#op atmos

[onepiece-birthdays]

It's March 19th

Happy birthday to Scratchmen Apoo, captain of the On-Air Pirates! He is 31.

We weren't able to get a quote from Apoo, as his party was already underway and the music was too loud and, frankly, dangerous.

Happy birthday to Atmos of the Whitebeard pirates!

[one-piece-moment-comparisons]

One Piece — "Justice will prevail? Of course it will!!"

From Volume 57 - Chapter 556 / Season 8 Episode 465. Atmos is trying to kill Doflamingo, and danger surrounds the Warlord on every side. He is not afraid. In fact, he is so nonchalant that he doesn't need to focus on fighting at all. Instead, he parades Atmos around, and boasts about his nihilistic view of this Paramount War.

[far-side-skies]

🐎🐎🏇

HONSE

I plan on adding more information to this page in the future, including art, but for now:

Here's my lore for Atmosian pegasi! An alternative to sky-rides and often found in wild herds across the Atmos, pegasi are large, carnivorous winged beasts that have been domesticated many times over throughout history.

They come in several different breeds, including Transport, Race, and Show breeds.

[op-smash-or-pass]

OP Smash or pass

[beautifullache]

🦄The Sims 4🦄

👠Shoe Career👢

💕EARLY RELEASE 7.12.2024💕

Journeys

PTO 3 days off

Journeys is a teen retail leader with an emphasis on footwear and unique specialty items including apparel, backpacks, hats and accessories. With more than 800 stores in all 50 US states, Puerto Rico and Canada, Journeys offers the most popular brands that cater to the teen lifestyle such as Converse, Vans, Dr Martens, UGG, Adidas, Timberland, Birkenstock, Crocs and Hey Dude. Through strategic artistic partnerships, event sponsorships, exclusive content, creative collaborations with musicians, and a focus on giving back to the community through charitable events and volunteer programs— Journeys has become more than just a retailer, but a universal part of teen and youth culture. The in-store Journeys experience features an energetic environment, friendly, passionate staff, and an inclusive atmosphere where self-expression is not just accepted – but encouraged and embraced. Journeys is an attitude you can wear.

Sales Associate

Sales Lead

Assistant Store Manager

Store Manager

District Manager in Training

Allow Teen

Allow Young Adult

Allow Adult

Allow Elder

Hibbett Sports

PTO 3 days off

Hibbett, headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, is a leading athletic-inspired fashion retailer with nearly 1,100 Hibbett and City Gear specialty stores, located in 35 states nationwide. Hibbett has a rich history of serving customers for more than 75 years with convenient locations, superior personalized customer service and access to coveted footwear, apparel and accessories from top brands like Nike, Jordan, and adidas. Consumers can browse styles, find new releases, shop looks and make purchases through our best-in-class omni-channel platform. Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter @hibbettsports and @citygear. At Hibbett I City Gear, we make it easy for you to have an edge up on the competition when it comes to your style. Whether it’s the brands we keep on our shelves or the people who work in our stores, we are here to help you reach your next level of play. You’ll get the latest products first and exclusive items that are harder to find. If you want to put your game in the right hands, you’ve come to the right place at Hibbett I City Gear. With names like Nike, Jordan, Adidas, The North Face, and Costa, we bring fashion and footwear together for you and your game. Whether you’re shopping for yourself or the whole team, at Hibbett I City Gear we have you covered from toe to head.

Sales Associate

Store Ops Projects Specialist

District Sales Manager

Manager in Training

Senior Internal Audit Analyst

Allow Teen

Allow Young Adult

Allow Adult

Allow Elder

Foot Locker

PTO 3 days off

Foot Locker, Inc. leads the celebration of sneaker and youth culture around the globe through a portfolio of brands including Foot Locker, Kids Foot Locker, Champs Sports, atmos, and WSS. With approximately 2,700 retail stores in 29 countries across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia and New Zealand, as well as websites and mobile apps, the Company's purpose is to inspire and empower youth culture around the world, by fueling a shared passion for self-expression and creating unrivaled experiences at the heart of the global sneaker community. Foot Locker, Inc. has its corporate headquarters in New York. At Foot Locker, Inc., our purpose is to inspire and empower youth culture through our family of brands by fueling a shared passion for self-expression and creating unrivaled experiences at the heart of the sport and sneaker communities.

Cashier

Sales Associate

Stock Associate

Warehouse Housekeeper

Sales Lead

Equipment Operator

Allow Teen

Allow Young Adult

Allow Adult

Allow Elder

Finish Line

PTO 3 days off

Finish Line is an American retail chain that sells athletic shoes and related apparel and accessories. The company operates 660 stores in 47 states, mostly in enclosed shopping malls, as well as Finish Line-branded athletic shoe departments in more than 450 Macy's stores.

Associate

Stock Associate

Store Management

In-Store Merchandiser

Allow Teen

Allow Young Adult

Allow Adult

Allow Elder

Champs Sports

PTO 3 days off

Champs Sports is one of the largest, athletic sports-specialty retailers in North America. We bring to the table an arsenal of the finest, freshest athletic apparel, footwear and accessories you’ll find anywhere. We believe that through our brands and our knowledgeable sales associates, we can claim the high ground as the authority on Game, and we’re here to help you up your own personal Game.

Cashier

Sales Associate

Sales Lead/Key Holder

Assistant Manager

Allow Teen

Allow Young Adult

Allow Adult

Allow Elder

DOWNLOAD NOW

[tsukiyadori]

Reading+Listening Log 2025.05 - May

Previous: Reading+Listening Log 2025.04 - April

Pretty shiny blue be pretty.

——————————————————————————

Reading languages: German, English, French, Japanese, not listing which was what. (There’s also been some continued music listening attempts at Chinese.)

Titles are as I’ve read them either first or most and thus remember it for that title mostly.

Not going to bother putting in the original titles of translated reads unless there is something worthy of note to it.

Bold titles means series completed, or it was a one-shot.

If it says a volume number, it may mean it has been finished or is still in progress.

Some notes’ content may be subject to repetition here and there, as I also copy some older notes from casual conversations over into these logs and don’t go through any rounds of cutting things down.

I will freely use some very lunatastic terms like cheese and fluff, you can find an explanation here: Luna-Lingo.

——————————————————————————

May

Very short list, but surprisingly that didn't mean the notes have gone that much shorter ...

I totally expected this to be a Tunnel to Summer month, but then I didn't even touch it this month for reasons that include that I probably didn't want to deal with the subject content for the time being.

There is a rare case of stray comic volume in there this month.

Western Comics:

Roxanne & George

Light Novels/Web Novels/Asian Novels:

A Certain Magical Index NT v3

Astrea Record: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Tales of Heroes v2-3

Dahlia in Bloom v5

Madougushi Dahlia wa Utsumukanai v2p12-v3p6

Tearmoon Empire v4

Manga:

An Archdemon's Dilemma: How to Love Your Elf Bride (Manga) v12ch62

Catch my Heart

Dahlia lässt den Kopf nicht hängen ch40

Dahlia lässt den Kopf nicht hängen v7ch39

Dragon Love

Echt jetzt, Tamon?! v1-2ch9

Flüster mir ein Liebeslied v3-5

Friends & Lovers

Goodbye, Eri

Jenseits der Worte v2ch8-11

Kemutai Hanashi ch36

My Roommate is a Cat v9ch27

Nenn es nicht Mystery v4ch7

Nichiko's Island v1-2

Not a Boy v1-2

Number Call

Office Affairs

Regeln der Liebe

Rutta & Kodama v1ch5

See you in the School of the Muse v1ch3

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale v1-3

Tatsuki Fujimoto Short Stories: 17-21

Tatsuki Fujimoto Short Stories: 22-26

The Essence of Being a Muse v1-3

The Heroic Legend of Arslan v18ch112

The Male Bride v4-5

What did you eat yesterday? v22

Wild Rock

Wir! Jetzt! Hier!

Wonderland Love

éclair blanche

Webtoons:

Solo Leveling v1-3, 4(WT),v5-6, v11, WTch98-200

Solo Leveling: Ragnarok ch1-47 (Season 1 end)

Villain to Kill v2

Music/Music Videos:

Bold are what were more memorably stuck in my head.

Foster the People - Imagination

Foster the People - Helena Beat

Neovaii - Dusk - 02 - Breathe

LUNAX - Back to You

Neovaii - Secrets

Lou Bliss - Killing Butterflies

My Hero Academia World Heroes' Mission OST - 13 - Deku's Whereabouts

张渠 - 采薇

张渠 - 秀青独舞与女子群舞

YLL GRYM - daydream

YLL GRYM - Headless Thoughts 6x the Lost Project - happiness

Aosaki - tangible dynamics - 06 - broken wings (Instrumental)

DOUBLE DECKER! Doug & Kirill OST - 10 - Hayashi Yuuki - Zabel

DOUBLE DECKER! Doug & Kirill OST - 13 - Hayashi Yuuki -DOUBLE DECKER! (Pf Mix)

DOUBLE DECKER! Doug & Kirill OST - 04 - Hayashi Yuuki -DOUBLE DECKER! (Atmo Mix)

DOUBLE DECKER! Doug & Kirill OST - 36 - Hayashi Yuuki -DOUBLE DECKER! (Emo Mix)

BORN TO BE ON AIR! OST - 24 - Hayashi Yuuki - Don't lose

汪苏泷 - 无名之辈

Solo Leveling OST - 07 - [Solo-Leveling] SymphonicSuite-Lv.6

Solo Leveling OST - 09 - [Solo-Leveling] SymphonicSuite-Lv.8

Solo Leveling OST - 17 - aikari

Solo Leveling OST - 01 - DARK ARIA

Solo Leveling OST - 19 - 4eVR

Solo Leveling OST - 02 - [Solo-Leveling] SymphonicSuite-Lv.1

Solo Leveling OST - 06 - [Solo-Leveling] SymphonicSuite-Lv.5

Solo Leveling OST - 03 - [Solo-Leveling] SymphonicSuite-Lv.2

Solo Leveling OP - 01 - LEveL (feat.TOMORROW X TOGETHER)

Solo Leveling OP - 02 - DARK ARIA LV2 (feat.XAI)

Solo Leveling OP - 04 - LEveL -English ver.- (TV size) (feat.TOMORROW X TOGETHER)

To Be Hero X Insert Song - JEOPARDY

To Be Hero X Insert Song - PARAGON

To Be Hero X OP - INERTIA

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 01 - REVIVƎЯ

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 02 - SHADOWBORN

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 03 - H∅WL

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 04 - [Solo-Leveling]-Arise from the Shadow-Suite-Lv.1

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 06 - [Solo-Leveling]-Arise from the Shadow-Suite-Lv.3

Solo Leveling -Arise from the Shadow- OST - 12 - [Solo-Leveling]SymphonicSuite-Lv.8 (Ver.0)

SawanoHiroyuki[nZk] - bLACKbLUE - 19 - Twin Fates

Goddess of Victory Nikke Global Theme Song - Sawano Hiroyuki feat. Mizuki - TuNGSTeN

Solo Leveling - DARK ARIA ᐸLV2ᐳ (from SawanoHiroyuki [nZk] 10th Anniversary Studio Live)

Notes:

Astrea Record: Is It Wrong to Try to Pick Up Girls in a Dungeon? Tales of Heroes v2-3: Finished it, and it was both surprising and entirely unsurprising in the end. It was pretty obvious soon that Alfia and Zald couldn't be anything but anti-heros secretly trying to level up everyone and anything, but that Erebus as that evil dark god was in cahoots with them trying to do the same was a bit of a surprise. Sure, those two couldn't possibly have lied to him, but I'd have guessed more that that they were mutually using each other and the god would simply have some fun and see what comes out of it as a sort of game, while the two would just be full of saltiness and be like that if the folks couldn't best them they may all just as well perish right then and there. But then, Danmachi has always been a deal about positivity and no hopelessly evil creature has ever been given that much time of the day, so probably it shouldn't have been anything out of the ordinary. The epilogue was a nice bow to the main story through. So Alfia is the aunt of Bell? In a way that connection is interesting with how it branches over to the past and makes everything a titbit of a long and winded history of the world, on the other hand, Bell just seems a bit to primed by destiny from the beginning to become grand. But maybe that, too, shouldn't be so surprising, if the grandness of one's fate is based on the quality of one's soul and the soul is something you have from birth. (Also apparently he is the reincarnation of some forgotten hero anyway, given that Memoria Freese Game?)

As for Lyu, well. Her resolve feels incredibly half-assed compared to what Bell does in less page count in an overwhelmingsly more boring arc, but then, this spin off ends before the whole Astrea Familia perishes and Lyu goes berserk, so it probably had to be half-assed at this point.

I do like Erebus take, on what justice is, that it's dreams and that in turn means heroes, which makes a nice arch over to the whole main ambition of the entire world about the world wanting and needing heroes.

Madougushi Dahlia wa Utsumukanai a.ka. Dahlia lässt den Kopf nicht hängen v2p12-v3p6: Starting with v3, I have to say, the series admittedly has lines where the writing gives me a few uhmmms, given all the many repetitions.

So like for example:

華やかな装いの客引きや、異国の長衣、紋様つきの衣装をまとった者もいて、なんとも華やかだ。

Literally: Among the passersby were people dressed in gorgeous attires or long robes from foreign countries in all sorts of patterns and fabrics. It was truly a gorgeous view.

As in like stuffs 華やか, so, aye, everything's so very 華やか in summary. @_@"

Same thing happens with なんともおいしい (very tasty/delicious), which I feel like is totally going on my hitlist soon. (Well, the food parts weren't that terrible yet so far, but I dread the oysters already.)

It also often goes to explain something in the narration (implicit to be a thought of the character), to only have the character speak it out loud in a conversation pretty much right after it once more.

But that's more of a minor observation. The actual content so far is, while slow, starting to hit bittersweet spots all over again. Those two being exhausted over the incessant guesses about if they are together or not. With Dahlia wistfully musing how nice it would have been if they had been siblings, for all the more time they could have spent with each other having fun in a brighter, more happy childhood and most of all that they wouldn't have to explain and justify their time together. There is also a whole deal about Dahlia just being gloom at facing the reality that most likely they will eventually be drifting apart, while being even more scared of the most probably only other alternative falling in love with Wolf.

それに、もし自分が勘違いをし、ヴォルフに恋い焦がれる日がきたら、そこでも終わる。

Moreover, if she were to make the mistake to fall in love with Wolf, everything would end then and there.

Like, there is something visceral about this passage. About her just being too aware of how things are in the world, and thinking the worst about the romantic route option.

The Manga interestingly has an change of that line:

If it were to be mistaken as love, then we couldn't spend time together anymore.

As for Ivano, he for his part seems to have been pretty much set for that Wolf got cheese-striken, but there is something nicely, really nicely inoffensive that he doesn't just assume it, but rather he just makes preparations for if they'd got down the route of marriage, he'd lay the groundwork for it to be possible, but it's still for them to decide. Other than that it's really nice how he's there to try Dahlia breaking out of her shell and propel her forward. It's not like Dahlia had an unhappy childhood, she was very loved and protected, but she is just getting so much more nurturing support now than in the past, and there is something pretty powerfully boisterous about it.

Tearmoon Empire v4: The narrator continues to have a bone to pick with Mia, but it's become more balanced; rather than kinda secretly hateful, but having to admit to her few core essential good points (which even more clearly are manifested in the dreams of characters having about previous timelines), they seem more resigned now. I suppose Esmeralda as the second handful would do that to you. Other than that I really do like, how some things are just peak accidental luck, almost arsed lucky coincidences and that being wonky and it being pretty self-aware of that. And it still feels earned, because it's not just plot convenience, as there appear to have been plenty of timelines to show for the cases where they didn't work out. What's more, and this kinda seems to not get a whole lot of mention: Mia's having quite the strong psyche actually. As in, yes, she has a few traumas about getting beheaded, but they are all adressed on she doesn't want it to happen again, rather than she's all that bugged about the past. Yes the narrator shoves it onto her ability to just have an empty brain, but the mere fact, that she was able to narrate her own dark fate in viscious detail sitting next to a campfire like its nothing is ... kind of a pretty big deal in terms of character strengh actually? Bel seems to have a similar trait as well with her always thanking people even in the darkest of times. I agree with Lynsha there, this is a most rare and impressive thing.

All in all, this series is just brimming with a sense of hopefulness and not giving in to the dark despair routes.

Goodbye, Eri: Ok, so we have a movie in a movie in a movie. By the cut followed by the explosion I was wth. By the second time, it turns to start feeling like a pattern about the deception of what was real or not.

So, this is my take on it: We learn the mother has been abusing him to make that movie of her dying, and he had some trouble taking it in, so eventually he ran, and the explosion just feels like a representation he'd like to incinerate. Nobody understands his feelings there. Then comes Eri around, we also eventually learn that she is dying, had a bossy and pretty bad character and effectively wants the same as his mother. (Despite ostensibly being a fan of his explosion ending.) He is shaken at first how could she request that movie from him, but the point is. He still made it. Not only that, but he delivered it in a way she wanted, removed from actual reality, leaving a mark in people's memory full of selective and manipulated memories. How much of this is trying to make up for the failure towards his mother? How much is there because his father possibly has pushed him to do that? (His father knew everything about his mother's abuse, but did not stand up for him. The mother's will stood above protecting his son, so even if his scene about him being sorry to MC was real, I don't think it likely he wouldn't still to right that failure in that first movie, by having it righted with Eri's. But doing that hadn't made the MC happy whatsoever as explained in the what comes after the second movie showing and him struggling and not being able to let go. And then his own family he created to distract him somewhat from the lingering pain that trauma has left him with. And when they are gone he's ready to just put an end to it and die, but then there's this whole vampire scene and the explosion ending yet again.

This may be a bit far fetch, but but I had the impression that Eri maybe got actually insane towards the end of her life. Fleed into a fantasy world of his creation, but what's more, the insane Eri ultimately wasn't at all pleased with his creation, even if it was essentially doing everything right that his mother or Eri herself had demanded from him from the first movie. This scene exists as a footage (and let's assume while is plenty capable of cutting things in and out and adding effects, he isn't good enough to make the scene completely from scratch, given the whole amateur-ness to the movie). So it really happened, either really, or as an act. But as an act this scene seems off, because it doesn't show up in the second movie, nor does it fall in line with its narrative they have discussed for it to have, why would Eri act like that? Maybe that was really her at the end, that was her way to escape the despair of death. And quite possibly that is now his way of dealing with his desolate reality. He says in the end that he now understands why he was never satisfied with the video. Combining it with the first movie, it's likely because all of it in the second is a complete lie, with nothing of his own, likely more so than the first, but most importantly neither himself nor even Eri were happy about it. But the first at least still had the explosion. So he goes for that. His dealing with his past trauma? Again, to incinerate it all inside the movie. (And making it all look cool.)

And so in this take I#d imagine that this character's real self probably is a complete wreck at this point. Because he's defaulting back to something he already knows hasn't helped him whatsoever in the past, so why would it now? Plus, there is also a slight vibe of he, at this point, understands Eri or this maybe insane Eri, who surrendered to despair. So if he survives it all without contemplating or executing on his suicidal thoughts, I'd imagine him to be some sort of living zombie going back and back to that explosion and relishing in incinerating all that has given him pain and grief in the past.

And that makes this piece a piece of horror to me.

Of course, I wouldn't know if my take is right or wrong, this piece is too ambiguous to allow such a thing.

But even if it's all fictional movie from beginning to end, I still think it's horror. Because then it would be about the coolness factor of the explosion and the indication of how incinerating it all is the power fantasy we all needed. (Which … I think might be even more likely the author's take on it, given how Chainsaw Man looks like.) And if that were the case, there is something about it that'd just give me the shivers, because it feels wrong.

(p.s. The MC's mother totally looks like a Makima from Chainsaw Man. Was that an early spoiler on her being a villain character?)

Nenn es nicht Mystery a.ka. Don't call it Mystery v4ch7: At this point it really feels like a pattern. The culprit is either a policeman, or someone "inside the system, you'd expect to be trustworthy." Also, I dunno, is it trying to set up some ship for the readers? Like the guy declares he'd never fallen for anyone, regardless what gender, but that one amateur artist, as he called him, occupies a helluva lot of his mind. It could be anything (mostly intellectual probably), but something about the vibes feels like fodder thrown out to the fujoshis, and something about it makes me feel kinda put off. Can't really pinpoint it.

Nichiko's Island a.k.a. Dogs and Punching Bags v1-2: Another one from the author, which I can say it's not exactly bad, but I really, really do not ever end up liking them. In this case, I just think the ending is errrrrks. I mean for one, you have this mother how disses his son essentially saying he's not going to have a normal life, how he's the murderer of his brother and such and then suddenly she cries over all her love to him? And this moron of a wife cheating guy. He's so entirely self-centered, egoistic, pathetic and irresponsible, acting on whims and the bolting to stick to his promised. Like, of course he'd choose wife and child at the end, especially if the wife stands to lose more with being kinda indebted to him for marrying her. But he gets off scot-free with his cheating - that he totally knew wasn't the right thing to do - and it would be one thing if all of them knew in the end and just laughed it off because the moron just never properly grew a few levels in terms of maturity, but the wife and child do not look like they know whatsoever.

Number Call: The author just completely loves this sort of character design template, it's starting to feel a bit like a one-trick pony…

Sugar Apple Fairy Tale v1-3: This series has it with arrogant ass hats, including the male lead, who makes for a pretty bad (as in boring) tsundere. Other than that, not much that has happened yet, which I guess is not a surprise considering the LN source has over 20 volumes …

Tatsuki Fujimoto Short Stories 17-21 + 22-26: These stories were all over the place. The chicken in the alien garden had the most interesting message, I guess. The one about the mermaids actually feels pretty normal, so like, almost boringly normal, but overall probably the prettiest. The one about the sisters was kind of creepy with how one sister is chasing after her sister (and a bit shocking at how that is apparently to origin to Look Back? So like, in a different word those two may have made for a GL story?) and then there's this afterword about Fujimoto confessing to having eaten that dead fish pet and poisoning himself. Eh. I guess that's where the ending of Chainsaw Man Part 1 comes from?

The Essence of Being a Muse v1-3: It's reminded me a deal of Beat and Motion in a lot of places, just a lot more gloom at first and more modest in where it goes.

It does have a few interesting spots, and the issues the MC has and is struggling with somehow it feel like they are the work's own work, too somehow. 50% is pretty unremarkable, in art, pacing and just the whole characters. 30 feels like a scream into the void with heavy feelings that don't really know how to best get out and 20% are spots that don't exactly look brilliant or original per se, but do look like trying hard and that there were some specific thoughts behind it. Made me wonder, how this would have looked in the hands of somebody else. Either one who truly has a talent for originality, or one who has accepted the lack of it and focused instead on grinding handiwork and technique not ashamed of using block elements that were used before a hundred times over.

It's a somewhat fascinating mix overall. An MC who desperately tries to be special somehow and has tied art talent and expressiveness with self-worth, and then all this packed into a presentation that felt like it was trying to do exactly the same. Interestingly, it even resorted to collaborations, so there's oil painting pieces and a sequence of Shoujomangaeque style by other artists. Those do stand out somewhat.

The afterwords also talks about trying to merge two typical narrative pathes of shoujo and shounen and I feel like it doesn't really succeed in neither, but somehow that falling flat seems to suit the overall theme of trying all sorts of things and not really getting anywhere you wanted to get, but you got somewhere a little bit at least.

On the question if it was anything like Blue Period:

I still haven't read Blue Period beyond that v1 I did years ago.

But it's definitely not getting into the finer details of things. Technically you could replace the art with anything else, the main focus is less the art studies or industries but the more abstract theme of somebody who always struggled, is emotionally not very stable in the sense of being firmly on their own feet and having self-fueled confidence and art just happened to be the one single thing MC wasn't completely terrible at and got some measure of praise in the past. And then she tries to stick to that, but also just not really all that great, which she knows herself/has to find out the hard way and I think it's more about people who really just have this one thing left to themselves and their lives become tied to it, whether they really want it or not. Art obviously just happens to be a neat way to put the hurdles and stakes a bit higher, because even if you stick to it, this is not a place where you will find an environment that makes you feel loved, respected and admired, unless you really, really, have talent. But they are still stuck to it, because whatever else are they going to do? (There is a side character with all the same issues who went and studied finances, so something more "useful", but that also didn't particularly make him happy either.)

v3 goes a long tangle about that, and it's pretty stuffed with a bunch of emotions ranging from apathy, resignation, disappointment, self-hate, being extremely lost, a lot of bottled up anger and then a little tiny measure of hope.

It also got the most experimental in trying to get those emotions a fitting vessel, some work quite nicely, some are more like well, uh, nice try, I guess.

Jenseits der Worte a.k.a. Kemutai Hanashi v2ch8-11: There is something really slightly gloom about these chapters that deal with the transience of friendships in the face of later marriage and starting a family. Not helped by knowing what sort of wreckage it causes to Arita later on and for me in this month also entirely not helped by the double dosage I got from Dahlia added on top of it. I had to take a break after chapter 11 on working on it. Chapter 12 is the grand chapter where the series came down like a bomb to me the first time round and I want to do it the proper honors.

Solo Leveling v1-3, 4(WT), v5-6, v11, WTch98-200: Finished. The following may be a quite the unstructured mess including random repetitions from trying to integrate immediate comments from while I was reading. You have been warned.

(Or well, admittedly that warning was just there to weasel this glorious expression pic in.)

In summary, this series was the biggest surprise of the year so far and probably even since last summer when Dahlia dropped for me. I never expected to actually get impressed by this series like that whatsoever. I had read the Japanese volume 1 back in 2021, when it was out there free to read in one of the promotions they so often have and the jp v1 from Kadokawa has the first 6 webtoon chapters compiled, so basically half of the Korean/German print volume 1 and after those 6 chapters my impression of the series could not at all be called being particularly interested, so if not for a string of coincidences and my general grind through them all attitude I'd likely not touched it again anytime soon. It looked edgy, full of violence that looks like it's there for the sake of violence. Looking back on it, it probably has a bit of an effect like Goblin Slayer, which also starts with a lot of shocking violence painting it thick at the start: It's not wrong, it is important to the plot and world building at large and isn't making u-turns that this is a thing, but still is also entirely not representative of the overall tonality and focus the series has overall.

I mean, somebody could have told me, you get stuff like this:

At this point, I also have to express my ????? on the first volume's cover.

Like, who even is this brown haired guy?

Sung Jinwoo never looks like that. He has black hair throughout. He doesn't even wear hoodies like these, so half-assedly. (Like, do you want to hide yourself or not?) He also never grins like that as far as I remember from just reading it? I mean, the illustration isn't exactly bad, and it exudes power fantasy OPness sure, but the man isn't even a OP power cheat, he ascends to something well beyond that. Actually, he's less just a OP-MC-cheat rather than he's a homme fatale. And the series has just about zero sexual antics (beyond a short token one), so there's no misusing the sexual allure for your own purposes irk there either. If there is something I really like aesthetically then it's femme and homme fatales who just exude power by their sheer presence and own the room while also just looking good without the irk of their attractiveness being misused or abused. (But even the classic ones with that trait are exceedingly rare out there.)

But in any case, he doesn't start out like that and what's kinda impressive in hindsight: He starts off very very wimpy, but not whiny. And maybe just slightly insane, because his job reality is just crazy, he wholly knows it and even gets told so multiple times for good measure, but it's still at it. But I think that also is a refreshing thing about his character, because he doesn't care too much about social norms brainwashing him, which definitely is a big part of his adaptability to things. He doesn't have any sort of long-lasting inferiority complex about his past weakness, nor the therefrom fueled ambition to cope, overcome and override them with his newfound power beyond the solution of the actual ongoing problem at hand. Any of it remains just a means to an end, and he doesn't lose his sights upon that, he just wanted to help his family and kinda live his life without things coming across his way leaving a bad aftertaste.

He abides to rules, and he can respect to uphold them (because not doing so is a pain in the butt), but it is entirely not beyond himself to just whatever he wants within the loopholes to it. So it also feels in line with how he has zero qualms to just kill off other human beings, and even the first time didn't at all shake him up too much. There is no morality second guessing there about valuing human lives justice or bettering the world or some such above everything. He just has his own few modest wishes concerning the few people right before his eyes and their safe environment and that ultimately is the extent of it, even if that can well mean battling extradimensional warlords or saving the whole humanity and earth while at it. It also makes him not drunk on his power. He knows about his abilities and the overwhelming power they have, but he stays level heaved about them and while he has this habit to try to solve anything on his own (also why not, when he can), it's not beyond him to seek out helping hands if needed. And that's refreshing, because a OP character that actually works out, who doesn't get drunk on their own power and who doesn't get boring is just so rare. I think he's probably the closest to a Haku from Utawarerumono if you only took his workaholic part from his duality of lazy sarcastic whiny neetness and stopping at nothing including not prizing his own life too much, when it comes to just do what he wants, which usually is for the people important to him. Down to the tendency to not really listen that much to what said people might want themselves concerning him. There is a strong sense of selflessness to it, which however also is complete selfishness at the same time., which is something I already thought was fascinating about Haku. Other than that I can at best think of Mikoto from the A Certain Magical Index/A Certain Scientific Railgun who just knows up huge her powers are and uses them freely without flaunting them, never gets drunk and arrogant about them, but then she always had those powers, so she has more reason for innate confidence. (Plus she is a teenager, with all the antics that involves.)

And as such, if there were to be gods of sorts, this is the sort of mentality that probably is best suited to a godlike being. This one scene where the chairman talks to that politician about how that proposed new law wasn't preferential treatment he just answers that he's right, that's exactly it. Power is might and might becomes right. So the best that can happen is for that power, might, and right… to be kinda modest. (Personally, I think someone too concerned about "rights" and "justice" and some such is just as dangerous as someone with malicious hedonistic, megalomaniac tendencies.)

And even with all his power, he still knows to meet others with a sense of cordial politeness and respect, as long as they are willing to do that as well. And while at it, it also never really catches the shonen nakama/teammate/comrades bug. It's more like alliances, delegation and leaving things out of his field to those who can do it better. That's actually way more real life than your preachy shonen tropes ever will be, which suits the more mature mentality, as Jinwoo himself is already a working adult himself.

Speaking of Shonens I was surprised about how little it reminded me of Hunter x Hunter. I mean, one would suspect that idea to occur, given they both have professions called hunters in both series, an association attached to it and there's even another ant monster arc there with the ant queen having pretty much literally the same motivation to birthing her super killer ant. But like nothing about the mood, style and anything about the series is similar to it really. If anything, I'd rather compare it to Is it Wrong to Pick up Girls in a Dungeon? (minus the harem antics, so probably more like Astrea Record) where there's also this leveling and skills system, which takes out all the more interesting things about leveling and getting better and just grinding and making things easy to parse in numbers, but there is none of this inherent MMO-Game-neet-geekness and accompanied flaunted escapanism to it that so many of the other mmo-style series have. I suppose both series have in common that this series is just a means to an end from the higher powers that be to facilitate an end goal, and this was just one way they picked to make the process approachable by humans.

Other than that the series just actually looks really good, and, if we leave the prologue out, also in way that is so, so full of the Rule of Cool, but never does it come off edgy, nor does it have that sense of rule of cool shonen usually has as in that moments are reserved to pointed climax scenes. No, here, he's just, really always cool. And do many side characters are like that, too (well, so as long as they last.) If you really are strong, your power radiates from you the entire time, not just in plot moments of excitement, and there are so few works that actually manage to do that as artlessly natural.

It certainly also helps, that Jinwoo's growth is gradual, so from the wimpy character he first turns into a few variations of could have been a Shonen Manga MC (among which he once looks kinda like Kazuma of Konosuba shortly and also like the MC of Black Torch), until he finally gets his haircut and first looks like a school council prez, before his hair grows in a bit again, and he has his final signature look of a homme fatale (that on few occasions looked like a Kogami from Psycho Pass or Mamoru from Sailor Moon or Subaru from X/1999). The art definitely makes a case for character design: You wanna be cool and handsome? Remove the roundness from your appearance. It's not just the muscles he gets or his body growing up more vertically. It also made his bangs on the sides of his head seem shorter and once he got rid of them it just proves how much of a difference a mere haircut can make. (It suits him really well even as a child, where there are more rounder features in his face.)

Also, most importantly: Make your eyes less round. Not so much that they are slitty, but perfect almond shaped eyes are best. Now I actually get, why Dahlia keeps repeating that point about Wolf. I absolutely loath slit eyes for being ugly looking, and somehow I thought almond shaped usually meant slitty, but it's more like the perfect balance of nicely pretty big and also not monstrously big round (or worse oval, like the eyes in Key series.)

It was pretty neat in the fake regression-world of Ashborn's, where Jinoo maintains present looks in a past setting and suddenly everyone notices immediately. The change was really so gradual, from one chapter to the next it doesn't feel like a big change, but if you line up it up to the beginning, they pretty much only have their hair color, chin line and contour of their faces in common.

That sounds very much like an understatement lol

But speaking of eyes: There be shiny, glowing eyes.

Not like that there weren't plenty of other series already doing it before, but I can't think of any other series putting such glowing eyes or the auras to such a continuous effect like this series. (Plus, there is more than just Jinwoo's blue/purple from the other characters.) And it certainly also adds to the dynamics of fights, because light sources that move will leave a bit of a light trail, so you kinda have implicit speed lines to help the animateness of the scenes. Which there are good bunch, too. There are many panels, that kinda look reminiscent to screenshots of fast paces sakuga sequences of anime, so multiple such panels coming one after another in quick scrolling succession makes the fights really look almost actually animated.

Also, shiny blue eyes combined with black hair? That's just a color harmony I really dig, give me more of it. (And the hair gets some fluttering in the winds too!) The purple is also nice, tho. I think it's also interesting, how the purple signifies more pure darkness, but also somehow feels a tinge warmer than the blue.

Other than that, it's also been interesting to see how the JP and Korean-based-German paneling of the book versions differ. The JP one is mirrored for right to left reading (and all the names are localized) and the design choice it to maximize the space of the pages to exhibit as much artwork as possible which makes it a bit more graphically striking at first glance, but at the cost of pacing, if you ask me. The German one instead has a lot of space between the panels in the beginning but as the books are bigger (about the size of Yen Press LNs) it also doesn't feel like the actual artwork feels too small or the space wasted. It definitely makes for a better reading flow. leaves breathers to the pacing and more of the vertical panels are preserved without cuts. I wonder if that was part of the reason, I wasn't wowed by the first 6 chapters when reading them in JP at the time? Unfortunately, it seems like that style fizzles out after a few volumes in the German edition as well. :<

Another entirely surprising thing about the series was, it can't just do Rule of Cool. It can also make peak reaction faces and put on a exhibit of different warrobes.

Or really, his just fighting in sneakers and a tracksuit. Or maybe shows up in a suit. He makes usually-not-so-cool clothing still look cool, if needed.

Not that you also get every sort of full fantasy-style armory either on side characters, both worn seriously or for the laughs. And there's really something really practical to have Jinwoo first be too broke to ever buy armory and then just being too OP to actually need them, so he always has a rather casual dress on his fights. Which is looking really nice and stylish, and with that background also not entirely irrational to hell. (Also almost hilarious how the thought about armory in the end battle just kinda occurred to him all of a sudden as if it was a sort of novelty.)

The series is surprisingly funny, cute, dramatic and quite rich in expressions. Even the super overpowered Jinwoo isn't just always cool or dark, but also funny, cute, worried and sometimes also really, really pissed off, and it can all show right away without the need of plot buildups. If you really are strong, your power is at the ready and subtly radiates from you the entire time even without the need of a build up, and I think there's too little amounts of characters who can be like that.

For all the lack of edgyness things do shortly get a bout into such a direction, with that comment about his emotions and pieces about himself getting broken, but that looks more like the fangs of a trauma he really should have had from the events in the past, and it's also basically immediately squashed by Jinho proving not all humans suck ass and then Johee, who also reminds him of what he was able in the past and how much of it he only was because of her. And he makes a u-turn quickly enough away from the edge mood to not care too much about it, as long as they leave him and his important people in peace.

Speaking of Johee, I think she is part of the reason the prologue feels so misleading. It's like she is primed to be the female lead, there are also some moods that in any other series would make her a romantic interest, too. But the series actually choses to sideline her. And not in the usual sense, where they stick around, half uselessly and are mostly just there for some lap naps and some mental comfort/cheese pampering or token cool moments, but she actively sidelines herself by retiring, by her own choice and agency and later on she still gets shown as a part of the world, just in a different real of the world, but isn't directly connected to the active plot involving Jinwoo's further path. Not directly connected anymore, but still connected somehow nonetheless. It's rare for characters to leave the stage so gracefully without them dying and still retain a role in the depicted world.

There was something even more surprising to come:

A cutefied ant monster. Like. How does this Rule of Cool max level series suddenly wind up featuring an actual mascot (that totally can kill you) character? And while Beru has most of it, the other shadows aren't beyond that treatment either.

The bonus chapters are also nice in fleshing their inner worlds out (they are a complete handful) and how they have grown more human. Which I think also subtly hints at the whole losing something stuff from the beginning that Jinwoo comments on earlier being what the plots makes of them: Not much to be concerned about. Everything he loses probably was made to make way for Ashborns power to get in, but all that he loses probably just got collected by the latter instead? And all that was his, gets handed over to Jinwoo anyway, so he isn't really losing anything really. (Granted, that bit is a bit wonky and may pass as slightly inconsistent.)

And also, me, half disappointingly: Even this series did not manage to do without the cheese factor, but equally surprisingly it is quite decently made. Hae-In getting cheese stricken isn't too much of a surprise (somebody whose company you can enjoy simply because he doesn't stink - I definitely can buy that picking attention), but the way he started to feel drawn to her also feels kinda of pretty buyable. He didn't have any active interest in her (or anyone really, but is also not entirely immune to it, given his reactions about the eating out promise with Johee), but she just bludgeoned into his life on his own, making a stand for herself, (that seems to be a pattern, Jinho did the same, and their time together made them friends), being actually powerful enough to meet him on eyelevel to some extent, and before he knew it, aside from his family he realized he didn't really have anyone to talk to, so it was a yeah, why not her, and eventually it's a mix of her just being there with no competition and her just being one of the few he every grew intimate enough to the point that in the end she is one critical component to fill in the void he has from spending so much time alone fighting, having his job done and kinda feeling this sense of purposelessness.

Besides, this shot is just really pretty.

Though I am not one of these cheese fans.

Which basically means

There is more cheese training to do, eh.

Speaking of the ending (ch179), it's funny how it kinda literally ends like Steins;Gate. But ye, why not also time loops. Pulling a regression trope at the end and saying it was there the entire time, you just didn't know, actually feels more refreshing than pulling it right off the bat as a checklist premise item. The ending overall is a bit like a mix of that with Utwarerumono Mask of Truth, except Jinwoo's ascension to kinda goodhood happens a whole deal earlier (that whole chapter about Ashborn meeting him and framing everything as a payoff to his efforts and the Arise Jinwoo he uses one himself is a really visually attractive chapter, too), so he has even more time to be throughout badass. And both Utawarerumono and Steins;Gate just also happen to be another favorite seriess of mine, just like how time travel is a staple element capable of baiting me, so, here is me digging in. (Granted, S;G is still Science Fiction and Solo Leveling's time loops are fantasy.)

The epilogue chapters with those unnamed disciples drawing them are also surprisingly consistent in the art department to the prior bits, even if you can see some differences if you looked closer. Some lines look softer, rounder, the skin color has different tinges, some other gazes seem to have more emotions behind them, and a bit on the composition of fights feels different. It almost makes the whole creation process less like manga creations rather than anime productions, where things aren't drawn by one person, but a whole team who may have little individual touches, but the end product still looks streamlined and consistent. (Unless there was some production fail at work, anyway.) There's funny, sweet and absurd little Slice of Elements, which also seem to introduce something new: Media savyness. There is a reference to One Punch man, and that short stint into a BL reference came from complete left field, but was pretty effective in causing an lmao. There's also random cool fights, Suho just smashing everything to bits and leveling up 99 levels in like less that 1/100th of the time of his father and just everything being a build up to a next story plot. Very Boruto style. But better Boruto, because Suho isn't a brat.

Anyway. It had a few years of delay until I discovered that one again. And it just proves the things I like always pop out from the unexpected places, and why do the things I wind up liking in the end almost always seem to have a habit of me first being anything but impressed or even close to liking it in the beginning? That sort of grinding by trying and re-trying it all is darn exhausting ...

But anyhow some more dork faces for good measure, because just because.

I also shall complain just a little bit, that there was never suit-Jinwoo in action to be seen. The one fight where he wore one, he pretty much just stood there and let the shadows do the work. (But then, I guess, good clothing should not be wasted by damaging it with needless fighting.)

Solo Leveling: Ragnarok ch1-47 (Season 1 end): Well. Uh. The poster cover and the insides kind of look somewhat different yet again. I mean definitely closer than cover 1 of the previous series and its insides, but the coloring texture is different, and why is Suho having swords, when he basically dissed swords in the epilogue of the previous series and went for fist fights and gauntlets instead?

But in any case: The first 3 chapters were genuinely good, they packed a punch and added just enough to make Suho definitely his father's son, but also a character of his own. Despite his childhood in the previous series proving he had all the talent in the world, he still has to suffer what it means to be helplessly weak and mourning the loss of a grounded confidence he once had. The stakes on his very life are there, and then the system pops up, but just as the reader wholly knows what its deal is, so does Suho already have a rough knowledge of how to use it from the tutorial, so we do not waste any time on a mystery system, that is not a mystery to anyone anymore. It still retains the effect of showing up in the best time to help him to his awakening, so he can survive. And while it seems like a cheap way out to just have his parents written out of the plot it uses that bit rather effectively to direct the mystery of the unknown to be uncovered about what happened to Jinwoo, while also avoiding the pit trap of having the old cast steal the show of the new protagonist. (I appreciate Boruto having tried to not cop out to the easy route right away, but ultimately even that one couldn't manage without writing Naruto and Sasuke out of the plot more conveniently than not and compared to that I suppose I'#'d rather have it off the bat like that.) Cherry on top, like the epilogue of the first series, the artist of this one proves they can handle art style consistency while adding some more new touches, so it's decidedly just really nice to look at.

Also, shiny blue eyes with black hair again~ (Part of the reason the fusion form just does not enthuse me whatsoever.)

And then Beru shows up and trashes all the remaining enemies away.

Which was still cool, but suddenly the ant has lost his powers (well duh, he needs to not steal the show I guess), so this cutetsy thing gets downgraded to a sidegag that is a wandering spoiler hazard and fanboy moron, about as useful/annoying as the Microsoft Office 2003 Clippy mascot.

Like, way to destroy all the suspense and mystery by just… spilling the beans about what his father has gone doing, explaining anything and everything at every step of the corner, being a complete convenient extract-info-from-corpses plot device, giving so much info on what the dangers are, not rarely discouraging Suho from having own ideas and also every so often stressing that the system is a gift to help him. So like it's a safe route and yeah, let's just do what it says, and forgotten are also the earlier complexes and worrying about compromising his self and going with the flow because he's been so weak. And then it goes and has Suho exhibit that he had caught the justice bug. Which, how could he have such an idealized image of his detective father, when he'd lived with him until he was a teen as seen in the epilogue? Also, why are his memories so hazy, as if he didn't know him, is this going Psycho Pass Season 2 Mika with no continuity to S1? Jinwoo's hair is back to his signature hairstyle even in all the flashbacks, which is different from in the epilogue. And we go on, and the whole series has caught the nakama bug with a literal quest for teammates. Somehow also slightly humanizing a past walking destruction hazard of a monarch, which, uh, how come? And making a former side character kinda useless. I mean cool, that it seems to be set on to give side characters also from fleshing out and screentime and Esil really felt more like a throwaway character than not in the first series, so much the epilogue even made a joke about it. But did you have to force her into becoming an outlet for the clumsy girl tripping trope of all things? (Also Grey just…. may be a wolf, but looks like a dog and I still absolutely don't have a thing for dogs …) They just all look so pathetic and the whole drill of it really just looking very very battle shonen is errrrrr. Having him wear some Tokyo Ghoul-ish masks isn't helping the case. (Also, his fusion form with that white spicky hair and extra eyelashes just looks completely generic, which is to say lame.) I really wanted to say, this was the better Boruto, but increasingly, I got less convinced.

Then it also adds a villain with a really shitty character and faces that range from a mean spirited Kiritsugu from Fate/Zero to really obnoxiously exaggerated grimaces and it's like one cannot wait until he exits the stage hopefully without too much whining about being a sore loser and let's better not remember he ever existed. And he's another side character from the previous series getting more fleshed out, but if Minsung was more of a joke character for the laughs with indications that he was hardly the most upstanding personality in the first series here he's just… not having any redeeming qualities at all and worse, he doesn't even look like a proper treat. Just a test on the wayside so he doesn't even feel like a villain you'd relish as a reader to see him punished and the turned into a shadow.

This goes on until about chapter 35ish, when it turns out, this villain actually nabs Suho and punches him both verbally and actually and confronts him with the entire problem this whole series has: It has been chasing shadows and tropes made Suho do that, too. Beru once makes a meta comment about how this is like the story of something along the lines "I thought I was a helpless unawakened nobody, but I'm actually the ultimate shadow heir?" which kinda looks like a lame genre self awareness that is entirely out of place and instead only brings in implied plot armory. (Suho's expression is what the whole middle part was to me.) Which didn't help on top this really stakes-free looking system leveling him up, all the wishy washy nakamaism, how his whole moral code of right and wrong is just borrowed and nothing about it is his and how he's really really really just going with the flow and not doing much of his own.

And yeah, he gets his ass kicked about really really neatly (or well he gets impaled) and even Minsung manages to get a dignified exit to the stage by showing the middle finger to the real apostle enemy. The following sequence of Suho realizing how much he was bathing in lukewarm and drawing a arch back to the beginning really got up to speed again, also visually very nice bit arching back to the paintings with his pen reference. Tho first disappointingly it just leads to him kinda doing some I'm gonna become the Hokage-style-declaration, except there isn't actually any confidence behind it, rather than he really just realized he needed something like it to drive him forwards as his own character. It felt extremely weak, but what's really cooler how he kinda just immediately gets a punched as well by the plot (or well, he gets impales yet again) and then we're into that the system is not able to wholly protect him just like that and then the system is compromised, how safe things are in the forced quests remains a question mark and finally, finally! The actual stakes are back. The last quest of the season about Suho having to fight his past selves and then conquering his alternate present self from another world is really cool to trash his wimpy-winy-lukewarm attitude out of him and the end about him going dafaq about picking one of the three system routes and going no he's going to have them all. Oh, and he finally ditches his mask. - Now we're talking vibes from the first series again.

And then the season ends and that was the last chapter around for the time being. Which is, well, darn, when it just got good again. How mean!

By now, I also totally think the plot and world is back in a time loop story. The Cup of Reincarnation was depleted in the first series, but there is one panel with that outer god giving another cup to his apostles ordering them to use it and also there is Suho's alternative self from the system quest. Going by the epilogue scene, Jinwoo was still around when he and Hae-in had their 16th wedding anniversary before he goes to face the invasion from a gate, which would also be when Suho was still a teen. Rewind that 10 years, and suddenly the only hazy memories Suho has about his parents make perfectly sense. Just like how this weird distance Chairman Woo seems to have thinking about Jinwoo does as well in all its nostalgic wistfulness, Jinwoo's hairstyle reverting back to his signature look, the indications of Tielle about how Jinwoo kinda looks very lonely would fall in just fine, too. (How many loops long in years has he fought already?) And that other self of Suho, who maybe awakened much earlier with a better support group and less going easy routes of playing it safe, is already said to be more than just an illusion of the system. Maybe it's latent memories of past loops, he's slowly getting to remember once he gets more power back? Any maybe those selves had gone too overconfident, leading to an earlier demise, which may be the reason of Jinwoo keeping the seal that much longer intact? May also explain the swords in the poster cover and Suho going to use them is yet to come, like his alternate self did.

Now, I like Time Loop stories that play with the alternative timelines, so, I kinda really hope I'm not just seeing red herrings.

For all the complaints above, this sequel is doing a better foundation at world building and giving side character a time of the day and also seems to fill in onto the evolution of how god's creations may start thinking on their own and rebel (Tielle totally looks primed for that). And with Tielle getting fragments of his self back and getting powerful that way he's the only one with a similar trait to the power leveling up Suho has, so this series may actually have an antagonist, that not only lasts a deal longer than any of the previous series, but evolves along the protagonist. So Ragnarok has an entirely different approach to things, which are all very refreshing, but darn was the middle bulk part of this season a chewy piece of not being all that exciting. The payoff at the end definitely worked however, and the beginning is still a genuinely really well-made hook.

I don't look forward to the waiting game now.

Maybe I should start reading the WN…

Music:

Well, a continuation from last month pretty much and grinding some new stuff, which included a batch of Hayashi Yuuki sountracks, which didn't leave much a lasting impression bar a few ones for a little bit, which is how those selected MHA and Double Decker tracks came about. But even those faded somewhat quickly, tho Aosaki's broken wings (Instrumental) also just randomly showed up and seemed to harmonize well with the YLL GRYM and Double Decker tracks.

I was still grinding though the Hayashi scores, when I started reading Solo Leveling and probably just by timing, Don't lose from the Born to be on Air soundtrack, whose series I totally have not watched, kinda got repurposed to a Solo Leveling OST in my brain. But only that one single track, which was when the Hayashi score grinding got a backseat and then most coincidentally 汪苏泷 - 无名之辈 landed on the playlist by algorithm. Which also has just been rewired into a Solo Leveling OST of sorts. Sadly the artist seems to only have one song in this style and I have to wonder just how heavily edited and pitch corrected it may be considering how the live/concert performance clips that are up on yt sound … not so great.

After that, I kinda figured, maybe I could just listen to the actual Solo Leveling Anime Soundtrack, especially as the second season's score also dropped by now. And while I was at it, I guess there was also some grinding through the most recent stuff by Sawano Hiroyuki. And so the last third of the month was pretty much just Solo Leveling(ish sounding) music. Granted, the S2 Vocal tracks first sounded more Attack on Titan than anything, but their lyrics are clearly not that. As for Dark Aria I just have to wonder about the "the question of my love?" line. Where did that come from, in a series that (at least to that point of the plot), really is about as cheese free as it gets.

What did you eat yesterday? v22: Quality content as per usual, but I made the mistake of reading it for a change of breather after being tortured with foodstuff scenes in Dahlia and Kemutai Hanashi. (Whyever I picked a foodie manga out of anything to distract myself from all that ...) The signs on the first page literally made me wince shortly.

But Shiro delivers more than a few nod nods from me. They feel just so real!

a.k.a. I still wanna have a grocery buddy like he and Kayoko are.

There were also a few other surprises:

I was going wtf, was Shiro going to become cheese? This perfectly tsundere Shiro?!

Way to go from a cheese build up to the cost of living crisis!!

You can definitely feel it's set in the contemporary world, there is the cost of living issues, there's talk about chatGPT, and a soft side trashing on the state of gay marriage in Japan in one of Wataru's snotty rambles. In reality it was ruled uncontitutional to not have them by the Tokyo High court end of last year, so this may become a likely plot point in one of the next volumes.

[theomeganerd]

Gears of War: Reloaded Comes to Xbox Series X|S, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud Gaming, PlayStation 5 and Steam in Summer 2025

Summary

The original Gears of War returns, faithfully remastered and natively optimized for more platforms than ever before as Gears of War: Reloaded.

Gears of War: Reloaded launches August 26, 2025, for $39.99 SRP on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud Gaming, PlayStation 5 and Steam, and arrives day one with Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass.

Play on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox PC and Xbox Cloud Gaming with Xbox Play Anywhere.

Gears of War: Reloaded supports cross-play and cross-progression across all platforms.

Xbox fans who own the digital version of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition receive a free upgrade to Gears of War: Reloaded.

Wishlist now for Xbox Series X|S and Xbox PC, Steam, and PlayStation 5.

Gears of War: Reloaded is a celebration of one of gaming’s most iconic franchises. Featuring 4K resolution, 120 FPS support, and the ultimate multiplayer experience with cross-progression and cross-play, across all platforms, this is the definitive way to experience the game that started it all.

As we approach the 20th anniversary of Gears of War in 2026, we’re reflecting on what this franchise means. It’s about the stories we’ve told, the friendships we’ve built, and the unforgettable moments we’ve shared together. With Gears of War: Reloaded, we’re opening that door to more players than ever.

A Modern Classic Goes Multiplatform

Originally released in 2006, Gears of War: Reloaded brings the full experience forward once again — enhanced for the latest hardware across multiple platforms, introducing the Gears of War franchise to a new generation of players.

Developed by The Coalition in partnership with Sumo Interactive and Disbelief, Gears of War: Reloaded launches August 26, 2025, for $39.99 SRP on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox PC, Xbox Cloud Gaming, PlayStation 5, and Steam, and arrives on day one with Game Pass Ultimate or PC Game Pass. Play on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox PC with Xbox Play Anywhere.

Gears of War: Reloaded includes the full breadth of content from the Gears of War: Ultimate Edition, delivering the most complete version of the original game to date. Players will gain immediate access to all post-launch downloadable content at no additional cost — this includes the bonus Campaign act, all multiplayer maps and modes, and a full roster of classic characters and cosmetics unlockable through progression.

Built for Brotherhood

Gears of War: Reloaded is built for shared play — whether you’re teaming up in split-screen or jumping online. The Campaign supports two-player co-op, and Versus Multiplayer allows up to 8 players. With cross-play across all platforms, you and your friends can squad up no matter where you play — no Microsoft account required.

However, signing in with a Microsoft account unlocks full cross-platform functionality. It enables cross-progression, so your Campaign and multiplayer progress carries across devices. It also allows you to send invites and play with friends across platforms — like Xbox to PlayStation or Steam to Xbox.

Precision Performance on Every Platform

No matter where you play, Gears of War: Reloaded has been re-engineered to look and feel incredible. Players can expect:

4K resolution

60 FPS in Campaign

120 FPS in Multiplayer

High Dynamic Range (HDR)

Dolby Vision & 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos

7.1.4 3D Spatial Audio

Variable Refresh Rate (VRR)

4K assets and remastered textures

Enhanced post-processing visual effects

Improved shadows and reflections

Super resolution with improved anti-aliasing

Zero loading screens during Campaign

From faster frame rates to deeper visual fidelity, every detail has been tuned to bring the original game into the present with clarity, smoothness, and immersion that matches the power of today’s hardware.

And wherever you play, we’re meeting you there with the best version possible. Gears of War: Reloaded includes platform-specific features that make the most of the hardware you already own to deliver a world-class Gears of War experience — faithful to the original, optimized for today, and made for everyone.

For Xbox Fans, A Thank You

As a token of our gratitude to longtime fans, Gears of War: Reloaded will be a free upgrade for players who purchased the digital version of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition prior to today’s announcement. (Must have purchased a digital version of Gears of War: Ultimate Edition prior to 16:00 UTC on May 5, 2025. A code for Gears of War: Reloaded will be delivered prior to launch of the game via a direct message to eligible Xbox accounts.)

And for Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass members, Gears of War: Reloaded will be available as part of the Game Pass library at launch.

[onepiece-lov]

Atmos OP02-003 by Nekobayashi from Booster Pack -PARAMOUNT WAR- [OP-02]

[forthesanityofstorytellers]

Playlist Tag Game!

Thanks to @aalinaaaaaa here, thanks!

Quickly tagging @everthewip @phynewrites @myancientmars @innocenthedgehog @gummybugg @bloodlessheirbyjacques @vacantgodling @jezwrites

Rules: post a screenshot or a list of your playlist titles and tag some friends. If you're tagged, send op an ask about one of their playlists, then add your own.

------------

Hellfire

Worldbuilding Mabanu: DesIdiots Atmo-Nah Atmo-Afwidooni Atmo-Diwooni Atmo-Jacooni Atmo-Mawooni Atmo-Domain;Shallows Atmo-Domain;Windways Atmospheric-Skybirth Atmospheric-Faroae Atmospheric-Deve Atmospheric-Muagjia Atmospheric-Kamere Atmospheric-BaLis Atmospheric-Elsewhere Atmo-Domain;NorthernWastes

Love Languages: Vicki's Recs

Keystone OCs: Keystones - Rami Keystones - Grace Keystones - Michael Keystones - Jake Keystones - Sting Keystones - Miles

Sequel: Becks Life Mattie&Past Lives The Kids Thomas Verin Becks Atohi&Taeda Close To You (Violin & Guitar Duo) Rod Jules Hansel Ipokashi

Worldbuilding General Fantasy Mix

highschool&favs

Eerie

Characters

Evanpark

Writing

[hishgraphics]

Last week, in a one-shot Star Trek Adventures tabletop RPG session, my niece Anya plays Commander Jewel Mochizuki, XO of the Walker-class USS Bangkok. It is July 2260. Captain Adilia Morales is sent by Starfleet to investigate the SOS from the Saladin-class USS Neptune in the Anansi Aleph system.

Captain Morales assigns Cmdr Mochizuki to the rescue ops. Upon dropping out of warp, Science Officer Lt Amanda Heisenberg scans nearby gas giant Anansi Aleph III detecting a ship in its upper atmosphere. Helmsman Lt. Cmdr. Simone Tsang plots a course there.

An electrical storm under the Neptune disables scanning, comms and prevents beaming. Cmdr Mochizuki orders Tsang to launch a probe. Despite the atmo disturbance, Mochizuki succeeds [using Control+Conn] in remote flying the drone. The Neptune seems fine, and there is no sign of activity.

Then, Mochizuki leads a landing party with Tsang & Heisenberg in a Type-7 shuttle. They pass the probe on its way back. The winds and ionisation disruption buffet the shuttle, but Tsang skillfully lands them in the Neptune's hangar bay, beside another Type-7 shuttle.

They disembark and are jumped by a creature out in the corridor. Mochizuki stuns the creature with her phaser. The creature is a dog-sized leathery ball of muscle with a huge maw and sharp teeth.

Heisenberg reports that there are multiple lifesigns on the Engineering Deck - but no reply on comms. Tsang informs the XO that the ship is sinking into the storm clouds below which would destroy the ship.

With 15 minutes left, they split up. Heisenberg proceeds to the Science Department to learn more about the creatures. Mochizuki orders Tsang to find and destroy the creatures while she heads for the Engineering Deck. The XO fails to break the lock on the Engineering Room, where the Neptune survivors are trapped. Another creature jumps her but is disintegrated by her phaser.

Then Heisenberg calls. She is under attack by more creature before her signal cuts off.

The Neptune rocks violently as it descends into the topmost storm clouds. Tsang reports that an organic, egg-like object smashed through the hull & hatched some time ago. The hull breach is contained by emergency forcefields for now.

Mochizuki heads toward Tsang but en route a group of four creatures rush for her. They are pursued by a large 3-m long tentacled creature! Mochizuki and the small aliens flee together. But [by spending 2 Momentum] a lightning hit activates the corridor security forcefield and traps the creature. The smaller aliens are also happy at this development.

Then Heisenberg shows up with more of the smaller creatures in her arms. She discovered that the smaller gir-ligud are not hostile. The USS Neptune picked a group of them in space as they were being hunted by the larger sarab-bok. The predator travelled in an egg-like vessel that had smashed into the starship in search of its food.

Lt Cmdr Tsang reaches the bridge but helm power is off. The XO finds a power junction and [with Reason+Engineering] successfully diverts power to the bridge, allowing the helmsman to pilot the ship up and away from the electrical storm.

The Neptune out of danger, Mochizuki beams the trapped sarab-bok out to space and rescue the near-frozen crew in the Engineering Room – some of which had been devoured by the huge alien creature.

With the survivors safe and sound, the USS Bangkok and the USS Neptune then warp away from Anansi Aleph III.

THE END

[lorz-ix]

I've been stuck, needing to finish several art projects, but not being able to get shit done for a few months now, and it's been bothering me every day. I'm trying to get back into the swing of things, so here's one of the small things I decided to tackle as a sort of warm-up.

Back during pride season last year, when I was still more or less frequently streaming, we had this "Optimus Pride" joke pop up that led to me coloring several commercially available versions of Prime in the style of the Kotobukiya bishoujo figure.

At some point during this year's pride more or less, I randomly remembered that I somehow forgot about one of the funniest OP toys: MP-10ASL, aka Convoy/Optimus Prime (atmos safari Lebron ver.)

So, over one year later, here she is, finally.

[enterprisewired]

Best Gaming Headsets for Every Type of Gamer in 2025

Source: Image by YakobchukOlena from Getty Images

Whether you’re playing exciting first-person shooters, working through MMO raids, or just hanging out in a co-op session with friends, sound is more important than you might think. A good gaming headset not only provides great audio but also makes in-game communication clearer, helps block out noise, and can even give you a tactical advantage. With so many models available each year, how do you choose the right one?

We’ve done the hard work for you and created a complete guide to the best gaming headsets of 2025. This list includes top choices for competitive gamers, affordable options for casual players, and versatile models that work well for both gaming and everyday use. 

Why Your Gaming Headset Matters?

Before jumping into the list, let’s understand why the headset you choose is as crucial as your monitor or mouse:

Sound positioning: In FPS games like Call of Duty or CS: GO, knowing where gunfire or footsteps are coming from can mean life or death.

Communication: Clear mic quality ensures you don’t sound like you’re speaking through a tin can in the heat of battle.

Comfort: Long gaming sessions demand a headset that doesn’t crush your ears or overheat your head.

Cross-platform compatibility: The best gaming headsets today are compatible with PC, PlayStation, Xbox, and even mobile devices.

Let’s dive into the curated list.

The 10 Best Gaming Headsets of 2025:

1. SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless

Price: $379.99 

Best For: Audiophiles, streamers, multi-platform gamers

Why It Stands Out: With its dual wireless system, active noise cancellation, and DAC support, the Arctis Nova Pro Wireless remains unmatched. It’s ideal for serious gamers who want high-fidelity audio without sacrificing comfort or battery life.

Pros: Swappable batteries, premium build, spatial audio support

Cons: Expensive

Buy Now

2. Razer BlackShark V2

Source – computerspace.in

Price: $199.99

Best For: Esports and competitive gamers

Why It Stands Out: Lightweight, affordable, and equipped with Razer’s Triforce Titanium 50mm drivers, this headset delivers clean highs, mids, and deep bass. Plus, its detachable mic is fantastic for Discord or Twitch.

Pros: THX spatial audio, breathable earcups

Cons: Wired only

Buy Now

3. Logitech G Pro X 2 Lightspeed

Price: $279.99 

Best For: Wireless lovers, competitive FPS

Why It Stands Out: Designed with esports professionals in mind, the G Pro X 2 offers robust build quality, low-latency wireless, and crystal-clear Blue VO!CE mic software.

Pros: 50mm graphene drivers, pro-grade mic, long battery life

Cons: Pricey, no ANC

Buy Now

4. Corsair HS80 RGB Wireless

Price: $159.99

Best For: PC gamers and RGB enthusiasts

Why It Stands Out: Dolby Atmos spatial sound, customizable RGB lighting, and a comfortable memory foam design make this a great headset for long gaming marathons.

Pros: Low latency, excellent PC integration

Cons: Heavier build

Buy Now

5. HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless

Source – me.ign.com

Price: $199.99

Best For: Long battery life

Why It Stands Out: 300-hour battery life on a single charge—yes, you read that right. HyperX also nails the essentials with a sturdy frame and punchy sound.

Pros: Unmatched battery, crisp audio

Cons: No Bluetooth or 3.5mm jack

Buy Now

Also Read:

Level Up Your Fun with These Top 15 Gaming Platforms for PC

The Best Gaming Websites for Gamers of All Levels

The Best Football Games for PC: A Thrilling Dive into Virtual Pitch Battles

6. Astro A50 Wireless (Gen 4)

Price: $199.99 

Best For: Console and PC dual-users

Why It Stands Out: With a base station that handles charging and game/chat mixing, the Astro A50 is tailor-made for people who game across platforms. It’s immersive, comfortable, and easy to manage.

Pros: Dolby Audio, premium comfort, great mic

Cons: Proprietary charging base needed

Buy Now

7. Corsair HS65 Surround – Best Budget Surround Sound Headset

Price: $69.99

Best For: Gamers seeking premium features under $100. 

Why It Stands Out: Offering Dolby Audio 7.1 surround sound at a budget-friendly price, the Corsair HS65 doesn’t compromise on comfort or clarity. The lightweight frame and soft memory foam ear pads make it ideal for extended play. 

Pros: Affordable price with impressive Dolby 7.1 surround sound and lightweight comfort.

Cons: Lacks wireless option and has limited software customization features.

Buy Now

8. Sony INZONE H9

Price: $199.99 

Best For: PlayStation 5 users

Why It Stands Out: Tailored for the PS5 with Tempest 3D AudioTech and superb noise cancellation, the H9 also works well with PCs. It’s sleek and minimalist, yet powerful under the hood.

Pros: Dual device connection, ANC

Cons: Software experience is still maturing

Buy Now

9. Turtle Beach Stealth Pro

Price: $329.99 

Best For: Streamers and multiplatform use

Why It Stands Out: Active noise cancellation, Bluetooth + 2.4GHz connection, and swappable batteries put this headset in serious contention. It’s a luxury offering from Turtle Beach that doesn’t disappoint.

Pros: Great mic, ANC, premium feel

Cons: Premium price tag

Buy Now

10. JBL Quantum 100

Source – in.jbl.com

Price: $44.95 

Best For: Beginners or casual gamers

Why It Stands Out: If you’re new to gaming headsets or shopping on a budget, the Quantum 100 offers impressive performance for under $40. The detachable mic is a bonus.

Pros: Lightweight, clear sound, detachable mic

Cons: No surround sound or wireless

Buy Now

Summary Table: Quick Comparison of Best Gaming Headsets

Headset

Price

Key Feature

Platform

SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro

$349.99

Dual wireless + ANC

Multi-platform

Razer BlackShark V2

$99.99

THX Audio + Lightweight

Multi-platform

Logitech G Pro X 2

$249.99

Blue VO!CE Mic + LIGHTSPEED

PC, Console

Corsair HS80

$159.99 

Slipstream wireless + 24-bit audio

PC, PS5

HyperX Cloud Alpha Wireless

$199.99

300-hour Battery Life

Multi-platform

ASTRO A50

$299.99

Dolby Audio + Docking Base

Console

Corsair HS65

$179.00

Open/Closed Acoustic Design

Multi-platform

Sony INZONE H9

$299.99

Designed for PS5

PS5, PC

Turtle Beach Stealth Pro

$329.99

ANC + Swappable Batteries

Multi-platform

JBL Quantum 100

$39.95

Entry-level wired

Multi-platform

How to Choose the Right Gaming Headset for You?

Choosing the best gaming headsets isn’t just about the biggest brand or the most features. Here are some criteria to consider:

Audio Quality: Look for headsets with at least 40mm drivers and support for surround sound or 3D audio if you play immersive or competitive games.

Microphone Performance: Detachable or flip-to-mute mics are handy, but clarity is king—especially if you’re on team chat or streaming.

Platform Compatibility: Make sure your headset works with your primary device—some are designed exclusively for PlayStation, while others have cross-platform support.

Battery Life (for Wireless Models): Anything above 20 hours is acceptable, but 50+ is ideal for frequent gamers. Bonus points for swappable batteries or fast charging.

Comfort & Weight: Lightweight headsets with adjustable headbands and memory foam ear cups are a must if you game for hours.

Also Read:

Popular Free VR Games: The Ultimate Guide for Virtual Reality Enthusiasts

Unveiling the Best Handheld Video Game Consoles: A Comprehensive Guide

Play These 8 Free Online Games without Downloading 

Final Thoughts

The best gaming headsets are no longer just about sound—they’re a fusion of comfort, durability, and intelligent features like noise cancellation, wireless stability, and software customizability. The gaming headset market is more competitive than ever, which is great for you. There are many options available, from high-quality wireless headsets to affordable wired ones, so you can find something that fits your playing style and budget.

Whether you’re in a tournament or just talking on Discord, getting a good headset improves your whole experience. Your teammates will appreciate it, and you might even win more games!

FAQs About the Best Gaming Headsets

1. Are wired or wireless headsets better for gaming?

Wired headsets offer zero latency and are generally cheaper. Wireless models provide more freedom and convenience. Choose based on your setup and budget.

2. Do I need a gaming headset if I already have good headphones?

Gaming headsets often include features like built-in microphones, positional surround sound, and game/chat audio balancing that regular headphones lack.

3. What’s the best gaming headset for PS5?

The Sony INZONE H9 is designed for PS5, but the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless also works great with it.

4. Can I use gaming headsets for music and calls?

Absolutely. Many of the best gaming headsets, especially wireless ones, include Bluetooth and sound profiles suitable for media playback.

[ajqwrites]

COD: Modern Warfare Reboot (Under Siege - Book 1)

|| A/N - Hey readers! As you can see.... I did my best on writing this chapter of this intense and the setting since normally I do my research of the place before I start writing this and then I edit just to make sense of this reading pattern.... Idk y'all 🥲 I did my best so.... please comment and point out on what make sense since I rarely write any fight/intense scene other than romance. Enjoy! 😬 ||

The Port of Tilbury lay shrouded in a dark, thick night with the damp scent of saltwater and diesel fuel.

Cargo cranes were known like skeletal giants above shipping containers stacked in irregular ways like it hadn't been properly stacked right way.

Along with the dockyard groaned with the sound of distant freight chains and the mechanical hum of patrolling maintenance drones. Floodlights carved narrow beams through the murky air, making the sharp shadows bled across the concrete like cracks in the world.

Beneath it all, the 141 team moved like ghosts.

John was crouched behind a rust-streaked shipping container, scanning the dockyard not far from the warehouse through the low-profile optic of his HK416 D14.5 rifle. Customized with a suppressor, vertical fore-grip, and low-light EOTech sight, this weapon he chose was an extension he'd hand-picked for this stealth op. His backup, the SIG Sauer P320 with a threaded barrel and suppressor, was holstered at his thigh, and snug under the fold of his black tactical thin coat.

Over his combat fatigues, he wore a modular plate carrier loaded with mags, a multi-tool, frag grenades, flashbangs, and a breaching charge tucked beside his hip. His gloves were worn, fingerless at the trigger hand, and his comms earpiece buzzed with chatter from the 141 base.

"Alpha-1, this is 0-6. We're in position," John said into the thin mic through his earpiece.

"Copy," Gabby said, her voice clear through the line. "Visuals are coming through. Levi's cracking into the dock's surveillance mainframe. Stand by."

"Firewall's tricky but I got eyes on warehouse sectors B through D," Levi chimed next. "You've got two rovers patrolling the northern lane and a thermal anomaly on the upper catwalk. Could be a sniper."

"Copy. Ghost, you've got eyes?" John asked.

"Affirmative," Ghost was nestled on overwatch from an elevated gantry crane overlooking the shipyard. Dressed in his ghillie-lined tactical jacket and armed with a customized AXMC .338 sniper rifle. His scope flicked across the map like a hawk's eye. "Rooftop sniper's ours. I'll handle it on your mark."

"Stand by," John said.

Soap crouched at his right, face camouflaged with urban dark streaks and his gear light for mobility. He carried his signature MCX Virtus short-barreled rifle with a suppressor, red dot sight, and angled grip.

"Feel like we're back in Marrakesh," he said, looking at John.

"Except colder," he muttered, tapping his comm again. "Roach, Gaz—status?"

"East flank secured," Gaz answered coolly. He was moving smoothly alongside Roach, who offered a silent thumbs-up through the fog. Gaz carried a SCAR-L kitted with a holographic sight, laser attachment, and under-barrel launcher. His face was set in calm determination.

Roach, true to his name, was wordless but lethal. He bore a Kilo 141 with a custom suppressor, thermal hybrid optic, and combat knife strapped at his chest. He heard Gaz said in his comm: "Movement by the dock 3 crane. Two hostiles."

"Copy," John replied back.

"Captain, you've got a ten-minute window before the dock manager's shift change. After that, this place lights up with civvies." Gabby said, leaning over Levi's shoulders as screens flickered with blueprints of the port and real-time drone feeds.

"Copy that," John replied. He glanced at Soap and signaled forward with two fingers. "Push up."

They moved like shadows, slipping between steel containers toward the warehouse. Their boots barely made a sound on the concrete as they moved through the maze of containers while the atmospheric noise of the port cover their movements—the groan of shipping cranes, the faint hiss of hydraulic brakes, and a distant clatter of metal on metal they heard. Ahead, the glow of Warehouse C pulsed through fog-smeared windows.

"Thermals showing three inside Warehouse C," Gabby relayed. "Static. Could be guards or sleeping dogs. Either way, it's tight quarters in there."

"Any side access?" Soap whispered, pressing close to the stack beside Price.

"Negative. Only entry's through the front roll-up and an overhead catwalk door—north side, two flights up."

"North side it is," John said. His voice was clipped and calm with a command.

Across the comms, Gaz spoke again, "Me and Roach will move to cover from the catwalk. We'll give you an angle from above."

"Copy," John murmured. "Ghost, clear that sniper."

Without a word, Ghost look through the scope of his AXMC as he aligned the crosshairs on the heat signature Levi identified earlier. A faint shuffle on the rooftop. Then, the suppressed shot echoed only faintly in the steel maze.

"Sniper down," Ghost confirmed. "Go."

They peeled off left, hugging the rusted edges of the shipping lane while John led his fireteam across a loading bridge, past forklifts and tarped crates. Through the mist, the warehouse loomed—its wide loading bay casting a pale industrial glow beneath the buzzing floodlights.

"Breach and sweep on my mark," John said low, already reaching for a flashbang. "Gabby, we go dark in ten seconds."

"Copy," Gabby replied. "You're clear. Levi's looped cameras for the next five minutes."

"One less headache," Soap muttered.

John signaled. The roll-up door was pried up just enough for them to slide under. As they entered, the warehouse air turned thick—heavy with machine oil, damp paper, and mildew. Crates were scattered, some labeled in Cyrillic, others bare and unmarked. They swept left and right—clearing corners until Gaz hissed over comms.

"Contact front!"

A burst of suppressed gunfire followed and Soap dropped to one knee, rifle up. "Two tangos down."

"Move!" John said, stepping over a collapsed guard, his rifle trained ahead.

Up on the catwalk, Gaz tapped Roach and pointed down—another figure was crouched behind stacked ammo crates, unaware of the crosshair already aligned on his back.

Pop.

Roach's suppressor barked once. The hostile crumpled.

"Warehouse C is secure," Gaz reported. "Clearing the rest."

"There's a side office in Warehouse D. Likely command node for port traffic control," Gabby said, flipping through dock blueprints on a second monitor as she turned and glanced at him. "Levi?"

"I'm in," Levi said while typing furiously. "Got access to their manifest logs. You're gonna want to know this—container 8971-D, inbound from Estonia, flagged under a ghost shell company. Matching Zakharov's logistics pattern."

"That container still here?" John asked.

"It's in Dock 4," Gabby confirmed. "Mid-row. Four crates down."

"Soap and I will converge on Dock 4. Ghost, overwatch perimeter. If this is a trap, I want eyes on every angle." John ordered.

"Already ahead of you," Ghost replied. The faint sound of wind swept over his mic. "Two heat signatures moving behind Dock 5—fast."

"Hostiles?" John asked.

"Unclear."

As they approached the target zone, Levi suddenly stiffened back at base. "Hold up. Something's wrong."

"What is it?" Gabby leaned over.

"I've got a sudden signal spike—someone's trying to access port comms... from within."

"Incoming breach," Ghost said sharply. "East container lane. Four—no, five targets, heavily armed. They're not dock workers."

"Ambush," Gabby muttered. "Captain, pull back—get cover!"

"Negative," John growled. "We hold. Set up a trap. Soap—cover left. Gaz, Roach—right flank. We've done this before."

"Like old times," Soap said grimly, flipping his fire selector.

When they ducked behind a metal crate and the scent of rust and gun oil heavy in their lungs. His eyes flicked toward the eastern lane as movement stirred in the mist—figures slinking through the shadows, weapons drawn, like wolves closing in.

"Levi, cut all external comms," John barked.

"On it—rerouting now. No one's calling for help on my watch," Levi answered, fingers dancing over the keyboard.

"I'll monitor their chatter," Gabby said. "If they're coordinating through shortwave or encrypted bursts, I'll catch it."

A distant shout broke the silence, followed by the unmistakable metallic clink of a flashbang being primed.

"INCOMING!" Gaz called out.

The device clattered to the ground just past Roach's boot.

Pop!

The blinding light and dull shockwave echoed through the dockyard, but the Task Force had already moved—heads turned, eyes shut tight, muscle memory kicking in from years of drills before gunfire erupted.

Suppressors barked like wild hounds in the dark, each shot controlled and never stopping. Soap rolled behind a shipping pallet, sighting and dropping two masked assailants before they could fully break cover.

"Two down!" he yelled over another round. "Now three!"

Gaz vaulted over a crate and slid into a crouch beside Roach, laying down suppressive fire toward the far end of the lane.

"More inbound! Right flank!" Gaz called out for once, voice sharp.

As John flanked left before popping off three controlled bursts—two center mass, one to the head—dropping a hostile behind the crate marked of Zakharov's network.

"They're mercs," John spat into the comms. "Not dockhands. These bastards are trained!"

"No doubt," Ghost said from above. "But they're not smart. One just exposed his back." A soft crack followed. "Scratch another."

"They're trying to pin us in," Gaz said through their comms. "It's a pincer—they're herding us until they shoot anyone of us."

"They want us blind and boxed," John muttered. "Too bad we've played this game before."

As John grabbed his flashbang and lobbed it high, angling it toward a gap between containers where shadows writhed with movement. The device detonated midair, a burst of chaos that disoriented two attackers long enough for Gaz and Roach to mop them up with fire.

"They're falling back!" Soap shouted.

"No," John corrected grimly. "They're regrouping."

Suddenly, a sharp voice crackled over the comms—British, but unfamiliar.

"This is Commander Ashford of London Special Forces—we're inbound from the south gate. We caught chatter about a hostile interference during your op."

"About time," Soap said in relief, all while trying to gun any mercs down on sight.

"We've secured three hostiles sneaking from Dock 6. We'll be linking up with you shortly. Your captain still breathing?" Commander Ashford said.

"Still here," John replied, his tone edged with dry steel and raspy. "We've got eyes on a flagged container. Possibly tied to Zakharov's shell ops. Need backup securing the manifest and moving out."

"Understood. We've got ten men and a K9 unit with us. ETA two minutes."

"You'll get a warm welcome," John said flatly, signaling to Soap. "Form up on me."

As they moved into position, forming a protective circle around the container in question. Their tactical lights cut through the darkness, illuminating the mist that swirled around them. The sound of distant barking could be heard as Ashford's team approached with the dogs.

"Stay sharp," John murmured.

No sooner had he spoken than a dark figure lunged from the shadows behind Soap. John whirled, his SIG Sauer up and firing in one smooth motion. The attacker crumpled with a muffled grunt, his own weapon skittering across the concrete.

Soap glanced back, eyebrows raised. "Nice shot, Price."

John simply nodded, eyes scanning their surroundings warily. The dogs were closer now, their handlers' footsteps echoing through the maze of containers.

A sudden scuff of movement sounded from above. John's gaze snapped up toward the catwalk just in time to see a masked gunman taking aim. He was lining up a shot at the approaching backup team.

"Ghost, catwalk, ten o'clock!" John barked into the comms.

Ghost didn't hesitate. The AXMC cracked sharply, dropping the hostile before he could get a shot off.

"Catwalk clear," Ghost reported. "You're all set for the cavalry's arrival."

Moments later, Ashford's team joined them. The dogs straining against their leads, growling low in their throats. Their handlers moved to secure a perimeter around the container in question. Ashford approached John, clasping his hand briefly.

"Looks like we got here just in time," Ashford noted, glancing around at the bodies strewn about. "What've we got?"

"Could be the break we've been waiting for," John replied, motioning toward the container.

As they turned toward the rows of containers lined like tombstones. Moving toward container 8971-D, the metal walls were dented with rusted seams and the serial numbers barely legible. John ran a gloved hand along the locking mechanism before glancing at Soap.

"Soap. Cutter."

"Rog!" The Scotman jogged up and produced a bolt cutter from his pack. "Bit primitive, innit?"

John gave him a look. "We're not blowing it open yet."

With a grunt, Soap clipped the locks. The door creaked open with an ominous groan. Inside were rows of metal crates—unmarked, no paper trail, cold as death. One had already been pried open slightly. John stepped in closer, brushing back the lid with the muzzle of his rifle. Stacked inside were weapons—military-grade, sleek and spotless. Mixed in were smaller cases labeled in Cyrillic, containing what looked like high-end electronics, signal jammers, and black-market comms gear.

"Jesus..." Soap muttered.

"That's not all," Levi said, voice tense as they listened in their earcomms. "You've got a secondary signal inside that container. Small but active."

"What sort of signal?" John asked, eyes narrowing.

"Tracker, maybe. Could be a decoy or a trap."

Before John could respond, one of the British Spec Ops who had just found with a K9—a younger soldier with his helmet off—called out, "Captain! We found something!"

John turned on his heel, his instincts already bracing.

Two men were dragging someone—no, a woman—out from a small service tunnel tucked beneath a crate stack near Dock 5. Her face pale, eyes wide and shell-shocked.

His heart stopped.

"...Hailey?"

She was trembling and breathing fast. Her lips quivered as she clutched the edges of the soldier's jacket. "John...!"

"Who is she?" Soap asked, looking at John. Eyebrows raised.

John didn't answer him when he came towards her.

"What're you doing here?"

"I—" her words cut off as the firefight erupted like a thunderclap in a silent cathedral—muffled bursts of gunfire, the sharp crack of suppressed shots, and the distant clatter of boots over steel.

Shit! No time Price. Get her to safety first. Ask her later.

"You there," John looked at the soldier without a helmet. "Get her outta here and give me sitrep of your position and her well-being."

"Yes sir!" The soldier obeyed and looked at Hailey as he ushered her to follow his lead and John watched them leave out of sight.

"What about the crates?" Soap asked.

"Plant the detonators. All of them." John commanded.

"Rog, Cap'n," Soap said before starting to get to work.

As he was planting each detonators on every crates until it was the last before leaving the room with the British Spec Ops. They kept low, moving through the space before meeting the hail of bullets. His HK416 kicked softly against his shoulder, each shot precise and controlled. Two hostiles dropped ahead of him—one crumpled against a crate, the other fell backward with a suppressed grunt. Each and every Spec Ops soldiers take on their shooting as well with the 141.

"Gaz, Roach—flank and push 'em into lane six and plant'em every crates you come across," John ordered. "Soap is handling below level."

"On it, sir," Gaz replied, vaulting over a low crate with Roach on his heels. The duo swept right, carving a brutal arc through the container corridor before planting each detonators. Roach's Kilo 141 hummed low as he cleared a lane, nodding at Gaz to stack right, until a pair of hostiles darted into view—one raising an SMG, the other signaling a retreat.

They didn't make it far.

Gaz let his SCAR-L shoot twice—center mass—and Roach's blade flashed as he closed the distance with the other, pulling the man behind cover and silencing him before his scream could alert more.

Above it all, Ghost scanned the chaos from his overwatch perch. His sniper rifle remained steady even as he adjusted slightly for elevation. A hostile crouched behind a fuel crate, taking aim toward Soap's position.

The Grim Reaper exhaled before pulling a trigger.

Crack.

Blood misted into fog.

"You're clear, Soap." Ghost confirmed.

"Appreciated, Ghost," Soap said while ducking behind a hydraulic loader. His MCX Virtus spat lead in short, effective bursts, pinning a pair of enemies who tried circling around left. "Captain—we've got a runner. Looks like they're trying to radio for backup."

"Negative," John growled. "No one gets out."

"I got it," Levi said over comms, his voice urgent. "Hijacking the port's internal comms relay now. He won't get a signal through."

"Watch for secondary units. This might just be the opening wave." Gabby added.

John and Soap moved fast, rounding the container cluster before they moved in opposite directions from Dock 4—Soap went to the left and John went to the right. Through the fog, the crate marked 8971-D emerged—large, unassuming, but unmistakably out of place. Its logo was smudged, the paint flaking, and Levi's intel confirmed it had only been there for forty-eight hours.

"Target in sight," John called before meeting up with Roach and Gaz. "I want eyes on the hinges."

Roach signaled, kneeling beside the crate. He ran a compact scanner along the edge—then turned back and raised two fingers.

"Wired," Gaz translated. "Booby-trapped."

"Shit," Soap muttered through their comms. "We're sitting on a bomb!"

"Stand by," John ordered. He clicked to comms. "Knocks, Dunn—can you disable remotely?"

Levi responded with rapid typing in the background. "Trying to access internal crate registry... Got it! There's a failsafe. Give me sixty seconds to override."

The gunfire had slowed—hostiles retreating or neutralized—but tension remained thick.

"Ghost," John barked. "Anyone still out there?"

There was a pause. Then Ghost's voice returned, sharp. "Eyes on a black SUV approaching from the dockyard road. Tinted windows. No plate. Four inside—armed."

"Command team," Gabby said grimly. "Or worse."

"They're early," Levi said. "This wasn't part of the scheduled handoff."

"Means we've spooked 'em," John guessed.

"Bomb is off. Crate's unlocked," Levi suddenly said. "Go. Now."

Soap began running to another room.

"Soap—give me sitrep," John ordered after a few minutes passed.

"I'm inside the next room, about to breach in," Soap said while pulling out his breaching tool, sliced through the latch, and swung the door open. Using the flashlight on his vest he turned on, inside were another six sealed crates, stacked in pairs. He began sweeping and looking at the labels that read: D-12 NVG, ZT-43 Armored Inserts, 7.62×54mmR / 5.56x45mm NATO, K-09 Drones, Makarov Int. Freight Ltd.

"Bloody hell, there's more shit tons of weapons?" Soap said before pushing his earcom on. "Found another six crates, what's your call, Captain?"

"Plant more. We're going to burn everything that has Zakarov's fingerprint all over."

Soap smirked gleefully. "Gladly."

"All units—mark and prep for demo. These crates are not leaving this port tonight," John keyed all coms at his end.

"Yes sir!"

"Rog."

Every and each British Spec Ops replied firmly, including Commander Ashford, began moving to tag the nearest weapons crate with their own sticky charge from their satchel.

Roach nodded once and broke off toward the rear half of the container, pulling out a pair of shaped charges from his side pack. Moving with calculated precision, planting them at structural weak points. Gaz joined him, securing a block of C4 to the drone case.

"Make it clean," John said in one of there earcomms. "We want a message left behind—but no chain reaction. Contain the blast."

"Got it," Soap confirmed through his headset. "Charges going live—fifteen-minute timer."

Back at the 141 base, Gabby leaned in toward the mic. "Captain, we still don't have confirmation on the dock manager's location. Levi?"

"I'm working on it," Levi muttered, fingers flying across the keys. "Give me a minute. Checking thermal trails near the admin office... got him! He's on the run—west sector! He bolted from his post after Ghost took that sniper. Probably spooked."

Gabby spoke next, sharp and urgent. "All units! He's the one with access codes to lock this port down—and if he makes it to a exit, it's over."

"Ghost?" John asked quickly.

"Too far. I'll lose line of sight in ten seconds. He's heading into warehouse lane six."

"Gaz, Roach—on your feet!" John ordered. "He's trying to run off from us."

"Moving," Gaz confirmed. "Roach, on me!"

As the two ran after planting charges, they were cutting across a divider of stacked pallets and chain-link fencing. Gaz moved with speed but control, ducking beneath piping and hopping over a spilled crate of rusted tools. Roach kept pace while watching their flanks.

"Price," Levi called out again. "One more thing—those crates? One of them had a transmitter on a thirty-second ping loop. I killed the signal, but whatever's on the other end knows something's up."

"Then we move now," John growled. "Once Gaz has the manager, we detonate."

As if on cue, Ghost's voice cut in—low and cold.

"New contacts. Docks 1 through 3. Full convoy. Unmarked trucks. This is extraction for the weapons—we interrupted their loadout."

"Then we end it here." John said being pinging at Soap. "Final sweep, MacTavish. Plant every backup charges anywhere and take down any men if they try and stop you. We're burning this entire cache."

"With fucking pleasure, Actual," Soap said, already moving toward Dock 5.

Back at the base, Gabby was relaying live feeds across split screens. "We've got ten minutes max before they regroup and try again. Captain, Levi's disabling the outbound comms tower. That should freeze their radio traffic and stop the ship from sailing."

"Do it," John ordered.

Levi hit the final keystroke.

"Done. Ship's control link is frozen. If they try to manually override, it'll alert every naval security protocol in the channel."

"Good. As soon as the manager is in our custody, we're retreating," John stated, glancing at the detonator after he set each charge and observing the countdown on the timer. "Gaz, Roach, sitrep?"

"Still looking for the dock manager," Gaz replied.

"Levi," John said into comms. "Where's the manager?"

A pause. Then Levi's voice came fast, clipped. "Running. He's moving northeast past the maintenance trailers. He's unarmed, but he's got a key fob to override port lockdown. He's not too far from where Gaz and Roach is."

"You heard Dunn, get after him!" John ordered.

Roach had already broken into a sprint, weaving through the steel maze like a phantom. Jumping down the flights in two steps, his boots hit the concrete in soft, rhythmic thuds, and his eyes locked onto a panicked figure cutting across the fog toward the warehouse exit.

The dock manager, a man in his fifties with a reflective vest flapping behind him, was glancing wildly over his shoulder—until Roach lunged. With swift precision, Roach tackled him from behind, slamming him into the ground and quickly zip-tying his wrists behind his back. The man gasped, face pressed to the cold cement.

Gaz arrived seconds later, rifle raised. "Got him?"

Roach turned his face over his shoulder and nodded. But just as Gaz was about to signal for exfil—

Crack! Crack!

Rounds snapped past their heads, one ricocheting off the container wall behind them.

"Contact!" Gaz barked.

Five mercs showed up from behind the crates—gear blacked out, weapons raised.

"Move move!" Gaz shouted, pulling the dock manager up by the arm and dragging him behind a stack of crates as Roach returned fire with surgical efficiency, dropping one hostile in the first volley.

"We're pinned Price!" Gaz said into comms. "South corridor near maintenance yard. Roach's with me—got the manager. Taking heavy fire!"

"Hold your position," John ordered, urgency sharpening his tone as he kept moving with his weapon raised. "Backup's inbound."

Behind cover, Gaz switched mags. "They're not letting up."

Roach fired again, two more rounds dropping another assailant—but the others kept advancing, flanking fast.

"Shit! They're surrounding us," Gaz muttered, gritting his teeth.

Then a low rumble split the sky.

"Eyes up!" Ghost barked from overwatch. "Friendly Grim Reaper inbound along a bird."

A roar of an engines broke through the haze. An Air Force jet streaked overhead—one sleek and black with glowing blue accents.

"Sundance at your service!" Cam said through their comms. "Brace for suppression fire."

From above, the Vulcan cannons lit up the fog—flashes of fire shredding the line of Harkin's men in a hail of precision rounds. The impact was thunderous, containers shaking under the barrage. Blitz smiled and shouted in cheer as if she was having too much fun shooting targets that each of their seat can watch on live footage below. A small explosion sent one fuel drum flying, and the remaining hostiles scattered or fell.

"HELL YEAH!! HATERS GONNA HATE MOTHERFUCKERS!!" Danny, as Blitz, cheered loudly as she kept on targeting many hostiles that were in the way below while Roach and Gaz were running for exfil since they got their jackpot.

"CLEAR!" Cam confirmed through their comms.

"Target secure," Gaz said. "We're heading to exfil point Captain!"

"Copy," John said. "All units, fall back! Ghost, cover the rest of the demo."

"On it," Ghost replied.

As the fog of war began to lift once the last of their demo charges were set. John, Soap, and the other spec ops regrouped before they plan on escaping the warehouse.

"Crates rigged?" John asked, turning to Levi's voice in his ear.

"All of them," Levi confirmed. "You got three minutes to leave the dock before you're all toast."

John nodded once, then gave the order. "Exfil now!"

Around him, boots thundered over concrete. Fog churned under blast waves from prior detonations, laced with the acrid scent of burning cordite and scorched metal. The distant alarm of the disabled cargo ship blared like a wounded beast. All while Soap helped hoist a wounded spec ops soldier to his feet, throwing the man's arm over his shoulders.

"C'mon, mate. We're not dying on this shithole."

"Coming your way," Ghost said, his sniper rifle slung over his back as he vaulted down from his overwatch perch. "Meeting you out at end."

Then, above the sky, Cam, as Sundance, and Blitz' jet buzzed overhead as they looped back further, a brief radio call from Cam cutting in.

"Clear lane to Bravo Six is hot. We're sweeping east to west—make your move, now."

John was already running. His coat flared behind him as he led the main unit past the decimated Dock 4—flames licking the edges of shattered crates, tags marked Makarov Int. Freight Ltd. curling in the heat. The burning remains of the smuggled arsenal flickered behind him like a graveyard for an undeclared war.

"Gaz, Roach—report!" John demanded, voice hoarse from smoke and urgency.

"Almost at exfil," Gaz grunted. "Dock manager's in one piece. Roach is covering rear."

"We're twenty seconds out," Gabby's voice crackled through. "Get clear. Levi and Soap are about to kill the detonator loop."

But just as all the soldiers were out and Price was last to escape—

BOOM.

A wave of fire and shock hit the dockyard like a thunderclap. The explosion ripped through the steel maze, hurling debris and flame in every direction. A towering crane groaned as it tilted, its skeletal arm crashing down into a cluster of storage trailers.

John was thrown off his feet, slamming into the ground with a grunt. His rifle skidded away, metal screeching on concrete. Alarms howled. Glass shattered in the towers above while chunks of container wall rained from the smoke-shrouded sky.

John hit the ground hard, the shockwave knocking the wind clean out of him.

He rolled once, instinct overriding pain as he tried to regain his bearings—but the searing agony that tore through his left shoulder and ribcage made him suck in a sharp breath through gritted teeth.

His vision pulsed at the edges, black creeping in.

The old injury screamed.

He grunted, reaching for something—anything—as he dragged himself behind a partially collapsed container. His thigh throbbed with an ugly, deep ache. The kind that said you're not walking far without help.

"Price?!" Soap's voice crackled in his ear. "John! Do you copy?!"

He pressed his hand to his comm and managed a raspy, "Still here. Took a hit. I'm—" fuck "—not down. Just give me a minute."

His hand slipped beneath his plate carrier, fingers finding the slim velcro pouch taped to his lower vest. Inside, nestled among his field bandages and gauze, was a small grey autoinjector—a single dose of ketorolac, a potent NSAID they only used on missions where downtime wasn't an option.

Not a narcotic. But it'd numb the worst of it for just long enough.

John yanked the cap off with his teeth, then jammed the needle straight into his outer thigh with a sharp hiss. His muscles tensed at the burn of the drug flooding in.

He stayed still for a beat, head resting against the scorched wall of the container, sweat beading down his temple.

Thirty seconds. That's all it needed to kick in.

He could already feel the tension easing slightly from his leg... and then his ribs. Not perfect—but functional meant he could still lead and breathe.

"Captain, come in!" Ghost's voice now—grim, urgent.

"I'm good," John rasped, grabbing his rifle and hauling himself to one knee. "Little scorched. Nothing new."

He reached for his comms again as the compound's skeleton smoldered around him, flames painting the fog in hues of hellfire.

"0-6 is mobile," he said, voice steadier now, though the tremor in his left hand betrayed him. "Rally at exfil. Now."

From somewhere in the smoke, Soap's laughter came through.

"Knew it'd take more than a bloody explosion to kill you."

John grunted, forcing himself to his feet with a grimace.

"Damn right it does."

And with the pain dulled just enough, the comms in his earpiece were a static mess, scrambled by the blast. But one word cut through clearly.

"–Ambush."

The fog wasn't just smoke now—it was burning fuel, chemical cargo, and ruptured pipe vapor. The heat surged around them as chaos threatened to swallow the port whole.

Roach emerged from the smoke, half-carrying, half-dragging the dock manager, who had taken a blast wave to the shoulder but was still conscious.

"Price!" Gaz appeared next, singed and coughing but upright, his SCAR slung across his chest as he waved down a shadow approaching from the east.

Then, there was Ghost and his known skull mask known in the firelight. He raised his weapon over their six as another figure joined them.

Blitz and Sundance began shooting down more fire bullets as they were aiming at the mercs, who were getting out of their vehicle to join the fight.

Roach tossed the dock manager into the side they were hidden as John joined him. Then, Soap and Gaz followed and joined, while Ghost remained on the perimeter until the last second. More gunfire cracked in the distance.

"They're trying to push through what's left of the yard," Ghost warned over comms. "We need to leave!"

"Standby. Levi's locking down the dock's digital system permanently—we won't have a second chance." Gabby said to Ghost back at everyone's comms.

"Do it before we're dead!" John growled, blood on his brow.

Levi's voice came through, calm but resolute. "Detonation in twenty seconds. Port will be blacked out completely. Let's light the fuse."

The fighter jet ascended suddenly when they heard what Levi have said. Their gears groaning under more extra load, as Blitz worked to retract the fire weapon back into their jet before taking off to return to base.

Ten seconds.

"Captain, we're RTB. I'll see all of you back there!" Cam said after the fighter jet left.

Everyone braced themselves before the mercs realized their time was up. The entire center yard of Tilbury erupted in a thunderous explosion—contained but devastating. Flames raced up the sides of cranes, and steel fractured into molten arcs. The air shimmered from the heat, smoke rising like a funeral pyre to everything Harkin had tried to smuggle in.

In the cargo bay, the 141 team, including British Spec Ops sat breathless, battered, bruised but alive.

The dock manager groaned as the zip-tied behind his hands and ankles for good measure. Waking up slowly, he saw John sat beside Gaz, one of them removed their helmet.

"No survivors," Ghost said flatly in their comms. "They'll blame it on a container malfunction. By the time they realize we were here... "

"It'll be too late," Soap finished his sentence.

John looked out the destroyed warehouse, the last burning lights of Tilbury smearing across the horizon before pushing himself upright. He groaned when he felt his ribs ached from the first blast, and his ears were still ringing—but his winter blue eyes were sharp.

Roach had just finished unsecuring the dock manager's ankles and hands before giving space as John came forward. Followed by Gaz and Soap. The man, pale and disoriented, blinked rapidly as the oxygen and adrenaline caught up with him. He looked up—into the eyes of hardened operators.

"Who are you?!" he gasped. "Wha—what the hell happened?!"

"You tell us," John said coldly. "You've got five seconds to start explaining who you're working with, or I start making guesses."

The dock manager swallowed hard, eyes darting from Roach to Soap, then finally landing on John like he was staring at the executioner.

"I—I didn't know it'd go this far," he stammered. "I was told to manage the dock's flow—keep the scanners off certain shipments, shuffle manifest codes, and get the ship cleared before the regular shift showed up."

"Who told you?" Soap asked, his tone held no hint of sympathy.

The dock manager hesitated—but Roach stepped forward, eyes narrowing with a scowl.

"I—I don't know his real name," the man choked. "But the others called him Harkin."

"Michael Harkin." Gaz corrected him.

The man nodded quickly. "Yeah. He paid me in cash. Told me the containers were 'military salvage' needs to be redistributed. Said if I kept my mouth shut, I'd be safe. But he threatened me once. Said if I screw this up, he'll kill me."

"Where is he?" John asked straight to the point.

"I don't know exactly," the man pleaded. "But I heard him say he'd be in a second location. Something underground. Said Tilbury was just the front and I should meet him after it's done."

"Where?" John growled.

The dock manager shook his head, then froze as Gaz yanked open the front of his jacket—pulling free a folded envelope from the man's inner pocket.

"Captain," Gaz called, handing it over.

Inside was a photo. An industrial tunnel entrance beneath a dry-dock basin—marked with a red X and a handwritten note.

In case they get too close, move the rest through the channel. Meet me where I'll give you more cash and take on more jobs.

John furrowed.

"That's a maintenance tunnel. Old utility line under Tilbury's east canal. Leads out near the gravel yards."

"So Harkin's still nearby," Soap said darkly.

"And he knows we're coming," Gaz added. He turned his gaze back to the dock manager. "Thanks for telling us. Our friends will take care of you."

"Wa-wait! I'm not gonna be arrested?"

"It depends on your connection with our target." John said without a remorse.

"N-no no! I have nothing to do with him, I swear! He just came up to me and paid me and told me what to do. That was it. I got my little girl and a wife. They don't know what I'm doing. My wife is pregnant, please. I swear I won't tell a soul of this."

"He's safe, y'all." Gabby said through their comms. "I checked his background. All the words he said are truth, let him go."

"But—" Soap said before Gabby cuts him off.

Ghost finally showed up as his rifle was slung behind his shoulder.

"Ghost, sedate him and Soap, transport him somewhere, please?"

"With pleasure, Brown Eyes." Ghost said without hesitation.

The dock manager quickly mumbled sorry before Ghost moved to sedate him and his body dropped.

"Done."

Soap groaned and moved his head back to look above the sky. "Why do I have to do that?"

"Because she's your superior," Gaz pointed out.

"Price is!" Soap looked at Gaz and pointed out to John with his fingerless glove.

"I oversee full operation. Do as you're told, MacTavish," John said with a frown, almost annoyed.

With a scoff, Soap said, "yes sir."

"What's the call, Price?" Ghost looked at John.

"We find the tunnel," John answered. "And take down Harkin."

"Good. I was hoping we'd get a round two," Ghost said, his tone gruff but light as if he was looking forward to the next firefight.

"You, Gaz, and Roach are on me, but before this, I need to see Hailey. This has been bugging me since she shouldn't be here."

Roach was frowning until his eyebrows raised, turning his head over to the distant where there was ambulance and some Metropolitan Police Force arrived the scene, Roach looked back at John and Gaz.

"What is it?" Gaz asked.

"I can get Hailey home safe," Roach finally spoke. "You go without me."

"Are you sure?" Gaz asked again, this time his brows lifted.

"Positive," Roach said.

John let out a deep sigh, rubbed his face, and then lowered his hand. "Fine. But let me talk to her before we go."

✨Return to Masterlist (RTM)✨

✨Chapter 118✨

👉🏽 Return to Main Post (RTMP) 👈🏽

[rexitamtam]

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