#unlike Skrit

[despairs-memorial]

As time had gone on, even before growing close with Gundham, Kazuichi had slowly but surely started to find out who and what he was as his support system grew. Sure, his dad still treated him like shit, but the mechanic had started distancing himself from the man after seeing how sad Gundham looked whenever he came back to the school with a black eye or busted lip. It was with this rise in confidence he'd even started branching out in his wardrobe with the help of Ibuki, and more surprisingly Sonia when they'd bumped into her while out clothes shopping. It was nice, he loved this new side of himself, and he hoped to Hell Gundham liked it too.

He hadn't told the breeder anything past musing the idea of wearing more feminine clothing in his day to day, with the shopping trip being a spontaneous outing via Ibuki, in which her and Sonia said it would be fun to surprise his.....Gundham with one of the outfits he'd bought.

He felt like a fucking fool, standing in his room in front of the mirror, the new clothes haphazardly tossed about across his bed as he tried to make heads or tails of them. Though, as stupid as he felt, he had to admit, he looked pretty damn good. He didn't think he would, given his more muscular torso, but Ibuki said it went well with his 'grabbable waist', whatever that meant.

Twisting and turning about (momentarily getting distracted by how the pleated skrit flowed when he did), he took in the look he had chosen; a simple black t-shirt made of some sort of shimmery, see through fabric with a solid tanktop stitched in undernearth, a pleated purple skirt (that he only bought because it was really close to matching the color of Gundham's scarf) that cut off just above his knees, and finally sparkly black thigh-high stockings, pattered with brightly colored galaxies that looked like shimmering stars when catching the light.

His plan had been to invite the breeder to his room later on, after he'd built up a bit more nerve, but his surprise for Gundham had turned into one for them both with a knock at Kaz's door. He'd forgotten for a moment, as he swung it open with the usual grin he wore whenever seeing the man (one filled with nothing but pure happiness), just what he was wearing as he stepped aside to let him in.

"Hey! Did uh, did Sonia tell you we were back or something?" Came the question as the door was closed behind him, Kazuichi unable to really look at the man as he went about cleaning up the clothes scattered across his bed. "'buki took me out sh-shopping 'n stuff, a-and we bumped into her at that one place with all the makeup 'n shit. Kinda surprised she tagged along, but it was fun." Maybe if he acted like everything was normal his heart would calm the fuck down where it rattled his chest.

While the odds of Gundham ever admitting to waiting for his partner to return back to the dorms like a lost puppy was unlikely, Sonia would be quick to call him out on it if he ever denied it outright. After he was done busying himself by caring for his beloved demonic beasts, he was left to just be in his dorm alone save for the Devas and studying whatever occult books that he had that he hadn't started on quite yet and wasn't able to focus on at all until he got the text from Sonia that the two of them had returned.

He had enough sense to wait maybe a moment or two before heading to Kazuichi's room and knocking on the door. While he waited for the mechanic to answer, he tried to get rid of the nervous energy that he had, but he didn't have to worry about it for long the moment that he was laying eyes on his partner.

Now, he always thought that Kazuichi was attractive. There were a lot of things Gundham wouldn't admit, but that was something that he would always admit to feeling if asked. But this? This was certainly going to be something that he remembered for quite some time. Actually, he was partially sure that he wouldn't be able to forget it, ever. The way that his torso looked in the top, the color of the skirt, the fucking thigh highs that were making his brain shut off for a second... it was enough to render even Gundham utterly speechless for a moment.

Hell, it took him a long moment to even register that Kazuichi was saying anything enough to form a response. "Y-yes, the.. the she-cat informed me of your arrival... I..." He clears his throat as he made a mental note to find some way to thank the musician for helping Kazuichi with this. "I see.... how joyous it is for me to see that you reveled fully in the excursion. Y-you, um... you have certainly captured my full attention. I believe that even the gods themselves would be unable to take their eyes from you... should you appear under them like this."

[rayveewrites]

Guess who's created another Among Us OC! This is Saffron, AKA Yellow.

Yellow is an imposter. More specifically, she's a human imposter- a mercenary hired by one of MIRA's many enemies.

She's quite small for a human, allowing her to squeeze through vents where most people would get stuck. Yellow is not as skilled with the gun as she is with a knife, and tends to favour blades over bullets as a result. She's not massively strong, but she's fast and she knows where your arteries are and how long it'll take for you to bleed out, so watch your back.

Yellow's pretty competent at spotting her fellow imposters, and she's fine working with them. Typically they're aliens of some description; it's rare she finds herself working with other humans. She's never afraid to throw her fellow imposters under the bus if things go pear-shaped, and she can manage fin on her own.

Yellow chose her colour because her name is Saffron; not the other way round. She's not much of a talker; because of this, most people don't hear her voice enough to pick up on any tells.

Yellow went into mercenary work out of desperation- she was born into poverty and would do anything to claw her way out of it. She knows full well that if she gets caught, she''l be dead, and she's learned to accept that. She's paid both by MIRA and the company she works for, and has a pretty sizeable amount saved up (MIRA pays well because it's the only way they can keep astronauts on; Yellow's shadowy organization pays well because they're basically hiring a serial killer). Yellow has learned to not care about any life other than her own, which is pretty much the only way someone can deal with being an imp.

She has a rather one-sided rivalry with this one Purple botanist; when the aliens tell Yellow pretty directly not to kill her, Yellow just wants to kill her more. Sadly, she's never had a good chance on a crew without an imposter that won't sell her out. So she waits, because she'll get her chance. One day...

(Purple, on the other hand, either doesn't know or doesn't care, and blatantly ignores Yellow for the most part.)

Saff saves most of her spare cash, but she does splurge occasionally on her sword collection. She has a sword collection. Even better, she can use those swords! She has a place on Earth where she keeps them, because trying to smuggle a dozen swords onto the dropship is not happening. MIRA may be spectacularly stupid, but even they will notice something like that.

[sarifel-corrisafid-ilxhel]

Visser Three: <Now, my little Andalites. Not feeling so brave anymore, are you?>

Marco: <You turned into a giant marshmallow. How's that supposed to be terrifying? This isn't Ghostbusters.>

Visser Three: <I... what? Wait, how is this possible? I acquired a viscious and ferocious monster!>

Ax: <Perhaps it is a species with multiple sets of DNA? Or is otherwise sufficiently unlike anything my people were aware of that the morphing technology did not properly register it?>

Visser Three, smugly: <See, Iniss? I told you they were Andalites.>

Chapman: "Sir, one of them knew what a marshmallow was."

Visser Three: <So what? I knew what marshmallows were before I even came to this planet.>

Chapman: "From my host, I assume."

Visser Three: <No, the Skrit-Na.>

Chapman: "... Well they also referenced a popular Human documentary."

Visser Three: <Iniss, please, have some respect. The Andalites are more than capable of intercepting Human transmissions.>

Chapman: "AND he sounded like one of the children at my school! A child who, I remind you, is the son of Visser One's human host!"

Marco: <No I don't.>

Visser Three: <See, the Andalite has no idea who you are talking about.>

Chapman: "THAT'S NOT WHAT HE SAID!!"

Visser Three: <You and your stupid theories. That is a gorilla, not a human. I know there is some resemblance, but my advisers assure me they are not the same.>

Chapman: "But I'm you're adviser!"

Visser Three: <I needed advisers who were competant. Tell me Iniss, when was the last time you were right about anything?>

Chapman, seething: "I hate you all so much right now."

Jake: <...So, can we get back to fighting?>

[sarifel-corrisafid-ilxhel]

How to Identify a Controller

In post-invasion America, the threat of the Yeerks returning remains in the back of everybody’s mind. Rumors of Yeerk warlords with delusions of grandeur, Yeerk pirates raiding the far-flung traderoutes between Earth and other friendly planets, and the Skrit-Na always talking about the “New Yeerk Empire” has led to the pioneering of several new techniques which may be able to detect Yeerks in a quick and timely manner.

So today, let us go over the ways that Humanity in 2020 might be able to detect Yeerk invaders, and what drawbacks each method has.

Method 1: Gleet Biofilters

Invented by the Andalites and made popular by the Yeerk Empire itself, the Gleet Biofilter began as a disease control system to limit the spread of illness among the Andalite population. The Yeerks, clever as they are, quickly realized that the Biofilter could be used to screen out other types of DNA such as unwanted animals, which could easily be Andalites in morph.

A notable drawback of the device is that while it can certainly destroy unwanted animals attempting to pass through the filter, it will not destroy anything located inside a verified user. This is a safety feature intended to protect the symbiotic gut flora many verified users have,, but it also means that if a Controller steps through the filter, it will detect the Yeerk but completely fail to stop the Yeerk from going through. Additionally, improper installation often leaves gaps in security that morph-capable Controllers could exploit. And lastly, due to the fact Gleet Biofilters rely on a database of acceptable and unacceptable DNA signatures, it is possible that this database could be compromised to allow Yeerks through without raising any alarms at all if the significant firewalls protecting the Biofilter’s internal computers were breached.

Method 2: Continuous Observation

A tried and true method, an observation period of 3 Earth Days can generally confirm if a subject is free of any Yeerks. The American organization known as the Center for Disease Control recommends an observation period of no less than 84 Earth hours, or 3.5 Earth Days, as it is impossible to determine exactly how long it has been since a suspected Yeerk last fed. While most Yeerks typically enter the fugue at around 72 hours, some Yeerks were known to have lasted as long as 80 hours without feeding during the war, which makes extensions past the traditional “three days” prudent.

It should also be pointed out that observation of a Yeerk can quickly reveal the Yeerk’s presence by exposing personality shifts that would be typically associated with Yeerk infestation, and in many cases may cause the Yeerk to expose itself out of sheer frustration.

A potential drawback of this method is the sheer amount of time it takes, especially if your subject is combative. In 2004, the United States Supreme Court ruled in Chapman v. California that a three-day hold in a jail cell under suspicion of being a Controller is a legal detainment under probable cause, but that the suspect’s combativeness may not be assumed to be proof of a Yeerk’s presence, as even innocent people can quickly become agitated and combative when detained against their will.

Another potential drawback of this method is the possibility of the Yeerks modifying their host with implants which emit Kandrona, utilizing an injectable Kandrona-enriched solution, or otherwise finding ways around the three day time limit.

Method 3: Kandrona Imaging

Another method invented by the Andalites as a form of medical imaging, Kandrona Imaging functions similarly to an X-ray. A subject is asked to stand in front of a powerful Kandrona emitter for a brief period of time, and detectors measure the amount of Kandrona radiation that passes through their head. Any larger-than-predicted losses of Kandrona radiation, such as those caused by the presence of a Yeerk (which absorbs some of the radiation), immediately flags the subject as a potential Controller.

However, this method is not useful when dealing with Human-Controllers, as Human skulls are dense and thick enough to block most Kandrona radiation. This method is only useful in creatures with skulls that are transparent to Kandrona radiation, such as Taxxons.

Method 4: Kandrona Re-Emission Imaging

Similar to the above method is a method developed by the Yeerk Empire to counter Mak rebels. Members of the Free Mak Resistance were known to infiltrate Yeerk Pools by blending in with Controllers on their way in and out of the Yeerk Pool, and they were known to bypass Gleet Biofilters by smearing crushed Yeerks across their skin, fooling the DNA sensors.

The Yeerk solution to this problem was the Kandrona Re-Emission Imager. The imager worked by flashing incoming Controllers with a large burst of Kandrona and then measuring the results. When a Yeerk absorbs Kandrona, it re-emits the Kandrona at a longer “waste” wavelength, which can easily be detected by standard Kandrona measuring devices. The Mak Rebels, having smeared Yeerks across their skin, would then stand out from the Controllers because the Yeerk cells on their skin would re-emit waste Kandrona.

The drawbacks of this method are much the same as Method 3, with both Kandrona and waste Kandrona being unable to penetrate Human skulls.

Method 5: Lumbar Puncture- Cerebrospinal Fluid Analysis

This method, unknowingly discovered by Human doctors during the Yeerk War, is perhaps the most foolproof way to detect a well-prepared Yeerk. The methodology is simple and robust: a sample of cerebrospinal fluid is extracted via lumbar puncture and analyzed for Yeerk proteins. If processed immediately, results are available within the hour.

This method was first discovered in 1997 after a large number of people in the greater Los Angeles area came down with an unspecified neurological disorder, now known to be caused by exposure to Instant Maple and Ginger Oatmeal. Human doctors, unaware of the nature of the disorder, began administering spinal taps to try and determine what was causing these otherwise-healthy Humans to begin freaking out so suddenly. What the doctors discovered was a series of unknown and complex proteins completely unlike anything Humans produce.

CDC officials initially hypothesized that an outbreak of a previously unknown brain parasite might be responsible for the strange proteins before suddenly declaring that there was nothing wrong at all and that everybody should join The Sharing. The CDC’s investigation of the Yeerks is remembered by historians as the first attempt by the US government to uncover and counter the Yeerk invasion.

Later analysis of the unknown proteins in 2001 confirmed that they matched Yeerk proteins. The CDC, now free of Yeerks, quickly recommended the method to the World Health Organization as a vital component in Humanity’s defense against further Yeerk incursions.

The only notable drawback of this method is the extreme inconvenience (and possible pain) caused by a spinal tap, as the subject may not be able to function normally for several days after the extraction.

Method 5b: Lumbar Puncture- Yeerk Protein Antigen Injection

A proposed alternative to simply looking for Yeerks is to inject Yeerk Protein Antigens into a Human’s cerebrospinal fluids to induce an immune reaction. This allows the neuroimmune system to recognize the Yeerk as a hostile parasite, and  the resulting immune response would theoretically be enough to disrupt a Yeerk’s control of the host and possibly drive the alien out of the host entirely, either by stimulating the release of chemicals that irritate a Yeerk’s sensitive exterior lining or by directly attacking the Yeerk’s cells with white blood cells.

If it is unknown whether or not a subject is a Controller, this method could quickly expose any Yeerk while simultaneously providing the Human with some resistance to future infestation. In addition, this method could be coupled with cerebrospinal fluid analysis for guaranteed detection of a Yeerk regardless of the Yeerk’s response.

This method shares the same drawback as the cerebrospinal fluid analysis method, as lumbar punctures can often leave Humans unable to move without pain for several days.