I couldn't find very much information on this, which is frustrating because the name brand dryers use CFM and the budget models use M/S or MPH. How do they even come up with these numbers? CFM seems the most clear, but the others, not so much. With numbers like 60 M/S and 134 MPH sounds amazing if not terrifying coming out of a 2 inch hose. That's 1030 CFM! Wow! Obviously not what's going on. To figure this out and maybe this will help someone else out, I did some work with an air flow calculator, because who is going to pull out formulas?
First, I established a baseline. The spec from the Flying Pig pro version would work for this. The advertised CFM is 240, the hose is 2 inches in diameter. Plug these into an air flow calculator. The one I used is here. Results are 13.97 M/S and 31.3 MPH. What! that is so much weaker than the budget models, how's is this possible? Hold on we know how much faster the cone nozzle speeds up drying over every other nozzle. The Flying Pig's nozzle reduces the diameter to 5/8 of an inch. What numbers do we get then? 143.06 M/S and 320 MPH Wow! Now it is so much stronger than the budget models, this must be wrong too. Well if we take the budget model and assume it is using the Flying Pig nozzle, what CFM does it have? 100.65 CFM, It's weak, but for a sub 100$ it is believable. Without the nozzle it would be 5.86 M/S out the hose, which is slow enough to be measured by an Anemometer. I have one coming in today because my curiosity is too much and I want to validate if this is right.
Start here if you just want to know how: If the above it right, to get M/S and MPH into CFM roughly. Find the diameter of the cone nozzle small end for the model you are looking at, or just assume 5/8 of an inch or 1.5 CM. Then plug the velocity number you have and the diameter selecting the round shape in this calculator and get some rough numbers to compare with.
For anyone who has used budget models around the 60 M/S 134 MPH power range and the Flying Pig. Does the Flying Pig feel like it has double the power or more? I currently don't have a Flying Pig to see for myself if the feel matches what the numbers say.
Last thought, finding a cone with a smaller opening might increase the performance of a weaker dryer noticeably. Going from a 1.5 cm to 1 cm opening brings the velocity of the budget model numbers above near the Flying Pig's numbers, assuming the fan can handle the static pressure. Something someone could try if they feel their current dryer doesn't have the velocity they need, but can't get a new system right now. Also, might be something to measure when comparing high-end models before investing.

Preface:
I am a huge Lord of the Rings fan; I re-read the books typically once a year. I also adore the movies, and find all of Tolkien's legendarium absolutely awesome. Truly one of my favorite hobbies so I'd like to offer some critiques and excitement of flavor gems from Tales of Middle Earth. I won't do every card, but I'll comment on some individual cards and how WOTC did on it. I will comment on the cards abilities but only insofar as it impacts the flavor; i.e. what the card is doing not power level, etc.
To be clear: I understand there are sacrifices you need to make for the greater game, and sometimes those come first. For these articles: I am looking at each card in a vacuum, so if I seem harsh it's because I am using a single lens.
Next up: Quickbeam, Upstart Ent!
​
https://preview.redd.it/svjshhpklu4b1.png?width=400&format=png&auto=webp&s=ed682eda8b5b6af682e8f258b7908c3bbcbfce92
Flavor Preface
We do not learn about too many individual Ents, but Quickbeam is one we spend the second most time with (after Treebeard). While Treebeard is leading the Entmoot he sends a friend to hang out with Merry and Pippin while they wait. Unlike the other Ents he had 'already made up his mind' about what to do with Saruman and needed no persuasion. He is the closest that we get to a 'hasty Ent' in the story.
Quickbeam is a fun little character. He laughs at almost everything he sees and bares a special love for Rowan trees who he witnessed Orcs burn sent from the White Tower. He piles in during the march when the "Last March of the Ents" occurs and they assail Isengard.
Color
He's an Ent, and all Ents are green. I'll probably dedicate some more time to Entish philosophy when I review Treebeard's card.
Abilities
We don't get to see too much about what Quickbeam...does, exactly. So a card that plays well with other Ents is fine. I do kinda wish he got Haste to reflect that he's a 'hasty' Ent, but I understand that perhaps it didn't work well. Maybe a reference to him playing well with Halflings? That would have been nice too.

Pa-rant lang.
I've been a working student since I was seventeen. Imagine seventeen (now I'm 23). Before iniisip ko na 'yong iba nga mas bata pa pero nagwowork na pero naisip ko na I should not invalidate my feelings. My feelings are valid.
Seventeen. Habang 'yong mga kaklase ko nagpapaka-seventeen lang. Ako puyat. Nagtatrabaho. Binubuhay 'yong sarili ko. Lagi kong sinasabi na hindi ako pinilit ng magulang ko magtrabaho pero naisip ko na kahit 'di nila ako pilitin kung 'di ako magsisikap ako lang din magdudusa. Ako lang rin 'yong maiiwan.
Service Crew. Hosting raket. Barista. Hanggang BPO. Napasok ko. Mula Grade 12 hanggang ngayon 4th year college and candidate for graduation na ako. Kahit emotional support wala akong nakuha sa parents ko lalong lalo na financially. Both sa pagwowork and pag-aaral wala akong narinig na kinamusta nila 'yong pagwo-work ko or pag-aaral I don't even know kung alam ba nila 'yong program ko sa college.
Meron akong mga ate na mababait. Nagpapakaate. Pinapautang nila ako kapag kapos ako pero binabalik ko. Kasi kapag inagaw ko pa 'yong tira sa sahod nila. Paano na 'yong sarili nilang pangarap?
Ngayon sobrang lala ng trigger ko. Nag-resign ako sa work. 2 years akong nagwowork as call center agent for telco. Gy. Tiniis ko 'yong ugali ng coach ko na sobrang walang boundaries. Kasi if 'di ko tiniis wala akong pang-raos. I did resign dahil 1) power tripping na yung coach ko and 2) fl blown na ang final defense ko and wala ng natitirang kapal pa 'yong mukha ko sa mga ka-group ka na laging nag-aadjust sa oras ko.
Nagresign ako and wala akong work. Meron naman akong ipon pero syempre binayad ko na sa bills and nagbigay narin ako sa kanila sa mayat maya hingi nila.
Kanina gusto ko na lang umiyak at mamatay saglit kasi habang kumakain ako kinausap ako ng mama ko and sabi "kapag graduate mo kaya mo na ba pag-aralin 'yong dalawa?" like tangina? ni hindi ko naman kapatid yun mga inampon nila mula pagkabata kasi 'di na kaya buhayin nung mga kamag-anak namin as if kaya rin nilang buhayin (don't get me wrong mahal ko yung dalawang pinsan ko sobra and binibigyan ko rin sila ng baon mula sa sahod ko pero HINDI-KO-SILA-RESPONSIBILIDAD). Imagine kinaladkad mo yung sarili mo palabas ng hirap tas biglang ganun sasabihin sayo? Anw, hindi ako sumagot and nilagay ko na lang yung plato ko sa lababo tas nandun naman lola ko at sinabing "[Name ko], bakit ka nag-resign paano na 'yong grad fee ni [pinsan ko?]" ---
and dito na ako nag-breakdown kasi putangina graduating din ako pero wala silang narinig nanghingi ako ng tulong sa kanila or mas lalo na nag-offer sila tulungan ako sa grad fee ko! sabi ko "La, pano ako? Sino magbabayad ng graduation ko?"
tapos umakyat na lang ako at umiyak magdamag.
ang malala pa gumimik ako one time at umuwi ng madaling araw sinabihan ako ng tatay ko na "magtrabaho ka na lang kesa puyat ka nang puyat sa walang kwenta" wow?? 4 years straight akong kuba at walang social dahil sa sobrang hirap ng college (polsci course ko) at telco (account o sa bpo) IMAGINE THE STRESS! and 'yong pagod noong biglang face to face na ulit na halos wala na akong tulog.
Stress ko na pinaguusapan ako ng thesis mate ko na lagi akong late sa part ko and ginagago pa ako ng coach ko kapag 'di siya nasususunod.
Gusto kong umiyak at gusto ko ng lumaya sa sitwasyon na 'to!' Tangina'

Hello flying!
I am writing this post because I am in a dilemma right now. I am studying Mechatronics Engineering in a university in Istanbul, Turkey and am about to graduate in two weeks. I can try to seek an engineering job in the very cutthroat dog-eat-dog industry of Turkey, or could enter the Turkish Airlines Cadet academy.
Some background : I am sure most of you are already aware of the state of Turkish economy right now. For the past 5 years, the average inflation rate has been around 100%, going up to 180% in some years. 1 kg of ground beef was 10 liras in 2018 and is about 400 liras right now. You can pretty much guess how much did the salaries increase in the same period :) Our dictator is trying to keep unemployment low by artificially lowering the interest rates and offering state backed loans but it's a Ponzi scheme that will collapse sooner or later.
Let me also tell that, unlike the USA(I am saying USA because flying is 95% American seemingly) Turkey is not a very R&D oriented, high added value economy, so good engineering jobs are far and few in between, and competition for them is very high, and nepotism is rampant. The remaining engineering jobs are more akin to glorified technician jobs that overwork you and pay you a tad above the minimum wage. Work environments are usually toxic, job security is nonexistent, and since employers know that if you get fired you will probably not find another job soon enough to keep your tummy full, they treat you like they are the God's gift. Of course I could try to go for a Master's degree in the USA/Canada/Australia/Europe and try to legally cement myself there as an engineer, but immigration is a very financially and mentally draining affair and is actually pretty difficult and high risk as well.
Aviation(at least line flying) isn't so bleak here though. Turkish Airlines managed to make itself a significant player in long haul hub-and-spoke game especially between Europe and Asia and Europe and Latin America. The fleet has grown about 100% in the past decade and airline is chronically understaffed, if you do get hired, you get upgraded to left seat and wide bodies in no time(compared to US legacy carriers for example). 777 captains in their 30s are common. And piloting is one of the very few professions here that don't underpay you to hell, a 737/A320 FO will make about 4 times as much as an entry level engineer, and for wide body captains, it goes up to pretty high levels(adjusted for cost of living, imagine earning 300k gross in the USA) especially if they also have other duties like line and base training/check airman/sim instructor. Since Turkish Airlines is a very global brand, with lots of foreign investment and USD/EUR income, it is like a safe haven from the storm that is the Turkish economy. Do note that seniority system doesn't exist here the same way it does in the USA, so you may still have to fly at 3AM to Iraq on New Year's Eve even when you have been in the airline for 30 years.
The cadet academy takes you with zero experience and puts you in the right seat of an A320/737 in about 30 months. The job is a guarantee, which is a great peace of mind. A lot of people don't make it through the entrance exams, language proficiency checks(English proficiency levels in Turkey are very low) or the medical examination(the conditions are much tighter than what the aviation authority requires, due to guaranteed job thing). You get modular training, and spend little time in the piston props and go pretty quickly to airliners. Most training on small props focus on stick and rudder stuff like spins and upsets, traffic patterns, crosswind landings etc, you actually pass your instrument rating in a 737/A320 sim. Sounds very odd from the FAAland I can guess, but it kind of works. Garmin G1000 is not that similar to a 737 after all. You can convert your licenses to FAA/EASA ones if you really want to, with some additional checkrides and written exams, but most people who leave Turkey for a flying job elsewhere go to the Middle East or the Far East which already recognize this kind of license so it's not that necessary. You start with around 140k EUR debt to the academy, which you can repay in 15 years. Yes it's a lot more than a lot of regular flight schools, I am sure a lot of it is "job guarantee surcharge".
I have been a flight sim enthusiast since I was a little boy, and I always sort of wanted to do it in real life as well, but until recently I used to consider a cushy office engineering job where I toyed around with SolidWorks, Excel and MATLAB for a few hours, wrote some reports and attended some meetings and went home with a livable wage, but that reality doesn't exist in my country anymore since a long time ago.
I am very well aware of all the downsides that come with flying professionally, but the compensation is too hard to ignore, especially when the alternative is just about poverty. What would you do if you were in my shoes, flying? Thanks in advance!

Author note: The Cryopod to Hell is a Reddit-exclusive story with over three years of editing and refining. As of this post, the total rewrite is 1,940,000+ words long! For more information, check out the link below:
What is the Cryopod to Hell?
Join the Cryoverse Discord server!
Here's a list of all Cryopod's chapters, along with an ePub/Mobi/PDF version!
Want to stay up to date on TCTH? Subscribe to Cryopodbot!
...................................
(Previous Part)
(Part 001)
...
After every Demon Duke pops one of Glinch's pills, they begin to evolve. The change shocks the Emperors to their cores. Yardrat prepared himself for the inevitability that these incredible pills would do the unthinkable, but seeing it happen in real-time is very different from imagining the concept in his head.
He and the other leaders, movers, and shakers of the Four Hells who came along can only watch numbly as Vespera, Rhesus, Hamir, Vepar, and all the other Dukes explode in strength, smashing through their limiters to ascend to the realm of Demon Emperor.
Their bodies glow with power. They fall to their knees and roar to the heavens, delighted in achieving that which they previously thought was unattainable.
In an instant, the balance of power across every Hell shifts, yet few even know of that which has just transpired, and fewer still take the time to think clearly about what this will surely mean in the coming days, weeks, months, and years.
If they cannot defeat Mephisto, it won't matter if they have six Emperors or six hundred. The power of a Demon Deity will crush them all into dust, with nothing left behind, aside from their dying screams.
As for the fifty newly ascended Emperors, their names and titles are numerous, almost numbing to dwell on. Among them are a smattering of renowned individuals, such as:
Vepar, the Corrosive Emperor.
Vespera, the Emperor of Nebulae.
Rhesus, the Emperor of Ripping.
Hamir, the Emperor of Tempests.
As well as numerous others.
The moment they ascend, their titles become known to all demons who gaze upon them. They need not speak these titles, as if having been named directly by the Creator himself. In the entire history of demonkind, few have managed to shroud their true names, the most notable individual being Gressil, who hid his Emperor-level strength until the time was right for others to know.
But these newly risen Emperors have neither a need nor a desire to hide their powerful new titles. They look at one another and grin evilly, excited to begin wielding their abilities as soon as possible.
After distributing half of the pills, Yardrat finds that he still has more than forty left. He turns to Emperor Melody.
"It wouldn't be appropriate for me to hold onto the rest." He says. "My Hell already has more elites than everyone else. If we make it out of here alive, rebuild the Hell of Isolation with these."
The other Emperors blink in surprise at Yardrat's gesture of goodwill. Some of them feel it's a bit of a waste, but the longest lived Emperors and former Dukes ultimately don't bother to interrupt him.
Bael crosses his arms and nods.
"Good call, Yardy-boy. That's what Shax would want."
"Shax was a fine demon." Yardrat says, as Melody takes the pills from him. "His death has always weighed on my mind. If I can help his Hell with a small gesture like this, then I'll do so without thinking twice."
"Thank you." Melody says quietly, looking at Yardrat with a strange gaze. She pockets the pills and sighs.
Shax wasn't just a cool music-loving dude, but a kind demon who made countless friends. He never attacked or fought anybody undeservedly, and he based his Hell on the principles of friendship and cooperation. Even the demons who might not have gotten along with him still respected him. His death to the humans ruined the morale of many demons at the time.
"Don't thank me until we kill Mephisto and leave here alive." Yardrat says, turning his attention to the distant center of the Stitched wasteland. "Everyone, let's move out. And remember, those pills were not for our benefit. This is where the real fight begins."
The others nod grimly. They begin marching toward Glinch's lair, and as they walk, powerful chimera cross their paths at regular intervals. No longer do only two or three of Glinch's minions appear, but instead five and six at a time, each and every individual far too powerful for mere Emperors to defeat alone. They quickly get the impression Glinch has managed to raise entities capable of challenging 5th and perhaps even 6th-Level Psions.
With nearly sixty Emperors on their side, the swarm of demons begins moving forward with great haste.
Yardrat imbues his body with the power of space. He flickers around to deal massive damage to Glinch's chimera with punches that rip across dimensional spaces.
Fae flies into the air and rains bombs from above. She takes the initiative to attack distant enemies with her strongest bombs, weakening and softening them up for her allies to take on later.
Dagon and Vepar work together. With both of their powers having reached the bottom of the Emperor-level in strength, they melt, corrode, poison, and suffocate any enemies susceptible to their poison and acid attacks.
Nymph keeps away from the front-lines. Due to Glinch's wasteland ruining any vines or plants she summons within seconds, she instead focuses on popping out plants sporadically to yank allies out of the line of attacks, or merely irritating her enemies by momentarily tripping them with vine shackles around their ankles.
Kristoff focuses on dealing damage and draining Glinch's chimeras of their blood. Any injuries he inflicts tend to bleed heavily, especially when he focuses his mind on doing so.
Serena uses her magic to boost dozens of newly ascended low-Emperors to mid and high tier Emperors, making their powers considerably more deadly. She also keeps her eyes out for invisible threats or other troublesome soul fluctuations.
Crow stays on the front-lines. Her incredibly durable body allows her to retain the title of the mightiest melee attacker among all the demons present.
Melody focuses on defense. Instead of trying to kill the chimeras, she leaves that business to the superior damage-dealers and instead uses her shockwaves to fling her enemies around and batter their attacks aside.
Vespera plays a versatile role, sometimes summoning shadowy minions to assist the others, sometimes jumping into battle herself to cut chimeras down, and other times teleporting around through the various shadows to distract the different enemies.
Rhesus becomes far stronger after evolving. Despite being hesitant to bother with the pills, he is no different from the other demons in his desire to mutate to Emperor, and the permanent strength increase he obtains puts him second only to Crow herself. Perhaps given time he will even surpass her as his power approaches the apex of the Emperor level!
And finally, Bael swings his flail with reckless abandon. He batters any enemy that jumps in front of him without any thought to strategy or planning. He ends up attacking with a strength not far behind Yardrat, dealing the killing blow to more than a few of Glinch's monsters.
For hours, the demon elites beat and batter their way past dozens of highly enhanced creatures, becoming more and more cognizant of the fact that if Glinch wanted them dead, he could merely command his chimera to swarm them and they wouldn't stand a chance of survival. It causes the smarter elites to shudder when they realize Glinch possesses military strength greater than the combined might of all Seven Hells, even after their ascension!
However, Bael is not one of those highly intelligent elites. He doesn't give these matters much thought. He merely continues beating the shit out of his enemies, pausing once in a while to rest his weary body and swap out with the other Emperors nearby as they fight with all their might to push toward the center of the Stitched Wasteland.
At some point, while Bael does his thing, a spiritual sense awakens from within the Matriarch's Armor.
Emperor Ose's remnant soul sliver opens her eyes and returns to the physical realm, unaware of what has been going on since she began resting. With what remains of her former self, she isn't able to stay awake for days and weeks like she could when she was still alive. She has to sleep frequently, lest her soul dissipate from straining itself. She awakens to find that Bael is no longer meandering around on Tarus II or hanging out in her secret demonic base. Instead, he's become engaged in some sort of incredible high-stakes battle, along with dozens of other mighty demon elites!
Ose blinks several times. She says nothing to Bael, but uses what's left of her spiritual senses to try and get a sense of the other demons around her.
Hm? So many Emperors... what happened over the last few days? Have I been unconscious for longer than I anticipated?
She gazes at Vespera, Rhesus, and Vepar, her eyes widening as she recognizes the permanent status of their new Emperor rank.
Devils! Has the Wordsmith's Belial Booster become more effective? How in the Seven Hells can there be fifty brand new Emperors out of nowhere?
She identifies the former Dukes with ease, having once been intimately familiar with the elites of the Seven Hells.
This is... the Stitched Wasteland? Why is everyone going against Glinch? No, more importantly, why do his minions appear to be so much more powerful than I remember? I heard they were at the level of Emperors, but now it seems they must be higher than Emperors, but lower than Demon Deities. Perhaps half-step Deities? Or simply Emperor-level souls contained within much stronger bodies?
Ose doesn't immediately decide to question Bael. She doesn't even alert him to the fact she's awakened. He's a moron anyway, so talking to him won't provide her with much more info than if she simply used her judgment to determine what's going on.
This is all so strange. Ose thinks. According to the Matriarch Armor's internal chronometer, I've only been asleep a single week, yet a frightening number of things have changed. Has a demon civil war erupted? Perhaps Glinch has decided to rebel against the Seven Hells, so Auger opted to put him down once and for all?
Her spiritual form shakes its head.
No. That isn't Glinch's style. He doesn't care about amassing power, or wealth, or fame and fortune. He doesn't care who rules the Seven Hells. He can't be bought, or bribed, or intimidated, or cowed into submission. Glinch does whatever Glinch wants to do, and not even the Volgrim can change his ways. Since his ability to manipulate bodies and souls is so formidable, the Volgrim have even lowered their heads to commission him on various top-secret R&D projects...
Ose narrows her eyes. Unlike the overwhelming majority of her kin, she is a demon who specializes in not only subterfuge and infiltration, but also high technology. She has stolen many peeks at the Volgrim's Black Level projects in a manner most discreet. Not even the High Technopaths were able to discover her breaches.
If Glinch isn't rebelling, then... could it be that this fierce battle isn't what it seems on the surface?
She pieces together multiple clues at blinding speeds.
Look at how Glinch's army only moves toward the assault force in groups of two or three. They could easily swarm Yardrat and the others, but they don't. That means Glinch is holding back.
She nods to herself.
Coupled with the fact that so many Emperors have ascended... ahhhh...
Ose forms a hypothesis, mulls it over, and smiles to herself.
So it's like that. Glinch must have been commissioned or requested by Auger to improve the fighting capabilities of the Seven Hells. Perhaps he developed some secret new method to uplift demons to the rank of Emperor at Auger's request, and now he's helping battle-forge these new elites. A sound strategy, considering the Wordsmith's rapid rise to power.
Ose ultimately comes to the wrong conclusion, but based on purely the different observable clues in her field of vision, the guess is quite good. She comes to assume that this is part of a secret training exercise intended to build up Hell's forces and churn out powerful fighters capable of pressing against the Wordsmith's bulwark.
Beelzebub isn't here. Ose thinks. None of the Second Hell's residents either. The Hell of Lust must have become quite intimate with the humans, which makes sense. Unlike the other Hells, they rely on fornication with humans to uplift their bodies and souls. The two make for optimal allies.
She checks out the allied forces again, this time paying attention to the specific demons present.
It seems not a single demon that has shown sympathies toward the Wordsmiths has come along. Melody is here all alone. Her Hell always was at least somewhat aligned with humanity, but Melody herself won't be particularly attached to non-demons. Yama isn't here... he must still be at large, along with Mephisto.
Unaware of the fates which befell Mephisto, Yama, and several other demons over the past week, Ose unfortunately misses a few important clues, but that can hardly be blamed on her.
Kristoff, Vespera, and Rhesus. Is this all that remains of the Hell of Blood? Perhaps they left their remaining Dukes behind as a reserve force, or perhaps those members will be uplifted later. I wonder what Auger is thinking, raising so many Emperors at once. He won't be able to keep news of their ascensions a secret for long. The Wordsmith will find out, and he'll become immediately suspicious provided he has an IQ five points higher than Bael.
As her thoughts drift to Bael, Ose finally decides to open up to him.
[Hey, idiot. I'm awake. What's going on here?]
Bael swings Big Bonk at the head of a fifteen-foot-tall brutish monster not unlike the one he first fought when he entered the Stitched Wasteland, but this one possesses a turtle-like shell on its back, making it specially resistant to heavy attacks.
"Huh?" Bael asks, after retracting his flail. "Oh, Ose! You're awake! Gimme a few minutes, I gotta pound some punks!"
Ose rolls her eyes. [No need for that. Just take a few steps back and talk to me. This training exercise isn't a life and death matter anyway.]
Bael pauses to consider her words. His jaw slackens a little as he tries to catch up with what she said.
"It... it's not?"
Some of the demons nearby Bael notice his attacks slowing. A couple even hear him talking to himself, but unable to hear Ose's voice, they just assume the poor galumpf must be having one of his ditsy moments. They quickly fill the gap lost by Bael's slowed momentum, leaving him to fall back even further.
[Of course not.] Ose says. [Tell me what this exercise is all about. How did Glinch uplift so many demons to the Rank of Emperor?]
Bael's eyes widen. "Wow, Ose! You just woke up and you already know Glinch did this? You're so smart!"
[I don't need your praise.] Ose says, annoyed. [Just tell me how Glinch raised fifty Emperors in only a week.]
"Ohh. Uh, he gave us special pills." Bael says. "Yeah, super strong stuff. Made my titties bigger too."
Ose blinks. [What?]
"My titties. They got real big. Didn't grow my ding-dong back though..."
Bael eyes fill with tears as he remembers the sadness he felt when his pants remained uninflated.
[Moron! I don't care about y-your mammary expansion! What sorts of pills were they? How did Glinch make them?]
Ose's growing frustration, as always, proves impossible to keep out of her voice. Bael doesn't seem to mind.
"Oh I dunno. Kristoff said something about x-beats and blood." Bael explains absentmindedly. "Why? You wanna grow bigger soul-titties too?"
[NO!] Ose roars. [I don't care about my boob size, you nimrod! FOCUS! What 'x-beats' are you talking about? Do you mean EXOBEASTS?]
A light seems to go off in Bael's eyes.
"Ohh, right! Yeah! X-O beasts! Like uh, X-O-X-O. Kissing beasts! I'm so silly. Can't believe I forgot that."
Ose closes her eyes and makes punching motions toward an invisible wall.
I'm gonna kill him. She thinks. I'm going to kill Bael and torture his soul for all eternity if I EVER figure out a way to bring myself back.
She clenches her jaw and opens her eyes.
[Bael. Does the Wordsmith know about Auger's plan yet?]
Bael scrunches up his face.
"Uhhh... Auger's... plan?"
[Yes. His plan to create more Emperors.] Ose clarifies. [He's working with Glinch, yes?]
"He is?!" Bael gasps. "Wow! Auger's so smart. I'd never have thought of that. This sure explains a lot."
Invisible question marks pop up above Ose's head. She squints her eyes as if trying to look inside Bael's head and locate his pebble-sized brain amidst a galaxy-sized void of emptiness.
[So... does... the Wordsmith... know?] Ose asks through gritted teeth.
"Nah. Doubt it." Bael says, waving his hands nonchalantly. "Unless..."
[Unless?] Ose asks.
"Unless it's all part of Auger's brilliant plan." Bael concludes, nodding to himself. "Damn. How is everyone so smart? And I thought we were coming here to kill Mephisto."
Ose's face freezes. A feeling like cracked ice washes across her soul.
[Me...phisto? You're here to kill Mephisto?]
"I dunno." Bael shrugs. "I thought we were coming here to kill him. But this must be part of Auger's plan to trick me and the others so he can make the Hells super strong. I guess all that stuff about Mephisto becoming a Demon Deity didn't mean anything after all. Thanks for helping me understand, Ose! You're the best!"
Bael gives Ose a HUGE mental thumbs up, grinning at her with the same level of stupid happiness he always does.
Ose's soul nearly implodes from the mental gymnastics Bael just unleashed upon her.
[Oh... devils...] Ose weeps. [Why... why couldn't I have been trapped with Auger... or Fenrir... or Gorn... even Serena! Why did I have to end up stuck with demonkind's biggest idiot?]
"It's probably just your bad karma." Bael grunts. "You were such a bad girl, taking all those dirty pics. The Creator had to punish ya."
[WHAT PICS?!] Ose snaps. [Bael, I'm going to turn your pea-brain into MUSH if you keep thinking such VILE thoughts!]
In the middle of Ose's raging, Yardrat fights his way to Bael's side.
"Bael! Is something wrong? Why have you stopped attacking? Are you exhausted?"
Bael blinks. He turns his attention to Yardrat.
"Huh? Nah, nah. Ose woke up, so I'm having a chat with her real quick."
He pauses before adding: "By the way, why didn't ya tell me this was all Auger's brilliant plan? You know I'm good at keeping secrets!"
Yardrat glances at Bael, baffled, while continuing to conjure lines of eviscerating spatial attacks upon the frontline enemies.
"What plan? What are you on about?"
Bael lightly slaps Yardrat's back and chuckles.
"Aw, man. Good one, Yardy-boy! What plan? Hah! You're a real kick in the pants sometimes!"
Yardrat pauses his fighting to stare at Bael for three full seconds in absolute confusion. Then he turns and walks away, muttering something under his breath about that guy being off his rocker ever since he body-swapped.
Bael jumps back into combat, having finally figured out the 'true' reason for coming here. As for Ose, she mentally slumps to the 'floor' of Bael's Mind Realm, drained by the idiocy she's just endured.
But, at least now she better understands the actual situation.
Ose sets aside her anger and rage. She closes her eyes and focuses, thinking about what she's actually learned. Her swift mind allows her to combine the new, albeit potentially unreliable intel she obtained from Bael, with her pre-existing theories.
Mephisto is ascending to Demon Deity. Glinch must be working to train up an army of Emperors... for some reason. Perhaps Mephisto threatens his interests or something. Ugh. If only I could just speak directly to someone not named Bael. If ONLY I had made my soul interface capable of projecting my voice outwards. Stupid, stupid!
Ose begins to feel glum.
She looks up at the sky, her senses able to detect anything around the Matriarch Armor within a 360 degree sphere.
She gazes at the waning sun, the ashen clouds of the Stitched Wasteland only blocking some of her view toward space.
I have to be more proactive. I can't just blame Bael. It's not his fault he was born with the IQ of a dead slug. I mean, it's a LITTLE bit his fault... but he can't really help being unable to retain information for longer than five nanoseconds. If I'd simply planned out my existence post-mortem, I might still manage to retain some influence over the Hells.
Ose becomes momentarily depressed. She begins to wonder if these things even truly matter.
She's dead.
She's unlikely to ever again walk the plane of existence.
She's not powerful anymore. All she has left is a fragment of a soul and her intellect formed during her 100,000+ years of life.
But that depression quickly fades away as she firms her resolve.
Ose is many things. She's easily annoyed by idiocy, temperamental, stuck up, and a bit of a viper, but she isn't mentally weak. Her willpower is formidable, and it was forged by the life she's endured, as well as the actions her adoptive mother took to empower her in her youth.
I don't need a body or magic to remain relevant. Ose thinks. I still have my intellect. Even if I can't taste good food or lounge on a comfortable bed, I still have ambitions. I want to continue expanding my influence.
She rubs her chin and looks thoughtfully at the battle around her.
Bael's an idiot. But he's also easy to manipulate and control. And nobody would ever expect him to accomplish much. That means the humans, the other demons, and especially the Volgrim will underestimate him.
Hmm.
Perhaps I can turn this situation to my advantage.
Her attention pivots to Glinch's laboratory, still more than a hundred miles away.
I wonder if the Stitched Emperor might be able to help my situation, too? It's certainly worth a shot.
So many possibilities...
Ose will never bow to the universe's will, so long as she retains her mental faculties.
She will never surrender.

After every Demon Duke pops one of Glinch's pills, they begin to evolve. The change shocks the Emperors to their cores. Yardrat prepared himself for the inevitability that these incredible pills would do the unthinkable, but seeing it happen in real-time is very different from imagining the concept in his head.
He and the other leaders, movers, and shakers of the Four Hells who came along can only watch numbly as Vespera, Rhesus, Hamir, Vepar, and all the other Dukes explode in strength, smashing through their limiters to ascend to the realm of Demon Emperor.
Their bodies glow with power. They fall to their knees and roar to the heavens, delighted in achieving that which they previously thought was unattainable.
In an instant, the balance of power across every Hell shifts, yet few even know of that which has just transpired, and fewer still take the time to think clearly about what this will surely mean in the coming days, weeks, months, and years.
If they cannot defeat Mephisto, it won't matter if they have six Emperors or six hundred. The power of a Demon Deity will crush them all into dust, with nothing left behind, aside from their dying screams.
As for the fifty newly ascended Emperors, their names and titles are numerous, almost numbing to dwell on. Among them are a smattering of renowned individuals, such as:
Vepar, the Corrosive Emperor.
Vespera, the Emperor of Nebulae.
Rhesus, the Emperor of Ripping.
Hamir, the Emperor of Tempests.
As well as numerous others.
The moment they ascend, their titles become known to all demons who gaze upon them. They need not speak these titles, as if having been named directly by the Creator himself. In the entire history of demonkind, few have managed to shroud their true names, the most notable individual being Gressil, who hid his Emperor-level strength until the time was right for others to know.
But these newly risen Emperors have neither a need nor a desire to hide their powerful new titles. They look at one another and grin evilly, excited to begin wielding their abilities as soon as possible.
After distributing half of the pills, Yardrat finds that he still has more than forty left. He turns to Emperor Melody.
"It wouldn't be appropriate for me to hold onto the rest." He says. "My Hell already has more elites than everyone else. If we make it out of here alive, rebuild the Hell of Isolation with these."
The other Emperors blink in surprise at Yardrat's gesture of goodwill. Some of them feel it's a bit of a waste, but the longest lived Emperors and former Dukes ultimately don't bother to interrupt him.
Bael crosses his arms and nods.
"Good call, Yardy-boy. That's what Shax would want."
"Shax was a fine demon." Yardrat says, as Melody takes the pills from him. "His death has always weighed on my mind. If I can help his Hell with a small gesture like this, then I'll do so without thinking twice."
"Thank you." Melody says quietly, looking at Yardrat with a strange gaze. She pockets the pills and sighs.
Shax wasn't just a cool music-loving dude, but a kind demon who made countless friends. He never attacked or fought anybody undeservedly, and he based his Hell on the principles of friendship and cooperation. Even the demons who might not have gotten along with him still respected him. His death to the humans ruined the morale of many demons at the time.
"Don't thank me until we kill Mephisto and leave here alive." Yardrat says, turning his attention to the distant center of the Stitched wasteland. "Everyone, let's move out. And remember, those pills were not for our benefit. This is where the real fight begins."
The others nod grimly. They begin marching toward Glinch's lair, and as they walk, powerful chimera cross their paths at regular intervals. No longer do only two or three of Glinch's minions appear, but instead five and six at a time, each and every individual far too powerful for mere Emperors to defeat alone. They quickly get the impression Glinch has managed to raise entities capable of challenging 5th and perhaps even 6th-Level Psions.
With nearly sixty Emperors on their side, the swarm of demons begins moving forward with great haste.
Yardrat imbues his body with the power of space. He flickers around to deal massive damage to Glinch's chimera with punches that rip across dimensional spaces.
Fae flies into the air and rains bombs from above. She takes the initiative to attack distant enemies with her strongest bombs, weakening and softening them up for her allies to take on later.
Dagon and Vepar work together. With both of their powers having reached the bottom of the Emperor-level in strength, they melt, corrode, poison, and suffocate any enemies susceptible to their poison and acid attacks.
Nymph keeps away from the front-lines. Due to Glinch's wasteland ruining any vines or plants she summons within seconds, she instead focuses on popping out plants sporadically to yank allies out of the line of attacks, or merely irritating her enemies by momentarily tripping them with vine shackles around their ankles.
Kristoff focuses on dealing damage and draining Glinch's chimeras of their blood. Any injuries he inflicts tend to bleed heavily, especially when he focuses his mind on doing so.
Serena uses her magic to boost dozens of newly ascended low-Emperors to mid and high tier Emperors, making their powers considerably more deadly. She also keeps her eyes out for invisible threats or other troublesome soul fluctuations.
Crow stays on the front-lines. Her incredibly durable body allows her to retain the title of the mightiest melee attacker among all the demons present.
Melody focuses on defense. Instead of trying to kill the chimeras, she leaves that business to the superior damage-dealers and instead uses her shockwaves to fling her enemies around and batter their attacks aside.
Vespera plays a versatile role, sometimes summoning shadowy minions to assist the others, sometimes jumping into battle herself to cut chimeras down, and other times teleporting around through the various shadows to distract the different enemies.
Rhesus becomes far stronger after evolving. Despite being hesitant to bother with the pills, he is no different from the other demons in his desire to mutate to Emperor, and the permanent strength increase he obtains puts him second only to Crow herself. Perhaps given time he will even surpass her as his power approaches the apex of the Emperor level!
And finally, Bael swings his flail with reckless abandon. He batters any enemy that jumps in front of him without any thought to strategy or planning. He ends up attacking with a strength not far behind Yardrat, dealing the killing blow to more than a few of Glinch's monsters.
For hours, the demon elites beat and batter their way past dozens of highly enhanced creatures, becoming more and more cognizant of the fact that if Glinch wanted them dead, he could merely command his chimera to swarm them and they wouldn't stand a chance of survival. It causes the smarter elites to shudder when they realize Glinch possesses military strength greater than the combined might of all Seven Hells, even after their ascension!
However, Bael is not one of those highly intelligent elites. He doesn't give these matters much thought. He merely continues beating the shit out of his enemies, pausing once in a while to rest his weary body and swap out with the other Emperors nearby as they fight with all their might to push toward the center of the Stitched Wasteland.
At some point, while Bael does his thing, a spiritual sense awakens from within the Matriarch's Armor.
Emperor Ose's remnant soul sliver opens her eyes and returns to the physical realm, unaware of what has been going on since she began resting. With what remains of her former self, she isn't able to stay awake for days and weeks like she could when she was still alive. She has to sleep frequently, lest her soul dissipate from straining itself. She awakens to find that Bael is no longer meandering around on Tarus II or hanging out in her secret demonic base. Instead, he's become engaged in some sort of incredible high-stakes battle, along with dozens of other mighty demon elites!
Ose blinks several times. She says nothing to Bael, but uses what's left of her spiritual senses to try and get a sense of the other demons around her.
Hm? So many Emperors... what happened over the last few days? Have I been unconscious for longer than I anticipated?
She gazes at Vespera, Rhesus, and Vepar, her eyes widening as she recognizes the permanent status of their new Emperor rank.
Devils! Has the Wordsmith's Belial Booster become more effective? How in the Seven Hells can there be fifty brand new Emperors out of nowhere?
She identifies the former Dukes with ease, having once been intimately familiar with the elites of the Seven Hells.
This is... the Stitched Wasteland? Why is everyone going against Glinch? No, more importantly, why do his minions appear to be so much more powerful than I remember? I heard they were at the level of Emperors, but now it seems they must be higher than Emperors, but lower than Demon Deities. Perhaps half-step Deities? Or simply Emperor-level souls contained within much stronger bodies?
Ose doesn't immediately decide to question Bael. She doesn't even alert him to the fact she's awakened. He's a moron anyway, so talking to him won't provide her with much more info than if she simply used her judgment to determine what's going on.
This is all so strange. Ose thinks. According to the Matriarch Armor's internal chronometer, I've only been asleep a single week, yet a frightening number of things have changed. Has a demon civil war erupted? Perhaps Glinch has decided to rebel against the Seven Hells, so Auger opted to put him down once and for all?
Her spiritual form shakes its head.
No. That isn't Glinch's style. He doesn't care about amassing power, or wealth, or fame and fortune. He doesn't care who rules the Seven Hells. He can't be bought, or bribed, or intimidated, or cowed into submission. Glinch does whatever Glinch wants to do, and not even the Volgrim can change his ways. Since his ability to manipulate bodies and souls is so formidable, the Volgrim have even lowered their heads to commission him on various top-secret R&D projects...
Ose narrows her eyes. Unlike the overwhelming majority of her kin, she is a demon who specializes in not only subterfuge and infiltration, but also high technology. She has stolen many peeks at the Volgrim's Black Level projects in a manner most discreet. Not even the High Technopaths were able to discover her breaches.
If Glinch isn't rebelling, then... could it be that this fierce battle isn't what it seems on the surface?
She pieces together multiple clues at blinding speeds.
Look at how Glinch's army only moves toward the assault force in groups of two or three. They could easily swarm Yardrat and the others, but they don't. That means Glinch is holding back.
She nods to herself.
Coupled with the fact that so many Emperors have ascended... ahhhh...
Ose forms a hypothesis, mulls it over, and smiles to herself.
So it's like that. Glinch must have been commissioned or requested by Auger to improve the fighting capabilities of the Seven Hells. Perhaps he developed some secret new method to uplift demons to the rank of Emperor at Auger's request, and now he's helping battle-forge these new elites. A sound strategy, considering the Wordsmith's rapid rise to power.
Ose ultimately comes to the wrong conclusion, but based on purely the different observable clues in her field of vision, the guess is quite good. She comes to assume that this is part of a secret training exercise intended to build up Hell's forces and churn out powerful fighters capable of pressing against the Wordsmith's bulwark.
Beelzebub isn't here. Ose thinks. None of the Second Hell's residents either. The Hell of Lust must have become quite intimate with the humans, which makes sense. Unlike the other Hells, they rely on fornication with humans to uplift their bodies and souls. The two make for optimal allies.
She checks out the allied forces again, this time paying attention to the specific demons present.
It seems not a single demon that has shown sympathies toward the Wordsmiths has come along. Melody is here all alone. Her Hell always was at least somewhat aligned with humanity, but Melody herself won't be particularly attached to non-demons. Yama isn't here... he must still be at large, along with Mephisto.
Unaware of the fates which befell Mephisto, Yama, and several other demons over the past week, Ose unfortunately misses a few important clues, but that can hardly be blamed on her.
Kristoff, Vespera, and Rhesus. Is this all that remains of the Hell of Blood? Perhaps they left their remaining Dukes behind as a reserve force, or perhaps those members will be uplifted later. I wonder what Auger is thinking, raising so many Emperors at once. He won't be able to keep news of their ascensions a secret for long. The Wordsmith will find out, and he'll become immediately suspicious provided he has an IQ five points higher than Bael.
As her thoughts drift to Bael, Ose finally decides to open up to him.
[Hey, idiot. I'm awake. What's going on here?]
Bael swings Big Bonk at the head of a fifteen-foot-tall brutish monster not unlike the one he first fought when he entered the Stitched Wasteland, but this one possesses a turtle-like shell on its back, making it specially resistant to heavy attacks.
"Huh?" Bael asks, after retracting his flail. "Oh, Ose! You're awake! Gimme a few minutes, I gotta pound some punks!"
Ose rolls her eyes. [No need for that. Just take a few steps back and talk to me. This training exercise isn't a life and death matter anyway.]
Bael pauses to consider her words. His jaw slackens a little as he tries to catch up with what she said.
"It... it's not?"
Some of the demons nearby Bael notice his attacks slowing. A couple even hear him talking to himself, but unable to hear Ose's voice, they just assume the poor galumpf must be having one of his ditsy moments. They quickly fill the gap lost by Bael's slowed momentum, leaving him to fall back even further.
[Of course not.] Ose says. [Tell me what this exercise is all about. How did Glinch uplift so many demons to the Rank of Emperor?]
Bael's eyes widen. "Wow, Ose! You just woke up and you already know Glinch did this? You're so smart!"
[I don't need your praise.] Ose says, annoyed. [Just tell me how Glinch raised fifty Emperors in only a week.]
"Ohh. Uh, he gave us special pills." Bael says. "Yeah, super strong stuff. Made my titties bigger too."
Ose blinks. [What?]
"My titties. They got real big. Didn't grow my ding-dong back though..."
Bael eyes fill with tears as he remembers the sadness he felt when his pants remained uninflated.
[Moron! I don't care about y-your mammary expansion! What sorts of pills were they? How did Glinch make them?]
Ose's growing frustration, as always, proves impossible to keep out of her voice. Bael doesn't seem to mind.
"Oh I dunno. Kristoff said something about x-beats and blood." Bael explains absentmindedly. "Why? You wanna grow bigger soul-titties too?"
[NO!] Ose roars. [I don't care about my boob size, you nimrod! FOCUS! What 'x-beats' are you talking about? Do you mean EXOBEASTS?]
A light seems to go off in Bael's eyes.
"Ohh, right! Yeah! X-O beasts! Like uh, X-O-X-O. Kissing beasts! I'm so silly. Can't believe I forgot that."
Ose closes her eyes and makes punching motions toward an invisible wall.
I'm gonna kill him. She thinks. I'm going to kill Bael and torture his soul for all eternity if I EVER figure out a way to bring myself back.
She clenches her jaw and opens her eyes.
[Bael. Does the Wordsmith know about Auger's plan yet?]
Bael scrunches up his face.
"Uhhh... Auger's... plan?"
[Yes. His plan to create more Emperors.] Ose clarifies. [He's working with Glinch, yes?]
"He is?!" Bael gasps. "Wow! Auger's so smart. I'd never have thought of that. This sure explains a lot."
Invisible question marks pop up above Ose's head. She squints her eyes as if trying to look inside Bael's head and locate his pebble-sized brain amidst a galaxy-sized void of emptiness.
[So... does... the Wordsmith... know?] Ose asks through gritted teeth.
"Nah. Doubt it." Bael says, waving his hands nonchalantly. "Unless..."
[Unless?] Ose asks.
"Unless it's all part of Auger's brilliant plan." Bael concludes, nodding to himself. "Damn. How is everyone so smart? And I thought we were coming here to kill Mephisto."
Ose's face freezes. A feeling like cracked ice washes across her soul.
[Me...phisto? You're here to kill Mephisto?]
"I dunno." Bael shrugs. "I thought we were coming here to kill him. But this must be part of Auger's plan to trick me and the others so he can make the Hells super strong. I guess all that stuff about Mephisto becoming a Demon Deity didn't mean anything after all. Thanks for helping me understand, Ose! You're the best!"
Bael gives Ose a HUGE mental thumbs up, grinning at her with the same level of stupid happiness he always does.
Ose's soul nearly implodes from the mental gymnastics Bael just unleashed upon her.
[Oh... devils...] Ose weeps. [Why... why couldn't I have been trapped with Auger... or Fenrir... or Gorn... even Serena! Why did I have to end up stuck with demonkind's biggest idiot?]
"It's probably just your bad karma." Bael grunts. "You were such a bad girl, taking all those dirty pics. The Creator had to punish ya."
[WHAT PICS?!] Ose snaps. [Bael, I'm going to turn your pea-brain into MUSH if you keep thinking such VILE thoughts!]
In the middle of Ose's raging, Yardrat fights his way to Bael's side.
"Bael! Is something wrong? Why have you stopped attacking? Are you exhausted?"
Bael blinks. He turns his attention to Yardrat.
"Huh? Nah, nah. Ose woke up, so I'm having a chat with her real quick."
He pauses before adding: "By the way, why didn't ya tell me this was all Auger's brilliant plan? You know I'm good at keeping secrets!"
Yardrat glances at Bael, baffled, while continuing to conjure lines of eviscerating spatial attacks upon the frontline enemies.
"What plan? What are you on about?"
Bael lightly slaps Yardrat's back and chuckles.
"Aw, man. Good one, Yardy-boy! What plan? Hah! You're a real kick in the pants sometimes!"
Yardrat pauses his fighting to stare at Bael for three full seconds in absolute confusion. Then he turns and walks away, muttering something under his breath about that guy being off his rocker ever since he body-swapped.
Bael jumps back into combat, having finally figured out the 'true' reason for coming here. As for Ose, she mentally slumps to the 'floor' of Bael's Mind Realm, drained by the idiocy she's just endured.
But, at least now she better understands the actual situation.
Ose sets aside her anger and rage. She closes her eyes and focuses, thinking about what she's actually learned. Her swift mind allows her to combine the new, albeit potentially unreliable intel she obtained from Bael, with her pre-existing theories.
Mephisto is ascending to Demon Deity. Glinch must be working to train up an army of Emperors... for some reason. Perhaps Mephisto threatens his interests or something. Ugh. If only I could just speak directly to someone not named Bael. If ONLY I had made my soul interface capable of projecting my voice outwards. Stupid, stupid!
Ose begins to feel glum.
She looks up at the sky, her senses able to detect anything around the Matriarch Armor within a 360 degree sphere.
She gazes at the waning sun, the ashen clouds of the Stitched Wasteland only blocking some of her view toward space.
I have to be more proactive. I can't just blame Bael. It's not his fault he was born with the IQ of a dead slug. I mean, it's a LITTLE bit his fault... but he can't really help being unable to retain information for longer than five nanoseconds. If I'd simply planned out my existence post-mortem, I might still manage to retain some influence over the Hells.
Ose becomes momentarily depressed. She begins to wonder if these things even truly matter.
She's dead.
She's unlikely to ever again walk the plane of existence.
She's not powerful anymore. All she has left is a fragment of a soul and her intellect formed during her 100,000+ years of life.
But that depression quickly fades away as she firms her resolve.
Ose is many things. She's easily annoyed by idiocy, temperamental, stuck up, and a bit of a viper, but she isn't mentally weak. Her willpower is formidable, and it was forged by the life she's endured, as well as the actions her adoptive mother took to empower her in her youth.
I don't need a body or magic to remain relevant. Ose thinks. I still have my intellect. Even if I can't taste good food or lounge on a comfortable bed, I still have ambitions. I want to continue expanding my influence.
She rubs her chin and looks thoughtfully at the battle around her.
Bael's an idiot. But he's also easy to manipulate and control. And nobody would ever expect him to accomplish much. That means the humans, the other demons, and especially the Volgrim will underestimate him.
Hmm.
Perhaps I can turn this situation to my advantage.
Her attention pivots to Glinch's laboratory, still more than a hundred miles away.
I wonder if the Stitched Emperor might be able to help my situation, too? It's certainly worth a shot.
So many possibilities...
Ose will never bow to the universe's will, so long as she retains her mental faculties.
She will never surrender.

I would like to start by saying this is an honest review. I was an extremely loyal Carvana customer and the first to defend Carvana from anyone saying how bad they were. I have purchased 2 cars from Carvana over the past 5 years. I am going to provide an honest review of both experiences because I want to outline exactly how much the customer experience has degraded in my personal opinion.
If you finish reading this and have any questions, please feel free to AMA about my experiences.
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1st Vehicle Experience (2019) 5 Stars, amazing experience
I purchased a 2018 Ford Fusion. This vehicle arrived as advertised, all exterior markings were clearly listed on the site and I could find no issues on the exterior that weren't marked. They delayed my shipping which I was perturbed about as I had paid good money for shipping. When the car arrived, the driver had a gift card he gave me for some restaurants which I thought was an amazing gesture. The driver unloaded my vehicle and scrapped the front and back bumpers off the ground because the car was low and the ground uneven. I was assured this would be fixed. I got the car home and realized there was dog hair all through the back seat. I contacted Carvana about both issues. They sent me $250 to get the car cleaned and footed the entire bill for repairs (almost $2000) to get it fully repaired. This earned my loyalty to their brand and decided I'd buy cars from Carvana in the future.
TL;DR; Amazing experience, driver was incredibly respectful and Carvana fixed every complaint I had and I felt actually went above and beyond to ensure I was happy including a swag bag.
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2nd Vehicle Experience (2023) 1 Star at best, awful experience lost a customer
I purchased a 2021 Chevy Silverado RST 6 1/2 FT bed with DFM from their site. There were a few usual delays during purchasing nothing major. Delivery day comes. I receive a text from the driver with a 15-minute time frame for their arrival. Wait a full hour before texting the number, I get a response when the driver pulls into the parking lot 1 hour and 10 minutes after the arrival time they gave me. I'm out of their market so this involved me sitting in a parking lot for a full hour. No apologies, just a joke about how they needed to stop for an energy drink. I ignore it, shit happens... they unload the vehicle and I take it for a test drive. Everything seems fine, I sign for the vehicle and drive it home. At this point, I have a few parts waiting for the truck including a bed cover which oddly does not fit. I start doing some decoding of the VIN number and realize the truck is actually a 5 3/4 FT bed. I also notice there are some deep gouges in the paint that weren't marked (one side had no scratches at all marked) and there's also a dent in the tailgate. At this point, I'm a bit nervous but I've had good experiences in the past so I assume it'll all work out. I open a complaint about the bed, I wait to hear back. They offer me a $100 check which I feel honestly is a slap in the face. I ask to have the shipping fees waived as this clearly wasn't my fault and would like to return the truck. They refuse. At this point, I'm either out around $1200 ($190 to get it to my state, $520 to get it to me, and $520 to get it back for the return) or I take the $100 and just forget about it. I ask to have a manager call me. They assure me a manager will call in 24 hours as now it is getting close to my 7-day return window and I am pretty displeased. A manager never called me and today I finally just accepted this is my truck now and took the $100 as I didn't want to lose $1200 out of pocket. I've since learned the truck does not have DFM either which is another feature they miss annotated but I've decided contacting them about it is not worth the extra $100 as each time has been a significant hassle.
So now I move on to the next issue the gouges in the paint and the dent that weren't disclosed. I take pictures and submit a claim request through their website. The pictures are sent to their insurance company. In about 3 hours I am informed that these scratches while not disclosed anywhere are "normal wear" and are being refused to be covered.
TL;DR; The delivery driver was extremely disrespectful. The customer support has mocked me and belittled my problems. They sold me a truck with a 5 3/4 FT bed as a 6 1/2 FT bed that has multiple scratches and a dent they had no pictures of and did not disclose in any way. Their solution was to offer me $100 dollars and refused to allow me to send the truck back without losing money.
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Safe to say I will NEVER purchase another vehicle from Carvana. It's a shame really, they're usually cheaper than dealers around here and in the past have shown amazing customer response. However, the customer experience is horrible now. An online retailer that can't get the simple facts correct or mark obvious imperfections while refusing to work with the customer in any way does not deserve anyones business.

TLDR We moved out of our house 2 weeks ago, our landlord wants to move back into said home while still charging us rent for the remainder of our lease (through September). My wife and I moved from Utah to Minneapolis this last week due to work. Our lease was initially through September, but we were hoping that our landlord would be able to find another tenant and release us from our lease, as they were pretty reasonable/nice people, and had told us they were trying to find someone. We understand that technically, if they wanted to, they could not look for new tenants and keep charging us rent through the rest of our initial lease as our contract states that only the owner has the power to end the lease early. (See contract at bottom). This morning, we received a text from the landlord saying that they’re planning on moving into the house in question and will rent out their current home. We would still be on the hook for rent through September. Isn’t this illegal? Obviously, they could say never mind and sit on their hands until the end of September while we pay rent which would suck for both of us, but my understanding is they can’t legally move in and start living in our house while the lease is still active. Any advice? https://docdro.id/3rgSEE2

(Copy and pasted from buildapc because it makes more sense to post here)
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I'll apologize as I see this is an issue not really exclusive to me but:
About a week ago I got an MSI RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio. I took a little extra precaution and used DDU to remove the drivers of my previous GPU to avoid any conflict with drivers, hooked the 4080 up, and installed the latest stable drivers from Nvidia for it. After installing the drivers, I used my PC every day for the past few days including last night with no issues (no crashing, no performance issues, etc). However, I turned my PC off last night briefly to run an errand, came back, and hit the power button. All of my high-performance RGB lighting, fans, and the GPU itself lit up/kicked on as usual... but no display whatsoever.
The typical panic when expensive hardware isn't working hit me then passed. So what I've done so far to troubleshoot includes: reseating the GPU, unplugging and replugging the PCIe power cables, unplugging one 8-pin from the 12vhpwr adapter that came with the GPU (saw this on Reddit as a possible fix), clearing the CMOS, and more panic before having to call it a night.
A couple of possible solutions I haven't tried yet are doing away with the janky 3x8pin to 12vhpwer adapter that really screwed my cable management in favor of the cleaner 600w Corsair adapter that comes in tomorrow. Other possible solution is updating my motherboard BIOS which I should have done prior to installing the 4080 and updating the firmware on the 4080 itself. I still have my other GPU so I can pop it back in to update my BIOS, which I'll try later today. However, I have a 12700KF with no integrated graphics to update the firmware on my 4080 if the BIOS update doesn't work. Something I was curious about is if I can have both my previous GPU and my 4080 installed at the same time and use the old one to get display to update the firmware on the 4080, or would there be a conflict having two different GPUs installed at once to do the firmware update?
I'm also definitely open to other suggestions that have worked for other people with this issue.
Hardware Specs:
Windows 11 Pro
MSI RTX 4080 Gaming X Trio
Gigabyte Z690 Gaming X (DDR4)
32GB DDR4 Corsair Vengeance @ 3600MHz
Intel i7 12700KF CPU
Corsair RM1000x PSU

A few months ago I cranked up the difficulty sliders and started a new dynasty file with a goal in mind: experimenting on defense. For years I have worked with offensive playbooks altering audibles, formation subs, and crazy formations, but always kept it simple running standard 4-3 defenses. A base 4-2-5 defense is by no means 'crazy' but it does afford me an opportunity to work with unique personnel and fun blitz packages. As a Buffalo Bills fan, the versatility of the safeties and the coverage skills of the linebackers in this formation was something that I undoubtedly looked towards as inspiration in my teambuilding and recruiting strategy with a college team. Implementing the 4-2-5 into my arsenal is where I was able to recruit and play with my favorite player thus far: Kevin Dodds, SS #8.
For those who might not be familiar, base defenses are typically labeled by the number of defensive linemen followed by the number of linebackers. Some of the most common base defenses are the 3-4 (three d-linemen and four linebackers) and the 4-3 (four d-linemen and three linebackers). A 4-2-5 differs in that it maintains the pass-rushing benefits of the four linemen with a boost in coverage by sacrificing a linebacker for an additional secondary defender. A common downfall of the 4-2-5 is a struggle stopping the run because typically an outside linebacker can tackle better than a secondary defender. Sometimes the fifth secondary defender is a nickel corner, but in NCAA 14 that fifth defender is the backup strong safety. The 4-2-5 formation has that second strong safety acting as a hybrid-type player in the box, close to the line of scrimmage.
The key principles behind the defense are being fast and physical. Some key personnel characteristics are as follows:

• DL: big linemen who can plug gaps and engage multiple blockers
• OLB: excellent tackler capable of pressuring the quarterback and stopping the run
• MLB: great zone coverage and better-than-decent at stopping the run
• CB: excel in press coverage and quick enough to stay with with a receiver
• FS: blazing speed and elite zone coverage
• SS1: similar build to FS, usually converted from FS or CB
• SS2: high speed, medium/high strength, great hit power and tackling

I encountered Kevin Dodds in either the first or second season of the dynasty. He was a 200 pound, 5'-11" four star recruit at the strong safety position with an overall in the mid-to high 70s. The dude had speed like a running back, strength like an offensive lineman, and tackling and block shedding skills like a defensive end.
It was early in the dynasty of a one star school so the existing talent around him was far from ideal. I decided to redshirt him his true freshman year and dedicated lots of recruiting capital to filling out the defense around him over the next couple of seasons. Dodds immediately stormed the scene of college football and asserted himself as one of the premiere defensive players - at any position - in the country. Initially, most of his time on the field was while the defense was in its base 4-2-5 coverage as a hybrid safety, but as the coaching staff learned how to utilize his strengths the defensive playbook evolved to showcase him.
The dollar 3-2-6 formation was utilized more when necessary and a formation sub put Dodds in the fourth cornerback spot behind the left defensive end. This position keeps him near the line of scrimmage to disrupt any potential running plays, but it also includes a wide variety of DB blitz packages. Dodds thrived in this formation in particular on obvious passing downs in the NCAA Blitz series of play calls, which has man coverage, cover 2, and cover 3 variations. Whether or not his blitz was disguised didn't matter. He had the speed to evade the offense's right tackle and the block shedding and strength to get past any half back in pass protection.
A bit later in his career, after a couple of off-seasons in which he could continue to be in the weight room gaining strength, the coaching staff got creative and subbed him into the 5-2 formation as the right defensive end. This effectively allowed him to play this formation in a three point stance in the 9-tech, although the right defensive end does assume coverage responsibilities in the flats in cover 2 and cover 3. A huge benefit of this formation allows him to set the edge on outside run plays when a slower, traditional edge would have a tougher time.
In all defensive sets he was afforded the chance to be on the field as a pash rushing, run stuffing, havoc wreaking disrupter. Run heavy offenses were stifled by the crowded box of the 4-2-5, not knowing which defenders would blitz and which would drop into coverage. Quarterbacks couldn't get rid of the ball fast enough to evade the rush of the 5-2, particularly the 5-2 Pinch which sent the OLB as described above blitzing alongside the five linemen. When offenses tried to spread the field by adding wide receivers: good luck. The dollar formation assigned Dodds to the tight end, the running back, or the slot receiver who he was more than capable of covering. In a pinch, many plays in the formation sent him on a blitz towards an overloaded offensive line. Even in quarter formation the strong safety lurks in the box near the middle linebacker and can control the pace of the opponent with an occasional blitz or short yard zone coverage near the line of scrimmage.
Dodds made a huge impact as a redshirt freshman, leading the team to one of the best statistical defenses in the country and joining Charles Woodson by winning the triple crown for defensive backs: the Bednarik, the Nargurski, and the Thorpe awards.
His sophomore season was cut short due to injury, but during that time the defense around him really started to take shape. He sprang right back into shape his junior season and won the Thorpe and Bednarik awards.
Halfway through his senior season he set the school record for career sacks and continues to build upon that record to the point in which it seems insurmountable. He also holds the NCAA record for the most number of sacks by an individual in a single game. He is a finalist for many of the same defensive awards he won in years past and is looking to cement himself as the greatest defensive back in all of college football late in his senior season, leading his team to an undefeated record with hopes of the national championship game.
Kevin Dodds is likely the greatest player I have ever developed in my time as a coach in NCAA 14. I had never prioritized ‘hard hitting’ safeties before installing and building around a 4-2-5 defense, so I had never been able to coach into action formations with incredible defensive back blitzes.
I hope reading this reminds you all why NCAA 14 is the greatest sports video game of all time. After a decade of playing this game on and off I still find myself returning with more to learn and more to experiment with. Thank you to those who took the time to read this and follow the career of Kevin Dodds and my journey through a custom defensive playbook.
—
Kevin Dodds, Senior (RS) - Player Skills
OVR: 98 SPD: 95 ACC: 99 AGI: 83 AWR: 99 TAK: 94 MCV: 80 ZCV: 82 PRC: 85 HPW: 89 CTH: 78 PUR: 96 STR: 80 PCV: 84 BSH: 93

so the new bios (1.11.1) that was installed on ur laptop bricked almost all of these laptops.
dell fails us once again whatever here is what u can do
ALSO before u do this IF u have already gone through this bios process and you are now finding you cant do this process again you are going to have to open up your computer and remove the os drive (the beginning of this video shows how), power on and off the computer on without the os drive in, and then put the drive back in and do this bios process:

1. u have to get to the bios recovery screen so you are gonna hold down the power button till the keyboard lights turn off
2. unplug the computer
3. hold down ctrl + esc
4. while still holding plug the computer back in and press the power button
5. let go when the lights turn back on and wait a little bit (if this does not work try the process again but instead keep holding when the lights turn back on)

ok so this is great now once you get to the bios screen this is what you do:

1. do recover bios and your computer will start up
2. go into ur settings,go to windows update, and pause all automatic updates for 5 weeks (i dont know of a more permanate solution but thats what i did)
3. ur computer should be good now (for 5 weeks at least), try to reset to make sure it works

hopefully this worked but if it didnt here are a few more things i did that might help (this was a very long process so im not sure what worked and what didnt)

1. there are 2 options when you get to the bios boot screen try selecting the other option (reset bios something something) i booted up the computer using both so im not sure the difference
2. install 1.9.0 from here and run that application after you have booted the computer
3. or put 1.9.0 on a usb drive and put it in the back of your computer (during the whole process there was a usb drive with 1.9.0 on it but im not sure if it did anything)

I think that is all the information i have but feel free to ask me anything!

Here's a link to either AO3 or Fanfictiondotnet if you wanted to read it over there.
Chapter 18
The ornate trimmings that lined the roof of the Iris dorms came into view as the two Battleships slowly made their way up the long path from the docks.
Long shadows stretched from the old worn out street lamps merging quickly with the surrounding darkness before disappearing completely as the lights flickered to life.
Lost in a daze, a ponytail danced in Massachusetts's eyes. Its ash-blonde sheen dimly glowed, glinting off the light of the old street lamps.
Somewhere in her heart she had hoped this slope would continue on forever, that the warmth around her hand would never disappear, but stopping in front of the marbled steps of the Iris dormitory, that warmth finally retreated.
"Why're you still following me around?" Jean spoke, looking down at Massachusetts from the corner of her eye as she made her way up the steps.
The Eagle Union Battleship hadn't moved from where they parted, staring down at the ground by her feet. Part of her grew anxious, waiting with false hope that she would be invited in.
"I-!" Her voice came out louder than she had intended.
"You've had a long voyage…" Jean interrupted, her words strangely soft, "go get some rest."
"...and besides…" the former Flagship continued, scratching at the back of her head, "I've caused enough trouble for my roommate already…"
"Okay then…" Massachusetts giggled, "goodnight!"
"Hmph!" Jean turned away with a huff, "good-", she went to say back, but peaking back around, the silver haired Battleship had already run off.
"-night… I swear," Jean disparaged,scratching at the back of her head, but unbeknownst to herself, the little smile on her face betrayed any sort of foul mood.
Stepping back into her shared room, Jean looked around for any sign of her Cruiser friend. The darkness that greeted her wasn't unusual as Le Malin was usually lying about asleep most of the time anyway, either on the couch or in her room, but a quick glance only revealed an empty sofa. Peeking her head into her companion's room she found it empty, just as it was earlier today.
"I'm back…" the door to the suite swung open.
The little Cruiser hobbled into the room looking more listless than normal. Richelieu did mention she was out doing something important, but whatever it was, it looked like it took a lot out of her.
"Le Malin! Where have you-" Jean quickly held her tongue as a look of fear crossed her companion's face, "n-nevermind… forget it."
"O-okay…" Le Malin released the breath she was holding, fully expecting a dressing down of some sort. She had been hiding out all day so a level of guilt did hang over her, but it was Lady Richelieu that suggested it to begin with. Plopping herself onto the sofa, Le Malin melted into its cushion as the fatigue of consuming a few pounds of brownies slowly washed away.
"Uwaahhh~" a sudden kneading at her shoulders elicited a sudden moan. These hands felt so good~, "yeah… r-right there~"
The Cruiser's relaxation was cut short as she stretched her neck upward, her eyes meeting those of her former Flagship's staring down at her from behind the couch.
"W-wha?!"
"Relax!", Jean commanded feeling the Cruiser's shoulders tense.
'Relax!? How can I relax?!', La Malin screamed in her head, 'why is she acting like this?! First she was super pissed, now she's being super nice! What's going on?!"
Her heart and her body were in conflict, on one hand Jean's hands were absolute magic, never has a massage ever felt this good. But on the other, this was still incredibly weird. For as long as she's served under her former leader, this level of skinship was unheard of.
"What?" Jean scoffed, still feeling a level of resistance in the little Cruiser's shoulders, "you don't appreciate this?"
"N-no!" Le Malin let out quickly, "I- I mean I do! Its- It's just that this is…kinda…" the Cruiser scrambled to come up with a word, "new… for you."
The little Cruiser chuckled nervously as a silence filled the room. The kneading at her shoulders became heavier. Jean's once delicate touch now much rougher.
"Ow ow ow!" Le Malin cried, "sorry sorry!"
It was only for a brief moment, but she could've sworn she saw a smile on her former leader's face as she squirmed underneath the Battleship's strong hands.
<><><>o7<><><>
"You don't have to come with me," Brooklyn said beside herself, continuing her pace down the hall.
"I-I know, but…" Val gulped down her anxiety, "It's your fault you know!"
"Mine!?"
"You just had to blurt out I was your advisor!" Val said in a harsh whisper, "now I have to keep up appearances with your sisters."
"W-well…" Brooklyn turned away with a look of guilt, "look, it's only for a few days, once my other sisters get here I'll tell them straight up, that…"
"That-" Val parroted after Brooklyn's pause.
"That, we are…"
"Uh-huh~"
"Thatwereengaged," Brooklyn rushed in a hushed voice looking around to make sure no one heard her.
"I still don't get why we have to be so hush-hush about it," Val said with a frown, "are you embarrassed about me or something?"
"W-what?! No!" Brooklyn denied vehemently.
With her head down, the blonde Cruiser says back in a quiet tone, "I just don't want my sisters finding out through hearsay."
"Fine~" Val let out an exasperated sigh before changing the subject to their task at hand, "so anyway… What should I be doing right now? How can I be more… advisor…y?"
"Don't talk like that for one," Brooklyn listed off, "y'know what? Don't even talk, just stand there and nod."
"Am I that unconvincing?" Val says, straightening up her clothes in vain attempt to look presentable.
"On second thought," Brooklyn pinched at the bridge of her nose, "I shouldn't have brought you here, these two are…"
"Huh?"
"Remember what Biloxi said back in Panama?" Brooklyn tries to jog Val's memory, "you have to be cautious around these two, they can be a bit… touchy"
The door to the main office swung open in front of them suddenly.
"Ah! Frau Brooklyn!"
Val stood in shock with her jaw hanging open, unable to turn her eyes away from the bombshell of a woman standing by the office threshold. The smile the woman wore was almost reminiscent of St. Louis' but there was something more behind it, Val thought, like some kind of unquenchable hunger.
"Prinz Eugen," swiftly recovering from her initial shock, Brooklyn greeted back with a curt nod.
"It has been far too long," the Iron Blood Heavy Cruiser stepped past Brooklyn's extended hand before wrapping her arms around the Light Cruiser suddenly.
Val blushed as the silver haired beauty, pressed up against her fiance, her hands roaming a but too close to her posterior.
Before Val could voice some sort of protest, Brooklyn had already pushed Eugen off, keeping the Heavy Cruiser at bay with a firm hand in her face.
"Always playing so hard to get~" Eugen pouted, muffled by Brooklyn's palm.
"And your skinship is as irrepressible as ever…"
Eugen let out an accepting chuckle, finally relenting her attempts at a hug.
"Brooklyn!" Another voice from inside the office greeted, "it's always a pleasure to have you!"
"Wales," Brooklyn dipped her head once again.
"You truly are a sight for sore eyes," Wales takes the Cruiser's hand into her own, before placing her lips upon it. The glint on Brooklyn's finger not entirely lost on the Battleship.
ahem Val audibly cleared her throat.
"Oh dear~,this one appears displeased with us," Eugen held her cheek with a playful smirk, "so~ who is this tasty little morsel?"
"Valentina," Val answered with a stern voice, but even she herself couldn't tell what kind of face she was making as Eugen politely shook her hand, "Valentina Hermosa."
"Ah! So you are miss Val-" Wales went to take her hand as well but Brooklyn quickly brought her lips close to the Battleship's ear.
"If you lay a single inappropriate finger on her," Brooklyn whispers, "I'll be sure to let Hood know the goings on in this office of yours…"
A shiver shot up the royal's spine heeding the Cruiser's words. Everything finally clicked into place as she shakily took Val's hand into her own, feeling the same cold metal band around the girl's finger.
"I-it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." An abnormally stiff Wales greeted, hoping that was enough to appease the Eagle Union Diplomat.
<><><>o7<><><>
Blocking out the sun with her palm, Massachusetts continued to look up. Not at the sky above but at her hand itself. She missed the warmth that had gripped it so tightly last night.
Closing her eyes, she could still see the slender shoulders of the Vichy privateer walking out ahead. To think such a small frame held such a vast amount of power and ferocity. With her thoughts turning back to their brief but intense fight back during war, Massachusetts couldn't help but shudder at the memory of Jean's blood soaked visage, her wavering posture as she struggled to even stand, but even being on the verge of sinking, the almost savage smile that she wore stuck out most to her.
"Oof!" A familiar voice let out as it bounced backwards on the floor.
Lost in her mind, Massachusetts barely felt the impact at her chest, but looking down she found Helena rubbing at her butt after her fall.
"S-sorry!" the girl cried, "I-I wasn't looking where I was going!"
"No. It's my fault too," the Battleship helped the Cruiser off the floor.
"Thanks," the youngest Brooklyn blushed with embarrassment as she dusted herself off, "I was trying to get a list together in my head…"
"A list?"
"Yeah," Helena nodded, "I was headed to Akashi's to pick up some ingredients for Brooklyn's party."
"I can help you out if you need a hand." Massachusetts offered, seeing as how she had nothing better to do today. The Battleship couldn't help but smile to herself as she watched Helena rock her head side to side, contemplating if she should accept her offer or not.
"It'd be no big deal really," Massachusetts reassured.
"It is gonna be a lot of stuff…" Helena mulled to herself, "sure! If you don't mind."
It had been a long while since Massachusetts had been alone with the youngest Brooklyn but watching her from behind as she led the way, there was an air of confidence that wasn't there in the past. Like each step she took was infused with a level of certainty not unlike her eldest sister.
The bell over Akashi's door rang in Massachusetts's ears yet again as she followed the older Cruiser inside. She stood by the entrance watching Helena list off a bunch items at a nodding Akashi. Whatever the girl was planning seemed fairly extravagant just with the sheer amount of things she requisitioned. Massachusetts guessed it made sense, seeing as how this was the first time Helena will be seeing all her sisters in one place after a so long, she couldn't blame her for being a little excited.
"Massachusetts!" Helena called, "did you want anything while we're here?"
"Me?" The Battleship was caught off guard by the offer, "n-no its alright…"
"Aww~" the girl pouted, "I still wanna pay you back since you're helping me out'n all and we haven't seen each other in a while."
"Really I'm good so dont sweat it," Massachusetts smiled back. It wasn't a surprise to see this girl was still so concerned with ever body else and their wellbeing, it was nice to see somethings about her haven't changed.
"As the older one it's only right that I do something for you," Helena puffed out her chest in an attempt to look more authoritative to the much taller Battleship, "I'm going to be baking once I get these ingredients back, so why don't you join me in the mess hall later? I-if you aren't busy."
Helena's home made snacks? How long has it been she's had any? The thought echoed loudly in Massachusetts's head as an eager look crossed her face, "sure!"
After waiting for several minutes for Akashi and her Meowficers to return from the depths of the store, they came back carrying stacks of bags, one on top of the other.
"Sorry for the last minute request!" Helena bowed after seeing the mountain of supplies.
"Its no problem nyah! Anything for one of my best customers!" Akashi reassured.
Attempting to take the stacks of stuff into her arms, Helena starts to teeter along with the goods.
"Woah there," Massachusetts caught the Cruiser by her back, stabilizing her before taking several of the bags into her arms. "I'm here to help, remember."
"He he," Helena chuckled sticking her tongue out like she forgot.
She's still a klutz…
<><><>o7<><><>
"Don't be a stranger now~" Prinz Eugen sang into Brooklyn's ear, her goodbye hug seemed like it wouldn't end until Wales had pulled her off.
"Yes, my door will always be open to you," the royal bowed, nervous to make any sort of physical contact with her two guests, "and since you two are here on holiday, please relax and enjoy all that this base has to offer."
"Of course," Brooklyn smiled back, "I'd like to see where all the budget goes."
With that said Brooklyn and Val disappeared out the office doors leaving just the two prince's inside.
"Even when she's not working she's working," Wales chuckled, allowing herself to breathe now that Brooklyn was gone.
"Something's changed about her," Eugen said next to Wales' ear as she draped her arms over the Battleship's shoulders from behind.
"So you didn't notice it?" Wales brought her own hand up in front of herself, "the ring on their fingers."
"A ring? Oh dear…" The Iron Blood's eyes went wide, "...I fear I have to apologize to little miss Valentina when I get the chance."
"Oh~ So even you're capable of remorse," Wales said with an exaggerated look of shock.
"Hmph," Eugen pushed off the Battleship's back, making her way towards the door, "even I won't be as crass to take something someone has already claimed. Now…" Eugen placed her hand upon the door, staring at it for a bit, "if only someone here wasn't such a coward…"
"C-coward? What do you mean by that?!" Wales shot up from her seat, but her secretary had already left the room.
<><><>o7<><><>
Brooklyn craned her neck upwards, staring up at the team of Manjuu setting down the giant wooden crate she had delivered from Panama.
"So that's supposed to be a gift for Queen Elizabeth?" Val asked as the shadow of the crate passed over her.
"That's what Wales said, yeah."
"Any idea what it is?"
"Probably a statue of some sort," Brooklyn shrugged, "knowing that little Queen."
"Extravagant…"
"Quite…" the Light Cruiser disparaged the Royal Navy's callous use of funds.
With a thump, the large crate came to rest at the center of the circular path, kicking up some dust in the process.
"So this is what they had you carry?" Massachusetts said from behind the pair.
The Battleship had dozens of bags hanging of each arm as well as stacked above them, making it hard to see her face.
"That's what I was carrying," Brooklyn said back in surprise, "but what in the world is all that?!"
"Just some supplies!" Helena had poked her head around Massachusetts from behind, startling her older sister a bit.
"She was gonna carry them all herself," Massachusetts tried gesturing to the Cruiser behind her.
"I told you to let me carry some at least!" Helena pouted at the Battleship.
Brooklyn froze up for a second, as a memory of the old Helena overlayed itself into her mind. Whether or not there was an old Helena, Helena is still Helena and it wouldn't change the fact that the girl standing in front of her is her little sister.
But she wasn't expecting to run into her sister so suddenly. Of course she wanted to see her but her nerves weren't quite ready. Brooklyn did mean what she said the other day when she first saw Helena again after four long years, that she looked good. Too good for someone who could barely crack a smile at the time. Watching her banter with Massachusetts now, it's as if she hardly had any trouble at all. Helena has grown so much, and she didn't need the help of her older sister at all…
"One step at a time… remember?" A memory of Val's voice echoed in Brooklyn's mind.
If she wanted to be a part of her sister's life as she once was, it would have to begin right now. Missing this opportunity would be something she could come to regret for the rest of her life.
"H-how about this?" Brooklyn grabbed half of the stack from Massachusetts arms before distributing some to Helena and a few to Val, "we can all help carry some."
Helena pouted even further as she stomped her foot at her older sister. "Brooklyn~" she whined behind her stack, "this is supposed to be for you! So you should let us handle this."
"If that's the case," Brooklyn already started walking off, "then that's all the more reason I should be helping out."
"And besides," Brooklyn yells already a distance away, "I get to spend time with my little sister!"
"Geez~" Helena burrows her face in the bags she was carrying, the tips of her ears glowing red.
Val quietly laughed to herself, knowing Brooklyn was probably too embarrassed to say that to Helena directly.
"Brooklyn! Wait!" Helena shot her head back up.
"Uh uh!" Brooklyn refused from a distance, "I'm helping and that's that!"
"No! You're going the wrong way! Helena shouted again, "we're going to the mess hall!"
Massachusetts and Val broke out in a snicker as Brooklyn stopped in her tracks, laughing all the while as the off duty diplomat swiftly about faced, retracing her steps in a hurried fashion.
<><><>o7<><><>
"So~" Wichita said over the rhythmic clinking of whisks beating against the walls of several bowls, "Cleveland…"
"Hmm-" the Light Cruiser hummed, not looking up from what she was doing, "what's up?"
"Whatcha workin on?" Wichita poked at the blonde's cheek trying to get a reaction out of her, "Helena's got you helpin her again?"
"Helena hasn't got me doing anything," the Light Cruiser said with a huff, "I'm helping out because I want too."
"Okay okay…" Wichita backed off.
"Why are you even here?"
"Everyone's busy doing something and I'm bored."
"Then why don't you put on an apron and help me out?"
"Hahaha!" The Heavy Cruiser's boisterous laughter startled the Manjuu in the kitchen, "y'know me! I prefer eating my food to cooking it!"
"Then just go sit down and watch!" Cleveland said more than a little annoyed.
Wichita held her arms out in front of her to calm the Light Cruiser down as she did what she was told, but sitting around calmly fiddling with cooking utensils could only placate the Heavy Cruiser for so long.
"Pst… Cleveland…" a small smirk formed on Wichita's lips as she just thought of something that was for sure going to get Cleveland to react, "psstt…"
"What?!" The blonde snapped with a harsh whisper, matching the Heavy Cruiser's attempt at trying to be discreet.
Tugging at Cleveland's apron, Wichita's smirk only widened, "say~ why don't we surprise Helena?"
"And do what?"
"And by we, I mean you," the Heavy Cruiser spoke into Cleveland's ear from behind, playing with the hem of her apron, "you could try greeting her in nothing but this apron~ I'm sure that would totally make her day~"
Cleveland's brow furrowed trying to make sense of Wichita's words. Why would she greet her in nothing but an apron? Nothing… but… an apron. Nothing…
"W-w-why would I do that?!" Cleveland's face glowed a bright red finally catching on to Wichita's dirty joke.
"Hahaha! Oh man!" The Heavy Cruiser nearly doubled over in laughter, "the look on your face!"
Cleveland did her best to ignore Wichita's teasing but the bowl of cream she was working at was whisked way past its intended consistency.
"I bet Helena could pull the look off," Wichita wiggled her eyebrows at Cleveland, "she does have that rockin' body~"
No sooner she said that, the sound of a bowl clattering onto the countertop rang throughout the kitchen. Wichita's laughter had transcended past the audible seeing as how Cleveland's entire face lit up all the way to the tips of her ears like a beacon.
"W-w-what are you even saying?!" The Light Cruiser whipped the whisk in her hand at Wichita, flicking batter in her direction.
With an audible splat, the creamy batter dripped down the Heavy Cruiser's face.
"Oh~ you've done it now!" The chocolate covered lids of Wichita's eyes slowly cracked open. Scooping what she could in her hands, the Heavy Cruiser slung it straight back at a still flustered Cleveland.
Before long the Manjuu in the kitchen scrambled out for the sake of their own safety.
<><><>o7<><><>
The mess hall should have stayed the same as Helena left it, quiet and calm. With the busy chatter and commotion that came during lunch still a few hours away. But the panicked Manjuu huddling near the entrance to the kitchen and the loud clattering coming from within betrayed any sense of tranquility.
"What's going on?" Val had asked Helena who had been beside her the whole time, but when she turned her head, a gust of wind had blown in her eyes and the Light Cruiser was gone.
Val's eyes darted around, spotting Helena already by the kitchen's entrance. There was a good seven ~ eight meters from where they first entered and she couldn't recall Helena even moving in the first place.
"Ya can't hit me throwing like that!" A familiar voice can be heard yelling inside.
"Wichita…" Brooklyn shook her head, watching helplessly as Helena slammed the kitchen doors wide open.
The two sole occupants inside turned towards the door in shock. The heavy overwhelming pressure radiating from the kitchen's entrance freezing them in place.
"Y-yo~ H-Helena!" The hand full of chocolate batter had dripped off Wichita's fingers. The audible splat it made filled the silence that fell over the mess hall.
"I-I was just h-helpin out… y'know…" The color from Wichita's face had drained, stuttering her words as she forgot how to breathe.
"T-take it easy n-now…" the redhead tried to back away as Helena slowly approached, but her feet wouldn't budge.
"I-I'll help you guys clean up!" The Heavy Cruiser's voice sounded almost desperate as Helena closed the distance.
"W-wait! T-think about this!"
That was the last everyone heard from Wichita's mouth as a loud thud echoed from the kitchen.
Brooklyn and Massachusetts winced as Helena emerged back out, dragging an unconscious Wichita by her collar out of the kitchen.
"Looks like I have a little cleaning to do before we start," Helena sighed, dragging Wichita to a nearby wall, letting the Heavy Cruiser's body slump to the ground after letting go.
<><><>o7<><><>
Cleveland counted herself lucky she didn't end up like Wichita. For a second there, she thought, that she too was done for. Closing her eyes bracing for a knockout, all she got was a towel to the face as Helena tried to clean the mess that she found herself coated in.
"Geez~" Helena frowned at the blonde, "it's my fault for leaving you guys alone."
"N-no!" Cleveland let out, "it's my fau-"
"It's fine~" Helena giggled as she wiped a glob of chocolate batter off of the blonde's nose, "Just help me clean up!"
Cleveland's face grew a little red as she watched Helena lick her fingers clean.
"Mhmm~!" Helena beamed, "that's really good!"
"I-I was only following the recipe on the note…"
"Dunkerque really knows her stuff…" Helena rubbed at her chin as she tried to analyze the flavor in her mouth.
"Dunkerque?" Brooklyn asked as she plopped down the supplies on a clean spot on the counter, "I didn't realize she was at the Joint Base."
"No. She's not," Helena shook her head, "Richelieu gave me one of her recipes."
"That's rare…" Brooklyn said to herself, knowing that Battleship wasn't known to just hand out her treasured recipes so easily, "so what's the occasion?"
"It's probably not much of a secret, but…" Helena furrowed her brow deliberating whether or not she should say or not.
"It's fine~ whatever you say won't leave this room," Brooklyn smiled before turning to the other girls in the room for confirmation, "right girls?"
Val and Massachusetts both nod.
"They're for someone's launchday," Helena, still reluctant to give up all the info.
"Intel is power," Brooklyn held up her finger, "so if you've got some to share…"
"But…" saying it would be like betraying Richelieu's trust.
"Jean Bart…" Massachusetts spoke, coming to a sudden realization.
"H-how'd you know?!" Helena panicked.
"I-" the Battleship blushed, "I just happened to remember… just now…"
"Oh ho~" Brooklyn and Val shot a knowing look towards Massachusetts simultaneously.
"She's that girl you were with last night," Val said, "hand in hand…"
"Oh ho~" Brooklyn said louder in surprise, "you work fast."
"I-I was just walking her back to the dorms…" the normally aloof Battleship fidgeted in place staring a hole in the ground by her feet.
"I didn't know you guys were friends?" Helena asked, "but that's great! You could help us bake some Pain au Chocolat for her if you want."
"Y-yes!" Massachusetts agreed a little more enthusiastically than intended.
"I could help out too if you don't mind," Val raised her hand, "if you don't mind an extra hand in the kitchen."
"Sure! I didn't really want to bother anyone else but we do have a lot to prep for."
"Val is one of the best cooks I know~" Brooklyn vouched.
"Is that right?!" Helena enthused, happy to meet someone else who knows their way around the kitchen.
"Well~" Val chuckled, not used to the attention she was receiving, "I'm definitely better than your sister here."
"That's not saying much…" Massachusetts laughed.
Cleveland couldn't bring herself to join in on the conversation seeing as how she was largely responsible for the mess they currently cleaning. And now that they had to start from scratch that feeling just compounded itself.
"Hey Helena," Brooklyn called, "where do you keep the extra aprons?"
Aprons, Cleveland blushed, cursing Wichita for putting weird thoughts in her head. The younger Cruiser's cheeks darkened even further not even realizing she was staring at Helena as she carefully hung her apron around her neck. Watching intently as she deftly tied the knot behind her back, before pulling her long and beautiful hair out from underneath. The air in Cleveland's lungs grew thin, watching in slow motion as Helena's hair fell back down, like some kind of swan decending upon a lake, framing her body like an exquisite portrait.
Cleveland wasn't blind, she was always aware just how beautiful her best friend is but she always tried to push it into the back of her mind. An act she was almost always successful at, but Wichita's recent words did wonders to destroy that. The Brooklyn sister's uniforms were quite the sight to behold and Helena's was no exception. Cleveland thought she was used to it by now, given how often the two were together, but she was finding it difficult to pull her eyes away from her best friend's figure.
"Clevie?" Helena said a little worried, "what's wrong? Your face is all red."
"N-nothings wrong!" The shorter blonde let out a nervous laugh, "Just Wichita putting weird thoughts in my head!"
"Great… what'd she say this time?" Helena said, all too familiar with the Heavy Cruiser's antics.
Cleveland would sooner scuttle herself than reveal the whole truth of what Wichita said, "It's… just forget I said anything…"
"Alright…" Helena pouted, a little disappointed Cleveland wouldn't tell her.
<><><>o7<><><>
With the clean up done, the girls were finally able to start their prep work. With each of them in their own little station responsible for each step of the process.
Val stared at the little note Helena had shown her committing the directions listed to memory. It was a shame she couldn't tell anyone else about this apparent super secret recipe but she figured it wouldn't be a problem if she used it for herself every now and again.
Helena and Val moved about the kitchen like some kind of synchronized, well oiled machine, stunning the rest of the girls as they struggled to keep up the pace.
Brooklyn was always fascinated with the way her sister and fiance worked, but seeing them both at it together all at once was something else.
Cleveland at the best of times could barely keep up with Helena when she was in the zone, but now, with Val involved, there was absolutely no hope.
Massachusetts was off in her own little corner making almost as much of a mess as Wichita did, whisking her bowl with a little too much force.
The team of Manjuu worked like an assembly line, rolling the dough that would become the pastries base.
"Hey Helena," Val called to her newly found cooking partner, "you think you could give Brook a hand? She looks a little confused as to what to do next."
"Brooklyn?" Helena turned to her sister who had just begun pouring the molten chocolate into each mold.
"W-what? I'm good," Brooklyn answered back, slightly confused as to what Val was doing," I don't ne-"
"-Here like this," Helena cut in, guiding her sister's hand as she helped to evenly pour the chocolate.
Val smiled to herself, knowing her fiance didn't really need help, and if she did she herself could step in lend a hand, but if she could engineer a way to get Brooklyn to spend some quality time with her sister she would take any opportunity she saw.
<><><>o7<><><>
Denver and Colombia could barely contain a snicker as a red faced Wichita sat down on the floor with her arms and legs crossed, still coated in a fine layer of chocolate, doing her best to ignore the two Light Cruisers.
"For a second, we thought you just came from the Iron Blood dorms, pfftt" Colombia broke out into laughter.
"Oh, its only chocolate…" Denver said in relief as she swiped some from the Heavy Cruiser's face.
"What the hell did you think it was?!" Wichita lost her temper as the two ran for cover inside the kitchen.

As much as I've loved my WiiU, I haven't touched it in a while (it's been plugged in and still works. In fact, I just tested it and factory reset it). I'm looking at selling it with everything I have, but I'm not great at pricing. I was wondering if someone could help.
It's 32GB, 5 wii remotes (4 are nintendo character and one black), all official and motion plus, 4 nun chuks, goldeneye wii, resident evil 4 wii, and spiderman shattered dimension wii. All power cords, sensor bar, wii u tablet with charger. Was hoping to sell it together and just be done with it unless you think i should split it up. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

On the planet teeming with eight billion others, I was just another face in the crowd, navigating the tumultuous corridors of high school. Today, we were ticking off the second to last day of the school year, and we had the liberty of a half day, making lunchtime the closing bell.
At fifteen, I was awkwardly wading through the stormy seas of adolescence, complete with the scourge of hormonal surges and the unfortunate sprinkling of acne dotting my face. My world was wonderfully wrapped up in a corner of our high school cafeteria, a realm presided over by Emila. The dazzling subject of my dreams, she held me under her spell with her enchanting beauty. Her hair, a river of glistening platinum, formed a comforting canopy around me, filling my senses with a tantalizing mix of coconut-scented shampoo and the memorable reminder of our gym sessions.
“Alex, come back to Earth!”
My Emila-infused daydream was interrupted by Elijah, my only friend in a table full of acquaintances.
“Did you see the TikTok I sent?”
He asked, a twinkle of devilish delight dancing in his eyes. I fumbled for my phone, eager for a dose of Elijah’s promised comedy, only to find the video was no longer available with unsurprising speed.
“Man, it was comedy gold! Imagine Thanos, asscheeks and all, telling the most offensive Holocaust joke. Legendary stuff”
Elijah chuckled heartily, his laughter echoing around the room, amplified by his own creative narrative.
“Sure sounds like it”
I muttered, my gaze returning to Emila. Her attention was stolen by my older brother, the infamous Mikey, whose joke had her laughing. Mikey, a final year student with a solid record of academic underachievement and a proclivity for marijuana, was a walking, talking, stoner stereotype. What was unsettling was his inexplicable charm with the wide-eyed freshman girls, a twisted hobby that gave him an unusual sense of satisfaction.
As the bell shrilled, signaling the end of the school day, Mikey abruptly stood up, the metal chair beneath him screeching in protest. His next words, a slurred mix of colloquial slangs and contemporary cuss words, were aimed at summoning his freshman fan club, a motley crew of wide-eyed youngsters who clung onto his every word like bees to honey. At the same time, he bumbled out a half-hearted invitation for Emila to join their quest for illicit pleasures. Emila's reaction was a fusion of disgust and amusement, an expression I decided to commit to memory for my poetry. She gracefully declined his offer with a well-rehearsed flip of her hair and a disdainful wave of her hand, then she returned to her conversation, laughter pealing from her like sweet music, completely oblivious to my heart hammering in my chest.
Around me, chaos broke loose as the cafeteria, now released from the clutches of academic torture, transitioned into a war zone of wild whoops, boisterous laughter, and the smell of overly sweet cafeteria food. At the corner of my eye, I caught Elijah's failed attempt to record a TikTok, where he took on the guise of a chicken playing Mozart's fifth symphony on a battered keyboard. The sight of him clucking passionately amidst a cacophony of piano notes sent me into a fit of laughter, providing a much-needed dose of comedic relief after the annoyances of my school day. The last sight that graced my eyes as I exited the cafeteria, was the bewildered expression on the face of our school janitor, as he stood paralyzed amidst the storm, mop in hand. It was a fittingly ludicrous end to another thrillingly mundane school day. With that, I picked up my bag, donned my headphones, and began my solitary trek home.
The burden of unrequited love weighed heavily upon my weary shoulders as I trudged homeward. In dire need of a chill-out moment, I fumbled for my go-to vape, only to be met with the light show of a dead battery. Just another bump in the road that is the teenage rollercoaster ride. As I hit the 7-Eleven on my route, I was looking forward to seeing Antonio, the ageless dude who seemed more interested in cracking jokes than caring about checking IDs. But instead of Antonio's playful smirk, I came face-to-face with a new character, with wrinkles that told stories of time gone by. A wave of disappointment washed over me as I nabbed a bottle of Dr. Pepper and headed for the cash register.
"What happened to Antonio?"
I asked, putting my drink on the counter for the mystery guy.
"Who?"
He muttered, his focus on the soda can he was sliding under the scanner.
"Antonio, the guy who's usually here in the evenings"
I explained, a hint of irritation in my voice.
"Dunno. I only started here last week. I just know the young girl who takes over when my shift ends"
He responded, his words leaving a gap in my world, like a punch in the gut of my usual routine.
Taking a bubbly swig of my Dr. Pepper, I tried to swallow the truth of teenage life. It was like walking into my favorite cozy room, only to find the furniture rearranged haphazardly. The change was unexpected, and unwelcome.
Finally trekking my way home after sitting on a bench listening to music for what Must've been hours. I walked under a sky that seemed to be experimenting with shades of orange and purple, I felt a strange kind of solitude sneaking in. My thoughts kept playing a merry-go-round with Mikey, Emila, and now absent Antonio - the trio that had become the stars of my high school drama.
My front door protested loudly under my foot's frustrated kick, and a slurred
"WHAT THE FUCK!"
Bellowed from the living room. My mother, ensnared in an alcoholic haze, lounged over the couch, her shaking finger accusingly pointed in my direction.
"Did you forget that I get migraines?"
The smell of tequila permeated the air, filling my nostrils as soon as I crossed the threshold. I sighed, hoping for a lifeline.
"Is dad home?"
My mother sank back onto the couch, her voice a whisper
"No."
My father, the only one who occasionally lent an ear when I complained about Mikey, was perpetually chained to his cubicle, another cog in the corporate machine.
I ascended the stairs, each creaking step a harmony to the melancholic rhythm of the dark. The silent house held the weight of my unease, my chest tightening with an indescribable yearning. Tucked away in the solitude of my room, I pulled out my phone, the screen's glow illuminating my apprehensive features. I typed out a tentative message to Emilia, a small confession of the feelings that had long been gnawing at my insides.
"Hey, Emilia, I..."
First message sent. But before I could finish my second text, the dreaded words - 'Message Failed to Send' stared back at me. My heart sank. Was it a sign? Maybe the universe was intervening, telling me it wasn't the right time, or perhaps, it never would be. Disheartened, I slung my phone aside, letting the unsent feelings hover in the digital void. Slipping under the comforting shroud of my blanket, I drifted off into a sleep, with dreams tinted in hues of Emilia and unspoken words.
The next morning started out ordinary until it was splattered with the color of angst when I pleaded with Mikey that morning to stay away from Emila. His response?
"Amelia, the freshman? Didn't know you had a thing for her."
His nonchalance was maddening.
"Emila. As your brother, I'm asking you to back off"
I clarified, hoping it would penetrate his stubborn exterior.
His perplexed expression turned into a nonchalant shrug.
"Damn, been saying her name wrong the few times we spoke, and she never bothered to correct me."
Mikey shrugged and walked away, leaving me feeling dismissed and unheard.
Feeling a mix of frustration and confusion, I left for school and shook off the encounter with my brother and headed to my first-period class. As I stepped into the room, I expected to see my usual teacher, Ms. Thompson, waiting at her desk. However, to my surprise, it was someone else entirely—a teacher I had never seen before. I had really liked Ms. Thompson too so to see she got a substitute on the last day was dissapointing. Yet his resemblance to Ms. Thompson was uncanny, from the way he held himself to the tone of his voice. I knew something was off.
I glanced around the classroom, taking in the unfamiliar arrangement of notes and papers hanging on the walls. The subjects and diagrams were foreign to me, not matching the usual decor that adorned this space. It was as if I had entered an alternate dimension, where everything seemed the same yet completely different.
As the class went on, the new teacher droned on with the same monotony I had grown accustomed to, but it felt hollow, lacking the genuine concern and passion that Ms. Thompson always displayed. The other students seemed oblivious to the change, talking and cutting up as if nothing was amiss. But I couldn't shake the feeling that something wasn't right.
Throughout the rest of class, my mind wandered, retracing the events of the past few days. Antonios unexpected absence, the failed text to Emila, Mikey's nonchalant reaction to my warning about Emila, the strange teacher in place of Ms. Thompson—it all felt like pieces of a puzzle that didn't quite fit together. For the first time, I realized how little attention I had paid to the details of my daily routine. But now, with this subtle shift in my surroundings, I couldn't help but question everything.
As the class finally came to an end, I gathered my things and made my way out.
The unfolding of the remaining classes before lunch did nothing to alleviate the paranoia that was steadily creeping over me. In my second-period class, usually dedicated to cleaning out the science lab, I noticed a set of instruments that we'd never used before. My peers didn't bat an eyelid, but to me, the incongruity was unsettling. Then in English, our final class reading didn't correspond to the assigned book. The text seemed different, as though it had been subtly altered.
Physical education, typically a free play session on the last day, was different too. Coach Peters was blowing a whistle I'd never seen before, its pitch more grating than the usual. And just before lunch, during the end-of-year assembly, the principal's speech, usually so predictable, seemed off. It contained references to events and achievements that didn't match my memories.
As lunchtime arrived, a mix of anticipation and anxiety filled the air. Even with my world falling apart I found time to worry about Mikey's presence around Emila. However, Emila was nowhere to be found. When I mentioned this to the group as I took my seat, my words were met with silence, as if I had become invisible.
Sitting alone at the edge of the table, I sought solace in our group pictures, hoping to catch a glimpse of Emila. I opened Snapchat and scrolled through my camera roll until I found my favorite picture of her. But to my surprise, Emila was inexplicably absent from the image. I blinked in disbelief, rubbed my eyes, and questioned my own perception. How could she have vanished? In the photo, my arm had once embraced her, but now it hung empty at my side.
"Guys, where's Emila?"
I asked, passing my phone to Elijah. He stared at the screen for a long moment, as if emerging from a trance.
"Who?"
He finally responded absentmindedly, his attention quickly diverted by a video shared by another friend.
Taking back my phone, I desperately searched for more pictures, only to find that they had vanished—her Instagram, Snapchat, even her parents' Facebook profiles. Panic gripped me, and I screamed
"WHERE IS EMILA!?"
My voice resonating through the cafeteria, reverberating off the walls. The entire room fell into an eerie silence, and all eyes turned to me, their gazes fixed with a mix of curiosity and concern.
"Her social media is gone. I feel like I'm going insane, and none of you even acknowledge me!"
My voice cracked with desperation as I pleaded for answers.
Mikey and Elijah rose from their seats, their expressions filled with compassion, ready to console me. But I couldn't bear their pity, their feeble attempts to calm my tormented mind. Their words would be meaningless. With a surge of frantic energy, I pushed my chair back and fled the suffocating atmosphere of the cafeteria.
As I stumbled out of the school, my surroundings blurred in a whirlwind of confusion and distress. The world itself seemed to warp and twist, mocking my feeble attempts to comprehend the inexplicable. Thoughts tumbled through my mind, colliding and fragmenting like shattered glass. Where had Emila gone? How could she vanish so completely, leaving no trace behind? Was I losing my grip on reality?
A light drizzle began peppering the surroundings, setting a somber atmosphere. Hours slipped away as I aimlessly wandered, searching for answers. Maybe someone had slipped me acid-laced food, or perhaps I was crazy like my mother. The thought of my brother's affinity for drugs crossed my mind, but I had never dabbled. Nevertheless, I felt compelled to find a sense of respite in my vape once again.
Entering the 7-Eleven, a chilling sensation overcame me as I discovered the same elderly man behind the counter. Without uttering a word, I hopped over the counter, desperate to find any clue.
"Kid, you can't be back there!"
The man exclaimed, attempting to restrain me. Swiftly, I pushed him away, unearthing the work schedule from the wall.
"Where's Antonio?" I stammered.
The old man, seemed to recognize me.
"I asked about that. Antonio doesn't work here"
He said, struggling to regain his footing. Overwhelmed with a sense of paranoia, I bolted out of the gas station, gasping for breath only when I reached the safety of my home.
In the dim light of the early evening, I found myself sprawled on the unkempt grass of the front yard. The recent rain had left the ground sodden, but I barely noticed the wetness seeping into my clothes. As the rain mingled with my silent tears, I heard the familiar rumble of my older brother Mikey's truck pulling into the driveway.
"Hey pussy"
He exclaimed, pushing his rain-soaked hair back from his forehead. His voice carried a light-hearted jest that felt foreign amidst the somber atmosphere. He was always like this, quick to crack a joke even in the gloomiest of moments. It was his way of diffusing tension, I suppose. He reached out, pulling me up and leading me towards the house. Once inside and in his room, an aroma filled my nose – a peculiar mix of stale pizza and mildewy old books – that somehow comforted me in a strange, indescribable way. It was an olfactory reminder of a time before things got so complicated.
Catching my eye, Mikey reached into his drawer and withdrew an intricately designed glass bong. I had seen it before, on one of those rare occasions when Mikey would let me into his private world. Now, he was extending the invitation again. He passed me the bong, a knowing smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.
I hesitated for a moment, my mind flashing back to times when mom would sit us down in front of the TV after school, her kind and comforting presence a strong reassurance of love and security. That was before the alcohol took over, before the comforting light in her eyes had been replaced by a glassy, distant look. The thought of her brought an odd sense of calmness, as if her spirit was there with me, in Mikey, guiding me through this haze.
Taking the bong from Mikey, I let out a nervous chuckle, matching his playful demeanor. As I took a hit, we fell into a comfortable laughter, punctuated only by the deafening theme song of Family Guy playing on the large TV in the corner of his room. The memory of our shared laughter resonated deeply within me, a balm to the churning unrest I had been feeling.
"It seems today that all you see is violence in movies and -"
Suddenly, the television vanished, replaced by a weathered dresser that had been stored in the attic.
Mikey's phone suddenly blared a familiar jingle.
"Ah, man. One sec, bro,"
"-sex on TV." My brother's phone blared at maximum volume.
"Sorry, bro, my friend texted me"
He explained, placing the phone between us.
"Where's the TV?"
I muttered, the words hardly audible. As the high intensified, the room started to spin, the familiar comfort of Mickey's presence fading away. I reached out in a futile attempt to steady myself but fell onto the cold, hardwood floor. The room seemed to swirl around me, familiar objects distorting into unrecognizable shapes and colors.
Pulling myself up, I lurched out of the room, navigating the labyrinthine house as fragments of memories flooded my mind. It felt like I was walking through a dream – a vivid, disorienting journey through time and space. Stepping outside, I saw the lawn had morphed into a neatly trimmed landscape, A new 'For Sale' sign swaying gently in the evening breeze, dissolved away as quickly as I noticed it.
The sounds of laughter drew my attention to the house. The windows were aglow with warm, inviting light, revealing an unfamiliar family engrossed in their game night. Their joy was a stark contrast to my growing desolation.
As days rolled on, my world reshaped, transforming from the familiar to an enigmatic panorama. Faces blurred, places mutated, my identity itself seemed to wane, fading into oblivion.
Caught in this mutating reality, I felt a quiet observer, my existence phasing out into the ether. Friends, family, Emila - all were melting away into the canvas of my evaporating memory.
Then, amidst the dissolving haze, clarity dawned, presenting a profound revelation. Our Earth was yearning for equilibrium, burdened with the weight of 8 billion souls, a possibly infinite and cruel humanity, now quickly seeking balance before it was too late.
We had pushed our home to her brink. Now, a beautiful transformation is underway. Smiling strangers began to color my world, their joy reflecting the Earth's newfound harmony. Merchandise, once an extravagant luxury, now seemed accessible to all. The battlefield in Ukraine had given way to peace, a testament to the world healing its wounds.
As I type this out in a clean and rather nicely lit alleyway. I find myself blending into the cosmic expanse, my hands and arms fading away before returning as if the universe wants me to finish. As I turn from a solid entity into an echo of existence. The world moves on, its stride unperturbed by my fading presence. Yet, in my diminishing, I realize my contribution to Earth's balance.
Earth is in the midst of achieving perfection. Many of you won't make it and will be gutted like myself, some of you will stay. The rest of you, I catch glimpses of as I fade, timeliness unaffected and left to die without God.
My final thoughts are not of sorrow, but of serene acceptance and profound understanding. As I phase into the ether, I became a cosmic whisper, a gentle reminder of the necessity for balance and respect for our fragile planet.

So I’m just a 19 year old dude, not a whole lot of experience working or doing anything, working on getting my license (low key suck at driving tho) and I don’t have a lot of passions or drive, I don’t care for a family in the future and I kinda don’t got a reason for money other than my own survival. So I don’t think I need to aim for the stars but my father and I both agree that there’s no reason to low ball myself, I just kinda don’t know what to do. I’m not offended at going to college or something but I ain’t too keen on school but idk how college is, I’m not very physically powerful and not super smart- pretty average for both. Any advice or ideas? I was thinking something calm like a desk job but I don’t know many of those that pay well.
Thank you in advance :)

I've been really missing my team and customers and (select few) peers.
it hurts me to know that this company preaches nurturing the human spirit, but stores have managers who don't give a single damn about their people and let their position of power go to their heads.
it hurts knowing that managers think the solution to their problems are corrective actions without any thought as to what might be going on in people's personal lives.
it hurts to know my efforts and capabilities were not valued or recognized, and that I was seperated for being compassionate.
it hurts to know that I was seperated for 'stealing time' (15-30 total minutes) when I worked hours and hours off the clock.
it hurts to know that partners viewed me as a their favorite manager and i had a bright future with the company but my career progression got cut short.

Let's begin with the standard datamining reminders:

1. All datamined info of unreleased content counts as spoilers, so please do not discuss anything from this thread or any other datamining thread outside of clearly marked datamining threads. If it is necessary to bring something up outside of one of those threads, make to clearly mark the spoilers (and preferably indicate that it is a datamined spoiler). Not everyone is interested in datamined spoilers, and you should respect that.
2. All datamined content is unfinished (otherwise I'd probably be putting it in a guide), as such there is no guarantee that any content discussed in these threads will release in its current form or that it will even release at all. There is still content that I have datamined from 1.1, which may have been in the launch build, that is not available to players (e.g., Spirit Totem series and Sosiel Romance Follow Up Card Game), and anything I find now could potentially follow the same route.

Well this probably isn't as much content as last patch, but there are some eagerly awaited build options in here. And on that topic, I suddenly feel the urge to remind people I am just the messenger. No particular reason why, just felt like saying it. :P

DLC5

So I think I found the exchange for meeting Penta. Not going to spoil too much, but one of the translated lines made me laugh too much to not share: "My main specialization is music. The Tech League considered this area of work unproductive, and I was reprogrammed for research work in extreme conditions, as well as unquestioning obedience and respectful treatment. One of these three programs was installed correctly." Also I know this line will break a few hearts despite no one having seen her yet and her almost certainly being constrained to DLC5's stand alone campaign: "I offer mutually beneficial cooperation. Optional friendship. Romantic relationships - excluded."
More generally, I think I have the general flow for the DLC now. It looks like the goal is going to be to track down the seven shards of Sithhud so that you can kill/serve/usurp/w/e him. Honestly, the dialogue makes me think of Throne of Bhaal because it seems we'll be using portals to move in and out of our extraplanar home base to track down the bhaalsp... I mean missing shards and those who hold them.
I see some entries related to the Plane of Shadow, so I guess that we'll be making a trip there? No details at the moment beyond it exists.
And since it was a crowd pleaser last time, I'll mention that there are further mentions of goblins.

Archetypes

Hag Riven
Some new abilities from the entry last time

• Evil Eye - At 1st level, you can curse an opponent with a wicked glance. As a standard action, you can afflict one target within 30 feet that you can see, causing it to take a –2 penalty to AC and on attack rolls for 1 round per class level. A Will save reduces this to just 1 round (DC = 10 + half your bloodrager level + your Charisma modifier). You can use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Charisma modifier. At 8th level the penalty increases to –4.
• Hag Fortitude - At 4th level, you become immune to mundane and magical diseases. At 8th level, you also become immune to poison.
• Hag Transformation - At 12th level, your form grows more twisted and powerful while bloodraging, but clumsy, blind aggression clouds your mind. You assume the form of annis hag, gaining a +2 racial bonus on Intimidate checks. Your morale bonus to Strength increases by 2, and you gain scent ability, but you take a –2 penalty to both Dexterity and Wisdom for the duration of your bloodrage.
  • At 16th level, you apply your morale bonus on Will saving throws while bloodraging to Fortitude and Reflex saving throws.
• Covenguard - At 16th level, you can cast bestow curse three times per day as a spell-like ability.
• Curse Conduit - At 20th level, you gain immunity to negative energy damage and all spells with the curse descriptor. Whenever you confirm a critical hit with a melee weapon, you can immediately target your opponent with a bestow curse spell-like ability with random curse effect.

Dark Sister
Dark Sisters are feared for their ability to bend minds and sow discord. Some say these witches can watch their enemies from afar and can even corrupt the minds of the most innocent or loyal, including newborn babes and cherished pets. Dark Sister can't have animal companion

• Dark Pact - Instead of choosing patron, dark sister forms a pact with specific Night Hag, this hag grants witch a familliar and bonus spells as patron feature does.
• Curdle Thoughts - At 2nd level, a Dark Sister can insert negative emotions into the mind of a single target.
  • She gains a +2 bonus on Persuasion checks due it's perfect ability to sow suspicion, hatred, or other forms of animosity. In addition, a Dark Sister increase the save DC of any spell with the fear descriptor she casts by 2.
  • This ability replaces the witch's 2nd-level hex.
• Sunder Hope - At 8th level, a Dark Sister can violently dismiss her curses to counter magical boons and impose her own capricious whims. Once per day, after the Dark Sister has successfully affected a creature within 30 feet with a mind-affecting spell, spell-like ability, or hex, she also affect creature with greater dispel magic. At 14th and 20th levels, a Dark Sister can use this ability an additional time per day.
• Hag Crony - At 12th level, a Dark Sister gains a blessing in the form of an alliance with a night hag special companion. This comanion progresses as dark sister gain more powers.
  • At 12-th level of Dark Sister, her Night Hag companion level is 12th and she gain following spells she can cast at will: Deep Slumber, Invisibility, Ray of Enfeeblement, Magic Missile
  • At 13-th level of Dark Sister, her Night Hag companion level is 13th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Blindness, Scare
  • At 14-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 14th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Hideous Laughter, Haste
  • At 15-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 16th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Dispel Magic, Vampiric Touch
  • At 16-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 18th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Slow, Contagion
  • At 17-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 19th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Crushing Despair, Fear
  • At 18-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 20th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Phantasmal Killer, Unholy Blight
  • At 19-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 21th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Enervation, Confusion
  • At 20-th level of Dark Sister her Night Hag companion level is 23th and she Night Hag gain following spells she can cast at will: Baleful Polymorph, Cone of Cold

Items

These are all probably DLC things.

• (draft) Belt of Lesser Shadowform - (draft) This belt grants its wearer a +2 enhancement bonus to Dexterity. Bonuses of the same type usually don't stack.
  • Furthermore, as a swift action, its wearer can become incorporeal. While incorporeal, he takes no damage from non-magic weapons, and takes only half damage from any source which deals neither ghost, holy, divine, or force damage. The wearer can remain incorporeal for up to 5 rounds per day. The rounds need not be consecutive.
• (draft) Dark Life Ring - (draft) A dark life ring grants its wearer a +2 profane bonus on Will saving throws against channeled negative energy and inflict spells (any spell with "inflict" in its name). In addition, ring grants the wearer resistance to negative energy 5.
• (draft) Sunless Shield - (draft) Whenever the wearer takes fire damage, the shield accumulates one energy charge. When the fifth charge accumulates, the shield casts a scorching ray, firing one ray at the creature that is the source of fire damage, as a level 10 caster.
• [Draft] Pearl of Power (variants exist for all spell levels) - [Draft] This seemingly normal pearl of average size and luster is a potent aid to all spellcasters who prepare spells (clerics, druids, rangers, paladins, and wizards). Once per day on command, a pearl of power enables the possessor to recall any one spell that she had prepared and then cast that day. The spell is then prepared again, just as if it had not been cast. The spell must be of a particular level, depending on the pearl.
• Quiver of Druchite Ammunition - The owner of this quiver can use it to shoot 50 units of druchite ammunition. Druchite ammunition grant their owner a 50% chance that the enemy will not notice the attack, as if the attacker were invisible.
• (draft) Aszite - (draft) The navy-blue ore known as aszite absorbs any light around itself.The wearer of aszite-veined armor gains a +5 circumstance bonus on Stealth checks. If the wearer uses a Druсhite weapon, the usual chance of an unnoticed attack with it, as if the attacker were invisible, increases to 20%.
• (draft) Absolute Darkness - (draft) Whenever the wearer of this +2 aszite full plate receives a critical hit, he gain partial concealment for 1 round.
• (draft) Dazzled Dagger - (draft) When this +2 bleed druchite dagger lands a hit on an enemy, the target becomes dazzled for 1 round.
• (draft) Midnight Flail - (draft) This +3 vicious druchite flail deals additional 1d6 unholy damage against enemies whose current number of HP is lower than the wielder's
• (draft) Ring of Shadow Stealing - (draft) Whenever the wearer of this ring kill an enemy, there is a 10% chance that it steal enemy`s shadow and use it to summon a CR9 Ravenous Greater Shadow to fight alongside the wearer for 5 rounds. When the shadow is stolen, this ability cannot be triggered for one minute.
• (draft) Dispelling Darkness - (draft) Each round, while the Dispelling Darkness is on, the stage of Shadow Madness decreases for you and your allies at 25 feet. It is impossible to use the Dispelling Darkness in areas of "full darkness".
  • Turning on the Dispelling Darkness can attract the attention of shadow demons.
• (draft) Dirgesinger's Choir - (draft) When the bard or skald using Dirgesinger's Choir and perform the Dirge of Doom, this performance has an additional effect. To be affected, an enemy must be able to hear the performance and be within 30 feet. Every round each enemy within range receives a Will save (DC 10 + 1/2 the carrier's level + the carrier's spellcasting ability modifier) to negate the effect. If the save succeeds, the creature is immune to this ability for 24 hours. If the save fails, the living target takes 1d6 points of negative damage, and the undead target is staggered for 1 round.
• (draft) Druchite - (draft) The black-and-violet ore known as druchite is so dark that creatures can have extreme difficulty perceiving it. Druchite-veined melee weapons grant their wielder a 10% chance that the enemy will not notice the attack, as if the attacker were invisible.
• (draft) Tangible Shadow - (draft) This +1 quarterstaff grants the wielder an ability to cast shadow evocation spell 3 times per day as 9th level wizard.\nIn addition, the staff increase the shadowy substance used to form shadow conjuration and shadow evocation spells, making it are 10% more real.
• Crushing Burden - Whenever the wielder of this +5 vicious gnome hooked hammer lands 3 consecutive hits on the same enemy, the enemy must pass a Fortitude saving throw DC 28) or become fatigued. Whenever the wielder lands 3 consecutive hits on a fatigued enemy, that enemy must pass a Fortitude saving throw (DC 31) or become exhausted.

Spells/Abilities

• Meteor Swarm - Meteor swarm is a very powerful and spectacular spell that is similar to fireball in many aspects. When you cast it, you call for a rain of meteors withing the area, wich deals 8d6 points of blungeoning damage and 24d6 fire damage to every creature within the area.A successful Reflex save halves this . Meteor swarm ignores spell resistance.
• Repulsion - An invisible, mobile field 40 feet radius surrounds you and prevents creatures from movement. Any creature within or entering the field must attempt a save. If it fails, it becomes unable to move for the duration of the spell or untill it leaves the area. Repelled creatures' actions are not otherwise restricted. They can fight other creatures and can cast spells and attack you with ranged weapons. If you move closer to an affected creature, nothing happens. The creature is not forced back. The creature is free to make melee attacks against you if you come within reach.
• Symbol of Vulnerability - This rune is activated by any creatures. Once triggered, a symbol of vulnerability remains active for 10 minutes per caster level, it saps the defenses of all creatures within 30 feet. Affected creatures receive a –4 penalty to spell resistance and a –4 penalty on saving throws, and damage reduction (if any) are reduced by 10 each (to a minimum of 0) and any energy resistances are supressed. Once triggered, the symbol remains active for 10 minutes per level. The effects last as long as the creature is within area of effect, and for 1 round per caster level afterward.
• Symbol of Weakness - This rune is activated by any creatures. Once triggered, a symbol of vulnerability remains active for 10 minutes per caster level, every creature within 30 feet of a symbol of weakness suffers crippling weakness that deals 3d6 points of Strength damage. A creature can only be affected by this symbol once.

Build Options

I think most of these are mythic things, but not all of them are clearly marked as such so some could be normal build options. And we finally get mythic armor and poison support for all those asking for them!

• Armor Focus (Mythic)
  • Light
    • Assault - Your designed your light armor to ideally fit for your combat style. When you wearing light armor and finessable melee weapons, you gain attack bonus equal to your weared armor bonus to attack with finessable melee weapons.
    • Avoidance - When you wear light armor your max dex bonus increases to your myhic rank, also you gain 5% per mythic rank chance to dodge any attack, made against you
    • Endurance - "When you wear light armor you gain spell resistance equial to it's armor bonus, this spell resistance stacks with existing spell resistance
  • Medium
    • Assault - You master armor combat and midify your armor with spikes , when you successfully attack in melee combat while wearing medium armor you also deal additional 1d6+ armor bonus to AC piercing damage
    • Avoidance - When you wear medium armor your max dex bonus to AC is equial to your constitution modifier if it's hier
    • Endurance - When you wear medium armor you gain half of your weared armor AC bonus to AC and no longer reduce your speed
  • Heavy
    • Assault - You master armor combat and midify your armor with sharp blades , when you successfully attack in melee combat while wearing heavy armor you also deal additional 1d6+ armor bonus to AC slashing damage
    • Avoidance - When you wear heavy armor you loose your dexterity bonus to AC, making your character flat-footed in combat, but add half of your strength bonus to AC.
    • Endurance - When you wear heavy armor you gain special armor damage reduction wich stacks with existing damage reductions and equial to half armor AC + half Mythic rank (Both values are rounded UP)
• Dodge (Mythic) altered to - The bonus to AC from Dodge increases by 1. You gain +10 dodge bonus to AC against first attack every round.
• Caster Onslaught - After you cast a spell you get bonus equal to half you mythic rank to attack and damage roll on attack with a melee weapon until end of this round.
• Corrupter - Your poisons and diseases ignore immunities
• Explosive Expert - You master the art of explosion. When you using bombs you have 50% chance to immideatly restore reagents used to create this bomb. Also your bombs deal additional dice of damage.
• Mythic Inspire - Your music became more powerful and better inspire allies.
  • Benefit: Bonus of inspired abilities increases by half your mythic rank.
  • Bonus applied to Inspire Courage, Inspire Competence, Archaeologist's Luck, Inspire Ferosity, Inspire Tranquility, Inspired Rage, Insightful Contemplation
• Perfect Cavalry - When mounted and moving you and mount have immunity to attack of opportunity.
• School Tolerance - You no longer suffer penalty from opposite magic schools.

Assassin

So Assassin got some stuff. Not sure if any of it fixes the class's problems, but hey improvements! (I think)

• [Draft] Alter Ego - [Draft] Assassin can create copies of himself to distract the enemy. As long as at least one copy is present on the battlefield, all creatures attacked by the assassin take damage from the sneak attack. Otherwise, this ability works like a mirror image. An assassin can create one copy and one at a time for every three levels of assassin, counting from the 3rd, up to a maximum of 3 at 9th level, 1+Intelligence modifier per day.
• [Draft] Cold Minded - [Draft] Assasin is a soulless mechanism designed to kill without feelings or emotions. You gain a +2 bonus on saving throws against mind-affecting, compulsion, fear and emotion effects. At 5th level and 8th level, this bonus increases by 1 to +4.
• (Poison Use improvement) - If the target is someone with the Mark of Death, she must make two saving throws when poisoning and choose the worst result" and "At 8th level, the duration of the poisons increases by 1 round.
  • At 9th level, the number of successful saving throws needed to remove the poison increases to 3.
  • At 10th level, an assassin's poison target takes poison damage on a success Fortitude save.
• [Draft] Master Assassin - [Draft] You've mastered the art of assassination to the point where you can deliver the killing blow before your target can react. Your \"Assassinate Target\" ability now use as a standard action. You also add sneak attack damage to all attacks against your \"Mark of Death\" target, even if you don't have an advantage in numbers or they aren't flat-footed.
• [Draft] Assassinate Target - [Draft] As a full-round action, you can special hit the target with your Mark of Death. You aim target that doesn't know about the assassin, at the weakest point , making a successful attack very difficult (the assassin suffers a -2 penalty to this attack). If it hits, the creature immediately makes a Fortitude saving throw with a DC 10 + assassin level + Int modifier. On a failed save, the target dies immediately. If the target succeeds, the assassin's attack damage is treated as a critical hit (the assassin still has to confirm the critical hit). The target also realizes that he was on the verge of death and gains the Shaken condition for 1d4 rounds. In either case, the target becomes immune to "Assassinate target" for 1 day.
• [Draft] Public Execution - Your art of killing shocks those around you, making them feel the fear of imminent death. Whenever an assassin reduces a target to 0 HP or kills it with a ability "Assassinate Target" , she immediately make a Persuasion (intimidate) check to demoralize all foes within 30 feet who can see that kill. If the victim was Mark Of Death, the assassin gains a +2 bonus to this action.

Silly Stuff

• (draft) Gollum
• (draft) Gollum`s Brother
• "...And they are tormenting me because I am sad because of the death of the magician."

Pics here: https://imgur.com/a/6WvvjMq
I hired an appliance installation company to set up this range hood. So 2 things happened:
1) On the right side of the range hood, it’s not as flush as the left side. The installers said they had difficulty getting it flush as they struggled connecting it to the vent. They had to bend the vent a bit to get it to fit. Said this was the best they could do and told me to fill it in with silicone caulk. Notice that in the other picture showing the left side, it’s much more flush.
2) This is an old house (1950s) and I learned that there wasn’t an outlet or socket where the old range hood was. However, the installers said they could just cut off the range hood’s power plug and directly tie the wires to the existing wiring. I wanted to tell them to wait if I can buy a socket as I really didn’t want to cut it off, especially considering it was brand new, but they basically left me no choice. I could either cancelled and paid them the installation fee and rescheduled or just proceeded. I told them to proceed, but I felt pretty bad about it. In the end, the range hood works. I just hope it’s not a fire hazard.
Now thinking about everything, am I being nit picky and a PITA customer or should I just accept it and move on?

Touch ID on Magic Keyboard 2 A2449 doesn’t work after MacBook sleeps overnight. Just wondering if anyone else has had this problem.
Some context:

• Paired to MacBook Air M1 2020 in clamshell connected to external monitor
  
• Works fine if I manually put Mac to sleep or if the screen locks and goes to sleep, but not after a long time (overnight in particular)
  
• After sleeping overnight, Touch ID only works if keyboard is powered off then back on
  
• Touch ID works completely fine otherwise, no other problems
  
• Updated to macOS Ventura 13.4
  
• Turned Bluetooth off and on, no fix
  
• Unpaired and paired keyboard multiple times, no fix
  

Had a brake job done a few months ago at an independent shop with aftermarke4 parts. Cost 2400 with all power stop parts (rotors and pads) constant squealing so they replaced the pad brackets that they said were not working properly. Didnt solve the issue so they replaced everything with centric parts. Still squealing but mostly from the rear so they put audi pads on with new rotors again. They are at a loss at this point and offered to do it again with audi parts if i pay for the difference in parts cost over the ones i bought. Any other ideas before i drop another 1000 into this POS? (2016 2.0t)

I really am trying to improve and take responsibility for myself and my life circumstances. But there are so many factors that are stacked against me with how my life is currently arranged. There are so many things I don't have an ability to affect, and I strangely go back and forth between what I think I am powerless over and I don't understand how my mind flip flops.
My job is exhausting and I receive negative messages that affect my subconscious beliefs about who I am and what I'm capable of. I'm not a sociopath unfortunately, I deeply care about other people's thoughts and feelings and so often internalizing everybody's messages around me. I'm remembering all the things people told me that's wrong with me and feeling like I don't know what is being abused and put under a microscope, and what things I should pay attention to. Even though maybe the way the message was delivered was unacceptable.
I Don't believe that anybody intends to harm me, but people still end up having that effect, and I just silence myself because I don't have the leverage or emotional fortitude to deal with people's potential violent communication. This takes away my courage to try new things.
I'm bored all day at my job and so my bored subconscious keeps tossing up the most horrific memories..I assume so that I can reverse engineer what traumatic events caused me to to fall this low, and what of my personal flaws keep me stuck in this job. But it's not working and I don't want to be angry with myself, but I am very frustrated that my brain can't figure out a way to help myself myself suffer less, be safe, and being powered to better my living circumstances and the habits that affect my sense of personal power and leverage.
On my days off from work I am exhausted and want to just do the bare minimum of chores and studying and other than that sleep or watch TV. I got extremely frustrated listening to positive self-improvement type stuff when I'm in my horrible job and then realizing I'm just wasting my time in this job and unable to enact anything I'm hearing about. It's more like I'm fantasizing about other people's lives instead of doing things with my own life. And it is terrifying to acknowledge this is what's going on when I am listening to all this self-improvement stuff when I'm at work. ( I deliver Amazon packages full time).
I want to be focused on my goals and positive ideas, but I also don't want to feel frustrated and helpless when I realize I'm just living in fantasyland. How do you strike that balance, and what in the world do you do when you are stuck in a god forsaken job that is not hospitable to all of the self-improvement type things you're trying to do? It's like I'm not improved yet to be eligible for another job, but I'm improved enough to be extremely dissatisfied with the type of life I'm currently able to have. And I just come back to being angry at myself and the world and individual people who I was harmed by and they never cared, and just existence in general. For even being this situation to start with, and feeling helpless and to depressed to take positive actions.
Sorry for this rant but I'm taking a break at work and just crying and overwhelmed with this predicament. If any of this sounds familiar to your own experiences, I really would benefit from your insights about what helped you get out of exhaustion of this mental cycle and circumstantial cycle.