#and it'd be a lot of data to process

[celiaelise]

Was thinking about how a couple of episodes of a certain TV show may have flowed better with the scenes rearranged in a different order, and then I realized there's not a lot stopping me from downloading them and making that edit myself??

I probably won't actually do that, cause video editing is a lot of work, I'm not sure my current laptop could even handle something like that, (it's technically a tablet) and the show itself is not that important to me, but it's cool to realize that that is a project that is within my creative power to make happen!

[not-terezi-pyrope]

Often when I post an AI-neutral or AI-positive take on an anti-AI post I get blocked, so I wanted to make my own post to share my thoughts on "Nightshade", the new adversarial data poisoning attack that the Glaze people have come out with.

I've read the paper and here are my takeaways:

Firstly, this is not necessarily or primarily a tool for artists to "coat" their images like Glaze; in fact, Nightshade works best when applied to sort of carefully selected "archetypal" images, ideally ones that were already generated using generative AI using a prompt for the generic concept to be attacked (which is what the authors did in their paper). Also, the image has to be explicitly paired with a specific text caption optimized to have the most impact, which would make it pretty annoying for individual artists to deploy.

While the intent of Nightshade is to have maximum impact with minimal data poisoning, in order to attack a large model there would have to be many thousands of samples in the training data. Obviously if you have a webpage that you created specifically to host a massive gallery poisoned images, that can be fairly easily blacklisted, so you'd have to have a lot of patience and resources in order to hide these enough so they proliferate into the training datasets of major models.

The main use case for this as suggested by the authors is to protect specific copyrights. The example they use is that of Disney specifically releasing a lot of poisoned images of Mickey Mouse to prevent people generating art of him. As a large company like Disney would be more likely to have the resources to seed Nightshade images at scale, this sounds like the most plausible large scale use case for me, even if web artists could crowdsource some sort of similar generic campaign.

Either way, the optimal use case of "large organization repeatedly using generative AI models to create images, then running through another resource heavy AI model to corrupt them, then hiding them on the open web, to protect specific concepts and copyrights" doesn't sound like the big win for freedom of expression that people are going to pretend it is. This is the case for a lot of discussion around AI and I wish people would stop flagwaving for corporate copyright protections, but whatever.

The panic about AI resource use in terms of power/water is mostly bunk (AI training is done once per large model, and in terms of industrial production processes, using a single airliner flight's worth of carbon output for an industrial model that can then be used indefinitely to do useful work seems like a small fry in comparison to all the other nonsense that humanity wastes power on). However, given that deploying this at scale would be a huge compute sink, it's ironic to see anti-AI activists for that is a talking point hyping this up so much.

In terms of actual attack effectiveness; like Glaze, this once again relies on analysis of the feature space of current public models such as Stable Diffusion. This means that effectiveness is reduced on other models with differing architectures and training sets. However, also like Glaze, it looks like the overall "world feature space" that generative models fit to is generalisable enough that this attack will work across models.

That means that if this does get deployed at scale, it could definitely fuck with a lot of current systems. That said, once again, it'd likely have a bigger effect on indie and open source generation projects than the massive corporate monoliths who are probably working to secure proprietary data sets, like I believe Adobe Firefly did. I don't like how these attacks concentrate the power up.

The generalisation of the attack doesn't mean that this can't be defended against, but it does mean that you'd likely need to invest in bespoke measures; e.g. specifically training a detector on a large dataset of Nightshade poison in order to filter them out, spending more time and labour curating your input dataset, or designing radically different architectures that don't produce a comparably similar virtual feature space. I.e. the effect of this being used at scale wouldn't eliminate "AI art", but it could potentially cause a headache for people all around and limit accessibility for hobbyists (although presumably curated datasets would trickle down eventually).

All in all a bit of a dick move that will make things harder for people in general, but I suppose that's the point, and what people who want to deploy this at scale are aiming for. I suppose with public data scraping that sort of thing is fair game I guess.

Additionally, since making my first reply I've had a look at their website:

Used responsibly, Nightshade can help deter model trainers who disregard copyrights, opt-out lists, and do-not-scrape/robots.txt directives. It does not rely on the kindness of model trainers, but instead associates a small incremental price on each piece of data scraped and trained without authorization. Nightshade's goal is not to break models, but to increase the cost of training on unlicensed data, such that licensing images from their creators becomes a viable alternative.

Once again we see that the intended impact of Nightshade is not to eliminate generative AI but to make it infeasible for models to be created and trained by without a corporate money-bag to pay licensing fees for guaranteed clean data. I generally feel that this focuses power upwards and is overall a bad move. If anything, this sort of model, where only large corporations can create and control AI tools, will do nothing to help counter the economic displacement without worker protection that is the real issue with AI systems deployment, but will exacerbate the problem of the benefits of those systems being more constrained to said large corporations.

Kinda sucks how that gets pushed through by lying to small artists about the importance of copyright law for their own small-scale works (ignoring the fact that processing derived metadata from web images is pretty damn clearly a fair use application).

[kuliak]

Finer-tuning that distorted FM sound from years back.

The modular experience is doing something cool by accident once, years ago, then trying to re-create it intentionally. I love this lead, Akemie's Taiko through a pedalboard's worth of processing (EQ, distortion, filter, EQ, compressor). I think the intention was always for Taiko to have the opportunity at a double-life between weird percussion and lead, and I've been finding that happy place a lot more reliably lately.

I'm using a lot of other grit here between other EQs, filtered noise, and sputtering feedback, against a backdrop of the clean Taiko signal through Erbe-Verb. I think a few times it gets a little out of hand, and the overall volume is all over the place throughout the recording.

I set up some fun macro modulation with Cold Mac, with very slow modulation from Maestro controlling 5 outputs including Data Bender mix, causing the glitchy noise swells. I think a bit of slew so this didn't drop off so abruptly would have been good, but overall it's a well-surveiled patch. I tried to adjust the base offset of Survey throughout, to mixed results - in the future I think it'd be nice to mix a sequence with the voltage chain to make it more consistent and even more dynamic (especially since 0-5v can't cover the whole range (but I'm just realizing I could have used Maestro as a bipolar -5-5v source, oops!))

I'd initially wanted to include more of the texture case - Pam is a start button, Bib is the faintest bit of reverb, and I'm using noise sources...that's it. I got too late and I was caught up in the sound design. I don't think that's necessarily a bad thing.

[starfightervicki]

ANIMORPHS BOOK CLUUUB!

I've read the whole series, but it was a long time ago and my memory sucks, so there will be a lot of surprises along the way. I've tried rereading the series a few times recently, but my attention span also sucks and books have been challenging for me.

I'm not sure what I have to say about The Invasion. It's good? I like it?

It's so fucked up that Visser Three eats Elfangor, holy shit my parents wouldn't have let me read it if they knew. I told my dad relatively recently, and his O_O face was a wonder to behold.

But that's hardly saying anything new.

Unless you're reading this because you follow me, not because you're reading the Animorphs tags. If so, hi! There's an Animorphs Tumblr book club happening. The Invasion was published in June of 1996. I was… let me math this out… no, let me have a website math this for me…

I was twelve.

And this wasn't a "reading past my age level" situation, oh no. I was the target audience.

It's so fucked up that Visser Three eats Elfangor, holy shit my parents wouldn't have let me read it if they knew.

I love animals, so it's no wonder that Animorphs sucked me in. I also love body horror, so it's extra no wonder that Animorphs sucked me in. I also love stories that feature outsiders (Data, Odo, Tobias, Ax), and aggressive women (Ivanova, Rachel), so it's extra extra no wonder that Animorphs sucked me in. And I love scifi/fantasy so it's extra extra extra no wonder that Animorphs sucked me in.

Anyway, some scattered thoughts:

At the beginning, Jake says he won't tell us where he lives.

It's San Francisco.

The Invasion establishes that everyone lives close to a beach. Close enough that it's completely unremarkable for the Sharing to meet there, invite kids to meet there, and for kids to get there independently. Therefore, they live on a coast.

I worked out San Francisco from book fourteen, The Unknown. Short version, San Francisco's the closest coastal city to Area 51.

Side note: I've been there, I've frozen my ears off on the Golden Gate Bridge, why do I misspell it every fucking time?

Let's see, what else…

Early in the series, I don't much like Marco.

I like characters who jump into the plot the moment there's a plot to jump into. I don't like reluctant heroes.

C'mon, Marco. (C'mon, Mat Cauthorn.) This is happening. I know it's happening, because it's a book and you're clearly a main character. Stop cluttering the page with trying to make this not happen.

I do feel for him. He knows the risks, and what his death would do to his father.

It hits a bit differently now that I've been processing some stuff about my teenage years and my mother. Then again, this is You're A Kid, This Should Never Have Been Your Responsibility: The Series.

For most of my life, I thought Tobias got himself trapped as a hawk on purpose and lied about it to the other Animorphs. The way he talked about morphing made Jake worried that he was going to, so that's not unfounded.

Plus, I'd be tempted. I wouldn't do it, but I'd definitely think about it. Dogs get to be happy.

I'd also spend a lot of time morphing other humans, and fuck the ethics of it. In my daydreams, I blend the morphs together like Ax does later on, so I wouldn't be impersonating anyone. But even if I were impersonating someone, fuck it. Autism is genetic, and mine is disabling.

Anyway, I've since decided that even though it'd be very in character for Tobias to trap himself as a hawk on purpose, it would've come up in his POV books.

Rachel. Racheeel! My amazing Xena, my beautiful badass. She shines more later on than now, but it doesn't take long.

Cassieee! Animal girl, heart and conscience of the Animorphs. No cover in the series makes me Feel Things the way the butterfly does. Again, she'll shine more later on, but she has one of the most beautifully heartbreaking moments in The Invasion.

`And Cassie had gotten away clean. It had been the suspicious Controller policeman who had grabbed her. He was the only Controller to know her name, where she lived, and that she had been spying on The Sharing.`And Cassie had gotten away clean. It had been the suspicious Controller policeman who had grabbed her. He was the only Controller to know her name, where she lived, and that she had been spying on The Sharing.

Cassie said we didn't have to worry about him anymore. She didn't want to talk about what had happened to him.

And K.A. Applegate had that happen with Cassie.

Heartbreak.

As for Jake…

I think I'll like him more this time around. I have an unfortunate habit of overlooking the leaders.

[one-of-many-journeys]

Day 15 (1/2)

Regional Control Centre

I woke in the middle of the night to see that Gaia had managed to unlock more of the facility. While she continued booting up, piecing herself back together with Minerva, I did a little more exploring.

As Gaia's integrated herself further with the Control Centre's systems, I can see a whole lot more with my Focus. Just scanning the server racks gives me information about each one, a summary of its internal data and its utility to us. She's been busy.

Most crucial in terms of utility: showers, sinks, and toilets. The plumbing is in ruins, but Gaia indicated that it wouldn't take much in way of repairs to get things patched up. It'd be amazing to get it all working—otherwise it's either out on the frigid mountain or down the elevator shaft.

There are sleeping quarters next to the amenities, four sections with a bed, desk, and plenty of storage space. The blankets have decomposed to scrap and the place reeks of mould, but with a bit of cleaning, it could be a nice place to stay. Better than a Nora bedhouse, for sure.

Gaia still didn't have all the rooms hooked into the power supply, but she unlocked a few for me to explore, one stocked with more servers and a smaller holographic projector. Again, Gaia had got their interfaces up and running to help me process their data on my Focus. There isn't much left; this place was meant to hold knowledge specific to operating and improving the terraforming system, but it was wiped clear along with Apollo.

There were a couple of offices accessible as well, similar to the offices in Zero Dawn facilities, but cleaner and better kept. They reminded me of Elisabet's office.

I don't need an office as such—with its physical monitors and old, creaky chairs—but I could use a place to stash my stuff, work on my gadgets and weapons. This is sure to worsen my hoarding problem. No more lugging everything around until I can pawn it off on the next merchant, and no more leaving stuff behind at secluded camps hoping it won't be stolen. I'm not going to let myself lose everything again.

The last accessible room was a little more useful—a lab, with a lot of mechanisms still operational. Most exciting was the fabrication terminal, a contraption capable of taking in scrap metal and other parts and rebuilding them to certain specifications. It was built to be interoperable with Gaia's machines, so using it to analyse and recreate structures from machine parts will help build the data I need to complete those corrupted override schemas I lifted from the Tau Cauldron core. I'm sure there's a whole lot more I can do with it too.

Watching it at work on a small test sample, tiny machines swirling behind the glass, it reminded me of the golden machine swarms wielded by the intruders at the Proving Lab. Maybe a more advanced form of similar technology?

Varl woke and joined me as I finished poking around the lab. He and Zo had similarly found somewhere passably warm to curl up. He wanted to know what was next; so did I. I tried not to come across as completely clueless about our plans going forward. I didn't tell him about the intruders at the lab, or the other clone. Not yet. Not until I know who they are and what they're really after.

As we were talking, Gaia called me over Focus to summon me back to the projection theatre. Her initialisation and merge with Minerva was complete. She was ready to talk and, I hoped, make everything clear.

She spoke to me first about the state of the biosphere. Not good, was the general prognosis. Gaia said it would only take about four months for the rabid terraforming system to degrade beyond all reasonable hope of repair. The good news was, since the RCC was built for long range communication, unlike Latopolis, Gaia could now run a far more sophisticated scan for the escaped subfunctions. However, the scan could take days or more likely weeks to complete, given she'd have to pinpoint each function's mutated signature and circumvent the many techniques they've likely employed to hide themselves. The others are unlikely to be as forthcoming as Minerva.

The only subfunction that Gaia could detect deafeningly loud and blindingly clear was Hephaestus. Figures, I've seen it around too. Gaia explained that it's scattered across the global Cauldron network, and in any attempt to capture it, it would simply slip away to some distant location, as I'd experienced at Firebreak and in Cauldron Tau. It had no reason to hide its activities.

Gaia would continue devising a plan to lock it out of the network and capture it, though attempting to do so before she had been reunited with at least three more of her subfunctions would lead to disaster. Hephaestus had mutated to a dangerous degree since the original Gaia's self-destruction. Given freedom of movement it had grown massive, volatile, and hostile; as it absorbed Cyan, it would absorb this more rudimentary, weaker version of Gaia with ease. She needed to be powerful enough to match it in battle by increasing her 'processing density'. The mission remained as it always had been: repair Gaia. Just because she was here, speaking and smiling and strategising, that didn't mean I was done. Far from it.

Hephaestus is our most important target. Without it, Gaia can't build machines of her own or take control of the Cauldron network. The machines are like her tools, her hands, able to act upon her orders and bring the terraforming system back into balance. With the other subfunctions, she would be able to enact some measure of change using existing machines and facilities to temper the most acute affects of system collapse, but without new machines to join the effort, that temperance wouldn't last long. That's to say nothing of the threat of Hephaestus itself as it continues to take direct control of Cauldrons, building more dangerous machines meant to cull humankind to make way for its own purple progeny.

So that's problem one: we need at least three subfunctions, along with a plan to bring Hephaestus to heel. We still have no clue where those other subfunctions could be, if they still exist, except that they'll be hiding in processor cores somewhere within rapid networking distance of Gaia Prime. That only leaves just about everywhere not on the other side of an ocean, if I'm lucky.

Gaia said she will devote as much of her internal resources as possible to detecting more of her subfunctions and notify me as soon as they're located. There's not much sense in me striking out into the open before then, especially with what I know is waiting for me, wanting me dead and well out of their way.

I asked Gaia then about the strangers at the Proving Lab.

She'd seen the whole encounter through my Focus, and she shared in my unease. She then laid out her theory, and it was worse than I ever speculated. Bombshell one: the signal that woke Hades, which Gaia ominously calls 'the extinction signal', didn't come from anywhere on Earth. She showed me, in projection form, Earth from a distance, moon and stars surrounding, then pulled back, the image moving so fast that the stars were coloured streaks racing past us. I was transfixed; horrified, but morbidly awestruck. What was so far away that would want to harm us here on Earth? Other worlds, other life?

This was the distance that the signal travelled to reach Gaia, a length so vast that light itself takes 8.6 years to cross it. That number was familiar, somewhere in the back of my mind, but I didn't realise where I'd heard it until Gaia's projection reached its destination, the motion of light finally ceasing.

There it was, orbiting a planet of brown landmasses, dark blue oceans, and thick swirls of clouds: the Odyssey. It was the same projection that Osvald Dalgaard used in his presentation at the Far Zenith launch facility. 8.6 light years...he used the same figure when describing the Odyssey's destination, the Sirius system.

Gaia said it was the only logical origin, though realistically the signal could have come from any direction of the same approximate distance away. As Hades said, the signal repeated for 17.22 years, and Gaia explained as I continued trying to get my head around distances that light crossed at a long crawl. That was 8.6 years once the signal arrived, for the fact of its failure to reach its sender, and another 8.6 for the sender's ceasing order to make it back to Earth.

Working theory: Far Zenith lied about their shuttle's explosion. After Travis' attack on their systems, and their deal with Zero Dawn coming to an end, they clearly didn't trust the descendants of the project to leave them alone. I know that Elisabet's view of Far Zenith was less than favourable; maybe they saw that as a potential threat. So, Far Zenith fake the destruction of their ship to keep Zero Dawn off their backs for good, and stay hidden from those that the project would raise and educate under Gaia's care.

I know they were paranoid. In the Old World, no one knew who the members of Far Zenith were, and it seems like a large portion of the public hated them for their flagrant wealth and hoarded power. They kept themselves secret on Earth, then hid their presence in space. They tried to steal Gaia before they left Earth, then tried to use their 'extinction signal' to steal her again, planning to take the whole world down in the process. Why?

I suppose they didn't know that Apollo was destroyed, maybe they thought we were still a threat, but even so, we didn't know about them. We couldn't have known, thanks to their cover up. So, what was it? They sent their signal to wake Hades and destroy all life on Earth, clean it of 'filth', as Hades put it, and then what? They subdue Hades, reinstate Gaia and...re-program her, maybe. Use her to create the world that they want. Play god, just as Elisabet feared. This is why she didn't want to hand over a copy of Gaia in the first place, but in refusing, in retaliating...did she doom us, here and now?

I posed my thoughts to Gaia, and she agreed that it was her own conclusion as well. Far Zenith had always planned to flee Earth in its dying days. Maybe they always planned to return as well. Return and claim the world they once dominated.

I thought there was only one inheritor of the human legacy, but there were two. One, Elisabet's, and the other...the space-born descendants of Peter Tshivhumbe.

Gaia confirmed something else that Hades said: the signal was meant for it alone, and the mutations imparted on the other subfunctions were only incidental, only unleashed when Hades was unable to assume control fast enough as Gaia initiated self-destruction, something Far Zenith couldn't anticipate. It was an incredibly advanced piece of malware, as Sylens observed, and Gaia said that only someone with in-depth knowledge of her code structures and her system as a whole could have engineered it. So...maybe Far Zenith was able to steal more of Zero Dawn's data than Travis thought. Maybe they've been working on reverse-engineering it ever since.

Suddenly, the strangers at the Proving Lab made a whole lot more sense. Their advanced technology, their flashy weaponry, their gilded ornamentation...Far Zenith, grown formidable with the knowledge of the Old Ones, given by Zero Dawn, on their side. They came here to do what their extinction signal failed to do: wipe out life on Earth, and use a stolen backup of Gaia to build it all over again for them to rule, destroying Elisabet's dream forever.

And all I could think about was that clone, moving on their orders, silent, weak. How could she go along with this plan? She stole Gaia for them, handing her over to Elisabet's enemy for them to use, to twist into a weapon to destroy and remake the world into some abomination, some paradise for these people who think themselves entitled to the planet.

How did they make a clone in the first place? Why, when their technology is supposedly so powerful?

Gaia explained that Far Zenith could have obtained a sample of Elisabet's DNA, with or without her consent, and stored it on board the Odyssey along with their many Earth life samples and human zygotes. She said that even with their ability to engineer powerful malware, obtaining a physical backup of Gaia in a shut-down state could only be done by walking in and taking it, and only someone with Elisabet Sobeck's genetic code could do that. Far Zenith made the clone as a key, just as Gaia made me. The only crucial difference is I was made to save the world, not kill everything on it.

Gaia had her doubts about the clone. She seems to think it's more likely that she's a subordinate, some sort of slave forced to take their orders. No way. She's Elisabet Sobeck, just as much as I am, she's no subordinate. Elisabet loved life; she gave everything for this world, just for this clone to come along and destroy it all? No. Just the thought of her makes me sick.

So it's all down to me. I knew it would be; it always is. Gaia can't do much from here but keep scanning for the other subordinate functions. As soon as she finds them, I'll be her eyes and hands. Vessel, if we want to get all Nora about it. I'll have to go and load each subfunction onto the cartridge I found Gaia on, then bring them back here to merge into her new system. Meanwhile, that other clone is running around with Far Zenith, who likely have way more advanced scanning capabilities, hunting the subfunctions right alongside me, with their own version of Gaia to mold and command. If they get to Hephaestus first, merge it into their version of Gaia...it'll be over. They'll have control over every Cauldron on the planet. They'll rule the biosphere and be able to build whatever devastating weapons they can dream up to kill us all.

But if I can beat them to it, we'll have the upper hand. Enough damage will take down the Zenith's shields, which to my onslaught seemed impenetrable. With an army of machines, we'll have the ability to destroy Far Zenith and their Specters on Earth, but even then...how many more of them are out there? How far have they already spread across the stars? How long will this fight go on?

It's...a lot. It's everything. My hands leapt to Elisabet's pendant without my knowing, tracing its comforting shapes and textures. Peeling paint, rusted hinges; the last thing Elisabet ever touched. I couldn't help but profess my doubts to Gaia. Even if it wasn't exactly her idea to create me, it was a version of her. Somewhere in her un-lived future there's a part of her that believes I am her best hope to save this world.

She gave me comfort. After all, she'd listened to her predecessor's final message too, trusting it. She'd seen that future, and repeated its words. Though her phrasing was mechanical, flat, ringing against old metal, the message was the same as I'd always heard when facing adversity, from Rost. Though the odds may seem insurmountable, there is hope. You are capable. You have prevailed many times.

Look deeper. Keep moving forward.

Before I left the theatre, I noticed a console on the circumference of the room. Gaia told me more about it; it was meant for uploading and accessing footage from observation drones. These drones were meant to be deployed in an emergency when biosphere observation could not be handled by personnel in the RCC. The centre had deployed them automatically a few years ago, when the first signs of blight start showing up. It took something extremely anomalous to trigger the system, apparently, and due to its degradation, the RCC soon lost connection to all the dispatched drones.

So, that explained the drone I found circling near that Thunderjaw in No Man's Land. I was able to upload the data I'd taken off it to the console, allowing the RCC to reconnect to the drone. And there it was, a live feed of red rocks and rusted bots. Those closest stones almost looked real. I figured that reconnecting these drones could be of some use to Gaia, who can observe the lands through them until she takes control of the Cauldron network again. Until, no if's.

I spoke to Varl and Zo briefly before heading back out into the wilds. They plan on staying behind to get up to speed on things with Gaia and make some repairs to the centre's facilities. Who knows, maybe I'll come back to a working shower.

Without any clear direction to where the subfunctions might be hiding, I may as well make myself useful in doing what I can to help the people of these lands. After Hephaestus' attack, the Utaru are sure to be struggling, and with Regalla's rebels still prowling their territory, the danger isn't over.

Sylens and his little army fits into all of this somehow. He knew who the Zeniths were, I'm sure of it. I'm willing to bet he was using me as some sort of bargaining chip; he leads Far Zenith to a backup of Gaia and a clone of Elisabet, he asks for a copy of Apollo in return. Then he uses his army to, what, conquer? That doesn't seem like his style. Maybe he thought Far Zenith would let him join up, otherwise I have no idea how he was planning to survive their plan for the world. What a self-absorbed idiot.

I thought it'd be a quick journey down the mountain with my Shield Wing. Beautiful views, pleasant weather, and no signs of total war and ruin down in Plainsong.

Not so quick once the rain started and a few Skydrifters came swooping in. I kept them down with spark cell detonations before going in for spear strikes. Ropes to keep the others from moving around too much in the meantime. A Burrower came to join in too, but I silenced it before it could call any more machines to the area. Fortunately, none of them were Hephaestus' deadly creations.

Continuing on my way down, I passed a signal tower like the one I found back in the Daunt. Scanning it, I picked up another corrupted projection. I made the quick climb back up to the ruin on the rise to repair the image from its original vantage. It showed the turbines and satellite dishes that now house Plainsong.

It was another site of the Miriam Technologies tour. This satellite array was once used to detect and monitor near-Earth objects—big rocks, I guess—rich in minerals. Miriam Technologies developed machines for the automated mining of these minerals out in space. I guess there wasn't much left of the stuff on Earth after the Claw Back, but it's pretty cool to think about. Unfortunately, there's only one near-Earth object I need to be concerned with right now, and that's the fucking Odyssey.

No need to dwell on it right now. There are people here who need my help. I continued down toward Plainsong.

[iobartach]

a quick one, but thanks in large part to spitballing ideas w/ @healingbrews , let's talk shop about how mig could experience distortions in his perception of time !

so in brief, spide.rs don't perceive the world in the same way as humans. and even amongst arachnids, this can vary, but basically their 'fps' is higher. this means that they can track fast-moving prey and respond almost instantly. and all because time itself may feel slowed down when things move quickly, as spiders process visual data in a rapid fashion.

(i'm gonna leave the importance of vibrations out of this for now, but as a quick refresher, therein lies the reason for my migue.l's aversion to physical touch -- he detects a lot, like heartbeat, the rhythm of a person's breathing, etc. it's overload for him!)

SO!!! how exactly would this translate for migue.l? what does it mean?

for one, he'd have an expanded bandwidth, enabling him to pick up on a raft of more smells, sights, cues from the world around him! it also factors into his reflexes, as his brain is capable of processing information far faster

but!!! ☝️ there is a catch

he risks getting used to this heightened state. meaning that, a normal pace (read, a human pace) would seem sluggish. conversations may lag. mundane tasks might irritate. this, of course, will all depend on who he is around, but something to consider if he exhibits any kind of snappy temperament!

and we're not done connecting the dots yet, folks! like the roots of a tree, this thing is spreading out!

remember his photophobia? how things like bright and/or flickering lights, loud alarms, fireworks, can overwhelm his system? well here's what can also come out of this, when he's not stumbling around, blinded by the light; vertigo, bouts of aggression (!!!), or even shutting down to protect neural bandwidth.

all of which is involuntary! decided by his own body, rather than the man withering way within... 💀

something that could(?) also be considered for this, that I have only just now realised; given his altered sense of perception and time, this could also mean if he gets hit hard enough, or suffers a concussion, it'd take him longer to recover. 🤔 seconds may loop from his perspective, and as he tries to unscramble his mind, his own body may start moving on instinct, even whilst remaining consciousness

and the long term effects of this could be vital to know, too!

it may transpire that he struggles to remember certain conversations, faces, or events that weren't tied to adrenaline spikes. which can also carry over into self care, like remembering to eat sometime, or dosing himself with the nutrients his body needs, only to suffer when he fails to do either task 😔

hence also why we see his impatience flare at times, or how he may be inclined to avoid crowds or certain environments if he has a choice (the suit can help with this!)

so yeah, all in all, let this poor man find moments of true peace, be it alone in his laboratory, or just chilling with some wildlife, he'll take solace in moments that don't require words at all <3

[cc-tens]

i am desperate to know: is fox's office is the senate or in the coruscant guard hq??? i've seen it both ways in fics and now that i'm writing my own fic i have to choose for myself where his office is and i don't know which to pick

Ok ok, so here's my thought process.

Personally I typically go for Fox's office being in the Coruscant Guard HQ. Reasons being: it would be easier to secure his space, whether this be from devices planted in his space, or unwanted visitors as he would have plenty of corries able to warn him ahead of time of anyone wishing to parlay with him. On top of this, I know many people enjoy the notion that Fox keeps little personalized things in his office, so it would likely be easier to hide non-regulation personal items in an office on his own home base.

However, I also understand people putting it in the Senate. It'd be easier for him to be monitored, and if he were paged for an issue he would already be on the premises, so it'd be easy for him to jump into action. This would be beneficial for the Senators, but I guess a negative quality may be it may make parlaying with his fellow Commanders a bit more difficult if they have multiple offices in different buildings.

I think, though, realistically, he'd have 2 offices. 1 at Corrie HQ and 1 at the Rotunda. Many people have an "at home office" so to speak and then a work office. I think if he had 2 offices, 1 to keep up work assigned appearances and 1 for personal use that'd make a lot of sense. Plus with how much work he does, it would follow the thought that Fox often "brings his work home with him." Hell, his office at Corrie HQ may not even be exclusively his own but a shared space for him and the other Commanders so information and data is shared easily and is always accessible to all four members.

Sorry if this doesn't help you pin down an idea lmao. This is just my thinking justifying different routes to take for it.

[sorbusaucuparia]

wait oh my god i've never posted my Insanity Project

so yall know 6 degrees of kevin bacon? where any actor can be connected to any other actor through who was in movies with who else? well at one point i got it into my head that it'd be interesting to have that date for youtubers.

...this was the result

this is. obviously not every youtuber ever and even for the people on here it's incomplete and impossible to read. so i abandoned this and made it into a much less visually interesting but much more useful spreadsheet. which i unfortunately have much less data on. (only like 17 videos so far bc i forgot it existed for several months but im actively updating it again)

(sorry for the terrible quality, again this is just. not visually interesting)

eventually i want to learn some kind of data processing so that i can put this in a network that pulls data from the sheet to make a chaos net or be able to process this data in some way so that you can actually try to make connections a la 6 degrees of kevin bacon

obviously i need a lot more data than i have now to do that and bc my dumbass wasn't storing videos the first time i cant. really pull from there. i MIGHT be posting a google form at some point maybe

before anyone asks i can't really crawl data automatically because collabs don't always have people listed in the description

also if anyone knows of a better way to store this or how to do the processing i described above please send me an ask or a dm

also also i am aware this is stupiid. and don't come at more for the problematic people in the data, number one they were originally added before it came out they were problematic, number two it's data. and data includes people who you don't like. whether you want them to or not, they have been in videos with other people

[katyspersonal]

Something I like about how I've changed in this fandom is my growth as an artist. Not in skill (I am forever stagnant fsdgfds) but in attitude. I embrace failures, scrapping my art even if I've put a lot of time into it and process of searching with much more ease!

Like I drew a few great drawings with Yurie as black-haired and blue-eyed, then I've came to terms that her face data is actually blond hair and grey eyes and her face had clear thought put into it so it isn't random nor blonde is default NPC hair color. Now I do draw her as blonde with grey eyes even if it splits my fanarts of her in two! I was drawing and portraying Caryll as the third Witch of Hemwick we've never met (check statue in Hemwick Mansion) and statue behind Memory Altar! Then someone I was dependent on convinced me the idea was bad and so I've made Caryll a red-haired guy who was also an artist who also drew Cainhurst portraits and started drawing Caryll like that! Now I STRONGLY consider going back to Witch idea and put Caryll 2.0 back into just a Cainhurst OC status, even though it'd joss two drawings I've put a lot of effort into! On my way I was drawing Micolash with brown hair and gave my Laurence black, then I've learned Mico has black hair so Laurence took the brown now! I've designed super interesting and elaborate outfit only to conclude that the bearded guy depicted on Surgery Altar IS more likely Laurence so I might change how I portray him too now! etc

Before I used to be very reluctant to make drastic changes of how I draw and portray characters because it would be admission of "wasting" my time and effort. It'd also make my previous drawings "invalid" and not worthy to show around..... as if I was not an artist but a brand, that needed to keep up to certain expectations. -_- But thanks to my stay in Bloodborne fandom I've learned to just.. be more okay with letting go? Like, yeah, I've spent 8 hours drawing character like that only to change my decision after art was finished and liked by my fans (all 8 of them), so what? I am always searching as an artist!

But I think big part of it is also how lore searching in From's games works. When you find new info that changes previous interpretations nonstop every other day, you learn to accept the process rather than rely on building some "stable" lore to be known by! xD Because, no, you fucking won't. Even decade after game's release, dataminers and people with laser-like attention span for their interests will STILL find new shit and new perspectives. It just rubbed onto me too, in a positive way. It helps to not stress with "sunk cost" or what it's called

[quirkwizard]

OHHHHHHHH, I loved Bio Focals, it seems simple, but it's what I was looking for, I'm even impressed that you managed to balance this Quirk without exaggerating the characteristics! However, I deduce that the Quirk has a certain very interesting field of evolution, perhaps awakening new abilities, and although they are probably simple, they will probably be very useful for a leader of a group or simply someone who is providing support to allies. Anyway, like I said, I'm interested in how the Quirk can be expanded, so could you expand on it please?

"Bio Focals" doesn't require a lot in the way of equipment. The most they would need is a helmet in order to protect their glasses. You could even have a fun usage where the helmet is able to work with the glasses, helping them to expand their range in order to better track people. Better yet, a helmet and set of light armor that can interface with the glasses directly to enhance the amount of data they get from their own body, such as having it apply to items on their person as well. Maybe some ranged option in order to take advantage of their ability to track targets. Training would be pretty simple as well. It would be helpful for the user to read up on human anatomy, everything from biology to psychology. Something like that could help them better understand and exploit the data they get from the glasses. Otherwise, it'd involve the user trying to study other people within their view, trying to gather up as much data on them as they work. Especially with more mobile targets attacking, forcing the user to try and keep track of them and improve their reaction time. This would make the target better at processing and compartmentalizing all the data they get.

As for evolutions, there are the more skill-based ones where the user learns to understand the data they get better, such as reading another person to tell what their emotional state is or whether or not they are lying. For the Quirk itself to grow, it'd be very scattershot. Not a lot of raw power, but plenty of different avenues to grow and apply it. I could see the user getting a lot more details on the kind of biodata they could gain, both in detail and in application. This is where a lot of other applications come in from the typical heads-up display. Things like getting a mini map that shows where people are around them, a stealth meter to track people's awareness of them, and a recital to help track where their eyes are moving to aim their shots. They could improve the ways they process the data they get, such as seeing health bars for their allies or having little tidbits of information the user knows about them pop up in their vision when they see them. It could even grow to the point where they can even understand Quirks to a degree. Like seeing Bakugou fight someone and seeing his arms get stressed when he uses "Explosion", to giving the user a hint of how his power works.

[lv-tangle-universe-blog]

The whole sketch sheet is complete, finished shaded, and more. I spent too much time on this... Of course, when I took the picture.It's been a week or more since it been done, i thought it'd be fun to try to write the story a little bit while posting the other pictures. Since it's a little undercooked now, I fear I burned it... These next words are more of closing thoughts...

(Game over, she swore she saw those words before up there. In the blackness of the void, but they're a lot more sugary than last time, last time? The memory slowly came to rear its ugly ahead. Oh yeah, this happened before.... But back then, there was more of a red glare. This was a soft, sugary game. Of course, the game over would be different, but the words underneath it... Insert four quarters to continue, rummaging around the pockets. Those are normally filled with the brim of code data to help her, to find nothing. Of course, she looks down at her body. Seeing the sugary facade slowly go first pixel by pixel, revealing the horrible truth underneath, and pretty soon that will go to... But why is it so painfully slow? The deletion process was a lot faster last time,... A sigh escapes her lips. She has accepted this situation... There's nothing here, but a void of black and a mistake, and the words...

She figured she would reflect on the past. Well, she's here to review everything, as her thoughts scramble for panic that she's trying to suppress, a memory popped up a good memory of the twins, helping her decorate and make her own little garage area sense she didn't have one,... She saw what happened to road blasters from the highest point of the bleachers quickly running down to her siblings that she loved even though she caused chaos on the track whenever she was on, she still cared about them, she tried to yell at them, tried to get them out of the game, but they wouldn't listen, "i should've drive them out myself. Or at least put myself in the player position so the game would still run, i guess I can't change it now. I hope wherever they are, they're okay. ".... A clunking sound could be heard to roll out.The void, like a quarter, was being inserted. She looked up at the words, Insert three quarters to continue,... She stared at it confused, didn't it say four?, penny for your thoughts munch?, with a huff, she tried to think of something else for a bit since the thought of turbo time is so painful,

Vanellope...oh... I wish I would have been nicer to my little sister... Teach her how to glitch more effectively... at least keep her safe... I couldn't even do that..."If it makes up for anything, I am sorry, my little glitch," she mumbled... Another quarter sound can be heard, 2..."So I guess this self reflection is helping somewhat. "... A bit of desperation finally seeps into her code, encouraging her to think of something else as the last bits of pixels fade from the sugary facade. Revealing an inverse coloration of turbo, looking down at herself, she is reminded that she is just a copy of a shadow of a man.That is so selfish it hurts...

Now, thinking about it, what is she even supposed supposed to be... Everyone tells her that she has removed the code, but no one tells her what that code is... Or what it is, since she's not a her anymore... Can she even keep that monocle... She doesn't see why not since she has nothing else to show her identity... thought it occurred to her. She never thought of what she's supposed to be doing. Or what her code is telling her to do, thinking back. She always finds joy in driving and causing chaos for the other drivers around her throwing stuff, knocking over barrels, she had to keep that on the down low for sugar rush, and it drove her mad, when getting those sugar cubes during a race? Oh, it was heaven either to wait until an affordable opportunity to screw over as many racers as possible or do it right away. Just for the heck of it and to see the look on their faces... I'm an enemy racer, of course, I take joy out of seeing a player, spin out... Whoa, where did that come from... She blinked a couple of times. It must have been her code that finally reached out to her to tell her what she was... An enemy racer,ha, everything makes sense now... her want to ruin her game, other games just for the sake of screwing over the players. She can kinda see why her code was kind of removed now, but to go to extremes, to completely crash, sugar rush was a little overboard, "i guess taking things too far is kind of my specialty"..."And besides, the game wouldn't be fun without some form of antagonist,"... She laughed and giggled, finding pure joy, just the thought looking up at that face behind the screen with an angry scowl. On their face, mad at her for ruining their fun time... Then, the realization hits her. She's just deleted code. The code itself had to reach out to the spreadsheet of turbo and invert the colors just to give her a model..."i guess in a way I was doing my job, hehe," her laughter died down, that doesn't excuse her actions, not even close, causing a pit in her stomach, the quarter sound hitting the bank plays again...1...

She started to cry a little... She couldn't think of anything else that she wanted to reflect on, only her anger on turbo and what he had done. It makes sense now. On why is she so angry at him all the time. She's supposed to be a rival or a straight-up. Antagonist to him... It doesn't give her an excuse to be so mean to him. She could have been better about it, then again, given what he has done to Sugar Rush. She should've knocked him in the head until he passed out, but instead, she thought she would be the better person and work alongside him to keep herself safe... She couldn't even guarantee that she wouldn't be erased... So half of his actions did fall upon her to do... All for what... Attention that she's probably never gonna get... That word came up again... Attention... Does it even matter?... The players are gonna hate her anyway... Maybe because she saw the ego in him growing and did nothing about it... If she did do something, He would just probably ignore her or call her names, throw her in a corner, and forget about her... Maybe she's mad at him for being such a selfish monster... No, that's being a hypocrite... Cause she was a monster herself... She wanted this goal so bad that she was willing to hurt herself for it... Well, that's not a healthy thought process... And it clearly shows on her precious lowrider...huh... "I guess I have a problem. Maybe if I asked ralph for help, he would help me to?".... She thought about it... ralph did say there was a support group for bad guys... And under some technical terms, she is a bad guy... Maybe they could help... That's if... She was still alive... She slowly looks down in despair...

Half of her actual body is gone... But the sound of a quarter filled in the space as her head snapped up, the screen was going bright... And she can see, it's starting to sparkle, like the sugar cubes, she tried to make out something in the brightness, and she swears she could see mister lickwhack but she wasn't able to get much details before something jabs into her from her back, regenerating the sugary facade, and everything else in a blink of an eye, knocking her out, slowly wiping her memories of this experience, only keeping the important stuff, before everything going bright again,... Press start)

This was mostly inspired by the game over fan Fics that I came across. If I ever figure out how to link text, I will put them here..

[plumblossomcafe]

Ch.91: The Night-Bird Falls at the Curtain's Call (2/2)

Warning: Blood

Nahida: "...Oh? How interesting. Those two managed to deduce quite a lot through guesswork alone."

Paimon: "So the guessay got it right!?"

Nahida: "Well, they guessed right about one thing: Tatarasuna was sabotaged."

The Balladeer: Must be a riveting conversation you three are having. Funny how all the good ones happen when I'm not involved.

Paimon: Ah! Wh—What makes you think we're talking to each other?

The Balladeer: Don't insult me. You're having a private conversation without me. Obviously, I must be the topic of said conversation.

Aether: We have every right to keep certain things confidential.

The Balladeer: Of course you do. You can't have your prisoner knowing too much.

Y/n: *tries to change the topic* So, have you found anything yet about Aether's sister?

The Balladeer: Still looking. *twords Aether* Don't get your hopes up, though. You and your twin come from outside this world. It wouldn't surprise me if there was nothing on either of you in Irminsul at all.

Paimon: ...Wait, how'd you know about that? Did Nahida tell you?

The Balladeer: It's not like we've never met before. And anyway, you're world-famous. It'd be more surprising if I didn't know a few things about you.

Y/n: At first, every conversation with you is hard work......But your attitude is better than I thought.

The Balladeer: Right now, we have to keep the peace. I'm not interested in creating more misery for myself, and making cordial conversation is something I can manage. *found something* ...Huh? Wait...

Paimon: This light... It looks similar to those saplings. What could it be?

The Balladeer: ...Anonymous data?

Paimon: Hey! Don't you forget the agreement. You have to share it with us!

The Balladeer: Shush. Just wait.

The scene briefly changes to an Inazuman building

???: ...Mr. Niwa, are you certain this is worth the risk? We are talking about Tatarasuna's furnace, after all. It may not pay to act rashly...

???: There's no one else who can enter the furnace. It has to be me.

???: Is that so...? *sigh* Well, since you insist...

The scene quickly changes back to the present

The Balladeer: *gasp*... It's...

Aether/Y/n: "That name... Niwa was the man in charge at Tatarasuna. Plus, he belongs to the lineage of Isshin Art..."

Paimon: Whoa!

The scene immediately returns to the Inazuma flashback

???: I have been in Tatarasuna for some time now. You have shown me great hospitality, as has Mikoshi Nagamasa... and indeed, everyone else.

Niwa was revealed, but his face looked like he was upset but didn't show it as the unknown person continued to speak

???: Under your leadership, Tatarasuna is a warm, welcoming place, like a giant village. People are gainfully employed, their lives have purpose. They are motivated. As I understand, the Raiden Shogun has, in recent years, eliminated much of the evil that plagued Inazuma. As for Tatarasuna, it was originally established as a means of safely disposing Crystal Marrow.

For some reason, the person speaking was not seen, only Niwa, as the ones who entered the memory could only watch it play out like a movie or a play

???: The forging industry with Crystal Marrow as a raw material has since flourished, giving rise to generations of swordsmiths — some world-renowned, others unknown... all passing on their legacy. Skills, blood, dreams... Every smith brought into this trade looks to find their purpose between steel and blade. That is why you accepted the proposal brought to you by myself and Akame.

Niwa: Yes, well... Were it not for you coming to Inazuma and happening to make Akame's acquaintance, the two of you never would have joined forces. And he would be the first to admit that there's no way he could have revolutionized our forging process like this on his own — at least not on the same timescale. You allowed Akame to take all the credit for a method that you jointly developed. He sold it to me, and now, every piece of ore here is smelted using the new technique.

Though Niwa looked displeased, he still continued speaking as if trying to hide his discomfort

Niwa: Even now, you remain one of Tatarasuna's key consultants, working right here alongside us. I believe it is you, Sir, who are truly responsible for the changes in our manufacturing and forging methods. You flatter me. From the outset, I saw much that was commendable in the forging industry of Inazuma, and it has been my great honor to befriend you all.

Though, finally, Niwa had enough as he finally opened up to the man in front of him

Niwa: So you say, Escher... But is this really the truth?

Escher: *surprised* My good sir, what do you mean?

Niwa: ...I tried to resist thinking it was all connected because I didn't want to speculate, and I didn't want to believe that things could turn out this way. What have we gained from adopting your new technology? Ominous, black smoke, mounting production problems... Worker fatigue and casualties are up and continuing to rise at an alarming rate.

He continued stating the problems as he remained oblivious to the future that awaited him when he accused the Escher

Niwa: And recently, as you well know, someone died because of that strange filth inside the furnace. We've kept the truth from spreading outside, but still, I suspect you understand it better than I do. None of the people who went out to get help have come back. Now, our mutual friend, the kabukimono, is taking the golden feather to Narukami Island to seek an audience with the Shogun. This is our last hope. But that doesn't faze you, does it, Escher? Nothing does... Otherwise, why would you still be standing there with that smile on your face?

Escher: I'm just surprised that you finally chose to be so sincere. I'm sure you've been harboring these suspicions for quite some time.

Niwa: ...Mikoshi Nagamasa may have noticed that there was one common denominator among all these events... namely you, Escher. But Mr. Mikoshi is more cautious than I. He does things by the book.

Escher: After all, Nagamasa is the adopted son of Mikoshi Torachiyo, the youkai struck down by the Shogun's own hand. If he truly seeks to redeem his family's honor, an abundance of caution is well-advised.

Niwa: ...You're well-informed on the subtleties of his situation for a mechanic all the way from Fontaine. Are you sure you're not a little overqualified?

Escher: Why, Mr. Niwa, are you suggesting I find a job as a diplomat? Sadly, I am so very attached to my craft...

Niwa: *angry* Enough, Escher. I'm here because an evil force is raging inside the furnace, and someone needs to take your new device inside the high-risk zone so we can absorb it and put an end to the problem. *trying to calm down* ...I'm in charge here, and I'm about to take some responsibility and head inside, probably to my death. But what about you? What are you still doing here?

Escher: Judging from the look in your eyes, you don't seem to trust me.

As Niwa distanced himself from Escher, he had his back turned to him, a grave mistake when in front of a man, he began to distrust

Niwa: Drop the act. We're past that now. Whoever you are, it looks like your plan to destroy Tatarasuna has worked. I just want to know what you're still doing here. What's left? Don't you have all your answers by now?

Escher: Honestly, I'm just waiting for the right moment.

As soon as Escher stated those words, a displeasing sound of a stabbing was heard

Escher: A moment like this where you finish talking and I stop you from entering the furnace.

Niwa: Argh! You, you...

As soon the knife was taken, out, the once clean white clothes that Niwa wore were covered in a crimson color as he fell to the floor, a pool of blood forming in the process as he looked at the culprit behind this chaos

Escher: ...Heh, you're a little smarter than I initially gave you credit for. *looks down at Niwa* I thought I'd disguised myself exceptionally well, at least for the first few days. But to my surprise, you had your people look into my background right from the start.

Escher continued speaking as Niwa continued to spill blood with every second passing

Escher: It's a long journey from Inazuma to Fontaine, but that didn't stop them. Eventually, they managed to confirm that Escher was an alias and that I was not from Fontaine at all. And yet, despite all of that, you still fail to realize my true identity and what I seek in Tatarasuna.

A voice changed in "Escher" occurred as he continued with his speech

"Escher": Did you really think you would be able to see through my plan?

Niwa: ...Ugh... If you kill me, there's no one who can get inside the furnace... So you're really going to destroy this place... is that it?

Escher: *walked past him* Oh, but you're quite wrong — there is one other person. Hmm, some may not see him as a person, but... you told him yourself: "You're not a puppet. You're a human... you're just missing a heart."

Niwa: ...! Whoever you're working for won't get away with this. They'll be found out. But... this makes no sense. What are you really trying to accomplish by all this? Why go to all this trouble?

Escher: It's no trouble at all... Patience is a virtue which I have in abundance. This is all part of a carefully controlled experiment. If you must know, I am happy to divulge my true identity. I am a Fatui Harbinger. Call me "The Doctor."

Niwa: ...The... Fatui? Who... What do you want...?

Escher: Just to create a minor inconvenience for your nation.

Niwa: That's it? THAT's why you... gave us your cursed technology... just to let loose the evil energy from the Crystal Marrow... *in pain*

Escher: Hehe, look how even the righteous soul is filled with venom when faced with its demise. My device functions precisely as you say. It is the only chance you have of preventing a catastrophe and keeping the truth from the outside world. However... I did not make it with you in mind. It is easier for a person to be possessed by evil spirits when they are filled with hate.

As if taunting Niwa, he continued explaining his device

Escher: So, give in to your fury... I want to see what happens when a malevolent heart is placed into an unsuspecting puppet. Make no mistake: Even without you, that pure, innocent puppet would only end up being used by someone else instead. What other reason would a human have for befriending one who is not of our kind?

Niwa: ...*gasping for air*... *gasping for air*... *cough* If you give him... my heart... tell him that both Nagamasa... and I... see him as... one of us. He has nothing to prove to anyone... because not everyone... just wants to use other people. The only ones who think like that... are people like you...

After Niwa said those words, he finally gave into his injury and passed away due to his blood loss. The crimson pool surrounding him as "Escher" continued speaking

Escher: What a beautiful way to see the world. It almost makes me feel a little guilty... Hm, then out of respect for you, I shall redefine myself. Think of me as a monster or a demon, if you wish... At least this way, your death is not a consequence of your own folly turning you into an easy target. You simply lost to something more powerful than you could ever hope to defeat. I say, Mr. Niwa, let's see what happens. Will your puppet friend become a human? No, that will prove quite impossible.

Escher, finally realizing nothing else came from Niwa, he was confirmed that the man who confronted him finally died in an effort to protect his home

Escher: ...Mr. Niwa? ...Tsk, already dead. What a pity. Phew...

Then the disguise of Escher was finally removed, as The Doctor revealed himself

The Doctor: Jester, I have completed the task you gave me. Creating a gap and infiltrating Inazuma's inner workings... Heh, what fun it was. I'd like to introduce a puppet to you. If he proves useful, let's make him our newest comrade. And if not... let's turn him to dust.

The flashback ends, leaving everyone in a state of different emotions upon learning and witnessing the truth of the incident of Tatarasuna. The trio was left in a state of shock, The Balladeer, on the other hand...

The Balladeer: ...

Paimon: Hey, are you all right?

The Balladeer: *lost his mind* ...Dottore? Hahaha... Dottore!!! ... Good, good...

Paimon: Was that The Doctor? Did he... turn into a mechanic from Fontaine?

Y/n: I'm afraid so. He was the one behind the Tatarasuna incident.

Paimon: But why did we see things from his perspective...?

Nahida: When I touched The Doctor to confirm whether he'd eliminated all his segments, I read this memory in his mind. You have to admit, it must be the truth.

The Balladeer: Maybe so... But it means nothing.

Nahida: Does it? But this memory shows that Niwa didn't betray you. He never meant for you to be the one to take the device into the furnace. You know very well what that means. Even more so than I.

The Balladeer: ...

Aether: "This betrayal was a lie that he has believed for hundreds of years. Was this part of The Doctor's experiment? If the betrayal never happened... it existed only in his imagination. But where does this leave him?"

Paimon: Let's... give him some space. He looks really mad. Paimon doesn't want to be anywhere near him right now.

Aether: Okay, let's go over there. *about to walk away*

Y/n: *looked at The Balladeer* ...

Aether: *grabbed Y/n's hand* Let's go Y/n

Y/n didn't listen as she harshly pulled her hand away from Aether's grip as she ran twords The Balladeer, hugging him from behind as a way to comfort him and calm him down

Y/n: It's okay. *rested her chin on his shoulder* You're not with The Doctor or the Fatui anymore. The pain is over

Nahida: Let's let Y/n handle this. She also suffered because of The Doctor. She might be able to calm him down due to their similar up bringings

As some time passed, Aether, Paimon, and Nahida discussed what happened telepathically, all while Y/n continued to hug The Balladeer, refusing to let him go until he calmed down

Y/n: *lets him go*

Paimon: Hey, you all right?

The Balladeer: *turns to look at them* ...

Paimon: That's a scary expression.

The Balladeer: ...Are you worried about me? If we didn't have such a history, I'd almost think that qualifies me to be your friend.

Aether: We just want to make sure this doesn't affect the plan.

The Balladeer: It won't. I'll keep my end of the deal. *goes back to searching* ...

Paimon: Hey, are you investigating the stuff we wanna know about?

The Balladeer: That's why we're here. But unfortunately, there's no information about the Descenders in Irminsul.

Nahida: If even you can't find anything, that seems to confirm it: Irminsul does not keep records on the Descenders. Anyone who comes from beyond this world is not counted as part of Teyvat.

Paimon: Does that mean we have to leave empty-handed...?

Aether: ...Not unexpected, but still... thank you.

The Balladeer: Don't thank me just yet. You look really upset... Heh, well, since Irminsul was a dead end, I guess I can share some other info that might interest you.

Paimon: Huh? About what?

The Balladeer: The reason why there are records about your sister in Irminsul... It might have something to do with Khaenri'ah. Apparently, Khaenri'ah was her first destination when she arrived in this world. Plus, she only came to this world because the heavens responded to the summoning.

Y/n: The heavens... responded?

The Balladeer: The Jester told me this himself. You can take his word on this. He was a royal mage in Khaenri'ah and lived with your sister for a time.

Aether: ...Why?

The Balladeer: I don't know the details. It's up to you whether you want to believe me. All I can say is, I wouldn't lie to you about this. *looks up* Did you get all that, Lesser Lord Kusanali?

Nahida: Yes. Astonishing news.

The Balladeer: Does this info count towards my mission? It wasn't from Irminsul, but was it valuable?

Nahida: Very valuable.

The Balladeer: Good. In that case... I'll take some time for myself now.

A barrier forms around Scaramouche, Paimon, Y/n, and Aether, startling the trio while the connection with Nahida being severed in the barrier

Paimon: Huh? What have you done?

The Balladeer: Lesser Lord Kusanali was right: My power's all but completely spent. Even if I use all of the divine power left in me, I can't sustain this shield for very long. Aether, Y/n, I shared a secret with you two, and now one of you owes me. So, in return, I'd like you to answer a question for me.

Aether: What do you want to know?

The Balladeer: Both of you, give me your hand.

The two gave their hands to The Balladeer, and they thought nothing happened until his voice was heard in their heads

The Balladeer: "...Can you both hear my voice inside your heads?"

Aether: "Are you trying to brainwash us?"

The Balladeer: "No, I can't do anything like that anymore. At most, all I can do is exchange a few words with you two. So tell me: In this world, is it possible... to change the past?"

Aether: "!!!"

Y/n: "Change the past?"

Aether: "Wait. Why would you ask that...?"

The Balladeer: Done.

Scaramouche releases both Aether and Y/n' hands

Paimon: Huh? What the... What happened? Paimon only saw you hold hands for a second...

The Balladeer: Nothing. *refers to Aether* I was just thanking him for helping me.

Aether: "Wait, that look... Did he see me hesitate? But that was because I know about Greater Lord Rukkhadevata... Uh-oh, I think... by not denying it immediately, I gave him the answer he needed..."

The Balladeer: *turns around* So long. I suggest you get yourselves out of here quickly.

Paimon: Where are you going? Hey, wait up! Didn't you say not to go running off!?

Aether: Balladeer! Stop! Paimon, Y/n, we have to stop him!

The Balladeer: Fast reaction time. But I don't think we'll be seeing each other again.

As Scaramouche disappears, his voice could still be heard inside Irminsul

The Balladeer: From this day forth, the names "Balladeer" and "kabukimono" will cease to exist....Those who died in Tatarasuna because of me deserve another chance at life.

Paimon: Hey, Balladeer! Don't do anything stupid!

The Balladeer: You know, I never did like insects. Hordes of the puny things swarming together can be a real nuisance... and I enjoy nothing more than to stamp them out like the pests they are. But if a colony of harmless ants isn't threatening anyone, I guess they deserve to be left alone... Luckily, everything can be set right. It's time to solve this once and for all.

Paimon: Balladeer! Balladeeeer! Uh-oh, he disappeared! C'mon, we gotta find him somehow!

The trio tries to look for him, but even if they looked everywhere, The Balladeer was gone, but would his hope twords his plan work in the end?

Paimon: Oh no, he's really gone...

Nahida: ...Hello? Can you hear me?

Y/n: Nahida!

Nahida: Aether, Y/n, Paimon, Balladeer, what happened just now? I was suddenly cut off by some kind of power...

Paimon: It was The Balladeer's fault! He... he shut you out.

After telling Nahida everything that happened...

Nahida: ...I didn't think he'd be capable of something like that with so little power left. Did he keep some of his power hidden when he was defeated? Or... did he achieve something beyond his abilities, and it took everything he had...?

Paimon: Where the heck did he go? It's all our fault. We were supposed to keep an eye on him... Sorry, Nahida...

Nahida: Don't be, it's not your fault. Please let me handle this from here, even though I'm not sure I can solve it. We're running out of time. Follow my lead and get out of Irminsul as soon as possible.

The trio was immediately teleported out of Irminsul and were instead teleported to their temporary home in Sumeru

Paimon: We're out! And we're at... uh, an inn or something?

Nahida: This is an emergency. I'll have to ask you to stay here for now. Everything's arranged, and nobody will disturb you.

Y/n: No, I want to help you! Isn't there anything I can do?

Nahida: I'm sorry, but this isn't something I need your help with. Leave this one to me.

Paimon: An emergency? How bad is it? Nahida, will you be okay?

Nahida: Don't worry. If my assessment is correct, though there may be some minor disturbances, it won't lead to a disaster. Please rest and recover your strength here until I say it's safe.

Paimon: ...Her voice has gone. Paimon can't shake the feeling that something really big has happened. What do you think The Balladeer meant? And why did he suddenly grab onto you before?

Aether: "Paimon doesn't remember Greater Lord Rukkhadevata... And The Balladeer's question was a strange one. It's hard to explain in full, and the truth might be very distressing for Paimon and Y/n... I'll skip the part about Greater Lord Rukkhadevata for now and focus on The Balladeer."

Aether told Paimon and Y/n what The Balladeer asked him and what he might have been planning...

Paimon: He wants to change the past? But... surely that's impossible.

Y/n: It's not easy, that's for sure.

Paimon: Right! You can't just rewrite history. All that stuff happened already in real life! It's like... Umm, imagine Paimon drank all the water in this inn. Even if no one was there to see it, Paimon would sure as heck remember drinking it.

Aether: Yeah, great example.

Paimon: Hmm, so why does Paimon still have a bad feeling about this...? Paimon can't help but feel scared about what he might do... *whine* Paimon's so confused...

Aether: Maybe he wants to erase himself from history.

Due to sheer stress and worry , Y/n knocks a vase off the table, and it shatters on the ground

Y/n: ...Aaah!!!

Aether: Y/n! Are you okay!?

Y/n: Sorry, I didn't mean to. I'm maybe just over thanking this too much, erasing yourself from history...? It's unthinkable! Is that really possible in Irminsul?

Aether: Not necessarily, but... maybe. I'm just guessing here.

Paimon: ...Whew... Uh-oh, Paimon's head is overheating from trying to understand what he's up to... and it's still not working! Gaaah!!! Paimon's had it with that little brat! He's been nothing but trouble ever since we met him! There's no way he'll actually succeed, right? Otherwise... won't everyone who's connected to him be affected, too?

Aether: "Indeed. If The Balladeer does erase himself from Irminsul, many people in Inazuma will be affected... I can't imagine what that situation would look like. Worst case scenario, it will affect everyone with a connection to the Raiden Gokaden... Kazuha, Ayaka, Ayato... Will this mean that they'll disappear!?"

Paimon: There's nothing we can do about it at this point... Hey, have you got any ideas on what we should do next?

Aether/Y/n: ...

Paimon: Seems like now there's nothing left for us to do but to go to sleep. But Paimon's still so worried! Paimon won't be able to sleep a wink tonight...

Y/n: Me neither.

Paimon: So how about, uh... w—we list all our favorite foods to take our minds off things? Heck, if that doesn't work, Paimon's probably gonna collapse of anxiety here. Alright, Paimon'll start. First dish, hmmm... Mondstadt Grilled Fish! Oh, and Chicken-Mushroom Skewers, Tea Break Pancakes, Cream Stew, Sautéed Matsutake......And Jueyun Chili Chicken, Almond Tofu, Satisfying Salad...

Y/n: "She's just listing off food. That won't help"

Paimon: Ooh, ooh, also Adeptus' Temptation, Golden Shrimp Balls, Triple-Layered Consommé, Lotus Seed and Bird Egg Soup, and, and...

Nighttime changes to daytime

Paimon: Um... Umm......Mm?

Y/n: Huh...

Aether: Paimon? Y/n? What's wrong?

Y/n: Uh... What are we... Wh—What were we supposed to be doing just now?

Paimon: Paimon was, um... talking...? Huh, Paimon suddenly can't remember what she was talking about. What was it, again?

Aether: You and Y/n were getting so worried about the situation with The Balladeer......that you started listing foods.

Y/n: Hmm? The Balladeer...?

Paimon: Is that a food, too? Huh... Weird name, though...

Aether: "...!? Paimon and Y/n don't remember The Balladeer!? That must mean... he actually pulled it off? But how did he have that ability? This doesn't make sense..."

Paimon: What's wrong? Your eyes are like saucers... Was it something Paimon said?

Aether: No, it's nothing.

Y/n: So, The Balladeer... Is that someone's name? 'Cuz it sounds like a nickname or something.

Aether: "...If this is really happening... I need to know what else has changed." Paimon, Y/n, come with me.

Y/n: Okay?

Paimon: Where are we going?

Aether: I want to go back to Inazuma.

Y/n: Inazuma? Why?

Paimon: Fine by Paimon, but... is everything okay? You're acting like this is an emergency.

Aether: Now's not the time to explain... Let's get over there first.

[cyberstudious]

Hey!!! I saw that u are working in cybersecurity as someone who is looking for jobs in the software/data science industry it'd mean a lot to me if you could refer me to an open role or help out a bit please?

hi! unfortunately I don't know of any open roles other than just what would be on job search websites (it is really a nightmare out there for finding entry-level positions 🙃) but do let me know if there's anything else I could help out with!

I got my job after doing an internship with my current company, and I got the internship by showing up to a recruiting event they had at my college and just talking to people, participating in the little tech challenge they had, and doing a "by the way here's my resume" when I sent in my answers lol. it still amazes me that it worked but here I am haha.

my top tip I guess is to take advantage of any chance you have to talk to an actual human person, whether through recruiting events or finding industry meetups in your area or something else, because that will make the entire process Way Easier than just submitting a million resumes to every open job alongside everyone else who is also submitting a million resumes to every open job.

also you probably know this, but I was chatting with someone else in the industry recently about how his daughter graduated recently & couldn't find a job (in marketing rather than tech, but still kinda the same boat). he wasn't sure if an internship was worth it or not and I told him oh it's absolutely worth it. from what I've seen and from my friends who are job searching right now, it's basically impossible to get a tech job if you haven't done an internship, and some of the internships out there want you to have experience already. it is truly a nightmare tbh, but any way to get experience will help out. certifications are a big thing in cybersecurity and I imagine that data science is similar?

it really is hard out there right now though so I wish you the best of luck! internship application season is getting ready to start (or at least the big companies always hire their summer interns in September/October from what I've seen) so hopefully some good positions will open up :D

(oh and also obligatory "I live in the United States" disclaimer, idk what the state of the industry is anywhere else)

[hell-of-blazing-fires]

Currently fully abandoning twitter because it's already a shithole, it's getting worse, about to start scraping all your data for ai training and it's a soon to be state propaganda site. So I've started tracing accounts to other platforms.

Went through my follows and now going through my bookmarks and it is an absolutely miserable process. But here's some things that have made it slightly more bearable.

I used it as a lurker mostly as a means to see art so that's where these tips are coming from.

You can get an archive of your twitter data.

Settings -> Your Account -> Download an archive of your data.

It takes a while so check the email your account is linked to. It has your tweets, retweets, DMs, etc. I used it to get my likes which is given to you in a big ass list of links. Also be aware that it does NOT archive your bookmarks.

Sky Follower Bridge

Finds the Bluesky accounts of your follows, followers or list members from their twitter name or links in their bio. It's far from perfect as their Bluesky name has to match their handle or display name perfectly or it doesn't work. But it will hopefully cut down a fair bit of work in finding people.

If an artist has a page there, it will have a list of links to their profiles across the internet. It's a lot more useful than you'd think it'd be because even a ton of small artists have pages. Though they are only as complete as the people who create and edits the pages makes them so it can be hit or miss.

Danbooru

I'd suggest searching with (artist name) + danbooru as the in-site search is janky with aliases.

Most Eastern artists, especially Japanese ones, use Pixiv. It's an annoying site to use because it locks basic features behind paywalls (Like sorting by most popular and the fucking ability to blacklist tags.) But a large majority of them can be found there.

Danbooru has a lot of porn on it (without filters by default) in addition to sfw drawings. Just be warned.

Pixiv

If you know a way to archive bookmarks definitely share that because all the methods I saw are broken and I'm pretty sure the only way to archive it is by doing it manually which is awful. Also these are just the methods I used for myself, please feel free to share others.

[one-of-many-journeys]

Day 76 (3/3)

Meridian

Inside the Hunter's Lodge, celebrations were well underway. The band was playing, people dancing. Still not up to joining in, but they seemed to be having fun. Varl was actually there, to my great surprise, but the other Nora hadn't come to join him. Once he'd gotten his mother to safety, the few remaning Nora had set up camp at the base of the Alight rather than rest and heal in the comfort of Meridian. I'm glad Varl was able to take even this small step toward shaking off his Nora superstitions.

Talanah was there too. She led me out to the balcony by the memorial she put together. She wanted to know where I was going next, what my plans were. I kept it vague. Delving, hunting, exploring the lands. What would be the point in telling her the truth? She has her own path to follow here at the lodge, training up promising hunters of all the tribes. It'll almost be a shame once I put a stop to the Derangement by fixing Gaia, for only one reason: life at the lodge will become a whole lot less fun.

Talanah went back inside to join the festivities, and I just stood there on the balcony for a while, got to thinking about what comes next.

I knew I couldn't stay in Meridian. Unwanted attention aside, it'd feel wrong, celebrating when there's so much still to do. Acting like the danger is gone when all the while, the terraforming system keeping this world alive is slipping further and further into chaotic disrepair. I need to start searching for signs of the other subordinate functions, Hephaestus most of all. More crucially, I need a backup of Gaia herself. I found references to their existence at Gaia Prime, but its data stores were obliterated. I'd do well to visit the Zero Dawn facility again, once matters with the Shadow Carja have been smoothed over. I might have missed something in its archives between avoiding cultists and kestrels. In her message to Elisabet, to me, Gaia spoke as if she knew she was possible to repair. There has to be a way.

I slipped back outside for a while in the late afternoon. More music, more praise. I tried to be as joyful as everyone else. I should be, but all I felt was this dread curling, growing darker. I'm the only one who can stop what's coming. Gaia didn't make me to stand around listening to music and drinking in taverns. She made me to save the world. I feel like every moment spent idle is a score against her memory, and Elisabet's too, especially after all she did, all the tireless work she put into completing Zero Dawn. And her sacrifice.

After sunset, I returned to the lodge, meaning to say my goodbyes, but it was so loud in there, so crowded. I ordered a drink, as I gathered that was what I was meant to do. Many in the lodge were already plastered. Carja wine; better than Gera's Scrapper sap, but not something I'll voluntarily taste again. Varl was lost in a crowd of hunters, recounting the battle on the Alight. I didn't want to interrupt. I couldn't see Talanah anymore either. There was no point in sticking around. I had work to do.

I left the lodge and walked through the city to Olin's apartment. The streets were finally beginning to empty out as the night grew later, but most of the houses and halls glowed with firelight and the sound of raised voices.

Back in the apartment, I packed my things and finally got some rest, though I couldn't sleep. It would become more difficult to slip out of the city once morning came and people returned to their senses. There would probably be a ceremony at the palace and everything. Processions, awards, speeches. Far too early given all the worse things coming to this world. Brin said a storm was brewing, after all, though it seems his vision was wrong about me falling in the Eclipse's attack.

More of Elisabet's journals were repaired, my Focus still working away at the rest of them. She mentioned poetry being uploaded to the Demeter sub-function by is Alpha, Tanaka Naoto. That explains the mystery of the metal flowers and their snippets of script.

I climbed the cliffs outside the city entrance, looking over Meridian and the Spire for the last time for a long while—however long this journey takes. However long this world has left. Even Gaia didn't seem sure how long it would take for the biosphere to break down, given the unpredictable nature of her transformed subordinate functions.

In the end, what I discovered was that, along with our genetic code, Elisabet and I share a distaste for goodbyes.

I overrode a Broadhead outside Cut Cliffs then headed down the slope into the Jewel, heading south.

First, I'll search for the bunker that was once Elysium. No datapoints I've found pointed to its exact location, only that it was some miles south of Zero Dawn. It's a long shot, but maybe I'll find another ancient ruin along the way to point me in the right direction. These lands were full of tiny underground societies, as Margo Shen put it, now caved in and grown over with Gaia's new world. Any one of them could hold the information or technology I need to track down the remnants of Elisabet's project. I had hoped that Sylens would be here to help me, but still he remains silent.

I rode for a couple of hours before the exhaustion of battle began to enter my bones. Without the noise of celebration to distract me, it came on keen and fast. There are more machines out here than usual, runaways left aimless once the corruption faded from their innards. I settled in a quiet spot between mossy buttress roots, far from any machines, with only the din of the wilds; screaming insects, the fervent rustling of plant life. A comforting sound.

I slept fitfully. Kept having a strange nightmare.

[synobun]

I hope this doesn't come across as rude, I'm just curious. I know you said you haven't written in a while but, I was wondering, how does your aphantasia impact your writing process? Do you notice differences between your style and the style of people who don't have it?

Oh my god, the absolute audacity. To think you can walk into someone's home and ask such a question of them...

Hah. No. It's not rude. But this answer did end up being super long, so, uh... it's under a Read More.

To some extent, this is sort of like asking someone who was born blind what it's like not to see. They have no concept of sight, so there's not really a way to answer it in a way that a sighted person would understand.

That being said, my aphantasia isn't complete, so I do have some concept of what you're talking about. If I focus solely on imagining something, I can do that. It just goes away the moment any kind of mental bandwidth goes elsewhere, and I can't maintain the image I create between those interruptions. A good example of that is that imagination exercise where you have to imagine a cube and then adjust its features step by step. I lose the cube I create between each step, and so I have to create it again every single time. And of course it'll be different every time as well. There's effectively no continuity.

Because of that, incorporating visual imagination into my writing process is incredibly counterproductive. I'd need to imagine a couple seconds, then find a way to write it. Then read what I wrote and imagine that, then imagine the next few seconds, then find a way to write it, and so on. And there would be no continuity between these snapshots. If I daydream and I want to write what I imagined, I have to work off of memory; I can't "replay" it as I write.

Style wise, I spend almost no time describing visuals. Many other authors, even those who don't write purple prose, dedicate a solid 5-10% of their exposition to how things look, and I... don't. It's simply not important to me because I do not imagine it. Which isn't to say that I don't include visual data, because I do, but it's an afterthought. I err toward emotion and intellectualizing, both things that don't require a visual component.

Along with that, I have difficulties remembering how things look. I make heavy use of image references so that I can remind myself as I write what something looks like, even if it's just a general vibe. I already don't consider my characters people (which is unlike a majority of writers on Tumblr), but they exist largely as amorphous blobs in my mind, physically speaking. I know a couple of their key traits, but an actual consistent image? Nada. Doesn't exist.

I don't know if this is more a side effect of my disability, but I find writing to have a significant cognitive load. It takes a lot of energy, and sometimes I wonder if that's because I don't have visual imagination to work with. I have to think about the physical parameters of each scene in an analytical, technical way, and I'm constantly backtracking mentally to remember those details and keep them coherent and consistent. The energy cost of writing is the biggest reason why I haven't done it in years. I can already barely do the bare minimum of my other more important responsibilities. If I were to write, it'd be lobbing a grenade into my energy envelope.