#stable and rapid method

[blythesarchives]

Sugar Plums. | W.S

summary: The soldier has an attachment to you.

warnings: Suggestive 18+ MDNI & Fluff | Fem!reader | Winter Soldier!Bucky | Brief mentions of PTSD | Brief talk of HYDRA | Heavy petting | Love biting/hickeys

a/n: This came to me randomly but thought it was cute and somewhat spicy. I added some fluff to balance it all out and tried to keep the sexy scenes sweet too. I see so many fics of him being super aggressive in bed and those are great, but for me I think he'd be a little more like this. Takes place after the events of CA:TWS. Contains roughly translated Russian, native speakers can correct me if anything was translated wrong. Ty. ;; wc: 5.5k

It was so awkward.

Everyone sat frozen in place, their eyes locked on the imposing figure of the Winter Soldier as he towered behind you, his piercing blue eyes methodically scanning the room and studying each occupant with an intensity that made them shift uncomfortably in their seats.

"Absolutely not!" Tony was the first to break the suffocating silence, his voice sharp and decisive as he beat Steve to speaking by a mere second. There was absolutely no way he would even consider allowing the fist of HYDRA to take up residence in his tower, treating him like he was nothing more than some lost stray that needed sheltering. "He's not staying here, no way in hell - this isn't a halfway house for reformed assassins."

"Tony, come on. HYDRA is gone, their control over him is broken," you reasoned desperately, your voice taking on a pleading tone as you gestured toward the silent figure behind you, "He's been surviving on his own for weeks, barely getting by. Just look at him...he's exhausted, malnourished, and clearly needs somewhere safe to stay and recover."

"Uh, how about no?" Tony fired back, staring at you like you had grown a second head...or like you had a towering sleeper soldier looming behind you.

Tony wasn't your favorite person in the world, but he was usually somewhat reasonable.

"There's absolutely no way that he's staying here. Have you completely lost your mind? What if he suddenly snaps or loses control and goes completely berserk, hm? What if one night those sleeper triggers buried in his brain suddenly activate and he systematically takes us out one by one in our sleep?" Tony added emphatically, his hands gesturing wildly in the air as he attempted to visualize the gruesome scenarios playing out in his mind.

"Your state-of-the-art security cameras can't give us a heads up before that happens?" You asked with dry sarcasm, your tone deliberately flat and unimpressed, clearly making a joke while you tried to find some kind of middle ground that would get the agitated, self-proclaimed playboy to calm down and think rationally.

"No chance in hell, sweet cheeks," he folded his arms and glared at you with sternness that etched across his features. "Too dangerous."

"He's staying, whether you like it or not," you replied in the same unwavering tone, standing your ground with resolute conviction. "He's hurt, weak, completely vulnerable. There's absolutely nothing he could possibly do in this state. He needs somewhere warm and safe to stay, especially since he's been struggling to survive out on the streets for weeks now. Besides, winter is coming fast and there’s no way he won’t get hypothermia or something." You added with concern, knowing full well that while the soldier hadn't been entirely helpless during his ordeal, he certainly hadn't managed to secure any kind of stable shelter.

His temporary refuges consisted only of cold spaces beneath bridges, dark corners tucked away in forgotten alleys, or the remains of abandoned buildings - not a single place where he could truly let his guard down or feel protected from the harsh elements. With winter's rapid approach and already light dustings of snow, the temperatures would only get more brutal as the nights went on.

You continued to argue with Tony, Steve butting in every so often, luckily siding with you, desperate to have his old friend somewhere safe. It was a long, frustrating argument that lasted much longer than need be.

Earlier that day, while you had been making your way down the frost-covered street of New York's downtown district, his eyes had caught sight of your familiar form. Something deep within him told him to follow you, a magnetic pull that he couldn't explain. He obeyed the instinct, trailing silently behind you all the way back to the tower. When you finally became aware of his presence, he was thoroughly drenched from the steadily falling snow, his cheeks and nose having turned a bright, rosy color from the biting cold as he tried to suppress his constant shivering.

The moment you made your sudden turn to approach him, he visibly startled, immediately taking a defensive step backward as his mind raced through all the possible scenarios and potential threats. His eyes darted across your face with obvious wariness as you fully turned to face him, his entire body subtly shifting its weight from foot to foot, muscles tensed and ready to bolt away.

"It's okay...you look cold..." You spoke softly, your voice barely above a whisper, trying not to startle him as you took in his disheveled appearance. The soldier, the one whose face had practically been plastered across every news channel, the same one Steve had spoken about with such raw emotion in his voice.

You remembered how Steve had mourned his best friend, utterly confused and devastated about why he had saved from the river, while Bucky fell to what should have been his death. Steve held onto that grief, that guilt, like a lifeline. He held onto it so desperately, clinging to the faintest hope that a sliver of Bucky was still somewhere deep inside the persona of the Winter Soldier.

Looking at him now, you couldn't see any trace of the man from Steve's stories - the soldier's eyes were too wild and wide, filled with fear and confusion.

But despite everything you'd heard, despite the destruction you'd witnessed on the news, despite the intense warnings from everyone in the tower, there was something about his presence that didn't trigger your fight or flight response.

He didn't make you feel unsafe.

He looked absolutely beat down, exhausted to his very core, his shoulders slumped in a way that made you wonder when he'd last had a moment's rest. You weren't even sure he could take you down if he tried in this state, though you knew his reputation suggested otherwise. He was shaking from the cold air as it blew in a stinging breeze, his metal arm gleaming dully in what little light remained, while the incoming winter storm brought with it a thick haze and countless tiny pinpricks of needle-like snowflakes that seemed to cut through the air.

"Come inside with me, I'll take care of you." You offered quietly, your voice gentle and reassuring as you extended your hand towards him. Your body language remained open and non-threatening, shoulders relaxed and posture deliberately casual to help put him at ease and to show him you felt no fear.

After a few silent moments where his piercing blue eyes studied you through the thick haze, he finally shifted his weight forward and took a step in your direction.

The water in the shower had set a steady steam in the bathroom, the mirror had fogged and the tiles sweat below your bare feet.

You could hear the gentle splashing of water against the bathtub as he cleaned himself. The mechanical whirring of his metal arm caught your attention, hopefully that thing was waterproof, but it must be, right?

After setting out a fresh towel and clean clothes for his use, you quietly excused yourself to provide him with privacy. The state of his current attire was awful, every piece was thoroughly saturated and carried an unmistakable stench that made you wrinkle your nose. The clothes were in such poor condition that you couldn't help but wonder if they had been scavenged from someone who no longer needed them.

You wouldn’t put it past the soldier to steal from a cadaver.

His shower routine was notably brief, years of conditioning taught him to minimize the time spent on his personal care. Upon finishing, he emerged from behind the curtain and efficiently dried himself with the provided towel. His gaze fell upon the fresh clothes you had thoughtfully placed by the sink, while his previous garments had been discreetly removed.

The soldier hesitated momentarily before donning the clean outfit. It wasn’t anything fancy, a pair of grey sweatpants emblazoned with the Avenger's logo along the side and a simple yet comfortable black tank top. When he finally emerged from the bathroom to face you, his body language betrayed his uncertainty as he stood there, not sure what to do now. Comfort was completely foreign to him, and care was a dream away.

"Tony finally gave in," you replied softly, your voice sounded in the quiet stillness of the bedroom. "He said you could stay here with us."

He remained motionless, his expression blank and unreadable as he stood there, offering neither response nor the slightest hint of acknowledgement to your words. You weren’t sure what to expect but that seemed pretty in character for him at the moment.

"You'll be staying in my quarters since no one else is comfortable having you in their space just yet...but don't worry too much about that," you reassured gently, though you could tell from his demeanor that others' opinions held little weight in his mind. "They'll come around after some time, I'm sure of it."

His gaze fixed upon you then, his brow creasing ever so slightly with an unspoken question as he began to move. Each step was deliberate and measured as he crossed the room, closing the distance between you until he stood directly in front of you, close enough that you could see the water droplets from his freshly washed hair beading at the ends and falling onto the fabric of your top, leaving dark spots where they landed.

"Everything's going to be fine," you said with gentle reassurance, trying to ease the tension in the air. "Why don't we head to the kitchen and get you something to eat? You must be hungry." You offered, hoping to bring some normalcy to the situation.

The soldier shadowed your every movement, following closely behind like a faithful companion who refused to stray from their master's side.

Upon entering the expansive kitchen, you immediately made your way to the industrial-sized refrigerator, searching through its contents for something suitable to offer him. The kitchen was perpetually stocked to the brim with an array of foods, snacks, and ingredients, practically anything one could imagine or desire. It was like having a private, fully-stocked grocery store.

Though with a the ravenous super soldier with enhanced metabolism, the mighty Asgardian god whose appetite matched his status, and Banner's surprisingly hulk-ish consumption…the team still depleted their food with an efficiency that would put a pack of famished wolves to shame.

"Hm...what should you have...do you want anything specific?" You turned over your shoulder to address him, but he maintained his characteristic silence. Unmoving, and completely stoic, like a statue carved from marble.

"Нет [No]," came his quiet response, the Russian word rolling off his tongue deeply. He remained perfectly still, observing with careful attention as you continued your search through the refrigerator's contents, trying to determine what would be most appropriate for him to eat. Your mind was working quickly, knowing you wanted to avoid anything too time-consuming to prepare. You wanted to get some food into him sooner rather than later.

"How about...I could make some soup real quick? Tomato and grilled cheese might be a safe option for you. Shouldn't upset your stomach too much if you haven’t been eating a lot, and it will warm you up if you're still feeling cold." You turned back toward him once more, studying his features carefully for any hint of reaction or preference to your suggestion, any subtle change in his expression.

But, he didn't provide even the slightest indication of his feelings.

You decided on tomato soup and a grilled cheese anyway, you figured it was best and immediately set to work in the kitchen.

Although you typically prided yourself on preparing meals completely from scratch, this particular circumstance called for something different. You assembled the sandwich, buttering the bread before placing it in a heated pan to get a golden-brown crust while keeping a watchful eye on the pot of soup simmering beside it, occasionally stirring for even heating.

Once everything reached the perfect temperature and consistency, you transferred the meal onto clean dishes, relieved it didn’t take too long. You presented him with the steaming bowl of soup and perfectly grilled sandwich, watching as the soldier deliberately took his place at the counter, his eyes fixed intently on the rising steam from the bowl before him.

You watched him, noting how his entire body remained unnaturally rigid and motionless, as though every muscle was locked in place and braced for something. His lips bore a slight sheen of moisture, like he had licked them at some point when you weren't watching. Yet despite his obvious hunger, he hadn't made even the slightest attempt to reach for the food. His eyes held intense longing and hesitation, briefly meeting yours before quickly darting away, as if making eye contact was somehow forbidden.

"What's wrong?" You asked with growing concern etched across your features, "You're hungry aren't you? I can tell you haven't eaten in a while. Especially not anything warm, at least. I know it can be hard out there, all by yourself…"

His response came in the form of an almost imperceptible nod, his gaze remaining firmly fixed on the bowl and sandwich before him, as though they were the most important and most dangerous objects in the room.

"So why aren't you eating? The food's getting cold, it won’t be as good if it cools too much."

"Я не могу совершить действие без приказа. [I cannot perform an action without an order]," the soldier responded in barely more than a whisper, his voice carrying the weight of years of conditioning.

You stood there, completely lost in the language barrier between you. Your limited knowledge of Russian extended only to the most basic words - 'да' and 'нет' - leaving you clueless by his response and worried about the implications of his behavior.

You didn't want to wake Natasha, even though she would certainly understand what he was saying in Russian, but disturbing her sleep for something as simple as a quick translation seemed unnecessary and might put her in a bad mood. Instead, an idea popped into your head that would avoid an angry widow. You reached for your phone and placed it on the smooth counter surface, navigating to a translator app before looking up at him again. "Can you repeat that?"

The soldier's eyes flickered briefly to the phone screen, taking in the sight of the translation app with what seemed like recognition, before his gaze deliberately returned to the untouched food laid out before him. "I cannot perform an action without an order," he stated in perfect, albeit mechanical English this time.

You blinked in surprise, thoroughly caught off guard by the sudden switch to English when he had been persistently speaking Russian up until this point. "Okay...well...eat then, you can eat freely here, you don't need an order to do that." You slowly tucked your phone away into your pocket as his right hand gradually lifted from where it had been resting in his lap, reaching out to pick up the sandwich.

You weren't sure what you were expecting, but he wolfed down his food within a minute, that sandwich was gone within maybe three bites. The soup swallowed just as fast.

God, he was starving, and the realization made your heart ache.

"Better?" You asked gently, to which he only nodded, swallowing the last of the food in his mouth.

This became routine, the soldier stuck by your side like a duckling imprinting on its mother.

He followed you diligently around every corner of the tower, his protective instincts activated as he positioned himself like an ever-vigilant guardian. His eyes constantly scanned the surroundings, noting how others would cast uncertain and sometimes suspicious glances in his direction.

These looks made him increasingly self-conscious and anxious, as though he were some exotic creature put on display at a zoo for others to gawk at. But in your presence, he seemed a bit more at ease. He genuinely liked being around you.

Gradually, the rigid tension that had defined his existence began to melt away, and he started allowing more intimate gestures of care. He let you gently brush his unruly hair into place, carefully wash his face with warm water, or trim his growing stubble for him.

He accepted these tender ministrations without the slightest resistance or complaint, though a nagging worry lingered in your mind that his compliance stemmed from years of conditioning to submit to others' wishes. Each time you worried about that, you’d see a genuine warmth and contentment in his gaze rather than submission, showing you that he truly found comfort and pleasure in your gentle touch.

It was evening, the room reflected the warm glow of festive holiday lights emanating from a miniature Christmas tree nestled in the corner. The soldier found himself transfixed by the small decorated tree, his eyes lingering on each twinkling light as their vibrant colors danced and shimmered. The sterile, monotonous walls he had grown accustomed to during his confinement were nothing compared to the colorful lights. The gentle play of red, green, and gold seemed to awaken something long dormant within him, he almost wanted to plant himself in front of the tree and just stare at it.

Tony may have allowed his stay, but that didn’t mean there weren’t restrictions. He was stern about where and when the soldier could go anywhere with you, and he demanded that he not leave your room afterhours. It wasn’t hard to follow, the solider showed reluctance to leave your room at all, having been so accustomed to being kept in one room. You didn’t push him, but you felt bad for him because he was missing how the tower had been decorated for the holidays. So, you got a smaller tree for the bedroom to provide some kind of festive look for him to take in.

You emerged from the bathroom, wisps of steam following in your wake, your damp hair leaving little droplets on your shoulders as you continued to towel it dry with scrunches. He remained motionless on the edge of your bed, his attention immediately shifting as he turned and blinked up at your approaching figure.

His icy eyes traced a deliberate path across your form, which was barely concealed beneath the thin fabric of your sleep shirt, the hem teasingly brushing against your mid-thigh with each movement. "I am beat," you sighed heavily, your voice carrying the weight of the day's festivities. The marathon of holiday activities had clearly taken its toll, leaving you thoroughly drained. The tower often held an array of things to do because Tony loved to show off what he could afford, and it wasn’t like anyone else would object.

He observed with rapt attention as you made your way onto the bed and settled back against the pillows, releasing a deep exhale that seemed to melt away the day's tension. His unwavering gaze remained fixed on the rhythmic, hypnotic motion of your chest rising and falling with each breath.

You felt the bed shift beneath you as he moved, his weight causing the mattress to dip and creak softly. He crawled over to where you lay, his arms positioning themselves on either side of your body, caging you in. Your eyes fluttered open to find him hovering directly above you, his presence overwhelming in its proximity. This was something new…he had always maintained somewhat of a distance before, never daring to position himself so intimately over top of you.

"Я скомпрометирован. [I'm compromised]," the soldier spoke in a hushed tone, his voice carrying that distinctive gravelly pitch that made you feel tingly. The tension between you had become damned near impossible to ignore. What had started as a subtle pull had grown into an overwhelming force of attraction that seemed to draw you both together like magnets.

Still, you forced yourself to hold back, maintaining that last thread of restraint. You had no way of knowing the depth of his emotional capacity, if he was even capable of genuine feelings, or wanted to experience them at all after everything he endured.

"Soldat...?" The whispered word escaped your lips as you noticed the subtle shift in his demeanor, the way his muscles tensed as he remained suspended above you, perfectly still. "You know I don't understand-"

"I am compromised," he repeated, switching to English this time. His voice had dropped even lower, carrying an edge of frustration that vibrated through the minimal space between your bodies.

"Comprom..." You sat up slowly on your elbows and shook your head in confusion, your brow furrowed as you tried to process his words. That’s what you’d say about a machine or computer, not a man. "What are you talking about?" Your eyes wandered downward, suddenly drawn to an unmistakable tent in his fitted briefs that became obvious from your new viewing angle, causing you to freeze in place as your breath caught in your throat.

So, he could feel things.

"Oh..." You felt a wave of embarrassment wash over you as you remained frozen in place, your cheeks growing warm. "I think I understand now...you're feeling a bit pent up, aren't you?"

His metal arm whirred softly, the sophisticated machinery humming as he moved to adjust his hand placement. "Да. [Yes]," he responded in a low voice, his gleaming titanium fingertips delicately ghosted across the bare skin of your thigh, just barely grazing beneath the hem of your thin sleep shirt. Goosebumps erupted along your body in response to the contact, the cool metal sudden against your flushed skin.

"Мне не нравится делиться вашим вниманием. [I don't like sharing your attention]," he muttered with an undertone of possession, his lips curling into a slight frown as he gradually leaned closer to you. His silken hair delicately tickled your face as he slowly lowered himself, the tips of your noses barely grazing against each other in an intimate gesture. His lips parted ever so slightly, revealing a glimpse of anticipation before he dipped his head down, warm lips pressing a tender, lingering kiss to your jawline.

You swallowed reflexively, your breath catching in your throat as you felt his warm, steady breath caress your sensitive skin, sending a visible shudder of growing excitement through your body.

He continued his gentle exploration, encouraged by your acceptance and the absence of any resistance. He pressed a trail of soft, purposeful kisses along the curve of your jaw, each one more intimate than the last, before gradually working his way down to your neck. His lips carefully followed the rhythmic flutter of your pulse beneath your skin, his tongue peeking out shyly to touch against you.

"Ah-" You voiced softly, feeling him settle on a particularly sensitive spot, right against the delicate side of your neck. It was nestled perfectly between the graceful junction where your neck connected to your collarbone, the skin there warm and inviting, holding a faint trace of blood flow from the intricate network of smaller veins positioned just beneath the surface.

He kissed many times with increasing intensity, clearly finding this spot ideal for his attentions. The soft, tentative pecks gradually became more passionate, open-mouthed kisses as each one was placed. His tongue began gently pressing against your skin with each lingering kiss, the pressure slowly growing in need. You felt your cheeks flush with warmth when he finally latched on, your eyes widening in surprise as the soldier's strong arms held you a little tighter.

Soldat began to suckle a mark, his ministrations gentle and teasing at first, but quickly growing in force and intensity as his skilled tongue swirled expertly around the trapped skin between his lips and teeth. The sensation drew a breathy moan from deep within you, making your entire body feel as though it were engulfed in flames of desire. Though you were completely helpless beneath the assassin, you had absolutely no intention or desire to push him away.

This felt too damned good.

Without thinking, your leg came up and hooked around his hips, drawing him closer until your bodies were flush against each other. The heat between you grew and you felt his painful erection trapped in his briefs, straining against the fabric as his arousal was staining them. Soldat exhaled sharply through his nose, his grip tightening possessively, but he did not let go.

His suckling grew increasingly intense, the sensitive skin tingling and starting to sting and burn with each passing moment. Still, he didn't release the bruised skin just yet.

Instead, he just bit down harder, ensuring the mark he left would last for days. You moaned loudly, your fingers gently tangling in his thick hair as your pleasured sounds encouraged his attention. He became more attentive when your little sounds of pleasure turned into sharp, quiet hisses - clearly indicating that the sensation had crossed from pleasure into discomfort, silently telling him to ease off.

When he did finally relent, he pulled back to admire his handiwork, looking down at the deep purple mark blooming on your neck. His breath came in heavy pants through his parted lips as he stayed quiet, watching intently as you struggled to catch your own breath too. The sight of you beneath him, disheveled and vulnerable, with flushed skin and labored breathing, was enough to draw him right back in.

He dipped back down with renewed hunger, his metal hand slowly threading through your hair before gently fisting it at the base of your skull, though his careful control ensured it wasn’t painful, just firm. He tugged just enough to guide your movement, encouraging you to expose more of your neck to his hungry gaze.

"E-easy..." You whispered, a note of anxious anticipation in your voice. You wanted more, god you wanted more, but his sudden change of behavior was a bit surprising for you.

"Понял. [Understood]," he whispered against your skin, pressing a soft kiss of reassurance to your jaw before returning his attention to your neck. Those soft kisses began again, trailing along your skin, but his restraint didn't last long as he quickly sought a new canvas for another mark. He latched onto a spot just a little bit higher on your neck, alternating between sucking and carefully controlled bites to gradually darken and bruise the sensitive flesh.

You felt bite after delicious bite, hickey after possessive hickey.

He marked the tender flesh of your neck in several deep, purple marks that bloomed like violent flowers across your skin...each one throbbing with a sweet ache when he pulled away. His tongue always swirled over the mark with care to soothe the sting of it, making you arch into his touch as you fell into a complete daze.

"S-Soldat," you muttered breathlessly, cheeks flushed crimson and eyelids heavy with desire. Your pupils matched his own - completely blown with hunger and desperate need. Those bermuda swirls meeting yours as he continued a torturously slow trail of hot kisses down your chest, nipping your collarbone with just enough pressure to make you gasp before following the gentle dip of your sternum.

He paused deliberately, pulling up so he could lift the thin sleep shirt over you and expose more of your bare chest to his hungry gaze, giving him better access for his heated kisses and teasing nips. Once your top was discarded somewhere on the floor, his hands gently but firmly held your sides, trailing up with reverent touches until settling against your ribcage. His larger hands completely encompassed your torso, making you feel small but protected.

The soldier was absolutely transfixed at the sight of your breasts, eyeing the soft mounds and peaked nipples as they hardened in the cool air, growing increasingly sensitive and rosy with your mounting arousal. It was like he was completely mesmerized by the sight before him, the fucking Winter Soldier, the most dangerous assassin in history, stopped dead in his tracks at the mere sight of your bare breasts.

You felt in charge now.

"What is it? Do you like them?" you purred softly to the soldier, your body swaying in a deliberately teasing motion that made them gently move. His eyes remained fixed, drinking in the sight before him as his lips parted ever so slightly. Slowly, his head tilted down again, surrendering to the moment. He let his face nestle against your chest, his lips trailing a constellation of unhurried kisses across your skin.

He began to nip and suckle the tender skin of your breasts, his mouth working to create deep, purple love bites on that delicate flesh. The bruising blossomed easily beneath his ministrations, almost like they were eager to show themselves.

His lips would find a promising spot, then he would begin lapping at the skin with gentle strokes of his tongue until he felt you squirming. The soldier took the sensitized flesh carefully between his teeth, rolling the captured skin while his talented muscle swirled and sucked.

Your chest displayed his passionate handiwork when he finally drew back to admire his creation. The plum-colored bruises created an intimate pattern across your skin, their rich hues made even more striking by the soft glow of the holiday lights that danced through the room, highlighting each carefully placed love bite until they seemed to shimmer like twilight stars against your flesh.

"Soldat...I think you covered enough surface area," you breathed, feeling overwhelmed by the intense throbbing that radiated from each mark he'd left. The sensation pulsed in waves across your skin, making it difficult to focus. Your neck was thoroughly covered in the passionate marks, and now your chest bore an equally impressive collection.

The soldier gazed down at you with intensely, his eyes taking in each little sugar plum bruise that decorated your skin like a masterpiece. Though they were scattered without any deliberate pattern, the overall effect clearly pleased him. You lay there looking thoroughly affected by his attention, hair mussed and breathing uneven, cheeks beautifully darkened with a dust of blush, just from his careful application of bites alone. The sight of you in such a state, marked so thoroughly, brought deep set satisfaction in his gut.

"Моя теперь. [Mine now]," he muttered softly, his warm breath ghosting across your skin as his lips hovered mere millimeters from your own. The almost-kiss was delicate, just the faintest brush of contact that sent electricity dancing through your nerves. He almost seemed nervous to close that final distance, his confidence faltering despite the passionate trail of marks he had already left scattered across your skin.

He drew back slightly, seemingly snapping out of a trance, and you could see the vulnerability written plainly across his features as that nervousness flickered in his eyes. Shifting his weight, he settled back onto the bed, his right hand finding your knee and tracing gentle, soothing circles there with his thumb. The tender gesture matched his hushed voice as he spoke, "Я не хочу идти дальше. [I don't want to go any further]," the words carrying both certainty and a hint of apology.

Your brow furrowed deeply as you struggled to understand what he was trying to stay, the confusion evident in the slight crease between your eyebrows and the questioning tilt of your head. You really needed to study Russian. "Do you not want to continue?" you asked slowly and carefully, focusing more on interpreting the subtle nuances in his tone rather than trying to parse the exact words he was using.

His facial expression held hesitance and uncertainty, the slight downturn of his lips and the way his eyes wouldn't quite meet yours telling you what you needed to know. Body language was his primary mode of genuine communication, and you had become very good at reading these silent signals he unconsciously broadcast.

"It's okay, we can stop," you replied with a reassuring tone, making sure to keep your voice soft to help dissipate any lingering tension he might be feeling. "Let's just lay here, okay? We can cuddle without any kind of pressure to do anything else, if you want." You offered with a warm smile, wanting him to feel that his comfort and boundaries were completely respected and that there was no expectation or obligation to continue.

This was a lot of good progress with him, you typically just cuddled or he kept to his side of the bed but he had shown you a lot of sweet affection tonight, and you loved it, it meant he was growing more confident in himself and your relationship. The evidence of his passionate yet tender attention remained visible in the form of gentle, plum-colored marks that decorated your neck and chest as you lay beside him, watching as his silent form trembled slightly beneath the heavy warmth of the thick blankets that enveloped you both.

You opened your arms, offering him a warmer space, and he quickly scooted forward, tucking himself against you. Prone to being cold, he liked being under many layers of blankets, so you made sure to provide plenty for him to not only feel warm but secure. Plus...having you to hold him always helped.

Without the worry of being a soldier, he could rest easy like this.

Thanks for reading. -em 🌿

Dividers by @/strangergraphics | Images found on Pinterest.

[mysterymastere]

Crashout Virus

CW: hypnosis, corruption

It started out as a curiosity. Since almost anyone can be hypnotized, what if someone developed a single really efficient and effective induction method that could be delivered digitally.

This turned out to be the most challenging part. It needed both visual and auditory cues, both to increase potency, and to ensure it could reach a wider range of people. It needed to be fairly rapid in order to maintain the focus of the most people. Finally, it needed a level of intensity where it would actually prove useful. Rapid instructions often needed deepeners applied immediately to ensure a stable trance.

Over 100 iterations later, I had a video file only 30 seconds long, capable of keeping 93% of people in trance for at least a minute after viewing, barring outside interference. I called it Crashout.

I was proud of my creation, but I wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it. I showed it off to a few friends into hypnosis. I watched one individual view the file, drop, drool, then come back up and immediately show it to a couple of their hypno friends.

That's what inspired the virus. I'm not sure why I decided to challenge myself to see how far it could spread.

Having played Plague Inc, I knew the viruses that spread the furthest had 3 specific features

1. Highly infectious - already done

2. Easily spread - A suggestion added in after the induction to share the video after viewing ensured people would want to spread it. Having the video posted to a hidden YouTube page would be easily spread, and allow me to track views, with an embedded command to click like so I can track unique views as well.

3. Subtle - this was a little challenging. I made sure to include a suggestion to forget the video, but it took a couple iterations to ensure people wouldn't repeatedly view the video every time they saw the message.

Test run was much more successful than I anticipated. I launched it to a group of 5 and set the time limit to 24 hours. I was expecting 1,000 unique views would qualify as a success. When I saw the numbers approaching 1 million, I got a little carried away.

I rewrote the embedded suggestions, encouraging the viewer to watch the file once per day. After all, repetition is the secret to ensuring strong suggestions. At first, that's all I did. I went live and waited a week. The video was limited to English speakers, so hitting more than 200 million unique views after a week was what made me realize how powerful Crashout was.

I modified the file the next day. Nothing significant, a small suggestion. Be kinder. I barely noticed the difference at first. By the third day however, people around me were much more polite, almost eerily so.

I switched the suggestion to a much more reasonable "be kind" to stop any sort of exponential growth.

I think I was pissed off about some work drama when I gave in and got selfish. Adding in images of me at the subliminal level didn't impact the efficacy of the file. The suggestion "you really like mystermastere. Be good to him," proved to be very successful. I wasn't thinking anything other than friendship. I hadn't considered how some people would interpret the suggestion.

I figured out what was going on the second time someone propositioned me that day. I wish I could say I corrected my mistake. I'm just not a good enough person, I guess. But it's ok. A lot of people are seeing things my way these days.

[notablenotions]

Masks of Nobility – Chapter 19

Henry had never expected his life to include embroidery circles, but here he was—seated under the soft shade of the courtyard awning, needle in hand, trying not to bleed on the fine linen. Opposite him, Jikta stitched with the precision of a surgeon, calm and methodical, as if they weren’t two people entangled by the same man, but instead an old married couple, discussing crop yields and tool designs like it was the most natural thing in the world.

Which, to Henry’s surprise, it was.

Jikta glanced at his clumsy attempt at a double satin stitch and sighed, not unkindly. “That’s a disaster.”

Henry frowned at the uneven threads. “I’m a blacksmith, not a seamstress.”

“And yet, I’ve seen you thread a needle to stitch wounds. Try thinking of it like repairing chainmail.”

Henry grunted, adjusting his grip as she leaned forward, guiding his hand with clinical precision.

“I’ve something for you to look at.” She set aside her hoop and pulled out a rolled parchment. “Schematics. A theoretical plow design. More efficient for the common folk. I need your eye—would it be practical? Easy to forge?”

Henry unrolled it, studying the lines. “With the right tools and materials, aye. Might cut time in the field by half.”

“Good.” She resumed stitching. “I’ll have it drawn up for the smiths if you think it’s sound.”

The conversation drifted to more mundane topics—grain shipments, the new mare in the stables, Mags’ increasingly prophetic disdain for Hans’ antics. It was peaceful, almost comfortable, as if they’d been sitting here for years, weathered companions managing a house. Not a husband’s lover and said husband’s wife.

Henry didn’t mind it.

Not until the tranquility shattered.

---

He heard it first—the honking.

Then the shuffle of webbed feet across the stone courtyard.

Henry looked up to see Black Bartosch striding toward them, smug as sin, with a goose in tow—dressed in bright yellow, a near-perfect mimicry of Hans’ most garish hunting outfit. The goose flapped its wings once, then stood still, terrifyingly calm.

“Good day,” Bartosch said, voice casual, as if he hadn’t just declared war. “Lovely weather. How’s the stitching?”

Jikta didn’t look up. “Peaceful. Was, anyway. I suspect that won’t continue.”

Henry was still staring at the goose. “Is that—?”

“Yes,” Jikta answered. “Yes, it is.”

The sound of rapid footsteps thundered from above, followed by the slam of a door and the unmistakable yelling of a man unhinged.

“You bastard!” Hans stormed down from his office, cloak billowing, hair a mess, looking like he’d seen the gates of hell—and it wore feathers. “What is this treachery?!”

Bartosch gestured at the goose, deadpan. “A gift. For the pig.”

Hans pointed dramatically, voice cracking, “I renamed a pig—one pig! You’ve brought an abomination! Dressed like me!”

“It honks less,” Bartosch noted. “Better behaved.”

The goose waddled in circles, pecked at Hans’ boot, and honked.

Hans shrieked, flailing. “Why does everyone think I’m a goose?!”

Henry, without missing a beat, muttered, “Because you’re a silly goose.”

Hans gasped, clutched his chest like Henry had stabbed him, and flounced off with a trail of dramatic curses, shouting about betrayal, mockery, and a distinct lack of appreciation for his greatness. The door slammed behind him with all the subtlety of a war hammer.

Jikta didn’t even blink. “He’ll sulk for hours. That’s your job now.”

Henry blinked. “What? You’re Lady Capon.”

She fixed him with a look. “And you’re more of a wife than I’ll ever be.”

Henry stared. Opened his mouth. Closed it.

She wasn’t wrong, and he hated that.

He sighed, rolling up his sleeves. “Fine. I’ll go soothe the goose.”

Behind him, Bartosch called, “Tell him I’ve got another cape for the goose—if he wants to match.”

Henry didn’t look back. He couldn’t risk laughing before reaching Hans.

[apas-95]

When Marxists say that certain groups, are adventurist, they have in mind the very definite and specific social and historical features of a phenomenon, one that every class-conscious worker should be familiar with. The history of Russian Social-Democracy teems with tiny groups, which sprang up for an hour, for several months, with no roots whatever among the masses (and politics without the masses are adventurist politics), and with no serious and stable principles. In a petty-bourgeois country, which is passing through a historical period of bourgeois reconstruction, it is inevitable that a motley assortment of intellectuals should join the workers, and that these intellectuals should attempt to form all kinds of groups, adventurist in character in the sense referred to above.

��� V.I. Lenin, Adventurism, 1914

Let us go over to the second point, the question of terrorism. In their defence of terrorism, which the experience of the Russian revolutionary movement has so clearly proved to be ineffective, the Socialist-Revolutionaries are talking themselves blue in the face in asseverating that they recognise terrorism only in conjunction with work among the masses, and that therefore the arguments used by the Russian Social-Democrats to refute the efficacy of this method of struggle (and which have indeed been refuted for a long time to come) do not apply to them. [...] We are not repeating the terrorists’ mistakes and are not diverting attention from work among the masses, the Socialist-Revolutionaries assure us, and at the same time enthusiastically recommend to the Party acts such as Balmashov’s assassination of Sipyagin, although everyone knows and sees perfectly well that this act was in no way connected with the masses and, moreover, could not have been by reason of the very way in which it was carried out—that the persons who committed this terrorist act neither counted on nor hoped for any definite action or support on the part of the masses. In their naïveté, the Socialist-Revolutionaries do not realise that their predilection for terrorism is causally most intimately linked with the fact that, from the very outset, they have always kept, and still keep, aloof from the working-class movement, without even attempting to become a party of the revolutionary class which is waging its class struggle. [...] The first thing that strikes the eye is the words: “we advocate terrorism, not in place of work among the masses, but precisely for and simultaneously with that work.” [...] The day “when the working people will emerge from the shadows” and “the mighty popular wave will shatter the iron gates to smithereens”—“alas!” (literally, “alas!”) “is still a long way off, and it is frightful   to think of the future toll of victims!” Do not these words “alas, still a long way off” reflect an utter failure to under stand the mass movement and a lack of faith in it? Is not this argument meant as a deliberate sneer at the fact that the working people are already beginning to rise? And, finally, even if this trite argument were just as well-founded as it is actually stuff and nonsense, what would emerge from it in particularly bold relief would be the inefficacy of terrorism, for without the working people all bombs are power less, patently powerless. [...]

This fabulous argument, which we are convinced is destined to become notorious, is by no means simply a curiosity. No, it is instructive because, through a sweeping reduction to an absurdity, it reveals the principal mistake of the terrorists, which they share with the “economists” (perhaps one might already say, with the former representatives of deceased “economism”?). This mistake, as we have already pointed out on numerous occasions, consists in the failure to understand the basic defect of our movement. Because of the extremely rapid growth of the movement, the leaders lagged behind the masses, the revolutionary organisations did not come up to the level of the revolutionary activity of the proletariat, were incapable of marching on in front and leading the masses. That a discrepancy of this sort exists cannot be doubted by any conscientious person who has even the slightest acquaintance with the movement. And if that is so, it is evident that the present-day terrorists are really “economists” turned inside out, going to the equally foolish but opposite extreme. At a time when the revolutionaries are short of the forces and means to lead the masses,   who are already rising, an appeal to resort to such terrorist acts as the organisation of attempts on the lives of ministers by individuals and groups that are not known to one another means, not only thereby breaking off work among the masses, but also introducing downright disorganisation into that work. [...]

Nor does the leaflet eschew the theory of excitative terrorism. “Each time a hero engages in single combat, this arouses in us all a spirit of struggle and courage,” we are told. But we know from the past and see in the present that only new forms of the mass movement or the awakening of new sections of the masses to independent struggle really rouses a spirit of struggle and courage in all. Single combat however, inasmuch as it remains single combat waged by the Balmashovs, has the immediate effect of simply creating a short-lived sensation, while indirectly it even leads to apathy and passive waiting for the next bout. [...] This very point is explained in No. 8 of Revolutsionnaya Rossiya, which declares that “it is easy to write and speak” of armed demonstrations “as a matter of the vague and distant future,” “but up till now all this talk has been merely of a theoretical nature.” How well we know this Language of people who are free of the constraint of firm socialist convictions, of the burdensome experience of each and every kind of popular movement! They confuse immediately tangible and sensational results with practicalness. To them the demand to adhere steadfastly to the class standpoint and to maintain the mass nature of the movement is “vague” “theorising.” [...] Demonstrations begin— and blood thirsty words, talk about the beginning of the end, flow from the lips of such people. The demonstrations halt— their hands drop helplessly, and before they have had time to wear out a pair of boots they are already shouting: “The people, alas, are still a long way off....” Some new outrage is perpetrated by the tsar’s henchmen—and they demand to be shown a “definite” measure that would serve as an exhaustive reply to that particular outrage, a measure that would bring about an immediate “transference of strength,” and they proudly promise this transference! These people do not understand that this very promise to “transfer” strength constitutes political adventurism, and that their adventurism stems from their lack of principle. [...] Anyone who really carries on his revolutionary work in conjunction with the class struggle of the proletariat very well knows, sees and feels what vast numbers of immediate and direct demands of the proletariat (and of the sections of the people capable of supporting the latter) remain unsatisfied. He knows that in very many places, throughout vast areas, the working people are literally   straining to go into action, and that their ardour runs to waste because of the scarcity of literature and leadership, the lack of forces and means in the revolutionary organisations. And we find ourselves—we see that we find our selves—in the same old vicious circle that has so long hemmed in the Russian revolution like an omen of evil. On the one hand, the revolutionary ardour of the insufficiently enlightened and unorganised crowd runs to waste. On the other hand, shots fired by the “elusive individuals” who are losing faith in the possibility of marching in formation and working hand in hand with the masses also end in smoke.

— V.I. Lenin, Revolutionary Adventurism, 1902

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from Anthropocene Magazine:

In Panama, the best protection for keeping rainforests from disappearing hasn’t been putting them inside protected refuges. It’s been putting them in the hands of the region’s Indigenous tribes.

In the two decades starting in 2000, just 3% of the roughly 19,000 square kilometers of Indigenous forestland was deforested. By comparison, protected areas lost more than 5% of their forests, while 27% of forests outside these designated regions were cleared, according to a new study in the journal Ecology and Society.

The findings add to the growing evidence that giving Indigenous people more control of lands is often an effective way to stem the tide of forest loss sweeping much of the world. And scientists’ interviews with inhabitants of Indigenous villages in Panama help illuminate key reasons why their lands keep more of their trees. It’s not that the forests are left untouched—in fact, it’s the opposite.

“Forests remain intact not just because they’re remote, but because of how people value them,” said E. Camilo Alejo, who completed the research as a Ph.D. biology student at McGill University in Montreal, Canada. “These aren’t just undisturbed forests; they’re consistently cared for.”

To document how the country’s forests were altered over two decades, the scientists used common methods: They looked at satellite images and tracked how they changed. Pixels from those images were classified as showing signs of long-lasting deforestation, continued forest coverage, or a sort of in-between state, in which there was evidence of temporary loss of forests that then regrew.

This bird’s-eye view allowed the scientists to see how the fate of forests differed depending on who protected they were and by whom. It showed that deforestation rates were lowest in Indigenous lands, and that forest cover in those areas experienced the most long-term stability. But it came with a twist: Compared to protected areas the Indigenous-controlled lands were more than twice as likely to experience temporary disturbance, where forest was at least partially cleared and then regrew: 7% versus 2%. Lands with no protections had the highest disturbance levels—nearly 10%—as well as the most rapid deforestation.

The picture that emerged was a human presence in a multitude of places spread across the landscape. High-impact farming of crops such as corn, rice and yams, associated with deforestation, was concentrated at the edge of forests. By contrast, the villagers pointed out a sprawling network of activities inside the forests that might create temporary disturbances, such as: harvesting wood to build homes or canoes. Other places were used for hunting and honey-gathering, or more religious and cultural activities such as a sacred mountain or a place where the kipara fruit, used for body painting, was collected.

“Many Indigenous communities integrate farming, spirituality and conservation in how they use the land,” said Alejo. “Our findings show that this diverse set of values aligns with areas where forests have remained stable, suggesting a strong connection between cultural practices and long-term forest stewardship.”

[butts-bouncing-on-the-beltway]

I realized that if I'm disappointed in the transmission of real information about Sudan and the Congo, I can just make the posts myself!

I am not surprised that people haven't been provided a strong understanding of the violence in the global south, but I *am* mad about it.

So let's talk about Sudan and the Congo

Since 2003 or so, an estimated 450,000 Sudanese refugees have fled to Chad, looking for safety from routine waves of ethnic cleansing committed by the Rapid Support Forces and their state/civilian allies.

While the Massalit make up the majority of those attacked, many other ethnicities are included amongst victims. It is NOT a religiously motivated cleansing, as most of those being victimized as well as most of those doing the victimizing are Muslim, and communicate the foundations of the violence as being the result of ethnic-cultural divides in the region current social system. Many of those speaking against the ethnic cleansing occurring agree, and also add that economic interactions appear to be major driving factors in who is targetted and when.

The Congo, meanwhile, has been going through it's own ethnic cleansing. One that has been more or less ongoing since 1996. An approximated 6mil people have been killed since.

Due to this relationship between economic motives and targets, ongoing desertification has been exacerbating violence in the region for years by making resources scarcer, more precious, and less stable to access.

The primary factors being credited with responsibility for this desertification and resultant resource volatility?

Climate change and human impact on the environment (via societal features such as urbanization, agriculture, waste management services, social welfare services, deforestation and bush removal, etc)

From FairPlanet ^

Funny how the global north causes lethal climate change but the global south is forced to die from it.

Funny how the global north forces the environmental recovery conversation to avoid study of environmental imperialism and remain solely focused on "incremental changes that can protect future generations". Whose future generations? What about the people dying NOW because of environmentally toxic industries??

And Nasreldin Atiya Rahamtalla via the International Journal of Social Sciences and Conflict Management says the following:

Hmm, I wonder why local power and social welfare infrastructure in Sudan and especially in Darfur might be diminished from previous governance:

It's almost like the British had a habit of pitting different regional communities against each other along enforced ethnic lines while pillaging some and sparing others, then blowing the whole governance network in a temper tantrum on their way out the door during decolonization, a method of inflicting one last violemt devastation and sabotage peaceful futures most often epitomized by Rwanda and the Belgian Empire:

It's almost like the imperialist businesses that feed off African continental resources and were installed during colonization as a form of economic imperialism were often THE ONLY PARTS of the social system left largely functional after withdrawal and "decolonization". It's almost like imperialism and colonization never actually stopped!!! It just??? Changed shape ☆->¤ still a fuckin crime against humanity my guy!!! Especially when child slaves are dying in your mines!!!

Sudan's economic imperialism comes in the form of Blood Diamonds! You know. The reason that none of us are buying earth mined diamonds anymore when lab made are literally the same goddamn thing RIGHT????????

Oh! They also have oil. The thing we're using to fuel our climate change machine. The climate change machine that's KILLING THEM.

And unfortunately for those of us with Nickel allergies, gold and silver have the same problem. If you haven't already switched to surgical steel, you might wanna. Of course, then we're right back to climate change since steel production allegedly creates a whopping 7% of global emissions due to relying on coke (coal) as a fuel source. So. I dunno really. I like my jewelry as much as anyone. But do I like it enough to know people are dying so I can have it?????

Not really. I'd rather save that risk addition for surgical steel being used in ACTUAL surgeries like the plates, pins, and screws that reattached my foot, or the replacement knee joint that my mom got. At least until we have a body-safe material for these things that ISN'T a source of devastation in the global south.

My point is, basically, that historically militerized conflict almost always stems, at least, in part, from efforts to control resources. It's the most timeless reason to go to war. To make sure you and the people you care about can guarantee themselves access to survival need-meeting. As consumerist and capitalist societies, it is DEEPLY important that we understand the price we ask other people to pay for our luxuries. For our right not to be made uncomfortable by too much radical change too quickly. We need to make that causal link A LOT more visibly explicit and unavoidable, because as it stands, allowing the hierarchy to go unspoken is going to kill billions.

I don't want that on my hands.

I highly recommend learning what civil disobedience and mutual aid infrastructures of care look like. How can we hold corporations (and the individual people who work there) accountable for the countless deaths directly attributable to their profit margins? How can we maximize our local resource distribution to ensure everyone has what they genuinely need to survive, even if that means we take a little less from the community resources for ourselves, or we have to give up things that can't be fully replaced by regionally sustainable alternatives.

I promise that we will adapt.

The dead can't.

[lesb0]

I feel kinda protective over Raphael because he had such a hard time after Vasari gave him 3rd place in the paragone and accused him of being a salacious hoe and a spoiled brat just because he was really popular amongst young women. he was the only one to master drawing, painting, and architecture (Leonardo couldn't do botany or sculpture or architecture and Michelangelo didn't care about anything except beautiful male bodies). he was the only one to hire female models as his sitters instead of teen boys. he invented such a rapid painting technique that his workshop produced more art than ANY other renaissance master.

but he was a really stable, had one beautiful girlfriend (with dark hair), great businessman, generally very polite to have been raised among the court patrons and princes his dad worked for. the pope just loved having him around all the time. he was very kind and respectful to michelangelo when he borrowed ideas out of his workshop, painted them as a tribute because he looked up to him, and got rejected.

people thought his teacher was perugino for decades until someone realized it was obviously his dad, because he painted his dads little gold crown on all his mary assuntas. when his dad left him an orphan at 11, no art historians really cared enough to figure out what happened to him. but now we know he invented artistic stealing as a learning method to teach himself. but people just think he's some loser and don't even stop by his rooms at the museum :-(

[lynns-bonkle-blog]

Metru Nui Archives data log 35494: Cordak Blaster Prototype

Log author: Chief Archivist Etoku

I am prefacing this data log with a reminder to the Kehrex Weapons Company that the Archives is not seeking a corporate sponsor, and that any attempts to convince us, or any other Metruan organisation, to convert to your philosophy of "capitalism" will not succeed, no matter how many "rare" prototype weapons you send us (if you wanted us to believe they were rare, you shouldn't have sent so many).

With that out of the way, let's talk about what our... magnanimous would-be benefactors thought was worth shipping all the way from Xia, starting with a bit of preamble about the history of Cordak Blasters.

The Cordak Blaster is a rotary-barrel, muzzle-loaded missile launcher, and one of the most widely used vehicle-mounted weapons in the universe, though beings with enough strength (or under other conditions that make things lighter such as being underwater or within the radius of a Toa of Gravity's powers) can also carry them as handheld weapons.

The Blasters work by using a reciprocating motor to drive a pump that pushes compressed air into the top barrel, propelling the missile (or "mini-rocket", as they are commonly known) forwards, while also triggering a mechanism that rotates the barrels through 60°, readying the next shot. Meanwhile, the missile's inbuilt propulsion system activates, and it travels in a roughly straight line before usually hitting its mark. This process takes such a short time that Cordak Blasters can fire rapidly, though their low ammunition capacity can be an issue.

As you can guess from its… unusual firing method, the Cordak Blaster was first conceptualised by the Vortixx of Xia during their industrial revolution. They were sold to military commanders and rulers on other islands, most of whom proceeded to resell theirs elsewhere.

The ammunition is surprisingly stable, and can be safely stored upon a being's armour with little to no fear of detonation. It's also worth noting that any object with a similar diameter to the barrels of a Cordak Blaster can also be fired by one, though it won't go far without any additional propulsion.

Along with the standard version, there's also a much larger variant, the "Nui Cordak", designed for mounting on warships and other large vehicles, and a smaller, cheaper variant known as the Firework Revolver, which is said to have been developed in collaboration with the legendary Nynrah Ghosts (though this could just be a fabrication for marketing purposes).

The weapon's name is derived from the Toa Cordak, a Toa Team who are most well-known for being disintegrated by Zyglak, to the point that, according to my more... outgoing colleagues, the word "Cordak" has come to be used as a colloquial synonym for desolation. Prior to the unfortunate demise of the Toa Cordak, they were referred to as simply "Revolving Blasters", and you can tell the age of a Cordak Blaster by whether the name on the side is prefaced with the word "Cordak".

Now then, let's get onto the topic at hand. This prototype Cordak Blaster looks and functions vastly differently than the final version.

To start with the least notable change, the pumping mechanism is an external unit, connected via thick, translucent hoses to the back of the weapon. The hoses would presumably have been a major weak-point, and the pump is about as large and as heavy as a regular Cordak Blaster.

But where things get interesting are with the weapon itself, as well as its ammunition. Rather than a rotary design that allows for rapid firing, the prototype Blaster instead uses a gravity-fed loading system, drawing from a box-magazine that clips onto the top, and fires from a single, rather bulky barrel.

The overall form-factor, air-pump aside, is much smaller, built into a gauntlet that is sized for most classes of Toa. The Matoran over in the Weapons Testing complex managed to get it to work by attaching it to an ancient artificial Toa arm from the Level 2 Prosthetics & Implants gallery, then controlling the arm using a machine that Archivists Nuparu and Mavrah designed for this exact purpose.

What this testing showed was how the prototype missiles worked; painted entirely yellow, they were cylindrical, rather than the thin, flared shape and red colouration of the final missile designs, and seemed to be made out of solid metallic protodermis. Rather than exploding on impact, they instead functioned similarly to traditional projectile weapons such as Kanoka, impacting the target with a large amount of physical force; all but one of the targets that the weapons-testers had set up were destroyed by the Blaster, with the remaining one gained a large dent in its torso-piece when the aiming system of the testing arm glitched.

Since Kehrex provided us with a hundred crates of ammunition (each crate contains seven magazines, for a total of exactly two-thousand eight-hundred projectiles) and twenty Blasters, I got the weapon testers to try loading the prototype projectiles into the final design and vice-versa, and the results were. Interesting.

Test 1 resulted in the projectiles loudly falling to the testing-chamber floor, due to the lack of additional propulsion. Rather disappointing, but to be expected. However, Test 2 was far more interesting; while the Blaster itself was damaged, the rockets fired as standard, albeit with a far higher initial launch velocity. I requested that the damaged blaster be put on display next to the intact versions, with an explanation of what happened to it, and that only one of the intact blasters be displayed; the rest will go into storage, along with the remaining ammunition.

Personally I believe these will be quite popular with visitors, though I doubt this will cause Kehrex to cease their attempts at buying our attention.

Artifact information:

Categories: Inanimate, Weapon

Current location: Level 3, Weapons gallery.

End of log.

Addendum by Surgical Director Gogot: Hey boss you should of just asked me what toa types it fits. You're office is literally like five doors from the dissection lab. For the record, its only compatible with the arm structures of class-2 toa, as they are the ones who were active during the creation of this weapon.

[luna-rainbow]

that ask/meta about Bucky and sleeping broke my heart. I always feel sad when seeing that scene of them manhandling Bucky out of the vault and so but to know they manhandled him while he was basically dead is just sad as hell. he deserved better than a bunch of criminals doing that to him. 😔

while writing this a question came to my mind: what do you think are all the things attached to his body in that opening scene of civil war? I always thought the mask was oxygen but if he was basically dead then he didn't need oxygen, right? plus he's not wearing a mask in other times when we saw him being put under cryo, so what was that for? and the things around his chest??

Thanks for the ask! Cryo is not at all within the realm of my knowledge because there’s complicated physics involved 😂 And to be fair, I think this is classic movie science where the creators themselves have done very little research into how cryo is achieved.

This article provides a good run-down of the theory behind cryopreservation, but it’s from 2008 and technology and our understanding of cell metabolism is likely different now.

To summarise:

The subject needs to be cooled to -120C to be held in cryostasis. At these temperatures, chemical reactions are so slow that the cells can stay stable for centuries.

Blood is removed before the subject has been cooled below 0C and vitrification mixtures are injected into the subject to prevent ice crystal formation. This mixture is toxic, so has to be tightly controlled for the temperature it is given.

Another factor to control for is reperfusion injury upon warming and re-infusing the subject with blood.

Other interesting facts noted in that article is that humans have been cooled to 16-24C with cardiac arrest of more than an hour, then reawakened without neurological damage, which is impressive given brain damage is said to occur within minutes of cardiac arrest at normal body temperature.

Importantly though, the article doesn’t seem to mention any cases where an entire mammal has been successfully resurrected from cryo, much less multiple rounds of freeze-thaw cycles that Bucky had to go through. A lot of what it discusses in theory is on the basis of maximising the preservation of brain tissue, while sacrificing other organs to potential damage (I think the article said something along the lines of “in the future stem cell technology would take care of all those damaged organs!” which…isn’t going to help poor Buck out)

What I can’t find with my (very limited) reading is how the blood is stored after it is replaced. Presumably it is also cryopreserved separately? Because transfusing someone else’s blood into the subject’s body will cause huge issues. The other major difference between current data and Bucky’s situation is that current cryo methods are for the preservation of recently deceased bodies, while Bucky is still alive when he is placed into cryo.

So uh, assuming Bucky’s cryo is anything based in current real world science, he’s likely to have attachments for: heart monitoring and defibrillation, airway support and oxygen supply, large bore intravenous lines for rapid blood removal and replacement which would also help control the cooling/warming, some sort of real time monitoring of acid-base and electrolyte and oxygenation levels and replacement, and maybe some sort of EEG to monitor brainwaves. The blue glowing buttons are kiiiinda in the right place for heart monitor if we’re assuming a 3-lead system and the other one is hidden on his right side.

Keep in mind, this is not taking into account any magic effect the serum might have, ie maybe cryosuspension and revitalisation is only possible because of the serum, and maybe crystallisation isn’t an issue because of the serum.

And this is going to be TMI but I wonder what the effect of intestinal contents would be on cryo. Limiting his intestinal contents is partly the reason why I feel like Bucky likely didn’t have a lot of chance to eat real food, and likely got most of his nutrition as some sort of prescribed nutrition mix that would give him the energy hit he needs for the mission. Assuming that his gut will go into hibernation mode with cryo and probably won’t digest properly at least for a few days (much longer if he were a normal human), I suspect they’ll go for IV nutrition if they need him functional quickly. (* This won’t be one of his lines during cryo obviously cos he won’t need the support)

So yeah, all those fics about Bucky exploring oral textures and tastes of foods as a part of his recovery has a special place in my heart.

[hnm-tech-support]

.....

Data recovered from disks taken from the labs of HNM Biotech's Dr. Yeva.

[Decryption failed, most files corrupt. Accessible data shown below]

HOLY NIGHTMARE CO. BIOTECH 04175401 DARK MATTER RESEARCH - SUMMARY - CATEGORIES - EXTERMINATION PROTOCOLS - IMMUNITY PROJECT

HOLY NIGHTMARE CO. BIOTECH 06305206 14-5566-0009 PROJECT LOGS - COLD FLAME - FALLEN STAR - WHITE OBLIVION - TROJAN MARE - RISING TIDE

DARK MATTER RESEARCH SUMMARY Dark Matter is the colloquial name given to a virus-like lifeform that needs to infect other living creatures to reproduce, feeding off these hosts like parasites. The basest form is a mere particle with no intelligence or will of its own. Lesser than even a single ant and more like a bacterium, it needs to mass into larger quantities, becoming a sort of "colony" that communicates through a hivemind. It reproduces through binary fission while infecting another living creature, releasing excess Dark Matter to split off into more copies. Other methods of reproduction are suspected but have not been recorded. Naturally more animal-like and instinctual in nature, only by infecting hosts of sapient species is it able to develop intellect of its own. However, as infected hosts no longer feel emotions such as fear, Holy Nightmare is devoted to preventing the spread at all costs to protect Nightmare’s continued control of the known universe. Hosts are infected when particles of Dark Matter enter the body through wounds or orifices. The infectious dose is quite high- most can fight off casual exposure. It doesn't spread well through the air and prefers physical contact. Host becomes part of the hivemind and will try to spread to other victims. This form is the primary way they spread but also the most obvious, as feral Dark Matter doesn't have the intelligence needed to hide itself effectively. They often start with animals and other less intelligent beings. WARNING: When threatened all forms can cause rapid mutations in the host to increase defensive ability, such as growing sharp claws or new mouths. They can heal the host if injured as well, but in extreme situations will evacuate the host to escape. This is often fatal.

CATEGORIES

They have a social structure superficially similar to eusocial insects, with each lower form being subservient to those higher. They advance in stages over their lifetimes, with the speed they grow seemingly based on how many and the quality of hosts they’ve consumed. Feral/Massed - As Dark Matter multiplies, smaller parts will gather into undifferentiated masses. The most numerous form, presenting as little more than inky black ‘blobs’ with varied numbers of eyes. They have little individuality at this phase and tend to join and split at random to create larger masses, but can't hold complex forms. Without a more advanced individual to control them, these will default to a simple 'spread and infect' mode of attack. Drones - Massed Dark Matter eventually begins splitting off into smaller and more stable colonies with a single eye. Notable are the orange orbs they form around the center mass, although the purpose is unknown. They become capable of hovering flight in this stage. Higher level Dark Matter can also spawn small versions of these from their own bodies by sacrificing a small amount of their own mass. Soldiers - Dark Matter drones that have infected many hosts of more intelligent species can begin to gain something akin to sapience, perhaps through a form of horizontal gene-transfer. They can keep more complex forms, often wielding weapons on their own. They're also better at hiding their presence in a host. Regents - The oldest and most powerful, their bodies turn pure white. Highly intelligent and extremely rare, they are believed to control all other Dark Matter.

EXTERMINATION PROTOCOLS- Dark Matter is resistant to cutting and bludgeoning weapons, and requires high energy to be damaged. Fire is effective, as is electricity. Focused light-based weaponry is the most effective counter when they're outside of a host. Inside a host they're more difficult to deal with- complete obliteration of both is recommended. Advances in destabilizing technology block the ability of individual particles from cooperating and cause a temporary loss of form. This hasn’t been tested on more advanced types. Current protocol when dealing with heavily infected planets is complet- [...the rest is too corrupted to access…]

IMMUNITY PROJE%55C77T000--- $F2r33r Ce&b2w~r9p/g 6G(eb*w#n<a $Z6+ne3r+

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

PROJECT LOGS - COLD FLAME - FALLEN STAR - WHITE OBLIVION - TROJAN MARE - RISING TIDE

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

PROJECT COLD FLAME [COMPLETE] PCF-01 [DECEASED] PCF-02 [DECEASED] PCF-03-A [MIA] PCF-03-B [KIA]

Selecting PCF-03-A and B show images of two tiny, almost cute blue lizard-like creatures, alongside what are presumably their larger adult forms, covered in icy spikes, alongside information describing developing and enhancing their ice powers and removing previous weaknesses. 03-B is described as being killed in battle with Galactic Soldiers, while 03-A's body was simply never found.

------------- PROJECT FALLEN STAR [CANCELED] PFS-01-A [DECEASED] PFS-02-B [DECEASED] PFS-03 [DECEASED] PFS-04 [REPURPOSED] PFS-05 [REPURPOSED]

DATA INACCESSIBLE

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

PROJECT WHITE OBLIVION [COMPLETE] PWO-01 [STASIS] PWO-2 [MIA]

PWO-01 describes the lab working with a creature said to modify memories, and how this can be weaponized. The creature is interchangeably called 'Erasem' or 'Oblivio'- apparently different HNM scientists disagreed on a name. PWO-02 just seems to be an improved version of the last, actually getting used a few times on the enemy to sew chaos among the GSA by rendering important individuals forgotten by their comrades. However after one much later mission it is said to go missing entirely, and the project is put to an end due to difficulty in managing the creature.

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

PROJECT TROJAN MARE [DEFUNCT] FORMERLY [REDACTED] PTM-01 [DECEASED] PTM-02 [DECEASED] PTM-03 [DECEASED] PTM-04 [DECEASED] PTM-05 [DECEASED] PTM-06 [DECEASED] PTM-07 [DECEASED] PTM-08 [DECEASED] PTM-09 [DECEASED] PTM-10 [DECEASED] PTM-11 [DECEASED] PTM-12 [DECEASED] PTM-13 [DECEASED] PTM-14 [DECEASED] PTM-15 [DECEASED] PTM-16 [DECEASED] PTM-17-A [DECEASED] PTM-17-B [DECEASED] PTM-18 [DECEASED] PTM-19 [DECEASED] PTM-20 [TERMINATED] PTM-21 [DECEASED] PTM-22 [DECEASED] PTM-23-A [DECEASED] PTM-23-B [TERMINATED] PTM-24-A [REPURPOSED] PTM-24-B [REPURPOSED]

DATA INACCESSIBLE

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

PROJECT RISING TIDE [DEFUNCT] PRT-01-X [DECEASED] PRT-02-Y [DECEASED] PRT-02-X [TERMINATED] PRT-03-Y [TERMINATED] PRT-03-X [TERMINATED]

Describes a project to turn a planet's native sea life into demon beasts.

@kirbyoctournament

(This is from a roleplay session over at the Discord! I figure I'd share it for more people to see if you're curious about figuring stuff out about Techie)

[inspofromancientworld]

The Science of Discovering the Past: Aerial Archaeology

Source: https://archaeologymag.com/encyclopedia/aerial-archaeology/

Studying archaeological sites from the air is a relatively new method of studying the past, coming from the development of aerial photography in the mid-19th century by the French photographer Nadar (Gaspard-Félix Tournachon) after he took the first photograph from a balloon in 1858 and has moved into satellite, multispectral and hyperspectral studies.

By Nadar / Adam Cuerden - This file comes from Gallica Digital Library and is available under the digital ID btv1b532323066, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=143845842

When Nadar took his first photographs of Paris from the sky, he used a wet-plate collodion process where the collodion, a 'syrupy solution of nitrocellulose in ether and alcohol', was coated onto glass plates and had to be exposed while the plate was still wet, within 15 minutes of preparing the plate, requiring a 'portable darkroom' to make sure the plates only absorbed the light from the desired target to create a clear image. Because of this, Nadar had to prepare and develop his plates while in the balloon basket. During this first outing, the balloon he was using developed a leak and the escaping gas caused problems processing the images. He then developed a gas-proof cotton cover to cover the balloon basket to allow him to capture stable images.

By uploaded by Osama Shukir Muhammed Amin FRCP(Glasg). Image location:This file comes from the Wellcome Collection, a website operated by Wellcome Trust, a global charitable foundation based in the United Kingdom. Refer to Wellcome blog post (archive).This tag does not indicate the copyright status of the attached work. A normal copyright tag is still required. See Commons:Licensing. - Own work after File:'Photographic automatic kite' Wellcome M0008638.jpg, CC BY 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=56677958

Other early attempts at photography took place in the years leading up to WWI, though there were many technical and practical challenges. Sir Henry Wellcome, a British-American pharmaceutical entrepreneur and philanthropist financed expeditions to Sudan that used a box camera attached to a kite trolley to take aerial photographs of Jebel Moya from 1912-1913.

By cliché J. Dassié - http://archaero.com/Arch%E9ologie-a%E9rienne.htm, CC BY 2.5, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=1574349

World War I led to many developments and improvements in aerial photography, used at the time for reconnaissance as early as 1914. This led to a systemic approach to how sites were photographed from the air. Developments became much more rapid due to the pressures of the war on both sides of the war. Film quality improved and cameras became able to take clear pictures from farther away, and thus higher, from their targets. Images taken for mapping the positions of armies were also studied for archaeological features in Europe, highlighting the potential of aerial photography for archaeological studies.

By Ruparch - Taking a picturePreviously published: Arcà A., Hinrichsen S. 2012, The strange case of snow-circles and cup-and-rings, TRACCE Online Rock Art Bulletin 26, 2012, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=36985986

After the war, in the 1920s, Osbert Guy Stanhope Crawford, more widely known as O.G.S. Crawford, became a leading figure in the development of aerial archaeology as a field. His work focused on Britain and the Middle East, showing that 'aerial surveys could reveal features such as crop marks and soil disturbances that were undetectable from ground level'.

By James Stuby based on NASA images - Source images from Wikimedia Commons, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=122648125

After World War II, many more advancements were developed, including infrared and multispectral photography, allowing researchers to study variations in vegetation and soil that weren't visible in merely visible light photography. This also allowed for detailed and accurate surveys. During this time, aerial archaeology also expanded from Europe and the Middle East into the whole world, especially into regions that were difficult to reach in Asia, Africa, and the Americas.

By Carlos R. Chiriboga/PAET - Personal archive, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=95008963

More recently, drones, or unmanned aerial vehicles (UVAs) have led to many changes in aerial archaeology. Drones have lower operating costs and are more flexible than traditional aircraft, leading to them being used to allow a broader range of researchers to use aerial archaeology as part of their studies. Further advances, which are often used via drones, include LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), which is able to penetrate vegetation to the ground below, showing features obscured by forests, and photogrammetry, which allows for the creation of 3D models of archaeological sites and further expanding the possibilities of aerial archaeology.

[frostkingoftheapocalypse]

Dignity

The Soulforge gave a soft chime in answer to Eir's swift-fingered input. Safe, for this hour. Temperature, stable. Breathing, within normal limitations ---although laboured and rapid. The Jötunar's pneumonia-like rattle was yet present in the head that was craddled against the layers of herb-and-icewater dipped silk in a roll against the bath edge.

Stoic satisfaction had become a tattoo upon the healer's mouth this day. The stone basin beside her was hefted once more to the larger disposal at the wall, before being refilled with unbloodied water. Her muscles, glorious as any warrior's, carried the heavy equipment with ease now that the handmaidens and her mountainous charge no longer needed constant emergency monitoring from her.

The floor-length mat of the foreigner's grey-streaked hair, cause of the bloodying, was re-dipped in the basin. Then came a gelatineous substance, methodically mixed into it of an egg-white consistency, stewed from a seed-mixture. Left of them and the tub, a wooden engraved bowl containing vials, combs, tiny golden scissors, and hairpins lay upon a hip-tall footstool.

Eir looked almost peaceful.

Eyes down upon her task, sleeves rolled to her elbows, the master healer spoke with a ringing clearness at the open doorway,

"My Lordship, if you must insist on spying, do so with greater skill. You are making me itchy. " She waited for the first option to sink in before, an old-hand with the meddlesome curiosity of the young heir, particularily when given an order, she conceeded sternly,

"Or. If you continue to be unchangeable in your stubborness as you were as a babe upon my knee. You will make yourself useful, lest I inform your father that you are disobeying his strict orders for our guest. Come learn the rigors of patient dignity. The Jötunar is unconscious."

@asgardianhammer

[materialsscienceandengineering]

Researchers develop new design strategy for carbonized polymer dots to discriminate between TNT and TNP

2,4,6-trinitrotoluene (TNT) and 2,4,6-trinitrophenol (TNP) are stable explosives that can accumulate and pollute ecosystems, impacting environmental and human health. Therefore, sensitive and rapid on-site detection of TNT and TNP is essential for safety compliance. Current sensing methods primarily focus on properties linked to either TNT or TNP, without adequately exploring how structural changes in materials affect differentiation between the two. Developing a new strategy for functionalized carbonized polymer dots (CPDs) to enable high sensitivity and quick detection of both substances is a significant challenge. To tackle this issue, a research team led by Prof. Dou Xincun from the Xinjiang Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry at the Chinese Academy of Sciences has developed a design strategy for carbonized polymer dots to effectively discriminate between TNT and TNP.

Read more.

[saylessastrology]

Life as an Earth Moon

Taurus x Virgo x Capricorn

1. Grounded Emotions: You likely have a steady and grounded emotional nature. Even when emotions run deep, there’s an inherent desire to manage and express them in tangible ways.

2. Practicality: Emotions are often linked to real-world concerns. You might measure your emotional well-being against practical accomplishments or the tangible aspects of life, such as financial security or a stable home.

3. Loyalty and Consistency: Once emotional bonds are formed, they are long-lasting and dependable. There’s a genuine sense of commitment and loyalty in relationships.

4. Security-seeking: Emotional security is vital. This can manifest as a desire for a stable home, financial security, or reliable relationships.

5. Resistant to Rapid Change: Quick or unpredictable shifts can be unsettling. You might prefer a more predictable and structured emotional environment.

6. Sensory Connection: You may connect emotions with sensory experiences. Comfort food, physical touch, or being in nature can be grounding and emotionally nourishing.

7. Methodical Processing: Instead of impulsively diving into emotions, there’s a tendency to process feelings methodically, seeking understanding and practical solutions.

8. Reliability: People might often see you as a rock—someone dependable and steady, especially in times of chaos or upheaval.

9. Value-driven: Whether it’s personal values, material value, or the value you bring to others, these play a significant role in emotional fulfillment.

10. Realistic Perspective: While you might have dreams and aspirations, your emotions are often rooted in reality. There’s a preference for setting achievable goals and seeking tangible results.

Specifically:

Taurus Moon:

1. Stability Seeker: You crave emotional stability and predictability, finding comfort in routines and traditions.

2. Sensual: You connect deeply with the physical world. Touch, taste, and other sensory experiences influence your emotional well-being.

3. Loyalty: Once you form an emotional bond, it’s deeply rooted and enduring.

4. Resistant to Change: Rapid or unexpected changes can be unsettling. You prefer gradual shifts in your emotional landscape.

5. Value-Oriented: Material security and the finer things in life can play a significant role in how you feel.

Virgo Moon:

1. Analytical Processing: You tend to analyze and dissect your emotions, seeking to understand and even improve them.

2. Service-Oriented: Helping others and being of service can be closely tied to your emotional well-being.

3. Detail-Oriented: Small things matter. You might be sensitive to subtle shifts in your environment or in people’s behaviors.

4. Self-critical: You may hold yourself to high standards emotionally and can be self-critical if you perceive any shortcomings.

5. Practical: Your emotions are often linked to practical matters. Solutions and tangible actions can help you cope with emotional challenges.

Capricorn Moon:

1. Emotional Control: You often feel the need to keep your emotions in check, presenting a composed exterior, even if there’s turmoil inside.

2. Duty and Responsibility: A sense of duty and responsibility strongly influences your emotional landscape.

3. Ambitious: Your emotions can be tied to your goals, ambitions, and how you perceive your own success.

4. Cautious: You might be wary of exposing your vulnerable side, taking time to trust and open up emotionally.

5. Seeking Structure: You find emotional solace in structure, order, and having a clear path or plan.

[beardedmrbean]

After getting off his helicopter, he kissed the ground then pumped his fist in the air in victory.  General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan made a triumphant return to Khartoum on March 26, to celebrate regaining control over the capital, “liberated” from the grip of the paramilitaries.

The army chief had been forced to flee the megapolis nearly two years ago, at the start of the war opposing his Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) led by his former ally Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo, also known as "Hemedti". 

The bloody power struggle has left tens of thousands of people dead and over 10 million displaced.

Forced to change course, RSF retreated across Khartoum on Wednesday, using the Jebel Awliya bridge, the last escape route from the greater Khartoum region. Scenes of joy erupted in various areas of the city following the militia’s retreat.  

General al-Burhan ‘back to business’

Launched in September, the Sudanese army’s offensive in Khartoum is a turning point in its war against RSF. The militia controlled certain strategic sites in the capital, including the international airport, the presidential palace and several military bases.

“Abdel Fattah al-Burhan’s return to the presidential palace is a very important symbol within the country as well as abroad,” said Marc Lavergne, Sudan expert with the Paris-based French National Centre for Scientific Research. “He claims to be the legitimate leader of the country, and he is showing the world that he is back to business.”

His return was long awaited. When the war began, the military-led government was forced to move to Port Sudan, the country’s principal port on the Red Sea, located 700 kilometres north-east of the capital.

The Sudanese army struggled to stem RSF’s advance. Besides controlling their historic bastion of Darfur, the militia managed to extend their presence across northern and southern Khartoum. The RSF in 2023 inflicted a particularly humiliating defeat on the army by capturing the city of Wad Madani, the capital of Sudan’s central Al-Jazirah state. The army reversed this defeat by reconquering the megapolis of 400,000 inhabitants in January 2025.

The paramilitary fighters lose ground

The change in the balance of power in favour of the Sudanese army is because the paramilitary fighters are “losing steam”, said Lavergne. “The Rapid Support Forces are not professional soldiers with a real hierarchy and logistical organisation. They wanted to hit hard and fast; they took control over large territories without being able to run them.”

Since the start of the war, serious acts of violence have been attributed to both sides. The army is accused of carrying out indiscriminate bombings, killing numerous civilians. A strike this week in Tora, in Darfur state, killed several hundred people, according to witnesses.

Accused of numerous massacres, the RSF is considered even more brutal than the Sudanese army. “These are looters who exploit the territories they manage to capture,” said Lavergne.

The RSF’s methods have tarnished their image and weakened their capacity to recruit among the population. The RSF are also confronted by desertions, like that of the war chief Abu Aqla Kikl, who changed sides and joined the Sudanese army in October 2024.

Fear in Darfur

The balance of power between the two warring sides in Sudan has long been relatively stable, despite the Sudanese army’s notable advantage of possessing military aviation. More established in urban combat, the RSF also possesses an arsenal of drones and missiles provided by the United Arab Emirates, their main supporter, although Abu Dhabi denies any implication in the conflict.

Pressured by losses suffered on the ground, Hemedti embarked on a regional diplomatic tour in Uganda, Ethiopia and Kenya. In a quest for legitimacy, he even announced the creation of a “parallel government” during a February visit to Nairobi, to govern the areas under RSF control. The initiative was firmly rejected by SAF leader Burhan who accused Kenyan President William Ruto of supporting his rival.

“The eastern African countries that hosted Hemedti could have maybe weighed in his favour during a negotiation phase. Yet on the military side, I don’t see how RSF could inverse the balance [of power] today,” said Lavergne.

While in Khartoum the army is celebrating the end of fighting, certain observers fear that RSF’s retreat to Darfur, which it still controls, will provoke a new wave of violence against the non-Arab communities, which are often targeted by the paramilitary forces. The United States accused the RSF and allied militias in January of committing genocide, through the systematic murder of “men and boys – even infants – on an ethnic basis”.

[digitaldetoxworld]

Top 10 Shopify Marketing Strategies to Skyrocket Your Sales in 2025"

 Shopify is a effective e-trade platform that empowers corporations of all sizes to construct on line shops. However, simply having a shop isn't sufficient; effective advertising is important to attract clients and power sales. This manual will discover key Shopify advertising techniques and strategies that will help you prevail.

"Effective Shopify store promotion methods in 2025"

1. Content Marketing

Blog: Create valuable content that addresses your audience's pain factors, answers their questions, and presents beneficial records.

Examples: Product courses, industry news, behind-the-scenes glimpses, consumer testimonials.

Social Media: Engage together with your target audience on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and TikTok. Share visually attractive content material, run contests and giveaways, and respond right away to feedback and messages.

Video Marketing: Create engaging films like product demos, tutorials, and consumer testimonies. Platforms like YouTube and TikTok are exquisite for video advertising and marketing.

2. Search Engine Optimization (search engine marketing)

On-Page SEO: Optimize your product pages, weblog posts, and website copy with applicable keywords. Use clear and concise product descriptions, exceptional images, and rapid loading instances.

Off-Page search engine marketing: Build splendid one-way links from different authentic websites. Engage in guest blogging, take part in on-line groups, and build relationships with different groups.

Technical SEO: Ensure your internet site is cellular-pleasant, has a stable connection (HTTPS), and is simple for search engines to crawl and index.

Three. Email Marketing

Build an Email List: Offer incentives like discounts or one of a kind content to inspire site visitors to enroll in your e mail list.

Segment Your Audience: Tailor your e-mail campaigns to particular customer segments based on their purchase records, surfing behavior, and demographics.

Automate Your Emails: Use email advertising automation equipment to ship welcome emails, abandoned cart reminders, and post-buy comply with-up messages.

4. Paid Advertising

Google Ads: Run focused ads on Google Search and Google Display Network to attain clients actively searching for products like yours.

Social Media Ads: Utilize centered ads on structures like Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest to reach specific demographics and hobbies.

Influencer Marketing: Partner with applicable influencers to promote your merchandise to their fans.

Five. Social Proof

Customer Reviews: Display patron opinions and testimonials prominently in your internet site and product pages.

Social Media Mentions: Encourage social media sharing by means of strolling contests and providing incentives.

User-Generated Content: Feature consumer-generated content like snap shots and videos of clients the usage of your merchandise.

6. Sales and Promotions

Discounts and Coupons: Offer discounts, coupons, and special promotions to draw new clients and incentivize repeat purchases.

Flash Sales: Create a sense of urgency via imparting confined-time discounts on choose merchandise.

Loyalty Programs: Reward repeat customers with unique discounts, early get right of entry to to income, and personalized offers.

7. Website Optimization

User Experience (UX): Ensure your internet site is straightforward to navigate, visually attractive, and cell-friendly.

Page Speed: Optimize your website's loading speed to enhance person experience and search engine ratings.

Clear Call-to-Actions (CTAs): Use strong CTAs like "Buy Now," "Add to Cart," and "Learn More" to manual site visitors towards conversions.

Eight. Customer Service

Provide Excellent Support: Offer activate and beneficial customer support via channels like live chat, e-mail, and phone.

Build Relationships: Go the extra mile to construct sturdy relationships along with your customers.

Address Feedback: Actively solicit and respond to client comments to improve your products and services.

Nine. Analytics and Tracking

Track Key Metrics: Monitor key metrics like internet site site visitors, conversion charges, client acquisition cost, and client lifetime fee.

Analyze Data: Use facts analytics tools to pick out areas for development and optimize your advertising campaigns.

A/B Testing: Experiment with exclusive website factors and advertising and marketing campaigns to peer what plays best.

10. Shopify Apps

Boost Sales: Utilize Shopify apps to beautify your advertising efforts, which include apps for e-mail advertising, social media advertising and marketing, and sales automation.

Improve Customer Experience: Implement apps that enhance customer experience, such as stay chat, product pointers, and transport monitoring.

Increase Efficiency: Streamline your commercial enterprise operations with apps for inventory management, order fulfillment, and accounting.

Key Considerations:

Target Audience: Understand your target market's wishes, choices, and on line conduct.

Budget: Determine your advertising budget and allocate finances efficiently throughout exceptional channels.

Consistency: Maintain regular branding and messaging across all advertising channels.

Innovation: Stay updated with the modern day advertising tendencies and technologies.

Shopify Marketing Examples:

Allbirds: Known for its sustainable footwear, Allbirds efficaciously leverages social media marketing, person-generated content, and influencer collaborations to build a sturdy emblem following.

Glossier: Glossier has built a devoted community thru social media engagement, actual logo storytelling, and a focus on purchaser experience.

Gymshark: Gymshark correctly makes use of influencer marketing, health demanding situations, and a strong social media presence to engage its target audience of fitness enthusiasts.

By imposing these techniques and strategies, you may efficiently marketplace your Shopify shop, appeal to clients, and force sales growth. Remember to constantly analyze your effects, adapt your technique based on statistics, and live focused on supplying value on your clients.

Disclaimer: This records is for general understanding and informational functions most effective and does now not constitute monetary, funding, or other professional advice.

I desire this comprehensive guide provides precious insights into Shopify advertising. Feel unfastened to invite if you have any further questions.