#And it's just rapidfire switching between all of them?

[eddiezpaghetti]

going off of your BEAUTIFULLY worded post(s) about byler being inevitable and treating queer characters with respect, do you think they will explore byler's sexuality with a sex scene or just keep it to a kiss? Or perhaps another kind of scene?

Honestly...I don't feel like a sex scene is likely? Not because they're too young or anything. There have been sex scenes between people Will and Mike's age on the show before--thank you Steve and Nancy--so that wouldn't be the issue. Nor do I think it would be an issue with them being a queer couple.

My prediction--and I could be wrong; this kind of depends on how the rest of the season goes with regards to the main action plot--is that Will and Mike are going to get together at a climactic moment. Maybe leading up to the final clash or during it. And sex scenes really need time to breathe. Steve and Nancy had sex at the beginning of Season 1. Jonathan and Nancy had sex in the middle of Season 2. They had time.

But I think, if the writers waited until the final season of the show to make this couple canon, it's because it's important. Not a romantic subplot, but plot. I think, in some way or another, the romantic plot and the action plot are going to be intertwined, and they're going to climax together. You know, like they're having SE-- There'd just be no comfortable place to fit a sex scene at the height of the action. Like, imagine trying to fit a Lumax sex scene when they're in the attic at the end of Season 4. It just doesn't go there. They got the cute little doodle scene instead.

I very much think Mike and Will are going to kiss, though. I'd be shocked if they didn't.

So basically what I'm saying is...I feel like Byler is going to be too important for a sex scene to happen. I could see a scene early on portraying some sort of sexuality, particularly from Mike's side, to show to the general audience that something is happening, that it's not just one-sided. For instance maybe they'd have to change clothes in the same room for some reason, a la Joyce and Hopper in S4, and Mike would look just a little too long before turning around. But a full-blown sex scene...probably not?

The more specific stuff like this gets, of course, the harder it is to predict, so I'm a little less certain about this prediction than Byler simply being canon, but, yeah, gun to my head? Kiss, absolutely. Sex, probably not.

[grimsneverendingfuneral]

OK RAPIDFIRE QUESTIONS GO 😛 😛 😛: Between your Barty and Evan, who tops? Also who smokes the most weed? Who cries more easily? Who is the most cuddly? WHO is the one to confess their to the other love first?

ok FUCK

they're switches as fuck. i think Evan generally prefers to get fucked more often than Barty does, but when Barty wants to get fucked, its like he wants to be eviscerated. he wants to be used and abused in a way that Evan has never encountered and Evan gladly delivers

Evan definitely smokes more weed than Barty ngl.....like i know most ppl would say otherwise but Evan needs to chill tf out and he can't do opioids or hit himself over the head with a hammer repeatedly so he smokes weed. huge bong rips from a huge bong. but privately in his home, mostly. first time Barty sees Evan hit a bong he comes in his pants

Evan cries more easily but its only because i think Barty genuinely doesn't know how to make himself cry. not in a macho way. in a i cant feel my body way. he wants to so fucking badly but its like the lump in his chest doesnt make it past his throat

Barty is the most cuddly. he loves to rub his cheek on Evan's like a cat. he loves to hold him close, wrap his whole body around him, coil around him like a snake. loves to get crushed. he often demands that Evan lays on top of him with all of his weight

aaaaand i dont think they ever confess their love. hear me out i know this fandom loves a good love confession, the first i think i love you but that shit doesn't happen between them. they show it. they use their actions. they just know it. they know it in the way they look at each other, private, coy little smiles while everyone is talking. they know it in the way they reach for each other in the dark, soft, explorative touches that they both get accustomed to. they know it when they say things like i've never told anyone this before and you're my best friend. i think there's definitely a love you thrown around when Barty leaves for work or when they part but there's no grand confession

[coldtomyflash]

I've seen your speech pattern analysis on Flash characters. I was wondering if you had any advice on how to create speech patterns for OC characters?

oh heck this is one of the coolest questions i’ve ever received.

i’m gonna try not to go overboard/overwhelming and just give a bit of advice, and then if you want more details please come back and follow up!

There’s a few things to think about up front with character voices / speech patterns. The biggest and most obvious is language and cultural background. The second is personality. The third is personal history. Fourth, briefly, is gender. And the final one I’d say is idiosyncrasies to avoid ‘same voice’.

Culture and Group Dynamics

Depending on the setting, there’s a decent chance you’ll be writing characters from different cultural backgrounds. Even if you’re focusing on a single culture, there will be subcultures. Even if you’re focusing on a single narrow group of people, there will be age and generational differences.

Think about where your character is from. If it’s a fantasy world, that’s still (and even more, in some ways) important. What country, what ethnicity, what mother tongue? Did they grow up urban or rural? High socio-economic status or working class? What sort of educational background and peer group did they have growing up (and presently) and how does that factor into their vocabulary and mannerisms, if at all.

All of these can influence how people talk. There are regional accents and different modes of speaking to signal your group membership. There is code-switching across groups, for those who have had to learn multiple linguistics codes to survive and thrive in society. 

How much slang does this group and therefor this character use? What references (modern, outddated, topical, etc) do the rely on? What kind of references (pop culture, music, academic, etc)? What colloquialisms and proverbs do they say? Are these the same or different to their characters, even within the same culture, subculture, or group, and is it because they’re from a different place/sub-group or because of their idiosyncrasies?

You can use these to help your reader get to know more about your character’s background without having to spell it all out directly. Speech patterns and style are a great way to show instead of tell when it comes to details that are hard to drop in organically in other ways.

An important caveat: don’t write a bilingual character who switches languages in speech unless you’re ready to do a bit of research on that. In AATJS I did an absolutely horrific job of this because I was thinking more about fronting the fact that character was Italian rather than thinking through how people actually talk, and it came out exotifying and embarrassing. It’s important to make sure that the way you use language to bring in a character’s cultural and/or ethnic background feels authentic and manifests is a way that respects that language and its users. You can write a character with a complex cultural history without using multiple languages if you’re unprepared to do research and talk to bilingual speakers.

Personality

Probably the most salient thing in a writer’s mind when they’re trying to write character voices: is this the funny character? the serious one? the brainy one? etc.

Don’t overuse stereotypes and archetypes for creating speech patterns (or characters in general) if you’re trying to make a rounded, 3-dimensional character. Instead, go about three levels deeper.

Think about whether they’re introverted or extraverted, whether they are neurotypical or neurodivergent, whether they are introspective enough to express their own emotions clearly or whether they stumble when asked why they did a particular thing or feel a particular way (most people don’t or can’t clearly articulate exactly why they did something or how they feel, and come at things a bit sideways to circle around their motives and interior realities when pressed to make them external and concretely verbal).

Is this character calm, is their voice soothing, do they speak slowly? Are they excitable and loud and is their speech free-flowing? Are they angry? Do they swear? Do they use references for humour or are they more into puns? Do they laugh at their own jokes? Do they talk with their hands?

This character has social anxiety: how does that manifest in her speech? Does she clam up and get very quiet when she gets nervous, or does she go rapidfire and a little too loud (does she process by turning in or by distracting herself by turning outward)? Does she get very careful and deliberate in choosing her words (is she a bit high-strung?)? Ask yourself which fits best with the other elements of her personality and what you want the reader to know/interpret about her. 

This character is incredibly smart and a bit awkward: how does that manifest in their speech? Do they tend to use 5-dollar words, or do they expend a lot of energy choosing their words more carefully (how considerate are they to their audience when speaking and does that influence their speech)? Do they stumble over their words and explaining things, or are they good at making points with clear language learned from a lifetime of tutoring and helping others?

This character is the bff, who tries hard to make sure everyone else is happy first: how does that manifest in his speech? How does he switch between his happy-mask versus his more authentic self, and what changes in tone, word-choice, and inflection come in when he does?

-

Personal History

I’m only drawing a distinction between this and personality (archetype, really) so that I can draw attention to ways to add simultaneously unique and shared layers to characters that are distinct but related to group dynamics.

Here’s sort of what I mean: the level of education of a mother (or primary caregiver) of an infant can determine that infant’s vocabulary size. While we can break down all the ‘why is that’ layers to this, the one I want to point is to the simple truth that the more education a person does, the more specialized language they end up learning over time. This doesn’t have to be formal education though -- the more you learn about something and the more you read and access new knowledges and perspective, the more and more words you learn, and then if you start using those words, they trickle down to those close to you.

So.

What’s your character’s educational background? Is it the same as their friends who you are also writing? Is the same as their family’s? How does this character’s family influence their speech? Are they formal, informal, warm, authoritative? 

If you’re writing siblings, they’ll have some shared things! But also some very different ones! Me and my sister talk nothing alike in terms of vocabulary, but a lot alike in terms of mannerisms whenever we spend a bit of time together!

If your characters grew up around each other, they’ll have a lot of the same references. People from the same cities or regions will have things specific to that region, either due to sub-culture effects or because of local references. 

The city of Calgary, Canada for instance has the Plus15 which are a connected pedway system between the buildings in downtown, so named because they are 15feet above the ground. Drive 3 hours north to the city of Edmonton, and you have an underground pedway just called the pedways, no special name. Go a few provinces east to Toronto and their underground pedway system downtown is called PATH. These are all known to locals and part of the vernacular, but are opaque to people outside those cities. And the whole idea of them is probably opaque to people who aren’t from super cold cities that don’t require building-connecting pedway systems for pedestrians to get around high-density areas like downtown (or university campuses) without going out into the cold. 

Friends, families, and groups are like that too. In-jokes, shared histories, speaking in references. What are your characters’ relationships to each other and how does that history influence the way they approach talking to each other?

-

Gender

I don’t want to spend too much time on this one because ugh, gender. What even is it?

But like it or not, it has an impact on our speech patterns. There are cultural and societal norms in how men and women are likely to speak, and breaking those norms will be noticed regardless of whether you’re trans, enby, queer, or not. There are norms that people who are queer may fall into as well, sometimes without even noticing at first. A lot of these aren’t about word choice per se but instead about mannerisms and tone and body language, but some overlap or are specific to language.

Speaking in broad generalizations here, women use more emotional language and tend to speak with more hesitancies/qualifications. So more “i think, i feel” and less “it is”. More conversations that front emotions and dig deeper into those, with longer sentences to explain in detail. The obvious caveat is that personality matters more (i.e., is this a person who likes to talk about their emotions in detail or not) but it is something to consider because there will be general but subtle differences that you can use to help further distinguish your characters’ voices. 

Sidenote: this can also be exacerbated by different cultural backgrounds and languages (a simple example is Japanese which has different words for “I” depending on your gender as well as your personality, familiarity with the other persons in the conversation, and situational appropriateness, so interesting ways that gender and social expectations intersect in language).

Anyway this isn’t typically a huge problem except that I’ve found that a lot of writers have a tendency to overgeneralize the speech patterns that fit with their ascribed gender due to early-life socialization, or conversely to overgeneralize patterns that fit with their gender identity (when not cis) either due to heavily identifying with their gender identity’s speech model (or sometimes possibly due to a knee-jerk sort of backlash). I say this as an enby who both struggles with it and notices it and tries to edit and correct for it. 

I could get into all sorts of examples of ways this can lead to voice issues, but in general i think the point here is to make sure you’re writing any given character in view of that character’s personality and history, with gender only as a modifier for how some of these might come out in subtle ways but which can be important to help tell us about your character (and if you’re writing queer characters, it’s all the more important to consider how their relationship with gender and socialization might impact which speech models and styles they identify more with).

-

Idiosyncrasies

So, you’ve got a character. You’ve got their personality and history down. You know how they manifest in their speech. And you’re still getting some ‘same voice’ issues.

People really are unique snowflakes. Let that be reflected in their speech.

This person uses contractions differently than that one. This one says “ain’t” and that one says “isn’t.”

This person makes Simpsons references and that one doesn’t like Simpsons, and makes Brooklyn Nine Nine references instead. That other one doesn’t use referential humour much at all. This one loves old movies and hasn’t seen any of the new stuff so they make references all the time but no one ever notices.

This one loves the word “excoriate” and that one doesn’t even know what it means because what the hell, who uses the word excoriate?

This one talks about food a lot, it overlaps with their interests. This one uses metaphors. This one grunts in response. This one exclaims. This one says “like” and that one hates it. That one refers to themselves in third person. This other one uses reflective language an usual amount (e.g., “love me some candy”). This other one keeps misusing the word inconceivable and that one speaks almost without contractions but still comes off as more charming and humorous while correcting him.

I have an aunt who says “girl” or “girlfriend” a fuck-ton and she has been my whole life and I don’t know why because none of her sisters do, but she does and it annoys me so much the way she says it. I swear a lot when I’m feeling casual despite never ever doing it in a professional or even slightly-less-than-relaxed space, so the idiosyncrasy of comfort levels has a massive impact on my vocabulary in ways which, I promise, almost no one who meets me first in a professional space expect.

Let your characters be individuals and try to make them as unique as possible without overdoing it, or over-relying on a single verbal tendency or habit. 

-

And ... that’s all I’ve got for now. Completely failed at being concise. I meant to give like 2-3 bullet points or examples for each, not paragraphs, but here we are. That’s one of my verbal tendencies: long flowing verbosity :)

Hope this helps! 

[penthepoet]

🎥 do you have any favorite scenes from your hyperfixation?🎶 if your hyperfixation has songs/an ost, what is your favorite song from it?💕 tell us about one of your favorite characters and why you like them!💔 tell us about one of your LEAST favorite characters and why you dislike them.

continuing from the last post!!

This is gonna be long, so I'm putting it under a read more!

Do you have any favorite scenes from your hyperfixation?

Gods, there's so many, but let me zero in on a few.

My favorite scenes in Michael's Camera would always be the ones where the protagonist got possessed - seeing Sealtoast switch rapidfire between playing two characters without missing a BEAT like that really had me fascinated beyond words.

One of the ones I always come back to is Operation Monarch Debrief from Recollect because seeing Joshua Kingsley (guy on the right) argue with his brother Carson (guy on the left) over his family is the absolute highlight of my day. It was the first mention of the character I write and play, Locke, too, so I have a super big soft spot for it in my heart. It's such a weird and spicy argument with lots of fun quotes from Carson that I end up quoting constantly. Good acting, lots of fun. I also really love the scene where I show up but I think that's cheating

When it comes to Welcome to Solstice, I always go to Angel Turner's reveal video. For those who don't know, Angel Turner was based on a prior character of Sealtoast's by the name of Marty Taylor. I fucking LOVE Marty. The absolute PEAK of Sealtoast's weird characters. This was one of the first times in Welcome to Solstice where I could truly see that influence shine through, how much of a fucking bastard he is. It captures just a little bit of the Marty-esque derangedness that I love seeing in Sealtoast's characters.

One of the ones that scared me the most, by far, is (gore warning) this scene (gore warning) from the timestamped mark to 43:16 in Soursalt. This scene ruled my nightmares when I was younger. The fever dream nature of it. The way Gumteeth looks into the camera. The fucking heart held up in the air. "We all fall down here." Fucking jesus christ, he doesn't even look HUMAN. It's so uncanny.

if your hyperfixation has songs/an ost, what is your favorite song from it?

There's one or two, I think.

Go Towards The Light (Destiny Version) from Recollect is always going to get me because of the exceptionally sad context of it and the way it connects to my character.

Sweet Dreams are Made of This is another one that's exceptionally nostalgic due to its inclusion in The Knight Shift, Michael's Camera, Soursalt and various other series. It's a leitmotif for the Michaverse/Paraveil as a whole, and I think that's very beautiful.

Tell us about one two of your favorite characters and why you like them!

Before you ask, Ellpagg and all the other characters below share an actor. Sealtoast is a shapeshifter and it scares me. I love it. They have at least 10+ individual, separate, absolutely weird characters.

Ellpagg Xeth'i'stral.

Let me tell you. I am a person being second and an Ellpagg apologist first. I love this funky little angel-alien-prince within an inch of my life. His style is fucking rad. He speaks what he feels is right. He has a badass revenge arc where he kills his abuser and becomes a god. He's a bastard and a horrifically tragic character and so so so so so good. He's an all-timer. I dunno what to tell you. He makes me so overwhelmingly happy. Comfort character Supreme. I could ramble about him for hours and hours.

Marty Taylor.

Nothing can compare to the rush of straight fucking fear and excitement this character gave me. Being in a chat with him in character was such an intense and viscerally fun experience. You NEVER knew when this bitch was going to strike. What he was going to do. Who he was going to torture. The STYLE.

Take one look at (gore warning) this video (Marty is the one recording, also Gore Warning) and TELL ME you don't feel the swagger. Tell me you don't feel the electricity, the feral bastard energy about him.

This is a man who has killed. This is a man who literally tore a guy's throat out on camera. This is a guy who SET HIS GIRLFRIEND ON FIRE for an internet game. You can feel the excitement and bloodlust from here. I'm fucking hollering and howling and gesticulating with my hands. He activates my brainrot.

Tell us about one two of your LEAST favorite characters and why you dislike them.

A p o l l y o n.

I hate him so much he doesn't even get the honor of a neat screenshot.

He's a living rot creature possessing the dead corpse of an alternate version of Ellpagg. He wants to walk the walk, taking Ellpagg's cane, taking his corpse, even trying to take his titles and other aspects about him. All the while he treats everybody around him like shit, orchestrates several of the more awful things in Recollect's setting, got one of my favorite characters killed, brainwashed my character and replaced all their memories of their best friend with himself just to get them to be more loyal to him, refuses to go to therapy and is just r a n c i d.

He stinks of bastard energy. He talks the talk, but he can't walk the walk by any stretch of the word. He's an absolute piece of shit who retroactively makes my favorite character look like a total piece of shit and the only thing saving me from decking him is that at least he's funny about it.

Also, Andrew Sheffield from Soursalt.

Not providing a picture because his actor is an attention whore who's dating somebody who fucked me up really badly out-of-game and I don't want to give him that attention.

The hatred I have for that character is more for out-of-game reasons that you can probably imply, but he, much like Apollyon, is also an utter asshole who got one of my favorite characters killed. He has a smug aura and a punchable face and he just makes me mad looking at him and hearing him.

Dick.

[lvnce-mcclain]

This is Totally Not a Fic, it’s only a Thought, okay, but imagine:

AU where Buck’s search for his calling didn’t lead him into the SEALs but rather the army, specifically right smack in Eddie’s squad somewhere near year two of his second tour. Miraculously Buck’s bullheadedness in being able to finish something he starts (his father’s words ring in the back of his head you won’t last a week, you’ll quit as soon as it gets too hard every time something he’s ordered to do nags at his conscience) outweighs his humanitarian nature long enough to make it to active duty.

(Fair warning I know next to nothing about the military, ok, go on)

Imagine Buck 1.0—self-satisfaction searching Buck, cocky and too-sure of himself to make up for the fact he has no fuckin’ clue what he’s gonna do with his life and he feels like he’s drowning out here in the desert, so he’s drinking every off night and hooking up with locals freely—meeting Army Sargeant Eddie. Imagine Eddie absolutely Not Having it from this dumbass kid, more ready to jump on a landmine for the heroic headline than listening to how to act as a part of a team.

Imagine Eddie—guilt ridden for leaving as soon as he found out Christopher was diagnosed and in denial he was running away, fighting with Shannon over their video calls more than he even gets updates about their son anymore—wound tighter than ever when Shannon shows up to a video alone one day, announcing she wants to separate and disconnects the call as Eddie starts to let that sink in, before he really knows what it means. Imagine Eddie stewing, finally going off on this Buckley one night about how he’s going to get someone killed with his more glory seeking behaviors because Buckley was the perfect target for all Eddie’s aggression—not like the kid didn’t have it coming, really, with his behavior and attitude and Eddie really, really needs something to hit so he’s kind of hoping it hits the wrong nerve for Buckley.

But then—then Buckley just. Doesn’t react. Well, doesn’t react in any way Eddie was expecting at least; before the sizzle of aggression begins to show in the defiant glare Buckley immediately sports—and Eddie’s thinking yes, this is what I needed—it’s fizzling out under weighted resignation. It’s like—like Buckley agrees, and just takes it, and it stops Eddie up short. He doesn’t know what to do with this Buckley that’s all soft-sunken shoulders and disappointment that’s too deep for Eddie to understand, so he leaves with adrenaline soaked bones.

The next day, Buckley still looks a little too introspective and Eddie can’t help but feel guilty at his outburst; the kid may be dumb, but he’s not a bad person. Eddie knows for a fact Buckley is the first many of their squad seeks out when hit with bad news, because he’s always quick smiles and solutions—knows that he’s also the first one to place a hand on a shoulder sunken in sorrow, and is quickly known by the local kids to be generous with sweets when placed in friendly territories.

So Eddie tucks tail and bolsters himself for an awkward apology after he finishes in the mess hall, but Buckley beats him to it; as soon as Eddie gets him alone, Buckley is all bunched shoulders and rapidfire remorse. Eddie can barely get a word in before he parses out what’s going on, and then he’s shaking his head and using the firmest tone he can muster that’s still friendly and telling Buckley that he “isn’t looking for an apology; it’s the other way ‘round, actually,” and there’s something a little too wondrous in Buckley’s expression so Eddie blurts out something like “you don’t deserve to be my emotional punching bag, ok? And you don’t need to be your own either, kid. Just take half the work you put towards being a pain in the ass and put it towards working and you’re gonna do just fine.”

After that, things get… Better. More tolerable, at least, from a work perspective. Buckley seems to put his head down and starts actually listening and the improvement is noticed even by some of Eddie’s peers, who joke over raised eyebrows about what Eddie could have done to tame the wild child of the whole company. There’s still some incidents of minor insubordination, but they’re fewer and farther between.

Buckley, meanwhile, has taken that whole talk as some sort of permission to hang around Eddie as much as possible and Eddie has to admit when he doesn’t have his head shoved up his own ass, Buckley can actually be good company. He’d never admit that out loud, of course. Buckley’s flipped some sort of switch and now he wants Eddie to tell him everything he knows about literally everything, and on the days Eddie feels the most patient it’s honestly pretty calming to just have a constant drone of information come from Buckley, whether just to reaffirm something he’d learned or looking to Eddie for approval over something new.

But then it’s a few weeks later when Eddie finally gets through to Shannon to talk about what the hell she had meant the last time they spoke, when she says she’s come to the decision to leave Christopher with Eddie’s parents so she can go take care of her sick mother. Eddie can’t believe it at first, his entire being slamming against this reality and refusing to accommodate it. He soon finds out this wasn’t a conversation but rather being informed over a decision already made, and then it’s over.

And sure enough, it’s Buckley who he seeks out first, who takes one look at Eddie and is hauling him away from prying ears and is all concern when he asks what happened. Eddie feels so tightly wound he’s going to snap if he doesn’t hit something, but there’s nothing here he can take a swing at; so instead he deflates, letting out all the hot air along with every heavy truth that has weighed in Eddie’s chest since he ran away from his son.

And Buckley… Seems to get it. (Eddie looks but doesn’t see a barely grown boy running from a distant father, looking at a new father struggling so hard to make the right decision for a son he obviously, obviously loves.) He has a more level head about it all than Eddie thought to give him credit for, quietly telling Eddie that what matters is that he stays solid for his son. That it doesn’t matter where he is, so long as Christopher knows he’s on Eddie’s mind, that’s all that’s gonna matter until he can get back stateside and be there for him. That every day will be a new step until then, and even bigger ones after, but all that matters is that Eddie tries to take them.

Buckley’s words stick with him while Eddie struggles to connect with Christopher over video, even though his parents try hard to push a connection, but the burn of that disappointment in himself grows. He vents it all to Buckley one night—the same night Buckley tells him he’s one incident away from being discharged, and there’s something a little too warm to be annoyance settling in Eddie’s chest at the news. By the time they both let themselves get riled up and pulled back down with deprecating jokes about what’s on their minds, that warmth has become a little more defined and Eddie thinks oh.

Eddie doesn’t get a chance to think too hard over the smallest flare of attraction that had been building in his chest, because by the next week Buckley is discharged for an altercation with a commanding officer and Eddie doesn’t see him again. Eddie loses a comfort he didn’t realize he’d grown into, and things are hard enough trying to focus on his family while thousands of miles away so he just doesn’t think too much more about it.

Things from there would go about the same for Eddie as canon: he gets sent home after his purple heart rescue, only this time he goes straight to his parent’s house and still struggles to get them to release their hold over Christopher (except it would be even harder for them now, with having interim custody); struggles with finding a job until applying for the fire fighters’ academy; ends up picking the LAPD with something small niggling in the back of his mind asking him to remember something about LA (but the offhand comment from Buckley one night over beers about a Plan B is too buried in Eddie’s memories to dig up).

Imagine how much s2 would change, how much of an impact it would have on Buck. I think this is enough for one Not Fic but I still have some Thoughts over this au so I might post them later. There’s just so much potential. 

Pt 2 HERE Pt 3 HERE and Pt 4 HERE

[fmdtaeyongarchive]

— after meeting you.

date: 2011-2021.

word count: 1,886 words, excluding lyrics.

summary: ash makes a song over the course of ten years.

triggers: n/a.

notes: creative claims verification. 

it’s a song a decade in the making. over the course of ten years, he comes back to it over and over as a diary of his idea of the perfect love.

2011

he begins it on the doorstep of the first time he’ll ever fall in love. he’s a trainee and his days are filled with nonstop practice. when he comes home late at night or in the early hours of the morning, he barely has the time to pull out his homework to complete enough to keep passing classes and avoid a scolding from the company, but he still finds time to try to put into words what he’s feeling.

love is everything he’d heard about and more. he’s had the butterflies, the moments of awe, but he’s also found himself confused at times by how much he has to learn about being someone’s boyfriend. hand holding on the playground in third grade and shy kisses during spin the bottle in middle school hadn’t prepared him for actually falling in love.

he’s young, only fifteen when he writes down the first words of what he has no idea will one day be one song of many he stands on stage and sings by himself. he has no idea about the heartbreak he’ll endure in the next decade, that the one he thinks will be his first and last will be far behind him by the time the world gets to hear the words.

we understand each other i was surprised how we got used to each other

he’s never felt this way with anyone. the quiet understanding, the spark he feels at every touch and every glance they share between ash leaving class and heading into practice or on the late nights of the weekend when he can slip in time to see them. if this is the love everyone’s always talked about, that everyone’s written countless songs about and based movies and art on, he can understand why.

in the bright morning i open my eyes while thinking of you

he’s young and it feels like no one takes his love as seriously as it feels to him. it’s all-consuming and he just knows they’re the two that got lucky to find their soulmates and life partners so young. the idea of fate battles with his desire for free will, but he doesn’t care which is real when his arms are around them.

it’s only a few lines, tucked away on a sticky note stuck to the margins of a school notebook, but they show a boy who believes in every word he writes, words he’ll reshape and flesh out when he’s older and his korean has refined itself into something more sophisticated than he can offer at fifteen, but one phrase he writes doesn’t change at all:

i love you

january 2016

more pieces of what will eventually become the song stick themselves together over the years, through relationships and flings, but it’s not until years later that he sits in a vocal practice room at bc entertainment alone, old notebook in front of him and his fingers on the keyboard.

the notes of the melody he writes link to years into the past and stay with him for years into the future.

solo music is still a pipe dream for him, but something he’s afraid to put a name to has sparked again in his heart. it’s not the only time since the first time he’d fallen, but it’s the most confusing for him.

see, they’re not dating. they’re friends who have fallen into the trap of letting skin on skin bleed into their hearts to mean more than it does.

for ash, at least. he doesn’t know if his touch has bled into her bone marrow the same way hers has into his, and so he doesn’t say anything. not to her. instead, he lets his fingers idle on a piano, recalling the moment he’d first looked over at her and realized he was in trouble.

for as complicated and messy as his situation is, the melody line he crafts doesn’t soar too high or too low, it doesn’t tumble over itself in rapid notes or odd time signatures, though he still simplifies it down some more a few years later when he comes back to it. it sits in 4/4 time signature, the most basic, for love sits inside such a simplistic framework, bent out of shape by the imperfect humans who inhabit it and, as ash has now come to learn, sometimes break the frame in half. 

the piano piece is therapy in keys, the only therapy he knows at the time, not for lack of needing it, but because of lack of time and motivation to take care of himself in the way he should.

the impending spiral downward in the next few months he can’t foresee yet will be the breaking point, but he’ll never stop coming back to the keys when he feels emotions he can’t share with anyone else.

late 2016-2017

more lyrics and music slot into place over the rapidfire falling he does over a few months. there’s the model trainee he thinks he could love that shatters his heart in the aftermath of a heartfelt confession. there’s the ill-fated relationship that starts hopeful, but dissolves into fighting before he can even write much embodying that hope. then, there comes her and then him, the ones that leave him looking back on his record of love put into song and makes him want to spill tears to drown every instrument and wet every notebook so he can never write something so hopeful again.

there are times he writes words about them, but, often, he’s at a loss for words, and the song becomes more instrumental than voice, silence on his part.

silence is what damns him in the end.

2017-2019

in kijung, ash is sure he’s found the true muse to the song he’s been writing for years.

just like now when it’s peaceful i want to be with you forever i thought that as i was looking at you i was so happy after meeting you i was able to love you so much because you embraced and understood my young and immature mind warmly

he almost plays the song for him one night, almost decides he wants to rewrite it to be solely about kijung so he can sing it for him and only him, but fear makes him back out.

months later, fear makes him back out of the relationship altogether and the song remains a patchwork quilt of lovers past.

mid-2020

when she’s back in his life, the tone changes.

when we hurt each other with nonchalant tones i can’t bear our distant relationship so i’m sorry even now when i’m anxious i want to be with you forever i thought that as i was looking at you

he knows now that love can hurt just as badly when one’s in it as it can once it’s ended.

are you happy after meeting me, too? i’m sorry that i have more that i couldn’t give you i’m selfish and unstable but i wanted to treat you well

he breaks her heart and his own at the same time and comes to realize he’s no longer a man built to be deserving of the love he’s prayed at the altar of his whole life.

late 2020

there’s a piece of writing advice ash has heard over and over again for as long as he can remember: write what you know.

but when he pieces together the last lyrics of the song, they’re to everyone he’s known and someone he’s never known at once. they’re to someone he’s accepted he’ll never meet, or to someone he let slip away. he can’t tell which one, but he knows it’s more fantasy than reality.

he bleeds out every ounce of hope he has left inside of him and leaves it printed in ink and bared in song. ten years of hope etched into one song, meeting a man who now stands empty of it. he’s faced with a mirror image of someone brighter and bolder, touched with love, but left shielded from the inevitable heartbreak attached to it.

in the end, they sit over an instrumental that’s been recrafted so that something sad hits under the hope, harmonizing the truth with the dream he’s packed away and abandoned.

i think i found a perfect love that i’ve waited for for a long time because you held me and gave me energy because you hugged me by being considerate lovingly after i met you

2021

he sends in the demo to the company right before the release of his fourth solo album as closure, but he doesn’t expect to hear back that they’re interested in having him release it. it’s so different from the sound that most of lovesick had been drenched in. it fits better the music he’d been known for releasing three or four years ago when he’d been first starting out as a soloist. it makes sense that it does, considering much of the song had been created before then, but management seems more excited for it than he’d expected.

he doesn’t realize right away why, but once he gets the brief for some, he realizes that maybe they’ve decided he’s been too mopey as of late to be marketable.

despite his best efforts not to let his hesitancy about some infect his work on this song, some resentment builds inside as he spends time in the studio on it. the more he listens back to different takes of his own voice singing back the polished lyrics over the finalized melody, the more he feels like he’s mocking himself. it sounds out of place in his voice.

he’d give up if he didn’t know that letting bc know he was throwing in the towel would only mean they’d put someone else on the job to get the final product completed, and as sour as he is, the song still has strings that attach to the inside of his chest that he’s not ready to cut to hand the song over to someone else.

erin is the one who points out what’s wrong to him one night when she comes to visit him in his studio.

“you sound really young here.” she’s silent for a moment, and then she corrects herself. “you sound like you’re trying to sound young.”

she’s right.

he’s trying to sound like the fifteen year old ash who had been the root of all of this. for a man who’s been so insistent he’s not good at playing a character when he’s writing, he’s taken on the persona of someone who can skate along the surface level of the song for the sake of marketability — a man the words can’t hurt.

the song isn’t about first love just because those were what the first words had been written about.

so, he re-records it, singing it like the man who’s experienced everything he’s been through. he switches out the arrangement from coffee house acoustic to transition the instrumental from a simple piano and strings arrangement o a full-out orchestral arrangement toward the end.

when he’d felt the first rays of love, he may have thought that it was as easy as two complementary instruments, but in the decade since, he’s learned all of the moving pieces that have to come together.

by most accounts, its arrangement lends itself to a run of the mill emotional ballad, and bc will either love or hate that, but some of the pieces that had been failing to line up slot in to place.

listening back, the song still makes him sadder than he can imagine a younger ash would be proud of.

the night he finishes, he sits in his studio with the lights low and loops the track, searching through every line for a flaw he needs to fix. it comes without thought, looking for what he’s done wrong.

as he sits there, he hears his own voice repeat over and over again thoughts from years past, singing about once-perfect loves that had only been perfect for flashes of time in a broad expanse of history, and he stops the track. for once, he’s done searching for his own faults.

[noonawriter]

Delicious Rendezvous Chapter 7

WORD COUNT: 3465

WARNINGS: Bodily harm threats, mention of narcotics, smut, cursing, alcohol consumption, Heechul feels a lot more than he actually realizes

DELICIOUS RENDEZVOUS

CHAPTER 7

Throbbing throughout your body was the first thing you noted. It was hard to pinpoint just where the pain began, where it stopped, but knowing that you felt it was a good sign. You were still alive.

Eyelids heavy, you tried to open them slowly; bright lights shining down made it next to impossible to see clearly. You attempted to turn your head to the right, just to get a sense of where you were or what was going on. Then you heard him.

“Ahh, I see you’re back among the land of the living. Just in time, too.” Claude’s sharp voice sent a chill through your body. It made you shrink back, but not anywhere near as far as you’d have hoped. A quick tug to your wrists gave you the tinge of clarity you needed. You were strapped down onto some sort of table. At least he’d had some sort of humanity to leave something soft under your head.

You groaned, trying to find some sort of relief and adjust. “Please, I’m begging you, le…”

Claude hummed sarcastically, as through he was enjoying every moment. “Are you?” he drawled, clearly excited. “If you were begging, you’d be on your knees.”

Your eyes cut to him quickly, mouth opening to hurl insults and swears his way when his hand clamped down, muffling you effectively. “Nice try, but you, my dear, are going to listen to what I have to say. You may not enjoy it, but I am quite through with playing nice.” The sinister look that settled upon his face had you recoiling as much as your straps would let you. The way his hand moved to gently caress your cheek made you want to retch, and the loving look that took over his face gave him a psychotic-looking aura.

Claude begins to murmur to himself as he turns away from your immobile form. You can hear metal hitting against metal as he moves items around. “You should have just said yes. No one has ever turned me down.” He turns back to you with some type of syringe in his hands. You see him push the plunger, fluid coming from the rather larger bore needle that sits threateningly atop it.

Shivering at the surprisingly gentle touch he is using, you can tell he’s about to inject you with some unknown substance. Whether it’s poison or narcotics, you cannot afford to be under his spell. Your brain whirs as you try to pull some magic from the reserve you keep closed off, in case of emergencies. It shocks you to find that he hasn’t placed any magical dampeners on wherever you are. If you can just hold on a bit longer, the perfect time will happen and you can bust your way out of here. But for now, you need to keep him occupied and keep that syringe away from your neck.

You cleared your throat, mustering up the strongest voice you can manage in this situation. “This isn’t the way to make anyone love you.”

Claude stops short, taken aback by how unaffected you sound. “Love?” He laughed at that, fondly even, as he looked down at you with heat in his eyes. “My sweet plaything, this isn’t about love.”

“You haven’t forced yourself on me. You haven’t even touched me until now.” You swallowed, forcing yourself to maintain that steadiness. “And even then, it was as though you think I’m made of glass.”

He smiled, utterly sure of himself, “I’m patiently waiting for you to ask nicely.” He leaned down to murmur right into your ear, “And you will ask nicely.” He looked away for a moment - gone was the tenderness. “Him and his damned predictions, trying to turn everyone against me. But now that I have you, all the power lies in my hands.” His muttered rant continued as he stared off into the distance. “He’s been a thorn in my sides for more decades than I care to count. Now that I have the opportunity to take him out? It’s a win-win situation.”

You struggle against your bonds as he comes closer to you with the menacing shot in his hands. He looks you up and down and smiles, creepily, evilly, knowingly. There is something darker, more menacing behind his eyes and you aren’t sure you want to stick around and find out what he’s on about. He gets down in your face, lips dangerously close to yours. 

Claude took in a deep breath, nosing down to your ear. “You will love me eventually.” Once his hands make contact with your skin, it flashes through your mind like a highlight reel, all the plans he has for you, the chaos he plans to create where Heechul is concerned. What frightens you the most is that he sees you standing beside him, a lifeless smile plastered across your face while he hurts those you’ve come to know and quite possibly love.

Before his lips can touch yours, a blinding light surges through your body, feeling like a dam has broken and all its water is surging forward with nowhere else to go. You’re hurtling through some unknown space, lights making it so you can’t see. Somewhere deep in the back of your mind, the only image you can see is Claude flying through the air and landing far away. You can tell you are no longer in that sadistic opulent room.

Jagged concrete digging into your palms is the first thing you notice when everything goes still. Dampness begins to encompass your overheated body. Taking in deep breaths as you struggled to sit up, your body sagged and fought for you to be still. “Need...” You rasp as you try to get up again, head swimming. Shaking your head to clear it seems pointless. You manage to crack open one eye and see a city street before you, street lamps dark and fog settling around you. “Got to get ba-”. The sentence doesn’t get completed because as you finally stand to search for the club, you feel yourself falling down, though you don’t land on the harsh concrete. A strong pair of leather-clad arms caught you securely as the darkness welcomed you into its cool embrace.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Siwon was the first to notice the dark lump on the sidewalk. An unknown force was pulling him towards it, telling him to check it out. Once he caught your scent, he moved in carefully, cautious because something didn’t feel right. He caught you on the second sway, carefully cradling your body close to his, damning his cold nature. “Master!” He cried out.

He didn’t need to yell too loud. Heechul was right on his heels the moment he felt your energy reappear in his area. His eyes searched your face, his sweep surely noting the pallor of your usually tanned skin. You felt drained of blood, of everything. He noticed a few small pin pricks along your carotid and fumed. He saw how your sluggish eyes struggled to open as he took your frail form into his own arms. “Shhhh. It’s me.”

It didn’t register. Not at first. You fought with what little energy remained in your body. He tightened his hold, pulling your head into his chest and squeezing your shaking body gently. “It’s me! Calm down. You’re safe.”

A quick kiss pressed to your forehead, then he teleported you both into his chambers.

Once Heechul had you settled, he began to mentally bark out orders. They were so loud; he wasn’t taking care to direct them. Though you could hear it, your comprehension still drifted in and out, sluggish, the words jumbling, crashing into each other. He sent word for Jongwoon and called for some water. So loud. But then so gently, he clutched your hand with his eyes closed, muttering to himself. His grip tightened. Your lips were moving but he couldn’t hear what you were saying - if you even knew yourself. He lowered his head enough to barely catch your whimpered ‘don’t leave’. His little gasp meant he must’ve heard you.

A feedback loop seemed to have formed between you and him, its switch stuck in the on position. If one of you was supposed to do something about that, it clearly wasn’t going to happen. His skin felt so nice where it touched yours.

The doctor showed up moments after Heechul had reassured you that he wasn’t going anywhere. He sat quietly by your side, thumb running across the back of your knuckles softly. Muting out Jongwoon, he zoned out; more quietly thinking of all the ways he can exact revenge for what happened to you, like a low muttering beneath your own muddled thoughts. Claude was going to pay for taking you right from under his nose. That much, you agreed with. Heechul still couldn’t wrap his head around how it all went down. An elegant plan: create chaos, misdirect attention and extract the real target while the distractions play themselves out.

That bastard didn't care how any of it went because he didn't have to.

He was brought out of his moment when he heard you clear your throat. Turning towards the weakened sound of your voice, his eyes lit up, knowing things were sort of alright. You struggled swallowing, wincing each time. He grabbed the cup from the side table, assisting you to sit up and drink some more.

“You don’t have to say anything right now. Just rest.” Heechul’s words shot out rapidfire, so fast they nearly tripped over each other. Caught off guard by your giggles, his eyes go wide. He’s not used to someone taking him lightly like this. His mouth opens and closes several times, unsure what to say, what to do.

He felt you grip his hand tighter to bring him out of his head. “Heechul, stop trying so hard.” A flush of embarrassment threatens to rush to his face as you continue, the curling in dread of it mirroring itself in your chest, yet not yours. “This is weird, even for you.” The energy you put off hits him like a freight train. You’re still terrified and now he can see it in your eyes, reflected in pulses coming off of him.

Eyes boring into each other, he breaks the silence first. “I can see it in your eyes. The panic. What’s gotten you so scared?” 

He watches as your eyes divert to the other side of the room. The frazzled energy you were giving off earlier grows even greater. “Claude got me because of chaos”, you whisper. “Who’s to say he won’t do it again?”

“Look at me.” Heechul’s command leaves no room for argument. His tone sounded firm even though he was still shaken on the inside. “I have an idea, but, you need to rest first.”

He goes to leave, but a quick squeeze to his hand was how you told him you wanted him to stay by your side. Being left alone was the last thing you wanted right now. He slipped off his shoes, removed his suit vest and settled in beside you, hand still clasped firmly with yours.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Alyssa, we need to re-do the ritual.” Heechul says matter-of-factly. It’s glaringly obvious that it wasn’t enough last time but he knows he didn’t go all out either. “I know you aren’t up to it right now. And that’s okay.” His last few words were hesitant. The sooner they pull this off, the better protected she’ll be and the better he’ll feel. 

He lays beside her, arm draped across her waist as he breathes in the comforting scent that she gives off. She’s awake but not talking. He can feel her processing his words, trying to decide if she’s ready for that level of commitment. He’d had her research sex magic a bit more since their last rendezvous in this same bed. He wanted her to be aware of her options, of what she would be signing up for should any of it be required. Admitting that it was more of a necessity than he'd impressed upon her was... a matter he had thought he would have more time to prepare for.

She sighs deeply. “I’m ready. I don’t ever want to experience that again.” A visible shudder rolls through Alyssa’s body that causes her to grind on him, given their current positions. He bites back a moan, but she feels the catch in his breathing. She arched her back in his hold, ass on his nether regions as she whispers, “Tell me what to do.”

His hands gripped her hips tightly as his lips trail down the cusp of her ear to her jaw line, leaving behind open-mouthed kisses. “This is going to be more intense than last time.” One of his hands slipped away from her hips, fingertips trailing up to her breasts where he kneads the clothed mound gently. “We must connect at a deep level,” he groaned out. “I know just how to achieve that.”

He’d smirked when he said it, but the edifice of his confidence, in truth, felt fragile.

Heechul rolled the two of them so he was laid comfortably on the bed and Alyssa was straddling his hips, her throbbing sex lined up perfectly with his hardening crotch. “The truth is, I... have a predilection for, well-” Embarrassment was a feeling nearly forgotten from how very much time had passed since it had last visited him. This wonder atop him, oh, how she has brought out so much that had long been buried! “I enjoy being moderately restrained,” he whispered at last as he produced a golden, corded rope from under the pillow. She bit her lip and ground down on him, making them both cry out; his groan deep and raspy, hers high and wanton. 

She gathered his wrists together, securing them to the post at the head of the bed. She begins to litter kisses down his jaw to his collarbone, paying particular attention to the pulse point that had him shivering. He tried to continue. “The protection will be much more powerful this w-” He visibly swallowed. A nip to his skin had him stuttering while Alyssa continually ground down. “Fuck. Th-this way, our powers will combine better, but yours will be more in control, as will you.” He jerked his hips up to emphasize that last point.

She whined out and caught herself before she could fall completely on him. She found his lips and kissed him passionately. He returned the kiss with just as much fervor, tongue swiping at hers, asking for entrance. As their tongues clashed, her hands roamed to his belt, fighting to get it undone just enough. She paused their makeout session as she gestured for Heechul to lift his hips. 

“God, you’re eager.” He moaned as she worked diligently getting his throbbing member free and stripped down herself. 

Alyssa smirked back at him. “And you’re not?” Her hands on her hips, eyebrow cocked up as she stared at him. The feedback loop snapped back on, the circuit complete once more, his every thought and feeling hers and the same returning to him. They were completely open to each other, as though they were one person sharing two bodies. He surrendered to it, to being overpowered with her thoughts, her feelings, her very being.

It reverberated through him, She couldn’t deny how turned on she was right now. How she’d never been in control like this, and the power trip she was currently experiencing was otherworldly. The pre-cum dripping from his reddening tip was enticing her. She crawled back up his legs, placing a kiss to the slit, carefully watching him writhe in his bonds. It was exquisite agony. Deciding to play with him a bit, she took his hot length into her mouth, carefully sliding it all the way to the back of her throat. 

Heechul convulsed on the spot and pleaded, “Let, let me finish!” She popped off, a trail of saliva still connecting her lips to his member. When she stared at him through the tendrils of hair that covered his face, he wanted to cum right on the spot. “You are in control,” he said, knowing its truth. “This is what we’re focusing on this time.” His wholly unnecessary breaths nonetheless grew rapid; he couldn’t discern what was whose anymore. “You can decide what magic comes through and what doesn’t.” He watches as she wipes her mouth off with the back of her hand and moves to line her entrance up as she takes him into her hands. “It will draw from- your power- hngh!”

He bit his lower lip as she eases down onto him, her velvet walls sucking him in, fitting him like a glove. She moaned out so loudly that he knew someone would hear them, but she felt so good like this, he couldn’t bring himself to care. As she set the pace, her hands found purchase on his chest. She leaned in, kissing him deeply to try and mute herself.

He closed his eyes, allowing their magic to combine in this moment, the very last barrier falling, him alongside it. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

His fingertips traced random patterns along her naked thigh as he watched her slumber deeply, content to allow her this moment of peace. She deserved at least that. From the simple yet intoxicating scent he was breathing in from her to the comfortable weight of her legs entwined with his own, Heechul felt something deep in his soul - something he’d thought to be lost. 

He quickly but gently adjusted his hold on her, smirking when she subconsciously fit yourself against him again, like a puzzle piece. From this angle, he noticed the reddening around her wrists had begun to fade. Anger surged to the forefront of his mind. How dare he mark her body like that, like he owned her. 

That thought hit him like a freight train.

The idea of someone else having any claim to her was not as foreign of a concept as he initially thought it was when the two of them first met. She was just a side project that would, in time and with some luck, become a full-fledged member of his menagerie. How had she managed to break through every single wall he’d manage to build up in the past few centuries? 

He considered all the possibilities until he heard the door creak open. He shifted slightly, pulling more cover over the both of them and closed his eyes to appear asleep. However, that familiar scent gave the intruder away. Heechul heard a gasp once his bartender fully realized what he was seeing. He silently chuckled, opting to send the comical man a telepathic message instead of disturbing Alyssa.

‘Let me find out you breathed any one word of this to any of the brothers.’ He could physically feel the way Shindong gulped, almost seeing the way he was trying to not trip over his own two feet to vacate Heechul’s bedroom. He pulled her closer, heart warming slightly as she relaxed further into his hold. Work had to be done, but... Now was not the time.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After helping Alyssa get to the shower and making sure her strength had returned, Heechul contemplated returning to his office. His mind was running rampantly, deconstructing what had happened, how they’d made it through his barriers. So lost in thought, he didn’t even notice how red Shindong had gone in the face when he walked past. Muttering voices hushed as he passed but he paid them no mind.

Safely ensconced in his office, he went to his private stash to pour a stiff drink. Several of the bottles were a personal collection and every bottle had a story behind it. He recalled who was with him when he gained a particular bottle. A special occasion indeed. A small smile stole over his face at the memory of how it was a group effort, but his brothers knew what it meant to him.

A second after he picked up his drink, he put it right back down to pace without having taken a sip. “Of course! My mistake is so obvious now. Trying to topple them by myself is a fool’s errand.” He tried to rest for a moment on a soft chaise lounge at one end of the room, but sprung right back up, shaking his head before going back to pacing. “I must choose my first prospective ally wisely..."

He cleared his throat, taking a large swig of his beverage. “Siwon.” Nothing more needed to be said. The calm, commanding aura of his clan’s leader surged behind him. “It’s time for a meeting. But first, we need to talk.”

Author’s Note: This one took a bit more time that I planned for. Life just wasn’t allowing for creativity for a few days. But no fear because the story is back and still chugging along! Lots of credit still goes to @thesirenandtheking for the immaculate help. Couldn’t do this without you.

[rhotano-rose]

Rosa’s Most-Basic-of-Basic Gpose Tutorial

Hello, I’m Rosa! And I’m here to attempt to help those out there who are either new to using gpose, are confused/intimidated by it, or simply don’t know what gpose is.

To put it simply: gpose is short for Group Pose, a feature in FFXIV mainly used to change how your in-game screenshots look in various ways.

I’ve lost count how many times I’ve seen people either struggle with learning how to utilize gpose for nice screenshots, or even just straight-up never realize it’s a thing that exists in FFXIV to begin with. And it results in so much ‘I suck at this’, ‘I can’t take pretty pictures like you guys’, etc.

And I’m here like, ‘YES. Yes you can!’

I know there are bigger and better tutorials out there, but I want to offer what I can in the easiest-to-understand way possible, since gpose is incredibly fun to tinker and experiment with once you get the basics down.

For the record, I will not be using any Reshade filters or mods for this. This is all 100% FFXIV gpose.

This tutorial also only contains PC keybinds, since I’m a PC player. If you’re a PS4 player, I recommend searching up the appropriate binds for your needs!

So without further ado, let’s start at the beginning! Pretty pictures abound!

1. Open gpose. 

Simply go to your chatbox, and type /gpose in there. Like so:

When you hit Enter, you’re now in what’s known as Camera Mode. This gives you more freedom to move the position of your camera than in regular game mode, and lets you access a handy-dandy control panel to fiddle with various settings. We’ll get to that in a moment.

(You can also access gpose in your Actions & Traits menu, found under Extras.)

If you used an emote, expression, or combat action before opening gpose, it will now be cycling over and over. The easiest way to reset this is to exit gpose, have your character /sit and then hop back up, and re-enter gpose.

If there is a certain emote/expression you want your character to be doing for your screenshot, you can do it before entering gpose OR access the list of emotes from the gpose control panel. Note that combat actions can only be performed before entering gpose.

2. Move the camera!

As mentioned, you can access a lot more camera angles now! Try using your W and S keys, for instance, and pull the camera way up..

Or down low!

Your A and D keys can also move the camera horizontally (left/right)!

First person also works in gpose, so hit your Home key to try it out!

3. The control panel, also known as Group Pose Settings.

It’s not visible when you open gpose, but it’s the key to using the feature to its fullest. Usually the default keybind to bring it up is R, but if that does nothing, hit the key/button that your Auto-Run is bound to. It’s bound to the same key.

There’s a lot of stuff here, I know. But it’s really not as scary and convoluted as it looks, and all the settings are labeled to give you an idea of what they do. I won’t go into every single setting; experimenting is half the fun, so don’t be afraid to press buttons and try things out! But I will point out the ones that will solve a lot of the ‘I don’t know how to do this’.

4. The Face Camera button.

This utilizes your character’s head-tracking; meaning that wherever you position your camera and toggle the button on (you’ll know it’s on by the border around the button), they will look at you!

You can also turn this on/off easily with the spacebar.

This toggle can be used in many ways to make your character look in a certain direction. Depending on what you have them doing, their whole body may turn during an emote/ability, or sometimes it’s just their eyes that move. It varies between emotes/actions.

5. Camera Position and Color Filter make a ton of difference alone.

The first slider for Camera Position allows you to zoom in and out a lot further than you normally can. (Try using your scroll function after adjusting the slider too!) This is how people get those nice close-ups!

The second slider is used to turn your view clockwise or counter-clockwise. This can also be done with the Q and E keys on your keyboard.

This slider is largely useful for artistic angles, and makes taking full-body shots a breeze!

Color Filter is just what it says! It’s a drop-down list, and there are many to choose from, so try ‘em out and see what you like! One I tend to favor is Bright 4, since it makes the colors far more vibrant.

6. Emotes and Expressions time!

Note the little running man icon on the left side of the controls, and click on it.

This will bring you to the Motion Settings panel. Here, you can:

Toggle your character walking/running/sprinting in place.

Access your emote window.

Toggle whether gpose picks up combat actions, or makes your character face someone you’re currently targetting outside gpose when the Face Camera button is off.

When you apply an emote, you can: 

Pause/unpause your character’s animations using the Disable/Enable All Motion button up top (bound to your 1 key). This also applies to the animations of others around you if they’re on your Friends List/in your FC or Party. This is HIGHLY useful for easy rapidfire pauses to get that pose just right. 

You can also use the button beside it, Disable/Enable Target Motion (bound to your 2 key) to adjust ONLY your character, or whoever you are currently controlling. If you have a friend with you, you can click on their character (or use the Tab key) and switch to their perspective!

But keep in mind, you cannot change someone else’s emotes/expressions.

Note that emotes and expressions can be applied at the same time! Try mixing and matching different ones together and see what kinds of poses you can create!

7. Light ‘er up!

The last thing I will touch on is lighting, which can be accessed by clicking on the lamp icon on the left.

Here we have Lighting Settings. And wouldn’t you know it, it turned to night-time when I briefly left gpose!

Moonlight is nice and all, but using gpose, we can use a maximum of 3 extra light sources to brighten things up a bit.

These buttons toggle each light source, which can be adjusted with the sliders below.

(Note that Lighting 1 can also be toggled with the lamp icon up top.)

The Types under each Lighting simply determine how big/bright that light’s radius is.

Type 1 is the smallest/dimmest and Type 3 is the largest/brightest.

Type 1 is ideal for lighting up just a small area, like around your character, and the other two will cover more of your character’s surroundings.

Each set of 3 sliders are simply the Red-Green-Blue values.

You can also choose where to put down your light sources, as well as how close or far they are by zooming in/out. So if we place one down on one side of Rosa..

And a slightly dimmer one on the other side..

Now we can see her lovely face again!

You can do a lot of neat things with lighting, and the effect will differ depending on things like your selected filter, location, weather, and time of day/night as well. It can completely change the mood of your environment, so experiment!

Or you can just torment your victim subject like me.

The possibilities are endless.

And those are what I consider the basics of gpose knowledge! There are other things to play with as well, but the majority of them are simply extras for personal preference. There’s no such thing as a ‘perfect’ way to do it, just play with things and see what strikes your fancy!

As another beloved redheaded lady says: Take chances, get messy, make mistakes! 

And most importantly..

I hope this tutorial helps some of you in your screenshotting endeavors! Thank you for taking the time to read it! ❤

[wonderblog775]

Corsair K95 Software

I have the K95 Platinum and was not being detected with iCue. I disconnected the keyboard and held the ESC while plugging back in and it was detected. Apparently this is a hard reset. I had went through the other typical fixes without success. I had uninstalled and reinstalled older and newer versions of the software. CORSAIR iCUE software enables vivid dynamic lighting control, sophisticated macro programming and full-system lighting synchronization across compatible CORSAIR peripherals, coolers, fans and more. The CORSAIR K95 RGB PLATINUM XT Mechanical Gaming Keyboard immerses your desktop in dynamic RGB lighting with per-key illumination. And, while the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum is an attractive keyboard with a ton of features – Corsair’s ‘iCUE’ software is still a pain to use. Design Corsair K95 RGB Platinum at Best Buy for. When looking at the Corsair K100 and K95 RGB Platinum XT, there is a clear winner. After testing both keyboards out, I can definitively say the K100 RGB is leaps and bounds better than its predecessor. How to: Connect the CORSAIR K83 Wireless Keyboard to an Android TV How to: Set Up Stream Deck integration for K95 RGB PLATINUM XT, K95 RGB PLATINUM, and K55 RGB Best practices for cleaning keyboards.

0 downloads·Added on: May 14, 2021·Manufacturer: Corsair

CORSAIR iCUE is an ambitious undertaking that, when complete, will provide you with more monitoring, lighting, and fan control capabilities than ever before. We’re excited to ask you to join us in these early access stages to help us create the best software possible.

To install this package please do the following:

- Make sure that all system requirements are met. - Save the downloadable package on an accessible location (such as your desktop). - Locate and double-click on the newly-downloaded file. - Allow Windows to run the file (if necessary). - Read EULA (End User License Agreement) and agree to proceed with the installation process. - Follow the on-screen instructions. - Close the wizard and perform a system reboot to allow changes to take effect.

About Keyboard Packages:

Install the proper keyboard software and your system will be able to recognize the device and use all available features. This will also make it possible for owners to configure additional hotkeys. In case additional keyboard accessories are connected, this step can also improve the bundle's overall stability and compatibility, as well as performance. Therefore, if you wish to install this release, simply make sure that your computer OS is supported, save the package, extract it if necessary, run the available setup, and follow the on-screen instructions for a complete installation. Bear in mind that, even though other platforms might be compatible, we do not recommend applying this software version on configurations running under OSes other than the specified ones. That being said, if you consider applying the present version, download and install the package. Also check with our website whenever you can, in order to stay up to speed with latest releases.

It is highly recommended to always use the most recent driver version available. Try to set a system restore point before installing a device driver. This will help if you installed an incorrect or mismatched driver. Problems can arise when your hardware device is too old or not supported any longer.

COMPATIBLE WITH:

Windows 7 Windows 7 64 bit Windows 8 Windows 8 64 bit Windows 8.1 Windows 8.1 64 bit Windows 10 Windows 10 64 bit

file size:

768.2 MB

CATEGORY:

Keyboard & Mouse

For

Dedicated macro and media controls.

Responsive, smooth keys.

Attractive aluminum build.

Easy yet customized utility.

16.8 million color options.

Military-grade aluminum frame.

32-Bit Arm Cortex Processor

8MB Profile Storage

Great RGB lighting.

Comfortable wrist rest.

Low actuation force.

Cherry MX Speed switches

Against

Quite expensive

No audio-pass through

Complicated software

Rubber palm rest gets grungy sometimes

Need to customize another OS before using Linux.

Limited switches options.

If you’re a fan of Corsair, you have never heard something bad about their masterpieces, including keyboards, and the K95 RGB Platinum is no exception. I know it’s no denying that it is pretty expensive, but it feels right at home, having a few more requested features.

Corsair Keyboard K95 Software

In The Box, you will get…

Corsair K95 PLATINUM Bundle Picture

Corsair K95 RGB PLATINUM keyboard

Extra textured keys (F,D,E,R,Q, 2x W, A, S, D)

Keycap remover

Detachable wrist rest

A couple of manuals

Price to Value Ratio

Corsair is not only responsible for bringing RGB keyboards into the mainstream. Its K95 Platinum can take your gaming experience to a new level; you will love its integrated light bar.

Now, consider the high $170.26 (£140.58, AU181.67) price tag that this elegance brings with; I know it’s a ton of money for a gaming keyboard. And, the sad part is – Corsair’s ‘iCUE’ software is still a pain to use.

Now, let’s talk about Corsair K95 RGB Platinum’s Design… starting from some basics!

Dimensions

Height – 1.3″ (3.4 cm)

Width – 18.3″ (46.5 cm)

Weight – 2.65 lbs (1.200 kg)

Depth – 6.6″ (16.8 cm)

Depth (with wrist rest) – 9.1″ (23.0 cm)

Yes, you’re right… This keyboard is big and follows a full-size design, so ensure you’ve enough space if used with its detachable wrist rest.

Are cable and connector detachable?

No, both cable and connector are non-detachable; the Corsair K95 RGB PLATINUM’s cable length is quite long – 7.2 ft (2.2 m) – with two USB plug ends, having two plugs means you can use the USB passthrough on the keyboard.

Other wireless compatibility;

Bluetooth – No

Bluetooth Multi-Device Pairing – No

Proprietary Receiver – unavailable

Battery – No Batteries

Corsair K95 RGB Platinum – Overall Look & Feel

To make your gaming life super-smooth and quick, the durable keycap, though it seem a bit cheap, is made out of ABS, following a better build quality, whereas the board is of a solid plastic base topped with a military-grade aluminum plate.

The reworking of Corsair’s predecessor, the K95 RGB Platinum keyboard, has a slight, comfortable layout with authentic Cherry MX Speed linear switches and six dedicated macro keys. Worry not; due to its low pre-travel distance, the switches feel quite responsive and quick!

Want to adjust the backlight brightness, switch between onboard profiles quickly or disable the Windows key? Let a trio of buttons let the magic work.

Meanwhile, its aluminum chassis is sturdy. The given reversible/detachable/magnetic wrist rest (a rougher texture on one side and a smooth micro-finish on the other) is also a good addition – great for both – on-desk and on-lap gaming.

Unfortunately, this wrist rest gets easily dusty, oily, crumby, oils, and all manner of detritus – so get ready for constant cleaning.

Talking about its ergonomics…

Board Design: Straight

Minimum Incline: 3°

Maximum Incline: 8°

Ergonomics are OK with an incline setting and open sideways so that it won’t meet the ground if you put too much pressure accidentally or un-accidentally.

Oh yes, how could this Corsair K95 RGB Platinum review be completed without mentioning my favorite thing – Backlighting – about the keyboard?

So…

Color: RGB

Backlit Keys: Yes

Effects: Yes

Color Mixing: OK

Programmable: Yes

Lighting, well, it has been upgraded with a new 19-zone light bar that runs along the top of the frame; you will love its eye-catchy if excessive touch and how the way colors wash across the Corsair’s logo.

You will all agree to the fact that the Corsair K95’s backlighting is quite amazing; each key is lit, even a strip of underglow as well. The good part is that you can control the brightness on the board.

Cables, Cables, Cables

Cable Length: 7.2 ft (2.2 m)

Detachable: No

Connector: Not Detachable

The Corsair K95 RGB PLATINUM’s cable is extended, ending with two USB plugs so that you can also use the USB passthrough on the keyboard.

Corsair has added an “X” arrangement of two cable channels, which can be molded underside; they’re not for routing the keyboard’s cable but keeping your headset wire out of the way.

Something more than just KEYING

Macro Programmable Keys: Yes

Dedicated Media Keys: Yes

USB Passthrough: Yes

Trackpad / Trackball: No

Windows Key Lock: Yes

Wheel: Yes

Numpad: Yes

Lock Indicator Caps, Scroll & Num lock: Yes

The Corsair K95 has a nice wheel to control volume with a dedicated Windows lock and media keys at the top right – so that your game doesn’t accidentally minimize instantly.

Let’s type with Corsair K95 RGB Platinum

Talking about its overall typing experience… It is excellent, thanks to its stable keys and the spacing between keys – this will help you avoid typos. The linear switches are quiet and easy to function.

On the other hand, the actuation point is quick to reach, so get ready for multiple mis-inputs.

The KEYSTROKES are;

Key Switches: Cherry MX Speed

Operating Force: 45 gf

Actuation Force: 42 gf

Feel: Linear

Pre and total Travel: 1.1 mm and 3.4 mm respectively

When it comes to speed, the K95 RGB Platinum keyboard follows in the footsteps of Corsair’s K70 RGB Rapidfire, featuring Cherry’s latest, highly responsive, linear MX Speed switches; press them lightly to actuate – just 1.2mm of movement and 45g of force will be required.

The keys will require less pressure and bottom-out faster, well suited for twitch shooters or those that require fast reflexes.

Software

Corsair K95 Software Driver

Software: iCUE

Profiles: 6+

Account Required: No

Cloud Sync: No

Onboard Memory: Yes

Macro Programming: Software and Onboard

The iCUE software is customizable, letting you have as many profiles, but you can only save only three on the onboard memory.

FAQ: Last, not least… How compatible is the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum?

Windows Full

Android No

macOS Partial

iOS No

iPadOS No

Linux Partial

Being fully compatible with Windows, some of its keys don’t work on macOS (the scroll lock, pause, print screen, and the G1-G6 macro buttons) and Linux (keys work, but the software, so you can’t customize your keyboard and the G1-G6 macro keys).

However, there’s an onboard memory, which can let you program them on macOS or Windows and use them on Linux.

Corsair K95 RGB Platinum Keyboard – Video Review

My Verdict

Even more than just standard and just six macro keys, the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum is the Rolls Royce of gaming keyboards – both in its styling and its price tag.

No other keyboard matches its classical, all-metal build quality, disco lighting, handy shortcut buttons; so if you can also stomach the price and being OK with its complex software, the Corsair K95 RGB Platinum is worth it. Dowload free games on mac.

If you’re also using Corsair K95 RGB Platinum, feel free to share your reflections or ping me with your favorite gaming keyboard in the comment section below.

Read Also Best browser 10.6.8.

Related posts:

Kylo Smith

Kylo is a tech geek who loves technology and spends time writing about it. He is also an avid gamer, completing his studies in Information technology. He is a co-founder of Reviewsed.

[andrewdburton]

Three Months of Slacking

Unsuccessfully but Refreshingly trying to climb the local waterfall

“MMM, are you still alive?” – somebody on Twitter

Holy Shit! I just realized that the last time I wrote a blog post for you was on April 18th, and now it’s late July. That’s an entire quarter of a year that I have let this wonderful, golden field of interesting opportunities and people sit untended.

 How could Mr. Money Mustache, a reliable stalwart of bossy financial advice since 2011 and usually good for at least one post per month, have drifted so far from his original dedication? It’s a question that earnest fans have been asking, and that I have even started asking myself.

When you break out of any habit, it can be hard to get back into it: the psychological barriers start to stack up and the pressure rises and you find yourself waiting for more and more unattainably perfect conditions that, surprise surprise, never really come.

If it’s a workout habit that you have broken, you might tell yourself,

“Oh, I just need to get over this injury or this cold.. And then my Mom is visiting next week but after that I’ll be ready to get back to the gym.“

With my blog-writing hobby I make excuses like,

“Oh, now that it has been so long, I have to wait until I have something really interesting or worthwhile to say. And yeah okay, maybe I have a few articles like that in the drafts folder, but those ones take a lot of thinking and focus to write, so I’d better wait until I am feeling really smart and focused to crack into that subject.”

But in both cases, the correct solution is just to say,

“Fuck it. I am going to just do something towards my goal, no matter how tiny.”

To get back in shape, you just need to start with at least a few pushups, which you can do right now on the floor of your office or kitchen. To resurrect the MMM Blog, Mustache just has to type some shit into the computer, and heck, why not just an easy breezy article telling you about some of the interesting things I’ve been doing in lieu of blogging?

Some stories from a real life of early retirement, which may be more relevant than plain old financial analysis and reader case studies anyway. And once we’re all caught up in life, maybe it’ll be easier to keep in touch on a more regular basis henceforth.

So in fairly rapidfire format, here’s what I’ve been up to this spring and summer:

1) Renovating The Shit Out of Our New Two-House Compound

We found the previous shower had been leaking for years and creating the most interesting scene of decay. We tore out and rebuilt the whole area, and cut in a nice window for good measure.

You may recall that back in January, I teamed up with a friend to buy the house next door, with cash, at a below-market price. Once she moved in, we realized that it needed even more renovations than we originally planned. So I’ve had a joyful time tearing down walls, framing in new windows and doors, reworking the floorplan and changing the wall surfaces, as well as fixing the shoddy plumbing and electrical work that was found along the way.

On my own house right next door, I’ve been going just a bit wild with metalworking, making all sorts of fences and decks and even a “Juliet Balcony” which features a fireman pole allowing me to slide quickly down from my master bedroom to the ground where we have a shared hot tub between our properties – in case of Hot Tub Emergencies, of course.

Cutting a giant hole in the back of my house (in February!), adding a sliding door where there was previously only a silly little shitty window, then many fun, casual days of metalworking. The last pic is my side deck, which I built mostly out of wood but also features lots of metal and a fun little outdoor kitchen including coffee machine and induction cooktop!

2) Working on a Pretty Big Documentary Project

Hmmm.. something seems different about the HQ kitchen.

I have said for years that I would never do it, but somehow a very persuasive filmmaker who has made some documentaries that I really respect, roped me into helping out with a probably-pretty-big documentary.

I did a casting call in March and found a couple that I am now coaching and working with throughout 2021. The film company doesn’t want me to talk about it much until they are ready to announce it, but suffice it to say that it is taking a lot of my time and energy, which comes out of what would otherwise be my blog-writing time budget.

However, this is the good kind of hardship – forcing me to experience things I wouldn’t otherwise get to do, and the end result will be reaching a lot more people than I could by just writing on this website alone. My fingers are crossed that it will come out the way I hope!

3) Switching 120,000 Underserved MMM Email Subscribers over for Better Newsletters

Easier signups, and better eventual emails.

Since the beginning, I’ve mostly ignored the fact that I sorta have a list of email subscribers, with predictable lackluster results. People were able to subscribe and unsubscribe themselves automatically, and the only thing it got them was an automated mailing of any new blog articles on the day that I posted them. The emails were poorly formatted, people who had non-gmail addresses often had trouble subscribing, and many probably wondered why I couldn’t make it work better.

Thankfully, a mini-crisis happened that has forced me to do the work to solve this problem, at last: Google announced that they were shutting down the aging Feedburner email service, so all of the old-school bloggers like me who were still using it were forced to migrate to a more modern platform.

I did some research, and in the end I decided to go with a higher-end option called ConvertKit, which is one of the most popular email services. It can do a lot more cool stuff, and I have taken advantage of this to create an automated (and free of course) “MMM Boot Camp” email series that people can sign up for. 

It’s just a curated feed of some of my most useful articles (about 35 out of the 500), which automatically go out to people once per week until they have graduated, so you’d think it would be pretty easy for me to create this.

But as I read through my old stuff, of course I realized that much of it was crappy and outdated so I ended up partially rewriting every one of those 35 posts as I went through, which took some time. The good news is, the updated versions are here on the website as well, so the work should benefit anyone who happens to read them in the future.

4) Having lots of Fun Times (and Hard Times) In Real Life

Just another cool sunset/storm in my back yard, taken during the traditional Evening Walk.

I’ve had a series of wonderful visitors who came and stayed at my house, sometimes for a week or more. Friends and I have hosted some big events at the HQ Coworking space, which left me both energized and drained at the same time. Then I got Strep Throat in mid-July, which knocked me out for the count for a full week or more – even well after the antibiotics worked their magic, I have still been having some ups and downs with energy. 

And then of course there’s the heat – I am always more energetic in cool weather (The typical 50 degree sunny days of a Colorado winter are some of my favorite for outdoor work in t-shirt and jeans). So the summer season here is always a challenge for me, with an endless procession of cloudless 95 degree desert days making me resent the very Sun I normally worship so much. I’ve been taking refuge indoor more than I should, hiding in my air conditioned house and making excuses and accomplishing less because of it. At least this has led me to the keyboard today, to write this blog post.

5) “Cutting the Pipe” at HQ and Installing a Giant Fancy Heat Pump system.

I had fun working alongside my co-owner Mr. 1500 for this work. Everything was easy about this install … except rebuilding some of the filthy century-old ductwork we found once we took out the old furnace.

Since I first bought the building in 2017, the MMM-HQ coworking space has been limping along with a clunky decades-old gas furnace, a gas water heater that was about 20 years overdue to spring a leak, no central air conditioning at all, and very high utility bills due to the way our local gas company charges commercial customers.

When you combine these irritants and contrast them with the fact that we happen to have a glorious solar electric array on the rooftop that makes a surplus of power, you can see why I would be itching to tear out all the gas appliances, cancel the service account permanently, and install all-electric replacements that are more efficient and will also save an estimated shit-ton of money each year.

I’ll save the full details of this for my very next blog article, but as a spoiler: we found and successfully installed a unit that should be able to cool and heat our building year-round, is very DIY-friendly, and cost only about $4000 to buy. It should prove to be a great annual return on investment, and I am excited to start installing these things on all of my properties and those of any friends who are doing upgrades.

And with that, I’d say we are all caught up.

In the comments: what have YOU been up to these past 3 months? And what subjects do you think we should be covering here on MMM in the next three?

from Finance https://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2021/07/25/three-months-of-slacking/ via http://www.rssmix.com/

[notwhelmedyet]

LL #1 thoughts

LL#1 felt frenetic. I think that’s the best word for it.

alright, hiding most of this behind a cut because this isn’t a well considered review, it’s just literally some of my thoughts.

frenetic pacing: I assume this is mostly due to the sheer amount of content being covered. But also: there are so many scene changes on page breaks? Which I feel like definitely contributed to the mood.

super weird reading a thing that you’ve seen tons of panels from on tumblr: yeah, not much too add to that, but it’s really weird. Also, replacing actual narrative tension with suspense about the reveals (i.e. knowing that something bad is going down with that decepticon but not knowing when it’s going to happen)

page 1: Cybernoughts are a lot smaller than I thought/remembered. Anode is going to have to try hard to win my affections because this indiana jones act isn’t winning me over yet. Partisan kneecaps is a good line.

page 2: I would die for Lug. I am very charmed by her.

page 3: teleport bracelets are an excellent idea and someone should invent some. Actually, if they’re a thing you can just make the fact Brainstorm hasn’t is a little weird. Pacing is still good thus far, you’re just a little perplexed.

page 4: Oh, of course, it’s a flashback! And Censere is here! He’s really Doctor Who-ing it up in here and his cape looks fabulous. I like that the page makes it unclear if Anode actually grabs Lug’s hand...since I have a vague notion of what will eventually be revealed.

page 5: Why is the background of this splash page so low resolution? It feels weird.

page 6: Okay, we have now spend 6 of our precious pages on Anode and Lug and none on the entire rest of the cast. I’m a little dubious about this pacing decision. I’m a little confused by the framing at the start and whether Lug is supposed to be in a pod or not? That may be intentional. And hey, Magnus! Cool.

page 7: Anode might not want to listen to a longwinded speech on the Cybertronian civil war, but I would. Also, the vague cut to outside the fortress is...disturbing. What with the bodies and all. Having Anode antagonize Magnus in her first appearance makes me feel on Magnus’s side. meh. Also, what is up with his chin? It is wrong. But the return of the Magnus practices jokes brick joke is good stuff.

page 8: This page is doing way too much. Nautica, Velocity, Roller and Rewind get a pair of panels between the four of them. And then we’re introduced to some sleazy looking Decepticons who I guess we’re gonna hate. Rapidfire appears to have an incredibly tiny waist.

page 9: Good good stuff but frustrating that it doesn’t get more time. Tailgate is so naiive that he doesn’t seem to understand that all the decepticons that they killed were people? It makes me cringe a bit, but I assume that is on purpose. Cyclonus, on the other hand, has gone through grad school as far as character development is concerned.

page 10: ANOTHER scene switch because we couldn’t look at the same character for two pages running. Ack. Swerve. I felt horrible this whole page because it kept being funny whilst also reminding me Skids was dead and I felt like I was having the wrong emotions. ALSO: SWERVE WHERE THE HECK DID YOU PUT THAT BADGE AND ALSO WHY.

page 11: this page had the highest ratio of ‘seen it’ panels to ‘new’ panels which made it a very strange reading experience. Also, I guess writing 40K words about ratchet and drift has solidified by dratchet shipping a bit because I kept resenting how little screentime ratchet and drift get together. Also still a bit prickly about how easily Drift accepted Rod’s apology back then.

page 12: my god this page. This page also wanted me to feel multiple emotions so distinct that I felt bad for not being able to pivot emotions fast enough. We dwell on Ravage’s death for a single panel, interrupted by weird slapstick comedy.  agh

page 13: I like the den. It’s nice. I’m not sure if they mean like an animal den or a sitting room? Ratchet and Drift stand next to each other. For all appearances at this point JR has Doctor Who season finale’d the geobomb (huge cliffhanger end of season turns out easily solved immediately in the next season) which is irritating. Pretty sure it’s how they shifted universes but we’ll see. Also “Aw Rung - has no one told you?” is a horrifying pivot back to skids and feeling awful

page 14: I want to feel sad but this page is insistant I instead feel intense confusion, concern for rung and horror. I don’t know what’s happening here and I don’t like it. rung honey are you okay

page 15: oh look we Worf’ed Cyclonus. I’d like to see that fight cause anyone that can beat up cyclonus has got to have moves. also, his chin is wrong and I don’t like it. You can definitely see how this drama is going to shake up and I do not like. I like plots where people communicate, think about their actions and make good decisions. (this is partially a lie but ah tailgate stopstopstop and think. also, maybe see if Cy is okay first? does he need to lie down? should you call velocity???)

page 16: oh my fucking god these page transitions. Drift why the heck did you bring your Great Sword into the teleport chamber? Anode, honey, mind your business and do not touch my boy or his sword without his permission. Also, anode, did you just explode my boy? what are you doing

page 17: well, if this is a vision from Primus, Primus is pretty fucked up. Why is Grimlock there? what the hell is happening? why is there pharma (the terrible doctor) but not ratchet (the best doctor)? The wiki tells me the words on the ground mean PREPARE, CONFRONT, REPEL...which I guess will mean something eventually. I hope this vision isn’t literal because while that would be a terrifying final showdown...it would also be intensely silly.

page 18: aaaaaaaah ratchet and drift talking. last time this happened I told you the truth. is he references his vision before the Lost Light took off? Or has he been collapsing/having visions while traveling with Ratchet? Is there a chance we could see some ratchet & drift adventures??

Why are you in such a hurry, Rod? If you want Cy in charge, find him and tell him, don’t tell Whirl to tell him. Also, there are practically 0 adults left in this fortress.

AND OKAY. I need to complain about this teleporter some more. How the HECK do they fit TERMINUS, ROLLER and MEGATRON in there simultaneously? let alone them and the rest of the bots? I am so deeply confused.

page 19: nobody bothers to help drift up because they’re all monsters. Also, saw the functionist universe thing coming a mile away (because spoilers obviously). Rewind is very cute here.

page 20: ooooh reveal. the pacing here feels good but all my bots have such cute facial expressions that i’m very distracted from the horrible reveal.

page 21: DRAMA! Senators can fly! Multicolored Rung-styled protestors! more judge dredd bots. And huh, Megatron’s badge is still red. I guess he didn’t want to paint over bumblebee’s badge? Or maybe he felt memorializing ravage with a blacked-out autobot sigil was weird.

...overall, I liked it, obviously. I feel like the anode and tailgate plots are going to be that sort of awkward secret keepy plots that make me feel bad, but the functionist stuff and whatever the heck is going on with Rung is exciting! there is just...so much. So much. We needed a bigger cast?

[masteredshadows]

crimson.

straight up this is a long one and requires way too much context but I also put too much effort into it and have been editing it for around a week so it’d be chill if you read it

tl;dr context: elli’s vlad’s modern verse variation and my zed’s modern verse had a fling and then shit happened and also you should read her excellent ... I suppose counterpart? drabble

xoxo thanks

     The room is quiet.

     The only noise that can be heard is the occasional sound of Zed’s fingers dancing across the computer’s keyboard, and the sole light in the area comes from the dull white of its monitor. The sun sunk past the horizon long ago; the moon is obscured by the curtains drawn tight across the window.

     Zed sighs, shutting the computer down before leaning back in his chair.

     The last few weeks have been all too dull. There is only so much entertainment to be derived from brute forcing insecure accounts and reminding people why, exactly, password or 123456789 (or, god forbid, 1q2w3e4r if they feel really clever) are terrible passwords.

     Idiots.

     Not that Zed really has any right to look down upon other people for making stupid decisions, given his behaviour over the last several months.

     Ugh. He could have just talked a bit, acted like any other member of that damned crime syndicate, kept himself as emotionally detached as he always does, but instead, instead -- !

     He lets out another sigh.

     Dwelling is pointless. He knows this, but it hasn’t stopped him from staying up until three AM for the sixth night in a row.

     Good grief. Zed shakes his head with a heavy sigh, disappointed in himself.

     At least twenty-four hour gyms exist.

     Zed pushes the chair back, standing up and shuffling over to the kitchen, not bothering to turn on the light: Enough filters through the crack underneath the apartment’s entrance to navigate. Even so, he grips the marble countertop’s cold edge, stumbling around a bit until he finds the handle to the fridge.

     Opening the fridge door is like staring into the sun. Zed squeezes one eye shut, the other blinking rapidly in an attempt to adjust to the intensely bright light, and quickly pulls out an assortment of vegetables before slamming the door closed. Blinking his other eye open, he sets them on the counter, then reaches for a large chef’s knife and places it beside them.

     Now, where did he put the cutting board…?

     A lamp would make this easier, you realise.

     Zed yawns. He doesn’t need sass from himself right now. Just opening the fridge hurt far too much for him to want to deal with such a thing again so soon, anyway.

     Just. Flick the switch on. It’s not hard. Don’t be stubborn.

     He sighs, turning away from the kitchen cabinets, but pauses. Outside, he can hear the distinct sound of someone walking in the hall. Their steps are slow, muffled by the carpet.

     Abruptly, they stop.

     Zed’s breath catches, his eyes darting to his apartment door.

     Two dark shadows interrupt the once unbroken line of light creeping underneath it.

     Who would be standing outside his door at this time of night? Those precious few foolish enough to consider Zed a friend wouldn’t visit him without warning, and he isn’t known for being the most welcoming of neighbours.

     A maintenance man? No, not at three AM, and certainly not when Zed hasn’t reported anything. Maybe to fix something out in the hall, but if that is the case, then why stop in front of his door?

     A quiet click comes from the door handle.

     Zed reaches for the knife, heart starting to beat faster.

     Why are they here? Did I mess up, leave a trace somewhere? No, I’ve covered my tracks-- nobody should know, nobody could know, nobody but--

     Shit. This is what he gets for dating a member of a crime ring, for allowing his emotions to get the best of him yet again.

     He is going to die, alone, and not a single person will mourn his disappearance.

     Zed tries to take a breath, but finds that he can’t, finds himself choking on the kind of terror that can only accompany a threat to one’s life.

     The handle turns.

     He doesn’t want to die.

     He swears his heart is going to explode. It beats, rapidfire, a machine gun emptying a cartridge behind his ribs. Zed’s fingers curl around the knife’s handle, his father’s martial arts classes flashing through his mind. If worst comes to worst--

     Why else would someone be breaking into his apartment? A robbery? Doubtful, robbers look for easy targets or immensely high value ones; breaking into a random (though, granted, expensive) apartment on the fifth floor of a building is too deliberate for a simple robbery.

     Then--

     The door pushes open, slow, agonizingly so.

     He swallows.

     Zed supposes he could get behind the intruder and snap their neck (this isn’t a movie), but they’re likely a trained killer, while Zed is not. Trained in martial arts, yes, but when is the last time he went to a dojo and practiced?

     It isn’t something he wants to do, either. He has hurt a countless number of people, and good god is it funny, but it is their emotions that he twists and plays games with, not-- Not their hearts, their flesh.

     Can he do it? Even he isn’t dense enough to ignore that his mindset towards the existence of other people is more callous than most, but--

     Zed takes a breath, trying to ignore his creeping terror, pulling the knife towards himself.

     His life is more important than the intruder’s.

     They might have a gun. It would be dumb of them not to.

     If they do, then Zed cannot allow them to get a shot off. He will-- would die, adrenaline or not, and he has to plan for the worst.

     He doesn’t want to die.

     If it is a knife -- Well, then at least they will be evenly matched.

     The intruder steps through, the hallway’s light illuminating their silhouette for a brief moment, then shuts the door.

     Zed holds his breath.

     Male. Reasonably tall, but from what Zed can tell from the brief glance, unlikely to outmatch him physically. No weapons in his hand yet, indicating he doesn’t want anything to be seen by the cameras in the hall. Does he have a key to Zed’s room, then?

     He should have moved the moment things went south with Vladimir, the moment the Black Rose had a reason to deal with him.

     Focus.

     The intruder takes a step forwards, but stops, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the darkness.

     Zed needs to do something. Now, while he still has an advantage. Shit. Shit. Shit.

     Slow as he can, desperately trying to avoid making any noise, Zed exhales.

     Why must his heart beat so fast? God. God! He can’t think straight, can’t wrest fear’s cold grasp off of his spine, can’t stop his head from spinning or his hands from shaking.

     He doesn’t want to die.

     The intruder reaches into his pocket, and suddenly, Zed finds the will to hurl fear aside and lunge towards the man. Knife extended, he rushes forwards, desperate to hit a vital. The intruder whirls around, facing Zed just long enough for the blade to plunge into the skin beneath his ribs.

     One stab isn’t enough, can’t be enough. How could something so easy possibly be enough to kill a man?

     Zed jerks the knife out, barely cognisant of the intruder’s frantic attempt to grab onto his own weapon, then jabs it forward again, pressing his free hand to the man’s throat, anything to stop him from grabbing onto whatever is in his pocket.

     Something disgustingly warm and clammy closes around his left wrist, trying to wrench his iron grip off the knife.

     Zed can’t think, can hardly breathe, can’t hear a thing but his heart pounding incessantly in his ears, can’t see a thing in this suffocating darkness. At least it means he doesn’t have to see the face of the man as he withdraws the knife again, doesn’t have to hear any shouts of pain that he might emit, but it means Zed doesn’t know where he is stabbing, doesn’t know anything besides the mounting violence threatening to consume him and the repetitive jabbing of the knife, one stab, two stab, three--

     His left hand feels warm, sticky; his right is doing everything in its power to crush the man’s windpipe.

     His father would be disappointed in Zed for forgetting so many of his lessons.

     The thought only renews his determination, adds fuel to the fire of his violent lust. Zed shoves forward, sending both him and the intruder careening to the ground. Somehow, he manages to keep hold of the knife, and he jabs it between two ribs, again, again, again.

     He doesn’t know how much time has passed when he stops, only knows that his arms ache and that his hands are slick with warm blood.

     His face feels hot. His lips feel dry.

     Zed stands up, shaky, leaving the knife impaled in the man -- corpse -- then reaches towards the wall. With its guidance, it takes him only a moment to find the lightswitch, though he hesitates before it.

     He swallows, takes a deep breath, and flickers it on.

     The first thing Zed sees is his hands, red, messy, with a row of four white finger-shaped imprints on his wrist.

     That’ll bruise, if it hasn’t fractured.

     Whatever the case, it hurts. How is he supposed to explain this to a hospital? ‘Oh, yeah, I got into a fistfight and didn’t report it to the police. Silly me!’

     Dumbass. He can figure it out tomorrow, or-- Later today, as the case may be.

     Zed’s gaze wanders, moving from his wrist to the wall, where his attempt to find the light switch is all-too-evident.

     He might need to repaint. How easy is it to wash off blood stains…?

     Zed shakes his head.

     Later. He’ll deal with that later, just like everything else to do with this horrific chaos. He directs his eyes to the floor, where a not small amount of blood is pooling, spreading out and across the wooden floor.

     --Shit. Zed’s eyes widen, and he moves to grab a towel from the bathroom. Tearing it off the rack, he rushes back to the hall and presses it up against the crack beneath the door.

     He doesn’t need any evidence leaking outside of his apartment.

     Satisfied with the towel, he turns away from the door and back to the body.

     It isn’t a particularly pleasant sight. The man’s once-white shirt has turned a murky scarlet, and his face is contorted into a gruesome expression, his jaw slack, his eyes wide open. Parts of his shirt have torn, revealing punctured, puffy, discoloured skin, and square in the centre of his abdomen, the knife lies where Zed left it.

     Zed supposes that he is lucky the man wasn’t wearing more, lucky that he keeps his knives sharp, lucky that a regular chef’s knife was enough to break through cloth and skin, lucky that he has kept up with his gym routine, lucky he had surprise on his side, lucky lucky lucky--

     The man is dead.

     No. Yes, but more accurately, Zed killed the man. Intruder.

     Future killer?

     Using different names for him doesn’t change what happened.

     Zed sighs, stepping over to the body and crouching down. Almost idly, he begins searching through the corpse’s pockets, of which there are too many.

     (Cargo pants. Disgusting.)

     To his relief, there is a gun tucked away in one -- a small, black pistol, though Zed doesn’t know enough to identify what kind. Elsewhere, there is a wallet with an ID that Zed doubts the validity of and about a hundred dollars worth of cash. Gingerly, he puts both back into the wallet, careful not to stain them with the residue on his hands, then sets it aside to rifle through later. In another pocket, Zed finds a packet of cigarettes, as well as a single key and a phone.

     He squints at them.

     The phone will need to be destroyed. Soon, too, assuming it’s being tracked. It’ll catch the Black Rose’s attention, inform them their man failed to complete the job, but, well-- They’re already sending people after Zed, anyway.

     It is only then that Zed realises he hasn’t confirmed that this man is from the Black Rose. A likely murderer, yes, judging by the gun and suspicious behaviour, but anything else…?

     He picks the wallet back up, looking at the ID once more.

     He’ll have to cross check it with the data he has on the organisation.

     Damn. Shit. Fuck.

     I killed a man.

     Zed turns his head to look at the wounds on the corpse’s chest. They are brutal, imprecise. No policeman would believe them to be the result of self defense, not when Zed has no major wounds to speak of.

     He swallows, reaching his hand out.

     It hovers over the knife.

     Stop being stupid. He died, you lived. Tragic.

     Zed reaches down and tugs the knife up and out of the corpse. Distracted, he stares at the blade. He thinks it may be staring back at him, condemning him for the crime he has committed.

     Zed tears his gaze away from the knife, letting it hang by his side. He stands up, steps over the body and walks into the kitchen, where vegetables lay scattered across the counter.

     Huh.

     It all looks so normal.

     He glances at the clock above the stove.

     The green numbers blink 3:51 back at him.

     It feels like a decade has passed, not fifty one minutes.

     He moves over to the sink, flicking the cold water on and sticking the knife underneath it. Within moments, the blade is washed free of blood, and Zed exhales a breath he hadn’t realised he has been holding. Once the knife is clean, he sets it aside and washes what he can of the blood off of his arms, though he resolves to take a shower before he sleeps tonight.

     Sleeping with a dead body in the home? The thought is almost laughable.

     Maybe if he was willing to risk the smell seeping out of his home, but no, first, he needs to somehow dispose of it. Acid might work, if TV can be trusted.

     It cannot, but Zed can’t think of any better options. No meat grinder large enough to deal with a body would fit inside his home, and the corpse’s wounds are unsettling enough without it being turned into a hamburger. He will need to erase the camera footage from the night, too, because he hasn’t committed enough criminal acts for the day already.

     It is all too much to think about.

     Finally, he shuts the water off, opening a cabinet and pulling the cutting board out. Zed rolls a head of lettuce onto it and begins chopping it in a rhythmic fashion, slicing it quickly, deliberately, efficiently, allowing the repetitive action to calm his mind and steady his heart.

     The room is quiet. A man is dead, and another quietly readies himself a meal, a content expression upon his face.

[burndownthehousetonight]

((WHO’S READY TO POP OUT A BABY WITH @last-of-my-bloodline))

Things seemed normal at the meeting, running over the usual safety n’ security of thing, a few minor arguments over what was best n’ what was terrible for the details of the current moment, even the occasional talk of what things will be like once things settle down for once. Light simply listened to the details n’ the arguments, sometimes amused by their sometimes odd arguments, yet his worry came when he felt oddly discomforted out of nowhere. 'Was it something I ate?’ He thought though tried to ignore it for a while.

"... ...Restrictions on entering the central city have decreased too much. Have you noticed the influx of weapons salespeople at the bazaar?" An elderly tapir man said in the midst of yet another debate.

"The bazaar has gotten larger on the whole, Lucid." That particularly dour Wolf Light didn't care so much for seemed to be on the minority team of this argument. "You could say the same for any vendors present."

"Yes, Fawlist, anecdotal proof is meaningless," Altitude added. "but import restrictions have gotten lighter exponentially as of late, that's the important part."

"A band of tentails with access to superweapons doesn't NEED to sneak in their weapons." The wolf shot back.

The argument was cut short by a strange, out of place popping sound. The tapir seemed to be the one to place the source. "Light, did you spill something?" He said, noticing the floor near his feet.

His ears suddenly lay flat to his skull, his discomfort more obvious. “No…I think Cassio ain’t waiting anymore,” Light replied, flinching a bit. “This was not what I had in mind at the moment.”

Security briefings were cut short immediately.

The castle servants dropped their daily tasks rushed to grab a wheelchair for the young king. They were only supposed to dig it up closer to the due date, they weren't expecting him to go into labor weeks early! This search was futile, as the castle guards who were helping Light's walking quickly came to the conclusion it would be faster if they carried him outside. There was already a small crowd of castle staff and family following Light to a bench out in the front courtyard.

"The ambulance is on it's way," Altitude assured him, annoyed at the lack of a certain castle resident. "Focus on your breathing. Where's Manic gone to?"

"Manic left with Scourge early in the morning," the castle guard informed them. I.E., they were out doing their usual thievery.

"Oh, lovely." Fawlist spat out in anger. "Light, how bad are your contractions?"

Hissing slightly he grumbled something under his breath he glanced over to Fawlist. “There is still time between… I really didn’t expect this, hopefully there is little delay,” he replied again. His mood was a bit goofed up with this situation.

He then looked to one of the guards. “Can you find them?” He asked, not sure where the two had wandered off to in their thieving hour. ‘This one is definitely a handful already, they can't even wait for daddy to get home,’ he thought with slight amusement. Where was the father, exactly? It was one of his normal 'dates' with Scourge. Find an awful person. Find their house. Rob 'em blind. Manic left his phone on, no one else was even in the house. That didn't stop him from getting angry, of course. "What do you mean, his water broke?" Manic whispered into the phone angrily. "Then fix his water yourself, this is kind of a bad time, dude." Through the phone, his tapir adviser could hear Scourge motioning and saying something to Manic. Disbelief turned into genuine, strong surprise, and Manic fumbled the phone to his face with the sound of something falling in the background. "Uh... What hospital's he at?" Manic asked, not sure what to think. Were they actually being born, right now? Right then and there? "Come on, just grab what you can and go!" Manic commanded, not even bothering to grab anything else. Lucid hung up his phone as soon as the ambulance began to approach. Light kept thinking about what a handful this pup was already, n’ it's just begun for its mischievous life. “The triplets were less trouble then you are…” He whined slightly as he tried to keep going. “Heh…how far are they?” He asked them, unsure. The tapir reiterated the question and handed the phone over to Light, most of the castle help staying behind as the ambulance pulled away. Inside, there was only Light, Shadow, and a handful of paramedics. "Light? That you, babe?" Manic said, clearly flustered. He could hear the van being turned on in the background. "Babe, I'm only like, two towns over. That's what, twenty minutes? I'll be there soon, hang on tight." The other door slammed shut. "He alright?" Scourge said loudly in the background. "Yeah, I think he's fine!" Manic almost yelled, not knowing what to think. He was actually going to have a kid in a matter of hours. "You okay? He's not making too much trouble, right?" He gave a slight chuckle. “At least we know he’s a lot like you, mischievous when he wants to be,” he said in a non-offensive meaning. “We are fine at the moment, Cassio just has terrible timing I swear. Guess they got sick of listening to the meeting earlier that they just had to interrupt it.” Light chuckled again at the thought, though he hurt a little. "I mean, I don't really blame him." Manic was feeding the joke, sure, but he wasn't laughing. He was more joking on instinct than out of actual humor. Crap... How was he supposed to get down to the hospital?! He wanted to be there for Light, what could he do? Even if it was just twenty minutes, that was a hell of a wait. "Tell you what, I know a shortcut. I'll be at the hospital in ten minutes." Manic said, motioning for Scourge. "I'll be there as soon as I can get there, alright, babe?" Manic's 'shortcut' wasn't a shortcut at all. Him and Scourge switched seats. He normally wouldn't want to deal with Scourge's reckless kind of driving, but he was willing to make an exception. The car revved and Scourge was rocketing towards the freeway, pushing the limits of the van and probably going tens of miles over the speed limit. “Alright, but do try to be careful,” Light replied over the phone. He knew even ten minutes was a lot of time to pass, he only hoped they would be fine n arrive soon enough.

Shadow huffed, partly nervous. ‘Boy this was definitely a wake up call for us,’ he thought nervousl,y but he was sure even with the puppy being with little early he was fine. It didn't take long for the ambulence to arrive at the hospital. It seemed the rumor mill ran fast, and streets almost seemed like they were empty in anticipation of the ambulence rushing to the hospital last second. It seemed the plans to have a home birth weren't to be, nothing was ready save for minor details. And sure enough, the king was given priority in the hospital and rushed to the birthing wing. The hospital wings looked clean and gorgeous after reconstruction efforts, just as one would expect from a nice hospital. What wasn't expected was the birthing room. It almost felt like... a cabin home. It was clearly decorated to look and feel warm and inviting, with the rustic furniture and medical tools seamlessly disguised as simple fixtures. The only giveaway that this was actually a hospital room was the bed which, while looking quite nice, still had the same plastic frame and tilted shape of a birthing bed. Doctors rushed to the king's aid, asking rapidfire questions and taking tests to make sure this truly was birth. There was no doubt, of course. The head delivery nurse was brought in as Light's assistance for the process, guiding Light through every step of the way carefully and gently. By the time Manic and Scourge had run in, Light was already positioned on the birthing bed, with the nurse checking the heart rate of the child. Manic dropped a backpack to one of the chair, landing with a heavy thumb. "Oh my god, Light!" Manic said, running up to the side of the bed and grabbing his hand. "Holy- Oh my god, what happened? You're alright, right?" “Relax Manic, this isn’t the first time I’ve had pups, remember. I’m fine,” he said, nervous only slightly. “It was an unexpected curve-ball cause he didn’t want to wait two more weeks,“ Light said softly, trying to keep calm n’ deal with the phase like he had before. N’ thankfully this time he ain’t expecting a set of three. Manic sat down on a cushioned chair, and pulled it up to next to Light. He held his hand as the middle aged reindeer wrote down some information on his patient. "Oh my god... I'm fucking terrified, Light." Manic said, with a weak but genuine smile. "So fucking- This is a real thing, you've got a real baby coming." He laughed lightly, pushing back his quills nervously. "Ooooh man..." Scourge sat down near him and gave him a pat on the back for comfort. "Relax, he's takin' it well." Scourge said, mildly scared himself but at least hiding it. "So how long's this take? He comin' out in an hour or summat?" "Birthing times vary from patient to patient," the nurse informed them. "But normally for a second-time parent, it should take eight or nine hours. The doctor should be in shortly, uh... your majesty." He said, clearly not sure if the term was appropriate. "Are you sure you can handle it, babe?" Manic said, wrenching his hand around Light's. "Like, I know it's supposed to be hella painful." “I know you're worried, but this is considered nothing compared to when I had to birth the triplets…” He winced slightly with a small groan. “But even still, it still kinda hurts just as much I swear…” He said with a heavy sigh, letting his head lay back. Manic scooted closer and gave Light a kiss. "Don't worry, we'll get you on every birth drug thing if you want." He said, trying his best to give Light comfort. He was used to cuddling, and he certainly wasn't going to do any of that here. "Or we could just go all civil war and you can bite a stick, I'm sure it'd be fiiine." He said with his normal stupid face. Things started relatively tame. Sure, the contractions weren't any fun, but they were far apart enough that Light seemed able to relax more. As well, they were able to listen to some music, even watch just a bit of TV, and all around calm down after the initial drama. But as the second hour turned over, things had begun to get worse. The pushes were hitting faster and harder. They had to focus mostly on Light's body to try and keep him comfortable. And unfortunately, Scourge was starting to leave the room more and for longer. Manic never left Light's side, knowing that this was his fault. It was his fault for pushing Light too far months and months before, and he had to make sure Light suffered as little as possible. "Are you sure you don't want more of that stuff?" Manic said. "What are they called... epidurals?" “I’m not sure how much I can take that can still be safe,” he said, eyes closed for a moment. “I know you're worried n’ I was never a fan of this part, but I’ll be fine…so will Cassio.” Light managed to say past labored breathing. “Heh, you're just like my brother was, worrying if I’d be fine through out this.” He gently placed a hand over Manics trying to help calm him down. Manic wasn't sure if he was helping Light or if Light was helping him anymore. One thing he was sure of was that, as the labor did begin to get more intense for Light, Scourge was staying out of the room more, and Manic was getting angry. "Shadow," Manic said, "Can you go get Scourge back in here? I don't- I don't wanna leave his side right now." If it weren't for that, Manic would have marched out there and chewed out Scourge in a second. Nodding he left to go look for green n’ find out why he has been leaving so often n’ for longer periods of time. With a sigh he eventually found the green hedgehog. “Is something bothering you Scourge?” He asked him, being mindful at the moment to let him have some space. When he'd find Scourge, he would be sitting near some vending machines in the front hall, wearing a sweatband and with his jacket removed. He had clearly returned from a jog of some kind, and was having a bottle of water. There was a genuine sadness to Scourge's glare that Shadow hadn't seen from him before. "'ts nothing." Scourge lied, quite baltantly. He could tell Shadow wasn't budging. He wanted to growl and fisht Shadow, but he couldn't. It would only hurt Manic and Light. So he motioned for Shadow to sit down next to him. "Manic fuckin' loves kids," Scourge grumbled, loudly opening the wrapper to a granola bar. "We always joked an' talked about having a kid together. Even found a doctor who thought he could help... fucking insane as he was." He chewed for a moment, speaking through mouthfuls. "He's finally havin' a kid... with someone else. Cassio ain't my kid. Manic's having some kid with some guy he's known for a year tops, an' not me." Sitting with him, Shadow listened quietly for a moment trying to figure what was wrong, n’ once he knew he simply shook his head. “Has it ever occurred to you yet that Light really wanted you n’ Manic to be happy again? Yes he’s having a pup with Manic, but that isn’t stopping him from allowing Manic to still be with you.”

Shadow looked up to the roof. “He knows you love Manic, n’ he’s learned that Manic loves you as much as him, yet he wants to keep from being a rift between that. Why do you think he asked if you could help him with caring for Cassio even if the idea bugs me a little? I know his intentions well enough without adoption, or some mad experiment. What are the odd of you getting that shot of raising a child with him?“

He knew that might have been a little rough, but it was true their records may prevent them from adopting for safety reasons. “Manic is worried n’ a little angry with you at the moment for leaving the room.” Shadow simply put out with a nervous chuckle as he didn’t wish to push his luck with them really. Scourge was aware they couldn't adopt. As thieving as they were, they weren't going to steal an entire child, that would be psychotic. And experiments... it was a nice fantasy, but Finitevuses were no one anyone could trust, especially now that they were more or less responsible for one's death. He was living with Manic and raising a child with him... He was living with Manic and raising a child with him. "Bet he is," Scourge said with a grim chuckle. "At least this time, our kid'll have someone who ain't fucked up to raise him. An' you'll be there, too~" If he was going to give Scourge an off-handed insult, Scourge was gonna be absolutely up front with his. He sighed, grabbed his granola bar... and picked up that heavy back they'd run in with. It was still clunking around, but Shadow could now hear a large rustle of food packaging inside on top of the normal clunking. "Stopped at the machine, Manic 'n me stress eat." He said, walking back towards the room. "How's Light doin'?" “Don’t be too hard on yourself. If anything things may take a brighter turn for the good for you,” he chuckled slightly aware of the sounds he heard, but said nothing. “I’m no better when I’m stressed, I’ve just gotten a little better at resisting thanks to my friends…though I’m tempted to grab one anyways.” His ear flicked about the question. “As good as any one is in labor, hopefully its over soon enough. This sort of thing always made me nervous with him.” "God damn..." Scourge said, seeing Light as they walked into the room. Even if his body was only preparing for the actual birth, the contractions and movements were clearly painful. He was going to be putting up with this for hours more? And this wasn't even the actual birth? Scourge walked straight up to Manic to hug him... and drop the bag and offer whatever vending machine snacks he might want to cope. "He already told me everything," Scourge said, not feeling good but at least not as bad. "Sorry, babe." It was excruciating for them all, and as more time passed, Manic was starting to eat more and more at the sight of Light struggling. He truly felt helpless watching him feel pain like this. He was now leaning near the bed, holding one arm around Light and cuddling him as much as he could to give comfort. Shadow knew he had to be close with how hard its been on Light. “Do you think he’s close, doc?” he asked. Light had been struggling to focus past the aches n’ pains, but he was thankful still for the company n’ comfort. "Your triplets must have been quite hard for your body," the swan doctor informed them. "He's adjusting very quickly. He's almost ready for birthing, but he's going to need to dialate a while longer." That last hour of preparations was particularly brutal. Scourge started leaving the room again, but not out of jealousy. Scourge couldn't keep watching Light twitch and groan in pain like he was. He certainly wanted this labor to just end in a second, but only so he would stop being so pained. But by a combination of constant support and help, the hour inched past. The nursing assistant was starting to be joined by more help, the doctor in the room staying by mostly as extra help for the young king. They could hear a few chatters among the nurses, who were getting more anxious. Manic's grip on the kings hand was almost a vice grip and Shadow actually expressed some shock when the nursing assistant turned to her helper for a second opinion. "Do you think he's ready to push?" Shadow still looked concerned with him, but had to trust the doc when he had given finally the go ahead. Light knew this was going to take some effort,but he only would need to do this once rather than three like before. ‘This is gonna be over soon’ he thought. Final preparations were made while the nurse got into position. "Okay, Light," the nurse said, "You're ready to start pushing the baby. We need you to focus on your breathing. In... out... okay, push." It was agonizing. It felt easier after birthing three kids, but it would have been nigh-on impossible for it to feel worse. It didn't take long before the first push was already over, and Light was panting in his bed. Manic seemed utterly terrified for him. He placed his hand near Light's mouth. "I'll share the pain, babe." Manic said. "Just bite down when you wanna scream, I've had hella worse." He gave Light another kiss. "We're almost done... we're almost done." The baby had far to go. The nurse looked up for just a moment. "Alright, push." Light was nervous about hurting Manic as his teeth were not exactly normal n’ he didn’t wish to cause any scarring on his friend/love, gritting he did as told, but avoiding to hurt him. Shadow glanced off to where Scourge went as he was concerned with him, but didn’t force it as he would get him after this is over. "'Ts already started?!" Scourge was shocked when the door was opened. He could see this wasn't preparing anymore, this was the real deal. He didn't know what to do, other than stand around in shock. What was he supposed to say?! He ran up and sat near Manic, patting his back and watching as he withdrew his hand when he realized Light wasn't taking the offer. His body was given another short break, to let him recover temporarily, and Manic just sat to the side and held his hand. "The head is visible," the nurse informed him. "If you're ready, we need to keep pushing." Manic only wished he could have helped more. With a aggravated grunt, he gave one more attempt to finally get over this hurtle. In a short period later, he finally felt the pains subside n’ only then did he give a sigh, his ears faintly alert to the small sounds. "Three pushes?" The nurses said among themselves. "The baby's already crowning," the head nurse informed them, holding his hands out. "Just a few more pushes, Light. Breathe in... and push!" The closer the baby got, the more painful it became. Every step was making it worse, every moment getting exponentially more painful as the baby came closer and closer to being delivered. He had to scream and writhe in the pain, Manic lending his arm as something for Light to sink his claws into. Every ounce of energy was focused on this one simple, torturous task that was testing the limits of his mind and body...! ◇        ◇        ◇        ◇ Scourge was the only person in the room aware of the throngs of residents of the nation, near and some far, intermingled with reporters of all kinds desperate to get some word about the royal birth. The crowds were kept at back for the safety of the king for hours and hours, after the sun set. The crowd hushed and cameras flickered as Fawlist left the building, a script in hand. Royal guards stood at either side. "On this day, the first of September, at 10:16 PM," he announced grandly. "We humbly welcome our future king, the fourth born child of his royal highness King Scourge Lightwing. The prince is fifth in line to the throne. May the new prince Ignis Cassio Lightwing live long and one day hold a glorious reign!" The crowds cheered outside the hospital, but not a word crept through the silent halls up to the king's room. The plastic holds on the bed had been removed, most equipment gone, leaving the room homely. Light and Manic were now facing one another head on as they lay on the bed, Manic holding his arms around Light, and Light with his arms wrapped around the new prince. He was silent right now. His skin was the same light green of Manic, with bits of dark green hear his tips. The most obvious signs he was the prince were the black marks under his eyes, which he had yet to open, and the tiny pair of folded, colorful wings with green and purple feathers, as well as the vibrant cyan of his father's eyes. He rested safely and quietly between them both, peaceful in his first few hours of life. Thought worn out, he was a bit stubborn to rest just yet. He gave a lighthearted smile “Heh…early but strong. I’m sure he’s gonna be quite the unique one of the house, don’t you think Manic?” He asked, gently running his fingers over the mostly downy fuzz wings, before yawning slightly. Shadow had gone back to the castle earlier to inform his mother n’ the assistants whom had to resume work even in Lights poor timing. Scourge had left into the hall to give the two as much time alone as they needed. There was no one else, just Manic, Light, and Cassio. "I can't believe he's gonna be a part of the castle," Manic said. If he wasn't so tired, he would have been energized and ecstatic. "You actually made an entire... person." He said. He took his hand off of light, and ruffled the quills on his head subtly, to minor reaction. Manic couldn't stop smiling at the sight of his child. All issues of the king knowing a thief were gone from his mind. All that was left was pure love for their child. "He's gonna be the best member of the castle," Manic finally said. "He's gonna be an awesome kid." With a soft chuckle, he let his head rest on the pillow. “I agree, yet what his personality will be like depends on how we raise him, n’ I am sure he’ll get along well with Severante, Trental n’ Victoria.” Feeling the fatigue, Light had begun to drift off to sleep, knowing they were safe n’ that the hardest part will start first thing tomorrow. “I hope Scourge is alright with lil Cassio.” "I almost don't wanna fall asleep," Manic said, yawning as he spoke. "Doctor's are gonna have to take him for testing... I just wanna lay here and hold him..." Manic let Light relax. He lifted Cassio and laid him on top of the king's chest with one arm around him for support. He rested his own head on Light's shoulder. "G'night, little dude..." Scourge just stayed outside and waited. He'd seen the child. He knew they wanted space. And even in spite of what Shadow had said, that jealousy was still there, eating away at him. As the doctors pryed Manic away from the recovering king in his sleep and carried Cassio away for testing, he waited as close to the baby as he could get. Cassio was on the small side for a newborn, but he was healthy. Healthy and well... ... When Light would wake up that next day, he would be in the same recovery room. Manic would by laying near him asleep, Cassio would be being tended to by the midwife in a bassinet, and Scourge himself would be asleep on the visitor's sofa. When he did wake, he chuckled lightly when he heard Shadow speak up. “Good morning sleeping beauty. Sorry if I am here already, the triplets wanted to see you.” Sure enough the three almost three year old pups were nearby. The eldest sat patiently while the other two were eager n’ energetic.

“I’m sure they couldn’t wait to see me n’ their younger brother,” Light smiled gently as he sat up carefully, mindful not to disturb Manic too much, though that didn’t go as planned with Trental leaping onto the bed the two were on. And right onto Manic's hand. Manic seemed to grumble in his sleep and roll over, rubbing his face. It took a moment for everything to come back, and for him to realize what was happening was real. "Heeey, Trent, you wake me up?" Manic asked with his normal smile. He started to shift up and force himself awake. Manic was just as entranced with the baby having their temperature taken. "Good morning, Light." Manic said as the last child bothered Scourge awake. "Guessing they just wanted to see the new dude? How're you doing, that looked like torture." He gave a soft chuckle again as he noted Victoria was the one disturbing Scourge at the moment. “Who knows with them at the moment, a lot makes them curious, but I’m feeling better today.” He smiled to Manic. “Usually takes a day or two, depending on when I’m feeling completely better."

Light found it amusing with each of his pups. Victoria looked a lot more fox than hedgehog, while the boys Severante n’ Trental were both more hedgehog save for their multi tails. Cassio even had a more floofy tail, but he always felt bad as Tren was the only one without wings with his kids. “I’ve got quite the household don’t I?”

Shadow smirked. “I am sure this is nothing you can’t handle, just another worry for the workers once Cassio starts walking or flying. Whichever comes first.” He replied, taking note of the doc returning possibly to inform Light of Cassio’s health. "We're going to need to give Ignis some more vaccinations," the doctor informed Light. "Standard procedure. All our tests are showing that the prince seems to be perfectly healthy." "Wait... He could be this little waddling baby nugget, and just take off one day? Like, he starts flying when he's young?" Manic asked, not knowing what he would think of seeing Cassio flying around before his legs were strong enough to walk. Victoria had managed to annoy Scourge awake. (An impressive feat, with how often Manic tried the same thing.) The sudden piles of children shocked him initially, but the more he looked, the more he could tell he didn't have reason to worry. The kids were excited, maybe a bit too excited, and Light and Manic seemed genuinely happy at whatever the doctor was telling them. There was a little bottle warmer placed near the bed just for Light's stay, as he couldn't breastfeed the child. So when the new child wanted to cry, he was placed gently into his arms, and quickly sated with a nice bottle of milk. "Scourge, come over here, check out the little dude!" Manic said. Scourge stood up, interested in his lightly-feathered wings. Light chuckled slightly as he heard what Shadow said. “It's rare to see a winged child take to flying before they are walking, but Severante was one. Shadow had to bring in our Gatelift friend Zonic to help me out with keeping an eye on him, took us till just a few months before you came into the picture to get him to walk instead of flying everywhere,” he said calmly.

Shadow shook his head. “Thankfully he won’t be able to fly till his wingspan is similar to his height, otherwise the weight is too much for them, but they sure as hell do try n’ it is a cute sight.”

Light then looked at the tiny little fluff nugget that was Cassio as well as the triplets. Scourge just had to convince himself it wasn't entirely the child of Manic and Light, just long enough. It was a kid he had with Light, but he loved him that whole time. He searched for him that whole time. He loved him for as long as he knew that Light was pregnant. He knew they were going to raise this kid with him around. And even then, it still had the traits of Scourge. The dark green tips of his quills and the way it fell behind his head... There was a bittersweet happiness to the moment. Even if it wasn't genetically his child, he was going to be raised like Scourge was his dad. He'd be the father he never got a chance to be to his own son with Fiona. It was like a bizarre determination had been dug up from deep inside his mind. Manic would have said something the moment he noticed Scourge's stare, but Cassio mewled, and Manic's heart could virtually be seen melting at the sound. "Hey, Light." Manic said lifting Cassio as gently as he could. "Could Scourge hold him for a bit?" “It would be rude if he couldn’t,” he said before he looked up to Scourge. “N’ if he wants to he’s welcome to.“ Light knew from the other's energy that he was still partly still on that old thought, but he’d consider it a step if he could help Light with caring for Cassio now. Manic didn't need to read Scourge's energy to know what he was thinking. Scourge was hesitant at first, but he reached over and picked up Cassio gently. There was a bizarre fragility to it all. Scourge's hand was larger than the child's entire head. His eyes were clamped tight. Some strange maternal instinct seemed to have been dug up, making him almost want to protect the kid, even if he would absolutely never admit it out loud. One of the baby's tiny hands gripped around Scourge's finger for comfort. His expression didn't change, but Light could feel a genuine pride in the sight. "He's cute," Scourge said simply, handing back the child and glossing over how he was feeling. “True he is,” Light said calmly as he carefully accepted the child, gently stroking the small infant. All the while, Shadow looked up to them n’ then to Cassio. “Knowing you Light, you will have him wait till he’s five years before you let the lessons start,” he said, chuckling lightly as Light huffed about the mention of teaching.

“You know I would prefer him to wait n’ learn through some form of play,” he said. His brother was serious about having a well taught family. "He's not even a day old," Manic said, pouting heavily towards Shadow. "Let him be a baby. I don't wanna start planning for college or whatever, I just wanna meet him." He reached out his hand, hoping Cassio would grab his fingers like he did with Scourge. "Hey, little guy. You wanna relax and cry and not worry about working on a doctorate thesis?" The other kids seemed entranced by the child. They were probably old enough that Shadow was going to start pushing lessons for them, too. Hell knows how that was going to play out. "Did you see all the people who were outside last night?" Manic asked. "They seem to want to meet this little guy, too." Shadow chuckled at their reactions to his remark n’ shrugged. “Just saying,“ he said before getting smacked with a pillow from Lights direction.

“Ah go pester your boyfriend, brother, I’m sure he’s wanting your attention.” Light retorted though chuckled slightly as he eventually left. “I know, but they need to wait till we are ready to return to the castle before they get any photos of Cassio.” It was like instinct that the baby tried gripping his fingers, letting off a few more light mewls. "I know," Manic said. "I just can't wait 'til they see how cute he is and get jealous of us both for having him." Light was soon going to find his quills getting yet another ruffle. "And Shadow's gonna be like his third dad..." He looked over at Scourge, surprised to see him looking over. "With Scourge, he's gonna have four dads. That's gonna be... That's gonna be kinda chaotic." Cassio was moved closer into Light's arms, Manic not removing his finger from his grip. "I don't know why I was so nervous. This is gonna be amazing." “For first timers it's always expected to be nervous of the unknown, but that is part of the adventure, n’ Cassio’s has just begun,” he purred lightly as he glanced over to Manic. “Just wait, things are just getting interesting.” He said with a lighthearted chuckle. Manic just tilted his head up and looked at Scourge. "What are you thinking, babe?" He asked with a smile. "You ready to be the cool dad?" He looked down at the child. He suddenly had something this... helpless near him, and he had no idea how he would handle this situation. He knew it was coming, yet nothing could have prepared him. "You know I am," Scourge said, not even sure himself.

[robotsandramblings]

well frig now this Starscream-Thundercracker-Skywarp fusion has got me all sorts of thinking... now i absolutely need an episode or comic where there’s a weird accident and the seeker trine becomes fusioned like this because so many ideas, so many possibilities

they retain their individual selves and switch between them like TFA Blitzwing switches between his faces

their mass/size doubles or triples in size. they’re finally bigger than Megatron. Starscream of course immediately wants to use this opportunity to overthrow Megatron. Skywarp is still kinda loyal to him and also scared shitless to do it because “it never ever works Starscream.” Thundercracker just wants to get the hell out of these guys’ heads and get his own body and brain back.

they argue with themselves in their fused body. A hilarious scene where they confront Megatron but can’t take action because they’re still arguing amongst themselves and their face just keeps rapidfire changing between SS, SW, and TC. “Yes kill him! No we can’t! Fuck get me outta here!” Megatron just stands there bemused and amused.

also a bigger body size would allow for my other wishlist item, BIG ASS BEAUTIFUL WINGSPAN. triple the body size, triple the wingspan!! (i dont care about the physics. just give me big wings pls)

yes they can still warp but it’s a slower process and this annoys Skywarp

i want them to have giant ass null rays on their shoulders (like Armada SS) that are triple the firepower and can obliterate everything

i need this like burning now holy shit

[pressography-blog1]

CORSAIR GAMING K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE KEYBOARD Overview

New Post has been published on https://pressography.org/corsair-gaming-k70-rgb-rapidfire-keyboard-overview/

CORSAIR GAMING K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE KEYBOARD Overview

By means of MATTHEW D. BARREL Editor’s be aware: IGN is ramping tech and hardware evaluations back up, one product category at a time. We’re kicking off with deep dives into some of the quality-of-the great headsets, GPUs, Mice, Monitors, and keyboards from the last few years.

The Corsair K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE (See it on Amazon) is a new(ish) version of the broadly acclaimed K70 with all-new “speedy” switches designed for gaming. The new switches have a shorter actuation distance than the Cherry MX switches used inside the Lux version, for this reason making it easier to spark off the keys; a theoretical boon to game enthusiasts who want to faucet a key a few thousand instances a night time on the grounds that actuation is faster and calls for much less attempt. If rainbow colored mild indicates are not your aspect, there’s a non-RGB model with a purple backlight that fees $50 much less.

The Corsair K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE mechanical gaming keyboard is constituted of an anodized brushed aluminum chassis with the keys installed at the surface without a top cowl so the important thing switches are uncovered. That is a double-edged sword that makes the keyboard less complicated to clean, but also allows dust to gather beneath the keys. The keyboard makes use of Cherry’s new “RAPIDFIRE” mechanical key switch, designed for gaming By means of combining a shorter actuation distance with a lighter actuation force. While the normal Cherry MX switches require 2mm of travel to actuate, the RAPIDFIRE switches want simply 1.2mm, which isn’t always an awful lot. The keyboard connects to your PC with a thick and braided two-headed USB cable supplying electricity to the board in addition to juice for the USB port on the front surface of the keyboard. Subsequent to the USB port is a transfer to set the polling price when the usage of the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE on older systems. T

he K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE consists of the usual 104 keys that you’d count on, although the lowest row of keys includes a slightly wider spacebar and slightly narrower ALT and CTRL keys. The keys are crafted from clean ABS plastic while the spacebar is pleasantly textured. The keyboard comes with a further set of textured keys that may replace the generally used gaming keys (W, A, S, D, and many others). The textured keys are barely beveled additionally, which is awesome for gaming but makes contact typing extra tough. Thankfully, it’s quite smooth to switch backward and forward among textured and untextured keys using the blanketed tool with a purpose to flow between gaming and writing.

Further to the same old 104 keys, the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE has seven more media keys and a quantity manipulates knob. There are 4 media manipulate keys (forestall, lower back, play/pause, and ahead) above the wide variety keypad. Above the ones are an extent knob and a mute button. The volume knob is my preferred characteristic of this keyboard because it offers a clean and precise way to govern audio extent. To the left of the mute button are 3 tiny white LED indicators for caps lock, num lock, and scroll lock. To the left of these is the Windows lock button which turns off Windows particular keys and a brightness button that you faucet to move through three brightness settings, with the final faucet turning the backlighting off completely. All of the controls are smooth to attain, paintings as predicted, and are easy and effective. Corsair Software Engine (CUE) Software program

After plugging the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE in I downloaded the most current version of the Corsair Utility Engine (CUE) Software program from the Corsair internet site. CUE has four essential settings: Profiles, moves, lighting fixtures, and settings. The profiling phase binds settings to unique programs and can be used to set game particular backlighting alternatives. It’s viable to remap keys, program macros, and set backlighting and save it all as a profile. Macros can handiest be programmed in the CUE Software. Macro programming may be very certain, yet there is no recording on the fly. This makes it virtually impossible to set up macros that require precise timing because you need to recreate them inside the recording interface, take a look at them in the game, tweak them in the interface, retest them in the sport, etc.

I did just like the potential to enter a gaggle of text and bind that text to a key. This turned into useful for the fast insertion of commonplace chat messages or other textual content that I often type. The lights phase of CUE lets you configure the keyboard’s lighting fixtures as very well as everyone would possibly ever want to. For me, backlighting is beneficial to spotlight the subset of keys utilized in a specific recreation, however, I don’t have any appreciation for anything beyond that. the one’s game enthusiasts who preserve such appreciation can use CUE to software any key to certainly one of sixteen.8 million hues and set timings (in 100ms increments) and styles. There are 4 principal outcomes: strong, gradient, ripple, and wave. These results may be enabled and color and intensity may be adjusted. There also are a number of presets you can pick out from consisting of the spiral rainbow, coloration wave, and rain, and you can additionally install fan-made styles too.

Lamentably, the CUE Software program is so poorly designed that I used to be pretty positive the “C” stood for “crappy” and no longer for “Corsair”. That is because of the use of tiny cryptic icons and absence of any significant descriptions or help. The CUE Software program is likewise pretty buggy. Typically the lighting fixtures settings that I selected did now not emerge as active. I could pick out the placing, no longer see an exchange, deselect it, then reselect it to peer the change. no longer cool. Gaming In my time with the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE I evolved an excessive dislike for the Cherry MX RAPIDFIRE transfer. As I wrote above, the MX RAPIDFIRE transfer makes use of a shorter tour distance than other Cherry switches (1.2mm vs the usual 2mm), and the actuation pressure appears to have been reduced slightly too. This gives the keys a totally stiff sense even as at the equal time a key actuates with the lightest tap. The end result, at least for me, changed into multitudes of errors in my typing both as duplicates of the key I used to be looking for the type or adjoining keys that I barely slid my finger throughout. This made the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE now not an appropriate keyboard for touch typing.

My gaming experience turned into tons higher. I’m an FPS enthusiast and that I certainly enjoyed gambling Overwatch and speak to of Obligation: Limitless Warfare. The quick key actuation that stuffed my documents with mistakes was a pleasure at some point of twitch gaming. I additionally enjoyed gambling the more deliberate The Witcher three: Wild Hunt. I, in reality, ignored being able to application macros on the fly even though. Having to depart my sport to application macros within the CUE Software program is far too disruptive to a system for me. I also have a real hassle with Corsair’s use of skinny portions of plastic for ergonomic adjustment at the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE.

There are 4 extendable ft on the lowest of the K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE to alter the height and attitude of the typing floor. Those fit are made of skinny plastic that felt like it might destroy simply from extending and collapsing the feet on a regular basis. The K70 RGB RAPIDFIRE additionally comes with a removable wrist rest that attaches to the keyboard base through skinny and brittle plastic connectors, and the primary time I connected the wrist rest to the keyboard I by accident broke one of them. even though I, in reality, share some of the blame, they’re tiny, skinny, and smooth to interrupt. This lack of sturdiness is unacceptable in a gaming accessory, especially one which charges north of $150.

Corsair Dominator RAM The pleasure of Corsair’s line of DDR2 reminiscence and the contemporary member of XMS2 era is the Corsair Dominator RAM. This reminiscence is made especially for computers running on the modern running systems; Vista and Windows 7.

absolutely everyone who has ever used Those structures on a PC with fashionable DDR or DDR2 memory chips can have skilled slowness and lag after they open up packages or perform device features. while it is able to be possible to overclock the CPU of the PC to obtain more speed, that can result in the memory chips overheating and will eventually result in a system crash.

It isn’t just running systems which might be reminiscence-hungry in recent times, the trendy versions of popular programs, together with games, animation programs, and Microsoft programming suites will want your CPU to run at most overclocked velocity for ease of use. Overclocking, By the way, is making your CPU run quicker than its declared velocity. now not all CPU’s may be overclocked although. The highest overclocked pace on which a Windows system was run is 800 MHz.

The tendency to burn the memory chips is a deterrent to rushing up the PC… previously, this is. With the Corsair Dominator RAM, you may set your CPU to carry out at speeds of 800 MHz without the threat of toasting your reminiscence and crashing your computer.

Heat generated and contained inside the Corsair Dominator RAM is diffused in ways. First, the traditional (buttons progressed) aluminum Heat-spreader era is carried out to siphon out the warmth from the reminiscence and release them into the air.

Secondly, the producers of Corsair Dominator RAM invented a method that they call the Twin-Direction Warmness Alternate (DHX). The mechanism includes mounting the memory chips at a better elevation than traditional on the motherboard. The greater height serves to house a medium which transfers some of the warmth in the reminiscence chips down to the copper groundings of the motherboard.