#like the clear winner of the three factions

[medicinemane]

In other things that suck for me, I will once again lament how I can't play Dead Space despite thinking it's a master piece, not because it's too scary, but because having limited ammo paralyzes me with anxiety over wasting a single shot

Actually related, but I can't play Divinity: Origin Sin 2 despite adoring that game cause I get such bad decision paralysis

I played the hell out of the starter island during the beta or whatever it was, but once you get to the main world there's too many things that seem exclusive and just... the need to make the right choices and do things in the best order... it made it so I stopped playing

Neither of these is a critique of either game by the way, they're not wrong for these things, and in fact they're probably better for them... it's just a shame is all cause it means I have trouble playing them

Like they just happen to hit on stuff that makes my brain shut down and lose all focus

[f1-05-writer]

Part 2 - the meeting

Pairing - max verstappen x Christian Horner daughter!reader

- still not max just yet!! But getting close

After a surprisingly restful plane ride I disembark shooting a quick text to my dad letting him know I’ve landed. Once I’ve cleared the chaos of baggage claim I head down the escalator to  find a man holding a small sign with my name on it. After some stilted introductions, the luggage and myself are squared away in the car. As he zooms around the streets of Bahrain a dystopian city dwarfs the landscape, sheer glass buildings fracture the landscape, the blue of the ocean bounces off the glass creating a faint glimmer adding to the other worldness of Bahrain making it feel that more foreign and impressive. We get to the hotel with no issues and the driver collects my bags – not used to this life of luxury anymore I'm a tad shocked.

 

Following behind the diver to the check in desk I can’t help but marvel at the hotel foyer it is almost like a mirror to the Bahrain landscape we just passes; blue and white hues and golds accent the lobby towering glass windows that have an uninterrupted view of the circuit. A polite cough interrupts my gawking and I turn to face the receptionist with a sheepish smile “Sorry! I was just so fascinated” I offer. She smiles proudly and has a slight chuckle “ No problems at all Miss. How can I help you today?” I say “Booking for Dr Y/N Horner” whilst checking my phone for the time 3:30 perfect just enough time to freshen up before I meet Dr Trome. After a few moments of typing from the receptionist she finds the reservation “Perfect I have you right here, room 335” she says handing over the key card. Thanking her I turn to grab my luggage and head up the elevator to my room – once locating it which proved to be straightforward. I swipe my key and hear a chirpy beep turning the handle I greeted to the same gobsmacking view that the hotel lobby boasted. Not having a moment to really spare before my meeting with Dr Trome I quickly change into a pair of jeans and a blouse – formal but not over the top giving myself an appraising look in the mirror – the same cannot be said for my hair which has been through the ringer during the flight.  Frustrated I quickly throw up in a bun which can be playoff as intentionally messy and textured – when really, it’s just straight up dirty.

 

Walking briskly to the conference room I'm suddenly overwhelmed with nerves. Taking a deep breath, I ready myself outside the door then with as much confidence as I can muster, I knock. A deep voice with a twinge of a British accent answers “Come in,” stepping through the door I see 4 people already seated “ah Dr Horner, I'm Dr Trome so good to finally meet you in person” says that same man – Dr Trome. Having seen him through Zoom I already recognised the man and his dark hair with a few grey hairs weaving throughout, his dark brown eyes and small smile, however what I have not seen through zoom was his height standing at only 5’6 I'm really in no position to judge heigh but he is only factionally taller than myself. Smiling warmly and accepting his warm and calloused handshake with as much vigour as I can “ The pleasure is all mine thank you so much for this opportunity” I reply, “Well let’s get started shall we.” Dr Trome says and quickly runs through the introduction of the remaining  three people sat around the conference table. To my right is Mark Porter a tall, thin man whose olive skin contrasts against his green eyes and who is also Sergio's personal trainer, Bradley Scanes a board muscular figure who introduces himself as Max’s trainer and finally Dr Jaks Wright the other internship winner – his dark eyes appraise me as I see something like distain arise in them paired with his tall frame and cropped hair give him a strangely threatening dementor. Shaking off the sense of discomfort, I politely introduce myself to the group and refocus on Dr Trome.

 

After an hour of basics and protocols I'm starting to feel the flight and am losing the battle to keep my eyelids open. Whilst trying to stifle a yawn I catch Jaks’ eyes rather than returning my friendly smile he quickly looks away and I see his jaw tense. What a weird reaction but I just chalk it up to be a woman in a ‘mans’ space. Prick. However, I'm snapped out if my pondering by Dr Trome “Now the moment you two have been waiting for – the driver you are going to be assigned to! You will obviously be working closely with myself but also their trainers and the driver so it's vital that this partnership works,” he says staring at both Jaks and I, “so, Jaks you will be working with Mark and Sergio over the course of the year and Y/N that leaves you with Max and Bradley.” Overjoyed to be Max’s doctor I smile widely and thank Dr Trome and turn to Bradley who is seated to my left “ I cannot wait to start working with you! I'm sure we will be a fantastic duo!” he smiles at my comments and slings a muscular arm over my shoulder “I'm sure we will be Doc!”

 

“Alright’” says Dr Trome “we will start the prequalifying medical tests tomorrow and you will monitor your driver whilst they perform their PT sessions assessing their breathing, heart rate …” Dr Trome drones on but I'm bursting with excitement about being able to work with Max Verstappen, a world champion and, an athlete at the peak of their game. I also know dad will be ecstatic I'm assigned to Max – it is no secret that Max is his favourite. As the meeting end Jaks and Mark leave presumably to talk elsewhere, leaving just Bradley and I in the room. I shift in my seat to fully face Bradley and get straight to business “So, what time do you and Max train?” I enquire keen to get started “We will be up in the gym at around 5:30” he replies casually, like that is not the crack of dawn, I don’t even think the sun will be up! Unable to hide my shocked face Bradley chuckles and continues “I’ll see you then Dr –.” Unable to stop myself I cut him off “Sorry but please just call me Y/N – I don’t really want people to know I'm Christian's daughter,” he shoots me a confused look “ people make too many assumptions about how I got here, it's just easier being Y/N.” His confusion turns sympathetic “ Ahh I gotcha but they’d be fools to think that Dr Trome is a stickler for the rules and would never allow interference” I give him a small smile at that but deep down I know that the facts never really matter. Where people think there is drama and scandal, they will believe anything.

 

After about 30 minutes of talks regarding Max and any previous injuries or complaints I feel a vibration and reach over to check my phone.

Dad- hey Y/N/N got time to come and see your dear ol’Dad I'm downstairs in the bar.

Smiling over I shoot back a quick reply and tell him I’ll be down soon. I start packing up all my notes and files  “Thank you so much Bradley this chat has been so helpful, thanks for taking the time!” He smiles and rises heading for the door “No problem, Y/N, it's good to see how dedicated you are. I'll go and inform Max of the morning schedule and your arrival. See you bright an early tomorrow” he says with a wink and disappears down the hall.

[irrealisms]

tidal forces liner notes

fic here if you haven't read it!

i mention this in the end notes and it's included in the web weave but a lot of this au is drawing off thoughts crystallized by part 2 of Barrier Blocks; a theme of heaven will be mine is that mecha fights aren't real war, they're play. they're communication! they can be an argument or they can be full of intimacy and joy! the point is sometimes winning but often--when it's at its best--it's about having fun. it can hurt people for real, but that's not what it's for. and this puts it in an interestingly similar place to pvp on lifesteal, to me! (this is why zam is cradle's graces--canon zam is the most attached to pvp and lifesteal as a place to fight-for-fun, and so hwbm zam is the most attached to the ship-selves and space as a place to fight-for-fun. contrast to subz's pacifism and general disinterest in the server, and to vitalasy's exploits that render pvp pointless.)

another thing i'm doing with this au: i really like putting eclipse fed in a setting where they are...genuinely at odds, they've got different worldviews, it's not like we know the devil where there's a true ending where they can all reject society and have an ending that's perfect for all of them, they're on different sides. but hwbm envisions a world where they can fight about it and then come out the other side with an ending where--it's not what 2 of them wanted. but they can still all be happy together, there. hwbm makes me believe in eclipse fed happy ending and this is rare for me & also makes me unbelievably soft

also the thing of. gravity. control over the narrative (as opposed to fighting in physical space as opposed to cheating, as three distinct things that characters do) as physical force. eclipse federation to me

speaking of narrative control. the faction that "wins" a scene is, consistently, the one who loses the physical fight. the first scene is sort of arguable since vitalasy runs away ig but-- the outcome of the fight is what vitalasy wanted, but zam is the one who wins the scene! and then in the second two chapters there are physical fights with clear winners, and whoever won the physical fight loses the narrative one. this too is eclipse federation

all of them are trans women bc the original game is very much about transness & transfeminity but it's also doing thematic stuff for all three of them. chapter 2 in particular is inspired heavily by (a) their conversation in this vod about zam leaving eclipse (b) the conversation quoted in the chapter summary between pluto and luna-terra in heaven will be mine, about how pluto identifying as a trans woman is bc she saw luna-terra and was inspired by her

i didn't explicitly get into vitalasy's gender as much but ... her issues around being seen as both [dangerous monster] and [scapegoat], and ending up sort of embracing alien-ness but in a way where she also kind of hates it, are very much tied into her transfemininity, here, as are her issues around earth and going back to earth

this is a small note but i'm really proud of the line in chapter 1, "All the implants they fit inside her couldn't make her matter more." because of the double meaning of the word "matter". matter as in physical substance--to have more of it is to have more gravity--and matter as in importance, which, in hwbm, to have more of that is also to have more gravity

subz's characterization is deliberately ... more comfortable with sincerity than canon? this is a subz who has undergone enough character growth to be openly trans and not just Wearing A Dress As A Funny Bit, yk. this is a big part of chapter two lol, subz talking about how when she was younger she was Kind Of Shitty! i debated making Subz more ironic and shitty and such in this fic also to be more accurate to canon but ultimately i think it works bc of how i explicitly establish the ways in which Subz has grown past that

chapter names! prominence eruption is a solar phenomenon but i chose it mostly just bc prominence once again has a double meaning of importance. retroreflection is the ability of a surface to reflect light back; it's lunar-themed but it's also a metaphor here for zam reflecting subz. for the last chapter i wanted something vitalasy-themed but i didn't have anything solid so i went with 'impact crater' since (a) it's pretty generic to a lot of celestial bodies (b) the Ogygia Chasma is an impact crater (c) it does work, since so much of the fic is abt the lasting aftermath of vitalasy's suicide attempt

more names, this time ship-selves: all the canon ship-selves are named after specific features of the planet their pilot is named after (for example, Pluto (character) pilots the Krun Macula, which is a dark region on Pluto (planet)); in this au, they're not named after planets, but they do have convenient space theming (subz moon zam sun vitalasy stars) in canon that i got to kind of steal from! the Montes Harbinger is a cluster of lunar mountains, so named (and so chosen) bc it's a harbinger of the dawn; the corona is the outermost layer of the sun, but it also means "crown", which is fitting for zam. vitalasy's is trickier bc "stars" is not actually a coherent....object in astronomy that has physical features, especially not ones distinct from the sun? i considered doing a constellation but one of my betas was looking at various things in the solar system to get ship-self names from and encountered the Ogygia Chasma and went "this would make vitalasy so sad" and . well. who am i to not pick names that will make vitalasy sad. (the Ogygia Chasma, on Saturn's moon Tethys, is named after the island Ogygia in the Odyssey, where Calypso trapped Odysseus for seven years, preventing him from returning home bc she wanted to marry him. i think Vitalasy would have some feelings about this and her relationships!)

in heaven will be mine, each of the three pilots (Saturn, Pluto, and Luna-Terra) mostly interact with each other, but they also each have someone in their faction who they communicate with privately and work together with to advance their faction's goals, although the specifics of the relationship vary based on the pilot. i didn't really get to show this off in the fic beyond two one-off mentions but the person filling this role for Zam is Planet and the person filling this role for Vitalasy is Spoke. i have some amount of vision for the relationships there that just didn't get onscreened at all. oh well! part of this is because i have no clue who fills this role for Subz--so much of subz's character in s4 is tied up in his isolation that it's hard to give him a confidant and teammate outside of eclipse. (zam was the easiest--if i didn't give him planet i could've given him pangi or mapicc.) realistically if i were to choose someone it'd probably be reddoons but one of my beta readers joked that the person filling this role for subz is princess of memorial foundation & renowned twitter poster Halimede and i keep imagining this and giggling to myself

i'm pretty sure zam betraying both Memorial Foundation and Celestial Mechanics doesn't actually work with the canon timeline of the game but shhhhhhh it's an au don't worry about it

i listened to Communist Love Song a lot while writing this. something abt refusing to reject the possibility of a better future even when everyone says it's impossible. politically or romantically? yes.

fun fact: i had written a chunk of the first chapter for a while and it was just kind of hanging out in my google docs as hwbm au inspiration and then zam said "I only want to be represented as a girl. Kissing other girls." onstream and i wrote the entire rest of the fic in a day. and then spent over a week editing it lol

[solarsonicsoda]

The Road to... Wrestlemania XL

Part 1: Roman Reigns & The Rock vs. Cody Rhodes & Seth Rollins, Seth Rollins vs. Drew McIntyre, and Roman Reigns vs. Cody Rhodes

On 30th August 2020, nearly over 3 and a half years ago, Roman Reigns won the WWE Universal Championship in his return match. On 7th April 2024, he will enter the main event of Wrestlemania XL Sunday still champion, as well as the WWE Champion. This is the Tribal Chief.

Roman Reigns "The Tribal Chief", leader of The Bloodline, and member of the legendary Anoa'i family. Standing at 6'3'', weighing 265lbs, from Pensacola, Florida, USA, he is the reigning Universal Champion for 1300+ consecutive days, and reigning WWE Champion for 720+ days. Finishers: Spear, Guillotine Hold

Reigns has been the top of the WWE ever since. This brutal bad guy has used his power and familial ties to reign supreme across the whole roster. He's defeated pretty much every major name in the company, he's turned even on his close family in Jey Uso, done it multiple times too, and he's only taken one pinfall loss in this whole reign. There is no stopping Roman Reigns.

Cody Rhodes hopes that isn't true though.

Cody Rhodes "The American Nightmare", son of the legendary Dusty Rhodes, seeking to finally claim the WWE Title for his family since returning to the company. Standing at 6'2'', weighing 220lbs, from Marietta, Georgia, USA, he is the winner of the Royal Rumble 2024, the first man to win consecutive Rumble matches since 1998. Finisher: Cross Rhodes

Cody Rhodes made his WWE debut in 2007, aged just 22. He was with the company for 9 years, and while he achieved success, this waned and he grew frustrated. He left, and over the next 6 years he would play a part in changing the wrestling industry. He would take the independent scene by storm, be a major player in other companies like New Japan Pro Wrestling and Impact Wrestling, and he would even form WWE's current biggest rival company, All Elite Wrestling.

He was a key part of AEW's early success, and many there cite him as a big help to them in the company. He was an Executive Vice President and one of the biggest stars they had, but in 2022, Rhodes decided he had unfinished business in the WWE. He would leave AEW at the expiry of his contract, and at Wrestlemania 38 in Arlington, Texas, USA, he would return to the WWE. His opponent that night? Seth "Freakin'" Rollins

Seth Rollins "The Visionary", former indie standout who's now one of the major stars on the WWE roster Standing at 6'1'', weighing 225lbs, from Davenport, Iowa, USA, he is a multi-time world champion and as of now, World Heavyweight Champion for 300+ days Finisher: Blackout Stomp

These two men would feud for the early months of Rhodes' WWE return, with the American Nightmare coming out on top in every match, but Rhodes made it clear what his goal was. He aimed to "finish the story" and become WWE Champion, the title his legendary late father was never able to achieve in his career. Fast-forward to the Royal Rumble 2023. After missing much of 2022 with a torn pectoral, an injury he would wrestle through in a Hell in a Cell match, Rhodes had returned. Now, out of thirty men, he was the only one not to be thrown over the top rope with both feet hitting the floor. Cody Rhodes had won the 2023 Royal Rumble. With this victory, he'd challenge Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania 39. The Tribal Chief had by this point become both WWE and Universal Champion, which are the two top titles for men's wrestlers in the WWE. Having seemingly achieved all there was to achieve, many thought this would be the night Reigns finally loses these belts... But this isn't what happened.

Like so many others, even with all his momentum, Rhodes was undone by The Bloodline. This faction built around Reigns consisted then of his "wise man" Paul Heyman and three cousins of Reigns': Jey Uso, Jimmy Uso, & Solo Sikoa. It was the youngest of these three brothers, Solo, who would use his Samoan Spike finisher to tee Rhodes up for Reigns and his Spear. Roman Reigns had defeated Cody Rhodes.

This was a pretty big shock for fans, but as they hoped, Rhodes didn't let this keep him down. He would feud with high-ranking wrestler Brock Lesnar, winning that feud, as well as briefly holding the Tag Team Championships alongside Jey Uso, who had recently defected from The Bloodline. This year, he would again win the Royal Rumble, giving him a choice: face Reigns again for his Undisputed Title, or instead challenge old foe Rollins for his World Heavyweight Championship.

Reigns seemed to be Rhodes' choice before a man who likely needs no introduction reared his bald head.

The Rock Dwayne Johnson, Rocky Maivia, "The People's Champ", "The Great One", "The Most Electrifying Man in Sports Entertainment", and another member of the Anoa'i family. Standing at 6'5'', weighing 260lbs, from Miami, Florida, USA, he is one of the most decorated world champions in WWE history as well as, y'know, The Rock Finishers: Rock Bottom, People's Elbow

The Rock returned to the WWE, having just become a major shareholder in parent company TKO, and he had his sights set on his cousin, Roman Reigns. Cody seemed to let Rock step up to the plate to take on Reigns, perhaps indicating he would take on World Heavyweight Champion Seth Rollins. However, it was at the Wrestlemania XL Kickoff Event, as the two possible tribal chiefs stood face-to-face, that Cody stood back up and declared he wanted to face Roman Reigns at Wrestlemania XL.

Unfortunately, as he condemned the frequently absent and dishonourable champion, Rhodes drew the ire of The Rock when he suggested Reigns brought shame on the family. Unwittingly, Cody Rhodes had created a dangerous alliance as Reigns and Rock joined forces against the "Grandson of a Plumber". However, a surprising ally revealed himself in the form of Seth Rollins. He and Reigns were once close friends, reigning as Tag Team Champions as part of the impactful Shield team. Rollins is also the only title challenger of Reigns' he never truly defeated, losing by disqualification.

Over the coming weeks, many of Rock's grandiose stylings returned as this super Bloodline team were out for Rhodes & Rollins. The newest iteration of The Rock was here: The Final Boss. Rhodes would challenge Rock for a match on Night One, but The Bloodline would propose a counter offer: Wrestlemania XL, Night One. Rhodes & Rollins vs. Reigns & Rock. If Rhodes' team wins, then The Bloodline are barred from ringside on Night Two. If The Bloodline win, then it's Bloodline Rules, meaning anything goes. Rhodes & Rollins would accept. The stage was set... but there's another story that we haven't mentioned.

Drew McIntyre "The Scottish Warrior", a top level wrestler who's justifiably frustrated with everyone around him, and a contender for Hater of the Year. Standing at 6'5'', weighing 275 lbs, from Ayr, Ayrshire, Scotland, he's a multi-time WWE Champion but never got to hold the title with fans in attendance due to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Finisher: Claymore Kick

At Elimination Chamber 2024, McIntyre would outlast five other men to earn the number one contendership for the World Heavyweight Championship held by Seth Rollins. He has had issues with much of the roster for sometime, all stemming from... The Bloodline. At Clash at the Castle 2022, McIntyre, a hometown-ish hero, would fail to defeat Roman Reigns due to Bloodline interference. For this, he would never forgive any of these men. This included later defectees, Sami Zayn and Jey Uso. He would take umbrage with both men and with the likes of Rhodes & Rollins for forgiving them. McIntyre would also become a dedicated hater of the returning CM Punk, but the story of "DM Hunk" is one for another day.

Adding one more reasonable gripe to the salty Scotsman's list of complaints, Rollins seems to have largely overlooked his challenger for Night Two of Wrestlemania XL. With a man so angry on his tail, should Rollins really be tussling with The Bloodline?

Tensions have been escalating week-by-week, with The Bloodline looking to get one over on their fan-favourite foes every week. The Rock even unleashed a brutal attack on Cody Rhodes just two weeks out from the show, leaving him in a heap. With the star-studded tag team main event of Night One leading into two major championship matches on Night Two, Wrestlemania XL's biggest matches are set with a lot of moving parts between the three of them. What's gonna happen? There's only one way to find out...

For those of you interested in seeing this story unfold in preperation for the Showcase of the Immortals, WWE have put out a video including much of this build, as well as posting many of the segments in full on their YouTube. Find the compilation video here for the Bloodline story, and here for Drew vs. Seth.

[twistsandtwizzles]

Stars on Mars: Episode 8

I never could have predicted this nine weeks ago, but I have come to truly look forward to watching Stars on Mars every week. The premise remains ridiculous and the show has basically no stakes, but somehow I now find myself watching this show live - commercials and all - and while I’m not entirely sure if the show has actually gotten better or if it has just worn me down . . . we find ourselves here together at Episode 8.

Shatner runs us through the highlights from last week: Team Jock were the first team to successfully complete the mission, but Ronda elected to send herself home from Mars; Base Commander Andy put Cat in the bottom three; and Cat is DEFINITELY carrying a grudge. 

We open on Cat, who is still absolutely furious at Andy for putting her in the bottom three last week. The two of them run into each other in the kitchen and Andy explains again that he was not making a personal decision. Cat says she still doesn’t understand his reasoning because she thinks she and Paul are much stronger players than some of Andy’s other options. Andy sticks to his guns, says he believes that he made the right choice, but apologizes for making Cat feel badly. The confrontation ends with a hug but as Andy acknowledges: “There is still some lingering stuff.”

Lance has joined them in the kitchen and observes silently. You can see him taking in this discussion, sizing both of them and this tension up, and trying to measure how this is going to impact gameplay going forward.

Back in the bunkroom, Porsha is feeling good. “I woke up feeling like a winner,” she says. “I just decided that I am going to go for base commander.” She explains that her name has been thrown about a few times before but she hadn’t felt ready, but that she feels more than ready now.

Lance joins Cat in the gym, and you can tell that he’s decided that Cat would make an excellent addition to Team Jock. He also says that Cat reminds him of his mom, who is in Lance’s words, “A legend. So it’s like the highest compliment.” He and Cat chat about their families and bond.

It’s time to choose a new base commander, and both Ariel and Lance immediately nominate Cat. Ariel tells the camera that she nominated Cat in the hopes that if chosen, she would select Ariel as mission specialist. Cat is grinning, very pleased at this development.

“Any other nominations?” Andy asks.

“I would like to nominate myself,” Porsha says, and I have to admit that I’m not sure about Porsha’s strategy here. Cat has just gotten a nomination from two people - from two very different factions of the crew - and throwing herself in the mix now seems to be creating some tension where there doesn’t need to be. But she does it, and the group seems a little surprised.

“Mmm!” Adam says, looking at Porsha appraisingly. “Yeah, you’ve never been base commander before.”

Porsha lays out her case. “I’ve been mission specialist before, and we did really good that day. It was a lot of directions that need to be told, and even though it’s starting to get difficult, I feel like I could step into the job.”

Porsha tells the camera that she’s feeling extremely confident about the vote - that they have asked her to do the job before. She goes on to say that she’s especially sure that Marshawn is going to have her back.

Cut to Andy asking Marshawn if he has any thoughts re: the base commander vote. “Yeah,” he says, and then doesn’t elaborate.

In his confessional, Marshawn says, “I don’t agree with a lot of people that they say should be base commander. So when it comes to all that, just mind your own business, you know what I mean?”

The group submits their votes, noting that nominees don’t get to vote, which I think may be a new rule? Marshawn wanders away without submitting a vote, and Porsha yells for him to come back. She tells the group, “I need that vote.”

Marshawn comes back. “My vote is Lance.”

I’m just going to say what has been becoming clear for several weeks now: Marshawn appears to have a major issue with women in positions of leadership. It’s disappointing. 

Porsha rolls her eyes, clearly disappointed.

Andy tallies the votes. One vote Paul (“Paul?!” Porsha exclaims, as Paul grins from the corner, hood up and sunglasses on), one vote Lance, two votes Porsha, and three votes Cat. 

“That’s not fair and y’all are stupid,” is Porsha’s response to hearing the vote totals.

The group applauds for Cat and Tinashe says that she thinks Cat will make a good base commander. She also says that Cat has “mom energy” and I’m not so sure that Cat would be thrilled to know that everyone has decided that she’s the Hab Mom.

Cat immediately says that she’s picking Lance as her mission specialist. Ariel tells her that she won’t choose that position until tomorrow. “Cause you also choose based on what the mission is,” Ariel says. I have to respect Ariel for refusing to give up on her goal of being mission specialist this week until she has to.

Cat thinks about that for a second and then says, “Okay, then mission specialist will be between Cat and Ariel.” Hoo boy.

Porsha is extremely disappointed and calls everyone out in the kitchen. “I actually said I wanted to prove myself, and y’all didn’t give a damn about that,” she says. “This is serious. I don’t care about any of you!” She’s half kidding but half not.

Adam laughs. “You don't care about your voters? You seemed pretty concerned about your votes in there!” He gestures to the command center. 

“Listen, when you’re campaigning, you care about your voters,” Porsha says, now laughing for real. “When you’re not, you don’t. That’s how it works. Politics!” Then she says she’s going to take off her “winner shirt” (a black sports bra that does indeed make her boobs look incredible) and put on her “loser shirt.” She returns in a gray hoodie, hood pulled up over her head.

“This is what Hillary Clinton did when she lost the election,” Adam says. “She said ‘fuck those voters’ and went right back to Chappaqua.”

“You remember Winnie the Pooh?” Porsha asks. “I’m the little donkey.”

Everyone: “Eeyore?”

Porsha nods and lowers her head, pretending to mope around. From the couches, Marshawn hollars for Porsha. She blows him off. “What do you want from me?!”

Cat moves into the base commander suite, saying she feels pretty proud of the fact that she went from bottom three to base commander in a day. She also says she’s not here for drama and that nothing she’s going to do is personal. THAT’S WHAT THEY ALL SAY!

Adam and Porsha are dissecting the vote - Porsha notes that Andy clearly voted for Cat to try to get on her good side, but that she’s pretty positive that isn’t going to make a difference. “You make someone that competitive cry? It’s over.”

“Cat is a firecracker,” Adam tells us. “She seems really competitive. But, you know, I did vote for Porsha. So am I unsafe? Oh, yeah. I am. Yes.”

Back from commercials, Paul is teaching Lance how to play dominoes, and explaining why he got fired from his commentary job on ESPN: he livestreamed a video of him drinking and playing poker with strippers. Lance appears slightly scandalized and amused by this: “Bitch, how old are you?”

Porsha has Marshawn cornered in the kitchen. “Why’d you choose Lance today? I know you don’t want me to be base commander first. You want me to wait til it gets down to the tough part and then you want to make me responsible as base commander.”

(Personally I think it’s very generous of Porsha to believe that Marshawn is playing a strategy game here, rather than not just wanting a woman telling him what to do.)

“That wasn’t the issue -” Marshawn begins but she cuts him off.

“It was my time! I’ve never -”

“No, it’s not your time yet,” he says. 

“Why?” she demands. “I want to win. You want me to go. If you're trying to get rid of me, then just tell me, cause I want to know what’s going on.”

Marshawn laughs in her face.

“I know what you’re doing!” Porsha says. “You’re in it. You’re just acting like you’re not, cause you think you’re cool.”

In his confessional, Marshawn has this to say: “I don’t know about strategy, but if a woman’s second toe is longer than her first toe, she got an attitude problem. And Porsha . . . second toe’s longer than her first.”

Sure. Seems like a cool, legit way to approach your relationship with women!

It’s time to assign base duties. The bio dome plants need some love, and the trash needs to be taken out: “Two stars must go through the trash and determine what can be reused and what they must bury for future Mars settlers to recycle,” Cat reads from her command sheet. “So, I have to pick two people to go outside and do trash.”

Lance volunteers to go outside. Cat sends Andy to go with him.

“Hmm, who’s going to go outside with Lance and pick through trash?” Andy asks. “Oh, yeah. Me. The guy who put her in the bottom three. I do think that Cat had it out for me a little bit.”

Lance and Andy pick through the trash. Lance uses the opportunity to try and win Andy over to his side as well. “I would have hated to be base commander yesterday,” he tells Andy sympathetically. “It was a hard one.”

Andy says again that he wasn’t trying to pick on Cat and Paul, but that they were the team that did their mission least successfully. (Again, I do have to commend Adam for so successfully getting Andy to change his mind on who was in the bottom three that it does not even seem to occur to Andy that it was not his original plan.)

“I’m just here to do things as they are supposed to be done,” Andy says. “And if they send me home for that, then oh well. And this whole notion of alliances and all that . . . I’m too old for that.”

In the bio dome the rest of the group is tending to the plants and making small talk. “What’s the first thing you’re gonna do when you get back to earth?” Cat asks.

“Get a colonic,” Adam replies instantly. Cat cracks up.

Apparently the base duty instructions also say that they need to sing to the plants. Cat immediately starts singing the Star Spangled Banner. The group tentatively joins in until Porsha says, “everybody, hush your nasty voices” and gives the floor to Tinashe, who - being a recording artist - has a lovely voice. 

“What a beautiful way to colonize a planet,” Adam says, as the song finishes.

Cat and Lance are back in the gym and she’s explaining that she’s either going to choose him or Ariel for mission specialist. He is underwhelmed by this. “I’ll do whatever,” he says. “But we have folks who have really tried to not go outside. And maybe it’s time for those folks who . . .”

“Haven’t done it,” Cat finishes. “I agree with that.”

Lance tells the camera, “At the beginning, I didn’t want to be mission specialist just ‘cause I like to go outside. Now having said that, inside means safe. Inside means immunity. And coming up on two weeks in here . . . this thing is now a game. And I feel like I’m playing the game right.”

The lights start flickering and then the emergency sirens go off. Time for this week’s mission! Shatner explains that there has been a solar flare that has interfered with the hab’s electronics, and that they need to repair the solar panels before another flare hits. “This mission will test your trust,” he tells them, before finishing with, “I want you to know that I love you.”

“That’s the first time he’s said he loved us!” Porsha exclaims with a laugh.

Unsurprisingly, Cat chooses Lance to be mission specialist. Ariel is not thrilled. Everyone suits up and heads outside. The mission seems pretty simple on the surface: unplug the old cables that are connecting the solar panels to the transformer, and replace them with new ones.

Cat begins reading from her command sheet, and Andy interrupts to ask, “What are the instructions?”

“Clear the line, please,” Cat says testily. 

The group easily unplugs the old cables, and gets the new cables out of the supply shed. The new cables are in a jumble and Paul yells at everyone that they are tangled. “So untangle them,” Tinashe says, already walking away toward a solar panel with hers.

Cat begins reading instructions and Andy interrupts again - I am assuming it is hard to hear out there, but you can tell that this is not endearing him to Cat. “Clear the line, please,” she says again. Cat and Lance tell everyone that they need to plug all the cables in at the exact same time. They do so, with seventeen minutes remaining.

Of course, it’s not that easy. Alarm sirens blare and the AI tells them that another solar flare has hit, and as a precaution everyone outside has had their “protective blackout shields activated.” In other words: now none of the celebs outside can see a thing.

So if I was base commander: I would have everyone out at the solar panels use their cable as a guide back to the transformer, and then once they all got to the transformer, direct them back to the hab. This is not what Lance and Cat do. Instead, they direct the crew, one by one, to the center point between the solar panels and the transformer, get in a single file line, hold onto each other’s shoulders, and walk slowly back to the hab.

This works, albeit slowly. Adam tells us that he was feeling annoyed because there had to have been an easier way to get them all safely back to the hab. Time is ticking by quickly. As Lance is giving Marshawn instructions, Cat says something, and Lance HOLDS UP ONE FINGER TO SHUSH HER. This guy.

Eventually the whole group is linked up and they start slowly staggering, single file and holding hands, back to the hab. “We couldn’t see when we were out there,” Adam says. “And the feedback we were getting felt like they couldn’t see, either, even though they could see.”

The group makes it to the rovers, Marshawn in the front of the group. “You’re almost at the rovers,” Lance tells them. “Marshawn, move to your left.”

“How much more left?” Marshawn asks. 

“A little more,” Lance says. “Stay calm, everyone, we are at one minute to go. Stay on the left side of the rover, Marshawn.”

The group navigates around the first rover and Lance says, “Just go straight ahead. Trust it. There is nothing in front of you.”

Marshawn promptly walks directly into the second rover. “Lance had one job to do that he didn’t do,” Marshawn says in his talking head. “And it was to not lead me into the damn rovers.”

With less than thirty seconds left, they reach the door. One by one, they make it inside - with ten seconds left. “Get me the *bleep* out of this *bleeping* helmet,” Adam says, as Cat and Lance celebrate in the command center.

Lance and Cat realize that picking a bottom three for this mission is going to be very difficult, because everyone did their jobs as they were supposed to. Andy says he’s glad Cat is now experiencing how difficult it is to pick three people to feel bad. 

Cat and Lance strategize. Lance says he’d prefer not to put Ariel in the bottom three “since the game has gotten so political” (aka it would look like he’s being petty), that Tinashe is always so good and calm, and that Marshawn was also a standout. Cat says that she felt like Andy got frustrated and wasn’t listening to her. 

They come to a decision and start calling people in: Tinashe, followed by Marshawn (“bye Porsha” he says as he heads inside; “That’s so rude!” Porsha yells at his back), Ariel (who exchanges an extremely awkward fist bump with Lance), and then Porsha.

That leaves Paul, Andy, and Adam as our bottom three.

“I’m actually feeling really annoyed,” Adam says in his confessional. “I really do believe that when you’re trying to figure out, like, ‘I don’t know who to put in the bottom three,’ you’re just like, ‘well, just put Adam in there,’ and I really hate that!”

The three men line up to make their case as to why they should stay. Adam is first, and he lets his annoyance seep out a bit: “I was doing exactly what I was told to do, and I moved all the cables to the right numbers, and everybody was all ready to go . . . So where do you think I fell flat?”

Cat sighs. “I think it was just the fact that we had two point people who were communicating at all times, and helping everyone else . . . it’s just who were the MVPs and who were the great crew members, and that’s where we’re at.”

“Mm-hm,” Adam replies. I feel like he’s trying really hard not to roll his eyes out of frustration.

Andy is next. He says that he thinks he did his job as well as everyone else did, and that he understands the tough position Cat was in. In his talking head, he says that he had hoped that the bad blood was gone between he and Cat, but it clearly was not. “I’m a little worried,” he said. Cat tells the group that if anyone out there had difficulties today, it was Andy.

Paul says that he was able to be calm and efficient. Tinashe tells the camera that she doesn’t think Paul is the most mission critical. “I gotta keep it 100. I just haven’t seen anything that to me makes him more mission critical than anyone else.”

The group comes to a consensus, and calls Adam back into the hab. He gives some fist bumps and disappears down the hall.

Paul is called in next, which means Andy is going home. “In no way, shape, or form is this personal,” Cat says. “For me it’s all about business and strategy.”

To the rest of the group in the hab, though, the message is clear: Cat will hold a grudge.

Andy says in his exit interview that he probably made a mistake: “If I had voted for Porsha and she was base commander, I very well might still be a part of this.”

Later that night, Marshawn is still mad that Lance directed him to walk right into a rover. “He gotta go,” he says.

“Tomorrow you might have a chance to vote me off,” Lance tells him.

Porsha walks into the kitchen, wig off and sporting her natural hair, which is short and slicked back against her head. “Boo!” she says, grinning.

“Whoa,” Lance says. “How’d that work?”

Marshawn cracks up at Lance’s confusion. “How’d that work?” he echoes mockingly.

“This is my natural hair,” Porsha tells Lance. “You like it?”

Lance is dumbfounded. “I like it a lot, but I’m freaked out,” Lance says. “I would have bet my life that was your hair.”

Porsha slides on a pair of aviator sunglasses. “I’m going to wear these tomorrow when I’m base commander,” she tells the group. She's a new, determined Porsha now.

“I’ve got this,” she tells the camera. “Watch me work.”

Next week: Lance tells Cat that he woke up that morning and decided he was going home, and there’s a living creature in the hab that sends everyone crawling through the vents. See you then!

[inventors-fair]

I’ll Stop The World And Meld With You - Chimeric Winners

Bring your hands together (and then separate them, repeating this process as many times as desired) for this week's winners: @hypexion​, @snugz​, and @spooky-bard​!

Abyssal Waltz (Aeon Chronicler + One With Nothing) - @hypexion​

In the fair workshop I believe you described this as "Draw, draw, draw-whoops", which, yeah. I will fully admit to being a bit of a sucker for Cards You Absolutely Do Not Want To Cast, No Thank You, and using One With Nothing as the metaphorical banana peel that sends this parade of card advantage into abrupt, slippery chaos brings me endless entertainment. I adore the flavor direction you took here as well, it feels absolutely natural to the card, even if I cannot envision the Aeon Chronicler or the monk guy on the Saviors of Kamigawa instant being particularly down to disco. If I had to critique anything, I might make it suspend four, if only because three (much more easily usable) cards for two mana seems like an appropriate rate given the impending and rather drastic Consequences. But yeah. Absolute home-run, I want to see someone cascade into this.

Volatile Fluxwurm (Panglacial Wurm + Averna, Chaos Bloom) - @snugz​

On the other hand, I would very much like to see people cascade right past this. As the fairly clear yet eclectic love-child of two cards that seem to take the comprehensive rules more as suggestions than anything, I'm honestly impressed that this does Just Kinda Work, even if it is maybe a bit handwavey? I dunno, it makes more sense to me than Averna does honestly, and it definitely avoids the bizarre rules-headaches that can arise in situations involving Panglacial Wurm. I appreciate that there is just enough of The Great Snake of Judge Calls in here to make that connection understandable. Even though mechanically it is definitely much more Averna, the fact that it's a Wurm and you cast it at a wonky time feels like just enough to make it make sense. Being a Wurm that cares about cascading doesn't even feel especially out of place, given the existence of Wurms of the Enlisted variety. Fantastic stuff.

Determined Muckrakers (Village Bell-Ringer + Larder Zombie) - @spooky-bard​

While this is definitely among the more straightforward card-fusions submitted this week, I adore how you've constructed this chimera by taking two cards from two completely different factions of two completely different Innistrads and blended them into a beast which fits on Neither Of Those, Actually, It's A Collection of Skeevy Reporters From New Cappena Now. While it doesn't necessarily mechanically fit on the single set we've visited there all that flawlessly I could absolutely see this informing an archetype on some kind of return trip, without any real acknowledgement of the card's gothic horror heritage, and that's just gorgeous card design I think. More than anything this feels like a real Magic card moreso than A Response To A Fair Prompt and I think that's a good sign that you've done well here.

That'll be the winners for this week! Gotta say y'all made picking these Absolutely Excruciating, a very solid majority of your designs this week spent some amount of time in contention, and it pains me to no end that I can only pick six. Regardless, join me again at some point later today for the runners-up!

- @starch255​

[tokiro07]

Cipher Academy ch.26 thoughts

[Does Among Us Count as a Puzzle Game?]

...I’m so god damn stupid...”the four of us”, “you don’t want Iroha to end up like Shutan”...it was staring me in the face and I missed it by a mile...I didn’t even have to get to Toshusai asking for Nutaba to be on the team, page one put the pieces into place instantly. Normally I like to go back and reread previous chapters when lines like that come up to try to get an idea of what they’re referring to, but since I’ve been so busy lately, I ended up skipping that step for the sake of finishing the review. I’ll try to be more diligent going forward!

I was right about the structure of the competition, though: Iroha will have a different five-person cell in each match, and the final match will be a three-way battle between the winners of the three matches of the first round. I’m sure Nisio will find some way to twist it around, but it’s going exactly as I expected so far

Also, WOW IS IT OBVIOUS NOW THAT I KNOW THE IROHA HERE IS FAKE! I didn’t notice on first read, but his hair-clips are on the wrong side! Very convenient for cluing eagle-eyed viewers in, but also really sloppy for an undercover agent. Hokiboshi establishes herself as someone you want to see get hers pretty much immediately, and Yugata delivers

I would like to know exactly what Yugata means by people like Hokiboshi being her specialty. I’ll conjecture that she means smug or overconfident people until we know a bit more

When Hokiboshi introduces the puzzle, Toshusai notes that there are 240 possible combinations, which is frankly the single funniest line that has been said in this entire series, at least to me. If you’re not familiar with the concept of Goroawase, 240 can be pronounced “ni-shi-oh,” which is also why Nisio Isin’s insignia is a clock set to 2:40. A cute detail, to say the least

The imagery of Yugata literally shattering Hokiboshi leaves such an impact, I feel like I could actually hear the glass breaking! I hope we continue to get fun visuals associated with the cast like that going forward, I think it’d be a fun artistic spin that could help get readers on board

It also feels a bit more believable that Hokiboshi was traumatized by Yugata solving the puzzle without touching it and only half of the pieces known to her, as that must seem like it’s completely impossible to anyone else. As it happens though, this puzzle lines up with the lipogram battle, as that established that Yugata is specifically skilled with omission-based word puzzles

Backing up a bit, Toshusai’s moment of humility in asking Iroha to let the Toshusai Faction face off against Class E speaks volumes of the gravity of the situation. Of course, it’s well within her established character to do that sort of thing for a friend, as I’ve been referring to her as a Friendship character for the past...ten chapters now? Perhaps we’ll get to see how she became a Friendship character in her backstory

This wasn’t a super dense chapter, so I don’t think I have much else to say here, but I won’t complain about a fast chapter if it’s this exciting! We got to see Class E’s underhanded methods (replacing Iroha, sending in agents to slow him down), we got a clear breakdown of Class A’s factions (very interesting that Iroha thinks Anonymity gets along with Mamushihishimeki, can’t wait to see why), and a hard-hitting moment from Yugata! Short, sweet, easy to understand, and character-rich. Those fools who can’t handle Cipher Academy for being “too wordy” don’t know what they’re missing!

I hope that we’re going to get more insight into Yugata going forward, but the point of this chapter wasn’t for that, it was to make her look cool as hell, and it accomplished that goal with flying colors. I figure Nisio is holding off on delving into her character for later, since she seems likely to be the best Cipher Soldier in Class A holding herself back for Toshusai’s sake, so hopefully CA gets to go long enough for us to get the payoff for her. I anticipate that we’re going to get some real characterization for the rest of the group, though, especially if Kubinashi is explicitly tied to Omomuro and Nutaba’s stories

Still hoping that this arc lights a flame in the fandom, and this chapter really gives me hope! It feels like a more traditional battle manga with Nisio’s characteristically snappy flow, which I think is what would show off the series’ strengths while appealing to a more general audience. Here’s hoping we see some notable improvement sales soon, cus I’d hate to see this series get snuffed out when it’s only getting better and better for me

See y’all next week!

[bunkershotgolf]

Monday After the Masters

By ED TRAVIS

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times…” Charles Dickens wrote those words over a century and a half ago for the opening of “A Tale of Two Cities” and some thought these words could be equally applied to this year’s invitational started by Bob Jones.

The normal staid if not stuffy world of golf came to the first major of 2023 with a rift–no, make that a chasm–between the PGA Tour and the upstart Saudi Arabian-funded LIV Golf series. Augusta National declined to invite LIV CEO Greg Norman for the week saying it would be a distraction. The potential of an all but armed confrontation between those who bolted for LIV’s million and those who stayed loyal to the PGA Tour didn’t happen. By all reports the past champions dinner was pleasant without even so much as an unkind word between the two factions which carried over to practice rounds and play the balance of the week.

As if that weren’t enough off course drama Augusta chairman Fred Ridley indicated the Masters would side with the USGA and R&A in the controversy around the proposed “roll back” of ball performance. This in the face of surveys indicating average golfers are overwhelmingly against any change at even the elite level nor in favor of bifurcating the Rules of Golf.

The PGA Tour’s battle with LIV Golf presumably won’t be settled with golf clubs but in a court room, which is unfortunate because that will do nothing to assuage the hard feelings between the two sides. Driven by the competition from LIV the PGA Tour has increased tournament payouts with more next year and it has become clear the players opting to leave the PGAT did it for the money not to “grow the game” as was said early on.

Almost as an afterthought the pretournament chatter got around to who would win the most popular of the four majors. As is usual speculation abounded about topics such as Tiger Woods’ injured leg, Rory McIlroy’s chance for the career grand slam, not to mention could Scottie Scheffler take the title back-to-back. Commentators also spent what seemed like endless time talking about the 35-yards added to the par-5 13th which during play proved to be a minor factor. For the week the water-fronted par-5 moved from the easiest hole on the course to the fourth easiest.

Woods obviously was uncomfortable and limping noticeably however the 47-year-old made the cut on the number then withdrew without finishing the third round on Sunday morning and McIlroy did not win his career grand slam; he missed the cut. The biggest factor affecting the scoring was the weather. Play was called Friday after strong winds toppled three trees near the 17th tee box and Saturday the players contended with temperatures in the 40s and 50s and more rain. Though the second round was completed Saturday morning the third round had to be finished Sunday morning. The final day skies cleared and the thermometer at least advanced above 60 though conditions were wet and sloppy.

Jon Rahm’s elegant victory after shooting a fourth round 3-under par 69 bested LIV player Brooks Koepka the leader by two after 54 holes. Phil Mickelson, another LIVer and obviously slimmer, scorched Augusta National in the final eighteen with the best round of the day, a 65 to tie Koepka in second four strokes behind Rahm.

For the record of the 18 LIV players invited to play in the 2023 Master 12 made the 36-hole cut as did the nostalgic favorite and 1992 winner 63-year-old Fred Couples. Favorites Jordan Spieth and defending champion Scottie Scheffler never really contended finishing five and eight strokes respectively behind Rahm.

Golf fans are already anticipating the 2024 Masters.

[girlb0yfriend]

OKAY . once again mulling over in my head who i want my rook to romance..... i've narrowed it down to three options i think .

it's either emmrich, neve or taash. neve i think has the angle of like. she's been here since the beginning, which i really like. i've also been bringing her everywhere so it really does feel like she and nikolas have been tackling this together (she's also the one he brought closer to interrupt the ritual). i also am just enjoying her a lot. like just in general.

emmrich...... the whole shared faction thing is working for me..... there was an interaction in the lighthouse where nikolas walked in on harding and emmrich talking about necromancy, and emmrich asked his opinion on something, and afterwards, harding commented that he sounded more serious when he was talking about mourn watch stuff. and i really vibe with that angle of like... i don't know they have a lot to talk about! peak romance.

as for taash...... i don't know i just immediately really liked them. not sure if nik is the rook i'll have romance them, but like... as opposed to, like, harding or davrin who i want to romance at some point but am just seeing no chemistry with my rook, i can see the vision with taash. the one drawback with taash is that i'm having a tough time fighting with them in the party..... they keep like, standing in front of whoever i'm attacking and it's making it way harder to see the indications that i should be blocking.

i think if i had to rank based on how much i, personally, really want to see their romance in isolation, it'd be taash, neve, emmrich. but if i were to rank based on how well i feel they're clicking with nikolas, it'd go emmrich, neve, taash. so you see my dilemma here. no clear winner. if we average all of this, they are all perfectly tied. So . we shall wait and see how things go .

OKAY EDITING . did some light looking around and it looks like taash's personal quest is kind of . not handled great?? like some stuff with their mom....... so not Quite as interested in seeing how that plays out...... well as i said before. we shall see.

sorry i keep returning to clarify this. it just seems like there's some weird choices made during the quest where it's like. Why do i get to decide this . why do i have to excuse this . etc etc just . not the most comfortable choices to be making.

[darkveracity]

Sexiest TLT Ladies Survey Results

About 3 months ago I ran a survey asking the locked tomb fandom to rate the attractiveness of each member of our large and varied cast of lesbians, necromancers, and necromancer lesbians on a scale of 1 to 5. Now it’s time to publish the results! The credit for most of this writeup goes to @misanthropicacegirl who applied a little of her data science expertise to analyzing your answers.

Preliminaries

The survey ran for 3 months and received 357 responses. The overwhelming majority of those were in the first two weeks but a slow trickle continued to come in over the remaining time it was open.

Section 1: Averages

One way to rate our girls is to look at their average rating.

Average Ratings

Gideon    4.25 Camilla   4.22 Harrow    3.80 Pyrrha    3.68 Corona    3.31 Alecto    3.30 Dulcie    3.28 Pal       3.20 Wake      3.15 Abigail   3.06 Ianthe    2.99 Cytherea  2.65 Mercymorn 2.61 Marta     2.57 Judith    2.32 Aiglamene 2.17

Gideon and Camilla are the only ones with an average above 4. Clear stand out winners here. At the bottom of the pack are Marta, Judith, and Aiglamene.

But it’s not all about averages. What are our other summary statistics?

Median Ratings

Gideon    5.0 Pyrrha    4.0 Camilla   4.0 Harrow    4.0 Dulcie    3.5 Alecto    3.0 Wake      3.0 Abigail   3.0 Marta     3.0 Pal       3.0 Corona    3.0 Ianthe    3.0 Aiglamene 2.0 Mercymorn 2.0 Cytherea  2.0 Judith    2.0

Gideon and Harrow both benefit from the median! The absolute middle of the road voter ranked Gideon a 5/5.

Difference Between The Median And The Mean

Cytherea   -0.651026 Mercymorn  -0.609971 Judith     -0.322581 Corona     -0.310145 Alecto     -0.298817 Camilla    -0.219020 Pal        -0.197059 Aiglamene  -0.174041 Wake       -0.151335 Abigail    -0.061584 Ianthe      0.011561 Harrow      0.198847 Dulcie      0.216374 Pyrrha      0.317507 Marta       0.425220 Gideon      0.748555

The difference between the median and the mean tells us a bit about the range of feeling, and how much outliers are influencing the average. Most people have an average fairly close to their median. Gideon, Marta, and Pyrrha all move up in the median – they have a couple of detractors who dragged them down. Cytherea and Mercymorn both move down in the median, because their average was raised by a couple of pro-lyctor fans. Surprisingly, Ianthe, who I would have thought would be very affected here is our most centrist/stable. She’s a 3 and she’s staying there.

First Quartile Ratings

Camilla   4.0 Gideon    4.0 Pyrrha    3.0 Harrow    3.0 Alecto    2.0 Wake      2.0 Abigail   2.0 Dulcie    2.0 Marta     2.0 Pal       2.0 Corona    2.0 Ianthe    2.0 Aiglamene 1.0 Mercymorn 1.0 Cytherea  1.0 Judith    1.0

What about on the low end? Whose popularity is most stable? Answer: Camilla and Gideon again. Even down to the 1st quartile, they were still getting a 4. (E.g., at least 75% of people gave them a 4 or higher.)

Standard Deviations

Camilla   0.978607 Gideon    1.017420 Judith    1.120026 Harrow    1.167082 Marta     1.182399 Pyrrha    1.216243 Corona    1.238687 Aiglamene 1.243601 Dulcie    1.274022 Pal       1.356506 Abigail   1.363070 Mercymorn 1.375335 Alecto    1.389682 Wake      1.426035 Cytherea  1.486678 Ianthe    1.491963

Looking at the standard deviation, Camilla has the lowest score too! Closely followed by Gideon, and surprisingly, Judith. No surprise that the bottom of the list features Ianthe, followed by Cytherea, Wake, Alecto, and Mercymorn – all fairly polarizing girls with a wide spread of potential takes.

Section 2: Ratings by Character

This is one more way of thinking about the distribution of answers each character got. I would have expected Ianthe to be mainly 1’s and 5’s, but she’s actually fairly neutral all the way through – nobody really has much of a bimodal distribution. Ianthe does have equal numbers of 1’s and 5’s, however. In contrast, Alecto’s 5’s outnumber her 1’s at a 2:1 ratio, and Gideon has nearly 20x the 5’s as 1’s.

Section 3: Ratings Given Ratings

Are Ianthe girls really so different from everyone else? Maybe a little. The people who rated Ianthe highly were also higher on Dulcie, Cytherea, Mercymorn, Pyrrha, Wake, Harrow, and Alecto– pretty much every morally gray girl on the list. Judith, Marta, Camilla, and Gideon don’t see much of a difference – and Pal goes down!

Here’s one way we could look at this up close to see the change.

This is the same chart from a Gideon perspective! As you can see, Gideon’s rating doesn’t really change Harrow or Camilla very much – their ratings are pretty high across the board without a lot of change. Pal has a stronger connection: if you rate Gideon a 1, chances are you rated Pal pretty low too. The reverse is true with Cytherea: the people who rated Gideon a 1 rated Cytherea more highly.

Section 4: Correlations

This is a correlation matrix! Each cell in the table represents the strengths of the relationship between the row and column character, between -1 and +1. +1 represents a relationship that totally corresponds with each other, 0 represents no relationship at all, and -1 represents a relationship that goes the opposite way. Each character has a perfect relationship with themselves, so there’s a diagonal of “+1’s” going from top left to bottom right.

Section 4A: Top Positive Correlations

They go together, like rama lama lama ka dinga da dinga dong

Top Positive Correlations

Judith->Marta       0.63 Pyrrha->Wake        0.58 Dulcie->Cytherea    0.47 Wake->Alecto        0.44 Cytherea->Mercymorn 0.41 Alecto->Aiglamene   0.39 Dulcie->Abigail     0.34 Judith->Aiglamene   0.33 Ianthe->Cytherea    0.32 Cytherea->Wake      0.31 Abigail->Mercymorn  0.31 Marta->Aiglamene    0.31 Mercymorn->Wake     0.31 Wake->Aiglamene     0.31 Corona->Wake        0.31

Our second house girls go together! Yes, mostly people both voted them 1’s, 2’s, and 3’s, but people generally ranked them the same.

Our next strongest pair is Pyrrha and Wake. Most people put them both at 5, but people who were negative or lukewarm tended to be similar on both. Probably because they are terrifying warrior MILFs.

This Dulcie and Cytherea one is funny because we have 3 very different points happening. People who hated both, people who loved both, and a minor contingent of people who loved Dulcie but hated Cytherea. That last contingent is significant enough to show up, but not enough to throw off the correlation.

What do Gideon and Camilla look like here? There’s nowhere for us to draw a line–almost everyone put them both at a 5. True, some people rated one a 4 and the other a 5–but not enough for us to see a pattern from it.

Section 4B: Negative Correlation

Opposites…. repulse

Top Negative Correlations

Corona->Pal       -0.14 Ianthe->Pal       -0.13 Gideon->Mercymorn -0.12 Gideon->Cytherea  -0.08 Harrow->Pyrrha    -0.05 Pal->Cytherea     -0.05 Pal->Mercymorn    -0.03 Harrow->Marta     -0.02 Harrow->Wake      -0.02 Harrow->Pal       -0.02 Gideon->Ianthe    -0.02 Ianthe->Camilla   -0.01 Gideon->Abigail   -0.01 Camilla->Cytherea -0.00 Gideon->Dulcie    -0.00

Basically, this correlation exists because there are two different groups – the people liked Pal and put her at a 5 or 4, tended to rate Corona a 3, and the people who liked Corona (who put her at a 4) tended to rate Pal a 1 or 3.

Pal and Ianthe are also kind of opposites! In this case, there’s a VERY pro Pal contingent (3-5) that all rated Ianthe a 1, and a generally pro Ianthe faction (who rated her 4-5) that was pretty lukewarm on Pal.

Lastly, a totally different pattern: Gideon and Mercymorn. In general, everyone was very positive on Gideon and very negative on Mercymorn, hence our major dark spot at (5, 1). This correlation isn’t as strong, since most people loved Gideon regardless of how they felt about Mercymorn. But there were just enough contrarians who loved Mercymorn and disliked Gideon to give us a negative relationship.

Section 5: Clustering

What if we pretended to do some fancy machine learning, and tossed these into a clustering algorithm?

Two Clusters

Abigail & Aiglamene & Cytherea & Ianthe & Judith & Marta & Mercymorn

Alecto & Camilla & Corona & Dulcie & Gideon & Harrow & Pal & Pyrrha & Wake

If we tried just two clusters, we can see a split like this. I’d call this line the conventional heroines VS the meaner, more frightening and military women.

Three Clusters

Abigail & Alecto & Corona & Dulcie & Ianthe & Pyrrha & Wake

Camilla & Gideon & Harrow & Pal

Aiglamene & Cytherea & Judith & Marta & Mercymorn

We can see a pattern here too:

Supporting characters with some redeeming features and some problems

Main heroes

Mean older women

Four Clusters

Abigail & Cytherea & Ianthe & Mercymorn

Alecto & Corona & Dulcie & Pyrrha & Wake

Aiglamene & Judith & Marta

Camilla & Gideon & Harrow & Pal

Breaking this down into 4 gives us similar slices again.

Older and/or Dangerous women

Bitches horny for revenge, probably

Military women

The Camilla/Gideon/Harrow/Pal quadrilateral of friendship

Five Clusters

Cytherea & Ianthe & Mercymorn

Alecto & Corona & Pyrrha & Wake

Abigail & Dulcie & Pal

Aiglamene & Judith & Marta

Camilla & Gideon & Harrow

Last one! Rolling around 5 clusters we get:

Morally dismal lyctors

Women who’ll try killing the emperor in book 3

Friendly but dead nerds

Military women again

Our heroes

Bonus: Harrow or Gideon?

Can we bring back the simple times of the Twilight fandom? Can we be divided into team Harrow or team Gideon? We turn to the data to find out.

Gideon vs Harrow isn’t a very big divide either, as it turns out. The biggest effect it has is (drumroll)…that people who ranked Gideon higher than Harrow had high rankings for Gideon, and vice versa. Everyone else is fairly similar, and I wouldn’t put money on them being statistically significant.

Though there is a slight preference for Ianthe from the Harrow faction, and for Corona from the Gideon faction, which is definitely funny.

We can also observe some slight team Gideon preference for Judith, Marta, and Pyrrha.

[dragonrajafanfiction]

The Cage

Somewhere just outside the Mexico Border

It is a rusty metal warehouse in the desert in front of which is a vast gravel parking lot filled with trucks left running with the high beams on. Kingpins as well as landowners wearing button down shirts and jeans file past burly looking men in muscle shirts, flashing their credentials. A short man had his arm around the waist of a model as he flashed his. “She’s with me.” He said of the model who kissed him on his balding head.

There is no visible security. This area is an agreed neutral zone, a privileged spot where the turf wars and smuggling routes could be forgotten in favor of sport and fun, and yet was not a haven where these criminal masterminds would ever admit existed to their families. It was protected by both a silent agreement of non-violence, and the fact that it was every low level drug dealer’s dream to be here.

The Warehouse is a fighting arena that only opens once a year and sends out invitations to its exclusive clientele. Even these Kingpins saved up money to come and bet on the fighters here and there was no limit to their wagers. It was not unheard of for millions and even a billion to be lost in a single match. Land was negotiated here. Trade routes were negotiated here. The existence of entire gangs were negotiated here. War and peace between violent factions were negotiated here.

People in the small border towns had a feeling that the government and the police weren’t really what changed the situation on their street. But they could never guess that what did change things was the winner of a match in an arena in the middle of nowhere.

As for the fighters themselves, no one knew where they came from. They had names like Cobra, Diablo, Demonio, and La Muerte. Their identities were a mystery. But their appearances seemed to suggest that they came from all over the world. Those who had the privilege of coming here, would whisper about these fights, saying that the fighters seemed like animals, something beyond human, or like monsters. They would compare them to famous action heroes like ‘The Hulk’ or ‘Superman.’ While it was true that regular MMA fighters could do amazing things, they were limited by their humanity.

These fighters… they didn’t stop fighting, even if they were gasping out their last breath.

Francisco Pererra had somehow stumbled on one of those fighters. He was just appointed as head of a cartel in Aguascalientes and had come upon a small fortune in the form of a free and open water route up through Corpus Christi. It wasn’t just the route, but also his method, using a combination of decoy boats and submarines to constantly distract the meager Coast Guard and keep them away from the actual cargo -- fentanyl and cocaine. He’d gotten rich very quickly, but before he spent on anything else, he wanted to spend on this gambling ring. This was his debut on the world stage.

When he was approached by a young man in his private residence, introducing himself as a fighter, he thought it was too good to be true. The owners of those who fought were the upper of the upper class. He was doing well as a startup Surely, this man wanted something.

“I just need entry into the Arena. The rest does not concern you and it's best you not get involved any further.” The young man opened three large briefcases. “This should be more than enough to cover the entry fee, plus compensation for your cooperation.” The young man was stiff but polite and spoke fluent Spanish with an American accent.

“Is this a bust? I won’t be responsible for it…” He shook his head. “I won’t live very long if I am responsible for something like that.”

“I have nothing to do with any government or law enforcement.”

Francisco Pererra did not believe him. He smiled and said, “Oh of course and of course.”

As the young man was leaving, Francisco pointed a pistol at the back of his head. Before he could pull the trigger however, the gun glowed red hot and exploded in his hand, taking off two of his fingers. When the young man looked back at him, his eyes were glowing gold. 

He calmly helped Francisco collect his severed fingers and put them in ice and drove him to the nearest hospital for reattachment surgery. When the nurses asked what happened, Franciso just said he had an accident with a firework.

That young man was no law enforcer. He was a true Demon Fighter.

Now Francisco Perrera came in, not from the front, but from the back. Wheeled horse trailers backed into a garage door and ramps were brought to them as they opened. Wheeled cages meant to house zoo animals rolled down the ramps and attached to a four-wheeler. Each cage was covered with a double layer of black fabric. Francisco’s champion was in one of those cages, but once they were in the arena, there could be no further contact between the sponsor and the fighter.

Francisco presented his entry fee in the suitcases on a cheap white plastic fold out table. Large men with assault rifles stepped forward and took the suitcases while Francisco waited. They were counting the money. He cleared his throat of dust and stood there, watching as one especially huge cage was rolled off the trailer. It was so heavy that it bent the ramp.

“Perrera!” 

Francisco turned around, his heart rate jumping. 

“Your entry fee is sufficient.”

Feeling validated, Francisco straightened his tie and tipped his cowboy hat and made his way to the VIP stands through a white door in the sheathing wall. The whole area smelled of alcohol and smoke. A group of big shots looked up from their game of cards. He gave them a proud greeting. “Good evening, I’m…”

They all turned their backs on him and continued their game. He let out a breath. Of course, they wouldn’t humor his attention. He was a newcomer after all. But maybe, with this fighter, he might actually get on their radar. Securing a treaty with a larger cartel had its risks and benefits, much like gambling but if you hit the jackpot you were set for life.

He sat down in a cracking folding chair. The arena was huge. Built for rodeos, it was temporarily reconfigured to house what could only be described as a gladiatorial contest. Bullet proof glass protected him from the rest of the lower level seats. And a double layer fence that stretched all the way to the roof protected the rest of the guests from the contestants themselves.

“Welcome Mr. Perrera.” A sweet young female voice greeted him and lowered a shot glass with a bottle of black label tequila in front of him. She was dressed in a tight red shiny vinyl dress. Her black hair spilled over her shoulders, looking quietly seductive. “Good luck on your first entrant.”

“Because you are a newcomer, you should be lower on the ranks, however, many in the crowd have thrown welcome money in the pot in your support.”

“Oh really?” Francisco had good instincts and didn’t rush to sip on the tequila.  “Sit and drink with me. Tell me more about this.”

She obliged and he took his glass and poured a cup for her and handed it to her. She gave a knowing chuckle. “You really are new. All the death and violence is restricted to the Cage. But if you’re still nervous…” She tossed back the tequila and then slid the cup back to him.

“One can never be too careful. If I disappear it's not a big thing, no matter where I am.”

“It’s rare to get a new fighter and a newcomer. People are betting on you because they’re excited and want to encourage more fresh blood. No one wants to see the same fighters every year from the same people they’ve known for years. What’s more… the name of your fighter… they like it.” Her lips turned up. “Caimán!”

“I had heard these fighters had the look of a devil, but I found out this was… something more grounded than I realized. The first thing I thought when I looked at him was ‘Caimán!’ He looks at me like an alligator! He’s not some boogeyman. He looked like he could actually eat me.” 

She didn’t leave his side as the PA system announced that the matches were going to begin. She slid a paper roster to him. “This is the line up.”

Caimán was going to be up against ‘Gigante’ in the first match! For the first time, Francisco felt upset to be here. How could they put a newbie up in the first match in an elimination contest and give him a chance to win? Even in the case of a champion, such fights were exhausting. He would have to defeat everyone of the beasts in the ring to have a shot at winning.

He stilled his expression and looked over the arena. Well, of course he wouldn’t have a chance at winning. The truth is, he shouldn’t be here at all. He was here on a stroke of luck. Winning was not in the cards for him. He should just enjoy his time and make the most of his good fortune. It was a shame this young man had to sacrifice his life. Despite his crocodile look, he had kindly expressed regret about the gun blowing up in his hand. He’d personally and quickly driven him to the hospital and then paid the bill. He even left him a wound care spreadsheet after the nurses forgot. It wasn’t the behavior of a tough as nails fighter or an alligator. More like a neglectful son come home to bother his father again. Much like he was once, years ago. Perhaps why he had taken a liking to him so quickly?

A roar interrupted his reverie. A roll up metal garage door clattered open and a giant of a man nearly eight feet tall of pure muscle, painted near black with tattoos, ran out, howling like a vicious animal. The crowd screamed and banged on the lids of garbage cans. The noise was deafening. The man clapped his hands over his ears and rushed the chains. Bright sparks like the sun snapped and popped.

The Cage was electrified!

Francisco reflexively crossed himself as the man didn’t react at all to the electrical current. When he let go of the fence, his hands were smoking. He rushed to the other side to menace the other spectators. Francisco saw it. The golden eyes!

Gigante suddenly stopped and turned. Another metal cage door was opening. Francisco could scarcely contain his grin! He pulled a napkin from his shirt and wiped his sweaty face. 

Caimán was acting true to his name. He was slight in figure, hilariously shorter than Gigante. Despite the heat and humidity in the air and the dusty dirty surroundings, he wore a black Burburry trench coat that reached near the floor. In his hand was a long sword that shined with a blue tinged light even though it wasn’t dark inside the arena. Weapons were allowed in the arena so long as they weren’t heavy firearms. Especially given the size difference of these contestants, having a bit of an equalizer was viewed as permissible. He took two steps into the arena with the air of a mother who had caught her children doing something naughty.

Gigante and Caimán faced each other. Gigante was panting, his mouth running with drool, his eyes bloodshot. He looked rabid, but didn’t rush towards his much smaller opponent and rip him in two. The crowd murmured with the suspense of the wait. Francisco felt the hairs rise on his back. He didn’t know why he got this feeling, but the thought came into his head that Gigante was being suppressed, that the whole crowd was being suppressed! It was like a pall had been cast over the entire crowd. Everyone was afraid to move, afraid to breathe, weighted down by a strange fear they didn’t understand.

Caimán walked around the edge of the Cage taking the longest route to his opponent, strolling with a slow, measured gait. He took his time, looking Gigante up and down.

“What is going on?” The woman next to him was shocked. “Gigante never acts like this.”

Her kind welcoming demeanor had vanished, she now glared at Francisco fiercely. 

Francisco sipped his tequila. “Ah… so Gigante is yours. No wonder you wanted to talk to me!”

She sat back and crossed her arms over her chest. Had this been any other place, she would have drawn a pistol and shot him in his smugly smiling face. Her nervousness grew as Caimán approached a still and silent Gigante. “Where did you find him?”

Francisco was silent. His intent was to use this opportunity to gain advantage for his business. The fighter had his own agenda beyond him and he shouldn’t be involved any further. This young man had walked into a room full of the highest ranking cartel members and had taken ownership of the entire space.

Gigante chuckled. “So… you’re finally here to put us out of our misery?”

Caimán didn’t answer for a long time. The crowd was getting restless in the silence, but that terrifying aura prevented anyone from speaking. “It’s my intent to free you.”

“Free? No one ever… gets free.”

When Gigante raised himself to his full height, Caimán raised his blade and that aura became more intense. He pointed it at him, like a knight facing off against an ogre. “Don’t.”

Gigante leaned back a bit as though struck by a strong wind.

“How are they controlling you? Answer.”

Gigante looked at Caimán, his eyes suddenly stopped glowing. “Get out… Get out while you c-”

A tattoo that hadn’t appeared before suddenly flashed red in the shape of an eye, right on his forehead, and the glow of his eyes lit up again. All humanity in those eyes froze, his pupils dilated wide until they became black save an eclipse ring of gold. Caimán for the first time in the match showed a touch of emotion, his eyes widening slightly as his Aura suddenly collapsed.

Gigante took a strong leap and closed the distance between them. Caimán reacted with a powerful thrust that slid the metal blade between the bones of the giant’s large knee. That leg was rendered useless in an instant but Gigante did not so much as flinch or cry out in pain. His arm whipped around and seized Caiman around the throat. That blade flashed again, neatly severing the hand. He didn’t have a choice. If he had waited more than that instant his windpipe would have been crushed. He rolled and staggered away from Gigante’s remaining fist. It slammed into the ground with skull-crushing force.

The crowd regained its former noise, cheering “Gigante! Gigante!”

At his tiny size and miniature build, one would think that they would have cheered Caimán as the underdog, but Caimán had walked in like a tyrant, barking orders like he owned the place. He’d humiliated not only Gigante but also all the spectators who were all predators in their own right and had been forced into silence by this newcomer. The sight of him fleeing Gigante was galvanizing. They wanted Gigante to smash this newcomer into a pulp!

Gigante was faster than a man his size should have been, it was like an ancient giant wolf, running his opponent down and forcing him to retreat or die. Even though he was running with blood, lame in one leg an missing a hand, he grinned and licked his lips in an intense desire to kill. Caimán however danced around every attack, not returning a blow if he didn’t have to.

Francisco was confused. Why didn’t Caimán go in for the kill? He had more fights after this. Why waste so much energy running his opponent around the ring? His female companion was only annoyed with Gigante. “Hit him! Hit him you bastard!” 

He then noticed her ring. It was red and glowing. 

The eye appeared on Gigante’s head again and the man suddenly screeched in a high voice. Caimán closed the distance and split the skin of the man’s forehead right through the middle.

The man’s eyes suddenly rolled back and he sank to his one knee. He went from a massive intimidating fighter to a hunk of empty flesh in an instant. Caimán who was still anticipating another motion suddenly lowered his sword and rushed forward, putting his fingers on the man’s neck. But there was no need to check his pulse. Gigante was dead.

The woman banged her fist on the table and stood up. “Spy! He’s a spy!”

Guns were suddenly pointed at Francisco. “Why are you saying this? You’re just angry that you lost! Put those guns away, this place is a place of non-violence!”

Her eyes turned cold. “You have no idea. You don't know anything.”

“He’s right.” Another voice came from the table to his right. An old man in a suit sat one leg crossed over the other, his white hair long down his back, his dark eyes like empty holes in his face. “Put the guns away. No need.”

The guns were put away and hackles lowered. 

Caimán stepped away as a worker arrived with a forklift to carry Gigante’s body away.

“Perrera. I will buy this fighter from you. Name your price.” The old man said.

Francisco didn’t know what to say. The truth is the fighter didn’t belong to him, it was the other way around. The fighter had bought him with the intent to enter the fight for his own agenda.

“My price? You know I have a route, sir. I would like your protection on that route. Your protection of my assets. I am a small operation. Even with a lot of money, I can’t buy what you already have.”

“You are a very smart man! That humility has brought you here. Then… Welcome to the club, Pererra.” The old man raised his hand and again, he was wearing one of those rings, just like the woman. He waved his hand twice and Caimán’s reaction was instant. He clutched his head and fell on his knees.

“Oh… he is a strong one.” The old man continued to wave and stood up, walking up to the bullet proof glass. “He will make excellent food for my Tigre.”

Caimán turned his head, his golden eyes blazing, he started to speak, snarling like an animal. That voice generated dark waves of black heat that ignited the sawdust. The heat was enough to melt the chain links on the Cage. The heat was so intense that the spectators started screaming and fleeing. Even at this distance, all the people in the VIP area started backing away.

The saw dust arena had turned into a pit of flames but Caiman was kneeling in all of it. Clutching his head.

Francisco had no choice. He turned and ran from the arena, leaving him behind.

[lady-divine-writes]

Klaine Advent Drabble 2020 - “Take One” (Rated PG13)

Summary: Embroiled in the aftermath of two very messy break-ups, Kurt and Blaine are preparing to film their first love scene together. But how do you pretend to be in love when your love life is falling apart?

It probably doesn't hurt to be in love with your co-star then. (1982 words)

Notes: Written for the @klaineadvent Drabble Challenge 2020 prompt 'grey'.

Read on AO3.

“Ooo, I get a limo this time,” Kurt mumbles, not nearly as impressed as he’s pretending to be. But he needs to keep up appearances. Even though it’s the literal buttcrack of dawn, he’s not alone. There are about thirty asshats, armed with cameras, camped out on his doorstep, climbing over each other to snap a candid of him for the gossip sites. A photo of him emerging from his townhouse fresh-faced and ready for another day on set will fetch an easy couple hundred.

But if he looks like he rolled out of bed, drank a bottle of whiskey for breakfast, then fell down a flight of stairs, landing face-first onto a mountain of cocaine - those pictures would fetch considerably more.

That’s what he gets for going through a horrendous break-up while having the nerve to be rich and famous.

Despite how he feels about his life at this moment, he went for the former, not the latter. He would never touch hard drugs, not for any reason, and he can't justify looking less than his best. 

Like a good friend once told him - never let them see you sweat.

“Kurt! Kurt Hummel! Over here!” the pariahs start calling, some of them whistling for his attention like he’s a dog. “Hummel! Hey, Hummel!”

Hummel.

That’s the one that gets him, burrows into the roots of his teeth and makes his whole head pulsate. It keeps his feet moving when he might have stopped to exchange a polite hello. Who talks to people like that? When did it become acceptable to bellow out someone’s last name as a means of getting their attention? Is it too much to ask for the respect of at least shoving a ‘Mr.’ in front of it? Have these glorified stalkers forgotten that if it weren’t for him and stars like him the only jobs they could get would be snapping photos of families for minimum wage at Six Flags?

Ugh. 

Too much thinking too early in the morning.

He could write an essay on how much he loathes pap culture, but today, Kurt can’t be bothered caring.

He slaps on a smile and waves, sliding his glasses down his nose only far enough so they can’t see how red his eyes are from crying.

“Oh, hello! I didn’t see you all here! It’s so nice of you to greet me at 5:30 on this fine winter morning! Oh, careful there. You spilled your coffee. And I think you just kicked that poor young man in the face.”

Kurt greets his guests this way every morning, killing them with kindness, as subtle an eff you as he can come up with when his brain cells have yet to kick in for the day.

Coffee. He needs coffee. About a gallon-and-a-half of it.

Kurt glides through the crowd, an angelfish among sharks, and comes out unscathed.

A man with dark hair and olive skin, wearing a fitted, black uniform tailored to within an inch of its life, opens the car door for Kurt as he approaches.

"Good morning, Mr. Hummel."

“Good morning, Harold. It's nice to see you.” Kurt slides into the car, thankful when the chauffeur shuts the door. He sinks into the leather seat and tosses his sunglasses aside. “God!" he moans, burying his face in his hands. "I don't want to do this! I want to stay home and eat ice cream! I don’t want to kiss anyone today!”

Blaine, who had been waiting quietly and wearing a sympathetic smile, frowns. “Gee. Thanks.”

Kurt's head snaps up, his face splotchy and red in seconds. “Blaine! I’m so sorry! I didn’t know you were …! That’s not what I meant!" He takes a deep breath in, lets it out slowly. "It's not you. I just don’t feel particularly romantic today.”

“It’s okay. I know what you mean. I feel the same way.”

Kurt squares Blaine with a stern look. “Gee. Thanks.”

Blaine ducks his eyes, his cheeks turning pink as he pours Kurt a glass of champagne. There’s always champagne, no matter what vehicle the studio sends to pick them up. But Kurt and Blaine never avail themselves to it.

Today, however, Kurt thinks as he accepts the flute Blaine offers and takes a sip, is an exception.

“I didn’t know Harold was picking you up first,” Kurt says, starting small talk to ease the tension. Kurt and Blaine don’t usually have trouble making small talk.

But, again, today is an exception.

“Well ...” Blaine clears his throat, seems embarrassed “... I was just … you know … a few blocks down the way.”

Kurt sits up further, leans forward with interest. “So you did it. You moved out.”

“Yup,” Blaine replies quietly. “I couldn’t … I just couldn’t stay. Not after …” He stops and sniffles, turning his head to hide eyes that must be as red as Kurt’s. Kurt doesn’t know.

He only ever notices how striking they are.

Kurt rests a comforting hand on Blaine’s knee. “I know.” 

“Yeah,” Blaine says with a slightly bitter laugh. “So does the whole world. In fact, the photogs knew I was leaving before I knew. You should have seen it. I could barely get past them.”

Kurt pulls a box of tissues out of the side panel and offers one to Blaine. “They’re bottom feeders. Try to ignore them.”

“Easier said than done.”

“I know,” Kurt repeats, feeling exceptionally useless. He’s in the exact same boat, but his heart hurts more for Blaine.

Blaine doesn’t deserve what he's going through. He doesn’t deserve such a public break-up.

He doesn’t deserve having his name drug all over social media by an emotionally manipulative bastard.

Kurt gazes out the window at the sky above. The forecast said it would be clear and sunny today, but it’s cloudy and grey. It matches Kurt's mood. Everything is cloudy and grey.

Well, maybe not everything.

The champagne isn’t. It’s cool and refreshing, and the bubbles make his tongue tingle.

That helps.

And Blaine helps, too.

Even gloomy, melancholy Blaine helps.

Just being in Blaine's presence helps.

“Living in the public eye isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, huh?” Blaine asks, though it sounds as much like a statement to himself as a question for Kurt.

“Not on days like today. But that’s the trade-off for being a star, I guess.” 

“Would you ever give it up?” Blaine takes a sip so slight it doesn’t lower the level of the liquid in his glass.

“I can’t say I would. You?”

“Nah. Acting has given me so many opportunities I could never have dreamed of. And all the great people I've met? I mean, this is what? The fifth film we’ve starred in together?”

“It is." 

Blaine chuckles, shakes his head. "Some of them have been real winners."

"I know! The roles you get offered when you're just starting out are criminal! Let’s see, we’ve been rogue enemy agents from different factions …”

“High school frenemies …”

“Alien co-conspirators …”

“Jealous rivals …”

“And now … lovers.”

“Yes,” Blaine says bashfully. “And today …”

Kurt smiles. “We get together for the first time.”

Hearing Kurt say it makes Blaine’s heart race, his pulse thrumming so fast it disappears.

The day Blaine found out he’d gotten the role of Kurt’s love interest and not the ‘jealous ex’ (the role his agent originally pitched him for since they play adversaries so well) was a dream come true. The studio felt the two of them could take their insane sexual tension (the studio's words, not Blaine's, although he doesn't disagree) and use it to fuel the plot of their latest 'friends-to-lovers' rom-com.

Blaine has always wanted to be a leading man. Deep down, he prayed that his first time, he'd play opposite Kurt. Now that it has finally happened, the role of his dreams comes with the greatest perk in the universe - an intimate moment with Kurt.

In front of about three dozen crew members, but still. 

It's Blaine's chance to indulge his crush, which he plans to savor since it may not come around again. 

Not in the way Blaine wants.

As friendly as Kurt is to him, as flirty as he can be, Blaine doesn't know for sure whether Kurt shares his feelings.

“If you don't mind my asking, when did he tell you?” Blaine asks.

“He didn’t." Kurt snorts humorlessly. "I woke up, and he was gone. I thought he had left for work. He had a table reading at six that morning, so I wasn’t immediately suspicious. Not until I started noticing important things were missing - clothes, toiletries, his contact lenses, his laptop …” 

"Did he tell you why he was leaving?"

Kurt chews his lower lip at the question he'd known was coming ... the answer he's debating whether or not to give. "Eventually." He glances up at Blaine, flashes a sly grin, and decides to go for broke. “He left because he thought I was falling in love with my co-star.”

"Really?" And just like that, Blaine Anderson dies, his heart shrinking into nothing and blowing away on the wind. "W-which one?" he asks, solely for conversation's sake.

This time, when Kurt snorts, clamping a hand over his mouth to keep from spraying champagne all over the interior of the limo, it's genuine. "You, you gumball!"

"Oh. Oh!" Blaine’s expression of shock is so endearing, Kurt can’t look at it too long. There's a glow about him. It's like staring into the sun. “That's ... that’s funny. My ex broke up with me for the same reason. Because of ... you. At least, that's the excuse he gave on Twitter ... and Instagram ... and Facebook. There were other things. Other men, too.” Blaine's glow dims as he talks about his ex. Their relationship, and separation, weren’t as civil as Kurt’s. In reality, trouble had been brewing behind the scenes for a while. 

He’s glad they finally went their separate ways. 

But it stings just the same, finding out that someone you once loved, who you thought loved you back, was using you for clout. 

And in that, Blaine's ex was a better actor than Blaine ever was.

"That is funny. Not funny ha-ha. Just ... funny. Who would have thunk?" Kurt goes back to his glass of champagne, keeping an eye on Blaine above the rim.

Blaine glances out the window as the limo slows, approaching the gates to the studio lot. Kurt doesn't follow Blaine's gaze, but he doesn't need to. 

He knows what Blaine sees by the way his face falls.

Blaine had hoped they could slip in quietly, but there's already a mob three feet deep waiting for them. The photographers and fans won't be able to see a thing through the car's windows. The tint on them is darker than dark. Still, the whole lot will be on high alert with them here. 

Inevitably, a handful will slip in. 

They may even find their way on set.

Blaine doesn't have the energy to deal with that.

Not today.

“How are we going to get through it?" Blaine asks. "Filming this scene? I mean, the timing is ... uncanny, to say the least.”

“Think of it this way …” Kurt slides across to Blaine’s side, sits as close as they're both comfortable with. Crooking a finger beneath his chin, Kurt draws Blaine's attention away from the gathering crowd and over to his eyes instead “… we get to spend the entire afternoon making each other feel better. That's how we're going to get through this. Agreed?”

Blaine's eyes lower, flicker to Kurt's lips unintentionally. When they travel back up, he notices Kurt's eyes do the same. He swallows hard. At this distance from Kurt, from his mouth, Blaine only has the wherewithal to say one word. He makes it count. "Agreed."

[wrestlingisfake]

Double or Nothing preview

Chris Jericho & Sammy Guevara & Santana & Ortiz & Jake Hager vs. MJF & Dax Harwood & Cash Wheeler & Shawn Spears & Wardlow - This is a "Stadium Stampede" match, so the contest will start in a wrestling ring set up on the 50-yard line of TIAA Bank Field. There are no disqualifications and falls count anywhere, so basically both teams can brawl all over the stadium until one guy scores a pin or submission on someone from the other team. If the Pinnacle (MJF's team) wins, then Jericho's Inner Circle will be forced to disband forever.

The Jericho/MJF rivalry has been brewing since the fall of 2019, when the subject of MJF joining the Inner Circle was broached. MJF (and Wardlow) finally joined up a year later, but it was all a plot to destroy the group from within to make way for the Pinnacle. The original five members of the Inner Circle stayed together and collectively turned babyface. The Pinnacle defeated the Inner Circle in a "blood & guts" cage match, where Jericho suffered a real dislocation in his elbow, but the Inner Circle demanded another chance to settle the score. So MJF challenged them to this match, knowing that Jericho's squad lost the first Stadium Stampede last year.

The first stadium match worked because they took full advantage of the format to do a lot of wacky comedy and absurd brawling spots. I don't think these teams can replicate that here, and really shouldn't try. They'll be better off focusing on the brutality of this blood feud and the dangers of an unfamiliar environment. Last year's match was all about finding new things to jump off of that nobody ever used in a wrestling match before. This one should be about finding new ways to hurt people.

I can't see the Inner Circle actually breaking up here, because there's a lot more left for them to do. In theory you could do it and just have Jericho keep targeting MJF all on his own. But they also still need to do Santana & Ortiz vs. Harwood & Wheeler, and Guevara vs. Spears, and I'd even be up for Hager vs. Wardlow. So it makes more sense to just give the Inner Circle the win here, although I can't deny that it's possible they could surprise me.

Kenny Omega vs. PAC vs. Orange Cassidy - This is a three-way match for Omega's AEW men's world championship, so the first man to score a fall on either opponent wins the match and the title. Omega's other championships--the Impact world title and AAA mega title--are not at stake.

As far as I can tell this match was always supposed to be a three-way. A Pac vs. Cassidy match on May 12 was set to decide Omega's next challenger and booked to go a time-limit draw. Omega would then argue that neither man won a title match, only to be overruled and have to face both of them, in a bit we've seen a million times. However, in the match Orange got legit knocked out. So instead of just declaring Pac the winner and sole challenger, which would make more sense anyway, they had to do some wacky hijinx to get back on the stupid track to their stupid draw to do the stupid trope for a stupid three-way.

So yeah, I'm not thrilled with this match, because nothing about it is more interesting to me than if the May 12 match had a winner and this match was one-on-one. Orange just beating Pac to earn the biggest match of his career would have been cool. Orange losing to Pac, so that it takes longer for him to prove he belongs in the main event, would have been cool. But a three-way just says to me "we don't think either of these challengers is a credible draw on their own, and you won't either after they both lose at the same time." Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if WWE hadn't run this sort of thing into the ground, but they did.

Anyway, Omega probably steals a pin from Orange, and the announcers all squabble with Don Callis for 25 minutes. I would really like to see this Omega heel run actually start going somewhere.

Matt Jackson & Nick Jackson vs. Jon Moxley & Eddie Kingston - The Young Bucks (Matt and Nick) are defending the AEW tag team title. The Moxley-Kingston alliance came about when Eddie set aside their differences to rescue Mox from the exploding ring on March 7. But the ring didn't explode, so both of them wanted to beat up Kenny Omega for embarrassing them. But they couldn't get at Omega becaue his faction kept getting in the way, and then the Bucks turned on Moxley to join Omega's faction. So Moxley and Kingston started targeting the Bucks, and by the time they stole the Bucks' fancy designer sneakers we had a title match.

I think I actually find the Bucks less irritating as heels than as babyfaces. When they're bad guys, they spend half of their time being all insider-y, like "WOW THAT SURE WAS AN EVIL THING WE JUST DID, THAT SURE WILL GET SOME 'HEEL' 'HEAT' FROM THE 'MARKS' LOL." But when they're good guys, they devote that time to being all "WOW THIS SURE WOULD BE A GOOD OPPORTUNITY FOR A 'HEEL' 'TURN' BUT WE'RE NOT GOING TO DO IT YET YOU 'MARKS' LOL." At least now they're supposed to be annoying.

The biggest missing piece in the Bucks' current heel run has been a team that won't take their crap and just punches each of them in the mouth. So Moxley and Kingston are really the perfect opponents for them right now. Like, I really buy that the Bucks have bitten off more than they can chew here. But I also believe that Mox and Eddie's deathmathch powers won't save them if they get cold spray in their eyes. So it averages out to an even fight, which I like.

I wouldn't book the Bucks to drop the title at this particular time, but I can see where it'd be hot for Moxley and Kingston to cement their bond as a team and get a short title run to set up a rematch.

Hikaru Shida vs. Britt Baker - Baker is challenging for the AEW women's world title, which Shida has held for just over a year. It's been a tough run for Shida, being booked as a dominant champion in an empty building, while Baker got all the glory of getting built up as a cult favorite heel. The fandom is impatient for a title change, and specifically for Baker to get the belt. I knew all along that we'd get here eventually, and the long wait would build it up, but it still feels hotter than I expected.

I kind of want to consider the possibility of Shida surprising everyone by retaining. But I think fans would be genuinely pissed if that happened, after waiting so long to see Baker's "coronation." So this is definitely one match where the "predictable" outcome is the right one. Baker should win the title and feud with all the faces she clobbered to get here for the next year. Shida should have to climb her way up to a big rematch down the line.

Sting & Darby Allin vs. Scorpio Sky & Ethan Page - Sky and Page sort of got thrown together because they both have the same "bellyache about not getting opportunities" gimmick. To that end, they both targeted Darby Allin, but instead of challenging him for the TNT championship they caused him to lose it to Miro. So now they're going to get their asses beat by Darby and his buddy Sting, while Miro gets a big PPV title match. You guys might want to review your strategy.

When Sting joined AEW with the intent to work matches, I think everybody assumed he'd just do "cinematic" matches like the pre-taped brawl on the March 7 show. However, AEW went out of their way to say this will be a normal tag team match in the arena, live in front of the fans. It'll be his first "real" match since September 20, 2015, when a bad bump forced him to retire. I sure hope they know what they're doing.

It's conceivable that Page and Sky will get the win, but it makes more sense to me for Allin to get the momentum on his way to rematch with Miro. Also, I think they'll want to give the live crowd a feel-good moment with Sting getting his hand raised.

Miro vs. Lance Archer - Miro won the TNT championship from Darby Allin a couple of weeks ago, and now Allin's busy with Pafge and Sky so that clears the way for Archer to step up and demand a shot. I felt like neither of these guys got their full due in WWE/NJPW, so it's especially rewarding to see them both get pushed in AEW and then beat the crap out of each other in a MEAN GUY MATCH~!

The money is in building to a Miro vs. Allin rematch for the title, so I don't think Archer is winning the belt and I sure don't think Miro is losing it this early. So this isn't about who'll win so much as it's about BIG MEATY MEN...SLAPPING MEAT.

Cody Rhodes vs. Anthony Ogogo - Ogogo won the bronze medal for middleweight boxing in the 2012 Olympics, but of late he's been training at the wrestling school started by Cody Rhodes and QT Marshall. Then QT turned on Cody, taking several students with him to form a faction called "The Factory." Cody got revenge on Marshall, but Ogogo hit Cody with his deadly body blow. Cody can out-wrestle Ogogo, but it won't matter if Ogogo lands that one punch again.

That's what the story of the match actually is. For some reason, Cody thinks it has to do with whether the United States sucks or rules. Basically, this is the same time of year that the Great American Bash would be held, and Cody wants to take up his dad's "The American Dream" moniker for one night weekend only, so that's how he's justifying it. So yeah.

Cody's storylines seem to operate in a parallel universe from the rest of AEW, but if you go along with that and buy what he's selling, it works. I can't decide if it's more important to deliver the happy ending for the white-meat babyface or to put heat on the up-and-coming future star. It probably depends on whether Ogogo's ready for a sustained push, and we won't know that until we see how he performs in this match.

Hangman Page vs. Brian Cage - This match actually relates to the company's rankings, in that Page was the #1 contender until a loss to Cage knocked him down a peg. So the inevitable rise of Page to complete his story arc by challenging his ex-partner for the world title can't proceed becaue Brian Cage is in the way. That's enough to get me motivated.

Cage has been lowkey teasing a face turn since he and Ricky Starks lost to Sting and Darby Allin. That's mainly important because Page is playing into that, suggesting he expected more integrity from Cage than the rest of Team Taz and daring him not to bring his goons to the match. It feels natural for Cage to lose this match because he refuses to accept help from his heel allies, who then turn on him for doing the right thing. Then again, Cage could just win to send Page spiraling further into despair and drag that issue out a while longer. But I really hope we're done with that.

21-man Casino Battle Royale - This is a gauntlet battle royale with timed entry, sort of like WWE's Royal Rumble, but five wrestlers start the match and every three minutes another five enter, until the 21st man enters alone. Once a wrestler enters the match, he can be eliminated at any time by exiting the ring over the top rope and landing on the floor. The match can only end once everyone has entered, and all but one is eliminated; the last man in the ring wins the match and a future world title shot.

Twenty of the 21 participants have been announced: Anthony Bowens, The Blade, Brian Pillman Jr., Christian Cage, Colt Cabana, Dustin Rhodes, Evil Uno, Griff Garrison, Isiah Kassidy, Jungle Boy, Lee Johnson, Marq Quen, Matt Hardy, Matt Sydal, Max Caster, Nick Comoroto, Penta El 0M, Powerhouse Hobbs, Preston Vance, and QT Marshall. The final participant hasn't been named; I'm guessing he'll just happen to enter last as luck #21.

A lot of AEW's factions are represented in this match, but the Hardy Family Office stands out for getting four of their guys (Blade, Hardy, Quen, and Kassidy) in this thing. I'm interested to see if that plays into the story of the match. But the heavy favorites have to be Christian Cage (a big acquisition that is already on track for a title match later this year) and whoever the mystery man is. Of course, last year's surprise entrant was Matt Sydal, so don't assume this one is going to be a huge deal.

Serena Deeb vs. Riho - Deeb is defending the NWA women's world championship on the pre-show. We haven't seen a lot of either of these women lately, because Deeb was out with an injury and Riho's international travel has been severely limited by the pandemic. (The NWA itself has also been out of commission for months, but they're back and probably anxious to book the winner of this match on one of their shows.)

So this match feels like it came out of nowhere, but it still manages to feel important. I mean, Riho ought to be the favorite, but doing a title change with another group's belt is no small thing. I'm really not sure what's going to happen, which is more buzz than I usually get for a pre-show match.

[dopescotlandwarrior]

Bluegrass-Chapter Nineteen

                 A special thanks to @statell​ for your help and wisdom

Previous chapters at AO3

Chapter Nineteen

Claire was unprepared for the public support of Runner after winning the Preakness. The moral of the country was at an all-time low as people were divided by the two factions of government, neither of which could get anything done. Misinformation was the norm and people lost faith in the evening news, Washington, the president, everything. Finding something to believe in had become impossible. The crown races were an American favorite with historically high viewership. When Runner won the first two crowns, America had a new hero to root for, and he was dubbed the People’s Horse.

There were seven horses in the past thirty-seven years that won both crowns, but all had failed at the Belmont Stakes. The hope for a triple crown winner swelled and moved across the country.

Jamie’s phone rang the instant he put it down as people called with good wishes, just wanting to talk to someone directly involved with the famous Runner. It was getting impossible, so he hired Lulu to answer the phone during her summer break. Lulu was five foot five inches with natural platinum hair cut into a pixie. She wore cut off shorts and cowboy boots with a loose-fitting button-down that was never tucked in. Her face was dominated by large round Hazel eyes that sparkled under heavy lashes. She was delighted with the job because it paid very well, and her secret crush was always nearby. If Claire had not been so preoccupied with interviews and the upcoming race, she would have noticed the way they gazed at each other.

After workout one morning, Claire asked Michael what she should say to reporters about her background, and how she came to be Runner’s rider. She wanted to uphold her promise to let Michael tell the story, but she was getting boxed in by questions. She, Michael, and Jamie met to discuss the talking points and decided unanimously to answer truthfully. Claire had a glass face that would give it all away if she tried to lie. She was very relieved.

Nosh, the reporter from Sports Illustrated left multiple messages for Claire. Lulu added them to the stack while she smiled coyly at Jason peeking into the office. When Nosh could not get a call back, he made a bold move and drove to the countryside to find them. He brought large framed pictures of Runner and Claire, hoping to delight her enough to agree to an interview.

Jason recognized Nosh from their brief meeting in the stall aisle at Aqueduct when Runner lost the Wood Memorial. He shook his hand with a big smile and looked at the pictures. Claire was doing her afternoon workout and Jason invited Nosh to watch. Seeing the horse breezing up close made his heart pound. He looked at Claire’s determined face, all business, no emotion. After an hour watching the duo together, Claire handed Jason the reins and went to speak with Nosh. She felt so comfortable with him, he was like what a beloved uncle would be. Because of her desperate desire for such a thing, Nosh was able to set her at ease.

The reporter sensed immediately that she was not like other jockeys that were full of themselves, with practiced answers that sounded rehearsed and boring. This girl was open and honest, and he pressed for the interview.

“I am done for the day. Would you like to come to the house and do the interview now? I have to start dinner but that won’t get in the way.”

“I would be thrilled, Claire. I can get the story into next week’s publication before the race. It will be fantastic timing.”

Claire had a sudden spark of apprehension and begged off for a minute to find Jamie. She called Jason and Runner over to entertain the reporter. When she peeked in the office Lulu was picking up the phone immediately after each call and rolled her eyes when she saw Claire.

When she found Jamie, her heart jumped into her throat watching him with the mares and their babies. He leaned against the bars separating two of the stalls. One baby was searching his jeans for the smell of treats, in the other stall, the baby was chewing on his shirt. The mares were pressed so close to him Claire almost missed him.

She watched him in his element, spending time with the future kings of the racetrack and the dams that would bring future generations to the world. This was so different from the actual track. The sport of kings required jockeys, trainers, grooms, and an unsung hero that made the matches, toiled year around, hoping for a miracle horse to drop its wet body into the hay. He worked very hard and he loved them, all of them. She could hardly take her eyes off him until he startled her calling her name.

“Come Sassenach, and see the beautiful babies we have this year.”

Claire opened the stall door and walked directly to him, wrapping her arms around his waist she looked in his eyes and kissed him.

“I love you so much, Jamie. I can’t wait to start our life together after the race next week.”

Jamie looked like he had just received a promised gift and pressed his forehead to hers, holding her hand to his lips.

“So, this is what you do all day. Play with baby horses and hide out in the dam’s wing?”

“Something like that.”

He was taking control of the kissing until Claire remembered the reason for finding him. She explained and Jamie went to meet Nosh. They agreed to do the interview in their kitchen while Claire and Jamie prepared a lovely dinner for three.

Nosh was very impressed with the house that Jamie built and toured the two levels while Claire pulled steaks out of the freezer and started cutting vegetables. Nosh was a pro, undaunted by the continuous movement of his hosts as they prepared dinner. When the grilling steaks reached his nose, he realized it had been too long since his last meal. So far he found out Claire was a veterinarian, who had saved Jamie’s horses on her first visit to the farm. During the sumptuous meal, he heard about Claire cutting the colt out of the dead dam in time to save him and Jamie hand-feeding the orphan for months until he was weaned.

Nosh looked at Jamie, impressed with his commitment to saving the colt’s life. It was no small task to play mommy to a growing colt and no one to help. Nosh laughed hearing about the FBI meetings with Runner pressed into Jamie’s side.

“Yep, he would come into my office and run to my side pressing his face into me, hungry and scared. When the dams rejected him, I knew I was in it for the long haul and didn’t expect he would ever run bein raised by a human.”

Nosh was so engrossed in the story he would just stare at Jamie for several minutes like he was trying to wrap his head around it all. Jamie took him through the impossible weaning and the next year of letting him grow into the monster he is now.

“Did you help Claire?”

“Me? No, I didn’t see Jamie or the colt for two years. When Jamie put him into the training program it was clear that Runner didn’t have a clue he was a horse. Jamie called me to help and to be honest, I thought Runner was a lost cause. I walked out to the round pens and saw two beautiful yearlings running on the lunge line while Runner was giving kisses to his handler.”

Something in Nosh went boom, boom, boom. He stared at Claire with his mouth open. “This would have been three months before his maiden race?”

“Yes, three months.”

“How did he learn to race then.”

“I taught him. I had to make it a game and told him I would beat him. He made it very difficult to keep my line in the dirt until I stood with my arms crossed fuming at him. When I took off for the finish line, he didn’t ge…”

“Wait, wait, wait. You raced him on foot? Runner. You ran on the track and he ran too?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Jamie sat back, enjoying Nosh’s face as the story unfolded.

“Just you…and Runner?”

“Yes. Jamie had to hide in the equipment barn so Runner wouldn’t see him. Otherwise, he would want kisses and wouldn’t work. Poor Jamie had to hide for the whole first month.”

Nosh shook his head a bit and flipped through the pages of his notebook. He wondered if they were playing him because a human doesn’t ordinarily teach a horse to run. What was happening here he wondered?

“Let’s talk about your training Claire. Did you always want to be a jockey?”

“Never wanted to be a jockey, had no jockey training, and was scared shitless of him the first time I mounted him.”

Nosh held his hand up, “wait.”

“You are a veterinarian with a completely green horse that has tossed every person off his back. Why would you get into the saddle?”

“Teaching him to love winning a race meant I had to be very pissed off when I lost. I played it up until he got it. He wanted to win every time and showed us speeds that blew us away. He beat me every time and told me I would be a winner if I got on his back.”

Claire’s voice started to quiver remembering his promise and her tears flowed down her cheeks. “He promised I would be a winner, like him, so I got on him and held my breath.”

There was the emotion Nosh was looking for, but he hardly noticed in his confusion. He stammered for a coherent question feeling like he just busted through the heart of the story.

“How did he tell you that?”

“I can’t tell you anymore. I’m sorry. Our trainer agreed to work with Runner for first rights to the story. After he is published, I can tell you the rest. I’m sorry, I promised.”

Nosh was feeling woozy from the disclosures and requested just a few more questions about general racing.

“Why do you hand ride? I have never seen you use your whip?”

“He doesn’t like the whip.”

“He what?” Nosh took a deep breath, “Alright, I have enough for a pre-race article. Thank you for talking with me on such short notice, and thank you for dinner. I believe Runner is a horse in a million. I also believe you will win at Belmont next week. I cannot wait to hear the rest of the story.”

Claire smiled at the reporter and they showed him out. As she rinsed dishes her eyes lost focus as she stared at nothing, thinking about the long race ahead. It was like Nosh had injected Claire with the reality of what was ahead. She read the papers, the industry magazines, and read through the messages coming into Jamie’s phone. The swell of support from the public had taken her mind off the actual dirt and grit of the one and a half mile race that was still ahead. She swallowed hard and felt the anxiety building in her stomach.

She spent time alone with Runner, always in the predawn hours when the cold bed would be noticed by Jamie. He would come and get her, pulling her into his warmth with the promise to love her forever, no matter what.

Claire and Michael spent hours each day watching video of the other horses they would be racing. When night came, Claire would become anxious and moody because another day was behind them. A day she should have found some peace. Jamie could only watch her helplessly and coax her to bed where she would promptly leave him in unconsciousness. He prayed for her strength as the pressure was beginning to take her apart. He prayed for himself, that life would become a new normal, full of love and enduring commitment. Win or lose, that is what he hoped for.

Finding Claire pacing in front of Runner’s stall, a day before they flew to New York was Jamie’s undoing. He gathered her in his arms and fought to keep her there as she tried to break free.

“Sassenach. There are two of ye racin in a couple days. Runner here looks calm, if not tired from bein up all night with ye. You, my love, look like yer ready to crumble. I’m worried about ye lass. Are you gonna fall apart and lose the race for him?”

Claire wanted to slap him at first. She was the one who rode his exercise every day, she is the one who risked life and limb in the races, she is the one who coached Runner. How dare he ask if she would throw the race. When he wouldn’t let her go, she quickly tired from trying to break free and the energy had to go somewhere so it came out in sobs. Deep, gut-wrenching sobs that broke his heart. He let her cry for several minutes until she wrapped her arms around his waist and told him how tired she was.

“Suppose we ask Runner how he feels about the coming race. Does he know why you are so wound up? Sassenach, does Runner know how important this next race is?”

Claire was lost in her thoughts for several minutes. “No, he doesn’t know. I didn’t want him loaded down with pressure.”

Jamie pulled Claire into Runner’s stall. “I think it’s time ye told him lass.” Claire looked up at Jamie’s face, so confident and knowing. “He can handle the truth of it.”

Claire reached shaking hands to Runners cheeks. She could talk to him now, but he often misinterpreted her words, so she spoke with her mind and showed him how important he was to the world at this moment. Several times he nickered, several times his muscles bulged with his understanding, but he never moved his head, the story was too important.

You are one in a million Runner. A miracle, to enchant the world and give hope for a hero. I know you can do this; I know you are faster than any other horse alive. Don’t be afraid. Just run like you own the world, as fast as you can. Now sleep, dearest boy, and know how much you are loved.

Jamie saw him relax into Claire’s hands and close his eyes. It was done. Runner knew the magnitude of this race and Jamie knew the level of difficulty they were facing. One and a half miles. Long enough to cause all his predecessors to tire and lose. He was running without an experienced jockey to hold him back and signal when to increase his speed. Jamie feared they were both running head-long into failure and didn’t know how to advise her. Claire now felt the calming effect of the truth and Jamie stopped sleeping all together.

By the time they landed in New York, Jamie had not slept a wink the night before. Dark circles under his eyes gave testament to the pressure he felt, and he glared at the world for making such a big deal out of this horse. Michael tried to talk to him and calm him down, Claire tried to coax him to sleep, but nothing worked. He was in it for love now, the gains they would reap no longer entered his thoughts. He loved Claire and he loved Runner, and he wanted them to win.

Sports Illustrated published Nosh’s article about Claire saving the colt, Jamie raising him, and Claire teaching him to run. Claire’s lack of jockey training and Runner’s choice of who would ride him made the pair seem unreal. The country doubled-down with their support.

At Belmont Park, the crowds pushed into the stands. Seasoned betters paced with anticipation and Runner lovers were in force to scream him to victory. Jamie walked the track trying to relax. He saw entire families pressed into the rail. Parents and children were there, not to bet, but to watch their hero horse win the third crown. He wanted to shout at them to go home. They could lose this race like so many double crown winners had done in the last thirty-seven years. He tried to remember them all. Superstars going into the race, soon to be forgotten when they lost. It was too much for him to deal with, so he went back to the shade of the stalls and by some miracle found Runner alone.

Jamie leaned against him and told the story of how he came to live in this world. He knew Runner couldn’t understand him, but he went on with the story of hope. He told him, no matter the outcome of the race today, it was his once in a lifetime pleasure to know him. When Jamie hugged his neck, Runner brought his head down and embraced him. Jamie couldn’t hear Runner asking if it was time to go, could they please go now, where is Sham, he wanted to race and show them all. When Jason approached loaded down with tack, he saw the two of them and gave them a moment before Jamie staggered out of the stall.

Claire was in new silks with “Highland Brothers Farms” emblazoned across the back and down the arms of her jacket. She was all smiles in front of Runner and the crew while she searched for Jamie. By some miracle, he had alleviated her worry and taken it upon himself. She was very worried about him.

The pre-race parade was starting, and Jamie lifted her to the saddle. She felt his arms shake with the effort and her worry deepened. She looked down at his haggard face and told him not to worry.

“I will see you in the winner’s circle, love.”

When she was ponied to the gate she twisted in her saddle and gave him a dazzling smile. The colt stood quiet, waiting to load into his number one post position. He was in his warrior stance looking ahead at the track while Claire told him to relax. He had looked at the stands during the parade. All the smiling faces calling his name were even more incentive to win. Claire reminded him it was the longest race and he should pace himself.

When the gate slammed open Runner leaped out and to the rail, no waiting for the other horses to break. Right from the start he and Sham were running nose to nose as they came through the first turn, changing lead position several times while the crowd roared. It was him and his nemesis battling it out in front of the world. They had gained a five-length lead on the rest of the horses and seemed to be in their own world. Running the backstretch, Runner was ahead by half a length until he moved forward, engaging his power. Claire felt the spike in energy as he stretched into each stride, moving ahead of Sham steadily. And the crowd lost their minds watching the widening gap between Runner and Sham.

Michael, Jamie, and Jason gripped the rail and pressed their chests into it to see the horses coming out of the second turn but they only saw Runner. Michael was going crazy, yelling about his speed, shouting that he couldn’t sustain it and would crash and burn. Jamie said nothing, moved not at all. If not for the tear that slid down his cheek he might look like a statue. He watched as Runner increased his speed yet again and widen the gap. He watched every stride hit the dirt as Claire tucked tightly and didn’t seem to move. Michael was holding his head, shaking it back and forth.

“He’s going way too fast! He is gonna have a heart attack or fade quickly to last place. They have a quarter-mile to go, he’ll never make it!”

That sentiment rippled through the crowd as every trainer, owner, and handler anticipated the worst. Jason shouted that Claire broke the track record for the quarter-mile, Michael was yelling at no one in particular. Jamie watched Claire and Runner, in his silence, he prayed for them both.

When Runner came out of the turn Claire felt him dig in and accelerate. She knew he was running too fast and they had a quarter mile left to the finish line. It felt like he continued to accelerate, and Claire just tucked and cleared her mind. He was running his own race as she promised. She heard the announcer’s voice sounding incredulous, calling the lengths between Runner and Sham and she heard the crowd going wild. She felt Runner dig in again and increase his speed, right about where the experienced horsemen in the crowd expected him to collapse or fade. He just ran faster, and the world watched an incredible athlete in the home stretch increase his speed again.

Claire could see the finish line and knew they were far ahead when her deafness crept in and she tucked tighter, keeping her mind blank, all she heard was Runner’s breathing and her own.

The sound in the stands, if she could hear it, was deafening. Runner was too far ahead to be beaten and was still accelerating. Jamie continued to stand stock-still and watch them run the race. His tears fell because he knew they couldn’t be caught. She won the Belmont. She won the Triple Crown. Michael grabbed Jamie and shook him, it didn’t matter, he couldn’t take his eyes off them.

Claire saw the finish line ahead and couldn’t resist looking behind her, but she was alone. She felt Runner accelerate again and knew he was showing the world just how fast he was. When his front legs crossed the finish line and the camera lit up, the noise of the crowd came rushing back and she heard the magic.

“Midnight Runner wins the Belmont by thirty-one lengths! He wins the Triple Crown!”

Claire worked hard at slowing Runner while she gushed that he did it. He won the hardest race. When she could stand in her stirrups her crop was raised above her head and the crowd went crazy. When she came around the turn, she saw that Jamie was surrounded by cameras and reporters, but with his extraordinary height, he could see her clearly and the kiss she blew.

Jason held the reins while people surrounded Runner and Claire. It felt surreal with the cheering fans that were weeping and holding their arms out to them. Claire took off her helmet and saluted the crowd only to have the deafening sound get louder. She dropped her upper body down on Runner’s neck and told him he was the king of horses, never to be forgotten.

It was thirty minutes before they made it to the winner’s circle where Claire leaned down to kiss Jamie.

“Ye alright, love?”

Claire nodded and smiled before Jason led them to walk in front of the stands to let people see Runner one more time. When he led them back, Claire was finally able to dismount, right into Jamie’s arms. When she looked into his beautiful eyes, she said the first thing that came to mind.

“Does this mean we can go on vacation again?”

“If we can call it a honeymoon, we can stretch it to a week, maybe more.” He kissed her and heard her answer seconds later.

“Is tomorrow too soon?”

[bopinion]

2021 / 14

Aperçu of the Week:

Talk less, smile more! (Hamilton, The Musical)

Bad News of the Week:

My favorite joke last week on Twitter: "We once summarized everything we have to be ashamed of in Germany." "Where, on a list?" "No, in downtown Stuttgart." Well, some jokes make your laughter stuck in the throat. The background: the "Querdenker" ("Lateral thinker")movement, originally started by critical-minded democrats who demanded a legitimate voice in restrictions against Corona spread, has become a rallying point for undemocratic subjects: Reichsbürger (who dispute the legitimacy of the Federal Republic of Germany), increasingly radical anti-vaccination activists (who have previously advocated so-called measles parties and see vaccinations as bodily harm), conspiracy theorists (ranging from Bill Gates haters to hardcore phantasists like QAnon), and a hefty helping of neo-Nazis.

Since then, "demonstrations" have taken place every week in virtually every major city, sometimes numbering hundreds, sometimes thousands. The nucleus was and is in Stuttgart. "Demonstrations" in quotation marks because it is clear from the outset that the permit requirements of the competent authorities (mask requirement, keep distance, numerical limitation, etc.) are to be disregarded in purpose. And this then takes place as well as assaults on police, media representatives and passers-by who do not join in the usual chants ("Merkel must go!") with spontaneous enthusiasm.

Also on Twitter, a teacher asks in the direction of the police how he should explain to his students that they should not be caught in threes on the way home from school, otherwise their parents will be threatened with a fine. And on the other hand, even at unauthorized demonstrations, the police calmly watch as up to 10,000 without masks and distance shout against cop pigs and mainstream media as stooges of encroaching governments. Good question. To date, I just haven't heard a serious answer.

Just to clarify, I hold fundamental democratic rights like free speech or the right to demonstrate sacred. What I have a problem with is instrumentalization by self-declared enemies of the state. How absurd is it to explicitly reject the rule of law on the one hand and to invoke it on the other. "We know our rights!". Exactly. That is perfidious and dangerous.

My generation can remember exactly how the police cracked down on protests against the planned nuclear reprocessing plant in Wackersdorf / Upper Palatinate in Bavaria in the early 1980s. That was when we first saw riot gear, pepper spray and water cannons. And that against (in the majority) harmless sit-ins. Today, we see discussions about the balance of state intervention ("Blind in the right eye?") and wonder about WhatsApp groups of police officers teeming with "88" references and factions in the military preferring forms of greeting that have been banned since 1945. This is a far cry from the ideal of the "citizen in uniform". So please show more clear edge - in the authorities and on the street.

Good News of the Week:

Sole governments have become rare in the German states; in almost all cases, it comes down to a temporary alliance of two or three parties: a coalition. Before entering into concrete coalition negotiations, it is customary for the winner of the election / the party with the strongest percentage, to hold so-called exploratory talks with all coalition partners that are basically in question. A lot of symbolism is attached to these. After all, no party has ever explored, let alone formed a coalition, with the right-wing populists, for example.

In Germany's political landscape as a whole, the Greens have been going up and up in the polls for months, while the conservatives have been going down. The state of Baden-Wuerttemberg has been gradually leading the way for years. Four weeks ago, the Greens were re-elected as the strongest force there for the second time, with Winfried Kretschmann, the only Green minister president to date, at the helm. And the conservative Merkel party CDU as junior partner. A constellation that has apparently worked quite well for ten years.

The Social Democrats, themselves far from previous election results, had hoped that the Swabian Greens would have had enough of the conservatives and would cheerfully enter into a coalition with them as well as the Liberals (the Left did not make it into the state parliament). With as much positive spin-off effects as possible for the federal elections to be held at the end of September. Did not work, the proven coalition has successfully explored and is since a few days in the concrete coalition negotiations, which will determine the policy of the next five years. Title of the paper on the exploratory result: "Great challenges require courageous decisions and reliable cooperation".

That's good. Ecology and economy - you can't have one without the other. And that's exactly what the two parties stand for. And they have also taken up the banner of the most far-reaching climate protection program to date, which is intended to be a genuine new departure. We'll see when details become public. But the signs are not bad. Just as the Greens, especially with Kretschmann, have proven that the former radical fundamentalists in the party have given way to realistic pragmatists, the traditionally industry-friendly Christian Democratic Union must prove that it has accepted the issues of climate, environment and sustainability as a central task for the near future.

If this works, it will also have a signal effect on the upcoming federal elections and federal government elections in the fall. Because there, too, the reconciliation of the two ecos must take place and bring quick and effective benefits. Because only if the individual member states of the EU pull together can the European Commission's ambitious goals in this regard make the step from theory into practice. Because only if Europe can demonstrate climate success will the emerging economies follow. Because only then will this planet have a chance. In this respect, Stuttgart also sends out a positive signal, as it is home to the green-conservative state government of Baden-Wuerttemberg.

Personal happy Moment of the Week:

The day before yesterday, I had an exciting experience. I came to a vacant commercial property of my bosses to show it to possible tenants. When I entered it, it became obvious that burglars were there. Hearing suspicious noises, I decided I'd rather not be a hero, but dial police 911 for the first time in my life. To the lady on the phone, I described where I was, what I had found, and why I thought the burglars might still be in the house. While still on the phone, after less than two minutes (I checked the phone log!) the first of four police cars arrived and secured the entire street block. The bottom line was that no one was there, only bubbling water was the suspicious source of the noise. Forensics came and found lots of usable material. I found it exciting to experience something live that I had previously only seen on television. And I was happy about how quickly and smoothly the police were on the scene when they were needed.

As I write this...

...I am enjoying the spring sunshine before the snow returns the day after tomorrow for the second time this April.

[danwhobrowses]

AEW Women’s Eliminator Tournament - Full Review

So as of tonight’s Dynamite the winner of the Eliminator Tournament is in the books, either Nyla Rose or Ryo Mizunami have overcome the other to earn the right to face Hikaru Shida at Revolution on Sunday

But now is time to look at the tournament as a whole and review how well AEW’s latest ambitious Women’s Division Project would/should be received

Warning: There will be immediate spoilers for the Winner under the ‘Keep Reading’, if you do not wish to know the Winner do not read until you have

So when the smoke cleared and the dust settled, Ryo Mizunami came out on top having pinned Nyla Rose for the win, claiming the spot at Revolution and the tournament.

Boy was my prediction wrong eh?

After being given the trophy by Shida however, Aniki refused to let go of the champion, trading and inviting blows from each woman until Shida was able to knock Mizunami down and raise the title aloft.

Was she people’s first choice to win? Probably not Is she an unworthy winner? Absolutely not

Mizunami is extremely experienced, her charisma can reach all ages, she has a genuine love for the wrestling (her sunglasses even have ‘I <3 AEW’ on them), she has aforementioned history with Shida and she went through 2 Fan-Favourites, the legendary Aja Kong and finally the previous Women’s Champion and No.1 Ranked Woman to get here.

And while we are on that topic, to the people who immediately condemned and criticized the tournament when Nyla made the finals: Don’t you get tired of being worked so easily? Honestly we had the exact same thing with the Deadly Draw, people don’t want competitor A (Nyla/Brandi and Allie) to win: so AEW put them in the finals so they root for competitor B (Aniki/Diamante and Iveliesse). Ye of so little faith

I also like to mention that it’s quite nice of Mizunami to be this rewarded by AEW and Shida given how she appeared on their first show at Double or Nothing, I didn’t know it at the time of my bracket rundown but apparently Mizunami was about to retire after DoN, but the crowd and energy of the match inspired her to keep going and push to reach a wider audience - which AEW is now letting her achieve.

Get it out of the way - The Negatives Make no mistake this tournament was great, but it doesn’t mean it was perfect. Of course my earliest criticism was that we could’ve had more, a bittersweet feeling I got when I realised the tournament was nearing its close. While yes it would’ve been nice to see the likes of Big Swole, KiLynn King, Allie, Penelope and perhaps even some debuts/returns, we cannot slight AEW too much for keeping the bracket small.

Time however was a bit of a constraint on AEW’s part. Having revealed late that the winner will face Shida for Revolution, the tournament matches started coming out fast...but on Youtube. Personally, I had no problem with the matches being a sole focus stream on Youtube, but I can also understand why not putting at least the entire American bracket on Dynamite would’ve hurt the tournament. If the tournament had more time I do believe that each match would’ve had a Dynamite showing and not a broken BR Live stream (but please note that BR Live were the problem there, not AEW).

A non-AEW criticism as well for Injury screwing over Anna Jay right as she was about to have her match, extremely rude of the world and we hope her shoulder heals up faster than usual.

The final criticism is probably with the BR Live US Bracket Finals video, simply put it was lacking compared to other streams. Madi vs Leva and Leyla vs Alize didn’t shine as much as Riho vs Rosa and the 6 Woman Joshi tag did in the prior stream, we could’ve probably gotten better matches out of that.

Why I loved it - The Positives I will look at anyone who says that this tournament was a waste and meaningless dead in the eye and tell them they are wrong, and they will be shocked to find that I am not lying.

The tournament not only put a lot of attention on the competing women but became a platform for AEW to show that they have some impressive women on their roster. The returns of Yuka, Emi and Riho paired with the stalwart performances of Baker, Rosa and Nyla as well as the bright showings of Madi, Anna, Tay Conti and Leyla shows that AEW still have a really good Women’s Division - I mean I love WWE but you have to admit their NXT women’s division bought many of their stars ready-made; Io, Toni, KLR, Meiko and Candice were already established names before WWE. Stack that on top of impressive performances by Red Velvet and Jade Cargill last night and the ranks of Big Swole, Allie, Penelope Ford, Kris Statlander, Shanna, KiLynn King and Tesha Price and you still have a strong division.

The tournament proved its worth also by the fact that there was not a single bad match on there, we had some bangers on each stage ranging from Yuka vs Emi, Rosa vs Riho, Nyla vs Baker and Leyla vs Rosa, among several others. The tournament succeeded in giving us great wrestling even with different formats of face vs face, heel vs heel, speed vs power, technique vs power, and even some new shades to the women such as heel Sakura and face Nyla.

I cannot praise the tournament without heaping a ton of praise on the Joshi. Shida and Kenny had always been adamant to show that the Joshi can be a revelation to Western audiences and they were paid in kind in that regard. All six Joshi brought out their A-Game to the point where several are asking for them to be signed, Sakura’s heel ‘Killer Queens’ faction rose interest with a fantastic entrance, while VENY dazzled with their gymnastic talent (and their wearing of the late Hana Kimura’s kimono), Mei Suruga and Yuka Sakazaki lit up the room with their speed and fun and Maki Itoh continues to be adored by the wider world into megastardom. The six woman tag as well was a nice cherry on the top to once again showcase the women, including Rin Kadokura who was fed to Aja Kong in the tournament, every bit of energy and charisma from the Joshi landed on the mark, it has opened several new fans to their home brands (TJPW however did kinda give away that Yuka wouldn’t win given how she was booked for one of their shows, but they’re still great) and have us gasping for more of those six and perhaps some extra, Miyu Yamashita for instance? Think about it TK

One thing that can really harm a tournament too is predictability, which this tournament did not have. You have to commend the balls of AEW to set up 5 fan favourite choices to win and have them each be felled and swerve the entire fanbase. It was for the most part good swerves as well, leading up to the Nyla work included, and actually made me feel like this tournament had big stakes for each member. People will criticize its unpredictability but I won’t be one of them, just because it didn’t go how you personally predicted it doesn’t mean it’s bad.

Also a stand out yes for Rosa’s several gear, especially the Selena one against Riho, and Hikaru Shida herself slaying it in the white suit, like lord almighty thank you for this food.

Was it worth it? - Conclusion This is an emphatic yes for me. AEW will always have its critics, fair and unfair, but if you have to wonder whether this tournament is a success you have to simply look at it this way

Were you entertained?

For me yes, there was a 100% consistency in good to great matches in this tournament paired with genuine surprises that got people talking and invested in the tournament itself.

Did it give you something fresh?

A dark horse winner who earned her way to face Shida for the 5th career time and 1st time in an AEW ring through outwrestling, outpowering and outwitting their previous opponents, unique heel/face changes and a showcase of new wrestlers and matchups? I’d say that’s a yes

Did anyone get over?

You ask anyone before this tournament was announced who Ryo Mizunami, Maki Itoh, VENY or Mei Suruga was and you’d likely get blank faces, thanks to AEW they are known and commended by several fans outside of Japan. You ask people if Tay Conti can bring a physical match to Nyla and almost win and you’d get a few murmurs, if you asked people if they though Kenny was valid for his push to bring the Joshi into a wider audience prior to this may’ve said no. Those minds were changed because these women got over. In addition to that the popularity of Thunder Rosa, Riho and Yuka Sakazaki has continued to rise as some of AEW’s top babyfaces, Leyla Hirsch, Emi Sakura and Tay Conti’s stock have rose thanks to the tournament and Nyla and Baker have delivered on strong match performances.

When you consider those three, there is no way you could call the tournament a failure or a waste, people benefitted from it in a good way which means it was a good tournament.

I for one will look forward to seeing Shida take on Aniki and see how it unfolds at Revolution - which I hope to do a review for, I’m also guessing that Paul Wight’s aquisition is either Christian or Okada. Many will of course assume that this is an easy retain for Shida (and act like winning the tournament means you should win the following match as if people don’t win the Royal Rumble/MITB/KOTR/Dusty Classic and lose in their title shot), but how many of those people thought that Itoh, Kong, Yuka and Nyla would beat Mizunami? She keeps on extending the party and coming out on top, you cannot underestimate the tournament winner, Shida produced this tournament, she’s picked her winner now she needs to fight them.