#It was on Team Rocket Headquarters...

[littleapocalypsekitten]

Tailored ads are terrible. Before I was even on tumblr, my fiance / partner had a major heart attack (second) and was in the hospital in need of surgery and I was a wreck freaking out about it. I talked about it with loved ones on Facebook and I talked about it with friends on a blog-area I go to and I guess I said "die" a lot and talked enough about "fear that he might die" that... guess what ads started appearing on my dashes, all of them, all over the Internet and I could NOT get rid of them? "Caskets hand-crafted by Trappist monks." Dear God in Heaven, did that trigger me something FIERCE!

every other website: highly tailored ads based off of your personal data

tumblr:

[casebasket]

oh my god oh my godhmy godh yomgodhy

[sourszt]

[ 𝟏:𝟐𝟏 𝐩𝐦 | 𝐫𝐞𝐱 𝐬𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐧 ]

𝐟𝐭. rex “splode” sloan x fem!reader

𝐜𝐰. nsfw, shower sex, quickie, pet names ‘sweet thing’ and ‘pretty girl,’ oral (m!receiving), facial, praise, (in)correct use of powers (blood manipulation), exhibitionism if you squint, rex being soft but also not ?

𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬. this came to me in a vision. i power wrote this last night, knocked out and i’m posting it now. more invincible smuts to come im obsessed w rex and that show. not proofread.

right after a mission, each member of the guardians of the globe had their own way of recollecting themselves.

most of them, decently battered and beaten, would make a brief stop somewhere in the city to give themselves a breather before gathering back at headquarters. the rest would grab a quick shower at headquarters and then head to the lounge area or kitchen to wait for the rest of their team.

you were typically among the former. after taking a decent beating a couple of times a week, you would fly home just to make sure your family was okay. and to reassure them that you were, too. it would only be about half an hour before you’d return to headquarters, which was around the same time as your other teammates.

half an hour of near radio silence within that tower.

near radio silence.

up in the training floor, one shower was still running long after the rest had been abandoned. steam had already condensed onto each bathroom wall and mirror. the sound of rushing water pelting the floor hardly muffled the harmony of stifled cries and grunted curses from that small yet open stall.

somehow, rex sloan had ended up with you in the stall, slinking in when you were all alone to kindly offer to inspect for wounds. you agreed to his oh-so-kind offer, well aware of his malicious intentions, but on the condition that he be quick.

so that was how you wound up pressed to the cold tile wall, back arched and legs spread while rex took you from behind. he was no stranger to your body, knowing exactly where your most sacred spots were and abusing them relentlessly. it nearly brought you to your knees, rex’s hand keeping you upright while the other groped your tit.

“no one’s gonna hear you, sweet thing.” rex husked into your ear, voice strained as he pounded into you. “‘ts just you and me in here.”

you continued to bite at the back of your hand to keep your volume as low as possible when rex’s grip on your hip tightened and he pulled you back into a particularly rough thrust. it caught you off balance for a moment, a surge of pain rocketing through your body, and a pitchy moan tore from your mouth. “fucking christ, rex!”

the man grinned at your whining. “that’s it, keep ‘em comin’,” rex’s other hand snaked around your torso to cup your throat. he yanked you back nearly flush with his chest, groaning at the way your walls clamped around his thick cock. “fu-ckin’ hell. you feel so fuckin’ good around me.”

the new angle let him hit one of those sensitive spots inside of you, and this time you couldn’t quite cover your mouth in time. you weakly grabbed at the hand splayed across your throat but by then you didn’t care about how your cries echoed off of the bathroom walls.

he knew you were reaching your breaking point when he felt that familiar tremble in your thighs underneath his palm. you were already taking him so well, spasming cunt practically swallowing his dick so greedily, but still he persisted.

“do the thing.” he whispered with a smirk playing on his lips.

his rhythm began to die down, telling you that he wouldn’t take no for an answer. as if you’d even tell him no.

you took one of your shaky palms off of the cool tile and reached around to rest it on rex’s waist. it took you a moment to focus as you began concentrating his blood flow down to his cock, gently restricting it at the base. you expanded his blood volume by the slightest percentage, minding the few injuries he sustained during the mission earlier.

rex felt it right away, cock instinctively twitching inside of you. his forehead pressed between your shoulder blades, his wet hair clinging to your skin; his fingers dug into your plush thigh. you could feel him stopping himself from rutting into you. he hardly had any restraint as he whispered your name so desperately.

“easy.” you instructed. “i need to — fuck — need to focus.”

you were doing anything but that, truthfully. which would’ve been lethal if you didn’t know what you were doing. but alas, this wasn’t the first time.

rex hissed at the same time you did when you felt his cock gently swell inside of you. not enough to be painful, but definitely enough to feel it. the moment you dropped your hand, rex took it as his cue to move.

“fuck,” his voice broke into a soft whine, “so goddamn tight.” he reached between your legs and nudged your thighs apart a little more. “c’mon, sweet thing.”

he moved his hand from your throat to between your shoulders, pushing you down as he pulled out to his swollen tip only to slam his hips forward, burying himself to the hilt inside of you.

a cry of his name came from you, only egging the arrogant man on. “god, you’re so fuckin’ good for me. aren’t ya?”

you could barely last much longer; that tight, hot coil in your abdomen was steadily unwinding with each of rex’s deep thrusts. you held on to the wall for dear life, your palms sliding against the slick tiles. the weight of rex’s chest against your back made you peer over in time to see his hand envelop yours against the wall, his strong fingers lacing through yours. he kept you upright while he fucked you through your orgasm, mumbling encouragement into your skin.

“that’s it, pretty girl. takin’ me so damn good — fuck!” rex’s grip on your waist began to falter, as did his rhythm, when he realized he wasn’t too far behind you. it didn’t help that your cunt was spasming uncontrollably around him. “come on, i’ve got you.”

the groan in his voice was enough to send you over, head falling forward with a cry of his name. your thighs trembled in his hold and threatened to give out. you hardly managed to keep yourself upright as he continued to pound into you. the stimulation almost became too much to bear, a few tears mixing with the sweat and shower water trailing down your face.

you finally gave out once rex pulled out, body going limp against the wall. rex caught you at the waist and closed the brief gap between you. he buried his face into your neck and pressed soft kisses to your skin. “god, i’ll never get used to that. so fuckin’ perfect.” he mumbled as he turned you around to face him. “do you… mind?” his green eyes shamelessly raked down your body, his still-hard cock twitching in his hand at the sight.

both of your legs were sore beyond belief, and they were sure to get worse after the nap you were bound to take later, but it didn’t stop you from sliding down onto your knees and replacing rex’s hand with your own. your own abilities amazed you; you could hardly wrap both of your hands around his swollen cock, let alone fit it in your mouth.

“fuck” rex groaned, long and low as he braced himself on the wall behind you. it shielded some of the water from splashing into your face, but ran down his body and allowed your hands to pump him with ease. “ju-just like that, christ.” a few stray drops of water running down rex’s red locks fell onto your face as you stared up at him. you made sure not to break eye contact when you took the tip of his cock onto your flattened tongue, easing it past your lips.

one of his hands went to your hair, brushing it out of your face as best as he could before resting his palm at the back of your head. it didn’t guide you nor did it force you to take him further. it encouraged you. you knew that he was already close. it only took you a few skillful bobs of your head and twists of your hands before he started whining. your favorite tell of his that he was about to come.

you inched back enough to take your lips off of his cock and stuck your tongue out, his cum painting it not seconds later. you took it all, gracefully swallowing it before getting back to your feet with his help. he was on you the moment you were, gently pressing you against the wall as he captured you into a deep kiss. not an ounce of concern crossed you, considering you were definitely supposed to be in the lounge by now.

“don’t think that counted as quick, rex.” you said with a smile when he finally pulled away.

“ask me if i give a shit. i hope those a-holes heard us.” rex sassed as he reached for your shampoo bottle. “another wash can’t hurt, right? turn around.”

i love him so much.

[niqhtlord01]

Humans are weird: The Last Guardian

( Please come see me on my new patreon and support me for early access to stories and personal story requests :D https://www.patreon.com/NiqhtLord Every bit helps)

There was once a legend of a dead world called “Terra” that held a vault so ancient that even time could no longer fade its surface. It was said this vault contained the last vestiges of a species that once strode across the stars like gods and shaped the very fabric of reality to their liking on a whim.

The Vault was said to contain not only the collective knowledge of this species but several of their most advanced machines they had ever created. Jump drives that span entire quadrants instead of systems, portable dimensional storage spaces, templates for artificial life forms both mechanical and organic, and so much more beyond the vast depths of a universe’s imagination.

For years treasure seekers hunted this legendary world. Called to it from across the stars every manner of species came in search of the lost world with no luck until finally a lone survey team stumbled upon it while searching for fresh mineral deposits.

Terra was just as described in the stories; an entire planet covered in cities and empty buildings reaching forever into the sky for the heavens they will never touch. Only a single power source was detected on the planet and the mineral team made straight for it.

Set in the center of a decaying city the mineral ship set down and began prospecting while several of their number went to investigate the energy readings. They had not traveled far when a strange figure appeared before them. It was a bipedal robotic figure caped in a cloak to protect itself from the harsh wind and eyes as bright as the sun that shun between the clouds.

It spoke in a tongue that none of the crew understood or their translator units and allowed none to pass. When the crew ignited their mining equipment to begin harvesting some of the rare metals still found in the decaying buildings the robot’s eyes turned red and disappeared in a blink of an eye.

Not much is known after that as the teams recorders terminated one after another until finally the entire contingent was killed. This was only known as the ship’s emergency systems activated and the autopilot took the ship back to headquarters to report the loss of crew.

When news broke of the events that had transpired additional crews were dispatched to investigate, yet all shared the same fate as one by one their empty ships returned home to report entire crew deaths. From then on security details and treasure hunters flocked to the mysterious death world in search of the promised fortune.

They lasted only slightly longer than the mineral teams.

Even with their advanced weaponry, the lone figure would appear before them and dispatch them as if they were nothing more than children. Plasma fire bounced off its polished exterior, quantum rockets were caught midair in its grasp and flung away like playing balls, an even the strength of a Omega class war droid was nothing as it ripped its arms off and impaled the droid on them.

Attempt after attempt was made until finally the body count had reached such an extent that the galactic powers took notice and dispatch their mightiest warships to the planet to investigate from orbit. They had no sooner arrived in high anchor when a beam of dark energy shot up from the planet’s surface and simply erased them from existence. From then on a quarantine procedure was placed around the entire solar system on pain of death for crossing it until the galactic powers could determine what to do next.

This lasted a year before one of the powers suggested opening diplomatic talks with the entity on the world. In truth none had considered it given its innate hostility to intruders, but they soon realized that in the previous attempts no one had actually attempted to communicate with the robotic being.

A small delegation was dispatched, comprised of the finest diplomats and linguists, and made landfall at the same place as the original mining team that had discovered the world.

In short order the lone robotic figure appeared before them mysteriously and spoke again its strange words.

As before no one could understand them, but since the original first contact other locations had been discovered in the universe that bore many similar markings as the Terra planet. It was theorized that these had once been colonies or other worlds controlled by the same power many millennia ago and through careful study a working translation had been achieved.

When activated the figure’s words finally became clear.

“Tread with care, for you stand on the greatness of my creators.”

“They….create….you?” the translator replied. It was not a complete translation but it could pass for the minimum understanding.

“Yes.” It replied. “I am the guardian of this world and the legacy it contains.”

“Why…attack?”

The robot cocked its head to the side in an unnaturally life like pose of confusion.

The robot stood to the side and held up a hand towards the entrance of the vault. As the dust winds finally dissipated the gathered delegation could finally make out the surroundings and wept in fear. Before the doors of the vault now stood row upon row of corpses, shoved on to stakes or mounted to walls in numerous horrific fashion each more grotesque than the last.

“The fate of thieves and pilferers is not one of kindness.”

It clasped its hands behind its back once more and addressed the gathering.

“Shall you share theirs?”  

[mewtwoandme]

A lil "blast from the past" question for you, Jericho:

When you build your magnificent castle/mansion/however you want to call it, how did you learn about architecture? Was it something you read up on before attempting, or did you go by trial and error to build your lair?

Well, back during the time I was still a part of Team Rocket, I took mental notes of their headquarters design and architecture. Though when I made my fortress, I took many creative liberties

[favevostagepoll]

i always read your url as "fave hostage poll"

Ok now I can't not use this as a premise for a poll, can I.

Picture this:

Team Rocket grunts have stolen a truck carrying 12 Pokemon I picked from the national dex with a random number generator hostage, and are planning to sell them in the black market.

However, what they weren't counting on is you were also back there, because you wanted to recreate the opening scene from Ruby and Saphire.

When you come to, you realize the truck has arrived at the center of the Team Rocket headquarters. You know how to battle, but all you're carrying with you is an empty Pokeball and 3 potions. A choice must be made: you have to pick one of the 12 hostage Pokemon as your partner to help you battle your way out of the headquarters, and clear a path for the other 11 Pokemon to escape!

[prismaticpichu]

hurt/comfort prompt! younger AGS, the first time one of them is injured badly in the field and they need patching up or taking care of? could be a fun "couple sentences or paragraphs for each of them" type oeompt, but we know we all kinda just want to see Seph coddled a little :3c

Shshshdhyd!!! I LOVE IT!!! ❤️💙💚

~

AGS: First Injuries

The first time Genesis had been injured, he immediately tried to deny it.

The facade wasn't very hard to see through.

Hobbling with every step, his smile crooked and precarious, it didn't take a scientist from Rocket Town to conclude that the tumble he'd taken had indeed broken bone—a fact that Genesis vehemently dismissed upon hearing it, nearly breaking into a pained laughter. He instead claimed that it was merely a sprained ankle, that it was nothing debilitating or all that alarming.

He would heal before they even returned to headquarters.

Chuckle. 

He would walk it off, soldier through the sting.

Chuckle. 

He just needed a few minutes to rest, and he would be fine!

Chuckle!!

Angeal didn't waste any time ushering his friend to the nearest rock, unbuckling his boot, and carefully sliding the muddied attire off his foot to inspect the damage—ignoring his friend's manic giggling, ignoring his insistences and desperate denials. Just a sprain, just a sprain, just a sprain...!

All of which stopped, abruptly, as Genesis saw the angry bruise bloomimg on his skin, bulbous and discolored and vile.

The tears came uninvited.

Fortunately, Angeal never left for a mission without equipping a Cure, but there was little magic that would smooth the auburn's turbulent emotions, his shame. He hated that he was weeping, even ifignrly; he hated that he was so squeamish; he hated that he had to get hurt, on an assignment, when he was supposed to be a...!

His thoughts were brought to a halt, however, as he felt the warm weight of leather fall upon on his shoulder, comforting him. Anchoring him.

Sephiroth.

"...You took that blow for me, my friend."

My hero.

—————————

The first time Angeal had been injured, he immediately tried to mend it himself.

The task proved to be quite challenging.

Crumpled on his knees, clutching his arm, the burly teenager had insisted his friends not to worry—he would heal himself. He would be fine, truly. It was his fault for dodging the Fire too slowly, for reflexively shielding his eyes with his arm, refusing to hold up in sword in defense. He would handle the consequences; he would tend to himself. All he needed was to reach for his—

Empty.

His mana was empty.

Having delegated himself as the team's nurse, Angeal never expected a scenario wherein he was the one in need of healing, and liberally used his spells on his Genesis and Sephiroth as a result. Never did he think to reserve enough to cast Cure on himself, to take care of...

Searing pain blazed through his arm, making him wince, making him wince.

His head swam.

"Sephiroth—get the water pitcher. Make sure its cool."

"Right here; use my cleaning cloth."

"Yes, good idea!"

"Here, catch."

"Got it...!"

His friends didn't even chastise him, didn't rebuke him for not being prepared.

They didn't waste a single second.

They didn't ask questions

They didn't panic.

"It's okay, old friend..."

Genesis.

"We've got you now."

Sephiroth.

"You're going be fine..."

Harmony.

—————————

The first time Sephiroth had been injured, it immediately became apparent that it was far from the first time.

He was completely desensitized.

The sheer fact horrified his older companions, who watched Sephiroth pick himself off the ground—off the reddened dirt—and threw himself back into battle, continuing his assaults on the monster horde as if he couldn't even feel the laceration. 

Drip, drip, drip... 

How was it that the blood was so loud to them, yet so quiet to Sephiroth?

Drip, drip, drip...

The beasts were smited in moments, the fallen pack dissolving into the starry ribbons of the Lifestream. Sephiroth turned around as the last of them faded, one brow raised, wondering why his comrades had stopped fighting halfway through. Why had they been shouting his name, for that matter? Why did they sound so distressed...?

He continued to stare at them, gripped by confusion, sheathing Masmamune with a casual chhhink.

Drip, drip, drip...

Puzzled, he followed their gaze to his side, finding his coat rended. Sticky. Trickles of blood filtered through his glove, dribbling onto the mud.

Drip, drip, drip...

"Nmn. I see."

"You see?!" Genesis gaped, almost paralyzed by the nonchalance. "You're—"

"Bleeding, yes."

"Minerva..." Angeal breathed, finally conjuring up the warm, healing theads of a Curag—

Sephiroth raised his hand to stop him.

"Don't waste your mana."

Blue eyes widened in alarm. "'Waste'?"You're hu—"

"It will heal," Sephiroth shrugged. "Mako will close the wound in time."

"Yeah, but..." Genesis could only blink, an almost desperate edge to his voice. "Doesn't it sting...?"

Another shrug, even slower. Calmer. "Irrelevant."

Drip, drip, drip...

Such a simple response, and yet so significant, so telling. An accidetal catalyst to what would become an hour-long interrogation; a tiny seed that would bloom into concern, protectiveness, alertness. It was the beginning of something darkly beautiful, huddled in their shared tent, Genesis and Angeal both tending to their younger freind's wound. It was the start of picking him up from Hojo's lab after appointments; it was was the start of buying him medicine and making tea when Sephiroth fell ill; it was the start of sleepovers, check-in messages, and sharing an office.

It was the start of trust, loyalty.

It was start of love.

And connection.

And family.

And memories.

And memories.

And memories...

Narrowing his eyes, Sephiroth turned away, leaving the doors of the training room behind.

[yuki-boshi]

Kai no Kiseki Prologue English Summary

Table of Contents

Hey all, I will be doing summaries for the game like i did with Kuro 2.

I might be busy so I will try to update the blog frequently.

My twitter is https://x.com/fragmentums

The opening scene takes place in May 1209 at Calvard's Space Force base, where the Independent II rocket is launched with the Prometheus IV satellite attached. Two months later, on July 8th, we see Van, Feri, and Bergard engaged in training exercises at Marduk's headquarters in Ored State.  They’re being monitored by a voice (later being revealed as Kasim). They’re in competition with another team called “Y-Team” while Van and his group are the “X-Team.”

The training facility is called the VARHALA sector, which combines VR, AR, and is based off the term Valhalla. Meanwhile, Altina, Kevin, Rean, and others are also participating in the same exercise. Altina is geeking out about the technology of MK compared to anything in Erebonia and it’s implied that it’s possibly even harder than Professor Schmidt’s training from the CS games. Rean praises Kevin and Kevin mentions that he’s honored that a Divine Blade is praising little old him. Kevin mentions that he’s actually met Rean before at the wedding but, but never directly spoke with him much, but heard all sorts of things from Gaius. Kevin deduces that Rean is on some kind of top-secret-mission, and Rean spills the beans to Kevin. Kevin is honored again and wonders why, and Rean explains that it’s that he feels he can trust him if he’s Estelle and Gaius’s friend.

Altina starts geeking out that the Holy City is also working on new military efforts for a new airship, but she’s cut off by Kevin saying “Hey that’s top secret!”

Mirabel is overwatching them as they speak about their past briefly, mentioning that she knows a whole lot, and Kevin is surprised a girl like her knows all the Church’s dirty laundry and inner conflicts. Altina funnily mentions that they’re both speaking weird (In Japanese, this is Kansai-ben) and that it’s similar to a classmate Rean used to have when he was in Thors as a student, referring to Becky.

Rean deduces that there’s another team also in the exercise, using his Minds Eye ability and is able to sense the numbers, but not exactly who it is. Kevin is impressed. Kevin’s also impressed that Altina’s shield, a modified Claiomh Solais can speak!

As the teams progress through the training, they meet up and exchange greetings. They discuss their past relationships and learn that Van knows Rean from his reputation. Mirabel interrupts to remind them that this is still a training exercise and more combatants are added to the field.

Risette and Crow join, and so does Rufus and Lapis. The groups are divided into two teams for a boss battle against Bergard, Risette, Crow Armbrust, Rufus Albarea, and Lapis.

The XY-Team narrowly secures victory with Van using the Kuro 2 S-Craft, and everyone compliments each other on their fight.

Afterward, Gilliam Thorndyke appears with a live camera feed to note that he's pleased with the new combat mechanics used in the exercise. He also reveals that Meister Jorg asked him to test Lapis' new body during the battle. Finally, everyone is invited to join Thorndyke for a banquet.

We are then serviced with a flashback of Gramheart back to the day of April 13th, explaining his Startaker Plan, stating it’s been under development for more than two years, and this will greatly benefit the country as a whole, as well as possibly helping out the Eastern parts of the continent too, which has been in turmoil and conflict for about a hundred years.

During this segment, it’s revealed that Daniel Harling is in charge of the operation, with the first phase of the plan is to be launching the satellite, while the second phase will be to send a manned launch into space, and the first astronaut to do so will be Harling’s daughter named Emilia Harling (Hermes from Kuro games), who is actually a former ace pilot.

It switches then to everyone reacting, Renne understanding now why the Ikaruga are defending the mountains where the operation is under development.

Agnes being mysterious mutters to herself that the announcement is a shock, but she’s glad that she can work with everyone again. But she needs to pay more close attention to her Father. Feri takes notice and Agnes was saying she was just spacing out and thinking about how to give it her all and tries to distract the subject by dragging Feri to go shopping. Quatre blushing also wants to go shopping, and Aaron can read the room and tells Quatre to go for it and he’ll also tag along. Judith responds that since she’s a movie star, she’ll give them the scoop of all the latest fashion trends! Group shopping!

Van is doing his classic “Good grief…” During the flash forwards, everyone drops by the Office, Shizuna included, scaring Van, and fast forwarding again, Agnes gets a secret message on her phone from Hamilton who she looks at it, away from everyone.

Fast forward back to present day with Rean, Rean talks that he was surprised Crow accepted a contract to help test Marduk’s new products and he’s surprised that Rufus is here too. Crow retorts that he’s a freelancer more than an employee, kinda like Arkride in a sense. Altina mentions that Rufus has been traveling all over the continent, and Rufus says something along the lines of “well, can’t exactly just walk back to Erebonia so I might as well travel everywhere else like the Free Cities and the other Central Eastern countries.” Lapis interrupts him by saying that’s exactly how she got a new body and “powered up” and says that she can experience being drunk now with it! Rean has the expression of a haha, but he asks isn’t she a little young to be drinking? And Rufus agrees saying that she’s too young and she’ll probably be allowed to drink whenever Nadia gets old enough to drink too. Lapis is kind of like, “grr I guess it’s fine if it’s together with Nadia.”

Feri impresses everyone with her natural insight and suspects there’s more to this exercise, and Kasim praises her to keep that instinct in mind, not just for her, but as the Kruga Clan’s Priestess too. Once the food is brought out, Van walks around to talk with the many groups.

Talking to Rean’s group, they briefly discuss Shizuna, and Van and Crow exchange their business cards. Crow asks Van why not just make her an official assistant already.

He says no freaking way, plus she’s ghosted all of them for nearly two months and recalls a moment where she stole his limited edition cake and brought a lesser replacement, laughing not knowing the difference. Lapis asks if it’s about the sweet cherry pie cake that’s available only in the Summer. Lapis mentions she’s eaten that too and it’s delicious. And Van says how can you even taste if you were stuck in that shard form back then (Kuro 2).

Van talks to Kasim and Feri, the two bonding. Mirabel explains that she traveled with Kasim back to his hometown and saw a smile that Kasim gave to Feri that she’s never even seen before. Van teases that isn’t it a bit unprofessional to be going together with a coworker back to their hometown on unrelated work duties.

Mirabel blushes and tries to deny it at first, but then gives up and says yeah, she and Kasim are dating (first hinted at in Kuro 2 in the finale, you can catch them watching a movie together!) and they’ve actually been dating for three years. Van teases her some more and she’s like grr why...

Van talks to Kevin, Bergard, and Thorndyke, basically confirming this whole exercise has an ulterior motive. Thorndyke doesn’t deny it, saying it’s for the advancement of AR technology. Kevin says the VR version of the tech is also super impressive too. Thorndyke mentions that it was a shame that ASO couldn’t make it,  Van says it’s due to Agnes having her finals, and Quatre also being busy, but is surprised that Risette came and found out through her own way.

Van then heads to Altina and Risette talking with Rufus, mentioning it’s a strange combination. Risette corrects him saying, she’s been in touch with Altina for MK business purposes for a while, and also with Rufus because of the incident regarding Lapis. Altina says she knows Rufus and is actually grateful to him because he taught her “common sense” years ago. He says the same thing back to her, saying that she’s completely different from back then. She says she’s humbled.

Van asks if he’s cool with calling him Albarea instead of “Rufus A.” Rufus says he can do whatever, but people might get nosy. Rufus says he can’t roam the Capital so he’s glad that he was able to meet Van through this exercise. Van thanks for him what he was able to do in Kuro 2 with Marielle and Dingo.

Van eyes some very tasty cakes, but is saddened as he only asks for a few pieces while Lapis demands the entire cake.

Van relents because he has to be the better person since she’s never had pastries from Calvard. Feri checks in with Van, but finds him basically sulking saying he’s a failure. The server brings out another cake for him, trying to console him.

Van runs into Lapis again, eating an entirely different slice of cake, realizing she already ate the whole cake she took from before, and chastises her that a patisserie put their whole soul into it and she should savor every bite. Altina mentions to Van that actually, her original body was known to be a heavy eater too. Van worries about the financials of Swin and the others who had to deal with Lapis.

Van also runs a sweets blog.

Van then runs into Rean and Kasim, talking, both meeting for the first time and thanking each other for what happened in Cold Steel 4 with Operation Mille Mirage and that MK was a supporter in it. Bergard mentions that he saw Gaius after three years, thinking he would hate him, but instead he got a hug.

Kasim mentions how Feri’s life has changed and thinks perhaps Van could become an in-law and a member of the Kruga, Van gets mad saying don’t be ridiculous. Bergard asks Rean to have a good relationship with Van.

As the conversation with Thorndyke continues hoping that the group will continue to do more exercises, suddenly, the second phase of the Startaker Plan commences to everyone’s surprise.

With the AR tech, everyone is able to witness it up close, and see that the rocket launch is a moick-up of an Assault Frame. (It thinks it's the Hyaku Shiki!)

Harling then announces that the second phase will be completed and that the third launch will have a piloted Assault Frame.

Everyone now suspicious, thinks that the Startaker Project has a hidden purpose and MK inviting them is to that purpose.

Van leaves with his group, Rean leaves with theirs, suspicious, showing that they’ve brought their Panzer Soldats from Reverie. Rean looks at a letter by Yun Ka-Fai talking about how the Eight Leaves One Blade has to reach the Land of the Turning Tides and ponders on it.

Elsewhere, Lapis, concerned that humans have reached into a place not even Elysium has reached. She asks what Rufus will do, but he says, basically nothing as they need to work out any kinks with her body, and will meet up with Swin and Nadia. Kevin in the back seat, is hitch hiking, says that Lapis has a cute charm to her, and she says that his name “Kevin” isn’t that bad, it gets a 70, no 69 in terms of cuteness. Kevin says that’s a stingy number.

Kevin gets to the matter at hand calling him and Rufus, ���bad adults” and he needs to hire them for a certain task.

Elsewhere, Campanella from the Society is observing things where he gets a very angry call from Novartis saying his help is different from what was promised. Campanella says he’s busy and Novartis tells him it’s too late to back out now and says to forget it and he won’t need his help at all, also cursing Harwood, saying he’s just going to get the new recruits to help him. Ulrika and Simeon both enter, with the former saying she was prepping for a livestream. Campanella asks to help with the Professor. Ulrika agrees and Campanella says it’s to help with the third phase of the Eternal Recurrence Plan, and the chapter ends with the opening playing.

[corruption-special-au]

so I know lore wise, these AUs can be a little hard to keep up with. Here is a general idea of each one for you that I will keep linked on my pinned 👍 have fun

▸ Corruption Special ◂

Red in this au, was influenced to join team rocket at a young age in an attempt to become a strong trainer. He meets Green(m) after visiting his home town; which infuriates Red. And after connecting the dots and finding out Green is the grandson of Prof Oak who has a research center in town; he breaks into the lab and steals the pokedex and Bulbasaur so him and Green will be (what he sees) on equal footing next battle.

Over the course of this AU, Red starts to see team rocket through a different perspective and slowly starts to turn his back on the organization. As well as helping in it's downfall.

Once Yellow is brought onto the research team by Prof Oak, they are ambushed by a rocket grunt known as Blue(f); who steals the pokedex from Yellow. Yellow travels and trains under Green (and to a lesser extent Red) while they search for the grunt.

▸ Masked Special ◂

After the dexholder Yellow comes into contact with the pokemon Celebi briefly, their understanding and proof of the event is sent back to the johto branch Prof Elm. Unfortunately somehow this information reaches Pryce, who sends his student Silver out to steal the information package and bring it back. Silver fails to do so because of a local troublemaker - Gold. After Silver reports back, Pryce decides to take matters into his own hands. He tracks down Gold; and blackmails him via taking part of his family hostage, as well as threatening Gold's mom. Instead Gold will work under him, and help Pryce in his plan to catch Celebi.

Meanwhile Crystal, who was offered an internship at the johto labs; has had that opportunity temporarily revoked while the search for Gold is still active. She decides to take the dex anyway, and resolve the problem. She eventually comes face to face with the Masked Trainers; whom she looses to. But she unexpectedly finds Gold and Silver; who give her all the information she needs. Including the part where the two plan on stopping Pryce before he can reach his goal. She agrees to help, and proves herself worthy of being one of Pryce's pupils to help Gold and Silver carry out their betrayal.

▸ Lost Special ◂

Ruby moves to Hoenn, and not soon after meeting his rival Sapphire. The two place their bet, and set out soon after into the Hoenn region. This AU starts after the final chapter of the main plotline. The difference being; Sapphire and Ruby unfortunately fall under the control of the Blue & Red orbs they take away from Maxie and Archie during the battle against Groudon and Kyogre. The gym leaders of Hoenn have managed to seal the legendaries within Soot. City and evacuate the citizens from their homes. However they are all to aware of that Ruby and Sapphire are not only missing, but also possibly under the control of Groudon and Kyogre who definitely are planning on escaping somehow. Luckily Ruby's friend; Wally offers a hand in finding the two before they can do any harm. And alongside him, Emerald; a mysterious kid whom he met in Sky Pillar. Emerald seems to have a knack for communicating with Pokemon, which comes in use as the two set out to search for the missing Ruby and Sapphire.

▸ Legends Special ◂

atleast thus far ..

Dia, Pearl, Platinum; along with Cynthia and Cyrus are trapped within a space time distortion that sends the group back in time to ancient Hisuia. Dia is dropped near the diamond clan, and sustains head injury. Causing him to loose a good bit of his memory. Pearl is dropped in the snowy mountains, and found passed out in a blizzard by the pearl clan. Platinum is found by a beach near the Team Galaxy Headquarters, and taken in by the research team to help uncover the appearance of the space time distortion. Cynthia and Cyrus are no where to be seen (yet)

So yeah this is the basic idea for each AU thus far, hopefully I'll get to keep adding onto this. Thank you for reading 👋 take care have fun

PS I love getting asks for this AU, askbox is always open!

[poppetsisters]

ALRIGHT EVERYBODY, LET'S ANALYSE THIS!!

So that map shows us some key locations. I was wondering what that tall building was in the pre-vis, and it's confirmed that that's the Baxter Building. The version in the pre-vis didn't have the 4 logo, so it's either going to be added after their rocket launch, or it's just for us to identify the FF headquarters on the map. Cute that their rocket is called the Excelsior Launch Pad, not just because it's Stan Lee's catchphrase, but because Excelsior literally means "ever upward" fitting for a rocket.

Time Square is featured. I can see a world symbol on the main corner building, but I also see a space themed establishment next to an ABC building, so despite taking place in an alternate New York, there will be products and brands from the real world making an appearance. I wonder if ABC is the people recording all that archival footage in-universe.

The Flatiron building is featured, but it doesn't appear to have any significance to the FF in the comics. It did serve as the headquarters for Damage Control though.

Yancy Street is front and centre on the map, I can see a deli, a synagogue, and a few apartment complexes. I'm very happy that Ben Grimm's jewish heritage is on display, even if the star of david is one of those blink and you'll miss it parts of the poster.

Speaking of blink and you'll miss it, right under Wall Street is a label for Subterranea!! Cute reference or foreshadowing to a Mole Man appearance in the movie? I think they should absolutely fight a Kirby monster in the opening of the movie.

The Williamsburg and Brooklyn Bridge are also featured. Other than the scene from 2005 Fantastic Four where they save a fire truck, I can't think of any significance this may have for the team.

We also have the Statue of Liberty, but on Govenor's Island is The FF Clean Energy Complex. I have no doubt this EBCOT looking area is gonna have some significance for the plot of the film. Maybe an explosion caused by a bad guy? Maybe Galactus drains the nuclear fission cells dry? Who knows.

If y'all noticed anything else from the poster, let me know.

[spacetimewithstuartgary]

NASA cameras to capture interaction between Blue Ghost lander, moon's surface

Say cheese again, moon. We're coming in for another close-up.

For the second time in less than a year, a NASA technology designed to collect data on the interaction between a moon lander's rocket plume and the lunar surface is set to make the long journey to Earth's nearest celestial neighbor for the benefit of humanity.

Developed at NASA's Langley Research Center in Hampton, Virginia, Stereo Cameras for Lunar Plume-Surface Studies (SCALPSS) is an array of cameras placed around the base of a lunar lander to collect imagery during and after descent and touchdown.

Using a technique called stereo photogrammetry, researchers at Langley will use the overlapping images from the version of SCALPSS on Firefly's Blue Ghost—SCALPSS 1.1—to produce a 3D view of the surface.

An earlier version, SCALPSS 1.0, was on Intuitive Machines' Odysseus spacecraft that landed on the moon last February. Due to mission contingencies that arose during the landing, SCALPSS 1.0 was unable to collect imagery of the plume-surface interaction. The team was, however, able to operate the payload in transit and on the lunar surface following landing, which gives them confidence in the hardware for 1.1.

The SCALPSS 1.1 payload has two additional cameras—six total, compared to the four on SCALPSS 1.0—and will begin taking images at a higher altitude, prior to the expected onset of plume-surface interaction, to provide a more accurate before-and-after comparison.

These images of the moon's surface won't just be a technological novelty. As trips to the moon increase and the number of payloads touching down in proximity to one another grows, scientists and engineers need to be able to accurately predict the effects of landings.

How much will the surface change? As a lander comes down, what happens to the lunar soil, or regolith, it ejects? With limited data collected during descent and landing to date, SCALPSS will be the first dedicated instrument to measure the effects of plume-surface interaction on the moon in real time and help to answer these questions.

"If we're placing things—landers, habitats, etc.—near each other, we could be sand blasting what's next to us, so that's going to drive requirements on protecting those other assets on the surface, which could add mass, and that mass ripples through the architecture," said Michelle Munk, principal investigator for SCALPSS and acting chief architect for NASA's Space Technology Mission Directorate at NASA Headquarters in Washington. "It's all part of an integrated engineering problem."

Under the Artemis campaign, the agency's current lunar exploration approach, NASA is collaborating with commercial and international partners to establish the first long-term presence on the moon.

On this CLPS (Commercial Lunar Payload Services) initiative delivery carrying over 200 pounds of NASA science experiments and technology demonstrations, SCALPSS 1.1 will begin capturing imagery from before the time the lander's plume begins interacting with the surface until after the landing is complete.

The final images will be gathered on a small onboard data storage unit before being sent to the lander for downlink back to Earth. The team will likely need at least a couple of months to process the images, verify the data, and generate the 3D digital elevation maps of the surface. The expected lander-induced erosion they reveal probably won't be very deep—not this time, anyway.

"Even if you look at the old Apollo images—and the Apollo crewed landers were larger than these new robotic landers—you have to look really closely to see where the erosion took place," said Rob Maddock, SCALPSS project manager at Langley. "We're anticipating something on the order of centimeters deep—maybe an inch. It really depends on the landing site and how deep the regolith is and where the bedrock is."

But this is a chance for researchers to see how well SCALPSS will work as the U.S. advances human landing systems as part of NASA's plans to explore more of the lunar surface.

"Those are going to be much larger than even Apollo. Those are large engines, and they could conceivably dig some good-sized holes," said Maddock. "So that's what we're doing. We're collecting data we can use to validate the models that are predicting what will happen."

NASA is working with several American companies to deliver science and technology to the lunar surface under the CLPS initiative. Through this opportunity, various companies from a select group of vendors bid on delivering payloads for NASA, including everything from payload integration and operations, to launching from Earth and landing on the surface of the moon.

image: One of the SCALPSS cameras is visible here mounted to the Blue Ghost lander. Credit: Firefly

[helix-enterprises117]

Halo Reloaded: Make-A-Wish

The pediatric wing of the hospital had transformed into an impromptu superhero headquarters, with Spartan supersoldiers from Blue-Team and Silver-Team taking cautious, elephantine steps through the sea of tiny, eager faces. The formidable figures of John-117 and his comrades were sheathed in gleaming armor, a stark contrast to the vibrant drawings and soft pastel colors of the hospital walls.

John, the Master Chief himself, stood slightly to the side, his towering form casting a long shadow.

Despite his stoic appearance, there was an unmistakable tension in his posture—not from discomfort at being surrounded by children, but from the simple uncertainty of what to say or do. His comrades, however, took to the scene like ducks to water.

Silver-Team, consisting of Vannak-134, Riz-028, and Kai-125, brought their own brand of quirky heroics to the hospital’s pediatric ward, weaving a tapestry of delight that was equal parts whimsical and touching.

Vannak, the powerhouse of the team, had discovered his knack for balloon artistry, though his massive Spartan fingers struggled with the tiny rubber. Amidst a colorful explosion of balloon swords, dogs, and hats, his serious facade cracked into a grin as a particularly stubborn balloon squeaked and twisted under his efforts.

“Operation Inflate is tougher than I anticipated,” he declared in mock-seriousness to the wide-eyed audience of children. Each successful twist was met with cheers, and every popped balloon was a dramatic “casualty” that had the kids in stitches.

Riz, always the quick-witted and agile thinker, turned a simple game of "Simon Says" into an epic adventure. “Simon says... act like you're low-gravity moonwalking!” she’d call out, demonstrating with exaggerated, floaty steps.

Her commands got sillier and sillier, from “Simon says pretend you're a sleeping Brute” to “Simon says dance like a Grunt throwing a tantrum.” Her energy was infectious, and soon she had a conga line of giggling children (and a few adults) snaking through the ward, each mimicking her inventive and hilarious instructions.

Kai, meanwhile, had set up a storytelling corner, but these weren’t your average fairy tales.

Armed with a digital projector and her vivid imagination, she transformed the stories into interactive shadow puppet shows using the kids’ own hands. “And then, the brave little Spartan faced the giant space dragon. Let’s see your dragons, everyone!” Kai would narrate, her voice filled with excitement as the children's hands cast monstrous, wiggling shadows on the wall.

Every child became part of the tale, their shadows merging to defeat space pirates, rescue alien princesses, and explore mysterious planets.

Fred, often the tactical brain of operations, had now turned his strategizing skills to the decidedly non-military task of organizing a children’s scavenger hunt. With a twinkle in his eye, he handed out makeshift maps, each marked with cryptic riddles like, "Seek where tired Spartans rest," directing them to a pillow fort under a table in the playroom.

With the gravity of a general but the grin of a mischievous uncle, Fred supervised the mission. "Alright team, remember, silence is your ally—sneaky steps!" he whispered dramatically, causing a gaggle of tiny sneaker-clad feet to tip-toe comically around the room. The children giggled, whisper-shouting as they discovered each "hidden" part—a glove, a helmet visor, all cleverly placed out of service’s way.

Meanwhile, Kelly, the speedster of the group, had turned a hospital corridor into an impromptu race track. "Okay, racers, on your marks!" she declared, lining up a motley crew of wheelchairs and walkers at the starting line.

With the flair of a seasoned sportscaster, she provided running commentary, "And they're off! Look at Tommy go—zooming ahead like a rocket! And here comes Ellie, oh, what a comeback!" Her laughter mixed with theirs, echoing down the halls. Each race ended with high fives, and Kelly making a big show of checking her watch and declaring each time a new "world record.

"In a quieter corner, Linda had set up a photo booth, not with costumes and props, but with a challenge to capture "the unseen beauty" of the hospital. She handed out digital cameras, kneeling to be at eye level with her new apprentices. "See this? It’s just a shadow, right? But watch this..." She helped them adjust the angles until the shadow looked like a wild, dancing creature.

"You’re the artist—you get to tell the story." Her station became a mini art gallery, kids snapping everything from the superhero reflection in a spoon to a dramatic, noir-style portrait of a teddy bear.

In the midst of this, a small boy broke away from the crowd. His approach was slow but determined, his hospital gown billowing slightly as he marched straight toward the Master Chief.

The chatter seemed to quiet a bit as all eyes followed this tiny figure confronting the legend.

“Hey, Mister Chief!” the boy called out, his voice surprisingly strong. He stopped just a foot away, craning his neck to look up.

John bent down, the servos in his armor humming softly as he adjusted to eye level with the boy. "Hello there," he replied, his voice modulated to a gentle rumble by his helmet.

“You’re Master Chief, right? Like, the real Master Chief?” the boy asked, his eyes wide with a mix of skepticism and hope.

“That’s right. And what’s your name, soldier?” John’s tone held a warmth, prompted by the boy’s earnest gaze.

“I’m Danny. And you’re my hero, Mister Chief. You’re my favorite!” Danny declared, stepping forward as if presenting a medal.

John paused, the compliment catching him off guard. “Am I now?” he asked, a hint of amusement in his voice.

“Yeah! You fight aliens and don’t afraid of anything!” Danny exclaimed, his grammar slipping in his excitement, which made a couple of nearby nurses chuckle.

“Well, I can assure you, I do indeed afraid sometimes,” John corrected gently, eliciting a laugh from Danny.“Can I... can I give you a hug, Mister Chief?” Danny asked, his voice dropping to a more serious tone.

John hesitated, a flicker of uncertainty crossing his visor's reflection.

But then he nodded, and as Danny wrapped his small arms around John’s armored waist, John’s own arms came around to return the embrace, enveloping the boy in a gentle, protective circle. “Thank you, Danny,” John said, and it wasn’t just his voice modulator that shook slightly.

“Are you gonna be my friend now, too, Mister Chief? Not just my hero?” Danny looked up at him with hopeful eyes.

“I think I’d like that very much,” John replied, his voice firm with a promise.

As Danny scampered off, probably to boast about his new ‘best friend’, John straightened up and scanned the room. The children were now looking at him with less caution and more curiosity. Kai nudged him lightly with her elbow, a small smirk playing on her lips beneath her helmet. “Looks like you’re not so scary after all, huh, Chief?”

“Seems so,” John conceded, allowing himself a rare, small smile. “Let’s make sure no one feels left out.”

[pokemon-ash-aus]

I remember I had an AU I called "Rocket Rescue" where the Rocket trio actually managed to capture Pikachu (it was during Alola) and Ash and co. had to rescue Pikachu from Rocket headquarters. During that, the Rocket trio ended up deciding to turn against Team Rocket, and helped Ash rescue Pikachu.

Sounds fun! Sounds like a fanfiction waiting to be written ^^

[hampstersilver]

live footage of team rocket headquarters

[mewtwoandme]

So any reason why Jericho's doesn't vibe and never gets used to cold weather even when compared to Sivith?

He's just never been a fan of cold weather. To be fair, in Jericho's earlier years, he's always resided in places. First, the Team Rocket headquarters, than the fortress he made on New Island, then he hollowed the inside of a small mountain on Mount Quena and made it livable inside for him and his clones. So, with that in mind, to fully live in the wilderness without the type of civilized luxury he had prior would be a very difficult transition for him.

Sivith has known the wild since she escaped her creators and has grown accustomed to the different types of harsh weather and conditions.

It just comes down to them both living in different circumstances and two completely different lifestyles

[fountainpenguin]

Hello, I wanted to ask you. Do you like Wanna-Bee from TUFF Puppy? And don't you find one detail in this series strange: bees seem to be intelligent in this universe, but for some reason in the episode Dog's Best Friend, when KIL-R releases the bees, they are normal. This is very strange...

Once a day, I think about the scene where Wanna-Bee had to commit a crime solo because the rest of his squad were all on jury duty, and I laugh every single time. I'm not even making that up; that's just been my life for the past 6 years.

Wanna-Bee setting up a picnic with standard-size picnic tables despite the fact he's only one inch tall... Wanna-Bee's friends rescuing him when he falls in someone's drink... Wanna-Bee scheduling an appointment to rob the bank... Wanna-Bee going off about how he had to relocate his evil plan to a different room because it clashed with the school play and he's super embarrassed that he accidentally sent Dudley to walk in on rehearsals for "It's Too Late, We're Doomed"... Wanna-Bee swindling Chief into paying extra for the rockets on a trap that catches the T.U.F.F. agents...

Wanna-Bee reading the instruction manual for the black hole generator and holding his little hat as he gets sucked in... Wanna-Bee breaking into T.U.F.F. headquarters because he took the tour and never left... Wanna-Bee giddy and excited about how much he loves being a bee so he puts together a film about how bees pass nectar mouth to mouth and everyone was horrified... when will I be him.

I am forever hands-to-temples slumped on my desk staring into the void thinking about how in the "T.U.F.F." universe, it's legal to wear flea collars and use bug spray, but also insects are treated with the same personhood as everyone else in terms of receiving medical care... The bees are our friends. Even the littlest bee... a friend.

In my heart, "T.U.F.F. Puppy" is peak animal person worldbuilding and I want to eat it.

Team F.L.O.P.P. is my favorite... They have one brain cell and it mostly belongs to Bluffalo, who doesn't even go here. spitting, crying on the floor over Missing Lynx never showing up and Escape Goat being who he is as a person... Wanna-Bee knows what he wants in life and I respect him for that, and Meerkat is in the top percentage of ideal characterizations (to me). I want to put a bell around his neck and let him loose in a field. be free, my special boy who's polite to the golf course groundskeeper, but will also kill you with a weedwhacker. Your honor, my client doesn't know his rights.