#you're just using outdated technology

[not-mary-sue]

The little name tag in the corner of Caleb's videos suggests he's sending them to some sort of social platform. So, what if nobody is replying not because they're all dead but because the site just doesn't have users anymore? He's been asleep for about 50 years, he's posting to the equalivent of MySpace.

[ohcorny]

it's interesting how the more we know about the world and the more we advance in technology, the more the line of speculative fiction shifts. like that thing about how moby dick is written the way it is is because people used to believe the ocean was so dense that it was impossible to get to the bottom and shipwrecks and bodies would just be stuck neutrally buoyant halfway down. that's CRAZY. but that is the world they thought they lived in, and they wrote about it like it was the truth. because it was to them!

and while you could of course still write as if that were the truth, or write as if people still believed that to be the truth, now it's speculative fiction, it's fantasy, it's sci-fi. it's not a lived reality or how water/atmospheric pressure works. it's different when you know better. a common example from now: writing about a world where androids and floppy disks are contemporary to each other is different when you're doing it because it reflects the times you live in, vs a past you are imagining with those features, because the world you live in has long abandoned floppy disks and still does not have androids. back then, the same concept was science fiction. to do it now is retrofuture.

i suppose the things we take for granted--like that the future aesthetic is white and plastic because that is the present state of technology--might seem just as outdated in twenty years, when things change again. to quote men in black of all things, "Fifteen hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was the center of the universe. Five hundred years ago, everybody knew the Earth was flat. And fifteen minutes ago you knew that people were alone on this planet. Imagine what you'll know tomorrow."

[penvisions]

bear my weight {a joel miller oneshot}

Pairing: Boston Era! Joel Miller x F! Reader

Summary: You've been keeping it a secret, but one fateful day out on a run exposes it- a disability carried over from before the Outbreak. You brace for the abandonment you're sure will follow since Joel Miller isn't known to be the most accommodating.

Word Count: 2k

Warnings: canon compliant language, canon compliant violence, brief description of injuries, blood, scar tissue, argumentative language, joel raises his voice, tess sees all, reader has a disability, reader has mobility issues, lil time skip, kissing, teasing, some banter, super tame one y'all

A/N: just a thing that's been sitting in my drafts for nearly a year. staring at the document for my paper and losing focus is a part of school, no?

It's quiet, in the aftermath of the threat being taken care of.

“What the fuck is your problem, you said you knew how to handle yourself!” Joel’s broad frame pivots as he takes in the now calm setting. Right in the middle of what was once a courtyard, debris and wreckage everywhere from a bomb dropped decades ago. It was supposed to be a simple exploration run for more supplies outside the zone. But clickers and runners have a way of throwing everything into a frenzy.

When you don’t respond, eyes locked on your throbbing leg, it’s when the man huffs and tries to get a gather of where you two ended up in relation to where you had been and where you needed to go. His low grumbles of whatever he’s saying are barely given any life- underneath his breath as he tries to figure it out.

You leave him to it, completely prepared to be left behind once he figures it out. Sighing, you grit your teeth and take the knife you had used to take down the last runner that chased after you and cut the now useless denim from your jeans where it’s stained with blood. It’s not helping to conceal anymore, wrapped around plastic and outdated technology, the blood slippery on your fingers and saturating the fabric even as you untangle it from around your leg.

Joel turns, prepared to fire off more insults at your lack of action if the twist of his open mouth is any indication but he stills when he sees you. You’re still on the ground, though you had managed to move into a seated position, your left leg bent at the knee as you lean forward to roll up what remains of your cut pantleg on the right. It exposes the aged prosthetic no longer secured to the stump of your leg.

Fingers inspecting the broken clasps that had once connected the artificial limb to the scared and rounded edge of your skin just above your knee. The piece of the fabric you normally keep tight over it is torn from the same jutting rebar that had caught your leg and caused you to fall. You sighed, shoulders slumping as you feel the hard gaze of the angry man on you.

The jagged slice into your skin is red and angry, mirroring how you feel about the whole fucked up scene.

He only watches in silence, jaw ticking and face frowning when you chance a blank look up at him

Silence and a long moment pass, him watching as you just sit there and stare down at the issue with hard eyes.

“You can leave now, since I’m such a waste of a partner.” You don’t bother to look up, fingers reaching for the knife holstered on the back of your hip. You use it to cut the once protective wrap for the end of your leg and tie the strip of fabric around the stump to ease the spots of blood bubbling up along the tear in your skin. “Everyone leaves me behind when they find out, wouldn’t hold it against you if you did too.”

His voice is low, but it’s hollow compared to the anger fueling him just moments ago. Your name a hushed thing from his mouth.

“I said leave!” You head jerks up, eyes meeting his and you can see the air leave his lungs in a surprised huff, though he schools his expression from you as quickly as it flickers. That same hard stare, reminiscent of the spaced out one you often see on him as he’s trekking alongside you on runs and walking alongside you in the crowded streets of the QZ. Seeing everything differently with the new realization. The way you often trailed behind him, and Tess if she’s with you both. The way you tended to rub at your knee whenever you stood in line for various rations, the way you tended to bear most of your weight on your left side that he had thought was due to similar backpain he experienced.

You manage to lift yourself into a standing position, leaning on the same chunk of exploded concrete that had taken you down. Wobbling slightly at the imbalance of leaning down to pick up the now useless prosthetic. The metal and leather clasps clink together as you lift it up to inspect it closer. “Just go.”

But he doesn’t. He simply takes the ruined thing from your hands and fits it into the pack slung over his shoulders. His face tightens when you flinch at his reaching hands, fear of his known brutality and violence finally landing on you. He pauses, eyes shifting as he takes in the trembles of your body, the way you clench your eyes shut and bring up your arms to shield your face from a hit that he never even thinks of making.

It speaks volumes, the gentle way he reaches for them once again to lower them, how he ducks his head and grips your chin to turn your face to him. All the breath in your lungs punches out, the flinch of your dirt smeared face almost a painful stab in the middle of his chest.

“I ain’t gonna leave you out here.” The surety of his words has you opening your eyes and he’s pinning you with a look you’ve only ever seen aimed at Tess before. The complete dedication he has for keeping her alive is now focused on you, stalling your next breath.

It takes a moment to figure out the best way for him to support your weight and carry you. But you both figure it out, hands hovering over your shoulders or waist to help you traverse the ladders and jumps back into the zone through discovered and kept secret pathways.

-

He lingers on the feel of your fingers and hands gripping him, long into the night once back in the relative safety of the apartment. Tess doesn’t say anything when Joel retrieves the prosthetic from his bag long after you’ve fallen asleep on your bed. The small thing tucked into the opposite side of the cramped space that leads to the bathroom. She simply pats a hand on his shoulder, watching the quiet, determined way he begins to look it over.

From that moment on, they’re both sure to look for any compression material they can, for baby powder or any lotion that they come across. For olive oil or anything that can act as a lubricant for your repaired support, to prevent it from the hinges catching or the materials to creak and give away your position while out beyond the walls. For the painkillers they know you need even if you don't ask for them.

The restless nights you tried to hide from them now act as a siren call fashioned for him. Joel rousing should your sheets rustle in the middle of the night or the phantom pain of a limb you now only possess half of becomes too much, the rattle of the pills against each other as you reach for one pulling him from his sleep.

She doubts he even realizes that his hands twitch every time you go to scale a ladder or make a jump, stop to rub at where that unavoidable pinch occurs over your skin- but she clocks it. Can see how it will all play out if given time. His need to protect and fuel to fight encompassing you just as it did her all those years ago.

Your determination to keep up as you always have not shocking, though they do tend to keep a closer eye on you.

Joel nearly loses it one day, hollering and berating your lack of caution when you all found yourselves trapped in a building, the second way out collapsed and blocked. Without thinking or even relaying the thought to them, you use the oil kept in your pocket and a lighter as a defense against the stalkers that hone in on your group in the dark. Your just as loud argument is that it the only thing you could think of that wouldn’t have drawn more of them shutting up the older man.

It's only because he didn’t think of it, think of the way to get you two safely out of the spot he had cornered you all in. Insistence on just one more block, one more spot- guilt making him lash out in anger that you face head on any time it shows.

She tells you to take care of him once she realizes she’s been bitten. Right in front of him and the little figure of a teenager that was meant to be the last job your trio ever worked before seeking something more than the life of a smuggler and outside of the zone for good. Her last words linger in the air just before you and Joel are grabbing harshly at a fighting Ellie, the explosion Tess ensured your safety with echoing in your ears even miles away from the scene.

-

It’s two years later, after many hours, days, weeks, months of traversing the devasted land of what was once sprawling cities and roads that connected them. You’re now settled into a home created between you both and a teenager that was once simple cargo. Connections and emotions tying your little trio together, giving you all a second chance at a life you had once given hope on of finding for yourself. A new prosthetic made of beautifully carved and stained wood supports you, just like the man who had once shifted his harsh demeanor for one of awkward kindship that could only be found in devastating loss.

The underlying care and need to protect allowing for more time, for both of you. For something new and delicate to bud between you, blooming in the time you spent protecting and fighting, defending each other and the girl who sits across from you now on a worn couch.

“Boom, motherfucker.” Her crooked grin brings out one of your own as all three of you look down at the board game set up on the coffee table. “Looks like I win.”

Once the board is folded up, the pieces back in a velvet pouch and the fire left to crackle in the living room do you say anything. The back door closing as the teenager retires to her detached space for the night.

“You let her win.” You put a hand on the threshold to your room, rubbing at your upper thigh to relieve the ache there as the snow and dipped temperature only worsens in the late hour. He watches the way your back flexes with the motion, the steady strength honed in every muscle of your body.

“Figured she would huff and puff if I didn’t.” He’s at the end of the hall, taking his time to shut off all the lamps but one to bathe the space in a sparce, warm light that glows from the window for anyone passing by.

“She thinks you cheat every time,” You taunt, knowing that he doesn’t really but riling him up all the same over the small things that have become a part of an easier life. “Something about you being too cautious to spend your fake millions.”

“Only thing I’m cautious of is messin’ things up with you.” And suddenly all the playfulness leaks out of you, the air growing charged as he gives voice to the quiet thing between you both. You close your eyes in a long blink, the presence of him behind you sparking something deep in your chest. He’s always there, always looking out for you as you do for him. This thing growing in the time you’ve spent together.

“The only way you could mess things up with me is if you take any more goddamn time working up the nerve to kiss me, Miller.” You tilt your head toward him as you turn around and the light seeping into the small hallway from behind him reveals the curve of your upturned lips.

“Fuckin’ impatient.” He closes the gap in two long strides, pressing you back into the wall beside your door and capturing your mouth with his.

[misfitgirlwrites]

Modern!Reader x Alastor Headcanons | Third Place Giveaway Winner

This is very funny to me. Alastor dating or befriending someone who's more similar to Vox to say the least than him when it comes to...technological advancements

CW: none, just some bickering between what could be seen as an old married couple

It's a little hard for almost everyone to tell, but you and Alastor are close

I say it's hard to tell because you two are constantly throwing jabs at each other and honestly, it couldn't be helped

He was just so...old

Everything about his habits and interests were outdated and Alastor wasn't the type to do his own thing quietly 

There's always a comment, a sideways glance, a light scoff which leads to,

"Don't be upset because you don't know how to use a cellphone."

"Me? Upset over such a device? You confuse me with someone else, dear."

"I don't think I am. What'd you have again? Messenger birds?"

"Very funny."

You would simply chuckle at Alastor for the most part. You've heard it all before, your love and talent did lead to you VoxTech for a bit of your afterlife, but you didn't stay.

You found it more enjoy using what you know to help Charlie with her cause.

You were a helpful person in your own way. It was the only reason you kept trying to introduce Alastor to some form of modern tech. 

"I can make you the simplest most basic cellphone Hell has ever seen. Only phone calls and texting--"

"You lost me."

"--Only phone calls and we'll get to the rest eventually?"

"No."

You'd groan out, "even Lucifer has a cellphone! He's older than you!"

"Was that supposed to help you convince me?"

"...You're such a loser."

You have special nicknames for Alastor when you feel like picking with him. 

Old Allie

Old Man Red

Ye Old Alastor

Arthritis Strawberry

Alastor: Great Gatsby Edition

He hates all of them, of course, and that's why you love them

Alastor is completely uninterested in what you do. His focus is just more on your talent and passion than what you're making

You argue that what you're making is your passion so he should show a little interest

This would lead to a breakthrough!

"Only for phone calls."

"Right."

"Don't add anything else."

"Mhm."

"______. I mean it."

"Don't go using that scary tone with me, mister. I'm your friend, so trust me!"

It took all your willpower to not add anything extreme to the, in your opinion, useless cellphone. Phone calls only, just as promised. You knew Alastor agreed to shut you up, but you were still satisfied with your win

That's why you were very surprised when you got a call from him and you knew he wasn't in the hotel. You of course told everyone who would listen (AKA everyone in the hotel)

You yourself were always on the move and it made you happy that the chance to hear Alastor while you were both away was significantly higher (he lowkey hates the thing, so he doesn't always answer)

After a while, like a lot of elderly, Alastor would just straight up not take the phone with him.

"Al."

"Yes, my dear?"

"The point of a cellphone. You get it, yeah?"

A roll of the eyes

"Al."

"I still use the thing."

"You leave it in the hotel!"

"I forget it here and there."

"You can't tell me you're not someone's fuckin' grandfather with that lame excuse. At this rate, I'm gonna glue the phone to you."

Honestly, he kept it on him for almost two months. You expected to be having this conversation sooner.

After nagging him for a few days, Alastor made sure not to "forget" the cellphone anymore, much to his annoyance. He, of course, couldn't be seen with the thing, so it was just easier to leave it at the hotel

Two more weeks in, and Alastor would definitely be thinking of ways for this device to get in an unfortunate accident, if you will

While fiddling with the damned thing one night, Alastor finally found the one extra feature you decided to add. After a small click sounded, the small phone extended in his hands, making him let it go. The small screen was now larger; touchscreen.

Alastor's eye twitched. He could almost hear you cackling. 

He was going to end you.

@theblueslytherin Here as promised! I really hope you like it!

Alastor Taglist: @alastorssimp @saints-wrapped-in-plastic @dasimp777

[tadc-harlequin-au]

I’ve been having this question for a while now and I suppose it’s not the most important but I can’t get it out of my head- is the world like earth? Were there areas/continents more impoverished say than the main area that everything is taking place in- areas that don’t have as much technology I mean, maybe not even puppets. Knowing humanity I wouldn’t put it past that there were villages and uncontacted tribes out there- before the fall I mean and all humanity got wiped out. Ig what I’m trying to get at is if the world just became a giant monoculture or if there was still different collections of people doing things they’re own way. (Sorr if this is a really weird thing to ask)

No no, you're fine. Funny enough, a while back, I was thinking about some rough drafts of literal worldbuilding for the harlequin au, and while this absolutely isn't final (it's TOO small), it does help me establish some rules for what I want this world to be.

It is a giant monoculture-esque/ethnocentric setting, yeah.

The world is NOT Earth. There are similarities yes, but it is significantly smaller than regular earth.

Some areas, lands, or archipelagos are even uninhabitable due to mostly environmental and a strangely paranormal(?) reasoning. Any attempts to expand beyond results in monumental losses whether resourcefully, financially, or just straight up casualties/no one returning ever. They don't have the necessary technology to be able to actually overcome this hurdle, so they cut their losses for now (that was the plan before everyone died that is lol).

That doesn't mean they don't try to harvest whatever resource they can that's in reach. Because they totally would.

The world would be fashioned like a giant cog; leaders say the cog symbolizes unity amongst the cities, and also marks the steady progress of everyone towards "The Future", as a cog helps keep a machine running. Very ironic, considering what state this world is in today.

Yes, I made City of Gears canon from Scarlet's story, I will not hear any objections /lh

The cities are HUMONGOUS. There are a total of 7 Megacities, all connected via giant bridges.

There are large docks for expeditions ALL over the edges of the cog. Planes are very, VERY less popular to use as mode of transport.

But you know what is popular? SKYBRIDGESSSSSSSSSSS BABYYYY

What's a skybridge? Think of "the floating train" + Skylines from Bioshock: Infinite's concepts, but it also spans THE ENTIRE WORLD.

Now, obviously you can smell that a well-hidden dystopian world like this has a lot of systemic corruption in place such as absolutist thinking, stereotyping, outdated societal "norms" and intense class oppression to name a few. I will not be delving incredibly deep into how shitty the old world was for three reasons:

For the sake of my sanity;

Out of respect because I'm severely uninformed and do not actually have the biggest brain nor all the time in the world to research; and

This old world is already gone anyways. There is no need to pick it apart piece by piece in incredible detail, because that's not the main focus of the story anyways. The main focus is how would everyone conform into their new lives, essentially a new beginning for everything?

As such, anything story-related will only be implied through the main cast. Besides, I'm clearly not the only one who's got a lot of ideas for this au, so as long as it's within the realm of possibility, I encourage people to worldbuild if they have ocs for this au, as well as if they so desire. Whether simply implied or directly referenced, go ahead. :)

P.S. some things may be added in the future.

[cookie-lore-keeper]

A lot of humans are confused as to the time period Earthbread is in (time is weird, so while we witches and humans can be in modern times, cookies might not be)

Here's what I think: Earthbread is in modern times, but since the kingdoms and other civilizations were so segregated from each other geographically, it was harder to make contact with other kingdoms, so they developed in their own ways without any outside influence, leading to different areas of development. It's like how humans have secluded tribes away from other civilizations, and their lives and technology end up being drastically different from ours.

The Hollyberry Kingdom is across a large mountain that's surrounded by a rainforest, so the only way to get there is through boat over a peninsula.

The Dark Cacao Kingdom is in cold and snowy mountains, and the climate is known for being too harsh for cookies who aren't used to it. There's also the Licorice Sea, which is the most dangerous part of the kingdom. There's also a lot of dangerous beasts in the forest, which can crumble a cookie instantly.

The Pure Vanilla Kingdom is, excuse my language, in the fucking sky. But, before that, it might've been one of the most diverse kingdoms in Earthbread. Too bad irs in the sky now and not many cookies know how to get there :(

The Golden Cheese Kingdom has crumbled, and all of the cookies there are dead; only bring "alive" through queen Golden Cheese Cookie's souljam magic. But even before it crumbled, it was in a DESERT. The WORST environment. While providing natural protection for them and their treasures, its very difficult for other cookies to get there. So, they just don't. (Rip messenger pigeons. You're our only hope). Though, now it's still a bit difficult to visit. I hope Golden Chees Cookie finds a way to restore her kingdom soon...

The Créme Republic is becoming more open, but the geography still makes it a bit difficult. In the map I have on Earthbread (which may be a little outdated...), it shows that the Créme Republic is protected by a mountain and a rainforest, so the only way to get there would be through airship or a boat.

Most cookie civilizations dont have airships, and the seas by the Republic can be pretty rough, so there's not many outside visitors. But, the Republic is trying to attract tourists and allies for the fight against Dark Enchantress Cookie! So, if you can, it would be safe to visit.

The only way to get to the City of Wizards is through dream. It was also made for wizards, not cookies, so imma just skip that whole place.

Then there are the non-major kingdoms. Places like the Snowfall Village are on snowy mountains, and we've already established that colder places and mountains are harder to visit.

We haven't seen Flower City on a map, since it's not on Earthbread, but we do know there's a giant mountain surrounding the city.

The Faerie Kingdom is on the dangerous continent of Beast-Yeast, and is purposely hidden from any outside cookies.

The spices are also in Beast Yeast, and have dangerous spice storms and a violent dictator... Not really a spot many would want to go to.

The civilizations in Dragon's Valley are LITERALLY in a place called Dragon's Valley, and it's noted to be dangerous BECAUSE of the dragons. They also have volcanoes and mountains there, and it can get really hot. So the tribe's and villages and all of that tend to stick to themselves as it's easier.

You get the point. Most places in Earthbread are secluded or protected geographically, which makes it difficult for contact with other cookies. So, they developed with their own technology they had. It's why the time period feels weird; every kingdom is so drastically different bcuz they had no contact with other kingdoms.

Now what's REALLY confusing is the timeline. I'm trying my best for that one, yall.

[cl0ckworkpuppet]

time for my monthly mp3 player propaganda post!

yall. don't fucking stream music off of youtube or spotify. they pay their creators shit. the most generous estimate i could find was artists being paid $1 for every 200 streams (0.5¢ per stream), and unless you're listening to songs on an album thousands times in total, it helps tremendously more to just. buy their albums or subscribe to a patreon-like service for them

mp3 players are laughably inexpensive (you can get a decent one with bluetooth for like $40-50 and you can get away with even less if you forego some features), many of them are drag-and-drop, no ads, decent enough sound quality for the average person, unlimited skips, track selection, regular play and shuffle, playlists, being able to shut off your screen, and more importantly, ALL OF THIS IS AVAILABLE WITHOUT A SUBSCRIPTION. i've always been an avid hater of subscription models. there are some things where it's understandable, but you shouldn't lose access to basic QOL features just because you can't or won't fork over $10-15 a month.

"b-b-but $50 is so expensive!" WRONG. $50 (which is more than i've EVER spend on a single mp3 player) is the equivalent to 5 months on spotify premium without discounts. if you can afford that, it's worth investing into a device that can last you literal years if you get a good one and take good care of it

"but i don't wanna carry around another device!" fair enough, but these things are small enough to fit in tiny pockets (mine fits snugly in the watch pocket of my jeans) and are typically light enough to not be burdensome. if you can carry around your phone, you can carry around an mp3 player

"what if people think i'm weird for having outdated technology" let them. it's worth it in my opinion if it means i get to listen to music ad-free. the most I've ever gotten was "wooooah bro's got the dinosaur tech" and i just thought that was funny personally

"but what if the artist collapses without a constant stream of money!!! i'm not supporting the artist!!!!!" companies try to pay as little as they can get away with to artists. most of that money goes to the CEO and other higher-ups.

"but piracy is bad!" Piracy is a Crime. However, downloading youtube videos/audio for your own PERSONAL, NON-COMMERCIAL USE and NOT REDISTRIBUTING THEM is legal (generally, in the US, check your laws, i am not a lawyer, not legal advice, blah blah blah). besides, i never said you had to pirate your music. in fact, i encourage you to buy the albums of and support your favourite artists in other ways. some artists might even provide links for people to download their songs for free in high quality anyway

not gonna link products just in case someone thinks i'm a shill. but literally just look up "mp3 player" on your search engine or shopping site of choice and find something that doesn't look like it'll fall apart if you breathe on it too hard

seriously guys. if you listen to music more than like a few hours a week, and you don't get all of your music from livestreams or radios (although mine can connect to AM/FM radio), consider investing in an mp3 player. i tried out using one regularly in fall of 2021, and I haven't looked back. don't let companies drain subscription money from you

[yanderes-galore]

yandere zane ninjago x nindroid darling who also has (unspecified) elemental powers if you can ofc!!!

I'll see what I can come up with, sure! Pardon me if I get Zane lore wrong, I never finished the show so this is a 'what if' Scenario :(

Yandere! Zane with Nindroid! Darling

Pairing: Platonic/Romantic

Possible Trigger Warnings: Gender-Neutral Darling, Obsession, Overprotective behavior, Manipulation, Slight jealousy, Isolation, Dubious companionship/relationship.

The one idea that comes to mind would be you and Zane being built together.

You and Zane were meant to be a pair.

It was like you were supposed to be companions to each other.

Unfortunately, somehow you two were separated.

You're both old model Nindroids but Zane barely has any memory of you.

You were probably deactivated and put into storage...

Only to be found later in a newer era.

That's the general idea I have when it comes to how Zane and you knew each other.

You were meant to be a way to keep Zane from being lonely.

Whether as a sibling or a partner is completely up to you.

You were quite literally built alongside him and for him.

This may also explain why you're capable of elemental power.

Since you and Zane are very similar.

Imagine if the ninja kept finding blueprints of another Nindroid but you were nowhere in sight.

Zane vaguely thinks the pictures are familiar, yet can't pin point anything.

It isn't until you're found and reactivated safely that anything really develops.

Zane suddenly feels a connection to you when you activate.

You're familiar and by looking at your blueprints and memories...

You two used to be close.

Zane feels bad his memories didn't click until now.

You were his first companion and he hasn't remembered you until now.

Despite that... He also feels like he's known you forever.

This scenario gives Zane a reason to obsess over a Nindroid other than just meeting you and developing a fascination.

Zane would feel even more of a connection as you're capable of elements too.

You didn't specify one so you can either choose one or be able to swap them out through some technological means.

Zane would probably try to have you upgraded like him.

After all, by the time they find you, your tech may be outdated.

Zane would feel protective since you're technically the closest person to him.

He'd be curious to know more about you just to properly fill his memory bank.

There's just a certain connection with you that no one else has.

Which makes sense as you two were built with a bond.

Meant to be bonded.

That built in connection would cause his obsession, perhaps after being corrupted.

How was it corrupted?

Maybe when he was helping upgrade you, some code went where it wasn't supposed to...

Which tosses you both into trouble.

Or maybe the reason you were separated was because he was always like this towards you.

Zane would try to justify his obsession.

He watches over you, carefully watches and analyzes how you interact with the other ninja, all with this oddly fond yet unnerving stare...

When others bring it up, or even you, Zane simply doesn't think it's creepy.

This should be normal between you!

Don't you trust him?

You can't know anyone else like he does with you!

It's simply improbable due to the connection you two have.

I imagine this would make it hard to leave him.

Zane, due to your bond, is under the impression you two are meant to be.

Doesn't matter how.

He just feels you can't leave one another.

He'd be desperate to convince you or keep that connection.

To the point he comes off as protective or even possessive at times.

Zane is unintentionally isolating.

He's so focused on the idea of you two being meant to be that he often doesn't consider how you feel at times.

You may want to interact with the other ninja, yet Zane is suffocating.

He doesn't comprehend the idea of you being or wanting to be away from him.

After all, don't you feel it too?

You're two halves of one whole.

Which draws him to you.

Zane isn't really violent, in fact he's oblivious to how wrong his obsession is.

He always wants to be around, always wants to spend time with you...

Zane wants to be as important to you as you are to him.

It wouldn't make sense if you went to any other.

While he doesn't kill out of jealousy, he may be violent if you were threatened or someone suggested something was wrong.

He doesn't understand, nothing's wrong?

Him wanting to be around you all the time can't be wrong.

Why would it be?

Isolation? That's not what this is!

The others just don't understand... and you're just confused.

What he's doing isn't wrong...

You two are meant to be... literally built for one another.

Is wanting to be by your side forever, inseparable, all that bad if you're meant to be?

[fictionadventurer]

It could be fun to lean into a science fantasy element in Lily Between Worlds.

I don't want Lily to be stuck in a world with drastically-reduced levels of public hygiene and medicine. It takes away from the happy ending if it's like, "Congratulations! You're stuck in a world where you'll probably die of dysentery!"

This world once contained a more advanced society, before the calamity that led to the rise of monsters and to the possibility of links between worlds. They've recovered a lot over the centuries (I keep thinking a roughly Regency setting), but there's still a lot of things that are lost to history. It could be fun to have them have access to a few technologies that are highly advanced, even if they don't know how it works.

It could also be fun to have their scientific development happen at different rates in different areas. Something like (it wouldn't be this, it's just an example of the concept), "How do you people have teleportation, but you haven't invented refrigeration yet?"

I'll bet they have very advanced surgery. When animals are tearing apart human bodies, you probably get a closer look at what people's insides look like (and then you have incentive to develop technology to put people back together).

Some of the societal systems/customs (such as, say, requiring combat skills as a womanly accomplishment) arose during a much more primitive and dangerous time. People hold on to a lot of these habits out of custom rather than out of any real need.

Some of Lily's fear of this world comes from the fact that her guardian's got a lot of old books, which gives her a skewed and outdated picture of reality. So Lily's like, "We can't go do this/go here because monsters will eat us," and the explorer's like, "Maybe in the 1600s, but it's totally safe now."

Also, Lily's vision of this world could be skewed because she was learning about this world in a house with young children. So, she could believe things like, "This breakfast food is important monster-repellant," only to be told, "You know we just tell kids that to get them to eat their vegetables, right?"

Lily's rural community could be a bit behind the times. Technology that's commonplace elsewhere hasn't made its way here yet. The explorer could fill her in on some advancements in the wider world.

[bigmilkagenda]

Of the many, many plates of pancakes* that were offered to the listener in magp 1-07, this one may be my favourite

[ID: A screenshot of an unofficial transcript to The Magnus Protocol. CELIA is saying "Yeah. I mean, it's an old system, but it could have been worse. It's not like we're wrestling with tape recorders and manila folders." /end ID]

When we meet TMA-Celia for the second time, she's lost her name. She was Lynne Hammond, and now she's not. She doesn't seem to remember Martin, either, but it's not clear how much of herself and her life from before the change she does remember. She's freaked out by the tape recorders that start showing up, and there's no indication that she associates them with the Institute specifically.

If Celia Ripley is, as we are clearly intended to believe or consider, the same Celia as in TMA, why is she making knowing comments about manila folders and tape recorders? Tape recorders in particular are hardly standard equipment at what seems to be mostly a text data-entry and cataloguing job. She could have said typewriters, or carbon paper. Fax machines, if we're dunking on Freddy specifically.

She says "tape recorders and manila folders." Celia Ripley is referencing The Magnus Institute, particularly the outdated technologies in use in the Archives.

Maybe she learned more from Melanie about what the recorders were and did at the Institute, sometime after MAG 190. Maybe she has those specific memories of giving her statement in MAG 100, and little else. Maybe Martin grew an apocalypse beard and she remembers everything, but just didn't recognise him out of context and in a tunnel and during A Pretty Weird Time Overall.

Maybe she stuck around with Melanie-Georgie-Basira for a while after things returned, and that's how she learned about the particular significance of tape recorders.

Maybe she found some tapes and listened to a couple hundred of them.

Or maybe she's simply an AU Celia, with a knack for oddly specific and kind of clunky comparisons, drawn into this through the powers of metafiction and string theory.

Or maybe someone filled her with spiders and sent her to finish the job of spreading Fear to this particular world.

And the reason this particular plate of textual pancakes** (short stack, butter and nightmare syrup) is one of my favourites from "Give and Take" is because I genuinely have no idea! None of these are theories because there isn't enough evidence to point me in any particular direction. It's a mystery!, Jon voice, etcetera.

If you cornered me and paid me to have an opinion about it I could say which options I thought were more likely, I guess. But the odds are high that I'd be wrong, and I think the boat for me getting paid to interpret texts probably sailed fifteen years ago, besides. I'm in this for the love of the game.***

November is the true spooky season in the northern hemisphere.**** Yeah, October ends with Halloween, but you know what month starts with Halloween? Mmhmm. By November of 2019 TMA had been on my list for a few years, and someone I was getting to know and really liked recommended it to me specifically in the days after 159 aired. The conditions were correct for me to get into something new, is what I'm saying. I still remember listening to "Anglerfish" for the first time, walking home from my office job in the blustery November dark. I got home starry-eyed and red-cheeked and thrilled by the story I'd just heard.

It took a couple of months for me to catch up, and though I loved having so much to listen to there were times when I wished I'd started earlier, to have the experience of seeing things unfold.

And now we're back at a beginning, and get to experience the horrible joys of finding out.

[ID: A screenshot of an unofficial transcript to The Magnus Protocol. LENA is saying "Of a sort. I hope you're as ready for it as you think you are. Consider yourself "in." /end ID]

*Sabrina pancake meme

** the best kind, especially if it's a contest between textual and fluffy pancakes. Keep those spongy bastards away from me, I'll take the kind with a typeface instead

***Being a huge nerd

**** For more of my opinions on November, see https://www.tumblr.com/almostmolly/188799234276

[hyacinthoideshispanica]

In the final episode, Vox and the other Vees don't realize that Alastor came back. They think they have or will have free reign of Hell.

So, I would love for season two to begin with the Vees calling a meeting of the overlords and declaring that, in the wake of such chaos and violence, they will happily take charge of things and in the middle of their speech, Alastor just waltzes in, apologizes for being late then makes direct, smug eye contact with Vox as he sits down and Vox is so enraged his system crashes and Velvette and Valentino have to carry him out of the room.

The Vees: .... and we are more than happy to take charge of any district from any overlord currently overwhelmed or missing and-

Everything stops as the doors open, and Alastor strides in.

Alastor: My humblest apologies for being late! The princess required my assistance this morning.

Valentino and Velvette immediately turn to Vox, whose face glitches in enraged shock. Alastor stares directly at Vox with a smug smile as he takes his seat and then looks around at all the other overlords.

Alastor, while gesturing towards the Vees: How kind of you all to stall the meeting with trivial matters until everyone was present! Well, I am here now. So, shall we get started?

Velvette: We already have started, you pric-

Vox shoves Velvette aside to get as close to Alastor as he can.

Vox, his entire face a furious shade of red: FU-

His scream is cut off abruptly, and his screen goes black. His body tenses for a moment, then goes limp and falls back.

The other Vees rush to catch him, and Velvette ends up holding him up under the arms, and Valentino holds his legs.

Velvette: What did you do to him, you outdated prick?

Alastor chuckles: Why, I didn't do anything! It must have been stress. You know, technology can be so sensitive these days!

The Vees begin carrying Vox out of the room.

Valentino: Fuck you, Alastor!

Alastor, cheerfully waving goodbye: No, thank you!

The Vees manage to get Vox back to their place and are waiting for his system to reboot.

Valentino, while pouring himself a drink: So, I can't cause a scene when Angel leaves me for Lucifer's little brat, but he can crash his entire system in front of everyone over Alastor of all people?!

Velvette: Oh, shut up, Val!

Suddenly, Vox's screen goes bright, and he bolts into a sitting position.

Vox: FUCK YOU, ALASTOR!

Velvette sighs and pours herself a drink.

Velvette: Well, I hope you're proud of yourself, Vox. You humiliated all of us for the sake of your weird little crush!

Vox looks around, realizes where he is, collapses into a fetal position, and begins sobbing.

Vox: Why won't he just die!

[resurrection-if-game]

Hey there!! Since we talking wheelchair I thought I'd bring my grain of salt to the table!!

Sadly, the way transhumanism is going it does look like the popular consensus to fixing all our problems would be going the terminator way, which I kind of disagree with. I am deathly, mortally, absolutely afraid of machines in my body especially since we live in a capitalist hell hole that would make me pay monthly for my knees and would make them rot if I did not pay my bills.

So, I have a few ideas about wheelchairs! A lot of them are based in pure fantasy, mostly because I suck at engineering and robotics.

If you wished to keep wheels on the chair, then there are multiple ways about modernizing that : Magnetic disks of different sizes and shapes could be cool, kind of like click on wheels but with different purposes (eg, use them as a holographic computer when you're not using them to move, use them as potential shuriken, or even a secret stach for drugs!), Replacing the wheel by Tank like one (slower but would be interesting to make a tank-chair, armed with cannons), or even just having a painfully normal old looking wheelchair FULL of secrets and surprises! A techy wheelchair that doesn't ring any alarm bells because it looks... Outdated.

Now, if you're wheeling (see what I did there ... Willing, wheeling... That's a pun if I know one!) to change the very concept a wheelchair, there are many many ways to go about that too!! A flying chair could be a good idea gliding instead of wheeling, overboard style (creepy that that is a real life thing, by the way). Mecha chair is also a funny one (Octopus chair, great for artisans and mechanics who'd need to adjust their height for projects AND for being an extremely dexterous little fuck when push comes to shove). There's a chair made of nannobots, big hero 6 style, an amorphous mass spilling towards you.

I have SO many ideas I am SO willing to brainstorm if you need. Hope these ones could help as well.

Omg I'm basically vibrating rn I'm so happy to see this! I personally do not use mobility aids, but one of my greatest friends has SMA and she is in agreement with you about people resisting the idea of bionics (or having AI connected to your brain). Like, some of these procedures give you a less autonomy of your body than before (and gives people/companies access to your body that you might not even be aware of!)

I'll put this under a cut because I got very chatty.

For anyone that's wondering why I think that a near-future setting should/would have wheelchairs: A real detriment to the progress of wheelchairs or mobility aids in general is that too many people assume that cures will happen soon (while gene therapy is an option, it's something that addresses known symptoms or specific mutations and will never be ahead of the genetic curve -- it's also impossible to tell what the long-term success rate of it will be for each condition), or that everyone should get robot legs or exoskeletons, which can help, but it's not a sustainable solution, considering many bodies would need highly tailored models, or if the spinal cord is compromised and the signals are too weak for detection. As for AI aids or BCIs, what if you're cognitively at a level where you cannot rely on AI to correctly interpret your intentions? And even assuming these technologies become available and are widely accepted by everyone ever, how many people can afford to have a set of bionic AI legs? In this capitalist world? Definitely not the poor! Realistically, it's just not gunna happen! Someone, somewhere, in 100 years or even beyond, is going to need/prefer a wheelchair or something like it.

Also, as soon as humans decide to colonize space, most health research will probably be diverted into figuring out ways to keep humans from losing all their muscle mass and prevent the development of osteoporosis from long-term space living. Who cares about health on Earth when space is the future, amirite? (But hey... if they do lose enough muscle mass we can... give them a wheelchairs.)

Workshopping wheelchairs!

For some reason the idea of click-on wheels calls to me -- like even if they're there for the illusion of wheels. Deceptively making it look like it's a very out-of-date model in order to catch people off-guard when you pull out a wakizashi from the back support.

Going full spiderman with a Doc Ock backpack would also be fun as hell. Same with the nanobot swarm. Like why have a mobility aid when you can become a living Cryptid?? This is going to live in my brain for a long time. 😂 (No one be surprised if I use this premise in the future, somewhere, somehow. I love it.)

I think what I might end up settling with is closest to the gliding wheelchair idea. If a space station's habitation areas are made up of... let's say nickel and if it's far enough out of Earth's magnetosphere, there could be a good justification that the station would have it's own magnetic field for radiation protection... and therefore granting rights to hoverchairs that use magnetic repulsion to levitate. Wheels could be attached if entering areas made from non/low magnetic materials because of sensitive equipment etc. It sounds science-y enough for me! I'm not too gung-ho about making it all hard sci-fi, but believable enough to give it some interesting limitations lol.

What do you think?

[dokk-fukuro]

so reader is already Lovecraft wife and says she loves all of him

Which leads to him turning into his true form and loving her

Fluff to smut

Not of This World [H.P. Lovecraft x f!Reader]

TW: SMUT, Minors DNI, afar reader, mention of using abilities, reader has ability too, mention of tentacles, she/her pronouns, mention of female genitals POV: You're the owner of an incredibly powerful ability that scares the inhabitants of your small town. And they decide to use you as a sacrificial bride for the Great Old One, because he haunts sailors on the water A/N: This is also the job I told you about, lol Word count: 3 821

The sacrificial bride. Sounds like a verdict, which isn't far from the truth. You, reconciled to your fate, are preparing for your “wedding” with something that will not leave a small town with outdated traditions alone. Surprisingly, they use quite modern technologies, but are forced to “please” small gods and creatures from outside, bringing them the gift of what they want.

You look at yourself in the mirror. You are not particularly happy with this outcome. You are only sixteen years old, and you are already forced to become a victim to please the Great Old One. And all why? And the answer lies in your shadows, with which you were “gifted” once, which now seem to you a curse. They're alive. They sometimes talk to you, tell you about what they have heard, what they have seen, what they have reached.

So you once found out that the head of a small town, a lustful old man, is ready to “marry” you to a monster from the depths of the sea, near which the city stands.

“We need him to leave the city alone. Even her parents don’t need this girl, and I’m sorry to give away others,” is what the shadows brought you. And since then, you have been preparing for what awaits you. The shadows that evening were ready to tear the headman to pieces for those words. It is true that your parents were cold towards you, loving only your younger sister and older brother.

"Smile, child, it's not every day that you get a chance to be a bride." It sounds from somewhere behind, and from this you want to grimace. Yes, not every day, but it would be better if there were never such moments in your life, and therefore the words spoken by an elderly woman who straightens her dress and tightens the corset at your waist seem like a mockery.

Your hair is only partly tied up. A pair of small strands are woven into braids that frame the face. Your eyes are on the people helping with the preparations like you're going to curse them. Oh, if you really could. You only seem paler when you look at yourself.

You hate them all, but slowly you accept the inevitable.

A whole procession accompanies you. A cloth is draped over your head so you can't see where you're being led. And only by the sound of water, which is only getting louder somewhere down there, you understand that this is a cliff. How you want to curse them all for eternal suffering. His father, mother, brother and sister, let alone the whole town. They tie you by the hands to a lonely tree standing on a cliff, but the canvas is not dragged off. The procession departs in silence, leaving you to wonder.

How much time you spend in this position you do not know, but your hands are numb, moving your fingers is already unpleasant. At some point, you laugh under your breath. To sacrifice you as a bride to some monster at the bottom of the sea. Ha! They just want to get rid of you because of your ability to control shadows. Even if there are gifted people like you among the residents, their abilities are clearly less dangerous to others.

A rustle is heard somewhere behind. Your whole body tenses up, you try to freeze so as not to show signs of life, it’s even scary to breathe. It could be anything… or anyone.

“How young you are, child." You hear, and you can’t understand what’s going on. It is so unusual for you now to hear human speech that it seems almost a hallucination, but no less terrible. A cool hand touches your chin under the canvas. Something or someone clicks their tongue. “White dress and… moving shadows. They decided to give you to me as a sacrificial bride, yes, Y/N?"

In response, silence. You are afraid to answer. Where does this something or someone know your name? They tear off the canvas from your head and raise your head, holding it by the chin. What appears before your eyes is not a monster, as you have been described.

This is a man about thirty years old with slick, black hair almost to the waist. His skin is pale, slightly greyish, his cheeks are slightly sunken. Dark gray eyes seem to look into the very soul. You are almost paralyzed with fear. It's not what you expected to see before your eyes. You swallow nervously.

"Are you scared, child?" the man grins, and your heart is already ready to go to the heels. You yourself do not understand whether you are scared or very much surprised by what you see. Your wrists are free from ropes. The man looks at his wrists and frowns a little. They're a little rubbed, but it'll pass. To your silent question, the brunette tilts his head slightly to one side.

“Since you are my sacrificial bride, consider me your future husband. Call me Lovecraft. I am that Great Old One you were given to."

And the last time you could be seen on the cliff.

Howard prefers to live away from people, spending most of his time relaxing underwater. You live in his house, learning to take complete control over your shadows, which learn to feel you too.

So the years go by. You are no longer a sixteen-year-old girl, you are a young woman just over twenty-five. Lovecraft does not change at all outwardly, as if he is not really a person, and you begin to catch yourself thinking about this more and more often. If earlier you would have reacted with skepticism to what you heard on the cliff on that fateful night, now you have no doubt that Howard Lovecraft is the Great Old One.

Late at night, when he didn't come back to the house after a while, you, scared to hell, rushed to find him.

You call out to him, look around everywhere, check all the woods, forests nearby, until your feet bring you to that very cliff. Lovecraft is standing there on the very edge, looking at the shining full moon, the reflection on the water of which gives the sea a mystical glow.

"Master Lovecraft!" Your eyes are filling with tears. He's been so kind to you all this time, teaching you new things. And all he asks in return for this is your loyalty to him, explaining that this is the fate of the bride. You have also had nights of love in which Howard is gentle to you, even very much.

The man slowly turns to you. It's so beautiful in the moonlight. His thoughtful gaze, in which one can see almost the hardships of the entire universe, is filled with increasing anger for the first time. But Howard is still reserved, even smiling a little at you when you run up to him. You throw yourself into his arms, nuzzle his solar plexus. The cool palm of the Great Old One rests on the top of your head. The wind ruffles his black hair.

"Y/N, there's something I'd like to discuss with you." The man is serious. The question he wants to raise is important. He looks at you in silence for a while before deciding to speak. "I want you to marry me. You will be my wife, and I will accept no other answer."

Your heart freezes. You look at your master Lovecraft, blushing deeply. He confronts you with the fact that you have no other choice but to become his wife. And for some reason, you don't mind at all. However, Lovecraft can also be understood. You sleep together, live in the same house, spend time together. A man is too attached to you to let you go to someone else. On top of everything else, you were named his sacrificial bride, which he also takes extremely seriously. However, with some amendments. You're not his first sacrificial bride, but you're the first one he hasn't killed.

"I agree." You smile, looking at Howard, as if mesmerized. He is so beautiful when the moonlight falls on him.

Lovecraft does not expect another answer, he knows that you will not answer in any other way. His cool hand strokes your cheek, goes under your chin and lifts your head. His dark gray eyes look into yours as he leans closer; your lips are separated by a miserable couple of centimeters. Howard kisses you gently, dryly, chaste, when you close your eyes, wanting to remember this moment.

"I will never let you leave me, Y/N," the man whispers, gently pulling away. You're so cute when your eyelashes flutter. You slowly open your eyes and gently smile at your new husband. You've become so attached to him over the past few years that you don't know what it's like to be alone. He treated you like a human being, not like a damned one.

Your warm hand touches his slightly sunken cheek, and Howard clings to the warmth like a lost cat who can't find his way home and asks for love from passers-by. He likes your touch, Lovecraft wants it to last as long as possible.

"I give you my word that I will never leave you alone…" You hesitate a little before continuing with a slight tremor in your voice and a blush on your cheeks: "my dear Lovecraft."

A smile suits him very well. It's a rare emotion you've ever seen. Usually Howard is always calm to the point of trembling, which is scary. At first, you were very afraid of this, because you didn't know what to expect from such a calm person. But now you're ready for anything, it's in your eyes, and Howard likes it.

He holds you in his arms, slowly covers your face with kisses. And this is the Great Old One, the very being before whom they shudder, whose appearance they are afraid of, because this does not bode well. You know him quite differently.

You are standing on the cliff where your fateful meeting took place a few years ago, looking at a small town in the distance. You're restless. Something has to happen. But it's not worrying about the worst. This feeling is more like waiting for something.

A huge wave is moving towards the city. No one will be left alive. You don't doubt it at all, but you don't care. The whole town agreed that it was you who should be left as a victim to Lovecraft, which means that no one deserves a chance to survive. Those houses that are closest to the shore are demolished first. The part of you that still retains at least some amount of compassion for those who live in the city wants to stop the man. However, his look alone makes it clear: he will not forgive the city that gave an innocent child as a sacrifice so that the Great Old One would leave everyone alone and not interfere with the sailors.

"This is my wedding gift to you, my love. They sacrificed you to save their own lives, and now they will lose them." People are fleeing from their homes in panic. There are screams, crying pleas for an end to this madness.

An ominous silence reigns. Neither voices nor cries of pets are heard anymore. I can't hear anything else. The sea is calm again, as if nothing had happened. You are looking at all the horror that the elements have created literally before your eyes. It was as if the city really did not exist. Those houses that remained intact are now abandoned. You have nothing to do with the ghostly place anymore. And you, surprisingly, feel a sense of relief. You are free and free to go wherever you want as long as Howard is with you.

Picking you up in his arms, Lovecraft walks with you along the path away from the cliff. The path you keep is back to the house where you live. Already in the house on a big bed, a man looks at you, admires you, as he has always done for several years. And if before, until you turn twenty, he did not dare to touch you in any other way than in a fatherly way, now nothing prevents you from loving each other as husband and wife.

"We need to set some rules in our lives," Lovecraft gently kisses you on the cheek. He's determined in what he's going to say. "From now on, I will be absolutely faithful to you, listen to your words, I will be your support in everything, but I expect the same from you."

You listen to him carefully, not daring to interrupt while the man takes off your clothes. This is your first time as husband and wife, so out of nowhere there is a slight shyness and awkwardness.

"I give my word that I will be faithful, I will listen to your opinion and I will support you in everything. You mean too much to me in this life for me to betray you," you pause before saying what is bursting out. "And it's not that those people gave me to you as a sacrificial bride. I won't betray you because I don't want to."

You touch his cool cheek with your hand, look into his eyes deeply, choosing the words you want to say in response to the question about your feelings for Howard. Initially, you had a completely different spectrum for him. When you first met Lovecraft, as his sacrificial bride, you were a little afraid of him, completely not knowing what to expect from him. And it was only after living with him for a long time that you began to understand that you loved him for his way of thinking, for his lack of emotion, for his manner of speech, even though it was strange, for calmness, education, awareness and responsibility.

Your shadows never liked noisy people, they were afraid of them. Next to Lovecraft, you found what you wanted. Home, love and a sense of security.

"I also find your ability quite charming. My shadows don't stand anywhere near." You nod, looking at how Howard undresses in front of you. A snow-white shirt fits neatly on the back of a chair nearby. A man's trousers remain on when he starts stroking and caressing your body, touching you as if in a gesture of acquaintance.

You pull him to you for a kiss, feeling a little cool and slippery tentacles begin to wrap around your body. One grabs gently by the wrists and presses them to the bed, the other two stroke the hips, sometimes wrapping around them. Howard drops kisses on your neck while his tentacles rush to touch your body wherever they can. His eyes are more like two Abysses than something human, but that doesn't scare you.

You gasp loudly every time the suckers on the tentacles leave reddish traces in the form of circles, some of them are very bright; they will definitely linger on your body for a couple of days.

"What do you feel now?" The man's voice is threefold, gives off a slight echo, and in principle it already sounds creepy, but he does not see fear in your eyes under it. Lovecraft sees genuine adoration in his direction, and this surprises him a little. "Do I disgust you?"

"No, not at all." You shake your head, feeling slightly embarrassed. You're pouting a little, subtly hinting that the man is still wearing his trousers. "Your tentacles. They are cool, a little slippery, move as if they have their own will and consciousness. But… I like it. I love you, Howard, and I will love you no matter what. After all, I am also not deprived of a small feature."

You giggle softly and let your shadows do whatever they want. They get to Lovecraft's trousers without any delay, take the form of women's palms and hurry to rid him first of the belt, and then of the unnecessary detail of clothing. The man only chuckles softly at this. His new wife is so sweet and charming when she tries to help him.

Howard again clings to your lips with his, kisses deeply, with tenderness and desire, listening to the muffled moans. This is the first time he uses his tentacles, but you are clearly not afraid of them, and he is incredibly happy about it. You accept him as he is. This is more than enough for him to experience a strange feeling inside, which bubbles like champagne, filling him with strange energy and the desire to joke and laugh stupidly. Is this… happiness?..

You both dissolve in love for each other, exchanging mutual caresses and kisses. You touch Lovecraft with your shadows, feeling everything they feel, even if it's not the same as your own hands. A man touches your chest with his cool hand, which causes a shiver down your spine. You let out a soft moan when Howard's lips descend first on one nipple, then on the second, paying attention to the previous one with a small tentacle.

You squirm under the strong but gentle grip of the tentacles of the Great Old One, breathing heavily, but asking only for one thing: that Lovecraft does not stop. The man looks furtively at the shadows and grins:

"Your shadows look agitated. Is it because of me or understanding what will happen next?"

"Both," you honestly admit, looking at your new husband with completely black eyes. This is the peculiarity of using the ability to control your own shadows. That's another reason they called you a monster.

While the shadows caress Lovecraft, he spreads your legs with his tentacles. They move smoothly in a spiral up and down, paying special attention to the inside. Your body is trembling with impatience and unusual sensations. They may well become your habit. And you understand why the body reacts like that.

Touching something unknown, unseen before. The same effect is produced by touching your shadows to someone. A person can lose his mind from the pleasure that the touch of shadows brings, or from fear. Your moans caress Howard's ears as he continues to deftly and effortlessly manipulate his tentacles, getting a little lost in the sensations from the touch of shadows. This is the first time he feels them, and it gives him goosebumps. Howard exhales convulsively through clenched teeth.

The tentacle that caresses your left thigh stretches out a little, and its tip touches your crotch. You arch in the back, being exposed to the kisses of the Great Old One, which only enhances the feeling of the tentacle touching the sensitive bundle of nerves. The tentacle moves along with small amplitudes up and down, then large, touching the folds and teasing the entrance to the womb. You moan uncontrollably, almost going crazy from what you feel, and kisses with glimpses of light bites add fuel to the fire.

Howard stretches his neck to be able to cover your body with kisses, suppressing his moans when he feels more tangible touches of shadows on his body. They stroke his shoulders, neck, chest, torso and climb lower.

"You are gorgeous, my love," the man whispers close to your skin, breathing heavily. And yet he breaks into a low, quiet moan when he feels the shadows squeezing his bulging penis. Lovecraft's heart is pounding in his chest like mad. The man is filled with passion and love for you under him.

He tentatively penetrates the tip of another tentacle inside, while he continues to attack the clitoris with the tip of another, making you almost scream. Your body is straining, then relaxing. You're begging Lovecraft to take you, whimpering with desire and lust. Leaving a short kiss on your eyebrow, the man kisses you on the lips when the tentacle penetrates inside in one smooth, slow motion.

The tentacle twitches in your pussy, touches all the most sensitive areas inside while it moves. Howard pulls away from your lips, listening to loud moans fill the room. He moans uncontrollably himself, feeling through the tentacle how tight it is inside you, how wet and warm it is.

And the thrill is added by your shadows, over which you lose control. They themselves move through his body and tentacles as they want. The room is filled with vulgar squelching, your moans and guttural male growling when the Great Old One increases the speed of the tentacle movement inside you.

You scream his name in outright ecstasy, almost losing all connection with reality. You're stuffy, hot. You feel good.

"I love you, Y/N. I will love you until the end of time and even after," Howard growls, looming over you. He wants to remember this moment of love that you share as spouses. How beautiful is his sacrificial bride, now his wife. You moan, whimper and whine from the sensations, fidgeting and asking not to stop. You are close to the climax, and when you reach it, the body only becomes more sensitive. All the caresses of the tentacles on your body are felt more clearly, the pussy is squeezed around the tentacle inside. The bundle of nerves is swollen and now susceptible to even a fleeting touch, but Howard continues to move the tentacle inside you, increasing the pace, almost going crazy from the intoxicating touches of your shadows, whose caresses are becoming more insistent.

After the second climax, your mind is clouded. All you can say is your husband's name. Your moans are now screams of pleasure. The third orgasm is coming, however, Lovecraft is also very close. You feel it with your shadows.

"Come on, love, let's do it together," his speech falters when Howard covers your body with kisses again, licking salty sweat. After the deafening groan of the two, silence reigns, which seems as uncomfortable as possible. Your breath is whistling, you're trying to catch your breath when the tentacle leaves your body. My vision is blurry and a little double, but my body feels so light, like someone else's. You smile wearily at your spouse when he gently kisses you on the cheek.

There are no more tentacles; there are only his big palms with long, thin fingers that take your weakened body and carry it to the cool bathroom. There, Howard helps stop the blood flowing from your nose — a side effect of controlling your shadows, which you are used to.

"I love you, Howard," you wheeze and smile wearily. Lovecraft gently takes your palm in his, brings it to his lips and kisses each finger.

"You're so beautiful now, Y/N. My Y/N," the man kisses your palm, calming all your feelings.

Thank you, my Queen. Thank you for your love.

[thelonelyshore-if]

With the last ask about the delivery is that the same for like clothes also? Also with the clothes do they just get a certain style or is their newer stuff like now? Do they get stuff that's new like cell phones and what not or no?

Yes, it's the same!! Though I think there are probably one or two places in town (boutiques and the like) where people make and sell their own clothes.

Most clothing is either delivered (which is a total crapshoot when it comes to sizes, styles, etc.); or it just sort of...fills the local shops as needed. The people of Easthaven wear a lot of basics, and the styles are fairly outdated (ranging from the 80s-00s). If you're into a more niche style it'll be hard to find what you're looking for.

Back when TLS was a TTRPG I ran, my players and I used to joke about a truck filled with Hot Topic products getting delivered and everyone in town dressing like edgy teens for a bit lol.

As for technology, that's a little trickier. Most of the town's tech stagnates, once again, in the 80s-00s range. Currently, the only people in town with cellphones are former outsiders.

If a truck full of modern tech showed up...hm. I'm not sure. I don't think most of it would work, both due to the lack of internet as well as the fog's influence. Probably.

[hellishere7980]

Whatever It Takes (CH-5)

Three days after Ra’s Al-Ghul died

She was shaken out of her thoughts as the train rattled to a stop. Such broken down trains were very uncommon to see in the USA these days, but okay, illegal businesses aren't meant to be all hi-fi and attention catching. She got up to the train onto the station, ensuring that her bun and cap were securely in place. The reason she picked this place was? You ask? Well, the only way to defeat the bat-technology was to use technology they were not accustomed to. Sadly, there wasn't much technology, or frankly, no technology that the bats weren't used to, so she used the next best thing- outdated technology. Awfully hard to make the technology corporate and a perfect grainy cover to always keep people in doubt. A lady, maybe in her 30s, looked over curiously at her.

“Are you fine, dearie? Is there someone you're looking for?” The lady asked.

She'll give up her favorite dagger if people agreed that it didn't sound creepy. Who asks a young girl if there is someone going to pick her up? That's like asking for a kidnapping. Or maybe a robbery. She'll give her the benefit of doubt.

“Why don't you mind your own business already? Desperate is not a good look on you.” She let a nice New York rockin’ accent slip in.

“Excuse me?!” The lady said, completely mortified.

“Excused.” Mariam replied while turning away.

The lady got up, huffed, and walked off, muttering something along the lines of, “Kids these days. They have no respect. No wonder the country is–”

Now before you get all judgey. This is simple human psychology. A person would be more cooperative to help find a victim if the victim was a sweet little girl. That sparked human pity. Nobody would go too much out of the way to help her rude little brat they saw on the train. While it's sad that this is the situation of the society, it's true. And she had tried it enough places to know that it worked like a charm.

Soon, Mariam got off the train. She made her way to a boarding ship that was leaving for Spain. In about 5 hours. Not her smartest choice to go there, but… She'll have time to find something in one of the boxes to wear! Shopping malls were not guaranteed to have outdated cameras. Grainy surveillance could very much stop a person from being caught shoplifting. As Mariam was looking around the boxes, she found pale pink leggings. Perfect. She thought. No excessive fabric to ruin motion. She snooped through a couple of more boxes and found a black T-shirt with purple lines on it. Another great find. These clothes are the definition of an ordinary outfit. She got into the box, changed, and then got out.

I'll just lay down for a little while. Mariam thought. Frankly, running around like a demented hooligan did tire her, despite the level of stamina she has. As she leaned against one of the crates in the shadows. She tried to think why she wasn't in her comfy bed in the league. Sure, it was just a futon on the floor, but it beat the wood scraping her back any day. Right. She thought. Just killed their Leader, so… May not be so open to the killer.

She sighed and looked up at the ceiling. Can it be called ceiling if it's the ceiling of a ship? Does English have a different word for the ceiling of a ship? I don't think so. Oh, good. I'm procrastinating. This procrastinating will definitely reduce my effectiveness. And now I sound like Mother. This will be the news of the town. Trained assassin killed due to negligence caused due to procrastination. Procrastination: The number one enemy of mankind. Huh, sounds like a good title. Again procrastinating. Mariam sternly told herself. Stop procrastinating. OK, deep breath in. Deep breath out. Feel your toes. Do not faint down. Mariam tried to calm herself, repeating the chant her mother taught her as a young kid whenever her focus would go off stream.

You just killed your grandfather. You declared your mother the head of the League of Assassins. You did not stay with your father or your mother. Instead, you chose to flee because you're too much of a COWARD to-look-your-brother-and-mother-in-the-eyes, because-they-have-the-same-EYES-as-your-grandfather.

She let out a sigh.

No good overthinking it now. I decided all the pros and cons before I did it. Who knows maybe this new ‘Life’ may not be so bad. It's not like I'm abandoning them. I'll still go visit and… It will work out. Hopefully. She drew a deep breath in. The breath out. No mother to help you out of a panic attack. Mariam told herself. You're on your own, kid. You can handle this. (Taylor Swift pun intended.)

With that, Mariam got into the crate, making sure that she had proper air circulation and that the crate would not shift with the ship's movement. She allowed the gentle to and fro motion of the sea to lull her into sleep. A sleep filled with green eyes, golden goblets, and murderous intentions, popularly known as her grandfather, Ra’s Al-Ghul.

She got up after one hour. League training ensured that she was always aware, even while resting. She went back to sleep. This continued to happen throughout her journey through the Atlantic Ocean. Food had never been a concern. She had too good of a stamina to let her awareness be affected by it. Soon she was woken before her one-hour gap due to the shouting above deck.

Two possible reasons. She thought. Number one, we are being taken over by pirates. Or we have arrived at our destination.

The latter reason turned out to be correct. She got off. There was a beautiful Spanish sunset. Looks like any sunset. Mariam thought in the privacy of her mind. She got off and made her way to the nearest train station.

“Excuse me?” She asked the man sitting at the counter In passable Spanish. “When does the train leave for Plymouth?”

“The day after tomorrow, kid.” The guy replied back.

He didn't even look up. Mariam thought, scrunching her nose at the man. Too busy playing Galaga underneath the desk, I see. (Avengers, pun intended.)

“Is there any way to reach there earlier using layovers?” She politely asked. This statement, however, got the guide to look up and squint his eyes at Mariam.

“Why?” He asked.

None of your business is what she would have said. Buuuut, she wanted the guy to be cooperative. So instead, she said. “It's for a school project. Our topic is to find out the difference between a straight path time and a layover path time.”

The guy looked at the chart in front of him and said, “There is a way, but it will take you about 7 hours more.”

“Thank you.” She smiled, replied and left.

Six hours later, she was asking a different counter guy for a layover ticket to Plymouth.

Another trick she learned from the guy who was teaching her. Never EVER go dot to dot. That's asking for a clear trace path. She has to use all her cards if she's trying to hide herself from the League of Assassins and the Bat Clan.

[ecommerceknowldge]

The Power of Upskilling: Why Investing in Yourself Is the Smartest Move You’ll Ever Make

In today’s fast-paced, constantly evolving world, the only thing more expensive than investing in yourself is not doing it.

Upskilling — the process of learning new skills or enhancing existing ones — is no longer optional. It's a necessity for staying competitive in the workforce, pivoting to new career paths, and adapting to a world where change is the only constant.

Whether you're a fresh graduate, a mid-career professional, or a business leader, this post will help you understand why upskilling matters, where to start, and how to make learning a lifelong habit.

Why Upskilling Matters More Than Ever

1. Rapid Technological Advancements

Automation, AI, and digital transformation have reshaped industries. According to the World Economic Forum, 44% of workers’ core skills will change by 2027. Skills that were in high demand five years ago may now be outdated.

Jobs aren't necessarily disappearing — they’re evolving. That means individuals must continuously adapt or risk being left behind.

2. Career Growth and Mobility

Upskilling doesn’t just help you survive — it helps you thrive.

Want a promotion? Looking to switch industries? Trying to freelance or start a side hustle? Upskilling bridges the gap between where you are and where you want to be.

For example:

A marketer who learns data analytics becomes more valuable.

A teacher who gains expertise in EdTech can unlock new career opportunities.

A finance professional with coding skills can transition into fintech.

3. Increased Job Security

In uncertain economic times, employees with in-demand skills are often the last to go. Upskilling makes you indispensable. Employers view proactive learners as assets — people who are flexible, forward-thinking, and ready to take on new challenges.

4. Personal Satisfaction and Confidence

Beyond career advantages, learning something new boosts your self-esteem. Mastering a new tool or concept builds confidence and adds a sense of achievement. Lifelong learning is directly linked to better mental health, cognitive ability, and even happiness.

Identifying What to Learn

Not all skills are created equal. Here’s how to identify what you should focus on:

1. Align With Industry Trends

Start by researching current trends in your field. What tools, software, or certifications are becoming standard? Websites like LinkedIn Learning, Coursera, and even job boards can offer insight into what’s in demand.

2. Pinpoint Skill Gaps

Look at your resume, job performance, or feedback. Are there areas where you consistently feel underqualified or reliant on others? That’s your starting point.

For instance, if you’re in marketing but struggle with Excel or Google Analytics, that’s a practical gap to close.

3. Balance Hard and Soft Skills

Hard skills (e.g., coding, SEO, data visualization) are measurable and job-specific. Soft skills (e.g., communication, emotional intelligence, adaptability) are often what make or break long-term success.

According to LinkedIn’s Workplace Learning Report, soft skills like creativity, collaboration, and critical thinking are increasingly valued by employers.

How to Upskill Effectively

Upskilling doesn’t have to mean going back to college or spending thousands. With the right strategy, you can learn faster, smarter, and more sustainably.

1. Set Clear Goals

Vague intentions (“I want to get better at digital marketing”) rarely produce results. Instead, try: ✅ “I will complete a Google Ads certification within 30 days.” ✅ “I will write one blog post a week to practice content writing.”

2. Use Online Platforms

Some great learning platforms include:

Coursera – Offers university-led courses, many for free.

Udemy – Affordable, practical skill-based learning.

LinkedIn Learning – Career-focused, bite-sized lessons.

edX – Ivy-league content in flexible formats.

YouTube – A goldmine for free tutorials.

Don’t forget podcasts, newsletters, webinars, and even TikTok or Instagram accounts focused on education.

3. Apply What You Learn

Knowledge without application is wasted. If you’re learning copywriting, start a blog. If you’re learning a coding language, build a small project. Application cements learning and gives you portfolio pieces to show potential employers.

4. Join a Community

Learning with others keeps you accountable. Join Slack groups, Reddit communities, Discord servers, or local meetups. Networking with people on the same journey also opens up career opportunities.

5. Track and Reflect

Keep a simple progress log. Write down what you learned each week, what worked, and what didn’t. Reflection helps identify plateaus and gives you clarity on your next steps.

Upskilling at Work: Make It a Two-Way Street

If you’re employed, your workplace may be willing to sponsor courses or give you dedicated learning hours. Upskilling benefits your employer too — so don’t hesitate to ask.

Here’s how:

Propose a specific course or certification.

Explain how it’ll improve your job performance.

Offer to train others on what you’ve learned.

Employers appreciate initiative and are often happy to invest in employees who invest in themselves.

Final Thoughts: Build a Habit, Not Just a Skill

The most successful people don’t upskill once — they build a habit of learning.

Start with 30 minutes a day. Read a chapter. Watch a tutorial. Experiment with a new tool. Upskilling isn’t a race; it’s a lifestyle.

Remember: your career is your responsibility. In a world where industries change overnight, the most future-proof investment isn’t in stocks or crypto — it’s in you.