#target controlled infusion

[tranquilsanatorium]

One of the earlier device models for target controlled infusion in anesthesia

[avokaidoll]

⑅ Self Discipline ⑅

Self-discipline is like having a personal cheerleader in your head, helping you stay focused and achieve your goals. It's the ability to control and direct yourself, making choices that align with your long-term objectives rather than giving in to immediate impulses. Think of it as the secret sauce for personal growth, productivity, and success. It involves setting priorities, making conscious decisions, and consistently putting in effort to reach your desired outcomes. Self-discipline empowers you to stay on track, overcome challenges, and ultimately become the best version of yourself.

Let's break down the essence of self-discipline in dfrnt aspects of your life

1. Morning Routine Magic:

Your morning routine is like crafting a daily sanctuary. Beyond skincare, imagine incorporating moments of tranquility like yoga or a quick workout. It's not just a checklist; it's setting the stage for a day of conquering.

2. To-Do List Love:

Your to-do list is a dynamic tool, more than a mere inventory of tasks. It's a glam planner, outlining your roadmap to success. Writing down your ambitions transforms them into tangible goals, making the conquest all the more empowering.

3. Snack on Goals, Not Junk:

Goals aren't just targets; they're your daily sustenance. Instead of mindless snacking, consider each accomplished task as a delicious victory bite, satisfying your hunger for achievement.

4. Wardrobe Power Moves:

Dressing for success isn't a superficial act; it's about embodying confidence. Your outfit becomes a statement, shaping your mindset for the day. It's akin to wearing a tangible boost of self-assurance. I want you to wear for the day you want, not the day you have !!!

5. Breaks Aren't Breakdowns:

Taking breaks is a strategic recharge, not a sign of weakness. It's not about slacking off but strategically powering up. These moments are not breakdowns; they are breakthroughs, allowing you to return with renewed sparkle. So don't beat yourself up when your really need the rest :)

6. Learn, Don't Stress:

In the face of challenges, see them as opportunities for growth. Self-discipline is not a pursuit of perfection but a commitment to a journey of continual learning. Remember, nobody is born with all the answers; it's about evolving.

7. Consistency is the Glow-Up Secret:

Consistency is more than a routine; it's the highlighter of your life's narrative. It infuses your journey with an extra pop, turning the ordinary into the extraordinary. Even on tough days, maintaining consistency becomes your guiding light.

8. Celebrate Small Wins:

Every step toward your goals, irrespective of size, is a cause for celebration. It's not just recognizing achievements; it's throwing a confetti party for yourself. Celebrate not just the destination but the entire journey.

9. Consistent Routine:

Envision self-discipline as a daily sanctuary, akin to your skincare routine. Skipping it is like neglecting a crucial step in your beauty ritual. Embrace it daily for a consistent, empowering glow.

10. Setting Goals:

Picture self-discipline as the GPS that is guiding you to your dreams. Establish small, attainable goals as waypoints on your journey. These goals serve as markers, leading you steadily toward your grand aspirations.

11. Prioritizing Tasks:

Think of self-discipline as your wise older sister, advising you on what truly matters. Prioritize tasks that contribute to your glow-up, whether it's acquiring a new skill or taking care of your well-being.

12. Resisting Temptations:

It's important to saying no to that extra slice of cake when you know you're full. Self-discipline aids in resisting temptations that might divert you from your goals, whether it's procrastination or unhealthy habits.

13. Building Habits:

Like establishing a routine of daily water intake, self-discipline helps in cultivating positive habits. These habits become second nature, contributing to your overall well-being and success.

14. Time Management:

Imagine self-discipline as a magical time-turner. It assists in managing your time wisely, allowing you to balance academics, self-care, and the pursuit of your passions effectively.

15. Learning from Mistakes:

Self-discipline is forgiving; it encourages learning from mistakes rather than dwelling on them. It's a compassionate guide, acknowledging that growth comes from understanding and overcoming challenges.

16. Celebrating Achievements:

Consider self-discipline your personal cheerleader. It not only recognizes but actively celebrates your achievements, big or small, in your journey of self-improvement and success.

Visualize self-discipline as your personal superhero cape, guiding you through the journey of glowing up and being super productive. You're on the path to becoming a true girlboss.

Keep shining doll !

Xoxo signing off,

Angela ꒰⁠⑅⁠ᵕ⁠༚⁠ᵕ⁠꒱⁠˖⁠♡

ps: this is my first post I hope it was informative enough as I am also in my own journey of being better mentally and physically and I see self discipline as something essential for that to happen.

[ghostwarriorrrr]

🇹🇷🔥 Turkish Air Force - F-4E 2020 Terminator

The F-4E 2020 Terminator represents a significant leap forward in the capabilities of the Turkish Air Force. This comprehensive upgrade enhances the venerable F-4E Phantom II with modern Turkish-made weapons systems, showcasing Türkiye’s commitment to self-reliance and advanced military technology.

Background

With a storied history dating back to the 1960s, the F-4E Phantom II has been a pivotal player on the global stage of air combat. Serving multiple nations and seeing numerous conflicts, the Phantom carved out its place in aviation history as a versatile and rugged aircraft. Türkiye’s decision to upgrade this aircraft stems from a strategic imperative to leverage existing assets while infusing them with cutting-edge technology to maintain relevance in modern aerial warfare. The 2020 Terminator program is the Turkish Air Force’s ambitious initiative to retrofit these fighters with state-of-the-art systems.

Strategic Importance

The ability to exert air superiority and conduct precision strikes is paramount in a region marked by dynamic security challenges. The F-4E 2020 Terminator’s enhanced capabilities contribute significantly to deterrence, and the demonstration of Türkiye’s advancing aerospace industry serves both a strategic and diplomatic purpose.

Upgrade Overview

The 2020 Terminator upgrade, realized by Turkish Aerospace Industries in collaboration with ASELSAN, constitutes a multifaceted improvement over the aircraft’s original design. It touches every aspect of the aircraft’s systems, bringing its avionics, armaments, and electronic warfare systems into the 21st century.

Avionics:

The modernized multi-mode pulse Doppler radar extends the aircraft’s detection range, allowing it to lock onto and engage targets from greater distances. Integrating a Hands-On Throttle-And-Stick (HOTAS) system enhances pilot control, minimizing response time during high-stakes manoeuvres. Color Multifunctional Displays (MFDs) replace outdated gauges, providing pilots with real-time data visualization for improved situational awareness.

Armament:

The Terminator’s weapons suite has been revolutionized with a mixture of Western and indigenous munitions. Long-standing armaments like the AIM-9X Sidewinder are joined by Türkiye’s own precision-guided munitions, such as the SOM cruise missile, capable of striking strategic land and sea targets with formidable accuracy. The UAV-230, a domestic innovation, represents the pinnacle of Türkiye’s missile development, offering supersonic ballistic delivery of a range of warhead types over substantial distances. The BOZOK, MAM-C, MAM-L, and Cirit missiles exemplify Türkiye’s expertise in laser guidance and smart munition technology, enabling the Terminator to engage and defeat a broad spectrum of target profiles with unerring precision.

Electronic Warfare:

To contend with the contemporary battlefield’s electronic warfare environment, the F-4E 2020 Terminator incorporates an advanced Electronic Support Measures (ESM) system for rapid threat identification and an Electronic Countermeasures (ECM) suite to confound hostile tracking systems. Moreover, chaff and flare dispensers have been integrated to provide decoys against incoming missile threats, enhancing the aircraft’s survivability in hostile airspace.

Operational Capability:

The F-4E Phantom II, transformed by these integrated systems, emerges as a multirole platform capable of dominating beyond-visual-range air-to-air engagements and precision ground-attack missions. It can operate in complex electronic warfare environments and deliver various ordnances based on mission requirements, making it a flexible asset in the Türkiye Air Force’s inventory.

Significance:

The F-4E 2020 Terminator project is a hallmark of Türkiye’s aerospace ambition and its push toward defence autonomy. By retrofitting and modernizing its Phantoms, Türkiye maximizes the value of its existing fleet while also establishing a foundation for future indigenous aircraft development projects.

Munitions Details:

The advanced, indigenous Turkish weaponry integrated into the F-4E 2020 Terminator underlines a significant shift toward self-reliance in defence technologies. Each munition type brings unique capabilities that enhance the platform’s lethality:

UAV-230: A domestically-developed ballistic missile, this supersonic weapon delivers high-precision strikes at long ranges, challenging enemy defences with its speed and reduced radar cross-section.

BOZOK: The versatility of this laser-guided munition makes it ideal for engaging both stationary and moving targets with high precision, ideal for close air support.

MAM-C/L: These smart micro munitions are designed for tactical flexibility, allowing for precision targeting in complex engagement scenarios, from anti-armour operations to counter-insurgency roles.

Cirit: A highly accurate laser-guided missile system designed for low collateral damage, Cirit is adept at striking soft and lightly armoured targets with pinpoint accuracy.

SAGE Munitions: TUBITAK SAGE, Türkiye’s leading defence research and development institute, has contributed a range of munitions enhancing the Terminator’s operational capabilities across various domains.

Conclusion:

The upgraded F-4E 2020 Terminator is a testament to Türkiye’s determination to retain a competitive edge in aerospace and defence technologies. The integration of modern avionics, armaments, and electronic warfare capabilities ensures the aircraft’s continued relevance in modern air combat, and its presence in the skies serves as a deterrent in a strategically complex region.

[hallucinateonpaperspines]

Have you ever thought about Megatron's claim in tfp that he can "control" the Terracons but we never actually see him do it? Sure, sir stands on top of a cliff, gives a dramatic speech, and, presumably, sends off his hoard to destroy Optimus on his behalf, but is that really controlling them?

Excuse me, but I must rant for a moment.

The first interaction is with Cliffjumper's revived corpse, pre-Dark Engeron infusion. So, obviously, there is no control and the Terracon attacks. Fitting with the whole "destroyer" aspect of Unicron. But is that just its nature, or a clue?

Then of course there is the cliff scene, the whole "rise and tear them apart" shebang... but does that actually deviate from the default nature of the Terracons? Attack the living? One of which possessed the fragging Matrix of Leadership?

*slams gavel down* Inconclusive evidence I say! Objection sustained!

The next interaction is the space bridge explosion. While calling back to Michelangelo's Creation of Adam (hehe, nice playing God implication), it also shows that there was no contact or room to give orders. So that is also null.

We do also have the Skyquake incident, which does not include Megatron but does include interactions with both bots and humans. The Zombie Con clearly attempted to attack the bots first and foremost, then moved on to the humans once the larger targets were gone. A result of visibility or sensitivity to the energon in their systems? A sort of I'm Primus' creation flag waving? IDK, I'm speculating.

And, finally, with the vampire infection on the Nemesis, Megatron can sense the Terracons, but he can't control them at all. (I've only seen clips of that particular episode, so my speculation will have to end there, but wasn't KO and Starscream right next to him at the time of the attack?)

So, no, Meggsy, I don't think you had any control over the Terracons. Zombie AU where he figures this out, anyone?

I could just be overthinking the entire thing, but I've been gnawing on this for Y E A R S.

[mostlysignssomeportents]

Big Telco’s fury over FCC plan to infuse telecoms policy with facts

I'll be at the Studio City branch of the LA Public Library on Monday, November 13 at 1830hPT to launch my new novel, The Lost Cause. There'll be a reading, a talk, a surprise guest (!!) and a signing, with books on sale. Tell your friends! Come on down!

Reality has a distinct anti-conservative bias, but conservatives have an answer: when the facts don't support your policies, just get different facts. Who needs evidence-based policy when you can have policy-based evidence?

Take gun violence. Conservatives tell us that "an armed society is a polite society," which means that the more guns you have, the less gun violence you'll experience. To prevent reality from unfairly staining this pristine ideological mind-palace with facts, conservatives passed the Dickey Amendment, which had the effect of banning the CDC from gathering stats on American gun-violence. No stats, no violence!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dickey_Amendment

Policy-based evidence is at the core of so many cherished conservative beliefs, like the idea that queer people (and not youth pastors) are responsible for the sexual abuse of children, or the idea that minimum wages (and not monopolies) decrease jobs, or the idea that socialized medicine (and not private equity) leads to death panels:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/04/26/death-panels/#what-the-heck-is-going-on-with-CMS

The Biden administration features a sizable cohort of effective regulators, whose job is to gather evidence and then make policy from it:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/10/23/getting-stuff-done/#praxis

Fortunately for conservatives, not every Biden agency is led by competent, honest brokers – the finance wing of the Dems got to foist some of their most ghoulish members upon the American people, including a no-fooling cheerleader for mass foreclosure:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/06/personnel-are-policy/#janice-eberly

And these same DINOs reached across the aisle to work with Republicans to keep some of the most competent, principled agency leaders from being seated, like the remarkable Gigi Sohn, targeted by a homophobic smear campaign funded by the telco industry, who feared her presence on the FCC:

https://pluralistic.net/2023/03/19/culture-war-bullshit-stole-your-broadband/

The telcos are old hands at this stuff. Long before the gun control debates, Ma Bell had figured out that a monopoly over Americans' telecoms was a license to print money, and they set to corrupting agencies from the FCC to the DoJ:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/11/14/jam-to-day/

Reality has a vicious anti-telco bias. Think of Net Neutrality, the idea that if you pay an ISP for internet service, they should make a best effort to deliver the data you request, rather than deliberately slowing down your connection in the hopes that you'll seek out data from the company's preferred partners, who've paid a bribe for "premium delivery."

This shouldn't even be up for debate. The idea that your ISP should prioritize its preferred data over your preferred data is as absurd as the idea that a taxi-driver should slow down your rides to any pizzeria except Domino's, which has paid it for "premium service." If your cabbie circled the block twice every time you asked for a ride to Massimo's Pizza, you'd be rightly pissed – and the cab company would be fined.

Back when Ajit Pai was Trump's FCC chairman, he made killing Net Neutrality his top priority. But regulators aren't allowed to act without evidence, so Pai had to seek out as much policy-based evidence as he could. To that end, Pai allowed millions of obviously fake comments to be entered into the docket (comments from dead people, one million comments from @pornhub.com address, comments from sitting Senators who disavowed them, etc). Then Pai actively – and illegally – obstructed the NY Attorney General's investigation into the fraud:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/05/06/boogeration/#pais-lies

The pursuit of policy-based evidence is greatly aided by the absence of real evidence. If you're gonna fill the docket with made-up nonsense, it helps if there's no truthful stuff in there to get in the way. To that end, the FCC has systematically avoided collecting data on American broadband delivery, collecting as little objective data as possible:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/26/pandemic-profiteers/#flying-blind

This willful ignorance was a huge boon to the telcos, who demanded billions in fed subsidies for "underserved areas" and then just blew it on anything they felt like – like the $45 billion of public money they wasted on obsolete copper wiring for rural "broadband" expansion under Trump:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/02/27/all-broadband-politics-are-local/

Like other cherished conservative delusions, the unsupportable fantasy that private industry is better at rolling out broadband is hugely consequential. Before the pandemic, this meant that America – the birthplace of the internet – had the slowest, most expensive internet service of any G8 country. During the lockdown, broadband deserts meant that millions of poor and rural Americans were cut off from employment, education, health care and family:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/02/12/ajit-pai/#pai

Pai's response was to commit another $8 billion in public funds to broadband expansion, but without any idea of where the broadband deserts were – just handing more money over to monopoly telcos to spend as they see fit, with zero accountability:

https://pluralistic.net/2020/05/26/pandemic-profiteers/#flying-blind

All that changed after the 2020 election. Pai was removed from office (and immediately blocked me on Twitter) (oh, diddums), and his successor, Biden FCC chair Jessic Rosenworcel, started gathering evidence, soliciting your broadband complaints:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/03/23/parliament-of-landlords/#fcc

And even better, your broadband speed measurements:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/04/14/for-sale-green-indulgences/#fly-my-pretties

All that evidence spurred Congress to act. In 2021, Congress ordered the FCC to investigate and punish discrimination in internet service provision, "based on income level, race, ethnicity, color, religion, or national origin":

https://www.congress.gov/117/plaws/publ58/PLAW-117publ58.pdf

In other words, Congress ordered the FCC to crack down on "digital redlining." That's when historic patterns of underinvestment in majority Black neighborhoods and other underserved communities create broadband deserts, where internet service is slower and more expensive than service literally across the street:

https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/10/flicc/#digital-divide

FCC Chair Rosenworcel has published the agency's plan for fulfilling this obligation. It's pretty straightforward: they're going to collect data on pricing, speed and other key service factors, and punish companies that practice discrimination:

https://www.fcc.gov/document/preventing-digital-discrimination-broadband-internet-access

This has provoked howls of protests from the ISP cartel, their lobbying org, and their Republican pals on the FCC. Writing for Ars Technica, Jon Brodkin rounds up a selection of these objections:

https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2023/11/internet-providers-say-the-fcc-should-not-investigate-broadband-prices/

There's GOP FCC Commissioner Brendan Carr, with a Steve Bannon-seque condemnation of "the administrative state [taking] effective control of all Internet services and infrastructure in the US. He's especially pissed that the FCC is going to regulate big landlords who force all their tenants to get slow, expensive from ISPs who offer kickbacks to landlords:

https://www.fcc.gov/document/carr-opposes-bidens-internet-plan

The response from telco lobbyists NCTA is particularly, nakedly absurd: they demand that the FCC exempt price from consideration of whether an ISP is practicing discrimination, calling prices a "non-technical aspect of broadband service":

https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/110897268295/1

I mean, sure – it's easy to prove that an ISP doesn't discriminate against customers if you don't ask how much they charge! "Sure, you live in a historically underserved neighborhood, but technically we'll give you a 100mb fiber connection, provided you give us $20m to install it."

This is a profoundly stupid demand, but that didn't stop the wireless lobbying org CTIA from chiming in with the same talking points, demanding that the FCC drop plans to collect data on "pricing, deposits, discounts, and data caps," evaluation of price is unnecessary in the competitive wireless marketplace":

https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1107735021925/1

Individual cartel members weighed in as well, with AT&T and Verizon threatening to sue over the rules, joined by yet another lobbying group, USTelecom:

https://www.fcc.gov/ecfs/document/1103655327582/1

The next step in this playbook is whipping up the low-information base by calling this "socialism" and mobilizing some of the worst-served, most-gouged people in America to shoot themselves in the face (again), to own the libs:

https://pluralistic.net/2022/12/15/useful-idiotsuseful-idiots/#unrequited-love

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

https://pluralistic.net/2023/11/10/digital-redlining/#stop-confusing-the-issue-with-relevant-facts

Image: Japanexperterna.se (modified) https://www.flickr.com/photos/japanexperterna/15251188384/

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

--

Mike Mozart (modified) https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeepersmedia/14325839070/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeepersmedia/14325905568/

https://www.flickr.com/photos/jeepersmedia/14489390566/

www.ccPixs.com https://www.flickr.com/photos/86530412@N02/8210762750/

CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0/

[mysticmonkeybusiness]

Prompt: MK isnt the only one who has nightmares of LBD (featuring: Wukong and or Macaque); given by @visionaryscribe

-

The chill is comforting. The Champion is a reckless wildcard, but his Lady’s magic helps him keep a cool head and on target. The mission objectives have increased from one target to eight, but there’s nothing that will stop him from clearing his Lady’s path.

He Knows in his mind, body, and soul, that he needs to eliminate the threat. For the sake of the one behind him, for the future she will make reality, for the Good that she will bring to the world.

The Champion will crush all that stands in her way.

One of the targets spout nonsense, words slipping like molasses and body flickering with glamoured scars. Emotion bubbles up, searingly hot, but his Lady’s magic cools his own and once more settles the world to a sharp icy crystal. Soon the world will be reborn in frost. No more lies or darkness or pain tainting it.  

As it should be.

The enemy is tricky, but hardly a match for him. With overwhelming power he ruthlessly hurls them into the ground, only for his attention to be caught by another daring to look at his Lady defiantly. He doesn’t give the one on the ground another look. It’s neutralized for now, and the other is of greater priority.

He charges at it’s back, the words it’s speaking sounding more like they’re traveling through water than air.

He doesn’t hesitate.

Blood bursts from a gored back and as the warm liquid of life splatters across his face, he finally sees the target’s eyes as they look over their shoulder. Pain. Betrayal. Despair.

Wide hazel brown eyes stare at him, rapidly clouding over.

His hands are warm.

Wukong gasps as he doubles over, shivering despite the hot, muggy weather of Flower Fruit Mountain. Each breath is harder to grasp than his last so he gives up, forgoing it all together. The burning in his chest is comforting, goosebumps rising up beneath his fur from the lack of air. He grits his teeth, leaps to his feet, and starts pacing.

Immobility just reminds him of all that She took from him. His thoughts, his magic, his memories. So far he’s managed to keep just how deep under Her- her control he was, but the others don’t need to know how close their victory was.

MK doesn’t need to know how close it was. If he hadn’t managed to break free-

Wukong violently shakes his head and his tail lashes behind him, knocking several things to the ground that he really can’t care about right now. It doesn’t matter. They won. LBD was stopped. The world is safe. Everyone is safe.

The kid is safe.  

Sharp ringing makes Wukong shriek and throw himself onto a table, creating an even greater mess. The jingle of his show’s theme song finally registers and Wukong scrambles off the table to answer. There’s only two people who even know the number exists and he’s blocked the other one ages ago. Emails are much easier to ignore anyways.

“Monkey King!” MK’s sheepish voice comes through the moment he picks up, barreling right over his (nonexistent) attempt to say anything. “So like. A demon attacked and the shop’s a mess so I was wondering if we could have training be an hour later than usual. No- Half an hour? Twenty- Ten? Minutes? Please? What was I thinking, of course I’ve gotta-“

Wukong cuts him off before he can spiral, feeling fondly exasperated. “Bud, it’s fine. Take the day off, it sounds like you need it. You’ve been working pretty hard recently.” And it gives Wukong the perfect excuse to be alone for a while.

MK is quiet for a few seconds. “…Monkey King, are you okay? We never cancel training. We even trained in that massive storm three weeks ago.”

Nervous laughter escapes before he can stop it and Wukong coughs to cover it up. Infusing the words with as much confidence as he can muster, he says, “Nothing’s wrong. Just think you deserve to have some time to yourself, bud. Been meaning to tell you about it and this seems like a good time.”

And if it keeps the kid away until he can stop seeing his bloody back behind his eyelids, all the better.

“…If you’re sure…”

“Positive!” The smile feels fake, but he does his best to sound cheerful and fine. He’s fine. “Go have fun with the dragon girl. You’ve said you weren’t able to hang out with her recently.”

Playful exasperation and an audible smile comes through the call. “I know you know her name is-“

“Bye!” Wukong hangs up and shudders. He tosses the phone somewhere off to the side and falls into a meditation pose, pooling his scorching magic in his chest and praying it chases the frigid cold from his bones.

She’s gone and everyone is safe. The kid is safe. The kid is safe.

Wukong repeats the phrase, nearly chanting it as he sinks into light meditation. The chill lingers, but he lets the truth of that one phrase warm his heart. He holds it close, like a lifeline.

The kid is safe. Safe from him.

…Isn’t he?

Wukong shudders, the subzero cold clinging to his bones.

The Champion opens his eyes, determined not to have the vision his Lady shared with him come to pass. His Lady Will Not Die. He refuses to allow it.

He Knows what he must do.

[vibke]

My holidays are over, now I won't have that much time to draw (TヘT)

However, because of that i decided to post some more accurate information about how the Vanilla's new physiology works, since before that there were only some interesting facts. Here is the same pic but with silly notes (ノ*°▽°*)

Sooooo, what the hell has happen?

Basically,

Shadow Milk cookie infused a substantial amount of his life magic into Pure Vanilla cookie, fundamentally transforming his essence to mirror that of milk itself, establishing a familial connection between them. Milk, being a pristine wellspring of vital energy, sustains himself internally without the need for external sources, unlike Vanilla, who must assimilate the life force of other cookies to thrive. This absorption can only be achieved by consuming another cookie alive, with the intensity of their suffering directly correlating to the energy garnered.

The constant expenditure of this vital energy is essential for Vanilla's survival, yet it can also be deliberately harnessed for magical purposes. Also existing in the physical realm demands a higher energy expenditure compared to the void. Vanilla feels hungry all the time, regardless of the energy level. Despite the persistent gnawing hunger, Vanilla exercises restraint, indulging in consumption only as a last resort when energy levels dwindle perilously low.

When the energy level reaches this point or when grievously wounded, Vanilla's sanity unravels, plunging him into a frenzied state where he indiscriminately attacks and devours any cookie in sight, save for Milk. Even at maximum energy capacity, this ravenous frenzy persists, transforming Vanilla into a feral being devoid of speech, reveling in the carnage and suffering inflicted upon others. Respite from this state is only achieved once energy peaks and no viable targets remain for consumption.

However, a glimmer of hope resides in Lily's voice, capable of momentarily grounding Vanilla and averting complete loss of control, hinting at a potential emotional tether that may offer salvation. The preservation of memory and knowledge during these frenzied episodes contrasts starkly with the loss of coherent communication, replaced by primal vocalizations akin to predatory animals.

Taking all this into account, Vanilla's main goal is to prevent loss of sanity. If, even in a wild state, Vanilla cannot find and eat anyone, or if he is killed, then his physical shell will collapse. However, the symbiotic relationship between Vanilla and Milk ensures their physical shells can regenerate using the vital energy of the other upon destruction, rendering their demise nearly impossible. This makes the destruction of each of them almost impossible, since they both have to be killed within a fairly short period of time. Milk as a whole is not set up to lose, and Vanilla enters a state of savagery when seriously injured, so you need to try hard to kill two at once. Vanilla predominantly resides in the void, emerging sporadically to hunt in the outside world to conserve energy, while Milk adopts a congenial demeanor, advocating for joint dominance in the world, a proposition Vanilla resists.

The psychological toll of wanton violence and senseless slaughter weighs heavily on Vanilla, compelling compliance in the face of Milk's dominance, exacerbated by the threat of descending into unrestrained savagery when resisting. The trauma inflicted by brutal acts of violence reinforces Vanilla's obedience, believing himself unworthy and trapped in a cycle of submission.

[dailycharacteroption]

Living Vessel (Pathfinder Second Edition Archetype)

(art by xiaofanchuanart on DeviantArt)

It’s a fun trope that’s seen a lot of traction these days, the hero with an entity bound inside them, granting them power at the cost of having a volatile roommate inside their head.

While said entities are traditionally malevolent, not all of them are evil or demonic in nature. Some might be eldritch entities beyond the concept of good and evil, have almost mortal motivations, or even be outright benevolent. However, their behavior is not always in line with the character’s desires or methods, leading to conflict occasionally or often, depending.

Additionally, there is the question of how the entity ended up bound to the hero in the first place. Perhaps it was a willing pact between two entities, or a forcible one where one or both had no say in the matter, such as an offered bargain with a fey, or being dragged onto an altar for a foul ritual, or being bonded by pure accident.

An interesting aspect of this archetype is that it can be thematically involved as much as you like with your base class, either being entirely separate, or flavored as being the reason you have the abilities of the class in question in the first place, such as a witch whose pact is with an entity that is also partially possessing them, or a sorcerer or psychic channeling the power of the bound entity as their own.

Additionally, the archetype also does suggest that your GM might allow you to take one of the pact feats from the pactbinder archetype for even more thematic powers.

On that note, since the exact nature of the living vessel is left vague, you should work with your GM to possibly modify the feats of the class, or even homebrew new ones that fit with the bound entity. For example, Exude Abyssal Corruption might deal fire damage instead if the entity is a devil rather than a demon.

With all this in mind, this archetype offers plenty of leeway to grant new powers or reflavor old powers to be the results of another entity within themselves, with all the quirks and roleplaying opportunities that represents.

The base dedication of the archetype grants the bond with the entity, which must be regularly appeased (the specifics being worked out between you and the GM). If not appeased so, the entity becomes irate (granting greater penalties) and can only be appeased by being granted full control for a day, letting it pursue it’s own agendas. However, the entity comes through for you in emergencies, taking over when the hero would fall unconscious to keep them in the fight a little longer, albeit under their control.

Oftentimes, the entity transforms a limb of it’s host, or extrudes one through their body to grant them a physical attack that they can manifest.

Living Vessels can sometimes tap into the life force of the entity to heal their wounds, but some of the entity’s psyche comes with it, blurring the line between the two until assuaged. The specifics are vague and can range from roleplaying changes to priority shifts or even GM control after repeated uses.

Some bound to demons might ooze with demonic corruption, infusing their attacks and touch with poison.

Those with a fey bond might benefit from illusions that make it difficult for foes to target the real vessel.

Meanwhile, eldritch bondmates may aid in grappling foes with their unknowable limbs, assaulting them both physically and mentally.

The most powerful, through either mastering their control of the entity or coming to a true understanding, may truly merge with the entity and temporarily take on a hybrid form blending the two together, improving their combat prowess and bolstering various generic abilities associated with the archetype.

Finally, don’t forget that your GM might let you take a pact feat from Pactbinder or a modification of such.

For all it’s flexible abilities, this archetype is pretty unintrusive, but it can grant anything from the basic ability to keep standing in an emergency with buffs with a cost, to a natural attack for emergencies, healing, and of course a powerful battle form alongside whatever flavorful abilities you choose to take based on the entity’s nature. In this way, it can provide some useful abilities without inhibiting your main class, making it useful for pretty much all of them.

No matter if you using this archetype to emulate older 1st edition entities like medium or shaman spirits, the alternate self of the abomination psychic discipline, or want to do something entirely new, the dynamic between the character and the entity can be as varied as any other relationship. Perhaps they are truly monstrous and demand horrible acts to be placated, or maybe they’re a playful trickster, a misunderstood grump, or something else. Creativity is absolutely your friend here.

When the angel Lowentiel fell, it was not arrogance or disobedience  that brought him low, but a thirst for justice that had forgotten mercy. And so rather than join the ranks of the Erinyes, he had to be sealed away lest he tear his way through Hell on his bloody quest. However, while his name is striken from records and his true self locked away, there are those who find his name on their lips when vengeance and punishment are on their minds…. Who can invite a measure of the fallen demigod angel into themselves.

If there is anything the azarketi, or gillfolk know too much about, it is the eldritch horrors that sleep beneath the sea awaiting the proper alignment of the stars. However, despite being better informed of the danger than most, some are still seduced by the tales of those that invite the dreaming minds of such horrors into themselves, all for power.

While the party is visiting a village on the outskirts of the kingdom, they manage to spot a brownie house fey. While normally this would be merely a rare chance encounter, the tiny fey recognizes something about the party’s mage… not them themselves… but the fey entity bound to their soul, making the brownie the only lead they have to discovering the true identity of this being.

[anarchy-and-piglins]

I need you to know I’m eating (/pos) this sun moon stars hero dynamic. I’m infusing it into my very soul. It’s a fucking banger of a universe AND ITS EMDUO ON TOP OF IT? I’m thriving. My crops are watered my skin is clear. No notes except that I think that someone tries to fuck with Phil thinking he’s just a moon he can’t be that scary right except oops, get drop kicked into the next year. He may not be techno be he’s no damn pushover. (Also the idea of maybe Enderking as moon who can somehow STEAL sun powers rather than just reflecting it? Maybe?)

Phil absolutely gets mistaken for the Moon in their team up constantly with pretty disastrous results for whichever villain makes that mistake lol-

ALSO funny you should mention that because I actually had an idea that that's how Chayanne and Technoblade found out they're compatible as a team. The Enderking - a villain with some type of mind control / body control power - targets Phil and there is nobody there except Chayanne who can try to stop him. Techno arrives and can't link up with Phil in this state (it would kill both of them if he tried) so he and Chayanne tentatively try instead and it works really well and they defeat the Ender King together!

[dailyanarchistposts]

E.1.1 Is industry the cause of environmental problems?

Some environmentalists argue that the root cause of our ecological crisis lies in industry and technology. This leads them to stress that “industrialism” is the problem and that needs to be eliminated. An extreme example of this is primitivism (see section A.3.9), although it does appear in the works of “deep ecologists” and liberal greens. However, most anarchists are unconvinced and agree with Bookchin when he noted that “cries against ‘technology’ and ‘industrial society’ [are] two very safe, socially natural targets against which even the bourgeoisie can inveigh in Earth Day celebrations, as long as minimal attention is paid to the social relations in which the mechanisation of society is rooted.” Instead, ecology needs “a confrontational stance toward capitalism and hierarchical society” in order to be effective and fix the root causes of our problems. [The Ecology of Freedom, p. 54]

Claiming that “industrialism” rather than “capitalism” is the cause of our ecological problems allowed greens to point to both the west and the so-called ��socialist” countries and draw out what was common to both (i.e. terrible environmental records and a growth mentality). In addition, it allowed green parties and thinkers to portray themselves as being “above” the “old” conflicts between socialism and capitalism (hence the slogan “Neither Right nor Left, but in front”). Yet this position rarely convinced anyone as any serious green thinker soon notes that the social roots of our environmental problems need to be addressed and that brings green ideas into conflict with the status quo (it is no coincidence that many on the right dismiss green issues as nothing more than a form of socialism or, in America, “liberalism”). However, by refusing to clearly indicate opposition to capitalism this position allowed many reactionary ideas (and people!) to be smuggled into the green movement (the population myth being a prime example). As for “industrialism” exposing the similarities between capitalism and Stalinism, it would have been far better to do as anarchists had done since 1918 and call the USSR and related regimes what they actually were, namely “state capitalism.”

Some greens (like many defenders of capitalism) point to the terrible ecological legacy of the Stalinist countries of Eastern Europe and elsewhere. For supporters of capitalism, this was due to the lack of private property in these systems while, for greens, it showed that environmental concerns where above both capitalism and “socialism.” Needless to say, by “capitalism” anarchists mean both private and state forms of that system. As we argued in section B.3.5, under Stalinism the state bureaucracy controlled and so effectively owned the means of production. As under private capitalism, an elite monopolised decision making and aimed to maximise their income by oppressing and exploiting the working class. Unsurprisingly, they had as little consideration “first nature” (the environment) as they had for “second nature” (humanity) and dominated, oppressed and exploited both (just as private capitalism does).

As Bookchin emphasised the ecological crisis stems not only from private property but from the principle of domination itself — a principle embodied in institutional hierarchies and relations of command and obedience which pervade society at many different levels. Thus, ”[w]ithout changing the most molecular relationships in society — notably, those between men and women, adults and children, whites and other ethnic groups, heterosexuals and gays (the list, in fact, is considerable) — society will be riddled by domination even in a socialistic ‘classless’ and ‘non-exploitative’ form. It would be infused by hierarchy even as it celebrated the dubious virtues of ‘people’s democracies,’ ‘socialism’ and the ‘public ownership’ of ‘natural resources,’ And as long as hierarchy persists, as long as domination organises humanity around a system of elites, the project of dominating nature will continue to exist and inevitably lead our planet to ecological extinction.” [Toward an Ecological Society, p. 76]

Given this, the real reasons for why the environmental record of Stalinist regimes were worse that private capitalism can easily be found. Firstly, any opposition was more easily silenced by the police state and so the ruling bureaucrats had far more lee-way to pollute than in most western countries. In other words, a sound environment requires freedom, the freedom of people to participate and protest. Secondly, such dictatorships can implement centralised, top-down planning which renders their ecological impact more systematic and widespread (James C. Scott explores this at great length in his excellent book Seeing like a State).

Fundamentally, though, there is no real difference between private and state capitalism. That this is the case can be seen from the willingness of capitalist firms to invest in, say, China in order to take advantage of their weaker environmental laws and regulations plus the lack of opposition. It can also be seen from the gutting of environmental laws and regulation in the west in order to gain competitive advantages. Unsurprisingly, laws to restrict protest have been increasingly passed in many countries as they have embraced the neo-liberal agenda with the Thatcher regime in the UK and its successors trail-blazing this process. The centralisation of power which accompanies such neo-liberal experiments reduces social pressures on the state and ensures that business interests take precedence.

As we argued in section D.10, the way that technology is used and evolves will reflect the power relations within society. Given a hierarchical society, we would expect a given technology to be used in repressive ways regardless of the nature of that technology itself. Bookchin points to the difference between the Iroquois and the Inca. Both societies used the same forms of technology, but the former was a fairly democratic and egalitarian federation while the latter was a highly despotic empire. As such, technology “does not fully or even adequately account for the institutional differences” between societies. [The Ecology of Freedom, p. 331] This means that technology does not explain the causes for ecological harm and it is possible to have an anti-ecological system based on small-scale technologies:

“Some of the most dehumanising and centralised social systems were fashioned out of very ‘small’ technologies; but bureaucracies, monarchies, and military forces turned these systems into brutalising cudgels to subdue humankind and, later, to try to subdue nature. To be sure, a large-scale technics will foster the development of an oppressively large-scale society; but every warped society follows the dialectic of its own pathology of domination, irrespective of the scale of its technics. It can organise the ‘small’ into the repellent as surely as it can imprint an arrogant sneer on the faces of the elites who administer it … Unfortunately, a preoccupation with technical size, scale, and even artistry deflects our attention away from the most significant problems of technics — notably, its ties with the ideals and social structures of freedom.” [Bookchin, Op. Cit., pp. 325–6]

In other words, “small-scale” technology will not transform an authoritarian society into an ecological one. Nor will applying ecologically friendly technology to capitalism reduce its drive to grow at the expense of the planet and the people who inhabit it. This means that technology is an aspect of a wider society rather than a socially neutral instrument which will always have the same (usually negative) results. As Bookchin stressed, a “liberatory technology presupposes liberatory institutions; a liberatory sensibility requires a liberatory society. By the same token, artistic crafts are difficult to conceive without an artistically crafted society, and the ‘inversion of tools’ is impossible with a radical inversion of all social and productive relationships.” [Op. Cit., pp. 328–9]

Finally, it should be stressed that attempts to blame technology or industry for our ecological problems have another negative effect than just obscuring the real causes of those problems and turning attention away from the elites who implement specific forms of technology to further their aims. It also means denying that technology can be transformed and new forms created which can help produce an ecologically balanced society:

“The knowledge and physical instruments for promoting a harmonisation of humanity with nature and of human with human are largely at hand or could easily be devised. Many of the physical principles used to construct such patently harmful facilities as conventional power plants, energy-consuming vehicles, surface-mining equipment and the like could be directed to the construction of small-scale solar and wind energy devices, efficient means of transportation, and energy-saving shelters.” [Bookchin, Op. Cit., p. 83]

We must understand that “the very idea of dominating first nature has its origins in the domination of human by human” otherwise “we will lose what little understanding we have of the social origin of our most serious ecological problems.” It this happens then we cannot solve these problems, as it “will grossly distort humanity’s potentialities to play a creative role in non-human as well as human development.” For “the human capacity to reason conceptually, to fashion tools and devise extraordinary technologies” can all “be used for the good of the biosphere, not simply for harming it. What is of pivotal importance in determining whether human beings will creatively foster the evolution of first nature or whether they will be highly destructive to non-human and human beings alike is precisely the kind of society we establish, not only the kind of sensibility we develop.” [Op. Cit., p. 34]

[tranquilsanatorium]

TCI pump with propofol

[quirkwizard]

Hey, Quirkwizard. A while back I asked if you did a Quirk where the user infuses objects with heat. You did not, but expressed a willingness to try covering that idea in some form. Is the offer still open?

And I would be fine doing that. I will go in a somewhat different direction to make it distinct from some of the other fire Quirks I made like "Hotspot" and "Burner".

I see it working as an Emitter type Quirk that allows the user to make a red hot, flaming energy around whatever they come into contact with. The user can target objects up to the size of a garbage can and may extend it up to short ranges from the point of contact. This energy burns as hot as regular flames, searing anyone that it comes into contact with. The user has an extensive amount of control over the flames in how they are shaped and formed. The user can shrink and focus this energy on a target to deal damage to them if they wish. The flames last a short time after the user makes contact, though they will slowly burn out. This gives the user a powerful tool for combat, unleashing immense heat on whatever they touch. They can make random objects into flaming weapons, subtly bypass defenses by burning away at them, limit enemy movement with lines of flames, burn their enemies with their attacks, or simply warm up their food. Though the heat on an object for too long can be an issue, potentially causing the item itself to overheat and harm the user. The Quirk works best on objects that naturally attract heat, such as metal or wood, being harder to heat up otherwise. A possible name for the Quirk could be "Firebrand".

[verdemoun]

can we have more info on sean trying to go sober pleaseeeee🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏😝😝😝😝😝😝😝😝😝😝😝

soberity sean

First time he tried to quit cold turkey with Lenny's supervision and support, because he didn't want to make his poor boyfriend worry so much about his drinking.

He went into serious alcohol withdrawn syndrome and had to be rushed to hospital. Sean never would have agreed to going to hospital but was experiencing delirium tremens, shouting at Sheriff Gray and absolutely yapping away in irish gaelic to what most suspect was a hallucination of his da.

Lenny was petrified because he knew it was a possibility but Sean had been lying about how much he was drinking. He can have a good 5-6 beers and still seem completely functional sober.

He celebrated getting out of hospital with a drink, which was the end of attempt one.

Second attempt was a out-patient controlled reducing how much he drinks following a plan created by specialists, with daily consultation with medical supervision. This is the first time they saw proper twitching for a drink Sean, who was very combative.

Suffering a migraine, and desperate for a drink, Sean went after the weakest target and screamed at Kieran about how how fucking annoying he was and too stupid to get a job when getting a job in modern era is 'easy'. Kieran he locked himself in his room hyperventilating and in tears because damn straight he internalized all of it.

In the time it took Lenny to follow Kieran and try to calm him down, Hosea gave Sean a drink because he was sick of the attitude.

Sean forever feels awful about this, especially the following weeks when Kieran was still clearly distressed and avoiding him, including changing his routine and not watching any of his comfort shows in the living room or turning them off quickly when Sean appeared.

He would have secretly drinking his morning whiskey-infused protein shakes his entire life while still enjoying how much praise and support he got from Lenny being proud of him for sobriety if not for lactose intolerance. Wasn't enough lacteeze in the world to make it possible to keep up morning drinking and a bicycle-powered pizza delivery gig and he actually really likes his job.

[muralikesgames]

What are weapons you want to see return in DD2?

I have my share of requests, but I also want them to come back with unique effects instead of being another regular\enchanted weapons, preferably as a quest reward. I'll start.

Dwells-In-Light An immaculate greatsword said to have formed in a flash of sacred light. Its holy strikes have a small chance to heal the user each time they land a blow.

The healing will be akin to a lesser Anodyne only on the wielder, so it's a short steady health regen. This is inspired by Holy enchantments from DD1 having innate chance to heal when attacking\killing enemies. It also fits warrior's gameplay of tanking damage as an immovable object.

Malignance A saw-like greatsword infused with cold such that it freezes as it eviscerates. Performing a follow-up attack unleashes Frigor around the wielder.

Follow-up attacks are the "finishers" performed with heavy attacks on a downed\staggered enemy. Since the attack's really slow, this will add an additional layer of AoE if the warrior's getting attacked by other enemies during the animation. It will also be extra brutal against drakes. The ice spikes will be smaller and concentrated around the user's attack, similar in size to enemy's Frigor (bandit mages and Wights).

Ascalon A sword wrought of an unknown metal imbued with holy light, giving its blade an otherworldly glow. Slashes against the undead have a small chance to unleash a stunning light blast. Killing an undead has a higher chance for it to occur.

Inspired by Skyrim's Dawnbreaker, the idea's to have a really strong holy sword with minor AoE. The light blast will be similar to mage's Empyrean spell, but much smaller in scale and without lingering light. Just like that spell, it has a huge stagger chance against the undead, and can make skeletons "faint."

Bezel Crown A bow like something out of a clockwork contraption. Each shots that finds its mark has a chance to ricochet, while arrows from bow skills have a chance to hit twice.

Since its original effect has been given to Medusan Spellbow, I thought a new unique effect inspired by its "clockwork contraption" tech could be used. The idea's to make this more of a crowd control weapon, but when using skills, the ricochet will bounce "on itself," allowing it to hit the same target a second time. If you shoot an ogre's hand, the arrow may bounce towards its head. Unlike MA's Ricochet, it does not bounce on surfaces.

Thunder Kite Shield A result of an unknown smithy's fatal experiment with magick, this shield is forever enchanted with thunder. Bashes and deflects have a chance to send a roaring shockwave. Perfect Deflects will guarantee its thunderous might.

Instead of casting Levin, I took the "thunder" part of its original description as inspiration. The conal shockwave deals lightning damage of course, but it also has really high knockdown power. Perfect Deflect against smaller enemies with low knockdown resistance will send them flying rather than staggering them, similar to a Shield Pummel.

[blackjackkent]

"Tsk'va!" Lae'zel shouts with dismay as the battle is joined. "Thorm can't die while Nightsong's still caged."

And indeed, at the far side of the platform where Ketheric has planted himself, there is a swirl of familiar magic. Aylin, recaptured on the rooftop, has been thrown back into her cage, the necromantic power dragging her immortality into the general's body.

Were Rakha more coherent at present, perhaps she would register this, but she has been in terrible pain and under terrible tension for several straight days. With the final opening of hostilities between herself and Ketheric at last, she barely notices Lae'zel's words, or anything besides her target.

She surges up onto the platform and into Ketheric's face with an explosion of fire out of the palms of her hands.

Lae'zel growls low in the back of her throat, flashing back suddenly to the first day she ever knew Rakha - another burst of fire as Rakha hurled herself at the mind flayer in the center of the nautiloid's bridge, leaving Lae'zel to dash for the control console.

"G'lyck... tas'ki, t'rac'shka... not again," she mutters, and vanishes, Misty Step-ing past the platform to appear at the Nightsong's side.

"Free me," growls the aasimar as Lae'zel shimmers into being next to her. "Set Dame Aylin free to wreak her bloody vengeance and set her boot upon the head of that accursed--"

"Yes, yes," Lae'zel says impatiently, grabbing the huge armored woman by the arm and yanking her free of the cage. "There is a line; you will have to get in it."

-----

Rakha pays very little heed to any of this. Her focus is only on Ketheric; she is dimly aware only that the fire of her spells takes root suddenly and begins to burn along Ketheric's flesh, through his hair. Minthara, at her side, is equally single-minded, her blade flashing out, clashing against the metal of the general's hammer, sending sparks flying along the platform. Behind them, Wyll's magic chews away at the mind flayers and intellect devourers that emerge, screaming in fury, from the room's shadowed corners.

"KETHERIC THORM! FACE ME!" bellows the Nightsong, climbing up to the platform at Lae'zel's side. Around her, a bright glow of icy moonlight flares, vaporizing several of the intellect devourers that swarm towards them.

Lae'zel can see Rakha's head swivel just a little at this - the only thing that can distract her from her vengeance, the touch of new magic flooding the battlefield. Something loosens in the half-orc's face, just for a moment and then with renewed energy she sends a bolt of lightning directly into Ketheric's eyes.

The battle grows faster, more hectic, terrifyingly chaotic. Between spells, Rakha briefly seems to vanish from the battlefield, followed by Minthara, followed by for a moment Lae'zel herself, her head swimming into a strange negative version of the world full of distant howls. For every blow they strike against Ketheric, he strikes back just as hard, glimmering blows of necromantically-infused divine smites that detonate like bombs.

And then... suddenly, stillness.

-----

Minthara's blade sinks deep into Ketheric's chest and he staggers. Putrid black blood pours out over her sword, over her wrist, steaming as it puddles on the rocky floor beneath him.

His eyebrows lift - a flash of fear, and then his face settles into cold mockery. "What a fool you are," he rasps, looking from Minthara to Rakha to the others at a greater distance. "You cannot kill me. I am eternal!"

With a wrenching motion he jerks backwards, pulling himself off of the blade, letting the blood pour in waves down his armor. He spreads his arms to both sides, looks up with a wild, maniacal gaze into the arching roof of the cavern.

"Myrkul! Lord of Bones!" he cries. There's a wet, bubbling liquid sound in his voice, but the words are clear, fervent, desperate. "I am here! I am ready!"

Rakha realizes what he is about to do, too late to stop it.

He lets himself fall backwards, down into the deep pit that sits at the center of the cavern, glowing with that pale green light that illuminates the brining pools.

She darts forward to the edge of the pit, her mind flaring for a moment with the beast's uncontrollable rage - how dare you deny me the final blow that splits your skull? how dare you deny this mad dog her teeth in your throat?

But he's gone. And as she peers down into that bottomless, glowing pit, a voice rings in her head. A new voice - not the Absolute, not the guardian, not the tadpole, not the beast, but something entirely new, basso and rumbling and full of icy malice.

"YOU DARE END ONE WHO BELONGS TO ME?"

Her head rings with it. Even the tadpole for a moment seems to cower as it clangs like a gong through her skull.

"I AM THE SMILE OF THE WORM-CLEANSED SKULL. I AM THE REGRETS OF THOSE WHO REMAIN, AND THE RESTLESSNESS OF THOSE WHO ARE GONE."

"I AM THE HAUNT OF MAUSOLEUMS, THE GOD OF GRAVES AND AGE, OF DUST AND DARK."

An enormous skeletal hand lifts out of the pit. Then another. And then before her rises the great bulk of a creature of bone and metal that she has no name for. It reeks of incense and decay, and for once all her rage is lost beneath a primal wave of fear.

"I AM MYRKUL, LORD OF BONES, AND YOU HAVE SLAIN MY CHOSEN! BUT IT IS NO MATTER. FOR I AM DEATH - AND I AM NOT THE END. I AM A BEGINNING."

"The Triad help us..." Wyll whispers.

Rakha tries to swallow in a throat suddenly as dry as those bones. What is that thing? What is happening?

There is no time for more questions. No time even for the beast's rage, because this creature will not bleed. One of those skeletal arms smashes downwards, narrowly missing her head - and she begins a fight not for vengeance but for her life.

[worldbuildingwanderlust]

Confessions of an Astral Assassin (part 2)

Her favorite time to take a shower was 10:30a.m, when the morning sun pierced through the obscured glass at just the right angle. It always danced upon and between the water, prismatic and gleaming. Each drop a diamond of purification, blessed by the giver of life, to bathe and baptise the flesh of yesterday in preparation for its rebirth today. It became her ritual, and so it became mine.

    This is a place I often return, my consciousness a passenger to her's. I believe she senses me, in those moments her lips cut slight, involuntary smiles with each merge of consciousness. When I can see through her eyes. Feel with her hands. Bask in the healing water of jewels, and smell the scents she infuses with her hair. Relish the majestic stillness of the moment, removed from space and time. It was heaven. She was its Goddess. A Goddess named, Olivia.

     I never pressed too far, nor too deep. I never wanted to. Not from lack of interest, but from a place of respect. Her thoughts are her own, and if she can indeed sense me, and wanted me to leave, I would. Without question. She knows my heart, and intentions. I...feel it. Even now, as we rinse our hair and trace the tingle of rivers down the curves of our back, I feel her open her mind to me. Like she wants me to see more. Feel more. She exhales a laugh that kills my hesitation.

     I tentatively push my consciousness deeper, but only enough to feel the energy of her thoughts without being able to read them precisely. In my line of work, despite the grotesqueness of it, I try to hold myself to a higher standard of decency. Even the targets Im assigned to eliminate are given this measure of grace. Nobody should have the security of their soul's inner sanctum violated. Everyone deserves that privacy.

     Like standing at the base of ruptured reservoir, I am completely engulfed in a deluge of emotions. Joy. Sadness. Pleasure. Pain. Certainty and uncertainty alike. She is a wellspring of all the things I've grown numb to in my own physical form, and I want nothing more than to marinate in the unbridled beauty of it all. I dilate the moment as long as I can, savoring the dance between sensation and emotion. The intermingling of material and immaterial bliss. Even in the present sadness, there is beauty and understanding. There is fluidity in emotions and none exist independently. Each has a relation to, and role among, the rest. A kaleidoscope of conscious and unconscious energy painting a perfect portrait of what it means to be human. Nowhere in the Conflux have I ever felt such divine beauty...

     I feel a smile widen across her face and...is that a tear rolling down her cheek? Or just a drop from the stream? Does she feel my impassioned awe? My grand appreciation of her transcendental complexity?

     Our hands trace down the curve of our breasts, and I see a flash of memories recalled by similar sensations and their associations from her past. The serenity of a lover's sensual touch, married with the ache of its loss twisting a taught tension in her chest.

     Celine. The name manifests with the vision of a bright and vibrant face, before it dims into a pale, dressed-up painting on a corpse in a coffin. I feel the pressure in Olivia's heart seize, and she lets her arms fall to her sides with balled fists. All I want in that moment is to help ease her pain. I let my consciousness take control, just this once, and I coax her arms up, wrapping them around her form like a shawl. She chokes out an accepting whimper and tightens her grip. Streams of tears flow in the shower's rain and ripple in the small pool of standing water below. Sobbing begins to shake her body.

     I extend my mind to her's, and show her some of what I have learned of death in my travels; omitting the role I have played in it. I convey to her, death's illusory permanance and the interconnected beauty of the Astral Conflux. I paint her an ever changing picture of the collective unconscious, and highlight the space she and Celine still share; even though her lover's body has long since left the material plane. I unlock those locked recesses of her mind so she can see that Celine has never left her. That the visions and memories that spring forth without warning are her attempts to tell Olivia this truth. To remind her of her presence, and communicate her love from beyond the mortal grave. They find each other again, and I am pushed back to my outer level of observation as their energies collide and enfold.

   A familiar buzzing vibration snaps at my attention, and I feel my handlers' summons in the back of my mind. An implanted shock collar on the base of my cerebellum, stinging my every muscle like a furious hornet. I feel the distant memory of my muscles tense violently. They want me back. It's as if they could sense me experiencing one of life's many beauties. Like they can sense me using my gift of astral travel to spread awareness and rekindle love, instead of perpetuating their endless agenda of death. I stubbornly resist the call as long as I possibly can, cementing this wonderful reunion of two souls in my memory. May I never forget this sensation and the connection they share....

     The cerebral quakes grow louder. More violent. Until I am snatched away, and snapped back to my reality...