#mantis shrimp sun

[thatmooncake]

Sea critter hangout 🌊

Axolotl Eclipse: @nikolliver

Sea Slug Sun: @aquacomet

Kelpie Jack o Moon: @bloo-the-dragon

Sunshoe Crab: @biggiesnails

Moonshoe Crab: @thatmooncake AKA moi

Mantis Shrimp Sun: @flinxypie

[shadzytarts]

DVghsak the image was too big for Artfight omg

Mantis shrimp sun for @flinxypie !

[nikolliver]

Friendly fire for @flinxypie

he ballin

[surejess]

"Technically you're not supposed to -- ya stare straight at it for too long, your eyes can get real damaged! -- but, ya know, a couple quick glimpses never hurt anyone!" Not that Jess was encouraging Fins to glimpse at it more than he probably had in his lifetime, but who would it hurt? She had half a mind to stare directly at the sun one day and see if she really would damage her eyes ( after the solar flare had passed, that is )! "Exactly! Real bright which means it's real vibrant! If you can tell the vibrancy, that's really the most fun part!" Hey, May! Wouldn't it be fun if Fins could see in color? Even just having three cones? You're not in charge of that? Damn! Hey, Grey- "That's exactly right!" Jess pointed to one splotch on the carefully crafted flashlight and said, "We got a little extra yellow there, so it's a little more green --" -- then to another -- "-- and more blue there t' make it darker, so it's kinda like if ya went real deep underwater!" Not that Jess had experienced the triumphs and defeats, the epic highs and lows, of going deep underwater, but she'd heard about it! And, ya know, it did make sense -- ya get less light, it's gonna get darker! Science!

"...i think so. i thought you weren't supposed to look at it," he admits, a little confused. "i try not to. but it's very bright!" he tries to remember which color jess had assigned it. green? no, that's something else... yellow! it's yellow. he tries to remember that intensity, the way his eyes instinctively try to roll back. maybe that's what yellow should be. intense. bold. impossibly vibrant. fins can almost taste it in his mind... but unfortunately, he'll never have a mind capable of recognizing color. one of his biggest envies, he thinks... but certainly far from the only one. he's only human, as much as he's treated otherwise. and human feelings and impulses run rampant within him. as long as there's greener grass, there will be envy. his mouth falls open again as jess explains the mixture, and suddenly he stares at his flashlight in a new... for lack of a better word, light. blue and green? he didn't know you could mix them... sure, he had just heard that red and white make pink, but how is he supposed to guess that the same is true of others? his lack of experience hinders him yet again. "so, um... blue and—no, yellow and green—no, yellow and blue make green... and you mix... that with blue to get... this color?" he asks, waving his light again. it all seems so wonderfully complicated.

[elancholia]

The "shrimp colors" meme is part of a long and storied tradition of attributing wonderfully poetic, metaphorically rich, and completely spurious properties to animals and plants. Irises grow from lightning-struck ground, the pelican revives her chicks by drawing blood from her breast with her beak, weasels conceive through the mouth and give birth through the ear canal, the eagle flies up to the sun to burn old age from his eyes, and mantis shrimp see colors we cannot imagine.

It's the kind of thing that fills medieval bestiaries, folk medical traditions, and the writings of Pliny the Elder.

[flinxypie]

@thatmooncake made me do it :U

Peacock Mantis Shrimp Sun

I have a whole backstory on how him and Moonshoe met, okay!

Fun fact: this was supposed to be cell shaded but I keep accidentally painting instead aaaaaaaaa

[barbwritesstuff]

A truly insane question: if all the supernatural(-ly powered) ROs from BM or TT had to choose what kind of supernatural to be - like some sort of curse that makes you reaffirm you want to be a wolf, a vamp, or a witch ... would anyone switch? Would anyone wish to be human instead? Would any of the humans want to be non-human?

Marcel: "To be human again... to see the sun and feel it's warmth... to feel satisfied after a meal. I think all of us yearn for such a—"

Iliya: "Not me. I love being dead."

Marcel: "But surely you miss the vibrancy of life."

Iliya: "Death is vibrant."

Marcel: "The flush of youth."

Iliya: "Can't relate. Love being old."

Marcel: "The feeling of warmth."

Iliya: "I am Russian. I have never been warm."

Marcel: "..."

Iliya: "..."

Marco, sitting in the corner, smoking pot: "I'd be a were-mantis-shrimp."

[norts-trolls]

WOE TWINS BE UPON YE!! i have more twins but like their siblings were made by/owned by friends so i wont add em to this list

Of course the mantis shrimp twins Kleiel and Kleeil

Phobos and Virtus The sun and moon twins

Uhunei and Xander the song dragon twins

fantroll community. hello.

u MUST show me ur twins NOW!!! u have 2, im compelling u 2

i go first <3

juniee and maylon <3

neguna and pharyx

and then kemdal and houell

[niteshade925]

April 21, China, restaurant again

It's pretty much all food pics from now on, mostly from family gatherings with different relatives, so I'm going to speed up with posting.

Beijing kaoya/北京烤鸭 (Peking duck), or simply kaoya/烤鸭/roasted duck. The duck had already been sliced and put into the plates on either side. The traditional way of eating kaoya is by wrapping the slices in the spring pancake (chunbing/春饼; also referred to as heyebing/荷叶饼/"lotus leaf pancake") along with sweet bean sauce (tianmianjiang/甜面酱), green onion shreds (usually just from the white part near the root), and cucumber strips.

Dry-braised (ganshao/干烧) halibut fish

Fried shrimp cakes (with dipping sauce)

Seafood stirfry and Chinese yam with blueberry sauce (lanmeishanyao/蓝莓山药). Apparently the latter was invented by the chef Sun Lixin/孙立新, one of the hosts of the popular internet cooking show Laofangu/老饭骨 (I think I have linked some of their videos in the past)

Stirfried clams (炒花蛤; this type of clams is called huage/花蛤). The popular version of this dish is usually spicy and called "spicy stirfried clams"/辣炒花蛤, but I don't remember this particular version here being spicy so...

Left is Chinese steamed egg/zhengdan/蒸蛋 (also known as jidangeng/鸡蛋羹 and "water egg"/zhengshuidan/蒸水蛋) with mantis shrimp on top, and right is duck soup made from the rest of the roasted duck. I love all kinds of soup, but duck soup remains one of my all-time favorites (btw cooking tip, if you want a milky white soup/stock made from fish or poultry, try lightly frying or roasting the meat first to help the fat emulsify)

[bethanythebogwitch]

Wet Beast Wednesday: pistol shrimp

Oh snap, it's the snapping shrimp post for Wet Beast Wednesday! Snapping shrimp or pistol shrimp are loud little critters that have evolves a very useful and fascinating tool in their pincers. Let's not waste time and shoot off to learn about these little gunslingers.

(Image: a pistol shrimp. It is a mostly white shrimp with red stripes. One of its claws is considerably larger than the other. It is standing on gravel and next to some seaweed. End ID)

Pistol shrimp are over 1,000 members of the family Alpheidae, which is part of the infraorder Caridea. This means they are true shrimp, not to be confused with superficially similar animals like brine shrimp, mantis shrimp, tadpole shrimp, and prawns. Yeah, I only recently learned that prawns and shrimp aren't a language difference between British English and American English like chips vs fries. They're not even that closely related. As true shrimp, pistol shrimp have two main body parts: the cephalothorax and abdomen, which are composed of 19 body segments. The abdomen forms a flexible tail with a fin on the end. When startled, the fin can rapidly curl under the body, propelling the shrimp backwards. Like other decapods, there are 10 limbs. The front pair of limbs have evolved into claws used to manipulate objects. The claws are the most distinguishing feature of pistol shrimp. They are asymmetrical, with one growing extremely large, over half the size of the body. The big claw has a modified version of the typical pincer. This pincer has an upper claw that can open up at a right angle. Under the claw is a pocket in the lower pincer, into which water flows. The upper pincer then slams down into this pocket, forcing the water out. The pressure of the pincer closing water in the pocket creates a cavitation bubble that is forced away from the claw at up to 26.8 meters per second. This is enough force to seriously wound small animals and hurt larger ones into leaving the shrimp alone. The cavitation bubbles can reach up to 4,427 degrees C (8,000 F) . For comparison, the surface of the sun is about 1,000 decrees (C) hotter. When the bubble pops, it creates a snapping sound that can reach 218 decibels. For comparison, most gunshots max out at around 170 db. This puts pistol shrimp is the running for the loudest ocean animals, with whales being the other main competitors. If that all sounds like a lot, the whole event happens so fast that the heat doesn't have time to affect much and the noise sounds like a moderately loud snap to us. Adults can snap their claws shut with an acceleration of up to 30 meters per second squared and juveniles can do it up to 20 times faster. The whole process takes less than a millisecond. When the cavitation bubble collapses, it can produce light. This is called sonoluminescence and nobody knows how it happens. If a pistol shrimp loses its large claw, the small claw will grow into a new large one while the missing limb will regenerate into a small claw. Adult pistol shrimp average between 3 and 5 cm long.

(Image: a drawing showing the process of a pistol shrimp snapping its claw. In the first panel, the claw is closed. In the second, the upper claw opens at a 90 degree angle, revealing a cavity. In the third panel, the cavity fills with water. In the final panel, the claw is closed again and a jet of water is ejected from the claw. End ID. Source: Wikipedia user Carermyers)

(Gif: black and white, slow-motion video of a pistol shrimp's claw snapping shut and creating a cavitation bubble. End ID. Source)

Pistol shrimp live worldwide, though most species live in tropical or temperate water. There are some cold water species and even freshwater species. Most prefer habitats where they can make burrows and where there are plenty of other animals. Coral reefs, oyster reefs, seagrass beds, mangrove groves are common habitats. Snapping is used for hunting and communication. They typically hide in burrows, waiting for fish or other small animals to pass by. When prey passes, the shrimp will snap to stun or seriously wound the prey, then drag it into the burrow. Some social species actually form eusocial hives with a single queen who produces all offspring. These shrimp are the only known marine eusocial species and all occur within the same genus (Synalpheus), though not every member of that genus is eusocial and eusociality appears to have evolved at least 3 times within that genus. It appears that a reason why only this genus developed eusociality is their larvae do not disperse, instead staying in the same area as the parents. The hives are usually located within sponges. Other social species are not eusocial, but still live together in colonies. Many less social species have formed a symbiotic relationship with gobies. Both species live in burrows, but gobies are bad at digging while the shrimp have poor eyesight. The goby will protect the shrimp while it digs a burrow, then the two live together. They will forage together, with the goby using its superior eyesight to watch for predators and warn the shrimp to get back to the burrow. Pistol shrimp are monogamous, the same pair coming back to mate over and over again (this does not apply to the eusocial species in which only the colony's queen is permitted to mate). The female is only fertile during a short period after molting. The male will stay with the female and protect her during the vulnerable period after mating and some species will remain with each other until the eggs hatch or permanently.

(Image: a eusocial pistol shrimp queen with eggs. Her body is translucent and multiple eggs are attached to her abdomen. The eggs look like translucent balls. The is inside of an orange sponge. End ID)

(Image: a pistol shrimp and goby emerging from a burrow in the sand. The shrimp is a mottled green and white. The body is a bright yellow fish covered with blue spots. End ID)

Pistol shrimp are a major source of noise in the places where they live. If you've ever been swimming and can hear repeated cracking noises, that may have been a bunch of pistol shrimp. Some scientists monitor the level of pistol shrimp noises as a method of monitoring the ecosystem. If the noise level drops, that is an indicator that the local ecosystem is suffering. The noise of the shrimps can get so loud that it actually interferes with sonar and forms of underwater communication. During World War II, members of the navy realized that the shrimp disrupted sonar enough to hide submarines, so they started hiding submarines near reefs with lots of the shrimp to keep them from being found by enemy subs. Weirdly not the only small marine animals to mess with submarines. I'll get the the other major one soon. The largest threats to pistol shrimp come from habitat destruction. Some species of pistol shrimp have entered the pet trade. As coral reefs, seagrass beds, and other habitats are destroyed, the shrimp that rely on them will suffer as well.

Yet another time I get to use one of these cards in a post

(Image: the Weird n' Wild Creatures card featuring pistol shrimp. End ID)

[anumberofhobbies]

Jupiter: 10 Years of OPAL Observations by NASA Hubble Space Telescope Via Flickr: Hubble's sharp images track clouds and measure the winds, storms, and vortices, in addition to monitoring the size, shape, and behavior of Jupiter's Great Red Spot (GRS) storm. Hubble follows as the GRS continues shrinking in size and its winds are speeding up. OPAL data recently measured how often mysterious dark ovals — visible only at ultraviolet wavelengths — appeared in the "polar hoods" of stratospheric haze. Unlike Earth, Jupiter is only inclined three degrees on its axis (Earth is 23.5 degrees). Seasonal changes might not be expected, except that Jupiter's distance from the Sun varies by about 5% over its 12-year-long orbit, and so OPAL closely monitors the atmosphere for seasonal effects. Another Hubble advantage is that ground-based observatories can't continuously view Jupiter for two Jupiter rotations, because that adds up to 20 hours. During that time, an observatory on the ground would have gone into daytime and Jupiter would no longer be visible until the next evening. These two views of Jupiter showcase the wealth of information provided by the spectral filters on the Hubble Space Telescope's Wide Field Camera 3 (WFC3) science instrument. At left, the RGB composite is created using three filters at wavelengths similar to the colors seen by the human eye. At right, the wavelength bounds are widened beyond the visible range to extend just into the ultraviolet (UV) and infrared regimes. Humans cannot perceive these extended wavelengths, but some animals (such as mantis shrimp, whose eyes function similarly to certain sensors on some NASA missions) are able to detect infrared and ultraviolet light. The result is a vivid disk that shows UV-absorbing lofty hazes as orange (over the poles and in three large storms, including the Great Red Spot), and freshly-formed ice as white (compact storm plumes just north of the equator). Astronomers, including the OPAL team, use these filters (and others not shown here) to study differences in cloud thickness, altitude, and chemical makeup. For more information: science.nasa.gov/missions/hubble/nasas-hubble-celebrates-... Image credit: NASA, ESA, Amy Simon (NASA-GSFC), Michael H. Wong (UC Berkeley); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI) Find us on X, Instagram, Facebook and YouTube

[multiheadcanons]

MERCS AS SUNRISES

scout: a sunrise that doesn’t pan out the way you would think. thick, rolling clouds obscuring the more favorable conditions to create the pinks and oranges of a photogenic sunrise, but as the sun climbs higher over the horizon, the dazzling yellow rays that shine through each is enough to wake you. the kinds of sunrises where when a beam of sunshine hits you it felt it was made just for you. the sky is a brilliant, clear blue in minutes. it turns into a picturesque morning, regardless of where you are.

soldier: a sunrise from a cruel sun, most normally found in summers. the kind that, throughout the night you look up and see clouds rolling in and hope for an overcast day to break the heat wave, but as the sun rises it completely eradicates each and every cloud, leaving unbearably hot, humid mornings. the kind where you can tell from the reflection of the sun on your neighbor’s windows it may not be a good day to be outside. but somehow you will end up there.

pyro: a sunrise that comes during a wildfire. it’s red, and smoky, and it’s hard to breathe outside. the kinds of sunrises where you can’t see them, but your heart swells, then drops at the lack of the sound of wildlife. you hope they make it to safety. and as you quietly mutter a prayer, or words of manifestation for their safety, you are hit with the sudden question. what about your safety? how will you get out of this? is there a way out? you are sure there is. we are in too modern of a time for you to not have a way out. but the question will never leave you as you check your go bag. it looks like an apocalypse out there. hell is on your doorstep. you can only hope everyone makes it to safety. including yourself.

demo: vivid, bright sunrises. where the clouds all combine with the sky to give a kaleidoscope of colors. the kind where you step out of your door and are washed in a periwinkle, and if you wait a little longer the periwinkle changes to shades of purple you couldn’t sit down and recreate with the highest tech lightboard and the creativity and time of god and the eyes of a mantis shrimp. the sunrises that make you think that maybe all of the struggle is worth it to see sunrises like this. and maybe it is.

heavy: the sunrises that come after a nightly rain. as the sun rises, the rain softens. leaving you to rise to a wet, muggy morning. that smells of teeming life and plant matter. in cooler weather, you may even get a mist, or a fog that morning. the kinds that you feel you can wander into your front yard and get lost in. the clouds may never truly leave, but the rain is quiet, less aggressive. and for that day, that will do.

engineer: them good sunrises. the ones that literally stun you, the ones where you let out a “gah DAMN!”. bright and vivid and beautiful, everything is awash in pink. pinks warmer than the brightest flower. you are pink. and the sun is the bloodiest orange you’ve ever seen. and the clouds look painted, good god. big bellows of low, lazy drifting clouds dyed pinks and oranges you never thought possible. the kinds of sunrises that by all means had to be created by someone.

medic: hazy and orange. the kind where the sun looks red and it doesn’t hurt to stare at. passing slowly through something you can’t tell from the distance is mist, or cloud, or smog. the sunrise you wake early for no reason to watch, and as you watch it develop you feel the primal urge to take cover. today, mother nature decided she will not be kind. the clouds move slow, to the point where you’re not sure if they’re moving. but they have to be. because it’s only getting darker as the sun climbs higher. it must be a storm on the way. but you just don’t know.

sniper: the kind of sunrise that has you begging for less clouds. the kind where you look up and you see the whispers of pink and purple and blue from between the thicket of clouds. but as the sun continues to rise, there is no color. it’s almost as though you imagined it. just clouds that give you the heavy reminder that they would crush you if they were affected by the earth’s gravity any more than they already are. and so many anviled clouds in the sky, daring to drop whatever they hold alongside themselves. but not a drop of rain to speak of.

spy: a sunrise where it seems like no matter how late you stay up, you are never awake to see the clouds form and cover what could be another sunny day. but, if you’re lucky enough, you get to watch the rain begin. and as the sun climbs higher, the rain gets harder. it stops getting brighter after a while, as the storm clouds continue to roll deeper inland. a breath of fresh air the first few times. until they just don’t stop. these make for wretched afternoons. you stare at stars with the feeling that they wait for everyone to sleep to beckon the clouds in. it almost makes you want to stay up all night, if that keeps the clouds away. like catching santa. but you just can’t stay awake long enough, and you rest, turbulent as the clouds sneak in once again, its thunder dully rumbling before it rises everyone in the early hours of the morn.

[ramshacklerumble]

Name, hobby and quote for Gia, Bobbi and Cusi? :3

NAME: What does your TWST OC’s name mean? Why does Rook/Floyd call them [insert nickname?]

gia yugo

‘gia’ has its roots in italian from what i could see, with the meaning ‘god is gracious.’ it wasn’t on purpose, but the irony isn’t lost on me. i actually didn’t pick the name for its meaning, but rather because when making ‘sonas’ or at the very least ocs that started out as ‘sonas’, i will try to give them names that start with the letter ‘g.’ gia is also a name i’ve been wanting to use ever since i’ve worked with a fellow genderqueer coworker named gia, i just really liked the name and it stuck. ‘yugo’ on the other hand is straight up the spanish word for the wooden frame typically on the backs of oxen, used to carry heavy burdens. hardy har har. it also had the added bonus of starting with the ‘yu’ sound.

i opted to keep the in-game yuu floyd nickname ‘shrimpy’ and actually centered gia’s hairstyle around it so that it made more sense in-verse as to why they get the name, as instead of darting away from him when floyd approaches, they don’t do anything as floyd playfully tugs at their ‘hair antenna.’ as you prolly know by now, the full name wings up being ‘mantis shrimp’ (which is hilariously, not really a shrimp— but that’s also still quite fitting.) gia’s violent streak and devastating right hook get them the title.

when it came to rook’s nicknames for them, though, i did end up choosing something different. when first meeting gia in science club, rook dubs them ‘masque de pierre’ or ‘stone mask’ due to their seemingly unflappable poker face. from book 3 onwards, however, rook gives them the name ‘monsieur géode.’ ‘geode.’ inner beauty, having to break the stone to see what glimmers within. all that good jazz. plus, it fits gia’s rising interest in magestones.

bobbi st. robins | beau fowl

‘bobbi’ comes from ‘robert’ which i’ve seen carry the meaning ‘bright fame’. bobbi was also not a name i picked for the meaning. i didn’t pick the name at ALL, actually. bobbi did. he showed up and told me without any input that his name was bobbi st. robins. spelled exactly like that. ‘st.robins’ or rather ‘saint robins’…well, can’t get any clearer than that, right?

as for his RSA disguise, while i did have to look for it, ‘beau’ came in fairly easy. meaning ‘beautiful’ or ‘handsome’ i found it a fun little fit for one meant to be in pomefiore. it also happens to be phonetically similar to ‘bow’ as in ‘archery bow.’ then you just have ‘fowl’…well, can’t get any clearer than that, right?

floyd originally only knows bobbi as beau, but even after finding out they’re both one and the same many…many years later— he keeps the nickname of ‘pelican.’ something that initially irks bobbi as he takes great pride in his transformations, he’s a STORK. but it’s until later than floyd might have had another reason for calling him so. pelicans really will snatch up anything they can get their bills around.

likewise, rook keeps his nickname for bobbi and beau the same. ‘roi de flèches’. ‘king of arrows.’ there is actually a story behind this one that i’ve been slowly been chipping away at, but for now lets go with: they both simply can’t resist a challenge.

cusi cápac

‘cusi’ comes from the quechua word ‘kusi’, meaning ‘pleasure’ or ‘joy.’ besides sounding similar to ‘kuzco’, i thought that the name fit someone who’s obsessed with indulging in the best life has to offer. she did give me a wicked hard time with her surname, though, to the point where i considered simply not giving her one. that was until she started circling the name ‘cápac’ with bright red marker on the screen— as in ‘manco capac’ the historical figure accredited as first governor and founder of the incan civilization. as well as figure that served as inspiration for the character that would eventually turn into ‘emperor kuzco’ when ‘new groove’ was still being worked as ‘empire of the sun.’ as it stands, i’m actually still researching into giving her a second name as it was a practice among emperors to don a new name when they rose to the throne.

floyd’s nickname for cusi is ‘beadlet anemone.’ she doesn’t like it and won’t respond to it, but it is what it is. floyd couldn’t help but find her comparable to the stubborn little things. won’t move unless they want to, waving their hands in the air like they just do not care, but they’ve got a bit of a sting to them if you try touching them. kinda annoying.

then we have rook, who up until this point, i haven’t figured out a reason why they’d interact— but on the chance they come across each other, rook does dub her ‘empereur d'or’ or ‘golden emperor.’ pretty spot on, honestly.

HOBBY: What are your TWST OC’s hobbies? Who among the cast will they possibly ask to join in their pastime?

gia yugo

prior coming to nrc, before magic flora and magestone creation rotted their brain with glowing mushrooms, gia’s passion was music. in truth, it still is— they’re a not-so-secret metalhead. they play the electric guitar. they don’t have much time to practice it nowadays, but they would secretly practice speed riffs under their parents’ noses. it’s actually something that would’ve gone entirely under the radar in nrc, had gia not once played quick riff on cater’s guitar, unknowingly with lilia as audience. this does kickstart a friendship with lilia as he encourages them into an impromptu jam with him. gia’s love for metal’s many subgenres makes them receptive and highly interested in exploring what twisted wonderland has to offer in the scene. fae folk metal? beastman power metal? ACTUAL PIRATE metal? are you telling them dethwater - album for fishes could be an actual thing?? they’re all for it. point is, if you want see gia have a genuine good time, throw them into a mosh pit.

bobbi st. robins

(theft? eating?) archery is the easy choice here, because frankly it is something bobbi has had interest in ever since he first heard the stories of the thief archer of the woods. and despite being self-taught, bobbi took it well and quick— wanna see him shoot that coin with his feet? he finally gets to show off a little when he enters ‘the arcane exchange’ as he runs into two people willing to give him a challenge. one rook hunt— with whom bobbi has a prior encounter with— and @tixdixl’s huntress, eveline dubois. bobbi and eve have a little back and forth game of hunter and prey that allows him to stretch his fingers and shoulders a bit and to be honest, he does bring a bit of that skill to his spell cast style during spell drive practice.

but adjacent to that hobby, and really the reason why bobbi could even pick up a bow in the first place, is because bobbi enjoys woodcarving. besides making his own bow, bobbi will make little wooden trinkets for the fun of it— or even as gifts. while he’s not particularly ashamed of it, bobbi isn’t as loud about his woodcarving endeavors as he is his archery, so to get something he’s personally made is a good sign.

cusi cápac

DANCE. although calling it a simple ‘hobby’ is an insult to her art. it’s a spiritual experience. cusi is one with the Groove.

she indulges in many styles of dance, but she’s most drawn to waacking when moved to freestyle. she takes up any opportunity to tear up the dance floor and doesn’t care who is around to watch— but contrary to popular belief, cusi appreciates a good dance partner. the Groove can find its way through anyone— from the greatest of royalty to the lowliest of peasants. she often finds herself partnering up with kalim during scarabia’s banquets and it’s not uncommon for dance offs with floyd to happen during basketball club— enough for even jamil to not help joining in despite the friction cusi has with him. cater has even managed to talk cusi to making an occasional post on magicam with him showing off their moves— which was enough for cusi to make an account for herself where she shows off her own choreography, she’s been making a rather rapid rise in followers.

really. it’s a shame she couldn’t attend the SDC auditions due to…a llama situation... but there’s always next year!

QUOTE: Give me something your TWST OC will say. Either something they always say or something iconic they said. Something that helps solve the problems or something that is a catalyst to even more issues.

gia yugo - “Easy. Either this works or it’s not my problem anymore.”

bobbi st. robins - “Sorry, officer. See, my face just looks like this— I look like I’m smiling even when I’m not. Oh no, I’m definitely smiling now.”

cusi cápac - “Not to be dramatic, but if I have to run another lap, I’m finding Vargas’ tracksuit cabinet and hurling into it.”

(i’m so sorry i took so long to answer this wheeze)

taglist:

@cyanide-latte @inmateofthemind @tixdixl @winterweary @thehollowwriter @harryinramshackle

@theleechyskrunkly @skriblee-ksk @boopshoops @the-trinket-witch @twistedwonderlandshenanigans @kimikitti

@s-t-y-x @nightwingshero @water-writings @beneathsakurashade @oya-oya-okay @scint1llat3

@twstinginthewind (dm to be added)

[hetalia-club]

Breaking down America's raw power

I think the best way I can describe how I see Alfred's strength is that of a Mantis Shrimp. Like imagine how strong a Mantis shrimp is but in human size. Never heard of Mantis shrimp? Let me lay it out for you. A mantis Shrimp can throw a punch at 50 miles an hour and when it swings its hand the kinetic force around it makes the water so hot that it boils. The average Mantis shrimp can punch with a force of being hit with 340 lbs of force. Just in one tiny little claw. and that is the average shrimp not one that is seasoned and has been at it awhile the big ones can get u to 1 ft long and the bigger they get the stronger they get. If their punch happens to form a bubble underwater when the bubble pops it is as hot a the surface of the sun. If a human gets punched by one apparently it feels like being shot by a .22. They can easily fracture human bones. People do keep them as pets but they don't make that great of pets because they can shatter aquarium glass.

Now I don't feel like Alfred utilizes this strength very often but that being said I do fully believe he has the strength to punch a hole through someone's chest if he wanted to.

Let's just sort of break it down a little.

Alfred First Discovery:

Has the ability with little to no effort to pick up a full grown bull bison and swing it over its head.

The weight of an average bull bison is 2000 lbs.

Alfred 1940's:

Drug around England car with a single hand for over an hour because he simply wanted to drive it. Again this looks like a Ford model A of some kind and the typical weight for that kind of car in this time period was about 2,500 lbs. Mind you when America finally found England he was not out of breath or even sweating. This was just a regular Tuesday for him.

I think it is just something the Hetalia fandom doesn't really play off of much and everyone just kind of forgets that America is basically a superhero when it comes to strength. I think of him as having One Punch man level strength where he can be as strong as he needs to be for parody's sake.

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I have this theory that the reason that the cold war happened (I am talking Hetalia here not IRL) Is simply because America and Russia were bored. Because I firmly believe America is not alone in having this massive strength though his might be the most intense. I believe Russia has it as well.

We never 'see' it on screen we do get to hear about it from other nations and when Russia was late to a meeting he did tell America that he "Got a raw deal, I had to stop tanks with my bare hands" Everyone was surprised except except America who just said. "Dude that's sick". He wasn't impressed or afraid by it and simply was like "That's a cool way to spend the afternoon". Then in the same instance when they were acting like they were going to get in an actual fight both France and England had to separate then both seeming extremely concerned while doing so like they were trying to prevent a DBZ style fight.

The cold war was just trying to get the two of them not to get into a fist fight because everyone else was afraid what would happen if they did.

There are a couple others who are rumored to have this strength Sweden being one of them. I think Finland said there were a couple more but I can't remember who. Himaruya said before that Italy is extremely powerful but doesn't often show it because he's a 'coward' Now if we think about it, it would be true based on history. He has beaten a lot of powerful nations by himself. Turkey, Spain, Austria, Empire, France, His brother, Hungary-Austria and many others. Italy has historically won more wars than they have lost by a land slide. Epically after they were unified. They were damn near untouchable after that. In fact Italy has lost very few wars and a lot of wars they have fought have ended in a forfeit which there is nothing wrong with understanding when you've lost and throwing in the towel. It's stupider to keep fighting when you're continuing to lose.

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People seem to think that the UK follows America into battle whenever they go but that's simply not the case if you look up American wars you will see a little green, white and red flag with us even when the UK and Canadian flag isn't there.

I know I'm rambling but I fully believe what I'm saying is true. Maybe starting my HFC poll is sparking it in me thinking just how strong they would actually be.

[splitting-infinities]

how am i supposed to do anything in this environment. i still have to go to work even though everything is falling apart around me. i wash my dishes and do laundry. I force myself to get up every morning even though I just want to sit in the fetal position and cry from the stress and anxiety. I get praise at work for doing things I'm very good at. My face is scanned by the facial recognition software at the airport as I travel for work. I react stonily as my grandfather, an immigrant, praises trump and calls other immigrants "loafers" while on facetime with me. I do a zumba workout. I listen to my dad tell me about how he's glad they got rid of USAID and DEI and then he tells me he loves me. I recycle and buy thrifted clothes and then take a run to goodwill. I go to the library and wonder how long I'll still have a library to go to. I eat a spinach and beet salad because i need more vitamins in my diet. I wait to be fired from my job. I read Everything Is Tuberculosis and feel mantis shrimp levels of rage and compassion. I'm still wearing masks even if nobody else is. I go to a rally. The next season of my favorite show should be out soon. My work wants me to use the AI assistant. I do not want to use the AI assistant. I drink my favorite tea and it is good. The fucking connections puzzle today is too hard and it made me cry. The law apparently isn't real anymore. I made cushions from scratch so I can sit on my patio in the sun. It's 75 degrees Fahrenheit in March in the mountains and hasn't snowed in weeks. My dream job no longer exists. I'm alive. I'm not doing great. In fact I'm doing really bad. When coworkers ask how my weekend was I say oh it was great, I met a cute dog.

[the--ron]

Soooo here's my rant about mantis/ pistol shrimp. Sorry in advance for grammer, spelling, and overall English. All these thoughts are going to be very random, unnecessary, and very... passionate. So read at your own risk.

So to get into it, pistol shrimp are fucking insane. They are so small and yet they can produce the heat of the SUN in a fraction of a second. Mantis shrimp are pistol shrimp but mele. They don't produce heat though, their energy is converted into movement instead. This reason is why I hate it when I bring up pistol shrimp in conversation and the other person says "aren't they just boring mantis shrimp?" NO they are 1. Not boring and 2. Not mantis shrimp. The only few things they have in common are that they both have tension based function in their claws, they are both shrimp, and they are both surprisingly deadly.

So, how do they work you didn't ask? Well, in pistol shrimp, there is one big claw and one lil claw. The lil claw is just a normal claw but the big claw is a fucking gun. The big claw has three pieces: the middle thingy, the half with a hole in it, and the half with a plunger in it. The plunger fits in the hole almost perfectly (get yo mind out of the gutter) The middle thingy works like a spring in a wind up toy, opening the claw farther and farther as the tension rises in the claw. Tension=build up of energy and when you have a build up of energy, you need a release. The release is where the heat develops. The amount of energy that is built up in about a second creats an explosion of heat and movement in a singular bubble. Said heat and movement pops the bubble quickly, but in that little time, the pistol shrimp has stunned (or killed) and burnt their opponent. Now on to the mantis shrimp; I am going to admit, I don't know as much about them as I know about pistol shrimp. They have almost the same claw structure but instead of one big claw, there's two, instead of plunger/hole it's simply half and half with ball, and instead of tension pushing outward, it's tension pulling in. Think pistol shrimp but brawler. Instead of pulling back to shoot, it's pulling back to punch your face so hard it cracks your whole scull into fourths. So, to explain it simply, a mantis shrimp's arms go \/\ (like a mantis) but the last /\ is a big, skinny claw. The claw closes in the same way the pistol shrimp claw opens. As it releases, it produces a lot of motion and force in the claw as it snaps back into place. This release of energy is how it is able to break open a fucking TURTLE SHELL IN ONE PUNCH.

Anyway, I like fish. I hope you enjoyed my rant.

/lh