#Introduction to Our Solutions

[great-and-small]

When I was in vet school I went to this one lecture that I will never forget. Various clubs would have different guest lecturers come in to talk about relevant topics and since I was in the Wildlife Disease Association club I naturally attended all the wildlife and conservation discussions. Well on this particular occasion, the speakers started off telling us they had been working on a project involving the conservation of lemurs in Madagascar. Lemurs exist only in Madagascar, and they are in real trouble; they’re considered the most endangered group of mammals on Earth. This team of veterinarians was initially assembled to address threats to lemur health and work on conservation solutions to try and save as many lemur species from extinction as possible. As they explored the most present dangers to lemurs they found that although habitat loss was the primary problem for these vulnerable animals, predation by humans was a significant cause of losses as well. The vets realized it was crucial for the hunting of lemurs by native people to stop, but of course this is not so simple a problem.

The local Malagasy people are dealing with extreme poverty and food insecurity, with nearly half of children under five years old suffering from chronic malnutrition. The local people have always subsisted on hunting wildlife for food, and as Madagascar’s wildlife population declines, the people who rely on so-called bushmeat to survive are struggling more and more. People are literally starving.

Our conservation team thought about this a lot. They had initially intended to focus efforts on education but came to understand that this is not an issue arising from a lack of knowledge. For these people it is a question of survival. It doesn’t matter how many times a foreigner tells you not to eat an animal you’ve hunted your entire life, if your child is starving you are going to do everything in your power to keep your family alive.

So the vets changed course. Rather than focus efforts on simply teaching people about lemurs, they decided to try and use veterinary medicine to reduce the underlying issue of food insecurity. They supposed that if a reliable protein source could be introduced for the people who needed it, the dependence on meat from wildlife would greatly decrease. So they got to work establishing new flocks of chickens in the most at-risk communities, and also initiated an aggressive vaccination program for Newcastle disease (an infectious illness of poultry that is of particular concern in this area). They worked with over 600 households to ensure appropriate husbandry and vaccination for every flock, and soon found these communities were being transformed by the introduction of a steady protein source. Families with a healthy flock of chickens were far less likely to hunt wild animals like lemurs, and fewer kids went hungry. Thats what we call a win-win situation.

This chicken vaccine program became just one small part of an amazing conservation outreach initiative in Madagascar that puts local people at the center of everything they do. Helping these vulnerable communities of people helps similarly vulnerable wildlife, always. If we go into a country guns-blazing with that fire for conservation in our hearts and a plan to save native animals, we simply cannot ignore the humans who live around them. Doing so is counterintuitive to creating an effective plan because whether we recognize it or not, humans and animals are inextricably linked in many ways. A true conservation success story is one that doesn’t leave needy humans in its wake, and that is why I think this particular story has stuck with me for so long.

(Source 1)

(Source 2- cool video exploring this initiative from some folks involved)

(Source 3)

[twisted-broth]

Emergency Rendezvous

Introduction

TW: accidental drugging, aphrodisiacs (no actual smut yet but reader is v horny)

You swat Grim's paws away from the ingredients on the table for the third time while Crewel continued explaining the science behind your assigned potion. He grumbled impatiently, resting his chin on the workbench. With the hand not prepared to Throw Down, you copied Crewel's drawing of some kind of chemical synapse with little bubbles in between labeled "endorphins".

"What makes this solution so potent is the ability of our magic ingredients to act directly on endorphin-releasing pathways in the brain, encouraging the body's natural painkiller system rather than introducing an artificial one. This greatly reduces the risk of addiction seen in non-magical analgesics. While this potion is relatively low risk, and hopefully easy enough that even you pups can't mess it up, there is a significant overlap with nearby pathways that may produce unintended effects. I trust that I've trained you properly enough to thoroughly check the labels on your ingredients and weigh them carefully."

The moment Crewel ended his lecture, Grim was grabbing at the various powders and herbs. With barely a glance given to the textbook in between you two, he started haphazardly shaking the magical- and probably expensive- elements into a weigh boat on the scale.

"Grim! What part of 'read the label' did you not understand?" You reach for the bottle, but are too slow to stop Grim from tossing the ingredient into your cauldron. You sigh wearily, resigned to leave the fate of your grade in Grim's trigger-happy paws. You manage to double check most of the ingredients before they're added to the mix, surprisingly in the correct order. After over a year spent with your troublesome pet/friend/roommate/co-student, you've learned to adopt an "it is what it is" mindset.

When the concoction is finally done, you're honestly shocked to see that your potion is the same color as everyone else's. To make it even better, nothing exploded in the process! You swirled the blue potion around in the flask, admiring the iridescent tone.

"Good dogs!" Crewel congratulated the class, almost sounding surprised that nothing had gone wrong. "Since you've all signed your waivers, and the risk associated is low, I'll allow you to test your products now or save them for later. If you experience any adverse side effects, inform me at once. Class dismissed!"

You eyed the potion on the desk in front of you, weighing the risks it posed. A tap on your shoulder stole your attention, and you swiveled around to see Ace sporting his usual self-righteous smirk. Beside him, Deuce was curiously sniffing their own creation.

"What d'ya think, prefect? Gonna give it a taste test?"

You respond with a weary laugh, finding that the shimmer of the potion was becoming less and less appealing. "I don't know... I mean I don't really have any pain right now. I guess my back is a bit sore?" You reply noncommittally.

Ace rolled his eyes with a tsk. "Aw, c'mon! Crewel never lets us try the potions we make. I, for one, have a killer headache. Cough it up Loosey Deucey!"

Ace swipes the flask from Deuce's hands, ignoring his scoff of protest. With disturbingly little hesitation, he downs the potion in seconds and licks the stray blue droplets from the corner of his mouth. The three of you watch him with mixed expressions of anxiety and curiosity, waiting for the potion to take effect. After another minute or so, Ace's eyes widened in excitement. "Hey, it's totally working! Damn that's a lot better!"

"And of course you had to go and hog it all to yourself," Deuce grumbled, resting his head on the workbench.

Grim pushed your experimental product closer to you. "Well? Go on, henchhuman! Anything the Great Grim makes will be 10x better than those two."

You raised an eyebrow, highly doubtful of Grim's claim considering his disregard for proper measurements. You open your mouth to voice your hesitation, but the excitement in his eyes gives you pause. Well, Crewel did say the potion was pretty low-risk, even if you did make it wrong. And you suppose even Grim deserves some semblance of a win on occasion. With a heavy sigh, you raise the flask to your lips and down the concoction.

You're pleasantly surprised by how good it tastes. Not that you were really paying attention to the ingredients, but you just assumed it would be terrible. Instead, the faint taste of honeysuckle and lavender dances across your tongue, gracing your throat with a warm coating on the way down. You can trace the warmth down your chest and into the stomach, where it slowly dissipates throughout the rest of your body. Despite the pleasant sensation, you say with certainty that your back ache had gone away. Rather, you were distracted from the dull pain as the same warm feeling flooded and settled in your groin.

Either from the potion or the realization of your situation, a furious blush burned your cheeks and ears. It took nearly a minute for you to regain your composure and notice the voices of your friends calling out to you in concern.

"Y/n! Are you alright?" Deuce gently placed a hand on your forearm, trying to bring you back to reality. You gasp at the touch, quickly withdrawing your arm as though you had been burned. Noticing your friends hurt expression, you cleared your throat in embarrassment.

"Sorry! Just a different sensation than I was expecting. You did great Grim! It works really well." You laugh unconvincingly, already feeling a drop of sweat budding at your temple.

Ignoring the various expressions of concern and confusion, you stand up abruptly, nearly knocking your chair over in the process. You make quick work of gathering your belongings, using all your focus to hold onto your last bit of composure.

"Sorry guys, I forgot that I uh... told Azul I would help out at the lounge! It'll be suuuuper boring though, so you guys should go on without me. I'll catch up to you later!" Without leaving room for protest, you rushed out of the lab room, hiding your beet-red face behind your free hand.

Within minutes, you were urgently knocking on Crewel's office door. The sudden noise summoned two large black noses to the narrow gap under the door where they sniffed intently at your feet. From within the office, you hear Crewel call out for you to enter. The dogs retreat from the door at the sound of their master's voice, allowing you space to slip in and close the door quickly behind you.

Although Crewel initially only glances in your direction, he does a double take at the sight of your flushed face and sweat-drenched brow. Two lanky Dalmatians regard you with mild intrigue from their large bed in the corner, where they lay daintily on top of one another. A rare look of concern crosses Crewel's features. "Prefect? Are you alright?"

You stay pressed against the door, trying to distance yourself from the tempting scent of Crewel's cologne. Your hand feebly attempts to cover your nose and mouth, and you shake your head no. "O-our potion," you stutter, "I think something went wrong".

Continuing to test your self control, Crewel stands and approaches you, assessing your vulnerable state. He presses the back of his hand to your forehead to feel for a fever. To your continued humiliation, a quiet whine escapes you at the contact. His eyes widened slightly, but he quickly dawns a mask of professionalism as he retracts his hand.

"I see. Well, as I mentioned in lecture, slight alterations in the potion's formula can trigger alternate pathways which are also mediated by endorphins. One such pathway is the arousal pathway. It would seem that significant enough errors were made that your potion activated your arousal pathway, rather than the intended pain relief pathway". He explains the error matter-of-factly, returning to his desk.

Your jaw dropped in disbelief. Arousal pathway? Doesn't the universe ever get tired of playing practical jokes on you? The persistent throbbing in your core sent the clear message that it doesn't. You groan, burying your face in your hands in an attempt to disappear from the face of the earth. "Can you undo it?"

"I'm afraid the only inhibitor of such endorphins is prolactin, the neurotransmitter released after orgasm. Unfortunately, we've yet to artificially synthesize an effective substitute. Otherwise, your body should metabolize the potion in eight hours." You were appreciative of Crewel's calm and even tone. Even if it didn't cure your current predicament, maybe you'll be able to look him in the eyes again someday.

Making the choice to not dig this hole even deeper, you gave him a grateful bow and quickly departed. Your mind was swimming as you made a beeline for Ramshackle, hoping to make it home before your knees started buckling. At last, you shut the door to your quiet dorm building. Your heart pounded in your ears, though if it was racing from the speed walking or the overwhelming arousal coursing through your blood, you weren't sure.

In any case, your options were to suffer for eight hours, or to get fucked. Well, you would be fucked either way. Your legs finally gave out by the time you had crawled to your bed and curled up on your side. The pillow trapped between your thighs did little to reduce the pressure that consumed every thought. As you stripped down to your underwear, your trembling fingers and raging heart made it very apparent that you weren't in any state to be able to take care of this yourself.

Several faces flashed through your mind, innocent encounters with your friends being quickly perverted in your brain. With less apprehension than was probably warranted, you pulled out your phone and opened your contacts. It wasn't an impressively long list, but nonetheless you quickly found the name you were looking for. The voice of reason in your head insisted that you would never live this down, but it was quickly gagged by the larger majority of your brain that was begging to be fucked.

With shaky hand, you pressed the call button.

A/n: if you missed the poll, I'm hoping to make this a series (no promises). Either way, the first victim will be Leona 😮‍💨

[thewertsearch]

One down.

"One Act, right?"

No, not kids! I mean these curtain dealies. I still need to set up, what, like another five of these rigs? God dammit.

Six sub-Acts, then - and the first ended the same way Act 1 did, with a seemingly-fatal explosion at the Egbert/Crocker household.

Sounds to me like these six sub-Acts will be 'remixes' of Acts 1 through 6, with events that 'rhyme' with the B1 session. I doubt we'll be rehashing everything, but I think I can make a couple of educated guesses about the path we'll be treading.

Act 6.1, as we've just seen, was dedicated mostly to wacky shenanigans in our protagonist's home, as well as hints of intrigue surrounding their friends. It ended with our hero in mortal peril - although everyone knows they're not really in any danger. The story just got started, after all!

Act 6.2 will probably be similar, but I expect to see Roxy and Dirk take to the stage with their official introductions. It may also introduce Jane's Exile, which had better be a Problem Sleuth character at this point.

By Act 6.3, most of our heroes are entering the Medium, and we've come to understand their lives a little better. We might finally begin to get a sense of the Guardians' personalities - and if we're lucky, the Earth's First Guardian might finally show its face.

Act 6.4 is when things will go horribly, horribly wrong, as powerful antagonists finally emerge from the woodwork to wreak havoc on the session. It might be Jack, again - but it could just as easily be the Condesce, or Lord English himself. The session, at this point, seems almost unsalvageable.

If we're really lucky, Act 6.5 will bifurcate again, and we'll start with a remixed version of Hivebent - this time, with the pre-Scratch trolls, explaining what really went wrong with their session. Then, 6.5.2 will compose the meat of the B2 session, as the kids rally, and try to salvage this new mess.

Scratching isn't an option this time - or, at least, I don't think it is - so I'm not sure what'll happen here. I definitely expect to see some God Tier ascensions, and I'm sure the B2 kids will have some crackpot solution for whatever's tearing their session apart.

Finally, we come to the end of our story - Act 6.6, where the callbacks begin to get recursive. I have no idea what the shape of this Act is going to be - except that it'll undoubtedly involve kids and trolls from at least four timelines finally coming together to end the English problem once and for all.

And that, ladies and gaydies, is my big-picture prediction for the rest of Homestuck. As always, I'm sure a good chunk of this speculation is way off-base - but I am confident that, broadly speaking, the next six Acts will be reflections of the previous six. I'm here for it!

[bunni-v1]

can i request another “what do we have here” but with hugo? the way you write is so good thank you for my life 🙏

What do we have here...? PT. 3

Pt. 1 - Pt. 2

🍓There's like actually six requests like this for Hugo in my inbox lol. You're the most recent though, so you are my little victim. Kisses. Anyway I was gonna add more characters, but my burn out is so bad rn because of midterms, so please god give me what little grace you people have left in your hearts for my depressed ass. I plan on doing this series for lads next as my official introduction of it to my blog, I hope you guys won't mind.

Tw: NSFW; Deepthroating (choking); heavy hand focus; unedited

Info: Hugo Vlad x Reader; NSFW

SPECIAL tag for @cilomarc because they've had to listen to me whine about this fic for months lol

MDNI

Hugo Vlad is an interesting man - a busy man with little free time to spare on most trivial things. While he wouldn't call your sex life trivial, per-say, it unfortunately took the back burner when he was up to his neck in secret missions and shady business. Not that you don't have sex, obviously you do, the collection locked away in his phone is proof of that! It just that, usually, you don't have much time for it. So... the two of you have had to be creative about how you get off while the other is there.

As previously mentioned, Hugo's solution is filming as many moments he has with you as humanly possible without entirely ruining the mood. His camera roll (on his second, private phone that only comes out when he is texting you or Vivian, of course) is fill to the brim with pictures of the two of you together. Candid shots of you around the house, blurry pictures he got while you tried to smack the camera out of his hands, there were even some with you and Vivian posing cutely together around the city. All very cute things he cherishes more than he'd ever let you know, but we aren't here for that.

What piques our interest is what he has in an encrypted file, kept separate from his usual camera roll. Inside it are hundreds of photos and videos of you together, tangled in sheets and skin slick from sweat. They range from mostly innocent to downright depraved, all carefully organized by type for ease of access. It was all made for lonely nights without you, when the bed in the hotel room was cold and his dick was so hard he couldn't think of anything but you and you're cute little face. Oh, how he wished he could run home to you and have you now. He couldn't, of course, so instead he clicks open the file and starts strategizing how he wants to relieve himself tonight.

He decides on three videos, carefully selected for an easy but slow release. He likes to savor you, after all.

The first one he clicks open has your legs spread open for him, pretty lavender laced panties on display. There's a clear wet spot in the middle, it makes him smile. He coos lowly behind the camera about how cute you are, gloved fingers coming up to slide up the lacy hems. Your thighs shudder, and slowly they draw together at the apex of your pelvic bone. He draws them down along your little mound, feather light in his touch, glossing over your sensitive folds and stopping right over the wetness you've accumulated. He taps his fingers a few times, huffing a chuckle at the way you squirm, then draws a little heart against you. Regardless of if you recognized the shape or not, you whine at the sensation, moving your hips to press into him further. He doesn't allow you to get release, flinching back and tutting at you as if you were a petulant child. He only resumes his motions when your hips settle obediently in the sheets, fingers hooking over the side of your lingered and tucking it out of his way, revealing your glistening pussy to the camera. He made sure to get a good lasting shot of it, settling the frame on your glimmering lips before slowly sliding his fingers between your folds. He takes his sweet time collecting your juices, then carefully spreads your lips to reveal the shining pearl hidden between them. A smooth sound of praise wafts through the room, and then the video ends.

He's quick to select the next one, the camera set across the room of his office, opposite of his plush red couch. You are naked, back to the camera, standing between his spread legs. His posture is relaxed, eyes eating you up like his last meal, hungry and certain of what he wants as his fingers trail up your side lightly. He whispers something that makes you giggle, easing the tension between your shoulders just like that. He pats his leg when you appear calm, and you settle yourself upon it like you were made to be there. A few more soft words are spoken, a gentle kiss, and then you are slowly moving yourself along his thigh. Your hips move in hesitant rolls to start, small and unsure as you work yourself upon him. This was one of the first times you'd done such a thing with him, so of course you were nervous. His eyes never leave your body, but his hands don't reach out to you either, he simply enjoys the show. You were in power here, controlling the pace as you pick up speed, feeling more bold with his eyes on you. The faster you get the more sounds you make and the hungrier he seems to be, devouring each move, each sound, with an intensity that can only be described as predatory. Still, he does not touch you. You begin to bounce yourself along his thigh, gripping his shoulders now to try and up the friction, it is successful, head leaning back in a desperate cry. His face twitches slightly at the sound, fingers curling tighter against his face. When you finally cum, you slump forward, and that is when he allows himself to touch you. Gentle hands soothing over your back like you are the most delicate porcelain in the whole of New Eridu. Before the video ends, his eyes slide over to the camera, knowingly pressing you closer to his chest.

The final video he selected for himself is a rather... unruly one, even for him. The camera is pointing down to you, fingers dancing along his belt with practiced ease as you unbuckle it. Button and zipper following suit rather quickly so you can tug the half-hard member free, an audible sigh of relief leaving his mouth. In the background there is the distinct chatter of people, soft jazz floating through the air, and the warmth of dim lights heats your skin. You are in public, on your knees, just barely hidden from sight as you begin to suckle on his tip. Your eyes flutter between the camera and his member, slowly inching more and more in your mouth with each shift. His hand places itself on your head when you have half of him inside your mouth, twitching impatiently but remaining still. You bob your head like that for a while, unable to fit much more in your mouth without strain. His restrained huffy breaths fill up the audio, overpowering the background noise with its intensity. His fingers begin to massage against your scalp, quietly begging you to take just a little more in. You don't budge, though, keeping the same pace and same length in your mouth. Your hand making up for the missing space, smearing spit along the length. He would've been content with that, truly, he knew he could've taken it well for you... but they you flutter your eyes up. You look past the camera and directly at him, smiling around him just a little. Your warning is the slight flinch on his hand, then his is forcing you down the rest of him. A sharp gag rips from your throat, but he does not allow you to pull back, groaning at the way your throat contracts desperate for air. Tears well in your eyes, quickly falling down your cheeks and ruining your mascara, making you the most beautiful mess he'd ever seen. He tugs you off him by your hair, allowing you to catch your breath, and then he is pushing you back down just as roughly. He fucks your face like that, hard and fast and desperate to make it as quick as possible to avoid being caught. Little sounds of happiness bubble from you, sending him spiraling quickly down the unending hole of pleasure. You swallow harshly, and that's what does him is, a deep grumble of pleasure ripping from his chest. He cums down your throat, enjoying the way you struggle to swallow it all up. The video ends after he pulls you off his length, mouth open and proudly displaying that you had gotten it all down, smile proud and directed right at him.

The memory of that smile is the perfect finisher, sticky white release coating his fingers. A satisfied sigh leaving his mouth as he stretches his fingers out. It would be much better down your throat, but alas, he couldn't give that to you until you met again. A soft smile lights up his face, yes, he would certainly give you all you wanted during your next encounter. He was needing something new for the collection anyway.

[mariespen]

➸ Career Day - Pt. 2

Sheriff!Rafe x Teacher!Reader

➸ Masterlist!

Requests open!

The ride in Rafe’s cruiser was intimidatingly quiet as his arm rested casually out of the window, country music humming softly from the radio. He had rounded up three of his men from the station, heavily implying that they should abide by his request for a favor. And what did he ask? A small task, really.

You, his perfect wife, had been working late nights to convince parents to attend the class’s career day—practically begging grown adults to contribute to their children’s education for just ten minutes. So, Rafe’s solution? Introduce your kids to himself, the sheriff, along with men from different positions at his station.

"The more variety of positions, the better," you’d told him just a few hours earlier, pressing a kiss to his lips before hurrying off to take the kids to school.

Luckily, your efforts had paid off, and by the end of the week, you had somehow convinced 20 parents to sign up for different time slots. The pride you felt when you secured the 20th RSVP was unmatched, though you had always kept the very first slot open for Rafe and his men. Your class was always giddy with excitement and nerves when real-life police officers visited.

A faint wail of sirens outside your classroom made your students freeze, eyes widening as they rushed to the windows. You let them have their moment, biting back a grin as they whispered in awe, tracking the movements of Rafe and his officers.

Your daughter, Samantha, was among them. She talked about her dad like she owned the entire police force, claiming she had every officer in town wrapped around her little finger.

Suppressing a chuckle, you clapped your hands together, your own excitement mirroring that of your students. "Alright, friends! Let’s sit down nicely and wait for our sheriff to meet us!"

The door opened, and in stepped Rafe, his thumbs tucked casually into his belt, exuding easy confidence. The other officers followed suit, making their way to the front of the class. Rafe caught your eye, his lips quirking up ever so slightly in a secret smile. You returned it with ease.

"Alright, guys! Sit quietly as these men introduce themselves!" You stepped aside, moving toward your desk but unable to take your eyes off Rafe’s uniformed stance.

"Hey kids, I’m your county sheriff, Rafe Cameron. These are some men from your police station. Here’s Detective Smith, and then we got Officer Colley and Officer Whitman—some of my best men." Rafe spoke with practiced authority, but there was a certain warmth in his tone, one meant for the wide-eyed first graders in front of him.

"We’re here to protect you and your families, yeah? It’s our job to help y’all and make sure each and every one of you is safe."

The other officers followed with their own introductions, summarizing their roles in ways the kids could understand. After about ten minutes, you stood up once again, practically glowing with pride as you addressed the class.

"Okay, friends! If you have any questions for our police officers, detective, or Sheriff Cameron, now’s the time!"

Almost every hand shot up.

"Yeah, Sammie?" Rafe asked, pointing to his daughter, whose brown curls bounced as she all but vibrated with excitement.

"That’s my daddy!" she announced proudly, looking at Rafe like he hung the stars in the sky.

A knowing smirk tugged at his lips. "Mhm, sweetie, did you have a question?"

Samantha’s face scrunched in thought before she quickly covered with, "Um… did you catch any bad guys today?"

"Not yet, it’s a bit early for an arrest," Officer Colley answered with a small chuckle.

"That’s right," Rafe nodded before shifting his attention. "You? What’s your name, son?"

"I’m Noah, sir," the boy at the front said hesitantly, then bit his lip before continuing. "How long does it take to become a police officer?"

"Just about nine months of training and a lot of hours of experience," Officer Whitman responded, nodding toward the boy.

"Even longer to become sheriff," Rafe added with a teasing glance toward his men.

Another hand shot up, belonging to a girl in the center row who looked particularly determined. "I want to be a detective. Do they make a lot of money?"

Detective Smith let out a hearty laugh before responding, "It’s not a bad life."

The questions continued until time ran out, and after a final round of thank-yous and goodbyes, the officers prepared to leave. Before heading out, Rafe crouched beside Samantha’s desk, pressing a quick kiss to the crown of her head and murmuring a quiet reminder to behave.

"Goodbye, kids! Be nice to Mrs. Cameron, or she’ll call me! I won’t be so nice then, m’kay?" Rafe teased, throwing a playful wink at your students as he waved.

Once the door shut behind them, you wasted no time slipping into Rafe’s arms, wrapping him in a hug before pressing a quick kiss to his cheek.

"Thank you, baby," you murmured, your voice full of gratitude.

He let out a soft chuckle, his arm securing itself around your waist. "Always. See you at the house tonight?"

"Mhm! Love you!" you called after him as he backed away reluctantly.

"Love you too!" Rafe shot over his shoulder before disappearing down the hall.

[raven-at-the-writing-desk]

Now that Book 7 is over, if you had to list all 7 Books in order of most to least favorite, how would you list them?

For me, it's:

BEST

Book 6 - Amazingly catches us up on the character development for the OB boys while also exploring the complexities of loss + grief and what that can do to a person. Doesn’t feel too bloated or like too many characters are fighting for screen time.

Book 4 - Very complicated motives for our OB boy of the month. Appreciate all the mind games played this book.

Book 3 - I actually consider this one pretty basic too, but I do like that Yuu takes on more of an active role in this one + actually tries to come up with their own solutions. OB boy's self-reflection in the museum was also good.

Prologue and Book 1 - Very basic, nothing offensive about them. Serviceable enough introductions to the world and to the general pattern of each main story book.

Book 5 - Just personal dislike for idol competitions and anything adjacent to them. Premise was definitely not for me. Middle part/the training was boring but necessary. Thought Epel got over his gender normative views way too quickly but liked his talk with Deuce on the beach.

Book 7 - Bulk of the issues start coming in during the dream hopping part, everything ultimately dragged on for too long. Feels like one huge chunk of wasting time doing irrelevant things + there is not enough urgency to save the world because of it. Ending is hand-wavy and rushed (the one part that should have been longer and more detailed got glossed over). Also has holes in logic, but not as many as book 2; story can still largely function with those.

Book 2 - So many plot holes. Actively makes the OB boy look incompetent rather than intimidating.

WORST

[ckret2]

Chapter 54 of everybody being really eager to kill their prisoner human Bill Cipher for good: the gang's trying a new way to create fuel for the one weapon guaranteed to destroy Bill.

It goes so great.

As Ford drove to Northwest Manor, Dipper skimmed through the introduction to Flatworld, where Edward Bishop Bishop was pretending that his book had been dictated to him by a sentient square; but he couldn't focus on it. He sighed, shut the book, and stared out the passenger window at the passing trees.

"Something on your mind?" Ford asked.

"I'm thinking about the Axolotl's poem again. The one about Bill."

"Ah. Still trying to remember the rest?"

"Kinda. Mabel and I are working on it together," Dipper said. "But it's not that. I've just been wondering... what if the poem is... you know, part of a prophecy about Bill or something? Mabel remembered another line of the poem—'A different form, a different time.' What if the Axolotl was telling us why Bill's back as a human? Maybe we need him here—to, to use his powers to fight off a bigger threat or something. Do you think that's possible?" He held back another question: what happens if we kill him before then?

Ford frowned thoughtfully. "I've been thinking about the Axolotl as well," he said. "About the worlds I visited that called it a god of criminals, tyrants, and luck. That sounds to me like the exact kind of being that would be Bill's ally. And it's odd how resistant Bill was to telling us anything about the Axolotl, when it simply passed over town for a few seconds and then moved on. Why the secrecy? How does Bill think it benefits him for us not to know about it?" Ford shook his head. "I think you're on to something, Dipper—I think whatever the Axolotl told you is important. The question is: important for whom?"

Dipper's stomach turned. The Axolotl had radiated such kindness; it was hard for Dipper to believe it could be up to anything evil with Bill. But then—Dipper clutched at Flatworld with the damning biography on the back—but then, how many people had Bill himself fooled with the benevolent teacher act?

Dipper understood now why "Don't Trust Bill" had so quickly turned into "Trust No One." Even when you knew that there was only one real enemy—even when you knew that most people out there were still reasonably honest and friendly—you could never tell just how far Bill's shadow stretched. "I guess that's true. We can't really know."

"We can't know yet. But it is worth trying to figure out," Ford said. "I wish I could tell you where to start looking for answers. For now... we'll just have to consider anything possible."

Ford was right. But all the same, every time Dipper paranoidly asked himself What if Grunkle Ford is right, what if the Axolotl really is on Bill's side, a second, even more paranoid, even more worried voice asked, But what if he isn't?

####

When they arrived, Fiddleford was already in his lab, hard at work on the miniature particle accelerator they'd come to see him about.

"The paradox what was powering it started yowling" Fiddleford said. "So obviously it ain't a paradox no more."

Ford grimaced. "That does lay to rest whether the cat is alive or dead."

"Sure does," Fiddleford said, sighing. "So I let the cat outside and I'm rebuilding the whole contraption to run on a more robust paradox. I hope you've got better news for me, Stanford."

"We hope so too. I think Dipper might have the solution to our fuel generation problem."

They briefly explained Dipper's unfortunate puppet incident last summer—Fiddleford had to take a break in the middle to grab a cup of coffee, "To steady my nerves,"—its ongoing effects on his sleep, and the new developments of the last few days, culminating in Dipper learning how to project his soul out of his body—

—which, Ford now realized, he probably should have expected Fiddleford to take poorly.

"Sweet sasparilla!" Fiddleford kicked over his chair while jumping onto the nearest table. "You're dead?!"

"What?" Dipper said. "No, I—"

"You're like a ghost possessing a zombie!"

Dipper thought that over. "Whoa..."

But, even though Fiddleford thought the whole affair went against the rightful order of the world, he agreed that it was a sound idea and worth trying. "It's lucky that my tater tot and I hunted out all the ghosts in this place during our spring cleaning," he said, opening a cabinet. He retrieved what looked like a pair of vacuums redesigned to be worn like backpacks with an assortment of random electronics dangling from wires. He held up a set of goggles and headphones hanging off one of the vacuums. "I invented these doohickeys that'll let you see and hear ghosts! They'll let us keep in contact with Dipper while he's out of his body." He set the vacuums on a table near the miniature particle accelerator and said, "First, though—Stanford, I need you to help me rebuild this machine."

"Of course." Ford turned away from the vacuum he'd been inspecting to look at the miniature particle accelerator.

Dipper said, "Wait, there are other ghosts in this mansion?"

"Yep!"

"I hunted one at the Northwests' big party last year," Dipper said. "How many more ghosts are in here?"

"We've caught, oh... thirty or forty so far."

"Seriously? That's amazing." Dipper was already thinking about the amazing Ghost Harassers episode this place could have been. Maybe even a miniseries.

"Aw, it weren't that hard. If you leave the TV on, they like to flock around it to watch. All you've gotta do is hide in the corner until a whole big bunch of 'em are gathered 'round—and then ya get them!"

"Oh," Dipper said. "Huh. I just tricked one into getting trapped in a silver mirror."

"Well, that's right impressive too. I never woulda thunk of that," Fiddleford said. "Me and Tate have been sucking them into cooling pouches in these here vacuums and then sticking the pouches in a chest freezer down in the dungeon! Maybe I oughta line the freezer with silver."

"This place has a dungeon?" Dipper asked.

Before Fiddleford could respond, Ford asked, "Which parts are we replacing?" He was inspecting the miniature particle accelerator.

"All of them!"

Ford gave Fiddleford a surprised look. "All of them?"

"Yep! Every last one!"

"Is the design changing that much?"

"Nope! It's staying exactly the same!"

"Then... why can't we just use the same machine we already have?"

"We will be using the same machine!" Fiddleford smiled mischievously. "Or will we?"

"Ah! I see! The particle accelerator of Theseus," Ford said. "Very clever."

"And kinder on the local stray cats, I reckon."

Dipper offered his assistance, but the work involved too much welding and buzzsawing for him to try untrained, so he was directed to sit a safe distance away with the first aid kit. At least it gave him a chance to read some more. He had to shove aside a couple flashlights and the glue grenade to reach where the slim book had slid to the bottom of his backpack during their walk from the car.

He skimmed over some of the worldbuilding looking for the story before he realized the story was the wordbuilding and looped back. It was a lot bleaker than he expected, even after Mabel's warning. Rigid class system, oppressive government, all kinds of horrifying shape prejudices... Frustrating dream visits to the ignorant line people in the first dimension who didn't believe in the second dimension, and to the self-absorbed King Zero in the point-sized zeroth dimension who thought a whole universe was contained inside him... A just as frustrating visit from a sphere who simply couldn't explain the third dimension in a way the square protagonist could understand, which was even more annoying since the square had just seen how the first dimension couldn't comprehend the second for the same reasons, so why couldn't he accept the possibility of a third dimension he couldn't imagine? Dipper got that it was supposed to be a metaphor to help three-dimensional readers understand that not being able to visualize a fourth dimension didn't mean it was impossible; but still. Come on, man. Don't be stupid.

On the other hand, at least now Dipper had a framework to understand the concept of higher dimensions and probably a leg up on next year's geometry. Would high school geometry cover four-dimensional space?

After a couple of hours of work and a break for lunch, the miniature particle accelerator was rebuilt and ready for another attempt to generate fuel. Fiddleford pulled on one of his ghost vacuums like a backpack, put on the set of connected headphones and goggles, and settled his glasses on over the goggles. "Y'all ready?"

"Ready," Ford said. He was seated at the accelerator's monitors, holding the jug that would contain any NowUSeeitNowUDontium they generated, and wearing the other vacuum—with the goggles over his glasses, and he was a bit worried about how Fiddleford had positioned his.

"Ready," Dipper said, a tad less certainly. What if he couldn't do it today? What if he'd never actually been able to do it last night and the whole thing really had been a dream?

But Fiddleford flipped the accelerator's power on, stepped back, and said, "All right! Do your thing!"

"Okay." Dipper stared straight at the machine, and—eugh—thought about degloving his body from his soul, peeling out of his skin fingers first.

This was only the second time he'd left his body deliberately. He'd observed in the past that the mindscape was strangely gray and still compared to the real world—but he'd never realized just how stark and swift the change was, like all the color and warmth had been abruptly sucked from reality. He shivered.

Ford inhaled sharply. Fiddleford stumbled back against the nearest table and yelped, "Flipping flapjacks!"

"You can both still see me?" Dipper said. "Can you hear me, too?"

"Loud and clear," Ford said.

"Like the voices of the dead." Fiddleford shuddered. "Welp, let's get this over with. I don't like all this ghost business. It ain't natural."

Ford gave him an amused look. "Since when have you ever been concerned about what's 'natural'? Didn't the engineering club vote you 'most likely to build a robot that flies in the face of God'?"

"You hush! There's nothing unnatural about iron, electromagnetism, and flamethrowers."

Dipper studied his body's face, its eyes pointed blankly toward the particle accelerator. "Well, I'm looking at the experiment, but I'm definitely not thinking about it. I think that's half of the paradox?"

"That's right," Fiddleford said. "Now, you just—float yerself on over to the other side of the accelerator, and think about it without looking at it."

"Right." Dipper positioned himself directly across the accelerator from his body, shut his eyes, and tried to think experimental thoughts. He didn't know much about Dontium besides what Ford had written about it in Journal 3—that it was inert when you were looking at it and radioactive when you weren't—so, if the miniature particle accelerator generated any, would he get blasted with radiation? Or was his body staring at the accelerator enough to keep it inert? But no—it was supposed to fill up the jug Ford was holding, right? Ford was observing it. Dipper tried to imagine what must be happening inside the accelerator; how did it work, would particles spontaneously generate in the tubes? Maybe they circled around until they fell into the hose to the jug...

He heard Ford gasp. "Fiddleford, look at this— Don't listen to me Dipper, just keep—keep thinking whatever you were thinking!"

"Is it working?"

"It was! Don't let us distract you."

Dipper tried to ignore the sound of Fiddleford running over to Ford, and started humming to drown out their hushed conversation. That was good, right? It meant the experiment was working. Keep thinking about that—experiment. Experiment. Expeeeriment. ... He wondered if trying to do the experiment by putting himself and Tyrone on either side of the accelerator would have worked, or if it had to be Dipper's soul and his body—

"Hot diggety!" Fiddleford shouted. "We've reached critical mass!"

"What does that mean, is it bad?" Dipper opened one eye a crack, trying to squint enough that he couldn't see the particle accelerator. "Is it gonna explode?"

Ford explained, "It means we've generated enough Dontium that it can sustain its own existence. Now, even if you get distracted, what we've already generated will remain. It can only go up from here."

"Wow," Dipper said. "That only took, what, a couple of minutes?"

"Less than that! During our last attempt, we tried for hours without reaching critical mass," Ford said. "Your idea was right on the money. Excellent work, Dipper."

Dipper grinned. After all that anxiety, it was almost a letdown how easy it was, but the coolness factor made up for it. He could just imagine the conversations the first week of high school: What did I do over summer break? Oh, nothing much. Just synthesized a new element. To fuel a weapon custom-designed to kill an immortal chaos god. And did I mention I was a ghost at the time? It didn't quite top last summer's adventures, but...

Then something went wrong.

There was a noise halfway between the electric buzz of a tesla coil and the rip of Velcro being torn apart. A stench like burning hair filled the air. A line of shifting colorful light began worming its way out of the center of the particle accelerator and up into the air.

"Oh no. Ohhh no!" Fiddleford grabbed his head. "The micro-rips! The threadbare fabric of reality! Our experiment put too much of a strain on it! We tore straight through!" One foot bounced agitatedly, "Ohhh, I knew I shoulda run some calculations before substituting in Dipper for you and Stanley."

Dipper gasped as the line of light began to agonizingly stretch open wider. Reality began seeping over its edges and dripping through into the kaleidoscopic miasma beyond. It developed a second horizontal rip across its middle as reality stretched beyond endurance in multiple directions. "What—is that?" He was afraid he knew.

"A dimensional rift," Fiddleford said.

"The Nightmare Realm," said Ford.

The last frayed thread holding reality together snapped apart, and the rift tore open wide, fully exposing the Earth to the roaring roiling chaos beyond. 

They screamed.

"Hello?" A giant set of dentures with stubby arms and legs leaned through the rift. "Oh hey! Aren't you the guys that killed Bill?"

They screamed again.

"Is screaming how humans say hi?" the monster asked. "I'm Teeth. Aaah!" He turned toward Ford. "Hey! Fingers! Lookin' less electrocuted than the last time I saw you—"

Ford socked Teeth in the incisor, knocking him back through the rift. "Back, you! You and your 'friends' are not welcome in this dimension!"

"Ow. What the heck, man."

Fiddleford shouted, "Don't stop observing the Dontium!" He bounded across the room on all four to scoop up the milk jug and stare at it. 

Ford nearly toppled through the rift, and had to grab onto the miniature particle accelerator as the heaviest nearby object to anchor himself. The rift sucked on reality like a vacuum, and the longer it was open the more powerful it grew.

Over the roar of the rift, Dipper yelled "What do we do?!"

"We have to seal it! Before it sucks all of Gravity Falls into the Nightmare Realm!"

"How?!"

Last summer, the instant Bill had no longer been around to maintain the dimensional rift, it had also sucked reality into it, starting with everything that properly belonged in the Nightmare Realm; but then it had also quickly sealed itself back shut. On the other hand, this rift was just opening wider and wider. Maybe it wasn't like the rift Bill had used to enter Gravity Falls, then? Maybe it was structured more like the wormholes that had been left behind after Weirdmageddon—

"I've got it!" Ford picked up Dipper's body—trying not to shudder at how lifeless it felt—and unzipped his backpack. "Is the alien adhesive grenade still in here?"

"It should be! Let me see." Dipper floated over to peer into his backpack.

The rift was already strong enough to drag at Ford's clothing. The lightest objects in the room lifted into the air and were sucked through. Papers. Pencils. Coffee mugs. Dipper's soul.

He screamed. "GRUNKLE FORD!"

"Dipper!" Ford grabbed for Dipper's ankle, but his hand passed right through. Ford's blood ran cold as Dipper tumbled head over heels into the Nightmare Realm.

"Look at that," Teeth said, watching Dipper soar by. "Dinner delivery."

There was no difference between the mindscape and reality in the Nightmare Realm, if Ford followed Dipper  through he'd be able to get a grip on Dipper there. But how would he carry Dipper back to Earth without him melting through Ford's grasp the moment they were through the rift? Didn't matter, grab Dipper first, then figure it out—

Fiddleford shoved the jug of Dontium in Ford's hands as he ran past. "Watch over this!"

"What—!"

Fiddleford jumped into the Nightmare Realm, the end of a long extension cord tied around his waist. He stretched out the hose of his ghost vacuum and flipped a switch, and with a yelp Dipper's soul was sucked inside. Ford gasped in relief.

Trying to keep as much of his attention on the potentially-radioactive jug as possible, Ford reeled Fiddleford back in, shoved the jug in his hands, and dug into Dipper's backpack again until he found the alien adhesive grenade. He pulled the pin and chucked it through the rift. "Duck!"

He shielded Dipper's body and Fiddleford shielded the Dontium jug as the grenade exploded. Even so, the force of it blew aside everything within ten feet of the rift and sent both of them sprawling. When Ford glanced back over his shoulder, the adhesive had gummed up the opening of the rift like a popped glowing magenta bubblegum bubble; and as he watched, it sucked the opening shut. In a few seconds the air was still and quiet, and the only sign the rift had ever existed was an immense, jagged vertical line in the air around which the light refracted wrong.

Fiddleford gingerly got back to his knees, then pulled off his glasses and pushed up his goggles. One of the lenses had been crushed, and the glasses' frame was bent beyond repair.

Ford heaved a long, heavy sigh. "A bit too familiar, wasn't it?"

Fiddleford blinked at him. "Wasn't what?"

"The—reeling you in from the Nightmare Realm?" Ford said. At Fiddleford's blank look, Ford said, "The portal test?"

"Oh." Fiddleford scratched his head. "I... still don't remember it too clearly."

"Ah. Yes. Of course." Ford's stomach churned with guilt as he looked away from Fiddleford. Over thirty years late was too late to apologize, wasn't it? (Over the past year he'd wondered, again and again; and again and again he'd decided that it was.) "Thank you for saving—" He gasped, "Dipper!"

"Oh, right!" Fiddleford took off his vacuum, dropped it on the floor, and unzipped its bag. The ghosts of a Northwest in a buckskin coat and a confused-looking hippie escaped into the air. "Hey," Fiddleford barked. "You get back here!" He raised the vacuum's hose and flipped its switch. He caught the hippie, but as soon as she was sucked in she flew out the unzipped bag and off to freedom again. Fiddleford lowered the hose and shook a fist at the retreating spirits. "I'll get you ectoplasmic varmints, just you wait!"

Ford knelt on the floor and held the bag open wider. Dipper floated out, arms crossed tight and shivering. "So... so cold... and dark... and really, really dusty."

"Let's get you back where you belong."

Ford held up Dipper's body as he lay back down in it. He could see the moment color flooded back into Dipper's cheeks and his eyes focused again. Dipper groaned.

Ford said, "You're never doing that again."

"I am never doing that again," Dipper said.

"We can't do that again," Fiddleford said. "The fabric of reality in this town is too unstable to handle another paradoxical physics experiment that powerful! We'd rip open another rift to the Nightmare Realm!"

"And we just tossed away all of our remaining alien adhesive," Ford sighed. It left Gravity Falls vulnerable if any more rips formed. Sometime soon he'd have to go back to the alien crash site and see if there was any more adhesive he could scrounge up; but even if he did, they couldn't risk wasting more of it like this.

"But did we get what we needed?" Dipper asked.

Fiddleford held up the milk jug of Dontium and shook it. It had a strange shifting color, wavering between cyan and orange depending on the lighting. "Looks like we got about three-fourths of a gallon," Fiddleford said.

"It's only enough to fully power one shot," Ford said. "But... one shot is all it'll take to destroy Bill." His stomach flipped nervously as he said it. He'd been anxious every other time he'd prepared to kill Bill, but that had always been because he'd been preparing to battle for the fate of the universe with a godlike monster who could easily kill him or worse. For the first time, he was preparing to execute a defenseless prisoner, and he didn't know whether it would make the universe any safer.

For half the summer he'd hoped Bill was harmless. Now he wished he had proof that Bill wasn't, so that he could lay his conscience to rest.

Dipper looked as uncomfortable as Ford felt; but when he caught Ford's gaze, he hardened his expression and nodded. Ford nodded back.

"WOOHOO!" Fiddleford leaped his full height straight up, making Ford and Dipper start. "We done it! YAHOO!" He waved his hat around ecstatically, doing a little jig in place. "YIPPEE! HIP HIP HURRrr—hey, how come you fellers ain't celebrating?"

Ford didn't know how to explain without making Fiddleford worry he was at risk of falling under Bill's spell again. "We'll celebrate when he's dead."

####

"Who was at the door?" 8 Ball shouted. When he didn't get a response, he paused his game. "Teeth?"

Teeth waddled into the game room. His face was completely plastered shut with some kind of glowing purple glue.

Pyronica cracked up and Paci-Fire chuckled darkly. 8 Ball sighed, "What'd you get into, you idiot?"

Teeth waved his hands emphatically.

"All right, okay." 8 Ball stood and stretched. "Does anyone have the number of that lamp guy Bill used to hook up with?"

Half an hour later, having lured over Lava Lamp Guy with the false promise of ping pong pool and illicit liquids, they cornered him in a bathroom, with Zanthar sitting in the tub restraining him while Paci-Fire struggled to hold his face still.

"Please!" Lava Lamp Guy screamed. "Let me go! I'll do anything you want! My neurologist said I can't take much more of this!"

"Cease your complaints," Paci-Fire said, as 8 Ball took off Lava Lamp Guy's bowler. "You shall not dissuade us. We do this because we have no choice in the matter."

"Why not?!"

"Because none of us feel like making the trip to a dimension with a drugstore."

8 Ball stuck a soup ladle into the open top of Lava Lamp Guy's head and fished around until he got a scoop of the red goo floating around in the thinner orange liquid. Lava Lamp Guy howled in agony. Zanthar heaved a weary sigh.

8 Ball carried the ladle over to where Teeth was sitting on the toilet lid kicking his feet. "Here you go, bud."

Teeth clapped his hands, grabbed an oversized toothbrush, and held it out for 8 Ball to pour the goop on. He scrubbed his teeth until the goop dissolved the adhesive. "Whew!" He stretched his jaw a few times, then jumped to his feet. "Thanks! I was worried I was gonna miss karaoke night." He looked in the sink mirror to scrub off the remaining scraps of adhesive.

8 Ball put Lava Lamp Guy's hat back on. Lava Lamp Guy groaned, "I think I forgot my third husband."

"You've only been married twice," Hectorgon lied.

"Oh." Confused, Lava Lamp Guy said, "Alright."

Teeth muttered, "Blech, divorce memories." He grabbed a bottle of mouthwash to clear out the taste.

"So what happened?" Kryptos asked. He was hovering in the doorway beside Pyronica.

"I'unno. I think the Dimension 46ers were messing around with their portal or something? They opened up a portal here."

"What? Uh-uh," Pyronica said. "It had to be some other dimension. We just invaded them, why would they open the portal again?"

"No no, that sounds like humans to me," Kryptos said. "If one of them pushes a button and immediately dies, the guy standing next to him will go, 'I wonder if it does that every time.' I've seen them do it."

"It was definitely them, I saw that local contractor Bill recruited for the portal who went nuts. Fingers or whoever."

8 Ball groaned. "You mean the guy that invaded the Quadrangle and tried to kill everybody?"

"Yeah. That guy. He told me I wasn't welcome on Earth and chucked a glue bomb in my face. I was like, well alright, buddy, I'm not the one who opened up a portal in your house, you could have just stayed home instead of ruining my day," Teeth said. "I didn't really say that to him. I thought it."

"So now the humans are invading us." Pyronica threw her hands in the air. "Great! This is just terrific! Bill teaches them how to make their own portals, they follow us home, and now we're about to have a pest problem that knows how to use tools! How long is it until this whole place is crawling with humans?! I'm going househunting, how many rooms should I look for? 8 Ball?"

"I'm in."

"Teeth?"

Teeth sighed, but said, "Yeah. The neighborhood's going downhill. Especially if we're gonna have a pest problem."

"Big Z?"

Zanthar gave a thumbs up.

Pyronica looked at Paci-Fire. He averted his gaze. Pyronica said, "Paci?"

Sullenly, he said, "We should ask Keyhole's opinion as well."

She laughed in disbelief. Nobody cared about Keyhole's opinion, he went with whatever everyone else went with. Appealing to Keyhole was just a delaying tactic. "Fine, sure. We'll get Keyhole's opinion."

"I'm not going," Hectorgon said, crossing his arms.

Relieved, Kryptos said, "Yeah. Me neither."

"You don't have to," Pyronica snapped. "You two and Morph can wait for Bill to come back from the dead as long as you want. But the rest of us are leaving."

Kryptos tilted toward the hall, gesturing for Hectorgon to follow him away from the others. "How long do you think we can hold this place without the outerplanars?" The Quadrangle was all that remained of Bill's turf. Without Bill's energy boosting them, none of the shapes were particularly powerful. They'd always depended upon the other Henchmaniacs to guard Bill's stronghold, the heavy-hitters like Zanthar and Pyronica. Even Bill preferred to let them fight his battles when he could; Bill's energy was much vaster, but less renewable.

Hectorgon grimaced uncertainly. "We've gotta think of something fast."

####

Dipper stared at the jug in his lap, ensuring it didn't turn radioactive before they got home. Bill practically seemed to have a radar for Ford—and on top of that, could see through walls—but as far as he cared Dipper may as well have not even existed; so they'd decided that Ford would go in the main door to ensure Bill's attention was turned away while Dipper went through the gift shop and took the elevator down to Ford's study. Ford had told Dipper where to find a lead locker that would keep the Dontium contained until Ford could use it to refuel the Quantum Destabilizer; all he had to do was put it in and stare through the crack until he'd slammed the door shut.

And once they'd decided on that, the drive home had fallen deathly silent.

As the Mystery Shack appeared through the trees, Dipper asked, "We're doing the right thing, right?" His voice was quiet. "I hate him, but—we owe him our lives. And there's that prophecy..."

"Lives can't be owed," Ford said. "Yesterday he may have saved us, but tomorrow he would still destroy our world in a heartbeat. We can be grateful to be alive—but we can't let that stop us."

"So, we're doing the right thing?"

Ford was silent for much longer than Dipper would have liked. "I hope so."

####

(We're moving toward some important stuff!! Hope y'all enjoyed and I'm looking forward to hearing your thoughts on this week's chapter!)

[blackstarlineage]

Roots and Routes: The Sharp Divide Between Afrocentrism and Pan-Africanism Through a Garveyite Lens

Introduction:

Too often in today’s discourse, Pan-Africanism and Afrocentrism are used interchangeably. But from a Garveyite perspective—rooted in organization, political power, race-first philosophy, and global Black unity—this conflation is both incorrect and dangerous. While both frameworks attempt to restore dignity to African people, their core philosophies, strategies, and end goals differ profoundly. One is a worldview rooted in aesthetic restoration and cultural reclamation; the other is a revolutionary project of global liberation, nation-building, and self-determination. Let’s draw the line.

1. Definitions: Surface vs Structure

Afrocentrism is primarily an intellectual and cultural movement. It seeks to reframe history, philosophy, and identity from an African-centered perspective. It reclaims ancient African contributions to civilization (Kemet, Nubia, etc.), reinterprets historical narratives, and critiques Eurocentric frameworks in education, religion, and science. Its goal is to mentally decolonize.

Pan-Africanism, especially in its Garveyite form, is a political movement—built on race pride, economic independence, self-reliance, and the unification of all African people under one flag. It calls for African control of African affairs, be it on the continent or in the diaspora. It doesn’t just want to rewrite history—it wants to make history.

Garveyism, the most militant and organized strand of Pan-Africanism, understands this difference and demands more than mental liberation. It demands power—political, economic, and military.

2. Cultural Reconnection vs Political Realignment

Afrocentrism often revolves around symbolic reclamation—names, clothes, spiritual systems, and a sense of identity. It’s about replacing European heroes with African ones, reclaiming ancestral memory, and taking pride in Blackness.

But Pan-Africanism asks: What systems do we control? Who governs our lands? Who owns the resources? It sees cultural pride as a tool, not an endpoint. Garveyites assert: What good is reclaiming a name or deity if we still live under foreign rule, economic dependency, and systemic subjugation?

Afrocentrism may critique oppression. Pan-Africanism strategizes to end it.

3. Individual Liberation vs Collective Nationhood

Afrocentrism often emphasizes personal or group enlightenment—an internal transformation through African-centered knowledge and spirituality. While powerful, this path often lacks organized mass movement or material outcomes.

Garveyite Pan-Africanism is inherently collectivist. It calls for global Black unity—not just in spirit but in institution. Garvey’s UNIA (Universal Negro Improvement Association) built shipping lines, schools, factories, newspapers, and provisional governments. The aim wasn’t just consciousness—but sovereignty.

Afrocentrism may change minds. Pan-Africanism changes conditions.

4. Diaspora Focus vs Global Black Nation

Most Afrocentric discourse is diaspora-centric, particularly African American in tone. Its critiques and solutions are often local, focused on Western systems of education, religion, and media.

Pan-Africanism—Garveyite Pan-Africanism especially—is transnational. It refuses to center the West. It sees Black people in America, the Caribbean, Africa, and Europe as one people with one destiny. Its map is global. Its aim is a worldwide African federation.

Garvey said: “Africa for the Africans, at home and abroad.” Afrocentrism too often forgets the abroad is not just where we are, but where we must unite to return, rebuild, and reign.

5. Militancy and Mass Movement

Garveyism believes Black liberation is a war. It’s not poetic or symbolic—it’s real. It demands discipline, order, strategy, and mass mobilization. The UNIA was a blueprint: uniforms, oaths, ranks, black cross nurses, and political offices. That wasn’t cosplay—it was preparation for sovereignty.

Afrocentrism is rarely militant. It is more academic, introspective, and expressive. There is no Afrocentric equivalent to the UNIA or the Black Star Line. No global organizational machinery. No chain of command. No flag to fight under.

Garveyites know that without structure, you cannot build power.

6. Pitfalls of Afrocentrism: The Garveyite Warning

Myth-making without organizing: Afrocentrism sometimes indulges in unverified or romanticized histories (e.g., everyone being Moors, Israelites, or Pharaohs), which can become distractions.

Individualism over institution: It often produces lectures, not organizations.

Confusion over unity: It can fracture along spiritual lines—Kemetic, Yoruba, Moorish, etc.—while Pan-Africanism aims to unify across these differences for political goals.

Silence on Africa today: Many Afrocentrists romanticize ancient Africa but have little to say about modern Africa’s struggles or Pan-African state-building efforts.

Garveyism stands firm: If it does not build power for African people worldwide—it’s not enough.

Conclusion: The African Race Needs Builders, Not Just Dreamers

Afrocentrism is not the enemy of Pan-Africanism—but it is not the substitute. Culture without sovereignty is performance. Identity without power is vulnerability. Garveyism demands we go beyond aesthetic reconnection and move toward global Black reconstruction.

As Garvey once thundered: “The Black man must build for himself. If others are to live by conquering, then he too must learn to conquer for his survival.”

Let us not be content dressing in Kente while begging for crumbs. Let us organize, unify, and take what is ours.

[lunachy]

New IS 6★ Supporter: Raidian

Summoner Supporter

Illustrator: aZLing4

Trait: Deals arts damage. Can use summons in battle.

Talent 1: Can use up to X Summons. Summons' effect changes based upon Skill.

Talent 2: Raidian's summons gives a percentage bonus of her own atk, def and hp to the summons.

S1: Rhythm Line

Summons go on melee tiles.

Active effect: Self and summons gain 80% DEF and barrier equal to 100% max HP, lasting until skill ends.

Gain 1 summon when activated.

25 SP, 25 sec duration.

(60% DEF and 70% barrier at skill level 7, 30SP for 25 second duration)

S2: Circular Scale

Summons go on melee tiles and fire bullets forward. (Summons have a normal attack range of their tile and three more ahead of that in a straight line. They deal physical damage to the first ground enemy the bullets collide with. They have 2 block it seems)

Active effect: Self and summons gain 80% ATK, summons fire two extra bullets and travel for 2 extra tiles.

Gain 1 summon when activated.

25 SP, 25 sec duration

(50% ATK at skill level 7, 30SP for 25 second duration)

S3: Holding Hands

Summons go on ranged tiles. When there is no enemy within a summon's attack range, it will coordinate with other summons within its range to attack enemies within the other summon's attack range. (They deal arts damage. Core caster range. Effectively they merge their attack ranges together as long as they're placed within each other's attack range)

Active effect: Self and summon gain 150% ATK, and inflict Slow and 35% arts fragile for 2 seconds.

Gain 1 summon when activated.

30 sec duration.

MTL Weibo Introduction:

"According to Amiya's authorization, I will follow your command directly from now on, Doctor. I am mainly responsible for communication and intelligence processing. Of course, if you have any problems with life management, you can also come to me."

____________

"Miss Raidian, that..."

"Ah, is it Rosemontis again..."

"Yes, I'm sorry to bother you... We really have no choice but to come to you..."

The medical operator walked in front, and Raidian followed behind. The distance was appropriate, the pace was the same, and the two footsteps overlapped. Crossing the corridor, turning left three times, and taking the elevator, the deepest part of the rehabilitation ward area of the medical department, a wide and bright room was waiting there. Several baskets of colorful wool balls were abruptly piled at the door.

"So, this treatment is very effective for her?"

"Yes, Rosemontis is always more relaxed when facing colorful yarn, and we are also trying our best to let her enjoy it, but if she is not careful..."

"Hehe, it's just that Rosemontis will be entangled in the yarn and can't be untied at all?"

"We tried to solve it with scissors, but she seems to be very resistant to this, so we can only trouble you..."

"Little Tree" gently patted the medical operator's shoulder, and "Little Axle" turned the door handle. The little girl in the door twitched her ears, and her attention was still focused on fiddling with the yarn.

"For her, clarifying herself has always been an important issue.

"There are many things in this world that are chaotic, such as electrical signals, words, emotions, and even balls of yarn...

"What's important is not the sharp cut, not to cut it off and then throw it away, but to use your own hands to untie the knots and organize them in order. Violent solutions often leave ruins. Many times, they just need to return to what they should be."

Raidian retracted his hand, and "Little Tree" and "Little Axle" playfully made a gesture of spreading their hands.

"From this point of view, I have four hands, which does have certain advantages."

IS Specifics for Raidian

There is a lot of intricacies in how she grows from and plays in IS6:

(Quoted from u/IbbleBibble)

In battle, her summons get the following effects in order every time a new floor is reached:

summons cost less DP

more summons can be deployed at the same time

summon ASPD increases

summons no longer take deployment slots

In exploration:

higher spare recruitment ticket limit

increases shields when recruited

gives more candlelight when exploring the Bosky

reveals a random node in the Bosky

costs less hope than other 6*s (not mentioned here but it's based on the preview video)

Her IS6-specific module:

summon redeployment time lowered

summons give Raidian some SP when defeated/retreated

+5 summon limit

25% chance of recovering summon when it's defeated/retreated

[venxomi]

TBHK Chapter 125 Analysis - Duty and Determination

This chapter has been a lore-heavy one that opened the door to a lot of possibilities.

The introduction of a new 'God'

We always knew multiple gods existed via multiple mentions throughout the series, but the pit god was the only one introduced as such. We now welcome our second 'God', the Sand Clock.

You may ask, "How is the Sand Clock a God?", and I will reply with "Because it's so similar to the Pit God, it feels like a cruel joke".

Its origins unknown, with a will of its own- It wants to be used so it can claim its prize.

"Turn the clock upside down, make a wish, give up your present, and you can redo your entire life". Simple enough, isn't it? Make a sacrifice and get a chance at happiness.

It operates in a very similar way the pit god does, it just works by a different mechanism; It wants you to use it, it lets you use it as much as you'd like to reach your desired outcome, and when you're done wasting your soul away trying, it takes its due compensation in a very 'natural' and ironic way.

It either claims the lives of those who use the clock for themselves or the lives of those they want to save.

One who used it to become rich died at the hands of bandits, one who used it to gain fame died at the hands of envy, one who used it to gain love died with the one she loved- And finally, the one who used it to make another happy made it so that person never existed.

The theme of "happiness" reared its head once again- a honest desire to make another happy turned to ruin. We saw it with Tsukasa and Amane in the Red House, we saw it with Hanako and Nene in the Severance, and we saw it just a few chapters ago with Nene and Amane. We now see it with the watchmaker and his niece. In an honest attempt to make her happy, her existence was erased instead.

Kako's Purpose

After he experienced tragedy himself, the watchmaker decided to seal it. Desire is a part of human nature, so a human couldn't be tasked with guarding this cursed item.

As both a solution and punishment for himself for his actions, he used his own flesh and soul to create Kako, the Clock Keeper- A perfectly inhuman supernatural who would never fail in fulfilling his duty to guard the Sand Clock.

This reflects in the Clock Keepers' Yorishiro, the Key. It's the very key used to unlock the Sand Clock's seal and it is proof of Kako's duty, his purpose for existing. He was created solely to guard the clock, and having his yorishiro destroyed means destroying his entire reason for his existence.

Kako's inhumanity is meant to combat the Clock's ability to fan the flames of desire. It does not allow him to fall prey to the Clock. And it's proven up to a point- Nene tells him of Akane, the Guardian of the Present's death, along with her other friends' death. But Kako is unfazed. Like Akane said in the Clock Keepers arc, they do not value human life at all.

However, it is important to note that it's not perfectly inhuman. The watchmaker only used himself to create Kako, so who created Mirai, a clockwork doll in the likeness of the watchmaker's niece, if not Kako? Does it not contradict his intended inhumanity?

Which leads me to further think- He stored his yorishiro, the key to the Sand Clock, inside Mirai. Wasn't it so he wouldn't be able to use the Clock for himself, so he wouldn't be able to abandon his duty, as he would be forced to destroy the machine that looks like his niece to do so? A bitter reminder of the tragedy that follows.

It is also important to note that it is specified that Kako was created to prevent the Sand Clock's use. So why is it that Kako claims that his purpose is to "use it perfectly"? Is it his pride in his inhumanity that his actions would be based off logic and not desire?

The one thing "that must be protected above all else"

It is something that is so important it precedes mass killings. That it's fine if dozens, if not hundreds of people die, if this something is unharmed.

Most importantly, Kako says it's a secret, but it's something that even if it was revealed, Nene wouldn't be able to threaten Kako with it.

That opens up three possibilities:

It's something beyond Nene's reach, something that Nene can't do anything about anyway;

It's not a something, but a someone; Nene refused to destroy Sumire, who was a human yorishiro- So how could she threaten Kako at the expense of someone?

For me, it's the most likely one: It's someone or something Nene cares about, someone Nene would never want to come to harm.

I do have my own ideas, but I reached them via my intuition and not solid evidence, so they're not meant to be explained here.

The Intruder

The alarm rang since chapter 124. The cat assumed it's an alarm for an intruder, and it's confirmed in chapter 125 by Kako.

But see, Kako says that the alarm rings when someone invades the Boundary. But it didn't ring the moment Nene entered the Boundary, did it? It took one and a half chapter for it to ring. Which means Nene is not the invader the alarm went off on.

Perhaps you remember in chapter 121 when Akane ran his mouth in the Red House about going back in time and the curse of the Red House heard him?

"Still, a clock that can control time... That could be trouble."

Akane, Aoi and Teru put their lives on the line to get Nene enough time to get to the clock and turn back time. But that time seems to soon expire, and Kako will have to confront the issue he didn't bother prioritizing. He will have to confront the arrogant belief that he used the Sand Clock correctly, just because he was made 'perfect', 'beyond human'.

Nene's determination and... self-sacrifice?

Nene's determination is to be admired, for sure. For the entirety of the chapter she is told how the Sand Clock is a curse that brings the user to ruin. In the previous chapter, she is told about how others who attempted to turn back time were turned into mechanical dolls and forced into the Clock Keepers' Boundary for eternity.

She does not waver.

However, is that a good thing?

"I heard what you said, and it doesn't make any sense at all."

No, she does understand. She made it clear that she understands that if she takes the Sand Glass, ruin will await her.

But she doesn't want to acknowledge that she understands. Because if she does, she would acknowledge her own doom. Not only her own, but possibly others' aswell. Or rather, she feeds into the mindset she started having since chapter 91.

She... No longer values her own life nor her own personal happiness. As if befitting her role of a 'kannagi', she has a dangerous mindset- She starts thinking she's fine with sacrificing herself for others.

She doesn't care that she risks more than just her life anymore. She cares about reaching her own goals for others' sake. I, as of now, do not see a good outcome for Nene. Hanako picked up on this mindset and tried to rid her of it early in 91, but it would seem he failed.

I wonder how things will progress from here.

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Doctor Who, but Chronologically: 53

So, we go from 1996 to 2005, which is wild, because 1941 got three different fucking episodes but apparently the Millennium went unmarked by Doctor Who. This is also the span of time the show was off air, actually. Late 80s to 2005, with one return for the film in 1996. Hmm.

Anyway! GET READY FOR ROSE

This, back in 2005, was our first episode of new Doctor Who since its cancellation - the first episode of what I now call the Welsh series, after RTD forcibly moved production to Cardiff and thus created an industry that substantially increased Welsh GDP. Let me tell you, lads, we watched this one and we were EXCITED. It was new!!! It had modern special effects!!! It looked so impressive and shiny and high status!!!

Hilarious watching it now, two decades later, and going "Why was this filmed through a thin layer of vasoline?"

(Also hilarious seeing Cardiff pretending to be London on streets and buildings that very much do not look like that anymore. Queens Arcade! The street by the cinema with the eyebrows! Howells! What a difference 20 years makes. Such a nostalgic episode. BUT I DIGRESS)

So plot-wise we get a fairly simple episode. Autons like Rory the Roman have arrived on Earth and want to take over, but they're simply inert shop mannequins unless the Nestene Consciousness - a big vat of living plastic with a sort of lumpy face - transmits a telepathic signal to them. The Doctor is looking for this vat of plastic so he can preferably tell them to leave for a less killy planet, and if that fails, to tip a lurid blue test tube of what appears to be Panda Pop but we're assured is "anti-plastic" into the vat to... melt it more. But! He cannot find the vat, because he is failing to trace the signal.

But STORY-WISE we get, apparently, the introduction of Rose!

Long-time readers of these posts will know that I have strong opinions on how companions should be used. If they cannot pass the Sexy Lamp Test - if replacing them with a sexy lamp would literally not change the story - then the writer has utterly fucked it and needs to reconsider their career. For my money, Tumblrs, companions serve three varying purposes, to whit:

Providing fun chemistry with the Doctor so we can enjoy the pairing

Being the point-of-view human character for the audience, i.e. asking the questions or posing the theories that will make the story make sense according to our understanding

Providing the emotional connection to the other characters that mean we get fully fleshed out stories rather than boring plot points. The Doctor is plot, the companion is story

Bringing the Basic Common Sense to the proceedings to counter the Doctor's Wild Scientific Knowledge and Schemes

Each does these in different ways of course, but what's brilliant here is that Rose has all four in absolute spades. They're meeting for the first time here and he's super grumpy, but they make each other laugh almost immediately. As the Doctor strides about self-importantly, a cannon ball of purpose and curt non-explanations, it's Rose who pushes him to explain what's going on in terms she (and we) will understand, paring the plot down for us to follow. In this story, Eccleston's Doctor is the most aloof and stand-offish and Above The Petty Affairs Of Humans as we've ever seen him (except Capaldi); he cares deeply about trying to save everyone, but once an individual human is dead, he simply puts them out of his mind and moves on. It's Rose, grieving the possible loss of Mickey, who reminds us that these are people that are being lost. And, ultimately, Rose actually provides most of the final solutions - firstly by listening to the Doctor wittering on about how scientifically the Nestene MUST be using a big round circle for transmissions and going "That's the London Eye, here's the access hatch," and secondly by literally saving the Doctor's life.

And lol, yeah, she does save his life. She gets a great lil speech: "Got no A Levels, no job, no future," she says, grabbing a hanging rope while the Doctor is menaced by Autons. "But I tell you what I have got. Jericho Street Junior School under 7s gymnastics team. I got the bronze."

And she fucking. Just Tarzan swings. Right into the Autons who are holding the anti-plastic Panda Pop, knocking them right into the big vat. Incredible. What a babe.

Three last things before I wrap up!

Firstly, Christ, we get so much information about who Rose is. We're shown her messy bedroom, her useless boyfriend (side note he is SUPER USELESS in this. He was not this bad on a spaceship with Madame de Pompadour. My god, he's got some development coming), her job, her mam, her thoughts about the future. She left school for a boy, and now regrets it. She wants to make something of herself, but doesn't know how. After her job is blown up by the Doctor at the start, her mam Jackie (we've met her! We saw her recently, in Father's Day) suggests she try getting a job in a local business.

"Oh great," Rose says sarcastically. "The butchers."

"Well, maybe it'll do you good," Jackie says back. "That shop was giving you airs and graces."

... and in those two lines - in that one exchange - we know everything we need to about these people. God, it's the sort of character writing that you dream of managing. The simple mundanity of it, and what it tells you about them both; their position in society, what they think of it, what they want and aspire to and believe. Impeccable. Rose is a working class girl who dreams of more, who wants a life that's more than this. Jackie is a loving mother who's firmly in the crab bucket, and feels shame about her own life when she sees Rose reach up. God it's good.

Also, Rose has a GREAT reaction to seeing the TARDIS for the first time.

Secondly! This is seemingly an introduction of sorts for this Doctor as well! At one point, he looks in a mirror and remarks that this face is "not bad, but look at the ears", which is interesting, because we later find out he's had it a while. An internet nutter has the world's worst photoshopped prop showing Eccleston at the Kennedy Assassination (presumably he was there sorting out the Silver Nemesis) among other historical points, so the lad's been about. But alone, and avoiding mirrors.

We are also shown some super powers! He can read a book in the time it takes to flick from front to back, and he can feel planetary rotation, and he can speak Liquid Plastic. Exciting.

But also, he's constantly referencing a war here, which I suspect is going to be hell on our question list. The Nestenes lost their protein planets in the war, so they want Earth. He almost cries at the vat, telling it he tried to save their world, but he couldn't. Lots of references, but alas, once again, no answer as to which damn war this is. In theory, the episode after an introduction would explain that of course :) Presumably we'll get those answers next episode :) Surely this watch order would make us wait until, like, the year Five Billion to find out :) Ho ho ho

Finally, some absolute iconic moments in this one, but my particular favourites are: the look of Plastic Mickey and his glitching speech, with Rose literally not noticing a difference (says a lot about the quality of Mickey); Rose trying to google the word "Doctor" and expecting it to work; and my absolute favourite, which is Rose and the Doctor trying to fight a plastic arm in the living room while Jackie turns a hairdryer on for her COMPLETELY BONE DRY HAIR to give a reason as to why she misses the action. Campy fun, 10/10.

SO! Let's update the board!

“She” (an unknown person) is returning (Suspects: River, Missy, Me, Clara)

There is something on Donna’s back

An entire planet, Pyrovilia, just… disappeared, somehow. (Maybe because the TARDIS is exploding??? Saturnine was also lost, and that WAS because of the TARDIS exploding. The lion man’s planet was also lost but he was a bit of a knob about it if I’m honest. The Thijarian planet was destroyed by some sort of impact). Is this the Flux?

The TARDIS is sort of melting because it’s corrupted, but it’s fine again. NOPE, back to not working.

The Doctor has employed(?) Nardole

(And Nardole was “reassembled???” Nardole had glass nipples and invisible hair?? He used to be blue, and could apparently go back to it??? He’s some sort of helplessly criminal con-artist??? WHAT THE FUCK IS HE)

There’s an immortal Viking girl now. Her name is Me and she’s now looking after the people the Doctor abandons

Why was Rory entirely unconcerned by the entire world suddenly going silent when that is Not Normal and should have been, at the very least, extremely disconcerting?

What did the Doctor do to Queen Lizzie One?

Why is Amy seeing a one-eyed woman in a vanishing window? (She’s with the Silents, but we don’t know why Amy saw her)

Why is Amy’s pregnancy inconclusive? (Maybe because the baby had Time Lord DNA?) She’s deffo pregnant and the baby becomes River, but why inconclusive?

Who is Sarah-Jane Smith?

How is the Doctor Bill’s teacher and why/where does he have an office?

What is going on with the Cyber War and the Cyberium???

What happened with the Other Cyber War? Were either of these Cyber wars affected by the Doctor blowing them up with Nemesis?

What happened with the Third War that deleted the void?

Why does Rose seem particularly important?

What order do these Doctors go in? (Eccleston, Tennant, uncertain, Smith, Capaldi, Whittaker)

Which companion just… forgot the Doctor, and how?

Yaz and Vinder are about to die as Mori/Mwri/Muuri (Not anymore, somehow)

There is a Lupari shield around Earth.

What’s a Time War? Did this destroy the Doctor’s planet and/or family? NEW INFO: did this destroy the Auton world?

What’s the Rift?

What’s Bad Wolf? Gwyneth saw “the Big Bad Wolf” in Rose’s mind, and it was on a 1987 poster as graffiti

In which war did the Doctor become a war criminal, and how?

Is Rory plastic or not? Yeah, must be, he couldn’t possibly remember being plastic otherwise

Why is the Doctor sulking on a cloud?

How exactly does the Doctor have a cloud?

What exactly happened with Strax to, uh, tame him?

Which friend killed Strax?

Which friend brought Strax back?

Where did this lesbian lizard and human couple come from?

What happened with Clara as Souffle Girl and the Daleks?

How does Clara actually join?

Why so many Claras? A psychic midwife says she’s just normal human

Why is Missy apparently in robo-heaven? Is this because she’s now dead?

Why is probably!Missy pushing Clara and the Doctor together?

What is Trensilor and what happened there?

Who is Handles?

The Doctor is about to be dissolved by a beautiful geode man

The universe is being crushed by the Flux

Will the Doctor open the fobwatch? Is it actually just a pager?

Sontarans are invading Earth again

Who is Kate?

Who is Osgood? Another name of Clara’s again?

The fuck is the deal with the Grand Serpent

Does Martha get to go to an ice cream planet with 12-fingered massage aliens?

How did the Doctor forget Clara?

Who is Bill’s puddle girlfriend Heather? This is presumably the star-eyed water faerie

How did Nardole die?

When does the Doctor shrink and enter a Dalek called Rusty?

Whittaker is falling to her death rn

Was that ring relevant?

Does anyone know the Doctor’s name? Missy says it’s “Who”

When did Yaz talk to Dan about fancying the Doctor?

When did Dan talk to the Doctor about fancying Yaz?

What’s happening with the bees?

What happened with Donna’s ex and a giant spider?

What war wiped out the Daleks, and is it one of the ones already mentioned?

What did the Doctor mean when he said “The (Daleks) always live, while I lose everything?”

If Dalek Caan is the last Dalek left why are there more now?

How did the rest of the Time Lords die?

How and why did Amy melt?

What’s the question that will make silence fall?

Why do the Silents… want silence to fall?

How and why are Silents at war with the Doctor when he… hasn’t even heard of them?

How does Hitler get out of the cupboard?

What’s the significance of fish fingers and custard?

Why does the Doctor feel guilt about Rose, Martha and Donna?

What happened with the space whale?

How does the Doctor survive River? He doesn’t, apparently

How does he erase himself from history

Did Captain Jack lose his memories to the same people as the Doctor? What did he lose?

When did the Doctor send the Daleks into a void to save the universe?

Why do Amy and Rory think the Doctor is dead? Is it because of River as an astronaut?

Is Matt Smith’s Doctor a tree racist?

Why is the beautiful geode woman stealing people into a Passenger form?

River says she’ll die one day when the Doctor doesn’t remember her, let’s hope she doesn’t mean it

Why doesn’t the TARDIS like Clara?

When was the Master Prime Minister?

How do Amy and Rory rejoin the Doctor given that they haven’t died yet in 1950s Manhattan?

[toronto-tree-removal]

Expert Tree Removal Services in Toronto: Why It Matters for Safety & Aesthetics

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Citations:

Toronto Tree Removal Services

Tree Bylaws & Removal Permits – City of Toronto

ISA Certified Arborists – Why Certification Matters

[wachinyeya]

An intuitive piece of hardware is collecting days’ worth of renewable energy from airplane engine exhaust before take-off from a Dallas airport.

“Boarding is completed” is a common refrain heard over the intercom system in the moments before taxiing to the runway.

At that moment, the pilot will begin a series of engine tests and pre-flight checks during which time the turbine engines are idling with their ferocious noise and exhaust fumes.

A company called JetWind has realized that all that idling force is like the strong winds needed to power a wind turbine, and has built a series of pods that can capture it during the 5-10 minutes the aircraft is sitting at the gate waiting for clearance to taxi.

“The main goal of our project is to harness the consistent wind created by jets and convert it into an eco-friendly energy source,” JetWind’s founder and president Dr. T. O. Souryal told Interesting Engineering.

“What was once considered wasted energy can now benefit energy grids, ultimately promoting smarter and more sustainable infrastructure across the globe.”

Three years of testing between 2021 and 2024 have informed the official deployment of JetWind’s flagship product at Dallas Love Field airport. 13 sets of pods will sit beneath the gate hooked up to external batteries that connect to the grid the airport uses. Solar panels add to the energy generation, and the whole set can create about 30 kilowatt-hours of renewable energy, enough to power a family home for a few days.

While on its own it isn’t nearly what the average airport will consume during a day of operations, when combined with 12 other systems just like it, it can make a serious difference in reducing the carbon footprint of the building.

“Dallas Love Field has always been a hub of progress, and the introduction of JetWind’s Energy Capturing Pods reinforces its position as a testing ground for innovative technologies,” said former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert.

“By converting man-made wind into energy, we are highlighting Dallas as a leader in sustainable solutions and proving that cities can take significant steps toward tackling global energy challenges.”

The debut of the JetWind pods at Love Field has attracted attention from around the globe, including companies and governments from Switzerland, Brazil, Saudi Arabia, Ecuador, the UK, France, and Australia.

[yuurei20]

Sorry if this was asked/addressed before, but do you consider the Twisted Wonderland Novels to be canon compliant, canon divergent, or maybe a little bit of both? Thank you so much!

Hello hello! ^^ Thank you for this question!

The Twst novels are fascinating, and seem to be accomplishing a multitude of things at once: we get insight into things that are barely hinted at in the game, like the scorn Riddle suffers post-overblot, the respect he holds for Leona and how he wants to learn from Malleus.

・Riddle and the consequences of overblot ・Riddle's confession ・Riddle on Malleus

We also get complete changes to things established in the game, such as the retconning of our introductions to Leona, Vil and Azul. ・Meeting Leona ・Meeting Pomefiore (pt1)) ・Meeting Azul (pt1)

And, most interesting of all, we get a lot more detail into things that also might be happening in the game, but we were just not told about it due to the limitations of the visual novel medium:

・Yuuya's First Class The prefect is not exactly welcomed by the students of NRC, with no one but Ace and Deuce willing to acknowledge them. ・Yuuya Fails After being supported by Ace, the prefect fails to support him in return ・The Classroom Tensions between Savanaclaw and Diasomnia students ・Riddle and Unique Magics Information on how unique magics manifest. ・The Overblot Battle Ruggie and Jack work together to defeat Leona ・Post-Overblot Leona (the flashback monologue) Leona's fear of giving up. ・Trusting Riddle Ace and Deuce's relationship to Riddle.

Due to how some things are being completely changed I think it is safer to consider the novels as a different canon unto themselves, but they are also a great frame of reference to apply to the game!

→ What language is being spoken in Twst? It is never specified in the game, but we know the language at novel-NRC is not Japanese!

→ What is the roommate situation at NRC? While we have a few hints in the game, the novel has explicitly explained the rooming situations!

→ How many students are there at NRC? Again we have a few hints here and there in the game, but the novel has given us a solid number :>

While things like the above three points might not apply to the game at all they are a useful reference for fanfic purposes, for example, until such a time that they are confirmed or denied by game canon.

And there might be times when the novels are even making corrections to in-game oversights 👀

In Book 1, for example, Ace is unable to repeat Chenya's full name after hearing it for the first time.

The problem: Ace is well known for being talented at mimicry, imitating tongue-click sounds he learns from Rook on his first try in order to communicate with hedgehogs.

The solution: Both the novel and the manga corrected this scene by having Deuce, not Ace, be the one who struggles to repeat Chenya's name.

Did they realize at some point that Ace not being able to mimic Chenya goes against an important character point, which they then corrected in the other two mediums? 👀

As the novels are coming out after the game, this could mean that there is a possibility that they are actually more accurate to the characters in some ways, as the creators have had a chance to review previously established points and make adjustments accordingly ^^

(The author for the novels, Hioki Jun, is both one of the original writers of the game's events and vignettes along with Yana, and a member of Yana's personal studio, D-6th!)

While maybe not canon to each other, both the novels and the game are most enjoyable, and I highly recommend them both!

English-language translation of the first novel coming out this August! 🥳

[mesetacadre]

hi, love your blog! have you heard of "maga communism"? i personally find it pretty silly, but it does open up some questions and conversations about reactionary/conservative beliefs within communist movements and individual communists (can you call a reactionary a communist?). most "maga communist" and similar tendencies i have seen were pretty exclusively on twitter so far, for example individual self-described communists being homophobic (talking about "bourgeois decadence" and all that, you know the story), but its also rather concerning considering the recent transphobic course of the CPGB, or the homophobic statements of the KKE. how to deal with such tendencies in the movement? are such tendencies compatible with communist thought? (i personally dont think so, but how do you change such tendencies?) would love to hear your thoughts on that!

MAGA communism is a US-specific subset of "patriotic socialism", patsoc for short. MAGA communism in particular peddles republican and other reactionary positions via pseudo-communist rhetoric. This isn't something new, almost if not all factions of the bourgeois political establishment use workerist rhetoric to some degree, such is their function to mislead the working class. The only thing that stands out to me from this sect is the outright self-labelling of being communists. Take even a shallow step into their positions however, and you'll find run-of-the-mill reactionarism and nationalism.

This is a very different phenomenon from actual communists taking some reactionary positions but who are otherwise quite "normal", and from actual socialist countries fostering some kind of patriotism.

Regarding the latter, the example I'm most familiar with is Cuba. Following their triumph in both national liberation from colonialism and the socialist revolution, one aspect of Cuba's strategy for security and that also was a natural rationalization of their victory was the proliferation of pride in the Cuban revolution. Critically, this form of pride is not like the usual (bourgeois, as in, the emergence of nationalism within the rise of capitalism) nationalism, but the expression of international solidarity with all peoples and honor in being one of the groups of workers who achieved self liberation. It's a pride of the Cuban revolution, not the Cuban nation in itself. There are no traces of superiority over other peoples in this kind of patriotism. This is categorically very different from what the patsoc types express.

"Normal" communists taking reactionary positions comes from a vestige of the capitalist culture that is hammered into every single one of us emerging because of an unfinished education in marxist philosophy. The solution to this is very simple, that is to continue the development of our mistaken comrade, and adequate punishment if those beliefs resulted in harm.

I also want to make dedicated points about the CPGB and the KKE. The CPGB, like most other historical Communist Parties in Western Europe, folded themselves into reformism within liberal democracy following the eurocommunist current that arose in the second half of the 20th century. The fact that the CPGB has adopted reactionary positions is a consequence of having embedded itself into parliamentarism, as the political consensus amongst bourgeois parties in the UK right now is that of transphobia and racism, they are following the same general shift that Labour has.

The KKE is a different story. I have talked to a (trans) militant of the KKE about this, as well as with another (cishet) militant. They say that the KKE's opposition to the introduction of homosexual marriage in the Greek parliament (which was thankfully passed) comes from a non-homophobic critique that was, however, badly communicated. The KKE has repeatedly proposed separating marriage itself from the legal and financial benefits that it carries. For example, instead of only being allowed to visit someone in a hospital if you're family or married, the KKE proposes that people should be able to authorize anyone to have these sorts of benefits without also having to marry them.

The voting against homosexual marriage was done on the grounds that the institution of marriage involves unnecessary state involvement in interpersonal relationships and abuse, since these benefits also sometimes lead to couples who can't afford to divorce. Was voting against gay marriage the best course of action? No, and the militants I've talked to agree. But it was never about the KKE believing that homosexuality is "bourgeois decadence", like some media outlets have twisted it, just like most ML Party positions are twisted in some way or another.

It also does not help that translations from Greek aren't that simple, and that can also lead to misinterpretation in subjects where nuanced language is very important, such as trans people. There are no separate words in Greek for "sex" and "gender", even though in English they are complicated terms with a lot of drawbacks, it is immensely useful to have separate words. So discussion in Greek about this, and more importantly translation, can very easily be misinterpreted or deliberately misconstrued.

I am not saying that the KKE is free from reactionary tendencies and that it's a paragon of absolute social progress, but just like it isn't that, it is also not comparable with crypto-fascists or glorified socdems playing into transphobic or racist tendencies. This leads me to a broader point about general reactionary thought in the past.

There is no doubt that people like Stalin or Lenin, or more appropriately the vast majority of ML parties in the past were homophobic (I'm using this term to also include transphobia and similar discriminations) and that they instituted policies that specifically hurt queer people. No serious communist today abides by those positions and those actions. And just like we can understand that an individual communist today may be insufficiently educated and express reactionary views and hurt people because of this, I think the analogy can be made that these past communist people and parties hadn't yet been sufficiently educated by practice and theoretical discussions. We can't ignore the harm that they did, but we can recognize that it was in no way necessary, and that it was counterproductive, so we can acknowledge those mistakes, carefully separate those elements from the rest of their achievements, and learn about them.

A good example of this evolution is Cuba. In the times of Che and Fidel, queer people were discriminated against and sometimes sentenced to forced labor, nobody denies this. But this was 50 years ago, and not only did Fidel recognize this mistake in this lifetime, he began the process of improving the party line on this which has resulted in one of, if not the most progressive laws regarding homosexuality in the world, in the form of 2022's family code, which you can read here in Spanish. I have copied part of article 4 below, which regulates the rights of people within a family, along with my own translation just below:

Artículo 4. Derechos de las personas en el ámbito familiar. a) Constituir una familia; b) la vida familiar; c) la igualdad plena en materia filiatoria; d) que se respete el libre desarrollo de la personalidad, la intimidad y el proyecto de vida personal y familiar; e) que las niñas, los niños y adolescentes crezcan en un entorno familiar de felicidad, amor y comprensión; f) la igualdad plena entre mujeres y hombres, a la distribución equitativa del tiempo destinado al trabajo doméstico y de cuidado entre todos los miembros de la familia, sin sobrecargas para ninguno de ellos, y a que se respete el derecho de las parejas a decidir si desean tener descendencia y el número y el momento para hacerlo, preservando, en todo caso, el derecho de las mujeres a decidir sobre sus cuerpos; g) el desarrollo pleno de los derechos sexuales y reproductivos en el entorno familiar, independientemente de su sexo, género, orientación sexual e identidad de género, situación de discapacidad o cualquier otra circunstancia personal; incluido el derecho a la información científica sobre la sexualidad, la salud sexual y la planificación familiar, en todo caso, apropiados para su edad; h) la protección a la maternidad y la paternidad y la promoción de su desarrollo responsable; i) una vida familiar libre de discriminación y violencia en cualesquiera de sus manifestaciones; j) una armónica y estrecha comunicación familiar entre las abuelas, abuelos, otros parientes, personas afectivamente cercanas y las niñas, los niños y adolescentes; k) la autodeterminación, voluntades, deseos, preferencias, independencia y la igualdad de oportunidades en la vida familiar de las personas adultas mayores y aquellas en situación de discapacidad; y l) al cuidado familiar desde el afecto.

And the translation (OC)

Article 4: A person's rights in the context of the family a) To build a family; b) to family life; c) to full equality in filial matters; d) for the free development of personality, intimacy, and the personal and familiar life project to be respected; e) for the boys and girls and adolescents to mature in a familiar environment of happiness, love, and compassion; f) the full equality between men and women, the egalitarian distribution of domestic work and care between all members of the family, without overburden to any of them, and for a couple's right to decide if they want descendants and the number and time to do so to be respected, preserving, in every case, the right for a woman to decide over her own body; g) the full development of sexual and reproductive rights in the familiar environment, independently of their sex, gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity, disability, or any other personal circumstance; including the right to scientific information about sexuality, sexual health, and family planning, in every case, suitably for their age; h) the protection of maternity and paternity and the promotion of its responsible progress; i) a familiar life free of discrimination and violence in whichever of their manifestations; j) a harmonious and close communication between grandmothers, grandfathers, other relatives, people who are affectionately close, and the girls, boys, and adolescents; k) the self-determination, wills, desires, preferences, independence and equality of opportunity in the familiar life of adult people and those in a situation of disability; and l) to affectionate familiar care.

[lipshits-continuous]

Relative de Rham Cohomology

One interesting thing from my dissertation was looking at relative de Rham cohomology and whether we get a long exact sequence like we do for singular (co)homology. The answer is we do and we'll go through the constuctions and results in this post!

This is covered briefly in Differential Forms in Algebraic Topology by Bott and Tu and in a bit more detail in Riemannian Geometry and Geometric Analysis (Second Edition) by Jost. However some details like the functoriality of the de Rham cohomology of a pair and the naturality of one of the homomorphisms in the long exact sequence aren't touched on. I filled in these details in my diss!

In what follows, I will be assuming you are comfortable with de Rham cohomology, the theory of smooth manifolds and a bit of homological algebra. I might make some posts in the future about these but in the meantime, I cannot recommend enough Introduction to Smooth Manifolds by Lee.

1. Pairs of Smooth Manifolds

In the more general setting of topological spaces, we say a pair of topological spaces (X,A) is a space X and a subset A⊆X equipped with the subspace topology. The key here is that the structure on A is inhereted from the structure on X. Since in general, subsets of a smooth manifolds are not smooth manifolds, we must be more careful about which subsets we choose. For what follows, we will consider a pair of smooth manifolds (M,S) to be a smooth manifold M and a smoothly embedded submanifold S⊆M. The notion of maps of pairs carries over with no issue since the restriction of a smooth map to a smoothly embedded submanifold is smooth. That is, a smooth map of pairs F:(M,S)->(N,T) is a smooth map F:M->N such that F(S)⊆T.

2. de Rham Cohomology of a Smooth Map

The motivation for relative (co)homology is to study how a subspace contributes to the (co)homology of the whole space. In a sense, it is the (co)homology of the space without the affect of the subspace. For singular homology, singular n-simplies of a subspace A⊆X are already also singular n-simplices of X and hence span a submodule of the nth singular chain module of X. So we may take the quotient Cₙ(X)/Cₙ(A) and produce a new chain complex. However, this approach doesn't quite work for de Rham cohomology since differential forms on an embedded submanifold S⊆M aren't automatically differential forms on M. If we wanted to take this approach, we would have to worry about methodically extending differential forms from a submanifold to the whole manifold. However that might get messy and perhaps might involve too much analysis. There is, however, a neat algebraic solution!

The idea is to somehow study differential forms on M whose restriction doesn't contribute to the cohomology on S. More specifically, we will construct the de Rham cohomology of a pair in such a way that cohomology classes are represented by closed forms on M whose restriction to S is exact. As in Bott-Tu, we can actually define a more general cochain complex given a smooth map F:N->M by noticing the restriction of a form to a submanifold is precisely the pullback of the pair by the inclusion. So more generally, we will define cohomology classes represented by differential forms on M whose pullback to N is exact.

Definition 2.1:

Proposition 2.2:

Definition 2.3:

Remark 2.4:

We now consider two obvious linear maps.

Proposition 2.5:

This means that β is a cochain map and hence induces a well-defined map in cohomology. Whilst α is not quite a cochain map, it's easy to check that it induces a well-defined map in cohomology given by α*[θ]:=α[(θ)]. Combining these with the pullback of F:N->M, we get a long exact sequence!

Lemma 2.6:

3. de Rham Cohomology of a Pair

Now that we have developed the more general case, we will bring our focus back to the de Rham cohomology of a pair of smooth manifolds. As alluded to in the previous section, we define the cohomology of a pair to be the cohomology of the inclusion map!

Definition 3.1:

Just as smooth maps between smooth manifolds induce well-defined maps of their respective de Rham cohomology groups, smooth maps of pairs also induce well-defined maps of the respective relative de Rham cohomology groups! This results is the first of two that is completely my own. The key to the proof is the following commutative diagram:

Lemma 3.2:

We can now show that α* in Lemma 2.6 is a natural transformation, which is the second of my two results. This along with a quick argument to show that β* is induced by the inclusion M->(M,S) will actually show that de Rham cohomology satisfies the Exactness Axiom in the Eilenberg-Steenrod Axioms.

Proposition 3.3:

You might wonder now whether we also have excision for de Rham cohomology and we do! The proof can be found in Jost's book!

If you have any questions, I'd love to chat about this (or anything else about my dissertation)!