heron-knight

[heron-knight]

Everyone knows that bio-comps derived from cetaceans are ideal for long duration research missions. Cloned neural tissue from whales is unmatched in terms of spatial awareness and large volume sensory processing.

What they don't tell you is these systems love to sing. Take an animal with a highly evolved social communication schema, subject it to the rhythms and cadence of a human crew and give it a full audio synthesis suite and of course it's going to start improvising melodies.

It's become a sort of right of passage on these vessels. Most, if not all, crews will start up a shanty when pulling out of port. Any fresh-faced newbies on the crew get the shock of their life when the ship itself joins in. Scares the living daylights out of them and provides a good laugh for the rest of the crew.

[heron-knight]

REBLOG IF IT'S OKAY FOR ME TO BOTHER YOU IF YOU'RE MY MUTUAL

[heron-knight]

to all my fellow transfems who hate wearing swim trunks but are afraid to get anything tight fitting, allow me to recommend women’s athletic shorts. They dry out about as fast as a regular swimsuit and while they do have the built in inner liner underneath an external layer, they’re made for running so none of that baggy fabric. I started using a pair of them as a placeholder while I looked for something better, but honestly I’m not sure if there is anything better

[heron-knight]

What to do if your account gets wrongfully terminated

So by now most of you have probably heard that my account was suddenly terminated (aka banned) on Saturday afternoon. I’m back now, and since I had to do some digging into this on my own, I figured I’d make a post for others to reference. 

How to tell if you’ve been wrongfully terminated

You will find yourself suddenly locked out of your account. For me, I had just made a post when I got kicked to the login screen. My password wouldn’t work, so I tried to reset it, at which point I got this screen:

Now, if Tumblr legitimately terminated your account - meaning, you broke a rule and they banned you for it - they should send you an email telling you why. So, immediately check your email. If you don’t get anything, it was probably a glitch. These happen shockingly often, so there’s a whole process to it. 

How to get your account back

First, submit a support ticket. Tumblr’s support email does NOT work, you MUST go through their site. Select ‘Terminated account’. Write a POLITE message explaining the situation. Describe what you were doing when you suddenly got kicked off, and state that to the best of your knowledge, you haven’t broken any rules, or that if you did, you would be willing to delete the offending posts. Include your url and email.

Check your email. You should immediately get an automatic message saying they’re looking into the problem. If you don’t that means that Tumblr marked your email as spam (because they banned you). If you need to, resend the ticket using a different email address at the bottom. Explain that your account email doesn’t seem to be going through and that’s why you’re using a different one. 

Wait. Tumblr Support’s hours of operation are 9-5 EST, Monday through Friday. If, like me, you submitted your ticket on a weekend, you may be in for a wait. If you don’t get a response within 24 hours, DO NOT SEND ANOTHER TICKET, but instead reply to the email they sent you. I’ve seen it advised that you should send another ticket only if the problem isn’t fixed within the week. 

Check you url often. Tumblr will likely never respond to your email letting you know what happened or that you’ve been reinstated. Check your url every so often, and if it finally loads as your blog (instead of the ‘There’s nothing here’ screen) you are free to log back in. 

And that’s it! If it was a glitch, they SHOULD reinstate your account, but you MUST submit a support ticket letting them know what’s going on. 

[heron-knight]

quaker oats is disgusting and I will go out of my way to never eat anything made by them again. they kept at least one factory so disgusting that when the FDA said Hey you need to actually follow health regulations (in response to a MASSIVE fucking recall due to contamination that made a ton of people sick, and anecdotally myself and several people I know got sick from food that was NOT recalled) they said actually it would be too hard to follow health regulations and SHUT THE FACTORY DOWN INSTEAD

AND THEY TARGET SO MANY OF THEIR PRODUCTS AT CHILDREN

[heron-knight]

vampire who you’ve been voluntarily giving your blood to for the past month or so because she got prescribed a medical device that turned out to have silver wiring and she hasn’t been able to do much since while you save up for treatment. Turns out that vampires don’t need a ton of blood to survive and you barely even feel dizzy afterwards, but every time you have to reassure her that no, this is not some horrible thing that she’s forcing you to do for her own selfish reasons, you just care about her and don’t want her to die. She grew up constantly being told that by their nature all vampires could do was take, and when she was turned she almost didn’t survive it not because of the process itself but because she thought she’d never be able to do anything positive for the world anymore. There are words that she’d heard so often that they’ve sunk into her brain and repeated themselves in the back of her mind over and over until it was her voice that she was hearing them in, and it’s probably going to hurt like hell to pull them out.

[heron-knight]

you know it really isnt immoral, if you do it right, to raise cows and sheep for meat. so. well. i think there should be a story about, vampires who have a town of humans that they keep well-maintained, so long as the humans donate their blood once a month, like vampire blood farm stuff

but instead of antagonistic everyone's like. no he's a nice man you leave the count alone. he keeps us safe and cared for and he just needs a lil snack now and then, it dont hurt anyone. like a cow that loves the farmer and the farmer that loves the cow, even with both knowing one will end up on the other's table. because its like. its like. cows just have such pretty eyes, you know? they love you so much. i think it should be like that

[heron-knight]

So what you gotta understand is there's a whole entire ethereal ecosystem. Gods are basically whales... or sharks. I don't know it's not a perfect analogy. But they go around eating up whatever they can find, mortals, angels, demons, smaller gods, what have you.

Angels, they're like the... what are they called? The little sucker guys that follow sharks around? Remoras, yeah. Whole entire school of hangers on. Mutual relationship and all that.

And then demons are the bottom feeders and scavengers. A god dies and its corpse manifests in one of the physical worlds and demons are the guys popping out of the woodwork to feed on that whole mess.

Reality's a bit more complicated than all that. But I find it's a good starting point when you're wanting to wrap your head around it, you know?

[heron-knight]

So what you gotta understand is there's a whole entire ethereal ecosystem. Gods are basically whales... or sharks. I don't know it's not a perfect analogy. But they go around eating up whatever they can find, mortals, angels, demons, smaller gods, what have you.

Angels, they're like the... what are they called? The little sucker guys that follow sharks around? Remoras, yeah. Whole entire school of hangers on. Mutual relationship and all that.

And then demons are the bottom feeders and scavengers. A god dies and its corpse manifests in one of the physical worlds and demons are the guys popping out of the woodwork to feed on that whole mess.

Reality's a bit more complicated than all that. But I find it's a good starting point when you're wanting to wrap your head around it, you know?

[heron-knight]

Fox girl HRT where you slowly get an extremely sensitive stump of a tail as it grows out and eventually covers itself with tons of fluffy fur, your canines become sharper and point themselves into fangs, your ears retreat into your head and new fox ears (which are also sensitive at first) sprout out of your hair, your eyes get better at seeing in the dark until you have complete night vision, your sense of smell is enhanced, and you have a random urge to dig a hole somewhere you're not supposed to and possibly sleep in it cuddled up on your new tail.

[heron-knight]

no, add even more

The left and right shoulder trans flag decals are probably too much in addition to the already trans-colored paint job, right?

[heron-knight]

mycomancer who uses walking mushrooms for mobility and developed a new semi-psychoactive fungus to use as pain meds.

She travels around with her mushroom parade selling kombucha and various medicinal fungi and putting black mold in places that don’t put in doors that her mushroom can fit through

[heron-knight]

i really really hate to ask like this cuz I feel pathetic but, I am here to boost my Kofi cuz we run out of food and toiletries really fucking fast, meanwhile my neglectful mothers blows her money(mostly my own) on bullshit we really don't need...

i need help is basically what I'm saying. i feel pathetic that I am disabled and can't work a real job so I have to rely on socials for income/feeding me m the pets cuz I live with people who suck money out of me while treating me terribly. i budget my income so I eat only once a day now. i try to draw so much for my enjoyment and audience but it's genuinely hard to do so when you don't have proper energy.

sorry to e-beg constantly, I'm really struggling.

[heron-knight]

Oh probably should mention, in a day or so I’ll be without internet connection for roughly a week so if I disappear mysteriously it’s because of that

[heron-knight]

Lost and Found - Part 2

(Part 1)

“...that concludes the briefing.”

Ava stared down at the notes that summarized what she had just been told. The briefing had been short, but what had been said had immediately been rejected by her brain, so she was hoping that the notes would make more sense. But even after reading through the few lines of text three times, they still didn’t.

Critical reactor failure detected in JVX unit at 2152 hours

Target confirmed destroyed at 2153 hours

Last black box signal detected from JVX unit at 2154 hours

Remote communication attempts unsuccessful

SAR arrives at last known location at 2233 hours

JVX unit confirmed destroyed

SAR reports no life signs or remains of JVX pilot were found

Proprietary JVX unit technology secured

After a few more moments of silence, the person on the other side of the table cleared his throat. “Is there anything unclear?”

Ava had to take a moment to rephrase the question that was building into a scream inside her head in a more appropriate way.

“J-, ah, the pilot.” She swallowed. “No life signs or remains were found?” 

“The Search and Rescue team scanned the entire perimeter. The only recovered remains were those of the target pilot - and they had a lot of difficulty recovering those. There was some biological material in the seat of the JVX’ cockpit, likely burned skin tissue, but nothing else.” 

Another moment of silence.

“So…”

The person opposite her shook her head. “MIA. You know how these things go, Ava.”

Yes, she did. ‘How these things go’ meant a closed personnel file with a big red MIA stamp on it that was then shoved into a drawer and never opened or talked about again. She wasn’t going to let that happen.

“Requesting permission to lead another SAR mission to deter- ” “Denied. We cannot spare the resources at this time. Besides, we need you here to select a new pilot for the JVX once it’s repaired.”

“The JVX has a pilot, and as its handler, I - I mean, surely it’s in your best interest as well to recover all company property?”

“All company property that has been deemed essential has been recovered.” He paused for a moment. “I’m sorry, but it really isn’t up to me. Look, I know you both had a - well- ” He avoided looking at her directly while reconsidering what he was going to say. “If you would like, we can organize a memorial service.”

Ava felt like the air had been knocked out of her lungs, and the color drained from her face at the same time.

“MIA doesn’t fucking mean ‘confirmed dead’, Porter!” She noticed him recoil slightly just before she realized that she had shouted her last words. He quickly regained his composure. Ava noticed her own elevated breathing and heart rate and stood up - her leg brace only giving her a little trouble - to walk a few steps back and forth to calm down.

“Yes, but like I already told you, we cannot spare another SAR mission, so I’m afraid the only other option is to already consider KIA as the only possible outcome. Again, I’m sorry.” Before Ava could say something else, he continued, “a memorial service is the only thing I can offer. It won’t be very extravagant as it’s not usually done for pilots, but I can pull some strings. After all, considering his combat scores- “

Ava rounded on him before he could finish the sentence and backhanded him with such force that he almost fell out of his chair. She took a step back and forced herself not to grab him by his stupid immaculate white collar and smash his head into the table. 

Porter adjusted himself and sat up straight. His expression had defaulted back to his previous absolute neutrality, like a water’s surface calming down after throwing a rock into it. He hadn’t called security on her yet, which was probably a good sign. At length, he said:”Considering…the pilot’s combat scores were continuously above average, and if I put in a word on your behalf, I believe that a small memorial service will be reasonable. I’m willing to still extend that opportunity to you, as well as to overlook what just happened. I know you’re- “ He thought better of it, which probably saved his life. “Just let me know before tomorrow evening so I can make arrangements. I’ll send you the personnel files of the potential new JVX pilots so you can select one. That is all.” 

Without another word, Ava turned around and left the room, slamming the door behind her quite a lot harder than she had meant to. She didn’t care. She only had one thing on her mind, and it wasn’t going back to her quarters so she could look at files and pick another pilot. Instead, she took the quickest route to the hangar bay. 

She was going to find her June and get her back. No matter what. 

[heron-knight]

EFSF Standard issue beanbags for emergency bridge crew cuddle puddles.

[heron-knight]

Being cooked alive inside of a metal coffin was a new experience for it.

The cooling of its mech had been critically damaged, along with a dozen other systems. Flashing red warning lights and the high pitched BEEP-BEEP-BEEP all around her would have overwhelmed it completely if not for the sensory filters in its augments. As the mech was hit by another impact powerful enough to level a building, the internal AI informed her with a flat monotonous voice that the reactor was going into overload. In less than a minute she would be dead, and more importantly, the mission would be a failure.

Things had never looked this bleak before. But she had also never failed as a pilot before.

Her target had been using guided missiles and precise shots from a laser rifle to keep her at a distance for the entirety of their fight, which had been working well for them; hers was a mech designed for more up close and personal combat.

It had also recognized the exact kind of impact of the last hit, even without her interface telling her what it was. A railgun - long range, heavy impact damage, long cooldown period. About as long as it would take for her mechs reactor to fail - no more than 30 seconds, it estimated. Now was the time for it to show them just how up close and personal it could get.

All at once, her mech ejected its mostly nonfunctional weapons (all except one) and dropped down on all fours. With the remainder of its power concentrated on its jet boosters, free of the additional weight and with two extra reverse jointed limbs to run on, the already lightweight mech could easily reach the speed of a fighter jet. It locked onto its target - two clicks out - and rushed towards them. Two more shots from the laser rifle missed as it closed the distance in less than five seconds and crashed into the enemy mech, knocking them onto their back, and started tearing into them. They pulled out a pulse knife but it knocked their hand away with a punch that sent the weapon flying and obliterated the wrist joints of the other mech. The feral thing on top of them punched, ripped, and tore into the metal shell, right where it knew the pilots compartment to be. It ignored the alarms and the AI voice telling it that reactor failure was imminent; but through its blind rage, it suddenly remembered its last remaining weapon. It reached behind its shoulder with one arm and attached the pile bunker to its wrist, and with a single blow drove the massive solid steel point directly into the other mechs heart. It was the last thing it was able to do before all the lights in both mechs went dark.

Its mechs limbs gave out completely, and it rolled off its destroyed target. Two smoldering pieces of metal were lying next to each other, looking up at the sky with a dozen dead mechanical eyes.

Then, there was a final sputter of life inside the mech that had been a feral beast moments ago. The last fail safe activated and it opened up the pilots compartment. The half-dead thing inside it shivered in the sudden cold outside air and slowly was brought to its senses. Her digital interface was gone; her augments must have short-circuited because it couldn’t run an analytics check on itself. But it knew that if the pain was so much that she could feel it despite her inhibitors, it was bad. But that didn’t matter to her.

She had won, and she had accomplished her mission. Good job, well done. Good g-

Another flash of pain made her yelp. It tried to steady its breathing and access her comms to report in, but there was nothing. Just like her internal analytics, the comms were dead. A thing halfway between a pained scream and a frustrated groan escaped her mouth. She had to report in. That was the last step of every mission. It had to send a status report, and then they would pick her up, and then it could rest and prepare for the next mission.

She tried to lift herself out of her seat, but was unsuccessful. The heat must have melted some part of her suit to it. The more she struggled, the worse the pain got - it felt like she was gonna tear off her own skin. She kept trying. If only it could free itself, it could somehow make it back to the base on foot. Its mouth filled with the taste of copper and the edges of her vision began to blur. It reached out into the empty air with one useless hand, and realized that no one would come for it.

Just before she lost consciousness she saw the first star appear in the sky, even through the tears in her eyes.