#Device ID Targeting

[skymattix]

Accurate marketing with device ID targeting

Harness the power of device ID targeting to refine your marketing tactics. Reach your target audience directly through their devices. Maximize your campaigns' impact with unusual precision in ad delivery and engagement.

[sachininformationworld]

Why is Reputation Management Company essential?

Reputation management companies offer a range of services to help businesses and individuals manage their online reputations. Their services include monitoring online reviews, removing negative content, and improving search results. In addition to reputation management, they can also help develop and optimize your digital content and public relations. Despite the fact that reputation management companies have a variety of services, they all share the same basic principles.

Monitors online reviews

One of the most important elements of reputation management is monitoring online reviews. This is a crucial part of customer acquisition and client retention. It involves tracking brand mentions and customer feedback, implementing proactive measures, and staying on top of your reputation. To monitor reviews online, you need a reliable service that can give you real-time insight into what your customers are saying about your brand.

One service to monitor reviews online is SentiOne. This platform allows you to monitor hundreds of different websites. This makes it easy to find what people say about your brand. You can then use this information to respond to negative reviews as quickly as possible. You'll receive alerts when someone leaves a review about your products or services, so you can take action before the reviews get out of hand.

Monitoring reviews can also help you measure the quality of your customer service. Many consumers trust reviews online, and disgruntled customers can easily tarnish a company's reputation. That's why it's essential to make sure you have a strong digital presence. Monitoring your brand's online conversations will help you respond to reviews in real-time and improve customer relationships.

Another free tool to monitor online reviews is Google Alerts. This simple tool will monitor the web for any name or phrase, and notify you of any new mentions. However, it's important to use Google Alerts in conjunction with other reputation monitoring tools. While this tool may pick up some new mentions, it may miss reviews that don't mention your business name.

Removes negative reviews

One of the benefits of hiring a reputation management company is that they can quickly and easily remove negative reviews that have been posted about your company online. There are dozens of websites that let people post reviews and feedback. While removing negative reviews can be valuable, it can also be difficult and time-consuming. Instead of wasting time and energy, you should hire a professional to handle this task for you.

While removing negative content from the Internet is an effective reputation management technique, it is not an easy process. Moreover, removing the content may make the situation worse. Research shows that nearly 45% of consumers who read negative reviews are influenced by it and are less likely to buy products or do business with the company. To remove negative reviews from online platforms, simply click the "report review" option on the site that has posted the review.

Once the reviews are removed, the company can learn from them and prevent them from affecting their business in the future. Furthermore, having a positive web presence reinforces trust between a business and its customers. A negative review on a search engine such as Google can also tarnish a business's credibility.

In addition to removing negative reviews on Google, there are other ways to improve your company's reputation online. For example, a Google Removal Audit will identify negative reviews and identify the best way to remove them. Moreover, a Damage Control Process will reduce the number of people who find negative reviews on a site by publishing positive content and social media updates. The best part of this strategy is that it uses optimized content to keep positive pages higher than negative ones, creating a protective barrier.

Also Read: - Understanding What Business Consulting Services Is All About

Google allows you to remove malicious reviews from major sites. However, this process is time-consuming and tedious and requires the business to deal with the legal department of the site. For this reason, it is advisable to hire a review management company to handle this process for you.

Optimizes digital content

A Reputation Management Company is a group of professionals who design, optimize, and distribute digital content to improve a business's reputation. They work to remove any negative impacts from damaging reviews, news articles, forum comments, and more. In addition, they offer search engine optimization (SEO) services.

Develops public relations

A reputation management company can help you maintain a healthy reputation. Managing a reputation involves a number of steps, including developing a social media presence, search engine optimization, and review management. Because the internet is constantly evolving, it is vital to stay on top of current trends and technology to ensure your reputation stays healthy.

To do this, you must know how to maximize the value of your reputation. Your reputation is an intangible asset that depends on the public's perceptions. It is constantly being manipulated and altered by the media and search engines. But with the right public relations tactics, you can affect public opinion over time.

While traditional PR focuses on building relationships with traditional media, reputation PR focuses more on ensuring your business's online presence. This could mean launching a marketing campaign to earn brownie points with your target audience or implementing search engine optimization strategies to ensure your site is found on search engines.

Both public relations and reputation management are important aspects of a corporate. Both techniques involve working with others to share positive information about your business. For example, a reputation management company can develop relationships with journalists and social media influencers. The goal of this strategy is to keep your company in the public's mind and avoid any negative coverage or rumors.

Offers ongoing service

A reputation management company can help with a variety of tasks, including website building and redesign, managing reviews, and navigating conversations about your business. They also can help you manage social media, which is a growing area of online conversation. A good reputation management company will also offer ongoing service.

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[five-thousand-loaves-of-bread]

when taking about the judge routenburg center i wish people talk about how “students” there overwhelmingly BIPOC and/or have intellectual disability.

literal majority are BIPOC. depending on sources, 13-18% are white. (x)

don’t have stats on top of head, seen it somewhere, don’t know if people w ID is majority, but people w ID is a targeted population for centers like this.

i suspect a lot of them are nonspeaking, minimally speaking, don’t have functional communication, or high support needs, too.

so i mean it’s true that JRC targets neurodivergent people, but like they target a very specific group of neurodivergent people. i don’t see white speaking lower support needs autistic or otherwise ND advocates talk about this specific group of neurodivergent often.

all autistic and or neurodivergent people need to band together to protest JRC and shock devices, but in doing that we need to talk about who is most likely to be affected. not every one of us is affected the same.

[huginsmemory]

First meetings: Wolfwood and Vash

ID: Wolfwood in his introduction chapter pinching a protesting Vash's chin with interest and exclaiming that people are stupid for not immediately recognizing Vash.

One thing I noticed while rereading the manga, is the nature of Wolfwood and Vash's first meeting; that is, Wolfwood isn't targeting Vash as his next mark, nor does he likely know that Vash is his next mark. As a result, I thought it would be interesting to look at how that shapes their relationship with each other in the beginning, especially in comparison to the differences in the anime adaptations. Just a fun lil tidbit to sink your teeth into.

Proof of Unknowing

For the case that Wolfwood wasn't yet targeting Vash, my first point is that it makes sense logistically; if Wolfwood was targeting Vash to kill him as Legato had originally told them to in the manga, it would be assumed that he would have tried to kill Vash. However, instead he doesn't try to at all, although one might chalk that up to Vash saving his life by spotting him while on the bus or some other plot gimmick for Wolfwood to not immediately try to kill Vash.

Secondly, and more obviously, Wolfwood hasn't met Legato yet. This is seen clearly when Legato asks Wolfwood if he's Chapel, who Wolfwood is (later shown to be) impersonating, which means that Legato has never met Wolfwood. As well, Wolfwood is only shown to know the location of his next job- when he mutters about the chapel on the top of the rock- and doesn't seem to know nothing else, making it highly likely he doesn't even know any other details. In fact, Vash actually warns Wolfwood to not get involved with Legato, giving Wolfwood his description, to which Wolfwood when recieving the info doesn't seem to know the man; and upon arriving, and meeting Legato, Wolfwood actually parrots the description from Vash's warning in wariness, recognizing him through Vash's warning.

ID: Collection of three manga pages.

First page: Legato comments, "'Chapel' seems to be missing... Well, no matter. Our target... Has yet to arrive." His words fade into Wolfwood exclaiming, "Huh?! A skull attached to his left arm?" Vash says, "Yep, yep! That's right. And a raised, needle-like torture device on his right shoulder." After a pause, Vash says, "You don't know him? Well, if you see him, let me know."

Second page: Vash tensely remembers a blood spatter and thinks, "Like a shadow, he came. And like a shadow, he killed and slipped away. If he... If he can move in and out of a crowd like that, people can be killed easily..." Wolfwood and Meryl look curious, and Wolfwood asks, "Well? If I see that guy, what should I do? You got a message for him?" Vash makes an exclamatory sound and shouts, "No! No! Never-mind!! Do not get involved. He's a very, very dangerous man. I swear!" Wolfwood laughs, "But I heard you were the most dangerous man in the world!" Vash sighs.

Third page: we see Legato and Wolfwood standing across from each other at their first interaction. Legato says, "That cross... I've been waiting for you. You're 'Chapel,' correct?" Wolfwood's expression is wary, and he says, "The skull... The torture device... I know you..."

Since Legato hasn't met him yet, this also means Legato's precious half-coins which he gives to each of the gung-ho guns hasn't been given yet to Wolfwood, which Legato has been previously shown to inform the gung-ho guns who their target is when he gives it to them (as with the first gung-ho gun). This again makes it unlikely that Wolfwood even knows his mark is Vash.

ID: A panel of Legato touching a broken coin in front of Monev the Gale, the first gung-ho gun and saying intensely, "Do whatever it takes. For twenty years of your master's benevolence, it's time to repay him."

Lending further support, when Legato mentions that they specifically may need to deal with--ie, kill--Vash, this is the moment when we are privy to Wolfwood thought processes, where he desperately rages against his life as a assassin and how he wants to escape this life that causes him to kill. This is especially understandable under the context of Wolfwood just being told that he is supposed to kill a man that he had just somewhat befriended, a man who had just saved his life and payed for his lunch, who clearly has a good heart.

ID: Two subsequent manga pages. Legato (off page) says "We're entering unknown territory here. You must be ready to handle any situation. Especially... Vash the Stampede. By no means may you fail!!" Wolfwood's frowning face is shown as Conrad comments that Vash is coming and that he understands why Knives chose that location. There's a close-up of Wolfwood's narrow-eyed expression before a cut to his shoes stomping up a mountain. He angrily exclaims, "Shit! What the hell was with all th' training?! Once again I'm staining my own hands with blood. God..." He thinks, "Once it's gone full-circle... where will it end?"

Basically, manga Wolfwood and Vash's beginning of their relationship starts with them forming a camaraderie before Wolfwood learns that he needs to kill/betray Vash. This makes it in a way more bittersweet, because their original interaction never had that tension of knowledge that Wolfwood is there since the beginning to betray Vash, and instead, they are simply existing together and form a what might tentatively be called a friendship--at least something where the both of them seem to have made a positive impact on the other-- outside of Wolfwoods mission. As a result, the question of how much of the camaraderie in the beginning of their relationship is Wolfwood having to get close to his mark is removed; you realize the camaraderie they share is honest and organic. In a way it's more tragic, because Vash even warns Wolfwood to remain away from Legato, but Wolfwood is already inevitably heading towards meeting the man, and learns to his horror that his next target is actually Vash. For Vash it also it's bitter because when Wolfwood finds Vash, Wolfwood mentions Knives for his reason of finding Vash; showing that even against Vash's warning, Wolfwood has clearly been entangled in some manner in the fight between Vash and Knives.

Anime adaptions

All this gets cut from Stampede, as Wolfwood is pretty explicitly following Vash to babysit him since the beginning. As Stampede has considerably condensed the story this makes sense since it would take time they don't have to add it in; but I think that cuts out an interesting extra dimension to Wolfwood and Vash's relationship, but so many things have been cut that I'm not surprised, and it's so changed that this being cut is not a big deal to me (compared to other things they cut which were more important).

From what I remember of the 98' anime, it's left a bit open to whether or not Wolfwood already knows from the beginning. However, as Wolfwood appears before Legato appears, it may mean that Wolfwood doesn't know during their first few meetings, like in the manga, but we aren't given a specific scene that shows Wolfwood being told to follow Vash, so we don't know where in the timeline he knows (we are only given the scene where he's told to kill Vash, later in the series). As well, Vash warning Wolfwood about Legato was removed in '98, which then lacks that bittersweetness of the realization that Wolfwood has become entangled in Vash and Knives fight. However, I haven't finished rewatching '98, so I don't have a more confident answer for whether or not Wolfwood knows, so take this part of the analysis with a grain of salt.

Conclusion

TLDR: In comparison to Wolfwood seeking out Vash to betray/observe him since the beginning, Wolfwood not knowing, (as shown by Legato not knowing who Wolfwood is when they meet) makes their whole first interaction in the manga organic, and adds a whole extra dimension of tragedy to their relationship, especially with the way Vash tries to warn Wolfwood away from Legato, which ultimately fails. As a result, the darker parts of both of their lives, which they don't acknowledge in their first meeting, end up intertwined, against their will. This actually serves as part of a huge thematic resolution of monstrousness and rejection but that's not the point here, that's another thing for another day.

Btw! If u wanna read more rambles from me, here's a masterpost of em :)

Edit (Apr. 2): Added photo ID, written by @princess-of-purple-prose

[houseofpurplestars]

[Image id: Abu Obeida, spokesperson for Al-Qassam Brigades in Gaza, the armed wing of "Hamas." He wears a red keffiyeh covering his face and a military uniform and headband in green camouflage. /end id]

Martyr Izz El-Din Al-Qassam Brigades spokesman Abu Obeida:

—

During the last week, Al-Qassam fighters successfully destroyed 42 military vehicles, either completely or partially. Our fighters confirmed the elimination of 22 zionist soldiers at point blank range, in addition to inflicting dozens of deaths and injuries in 52 different military operations.

These operations targeted the invading zionist forces with anti-fortification shells and explosive devices, as well as machine gun and sniper weapons. Additionally, a house was blown up, 4 tunnel entrances and a minefield were detonated, and a surface-to-air missile was launched at a helicopter in the sky of Strip.

Our fighters downed a "hermes 900" reconnaissance aircraft and seized a "skylark" drone, as well as two other drones. They bombarded field command centers and military gatherings with mortar shells and short-range missiles across all combat axes, and directed a heavy barrage of rockets towards "tel aviv" and its surrounding areas.

t.me/PalestineResist

[ask-obt]

would you tell us about your "what if mateo was a better parent?" au??? id also like to know if youve come up with other aus other than the dielle ones youve mentioned (and please tell us about it if possible)

Anonymous asked: I have 2 AU Questions: 1. What if Mateo was a good parent and 2. What if Malachi never chased after Rune into Beach Cave?

// I've answered the "mateo as a better parent" au in a previous ask, but I can answer the "malachi never chased rune" au!

so in this one, malachi decides that giving chase after rune into the mystery dungeon isn't worth it and would probably make her uncomfortable. he goes home, and rune is left to her own devices to figure out how to navigate the mystery dungeon. she'd eventually make her way out (probably after aggro-ing some of the pokemon living there, and getting beat up as a result), and tries to gather her bearings in town. she doesn't have a lot of resources available to her (mainly: money), and reluctantly decides that she'll have to steal food in order to survive. the first and second night is completely unsuccessful in this regard. enter: a certain koffing and zubat, a pair of petty criminals! they watch her fail miserably at Pretty Basic Crime, and offer a helping hand. rune follows them back to their hideout for the night, and gets her first visit from requiem where she gains her voice back.

the next morning, the trio decide on their next mark who is, to rune's shock, a weirdly wealthy shinx who is currently struggling to enter the guild. his schedule is pretty repetitive so he's easy to track, they just have to isolate him. they do so (with rune reluctantly trailing behind), and are almost successful- when rune "accidentally" trips in the middle of an attack and takes the brunt of a hit for this shinx. startled, he runs off, and the rest of the au takes place with rune on the rival team. as she develops in her battling skills, she gains a more intimidating demeanor, but still insists on not making that shinx a target ("nah, he's low-hanging fruit. you wanna be the illustrious criminals who beat up some nerdy kid?"). malachi in this au still gets dielle and inigo as teammates, and everything comes to a head when the rival trio is invited by julius to be his team members for an upcoming expedition. team skull, now with a decent roster, behaves more closely to the games until the showdown in apple woods. julius wants to really beat team maelstrom down, which rune just can't agree to doing. she switches sides, tries (and fails, with the rest of the team) to take down team skull, and ends up in the infirmary with them when she comes to. the remainder of this au involves rune slowly being accepted into the team as she tries to make amends.

[vaguely-yandere]

ehehehe i can't stop thinking about a darling who's a stalker! maybe a dirty PI, some criminal, it doesn't matter! what matters is that they're good at stalking people. they aren't a body guard or anything but if you need them to follow someone around, they're the one you call. whether their job is to remain unseen or to be basically attached to their targets hip, they're good at it. it's just so cool!!!

their targets are usually bratty rich kids of insanely wealthy parents or a rival criminal or they're just someone's spouse but their most comment target is other darlings. you'd think yanderes might hate the idea of someone else stalking their darling but this darling is... unique. they look normal and plain, non threatening and they understand their clients wishes to remain as far away from darling as possible. the yanderes that hire them are usually rich and busy people, not having the time to stalk darling without their business tanking and our stalker has an uncanny ability to show up right when the yanderes are weak and need them the most (as well as seeming completely non threatening even to the most insecure and possessive yanderes) and offer them a business card or something. pretty soon, they're discussing the stalking packages and the darlings prices

"Attached At The Hip" includes darling, the target, never leaving the stalkers sight. bathrooms, bedrooms, jail cells, surgeries, stalker will be right there by their side, no matter how much of a fight darling puts up. comes with regular selfies and updates but if you pay extra, stalker will wear a body cam 24/7 and live stream the feed directly to yanderes devices (additional charges such as medical bills, fake ID's and costumes, down payment on camera just in case, etc not included). pay even more and stalker will befriend darling, becoming a clingy bff to reduce the darlings stress levels

"Classic" package includes stalker following from a distance and is one of the most popular packages. stalker isn't allowed within 10 feet of darling unless absolutely necessary or requested by buyer. tracking devices will have to be paid for by the buyer. stalker will follow, again, at a distance, usually by car but won't go into small buildings, alleyways, elevators, etc without the buyers explicit permission (and extra money) just to prevent any... mishaps. stalker isn't really concerned about their safety, they have hundreds of powerful yanderes who owe them one, but still it's nice to avoid trouble. besides, darlings seem to have an.... air about them. it's distracting and while is attracts obsessive freaks, it makes stalker kinda nauseated. (stealing from darling is not included and will require additional purchases as well as an insurance payment in case of accidental arrest. any bodily fluids or secretions will cost extra, so will breaking and entering.)

"Birds Eye View" is for the more insecure yanderes who want this stalker for hire to not even breathe the same air as their darling and its a bit more expensive than others due to parking passes, binoculars, paying off security guards and hiring their own small team of trusted hackers who are more than willing to get into a buildings security cameras. its called "Birds Eye View" because stalker typically isnt even allowed in the same building as darling, forcing them to hang out in the building across the street or up on rooftops with nothing but their binoculars and their lunch. its stalkers favorite package, much more quiet. it is a difficult package to pull off however because the yadere isnt going to be satisfied with just faraway, blurry pictures of their darling thats half obscured because it was taken behind three different windows and a tree and thats where stalkers computer experience comes in. while stalker is better at physical stalking, following someone around for hours on end, they have coworkers that are better at getting high quality pictures through security cameras, audio recordings through secret microphones, sometimes the yanderes even request that stalker puts their own cameras and microphones in the darlings house, work, car, but that costs extra and luckily, the cost of a body cam so yandere can ENSURE stalker doesnt try anything is included! earpieces so yan can directly speak to stalker isnt included and costs extra.

now, idk if stalker would have a yandere or would just be apart of the people at yanderes disposal! you know how in 'rich yandere' or 'criminal boss yandere' stuff, they almost always threaten you, the reader, with their arsenal of shady characters that have no face or depth? i kinda wanna write about those characters! yandere clean up crews, kidnapping experts, drug 'lords', doctors for captive darlings, stalkers, best friends for hire, yandere parents, etc etc

but anyway!!! i think if stalker did have a yandere, theyd be more of a platonic yandere! maybe when stalker was a child, they were hired to be friends with the spoiled kid by the kids parents because, well, they were worried! and they needed another kid to help keep their kid on track! the yandere did hate it at first, not enjoying the freak who never did facial expressions right and always followed them everywhere but at some point, yandere realized they could get rid of them and accepted their permanent babysitter and as stalker grew, their prices changed and evolved and they defined what they were comfortable doing and what they werent.

they werent going to be yanderes body guard. they wouldnt physically prevent yandere from going places. their job was to follow yandere around and monitor them then report back to their parents. easy. and after a while, yandere grew obsessed and possessive over stalker, threatening other kids when they got too close to stalker, no longer trying to run away from them, even inviting them over to stay the night! and it was fairly easy, stalker was always around so yandere never didnt know what was going on with them.

i also think itd be fun seeing yandere killing someone who got too close to stalker or threatened yanderes position as stalkers best friend and stalker just stands there behind them, watching yandere brutally murder someone, eyes blank as they watch someone who tried to be their friend give them one last look of utter betrayal before the life leaving them. poor stalker did throw up later, wracking with sobs and shudders, not prepared to see all of that but luckily, yan was right there to comfort them <3 and apologize for the mess, not mentioning the fact stalker knew this would happen and even invited the pest over for a more controlled environment.

and you'd think yandere would be against stalkers business but no. sure, when yan was a teenager, they were out of control! killing left and right, starting fights with anyone who got too close to stalker, refusing to let stalker befriend anyone else, if anyone annoyed stalker (which was rare) then yandere would take care of them. youd think yandere would get a reputation or something but they were the top of their classes, wealthy and attractive. a good kid in teachers eyes but a giant spoiled brat, running off to the mall or shops whenever they wanted to, with stalker diligently following along, no longer really getting paid by yanderes parents but this is what theyve spent the past decade doing so why stop? besides, stalker was friends with yandere now and, well, being friends with yandere offered a lot of security and protection. a full ride to college, anyone they wanted dead, a house they could go to and basically a rabid wolf always willing to bite on command. it was nice.

but stalkers business starts after highschool and while yandere insists on staying close by, the buyers tend to be very threatened by yandere, even when theyre assured that they already have a darling and over time, yandere gets less and less possessive, trusting darling to always return to them by the end of the day and it helps that stalker always says that other darlings 'smell bad' and that other yanderes make them gag if they stay around them too long. its an odd reaction, almost like an allergy, but its very comforting to yandere.

and its just so cute imaging yandere being the ceo to their parents big company or something, having all the money in the world and coming home to an empty house, making dinner and just grinning ear to ear when stalker comes in, bruise on their face, grumbling about a feisty darling that didnt appreciate being attached to the hip with stalker or maybe just some bratty rich kid that slapped them for 'ruining a party with their vibe' and while usually, a yandere would freak, yandere just get an ice pack and shrugs it off.

yandere knows not to mess with others darlings. thats apart of the contract and yandere gets it, darlings can be hard and yanderes need stalker, they dont want them to get hurt or to drop them as a client just because their darling got a bit stabby but bratty kids? normal people? yandere hires someone to go return the wounds that got inflicted on their cute little stalker.

its just such a cute idea!!!!!! i love it!!!!!!

[thesherrinfordfacility]

LWA: Brief follow-up to your Shax observations:

Gaiman said in response to a recent ask that the /Ars Goetia/ ranks aren't canon in the GO-verse. Furfur was just exaggerating his importance to whomever he was speaking. That's in line with his treatment of occult and religious source material elsewhere.

The precedent for Shax's very targeted brand of telepathy would be S1 Crowley turning the paintball guns into real ones ("I gave them what they wanted"). The show suggests that demons can't read minds in any broad way, but they can pick up desires (Crowley) or weaknesses (Shax) in a narrow band. Shax is more significant as a narrative device, though, since what she picks up are not so much /real/ weaknesses as what her target consciously or subconsciously /believes/ about their own weaknesses, and there's probably a post in there somewhere about how strongly her targets hold those beliefs. Her first attempt to needle Aziraphale about Crowley misfires, but the "emotional support angel" lands. Aziraphale's equivalent is the Jedi mind-trick he pulls in Edinburgh during S2 and in the deleted "Aziraphale Meets the Neighbours" from S1, where he elicits alternative positive emotions and desires that are already there--the gangster career options in the deleted scene, for example.

There's been no consistency at all in the series about whether or not the angels and demons can sense others in the area. In S1, neither Aziraphale nor Crowley pick up on the high-ranking demons and angels /right behind them/ in St. James Park, and Crowley has to make a conscious effort to check for observers before they reverse the bodyswap. But in S2, Aziraphale feels the arrival of the Archangels. So would Crowley be able to detect Shax unless he already knew she was there?

We saw Hastur, Dagon, and the little demon pull the same shape-shifting stunt as Shax when they came to "arrest" Aziraphale in S1. I think the show is deliberately vague about whether they are changing their material forms or just casting a glamour, although in either case it's impenetrable to occult/ethereal beings as well as to humans.

LWA!!!!!!!✨

ahhh thanks for having a gander at it, ive not seen a lot of posts that have focused on shax so it was good to get some thoughts to paper, even the implausible ones - and getting those thoughts bounced back at me is always really helpful!

1.

i had literally saved this ask specifically to talk about in that post, and bloody forgot about it 🥲 so thanks for reminding me!!! it would definitely make sense for ars goetia - in GO!verse - to be biased/inaccurate because it's furfur's retelling (plus, he's not wearing a sash when in hell in front of dagon, but has an ornate one up on earth, which im presuming is to add to the facade...?).

i guess the only point where, feasibly, the two thoughts could align is that if the lesser key of solomon was compiled in 1600s, that would track with furfur being a low ranking demon up until 1941 at the very least... but is there anything to say that he didn't get promoted after 1941? he appears to have moved laterally (?) to recquisitions, and that could mean he has some higher level of responsibility... im unsure. but in any case, id love to see if he possibly returns in s3 - specifically to get his own back after 1941.

in any case, once i spotted the ring on shax (which again im guessing is the same exact one as seen in ep4; it would make sense to call back to it), that seems like a much more logical reason for furfur to be at the bookshop-meet with dagon and beelzebub, than him suddenly having a rank that puts him on any kind of level playing field with dagon and beelzebub...

so, in summary, shax somewhere in ep5/6 makes the call, furfur informs dagon, and they plan to come up to earth. dagon also notes that heaven and hell are at war, so perhaps that alarm came in around the same time, and accounts for why beelzebub arrives separately to the other two. idk - i guess possibly the exact detail isn't hugely important? (famous last words) but if shax does end up ruling hell, or at least getting a hefty promotion (duke?), and furfur helps get her there... maybe we do see a rank shift for him too, but later on in the story? exciting!!!

2.

thanks for summarising this so succinctly, that really helps! i definitely agree that she seems to have a knack for what her target might perceive to be their weaknesses, failings, or insecurities - this seems especially true for aziraphale, which i looked at in another post relatively briefly:

and they are definitely traits in aziraphale that have been mocked elsewhere - predominantly by heaven/the archangels - and i think it's fair to say that aziraphale holds these 'weaknesses' quite close to the chest. that being said, on the last one, sure - aziraphale does appear to have some confidence that crowley likes him, that he's definitely crowley's type (ie. due deference to the legendary cunty eyebrow)... but - from aziraphale's perspective - what is the motive for that? to me, the 'emotional support angel' reads like aziraphale knows that crowley might love him, but does he secretly worry that it is out of pity, or for lack of a better option? or, is it that when mixed in with all of the other things shax mentions, aziraphale thinks, "hang on... why would he want me?" i am unwell

as for maggie... sure, it might be that shax is just needling at maggie because she's irritated her. but i find it interesting that maggie's insecurities, as shax is sensing them to be, are also things that at some point or another in s2, could be attributed to crowley. bit of stretch, i grant you, but also makes sense.

anyway, back on the main topic; idk if im just Missing The Point, but the fact that shax seems to know the detail, the specifics, of why aziraphale or maggie might have these 'weaknesses' still doesn't make sense to me. taking aziraphale out of the equation for a moment, and focusing solely on maggie; sure, maggie might be lonely, or feel alternatively like she's a failure (and this is what shax is picking up telepathically/empathically), but why would shax necessarily know it's because of noone visiting her shop, and her being unable to afford the rent? if shax doesn't have your bog-standard mind-reading telepathy, how would she know this?

even if maggie decides within herself to not see these as weaknesses, it's still information that we as the audience know is correct, same as maggie and nina, and shax weaponises it. i don't think there hasn't been, so far, any narrative explanation for why shax would even care to know this level of detail about maggie (other than, i guess, that her shop used to be part of the bookshop?).

(But now that i think about it, im suddenly very aware of these two points about maggie's story being mentioned externally from the private aziraphale-maggie conversation in the record store in ep1, and specifically near or including nina:

not going to turn this ask response into a speculation on nina, but in the context of informants and recruiting them, this is... interesting. to me, anyway.)

also think there's a separate post to be had about when crowley's ability to read desire similarly does and doesn't land - and how this might possibly inform on the success of his temptations (you might not have mentioned the antichrist fiasco in this ask, LWA, but by god am i going to do it for you - it's tradition now).

and also when aziraphale appears to try manipulating mood, but this too doesn't find its target... hmm. wonder if it's a more demonic trait than an angelic one, it at least a trait aziraphale has unlocked it but 'uses it for good' (lmao debatable).

3.

true. it does seem at least it has to be a conscious effort to detect them - the only times that seem to be based on a sense of foreboding/gut instinct/an undefined Sense are:

crowley's Something Wicked This Way Comes moment in ep5, and that in particular feels like it's due to the sheer scale of it - "coming in waves" (but this might actually just simply echo his sense of the hellhound finding the antichrist/sensing satan's anger in s1; that it's not the entity he's sensing, but a higher malevolent energy?)

michael and shax both are somewhat able to recognise or sense (or maybe actually smell, it seems, in shax's case?) gabriel in the bookshop, even if they don't/can't link it to jim or the fly

also going to tentatively include "you've gone" / "can't find you!" from the bookshop fire; i realise this could be very literal, that crowley can't see or hear aziraphale in the bookshop, and he's jumped to his conclusion out of panic/rage/despair, but it could also read that he somehow can't sense him? ✨update, @aq-uatic come through with the goods✨

it's difficult to determine 100% what sound cues might be diegetic to the show - specifically the miracle chimes, and the herald tune - because if they are, that goes a long way to explaining how a) aziraphale knows the archangels are coming, and b) at the very beginning of s1 he seems to react to the miracle chime in the sushi bar... but given that for the first example aziraphale asks maggie, "cant you feel them?", it does make me question it. in fact, are they audible cues only for the audience, and therefore in-show is aziraphale reacting only to a sense, a Disturbance In The Force if you like, rather than audio?

i think they are indeed non-diegetic, because watching back the 1967 scene, there is a miracle chime just before crowley gets into the bentley, and then when he gets in, he actually appears startled to see aziraphale physically sat there. now, this could be the whole demons-cant-sense-angels thing, or because they are actually so similar and non-threatening to each other that crowley doesn't register it, but regardless - he doesn't appear to react to an audio cue, suggesting that they are non-diegetic.

iirc, all the other instances where we do see aziraphale or crowley sense other entities appear to be because they can literally hear or see the other entity themselves

s1, when aziraphale realises crowley has arrived at the tavern/globe/bastille/church - hears him before he sees him

s1, when gabriel and beelzebub arrive to the airbase; thunder and lightning strike from gabriel, and then beelzebub follows up from hell

s1, when crowley-as-aziraphale is literally jumped on by angels in their coveralls, and when aziraphale-as-crowley gets whacked by the demons in disguise

s2, ep1, when crowley lowers his newspaper because shax arrives (and im presuming crowley sees her appear), and when crowley knows shax is behind him - can hear her voice from the phone as well as out loud

s2, ep2, when crowley enters the barn; the archangels definitely don't recognise him as a demon, and only notice him altogether when he enters the room shouting - certainly don't sense him from outside

s2, ep3, when muriel arrives, and later on when shax knocks at the window of the bookshop

s2, ep4, when aziraphale doesn't sense that the hitchhiker is shax (albeit she's in complete disguise*), and then later when furfur arrives at the theatre and then comes into the dressing room

s2, ep5, when aziraphale only really seems to notice the demons when crowley points out that they are literally crawling at the windows, and crowley spots muriel chilling across the street with a book

s2, ep6, when the demons arrive in the bookshop, and when metatron enters the bookshop separately.

so yeah, suffice to say that this has near enough answered the first couple of questions for me in the original shax post - that there's no clear reason why aziraphale or crowley would have detected shax lurking around if she hadn't wanted to be seen. still gives food for thought on the others, though.

*4.

this makes sense!!! does make me wonder about the comment shax makes in ep5, about "masks will be provided for those unable to... blend in." and sure, there was the teeny-weeniest little explanation for this from a filming perspective, but within the story? is it possibly only an ability shared amongst the more powerful demons (given that the ones that stormed the bookshop were, by crowley's assessment, "practically the Damned"? hmmm again✨

[jeffhirsch]

Making Money w/ Charles Payne - Fox Business February 27, 2024

Charles and Jeff discuss Fed rate cuts, March and election year seasonality, and four stocks on Jeff's radar.

Path To Fed’s 2% Target Is Quite Optimistic

The path to the Fed’s stated 2% target is a quite optimistic 0.1% or less monthly change. If that ends up being Thursday’s PCE reading, the 12-month rate will be 2.1%. Any monthly change greater will likely only further delay the Fed. Unless January’s PCE is surprisingly lower, I still do not expect the Fed to begin cutting rates until at least around mid-year and likely later.

Beware Ides of March

Stock prices have had a propensity to decline, sometimes rather precipitously, during the latter days of the month. Late March gains in 2009 and 2020 improved 2nd half March performance. March Triple-Witching Weeks have been quite bullish in recent years. But the week after is the exact opposite, DJIA down 22 of the last 36 years—and often down sharply. “Beware the Ides of March” this year also coincides with the seasonal decline during presidential election years where the sitting president is running.

Support Levels to Watch

S&P 500: 4800 old ATH and 4600 near summer 2023 highs.

Stocks I like here on a dip:

Reliance ($RS): Making steel and metal for all the industrial, tech and infrastructure growth.

United Health ($UNH): Everyone is going to still need lots of healthcare.

Assurant ($AIZ): Insurance juggernaut in mobile device, electronics, and appliances as well as homeowner, property, fire, hazard, liability, etc

EMCOR ($EME): Construction behemoth building out the data centers, semiconductor fabricators and biotech facilities.

[kaecodes]

Universal Scroll Button(Autochange Direction) For Any Host

Hey, do you have a site with a lot of forums? Does your host allow you to use Javascript? Boy does this weirdo have a deal for you! For the low low price of free, you can get right now access to a scroll button that swaps directions when you scroll automatically, as well as changing the target & title on hover! Act fast, this deal won't last! I kid, but enough of the ShamWowery. In reality, this is a very simple script that reads how far you have scrolled a window, & applies or removes a class to your scroll button, as well as changing the target of said scroll button & adjusting the title to reflect which way it will take you!

It's so simple, crediting me seems superfluous but if you want, feel free to credit with a link to my blog <3 I hope the new verse of our song is eminently kind to everyone!

See it In Action(Click, or look Below):

I currently use this code on two different WIPS, so feel free to check out some gifs;

To Begin

Before the end of your </body> tag in your wrappers(for Jcink) or wherever the HTML templates go on other sites, you want to place this script:

<script> $(window).scroll(function() { if ($(this).scrollTop() > 800) { $('#scroll').attr("title","To Top?").attr("href","#Top").addClass('totop'); } else { $('#scroll').attr("title", "To Bottom?").attr("href","#Bottom").removeClass('totop'); } });</script>

This seeks out an id of Scroll to adjust the href & title as needed depending on the scroll position within the relevant window. The scroll amount is in px, so to change how quickly it changes the button, alter the number 800 to whatever you desire, fiddle with it; one size never fits all.

The Styling

Once you've saved that, move to your CSS, or wherever your Style tag is to add styling for the link itself. Keep in mind the link should be contained within a container that handles its positioning for it as otherwise the script will fuck with the positioning as well as the transformation & you really just want it to spin upwards.

The styling for the link should be as follows;

#scroll { display: inline-block; positioning: relative; transform: rotate(0deg); transition: transform .5s ease-in-out; /*** ^ change the .5s to alter duration or the ease-in-out to alter the timing of the transition between button states ***/ }

#scroll.totop { transform: rotate(180deg); }

The first statement defines the default state (linking to the bottom) of the scroll button on the load of the page, the second defines the change of position once the window has been scrolled far enough to activate one's script.

The HTML

Now you've got the behaviour defined via JS & the styling defined via CSS, it's time to input the HTML, or the bone structure of the code itself. In your wrappers, template, or wherever HTML goes on your host, locate three places;

One, where you want the TOP scroll location to be. This is where the scroll button will take you once it has changed states on scrolling a certain distance. Here, you place an anchor span as follows;

<span id="Top"></span>

Two, Where you desire for the BOTTOM or BODY scroll location to be, as in where the scroll button will take you on click initially. This could also be a scroll to the start of content, in which case I recommend changing #Bottom & id="Bottom" respectively to reflect the syntax, it's entirely up to you. Here, you place an anchor span as follows;

<span id="Bottom"></span>

Finally, It's time to add the scroll button. Keep in mind, where you put it is a function of utility & design choice. Some like it persistently hovering in a fixed position, some like it in a sidebar or on userlinks, some prefer it in the navigation bar.

Wherever you place it, try to ensure that it's easily accessible on any device, screen size, & matches the User Interface logic you've used everywhere else. If you have all text buttons, don't use just an icon, if you have all icons, don't suddenly use just text. Match your action calls, so users don't feel confused while using your site.

Once you've decided where you want it, place the following code, NOTING that there should be a container for this code that positions it for you. I've provided two options; the Icon Font option (courtesy of Phosphoricons -- a free & reliable Icon Font I recommend -- As well as one which includes text, so both UI/UX design philosophies are accommodated.

Note the option with text will only rotate the caret from downwards to upwards, so the scroll text shouldn't need editing unless you want to add or supplement flavourtext.

Please choose the appropriate option for yourself;

Icon Font

<a id="scroll" class="ph-fill ph-caret-down"></a>

Icon Font with Text

<span>Scroll <a id="scroll" class="ph-fill ph-caret-down"></a>?</span>

Some Notes:

I just want to add a bit of info:

If your browser isn't scrolling smoothly to your anchors? Check your settings, & be sure the root of your CSS has scroll-behaviour: smooth; in it.

If you use this guide & have problems getting it to work, please let me know! I will troubleshoot this for you & tumblr has strange coding, I may have futzed something up, I want this to be as accessible as possible, so don't be silent; questions help!

If you are not using Jcink, or another host with a Jquery library pre-loaded, be aware that one is needed for this script to work. Most hosts will have a default Jquery library, but if yours doesn't or you're self hosting, any should do. The Jcink file is below, however, if you want to just use that.

[sachininformationworld]

Understanding What Business Consulting Services Is All About

If you're looking to hire business consulting services, it's essential to understand what these services entail. The process of selling consulting services is very different from selling a product. Marketing your consulting firm requires a combination of traditional and non-traditional marketing strategies. To sell your consulting services, you should aim to reach an untapped market.

Profitability of hiring a business consultant

Hiring a business consulting services provider can save you time and money. These consultants have specialized knowledge and experience in their respective fields and are able to identify areas in which you are overspending. Additionally, a business consultant's service can help you cut costs by advising on best practices in your industry. Instead of reinventing the wheel or wasting resources on salaried labor, you can hire a business consultant to address a particular issue for a short time.

A business consulting services provider can help with almost any type of business. Start-ups need constant planning, and even established companies can use a fresh approach. In recent years, the consulting industry has been expanding rapidly. Choosing the right consultant can benefit your company's revenue, reputation, and long-term growth. Their expertise lies in maximizing your business's operations.

Business consultants have experience in many areas, which means they can provide valuable insights into your business. Because they have no stake in winning over company leaders, business consulting services providers are more likely to approach problems from a different perspective. In addition, a business consultant can provide you with operational infrastructure that you may not have otherwise possessed.

Before hiring a business consulting services provider, it's important to do due diligence. Verify references, and consider the person's style. A good consultant will be personable, patient, and easy to work with. The consultant should also have a contract outlining the services that he or she will perform. The contract should outline the fee, deliverables, and timeline of the project.

Cost of hiring a business consultant

Hiring a business consultant is not a cheap endeavor. Whether you are a start-up or a well-established company, hiring a consultant can be a good move. Business consultants are highly skilled individuals who can help you overcome challenges and develop specific aspects of your business.

Also Read:-

THE BENEFITS OF DEVICE ID TARGETING AND GEO FENCING MARKETING

business consulting services providers are independent contractors who work on their own schedules. Their job is to analyze your business and offer recommendations for improvement. Business owners hire consultants when a problem is hampering their business, when they are ready for a major change, or when they need an outside perspective to make a crucial decision.

Hiring a business consultant may not be as expensive as you might think. The benefits outweigh the cost in the long run. Consultants can identify problems and recommend solutions to your company's challenges. Furthermore, they can supplement your existing staff. If you hire a consultant, your business can save thousands of dollars per week on payroll and benefits.

A business consultant can charge by the hour, project, or retainer basis. It is best to research the fees of other consultants before setting your own. Ask your friends and colleagues to get an idea of the rates charged by various consulting companies. Once you know the fees of other consultants, you can determine a rate that is reasonable for your company.

Hiring a business consultant can save your company time and energy. A professional consultant can help you develop a strategic plan that will focus your efforts, improve efficiency, and enter new markets. It can also help you find new opportunities and clients. In addition, a consultant can help you optimize your marketing strategy.

Choosing a business consulting firm

Before hiring business consulting services, it's important to research them thoroughly. Check out online reviews and speak with past clients to get a feel for their quality of service. You should also ask for a proposal so you can compare rates and services. If you can, check out reviews from other clients so you can see if they're happy with the work done.

Also Read:-

WHAT EVERYONE OUGHT TO KNOW ABOUT GEOFENCING MARKETING

The type of firm you hire should be based on your company's requirements. A general consulting firm may provide comprehensive services for your entire company, whereas a specialist firm will focus on a specific area of business. Make sure the firm you choose specializes in business consulting services or the market you're in because this will make it easier for them to get the best results.

Choosing a business consulting firm is not an easy task. The market is saturated with different firms offering different types of services. Bigger consulting firms usually have a better reputation and charge higher fees. On the other hand, smaller boutique firms may offer a smaller range of services and focus on a more local market.

Choose a business consulting services provider that can provide the services you need at a reasonable price. Many business consultants provide only a few hours of service, while others may offer a month-long engagement. You should always ask about the length of service offered by a business consulting firm. You should be able to communicate your needs and goals with the consultants. In addition, consultancies should be transparent and explain their reasoning behind recommendations and action plans.

Source Link

[mtg-card-of-the-day]

may I suggest one of my favourite cards, Blast of Genius?

Happy Free Comic Book Day! May the 4th be with you!

Today is May 4th, 2024 and today's card is Blast of Genius, as requested by @niseag-arts!

[ID The image depicts a man clad in blue clothing and steampunk-looking technology posing in front of a fancy looking building. On his back he wears a cylindrical device with a lightbulb looking vessel in the middle and three rods on the top. Each of the rods is emitting crackling blue electricity. Below the tech on his back there's some sort of boxy accordion-looking technology that is also emitting technology behind him curving upward. A long cord coming from the boxy technology runs up to a gauntlet on this guy's arm. The gauntlet has powerful aura of electricity around it possibly coming from a circular indent in the middle of the gauntlet filled to the brim with the same blue electricity.

The man has mid-length greying black hair with white stripes, and a black beard. His gauntlet arm is raised at a 90 degree angle, he's wearing blue robes with red accents, and he's in the foreground of the image. The building behind him has their lights on which you can see through their windows and above the building a dragon raises its head ominously.

This card is a blue and red Sorcery that costs 4 uncolored mana, 1 Blue mana, and 1 Red mana. Its rarity is Uncommon.

Its rules texts reads "Choose target creature or player. Draw three cards, then discard a card. Blast of Genius deals damage equal to the discarded card's converted mana cost to that creature or player."

Its flavor text reads "Ral Zarek's brainstorms bring actual thunder and lightning."

Its artist is Terese Nielsen and its print year is 2013. This card is from the set is Dragon's Maze. End ID.]

[copperbadge]

I have most of my “follow me around and track my interests and purchases” stuff turned off on most of my devices, but god damn if the Target app didn’t somehow nail down, if not anything I want to buy, at least the people I want to see hawking it to me. 

I don’t drink Pepsi or buy Lays potato chips but Leo Messi’s face next to them certainly got my attention. Well played, Target app, well played. 

[ID: A banner ad I screencapped from the Target app, which reads “Get delicious chips & beverages for game day” on the left. The photo on the right features a can of Pepsi and a bag of Lays classic potato chips incongruously pasted in next to Lionel Messi, a famous Argentinian footballer.]

[mediamonarchy]

https://mediamonarchy.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/20240521_MorningMonarchy.mp3 Download MP3 Video purges, Tetris records and human antennas + this day in history w/banning facial recognition in the Bay Area and our song of the day by Ibibio Sound Machine on your #MorningMonarchy for May 21, 2024. Notes/Links: Star Witness Michael Cohen Admits Stealing Tens of Thousands From Trump Organization https://www.theepochtimes.com/us/star-witness-michael-cohen-admits-stealing-tens-of-thousands-from-trump-organization-5653415 Mortgage Brokers Leak Sensitive Data to Facebook https://reclaimthenet.org/mortgage-brokers-leak-sensitive-data-to-facebook Thieves target electric vehicle charging stations, likely for copper https://www.fox29.com/news/thieves-target-electric-vehicle-charging-stations Video: BREAKING🚨 The Biden Administration is set to allow Jewish billionaire Dan Gertler to cash out his mining positions in the Democratic Republic of Congo which has enraged human rights activists… Gertler is responsible for thousands of child slave deaths in his illegal cobalt and diamond mines in the DRC… (Audio) https://x.com/resist_05/status/1792415747253428416 Biden open to easing sanctions on billionaire Gertler in return for Congo exit https://www.miningweekly.com/article/biden-open-to-easing-sanctions-on-billionaire-gertler-in-return-for-congo-exit-2024-05-17 Progressive Biden staffer who furiously resigned over White House support for Israeli ‘genocide’ is daughter of weapons company executive who’s helping Netanyahu government https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13433217/lily-greenberg-call-biden-israell-resignation-father-rtx-raytheon.html MIT students stole $25M in seconds by exploiting ETH blockchain bug https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2024/05/sophisticated-25m-ethereum-heist-took-about-12-seconds-doj-says/ LockBit Claims Wichita as Its Victim 2 Days After Ransomware Attack https://www.darkreading.com/cyberattacks-data-breaches/lockbit-claims-wichita-as-its-victim-two-days-after-ransomware-attack Reddit partners with OpenAI to integrate content into ChatGPT https://www.searchenginejournal.com/chatgpt-to-surface-reddit-content-via-partnership-with-openai/516605/ User Outcry as Slack Scrapes Customer Data for AI Model Training https://www.securityweek.com/user-outcry-as-slack-scrapes-customer-data-for-ai-model-training/ UK Disinformation Unit Minutes Reveal Consideration of Placing Government Employees Inside Social Media Companies https://reclaimthenet.org/uk-consideration-of-placing-government-employees-inside-social-media-companies Google’s New Conversation-Listening Tech Could Embolden Governments To Mandate On-Device Speech Scanning https://reclaimthenet.org/google-scam-listening-privacy-scanning French Government Blocks TikTok To Curb Civil Unrest in New Caledonia https://reclaimthenet.org/french-government-blocks-tiktok-new-caledonia Former Facebook and Nike DEI manager sentenced to 5 years in prison for fraud scheme; Barbara Furlow-Smiles, 38, admitted to stealing millions from Facebook and Nike in kickback schemes https://www.foxbusiness.com/lifestyle/former-facebook-nike-dei-manager-sentenced-to-5-years-prison-for-fraud-scheme Belgium and Hungary Launch Controversial Digital IDs, Vaccine Passport, Ahead of EU Regulations https://reclaimthenet.org/belgium-and-hungary-launch-controversial-digital-ids-vaccine-passport BREAKING: Klaus Schwab Resigns as World Economic Forum Chairman https://thenationalpulse.com/2024/05/21/breaking-klaus-schwab-resigns-as-world-economic-forum-chairman/ UK PM Sunak Endorses Facial Recognition, Implicitly Backs Mass Bank Surveillance https://reclaimthenet.org/uk-pm-sunak-endorses-facial-recognition-implicitly-backs-mass-bank-surveillance UK Army Unit Labeled Accurate COVID Reporting as “Malinformation” https://reclaimthenet.org/uk-army-unit-labeled-accurate-covid-reporting-as-malinformation YouTube Removes 35,000 EU Videos for “Misinformation,” Enhances Content Censorship Ahead of 2024 Elections https://reclaimthenet.org/youtube-removes-...

[ask-the-becile-boys]

33. The Amplifier

Previous | Next

[10 digitally sketched panels in b/w, with one panel containing green.]

[Panel 1: The Skull stands with his back to the viewer, fists clenched and shaking, venting a large amount of coal smoke, silent.]

[Panel 2: Scratch and Riker exchange nervous glances.]

[Panel 3: Scratch looks over to The Skull's back worriedly while Riker awkwardly begins to speak, "... Sooo... about that other thing... you wanna hear about that now or"]

[Panel 4: A close up of The Skull's eye, the pupil sharp and bright green. He snaps darkly, "WHAT." A tiny picture of Riker in the bottom right corner says, "K"]

[Panel 5: Riker's hand holds a small dish, in which sits a large computer chip appearing device. He says, "This is called an emotional amplifier. We found this one in Jack's neurocircuits."]

[Panel 6: The pictures invert to white lines on black. A simplified robot is shown with an amplifier connected to its head, the symbol between the upper prongs mirrored in its eyes. Riker narrates, "They latch onto something like a memory or emotion, ramping up its intensity and preventing it from ever resolving or fading. In Jack's case, it seems the lightning tweaked its target, so instead of whatever it was meant to do..."]

[Panel 7: The Jack is shown with jagged lines in his eyes and radiating lines from his head and the amplifier in his head sparks. Riker continues, "... It locked him into a permanent panic attack."]

[Panel 8: The Skull looks down at Riker, who is looking sternly at the dish with the amplifier and mumbling, "No wonder he's testy." The Skull asks, "And the odds me 'n Hare got the same thing?" Riker responds, "Pretty damn high. Might've been installed when Becile wiped Locksmith from your memory."

[Panel 9: The Skull moves past Riker and starts to remove his hat, saying, "Yank it." Riker looks up in surprise and says, "Huh? Now?" The Skull replies, "Yes, now. I don't want nothing like that in my head."]

[Panel 10: Riker looks tiredly after The Skull and asks, "... Can I have a drink first?" The Skull retorts, "NOW." Riker sighs. End ID]

[bcdrawsandwrites]

[ID: The first image Psychonauts fanfic banner on a black-to-gray gradient background. On the left in white text it says “Prompt #4: Rescue Mission” On the right is a pink animated figment of a thought bubble, inside which is a donut with frosting and sprinkles.

The second image is a Bad Things Happen Bingo card. Various prompts are marked with a half-brain (prompt requested but not filled) or full-brain (prompt requested and finished) symbol, while the “Rescue Mission” prompt specifically is marked with a full brain symbol. /end ID]

Okay so I hate the way Tumblr crops these so I’m putting the banner above the bingo card. I hope that’s okay, @badthingshappenbingo ​! (also I promise the figment in the banner makes sense for the fic)

I am currently NO LONGER OPEN FOR REQUESTS. I have enough to work on to get a bingo! I MAY decide to reopen prompts later if I want to keep going after finishing these fics, but for now, requests are closed!

This request comes from @echoing-interests​! Hope you liked my take on this. \o/; Thanks to @jaywings​ and @of-science-and-stars​ for beta-reading!

Prompt: Rescue Mission Characters: Sasha Nein, Milla Vodello, and Razputin Aquato Warnings: None

---~~~---

Status report. Dustpan?

Listening to conversations at the water coolers, darling.

Have you gathered the intel?

No, just gossip. It's quite juicy, but I'm keeping an ear out for our target. What about you, Shoehorn?

Searching the trash bins. Sasha flipped through another folder in the file cabinet. The Gastronauts are still terrible at... recycling, so this is taking longer than expected. Eggbeater?

I'm still wondering why we have to use our code names when we're talking through telepathy.

Because the devices Egg Carton gave us to counteract the disruptive waves the Gastronauts put around their base are still experimental, and we don't know that they aren't listening in.

...Are there really devices that can listen in on psychic thoughts?

We don't know yet, darling.

Do you not recall our briefing?

I uh... Raz's mental voice faltered. I... was kinda so excited that we were infiltrating an enemy base that I... forgot to listen.

Sasha's brow furrowed, and he let out a hum. It's a good thing this isn't a more serious mission, or you would be in danger.

Sorry.

Darling, do you at least remember our goal?

Oh! Yeah, got that one. Find the blue—wait! We weren't supposed to relay that over telepathy, were we?

Correct. Can you relay your position?

Affirmative. I'm still in the air vents and looking for the office, as instructed. Over.

Let's resume. Let me know if you find anything.

With that, Sasha TK'd another stack of papers out from the filing cabinet, quickly sorting through them, his eyes darting over the dates. Annoyingly they seemed to jump from January, to March, to November, to May of last year. Either they never referenced their files or they just didn't care how disorganized they were, and he wasn't sure which was worse. Frowning, he slid the papers back into their places and moved onto the next drawer. This went on for some time—there were a grand total of ten filing cabinets in this forsaken clerk's office with four drawers each. This combined with how awful the Gastronauts' bookkeeping was certainly did not make it easy for Sasha to find what he'd been looking for.

At the very least he had a bit of time—this clerk, he'd discovered, liked to take his sweet time with his lunch break, sometimes taking longer than the time allotted. Plus, if their telepathy was intercepted, then whoever tried to investigate them would be looking in the wrong places. Typically for something like this they would've used encrypted telepathy, but Raz had yet to learn it, and the agent that usually taught it was out on a lengthy mission, so they had to fall back on simpler methods. This, at least, was something Raz had no trouble with.

Eggbeater is quite enthusiastic, isn't he? came Milla's voice over telepathy. It was a message sent to him alone, a familiar psychic whisper.

Yes, but his enthusiasm can be a bit... misplaced at times. Finding this stack only had papers from three or four years ago, he sighed and moved on. He needs to pay attention during briefings.

He'll get the hang of things soon, Shoehorn.

I'm sure you're right. Stooping down, he opened the last drawer to find it only had one folder within. He TK'd out its contents, looking them over. Eyebrows raising, he put a hand to his temple. I've only found worthless things here.

That's terrible! We'll have to move on, then, Milla replied with an excitement that did not match her coded words.

Sasha smiled, waiting for Raz's equally-enthusiastic response. As he quickly folded the paper and shoved it into his jacket, however, no reply came. Eggbeater? he asked. Please confirm you received the message announcing my failure.

Perhaps he's forgetting things again, Milla suggested.

Frowning, Sasha sent a stronger signal. Eggbeater? Respond.

His telepathy was met with the almost-physical thud of psychic energy striking against a barrier. Sucking in a breath, Sasha straightened his back. Dustpan, send a message to Eggbeater immediately.

Several heartbeats later, Milla sent an uncharacteristically quiet response: His signal was... blocked.

Change mission objectives immediately. Retreat to base.

Instead of heading for the exit, however, Sasha scanned the darkened office he'd been sneaking around in. Its owner had been out to lunch, but... He hurried up to the desk, spotted a pen, and put his hand on it before shutting his eyes.

Immediately his view was replaced with that of a half-eaten plate of french fries and ranch dressing. (Eugh.) With a subtle suggestion he made the person look up, granting him a better view of what appeared to be a cafeteria. Several other workers were milling about, chatting with each other and eating food. With a few quick uses of clairvoyance, he jumped from person to person, taking a moment to listen to their thoughts.

Ugh, that report is due tonight, gonna have to work overtime.

Can't believe they caught that listening device! That took months to plant.

Man, why are the fries always cold?

While Sasha could feel the anxiety tugging at his mind at finding no information on Raz's whereabouts, at the very least none of these people were aware that there were intruders, meaning that perhaps only a few people had found Raz. The fewer people they had to deal with, the better.

Finally he caught someone that was heading out of the room, and CV'd into her. Meanwhile an encrypted message reached him, and he quickly untangled it: Sasha, have you found anything?

He replied with an encrypted message of his own: I'm currently employing use of clairvoyance to check around the base. A note on the listening device we found in the Motherlobe, but nothing on Razputin.

I'm searching for ripples as we speak. This shouldn't take long.

Yet even now it already felt like they were taking too long. The woman whose head he'd hopped into was walking to the restroom, so he moved from her to a man that was exiting the men's room and striding down another hallway. This one only had a stack of paperwork on his mind, so he jumped from him and over into a person lingering in the doorway of an office. There was nothing of note in there other than a very tired worker holding his head in his hands while the woman in the doorway rambled about the latest football game. The man at the desk finally raised his head. "Rhonda, I know, I know we lost. Man, I can't believe I stayed up to watch that mess." He rubbed his eyes. "I'm so tired I think I'm hearing things—I swear I heard a kid in here earlier."

Sasha gave a start.

Sasha, Milla's encrypted voice came over telepathy. I've got something.

I may have as well.

"Seriously, like, did Jakob bring his kid in again?"

"Nah, we would've heard from Morter if he did."

"True..."

Quickly Sasha compelled the woman in the doorway to glance out into the hall, and from there, jumped into a different person's head through another open door. Some people here may have heard Raz's voice, he replied quickly. I may be close to where he was taken. He took a moment to listen in on the worker's thoughts, and upon finding only an extreme longing for donuts, he jumped to the next worker he could spot. What have you found?

I may have pinpointed where Raz was taken. Raz's signal is blocked entirely, but I've found a man who's very intently focused on a child, in a storage room...

Sasha's stomach dropped, his mind racing to several different conclusions, none of them positive. Perhaps a secret interrogation room, he thought frantically, compelling the man he'd jumped into to glance around the hallway. Sure enough, he spotted a storage room, but the door was shut. Frustration gnawing at his astral consciousness, he tried to send a subliminal urge to the man to grab some files that had definitely been put in that particular storage room.

What? the man thought. Where'd that come from? That one doesn't even have files in it, that's in the one on the second floor.

Gritting his teeth, Sasha sent another subtle signal: Someone left a very important file in there and it will get lost if I do not grab it.

...Oh yeah, Elliot dropped his report in there last time. Ugh.

With a sigh, the man fished in his pocket for a key before moving to open the door.

"Uh-uuhhhh hang on, occupied!" a frantic voice came from inside, followed by a lot of scrambling and clanking.

"Wha'd'you mean, 'occupied'?" the man outside asked. "You're in the device storage, Morter, not the bathroom!"

"Look I'm—I'm conducting something in here, okay?"

"Conducting... what, exactly?"

"An... interview?"

The man outside groaned. "Man, why don't you interview applicants in your office? What've you got one for if you're just—"

"R-Rhonda wouldn't shut up."

"...Ah, got it." Sighing, he shook his head. "Look, did Elliot leave his report in there?"

"I... oh. Huh, he did."

"Just hand it to me, and I'll leave you and the new guy alone, okay?"

"R-right."

Sasha readied himself, and the second the door cracked open, he jumped into the man—Morter's, apparently—head. Sure enough, once the man turned around he found himself staring at a dimly-lit room with shelves and shelves of boxes and strange devices he didn't have time to analyze.

And in the middle of the room was a metal chair, with Raz sitting on it, bound and gagged, a look of fear and worry in his eyes. The counter-device Otto had provided him with was sitting on the floor a distance off, too far away to properly block the disruptive waves around the building. He jumped into Raz's head, taking a quick read of his thoughts.

Oh no, oh no, please don't come back here, this isn't good...!

He'd seen enough.

Don’t worry, Eggbeater, we’re on our way.

Without waiting for a response, Sasha yanked his consciousness back to his own body, shutting his eyes against the dizziness it brought. He pressed a hand to his temple, fingers digging in so hard they hurt. I've found him. He's in danger.

There was silence on Milla's end for a moment. When she replied, her mental voice was cold. We've known the Gastronauts could do questionable things... but placing a child in danger...

There's no time to waste.

Nothing more needed to be said. Sasha levitated up into the ceiling vent he'd initially come out of, closing it behind himself and crawling through. He'd come to this place a number of times for routine missions, but he was less familiar with the location of the device storage. He'd seen the cafeteria before, so if he could remember where that was from his current position, and build a mental map of where he'd gone to find the door to storage...

It wasn't the first time he'd had to do something like this, yet for once he was having trouble focusing; the longer he took to do this, the more likely it was that Raz could get hurt. How he was being hurt, he wasn't sure, and not knowing only worried him more.

A hand—one that wasn't truly there—gently rested on his shoulder before squeezing it. Sasha, Milla said, and he shook his head, bringing himself back into focus. Silently he crawled through the vents, heading in a direction just west of the cafeteria. Milla, meanwhile, was disguised as a Gastronaut herself, and navigating the building below him, moving over to where she'd felt the waves. Sasha could feel the frustration bubbling on her end when an actual Gastronauts agent stopped her to ask some questions, but he moved on, heading closer and closer to the storage room.

A wailing noise, distorted through the vents, made the hair on his neck stand on end.

It was coming in the direction of the storage.

Sasha was over the vent cover in moments, and with a single psi-blast knocked it off its screws and sent it crashing to the ground. He followed seconds later, landing a bit more roughly than usual, one hand to his temple. On the opposite side of the room, Milla slammed the door open, her presence filling the doorway.

Both of them stood partially crouched, one hand to their temple... until they took in the sight before them.

Raz was still sitting on the chair, no longer gagged, while the man that Sasha had caught a glimpse of earlier was now lying on the floor, hands covering his face as he sobbed. Between them sat Raz's Psycho-Portal. Upon seeing Sasha and Milla barging into the room, Raz whipped his head around, eyebrows raised in surprise.

"Oh! Hi, guys!"

Slowly Sasha and Milla straightened their backs, lowering their hands as they both stared at him.

"...Razputin. What."

Raz shrugged sheepishly. "I felt your CV earlier, but I was kinda preoccupied with helping Morter, and I was also really worried that his coworker would come in here and see us. Which, speaking of—Milla, can you shut that door?"

Blinking, Milla stepped into the room and shut the door softly behind her. "Who's... Morter?"

"ME!" the man on the floor cried, scrubbing the snot and tears from his face.

"But don't worry! We've got it all settled now. D'you mind untying me, though? I was gonna ask Morter, but..." He lowered his voice to a stage whisper, "I think he's kinda having a moment right now."

Sasha felt oddly lightheaded as he stepped up to Raz, using telekinesis to untie the ropes that bound him. "So you're not hurt?"

"I feel a little stiff now that you mention it," Raz said as he hopped down. He rolled his shoulders and stretched his legs. "I think I can walk it off, though."

"We... may have caused a bit of commotion," Milla remarked, glancing back toward the door. "I think we should take our leave."

"Already?" Frowning, Raz snatched up his Psycho-Portal, hurried over to Morter, and placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, I gotta go. Sorry I couldn't stay longer. But you're gonna stand up to Jakob from now on, right?"

Morter raised himself up onto his knees, scrubbing at his face again. "Y-yes!" he sobbed. "I will!"

"Great! Glad to hear it." Giving him a positive thump on the back, Raz stood up straight and hurried over to Sasha. "Are we heading back through the vents?"

"...Yes."

"Okay, got it. See you later, Morter!" He paused. "Please don't rat us out to your bosses, okay?"

"I-I—I won't!"

"Thanks!" Grinning, Raz hopped up onto his levitation ball and bounced up into the vent. Sasha and Milla exchanged bewildered glances before following.

Once they were out of the building and heading back to where they'd arranged for Oleander to pick them up, Milla finally spoke up: "So... can you tell us what happened in there?"

With a wince, Raz ducked his head. "Yeah, so, I kinda got caught..." Then his head shot back up, and he held up his hands. "But it's okay! 'Cuz Morter took me into that storage room—he wanted to interrogate me, I think, but I saw he was all stressed out, and I asked him about what was wrong, and he talked about how he's this office worker and this one agent keeps bullying him and dumping all this work on him and making him watch his kid at work, and... I kinda... asked if he'd like me to take a look around in here." He tapped on his head. "He was actually kinda curious about how we do that kinda stuff, so he agreed, and... I... kinda helped him sort things out from there." Raz paused, then screwed up his face. "His mental world was a daycare."

Sasha laughed, quite a bit louder than he'd intended, and Milla and Raz stared at him. "That's... quite remarkable, Razputin."

"You think so?" Raz smiled, only for his face to fall as he glanced aside. "I was... kinda worried that I wasn't doing as well on this mission, especially since I missed so much of the briefing."

Milla stooped down closer to him to give him a grin. "You did amazing, darling!"

"Awesome! Man, for a bit there I was worried we weren't gonna pull that mission off."

"Well, about that..." Frowning, Sasha pulled the paperwork he'd found out of his jacket. "I did find the new employee paperwork, but we weren't able to secure the blueprints for their newest device."

"...Oh, yeah! Almost forgot. I did get taken to device storage, so at one point while Morter's back was turned..." Glancing over his shoulder, Raz TK'd a rolled-up sheet of paper out of his backpack.

Sasha and Milla exchanged glances, both of them giving a relieved smile as they looked back down at Raz.

"You really are something, Agent Aquato."