#modern bug army

[willowve01]

Modern AU

Not going to lie, I thought about this AU in private for a while before @rozeliyawashereyall helped me gain that confidence to share it with the army. (And the writers more-less)

My personal headcannon of this AU is similar to Demon Slayers ending—where they’re all eventually reborn into a future timeline where everything is better. Still sticking to the sirenverse Al’terra, I made society somewhat the same.

Halfbloods are tolerated much better within this society but there is always that bad apple—like Circe. Roze and I came up with the idea of a sort of Mafia vibe (based off Obi’s Gator Boys 2nd Anniversary art) to the AU, though that’s more of the Founders thing. (Anyone is welcome to join if they wish) All the other bugs live their life as street vendors, performers, journalists, etc.

As for the Founders, they are bounty hunters, modeling as a side-gig. Looking for Circe Fain due to the various crimes she committed; trafficking/man-slaughter/slavery/there’s more. Our Founders just-so-happen to work for The Boys, working to get Bog Boss’s family back.

The Founders: @asmrbrainrot, @rozeliyawashereyall and myself.

[willowve01]

I’m reblogging this again, because I love this so much.

The Gals ever.

Some more doodles of modern bugs to go along :3 + one Korey angst because I can

Anywho- what's your bug's favorite hobby to pass the time?

@willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @iistxrmyskyii @astralbulldragon13 @kaiamtt @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @fangsshadow @keyaartz @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @littlesiren79 @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @wilderrorcard @diamondzoey @fennaboysenberry @lunnats @lightdragon789

[diamondzoey]

Rules of the bug army house!

Marco walks into their house: Alright bugs sorry to bother you but- *Sees a whiteboard* umm… what is that in the wall?

Korey: umm.. So that, that’s a white board

Emerald: of all the rules we have for the house

Marco: you guys made rules for yourselves?

Chester: Uhh yeah.. We realize we needed it, after a lesson a day of living with each other sooo.. have that

Raine: Yeah and as the time goes on we add to the list, sooo

Calix: it’s been growing

Marco:….Let me see that

-a few seconds later-

All of the bugs and Marco are sitting down

Marco looking at the list of rules: Rule No.1 No sparing, training, fighting, etc.. after dinner, seems fair enough

Duarte: See, it’s not that bad

Marco: Rule No. 2 Lamia and calamity are not allowed in a room together unsupervised.. also understandable..,

Jemma: see, that was made after they almost blew up the house after the first night

Lamia huffs: I said I was sorry, also he started it *While pointing at calamity*

Calamity: you little-

Marco: Rule No.3 neither Jemma nor Korey are allowed in the kitchen unsupervised…why?

Easton: Well Korey would burn the kitchen and jemma can’t cook and will burn the food she’s making into a crisp

Marco:…Okay, Rule No.4 Duarte is not allowed to babysit the baby bugs unsupervised..what?

Chester: Well when she does she teaches the baby bugs curse words

Marco shrugs his shoulders: Fair, Rule No.5 if you hear one of the bugs playing in someone’s room, leave them alone. Okay, I don’t understand this one

Malachi: basically means that they are going through it and they need to be left alone

Easton: No question asked

Marco: Rule No.6 Sunday brunch is mandatory- what are these rules!?

Emerald: Sunday brunch is necessary for team bonding, come on Marco

Azren: besides the rules get better trust me

Marco looks at the list: Rule No. 7 if any one dyes their hair red they must only do it in their bathroom

Calamity: Yes, so that was from when I dyed my hair in the kitchen, apparently I got red dye everywhere..

Victor: And it looked like a crime scene

Jemma: Sammy and some of the other bugs was traumatized for days

Marco: Oh my..Okay, Rule No.8 Jemma or Lamia needs to wear gloves every time they sleep

Vincent: yeah we found out after night 3 that they both sleep walkers

Jemma: I’m NOT a sleep walker!

Chester: Okay then explain why the couch lit on fire last night?

Jemma: I don’t know maybe you were dreaming??

Korey: it wasn’t a dream if all of us saw it

Marco: Okay moving on..Rule No.9 if anyone hurts one of the bugs or the gator boys, the bugs are allowed to beat that person up

Easton: yeah we made that rule when Jemma almost rip Sammy’s bio mom’s hair out

Jemma: 😊

Marco: Alright..Moving to rule no.10

Vincent: Oh my divines, this one is my favorite!

Marco: If someone picks up a nerf gun…? Everyone in the same room must immediately pick one up and participate in a nerf..Battle…Is that why there are so many nerf guns lying around?

Duarte: Yup and you pretty much keep going until there’s only one person left standing!

Calix: it’s very intense

Marco: oh okay.. Rule No.11 Sammy is not allowed to have weapons near him

Azren: yeah that rule was made when he accidentally fired a tranquil dart at victor and he was out for days

Marco: Okay, Rule No.12 Azren is not allowed to sleep outside when it’s winter?

Joan: yeah that was after the many times he almost turned into a human shaped ice cube many times

Azren: Hey!

Marco: Alright, Rule No.13 twister is not allowed to be played in the house, why?

Easton: that was because after few games of twister some of us got turn into a human pretzels and took hours to get unstuck

Marco:…Rule No.14 every week everyone gets to pick a activity to do that week

Amber: me and Lucy made that rule because we thought it was be a fun experience to do everyone’s activity UwU

Marco: Alright… Rule No.15 Jemma is not allowed to use her fire power in the house

Jemma: Yeah that was after I accidentally burned the kitchen because I thought if I use my fire power it would cook the food I was making faster

Duarte: it didn’t

Marco: Okay… Rule No.16 Monopoly is banned, that’s a rule?

Chester: Monopoly ruins friendships, Marco

Emerald: Basically Raine way too good at it

Malachi: there’s also been times when the board had been broken too many times

Vincent: first instance being calamity and the second time Jemma almost beat Raine in monopoly and Jemma accidentally lit the board on fire

Amber: So…

Azren: The last time we played calamity throw the board game out the window

Marco:…Okay, Final rule- Rule No.17 always remember that we’re a team/Family, Aw that’s pretty sweet

Duarte: that is correct Marco, we have to remember to work together in times like these

Marco: Times like these?, what do you-*Sees that all of the bugs have nerf guns*

Marco: Well is that a nerf gun in your hand…?

Nash: refer to rule No.10 Marco

Sammy: if someone picks up a nerf gun, everyone in the same room must pick a nerf gun and participate in a nerf gun battle

Marco: You- You’re not being serious…?

Let’s just say a nerf gun battle begin

————————————————

A/n: am finally done, this took me three hours to write , also what would you add to the rules?

The bugs in this

Korey- @rozeliyawashereyall

Emerald- @aspenm00n

Chester- @not-5-rats

Raine- @willowve01

Calix- @pinkcocopuff-aqualoid

Duarte- @puffin-smoke

Jemma/Lamia- @diamondzoey

Azren/calamity- @strayharmony943

Sammy- @ccstiles

Easton- @itsargyle

Victor/Vincent- @littlesiren79

Nash- @lightdragon789

Amber- @astralbulldragon13

Malachi- @stxph-artist

Joan- @rustycopper4use

Lucy- @castbracelet240

[tiefling-chaos]

Modern au lily-Ann now that I can better draw her body type

[castbracelet240]

So I made a post a week (I think) ago on if I should draw dnd Lucy or Lucy and her past. Lucy with her past won, so now the “fun” part…figuring that out.

anyway question time for the bugs! And a scenario or two.

what are your bugs favorite hobbies?

scenario 1

Lucy Anya and your bug went to the village to get some supplies, on the way back Lucy shoved your bug and Anya out of the way of a arrow and caught it in her hand. Lucy turned to where the arrow came from and got tackled to the ground by a man that was at least 6’7 (it’s Ragnar)He wore a fur cloak and called Lucy traitor instead of her name. They started arguing as Lucy tried to kick him off of herself.

Lucy: the hell do you want Ragnar?! Ragnar: your death! You were a curse upon the village, you’re the reason Marina is dead and our son doesn’t have his mother! Lucy: it was a accident! I lost control!

Lucy then kicked Ragnar off of her, flipped over to be on her hand and knees as she reached for her dagger that was strapped to her belt on the back.

question 2

beach day modern au!

the bugs went to the beach. Anya is with some of the bugs getting ready for volleyball as Lucy gets hers and some other surf boards out from the back of her truck. what activity would your bug do on the beach?

Scenario 2

angst!

your bug sees a memory of when Lucy was in her early twenties and Anya was still a little kid, the memory shows when Lucy had horrible phantom pains from her burn scar and the scar under her eye. It was bad enough that Anya had ran to get help and came back with Warren (Warren is/was Anya’s father figure) your bug realizes the day of the memory marked three years since Marina’s and Lucy’s adoptive father’s death.

@rozeliyawashereyall @willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @kaiamtt @iistxrmyskyii @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @keyaartz @fangsshadow @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @not-5-rats @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @threeweekinsomnia @recated @wilderrorcard @diamondzoey @fennaboysenberry @lunnats @lightdragon789 @pinkcocopuff-aqualoid @itsargyle @astralbulldragon13 @puffin-smoke

[willowve01]

Can you tell us some facts about modern au Bill and Raine :3

Personal HC: Timothy and Raine knew each other growing up, hence how she knows about his family and their business.

Raine is a bounty hunter that formerly worked under Circe,simply for the training. She got hella trained by both them and her uncle, becoming she’s a strong, skilled fighter in close combat— fyi, she still has her abnormal strength.

* She isn’t always tough, she just takes her job seriously. But during the day hours, she’s that kind and compassionate woman many had grown at adore seeing after a long day.

* She still has Wybie in this universe. She found him as a stray kitten and has kept him since.

As for Bill, he’s the Chief of Police. That would make the niece and uncle enemies because she works for the Mafia right? Wrong.

My guy goes out of his way to dispose of and tamper with evidence that leads remotely close to her. Meanwhile, he gives her intel about a target she’s after; their location, crimes committed, etc.

* Bill has a bionic leg after an accident while on the job. He still works in his position and preforms just as well.

* Has a K-9 with him at all times: his name is Rex.

* His personality is somewhat similar to Rolden and Bodie combined; hella intimidating but understanding, forgiving and compassionate despite the shit he’s seen and been through.

[diamondzoey]

More questions for the bug army let’s go!

1. What do they do on a winter day?

2. Actor Au!

Jemma in her costume while filming pirate swap Au: how long do we have to film for?

3. If they were in the twisted wonderland game which dorm would they be in

4. Modern Au!

If they got put in jail why was the reason?

5. If they were to punch one person from their past who would it be

6. If the bugs were to wear high heels would they be good walking in them or would they fall face first?

7. What If jemma showed her burned scar on her face she got from the boiling water that poured over the left side of her face which she hides, how would they react?

8. High school Au

Favorite and least favorite class and why?

9. Villain Au >:3

If they were fighting a hero and say hero asks why did they become a villain in the first place what would bug name say?

A/n: I hope you enjoy and if I forget anyone let me know

@willowve01 @keyaartz @asmrbrainrot @iistxrmyskyii @astralbulldragon13 @piffany666 @littlesiren79 @aspenm00n @kaiamtt @stxph-artist @rustycopper4use @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @tiefling-chaos @rozeliyawashereyall @fennaboysenberry @lightdragon789 @pinkcocopuff-aqualoid @not-5-rats @itsargyle @ccstiles @puffin-smoke @aces-oceans @lunnats

[diamondzoey]

I saw this so let’s go!

1. Jemma would follow the red string

2. Well jemma would be purple, while lamia would be pink

3. Jemma’s music taste would be classic

4. Jemma would kick the creep where the sun don’t shine and would glare at the creep and tells them to leave Chester alone

5. Spirits or divines

6. Cuddles or making them gifts

7. Her biological father

8. Jemma would choose option 2 because she wanted to forget her time at the lab but she still wants to remember her adoptive family

Well call me Scott Smajor cause I have questions (pls get that refrence-)

1) Y'know those universes where a red string connects soulmates (platonic or romantic) by their wrists? Yeah your Bug's in that universe, what do they do? (Do they follow the string? Cut it? Wait for their soulmate to find them? WHAT HAPPENS BRO)

2) Describe your Bug as a colour (specific shades people) ((this has probably been asked before, sorry))

3) Modern! AU

What's your bugs music taste like?

4) Scenario! (tw: creep)

The Bugs were at the park, some were playing in the actual park bit, some were simply enjoying the sun but Chez was sat on the grass. He had a jacket underneath him and a notebook in his hands, he was taking notes on the flowers he could see around him. He seemed happy...until a stranger came and sat down right beside him

Stranger: Well hello there, what you doing over here all on your own darling?

Chester tried to politely tell the stranger that he was simply looking at the plants which he didn't think required a companion, this made the person laugh

Stranger: Oh come on, you can't seriously be that interested in a bunch of plants. Why don't you come with me? I'm sure we could get up to something a lot more interesting than looking at some grass

Chester kept trying to politely tell the stranger that he wasn't interested in whatever they were offering but the stranger wouldn't take no for an answer, they kept talking and shuffling closer to Chez. Then they put their arm around his shoulders causing him to tense up...but he wasn't doing anything to get rid of them. He was so good at helping others get rid of creeps yet for some reason he froze up whenever he was being pestered

What does your bug do?

5) What kind of spiritual creatures does your bug believe in? (Gods, spirits, ghosts, angels, etc)

6) What's your bugs way of showing love/affection?

7) Your Bug is being forced to forget one person from their life, entirely, they won't remember a single things about them. Who do they forget?

8) (sort of similair to 7)

Your Bug has a choice

Option 1. Abandon all the Bugs, they will never see any of them again but they will remember everything from their time together (the Bugs will also remember them but a traitor who left them for no reason)

Option 2. Forget everybody they knew before the Bugs, everybody in their life before they met the Boys & Bugs just gone from their memory (everyone from their past will also forget them, as if Bug never existed to them)

Which do they choose?

Tags -

@rozeliyawashereyall @willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @kaiamtt @iistxrmyskyii @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @keyaartz @fangsshadow @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @littlesiren79 @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @threeweekinsomnia @recated @wilderrorcard @diamondzoey @fennaboysenberry @lunnats @lightdragon789 @pinkcocopuff-aqualoid @itsargyle @astralbulldragon13 @ccstiles @puffin-smoke

[tiefling-chaos]

Here have Lily-Ann in her modern day au outfit this one also showcases the scar from the bear ( and sorry that it is being weird and layered on top of the clothes. I could not figure out how to get it layered under. )

[raymurata]

Just scroll (or go ahead and block my #dav critical tag) if you don't wanna read me whining abt Bellara's Archive choice again, but I'm not done with the salt.

What bugs me isn't that the choice to destroy the archive exists, it's that the game frames it, through its UI (which is the closest thing we have to a nonbiased narrator in this medium), as equally weighted against the opposite choice.

If they had worded it like this:

"Free the archive (the knowledge will be lost)" x "Keep the archive (the knowledge will be kept)"

With no extra commentary, then that would be better. If you got to be openly racist against the Dalish or openly in favor of the Dalish, period. Just like in previous games.

Bellara says "(the archive would help us) get back what made us who we were," and "With it, we could be that again."

Which is funny because... People don't study history to return to the past. It's fine if Bellara is idealistic and saying whatever unrealistic, grandiose dreams she and Cyrian had, but the Dalish would never (could never) become like the ancient elves again. For starters there is a Veil now. So what it would in fact do is help them understand where they come from, what they've been through, and trace the changes in their culture.

Of course our modern historians and scientists have tried to reclaim lost technology, too. They've figured out how the Romans made their extra sturdy concrete, and scientists in Brazil have long been trying to replicate the extra fertile Terra Preta from indigenous peoples that lived in the Amazon basin, and several South American historians would love to know how exactly the Inca used the quipu as a writing system aside from counting tool, etc... And that's super cool!!! And maybe (but that's a big maybe) the Archive could give the Dalish a technological edge to carve a corner of the world for themselves without the constant struggle with Tevinter trying to enslave them or Andrastians trying to subjugate them.

But I personally don't think anyone's reading Aztec accounts of human sacrifices to replicate the same practices in modern cults, or that there is an army out there utilizing Roman decimation as a method of discipline. We're using different horrific methods of control now, lol.

But let's say a modern general does decide that the best way to punish a battalion for one man's insurgence is to force every group of ten soldiers to violently murder the 10th man.... Do you really think that the fault would lie with the historian who unearthed that information and put it on Wikipedia? Or the insane general that decided to do this? Would modern morality and laws allow for that punishment to be executed? Do you think that the existence of that article online is inherently dangerous and controversial, and that it should be taken down? Do you think this general would have been a good and non-violent general if he hadn't ever read about Decimation? Or is it clear to you that violence and ingenuity are both inherent to mortals as a whole and can't be so easily blamed on the spread of knowledge?

Because it's not clear to DAV. The game (not Bellara, not Varric) words it very unambiguously as a dichotomy: The only safe way to deal with this Archive is to destroy it. Keeping it is inherently dangerous because the knowledge could fall in "the wrong hands."

What Bellara says is "Cyrian is gone because of what that thing knew," and "what about the bad side, the other things we did?" and "We stole the dwarves' dreams."

Again, she gets to say whatever she wants because she's a character and she's an anxious, idealistic mess. Love her for it. I like that she feels guilt here too because she has been established (through her way of dealing with Cyrian's first death) as someone who takes the blame for mistakes she didn't even commit (She certainly isn't responsible for Solas' actions). She's someone who drives herself sick cooking up the most horrific scenarios in her mind, and she's so compassionate she can't stand the thought of being the one perpetrating violence against innocents. Her misplaced guilt and dread are the emotions that lead her to consider destroying the Archive.

But no matter how guilty a young german may feel about the holocaust, destroying knowledge about gas chambers is not what will prevent other genocides from happening around the world. Individual guilt is barely productive.

Furthermore, Corinne Bursche says that DAV gives you a choice between "destroying" or "sharing" elven knowledge, which is not how the game worded it. But the point still stands even if the Veil Jumpers, for some condescending plot reason, completely lost control of this knowledge, or were so flippant as to put everything on Thedas' wikipedia without curing it at all.

Let's accept, too, that the Archive contains knowledge of how to build something equivalent to nuclear weapons, which one could argue is in fact truly dangerous, but... Well. Do you think it's fair that the countries that have nuclear arsenals are some of the most vocal about the dangers of other countries ever developing their own?

Because that's what it feels like, to me, when the game calls elven knowledge dangerous without ever allowing you to question -- what about Tevinter rituals and magic? Tevinter's millennium of slavery, still in practice at present day? Should we destroy all their libraries too to keep the world safe from dangerous magics? Why do we only get to tell the Dalish, the nomad nations severely subjugated in present Thedas (If you ever played the previous games and have the context, at least, since this game that happens in Tevinter somehow manages to completely gloss over racism against elves as if it never existed) to destroy a one-of-a-kind, ancient trove of knowledge? And have it be framed as good and safe? As "moving forward"?

If you choose to free the archive, Rook says "The elves deserve the chance to chart their own course" to which Bellara answers "Right. Define ourselves by who we are, not who we were," but once again that writing just makes me question Bioware -- Do they not understand the point of history at all? Do they think indigenous peoples are monoliths stuck in the past if they choose to study the history they lost to colonialism? What purpose do they think that keeping that history and culture extinct serves? Who do they think it benefits?

If you step outside of what the game is telling you as fact and think for yourself, with the context of the other DA games in mind, do you still agree that it's inherently dangerous to keep the Archive? Do you still think these are equally morally weighted choices?

Or would you agree that DAV has to subtly convince you, out of character, that keeping this knowledge is inherently dangerous to make this dichotomy make sense?

Again. This wouldn't bug me if they just owned up to the fact your protagonist can, once again, genocide elves/their culture, just like in previous games. And scapegoat present elves too for the sins of their thousand-years-old tyrants, now suddenly returned (it would make so much sense for characters in the narrative to scapegoat the elves, and for us as heroes to fight against that. But no, they don't even go there except through Bellara's guilt.). It's just bizarre to have an elven historian guiltily agreeing with destroying the Archive and then telling us "The Evanuris broke us and kept us broken" without anyone, either Rook or her, ever mentioning a thousand years of Tevinter slavery and several centuries of Andrastian persecution and subjugation.

No. The Evanuris are the be-all and end-all of evil and everything bad that ever happened in Thedas, ever, can be traced back to them.

[frostycatblr-fandom-files]

Hi Frost! Congrats on the 200 followers 😍 if you're up for it I'd love a little fic with one of the Bad Batch boys (your pick) and meeting someone online? Can be canon or modern au, but developing a crush before they've ever met in person. Fem or GN is fine. Details can be up to you!

Congrats again 🧡

Cyber Crush [Wrecker x Fem!Reader]

Story Summary: When a hot new dating site hits the Holonet dedicated to the soldiers of the Grand Army appears practically overnight, it becomes all the rage for many a hopeful romantic living in Republic space. No one’s admitting to who created it, or why, but you’re simply too curious to not check it out for yourself. You get lucky and end up hitting it off very well with the first soldier you match to, Wrecker of Clone Force 99. A mutual crush leads into a small handful of “digital dates” before there’s finally an opportunity for the real deal.

Warnings & Information: Second Person POV; undescribed, unnamed Fem!Reader living on Coruscant. Clone Dating Service AU. All dating profiles have little clues to various Clones [some are my OCs; most are Canon!]. Minor amount of Star Wars and real-world swearing. Some use of Mando’a. Narrative and stylistic use of italics. 

Word count: 6,630

The old proverb “Curiosity killed the Loth-cat, but satisfaction brought it back.” had never been more true than tonight as you opened a new browser on your home terminal and pecked in the URL scribbled upon a strip of flimsiplast taken from a tear-off flyer. 

You had just gotten home after a long day of running errands, making the very last just before the evening rush-hour was initiated by Coruscant’s diverse nightlife. It’d been a hurried grocery run; grabbing only missing essentials for dinner. You were probably in and out in less than five minutes. Seven tops. There was nothing out of the ordinary when you ducked into the store. Ducking out, however…

Well it was impossible to miss. Fliers had been stuck to every conceivable surface – probably a hundred more at the average eye-level alone. There must have been a huge group of people working together to hang up this many in such a short time. Nothing really remarkable about them from a distance, either. 

A closer inspection showed all of them bore the Republic’s eight-spoke Galactic Roundel along with a tantalizing offer. 

“Wishing the nice night you had at 79’s was EVERY night? Take one to find out how!” 

You couldn’t really resist discovering what this was for yourself. Pocketing one of the strips, you hurried home and threw anything temperature-sensitive into the conservator first, thinking this would only be a quick peek. 

Dinner could afford to wait a few minutes. You just have to see for yourself what was being teased about a popular hangout in the Entertainment District from such an otherwise nondescript flyer. Which… maybe you should have used the incognito feature for. The welcome message on the landing page is ambiguous enough to cause uncertainty of the “service” being advertised, but the growing allure proves more powerful than your caution. 

"WELCOME TO THE #1 HOTTEST SITE ON THE HOLONET – GUYS OF THE GAR!

"Looking for a sensitive, sweet or strong soldier to steal your heart? Please sign in or create an account to make use of our services!"

Curiosity nips at your heels. The cursor hovers thoughtfully over “Sign Up!” for a quiet moment. A dating service? For the Grand Army of the Republic? To hell with it, you decide. There’s no harm in looking! 

Clicking in, you’re presented with a small pop-up window after creating a username and password. 

‘Thank you for showing interest in the newly-developed and secretly-run Clone Dating Service (CDS). Be advised that our site is closely monitored at all times and in spite of our last “fumigation” before the site went live, there may still be a few stubborn bugs. They will be squashed shortly. - CDS Sysadmin’ 

Dismissing the pop-up opens the profile editor for you. (Rather convenient.) In the bottom left corner of the page sits an animated, digital “mascot” of sorts. It, or rather he, looks mostly like a standard Clone - granted one who’s been stylized in such a way to appear more “cutesy”. The helmet is slightly oversized, lending to a bobble-headed image, and the visor is very… shiny. 

Inclusion of a digital mascot is unexpected; that kind of quirk is rare these days now that the practice has largely lost its charm. Relievingly, this one is not immediately annoying. He salutes, informs you of his purpose through a small speech bubble, then falls silent and assumes a parade rest position. 

“Clicks, reporting for duty! I’ve been assigned to cover your six in case you run into trouble setting up your CDS profile!” 

For a site that went live very recently, you’re impressed by how many options have been provided. There was a matchmaking service run by “in-house” analysts, or the option to self-match with profiles that fit within selected parameters. Additionally, you could opt for in-person dates, long distance relationships, keep it strictly online, or, curiously, even be pen pals. 

That option creates some pause. Why would a dating service offer a pen pal program? You do a little digging around the site before editing anything. 

Was this something new cooked up by the Commision for the Protection of the Republic - some clever bit of COMPOR propaganda to drum up more support for their literal poster boys? Were they the ones behind this? 

Strangely enough, you can’t find anything that smells like their usual influence. You continue to look around, even trawl through other parts of the Holonet to find an answer while making dinner. (No sense doing detective work on an empty stomach.) There are many varying schools of thought muddying the waters, but nothing that puts a bad taste in your mouth about the Guys of The GAR CDS at the same time. 

Profiles promise to be “pretty painless” to create and deactivate. Militaristic lingo had two possible explanations: the CDS was made by the Clones themselves or it was part of the theming. Naysayers casting doubt on whether or not these profiles actually belonged to GAR soldiers were quieting as the mountain of evidence only grew. Incredibly, there were already multiple reports of dates set to meet at 79’s tonight - of which was rumored to involve one of the Corries. 

And admittedly, those reports looked pretty damn legitimate. Okay, the pen pal thing is still a little odd, but you decide to proceed as planned. 

Beginning with the basics, a few tiny embellishments are added to your lists of interests, hobbies, and personality traits. Not so much that it becomes dishonest, but enough to add intrigue. Then came the oft-dreaded photo selection process. Call it a stroke of luck that finding something high-quality and you liked well enough didn’t take too terribly long. And finally, an optional ice breaker question. 

This you opt to skip for the time being. You’re far too eager to get right into the heart of it and waste no time selecting your preference of services. 

Clicks “speaks” for the second time after you hit ‘Submit and Save’, breaking from parade rest to offer two thumbs up. “You’ll have your boots on the ground in no time! Please just give the CDS a moment to finish filling out the roster. It should be available shortly.” True to the digital mascot’s words, the site offers a batch of eight profiles to start with, labeled RO for Roster One. 

“Good luck!” he adds before assuming formation once again. 

Looking over RO, you feel your heart quickening with excitement. You have a promising listing full of very intriguing prospects. It provides a two word moniker, tagline of sorts, detachment, and the chosen services for every Clone - his likes and dislikes included in the expanded view of his particular listing. A small taste of who he is as an individual person. 

What truthfully grabs your attention the most is a promise of getting the trooper’s name on one fair condition: a successful match. 

The rest of your evening was free and there were no pressing responsibilities to take care of tomorrow. This gave you the freedom to spend however much time you’d like on the CDS tonight with the rest of the galaxy’s hopeful romantics. 

So what were you waiting for?

ROSTER ONE 

Blue Hawk 

Very experienced. 

Deployment: Legion

Preference: Matchmaking 

Gentle Giant 

Date me, and I GUARANTEE you'll have a blast! 

Deployment: Specialty/Commandos

Preference: Self Match, In-Person, Long Distance

Glorious Daylight 

If you think my scar looks bad, you should see the other guy.

Deployment: Battalion

Preference: Other/Hidden

Last Domino 

ARC troopers do it better.

Deployment: Specialty/Commandos

Preference: In-Person, Pen Pals

Lost Eyebrows 

Enough heart and soul to go around! 

Deployment: Specialty/Commandos

Preference: Other/Hidden

Missing Paintbrush

Made a profile because I lost a bet to my brothers. (Thanks, guys…)

Deployment: Legion

Preference: Pen Pals, Self Match

Silver Moon 

Only here to keep my one good eye on my men. Sorry in advance about “Filthy Flower”.

Deployment: Battalion 

Preference: Other/Hidden 

Young King

I’ll be as loyal to you as I am to the Republic. 

Deployment: Legion

Preference: Long Distance, Matchmaking

Taking a moment to peruse this small wealth of choices here within Roster One, you gradually gain a better understanding of the site mechanics available. There are no pictures to look at – conceivably, by design. Maybe the idea is once you match with a trooper, you get more than just his name, but some idea of his physical image. Mildly ingenious. 

Your given options are ‘Like’, ‘Dismiss’ and ‘Maybe’. Results will refine themselves accordingly, steadily supplying the best possible prospects for subsequent rosters. You wonder how large the CDS dating pool is at this very moment. Hundreds, maybe thousands of live profiles? How many more were well on their way - set to join the database by the end of the week? Hopefully the Clone Dating Service had a plan (or two) to accommodate the sheer number of civilians making profiles and the influx of digital foot-traffic they were likely to see... 

Could get hairier than a Wookie for their servers if everyone and their tooka created a profile on Coruscant, alone. A trillion or so people lived here. Turn the scope out to the entire rest of the galaxy and it was nigh impossible to get an accurate sense of the populace. You’d sooner find a way to reintroduce nature to the Jewel of the Core Worlds than acquire such records. 

How long will this ‘Guys of The GAR’ be sticking around, anyway? 

How likely would it be that you, competing with trillions of other sentient lifeforms, find someone who could end being right for you? 

You look again at Roster One. Unsure of what “right” looks like to begin with, you read what little information is provided again and again. Maybe you’re looking for casual, laidback experiences. Or yearning for depth and devotion. Putting what it is you hope for into words is not as simple as you thought. 

Something about the second from the top speaks to you over all the others. It starts first as a whisper. Before long it grew louder. Clearer. What could it be about this soldier who dubbed himself “Gentle Giant” that you return to his profile more than the rest? His non-specific promise of a good time? And in the midst of a war, no less. 

He identified himself as some variation of SpecOps; such a service might come with elevated privileges whenever he’s granted leave (or leisure or liberty or whatever they call it). Could it be that Gentle Giant has special connections and/or favors to collect on – something he hopes to make use of with slightly more select company? 

With another tooka for your curiosity to threaten, you take one final opportunity to consider. 

The bait set on this hook was mighty tempting. You’re willing to take a chance with it. Test your luck. You select ‘Like’, knowing that all you can do now is wait. Hope. Keep your search going. Requesting the next roster, your examination only takes you as far as the third profile before the digital mascot is vying for your attention. 

“Incoming transmission!” Clicks exclaims, his shiny blue-black visor now blinking green. “This is straight from command: you’ve received your first successful match! Shall I patch you through now?” 

For a beat, you do nothing, surprised. Hadn’t been very long at all and you already had an eager bite of your own. 

Curious, you open the notification presented to you by Clicks. The portal for direct messaging opens to some rather sunny correspondence from Gentle Giant - evidence of a social and friendly disposition. 

Giant: Hi miss! Thanks for matching with me. Love your pictures!

You type out a partial reply, half hoping there’s no indicator for Giant to watch. It might show him when you stop to open his CDS profile in another tab and have a look at the expanded information. At the uploaded pictures with… Are those hand-written notes? Aside from the commentary left on each of them, and perhaps the fact he wore (a majority of) his armor in most, there is a more immediate theme throughout all of these images. 

Gentle Giant wore his helmet in every last shot. 

That, you don’t entirely think too much of. He had been upfront about his classification as some variety of specialty soldier; which the unique shape and ominous rancor-inspired design would be very befitting of. You’re more focused (and perhaps even impressed) by the thorough attention to detail everything has been given. 

Safety measures, you would guess, that the helmet is an extension of. Reflective surfaces are covered by large drop cloths. Data screens in the background are set to display little bits of trivia, playful messages or jokes. Anyone in the frame had their face obscured by helmets, hoods, or strategically positioned items such as datapads. (And a whole GNK-series power droid, in one case.) That’s the sort of thoroughness Gentle Giant, and the squad with him, by the look of it, had put into everything. 

You won’t get to see his face or really anything that isn’t carefully curated. Maybe not for a while yet, depending on how the first exchange plays out. That doesn’t mean there isn’t already plenty about him that you can see. 

Showing off for the camera, the black undersuit has been rolled up past his elbows to show off well-muscled forearms in the third image out of the collection. Basked in the light of some midday sun, the familiar warmly tanned and rich brown skin many knew the Clones for almost appeared to glow. You can’t tell what planet he’s on. Nor what he’s holding up to the picture-taker with a pair of firm, dexterous hands. Some kind of quad-eyed fish, perhaps?

From the fourth picture you can infer that he must be strong. This, like the picture before, is also posed. Gentle Giant stands in a typical bodybuilder’s pose against a brushed-metal wall; his legs shoulder-width apart, elbows raised high. With a pair of troopers sitting on each arm you’ll have to settle for imagining the biceps firmly flexing beneath them. No clues come from the small-print annotations about who they are, only that they wear the same set of armor labeled with the following. 

“K-Class armor, 20kg; not that wimpy 6kg stuff!” 

A second annotation states the soldiers stand 1.83m tall, Giant at 1.96m. Damn, wouldn’t that put him at six-foot-five or six-foot-six? Now you see where the ‘Giant’ in his moniker comes from. 

That sets him apart from COMPOR’s typical poster boys. A fairly reasonable assumption to make is he may or may not stand apart from them in other ways as well. But so long as he continued to be pleasant and friendly, what did that matter?

You: Thanks for matching with me too. Didn’t mean to take so long to reply! Got a little distracted taking a look at your pictures as well. Kinda liked the one with the fish-thing, haha. 

Giant hardly seems perturbed by the delay. It appears he expected it, if anything. Given that you had listed your location as ‘On/Near Coruscant’ he had assumed you must be having dinner or taking care of some daily task. 

Giant: No need to worry! If you have stuff you need to do, take all the time you need! I was catching breakfast for my squad after saying hello - more of those fish since there’s a LOT of them here. (And we’re all pretty sick of rations, haha!) You: That’s very nice of you, but I already took care of the most important stuff so I’ll be free to talk for a while. Very kind of you to do that for them, too! Variety once in a while must be extremely nice and/or rare.  Giant: HAH, you have no idea!! 

He signs off the reply with a smiley face. A little thing that lends further credibility to your earlier impression about his friendliness. Makes it easier to talk to him throughout the evening and late into the night. 

Time manages to seriously get away from you. Before you know it, you’ve stayed up entirely too late. The dull burn behind each tired eye seems to flare when you glance at the first available chronometer. Ah, poodoo… You really should have gone to bed long before now. 

But you had been having a pleasant and easy-going chat with Gentle Giant for hours on end. Doing so was almost effortless; taking notice of less-immediate needs became less of a priority as a result. In the natural course of conversation he had shown incredible kindness and genuine interest over everything that was discussed. 

That made it easy to speak a little more playfully and jokingly at times, even when it came to asking one another the usual questions. 

Favorite colors, foods and beverages, what hobbies you had. Learn if you have any in common. Compare the list of planets the two of you know of – where you’ve been, and where you hope to go someday. Determine the farthest you’ve ever been from your respective homeworlds. Then the longest you’ve been away after that. And if it was too long, or not long enough. 

Long before belatedly bunking down and asking your final question of the night – when would he like to talk again? – you had learned his name. 

Wrecker. 

The line between get-to-know-you questions and first-date-together questions blurred somewhere very early on. 

Far sooner than either of you might have expected. Maybe even as soon as the night you had mutually matched on the Guys of The GAR webpage. 

It helped that Wrecker was an incredibly attentive and curious guy. Possessed a well of intelligence tempered by a humble streak. Left no room for doubts pertaining to whether he genuinely cared whenever he got a chance to hear from you. Peppering in little follow-up questions. Reaching out for recommendations regarding more mundane things. 

It hardly mattered what the subject was, either. You could, and often did, talk for hours together. 

Endlessly. Easily. Flirtatiously. 

Wrecker only wished it were more often, were it not for the nature of his detachment. He and his brothers do a fair number of the ‘dirty jobs’ the GAR might require. Getting more specific than that wasn’t something he believed would be wholly necessary. Not at this stage where there were healthy embers between you, to be certain, but no steady flame. 

Not just yet. 

The first dozen or so conversations were strictly text-based. A way of testing the waters before committing to the idea of taking a swim in the shallows. If the temperature between you was too chilly for someone’s liking, then no harm done! Just wade back to shore, acclimate, and try again. Your time in the shallows carried on for a good few weeks, paddling about in the current with cautious optimism. Only once there was more confidence did Wrecker think of proposing the transition. 

Audio only; no visuals to start. That way you could both be in the other’s ear while going about your lives, so to speak. Going to bed with the suns. Rising for a new day with the moons. Catching speedercabs and lunch. Putting away provisions and groceries. Cleaning. Killing time. 

Giddy giggles. 

Boyish laughs. 

Hearts racing, racing, racing. 

Elation, frequent. Excitement, boundless. Crushing all the while. 

Falling for one another. Steadily. Deeply. 

And subject to much teasing. By far, the vast majority of it was dedicated to Wrecker – given the source was his brothers. You often caught snippets of passing remarks and fragments of conversation from them when he tried finding the most private spaces on their small ship to chat with you. Hardly anything cutting. Nor relentless and cruel. Nothing more than standard sibling smack-talk. 

“Don’t forget to get some sleep, loverboy.” 

“Ohh, shaddup. I’m not gonna forget!” 

“Uh-huh…” 

Things were a little different once you graduated to video feeds and hologram projections over the same secured lines. These adjustments were far more intimate. More personal. More real. You were engaged in an exercise of trust and vulnerability by adding another sense - sight - to these real-time interactions previously limited to sound. 

Wrecker would return to the dedicated practice of wearing his helmet facing this change. Assumingly, it was just one of the precautionary measures that would be stubbornly holding on longer than the rest. He had been talking with you for well over two months, at this point. 

You could honestly say these last fourteen weeks or more had truly flown by. In that time, you had grown so incredibly fond of him. So you had asked Wrecker during one of these calls. Once. And not for him to shuck the helmet from off his head. Just about it. 

“I would imagine you’re largely used to your helmet Wrecker, but does wearing it ever get uncomfortable?”

He tugged on the neckline of his undersuit, offering only a guarded chuckle at first. 

“Uh… Yeah. Sometimes, anyway!” 

The careful way he had admitted this to you gave off the impression he would have been avoiding eye-contact had he not been wearing the black, gray and white bucket. The one you sometimes find yourself staring at the red double nines painted over the brow rather than the visor directly below. The aurebesh 99, perhaps unintentionally, functioned like an eyespot or ocellus. Difficult not to feel like the numbers were almost watching you. 

You wouldn’t press the question any further on that particular occasion. 

But it wouldn’t be long until it was brought up again, this time by one of Wrecker’s brothers. 

It was a rare instance where everyone was in the same galactic time zone. No chance of his squad making a ‘friendly pitstop’ on Coruscant, however. They were duty-bound, and it was late into the night. You and Wrecker were on yet another video call in spite of that. 

He’s midway through an animated retelling of a prior operation when the sound of someone yawning as they shuffle closer gets picked up by the audio transceiver. Wrecker’s brother stops just out of frame, voice full of unmistakable fatigue.

“Wrecker. Move already…” he orders tersely, “You’re in my bunk.”

Asking you to give him a second, Wrecker obliges. “Sorry. I’ll move to the hold. Won’t be much longer.” 

“Apologies if my desire to sleep is getting in the way of your little virtual dates… Only, it’s not much of a date if your cyber crush has never seen your face, now is it?”

He had already gotten up from his brother’s bunk by that point, intending to do exactly as he said. But something about his brother’s words provokes Wrecker to stop and protest. “Hey. We all came up with the idea about our helmets. I was-” Perhaps thinking better of whatever he had been about to say, Wrecker stops abruptly. “Forget it,” he says, “we’ll talk about this in the morning.” He bids his brother goodnight before disappearing into the hold. 

A quiet unease sits on Wrecker’s shoulders once he’s alone again. Settled on the floor of their shuttle’s tiny, tiny hold, back propped by a stack of secured crates, he lets out a tense sigh. 

“Sorry ‘bout that, mesh’la…” 

Frowning, you ask if he’s alright. You understand Wrecker couldn’t have anticipated one of his brothers saying something like that, so the thing he’s likely sorry about is you overhearing it. But your more immediate concern is whether or not he’s upset. This is not a candid or thoughtful kind of silence. 

“Wrecker? I’ll understand if you want to cut tonight shor-”

Please, wait, Wrecker insists. Before you say anything else, there is something he should say. His brother is right. That isn’t what upsets him. He should have been the one to bring it up. This was his conversation to have with you, when he was ready. And it would’ve been the next time the two of you talked – would swear to that on his blaster, if you wanted him to. 

Now Wrecker feels like it should be tonight instead. Because, truthfully, he has some really strong feelings for you. Had for some time now, as a matter of fact… Thinking of getting a little more serious, Wrecker might argue you’ve had a few long-distance dates at this point. (Without necessarily calling them that.) Something he would certainly like to continue, but not without taking care of a couple things, first. 

“You’re a nice lady. Real nice, even. Been real understandin’ of my anonymity this entire time,” Wrecker explains. His dexterous fingers nervously fiddle with a short length of spare wire, tying and then untying it. Each loop is roughly the size of his wrist. “I think it’s only fair I show ya what I look like before askin’ ya what you think of… Movin’ to the next step or somethin’.” 

After haphazardly stuffing the wire into a pocket, Wrecker adjusts the datapad he’s propped on the crate opposite from him to make sure he’s in focus and in frame. 

“Welp. Here goes nothing.” 

Wrecker wastes no time after his declaration. Reaching up, the helmet is unsealed before then carefully removed from his head. Wrecker offers you a boyish, charming smile before his helmet is even so much as level with his chest. He grips it tightly in his hands, giving himself something to direct all of his nervous energy into so he has an easier time maintaining eye contact. 

And it would be dishonest to say one could overlook the obvious. His left eye is a pale, blueish white; a stark contrast to the brown eye opposite it. A noticeable smattering of scar tissue sits on the left side of his face. It is a firework frozen in time - wrapping over his ear, spread across his temple and a portion of his hairless head. Several trails cut across his left cheek, even slashing through a healthy five o’ clock shadow. One disconnected band sits over the sloped bridge of his nose. It appears to be an older injury based on the color. An aged souvenir of battle, maybe a crash. 

With a palpable undercurrent of anxiety, Wrecker bravely breaks the silence once he figures you’ve had a good look at him. 

“S-sorry,” he says with a lopsided grin, “I, uh… I haven’t had time to shave this week! Hopefully my beard doesn’t look terrible.” 

You shake your head, telling Wrecker it looks just fine. He sighs in relief. 

“Whew! Was honestly pretty worried about that, haha!” 

“Really? I’m… surprised.” you admit carefully. 

There are implications obvious enough here to avoid putting both feet in your mouth and bring up those features more indirectly without being incredibly insensitive, even by accident. That certainly might sour… whatever it was you wanted to call these little video chats you’ve been having with Wrecker lately. Dates? 

Pre-dates?

They were happening pretty frequently, to be perfectly honest, with more than a few being less, shall we say, “cadet-friendly”. 

“Sorry,” Wrecker apologizes again. “I thought about telling you sooner. Honest. Even asked my brothers how I should do it, but, uh… I-I couldn't figure out how to make it sound like me, heh.” 

He knew showing you his face would be a big step. Huge, even. But… there was always a dash of worry that it wouldn’t go well. A blind eye and a large scar aren’t exactly “little” features he can hide all the time, so Wrecker has developed a strong sense of self-confidence and self-assurance in the time following what he only refers to as “the incident”. And if he wanted to ask you to meet him at 79’s next week or the week following, then…

“T-that’s if you want to, that is!” 

Great galaxies. 

How could you refuse? Wrecker had yet to fail to deliver on his punny promise advertised on the CDS; he truly was an expert not just in explosive ordnance, but in having a great time, all the time. His knack for seeing the silver lining in everything, perhaps with exception regarding his “problem with gravity” (as he liked to explain his fear of heights), had been a great comfort on several occasions when you might’ve otherwise felt glum. He was not shy about being excitable, or sweet, or even vulnerable with you. 

You had been shown Lula, a black-and-red tooka doll he occasionally brought aboard the Havoc Marauder (typically when their assignments were shorter, as he preferred to keep her safe on Kamino), on your very first video call together. And she was a well-loved doll, too. Lula’s fabric was clean and her belly plump with stuffing for “more effective cuddles”, but you could see it was just beginning to thin from constant use. 

Seeing how Wrecker clearly cared for little Lula only further endeared you to him. So no: his eye, his scar, were not going to be a dealbreaker for you. You would love to meet up at 79’s. 

Setting down your own device, you rifle around in search of where you’ve written down important deadlines and appointments for the upcoming weeks. 

“Sounds like fun, Wrecker. Count me in! Did you have a day in mind?”

“Next Taungsday? At, say, twenty-hundred hours?”

Middle of the week three hours after a majority of Coruscant has completed their nine-to-fives. 

It’s a date!

You hitch a ride to the Entertainment District via speedercab forty-five minutes ahead of the agreed-upon time, knowing after years of living on Coruscant that there is no such thing as a “lull in traffic” here. 

Not even in the middle of the week. Not with many establishments offering discounts and buy-one-get-one-s on their services. Something to entice people to abandon the hustle and bustle of the megacity and lighten their pockets of a few credits. Indulge themselves in the spoken and unspoken ‘District Dorns’. 

Dining. Drinking. Dancing. Drugs. Den-fights. Dating. 

Wrecker had thoughtfully informed you that 79’s—which already ran a little warm as an establishment—had reported a shift in temperature ever since the Clone Dating Service hit the Holonet. 

“Should see the way this place GLOWS on the heat sensors, cyar’ika!”  

You chose something to wear accordingly, wanting to keep comfortable as much as possible to enjoy as much of your date as possible. An outfit you believed was equal parts flattering, cute, and stylish without sacrificing anything that wasn’t unapologetically you. A suitable bag was also taken with a few small necessities for personal grooming and styling, including a decent fistful of credits, just in case. Fresh packs of breath mints and bubble-chew were tossed in as well. For the hell of it. But also just in case. 

The cabbie pulls up to the platform in front of 79’s ten minutes early, hesitating to throw the air taxi door’s release because they’re too busy staring at the main entrance in bewilderment. “Huh! Thought this place was just a Clone bar… but I’m seeing more than just soldiers…” they murmur to themselves, a free appendage scratching one of two heads in thought. “Did I take you to the right joint, ma’am?” 

“Yes, I’m meeting a date here,” you answer with a smile. 

Your heart flutters just hearing yourself say it. A date. With a man you had first connected with on the Holonet through a curious dating service. You haven't been able to think of much else all week. Only willing time to move faster. To please hurry up and be Taungsday, already! And now tonight was the night. 

Paying via surface pass, you bid the cabbie goodbye and hurry into the bar. 

It’s already a packed house. Clones and civilians alike are bustin’ it down on the electronic dance floor to energetic remixes of popular jizz-wailers at the moment. A static viewscreen over the long oval bar advises patrons there will be genre changes at every half-hour. 

Special requests can be made for two credits per song. The special tonight is something called the “buddy bucket”; five credits for the bucket, seven with the inclusion of two (non-alcoholic) drinks. 

You look around, hoping Wrecker is already here or not far behind. You consider asking the soldier wearing a volunteer’s name sticker on his chestplate and manning the CDS event booth. While briefly wondering what the story behind his ‘Squeaky Clean’ moniker is, you pay more attention to the scrap of flimsiplast taped below the badge. “Check-in assistant”, it reads. 

Oh good. Less need for guessing games. Presenting your name and profile code, you inform Squeaky who you’re here to meet. Information he’ll likely need to cross-reference any lists of RSVPs, meet-ups and the like. 

“Is Wreck- er, Gentle Giant here tonight?” 

Squeaky sets down the datapad in his hand in order to rifle through a small file box of reservations. Before he can locate it, a boisterous voice calls out your name across the bar. You were early, but it sounds like Wrecker beat you here. 

“Is that you?!”

He calls your name again. You turn to look in his direction. 

And you make eye contact. 

And you know. You know that face. The face that’s not a typical COMPOR poster boy’s. That smile. The gleeful and boyish—yet so charming—smile that drives your stomach wild with butterflies. And finally that laugh. That exuberant, resounding laugh as he carefully makes his way through a sea of partying patrons to greet you. 

In the flesh, at last.

Your greetings overlap once Wrecker has safely made it through the crowd, finding yourself wrapped up in a friendly hug. One long enough for him to say “It is you!” before promptly letting you go. He steps an arm’s length away to stand back and admire your attire, grin never dropping. 

“You look great!” 

You return the flattery. “So do you, Wrecker. Blast, you look good in civvie clothes!” 

He had cleaned himself up rather nicely for tonight. His facial hair had been trimmed, to start. A rather woodsy sort of aftershave was a nice touch too; complimenting the simple, heathered gray button-down and black slacks bought just for the occasion, judging by the slight stiffness of the fabric. Care had been taken to steam out the most egregious of the wrinkles. The manner in which the long sleeves had been tucked and rolled perfectly level with each other suggested assistance. 

The name on the reservation Squeaky Clean locates at long last confirms it. 

“I have a… corner booth set aside for Gentle Giant and the lovely lady; the request was made by Bookish Spectacles. That sound right to you, vod?”

“Oh, yeah,” Wrecker replies, taking the small square of flimsiplast with the corresponding number, “he’s one of my squad mates.” 

“You’re all set then. Hope you both enjoy your evening!” 

The booth is found in no time at all. 

Being slightly more removed from the dancefloor, there’s less need to talk quite as loud as you had near the entrance. A very thoughtful bit of placement on Spectacles’ part. Wrecker explains this where he and his brothers like to sit whenever they have leave close to Coruscant and crave whatever’s greasiest from 79’s. He kindly offers to hold your bag for you while you slide into the booth, being extra careful not to drop it on the sticky floor when handing it back.  

Scarcely a moment after Wrecker has gotten in the opposite side of the booth, an unhelmeted soldier steps up to the table with a wry smile. He sports a neural brace, his right arm is held behind his back at an unusual angle. Obviously trying to hide something. 

“You kids behaving yourselves?” he asks somewhat playfully, not quite sarcastic. 

You recognize the voice from various bits of brotherly background chatter over all the different calls you’ve had with Wrecker, but you’re not sure of his name. 

“We haven’t even gotten started, Ec- Domino.” Wrecker pointedly informs him. He almost slips up. Until it was safe to say that you and Wrecker were looking like a confirmed item, sticking to calling his brothers by their CDS aliases was a more neutral course of action. “You guys promised you’d leave us alone.” 

“I’m only messing with you, Wreck,” his brother chuckles. Moving his right arm—which is mostly cybernetic, to a small amount of surprise—from behind his back, Domino puts a red foil gift bag down on the table. “We fully intend to keep that promise. Just came to give you this like you asked.”

Wrecker grins sheepishly. 

“Oh, right. I did ask that. Uh… thanks, Domino.” 

Limiting his reply to “Anytime, Wrecker,” and some encouragement to have fun, Domino takes his leave. 

Now you know what one of his brothers looked like under the helmet. You watch him for a moment, thinking Domino might go back to the others who made up Clone Force 99. No luck. He finds a group of troopers sporting cobalt blue paint and decides to brush his shoulders with them for a while. Wrecker mentioned once upon a time that even after joining CF99, Domino has good rapport with his previous detachment, still. 

A legion. Five-oh-something. It’ll come to you in a moment. 

You’re distracted by the butterflies now that you and Wrecker have the booth to yourselves. There are matching, giddy smiles as he briefly pulls the bag to his side of the table. Just to make a quick check of the contents. “Sorry ‘bout that, cyar’ika,” is all Wrecker will say about the interaction with Domino. No sense dedicating further thought to it when you’re here for a date tonight. 

Your first in-person date. 

So once he’s satisfied there’s no damage and everything is accounted for, Wrecker carefully slides the gift bag back across the table. This is for you, he explains. And you can open it whenever. Now. After something to eat and a few drinks. When it’s time to leave. It’s entirely up to you. 

Curiosity gets the better of you once again.  

And it gives you a tooka. 

A tooka doll, to be exact. 

Carefully swaddled in a bundle of gift-paper, you find yourself face-to-felt with your very own “Lula” doll. The gifted plush looks just like Wrecker’s – key difference being it was made using your favorite colors. All the way down to the thread used to stitch the toy together. 

“Oh, I love them…!” you coo, squeezing the cloth tooka to your chest. “It was really sweet of you to find one in my favorite color.” Oh, you can’t wait to take them home, you add. 

Wrecker is soon wearing another of his boyish grins, saying he’s glad you like it. But… would you believe him if he said he didn’t find the doll? (And before you ask: no, it wasn’t one of his brothers who found it, either.) He had made it. Often spent a large amount of time while his squad had been in hyperspace working on it, lately. 

You’re honestly blown away. “By hand? That’s incredible!” How long did it take him to make the doll? And when did he start? 

That’s easy. 

Wrecker started working on them when he realized he had a crush on you. Luckily, he already had all the material he needed on the Marauder. A lot of soldiers in the GAR had learned basic sewing skills that might come in handy in the event of an emergency, so, if he had to guess how long…? It’d probably taken him three weeks, at most, to finish the toy. 

He sews a lot. It keeps his fine motor skills sharp. Something he needs when it comes to dismantling (or building) bombs. Or, say… 

Adding a little message to a tag on the doll’s back following the night he had shown you his face. 

A heartfelt dedication, of sorts. 

'For: My cyber crush

Love: Wrecker'

A huge thank you to Maniacalbooper for making such an entertaining request and being a part of my 200 follower event, as well as having incredible patience with me in order to complete this story! I hope you and everyone else enjoyed this Wrecker fic. 🩷

Taglist: @callsign-denmark @dukeoftheblackstar @dreamie411 @dystopicjumpsuit @msmeredithrose + @returnofthepineapple @lonely-day3636

[FFF Masterlist] [TBB Masterlist] [NEW Taglist] [Requests: CLOSED]

[the-monkey-ruler]

Hello!!! Stumbled upon this blog on a casual scroll-through and am super impressed at how thorough and passionate it is!! Kudos!!

I had a question, if it’s not too much of a bother:

Is there any sort of artifact mentioned in JTTW (or Chinese mythology at large) that’s been used to contain a yaoguai’s power/take it away from them? Maybe in the vein of Guanyin’s vase? Sorry if this doesn’t make sense.

So what you are asking for is something that can take away cultivation so to speak? There are some tv/movies that do show other yaoguai that are able to eat the life force of yaoguai and forcing them back into their original state therefore taking away their power and their humanoid form.

However that is more popular in modern media, as for any canon items they are more focused on subduing and capturing rather than depowering.

Gaunyin's vase sadly hasn't been able to show any depowering abilities either if you were asking about that. It has been show to whole an entire ocean and that it can hold healing water. But there are movies where she is able to capture demons (such as Wukong) in her vase and keep them in a state of status. But I don't know how in canon that is as she does have a lot of history outside of journey to the west.

But on to magical items in journey to the west! I shall rank them from most subduing to least subduing

Subduing Buff Attacking

Golden Jade Ring (金剛琢) - it can change size, is invulnerable to water and fire, can strike all things, collect various magic weapons and weapons, and has infinite uses. Laojun used this treasure to knock down Sun Wukong and help Erlang Shen capture him. The One Horned King used this treasure to take away Sun Wukong's golden hoop, Nezha's six weapons, and the magic weapons of hundreds of gods and generals. It can even dissolve water, fire, thunder and lightning. Later, Taishang Laojun, who came down to the world himself, defeated it with a fire-type banana fan. This was the thing that put Wukong stop in his tracks, doesn't take away power but def the most powerful.

Flask of Yin and Yang Essence (陰陽二氣瓶) - it contains the Seven Treasures and Eight Diagrams, twenty-four Qi, and requires thirty-six people, according to the number of Tiangang, to lift it. This treasure can hold a person and if a person does not speak, the bottle will be very cool. But once they speak, fire will burn them into pulp water in a moment. Wukonghad to use his Golden Hair he was given by Guanyin to escape. While not invincible it took another magical item to counteract it and thus very powerful.

Golden Cymbals (金鐃) - the magic weapon used by the Yellow-Browed Monster who trapped Sun Wukong inside and would have turned to puss inside it if he didn't escape. Sun Wukong escaped from the golden cymbal with the help of Kang Jinlong and immediately broke it. Took nearly an army to escape it, very powerful.

Purple Gold Red Gourd (紫金紅葫蘆) - as long as you call out your opponent's name if they respond, the elixir will pull them inside. Then a note with the words "The Supreme Lord Laozi, please obey my command as soon as possible" will be posted on it, and the elixir will turn into pus in a few hours. Hard to say how powerful this is since Wukong escaped it twice turning into a bug so... take that as user error or not.

Human Sack (人種袋) - Sun Wukong invited the twenty-eight constellations, the two generals of the tortoise and the snake, the five great dragons, Prince Xiao Zhang and the four great generals, but they were all put into the monster's bag. Later, Maitreya Buddha took back the human seed bag and put the demon king into the bag. Very powerful but does not kill, so less of a threat.

Golden Cloth Rope (幌金繩) it was originally a belt used by Taishang Laojun to tie his robe. It has a tightening rope spell but also a loosening rope spell and if a user knows both they most likely will not be affected. Powerful but if you know the loosening spell it is useless.

Suet Jade Flask (羊脂玉淨瓶) this was used by Taishang Laojun to make elixirs and hold water. It has space inside to hold water from all over the world.

Seven Stars Sword (七星劍) - the real sword from the Ming and Qing dynasties that has survived in modern times was used by Tan Sitong. The seven stars are mainly symbolic, but from the perspective of material mechanics, they should have the function of buffering stress concentration and preventing the sword from breaking.

Palm Leaf Fan (芭蕉扇) - The two banana fans, yin and yang, are held by Taishang Laojun and Princess Iron Fan respectively: the banana fan used by Taishang Laojun is yang, and the six Ding divine fire it fanned is the power source of the alchemy furnace; the banana fan used by Princess Iron Fan is yin, and its water vapor can extinguish the fire in Huoyan Mountain. The two fans are mutually reinforcing and mutually restraining. There are prototypes that can be traced in reality.

Banana Leaf Fan (芭蕉扇) - The extremely yin treasure fan can fan out water vapor, and water can extinguish fire, so it can extinguish the 800-li Flame Mountain. "Journey to the West" Chapter 59 "Tang Sanzang's Road Blocks the Flame Mountain, Sun Xingzhe Uses the Banana Fan" "...Her banana fan was originally a magical treasure created by heaven and earth since the beginning of chaos behind Kunlun Mountain. It is the essence of the Taiyin, so it can extinguish fire." The yin wind fanned out can make people drift 84,000 miles before it can stop.

Purple-Gold Bells (紫金鈴) - This Purple Gold Bell was forged by Taishang Laojun in the Eight Diagrams Furnace, and it is very powerful. Shake it once, and fire will come out. Shake it twice, and smoke will come out. Shake it three times, and sand and rocks will fly. Sun Wukong stole the golden bell and then subdued "Sai Taisui".

If you are looking for more magic items that can take away cultivation I actually think that there is something in FSYY that took away some daoists' cultivation... but I think that was more of a formation than an item... I'm sorry I didn't take notes on but that novel DEF has a lot of magical items!!

[willowve01]

Well, now that you've asked me about who'd win between OG!Korey and M!Korey..I gotta ask you to!

So who'd in a fight? M!Raine or OG!Raine?

Mmm..let’s see.

Both gals have equal raw strength, no if ands or buts about it. (Both could easily push Bodie around)

M!Raine definitely has a lot more training, experience and lighter on her feet due to the numerous stealth missions. So, just think of M!Raine as an updated version of the OG!Raine…

Yeah…M!Raine wins even if OG!Raine knows her way around a sword.

[diamondzoey]

*Kicks open the door* look what I found! *Holds the angst shovel, also here’s bug army questions and scenarios

1. Favorite epic the musical song?

2. Are they good at ice skating?

3. Scenarios #1 (Tw: Angst, insecurities)

Your bug was doing something and hears some yelling and goes to see what it is and sees Jemma and her uncle Liam arguing, than hear him say this

Liam: you don’t belong in this family because you’re a demon freak, a monster that will ruin our family reputation!

Jemma goes silent as Liam leaves

Your bug: Jem are you okay?

Jemma doesn’t answer and goes to her room

4. Modern!Au

Least favorite show and why?

5. Swap bug Au! (Where the bugs are halfbloods)

Favorite season and least favorite season and why?

6. Scenarios #2 (Thanksgiving)

All of the bugs were getting ready for thanksgiving at the house. But one of them got a live turkey who escaped its cage and now all of the bugs were in a room wondering what to do

One of bugs: Okay one of us has to chop off the feathery menace’s head off

Your bug: yeah but who’s going to it that thing has sharp claws

@rozeliyawashereyall @willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @kaiamtt @iistxrmyskyii @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @keyaartz @fangsshadow @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @littlesiren79 @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @threeweekinsomnia

@recated @wilderrorcard @puffin-smoke @fennaboysenberry @lunnats

@lightdragon789 @pinkcocopuff-aqualoid @itsargyle @not-5-rats @astralbulldragon13

@ccstiles @headstrashdump @fruity0salad @takashishihoin @megapugman

@reefhastoomanyaccs @kaydenskiwi @greaysharkboi @aces-oceans

[diamondzoey]

1. Idk maybe Harper because she’s also fashion designer

2. Jemma would ask Astrid where she last saw Azren

3. Jemma’s outfit would be a long black dress with some sparkles on them and jemma seeing Azren’s outfit would try not to giggle and says that she likes his outfit

4. Dark purple, mermaid dress, orchid

okay okay, me do questions about modern au!!!!

1: Who is the most likely to force the journalists or some of the others to dress up and model?

2: Scenario: Azren is a journalist, aura is a top researcher in an organization, and Astrid is a fashion designer. (Loads of money in the modern au 🤣) The bugs get a text from Astrid saying;

Astrids text: "Heyyyyyyyyy, can y'all help me out? Ive made some new outfits for everyone based on fav flowers and colors! And sooooo, I was wondering if....yoi could help me find Azren? Peace ✌️!"

How would your bug react?

3: Okay, this next one is after the bugs arrive at Astrid's studio, which is extremely large for some reason. And they also have their outfits on! (Y'all can decide what to wear if anyone draws these 😅🥲) And all the bugs see Aura dragging Azren out of the dressing room!

Azren: *A blushing mess* "AURA I AM NOT GOING OUTSIDE!!!!!"

Aura: "C'mon!! It's just and outfit!!!!"

Aura manage to get Azren out and he is being forced to wear a yellow and green suit with a moonflower pattern on it. Which also has a boob window cuz why not, I like embarrassing mah boi.

How do you think your bug would react!

4: I need outfit designs, cuz I plan on drawing these! Soooo, fav colo or colors r, fav flower, Name, type of style, anddddd anything else y'all want!!

Imma be having fun with these :3

@rozeliyawashereyall @willowve01 @asmrbrainrot @kaiamtt @iistxrmyskyii @insignificant-anarchy @stxph-artist @aspenm00n @keyaartz @fangsshadow @rustycopper4use @piffany666 @dreamyshape @idontevenknow7878 @lunaritychuwolf @littlesiren79 @castbracelet240 @strayharmony943 @proxdragon @tiefling-chaos @threeweekinsomnia @recated @wilderrorcard @diamondzoey @fennaboysenberry @astralbulldragon13 @lunnats @lightdragon789

:3

[posttexasstressdisorder]

Culture

Jeez, I wonder why Trump won't release the Epstein files

SFGATE columnist Drew Magary unpacks what could be the biggest scandal of our time

From left, American real estate developer Donald Trump, his girlfriend and future wife Melania Knauss, financier and future convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell pose together at the Mar-a-Lago club in Palm Beach, Fla., on Feb. 12, 2000.Davidoff Studios Photography/Getty Images

By Drew Magary, ColumnistUpdated July 16, 2025 11:38 a.m.

When Donald Trump doesn’t want to talk about something, that usually means that we need to talk about it. That’s especially true of the president’s most recently adopted third rail, the late Jeffrey Epstein. Donald Trump would really like everyone to shut the f—k up about his old friend and has communicated those feelings with that classic Trump subtlety that we all know and adore:

“STOP TALKING ABOUT EPSTEIN!!!!!”

But why does Trump suddenly have a bug up his ass about Jeffrey Epstein? More important, why should you pay attention to THIS Trump scandal when every other Trump scandal comes and goes like a summer afternoon rainfall? Why shouldn’t you just go eat a Pop-Tart instead, given that you’ll likely accomplish just as much in doing so?

The mug shot of Jeffrey Epstein in 2019.Kypros/Getty Images

Who was Jeffrey Epstein?

A former teacher who switched to a career in finance at Bear Stearns. From there, Epstein became a boutique financial consultant (and likely inside trader) who only accepted billionaires as clients. But Epstein’s rise among society’s elite can likely be owed to far darker forces than market manipulation. In 2019, he was charged by the feds with trafficking underage girls with the intent of sexually assaulting them. Epstein also pimped victims out to some of his most powerful friends and clients. Perhaps in tribute to Diddy, Epstein hosted these group assault “parties” in lavish settings, including in Manhattan, in Palm Beach, aboard a private jet that went by the nickname the Lolita Express and on his own private island. While Epstein’s closest associate and lover Ghislaine Maxwell is currently serving a 20-year prison sentence for helping Epstein run this illicit sex ring and luring in victims, the man himself was never convicted in that matter. This is because he died in his jail cell while awaiting trial. Authorities ruled the death a suicide.

Was it a suicide?

Well the government says so, and it recently posted raw surveillance footage from the day of Epstein’s death to confirm the ruling. Oh, but Wired just reported that the released footage has a gap in it of nearly three minutes, which allows for all sorts of funny business to still be in play.  

That’s curious.

It gets curioser. In death, Epstein left behind perhaps the most infamous paper trail in modern criminal history, including a little black book that included the names of his victims, his accomplices and, most tellingly, the aforementioned powerful friends he’d collected. The names in that book, many of which also show up in Epstein’s flight records, include the likes of Courtney Love, Alec Baldwin, Prince Andrew, Alan Dershowitz, Bill Clinton and —you guessed — Donald Trump.

A portrait of American financier Jeffrey Epstein, left, and real estate developer Donald Trump posing together at the Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla., in 1997.Davidoff Studios Photography/Getty Images

Like Trump!

Yes, like Trump. But prior to this month, Trump and his little MAGA army were vocally convinced that the files would implicate Trump’s enemies much more than they would the man himself. This is in line with the modern GOP playbook under Trump. Democratic leaders convened at Comet Ping Pong in Washington, D.C., to abuse children. LGBTQ+ Americans were “grooming” children in order to take advantage of them and/or turn them LGBTQ+. All of the immigrants living here, either legally or off the books, are a threat to our precious children, which is why we need ICE to round them up and then throw them in the cargo hold of a plane bound for Western Sahara. Oh, and abortion MURDERS children outright. The old man protesting outside your general practitioner’s office has the enlarged photos to prove it!

Oh wow, is all of that true?

Of course it isn’t, you f—king idiot. But you can see how Trumpists have been able to capture the visceral reaction that child abuse inevitably fosters in people, and then turn that outrage against anyone they hate. So when the possibility arose that the Epstein files would be released, many MAGA heads saw it a fantastic opportunity to finish off the Democratic Party once and for all. This is why Justice Department head Pam Bondi made a promise in February that she would give up the goods. In fact, she even told Fox News “it’s sitting on my desk right now to review” when asked about the list of Epstein’s clients.

Did she make good on that promise?

You’re not gonna believe this, but no. Last week the DOJ released a statement that included this wildly blatant piece of obfuscation (emphasis mine below):

A protest group called “Hot Mess” holds up signs of Jeffrey Epstein in front of the federal courthouse in New York City on July 8, 2019. Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

So she’s NOT releasing the files?

Apparently they’re hella boring if you ask Bondi, and why wouldn’t I believe this woman? She’s only quid pro quo’ed with our dear leader a few times. Oh, and a curious plea deal that Epstein struck with Florida prosecutors in 2007 was worded to shield his co-conspirators from further scrutiny. It also barred the terms of Epstein’s plea deal from ever being made public, which a judge later found to be in violation of the Crime Victims’ Rights Act; it was an illegal cover-up between Epstein’s lawyers and the prosecution. So here’s a notorious sexual predator with a recorded history of gaming the system to hide his evildoing. But Donald Trump is angry that you’re even still bringing it up. Move on already, jeez! We’ve got legal immigrants to kidnap and torture!

Are we moving on?

We are not, and we strangely have Trump’s supporters to thank for that. After breaking with Trump on his Big Butthole Bill, Elon Musk straight up tweeted that Trump’s name was on Epstein’s client list. After Bondi buried the files, Don Bongino, the deputy director of the FBI, was so pissed that he ghosted work the next day and then got into a big ol’ row with Bondi about it when he finally showed back up at the office. Bongino’s direct boss, FBI Director Kash Patel, was rumored to ponder submitting his resignation over the matter (he didn’t, eventually falling in line). GOP members of Congress are pissed at Trump, with House Speaker Mike Johnson going so far as to call for their release, although in the squirreliest, most Mike Johnson manner possible:

“But at the same time Johnson publicly called for the files to be released, he opposed a procedural motion advanced on Tuesday by Democrats that would have set up a House vote to release them,” the Washinton Post reported.

Even Congress’ No. 1 MAGA loon Marjorie Taylor Greene is pissed at Trump, warning the president the MAGA faction will face significant blowback if he keeps everything on the DL. Laura Loomer is pissed at Trump and, like many other GO members, she wants Bondi fired. And for the first time in the ratio history of his own social media network, Truth Social users are pissed at Trump. These folks were promised blood, and the president hasn’t delivered.

Why hasn’t he?

Donald Trump, left, and financier Jeffrey Epstein attend a Victoria’s Secret Angels event sponsored by Rogers & Cowan at the club Duvet on 21st Street in New York City on April 9, 1997.Thomas Concordia/Getty Images

Yes.

Okay, well we already know that Epstein himself told author Michael Wolff that Trump was his best friend for a decade and that he told Wolff the president first slept with his current wife, Melania, aboard the now infamous diddler plane. We know Trump’s name is on those flight records. We have photos of Trump chilling with Epstein at one of Epstein’s parties (whether that party got freaky later on isn’t known). And, most damning of all, we also have Trump on the record about Epstein in 2002 in the New York Magazine, calling the then-at large sex offender a “terrific” guy and that, “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.” 

Most telling of all, a woman going by Jane Doe filed a lawsuit against Trump in 2016 for allegedly raping her when she was 13 years old. Doe, who had previously filed another suit under the pseudonym of Katie Johnson, alleged that both Trump and Epstein raped her, which would make Trump part of Epstein’s sordid ring. But just as Doe was about to make her first public comments about the case, her lawyer announced that her client was dropping the suit after receiving threats to her person.

If she dropped the case, then why does that matter?

We know that, given what people who accuse powerful folk of sexual assault have to endure once they make their stories public (Anita Hill and Christine Blasey Ford foremost among them), many would rather drop the charges than be traumatized all over again in both a court of law and the court of public opinion.

Specific to Trump, we know that he’s already been found liable for raping writer E. Jean Carroll in a Bergdorf Goodman’s in the mid-1990s, that he was accused by his former wife Ivanka of raping her (she would later recant), that he was accused by model Stacey Williams of sexual misconduct, and that he was famously caught on tape bragging to Access Hollywood co-puppet Billy Bush about grabbing women by the “pussy.” The man is a proven lech and has gotten away with being one for the entirety of his existence.

That makes his little tantrum over the Epstein affair noteworthy, especially when he now claims that the Epstein files — all of them! — were fabricated:

“Why are we giving publicity to Files written by Obama, Crooked Hillary, Comey, Brennan, and the Losers and Criminals of the Biden Administration, who conned the World with the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, 51 ‘Intelligence’ Agents, ‘THE LAPTOP FROM HELL,’ and more?”

Geoffrey Berman, the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, announced charges against Jeffery Epstein in New York City on July 8, 2019. Epstein was charged with one count of sex trafficking of minors and one count of conspiracy to engage in sex trafficking of minors.Stephanie Keith/Getty Images

Sounds like he’s a little shaken.

That’s because he TOTALLY did it.

So why aren’t Democrats hammering Trump over this?

You’ve met Democrats, yeah? You also saw Bill Clinton’s name on those flight logs, too. Also, in a long-gestating bit of irony, it’s likely that Democratic leaders are frightened that bringing up the Epstein files over and over again will make them look like kooks.

Would it?

What does it matter? You know how Trump rose to power? BY BEING A F—KING KOOK. All day, every day. Being relentlessly crazy is how you win now. Democrats won’t do it. And from what I’ve seen so far, the mainstream media won’t, either. Much of Epstein files coverage I’ve seen from the New York Times and Washington Post has been below the fold and about how the files have created a rift between Trump and the MAGA movement. That’s an awfully roundabout way of covering what really could be, at long last, the scandal of the century. A scandal that really does bring down everyone involved in it.

Will it?

Only if you and I keep it circulating. So embrace your inner kook and scream RELEASE THE EPSTEIN FILES at everyone you see: your friends, your local representatives, your social media following, and the milkman. The longer this story sticks around, the harder it becomes to ignore. That’s why Trump wants everyone to shut up. The man’s hands are so filthy, you can’t even see visible skin.