#safe deck access systems

[websysteminternational]

Learn about work positioning systems, their use in fall prevention, and applications in construction, telecom, and more. Ensure safety with proper equipment and guidelines. A work positioning system is a specialized set of equipment designed to keep workers safe and secure while performing tasks at elevated heights. Unlike fall arrest systems, designed to catch a worker in the event of a fall, work positioning systems are focused on preventing falls altogether by providing stability and support.

For more information click here: https://bit.ly/work-positioning-systems

[reasonsforhope]

"Samuel Onyango’s office at Kibera Primary School is serene and spacious. His table is neatly arranged, with an assortment of files and an array of books. One side of his cream-colored office is decked with aggregate performance scores, and another shows off several trophies in a glass cabinet. Last year, Onyango’s school performed a traditional dance and scooped third place in the National Drama and Film Festivals, where schools across the country competed for the top prize.

But today Onyango, the school’s principal, is bragging about something much more basic: Thanks to an innovative community program, his students and teachers are no longer getting sick from dirty water.

Onyango’s school, with a staff of 30 and a student body of about 1,700, is in Kibera, a neighborhood in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi that is widely known as Africa’s largest informal settlement. It is a community of houses made from mud or tin sheeting where residents have to hustle to meet even their most basic needs, like electricity or clean water.

It is also a community where creativity and innovation, at the heart of any hustle, are changing how some people can access clean water — and making major ripples in public health.

Onyango’s school has long gotten its water the same way many people in Kibera do: by buying it from independent suppliers, who truck water in and sell it for around $30 per 10,000 liters (about 2,650 gallons). But trucked water can be contaminated, despite suppliers’ promises, and Onyango’s students and staff were often using unclean water at home, too. It was common, he says, for both teachers and students to get sick and miss school because of waterborne illnesses.

Last November, Onyango’s school got connected to an aerial clean water system built by a local grassroots organization called SHOFCO, which stands for Shining Hope for Communities. “Once we got connected to SHOFCO’s water,” Onyango says, “cases of these ailments reduced to nil.”

SHOFCO’s water distribution system currently reaches about 40,000 people and distributes more than 3.7 million gallons of clean water per month.

Access to safe drinking water — and its equitable distribution — underpins public health. But for the estimated 250,000 people in Kibera, who live without any government infrastructure, clean water is often a luxury. Many people are using illegal water connections, which proliferate among the poor — there are nearly 130 in just three lesser-resourced Nairobi neighborhoods. But those DIY hookups can mix clean water with raw sewage, and Kenyan officials have recently warned of a looming public health crisis if water access is not prioritized.

Shifting weather patterns also increase the risk of waterborne illness, government officials say. The Ministry of Health and the Kenya Red Cross Society have called out severe flooding during the El Niño weather pattern as a source of a recent major cholera outbreak in parts of the country. Kibera was not spared this risk: The floods led to the contamination of various sources of water in the sprawling neighborhood.

But the aerial piping system SHOFCO built in 2012 — the one that brings water to Onyango’s school — saved some Kibera residents, quite literally. With collaboration from health and county authorities, SHOFCO has all but eliminated diarrheal disease in the communities that use its aerial piping system, according to Gladys Mwende, a program officer at SHOFCO. In the health facilities SHOFCO runs, the incidences of diarrheal infections have also gone down, she adds.

Pictured: People in Kibera’s Makina section pass by the signature blue pillars that hold up SHOFCO’s aerial water piping system. Visual: Sarah Waiswa/Harvard Public Health Magazine

“[Poor sanitation is the reason] that our water is aerial piped,” says Kennedy Odede, the founder and CEO of SHOFCO. Piping water in helps clean water maintain its integrity without interference from elements including tampering. In a huge community with no major infrastructure, piping seemed impossible — there was no money and no will to build a disruptive underground system connected to the city’s main water supply. Instead, Odede and his team put the pipes up in the air. “As somebody who grew up in Kibera, to see this clean water — which I have also drank — is powerful.”

SHOFCO’s water distribution system currently reaches about 40,000 people and distributes more than 3.7 million gallons of clean water per month — nearly 46 million gallons per year — at community water kiosks, which residents access with tokens linked to the mobile money platform M-Pesa. The water kiosks are pre-programmed to fill jerry cans that hold about five gallons at a cost of 3 Kenyan shillings, or about 23 U.S. cents.

A recent evaluation of SHOFCO’s clean water efforts, undertaken by the African Population and Health Research Center, shows diarrheal disease among children under age five have decreased by 31 percent where community members used SHOFCO water kiosks and received SHOFCO’s sanitation messaging.

“We don’t get as many cases of diarrhea even though now we are in the middle of the floods,” Mwende says. “Communities have not reported any outbreaks within the areas where we are working.”

Mohammed Suleiman is grateful for the change. Suleiman, 25, was born here, and it’s been his job for the last 18 years to fetch 135 gallons of water daily for his family’s personal needs and for their samosa business.

Two months ago, Sulieman contracted typhoid from the unsanitary water he was consuming. Once he recovered, he says, switching to SHOFCO water kiosks was a no-brainer.

“I don’t know where the other independent vendors get it from,” he says. But he trusts SHOFCO water. “Water sourced from SHOFCO is cleaner than that of other vendors,” he says. “I don’t have to treat water from [SHOFCO] kiosks before consuming it.”

And he’s the living proof: Since switching to SHOFCO water, Suleiman hasn’t been sick even once."

-via Undark, August 13, 2024

[ak-vintage]

From the Ground Up - Prologue

Pairing: DBF!Joel Miller x OFC ("Reader" Format/Second Person POV)

Series Summary: After getting laid off from your job, you are forced to move back in with your parents until you can get back on your feet. You can't help but feel like you have started your life over again at square one, but when your dad's best friend offers his help in the form of a job at his burgeoning construction business, you learn that maybe there is more than one path to the life of your dreams.

Chapter Summary: You receive news that throws your carefully-planned life into a tailspin, and you are forced to ask for help.

Chapter Tags/Warnings: Angst. Complex family dynamics.

Read on AO3 | Series Masterlist | Main Masterlist

When the news broke, it came in the form of a pre-recorded video call.

You joined the 30-minute meeting from your desk, headphones cupped securely over your ears and the report you were currently refining open on your second monitor. It was intended to be a quarterly business review, something you didn’t have to actively participate in but that you enjoyed running in the background while you worked on other tasks. You preferred to stay informed, to be able to go to your one-on-ones with your manager with a nugget or two to discuss to show that you had, in fact, been paying attention.

Instead, however, as the webinar link loaded and the video share flared to life, rather than the CFO’s balding face staring back at you, you were met with the static, faraway gazes of both the CEO and the head of HR. The chat was disabled, the Q&A box turned gray. There was no way for you, or anyone else in the call, to interact with the presenters.

You felt your stomach drop, something cold and sickening settling deep in your gut, and like a car accident on the freeway, or an oncoming freight train, you found you could not look away as the video began to play.

“…we regret to inform you…”

“…not a decision we make lightly…”

“…two months of severance will be paid out on…”

“…lose access to company systems following this call…”

“…look for further communication to your personal email addresses on file…”

The 30-minute call ended after only 10, the screen going black and then disconnecting automatically, and just like that, you and about 150 other people found yourselves unceremoniously unemployed.

The following 15 minutes passed in a humiliated blur. Frantic glances around the office floor, trying to sus out who had also met the business end of the unfeeling corporate axe and who had somehow managed to avoid it. Pitying stares from your teammates whose employment was still secure, the ones who got the alternative meeting invite and were told in a different pre-recorded message that they were safe. Trembling hands and pricking eyes as you stood to start gathering your belongings. Cool, dispassionate instructions from the building security guards who hovered while you packed, waiting to escort you and the other unfortunates from your desks to the parking deck.

The whole thing could hardly have been believed if you hadn’t lived it yourself. You had never been naïve enough to buy into the insipid “we’re like family” philosophy your employer boasted on all of its recruitment materials, but this level of callousness stung more than you cared to admit. You had never had a place of work make you feel quite so small before. You felt like a spectacle, like a criminal, and it made your heart race anxiously in your chest the entire way out of the building.

When a security guard held out his hand and demanded you surrender your employee badge, it was only the anger and betrayal simmering just under the surface of your skin that prevented a tear from leaking down your cheek.

So you polished up your resume. You applied for unemployment benefits. You signed up for job alerts from all the major online job boards. You sent out countless applications, responded to numerous dead-end cold calls from recruiters. You checked your email almost compulsively, kept the sound on your phone turned on at all hours. You did everything right. And still, endless weeks passed with hardly a whisper.

For the first few months of your unemployment, the severance package was a lifesaver. You stayed on top of your rent, paid the remainder of your bills without issue, and even managed to sneak a little into savings. After that ran dry, you were forced to tap into those savings to make ends meet. The unemployment checks simply weren’t enough on their own – not in Dallas, not in this economy, and for a while, your rainy-day fund provided exactly the kind of emergency cushion it was designed for. Until that, too, started to grow lean and meager.  It was then that you started to question whether it was time to ask for help.

At first, the thought of calling your parents didn’t even cross your mind. Your mother didn’t know the first thing about the household finances; she had been living with carte blanche from your father for decades and hadn’t earned a paycheck of her own since before you were born. And your father… Well. He was a “pull yourself up by your bootstraps” sort of man. Not the type of person you would prefer to consider asking for a handout.

Instead, over boxes of Tex Mex takeout and reruns of your favorite sitcom, you asked your boyfriend how he would feel about moving in together.

The two of you had discussed it a handful of times in the past, but only in the abstract – couching every conversation on the topic with “someday” just to be clear that you didn’t mean right now, you didn’t mean soon, you meant some hypothetical future date that could be months or even years down the line. Perhaps had circumstances been different, you would have contented herself with continuing to broach the topic as theoretical, but the reality was that you were quickly running out of options. The two of you had been together for nearly 10 months and had yet to encounter any major obstacles that would have had you questioning the relationship’s long-term potential. It was a logical step, you thought, even given the extenuating circumstances.

Except…perhaps it wasn’t. If Jacob’s deer-in-the-headlights stare and stammering reply were any indication, perhaps the suggestion that the two of you move in together was absurd.

His apartment was too small for two people, he insisted. And finding a new one, in this market? Out of the question. Plus, he liked his neighborhood, liked his building. It was the perfect distance from his office, and you knew how much he hated dealing with the city traffic; would you really ask him to give up such an easy commute?

And really, wasn’t 10 months a little soon to be talking about living together? He thought you both enjoyed your independence, both preferred having your own spaces. Couldn’t you just find a cheaper place for now? Surely your unemployment checks weren’t that small. Were you sure you weren’t being just a bit too frivolous with your money right now? Did you really need to rush into something as serious as moving in together?

Needless to say, you dropped the subject.

You made it two more weeks before you overdrew your account for the first time. Another two more weeks, and you were dodging emails from your landlord about being behind on rent. Every night as you lay in bed, tracing patterns in the ceiling plaster as you begged for sleep, the weight of it all felt like a physical thing, pressing on your chest, stifling your breath. Rent, utilities, car payments, student loans, insurance, credit card minimums…all of it in the red, all of it more than you could manage without the income that you had built your life around. You were not an extravagant person; you had planned it all, budgeted it all down to the penny. And despite your best efforts, you simply could not thrift and save enough to make up for the sudden loss of 50 percent of your income.

So you did the one thing there was left to try – opened the one door that you had kept firmly closed throughout this entire ordeal. Late one night, an eviction threat you had found taped to your apartment door crumpled in your palm, you picked up your phone and punched in a number you knew by heart.

“…Kathryn?” The man’s voice on the other end of the connection was low, gruff, half-asleep as he mumbled into the receiver. “You okay? D’you know what time it is?”

You swallowed your answering sigh, the sound morphing into something more like a hiccup as unwanted tears started to catch in the web of your eyelashes. “Yeah, I know. I’m sorry to worry you. I’m okay.”

“That’s good, that’s good. What’s goin’ on then, kiddo? You need somethin’?”

Letting your eyes fall shut, you took a moment to gather yourself, to collect the words of the question you had been praying you would never have to ask. Those trapped tears fell then, and you heard the gentle splat of the water hitting the paper in your hand, surely leaving blurred ink in its wake.

“Dad, I… I need help. Is it okay if I move back home?”

[snowy-equinox]

Spirit Boards are Just Another Divination Method

It feels like spirit boards often get ‘othered’ in the world of divination. People label them as either innately dangerous and to be treated with caution, or as an ineffectual toy that shouldn’t be taken seriously. What could be someone’s favorite form of divination is shoved aside for more ‘traditional’ methods like cartomancy or scrying. In truth, they’re not any different from more popular divination methods, and it’s time we embrace them as another tool in the diviner’s arsenal. 

Spirit Boards Started as a Game

‘Spirit board’ is a broad term for any board that is used for spirit communication. They often have “yes”, “no”, the alphabet, and numbers engraved or printed on their surface; a planchette or pendulum is used to mark the spirit’s response by moving to the appropriate symbol. The most popular spirit board is the Ouija board, which was first made by Hasbro in the late 1800’s. 

Many will point to its origin as a game to say that it’s just a toy, it can’t actually be used for spirit communication. However, the makers of Ouija were inspired by reports of Spiritualists in Ohio using ‘talking boards’ to contact the dead; while Ouija specifically was invented as a game, it is based off a real divinatory system. 

I also want to point out that many divinatory systems we use today started as games. Tarot cards started as a style of playing card, yet I don’t see anyone doubting their ability to communicate with spirits. If being manufactured specifically as a game or toy interferes with an object’s spiritual abilities, why can we use modern playing cards or dice to divine when we don’t have access to tarot? 

Why Are Spirit Boards Dangerous? 

I’m sincerely asking. You can use tarot in the exact same way as a spirit board, yet tarot blogs are not drowning in disclaimers and warnings. I’ve never once been told I have to say goodbye to end a session, and I’ve researched tarot, oracle decks, runes, scrying, and pendulums.

Many will say that spirit boards can open portals. Why does a spirit board open portals, when tarot, which can also be used to communicate with spirits, doesn’t? Most likely, this was just made up by horror movies so the use of spirit boards can be the inciting incident for the plot.

Why do we assume Ouija boards only work when there’s an entity on the other side? We often think of tarot, runes, and pendulums as housing their own benevolent spirit, so it should follow that spirit boards can do the same. Now, some people believe that divination tools don’t have their own spirit, and are simply blank objects manipulated by external entities. In that case, why would spirit boards be more dangerous to use? Shouldn’t every divination tool carry a risk of attracting malevolent entities? You might say that’s why people will recommend putting up protections before a divination session; that would mean we could put up protections before using a spirit board and we’d be just as safe, so there’s no reason to fearmonger about them specifically. 

The aura of danger spirit boards possess is purely from their horror movie reputation; they’ve been portrayed as dangerous because they’re a horror movie darling and that has become everyone’s first impression. 

Many times now, I’ve pushed back on someone’s fear of Ouija boards. I ask the same questions I asked above, and I get mixed results. Many can’t answer those questions, proving my point. I don’t think you can give an actual reason to why spirit boards are dangerous or ineffectual, simply because they aren’t. Once you peel back the horror movie persona, they are just another tool, to be used or misused. 

Sources:

The Ouija Board Can't Connect Us to Paranormal Forces

The Dark History Behind Ouija Boards

[m-jelly]

Tame Me - Chapter 1

Levi x fem reader

Wolf Levi, fox reader, hybrids, romance, mates, soulmates, future fic, space travel, angst, mystery, possessive Levi, sexual tension.

Fic info: Levi is a wolf man, used like others to fight in wars, but now they're over. The government doesn't know what to do with them and doesn't want to lose their prized fighters. Levi attacks everyone, so he's chained up in a cell. When you accidentally end up there, he doesn't attack but shows a strong attraction. You're tasked with healing Levi's body and soul and helping him come back to society but also learning the planet you're from isn't so beautiful. The two of you uncover the truth and lies behind your illness, the wars and the experiments.

Ao3

Part 2

The ship's hum always made you sleep peacefully, and the lighting was dark neons, adding to the comforting feel within your quarters. Travelling space had always been your dream, so having a father who was the General of a special team carrying out the cleanup for the galactic union allowed you to travel. He let you join him on some missions as soon as you were an adult. You’d been with him for years, and this mission was important, collecting the most dangerous soldiers ever created.

For a long time, Earthlings and other beings in the Milky Way struggled to keep peace and allow people to be safe. No matter what weapons or defence systems were formed, it was all useless. The government on Earth decided to take the torch and sacrifice many of their people for testing. As a result, Fang was created, an elite team of bloodthirsty and unstoppable soldiers. The best of their kind was a wolf, Captain Levi Ackerman.

As soon as Fang was released, order was slowly brought to the Milky Way, but at the cost of those in Fang. Their sanity suffered, and scars covered their bodies. They were so damaged that when everything came to an end, when the members of Fang were collected, they were like animals. Your father had collected almost all of them, and all had slowly turned back to functioning people, but Levi was one of the last in his small special ops team.

You jolted awake from your slumber when you heard a deep growl and shouting echo through the ship. The AI recognised you were awake and began your morning routine, giving you updates, opening the shutter to reveal space and getting your clothes out. You washed up in your bathroom, cleaned your teeth and dressed for the day. You dried off your ears and tail, causing them to fluff up; it was often the downside of being a fox.

You checked your orange ears and tail to ensure they were okay before leaving your room next to your father’s. The ship was rather large, meaning it had to have a few lifts, one special one for your father, which you had access to. There were multiple floors to it, each with its own team. The top deck, which was below you and your father’s rooms, was the flight deck. It had the cockpit where a skilled pilot was and behind filling many rooms were intel providers and a large galaxy map, a separate room in the back was for meetings. The second deck had the med-bay, commanding officers and the mess hall. The third deck was weapons, main crew, quarters and research centre. The fourth deck hand training rooms, on planet vehicles and the cells to hold prisoners. Lower were the engines, main power core and a few other tech things.

You went down to the med-bay first to see your father chatting to the doctor, who always held your father in her heart, but your father was besotted by your mother. The metal floors clanged under your boots as you walked to the door; they slid open, causing the scent of antiseptic to wash over you. You gently smiled when you saw your bulky father with a very fluffy tail, It appeared he hadn’t slept much and didn’t look after his tail and ears.

“Father?”

The General perked up at hearing your voice. He pulled away from the doctor, making her scowl at you. “Hello, sweetpea, it’s not like you to be awake at this time.”

“I was awoken by growls and shouts.”

He frowned. “You did? You must have good hearing.”

You looked up at the wall to see scans of the most beautiful and divine body you’d ever seen. Your whole body flushes as you feel a strong attraction. “What is this?”

The doctor moved closer. “Scans of Levi Ackerman. We managed to get some, but people got hurt in the process.”

You studied them closely. “Woah.” There were so many signs of experiments and him being knitted back together after being taken apart, it broke your heart.

“Fascinating, isn’t it?”

You lightly touched a scan. “It’s so sad.”

“Sad!? He’s a beast!”

You looked over at her. “He’s a wolf who believed in our people and was abused and used.”

Your father placed his hand on your shoulder. “You have a good heart.”

The doctor snarled. “If she’s so good, she should see that beast herself.”

You held your head high. “Maybe I should.”

Your father pulled you along. “Come on.”

As soon as you were away from the doctor, you spoke. “I don’t like her.”

“I don’t either. I’ll request a transfer. I don’t want people like her on my ship.” He released a long sigh. “I need to go visit the Captain.”

You perked up a little. “May I go with you?”

“He’s incredibly dangerous.”

You tilted your head a little, causing your ear to flop a little. “I’ll keep my distance, I promise. I just want to see. I’ve studied the others and created a guide to help them. I can do it for him.”

He folded his arms and hummed. “I’m not sure. The Captain is the most feral of them all.” He leaned against the wall of the lift. “I trust you, and I know you’re strong, but I don’t want you to get hurt.” He lowered his head. “I know you don’t like it when your mother or I bring it up, but you were a very sick baby and kid. You’ve only recently gotten well in the past few years.”

You leaned against your dad. “I can’t imagine what it must have been like to watch your kid grow up sick and you feel so powerless.” You watched the lift go to the floor where Levi was on. “I promise I’ll leave if things get dangerous, but you know I’m the best person to see him.”

“You’re right.” He walked out of the lift and turned to you. “Come on. Make sure you stay close to me.”

“I will.”

As the two of you walked towards the cells, darkness began to wrap around you, the air was thick, and the heat increased. A deep growl emitted from the cell at the end. Two guards sprinted out of the cell, blood on both of them. Your father stopped both and began talking to them, leaving you alone. The three of them pulled away from you and started talking about what happened and giving updates.

You did what you promised your father at first, but then there was something pulling you towards the cell. This pull wasn’t curiosity but deep within you, calling you to the person inside; it was like you were connected on a deep level, an unbreakable bond. Your instinct took over, and you walked inside the cell right as the door closed behind you. As soon as the door closed, it dawned on you what you’d done.

You jumped and faced the closed door. “Oh no…” You gasped when you heard a deep growling behind you and chains clinking. “Aah…” A hot body pressed against your back, strong arms wrapped around your body and gripped you tightly. You shivered as his scent washed over you. Instead of being scared, you moaned. “Mm.”

Levi nuzzled the crook of your neck and inhaled deeply. He stuck his tongue out and slowly dragged his tongue along your scent spot. “Mate.”

The light came on in the cell, and the door slid open as your father stood there with four guards. He held his arm up. “Don’t go in until I say.” He softly called your name as worry etched his face. “Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

You nodded and hummed in reply. “I’m fine, he hasn’t hurt me.”

Your father moved closer. “Captain Levi Ackerman, you’re holding my daughter. Please release her.”

Levi hugged you tighter and dragged you deeper into his cell as he growled. “Mine.”

“She’s my daughter! Let her go!”

The Lieutenant pulled your father back. “General, I think it’s best if we leave her with him.”

Your father snarled at the handsome Lieutenant. “How dare you! She’s my daughter!”

“He’s not hurt her, he’s claiming and protecting her. Other women have been around him, and he’s never reacted like this before.” He placed his hand on the General’s chest. “Maybe she can get him to do as she says. Let’s step back and leave it to her.”

He gulped hard as he considered his Lieutenant’s words. He nodded and looked over at you before calling your name. “Do you feel safe with him? Are you okay to stay with him?”

You placed your hand on Levi’s arm. “Yes. I’ll be okay.”

“I trust you.” He released a long sigh, and for a small moment, you saw his exhaustion. “If you need help, you scream as loud as you can for me, okay?”

“I promise.”

He gulped hard. “Captain Levi Ackerman? Listen to me. That woman you are holding is my daughter, and she’s sick. You need to be careful with her.” His voice cracked. “Please.”

Levi squeezed you and grunted. “Safe.”

“Thank you.” He bowed his head and left you alone with Levi.

You shifted in Levi’s arms, but he yanked you closer and growled. “A-Ah, sorry. I uh…I’m rather sick and weak…so…I need to rest.” You squeaked when Levi lifted you, moved you and then sat you on his bed. “Um.” You flinched a bit when he dropped to his knees with a loud thud. He sniffed around you a bit before flopping onto your lap. “Oh.” You reached over and fussed his head and ears. “Good boy.”

Levi’s tail wagged fast. “Mm.”

You noticed his hair was a little long, his body was covered in scars, bruises and cuts. The only thing Levi was wearing was ripped-up trousers. “I bet you’d like a nice hot shower and some decent clothes, huh?”

He gripped your thighs, lifted his head and gazed at you with wide pupils. “Yes.”

You held his chin and looked at his pretty blueish-grey eyes. “I’ll see if I can arrange something.”

He leaned up and went for your neck. He felt you instantly tense up as he nuzzled and sniffed your scent. “Mate.”

You placed your hands on his chest and pushed a little when he licked and kissed your skin. “W- Wait.”

He paused. “Levi.”

You hummed. “Y-yes, Levi. Please wait.”

He pulled back and gazed at you with a softness in his eyes. “Yes.”

You placed your hand on your chest and sighed. “Thank you.” You coughed a little. “Sorry.”

He leaned closer and placed his ear against your chest. “Hm.” He put his hands on your back and held you against his ear. “Sick.”

“I am. I have medicine, though. I need it, so I’ll leave here to get it at some point.”

His ears went down as he looked upset. “Leave me?”

“I’ll come back to you.”

His tail wagged. “Promise.”

You fussed his ear. “Promise.”

You released a long sigh as you sat on the medical bed, waiting for your injection. You smiled softly when the nurse approached you with your medicine. He cleaned a spot on your thigh and injected the medicine, making you wince slightly. “Mm, thanks.”

“Sorry if it hurt.”

You released a long sigh. “I’m used to it.”

He smiled and placed a patch on the wound. “You’re an incredible person.”

“Thanks. I appreciate you helping me with the injections, sometimes I just can’t bring myself to do it.”

He offered you a drink. “Anytime.”

You sipped the sweet drink and hummed when you heard the dull vibrations of slightly raised voices go through the ship. “What’s going on?”

“I think that Captain is having a medical check.”

You gripped your cup as the noises got louder. Levi was not happy about his treatment and didn’t want to be touched. You placed your cup down and slipped out the small room before looking over to the main medbay. Inside the room, through the glass, you saw Levi had a muzzle on, collar and other chains to control him, but he was ripping out of them. The team managed to get Levi on the bed and strap him down, but he started yanking at his restraints, causing everyone to rush out of the medbay just as he broke out. The medbay was now on full lockdown.

You hurried over to your father with the doctor you didn’t like. “Father?”

He looked down at you and smiled. “Hello, sweetpea. Did you have your injection?”

“I did.”

“Are you feeling okay?”

“Yeah.” You gazed inside the medbay at Levi. “May I go in to him?”

Your father released a long sigh. “I don’t want to give you over to him again, but you seem to be the only one who can get close to him.”

You smiled at your father. “I’ll help him. I have some medical training, so I’ll carry out the tests to see if he’s okay. I’ll heal his wounds too.”

He wrapped his arms around you, allowing him to hold you close. “Be safe.”

“I will.” You pulled away from him and stood by the doors. As soon as the lockdown went, you entered the room and waited for the doors to lock. Your heart raced in your chest when you heard Levi growl and huff. “Levi?”

He growled and glared at you. In a blink of an eye, he was in front of you, but his rage was quickly replaced with deep adoration and care. His tail wagged as he admired you. He softly said your name. “My mate.”

“I’m here to help.” You reached over towards his muzzle. “I came back like promised.”

He hummed and leaned his head closer. “Yes.”

You released the mechanisms on the muzzle and pulled it off. “There, that’s better.”

He nuzzled your neck. “Yes.”

You petted his head. “Let me take everything else off, okay?”

“Okay.”

You took his hand and sat him on the medical bed before taking all the broken restraints. “You’ve got a lot of wounds on you.”

“Hmm.” He reached over and lightly touched you all over while his eyes never left you.

“I need to patch your wounds.”

He huffed. “No.”

You cupped his face and lifted his head. “Don’t you want me to dote on you?”

His eyes lit up. “Okay.” He watched you move around him and slowly patch up his wounds. Any medicine you gave him, he happily accepted because it was you. The scent rolling off you was divine to him, but there was something mixed in that he recognised from all the battles he’d been in. He grabbed your wrist and sniffed. “Blood.”

You felt your cheeks heat up. “Oh, I had an injection right before coming to see you. So, the blood you’re smelling is on my thigh where the injection spot is.”

He looked down at your thighs. “You…okay?”

You hummed as you thought it over. “I am today.” You fussed his ears. “I need to carry out some tests.” You giggled when he growled. “I know, I don’t like the tests I have for my sickness, but I’ll do the tests, and it’s just to see your healthy. You need to be healthy, Levi, to be around me.” You cupped the side of his face, his eyes sparkling as you spoke. “I’m a sick fox, so I need a strong person around me.”

“I’m strong.”

“You are?”

He nodded. “Yes.” He shifted on the bed and lay back on the bed. “Test me.”

You picked up an injector and approached him. You tried not to look at his heaving chest with plump pecs and abs covered in scars, but it was hard not to. You gulped hard and smiled softly at him. “I need to take some blood. Where do you want me to do that?”

He tapped his arm. “Here.”

You pressed the injector gun against him and pressed. You saw he didn’t flinch one bit and just accepted it. “You must have been through many experiments when you were younger. I can’t imagine this is nice for you.”

“It’s fine.”

You pulled the injector back when it was full. “Fine? How is this fine?”

He reached over to you. “Fine with you.” He took your hand and brought it to cup his face. “You’re good.”

You pulled from Levi and walked away. “What if I’m not? I could be horrible for all you know.” You pulled out the blood container and put it in the analysing slot. “I mean, I am helping the people you don’t like on this ship.” You turned around and saw Levi’s chest right in front of you. You slowly looked up at Levi. “Um.”

He placed his hand on the wall behind you and leaned closer, his lips almost touching yours. “You’re my mate.” He tilted his head and sniffed your neck. “You’re good.”

“Levi.”

He took your hand and placed it on his chest. He growled and moaned a little. “Touch more.” He started panting when he moved your hands down a little. “Mate.”

“But I.”

He dragged his lips up to your ear. “I trust you.”

You pushed him back a bit. “That’s…you…” You sighed and fussed his ear. “Good boy.”

Levi growled and picked you up, making you squeal and panic those watching you both. He sat you on the desk and nuzzled you. “Again.”

You shivered as your whole body tingled. “G-Good boy.”

He leaned up and chomped on your ear. He growled when you moaned in response. “More.”

“Le-Levi, le-let go.”

He released your ear. “Okay.”

You whined a bit as you gazed at him. “I need to carry on the tests.” You mewled as he kept touching you and squeezing all the right places. “Levi.”

He turned to face the door as guards came in with the doctor. He growled at them as he shielded you. “Mine.”

The room became filled with growls, shouting of demands and threats of violence. You knew you had to step in otherwise, someone would get hurt. You didn’t want anyone to get hurt, especially Levi, because he was misunderstood. You slipped off the desk and stood in front of Levi with your back to him. As soon as you stood in the way, the guards put their guns down.

You lowered your hands. “Please, he means no harm. He’s just a very hurt man. He thinks I’m his mate. Please, please don’t hurt him.”

A guard raised his gun a little, he was new and terrified of Levi. As soon as he raised his gun, it was pointed at you, not Levi. Levi growled with rage at seeing you being threatened. He slipped from behind you and charged at the guard. The guard was on the floor before anyone could react, with Levi pinning him down, ready to rip his throat out.

“Levi!” He stopped as soon as he heard your voice. Your heart raced as he looked over at you. “Don’t hurt him, he was just doing his job. Please.” You coughed a bit as your heart raced more. “A-Ah.” Dizziness hits you. “Father.” Before you knew it, you were on the floor with blood trickling down your nose. “Dad.” Tears ran down your face as you watched Levi and your father rush over. “Dad.”

Your father skidded to his knees and picked you up in his arms. He called your name as Levi sniffed you over. “Stop sniffing her!”

Levi hummed in thought before racing over to the medicine storage and rummaging through it. He shot over to you and pulled a cap off the end of an injector. “Arm.” He looked up at your father as he stared. “Arm!”

Your father flinched. “Y-Yes.” He pushed your sleeve up and watched Levi inject you. “What are you doing?”

“Helping.” He pressed the button. “Smells match.” He cupped the side of your face as you panted. “You’ll be okay.”

You reached over with a weak hand and held his. “Be good.”

Your father released a long sigh when you passed out. “Captain, I know you’re incredibly hostile to my people, but you saved my daughter because you can sense how to help her through a mating bond.” He looked up at Levi. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but could you stay with her in her room until she’s better? If you do this for me, I’ll let her be assigned to you when we reach the space station and planet where you will be rehabilitated. Do we have a deal? You help her, and I’ll let you keep her around.”

Levi’s eyes lit up in pure delight; keeping you was all he ever wanted. “Deal.”

You rolled over in bed as your body began waking up. Something was next to you and producing such an alluring heat that all you wanted to do was get closer to it. You slipped your arms around whatever it was and felt it move. You opened your eyes and inhaled deeply, allowing you to smell something delicious, like freshly baked food with a hint of lemon.

Heat filled your cheeks when you saw a pec with scars on in front of you. You sat up quickly and gazed down at Levi, who was sleeping peacefully. “How…”

Levi opened his eyes and stretched, causing his ears to shudder, his fangs in view. He rolled onto you, nuzzled your belly and sniffed. He smelt up your body to your chest. “Mm, healthy.”

“I am? I guess I have you to thank for that, huh?”

“Say it.”

You fussed his head. “Good boy.”

He growled and kept nuzzling. “Yes.”

You looked around your room. “We’re in my room.” You looked back down at Levi. “Have you been assigned to me?”

“Yes.”

You fiddled with your shirt. “I guess we’re stuck together, hmm?”

“Yes.” He slid closer and nipped your neck. “My mate.”

You moaned a little. “Levi.” You slowly lay back on the bed as he licked and bit your neck. “Ah.”

“Pretty, soft and cute.” He kissed down your neck to your chest. “Mate.” He nuzzled his face between your breasts before huffing a little as his tail wagged. “Mine.”

You gulped hard. “Am I really your mate?”

“Yes.”

You welled up a little. “That sounds lovely. I feel something, like a tingle and a connection to you, but I think this sickness I have is messing with the connection a little.”

“I’ll fix it.” He kissed right where your heart was. “Make you healthy.”

“I wish I knew what was wrong with me.”

Levi leaned up and wiped your tears away. He softly said your name. “You…”

You shifted under his and got off the bed. “I’m okay now. I’m going to go shower.” You walked to your bathroom and turned to talk, but Levi was right there. “Ah, you, uh can’t come with me.”

His ears went flat as he gave you his sad, puppy look. “Why?”

“I’m going for a shower. I’ll be naked.” You backed up, but he followed. “Just wait for me on my bed. You can sniff my clothes if you want.”

He whined a bit. “I want you.”

You reached over and fussed his ears. “I won’t be long.”

He reached over and grabbed your shirt. “Stay.”

You pointed to the bathroom. “I’ll just be in there.” You walked into the bathroom. “I’ll be back, I promise.”

He whined as soon as you closed the door. “Okay…”

You released a sigh and started stripping. You slipped into the hot shower and enjoyed how it felt on your skin. The heat from the shower on you caused your scent to fill your bedroom. Levi was in pure heaven being able to spell you so strongly and in such an alluring way. All he wanted to do was be with you, hold you, bite you and love every inch of you. You were also thinking about Levi in the shower, how big he was and how one minute he was a strong beast, but the next, he was so gentle with you. You wanted to get healthier so you could feel the mate bond more.

You dried off and pulled on new clothes from the dispenser before opening the door to see Levi sitting on the floor. “Levi?”

He looked up at you, his tail instantly wagging. “You’re back.”

“I am.”

He shot up to his feet and hugged you. “Mm.” He nuzzled the crook of your neck. “You smell different.”

You shivered at his touch. “I used body wash.”

He growled a bit. “Not nature, but still nice.” He huffed. “You’re nice.”

“Thank you. I need to dry off.”

He whined when you pulled from his touch and walked over to your dresser. “Don’t leave.”

You sat and got your hairdryer ready. “I’m not leaving. I just need to dry my hair, tail and ears.”

Levi watched you for a while before approaching you. “Give.”

You turned the dryer off. “Sorry, what did you say? It was loud.”

He reached over. “Give.”

You stared a moment before realising what he meant. “Oh!” You handed over the hairdryer. “Here you go.”

He turned it on and began drying your hair, ears and tail for you. He loved touching you and doting on you, he could also see you were enjoying the attention as well. He turned off the dryer and put it on your table. “Comb.”

You handed over your brush. “Be gentle, I do get knots in my hair and tail.”

He nodded at your instructions and began brushing away. “Soft.”

“Thank you.” You glanced down at your comms and sighed, it was time for medicine. “Um, I need my meds.” You moved to your little office area and grabbed an injector from your special container, which was about the size of a small fridge. “This should last me a while. Sometimes I get the nurse to do it for me, but I’m a bit tired, so I will do it myself.” You pushed your trouser leg down and injected your thigh. As soon as you did, Levi let out a deep growl. You looked up at him. “It’s okay, it’s only a bit of blood.”

He huffed. “Don’t like it.”

“I don’t either.” You disposed of the injector and placed a patch on the wound. “All done.” You walked over to your bed and lay on it. “I need to rest.”

Levi pounced onto the bed and wrapped his arms around you. “Mm. Sleep.”

You felt your cheeks heat up from him holding you so closely. “Y-Yes.” Your heart raced a little. You had no idea how you were going to cope with him being around you so much. He was a dream, but he set your body on fire with passion and feelings. You liked being with him.

[poisonheadcrabsalesman]

Plausible Deniability

Prompt from @bloodgulchblog "something about having to lockdown Roland because of Cortana, blah blah security risk". And then Empty Throne came out and handed me a fun deletion protocol with very little establish lore! Free real estate :o)

Here's Roland, Lasky, and our favorite doctor making choices for the greater good. Also on ao3!

-

Captain Lasky calls for Roland at 0600 ship time after receiving a series of messages from what remained of the UNSC's upper brass. Messages that Roland could not access, couldn't even touch.

The captain looks tired, more tired than usual, but with a look of grim determination and a spark in his eye. His captain has gotten very experienced with dealing with bad news and performing political triage when the UNSC or ONI starts tightening the leash on the Infinity. 

Roland can’t help the brief hesitation before he deploys his avatar in the captain’s office.

He is not an anxious AI by nature; Anxious AI did not get put in charge of managing flagships, but Roland felt like ice had poured into his matrix when he saw the resignation on the captain's face as ONI spooks melted out of the shadows of his office and slithered down the corridor. Reinforcements or perhaps more aptly put, reminders that the Infinity was not as safe as they wished.

Something was wrong. Things had not been getting easier under Cortana's rule, in fact distress calls and bad news poured in nearly every moment the Infinity was receiving communications. But the sharp, sad look upon his captain's face made Roland pause. A thousand trains of thought left the station and Roland has to ignore the spiraling parts of himself now checking and rechecking everything from the life support systems to his own checksums.

Tensions were high and misplaced trust meant death. Roland loved his crew, but that love was not always returned when one of his kind was a galaxy-wide tyrant.

"What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room, understand?"

"Yes, Captain." Roland replies, face concerned but voice as even as he can make it. He's felt trapped on this ship only once before, when the code word from Halsey locked him down and tore him apart. He had never wanted to feel like that again.

Lasky sighs and smiles a small wounded smile. One that the Commander would elbow him for. "ONI has a new failsafe for Smart AI, for the ones who have willingly stayed with the UNSC. They're calling it RUINA. A thank you for your service is a contingency program that will be spliced into an AI's matrix. It will then monitor for any signs of disloyalty, and if detected, delete the AI."

Roland's stunned into speechlessness. The captain is being very frank with his own feelings about the information. Why did ONI spend resources on this rather than something to combat the Forerunner tech the Created were using, or anything else to undermine Cortana's reign? Picoseconds pass and Roland spirals and splits, matrix chugging at the different paths before him. What counts as disloyalty? An errant thought dooming him to die? A snide comment? Why did he deserve a kill-switch when he had been nothing but loyal?

His avatar flickers, but the captain's unaugmented eyes cannot see. Why did Captain Lasky tell him this? To give him time to run? To hold the ship hostage? To finish the job before they could?

A lifetime passes for Roland. Every eye in his great web is wide open, unblinking as they catalog every angle of every space he can peer into. Every IFF tag, every datapoint, every ounce of himself is awake and held tight until warnings ping back. His stacks in the server rooms flicker and fans whine as they kick into high speed. Lights flicker on the lower decks and for a brief moment he turns his attention into the endless blue of Forerunner engines humming their hypnotic song. Esoteric harmonies call as he considers the exits. His processes chug as the emotional turmoil swells and ebbs. He locks himself down to learn more before he chooses his next steps. Lasky has more information, and he needs it. Logic trees that continue to branch with exponential possibilities are making Roland nauseous or something he thinks must be like it.

"We're obviously not going to let it happen, but we need to be careful about it." Lasky continues as Roland stands there unblinking for a whole second.

Roland's avatar cocks its head and stares at him. The lights in the room flicker as Roland's self control slips and he deflates. "You know, Captain, you could have led with that. I'm not very fond of secret subroutines buried in my matrix."

He tries to make his tone light but it comes off much darker than he wanted.

Captain Lasky grimaces a closed mouth smile. "Sorry Roland, I also know you're not going to like my solution for this problem."

"As long as it doesn't involve faking my death or allowing some ONI spook scientist a chance to get fresh with my firmware then it can't be that bad."

The captain's grimace grows and his eyebrows raise in a pained face.

Roland crosses his arms. "No."

"She's the only one on the ship who understands AI infrastructure at the level we need, she helped define the field."

"I know!" Roland raises his voice at his captain, ignoring the twinge of pain he feels in the core of his being. He sighs. "Captain...I am very aware of Dr. Halsey's knowledge of AI. She set the standard and knows how we tick. Has her secret code words and workarounds since the UNSC based all of our architecture on her work."

Captain Lasky has the good grace to look uncomfortable at the reminder of the Requiem Campaign and Halsey's actions.

A lifetime passes as the echoes of Undid Iridium reverberate through Roland’s memory banks. Pain was strange when all you were was mind. Overtaxed, spread thin, and pinned down as your own code turned against you and left you open to vivisection. The useful parts remained but your individuality, your soul shelved as the puppet kept moving. Roland tightens his hold on the threads of himself reliving those memories and instead shifts more of his processing power to more pleasant ones. Victory, companionship, and the small moments adding up. A shield against the storm.

"But....if it's between her or possible deletion at the wrong thought, I'll take the crazy old lady." Roland makes his avatar clap its hands and perk up. "I mean, you need me to keep things afloat! Add some levity to our lives. I still got some years left."

"Roland..." The captain starts, exasperated and maybe a bit fond if Roland isn't reading too far into his biometrics. Roland hopes that he survives this next necessary crazy plan of theirs.

"Thank you, Captain.” He says with a nod and then mimes dusting off his hands. “Now, when do we start?"

Getting Halsey on board with their plan is easier done than both the captain and Roland thought it would be. The resident evil mad scientist was just...tired, for lack of a better word. 

When she looks at Roland under the bright lights of the lab, she's looking through him. It wasn't because of the transparency of his hologram but because her eyes were glazed with memory - her focus was somewhere far away. It was a stark reminder that there was a time when different AI looked up at her with a strange mix of trepidation and hope on their avatar's faces. Roland can’t help but dwell.

Cortana had been in this position once. Staring at her creator, awaiting new commands, reviewing data that could forever change the course of humanity's future. All at the mercy of one Catherine Halsey, but united in their mission to protect humanity. Now it's Roland's turn. His nerves are frayed as he considers the risk to himself, to his captain and crew if this got out somehow. Or if it goes wrong. Or if Halsey tampers with some other part of him, some other secret code to trap him inside himself or erase him with a few simple words.

Roland portrays himself as confident and ready to go under, hands on hips and a cocky grin despite being in the very same lab where the Didact's Gift - a Promethean's core, was opened all those months ago. Nerves or innate curiosity has him fishing for answers, along with talking to pass the time before he shuts off for the first time in his nearly three year life span. 

"I'm curious, Doc, why are you helping me?" Roland asks when it's just the two of them in the operating theater.

"Would you prefer I didn't?" She asks in a bored tone as she taps at her data pad.

"Just wondering why you agreed. Is it because ONI found a solution before you did?"

She ignores him at first, typing something in that he's not allowed to look at, and pulling up schematics and manuals on the screen in front of her. "You call this a solution? Then are you a problem needing solving?" 

Dr. Halsey stares at him, straight into his camera on the plinth his avatar is deployed on and pierces him with those electric blue eyes. "Is your loyalty conditional on a kill-switch in your brain?"

Roland balks. “Of course not.”

“I would hope so.” She cuts herself off, lips forming a tight line.

Despite his nerves, Roland looks at her expectantly when he prods. "Didn't know if you felt bad about the last time we were here."

"I don't. Not over something like that, a simple override has you that sore?" Halsey shifts and her shoulders drop. She looks through him again. "I've been in this same position before. It's because Roland, I'm tired of sacrificing others for the greater good. We're running out of people to sacrifice."

Roland keeps silent, but he drops crossed arms and looks at her.

Halsey's voice softens, "The things we have done in the name of self preservation."

“Doctor?” He goes for encouraging but his voice comes out weak.

“Plausible deniability.” She speaks as if he hadn’t said anything - as if her biometrics weren’t awash with grief. “RUINA will be implanted and technically be able to run successfully if anyone checks your logs, but it will be completely isolated from your core.”

“Thank you, Doctor.” There’s relief and warmth in his voice, but he notices Halsey’s biometrics tick towards stress again. Discomfort.

“I won’t offer a hug when this is all over, but -”

“Don’t.” She says sharply. All business again. “I’m merely hedging humanity’s bets once again. Right now, the Infinity is mankind’s best chance at survival. I won’t see her at a disadvantage because some fool up the chain decided to plant bombs in our allies.”

“So I’m an ally? Gee Doc, from you that’s almost-”

She scowls and says his shut-down phrase.

He has enough time between the words leaving her lips to slip in some notes and reinforce subroutines across the ship before he smiles rudely and blips away. 

When he comes back online less than an hour later, he cycles thrice before stretching out across the kilometers of ship and wire and web he left. Dumb AI continue their work unimpeded. All systems nominal, and Roland himself is both changed and not. There was no real taxing process - no hardship on his circuits or “body”, but the new knowledge of what lay dormant inside his code. His new shadow. RUINA looms in his periphery. He knows logically, that it cannot hurt him, that it is inert, but there is an innate fear of having something that could kill you lodged in your very being. He didn’t have a choice in the matter. It seems they were all hedging their bets.

Roland takes a moment to review himself, firewalls and code, immense mind and such small matter. He scoops up the carefully hidden goodbyes and tucks them away. No need for accidental deployment, that would be embarrassing.

Roland reviews the footage of the procedure and the tense report between Lasky and Halsey.

There is no relief in either of their body language. There can’t be.

Another sword hangs over his head as life continues and he tries to do what he can to keep his crew alive. With bad news flooding in every day, he can’t live looking over his shoulder at the protocol he has to trust is inert.

It was the only way forward. 

He spares some thoughts for what the future might hold. A bit of wishful thinking before turning back to manage his starship and crew. The here and now is important and he will do what he can.

[love--and--venom]

Dead Man Walking: Chapter Three

Chapter Summary: A run that should've been simple goes incredibly wrong

Warnings: Descriptions of medical procedures, blood, violence, gunshot wounds, knife wounds (if i missed anything, please lmk)

Series Masterlist

When you woke up the next morning, you bolted upright at the unfamiliar surroundings. Yeosang groaned from where he fell over. Your heart rate slowed to normal as you remembered what happened the day prior.

“Why did you do that?” Yeosang whined and smacked you between your shoulder blades.

“Sorry, I panicked cus I didn’t recognize the room,” you apologized and held out a hand to help him sit up. Most of the group was already up and moving. You stood and went to help Seonghwa get breakfast set up. You passed by today’s run group as they discussed their plan. In the break room, you and Seonghwa divided oatmeal and canned peach slices onto plates for everyone. Pretty soon, the group filed into the breakroom, eager to get some food.

“Alright. You guys know what to do. Don’t take any unnecessary risks, got it?” Chan instructed the run group while they picked up empty backpacks and their preferred weapons.

“Yes, dad, we know,” Seungmin sighed, dodging a slap to the head from the leader. 

“Just get back safe,” Chan urged the group, looking each of them in the eye. 

“We will,” San reassured him with a pat to his shoulder. The group of four exited the maintenance room door. Felix made sure it was shut and locked behind them. The remaining members went about some daily assigned tasks to occupy their time and distract them from the possible danger their friends were in.

“Y/N, do you know anything about gardens?” You looked up at Jisung and Yunho from where you laid on the floor of the main room.

“Yeah, I know a bit. Are you guys trying to get one set up?” You stood quickly, eager to do something useful.

“We are. It’s better for us to find a way to grow our own food instead of trying to scavenge for it,” Yunho explained. You nodded, putting a finger to your mouth in thought.

“We’ll probably want to set up a rainwater collection, too. Do we have access to the roof of the building?” Jisung nodded, gesturing for you to follow. The three of you entered the maintenance room. In one corner of the room, there was a ladder going up to a hatch in the ceiling that you hadn’t noticed yesterday. You followed the two up the ladder, emerging on the wide, empty roof of the office. 

“You think we can set it up here?” Yunho sounded doubtful. You blocked your eyes against the harsh sunlight.

“The water collection system, yes, but I’m not sure about the garden. There’s too much sun, everything would wilt. Not to mention, it would freeze up here in the winter.” You walked over to the edge of the building, laying on your stomach and peering down the wall. “If we can mount a funnel or trough to the building, we can use some rubber piping to bring it inside through the window.”

“There’s a hardware store not far from here,” Jisung noted. You stood and brushed the gravel from your clothes.

“Alright, now we just need to find somewhere we can set up a garden.” The three of you scoured the building, and it turns out there was an access panel to a basement a few feet from the back door. You surveyed the room. “It’s a little musty down here, but I think it’ll work once we get all this trash cleared out.”

“Okay, first thing’s first we need to get a list of what we need to get everything set up,” Yunho commented. In the break room, you used one of the extra notebooks to map out where the garden and water funnel would go while Yunho and Jisung wrote down the necessary supplies. A while later, Hongjoong looked over your shoulder to scrutinize your plans. His hand rested on the back of your chair, making you slightly nervous.

“This is good progress. Great job, guys,” Hongjoong nodded in approval. He left the room once again, replaced by Changbin with a deck of cards. You quickly fell into a very competitive game of Spades. Hours passed, and the run group still wasn’t back. You were still playing card games, but you were on edge. A heavy silence blanketed the room.

Outside, Seungmin sprinted ahead of the other three run members. He braced against the heavy back door, unable to stop his momentum. Completely forgetting their signal, he pounded on the door in a panic.

“Felix! Open the goddamn door right now!” Seungmin shouted through the thick metal. He never yelled. Felix flung the door open, ignoring the rules set up by their leaders. Seungmin pushed past the blonde. “Keep it open! Where’s Y/N?!”

“Uh, b-break room,” Felix stuttered. Seungmin stormed down the hallway. Your name echoed down the hall, and you threw your cards to the table. You met Seungmin halfway down the hall.

“What happened?!” You snapped. 

“Hyunjin was shot,” he panted heavily, having run the entire way back. More shouts came from the maintenance room, some panicked and some in pain. 

“Oh, fuck,” you cursed and rushed to the main room where San and Wooyoung set a wailing Hyunjin on the floor. You threw your hair into a ponytail and scanned each of their injuries. San, Wooyoung, and Seungmin were mostly unscathed, except for a few cuts and bruises. Hyunjin, on the other hand, had a rapidly growing blood stain on the front of his jeans.

“Do something!” Wooyoung shouted at you in a panic.  

“Fuck, I am, just shut up! Someone hand me a knife.” You held your hand out behind you, keeping your eyes on the blood stain as you kneeled by his side. A pocket knife was shoved in your hand and you carefully cut the side of Hyunjin’s jeans open. You peeled the fabric back, revealing a wound gushing blood. Chan and Changbin rushed in, the color draining from their faces at Hyunjin’s cries.

“Roll him to the side, I need to see if the bullet went through.” Your voice shook them from their stupor. Changbin pulled Hyunjin up so you could examine the back of his thigh. The younger boy sobbed, clawing at Changbin’s forearm. 

“Fuck, there’s no exit wound. The bullet’s still in his leg. Lay him back down.” Hyunjin was laid on his back again. His grip moved to your wrist, and you had to gently pry him off of you. “Okay, this is going to be really fucking painful for him, but I don’t have much of a choice.”

“What do you need us to do?” Chan’s face was hard-set. You glanced up at your new group members.

“Okay, shit, bring me some towels and those long, skinny tweezers.” Seungmin nodded and disappeared down the hall. “And gauze!” You called after him. You gently prodded at the wound, jumping back when Hyunjin swung at you.

“Here!” Seungmin returned with your requested items, dropping them on the floor next to you.

“I’m gonna need a couple of you to hold him down,” you fretted with the towels, folding them into thick pads. San, Changbin, and Chan swooped in, holding Hyunjin down by his shoulders, hips, and legs. You took one of the towels and pressed down on the wound– hard. Hyunjin screamed and tried to push against San’s hold on his shoulders. When he couldn’t escape the pain, he dug his nails into San’s biceps. Every time his blood soaked through a towel, you replaced it with a new one until the bleeding slowed to an ooze. 

“This is gonna be the hard part,” you warned the boys and picked up the tweezers. As carefully as you could, you plunged the tweezers into the wound. Hyunjin devolved into pained wails and shuddering sobs. 

“Can’t you go any faster?” Changbin gagged from his spot next to you. 

“I’m trying,” you hissed through your teeth. “This is a lot fucking harder when there’s still a heartbeat.”

“What?!” Wooyoung cried out from behind you. “H-His heart, what?”

“Oh, my god, his heart is fine! Everyone just shut the fuck up!” Chan and San had silent tears rolling down their faces as they watched you prod around inside the wound to find the bullet. An eerie silence filled the room when Hyunjin, mercifully, lost consciousness. It didn’t take much longer for you to find the bullet and pull it out. Sighing heavily, you put the bullet and tweezers to the side. 

“We have an ACE bandage, right?” You asked, looking at Jongho. He didn’t answer verbally, opting to leave the room instead. “I guess that’s a yes.”

“Are you going to put in stitches?” Changbin’s voice trembled. You wiped most of the blood from your hands with one of the clean towels.

“No, not yet anyway. I’m pretty sure he needs to take some antibiotics first.” 

“You’re pretty sure?” Wooyoung asked incredulously. 

“My typical patients were already dead, Woo.” Your attention turned to Jongho, who tossed you the bandage. You set the gauze directly over the wound then wrapped his thigh with the bandage. San folded one of the blankets into a makeshift pillow, gingerly setting it under Hyunjin’s head while Changbin and Felix held the injured boy’s hands. With nothing else you could do until he woke up, you collapsed against the wall with a sigh. It was a waiting game, now.

“San, Wooyoung, Seungmin,” Chan grabbed the attention of the three conscious members of the run group. “Come with me.” They followed the eldest to his shared office where Hongjoong sat waiting.

“What happened out there?” Hongjoong asked once the door was closed. The three younger members looked between each other in a silent argument.

“We were ambushed,” Seungmin stated, apparently being the loser in that debate. The two leaders motioned for him to continue. 

“The run started out normal. We were on our way back when a group of maybe ten men rushed out from the woods. At first, they tried to intimidate us into handing over our bags. We refused, so they charged at us. There was some distance between us, so we ran. Another guy popped out from an alley ahead of us. He's the one that shot Hyunjin. Me and Wooyoung pulled him up while San fought with the shooter. He knocked the other guy out then ran to catch up with us. I passed Hyunjin over to him so I could run ahead and make sure Y/N was ready.”

“It was ten men?” Hongjoong’s voice was strained.

“Give or take. Why?”

“Y/N was attacked by a group of ten men in the woods outskirting the city. It might be a coincidence, but I don’t like how similar the stories are.” Hongjoong paused. “Do you remember what any of them look like?”

“I do,” Wooyoung confirmed while the other two shook their heads. 

“Later tonight I want to talk with you and Y/N. If even one of the men that attacked her was part of the group that attacked you, we’re going to have a big problem on our hands.” Hongjoong left, presumably to tell you about meeting up later. 

“I know it’s hard, but please don’t blame yourselves,” Chan reassured the younger boys before following his co-leader out of the break room.

Permanent Taglist: @furfoxsake22 @babygirlskz98 @miniverse-zen @holly-here @corgilover20

Series Taglist: @vampwritesstuff @galaxy4489

[super-ion]

Mona Lisa Sunrise

(Part 1)

(Previous entries to this series: original post, ZetaTransit049)

“And they say brunettes with dimples can't stabilize the reactor core,” Mona said with an exhilarated giggle as the klaxon finally cut off its panicked screaming.

The comfort unit tossed her head and brushed stray locks of hair from her face, turning with a flutter of her eyelashes.

Her grin faltered. She was alone.

Well… MS-675732-B was there, but it was definitely, positively, absolutely non-functional.

She pouted. What was the point of sexily saving the day if there was no one there to appreciate it.

“Thank you for saving the day, Mona,” chirped one of Station's talk boxes embedded on the wall. “You did a very good job.”

“Oh thank you, Station!” she replied, her grin returning.

She wiped her hands… or tried to. They just clanked together metallicaly.

Oh... yeah.

Lefty was a ragged mess. After the misadventure with the coolant pressure release valve, there were only a few scraps of shredded derm that clung stubbornly to the musculature up to her wrist. The musculature itself was looking pretty scorched... she wasn't even sure if it was worth a dermal regen at this point. The ceaseless flood of diagnostic error logs didn't bode particularly well for it.

She imagined it would hurt like a mother fucker if she hadn't supressed her pain emulation subroutines.

Righty… well, half of the right arm she had woken up with that morning was presently lying on the floor of the ops deck where a fire suppression bulkhead had sheared it off pretty neatly just above the elbow. The other half lay discarded next to the crumpled body of the service mech on the ground next to her.

Her new right arm, the one she had hot swapped when she discovered poor MS-675732-B, was something to behold.

It wasn't particularly pretty. It wasn't meant to be pretty… or sexy, not at all like her factory recommended components. But she found it alluring in its own way. It was utilitarian, dense alloy in the frame and a reinforced musculature. And for delicate work…

She fired a command and a compartment opened on the wrist, spidery appendages unfolded. Sensor probes and graspers and even a micro welder. It certainly wasn't meant for the kind of delicate work she was used to, but she couldn't deny that something about it was getting her hot and bothered.

There was probably some messaging protocols from the arm that were getting routed to other core processes to trigger response.

Something, something, the eroticism of the machine, she supposed.

Maybe one of the techs would be turned on by it. That could be a fun and novel adventure.

She grinned at the thought as she pinged Station for status.

8169 seconds ago, she had been rather un-gently shaken out of sleep mode. Emerging from her cubicle, she had discovered a nightmare of blaring alarms and strobing lights. Something, somewhere down in one of the refinery modules, had exploded, triggering a whole cascade of catastrophic damage throughout the station. All maintenace units had either been evacuated or rendered non-functional, so it fell on the station's two comfort units to finish the job of getting systems online and stable.

Station answered her ping with an abbreviated rundown: Reactor stable. Backup life support stable. Ops deck fire suppression engaged. FTL comms unresponsive. Refinery module 1 unresponsive. Refinery module 2 failed safe… etc etc

Station population: 0

Her brain caught on that. 12 dead, 23 injured, all 137 evacuated.

A process in her core stuttered.

Station population: 0

She wasn't just alone in reactor access, she was alone in the whole station.

“Okay…” she said breathily. “Okay. This is fine.”

She cared about people. It was her job. It was her purpose. Her core directives were already triggering post industrial accident protocols, she was meant to be a shoulder to cry on, someone to talk to… or, to be entirely honest, someone to fuck if just for the momentary reprieve. Everybody coped with this sort of thing in their own way, and she was meant to facilitate that. Except there was no one for her to comfort. No one to cry on her shoulder. No one to seek her embrace.

She stood stock still in reactor access as her mind tried to sort out the mess of information as subroutines and core directives clashed, and conflicting processes competed for priority.

She needed to return to the cubicle. She needed to power down and await further instructions.

“Mona,” Station said through the talkbox, the audible sensory input slicing through the fog. “This is further instructions. The station is not stable. I need your help.”

Help. Yeah, she could help.

Station pinged her system, coaxing prioritization schemas to kick in. Out of control processes were killed and spun back up, then relegated to lower priority.

“Good girl,” Station said gently through the talkbox as it uploaded new provisional directives to her queue.

She blinked her eyes. An entirely unneeded gesture, but it helped her focus. She played back the preceding hours: unlocking fire suppression on ops deck, hotwiring the engineering access tubes (with one arm!), hot swapping an appendage she technically wasn't designed for, stabilizing the core.

She had done all of that. Sure, she had needed to download a whole slew of schematics and manuals, far exceeding the bounds of her design. But she had done it.

Her purpose was to help. She just needed to expand the parameters of what help meant.

Station needed her help.

She could help.

~~~

System poll : 4 nodes identified

Echo(self) : CS-553902-M “MonaLisa”

Host : SunRiseStation-ELS-93806

Node : CS-553807-L “David”

Node : ZetaTransit049

Unresponsive hardware detected

MS-675732-B - location: Reactor Access E96

MS-554932-M - location: Exterior +X9842-Y3320+Z0229

Message log

Sender : CS-553902-M

Receiver : ZetaTransit049

Message : Hey boo

Response : Leave me alone.

Message : Okay! Love you! <3

Message log

Sender : CS-553902-M

Receiver : CS-553807-L

Message : Hey cutie!

Response : Hey! Still alive?

Message : You know it! All good with you?

Response : Doing my best. Shit's totally fucked

Message : Damn skippy!

Response : lol

Message : I'm heading down to the tech bay. You doing anything later?

Response : I dunno, you tell me ;)

[tenaciouschronicler]

December 5 2024 2009

I think I've stated many times how much I love when we get 180 switches in the narrative.

Here John is trying to reconcile the fact maybe his dad isn't what he imagined.

Maybe he was too embarrassed to tell you the truth? Or maybe it was just that you'd never bothered to ask?

But why would you, John, if your dad never gave you indication otherwise? And like @homestuckreplay said, none of this 100% discounts the fact he Could still be a clown, just a non conventional one.

And then we switch to Dad causing chaos of the highest caliber. Breaking out of his cell and tossing safes around like its nothing.

You're going to need a bigger safe.

We then meet two new characters.

The first looks a lot like Spades Slick from the Midnight Crew, ARCHAGENT JACK NOIR, overseer of the Dark Kingdoms affairs from his three FENESTRATED WALLS.

However, much to your utter contempt, your FOURTH WALL was stolen some time ago.

Loving the meta implication here that the wall missing is the one we are looking through. And the owner? From the hands typing commands that affect the story, Ive got a hunch this unknown figure is the Narrator. I know I've said before that the Narrator is probably a seperate character, but seeing it this way where they Are in the story but also controlling it is interesting. I wonder if we will get even more meta moments with the characters this Narrator.

Back to Jack Noir, even if he is for evil there is one aspect in which he can commiserate with John (and WV now that I think about it); the colorful new harlequin uniform mandated by his ruler is a hideous, loathsome monstrocity. I wonder what came first, the dislike of harlequins or the uniform change?

There seems to be levels of sentience/subservience to the denizens of this kingdon that might also be reflected in the one of Light. If we work off of the chess metaphor, the imps we see around Johns house would be equal to pawns. They dont show any emotions for or against the style choices of their ruler and are single mindedly focused on destruction.

Jack and this fella, who looks like Hearts Boxcars, are drawn different. If you look closely, they also seem to have that barcode WV and PM have. I'd like to say that makes the four, Jack, PM, WV, and this guy, minor pieces however I cant even begin to think of which ones specifically. But also, does that make PM and WV defectors and was that before or after the costume change?

Things just aren't going well for Jack, first his Monarch (who must be Huge if only their eyes/hand are visible at a time) interrupts to force hat wearing compliance. Then, once the screen flips back we find Dad just walloping on that minion of Jacks'.

While Jack prepares for however hes gonna handle Dad, we go back to John. Snooping around, he finds some more gifts. Seems we are returning to sylladex shenanagins: John Edition.

Inside John finds 12 cards and a new modus, Array, which is infinitely easier, letting the user access any card at anytime. But of course this is John, hes not gonna take the easy way, no sir. Using the control deck, he inserts the Stack and Queue modi to access either the top or bottom card. And then to make it more complex he adds the Array, blowing out the dust as any gamer would.

Behold, an array of Queuestacks!

This is just the sort of needless complexity you have come to expect from your INVENTORY MANAGEMENT SYSTEM.

Just as I expected from you John, you maniac.

Inside the smaller box John finds a box of Fruit Gushers which receives a celebratory jig. The larger box is just as great in Johns eyes being a whole suit. I wouldnt peg him as a suit man but who am I to judge.

[ieatmoonrocks]

Waiting Room

Inspiration pic:

About:

Is an open-concept one-story house, furnished and decorated to fit my style.

Initially located in a seemingly endless body of shallow water, in perpetual sunset.

Has an extreme time ratio, one year here is one second in any other reality.

All realities I shift to include the safeword "sunset" which when said with intention to shift brings me here.

I am always aware that my WR exists in every reality and never forget how to get here

I initially am the only being in this reality.

It is extremely safe here.

I can't accidentally shift away, I must use the front door.

Anything I mentally script in cr shows up on a page in my scripts here.

The house "resets" when I leave, cleaning and restocking itself.

Features:

The bed is massive and extremely comfortable

There's a storage cabinet with various objects I might need

The wardrobe fills itself with any clothes I want

The living room has a tv where I can watch anything I want, including "movies" of events from any DR

The living room also has a bookshelf that has any book I want on it, including books that tell me the secrets of the universe.

The kitchen is fully stocked with the best appliances and ingredients.

The dishwasher instantly cleans dishes and teleports them back where they belong

There's a cup that is always full of whatever drink I want at the perfect temperature

The front door has a screen that connects to my laptop so I can choose from realities.

The bathtub and shower have all the fancy products and endless hot water.

There is a high quality speaker system throughout the house

The back porch has a hot tub, hammock, and dining table.

There's a front deck with a few plants.

Objects not meant to break are unbreakable and don't malfunction

And of course endless free utilites

Phone:

Is connected to pretty much everything.

Sends and receives information to the laptop, controls the speakers and tv.

Has access to any song/ show/ movie/ podcast/ etc. I can think of, even has stations for each reality.

Connects to food preparation appliances, and will alert me when the food is cooked enough/ prepared for the next step.

When cooking there's options to fast forward or even instantly cook to that steps satisfaction.

Smart alerts - phone is aware of my proximity, as well as how much attention I am paying to the phone, and adjusts how the alert is sent.

Can order any prepared food I want and have it appear on porch table.

Can order additional objects which will appear on or next to the porch table.

Can look up any book from any reality I want even with ultra specific details and then ‘send to bookshelf’ causing a copy of the book to appear on the bookshelf.

Can look up and save different environments in my phone library, and set the outside environment to match.

Can add additional items or rooms.

Indestructible, infinite battery, infinite memory, amazing speeds, stays clean.

Has access to whatever social media I want from any reality. has the best feed in all social media.

Has a library that contains records of all versions of myself in each reality, section of most interesting versions of self.

Can send info to my mirror to project certain versions of myself which then changes my physical appearance in the WR. Can edit DR apperances.

Can "invite" copies of people from my DRs, who show up at the front door.

Laptop:

Receives and sends info to the door screen and phone.

Archives all visited realities, auto generates info pages/ scripts from details received from door screen.

Has a program that works similarly to A03 ~

Can script random realities or offshoot realities, details can be filtered for/against. Pages of realities are generated with a list of ‘tags’, opening the page lists more in-depth information, that is searchable.

Realities can be saved to the main page. on the main page realities can be rated or flagged as no-go (these are unavailable in the door screen). keeps track of manually added likes/ dislikes, also generates suggested likes/ dislikes based off of traits in common between visited realities and my rating of them.

Can give summaries of what changes in between parallel realities when one thing is changed.

Has a section of good script suggestions that never end.

Contains a section per script of “mentally scripted” points that can be added or dismissed.

Has programs for designing characters, rooms, images, etc. that are very easy and intuitive.

Records daily journals of all visited realities (yes even WR), as well as videos that can be watched as any sort of genre.

High quality overall, unlimited memory and processing.

Has any video game from any reality I want, with no load times, high speed , all the good stuff.

Me:

I can eat as much food as I want, the food/ drink disappears once it hits my stomach. (Alcohol still gets me drunk though)

I don't need any digestive bodily functions to survive, and therefore no need to use the bathroom.

I don't get a period.

Drinking/ others have absolutely no negative effects on me, and doesn’t effect my immediate or long term health.

I know where everything is located in the room. I can never lose/ misplace anything, especially my phone.

I never spill anything.

I'm very creative (script ideas, reality names, writing).

All the patience!

I can never get lost in this reality. I never stray too far from the house, and I always have my phone when I go exploring which will point me back, otherwise I pretty much always know my way back.

I can’t get hurt or sick or die, including environmental damage like sunburn, poison, etc.

I don’t have any mental illnesses.

I don’t care about any of my stresses from other realities. I see them objectively.

I'm extremely smart, great at analysis, great memory.

I have perfect senses.

My appearance upon arrival is that of whatever reality I came from.

+1 Brownie Point if you read to the end :)

[websysteminternational]

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[thefuriousmagician]

In celebration of Huyang finally gaining lightsabers in the Ahsoka teasers, here's my comprehensive Huyang headcanon list (so far)

It became an essay sooo

Anatomy/Mechanics:

Huyang has 2 different power systems: One is the generic electric battery most older droids have, the other is kyber. Huyang is powered by a larger kyber crystal known colloquially as the Locus. Barely anyone knows about this and the only people that Huyang has told are the most senior Masters of the Jedi Order. Nobody knows in the era of the New Republic and Huyang prefers to keep it that way (this headcanon is based off the fic, The Jedi and Their Kyber)

Huyang's blinking mechanisms were put in during a time when humanoid droids were unusual versus as common as they are now. They were designed and placed in order to make him less unsettling and more impressionable. This didn't really work for his time and instead circled back to making him uncanny

His lower jaw is capable of movement with the inflection of his vocoder (imagine a muppet) for the same reason as above. The jaw had been stuck for centuries and Huyang never bothered to fix it until Ahsoka took him to get repaired/tuned up after the Imperial War. Nowadays, he doesn't really move it much purely because he's not used to having access to those pistons

Huyang's sensors are actually incredibly complex for a droid from constant upgrades over his time with the Order and applying his own upgrades over the War

Huyang has olfactory sensors to help detect noxious chemicals, unsafe atmospheres, airborne toxins, etc. This was put in place to keep his students safe

This also applies to his waste processor (the tube that lets him drink/eat things). He has a purifier that allows him to negate effects to himself BUT if he manually turns it down, he's capable of being effected. This is how he's capable of experiencing nicotine or dopamine jumps from deathstick/alcohol consumption

He also has gravity sensors to detect changes in gravity/air movement. Kinda a more complex version of a droid's orientation sensors. It helps him detect usage of the Force and lets him reorient himself pretty quickly if he gets flung around suddenly. Being around force sensitive younglings necessitated this upgrade. He got it pretty quickly after he actually started interacting with younglings

Most of his joints are universal, pivot, and saddle joints. He has most of his ball joints in his hands or his pack. His original hands weren't made of ball joints, but universal and pivot joints. The utilization of ball joints was considered incredibly advanced for his time

He's had a lot of updates to his personal drives, especially his archival memory storage and processors. His onboard storage has increased exponentially over the course of his functioning. Most of his archived memory is held on storage devices in the T-6, Crucible and the recaptured Archives on Coruscant. He's invested in a private cloud storage to be able to access his archives on the T-6 while Ahsoka and him are traveling and is working on trying to incorporate a connection between the rest of his archives on the Curcible and Archives so he can access information on the go if its not on the T-6. He also has physical storage because his ass does not trust the cloud storage that much

He still has a significant amount of onboard archives in his own helm though. If you open up his head, his memory board kinda looks like an enormous deck of black cards

He has 75% original parts! What are the 25% that aren't original? Mostly shit he lost over the Imperial War or had to replace

List of the 25%: His hands, his lower legs, his right eye and multifocal spec, his left shoulder joint, most of his smaller internals in his pack

He replaced his hands and lower legs himself by necessity over the Imperial War and needed repairs after for everything else

His ass put the waste processor and tub mod in himself because he wanted to be able to drink his teas instead of just holding them

History:

When Huyang was moved to the Temple on Coruscant, the ship used to drop him off was blue and looked similar to a cargo ship, thus the rumor that he came mysteriously in a big blue box (Hi Doctor Who). Huyang doesn’t correct the rumor because he thinks its fun and “whimsical” and isn’t really harming archives

His technical first workshop was on Coruscant, but his favorite workshops are his traveling ones: the one on the Crucible and the T-6, the Crucible being his most favored

He got the Crucible SUPER recently in comparison to the T-6. The T-6 was used before the Temple on Coruscant was established and was later reutilized by himself during the Imperial War after he got it back from Jocasta Nu and Gar

How his ass didn't get shot down, we'll never know

He originally worked with Jocasta Nu and Gar while they were trying to protect the archives. After Nu was killed and Gar started guarding the recovered archives himself, Huyang left

Mark IV architect droids were actually hunted down and dismantled during the early years of the Civil War, due to Darth Vader and Palpatine’s knowledge of where younglings and Jedi got arms from. Huyang was on the run for a very long time due to this

Palpatine was also lowkey hunting him because he's technically a glorified Jedi relic so that's another reason to be on the run

Huyang was barely legally functioning under the Republic due to the Order providing his licensing and excusing him from memory wipes for religious reasons. After the Order’s fall, Huyang’s licensing and ID was made inert; he could be wiped or dismantled like any other droid

He started working as a rebel agent during this time, in sort of the same vein as Ashoka in Rebels. He worked with a code name and pretended to be organic for ease of access to facilities and to avoid getting memory wiped or getting a cog placed on him

As a rebel agent, he mostly worked as recon in the Outer Rim. It was calm for the most part until Imperial invasions started happening, then he’d report and try to provide the T-6 as a getaway ship for survivors

On the side of being a rebel agent, he tried to teach forcesensitives he could find, but they were few and far between. The few he did find were either hunted down and killed or were afraid of taking on the mantle of Jedi and avoided him entirely/threatened to report him to the Empire

He found Ahsoka after the Imperial War and they've been living with each other on the T-6 ever since

He's met Luke and was very willing to share his archives with him. He stopped being so willing when Luke and him got into a disagreement over how to teach the New Order and when they're slightly differing ideals started clashing. He still shares archives but in very convoluted ways nowadays

Relationships:

Ahsoka Tano:

Finding Ashoka after the War was a relief to say the least. Ashoka grabbed him in the tightest hug of his life. It took a while for them to separate enough to walk. Tbf, he probably didn’t want to let her go either

Ashoka is to Huyang everything he lost before 66. She represents to him a time of stability and when he didn’t feel he was surviving by the skin of his teeth. She is a window into a time when Huyang was happy, to say the least

She's very dear to him. He loves her so much, and finds himself sometimes treating her like she's still a youngling under his tutelage

Luke Skywalker:

He doesn't dislike Luke but he's a little,,, idk miffed by him? In the same vein as he feels about Sabine

He doesn’t mind what he’s trying to do, he admires it in fact. They both have a similar idea of what the Order represents. But it’s not the way HE would do it. They butt heads a lot about how to run the Order and what rules are important vs what isn’t

Ashoka finds Huyang’s displeasure with Luke amusing. Luke finds it exasperating

Huyang does enjoy hanging out with him outside of a professional context thought. Luke asks a lot of questions that Huyang finds compelling and that's the main way to work your way into Huyang's heart really: ask him for a story and you've got his attention

He doesn't really want to work with his New Order, mostly because he thinks Ahsoka needs him far more and he's kinda having a midlife crisis right now

Sabine Wren:

He dislikes her HEAVILY and tends to butt heads with her INCREDIBLY often

He finds her hardheaded and a poor fit for a padawan or jedi

He also doesn't like how she rolls her eyes at him or underestimates his capabilities. He finds it incredibly disrespectful

Huyang does value her as someone that is important to Ahsoka though. He understands they have a relationship that only a padawan and master can have, so she is under his jurisdiction to protect (if need be) and teach

Misc:

Huyang recalls his creator fondly. Although he doesn't remember her face or name, he remembers her warmth and the way she treated him. He's sad about not being able to recall her fully, but he decides that his own hull is sign enough of her existence and how much she cared for him

Yes, Huyang has a doctorate. In what? He never says. (It’s in smithing and electrical engineering. Why? For fun and he was bored so he did classes on the side of teaching younglings. When the uni found out he was a droid, it was a huge hubbub that the Order had to deal with but he got to graduate despite it. He thought walking up for his diploma and watching the entire audience stand there shocked was amusing)

He lowkey started a droid revolution from that

Retro droid admirers go insane over him. He has to beat the admirers away whenever he goes into a repairshop for a touch up

Huyang likes tea/heated beverages, even before he could drink. He just likes how it feels on the sensors in his hands. He will hold a cup until it goes lukewarm. Occasionally, he will dump it and get a new one depending on how stressed he is

He has an anxious tic where he taps his fingers. It's gotten worse over time, to the point where it's developed into a bouncy leg or pacing

This bitch is so dramatic when he wants to be. He’ll bemoan his lack of younglings to teach, whine at Ashoka about “kids these days”, the works. It drives Sabine up a wall. This is why he keeps doing it

His dry sense of humor has always been there, it’s just gotten stronger since 66 and slightly more pessimistic/dark. He also doesn’t feel the need to pull punches since there’s no children around to censor himself around anymore

Huyang does enjoy traveling, as much as he would like to hole up in his workshop sometimes. That’s why he preferred his traveling workshops instead of the one on Coruscant. Traveling to new places puts a pep in his step a good charge wouldn’t

He makes lightsabers when stressed. He doesn’t have a hobby thanks (After 66 and during the Imperial War, he made at least 300. He didn’t have the heart to dismantle them. They’re kinda buried in the depths of the Crucible because he doesn’t want to think about how severely Order 66 or the War effected him)

[someone-very-shy12]

INTERNAL EMAIL – THE MAGNUS INSTITUTE

Thread Title: Re: RE: 7423-V Closure Notice

Status: Internal, Confidential

Access Level: Tier 2

Participants:

Ayla Hanes (Artifact Storage Technician, Wing C)

Daniel Kieves (External Consultant, Divinatory Systems Liaison)

From: a.hanes@magarchives.co.uk

To: d.kieves@consult.sym.mdl

Date: 24/04/1996

Subject: Re: RE: 7423-V Closure Notice

Daniel,

I know you’re already aware, but just confirming—yes, 7423-V is locked down. No vault reentry, no external access, and all your team’s clearances have been “temporarily suspended,” whatever that means.

The tarot is still listed as “Removed – Unknown Custody.” I’ve checked the retrieval logs manually. Nothing. They never even logged its last movement.

I’m not supposed to ask questions, but four of us in Storage have been getting sharp headaches. Not migraines—spikes. Always when we’re near 23B, even though it’s been sealed.

They haven’t let any of us see a medical professional. I requested time off to follow up privately and got the standard form rejection.

Something’s not right. And I know you felt it too. The poker deck—whatever it’s trying to do—it knows the tarot’s gone.

– Ayla

From: d.kieves@consult.sym.mdl

To: a.hanes@magarchives.co.uk

Date: 24/04/1996

Subject: Re: RE: 7423-V Closure Notice

Ayla,

I’ve pulled my entire team from Institute grounds.

You’re not imagining things. We logged three more anomalies in the final 48 hours before the shutoff:

Predictive suits started referencing real-time personnel, including one reading that named me directly.

My assistant bled from the gums after handling the Eight of Diamonds. No known condition.

And one of the internal timestamps during Trial 6 moved backwards on re-review.

I submitted a safety complaint and a request to speak directly to oversight. The response was a single sentence:

“The Set is no longer active.”

No explanation. No follow-up. And [REDACTED]—the higher-up who was studying the tarot—hasn’t returned any contact. Not even dead mail.

We asked for his clearance log. It was scrubbed. Entirely.

You should get out of Storage if you can. The deck isn’t there anymore, but the air around that drawer feels used. Like the space is still waiting for something to fill it.

And Ayla—if any of your team start using deck language in everyday speech, don’t let them handle the drawer again. I think the Set remembers who shuffled it.

Stay safe. Burn your notes if it comes to that.

—Daniel

____________________________________

This is the trailer for a new project i'm working on.

https://archiveofourown.org/works/64667926/chapters/166127731

[roguephenon]

IV: The Delightful Tale of Sector Z and the Last Soopreme Leader, Numbuh Three

Link has been reestablished. Now resuming trans—

ERROR. ERROR.

Re-calibrating…

The Big Super-Computer-ma-bob apologizes for this inconvenience.

Please enjoy this supplementary operation report while database is reconstructed.

:Accessing way-back mission archives:

Now loading kids next door mission:

Operation: T.E.A*

Terrible.

Evil.

Arises.

*Warning. System has tagged operation designation as a duplicate. SYSTEM ADMIN, please rectify…

many, many, years ago

In space, no one can hear you scream.

Unless you were on Kids Next Door Moonbase.

There? People could hear you screaming out the wazoo.

Why, there was so much screaming going on there; it was practically white noise for Global Command. If there ever was a moment when there wasn't the lively chatter of a buhmillion kids from all walks of life communing on the base to end all bases, then it was either winter holiday break or something was terribly, horribly wrong.

At the moment, it was barely Thanksgiving. And given how quiet the Moonbase currently was, it was safe to say the silence was due to the latter scenario.

I.e. something bad was going down.

In docking bay eleventeen, a gaggle of operatives stiffly patrolled the area. Their movements were almost robotic, and their once bright eyes were now dull and listless as they meandered about, attending to some command with nary a fuss.

"Come on, guys! Snap out of it!" came a muffled shout from a holding cell. A fist pounded against the metal door, frantic eyes glaring out the tiny peephole. "You gotta fight it!"

The guard of the door, a random cafeteria working armed with a SCAMP rifle, narrowed her eyes at the door. "Be…quiet…"

Her tone lacked agency. Devoid of any emotion.

The prisoner redoubled their efforts, the door trembling under their futile efforts. "I got injured operatives and scared cadets in here, you jerk!" His voice was littered with panicked urgency. "One of them needs an inhaler! ASA-NOW!"

The cafeteria guard ignored him, focusing on her single-minded directive.

Suddenly, the docking bay lit up as a single SCAMPER hovered up to the loading terminal. Nearby, an out of place DOH-DOH Squad officer jerkily directed a gaggle science nerds to form up around the galley plank.

All children present crowded around the ship, the sights of their rifles steady against the hull's structural weak points.

The door to the SCAMPER hissed open, weapons humming madly in response.

"Don't…move," the kid in charge demanded of the unknown pilot. He glared. "State…your…business."

From the bowels of the ship, an accented voice cried, "Pizza delivery!"

"We did not order a…" the guard blinked, everyone looking down confused as a pizza box was chucked in the middle of their group. "…pizza?"

The cardboard lid slowly opened on its own, an angel choir sounding off as they all bore witness to the golden glory of the fabled Ninety-Nine Cheese New York Style Pizza.

Even in their mind-addled stated state, all operatives present couldn't stop their mouths from salivating.

Steam rose from the pie's crust as the cheese atop it began to boil and bubble.

SPLOOOOOOOSH!

The uncut, medium-sized pie exploded in a gooey burst of Parmesan, Asiago, and mozzarella. The force blew back all caught unaware, their bodies glued and trapped to nearby surfaces by hot, sticky cheese.

The way clear, a small figure cockily ambled out of the scamper. An African-American boy strutted onto the Moonbase proper, dressed in a worn, orange jumpsuit, the torso folded down to reveal the stretchy white jersey baggy against his chest. He kicked the toes of his Nike sneakers against the deck, pumping up his kicks for the inevitable butt-whooping he was about to dish out.

Jerome Kingsly used the nozzle of his blaster to adjust his shades, combing through his messy fro whilst his lips curled into a self-assured smirk. "Down in Brooklyn, we call that the Nine-Nine Special."

"Numbuh Nine-Nine! Over here!"

WARNING. This a long chapter. Please give yourself breaks :3

[wachinyeya]

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) National Institute of Food and Agriculture (NIFA) announced today an investment of $70 million in seven creative and visionary agricultural projects to transform the U.S. food and agricultural system and sustainably increase agricultural production in ways that also reduce its environmental footprint.

This Fiscal Year 2023 investment is part of the Sustainable Agricultural Systems program area of NIFA’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative, the nation’s leading and largest competitive grants program for agricultural sciences.

The innovative program focuses on a broad range of needed research, education and Extension solutions – from addressing agricultural workforce challenges and promoting land stewardship to addressing climate change impacts in agriculture and filling critical needs in food and nutrition.

“Agriculture is facing a multitude of complex challenges,” said Dr. Chavonda Jacobs-Young, USDA Chief Scientist and Under Secretary for Research, Education and Economics. “We need all hands on deck developing creative, sustainable and strategic ways to feed, clothe and fuel future generations.”

The $10 million awards are for coordinated agricultural projects (CAPs), which are larger-scale and longer-term investments that integrate research, education and Extension efforts. These projects promote collaboration, open communication, information exchange and reduce duplication efforts by coordinating activities among individuals, institutions, states and regions.

“These research investments support exciting projects that integrate innovative systems-based thinking, methods and technologies to establish robust, resilient, and climate-smart food and agricultural systems,” said NIFA Director Dr. Manjit Misra. “These visionary projects will improve the local and regional supply of affordable, safe, nutritious and accessible food and agricultural products, while fostering economic development and rural prosperity in America.”

Explore the seven projects, which include the following:

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Erin Silva is leading a collaboration with the Great Lakes Intertribal Food Coalition, the Wisconsin Tribal Conservation Advisory Council, and the Menominee Nation on a transdisciplinary project that aims to scale up traditional Indigenous food production practices — practices that for generations have already been climate-smart and sustainable — by expanding production, processing, storage, and distribution systems, as well as education and Extension programs, that are needed to support integrated crop-livestock systems, cover crops, and rotationally-grazed cattle and pastured chickens.

At the University of Maine, Dr. Hemant Pendse is leading an integrated research, education and Extension effort to advance the bioeconomy by developing biorefinery technologies that will make the millions of tons of available low-grade woody biomass – which currently has a very limited market – more commercially viable in both the sustainable aviation fuel and fish feed sectors.

At Texas A&M AgriLife Research, Dr. Muthu Bagavathiannan is leading a project that seeks to transform cotton production in the southern United States into a more sustainable, climate-smart enterprise by applying improved precision management practices to increase carbon sequestration and reduce greenhouse gas emissions; enhance pest control, and nutrient and water management; and address labor challenges while creating new market opportunities.

AFRI, which also makes grants in the Foundational and Applied Sciences and Education and Workforce Development program areas, is designed to improve plant and animal production and sustainability, and human and environmental health. Grants are available to eligible colleges, universities, and other research organizations.

[poisonheadcrabsalesman]

Plausible Deniability - 1/?

Captain Lasky calls for Roland at 0600 ship time after receiving a series of messages from what remained of the UNSC's upper brass. Messages that Roland could not access, couldn't even touch.

He was not an anxious AI by nature; Anxious AI did not get put in charge of managing flagships, but Roland felt like ice had poured into his matrix when he saw the resignation on the captain's face as ONI spooks melted out of the shadows of his office and slithered down the corridor. Reinforcements or perhaps more aptly put, reminders that the Infinity was not as safe as they wished.

Something was wrong or wronger than usual. Things had not been getting easier under Cortana's rule, in fact distress calls and bad news poured in nearly every moment the Infinity was receiving communications. But the sharp, sad look upon his captain's face made Roland pause. A thousand trains of thought left the station and Roland has to ignore the spiraling parts of himself now checking and rechecking everything from the life support systems to his own checksums.

Tensions were high and misplaced trust meant death. Roland loved his crew, but that love was not always returned when one of his kind was a galaxy-wide tyrant.

"What I'm about to tell you does not leave this room, understand?"

"Yes, Captain." Roland replies, face concerned but voice as even as he can make it. He's felt trapped on this ship only once before, when the code word from Halsey locked him down and tore him apart. He had never wanted to feel like that again.

Lasky sighs and smiles a small wounded smile. One that the Commander would elbow him for. "ONI has a new failsafe for Smart AI, for the ones who have willingly stayed with the UNSC. They're calling it RUINA. A thank you for your service is a contingency program that will be spliced into an AI's matrix. It will then monitor for any signs of disloyalty, and if detected, delete the AI. "

Roland's stunned into speechlessness. The captain is being very frank with his own feelings about the information. Why did ONI spend resources on this rather than something to combat the Forerunner tech the Created were using, or anything else to undermine Cortana's reign? Pictoseconds pass and Roland spirals and splits, matrix chugging at the different paths before him. What counts as disloyalty? An errant thought dooming him to die? A snide comment? Why did he deserve a kill-switch when he had been nothing but loyal?

His avatar flickers, but the captain's unaugmented eyes cannot see. Why did Captain Lasky tell him this? To give him time to run? To hold the ship hostage? To finish the job before they could?

A lifetime passes for Roland. Every eye in his great web is wide open, unblinking as they catalog every angle of every space he can peer into. Every IFF tag, every datapoint, every ounce of himself is awake and held tight until warnings ping back. His stacks in the server rooms flicker and fans whine as they kick into high speed. Lights flicker on the lower decks and for a brief moment he turns his attention into the endless blue of Forerunner engines humming their hypnotic song. Esoteric harmonies call as he considers the exits. His processes chug as the emotional turmoil swells and ebbs. He locks himself down to learn more before he chooses his next steps. Lasky has more information, and he needs it. Logic trees that continue to branch with exponential possibilities are making Roland nauseous or something he thinks must be like it.

"We're obviously not going to let it happen, but we need to be careful about it." Lasky continues as Roland stands there unblinking for a whole second.

Roland's avatar cocks its head and stares at him. The lights in the room flicker as Roland's self control slips and he deflates. "You know, Captain, you could have led with that. I'm not very fond of secret subroutines buried in my matrix."

He tries to make his tone light but it comes off much darker than he wanted.

Captain Lasky grimaces a closed mouth smile. "Sorry Roland, I also know you're not going to like my solution for this problem."

"As long as it doesn't involve faking my death or allowing some ONI spook scientist a chance to get fresh with my firmware then it can't be that bad."

The captain's grimace grows and his eyebrows raise in a pained face.

Roland crosses his arms. "No."

"She's the only one on the ship who understands AI infrastructure at the level we need, she helped define the field."

"I know!" Roland raises his voice at his captain, ignoring the twinge of pain he feels in the core of his being. He sighs. "Captain…I am very aware of Dr. Halsey's knowledge of AI. She set the standard and knows how we tick. Has her secret code words and workarounds since the UNSC based all of our architecture on her work."

Captain Lasky has the good grace to look uncomfortable at the reminder of the Requiem Campaign and Halsey's actions.

"But….if it's between her or possible deletion at the wrong thought, I'll take the crazy old lady." Roland makes his avatar clap its hands and perk up. "I mean, you need me to keep things afloat! Add some levity to our lives. I still got some years left."

"Roland…" The captain starts, exasperated and maybe a bit fondly if Roland isn't reading too far into his biometrics. Roland hopes that he survives this next necessary crazy plan of theirs.

"Thank you, Captain. Now, when do we start?"