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cina-full-moon-xanadium · 10 months ago

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Heisei/Reiwa Kamen Rider Bike Riding Time research

Hello there! Does anyone remember from a little while back when this image was going around?

For a while, at least in fan communities I frequented; this was quite infamous for showing just how sharp a decline Kamen Rider's namesake had become in the last few years, with the absolute nadir of the Heisei 20th anniversary Kamen Rider using his bike for a total of 47 seconds (and also, on the other end; just how much Kuuga would not get off his bike)

Obviously, it's been a few years since Saber now; and I've found myself wondering from time to time exactly how the Riders since then have fared, especially since both Geats and Gotchard have garnered a reputation of sorts for putting a bit more emphasis on the bikes and feeling like they have more screentime than your Zero-Ones and your Sabers.

So! I went looking and found the source. This extremely dedicated Japanese poster called Yamashita Radio who of course I will be basing the majority of this on, including his rules and his counting. And when I say 'dedicated' I mean that at one point he lost all his data so he just counted Kuuga through Saber all over again. MAD respect for this man! I highly recommend a full readthrough of this 5-part post at one point because it's very impressive and interesting stuff in my opinion

One other interesting point is that that chart there? That's main rider only; and also includes any riding they did as civilians. There is a separate chart for all motorbike riding in the show as a whole; including other riders, including monsters, including even just random civilians! For posterity, I think it's important to post that chart for comparison with the main rider one -- I've colour coded here so that red is Heisei 1 (Kuuga-Decade), green is Heisei 2 (W-Zi-O) and yellow is Reiwa (Zero-One onwards). Main rider only on the left, all biking on the right.

Up front there are some absolutely fascinating observations to make here - Zero-One had the least bike scenes of any show! Brand new era of Kamen Rider! - but I think I've talked about the past enough. With all this said and what I feel is a very important plug to make, let's get into the meat of this -- how do Revice, Geats and Gotchard compare to previous shows?

Rules

... okay, yeah, sure; let's quickly establish a baseline first. As I'm going off of Yamashita's work, I'm also going by all his rules; it's a good thing I agree with all of them because I kinda didn't want to completely redo the count of every season!

TV Show ONLY! No movies, no TTFC specials, no HBVs, no V-Cinema, none of it. The main reason given is that, uh, Paradise Lost has a 100+ bike scene near the start so that's too much of an advantage -- fair enough! Personally I also think it's more interesting, because movies generally have more budget and allowances for bike scenes so those tend to be the same. Maybe a separate count would still be interesting, but I think including movies would flatten out the times too much and make the data pretty uninteresting

No openings! Agito has too much of an advantage

Non-transformed states count the same as transformed states. Godai riding a bike is the same as Kuuga riding a bike.

All motorcycles are treated equally! Mopeds and even CG scenes and bikes are allowed

Other vehicles such as cars, trains and even bicycles and hoverbikes are excluded. Two big exceptions are made for Drive and Revice as they do not have a main motorbike otherwise, but this does exclude things like Gaim's Dandeliner, many of the Oni in Hibiki's transport vehicles, Den-O's Den-Liner, Gotchard's Steamliner and Madwheel and Decade's Agito Slider

Transformations of the bike still count as long as it's being ridden. The Boostriker turns into fox mode while you're riding it? That's fair game

Flashbacks and other repeat footage ("previously on" segments etc) don't count of course. But in cases where it's clearly stock footage but it's still a new event, like the many Ryuki Rideshooter scenes, that's still counted

Count from the moment the bike is straddled to the moment the bike is gotten off, and everything in between. Scenes where the bike isn't technically visible - such as close-ups of the rider's face, or cutting to another character's reaction - are still counted if it's all the same scene

Revice

3m21s (2m23s for Revi only)

Oh lucky me, this was actually done for me! Yamashita made a small update after Revice finished to add this. I just went over and double checked it.

At 3m21s, Revice is at this point the series with the 2nd least amount of bike riding; above Zero-One and below Zi-O. For Revi alone he's in 3rd least; above Zero-One and below Saber. Happy 50th anniversary!

An interesting note here is that Ikki never rides Vice Ptera untransformed -- concerns over the actor's safety, maybe? Daiji also pulls in 58 seconds for the show on his own motorbike, but abandons it completely after episode 13; only bringing it back for the summer movie (which is also the only place he rode it as Live). Interestingly, the 12 seconds he rides it with Sakura in episode 13 is the only time he uses it in the show after becoming a Rider. The skateboarding scene in episode 7 for Jackal Form goes on for over a minute, but unfortunately can't count for this...

I think most people expected Revice to place quite low, though. So let's move on to a show I think a lot of people expect to place higher.

Geats

4m05s (3m45s for Geats only)

I keep repeating it, but this is a show where it seemed a lot of people got the impression of the bike having more importance than before. I think there's a lot of aspects that come together into that -- the bike being tied to a specific 'special' item that's even part of the main rider's main form, the upgrade forms going off of that, and the bike being used in prominent scenes including in the first episode. Geats even arrives on it in his Revice summer movie cameo!

But ultimately if you look at riding time, Geats ends up in 3rd place for overall bike time; above Revice and below Zi-O, while for main rider only Ace ends up in 5th last; above Saber and below Decade. As such he ends up being the main Reiwa Rider to use his bike the most.

This is where I started splitting main rider and untransformed rider in my personal tracking charts, just for fun -- I actually couldn't do that for Revice because as said Ikki never rides anything untransformed except his bicycle. Until episode 11 Ace actually just slightly edged out Geats for having more bike time which was enjoyable to see.

A very interesting thing happens in regards to the Boostriker's transformed state. I decided not to include finishers involving it unless the Rider is specifically riding it -- and the one and only one to do so was Buffa in episode 6, accounting for every single second he rode the machine. He had a penchant for using the buckles' weapons in ways he wasn't supposed to, and he kept up that rule even when the 'weapon' was a bike.

Geats spends a decent amount of time in the final episode sitting on his bike while talking to Regad and the other Riders, and that really saved the show's overall times.

Gotchard

5m09s (2m32s for Gotchard alone)

According to production blogs, Gotchard had a stated aim of using the bike more. Unfortunately it seems this didn't manifest itself in a very major way... but I think we did see more interesting uses of it! Spanner has his own bike (that like Daiji, he never rides transformed!), there's a version of Golddash from the future, other characters including Golddash itself ride rather than Hotaro at multiple points!

For 'others', the 3 seconds in Episode 2 is when Minato rolls up to deliver Golddash to Hotaro personally. Episode 9's 5 seconds have Renge (with Sabimaru in the back) riding it to deliver Hotaro's cards to him in Kyoto.

Spanner shockingly saved the series' overall time here in a similar way to final episode Ace, by sitting on his for an extended period of time during his conversation with Lachesis at the start of episode 47.

While it's not a very long scene nor did it change anything for the rankings, the bike scene in the final episode that just aired is notable for an extremely rare instance of a Rider Machine being ridden by a Kamen Rider's final form. To my knowledge this has previously only been done by Agito, Den-O and Revice (the latter in a movie). Fittingly for a show where part of the direction was inspired by Agito, both Agito and Gotchard do this Final Form bike scene in their final episodes.

And now, for the final count...

Gotchard ended up in 21st for overall bike time between Zi-O and Saber, but this was largely due to other characters; so Hotaro alone ended up in 22nd between Revice and Saber.

Overall we're now 5 shows in instead of 2, we can indeed see a very large dropoff in the Reiwa Era -- including Zi-O, the most recent 6 shows are all at the bottom of the list. This is especially notable when The next most recent series, Build, had 12m31s; almost double that of Saber's -- and this wasn't uncommon, with Ghost and Ex-Aid sharing similar times.

This was the main thrust of my research... but what say we go on a little addendum? Because when I mentioned Yamashita updated his post to include Revice in 2022, there was... one other series he saw fit to do a count for. One that was only halfway through, but nonetheless saw an impressive amount of bike riding time. He only got halfway, but what say I finish the job out of pure interest?

It is "Avataro Sentai Donbrothers"

The extremely normal 2022 entry into the Super Sentai series has a number of bike scenes. Some you may expect from Don Momotaro riding his CGI Enyarideon on his Palanquin for much of the first cour. Some of you might say that CGI shouldn't count, it's easy enough to animate together a scene than deal with road laws and such -- but does Kijibrother not count? Does Inubrother not count? Do none of the mech scenes count? It's a festival, people. Let's enjoy it.

Even aside from the CGI, Yamashita noted halfway through the show; that can't quite account for everything else. Sonoi has a bike he rides in multiple episodes, every time with a wheelie. Inuzuka twice within 4 episodes steals a bike and almost runs people over with it, as is perfectly fine for a hero. Don Kaito shows up with his own motorbike to promote his new book, which you should buy. For a show where it's not even in the name and for recent Sentai, there's an awful lot of riding going on.

Yamashita in his post speculates that part of this is Inoue's own habits -- as a man whose Toku experience largely consists of regularly writing for Kamen Rider in the 00s, it's natural to expect he would be inclined to write something like "Inubrother escapes the scene on a motorcycle..." as if it was second nature; as if that's nothing special for a modern show.

And I would be inclined to believe that... as such a habit is something that would likely get ironed out after a while; and sure enough, while bike scenes are frequent for the first half of the show, they disappear entirely from episode 23 to 43. It is at this point in my own count I thought we would simply never see a large bike scene from the show again, and the sheer fun of counting up Donbrothers would be lost.

And then... he appeared.

My saviour from the future.

With a full uninterrupted 1 minute 15 second bike scene

I could hardly believe what I was seeing. I remembered the future episode but I had completely forgotten this was a part of it. When I started timing this episode I was leaving the house fairly shortly and I figured like the past 20 episodes this would be easy enough to count, and I was utterly bewildered. I should never have disbelieved for a moment.

With all that said... where does Donbrothers end up in full?

7m21s (4m23s for Don Momotaro alone)

This overwhelming record easily puts both Donbrothers and Don Momotaro in 20th place of their respective charts; beating all Reiwa Riders and Zi-O -- with Don Momotaro even coming close to dethroning Kamen Rider Decade's riding time!

This is where we stand, my companions. In an era where Kamen Rider's biking time is lower than ever before and shows no sign of significant recovery, Donbrothers swoops in to steal its glory. Never lose faith. The festival never ends

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moodcrab · 5 months ago

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Looks like we'll be getting jyggy with it...

Fixing Skyrim's Daedric Quests

Part III Jyggalag

Even on my second or third ever play through of Skyrim NEARLY FIFTEEN YEARS AGO I still fully expected to find a Jyggalag quest hidden somewhere in the world. His absence was something of an anticlimax for many, as The Shivering Isle was the highlight of Oblivion for a lot of players. Jyggalag being missing from the world in the 200 years since his separation from Sheogorath makes little sense, and Jyggalag doesn't do things that aren't perfectly logical. Either he was overlooked by Bethesda, which is sloppy, or there's an implication that the events of Shivering Isle had no real lasting effect other than the odd cheeky remark from Sheogorath hinting at being the CoC, which is underwhelming to say the least.

But, it does give me a completely blank canvas to write this post, as we are going to be completely ignoring the Creation Club addition. Anniversary Addition is not cannon. I would no more consider a mod to be canon than CC, which isn't a fair comparison as the average mod is more lore friendly than the best CC content, which not only broke lore and established canon but, on occasion, broke the plotlines to whole games. Better games. And it did so for the shallow reason of selling Skyrim AGAIN. I repeat, Anniversary Edition is not canon. Except Scout Armour. That shit is fire.

Who is Jyggalag?

Jyggalag wasn't in Skyrim and was barely in Oblivion, so let's get to know him before we attempt to write a quest that might get into some heavy metaphysics.

Jyggalag is the Daedric Prince of Order in the sense of pure logical and statistical probability, not to be confused with Peryite whose realm is the Natural Order (you get sick, you die), in fact he has more areas of overlap with Jhunal, the Nordic god of mathematics, another unacceptably absent god in Skyrim. Jyggalag is the denial of both determined fate AND free will, everything that is fated and every decision freely made was already accurately and precisely predicted.

Your fate is 3+1

Your free will is 2+2

Either way, you are 4

That's who Jyggalag is. Cold hard numbers. Humourless, colourless, immensely powerful. The implication is that Jyggalag knew that his power would invite betrayal from his fellow Princes but would not deviate despite hating living as Sheogorath, that he knew full well that every Greymarch he'd do for millennia would inevitably be undone, but did them anyway, which must have been hell for him as "doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results" is the definition of insanity. His own nature would have him both foreseeing this AND refusing to alter it, so we can add incredibly patient and relentlessly unyielding to his character breakdown.

*He is also, in my opinion, an aspect of Lorkhan, his mind to be specific, but as this is just a theory I shall leave this to one side for this quest, but if you're interested I have a blog about it that I'll link in the comments.*

Setting the Scene

In case you haven't read the rest of my "Fixing Skyrim" series, the game is now set only 64 years after Oblivion, not the vanilla 200+ years. So it hasn't been that long since Jyggalag was freed and it's somewhat more believable that he hasn't gathered a significant following on Tamriel yet. Also, Silus Visuius, the Imperial who runs the Mythic Dawn museum in Dawnstar, is no longer a man having a mid life crisis who got really into family history, he is the child of actual Mythic Dawn cultists who was indoctrinated and traumatized during childhood. This will be relevant later.

Quest: Restoring Order

After attaining a reasonably high level, if you happen to be walking around one of the following locations; The Library at the College of Winterhold, The Dwemmer Museum at Markarth or the class rooms of The Bard's College, you will find an area unlocked that wasn't previously there. If you wander inside you will find a library, and amongst its stacked corridors, a priestly, unassuming looking man in plain grey robes, sat at a table with an empty chair, presumably for you. Why these locations? Well they have a thematic link to logic and knowledge, but also they are areas you are unlikely to return to once completing their associated quests, which will probably be completed at a lower level, so the quest is somewhat hidden.

The man, you discover, is Dyus of Mytheria, the Chamberlain of Jyggalag. You sit and he explains who he is and the situation with Jyggalag, that he has recently been liberated and requires a new Mytheria, his Realm of Oblivion. It just so happens that a pocket realm of oblivion has recently been "vacated", Gaia Alatar, aka Mankar Camoran's Paradise. Well, "recently" if you're immortal, of course. The pocket realm has been rapidly dissolving into the endless sea of Oblivion, but has not fully collapsed yet, and there is still one from its glory days that lives. He directs you to Silus at the Mythic Dawn Museum.

Silus, who insists his museum is purely in the interests of history, is upset that everyone finds it to be in bad taste, so he's pretty eager to show you around. It's not difficult to get him to overshare, but you'll need a high speech level to get him to spill the beans on his fucked up family history, but he was indeed the child of Mythic Dawn Cultists and was the youngest member as a child. If you gain his trust he will show you a secret artifact that is usually off limits to the public because he had to do some dangerous and very illegal things to acquire them: The Bands of the Chosen, an item the CoC used when he destroyed Paradise, but lost them inside. There are two approaches to enlisting him. Using the information you learn from him and what is available in his museum/house, you can either convince him to that you are also a Mythic Dawn remnant so he will trust you, or threaten him with information that he is a secret Dagon worshiper.

You take him and the Bands of the Chosen to Dyus, who explains that as a devotee of Dagon and follower of Cameron, Silus's soul is still technically destined to go to Paradise when he dies. You have the choice of killing Silus and using a unique soul trap spell to piggy back his soul to what remains of Paradise, or, as he is now begging for his life, spare him and let him open a portal using his Mythic Dawn magics (which is how he got the Bands in the first place). Either way it only works if you wear the bands. Dyus will also give you a conjure Knight of Order spell.

You enter Gaia Alatar, which will be a bizarre half world, with bits of Ayleid like architecture floating around a black sea. You must fight your way past a unique enemy, the tortured souls of the Mythic Dawn, to a throne. Once there you must conjure and kill a Knight of Order, and place its crystal heart on the throne. The destroyed and chaotic world will transform around you into a white crystalline solid state, and Jyggalag himself will finally arrive. He will explain that the Knights and their hearts are his own creation, and therefore worked as "chaotic creatia" (an aspect of a Daedric Prince that can be used to mold a Plane of Oblivion in their image. The Plane is small now, but will soon thrive and overtake the infinite seas of Oblivion. He rewards you by transforming the Bands of the Chosen into white crystal gauntlets called The Hands of Order, which gives the wearer a chance of doing non elemental "crystal" damage when striking, a shard of crystal shall strike the opponent. This works even with hand to hand.

And that's it. Don't worry about Silus, I had no intentions of using him in my Dagon fix. I'll be honest I'm a little disappointed with how this one turned out, I've been coming back to work on it for a while and just wanted to get it posted. I did attempt to write actual dialogue for Dyus, Silus and Jyggalag but it wasn't great, so here it is and I hope you like it.

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yorha-fangirl · 2 months ago

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The Looping World of NieR

If you have any interest in NieR lore and have played either NieR (2010) or NieR Replicant Ver.1.22474487139... (2021), you've probably asked...

Question 1: "so... is Gestalt or Replicant canon to automata?"

Hi! Quick Side-note: I will refer to NieR Replicant Ver.1.22474487139... as Replicant (2021) occasionally because those numbers really take up a lot of space lol

For a while, and even somewhat now, the only answers you'd get are something along the lines of "they're both canon, just different branches" or "they're both canon and completely interchangeable." Both of which are half true, both are indeed canon, but they're also quite off the mark about how they're both canon.

"Replicant" and "Gestalt" are not parallel worlds, but one of the patterns of the repeated world, and the relationship between the main character and Yonah was sometimes a brother and sister, sometimes a parent and child, so there is a difference in the years in the settings of both works.

This is a machine translated snippet from a 2010 Famitsu interview with Yoko Taro(courtesy of the Accord's Library discord server). So the world of NieR is repeating and sometimes the main character is a dilf and sometimes hes a twink? That makes sense. Its a relatively straightforward statement, but like most things Yoko says, it just leaves more questions.

Question 2: "Is Replicant Ver.1.22474487139... the same as Replicant or is it a different loop?"

Good question! It's actually a separate iteration taking place after NieR: Automata. This explanation will be a little longer, so stick with me. After the events of NieR Replicant (2010) we have the short story The Lost World Ver.1.00 which is also known as ending e. This short story takes place after ending d and shows Kaine confronting k?K? Σ ?XH, an administrator who manages the quantum computer that oversees the gestalt project. In Replicant Ver.1.22474487139... this story is included in the game itself, however this time around we have a second administrator named Her. Both versions of the story show Kaine destroying the administrator(s) and bringing back a 16 year old protagonist.

The Lost World Appendix Ver.1.22474487139... is a short story included in Grimoire NieR Revised Edition that takes place after Ending E of Replicant (2021). It explains that the male administrator created his female counterpart after witnessing the same loop time and time again by himself. This, as well as the fact that Automata takes place after The Lost World Ver.1.00, means that the timeline should look something like this:

NieR Re[in]carnation also plays an important part in the discussion of world loops, but I'll leave most of that for another time.

Question 3: Where do the loops begin and end?

This one is... difficult to answer. So I'll hold off on attempting to explain that until a future post (maybe(no promises)). Until then, just know that there's a lot of unknown here and all we really have are theories.

Hi! This is a bit of an afterword but this is my first blog post so I figured I should introduce myself! My name is Emily, and I'm a college student in her early 20s about to start studying Japanese with hopes of going into some form of localization or reporting. I'm a huge fan of JRPGs, visual novels, anime, and most relevant here: the Yokoverse (NieR, Drakengard, SINoALICE etc.) I'll probably be posting here really sporadically about lore and any new release information, so if you're interested in that kind of thing I hope you stick around lol

#nier automata #nier replicant #nier reincarnation #drakengard #drakengard 3 #yoko taro #yorha #nier lore

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weirdmarioenemies · 2 years ago

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I am going to rank all of the Super Mario Galaxies and none of you can stop me

That's right! I'm ranking all of them! All ninety-one of these things! Hi, I'm Mod Hooligon, and you may recognize me as "the mod that posted about Super Paper Mario a lot", but did you know? The Super Mario Galaxy games are maybe my actual favorite Mario games! In fact, I've never even beaten Super Paper Mario! I'm a fraud! But I'm a cute fraud, right?

But I'm not a fraud when it comes to Super Mario Galaxy, because I've 100%'d both games, and have replayed them multiple times over! And when you play some games that much, you start to have opinions. And then you want to subject everyone else to your opinions! So that's what I'm gonna do.

This is gonna be a little Weirdmarioenemies mini-series I run outside of our usual posting schedule, so expect a new part of this list every Sunday, until there's no Galaxies left to cover. Today we'll be tackling all the low-tier Galaxies, because there's not enough of them to warrant making three separate posts for F-tier, D-tier, and C-tier.

Got that? Good. Rankings start under the cut!

91. Sling Pod Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: F

Well, something had to be the worst. If you are an ardent Sling Pod Galaxy fan, I am so, so sorry. Let it be known that you are entitled to your own opinion, and that I understand.

But I'm also entitled to my own opinion and my opinion is that Sling Pod Galaxy is Not Very Good! Really, not a lot of the Hungry Luma galaxies from the first game are, we're gonna be covering most of them in this post...

The Sling Pods aren't an awful gimmick in and of themselves, it can be fun to slingshot Mario around, and they're used to great effect in the Tarantox boss fight! But I feel like they can be a bit imprecise, and nowhere does that show more than in Sling Pod Galaxy, where you're required to fling Mario from Sling Pod to Sling Pod with precise timing, and not a lot of wiggle room.

If your aim or timing is just slightly off (and let's face it, it uses motion controls, so it's probably going to be) then you're gonna sling Mario right into the void. There's a cool concept here, but at the end of the day, I'll always find Sling Pod Galaxy more frustrating than fun.

And besides that, it's just not very thematically interesting! It's kinda just cobbled together out of miscellaneous assets, but doesn't manage to make it feel like a Theme the way Space Junk Galaxy does.

90. Snow Cap Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: F

Oh look, another Hungry Luma Galaxy! That didn't take long at all.

I feel like most people wouldn't consider the bunny chases the highlights of the Super Mario Galaxy games, and Snow Cap Galaxy is a galaxy that makes you chase three bunnies, all of which start the mission hidden, under a pretty strict time limit. There's a small chamber you can open that you can chase the bunnies into, but in order to open it, you need to activate a number of Flipswitches, most of which are hidden in the snow, which you need to use your cursor to clear out...

I feel like this mission asks too much of you in too little time, and ends up being another one that ends up more frustrating than fun, especially with how inconsistent chasing down the bunnies can actually be! That being said, I'll give it the edge over Sling Pod, since I think it's at least a little more aesthetically interesting. Bunnies hiding in the snow! It's cute.

89. Stone Cyclone Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy 2 Tier: F

If the Hungry Lumas have the worst galaxies in the first game, then World S has some of the worst in the second. I wouldn't say the track record is nearly as bad, I think Super Mario Galaxy 2's quality is much more consistent all around, but that didn't manage to save Stone Cyclone from escaping the bottom tier...

I like a good challenge, but I like a good challenge, and I don't know if I'd consider Stone Cyclone Galaxy good. It's a repeat of the Stone Cyclone planet from the first game (which I do like!), but with all the Tox Boxes, Thwomps, and moving platforms moving 4 times faster. You're given switches that can temporarily slow everything down, and make everything much more manageable, but since it's all temporary, you better be able to manage the faster version once the timer's up!

I don't know, there's a cool concept here, but I feel everything moves so fast when time isn't slowed down, that making jumps between the moving platforms in particular can be really difficult. And when the Tox Boxes are moving faster than you do, sometimes it feels like there's not much room to move without getting squished soon after!

88. Flipswitch Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: D

Yep! Stone Cyclone was the last of the bottom-tiers. Again, there's not really a lot of galaxies in these games I don't like. Now we're at the "I don't necessarily hate them, but also find them kind of pointless" tier!

And no Galaxy feels more pointless to me than Flipswitch Galaxy, which is honestly kind of a joke. Flipswitch Galaxy is One planet. That's right, you get one! This is an entire Galaxy that could easily be a mission in another Galaxy, and even that's being generous. This is a stopgap between two planets in a cooler, more elaborate Galaxy.

Flipswitch Galaxy isn't really frustrating at all, it's probably one of the easiest missions in the entire game, but it's so short and so pointless, that I just wish they did a little more with it, you know? Add a couple more planets, let things escalate a little more, I know you want to keep it easy because of how early in the game it is, but if Flip-Swap Galaxy is any indication, you can do a breezy early-game gimmick galaxy much better than this!

87. Bigmouth Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: D

Okay, quick question, how many of you have beaten Bigmouth Galaxy the intended way? I genuinely didn't know until a pretty recent playthrough that there even were Star Chips in this Galaxy. I always just used gravity shenanigans to jump from the top of pool to the other! I thought that's what you were supposed to do, and that the jump was just a little annoying to get right! I'm not sure if I've even ever done this mission the intended way. The jump is just way quicker.

Bigmouth Galaxy is pretty whatever. It sure does exist! I think it's funny that this is a Hungry Luma Galaxy, but Penguru says he likes to come here frequently just to think. He's been a frequent here ever since the galaxy was born five minutes ago!

What do you want me to say about Bigmouth Galaxy. It's a shorter, easier, more mediocre version of Slimy Spring Galaxy, I guess.

86. Drip Drop Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: D

I'm just not giving these Hungry Luma galaxies a break, am I? Don't worry Hungry Lumas, you'll do better in Super Mario Galaxy 2.

Anyway, Drip Drop Galaxy is a single planet where you kill a few Gringills with shells, and that's really it. The underwater controls in this game can feel a little janky, so aiming the shells can be a little frustrating, but it's not especially hard, especially if you can find the Red Shells, which retain their homing ability from Mario Kart.

Pretty unremarkable, not especially fun, but I don't dread it the way I do some others, so that's a plus. Apparently this is where Penguru lives.

85. Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: D

Wrapping up the D-tiers, we have Bowser Jr.'s Lava Reactor, the most forgettable of the Bowser and Bowser Jr. stages. King Kaliente is a cool boss and all, and I think the sinking lava platforms are a cool shakeup to his fight, but for the final boss of the fifth dome, you kinda think they'd do a bit more, right?

There's not really a lot of buildup to the boss, and the boss itself isn't all that difficult, which makes this mission feel pretty underwhelming. I'm curious if I'd put this higher if it weren't one of the Bowser Jr. stages. My stance is "probably, but not by too much". There's not a lot going on in this galaxy.

84. Boo's Boneyard Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

I don't know what it says that this is one of the better Hungry Luma galaxies from the first game.

Let's talk positives first! I think it's cool that they give you a rematch against the Spooky Speedster, and I like that it shakes things up so much. The idea of you getting the Boo Mushroom to become more "equal" with the Spooky Speedster is cool, and I like that they further differentiate things by making it a 2D level. That's all pretty cool!

It's just that... I think this mission is really easy. The Spooky Speedster isn't really all that speedy here, and unlike the shortcut during the first race which you kinda have to go out of your way for, this time it's in plain sight, and not hard to reach at all. Besides that, I just don't think the Boo Mushroom is an especially fun powerup to use in a Race. It's a good powerup, make no mistake, but in the context of a race, it feels pretty sluggish...

83. Loopdeeloop Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

Super Mario Galaxy has a handful of motion-control based minigames, and of the bunch, I think the ray surfing is my least favorite. I don't hate it, I kinda like how wild riding the waves can feel, but at the same time, that wildness combined with the motion controls can make it feel at times like you don't have a lot of control over where you're going, you know?

Loopdeeloop Galaxy is the galaxy that introduces this minigame, and it's fine. I generally prefer its more challenging variant (which we'll see later, but not too much later), but this works well enough as an introduction. It's just kind of a basic version of a minigame I'm not that big a fan of, there's not a lot to say about Loopdeeloop Galaxy.

82. Honeyclimb Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

As far as single-mission gimmick galaxies go, this one is alright. I like the use of Mandibugs and Meteors to spice things up. Unlike something like the Flipswitch Galaxy, this has a pretty solid sense of escalation, which I like!

That being said, it's still pretty basic, climbing honey walls isn't exactly the most exciting gimmick in the world, so I'm not gonna be that huge on a galaxy built completely around it. I guess the focus on the honey climbing lets it feel a bit more distinct from the other Bee Mushroom galaxies, but it's also easily the weakest of the Bee Mushroom galaxies, so I'm not sure if that's a good thing...

I feel like I don't have much to say about any of these mid-tier Galaxies. Sorry.

81. Grand Finale Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

Of all the galaxy rankings, I feel like this is one of the ones I feel the least certain about. Part of me feels it should be lower, part of me thinks putting it lower would be unfair, so instead it ends up here!

From a gameplay perspective, Grand Finale Galaxy is not really that interesting at all. There's no challenge, you just grab the Purple Coins, which are all just out there in the open, and that's really it! That's the star! I don't even know if you can die in this galaxy at all.

But like, that feels like the wrong way to assess this galaxy, because it's not meant to be a challenge in the slightest, it's meant to be this nice little reward you get for getting 100% in this game. You beat the game twice over already, so get to enjoy the Star Festival without Bowser rudely interrupting! Get to spend a little more time with all the characters you've met on your journey before being done with the game for good, it's here as a nice little bonus.

That being said, as a Grand Finale, I feel it sort of lacks... grandeur? I dunno. It's cute as a nice little goodbye, but part of me feels they could've done a little more with it.

Don't ask me what! I'm not a game designer, I'm just some autistic girl on the internet talking about a 16 year old video game! Leave me alone!

80. Mario Squared Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy 2 Tier: C

I'll give Mario Squared Galaxy this: it has one of the best names of any galaxy across these games, and that gotta count for something.

Mario Squared is pretty much just a reused planet from Toy Time Galaxy in the first game, just with the rotating squares swapped out for Flipswitches. And I mean hey, if you're gonna reuse content from any galaxy, Toy Time is a pretty good pick. but also the very nature of being reused content means I'm bumping it down a bit, because eh! We've already seen this before! I don't need a galaxy to be a small part of a better galaxy!

I'm pretty sure this galaxy solely exists so they could bring back the infamous Luigi's Purple Coins mission in Super Mario Galaxy 2, which I guess is fair. That mission is difficult, but it is fun, and I like the twists they add in this game (like the Cosmic Clones, and the fact you have to grab all of them this time)! Fun way to create a new take on one of the first game's most challenging missions.

...But can I really rate a galaxy that highly for redoing something another Galaxy already did? I don't know if I can give Mario Squared Galaxy a super high grade for copying Toy Time Galaxy's homework and changing it a little.

I think it's funny that the objective of this mission is to turn all the blue Flipswitches yellow, so it looks like Mario's SMB1 sprite, but once all the Flipswitches are activated, they all turn green, making the whole thing feel kinda pointless. This is fine because green is a better color than yellow anyway.

79. Hurry-Scurry Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

Another one of those short gimmick galaxies with only one mission. I think building a galaxy around these disappearing panels is a pretty fun idea. Once you stand on one of them, it's gone forever, so you have to plan your route carefully, but don't spend too much time planning, because all the ground is disappearing panels. It creates a fun dynamic, that's true to the galaxy's name! There's a solid chance your route will be a little off, so you might have to make some big leaps to grab notes you may have missed. It's cool, I like it!

But not like, that much. It's still a pretty small galaxy all things considered. This one gets a little buildup before the end, which is nice, but it's not much buildup, so the whole experience ends up feeling a little short.

Not helping is the fact they repeat this mission later in the game, but more challenging, and in a galaxy that has other things going on. That does subtract from Hurry-Scurry Galaxy a bit, I feel.

78. Sand Spiral Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

I know I've mentioned multiple times in this post how mediocre the Hungry Luma galaxies in the first game are, but for emphasis: this is the second best one, and it's in C-Tier. Don't feel too bad, Sand Spiral Galaxy. You'll still outshine most of your siblings at the family reunion. At least if you're ignoring those pesky Super Mario Galaxy 2 Hungry Luma galaxies.

This Galaxy gives you a choice between the Bee Mushroom and the Boo Mushroom, and I pretty much always pick the Boo Mushroom I'm pretty sure. There's obstacles for both on the way, so it's not like one's strictly "better" than the other, but I always appreciate the extra control the Boo Mushroom gives me here. After a short tunnel, you lose your powerup, are sent to a spiral planet spinning around a moon, where you grab a Rainbow Star and run through some mines to grab the Star at the end.

It's a pretty short mission that doesn't really feel like it knows what it wants to do, but at the very least, I appreciate that it gives you multiple options, the visual at the end is pretty striking, and making big jumps during the spiral as a Speedrun Strat can be pretty satisfying.

77. Boss Blitz Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy 2 Tier: C

If you couldn't tell already, a lot of World S in Super Mario Galaxy 2 is reused content, and that's a lot of why these galaxies are scoring so low. Boss Blitz Galaxy is a string of five boss fights from the first game in a row, which I guess makes it a bit interesting in the context of the sequel, given none of these bosses show up in the main quest, so if this is your only Super Mario Galaxy game, you kinda gotta figure them all out on the fly.

Thankfully, most of these boss fights are still pretty fun, though again, they're all reused so you're not really getting much new here. The timer challenge is sort of teetering on the edge between being "challenging in a frustrating way" and "challenging in a fun way" for me. Speedrunning all the boss fights can be really fun, but none of them really have shortcuts the way the bosses in say, Super Mario Odyssey do, and some of the RNG in the Bouldergeist fight can make the challenge feel a bit inconsistent (even if that IS the best of the bosses), so sometimes your pace feels a bit out of your control.

It also feels weird to have both Dino Piranha and Fiery Dino Piranha, it's kinda redundant, though I do like having them as the bookends, I guess.

76. Twisty Trials Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy 2 Tier: C

Woah, reusing content from Super Mario Sunshine now? Slow down, World S!

For what it's worth, reusing Sunshine content is a bit more interesting than reusing Galaxy content, because it's a different game with different controls and different physics and whatnot. Still, it's not like Twisty Trials Galaxy is that interesting. It's a series of progressively more difficult rotating platforms that you have to keep your balance on, and that's really it, though I do like the comet challenge where they move twice as fast, and you have to use the Cloud Flower to keep on pace. That's pretty neat.

I wish they kept the music from Sunshine. I like the weird a capella version of the Super Mario Bros. Overworld theme way more than Super Mario 2007.

75. Loopdeeswoop Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

"The Galaxy's Greatest Wave". I mean, there's only two ray surfing galaxies across both games, this one and Loopdeeloop, so is there really that much competition?

That being said, yeah, I like this more challenging version. I know that the ray surfing minigame still isn't really my favorite (it's in C-tier for a reason!) but having a more difficult course I think brings out some of the best aspects, like how wild it feels to control! And also some of the worst aspects, like how wild it feels to control! It's still as much of a double-edged sword as ever, just a bit more extreme due to the more extreme course.

That being said, since it's more challenging, that makes finishing it feel a lot more satisfying, and I'd never say it really feels unfair. Sure, falling off can be frustrating given how difficult it can be to control, but when it's all done, I end up feeling more "yeah, I did it :D" than "oh thank god that's over with", which I think is the important distinction between an F-tier and a C-tier.

Don't take that as meaning I'm in love with this galaxy, though. It's still here for a reason.

74. Bonefin Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

The cooler Drip Drop Galaxy.

That's really pretty much all this one is, it's Drip Drop Galaxy again but this time it's a boss fight, and it's a bit more exciting because of it. Heck, you need to beat Drip Drop Galaxy to unlock this one, so the resemblance isn't unintentional!

Since it's pretty much Drip Drop Galaxy again, it suffers a lot of the same issues that Galaxy has, but I'm not gonna pretend it doesn't get boosted a lot from the Style Points, though I also think having a single large target to hit ends up feeling a lot better than several smaller targets. Aiming your shells feels a lot easier, but since it's a boss fight, there's also a better sense of escalation here.

Still, it's pretty much just the boss fight, and I mean, being a slightly better version of a D-tier Galaxy isn't exactly something I'll sing my highest praises about. If nothing else, at least it has a killer atmosphere.

73. Sea Slide Galaxy

Game: Super Mario Galaxy Tier: C

Wrapping up the C-tier is Sea Slide Galaxy, the worst of the "big" Galaxies from the first game. To quote myself from earlier in the same post, "Well, something had to be the worst." But also not quite like that since it's nowhere near as bad.

The biggest issue with Sea Slide Galaxy is there's really not an awful lot of diversity in its missions. Of the six missions here, three of them are basically "swim in a loop around the galaxy," just with slightly different distances. The Silver Star mission, thankfully, fares a lot better, as does the Improved Version of Hurry-Scurry Galaxy (here it is!) but the last of the missions is one of the boring Purple Coin missions. Mod Hooligon's Tip: If you start a Purple Coin mission and it doesn't have this banger, I'm Sorry.

The galaxy definitely has a unique layout, but there's not really much to do in the water besides swim in a circle, since every mission that doesn't involve swimming in a circle usually has you ignoring the water outright. Would this galaxy be better if it had more swimming? I dunno. As stated, the underwater controls in this game can be a bit finnicky, so maybe I should be glad it's either swim in a circle or don't swim at all.

And that's it for today's post! Do you agree with my opinions? Do you disagree? If you're a Sling Pod Galaxy fan, make some noise!

And if you're looking for the B-Tier galaxies, you're in luck, because you can find those here!

#super mario galaxy #super mario galaxy 2 #mod hooligon

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leosxrealm · 2 years ago

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OMG I LOVE LOVE LOVVEEE ur best friend’s brother fic w itoshi sae!! it randomly popped up in my head and i js had to go reread it !!!! i was wondering if you could do a part 2 or maybe a few more headcanons abt it ?? :)

-ʙᴇꜱᴛ ꜰʀɪᴇɴᴅ'ꜱ ʙʀᴏᴛʜᴇʀ- [ᴘᴀʀᴛ-02]

pairing(s): itoshi sae x gn! reader

warning(s): mentions of sex, nothing too explicit, mentions of alcohol, rin and sae have a better relationship, rin being a protective bestie (in his own way), everyone is 18+

a/n: i re-read that fic to get some of the details right and ngl lie it made me cringe a lil lmao. but thank you !! i decided on doing both. i made a separate post for boyfriend head cannons, so you can check that out! this one is a small drabble on what happened with rin. hope you like this and the hcs

!not proofread!

part 1 || headcannons

you squirmed under rin's intense gaze. he was pissed pissed. the safest thing for you right now was to keep your mouth shut.

rin was waiting for you at your apartment when you got home from your little nap with sae. you were kind of regretting giving him the spare key to your apartment. but you knew that this would have to be done one day or the other. you just didn't know that it would be this soon.

with the last bit of courage, you looked your best friend in the eyes, "rin-"

"don't" he cut you off before you could even explain yourself.

it's kinda stupid, he thinks. he has known that his older brother has harbored feelings for you for years, but never acted on it because sae believed that relationships are a waste of his time.

now, rin wasn't stupid, he very well knew that all that happened between you and his brother could have been the result of the alcohol in both your systems. he just couldn't accept it.

what annoyed rin the most is that he doesn't know if sae took advantage of your drunken state. deep down he knows that his brother is better than this. and no matter how much of an asshole he could be; he would never stoop to that level. but, he can't think straight right now. what if there's even a slightest of the slightest chance that this was all planned by sae. he would make sure to make his brother's life a living hell.

"whatever you're thinking, it's not that," your voice pulled him out of the spiral of thoughts in his head. he looked at the couch you were sitting on. what was this? some kind of intervention? in your own house?

you gulped, before continuing, "i don't remember much from last night. it's all a little blur, to be honest. but i was the one that initiated the kiss that led to all of this," you vaguely motioned with your hand, "i remember a few moments here and there. your brother didn't force himself on me."

"do you love him?"

you choked on your own saliva. where the hell did that come from? "well...." you paused, trying to find the right words, "'love' would be too strong of a word." he didn't say anything in return. an uncomfortable and tense silence settled over you two.

"i do like him!" you blurted out. you had to say something, you couldn't take the silence anymore. looking down, you fiddled with your fingers. "i like him," you reiterated, "a lot. and i would like to give him a chance."

rin sighed. he knew this was coming but seriously? his best friend and his brother? it would take him some time to accept it.

"we discussed it...before he dropped me off..." you trailed off, "he wants to court me. officially."

"okay."

"huh?"

"i said, okay" his irritated tone made you shut up real quick. right, he hates repeating himself. and if it were someone else, he would have ignored them a second time. they weren't worth his time. but you were his best friend, you weren't someone else. as much as he hates it, he would repeat himself for his best friend; and how do you pay him back? by sleeping with his damn brother? he scoffs at the thought.

honestly? he should've seen this coming. he knew your lingering gazes and exchanged glances would lead to something someday.

he sighed for what seemed like the millionth time. he can't do this right now. too much thinking. so the both of you spent the rest of the evening watching horror movies.

#blue lock x reader #itoshi sae x reader #sae itoshi x reader #i love sae🥺#bllk sae #sae x reader #itoshi rin x reader #rin itoshi #blue lock fluff #itoshi sae fluff #itoshi rin fluff #itoshi sae #leosxrealm #leo's works

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jublubdubs-cone · 2 months ago

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How do you glitter-ify an image? (Like what you did with the Centaurworld autism creature)

@hat-stack

YAY!!! I’VE BEEN WAITING TO TALK ABOUT THOSE GIF FOR AGES! Thank you so much for the ask!

(here are some examples of some glitter stuff I did)

First of all, I really think that knowledge is the best thing ever, so I am going to tech how to make those gifs in this post. BUT! If you don’t have the time or just don’t want to, my requests are open for glittering images. Without no further ado, let’s start!

TUTORIAL

In this post we will go through the steps of making this gif:

First thing you’ll need is the starting image. The best starting images are one with LOW TO NO COMPRESSION and flat colors (I know I used pixel art for this exemple, but glittering pixel art is hell, I only did it because the image was extremely clean).

Once you have your starting point, you need to find glitter images. Just go on google and search “X-color glitter”. Then chose the shade of glitter that best matche your reference and save them, the shade doesn’t need to be perfect, we can edit it slightly once in the editing program. Some glitter finding tips for better end result:

1) Avoid images with gradients

2) Avoid images where the glitter is in perspective or have any variation in size

Now that we have all the images that we need, we can go on to IbisPaint (or any other app or software that has clipping layers). Then, with the wand tool or the select by color tool, cut the parts that will turn into glitter in separate layers

Import your glitter images and fill the entire canvas with them, them clip them to the part

repeat for all colors

If you wnat stars:

Import the stars that you want. The amount you want in your gif can be different from mine, but have in mind that the image you import needs to have 4 times the number of stars than the amount of them you want per frame

LETS START EXPORTING OUR FRAMES!!

FIRST FRAME

For the stars: Duplicate the layer. Hide one of them and in the other delete 3/4 of all of the stars

For the glitter: Nothing for now

Export

SECOND FRAME

For the stars: Invert the color of the stars from the previous frame to use them as a guide to not repeat any of the stars.

Then duplicate the origional layer, and delete 3/4 of all of the stars again, but make sure to delete the ones you marked in your guide

For the glitter: Flip all glitter layers horizontally

Export

THIRD FRAME

For the stars: Invert the color of the stars from the second frame and merge them in your guide layer. Repeat the last step

For the glitter: Flip all glitter layers vertically

Export

THIRD FRAME

For the stars: Delete all the stars that arent in the guide from the origional

For the glitter: Flip all glitter layers horizontally

Export

Here is the result I got

The FINAL STEP is assembling the gif in this site, import the images, and here are the settings I use:

Make gif and TA-DA!!!!! ITS DONE!!!!

Hope this helped anyone out there! Happy glitter!

#glitter #blinkies #web stamps #blingees #my post #my art #sparkle #tutorial #art tutorial #gif #gifs #danganronpa

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thestargayzingetherian · 1 year ago

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She-Ra In He-Man Revelations/Revolution

So it's been a few days and I wanted to put this post out there to basically publicly give my thoughts on some... recent developments concerning He-Man Revolution. Before I go into this, MASSIVE SPOILER WARNING FOR THE SHOW!

And also, and this is probably MORE important than the spoiler warning. Do not, and I repeat, do not take whatever speculation I put in this post as gospel or something that is GOING to happen. I may be a bit more knowledgeable than a lot of people about this stuff, but I don't wanna consider myself an expert. This is just me speculating and giving my thoughts and I don't want to get anyone's hopes up because there's a good chance, that what I'm saying turns out to be completely wrong and I don't wanna be responsible for that, so please, take all of this with the smallest grain of salt possible.

With that out of the way...

So the new season of He-Man ends with the reveal of this lady, Despara. For those who don't know... she is Adora. As in She-Ra Adora. In the DC He-man comics, Despara was the name Adora was known as when she was raised as Hordak's daughter. Her name is often used by Catradora fan artists and fic writers who really wanna just make Adora a hot evil lesbian, usually with a hot butch hairdo. It is likely that if/when another season of this show comes, Despara will be the main focus.

Now this raises the obvious question... how are they going to handle the She-Ra stuff. As I have made posts about before, the She-Ra rights and He-Man rights have been separate for a very long time and apparently, the last thing I heard, Mattel themselves can't use any of the She-Ra characters in animated form due to Dreamworks owning them now.

So naturally, you might be thinking that Despara here is just a placeholder because they can't use She-Ra. Except... there are a LOT of She-Ra references in this season that are way too numerous to be just references.

For example:

They recreate the exact scene from the 80s She-Ra movie where Adora is taken as a baby by Hordak in a flashback scene. They also mention Horde Prime existing as well and they EVEN imply that Shadow Weaver exists in this universe as well and Hordak's new robot second-in-command, Motherboard is a replacement for her.

So yeah, all signs SEEMINGLY point to some sort of She-Ra-inspired adaption being the next part of this show. Now, considering the very complex rights issues... I can see this going one of two ways.

Mattel and Dreamworks did a deal like the one Sony and Marvel did with Spiderman to temporarily get the She-Ra rights back for JUST this next season. Despara is revealed to be Adora and her arc will be her learning her true family AND eventually becoming She-Ra to fight Horde Prime with her brother and possibly all the other She-Ra cast are there too. This I feel like it would be the ideal solution to all of this.

2. Despara is revealed to be someone else OTHER than Adora under her helmet because her face is obviously not seen in her brief scene when she takes her helmet off. Technically, Mattel would own Despara outright and not Dreamworks and they could easily make Despara her own character. This was also how they planned to include her in the second season of CGI He-Man. HOWEVER, considering all the foreshadowing and knowing how many people working on these shows loved SPOP... I feel like it'd be really unsatisfying if it wasn't Adora under the mask, both as a fan and from a creative standpoint.

As for my personal theory of what Despara's whole deal is, I think she's ruling Etheria on the other side of the galaxy with Catra and serving personally under Horde Prime. Basically SPOP but a bad ending. The plot will be He-Man and his friends finding out about Etheria and going there to free the planet and Despara will redeem herself and she and Catra and whoever will join team good guy.

But that's just my personal theory. I really don't know what the hell is going to happen here or even IF more episodes will even be coming and I don't want to get people's hopes up. There's a reason I myself have been working on my own She-Ra and He-Man crossover extended universe stuff for the last while so, at the very least, there'd be a fanfic that would satisfy my hopes. I am prepared to be very wrong here.

But even if none of this speculation pans out, I still highly recommend this show to She-Ra fans. The second season definitely fixed the few issues I had with the first one and I hope more comes out of this version of He-Man... then again, it wouldn't be the first time a He-Man series was cancelled.

Hope you find this post informative!

#Catradora #She-Ra #He-Man #motu #motu revolution #Despara #Adora #anaylsis #spoilers

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tavyliasin · 3 months ago

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Recent Writing Milestones!

I am going to take a moment to toot my own horn (not like that) because I've really come a long way and that's worth celebrating!

Many of you may have heard me say this before, but for those of you new to me repeating myself I only started writing NSFW work and fanfiction in September 2023. And where am I now?

Well, I'll put that below the cut to save space on your timelines~

Milestone 1 - AO3 Word Count 609,560 WORDS

All of this is BG3 FanFic, with a couple of D&D crossovers to bring in other lore characters. My AO3 stats aren't perfect, I have 2 small works that have duplicates because they were originally part of smaller collections but needed their own work to separate them and put them in the right series. The other is my longfic, which I posted initially as a single work with multiple chapters, but because the kinks and tags vary so wildly I made a second version where each chapter is a single work with accurate tags and these are collected into a series, with the addition of some side stories and specials to round out the series.

So I have a total of 134 unique works on AO3, across so many pairings!

Milestone 2 - First Longfic Complete!

The fic that started my journey in writing - hesitant and shy as I was back then to even consider writing mild erotica (oh how far we've come since then!) - is finally complete! I'm a little proud of that, ended up at just over 100,000 words which is a milestone in itself.

Series Link (one chapter per work, clearer tags, includes side stories and extras) https://archiveofourown.org/series/3766246 Unabridged Link (one work, many chapters, a more fluid read if you wanted to go start to finish) https://archiveofourown.org/works/50413747 102,383 Words over 20 chapters covering multiple pairings as Tav ventures across the Sword Coast~ Pairing List (numbered chapters, but please mind the tags on each individual piece) 1-3 Astarion x Tav | 4 Raphael x Tav | 5-6 Astarion x Tav | 7 Raphael x Haarlep | 8 Emperor x Tav | 9 Haarlep x Tav | 10 Raphael x Haarlep x Tav | 11 Haarlep x Tav | 12 Raphael x Haarlep x Tav | 13 Halsin x Tav | 14 Mizora x Tav | 15 Astarion x Tav | 16 Astarion x Halsin x Tav | 17 Gortash x Tav | 18 Raphael x Tav | 19 Astarion x Halsin x Tav | 20 Finale and Epilogue

Milestone 3 - So Many Crackships!

When I'm not writing the more serious long pieces like the longfic there I finished, or the ongoing prequel series for Raphael x Haarlep, there's little I love more than opening up a rare pairing or even better one that nobody has written about yet. I have a claim to being the only name on a whole range of pairing tags, and even some character tags I may still be the only one writing smut for that character.

I made a couple of collections to make them easier to find for those who are intrigued at the strange places my mind leads me~

Tavylia's Rare Character Works on AO3

Tavylia's Rair Pairing Works on AO3

I'm also responsible for around 3/4 of all Volothamp Geddarm smut pairings on AO3. Not sure how I feel about that one~ (I mean this entirely lightheartedly, because dear friends love to tease me about being into Volo, when really I'm actually into other characters enjoying him because he's just so fun to write, I'm not actually attracted to Vo-...I fear I'm digging the hole deeper, moving on!)

I'm also going to cling tight to the absolute honour of this comment from a friend earlier, in reference to the sheer number of wild one shots I've written (including but not limited to: Tav x The Tadpole In Her Brain, Gale x Gale's Summoned Mage Hand, Raphael x The Actual House of Hope, The Emperor x Sovereign Spaw, and more!)

To even be thought of in the same breath is the highest praise I can imagine~ So yes I'm going to brag about the nice words from a friend and treasure this forever. Going to take this, and every nice thing anyone has ever said about my work, to fuel more of it.

Milestone 4 - Fan Projects!

I am just delighted to have had the opportunity to work on so many incredible Zines and fan projects. Some are already over, some about to come out soon, a few are right in the middle of the creation phases, and there are more just on the horizon that are barely getting started!

I'll share more from the project accounts themselves either here or on Bsky so keep an eye out for those~

Milestone 5 - All of You

I can't go without mentioning how absolutely delighted I am to have made so many friends, allies, acquaintances, and connections throughout this fandom community. We really do have an infinite ability to lift one another up, to support each other, and all reach our own milestones along the way!

There's not a lot this wretched meat suit can do, but if I can sit here and type away, maybe doodle cursed things sometimes, and connect to all of you? That's worth it. You make my days brighter and the dark of night more bearable <3

So thank you to everyone, whether you've known me from the start, joined along the way, or you're just stumbling across my silliness now - I appreciate you all and can't wait to see how much further we can all go together~

#baldurs gate 3 #bg3 fanfiction #writer #milestones #writing goals

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divineerdrick · 11 months ago

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Homestuck: Beyond Canon Upd8 for July 23, 2024

Alright! We've got a new Upd8, and apparently it's a doozy! As usual, we'll start with the news post first!

Oh! There's a vod of the SAHcon panel. Might have to look that up.

James mentions a "big flash," and wants to give the team a break before either they start work on it or they drop it (wasn't sure here). I'm all for this. I don't want this team to burn out. Apparently there's progress on the plush, but James isn't telling us yet because it might not make it into the final version. Other than that, it's just this upd8. They're planning on more like it, so this won't be the only one of this style.

And what is this style?

It's a freakin' visual novel is what!

Looking at the options we have some basic VN selections, including options for skipping text. We have a History panel, which hopefully will allow us to go back to prior choices. We can also save and load. We don't have an option for full screen, so that's a little frustrating. But otherwise, away we go!

Yay! New talk sprites!

Absolutely love this one!

Oh man! Tavros got sucked into this too? Or is this some sort of construct or projection?

Oh wow. Vriska's trying to reconcile and every time she gets a prompt, she comes up with something else awful she did to him. I'd say we could be here a while, but I'm pretty sure she's going to lose patience soon.

"Hours later, but not many." Or we do that XD

Vriska doesn't get that the patterns that lead her here are the problem. She doesn't understand that being "an expert on this revenge thing," is part of the problem. The problem was that she was always trying to force Tavros to conform to some image of strength she had for him in her head, and used only the methods that she thought made her strong. That is, when she wasn't just losing her patience and doing something out of spite and anger.

Just as she thought she made things square with him before, she's not listening to him now. She's still never gotten that her failure to help Tavros wasn't Tavros's fault. It's always been her fault for not trying to understand who Tavros was and what he needed. By trying to help Tavros get revenge on her, she's just repeating the pattern again.

"Before I screw your life up," wow, I think she might have just had a genuine realization there! That's what she needs, though she still needs to understand why. She needs to understand why she did it, and why it caused Tavros so much suffering.

"Kill me." Oh wow. We've literally been exactly here before. How can she not realize that it didn't work then, and it's not going to work now!

"TAVROS: nO, i LOVE TO RUN AND, i DO NOT PLAN ON STOPPING, aNY TIME SOON,"

Ouch.

"Thief: Do the right thing."

Oh this is so not going to be the right thing.

Wow. She looks way too happy to have gotten Tavros to kill her. She is so not going to be happy when this almost certainly doesn't turn out to have worked.

Yep! That sure looks like we're back where we started! Respawn time!

Yay! Davepetasprite^2 talk sprites!

'Nother Vriska talk sprite. Is this a look from her past we haven't seen yet?

Hah! Groundhogs Day reference.

Sorry Davepeta, you can't help but make that innuendo sexual. It is your nature. Well half your nature.

Oh wow! When they said, Year 2, they weren't depicting a second point in the time frame. Vriska has been at this for over a year! "welcome to hell"

Whatever problems Dave and Nepeta respectively had, they just can't relate to the twisted mindset Vriska adopted to survive on Alternia.

"purrppets and then theres pawppet33rs" That one took me a while.

I think Davepeta just admitted that both Dave and Nepeta prefer to follow and let someone else be in control of things. No wonder Dave put up with so much of Jade's constant desires to form a stable polycule. I think I'll have some more to say about this later. Might even put it in a separate post.

Oh! Well that's that I guess! Might as well talk about this "panel" then.

So let's start with this. I do not believe in "leaders" and "followers". I think that's such a false dichotomy, that it barely deserves commentary. I think at best you can say that a person would be more likely to take charge, follow along, do there own thing, or disengage under sociologically normal circumstances. Already, that's four potential responses verse two, and these only apply under each person's "normal."

But even if we break it down to just "leaders" and "followers", Homestuck has already broken that dichotomy plenty of times. Take our beloved nub horned ball of of anger. Karkat presents at the beginning of Act 5 as a "leader." He was even somewhat good at it by Vriska's own admission. But Karkat was never happy as a "leader." He was doing it because he felt he had to. Being an exceptional bloodthirsty Troll warrior wasn't going to be good enough for him to avoid getting culled. He needed power, fear, and respect. He needed to be a "leader."

But once everything was over and he was given the chance to relax, he abandoned the role and was all the more happier for it. Pre Game Over, he wasn't particularly happy but he seemed less miserable than he did in game. And most of his anxiety revolved around not knowing where he stood with Dave and Terezi. Post Game Over he seems to have practically thrived. Letting Vriska, Rose, and Terezi handle all the planning and organization allowed him to finally enjoy life for once.

But now on Candy Earth C, he's a "leader" again. While he seems to be delegating a lot to Meenah, he's still the one everyone looks to. And while I can't say our beloved Knight of Blood is thriving, he's definitely much more comfortable as a "leader" now.

So all of that being true, has HSBC made any case for any character being a "leader" or "follower"?

But let's assume the premise and say Davepeta is correct. I think Nepeta can be said to be a "follower" in such a dichotomy. Even when it upset her, she still went along with Equius's wishes. But I would still stress she didn't exactly get a lot of screen time. We never got to know how Nepeta might have developed as a character over a full Homestuck run.

But what about Dave? Does Homestuck depict Dave as a "follower"? We definitely have plenty of examples of Dave going along with the plans and wishes of others. But I feel like we have far more examples of him taking initiative, doing his own thing, or even refusing to go along with a plan. Dave didn't want to play SBURB. Dave ignored Jade's advice to let the Crow hatch the egg. While he followed Terezi's plan, he eventually needed a break and basically broke with her after they finished the time loop. When Jade needed help, he acted on his own to get her situated in the game. He didn't like Rose's plan and refused to let her be the one to sacrifice herself when it seemed like that was the only option. He refuses to go along with Karkat's plans to try and setup quadrants with Terezi. In Game Over, he jumps into the fray to try and placate and then fend off Jack and PM. In Collide he takes the lead roll in the Strife at several points, including being the one to land the killing blow. Even Davepeta, as Vriska points out, was the one that secured victory against Lord English.

I think at most, what can be said is that normally Dave prefers to go with the flow. As he puts it, "maybe id rather just be like the dave of guy." This is one of those places where again, I have to ask if Homestuck has ever depicted a "leader/follower" dichotomy. Dave really seems happiest when he's just being Dave doing Dave things. Given a fully informed choice, Dave might have done everything he could have to avoid the SBURB session taking place. He stayed on the sidelines as things went to shit on Earth C, even as Karkat was looking to him for help. I just don't see Dave as a "follower."

That doesn't mean he has any angle to relate to Vriska. But for being an enlightened Sprite^2, I don't think Davepeta's take is a good one.

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aiiria17 · 4 months ago

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I (re)read Warriors: Fire and Ice

The little cover box thing made me so scared as a kid. It's still super terrifying now.

tl;dr intro: read books as a kid, feel like rereading, did a post for Into the Wild so read that if you wanna.

Anyways, Hi I'm Ari

Going into Fire and Ice I remembered two main things: Graystripe being a disloyal lil' bastard and Cinderpaw...

poor Cinderpaw

Now those two things still stuck out to me and I will definitely spend some time on them and actually probably spend the most time on them (who knows I haven't written this yet) but I was also invested in how Tigerclaw was handled, Windclan's whole arc, and, least importantly of all, Runningwind (my goat). That's like 4 big things to cover and also Runningwind so oh boy I'm just going to get going

1. Windclan is introduced for the first time

If the first book flopped hard Windclan would literally just have never showed up. Just process that world for a second.

So the book opens with a little prologue from the perspective of Windclan to kind of depict the struggles of the clan. Through Thunderclan we really only know about their suffering conceptually through the fact that they were booted from their territory but the perspective lets the reader understand their fears which is nice.

Anyways that's some High School English I type analysis so let's dive a little deeper.

Windclan's suffering indirectly serves to show the comfort the cats find in their clan lives. They are held comfortable by the systems that exist and the separation shows the fact that the social structure is the only thing keeping the clans stable. They don't know how to live "in the wild" they actually have just made their own societies. The discomfort introduced to that society is why Warriors is interesting. Even just in the first two books the challenges to ideals of the clans (Fireheart joining, Graystripe's "forbidden love" which totally won't be repeated 37 times as a plot line, etc...) is what brings nuance to the ideas the books presents. The Warriors series works best as a exploration of life within a closely held social system. When Windclan is separated from their ability to feel that structure they crumble to being unable to properly care for themselves. The reason they survive is only because of their ability to hold onto things like Tallstar's leadership.

The prologue kinda slaps, what can I say.

So Fireheart then is sent to save them. Narratively alone, obviously the reader should see the big action of bringing 25% of the cats back and Fireheart, as Mr. Protagonist Cat should probably be involved. But building on what I said earlier, why Fireheart?

To me, Fireheart is kind of treated like a light. The obvious connection is fire=bright=light. He's a way forward. He'll "save our clan" (and the others too but that's whatever). I think part of why this is is because he's the main character so he'll be a stereotypical hero but still he serves as a light to guide Windclan back to their promised... land...

Is Fireheart God?

Maybe. I don't want to do that analysis though so YOU can do that one

But deity questions aside, Fireheart is meant to guide the wider clan society forwards. He's the light to a new world for the clan cats and a light back home for Windclan.

Well I think that's minimum English II tier so good enough.

2. Cinderpaw: Someone's life has to suck, or does it?

The highlight character introduced in this book is Cinderpaw: the energetic apprentice with the staple tragic life event.

Cinderpaw is Fireheart's first apprentice and he's struggling to keep her under control. She highlights his youth despite his fancy shmancy warrior name and gives Fireheart room to grow throughout this book seemingly. Obviously this gets subverted by BIG ASS CAR but she still forces FIreheart into a role he isn't really ready for.

So Fireheart is slowly helping Cinderpaw take advantage of her eagerness and channel it responsibly though there's always a reigning hint of "her excitability could lead to problems oooooo"

I'm running out of words that mean high energy.

Then she gets hit by a car. Ouch

Disregarding the Tigerclaw part her character obviously changes dramatically. While she holds the desire to be a warrior reality now works against her and the energetic nature that's defined her now starts to hurt her as she loses hope and feels like a burden. To me the apex of this is when she tries to fight Brokenstar et al along with everyone else but is sent back to Yellowfang limping away. The limping, obviously due to her leg literally not working, I believe is meant to contrast the speed and energy she ran around with earlier. They didn't choose a leg injury for no reason. The injury is made to fully inhibit Cinderpaw's life so that she can't be herself.

But the strength in Cinderpaw's character is that she isn't a burden. As is hinted at towards the end, she's going to become a medicine cat apprentice and end up finding great utility in the clan. Cinderpaw's story is one of lost purpose. She exhibits the childlike eagerness towards one specific goal and gets that dream violently stripped away from her. But she's never useless, Cinderpaw finds a new job that supports her skill set. Nobody in the clans has no purpose. There is no dead weight, and Cinderpaw shows how she's able to exist, even in an acclaimed role like medicine cat despite her new disability.

And I think that's beautiful honestly.

3. Graystripe why are you like this

You're tearing me apart Graystripe!

Okay but seriously Graystripe is kind of an "antagonist" by the literal definition because while he may not conflict with Fireheart he conflicts with the ideals he upholds and believes in.

Graystripe is having a forbidden love with Silverstream, some Riverclan cat he meets while like drowning which is not how to find a girlfriend normally. That only works in Warriors Cats and The Sandlot. Graystripe's love deal is a fun conflict because it's entirely justifiable that he breaks the code. He truly loves Silverstream and wants to be with her. Can you blame someone for love (yes here's why)

The way the conflict actually unfolds is that Graystripe straight up significantly reduces his work in Thunderclan to meet up with Silverstream. He's consistently missing from patrols and hunting, he prolongs his sickness to not have to do things other than meet Silverstream, and, worst of all he isn't there when Fireheart needs someone to find Cinderpaw. Graystripe's laxness towards having his whole heart in Thunderclan is part of the reason Cinderpaw gets hurt (not saying it's his fault, Tigerclaw's next).

Really Graystripe's conflict goes back to the exploration of a society that Warriors is all about. He breaks the bounds but it begs the question: why are the bounds there? Graystripe's life is not being actually helped by the rules and the only reason harm comes is from the secrecy. It makes the reader ask a much much larger question:

Why four clans?

Seriously the main question this asks is how does the warriors society benefit from separation.

Going to leave that lingering for now. There's infinitely many more books and I know some later arcs hit on that better (and I do plan to go until I'm bored).

Going back to Graystripe, the conflict also stresses Fireheart's friendship with him and puts his ideals at odds with his friendship. Fireheart does pick his friend over the clan which I personally believe is based in him not originating from clan life. He isn't as deeply ingrained in the clan and is therefore willing to see friendship, something inherent to him (and like, most creatures), as more important than the stability of the clan. It's why he's an interesting main character.

"Fireheart went on. 'Graystripe, whatever you decide to do, I will always be your friend.'"

4. I (Cat M) tried to bait my leader into being hit by a car so I could assume complete control over my clan. A child got hit instead AITA?

Hello Reddit, my scheme didn't go as planned.

Enough Tigerclaw Redditor roleplay (any amount is enough tbf)

I didn't appreciate Tigerclaw as a villain nearly enough as a kid. He's SO good.

Again returning to structure, Tigerclaw shows the true fragility of the Warriors world: strong evil cats can take charge shockingly easily. Brokenstar took power and ruined Shadowclan with nothing to stop him until he was ousted by Thunderclan. Tigerclaw nearly takes a similar route and Fireheart shows how little there is to do to stop him.

Tigerclaw's presence shows how much weight authority is given in the world of Warriors. Fireheart can do nothing because Tigerclaw, as deputy, will always be in the right. He's strong, so why would he kill Redtail/try to pressure or kill or whatever Ravenpaw/plot to kill Bluestar and injure Cinderpaw. Even Bluestar's reasoning for not believing Fireheart is based in trusting anyone in authority. Because Tigerclaw killing Redtail means Redtail killed Oakheart and that can't happen because Redtail wouldn't do that as a deputy. The idea of authority comes above all else and Tigerclaw takes advantage of that.

Going to hold more on Tigerclaw for now though. As a kid I really just had the first 3 books for a good few years and read them tons. I know exactly what this bastard gets up to and I'm really excited to see it again.

5. Runningwind deserves to be mentioned

Trust me

No serious analysis cause you know its about like the least relevant Thunderclan warrior but something funny I noticed.

Graystripe is Fireheart's best friend however Runningwind specifically is hanging out with Fireheart a lot in this book. There are multiple scenes of him and Fireheart just chilling together. Eating mostly but still enough that I noticed. And not like Fireheart is with like a group of warriors it’s practically always Runningwind. What an underappreciated king honestly

Look at him (according to his Warriors wiki art):

Point is I’m going to provide Runningwind updates now because…

If Runningwind has a million fans, I am one of them

If Runningwind has one fan, it is me

If Runningwind has no fans, that means I am no longer on this Earth

Conclusion Just to Feel Done

Fire and Ice is really good. I love so much of the book and I didn’t even have time for other standouts like Cloudkit, the way Winter is handled, Fireheart visiting Princess etc. because there is just so much happening.

Thanks for reading, I really do appreciate it cause I wrote way more than feels remotely reasonable . Feel free to leave any thoughts or disagreements cause I’d love to discuss this

I’m going to read Forest of Secrets now so bye bye see ya later

#wc #warrior cats #fire and ice #firestar #cinderpelt #tigerclaw #graystripe #runningwind

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oliviabutsmart · 2 years ago

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Physics Friday #14: Sound (Part 2/2)

Preamble: Let's get straight into it

Education Level: Primary School (Y5/6)

Topic: Sonic Physics (Mechanics)

The previous part 1 of my sound post is here.

Pitch and Frequency

Pitch and frequency are related to eachother, the only difference being that frequency is a physical interpretation of sound and pitch is our own mental interpretation of it.

But what exactly is frequency?

Go back to last time's example of a tick sound occurring at regular intervals ... because this sound is repeating, we can describe it's behaviour by measuring mathematical properites:

How much time passes in-between each tick (Period)

How many ticks occur every second (Frequency)

These two ideas are related to eachother, in fact Frequency is 1/Period. If you have a tick every half-second, then you can say the tick occurs twice every second.

We measure sound in Hertz, which is effectively a measure of ticks per second.

Most sounds, however, don't work this way, with repeated ticks. They act as proper waves. With zones of high pressure (peaks), and low pressure (troughs). This is where we have to introduce another variable into our equation:

The physical difference separating each peak (Wavelength)

Since these waves travel forward in the air, a detector (like our ears) will pick up the peaks and troughs as they reach our ear. We can measure frequency or period by recording the speed at which our peaks reach our ear.

But we also can relate frequency to wavelength. After all, the further apart the waves are separated, the more time it'll take for a peak to reach us after the previous one.

We quantify this relationship using c = fλ. Where c is the speed of the wave, f is the frequency, and λ is the wavelength.

Notice that we can also say cT = λ, where T is the period. This demonstrates that the physical wavelength is proportional to the amount of time between each peak.

So where does pitch come in?

As mentioned in part 1, if we continue to decrease the time between each tick, or increase the frequency, at some point we'll begin to hear a sound.

This is our brain playing a trick on us. It's like frames-per-second but for our ears. Below some fps threshold, we can see the individual pictures of a video, but above the threshold, it looks like a continuous film. Notice that fps is also another form of frequency.

When we reach this level, our brain can't distinguish between each tick and sees it as one sound. We begin to hear our first sound.

At this point, frequency becomes tied to pitch. The more rapid the ticking becomes, the higher of a pitch we hear. This is a choice that our brain makes - it's purely psychological.

Mixing different pitches

Combining different pitches allows us to create a foundation for music. In western music, our source of harmonics comes from Pythagoras, who kinda fucked it up by not using irrational numbers.

An octave is defined as a higher sound that has twice the frequency of the lower sound i.e. a ratio of 2:1. One octave above middle C (at about 262 Hz) gives us C5 (at about 524 Hz).

We can create further subdivisions like a perfect fifth, where frequencies form a 3:2 ratio. Or a perfect fourth, which has a ratio of 4:3.

Volume, Intensity, and the Inverse Square Law

Volume is directly related to the amplitude of a sound wave. Effectively, how strongly is the air being compressed at each peak?

Again, volume is just another psychological interpretation of a physical phenomena. Similar to how our eyes see brightness.

Amplitude isn't just interpreted as volume, it is also the power that the sound waves carry. Smaller amplitudes correspond to less energy contained within the moving particles.

We measure intensity logarithmically, because that's what our ears here. Effectively a wave sounds twice as loud only if the wave is 100 times as amplified. It's a similar effect to pitch, where we multiply frequencies instead of adding them.

That's where the decibel scale comes in. 1 dB = a 10x increase in the sound's power output. The decibel scale is used generally for a lot of measurements of wave/power intensity. However it just so happens that our ears behave in very similar ways.

Image credit: soundear.com

Notice that louder sounds are more likely to damage our ear. That's because when loud sounds reach our ear, it causes the inner components to vibrate. This vibration amplitude generally is proportional to the amplitude of the waves.

Too loud of a sound means that our eardrums are vibrating with too great of a physical movement. This can create tears in tissue that damage our ears' sensitivity to sound.

Sound looses power over distance

If you stand far away enough from a sound source, it sounds fainter, eventually becoming unhearable.

This is because of the inverse square law. As sound spreads out over distance, it has to emanate in the form of a sphere, going outward in every direction, in order to maintain consistency of direction.

The same amount of power gets spread thinner and thinner over the bubble that it creates. The surface area of a sphere increases to the square of it's radius.

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Thus we get a decrease in volume over time.

What the Actual Fuck is Timbre, and how do you pronounce it? (also Texture too)

Unfortunately I still don't know how to pronounce it.

Timbre is defined as the quality and the colour of the sound we hear. It also includes the texture of the sound. It's sort of the catch-all for every other phenomena of sound.

Timbre is a bit more complex of a phenomena. In that, it combines basically everything else we know about how we hear sound. So I'll go one by one and explain each component of what makes Timbre Timbre.

Interference

Wave interference is an important property that needs to be understood before we actually talk about timbre. Sound waves often can overlap eachother in physical space, normally caused by multiple sound sources being produced at different locations.

These sound sources often will create new shapes in their waveform, via interference.

Constructive interference is when the high-pressure zones of two sound waves combine to produce an even-higher-pressure zone of wave. Effectively pressure gradient add onto eachother.

Destructive interference is when a high-pressure zone overlaps with a low-pressure zone, causing the pressure to average out to baseline, or something close to the baseline.

Image Credit: Arbor Scientific (Youtube)

We can look at multiple waves acting continuously over a medium to see how their amplitudes will add up together using interference. This is the origin of more unique wave patterns.

The shape of a wave

Sound waves can come in different varieties. While the most basic shape is the sine wave. We can add different intensities, frequencies and phases of sine waves to produce more complex patterns.

I won't go into how this combination works because that's better left for a Fourier series topic. Just know that pretty much any sound can be broken down into a series of sine waves.

These patterns have a different texture, as they combine multiple different monotone sounds. Take a listen to a sawtooth wave vs a sine wave:

Warning: the sawtooth wave will sound a lot louder than the sine wave.

This gives us a different sound texture.

Resonance

When you play a musical instrument at a particular frequency, the instrument is often resonating.

Say you produce sound within an enclosed box. Producing it at one end. Eventually the sound will reach the end of the box and bounce back from reflection (as we'll see later).

The sound will bounce back and forth, combining itself with the previous waves to produce more and more complex waveforms.

But there is a particular frequency, at which, the waves will perfectly interfere with eachother to produce what's known as a standing wave.

A standing wave will oscillate, but it will appear as if it's not moving forward. Of course, power is still moving throughout the wave, as we'll still be able to hear something.

This standing wave can only occur at a particular frequency, one in which the wave perfectly interferes with it's reflection within the box.

A standing wave (black) that is produced by two sine waves (blue and red) moving in opposite directions Image source: Wikipedia

This frequency is called the resonant frequency of the box. This frequency depends on several factors like the speed of the wave, the material inside the box, the shape of the box, and the length of the box.

The resonant frequency can be activated by our voices, as our voices or just blowing air is already a combination of different sound frequencies. The non-resonant frequencies will eventually loose all of their power as they destructively interfere, leaving only the resonant frequency, which gets amplified by what we put in

For example, you can fill a glass bottle halfway with some water, blow in it, and it will produce a particular sound. Fill it with more water, and the pitch increases - i.e. by adding the water we increase the resonant frequency.

All instruments have one or more resonant frequencies based on their material and shape (I say multiple because some instruments can me modelled as multiple boxes. Like a violin will have the inside of the wood, the wood itself, the strings, etc.).

Instruments also allow us to alter the resonant frequency by playing it differently (like putting a finger over your recorder's hole (phrasing)).

These differences in how we obtain resonance can also affect the quality of the sound.

Overtones

Resonance is not just generated with a single resonant frequency, we can create resonance with higher multiples of the the same fundamental frequency.

This is because in our box model, multiplying the fundamental frequency will allow us to create a standing wave, just with a shorter wavelength:

The A's stand for antinodes, which vibrate in the standing wave with the maximum amplitude. The N's stand for nodes, which do not move at all.

Image Credit: Macquarie University

Direct multiples of the fundamental frequency are called harmonics. Instruments can also produce other frequencies not directly harmonic depending on the structure of the 'box' they utilise.

These additional frequencies, ones which come often in fractional multiples of the fundamental are called partials. Both partials and harmonics represent the overtones of an instrument.

Overtones are what give sound additional character, as they allow instruments to not just resonate at the note they play, but at other combined frequencies. In some instruments, the overtones dominate over the fundamental - creating instruments that can play at much higher pitches.

Envelopes and Beats

Say we add two sine waves together (red and blue), each with slightly different frequencies, what we get is this:

Image Credit: HyperPhysics Concepts

We can see that the brown wave has a singular oscillation frequency, but also it's amplitude continuously scales with reference to this hidden envelope frequency, called the beat frequency (dotted line).

This difference between the actual wave's real frequency and the wave's overall frequency envelope. Is another source of timbre.

Notes, and the way we play them will often generate unique and different envelopes depending on how they are played. For example a staccato quarter-note will have a different envelope to a softly played quarter-note.

Other properties of Sound

Reflection

Different mediums mean different speeds of sounds e.g. molecules in wood (solid) are harder to move than molecules in air (gas).

These different speeds create several effects. Including the reflection of waves. Often waves require a bit of power in order to physically overcome the resistances to vibration of a particular medium.

Often this leads to sound waves bouncing back off harder-to-traverse surfaces.

Say that a sound wave travels through the air and reaches a wooden wall. The atoms vibrating in the air will hit against the wooden wall, transferring only some of their energy to the resistant wood.

The wood atoms on the border of the wall will bounce back, as expected. But this time they will transfer energy back into the air at a much greater magnitude due to newton's third law.

Thus while some of the sound wave ends up going deeper into the wood, the wood will push back and cause the air to vibrate in the opposite direction, creating a reflected wave.

Image credit: Penn State

We characterise the amount of power being reflected versus transmitted versus absorbed using portions:

A + R + T = 1

A = Power absorbed into the material (e.g. warms up the material)

R = Power reflected back

T = Power transmitted into the new medium

This is both an explainer as to why rooms are both very good, and very bad at keeping sound inside them. It really depends on the rigidity and shape of the material they are bordered by.

Refraction

Just like light, sound waves can also refract. Refraction is actually a lot simpler to understand once you already realise that waves will both reflect and transmit across medium changes.

Refraction is just combining the results of incomplete reflection (i.e. transmission) with some angle.

I won't go into refraction in too much detail, as it's worth a different topic. But effectively we experience snell's law but modified for sound.

Diffraction

Sound waves, like all waves propagate spherically (or circularly in 2D).

When travelling around corners, sound can often appear louder than if you were further away, looking at the source more directly.

This is because spherical waves will often 'curve' around corners. This is better described by light diffraction. Which is something for another time.

Conclusion

In conclusion, that's how sound works, mostly. This is a topic that is a little less closer to my expertise. Mainly because it delves into more musically-inclined phenomena that I am less familiar with. But I'm sure I did a good job.

Unfortunately, it seems like the plague of the long post is not yet over. Perhaps I need to get into a lot more specific topics to make things better for me and you (the reader).

Anyways, my exams are done. I am done. I do not have to do school anymore. Until I remember to have to get ready for my honours year (a.k.a. a mini-masters degree tacked on after your bachelor's degree).

Until next time, feel free to gib feedback. It's always appreciated. Follow if you wanna see this stuff weekly.

Cya next week where I will probably try another astronomy topic, or something like that.

#physics friday #stem #academics #stemblr #science #physics #sound #acoustics

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ksntoast2 · 4 months ago

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Strawpage Questions

A collection of asks I answered on twitter, all together since I won't post all of these old ones separately.

Naruto was excited, Sasuke was shocked, and Sakura was nervous. They were also 100% sure it wasn't possible before the announcement. They had to start readjusting their plans for life bcs a baby is a pretty big deal.

Thank you! Sasuke accepted them easily. He and Sakura end up dating without much trouble. Naruto is jealous of Sasuke initially but doesn't say or show it around Sakura. Sasuke is aware but doesn't do anything. Eventually he misses Sasuke's affection but doesn't want to admit it.

I had ideas for him, he would be a rich snob, but also incredibly ignorant. He'd try to win Hina over with gifts. Toneri would be the only person able to irritate her.

The short explanation: Sasuke leaves people before he thinks they'll leave him.

She doesn't know. If Sakura were to ask either of them "do you like men?" they would tell her no. Like liars.

Thank you! I use pinterest, I save pages from fashion magazines. Some celebrity photos too. I haven't really explored that thoroughly though 👉👈

my pinterest board

Sakura is a source of comfort, but Sasuke also loves her. The problems in the nss love triangle stem from each member loving the other 2, but only choosing one option. Sasuke loves Naruto, but distanced himself because of that. And with Sakura the pattern repeats itself.

Ty! 💕Sorta? Naruto and Sasuke both like Sakura, which is a traditional love triangle. Sakura is unaware of Naruto's feelings for her, and her feelings for Naruto. So doesn't know there's any tension. Sasuke and Naruto like each other, but aren't pursuing anything.

I did design a second kid for them once, named Nuko, but I prefer them having only Sarada. I know I could do the 1 kid from each dude thing, but that feels strange lol.

Yeah, but it was an accident. Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke didn't know who the dad was until Sarada was born too.

It's the start of Sasuke abandoning someone before they can leave him. By the time Naruto learns it's happening, he feels like he isn't in a position to say anything.

Sakura suffering is repeatedly brought up. Sns have problems that unintentionally hurt Sakura. The angst is mutual, I can't exempt her from it and dump it on the boys. I feel like hers is tame for now tbh. And yes the ending will be happy.

Soon.

Spoiler! Sai has ulterior motives.

Jealousuke is always funny! Sakura's the most well adjusted so she wouldn't show her jealousy, I could see her getting angry though. She would not pull a Sasuke and attempt to make someone else upset.

Thanks! All his romantic attempts with men have ended poorly, so he's given up in a way. He did always like women too, but now he's just ignoring a part of himself. Until Sai, anyway, Naruto’s bad at pretending. So he's not very comfortable yet.

Ty! Taka were Sasuke's high-school friends. They'll show up eventually to shed some light on Sasuke's past. They work under Orochimaru, who runs a shady plastic surgery business. Sasuke broke off all contact with them when he moved. They're not over it.

They were separated during their high school years. Naruto still had friends and a stable life in Konoha so he was, himself, goofy and happy. Sasuke was mourning the loss of his mother, Itachi distanced himself, and Fugaku was being cold. So Sasuke was depressed.

Sakura makes it easier for him. But it doesn't last long, Sasuke was mostly the same with Naruto, physically, but began distancing himself. Never committing. I wanted Sasuke to not even consider himself Sakura's boyfriend yet either.

He was involved with one taka member, but I will not reveal who. It wasn't that exciting tbh, it's hard for Sasuke to get with someone just for the fun of it.

#NRTY2K #ask

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pocima · 5 months ago

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2024 albums I recommend catching up on ⋆✴︎˚｡⋆° 📹

In other words, a shamefully long overdue list of my top 10+2 albums of 2024

Welcome to my long overdue list of albums I’ve been adoring last year! It’s the second rendition of my yearly project reviews, and I’m so grateful to be in a circle of bloggers who are as passionate for music and musical projects as I am for over 2 years now. The competition in this list is truly tough because 2024 has been a year where incredible full-length projects were dropping left and right from countless names in the music industry, and I still feel bad about ranking some names lower in the list. A good amount of artists were breaking their years-long hiatuses as well as if they were all given a deadline until 2025, and that felt surreal to witness. Considering the abundance of good full albums specifically, as you noticed, the list will cover my personal top 12 rather than last year’s 10! Additionally, I chose to separate them from my favorite EPs this time around, and an EP ranking will be dropping soon! 💋 Side note: two of the entries are accompanies with audio files instead of the usual videos because of Tumblr’s 10 video per post limit, soz.

⑫ Heráldica - Saramalacara

I wanna start this off by shouting out my sweet tasteful mutual @a-moth-to-the-light, because my Heráldica and Saramalacara discoveries all started with this HUMO audio post. When I first pressed play, I was surely hearing something, but I didn’t exactly predict it would all lead to Saramalacara playing a huge part in defining my summer and fall, and being my top artist on my YouTube Music recap. I was introduced to a very trance and hardstyle influenced headbopper right off the bat, and soon I would be transported to Sara’s very own Heráldica world. The surreal drum & bass INTRO_ greets us, and we stroll through Más Feliz’s breakbeats, .tumblr and 10percs’ electropop dancefloors, Sola’s dramatic cries, XQSI, Tokio Hotel and Diamantes&Kalashnikov’s thumping trap highways and the emo rock anthem tu droga at the departure. I kept the album on repeat, not even intentionally, partly because the tracklist was all pure earworms, but more so because Sara excels at the craft of worldbuilding with music and sound. Her EPs prior and now her debut album feel exactly like portals, straight out of a video game. The visuals support the gloomy, hazy vibe the album gives on its own, and the end result is a distinctive era much needed in the current emo/digicore pop-rap scene.

Favorite tracks: HUMO, Tokio Hotel and .tumblr.

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⑪ Access All Areas - FLO

Moving on to another debut album, one that I’ve been so eagerly anticipating since discovering FLO when they dropped their first single Cardboard Box in 2022. For years I’d been hoping for them to flourish as artists and get all the love and success they deserve because they’re such talents, especially vocally, and their EPs and singles had been just wonderful, and there was just no way their big and mighty first LP would be a letdown. FLO’s contemporary R&B princesses status, their consistency and versatility are fully set in stone with Access All Areas. Harmonies and runs top-notch off the bat with the intro and smooth, sax driven title track AAA. In My Bag, How Does It Feel?, IWH2BMX and Nocturnal are instant confidence boosters all in their different ways and sounds. (The Bree Runway feature on Nocturnal in AAA: Unlocked? Now THAT’S what I’m talking about.) Soft and On & On reveal their more sultry sides with gentle, serenading vocals, while they stand on business and let go of the untrustworthy on Caught Up and Shoulda Woulda Coulda, which is my personal favorite genre of FLO songs. They dabble in some Miami bass with Check, Detroit drill with Get It Till I’m Gone and surprisingly nice pop-rock (I typically find it ear-grating so REALLY surprisingly) with the empowering final track, I’m Just A Girl. The production quality, again, the VOCALS, the arrangements, the group chemistry, the charisma, the energy, everything sets the bar higher for pop and R&B stars, but truthfully it’s unsurprising since that’s exactly what you’d expect from the FLO girls.

Favorite tracks: Shoulda Woulda Coulda (track review here), Caught Up, Get It Till I’m Gone and Nocturnal.

⑩ DOGMA - LSDXOXO

2024 was THE year of underground club bangers and electronic music with a gritty twist, as seen with many projects gaining plenty of attention and artists following suit, and it would only make sense to get to the top 10 of my list with the iconic producer and DJ LSDXOXO’s debut album. LSDXOXO is primarily known for his upbeat, sharp sound, notably on his Dedicated 2 Disrespect and Delusions of Grandeur EPs, however, Dogma takes a bold turn, with the pulsating club beats making way for the guitar topped reggaeton of 4LUVN, the alternative R&B worlds of Blinded and Bloodlust, the dark electropop thrill of Black Light, the synth-focused trap instrumentals of Girls Girls Girls and Ghost, the breakbeats of Witching Hour and Superstar and softer vocals and raps observed on all of the tracks. I knew this direction would be smoothly, beautifully executed since Bloodlust’s single release, and with the continuation of the rollout, I knew the album’s sound would be what I needed in September. The production remains incredibly in-depth and the atmosphere of the project is irresistibly alluring. Overall, this was definitely one of the top projects that defined fall 2024 for me and surely one that proved LSDXOXO’s versatility and successful experimentation. Special shoutout to Kelela for elevating Girls Girls Girls and Ghost with her background vocals, you know I love small but impactful details.

Favorite tracks: Black Light (track review here), Bloodlust and Girls Girls Girls.

⑨ Chupetones - Meth Math

Another solid debut album that has stayed heavily on rotation multiple times throughout 2024, this time by the alternative neoperreo collective Meth Math, previously having captured my attention with their feature on Isabella Lovestory’s Tacon, and later with their Pompi and m♡rtal EPs. Prior to the announcement of the album, I’m gonna be honest and say that its lead single (and later album opener) Mantis did not pull me in like the rest of their discography did, but despite a slightly rough start, the dramatic, hypnotizing second single Myspace brought me back immediately, and forget being seated, I was glued onto my chair with Cyberia (still the catchiest song on the album in my opinion) and later with Axila. Meth Math introduce new genre influences that fit the band’s style like a glove to their catalogue, such as happy hardcore with Cyberia, trip-hop with Capullo and witch house with Axila and Pócima (yup, the source of my username). On occasions they mix said genres, like they did with the familiar reggaeton and the less familiar witch house in Abducida. Every aspect about the project is impressionable, from the echoing sound design to the visual direction of both the music videos and perfectly eccentric cybercore album photography. I can confirm I will be paying attention to Meth Math’s future work moving on forward as I constantly need some electronic, gloomy reggaeton in my life.

Favorite tracks: Pócima (duh) and Cyberia (track review here).

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⑧ Tidal Memory Exo - Iglooghost

You guys witness me frequently posting about music I fall in love with instantly, giving immediate reactions right upon discovery, but I’ve also mentioned that most of the time, my all-time favorites end up being bodies of work that creep up on me slowly. This was the exact case with electronic musician Iglooghost’s Tidal Memory Exo and his discography in general. I knew of his remixes and a couple songs here and there previously, I saved Nemat0de right on the first listen, and just casually kept coming back to the rest of the album, and realized I fell in love with it more and more, and not so unexpectedly. Ever since his come-up, he’s been delivering some of the sickest, glitchiest, most maximalist sound design and absolutely otherworldly mixing. That’s not the only proof he’s an electronic music mogul either, he proves it by the flawless incorporations of breakcore (Alloy Flea), 2-step/garage (flux•Cocoon), drill (Pulse Angel and Dewdrop Signal), along with gothic influences akin to Gesaffelstein’s Gamma (Coral Mimic) and orchestral moments giving that “calm after the storm” feel (Dewdrop Signal). Another element that makes the album this cohesive and put together is the storytelling, present in all of his past projects but especially prominent in this one sonically and visually. The inspiration for the Tidal Memory Exo-verse comes from his time squatting in a garage of a UK seaside town, and the concept is based on apocalyptic, sci-fi themes, and here are some articles that can frankly give a lot more insight on the lore than I can. Tidal Memory Exo is a universe I’d recommend to all IDM fans, or anyone who’s looking for intricate sounds and top-notch quality dopamine.

Favorite tracks: Nemat0de, flux•Cocoon and Coral Mimic.

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⑦ G-SPOT - STARKIDS

Speaking of dopamine, I’ve also mentioned that there’s arguably nobody that induces it in the music game like the Japanese hyperpop band STARKIDS do. It’s been forever since I full-on geeked out over a group like this. I’m very often in need of some loud underground EDM in my life, and they’ve played a huge part in me falling further in love with the J-hyperpop scene. They’re the ultimate masters of unapologetic, maxed out, extremely well-produced fun music. Even when it comes in the form of singles (okay so for the 1000th time I will emphasize that Pop is the 2020s’ Like a G6), their music is mind-blowingly captivating and entertaining, but an entire album of pure unadulterated bangers 3 years after the last one? I’ve gotten scared and then pissed at their diabolical disbandment prank rollout (near decade long K-popper moment) but how could you not forgive them when the music is really THIS good? Unlike the previous projects mentioned in the list, they don't take entirely new directions, but instead effortlessly show how good they are at what they do, from their throbbing as always takes on happy hardcore and Eurobeat to the usual yet exciting hip-hop and trap roads, with hints of 2-step (BACK2BACK) and hardstyle (title track). The members’ flows never fail to hit like a sip of freezing soda, and while Espeon and Benxni are my MVPs in this aspect, all of them have their moments with their own addictive verses and choruses. Thematically, the album offers STARKIDS' constant preachings on embracing authenticity and living your life free of any judgement. Honestly, there's something people of all backgrounds and lifestyles can get out of these preachings. Whether you're the type to spend days and nights partying or choose to navigate stably through work or education, all you have to do is listen up, mentally hop on the band's wavelength and have fun to the fullest just like they do.

Favorite tracks: BACK2BACK (track review here), G-SPOT, Stay Back, TYOSTAR and Thailand BKK.

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⑥ Where The Butterflies Go In The Rain - Raveena

After the intense, high tempo, electronic projects I've talked about in the list so far, it's time to make room for some therapeutic, lush R&B with another gorgeous project from Raveena. With her third studio album, she once again takes on roles she absolutely owns: a narrator, a fairy, a healer, an ethereal being. Let me start simply with how I felt while first listening to it on its release day: I remember taking a half-hour walk home, DMing the #1 Raveena fan @timetravellingkitty my thoughts as they formed, feeling just like a main character in a coming of age movie. You can easily observe that music puts me through countless emotions, that’s why I talk about it so much and in such detail, but again, the art of building entire worlds through albums is something that particularly earns my appreciation. You can guess the beauty of the production and sound straight from the title. From the Brandy inspired string-heavy Pluto and Lose My Focus; to her blending Western and South Asian influences on Every Color; the simple but moving soul tunes Lucky and Rise; the catchy dream pop bops Baby Mama, 16 Candles and Smile For Me; the guitar-only Kid and piano-only Little Bird and We Should Move Somewhere Beautiful; and the soothing, cinematic finale Water (and she KNOWS how to do a good key change). Not to forget the wholesome Afternoon Tea with the Auroras interlude, which begins with her grandmother reciting the Sikh mantra Ik Onkar and includes a conversation between the two, and that alone represents the rawness and emotion put into the album. The sweet vocals and harmonies, lullaby-like at times, are a key in maintaining this otherworldly-ness. Moving onto what the project means to Raveena herself: in her own words, she needed to return to comfort and stop weathering storms, just like how butterflies go into hiding in the rain due to their fragility. If you’re new to her, her spirituality, connection with herself and eloquence seep through every word, every melody she puts out. Whether the topics are sweet such as romance or personal growth and realizations, or rather painful such as grief, genocide or the opposition to women’s rights and humanity, it’s all tackled deeply, but with genuine hope. Genuineness is a quality I highlight consistently when discussing art, though it seems and feels like a bare minimum, and it’s what Raveena directly exudes. That’s something to find true comfort and consolation in.

Favorite tracks: Junebug (track review here) and Lose My Focus.

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⑤ Still - Erika de Casier

Erika de Casier is still a wonderful player in the contemporary R&B game, with her added pinches of breakbeats, 2-step and synths straight out the 2000s all throughout her discography. While her debut album Essentials was pretty down-tempo and trip-hop focused, and sophomore Sensational introduced heavy garage influences, her third album amps up the 2000s aspect of her sound. Right after intro Right This Way, where Erika welcomes you to her very own party as a VIP comes first single Lucky, the adorable liquid drum and bass jam and a production highlight. (Peep two albums back to back having cute songs called Lucky!) Home Alone and ooh possess the epitome of that Y2K era cheekiness and sensuality, as well as the Timbaland-coded beats and samples. The Princess is debatably the most vulnerable Erika has gotten with her with her inner disagreements in relation to her life and future, accompanied by a guitar and soft chest singing. On ice, she brings out Tampa rap duo They Hate Change for their takes on verses about relationship bantering, and the chemistry of the three combined with the melodic high “ah, ah”s and chill instrumentation makes the track unbelievably smooth and itch scratching. Test It, Believe It and Anxious have simpler production that relies on the top-tier synths. Ex-Girlfriend with Shygirl is a collaboration I’ve been anticipating as a big fan of both, and it was surely executed even better than I could’ve imagined. It has that moody, confident flare that both pull off perfectly. Toxic seems like a slower, more soul-leaning ice, and lyrically it’s a drift from the romance of the first half of the album. My Day Off comes in with the pop/EDM hybrid era hip-hop vibe. You can even sing “shawty had them apple bottom jeans, boots with the furrrrr” to its tune, but you honestly won’t need to when its actual lyrics come in handy for classily flipping someone off with words. Toxic featuring Blood Orange, the post-breakup duet with a monologue and low-key harmonies, signals that we’re getting closer to the departure, and with the self-reflective, brink of tears-sounding Someone, we close off the party. To round up the album description, it combines R&B smoothness with electronic elements, both of which are perfect for my tastes. Moreover, it’s an album stripped of previous alter egos (such as Sensational’s Bianka) and is purely a reflection of Erika’s world and observations. Unsurprisingly, Still is a solid new member of Erika de Casier’s pristine, timeless, charming catalogue.

Favorite tracks: Ex-Girlfriend (track review here), ice, ooh and My Day Off.

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④ GAMMA - Gesaffelstein

Techno father Gesaffelstein is a relatively secretive figure. His releases are typically long-anticipated, and come as surprises especially if you rely heavily on social media for your favorite artists’ updates. He uses YouTube and streaming services as announcement-only platforms, with the comments turned off, where the average viewers are all obliged to stay silent like an uninterrupted theater show. I only found out about his exclusive community website (to which you can just sign up for free), where you can actually access announcements and comment your thoughts when I was in the middle of writing this review. The Gamma teaser drop appeared on my YouTube suddenly, and I was blown away by the quality and excellence of the visuals alone. (Director Jordan Hemingway, you are so loved.) We were getting into an era of grandeur, the dark digital bleeding into the plasticized flesh, something I can’t even fully describe. Hard Dreams was released as the first single (in fact, I can’t exactly remember whether I saw the teaser or heard the song first), it’s an accurate introduction to what the era has to offer, similarly to and differently from Gesaffelstein’s previous albums. It has the classic cold, hard synths and dry kicks, but brings in gothic vocals from Yan Wagner and somewhat more vulnerability. The gothic influences especially show through with Digital Slaves and The Urge (yes, we had a little foreshadowing moment in the Tidal Memory Exo section), and 80s electronica á la Depeche Mode or Nine Inch Nails’ earlier music is heavily dabbled in with Your Share Of The Night and Hysteria. The Perfect feels like a reincarnated Aleph, louder and with vocals. Mania, Psycho and Tyranny are chaotic and fiery in their own ways, the first being fast and repetitive and almost hardstyle-like, the second abrasively maxing out the kick drums and the third relying on acids for a majestic, grim catwalk soundtrack. The serenading Lost Love and the minimal, reverse synth based outro Emet balances them out. Another difference between Gamma and its predecessors is the format, as in the track lengths; only Hard Dreams has a duration of longer than 3 minutes, but it adds up with how diverse the project is, though considerably more cohesive and story-based than Hyperion (with that being said no Hyperion slander allowed). What’s the most certain in my eyes, though, is that this album has the best visual direction of the year. The album trailer, especially, sets the standard insanely high for all other musicians and their concepts. The scenes are abstract and mystical, but so polished and precise, just like the album it backs. Gesaffelstein is rightfully known worldwide as a legendary producer, however, that doesn’t stop his art from consistently being elevated and exclusive.

Favorite track: Hard dreams.

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⊛ Bonus review: RAVE:N, The Remixes

Raven was my favorite R&B album of 2023 with its quality in all areas, surreal feel, metaphors and depth; and it turned out to be a gift that kept on giving. I can’t name a remix album off the top of my head that I love more than this treasure box right here. This is a perfect example of how you reimagine and transform music, in particular a dance music inspired project. On this remix album we play around with ambient, trap, jungle, reggaeton, Eurodance, drill and more with a star-studded feature list. The whole thing is vastly different from what the original album gives, but in the best, most complementary way possible. The visuals were simple but very on point as well: the vignettes were filmed in Tokyo, from a capsule hotel to its nighttime streets to a bright green garden. Everything about this era was flawless and a beautiful sequel to the original Raven era.

Favorite tracks: Sorbet (LSDXOXO Remix) [track review here], Holier (JD. REID Remix feat. Shygirl) and Closure (Flexulant x BAMBII Remix feat. Rahrah Gabor & Brazy).

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Honorable mentions:

Inferno - Moistbreezy (favorite track: La Dolce Vita): Feel genuinely bad for only placing this in the honorable mentions because it’s pure trance heaven, as well as the storyline and concept being so well-crafted. Bangers only in this house, Moistbreezy always outdoes herself.

Hunter - Rhea Raj (favorite track: Hush): Hopped onto this train fairly late, probably sometime in December, but if Rhea isn’t at least a cult favorite pop girl this year I’m giving up on pop music point blank. Such a fun debut project, just wish the tracks were a little longer, but aren’t Hush and Pray On It (which reminds me of my SOTY 🤭 keep reading to find out) the biggest jams ever?

epistolares - Akriila (favorite track: Popper): Akriila is certainly another one of my favorite artist discoveries of 2024. Great genre concoction of neoperreo, dream pop and liquid drum & bass going on in this album. The project’s defined, soft sound makes it looping material.

MEGAN: ACT II - Megan Thee Stallion (favorite track: Bourbon): Megan, you will always be famous. Act I was on rotation the entire summer but Act II came through even harder with the upgraded production, increased cohesion and new, fresh flows. Easily my favorite project from her. (Bourbon is the closest we’ve gotten so far to hearing her on a trip-hop beat, which I desperately need.)

Miniseries 2 - Sumin & Slom (favorite tracks: Why Why Why and I Think…): Another long-awaited by many album and the acclaimed duo’s return, this time taking a more acoustic, slow approach. Love how Sumin’s voice shines even more, and the way the album feels like a game main menu soundtrack but also very earthly.

And now, drumroll for the top 3!

③ For Your Consideration - Empress Of

Welcome to the story of falling love with my most played album of the year, and how it’s my favorite pop album of the year! I was first made familiar with Empress Of through her collaboration with Rina Sawayama, titled Kiss Me, in 2023. I REALLY started to pay attention to her when I saw a reel of her announcing the release of Preciosa with a snippet, and from that snippet alone nobody could convince me we weren’t heading towards the pop emergency of the entire year. I had no choice but to tune in immediately upon seeing Isabella Lovestory and Erika de Casier collaborator Nick León and experimental electronic producers Umru and Casey MQ were on the production team as well. And yeah, pop emergency at its finest. For Your Consideration is primarily an alternative pop and dance album, with strong house and vogue influences. Its core themes include immortalization, being a prize you have to reach for, being the centerpiece in a relationship and gaining dominance after long years of timidity. Numerous pop microtrends came and went in the 2020s and especially in 2024: While some pop stars are truthers of maximalism, whether it be EDM or theatrics, many (especially in K-pop and on the Internet) choose to move away from saturation, and lean into instantly recognizable drum patterns, gently mixed synths, less sharp choruses, overall more monotony (such as in UK garage, drum & bass, Jersey club) and less in-your-face. This “blur” can either create jams that you can’t get overwhelmed with or tired of, or a boring, predictable skip where you can tell what the producers were miserably going for. Empress Of’s record isn’t exactly a banging, loud, overly melodic one like what we left in the 2010s, but she delivers multi-layered work that really takes up space with elegance, confidence and assertiveness. She sings about different aspects of romance, her feelings and experiences over casual beatboxing and breathing and beats that make you put a pep in your step.

The record starts with its title track: the heavenly, passionate intro that lays down the concept of the album. Lorelei is a fan favorite to this day and for good reason: the angsty lyrics, the house beat backed by the vocal bits serving as synths, the harmonies make this song a good representative of the whole project. Preciosa’s chorus is what pulled me into the track and into the whole album before anything else, but the whole track is very memorable, danceable and embellished. Femenine, What Type Of Girl Am I? and Cura strongly lean towards house and vogue with whispery vocals, while Fácil and Sucia is where Umru’s trademark thumping bass and snares come in. Baby Boy and What’s Love are the finisher ballads, vocally pleasing and leaving a sweet aftertaste. My favorite characteristic of this pop masterpiece is probably how detail-oriented and satisfying the whole thing is, how Empress Of utilizes her vocals and transforms them into all sorts of instruments (I’ll elaborate on this further a bit later), the little Timbaland inspired “hah”s and the “tch”s, the harmonies, my brain processing how all of it comes together. In an era of music where so much is stripped down, and all the nostalgic elements being brought back are some of the easiest ones to replicate, it fills me up with joy to see maximalism of this kind being understood and slowly making a comeback in practice. “Satisfying” is truly the way to put it about For Your Consideration. Nothing unnecessarily over the top or unfitting, but no missing keys or details. So grateful that this album got me through the whole first half of the year, nothing could’ve set the tone better for me.

Favorite track: Fácil (track review here).

② Quantum Baby - Tinashe

Quantum Baby earning the silver medal didn’t come as a surprise to you if you’ve been hanging around this blog for a while, I’ve been an avid fan of Tinashe for years, and prequel BB/ANG3L took the #5 spot on my 2023 album awards. You already know by now that I’ve been WAITING for that sequel ever since Tinashe announced that BB/ANG3L was part of a trilogy, so rather than a personal timeline, it would make sense to skip over to witnessing the virality of lead single Nasty. It’s first teased on an Instagram livestream, us SweeTees start humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?”, the song is released, SweeTees keep humming, but we turn around and the whole World Wide Web is humming “is somebody gonna match my freak?” too? Brilliant freestyle-turned-sound bite aside, I’ve seen Nasty being described as combining the best of Tinashe’s older music and newer music, and that couldn’t be more true. The dark-leaning, relatively minimal production of her mixtapes, Nightride and Joyride eras meets the danceability and infectious bars of her 333 bops and BB/ANG3L track Needs. The rollout got followed up with the 2-step Getting No Sleep, possibly less plausible to the mainstream but something that real music enjoyers like me (:3) appreciated. It has that hypnotizing quality, drums and synths/pads wise, that I always immediately cling onto as you can clearly sense, and the topline wasn’t any less catchy either, so it didn’t take long for me to already fully indulge in the music the era had to bring us. When the album dropped and I got to listen to it, what I really appreciated is how experimental it was, how much was dabbled in without hesitation, without losing the plot or that Tinashe essence. No Simulation is the drum-free opener with a fire bass line right off the bat, with the heavenly harmonies more in the spotlight than ever, almost as if it belongs on Miniseries 2. Thirsty… Thirsty… save me crunchy trap song with beautiful, beautiful vocal moments… Red Flags doesn’t fall short on the beauty, it has that distorted synth line that strongly reminds me of Oklou’s work on Galore, which is a vibe I’ve wished I came across more frequently. Next up is the Jersey drill Cross That Line that kicks off with choir vocals and continues subtly too, and When I Get You Alone is an R&B/trap masterclass at the Tinashe School of Two Songs In One with both parts making you move like Homer Simpson in that one GIF. No Broke Boys is the Needs of this season, with its lyrics serving as daily affirmations, and the track later rightfully being pushed as a single. As I mentioned, the songs went in such different directions, in ways you can feel if you listen to the album and fully comprehend if you listen to Tinashe’s previous projects, and that alone felt so fresh and invigorating Quantum Baby instantly became one of my favorite projects from Tinashe and 2024.

With that being said, the aspect that made me more interested in and attached to this project is what it means to Tinashe herself. In BB/ANG3L, she consistently used water as a metaphor for reaching your own essence and getting purified, free from self-doubt, bind to the past and fakeness; and reflected said themes in her lyrics. Thematically, Tinashe follows similar themes in Quantum Baby as you may guess from the title, as in getting to your own core and coming across contradictions and intermediate states between strength and vulnerability in the process, akin to the Schrödinger’s quantum paradox, for example. Not only can we go on and on about how thought out album trilogies are so back and how important it is to map out your themes, concepts and creative direction well (which she evidently never fails to do), but I also wanna touch on how her self-discovery as an artist and person really shows in her craft. For decades, Tinashe has been a polymath from singing and dancing to producing in engineering, pioneering musical trends and influencing many, yet somehow the only repetitive thing about her music is her commitment to excellence. Whenever she drops an album or EP, it never entirely consists of sounds or visuals she’s done previously, everything new from her is refreshing and either causing a buzz (like Nasty or 2 On) or worthy of causing one, and it’s especially noticeable with Quantum Baby. 2024 treated Tinashe like the queen she is, she deserves her success and more, and I will be anticipating all the more to come.

Favorite track: Thirsty (track review here).

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① Dennis - Sega Bodega

Finally, what the readers of this series have probably been anticipating: the review of my favorite album of 2024. To my mutuals, the top spot has been obvious long before I even knew the album was even in the works, simply because it was gonna be a Sega Bodega album, his third album. I’ve mentioned numerous times that Sega is my favorite producer of all time, though I don’t remember if I’ve ever elaborated on it. If I were to put it simply and with a pinch of humor, his brain fascinates me. The way his whole sound design speaks to me from the distorted keys to the reverberating drum patterns, his seamless incorporations of samples from the most random clips and sounds, his surreally gorgeous album and concept building, his artistry and loyalty to the distinctive and unseen before… all so entrancing to me. I’ve played the life of Romeo, Salvador, self*care EP, hell, even the in-between singles such as Arena! with Safety Trance and mimi (no, that’s not where my nickname comes from) or the classics such as Ess B EP and Nivea, his entire discography basically, so I was seated since, like, 2022. I’ve said this about countless projects, but I mean it with each and every single one of my neurons when I say this about Dennis, my already high expectations were blown. I’d like to share this excerpt from Sega’s PAPER Magazine interview (which I highly, highly suggest reading as well as these three articles) that precisely describes his three albums and his evolution:

Dennis continues his artistic development which has steadily moved skyward. Bodega's first album, the darkly intimate 2020 Salvador, was a brooding haunt through a dimly lit bedroom. On it, his deep voice beckoned the listener towards the heathenish. His follow-up, Romeo, seemed to fly out of the bedroom and perch itself on the top of a nearby building. The floaty, angelic project circled the sacred and profane as songs like Only Seeing God When I Come and Angel On My Shoulder merged the physical body with the transcendent. Dennis, though, seems to forgo the world as we know it for the one we experience in our dreams. A floaty, at times euphoric, at times nightmarish journey through the subconscious, Dennis is an exploration of surprising association, the kind of expansive logic that only makes sense in your dreams.

Yup, before we get into my rambles about the songs themselves, let’s discuss the collective consciousness theory and “sleep” as a literary theme, because looking into Sega Bodega discussing this and doing research on the topic alone is something that staggered me entirely and pushed me to think and process a lot of my outlooks and feelings on life. Dennis was titled partially in the sake of two unrelated comic debuts titled Dennis the Menace in the US and UK. This ties into “collective consciousness”, which claims all of our brains are pumped the same information while we sleep, causing uncanny “coincidences”, if we can even call them such. Dissociation and the sleep cycle are core components of the album’s world, which is reflected in hypnosis inducing intro Coma Dennis, its alarm-like follow up Adulter8 and somniloquy samples by Rick Farin in Dirt and Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark.

Now onto the sonics, as mentioned, Adulter8 hits you like an alarm with its distorted 8-bit melody, possibly even causing a headache for some, but as the song progresses, you can’t help but get lost in the echo-y background chords. Next is Elk Skin, third (technically fourth) single from the album rollout, which starts off with a trap beat and transitions into a combo of reggaeton and acoustic guitar, is the most pop-like the album gets, but remains incredibly distorted and modified especially on the vocals provided by Cecile Believe. Kepko was released in 2022 and remains one of Sega’s personal favorites and “most fun he’s ever had making music” to this day, comprised of reversed and chopped up vocals and fast, repeated drum loops, and the atmospheric, warped feel deems it perfectly fitting for the album. Dirt is calming post the chaos of the predecessor two tracks, leaning towards hazy progressive trance and 2-step. I reviewed Deer Teeth instead of Set Me Free, I’m an Animal in my winter 2024 favorite singles review, and I still feel like I did it injustice, because it came to me at a time in my life when I needed something comforting and freeing in its darkness, and the track didn’t fall short, maybe because of its minimal echoing guitar-heavy production, maybe because of its lyricism. True, the final single, is a stunning maze of various sounds with three key changes and a beautiful chorus by KUKII fka Lafawndah. With every key changes, the song steps into a higher ground, becoming more and more celestial and incorporating choir vocals. Tears & Sighs is a rather cold and unwelcoming goodbye, with the abrupt guitar intro flowing into softer but bleak chords and Sega’s voice pitched deeper than ever singing “Heaven stays on burning but that’s none of your concern / You reduced my wings to bone ‘cause they were never yours to earn” and later “Said our goodbyes, these tears and sighs, who even are you anyway? / Don’t talk to me, don’t even look at me, I want to”. Humiliation Doesn’t Leave a Mark is a journey, it’s heavy on the violins and vocals, it has an astonishing beat drop and chorus, its vocals (featuring Kiss Facility bandmate Mayah Alkhateri) are whispery and minimal, and its instrumental interludes are mesmerizing. Coma Salv is the instrumental final, reminiscent to me of deep sleep and the music box loop I’d hear past 11 PM on the kids’ cartoon channel when I was a kid, tying the unconsciousness/subconscious theme together.

In this review, I’ve been reciting “world-building, world-building, world-building” like I’m trying to cast a spell to levitate an alien’s couch, but in my defense, I’ve been emphasizing it relentlessly because it’s been lacking in the music world overall, in an industry where musicians are plastering unrelated singles together, pushing barely-mixtapes as “albums” and putting no thought into what meaning and beauty the barely-mixtapes carry as a whole. Projects like the ones mentioned in this post give me hope for artists creating portals with their projects again. Sega Bodega and all of the ingenious artists I’ve praised here give me hope for the future of music. For the return of proper utilization of song lengths instead of cropping them all to 2 minutes out of convenience, for the collective courage to try the uncommon and lead instead of follow, for complex emotions and situations to be expanded on and shown not told. For albums, for art, for thought and for distinction. I don’t think I can grasp some musicians’ craftsmanship entirely due to my lack of technical knowledge on music theory, so I guess it’s natural for me to continue to be impressed, but on occasions you can be certain when someone is universally outstanding. Sega Bodega is a mastermind.

Favorite track: Adulter8 (track review here). Song of the year. Song of forever.

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I wanna apologize to all potential readers for keeping you waiting this long, the post took me a lot of energy and mental capacity to make, and I always tell myself I’ll do a better job juggling it with my personal schedules, so I appreciate anyone that could be on the lookout for my writing. Thank you so much for reading and possibly enjoying the music I show love to, I see it as the way my mutuals here and I share our love and joy. May 2025 continue to be a year where full bodies are work are appreciated and put effort into creating and understanding.

#keyboard.com #music reviews #sega bodega #tinashe #empress of #gesaffelstein #erika de casier #raveena #starkids #iglooghost #meth math #lsdxoxo #flo #saramalacara

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treacheryinblue · 1 year ago

Text

Chapter 1/?

Word Count: 8.5k

Masterlist

A Noah Sebastian x OC x Nicholas Ruffilo Series

× Summary: In the not so distant future, there's only Above and Below ― a "castle" that reaches the sky and the gritty underbelly that's looked down upon ( both literally and metaphorically ). The guys are recruited to carry out the task of taking down this power with the assistance of Scarlett: a confident and seductive, yet mysterious, force that may be closer to the enemy than what she lets on. Themes: dystopian, cyberpunk, post-apocalyptic, etc.

× Warnings!: Things get smutty. Language. Death - both spoken of and written. Violence. Anti-government. Broody Noah. Precious baby angel Nicholas. A girl who can't choose. Drinking, drugs, etc. Unreliable narrator? Each chapter will have its own set of separate warnings if there's anything additional.

× Author Notes: ( 1 ) Just going to be honest straight up ― if you don't like world building, then you may not like this. ⍨ ( 2 ) This chapter is more Nick centered because he deserves some recognition on my page. ( 3 ) Feedback of any kind is welcomed. Happy reading! ❤

Known affectionately as Lost Angeles, the last true and vast surviving city.

Made up of Heaven and Hell, most commonly referred to as Above and Below.

Why? Because, well, the latter was quite a ways down from the glimmering mega tower that you either hated with a passion, or desperately wanted to become a part of.

Although, anyone with at least two working brain cells could see that Heaven was a cruel and sadistic facade ran by a dictator by the name of Silver. Its main purpose being to inflict fear upon those belonging to Below; a way to control them, a warning they were always forced to see no matter where they stood within the decaying city.

This is why Noah chose to conduct the majority of his doings even further down, right in the underground of Below.

“You want us to what?”

A fit of laughter erupted from him, the three men standing a bit further back following suit with amusement of their own.

“You've got to be fucking joking.”

The older man’s face reddened with anger, his pudgy fingers rapping against the table top that separated him from them. This man in reference was Ulrik, a well known con man and loan shark that had a way of getting things done. Did you have a messy job you needed performed to completion? Ulrik was your guy, but always for a hefty price.

This is how Noah knew he had to be truly desperate if he was outsourcing his jobs now. Or maybe he just needed to find someone stupid enough to agree to the suicide mission.

“I was being nice by asking. Did you forget that you owe me a favor?”

A heavy sigh was then expelled, his gloved hand lifting to rub his chin from over the black ski mask that covered the entirety of his head. It's the same mask the other guys wore as well, the one thing keeping their identities secret.

It wasn't an odd thing to see. People of Below were known to wear masks - some more simple, others terribly intricate - solely because it kept them safe from the debris and dust that was constantly floating through the air. Wearing them inside was a little less popular.

“I'll even make it easier for you,” Ulrik continued with a toothy grin that was riddled with bits of gold. “There's a girl-”

“A girl?” Noah repeated, brows raised beneath the mask.

“Yes, a girl. She can help you get in and out of the Tower. She's smart. Does work for me sometimes.”

Another laugh was pulled from him, followed by a roll of his eyes. Noah leaned back casually in his chair, though his hands remained clasped atop the table. He was staring the man down, silently daring him to feed him bullshit one more time.

“Cut the shit, ‘Rik. Everyone knows you don't just enter the Tower and then live to tell the tale when you don't belong there. People go up, but they never come down.”

Ulrik’s grin lingered, becoming more and more smug by the second.

“Ah, you see, that's where you're wrong. She has gone both up and down.”

× × ×

Seven wasn’t exactly where he was expecting to end up that night. He stared up at the neon-lit business front, flashing signs indicating the purchase of companionship, while others promised music and dancing. He had passed by the building many times, but never stepped foot inside. Tales of the happenings inside ran rampant, though. From what he gathered, it wasn't a place for the faint of heart.

“I can't believe you agreed to this shit.”

Noah glanced over to Nicholas as he took a deep drag of his cigarette before tossing it to the ground. The motion was followed with a shrug, his expression remaining blank.

“I agreed to us talking to the girl. I never agreed to us taking the job.”

“When it comes to Ulrik, you may as well have signed our lives away.”

That could've possibly been true, but Noah was going to give the man the benefit of the doubt. Maybe nothing would come of this visit. Maybe he would let them turn the job down. Maybe they'd laugh it off together. Or maybe all of them would end up with their tongues cut out.

Noah didn't say anything else before taking long strides up to the building, Nick trailing begrudgingly behind him. Despite the masks still covering their faces, the rather large and buff man at the door nodded them in. If they looked like buyers, then there was no issue.

…now he wasn't so sure what that said about them.

Inside of Seven was dark, the only source of light coming from the red and blue LEDs sporadically placed around. It was cleaner than he was expecting, but there was still a sharp scent in the air that led him to believe strong cleaning products were used on the regular. Noah didn't want to think about what they could possibly be cleaning in depth so often.

“Hey there, handsome.” A woman cooed almost as soon as they walked into the main area, her hand grazing along his chest as she sauntered by. She didn't pause to entice them in, though. Probably because she could sense their lack of engagement due to his skill of avoiding eye contact, and basically acting like she wasn't there to begin with.

Stepping deeper in, Noah was on high alert. He looked to every corner, studied every face, and noted every exit that could be seen. Never know when you'd have to make a quick getaway.

The music playing throughout had a deep bass to it; one of those dark wave tracks that was supposed to sound sexy, but it only bored him. Dolled up women were seen with every sweep of his gaze, as well as desperate men looking for someone to force their fantasies on. A few of the women were encased in large metal cages, their bodies moving rhythmically to the songs playing.

Yeah, this place definitely screamed ‘Below’. It was gritty and filthy - in the kinky sort of way. Depraved was possibly a better word for it.

“Hey,” Noah called out to a man who stood to the side with his hands clasped in front of him. He was obviously security, so hopefully that meant he could point them in the right direction.

“We’re looking for a girl that goes by Scarlett. You know where we can find her?”

Macho security man took one look at them and shook his head.

“Ah, come on!” Noah grinned beneath the mask with his attempt at being inviting. “A friend of mine said she was the best. I just want to try her out for myself.”

Fuck - how badly he wanted to gag and cringe at his own words.

“If you don't know which girl she is, then she isn't the girl for you. Now fuck off.”

Noah figured it was best to not argue with security, so he took a few steps back and then turned to Nick. “The hospitality here is something to be desired.”

“Why don't we just take a look around? Maybe one of the other girls will point her out.”

Just as Noah was about to agree, a sweet voice cut through the atrocious music that was still thumping ridiculously loud through the club.

“Did you say Scarlett?”

Both him and Nick simultaneously turned towards the voice, only to see that it belonged to a girl in one of the cages. Her manicured fingers gripped the bars as she kneeled down to their level, eyes bouncing back and forth between them both.

“You know her?”

The girl's fair shoulders gave a shrug, though she smiled when she briefly locked her gaze with his.

“Everyone knows Scarlett.”

The girl was running a hand up and down along one of the bars that separated them. Noah assumed this was a way to entice the desperate men in, leading them to think of her hand wrapped around their unsavory dicks and not the metal.

“Hi, pretty eyes.” Her focus was now on Nick, which didn't surprise him. Even with the masks, he was sure Nick appeared nicer than he did. Someone that would be easier to talk to. Easier to butter up.

Leaning in closer to the bars, her hands spread across to widen her grip, showcasing her cleavage that was popping out from the skimpy top she wore. Noah knew the games, and he knew Nick did too, but that wasn't going to stop his friend from falling for it. Hard.

“What will it take for you to introduce us to her?”

The girl smirked, her teeth sinking into her lower lip as she thought.

“Buy a private room for an hour. Ask specifically for number thirteen.” She tore her gaze from Nick to look over to him, obviously showing no shame in the way her eyes raked up and down his tall stature. “I'll make sure she's there.”

With that, she stood up to her full height and made a motion to the side which prompted someone to unlock the cage.

“Go on,” she smiled at them before she could exit, shooing them away to a cashier.

“Ulrik better fucking reimburse us for this.” Noah grumbled while already beginning to pull the cash from his pockets.

× × ×

Room thirteen was on the second floor and sat at the very end of the hall. He assumed this was the most private of all the rooms, merely from the location alone. While making their way to it with the key clutched in his grasp, he could hear all the unpleasant things happening beyond the other doors they passed. Most sounded like noises of enjoyment but there were some that reminded him of pure torture. Those were the ones he didn't want to think too hard about. They had a task at hand, and worrying about what 'paying customers’ did was not it.

As they entered the room, all outside noises suddenly stopped upon closing the door. That sure was interesting. He shook his head, cautious steps then being taken further into the room. It was reminiscent of a hotel room, but not as luxurious. There was a bed, a dresser, and a darkened doorway which he assumed led to a bathroom.

“This is fucked,” he murmured with a glance to Nick who had just plopped down into a chair that sat in the corner.

“Do we know anyone that comes to these sorts of places?”

Noah chuckled, his head ducking a bit in an attempt to see if he could inspect behind the mirror attached to the dresser. It was easy to assume that they were being watched and listened to.

“I doubt it, unless you mean know like how we know Ulrik. My guess is he's a big spender here.”

A gloved hand ran along the seam of the mirror pressed to the wall, looking it up and down suspiciously. Did each room have a camera? Or just some perverted guy sitting behind a two way mirror monitoring their doings? Either way, he fucking hated the feeling of being watched.

“What are you doing?”

Well, that voice surely didn't belong to Nick.

His eyes flickered up to the door of the room that was being closed, the same girl from the cage standing in the entryway.

“There's a reason why I told you guys to request this room. No cameras. No mics.”

There was something different about the girl now - other than the fact that she had covered herself in a black silk robe that hit the top of her thighs. Was it that her voice wasn't as sweet? Her eyes a little more piercing? Or had she just completely dropped the act now that they were behind closed doors?

“Where's Scarlett?” Noah ignored her initial question, instead choosing to respond with one of his own. He didn't have the time or patience to play this game.

The girl arched a brow, her eyes brightening with a hint of amusement. She walked by where he stood, then bent at the waist when she was at the end of the dresser. From the bottom drawer she produced an unlabeled bottle, as well as three glasses which she placed atop the dresser.

“I think she is Scarlett…” Nick spoke up, still seated.

With a widening grin, the girl put her fingertip to her nose and looked back to Nick from over her shoulder, the same finger shifting to point his way. “Good job, pretty eyes. I'm glad at least one of you can put a two-piece puzzle together.”

A glass of amber liquid was extended to him, which he had no choice but to take upon her forcing it to his chest. He noted that she was much more gentle when offering an identical drink to Nick, the other being kept for herself.

“Before anything else is said, I'm going to need you guys to take the masks off.”

Noah immediately shook his head. “That's not happening.”

An intense look was sent his way from Scarlett. Her hand was on her hip, heel-clad feet carrying her closer to him.

“Either you take off the masks or we're done here.”

SCARLETT

“Well?” Her brows quirked as she stepped around the tall one, slow motions being taken closer to the one with the clear blue-grey eyes. She was already more fond of him.

“Just do it,” he exhaled, quickly pulling his mask off as if he was ripping a band-aid free in one swift motion.

Mumbles of aggravation came from the tall one, but she knew he had done the same based on the sounds of shuffling around and the way his mask was then tossed to the edge of the bed. When she glanced back to him, he was working his fingers through his hair, but that wasn't what caught her attention

“Hold on…you guys are Entertainers?” Scarlett’s eyes went wide with excitement, her sights going back and forth between the two of them again. The guys said nothing, though they shared a silent look with each other that had her interest piqued.

“Ulrik failed to mention that when he told me I'd have visitors.”

“That's because Ulrik doesn't know. That's also how it's going to stay, got it?”

Entertainers were some of the most important people, both Above and Below. They had a way of controlling the masses and getting messages out, especially these specific Entertainers she was currently in the company of. If anyone was to know they were in cahoots with someone of the likes of Ulrik, they would probably disappear in a snap.

“Are you always so feisty?” Scarlett shook her head as she brought her drink to her lips.

“Since you recognize us, does that mean you've seen our shows?”

Nodding, she reached over to lightly drag her fingertip along the seated one’s jaw. His bright eyes lifted to meet with hers and she instantly graced him with a sweet smile.

“A few times, actually. Let's just say…I'm all about your scene.”

The scene she spoke of being one that was kept hush hush, all because of their leadership in the powers that wanted to overthrow Above. Not everyone was privy to this information, though. To be a part of it meant sure death.

“Listen, Scarlett, that's not why we're here. Ulrik told us to come talk to you, see what you could do to help us with this job he has, so we can decide if we're going to take it or not.”

“Oh, honey, if you're here talking to me then you've already taken the job.”

Although she was addressing the tall one on the opposite side of the room, her sights remained set on this sweeter one she had taken much more of a liking to.

“Do you think you just happened to run into me by chance downstairs? No. I knew you were coming, that's why I was on the floor to begin with. Just waiting for the guys with an ‘air of arrogance' to arrive.”

Scarlett looked back to the tall guy, her eyes drinking him in again. She was well aware of the perplexed expression he wore as he studied her, obviously trying to figure her out. Jokes on him, because he would never be able to.

“You two have names?”

“Nicholas,” her favorite almost immediately revealed. “Nick.”

“Fucking seriously?” The unknown guy hissed, now looking at him in disbelief. “You're just going to drop your name like that all because you're hypnotized by her tits?”

Scarlett rolled her eyes in annoyance.

“My eyes are pretty nice too, but don't get your panties in a twist. You need something from me, correct? So, how can you trust me with that if you don't even trust me with your name?”

This got him to shut up for a second because he knew she was right. Something told her that he didn't like being the one who wasn't. His arrogant demeanor wasn't exactly her favorite quality about him, but she was going to let it slide this time. All because of her own curiosities.

“Noah,” he finally answered after a long pause of silence had settled between them.

“Can we just cut to the chase? No more of your seductive cage dancer bullshit. We bought the room - you - to talk, not to play little games.”

Scarlett retracted her touch from Nick, her body language immediately shifting to defensive mode. She was finding it harder and harder to play nice when it came to this Noah jackass.

“Not that it's any of your business but I'm not a cage dancer and I'm not for sale.” Her eyes narrowed at him in a silent warning, though she still found her way in front of him despite how badly she wanted to drop him on his ass.

“That know-it-all attitude of yours is going to leave you dead one day. So if I were you, I'd compose myself a little more, especially when you're asking someone for help.”

She could tell that he wanted to say something else, but she continued before he could.

“Sit down and shut up. I don't want to hear another peep from you until I say. I'll be directing my attention and questions to Nick.”

Scarlett motioned to him, her smile returning as she did. She was going to show Noah that you could catch more flies with honey than vinegar, so maybe he could learn a lesson or two to take home with him to resonate on.

“Now, Nicky, why don't you tell me about this job Ulrik has so kindly signed you up for?” She sat on the edge of the bed closest to the chair he remained perched in. Her back was straight, one leg crossed over the other, and her focus was now solely on him.

Nick took in a deep breath before tilting his head back to down what remained of the liquor in his glass. He grimaced slightly, just enough to bring a genuine smile to her lips at the sight.

“He wants us to break into the Tower.”

Scarlett slowly nodded since she had already gathered as much. “Is…that it?”

“No…” Nick shook his head. “Once in the Tower, he wants us to cut the power to it permanently and then kill Silver.”

It felt as if someone had punched her right in the gut, that's how strong the shock was when she heard his words. Had Ulrik lost his goddamn mind?

“He wants you to kill Silver? President Silver? The man who runs Silver Life Industries, also known as the company that provides every-fucking-thing we lay our eyes on?”

The destruction included.

Nick could only nod and when she glanced back at Noah, he had his elbows propped up on his knees with the heels of his hands digging into his eyes. It was obvious that they knew how ridiculous it sounded. Not to mention how dangerous it was. Hell, this was the only room in Seven not bugged and even she started feeling nervous that someone could hear them.

“Well…shit.”

“Can you help us or not?”

Scarlett wanted to scold Noah for speaking before she allowed him to, but with the situation that was just dropped into her lap, she no longer cared about his manners.

“I mean…yeah, I can get you guys into the Tower, but you have to survive to actually make it out too.”

“Perfect. All we needed to know.” Noah dropped his hands to his knees in a slap then stood from the opposite corner of the bed he had claimed. The mask was tugged back over his face and adjusted properly, thus signaling to Nick that it was time for them to go.

“How do we get in touch with you?” Nick questioned after mimicking Noah's motions, both of their identities now concealed.

Scarlett smiled before opening the door, a rush of mixed noises immediately assaulting their ears.

“I'll find you.”

× × ×

And find them she did, although nearly a week later.

It definitely wasn't her fastest work, but a lot had been on her mind since their little meeting at Seven. Not to mention the guys had done a pretty good job at not leaving much of a trace of themselves in the outside world. Unless you knew the right people to talk to, which she did.

Scarlett had been a little nervous when taking the rickety elevator down to the lower level of the apartment building they resided in. It's where she had been told they spent most of their time because it was secluded and away from the prying eyes and ears of those watching from Above.

Thinking back on it now, maybe she should've announced herself before waltzing into their glorified man cave. This thought came to her as she stepped off the death trap of an elevator, only to immediately feel the cool barrel of a gun pressed to the back of her head.

“Who the fuck are you?”

When she didn't answer right away, the gun was cocked as a final warning. The sound alone sent a chill down her spine, but she still released a huff as if annoyed by the hold up.

“Are all of you this paranoid?”

The gun was nudged against her head, his prior question silently being asked again.

“Scarlett,” she then answered, though the gun remained firm in place.

“Don't know a Scarlett.”

“And I don't know why I'm being held at gunpoint, yet here we are. Both of us confused.”

“Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Jolly! Gun down!”

There was a rush from behind her and then the loaded weapon was no longer pressed to her head, but instead decocked and set aside based on what sounds she could pick up.

Bickering began to unfold, something about them explaining to him who she was a few days ago, him claiming he didn't remember, then a few soothing phrases and words were exchanged to calm the trigger happy man down.

Scarlett glanced back during the altercation, seeing that it was Nick lightly touching the guy's shoulder as another unknown male stood a bit off to the side. Noah was nowhere to be seen but that was okay. She was only popping by to show her face and obviously let it be known that they weren't super hard to track down.

“I'll send a carrier pigeon next time telling you guys I'm stopping by,” she joked once Nick was making his way over to her. “Maybe avoid a bloodbath.”

“I would say ‘sorry’ for him…but you are the one intruding. How the hell did you get past the locks, by the way?”

For a moment she was confused by his question, but then remembered the coded pin pads she had easily bypassed to even open the elevator doors. “Oh,” she waved the confusion off, laughing. “It wasn't exactly the hardest of programs to crack. You guys should probably get someone better to handle that for you.”

Nick squinted at her, his smile wavering. “I set those locks…”

Damn. She couldn't remember the last time she had truly been embarrassed, but this was definitely going to remain fresh in her mind for a while.

“Right…well…I'll have to give you some pointers.”

“What are you doing here?”

Scarlett smiled at his sudden change of topic. She found herself taking a slight step closer to him, pleased to be able to clearly see his eyes without dim or harsh lights drowning out the color.

“Not happy to see me, Nicky?”

Nick took in a deep breath, those eyes of his trailing her up and down unabashedly. “No…no…seeing you has definitely been a highlight…”

Grinning, she reached out to lightly touch his cheek, just before her eyes shifted to the guys lingering not far back.

“Are you going to introduce me?”

“Shit, right.” Nick cleared his throat, his body turning so he could carry himself closer to his friends. While Scarlett did recognize them from the shows she had attended, it was still best that he initiated the exchange of their names.

Did she already know them? Maybe.

“Scarlett, this is Jolly, and I promise he isn't as quick to pull the trigger as you may think.”

“Clearly, since I'm still alive,” she taunted.

“And this strapping young man is also Nick, but we call him Folio. So, yeah…this is Scarlett, the girl Ulrik told us about.”

Jolly scoffed as he examined her with what appeared to be great frustration.

“This little sparkle fairy is supposed to be the one helping us? My foot is bigger than her!”

“Sparkle fairy?” She repeated with a look of distaste for the term.

“I'm sure my foot can cause more damage too!”

Now this caused her eyes to narrow, jaw setting into a firm clench. What is it with men and their need to always underestimate her? Most of the time it didn't bother her too much because it typically worked out in her favor when they did, but sometimes - like now - it truly pissed her off. Here she was, offering her services and also her time, and it was unappreciated.

“Do you want to test that theory out? I have no issues with shattering every bone in your foot with my own goddamn heels.”

Jolly appeared taken back for a moment, but a smile then pulled at his lips and he was wagging his finger in her direction. “Never mind. I like her.”

“Same…but she's a little scary…” Folio murmured under his breath as he and Jolly led the group to a sitting area.

“Just some knowledge to place upon you,” Nick called out to Folio while dropping his hand to his shoulder. “All women are scary.”

This made her smile, another slight laugh leaving her. “I always knew you were the smart one.”

A few more steps and they were within an area that held mismatched chairs, rugs, and other random decor pieces. It was obvious that the guys grabbed whatever they could that was still in decent condition, and she didn't blame them. Sometimes it was the simple things that were hard to come by nowadays.

“No Noah?” She questioned as she dropped her bag onto one of the random chairs, this one being a deep green color.

“He said he was going down to the corner store but that was…” Nick glanced at the others, “maybe about an hour ago.”

“Well, I guess it's a good thing this was more a social call than actual planning. Pretty much just needed to see what - and who - I'd be working with.” Her eyes drifted between all three of them, lips pursed as she sized them up. Scarlett had a knack for reading people. Very rarely was she incorrect in her assumptions.

The point of her nail angled towards Jolly, slowly nodding. “I'm guessing you're the muscle, yeah? Good with weapons, intimidating, a pretty decent shot.”

Scarlett didn't give them a chance to respond before she was moving on to the next. Her focus fell to Nick, immediately giving him a sweet smile as she had done consistently now.

“The kind of guy that knows his way around tech…probably the smartest one in the room but doesn't like to show it…voice of reason.”

Their eyes remained locked for a long moment, though she looked away first before anyone could question it. The reddening of his cheeks didn't go unnoticed by her, though.

“And Folio…the wild card. Every good group has one. Never know what you're gonna do next, but it somehow always works out to be helpful.”

“Damn…are you psychic?” Folio asked, his eyes wide with awe for her little party trick.

Before she could reply, a different voice cut through.

“Guess that makes me the asshole leader.” Noah strolled in and paused a few feet from her. He crossed his arms over his chest, letting her know that he was trying his best to make himself look bigger. An intimidation technique, obviously.

“Arrogant, bossy, doesn't know when to quit…”

“The one who ends up getting someone killed.” Scarlett quickly snapped, her head whipping around to show him just how serious her expression was. “Not yourself, though. No, you're the one who gets to live with the guilt of his pretentious, pompous attitude being the reason a friend doesn't make it out alive.”

NICHOLAS

The room grew so quiet that he was convinced you could hear a pin drop. He was looking at Noah, at Scarlett, and then back to Noah, studying the way they now glared at one another. His best friend appeared as if he wanted to explode (verbally? physically? both?), but he was doing the best he could at holding onto his composure.

Flexing his shoulders backwards, Noah gave a single nod. Seconds later, he was disappearing to the other side of the room where he could slip through a typically concealed doorway that led to their makeshift studio area.

“I'll draw up a plan and see you guys in a couple of days, yeah?”

Scarlett was smiling again as if nothing had happened but he could pick up on the slight waver in her voice. That had him curious.

Unfortunately, she was gathering her belongings and strutting away before he could even stand from his seat.

“Hey, Sca-” Nick rushed to his feet to try to stop her, but she was gone. The sound of the elevator doors closing rang in his ears - a reminder that they really needed to fix that.

“Shit, she's brutal.” Jolly shook his head. “I still like her, though.”

Nick heavily exhaled while turning on his heel, now heading back the other way to where Noah had slid away. He found him sitting at the old, out of tune piano, lightly pressing random keys as if just testing the sound.

“Maybe I should just do this alone.”

That was the last thing Nick had been expecting to hear.

“Absolutely not.”

“No, Nick, she's right. I should've told Ulrik to 'fuck off’. It's my fault we’re in this, and I'm not going to let anyone else die because of me.”

Nick could sense how heavy those words were for him to say. He could hear it. He could feel it. They were all still mourning in their own way, though Noah’s preferences were a little more on the self destructive side.

“You've completely lost it if you think any of us are going to let you do this alone.”

Despite his statement being true, he couldn't bring himself to tell Noah that he was wrong for experiencing guilt and blame that he placed on himself. Things had happened in the past because of him. Nick figured it was best to not outright say this, though.

“Fuck!” Noah abruptly growled, his hands slamming down on the piano keys with such force that a couple remained permanently sunken in.

“Why do you always have to be so fucking understanding and loyal? Why can't you for once just tell me I'm a piece of shit? Huh, Nick?”

How the hell had this suddenly become an attack on him?

“I know you're thinking it. Jolly and Folio obviously are too. Shit, even your girlfriend read me like a fucking children's picture book.”

“What? Scarlett isn't my-”

“Obviously, Nick. A girl like her?” Noah snorted a laugh. “She would rip you to pieces.”

Nick stared at the back of his best friend’s head, since he had refused to turn around since their conversation began. There was a lot he wanted to say, but he swallowed every harsh word because he knew Noah would regret this by the next day. That's just how things went with them nowadays.

“Y’know, maybe Scarlett was right about some things. Your attitude will be your downfall.”

× × ×

The last thing he wanted right then was for Noah to be right. He refused to let that fucker wear a smug smile while muttering 'I told ya so’ to him. Why was he so quick to assume Scarlett would get the better of him? All because he was nice? Because he knew how to smile? Because he didn't need to be a broody asshole day after day?

Nick wouldn't let himself believe that.

Taking in a deep breath, he shook his hands out to rid the nerves, then he pressed the faintly glowing blue button on the outside of the door. There was nothing for a long moment, so long that he almost walked away, but as he was considering it, the door creaked open slowly.

“Nick? What…how did you find me?”

Not even seeing Scarlett’s face right then could calm him. Although, the fact that she recognized him within less than a second while he was wearing his mask did make his heart swell a bit.

“It took you how long to find where we were?” He cracked a slight smile. “Just had to show you how it's done.”

Even through her confused expression, he could see a smile threatening to appear and overtake her stoic demeanor. Nick was praying that meant she was at least a little happy to see him - invited or not.

He watched as she contemplated silently to herself before finally taking steps back and widening the entryway for him.

“Wait…don't go any further.” After closing and securing the door with multiple locks, Scarlett’s form rushed by him so she could begin pulling the curtains closed around the living room. The area darkened significantly, though he understood why she was being cautious.

“I'd rather not become Above’s nightly entertainment,” she explained once she was turning to face him, her arms loosely crossed over her chest in what he could assume was another one of her infamous defensive stances.

SCARLETT

Why was her heart racing right then?

Why was Nick in her home?

Why was he looking at her like that?

Before she could verbalize any of these questions, he was tugging the black mask off his head and shaking his fingers through his hair.

“You shouldn't be here…” she softly murmured, the nerves setting in. “It's not safe for either of us.”

Scarlett desperately wanted to tell herself to ‘shut the hell up’ because having him there actually felt nice. Her apartment wasn't so lonely for once. It was going to be a fleeting feeling and she knew this, but what was so wrong with enjoying it while she could?

Oh, right, the high risk of death.

Nick nodded in agreement, but instead of turning and leaving like she was expecting him to, he actually took fast steps over to her. His rough hands grabbed her face within them and he leaned down as far as he needed to, to force his lips hard against hers.

The shock of the kiss nearly knocked the breath out of her, but she was able to recover almost instantly before he got the wrong idea from her reaction. It took about the same amount of time for Nick to soften the claim his lips had made on hers. Scarlett wasn't going to let that slide.

As they engaged in their yet-to-be-broken kiss, her hands ran up along the length of his waist and over his arms where she could briefly grip his wrists. Since he had just come in from outside, he was wearing far too many layers that were used to shield him from the elements. So, she quickly went to work at ridding him of them.

First, his jacket was pushed from his shoulders, followed by the secondary lighter one he wore beneath it. Nick graciously helped her, eagerly tugging at the sleeves and tossing each article of clothing aside. She couldn't help but to smile against his lips since she found his excitement to be cute.

Scarlett released a slight sound of surprise as he gripped beneath her thighs and lifted her up into his arms, forcing her back into the wall. Her legs secured around his waist, pressing herself right against where she could feel the growing bulge in his dark jeans.

“Someone's excited…” she taunted, her breathing heavy after parting from the kiss. Nick’s lips were flushed red, pupils dilated as he stared directly at her. Her thumb swiped along his lower lip, gently soothing the tier from where her teeth had sunken in at some point. She swore she saw his eyes darken just before his lips were crashing to hers again.

Scarlett moaned, her fingers working back into his hair, nails scratching at his scalp. He must've liked this, because next thing she knew he was pressing himself firm between her thighs, grinding against her aching core. The sensation caused her to shiver, legs then tightening around him in an attempt to bring him in closer. Nick’s grip on her thighs embedded deeper and now it was his turn to break from her lips, just so he could begin trailing hot kisses along her neck and the front of her chest.

“Nicky…” she breathed out to gain his attention. That's all it took for him to detach himself from her skin, his bright eyes lifting to meet with her own. “I should probably tell you that I'm not looking for anything serious.”

The man she was currently wrapped around was sweet and she knew he had a good head on his shoulders, anyone would be lucky to have him, but these days…it wasn't that simple anymore.

His eye searched hers as he carefully lowered her back down to her feet, though he didn't move away from her. Actually, he pressed his body flush against hers, trapping her between himself and the wall. Scarlett smirked, her hands slipping beneath the shirt he wore so she could feel the heat of his bare skin.

“I know,” he nodded while his hand smoothed along her jaw and to the back of her neck. “That's fine.”

To her, that was a green light to continue.

Scarlett pressed up onto her tip toes so she could kiss him again, just before she placed her hands flat against his chest and pushed him back. Grabbing his shoulders, she guided him to the couch and forced him down into a seated position. Nick’s hands instantly attached to her hips as he gazed up at her with a smile, though his obvious desire for her was still present in his eyes.

Grasping his shirt, she pulled it off in a swift motion and tossed it back to be tended to later. Despite his hands eagerly beginning to lift the dress she wore, Scarlett sent a look his way that caused him to immediately stop, though his touch didn't leave her body.

“You listen well,” she taunted. “I like that.” With a lingering smirk, she gently nudged his hands away so she could slip her own beneath her dress, her panties being pulled down for her to step out of.

Nick watched her for a moment, but then began fumbling with the belt he wore, followed by the button and zipper of his jeans. He really was just so fucking cute. Most people she had been with in the past always tried to play it way too cool, making it appear as if they really didn't give a shit about what was happening. But Nick? Well, he clearly had no issue with showing his excitement.

Stepping back to him, her hands slowly ran up the expanse of his thighs. Nick took in a sharp inhale as she grazed the obvious bulge that was straining in his jeans, the reaction causing her to arch a brow.

“Sensitive?” Her smirk widened when he cursed under his breath but ultimately nodded in response.

Scarlett gently pressed the heel of her hand into him before her fingers began to massage his lengthening hard on over the fabric. Her eyes fixated on his face, joyfully watching the change in his expression as his hips bucked up into her palm and his brows knitted together.

“If I wasn't so eager to have you, I'd make you cum just like this…” she softly threatened.

Nick heavily breathed out at this, his frustrations quite apparent. She understood how maddening it could be because she was feeling it as well. The only difference was that she had a bit more composure than he did, though only because she had claimed the dominance between them. At least this time.

Hiking her dress up, she situated herself on his lap in a straddling position. She was lifted up onto her knees so she could further undress him, now moving faster than she previously had been. Scarlett dragged his jeans and boxers down as far as necessary, allowing his cock to spring free at full attention.

Then, she was positioning herself over him with the guidance of his hands, but she didn't yet drop herself down.

“You've been thinking about this since the moment you saw me at Seven, haven't you?” Scarlett hovered right over the swollen head of his cock, only allowing him to feel the heat her cunt radiated. His grip on her hips tightened in anticipation, jaw clenching from how she was dragging this out.

“I bet you've imagined how wet I'd be for you…how tight…what sort of noises you'd get me to make…”

Closing the space between them by only a few centimeters, she briefly shut her eyes when she felt the tip nudging against her soaked entrance. It took all of her self control to not just fully give in because Nick felt better already than even she had imagined.

So what if she had spent a night or two cumming around her fingers to the thought of him?

“Are you going to let me find out?” Nick retorted with a smirk of his own, his hips shifting slightly as he attempted to press up into her. He probably thought he was successful in this, but Scarlett had let it happen, both of them gasping in unison when the head of his cock buried further.

Leaning in, she began to kiss along his jaw as her hands shifted back to grip the top edge of the couch. She was slowly taking him in now, stroking herself up and down while engulfing his cock inch by inch.

“Fuck…you feel amazing.” Nick groaned, a twitch of his cock reiterating his words.

His fingers then flexed along her hips and she was suddenly being forced all the way down, his hips lifting simultaneously. A loud moan echoed through the room, easily drowning out the sound of his own groans. Scarlett bowed her head into the crook of his neck, heavily breathing from the rush of ecstasy that radiated through her. Her cunt tightly clenched around his throbbing shaft as she tried to quickly adjust.

Nick pushed the thin fabric of her dress up while they remained flush together so he could fully expose her body to him. One hand slid up her abdomen and between her breasts as the other returned to her hip, eagerly trying to guide her hips along.

It took a moment, but she was finally able to get her bearings and find a proper rhythm. Breathy moans escaped between them once she was sliding up and down his cock with a newly established ease. Each drop of her hips had the tip stroking along just the right spot, causing her to arch her lower back in a desperate need to feel more.

“Nicky…oh!” She gasped, her mouth falling opening and her hips briefly stuttering atop his. “Yeah, just like that…”

Scarlett nodded when his tattooed hands assisted in lifting her up and down, forcing her harder into his lap with every downward motion.

Tossing her hair aside, a hand released the back of the couch so she could grab his jaw. Nick’s eyes were forced up to hers where she held his gaze, just so he could see how fucking good he was making her feel. Something about the eye contact must've really done it for him, because his grip shifted back to her ass to keep her up so he could drive himself up into her aching pussy at a rapid pace. The action caused the entirety of her body to tense and her breath to stall, the pleasure nearly too much.

“I'm going to cum…” Scarlett again nodded. She dropped a hand between her thighs to begin rubbing her clit in fast circles, the act immediately drawing Nick's eye down. Watching him watch her, as well as the sight of his cock disappearing up into her petite body again and again, had her right there.

Only a couple of more thrusts from him beneath her and her cunt was erupting around him, briefly causing her composure to break. Scarlett had to latch onto his shoulder with her teeth to keep herself from crying out his name too loud - they couldn't draw too much attention. His arms circled around her waist to hold her in close as her entire being trembled and quaked with her orgasm.

Nails raked down his arms, involuntarily marking him before she even realized she had. Oh well. Maybe Nick liked the slight pain that came from it, though, because his own hips jerked after he demanded her pussy remain with his cock buried as deep as possible.

“Shhh,” she soothingly hushed him, a hand immediately flying up to cover his mouth to muffle all the moans and profanities he was now expelling. Despite the need to keep quiet, Scarlett whimpered at the sensation of his cum overflowing and spilling out between them, mixing with her own small mess she had made.

Once his body stilled, she slowly lowered her hand and instead covered his mouth with her own. They shared a desperate kiss, all eager tongues moving in sync with teeth clashing as they both tried to overtake the other.

“You good?” Nick mumbled the best he could, receiving a nod from her in response.

“Good.”

In a swift motion, Nick had her on her back across the couch and he was driving himself between her thighs again. She stared up at him with wide eyes for only a second, utterly shocked by his ability to go again almost immediately, until the over-stimulation of him thrusting into her spent cunt clouded her mind.

Scarlett suddenly didn't care anymore if her apartment neighbors heard them. Hell, she would rip her curtains down and let Above watch if that's what it took to make sure he didn't stop.

Propped up on one elbow, his opposite hand began exploring her body. He grasped her neck for a moment, then dropped down to knead and massage her breast that was bouncing with each forceful snap of his hips. Scarlett’s noises spoke to her approval because words were impossible for her to come by right then. The smirk he wore showed his enjoyment in the sounds she made for him.

Nick concluded his exploration when the pads of his fingers made contact with her swollen and overly sensitive clit. A simple touch made her hips twitch and attempt to retract, despite how good it felt at the same time. This didn't stop Nick, though. He sat up on his knees and pulled her in closer, driving in harder and faster while his thumb stroked her clit in time.

Scarlett writhed in ecstasy beneath him, hips rolling up to meet with his, before she was suddenly cumming again. Her pussy gushed and quivered through her climax, to the point that she thought maybe she would pass out from the intensity.

“That's it…you did so good.” Nick cooed, this being a side of him that was taking her completely by surprise. Had he not just been the more submissive between the two? Wasn't she supposed to be the one in control?

Too bad she couldn't focus on that right now because she was too busy watching his face contort as he released inside of her once more. Nick’s head hung at a downwards angle once his hips stopped spasming, the only movement from him now coming from the rapid rise and fall of his chest. He groaned and his jaw clenched as he slowly pulled out, bringing forth a pout from her due to the lack of being filled.

Sex had always been something Scarlett could go without for long periods, simply because there were always more pressing matters that needed tending to. Trying to survive was a daily task that took up most of her time, if she was being honest. But now? Well, now she figured she would have to drown herself in this job of theirs so as to not become carried away each and everyday she was around him.

“We can't tell anyone about this,” she spoke up first after catching her own breath.

Nick had shifted to the opposite end of the couch to regain normal brain function, his eyes settled on her. She wasn't sure how to read his expression, but he eventually nodded in agreement.

“I'm serious, Nick. It could jeopardize everything.”

Taking in a deep breath, Scarlett carefully sat up, her knees being pulled closer to her chest. He was then softly chuckling, head shaking at her comments.

“You should work on your pillow talk,” he teased. “I mean…my cum is still in you as you're telling me this has to stay a secret.”

Scarlett rolled her eyes, a decorative pillow soon being tossed his way once she had dislodged it from behind her back. “Shut up,” she demanded with a huff.

Nick smiled despite being well aware of how serious she was about everything. It wasn't like he was going to go back and gloat to the guys about what they had just done because Scarlett knew he wasn't the type. He may have surprised her a bit towards the end there, but that didn't change what she already knew about him.

“What about…?” He motioned between the two of them and their still fully exposed bodies. “Was this a one time thing?”

Now that was a question she didn't have an answer for. She knew what she should say but it definitely wasn't what she wanted to say.

“Let's just focus on keeping you and the others alive first.”

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