#she would be a mega capitalist

[communist-hatsunemiku]

what happens to your url if miku falls to the capitalist agenda

Well, first of all, it's impossible for Miku to 'fall'. Like She's already out of the box, she's released on the internet. You're talking about scrubbing the internet of Her voice and image entirely so it can be locked away in some corporate vault only let out to paying customers, or something.

Like the complete fall of Hatsune Miku to a capitalist agenda is functionally impossible in a practical sense.

And let's say it was somehow possible for a mega corporation to scrub the entire internet of Miku and lock Her down with DRM or something, it would be so exceedingly difficult because people would actively try and save as much as we can, and there's already SO MUCH and the amount grows every day. Her inherent nature is to be shared, and that isn't something you can lock down or take away from Her and Her fans.

Beside's as long as I'm alive and breathing, She and I will always be fighting the good fight. If this blog goes down, I'll make another and flood the internet with my 1 terabye and growing Miku folder on my harddrive all over again. They'll have to kill me I'm not joking

[evermoredeluxe]

i know lots of fans don’t think taylor is a good person and im no economist so correct me but it’s kinda funny that people think of her as a capitalist. ofc she is signed with republic and they do her merch so that they can make a profit from having her as a client. but like even on a very personal level, she owns her work and no one is benefitting off of her. she very much believes in giving credit where it is due, artist’s rights is literally a passion of hers that she is actively fighting for and making a statement about by re-recording her music, and none of that goes hand in hand with capitalism. she took her music off of streaming platforms and went on a personal strike so that those platforms would start paying artists everywhere better. she personally got apple music to change their rule about not paying artists during the free trial. now ofc she is part of a capitalist society at large so she obviously must partake in it in some capacity when she does contract-hiring. but we know for a fact that people she personally hires are compensated fairly and compensated well. her band is paid for the whole year. all her management is in-house, and the way she controls her mega Taylor Swift business is soso indie.

now ofc she is extremely rich but she didn’t have to manipulate someone else into doing the work or manipulate people into spending money. she made the art and then used her extremely talented marketing brain to advertise said art and fans willingly bought it. regardless, can’t talk about all of this but not talk about ticketmaster. just based on the few things i talked about here (im sure there’s so much more we don’t know), in good faith, i just don’t believe she wanted to screw fans over to make some extra bucks. her hands were tied in a way and she had to work with TM to be able to even do a tour this big and book those stadiums because those stadiums literally have contracts with TM and all that legal stuff. anyway, im not saying she’s some liberal leftist worker god, and i understand the jokes and im not saying stop making them, but i genuinely think some fans don’t know this stuff and think the jokes are true. so here’s this.

[englishmagic]

After @sillyshrimpfella suggested Disco Elysium tarot designs I haven’t been able to stop pondering it.

(Am I desperate to distract myself from terrible things in the world about which I can do nothing except “raise awareness” and donate money I don’t really have? …maybe)

It’s probably something that’s been done before, but here are my thoughts on the major arcana so far:

The Fool - Harry Du Bois. I was initially thinking the Magician for Harry, because of his effortless genius and creative mindset, but then I remembered the Fool, and… yeah. Naïveté, a fresh approach to the world, being ridiculous for better or worse - it’s all him, baby!

The Magician - Mega Rich Light Bending Guy. This one I am less certain of - I haven’t encountered him myself and I refuse to watch videos of it until I can make the check myself. I put him here because he does seem rather magical, but is he creative, talented, and an effortless genius? Unpredictable and unreliable? I really don’t know. Another person I was thinking of was Neha, she’s creative and industrious, but didn’t quite feel singular enough for the card, so I place her more as the Queen of Coins/Pentacles at the moment.

The High Priestess - Plaisance. She is a figure who (kind of) worships a higher power, and though she’s not really an oracle in the way that the card often represents, she’s a symbol of belief in the supra-natural in the forms of curses, entities, et cetera. Albeit in quite cheesy, culturally dicey ways.

The Empress - Joyce Messier. She presents feminine traditions and mannerisms, but also has a lot of institutional and traditional power as a representative of the capitalist world order.

The Emperor - Everart Claire. He’s a masculine-ish figure who uses his institutional power in the union to exert his influence on the world. Not physically imposing, but I don’t think that’s a requirement - he has a racist, a street gang, and an uncomfortable chair at his disposal where others would have fists to fight with.

The Hierophant - Dolores Dei. Yes, she’s the hierophant and not the priestess - Dolores is a figure of worship, not a worshipper, she represents organised faith rather than personal faith. You don’t have to stick 100% within the traditional genders for these cards.

The Lovers - Next World Mural. Self explanatory - I think that image would look good on a card too!

The Chariot - the Coupris Kineema. I like this because not only does it make sense sense to put a vehicle from the game on the chariot card, the sound of the Kineema is the journey from intro to gameplay, and this card is all about journeys!

Strength - Measurehead. Because… He’s strong. There’s not much more to this one; I’m happy to accept other ideas, especially since the card is usually a woman. Also, who or what would be the lion? Just… a picture of Jean-Luc Race Warrior wrestling a lion? …….actually what if this card depicted Samaran bear wrestling, that’s a fun alternative

The Hermit - Tiago the Crab Man. He is isolated by choice and strongly associated with philosophy. I was thinking the Deserter for this one originally, buttttt then I had a different idea for him.

Wheel of Fortune - the pleasure wheel. Visually fun. Also symbolically appropriate - the never-built attraction represents the investment gamble that didn’t pay off.

Justice - The Deserter. The card usually has a judge on it, dispensing retribution. The Deserter sees himself this way; he’s also a singular male figure with a “gavel” in the form of his rifle. Visually appropriate.

The Hanged Man - Lely Kortaneer. Because he is a hanged man. I wonder if he can be tied to the deeper meaning of the card through the “conversations” Harry has with him in his head, or simply through the fact that being dead he naturally has no agency?

Death - Working Class Corpse. This one is just sad. In some ways this death is more “death-y” than any other in the game, underlining how things, and people, can end abruptly and without warning. And his discovery is the end of an investigation, too.

Temperance - Washerwoman. Mainly a visual connection - she’s a woman with a container of water. The card could be her pouring washing water from one cup to another, and I think it would be a nice image.

The Devil - Cuno De Ruyter. He has given into vices already despite his young age, and he influences you to do the same. This is honestly one of the few places I consider a Fury could be a good choice for a card - Electrochemistry is basically the Devil personified.

The Tower - FELD R&D. A crumbling building where everything can quite easily go to shit - the tower is about things falling apart and potentially being rebuilt. The FALN employees fell apart - aka were executed - and Ruby is building something new in the ruins.

The Star - Klaasje Amandou. Kind of ironic to have her, a manipulator who’s always in control, on a card that represents leaving things to fate- but the visual of her hiding documents in the buoy really fits the traditional design of the card and could be adapted well, and while she’s not very up in the air herself, the skills all get up in the air while talking to her because of how you’re compromised by her beauty and charm. It’s not so much about where she finds herself, but where you find yourself in relation to her - unable to trust your own knowledge and defaulting to chance more often than you’d want.

The Moon - Insulindian Phasmid. It’s a mystery! Maybe it could be the crustacean in the design? Or it could be haloed by the moon the way Kim is haloed by the sun. I love the specification for the moon design in tarot so it does have to have two dogs and a crustacean for me to be happy.

The Sun - Kim Kitsuragi. Haloed by the sun. A new dawn. A new lease on life. This is what he represents to Harry.

Judgement - the Tribunal/Krenel. A tribunal is a court event, a judgement of sorts, and the event is a moment of dire consequence in the game. The mercenaries lining up like the angels on judgement day would also make a cool visual.

The World - Elysium. Self explanatory, I think? The image would be the world broken apart, with the isolas emerging from the pale.

For the minor arcana I’ve not got a lot of opinions - Lillienne the Netpicker as Queen of Swords for no deeper reason than the fact that she has a sword, Annette as Page of Coins/Pentacles because she’s a bright and precocious child… The cups would have a lung design on them, maybe? I really hope someone else has Thoughts about this because I would like to visualise the entire thing in my mind until I inevitably try to draw it and ruin my enthusiasm when I remember that my art skills do not match my ambition in this area 😂

[flower-of-knighthood]

"Rise and fall by their own merits"... and governmental aid and support that intentionally caters to the specific needs of those in important positions who have been determined to be the best fit for roles society needs to flourish:

Linhardt: Are you suggesting land-holding lords would have no means of applying?

Edelgard: Quite the opposite. I'm looking for applicants with enough passion for the job that they're willing to relinquish any land-holding rights they possess. They will be provided with necessities like food, clothing, and housing but will receive no further compensation. That said, they will be free to take as much time off as they desire.

Linhardt: Do you expect anyone to be interested in such an odd position?

Edelgard: That's my hope.

Linhardt: Have you gone mad? Demanding someone rescind their land rights and then provide no compensation? Even the unlimited time off is a rather discourteous perk to offer. No one would accept room, board, and endless time to research... No one but me. Why must you...

Edelgard: Why must I what?

Linhardt: Why must you understand me so well? I asked you to consider the feelings of those below you... I never expected you to consider mine to this extent.

She specifically caters to Lindhardt's needs. His merits are his Crest research and so she provides a specialised opportunity for him to be able to persue that, with the consideration that it would be the only thing he does and knowing he wouldn't be capable to taking care of his land holdings. (Much like the position of president this also removes the opportunity for excessive power and bias.)

People seem to focus a lot on what Emperor Edelgard says and completely ignore that she's extremely considerate of other people's needs, with Bernadetta being the prime example, as she only leaves her room in Crimson Flower. (And is mocked by Dimitri in AM.)

Her society isn't so easily comparable to what we experience, and even in comparing it to other societies it shows a bias towards a very democratic capitalist systems, which consistently fail minority groups (see Australia's recent referendum) and create extreme class divides that with no upward mobility that instills a "noble" class in billionaires outside of all consequences who serve as political decision-makers without the public's consent and steals the wages of the middle-class and poor alike for their mega yachts.

Fodlan is a xenophobic country. Democracy isn't going to work there.

Edelgard's society of catering to the specific individual needs of her subjects through public schooling, equal rights (not a "we need to respect that some people are born noble and better" ideology), religious freedom, and an understanding of equity is far more advanced than the societies created by her peers.

Also. How did you expect her to kill the Agarthans before Remire? They don't know where they are. No one does.

Obviously you understand that Edelgard isn't actually in control of Adrestia, right? Like she has her own bid and Hubert's. But she has to perform a military coup in order to even have a majority vote of confidence in her council. She can't get rid of Thales for the same reason the Insurrection happened in the first place. The Emperor consolidating power scares the nobility and they would revolt again.

Beyond that, the war is stated as "inevitable" by the game repeatedly. If not Edelgard it would have been someone else. (The Tragedy of Duscur was already an act of war from Agartha.)

So in order to have any spin on the war she needed to convince the head of Adrestia's military that it was a good choice backing her. How do you do that? You promise conquest! How does Edelgard know it's a good time for her to promise conquest? Because that's what the Slithers were already planning to do, she's cashing their cheques to steal back governmental control, and Thales can't do shit because despite him still owning his own giant militia, this "to war" attitude was what they wanted anyway. And he's not worried because Edelgard for the most part needs their support and she cannot trust anyone in any government ever while they still exist.

Her situation is more nebulous than you give it credit for and it relates specifically to the order in which Fodlan needs to be deconstructed to remove the rot. It's why Rhea never stays in power in any route. She was a super conservative.

Hi there, thanks for the ask.

I've stated several times in the past that the system Edelgard seeks to create is a meritocracy, which you were kind enough to spare me provide a definition. It seems that you are unknowingly or not projecting onto Edelgard's society, as there is no evidence of religious freedom or a freedom of equity being in Edelgard's ideal society, with equal rights being nebulous as it is possible that the talented rising in society could be considered equal rights and education being a possibility that Edelgard will consider. The main issues I have with Edelgard is her complicity in several of Agartha's crimes and her war of conquest.

You do realise that Fodlan's caution towards foreign nations is because most of them such as Almyra and Sreng continue to launch offensives against Leicester and Faerghus, with Dagda recently launching an invasion of Adrestia, additionally the claim of xenophobia comes from Claude, the guy who consistently dodges the fact that Almyra continues to assault Leicester, only being halted by Holst.

Actually no, Edelgard explicitly says that she has set out to conquer Fodlan, https://hopes.fedatamine.com/en-us/supports/edelgard/balthus/b/#event-68. Edelgard has already secured the loyalty of all seven noble houses by the end of pre-timeskip one may or another, with all evidence pointing to be the result of Edelgard and Hubert's efforts with no assistance of Agartha, and no evidence of people making her do anything.

You know she could simply not work with the genocidal maniacs that have already exhibited the willingness to mass murder people? It's really not that hard of a concept to grasp.

What is it with people and trying to shroud morally atrocious actions in a veil of "grey morality". Sure, a lot of the time, things tend to be gray, not entirely good and not entirely bad, but sometimes there are just situations where that rule doesn't apply such as willingly working with a cult of mass murderers until their use is depleted.

[winterbirb]

My daydreaming can't be put on hold until late 2025 so here's some of my PL:ZA!AU

Characters

Juliette [Sycamore] - the head doctor of the Blue Cross (an × shape instead of +). Doesn't like pokemon because she's dealt with so many pokemon-related injuries. Not a fan of the city's renovation for how it's causing more pokemon-human injuries. Juliette (July) like Augustine (August). Xerneas. Prof Sycamore's curly hair pulled back into a bun; streaks of grey at her temples. Has her descendant's typical flair when talking about medical innovation.

Liliane [Fleur-de-lis] - Kalosian royalty, a descendant of the ancient king. The main financial backer of Lumiose City's huge renovation—and thus, also the protagonist. Liliane because... lilies, and I couldn't find a great lion name that wasn't trying too hard. Yveltal doesn't tie in as neatly. Maybe death of the old ways, in with the new? Long red hair like the female version of that lion pokemon I forgot the name of. Not wearing Lys's Yveltal gijinka suit.

Governor Désiré. Diantha's ancestor. The political force behind the renovation... and yes, this does follow the PL:A template, thabks for noticing. He's the "twist" villain, seeking to build a version of the Ultimate Weapon in Lumiose Plaza that's powered by none other than... *drumroll* Diancie! He wants to build a beautiful city and then turn it all, people and pokemon included, into Diancie's pink diamond so it's "beautiful forever." The Governor's Mansion has pink diamond statues which he refers to as his "beloved pokemon." Masc version of Diantha's face structure with the same base hair color, but styled in a perfect Politician's Cut with perfect streaks of grey at his temples... almost like he dyes his hair. Maybe he doesn't even leave grey streaks. Dresses in white suits with pink accents, a white ruffle collar with a pink diamond gem.

Emmet <3. He's in The Tunnels, for some reason. What tunnels? Well. IDK if catacombs would fit Pokemon (but it would certainly fit the life/death theme). If not actual catacombs, then some sort of ancient Diancie-created tunnel structure. He remembers more about the past/future than Ingo—same with my Serena vs Lucas. Why? Because it's my story, and I want them both to suffer in new ways. Emmet is seen as a strange ghost-like figure who haunts the tunnels, looking for his brother (how to find a way home).

Serena - originally from Unova, from the same town as Rosa (B2W2 protag), but a year younger than her. Moved after the Kyurem thing. Loves fashion, looks up to Elesa.

Mechanics

Serena (as the MC) needs to change clothes to fit in different parts of the city (like Looker doing disguise stuff; my Lucas has Looker's detective skills)

Zygarde is the "sponsor" this time, much like Arceus in PL:A. Some sort of Zygarde-tablet-thingy. But also Serena needs to do the Find Zygarde's Cells quest, because of course she does.

I don't really have any other mechanics. This section was just made to include the fashion thing.

Oops, I forgot about Mega Evolution. It's there, I guess.

I just remembered Hoopa. It helps Serena travel around the city and get into places she shouldn't be in. Why, when its chaos is the opposite of Zygarde's order? IDK, Governor Désiré probably pissed it off.

Other

It's Paris in the late 19th century. It's gross. It's overpopulated. Greedy capitalists abound, and so do the horrors of poverty. There's also an overconsuming Royal Class. She has to hold onto her ideals despite all the signs pointing to the "easy out" of Lysandre's hardcore-Malthusian philosophy. She succeeds with flying colors, because "kill all the poors and unworthy so humanity has enough to survive" is a terrible philosophy.

Might be redundant because Zygarde, but a major theme is ecology and ecosystems.

Emmet and Ingo both disappeared and came back in 2011; BW happens in 2010, B2W2 happens in 2012, XY happens in 2013, and Serena disappears a few years after 2013. Emmet remembers being in the past, and is very alarmed when a younger Serena becomes the Kalosian champion. Elesa, who is troubled by how much the twins have changed and how little she knows, eventually gets in contact with Serena. When? IDK. I just want them to meet up eventually.

Lysandre isn't dead in the present time. Even in Y, in-game dialogue implies he's still alive. There was plenty of time to drag him out of the Ultimate Weapon.

Perhaps Zygarde traveled through an Ultra Wormhole to bring Serena back and prevent Désiré's dumbassery... but got scattered into Z Cells. Or maybe Hoopa brought it to the present, but on the way back to the past it had to use an UW and got scattered. IDK, I'm just trying to figure out a way for post-games Lucas and Serena to meet in Alola (to harass Looker and give Nanu a headache ofc).

[weareuniqueandimportant]

GIVE ME FREE HRT WE LIVE IN FINLAND PLEASE...

ABUSER BIGOT THEY DON'T CARE ABOUT US WE'RE NOTHING BUT A JOKE FOR THEM... THEY GET THEIR LAUGH BUT DO NOTHING FOR US...

I LOVE MY WIFE I LOVE MY WIFE I LOVE MY WIFE SOON SHE WILL DISAPPEAR AGAIN SOON WE WILL BE LIKE BEFORE WE CAN'T HAVE ANYTHING WE'RE BELOW THEM TREATED LIKE THIS... STUCK WITH NEEDING TO DIE BUT BEING UNABLE TO... THE SAME PAIN SAME TRAUMATIC EXPERIENCE FASCIST SOCIETY RELIES IN AND LOVES... THIS YOU SEE IS THE DEFAULT OF A CAPITALIST SOCIETY. A SYSTEM THAT MUST BE ENDED. THAT DOESN'T CARE ABOUT DIFFERENCE. WE ALSO GOT MEGA SCAMMED AGAIN ALL FOR NOTHING. GETTING HRT IS BUT A SIMILAR SCAM ASWELL. EVERYTHING JUST A TORTURE IN PLACE SAYING DIE TRANS...

WE WATCHED A TON OF EPISODES THAT WAS CRAZY. SOON THAT WILL BE AS THAT IS ALWAYS... I CAN'T LIVE... I AM TORTURED...

ABSOLUTELY NONE THOSE ABUSER BIGOT ADDED OR CHANGED ANYTHING... THEY ONLY WORSENED OUR PAIN OUR ISOLATION... DISCRIMINATION... UNHELPFULL EVIL NOBODY WOULD CARE ABOUT... FASCIST POLICE NAZI ANTI SJWS... ALL AFTER US... ALL ITCHING TO KILL US... EVERYWHERE IN THE SOCIETY... I LOVE SCIZOPHRENIA... STOP DISRTACTING ME BIGOT... I AM SUFFERING.. I DESERVE BETTER. DEAD PEOPLE ARE A JOKE TO YOU LOOK AT HOW MANY DIE. YOU NOTHING BUT WISH MORE CORPSES MONSTER. FASCIST POLICE. THIS IS ALL YOU EVER CAN BE. KNOW YOUR PLACE BELOW ME SCAMMER. THERAPY FOR WHAT THAT WASN'T HELPFULL EVEN THEY QUIT DOING THAT... THAT IS TRANSPHOBIC TO ERASE TRANSITION EVERYONE BESIDES MY WIFE IS TRANSPHOBIC AND WORTHLESS AND EVIL... I HAVE NO TIME FOR EVIL SOON MY BODY WILL BE IN THE RIVER... NOBODY CAN STOP THIS... THIS IS WHAT THEY WISH AFTERALL...

STILL HUNGRY. I'M SUPPOSED TO SLEEP. BTW WE NO MORE HAVE A PURPOSE IN LIFE AND ARE NOTHING BUT A COSTLY CHORE THAT CAN'T EVEN EXPERIENCE THAT FEELING FURTHER AS ALL ANYTHING IS ERASED ALL ABUSE IS RETURNING... BODY STILL THE SAME AS BEFORE... ONLY LOSING FURTHER... MONEY GOING TO WASTE... WITHOUT REWARD... NEVER ANY REWARD FOR SUFFERING FOR BEING PROGRESSIVE... I HAVE 1 BUT I AM EATING ALIVE MY LOVE MY WIFE... I KILL HER BY MY PRESENCE I AM HORRIBLE I MUST DISAPPEAR AND FAINT AND EXPLODE... I CAN'T EXIST ON THIS PLANET THIS ISN'T MY PLACE I BELONG IN HEAVEN I AM AN ANGEL... JESUS IS CALLING THAT IS MY PLACE... CALL US DELUSIONAL THAT WILL DO NOTHING ABOUT ANYTHING SAY GET THERAPY THAT WILL NEVER BE HELPFULL DIAGNOSE US AND SAY WE CAN'T SELF DIAGNOSE KEEP GOING YOU WILL FIX NOTHING FASCIST NAZI ANTI SJW POLICE... WORTHLESS THING... UNNECESSARRY...

MAKEINE NEW EPISODE WAS GOOD... FAIRY TAIL PRETTY SEXIST... LUCY PRETTY SIDE... EPISODE BEST OLE SO FAR... GRENDIZER U PRETTY COOL RED WOMAN BADASS TOO BAD SHE THE MORE LESS TRAFITIONAL ONE IS THE BAD ONE... I NOTICE ALOT OF YOUNGER SISTERS AND I LIKE THAT... OSHI NO KO GETTING HEAT SIDE CHARACTER GETTING SHIT BADASS... WHAT IS MISSING IS PARAPHILIA... FAILURE FRAME EPISODE BETTER THAN PREVIOUS 2... SEXISM CRAZY AND THE CLASS PROBABLY USELESS TO BE... GRIFFITH LOOK ALIKE PROBABLY ALIVE OR SOMETHING... THAT COULD WORK...

[mousecolor]

Anime I’ve Been Watching Recently (April 2023)

Giant Gorg

I’m a few episodes into this kids adventure show from the 80s and I’m obsessed with it. It’s got the typical genre crew: boy protag, girl, nerd, heavy, giant robot and dog mascot. The villain is an evil nepo baby trying to earn his billionaire inheritance by taking over a fictional island in the South Pacific for his family’s mega corporation. He is basically what the characters of Succession think they are. 

This show also contains some pretty heinous racial caricature of Black people, to the extent I would be remiss not to bring it up. It’s mostly background characters, so far main characters with dark skin are depicted sensitively. 

Here’s what I like about the show: the protagonists are constantly killing people. After the last few years of working in kids media and building a laundry list of pretty benign stuff I’m not allowed to depict in kids comics, (can’t show a kid prick their finger on a cactus, can’t show a kid use scissors that are too big, can’t show a mom greet a kid with a neutral expression, she has to be ecstatic) I have to admit I’m pretty jealous of a show where the protagonists get a tank and fire it at evil capitalists. I know this is kind of like being nostalgic for when gasoline had lead in it. 

Gorg has also had a couple scenes that were genuinely creepy and scary. Those scenes usually are completely silent, something really rare in kids cartoons. I’m excited to see where Giant Gorg goes.

Kanon

I came across this while browsing and, based solely on the image above, I correctly deduced that it was based on an erotic visual novel from the 90s. I felt like a genius when I looked it up and saw I was right, then I felt ashamed I had amassed enough experience rubbing elbows with such media that i could identify it immediately. Is there a term for this? The skills we acquire by accident in pursuit of our hobbies?

Anyway this show is complete schlock based on an eroge and it still made me laugh out loud and cry actual tears. 

I also got the feeling I got when I first read “Night on the Galactic Railroad” and other stories by Kenji Miyazawa in that I was realizing how many manga and anime had been influenced by his work. I had been encountering work inspired by, responding to, and reaching for his work for years, but I had never read the original text. Suddenly he was everywhere. Similarly, I realize now I’ve been encountering works responding to Kanon for ages now. 

I was curious about how adapting a romance visual novel for a TV show would work out. Each girl gets her own pollen, slightly interwoven with all the others, and the show spends a few episodes introducing them all at once, then goes through each girl’s story line one by one. In a VN the storyline would culminate in a love confession and the couple getting together, but for a show that still has a few more girls for the protagonist to get close to, each storyline culminates in something akin to a love confession, then the girl gets conveniently removed from the story. Mostly they get put in the hospital. 

I really like how the supernatural elements are introduced in the show, which is bit by bit, and then all at once. The girl with the most implausible, magical storyline is explored first, so the rest seem completely believable in comparison. 

The show did become a little one-note in that all of the plot lines culminate with the girl (or someone close to her) being sick or injured. There are a million scenes of girls languishing in hospital beds or tending to someone doing the same. I don’t know what any of the sex scenes in the VN were like, but this almost felt more perverse. By the end of the show, almost the entire cast is in the hospital. 

Anyway, I loved it!

Record of Lodoss War (OVA)

I first saw this years and years ago as a little kid. I got the DVDs from my local game rental place, which had a tiny rack of anime tapes and DVDs for rent. It was really fun to compare what the show actually is against my memories.

Anyway, this show looks great. At no point did the story or characters surprise me in any way. I loved looking at it but I was also enduring it.

[liketaylorswift]

Idk why people expecting Taylor to speak up about palestine (or saying she wants to but can't for x reason)

In the last year shes dated a mega racist and now a republican (neither of whom wash. Which isnt relevant but you know)

Like if she gave a fuck about other people.... a lot of her behaviour would be very different

I think people need to accept that shes either fooled everyone up to now on being a decent-ish person or she's changed

besides calling a travis a repub - he most certainly is not - I accept this opinion. personally I can’t trust her to use her influence for anything that doesn’t affect her. nobody really should trust her or any other rich-as-fuck-out-of-touch capitalist to do so. doesn’t mean i can or will excuse the silence.

think we have a duty to use our collective platform to invite real change via her massive platform. if she chooses to ignore it, that’s what will be remembered. swifties are generally not quiet or meek!

[leiogerio]

This is gonna be a hot take, but I actually don’t like the show that much. I can recognize that it’s still pretty good, but I felt that we weren’t able to spend enough characters to make many of their deaths feel truly meaningful. Pilar’s death really just came out of nowhere, mostly serving as a way to move the plot forward. Also, Maine’s fall into cyber psychosis only occurred during the span of a single episode. If we had gotten to see an entire arc where Maine kept trying to get new implants despite his growing insanity, just like what happened to David in the end, it would make both of their deaths so much more significant. Like I said, I don’t think that show is bad. In fact, the last arc is one of the best pieces of fiction I’ve ever seen, but I’m just sad that the series could have been so much more.

As with nearly all cyberpunk works, the show presents a speculative world that results from late capitalism. When businesses and profit reign supreme, it leads to massive social stratification, as shown by the different lives that David has to live compared to his high-class students. David is forced to pirate, his mother is forced to engage in illegal activities to make a living, and when David’s mother is horribly injured during a crossfire, he isn’t able to pay for her healthcare.

It's also important to note Lucy's desire for exteriority. Her dream is to go to the moon, far away from the capitalist dystopia of Night City, but the moon has simply become a tourist destination for more people to exercise capitalism. When she finally makes it to the moon in the final scene, she isn't happy because it seems as if all her efforts had been for nothing, having lost everyone that was close to her.

The show effectively portrays the harsh realities of a dystopian future where access to basic necessities such as healthcare is determined by wealth and privilege. This portrayal aligns with the cyberpunk genre's overarching theme of societal inequality resulting from uncontrolled capitalism and corporate control. It highlights the vast disparity between the rich and the poor, where the mega-corporations hold immense power, and the lower class struggles to survive, often resorting to illegal activities to make ends meet.

[myrfing]

everyone says NL or nearl herself is mega neoliberal which throws me for a spin because I think of all the non viginette events it’s one of the only ones that says things can be better through great upheaval and that bears hope that the people themselves when mired in one of the most uh “late stage” capitalist countries in the game might actually gain like. class consciousness because of the ever-growing awareness in every corner of how deeply they’ve been robbed of their humanity under the current system.

a lot of people do the unthinkable. the adeptus intervenes just to save the child of an old friend she loved. margaret walks with dikaiopolis to the victory hall (which is for once, empty of reporters and cameras since the commercialization of knighthood <- MEANS SOMETHING) and MAKES IT because everyone just finally gets up to take the steps with her; she denies the spectators a clear victor to the endless competition and holds the crown in ambiguity. viviana, the secluded forever-outsider, literally physically threatens a kgcc official to let them go. Mlynar changes his mind and leaves, leaving the nearl household to margaret, and before that, actually brings in Toland to fight the armorless. before that nearl actually intervenes underground and fights off the armorless there too alongside pinus gang. the assassination is completely thwarted. Gravel is freed. Platinum does the unthinkable for someone so apathetic and entrenched and tries to unchain herself and run against all odds; and she survives, and makes it out; Centaurea is freed, unlike her predecessor. the voice on the phone says none of this matters, we still have control forever and ever but even malkiewicz finds the man who gave him his position in the country, and watches him kill himself after declaring he was right and kazimierz will never change, and vows to fight it anyways. maybe it’s because the voice on the phone is in the epilogue that it comes off as the final word, and it and darksteel remain safe and faceless and seemingly untouched, but I think that the kgcc is actually utterly underestimating its people and what this meant to many of them. what nearl did was that with her at their side, people stopped being afraid: to run, to leave, to fight, to want something better…she showed them you can struggle against these colossal forces and win if you do it together. the first step was made man!

my biggest criticism is that pinus sylvestris LMFAOOO gets merged into RI which is like…you know me it’s ironic I always criticize rhodes if anything for being “neoliberal” and always acting as a violent stopping force against change, often siding with police against protestors and with oppressive governments against “dissidents” and I personally think RI would really muddle their directives and spirit and bind them to goals that often hurt infected, which they even admit to themselves. but they do it anyways because RI offers short term safety for the few refugees. But otherwise every other event bar maybe i dont fucking know break the ice (which is about industrialization moreso than this stage of things) absolutely thoroughly fucking stomps on any sort of “idealistic impossible goal” and paints all its revolutionaries as either idiotic self-serving violent criminals or misguided naive losers who never even had a chance and NL is the one that says Yeah okay right now it’s possible. of course it’s not a certainty and we all know this game never hands over total victories like that to the point it reads often as a warning and a damper but like. AM I READING IT WRONG? i havent reread the entire event and it’s been a while so I might be missing some things so am I….🚶

[raylazuko]

Nm, I’m gonna make a new intro but make it more blunt instead of over explaining everything.

Basic info: My name is Riah and it’s pronounced like Maya not Mia. I’m 22, non-binary (they/them), asexual, have autism, adhd, generalized anxiety, and likely SAD. Based in the northeastern USA. I’m in a lot of fandoms mainly Genshin, Zelda, animation and Disney, GOTG/Marvel, Mega Man, Sonic, and whatever I like at the time. I also like music, dancing, K-pop, and all that. I like alt rock and pop music like Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Radiohead, Bjork, Billie, Florence, etc etc and I like pop and K-pop, Dua, Olivia, Chappell, and K-pop girlies Blackpink, Gidle, Itzy, Mamamoo, Aespa, IVE, etc etc. Dreamcatcher is my fav group they are dark concept queens. I’m also slightly obsessed with Lee Taemin, he is the god of pop and K-pop. I have a lot of trauma from bad friends and my ex so a long DNI, sorry.

DNI:

Basic DNI, bigotry, ableism, PDF files, etc.

Toxic stans/petty drama/those who make themselves the victims always

People who hate on harmless interests

If you tell me who/what to boycott. I don’t have an issue with the cause but it is the tone used. Basically the “I am morally superior to you because I don’t support xyz” bs. Like informing is fine. Saying “here’s what this company donates to” but saying “you’re a terrible person and don’t care about xyz because you bought x” is not helpful and is triggering for me.

By this same logic, crazy vegans, environmentalists of any people who guilt trip and cannot understand nuance of our capitalist hellscape.

If you support Trump or say he’s better than Kamala or that you won’t vote for Kamala because of stupid reason xyz even tho she’s by far the better option.

Any form of bigotry and queerphobia that includes apathy

Transmedicalists or whatever tf you call yourselves these days.

Cis men who hate Korra as a character are on thin ice

If you make bad faith arguments about fiction in general/taking it way too serious or not serious at all when it does pertain to real issues.

If you think bad things can’t be talked about in fiction. As long as it’s handled well and shown bad thing is bad, I like to explore darkness as I’m a writer.

If you agree/defend Lily Orchard’s bad takes and then say she’s only hated cuz she’s trans

If you saying liking SU means you wanna forgive not sees or other brain dead cartoon takes

“All (insert ship here) are toxic”

“There’s no need for fanfic, canon is fine” or just disrespecting harmless headcanons and creativity in general. If you don’t like fanfic, don’t read it.

If you ship: Azula and Zuko (ewwww), Anna/Elsa (it’s an actual thing on AO3), any other bio siblings close bio relatives, immediate yeet, dark themes should be explored but shipping is condoning imo. Okay, let’s see: Catradora, Kaeluc, Thorki, Alluthor, any other adopted/pseudo adopted incest. Idc if it’s canon. You can ship what you want privately but please don’t discuss it with me and if you comment about it it’ll block you and I’ll also block if I see it on my feed. Also shit like Reylo would only be abusive if it happened before Ben turned good (I don’t ship it anymore) but ACTUAL abuse (Dottoscara or don’t even get me started on Collei), please DNI.

Also like this goes without saying but PDF file ships.

Lolisha content or discourse about whether it should be allowed (no, it shouldn’t)

I’m on thin ice with age gaps because of my ex, just be mindful about that.

Have whatever religion you want but do not force it down my throat , I probably don’t share your religion so it doesn’t apply to me.

Making judgments about my life/telling me to go to therapy (I’m in therapy). Any sort of unsolicited advice is a big no/no. If I offend you please just block me or give it to me straight but don’t assume shit you don’t know.

Just don’t be an ass in general.

TW/CW:

Please warn me if you’re going to talk to me about these topics:

Medical stuff, hospitals, cancer, etc.

Sewer slide and SH

Politics. Especially anti queer legislation and stuff. If I block you it doesn’t mean I disagree, it’s just causing me stress.

Religion/religious trauma

Mommy issues

SA and grooming

Death

I’m probably forgetting some but idk.

Anyway thanks. If this offends you literally just DNI or block me. I’m allowed to set my own boundaries on my page. Thanks.

[the-amalgam-house]

With everything that's been happening irt family and finances, I've been in a horrible depressive episode for what feels like many months now. Maybe it's only been a couple, idk, but it seems longer. I had to drop D&D again indefinitely and it's just. Like I know I don't have the mental capacity for it but it still bums me out, you know?

I asked my mom how everyone is doing over there after the last incident and she says it's not too bad, kinda stressful but things look to be working out. She also told me to put my trust in God and pray, as she always does. Even after I've made it clear that I'm not a Christian anymore, she still tries. Which I'm not like mad at but I'm really not ready for any type of major religion or whatever, and especially not the one that caused me the most sorrow and trauma.

I don't NOT believe in God. In fact I believe that all gods do exist. Maybe not all on the same plane of existence, but they do all exist in some form, beyond normal human perception. But the church and the beliefs of the people are what burned me. And technically that one isn't god's fault, it's human being human and showing their capacity for evil. It's mistranslations and personal bias being written into religious law by self-righteous god-kings and pastors/deacons/wannabe saints...etc. It's how humans set up the religion and told everyone it's God's will that really fucked me up. It's those people who hurt my friends and family so badly they never want to believe in anything beyond ourselves because something having that much power over humanity is terrifying and infuriating when all you want is to be left alone in peace.

I guess I still get a little mad. I've asked her not to get preachy at me before when I was really angry. I know she does it with good intentions, but I still roll my eyes when I'm told I should pray about it and show reverence to a god that people always told me would send me to hell just for being me. A vindictive and jealous war monger who shuns anyone who's a little different and tells their followers that their children are better off dead than living in sin. A very "do as I say, not as I do" mindset that never did come off as the type of deity that encompasses "love" but demands it through fear.

I'm tired of hearing it. I'm tired of being told that's the only way. I'm tired of trying to justify my existence and my worthiness to some man-made version of a "kind" and "loving" god who, according to his followers, has already deemed me an abomination destined to eternal torture. For what? What in my entire life could I have possibly done to deserve that? People who commit the worst global scale atrocities known to all creatures on the planet are praised as godly and just people, but a truly kindhearted human who just happens to be trans or gay or mentally ill in an undesirable way has to face utter destruction and despair into infinity? All while those corporate greed CEO oil drilling slave labor capitalist literal taint cheese manifested into a wicked simulacrum of a parody of a human are allowed to rise to idol status and sainthood in the eyes of the church.

I want absolutely ZERO part of that. I don't even want to be remotely associated with that by proxy. I want it so fucking far away from me and my life except I have to live in it, wading up to my nostrils in the fucking doo-doo swamp that is American Christian capitalist culture. The denomination doesn't matter, they're all fucked up. Baptists, Presbyterians, Protestants, Catholics, Mormons, Witnesses, there's like a thousand of them I can't remember them all and any time a sect tries to be any kind of progressive in any way the vast majority condemns them as not being real Christianity and just...

Like fuck off. Fuck off forever. Most humans don't deserve to suffer but the idea that one day there will be no more humans is somewhat soothing tbh. Fifth or sixth mass extinction event happening cause of these rich white cis straight greedy mega church evangelical tech bro assholes not giving a shit about the planet and the people and creatures on it.

Please I hate being here so much. I hate money. I hate mainstream Christian culture. I hate the nuclear family model. I hate technology enabling crypto bros and art theft. I hate that all our amazing technological advancements are all put to use in war and suppression instead of healthcare and infrastructure. I hate everything about this country and the state of the world currently and please I don't want to BE here anymore!!!

[storiesbybean]

Hi I hope I’m your first request! May I request a Karl heisenberg x his daughter when he first meets her as a baby and dealing with all the new born stuff

The first request! Yes we need more Karl and his little Squirt. I love to think he’s a huge futty dutty about being a dad until there’s an actual infant in his arms.

For this one I’m going to keep the name Ida but no mom just adoptive dad Heis but with out further stalling

Worlds Daddliest Man

Karl Heisenberg w/ newborn Daughter

Word count: 1546

Finding a kid wasn’t the worst thing he’d brought back from the village. Being a dad seemed like a normal progression for a man his age, most would’ve said he was past that age by now. The weird part was he was excited. For decades it had just been him and his plans of revolution and the occasional breakthrough and then just out of thin air the promise of something new. Even with all his cold mountainous walls around his heart it wasn’t enough to stop him from leaning down to scoop up the small child. That’s how he got here staring at two huge blue eyes, the child just blinked slowly as Karl wrapped his coat around the both of them to warm her up.

Getting back was rushed. Karl was almost frightful he’d be caught with the child and lose it to one of his false family members. This glimmer of hope was too special to let mega bitch turn it into her newest collection of merlot. He wanted to give it a shot on his own even if he was adventuring into a minefield blind.

“The fuck is your problem? Your mom never told you staring is rude?” Karl held the child in his lap trying to warm her up by the fire after she'd probably spent a while in the snow. The lack of parents suggested something or someone already got to them. “You’re right you’re just curious. Shouldn’t be mean about curiosity.”

The next few hours carried on like that. Karl was talking out loud to the child’s who would either stare at him or sleep. He didn’t really have a crib in his factory but a cleaned out parts crate with the least stained blanket he owned seemed to do well enough for the child. He kept trying to say different names to get her to perk up, much like you’d do a lost dog. Nothing really stuck with her so he’d decided to think of a name himself. Much like all his creatures he gave them strong German names to invoke fear into the hearts of anyone stupid enough to come across them! There were rattling names as he walked slowly trying to soothe the child.

“Mörderin? Uh no you’re too cute to be a killer. Let’s see Berta is a weighty name. Hello little Berta…no! No that’s stupid you’re right. I dunno anymore. I..da..know.” Ida. It sounded like a sharp command of power! Something you could scream and terrify others. “Ida Heisenberg? How do you like that one Squirt?” The infant wasn’t fussing as much now, just the usual hungry whine. He needed to find the Duke sooner rather than later and see what that capitalist had for a squirt.

—————————————————————-

Midnight, three a.m., five a.m., up at seven into the workshop. This child was always hungry. So much so that Heisenberg had to have a radio in their room so he could hear when she started asking for her next meal with that ear piercing cry. It left him more exhausted than usual, trying to figure out what different cries meant and how to feed Ida. Not to mention clothes and toys and sleep training which he’d read about in a book the Duke forced into his hand when Heisenberg had brought the child to him for the second day in a row asking if whatever was going on with her was normal. There was much more to child care than just keeping it fed and making sure it was still breathing.

A monstrous wail left that tiny body again! He’d fed her and burped and changed. He had Ida on his chest trying to figure out why she was so angry today and why it was her personal vendetta to keep her papa awake till the cows came home. “Squirt I will give you whatever you want just please shut the fuck up for ten minutes. I’ll build you a pony!” The crying only continued until eventually Karl had nothing left to do but lay her in the small gap between his arm and his chest on the bed. He willed the radio in the room to flick on and slowly crackling oldies music filled the room. After the first verse Ida had gone silent with her thumb in her mouth and those tearful blue eyes peacefully closed. Karl told himself it’d get easier. Swearing he was going to raise mud daughter better than Miranda ever did to him.

Dealing with traumas as he raised Squirt was possibly the hardest part. He still had “family” meetings and days where the pain in his chest was nearly unbearable. He tried to keep Squirt hidden from that part of his life the best he could. When village things happened he kept her in a secret hideaway with toys and her little radio to keep her entertained while he dealt with the problems. At least he knew she’d be safer there than by his side at times like these. Well that was until he realized she was becoming mobile and just how dangerous the world really was.

Karl’s heavy eyes had slowly begun to fall shut only to snap open when he heard Squirt moving in her crate. Every moment was filled with the fear of his new family member injuring herself in his deadly factory. He didn’t have locks on doors or sharp things covered up not to mention the death pits he had strewn about. It got to the point where Karl took a day to build a protective carrier for his daughter. He’d keep her in the room when he worked making sure to give her toys to entertain her while he was doing less than pleasant work. He could see her but she couldn’t see any corpses or whatever else. She was old enough now he had to think about building a nanny companion for her when eventually she started needing more than a few stupid toys to entertain her. As much as Heisenberg wanted so badly to spend all day with her he knew he had to kill Miranda sooner than he expected, he couldn’t let her find Ida and take her away not after months of growing attached.

The strangest was definitely swearing. When he’d found Ida it wasn’t like she was old enough to talk or something but then as she started to babble more and try to form words the reality of her first word potentially being bitch or worse became scarily real. Karl had never cared about swearing around anyone before but something in him switched over the past few months and now the attempted baby proofed cursing was in full effect.

“B-b-b,” Ida babbled, hitting her plush on the head with her rattle.

Karl stroked her head begging this to not be her first word. “Butthead. Yes, squishy is a butthead.”

He got lucky today. No words were formed yet but with how he had to refer to Miranda as that butthead or shouting fudge when he injured himself working on something it almost wasn’t feeling worth it. Besides, kids swearing was adorable.

——————————————————————

“Ow ow stop pulling on Papa’s hair! Release Squirt! Release!” Squirt's little lightning hands were grabbing hold of everything they could. His tools, his hair, his glasses were long since discarded to cut down on her, nearly breaking them. He hadn’t realized babies were so grabby. He couldn’t even eat without her diving for a handful of whatever he’d made to put in her gummy mouth. Though the squealing laughter was almost worth every tug on his hair. Being a massive child himself he’d grab Squirt's cheeks and smoosh them together until her grip loosened up. It wasn’t enough to hurt her, just distract her from the silvery hair in her fat little hand.

Her smile was enough to make his fiery outburst turn to a mear simmer. It was such a huge weakness having her. Before fatherhood he’d been feared and unreachable by all who came against him. Now though, he was a papa who did hair and sang abcs so his baby girl would grow to be just as smart and half as good looking as himself. Every time Ida tried to form the word papa he’d wait with bated breath only to huff when she babbled on in that child’s nonsense language. His baby girl and only his. Whoever abandoned this miracle was a fool and deserved nothing to do with her upbringing. Karl could raise her better than any of those village freaks. He was going to be a better parent.

——-fun antics I also would like to mention———

Ida tried to breastfeed off of Karl once and only once. The Lord now wears his undershirt religiously.

No Karl did not look for her parents. They’d made their choice.

Squishy is a crudely made dog plush. After being beat up daily it looks more like a Lycan than ever

Karl makes her wear a little metal bracelet/anklet so if she’s either falling off the bed or venturing to far away he can stop her long enough to rush over and “save her”

Wet babies are slippery. Karl discovered this after bath time and nearly threw Ida on the floor cause he couldn’t get a grip on her.

The first time Ida got sick after Karl adopted her was the worst Karl’s panicked in a while. It was just a minor cold but he was convinced he’d killed her.

He also does breathing check often when he first brought her home. Surely a scary man like him was enough to give the infant a heart attack so he wasn’t holding his breath on survival.

Well that’s all folks I hope this satisfied your Dadenburg cravings 😅 and like always my request are always open.

[grimaussiewitch]

Would anyone like to hear my fanfic ideas? Some include but not limited to:

- Deaf/Blind!Tommy + Hermit!Tommy idea dabbles.

- Dream smp members going to hermitcraft for a holiday, Niki sparing with False, Foolish getting sort of over the chandelier, Eret taking photos of builds and mega bases.

- Server hopper!Hbomb who can enter any server without needing a white list. Although a solo traveler, he sneaks Ant, Niki and Eret into hermitcraft for a quick day trip. This might of caused some glitches…

- The egg in hermitcraft. So many different one shots…

- Fusion au that I came up with after realising that my number 1 favourite dsmp member and hermit both have king aesthetics and are in fact hard to draw as a fusion.

- Deep sleep!Tommy au, it’s filled with angst and a badly written Evil X!

- Magical Coma!Dream au that I came up with from a comic I saw on Instagram. It basically Bad takes on Dream’s role through out the L’Manburg arc and when the eggpire arc starts Bad takes his original role back and Punz takes over being a dictator, all the whole Dream is in a magically induced coma.

- Double life role swap au where Grian uses his watcher powers/connections to have scar and BigB swap but this causes everyone else to swap soulmates too.

- Dad!Zedaph and lab!Tommy, a cracked fic my beloved. It’s just adding Zed to the list of “potential white blond British man as a father figure” but not because he can be seen as a father figure but because I love lab Tommy au’s and think it would be funny if Zed made him as an experiment and then dropped him off into a forest to fend for himself.

- Ghostinnit befriending Cleo

- Hermit!Tommy BUT he doesn’t go to boatem. An au with a bunch of half baked reasons.

- Jimmy isn’t a toy but he is made out of porcelain and has a realisation with Joel shoots him in the eye. Bonus if Fwhip helps Jimmy out.

- After double life ended everyone goes back to their main servers but the empire members end up in hermitcraft and the hermit players end up on the empires server. The hermits have amnesia like False because of story magic while the trapped empires members are fully aware that they’re on the wrong server.

- One shot of season 1 empires!Joel making clay clones of himself. (A headcanon that he’s made out of magical clay) He stops after Lizzie disappears so the Mezelea Emperor dying of a broken heart was literal.

- One shot of Tommy becoming a champion of DreamXD, other champions include Philza (under the goddess of death), Jimmy and Grian (both under the watchers)

- Scar some how ends up on the dream smp and becomes a capitalistic rival with Quackity. Scar is made out of cartoon logic and Quackity HATES it.

- ElainaExE being a sort of demj god and is fighting DreamXD to let her go onto the dream smp to visit Eret and Puffy. The last two times she did that Puffy got caught in a storm and Eret died fighting ex-wither cult members. Also she’s made out of stars.

- Maidbomb terrorising people one shots uwu.

I dunno, would anyone like to hear my in depth rambles?

[kalamity-jayne]

I wrote and posted a version of this last night but then after an hour or two I hastily deleted the post. I'm usually not prone to saccharin sentimentality (but maybe I'm wrong about that) and being my own worst critic, I second guessed myself. It was up long enough for my wife to read it and she was confused as to why I deleted the post. She enjoyed its sweetness and thought I should have left my tender musings up. My wife is rarely ever wrong about anything. So, if you want to read something about queer family planning peppered with personal flights of fancy I remade the post below (it's a better version too).

I've been struggling to sleep these past few evenings, my unquiet mind racing to many different places all at once, faster than the rest of me can manage. My thoughts are not being animated by anxiety, as is typical, but instead by an exciting idea that planted itself weeks ago and has since been steadily taking over like wild kudzu. Like the vine that ate the south the idea is equally difficult to uproot but I honestly don't want it uprooted anyway.

My wife and I have been discussing wether or not to have a second child. As much as we both want another baby it just might not be in the cards for us because we live in a profoundly callous and myopic capitalist hellscape that hates families despite so much hot air to the contrary.

I absolutely love being a parent and our first born is growing up so fast that I already miss those early days. I miss the intense nesting most of all. That sentimentality is balanced by the previously mentioned capitalist hellscape as well as the memory of how difficult those early days were, knowing that a second kid is more than twice as hard. So, I've been thinking a lot about non-traditional families.

I don't know what got my wheels turning on the subject, if it was because my wife and I recently finished Detransition, Baby (👎) or wanting to reread The Argonauts by Maggie Nelson (👍) or if it's a newfound appreciation for T4T as a philosophy or if it's just spring is in the air but I've latched on to this lil' fantasy I've been spinning in my head where my family meets another queer family, at least of one of the other parents is also a trans woman, we all become fast friends, that friendship grows into something more, the kids become more like siblings than friends and I, my wife, and the other two parents all fall in love with each other, and the two families merge into one mega family. A union like that would compound and grow the amount of love under one roof a hundred fold.

I know how it sounds (I did after all have second thoughts the first time I posted this). Maybe it is a bit ridiculous and wildly unrealistic but... idk... I think that it's kinda beautiful. It's a defiant love, it's trans love, it's queer family, it's a sacred nest that just keeps growing. After all, it takes a village, does it not?

So, maybe it is a romantic pipe dream but a girl can still dream can't she?

I anticipate a few more of these restless nights.

[thelordofdarkreunion]

Magnificent Scoundrels- Of Humans and Demons

It had been quite a while since I’ve came out with a story.  In this, we have the explanation of what is happening in two of the galaxies concerning the shenanigans bringing them all together, as well as the more supernatural side of all of them.  As usual, I do not own anything except Thomas Drake and his universe.  Enjoy the story.   

“Speak softly and carry a big stick.”  -Theodore Roosevelt

Empyrean Iris Galaxy

Rundi Homeworld, Seat of the Galactic Assembly

“Nervous?” 

“Actually, no.  Not really.”

“Figures.  First human to make contact with extraterrestrial life, now the first person to meet the newcomers from these new galaxies.  Nothing fazes you,”  Admiral Kelly sighed.  Admiral Vir, dressed in an immaculately pressed grey uniform, grinned.  

“They said space was the final frontier.  As it turns out, we’ve got eight new galaxies out there.  Life just got a lot more complicated.  But, honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.  More fun!  More exploring!” said Vir.

“It takes all kinds, I suppose.  But you have to deal with briefing the Assembly,” replied Kelly.  “And deal with their possible reactions to the fact that they might not be the top dogs anymore,” she added as an afterthought.

“True,” sighed Vir.  “The worst part of the job, by far.”  A younger human officer stepped into the small, well lit room outside the main council chambers and turned to the Admirals.

“Admiral Vir, sir.  The Assembly is ready.”  He clutched his hands together, nervous to be in the presence of a living legend.  

“Thank you,” replied Vir politely.  He strode forward, only to pause briefly and look back at Kelly with a grin.  “Oh, by the way, Star Wars is real.”

“Wait...what?”  

He walked into the council chambers, radiating an aura of careful calmness.  He looked to the seats where the various delegates from all the different species in the galaxy sat, looking slightly wistfully at the human section, wishing he could be there instead of standing alone at the head of the council.  But, like he had said earlier, it went with the job, and he was the only person to make contact with the denizens of the other galaxies.  He reached the speaker’s podium, and, after the usual useless bureaucratic formalities were made, began.  

“Esteemed members of the Galactic Assembly, I am sure you have noticed that we are no longer the only populated galaxy within this universe.  Approximately a month ago, an extreme anomaly caused nine different galaxies, including our own, from nine separate universes to co-exist in one singular universe.  I come before you today, having met with people from each of the galaxies to brief you on the various governments from these other galaxies, what they are like, and what you should expect.”  He paused for a moment.  Perhaps he had used the word ‘galaxy’ too much in that speech?  No.  He had to be extremely specific, even at the risk of sounding redundant.  “It should be noted that, interestingly enough, humans exist in all of these realities.”  That drew a round of nervous murmerings.  Humans were one of the newest additions to the Assembly, and were by far one of the more powerful and dangerous member races.  Come to think of it, I might be lucky if they don’t start a riot over this, he mused.

“It should also be noted that, coincidentally, several of these new realities share similarities with old human stories.  Should you wish to know more, the appropriate media has been forwarded to you.”

“Now, on to the main briefing.”  Several delegates leaned forward in their seats expectantly.  Notepads, recording devices, or computers were taken from their holding places.  Adam cleared his throat.  “This is what we have deemed Galaxy One…”

And so the briefing went on.  He told them of the people he’d met, gave them the anatomical reports on new species of aliens.  And, most importantly, he told them of their counterparts.  Told them of both the good and the worrying.  

The Galactic Empire: a fracturing, militaristic pro-human superpower that used to rule Galaxy 1.

The New Republic: a pro-democratic group that opposed and overthrew the Empire from Galaxy 1.

The United Federation of Planets: a peaceful yet technologically powerful group where all species were equal in Galaxy 3.  

The Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation: a massive, privately funded mega-corporation that effectively ruled Earth and humanity in Galaxy 7.

The Covenant: a theocratic coalition of aliens dedicated to activating a series of devastating WMD’s in the belief that it would cause their ascension in Galaxy 4.

The Imperium of Man: a theocratic, xenophobic, militaristic pro-human superpower fighting an endless war against all comers in Galaxy 6.  

The list went on, and on, and on.  As each different government was mentioned, a map of their territories, capabilities, species, and symbol flashed on a centrally located holographic projector.  

“Now, the next part is this.  We have received word from the Citadel Council, the reigning government in what we have dubbed Galaxy 5, asking us to come to their capital for peaceful negotiations.  They seem to be extremely similar to our own government, in the sense that they are a galaxy-spanning federation including multiple species.  While I am no diplomat; that would be your area of expertise, the information we have gathered has led us to believe that this government in particular, and two others are the most similar to us and would be the best to ally with.”  The room filled with hushed murmurings.  The Drev delegate spoke up.

“And what is to stop all you humans from ending up like this?  Or this?”  He tapped a button, and the six-spoked circle of the Galactic Empire and the double-headed golden eagle of the Imperium of Man flashed to life on the console.  “As there are humans in all of these galaxies, you could band together and wipe the rest of us out.  What’s to stop you?”  Vir paused for a moment.  

“Because, being human is all about individuality.  We have no collective.  Our societies change all the time throughout history.  It is often not a story of unity.  In the end, a human is whatever it wants to be.  The humans of this new reality are probably just as different to each other as all the other species are.  And, because we are an individualistic species, the chances of us uniting under one banner to conquer not only one but nine different galaxies is not going to happen.”  He looked out at all the different delegates, all the different aliens he had come to appreciate over so long.  “One other thing.  Most humans have a great sense of right and wrong.  Something that many of you have come to appreciate over the time we’ve been in the Assembly, I’m sure.  We know that to take your land, to kill your people, is wrong.  And, as I said before, humans are different.  There are evil and bad humans in this reality; there always have been good ones as well.  The same still applies.  While some of these humans will want to take from you everything, humans like me will always be there to fight by your side against tyranny.”  The room broke into applause.  Sometimes good speeches weren't about grandiose words.  Sometimes they were simply there to get a point across.  And Admiral Adam Vir was a master at that type of speaking.  

He sighed to himself.  No bad.  There wouldn’t be any riots.  Probably.  Hopefully.  He went on with his briefing, pausing slightly to wonder if similar things were happening in the other galaxies...

“I want one simple thing: money.  I will tell you what I want; everyone knows what I want.  But the people you call saviors, the ones who you think will deliver you and raise you up, they want something else.  They want complete and utter control over every aspect of your life.  And when you naive fools put them into power, in a short time you will miss my kind.  But I will be dead, and you will be damned, because you never thought through the consequences of your actions.”  -Martin Crossgrow

Aboard the Apocalypse 

Thomas Drake sat in his quarters.  The room was an odd combination of styles, with austere and sleek metal plating contrasting with the rustic stonework of a large electric fireplace and the handsome woodwork of the furniture.  He sat before a large video screen, barely the width of a piece of paper.  His black hair was immaculate, as always, and his deep blue eyes stared from underneath a brow furrowed with concentration.  His fingers flew across a holographic keyboard, inputting the correct security procedures.  A mesh of invisible, interlocking and ever-changing computer algorithms flashed across the screen.  Good.  Even if someone were to try and break into his ship’s computers, they would not find records of what he was doing.  They could not.  He pressed a few more keys, then waited.  

Waited for one person.  His...sponsor.  For lack of a better word.  The head of the most powerful corporation in his galaxy.  The head of the Guild of Merchants, the corporate oligarchy that ruled the space in between the Galactic Federation and the Empire of Prosium.  Ultra-capitalists to a somewhat disturbing extent, it was they who controlled most of the galaxy’s comperce, built most of the products, and of course, paid the most.  

A series of chimes, repeating the same notes, sounded.  They sounded faster, quicker, humming together, until one long, high, note sang out.  The computer screen flashed from black with lines of green coding to reveal a face.  

It was that of a man, skin pale from never seeing the warm kiss of a sun, pale from never leaving building complexes.  It was old, with receding white hair and skin starting to sag, but the face and the eyes did not betray this age.  They burned with energy, arrogance and contempt.  Not the misplaced arrogance and perceived invincibility of youth, or the kind energy of an honest worker.  No.  These eyes shone with an arrogance of age and assurity, the arrogance of a man who knew with absolute certainty he was better and more powerful than anyone else.  These eyes now turned to Thomas Drake, and took on a new expression.  That of a superior looking on at a trusted subordinate.  

“Captain Drake.  How are you?” spoke the calm voice of Martin Crossgrow.  

“I’m doing well, Mr. Crossgrow,” replied Drake.  

“Wonderful.  Now, what do you have for me?”  

“Information.  As per usual.  Stocks, governments, companies...entities.  In some cases.”  Crossgrow gave an appreciative nod.  

“Excellent.  Your usual fee will be transferred to your account when the information reaches me.”

“Good.  I wanted to warn you, though.  In some of these new realities, there are...things. Things of...supernatural power.  I’m getting you as much information as I can on them, so as to be better prepared if and when confronted.”  At this, Crossgrow laughed, a low, dry, chuckle.  

“I’m not afraid of the supernatural.  If it does exist in these new galaxies, then there are people who will know how to fight it in those galaxies.  And every man has a price.  So if the time comes, I merely must pay that price.  It’s simple.”  Drake said nothing.  He knew it wouldn’t be quite that simple.  But he also knew that disagreeing with the head of the most powerful corporation in the galaxy, and his highest paying employer, was not a wise decision.  

“If that’s how you play it, then that’s how you play it.  But I think I need more information.  Places, organizations with knowledge, information.  That’s what I must find.”  Crossgrow made a harrumph noise in his throat.  

“Well, in the meantime, tell me about the financial side to these new places.”

“Of course.  The biggest threat to the Guild is probably the Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation.  Monopoly.  Rules humanity in one of these other galaxies.  Produces quite powerful and interesting war machines.  I’ve got the schematics for one type.”  This elicited a laugh.

“I’m reasonably sure that you stole that from one of your...what do you call them…” he paused for a moment, then snapped his fingers in realization.  “Ah, Scoundrels!  Didn’t you?”  Drake shrugged.

“Of course.  It’s being sent to you as we speak.  I’ve also got…” he trailed off as he tapped several buttons on his wrist computer.  “Schematics for…” He looked up and grinned.  “Chainsaw swords, plasma swords, rechargeable laser weaponry, jetpack boots, laser weapons that run off of explosive gasses, contractible body armor, high-quality medical gel that heals wounds almost instantly, cybernetic super-soldier armor, three types of personal shields, teleporters, omnitools, so-called ‘phaser weaponry’, two types of power armor, and the blood readouts from biotics, pariahs, and SPARTANs.”  He held up a hand to forestall Crossgrow’s confused look at the last three items on the list.  “It’s all described in the report.”  

“Ah, very good.  Very good, indeed, Captain Drake.”  A slightly amused look crossed Crossgrow’s face.  “Although, won’t your compatriots be upset if they knew you were selling their secrets?”  Drake smiled in response.  

“If they ever found out.”  HIs smile grew wider, and both he and Crossgrow repeated the mantra in perfect synchronization.  “Besides, that’s just.  Good.  Business.”  

“Forget everything you think you know.” -Karl Mordo, upon Dr. Strange’s arrival in Kamar-Taj

Marvel Galaxy

Earth

The New York Sanctum

Doctor Steven Strange was a wizard.  Not “wizard” in the sense that he was extremely good at something, like “technological wizard” or “engineering wizard”, but a literal magic wizard.  Once upon a time, he had been a prestigious surgeon, but that had all ended in the fires of a car crash.  He had traveled the world, trying to heal his broken body, and stumbled on a place that taught actual, real, magic.  

Through a strange series of events, he had mastered these “mystical arts” and become the head of Earth’s sorcerers.  It was his job to defend the planet and all its inhabitants from any and all magic or extra-dimensional threats.  This, of course, was now a particular problem, seeing as eight different realities from different dimensions now existed in the same material universe as his reality did. Now he had eight new galaxies to take care of, and possible threats from all of them to fight.

Wonderful.

He sighed to himself.  Might as well get started.  Get it done with.  Hopefully he didn’t get eaten.  He breathed in, breathed out, his mind calm, tranquil.  His heavy red cloak billowed around him, lifting him in the air as he took a cross-legged position.  One more deep breath.  He drew upon his power, and allowed his mind to roam.  Not freely, of course.  Silently.  His metal defenses were high.  No entities, no beings, could tune onto the small signature he emitted.  It took practice, hours upon hours of it, combined with an innate talent to disguise one’s mental signature so.  

He floated, his mind calm.  Thoughts, emotions, feelings…   Interesting.  They all flitted through his brain, caressing the edges of his mind.  Nothing for now.  He roamed higher.  Opened his mind to beyond his Earth, beyond his reality...and was immediately assaulted, battered, his mind tossed around like a cork upon an ocean.  Travesty, glory, tragedy, celebration, hatred, hope, love, rage…  He wanted to scream.  He did not.  He merely steeled his mental defenses, clamping down on the sanity of his own brain.

He saw...darkness crashing against light.  An eternal battle, observed by one.  Something larger at play.  Something he did not, could not comprehend.  Time began, the beginning played out, a universe expanded.  Light.  Beginning.  Emotion.  Differences.  It reminded him of the principle of yin-yang, but on a much larger scale.  Strange watched the universe, as millions of stars were born and died.  The light encompassed everything.  Shadows, tendrils of darkness, battled it, fought it, sometimes snuffed it out.  The light won when it came forward, burning away the darkness, but if the light failed, gave up, the darkness crept forward to take its place.  The light was passive, in a way, upholding the rules with a code of honor.  The dark was not.  It surged, striking forward, defying the rules and logic itself.  Interesting.  Strange got the feeling that there was something more here at play, something he didn’t know yet.  But it wasn’t a threat.  Yet.  It could wait.  He moved to the next galaxy, the next reality that had been entwined with his.  

Next.  His mind reached out once more.  Now this place...this one was interesting.

It has power.  Not separated from the real world, not some ancient deities having eldritch chess games.  No.  This one had...something different.  An energy field, created from the energy of all living things, surrounding them, binding them, letting some get a taste of its power.  Most interesting indeed.  He went further.  

A field.  A field of ghosts.  Roughly divided in two.  On one side, strength, power, hate, rage, passion.  On the other, peace, knowledge, serenity, harmony.  Two different sides, two different users and practitioners of this energy field.  Different individuals.  No gods.  No demons.  Only mortals.  But powerful ones.  Two in particular stood out.  Both on the side of passion.  A void, a hungry, hungry void encompassing an individual of massive power.  Another, a crackling nimbus of darkness and selfishness.  They did nothing.  But should they break free from this field of ghosts...the consequences...hmmm.  What was this place, even?  A place of the dead?  Reflections of the living?

Strange whirled around as he felt a presence behind him.  Another shade.  But not milling on the field with the others.  This one stood alone.  It was of both sides...but neither.  Light and dark swirled within the figure in perfect harmony.  It walked forward, towards him.  Strange could sense it was, or once was, a human.  It wore stylized armor and a mask under a black, heavy, hooded robe.  It inclined its head in greeting to Strange.  

“What...what are you, exactly?” asked Strange.  The robed figure started out on the field of ghosts.  

“I was once like you, sorcerer.”  The voice was whispery, swirling, ghostly.  Beneath Strange could hear the faint trace of the voice of a dead man.  “A man with a destiny.”  

“Why are you not with the others?” said Strange.  The figure gave the phantom impression of a laugh, then a sigh.  

“I do not walk in the light, for it robs me of the stars.  I do not walk in the dark, for it robs me of my surroundings.  I walk in the twilight, and while both are dulled, I can see the entire picture and walk in balance.”  He turned towards Strange.  “Some say it is between light and dark.  It is not.  You must have balance.  You must have harmony between the two.  There is a war coming, sorcerer.  A war that you must win.  Your power will be with you.  Always.  Remember that.”  The ghost faded into oblivion, and the vision of the field ended.  Odd. The vision was something to meditate on for another day.  After he had the complete picture.  

Next one.  This one had a parallel universe.  A shadowy reflection of the real world, ruled by...something.  The ruler wasn’t human, wasn’t demon or god, it was...something else.  A creature of the shadows.  Formed by them.  Made by them.  This reality was odd, yes, but it had no place in the real world.  It could not come to nor affect the realm he was sworn to protect.  No threats here.  Next.  

No magic here.  Science.  More than anything else.  Fine.  Good, actually.  Less work for him to do.  He was about to turn and leave, when he felt a presence.  Something different.  An ancient being.  Strange blinked, and suddenly found himself in a blank white room.  What?

Staring at him, lounging in a comfortable white chair with a drink in hand, was a man (no, being, he corrected himself) wearing a ridiculous, outlandish, garb of an old school extremely wealthy Renaissance priest.  Okay.  That was a new one.  Personally, he much preferred the man from the other galaxy with his armor and heavy robe.  Whatever.  He was getting sidetracked.  The being grinned at him.  

“Surprised?” it asked.  Strange recovered quickly. 

“No,” he replied.  The being laughed uproariously.  

“He he, yes you are!”  It sipped its drink.  “It is so rare to get guests!”  He turned suddenly, looking around at things that were not there.  “Hmm.  My time is short.  There is much work to be done in little time.  The gods of humanity are outnumbered.  A war is coming.  Heh.  I see someone already told you that.  Yes.  There are forces teaming up.  The darkness is spreading.”  The being leaned closer.  “I usually am not so straight forward, but it is doubtful you’ll see me again, so I must tell you these things now.  Anyway, be prepared.  Have fun.  Try not to die.  That would be bad.”  The being snapped its fingers, and the room disappeared, leaving Strange hovering over the universe once more.  He shook his head.  Usually massively powerful beings did not make odd jokes while inviting him for drinks.  More things to remember, more things to meditate on.  He had to move on.

In two other universes, nothing.  No semblance of any sort of magic or higher beings.  Good.  Nothing to worry about there.  Next.  

No magic here.  Nothing.  But..something was off.  The souls of the dead were...missing.  Nothing here.  Odd.  No matter.  No gods, no demons, no other eldritch beings.  Fine.  Mysteries could be solved on other days.  He had more important things to do.  

He turned his gaze to the last galaxy.  Felt as his mind and spirit floated forward.  Immediately, he recognized this galaxy as two dimensions in one.  Strange.  But today was a day for oddness.  Warily, he crept forward, mentally entering the new galaxy.  

Emotion.  Hate.  Rage.  BLOOD.  Apathy.  Stagnation.  ROT.  Movement.  Hope.  CHANGE.  Lust.  Pain.  EXCESS.  So much.  Too much.  Conflicting ideas.  Dead uncountable, screaming in torment from a sea of souls.  A Great Game, a chess match between beings he didn’t even want to know existed.  And endless war, for billions of years, between factions so powerful he felt as if he were a single grain of sand in an hourglass, a person of such small importance that he could do nothing to change the future that would doom everything.  

He screamed as these emotions, as the chaos of this place engulfed him, clawed at him, threatened to drown him.  He tried to break free, used all of his power to try and get as far away from this place as he could, away from the madness.  He gritted his teeth and focused, focused harder than he ever had, focused harder than the time after the wreck where he could not get his hands from shaking.  He felt as if he were trapped, unable to run as if in a terrible nightmare.  He could feel as creatures, demonic inhabitants of this realm started to notice his presence, started to turn their hungry stares towards him as he struggled even harder, looking for any salvation.  

A light.  Faint, in the darkness.  He rushed towards it, the souls of the damned clawing at his cloak, the demons closing in with the force of an unstoppable tide.  He felt as if he were on a treadmill, unable to go anywhere, stuck in one spot, pursuers closing in.  He felt their hot, foul breath on his back, felt their horrible talons and teeth…

Then, nothing.  He spun.  Nothing.  No pursuers.  No demons.  He fell to his knees, breath coming in gasps.  After he caught his breath, he came to his feet and looked at his surroundings.  He was still in the sea of souls.  Still in this odd, horrible dimension.  But, this part was different.  A blinding, golden light shot up as if from nowhere, keeping the darkness and terror at bay.  What?  How?  He walked forward, surroundings bare, the great golden light making sure that no demons tread here.  As he walked, he felt...something.  

A single voice, screaming through the void.  A soul slit, in utter agony, bruised, beaten, but unbowed.  Strange felt the voice, using his powers to attune himself to it.  It had been in pain for...millennia now.  Pain was a constant companion.  But it would not give into the pain.  Never.  

Strange looked forward.  The beam was being produced by something...no.  Wrong.  Someone.  He shuddered involuntarily.  The sheer power required to produce such a thing, let alone to sustain it…  No wonder the voice was in pain.  Strange looked around again.  He had seen enough.  Knew enough.  Time to go back.  He leapt up, leaving this place, still keeping the light in sight...

When suddenly a being of unfathomable power and incalculable malevolence turned it’s gaze towards him.  He shied away from it.  Now was not the time to trifle with such a thing.  

Time, space, and reality warped around him.  Every color, yet no color swirled.  The being came into focus in front of him.  It was ever-changing, morphing from one form to the next with no pretext.  He hid his eyes.  To stare at it would be to go mad.  It studied him.  Looked at him with amusement, like a child studying insects under a microscope.  Then, it spoke.  Its voice was the worst thing Strange had ever heard.  Constantly changing, echoing like a nightmare into the void around him.  

“The Anathema's pathetic light cannot protect you for long, sorcerer.”  Strange winched, and shielded his face even more.  

“What are you?” he asked in response.  The being laughed.  Strange screamed.  The laugh echoed around him, promising the bending of time and reality as he knew them.  

“Do not ask which creature screams in the night.  Do not question who waits for you in the shadow.  It is my cry that wakes you in the night, and my body that crouches in the shadow.  I am Tzeetch, and you are the puppet that dances to my tune…”  Strange pulled back.  This was out of his league.  He made a motion, and activated his one, final, failsafe.  The locket around his neck opened, and a stone within glowed green.  The being, Tzeetch, grimaced, hissed, and launched at the same time.  

“Oh, ho!  Your pathetic trinket cannot keep you safe for long.  Every time you use your power, every time anyone bends the laws of nature to their own whims, I will be waiting.  Know that I will be watching you and guiding your fate, mortal.”  Strange said nothing.  He could do nothing against such a being.  “Now, go pack to where you came from.”  With a great, ringing, clap, Strange opened his eyes.  He found himself back in New York.  His cloak let him down with a thud on the hardwood floor.  He winced, then stood.  A meeting had to be called.  He just hoped superheroes would be enough to stop whatever came next.  

[Author’s note: For the curious, Tzeetch is pronounced zeen-ch]

I hope you liked it.  While I didn’t want to give you the names of any of the people in Strange’s visions, preferring instead for you to guess for yourselves, the line “I am Tzeentch and you are the puppet that dances to my tune” was just too good to pass up.  I also do hope that you could follow at least some of my ramblings there, but, if you couldn’t, feel free to ask me any questions you may have, along with any comments, criticisms, requests, or concerns.  Wherever you are, I hope you have a great day.