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noneatnonedotcom · 5 months ago

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not as sick just as bored.

same rules as before, this time we're making a DC superhero. lemme know how strong you think this guy would be.

Etiquette: (100 cp) "You are instinctively knowledgeable about the etiquette and deference that must be shown in any martial art or martial culture. You are aware of faux pas or mild signs of disrespect and will subconsciously avoid making them. You know how to show respect as well as where and when it is best to show it without being considered a sycophant or rude. So long as the culture is rooted in combat and discipline, you will never offend someone unless you actively seek to do "

"Army Defying: (200cp) "You cannot be overwhelmed by mere numbers. If an enemy would not present a threat to you in a one-on-one battle, then any number of similarly skilled foes are equally useless in the face of your martial prowess."

In for a Penny, in for a Pound of Flesh: (200cp) "Training? Guns? Numbers? All is for naut against true battle experience. You have no issue taking on entire armed groups on your lonesome. The more you kill, the larger groups you can take on, and the stronger individuals you can challenge. With a few wars under your belt, taking on a small army or a stone-skinned monster is child’s play "

Instant Ninja: (100cp) "Blending in is all well and good, but if there are security cameras around you'll feel a bit out of luck. You can't do anything, act out or you'll expose yourself. Say you do wanna act though, but aren't in disguise, what are you to do? Upon purchase, you become incredibly skilled at whipping up ""ninja"" themed disguises using only what you have on hand or find in your surroundings. Disguises usually consist of masks, flowing scarves and tactical wrappings that help pull the look off. These improvised disguises are surprisingly effective at keeping your identity secret, with a single flaw that may expose you to the especially observant, your footwear. Something about your shoes leaves them the only thing people will be able to recognize in and out of your disguises, if they ever saw them to begin with."

Angel of the Battlefield: (400cp) "Just being a leading star in the medical field isn’t enough to change the world, not when you have to do it from the front of a battlefield too. While you are most certainly at the front of the pack in terms of medical skill and knowledge of your time, at least as far as Nightingale’s time, your talents are more notable than that. A superb instinct for all things relating to medicine, it allows you to easily master techniques and technology even centuries advanced from your time if you can gain access. Even without access, advancing medical knowledge comes smoothly and quickly to you, accelerating the speed of new discoveries greatly.

Medicine becomes widely applicable in your hands, in some ways superhumanly so. Your knowledge makes you a lethal combatant even with limited combat training, innately understanding the most efficient ways to move your own body, the most vulnerable vital points to strike and how to greatly reduce damage with the right block. Your treatments become applicable on all targets, even against what seems like common sense, as you can stitch up the wounds of spiritual beings with no more difficulty than a flesh and blood human. Even non-humans take only a small time to study before you can effectively understand and begin treatment. While this talent does not directly boost the power of healing magecraft, your knowledge and the skill it lets you use those spells with make you a far superior wielder to most."

edit: forgot the free roll

Philosopher Kings: (free, 100cp) "The greatest kings and military leaders were more than just warriors and tacticians. They were men of incredible fortitude beyond the simple body, with wills to push forward against the impossible for years at a time, so that they could grasp victory. They were more than fighters, with experience as philosophers or explorers that they bent towards their goals of conquest. You’re not a great king yet but you share those beginnings. You’ve got a will like a wall of diamond, incredible hard and near impossible to break or bend. You might not last forever against everything but it’ll take a damn lot to make you bend the knee by choice. Your childhood, where you found that will, was spent not just on military training but also in another field of life of your choice, such as exploring distant lands for years to experience new cultures or spending time as a notable teacher of the arts at home, which has given you a wide array of minor skills and experiences that aid you in finding creative solutions to your enemies."

he spent his childhood learning the law

the basic concept is simple, a frontline doctor who's able to keep up with and heal the heavy hitters of the JL something like a batman but one devoted to keeping his allies in the fight rather than planning up grand strategies to take on the bad guys, that being said he is still growing with every fight, and he can easily ignore fodder. that being said just starting out he's got no combat training and will need someone to help get him started. at least he knows how to do the basics like throw a punch without hurting himself.

@howlingday @heliosthegriffin @weatherman667 how well do you think this hero would do in the DC universe?

#DC au #character creation #none rant #[email protected] fics

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littlecrittereli · 1 year ago

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Krattnapped au? Krattnapped au? Evil chris against his will?? Oh hoho I am INTRIGUED

I am sitting in front of you staring directly into your eyes with the chin resting on my hands and I desire more information if you have it 👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀👀

I FINALLY HAVE A NAME....

REPROGRAMMED AU!!! (because he... reprograms the cps) (im super creative I know)

So I'm kind of using a couple headcanons in order to make the logistics of this AU work. So I'll explain them real quick!

The CPS were made specifically to the biometrics of Martin and Chris and are too unstable to be used by anyone else. We see Koki and Aviva wear the bro's suits a couple times in the show, but it's usually only for emergencies and for only a few minutes. Aviva refers to the suits as prototypes, and Martin and Chris are kinda the test dummies. They are programmed this way to help the suit work better, and also to keep them out of evil hands. Martin and Chris also had to undergo some serious tests and special training in order to be able to operate the suits. (Kinda like how Astronauts have to go through special courses before they go to space!)

The CPS are not meant to be operated for long periods of time. The suits are practically transforming their bodies, giving them new senses, and changing their instincts. This process becomes physically taxing on the body. It's not enough to be noticable from a standard creature adventure, but if the suit is activated for 12+ hours it can start to have negative consequences on the operator. Rapidly activating the suit, or reactivating it numerous times in one day can have the same effect. It's dangerous to not take breaks in-between usages.

The way this reprogrammed CPS will operate is a tad different from Aviva's design (as it was altered by Zach), which makes it extra unstable, and prone to malfunctions. The Villain doesn't really care that much because he's not the one wearing the suit, and just wants it to function more conveniently for his schemes, not Chris' wellbeing.

The biggest alter that was made to the suit is Chris does not need power discs or a DNA sample to activate the suit. The programming is relying on ghost activations of animals he has already collected DNA samples of. (meaning he can't access any new suits, only ones that he's already used before). Pairing Zach's alterations with Donita's pose-beam technology, gives this new Villain complete control of the suit's actions. Since the suit is more unstable, animal instinct kinda takes over whenever it's activated so Chris can't always remember what's happened while he was operating the suit.

#WK Reprogrammed AU #Reprogrammed AU #wild kratts #chris kratt #martin kratt #littlecrittereli #Wild Kratts Headcanon #Wild Kratts AU #kratt brothers #THANKS FOR THE ASK AND LETTING ME INFO DUMP BTW #I JUST OUGGGHHHHHH IM SO INSANE

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spaceintruderdetector · 1 year ago

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Isolating the precise essence of cyberpunk is a tricky business, because like the SF virus itself, it’s continually reduplicating itself from the DNA up, changing to meat each new environmental challenge. Everybody's got their own two cents to throw in. Gibson talks about the generation of writers who were taking William Burroughs for granted when they were thirteen (and if you've read NAKED LUNCH, you know what a scary idea that is); while CP pioneer Sterling points to the bewildering transformations—mental and physical—that technology exerts on us; and goofball information theorist Rudy Rucker measures the data-density in CP prose. Founding zygote John Shirley summed it up best, with: “I think it's characterized by writers who have @ global worldview; who write with an attitude informed by information arising from the so-called “underground”; who write with a certain intensity of tone that's sometimes taken for punk; who are influenced by writers outside the SF genre, and by certain aspects of rock culture (the better aspects); who realize that anti-heroes are not really anti-heroic; who search for real honesty in characterization; and who write with a perspective of o new, constantly transforming, global flux of worldwide media/information/imagery.”

High Times Magazine, 1980s : THC : Free Download, Borrow, and Streaming : Internet Archive

#cyberpunk #science fiction literature #science fiction

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youth-liberation-june · 7 months ago

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being a person of youth is getting insomnia and then getting blamed for not telling anyone, as if it were that easy. as if i brought it on to myself and it's not once again just adults not giving a shit.

being a person of youth is struggling with school, made to fit prison but is worse, whether i do the work or not.

being a person of youth is being given a phone (which is seen as a privilege, even in this modern world of technology), and then that phone needs to be fixed to the point where you can barely use it, but it's just a little glitch here and there, you'll be aight.

being a person of youth is having the most annoying neighbors without being able to do a single thing about it.

being a person of youth is being stuck with your abuser AS HER PROPERTY because the abuse she commits is legal, and then having adults supposed to “protect” you (CPS is no better than pigs, ACAB) try to gaslight you into believing it's okay.

we've got to stop normalizing how adults don't give a shit. full stop.

#youth oppression #adultism #monty storytime: being a kid is hard #youth liberation #youth rights #this has got to stop

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racsow · 3 months ago

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Here lies my full thoughts on the Electric State movie adaptation released earlier this month. I knew it was going to be bad, but this is almost impressively so.

Mild spoilers for both the book and the movie, though the book isn't overly plot reliant and the movie is eminently predictable within five minutes of watching

Let me begin by saying the fucking up of the film's source material is a feat not easily accomplished. Simon Stålenhag is a brilliant artist and writer. His illustrated novels are at once sinister and sentimental. They deal with childhood wonder and the broken promises of the real world; with humanity as society and individual. They are about love and loss and the blurring of those lines in retrospect. All this is depicted in some of the most gorgeous, haunting art I have ever seen. He has written five books. I recommend them all.

The Electric State book is his third work, and to me, his most compelling. That stands for both the art and the actual prose. While Stålenhag's visual pieces are undoubtedly what he is most known for, I've found myself enjoying his written word more and more, even in translated English. The book speaks to abandonment, to the disenfranchised, to the consequences of unchecked consumerism and mindless entertainment.

Speak of the devil...

It would almost be funny (if it weren’t so depressing) that Netflix took such a story and ground it into the Marvel-blockbuster mold, eviscerated any remaining shred of ethos or emotion, and drowned it in Hollywood prestige. Electric State, the movie, is a 320 million dollar shit taken directly on its source material, and I mean that in multiple ways.

PLOT

The first and most egregious transgression was the butchery of the story. The two iterations are related only in the most basic terms; Michelle, a young orphan, goes on a journey to find her long lost brother. Stålenhag's themes of childhood disillusionment, the cataclysmic effects of rampant consumerism, of a society that turns to mindless stimulation instead of dealing with their problems, and the world that attitude creates? Gone.

I struggle to comprehend the boneheadedness of whoever rewrote the plot for the movie. I understand that if you’re trying to make a movie as widely comprehensible as possible, the mysterious worldbuilding of Stalenhag is not compatible (perhaps something we should have thought of before, hmm?). He explains very little about the state of the world, except for how it affects our characters.

But there is concrete worldbuilding if you can infer it. I can only conclude that the writers simply didn’t. Instead, they gutted the entire plot in favor of a bland Robot Revolution Blade Runner schtick that has been done to death and back. And don't even ask if they did a compelling twist on it... because you know they didn't.

The plot details are so catastrophically assbackwards that my gorge becomes bouyant thinking about them. They are also so plentiful I would never finish this post. Instead, I am going over the central aspects of Stålenhag's work that Netflix fucked over.

WHITEWASHING THE MILITARY

In the film, Michelle is an orphan because her family died in a car accident. This is actively sanitizing her origin in the books, removing not only complexity but also Stålenhag’s criticism of the military industrial complex. In the book, Michelle's mother was in the US Air Force, and served as a neurocaster pilot during a global war where the technology was first used. As a side effect of the experimental tech, she (and hundreds of other pilots) developed an addiction to a chemical called neurine. The army fired her without compensation or help for the affliction they gave her, and she eventually died of an overdose, leaving Michelle and her brother orphans. They stayed with their grandfather until he, too, died of chemical exposure from his job assembling war drones, at which point the siblings were forcibly split up by CPS, and Michelle was sent far away to be fostered, while her brother was kidnapped and experimented on by the government. I struggle to conceive of what the purpose of removing this backstory could possibly be, apart from relieving the story of its commentary in order to be more digestible. Because that's what art should aspire to be, after all.

WHITEWASHING CONSUMERISM

The dystopia we see in Stålenhag’s book is not a typical nuclear wasteland. It is generally still as functional as it ever was. It is simply that consumerism has progressed faster than in our world. People have checked out with neural headsets that drown their brain in formless pleasure while the world slowly decays around them. Cities are silent. Gargantuan corporate machines lie in ruins. There is no “Robot Revolution,” no “Electric State” as they claimed in the movie. The war was one fought by world powers that left their countries devastated, and capitalism swallowed up the remains.

The neurocaster headsets were kept in the film, but became a cheap “phone bad” metaphor, again scrapping a far more interesting concept. In the book, it becomes something else; something far stranger and more silent. The eeriness of the apocalypse Michelle travels through is that it’s full of people. They’re just not doing anything. Humankind has checked out, sending their minds to be entertained in gigantic server farms in the Rockies. And slowly, a hivemind emerges from this neural coitus occurring on a planetary scale; a kind of ur-sapience that is entirely beyond human minds...yet fundamentally human. Hordes of people move silently through the dark, their headsets connected to strange new machine gods in the night. The people are notably smiling, at peace. Perhaps it’s better this way is a thought that comes to mind, after going with Michelle through the cruelty of the world before.

WHITEWASHING QUEER RELATIONSHIPS

One of the rare few things I see people enjoying about this movie is the implied relationship between Chris Pratt and his male robot companion. And I am all for more representation! If representation was the goal, however, what's baffling is that they entirely removed a far more integral queer relationship: that being of the protagonist, Michelle!

In the book, a large portion of Michelle's reflections goes to her first romantic partner: another girl named Amanda met in foster care. Amanda and Michelle's connection is one of the few moments Michelle remembers feeling safe and happy after her family was torn away from her. She has a few months where life seems tolerable. They are each other's refuge against the world. And then Amanda breaks up with her, after it is implied she was forced to undergo conversion therapy by her father, an abusive priest. This is the moment that made Michelle who she is in the present day, a huge turning point for her character, and it's just... erased in the film. Interesting that they removed a clear, central, complex queer relationship to replace it with a barely mentioned implication between secondary characters. This is a deliberate and fucking cowardly change. They straightwashed the protagonist, removing core events and character aspects so that bigots in the audience won't be challenged.

DEFENSE & FINAL THOUGHTS

There is sparing defense of this movie; most equate to “it’s not great, but it’s just fun! Can’t a movie just be fun?” And I say, absolutely. Simple fun is not a sin. Entertainment is not a sin. If this were the latest Marvel movie, I would not be writing this.

I am pissed because Netflix specifically adapted a work whose entire message is the dangers of mindless entertainment; of formless pleasure, and absolutely especially mindless entertainment peddled by powerful corporations!! It is about the lethal flaws and base cruelties of humanity; blind greed and misery; and fighting for love in the face of it all. The movie ignores all of that; assassinates the characters and completely bastardizes the story and themes. It at best utterly stupid, and at worst malicious.

I hold no delusion that the Russo brothers actually cared about being true to the vision of the artist. They fundamentally did not understand the book, and admitted as much themselves! This is a direct quote: "We just looked at the images, and the story that he unfolds in the graphic novel. It is very opaque. It’s kind of hard to understand it. You get it in glimpses." Dear lord, its almost as if... as if... It's being subtle with its storytelling! God almighty, make it stop! The board is going into conniptions!

There’s also the fact they used AI for voice acting work, or that they've stated that generative AI is "inevitable" in creative industries, or that they neglected to even mention Stålenhag in trailers until public backlash. Simply put, Netflix and the Russo brothers don't give a shit about respecting, elevating or adapting art. They don't give a shit about creating something that makes the heart resonate or breaks the brain out of its mold. They don't care about voyaging into the burning core of the soul, about evoking things too difficult or powerful to describe outright. They aren’t interested in saying anything at all.

What is even the point of all this? There's a simple answer. It’s in the promotional articles surrounding the release of the film (the ones before it came out). They vary, but there’s one fact you cannot avoid:

The Electric State is one of the most expensive movies ever made. It is the most expensive Netflix movie ever made. That is what headlines latch onto, because there is nothing else this movie can flaunt to justify its existence. Three hundred and twenty million goddamn dollars.

There is a world where money equals passion. A world where it equals skill, pathos, and most of all, where it equals good art. It is a world inhabited solely by streaming service CEOs and Disney execs, and is therefore to be avoided like an outhouse with a wasp hive down the hole.

The Electric State is a wonderful book. It is resonant, it is beautiful, it is dreadful and melancholic. It speaks to the dark, heavy seabed of the soul. It drips with fog and fear, whispers about monsters of our own making and sends you spiralling into the dark with only the dimming ember of love to tell you where or what you are. It is a haunting dirge for humanity.

The Electric State is a repugnant movie. The blind idiot forces of greed which Stålenhag decried have stripped his story bare, ran it through algorithmic filters and focus testing until what is left is a pallid mass-market blockbuster wearing the flayed skin of an artist's passionate work. It is notable only in that it is symbolic of the "art industry," (a phrase I find near antithetical), one where stories are marketed on their prestige, their price tag, where content is dully manufactured according to standard, packaged and shipped out to be half-watched at two times speed. Because this is not about art, about stories, about people. For them, it never was.

#the electric state #film essay #this was a holy crashout icl #this just fills me with rage #my only hope is stalenhag got enough money from these scumbags to be secure for the rest of his days

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kaythefloppa · 2 months ago

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A thing I realized about the recent Wild Kratts special is that the CPS capacitor explains a lot about certain questions like:

Why the Kratt bros don’t use the CPSs in regular environmental threats not caused by the villains?: Because there’s simply too much of that if real life has shown us and the Kratt Bros would better handle the villains with their more advanced tech, and it’s why the Wild Kratt Kids are a thing

Why it took until Season 5 for Koki and Aviva to have their own CPSs?: Aviva would have taken a long time to at least calibrated two more CPSs to the capacitor… and likely though to herself that would’ve been useful during the Christmas special.

Why there will no CPS for Jimmy: See the last question for the answer, plus Jimmy doesn’t need a CPS to be valuable to the team. He pilots the Tortuga and cooks for the team, and he isn’t the sort to go out on Creature Missions.

This is a good retcon that recontextualizes a lot of previous moments and gives answers to what us fans were asking since the beginning of the show.

Very nice observation! A slight correction: Aviva got her Creature Power Suit in the Season 2 finale, Groundhog Wake-Up Call. That being said, her CPS gets a redesign in the Christmas special, which could align with your theory of Aviva having to calibrate more suits to the capacitator (add that with the invention of Koki's Creature Power Suit which we see being used in the S5 premiere).

The addition of the Creature Power Suit Capacitator admittedly does raise a few questions (i.e. why did the capacity need to be raised when multiple activations in rapid succession were used in the past and why Zach's malpractice didn't damage it), but at the same time, it's an interesting addition to the established tech of the show.

I already pointed out how the special not having Jimmy use a CPS worked because the entire message of that episode was ingenuity being used to help wildlife. A lot of people seem to agree with me that he's been able to prove his worth even without a power vest (some theorize that Aviva did make a suit for Jimmy, but because of how well he is at serving the team, it's a failsafe). But it would also give the technological advantage of not having to do even more grunt work calibrating a 5th power suit onto the capacitator

Either way, I like it, and even if it feels like a retcon, it's place in the story is perfectly acceptable, and does the special a huge service. I really hope they bring it back in future episodes. We could learn more about it, and it could serve as a jumpstart to future sources of conflict.

#wild kratts #pbs kids #kratt brothers #aviva corcovado #wild kratts season 7 #asks

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neechees · 1 year ago

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People who call younger people "puriteens" and blame them for censorship online or in media (either actual unfair censorship or like the most basic of moderation prohibiting the distribution of cp online) are like similar to the parents who blame younger people for "being addicted to technology" and the growing exclusive digitization of stuff.

Like teens and kids don't have power to do all that, they weren't the ones in control when that shit was happening, adults like their parents and grandparents were. Teens & kids aren't the ones hindering safe places for sex workers online, they aren't the ones in government right now or the ones running these sites making the internet more hostile. Teens & kids aren't the ones who forced everything to become digital, like you can't give your 3 year old an iPad that YOU bought for them with YOUR money and then be mad they're "addicted to technology".

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beardedmrbean · 26 days ago

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NEW DELHI (Reuters) -Global makers of surveillance gear have clashed with Indian regulators in recent weeks over contentious new security rules that require manufacturers of CCTV cameras to submit hardware, software and source code for assessment in government labs, official documents and company emails show.

The security-testing policy has sparked industry warnings of supply disruptions and added to a string of disputes between Prime Minister Narendra Modi's administration and foreign companies over regulatory issues and what some perceive as protectionism.

New Delhi's approach is driven in part by its alarm about China's sophisticated surveillance capabilities, according to a top Indian official involved in the policymaking. In 2021, Modi's then-junior IT minister told parliament that 1 million cameras in government institutions were from Chinese companies and there were vulnerabilities with video data transferred to servers abroad.

Under the new requirements applicable from April, manufacturers such as China's Hikvision, Xiaomi and Dahua, South Korea's Hanwha, and Motorola Solutions of the U.S. must submit cameras for testing by Indian government labs before they can sell them in the world's most populous nation. The policy applies to all internet-connected CCTV models made or imported since April 9.

"There's always an espionage risk," Gulshan Rai, India's cybersecurity chief from 2015 to 2019, told Reuters. "Anyone can operate and control internet-connected CCTV cameras sitting in an adverse location. They need to be robust and secure."

Indian officials met on April 3 with executives of 17 foreign and domestic makers of surveillance gear, including Hanwha, Motorola, Bosch, Honeywell and Xiaomi, where many of the manufacturers said they weren't ready to meet the certification rules and lobbied unsuccessfully for a delay, according to the official minutes.

In rejecting the request, the government said India's policy "addresses a genuine security issue" and must be enforced, the minutes show.

India said in December the CCTV rules, which do not single out any country by name, aimed to "enhance the quality and cybersecurity of surveillance systems in the country."

This report is based on a Reuters review of dozens of documents, including records of meetings and emails between manufacturers and Indian IT ministry officials, and interviews with six people familiar with India's drive to scrutinize the technology. The interactions haven't been previously reported.

Insufficient testing capacity, drawn-out factory inspections and government scrutiny of sensitive source code were among key issues camera makers said had delayed approvals and risked disrupting unspecified infrastructure and commercial projects.

"Millions of dollars will be lost from the industry, sending tremors through the market," Ajay Dubey, Hanwha's director for South Asia, told India's IT ministry in an email on April 9.

The IT ministry and most of the companies identified by Reuters didn't respond to requests for comment about the discussions and the impact of the testing policy. The ministry told the executives on April 3 that it may consider accrediting more testing labs.

Millions of CCTV cameras have been installed across Indian cities, offices and residential complexes in recent years to enhance security monitoring. New Delhi has more than 250,000 cameras, according to official data, mostly mounted on poles in key locations.

The rapid take-up is set to bolster India's surveillance camera market to $7 billion by 2030, from $3.5 billion last year, Counterpoint Research analyst Varun Gupta told Reuters.

China's Hikvision and Dahua account for 30% of the market, while India's CP Plus has a 48% share, Gupta said, adding that some 80% of all CCTV components are from China.

Hanwha, Motorola Solutions and Britain's Norden Communication told officials by email in April that just a fraction of the industry's 6,000 camera models had approvals under the new rules.

CHINA CONCERN

The U.S. in 2022 banned sales of Hikvision and Dahua equipment, citing national security risks. Britain and Australia have also restricted China-made devices.

Likewise, with CCTV cameras, India "has to ensure there are checks on what is used in these devices, what chips are going in," the senior Indian official told Reuters. "China is part of the concern."

China's state security laws require organizations to cooperate with intelligence work.

Reuters reported this month that unexplained communications equipment had been found in some Chinese solar power inverters by U.S. experts who examined the products.

Since 2020, when Indian and Chinese forces clashed at their border, India has banned dozens of Chinese-owned apps, including TikTok, on national security grounds. India also tightened foreign investment rules for countries with which it shares a land border.

The remote detonation of pagers in Lebanon last year, which Reuters reported was executed by Israeli operatives targeting Hezbollah, further galvanized Indian concerns about the potential abuse of tech devices and the need to quickly enforce testing of CCTV equipment, the senior Indian official said.

The camera-testing rules don't contain a clause about land borders.

But last month, China's Xiaomi said that when it applied for testing of CCTV devices, Indian officials told the company the assessment couldn't proceed because "internal guidelines" required Xiaomi to supply more registration details of two of its China-based contract manufacturers.

"The testing lab indicated that this requirement applies to applications originating from countries that share a land border with India," the company wrote in an April 24 email to the Indian agency that oversees lab testing.

Xiaomi didn't respond to Reuters queries, and the IT ministry didn't address questions about the company's account.

China's foreign ministry told Reuters it opposes the "generalization of the concept of national security to smear and suppress Chinese companies," and hoped India would provide a non-discriminatory environment for Chinese firms.

LAB TESTING, FACTORY VISITS

While CCTV equipment supplied to India's government has had to undergo testing since June 2024, the widening of the rules to all devices has raised the stakes.

The public sector accounts for 27% of CCTV demand in India, and enterprise clients, industry, hospitality firms and homes the remaining 73%, according to Counterpoint.

The rules require CCTV cameras to have tamper-proof enclosures, strong malware detection and encryption.

Companies need to run software tools to test source code and provide reports to government labs, two camera industry executives said.

The rules allow labs to ask for source code if companies are using proprietary communication protocols in devices, rather than standard ones like Wi-Fi. They also enable Indian officials to visit device makers abroad and inspect facilities for cyber vulnerabilities.

The Indian unit of China's Infinova told IT ministry officials last month the requirements were creating challenges.

"Expectations such as source code sharing, retesting post firmware upgrades, and multiple factory audits significantly impact internal timelines," Infinova sales executive Sumeet Chanana said in an email on April 10. Infinova didn't respond to Reuters questions.

The same day, Sanjeev Gulati, India director for Taiwan-based Vivotek, warned Indian officials that "All ongoing projects will go on halt." He told Reuters this month that Vivotek had submitted product applications and hoped "to get clearance soon."

The body that examines surveillance gear is India's Standardization Testing and Quality Certification Directorate, which comes under the IT ministry. The agency has 15 labs that can review 28 applications concurrently, according to data on its website that was removed after Reuters sent questions. Each application can include up to 10 models.

As of May 28, 342 applications for hundreds of models from various manufacturers were pending, official data showed. Of those, 237 were classified as new, with 142 lodged since the April 9 deadline.

Testing had been completed on 35 of those applications, including just one from a foreign company.

India's CP Plus told Reuters it had received clearance for its flagship cameras but several more models were awaiting certification.

Bosch said it too had submitted devices for testing, but asked that Indian authorities "allow business continuity" for those products until the process is completed.

When Reuters visited New Delhi's bustling Nehru Place electronics market last week, shelves were stacked with popular CCTV cameras from Hikvision, Dahua and CP Plus.

But Sagar Sharma said revenue at his CCTV retail shop had plunged about 50% this month from April because of the slow pace of government approvals for security cameras.

"It is not possible right now to cater to big orders," he said. "We have to survive with the stock we have."

#nunyas news

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bedtime-broadcast · 26 days ago

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Lucifer: *blinks slowly* Who are the Vees?

A trio of overlords who work together and run pretty much all electronic entertainment in Pride; film, technology, social media, internet, so on and so forth. Two of them, Vox and Valentino, are obsessed with two people living in the hotel. And Valentino was the one behind the CPS invasion.

Lucifer: Ah….I see��*cracks his neck* I normally don’t get involved with “Overlord” affairs but, a baby was put in danger so… *vanishes for a moment*

#bedtime broadcast #Lucifer #lucifer morningstar

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syrena-del-mar · 1 year ago

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People forget that actors don't owe anybody the knowledge of their sexuality. Whether that be lesbian, gay, bisexual, pansexual, demisexual, asexual, or any other sexuality. That includes their dating history or who they're currently dating. Actors only owe the public one thing: that they do their job and that they do it well.

If that job consists of partaking in CP/ship culture, consume their media knowing that what they show you in public is curated for you as a fan. If they're dating someone who is not their partner, they're not cheating you; they're not making a mockery out of you or of queer relationships. With ship work, they're simply doing their job how their culture expects them to.

Ship work is not queerbaiting. Living, breathing humans do not queerbait. Queerbaiting comes from a marketing tactic for fictional entertainment work to ensure that they don't alienate their straight audience while also ensuring queer interest. You're consuming BLs and GLs, where the shows deliver in the promised relationships. If you're consuming BL/GL, you should know that fanservice generally follows.

Fanservice works because it's understood to be common practice. It's acting, an extension of whatever series they're promoting. Also, realize that fans often find themselves so invested in a couple that a hug or even a tiny brush of their hands will be considered 'evidence' of a relationship. Friends can flirt, 'lovingly' touch each other, and mess around without it meaning anything.

That's still not queerbaiting.

Because of how advanced technology has become, we have so much access to these actors/actresses. Accessibility does not equal entitlement to know how they identify. Claiming an individual is 'queerbaiting' only causes harm in the long term because you might unknowingly force someone to come out of the closet before they were ever ready to be. This only pushes media/reporters to continuously ask for information that isn't anyone's business to drum up engagement, potentially exploiting them for clicks. There's no need to inquire about their personal life, relationships, or sexuality.

But what if they take cryptic 'couple' photos with someone other than their work partner? Stop searching. Take their social media posts at face value. Stop trying to come up with some 'gotcha' moment, whether that be actually dating their work partner or some other individual. It's their personal life (curated, but still their life); you're overstepping, and if what you find out upsets you, then it's time to pull away.

It's really that simple.

Just because you buy into the fantasy a little too much and invest yourself in the pseudo-relationship does not mean the actors are queerbaiters. At the end of the day, fanservice is just that—a service provided for the fans. In other words, it's a job. Finding out that an actor/actress is dating someone of the opposite sex does not make them queerbaiters. (Also, realize that dating someone of the opposite sex does not signify that they're straight; whether they are or not, it's none of your business.)

If an actor/actress's personal relationships make you so mentally unwell because they're not with the onscreen partner, it just means you've genuinely detached yourself from reality. I mean this sincerely, if you're at this point, find help. Try to learn and understand more about why you're putting so much of yourself into a parasocial relationship. It's unhealthy for you to get so worked up that you feel sick because two coworkers aren't together.

If you find out that you're not a fan of CP work because you feel lied to or cheated, just don't consume it. Simply watch the show, look up their artist profile to see what other works they've been in, and log off. Don't follow them on social media, don't look up their fan meets, or watch video compilations that fans have made for shipping.

You're the master curator of your online consumption.

Curate it.

#i keep seeing fans and reporters overstepping boundaries #from jeff to freenbecky to maxtul to mile to netjames... fans keep getting upset when they're the ones crossing lines #humans can't queerbait when will people start learning this #also the pan/bi erasure is insane in some of these takes #fanservice #thai bl #japanese bl #taiwanese bl #korean bl #mexican bl #media criticism #bl actors #personal rant

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accio-victuuri · 2 years ago

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YIZHAN’S 06.29 HK Event ( A Summary ) ✨

As the title says, this will be a timeline of sorts around the show. It’s always a treat to see them in one place so the next step is really to archive the story behind it. A mix of events, cpns & fandom reflections.

The last part of this is more on my words on why ( i think ) they didn’t interact or even see each other at the event, if you’re interested in that, you can scroll down and skip the others.

This is gonna be a long post, Enjoy! ^^

What is the event all about?

The name of the show is The Greater Bay Area Film Concert 2023 and the venue is in Hongkong. It is described as :

More than a hundred filmmakers, musicians, cultural and sports technology representatives from both sides of the Taiwan Strait as well as Hong Kong and Macao will gather on the banks of the Xiangjiang River to work together Write a new picture of Chinese-style modernization belonging to the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area.

It is also a big event because it is broadcasted in multiple platforms:

CCTV 6 Movie Channel, Phoenix Satellite TV Chinese Channel, Phoenix Satellite TV Hong Kong Channel, Guangdong Satellite TV, Shenzhen Satellite TV, Radio Television Hong Kong, and Macao Radio and Television , Australia and Asia Satellite TV and other TV platforms live broadcast, China Central People's Broadcasting Corporation, Hong Kong TVB recorded and broadcast, movie channel Rong Media, 1905 Movie Network, Phoenix.com, Phoenix Show and other major media platforms of the whole network broadcast simultaneously.

I personally haven’t experienced an event they both attended — or actually even as individuals as endorsed as this. It is considered a “government” event and it would make sense that they will be present. Even if they are still considered “traffic” stars, this time, it works in their favor because they need the audience that these two will bring.

It is labeled as a “concert” but it’s truly a “party” for the 26th anniversary of Hong Kong’s return to China. The actual date is 7/1, but this is a primer to that, and why it’s taking place in HK. This is a touchy subject so I won’t go into detail and i feel like a good number of us are happy to see them perform but at the same time knowing what this party is about makes us feel off. It’s always been a popular theory among turtles that our best bet for a same event and interaction is for a government approved celebration. This way, their fans will ( hopefully ) be in their best behavior.

The same sentiment was actually passed on to turtles the day before the event. Reminding that it’s not like the other shows where you can say whatever.

Before the 629 Party:

By the last week of June, there were already some buzz surrounding the show and who will be attending. The most talked about being XZ & WYB. Melons were already releasing news about it but there were still talk about them not being in the same place.

It could be the same show but they will be in completely different places. It got cpfs excited, knowing how rough the past days were with all the YBO business, this is exactly what a lot of fans needed. some really positive news. Though there were some minor signs that all is well, a loud sign like this was so much better.

6.26, fans were talking about a potential double airport which turned out to not be true. However, this added fuel to the fire that they will both attend.

6.27 for cpfs was of course all about celebrating CQL’s 4th anniversary and well it was truly a special day. The weekend before, cpfs were already sharing face-to-face events and online materials on the actual day was a lot. It is the answer to the question of whether the cp fandom was already broken. The answer is a very loud No. Same day, Yubin also shared a video that showed a split second glimpse of them back in 2018 and eating hotpot. At this point, it was only a matter of time for them to be in the same event.

6.28, around 8:30 AM there were videos and then photos of XZ leaving and flying to HK. This lined up with melons that he will leave on this day. Even if there are no official announcements yet, it was the answer we were looking for. He was looking so good and his hair was tied up — which of course made us think of all the times they both had this style. the best. and also how they look so similar. twins!!!!

and well, how it is sort of similar to how lei yu’s hair was tied too in BTF.

There is a speculation that he was really supposed to fly 629 but that information was leaked so they decided against it. Or they booked multiple flights. The reason is @ the airport, there was a video of ZZ looking through his bag when he was about to go to the gate and it seemed like he forgot important things. So his staff had to leave and get it. It leads us to believe that he may not be prepared to go on that flight in particular.

They were also on HS as attending. This goes to show how no one is over BJYX. lol. It still brings the heat, because of who they are as individuals and moreso as a pair. There are so many guests, a lot of them really well-know names to the general public but the entertainment blogs know who to talk about.

10:00 & 10:15 AM Movie Channel weibo account announced the attendees and two very familiar faces are on it. The news we have all been waiting to hear has been confirmed.

It’s cute that the photos they used were from the recent Weibo Night. GG’s is what he used for the event poster.

11:25 AM Yibo-official shared that WYB is attending.

Next up, the program list was revealed and ZZ & WYB are confirmed to be performing. WYB = Wuming OST and ZZ will sing Run Without Care.

An event like this takes careful planning and while i do believe that them attending is not about “pleasing cpfs” — it doesn’t take away the fact that it feels like a gift to us. the drama from the past days. cql 4th anniversary. The universe is on our side on this one.

2:00 PM - ZZ landed in Hongkong. 🛬

3:00 PM - XZS posts about ZZ attending

In the evening, Movie Channel weibo account had a pre-show livestream related to the event and ZZ & WYB were talked about and evaluated.

6.29, at approximately 8:00 AM, Bobo is seen at the airport and is on his way to Shenzhen then to HK. Wearing a really cute Pokemon shirt!!!! People are saying he took this route cause he doesn’t want to be photographed by the public.

The HS bringing them together is also trending so early, #7 on general HS and #11 on entertainment. Everyone is so excited! HK based media accounts on weibo are also joining in and posting about the event with the boys as the main photo.

( these screenshots taken at the time of posting, however hours later, they were edited to include other acts in p2 especially. )

Some videos about them were also circling around, i don’t really think these are necessary cause it’s different when a cpf makes them and meant for the fandom audience compared to the “media”putting their own spin to it. Stuff like these are definitely a hit or miss and may be antis in disguise.

Around 12nn, WYB is in Shenzhen and on the way to HK. His itinerary really caused the confusion before. cause people really thought there was another event in SZ cause why would he go that route.

BJYX was also on HS before the event. In the regular one, that high up, not even entertainment.

6PM , WYB is seen attending the rehearsal for the show. There were also talks of how far they might be seated from each other.

The program started 30 minutes earlier than the broadcast of 8:00 PM. That’s why the fancams were released way earlier. Yibo left right after his performance and didn’t spend that much time with the other guests/audience.

XZ was seen around 9PM, he spent time in the audience then performed as well. He also left right after.

Both of them were all over HS. moreso GG.

Media Compilation 📸

• XZ Studio

pre show photoshoot fire one | two

live photos

XZ’s performance of 潇洒走一回

• Yibo-Official

pre-show photoshoot b&w

live photos

WYB’s performance of Wuming

CPN clues here and there

1. The joint event is on a Thursday, and as we all know, Thursday is a good day to see you.

2. The song chosen for XZ was part of a record released back in 10-28-1991. It’s the same birth month & year as him, but the date is such a good coincidence. 28. Ai Bo ( Love Bo ) 🫶🏼

3. Emphasis on Yibo’s moles in one of the YBO photos. Bobo is known for other things physically but not really his moles, so it’s interesting how it was highlighted. A mole is really more of XZ’s thing so i can’t help but feel like there is something there 👀 ; a connection being made.

4. I know some people were bummed that ZZ was not in the audience, or hasn’t even showed up at the tables when Bobo performed. Well, he missed alot too. It’s not like it was only Yibo’s.

Same thing with WYB leaving the event right after his performance. We know this is his usual MO but we had hopes anyway.

I know it’s heartbreaking but we have to focus on the positive that they are in the same event ! ✨we will get there, we just have to be patient and remember that their safety is the most important.

5. ZZ’s table mates are Yoshi ( WYB’s BTF co star and friend ) as well as Huang Bo ( WYB’s One and Only co star ). What a coincidence. 🫢🫢

6. This photo from XZS. 📸 what a great shot considering WYB performed Wuming.

7. Here we go again with their usual strategy of not posting at the same time when they are at an event. You can say that this was somehow coordinated by the people from the show. We noticed WYB was scheduled at the start to get traffic early, and then ZZ close to the last to get people to stay till the final hours.

However, XZS really posted and showed XZ after WYB’s performance of Wuming was broadcasted. The screenshot i’m posting shows Movie Channel posted at :52, but that’s a bit late cause minutes before that other accounts have already shared. Even me. I was uploading the Wuming performance here on tumblr when XZS popped up on my Weibo notification.

Interpret it how you want, but the two are not here to “compete”.

A fan was able to see them shooting these materials 628, so they could have posted it anytime before the actual broadcast but didn’t.

8. Let’s go back to ZZ’s photos lol. It’s 18 photos uploaded but the actual number of shots is 33. What a good combination! Also his posting time is 20:50, or that can also be 8:50. 8/5. Yibo’s birthday 😭

9. The Movie Channel weibo accounted posted a video cut of their performance. Just them. And put a caption like “ it’s like the same stage” cause they did perform on the same stage, just at different times 😂 but then it was later edited out / deleted. Lol. Here is the video someone saved of the cut.

10. The IP address in ZZ’s video post is in Guangdong. Again, i’m not sure how these IPs work or if a staff is posting for him but the thing is this place is close to Shenzhen. WYB is rumored to be going from HK to Shenzhen again so who knows. It’s all CPN anyway ☺️

11. ZZ’s pants, it has a heart that is outlined with a color green.

There are probably more out there, but these are the interesting ones i’m including as of now. If some “big” ones show itself then i will just make a separate post on it. I find that the sweetest candies from events happen weeks or months later. When we get more “clues.” In the meantime i hope enjoyed these ones.

========================

Personal thoughts on “not interacting” and the reality of being a BXG.

I’m using this post/photos from one of my favorite BJYX fansite to start and give a general theme of what my stand is with this whole thing. “no need to prove it.”

I think most of us dare hoped, but the reality is, when it comes to same events with them, we should always manage our expectations. do not expect anything. There are some who are frustrated because of what they think ZZ/WYB should do or act around each other — as if we really have a say on that. As someone who has been on here for quite some time, it is a fact that being a BXG is hard. You don’t have to believe in BJYXSZD, but if you’re here to see cute interactions like how “CPs” do then this is not the fandom for you. It takes a whole lot of understanding of their status as celebrities and the toxicity between their solo fans as well as C-ent in general. Then add the whole 2*7 incident. Some may say it’s so easy to just interact and shut people up. No it’s not. Xiao Zhan is not just Xiao Zhan ; Wang Yibo is not just Wang Yibo. The reality is, at events like this, they are products. Both of them have millions or billions riding on them. So there you go. It’s not as easy as everyone thinks. I understand if people feel bummed — it’s okay to leave the CPF side of the fandom if that will be better for you. There is no shame in letting go if it only upsets you because fandom should make you happy. As I said, it takes a certain kind of person to stay and continue believing in them.

As CPFs, we should be kinder to them both. more understanding. not too demanding. We are the ones who are supposed to be on their side and know why they do certain things. It is tiring to be this selfless but it is what it is.

Now on to the more serious reason…

As I’ve mentioned above, this event is really not the “party” for entertainment everyone is making it out to be. It’s not an NYE program. It’s to celebrate the anniversary of HK’s return to China and you all know how that paints this as political. The same goes for celebrities who attended this event.

Both of them were already on HS leading up to it. HK media are focusing on them. Even during the event, the HS about them was so high up.

This is why I think they decided to not give any chance for the public to see them in the same space. If ZZ was there, the camera will surely pan to him when WYB was performing. If not, there will be fancams and people will scrutinize every micro expressions. Their solo fans will be at war. and well basically, the event will be about them. It’s not the greater bay area film concert anymore. It’s the BOJUNYIXIAO REUNION SHOW. Which is something they don’t want. The “celebration” shouldn’t be about them at all. Tho the media used them to hype it up. At the end of the day, they don’t want and need that kind of attention. It’s okay when it’s about their performance but not anything else.

They want to be known as individuals and not as a “pairing” even tho a lot of people and not just cpfs are interested in what will happen if they go on the same stage and interact 😂😂😂😂 These two really act like a real celebrity couple in c-ent who don’t interact in events!

Right now, I’m really happy to see them onstage and get all the content. I’m comforted that they are in the same city and were basically MIA days before they popped up at the airport to leave so hopefully they get to spend more time together!

To my fellow bxgs who believe, stay strong! ♥️💛💚.

#yizhan #bjyx #there is no science here i’m just clowning like i always do

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piedpiperart · 2 years ago

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Phantom of Gotham 18

Chapter 17

”I can’t believe you!” Tim exclaimed, punching Danny in the arm when he spotted him in class.

“Ouch!” Danny laughed nervously, rubbing his arm. “You-”

“You could have told me you were leaving! Or at least talked to us about it first,”Tim said, exasperated. Danny watched him throw himself into the seat next to Danny dramatically and throw his bag down, only to dig through it for a tupperware of… oh, were those Alfred’s cookies? Danny hoped they were for him. Alfred’s cookies were awesome. “Now even Damian is bugging me about you and telling me to just take you home after school.”

“Uh, you guys did say I could leave and that you wouldn’t call CPS,”Danny reminded him, rubbing the back of his neck. Tim gave him a look, blowing some bangs out of his eyes.

“Yes. And we’ll stick to that. But you know we only said that because we’d hope to convince you to stay at the manor. Because we’re rich and we have an infinite amount of space for you to stay,”Tim stressed. “Seriously. Where are you staying now?”

“Not telling,”Danny deflected immediately. “You guys got a frickin’ vigilante working for you, I’m not a snitch.”

“That’s not-” Tim threw his hands into the air exasperatedly. “Fine! But only talkers get cookies,”Tim glared, sliding the tupperware of solid gold goodness away from Danny’s hands. Danny pouted, but didn’t relent.

The day continued like that, with Tim trying to convince him to stay at the manor, while Danny deflected and changed subjects like a bored teen changing channels on a tv. I was getting cumbersome for both of them by lunch though, and they’d settled for a truce. Danny ended up getting a few cookies while Steph joined them at the lunch table. She was soon cackling over the Waynes losing a potential adoptee and for Danny sneaking out. They high-fived. Tim was not amused. By the multitude of texts to Tim’s phone, the family wasn’t either.

RobinHood

Went to the Pizzaria, kid’s stuff is gone.

LittleJohn

Damn. I got nothing on my end. Any ideas?

RobinHood

Tail him after school

MaidMarian

You think he’ll notice?

LittleJohn

Well, he might if he’s got a ghost looking out for him Steph. We’re not sure where Phantom went the other day but we do know that Danny got out of the manor without triggering any security.

RobinHood

Plus Phantom is friends with Danny.

MaidMarian

Eh, we can still try. Or just kidnap him as civilians (≖⌣≖)

LittleJohn

Eh… Maybe. Last resort.

RobinHood

I could just take him from school

MaidMarian

•̀ ᎑ -

LittleJohn

No!! That would be so much worse oh my god

Jason sighed at his brother’s lack of creativity. He’d thought the Pizzaria might have been cleared out but seeing it for himself still made his heart sink. If only there was some clues to where the kid had gone, he thought. No doubt he was anywhere but around Hood’s territory now.

To be fair, he wasn’t nearly as worried about the kid now that he knew he had ghost powers that helped him survive. Still, Jason knew living on the streets wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Part of him thought that maybe the kid was scared that everyone hunting him would put the Waynes in danger. He wasn’t wrong to think that, but they could handle themselves. Sure, ghosts were a new thing for them, but they adapted. Made plans.

Jason wasn’t sure they’d be able to keep Danny or Phantom in one place without using some kind of ghost technology like the GIW or call in a magic user. Except Jason didn’t want to think about having weapons that Danny’s parents made to hurt him. From what he could tell, ghosts weren’t as much of a problem to humans as humans were to ghosts. Jason didn’t need ghost weapons to deal with the GIW, and he sure as hell was gonna deal with them.

The Bats had been gathering information on them like crazy. Babs was still hacking their databases and Batman was putting together a plan to inform the Justice League. They weren’t entirely sure this was something the Green Lanterns needed to take up to the OA, but if it was they’d cross that bridge when they got to it.

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

Damian was furious.

He’d been texting Timothy nonstop about Danny and yet- unsurprisingly- his older brother had been unable to convince the boy to come back to the manor. Frustratingly, Timothy had not even responded to any of his text messages since lunch time and hadn’t come to the manor after school. Even Todd wasn’t answering any of his messages- plans- to convince Danny to join the family. It had been two days and Danny had still been staying who knows where. The family had not even tried to follow him home out of some misguided respect for privacy and free will. He was sure Danny was somewhere abandoned, likely somewhere lacking proper water and heat. Damian was beyond frustrated that all his hard work getting Danny used to a stable meal plan was for nothing.

It was ridiculous how dumb Danny was acting in regards to his own safety. As one of the few species of half ghost around, he had the survival instincts of a paper bag, and Damian was of the opinion that he should be trying a lot harder considering his status. Damian had no idea why Danny would think they wouldn’t be able to protect and care for him at the manor. Obviously, Danny was an asset when it came to the Ghostly dimension given his halfa status and friendship with Phantom. There was no other reason why he wanted Danny to stay. It wasn’t like he missed the boy. Even if he was better than Timothy in every way, and had intriguing powers that he trusted Damian with. Not at all.

Damian scoffed, adjusting his tie for the third time. He didn’t want to go to this infernal Gala, especially when only Grayson and his father were attending. Cass was still in Hong Kong, and Jason and Timothy had other plans. Damian hoped those plans included getting Danny to stay at the manor. He would no doubt be a good sidekick for when Damian was older, and he would not be letting Danny slip through his fingers.

“Are you ready Baby bat?” Grayson asked, a grin on his face and despite the formal wear, he’d somehow convinced Father to let him wear a glittery monstrosity instead of a tie. “There’s gonna be a few people B wants us to keep an eye on, wanna help me with surveillance?” Damian scoffed. “Why not. It’s not as if there will be anything else of importance going on,”He added. Grayson gave him a knowing smile, as if he was recalling just how boring and overly formal these parties were.

“I’d say you get used to it, but…”Grayson trailed off, sighing dramatically. “Never do.” He shook his head, then they made their way to the front where Alfred and Bruce were waiting with the car.

As far as Galas go, it was certainly not the most boring, but it definitely wasn’t providing any riveting conversations. As far as surveillance, Damian was able to trade off with Grayson during the night, switching targets and gleaming information as they went. It was no surprise that Mr. Elwood was simply in an affair than any nefarious business deals. Ms. Green on the other hand was definitely collaborating with some of the shader patrons in the Gala, whom Father suspected had ties to Penguin.

Though, there was one target that Damian couldn’t get a read on. He was tall, haughty, and self-absorbed, yet according to B, had a perfectly clean multi-million dollar business despite multiple complaints and signs to otherwise. Damian in particular hated him on principle for the way he looked down on everyone around him. He ignored how hypocritical that statement might be and chose to eye the billionaire talking with his father.

“As I was saying, my son Daniel reminds me a lot of your sons,”Vlad was saying to Bruce. He was wearing a gray suit with a black shirt and an annoyingly green tie. Damian was certain it was some type of football paraphernalia. “He’s very headstrong and independent for one. How do you deal with your sons when they refuse to listen to reason?”

“Oh?” Brucie said with an exaggerated confused look. He ignored the concerning question for now.“I was unaware you had any children.”

Annoyance and something else flashed across Vlad’s face before he schooled his expression to exasperation. Damian sneered at the man internally. “Ah of course, Daniel is technically my godson, but he’s like a son to me. We have a lot in common,”Vlad explained, a sneer suddenly forming and taking Damian by surprise,”At least more than his father has with him. Honestly, his mother could do so much better than that bumbling idiot.”

“Where is this Daniel then?” Damian cut in, garnering the attention of both men. Vlad seemed surprised to see him, if not a bit jealous. “If you are so close, how come he didn’t join you here?”

“I would have loved to have the little badger here beside me,”Vlad’s face twisted into something like sadness, but missed the mark. “Unfortunately, Daniel’s gone missing these past few months without so much as a word.”

Damian frowned as his father offered meaningless sympathies. Daniel? Vlad had been from Wisconsin, but he recalled the man having some sort of dealings in Amity. After a moment he remembered and scowled. This man was the Mayor of Danny’s town. He was the one who’d let the GIW in in the first place, surely. Looking up at the man’s false mask, set on gaining sympathy from his father made him light up with contempt.

“Of course,”Vlad was saying when Damian started paying attention again.”I had originally come to Gotham to find him, you see. I’d heard something about him being spotted in the area and just had to check it out for myself.”

That was bad. If he was talking about Danny, then Vlad somehow had gotten ahold of information about his whereabouts. Who else had that intel? Was the GIW or the Fentons on his tail? Was Danny in danger? He quickly excused himself from the two adults and meandered over to his elder brother to relay the information. Hopefully they could get Danny to a safe location before something bad happened.

Chapter 19

#my 9 key is so sticky aaa #phantom of gotham #dcxdp #dpxdc

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