#mca updates

[batwynn]

I’m off to go get poked by things I’m allergic to to prove I have the thing I already know I have and have 30+ years of evidence of but doctors gotta poke so if I’m away for a few days it’s because the potatoes finally got me.

[kirby-the-gorb]

[thergbvision]

Life/Health Update

So… a lot’s going on medically again.

My orthopedic surgeon has decided to pause physical therapy and move forward with a diagnostic knee scope to try to figure out what’s really happening. PT just wasn’t helping enough, and my knee’s been unpredictable. On top of that, I’ve been diagnosed with snapping hip syndrome (aka dancer’s hip), which basically means one of my tendons is catching painfully over my hip joint (super fun). I’m getting a steroid injection in the area soon to help manage pain and inflammation.

And because the universe has a sense of humor, my mom is also about to have hip surgery, so we’re both in the Hip Chronicles together.

On the autoimmune side: my ANA test came back positive with speckled and nucleolar patterns, but all the specific autoimmune markers came back normal. That means we’re not looking at something like lupus or Sjögren’s (at least for now), but it does mean something is up. So the next step is evaluating for Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS), which makes a lot of sense given my symptoms and my diagnoses of POTS and HSD.

It’s overwhelming, but I’m trying to take it one step at a time. Thanks to everyone who continues to check in and send support; it really means the world.

[giuseppediamandis]

heyooo… i’m coming down from a two for one crashout and the mast cells are firing on all cylinders

i fucking hate it here

[thebibliosphere]

MCAS update: since starting iron treatment with the aim to get my ferritin stores over 100 for migraine prevention, I’ve finally been able to raise my protein intake.

(Hey, did you guys know that while some MCAS patients present with abnormally high levels of ferritin, low ferritin can cause mast cells to degranulate? And mast cells store and release ferritin when they degranulate, so it’s like a shitty ouroboros of self-fulfilling misery? I didn’t. No one told me, the person with a mast cell disease and chronic lifelong anemia 🙃🙃🙃)

This is a big deal for me because even after years of treatment, this time last year I was living on 7-16g of protein a day because attempting to eat more than that was priming me for an anaphylactic reaction.

As of today, after 3 months of consistent iron treatment, I’m able to eat 50-60g a day.

Progress!!! 🎉

[theclassifiedfan]

HI TOP GUN FIC WRITERS!

So I’ve got some inside knowledge on the workings of Top Gun or more so the military in general (specifically SD military) as I’ve been lucky to work at both Miramar and North Island as well as been deployed on a ship. So thought I’d share for anyone writing their stories and wanting to use it when thinking of ideas or even getting into the writing phase:

DISCLAIMER - I am a civilian and I mostly worked with the marine corps, but I’ve got 13 years with the USMC and 1.5 with USN along with a lifetime of San Diego Navy Brat in me. While I would love to think I’m an expert always feel free to fact check some things.

I’ve made sure all information shared below is public information to not allow for any CUI to be mistakenly released in accordance with OPSEC.

Use what you want & ignore what you don’t want, love reading your stories either way you creative people!

MIRAMAR INFO

Quick History:

Formerly NAS Miramar (est. 1952) and now MCAS Miramar (est. 1997), this is the main hub for Fighter Jet aviation in the San Diego area but strictly Marine Corps Aviation now. Of course some branches touchdown and fly through but there are no active navy squads. This base is relatively close to the water cause it’s San Diego but it’s 4 miles inland so it is land locked and depending on traffic about 30-45 minutes from NASNI (not 4 hours like I read somewhere once). This is the OG Top Gun base, a lot of the places in that original movie are still there but VERY different because it’s been updated quite a bit and the marines own it now.

Their aircraft on base are:

F/A 18 Super Hornet - Very cool, TGM jets

F-35 B&C Lightning - EXTREMELY COOL JETS, these babies are very top secret but are publicly known for their vertical landing capability. Can technically takeoff vertical (but limited in that aspect)

KC-130 Hercules - big support planes used for aerial refueling and other support missions

CH-53E Super Stallion - Awesome Cargo helicopters that move large loads and equipment

MV-22 Osprey - If a plane and a helicopter had a baby! These incredible fixed wings use tilt rotors to vertically take off/land and then tilt those propellers forward for flight (If you haven’t seen one transform check it out they’re amazing). Used for troop transport, special operations, and humanitarian aid.

NAS NORTH ISLAND INFO

Quick History:

Commissioned in 1917 and recognized as the birthplace of Naval Aviation in 1963 it’s a beacon of navy pride. Now, time to mess with some Top Gun Movie canon: this base has never had USN Strike Fighter Tactics Instructor Program (aka Top Gun). Maverick was filmed here, but the program lived on Miramar when it was founded in 1969 and then was relocated to NAS Fallon in 1996 (shoutout Fallon, and they filmed out there BUT Nevada is boring why base their story out there when it could be based here). NASNI is now a master helicopter base, there are no active fighter jet squadrons on north island - but I believe they host them across branches here and there!

Their aircraft on base are:

MH-60 Seahawks - Incredible helicopters that are used in so many missions such as anti-submarine warfare, anti-surface warfare, vertical replenishment, passenger and cargo transfer, and search and rescue capability

V-22 Osprey - the same the Marines use but now being adapted into North Island. Again very cool aircraft with the best (and worst) of both worlds as a fixed wing and a rotary.

Learjet 35 - comfortable transportation aircraft

C-40A Clipper - basically a military 737

NAS LEMOORE

I won’t put too much info in here because I know it’s not the “cool canon movie base” but I will note this is the navy’s west coast Master Jet base since its commission in 1961! It’s in Kings County/Fresno County.

OK NOW LET’S ‘FACT CHECK’

Again take what you want from my ramblings these are just some things I notice in fics that contradict actual military policy and life. But even the movies don’t follow that, so just take these as tools for writing ideas!

Navy = Sailors (Pilots = Naval Aviator)

Marines = Marines

Army = Soldier

Air Force = Airman

Mix these up and someone could get annoyed with you and they’ll often correct you on the spot. Think of the branches like fraternities or sports teams - yes they’re playing the same game but they love to compete against each other. Plus they’re high key frenemies.

There’s a strict dress code on base including in the Gyms

Attire should be conservative and modest, with no revealing clothing, undergarments visible, or items designed for undergarments at all times. For the girls it’s even more rules because of course it is so no mini skirts, no cleavage, no crop tops. Some bases take this more seriously than others and you can get in trouble for it.

In the gym you have to have shirts on at all times, no booty shorts, absolutely no wearing only sports bras, no stringer tank tops and all that jazz.

Beach is fine though cause it’s the beach, and don’t worry I get it people wanna like good in their fics so slay away lol

Fightertown is not an actual town

It’s also not north island, it’s still Miramar. That was the nickname for the base itself so it stayed there with the marines that took it on in 1996. Plus a good way to keep the history of Fightertown united and in its OG place.

You cannot be permanently stationed anywhere in the US Navy.

You go where they want and need you. Some fics talk about the daggers becoming a full time squadron which honestly could happen, as squadrons come and go all the time however from my experience pilots have to move every 2-3 years and the daggers would be changed out. There’s some cases where they can request to “fleet up” to stay in that squadron or even bounce to another squadron and stay in the same spot but that’s a wish that cannot always be granted.

Dating in your squadron has consequences

In the U.S. Navy, while dating another sailor in your unit is generally not prohibited, it could potentially lead to a transfer or other issues if certain conditions are met. There’s a very strict fraternization policy which prohibits relationships that compromise the chain of command, good order, and discipline.

One aviator dating another aviator sounds fine because they’re two officers who tf cares, but there’s a very high chance one of you will be sent away if they feel it risks the unit/squad. Note how I say if they feel, you might be fine with it and it might be you two get along great but if a higher up says no - someone’s gotta go.

Also no officer enlisted, there’s technically ways around this like if they were married before or dating before but in the same command? Forget about it. BIG no. Could be a cute Romeo and Juliet thing forbidden love - this is just talking on the reality of it.

Civilians are not allowed on base

Unless they are directly being escorted on base by a service member or they are a dependent/civilian employee with their own credentials they are not coming on base. Even if they ask nicely and say you know so and so, this has been even tighter since 9/11 but in the past few years it’s gotten much more strict. There are Air Shows on bases which open them to the public but without that there’s pretty much no chance you’re getting on base. If you did then someone is getting their ass beat.

The Hard Deck is based on the I Bar

While the Hard Deck is fictional (although the set they made which is very real and somewhere locked away on north island) the I Bar is very real! Amazing place and they have someone who’s their version of Penny and has been working there for a very long time that the aviators love along with their other awesome bartenders.

Those rules in the bar are pretty close to the real ones which are:

“He who enters covered here buys the bar a round of cheer” (you aren’t supposed to wear a uniform cover or hat anywhere inside although some places let hats slide not here though they will ring you)

No phones on the bar

No hats/covers on the bar

Don’t touch the planes! It’s in the movie as well but the real bar has authentic donated model planes that they added this rule to make sure they live a long life without being broken.

There’s no official “disrespect a lady or the navy..” but it’s unspoken - the guys in there will call you out and there’s some very high ranking people who go frequently and you don’t want them catching you pulling that in their bar.

Now another new thing is that they can’t “make you pay” anymore so if you violate a rule they’ll ask if you’d like to. That being said they added this rule because of the influx of people wanting to see the bar because of Top Gun but the pilots HATED THIS and you will piss off a lot of aviators for not following their traditions. But if you do pay up? So many new friends lmao

Used to be an officers/aviators only bar, but it’s open for everyone who has access to the base.

North Island is not its own Island

NAS North island is a base located on the island Coronado. It’s a navy heavy island mixed with a lot of very rich people. Houses are not cheap and neither are apartments, so there’s not a high chance you’ll see anyone O4 and below living on the island unless they have roommates or they’re a chief that’s been in the navy for a long time. They’d probably live downtown or off island if they wanted to live alone or TRY to buy a home. (Houses here sell for at least around a milly in most places)

There’s some bars on the island as well including one bar called “Danny’s” which is a well known Navy Seal bar because there’s a Seal Base also located on the island more toward the long strip that connects the island to Imperial Beach.

The Naval Academy is not where pilots are made

I’ve found a few fics where they talk about Bradley going to UVA and then the Naval Academy but the USNA is a college in itself. It’s not typically transfer in type of school because if you go that route you start from the bottom as a freshman.

But to be an aviator you do not need the academy. There’s two other routes to becoming an officer which is ROTC and OCS:

The way I suspect Rooster went is to go to a normal university that has an ROTC program and complete it which leads straight to commissioning right-after graduation.

OR graduate any school like normal and then apply to officer candidacy school (OCS) where if accepted you’ll do an officer version of basic training. Which to be fair if that’s the route he took I’d be pissed at Maverick too because that means completing school in 4 years plus whatever amount of time it takes to apply to OCS with the preference of aviator (which is super compact) and can take anywhere from about a year to multiple vs into the academy and good to go.

Once they complete one of the three and are qualified via testing to be an aviator they’re off to flight schools, of which there are many to come.

(Also you could make it to flight school and get dumped out because of maybe not hitting the mark, or even medical stuff that they missed/skipped before - then get transferred to a different type of officer job)

Gold Star kids - AKA Rooster

Gold star kids are those like Bradley who lost a parent due to death during their service, and they do not get to stay on base once their loved one passes. They’ll have a certain amount of time to find a home then move off to make space for another active duty family. BUT the surviving spouse if they’re civilian usually (I believe) retain their benefits for the rest of their life. Not the kids though they get kicked off healthcare at 21 unless they’re still in school enrolled full time and their parents are more than 50% financially taking care of them. It’s all kind of intense and very sad but it’s true.

Dependants are not all nice

NOTE HOW I SAID NOT ALL. There’s some fantastic people but it’s not all sunny and perfect. I’ve worked in the recreational, support, and retail aspect of military bases and the horror stories I could tell you about certain military dependents. Crazy, some of them are literally insane. But could be used for some interesting dramatic aspects of your stories. I’d put examples but I have too many to name.

Pilots don’t fix their planes

Yes they have to learn the ins and outs of their planes and they’re absolutely tech savvy as well as extremely smart. BUT you will not see a naval aviator working on a plane, they have enlisted sailors who work hard and go through a lot of training/school to do that and they deserve their roses. They’d probably kick their officers ass if they saw them taking a wrench or tool of any type to those planes. Pre flight inspections are different to maintenance. That reminds me…

ENLISTED SAILORS EXIST IN AVIATION

I feel sad that fics/stories leave them out in the workplace. They have really great bonds with pilots because pilots can’t fly without them and put all of their trust into them. The sailors and chiefs are the best in their fields and often are credited for being the ones who teach officers because it’s true - think like this:

An officer commissions to O1 (ensign) after earning a bachelors degree which is on average around 21/22. Depending on how they commissioned they may not have worked any college jobs (some have never worked a job at all) so this is their first job and they are in charge of people plus millions of dollars worth of equipment. That’s not including the 2-3 years it takes to pass flight schools.

Enlisted sailors can start service at 17. They’ve been in their jobs going to schools and mastering their trade for a hot minute. They’d often can be the same age of their officer (let’s say 23 for an aviator who went through flight schools) and have 6 years of service in their belts, they know the game.

The best leaders I’ve met in the military know how to be that leader while also learning from their sailors. That bond of trust both ways is crucial for success.

Some ships have WiFi

But it can be limited, it also can get turned off for any reason at any time if it means keeping the ship safe. So could they text and call/FaceTime? On a carrier for sure UNLESS they’re in need of turning it off for a while. Super great for sailors to stay connected honestly wish they’d had that when my dad was in.

Call signs often are not a cool brag

Usually it’s from a time you fucked up and now it’s stuck with you so everyone can have a laugh. You can’t change it and you can’t pick one yourself. That’s not to say that can’t be from cool moments but the ones I’ve met it’s been from funny moments with their squad.

I think the only way it could get changed is if it was really bad like one you couldn’t say in front of an admiral without getting in trouble. I think they usually change those to ‘redacted’ or try to make it an abbreviation so it’s not immediately obvious it’s a fucked up nick name. The ones from back in the day were super messed up. Or maybe you ranked up high enough to change it cause who’s going to tell a Captain what they can or can’t do.

ADDED FACT CHECKS:

It’s Naval Air Station (NAS) North Island NOT Navy Air Force Base/Station North Island/North Island Air Force Base/Air Force Naval Base

Two different branches completely. I do understand why people would put this and this is not me attacking people but I would very much suggest not combing the two because a naval aviator is capable of something Air Force pilots aren’t:

Landing a plane/helicopter on a ship in the middle of the ocean.

They train like crazy to have this skill and let me tell you landing on that thing is no easy feat. Naval Aviators (and Marines they get qualified in this too!) deserve that hype because the risk that takes comes from so many people in a plane and on deck to succeed in? INSANE. I’ve been in Tower (primary flight control or ‘pri-fly’ for short) and there’s so much that goes into this process including collaborating with the people driving the ship. I wasn’t even in an active combat zone so idk how this legends do it with people shooting at them.

All love Air Force Pilots, they could probably be trained to do it - however they aren’t soooo… FLY NAVY 😈

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

Oh man that was A LOT of info. If you’re reading this? How’d you make it this far? Also hope it helped in someway or another to spark some ideas. I’ve debated writing some kind of story haven’t gotten the courage up but YOU ALL ARE AND YOU ARE AMAZING AT IT!

[lggy]

i present to you the aphverse flesh cube using canon skins i personally hunted off the body actor's accounts and original skin artists so now you guys have no excuse to whitewash them

i have searched high and low i couldnt find zenix im sorry all we still have is the default mca skin.

lucinda here has her og skin i also could not find any other updated versions. her skin has a lot of variation of colors, which i'm attributing to being highlights/shading since it's edited to be 1 tone by mystreet s2 and pdh s1. i would use the middle tone for her until we can find a legit source

[finn-hasnoclue]

so hermitcraft/life series hospital au. i've done some thinking and this is what i've put for what they have. i'm doing mostly chronic illnesses because what's the fun if they just get better??

i haven't done everyone as i don't know every hermit/life series member as good as i do others. but if you love someone i left out, let me know what you think. ask questions or leave me asks i would love to keep talking about this. this is what i think the hermits would have and i will be elaborating on them at a later date/when asked.

Chronically Ill Hermits

Bdubs - De Quervain's tenosynovitis (Mommy Thumb), Narcolepsy

Cleo - Asthma, Trigeminal Neuralgia, Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS)

Doc - Prosthetic arm (right), Blind (Left Eye, Prosthetic), Doctor at the Hospital (Surgeon)

Etho - Blind (Left Eye, Prosthetic), Sepsis-induced immunosuppression

Gem - Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS; Hypermobile Type/ hEDS)

Grian - Fibromyalgia

Impulse - Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS)

JoeHills - Chronic Back Pain/Juvenile Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS)

Joel - Chronic Migraines

Mumbo - Orthostatic Hypotension, Hypothyroidism, Chronic Finger, Wrist, Elbow, and Shoulder Pain.

Pearl - Mast Cell Activation Syndrome (MCAS)

Rendog - Type 1 Diabetes, Chronic Lyme

Scar - Neuromuscular Disease (Using muscular dystrophy & polymyositis as a research reference), Dyslexia

Skizz - Multiple Sclerosis (MS)

Tango - TNF receptor associated periodic syndrome (TRAPS; a systemic autoinflammatory disease, SAIDs)

Xisuma - Cystic Fibrosis (CF)

Life Series Members

BigB - Hypotension, Intense Visual Snow, Musculoskeletal pain

Jimmy - Paget’s Disease of Bone

Lizzie - Endometriosis

Martyn - Tinnitus, Chronic Kidney Disease, Hypertension, Psychosis

Scott - Gastroparesis

Non-Chronically Ill Hermits

Cub - Doctor at the Hospital (Infectious Disease)

False - Cleo’s friend

Zedaph - Lab Technician 

Wels - Hospital Volunteer 

Beef - Doctor (Previously Rural Family Medicine, now Emergency Medicine)

Keralis - Left Handed, Xisuma’s childhood best friend

Jevin - Doctor (Anesthesiologist) 

Hypno - Doctor (Orthopedic Surgeon)

EDIT: alphabetized it, updated Beef, BigB, Cub, Doc, Etho, Hypno, Jevin, Martyn, Zedaph.

EDIT 2: Updated BigB

[bloopitynoot]

Reading TGCF: Chapter 64

For those who don't know, I am reading TGCF for the first time and sharing my thoughts!

If you have not read it, there will be spoilers! Consider this a warning.

Also- if you want to follow along, I am aiming to post updates daily. You can find all the posts in the tag Bloopitynoot reads TGCF. You can also check out the intro post for context on my read BUT if you followed along with my SVSSS read, the rules and vibe are the same.

Today's tea: masala chai!

I was going to share a video/photo of my tea sleeve progress but it is quite a mess at the moment.

One thing about me is I am hypermobile, part of this is issues with collagen and likely MCAS so my skin can be weird and overly reactive - sometimes, but not always.

Anyways we found out my upper arm is way sensitive to tattooing so I am bruised af right now. I will share the updates maybe after the second skin comes off/next week!!! I don't want to jump scare anyone ahaha.

but for now

let's go chapter 64!

Wind master! My baby! p198

"San Lang, I just need an itty bitty tiny amount of spiritual energy to borrow" Also xie lian: proceeds to eviscerate a bunch of ghosts once again. p199

oo! what a cool little mirror/water demi-plane. 10/10 would want this as an evil lair p200

I love the honourable mention for the random background ghouls just pretending to be scary to escape p201

no! The earth master is not well p202

okay this is the second time that Xie Lian is clocking odd maybe secrets from Hua Cheng. I'm scared to know what it is p205

So ominous! The skeleton in the black water mansion. The jump scare got me. p207

Terminal lucidity is such a cool term p208

This is such a dnd moment. Ming Yi pretty much dead in a corner; "WAIT check for traps!" p210

okay if they're worried about the heavenly tribulation they should be sending Shi Wudu first! p210

Xie Lian screaming into the communication array like a boomer on a video chat is my favorite. p215

Soul shifting again! By the end of this arc the wind master is for sure going to be absolutely ride-or-die besties with Xie Lian. p219

I'm so upset about the earth master reveal!!! :((((((((((

I have been made a FOOL

You can all catch me in the circus from this day forward because I have been made an absolute clown. How many chapters did I go on about the earth and wind master being the cutest. Now I'm over here just -

Damn :((( the skeleton reveal got me too. I feel bad, but also not, because we never even knew the real guy,

[batwynn]

Little Duncan Watson has been keeping me up all night for four nights in a row so I’m like… dead dead tired. But I drank some green tea so I could send emails and work on commissions today, aannnd I’m just powering through the MCAS/allergic reaction to that lmao. Anyway, emails are being sent. Art is being drawn. Sobbing all the way, but it’s getting DONE!

Spooky little man pictured below:

[yellowplumfruit]

life update yippee yahoo!!

it’s definitely been rough out here! i very very very likely have the heds/pots/mcas trio. i’ve been to so many doctors and started physical therapy in i think january. and i was getting better! until the dreaded famotidine, which worked sooo well until it didn’t and flared me up all over again/made me anemic yay :’) i’m in a lot of pain again and am confined to my bed (AGAIN) to try and rest it off. ALSO i’m just gonna complain about the low histamine diet for a second. no AVOCADO??? no GREEN TEA?????? FERMENTED FOODS????? i’m reaching my hand out towards sourdough and kimchi but we narrowly miss each other like we’re doomed soulmates or something. theres literally nothing to eat

i have an immunologist scheduled for JULY (and a gastroenterologist……and a neurologist) so hopefully he will be able to treat my mcas which has been my biggest hater

i really really want to start drawing just to draw again and i’m pretty close to finally finishing comms, but my body is just straight up out to get me this year. i was so excited to get my biology degree too but that’s also been put on hold. idk i think i’m just tired! it’s been a lot!!!!!

[jokeringcutio]

Still here, still dreaming.

Hi lovelies 💛 I wanted to give a little update.

I’ve had to pause writing thank-you stories for Ko-fi donations. I simply can’t keep up due to long COVID (PEM/MCAS/asthma) and post-surgery recovery. The truth is, I haven’t been able to work since 2020, and while I’d saved up to finally start self-publishing, most of that had to go toward medical costs.

What I’m currently fundraising for is a lightweight, foldable wheelchair so I can join my friends at a book event this fall, and just... move through the world a little more safely and with a little more freedom.

Anything beyond that will help me inch closer to my publishing dream. I’m still writing, just slower, gentler... and hoping to release something this year. I had plans, and while they’ve been delayed, I haven’t given up.

Welcome to my Tumblr Blog

~~ Masterlist - Request Box  ~~

A quick hello and introduction to my new followers ♡ And perhaps if you don’t follow me yet, this is a nice way to get to know a little more about my blog.

IMPORTANT NOTE MARCH ‘24: Due to Medical Reasons I am currently unable to post regularly (or write much). Please bear this in mind.

A mature, 18+, reader and writer here, famously posting darker romance tales on this account. I love to explore new things in my drabbles, imagines, headcanons, and multi-chapter fics. Feel free to check my interests and leave me a request.

What do I write?

Almost anything. I seem to have a passion for dark romance and general dark fiction. I like writing about villians. I try and specialize in writing reader inserts that don’t include y/n and that hopefully feel natural enough for the reader to enjoy.

Types of tales:

Headcanons: Lists of ideas and thoughts about a certain character and a certain topic.

Drabbles: A short fragment of a tale, or fragments blended together.

Imagines: Combination of headcanon and drabble.

One-shot: A longer story that isn’t just a fragment, but is posted as one piece.

Multichapter: A story containing several chapters. I am infamously bad at finishing them, but I do make attempts.

Genres:

I tend to drift between dark & angst, and humor and fluff. I suppose I would want to give everything a go.

What I won’t write.

Try me. I will probably discover more things as time passes. But I won’t write underage smut and about miscarriages.

Requests/Prompts

Feel free to send in requests and prompts whenever my ask is open for requests. I might take a while before answering or filling them. If for whatever reason I (have to) decline to create a fill, I will try and let you know asap.

I am doing this all in my spare time (which is very sparse) and am writing mostly for my own enjoyment. Like most (fan)fiction writers, I share my works for that very small percentage that has been hoping for one of these stories to appear online. I am not doing this for the likes/reblogs/hits (though they do help, just saying 👀 ).

~~ Masterlist - Request Box ~~

[callmearcturus]

✈️

so this is a remix/companion piece to a fic @arquiving is working on. we're using a lot of the same assets, telling different stories. you should all know the epigraph at the start is:

"Hey, Austin?" "Yeah?" "Do you wanna know what the weak point of a mech is?" "Yeah, what's the weak point of a mech?" "The fucking pilot."

— Jack de Quidt, Austin Walker, The Road To PARTIZAN

The story is, basically

I actually have no idea how to explain it, so here's some excerpts I wrote for either my version of the story or @arquiving

\\\ PATCH NOTES FOR F-14 MECHANIZED COMBAT APPARATUS MCA-012, DESIGNATION MAVERICK.

Retrofitting to F18 specs completed July 02, 2022. Comms upgrade completed, along with hardware alterations to accommodate them. Engine upgraded from V9.0 to V10.8 dual-compatible.

Retrofit marked SUCCESSFUL with following caveats:

> Cockpit depth within apparatus reduced but not currently within acceptable range for F18 safety compliance. Upgrade partially complete.

> Standardized rigging of anchor lines found repeatedly incompatible with apparatus chassis. Adjusted anchor line mounts engineered. Fourth iteration of improvised mounts found to be stable. Report from MCA Technician Corp suggests "do not adjust again, no better options found, current setup slightly precarious." Upgrade partially complete.

> After seven attempts to introduce new SC-84-18990 formulation, discovered Apparatus anatomy will not tolerate new compliant Seele conductant and will forcibly expel through vents, requiring full decontamination and cleaning. See appendix 17 for  further detail. Upgrade declined.

> Attempts to remove secondary cockpit failed. Upgrade declined.

> Attempts to install automated secondary cockpit violently rejected by apparatus anatomy. Upgrade declined.

MCA-012, designation MAVERICK, classified as single-pilot apparatus. Please note WSO "second seat" is present but is not to be used under any circumstances. See Warrant Office Coleman with any inquiries.

=

Bradley remembered when the Naming happened.

It was kind of funny, the way the Navy had gotten first crack at the Exclusion Zones. When Bradley was back in Basic, it was a frequent point of discussion and low-brow humor. When Phoenix— just Nat back then— had mentioned she was getting sent to the Tanager Outpost, Bradley had asked her if she was packing a swimsuit.

"It's 300 miles from any body of water," Nat had groused. "Remember when we were the boat people, Bradshaw?"

Truly, Bradley didn't, and he knew Nat didn't either. Both of them were too young to remember before the Zones appeared. The Navy of old existed on celluloid and in history books. Hell, back when Bradley was in high school, the textbooks hadn't even been updated with all that shit. He wondered if kids in AP World History had to learn the names of the Zones or the order they had opened in.

But that may have been 300 years ago for all that it mattered now.

Bradley had always hoped he'd get assigned to the mech corps when he was in Annapolis. Between his last name and the fact he had Admiral Kazansky's phone number in his contacts, he thought he might get in. But Bradley also knew how few MCAs existed, and the Navy didn't let you opt-into the pilot program. You either passed the aptitude test or you didn't.

The test had been a fucking blood test. Someone took four vials of his blood and walked away with them, and nobody told him shit.

Everyone's results were classified.

Bridewell was not the first base Bradley had been stationed at, but the third, after Yokosuka. He'd put in his time watching monitors as Seresin ran underwater drills in his MCA, keeping an eye on the sync rate.

He'd been on duty when Seresin had broken the 90 percent threshold and had started laughing over his monitor. "Yokosuka, tell the techs to break out the stencils and spray paint. MCA-zero-four-niner's designation is HANGMAN."

Of course it had been HANGMAN. "How the hell do you deal with that cockpit," Rooster had asked Hangman over ice cold asahi at the local pilot bar.

"Ain't as bad as it looks," Hangman had said with an almost fond smile. "I know my boy's going to protect me."

"Boy?" Bradley grew up hearing men call their favorite car milady and ships were still consider old broads. The specificity had caught his ear.

"Hm? Yeah. Or, closer to that than anything." Hangman had tilted his bottle against the tabletop, letting it roll along the curve of the glass. "They don't tell you that part. Maybe because most of the people writing the manual can't break a fifty on their synch ratio, so they don't even know. But the mech has ideas of what it is. You just gotta listen."

After Yokosuka, Bradley was back in the states, Bridewell Forward Operating Base, right outside of the Gateway Exclusion Zone. No one called it St. Louis anymore, just Bridewell if you were military or Gateway if you were a civilian.

Bradley was piloting MCA-059 when it all went to shit. 059 was an odd bird, slow ambulation with its awkward hip joints, but the legs were… different. As his sync rate climbed, he could feel the massive shock absorbers around his ankles, how his femurs were hydraulics. 059 was fitted for urban landscapes, it was built to actually maneuver around the buildings and the streets.

Shutting his eyes, Bradley inhaled, mouth and lungs full of Seele conductant. Holding it inside, he listened to the low thudding ping of his sync ratio rising. He counted until his synch settled at 57 percent.

"Lieutenant," his comms officer hailed over the radio. "We have a report from the tower, there's a fluctuation over by the riverside, south of the I-65."

"What kind of fluctuation? Something big wander out?" The majority of his work around Gateway was just making sure nothing from the Zone crossed the Mississippi. Plenty of people still insisted on living in Gateway for reasons Bradley had never understood. 

"Information is currently incomplete, but marked as urgent. Setting guidance."

Coordinates updated in the cockpit, and Bradley felt the faint tug of that way, already pulling his mech around. Turning his grip on the controls, 069 sank down, sinking below the skyline. At 30 percent power, Bradley let the line snap like releasing a rubber band, and he launched up into the air.

Wind rushed by him as he soared in a narrow arc, landing on a rooftop. From here, he could see down the river.

"What the hell is that?" he murmured as the opalline green-blue sheen of the Zone wall curled and twisted into nonsensical kaleidoscopes.

He had eyes on it when the wall just ruptured, split like a worn seam. Underneath was more shimmering Zone wall, spilling out from the break like silk in water, spurting across the river. As it landed on the Missouri-side, it filled out, the wrinkles smoothing out as it stretched.

"Zone wall anomaly, the Zone has breached the river boundary," Bradley called out, twisting his throttle sharply. 059's thighs folded down into its calves, pressure building.

This time Bradley didn't aim up, he pushed forward, rocketing over to anomaly with such force, his body slammed back fully into his pilot's seat.

It was the Gateway Zone Expansion, the first of its kind. Usually Zones didn't get wider, just deeper.

Much later, Bradley would be questioned extensively about what he saw, the shape of the growth, how quickly it had spread and whether the spread had felt directed, bullshit like that. But in the moment, Bradley hurled himself and his mech into action.

There was no way to stop the expansion, so Bradley followed it, spire jumping along the boundary. As FRM began to wander out into the city streets, he fell on them, grasping every weird-ass creature with his metal hands and redirecting them back into the veil.

His brain was alight with waypoints and blooms of information, and he continued the crash his thousand-ton body into the streets, the hydraulic tension in his legs becoming easier to take each time.

There was no moment of epiphany, no trip through the Star Gate, just— ROOSTER. He felt the connection like a breeze through his hair. MCA-059 was ROOSTER, or they were ROOSTER, it was complicated.

"Lieutenant Bradshaw, your synchronicity is unstable. Please return to baseline," a MCA technician said over the comms.

"I'm fine," Rooster said. "I— I just, it was the thing, I—" He glanced over at the monitor.

72%. Personal best. He breathed in and felt his chest expand, his shoulders rolling back, the accentuators powering, shifting the mech's limbs with him.

He exhaled slowly. "Uh, status update. MCA-059 should probably be designated ROOSTER. Yeah, Re-engaging FRM." Twisting the throttle, he soared.

=

\\US NAVAL MECHANIZED COMBAT APPARATUS CORPS TOPSHEET \\CANDIDATE PROFILE \\LT BRADLEY BRADSHAW

STATIONED AT BRIDEWELL NAVAL FORWARD BASE, OUTSIDE THE GATEWAY EXCLUSION ZONE

MCA Pilot Proficiency Test conducted during tenure at Annapolis. Results in second percentile. Stationed with MCA Corp to monitor for future placement.

Assigned to Gateway Perimeter Guard and on duty during an unexplained Zone expansion. Earned multiple commendations for efforts aiding civilian evacuation and redirecting FRMs away from evacuation routes.

Permanently assigned to MCA-059, "ROOSTER."

Recommended for Special Detachment by Admiral Thomas Kazansky. Reassignment to Tanager Outpost pending.

[thebibliosphere]

Met with a speech therapist today. She was very nice and informative but also told me straight-up that she wasn’t as well versed on EDS as she’d like but that she’d done a lot of research leading up to our appointment.

We talked for a bit about EDS and MCAS in general, before discussing how I’ve been handling my dysphagia by myself.

She told me I was already doing everything she’d tell me to do and unless I wanted to do a barium swallow study (possibly not a good idea with MCAS) there wasn’t much else she’d recommend, and it seemed like I had a good handle on it.

I appreciated that honesty and expressed thankfulness to know I was already doing all the right things.

Got home a few hours ago and saw my mychart had updated with some test results. Checked those, then on a whim checked the summary notes from the speech therapist.

Top line of the summary just says, “Patient knows more than me.”

I mean, A+ for humility, I guess 😂