#the backup situation exists and I think this is how things will work out

[veryloovy]

Cyn is the administrator of every Disassembly Drone, and Cyn (the Solver?) also has backups of them should they die. Uzi is also a Solver-user and she is now the administrator of N and V.

I feel like Uzi could have backups of our N and V, which is only important should they die. Granted, Cyn's backups come with a body (likely produced from the mass the Solver has consumed) and Uzi's backups would likely only be able to copy their mind into another body. Which I guess makes our clone N and V able to be Workers again should the opportunity present itself (something that, should it happen, would probably only happen towards the end of the show). Otherwise, I assume that "Tessa" brought unused clone bodies for N and V with her in one of the other pods, which could be used in case Uzi needs to put her backups into a body too (and prevent Cyn's backups from going in).

I think this the main reason for bringing up the whole adminship thing with Disassembly Drones. So far it's mostly been used to stop memory wiping and block out memory access on them (ep5 and ep7, the only exception to the adminship memory stuff is Cyn blocking AS on N in ep1). It's definitely seems memory-tied, and backups also tie into that since they capture memories.

(I'm super congested rn hoping this reads soundly)

[qwimblenorrisstan]

(im back, christmas break is here!!)

tw: mentions of abuse, violence, sexism (but secondary gender), omegaverse dynamics, crying, heavy angst no aftercare (again)

The uncomfortable tension in the room was palpable as they all sat in their usual debriefing room. Usually, the nest was a place for such a personal and volatile topic such as this, but none of them felt worthy of being there now. Not with how they’d treated you.

Soap was tapping his foot against the floor, the pattern uneven and sporadic, until Gaz snapped at him.

“Could you quit it, mate?” It had come out harsher than he’d meant. Soap huffed through his nose but obliged. They were all tense and on edge, their usually oh-so-controlled scents now sour and bitter with unease and anxiety.

In the field, they had their skills and weapons to fix problems, to take out the enemy. But here, back home? They had absolutely nothing in this fight. No amount of backup or fights could win this for them. In this fight, they were the enemy, and the only way to win this was by fixing the sacred little strand keeping you together that they had so carelessly unwound until it had snapped.

Ghost looked to Price. His hand was in his beard, thoughtfully running through the hair, stressed as Ghost has ever seen him. A sour pang of guilt shot through him. If he hadn’t tried forcing you to his scent gland, then you wouldn’t be in this position, and he wouldn’t have messed everything up, again—

“Y’re thinking too much.”

Price muttered, Simon’s feelings clear through the thick scent that somehow seemed to overpower everyone else’s in the air. He swallowed thickly. They needed a plan of action, some way to fix this, and the only way Price saw things being mended was by a lot of time and effort.

Gaz let the silence simmer for a moment, before speaking up.

“Cane Baker Syndrome, I looked it up yesterday night, it’s just like the med’ said. PTSD. Do you think…?”

An alpha being abused wasn’t as commonplace as it had used to be. Only 50 years ago, if you’d stepped into the common era, you’d see alpha’s being forced to work for a family they’d been forced into providing, their protective instincts abused. Among the more insane practices had been scratching out an alpha’s scent gland, so they couldn’t scent or get attached to their offspring, meaning the omega got the child all to themselves.

Awful things such as that had been outlawed years ago, but still happened in little forgotten corners of the world where loopholes existed.

“We can’t know for sure, but based on their reaction, I’d say we have a safe assumption. When they’re in a better….state of mind, we can ask a few questions.”

Price answered, voice heavy with an edge of guilt that seemed to grow richer by the second. Soap’s incessant tapping started up again, anxiety clearly chewing away at him. He couldn’t defuse you or the situation they’d created so easily like any other bomb he might during a mission.

“Could we get a background check on them?”

He asked, a hint of desperation in his tone. All he wanted was for you to be better again, for things to go back to normal, for a second chance.

But as they all split up, and he went to the nest, usually all so warm and comfortable and smelling of their sweet, rich scents combined, all he found was isolation among his team, sour scents mingling with rotten ones, a few sniffles and the salty scent of tears, he knew one thing.

They’d made their bed. Now they had to lie in it.

(sorry for the short part I’ve been playing cod bo6 multiplayer a lot and I’m kinda addicted + depressive episode, but there’ll be more soon I promise!!)

Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5

[bunnyley00]

Bittersweet Punishment

pairing: gang member fem!reader x mafia boss!nanami

genre: slight angst, smut, fluff

rating: 18+ 

word count: 7.8K (something's wrong with me ik)

warnings: slightly angsty, mention of drug usage, nanami is emotionally constipated but eventually figures it out, light bondage with a certain item ahem, impact play (spanking), dirty talk, light degradation, overstim, sex on multiple surfaces, punishment kink, orgasm denial, hair pulling, fingering, oral sex, dom nanami, fluffy aftercare

When you don’t listen to your boss who happens to be running the biggest crime syndicate in the world, there’s ultimately going to be consequences.  

Joining the crime ring scene was probably one of the best decisions you could’ve made with your life. Abandoned by your father, and taking care of your mother as she widdled her existence away doing drugs, you had nowhere else to go. Your other relatives were too far away, and they didn’t even know you. So, you sucked it up and finished school, and managed to get a good job at some random company as a data analyst. You always hated it, felt like you were wasting your life away every day at a desk. The only thing that made it worthwhile was your boss: Nanami Kento. He was tall, handsome, and precise with everything he did. Seeing him about once every week to give him your written reports was always a highlight. You strove to go above and beyond, looking for a sense of purpose through your occupation. Needless to say, it paid off. 

You see, Nanami wasn’t the man you thought him to be. Yes, he looked strong, probably capable of throwing someone across a room, but you had never seen him act out or be violent. So when one random weekend, you received an anonymous invitation to some undisclosed location miles out, only to discover that the Nanami Kento you know happened to be the leader of the Kaisen Syndicate, you didn’t know how to react. But from then forward, you knew you had found something truly special. If you remember the way he put it: “I respect your tenacity and work ethic more than anything else. I would like to see if you’re willing to display those qualities elsewhere.” 

At first, you wanted to deny him, to tell him he’s insane and how could he be in charge of such a terrifying and dangerous group of people. But then, you take a moment. This Syndicate has done terrible things, yes, but only to terrible people: drug dealers, traffickers, money laundering schemists; The list goes on. Even if their methods were less than… moral, the result was a cleaner world, and you could get behind that. So you trained as hard as you possibly could, breaking your limits one by one, body and soul. You probably worked the hardest to get where you were, and it felt good to reap the benefits. You never grew hungry, or without. The Syndicate was like family to you, one you never had. But Nanami, he was always who you had your eyes on, seeking his approval and praise, bettering yourself not only for you but for him. So he could finally just see you without the eyes of a man who’s just in charge.  

You suddenly come to your senses, remembering that you were in a Syndicate meeting and it was hardly the time for a trip down memory lane. This is a huge job. That’s what you think half haphazardly in your mind anyway as Nanami continues with his meeting about the next mission that needs to be carried out for the inevitable expansion of the group. A deal had gone wrong with an enemy gang for some material a month back, and now we were to seize the materials forcefully… use them as an example of sorts. That was the gist anyway. The intel was crucial for everyone who could be chosen for situations like this, in case something doesn’t go according to plan. That’s who Nanami was, even at the company; He was someone who had backup plans for his backup plans. But, who could blame him? Working as a salaryman as a front for his mafioso dealings, he needed the insurance. It wasn’t an option. 

You’d felt as though you’d certainly be chosen for this mission. You were undoubtedly one of the best in the middle ranks, and your colleagues knew how hard you worked. Someone with barely any prior knowledge of combat, manipulation, and intel gathering forced you to become a novice overnight, something everyone respected you for. 

Nanami paced back and forth slowly and methodically in front of a projector displaying the area that would be infiltrated while explaining the details. “As previously stated, this will be a two-man operation at most. There is no need to send the whole Syndicate to a rival organization that cannot respect us or have the common decency to behave. Therefore we shall not be overextending ourselves and show them that we will not be toyed with, with as minimal effort as possible.” His voice was monotone yet smooth, words coming out with purpose.

“You will get in, dispose of any that get in your way, gather the product and return to me. In addition, there is an envelope that you will deliver to their leader. Under no circumstances will you kill him. While it could dissolve them, it could also lead to another person being inclined to take his place and start a full-on war. I’m not a fan of working overtime, as you all know, so a war is not a goal of mine.” 

The room full of members all hummed and nodded in agreement, and you continued to watch Nanami, his words beginning to drown out as you watched him walk. He was clad in his usual attire, always in some sort of suit and tie. The jacket fit him just right but the dress shirt underneath was always a little too small for him in the best way. You swore you could see the outline of his pecks, that the buttons were probably screaming to be let free from the prison that was his fit abdominal structure. 

“I will summon the two members suited for the job later today. You’re all dismissed.” 

Those words made you snap out of your trance, and you stood up, letting everyone file out. You were one of the last ones to leave the meeting room, but Nanami stopped you. 

“Wait. There’s something I’d like to discuss with you,” he piped up as he gathered up files and mission info neatly. He’d been doing that quite frequently lately, asking you about your training, about your work at the company, about just…you in general. It never bothered you one bit. 

“Yes?,” you ask politely as you turn around, making your way toward him. Your eyes meet his through his glasses, the green tint making it hard to see his actual dark brown eyes. “How has your physical condition been lately? I was informed that you pushed too hard during your spar last week. You were limping for days.” You let out a soft, “Pshh,” waving a bit with your hand, “I’m okay. It was just a few scratches.” 

Nanami hated when you lied, especially because you were shit at it. “Besides,” you continue, “Should it matter? I’m just another cog in the machine, right?” “No,” he stated in rebuttal, “I respect and trust every one of my colleagues. Had you been someone else I would’ve asked the same questions.” 

‘Wow, way to make me feel special, boss,’ you thought before mentally berating yourself for expecting any other response but that one. 

You hum, watching his large hands continue to fiddle with papers. “How have you been, then?” you ask with a raise of your eyebrows. “I hardly see how that information is relevant.” “Because I respect and trust you, I want to know how you’re doing. Same concept.” He knew you were playfully mocking him, then again, you always did that.  “It’s not the same. You don’t bear my burdens so my feelings aren’t what matters here.” 

God, he was so confusing when he did this. You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at him. “Sure, boss.” “That attitude is why you’re always getting into heated scraps. And you know I dislike the title ‘boss’,” he mused, “Even at the company I can’t stand it.” He finally finished gathering his things. “Just continue to execute like you always have. You’re one of my best, don’t squander it by getting so hurt that you can’t.” 

“Yes Sir,” you answered back respectfully, internally blushing at the words ‘one of my best’. He very rarely complimented you so directly in this line of work. 

A day later, you prepared yourself to be called into Nanami’s office at Syndicate Headquarters, the pre-mission butterflies floating around in your stomach in a way that made you increasingly giddy. Walking about the halls, you waited and waited, looking for an announcement, listening for gossip on who he’d chosen. You hoped to hear your name amongst the hushed whispers. However, what you found out frankly just pissed you off. 

“Didn’t you know?”, Itadori asked, chewing on a piece of his milk bread fruit sandwich. “Know what?”, you cocked an eyebrow up. “Nanamin chose me and Takuma-san.” “He what?!” “Yeah, the meeting was earlier this morning. I asked him if he was sure and he just said what he always does. The whole, ‘This is the most efficient way’ spiel.” Your eye twitched and Itadori knew exactly what you were about to do, “Good luck.” 

The other members could see it all over your face, and didn’t try to stop you as you practically stormed up to his office. They knew only you would get away with stunts like this, outwardly and inappropriately showing your anger and or frustration over a decision that’s already been made. You didn’t even bother knocking, just opening the door to a quiet Nanami penning away in his notebook at his desk. “So was it a lie?,” you said curtly, letting the heavy door shut behind you.

“I was expecting you. What are you talking about?”, he spoke up, glancing up at you before returning his eyes to his work. “You know exactly what I’m talking about.” “Is this about the mission?”, he asked, finally giving you his full attention. “Is this about the mission? Of course it is! ‘You’re one of my best’? Was it a lie?” “Why would I lie about something like that?”, he asked calmly. “Well, obviously I’m not because you’re sending Itadori and Takuma! I’m just as good if not better for the job!” Nanami sat back in his large leather chair, fixing his glasses. “Just because I’m not sending you doesn’t mean you’re not equipped for the job.” “So why?!” “Don’t yell.” You didn’t even have time to register who exactly you were talking to and kept going, genuinely hurt by his seeming oversight of your abilities after all this time. “No! I want to know why I won’t be there!”

Nanami grew quiet, just watching you. Why did he not send you? You were an easy choice. Reliable, capable, strong. He trusted you more than some of the other people under his wing. It should’ve been a ‘home run’ so to speak. But, something in his chest stirred when he thought about you facing off an entire organization basically on your own. You weren’t quite ready yet. It felt…wrong to send you. “Because both Itadori and Takuma are a bit more experienced.” “Bullshit.” “Excuse me?” “Did I stutter?! Bull! I don’t care if they are! I’ve worked my ass off! I deserve this! Stop lying to me. Do you think I’m too weak? Is that it? Is it because I’m a woman?! You think I just belong back at the office?!” You knew that didn’t make any sense. Gender never mattered to Nanami, but you were just so angry you wanted to, as bad as it sounded, blame him for something.

Those words made Nanami’s brow furrow. He was getting quite irritated. “You deserve it? Please tell me how exactly you do when you’re in here throwing a fit like a child. And don’t you dare imply such a disgustingly sexist and absurd thing. Not only are you disrespecting me but yourself as well. You aren’t going. That’s my final say on the matter.” You felt more and more of your emotions swirling inside of you, manifesting itself as heat in your face and fingertips. “What’s the matter with you?! You compliment me and give me extra attention and training and tell me I’m one of the best but you don’t send me on one of the most important jobs since I’ve been here?!” You raise your arms in defeat, fighting not to get teary-eyed. 

“Yes! That’s exactly what’s happening!”, he raised his voice back, fed up with your attitude and how you spewed baseless accusations at him. The tone was deep and almost guttural, and it made your eyes widen in surprise and your body jump, startled at the outburst. He never got like this. Nanami couldn’t comprehend why you were so upset. He was just trying to make sure that you didn’t overextend yourself. That was the only reason. Right?…Right? 

You grew quiet, eyes and body relaxing before biting your lip, your eyes growing cloudy despite your efforts. “You know what? Fine. You don’t want me to go? I won’t,” Nanami wanted to apologize for raising his voice, but he knew it would fall on deaf ears. You began to turn around to walk out before turning your head to look at him. “Anything else I should be informed of before I leave, Kento?” Nanami clenched his jaw slightly. You were one of the few people who knew his name. The other members would just call him “Leader” or “Boss”, much to his dismay. Nevertheless, you never used it until now. “You’re dismissed.” He watched you stomp off, putting his head in his hands as soon as the door to his office closed behind you. 

The day of the mission was nigh, and per the meeting, you knew when your coworkers would head out and where to meet. “Screw Nanami. I’ll fucking show him,” you mumble to yourself, getting dressed in all-black attire to carry out the mission without his permission. You prepped as much as you could, and when you arrived at the rendezvous point in the dead of night, both Itadori and Takuma recognized you immediately. 

“Uhh, what are you doing here?!,” Takuma whisper-yelled frantically. “I told you she’d show up,” Itadori mused, a quiet laugh slipping past his lips, “I don’t know why she wasn’t put on the mission in the first place.” “How’d you even know it was me?”, you asked, looking around to make sure the coast was clear. “Because you’re the only one stupid enough to defy Nanami like this,” Takuma stated matter of factly, “And who cares if she’s just as capable, she wasn’t chosen,” he said to Itadori. The pink-haired boy just shrugged, “I’m sure we could use the extra help. I mean, sure Nanamin wouldn’t be necessarily happy about it but we’d get the job done.” Takuma just groaned in disapproval, “Whatever. I don’t approve of this but I can’t stop you.” You gave both of them a cheeky smile, “You’re right. You can’t.” 

Some part of you wished he had stopped you. The mission was successful but at the cost of heavy bodily injuries. Takuma got the worst of it, and you were right behind him. Somehow, though, Itadori came out mostly unscathed, with only a few bruises littering his body. He was always kinda freaky like that, like a walking superhuman. You, on the other hand, had various wounds ranging from stabs, to dark purple and yellow bruises, and your back was littered with scratches from a glass window pane you were kicked through. You wore the injuries proudly though, musing that they were your badge for succeeding. The other members couldn’t help breaking into whispers the moment you 3 returned to Headquarters, no doubt talking about you. You didn’t have the fucks to give though, and you proceeded up to Nanami’s office with head held high. 

The moment Nanami saw you with Itadori and Takuma, he was fuming. It was exactly why he didn’t want you to go in the first place. You were hurt badly and it made him rethink his… feelings toward you because the way his chest felt seeing you that way didn’t feel normal. “Itadori, Takuma,” his eyes landed on you next, taking in your state. “All three of you-,” he was interrupted by Takuma, “Sir, I told them I didn’t approve but-,” It was Nanami’s turn to interrupt him. “I care not about the details of who went. How did the mission fair?” “Went off without a hitch!”, Itadori smiled, “More people resisted than we initially thought though. Took a lot for them to actually get scared.” Nanami hummed, “And the envelope?”

“I delivered it,” you piped up, “It’s with their boss safe and sound. The materials are also back in our possession as well.” “Is that so? Good. Well, as per usual, based on your condition you shall all take a short break from the field. Itadori, you should only need a week or so, right?” Itadori nodded, “Yeah Nanamin! I’ll be all good.” “I thought I said stop calling me that.” “Aw, but it’s a really good nickna-.” “Whatever,” Nanami gives up. They have that conversation every other day and it always goes nowhere anyway. “Takuma, 2 weeks for you. There’s nothing broken, right?” Takuma shook his head. “Just lots and lots of bruising, heh,” he lifted his hand to scratch the back of his head but winced as he did so. 

Nanami returned his hard gaze to you. “I want you on a month's hiatus.” “But-” “No arguing. You have deep stab wounds that need stitching and proper healing. I just know you’ll do nothing but go back to training if you return here. A month at the least.” You couldn’t even fight back, he was right. The wounds were fighting to close, hot and throbbing. “The nurse downstairs will tend to all of you. Go home after, get some rest,” he stood, looking at all of you, “Good job for a successful mission despite some changes in the moment. I’m glad you’re all alright. You’re dismissed.”

After Itadori and Takuma left, you expected to be called back, but Nanami just sat back down at his mahogany desk, continuing to work. “No reprimand?,” you asked in the quiet of the room. He glanced up at you, “Not at this time. Your recovery is more important. You’ll receive some corrective action when you return. I’ll see you at the company in the meantime.” That was unlike him, but you supposed he already felt bad for the argument the both of you had earlier. “Not kicking me out are you?” “Not in the slightest. You just need some… readjustment for your behavior.” “Sure thing, Sir. Goodnight.” “Goodnight. And I’m not lying when I say that I am glad you’re alright.” The statement made you smile a bit. “Yeah.” 

The next month went by fairly quickly, although you weren’t going to Syndicate Headquarters every night. You almost enjoyed the break from the constant fighting, and ended up taking a bit more extra time. You still saw Nanami every day at your day job. The clothes you wore covered most bandages, and you explained the visible ones away as just plain, clumsy behavior. Your wounds healed nicely and at a rate you didn’t expect. Only one stab wound needed stitches. You’d surely have scars but that didn’t bother you. They were merely proof that you were alive. So, when you were back at the Syndicate after almost 2 months, you were welcomed with open arms, literally. They all dog-piled onto you like you’d been gone for years, saying that they’d missed you and your presence around the place. You smiled and laughed with them, once again incredibly grateful for such a large group of people who loved you unconditionally. “Oh! Nanamin said he wanted to welcome you back. He’s in his office,” Itadori informed you. “Okay,” you nodded, promising you’d be back as you made your way toward your leader’s door. 

“You asked for me?”, you piped up as you opened it, letting it close behind you. Nanami was standing, both hands leaning back on his desk. “Lock it.” “Huh?” “Lock the door.” Your heart started beating a little faster just then. “Why?” “I just don’t want to be interrupted.” “O-kay?”, you spoke slowly, following his directions. “Welcome back.” He took off his glasses, running his hand through his blonde hair before setting them aside. Sometimes you forgot that he didn't actually need them to see. He then asked, “How are your wounds?” “Glad to be back,” you smiled, “They’re way better. That extra time I took sped up the healing process..” What was he up to? He looked… different somehow. Oh, how you had no idea. “That’s good. There are 3 things I’d like to inform you of…,” he trailed off, his eyes intense. “First, I am sorry for yelling at you.” You looked down at the floor, “I’m sorry for yelling as well… and accusing you.” “I now know why I was so adamant on keeping you from the mission,” he continued, letting his hands softly move him off of the desk and toward you, “And that brings me to number two.” He used one hand to slowly lift your chin, and the action surprised you. Your eyes widened slightly, and you swore you could hear your heartbeat in your ears. “It was more than your skill set, or even keeping you from overextending yourself.” His voice was silky smooth, deep in all the right ways as he spoke to you. “It was because I wanted to keep you from harm's way. I didn’t want to see you in pain or with so many injuries. Because in reality…,” he’d been slowly walking you back, yet you didn’t notice and were surprised when your back hit a solid wall. 

His face moved past yours and dipped down for his mouth to reach your ear, the tips of them hot much like the rest of your body. “I’ve always wanted you,” he whispered. “Every part of you. At first, I thought it may be just the way I admire your tenacity. It wasn’t an unreasonable thought. You work hard, all for me, don’t you?” You didn’t even register that a question was asked, mouth dry and mind foggy from the kindling of fire in your lower regions. Your breath rose and fell steadily but deeply, your breasts almost rubbing against him with each inhale. “I,” you started, “I, yeah. I do.” “Exactly. And then I thought: ‘How did I not notice?’ Whether you’re at the company, making sure you wear a low-cut shirt so the tops of your breasts are flashing me while you read off your report to me, or when you wear tight pants to incite me to look at your curves at the Headquarters, you’re always seeking my attention. And more importantly, you’re seeking my praise. Am I wrong?”

He was reading you like a book now, and even though it took him an eternity, you still didn’t expect to feel so exposed in the moment. He pulled his head back a bit to re-establish the heady eye contact. You tried to be coy. “I mean, not necessarily,” you managed to breathe out. “You really are bad at lying, you know? The extra training, the almost excessive reporting, taking on extra work, asking me repeatedly, ‘How’d I do?’ The look on your face when I compliment you is filled with warmth and something else. But I can probably infer what that is.” 

Being pinned against the wall was the least of your worries, as your clit throbbed against your panties, hands at your sides and Nanami kept you caged in like a predator closing in on his prey. “And the third thing?”, your voice trembled. “Ah, the third thing. Do you recall what I said before you left my office 2 months ago?” “Something about readjusting my behavior?”, you breathed, beginning to put the pieces together. “That’s right. Good girl.” The shiver that ran down your spine shouldn’t have been that intense, and it made you squirm against him. “Now, is this what you want?” His question was serious, not laced with arousal but genuine. “Maybe,” you said slightly playfully. “A terrible liar as always,” he said quietly, leaning down to kiss you. Your lips slotted together slowly yet intensely, and it was everything you’d been waiting for. His large hands made their way to your waist, squeezing you softly as you moaned into his mouth. He let you indulge because this would be the last time you would for a while. Your arms made their way up to his broad shoulders, wrapping around them while he nipped at your bottom lip. 

Your body screamed, begged for more, the heat in between your legs growing in intensity. After what felt like an eternity of teasing bites, small prods of tongues, and little sounds being consumed by Nanami’s lips, he pulled back. You just about whined and Nanami couldn’t help a small smirk. “I’m sure you’ll live. You waited this long, right? Don’t forget,” he squeezed your hips a bit more, “This is a punishment. You directly disobeyed my orders. So now I have to take my time and break you down piece by piece, and put you back together again.” “Heh,” you let out a breathy laugh, “Is that what you intend to do?” “Oh, darling, it’s what I’m going to do.” 

You had to be dreaming, but the way your breath hitched and your pussy ached had to be real. His hands moved upward, trailing the sides of your abdomen and then shifting to take the hem of your shirt and lift it up. You let the shirt slide over your head, watching as he tossed it aside. You took no time in taking off your shoes, Nanami leaning down to kiss you again as he kneaded your tits through your bra as you worked on your pants. Now that he’s gotten a taste of you, he is going to indulge in every facet of your body. As soon as your pants were discarded you were left in your matching bra and panty set. He pulled back. “I want you bent over my desk, with your hands resting on your back.” You nodded a bit, “O-Okay,” you said breathily as your body began moving towards the desk. His words stopped you in your tracks. “Okay, what?” “Okay, Sir,” you corrected yourself, and you swore your pussy got wetter. “That’s better. Good girl.” 

He watched you get into position, and when you were, he took a moment to admire your body, how small it was compared to him. It made his dick throb a bit in his pants. In just a few minutes you’d be putty in his hands, moaning and writhing all for him. It really did take him too long to get here. You heard the sound of clothes rustling and then what you immediately recognized to be his tie tying your wrists together. The desk was cold against your skin, sending goosebumps along every inch of it. “Isn’t that your favorite tie?”, you asked playfully. He only reserved his tan suit and speckled tie for special occasions. “It is. Why wouldn’t I wear it on a day when I train a brat on how to behave?”, he asked, finishing the knot and following up his question with a smack against your ass. 

“Ah!,” you yelped in surprise, squirming against the desk. “Not too loud now,” Nanami mused, “You wouldn’t want the rest of the Syndicate to know how much of a disobedient brat you are, would you?” Slap. “A-Ah! No!” “No, what?” Slap. “N-No, Sir!” “Good, good.” He rubbed his hand against your now slightly red cheeks, the touch soft despite his calloused hands. “This is long overdue, you know? How many times have you disobeyed me? Ignored my instructions because you felt like you could do it better your way? Even at the company, trying to undermine my authority.” Slap. “F-Fuck,” you moaned, fighting back the instinct to get loud. “It really is a pity, darling, that I had to resort to such,” slap, “physical means of getting through to you.” Your ass was on fire and you jumped a little every time Nanami’s hand came down on your cheeks. You wanted to squirm away but it felt so good. At this point, your panties were soaked with your wetness, a visible spot on them. 

Nanami watched while you squirmed and shifted on the desk, your ass jiggling with every sharp movement. You were nearly on your tippy toes, and he could tell you were enjoying yourself. “Now, how many times do you think I should bring my hand down on this ass of yours?”, he asked. You heard him shift and then felt fingers tugging at the hem of your panties. They were pulled down slowly, your bare ass now on display. A wet string of slick connected you to your panties until it broke, the clothing item now at your feet. “I-I don’t know,” you whined, the cold of the room hitting your core. “You don’t? Want to take a guess, darling?” Nanami reached a hand to your pussy, lightly running two large fingers against your folds. You gasped and moaned, hips moving back against the touch. “You won’t get what you want until you give me a number.” Your forehead was up against the mahogany wood, breath escaping as mild panting, heating up your face more in the process while he persistently teased your pussy. “T-Ten,” you finally spoke up. 

“Only ten? Do you really think a brat like you only deserves ten?” Nanami did a few quick circles on your clit. “Fuck, N-Nanami, I don’t know, please.” “Hm? Please what? You still haven’t honored my request yet.” He pulled his fingers back. “Okay! O-kay. Twenty?” “Twenty sounds fair enough for all the trouble you’ve put me through. Good girl.” Slap. “That’s one.” “Shit!” Nanami used his other hand to continue to rub your clit at a painstakingly slow pace, occasionally dipping the tip of his digits into your entrance. Slap. “Mmfm!,” you moaned, biting your lip to hold in your sounds. With every slap came the delicious feeling of focusing on his fingers, but the combination of pleasure and pain left you dizzy. “You’re enjoying yourself aren’t you, darling?” Slap. “Does this feel good? Me punishing you for being a bad little brat?” Slap. “Your greedy pussy is dripping for me.” Slap. “G-God, yes it feels good!”, you answered obediently and he rewarded you, sheathing the full length of both fingers inside of you. “You look so gorgeous tied up like this.” Slap. “I should punish you more often, shouldn’t I?” Slap. You were drowning in pleasure rutting back against his fingers and eating the satisfying sting of his palm against your ass. Although the pace was slow, the knot in your lower abdomen began to build, your orgasm creeping toward you like a thief in the night. By the last slap you were whining and whimpering, Nanami’s fingers still working inside of you. 

“Would you like to cum, darling?”, he drawled, the sound of his fingers entering and exiting your hot, wet slit filling the room. “Y-yes! Please!”, you beg without much fight, cloud nine so close but so far. Nanami kept going, speeding up his fingers until he felt your legs tremble and your breath become uneven. You were just about to tip over the edge and then…nothing. The loud whine that you let escape your mouth didn’t even sound like you to your ears, and Nanami took both hands and squeezed your thoroughly reddened ass cheeks, your arousal still on his fingers. “It seems that you’ve forgotten that this was a punishment, darling. You don't quite get what you want yet.” “Nanami,” you whined again, hips moving back in search of something, anything to cure the ache in between your legs. “You really are an impatient little thing aren’t you?” 

Nanami helped you get to your feet and guided you to the other side of his desk. He sat in his chair. “Kneel for me,” he spoke up, and you followed directions swiftly. He made sure that you didn’t lose your balance. You watched as he unfastened his belt, and you felt a sliver of shame as your mouth began to water. He unbuttoned his pants and then looked at you. “Use your teeth.” “Yes, Sir,” you almost moaned, leaning your upper body forward to get into position. You let your teeth grab ahold of his zipper, following a command of, “Look at me,” as you pulled it down slowly. Nanami let out a small sigh and assisted you in pulling his throbbing dick out of his pants. It bounced out of his briefs, his tip sticky with his pre. “Show me you’re a good girl,” he spoke up, using a hand to softly caress your jaw and trailing it up into your hair. 

You leaned into the touch, letting out a soft, “Yes, Sir,” as you let your head descend and your mouth wraps around the tip of his cock. It was thick, and you moaned at the taste of his pre cum. Looking up at him, you began to slowly bob your head, coating his length in your saliva. He groaned, letting his head rest against his chair as he watched you intently. “That’s a good girl. There we go, just like that,” he praised, making your already swollen clit almost hurt from the arousal. You lifted your head off of his dick, licking from his balls to the tip repeatedly to trace the pulsating veins that ran up it. Your head went back down onto him again, taking him in more and more with each movement. His hand guided you through it all, your sticky spit running down his dick and onto his balls. You began to wonder if you could really handle not cumming for this long, your pussy hot and needy. You tried to sneak your other hand down to your clit and the grip he had on your hair tightened. “Where’s that hand going, darling? Did I say you could touch yourself?”, he asked, pulling your head up and off of him. 

Your spit ran down your chin. “N-No.” “Right, I didn’t say that, did I? So why is your hand trying to play with your bratty little pussy?” You moved your hand. “I-I’m sor-” The moment you did he pushed your head back down onto his cock, moving it up and down forcefully. “And here I thought you learned your lesson,” he grunted, moaning at your hot mouth, “But I guess brats never really learn do they? Have you got anything to say? Hm?” You struggled to produce the words ‘I’m sorry’ as his dick moved in and out of your mouth and throat, the sounds coming out garbled and riddled with wet, sloppy sounds. “Yeah? Are you sure?”, Nanami asked, his brow furrowing from the pleasure. You attempted to say yes, but gave up entirely, letting him use your mouth. He pulled your head off when he was close, dick pulsating as he denied himself sweet release. You coughed and sputtered a bit, eyes watery from the forcefulness of it all. Nanami leaned down and pulled your head up, kissing you hard enough to take the little wind left you had out of your lungs. 

You gasped as he suddenly stood, picked you up, and put you on the desk, but ass up face down. He sat back down in his chair, your wet pussy right in front of his mouth. “Is this what you want?”, he spoke right against it and you moved your ass back so much you almost fell. He held your ass and hips. “Please, Kento, please,” you begged, a whining mess with your cheek up against the wood. “I want it, I want it.” Nanami didn’t leave you hanging, instantly starting to suck on your clit. “Oh god f-fuck!” His mouth sucked and licked at your slit, taking in the taste of your arousal with a low groan. He hummed, letting the vibrations give you a bit of extra sensation. Your hips rocked and shook, and he held you tight, not allowing you an inch of movement as he ate you out like it was the last thing he’d ever do. “Kento! Oh god, Kento fuck!-” “So vocal for me. Although I don’t expect anything else from a brat like you who can’t keep her mouth shut otherwise.” He let his long tongue dip inside of you, pushing your hips back and forth to tongue fuck you. His thumbs spread your ass cheeks apart, opening up your pussy for him. 

You were so sensitive you were shaking. Your tits were rubbing against the desk, nipples hard from the teasing stimulation. Your pussy clenched around his tongue and once again you felt your orgasm creep up on you while Nanami licked you. He sucked on your clit repeatedly, letting it go with a small pop sound over and over again, switching between that and using his tongue to soak your slit in his spit. “Shit- shit, fuck,” you panted, brows knitted tightly on your face as your eyes shut. Nanami knew you were close, could see it in the way your legs trembled and your moans broke up into gibberish. “Going to cum, darling? Hm?” “Yes! Pl-please! Kento! Let me cum!” Nanami kept licking and sucking and like clockwork, as soon as the precipice was before you, you were yanked back. It almost made you want to cry. “Kento cut it out, please! I’ll be good, I p-promise! I-”

Your sentence was interrupted by Nanami adjusting you and pulling your legs back down so your toes touched the floor again. He stood up and started to press himself into you, his cock stretching you out in a way you didn’t think was possible. You were so close to finishing the feeling of him sheathing himself inside of you made you cum. “F-fuck! Oh fuck!” You moaned and writhed and Nanami growled behind you, starting to slowly piston his dick inside of your pussy. His hands traveled up to his dress shirt, unbuttoning it and tossing it aside while he fucked you. “You said you wanted to cum, right? Isn’t that what you wanted, darling?,” he breathed. Being edged made you 10 times more sensitive, and all you could do was moan and hiccup from the way your pussy convulsed around his length. “I’m giving you what this pussy wants.” Nanami couldn’t help himself, watching as your ass moved with every thrust into your pussy. All you could do was take it, Nanami’s hands preventing you from running. 

The room was filled with the sounds of sin: the slapping of skin, your desperate moans, and Nanami’s growls and grunts. He began to move faster, and you could feel his tip hit your cervix in the best way with every single thrust. “K-Kento! F-f-fuck!” “Is this all you wanted, darling? You being punished and fucked like the brat you are?” You nodded weakly, too enraptured by the feeling of his cock sliding in and out of you. You began to shake again and Nanami slapped your ass. “Go ahead, I know you want to. You’ve been begging for it all night. Cum.” Your body responded immediately and your orgasm slapped you in the face. Your hips couldn’t buck from his strong grip but the rest of you did, squirming on the desk while you coated his dick in white.  

Nanami didn’t give you a chance to rest, pulling out and quickly picking you up. He slid back in as he carried you over to a small sofa on the other side of his office. He bounced you up and down like you were a rag doll as he walked, kissing you feverishly and swallowing your moans until he laid your back down onto the cushions. Grabbing your legs, he put them over his shoulders, starting to thrust into your pussy again. The change in position left your head spinning, and deeper angle made your moans increase in pitch and volume. “Keep these pretty legs up here while I fuck you into submission,” Nanami growled, holding them as he pounded you. “G-od shit! Fuck! Y-yes, yes, y-yes Sir!” “Now look at that, she’s learning,” he smirked a little, letting your legs rest against his shoulders and leaning down to kiss you more. Your knees were damn near touching his ears and you couldn’t get enough. His hands tried to reach under your back to unclasp your bra, but he got impatient, instead ripping it through the middle and taking a tit into his hand to knead while he fucked and kissed you. 

Moans poured into Nanami’s mouth and he drank them like the sweetest wine he’d ever tasted. His dick started to hit your g-spot, and you couldn’t control the way you grew even louder. He was relentless against the sensitive area, and you started to whine. “I-I’m gonna! G-gonna c-cum!” That was the only warning you gave him as your pussy clenched and tightened around his cock rhythmically. “Oh? Is my good girl that sensitive?” Nanami reached his hand down from your breast to your clit and you started to squirm harder. He had you pinned with nowhere to go as you tried to handle the overstimulation. “T-too much! Please Kento!” “Too much? But I thought you wanted to cum?” He asked, voice breathy but still deep against your lips. He rubbed and fingers faster and harder and sped up his thrusting, and you felt like you could explode. His cock was covered in your cum. But he wanted more. He wanted to show you he could deny you, but he could also make you overindulge. “Give me another one. Now. Now brat, cum again.” 

Your body seemed to be running on autopilot, listening to his command the moment it left his lips. The intense pleasure made your eyes well up with tears and Nanami praised you over and over again. “Good, good girl, there we go, that’s what I wanted,” he moaned as he continued to thrust. He moved his hand and picked you up again all without pulling out once more. When he got to a wall, however, he did put you down, his dick slipping out of you as your weak legs held you up in front of him. “Against the wall.” “K-Kento I don’t think I can sta-” “I won’t let you fall. Hands against the wall, darling.” You turned around, putting your palms against the wall and jutting your ass out. Nanami took one hand and held your hip, easing himself back into you with a moan. He took the other and ran it up your neck, grabbing your hair almost from the scalp and pulling your head back as he began his fervent pace once more. You couldn’t hold back your moans, and your legs wanted to give out. He wrapped his arm around you to keep you steady. 

“That’s right. I’ve got you. All you have to do is fucking take it,” he groaned into your ear. “Y-ah! Yes Sir! K-Kento oh fuck! Oh fuck, oh fuck!” You were trying your hardest, but your words descended into gibberish and half-spoken curses. Nanami was beginning to lose his patience, his dick throbbing angrily inside of you from holding back his orgasm. But he needed one more out of you. He wanted to leave you shaking with ecstasy. “Take it, take it, take it,” he growled with each thrust, your mouth open as you began to slightly drool, hot, salty tears running down your face. The both of you were covered in sweat, and it just made the slapping sounds of his balls hitting your slit even louder. “This is your punishment,” he moaned, “Are you going to disobey me again?” “N-No!” He moved forward slightly so his mouth was right up against your ear. “Are you going to be a fucking brat or are you going to be my good girl?” 

Your vision was getting hazy. His dick was fucking you into oblivion and you gladly wanted to let it. “Answer me,” he growled, yanking your hair a bit harder. “Ah! G-good! I’ll b-be good Kento!” “Say it,” he panted, starting to feel himself get closer to release. “I-I’m a good g-girl!” “Again.” “G-god- fuck Kento pl-please!” “I said again!” “I’m a good g-girl! I’m y-your good girl K-Kento! Fuck I’m gonna c-cum please l-let me cum!” “Do it, darling. Cum for me.” The both of you came at the same time, and he held you as much as he could as he let his cum pour into you. “F-Fuck!”, he moaned loudly while his hand holding your hair moved to cover your mouth, knowing your screams would be extra loud. They were mixed with cries, the overstimulation leaving you weak. Your hips convulsed and he growled into your ear as it filled you up, his thrusts slowing down as the both of you rode it out. 

He gently pulled out of your spent pussy, keeping you upright as he finally untied your wrists. Tossing the garment away, he picked you up and held you close to his chest as he sat down on the sofa. You laid your head in the crook of his neck, your legs wrapped around his waist. “You did so well,” he whispered, stroking your back. The air grew silent then and you both basked in the afterglow of everything. The both of you cuddled for what felt like hours, eyes closed and heartbeats steady. “I really…am sorry,” you piped up, voice a low whisper. “Hm? Are you talking about the mission?” “Yes. I should’ve listened to you. I wasn’t quite ready yet.” “It’s alright. What matters is that you came back safe and sound,” he murmured, absently feeling a scar that ran up your back from the incident. The both of you grew silent once more, letting each other feel and touch each other's skin intimately in the process. “I can’t believe it really took you this long to figure it out.” “…I’m not sure how that information is relevant to the situation.” “Now look at who’s being a bad liar.” 

_______________________________________________________

pumped this one out in two days, it was super fun to write. hope you enjoyed it! <3 -leyley

[sable-pigeon]

Notes on Recognition: Xiao Jingyan and Mei Changsu

This is a collection of thoughts that developed while I was making the ‘recognition’ video (x), and in which I reflect on Jingyan's unique position regarding knowing Mei Changsu's identity.

Jingyan is, of course, The Last To Know, and, in the scene with his mother, he speaks of how he was so close to recognizing his friend, and that he faults himself, that should have known. If we go back, however, and look at the circumstances under which the others find out, a few things start to emerge.

First off, the people who don't already know and find out, find out quite early on. Meng Zhi doesn't really count because he'd been contacted previously, but Nihuang finds out relatively soon after they meet, and Consort Jing also finds out fairly early once she has something to go on—and it's having something to go on that's the key thing.

Both Nihuang and Consort Jing are possessed of outside information—that is, external clues not originating from Mei Changsu's observed behavior—that lead them to draw their conclusions. In Consort Jing's case, she has the character missing strokes in the book, and in Nihuang's case, she has Wei Zheng (and since I'm sticking to the show here, I'll only briefly mention the original presence of Nie Duo, which made her even more keen to investigate in the novel) whose appearance, as with Consort Jing and the book, gives Nihuang hard evidence to work with, and with which to confront Mei Changsu, which she then does. Apart from these clues, Consort Jing has her medical knowledge to draw on, while Nihuang has the show version of the meeting with Tainainai, but while that scene does involve Mei Changsu's observed behavior, it does not arise unprompted, and is instead a reaction to Tainainai's actions.

So, to return to Jingyan, what does he have to go on? He doesn't have those outside clues—there is no known Jiangzuo assistance with a familiar face, or the right information to tell him what exactly is so revealing about the book he's borrowed. And, crucially, each time he encounters new information, Mei Changsu is there (with backup) to bat it down. What Jingyan is reacting to, then, and reacting to so strongly, is almost purely based on Mei Changsu's unprompted observed behavior, most notably the sleeve rubbing, the discussion of the grain supply, and the drawing of Jingyan's sword, all of which Mei Changsu does naturally and not in response to external influences. Moreover, the things Jingyan notices are not just instances of general familiarity, but specific things Jingyan recognizes as specific to xiao-Shu. The way he thinks, represented by the rubbing of his sleeve, the way he speaks, represented by the detailing of grain supply logistics, and the way he acts, represented by drawing Jingyan's sword.

The other side of this, of course, is that in these moments, Mei Changsu has neglected to conceal himself fully, which speaks to him, on some level, being comfortable enough in Jingyan's presence that he is simply existing as the person he currently is, which still includes many elements of the past. (And to expand on the concept of being 'comfortable,' I don't necessarily mean 'relaxed' although that's sometimes true, but that, however unconsciously, part of Mei Changsu's response to being in Jingyan's company and to working with him, is a tendency to let down his guard while focusing on the task at hand.)

This leads, then, to unique situations on both sides: on one side, Jingyan, without outside information, consistently recognizing xiao-Shu in Mei Changsu, and, on the other, Mei Changsu consistently becoming uncharacteristically unguarded around the one person who doesn't know and who he insists should not know. This combination (along with, again, the lack of outside information and the immediate unified dismissal of any other clues) leads Jingyan to be in a position where he cannot get the appropriate perspective to see the entire picture, partly because, in many ways, he is too close to it.

This is something I've explored elsewhere, but I think it's always worth revisiting that the other way in which Jingyan is unique is that he gets close to Mei Changsu without knowing he is xiao-Shu (unlike Meng Zhi and Nihuang et al), while also having been close to xiao-Shu (unlike Feiliu and Lin Chen) and this affects his perspective. Unlike those who find out Mei Changsu is Lin Shu in the early days of their acquaintance with Mei Changsu, before they have much of a chance to get to know his current self, Jingyan alone will ultimately have the unique experience of reconciling the memories of the companion of his youth with the man who is now so important to him.

While Nihuang and Consort Jing have the space to consider their outside evidence of Mei Changsu's former identity, Jingyan has the space to get to know Mei Changsu's current identity, even filtered as it is through Su Zhe, and to form a new picture—throughout the narrative we see how carefully Jingyan listens, even when he's seeming not to. It is clear Jingyan is interested in who Mei Changsu is—even before he knows There's Something About That Book—he reads it with a genuine curiosity about Mei Changsu's remarks and retains enough detail of what he's read to bring it up with his mother—he may not know what exactly to think of Mei Changsu, but he is genuinely listening to him, and as a person, not just a strategist.

So, to wrap up this reformatted collection of thoughts, while Jingyan is unique in the lack of information he is given, he is also unique in what exactly he's noticing and responding to. And, on the other side, Mei Changsu, who treats Jingyan uniquely in what he doesn't show him, also treats him uniquely in what he does.

[squidsinashirt]

Your thoughts on how to be a good big brother to Alan are super interesting. He’s a lucky kid 🥰

If the roles were reversed, do you think you’d have made a better job of being the biggest big brother than Scott has? What advice would you give him?

If that question were any more loaded, Anon, it’d have come with cheese and pickles on top.

Me? Give advice to Scott on how to be a big brother? 😂

Everything I learnt about big brothering comes from my own big brothers. You mess with the order, and suddenly things will not work. It’s a null point to ask because I didn’t have to - because of Scott. Because of him, and Virg and John. And it’s because I have three big brothers that did all that, that I can be the way I am with Alan. Doesn’t exist in a vacuum.

Look, it’s really easy to sit and make comment and say your piece when the day is done. Everyone’s a critic in hindsight, right? But sometimes, you don’t get the luxury of time to consider, to think, multiple options or plans to weigh up. Sometimes you’re tossed into a situation, with other people relying on you, and you’ve gotta think on your feet and run with your decision.

Bit like doing a rescue, y’know? We don’t make a habit of sitting picking apart missions another brother was on to say “oh, I’d have done this or that”. Because ultimately, you weren’t there, and it wasn’t you that had to work with what you were given. It’s really easy to criticise when you’re safe and comfortable.

So with that in mind, now that I’m a grown adult who is very safe and comfortable in numerous ways thanks to the decisions somebody else had to make…

A better job? Never. Not in this lifetime or the next.

A different job? Well, naturally, we’re different people. And maybe that difference would have mattered - maybe it wouldn’t. I’d have definitely let more things slip - and I’d have definitely slipped up more. I couldn’t have shut things away the way that Scott chose to, to focus on what he had to do. Because that’s just how we differ as people, isn’t a jab.

… see, Scott, he leads like the world is on fire and it’s his job to put it out with his bare hands. He wakes up every day with this weight on his shoulders like if he slips up for even a second, we all fall. That kind of responsibility? It’s heavy. The kind of heavy that could crush anybody ordinary, and that pressure doesn’t just shape you — it builds walls around you. High ones.

And for a long time, maybe that was true.

He had to be that way. Alan and I were kids. Dad was gone, International Rescue was all on him and suddenly we were on the edge of something massive, dangerous.

Scott stepped up and carried us. No instruction manual. No backup. Just sheer will and that impossible sense of duty carved into his bones.

And y’know — no one gives him credit. Not really. They see the mission. The uniform. The job. Might even see the CEO, head of the family, big brother.

But we see him — or at least, I do.

I still see the twenty-something-year-old who stood in front of his grieving little brothers after burying another parent and said, “It’s gonna be okay, I’ve got this.”

And sometimes I wonder if he ever stops just to get to look at what he’s built — or if he’s too busy holding the scaffolding up to notice it’s already standing.

So if I was pressed to tell him something? Not that he’d be for listening, it’s Scott, c’mon, but… it probably wouldn’t be all that different to what I tell Alan. That, despite his gained belief somewhere along the way that being vulnerable is the same thing as being unreliable, I’m here if/when he decides to change that. That he’ll always have me, without question, and with space for him to… just be Scott. Yes, despite the frequent attempts to emulate the volcano we live on top of when we argue.

Let us all be there for you, the way you've always been there for us. You're not a machine. You're not a myth. You're a man — our brother — and you don’t have to be perfect for us to love you.

Because this family? Its not a chain of command. It’s a net. It catches you - because you taught us how. And no one — not even Scott Tracy — is above needing that.

But you realise he’d absolutely hate that and he’d do the pat on the head and ‘okay Gordy’ and then oh no, a call from John, he’d have to run. Because world to save, y’know?

[domoz]

CW for suffocation (of someone else)

Getting an Uchiha trapped in a genjutsu is as difficult as it sounds.

Touka has learned that there's no point in changing what see ages ago. She's good enough that they won't notice the difference without a sharingan, but the moment it's on they'll break it. If they're on edge -- and Izuna Uchiha certainly is -- they'll turn it on for anything. His eyes turned red thirty minutes ago, when some animal made enough noise to startle him and haven't been off since.

So Touka hasn't put anything in his path that might tip him off. Her genjutsu is all subtle -- her own sounds muffled as she trails him though the autumn woods and one of the mildest disorientation genjutsus that exist. It's not enough to make him off balance, but just enough to have him listing to one side as he walks. On top of that, if she's laid it right, he should only think it's been five minutes instead of the half an hour it's taken for her to lead him away from the rest of his squad.

He clearly knows that something is wrong by now, recognizes that he's been turned around but can't quite seem to pinpoint how. He won't take more than a few steps now before he pauses to look around. Forward progress has slowed to a crawl, Izuna isn't getting any further away from backup, and sooner or later they're going to come looking for him -- if he doesn't realize that someone is trying to catch him first.

Touka had more-or-less assigned herself this mission after her last spar with Tobirama. She has no support here, and not much confidence that she can win a one-on-one fight. It's hard work to shave a win off of Tobirama on the best of days, and he usually doesn't try to actually kill her.

She pushes all of the air out of her lungs with a silent whoosh, hands coming up to form the signs, slow and precise, of one of her own techniques.

It's a funny thing, breathing. Automatic until you think about it, and then it's all you can focus on. In a middle of a stressful situation, it's common to not realize that you've stopped. The darkness that creeps into the edge of your vision is slow, and without the feeling of discomfort, it's almost too easy to forget that you've stopped doing it.

If Izuna realizes something has happened he'll be onto her for certain, but he's not breathing now.

Twenty seconds. Thirty. Sixty. His movements start to slow, his blinking goes sluggish, and red eyes fade to black. Lack of air impairs judgement too, but she can't trust that he won't realize something is wrong at any moment.

Sweat beads at Touka's brow. She doesn't use this technique often, hasn't had the chance to practice and refine it to a more workable chakra cost. Her own hands tremble as she holds the threads of all the genjutsu she's woven. One more.

Touka has never heard of an Uchiha being fooled by a henge of one of their own clanmates before, but she risks it anyways. Any good genjutsu master spends time observing their enemies, but there's one Uchiha she has more material on than the others, and her only stroke of luck in this whole endeavor is that he was among the group she'd lured Izuna away from.

Hikaku Uchiha's skin feels tight on her, but with she shakes it off with the ease of practice, rolls her shoulders, and steps out from behind the cover of her tree. Izuna doesn't react to the sound of her steps right away -- a good sign.

"Izuna-sama." She's short of breath herself, when her voice comes out as Hikaku's it sounds like he's been running, "We've been looking all over for you. Why are you out here?"

"I was, uh… Patrol…?" His eyebrows furrow as he uses up the last of his air.

"Are you alright?" It's easy enough to feign concern, and Izuna only blinks in confusion when she puts her hands on his shoulders.

He only puts up a token resistance as she kicks his legs out from under him and pushes him face down in the dirt. The shock of it breaks all of her genjutsu at once, and she lets the henge drop for good measure, all focus now on getting his arms and legs tied. He wheezes underneath her, not able to get the full breath she's sure he desperately wants with her full weight between his shoulders.

Wrists are tied, then elbows, ankles then knees. She cuts a long bandage into strips and covers his eyes and mouth, too. Only once she has the Uchiha properly hogtied does she roll him over and start removing weapons

He's still taking heaving breaths, around the gag. He twitches when she reaches out to pat one cheek.

"Hey, me catching you here is better than the other thing was going to happen to you. We're all lucky I pulled this off, really."

Izuna shakes his head as violently as her ties will allow. He doesn't get it, probably wouldn't believe her even if she told him Tobirama has finally found his way to beat the sharingan, but that's fine. If they play their cards right, he'll never have to know at all.

[hydrangeyes]

Missing you

So if you don't know, Yes this already existed, my old account was deleted (accident but I can tell I won't be getting it back), and am reposting my old x male reader works!

I don't know if I saved all of them but here is one that was saved to my AO3 account.

Edit: So shuffling through my docs It's been brought to my attention that wattpad (who I use as backup) Cut a lot of my fics in half??? anyway I'll be trying to fix that also

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Aizawa x Male reader

(Y/n just returned from an out-of-the-country mission. And well how can you blame him for immediately looking for his precious boyfriend?) unedited

+Fluff (✿◠‿◠) +

Height: 6'2

Gender: Male

Age: 32

personality: Impulsive, bubbly, kinda forgetful

Hair color: Hazelnut brown

Eye color: honey brown

body type: Lean but muscular, not bulky, soft

Quirk: ????

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Y/n has never run so fast in his life.

Y/n didn't really think through exactly what he was currently doing. That is breaking into his boyfriend of 4 years, workplace. Well sort of breaking, he had a copy of his mans' teacher id..... did that count?

How was he supposed to know they added extra security!? Hell why was all might chasing after him, they knew each other dammit!! Y/n conveniently forgot just how different he looked now, being both taller and muscular than when he last saw the prized hero.

Thinking quickly Y/n scrambles to the nearest door and dove inside without (once again) thinking it through.

Panting and wheezing a little, Y/n blink seeing a bunch of eyes now on him.

"Y-yo..." he stutters out to apparently a bunch of kids mid-training.

"Y/n? You idiot how did you get in here?" a familiar tired voice call out not far from y/n. Immediately forgetting where he was Y/n tackles the man with a delighted laugh.

"Shota!!"

Said man was previously sitting on the floor next to his students' belongings, leaning back on his rolled-up sleeping bag. Both him and y/n now a sprawl on the bag and floor.

"I'm so happy to see you, as soon as I got off the plane-"

"Y/N!"

Aizawa groans as y/n finally stop talking looking at him with his full attention. (Y/n: ≧◉◡◉≦??) "Maybe here isn't the place for this? my students..." he grumbles. Y/n blinks finally catching on and looks from their little bubble to see the students all gathered and watching with interest.

"a-ah, um sorry about interrupting kiddos." y/n coughs out realizing he did it again. Getting up and helping Aizawa he bows deeply before straightening and rubbing the back of his next. " Couldn't help rushing to see my sweetheart."

the burst of surprised outcries filled the gym and Aizawa winced as he sees Mina and Denki grab onto Y/n demanding answers. glancing over at the door he waves off a thoroughly confused all might wondering if he should end the class early. He could sneak off while they were distracted with Y/n.....

"So Mr. L/n what's Mr. Aizawa like outside of school?"

"hm? well I guess it depends! usually he's cuddly and - mftt?"

Y/n blinks looking down to see aizawa's scarf covering his mouth. looking back y/n chuckles nervously seeing aizawa glare at them. "That is none of their business, also you still have yet to answer my question. How did you get in?"

Y/n fully turns and giving him a kiss on the cheek, "Come on sweetheart, I wasn't going to say anything embarrassing..." Y/n inwardly let's out a breathe when that seems to calm the man down.

"I do have a copy of your old id card, it still works apparently." Y/n shrugs.

sighing and rubbing his temple, Aizawa waves at his students. "Class dismissed, I have to get the situation this idiot no doubt caused cleared up."

:One awkward mini teacher meeting later:

Y/n pouts from where he is sitting on the couch. He wasn't exactly in trouble but he was told off once things were cleared. Now here he was in aizawa's dorm apartment, which was confusing they had a place already, waiting for his sweetheart to finish showering.

"oh peaches, It's not a crime to love someone too much right?" y/n dramatically coos to a black cat that comes to him sniffing his leg curiously. their collar pendant engraved with 'peachs <3'.

"In your case, no."

Smiling softly y/n looks back to see Aizawa drying his hair wearing black sweatpants and a long sleeve grey shirt. "Mmh good, I don't think I could stop." y/n teases. Aizawa rolls his eyes and comes around to sit next to him.

Laying back on the couch arms, Y/n tugs him to lay on top. "I've missed you."

Aizawa chuckles softly and gives him a kiss.

"I've missed you too."

------------------------------

short but felt like this would be a fun start to this book. I should say that the UA whenever I write about it or our beloved characters are in a college setting (U.A being the college). As well as characters being OOC canon-wise because of this.

anyway, Thanks cupcakekiller for the request!!

[donkeys-waffles]

Okay, listen I'm not all that convinced AFO is completely gone. And let's put DFO aside for a moment. His and Yoichi's story feels uncomplete, there are certain elements that were given the time to be graced on but never really elaborated on. Like for example, that possibility that certain elements of AFO's backstory were fabricated to accomplish a certain message.

It's very easy to read over his backstory and gather the idea that he was born evil. But after a deeper look, it's very clear that was the purpose. We are meant to believe AFO is evil because that's what he wants us to believe, that's what he sees in himself. I feel bittersweet towards his supposed 'end'. Because I hate how Bakugou delivered that end, for one. But on one hand I enjoy how he mentioned needing Yoichi, it starts with denial and ends with recognition. And even if this a hot take, I think it's a beautiful, emotional end to such a messed-up individual.

However, I have a weird feeling about two things. First, I'd like to say, one thing I've noticed in writing is if something is brought up randomly, it'll generally come back to bite you later. Nothing is left unsaid, otherwise you have plot holes.

I found it interesting how it's mentioned AFO wasn't able to use his last trick up his sleeve, without any elaboration as to what that would have been. And I would say this was done on purpose, maybe just used as another example of every dream he wasn't able to accomplish before he died. But bringing light to this does nothing to strengthen the impact of his death on the narrative. Another interesting detail was Yoichi's wish. His dream of AFO being the kindest quirk in the world, which I can see being used to cause a reaction in the reader, as if trying to make them feel some heartache for such a bastard. But even with that reasoning, that sentence in the end feels so empty. unfulfilling, and almost lack-luster. It seems odd to be brought up and this could be bias, but I feel like that sentence had more importance than just literary cannon fodder.

We know AFO's main goal, make everyone love him like Yoichi, and his midterm goal was to steal his brother back through OFA. Makes sense.

But I still have questions. I understand why he took Tomura, to get a strong enough host to steal OFA, makes sense. But how does leaving Gigantomachia in the mountains have anything to do with such a goal? For what? Retirement? What did that achieve, wouldn't it better if he kept him around? If he was planning on moving his consciousness to Tomua later, then keeping him around would be better, right? Afterall, he'd be able to meet the child and possibly have a better understanding of the situation. Gigantomachia is an incredibly strong asset (look how he took down SO many heroes in the first war); he could have possibly even used him as backup during his fight with All Might.

And why keep OFA at a distance when his entire goal is to steal said quirk? I'm referring to that one panel in Vigilantes. Thats the entire opposite of his entire 200-year-old goal.

And that whole thing with his copy of rewind... This man is 200 years old, with an extremely strong villain empire, who has earned the respect of a genius scientist... You don't achieve any of those things by being stupid. And now I'm not normally one for completely trusting the MHA Wiki, but I can't blame them for giving him a 6/5 intelligence. He's a genius, and is spectacular with quirk analysis, it's his thing ya feel me. But it does show his lack of self-preservation, which is against what he's supposed to be angry at All Might for.

All Might took his health and his empire; we know he didn't really care about his empire as much from Spinner. (I mean lack of self-preservation because he's using a quirk that will eventually rewind him out of existence, whether he transfers his quirk to Tomura entirely or not. There's a possibility that it won't work, he failed to take complete control the first time remember. Is that what this supposed 'trick up his sleeve' was supposed to remedy? This is the same man that gave himself immortality, the same man that ran away from All Might for years, the same man that has shown to rely on the strength of others instead of dealing wounds himself. And might I add the same man that is supposed to be angry about his health being diminished. Afterall if not his health or his empire what could he possibly be angry at All Might for that's so special, so unique compared to his predecessors?)

This brings me to my last point. Since when the hell did this bitch care about THE CHILDREN! This man literally stole quirks from children, killed thousands, and turned a crap tone into braindead nomu. And he's angry on behalf of the children. Are we ever going to get an explanation for that?

Like I would understand if he killed the children that he apparently gave heroic ideals to. Like Ha! You will pay for passing on your ideals to children by watching me steal their quirks and kill them. But that's not what he means, or he would've stolen Tokoyami's quirk, killed Jiro instead of leaving her with a broken eardrum, and blasted Izuku away with deadly force instead of holding back in the first war. We have no answers for such behavior from a man known for exhibiting zero humanity (and making that behavior his ENTIRE personality.) Need I remind you this man stole Tomura (possibly gave him the quirk that killed his entire family,) and groomed him just to possess him later alright. He also turned Tsubasa into a nomu for shits and giggles, which we have never talked about once! Tsubasa, need I remind, was a small child and was the Doctor's grandson (which you'd think give him immunity to this kind of sick shit but apparently not.)

There are so many questions left unanswered, many of which Yoichi himself can't even answer. Like with all their human experimentation they do on a daily basis, the clone theory wouldn't really surprise me. It would make a lot of sense for his character as well. And even if that theory doesn't pan out, the vestige behind the locked door (which is entirely separate rant honestly,) or even Tomura's AFO vestige maybe. Though I feel if Izuku really saves Tomura in this war, then we might never hear much of anything from that vestige. Especially since their first priority would be to cancel it out as soon as possible. A lot of people bring up how the story is almost over, and they are probably right. But the end date was supposed to be 2022 originally, right? Then it was moved to 2023, now it's 2024-2025. Like yeah it is almost over, but there's still story that needs wrapping up clearly because that deadline has been pushed back multiple times. Too many times to make it a valid counterclaim anymore. Either way, I don't think we are in the clear of the Demon King's superiority complex anytime soon.

[dramatisperscnae]

the empress, the fool, the hierophant. for your dc boys.

[The Major Arcana || accepting]

[THE EMPRESS] - Do they participate in or have a self-care ritual? If so, what does their routine look like?

Bruce knows the meaning of self-care but somehow missed the part where it also applies to him. He doesn't have a ritual or routine, but his usual downtime includes reading and spending time with his kids. Yes, this does mean that patrol sometimes counts as relaxation. Go figure. He does have A Whole Routine for skincare, though; scar minimalization is kind of necessary to keep people from asking too many inconvenient questions.

Kyle is probably the best of all of them when it comes to self-care, but his ritual is a simple one: put on music to vibe to and just draw whatever comes out as a result. He also likes movie marathons and reading; sometimes instead of music he'll put on an audiobook and sketch his favorite scenes.

Arthur goes swimming. That's it, really. Just him and miles of ocean with no one else around. He'll take his small boat - it's an old fishing boat he's refitted - out and use it as a base if he really needs to, but he can swim faster than any boat on the planet so y'know.

Dick is almost as bad as Bruce, but he at least understands the concept of self-care as it applies to him better; he just forgets about it half the time. His self-care involves a shower just this side of scalding and aerial work; either trapeze or silks, occasionally both. Follow that up with a mug of proper chai [he has a custom spice blend he orders from India] and - if it's been a particularly rough time lately - cinnamon toast, and that's how he decompresses.

[THE FOOL] - Do they weight their options when making a decision, or do they impulsively make a choice?

Bruce is seldom truly impulsive; he's a chronic overthinker who has a minimum of five plans for any given situation no matter how absurd. That said, he also has a policy of never ignoring a hunch; instincts exist for a reason.

Dick acts impulsively so often that 'Nightwinging it' is a canonical in-universe term for 'making up the plan as I go'. The fascinating thing about that is the fact that Dick actually does think about his options a lot more than most people - even Bruce on occasion - give him credit for. It's highly likely that a minimum of a quarter, possibly even up to half of his apparently-impulsive actions have quite a lot of thought behind them that no one else ever gets to see. When he's leading a team he's slightly more prone to actually showing those thought processes, though; his impulsiveness really only shines when he's acting on his own.

Arthur leans far more towards impulse and instinct than he does careful thought. Not to say he doesn't think at all - he does, especially when he has clear responsibilities to uphold - but he's as wild and untamed as the Pacific Ocean when left to his own devices. He just...isn't usually left to his own devices and has had to force himself to learn to weigh his actions before doing anything.

Kyle spent so long as the only Green Lantern in the universe that his actions can seem very impulsive to outside eyes - and to be fair they often are - but he had a series of pretty harsh lessons in learning to think before he acts, and now his impulsiveness is largely limited to 'forgetting he has backup and handing The Thing on his own'.

[THE HIEROPHANT] - What are important traditions to them, if any? Do they stay true to these traditions, or do they adapt them to fit their current situation?

Bruce has an iron-clad tradition of visiting Crime Alley once a year, on the anniversary of his parents' deaths. Not even the Red Hood can stop that one visit. He also makes a habit of visiting the graves of the Graysons and the Drakes - and the Todds and Sheila - once a year, to tell them how their boys are getting on. Until Jason returned, he also visited Jason's grave, every year on Jason's birthday. Only Alfred is aware of any of this

Arthur holds to quite a few traditions from his father's people, the Maori of Aotearoa [New Zealand], but as I myself do not know enough about them to confidently say which ones he keeps specifically I will have to simply leave it at that until I'm able to do more research. He doesn't yet know enough about Atlantean traditions to really hold to them much.

Kyle maintains a few Earth traditions while out in space because he likes them: decorating eggs for Easter, carving a pumpkin - or pumpkin-adjacent alien vegetable - for Halloween, decorating for Christmas, that kind of thing. And he always, no matter what else is going on, goes to visit Alex's grave whenever he comes back to Earth. He just tries to make sure he avoids her family when he does that; her sister made it very clear that he's not welcome.

Dick, oddly enough for a half-Romani circus brat, doesn't have any specific traditions that he holds to himself. Most of those that he would have held to - avoiding places of death, for instance; have you seen Gotham City? - are either complicated or made entirely impossible by his vigilante lifestyle. Plus he was so young when he was forced away from the circus that a lot of things have just faded from memory over the years. He has a few superstitions and beliefs that remain, but traditions? Not quite so much.

[autisticbokutoenthusiast]

pit babe ep 9 stray thoughts

- charlie’s “you’re the person i’ve spent my whole life trying to stand beside” 🥺

- northsonic my beloved. love in the influencer era “if i leave you who will start the youtube channel” i love my clowns

- charlie looking at alanjeff like ok 😏 i see you is so funny to me

- oh what’s pete doing at the child trafficking ring?? he better be exposing them

- what is babes plan in these situations get into fights he can’t win with no backup when he’s supposed to be sneaking around like makes my guts rumble

- PETE IS THE ENIGMA WKEJRJDEIEKK?!?!,!?! SCREAM I FIFNT SEE THIS COMING

- babe why are you spilling everything while still in enemy territory like be serious right now this is why you’d make a terrible spy

- HUH IS IT OETE IR WAY WHAT WHAT AHHH BITH ITS BOTH WHAT

- babe you fucking fool why are standing in some evil hallway discussing this go back home

- THE LOOK OF BETRAYAL SCREAM

- oh it’s the mind control…

- oh this is why yall hate way…

- CHARLIE POPPING OUT OF NO WHERE TO START WHALING ON HIM DISKDKKDF sorry but i laughed a lil

- none of these bitches ever bring back up like why don’t you work together

- babe and ways actors work well off of eachother i must say

- scream this is devastating “if you still have humanity left” like damn…..

- way you done fucked up boo

- not the flashback montage you can’t keep doing this to me 😞

- oh babe…..

- “why do all the people i love betray me” im going to jump into the sea i cant do this

- how do they find out who an enigma is

- i need tony gone like ripped to shreds im so serious. fuck that man

- the music choice here it’s making me feel like something bad is about to happen…….. WHY ARE YOU SORRY CHERLIE

- oh babe

- if alan’s losing it the teams fucked. ok now he’s gettin naked

- wait is jeff back??? when did this happen???

- ok alanjeff…. are they gonna kiss. psjjsdjdj jeff “at least they’d just kidnap me” … “internships here pay well” ….

- my one complaint about jeff’s visions is i wish he had a that’s so raven animation moment beforehand

- cowardly tragedy enjoyers when the characters are trapped in a tragedy…. unless

- i straight forgot dean existed…idk if i trust him…..

- northsonic being scene stealers again i love my clowns

- deans awkward little thumbs up sjejjdjdj

- charlie’s so real if i ever go missing it’s because i too am in the bathroom getting over stimulated.

- charlie looking at babe like damn bitch you lived like this

- screaming over this charliebabe scene

- OH IS THIS THE FAMED MIRROR MOMENT COMING ABHHHHHH

- winner winning for the first time in his entire life: damn yall suck fr

- tbh for his like first race i think second place is pretty good but idk about all this

this episode was wild i thought THE THING was gonna happen here but i guess it’s next race… im already nervous

[spamtoon]

DCRC Week 7. I'm so close

I'm so close to catching up. time for an earthquake! I know that from puffy's various jokes about it something happens with the west coast in this one hoo boy calisota is gonna be in danger tonight! I'm so close to catching up. So inanely close. oh wiat hold on lemme get in club pen.guin again

ALRIGHT okay interesting first panel. i like the colors here and the sound effects. sorry these panels are so bright paperinik's style...

my favorite standard font title replacement so far i think

i like how the money symbol is there so we can tell its mcduck enterprises

im so mad i love how he's ploping the bear into the coffee. hot chocolate. something like that

the little crackers surrounding the coffee mug as theres a rainy scene in the background. the color contrast... hi one you look so silly today

i love how uno's just floating today usually they try to show his little chord or him attached to something but he's so silly

im so mad. get uno's ass donald

hes so silly though... the way donald rattles off all the things and uno's just like shut up please. he thinks he's onto something btu he's literally onto nothing

im so mad. do you know how to ride a bicycle this is not that

divorce (they argued for two seconds)

hello girl. i dont know who you are but your design is everything to me

im so mad shoutout to when comics do this. more heroes should be federal criminals and evade taxes. i love the way he's like Oh Fuck! I'm a Criminal Now! glad the government gets on pk's bad side too RIGHT after the time police nonetheless

she... i might have her job someday. imean not LITERALLY like i dont wanna go into security but i do want to work in an environmental department. i love how uno is just really into snooping on the fbi and honestly who wouldn't be Donald. be peer pressured into getting yourself into more trouble with the govenrment come onnn

physical antiviruses... ugh code wall so cool im. the way they're battling on the us fbi logo

IM SO MAD i actaully laughed at them getting angus fangus. if he blamed this on the duck avenger randomly he would be right and he could convince them so this could have been the worst play ever but its also the most cathartic

hello mary ann flagstarr...

cog donald's little red eyes... the digital and the real are blurring for a moment but i guess the fbi's security system is so complicated it has. air vents. or he's in the real fbi nevermind

holy shit guys its MEEEEEEEE yeah i never told you guys i was in pk the whole time. its insane

I LOVE HOW HES JUST LIKE. BEATING UP FEDERAL AGENTS NOW AND IT SLIKE OKAY things are only going to get worse im . this is a you call yourself a superhero moment but also the government is the government so!

odnald duck really did think nobody would show up at 3am

hes so fucking smug

ah the pangea project! surely that doesn't mean good things for calisota! ah okay they're not painting the whole government as evil just this guy specifically that makes a little more sense for a disney comic

she's so sad... ooh this is gonna be a ba.xter stockman situation isnt it (SORRY i have seen 1 episode of 2003 and it was. the banned one in call with everyone). she's just like oh my god you're fucking dying and he's like my plan... you must do it... it was my wife's definitely

WHAAAAAAAAT NOOOOOO... HOW COULD THIS HAPPEN IN MY DONALD DUCK STORY? (sarcastic)

sorry this was like the one thing i knew about this comic beforehand. other than like. uno existed. sarcasm aside i do love this panel

i like they Try to give a reason as to why the govenrment is doing this "out of good will" despite the evil laughs and such as like. a climate change backup--land we haven't messed up yet. but like this should be a last resort and not an immediately executed plan and i get you cant evacuate the whole west coast but california has so much of what the us is known for the us would be stupid to let those countless tourism dollars go to waste--especially when new land may not immediately go to claim of the us and Wars might happen over it. sorry im not nitpicking or anything i'm just saying my thoughts. like st canard is a massive city and so is duckburg and--sorry

and uno is sad because he doesnt know whether the sacrifice is worth it which. alright! yeah! but everything's not gonna be peachy keen just because we have some new land to work with. its got to grow naturally and as its arisen from the sea unless its all completely man-bulldozed its going to be rock, dead coral, and lichen for a while before anything grows naturally. the thought process of a scientist who can see everyone as getting in the way, climate change disaster as inevitable unless there are serious changes in human behavior or just straight up more resources and time (and who HATES calisota because he lives there), sure. believable enough for a silly comic like this

IM SO MAD AND THEN IT JUST CUTS TO

HIS STUPID PLANE its beautiful.

PLEASE dont kill of mary ann i love her already

im so glad she doesnt shoot either of them right away like its a massive ??? situation. you cant shoot donald duck

uno feels so bad for dipping for a second for being unsure :(((( poor guy...

this ending panel with the seagull is so good but oh. hohoh. are we gonna get more uno lore next issue ANYWAY yeah! good comic i see why this one is a lot of people's favorites. im glad im having fun reading paperinik again... that sure was a terremoto and boy oh boy... the west coast DIDNT sink? thanks to donald duck? wow. incredible.

[suyooo]

Making BIG SIF2 (Part 3)

Hi! I'm back, and my BIG SIF setup is complete! That's not to say I'll never touch anything about it ever again, but it works great, and it also looks great now. Almost as if it's not just a pile of jank and bodges!

If you missed part 1 and part 2, the tl;dr is: I recreated an old SIF event where you stomp on big old floor buttons with eight other players to play songs together as a team. The other two posts talk about how the switches work, and various details about how it's all connected respectively, in case you are interested!

This post is another write-along of me working on stuff, and this time, it's about just finishing off the last few problems and to-dos - making a case for the electronics, and thinking about reliability and portability. Because of how many topics I want to cover, everything will only be covered relatively briefly. But if you want to know more about something specific, drop me an ask and I'll write more about that topic.

And just to have this important bit above the fold: I'm bringing the setup to Connichi on Saturday next weekend, in case you are there and want to play. More about that at the bottom of the post - but let's get started!

First off, an admission: I lied to you. Last time I said I made eight more floor switches. But that was not quite the truth:

It was eleven.

So multiply everything I said last time by 1.33 - 12 total switches, with 36 shelf liner layers, 24 of those copper taped and soldered, 144 holes cut into 12 rug pad layers, 192 snap caps pressed by hand, 48 cables crimped with bullet connectors by hand. Needless to say, I have been taking it easy to give my wrist a break... The first question is probably "why?" - it's not like there's a 12-spot mode or something. That's true, I'll never use more than nine of the switches at the same time. The reason these extra three buttons exist is reliabilty: there can be three backup floor switches on standby, to swap in if something breaks.

The switches are probably fairly easy to fix if something goes wrong - just need to re-solder a connection or repair some copper tape, at most. But that will still be a problem when actually playing with the controller system, because it will always take some time, during which the game will not be playable. Having more switches on standby means you can swap out the faulty button to diagnose and repair it, while the game can go on! But the main thing is that I will not be having the means to repair switches in most locations in the first place. I'm not going to bring my screwdrivers, soldering station, multimeter, extra copper tape, cable and everything else to wherever we're playing! And there's a good chance there's no power or space for a repair station, anyways.

That's why I went with three backup buttons, so the game can go on even longer even if I I'm unable to do repairs right away. We'll just keep playing, and I'll repair the broken switches when I'm back home. And technically, because all the buttons are modular and I can swap out the separate layers, the system doesn't become unusable until four of the same part break! That should be more than enough reliability for almost any situation, especially since it probably won't be used for more than a couple hours at a time.

Next up: let's hide all of the work I did. Having the wiring visible is a little ugly, so let's just put everything in a box. Building an enclosure also makes transporting and setting up everything a lot easier, since I can already connect everything inside the box ahead of time, and then just have to plug in and place the switches on the floor. And the easiest way to make a bespoke enclosure is 3D printing it!

What I'll need - besides the obvious "places to put all of the adapters and the phone" - is some way to access the sockets and board from outside so I can plug all the cables in. Also, even though SIF2 isn't that demanding, it's still a closed box, so I'll probably want to add a fan. But that sounds doable, most of these won't be any problem. I can draw a box with some holes. I decided to go for OpenSCAD for this project instead of FreeCAD - while it would have been nice to have FreeCAD to plan cable routing and be able to set constraints and everything, I just didn't need all of these complicated features. Again, it's just a box with holes, and I can do that real fast in OpenSCAD.

To make sure I get the box right the first try, I implemented every component as a seperate module in OpenSCAD, so I could print them seperately - for example, I could easily test print only the part of the wall that would house the Ethernet socket, to make sure that it fits perfectly before printing the whole box - and then adjust their position easily without messing up the rest of the components.

For the adapters without screw holes, I used threaded inserts that you melt in the plastic. I've never used them before, but since self-tapped holes wear out after a few times of putting screws in and out, I wanted to try out a more reliable method. These ones will last probably forever, and hold the screws in real tight. They were surprisingly easy to use, I assumed they would be harder to get straight... With this, I can use pillars with threaded inserts and some clips to screw in to keep the adapters in place, no matter how much the box gets thrown around. These threaded inserts can also be used to mount the arcade controller board and the fan. The fan even gets power right from the arcade board, which has 5V pins meant for LEDs - but they work just fine for anything else that needs power, too. I did add a resistor on the wire though, to turn down the fan speed and noise. Finally, to access the adapter sockets easily without having to open the box, I found panel mount extension cables for all the sockets that needed to be accessible outside - HDMI, Ethernet and USB-C (power delivery).

One difficulty was the sockets for the button cables. These are not some standardized kind of plug, after all, so I can't buy a panel mount cable like the others - I have to figure out how to mount these flush with the outside wall myself, and they have to stay in place, both when inserting and pulling out the cable. In this case, I was able to use the middle shelf I already had, that mainly exists to hold the phone, since it's placed right above the cable holes. I hot glued the sockets for the cables to some small clips, which can be screwed into the shelf with screws. Finally, the shelf can be aligned with the holes in the wall when placing it in the box, all the sockets being inserted at once. There's even a bit of a taper on the button cable holes, so the sockets self-align with them!

All that's left then is just jamming all the cables in there somehow. The only real awkward cable was the USB-B-to-A cable for the arcade board connection - the one that came with it was two metres long, far too much to fit in there. So I just cut it up and soldered it back together, reducing the length down to just 20 cm. That way, all the cables actually fit in there quite nicely, and there's plenty of space left for the board connector cables, so the middle shelf can lock everything in place!

And here's the finished box! That's a good box, right?

As one little last addition, I worked on some decorations. A plain white box would look a little boring, after all, so I added some accents and icons on the front and top. While it would have been super easy to do by printing the lid in one go and changing to a pink filament for just the decoration layers, I thought I'd be smart and not buy an entire spool of filament just for that. Instead, I printed everything seperately in white filament, and then painted it all with pink acrylic paint instead. That made the decoration only cost half - but it was such a pain. Between all the coats of paint needed to get a result that didn't look completely awful, having to glue on all of the little dots on the lid by hand, and then the clear coat, which kept getting tiny bits of dust getting stuck in it which are painfully noticable on a white background... I should have paid the extra price for the filament, it would have been less work and looked much better. Hindsight is 20/20. At least it looks okay from "standing on the floor switches" distance, I guess.

To close up the box securely, I also ended up adding some magnets I had around, glued into holes in the lid and the box walls. This way, to set up the game, I don't need any tools - all the cabling in the bottom department can be done far ahead of time, and then, at the location, I just open up the magnetic lid to place my phone into it, plug the floor switch cables into the sockets, connect the output cable on the back of the box, and it's good to go! This was an important step for the project - instead of a nest of wires openly sitting next to the TV, it looks nice and properly finished now. It probably could have been done way easier by just grabbing a shoe box, punching some holes into it and just having extensions cables hang out, but I wanted to try doing it "right", and I think the result is absolutely worth it.

One more note: I tried to reduce printed waste by just printing small parts to test and only doing the full box print once I was sure everything would work - but all those test prints shown above are still waste of course. This is sadly something that cannot be avoided, but I can at least make sure to reduce the impact it has. The test prints are not getting thrown into the trash, but will eventually make their way to the Recyclingfabrik. If you've never heard of them, they're a company based here in Germany that makes 100% recycled 3D printer filament! That way, my useless prints won't get burned or end up in a landfill, but can instead be reused in the future. (Also, they make some really cool filament colours, I highly recommend checking them out!)

Alright, now that we made a really good box, it's time to get back to something questionably janky.

With everything in the box running off of the phone battery, the system already is completely portable! Imagine being able to set up a quick BIG SIF game wherever you are, at cons or something… but in order to do that, there's still one massive component missing, and that's a screen to play on. Obviously, playing the game on a 15cm phone screen while standing on buttons up to two metres away is not a good time. You need something bigger! The coolest thing would be to buy a battery powered projector. That would give you a giant picture and be easy to set up anywhere - I'll probably get one sooner or later, but I'm not pulling the trigger on that purchase just yet. It'll be a lot pricier than the rest of this project, and choosing an outdoor projector seems hard, anyways… (I've been looking for comparisions of images from projectors with different Lumen amounts in different light conditions, but that doesn't seem to exist. Maybe some of you know something similar?)

There's also portable monitors. These are mainly meant as a simple second screen for laptops when working, but they would be a good fit for this situation as well, since they only need a USB connection for power. Something like that could work if I could find a screen that is large enough, and it would also be quite easy to carry around with the setup, as these are usually pretty thin. But again, good ones are usually in the "costs more than this entire project in total" range. But the thing is, technically all we need is a screen and a battery. I think if we bodge things a little, we can use another device that has a screen and a battery, and is made for being portable: your laptop.

Let me introduce you to scrcpy, which is pretty much the best thing since sliced bread. If you want your Android screen on your PC screen, it is hands down the best way to do it. All you need is an USB cable - no app needed, no massive latency due to WiFi, and no need to send all your video data through some provider's remote server. scrcpy has almost no delay, you can use your PC keyboard and mouse, and you can even play phone audio on your PC with the newer versions. It's incredible, and I use it almost every day. So, plug the USB cable into the phone, and you can have SIF2 on the laptop screen! A luxurious 40cm screen, and speakers included, no emulators needed! But wait... now that the phone is directly connected to the laptop, I can't connect the other adapters in the box. It doesn't make sense to have the video on the laptop if I can't use the floor switches. Those are the entire point of the project! So, I can't use an USB connection.

But remember that Ethernet adapter I added? The main use for it was to be able to wire up to get a good and stable internet connection when the wireless one is too weak. But by using a special Ethernet crossover cable, two devices can communicate without needing a router or switch, and can create their own network just between them! scrcpy doesn't work just over USB, a network connection works, too - and I can set up that connection with just that cable. The video stream to the laptop is back up, and the board can still be connected! And now, we have a solution for a portable screen - it shows the game, it has it's own battery, and it's easy to transport! This approach is obviously not perfect - it's pretty janky, and "almost no delay" is still a delay - but for a quick spontaneous game of BIG SIF, this is a fine way to play.

The final hurdle to take is the internet connection the game needs. This is still a massive weak point in the portability, because, as every con-goer knows, it's basically impossible to use mobile internet at cons, as it is immediately overloaded by the amount of people there (or at least German con-goers know, idk if other countries are as bad). Unless you are have a provider that uses the higher tier mobile networks, it's either extremely slow or just unavailable. If the connection is laggy, that should still be enough to play, as you'd only have to fetch song info at the start of a Live - but SIF2 makes it difficult, due to how the game handles assets, specifically, the music files.

Every time the game loads a new song, it needs to download a file from the servers. That's the reason why, if you scroll through the song list quickly or hit the Random button a lot, the preview music doesn't play for a while: The game has to load all the server files for all the songs you stopped on... The song files are on your phone, but they are not complete. There's parts missing, and that file that has to be downloaded contains those missing parts. Without being able to download these server parts, the game would not be able to reassemble any song files, and could not play any music. And this is why a stable internet connection is so important for this project. We'd have no music at all without one, because every file must download it's missing parts from the servers! If only there was a way to keep the missing parts files, and store them on the phone so we wouldn't have to download them every time...

Trying to avoid too much technical details, here's the idea in a nutshell: I made an app that runs in the background while SIF2 is open, and whenever the game contacts the asset server, we trick it into instead requesting the missing parts file from that app. The app will handle the download instead, but in addition to delivering the file to the game, it will also save it on the phone. And if the same file is requested again, we just take it from storage instead of downloading it from the server again! The code for it is surprisingly simple, but the difference it makes is massive - it's noticable even with a stable and fast WiFi connection, because the delay between selecting a song and the preview starting is completely gone! So I'll probably keep using this app even when playing normally, but most importantly, this is going to work wonders on mobile connections! Maybe, that's enough to play the game even with things slow down... I won't know for sure until we get there.

And hey, while I already made an app, I also added a bunch of buttons to make setting up easier without having to use the shell. Everything that's needed to do a BIG SIF, on a single screen!

Anyways, we've come to the end! That's all for this project for now! Thank you for reading all the way to here!

If you're planning to make a BIG SIF setup for yourself and have any questions, or are just interested in more details on anything I've talked about, feel free to drop me a ask/message and I'd be happy to answer! If you want to come play with me on this setup though, that'll probably be a little harder for most people reading this due to distance, sadly :) But you could try checking my Mastodon, where I might be talking about any cons I'll be bringing it to! Just to mention it again, I'll be bringing everything to Connichi in Wiesbaden next Saturday (September 2nd)! I won't have a proper setup location, but if you have a group who's up to play, keep an eye out for the GenYoha!Kanan cosplayer - assuming I finish the cosplay in time, otherwise, look for a nesoberi-laden Lanzhu. If we can find a place where we don't annoy others, and the mobile internet connection plays nicely, maybe we can play a few rounds - so, see you there, possibly?

And as the last last last topic, here's some final thoughts - on things I'd like to change, or that you can consider changing if you make something like this yourself!

One obvious part of the project you could change is how the buttons work. I like the copper tape approach - it seems robust, is easy to build and fix in case of problem, and works reliably. But as long as you can make something that can close an electrical circuit, anything could work! One obvious choice would be contact sensor, but personally, I feel that's just a big point of failure, but maybe there's some cool approaches out there I didn't think of... One thing that I want to try though is replacing the rug pad with some light foam, about 1cm thick or so. As it is right now, the switches are lacking some kind of physical response, you don't feel much of a press. Maybe the foam would allow the button to have a "travel", being able to feel the switch depress and bottom out could be nice.

And regarding the caching app for the sever files, maybe I should just go all the way with that idea? Because ideally, I'd extend this concept to not just the missing part files, but generally all server communication. The app would just replay responses from when I logged in earlier instead, and have infinite plays without a connection! But I'm not sure whether I want to go down the private server rabbit hole...

The big thing I'd love to do though is improve the menuing. SIF2 is just not meant to be played with buttons - it's made for a touchscreen! And the keyboard solution I have right now works, but it's not a great solution. The floor switches will still be functional on the menus and mess around there, and the keys will also be usable on the screens they're not meant for. It's definitely not something I can just pass to someone and say "here, have fun". But what would the better approach be? The base requirement for any better interface would be to be able to track which screen the game is on, which is already a major problem. One thing I was able to come up with was making a helper app record certain regions of the screen, and doing image comparison - as in, "if this button is visible, the app must be on that screen". But that would be a whole different project, probably worth a full post in itself...

Okay, I'm stopping for real now. Too many ideas, not enough time, as always. byeee

[furshrimps]

I'm down to about 150€ left for vet purposes, and if things go on like this I seriously need to think about rehoming Sammy (once the current crisis has calmed down of course). I just can't pay for all the vet costs anymore, and Sammy tends to need vet visits rather regularly. Also with my dad losing his ability to work I don't have a financial backup anymore. My brother may be able to lend me a certain amount if things get hard, but how would I ever be able to pay him back? I just don't see how I can give Sammy the care he needs for much longer. It's so heart breaking.

But idk how to properly go about this in the first place. In theory the first thing I would do would be contacting his breeder, but the person herself has me blocked on FB (that was about her stealing my photo a couple years back and when I politely tried to explain to her why that's not ok she immediately blocked me). Also it's been a while since I last heard/ saw anything of her and tbh I don't even know if she's still around. She had another account through which she later liked and commented on some of my pics, but that doesn't seem to exist anymore either. I could contact her husband, but idk. My other idea was to ask a breeder whom I trust for advice on how to handle the situation.

Or maybe I'll start asking other trusted people (my dog trainer mostly) if they know someone who would be a good match for Sammy and once there's a candidate discuss the matter with the breeder/ husband from there. Briefly I thought about asking his previous owner if she can help or even take him back, but the reason Sammy needed to be rehomed back then was her abusive/ mentally ill husband. I think they're divorced now and the guy seems to have disappeared somewhere within the EU, but idk if that's a safe enough situation for Sammy. Not to mention if she even would be able to/ want to care for a second dog. But it would probably be the easiest option for Sammy to cope, since he grew up with her and all, and she loves her dogs a lot and even does for fun sports. From that point she would be ideal. Just the ex-husband thing really worries me a lot, he already has used Sammy in the past to get to her and as long as he's still potentially able to reach her it doesn't strike me as very safe for Sammy. :/ My sister also can't take him, she needs to rehome most of her own dogs too due to what happened with our dad.

Idk 😞 this sucks so much. He was supposed to stay here for the rest of his life and be happy and everything. But with how things have developed with my own health, Sammys health, and now my dad's health too... I do have to admit that I'm quickly falling out of a position to care for his needs. I'm trying to earn some money through my art but it's not going so well. And not nearly well enough for so many and frequent vet costs. I just don't see another way :( If it was just a one-off thing I would've tried a GoFundMe or something, but based on Sammy's history he likely will continue to need a bigger financial pool than I can provide.

Or does anyone have any other ideas what I could do?

[hiddenbeks]

4, 9 & 14 for an oc you really want to talk about!

whooooo thank u!!!

gonna talk abt my breton criminal & dragonborn isabeau... the oldest of my currently existing ocs... here's an old as balls and somewhat outdated screenshot of her <3

anyway answers under the cut!

4. how crafty/resourceful are they?

she's more crafty than resourceful i think. if that makes sense. not sure abt the nuances and differences between these two words lmao but like... resourcefulness is more about the ability to improvise using whatever resources are currently available right? and craftiness is like cunning?? so basically isabeau prefers to use her craftiness to gather information and plan carefully and make backup plans so that she won't end up in a situation where she has to improvise. obviously that doesn't always work out but it's her preferred modus operandi!

she is however resourceful in her usage of her connections across the province! be it members of other factions or fellow criminals or guards she has bribed/blackmailed or nobles she has convinced into an alliance.. beau knows how to pull strings to get things done!

9. favorite food? least favorite? are they a picky eater? do they have any dietary restrictions?

she doesn't have any dietary restrictions but she is a picky eater! growing up in a province known for its exquisite cuisine and being raised a privileged noble has made her snobby about many things including food. nordic cabbage potato soup is the most disgusting thing she has ever eaten. the nords do make good bread though

beau's favorite food is any fancy breton food, especially seafood! the thing she misses the most about high rock is ze cuisine... nordic food is just boring compared to it. it's nutritious. but bland. just like irl

14. are they any good with numbers?

hm. i don't think abt my ocs' math skills much bc i'm personally bad with numbers and would rather not think about them lmao. however i know that isabeau is the one oc who is actually really good with numbers! her parents hired a tutor to teach her like. finance management stuff. as a kid. so that she'd be of some use to the family after her utter lack of magical talent became apparent. she found the lessons boring but had a head for these things and the tutoring proved useful later in life after she became the leader of the thieves guild hehe!

[rei-ismyname]

X-Men #14

Review

It's my kind of issue as Mackay picks up a big handful of threads that have run through the series so far and welds them together. Piper Cobb is missing so Merle's top cop asks the X-Men for their help. The 3K plot intersects with search efforts and we find out more about just what they're up to. Well, a little bit more. Also, Scott is acting slightly weird.

'No worries, we kidnapped her a while back'

X-Manhunt is done and dusted so it's back to business for Alaska's X-Men. Any follow up on that event will happen at a later date, which is probably for the best. Chief Robbins, who the X-Men have built some kind of relationship with, has a missing persons problem. Piper Cobb tested negative for the X-Gene in issue #7, but Scott can't exactly tell her that. The cop seems nice enough, and she recognises the value of having a superpowered paramilitary group with science fiction technology in town. Of course the X-Men will help. Very polite of her to acknowledge the persecution by the federal government, including kidnapping without due process in her jurisdiction.

Quentin searches telepathically in the Marauder while Jen Starkey utilises the instinctual knowledge of flight that comes with her avian form. I can do without tedious flying lessons - she has at least one other form and I find exploring the transformation control and identity issues to be a more interesting use of page space. Also, it means Jen can get involved in more stories rather than just hanging out in the background. 3K seem very competent at making mutants. If it wasn't for the whole 'kidnapping people and changing them without consent' thing they could probably make the world a better place. Alas, they're bastards with evil plots, as we'll see.

The rest of the team waiting at the factory feels forced to me. Quentin is only a fast mover because he's piloting The Marauder and that ship fits the whole team pretty easily, as we've seen. Everyone in this conversation plus Magik and Juggernaut could be with him as backup, and they have multiple vehicles. People make mistakes but this is a no brainer. They're mutants on a rescue mission - backup is very sensible.

Idie objects, presumably on those grounds, but also because this is apparently the X-Men's fault. She's right that it's a shitty situation but even if Piper tested positive and wanted to stay, they can't just keep children. It was mentioned at the time as a rash and risky move on her part, but she's not being entirely rational in her argument. She takes Corsair's jetbike to join the search against Cyclops' objection, though he doesn't seem too stressed about it. It's nice to see the working relationship Scott and Kwannon have as he defers to her recommendation to leave her be.

This is a recipe for exacerbating existing internal conflict, as Idie is right that deploying more bodies makes sense. It looks like Scott isn't wearing his uniform, which could speak to him being gun shy or anxious. I would think Mags or one of the psychics would pick up on that, though. We'll see how it plays out in future issues. A crisis of leadership could be interesting and it's been set up a little.

Ben Liu thinks (correctly) that more bodies is just simple probability, offering to send up a few dozen of his UFOs. Mags takes him aside for a chat, asking him if he knows why he's tried to mentor him (citation needed) and receives flirting in return. I love it.

Mags notes that Ben has adapted to his new circumstances easier than might be expected, even being down for the fight. Using real world identity as character development can be dicey, but I think his outsider experience works. Although, dude has also lost everything - job, friends, home, etc. It makes sense that he'd cling to what he's got, but he really does seem to be dealing with it well, including joining a paramilitary group at war with the United States.

Magneto is skirting the line between being supportive and exercising power vicariously through Ben. Aside from 'summoning fake UFOs' we don't know much about what he can do. I can't help but think of Magneto's relationship and failures with Wanda, as well as his recent death wish. Mags has been very much a background character so far (as has Ben) so I look forward to seeing how this develops. X-Men stories usually deal with queer youth, and Ben is an adult presumably secure in his identity.

3K sent this bozo along to 'allow the subject to act unimpeded.' The subject is assumed to be Piper, though the exact wording leaves wriggle room. It could very well be her secret twin. Likely even. After a pissing contest over who's the greatest mutant slayer (it's definitely Cassandra, come on) the silly codenames are dropped. Cassandra Nova is talking to Wyre, a very minor Alpha Flight character who acted on behalf of Secret Empire AKA HYDRA.

His power set is very Sabertoothish, and he seems to have gotten over his objection to genetic fuckery. Unless I'm mistaken, I don't think he's ever killed a mutant, not that I can recall. He failed to kill Wild Child, which isn't very impressive. Presumably he's levelled up. Aside from Wyre's identity being revealed and an unstable hierarchy, we don't learn much new about 3K from this. Dude does have a lot of wires.

Wyre downs the Marauder with that big gun. It didn't look like he did serious damage, but that explosion is pretty big. Quentin goes flying and is likely unconscious. Aside from poor Surge, mutants are pretty durable lately. Enemies and teammates alike have the uncanny ability to injure them to near death without killing them.

Ilyana, Cain and Xorn teleport to Idie for a sitrep but have different priorities it seems. Idie cares about Quentin but is really invested in Piper. She's continuing the search while everyone else looks out for Quentin. I feel like everyone being in the field from the jump could have avoided this. Protagonist incompetence or making mistakes is fine, but it's satisfying to know why. As I mentioned above, sending out a search team of two seems like unexplainable carelessness. It doesn't account for the possibility of hostiles, which is exactly what happened. Not sure I buy Scott or any of the X-Men making this decision, and not mobilising the full field team feels even stranger. Scott seems incredibly calm and purposeful, so I don't know.

Magik takes issue with Idie's decision, as 'one of ours is down.' I bet she wishes she didn't arbitrarily enable Idie to kidnap Piper right now. Cain as peacemaker with emotional intelligence and a cool head is delightful - he knows exactly what to say to Ilyana. Idie is feeling emotions and not having a good time, while Cyclops - the leader - stays out of it entirely because he's not there. Hmm. They get to their respective tasks with bad tastes in their mouth.

Hey Glob ❤️

Cyclops, who looks like he's still in his pajamas, gets on the PA to declare a war footing. Even if Scott was being cautious due to mental health issues or trauma, that doesn't account for Psylocke - the 2ic. One of them should be in the field, if not for the search and rescue, but for the combat situation. The war footing.

Scott and Kwannon aren't even in the same room, suggesting they're not taking this very seriously. Quentin is down, the Marauder is down, and there's a child out there they're meant to be rescuing. Scott not rushing into action for any of this is odd. Maybe there'll be added context next issue explaining this but I have been burnt before. If information is hidden from the reader it's going to feel like a stretch for the sake of forced drama and cliffhanger - OOC should be serious business.

Idie finds Piper shortly, or so she thinks. Piper's twin that she absorbed in the womb is in control of her body. The unnamed twin - let's call them Piper Nova for now - fudged Beast's DNA from issue #7 to keep the secret. How'd they fool Cerebro? Maybe they didn't and Scott/Psylocke are aware, though that would be difficult to explain. We know 3K are at least interested in this situation. Their MO has been activating the X-Gene in adults and Piper's mother would probably notice if she went missing.

There's certainly another option for 3K's interest - this baby eating, body jacking psychic entity business is Cassandra Nova's origin story. Chuck didn't 'eat' her in utero, but he did kill her. It's almost 1:1, which is another tick in the 'New X-Men Morrison nostalgia party' box. That's not necessarily a bad thing here, as it is an interesting concept with a lot of potential. Cassandra's 'pure evil' thing limited the kinds of stories that could be told, so I'm cautiously excited to see how this plays out. Whatever the case, Wyre seems like a bozo with the kind of name a 13 year old would tag on a phonebox, but 3K the organisation has astonishing capabilities and ambition. That does a lot to complicate them as a threat and gives the X-Men a tight knot to unravel. Jean and Xavier are both off Earth - Quentin is powerful but inexperienced. Emma is doing her own thing, so they aren't in a strong position for dealing with this situation or Cassandra Nova in general.

Overall this issue was entertaining and advanced the myth arc of the series. My complaints about various oddities and strange behaviours could be explained in future issues, but for now it's more annoying than mysterious. Definitely worth a read though. It hews close to the formula of 'introduce crisis - trickle out information - cliffhanger' that I've come to expect, but that's to be expected. As cliffhangers go it's a good one - Quentin out of action and this possible Mummudrai about to do something. The fundamentals are executed well enough and it looks good as always. I suspect I'd be higher on it if I was reading it as a trade, where the oddities likely make more sense in the context of an arc.

Less Cyclops than I like, but it had more Magneto than usual while developing the 3K mutants ❤️

[agentsterling]

Be honest.... you don't always follow protocol, do you?

"No. No, I don't. I try to in every way I can but, let's face it. Each and every day we tackle situations we never dreamed possible. Alien invasions, spontaneous mutations, sentient androids, reality bending. The list goes on and it just keeps getting bigger. We don't have protocols in place that match every situation we're going to be in."

"What I tell new recruits is that they need to learn the rules and protocols, learn why they exist, who and what they exist for, and what they exist to protect. Then, and only then, will they have the knowledge they need to bend or break those rules properly and safely. We are in this business to save lives and protect people. Rules protect people, no matter how much some people may not like them. If a rule fails to protect someone, find out why and figure out how you can tweak it to fit the situation."

"But I know that's not really what you're asking me, is it? You're asking me if I blatantly and blindly go against rules to follow my own heart. The answer is no in probably 99.9% of situations. It's cost me friendships, it's caused me pain, but I believe in what we do. Rules written by people who came before me know a lot better than my emotions in the moment. Of course, feelings and gut reactions play a part in all things. You have to think fast on your feet and you have to make a decision quickly. The choices I make don't come from my whims and emotions but are based on the protocols and logic as best as I can manage."

Rules keep people safe.

If he had followed protocol better he wouldn't have been alone when Merc had found him. He might have had backup. He might have escaped.

If they had followed water safety rules Leela might still be alive.

If he had let emotions rule him he might have let a mob of angry agents hurt his mentor before they had all the facts. Instead he stood between them and took a punch to uphold protocols. And he had been right. He had protected an innocent man.

The rules were Sterling's security blanket. When all else failed him, rules gave him comfort. He didn't expect everyone else to feel that way, but it worked for him.