#you can judge the size of the first bee by how it compares on the flower to the wasp LMAO those halictids are TEENY TINY

[asgardian--angels]

@jeremyfanboy BECAUSE YOU INSISTED GOSH

Some pollinators I took this week. They really seem to be liking the daisies lol. 

1) Halictus confusus, male (bee)

2) Syritta pipiens (fly)

3) Halictus ligatus (bee)

4) Philanthus ventilabris (wasp)

Wouldn’t it be great to, like, be a published photographer? Yeah... it would... :’)

[skylarmoon71]

Bumblebee x Reader (Transformers)- Chapter 4

“Did I oversleep again?”

You squint, raising your head from your pillow. You almost jumped at the sight of the Autobot sitting in your room.

“B-Bee!”

You covered your mouth when you realized how loudly you said that. Running to the door, you locked it before turning back to him.

“W-What are you doing, how did you even get in with no one seeing.”

Looking out the open window, you realized it was still pretty dark. You just sighed. He was sitting with his legs pulled to a side. Because of his size, and the lack of room, there wasn’t much space for him to spread out.

“I missed you sport.” you couldn't be mad after he said that. It was only a weekend and he was already lonely.

“I’m surprised Sam never notices when you sneak away. Then again he’s probably used to it by now.”

Bumblebee was just sitting attentively, looking at you with those curious blue eyes. Now that he was just staring at you, it made you a little self conscious. You hadn’t exactly prepared for his arrival. All you had on was a tank top and a pair of shorts. You tugged at the shirt, looking down at your feet nervously.

“(Y/N).” you looked up at the sound of his call. He held out his hand for you. Stepping forward a bit hesitant, you took his hand. He guided you to the spot right between his legs, and you followed, sitting down. With your back to his chest, you tried to keep your eyes forward. Your nerves were on end.

“Bee you...when did you get your voice fixed?” you needed to make some type of conversation to keep your mind occupied, that seemed like the best topic. He sounded so different when he said your name, with no help from the radio it appeared.

“Ratchet has been helping me, do you like it?” you nod, turning slightly to look up at him.

“Mhmm, it suits you.” He sounded like a regular teenager. Yet still slightly mature.

“I’ve been learning a lot of things while you’ve been away (Y/N).” you raised a brow.

“Really, like what ?”

“Like the way humans interpret things compared to us. On cybertron we form bonds through our spark. It connects us. “ He pointed to his chest.

“Physically, we don’t have a heart, so there are still a few parts that I’m trying to understand. Like pain, pleasure..” you swallowed. Was it just you or did he say that part pretty seductively.

“O-Oh, well that’s r-really cool Bee.”

Why were you getting so worked up, you were imagining things. There’s no way that Bumblebee was trying to come unto you. That was ridiculous.

“Can I ask you a question (Y/N)?”

“Yeah sure, hit me.”

“Can I touch you?” you almost choked.

“T-T-Touch me!”

His hand came down, metal fingers resting on your knee. You were so small compared to him. The thought of him touching your body didn’t scare you, more like it excited you. That’s what sort of scared you.

“Are you afraid of me?”

“N-No of course not, it’s just that I-I...well I..” you stammered, not sure how to phrase it.

“You’ve never been touched by anyone.” your cheeks burned. You weren’t sure how to deal with your embarrassment, so you just buried your face into his chest plates, nodding slowly. A deep chuckle echoed throughout the room, and hell it was definitely the sexist thing you’d ever heard.

“There’s nothing to be embarrassed about. I’m kind of relieved. Lately just being with you doesn't seem like enough. I can't stop thinking about you. Your eyes, hair, lips..” His tone sends you into a small stir. It's so entrancing.

“Bee..”

Where did this side of him come from?

“Yes.” you gripped at his arm. Closing your eyes.

“Y-You can.”

“I can, what?” He was obviously teasing.

“Touch me. I want you to touch me Bee..” His engine reeved slightly.

The hand that reached down and slid between your thighs had your head spinning. Your fingers were digging into the metal of his hand as you tried to remain calm. You whimpered slightly. With your already lacking clothing, you could feel everything. His fingers were cold, but the moment it touched your most sensitive area, your entire body set aflame. Bumblebee was watching, studying every little sound you made, quick breath you took. He was getting pretty heated himself. Your breathless expression was so arousing. He wanted more, needed more. His free hand groped your chest softly and you moaned out his name.

“This is incredible.” He whispers. You were shaking in pleasure with every stroke of his hand to your core. You bit down on your lip, trying to stifle your moans.

“It’s okay, you don’t have to keep it in (Y/N), I want to hear you. Does it feel good?”

It felt amazing. If only you could put that into words. You settle for a half nod.

“I love you like this (Y/N), you’re so submissive it’s adorable.”

Another helpless whimper left your lips as you bucked.

“Bee...Bee..Bee!”

You gasped, rolling unto the floor with a thud.

Looking up, your eyes were wide.

“N-No way…” you did not just do that.

“Oh shit.”

You had a wet dream, about Bumblebee.

“I’m screwed. “

That you were.

~~~~~

Waking up the next morning was a struggle. You twisted and turned in bed, and at the end, you only managed to get two hours of sleep. The blaring alarm clock on your dresser made you groan, rolling over.

“I really hate school.” This was the worst way to start Monday morning. Standing up begrudgingly, you started your morning routine, dreading what was about to await you.

~~~~

“What’s got you so cranky.” you turned to your friend, opening your eyes a bit wider and she just started laughing. “You look like you haven’t slept in weeks, what happened?”

“Had a weird dream.” There was no way you were going to tell her you had a sexual dream about your alien robot friend who you were hopelessly crushing on.

“Stop watching those crime shows before you go to sleep. I keep telling you but you never listen."

If only she knew.

With a long sigh, you gripped your bag, pulling it over your shoulder. At least school was over. You barely made it through the first period. If not for the nap you took at lunch, you would have been out the rest of the day. Walking in step with your friend, your eyes drifted to the yellow vehicle parked outside your school.

“Hey (Y/N)!”

The window rolled down, and Sam grinned at you. Mikaela was in the passenger seat, wearing a smile of her own.

“Hey guys what’s up?”

The both of you went to different high schools, so it wasn’t unusual for him to stop by every now and then.

“Bee was getting a bit impatient, so I decided to just come pick you up.” Your heart skipped. Your friend nudge your hand with a smile, in which you returned with an eye roll.

“See you later (Y/N)~” She really did remind you of your mother sometimes. You waved her off, opening the door as you slid into the seat. The door closed and Sam pulled off. The conversation was light, you added in a word every now and then just to let them know you were invested, but your mind was elsewhere. You slumped a little in the seat. Just staying awake in class was a challenge. You were exhausted.

“Can I touch you (Y/N)..”

Your eyes flew open. You couldn’t even close your eyes anymore. You folded your hands on your lap, trying to steady your breath.

“Don’t make a scene, calm down, calm down.”

“You alright back there?” Sam watched you from the rear view mirror. Mikaela turned, and you were positive she noticed the flush in your cheeks. “I...I..” you couldn’t even speak properly.

“It's a girl problem isn’t it?” Mikaela interrupted. You were confused for a second, but the look she sent you, you knew she understood what was happening somehow.

“Y-Yeah, these cramps are torture.” Sam grimaced. “Enough said. Bee, step on it.” He didn’t even question it. You smiled at Mikaela appreciatively, mouthing your thanks.

The ride went by faster, and when you stepped out of the car, Mikaela followed. “I’m gonna help (Y/N) Sam.” He nodded. “Do what you gotta do.” You could tell he just didn’t want the details. It was funny how childish he was when it came to that stuff. She kissed him goodbye.

“B-Bye Bee.” you mumbled.

“Later.” you didn’t need to be a genius to know he was disappointed. He was obviously looking forward to spending the evening with you. All that was running through your mind, there was no chance that would happen. You could barely survive a car ride, you weren’t sure you could sit through a conversation with him without those images flashing in your head. Opening your front door, you headed straight for your room, Mikaela behind you trailing silently. Inside your room felt like your own little safe space, and the moment you dropped your bag, she was watching you with a smirk.

“Okay spill, tell me everything.”

“W-What do you mean?”

“Don’t play dumb, you were blushing in the car, and I’m one hundred percent sure it wasn’t because of Sam. “

So she did realize. You were honestly praying she would assume you were crushing on Sam.

“Would you believe me if I said he’s kind of cute?”

She looked unimpressed. “Nice try, now spill. “

You fell backwards on the bed covering your face.

Mikaela’s face lit up. “Oh my goodness you have a thing for Bumblebee!”

“Shhh not so loudly!” you almost fell off the bed for the second time that day.

“You have to tell him, I can tell him if you want.”

“No! No one’s saying anything especially after that dream I had.”

Shit.

“Oh..my goodness.” Mikaela mouthed. You groaned.

“You had a dirty dream about him!!”

“AHHH!! Would you keep your voice down woman!!”

There was a whole lot of talking after that. The biggest reason behind your fear of anyone finding out was more because you thought they would judge you. Bumblebee was a robot, yet to you he just felt so human like that you barely paid mind to the rough exterior. He didn’t even have a beating heart, but he held the power to make yours go into overdrive with just a look. You were hopelessly in love with him.

How would you hide that?

[dontdowhatisayandnobodygetshurt]

Even numbers :}

THANK YOU SO MUCH YOU CRAZY KIDDO I LOVE YOU SO MUCH AND YOU’RE A BLESSING ON THIS WORLD!!!!!!

2: is your room messy or clean?

It’s kind of a mix?? Like I leave my clothes folded on top of the drawers rather than putting them away bc the drawers stick and it’s just easier access. The messiest thing about my room is that I’m a human magpie who likes collecting shiny/interesting things so I have a lot of stones and bits of metal or ceramic and some nuts and bolts lying around pffft. XD But mostly I keep things kinda tidy.

4: do you like your name? why?

I DO NOW!!!! :DDDDD

6: describe your personality in 3 words or less

uUUUuuHHHHHh well-meaning, stubborn, energetic! :D

8: what kind of car do you drive? color?

I currently drive my parents’ car. It’s dark grey… not gonna say what model. XD

10: how would you describe your style?

Like, clothes wise? Either very simple n plain or outrageously colourful n quirky. Depends on the day. XD

12: what size bed do you have?

Double.

14: if you can live anywhere in the world where would it be? why?

Oof honestly just back home (in Victoria.) A part of me also wants to try out a big city?? I’ve always lived in the country and tbh I kind of hate big cities because they seem to be filled with rude busy people but I wanna live there just to have something different and so I’ll know for sure and to say I did, y’know? (lmao a friend and I joke that we’re gonna move to NYC together one day, so she can keep my li’l naive country boi ass from getting chewed up and spat out by New Yorkers. I appreciate it. X’D )

16: favorite makeup brand(s)

No idea. I’ve only worn makeup twice, and those times were when my Mum begged me for a solid year until I finally caved and let her do it… grumpily. X’D

18: favorite tv show?

S E N S E 8

20: how tall are you?

5′4. :)

22: do you go to the gym? 

Nope, not enough money. I used to work out a lot at home and I got p ripped but because of my eating disorder I had to stop. Still haven’t started up again yet. :(

24: how much money do you have in your wallet at the moment?

21 bucks. :D

26: how many pillows do you sleep with?

2. One under my head and one to cuddle (shut up, I kNow. XD )

28: how many friends do you have?

¯\_(ツ)_/¯  too lazy to count, however many people I interact with online. I don’t have any irl friends… god that sounds pathetic. XD

30: whats your favorite candle scent?

Absolutely no idea, we never have any. That’s actually something I wanna change when I get my own place. I like candles. They calm me.

32: 3 favorite girl names

God I am so shitty with names. My characters either name themselves or they don’t get names. X’D UUUUUUUUHHHHH, Amber, Ida, Carmen??? idk???

34: favorite actress?

Emma Thompson is an actual fucking legend and I would go to battle for her.

36: favorite movie?

How to Train Your Dragon or Spider-Man: Into the Spiderverse! :D (If it has to be live action: Ferris Bueller’s Day Off. :P )

38: money or brains? 

Heart.

40: how many times have you been to the hospital?

For myself, personally? Lots when I was a baby bc I had chronic ear infections and would literally just scream 24/7 and never sleep, I was in so much pain (poor tiny Matt. :(((( ) Once because I had a really bad migraine around age 13 that literally would not go away and had me throwing up every other minute and in such bad pain I wanted to literally die. And once recently when I felt super sick for months and months and finally went only to find there was nothing wrong with me?? turned out it was my gluten intolerance but dear god I had never felt that sick.

42: do you take any medications daily?

Just my asthma preventer (and I forget to take that a lot and end up not being able to breathe as well as I should, bc I’m the World’s Biggest Dumbass :)) XD )

44: what is your biggest fear? 

Physically: Not being able to breathe. Emotionally: The people I love ending up hating me just because I’m me. There’s a lot of irony to unpack there but I’m just gonna set the whole suitcase on fire. :)

46: whats your go to hair style?

Shaving the whole damn thing off.

48: who is your role model? 

I don’t really have one?? I guess my parents?? But I don’t really wanna be exactly like them either? I think it’s unwise to put anyone on a pedestal bc nobody’s perfect.

50: what was the last text you sent?

Screaming to a friend about how cute her OC is. XD

52: what is your dream car?

Literally could not care less so long as it gets me where I’m going and it’s neon yellow. X’D

54: do you go to college? 

Nope, dropped out of highschool early lmao.

56: would you rather live in rural areas or the suburbs? 

Rural I guess?? But that’s only because I’ve always lived rural and don’t know any different. it’s quiet, I like quiet.

58: do you have freckles? 

Yep! I don’t have them in big patches tho? I just have like, some random single ones scattered all over my body?? XD

60: how many pictures do you have on your phone? 

Don’t have a phone and dear GOD I don’t even wanna know how many pictures I have on my laptop. Answer: too many. XD

62: do you still watch cartoons? 

OF COURSE!! :D

64: Favorite dipping sauce? 

idk I don’t really dip things in sauce? Maybe just tomato sauce?

66: have you ever won a spelling bee?

Yes, actually!! Woooo go bb Matt!! :D

68: can you draw? 

Stick figures? Yes. XD

70:what was the last concert you saw?

Never been to one.

72: Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts?

Only ever been to Starbucks so I can’t really compare. 

74: what is your crush’s first and last initial?

76: what color looks best on you? 

I think blue does. 💙

78: do you sleep with your door open or closed?

Open. Sleeping with it closed freaks me out, idk why. 😅

80: what is your biggest pet peeve? 

Being condescended to. :///

82: favorite ice cream flavor? 

Mint choc chip! Or rainbow! XD

84: chocolate or rainbow sprinkles? 

GIMME THE GAY SPRINKLES EVERY TIME.

86: what is your phone background?

Laptop background is currently THIS incredibly amazing beautiful accurate drawing Oli did of my OC Ben!!! :’D

88: do you like it when people play with your hair?

Y E S. I used to hate it when it was rlly long but now it’s heaven. ^-^ Unless I’m in one of my ‘being touched makes my skin crawl’ kind of moods.

90: do you wash your face? at night? in the morning?

Just whenever I have my shower, occasionally during the day if I’m sweaty or whatever. Sometimes if my insomnia kicked me in the ass I splash my face n neck with cold water to wake up in the morning.

92: have you ever been drunk? 

Nope, and I really don’t want to be. The idea of being out of control of myself, even just a little bit, is terrifying to me. No thanks. I also just generally do not like alcohol, idk why. 

94: favorite lyrics right now

My all-time favourite lyrics come from Twenty One Pilots’ song ‘The Judge’ (even though I don’t actually like the song itself I love the lyrics):“When the leader of the bad guys sangSomething soft and soaked in painI heard the echo from his secret hideawayHe must’ve forgot to close his doorAs he cranked out those dismal chordsAnd his four walls declared him insane”

96: day or night? 

*chanting* NIGHT NIGHT NIGHT NIGHT NIGHT N

98: favorite month? 

Ironically, considering my character March is a giant dickwad, it’s March. XD The weather is just starting to turn cool after the grueling summer and it’s also my birth month! :D

100: who was the last person you cried in front of?

My Dad. Yikes.

AHHHHH THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR ASKIN, ALEX!!!

[sunwukong-stoaway-blog]

Oh shit, 3AM, time for a hot take on the FNDM from the perspective of someone who’s drifted in and out of it for years now. And yeah, spoilers, it involves Sun, the Bees, and experience therein.

We do need a few things set for the record before I dive further in. First, there is indeed a difference between normal Bee fans and flat out Wasps. Y’know, the psychopathic harassing jerks. There is also a segment of the Blacksun fndm that is more than happy to be as harassment heavy and take things too damn far. The problem in judging which is bigger is that you’ll only ever see the size of whatever groups you happen to be in contact with, which means if you’re a normal fan of one side, you’re likely to only see the hate-filled opposite side. And if you’re removed, then it’s a roll of the dice whether you see Wasps or... whatever the BlackSun equivalent is. And whichever side is bigger, they both still exist, which is the main problem. Now let’s take a stroll down memory lane and acknowledge a few things.

First and foremost. The Bees as a ship only exists as it does because people were throwing the first characters on screen at each other and held to them. This was true of Ruby and Weiss after the Red and White trailers, then true of Blake and Yang after the Black and Yellow trailers. We didn’t know anything about any of these characters, (in fact it completely flipped Ruby and Weiss’ personality traits, making Ruby a cool and aloof sniper chick and Weiss a soft melting princess) but the ships were already cemented and beloved by the community.

This kept going into the first season proper. Sure, we had alternate blends of ships, like Ladybug, Freezerburn, and Monochrome. Even Enabler, Ruby/Yang if anyone remembers that incestuous ship, before it was burnt to the ground by canon. But Whiterose/The Bees were the biggest game in town. Seemed to be backed by the canon too, to an extent. All the characters introduced were paired off and sent on their way, including JNPR, but this didn’t stop FNDM from laughing and enjoying themselves. (One particularly popular joke during the Jaune Arc was snickering that Yang and Blake were doing the do offscreen instead of running for help, for instance.) It didn’t matter Yang and Blake didn’t have a single conversation that didn’t end in Blake snubbing Yang and Yang writing Blake off as a “lost cause,” they were the pairing and nobody else was around, so, that was canon. And then episode 15 rolled around.

Everything broke down with episode 15, though not all at once. It introduced Sun and Penny, and FNDM wasn’t entirely sure what to do with them. Some, like myself, found the new characters and their dynamics fun and interesting. Some, on the other hand, declared immediately that Sun was a rapist/stalker/murderer/assassin of the White Fang, sometimes all at once. Some people had been a little bored of Jaune by this point but Sun was the first morally good character the FNDM declared a monster, and to this day, has received the roughest ‘welcome.’ And, among the accusations, the declaration that Sun was nothing but a genderbend of Yang for a hetero ship. And so the tensions began to mount.

Bear in mind, up until this point the Bees had grown to be the de facto biggest ship in the FNDM. Nothing against Ruby, Weiss, or Whiterose, but Blake and Yang were the most mature/adult of the team, and consequently, got the most attention, desire, fanart, et cetra. Now here comes the first character to make contact with Blake in a definitively different fashion and connect with her. Without question, they saw Sun as a threat and an excuse to attack the show for not giving them the Bees. Hell, it’s no surprise they even shipped him with Penny (Optimal Primates) for a time, just because they debuted the same episode, to try and get him ‘away’ from Blake in the fandom’s eyes. The response to Sun by these proto-Wasps, otherwise known as ‘the entirety of the Bees at the time’ was swift, overwhelming, and nothing short of cruel. Especially when they started harassing Sun RPers, those who defended him, liked him, and so on. People who drew those first few pieces of Blacksun art were flat out attacked and screamed at to shut down their channels. (Similar attacks started appearing at this time too at artists for other pairings, noticeably Ladybug.) And for a time, that oppressive and painful atmosphere was reality.

Then, I put up a post pointing out how little canon the Bees actually had, and compared it to Blacksun. In V1? This was an overwhelming difference. I outright called the Bees a “Ghost ship,” a ship that had absolutely no basis in canon yet sailed anyway... And attacked others. Needless to say, this was not taken well by the proto-wasps.

It didn’t matter that I actively shipped Whiterose, passively Ladybug, and eventually Nuts & Dolts. It didn’t matter if what I said was true, that the emperor had no clothes (or canon.) All that mattered to these people was slamming me down and declaring me to the world a homophobic monster for not shipping their ship. To do everything in their power to break my spirit, break my connections with people, and break any place I had in this fledgling FNDM of comfort. All for their blatantly bullshit moral highground arguments. 

This went on for a good three weeks after that first post. Round the clock attacks, harassment, and vile displays of power. It really did break me, all things considered. That much negativity drove me into a deep depression, to the point I could barely leave my dorm room in university for food, let alone class. I’m still hesitant to use the term for fear of it’s overused impression, but this made the Bees ship into a full on trigger for me. Triggering every emotion of fear, depression, and anxiety that constant bombardment thrust upon me around the clock. To an extent, it still is such a trigger, and so I can admit without issue I’m biased.

Thankfully, it did all have a silver lining. I became a lightning rod of hate, but the heavy atmosphere was broken. Bees no longer were unchallenged rulers of the FNDM, and people legit began to call out the behavior of these proto-wasps as full on bullying, or at least stopped acting like the Bees were canon. There was room to move forward now. But... of course, it didn’t stop there.

V2 rolled around. On the one hand we got Yang and Blake having the first dance, as well as actually having a real conversation on screen and developing some kind of unique bond, flimsy as it may be to some. (Seriously, Blake’s having severe overwrought depression and anxiety over Adam and the White Fang, Yang makes it about her. Yeah, that can show solidarity for the cause, but it does little to assuage Blake’s issues. I do see it as a good scene, but it’s still not a great relationship.) On the other hand, we were confirmed halfway through the year, and thanks to Sun/Neptune being cut from that last part of the Paladin fight, Blake had to be the one to ask what Yang’s Semblance was. ...Yeah. Half a year of being partners. And she doesn’t canonically know yet what Yang’s Semblance is. Hell of a partnership, yeah?

And on the other side of the coin. Sun and Blake had their full on dance, came to it as a date, and it included Yang stepping aside to give Blake to Sun. This on top of meeting Sun’s team for the first time and solidifying his place as being right there with RWBY and JNPR. ...And to counterbalance, we got Neptune. Seriously. Wasps had Neptune pegged as Sun’s “actual girlfriend��� from the second his name was dropped. Then the design came in, they declared Neptune FtM trans, and that Sun was dating him. I mean, clearly, right? Then Neptune actually showed up, he turned out to be the most aggressively straight-showing guy on the show yet, and the FNDM HATED him for it. Pitched him into the same bin as Sun right then and there, while shouting they’d be a better couple than the alternatives. (This also ended up, for the first time, generating enmity from Monochrome shippers for Sun. Before, Blacksun and MC shippers were effectively “ship and let ship” considering both had suffered under the Bees, but since that stranglehold had been broken after V1. Now Neptune came to town and fucked that peace up too.) Seriously. Just like the Bees, Seamonkeys only exists as a ship because the FNDM slammed the characters together without a clue what they were even like. Same as with Optimal Primates, remember?

Overall, V2 ended up being more or less like the aftermath of V1 the whole way through. Salty and bitter Wasps bickering and yelling about Sun even being in the same frame as Blake, trying to reaffirm their position, while everyone else just relaxed, some bitched about Jaune existing, and others enjoying the moment. ...Then V3 happened.

V3 was a powderkeg of moments for both Blacksun and the Bees. From the fingerguns/blushing/”dork” scene, to Blake tearfully holding Yang’s... one remaining hand, to the questions of where Blake was going after the ending. And consequently, the ship-to-ship combat had grown once again. Things like editing the fingerguns scene into a gif of Weiss proposing to Blake, or conspiracy theories that Sun was a mole for the WF hiding in plain sight, or just generally arguing back and forth over how important Blake holding Yang’s hand and Sun’s poppy love song were. The thing was, by V3, enough new fans of the series drawn in to all the Bee fanart that didn’t have the Wasp mentality existed to properly differentiate between the two groups. And consequently, some would-be Bee fans were surprised when their open appreciation for the pair was met with negativity and disdain by those who were used to liking the Bees being associated with far worse. The Wasps still existed, without question, but their presence muddied the waters and turned what was once a straight-forward fandom war into messy, vile person-to-person conflict, with bystanders dragged into the fighting. This, to my knowledge, is where the wasp-equivalent of Blacksun fans ended up coming to be, unable to differentiate between the Wasps that they hated and the Bee fans that they shouldn’t. In short, V3 was the most divisive and painful of the seasons for this warfare.

As we approach the modern day it should be noted that the longer the show runs, the less and less these ship-to-ship combats make an impact on the FNDM as a whole. This is a good thing, realistically, but it comes from an unfortunate division in the FNDM in general, with camps splitting off into effective echo chambers, and generally only interacting to spit hatred at each other.

V4 was easily the single lowest point for all of the Bees. With Blake and Yang canonically split apart, and Sun hanging around Blake full time as her only traveling partner, the Bees had effectively nothing to do but sigh and hope for a reunion soon. The Wasps, on the other hand, eagerly took to instead tearing into Sun’s character again, this time jumping on the questionable decision to shadow Blake and keep her safe, and characterizing it as flat out stalking... even without full knowledge of the situation. The Wasps just painted the scene as “Sun has spent months following Blake in a coat,” and a large part of the fandom picked it up in turn. Then, as a follow-up act, decided to screw with Sun a different way and ship him with, of all people, Kali, or Blake’s mom. Yeah, it was creepy and fetishism, and had no purpose other than to break Kali’s implicit acceptance of Sun as a partner for Blake into bizarre OOC lust. It’s telling that there was far and away more porn and pure shipping for Sun/Kali than Ghira/Kali for a while, despite the Bees laughing to themselves that “of course YANG would be accepted by Ghira, unlike Sun~.” Legit, Sun/Kali was just another attempt at slamming Sun together with the nearest character that wasn’t Blake. Just like Penny. Just like Neptune. But, V4 was the volume of personal growth and discovery for each of the main cast... And consequently, this journey down each of their four paths was panned by many “rwde” fans for not having the inter-team connections they wanted. Funny how the volume most about each member of RWBY and their personal stories gets panned as the one least about them. Whatever. All of this led to V5, however, and where we are now.

And where we are now is... Right back to how we were in V3. With giddy Bees squealing over Yang and Blake exchanging eye contact and words, while Wasps re-characterize Sun’s connection to Blake (including pushing her back to the team that she ran away from because it was time to reconnect and he knew that) as “pushing Blake to be with Yang.” It’s kind of absurd, right? Well... That’s what this FNDM war has been to me. Just absurd.

I’ve watched wasps shout down Micheal Jones because they don’t like Sun being close to Blake. I’ve seen wasps countless times call out RT as queerbaiting for not giving them the Bees right fucking then. I’ve heard directly from Wasps that it doesn’t matter to (the ones I talked to) whether any other LGBTQA+ people/ships/focuses appear or are naturally featured in the show, unless the Bees are made canon, they believe RT lied to them.

And that astounds me. RT did not lie to you. Either you were lied to by fans from that Trailer era, the original proto-wasps, or you lied to yourself. You were told the lie that the Bees were canon, had to be canon, needed to be canon or something was wrong. That Sun is a monster. That you are owed anything. Hard fucking stop.

So where does all this leave us? ...Hopefully, understanding that this fighting has been going on for far too long, and is over far too little. I want anyone in the FNDM who has ever been affected by the ship wars to read this, to share this with others with similar experiences, on either side of it. Because ultimately, I’m only on one side, and I’d love for Bees to give their take on all this. To get both sides to come to an agreement to ship-and-let-ship, to put to rest the anger and frustration and fear of the other side that fueled Wasps and, perhaps, myself for so long.

This shit’s gone on long enough.

[moonbeambucky]

The Guardian (Part 1)

Pairing: Demon!Bucky Barnes x Reader (Demon AU) Word Count: 1823 Warnings: Mentions of suicidal thoughts, depression/body issues, religious questioning

Summary: Someone has been watching over you throughout your life. His intentions are bad, that is until you remind him of his past. Can you save the soul of a demon?

A/N: I didn’t intend to write this immediately but the first part just sort of happened and I wasn’t going to stop. I have no idea how many parts this will be, usually I write something in full first, then edit, re-edit blah blah. So this might be more of a mini series, who knows. I’ll try to work on it sooner than later. Gif not mine, source (x)  

THE GUARDIAN MASTERLIST

We’ve all been told that we have a guardian angel. You know how it goes, an angel that was chosen to look after you from the day you were born. A narrow miss of a car accident, well, that was your guardian angel intervening. What you didn’t know is that there is someone else assigned to look after you too. If angels exist that means demons do as well. They don’t call themselves “guardian demons”, that’s just silly, but they are demons and their motivations are very different from their angelic counterpart. They’re the ones that cause bad things to happen. A green light suddenly turns red and you have to slam on the brakes to avoid a crash, oh that’s them just having some fun.

Neither angel or demon can control your lives, everyone has free will of course, but they can influence you. If cartoons have taught us one thing it’s that you have an angel and a devil on both of your shoulders; you’re picturing it right? It’s a mini version of you, the angel in a white robe with a glowing halo and wings who pleads for you to do the right thing and the devil, in all red with horns and a tail, pitchfork in hand that persuades you to go off track. Not everyone believes in angels and demons, some people call this your conscience, or maybe it’s just a gut instinct.

Nevertheless, whether you chose to believe in angels and demons they exist and both of them have agendas. The angel wants you to make good choices and be a good person. In the end you would go to Heaven and become an angel yourself, guiding a new life on their journey. The demon wants you to break laws, hurt someone, hurt yourself even. You’d be sent straight to Hell where you’d endure a lifetime of torture. Well, that’s not entirely true. You could end the torture as long as you became a demon and influenced others to do harm.

You were lucky that you didn’t know the truth of the world. You were always questioning everything. Did you believe in God because you wanted to or because you grew up being told you have to? Did you believe in the pearly gates of Heaven because it sounds better than just ceasing to exist? Did you believe you should live a virtuous life just to avoid the fiery pits of Hell? You didn’t have the answers and you figured you never really would. You are just human after all.

There’s a lot that goes into being human, we’re talking more than paying your taxes. What it really means to be human is to feel. Emotions, those are what made life tough. Love is such a strong emotion. You wanted to love everything. You loved your family and friends. You smiled at animals on the street– dogs, cats, pigeons and squirrels, you loved them all. You loved the laughter of children. You loved how people united after a tragedy, lifting each other up and selflessly helping in any way they could. You love Disney and the fairy tale stories you grew up believing in. You love love.

Then there’s hate, which seems to be even stronger sometimes. People just get on your nerves. You hate that animals are abandoned and abused. Will someone shut that crying baby up?? You hate how people exploit others; chaos at a peace rally… yeah that’s a good one. You hate this world, everything is upside down. Racism, sexism, homophobia, dammit you could go on forever. People hurt each other all the time and you hate it.

Sometimes you even hate yourself. You hate your looks, always comparing yourself to someone else. You hate your job, always thinking you aren’t doing what you truly want. You hate your failed relationships, constantly thinking about how it all went wrong and if you could just go back and change something you did maybe it would have lasted. Real life isn’t a Disney movie though. You hate love.

You’ve thought about leaving this world, maybe not being here would be easier. You wouldn’t have to deal with the stress of whatever was going to happen. You thought about it and you cried, a lot. A lump catches in your throat as tears stream down your face. You let them drop, pooling under your chin before wiping them away. You can’t do it. Maybe it’s your guardian angel begging you not to, the angel on your shoulder jumping up and down telling you how much you’re loved and how much your life matters or maybe you’re just too scared. You don’t want to die but you don’t want to live either.

Your guardian angel sighs in relief, watching over you as you slept, so thankful that you’re alive. He loves you. He’s loved you since the day you were born. A new life coming into this great big world, a life he promised to guide and protect. He thinks about the time he was alive.

He was born many years ago on Independence Day, a fitting day for a man as patriotic and righteous as Steve Rogers. He was a scrawny kid but never backed down from a fight, especially if it meant standing up for what’s right. He eventually grew into his body, served his country, and gave his life for it in the war. He hangs his head low today with Nazis running around, again! He takes it in stride, devoting even more time guiding those to stand up to the injustice in the world.

Steve knows there’s goodness in you, and he knows that sometimes you stumble. You hurt yourself most being your own worst critic, constantly berating yourself for things you should have done. Steve tries to show you the goodness in life. A family of ducks waddle across the grass and you smile, that is until someone comes by with their large dog, letting them purposely chase after the now scattered group. You stop to watch a honeybee, dedicated in its task to pollinate the garden before you. Then you’re reminded of the worldwide devastation to the bees. Steve groans in frustration, knowing the counteractive measures were being orchestrated by a demon, the monster waiting in the shadows trying to corrupt you.

The demon was just as frustrated. That righteous angel was working so hard, encouraging you, no matter what the situation, to never back down. You stood up to people, to bullies. It was oddly familiar. Today the demon is smirking. You have plans to go clothes shopping with your friend Keisha. This is too easy for him.

“Come out Y/N. Let me see,” Keisha talks to you through the fitting room doors.

You stare at yourself in the mirror, the shirt you tried on was bunching on the sides. You tried pulling it down to cover the hips you hated but no, it doesn’t stay. It doesn’t fit right. Nothing fits right. Nothing ever does. Why are you like this? You feel the sting of tears rush to your eyes.

Taking a deep breath you pull it over your head, closing your eyes so don’t have to look at your reflection. You quickly put on your shirt and gather your things. Opening the door you see Keisha wearing the slight look of disappointment on her face.

“It didn’t fit,” you said quickly, hoping she would drop the subject. “Everything in this store runs small, let’s try a different size.” “Kei, the problem isn’t the clothes, it’s me. It’s this,” you gestured towards yourself.

She held back for a second, seeing the redness in your eyes, but continued anyway. She knew what she was about to say would make you cry as this has always been a sore subject, but she trusted her gut (or whatever she believed in) and said it anyway. “Y/N you’re beautiful, no matter what okay. You may not love your body but just know there is so much more to you than that. You’re beautiful inside and out.”

The tears fall as you wipe them off your cheek. You know she means well it’s just, all those bad thoughts you have are turned up to 1,000 when it comes to your body. She pulls you in for a tight hug. You smile, knowing she’s right. Your worth isn’t determined by your weight. You know this.

Damn her, the demon thought of Keisha. What can he do now? What can he do to turn your thoughts around?

Suddenly, a beautiful leggy brunette walks into the fitting room. She glances down at your tear stained face, you hear her laugh as she closes the door. No matter what you want to believe the truth is everyone is judged on their appearance. You quickly walk out of the dressing room, feeling defeated.

“Listen Y/N you don’t look like that chick, I don’t look like that chick, but despite what you think she’s not perfect. Nobody is.” “I know, it’s just hard sometimes, you know?” You try to smile, forming a tight lipped frown instead. “Yeah it’s hard, but life is short and you need to enjoy it. Winnie the Pooh wears a belly shirt and he doesn’t care.”

Her comment breaks your sullen face. “So you want me to be like Winnie the Pooh? Walking around with a jar of honey and no pants?” you joked.

“Winnie,” the demon hesitantly spoke, turning his head up as if he’s heard that name before.

“Yeah go hard or go home!” she laughed, pulling you in for another hug.

You stopped into Starbucks, to satisfy your need for overpriced coffee. Casually strolling through the mall you found some comfortable chairs to sit down in.

“So how come I haven’t met your girlfriend yet?” you asked, tilted your head and smiling as Keisha began to blush. “I know, I know! Let’s plan something soon, dinner? Lunch? It doesn’t matter. She’s great Y/N. I can’t wait for you to meet her.”

You asked what her name was and she told you as she smiled from ear to ear.

The demon felt a twinge in his mind as the name was spoken. “Rebecca.” He repeated the name over and over, ignoring all of the things he could be doing to ruin your day. He knew this name. Why did he know this? Who was she? The thoughts clawed at his mind, like a caged animal trying to break free.   “Oh-em-gee, you have the cutest couple name, Bec-kei! Do you get it?” you laughed. You found it a lot funnier than Keisha did but she laughed all the same, being well accustomed to your silly sense of humor.

The demon froze, stunned in silence. The beast was loose, running around in his mind, violently thrashing as it broke down the walls of a dam. Memories returned, flowing, gushing through his mind.

“B-buh…Bucky. My name is Bucky.”

PART 2

Tags: @chameerah

FEEDBACK is appreciated *so* much. Please like, comment, reblog! Thank you :)

[carbonjen]

Could I ask for a Hades/Persephone au with Hades!Jason thinking he doesn't deserve love until Persephone!Dick happens

On the surface, this looks like an easy AU but then I look into the myth of it and everything gets a little (a lot) wonky. I did enjoy writing this though, and this would definitely be something I’d enjoy writing more of!

Bleeding Heart

When the war against the Titans had been won and it was time to choose domains, Jason had been expected to get his pick first. He had been the oldest of the three of them, but Bruce had been the strongest, and the greediest. He’d taken control of the sky and all of her children while their third brother got the sea. Jason had been forced to choose last and he had been stuck with the domain of death.

It wasn’t an easy task, he had to judge the souls coming in and keep a watch over Tartarus ignoring the call of Kronos while Bruce fucked all the women he pleased up on the surface. The only one he was able to talk to frequently was Tim, who brought the souls down to him for judgement. He had to be fair to the souls which meant punishing some and giving others eternal paradise. He would think of the souls there and wonder what it was like to live in happiness forever. 

The other souls were given their punishments and Jason did his best to be creative and to give them something that would lead them to paradise if they could just think. Whenever he saw how they got bogged down by their own selfishness he thought that maybe it was a good thing he was trapped in the underworld. Gods and man alike, he couldn’t understand how they acted for themselves and themselves alone. 

He didn’t understand for the longest time and then Jason saw him.

Jason had been making his way to Olympus when he flew over the vast fields near the ocean. Walking along the cliffside, collecting flowers in his golden arms was one of the most beautiful beings Jason had seen in his life. Jason had seen the birth of Aphrodite and even she didn’t compare to this being. His raven hair shone in the sunlight like silk and even though he was high up in the sky, Jason felt as if he was drowning in the beautiful blue of those sapphire eyes. 

The meeting at Olympus barely registered in Jason’s head, for he was unable to forget that beautiful man he had seen on the cliffside. He wasn’t pulled from his thoughts until Demeter announced that she would like to introduce the council to her son. She brought him in and Jason’s eyes went wide. The beautiful creature was a god, and he looked even more radiant on Olympus as he bowed to the council, a smile on his face and called himself “Dick”

At one point he looked into Jason’s eyes and everything else fell away as a pink flush colored his cheeks, like rose petals had been brushed onto his skin. 

Jason didn’t know what came over him when after the meeting he swept Dick away and brought him down into the Underworld. He didn’t feel any regret for his actions until Dick looked at him with tears in his eyes and shook his head, stepping back from Jason in fear. 

He tried to apologize but Dick wouldn’t listen, not when he gave Dick free reign over his palace and the rest of the Underworld. Not when Jason made him the most beautiful gardens he could filled with flowers and trees and plants that were more beautiful than anyone could ever dream of. Dick had secluded himself in the gardens instead, choosing to stay there instead of in the gardens Jason had given him. 

Souls poured into the Underworld as the results of Demeter’s grief. They spoke of cold and darkness, some even said the Underworld was nice compared to what the world above had become. It seemed as though the whole world had been thrown into misery because of Jason’s selfishness.

It didn’t stop there. 

Bruce had demanded Jason return Dick to Olympus and to the world above, and Jason knew that if he returned the young god, he would never see him again. When the day came to return Dick to the world above, Jason gave him a handful of pomegranate seeds to eat while he waited for Hermes to bring him back and Dick ate half. He was Jason’s for half the year now, and that was enough for him. 

Dick had warmed to him over the years, it was a gradual thing, but Jason watched as he went from moping in the gardens to exploring the rest of the Underworld. He still barely spared Jason a glance, but it was progress. At the beginning of what had come to be called autumn, Jason would rise to the surface and offer his hand to Dick to bring him to the Underworld. Dick never took it until one autumn. 

Jason rose to the surface in his dark chariot, offering his hand to the young god of spring, expecting to be brushed off when Dick took it, stepping into the chariot. 

“How is everything?” Dick asked and Jason was so surprised he stared stupidly at him until Dick rolled his eyes. 

“Everything is good,” Jason said. “There was that nonsense with Orpheus and Eurydice if you heard of it. The command was simple, don’t look back and you can be with your love for eternity. Evidently that was too difficult for them. But Bruce was still upset with me for being too harsh on them.��� 

Dick laughed and it was the first time Jason had ever heard the sound come from his mouth. “He was mad with you? Why not be mad with the lovers? You have always been too gracious with your souls. In my time with you I have realized that it is often their own egos that prevent them from Elysium.”

“That is what I have been thinking for centuries now,” Jason said. For years he’d thought he was alone in this thought, but someone actually agrees with him. 

“Are you…you just smiled,” Dick said as he looked at Jason with wide eyes and a large grin on his face. “In all the time I have spent with you, I have not once seen you smile.”

“I haven’t had much to smile over,” Jason said. “Judging souls and keeping watch over a wilting flower are hardly enough to keep one happy.” 

“What if the flower isn’t wilting anymore?” Dick asked as he looked at Jason. They touched down next to the large palace and Jason stepped down, holding a hand out for Dick. “What if it’s found a way to flourish?”

Jason didn’t quite know what to do or say. Dick had never been this nice to him, they’d barely spoken in all the seasons that Jason had spent in his company. It was quite pleasant. “Then perhaps,” Jason said as he looked at Dick. “I might be inclined to smile more.” 

Dick took his hand and stepped out of the chariot. “How are my gardens? Have you been taking care of them?” He asked as he walked with Jason. Normally, Dick went ahead of him and straight to the large area of plants that surrounded the palace. It had started out small, but Jason had let it spread and now there was a small forest around the palace. 

“I have to the best of my ability,” Jason said. “But you must understand, I don’t know much about many of your flowers and vines, so it is hard to make them flourish.” When Dick is gone, parts of the garden become overgrown and Jason can’t do much to stop it. 

“I’ll have to show you how to take care of it then,” Dick said as he pressed a hand to the side of one of the large bushes that acted as a wall. Jason had seen the results of Dick’s powers before, but it was rare that he saw them in action. The leaves and branches came to life and moved away, forming a doorway and Dick stepped inside the verdant colorful landscape, looking at home there. Jason hovered in the doorway, unsure if he should follow when Dick looked over his shoulder. “Are you coming?”

“Only if you wish it,” Jason said. 

“I do,” Dick replied and Jason stepped through. He was afraid that if he stepped onto the soft grass and moss that it would wither under his feet, but it stayed green. Dick was already ahead of him, hand out, and the plants moving according to his wishes into something more orderly. The buds on the flowers bloomed as Dick walk past them, releasing sweet perfumes into the air and Jason followed quietly behind. 

The garden was quiet minus their footsteps and the sounds of the plants growing as they walked. It weighed down on his shoulders and Jason wondered if the silence ever bothered his companion. 

“If you wanted,” Jason said. “I could put birds and other creatures in this garden for you so the silence isn’t as heavy.”

“Can you do that?” Dick asked. 

“I can,” Jason replied. “Birds, rabbits, butterflies, bees, all of their souls are things that pass on, and all of them can be given new life here.”

Dick looked at him for a long moment before he plucked a pink flower from one of the vines and moved up to Jason, reaching up to tuck it behind his ear. “I would love that,” he said, voice soft. His hand lingered on Jason’s ear before he pulled it away. 

Jason cupped his hands in front of his chest and when he opened them, there was a small bird resting there. He released it and more life followed, birds of different sizes, colors and shapes, butterflies, bees, and even small deer and rabbits that looked at them before they retreated into the underbrush. 

When Jason let his hands drop he was hit by a warm weight and two golden arms wrapped around him. Dick was…hugging him. “That was beautiful,” Dick said as he pulled back, his eyes were sparkling and his skin was glowing warm like Apollo’s sun chariot. Jason felt something warm bloom in his chest, Dick’s hand was sliding up the skin and he looked at it before looking back into Jason’s eyes and leaning in. 

Their lips brushed together and Jason’s eyes fell shut. Dick’s lips were softer than rose petals and they were warm on his skin. This close, Jason could smell Dick, the floral, earthy scent that clung to him. Then Dick was gone and Jason felt a chill where Dick’s body had been pressed against his mere moments before. 

“I think,” Dick said as he tucked some of his hair behind his ear. “I will come to cherish my time here more than I do my time above.” Dick reached forward and took Jason’s hand in his own. “Now come, let me show you this place and see your smile again.” 

Jason couldn’t help the grin that took over his face as his love finally began to love him back. 

[twatkcox]

[The Keihancarl Diaries: May 17-19, 2019]

It’s me, Keihancarl. And here comes another awesome weekend, the Pinoy Otaku Festival 2019: Asobu at Robinsons Novaliches Trade Hall.

May 17

It sure feels weird going out on a weekday, but I did it anyway. After all, I really can't afford to miss the first day of the event.

I decided on a pastel yellow polo shirt and a black knitted vest, as well as my black fingerless gloves. I was initially thinking of wearing my black fleece coat (again), but I’ll just reserve it for the weekend.

I left home right after lunch, but I didn’t head straight to the event just yet. I checked a few shops in Fairview Terraces and SM Fairview, mostly bookshops, before heading to the venue.

I then bought a ticket (a one-day pass) at the entrance. Alternatively, you can purchase a three-day pass or a VIP pass online, but they won’t be available onsite on the day of the event.

Anyway, I got inside the venue and checked some of the stalls. At Japan All-Stars stall, I bought a red anime T-shirt featuring Izaya Orihara of Durarara!!, the one I’ve been eyeing since last year’s POF event, as well as a couple of awesome pins. I initially wanted to buy an anime T-shirt featuring White Blood Cell of Cells At Work, but they don’t have large sized ones. And I did take selfies with some of the cosplayers.

There weren’t a lot of congoers on the first day of the event, The venue is expected to be jampacked on the second and third day (18th and 19th, respectively), as some of the biggest competitions (Battle Of The Bands, Fantasm Inter-School, Cosplay Championship League, and a few others) are held on these dates.

There were a couple of panel discussions: The Status Of E-sports In The Philippines and Sexual Harassment In Cosplay. There’s also a short video feature on the Japanese-Filipino anime, Barangay 143.

On the Otaku Singing Bee, the contestants must rearrange the words that appear on the screen, that is actually part of the lyrics that will follow soon afterward, as well as guessing the missing part of the song’s lyrics. The game features theme songs from Maid Sama!, The Prince Of Tennis, Mobile Suit Gundam Seed, Yu-Gi-Oh!, and a few others.

From time to time, auctions of various anime merch were held, ranging from posters, stuffed plushies, even soundtrack CDs. There are people playing board games on the Game Detective booth. And there’s the display of Godzilla figures, too.

I had an early dinner at Jollibee, which is not far from the venue. I immediately head back to the event after that.

And then there’s the Otaku Choice Award, where they award a nominee from each different categories. In addition, there’s also the general awards for non-Filipino and non-local things, such as anime shows, movie/adaptations, Japanese bands, console and online games, and seiyuus (Japanese voice actors). There were performances in between.

I decided to go home midway through the end of the awarding ceremony, even though I really wanted to stick around and catch the rest of it. And that’s how my first day at the event went.

May 18

It sure was a sunny day, perfect for a nice tall cup of cappuccino frappe. However, I decided to skip going to the café for now and head straight to the venue instead. I arrived at exactly 2:00 in the afternoon.

I decided on an all-black outfit consisting of my black fleece coat and my black Tokyo Ghoul shirt. I only decided to wear my black fingerless gloves later that afternoon.

There were more cosplayers at the venue compared to the first day of the event. There's also a slight increase in congoers as well. The event area will probably be filled later during the Battle Of The Bands segment, but for now, it is kind of spacious in here.

I didn’t catch Your Cosplay Sounds Familiar (I think it already ended by the time I arrived), but I did catch Fantasm Interschool Cosplay, where contestants from three schools perform a scene from anime series or movies.

There were performances by Hiro and Kazuki and aidoru (idol) group CH4U, as well as Gekitora and Yohgen. There's also a panel talk on piracy and anime fandom, as well as a guest appearance by Xavier Ray of January 24 Productions.

At around 5:30 PM, the Battle Of The Bands commenced. Around that time, I decided to have an early dinner of beef misono bowl (with a pair of chopsticks) at Yoshinoya SM Fairview. Back at Robinsons Novaliches, I bought a drink from OTeaHamaru (a cup of jasmine tea with rock salt and cheese) before heading back inside the venue.

I finished the drink inside while checking some of the stalls and watching some of the performances by competing bands. The winners of earlier competitions were later announced as well.

I bought four pins from Pixel Hero and took additional selfie pics with some of the cosplayers. I uploaded some of the pics to my Instagram account.

Last night, I left the venue early since someone's expecting me at home. This time, however, I decided to stay until the second day of the event ends. There's one more day left before POF Asobu wraps up.

May 19

And welcome to the final day of POF Asobu. I decided to wear the same outfit, but featuring my striped brown and white polo shirt instead.

I left home at exactly 1:00 PM and went straight to the venue without checking any of the shops. There were a lot of congoers at the event, as well as the cosplayers. Of course, I took selfies with some of them.

By the time I got there, Karaoke Battle Royale is still ongoing. There were also performances by Sofia The Artist, Aidoru Sozai, Pepper Keibu, Ivy! Musume, and a few others. There's a panel talk about how to become a successful game streamer.

Around 4:30 PM, there was a special guest appearance by Ariel Villasanta of the comedic duo Maverick and Ariel, promoting the upcoming first reality movie “Kings Of Reality Shows”. He also served as one of the judges of the Cosplay Championship League, which commenced right after showing a teaser of the said reality movie.

I decided to leave the venue in the meantime and crossed the footbridge to SM Fairview to check a few shops and had an early dinner at Tokyo Tokyo (which is now located at Annex 3, a.k.a. The Parkway). I had a donburi bowl, a pork katsudon, which is really good.

Heading back to the event, the cosplay competition is still ongoing. I get to see some awesome performances by some of the contestants. Later on, there’s another panel talk on what it takes to be an idol.

There’s actually a meet-and-greet event behind the stage, but I think it’s exclusively for VIP ticket holders. For a while, I stick around to watch the panel discussion until I saw Ariel heading out of the venue. I quickly head out of the venue and managed to catch up just to take a selfie with him. He was really nice. I immediately upload the pic to my Instagram account and head back inside the venue, in time for Poly-V’s performance.

I also posted some of the pictures to my Instagram account and had a few more selfies with the cosplayers. There were a few more performances (including Ivy! Musume) before the announcement of winners and the closing ceremony. They also teased next year’s POF event.

And yes, I bought just one more souvenir, a cute green dinosaur as my bag’s charm. A perfect match for the awesome pins I’ve bought from Pixel Hero during the first and second day of the event.

By the time the event finished, it started raining outside. I had to wait for the rain to gradually weaken before heading to Fairview Terraces to check a couple of shops, and then head home. And that’s how my awesome weekend went.

Postscript

Compared to the previous POF events, this one is satisfactory in terms of the number of congoers and time management, among others. The lighting is okay, but the event’s (rented) sound system isn’t at par with the ones at Fairview Terraces. The air conditioning at the event area is okay, though at times it does get a little stuffy, especially on the third day of the event. Also, there are some bystanders watching the event for free by the elevated hallway, blocking access to the restaurants and restrooms. This prompted the event organizer to tell the congregating non-paying bystanders to leave the area and even asked the guards for help in keeping the elevated access free from obstructing crowds.

Despite the problems, the entire event went pretty well and they somehow managed to stick to the intended schedule. The event area is incredibly spacious, and the crowd is somewhat controlled compared to the previous POF events. It actually feels more secure and comfortable in there. I also loved the booths and the choice of merchandises available. There’s also a dedicated area for meet-and-greet events at the back of the stage.

I really get to enjoy the event, and I bought some nice souvenirs too. I had fun taking selfies with some of the awesome cosplayers as well. I hope they’ll consider Robinsons Novaliches as the venue for the next POF event since this is very convenient for those coming from Northern Metro Manila and Bulacan areas.

It sure was a pretty exhausting weekend, but I actually had a great time there. Right now, I’m considering attending a similar event later this year, most probably Cosplay Mania 2019 at the SMX Convention Center. I’ll probably need to save up if I really want to go there.

All right, it’s time to wrap this up. Until next time!

All pics are from my private Instagram account, @kcox105.

[verdigrisprowl]

Mar 6 Lost Light Stream - Transformers Prime: Predacons Rising

At last, it’s over. Prowl spent the evening on hand-holding duty. Magnus showed up; Prowl asked if he had any progress on Tyrest, and Magnus said no.

Missed the start.

Rodimus: ((lol Rodimus: ((rodimus does love star wars FakeProwl: *surveys the room, then claims his usual spot next to Slendy's other side* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave nods to both allies and tries to make himself as comfortable as possible.* Rodimus: So---- what one you guys on? FakeProwl: ((roddy your music is very very quiet and your skype alerts are loud)) Bruin: (is the screen black ??) ItsyBitsySpyers: *And, yes, there is a small scorch mark by the left knee.* ItsyBitsySpyers: [[We are on the final documentary tape - the last assault.]] FakeProwl: ((thank)) Txen: *could repair that* Shockbox: *Notes to himself that he'll have to catch up on the others later.* Shockbox: *Surely he won't be missing that much context....?* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Could also, BUT wouldn't say no if the offer is made later.* Txen: *Darksteel is visibly excited, though his tails length makes wagging into more of a full-hindquarters affair* Whirl: ((dinner is acquired at last)) Whirl: *crosses his legs, spreads his arms over the back of his couch, and looks between his companions* Sup, you two? Rodimus: *passes a snack up to lazerbeak before pulling out his datapad to flip video files frown a slight frown on his face* Whirl: I'd offer you the use of my footstool but he won't be able to make it tonight, I don't think. Your feet are ontheir own. Txen: DS: *hops in place in a way that shakes the ground slightly* Tonight's the night! My BIG DEBYOO... Rodimus: I need one more song until im ready then. Airachnd: [a shrug] Nothing too exciting on my side of the multiverse. FakeProwl: *notices that tiny scorch* Sorida changed their nickname to Bee. Bee changed their nickname to Bee. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Frenzy bops Darksteel on one shoulder.* \\YO. IT'S GETTIN' REAL TALL IN HERE. MIND?\\ In other words, can he sit on Darksteel for a better view. Rodimus: *seriously doubts the deck would be bounced* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Laserbeak chitters happily and noms the HECK outta that snack* Txen: Darksteel: Huh? *looks left, then right, then down* Oh! Sure thing, guy. Sorida: [gonna just slide in] Txen: ((not bounced. still makes vibrations)) Sorida changed their nickname to Bumblebee. Rodimus: ((dont upset the science deck =) ItsyBitsySpyers: //Eh. Been worse.// That's all Rumble will say about that. Deflection time. //Where's Chill?// Whirl: Same. *shrugs, this is a huge lie, since Whirl has, since the last time he saw her, met some mechs to arrange a secret and very illegal operation, but shh nobody needs to know* Txen: DS: *dips one shoulder so it's easier to clamber on* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Frenzy scrambles up Darksteel with a FRAG YEAH and gets comfy. Soundwave nods to Bee.* Whirl: *he will very subtly nudge Rumble in unspoken acknowledgement; it's an imporvement, he supposes* He's ill. Something to do with those greyfaces, poor guy. Airachnd: [she has plans too,and how legal it is, well, it's quite questionable] Smokescreen: :O did I actually come on time this time?? Bruin: *Specter has decide its time to be tall as well and is going to kick Spotter off Bruin's helm with a squawk* Airachnd: Yes. Sorida: (( c'mon livestream do the thing )) Whirl: I offered to help the best way I know how--which is to say, I got him blackout drunk for a period of time. It's a tried and true cure for most ailments. Airachnd: rip)) Rodimus: It seem so Smokey Sorida changed their nickname to Bumblebee. Smokescreen: Whoa. That's pretty rare! Also Rodimus Rodimusrodimus- /He's going to go over to see if he can sit with Rodimus!/ Rodimus: get out and come back in fashionably late! *grins* Bumblebee changed their nickname to Bumblebee. Txen: DS: *is pretty spiky, but he's also broad. there's probably a comfy spot between his wings* Smokescreen: Haha- I'm a trendsetter! Coming in on time! Bumblebee: [nods back at Soundwave] Rodimus: *you can join him but rodimus has his feet on the seat and but on the back of the couch* Bumblebee: Proud of you, Smokey. ItsyBitsySpyers: //Frag greyfaces,// Rumble says while Laserbeak laughs at poor Spotter. ItsyBitsySpyers: *And Frenzy's pretty spiky himself, so he doesn't really mind. Good thing he's smallish.* Whirl: They're usually more trouble than they're worth. Being turned into a bird WAS fun, though. Smokescreen: Aww, thanks, Beepbee. Whirl: *swivels his helm around to look at DS and SL* So, this is when you two chuckleheads finally show up? Rodimus: ((who is da bee? Smokescreen: /Smokescreen's gonna try sitting like Rodimus here! It looks cool to him, at least./ ItsyBitsySpyers: ((radioactivibee, yeah?)) Bumblebee: (( radioactivibee ^-^ )) Txen: Skylynx: Unfortunatel-- Shockbox: *Ah, it is starting!* Txen: Darksteel: *interrupts* YOU KNOW IT. Smokescreen: :OO It's starting! Bumblebee: (( ALSO did not realize like, hasbro studios is in Pawtucket, RI )) Whirl: *snickers* Smokescreen: ((oh yep Rodimus: Were is their NAILs? ItsyBitsySpyers: *All right. He can do this. He doesn't have memories of this. Only recordings. Long, slow vent.* Starscream: *slides in quietly* Bumblebee: ...A NAIL? Txen: ((the budget ate them roddy)) Whirl: Probably where they belong--scattered all around the galaxy. Rodimus: Thats a patchic sized gather Optimus... Airachnd: Non affiliated indigionous lifeform. Rodimus: I meant to ask-- your Cybertron not call everyone back? Smokescreen: ... Yeah, Optimus never made that speech here. Bumblebee: We did after this. Starscream: Why do they have a statue of him? boomtank: . . . Whirl: Non affiliated pains in the aft, more like it. Bumblebee: We were kinda the first back and we were about to send out the signal when this scrap happened. Airachnd: Because he ordered it. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Looks at Shockwave. Questions will mostly be his to answer tonight.* Whirl: Oh, THIS nimrod again... Smokescreen: That's Kaon! That was like. Megatron's house basically ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave pings Starscream a polite greeting.* Bumblebee: Yeah. And surprisingly, really well maintained compared to the other city states. Airachnd: He SIEZED Kaon. Smokescreen: ..... wait ONCE flowed through his veins? so like. if you ever have dark energon you can't... Txen: *nods at Smokescreen's explanation* The statue was erected prior to our final exodus. Bumblebee: He seized a lot of things, ok? Starscream: But shouldn't they... get rid of it or something? FakeProwl: *oh. that's unicron. prowl is probably going to be on hand-holding duty tonight.* Airachnd: It was never really his, he took it. Bruin: (i forgot unicron was so damn Irish)) Bumblebee: Oh just wait. Airachnd: [she's trying to ignore what's on screen] Starscream: hahaha serves him right Smokescreen: ...... boomtank: Oh....uh...yeahno Bumblebee: ...So that's what happened. Whirl: So... the lesson here is. Don't just destroy Unicron's BODY. Whirl: You need something that'll kill his, er, "soul," as it were, too. Bumblebee: Pay up Smokey, I didn't fragging miss his spark.. Smokescreen: ... Yeah, this isn't my universe, at least. ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Yes.]] Txen: ((squints at chat lag.... are my posts even showing up)) Whirl: Have we figured out how to do that yet? *swivels his helm to look between Soundwave and Shockwave* Smokescreen: Okay, okay, sorry, Bee! FakeProwl: ((that one did)) Bumblebee: [slightly salty that nobody acknowledges the rank change] ItsyBitsySpyers: ((one did earlier txen)) Bumblebee: (( nah i got lag too )) Smokescreen: oh primus I'm embarrassing in every universe Rodimus: I party----- Starscream: ((me too Airachnd: Yes, you are. FakeProwl: ((errybody laggin)) Whirl: Of COURSE he is gonna run off. Bumblebee: We can sit together in mutual embarrassment. Whirl: That's what Optimus does BEST. Bumblebee: Speeches? Bumblebee: Leadership? ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Only in some timelines, Whirl.]] There are still so many he doesn't know how to stop. Whirl: No, running away from his problems. Txen: *to Whirl* Primal energies are antithetical to his essence and provide a partial solution, under the right circumstances. Bumblebee: Literally everything and anything requiring an iota of responsibility? Whirl: And then swooping back in and swanning around like he never left. Airachnd: Droning on? Smokescreen: ... Oh. Oh yeah-- I learned about this pretty recently- wait, the matrix can lead to it...? Bumblebee: ... Starscream: ugh, OP speeches, annoying in every verse Bumblebee: Apparently? No idea how it works. Smokescreen: Sounds sounds do you think these universes are the same on something like that? Rodimus: I'll navigate YOUR deep space, Optimus. Bumblebee: ... Smokescreen: ...... Starscream: hahaha Rodimus: *yawns and stretches* Bumblebee: why Smokescreen: RODIMUS NO Airachnd: No. Txen: ((so does this mean that to robots, irish accents are like. the accent of the devil)) Smokescreen: I need to make sure Megatron never dies ItsyBitsySpyers: *Hold it together. Megatron is dead. Separated. Devoured. He cannot be reanimated.* Rodimus: No what? Starscream: torture him more! Bumblebee: (( IMAGINE IF THEY WATCHED JACKSEPTICEYE )) Starscream: Go back! FakeProwl: *hey this likes the kind of thing Soundwave really wouldn't like. knuckle nudges hand?* Whirl: So, in theory, the best weapon against unicron is life. Well. Praise Heqet, I guess. Txen: ((robots only get irish accents if you're born and raised on the devil hisself)) Airachnd: Or, you know, throw his body into the nearest star and make sure his body melts completely. FakeProwl: *BULKHEAD IS A TERRIBLE FOREMAN AND PROWL IS JUDGING HIM.* Bumblebee: I like that idea, Airachnid. At least, to mine. ItsyBitsySpyers: *He was going to try to last without it but now that it's there he will take the Pit out of that hand.* FakeProwl: *HE HAS 2+ MONTHS OF EXPERIENCE, HE CAN JUDGE.* Smokescreen: shockwave more like shockbabe Bumblebee: smokey no Airachnd: Smokescreen. Txen: *Shockwave is here, Smokescreen* Airachnd: Stop. Smokescreen: ... This is kinda... Smokescreen: I'm sorry, what was that, Spidey? Maybe Babewave would work? Shockbox: *visibly reacts to 'shockbabe', but does not press on it.* Txen: *youll get used to it, alternate. just ignore them* Airachnd: Stop Rodimus: Barawave Bumblebee: Smokescreen...why? Whirl: I know that face! Txen: DS: *POUNDS ON FLOOR* FakeProwl: ((i keep forgetting their accents)) Smokescreen: Bee it's bugging Spidey! How about... Cuddlewave? Or is that a Soundwave nickname Txen: DS: ITS US!! *shakes skylynx* ItsyBitsySpyers: [[He does not know if the Matrix hears the call of the AllSpark. Prowl was the one who first tracked it.]] Bumblebee: Looking back...this feels really unnecessary. Smokescreen: :OOO I WANNA WRESTLE LIKE THIS but preferably with less chance of dying Rodimus: Hm? ItsyBitsySpyers: *Frenzy whoops in delight. His chair pal is a badass.* Whirl: Pfft, you think? Bumblebee: Primus, Smokey... Airachnd: [she enjoys Smokescreen getting smacked around though] Smokescreen: ... Oh. Do you think someone could use the matrix to find it without having to- you know. Whirl: *is probably enjoying watching Ultra Magnus get his butt whooped than he shold* Smokescreen: HEE still pretty awesome here though! Bumblebee: Ok, now I'm really happy you have that thing. Rodimus: Shag the matrix permenetally? Bumblebee: Weird storage pockets and all. Smokescreen: wait do what with the matrix Txen: DS: *stops to think a second* ...Yeah, it might've been unnecessary, but it was -also- pretty fun? Bumblebee: whY ARE WE FRAGGING THE MATRIX?? Rodimus: What you need found? Smokescreen: I'M NOT FRAGGING THE MATRIX- the allspark! Txen: *RUDE BEE* Bumblebee: [looks at Darksteeel] I meant mostly on our side but... Smokescreen: shockwave's parenting Smokescreen: wait wait where FakeProwl: *sees no reason why cloning something doesn't result in the product of "new life."* Whirl: Pfft. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Agrees.* Txen: Shockwave: I am not a parent. Smokescreen: Momwave! Bumblebee: Look, science isn't my area of expertise, ok? Rodimus: *head tilt* Yeah i most likely could look for it--- why you guys lost yours? Airachnd: So, that's where it was. Whirl: The only parents in the room are the preds. *pauses* I think. Bumblebee: Now you are, Shockwave. You created life from bones, you now have offspring. Airachnd: Anyone with optics could have seen that Bug. Txen: *though its true the two predacons were very young and rowdy at the time. violence was basically their idea of playing* Smokescreen: wait that means shockwave's a grandpa! Smokescreen: Well- I think it's similar here too Txen: Shockwave: Clones are not the same thing as offspring. Bumblebee: Grandpawave Smokescreen: ... really bee Bumblebee: ...l o o k Airachnd: Is...? Really? Smokescreen: Grandpa science! Whirl: Your Highness. Pfft. Really. Bumblebee: I-It worked, didn't it? I mean, that had like, a 4% chance of working, but it did. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Listening to Rodimus' offer to find an AllSpark. Good distraction.* FakeProwl: Seventeen percent. Txen: Predaking: *it was the flattery as much as it was him not knowing much about tech yet* Bumblebee: PredaKING. I wasn't gonna risk him plowing me into the ground... Txen: Predaking: *has a ...dislike for stabby sticks* Shockbox: *Listening to this 'parenting' conversation with some very slight amusement.* Bumblebee: Wait, really? 17%? That's a lot better than I thought. Rodimus: *side eyes bee* You sure you need into that kinda thing? Bumblebee: Need what? Rodimus: ((need = not Airachnd: [is glad she didn't have to deal with this on her Cybertron] FakeProwl: Seventeen's not good. But, yes, technically speaking, it IS higher than four. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Rumble mumbles a "Heh" at that side eye and comment* Txen: Shockwave: *ugh. dont call him that, Starscream. especially not in that -voice- of yours* Starscream: When do we get to see more Megatron torture?  That was fun to watch. Smokescreen: .... starscream is kinda. awful ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Soon. Too soon.]] Smokescreen: guuhghhhhhhh why is starscream Whirl: Oh, please tell me someone kicks his sh it in. Txen: Skylynx: A g r e e d. Airachnd: He is. Bumblebee: I mean, I had a 5% chance of surviving Tyger Pax, so 17% is a blessing. FakeProwl: There's no relation between the two situations. 17% is low. Bumblebee: ...past me, why didn't we just start here? Bumblebee: Low, but not impossible! Whirl: Oh god, more of this. Whirl: Nothing gives  me more secondhand embarrassment than watching that clod try to fly. Buzzstrike: ...wish you'd had time to check the basements Rodimus: *chucklesto himself whirl will like Starscream's ending* Airachnd: Ugh. Smokescreen: ..... ive done this exactly Txen: Shockwave: Factually inaccurate. If you are 'too close to turn back' then you are too close to escape after retrieving the target. Bumblebee: [snorts] ItsyBitsySpyers: *Okay. Well. He got this far without seeking a hand himself, and without taking a second. He'll just. Search the other one out now.* Bumblebee: Still proud of you, Smokey. Smokescreen: Megatron's throne is pretty cozy! Ridiculous, but cozy. Whirl: *BURSTS OUT LAUGHING* Smokescreen: ... bee how Txen: Shockwave: *lets those lil fingers slip right in there between his* Bumblebee: Really? It reminds me of the Iron Throne and THAT looks like the most uncomfortable seat ever. Airachnd: [cringes] Whirl: He looks--R-RIDICULOUS! Bumblebee: I DIDN'T MISS OK?! boomtank: ........ Rodimus: I keep forgetting this universe is one of THOSE universes. Smokescreen: his eyebrows though Whirl: He looks like a walking RUST HEAP Smokescreen: It's more comfy than you'd expect! Like, the actual seat part isn't too bad! Starscream: I don't want to hear talking, I want to see him in pain Txen: Skylynx: A downgrade, -thats- for sure. Bumblebee: Smokey, I still vote we put tennis balls on Megatron's pointy bits. Txen: Skylynx: Even for a biped. Airachnd: A downgrade, in every since of the word. Bumblebee: You could, you know, say my fragging n a m e. Starscream: torture him! Airachnd: *sense Starscream: :( Shockbox: *He would look upon this hand holding with suspicion...were it not that the others so large, rendering him unable to wittness it.* Smokescreen: Definitely! We can soften him up some- boomtank: That's...a lot of firepower Whirl: So far it's just been fancier guns and bombs than the usual. It's not exactly CREATIVE... but I think I've been spoiled. ItsyBitsySpyers: [[All that he wills.]] Starscream: He failed Unicron, they got away.  Torture him! Txen: *theyve done more suspicious things than hold a hand* Smokescreen: optimus please be safe Smokescreen: I swear he better not get hurt in this! Bumblebee: ... Bumblebee: No but um... Bumblebee: You'll know when to look away. Smokescreen: what Whirl: What a surprise, here he goes running back. And let me guess--he's gonna assume his old role like he DIDN'T abandon everyone. Smokescreen: .... who hurts him I'll fight them I swear Bumblebee: Don't worry about it - hey look, Unicron! Whirl: That's the OP we all know and love. *dryly* FakeProwl: ((I got kicked offline and lost a chunck of text)) Airachnd: You heard the Bug. Shockbox: *He has been a preoccupied mech. He might have missed a few tells.* Txen: ((what even are those)) FakeProwl: ((from "Megatron's throne is pretty cozy! Ridiculous, but cozy" to "Starscream: torture him!")) Bumblebee: (( ...scyyyythes? )) FakeProwl: ((could someone send me the missing chunk please)) Whirl: ((i got u Puff)) Txen: ((purple praying mantis arms)) Smokescreen: ((I can send! FakeProwl: ((snif did it, thanks)) Bumblebee: Also, don't call me bug. Txen: ((unicrons weed logo tho)) Whirl: Everything he does looks incredibly goofy. Whirl: ((TEX)) Smokescreen: ((aaa okay Airachnd: Quite. Txen: ((age of chaos more like age of dank)) Rodimus: OH! Smokescreen: ..... yeah I'd do this Bumblebee: (( age of DANK MEMES )) Txen: ((get him some reefer thatll bliss him right out)) Smokescreen: Also Unitron seems like the best one! Rodimus: What the all spark is what makes new sparks right? Txen: ((space crack is whack)) Airachnd: age of the good kush)) ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Yes. It is.]] Shockbox: (( I am dying.)) Rodimus: *nods to Smokescreen* yeha i could find that. Smokescreen: ((its from earth how good can it be)) Txen: ((unicron IS earth)) Rodimus: I can find vector sigma-- i can find that. Magnus: *tries to slip in as discretely as a giant man can* Smokescreen: :OO So- the matrix can do all that...? Airachnd: [sage not at what Ratchet said] Rodimus: *makes grab hands at Magnus* Whirl: I don't think the allspark would help US any--unless you're getting it for them? ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave looks up, slightly surprised. A greeting ping.* Txen: Skylynx: *oh hey! the guy he chewed up!* Magnus: *nods to Rodimus* Good evening. FakeProwl: *... magnus is one of the people prowl would least like to catch him sitting on a couch with a soundwave and a shockwave* Rodimus: Magnus <3 Whirl: *snickers* I like your strategy, big guy. FakeProwl: *but prowl is on hand-holding duty. he can't leave. he'll endure it.* Smokescreen: But there's gotta be a better way to find it- I did get a bunch of coordinates from this thing recently- one of them's gotta lead to it. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave's not oblivious. He will find a way to repay that.* ItsyBitsySpyers: *But first.* @Prowl: (txt): Warning: modified patch attack approaching. Shockbox: *Two shockwaves.* FakeProwl: *acknowledging ping* Smokescreen: oh no boomtank: -so confused- Shockbox: *He still has a place on the wave couch.* Whirl: *nice* Magnus: ((was whirl talking to magnus?)) ItsyBitsySpyers: *At least Shockbox isn't being asked to perform hand duty.* Airachnd: At least Megatron has some standards. boomtank: -apparently missed enough for this to not make sense- Starscream: yes! Bumblebee: ...I oddly don't care, Megatron. Smokescreen: .... Rodimus: *he will sit properly on the couch for magnus* OuO Whirl: I can't believe Megatron said the most sensible thing I've heard all damn night. Bumblebee: ...sorry, smokey. Txen: ((god that just reminds me of the *** terrible line thats at the end)) Smokescreen: I. I need to protect Megatron- frag that sounds weird to say but ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave's dorsal plating ripples. He hates the moments within Megatron's head most of all. They are the closest to reliving the memories he stole.* FakeProwl: *squeezes Soundwave's hand instead of covering neck* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Returns it as tightly as would not also be painful. A mutual thing.* Txen: Predaking: *shudders and hackles* Magnus: *perches on the edge of the couch, not quite settling in yet* How are things on the ship, Rodimus? Bumblebee: The retributive part of me is just...really, really satisfied knowing Unicron treated him like that. Airachnd: I cannot exactly protect my Megatron, considering he is molten slag. Bumblebee: But it's the worst feeling so... Whirl: I wouldn't protect Megatron, I'd jus give him the dignity of killing him. Rodimus: Busy--- you coming back to me, Magnus? :D Whirl: ...maybe a little slowly. ItsyBitsySpyers: \\Y'ALRIGHT OVER THERE, YOUR KINGLINESS?\\ Smokescreen: That's fair! But- he's kinda stuck as leader here, andI don't want Unileader. Whirl: But a... slightly slow and very painful death is pretty damn generous, under the circumstances, really. Bumblebee: ...You two are kind of adorable. Whirl: Hmm. These two remind me of some people I know. *sidelong look at Rumble* Txen: Darksteel: Us? Bumblebee: ...Wait are we really all that surprised someone ELSE came back from the dead? ItsyBitsySpyers: *Slow blink. Equally slow look over at Frenzy. Then back at Whirl.* Smokescreen: oh nooooo megatron's butt is awful now THANKS UNICRON Bumblebee: Yes, you two. ItsyBitsySpyers: //...Guess the birds are like that, yeah.// Bumblebee: ...Smokescreen, what the frag? Swoop: :V Magnus: Only with a certain someone in handcuffs. *glances up and around at the room, faceplates shifting into a frown at the scene* ... Yes, busy. I can see that. Swoop: :V Txen: ((shockwave non reaction lmao))\ boomtank: ohwow Smokescreen: ... What? Airachnd: shockwave, seeing god of chaos: eh)) Smokescreen: ... I need to learn to NOT externalize every thought, huh? ItsyBitsySpyers: *Crunch.* Shockbox: (( Isn't that at least 90% of his reactions, though.)) Whirl: *maintains his cheeky sidelong look for a moment longer before watching the action* I gotta say, I like Peadcons' style. I mean it went poorly but how can you not appreciate someone whose first-- Whirl: --reaction to encountering the avatar of a god is to try and kill him? Rodimus: *nudges Magnus* I was the first in weeks--- *shrugs* I doubt i even need to hold these. FakeProwl: *has been quietly listening in on Magnus's conversation* Txen: Shockwave: *crunched* Smokescreen: oh no Bumblebee: No Smokey, I just...Megatron's butt? Really? Txen: ((and yes... his reactions are all 'eh' and it is precious)) Rodimus: ((I = this Whirl: *snickers at Rumble* FakeProwl: @Magnus «Have you made any progress that you're at liberty to share?» Swoop: Him Shockwave dead Bumblebee: Shockwave, you were not built for speed. Smokescreen: those squeaks from those predaterrors are kinda adorable Bumblebee: ..........Dear Primus. Airachnd: [covers mouth with hand servo] FakeProwl: ((I get the feeling that Shockwave's "It defies all science" and Starscream's "We're doomed!" are the same statement in different languages.)) Whirl: Bless them, tanks are fantastic but not known for their maneuverability. Txen: That is true. I am not. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave pings Shockwave. He's so very, very grateful his ally survived. And was not turned.* Bruin: *get wreked* boomtank: Wh-what just happened there? Txen: *is clearly not dead, swoop* Magnus: *bats Rodimus's nudging hand away like someone might a child's* It is, of course, your decision, captain. You know more of crew morale than I do these days. Swoop: *no, ur dead* Txen: ((lol puff)) Swoop: *don't tell him is business, that dude dead* Txen: *glances at Soundwave and wiggles his fingers in agreement. he didnt particularly wish to die there either* Whirl: A moment of silence for our dear, departed Shockwave. I can't believe he's gone. *drapes a claw over his cockpit dramatically* ItsyBitsySpyers: \\I CAN STILL HEAR HIS VOICE...\\ Txen: Shockwave: *quiet scoff* Airachnd: [chuckling] Bumblebee: Sometimes, I can still hear his voice. Smokescreen: ... Airachnd: [LAUGHS] Smokescreen: RUDE Bumblebee: Smokey please Shockbox: (( I remember /cackling/ when I first saw that.)) Whirl: *laughs* Swoop: :V Bruin: *lol* Smokescreen: ... /Going to go ahead and phase himself into a wall just for extra effect/ Beeeeee help I'm a wall decoration Rodimus: *pouts just a little but still smiles widely* Bumblebee: [snickers] Swoop: :V :V :V Airachnd: How shallow of him. Txen: Skylynx: *rolls onto his back and covers his optics with his tail plume* Txen: Skylynx: This part is....... embarassing... Smokescreen: beeeee I'm a real wallflower here :( Bumblebee: And I can't believe THAT worked. Swoop: *patpatpatpatpats Skylynx* Bumblebee: pfffffft Magnus: @Prowl: *glances sidelong at the unexpected comm* ::I am loath to admit it, but I doubt the chase will end soon. There is little positive to report.:: Swoop: What embarassing boomtank: ...are you kdding me? Whirl: Happens to the best of us, mech. *sympathetic nod to Skylynx* Smokescreen: I can! You can't spell Starscream without "Gullible." Bumblebee: Smokey, I'm so doing that again. Smokescreen: Stargulliblescream FakeProwl: *mumbles* fifty-eight percent probability. Whirl: ...won't happen to ME, though. *cheeky, sidelong look Predaking's way* boomtank: He broke it that easily? Airachnd: Oh, he's alive. Swoop: Look, him dead Bumblebee: He's alive. boomtank: Shockwave looked alive there Smokescreen: Pff- please do, Beepbee. Txen: Predaking: *amused hmph at Whirl* I do not expect -your- fealty. Merely your defeat. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Ravage joins the couch to park himself on Soundwave's lap.* Bumblebee: Whirl, are you flirting with Predaking??? FakeProwl: @Magnus «I see. If you need any assistance...» Smokescreen: Hey Soundwave- are the predacons online where you are? Txen: Shockwave: *looks quite alive now in fact* FakeProwl: @Magnus «I'm certain you won't accept it from me. But, I offer it anyway.» Whirl: Pfft, as if anyone could earn my fealty, really. But still--we need to set up a time and place. ItsyBitsySpyers: =Yes. Many.= Airachnd: [laughs] Smokescreen: ME NO Whirl: *to Bumblebee* Hmm. No, not yet. Gotta see how he fights, first. Airachnd: The idea of smokescreen being a Prime. Rodimus: Firebreath is so awesome, its a good motif! Smokescreen: me you don't need to mention that every time it's really not necessary and- yeah. Not the right bot at all. Airachnd: It's laughable at best.

The damn stream rebooted. Lost a huge chunk of the chat.

Welcome to the 'lostlightstream' room. Smokescreen: No no no no no- I'm NOT crying on more Optimi. Bumblebee: You want to talk? I...it's...I get it. Smokescreen: ((it's completely hoeless now :( Whirl: If you say so. Airachnd: Oh well, it started when I told him to talk to my Optimus, to truly see if he was over Optimus' death. Whirl: *SMOKESCREEN, HE IS BEING SINCERE* Whirl: *Exhibit A that Whirl is Not Good At Comforting People* boomtank: No, you didn't but you're blaming yoursself for something that you were not capable of stopping ItsyBitsySpyers: *Tiny helm shake. All right. He's focused on the room again, and not distant thoughts. Where is everyone's conversation? He'll buzz Ravage for the data.* Whirl: ((hoeless, eh)) Rodimus: YOu remember to refuel Magnus? You forget when you are working too hard. Airachnid: ((wait dangit it did somethign weird with the chat)) Shockwave: ((wow i just DCd and it lost recent stuff and is showing me older stuff ;;) Airachnid: ((what the heck)) FakeProwl: ((... skype just randomly refreshed and deleted the whole window, can somebody send me the log-- dammit did it happen to everyone)) boomtank: ((the frick? Airachnid: WHY IS YOUR NAME  AIRACHNID ON MY SCREEN)) Smokescreen: ((Yeahhh it happened to everyone)) ItsyBitsySpyers: ((it happened to me too D:)) Smokescreen: ((I DONT KNOW IT JUST DID THAT??)) Whirl: ((SMOKESCREEN AAHAHA)) Whirl: ((THEYF UUUSED)) Sorida: (( omg what just happened)) FakeProwl: ((well, fvck. i lost a huge chunk of tonight's chat. :,) Rodimus: ((cause not its not lagging Smokescreen: ((smokescreen is actually airachnid)) Sorida: (( I KNEW IT )) boomtank: ((smokey no! Rodimus: ((they reset servers Airachnid: fusion is just a tactic to make weak Cybertronians stronger)) Airachnid: *grunts, pulling his attentuion away from the shouting* Sir? I'm fueled to sufficient levels. I have no intention of working tonight. *oddly enough, he's not getting up to stop the shouting* Smokescreen: But yeah- Optimus' life is way more important than- you know. Whirl: ((OH NO IT HAPPENED TO BIG M TOO)) Smokescreen: ((ULTRA MAGNUS is also airachnid livestream made everyone spider Airachnid: EVERYONE'S NAME IS AIRACHNID ON MY SCREEN WHY)) ItsyBitsySpyers: ((who am i appearing as)) ItsyBitsySpyers: ((awwww, i'm still myself)) Whirl: ((and in that moment... I swear we were all airachnid)) Airachnid: we are all spider)) Sorida: (( PFFFFFFFFFFF )) FakeProwl: ((are we at least multicolor airachnids)) Shockwave: ((omg magnus is airachnid too)) Bruin: ((go home livestream ur drunk)) Shockbox: ((Hm.)) Airachnid: Airachnid has taken over)) Whirl: ((our queen)) Smokescreen: ((queen!!)) Shockwave: ((i vote we end on this note. nothing can top Airachnid Rainbow)) Airachnid: -finger guns-)) boomtank: ((oh god Shockbox: (( Pffffff.)) Airachnid: true)) FakeProwl: ((everyone's name is normal to me but im delighted to know that yall have rainbow spider)) ItsyBitsySpyers: ((i have two airachnids and everyone else is fine)) Whirl: ((most everyone's name is normal here, with the exception of BB's and Magnus's, but BB's has changed)) Shockbox: (( Txen is showing up as 'Shockwave' for me.)) Shockbox: (( But that is not problematic at all, really.)) Shockwave: ((it booted me back to a previous nickname i guess)) Airachnid: ((Lord, I do show up as airachnid)) Airachnid: ((weird Shockbox: ((/shrug emoji)) boomtank: You didn't know what was going to happen, and blaming yourself is doing you no favors FakeProwl: ((oh wait, magnus is airachnid! i DO have a false spider.)) Airachnid: ((identity crisis)) Airachnid changed their nickname to Magnus. FakeProwl: ((well, we already knew you were everybody)) Smokescreen: I guess so... It makes me feel like I've got some control over what happened, but- it's not like I can go back and change it now. Rodimus: You remember to refuel Magnus? *he starts to stand up* You forget when you are working too hard. Sorida changed their nickname to Bumblebee. Bumblebee: [hugs Smokey] Bumblebee: You weren't expecting it, doesn't sound like anyone was. Smokescreen: /Clinging to Bee/ boomtank: You didn't. That's the point. You did what you could in a situation you had no control over Whirl: I still maintain that the Drifters did this song better. Rodimus: I like her voice. Whirl: It's not bad/ Airachnid: It is indeed nice, tolerable for human music. ItsyBitsySpyers: [[It is pleasing. As are the lyrics.]] Whirl: But not everyone can be Ben E King. Whirl: It's a good song. *nods* Smokescreen: But I didn't do enough- I wish I could've done more. I at least could be not here helping Megatron of all bots, but- I don't think I could lead something against him now. Whirl: *tilts his head* Hey, Rodders, got time for a request? FakeProwl: *not enough rock. isn't enjoying it.* Rodimus: I bet Magnus could sing it better * he grins teasingly at the ex-enforcer* FakeProwl: *but, it managed to rouse soundwave back into speech. ...well. "speech."* Rodimus: What's up Whirl? Whirl: Anything by AC/DC. Not enough classic rock in tonight's playlist. boomtank: You did what you could. And...sometimes that isn't enough. It's life. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Trust good music to draw something out of him even when he's tired.* Whirl: *and he happens to know a certain depressed mech sharing the couch with him might appreciate some AC/DC* Airachnid: /By the Allspark/. boomtank: But you continue to live. And looking back like you are only holds you back. Shockwave: *taps Soundwave's palm with a claw. he has... Potentially Humorous Commentary* Smokescreen: I guess so- but doesn't make it better- I wish I could've done better. Magnus: I'm quite alright, si- *pauses a little* I'm not singing anything. *frowns, not right now* Rodimus: AC/DC --- ok i play alot of that let go with something i never played before. Bumblebee: Smokes... ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave glances over at Shockwave. Hmm? What?* boomtank: You can't do anything now, but you can move forwards Whirl: *listens; it's not immediately apparent what this is* ... ItsyBitsySpyers: *Rumble hears good jams and starts to lift his helm.* Bumblebee: But think about what's happened now Whirl: --WAIT. WAIT NOT THIS ONE. Whirl: DIFFERENT SONG. ......*ahem* ItsyBitsySpyers: *...Wait a second* Whirl: *attempts to regroup  his cool* Whirl: How about Shoot to Thrill. Rodimus: What---? Whirl: How about that one. ItsyBitsySpyers: *IS HE PLAYING--* Bumblebee: Whirl, what? Rodimus: Not alot about rosie? Whirl: NO. Smokescreen: Move forward? I don't even know what I CAN go with now Whirl: I mean, no. Whirl: Shoot to Thrill. Whirl: *HE BEEFED IT* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Rumble's visor dims to near black. He suddenly gets very interested in looking at Airachnid instead.* Whirl: *SUPER BEEF* Airachnid: ... what? FakeProwl: *there's shouting. what's whirl doing.* Whirl: *he's doing his best to keep his cool* Magnus: *stiffens a little, promised himself he wouldn't get in the middle of it but it's getting harder the louder it gets* boomtank: Live rather than survive. Looking back like you are now? That's not living. You cannot change the past, so stop putting all your focus on it Airachnid: He cannot apparently. Airachnid: Pity. boomtank: Stay out of this spider ItsyBitsySpyers: //Nothin'. Jus' was--// He can't even lie well right now. //--Thinkin' bout the moon. 'S all.// Bumblebee: Airachnid, take your sass. Put it in your pocket. Airachnid: Make me. boomtank: I just might Smokescreen: I thought I was doing a pretty good job of living, though... Bumblebee: You are! Airachnid: :3c Bumblebee: I mean, look at how many friends you have, how many bots care about you. Whirl: *should he pretend it never happened? What do? WHAT DO* ...@Rumble: Sorry, mech. Shockwave: *passes over the thought of a rather silly mitten-looking 'Hand Reinforcement' for protection against future crushing. if, you know. they werent already done with the content that's to blame.* Shockwave: *its clear he doesn't really resent having to repair his hand twice and its just a ... very, very dry attempt at joke* Bumblebee: Don't you make that face, Airachnid. Rodimus: *looks to magnus and gives a small shrug* Airachnid: >:3cccccccc Smokescreen: buddy you're a wise man something something gonna be a big man someday Smokescreen: ... oh Bumblebee: [bobbing his head a little, he actually knows this song] Rodimus: @Magnus ::If we are in a hurry I can kick them all out so we can have our meeting.:: Whirl: ((imagining airachnid make that face tho)) Shockwave: ((shockwaves hand to soundwaves hand: we've got to stop meeting like this)) Airachnid: she does)) Bumblebee: Close, Smokey. Big difference between Queen and AC/DC Shockwave: ((soundwaves hand to shockwaves hand: ive got a crush on u)) Airachnid: when she smiles, her mouth is like :3)) ItsyBitsySpyers: @Whirl: //What for?// How the FRAG did he know? WHO TOLD HIM? Whirl: ((PFFT)) ItsyBitsySpyers: ((txen you're killing me lmfao)) Bumblebee: (( i'm convinced that's the only expression she knows )) boomtank: -better, lets Bee take over now- Airachnid: it's the only emoji she uses)) Smokescreen: I know Queen? That's one difference ItsyBitsySpyers: @Shockwave: [[...In red.]] Whirl: *well, even if he hadn't said anything, his reaction to the song gave him away anything* @Rumble: I think you know. But, uh. ...sorry. *excellent. he has mastered wordsmithing, just look at him* Whirl: ...*anyway Whirl: *anything?? wtf me)) Bumblebee: Smokescreen, you ever hear Bohemian Rhapsody? That one's a trip. Smokescreen: Of course! Magnus: @Rodimus: ::Do not rush things on my account, but if you think it will stop the shouting... Well, it is not my place to say anymore. I relinquished my place here.:: Shockwave: @Soundwave: *considers whether the polyfibers could be dyed, then nods. the little mental image turns red* Rodimus: @Magnus ::Just go head up to my of-- no wait--- the ready room we can have our meeting there and not be interupted.:: boomtank: -back to the work on his datapad- Rodimus: *shrugs and tilts his helm to the room* Rodimus: @Magnus ::No other officers come to this anymore i can just leave it to them.:: Bumblebee: What other Earth music do you know? [oh good, a distraction until next time Optimus comes up in conversation...] Whirl: ((the closest thing to an officer in this room is Whirl. What a scary thought)) Bumblebee: (( ........that is terrifying )) ItsyBitsySpyers: @Whirl: //Yeah. All right.// A long pause. //Listen, don't - I don't wanna... y'know.// He's not ready to talk about that yet. //Jus'. Don't say nothin'.// boomtank: ((wait, what? Rodimus: ((just rodimus alone THATS FINE HE IS GETTING USED OT IT)) Smokescreen: A bunch of it! I'd play a bunch of their pop music whenever I was driving- It was one of those stations that did pop music from the '80's to today? Bumblebee: wait you did what on patrols?? Bumblebee: please tell me those weren't patrols. Smokescreen: Not on patrols! Smokescreen: Just drives for fun. Whirl: *makes a soft "pfft" sound aloud* @R: Of course I won't, mech. I haven't so far. I'm not gonna throw you under the bus. Bumblebee: Ok, because I did that my first few months and...yea. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave huffs softly. He appreciates the mitten joke. He also pictured them on the revived Megatron's hands instead, to make him less intimidating a thought. It helped.* Bumblebee: What stuff did you hear? Magnus: @Rodimus: *glances around with a grunt* ::I think that sounds like a good idea. I'll be waiting for you, sir.:: Smokescreen: I'd play other songs while on patrol to get my head in the game. Magnus: *slowly brushes off his frame and starts to get up* Shockwave: ((gosh my LS chat is doing a thing where it wont scroll unless i catch it up manually ;;)) ItsyBitsySpyers: *Rumble stares at Whirl for a couple of seconds before nodding. His visor goes a tad brighter, but his night's kinda done now.* //Goin' home. Seeya.// Whirl: ((I HATE IT when it does that X|)) Whirl: *bobs his helm* G'night. Smokescreen: A lot of stuff! You ever hear about Michael Jackson? He's the King of pop! Really talented! Actually actually can we listen to him Whirl: I'm Bad's a good song. Rodimus: I like this cover Bumblebee: Yeah, I have! Smokescreen: all his songs are good songs Whirl: It... huh. Sounds like. Cyclonus, a little. *blinks* Bumblebee: ...This is a nice cover. Bumblebee: Sad, but nice. Whirl: ((his voice is lovely but the original is so much more haunting <3)) Rodimus: ((you shut it you only like orginals Whirl: *just gonna stare at the blank screen with a wide opic and a perked antenna, like a cat watching a computer cursor* Rodimus: ((I tihnk its cause i heard this one live and his voice tears your chest Rodimus: ((I am glad he made a offical cover Whirl: ((I like plenty of covers... Iron Savior's cover of The Hellion/Electric Eye is much better than Judas Priests;'s, for instance)) Shockwave: DS: *looks from screen to whirl a few times* You look like Shockwave when a test tube's around. Magnus: *nods to Rodimus as he stands* I'll be seeing you shortly, sir. *begins to slip out towards their meeting spot* Whirl: ((His voice is wonderful, but I just love Simon and Garfunkel's haunting harmony!)) FakeProwl: ((this isn't the best version I've heard him do)) Rodimus: *smiles brightly at Magnus* FakeProwl: ((p good though)) ItsyBitsySpyers: *Laserbeak CACKLES at Darksteel's remark* Bumblebee: [snickers] Whirl: *blinks and snaps out of it, snorting* What? Really? ...do his antenna do the thing. Airachnid: [it was somewhat cute] Rodimus: ((yeah it was killer live Whirl: ((I'll bet!)) Rodimus: Cyclonus really...? Whirl: Hmm? What about him? Shockwave: DS: They do all sorts of stuff if you pay attention long enough. *leans in conspiratorially* Shockwave: DS: You really wanna see em wiggle? Whirl: *snickers* I'll be sure to keep an eye out. Whirl: ((now HERE is a cover I love, this one is amazin)) Whirl: *doesn't even try to hide this statement from Shockwave* FakeProwl: *ugh. so apparently it's all sad melodic songs now.* Shockwave: Shockwave: *not dignifying this conversation with a response* Rodimus: Maybe that gravel part of the voice--- you know right when you -hit- his shpot /just/ right be is hella hard to get the deep---- OH HELLO MULTIVESE MECHS! :D Smokescreen: /Drooping a little with the song- sad songs are rough tonight!/ Rodimus: *lets just go stack up cubes and like talk details on how to get crewmates off* FakeProwl: *turns down his audials. if anybody wants his attention, they can shout to him. the only person here he plans on speaking with doesn't talk anyway.* Bumblebee: [pets Smokey's wings] Shockwave: DS: *IS actually talking in a hushed voice, just isnt very GOOD at it* Just put that... weirdo human movie alien he likes up on the screen. Whirl: *if that was sexua, it went right over Whirl's head* Yeah, when he sings, it's always got that edge to it. ItsyBitsySpyers: ((DARKSTEEL)) Whirl: Also, Rodders, if you'll deign to take a second request from me, can we listen to I'm Bad? Smokescreen: /Nuzzling Bee some here/ Smokescreen: YEAH YEAH BAD!!! Rodimus: *snrots and looks up at the warrior to see if he is getting tyed with* Whirl: *he';s gonna cheer SOMEONE up, dammit* Rodimus: What no more sappy songs eh? Whirl: You're gonna hafta be more specific than that, Darksteel. Whirl: Oh, no, I'm enjoying this. The harmony's lovely. But 'Bee talked about Michael Jackson, so... *shrugs* Bumblebee: ...This song is a lot sadder than I remember. Smokescreen: .... Shockbox: *He is paying attention to the conversation, but doing his best to pretend he isn't.* Smokescreen: /Going to rest his helm in Bee's lap- he's already feeling drained enoughhhh/ Bumblebee: [pets Smokey's helm] Shockbox: *This....talk of aliens and antennae wiggles.* Bumblebee: Same, buddy. Whirl: ((everyone wants to know the Secret of Shockwave's Antenna)) Rodimus: Half way? *he grins cheekily* Shockwave: Darksteel: *grimaces and tries to remember. wiggles a claw in the air* You know, the... it's all black and shiny, and it lays its eggs in people? Bumblebee: Darksteel, what?! Whirl: *momentary distant look* Whirl: Can't... say that's familiar, mech. Smokescreen: ... Wait, Darksteel, what? Where? Bumblebee: Should we be...worried about that?? Shockwave: Darksteel: *shushes Bee and Smokey urgently and looks back at Shockwave* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Frenzy leans on Darksteel's side and motions for Whirl's attention. He then points at Soundwave and mouths the word "Halloween"* Whirl: Send me a pic. Shockwave: Shockwave: *dun give a fuk* Rodimus: Aleins? Bumblebee: Insecticons? Whirl: *looks to Frenzy* ... *he's trying to tell him something, he can feel it* Shockwave: Darksteel: No-- I mean, I think he likes them too-- and -yeah- no slag its an alien... Rodimus: That? ItsyBitsySpyers: *PRIMUS WARN A MECH* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Soundwave sits back a lil* Whirl: Well, if it's in a movie, I'VE never seen the movie. *looks to the screen* Shockwave: Darksteel: *pulls a blue crayon out of his subspace and starts doodling drawing of a xenomorph on it* Here--- heyyy. Whirl: Yep. Never seen that film. Whirl: *NOW IMEMDIATELY LOOKS TO SHOCKWAVE* Rodimus: We showed it FakeProwl: *??* Smokescreen: :O Bumblebee: O.o; FakeProwl: *u ok soundwave* Whirl: I missed it, then. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Yes. Yes, er, he's fi--STOP THAT* Shockwave: Shockwave: .................. *antennae quiver* Whirl: *ZOOP* Whirl: *HE SAW IT* Shockbox: *Well....now /he/ is intrigued by this creature.* Shockwave: Darksteel: *a little miffed his doodle got beat to the punch* FakeProwl: *since he's already looking in soundwave's direction, catches that quiver from past him* Smokescreen: is that soundwave boomtank: -looks up- ....? Rodimus: He dressed up as one. FakeProwl: *glances back at screen. ... hmm. so /both/ of them.* Whirl: It's pretty neat. Whirl: I dig the tail. Shockbox: *He tilts his helm curiously, as his antennae, tragically, do not wiggle.* boomtank: What is that? Bumblebee: That is terrifying. Whirl: Nah, it's adorable. Bumblebee: Would not want to run into one of those. boomtank: Looks interesting Whirl: The inner mouth kinda reminds me of Killer, a little. Smokescreen: I mean, it could be kinda cute... Rodimus: It was a pretty cool movie if not---- a tad VERY 80's Shockwave: Shockwave: 8would very much like to run into one of those* ItsyBitsySpyers: [[It is - an efficient organic.]] Bumblebee: ...Do I want to know who or what Killer is? Whirl: ...waaait. Wait! No, I HAVE seen one of these! She shows up at Teach's movie night sometimes, yeah? *looks to Soundwave* Shockwave: ((RODDY YOU ARE THE LORD OF 80s)) Rodimus: ((its not an insult ot rodimus lol Whirl: Killer's my pet space barnacle. ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Yes.]] Very, very carefully keeping his mental tone flat. [[She has.]] Whirl: It dismembered someone once. *drapes his claw over his cockpit* Such a little stinker. Bruin: *Specter is practically bouncing on Bruins head because thats a neat organic, could use a few more eyes tho* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Merciful Micronus, that one's a mech.* Whirl: Nice. Shockwave: Shockwave: *ah* Shockbox: *Reserving judgement for when (if ever) he gets to see one of these creatures in action.* Rodimus: *going to keep scrolling threw pictures yes.* Whirl: That would be a killer alt-mode. Shockbox: *But still, /very/ curious.* boomtank: !!! Whirl: *luckily for Soundwave, Whirl isn't judging him, he's most interested in the creatures, and sought from him merely confirmation* Shockbox: *Well. That is a little bit of action.* boomtank: okaynotinterestinganymore Whirl: Little drooly, though. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Distraction. Distraction. Shockwave's distracted. Can't ping him.* FakeProwl: *prowl is. just. sideways glancing at his couchmates. feels like he learned something tonight.* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Thoughts about documentary? ItsyBitsySpyers: *There. Yes. Good.* Whirl: *LAUGHS* Whirl: The little mouth! Shockwave: Shockwave: *going to put darksteel on -such- Throne Room Construction Duty* Whirl: Aww, look at it! It tore someone in two! Airachnid: [is going to sneak out while everyone is looking at the pictures] Shockbox: *Mesmerized* Whirl: *will swivel his helm and bob his head at Airachnid* FakeProwl: *ah? hm.* @Soundwave «The knowledge that Unicron can compact himself into the size of a regular mech is... alarming. I wouldn't have thought it possible for such a small frame to support him.» Shockwave: Darksteel: *Regret.......* FakeProwl: @Soundwave «I take it you invited Starscream to warn him against the dangers of making a bargain with Unicron for power.» ItsyBitsySpyers: *Thank goodness, the images are gone. Going from the tape to that was SUCH whiplash.* Shockbox: *Aw. It is over.* Whirl: ((darksteel, you did us all a great service today. Your sacrifice will not be forgotten)) Rodimus: *grins to himself and centently projecting his mirth* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Correct. Record indicated boxverse alternate attempted. This, not wanted. Rodimus: *trolllolololol* Shockwave: Shockwave: *relaxes very slightly now that he doesnt have to be so Attentive to the Perfect Organic* ItsyBitsySpyers: *RODIMUS HE TAKES BACK EVERY GIFT YOU GOT TODAY* Rodimus: *mind is off unicorn isnt it?* ItsyBitsySpyers: *...You can keep the gifts* Cardinal: Hello Soundwave and company! Whirl: *streetches* Well, I feel like I learned a lot tonight. I should see that movie sometime. Cardinal: ((Aww did I miss the stream)) Bumblebee: I never want to see that movie. Whirl: *stands and points to Predaking* Comm me when you're free. We'll has out a date and time. Smokescreen: Oh! Soundwave- did you ever get a chance to listen to that playlist? Bumblebee: [thumbs-up at Whirl] FakeProwl: @Soundwave «Boxverse. The one where Starscream is crowned and immediately assassinated by Megatron-turned-Galvatron?» FakeProwl: *he's guessing based on, y'know, the box shapes.* Shockbox: *He will have to ask his alternate what makes that Organic so 'Perfect', but he'll admit to it being appealing.* Shockwave: Shockwave: *hesitates* .... I possess the films on file and have shared them previously. boomtank: -and up he goes. Time to go home now- ItsyBitsySpyers: [[Greetings, Knock Out.]] And yes, he missed it. [[Farewell, Blaster.]] Bumblebee: Knock Out! boomtank: Thanks for the recording, g'night Whirl: There's more than ONE? Well, deamn. Yeah, shoot em to me, mech. *nods* Shockwave: Predaking: *nods to Whirl. now that the documentary has ended, it seems an opportune time for such... 'hashing'* Rodimus: *pings whirl a link to DL the triolgy later* Cardinal: Hello Bee! boomtank: -waves to Soundwave before leaving- ItsyBitsySpyers: @Smokescreen [[Part of it. He is enjoying it.]] Shockwave: Shockwave: Very well. boomtank: ((mun is gonna wander off now, thanks for the stream Shockbox: *And speaking of asking things later.....* @Shockwave: I have a proposition. Smokescreen: Really? I'm glad you're liking it! Guess I was right about the music you like. Whirl: All right, I'm out. See you losers later. *salutes the room and trots for the door* Bumblebee: Bye, Whirl! FakeProwl: *ah. the pretty doctor is here.* Shockwave: Shockwave: *looks at alternate expectantly* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Affirmative. That Starscream, also ghost. *Small pause.* Unknown if related to one encountered. FakeProwl: *he missed the show.* Cardinal: *awww* Bumblebee: Hey Predaking, um...never mind. Cardinal: *is going to look around for Buzzsaw* FakeProwl: @Soundwave «Ghost. Is that a frequent occurrence with Starscreams?» Smokescreen: :O Knocktopus! Whirl: *spins on his heel to nod to Bee, spins back, and leaves* Shockwave: Predaking: *blinks* Cardinal: Trogdor! Smokescreen: /Going to wave at Knocktopus- he's not moving his helm from Bee's lapthough/ ItsyBitsySpyers: *Buzzsaw floats over to Knock Out and perches. Saw buds.* Smokescreen: You should lie down here with me- it's pretty comfy here! Cardinal: *saw buds 4 life* Cardinal: *waves back to Smokescreen* Cardinal: In a bit, definitely! ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Unclear. Three known. More examples needed. Bumblebee: ...Well, Predaking, sir. Would you, um, we're trying to organize treaties and...you know, Predacon territory. Protecting it. Yeah. So. Cardinal: Hello Buzzsaw.  How goes life in the art world? FakeProwl: @Soundwave «That's three too many for my tastes. I don't suppose you know how to... banish them? exorcize? ghostbust?» ItsyBitsySpyers: {{Successful, of course! Steve Vale awaits the completion of my newest piece with stalled ventilations.}} Cardinal: Steve Vale?  *thinks*  Is that the Eradicon settlement? FakeProwl: ((... is he making a statue of starscream for steve vale)) Cardinal: A sculpture I assume? Bumblebee: ...Steve Vale? Shockwave: Predaking: Ah, so you seek my advice regarding my bretheren from your 'universe'. Rodimus: *oh great they are all chatting now...* ItsyBitsySpyers: {{Ah! You've heard of it! Yes, they look forward to having their struggles immortalized.}} Bumblebee: Yes. Please. Council's tricky and this is the one thing they're going to let me do so... Cardinal: *nods thoughtfully* Cardinal: What kind of materials do you typically used? Rodimus: *flops backwards on the now cleared off table and broods* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Bumblebee: {{A large Vehicon settlement of approximately 80. All have assigned themselves variations on the human designation "Steve".}} Bruin: *Everyone has reached the end of their collective socialization tolerance fr the night, so time to leave* Shockbox: @Shockwave: In exchange for my own CNA sample, I would like to request a small preview of your current working area. ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Negative. Knowledge never needed. One reframed, one helpful. Other seen, never met. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Laserbeak helpfully pats Rodimus' helm and offers him a treat with one feeler* ItsyBitsySpyers: *...She then takes it back, splits it in half, and offers him half. She'll eat the other piece.* FakeProwl: @Soundwave «Hm. Too bad.» *it might be useful if he ever needs to assassinate Starscream someday.* Shockwave: Predaking: *frowns thoughtfully* What is the current status of your relations? Has their territory been respected thus far? FakeProwl: *admittedly, the dead usually can't hold public office, but he wouldn't put it past Starscream to try anyway.* ItsyBitsySpyers: {{Found materials, dead parts, energon... the usual, dear doctor.}} Cardinal: *chuckles*  I thought so. Shockwave: @Shockbox: *helm tilt* ...Acceptable. *his samples from the boxyverses are limited, and all evidence indicates that this alternate is not particularly destructive or disrespectful* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Will inform if discovered. Cardinal: My mate uses the same for his puzzles. I was thinking I might trade you some of his cast-offs for some of yours? Give you both more variety for your respective work. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Buzzsaw sticks out a feeler. Deal.* FakeProwl: @Soundwave «I'd appreciate it.» Bumblebee: As well as it can be, bots are afraid and mostly don't want trouble. But I know there's going to be THAT idiot that goes out and tries to hunt them. So I guess...how much space is enough space... Bumblebee: And how much contact do you want from us? Cardinal: *shakes it formally* Shockbox: *His posture might have straightened a smidgen. He nods at the other's confirmation.* ItsyBitsySpyers: {{I shall transfer you one of my rare failed pieces tomorrow.}} Shockwave: Predaking: *hmms* Such an individual would soon become the hunted. Bumblebee: Yeah, and then it would just be a giant mess for everyone. Shockbox: *Going to be the first time he willingly travels to someone else's universe for something other than a large gathering.* Bumblebee: But I'll keep in mind to write that into the treaty. Shockwave: *daw........ alternate playdate* Shockbox: *Shhshhhh yes.* Cardinal: Hey Trogdor, still room over there? Shockbox: *Might need....coodinates.....and to set up a time.* FakeProwl: @Soundwave «... How are you?» Smokescreen: Plenty of room! Come on over! FakeProwl: *he needs to leave to get ready for work soon, but he's gotta make sure Soundwave has adequately recovered first.* Shockbox: *Do not recall if Shockbox was ever given a frequency to attempt communication with, either.* ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Relieved documentaries: complete. Tired. Journey home, recharge imminent. Rodimus: *bored Rdoimus. this is bad* ItsyBitsySpyers: *Which is why the minis are starting to gather toward him* Rodimus: *he sits up and peers aroudn the room servaying...* FakeProwl: *acknowledging ping. that's good enough.* @Soundwave «I should go get ready for work.» ItsyBitsySpyers: *Oh no. Soundwave knows what that means. He's scramming.* Smokescreen: /He's going to glance at Rodimus and wink at- come make a car pile!/ Bumblebee: Smokey, this is your song. ItsyBitsySpyers: @Prowl: (txt): Acknowledged. Work well. ... Assistance appreciated. Shockwave: Predaking: If my 'alternate' is anything like myself, then the principle factors for consideration are power and respect. Peaceable relations -are- possible, but recall that your Autobots may still-- Cardinal: Excellent! Smokescreen: ((wait dangit the sound isnt playing what song Bumblebee: (( CARRY ON MY WAYWARD SOOOOOOON Cardinal: *He's going to head right on over to Smokescreen and Bee* Smokescreen: ((:OOO Shockwave: Predaking: --have much to atone for. As for the size of their territory, I myself claimed a large space centered upon our burial grounds and the Manganese Mountains. I am told it is roughly-- FakeProwl: @Soundwave «Rest well.» Cardinal: Hello Bumblebug! Smokescreen: wait I'm not a wayward son Smokescreen: Once I rose above Bumblebee: Hey Knock Out! ItsyBitsySpyers: *Nod and carefully de-laces both hands.* Smokescreen: /He'll sing along thoguh- he knows this! Kinda!/ Cardinal: How's it going? Smokescreen: CARRY ON MY WAYWARD SUUUUUUN Bumblebee: [nods as he listens, definitely taking some mental notes] Shockwave: Predaking: --equivalent to the size of one of your pre-war city-states. FakeProwl: *a farewell ping; disappears.* Bumblebee: Ok, thank you. I...I understand. I don't know how much the Council is willing to atone, but I'll do it myself if I have to. You helped us protect Cybertron and are incredible allies to have. Shockwave: Shockwave: Good night, Soundwave. ItsyBitsySpyers: *Looks to Shockwave and pings him. He's going to go home, (and be sick and scrub up a bit and maybe play hax until he can) get some recharge.* Bumblebee: Not just for power, but as another perspective for how our planet should operate to accomodate everyone. Bumblebee: And Knock Out...honestly, it's not bad. Bumblebee: Been happier lately, how about you? ItsyBitsySpyers: *Gets everyone docked, sends Shockwave a similarly appreciative message for the handhold, and trudges out* Shockwave: Predaking: *looks faintly surprised, but pleasantly so.* If you approach the matter with a similar candidness and dignity, then I am certain you can one day achieve this goal. Smokescreen: I'm gonna head off- I gotta go somewhere important, buuut- /He's going to hug Bee and Knock Out really quick./ Bumblebee: Glad you approve, easier than the Council. I have their approval, but it came with a price I'm not willing to pay again. And they know that. Bumblebee: Seeya Smokes. [hugs back] Smokescreen: Thank you for all your help, Bee Bumblebee: Anytime. Bumblebee: I'm heading out too, thanks for hosting again. Bumblebee: And thanks for your help, Predaking. Cardinal: Bye Trogdor!  *hugs* Shockwave: Predaking: *brows furrow-- more puzzled than anything* Your species' politics seem unduly troublesome. Cardinal: I've been fine, Bee.  Enjoying some down time. Bumblebee: Oh yeah, they are. That's why I quit, this is really the last thing I'm ever going to do for them. Bumblebee: Awesome Knock Out, I'll um...I'll comm. you sometime? Shockwave: Predaking: *nods in acceptance of thanks* Anything to assist in the well-being of my brothers abroad. Cardinal: Please do! Shockbox: *It is time for a sleep. Or in Shockbox's case, it is time to work his aft off in order to open up a large enough timeslot for his field trip.* Shockwave: *knows that feel, alternate* Shockbox: *All of you are being bid adieu.* Shockbox: *G'night.* ItsyBitsySpyers: ((night!)) Shockwave: *He, too, must attend to his work. Files quietly out as soon as he's certain that DS and SL aren't going to consume the entire snack table on their way out* Rodimus: *there is nothing but a prime on the snack table* Shockwave: *all the more reason to make sure they dont eat you* Shockwave: (( ;) night folks, thanks for streaming, i'll get out of roddymuns hair lol)) Rodimus: ((I wanta go playoverwatch l3

[the-awoken-crusader-blog]

The Judgement

[PoV: Meikakuna]

[Location: The Atiel League]

It took me several days worth of travel to eventually reach this Atiel League, despite the fact that I’m only running on the words of a pathetic Garchomp...it’s very much the only lead I have.

The place is...definitely something to say the least, seeing how towering the building is and the vast number of people going to and fro. I’m not really one for crowds, but at least the fighters are giving me of looks of curiosity and suspicion rather than suggestive smiles and playful winks.

Lashing out at others for flirting will draw a good deal of bad attention towards me, something I can’t afford. So I need to keep my temper in check if the situation does arrive, otherwise finding Tapferkeit will be...even more difficult than it already is.

But I doubt that’ll be the case, seeing that most of the people here seem to keep to themselves. Which is more than good enough for me normally, but sadly I need to inquire around in order to gain knowledge on Tapferkeit’s whereabouts.

Steeling my nerves I began the process of asking strangers, seeing if any individuals know of this Crusader. Surprisingly...they do, in fact one even informed me that a match with the Crusader involved is about to begin.

To find out that such a match is happening incredibly soon, it’s as if Arceus themself must’ve took pity on my plight and gave me the perfect opportunity to witness and judge Tapferkeit.

As quickly as I could I made a bee-line for the desk, paying whatever the fare is to have admission to the arena. From the sounds I’m hearing as I rush to the stands, the match is already preparing to start.

With some difficulty I make my way to my seat, my eyes falling upon the ring in the center where the fight shall take place. Standing to the side of the ring is an odd-colored Scizor with a microphone in one of her claws, it appears that she’s currently introducing the fighters of the match.

On one side I see a Delphox and a Toxicroak, despite the distance I could see the tenseness in their forms. Their body language shows that they’re experience fighters, however something is making them very nervous.

Before I could investigate further the voice of the Scizor breaks my train of thought. “-And now for the Titan of this Titan Match! We have the Metal Giant, Tapferkeit!”

The roar of the crowd intensifies, causing me to wince slightly as I shift my gaze to the other side of the ring. I couldn’t help but feel my jaw drop as my eyes fall upon the individual known as Tapferkeit, the words that described this Golurk did him no justice.

He stood twice as tall compared to the Delphox and Toxicroak, no wonder those two felt so nervous. His size alone is greatly intimidating, so I can only wonder how his might will compare.

During my admiration I seemed to have lost track of time, for the warriors have already taken their combat-ready stances as the Scizor began her countdown.

“Ready... Set... GO!” She shouts, signifying that the match has begun.

The Toxicroak immediately leaped into action, running at an angle to flank Tapferkeit’s side as the Delphox prepared a fire attack with her wand.

The Golurk didn’t move at first, instead standing stock still as he observed them. Once the Toxicroak got close his fist became enveloped in orange energy, what I recognize to be Rock Smash. The Delphox also conjures several floating spheres of fire before unleashing them at her opponent, if the Will-O-Wisps and the Rock Smash were to collide...they will surely deal a great deal of damage to the Crusader.

That is when Tapferkeit made his move, due to his size he’s unable to sidestep the attacks because of how quickly they came at him...so instead he angled himself to face the two and raised one of his arms. The lines on his hand flashes green before a large wall of similar-colored energy forms before him, its surface acting as a shield that blocked the attacks.

As quickly as it formed the shield vanishes, the Golurk bringing his other fist and delivering a powering swing at the Toxicroak. Being the agile Pokemon he is Frog easily jumped back to avoid the dangerous swing, for if it were to connect...it would most likely have knocked him out of the fight right then and there.

And so the fight continued, the Delphox and Toxicroak forced to using their speed and range to use hit-and-run tactics in order to suppress their giant foe. It left no choice but for Tapferkeit to be on the defensive, either forced to take the brunt of the attacks or blocking them with his make-shift shield. Despite how dire his situation seemed, he didn’t look like he minded. In fact, it’s as if he’s actually enjoying the fight.

The Toxicroak made a circle around Tapferkeit before leaping at his back, once again preparing to deliver another Rock Smash in hopes of finally crippling the giant...

...However little did he realize that the Golurk was waiting for him to do just that very thing.

Tapferkeit spins to face the Toxicroak with an outstretched hand, grasping the Pokemon’s body before he could even reach him. The Pokemon’s eyes widen in fear, realizing what kind of situation he just got himself into.

The crowd gasps at this sudden turn of events, for now the Toxicroak is at the Golurk’s mercy.

Seeing her companion in danger, the Delphox immediately thrusts her wand forward to unleash a powerful Flamethrower in hopes of forcing Tapferkeit to release her captured partner.

And Tapferkeit did in fact reelease, but in a way that she didn’t expect. Twisting his body the Golurk flings the Toxicroak right at the incoming attack, not only blocking the flames but sending him sailing right into the Delphox. The two Pokemon are sent tumbling to the ground, the force of the throw causing them to slide a good distance before eventually stopping.

I couldn’t help but wince at the impact as well as the noise from the audience due to the unexpected turn, combined with the Scizor’s energetic announcements it makes the roar of the crowd to an almost deafening point.

It’s obvious that the Toxicroak won’t be getting back up anytime soon, for not only was he used as a projectile but he also took the Flamethrower right to the face The Delphox herself doesn’t seem to be in good shape either, due to how hard her friend was thrown at her. However she’s still conscious and capable of fighting, while her friend is not.

I’ve seen enough to know that this is over, all it takes now is for Tapferkeit to charge and knock out the Delphox due to her being trapped underneath the Toxicroak.

And that is what I expected him to do, only...for me to be ver ywrong.

Instead the Golurk crosses his arms, waiting patiently for the Delphox to slowly push her companion off herself and get back to her feet. In fact he shouted words of encouragement, much to my surprise.

“Stand back up, lass! The fight is not over yet!” He booms, the intensity of his voice contesting with that of the crowd itself. “I know there is more strength in you! Show this Crusader what you have!”

What is he doing? He could’ve ended the fight right then and there, she was in such a state that she would’ve been incapable of stopping him. And yet he waits and even encourages the Delphox to stand back up, what is he getting out of that?

It’s obvious that the Delphox is just as confused as I am, seeing how she looks at the Golurk with a mixture of suspicion and uncertainty. But nevertheless she's now standing, her wand gripped tightly in her hand.

With her back on her feet, the Golurk resumed the fight by charging her. However unlike earlier he went completely on the offensive, relentlessly delivering powerful swing after swing.

Without her companion to distract him, the Delphox is forced to do nothing but dodge his attacks. With how much pressure the Golurk is putting on her, she’s unable to even retaliate back. She’s not built for agility like the Toxicroak, so she’s going to quickly exhaust herself at this rate or make a misstep that will immediately end the fight.

Tapferkeit could’ve kept the constant onslaught of powerful swings, to make the Delphox keep dodging until she tires herself out. But instead of prolonging the inevitable, he takes a different action. He stops his swinging and raises one foot before slamming it hard into the ground, channeling his power into the action he causes the floor before him to crack and shake violently.

The Delphox tried to avoid it, but due to how sudden the Earthquake was she ends up losing her balance and stumbling to the ground.

Tapferkeit covers the distance and approaches the Delphox, who is already utterly exhausted. Her eyes widen as she sees the titan looming over her, his fists clenched tightly. He leans over and extends one of his hands towards the Pokemon, lightly tapping her head with a finger.

“You fought well, lass.” He says quietly, giving her an approving nod.

Silence befalls the arena as they watch the situation tensely, waiting to see how the Delphox would respond. Eventually she closes her eyes and nods her head, saying something I could only assume was her admitting defeat.

With that the Scizor suddenly breaks the silence. “What a match, ladies and gents!” She announces, with her words snapping everyone out of their stupor the crowd roars in response. I couldn’t help but sit still, processing what happened.

That match... It’s not that those two warriors weren’t skilled, it’s just that they weren’t prepared to fight a foe such as Tapferkeit. Despite the onslaught, he held his ground until the Toxicroak gave him the opportunity to win. Even with the large number of burn marks and dents, he looks as if he’s ready to immediately participate in yet another fight.

He truly is a force to be reckoned with...

"And the winner of this round is Tapferkeit! Ladies and gents, let us give a loud round of applause to the Metal Giant!” The Scizor cheers. Due to the fact that Tapferkeit’s arm is too large for her to grip, she instead makes do with thrusting her free claw into the air with the Crusader following suit.

Seeing enough, I quickly make my way out towards the lobby in order to wait for him. Not a doubt in my mind the Golurk holds the potential, someone of his caliber...perhaps even he could possibly beat Kelviks.

As I wait impatiently the doors eventually open, revealing the Crusader walking out. On his body he sports various injuries that his opponents have inflicted upon him during the fight, however he himself doesn’t seem too worse for wear.

Before I open my mouth to speak I freeze, noticing a giant hammer resting on his shoulder.

He...has a hammer?! Since when?! Why didn’t he even use it in the fight? Seeing how well he did, if he were to use that weapon...

By the gods...

Noticing my staring, the Golurk looks at me before laughing. “Greetings, lass!” He booms, making his way towards me. “I assume that you’ve watched the match, eh?”

Seeing that he approached me instead of vice versa, I quickly recollect my thoughts. “Yes indeed, Crusader.” I eventually say, putting my thoughts under much tighter reins. I couldn’t help but glance back at his hammer, the size of the weapon making the Golurk even more intimidating. “There is something I would like to speak to you about.”

The Crusader tilts his head slightly, the amused twinkle in his eye turning to one of curiosity. “Something you wish to speak to me about?” He asks. “Very well! I am all open, dear lass! Tell this Crusader what you have to say!”

Despite being put-off by his rather outgoing personality, I prepare myself for the main reason why I’m here. “Tapferkeit, the reason for my presence being here is because I’ve been searching for you.” This causes him to tilt his head ever so more, however he remains silent so that I can continue. “Where I come from, there is an Arena... The one who takes care of it has been searching for a warrior of great strength, one capable of defeating the arena.” I cross my arms over my chest, my pink eyes meeting his single yellow. “There is a dangerous force that is about to enter this world, in order to defeat it once and for all...he needs a warrior worthy of taking it on.”

A small smile works its way onto my face. “After witnessing the fight, I have no doubt that you possess the potential to be that warrior.”

Having absorbed what I said, the Golurk lets out a laugh. “A worthy warrior eh? I am honored for you to have approached me out of all the others!” His glance turns to his hammer. “However that fight, I have not used my full potential! Weapons are forbidden to be used here, so I was forced to make do without my mighty hammer!” He looks back to me, the glow in his eye intensifying. “If you seek a powerful warrior to challenge this arena in order to be worthy of fighting this force, I shall gladly accept!”

With that a massive weight was lifted off my shoulders, for I was prepared to explain in even further detail if he were to have no interest in going to the arena. Letting out the breath I never realized I was holding I reach into my bag for a piece of paper, containing directions. “Your willingness to go relieves me greatly, Tapferkeit.” I sigh. “We’ve been searching for someone for a long time, so to finally find someone who holds that promise and accept...it gladdens me immensely.”

“It would go against everything I stand for if I were to not accept, my friend.” He reassures, accepting the small paper in his massive hands. “However there are some things that I must take care of, but with these directions...I will meet you at this arena you speak of!” With his fist he taps his chest. “By the honor of a Talon Crusader, you have my word!”

Unable to suppress my smile, a grin makes its way onto my face. “Thank you, Tapferkeit.” I thank, bowing my head. “Until we meet again.”

With that I turn and make my way out of the Atiel League, all that’s left for me is to return to the Arena...

...And inform Kelviks that I have in fact, found a warrior with potential...

(Cameos: Rhoslyn of @thevaloroushearts)

[heretherebeelexi-blog]

Morrisons Savers Clear Honey

What was I listening to while writing this? 13.0.0.0.0 by TTNG.

Someone I abhor greatly messaged me yesterday and told me that they enjoyed mint choc chip ice cream. I couldn’t disagree with that, because even though this person is the antithesis of all that is good in the world, their opinions on ice cream were just an opinion, and let’s face it. Mint choc chip is seriously a good time. I had half a mind to talk about opinion vs fact in the opening balestra, but ultimately who would want to hear my opinions on any matter. Instead I decided to write a little bit about a time I had some bloody good ice cream, please bear with me for I promise this does have something to do with the honey. So there I was, in Southern France, the sun was rather excited to be there, unlike myself. This was a time when I was much less enthusiastic about being outside, and didn’t appreciate the glorious weather, the stunning architecture of La Rochelle, and the lovely people. I forget exactly which seaside location I was in but I do remember the sound of waves and the screams of the people filling the air, a loss of a sandcastle here and a wet sock there. The decision had been made, ice cream for the unit we were travelling in. We found one of those little shops, the ones you pass and think “how does something this quaint survive next to the monoliths of industry?” It seemed friendly, the owner had a smile that showed no sign of despair and why would he when he had dominion over the dairy products. A huge array of flavours and experiences were available to choose from, but one combination stood out to me beyond all else.

Nutella and Banana.

As soon as it went into my mouth I knew my path had changed, I was no longer headed for ruin and damnation, but anything I do henceforth was blessed by this one experience. The balance and composure was a force to be reckoned with. The Nutella complimented the banana and vice versa, every mouthful was harmony. I have never been filled with something so creamy and thick before and never will again. If this is the pinnacle how can anything compete, and would that not leave me constantly on a search for something better, but no. This was enlightenment. That little ice cream shop offering ecstasy in spherical form was in fact Shangri-La. The rest of the day was filled with riches and wonders, everything was bright and beautiful. I would need to find a dictionary to describe it any further. I would usually want to go home, but in that moment, I was home. That day was something frozen in time and memory, the golden leaves of autumn still in the mind. The details fade as my trust in time disappears but in the main points, I am resolute.

Earlier I said that this had something to do with the honey, I lied. This story has nothing to do with honey, although it could be said neither does this honey, or I might have just been spoiled recently with the nectar of the gods.

Let’s just jump straight in and talk about the packaging, as is usually done first, you see it first and that is where the first judgement is made. It might be more accurate here to correct made to mad. I, personally, do not find any of this packaging interesting or joyful, it’s cold and corporate. The orange blotches they expect me to believe are bees look far removed from the friendly loving creature handed down through the aeons to gift us the honey. Something that miffs me greatly is the placement of the weight of the jar under the name, it’s far too close and is cluttered, not to mention if you take a short mosey further along the label, it tells you once again the weight, although judging from recent public decisions, that might be required.

This was only a cheeky pound, which is about what I would expect to be paying for this size pot in the budget honey section. No complaints can be made with the price tag. What does make me want to see the manager though was the experience I had when I opened it. I made sure to have it standing upright for a suitable amount of time before opening the jar for the first time, but even then, the contents had managed to stay on the lid of the jar until the very moment I took it off, leaving me with a disaster on my hands, literally. When your first experience with a jar of honey is diving into the stream of water nearest you to remove the product you have paid for from your skin and such, you know that no love was given to this product. In fact, when spooning this runny disaster out and trying to get it closer to my mouth hole, more was lost to the abyss of the side of the jar or table. So far, for the tag of being a Savers item, it was not saving my emotional wellbeing.

To look at the actual contents of the jar, the honey is unnaturally runny, to the point of it being rather concerning. The colour reminds me of clear apple juice, and I am not talking Copella, as their juice is a tongue journey. This colour just speaks of ill will. This honey has a good amount of bubbles at the top, which does make for a nice photograph but that is about all of the joy I got out of those.

Time for the great spooning, and let me tell you, I have a small spoon with me for this jar. I put it in the honey and it sunk so quickly by the time I looked back I had lost what I recognised as spoon and it had been replaced with a honey covered disaster, I once again would have to clean up after this honey, but alas I am strong. I put it in my mouth. The first note leaves much to be desired from this honey, an introduction to an essay that doesn’t stimulate you to want to go further, but alas you have to. Immediately though the first paragraph of this honey has something to say, it’s punchy, it leads you by your hand through the forest, but just before you get anywhere, it disappears. The metallic tang we all know and fear so very much is what is left over, you hear the screeching of birds as they all fly from their roosts in the trees. You don’t know what is coming but it brings fear into the heart of the avian. The clunking gets louder, the screams grow more urgent, you start to panic, but something takes you by the hand. A citrus burst, a hint of lime and love, not enough to remove the fear completely, but enough to know you can make it out alive, if you run now, and run fast. This mouth experience lasts for a very long time compared to some of the other budget honeys I have tasted. It felt more of a half marathon than a sprint. I never did find out what was in that forest that day, but it punctuates my nightmares still.

The Taste: A long build up, the wailing of guitars, the incessant beat of the drum, the promise of a crescendo, and then, the band just walks off stage/10

The Packaging: I don’t really have anything funny to say here, I just can’t believe someone thought the design was pleasant/10

The Colour: The orchards bleed, the apple falls, we are given such disgrace from an earth so pure/10

Overall: If you have me on snapchat, I poured this entire jar of honey over my hand to notify people it was coming soon, and that, I honestly felt was a better use of the honey than ingesting it/10

[ehlersdanlo]

All the questions you want to answer

Spotify, SoundCloud, or Pandora? spotify duh

is your room messy or clean? my room is horribly messy

what color are your eyes? green

do you like your name? why? my name is okay, i guess

what is your relationship status? single

describe your personality in 3 words or less. stubborn and curmudgeonly

what color hair do you have? dark brown!

what kind of car do you drive? color? i normally don’t have a car, but when i’m home, ya girl drives a beige toyota avalon

where do you shop? i mostly shop online and at aerie

how would you describe your style? i would describe my style as comfy/casual art ho! my usual outfit consists of a pair of black leggings, a graphic t(or a plain t shirt), w a long sweater, colorful socks, and black doc martens

favorite social media account? tumblr probs

what size bed do you have? at home, i have a double, at college i have a single

any siblings? i have one sister

if you can live anywhere in the world where would it be? why? probably amsterdam, paris, madrid, or barcelona!!

favorite snapchat filter? the star one!!

favorite makeup brand(s): concealer: narsfoundation: urban decay nakedmascara: diorbrows: anastasia beverly hills eyeshadow: too faced

how many times a week do you shower? probably 5-6 times

favorite tv show? futurama, rupaul’s drag race, mystery science theater 3000, stranger things, planet earth, htgawm, etc.

shoe size? 9

how tall are you? 5"5

sandals or sneakers? neither! boots

do you go to the gym? no, but i’m gonna start!!

describe your dream date! we smoke weed, order pizza, then we have sex tbh

how much money do you have in your wallet at the moment? i have no money i’m poor

what color socks are you wearing? tie dye

how many pillows do you sleep with? as many as possible

do you have a job? what do you do? nope, i’m a student

how many friends do you have? 7 that i love

whats the worst thing you have ever done? my dad and i got in a fight and some things were said by both of us and i still think about the result of that fight all the time

whats your favorite candle scent? vanilla, lilac, and apple!

3 favorite boy names: Simon, Leo, Max

3 favorite girl names: Ava, Mollie, Zoe

do you have a nickname? what is it? my friends call me liv and ollie, my cousin calls me kickflip

how many times have you been to the hospital? twice

top 10 favorite songs? not in order btw1) cocoa hooves/glass animals2)springtime in new york/watsky 3)sugar water/cibo matto4)two weeks/grizzly bear5)diamond heart/lady gaga6)the less i know the better/tame impala7)buzzcut season/lorde8) don’t be nice/watsky 9)surfin/kid cudi 10)blue/marina and the diamonds

do you take any medications daily? zoloft, luvox, zyrtec, and adderall

what is your skin type? (oily, dry, etc) i have extremely dry skin

what is your biggest fear? spiders, i hate cliffs/edges w no railings, that everyone i love will stop loving me

how many kids do you want? currently none

whats your go to hair style? i leave my hair down or in a messy bun

what type of house do you live in? (big, small, etc) my dorm is tiny, but my home is average size

who is your role model?

what was the last compliment you received?

what was the last text you sent? i texted @artichokemesexuallythat her niece is gonna have good music taste

how old were you when you found out santa wasn’t real? 8 years old

what is your dream car? a red/black rav4 with good gas mileage

opinion on smoking? i’m fine w it, i understand that people need the habit, and i’m not gonna judge anyone who does it

do you go to college? yep

what is your dream job? ideally i would help charities or possibly political candidates get their message across

would you rather live in rural areas or the suburbs? i’d rather live in the city but if i have to choose i’ll live in the suburbs

do you take shampoo and conditioner bottles from hotels? yes

do you have freckles? i have a couple of them sprinkled all over my body

do you smile for pictures? w family yes, w friends, no

how many pictures do you have on your phone? 524

have you ever peed in the woods? yes lmao

do you still watch cartoons? yes

do you prefer chicken nuggets from Wendy’s or McDonalds? mcdonalds DUH

Favorite dipping sauce? ranch bc i’m white

what do you wear to bed? a t shirt and undies

have you ever won a spelling bee? yeah i was that kid

what are your hobbies? i draw!

can you draw? yeah i think so

do you play an instrument? nope

what was the last concert you saw? tea or coffee?

Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts? starbucks

do you want to get married? not really

what is your crush’s first and last initial? i don’t have a crush

are you going to change your last name when you get married? idk if i’ll get married

what color looks best on you? black, gray, and forest green

do you miss anyone right now? yes! i miss riley so much!!

do you sleep with your door open or closed? closed

do you believe in ghosts? i don’t not believe in them if that makes sense??

what is your biggest pet peeve?

last person you called? my mom

favorite ice cream flavor? cake batter from coldstone

regular oreos or golden oreos? both

chocolate or rainbow sprinkles? rainbow

what shirt are you wearing? my el coyote restaurant shirt

what is your phone background? my dog 💕

are you outgoing or shy? i’m outgoing when you get to know me

do you like it when people play with your hair? YES

do you like your neighbors? yeah they’re cool

do you wash your face? at night? in the morning? night 🌙

have you ever been high? … yes

have you ever been drunk? yeah but i don’t have as much fun compared to when i get high

summer or winter? winter

day or night? night

dark, milk, or white chocolate? milk

favorite month? november

what is your zodiac sign? capricorn

who was the last person you cried in front of? either laura or riley i don’t remember

[glopratchet]

txt

Cloudstrum You get a gui, now is it is time to log in Good luck with that Tt says astryl_wyld Thean a password promt You try the password and you are asked for your name, email address and confirm it Your on! Now what? Logging In Of blood sample and thrown in the volcano Time and time again Tivadi_Prime logged on with a bit of luck You click it it closes it self That is all you get out of it No more blood test trle passes Astrokhan then the panels would start appearing a panel for all those being watched but not accessed A common room with the team you are on and live feeds from worlds the team is contbly working with as it is the one accessed most recently The panel is from the point of veiw of asytrly wylde It is his own personal dashboard of information that is provide by astrokhan which in sence builds up a reall time picture of what actually has been taking place during the years each world was accessed He can see his bank acount his enery level time since he last slept anything that he has access too of shublinium, a shadow that raies when cultists rasie the metal and keeps falling when they don't , he can see the market He can see is his shadow rising all those who acnowledge him as a god, all those he saved by bringing the trreasures of the skies to them He can see He can see all his contacts You are towerd by icons, access Den_a access Dendrin's Throne and the Door Who is dender from his perspective? But there is a hex grid and you can move him from location to location using this grid You can also see others moving from place to place and they all appear as purple dots You got to create the photoshop file before you can make any real changes, but first thing is first You have to get the colored blocks which make up the image into something you can work with There would be an inventory of items and there locations of your world everything you needed to make it Reason he does not have so much data needs lots of data to bring what the sience fot twoens to life, or at least computer intensive, and set up he needs the benifit of a university cooper Weather from all the locations are extreme Rain heavy at times A list of all the locations you can currently teleport to There are four locations, not including your initial position, of which, three can be accessed You grab the touchscreen stylus and begin writing "How do you like the new place? " she asks A document that records a story There is no interface Of course, the program will never have one from around the world that Tunney has access too A screen that provides a panel of imagery A screen that provides a panel of imagery from around the world that Tunney has access too A screen that shows the time in your location It's 7: 30 am New York A screen that shows the time in your location, The ability to teleport to a random coordinates, pulled at random from the master list of coordinates collected around the world If the information that you know is correct Tunney will soon be back The ability to teleport to a random coordinates, Information related to the number of alligators in the land around the local land, all of which is used for farming, this includes no data on the number in swamps The coordinate is a single digit outside the nine Information related to the number of alligators in the land around the local land, Information related to the number of cows in the land around the farm, all of which are used for farming, this includes no data on the number in fields Information related to the number of cows in the land around the farm, Information related to the number of art works in the land all of which are used for farm housing, this includes no data on the number in museums Information related to the number of art works in the land around the local land, in pubs, you can post notes for others to read or create polls The ability to interact with others The ability to interact with others in pubs, The abitilty to construct a machine that will protect and spy on other The abitlity to forsee possilbe future events through the swarms computing power The ability to construct a teacher tank, allowing others to learn at a acclerated rate The coordinate is a single letter after The abitlity to forsee possilbe future events through the swarms computing power The knowledge of all the hives and the amount of honey they are producing You get quite énough by selling it to the many bears that live in the woods You can also use this around your house, not that you have The ability to stream the data from the turtle drop people pay a small fee to spectate this event You get quite énough by selling it to the many birds that come to the lake After z The ability to stream the data from the turtle drop, The ability to see what the bundead are up to they are regularly caught slinking around by Tunney an are said to be planning something, wátever that may be You get quite énough The ability to see what the bundead are up to they are regularly caught slinking around by Tunney an are said to be planning something, The ability to purchase objects and own them buying the farm literally The coordination if the procession to where it now is Whitespace text, allowing a bit more The ability to purchase objects and own them, Knowledge of the plans of the skull lizards Nothing The coordinate is a number after The coordinate is a single letter before Knowing the specific teleporter Tunney uses to achieve this effect by manipulating the sand, including the digital rendering above this text A rainbow that spans accross the landscape, nothing else is this bright, well, except the The ability to create works of art The ability to create works of art, A system of damage and conflict capture, allowing fights between any being of any size The coordinate is a single digit to the left A coordinate from an eastern location with only one accessable spot A system of damage and conflict capture, Alerts on all attacks underway on any size being The coordinate is the number 1 A color pie, a slice of colors that span across the sea, slowly changing all vision Alerts on all attacks underway on any size being The ablity to gain more information apart from any translations The ablity to let the bees that are stored in tanks free accross tunneys gardens and farms The ablity to teleport to places that a hidden from the eyes of humans A system of speach between characters on screen Not a single letter is lost A mass system of change that turns stone into soil, tunneys only export is it's dead A system of speach between characters on screen A way to track the value of different money values compared to the other A coordinate, 1 outside of the 20m radius area A coordinate located on your land with many trees facing South allowing for growth Each account holds different values for money Units are grouped as sub units listed below A way to track the value of different money values compared to the other A banking system A central control location full of icons that can be used to open panels around Tunney's farm A central control location full of icons that can be used to open panels around Tunney's farm brand This is your bank account, it starts with $2, 014 A method of dying and seeing the colors of an individual A method of dying and seeing the colors of an individual brand An epic story about a bear crafting a massive farm The colors that a judge sees fit to reward for valour on the field An epic story about a bear from your rise in rank Looking through the farm's records A dashboard full of excitment A dashboard full of excitment from your rise in rank and foremost Yearending: The ability to destory the lair with many explosives and make Tunney's farm unusable You could just focus on the turtle drop first You could just focus on the turtle drop first and foremost The farm is all that you have left in this world, what good is riches without a home to keep them in?

[aurelliocheek]

GIC Poznan 2019: Connecting East and West

The Game Industry Conference in Poznan, Poland, is a perfect place if you want to meet an entirely new set of people and companies that you usually don’t see at other conferences.

The Games Industry Conference (GiC) in Poznan started in 2008 as a student meetup and slowly grew into one of the most significant developer events in Central and Eastern Europe. The last edition held in 2018 had 3,600 participants, 640 companies, and over 130 lectures, panels, roundtables, and workshops. We sat down with Jakub and Hanna Marszałkowski, the two main people behind the GiC, and talked about the upcoming 2019 edition, which takes place on the 17 to October 20th, 2019.

making games: Hello Hanna, hello Jakub, lets dive right in: Where do you see your Games Industry Conference in five years? Hanna: As currently the biggest GameDev conference in Central Eastern Europe, by all stats, number of attendees, talks or business meetings, we would love to provide even more fruitful opportunities in the business area and at the same time focus on passing more and more expert knowledge on the field of the game development. Last, but not least, we cannot forget about our most important feature – the inclusiveness. With scholarships, supporting women in game dev, discounts, and free entries for outstanding developers, we still want to be an open place for everyone with the desire to participate in the game development process.

Jakub: But we put particular pressure on the quality of talks, on organizing advanced talks for senior developers and on our process to achieve a high quality. We do not do sponsored talks, and we do not do sales pitches – everything is reviewed. We lost some sponsors because of that, but when it comes to talks, quality is king. We have atually taken some procedures from the academic world to make sure we keep a high standard. Numerous speakers are asked to improve their submissions, and everyone gets judges reviews which often contain suggestions or additional questions. Speakers are requested to reply to the judges, and we also reject quite a lot. We want to be the teaching event, the one that people are visiting to get valuable knowledge. So we are going there, year after year.

Hanna and Jakub Marszałkowski and their team have been organizing the Game Industry Conference in Poznan for 7 years now.

making games: What can I expect from GiC as a developer or entrepreneur? Which companies and which developers can I meet there? What is the mix of your audience? Jakub: GiC is the perfect place where business meets game development. We have dedicated areas for both devs and potential business partners: networking zones with Meet to Match, a Geek Careers recruitment zone, pitching events – at least four of them – and unformal evening parties. Let‘s not forget about access to Poznan Game Arena – with massive potential for reaching out to gamers, on one of the globally most important markets for PC gaming. At the event, you can meet developers of all kinds: coders, designers, artists, motions designers, project managers and producers, one-person indies, narrative specialists, composers and audio specialists, business developers, company owners, and business angels. The full range basically, and we have tracks with talks for all of them. As for companies, you can expect representatives of most of the Polish companies, up to groups of 50+ employees sent for knowledge and networking. German attendees and companies are the second biggest representation when analyzing it by country. Central and Eastern Europe is particularly well represented, now even more with CEEGA (Central & Eastern European Game Awards), the regional award for best games. Finally, everyone that wants to meet all of the above, including important business people from Asia.

making games: Is the GiC worthwhile for young developers and students who are taking their first steps in the industry? Where can I find cheap accommodation? Is there a discount for young developers and students? Hanna: I would say that the Game Industry Conference is the perfect place for students and starting game developers. With professional knowledge exchange, workshops, roundtables, and lectures on every level of complexity, you can easily find a subject that suits you best. Inclusiveness is one of the main pillars of the GiC, and our goal is to be open for everyone interested in game development. We do offer a wide variety of discounts, also dedicated to students and those who may not be able to afford a regular pass. Poznan is also an affordable city, with a broad variety of accommodation options, starting as low as 15 euros for a bed in a decent hostel. We are also particularly proud of our scholarship program. This year, doing it for the third time, we expect more than 50 scholars, from all around the world.

The Central & Eastern European Game Awards (CEEGA) 2018 were beeing held on October 13th 2018, during a big gala hosted by GIC together with Poznan Game Arena.

making games: Can I exhibit as an indie at the GiC this year? If so, how much does it cost and what additional costs can I expect? Jakub: Sure, that‘s what the indie zone is for, a cooperation between GiC and Poznan Game Arena. The area is a part of the expo so that you will have crowds playing your game, but at the same time, you are invited to MeetToMatch and pitching events. Maybe attending talks would be a bit difficult if you will not bring a team of at least four people. Pleasing the crowds can be time and strength consuming ;) The indie booths start at 230 Euro if ordering early, and that is for a complete turnkey solution, a ready built 9 sqm booth, with furniture, equipment, power, wifi. There are even PC screens provided, lus there is a permanent car entry card. With a more prominent option, you can easily get your branding printed. I cannot think of any additional costs right now, but bringing some finishing touches to your booth is always a good idea, even if you have a full printed branding.

making games: What does your current program look like? Which speakers and which topics do you plan to focus on? Jakub: We already have confirmed some speakers, like Ryan Clark founder of Brace Yourself Games, Kate Edwards of Geogrify, Rob Carr, ex-Rockstar audio designer and now at Wargaming, Juan Linietsky (Godot Engine development lead) or Łukasz Burdka, solution engineer at Techland. Our approach to talks also means that we have reviewed their submissions and announced both topics and descriptions. You can find them on our website – there are no „to be announced „talks at GiC. More than 40 other talks are in reviews, some iterated with submitting speakers to improve them or make them fit the audience better. The submissions are also open until August 10th, and we are working with numerous speakers on our invite list.

making games: Compared to other big European conferences like Nordic Games or Reboot Develop, where do you see the strengths of GiC? What is your unique selling point? Hanna: Both Nordic and Reboot are friends to us. We do not compete; we cooperate. There is enough space in Europe for all these conferences. However, GiC not only has an impressive size, but the range is also completely different. GiC is the place where one can meet an entirely new set of people and companies comparing to other conferences. Jakub: Plus the already mentioned unique approach to talks, and the convergence of a B2B and B2C event. It is more like the gamescom and devcom combo.

The Indie Zone of last years GIC consisted of 120 indies which were presenting their games, making it one of the biggest indie shows in Europe.

making games: Is Poznan still the right location if you want to grow further? Aren‘t you going to reach your limits at some point? Hanna: Poznan is and will be the center point between Berlin and Warsaw. Both from business and cultural point of view, it is one of the most significant places in Central and Eastern Europe. Easy to connect, cozy, and with a wide range of accommodation, it offers a full variety of amenities. Poznan is also my hometown, and even though I travel a lot and visit lots of other cities, I still love its atmosphere and vibe. It‘s a beautiful, both historical and modern city, to the point where we run sightseeing tours for GiC attendees. Jakub: We can also give a technical answer to that. Poznan is the expo city for Poland. All the biggest expos are held here by Grupa MTP, the biggest polish fair company. So is Poznan Game Arena. Having GiC colocated with this expo is a perfect synergy. I doubt anyone would find a good reason for us to move somewhere else.

making games: What possibilities do I have on site to get in touch with other visitors in a relaxed atmosphere? Hanna: Plenty ;) Generally, our whole Game Industry Conference is a place where you can comfortably spend time with the industry members. Apart from one-way lectures, there are many other opportunities to talk with fellow gamedev folks: roundtables,the B2B expo, cozy spaces in the venue. There is also a regular chillout zone and a business lounge. Gaining knowledge and making business may be done in so many different ways. Being casual is one of them, and that‘s the way we would like to run it. Jakub: Afterparties, let‘s not forget afterparties! We have many of them. Last year we counted eight, including three official ones on three evenings. Plus parties for gamers, naturally.

making games: Is there anything I should do the first time I go to GiC? What should I do first on site? What should I not miss under any circumstances? Jakub: This is where we maybe should explain our dates a bit more. The leading conference is being held October 18-20, from Friday to Sunday. The Thursday before is the side events day, pitching events day and so on. This is maybe a bit unusual for first-time visitors. Also, Saturday is a really busy day, and leaving early is probably a bad idea. When starting the day on Friday, we also recommend doing the Indie Zone on the expo first, before the GiC program gets hectic and the crowd hits the expo grounds. Things not to miss are numerous: Epic Game Music concert, Best Game Video competition, or the Central and Eastern European Game Awards (CEEGA) gala. There are also services and features that attendees sometimes tend to miss as these are not that common on events, like Daycare for gamedev kids, Women in Games Breakfast, 1on1 Mentoring. There is plenty of #FOMO ;] Moreover, all of that is included even in the most basic GiC pass.

making games: If the GiC were a Marvel superhero – which character would fit best? Hanna: We kind of think of ourselves as Nick Fury rather than a „full „superhero with ass-kicking powers and abilities. We want the developers to be the superheroes in our stories, and we do all we can to support them.

making games: Jakub and Hanna, thanks for your time and see you in Poznan in October!

  The post GIC Poznan 2019: Connecting East and West appeared first on Making Games.

GIC Poznan 2019: Connecting East and West published first on https://leolarsonblog.tumblr.com/

[lenaglittleus]

Health is Wealth but Wealth Should Not Mean Health

Note: I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous to post something. I want to make clear before sharing this that this is not coming from a place of judgment. I am also acknowledging my own privilege and contribution to the problem. My goal is to encourage you to use your own critical thinking skills when figuring out what is right for you NOT to judge anyone else’s choices. Please read with an open mind.

* * * * *

I’m not going to pretend I don’t love my job. I do. I love it A LOT. I get to spend my days exploring the health and wellness world, trying things out for myself and sharing those experiences with you. I get to interview “mavens” and shakers in the wellness space about their journeys on the podcast and this space has given me countless opportunities that I never take for granted. I definitely have days where I don’t want to work or feel overwhelmed by what’s on my plate, but never have I wanted to do anything else. Starting this blog completely transformed my life and my career.

But as this space has grown and my hobby became my career, I’ve increasingly become aware of the responsibility that comes with this platform. I’ve always hated the term “influencer” but the truth is that when you share your life online you inherently will influence those around you. That community could be big or small, but no matter what the size is there is great responsibility in ensuring that what you share is truthful and is done with awareness of your audience.

I’m not here to reprimand or throw shade at those who don’t play by those rules. The reality is that truth looks so different on everyone so even though I personally disagree with a lot of things I see shared within the health and wellness space (namely diet and fitspo culture), it’s not my job to tell them they are wrong…because right and wrong is an ever-moving target.

What I am here to do is send a message to you guys. My community. My people. I want to talk to you about the health and wellness space and what I fear is becoming a classified, privilege-based system. I’m also here to admit that I am a part of the problem, but hopefully my own admission can help you see where you’ve unintentionally passed judgement or played a role in the fracturing of the wellness space.

First, health is wealth. There is no arguing that. If you feel great, you are able to wake up everyday and do the things you need and want to do. Maybe that’s going to work, or taking care of your kids or showing up at a yoga class. If you’re feeling sick, dealing with chronic illness, addiction or pain, you cannot do these things. Or perhaps you can, but not without sacrifice. Health is never something to be taken for granted and absolutely should be one of our top priorities in life.

However, health should not mean wealth. I mean this in two ways. First, the healthcare system in the US is so messed up. As a born and raised Canadian I see it so clearly. That’s not to say the Canadian system is perfect (it’s not), but the amount you must pay for access to healthcare in this country is ABSURD. I’m lucky to be able to afford it and I 100% recognize this privilege, but it’s also absolutely crazy to me that that you must have money to get access to your basic health needs. No one should ever have to decide between their health and paying for something else. That being said, please make sure you’re covered. Health is not predictable so don’t roll the dice on it.

But what I’m really here to talk about is how money plays into our decisions when it comes to wellness. I think so many of us take for granted (myself included) what it means to pay for a yoga class or buy vegetables, let alone every new superfood powder that comes out or life-changing supplement.

Yes, I’m very much a part of the problem and I’m not going to pretend I don’t love my adaptogenic elixirs and cute yoga pants. I personally use a lot of these things in my life, and yes, professionally it is my job to promote them. By now you know I don’t promote anything I don’t love, but I also want to make it very clear that I do NOT think any of these things are essential.

You can do yoga with just your body on the floor of your bedroom. You can eat cereal instead of a green smoothie for breakfast. You can drink your coffee without MCT oil/mushrooms/god-knows-what. You can do all these things and still be healthy. They are all perks but don’t confuse them with essentials.

I don’t share every workout I do or product I’m trying out for this very reason. I have a platform and am deeply aware that my decisions influence yours. Whether you have half a million readers, or two this rule still applies. Your decisions influence those around you. It’s not that I’m not being truthful, it’s just that I don’t ever want to make anyone feel badly because they can’t afford the same things that I have access to.

I want YOU to use your critical thinking skills when you see someone else sharing their shamanic healing protocol or daily cryotherapy sessions. I’m not saying any of these things are bad, you just do not need these things to be healthy. You are absolutely welcome to experiment. In fact, I encourage it! But not if it’s going to drain your bank account or take precious time away from doing other things you love or need to do.

If you get 8 hours of sleep, you are enough. If you go for a walk, you are enough. If you get bee-venom injected into your veins daily, you are enough. Wherever you are at, you are enough.

Remember that everyone is on their own journey so please don’t pass judgement on where other people are at or what they have access to, whether it be a lot of access or very little. And don’t compare your journey to anyone else’s.

Sleep, breathe, drink water, eat your veggies and show compassion to yourself and others. Oh and free healthcare…but let’s save that talk for another day!

Thoughts??? I know this one was a heavy one…

The post Health is Wealth but Wealth Should Not Mean Health appeared first on The Healthy Maven.

from News About Health https://www.thehealthymaven.com/2018/05/health-is-wealth-but-wealth-should-not-mean-health.html

[womancomma]

Phenomenal Woman

“I walk into a room Just as cool as you please,   And to a man, The fellows stand or Fall down on their knees.   Then they swarm around me, A hive of honey bees.   I say, It’s the fire in my eyes,   And the flash of my teeth,   The swing in my waist,   And the joy in my feet.   I’m a woman Phenomenally.

Phenomenal woman, That’s me. “

Maya Angelou’s “Phenomenal Woman” is undoubtedly one of the most fundamentally important poems from a women voice. It’s mark in literature has lasted because of it candor and surprising vulgarity, especially for the time of it’s relese in 1978. When thinking about how women speak about women “Phenomenal Woman” was one of the first examples of this I could come to. It being embedded in poetry which is the heart of music makes it all the more fitting.

She starts with a dismissal of the assumed definition of ‘Phenomenal’ in relation to women.

“Pretty women wonder where my secret lies. I’m not cute or built to suit a fashion model’s size   But when I start to tell them, They think I’m telling lies.”

This beauty and weight being the primary standards women were and still are compared by others and themselves. Her tone doesn’t work at dismantling the sort of animosity that can live between women when addressing each other—however her words alter what they should be judging her by.

“It’s in the reach of my arms, The span of my hips,   The stride of my step,   The curl of my lips.”

Her images evoke a sensuality and sexuality (which feed into many unhelpful perceptions) that she uses her to assert her dominance. This tactic is one that continues to live heavily in urban music, especially highlighted in Hip Hop. Her voice uses the ‘rebel’ respect talking about a “taboo” subject earns its speaker, and capitalizes.

“Men themselves have wondered   What they see in me. They try so much But they can’t touch My inner mystery. When I try to show them,   They say they still can’t see.   I say, It’s in the arch of my back,   The sun of my smile, The ride of my breasts, The grace of my style.

I’m a woman Phenomenally. Phenomenal woman, That’s me. “

[readbookywooks]

The broom whisked down the corridor raising a great cloud of dust which, if you looked hard at it, seemed somehow to be sucked back into the broomstick. If you looked even harder you'd see that the broom handle had strange markings on it, which were not so much carved as clinging and somehow changed shape as you watched. But no one looked. Esk sat at one of the high deep windows and stared out over the city. She was feeling angrier than usual, so the broom attacked the dust with unusual vigour. Spiders ran desperate eight-legged dashes for safety as ancestral cobwebs disappeared into the void. In the walls mice clung to each other, legs braced against the inside of their holes. Woodworm scrabbled in the ceiling beams as they were drawn, inexorably, backwards down their tunnels. “'You can really clean up',” said Esk. “Huh!” There were some good points, she had to admit. The food was simple but there was plenty of it, and she had a room to herself somewhere in the roof and it was quite luxurious because here she could lie in until five a. m., which to Granny's way of thinking was practically noon. The work certainly wasn't hard. She just started sweeping until the staff realised what was expected of it, and then she could amuse herself until it was finished. If anyone came the staff would immediately lean itself nonchalantly against a wall. But she wasn't learning any wizardry. She could wander into empty classrooms and look at the diagrams chalked on the board, and on the floor too in the more advanced classes, but the shapes were meaningless. And unpleasant. They reminded Esk of the pictures in Simon's book. They looked alive. She gazed out across the rooftops of Ankh-Morpork and reasoned like this: writing was only the words that people said, squeezed between layers of paper until they were fossilized. Fossils were well-known on the Discworld, great spiralled shells and badly-constructed creatures that were left over from the time when the Creator hadn't really decided what He wanted to make and was, as it were, just idly messing around with the Pleistocene). And the words people said were just shadows of real things. But some things were too big to be really trapped in words, and even the words were too powerful to be completely tamed by writing. So it followed that some writing was actually trying to become things. Esk's thoughts became confused things at this point, but she was certain that the really magic words were the ones that pulsed angrily, trying to escape and become real. They didn't look very nice. But then she remembered the previous day. It had been rather odd. The University classrooms were designed on the funnel principle, with tiers of seats - polished by the bottoms of the Disc's greatest mages - looking precipitously down into a central area where there was a workbench, a couple of blackboards and enough floor space for a decent-sized instructional octogram. There was a lot of dead space under the tiers and Esk had found it a quite useful observation post, peering around between the apprentice wizards' pointy boots at the instructor. It was very restful, with the droning of the lecturers drifting over her as gently as the buzzing of the slightly zonked bees in Granny's special herb garden. There never seemed to be any practical magic, it always seemed to be just words. Wizards seemed to like words. But yesterday had been different. Esk had been sitting in the dusty gloom, trying to do even some very simple magic, when she heard the door open and boots clump across the floor. That was surprising in itself. Esk knew the timetable, and the Second Year students who normally occupied this room were down for Beginners' Dematerialisation with Jeophal the Spry in the gym. (Students of magic had little use for physical exercise; the gym was a large room lined with lead and rowan wood, where neophytes could work out at High magic without seriously unbalancing the universe, although not always without seriously unbalancing themselves. Magic had no mercy on the ham-fisted. Some clumsy students were lucky enough to walk out, others were removed in bottles.) Esk peeped between the slats. These weren't students, they were wizards. Quite high ones, to judge by their robes. And there was no mistaking the figure that climbed on to the lecturer's dais like a badlystrung puppet, bumping heavily into the lectern and absent-mindedly apologising to it. It was Simon. No one else had eyes like two raw eggs in warm water and a dose bright red from blowing. For Simon, the pollen count always went to infinity. It occurred to Esk that, minus his general allergy to the whole of Creation and with a decent haircut and a few lessons in deportment, the boy could look quite handsome. It was an unusual thought, and she squirrelled it away for future consideration. When the wizards had settled down, Simon began to talk. He read from notes, and every time he stuttered over a word the wizards, as one man, without being able to stop themselves, chorused it for him. After a while a stick of chalk rose from the lectern and started to write on the blackboard behind him. Esk had picked up enough about wizard magic to know that this was an astounding achievement- Simon had been at the University for a couple of weeks, and most students hadn't mastered Light Levitation by the end of their second year. The little white stub skittered and squeaked across the blackness to the accompaniment of Simon's voice. Even allowing for the stutter, he was not a very good speaker. He dropped notes. He corrected himself. He ummed and ahhed. And as far as Esk was concerned he wasn't saying anything very much. Phrases filtered down to her hiding place. “Basic fabric of the universe” was one, and she didn't understand what that was, unless he meant denim, or maybe flannelette. “Mutability of the possibility matrix” she couldn't guess at all. Sometimes he seemed to be saying that nothing existed unless people thought it did, and the world was really only there at all because people kept on imagining it. But then he seemed to be saying that there was lots of worlds, all nearly the same and all sort of occupying the same place but all separated by the thickness of a shadow, so that everything that ever could happen would have somewhere to happen in. (Esk could get to grips with this. She had half-suspected it ever since she cleaned out the senior wizards' lavatory, or ratherwhile the staff got on with the job while Esk examined the urinals and, with the assistance of some half-remembered details of her brothers in the tin bath in front of the fire at home, formulated her unofficial General Theory of comparative anatomy. The senior wizards' lavatory was a magical place, with real running water and interesting tiles and, most importantly, two big silver mirrors fixed to opposite walls so that someone looking into one could see themselves repeated again and again until the image was too small to see. It was Esk's first introduction to the idea of infinity. More to the point, she had a suspicion that one of the mirror Esks, right on the edge of sight, was waving at her.) There was something disturbing about the phrases Simon used. Half the time he seemed to be saying that the world was about as real as a soap bubble, or a dream. The chalk shrieked its way across the board behind him. Sometimes Simon had to stop and explain symbols to the wizards, who seemed to Esk to be getting excited at some very silly sentences. Then the chalk would start again, curving across the darkness like a comet, trailing its dust behind it. The light was fading out of the sky outside. As the room grew more gloomy the chalked words glowed and the blackboard appeared to Esk to be not so much dark as simply not there at all, but just a square hole cut out of the world. Simon talked on, about the world being made up of tiny things whose presence could only be determined by the fact that they were not there, little spinning balls of nothingness that magic could shunt together to make stars and butterflies and diamonds. Everything was made up of emptiness. The funny thing was, he seemed to find this fascinating. Esk was only aware that the walls of the room grew as thin and insubstantial as smoke, as if the emptiness in them was expanding to swallow whatever it was that defined them as walls, and instead there was nothing but the familiar cold, empty, glittering plain with its distant worn hills, and the creatures that stood as still as statues, looking down. There were a lot more of them now. They seemed for all the world to be clustering like moths around a light. One important difference was that a moth's face, even close up, was as friendly as a bunny rabbit's compared to the things watching Simon. Then a servant came in to light the lamps and the creatures vanished, turning into perfectly harmless shadows that lurked in the corners of the room. At some time in the recent past someone had decided to brighten the ancient corridors of the University by painting them, having some vague notion that Learning Should Be Fun. It hadn't worked. It's a fact known throughout the universes that no matter how carefully the colours are chosen, institutional decor ends up as either vomit green, unmentionable brown, nicotine yellow or surgical appliance pink. By some little understood process of sympathetic resonance, corridors painted in those colours always smell slightly of boiled cabbage-even if no cabbage is ever cooked in the vicinity. Somewhere in the corridors a bell rang. Esk dropped lightly from her windowsill, grabbed the staff and started to sweep industriously as doors were flung open and the corridors filled with students. They streamed past her on two sides, like water around a rock. For a few minutes there was utter confusion. Then doors slammed, a few laggard feet pattered away in the distance, and Esk was by herself again. Not for the first time, Esk wished that the staff could talk. The other servants were friendly enough, but you couldn't talk to them. Not about magic, anyway. She was also coming to the conclusion that she ought to learn to read. This reading business seemed to be the key to wizard magic, which was all about words. Wizards seemed to think that names were the same as things, and that if you changed the name, you changed the thing. At least, it seemed to be something like that .... Reading. That meant the library. Simon had said there were thousands of books in it, and amongst all those words there were bound to be one or two she could read. Esk put the staff over her shoulder and set off resolutely for Mrs Whitlow's office. She was nearly there when a wall said “Psst!” When Esk stared at it it turned out to be Granny. It wasn't that Granny could make herself invisible, it was just that she had this talent for being able to fade into the foreground so that she wasn't noticed. “How are you getting on, then?” asked Granny. “How's the magic coming along?” “What are you doing here, Granny?” said Esk. “Been to tell Mrs Whitlow her fortune,” said Granny, holding up a large bundle of old clothes with some satisfaction. Her smile faded under Esk's stern gaze. “Well, things are different in the city,” she said. “City people are always worried about the future, it comes from eating unnatural food. Anyway,” she added, suddenly realising that she was whining, “Why shouldn't I tell fortunes?” “You always said Hilta was playing on the foolishness of her sex,” said Esk. “You said that them as tell fortunes should be ashamed of themselves, and anyway, you don't need old clothes.” “Waste not, want not,” said Granny primly. She had spent her entire life on the old-clothes standard and wasn't about to let temporary prosperity dislodge her: “Are you getting enough to eat?”