#with a monstrous tattoo artist

[cellbitupdates]

🟡 ¡Cellbit respondió a un tweet!/❤️ Cellbit replied to a tweet!/🟩 Cellbit respondeu a um tweet!

🟩 Achei a sua arte bem legal! Dito isso, vou aproveitar a "sugestão" pra responder a todos que estão reclamando que as alterações de Conhecimento são "simples" ou "decepcionantes", porque alguns comentários tão saindo de controle e inclusive desmerecendo o trabalho dos artistas incríveis que trabalharam no livro tentando "consertar" o que não está errado:

Todas as alterações que você (e vários outros) estão sugerindo não são realizadas pelo Conhecimento, são realizadas pelo personagem, e são exploradas e explicadas na trilha Monstruoso. Elas não se aplicam à seção que você está sugerindo.

Tatuagens são feitas pelo personagem, apenas alteradas pelo Conhecimento. Joalheria pode sim se tornar dourada, mas também são itens escolhidos pelo personagem. O cabelo ficar maior é um elemento de Morte, não de Conhecimento, como você mesmo explicou, o que tornaria poderia tornar o exemplo confuso visto que essa é a entidade com mudanças mais sutis.

O objetivo das artes na seção "Alterações Paranormais" é mostrar como as Entidades NATURALMENTE podem afetar cada pessoa, independente de suas escolhas, e o Conhecimento é obviamente a entidade que menos causa alterações físicas graças à sua natureza. Não é uma seção "olha como o Outro Lado te deixa mais descolado!" e sim uma seção "como o Outro Lado te deixa arruinado". É um livro sobre terror.

Todas as outras artes de elementos também contém designs bases de personagens simples para evidenciar o que está sendo descrito no texto, as alterações físicas, não escolhidas.

Se você quer ver, no livro, uma sugestão de como alguém pode ser completamente fisicamente transformado pelo Conhecimento e ficar "estiloso", é só voltar para a trilha Monstruoso e ver a arte do Namkuzu.

Além disso, a arte é um EXEMPLO, que nem mesmo aplica todas as descrições que estão narradas no texto que ela ilustra, justamente para ficar explícito que cada personagem é transformado de maneira diferente. Tem uma box inteira literalmente descrevendo isso, que aparentemente muita gente está escolhendo ignorar. Se você quiser um personagem com 7 olhos e pele dourada graças ao conhecimento, você PODE fazer isso, basta estar de acordo com o resto do grupo, mas esse não é o resultado mais comum das alterações de Conhecimento, e consequentemente,

Pra finalizar, a percepção pessoal / "headcanon" do que um Elemento deveria fazer no universo do Ordem é uma expectativa exclusivamente sua, e não necessariamente vai sempre condizer com as oficiais, e essa é a graça de um RPG: cada um pode criar as próprias histórias e os próprios personagens. Uma das minhas coisas preferidas é ficar vendo os personagens originais que o pessoal cria usando o universo e os elementos do Ordem e maneira criativa e inesperada.

Espero que isso tenha esclarecido pra todo mundo, e obrigado a todo o pessoal pelo apoio no livro! De coração tenho ficado muito feliz em ver todo mundo satisfeito depois de tanto trabalho ♥

❤️I thought your art was really cool! That said, I'm going to take advantage of this "suggestion" to respond to everyone who is complaining that the Knowledge changes are "simple" or "disappointing", because some comments are getting out of hand and even belittling the work of the incredible artists who worked on the book trying to "fix" what is not wrong:

All of the changes you (and several others) are suggesting are not performed by Knowledge, they are performed by the character, and are explored and explained in the Monstrous path. They do not apply to the section you are suggesting.

Tattoos are made by the character, only changed by Knowledge. Jewelry can indeed become gold, but they are also items chosen by the character. Hair getting bigger is an element of Death, not Knowledge, as you explained, which could make the example confusing since this is the entity with the most subtle changes.

The objective of the arts in the "Paranormal Changes" section is to show how Entities can NATURALLY affect each person, regardless of their choices, and Knowledge is obviously the entity that causes the least physical changes thanks to its nature. It's not a "look how cool the Other Side makes you!" section! rather a "how the Other Side ruins you" section. It's a book about horror.

All other element art also contains simple character base designs to highlight what is being described in the text, the physical changes, not chosen.

If you want to see, in the book, a suggestion of how someone can be completely physically transformed by Knowledge and become "stylish", just go back to the Monstrous track and see Namkuzu's art.

Furthermore, the art is an EXAMPLE, which does not even apply all the descriptions that are narrated in the text it illustrates, precisely to make it clear that each character is transformed in a different way. There's an entire box literally describing this, which apparently a lot of people are choosing to ignore. If you want a character with 7 eyes and golden skin thanks to Knowledge, you CAN do that, just be in agreement with the rest of the group, but this is not the most common result of Knowledge changes, and consequently,

To conclude, the personal perception / "headcanon" of what an Element should do in the Order universe is an expectation exclusively yours, and will not necessarily always match the official ones, and that is the fun of an RPG: everyone can create their own stories and characters themselves. One of my favorite things is seeing the original characters that people create using the universe and elements of Order in creative and unexpected ways.

I hope this clarified for everyone, and thanks to everyone for supporting the book! From my heart I have been very happy to see everyone satisfied after so much work ♥

[detectivebambam]

Congrats on 500 followers! I adore your blog! Can I request tattoos and scars for the drabble prompts!? <3

i promised y'all i was working on these didn't I

didn't get a character so obvs we're doing Andrew 😋

tw for mentions of scars (obviously) and a hint of past CSA but nothing explicit

It had been years since someone had laid their filthy hands on Andrew's skin. Still, the scars they left were with him every day. Physical or mental, they were there. Clawing at him. Feeding off of every thought, every memory, every moment. He didn't find it fair that they could commit such a monstrous crime, forcing Andrew to live with the consequences, yet have none of their own.

He ran his fingers over the bumps and ridges that covered his forearm. For the longest time, they had been a symbol of his survival. A reclamation of a body that had been taken from him. But now they were just... there. Bumps on his skin that didn't mean anything anymore. He had talked to Renee before about a coverup tattoo, but he had mentioned that he wouldn't want people to think he was ashamed of his scars.

"Since when have you cared what people think?" She had asked him.

It was a good question. Under his armbands, people wouldn't see the tattoo anyway.

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

"This one," Andrew said, pointing to the sketch in Renee's book.

"You're sure?"

"It will be hidden," he said, holding up his armbands.

She nodded in response and walked him to her chair.

"I'd say two hours based on the style. That okay?"

Andrew nodded.

Sitting still for two hours was nearly impossible, but Renee knew not to talk. She didn't make any faces or look at him like another artist might. The last thing he was was a victim, and she knew it. They both did.

He left without paying at Renee's insistence, with the promise to wear loose sleeves instead of his bands for the next few weeks.

He looked down at the snakes slithering around the old bumps. At the woman with the stern eyes that felt exactly what he did. Maybe this too, would pass.

[solangeloweek]

AUctober 2023

[ID: An orange and purple prompt calendar for the month of October, titled AUCTOBER, with clipart of bats, a ghost, a pumpkin, and a scarecrow /end ID]

Happy AUctober!

This year's prompt calendar includes themed days of the week, including Monstrous Mondays, Terrifying Tuesdays, Free-Day Fridays, and Soulmate Saturdays! As always, Halloween (Oct 31) is a free day as well.

Event Rules can be found Here. Any questions can be directed to @solangeloweek or any of the mods! Written list of prompts below the cut:

Sunday, Oct 1 - Roommates

Monday, Oct 2 - Sea Creatures

Tuesday, Oct 3 - Ghost Hunters

Wednesday, Oct 4 - Exes

Thursday, Oct 5 - Royalty

Friday, Oct 6 - Free!

Saturday, Oct 7 - Red String

Sunday, Oct 8 - Artist

Monday, Oct 9 - Vampires

Tuesday, Oct 10 - Magic

Wednesday, Oct 11 - Childhood Friends

Thursday, Oct 12 - Enemies to Lovers

Friday, Oct 13 - Free!

Saturday, Oct 14 - Soulmate Tattoos

Sunday, Oct 15 - Canon Divergence

Monday, Oct 16 - Werewolves

Tuesday, Oct 17 - Necromancers

Wednesday, Oct 18 - Athletes

Thursday, Oct 19 - Office

Friday, Oct 20 - Free!

Saturday, Oct 21 - Dreams

Sunday, Oct 22 - Musicians

Monday, Oct 23 - Ghosts

Tuesday, Oct 24 - Saw Trap

Wednesday, Oct 25 - DnD

Thursday, Oct 26 - Canon Rewrite

Friday, Oct 27 - Free!

Saturday, Oct 28 - Soulmate Timer

Sunday, Oct 29 - College

Monday, Oct 30 - Zombies

Tuesday, Oct 31 - Happy Halloween! Free Day!

[misspjsuperior]

Medusa, the OG stonergirl 👁️🪨 Almost all of us are familiar with her legendary petrifying gaze. It is mentioned in the earliest records of Medusa and her monstrous gorgon family. What is also mentioned in ancient texts by 500 BC is that unlike her immortal family, Medusa was mortal as well as remarkably beautiful. The origin story of how she got her defensive power comes much later from the Roman poet Ovid during the turn of the common era. Yep, dude lived through the turnover from BC to now times. Ovid wrote that Neptune found Medusa in a temple to Minerva, goddess of war and intellect, and forced himself upon her. When Minerva found out, Neptune blamed Medusa for coming on to him. Because Medusa was a gorgon and not a fellow god like her uncle Neptune, Minerva chooses to punish Medusa by giving her a gorgon figure like her sisters, with snakes for hair. 🐍 As a result of the betrayal, Medusa’s gaze turns men to stone. Relatable to sexual assault survivors, Medusa has become a symbol of righteous rage for many feminists. We can understand Ovid’s version as a critique on power when we look at history and realize that he was in resistance to political corruption in ancient Rome.

Obviously, and sadly, this critique’s relevance to society both predated Ovid’s time and has followed into modernity. Ovid’s myth shaping also demonstrates how storytelling and art can shape historical and mythological memory in society, how concepts of divinity and the personas projected upon these divine forces in the form of gods are forged from human imagination in order to make sense of not just the workings of nature but of relationships within civilization.

An an artist I have taken my own liberties with the Medusa myth in self portraiture. Playing with the “stoning” powers of Medusa’s gaze, I’ve drawn a “stoner” tattoo on her wrist as she burns one down. This is also in acknowledgment to the Ovidian origin story in which Medusa is explained as an assault survivor with a nod to how cannabis has been a clinically proven medicine for PTSD in association to such experiences and yet remains often vilified similarly to Medusa.

https://misspjsuperior.etsy.com/listing/1588503886

[nbwriteschaos]

re: writing commissions.

---- my writing commissions are OPEN! all info can be found within this post or in this google doc. please dm for any inquiry or request!!

!!!fiction, nonfiction, original works, smut, etc!!!

1 thousand words ♡ $10 USD

2 thousand words ♡ $12 USD

3 thousand words ♡ $15 USD

4 thousand words ♡ $20 USD

5 thousand to 10 thousand words ♡ starts at $25 USD

---- all payments are processed through paypal only. payments must be submitted first before i begin the commission. refunds are not available but i will rewrite a commission if you are not satisfied :)

more below ...

(this may format a little funny as i'm copying and pasting some info from my doc, sorry!!)

-- as for pricing

((I do not accept negotiations as far as pricing! I’ve priced my commissions based on what I think my time and effort is worth while also maintaining affordability. There are to be NO REFUNDS.  If you are unsatisfied with the result of your commission I am open to rewriting it once more to ensure your satisfaction. All payments are accepted through Paypal. I am working on opening some sort of website to provide the best experience for commissions as well, but for now, Paypal and Tumblr are the best I’ve got. 

Please let it be noted that although I am an experienced writer, I do not have the qualifications of a professional published author. I am simply a person at their laptop trying to build a future career as a writer :)

You will not be charged if I go over your paid word count!!

Custom word counts between 5k and 10k will be charged based on how I see fit. **It will not go over $60 USD** ))

-- as for boundaries

i will write mostly anything. even if it seems a little questionable, i'll probably do it. for example:

a super sad angsty character death probably nobody but yourself would want to read, that one coffee shop/tattoo artist au you've been wanting to read but can't find on ao3, or like, idk, a fantasy involving d*bcon, f*rry, p*ssplay, whump/whumpee, mpr*g, terat*philia (monster fucking), obscure s*xual organs, g*re (ask me about this one if you are looking for smut involving g*re), v*yeurism, size differences, or other common k*nks.

i do request some sort of age verification if you are commissioning for smut.

strict NOs:

No extreme depictions of SH or s*icide. No animal a*use, death or g*re. Nothing depicting extreme homophobia or transphobia. No politics or opinion-based pieces of writing. No depictions of child or adult a*use of any kind. No extreme drug use. No underage, fe*derism, sc*t/f*rts/underarms/feet/sneezing, be*stiality, n*ncon, age pl*y/massive age difference, inc*st.

i have a right to deny any commission for any reason!

-- as for fandoms

I can and will attempt to write for any fandom I am not familiar with so long as there is enough info that has been provided for it!! However, I can’t guarantee it will be perfect. Here are fandoms I am familiar with and will write for: 

Anime/Cartoons: Genshin Impact, My Hero Academia, Tokyo Ghoul, Toilet Bound Hanako Kun, Fullmetal Alchemist, Death Note, Chainsaw Man, Spy x Family, Jujutsu Kaisen, My Melody, Free!!!, Haikyuu!!!, One Punch Man, Mob Psycho 100, Demon Slayer, Hunter x Hunter, JJBA, Black Butler, Bungou Stray Dogs, Yuri on Ice, Kakegurui, Attack on Titan, Noragami, Adventure Time, Steven Universe. Probably more, just ask! 

Books: The Raven Cycle, The Dreamer Trilogy, Simon Snow Trilogy, The Foxhole Court series. Monstrous Series. Anything more obscure check out my Goodreads profile!! 

I am 100% down to write your original characters and plots!! In fact, I encourage it! For maximum accuracy, please provide as much information as you can for each character, plot, setting, etc! 

if you have any other questions feel free to send a DM or an ask and i'll get back to you as soon as possible! you can also check out the doc to see if it is answered there!

if you read this far, please feel free to reblog just to spread the love. i'd really appreciate it! thank you!!!

[m0ch1nut]

After Sukuna spills the beans, YN says that theyd been looking at a Heian artists painting of his curse form to associate Sukuna with that visual rather than Yujis looks, and even piles up blankets/pillows around themselves so its like his 4 arms are hugging them. Sukuna kinda just goes 🥺 (or as close to it as he can lol) at how accepting they are before kissing YN for the first time. Sorry this is so long and detailed, I just thought it was precious! No pressure tho <3 (no part 3, it all fit!)

Okay I don't know if I can put both parts of the ask in one post so I'll summarize,

Sukuna struggles to be physical with his s/o because he's uncomfortable doing so while still being in Yuji's body. While he's not insecure about his true form, he's still unsure if his s/o will still find him attractive since his true form is more monstrous and "creepy". Eventually, they discuss it (and the rest is continued in this ask).

Now I'm kind of stuck on how to write for this. I know you might be expecting the full story but I, just like Sukuna in this situation, am uncomfortable with the idea of Sukuna still being in the body of a teenager. This is why I write strictly for his true form or an AU. However, I still think this idea is really adorable so I want to add to this in a way I'm comfortable with.

-

Communication has never been Sukuna's strong suit. He believes any problem that can't be solved with power and strength isn't worth his time. This "actions speak louder than words" attitude has never failed him, (mainly because he's shit with words) but then again he's never been in a situation as difficult as this. At some point, you became very important to him. Ever since you accidentally stumbled upon his domain within a dream, Sukuna was intrigued by how you continuously managed to return. For some reason, your humanness piqued his interest; the fact that you were physically attractive was just the icing on the cake.

Being stuck in Yuji's body had its pros and cons, but mostly cons. The damn brat was able to maintain control over his body, forcing Sukuna to spend the majority of the time stuck within his domain, all whilst remaining the spitting image of Yuji. As Yuji goes about his daily life as a high school student, Sukuna is constantly reminded that although he is hundreds of years old, his physical form is still similar to that of a child.

At first, he's able to keep his frustrations hidden. Anytime you arrived in his domain, he told you stories of his prime, his views on the world, and anything else he was willing to share; all while you sat politely, listening in awe and wonder. For a while, this was enough to hide his inability to act on his attraction to you. However, your impatience began to show, with each visit you sat closer and closer until your chin rested on his knee; looking up at him with love and admiration.

As the King of Curses, Sukuna's not used to difficult situations where things can't go his way. He knows he should talk to you, but doing so requires being vulnerable and weak. So unfortunately for you, Sukuna dragged you into one of his long-time habits: taking his frustrations out on others. He became short-tempered, quick to snap and force you out of his domain the minute you got too close.

You weren't stupid, you knew something was wrong but couldn't put your finger on it. Sukuna wasn't the easiest to read either. You knew from his stories that he's had no issue being physically affectionate with humans in the past, and his words showed no indication that he was upset with you in particular. It takes night after night of pestering to get Sukuna to talk about his feelings, and its... adorable? Seeing him stumble over his words and avoid your gaze makes him seem almost human; that is until you see the paintings of his past form.

Fearsome, ravenous, and powerful; every painting depicted Sukuna in ways you should've feared, but all you saw was beauty. His familiar tattoos wrapped around his larger form, except now the black bands circled twice as many arms. A rough mask stretched over half his face, the name Ryomen now making more sense. One image, in particular, caught your eye, depicting Sukuna towering over the remnants of a village. The image was still, motionless, and yet the flames seemed to dance around him; bathing his muscular body in shades of red and orange. Compared to his true form, it made sense now why Sukuna would feel uncomfortable in Yuji's body.

Some time had passed since he last saw you, and embarrassingly, Sukuna was starting to worry he'd scared you away. He decided to pay you a visit. This was rare since you had never actually told Sukuna where you lived, he found you on his own. He concluded that regularly visiting you outside of his domain could make you a target for local sorcerers. Yet here he was, seated on the roof of your home, gazing into your bedroom window. The room was dark, it was late and you'd already fallen asleep. Sukuna didn't notice at first, but after his eyes adjusted he noticed the mountain of blankets and pillows wrapped around your resting form. Were those... arms? Was that supposed to be him? The realization hit Sukuna like a truck, for once he was actually caught off guard. Waves of different emotions coursed through his mind, relief? Sadness? He was glad you weren't frightened by his true form and actually embraced it. You looked comfortable and really fucking cute. Unfortunately, he's stuck in this body for now. A reality where he could hold you like that, if at all possible, was not promised. As he made his way off your roof and back towards the school Sukuna thought about how disgusted he should've been, the mere sight of you like this was so cheesy. To feel like this for a human was almost nauseating. He ultimately pushed those thoughts to the back of his mind, deciding he could work through those feelings later. For now, he was allowed to be happy.

The next time he saw you, things would be different.

-

Again, I'm sorry this took longer to write than I had originally promised, but I hope you like it! This idea was so sweet and I had a lot of fun writing it.

I'm glad to be back :)

[saportavevo]

gabe saporta awoke one morning from uneasy dreams to find himself transformed in his bed into a monstrous vermin.

Gabriel Eduardo Saporta.

I don’t really like writing too extensively about myself so let’s make this short and sweet, unlike my body type (which is tall and spicy, if you have to ask).

Formerly in the Starship, currently tattooed on Pete Wentz. These days, I’m putting my skills of business and music together to help other artists achieve their dreams. I enjoy long walks on the beach, good red wine, and trading terrible pick-up lines.

Give me attention @ spilledgvts on Chats, I enjoy the validation. 

plot page here

[monstraduplicia]

tagged by @geryone to post 9 book recemendations!! i think ive mentioned all these books before but theyre my current favorites <3

brother by ania ahlborn - michael is the youngest in a family of serial killers. ignored by momma, for better or for worse, and unable to please his tempestous older brother, rebel, he tries to cope in a house of horror.

any man by amber tamblyn - chronicles the aftermath for several men who share trauma: they're all victims of the same female serial rapist.

pin by andrew neiderman - orphaned, codependent siblings leon and ursula are more than willing to blur the lines between sibling and lover. bound together for life, the only weak link between them is the realistic anatomy dummy named pin that leon believes is alive.

choke by chuck palahniuk - victor is a sex addict unable to stop forcing himself to chock at restaurants just so people will save him. the fact that his mother, who was equally possessive and neglectful to victor during his childhood, has dementia and is now dying has absolutely nothing to do with it.

bath haus by pj vernon - what would you do if, when deciding to cheat on your partner, the man you meet at a bath house tries to strangle you? what would you do if your would-be murderer than begins to stalk you? do you go to cops? do you confess to your partner? or do you simply crumble under the constant fear?

lost souls by poppy z brite - several stories converge in the small town of missing mile, north carolina. steve and ghost are best friends and musicians dealing with steve's recent breakup and ghost's sudden visions of monstrous, incestuous twins. zillah, molochai, and twig are a ragtag trio of murderous vampires on a cross-country roadtrip, drunk on hedonism and death. nothing is a young, depressed teenager desperate to find family and belonging while figuring out his growing longing for blood.

drawing blood by poppy z brite - 25 years after bobby mcgee killed his wife and youngest son before committing suicide, trevor, the eldest child spared for some unknown reason, returns to the house that destroyed his family. death, however, leaves stains that can't be erased. down in louisiana, zach is a hacker on the run from the fbi, his hypersexuality, and his ptsd. but demons, personal or otherwise, have a way of catching up.

house of leaves by mark z danielewski - there is a house that is bigger on the inside, chronicled for decades by an old, blind man. his life's work is found by a young tattoo artist who in turn becomes obsessed with the writer and his tales of houses and minotaurs and ordinary people thrust into mind-bogglingly extraordinary situations.

the sparrow by mary doria russel - emilio sandoz is a priest with a group sent on a mission to follow an extraterrestrial sound wave to its origin. what happens on the far distant planet haunts the man once he returns home.

tagging: anyone that wants to say i tagged them ❤

[nikuqueensempai]

Luka /Viperion in Reverse Universe

And here, remembering this post, I present to you my version of Luka/Viperion in the reverse world

(Read below to know more)

Let's start with when I was a child, the Luka of the reverse world was actually the first child of the famous duo Crocoduel, which in this world was a duo/couple of pop artists from the 80's who had twins Luka and Juleka. From a very young age, Luka realized that his parents always gave extreme favoritism to his sister, which created the resentment towards women that he has now due to a phrase that his mother once said:

"She is a girl, "it must have everything"

At the age of 12 he runs away from home to get to The Supreme. One of the worst mistakes he could make because, although he would take him under his mantle, he would become the guinea pig for an experiment he had to unite a miraculous with someone. The Supreme would achieve his goal (As a note, the tattoo, which is not a tattoo, on his arm is reminiscent of what Sass is) but greatly disrupting Luka's mind, turning him into someone incapable of feeling pain, and most alarming of all, he could not see the majority of the bearers as humans but as monstrous and aberrant amalgams, his only, and curiosly, exception is the miraculous of the peacock.

In those years he would meet Felix, a boy (More a war machine of The Supreme) with whom he would get along very well and with whom he would slowly begin to develop a strong feeling for him, and after a series of events, Luka would get the object of Felix's amok and both would get flee from The Supreme, becoming a couple of carrier killers who had both their challenges with the envoys of The Supreme (Also having their confrontations with Shadybug and Claw Noir when they were on the side of The Supreme) and with the kamikozaded of Hesperia.

[hypnofantasma-asks-and-doodles]

Kraizen who work as Clowns in Circuses are described as having tattoos and patterns to make them look tough, bizarre, and monstrous. But how do they get these tattoos and markings? Does someone else in their circus provide them, or do they go to a type of Artist for them?

Anyone who works with body paints (or bodily fashion, like tattoo artists and piercers and practical effects artists, in general) will paint them on, and most Circuses probably definitely have one such specialist. they aren't special to Circuses nor does every Circus have one, but i can see it being rather common

[vanillawhiskeyflavoredkisses]

I can't even...

"Why did Depp, who had already lost a similar case in Britain, insist on going back to court? A public trial, during which allegations of physical, sexual, emotional and substance abuse against him were sure to be repeated, couldn’t be counted on to restore his reputation. Heard, his ex-wife, was counting on the opposite: that the world would hear, in detail, about the physical torments that led her to describe herself, in the Washington Post op-ed that led to the suit, as “a public figure representing domestic abuse.”

Even before the verdict came in, Depp had already won. What had looked to many like a clear-cut case of domestic violence had devolved into a “both sides” melodrama. The fact that Heard’s partial victory, which involved not Depp’s words but those spoken in 2020 by Adam Waldman, his lawyer at the time, can be spun in that direction shows how such ambiguity served Depp all along. As one commenter on The New York Times site put it, “Every relationship has its troubles.” Life is complicated. Maybe they were both abusive. Who really knows what happened? The convention of courtroom journalism is to make a scruple of indeterminacy. And so we found ourselves in the familiar land of he said/she said.

We should know by now that the symmetry implied by that phrase is an ideological fiction, that women who are victims of domestic violence and sexual assault have a much harder time being listened to than their assailants. I don’t mean that women always tell the truth, that men are always guilty as charged, or that due process isn’t the bedrock of justice. But Depp-Heard wasn’t a criminal trial; it was a civil action intended to measure the reputational harm each one claimed the other had done. Which means that it rested less on facts than on sympathies.

In that regard, Depp possessed distinct advantages. He isn’t a better actor than Heard, but her conduct on the stand was more harshly criticized in no small part because he’s a more familiar performer, a bigger star who has dwelled for much longer in the glow of public approbation. He brought with him into the courtroom the well-known characters he has played, a virtual entourage of lovable rogues, misunderstood artists and gonzo rebels. He’s Edward Scissorhands, Jack Sparrow, Hunter S. Thompson, Gilbert Grape.

We’ve seen him mischievous and mercurial, but never truly menacing. He’s someone we’ve watched grow up, from juvenile heartthrob on “21 Jump Street” to crusty old salt in the “Pirates of the Caribbean” franchise. His offscreen peccadilloes (the drinking, the drugs, the “Winona Forever” tattoo) have been part of the pop-cultural background noise for much of that time, classified along with the scandals and shenanigans that have been a Hollywood sideshow since the silent era.

In his testimony, Depp copped to some bad stuff, but this too was a play for sympathy, of a piece with the charm and courtliness he was at pains to display. That he came off as a guy unable to control his temper or his appetites was seen, by many of the most vocal social media users, to enhance his credibility, while Heard’s every tear or gesture was taken to undermine hers. The audience was primed to accept him as flawed, vulnerable, human, and to view her as monstrous.

Because he’s a man. Celebrity and masculinity confer mutually reinforcing advantages. Famous men — athletes, actors, musicians, politicians — get to be that way partly because they represent what other men aspire to be. Defending their prerogatives is a way of protecting, and asserting, our own. We want them to be bad boys, to break the rules and get away with it. Their seigneurial right to sexual gratification is something the rest of us might resent, envy or disapprove of, but we rarely challenge it. These guys are cool. They do what they want, including to women. Anyone who objects is guilty of wokeness, or gender treason, or actual malice.

Of course there are exceptions. In the #MeToo era there are men who have gone to jail, lost their jobs or suffered disgrace because of the way they’ve treated women. The fall of certain prominent men — Harvey Weinstein, Leslie Moonves, Matt Lauer — was often welcomed as a sign that a status quo that sheltered, enabled and celebrated predators, rapists and harassers was at last changing.

A few years later, it seems more likely that they were sacrificed not to end that system of entitlement but rather to preserve it. Almost as soon as the supposed reckoning began there were complaints that it had gone too far, that nuances were being neglected and too-harsh punishments meted out.

This backlash has been folded into a larger discourse about “cancel culture,” which is often less about actions than words. “Cancellation” is now synonymous with any criticism that invokes racial insensitivity, sexual misbehavior or controversial opinions. Creeps are treated as martyrs, and every loudmouth is a free-speech warrior. Famous men with lucrative sinecures on cable news, streaming platforms and legacy print publications can proclaim themselves victims.

Which is just what Depp did. And while he accused Heard of doing terrible things to him in the course of their relationship and breakup, the lawsuit wasn’t about those things. It was about words published under her name, none of which were “Johnny Depp.” In a sentence the jury found false and malicious, after describing herself as “representing domestic abuse” Heard wrote that she “felt the full force of our culture’s wrath for women who speak out.” This time she surely has.

Misogyny isn’t the subtext of American political rage and social dysfunction; all too often, it’s the plain text. The links between domestic violence and mass shootings are chilling and well documented, though rarely cited in arguments about policy and prevention. The mobs of social media mobilize against women with special frequency and ferocity, often using the language of righteous grievance. Gamergate, a campaign of harassment directed at women who wrote about video game culture, pretended to be about “ethics in journalism.” The alt-right in the months before the 2016 election and its post-Trump progeny specialize in targeted misogyny. The TikTok hordes that went after Amber Heard over the past few months took a page from that book.

Depp’s victory is also theirs. The rage of men whose grievances are inchoate and inexhaustible found expression in a 58-year-old movie star’s humiliation of his 36-year-old former wife. I have to wonder: Are men OK? That’s a sincere question. Does the blend of self-pity, vanity, petulance and bombast that Depp displayed on the stand represent how we want to see ourselves or our sons? That’s a rhetorical question. The answer is yes.

Not all men, though. Right? Now that the trial is over, we’ll find new things to be ambiguous about, new venues where indeterminacy can serve as an alibi for the same old cruelty, and for its newer iterations. Johnny Depp is being embraced as a hero in some quarters, but his victory extends even to those who will allow themselves to feel troubled by the outcome of the trial and then move on. Some of us may wince a little when we watch “Pirates of the Caribbean” or “Donnie Brasco,” but we’ll probably still watch. They’re pretty good movies, and it’s not as if they can be expunged from the collective memory. That hasn’t happened to Louis C.K., or Woody Allen, or Michael Jackson, or Mel Gibson, or even Bill Cosby. Some of them have gone to court, some have faced public censure and disgrace, but they all remain woven into the fabric of the culture, and their behavior is too. We may not entirely forget, but we mostly forgive.

Let’s at least be clear about what that means. It means that we value the comfort and self-regard of men, especially famous ones, more than we value the safety and dignity of women, even famous ones."

(x)

This was written by a man. Which honestly kills me because all it does is prove that misandry is alive and well when it comes to the subject of domestic abuse. Just like that age old view of the patriarchy unable to see women as equals, women as anything other than damsels in distress, fragile little creatures that must be protected at all costs, here we have proof that society is still unable to accept the fact that a woman can abuse a man. And because said abuser is a woman, then society demands that we absolutely believe everything they've claimed despite evidence that was entered into a court of law that was reviewed by legal experts and jurors alike proving the contrary. It demands that not only are we to circle her wagons and defend her due to her anatomy but also turn a blind eye to her abuses of not only a man but other human beings that it has been documented by law enforcement and in a court of law that she actually did.

I am just...astonished. This is the NY Times. They approved this piece. And rather than talk to actual abuse experts and psychological experts, even law enforcement, they choose to continue to be part of the problem.

Let me say this, had I heard JD making the statements on the audio recordings that AH did instead, I absolutely would be just as passionate in supporting her. Because I support ALL survivors, regardless of their gender.

And because of my experience in this arena, because I am a survivor, I can tell you that within seconds of hearing AH speaking that I knew right then, other evidence sight unseen, who was really abusing who. It's a special club that not one of us ever wants to be a part of.

[vespertea]

My Helluva Boss OCs, Dax, Tripp, and their sinful demon princess Merihem of the Vainglory ring. Merihem is based on a bat & manta ray hybrid! I wanted something that flies, but maybe looked somewhat elegant even though it was still monstrous and demonic. Her unleashed form is much more bat-monster like, rivalling that of dragons. Vainglory Imps are born with larger, fancier horns, wings, and are more likely to have symmetrical or artistically abstract birth marks (white & black markings). They're descended from Lust Imps (regular imps who bred with Succubi, putting wings in the gene pool) and are obsessed with decorating themselves in any way possible, as their home ring entails. Vainglory is a major shopping district, selling cosmetics to it's inhabitants. Personal imps that belong to Merihem herself are decorated in gold jewelry, whereas typical imps will get silver or black cosmetic trinkets. It's not uncommon to see imps with strange white patterns-- some of these can be due to genetics, but many imps also get tattooed in Merihem's Bar & Lounge. Tattoos range from regular black ink to pure cutting and branding. Oh But What Is The Difference Between VG and Plain Old... Pride??

Vainglory : Excessive vanity, ostentatious display

Pride : Inordinate self esteem, unreasonable conceit of one's own superiority in talents, beauty, wealth, rank, etc.

"... Pride is about position and power, and Vainglory is about attention and acknowledgement."

"Vainglory is a characteristic that comes from the heart as desire while Pride is an attitude that comes from the mind as a way of thinking or mindset."

"... Vainglory is focused on impressing others and seeking the approval of others, while Pride is focused on one's own self-esteem and trying to be better than others." Hopefully that's enough random quotes I found on the internet comparing the two. They really are different.

[damienthepious]

continuing to be unhinged on main, i guess the florist/tattoo artist au has another chapter now??? but THIS time i truly think that’s it. that’s it! I’m tapped for this au. unless i think of something else fun. and then all bets are off.

Budding, Blooming (chapter 2)

[ch 1] [ao3]

Fandom: The Penumbra Podcast

Relationship: Lord Arum/Sir Damien, Sir Damien/Rilla, Lord Arum/Rilla, Lord Arum/Sir Damien/Rilla

Characters: Lord Arum, Sir Damien, Rilla

Additional Tags: Second Citadel, Lizard Kissin’ Tuesday, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, (but there’s still monsters), Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Pre-Relationship, Romantic Tension, Poetry, Flowers, Valentine’s Day, (implied but not stated. could be a some weird modern-citadel fest), DOESN"T MATTER

Summary: ... Was he asking for a date, though?

Notes: okay fuck. alright. okay so there's more. it's fine. thank you for uhhhh sticking with me as i took an unexpected month off!! felt weird, gang. felt real weird.

~

Arum feels... unsettled as he locks up the shop, that evening. He half expected Damien to have returned before he finished, considering- well. Considering. But the street is dark and still shining with the brief rain from a few hours earlier, and it is entirely empty of meddling poets as Arum flicks the keys around his fingers, his shoulders sagging with a sigh.

Long, grueling day. Damien hadn't been the only annoyance, of course. He hadn't even been the worst annoyance, surprisingly, and Arum is... tired. Perhaps he should have told the poet to come another day- tomorrow, or next week, or-

(Enough time to talk himself out of the idea.)

"Did he finally get up the nerve?"

Arum jumps, the keys flinging off his fingertips and hitting the pavement with a heavy chime as he whirls, teeth automatically bared and another hand clenching hard behind his back.

"What?" he snaps sharply, embarrassed without really knowing why, and then-

It's the woman from across the street, from the tattoo shop. Amaryllis- Rilla, Damien's- his-

(Once or thrice she has stopped by, warm and chipper and citing small business owner solidarity with a smile, chatting amiably about her almost-botany-degree while acting as if Arum isn't the most uncomfortable and asocial monster to ever crawl out of the swamp. She's sourced rare or monstrous flowers through him before, too, both for her own personal collection and because pics on the internet aren't good enough, I want this piece to work and I want hands on the real thing for my preliminary sketches. Which Arum... could not help but respect. It makes sense, to Arum, that Damien would fixate on someone like her.)

(She goes by Rilla, he knows, but Damien's insistence every single time he tried to plan an arrangement for her, every time, it needed amaryllis, he must add amaryllis, and amaryllis for Amaryllis caught in his head sturdy enough that he cannot seem to shake that name.)

(And now she's here in front of his shop and almost leering while Arum is distracted thinking about Damien and she's asking about- what? What-)

"Whoa, sorry," she says, grinning in a decidedly unapologetic way as she lifts her hands. "Didn't mean to scare you."

"You- would hardly say that you-" he huffs, flicking his tail to snag the keys and dropping them back into his hands. "I am fine."

"Right," she says, her eyes dancing (reminding Arum forcefully of one of Damien's poetic scraps), and then she tips her head. "I was just curious, y'know. The holiday and all, and he came out of here absolutely bouncing. He usually looks like a wet puppy when he leaves your shop, you know."

"What?" Arum says again, pulling his head back. "Who?" he asks, despite the fact that his stomach is clenching with a certainty that he does, in fact, know who.

"Damien, that cute poet boy," she says, her mouth curling into a warmer smile. "He's friends with my brother, so he stops by the parlor sometimes. Or- they're friends now," she says, rolling her eyes and gesturing to nothing before she shakes her head. "It was a whole thing, before, but- nevermind, not the point. Did he finally...?"

She leaves the question in a suggestive stretch, her eyebrows rising as she trails off, and Arum clenches his hands and stiffens with another wave of incomprehensible embarrassment, his throat ticking in a helpless rattle and his traitor frill rising at his neck.

"I don't know what you could mean," he rushes in a single breath, wrinkling his snout with as much disdain as he can muster.

"Aw, c'mon," she wheedles, leaning closer as Arum stiffens. "I've been dying over there watching him dance circles around you."

"Around-" Arum sputters, flicks his eyes away. "Around me?"

Some of the smirk falls out of Amaryllis' smile, then, her expression softening. "It looked like he asked you out. That's all. I don't mean to be nosy, I just-" she pauses, then laughs. "I just am. Nosy, I mean."

Arum barks a laugh at that, helpless against it, and then he huffs a breath and glances to the side, to the still empty, still rain-wet street gleaming in the light from the shops. "I don't-"

And he pauses.

Did- was that-

He had assumed, from Damien's tone, from the context of the day and-

"He asked if he could come meet me," Arum says slowly. "After my shift was over. I don't... I don't know if he meant..."

He trails off, stomach twisting, suddenly much more uncertain, and then he looks to Amaryllis again. Her smile twitches as she meets his eye, and she nods, her expression going thoughtful and sympathetic.

"That sounds like he was asking you out?" she says, her inflection swooping upward at the end. "I would think?"

She pauses, while Arum's stomach continues to do unhelpful little turns, his hands flexing, and then she tips her head gently to the side.

"Did you... want him to be asking you out?"

Usually, Arum only wishes that he could sink into the mantle of the planet once per day at the very most. This holiday might kill him, he muses.

"N-no," he sputters after a suspicious beat. "He is- he- utterly obnoxious, and-"

"So... that isn't what the flowers are for," she drawls, her eyelids lowering and her smirk reemerging with a sly little twist (another poem screams to the forefront of Arum's mind, distracting as a flitting moth).

Arum stiffens further as the words sink into his mind. He clenches the hand already held behind his back, ineffectually trying to hide- the bouquet.

(Ridiculous. This was ridiculous. Two canceled orders and a few minutes stolen time and the vague idea that Damien would like these colors together, the memories of the flowers Damien gravitated towards when he would plan out his own arrangements-)

He manages a sound that could be half the word no, an awkward nasal humming, and then his voice fails entirely as the compulsive rattling growl in his throat takes precedence.

Amaryllis giggles, and Arum does not know why he does not instantly take offense to the noise. Perhaps because it sounds entirely joyful, and not at all mocking.

He sighs, after a moment, relaxing his arm and holding the bouquet at his side rather than behind his back. "Perhaps," he admits, but then he glances back through the unlit shop window, to where he can see the clock. "Though I'm not certain that it matters."

Her smile subsides a little, her head tilting. "Hm?"

"He's... late."

He told Damien he would be done around seven. He had been optimistic, apparently. It is already nearing eight, and... he and Amaryllis are still alone on the dimly lit street. He had been (without admitting it to himself) keeping an eye on the door since six thirty, for all the good it did him.

"Oh," Amaryllis says, and Arum turns his attention to her again at the quiet note of sympathy in her voice. "Maybe he... lost track of time?"

Arum thinks of the hours that Damien has previously spent agonizing about his potential purchases, and decides that the possibility is entirely likely. He is unsure if that makes him feel any better, however.

He realizes, belatedly, that Amaryllis has stepped a little closer, and he tries not to visibly tense as she lifts a hand.

"Can I see?" she asks, and Arum can't quite think of a reason to say no. He sighs again, lifting the bundle and allowing her to brush, just barely, the petal of one of the flowers. "It's pretty. The colors-"

"It was the best I could do with scraps," he deflects, shrugging one shoulder.

"It's pretty," she repeats with a stubborn lilt, glaring up at him as she gently cups a hand around one of the few roses he'd managed to salvage, a dusty pale purple thing, and the way her fingers curl against the petals is almost protective. There is something about the gesture that Arum feels like he needs to look away from. "And it's very sweet of you."

Arum grumbles, some part of himself distracted with wondering if he has ever in his life before been called sweet.

She seems to realize that she's still got her hand in his flowers, and she shifts backward without taking a step, dropping her hands back to her sides and briefly biting her lip.

"Tell you what," she says, and then she- she hesitates for a half second, ducking her head and then looking up at Arum with her dark, oddly searching eyes. "I'll wait with you. If he doesn't come..." she shrugs, "I'll walk you home."

Arum's instincts flare in at least three directions, after a moment of confused sputtering he hones in on his indignation, stiffening.

"I do not need your pity," he says, only barely managing not to spit, and Amaryllis-

Half-steps back, blinking as her expression opens in surprise.

"Wh... whoa, what? No, no, I just-" she shakes her head, giving a stunted, embarrassed laugh. "Being stood up sucks for anyone," she says, "and I just- I mean, it isn't like I haven't thought about it, y'know? You've got this whole," she pauses to gesture with a hand, up and down Arum's entire body as if that explains anything, "this whole thing, hold yourself all regal and- if we weren't both so busy constantly it might've been nice to try- to ask- I don't know, I don't-"

She pauses more fully, lifting her shoulders as she takes a deep breath and then releases it, giving Arum a wincing smile as he stares at her, still uncomprehending.

"I am... making a complete ass of myself, aren't I?"

She waits for him to answer, which means that Arum needs to come up with one. He can feel his tail twitching behind him, so he tries to curl it around his ankle to keep from hitting anything.

"I don't have the first idea what any of that meant," he admits, and she exhales a sigh that sounds relieved.

"That's fine, that's great, I was just- what I meant was, I don't want to walk you home out of pity. I want to walk you home because- because I just want to. It isn't like I have anyone else to take me out tonight, anyway," she adds, not sounding bothered about it.

Arum turns that over, then slowly gives a nod.

"Solidarity again," he murmurs, and Amaryllis snorts.

"Well- not exactly, but- fine. Yeah, that works."

Arum considers letting it drop there, but-

"If not that, then what?" he asks, his voice sounding tired even to his own ears, and she gives him a searching look.

"I like you," she says after a beat, and then she shrugs as Arum's comprehension staggers to another halt. "I'm literally too busy to date, so it's not like I was planning on doing anything about it, but- you're fun to talk to, you're gorgeous, I like talking to you," she shrugs again, a little too casual, and realization hits Arum like a physical blow that she's nervous about this, at least to some degree. "And I don't want you to have to walk home alone in the dark on some big dumb romance holiday when I could walk with you instead. So."

Arum stares at her for another long moment, but-

Before he can respond, he hears footsteps on wet pavement, and he turns his head at precisely the right moment to see Damien round the corner at an anxious jog, skidding on the turn, a journal overflowing with stuffed in pieces of extra paper clutched against his chest.

"Arum, I-"

Damien twitches with his entire body when he recognizes Amaryllis, the nervousness in her expression replaced now with amusement and delight, and-

The three of them... stare. At each other. Arum considers his third bout of wishing for swift removal from the planet. Damien looks as if he may have forgotten how to breathe air. Amaryllis only looks more amused with each moment.

But then Arum-

(Flowers in his hand. Bouquet here and now between Damien and Amaryllis. A box full of poems. Love poems.)

Arum has a moment of clarity.

He understands what he should do, even as Damien finally takes a breath to collect himself and and steps forward again. It makes Arum feel as if his stomach has vanished, but... well. It doesn't matter.

Arum holds the flowers up, pressing them into Damien's hands as the poet flushes dark and sputters wordlessly, and then Arum turns towards Amaryllis.

"He hasn't been coming by my shop for my sake," he explains, his voice strangely calm. "He was trying to pick out the perfect flowers for you, and the nerve to give them. Because he adores you," he continues, watching Amaryllis' lips part with surprise. "He's written dozens of poems for you and doesn't consider any of them sufficient to present to you, despite their beauty and deftness. He-" Arum inhales, a hint of a shake entering his voice. "He made a mistake, earlier today. I made him feel guilty. He was trying to... make up for inconveniencing me. But it is you, that he wishes to be with."

Arum makes himself turn towards Damien, then, who has returned to open gawping, his hands clutched hard around both his journal and the flowers.

"You should give those to her, honeysuckle," Arum says, because that's what happens next, isn't it? And Arum can- he can go. He's no longer needed in this exchange, and he can finally escape this whirlpool of discomfort and go back to-

Being alone.

"Hey whoa hold up-"

Amaryllis grabs his wrist before he can even finish turning, which is so surprising that Arum fully freezes instead of pulling away like he should.

"I- what? You can't just drop a bomb like that and leave."

Arum glances between the two of them, who- why are they both looking at him? Shouldn't they be- he doesn't know, falling into each other, already? It should be abundantly clear that Arum has no place here, between them.

Damien's pout is firmly aimed in his direction, however. And he glances down at the bouquet for a heartbeat, his face softening, before he shuffles the book into that hand as well, carefully juggling both objects so he can step forward and take one of Arum's other hands, his brow furrowed.

"I did not make a mistake, today," he says, and Arum is mortified to find that his voice sounds hurt. "It is-" he flushes, but perseveres, "it is true that I have been... contemplating a romantic gesture towards- towards Rilla, yes, but- but that does not mean that my words to you today were a mistake." He swallows, glancing to Amaryllis for a moment, and adds, "I apologize, that you needed be told in this way. You deserve far more than that, I should say."

"Don't mention it," Amaryllis says, her nose wrinkling as she flaps a hand in the air. "If it makes you feel better, I kinda figured you had the hots for Arum and I was stuck across the street wishing I had more free time to join the flirting."

Arum feels his frill twitch and Damien gives a startled laugh of his own.

"Flirting with- with who, may I ask?"

Amaryllis shrugs, grinning again, still holding Arum's wrist. "No wrong answers, there, I think," she says slyly, and Arum chokes on a breath, unfortunately drawing both of their attentions again. "So. Wait," Amaryllis says, tilting her head to the side. "So... Damien. You- you like me?"

Damien's flush deepens, and his throat seems to have failed to work, but he does manage to nod, his expression almost brokenly shy. Amaryllis, conversely, grins even wider.

"And you like Arum," she continues, and Damien nods again, his brow furrowing, obviously as uncertain as Arum is, as to where, precisely, she's going with this line of thinking. "So you like me and Arum, and honestly I've been fighting back crushes on the both of you for weeks now, and Arum- the date and the flowers, I think you probably like Damien back, yeah?" she asks, but she doesn't actually seem to expect an answer, this time. "And... do you feel any sort of way about me?"

Arum stiffens, two of his hands still clutched in their absurdly warm grasps, feeling utterly trapped. But-

He swallows. He glances down at each of them, hesitant and unable to hold their gazes for more than a moment each.

"You-" he hesitates, then jumps when he feels Damien squeeze his hand. "You inspire poetry," he says in a rush, and then he looks away entirely, growling low in his throat without meaning to. "Your work is exquisite and your laugh reminds me of sunlight," he adds, still growling, still not looking.

And then Amaryllis drops his hand, and he lets himself look again, startled into another spike of anxiety, but all she's done is pressed a hand over her heart, her bottom lip pulled between her teeth and her expression very tentatively hopeful. She inhales, deep but shaky, and then she quirks a smile and holds her hand out again, offering rather than taking.

"Pretty much every restaurant is going to be full up tonight," she says, "so if we want to go somewhere to talk and have some coffee, maybe... my apartment is above the shop. We could... we could go sit down, maybe. Talk a little bit more about... who likes who. And if we might want to do something about that."

Arum- blinks, then glances down towards Damien, whose expression has tilted so far past hopefulness so fast that he looks near to tears.

And he still hasn't let go of Arum's hand.

This holiday might kill him, Arum thinks again, and then-

He nods, and he takes Amaryllis' hand too.

[monstrouscrew]

how to make the day (even) better? message your fav tattoo artist who does wonderful dark themed graphics and ask if they can make a design based on the song quote written in ST alphabet - and get a yes + her interest in listening to the song where the quote is from.

*dancing dancing jumping jumping*

they, and vessel i in particular, made us feel believed in. however monstrous and alien to the "normal compassionate humans" we are. worth some good marks on our shell's skin.

[nsomniacsdream]

I'm having a hard time with.. my spouse was getting work done on their tattoo. And we were talking to the artist, and he was telling us about how his wife had tried to get a hysterectomy before they had met (she was a widow) and the doctor told her flat out that he wouldn't do it because she was young enough that a future husband had to have a say in it.

I dont know how we all do it. To have it be so fucking obvious that there are absolutely people in this country who aren't legally fully 'people'. And it's the majority! Women, minorities, poor people, disabled people. I don't know how you can marry someone who thinks that they deserve more control over your body than you do. I don't know how you can vote for people that support that!

It's like.. it was always academic until this conversation. I am not proud of it, I was always supportive, but I never 'understood'. And now that I do I just don't know how everyone in this country that doesn't have control over their own fucking bodies haven't revolted. How are we all not living in the burned down remains of a monstrous dystopia?