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[pavitrapavi]

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[nirajforhelp]

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[mostlysignssomeportents]

Demon-haunted computers are back, baby

Catch me in Miami! I'll be at Books and Books in Coral Gables on Jan 22 at 8PM.

As a science fiction writer, I am professionally irritated by a lot of sf movies. Not only do those writers get paid a lot more than I do, they insist on including things like "self-destruct" buttons on the bridges of their starships.

Look, I get it. When the evil empire is closing in on your flagship with its secret transdimensional technology, it's important that you keep those secrets out of the emperor's hand. An irrevocable self-destruct switch there on the bridge gets the job done! (It has to be irrevocable, otherwise the baddies'll just swarm the bridge and toggle it off).

But c'mon. If there's a facility built into your spaceship that causes it to explode no matter what the people on the bridge do, that is also a pretty big security risk! What if the bad guy figures out how to hijack the measure that – by design – the people who depend on the spaceship as a matter of life and death can't detect or override?

I mean, sure, you can try to simplify that self-destruct system to make it easier to audit and assure yourself that it doesn't have any bugs in it, but remember Schneier's Law: anyone can design a security system that works so well that they themselves can't think of a flaw in it. That doesn't mean you've made a security system that works – only that you've made a security system that works on people stupider than you.

I know it's weird to be worried about realism in movies that pretend we will ever find a practical means to visit other star systems and shuttle back and forth between them (which we are very, very unlikely to do):

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/09/astrobezzle/#send-robots-instead

But this kind of foolishness galls me. It galls me even more when it happens in the real world of technology design, which is why I've spent the past quarter-century being very cross about Digital Rights Management in general, and trusted computing in particular.

It all starts in 2002, when a team from Microsoft visited our offices at EFF to tell us about this new thing they'd dreamed up called "trusted computing":

https://pluralistic.net/2020/12/05/trusting-trust/#thompsons-devil

The big idea was to stick a second computer inside your computer, a very secure little co-processor, that you couldn't access directly, let alone reprogram or interfere with. As far as this "trusted platform module" was concerned, you were the enemy. The "trust" in trusted computing was about other people being able to trust your computer, even if they didn't trust you.

So that little TPM would do all kinds of cute tricks. It could observe and produce a cryptographically signed manifest of the entire boot-chain of your computer, which was meant to be an unforgeable certificate attesting to which kind of computer you were running and what software you were running on it. That meant that programs on other computers could decide whether to talk to your computer based on whether they agreed with your choices about which code to run.

This process, called "remote attestation," is generally billed as a way to identify and block computers that have been compromised by malware, or to identify gamers who are running cheats and refuse to play with them. But inevitably it turns into a way to refuse service to computers that have privacy blockers turned on, or are running stream-ripping software, or whose owners are blocking ads:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/08/02/self-incrimination/#wei-bai-bai

After all, a system that treats the device's owner as an adversary is a natural ally for the owner's other, human adversaries. The rubric for treating the owner as an adversary focuses on the way that users can be fooled by bad people with bad programs. If your computer gets taken over by malicious software, that malware might intercept queries from your antivirus program and send it false data that lulls it into thinking your computer is fine, even as your private data is being plundered and your system is being used to launch malware attacks on others.

These separate, non-user-accessible, non-updateable secure systems serve a nubs of certainty, a remote fortress that observes and faithfully reports on the interior workings of your computer. This separate system can't be user-modifiable or field-updateable, because then malicious software could impersonate the user and disable the security chip.

It's true that compromised computers are a real and terrifying problem. Your computer is privy to your most intimate secrets and an attacker who can turn it against you can harm you in untold ways. But the widespread redesign of out computers to treat us as their enemies gives rise to a range of completely predictable and – I would argue – even worse harms. Building computers that treat their owners as untrusted parties is a system that works well, but fails badly.

First of all, there are the ways that trusted computing is designed to hurt you. The most reliable way to enshittify something is to supply it over a computer that runs programs you can't alter, and that rats you out to third parties if you run counter-programs that disenshittify the service you're using. That's how we get inkjet printers that refuse to use perfectly good third-party ink and cars that refuse to accept perfectly good engine repairs if they are performed by third-party mechanics:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/07/24/rent-to-pwn/#kitt-is-a-demon

It's how we get cursed devices and appliances, from the juicer that won't squeeze third-party juice to the insulin pump that won't connect to a third-party continuous glucose monitor:

https://arstechnica.com/gaming/2020/01/unauthorized-bread-a-near-future-tale-of-refugees-and-sinister-iot-appliances/

But trusted computing doesn't just create an opaque veil between your computer and the programs you use to inspect and control it. Trusted computing creates a no-go zone where programs can change their behavior based on whether they think they're being observed.

The most prominent example of this is Dieselgate, where auto manufacturers murdered hundreds of people by gimmicking their cars to emit illegal amount of NOX. Key to Dieselgate was a program that sought to determine whether it was being observed by regulators (it checked for the telltale signs of the standard test-suite) and changed its behavior to color within the lines.

Software that is seeking to harm the owner of the device that's running it must be able to detect when it is being run inside a simulation, a test-suite, a virtual machine, or any other hallucinatory virtual world. Just as Descartes couldn't know whether anything was real until he assured himself that he could trust his senses, malware is always questing to discover whether it is running in the real universe, or in a simulation created by a wicked god:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/07/28/descartes-was-an-optimist/#uh-oh

That's why mobile malware uses clever gambits like periodically checking for readings from your device's accelerometer, on the theory that a virtual mobile phone running on a security researcher's test bench won't have the fidelity to generate plausible jiggles to match the real data that comes from a phone in your pocket:

https://arstechnica.com/information-technology/2019/01/google-play-malware-used-phones-motion-sensors-to-conceal-itself/

Sometimes this backfires in absolutely delightful ways. When the Wannacry ransomware was holding the world hostage, the security researcher Marcus Hutchins noticed that its code made reference to a very weird website: iuqerfsodp9ifjaposdfjhgosurijfaewrwergwea.com. Hutchins stood up a website at that address and every Wannacry-infection in the world went instantly dormant:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/07/10/flintstone-delano-roosevelt/#the-matrix

It turns out that Wannacry's authors were using that ferkakte URL the same way that mobile malware authors were using accelerometer readings – to fulfill Descartes' imperative to distinguish the Matrix from reality. The malware authors knew that security researchers often ran malicious code inside sandboxes that answered every network query with fake data in hopes of eliciting responses that could be analyzed for weaknesses. So the Wannacry worm would periodically poll this nonexistent website and, if it got an answer, it would assume that it was being monitored by a security researcher and it would retreat to an encrypted blob, ceasing to operate lest it give intelligence to the enemy. When Hutchins put a webserver up at iuqerfsodp9ifjaposdfjhgosurijfaewrwergwea.com, every Wannacry instance in the world was instantly convinced that it was running on an enemy's simulator and withdrew into sulky hibernation.

The arms race to distinguish simulation from reality is critical and the stakes only get higher by the day. Malware abounds, even as our devices grow more intimately woven through our lives. We put our bodies into computers – cars, buildings – and computers inside our bodies. We absolutely want our computers to be able to faithfully convey what's going on inside them.

But we keep running as hard as we can in the opposite direction, leaning harder into secure computing models built on subsystems in our computers that treat us as the threat. Take UEFI, the ubiquitous security system that observes your computer's boot process, halting it if it sees something it doesn't approve of. On the one hand, this has made installing GNU/Linux and other alternative OSes vastly harder across a wide variety of devices. This means that when a vendor end-of-lifes a gadget, no one can make an alternative OS for it, so off the landfill it goes.

It doesn't help that UEFI – and other trusted computing modules – are covered by Section 1201 of the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), which makes it a felony to publish information that can bypass or weaken the system. The threat of a five-year prison sentence and a $500,000 fine means that UEFI and other trusted computing systems are understudied, leaving them festering with longstanding bugs:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/09/09/free-sample/#que-viva

Here's where it gets really bad. If an attacker can get inside UEFI, they can run malicious software that – by design – no program running on our computers can detect or block. That badware is running in "Ring -1" – a zone of privilege that overrides the operating system itself.

Here's the bad news: UEFI malware has already been detected in the wild:

https://securelist.com/cosmicstrand-uefi-firmware-rootkit/106973/

And here's the worst news: researchers have just identified another exploitable UEFI bug, dubbed Pixiefail:

https://blog.quarkslab.com/pixiefail-nine-vulnerabilities-in-tianocores-edk-ii-ipv6-network-stack.html

Writing in Ars Technica, Dan Goodin breaks down Pixiefail, describing how anyone on the same LAN as a vulnerable computer can infect its firmware:

https://arstechnica.com/security/2024/01/new-uefi-vulnerabilities-send-firmware-devs-across-an-entire-ecosystem-scrambling/

That vulnerability extends to computers in a data-center where the attacker has a cloud computing instance. PXE – the system that Pixiefail attacks – isn't widely used in home or office environments, but it's very common in data-centers.

Again, once a computer is exploited with Pixiefail, software running on that computer can't detect or delete the Pixiefail code. When the compromised computer is queried by the operating system, Pixiefail undetectably lies to the OS. "Hey, OS, does this drive have a file called 'pixiefail?'" "Nope." "Hey, OS, are you running a process called 'pixiefail?'" "Nope."

This is a self-destruct switch that's been compromised by the enemy, and which no one on the bridge can de-activate – by design. It's not the first time this has happened, and it won't be the last.

There are models for helping your computer bust out of the Matrix. Back in 2016, Edward Snowden and bunnie Huang prototyped and published source code and schematics for an "introspection engine":

https://assets.pubpub.org/aacpjrja/AgainstTheLaw-CounteringLawfulAbusesofDigitalSurveillance.pdf

This is a single-board computer that lives in an ultraslim shim that you slide between your iPhone's mainboard and its case, leaving a ribbon cable poking out of the SIM slot. This connects to a case that has its own OLED display. The board has leads that physically contact each of the network interfaces on the phone, conveying any data they transit to the screen so that you can observe the data your phone is sending without having to trust your phone.

(I liked this gadget so much that I included it as a major plot point in my 2020 novel Attack Surface, the third book in the Little Brother series):

https://craphound.com/attacksurface/

We don't have to cede control over our devices in order to secure them. Indeed, we can't ever secure them unless we can control them. Self-destruct switches don't belong on the bridge of your spaceship, and trusted computing modules don't belong in your devices.

I'm Kickstarting the audiobook for The Bezzle, the sequel to Red Team Blues, narrated by @wilwheaton! You can pre-order the audiobook and ebook, DRM free, as well as the hardcover, signed or unsigned. There's also bundles with Red Team Blues in ebook, audio or paperback.

If you'd like an essay-formatted version of this post to read or share, here's a link to it on pluralistic.net, my surveillance-free, ad-free, tracker-free blog:

https://pluralistic.net/2024/01/17/descartes-delenda-est/#self-destruct-sequence-initiated

Image: Mike (modified) https://www.flickr.com/photos/stillwellmike/15676883261/

CC BY-SA 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/

[bittwitchy]

few things of note now that i finally found the whole pictures of 'steve's' office (from here for others like me who were unsure) i noticed that;

a: they took away his rabbit mail holder in the actual film

but they ALSO removed that second 'award' from the corner of his shelf to put that box there. the box was originally on his actual bookcase next to the other locked box (that looks slightly similar to the fn/af4 box, i'd say a little more so than the one they moved, but whatever. also if im reading it correctly, the sticket on the box says 'ports and film.' but it may also say 'file'. the first may also say 'porth' or 'porte', i'm dyslexic so its hard to tell, but 'ports and film' make the most sense to me. )

my assumption for the rabbit mail holder was it was too on the nose, maybe, and the rabbits foot is smaller and less likely to be noticeable so its smaller easter eggs. The lamp behind him and the chairs are also spring bonnie colored if you notice, which gives more subtle hints as to who he is (honestly the fans knew, a: s/cott leaked it to d/awko immediately after m/atthew signed the contract, and b: m/atthew kind of leaked it himself too lol)

they also changed positions of a few things here and there, noticeable here when in the movie the camera focuses on mike

they sort of swapped the position of the coffee table and moved the stuff behind the chairs to the side instead.

those big file cabinets also seem to have been moved completely. which as a nerd im super interested in. i believe they put the one award they moved the box for on the wall in the screencap above.

also, another little thing i noticed; the inside of his cup kind of looks like freddy's mouth

looks a little bit like a mouth, this is the best i could find in the movie itself but one of the games had an animatronics mouth look like that (I think this is more coincidence but its a cool coincidence)

also!!! the award they moved from the shelf to put the box there instead? we see it again later, when mike calls him to ask if the jobs still open.

its on his desk, no longer framed, unfortunately i cant read what it says though.

and heres some close ups (as good as i could) of 'steve's' office. mostly things with writing on them. i sharpened them as well as i could.

the now infamous participation award is front and center of course, but i do thing the 'certificate of regional social worker of the year' award should also be noticed, bc who let him--

the painting on the side of him, its like a road with a tree

labels for probably files from 97 and 98.

i'm pretty sure the 099111 were numbers found on scotts website or a 'glitch' in one of the games at one point iirc. i remember the numbers from something.

i believe the one box says like, 145-176 or something. earlier i thought it said 1995-1996 but sharpening it i think it looks more three digit number to me.

cant' really read any of it ngl

honestly i think sharpnening it might have made it even harder to read but i couldnt make it out either way.

[uk3d]

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[myheartisoutatsea]

Speaking ill of the Dead

Okay, let’s have this conversation. The tragedy on the Titan Sub is an incredibly complicated topic, less so because of the actual technical issues of the submarine but for the actions of the company and crew. Perhaps by calling it a tragedy I have already made my opinion somewhat clear, but let me lament about the topic a bit further. 

Clearly the company did not take well enough actions prior to the dive of the submarine. It has had no peer review, not certification, and every attempt to express concern on the Submarines integrity was ignored in favor of a quicker time tune over and a profit. This is an inherent problem in the Adventure industry, where something that is meant to be undertaken slowly, carefully, and by well prepared experts is done by people who want an adrenaline rush and an experience. This leads to a lot of tragedy in the Industry. 

Secondly, the crew aboard has made some questionable designs in their life. I believe one report I saw claimed the co-founder of OceanGate and pilot of the Submarine was previously a private jet owner and flyer and thus according the account responsible for heavy air pollution and in passion of already great wealth. I believe they (the author of the account) found this to be abhorrent, and anybody who respects this earth would react to pollution, and found him to be  a terrible human being. 

There is also the issue of whether or not the site of tragedy should be a tourist destination, and also the waver the crew signed when entering the vessel. The waver clearly stated it was an experimental vessel and an uncertified one at that. 

Now none of these are what I have an issue with, seeing as I honestly think many mistake were made, that’s what makes it a tragedy and not a horror. What I have issue with it going around saying they deserved death, as though we should let people make their beds and lie in them, as though we should look death in the face and call it humane and right, as though I am supposed to speak ill of dead men for their money. 

So I’m going to go into these issues, from the point of view of a Sailors child. My parent is a sailor, and a Submariner at that. We’ve had extensive talks about the issues here, and I’d like to poke a few holes, a patch a few others, and make some conversation while I’m at it. 

I would like to ask you dear readers, what in the world do you actually know about Submarines? Had you read that waver, would you honestly believe there would better options? Would you know about the three to five organizations that certify Submarines or would you assume uncertified meant non-military? Would you not assume this new and amazing technologically was of course experimental? For what else could innovation in adventure be? 

There has been some outrage about the fact that the submarine was piloted by a game controller, well guess what, Navy Submarines have them too. Until very recently most Periscopes on Submarines were made to function through a highly calibrated set of mirrors. Quite literally mirrors. The submarine scene from the Fast and Furious 8 movie made me so mad, because there is not enough technology in an older submarine for Cipher to hack if she tried. Now, the most recent submarines use digital cameras in their periscopes. Want to know how they maneuver that? With an Xbox game controller. One of the Sailors pointed out that the technology for game control, meant to be intuitive to the user, could be very useful on the submarine and thus the engineers made it happen. Do not pretend the wireless, intuitive controller is not amazing technology because it helps you play video games. 

Another thing about Submarines, did you know that worldwide, during peace time, many nations have a specific system set up with each other to do search and rescue for submarines? Look up the disappearance of the ARA San Juan, an Argentina sub that also imploded and was only located with national help. The Hulk wasn’t too far off when he talked about being in a pressurized can being a bad idea. Submarines are some of the most deadly machines we have, in their military use and how much danger there is to operate them. As such, the international community reacts to them according. The US Navy specifically has a policy of being able to launch search and recovery equipment to the needed location or at least en route to within 24 hours of notification. This includes sonar and deep sea ROVs. Based on previous precedence set by Submarine emergencies, the international community is more likely to respond to Submarine disasters quicker, they have less time. 

So Yes, the tragedy of the refugee ship of Greece is a politically fueled tragedy and loss of life, but it is not the same as the Titan. The Titan didn’t get more attention because it has billionaires on board, it got more attention because it was a Submarine. Submarines have the benefit of being a recent dilemma for the world theaters, so they have more modern solutions while Refugees and Sailing ships have had centuries of existence to be wrangled into political machinations that make it complicated to rescue too retrieve. 

What is more likely to be a problem is the retrieval or lack there of the bodies, as those bodies are usually mounted over, but bodies lost at sea rarely get returned. The Navy has always held that the ocean is a fit and final resting place for those lost at sea, and while due respect is paid to their loss, retrieving the bodies and wreckage is harrowing and expensive. If you truly want to rage against those with a lot of a money, start asking who’s going to be paying for the retrieval operation and all that time spent searching. I would argue it should be OceanGate, for their negligence in the integrity of their Submarine lead to a loss of life. 

I will also honestly say this, I hate to speak ill of the dead even when it must be done. Yes, some of these people lost did terrible things, but they did not only do evil in their life and their story should not just be “They did this but they also did this!” it should be instead “They did this and this.” Was the french diver not also one of the only certified people to take wreckage from the Titanic to surface for study, posterity, and for museums? Was the British explorer not also a history enthusiast who was excited to see a piece of history he studied so fondly? Was the Son not also a student? Perhaps the pilot did pollute the earth, you’d be hard pressed to find someone who hadn’t, his crime is perhaps instead doing nothing to fix pollution. 

I believe a lot of us apply Spiderman's “With Great Power comes Great Responsibility” to those with Wealth, and while not wrong we get too disappointed when they fail to meet our standards. They are not obligated to help the world, as much as we need them to be. We want them to be better people, but they won’t always be. It is not wealth that made them bad, but their actions or lack thereof with it that did. 

The Navy hosts something called the Submarine ball, to celebrate the creation of the Submarine force. And every Submarine ball, they will list the submarines sunk and the life lost on them. I have gone too many times, heard that speech and list too many times to call the death by horrific pressure and cold and drowning something somebody has to have had deserved. 

Look up the specifics of implosion, of death, of how your blood boils if you rise to fast, of the cold seeping in so fast you feel like ice, to the lack of hair, and tell me you wish that on people. Tell me you have enough in you to wish somebody to die by the sea, lost and scared, and tell me how that makes you a righteous and good person. By all means rage an injustice, rage at the unfair, but do not turn that into a right to murder, to kill, and wish death on others. 

[spawksstuff]

De's Military Service

The National Archives and Records Administration is a great website for military records, especially old ones. Some have been digitized and some have not (and some were burned in a fire in 1973, presumably what happened to my great grandfather's records). I was searching for the two training films De was a part of besides "A Time To Kill" (I am determined to find them!) and decided to see if his record was on there, and sure enough it was. Even though it's a public website, I still blacked out De's Serial Number (his SSN was already blacked out) although I don't think anyone could do anything with it since its been so long and as he had no children, any potential VA benefits wouldn't be a factor today or in the future.

Draft Registration:

This address is right on the beach. His employer is "Cooper Arms" which is down the block from the residence address. Cooper Arms is where he got his elevator job. I don't know if this is before or after he crashed in their basement. He's 21 here, so this is sometime in 1941. Notice the signature on the bottom. The clerk most likely made him put in "Jackson" since that was his "official" name. Blue, Blonde, light complexion, and 150 lbs.

10 March 1943 Long Beach Press Telegram

The newspaper article where De got on the bus to go to Basic. (Mentioned in "From Sawdust to Stardust"). (Article was saved in my "military" folder instead of "newspapers", which is why it wasn't posted before.)

Payroll RAAF, Roswell NM 30 Apr 44

I don't know why this was included in his record, but I love finding records like this so I included it.

Going from left to right, 3 Mar 43 (date drafted). 0 is Years of Service (it's weird in the military: if you're in, but below 2 years, you're still considered having 0 years of service until you hit that 2 year mark, at least on pay records). With the comment under his name, it appears De stopped an allotment in February, and they are now reimbursing him for taking it after he wanted it stopped. If the codes are the same as today, an "F" Allotment is to a charity or emergency assistance fund. Blacked out is his Serial Number. The 6.60 is for an "N" Allotment which is life insurance. 3.75 is for "Class A pay reservations" which is a war bond as far as I can tell. 1.50 is for "Government Laundry."

In the second picture, I could not decode what the 10.35 was for (T/A). So he was due 65.65, but they collected the 1.50, leaving him with 64.15. He signed (with "Jackson" now) saying he received that money.

Separation 28 Jan 1946 -

After VE and VJ day, the First Motion Picture Unit was shut down and some of the unit was sent to Colorado to wait for their separation orders.

Separation Qualification Record

Lists his military jobs, basic information, and a summary of military occupations, which would likely have been useful for returning GIs to get a job doing something similar to what they did in the service, for example, radio technicians, communications, etc. The address on Normandie is where he and Carolyn started renting right before they got married.

Page 2 (Backpage), Military Education, Civilian Education and occupations. Again all of this would be helpful for returning GIs.

Honorable Discharge Certificate

WD AGO Form 53-55 - Official Separation Form

Basic information. Same address on Normandie as above. Blue eyes, but now Brown hair and weight is 165 (Guess 3 meals a day and all the PT helped him out 😂 Or Carolyn made him some good food 🤣). No. Depend-1, this is number of dependents, being spouse or children, or even at this time parents as the rules were more lax on supporting your parents.

Block 21 Civilian Occupation "Checker" - I'm unsure about this but according to "From Sawdust to Stardust" De told them he was an "entertainer." Box 35 is Immunizations, which continues in Box 55. I'm surprised by how late he got these. Perhaps the Army gave priority to those going overseas first and then the rest got them. Nowadays you get the majority at Basic Training if you don't already have them.

Served 2 years, 10 months, and 13 days, and was a Private First Class upon discharge. Reason for separation is basically "surplus." Pay Data was his final pay plus some travel money, and his insurance continued for another month.

Block 34, right thumb print. Box 55 Remarks: the continued immunizations. Inactive service is while he was waiting to board the bus to Basic, (the time between when he was notified he was drafted and the day he officially was).

The "6 Days lost" is throwing me. Usually "Days lost" means you weren't able to work because you made a bad choice (like you're hungover, or you did something incredibly stupid and hurt yourself, causing hospitalization, or you didn't show up for most of your shift) but I can't see De being too hungover to work or not showing up. However, there is the story of him, George Reeves, and another soldier getting lost in Colorado, pushed a car into the nearby town, and when they couldn't get the hotel owner to open up, they broke in and slept on the floor. They were drunk after drinking a bottle of bourbon trying to stay warm. The sheriff came by and took them to jail for the night. There's also the story of George Reeves getting recognized in Colorado at a hotel and decided not to spend the night because he got mobbed (De was with him). A sheriff pulled them over for something and decided to put them in jail for the night. I don't know if these two stories are the same or not, one was in the book and one was in a newspaper article, but if it made them late or made them miss a shift, that would count as being absent, (but not AWOL, which would have been much more serious). Also I don't know if the furlough time was considered "lost time". It's possible all of this was and it added up to the 6 days.

The 4 Discharge Emblems were pins issued to be worn on the uniform once someone was discharged. Since there was a clothing shortage, service members were authorized to wear their uniforms even after they were discharged (mostly while traveling home). The Discharge Emblem proved that they weren't away from their unit, that they were allowed to be wherever they were. ASR score was a rating given to service members to list who got discharge papers first.

De signed and he was now a Veteran and a civilian. Back to Carolyn at Normandie and Paramount.

[abeinginsand]

S2 Ep 34 Finding Tori sketch page (Scenes explained below)

A digital sketch page of scenes from episode thirty four of dungeons and daddies season two. The top portion shows guest star Tori sitting at a desk and smiling nervously. She says these were good and mentally asks herself what the podcast is about because she's not sure. The five teens that performed are below her. Its a pleased Lincoln thanking Garfield for the help, family guy fall pose Taylor with here lies Taylor written below him, a standing and devastated normal who is apologizing desperately, a cheering Scary saying fuck yes and thanking Uncle Rico, and a silhouette of a defeated Hermie in a chair. From left to right, each person has their score card with numbers five, three, four, five, and lastly four again. While Link and Scary hold their cards happily, Normal is surrounded by cards falling like confetti around him and Taylor has a card smacking onto his head. Scam looks disappointedly at Hermie with a single wagging finger and says you messed up boy. Hermie's score card was launched between the father and son via an arrow. Tori tells Taylor that she liked the end of his skit. The bottom sketches are from the space scenes. They show Scary happily signing her name as Terry Marlowe on the marriage certificate on the left. Taylor and Link riding on a dead astronaut towards their friends while Taylor uses an inhaler to propel them faster. Link calls for Scary and Normal. Hermie seems to be melting due to his shape shifting ability being influenced by his emotions and is hugging the air as he embraces the star filled void.

[not-so-bored]

Summer - week 6

July - week 2 🌥

Routine

🛏 Sleep 8+ hours  🟩🟨🟥🟨🟥🟨🟩 ⏰ Wake up earlier than 10:00  🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟥 👟 Work  🟩⬛️⬛️🟩⬛️🟩⬛️ 🇳🇱 Dutch lessons  🟦🟩🟨🟥🟩🟨🟨 🦉 Duolingo: Dutch  🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 💧 Drops: Dutch  🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 📚 Reading more than 15 pages 🟥🟥🟩🟥🟩🟥🟩 🧠 Meditation: 5+5 minutes  🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥 🌐 60-day Language Challenge by @leavelesstree (I aimed to complete it in 6 weeks, but it’s more likely it’ll actually take 7 weeks) 🟩🟩🟩🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥 🚲 Cycling  🟥 ☕️ Coffee*  ⬛️⬛️⬛️⬛️🟫⬛️🟫 *I enjoy an occasional cup of coffee but I need to keep them occasional, which means: up to three cups a week with one day break in between

Special tasks

Backlog

⁉️🌐 60-day Language Challenge by @leavelesstree 🟩 ‼️‼️🚲 Cycling 🟥🟥🟥🟥🟥 ‼️❗️💡 Reaching out to the Philosophy people 🟥🟥🟥 ‼️📞 Dispeling my doubts related to the move (formal) 🟨🟥 ‼️✍️ Editing my WiP 🟥 ‼️🏳️‍⚧️ Drafting my name change request 🟩 ‼️🗂 Cleaning my desk 🟩 ❗️💻 Working on my Computer Science project (figuring out how to use docker compose or something similar) 🟥🟥 ❗️🔢 Maths in English - Precalculus (Khan Academy) 🟥🟥🟥 ❗️📧 Sharing my WiP with one person to whom I promised it 🟥 ❗️💶 Learning a specific thing about financial matters in the Netherlands  🟨 ❗️📋 Scheduling meetings with people I’d like to see before I leave 🟨🟨 🟥 🟩 🗺 Sending an email and receiving an answer to my question 🟥🟥 🏢 Going to the library ⬛️ (done by a family member) 💼 Gathering information about internship opportunities (🇪🇺) 🟨 📱 Texting people whom I haven't talked to in a while 🟥(🟥) 📖 Digital Technology and Economy reading list - week 2 🟩🟩

Current tasks

👆 Dealing with the backlog (recovery)  🟩🟥🟥🟧🟥 🟩🟩🟥🟥🟥 🟨🟨🟥⬛️🟨 🟥🟩 🥕 Eating the carrots  🟩 📁 Gathering the documents of which I need certified copies 🟩 🟩 📃 Signing the schedule at work (that’s something new…) 🟩 🩻 Appointments 🟩🟩 🫣 Receiving the results of my final exams (online at first, then physical) 🟩🟩 ©️ Getting certified copies of the necessary documents  🟩🟩🟩 📨 Ordering sworn translations of the necessary documents 🟩🟩 🔁 Asking my supervisor if it’d be possible to reschedule one of my shifts 🟩 (it got cancelled...) 👥 Meetings with friends 🟩🟩 🏣 Requesting a copy of my birth certificate  🟩 📁 Picking up the translations 🟩 📝 Writing a report on the programme in which I participated  🟩 🗳️ Submitting the report on the programme  🟩 🔜🏫 Requesting some other documents  ⬜️⬜️  🔜🏳️‍🌈 Requesting a document ⬜️ 🗒 Preparing for the meeting  🟨 💬 Online meeting 🟩 🔔 Reminding two people about something 🟥🟥 🔜🧘‍♂️ Yoga With Adriene  ⬜️ 🔜📄 Writing a cover letter for a scholarship  ⬜️ 🔜🥒 Baking zucchini muffins and cleaning the kitchen afterwards  ⬜️⬜️ 📖 Digital Technology and Economy reading list - week 3 🟥🟥🟥🟥 🔐[👆(4) 📖] 

Things I had planned to do later, but have already completed them

I might swap them with the non-urgent tasks (🔜)

✅ Informing a person about the date of my arrival ✅ Making an appointment at the office in the Netherlands ✅ Creating a LinkedIn profile (and screaming internally) → to do: setting it up properly and professionally ✅ Estimating the "exact" hours I'll be available to work → to do: asking if it'd be possible to get the schedule of my classes a bit earlier. ✅ Going to the swimming pool

[petri808]

Day 1 @flufftober “I’ve got you” Nalu Drabble

“Aww, it’s been sooo looonnggg,” Lucy whines as she stretches her lower back and twists from side to side. “I can’t wait to get up this trail and take in that sweet clean air!”

Natsu chuckles as he finishes clicking the buckle of his backpack and checks to make sure the strap is nice and snug around his chest. “I wonder if we’ll see deer this time, that’d be cool.”

They work a lot of hours, Lucy as a crime journalist and him as a firefighter, so it’s hard to find a time when they’re both off on the same day. Now, it’s finally autumn, technically at least, with the heat index no longer in the triple digits to make hiking uncomfortable. Summer was truly miserable this year too, super dry conditions with no summer storms. For his job, that meant more fires than normal, often accidental like someone deciding to barbecue with coals over dead grass or kids burning trash in a barrel out of boredom.

She takes a swig of her water bottle before putting it away in her satchel. “Do you think it’ll be this dry up there too?” Lucy asks as she taps the dry grass with her foot causing a crunching sound.

“It’ll be dry, but probably not this dry once we get to about the 8,200 foot elevation and the forest is thicker.”

“8,200 feet?”

“Maybe two-thirds to three-fourths the way up the trail.”

“Oh, okay. It’s just kinda sad to see it like this.”

They’ve been on high alert, but his boss approved this time-off months in advance because in another week they will be saying “I do.” It may seem odd to be going hiking instead of using the time to solidify wedding plans, but relaxing is just as important for their sanity. And besides, he’s sure Lucy will agree when he says, that the wedding is just a formality at this point. Altogether, they’ve been close for 20 years, a couple for 13 of those years, and the marriage certificate signed 8 years ago. The only reason the ceremony took so long to take place is their busy careers.

Natsu walks over and puts his arm around her waist before kissing her temple. “I couldn’t agree more.”

The trail they’ve chosen is considered a moderate one in length and difficulty, two miles one way with an incline of about 8-12 degrees give-or-take. It’s a well worn and a well marked trail popular with locals, so the couple will have no difficulties scaling it. The forest is made up of a lot of needled tree varieties like pines, firs, and spruces as well as maples or hardy mahogany’s or an occasional mountain apple. There are also a spattering of berry options in the area that the deer and other wildlife eat like blackberry, mulberry, snowberries, and elderberry.

So many things to look at! And the smell… just a myriad of earthly scents in a dry air filling their lungs to replace what the city’s pollution left behind. They take their time as they traverse the dirt-packed trail, worn into a shallow groove from years of service, up the shallow incline of the mountain pass in a zig-zag. Every so often, they can hear the sounds of small creatures scampering through the leaf litter, through brush, or maybe a squirrel in it’s hollowed tree den high above. The birds too, add to the natural symphony with differing tweets and twittering chirps, or perhaps a call of warning when they see the two-legged creatures passing by. They were happy to see that while dry, once they got deeper into the tree line the flora appear to have weathered the summer sun just fine.

Eventually they reach the 8,000 foot elevation which is almost to the turning point in the trail. Here there is an opening in the tree line that allows the couple to peer down into the valley below that separates this mountain range into two. Maybe if you listen hard enough on a day with very little noise, it’s possible to hear the whooshing, burbling sounds of the river at it’s heart. Here the trail is around three feet wide. On the mountain side, there’s approximately four more feet of brush before you hit the wall, but on the other there is a sheer drop off the cliff side. Because of the trails worn out groove, it creates a sort of lip or raised berm before the cliff begins. Now, the cliff itself is deceiving because the cliff side is covered in low brush and bramble, and tops of trees that have taken root at a lower level. It makes it difficult to see just how steep it really is and camouflages the dangers.

Natsu takes off the pack and puts it on the ground so he can grab something to snack on and a drink. He then sits down on a large rock on the mountain side of the trail. It’s as good a time as any to take a break and appreciate the beautiful scenery. Lucy too accepts a small bag of trail mix from him before stepping near the edge of the berm. As she munches on finger-fulls of the treats, she takes a wide survey of the area. This isn’t the first time they’ve been here or stopped at this very spot before, so it’s nothing really new.

“Look!” Lucy points to some trees to their right near the entrance of the valley. “They’re starting to turn color! I bet if we came back in a month this whole area will be a multi-color sea of leaves!”

“Oh yeah?” Natsu responds. “That’ll make for some nice photos, maybe we should come back to take pics to turn into holiday cards?”

Finding the suggestion appealing, Lucy turns on her heel quickly to face him. “Oh, I love that idea!”

And that’s when he sees it. As Lucy spins around in her excitement, the dirt beam which is normally solid and compact, completely crumbles and breaks off the cliff’s edge. “LUCY!” Natsu screams as he pops up and tries to reach…

“Huh?” Lucy instantly looks down, but it’s already too late as she feels the ground below her feet give way. “OH! AHHH!” She cries out and her eyes blow up like saucers as she drops below the edge.

All Natsu can see as his hand grabs air is the love of his life disappearing from view, with her wide-eyed expression burning into his mind. “Lucy!!” He stumbles to his knees and peers over the edge.

“Natsu!!” She screams back.

‘Oh thank the stars!’ Natsu instantly lets out the air he’d been holding in when he sees that Lucy is about four feet down and has managed to grab onto a root. It’s still a precarious situation, evident by the continuously crumbling dirt around them. The root could give way or more of the cliff edge which would send Natsu down too. The abnormally hot and dry summer conditions have left the bare soil so dry that there’s little to keep it together. “Lucy! Don’t panic! Okay? Babe don’t move around too much, stay as still as you can okay?!”

“O-Okay,” Lucy sniffles, “p-please hurry!”

Natsu locks eyes with her and steadies his breathing as his emergency training kicks in. He knows better than most the importance of staying calm and appearing confident in these situations. “I got you! Lucy, you believe me right? I’m gonna get you out of there!”

A sense of ease rolls over when Lucy feels the cocksureness flowing from her man. She knows she can count on him, but to feel it is surreal. “I do! Y-Yeah, I do!”

He takes a quick assessment of the edges stability and notes he can’t put a lot of pressure on the dirt or it will break off again. That means if he tries to just reach for her and it gives way, they will both fall. Okay, the cliff face is at give or take a 55-65 degree angle, and no way to know if it turns into a sheer drop further down. There are several bushes doting the area though there’s no way to know how deeply rooted they are. Natsu can also see a many random divots on the cliff face created when rocks are likely dislodged due to weathering. He reaches down and yanks on a close-by bush to see how deeply rooted it is and it’s more solid than it looks. The edge is weak, but if he lays flat, and uses the rest of his body to counter and distribute his weight, he should be able to reach down maybe two feet. But that still means he’s two feet shy of reaching her.

“Okay, Lucy?”

“Y-yeah?”

“I’m gonna need you to trust me and do exactly what I say. Can you do that?”

“O-Okay…”

“You trust me right?”

“Of course, I trust you.”

“Do you see that bush just above your head? I want you to grab onto it at the base. Keep holding onto the root, but grab the bush with your other hand.”

“Okay…”

“And— but don’t looks down! There is a divot in the ground just below your left knee. I need you to use the bushes to help you pull yourself up until your foot can catch hold of the divot. Let your body drag along the ground not lift up while you do that. Once your foot feels like it’s solid in the divot, reach for the next two bushes above. You should feel another divot maybe another foot up to match. Can you do this? I should be able to reach you if you can get closer.”

“I-I’ll try.”

“Not try,” Natsu pushes her to think positive, “baby, you will!” He moves into position to where from his rib cage down it’s laying on the ground over the trail with the weight of the backpack anchoring his feet. He leans over the edge and extends his hand as far as it will reach. “Come on Lucy! Grab my hand!”

Tentatively, Lucy starts to make her move, first grabbing the base of the bush, then pulling up as her foot skims for the divot. Once it hits an indentation, she presses into it with her toes for stability. Just as she’s about to move to the next bushes, a couple of small rocks break free from the edge where Natsu is laying, causing her to look down.

Seeing how far up they are spooks her, and reminds her of the precariousness of the position. “I’m scared, Natsu…” Lucy whimpers. Why is this happening to them? It’s such a beautiful day, going on a hike which is something they enjoy. And right before the wedding ceremony. “It’s so high…”

“Look at me,” Natsu commands and Lucy instantly obeys. With her eyes transfixed, he responds as soothingly as he can muster. “It’s okay to be scared, but look’it, you already did the first step, just one more.” He flexes his fingers and smiles. “Take a deep breath and come to me Lucy!”

No verbal response, she just gives a shaky nod as she looks at her target and reaches for it. One bush grabbed onto, then two, and finally, her foot finds the divot.

“Now let go of one bush, and reach for my hand.”

With a trembling gulp, Lucy slowly reaches up, crawling her fingers up the cliff face as she aims for Natsu’s hand.

“Almost there…” He assures as he extends as far as he can as well. When he feels the tips of her fingers, “almost there…” Lucy stretches on tiptoe giving her the last bit of distance needed for Natsu to grab her left wrist. “Gotcha! Okay, I’m gonna start pulling, keep grabbing onto things too.”

“O-Okay.”

Little by little with him pulling and her reaching, they scale the cliff face. One foot conquered, two feet, each shift and movement triggering little cascades of dirt or rock causing Lucy to pause and lower her head to avoid them. Two more feet to go. “Grab onto my neck as soon as you can with one hand.” He lifts the few inches allowing her to do just that. “Okay…” Natsu tenses up his core and thighs, and presses down with his knees tensed to provide additional drag. After getting one arm around her back and side, with hand under Lucy’s right armpit, he uses everything his torso can offer, pulling up while using his knees to scoot backwards a few inches. Once her shoulders have cleared the edge, she wraps her other around his neck. Natsu changes positions quickly, still holding her tightly with his left, he uses his free hand to push off the ground while his legs shift and curl to the side and pulling her up and over. This brings his knees under him and allows him to use them as a lever for this final hurrah. With a straining grunt, Lucy is yanked over the edge, the momentum causing Natsu to fall onto his back and her onto his chest, immediately wrapping his other arm around her and scooting all the way back to the mountain side of the trail. He sits up and keeps her in his lap.

One would expect an immediate celebration, but such a physical and mental expenditure takes it’s toll. For half a minute they remain, wrapped tightly to each other in silence save for the natural symphony oblivious around them and the rise and fall of their chests while their breathing returns to normal. But soon, all the adrenaline that helped Natsu through, runs away, and all the emotions he’s tamped down explode to the surface. He’s been through tons of emergency rescues and battled hundreds of blazes, but never once has he felt this level of fear. Natsu keeps his head on Lucy’s shoulder, but adds pressure against her neck as a he speaks. “I thought I lost you…” his shaky words in a somber tone are just barely audible as if he’s too afraid to give it any more power.

Lucy reciprocates, tilting her head into the nape of his neck. “Me too…” She tightens her hug when she feels the moisture from his tears starting to soak the fabric of her shirt. His trembling frame speaks volumes. For as long as she’s known this man, she can’t think of a time when he’s shown this level of vulnerability. Always the protector worrying more about others than himself. “Natsu, I re—ally don’t know how you can handle death defying stuff so calmly, ‘cause that was fucking scary!”

“I’d rather do my job a hundred times over than go through this again.” Natsu mumbles. And he means it. They’re lives, their spirits are so entwined already that if he lost her, it’s like being dead too.”

They stay tangled for a little longer before getting to their feet and start heading back down the trail, but both are exhausted, so it takes a little longer than usual, stopping every so often for breaks. The air around Natsu feels heavy and yet light too. How can one feel both at the same time, well, it’s the only way he can explain it. As a trained emergency responder, it’s his job to be aware of anything dangerous and yet today he failed to notice the dry dirt or how close Lucy was getting to the edge. Perhaps this guilt is where the heaviness comes from and yet lightness stems from the same source. It’s because he is trained that he was able to save her life today and that has to feel good.

Sensing something amiss, Lucy squeezes the hand she’s holding and leans her head against his bicep. “Something bothering you?”

“Mmm,” Natsu throws on a genuine smile. Death always makes us think what if, but it’s time to let go. Lucy’s still here, smiling, and holding his hand as they walk along the trail. She’s not letting this experience hold her down. Plus, she’s tougher than she looks, and if he continues to feel sorry, it’s an afront to her inner strength. Sometimes… it’s a wonder who’s really the savior between them. “Nope,” Natsu smiles and kisses her temple area. “Not anymore.”

[zoeythebee]

Day One of Learning Cyber Security

Hello babes this is a studyblr now.

So Cyber Security is the field of protecting digital data from being stolen. The field is very expansive, and pretty difficult. But I decided to give it a go because I feel like I can pull it off.

Reason's To Learn Cyber Security

You make absolutely shit over ass quantities of money.

So How Do You Learn Cyber Security?

So first off college doesn't help even a little. What you need are certifications. Which you get by taken exams.

And there are a few ways to get those. I am going through (ISC)^2 which have a broad range of certifications you can get.

Sadly they all require multiple years of professional it experience to get. But (ISC)^2 offers an entry level cyber security certification that can get you further certifications, and opportunities to get that important job experience.

Even better, if you pick the self-paced course... It's free! Swag! Having a shortage of 2 million workers in the space really does pay.

So I am all signed up and ready to go for that exact entry level course. And I am gonna really throw myself at it, I only have about an hour a day to work on it but I am gonna try to make it count.

Wish me luck! <3

[mariacallous]

Thousands of law enforcement officials and people applying to be police officers in India have had their personal information leaked online—including fingerprints, facial scan images, signatures, and details of tattoos and scars on their bodies. If that wasn’t alarming enough, at around the same time, cybercriminals have started to advertise the sale of similar biometric police data from India on messaging app Telegram.

Last month, security researcher Jeremiah Fowler spotted the sensitive files on an exposed web server linked to ThoughtGreen Technologies, an IT development and outsourcing firm with offices in India, Australia, and the US. Within a total of almost 500 gigabytes of data spanning 1.6 million documents, dated from 2021 until when Fowler discovered them in early April, was a mine of sensitive personal information about teachers, railway workers, and law enforcement officials. Birth certificates, diplomas, education certificates, and job applications were all included.

Fowler, who shared his findings exclusively with WIRED, says within the heaps of information, the most concerning were those that appeared to be verification documents linked to Indian law enforcement or military personnel. While the misconfigured server has now been closed off, the incident highlights the risks of companies collecting and storing biometric data, such as fingerprints and facial images, and how they could be misused if the data is accidentally leaked.

“You can change your name, you can change your bank information, but you can't change your actual biometrics,” Fowler says. The researcher, who also published the findings on behalf of Website Planet, says this kind of data could be used by cybercriminals or fraudsters to target people in the future, a risk that’s increased for sensitive law enforcement positions.

Within the database Fowler examined were several mobile applications and installation files. One was titled “facial software installation,” and a separate folder contained 8 GB of facial data. Photographs of people’s faces included computer-generated rectangles that are often used for measuring the distance between points of the face in face recognition systems.

There were 284,535 documents labeled as Physical Efficiency Tests that related to police staff, Fowler says. Other files included job application forms for law enforcement officials, profile photos, and identification documents with details such as “mole at nose” and “cut on chin.” At least one image shows a person holding a document with a corresponding photo of them included on it. “The first thing I saw was thousands and thousands of fingerprints,” Fowler says.

Prateek Waghre, executive director of Indian digital rights organization Internet Freedom Foundation, says there is “vast” biometric data collection happening across India, but there are added security risks for people involved in law enforcement. “A lot of times, the verification that government employees or officers use also relies on biometric systems,” Waghre says. “If you have that potentially compromised, you are in a position for someone to be able to misuse and then gain access to information that they shouldn’t.”

It appears that some biometric information about law enforcement officials may already be shared online. Fowler says after the exposed database was closed down he also discovered a Telegram channel, containing a few hundred members, which was claiming to sell Indian police data, including of specific individuals. “The structure, the screenshots, and a couple of the folder names matched what I saw,” says Fowler, who for ethical reasons did not purchase the data being sold by the criminals so could not fully verify it was exactly the same data.

“We take data security very seriously, have taken immediate steps to secure the exposed data,” a member of ThoughtGreen Technologies wrote in an email to WIRED. “Due to the sensitivity of data, we cannot comment on specifics in an email. However, we can assure you that we are investigating this matter thoroughly to ensure such an incident does not occur again.”

In follow-up messages, the staff member said the company had “raised a complaint” with law enforcement in India about the incident, but did not specify which organization they had contacted. When shown a screenshot of the Telegram post claiming to sell Indian police biometric data, the ThoughtGreen Technologies staff member said it is “not our data.” Telegram did not respond to a request for comment.

Shivangi Narayan, an independent researcher in India, says the country’s data protection law needs to be made more robust, and companies and organizations need to take greater care with how they handle people’s data. “A lot of data is collected in India, but nobody's really bothered about how to store it properly,” Narayan says. Data breaches are happening so regularly that people have “lost that surprise shock factor,” Narayan says. In early May, one cybersecurity company said it had seen a face-recognition data breach connected to one Indian police force, including police and suspect information.

The issues are wider, though. As governments, companies, and other organizations around the world increasingly rely on collecting people’s biometric data for proving their identity or as part of surveillance technologies, there’s an increased risk of the information leaking online and being abused. In Australia, for instance, a recent face recognition leak impacting up to a million people led to a person being charged with blackmail.

“So many other countries are looking at biometric verification for identities, and all of that information has to be stored somewhere,” Fowler says. “If you farm it out to a third-party company, or a private company, you lose control of that data. When a data breach happens, you’re in deep shit, for lack of a better term.”

[world-of-aus]

Family Matters - Person of Interest

Pairings: Mobster!Bucky x Reader

Warnings: Minor character death.

Author's Note: Here is part II to the revamp for family matters series. Part one can be found on my other page @worldofausupdates. There are some things that will be changing as I rebuild this story but will try to keep things as similar to the original as possible. I am building story in this part, the next part will have more of the original series coming out in it. Thank you all for reading and I hope you enjoy this second part! More coming soon, happy reading Buns!

He runs the satin cloth over the blood splattered on his knuckles, the material shining the decorative rings as he goes over each digit. His darkened eyes flick up at the tied, slumped body of his latest lead, or what should have been a good lead. Bucky had to give credit where credit was due, Pierce kept his men on a tight leash, a life filled with fear if they were willing to give theirs for his.  

‘Hail Hydra’ had been the last words from the poor chumps lips before it was lights out.  

“Boss,” Steve announces his presence, “a call for you.” 

He looks over his shoulder, his best friend and right hand at the doorway cellphone in hand, “its detective stark, says he has something you might be interested in.” His interest has been peaked, satin cloth joining the pooling blood on the floor as he turns on his heel closing the distance between him and Steve. 

He grabs the burner bringing the device to his ear, “you know I don’t like to have my time wasted stark.” 

“Always a pleasure to waste it, but listen pal any news on y/l/n?” 

The brunettes jaw ticks, “why are you calling me about y/l/n? I did away with him the day he decided my friendship wasn’t enough to keep him from the likes of Pierce, even sent the fool out on his ass when he tried tucking tail and coming back, you don’t come back from playing with the enemy.” 

“Well looks like Pierce took those words literally, taking out a rat the only way he knows how.” 

The brunette straightens up, Steve’s brows furrowing in question as he looks at his bosses' features trying to gauge the direction in which the conversation has taken, “when?”  

“Got the call this morning from an anonymous, site wasn’t pretty by any means though we expect nothing less when it comes to Pierce, even left us a picture of y/l/n daughter."

“A picture of his daughter? What do you mean of his daughter – his daughter died stark.” 

On the other end of the line detective stark sits behind his desk a photo of a girl looking out her bedroom window looking back at him, ‘we know the truth, we know about y/f/n/ y/l/n.’ scrawled messily in the back of it. “Well unless Pierce has the wrong y/f/n y/l/n.” 

Bucky’s jaw clenches, “his daughter died stark, he showed me the certificate the day he signed over their estate to me. A low chuckles chimes in his ear, “well unless your mole’s daughter had a twin who was identical to her in features and name the man lied, and Pierce is going for her next.” 

Bucky swings around, his fist hitting the the wooden structure of the doorway, “and you’re sure it’s her, you better not be playing me stark.” 

“I have nothing to play you for Barnes, just thought you might want to know before you show up to your estate and find your moles ‘dead’ daughter very much alive.” 

“She’s coming home?” 

“That’s her plan, but I’m not sure how far she’ll make it.” What do you mean,” Bucky questions, “why wouldn’t she make it?” Tony sighs, “are you listening at all to me Barnes, Pierce knows about her, he had a picture of her left behind at her parents' crime scene, he has every intention of getting her.” 

“Not if I get to her first.” 

“Barnes,” Stark warns, “this girls' parents just died have some respect.” 

“Thanks for the information, Stark, you were right I’m definitely interested.” 

The line goes dead before he can get an earful of the detective, the burner being dropped back into Steve’s hands. His friend looks at him in question, “Get Wilson on the line, tell him its urgent.” 

 

“So, she’s alive?” is the first thing out of Sam’s mouth in the dim of his office, “and Stark is certain that it’s her?” 

Steve and Sam watch their boss pace the wooden oak floors of the office, once, twice, before he comes to a stop in the middle of the room, Cerulean blues dark as he looks over at his most trusted. “So he say’s, but that’s where you come in Sam, I need to be sure Stark isn’t pulling a fast one on me, I need to hear her voice for myself, I need confirmation.” 

Sam looks at Steve with a raised brow, while Steve was his right hand and he had a say in any decision laid down on their table, this was one Bucky would not let him have a hand in. Bucky needed to know whether the man who was once part of his most trusted had really gone as far as to lie about his daughters death to get out of what he owed him. He needed to know just how deep this man’s lies went. 

He moves toward the desk producing a strip of paper from his slacks, a number scrawled on it. “What’s this,” Sam questions as he reaches for the paper, “if she’s real, she’ll answer, call it.” 

“Wait you want me to call right now, Bucky I -” 

His hand slams on the table; albeit loud the noise doesn’t startle the men, “get your phone, and call the number Sam, now!” 

Sam’s lips fall in a flat line, jaw clenching as he looks up at his boss, “I don’t pay you to lily gag Sam, the phone, now.”  

He rolls his eyes adjusting himself in his chair as he leans for his office phone, Bucky watches as Sam dials the number in, the tone of a ringing line fills the office. 

It rings once, twice, and before it can pass three a feminine voice is filling the room, all three men straighten out at the voice a disbelief on their features as the look at office phone. 

The voice calls out again, “Hello, is somebody there?” 

Bucky is swinging at the air in front of Sam, ‘say something’ he mouths, Sam seemingly blinks out of the trance the voice placed him in, he was certain the call would go unanswered. 

“Hello,” the voice calls again. 

Sam clears his throat, shaking himself out as he answers, “Apologies for calling so early this morning but is a Mr. Y/l/n in?”  

The line is silent, “No,” comes her voice a second later, “I’m sorry sir, but my parents have been in an accident and they -” 

Sam’s eyes shoot up to Bucky’s as to say ‘really man’, the brunette waves him off urging him to continue. “Oh, I’m so sorry miss, wait did you say parents, are you Mr. Y/l/n’s daughter?” he questioned. 

Bucky holds his breath eyes frozen on the phone on the desk. This is it, he thinks, the confirmation he needs is within her answer. 

“Yes,” music to his ears, “I’m his daughter, may I ask what the reason for the call is?”  

Sam looked at Bucky then, he got what he needed, what more did he want? Bucky signals him to go on. Thinking quick on his feet and spinning together a response that wasn’t a complete lie in regards to your father he manages to get out, “Well, I’m calling from Wilson Lending INC in regards to your fathers account, due to the unfortunate events, my condolences,” he feels the need to add, “and seeing as you are his next of kin would it be possible to get you to stop by our offices? 

They can sense your hesitation on the line as it goes quiet, “M’am,” Sam calls for you. 

“I’ll be in town meeting with a detective tomorrow, as soon as I get free I can get in contact with you to meet you.” 

Bucky’s nodding his head, Sam’s agreement coming a second later, “is this the best number to reach you at,” they hear you question. 

“Yes, it’ll be the best number, we’ll be seeing you tomorrow.” 

You’re ending the call with a farewell, the office going quiet as all three men take in the call they just heard. 

“She’s alive,” Sam breathes as he leans into his office chair, “I can’t believe it, she’s alive.” 

“But there’s a death certificate,” Steve murmurs, “daddy must have had to jump through hoops to fake something like that, but why?” 

Bucky should be thrilled, should be elated that at the news but he’s not, he thought he knew the type of man your father was, thought he could trust with how many years he had known the man through his father, then through the work they did together when George Barnes passed. Turns out he didn’t know the man at all. 

��Buck,” Steve calls for his boss, “what are you going to do, she’s alive, the contract -” 

Bucky twists his head shutting Steve up, “take me to the estate.” 

He’s not leaving it up to discussion as he gathers his coat on the way towards the door, bidding Sam a quiet thanks before he disappears out the doorway. Sam and Steve give each other a look, “don’t let him do anything stupid Steve.” Steve shakes his head, “I mean it man, keep an eye on him, we don’t need him making any rash decisions because of this, the girl is innocent, or at least for now, she just lost both her parents too.” 

Steve sigh is heavy, he knows that despite how he tries to reason it to his best friend, tries to talk him down from what it is he is about to do. That the brunette won’t listen, y/l/n took more than just money from him, he betrayed Bucky’s trust, and with that, well who knows what price his daughter would have to pay for her father’s lies. 

Steve bids his pal a farewell, making his way out of the quiet office meeting his friend and boss by the black sedan, “We need to talk about what you’re going to do Buck.” 

“There’s nothing to talk about, I know what needs to be done, get me to the estates.” 

Steve won’t argue, his friends mind made up, he just hoped you would be prepared for what was about to come. 

[brownsugar4hersoul]

Time flies, so you better keep up. Life doesn't hit the pause button, So why should you? Transform 'I wish' into 'I will'. Say yes to life's menu. Embrace the 'carpe diem' spirit. Lifelong learning? Education? Back to school, you go. Workshops and seminars? Sign up for anything and everything. Master new languages. Devour books. Certifications? Collect them like trophies. Documentaries? Expand your mind. Storytelling? Pen your epic. Knowledge is your playground. Aim for the stars. Entrepreneurship? Launch that start-up. Barista skills? Brew it till you make it. Mixology? Shake up a storm. Forge friendships out of chance encounters. Invite that classmate for a coffee. Be a tourist in your own city. Explore museums, Become a regular at quaint cafes. Travel? Book that Airbnb. Break free from your hometown's gravitational pull. Grab your passport and roam the globe. Ditch the dead-end job and chase the dream. Fitness? Luxury gyms and spas? Indulge. Ballet? It's never too late to start. Experience the grace of ballet. Dance your way to health. Concerts? Dance like nobody's watching. Skydiving? Take the plunge. Snowboarding? Hit the slopes. Equestrian dreams? Saddle up. Enjoy cinema solos. End the reign of doomscrolling. Manual cars? Conquer the stick shift. Drifting? Slide into the driver's seat. Auto shows? Rev your engines. Motorcycling? Get that license. Art classes? Paint your heart out. Drawing? Sketch your vision. Pottery? Spin that wheel. Crocheting? Knot your niche. Candle making? Light up your world. Modeling? Build a portfolio. Hair? Reinvent your look. Fashion? Redefine your wardrobe. Wear those fancy clothes, Because being alive is the occasion. Give compliments like they're going out of style. Gratitude? Make it your mantra. Calligraphy? Craft elegance. Culinary arts? Whip up a feast. Versatility? Cultivate it. Home decor? Rearrange your universe. Vlogging? Share your world, feed be damned. Coding, video editing, photography? Create digital magic. Analog memories? Capture them on film. Be a free spirit, be wild. Smile. Hug your family, Hug a friend. Kiss a lover. Tell that special person that you love them. Just always remember, It's never too late When you're the one in control of your own destiny. Create your own world, Seal your own fate.

[uk3d]

Original Otter sketch | Limited edition fine art print from an original drawing. Otters are carnivorous mammals in the subfamily Lutrinae. The 13 extant otter species are all semiaquatic, aquatic or marine, with diets based on fish and invertebrates. My sketches start life as hand-drawn graphite images made on cartridge paper. I often work on these with charcoal, oil pastel or Caran d'Ache to create the look I'm after. The artwork is then scanned and finessed digitally ready for fine art printing. This process often referred to as Giclée printing uses the highest standard of printing methods to give gallery quality results that maintain all the details of the original sketch. The graphite pencils I use are Faber-Castel, the oil pastels are Sennelier and the china-graph is Caran d’Ache. The inks are pigment based archive quality (100years+). The heavyweight specialist papers I use are of the best professional quality having a wonderful surface designed specifically for fine art drawings and illustrations. Very limited editions with only ten per size printed. All artwork is signed and includes a certificate of authenticity. The A5 are 5.8" x 8.25" (14.8cm x 21cm) The A4 are 8.25" x 11.7" (21cm x 29.8cm) The A3 are 11.7" x 16.5" (29.8 cm x 42cm) The A2 are 16.5" x 23.4" (42 cm x 59.4cm) Originals are A3 11.7" x 16.5" (29.8 cm x 42cm) Frames not included in price. Free shipping on artwork to all destinations. https://www.seanbriggs.co.uk/product/otter-2/?feed_id=4036&_unique_id=666941236a127