#operation penumbra

[mytheetarecold]

Quick chibi token to use on roll20 of my modded Calendula (Minotaur) frame, RESOLVER. Pilot Kirin Delastre, callsign PROMISE, the code monkey in our party.

Former counter-intelligence for the Second Committee, Kirin Delastre went into cold sleep to be shuttled in a long multi-transfer journey between workplaces. Unfortunately, when his pod arrived to one of the stations along the way, said station had just changed hands. With the shuffle of new administration, a few normally harmless logistic delays and changes in the paperwork pipeline combined with successive physical rearrangements and expansions to the station resulted in the perfect storm that kept the next leg of Kirin's journey pending indefinitely.

Hundreds of years later, civil war had seen to it that Sec Com was no more, and the galaxy was brought into a more peaceful era by the Third Committee. Looking for salvage for areas out of operation, workers at the station chanced on a forgotten section sealed from all sides, and found Kirin's pod with him still alive in it. To add to the horror story, his prolonged long sleep resulted in Post-Cryogenic Hypersensitivity Disorder, or PCHD; a rare health condition. Symptoms include hypersensitivity to most sensory input, resulting in over-stimulation. He has been working to build a new career as well as afford better treatment.

Recently, Kirin was chanced upon by members of the Mirror Smoke Mercenary Company. Poking around their dossiers for salary information to investigate employment prospects, he realized that one of them was a Union outlaw- and that in putting those feelers out on the Omninet, he may have alerted them to his current location and place of employment. Out of guilt for potential consequences, and also in the hopes of getting in on what turned out to be a great payroll, he's offered his services to the mercenaries for their upcoming mission.

[ladyjayde]

Missing my podcasts :(

[ernestdescalsartwok]

CENTRAL TERMICA-FIGOLS-CERCS-PINTURA-ART-DIPOSITS-HIDROGEN-AIGUA-FUNCIONAMENT-TURBINES-DETALLS-FOSCOR-PINTOR-ERNEST DESCALS por Ernest Descals Por Flickr: CENTRAL TERMICA-FIGOLS-CERCS-PINTURA-ART-DIPOSITS-HIDROGEN-AIGUA-FUNCIONAMENT-TURBINES-DETALLS-FOSCOR-PINTOR-ERNEST DESCALS Impresionantes detalles en las entrañas de la cerrada CENTRAL TERMICA de FIGOLS y CERCS, en la oscuridad de sus múltiples dependencias y edificios ruinosos he podido Pintar este lugar con depósitos de hidrógeno y agua para el funcionamiento de las turbinas, una habitación en la penumbra en la que estar pintando las máquinas de mantenimiento que administraban la energía, piezas muy antiguas que he pintado como joyas de tiempos pasados, la historia industrial resucita a través del Arte. Pintura del artista pintor Ernest Descals con acuarelas sobre papel de 50 x 70 centímetros. Esta Colección me permite gozar como historiador y autor plástico.

[moosha-mushroom]

Media I imagine different fiction podcasts in instead of the media of being a podcast.

TMA: A selection of volumes, relating to the fears, each with those removable covers. Those covers has a victim or two, and then underneath the cover is a really detailed cover. The paper is decoratively ripped, with a kind of scraggly font, and each has a foreword and ‘author’s note’ from Jonathan Sims.

Malevolent: A really gritty graphic novel with deadly detail in each panel, and very little color. Maybe a trinket on each important character has a color? Like Arthur’s eyes being yellow or Oscar’s collar having a blue sheen to it. The novels are long, dramatic, and intimate in a visceral way.

Welcome to Night Vale: Local 58 bullshit. A broadcast on television with low quality images and audio, tacky music, and a kind of 80’s aesthetic. Each episode the words WELCOME TO NIGHT VALE zoom onto the screen, the purple eye behind them. And each weather segment is an animated short by a different artist.

The Penumbra(Juno Steel): A webcomic. Hours spent scrolling downward a comic that has so much color and GEOMETRIC design. Juno and his curvy jaw, brown pie slice eyes, a cartoonishly high collar for his investigator jacket. Nureyev and his sharp square jaw, shimmering jewelry, and stick legs. Characters sticking out of the panels, fonts changing constantly, a little blue Juno that does his narration and *guitar theme plays* each time he appears.

Wolf 359: A classic comic. Issues month by month. Different special covers of the characters in extra dramatic poses or scenes. Even MORE panel breaking than Juno Steel. So MUCH onomatopoeia, even for small things like the clink of a panel or the disapproving hiss of Hilbert in the background. Geometric designs like Juno Steel, but less colorful. Like the superhero art style mixed with a more stylized look.

Midnight Burger: You pull up the Midnight Burger website. They have a hidden page that has a sort of script-comic thing going on, where the art is next to the writing. Small coded in notes from Leif sometimes pop up if you hold your arrow over the art. Links are attached to the parts where Effie and Zebulon play music, linking you to the music so you can listen to it while you read.

Desert Skies: An animated show. Indie, something you’d find on YouTube. The animation is bouncy and incorporates 3D animation alongside the 2D. Maybe the Sphere Movers have 3D models and the staff don’t? The credits are short because it was made by one guy. People are complaining about it on Twitter /j. People are making content farms about it. Everyone is pissed at Corson like they’re pissed at Jax.

The Amelia Project: A sort of simulation video game. You play as Arthur. You listen to their stories and draw pieces of the tale to invent their death. Every once in a while the game transitions to a point and click suspense game where you solve puzzles as Cole and Haines. Maybe there should even be an Operation-esque part of it where you work as Kozlowski.

Ghost Wax: A novel with a lot of pictures spliced in it. The stories are all in a single book, though the book is through Luca’s perspective— so he picks up on the ghost’s body language and Voncid’s reactions. The pictures are tarot cards with each victim as a card. Some are repeat cards— Lorem does not have a card at the end of the story. Nor does Our Home or Evening at the Ardent. The pictures are only white with black line art. No color whatsoever.

Kakos Industries: A company newsletter. Not a broadcast. A newspaper that arrives at your door and has big bold letters with the main story and pictures of the events that happen in the story as it goes. And the Sunday Comic page is full of employee shenanigans. Some innocent… some not.

I am losing my mind.

[apas-95]

"DRIVER, ADVANCE" I yell into the intercom headset. The vehicle lurches forwards, jolting my head against the padded periscope-window.

Through the grimy glass, I see a narrow slice of the world. My visual cortex reflexively discards almost all the information a human being unburdened by my training would luxuriate in - the deep, rich colours of the earth and sky; the specular reflections of light, and the gentle penumbra of shadow. I see only one thing - as we crest the divot, a dark splotch comes into view. By the size and relative position on the landscape, I score it immediately at two kilometers distance.

My foot twitches uneasily on the gunner's shoulder. We're still cresting, still raising our cannon high in mock-salute. Until we level out, we won't have a shot. The optics view pitches violently, and, as I keep my attention locked on it, the shape morphs. It is aiming for us. The radio-operator is panicking, breathing hard and fast, like the deer my uncle had me kill, messily shot in the-- shut up. The torsion-bar suspension groans as we slam back down onto hard-pack dirt. "DRIVER, HALT!"

The turret slews around, the gunner's hand wildling swinging the control to match the bearing I had given. For a moment, the entire vehicle is still, but full of stored energy, like an ice-skater before a jump. "LOAD BALLOT," I yell. "VOTE!"

[sexiestpodcastcharacter]

No detailed graphics because I am both sick and busy. Idea came from tags by @dokidyke. Sorry if anyone finds the concept of this poll gross, I've only listened to half of one of these, and none of the other, and don't know what "semi-sentient" fully entails in either case. In general I operate by the Harkness Test for polls about how sexy a character is, and if someone makes an argument that one of these characters doesn't pass the test I'll delete the poll.

[argumate]

I need a good name for the part of the "deep state" (in the meaningful sense of the term, referring to departments of government largely insulated from democratic oversight that have persistent institutional memory over time and push for policy that benefits themselves and the specific ideological framework that they embody, not the illuminati sense of the term that takes this concept and adds lizardmen to it) that relates to "national security", which for the US is part of the department of defense I suppose which at least does much of its work in public along with the penumbra of think tanks and organisations that feed into it and then more darkly the CIA and NSA, which operate largely in private and a lot more difficult to make sense of; calling them "national security interests" is a little question begging and "the national security wing of the deep state" sounds a little conspiratorial, there's "the military-industrial complex" but that's a slightly different phenomenon focusing more on contracting and procurement policy than ideology I think?

[63n3437]

Too Busy Sunday!

“Live outside the state-of-the-art Duckliar Foundation, awaiting the newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of the Duckliar Enterprise, Mr. Solomon Hecks.”

“Wait, Duckliar? Isn’t he the genius who disappeared years ago? Fifteen years, to be exact,” Huey piped up, looking over his handbook.

“Ohhh! Did he make cool things like nanobots or laser guns? Maybe a super flying jet?!” Dewey’s hands flew everywhere in the excitement nearly hitting Louie in the face. Louie swatted the offending hand in annoyance, looked up from his phone, and snorted dismissively.

“Eh,” he shrugged. “Looks like another start-up.”

“Start-up!” Webby exploded from behind the couch, startling the triplets as she squished herself between Dewey and Huey. “No way. They were the most mysterious and probably one of the richest families in the world! Of course, it is nothing compared to your–erm–our family, but I have a separate board just for them.”

Scrooged harrumphed from his armchair, “The man’s no genius, reappearing just to disappear, leaving everything behind. Just looked at what happened to the tower. Gone!”

“You mean the Duckliar Tower?” Della entered the room carrying stacks of chips and sweets in her arms. Penumbra trailing behind, carrying liters of soda. “I was surprised it was replaced by a park. Does Everett still own the land? The last time I visited the area was under the administration of SVA….MP?”

“The Society for the Valorization of Duckburg Monuments manages sites that have historical significance, similar to the program from New Quackmore.” Huey said, closing his handbook with a snap, “If the tower had historical value, we sure don’t know how it could happen.”

“Duckliar Enterprise has been making its presence known after the disastrous moon-vasion. Despite the damage of the unexpected alien attack, which halted some of its operations, they were able to resume as soon as possible to build the Ducklair Foundation.”

Louie scooted next to Dewey to make space for Della and Penumbra. Della snatched one of the popcorn bowls and passed the rest of the snacks around. “Well, it’s another mystery of the Duckliar clan.”

Webby squirmed in her seat. “Oh my gosh! New lore!” She exclaimed with a hushed voice forcing herself not to run off to her room and start updating her board.

“Excuse guys, movie night?” Louie sensing that they would go off the rails again, gestured towards the screen. “Anyone?”

“Yeah – enough about Ducklair, it’s movie night! We need to show Penumbra how to have fun while sitting –”

“Which I doubt.”

“And why is it so much better than exploring the secret of an Incan treasury,” Dewey nodded seriously, though the slight downturn of his mouth hinted otherwise.

“Oh, lad. You should’ve seen the map in the study. If we fly to Peru today, we’ll stumble upon the entrance to the temple effortlessly.”

“When you say treasury?” Louie baited with a smirk. Webby let out a ‘woohoo!’ in the background, yelling, “Secret Inca temple!”

“Wait! Guys–we promised Uncle Donald no adventuring every Sunday,” Huey reminded full-stop, which prompted a series of groans.

“The new CEO of the company was a mystery until three months ago when new information emerged from a one-on-one interview with veteran journalist Ms. Layla Lay. Although the interview answered the common question, questions about his relation to the owner, Everette Duckliar, remained unknown.”

“That’s boring! No offense to Uncle Donald but adventuring is in our blood,” Dewey relayed dramatically.

Della sighed, deciding to stop the brothers from escalating the situation. After all, she owed his brother some peace, even if she wanted to explore just as badly. “Dewey, we did promise your uncle to rest for one day every week. He’s not stopping us from adventuring, and if any of our trips somehow extend until Sunday, no one’s preventing us.”

“I’m sure Uncle Scrooge agreed to this, right, Uncle?” Scrooge scowled in irritation choosing to watch the TV rather than answer his niece.

Scrooge was about to make a sharp remark when he saw the car pulling up on the screen, he focused his attention to observe the unknown head of the company. The upstart has been requesting to meet up with him to consolidate Everette’s investments and liquidated properties under McDuck Enterprises. Scrooge was pleasantly surprised when he reviewed the proposal. He usually let Bradford handle anything remotely business-related, but he couldn't hand off this responsibility, knowing he was dealing with a Duckliar. Though they didn't meet face to face and only made a video conference, once, he knew not to underestimate the younger duck.

“Is that Uncle Donald?” Dewey wondered, it was hard to recognize him without his usual white hat and black sailor outfit.

“Hmm, yeah,” Louie said distractedly, frowning at his phone. “He said he was hired as a driver for a billionaire. I thought it was Uncle Scrooge since the rest were enemies of Uncle Scrooge. It’s an easy mistake to make.”

“Good for him,” Della smiled in fondness. “I… should probably find a job, too.”

“Mom, it’s fine. You just came back from the moon. There’s no need to rush things.”

Della gave a quick smile to Huey, going back to the TV where she saw her brother opening the back seat of the car. A woman with long blond hair, pinned in multiple buns, was the first to step out. She mouthed a quick thank you to him before gathering the security detail. Next to her stepped a man towering over the woman and his brother. He has strawberry blond hair with thick sideburns with a face that means business. He gave a sharp nod to his brother who solemnly nodded back. There was a moment's pause between them, a silent conversation amid chaos before his brother jumped back into the driver's seat and drove off.

It was a bizarre exchange, however, it wasn't notable enough to be remembered. She felt Penumbra nudging her sides, raising an eyebrow, and looked pointedly at the screen.

Della clapped her hands twice and then abruptly announced, “Come on, let’s start the movie! Even if Donald's not here, we need to keep our promise. Capiche?”

“Dibs on ‘Eternal Moonlight’.”

“What? That’s–no. Really, Huey?”

“It fits the theme! I researched the best moon-themed movie we could watch. It is also the highest-rated movie this season. At least I try to be accommodating, Louie. Unlike some people.”

Louie sputtered indignantly, “On what earth do you think Penu–”

Dewey cut him off rudely, “What about ‘Darkwing Duck the Movie? It was released recently.” Louie growled at the interruption.

“Dewey, you already chose the movie last week. It’s not fair if you pick the movie again.” Dewey sent a scathing glare to his red-clad brother before ranting how ‘uninteresting’ his suggestions were. Louie, momentarily distracted, nodded in agreement and declared that he should pick the movie, which was quickly denied by both older brothers. If Huey’s recommendation was dull, Louie’s was downright atrocious.

Unnoticed by the bickering brothers except for the adults, Webby crawled out of her sibling-sandwich, snatched the remote to change the channel to one of the available streaming services, and typed in ‘The Betelgeuse War’.

Della smirked in astonishment and shared a look with Penumbra, who was instantly enamored by the screen.

“Webby!” the triplets collectively shout.

“What? It’s informative, it’s not boring, and the character has depth. It has three sequels, all amazing–as impossible as it is–and it is about space. And the moon. Penumbra will love it and we will geek over the characters. Now, shove off!”

“Atta, lassie,” Scrooge chuckled.

The lights slowly dimmed. Della glanced back by the door and saw Mrs. Beakly adjusting the light switch. She grinned in thanks before settling on the couch. It has been years since she last watched ‘The Betelgeuse War’. If Webby was right, then she’ll enjoy the rest of the series and her honorary niece will certainly be asked to join the exclusive club of the Betelgeuse she founded with his brother.

Penumbra was, always, a nice addition.

————————————————————————

Something was bubbling under the surface.

“Hey, Gandra, grabbing lunch?” Granda put down her soldering iron and removed her goggles. She looked toward the door where Dr. Dendron was standing.

“Is it noon already?” Gandra grabbed her phone from the pedestal and grinned as a series of messages popped up on her notification. She was about to open one when she caught the time. “Woah, time sure flies by.”

“Yeah, I don’t want to disturb you with your work. I am also absorbed in mine, which is almost complete. I thought that we could eat lunch in the pantry,” Dr. Dendron smiled hopefully.

Gandra blinked, pleasantly surprised by the invitation. She gave a jerky nod and said, “Sure, I haven't had my breakfast… or lunch, for that matter.”

“Same here,” Dr. Dendron’s frame relaxed considerably. “Work just sucked you in. Next thing you know, it’s dark out, and you’re only halfway through your task.”

Gandra hummed as she gathered her equipment, placing all the dangerous items in their proper places. She secured the cabinets of confidential experiments before leaving her lab.

As she approached the door, she could hear sections of the lab shutting down. Once she reached the threshold, she pressed her biometrics, and the door closed firmly.

“I still think it’s quite excessive,” Dr. Dendron noted.

“I think it's nice,” Gandra smirked as they walked down the corridor to the department lobby. “None of the other labs I’ve been to is as secure as this one. You would think they’re hiding something sinister.”

Dr. Dendron giggled. “It certainly looks like that. It’s confidential, yes, but anything we do in R&D can be discussed between us, scientists and researchers.”

Gandra challenged. “Such as?”

“I can imagine all of our works are going to converge at one point,” Dr. Dendron explained. “I am working with an Evronian spore and Dr. Einmug is polishing his research on atoms. Sparky is working with Dr. Zibaldo on enhancing security and creating technologies related to clean energy.”

“What the hell is an Evronian spore? And isn’t Dr. Einmug a recluse? How did they manage to convince him to work here?” Gandra asked incredulously. “Dr. Zibaldo’s nice, just a bit overzealous. Sparky…it’s strange having a rat as your co-worker. No offense.”

“Rodents of his species developing intelligence and cognitive abilities are quite rare,” Dr. Dendron grimaced. “Achieving such a feat…”

“It’s not pleasant,” Gandra’s eyes widened as a memory resurfaced, and felt her conscience pang between her gritted teeth.

Dr. Dendron bobbed her head in agreement. “We can continue with the questions after lunch,” she said, tapping her badge.

Gandra willed herself to calm down as she followed Dr. Dendron into the busy hallway. “So I can ask anything under the sun about our work but only within the R&D?”

“Now you're getting it,” Dr. Dendron smiled playfully.

Gandra and Dr. Dendron strolled in comfortable silence as they made their way through the throng of employees getting a quick lunch. When they arrived at the pantry, Gandra told her fellow scientists to line up at the buffet.

“I need to warm up my lunch.”

“Do you want me to get you something?” Dr. Dendron asked, picking up a tray.

“A plate of waffles, if you can, please” and then Gandra waved her hand in appreciation, marching to the refrigerator where she stored her homemade lunch. When she opened the fridge, she saw the note sticking out of her lunchbox, which she had forgotten to remove (and put on a special case with similar notes). Written messily on it was, ‘Go get them, Gadget Girl’.

She couldn't help but grin warmly. She fumbled in her pocket for her phone and sent a short message to ‘Suit’ with a picture of her blue lunchbox.

‘Suit’ replied quickly, ‘I made your favorite, empanadas and guacamole :).’

(Oh, he’s so nice.)

After heating the empanadas, she made her way to the tables when her eyes fell upon an unexpected figure. She knew some sparing information about him. Most striking was that he was the triplet’s uncle and Mr. Scrooge’s nephew.

“Oh, Donald’s here,” Dr. Dendron spoke behind her. “I wonder why –” then her eyes followed where Mr. Duck was staring, “– I see. I forgot the press conference is today.”

Gandra caught the TV and she could see Mr. Hecks sitting on a long table under an onslaught of questions.

“–the company's focus has shifted from weapons manufacturing and engineering to clean energy. How will you ensure the company's financial stability during this period of change?”

“That is an excellent question, Ms. Roxanne. Duckliar Enterprise isn’t always reliant on weapons production. While it has been the previous CEO’s primary focus, being an inventor himself, he understood it is not the sole path for the company’s long-term success.”

Gandra felt a crippling chill running down her spine, and a sudden heaviness clung onto her shoulders. There was a gaze observing her in hindsight. Her eyes returned to where Donald was sitting and felt a surge of trepidation. The consensus is that Donald Duck of the McDuck clan was the polar opposite of his adventurous uncle, Scrooge McDuck. He was averse to adventure and quick to anger, but a great uncle to his nephew, according to some sources–okay, mostly from Huey.

Donald’s eyes flickered like a blade, slowly dissecting each layer of her carefully crafted facade. Leaving her exposed and flayed, like a wound itching to be closed. With a blink, he shifted from a terrifying force to a deceptively weary man.

“You know each other?” Gandra asked Dr. Dendron instead of keeping on staring at Donald.

“You don't?” Dr. Dendron asked, taken aback, though Gandra could hear concern lacing her tone. “We can use another table if you want?”

“No need, I'm curious to know what his deal is.”

“Good to know that you have a sense of humor Mr. Hecks. Unlike your predecessor who again disappeared years ago after a bit of a scandal. Whatever happened to Mr. Duckliar? Any idea of his whereabouts?”

“Thank you for asking, I understand that you are curious and concerned about Mr. Everett. I am placed in confidence to steer the wheel of the Enterprise and Mr. Everett has always valued his privacy which I will be obliged to continue.”

“That doesn't answer my question–”

“Hey, Mr. Duck,” Gandra plopped on one of the fluffy seats a distance away from Donald. Dr. Dendron hesitated for a second before sitting beside Gandra. “I didn’t expect to see you here.”

“Same to you,” Donald raised his eyebrow, then looked at Dr. Dendron with a faint smile. “Hey, Dr. Rhonda. Good to see you, how have you been? Did you manage to find an apartment downtown?”

“Good! About the apartment… I decided to stay in St. Canard. I still like my city, despite the traffic. Also, thank you for shipping the Drosera occidendum’s seed.”

“I have no idea what you need from that plant but–er–you’re welcome?”

“No need to be bashful, it was a rare specimen. Knowing that your family managed to defeat it was amazing.”

Donald beamed like a mini sun, “It’s the kids who figured out that blasted plant.”

“Not surprising,” Gandra nodded, taking a bite of her empanada. “They’re very…inquisitive. Alarmingly so.”

“Oh, you’re just bitter that they foiled your spy career.” Donald's lips curled in amusement, although his eyes held a sharp edge.

“Speaking from experience?” Dr. Dendron, Caesar salad bunched on her fork, piqued in interest.

“Corporate espionage,” they both said at the same time.

“You were selected to work on nanobots?” Donald spoke out of the blue, startling both Gandra and Dr. Dendron. However, Gandra could tell that the other scientist was surprised for a different reason.

“NDA, Mr. Duck. My lips are sealed”

“Just call me Donald,” Donald rolled his eyes in exasperation. “Mr. Duck was my father. If you take my sister’s sons into account, that’s too many Mr. Ducks around.”

“What a nightmare it’ll be,” Gandra deadpanned, piercing the waffles.

“So nanobots… that's your forte, right?” Donald pushed on. “I remembered Huey telling a story about a ‘highly musculature Mark Beaks’ and how you helped win against him. No, I don’t want to imagine ‘Macho Beaks’. Yes, Huey shared his findings about nanobots enthusiastically and without reservation.”

‘I know who you are and what you did,’ was left unsaid.

When Donald spoke, Gandra could hear the resignation in his next statement. “I think you’ll do great with the project.”

“How did you know about it?” Gandra was eager to know because this guy was an enigma wrapped in a cipher. He was not supposed to be here, he was not on her radar of potentially dangerous people but goddamn, anyone who knew about her work with Mr. Hecks was.

“Here I thought that any scientific discussion can only be discussed by fellows and should be discussed inside R&D,” she said, voice drilling in sarcasm.

Donald shook his head, offering no explanation, eyes turning to watch the last thread of the conference. As Mr. Hecks plastered a polite smile, waving goodbye to the press, Donald’s phone rang.

“Hey, Belinda. Yeah, I’ll be there.” He paused. “Will do, thanks. Yeah. Bye.”

“Sorry, I need to go,” Donald, with a sigh, pulled up from the chair. “See you later, enjoy your lunch, Dr. Rhonda, Gandra.” He made his way out of the pantry, not without grabbing a freshly made waffle bag in a take-out bag from the pastry station.

“You know something,” Gandra faced Dr. Dendron in the eye.

“No, not really,” uncertainty seeping on her body. “I am as blind as you are.”

“Why have lunch with me?”

“Is it hard to believe I wanted to know you, or maybe become your friend?” Dr. Dendron's lips turned into a sad frown. “What you’re hiding is not my business but if it, in some ways, affects our work and reputation…” she trailed off, the unspoken implication hanging between them.

Gandra chuckled at the implied threat, “I didn’t think you had it in you, Dr. Dendron.”

Dr. Dendron relaxed and joined her laughter and said, “Oh, please, call me Rhonda.”

————————————————————————

Something was bubbling under the surface. Like lava slowly spilling at the edge of the crater.

“Hey, Layla,” said a duck holding an HDTV camera in one hand and balancing a tray of three coffees in the other. Layla readily helped get the tray out of the older duck’s hand.

“Alright, here’s your frap,” Layla chirped. “And a latte for me.”

The duck glanced at the remaining coffee, a plain black one, placed at the back of the van. “Donald’s will be here?”

“Yep,” Layla replied, popping the ‘p’, and taking a sip of her coffee. “He is Mr. Hecks’ driver.”

The duck hummed, “You’re suspicious about Mr. Hecks. Is he involved with… him?”

Layla took a moment to answer, “You can say. It’s complicated, Donald was more reserved about sharing information, after the moon.”

They dwelled in comfortable silence, finishing their drinks. Layla bit the bottom of her lips and asked, “Stefan, was I a bad friend?”

“I cannot give you a response to that,” Stefan said, slurping his frap.

“Why, weren't we friends in past years?” Layla quirked her eyebrow.

Stefan countered, “Were you?” He set the camera next to the coffee and sat beside it. “Your heart has always been in the right place. It took me a long time to understand that. Donald, we’re not friends, but I always felt a kinship with him due to our… affliction.”

Layla blinked in silence. It was rare for Stefan to speak this long. He continued, “I chanced upon him, months after he lost his sister to the moon. I was investigating the peculiarities of the Duckliar family. We did not talk; the situation was too heavy. And I suspect he lost more than just his sister that day.”

“I – Donald’s been keeping this?”

“It’s not my business, but I thought it might help you.”

“You’re right,” Layla took a deep breath. “I was not there when he needed me. I was so excited; I’ve always wanted to experience the world without restraint. In the process, I left the person who helped me achieve that.”

“Talk to him, once you both have the time,” Stefan stiffly patted Layla’s shoulder, taking the empty paper cup to the nearest trash can. “Come on, they should be here anytime soon.”

Layla exhaled and gathered all her materials ensuring her makeup was all good. She grabbed her coffee; taking one long sip, before closing the van door, pacing beside Stefan.

“Hey, Stefan?” Layla softly called out. “Thank you. And don’t ever doubt that you're my friend.” Stefan's eyes widened, revealing a timid smile.

They secured a good spot in the park where they had a clear shot of the podium. As soon as they saw a glimpse of Hecks’ car, Stefan started rolling the camera.

With a smile, Layla started with, “Channel ‘00, live in Duckliar Park…”

————————————————————————

Something was bubbling under the surface. Like lava slowly spilling over the edge of the crater. It rumbled hotter than the core of any mass in the universe.

Mary Ann Flagstarr was tired. She was running on six cups of coffee, a box of donuts, and a bowl of Garden salad because she wanted something healthy, alright? It wasn't even past three in the afternoon, and she was already flagging under the weight of paperwork and the lingering effect of a jailbreak. And that was many months ago.

If she had known that her first task as a captain of PBI would be tidying up the joint jailbreak of Dr. Fairfax and former Lieutenant McCoy, she wouldn't have taken the position. She’d probably be sleeping in a moldy hotel under a disguise but, at least, she wasn't slaving away to finish this administrative burden and locating escaped criminals in every part of the globe.

Mary Ann rubbed her forehead in frustration. She received help from personnel from Area 51, but despite their combined efforts, they couldn't find where Fairfax and McCoy were hiding. During her first month in her position, she instinctively dialed the Duck Avengers’ number only to remember that no one had seen the hero in decades.

Usually, his AI partner, Uno, would send her an email or fax with crucial information on any issue that may threaten the country before she could bang her head on her desk. It was convenient and very helpful; they’d saved her multiple times. She was grateful, yet a brush of jealous resentment lurked in the periphery of her mind.

The captain sighed sharply. It was all in the past. She would prefer to handle the situation under her own leadership. However, Dr. Fairfax was a dangerous individual, with a spy like McCoy, the danger they posed would affect not just Duckburg and its surrounding area but also target other countries.

She thought of enlisting help from superheroes, like Gizmoduck, or spies from S.H.U.S.H., or the Agency. She dismissed asking for Gizmoduck; he was too green when it came to international conflict. She had reached out to S.H.U.S.H., but they were indisposed without Ludwig. The Agency…their reputation had tanked when Double Duck resigned.

Her last option was to contact the Duck siblings. She did not want to consider it since their family was one of the reasons for her headaches, especially after the Moonlander invasion or the magical disruption two years ago. Therefore, when Mary Ann said they were the last option, it meant she wouldn't contact them under any circumstances unless she was really in-depth.

She needed to contact them, ASAP.

Fairfax and McCoy had been missing for one year and six months. No leads, no clues, no witnesses that may point her in their direction. Mary Ann was uncertain if they were even together. She had a terrible feeling in her guts that their plans would soon implode and everything they swore revenge on would go down badly.

She tried contacting the mansion, but the lines weren't connecting. She found out the telephone lines were blocked due to magical interference. It was a good thing they had a magical expert in the department, and they created a workaround.

But when she called the number and someone answered the phone, the housekeeper (certainly not an ordinary housekeeper) would inform her that the family was off on an adventure.

Then she sent emails to McDuck Enterprise because their digital security system was such a hardass PBI couldn’t retrieve any personal emails, but no reply. Della didn’t have any digital presence since she had just returned from the moon (how crazy was that?). Donald's contact information was easily found in various resumes; curiously, all numbers and emails became disconnected after he left his previous employers.

The captain had tried every avenue but received no luck until today.

Mary Ann paced anxiously in her office, the telephone line ringing once, twice, thrice. She stopped when it continued to ring for the fourth time, head on her hands, and took a deep steady breath.

“Deeeewey express! How can I help you with this fine evening?”

(Oh shit.)

“Good afternoon, my name is Mary Ann Flagstare, captain of PBI. I would like to speak to Dumbella Duck for urgent business.”

“Mom knows someone from the Secret Service?” Mary Ann bit back a groan, she had caught the kid’s wonder over the phone, it was like talking to Ziggy in his teens. Oh right, this kid is a teen. What a joy.

“It appears so. If you could pass the phone to her, I would appreciate it.”

“Why do you need Mom? Ohhh, are you going to send her on a mission? That’s awesome, but we are on a strict no-adventure Sunday, you can call tomorrow, and we can hash out the mission without any issues.” Dewey informed cheerfully, she could register the tell-tale sign of dismissal.

She hurried over to the phone, almost knocking herself on the lamp next to her table, and cried out, “Wait! I am not sending her on any mission. If you can tell her that–” She didn’t want to share the news with an unauthorized person, worst of all, a kid. Desperate times called for desperate measures. “–Dr. Fairfax and McCoy were on the loose, it’s a matter of national emergency. She can contact me through this number, preferably soon.”

“Sure,” Dewey stretched, “I’ll pass it on.”

Mary Ann sighed in relief, “Thank you.”

“Dewey, come on. The third movie is starting!”

“Webby, pause it!” Dewey shouted, muffled. “I have to go, Ms. Captain. Bye!”

The click of the disconnected call echoed in her office, pulsing in her head, syncing with her oncoming migraine. She braced her arms on her large desk; paperwork stewed like a hurricane went past. She can wait, hopefully, before the insanity stirs.

Mary Ann waited and completed her paperwork. Waited, and took a very quick break. Waited and visited a department in crisis which provided a mental breather from all the waiting. Waited until it was almost midnight and resigned herself to another failure.

She was tidying her desk of today’s paperwork and preparing the ones she needed to complete tomorrow when the phone rang.

She shot up like a bullet and swiftly put the receiver to her ear. She could scarcely believe it was Della’s voice on the phone.

“You, speak now.”

————————————————————————

Something was bubbling under the surface. Like lava slowly spilling over the edge of the crater. It rumbled hotter than the core of any mass in the universe. How it melts off the feathers and skin, burning everything inside out.

That is how Donald met his demise, ripped from the Earth’s atmosphere after his ill-fated venture on the moon.

He has, after all, been afflicted with terrible, horrible luck.

[indigoworks]

Hello will you please tell me about your Vorta??? I am in love??? 😍

aw hell yeah!! i'm delighted you enjoy her so much! <3

zeveth's been a leading dominion geneticist for the past few thousand years. she was built and designed to develop the vorta and jem'hadar lines, and she oversees a major chunk of those operations. she was involved in developing ketracel, and later tasked to help cure the founders.

which she failed to do.

WEYOUN: I have a team of Vorta doctors working night and day to find a cure. FOUNDER: Have them document their efforts and then eliminate them. WEYOUN: Founder? FOUNDER: Activate their clones and order them to continue their predecessors' work. Perhaps a fresh perspective will speed matters along. (from s7e17 Penumbra!)

i really like what they did with weyoun 6, but the concept of a former enemy living aboard the station at the close of the war is just too good?? (and such classic star trek...) zev follows his example and manages to defect to ds9. she'll stay there on probation and eventually work to help undo vorta and jem'hadar conditioning (probably impossible, but anything is something!) and help them find new life as the dominion crumbles and becomes something else. she also begins to discover her own personal individuality.

more little things about her under the cut:

she still feels that the founders are gods. she probably always will.

she does learn to call odo by his name instead of 'founder', though.

shes crazy tall for a vorta at 6ft.

she has this distinct deep voice, rich with gravitas. i think about alison moyet, grace jones, miley cyrus, muki zubis...

she's intersex, though it really only comes to mean anything to her once shes on the station. she/they.

she's nocturnal! and legally blind.

hc so are most vorta scientists, specifically. they keep the lights off/low in those facilities.

she's on her last clone. when she left the facility, she destroyed the possibility of them just cloning her again.

she's been through a few clones due to various lab accidents. and through being her own lab rat. :')

hc the sector of vorta that are scientists are kept under pretty heavy security. maybe that's "one reason" we don't see a lot of them. zev never saw the stars before, until she escaped.

she's not a malicious, sadistic, or brooding villain type. she laughs a lot. she expresses a lot. she's mean and she's friendly and she's a bit blunt but generally honest. she can be hot and cold, playful and menacing.

in order to be able to innovate within her role, she was granted like 1% more autonomy than most vorta. she can also partially taste a slightly wider range of fruits and things, and is attuned to the scent of certain chemicals. (lab safety!)

she kinda has a girlfriend? it's complicated. hc they don't operate that way in the dominion. but still, we know a butch lesbian. viwilath is a whole other story, but essentially theyre very important to each other.

zev's totally designed around little subversions of the mad scientist trope, both in visual design and personality, as well as story.

i really like scientist characters, and thought i'd explore more about that side of things within the dominion through zev

i should stop there before i go on and on chappell roan style. thanks for your ask!! made my day, and i hope you have a beautiful one too!

[the-voldsoy]

ROUND THREE LETS GO

Add any other good ones that I missed in the notes!!

Pods I've already listened to: WTNV, The Penumbra Pod, TMA, TMagP, Wolf-359, Hello From The Hallowoods, Camp Here & There, Wooden Overcoats, Malevolent, Re:Drac, The Silt Verses, The Deep Vault, Woe.Begone, Archive 81, Camlann, Soul Operator, The Grotto, Midnight Burger, Alice Isn't Dead, Old Gods of Appalachia, Dreamboy, The White Vault, Breaker Whiskey, Tell No Tales, Somewhere Ohio (both series), and I have The Bright Sessions in progress :) (good lord that list is getting long)

(Dungeons & Daddies has been in the top 5 of these polls both other times but I'm not going to listen to it unless it actually wins because oh Boy is it chunky)

[tea-the-not-understanding]

Tea. If one of your character goes to operation ichor au by @slumbrr-r

which character will it be?

I uh.. oh shit, this is tricky. I had no idea, like, most of the character that fit Dandy's world theme that I'm looking through in my folders, doesn't look like they fit in that au much at all. There are a few that fits and that's Dr.Appl, Wifi and Winifred. They may need a lot of redesign to fits but honestly, I gotta do more research and think about it.

And no, not Twinkle, he too powerful. Same goes for the moons oc's too. Penumbra is a maybe but he be too OP as well like.. dude is 800ft. no way he be in there

Anyways, old arts and concept idea. This is Wifi, he's an asshole. Never get to post him since I still not satisfied with the design and too busy with other things.

Dr.Appl, everybody scared of her but she's the best doctor ever in the verse. The reason she look so scary is to give others reasons to now get hurt stupidly. And well, ya know Winifred lol. Soft gentle giant.

Edit : I forgot Lemoon, he SO fit in that au too

[stephenist]

“I know. You're chronically online these days and you are pissing and/or shitting yourself with every new data point meant to convince you Trump and his extraordinarily unpopular ultra-right movement are somehow inevitable. My advice would be to put on that diaper, baby, and keep reading.

First, what do we mean when we say there are dozens of bad-faith polling operations manipulating the public? Josh Marshall of Talking Points Memo presented this explanation.

<There are a series of Republican or right-wing pollsters who are overtly partisan, use questionable or floating methodologies and pretty clearly release polls not as a predictive enterprise but to produce friendly numbers for Republican candidates. The worst offenders are places like Rasmussen, Trafalgar, InsiderAdvantage. We know this from a mix of a lack of transparency about methodology, general behavior that betrays a goal of shaping election perceptions and outcomes rather than measuring public opinion, and extreme “house effects” — the tendency to favor a particular party’s candidates over the other’s relative to what most pollsters are finding — that support their agenda. After those, there’s a larger penumbra of often less-known pollsters who don’t appear to be as flagrant, but generally seem to be in the same category.>

Now for your weekly allotment of Bad Faith Times copium. Except it’s not really copium, but rather an un-fucked view of how the general election is most likely playing out in these final days before another toe-to-toe fight against all-out fascist rule.

Cutting through the right wing’s manipulative polling bullshit is important both in our role as properly informed citizens of the United States and for our general well being. Who wants to walk around all day wondering how Trump went from 45 percent to 52 percent over a three-day period with nothing happening but the Big Boy droning on about Arnold Palmer’s gigantic hog? I certainly don’t.

[sfaccountant]

Character Focus: Penumbra Shard

Unit type: Moon Mage

(Note: penal conscript class. Unit is to be under guard at all times)

Rank: Cult Magistra

Species: Unicorn

Psyker rank: Unclear (suspected Beta-rank)

Cult: Lunar Ascendance (defunct/disbanded?)

Tactical Specialty: Close support caster

(Note: Unit is to be deployed to night operations only)

Penumbra Shard - Penny to her friends, and Magistra Shard to her subordinates - is the effective leader of the Moon Mages, or at least the closest thing they have after the secretive cult of Lunar Ascendance was outed and convicted for treason against the Equestrian throne. Like everything else about the order, the hierarchy of the Moon Mages is shrouded in mystery, and much of what has been pried from the Mages through interrogation has been kept secret for one reason or another. At present all Moon Mages have been seized, sentenced, and transferred to the 38th Company fleet for service as combat sorcerers.

Penumbra herself is - probably - the oldest and most powerful of the Moon Mages. She claims to be 30"ish" years old, but this is confirmed as false. Surviving records of her presence date back more than 60 years, and it is suspected that she has significantly slowed or frozen her aging process, not just disguised it.

These records are disputed, however. Like all Moon Mages, there is physical evidence of her upbringing in ordinary Equestrian society, but no corroborating accounts. Penumbra claims to have attended and then taught at the Manehattan Institute of Magic, and was married to Ash Torchlight. None of her would-be peers remember her name or appearance, and her would-be husband disappeared without a trace roughly one year ago.

Penumbra Shard is a perfectly pleasant and ordinary mare at first glance, which sets her apart somewhat from the other Moon Mages. She is not prone to sociopathic dysfunction or violent outbursts and doesn't flinch at exposure to sunlight. She even has an affectionate motherly side toward ponies she feels close to. However, extended interaction inevitably reveals patterns of malicious and deceptive behavior as her facade of normalcy slowly falls apart. Penumbra lies often, and purposefully. She thinks of most other ponies as tiresome dregs she tolerates out of polite obligation, and has a cruel streak that emerges frequently in combat or when she thinks she can get away with harming a pony she dislikes. She is selfish and lecherous (a trifling problem when the subjects of her affection are willing, and a serious one when they're not), and eagerly manipulates others to her advantage or sometimes for her petty amusement.

Although a prolific liar and schemer, Penumbra is admittedly not the best at it. She has difficulty planning very far ahead and tends to react poorly when under stress. She also has great difficulty hiding her own emotions, particularly strong distaste or attraction for particular ponies. She could never stand to seduce or even feign mild affection for somepony she disliked, for example. On the other hoof, her desire for Lieutenant Dusk Blade is strong enough that it can easily impede her plans or cause sudden missteps because she's suddenly afraid of his disapproval or frustrated by his rejection.

Penumbra is not known for her temper, but when she does lose her cool her malevolent tendencies causes her to default to violent outbursts. More than once this has utterly ruined a greater plot or hurt somepony she nominally cares for. Despite these problems, Penumbra Shard finds it easier to forget her regrets than correct her behavior.

Like most Moon Mages, Penumbra Shard is largely untested in combat. The 38th Company Iron Warriors respect the power of sorcery but consider it an inferior tactical solution to their war machines, fortifications, and strategic bombardments. They also routinely underestimate the ponies of Equestria, and unlike certain other equines the Moon Mages do not resent being overlooked. Princess Luna, the Commander of the Lunar Guard, mistrusts the Moon Mages deeply, and as a result they've mostly been confined under Nightwatch tower training other combat mages.

When deployed to combat - assuming, of course, it is during the nighttime - Penumbra boasts a fantastic spread of useful spells: light-bending shadow barriers, freezing explosive bursts, and dark lightning that excites the pain nerves to such a degree that it can immobilize even an Ork through sheer agony. Her most useful spell, however, is the ebon vector.

The ebon vector generates multiple discrete "tendrils" of magic force that emerge from the ground or the body and act with semi-intelligent autonomy. They can bludgeon, twist, ensnare, pierce, or slice the enemy, adapting the exact point of contact as necessary for the task at hand. The tentacles are solid enough to block gunfire and strong enough to crush stone, and can adopt a solid "crystal" state capable of piercing or smashing stronger armored materials.

The spell even has non-combat utility, able to safely restrain creatures, lift objects Penumbra could not possibly move with her own strength, and even lift and propel her for the purposes of evasion or getting around an obstacle. She HATES doing it, though; evidently the magic tendrils are quite uncomfortable to have pressed against you, as numerous aliens and ponies can attest.

Penumbra doesn't seem especially discouraged by her imposed service to the 38th Company. The Nightmare failed. The rebellion was thwarted. Eternal Night is a grim myth, while enslavement and genocide at the hands of Orks is a constant threat. Her life as a battle thrall and magic drill instructor is a humiliation, but it's a more dignified fate than a long imprisonment in stone or in Canterlot's dungeons. And really, what other fate could she hope for from this war-torn world, with Equestria allied to Chaos and the Nightmare vanquished?

Penumbra Shard isn't telling.

(Art by KlaraPL, Rozmed, Cotton Candy Pone, Fenwaru, Skyren, and SpoopsB)

[s4rainbows]

I just finished Penumbra. I really like it! I like the dance between growth-decay, light-dark. I really felt for Nocturne and in a small way for Blackwood and Lumina. They are kids and it's a lot of responsibility being royal and having to live to a standard. Fallen angel poses were neat, she was exactly how I think a fallen angel would be. I really liked that she was upside down a lot too.

Did you pull this from a mythology or just from your head? I am a lore nerd. I read all kinds of websites and learn about other cultures lore and mythologies. There's so many good stories out there in all the cultures. This is awesome!

I'd love to see more of them if you're ever do more!

thank you so much for your support!!

Penumbra's lore is all from my brain. Of course there's inspiration, but mostly from other media. The way the queens interact with each other is mainly inspired by the Sylvari from guild wars 2. Cryocena's character, for example, in concept, is based on a song. So is Sangue's relationship, but only really by the chorus

that's Cryocena's inspiration

this one was for sangue and blackwood, specifically this part

I will absolutely work in this universe again!

In fact, the story is kind of the basis of the universe all my gameplay saved operate in. For example, Alabastria, the founder of my BPR, is meant to be a sister of Cryocena's, who ran away to live with the regular Feytouched. I had initial plans of Nocturne finding her and getting help from her, but it didn't end up fitting.

Demetria here, founder of my Winter legacy, is also a feytouched descendant of Cryocena, and actually prays to her as a patron deity to her household.

my gameplay legacies rarely have narration, but they all exist in that universe

[junee-e]

A NEW PENUMBRA EPISODE HAS RISEN!!!! TIME TO THROW MY THOUGHTS INTO THE ABYSS!!!! random thoughts and ramblings follow :D

I AM SO READY FOR DETECTIVE RITA YOU HAVE NO IDEA

OH SHIT WILL SHE BE NARRATING PLEASE TELL ME SHES NARRATING

HER DETECTIVE VOICE IS SO FUN IM SO DEAD

why is she better at this than juno this is going so much better than his attempt

‘WATCH THIS’ * keyboard tapping noises* (i love her)

of course she gets paid in cereal i dont know what i expected

oh ok no junos still narrating

‘THE MAN I LOVED WAS ON THE LINE’ (this will never get old for me)

‘my name is juno steel and *usually* im the private eye’ i am enjoying this way too much

ok why do i love skipper they’re so fun?

‘he just ruins the *peaceful vibes*’ so real so real

HE TOOK THE FUCKING FLOWERS I SWEAR TO GOD

rita. had. dinner with them. oh my god. she is the best.

the mother speaking for the grandfather in like such an annoyed voice and then being so calm with ‘or so father says’ is so funny to me

skippers so dramatic i love them

‘SHUT UP DEAREST’ LMAOO

ooooooo did skipper help nureyev?? wait no thats too obvious….or it is just obvious enough to be right????…..no its isnt….or is it???? (im going insane)

‘he makes friends or.. more than friends and he uses those connections to his advantage’ OH SHIT (skipper???? skipper?? skipper kinda makes sense???) (but like yknow…obvious option)

‘watch skippers reaction in particular’ AHAHA!

OOOO ARE WE GONNA GET RITA NUREYEV INTERACTIONS PLEASE OH MY GOD

‘mostly i was thinking about nureyev’ *cue me falling off my chair at the instant romantic soundtrack that apparently follows nureyev’s name everywhere now*

roomantiic moonoolougueee tiimmee

GRIMMS MASK EPISDOE CALL BACK OH I AM NOT READY

‘another love’ ITS FOR HIS JOB ISNT IT ISTG

OH ITS FOR FUCKING HYPERION CITY OHHHHH SHIT

why does this remind me of the monolouge at the end of final resting place (end of the first season)

‘it wasnt a very nice city but hell im not a very nice lady’ vs ‘this is my city. im not proud of it but that doesnt mean its not worth saving’

there are so many things this season that are setting up to be broken (probably not the right word) but like so many things that have potential for a really sad/angsty pay off. like nureyev and slip or juno telling nureyev he’ll keep following him untl he says he doesnt want him to. or juno and missing hyperion city. i’m so scared.

oh ritas so dramatic its making me so happy

HE TOOK THE ORCHIDS !!!!!

ITS THE MOTHER????

of course she had an inflatable couch in her hideout spot

ooooo its juno detective-ing explain-ing time

juno obsessing over detective stuff is so fun

a CoNfEsSiOn

‘im tired of you people…and also just tired’ skipper being way too relatable

OH SHIT NUREYEV DIDNT TAKE THE FLOWERS???

SOMEONE TOOK THE FLOWERS FOR NUREYEV WHAT IS THIS????

OH IT WAS THE GRANDFATHER WHAT???

‘he sent me up to bed early’ ma’am, you are a probably-around-40-or-something-year-old woman

the gibberish is still funny

WHAT HE WAS FUCKING IN LOVE WITH NUREYEV HUH WHAT THATS SO FUNNY

‘we know how this theif operates he grabs you by your heartstrings and never lets go’ yeah rita would know about that with all the agnsty monolouges

WHAT THE FUCK HES TALKING????

WHO SAID HE LOVED HIM??? NUREYEV???? WHAT???

OH FUCK OH SHIT OH NO OH GOD ‘he said hed come back for me he said we’d run away together’ OHHHH NO NO NO NO NO. NO LONGER FUNNY

‘well it looks like my work here…is done’ *very fast tapping of rita walking away*

OH WAIT SHE CAME BACK TO ACTUALLY HELP JUNO LMAOO

awwww they’re all back together!

A TRACKER A TRACKER HE GOT IT ON NUREYEV AHAHAHA

THEY KNOW WHERE THE DOKANA GROUP IS LETS GO

oh ok fuck i thought we were done how foolish of me there hadnt been a sad speech yet

‘i knew he hadnt done the same to me’ OH THANK GOD OKOK

‘he meant the promises he made me’ AWW YAY

wait no its sad oh god oh no

‘problems for another day, i thought’ best coping method fr fr

‘the rest we’d just have to figure out together’ yay ok happy-ish ending :D

okok so alot of thoughts. i’m so scared of all the set-ups for angst and honestly i’m kinda just waiting for the episode that it all comes crashing down and everyones really sad. but also! hopefullness! juno saying that he’ll figure it out with nureyev! yay! i honestly don’t know how the big climax finally thing with jupeter and slip and the dokana group and everything is going to go i’m just really hoping for an eventual happy ending with happy jupeter (and rita there too :D)

anyway! loved this episode can’t wait for the next one with (i’m assuming) stuff with the Dokana group!!

[sonicasura]

Out of them all, Bulkhead’s voice was the first break through the cacophony of noise. “Why do you listen to her?” The former wrecker and current Autobot inquired, blue optics wide. “Her. That… She reminds me of some of the Functionalist overseers I worked under. Always making the job harder than it needed to be even when it really needed to be done…”

The cyber sleuth’s body language was tense as the question, but she thankfully didn’t end the call just yet. Wherever she was rumbled a bit—another contact popping up in the call itself.

“The Autobot is right, young speaker. You could’ve easily only informed the winged one of what you found. Why involve the cold one if you disdain her so greatly?”

Trypticon spoke up, though his voice was vaguely tinged with slight distaste at even partially addressing an Autobot. His reptilian head showed up in his “contact” making them all realize where she was. Young speaker? All the Autobots, Rescue Bots, and Burns family quieted down in order to let Pen speak. She was still too tensed up into herself for any’s liking.

“There’s only so much I can do to spite her before she actually does something awful, y’know?” The cyber sleuth remarked, letting her Digivice goggles cast a shade over her eyes. Many had picked up this was deliberate by Pen to hide how her eyes really looked. “If not me, then. Someone else.” She turned away from the camera almost as if seeing somewhere else. “Maybe or maybe not. None of us Sleuths are too sure what Mirei’s real capabilities are.”

“You fear her because of a mere possibility?” Chase questioned, voice level despite very much not feeling as stable as he sounded.

A bitter smile found its way onto Penumbra’s face, her body flickering to briefly show her true half-data form. To the Burns Family and Resccue Bots who hadn’t seen it closely before—the sight was mildly horrifying. Knell wrapped her up in their wings and Null patted her on the leg. Doof’s gaze flicked to the camera then back to her while holding his labcoat as if debating on covering it.

“She did this to me.” Pen’s voice sounded small and her face twisted in a grimace. “The refined version of cyberization, she called it.” All three dragons among those on call hissed out at the result being called refined. “I don’t want to imagine if she could possibly do it the whole way. Make someone completely made up of data and manipulate said data to her whims.”

Silence fell for a moment as the awful implications of her fear sank in to them all.

“That woman.” Ratchet spat out like he was uttering the worst curse this side of the planet. “Should have never tried to refine a process that was at first an accident. Not on you or anyone else she managed to snag…” The medic’s coding was sounding alarm bells for him to try to treat it. “She has a way of curing it, right? Hudiemon mentioned it could be reversed. Have you seen this occur, Pen?”

“Yes.” Her voice didn’t sound relieved at all.

“You were one of the first Cyber Sleuths, were you not?” Optimus’ smooth voice broke through the somberness settling over them all like a weighted blanket. “Your… second supervisor informed us of such. She also divulged that you were offered the chance to have your state reversed. You neither agreed or denied it. I hate to ask, but I must.

Why did you turn down an operation which by all accounts would have restored your body?”

****************

Everyone’s eyes and optics were expectant of her answer. Even her digimon’s though Knell knew better than to look at her like that.

“I was one of the first, yes.” She confirmed, feeling Trypticon’s attention on her even as his own optics were somewhere else. “By all definitions—Mirei didn’t deprive of us anything outside of not sending us home.” Pen hated giving that woman any sort of credit yet there was a limit to her callousness. “It’s a one way thing though. Those who were converted back never come into contact with the Agency again. Those who agreed didn’t bond well to their digimon or simply couldn’t take it.”

“And you stayed because of, what, making friends?” Heatwave asked, though his tone was less accusatory than she was expecting.

The cyber sleuth shook her head. “I didn’t have Knell or any other digimon when I was offered the chance.” She knew how it sounded—she had every motivation to go back to how she once was. “She offered only after Hudiemon started implementing changes, but none of us who stayed ever forgot. When I say I am one of the first, I mean… I am among the earliest turned who stayed behind period.” A look of surprise swept across everyone’s faces.

She held a hand to cut off any further questions. “Those selected were close to Cody’s age, my age or a little older than Jack. Mirei hates dragging adults into the Agency.”

“By Primus, you’re all children?”

“How can she get away with this?!”

“<I. I chose to become a scout, but none of you even got a choice.>”

“Despicable! That absolute slagger!”

“Why are none of the Royal Knights doing anything to abolish this?!”

“That’s. Oh, Penumbra…”

“She’s like one of those villains from my shows who always survives to the next season!”

“Illegal. All of this, is very much illegal by human and cybertronian standards.”

“She can’t keep doing this, can she?”

“Young speaker.”

…

“Shut the hell up!” Null hissed out, eyes going fully black in order to appear intimidating as a Gammamon. “She isn’t done talking. Right?”

…

“I am terrible at talking to other Sleuths and even Hackers. What I can do is speak to their Digimon without letting said digimon know I’m digging for information.” She explained, the faintest bit of a smirk on her face though it looked like a grimace. “Who do you think planned the resistances against her from the start?” Knell cackled from their perch on her shoulders. “I had to do something when my own partner took forever to digivolve, didn’t I?”

It took ages to work up the nerve, but Pen was very adept at tossing whispers out to the wider parts of the Agency in order to get efforts up.

The irony that Mirei hates to bring adults when I remember there being quite a number of adult Tamers like in Digimon Dusk/Dawn. Also Pen being responsible for the resistance is so on point. Early days for Sleuths were no doubt hell especially if Mirei wouldn't hesitate to leave them defenseless.