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Here’s options for downloading or watching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts streaming the full movie online for free on 123movies & Reddit including where to watch the Paramount's live-action Transformers franchise movies at home. Is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts 2023 available to stream? Is watching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on Paramount Plus, Netflix, Disney Plus, HBO Max, or Amazon Prime? Yes, we have found an authentic streaming option / service. Watch Transformers 1080p, En-HQ.
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Paramount Pictures! Here are options for downloading or watching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts streaming the full movie online for free on 123movies & Reddit, including where to watch Paramount's latest live-action adaptation movies at home. Is Transformers 7 available to stream? Is watching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on Peacock, Disney Plus, HBO Max, Netflix or Amazon Prime? Yes, we have found an authentic streaming option/service.
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Watch Now🔸>➡Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Full Movie!!
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will be in theaters beginning June 9. If you're wondering how and where you can watch it yourself, take a look at the information below.
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One thing we love about the summer season are the new shows and movies that premiere! Because, not everyone goes out of town. Instead, many of us enjoy a few days or more at home, unwinding and relaxing, while catching up on our favorite shows or enjoying a new movie. Or both! This is the perfect time to catch up on movies or a series you haven’t watched before. To us here at Hidden Remote, binge-watching movies is our idea of fun! So whether you are new to the Transformers movies or are already familiar with the franchise, this is a great movie series to check out ahead of the Rise of the Beasts release.
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Still Now Here Option’s to Downloading or watching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts streaming the full movie online for free. Do you like movies? If so, then you’ll love New Romance Movie: Transformers: Rise of the Beasts. This movie is one of the best in its genre. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will be available to watch online on Netflix's very soon! Want to watch 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' on your TV, phone, or tablet? The Autobots and the Maximals are teaming up to face an all-new threat.
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Is Transformers Rise of The Beasts streaming? How to watch new movie? The Transformers 7 release date is upon us, with the new movie set to bring metallic mayhem. Here's how to watch Rise of the Beasts on streaming services. With the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts theatrical release date only a few days away, fans wonder when the latest Transformers movie is coming out to streaming services like Netflix, Paramount Plus, and so on. Here’s the need-to-know info on streaming Transformers 7 and how to watch it.
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What started out as a popular toy line has quickly become one of the biggest action movie franchises on the planet. With a total of 6 Transformers movies in the franchise and a new film on the way, the series is showing no signs of slowing down. With Transformers: Rise of the Beasts arriving later this week, you may be wondering where you can stream all of the movies online before it arrives. We've compiled a list of where to watch every Transformers movie in the series in June 2023.
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There are multiple new movies on the way in the ever-bombastic and explosive world of the Transformers franchise, with the Transformers One release date set for 2024. Before the Transformers movies return to the world of animation, though, we have the Transformers 7 release date to look forward to. Fresh from Bumblebee, which was definitely one of the best movies the franchise has delivered, we’ve got another sci-fi epic. This time, Creed 2 director Steven Caple Jr. is at the helm of the twisted metal and unstoppable carnage. Here’s how to watch Transformers Rise of the Beasts, and whether it’s available on the best streaming services yet.
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Beast Wars is finally coming to the big screen, as the live-action Transformers franchise has decided to embrace the storytelling possibilities of a massive, robotic gorilla. We can’t wait to see it.
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Here are all the ways to watch Transformers 7 Rise of the Beasts.
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When Is the Release Date for Transformers: Rise of the Beasts?
Transformers 7 had its premiere at Marina Bay Sands in Singapore on May 27, 2023, and is scheduled to be released in the US, CA & UK on June 9, 2023, by Paramount Pictures.
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When it launches on June 9, 2023, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will be exclusive to cinemas. The movie was originally scheduled to premiere on June 24, 2022.
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Is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts in Theaters?
Directed by Steven Caple Jr. and starring Anthony Ramos and Dominique Fishback, the film arrives in theatres June 9, 2023. Those eager to see their favorite action figures come to life for the seventh time in live-action won't have to wait much longer. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will be racing onto screens as early as Friday, June 9, 2023. Additionally, Collider is also hosting a free early screening of Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on June 7 at 6 pm, in Los Angeles. The event will also include a Q&A session with Peter Cullen, the voice of Optimus Prime, and you can learn more about the screening here.
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Will Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Release on Streaming?
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will be racing onto screens as early as Friday, June 9. While Paramount has announced no streaming plans at this time, big-budget blockbusters like Transformers: Rise of the Beasts typically become available on streaming roughly ninety days after their theatrical run begins. Given that the Transformers franchise rights currently belong to Paramount Pictures, it's more than likely that we'll see the next Transformers film come to Paramount+ once the movie decides to indulge in a streaming release. While not every film from the franchise is currently available on the service, it's hard to imagine that Paramount wouldn't put a big recent release like this onto their own service.
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No, Transformers Rise of the Beasts is not yet streaming, so you’ll need to zoom your way to the nearest cinema if you want to see it. We’re sure that you’ll be able to stream Transformers Rise of the Beasts eventually, but Paramount has made it exclusive to cinemas for now. After all, that level of destructive action is best witnessed on a massive screen and through booming speakers.
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Where to Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
Transformers Rise of the Beasts lands explosively in cinemas on June 9, 2023, and it’s a theatrical exclusive for now. If you want to bear witness to the Beast Wars and the threat posed to Earth by Unicron – a planet-devouring contender to be one of the best movie villains ever – then you’ll need to head to your nearest multiplex. In common with the rest of the best action movies in this franchise, it’s theatrical or bust to begin with.
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There are currently no platforms that have the rights to Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Movie Online.MAPPA has decided to Transformers: Rise of the Beasts the movie only in theaters because it has been a huge success.The studio , on the other hand, does not wish to divert revenue Streaming the movie would only slash the profits, not increase them.
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As a result, no streaming services are authorized to offer Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Movie for free. The film would, however, very definitely be acquired by services like Funimation , Netflix, and Crunchyroll. As a last consideration, which of these outlets will likely distribute the film worldwide?
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How to Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts
To find out if Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is playing in a theater near you (and if it's available in IMAX near you), click on one of the following links below to find showtimes and advanced tickets for the upcoming film:
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Below, you'll find a number of top-tier streaming and cable services - including rental, purchase, and subscription alternatives - along with the availability of 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' on each platform when they are available. Now, before we get into the fundamentals of how you can watch 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' right now, here are some details about the Skydance, Paramount, di Bonaventura Pictures, Bay Films, New Republic Pictures, Tom DeSanto/Don Murphy Production, Hasbro Studios, Entertainment One, Amblin Entertainment adventure flick.
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Where To Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Online:
As of now, the only way to watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is to head out to a movie theater when it premieres on June 2, 2023. You can find a local showing on Fandango.
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'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' is currently available to rent, purchase, or stream via subscription on Disney Plus, Apple iTunes, Vudu, Amazon Video, Microsoft Store, Redbox, AMC on Demand, DIRECTV, Google Play Movies, and YouTube .
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When Will Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Be Available On Netflix?
When Will Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Be Available On Netflix? Unfortunately the movie Transformers: Rise of the Beasts is not yet available on Netflix. Follow us on Facebook to see when Transformers: Rise of the Beasts becomes available on Netflix!
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Transformers Rise of the Beasts is too busy shaking cinema walls to be on Netflix just yet. But we’ll keep an eye on the streamer’s catalog and let you know if the new Transformers outing does show up in the future. The streaming giant has a massive catalog of television shows and movies, but it does not include 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.' We recommend our readers watch other dark fantasy films like 'The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf.'
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Is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts coming to Disney Plus?
Transformers Rise of the Beasts is not on Disney Plus, and we doubt it will end up there any time soon. The new Transformers movie is a Paramount production, so it’s not likely to end up on the streaming arm of a rival studio. Transformers: Rise of the Beasts, the latest installment in the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts franchise, is coming to Disney+ on July 9th! The simple answer is, probably not, since Paramount Pictures make “Transformers” films, and so this means that the new movie will be streaming exclusively on Paramount+, following a theatrical and digital release.
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However, the previous “Transformers” films are spread around a number of different streaming services, depending on what country you are in, due to long-running contracts between the studios and streaming platforms.
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Is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on Amazon Prime?
We think Transformers Rise of the Beasts will be available on Prime Video before the end of 2023, but it’s not there yet. The other Transformers movies are available to rent or purchase on the Prime Video platform. Amazon Prime's current catalog does not include 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts.' However, the film may eventually release on the platform as video-on-demand in the coming months.fantasy movies on Amazon Prime's official website. Viewers who are looking for something similar can watch the original show 'Dororo.'
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Will Stream On Paramount+
Transformers: Rise of the Beast is expected to be available to watch via streaming on Paramount Plus by September 9, 2023. Paramount+ is where Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will stream upon its release. Paramount has been in charge of the Transformers movie franchise since it began in 2007 and thus is responsible for releasing every entry in theaters. While the studio might have previously sent its movies to other streaming services like Netflix, the shift to focus more on the development of its own streaming service Paramount+ has changed this tactic. That is why Paramount has released its other major recent blockbusters like Top Gun: Maverick or Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves on Paramount+ after their theatrical runs conclude.
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Want to know how to watch the Transformers movies in order before Rise of the Beasts roars into theaters? You've come to the right place. The seventh entry in Paramount Pictures' Transformers film franchise arrives in cinemas worldwide on Friday, June 9, so you don't have much time left to watch its predecessors at home. But, if you're planning to cram them all in before catching Transformers: Rise of the Beasts this weekend, we're here to help you work out how to watch them in chronological and release date order, and we'll also tell you which of the world's best streaming services have them as part of their movie libraries.
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So, if you're ready to be reunited with Optimus Prime, Bumblebee, and company – and get the lowdown on every Transformers film to be released so far – read on.
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Here's How and Where You Can Watch All of the Transformers movies
The best place to start is finding out where you can watch all of the Transformers movies in order in the comfort of your own home. If you're subscribed to Paramount Plus, that's your answer – well, for five of the six films, anyway. Paramount's primary streaming platform is home to the Michael Bay-directed trilogy – Transformers, Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen, and Transformers: Dark of the Moon. The streamer's film library is also home to the two Mark Wahlberg-starring flicks, Transformers: Age of Extinction and Transformers: The Last Knight.
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● Transformers (released on July 3, 2007)
● Revenge of the Fallen (released on June 24, 2009)
● Dark of the Moon (released on June 29, 2011)
● Age of Extinction (released on June 27, 2014)
● The Last Knight (released on June 21, 2017)
● Bumblebee (released on Dec. 21, 2018)
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Potential users looking to watch this quintet of movies will want to check out our Paramount Plus price guide to see how much it costs to sign up. Alternatively, you can get the lowdown on whether a Paramount Plus free trial is available, so you can try the service out without paying any money to stream the movies. Unfortunately for Paramount Plus UK and Australian-based users, the sixth entry in the action sci-fi franchise, 2018's Bumblebee, isn't available on British shores as part of the package.
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US subscribers can catch Bumblebee on Paramount Plus (and Fubo, for what it's worth), but UK and Australian fans will have to look elsewhere to get the full Transformers movies in order experience. Here's where UK and Australian viewers can watch Bumblebee instead:
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● Australia – rent or buy via the Amazon, Apple TV Google Play, Microsoft, or YouTube stores
● UK – rent or buy via the Amazon, Apple TV, Google Play, Microsoft, Rakuten, Sky, or YouTube stores
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Will Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Be On HBO Max?
No, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will not be on HBO Max since it’s not a Paramount Pictures movie. Last year, the company released its films in theaters and on the streamer on the same day. However, they now allow a 45-day window between the theatrical release and the streaming release.
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Disney may have made billions with last year’s mega-blockbuster Avatar: The Way of Water, but for now it’s going to share the streaming success. The Steven Caple Jr. directed sequel is coming to streaming on September 11 and though the film was distributed by Disney, Disney+ won’t be the only place to see it. You can see it there as well as Max, aka HBO Max.
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Is Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Available On Hulu?
Viewers are saying that they want to view the new animation movie Transformers: Rise of the Beasts on Hulu. Unfortunately, this is not possible since Hulu currently does not offer any of the free episodes of this series streaming at this time. It will be exclusive to the MTV channel, which you get by subscribing to cable or satellite TV services. You will not be able to watch it on Hulu or any other free streaming service.
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No, 'Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' is unavailable on Hulu. People who have a subscription to the platform can enjoy 'Afro Samurai Resurrection' or 'Ninja Scroll.'
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Release in the US
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts hits theaters on June 9, 2023. Tickets to see the film at your local movie theater are available online here. The film is being released in a wide release so you can watch it in person.
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How to Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts for Free?release on a platform that offers a free trial. Our readers to always pay for the content they wish to consume online and refrain from using illegal means.
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How to Watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Online For Free?
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There are a few ways to watch Transformers: Rise of the Beasts online in the U.S. You can use a streaming service such as Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime Video. You can also rent or buy the movie on iTunes or Google Play. You can also watch it on-demand or on a streaming app available on your TV or streaming device if you have cable.
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When Will Transformers: Rise of the Beasts Be on DVD and Blu-ray?
Transformers: Rise of the Beasts will likely be coming to DVD and Blu-ray around the same time as the streaming release. With theatrical films, on average, coming to streaming sooner than ever (usually ninety days after theatrical release), we'll likely see Transformers: Rise of the Beasts get a DVD, and Blu-ray release no later than Fall 2023. Transformers Rise of the Beasts isn’t on Blu-ray yet but will join the rest of the franchise on disc before the end of 2023. There are plenty of fancy releases and box sets of the other Transformers movies, so we’re sure this one will be available to buy in all of its 4K glory very soon.
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Transformers: Rise of the Beasts cast:
Some familiar voices can be heard as the titular robots-in-disguise in the Transformers: Rise of the Beasts cast, like Transformers legacy actor Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime, as well as new cast members like Peter Dinklage and Michelle Yeoh voicing new Transformer characters:
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● Anthony Ramos as Noah Diaz
● Dominique Fishback as Elena Wallace
● Luna Lauren Vélez as Mrs Diaz
● Tobe Nwigwe as Reek
● Peter Cullen as Optimus Prime
● Pete Davidson as Mirage
● Liza Koshy as Arcee
● Ron Perlman as Optimus Primal
● Michelle Yeoh as Airazor
● David Sobolov as Rhinox
● Tongayi Chirisa as Cheetor
● John DiMaggio as Stratosphere
● Peter Dinklage as Scourge
● David Sobolov as Battletrap
● John DiMaggio as Transit
● Michaela Jaé Rodriguez - Nightbird
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What Transformers: Rise of the Beasts About:
Optimus Prime and the Autobots take on their biggest challenge yet. When a new threat capable of destroying the entire planet emerges, they must team up with a powerful faction of Transformers known as the Maximals to save Earth. For a while, Transformers: Rise of the Beasts looked like it might be another Bumblebee--a Transformers movie that lacks any of the pizzazz of the Michael Bay flicks but which actually tells a decent story about characters you actually care about. For the first 45 minutes to an hour, we get the most compelling and relatable version yet of the story about a regular person accidentally becoming friends with an alien robot who was secretly a car. But then the plot really kicks in, and suddenly we're watching a Michael Bay Transformers movie--but without Bay's skill as an action filmmaker.
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It’s a tale as old as time: A human character stumbles upon a group of Transformers that includes Optimus Prime (Peter Cullen) and Bumblebee (voiceless yet again), and gets roped into their battle with an evil faction, which inevitably involves a race for a piece of Transformers tech that has the power to destroy the world.

Hello there!
I’m Kyle. I’m 37 and currently travel king, but normally reside in CST. I’m currently a number of Horus ahead of that currently, but I’m pretty much available to chat for most of the day! Would love to make a new friend or two who I can get to know and see where it goes from there.
A bit about me in (what I hope is) an easy to read format 😀:

• I’m a pretty laid back individual. Blah blah, life is short right? Exactly! I know when to be focused and serious, but do not let that dominate my life.
  
• On that, I do have a full time job and other adult responsibilities! I’m a homeowner and sometimes the adult responsibilities that come with that can be a lot!
  
• I love watching sports, especially live. Soccer, football, hockey, and baseball are my favorites. I used to play some when I was younger and would love to get into an adult rec/fun league. I also know enough about cricket to watch a match.
  
• I love exploring new places, be it a day trip or hopping on a ✈️ to explore! Good company makes it so no trip is ever bad!
  
• I enjoy reading, and tend to lean towards history and Star Wars novels. Stephen King is probably my favorite fiction author (The Dark Tower!!!!).
  
• I’m child-free (snip snip no baby), non-theistic, progressively inclined, social drinker (not daily by any means), and 420 friendly.
  

I have no idea if I wrote too much or not enough, but let’s leave some mystery either way! I’m open to chatting with anyone! All I ask is you not believe people who are different than you are deserving of less. All humans deserve love and all the best!
Hope to hear from some of you and I hope you all have a great day!

For context, my (33f) second cousin’s (40m) family is very wealthy. My branch of the family moved away years ago because they thought that being so wealthy was starting to corrupt their family relationships and mindsets. We were still fairly well off, but not like the others. I moved back into town 15 years ago for school and reconnected with my wealthy extended family members. Family is important to me, money is not. I am also of the mindset that money corrupts. I met up with a lot of family members and they accepted me.
Around the same time, I ran into my second cousin at an event without realizing that we were related. He was adopted so we don’t even look alike, and we don’t have the same last name. We hit it off immediately and I’m going to admit we were a little bit flirty. But later that night, we found out we were related and we were both mortified. He also had a girlfriend at the time who ended up becoming his wife in this story. We laughed it off but didn’t hang out again.
Fast forward to now. I have once again settled in the city where my wealthy family members are from. I reconnected with my second cousin (in addition to other family members), who is now married to his previous gf with a baby daughter. He’s a nice guy and wants me to feel at home in the city. We have a lot of similar interests and get along well. We often meet up for coffee, hang out around town, and are talking about taking a trip to do some genealogy research.
Recently he started inviting his wife along to hang out with us. She even leaves work to come along. I really don’t mind this at all. I would like to become better friends with her, and always thought it was weird that she seemed to ignore me. He is also very clearly in love with her, and I think it’s kind of cute to see two people who have been together so long still have heart eyes for each other. However, they often argue when the three of us hang out and I have noticed that it only happens when he asks me a question that is not directed at her. Or if he asks my opinion without asking her first. She glares at me during these hang outs and says things like “her opinion clearly means so much to you,” etc. It is clear that she seems to be jealous of me (or mad at him bc of how he talks to me may be more accurate) in these interactions. This makes me uncomfortable because obviously there is nothing to be jealous of. I shouldn’t have to say it, but nothing romantic is happening between me and my cousin. Ew. Barf.
I attended a family function shortly after these strange arguments started, and my cousin and his wife did not show up. When I asked his parents where he was, they said “you would know, you’re the one spending so much time with him. I’m surprised he didn’t contact you and let you know what’s going on first.” I just laughed and brushed it off. I made a point to be friendly to everyone at the gathering, and make sure no one felt left out. However, whenever I tried to talk to his parents, they would cut the conversation short and I often caught them glaring at me from across the room. At one point, his dad asked me why I was still single, and what my cousin and I even have to talk about.
Being wealthy means you are paranoid and you feel like you can’t trust anyone. I get that. But what on earth could I possibly have to gain by being friends with my cousin? Even in some crazy fucked up world where I was trying to seduce him, it’s not like I could get married to him or something. I am a literally just trying to make friends in town and find my place in my big, complicated, fucked up family. Logistics and unnecessary drama aside, it seems so backwards and old-fashioned to assume a friendly, confident woman must be trying to trick someone. To be so quintessentially misunderstood and stereotyped by my own family is hurtful. This idea is so messed up to me that it shouldn’t be on anyone’s mind as a possibility.
Thoughts? I don’t want to address this with anyone. It’s just a really shitty feeling to be ostracized and painted that way. I should feel comfortable around my family of all people and instead I feel really fucking weird.

Trigger I think, purging, I don’t know I’m sorry. I just need help.
About a week ago I got laryngitis which I never had before but I suddenly lost my voice no big deal work from home so no stress. I was told I might have really bad coughing fits and some phlegm. Again, I was like okay no big deal.
Well,… apparently these coughing fits go past coughing up phlegm, they started to make me gag and I was starting to actually throw up phlegm. At first it made me feel a little better cause after i would have an hour or 2 with no coughing so I didn’t even think about it. But then the phlegm went away and the coughs were just making me throw up actual food. The first 2 times I was careful and aware of what was happening and had to talk myself down. By the third time I looked in the mirror after and noticed my face looked a little slimmer (PROBABLY ISNT EVEN TRUE BUT MY BRAIN SAID IT AND NOW ITS JUST A FACT) I noticed if I ate anything anything at all in a few hours I was gonna throw it all up. But this time it’s different this time it isn’t my fault I’m not doing it on purpose it’s just happening. No one knows I used to purge in college so everyone is like “it’s okay it’ll go away just part of the cough just drink lots of water”. Which in college I would work out till I was dizzy and then chug a 1/4gallon of water and jump which would make me immediately purge almost everything I had eaten that day. Don’t know how I figured that out but I did. So the whole drink lots of water thing isn’t helping.
I work from home so I don’t even have to hold it in I can run to the restroom every 2 seconds if I want to. My daughter is here with me and she isn’t even phased by hearing me throw up she’ll just say “mama you’re still sicky” and just run off or not even stop playing if she hears me start to gag. It’s almost guilt free, but I know where this road goes and if the cough does finally go away I know how easy it would be to slip back in and I can’t stop it.

Hello all,
I hope I’m posting this in the correct place.
I’m hoping for help or guidance in finding out what may have visited me during my sleep two nights ago.
All I can remember from the “ dream” about the entity is that it was humanoid in shape and size. Features seemed exaggerated, very sharp cheek bones, sharp jaw with a very pronounced knob like chin, prominent brow without eyebrows. Skin seemed to be a dark colour but was either a bit luminous or there was light shining from somewhere ( it was dark in my dream. Dark like nighttime in a forest) with pronounced texture. Its nose was long and sharply pointed. I don’t remember seeing its teeth currently. What is sticking with me are its eyes. The sclera of the eye was a soft blue, the Iris was black and the pupil was an electric blue. I’m positive it had hair but I cannot remember it. I feel like in my dream it was reaching for me. I kept asking “ who are you?!” And I was struggling to speak in my dream but was able to tell it to go away at one point but it didn’t. It kept advancing on me until all I could see was its face smiling at me and those eyes.
I was in distress as my partner woke me up saying I was tossing and turning, stuttering, and sounded terrified. I spent the next day so exhausted that I barely left my bed and slept all day. When I was awake I heard crows. Lots of crows. I see them fairly often but they are never noisy. These crows were cawing and cawing loudly. Last night I slept normally, but I’m still exhausted today with a nasty headache.
Any ideas as to what I saw? And why were my crows so agitated?

Hey everyone, I'm new to the world of streaming, YouTube, and content creation, and I'm facing a bit of a challenge when it comes to finding a unique name. I've been trying various combinations, but it seems like every idea I come up with is already taken. So, I have a rather unusual question based on something I've seen before. Let's say there's already a content creator using the name "VoidGremlin," and I'd like to use "Gremlin" in my name. Would it be okay to go with something like "EternalGremlin"? Or would that still be considered copyright or trademark infringement?
I know it might sound like a strange question, but I tend to overthink things, especially when it comes to choosing a name. I worry about potential legal issues in the future and want to avoid getting unexpectedly sued or facing any repercussions. Another option I'm considering is using "Jester," but since it's highly likely that the name is already taken, I'd appreciate your suggestions on what I could do. Should I try different spellings, replace letters with numbers, or combine it with another word?
I'm grateful for any advice or input you can provide to help me navigate this naming dilemma. Thanks in advance!

We are neither rich nor poor, our financial stability primarily relies on our dad (55M). My mom (50F) works in an office, but unfortunately, her salary is comparable to what a student earns at McDonald's... Consequently, I believe it should be my dad's responsibility to handle the financial matters. But my dad's temperament has made him somewhat unpopular within the family. His hot-headedness and aggression often resulted in physical altercations and frequent outbursts, which made us to spend more time with mom. As we grew older, this made us distant. Personally, I've become self-reliant and independent, not needing their attention, and often feeling uncomfortable when they express affection towards me. I think my sister feels similarly, but a lot of the time we just can't figure out what she wants. She often feels embarrassed by our parents, yet once she cried because our dad unexpectedly attended her performance (without her knowing), and she cried because he was late??? (he had work to do😑). While I used to have a strong bond with my mom, things have changed over time. I also find her behavior annoying at times. Some people on the internet claim it may be due to anxiety, which can occasionally lead to aggression. I am working on changing this. I mention this because both my sister and I went through a phase of teenage rebellion, which was challenging for our parents to handle. The difference is that I managed to grow out of it, thanks to realizing how awful I was among other teenagers. I did a lot of research and self-reflection, I thought about a lot of what is wrong with me and how did I end up like this, resulting in personal growth and positive feedback from others, which made me very proud. I also just accepted that my parents are also people, and parents for the first time and it's not easy for them but I think they try their best. But I feel like my sister had no time for self-reflection because she is popular, and she is stuck, with many problems in her head. I feel like she blames others and listens to her angry music until she calms down..
Therefore, due to my mom's people-pleasing nature and my dad's emotional distance, we inadvertently became controlling. (Because dad tries to spend more time with us he tries to act more like mom, so we have two parents who says yes to a lot of things) Now my sister has "big plans" in her head. It's nearly impossible to have a serious discussion with her because she either becomes angry or starts crying. She frequently makes poor decisions, like wanting to move to a big city and attend university again (despite previously failing). This has led to arguments between my dad and mom. My dad refuses to pay for it, considering it foolish given the country's inflation and various issues. On the other hand, my mom, who has no interest in politics or the city in question (unlike my dad, who lived there), now sees him as the bad, unintelligent person. It seems she lives in a box where everything revolves around flowers and the happenings of our village. I can't comprehend how she thinks she's right. Currently, she sleeps at her mom's place to avoid facing the situation until my dad calms down and gives in (as always...)
What frustrates me even more is that my mom just doesn't believe me sometimes, even when I have proof. She simply dismisses it and sticks to her own foolish plan. It's not about my sister, for example I was talking to her about rice weevils and how they get into the packaging and how to solve the bug problem but she just doesn't care, even tho I sent her articles and pictures about it. I feel like my sister has essentially turned her into a slave, and she doesn't even realize it. They avoid discussing serious matters because my parents fear her anger or sadness. I'm at a loss. My hysterical sister is recklessly spending our money, and I can already see her returning home months later, angry at us. She's living in a dream world, constantly buying expensive and unnecessary items, driving the car without permission (resulting in high gas costs), getting her nails done, and behaving like a celebrity. I don't know if this helps imagining our money but when she wanted an iphone so bad he made dad angry and distant for weeks because it's was so expensive for us, but at least my sister finally became happy for a short time. The problem is that it's never enough, there's always something..... and I'm pretty sure she will fail in the university. I can already see her coming home, being angry at the whole world and being in her room for days.
Even if my dad refuses to financially support her, I'm certain my mom will secretly do so. What can I do without making anyone my enemy? I don't want to remain silent. If my sister won't listen to my dad, she'll only resent him more. My mom does nothing to address the issue and tries to keep the peace, which clearly isn't working. She fails to acknowledge the problems, which is incredibly frustrating. I feel like I'm watching everything fall apart, and I strongly believe that I need to take action rather than ignore these issues.
TLDR: Our family's financial stability depends on our dad but his opinion is not important to my sister at all, her irresponsible spending and unrealistic plans cause conflicts while my mom tries to avoid conflict, but always works as a shield to protect my sister. And I'm just here, not knowing what to do.

tldr: GF gives mixed hints and I have no idea what to do and what she could mean by them.
First of all, this is a throw away account, my main account has tons of pictures of my face and I don't want others to find out who I am.
My GF and I have been together for two years now. We hit it off early and had a harmonic relationship. This is the longest relationship I had, I have a history of poor relationships. This girl gave me everything I wanted from a relationship and I couldn't be happier. For one and a half years, our relationship was perfect. I was really happy and most of our friends were also really happy for us. Things turned to the worse in the past half year.
She spent less and less time with me. It started with our sex life at first, which was mediocre but then went non-existent. Later on she became more distant with me. It was becoming harder and harder to organise a holiday with her and it got the point where simply going to a restaurant was hard to organise with her. This spirraled even deeper, she became more distant, leaving me on read, (or ghosting me), she spends more time watching series alone and less time doing actual work. She much prefers hanging out with her friends than me. She does this whole ghosting part for around 2-4 days every week, and then for the next one (or two at maximum) day she makes me feel like she's heels over head for me and that I'm the most important thing in her life, which usually just leaves me more confused. Then the day ends and the cycle repeats. Whenever I try to talk to her about this, she always gives me a cold shoulder, or if she's grumpy then we have a huge fight. Note: We used to fight frequently even when things were great, but now,we fight almost every day.
The thing is, this girl never lied to me, I even checked her phone a couple times, hoping that I would find something but nothing. I trust her a lot and in her friend cycle I also have some friends whom I trust greatly and they ensure me that she doesn't do anything inappropriate behind my back. I have the utmost confidence that she doesn't cheat on me behind my back.
I love this girl and don't want to end the relationship I have but if this continoues, I'm afraid I'll be an emotional wreck sonner or later. Am I completely oblivious to something? When I checked her phone, I thought I would find proof of her cheating which would make this whole ordeal quite simple (well, for me). Is there something I'm missing? Is there a way for me to salvage this relationship? Am I just too oblivious? Am I just stupid for trusting her completely? She gave me no reason not to trust her but now I'm second guessing myself.

Hey there everyone, to make a long story short, I just got dumped for the last time by my ex, and I'm feeling kind of lonely. I'd like to find someone who's willing to just chat with me for a while, talk about the stuff we're into, maybe play some video games together. All in all, I'm pretty easy to please, just looking for some kind of companionship.
As for stuff I'm into, I like video games despite being terrible at them, I like to paint miniatures, I like working on cars, and I don't do it much anymore, but I used to be a bit of a writer.
I'm terrible at writing these kind of intro things, but hopefully you can look past that and message me, I'm excited to hear from you! And I feel I should say this because it's happened before, people wanting to catfish me, be aware that I am very poor, I will take your companionship and you'll get nothing in return lol.

Three days ago, my housemates were alive.
And I wasn't losing my fucking mind.
Three days ago, I awoke to my housemate, Misty, shaking me.
“Get up!!”
Misty was usually the last to roll out of bed out of all of us, so I figured it was something important. My housemate wouldn’t get out of bed for nothing. She valued her sleep—often comparing her bed to a safe haven. Her place of solitude. I was right there with her, until she startled me out of slumber. I opened my eyes to find her face roughly three inches from mine, her expression lit up with excitement I couldn’t justify this early in the morning.
She smelled of toothpaste breath and her raspberry scented body wash. Her thick black curls framing her face were still damp from what I presumed was a shower, hanging in tangled knots in front of wide, almost unseeing eyes. When I first met her, Misty Kang had been my crush for a while. With a Korean father and a Texan mother, she definitely caught eyes when we hung out. We had a thing in freshman year, which quickly fizzled out once we started living together. Never date your housemates.
I will just say that.
Over the last few years, Misty has become one of my closest friends.
When she knew I was at least conscious, my housemate was grabbing my arm and yanking me out of bed. “Get up!”
I was barely awake, and those were the only words I could fully distinguish.
I shooed her away for a moment and swung my legs out of bed, taking a minute to blink sunlight out of my eyes coming through the blinds. “Sam.” Misty was in front of me again.
I don’t think she understood the concept of being half asleep.
She wouldn’t leave me alone, waving her arms wildly. Her shadow under the soft morning light almost reminded me of one of those inflatable tube guys.
“Huh?” My voice was a low croak, and her smile widened.
“Guess who’s just scored tickets for an actual screening of the first five minutes of gameplay for the most anticipated game of the decade?”
“What?” Her string of words wasn’t making sense in my caffeine deprived mind. It just sounded like gibberish to me, initially.
Like we were in some cheesy commercial, she was the lead, and I was the confused NPC with the WTF expression. But when I went over it in my head, words started to slide together like a jigsaw puzzle. Misty didn’t get excited about video games. Well, she did. Though, my housemate was one to get excited on behalf of someone else. After living with her for a while now, I had concluded she was a follower.
By that, I mean whatever others thought or did or said, she copied it. If her Twitter followers were mad at bad takes, she would drop all of her own opinions on said follower and focus on what other people said. We had Korean barbecue for takeout the other day, and Misty clearly did not like it from the creased look on her face, and her very obviously spitting it politely into a napkin.
Jay, my other housemate, liked it.
And so did I. So, naturally, Misty announced she wanted more.
I had to watch her suffer through two more portions before she excused herself—presumably to throw up. Blinking at my housemate who was clearly excited for Jay, I resisted the overwhelming urge to roll my eyes.
“Slow down. What game? What are you talking about?”
I got out of bed and threw on my robe, half aware of the mess from last night on my desk. Another attempt to finish an essay which just wasn’t happening. The monster energy cans and takeout Chinese wrappers were embarrassing. I got a basic run-through as I headed downstairs with Misty right behind me, practically breathing down my neck. From what I understood, there was a Reddit post.
That was all I got from Misty’s squealing. She leapt down the stairs after me with a spring in her step. The clock above the front door told me it wasn’t even 9am. The smell of bacon, however, was quick to arise me from the dead.
Jay was in the kitchen making breakfast. I noticed his laptop was open on the table, and every so often he’d peer at it with wide, almost disbelieving eyes. Jay and Misty were complete opposites, which made them great people to live with. Jay was a quiet book who was slightly on the pretentious side, routinely quoting something philosophical to piss me off.
He had rich parents on the other side of the world, but the guy himself was fairly humble and had mostly detached himself from said family.
My housemate was usually well put together. In fact, I barely saw him in his pajamas, excluding game nights. That morning, however, he was a disheveled mess, still in yesterday’s clothes.
He offered me a grin. I glimpsed sauce from last night’s dinner still staining his chin. Jay hadn’t brushed his hair or even put on deodorant.
I caught a whiff of BO when he ducked in front of me, his gaze glued to his MacBook. It was rare when Jay ignored basic hygiene, so yeah, I was going to guess this was a pretty huge thing. “I did tell her not to wake you up, y’know.”
His slight aussie accent was always refreshing on a morning. Born in Australia and moving to the states when he was ten years old, Jay still had a slight tinge in his accent. I had seen pictures of his family, and the guy had definitely gotten most of his dad’s genes, thick brown hair, and freckles. While his dad was built like a pro wrestler however, Jay was leaner like his mom.
I shrugged. “I was already awake.”
“Liar.” He didn’t look away from his laptop.
Looking closer, I glimpsed the Reddit homepage.
“So, you have won something.”
Jay didn’t answer. I could tell he was excited by the way he could barely keep still, bustling around the kitchen, barefoot. “Coffee?”
His voice was more of a Misty-like squeak, and I half wondered for a moment if they had switched bodies, or he had at least become one with my other housemate through a chemical explosion. In our kitchen, which was yet to be cleaned after a cooking disaster several nights ago, I wouldn’t be surprised if something was living on the countertop. I nodded, slumping into a chair. “What’s going on? Why is Misty freaking out?” I nodded at his laptop. “She said you’ve won something?”
As if my housemate couldn’t hold it in anymore, he nodded, turning his screen towards me. “You know____, right?”
“Yes.” I sipped my coffee, eyeing a toaster strudel sitting on the countertop. "You mean the game which has been coming out for a decade."
He ignored that. “Well, what if I told you one of the developer’s posted on the official sub this morning?”
“For _____?"
He nodded with a grin, and I wondered it this was one of those rare times when Jay was blindly looking through a red flag to see what he wanted. I had heard of these types of scams, and Reddit was a breeding ground for them.
Gamers were pretty intense. I didn’t realize I was pulling a face until I caught his lips curving into a smile. Jay was usually the skeptical one.
“You don’t believe me.”
I downed my coffee to avoid replying. When I had drained the cup, he was still staring at me with amused eyes.
“What?”
“You think it’s bullshit.”
I shrugged. “You said it,” I said. “I’m pretty sure that game isn’t even partway through development. Didn’t Twitter leak a still last year? Also, they’ll be bringing out a new console before that game comes out.”
I leaned back in my chair. “It’s more of a pipe dream, at this point.”
“The leaks were fake,” Even he didn’t look sure. “Anyway, that’s not the point. One of the dev’s posted on the official sub this morning. He asked if we were all excited for the new game, asked if we could post some of our favorite NPC dialogue, and he’ll DM winners.”
“Uh-huh.” I nodded at the screen. I had already checked my phone for an internet meltdown concerning this post, but there was nothing. “And where is that post now?”
Jay didn’t look at me. “It was deleted. So it only reached a certain number of people.”
“Oh, it was deleted?” I couldn’t resist a smile. “What a coincidence.”
When I laughed, Jay scowled, showing me his screen—navigating his trackpad to his Reddit DM’s.
To my surprise, there was actually a message from what I guessed was a throw-away account.
While I was skim reading the DM, Misty hurried in, all dressed and ready for the day. I peeked at her outfit from Jay's laptop. Cute.
Extravagant, but cute. My housemate cranked the radio up before bouncing between us, a toaster strudel hanging out of her mouth.
Misty was a living animated character. Ignoring her wide smile, I turned back to the screen. “Congratulation!!” The DM started with capitals.
It took me reading it twice to realize there was a clear spelling mistake. I sent Jay a pointed look, but he was too busy practically vibrating with excitement. If the guy had any more caffeine, he was going to explode. “Since when did winning DM’s start with a typo?”
“I knew you were going to say that.” Jay curled his lip. “They were clearly excited when typing the message.”
“But this is supposedly an official,” I said. “Surely they would make sure it’s professional?”
My housemate didn’t reply, shooting a look at Misty, who rolled her eyes.
“Wow.” I squinted at the screen. “I am so sorry for caring about your safety. You do realize these types of scam’s usually end up with you being sold on the black market, right?”
I shuddered. “I’ve heard horror stories about underground markets specializing in illegal organ harvesting.”
“Or…” Jay’s eyes were glued to the screen. “You could be happy for me?”
I frowned at the rest of the message, which was just a capitalized freak-out about the upcoming release of the game, before inviting Jay (and a friend!) to a five-minute preview of gameplay, as well as a Q&A. There was a location and a time, which was brow-raising. “10 at night.” I said. “Who hosts a gaming convention at 10pm?” I leaned my chin on my fist. “Unless they wanted to lure as many gullible people as possible, and ship them to some organ harvesting factory on the other side of the world.”
Jay scoffed. “That’s dark.”
“You’re actually considering going to a 10pm gaming convention in the middle of nowhere. I’m trying to wake you up.”
Jay nudged me that time. “It’s real. Relax.”
“And.” I pointed to the screen. “No phones? Why would they ask you not to bring your phones?”
“To stop us filming content,” Misty sang. “Duh.”
I groaned, leaning back in my chair. “You’re on his side? This is clearly shady!” I didn’t get mad unless something was seriously pissing me off, and this was one of those times. Jay was a smart guy. There was no way he was falling for this bullshit. I thought he was joking around when he spent the day tracking the location on Google Maps. I went to class like normal and got updates through text. At lunch, Jay agreed with me and said it was in fact shady, and he wasn’t going. By afternoon classes, he was texting me in paragraphs explaining his own skepticism but had found several “friends” on an online forum who were also going and had changed his mind once again. The guy couldn’t make up his mind. He was driving me crazy.
Misty sent me several videos of Jay pacing the kitchen with his MacBook in his hands. She was broadcasting his mental breakdown via Instagram stories. But then she started to send me pictures of herself in different outfits, asking me for my opinion on each one. At that point, I turned my phone off. My housemates had lost their fucking minds. I did my own research though, just to make sure I wasn’t actually going to lose them to a shady cult.
I searched for the game itself, but just as I thought, it was shown as still in development. Every “update” was just fan speculation.
There were YouTube videos and TikTok’s of fake leaks, but nothing was real. It was either AI generated, or badly edited. By the time my classes had ended and I had turned my phone on, I had a barrage of missed calls and texts.
Most of them were from Misty with her outfit changes, and Jay changing his mind again.
This time he was convinced it was all a scam, his texts full of typos and crying emoji's which he never used. Before it hit me that Misty was most likely using his phone to text me.
I was right. When I walked through the door, I was greeted by both of them sitting on the stairs. Misty was scrolling through Jay’s phone, while the boy had his head in his hands. According to Misty’s last text, he was back to being excited to go.
From the look on his face, eyes shadowed with sleep circles, light brown curls slipping from under his hood, I wasn’t sure what Misty meant by “excited”. The guy looked the complete opposite. His mind had been consumed by the game, and the idea of seeing new content.
When I dropped my bag and folded my arms, fixing the two of them with my best disapproving parent look, Misty jumped to her feet. “Sam!” she waved Jay’s phone at me. “Did you get my texts? We’re actually going now!”
The 100+ texts on both messenger and iMessage said otherwise.
I nodded, my gaze on Jay. “Both of you do realize it’s a scam, right?” I softened my tone despite growing progressively more irritated. We were grown adults, not kids. I could understand a group of teenagers falling for it, but two twenty-three-year-olds?
This time, I ducked in front of Jay. “Hey.” I pulled down his hood, and he groaned, burying his head in his knees. “I don’t want to freak you out, so listen to me, okay?”
I exhaled out a breath. “I’m not saying something bad is going to happen to you, because it most likely won’t—and yes, I admit I’m being paranoid.” When he lifted his head, blinking through bedraggled curls, there was a faint smile on his lips. “But.” I said. “You are most likely going to end up disappointed. Which I don’t want, because you won't shut up about it for weeks."
I was only partly joking.
For a moment, I thought my housemate was going to wake up, and nod, laughing at how crazy it was.
Before shook his head and jumped up.
“I’m going to take a shower, alright? I should start getting ready."
I admit, I exploded at him.
We argued while he was in the shower, and I paced up and down the hallway, coming up with multiple reasons why he was definitely going to die, and only two positives if it was in fact real. In the end, I gave up worrying all together. I didn’t say anything when the two of them were hurrying around looking for shoes and missing car keys. I didn’t realize they were gone until the door was clanging shut, and a text was coming through. I didn’t look at it until an hour later, and I had calmed down.
Jay: 1h ago: Stop worrying, lmao. We’re good! I’ll keep my phone just in case. I’ll make sure to avoid the organ harvesting 😉
Another from Misty a few minutes later: “Love you! Chillll, kay? 😭😭 It’s going to be fun! I’ll take pics!”
…
Followed by: “Oh shit, we can’t. I’ll try to sneak some!"
Attached to the text was a photo of the two of them. Misty with a wide smile and a peace sign, and Jay who looked like he was mid-shout, his eyes on the road.
Those texts were… at least comforting, I guessed. Maybe they were right. I figured I was paranoid, and they in fact would really be okay.
But that didn’t stop the anxious coil in my gut when I tried to force down takeout pizza. I attempted to focus on my essay to distract myself, but I couldn’t stop glancing at my phone, and checking Twitter. There was a hashtag on the DM, which was just “PlayStationGO.” When I searched for it, however, nothing came up.
Sure, it was a private convention and only a select few knew about it, but nothing could escape Twitter.
Somewhere, someone must be talking about it. After scrolling through endless tweets though, I realized I was wrong. There was nothing.
That put a bad taste in my mouth.
10pm came, and I held my breath all the way through a Netflix TV show I was forcing myself to watch, half asleep, slumped at my desk.
I could barely distinguish the plot.
I just had a vague idea of the character names, and some of their motivations.
Midnight passed, and I was struggling to stay awake.
I glanced at my phone.
No messages, just a notification from Spotify reminding me my favorite band was playing nearby.
1am.
Still nothing. I fell back to sleep.
2:48am.
This time, I stayed awake for a few minutes glaring at my phone before my eyes grew heavy.
3:16: am.
My phone buzzed with a text from Jay, but I could barely desipher it: "can't feel help my head hurts Canshdhsn727272_6798mi/!! _&go home please. (Sent from: PlayStationGo™️ BETA)."
3:27: am.
3:54: am. I was wide awake, blinking at a notification which had popped up from an unknown number. I was trying to figure out what number it was, when my phone vibrated again and I almost jumped out of my skin.
After a moment of hesitation, I answered it.
I was trying so hard not to think of the possibility of it being the emergency room, or even worse, the cops.
All of my worst nightmares had come true in a single second.
“Hello?” I whispered in a croak.
“Are they in the house with you?” The stranger’s voice came through in a hiss of interference.
His words sent my mediocre dinner lurching back up my throat. “What?” I managed to get out. “Who?”
“Your friends.” He said, and I leapt to unsteady feet, my gut twisting and turning.
“No.” I found myself taking slow strides toward the window, brushing back the curtain and peering out into the night. “Why? Did something happen to them?” I paused.
“How did you get my number?”
“That does not matter.” His voice rattled in my ear as I rushed downstairs, almost stumbling down the bottom two. “I need you to get out of that house. Now. Get as far away as possible.”
I could hear his rapid breaths.
He was driving. I could hear the rumble of the engine. With my phone pressed to my ear, I obeyed his instructions, pulling open the door and stepping out into the cool night, a brisk breeze grazing my bare arms was just enough to stop my thoughts spiraling.
I was barefoot, in nothing but a robe, staggering down the driveway. The night was calm and silent; our neighborhood was asleep, each window drowned in darkness. I couldn’t breathe, my clammy fingers wrapped around my phone, as this stranger broke down over the phone. “Whatever you do,” he gasped out.
“Do not, I repeat DO NOT remove the PlayStationGo—shit!! He hissed out, static rattling the call. The guy seemingly got ahold of himself, and the wheel, and continued. I started to walk—where I was going, I had no idea.
The stranger lit a cigarette. I heard the click of a lighter and his exhalation of breath. “It was a BETA version, but we had to rush it. This was not my idea. My boss is a greedy man. He wanted to release the game last year, which would have meant widespread infection. Luckily, that did not happen. We did manage to delay it, but only by a year.” His words barely made sense to me as I struggled to get a word in, peering in the dark. “It was supposed to be a virtual experience of the game—a whole new angle of gameplay. But testing was difficult. First, on monkey’s, we lost multiple subjects. Tonight was supposed to be a…well, I guess you could call it out first attempt on human subjects,” his laugh was bitter. “I knew the tech wasn’t finished. And I tried. Believe me, I fucking tried. I tried to blow the whistle, but these bastards know where my parents live."
Something squirmed its way down my spine.
“So my friends were lab rats?” I said stiffly. “You used them?”
I fucking knew it.
I knew it was too good to be true.
“Yes and no. Listen to me, the people I work for are hunting them down. Trust me, I don’t want my bosses to find them because a life of experimentation will await them. Torture. Do you hear me? It does not matter if subjects fail. They don’t care. As long as there is at least a light at the end of the tunnel for them, they will see it as a win, and bring the publication date closer. They will not be treated as humans. Your friends signed a contract before trying out the tech, where the small print stated that, under section 3, player engagement, all subjects must agree to offer themselves as participants in later updates. I silently cursed Jay for always skipping the terms and conditions when buying games." The man stopped to breathe.
“I have told you multiple times, and I won’t say it again. Get as far away from that house as possible. I will take care of them. I will make sure of it." The sound of squealing engines, and I stopped power walking, coming to an abrupt stop. The silence of the night around me, compared to the sound of the highway he was on, traffic horns and the wind rushing through the window was an eerie contrast, a disturbance to the heavenly bubble we were trapped in.
“What do you mean ‘take care of them?” I had to swallow a yell. “Hey! What are you talking about?
“I’m sorry.” Was all he replied with. “I’m afraid it is too late. There was once an opportunity to save the mind during the initial level of the demonstration. However, once the PlaystationGo has been fully attached to the base of the subject, we no longer have control of it. Once integrating itself into the cerebral cortex, the PlayStationGo can only be removed by signing out of the player’s account,” his breath was heavy. “On this unfortunate occasion, however, your friends are unable to navigate the system due to a malfunction which scrambled their brains,” He trailed off. “Which has left them stranded in the game."
I let out a breath. “Right.” I said. “That’s.. bad. I mean, it’s a fucked-up piece of technology, but they’re just playing a game, right?”
There was a pause, before the man laughed.
“Young man, I don’t think you understand,” he said. “The PlayStationGo was created to give the player a full virtual experience of our game. The PlayStationGo is not a physical object. Created with nanotechnology, it attaches itself to the subject’s brain and is supposed to create a personal gaming experience for each player. As I said, however, it is not finished. It is yet to be released to the public, and of course, we are expecting certain ethical arguments due to the controversial—”
I pulled the phone away from my ear, shaking my head. I didn’t need to hear his attempts at trying to save his own skin.
“You need to help them,” I whispered. “Do you hear me? Can you do that? Can you help them?!”
“That is what I am trying to tell you,” He said.
“I know you are upset and confused, and believe me, I offer my apologies. But you need to listen to facts. During initial testing, our subjects were conscious enough to know where their home was. We are unsure why this happens, though we have linked it to territory, as well as the main character of the game heavily influencing their actions. I have been tracking them from the testing facility, and they are incredibly close. Please get as far away from there as possible. If you are no longer in the vicinity of the house, I can end this quickly and quietly before we gain attention.”
I wasn’t sure what I was going to say. Maybe start fucking screaming at him, because he was talking about getting “rid” of my friends, after their mistake.
“Do you understand me?” He said, when I couldn’t reply. “Your friends are lost causes!”
Before I could answer, though, headlights were suddenly coming around the corner, and I found myself paralysed to the spot. The car which swerved twice, crashed into several trash cans, before reversing and coming straight towards me, was not Jay’s car. Jay’s car was an old hunk of junk he’d gotten from a scrapyard. Jay’s car had doors which were practically hanging off, and a stereo which exclusively played either static gibberish, or old tapes I had no idea how to use. This car was bright yellow, and definitely had an option to drive itself. When the car came to a stop, inches from careening into me, I lost all control of myself.
I was vaguely aware of my phone slipping from my fingers and hitting the sidewalk. But I was too busy staring at the two shadows in the front of the car. The driver, and the passenger.
And the muffled screaming coming from the trunk.
When the door swung open, a figure stepping out, I did not recognise my housemate.
The stranger told me I wouldn't, but I didn't believe him.
Jay had left the house in casual jeans and a sweater, bearing the game's logo.
Now, I found myself face to face with a man with my housemate's face and features, his smile and eyes-- but something had been severed in his eyes and twisted in his expression. For one, Jay was wearing a suit I knew he couldn't afford, the sleeves torn, collar pulled open, smears of red staining the front.
His pants had cufflinks, and the Rolex on his wrist had definitely been pulled off someone's corpse.
The silver was stained a revealing scarlet. Drinking in his face, he looked like Jay. His curls hung in front of his eyes, freckles speckling his cheeks, but everything else wasn't. It wasn't until I was glimpsing what was moulded into the flesh of his hand, did I remember how to move. But then I was taking all of him in, everything my mind had intentionally skipped, because I didn't want to believe the stranger on the phone. Nanotechnology, the man had said in a hiss.
Fiction, I had thought.
Before I saw the reality of it, a writhing metallic like substance glued to the guy's temple, and slowly, very slowly, inching down his cheek, already forming around the bridge of his ear, a very faint blue light flickering.
Something must have alerted him. His cavernous eyes left mine, and he twisted his head—and I heard the sound of his neck snapping, his head lolling to the left slightly, his eyes flickering. I watched his whole body seem to sway back and forth, ready to fall forwards.
Before the newly formed device on his ear turned red, then green.
It was almost like he was… rebooting. As if coming back to life, Jay lifted his head at an awkward angle, before looking straight through me. The blood vessels in his eyes had popped, rivulets of red beading down his face. He should have been dead, I thought. No. No, he was dead. That… that thing was keeping him alive. “Well, shiiiittt,” he said. I could sense the game dialogue which had taken over him, forming on his mangled tongue.
“I’m a man on a mission.”
In jerking movements, he turned and marched back towards the car, opening the door, and sliding into the front seat.
I remembered how to move, ducking to grab my phone, before something slammed into the back of my head—and I saw stars.
I didn’t remember hitting the floor, only the soft sound of her voice, a seductive murmur repeating NPC dialogue, and her kitten heel sticking into my spine, forcing me onto my face.
Misty. I was expecting her to get it over with. But when she dragged me to my feet, sticking the barrel of a gun into the flesh of my neck—I figured she was still playing the game.
Twisting around to meet her eyes, lifeless and empty, only filled with light from the device which had taken over half of her face, I felt sick to my stomach. This thing wasn’t a games console or a virtual reality headset.
It was an attempt at coercing and programming something you already don’t understand, to do something impossible.
I could see that in the way the things had visibly chewed and eaten through her flesh, devouring her from the inside and out. I could see what was left of the dress she had worn earlier, but something must have gone wrong with her too. Because Misty had thrown on another outfit over the top, a diamond necklace hanging from her neck.
I caught a thin river of red pooling down her right temple, trying to ignore the twitchy way she moved, just like a character. From the way Misty walked, stumbling, I already knew she was gone. My housemate had newly acquired strength, throwing me in the trunk of the car where three other hostages were, and slamming it shut on my attempts to reason with her. She didn’t tie me up or restrain me.
In the dim light I could just make out though passing streetlights, I could see the trunk opened from the inside. Which was too easy.
Still though, Jay was driving recklessly, and every time I tried to throw the damn thing open, I was knocked backwards, rolling into a screaming girl, who was bound by her hands and feet. It took me multiple attempts before I had the trunk open, freezing cold air blasting me in the face. I untied the other hostages, but when I told them to come with me, they just stared blankly at me, and continued begging for their lives—and it only took me glimpsing what was attached to their temples, a familiar writhing metal plate, for me to understand. They too were playing the game. This time, as NPC hostages.
I found myself gingerly touching the trembling metallic flesh of the girl's fingers bound in rope. It had a slimy consistency, and I swore, I felt something bite into me.
No way, I thought.
This thing was sentient, yes. But it wasn't living.
Listen, I wish I could tell you what it was like to jump out of a moving car, but I can’t.
I remember it as lunging out of the trunk, hitting the freezing cold air, before hitting the ground head first, neutron star collisions exploding in the backs of my eyes.
What I do remember is waking up on the side of the road. Hours later. The sky was bright blue, a scorching sun blinding me when I managed to force my eyes open.
The early morning rush hour flew by as normal, and I wondered how ignorant American people had to be to ignore someone knocked out on the side of the road.
It’s not like I was nowhere near civilization. There was a fucking Subway right next to me.
When I had gathered myself, I remembered I had no phone. I couldn’t go home in fear of running into my rogue housemates playing their own fucked up version of _____ in their head. My plan was to try and find my phone, get in contact with the stranger who blew the whistle on my friends being dangerous, and find them. They couldn’t be far., right? And even if they weren’t themselves… someone would be able to save them.
If someone could do this to them, surely they could reverse it.
I felt sick, tired, and I was starving.
So, with some loose cash I’d found in my pocket, I bought a Subway and a Coke.
The woman at the counter smiled widely at me. She leaned forward, with a wink. “Nice cosplay!”
Cosplay?
I didn’t understand what she meant until I swore I felt something… move its way up my pant leg. I ignored it, and it happened again, this time it felt like something was… biting.
A bug, maybe? I had been laying on the side of the road for around six hours.
When I went to the bathroom, though, I found myself staring at an all too familiar glint of silver creeping its way across my temple. Like it was sentient, parts of it sider webbed towards my ear while the rest writhed into my hairline.
I pulled up my pant leg again, and there it was, a fungus-like metal substance which had already formed in two solid metal masses on my knees. I remember grazing two fingers across the thing beginning its slow feast of my flesh. I remember trying to pull it off, hissing in pain when I risked ripping off my own skin with it. I remember shaking my head and being in denial, even when the lights dimmed above me, and the bathroom door in front of me became more of a shadow. When I strode back through the Subway store, I began to see slight flickers of light above each person, highlighting something not quite there yet.
I could see it already starting, beginning to take over my thoughts. Cars which sped past were suddenly highlighted, and at the corner of my eye, if I concentrated, the outline of a map was starting to appear. Even now, when the room is almost completely taken over by shadow, and my thoughts are half my own, and half not—when a metallic device is beginning to form over my eyes—I know if I hold on, this thing won’t take me. I have considered killing myself, but that wouldn’t… be right.
How could I kill myself when there is so much left to do?
This developer was right. I don’t even know where I can sign out. There’s what looks like the beginning of some kind of index when I look up, but it’s not… finished. I can still see entangled pieces of code struggling to load what I’m guessing was log out. Whatever this thing is, it’s taking over me. Fast. Like a fungus, like a virus, it will not stop until it’s dragged me into the game, until it's leeched itself onto me.
I can feel it happening right now. It's been slow.
Almost painfully slow.
But maybe that is the point. Maybe part of the game is to feel my own thoughts beginning to unravel in favor of something else entirely.
Fuck.
Time is going by…. Fast.
Five minutes ago… I was trying to get home. But I can’t remember where I live.
I can’t concentrate.
I can’t think straight.
I have a phone—but I don’t know how I got it. Did I steal it?
Every time I move, the slowly emerging map comes to life at the corner of my eye jerks with my movement. There is a car parked nearby.
I know it belongs to the man with a child.
But a confusing blur of light is highlighting it to be something of importance. Reality is crashing in front of me, replaced with contorting shapes and bursts of color I have to blink through.
I keep hearing... sirens.
Jay is messaging me.
On what, I'm not sure.
But I need to find him.
I’m sure one mission won’t hurt, right?

I’m looking to maximize the amount of parts I’m using for my enclosed vehicles but Im having trouble finding a way to protect link while using minimal parts
Currently my most effective method uses 4 sleds in the shape of a square and my wheel axels seal the back and front of the vehicle which generally protects link from attacks including my own canon fire 😂
With a 21 part limit, this is undesirable though.
I tried using 2 random mine carts but I couldn’t disengage the first person mode which made it impossible to drive anything but I haven’t tried all variations yet.
It did occur to me that a metal cage with a slab or perhaps 2 leviathan heads (facing mouth to mouth) would take less parts but they seem heavy & bulky.
Has anyone else has found a complete enclosure that is smaller than a metal cage, doesn’t force first person view when link inside (or you can get to 3rd person with an easy method), and uses less than 4 parts?

Here are some teaching skills that can be valuable in a corporate environment:

1. Communication Skills: Teachers excel in communicating complex ideas effectively to diverse audiences. This skill translates well in the corporate world, where clear and concise communication is crucial for collaboration, presenting ideas, and building relationships.

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1. Adaptability: Teachers are accustomed to adapting their teaching methods to accommodate different learning styles and individual needs. This adaptability is highly valuable in the corporate world, where employees often need to adjust to new projects, changing priorities, and diverse team dynamics.

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1. Leadership and Management: Teachers are natural leaders who manage classrooms, oversee student progress, and facilitate a positive learning environment. These leadership and management skills can be applied to lead teams, coordinate projects, and motivate colleagues in a corporate setting.

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1. Problem Solving: Teachers constantly face challenges in the classroom and develop strong problem-solving abilities. This skill translates well to the corporate world, where critical thinking, analytical skills, and finding innovative solutions are highly valued.

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1. Organizational Skills: Teachers are skilled at planning and organizing lessons, managing time effectively, and handling administrative tasks. These organizational skills are transferable to corporate settings, where managing projects, prioritizing tasks, and meeting deadlines are essential.

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1. Presentation and Facilitation: Teachers are experienced in delivering engaging presentations and facilitating discussions. These skills are valuable for conducting training sessions, leading meetings, and delivering impactful presentations in a corporate environment.

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1. Collaboration and Teamwork: Teachers work closely with colleagues, parents, and other stakeholders to achieve common goals. Their ability to collaborate, build relationships, and work effectively in teams translates well to corporate settings where cross-functional collaboration is key.

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1. Customer Service Orientation: Teachers often interact with students, parents, and colleagues, providing guidance, support, and addressing concerns. This customer service orientation is valuable in the corporate world, where building strong client relationships and providing excellent service are essential.

I just wanted to see what y'all thought of the DEI (diversity, equity and inclusion) programs that are popular at universities and colleges. I am a Junior at a University (in the US) and just this past semester took a DEI course. It seems like a good idea. But I couldn't help but notice that it didn't actually cover too much. Only certain groups (LGBT+ and black) and didn't have much information on other smaller minority groups and the prejudice they faced, like the Jews (I think they may be considered white in the course) I just thought it was a bit odd, and I didn't know if anyone else has taken a DEI course? Did anyone else notice this? If you did take a DEI course did they discuss other, not as large ethnic/religious groups?

"Where are your fucking clothes?!" Jerry screamed as one of the girls ran past him naked, shouting for another one and paying him no mind.
"I just had you get dressed!" he wailed as she vanished through the door to the hall. Another one stepped in through the front door and Jerry rounded on her. "Whose fucking blood is that?!" he demanded. She stared, eyes wide, but didn't answer.
"That's two more! You're up to eleven, now." Inanna said cheerfully. Jerry rounded on her, giving her a glare made of pure frustration.
"Don't give me that look," she said primly, turning away from the girl whose makeup she was doing. "You agreed to this, and you're the one cursing up a storm."
"You don't seem to have any issues cursing yourself," he pointed out.
"That's right. I don't. I've told you before that adding a few extra 'fucks' and 'shits' and 'cocksucking motherfuckers' to your vocabulary wouldn't hurt anything and might be a little cathartic."
"Shit piss fuck cunt cocksucker motherfucker tits," he deadpanned.
Inanna beamed a smile at him. "Eighteen," she said and turned back as he shook his head and went stomping after the naked girl. The one with the blood on her chin and shirt continued to stand next to the front door, looking confused.
"Does this really make men want to mate with you more?" the girl whose makeup she was doing asked. "No, not really," Inanna said. "But it makes you feel prettier, which will make you more confident, and that tends to make the whole process go better as far as you're concerned."
"So when you're done, I will feel more confident?"
"That's the idea," Inanna confirmed.
"Then I will go out and seek a practice mate. How much longer?"
"You will do no such thing until your body's finished growing," Inanna scolded. "Fucking hell, kid, you look like you're about fifteen. Any guy that wants to mate with you right now is a guy you really don't want to mate with. If you really want to practice, I'll speak to Jerry and-"
"Absolutely not!" Jerry said, leading a naked girl out of the hall by a hand around her upper arm. He grabbed the bloody one as well and walked them back to his office, from whence the naked one had come.
"Why not?" the girl asked. Inanna gave her a level stare. "Did you already forget what I just said about men who would want to mate with you? But pay him no mind, I wasn't suggesting he could do it. I mean, he'd probably leave you with internal bleeding, anyways, you're just so tiny. I was going to suggest that he work a little magic to age you up appropriately for a while, so you could find a man who wasn't a hebephile."
"What is a hebephile?" she asked.
"Almost as bad as a pedophile. Worse, in some ways. They're creepier, in any event, at least to me."
"And what is a pedophile?"
"The scum of the earth," Inanna said, as if that settled the matter.
"So I should avoid hebephiles and pedophiles," the girl said. Inanna smiled sweetly at her. "Yes, you should. Now close your eyes, I'm going to do your eyeshadow and them we'll be done."
"I can't wait to see it," the girl said, a bit of excitement creeping into her voice. Inanna gave her smokey blue eyes and then leaned back. "Okay," she said, picking up the mirror and showing the girl her reflection. She squealed loudly and clapped her hands, grinning at her reflection.
Jerry returned, now with two fully dressed girls. He put them both on the couch. "Sit here, and don't fucking move," he instructed sternly.
"Nineteen," Inanna said. Jerry ignored her comment.
"I have to go clean up 'about half' of a dead racoon. Do you think you could get some food going before one of them encounters a neighborhood cat or, god forbid, a neighborhood kid?"
"How about I get them ready to go out? I don't think I have enough food to cook for all fourteen of them."
Jerry nodded, then headed for the garage.
----
It took two humvee to get all of them moving. It also took two hours, because once the others had seen what Inanna did to their sister's face, they all wanted to wear makeup. Fortunately, Aaina had come through, breaking out her own makeup and helping cut the time needed to do them all in half.
Inanna sat in the driver's seat of one humvee with Aaina on the passenger seat. Sarah and Junior were spending the weekend at Eddis and Yarm Junior's new apartment. Some people might find it odd to let two twenty-something boys do their babysitting, but Brekka and Yarm were taking a break, doing some sightseeing in the Sixteenth world, and Inanna trusted those two boys implicitly.
"Dad seems like he's ready to snap," Aaina said. Inanna glanced over to see her looking worried. She laughed. "No, he's not."
"The last time I heard him cursing like this was when we thought you guys were dead," Aaina said. "And I'm sure he'd have killed every single god who got in his way. Tysrane was lucky he only lost a hand..."
"Oh hun," Inanna said. "How much talking and complaining did he do back then?"
"Uhh," Aaina said. "Not much, really. He was more broody than angry."
"Would you say he's acting broody tonight?"
"Ahh, I get you. So what, he's putting on a show of being angry and stressed?"
"Something like that. He's fine, in any event." Inanna turned into the parking lot of the cafeteria and was relieved to note that there was plenty of parking available. She still pulled in near the edge of the lot, taking up two spots with the huge vehicle, but the availability of closer parking meant they wouldn't be too busy.
She climbed out, watching the flood of adolescent Akkorokamui pour out of the back seat. She'd been surprised when Jerry had agreed to watch them so Nick and Zelda could go out on a date. Jerry had given her the impression that he was still holding a grudge over Nick's actions years ago, despite the older man's efforts to make amends in more recent years. But he had gone ahead and volunteered the two of them. And now, he was seemingly paying the price.
She watched as he remained in his humvee after parking and the passenger and rear doors opened. The seven girls with him poured out, and each and every one was naked.
Inanna shook her head and walked over to the driver's side door, to see Jerry behind the wheel with his head against the steering wheel. She opened the door.
"How many?" she asked.
"Twelve more," he admitted. "That's thirty four," she said. He nodded slightly.
"Are you turning your aura on or something?" Inanna asked. He finally lifted his head to look at her.
"No!" he said. "That's what I don't get. They're not trying to do anything, with me or each other! They're just taking their damn clothes off like it's perfectly normal and continuing to chit chat with each other!"
"Well, I mean, it is kinda normal for them to be naked..."
Jerry fixed her with a look. "It's also normal for them to have tentacles instead of legs." None of the girls had reverted to her tentacles. Inanna hadn't even seen one start to, all night. Visually speaking, they'd been a normal gaggle of teenage girls, all evening.
"That's weird, because none of them got undressed in my car," she said.
Jerry threw his hands up. He whimpered. "I don't know how I'm going to deal with thi-Ahh, shit, they're already running inside!"
Inanna turned to see a trio of naked girls entering the restaurant.
"You go get them," Inanna said. "Put a veil of mundanity on them. If they want to go naked, let them go naked, just keep the staff from overreacting." Jerry sighed and nodded, jogging in. Aaina and four of the girls walked up. Inanna counted heads gathered in a group in the middle of the parking lot, chatting excitedly. Seven, five of which were naked. Which meant the girls who'd ridden with her were undressing now."
She sighed. She understood Jerry's frustration. These girls all seemed to have a serious attention deficit disorder, and herding them had been a nightmare so far.
"Aaina," she asked. "Will you find whatever clothing got discarded in the parking lot, and then help everyone who's still dressed get undressed? At least that way, we can keep them from losing their clothes."
"Gonna use a veil?" Aaina asked. "Your father should be using one by now, yes," Inanna said.
"Okay," Aaina turned, spotted a pile of clothing and went to retrieve it.
"We'll be inside," Inanna said. She walked over to the group and pulled the naked ones aside. "The rest of you, let Aaina take your clothes. You can all go naked if you like."
A ragged, high-pitched cheer went up as Inanna shook her head, smiling. "Come on, let's go get some food."
----
There was a bit of a kerfuffle due to the girls entering before Jerry could get the veil settled, but once he did, Inanna was able to smooth things over with the staff and other patrons. Jerry got the tab settled, which was over three hundred dollars for all of them. Inanna considered it money well spent, as the girls took to eating with gusto, and required no real supervision.
They also ate a lot. Which might make the owner upset, but that's the risk one takes when one's only dining option is 'all you can eat'. The cook staff seemed to like the girls, who were mostly bubbly and enthusiastic about trying everything they could.
Jerry was starting to settle down, too. He only racked up four more curse words during dinner. When he and Inanna had eaten, she scooched her chair over to lean against him.
"I think we should do something with them," she said.
Jerry sighed. "Nick told me that the last time they had a night together, Zelda's sister ate one of them, and Zelda in turn, ate her sister. I don't think they'd handle it well. Besides, that's not my-gahh!" Inanna cut him off with a poke in the ribs.
"I didn't mean killing them, you psycho. I meant taking them somewhere to blow off some steam."
Jerry gawked at her. "Are you out of your mind?" he whispered. "We barely survived dinner!"
"Actually, dinner went quite well, compared to keeping them cooped up at the house. That's what gave me the idea."
Jerry heaved a heavy sigh. "I guess you're right. But I have no idea what to do with them."
Inanna turned to Aaina. "Aaina, what do you think?"
"The park," Aaina said without hesitation. "Specifically, Rockville park, down on Churchville Road."
Inanna blinked. "The playground?" she asked. Aaina nodded with a smile. "Exactly."
"I'm not so sure that would be their speed," Inanna objected, but Aaina shook her head.
"Mom, I've been chatting with them all night. I know they look like teenage girls, but for the most part, they talk like little kids. I mean, they're what, six months old?"
"Good point," Inanna said with a proud smile. Aaina smiled back, so she reached over and mussed her hair, eliciting a squeal of protest and a frantic brushing.
"You're such a smart young lady," Inanna said.
----
The girls took to the park with gusto, hooting and hollering as they climbed all over the equipment and chased each other around and just generally had a great time.
"Now," Inanna said as she settled onto a bench with Aaina and Jerry. "All we have to do is make sure none of them run off."
"Okay, this was a damn good idea," Jerry said. "Thank you, both of you. I feel like I can finally breath again."
They sat there, watching the girls play, until a familiar voice sounded from behind them.
"Hey Mister and Missus Williams!" Eddis called. Sara and Junior cried out "Mommy!" in unison.
"Hey," Inanna said as her two youngest children tackled her, hugging and tickling them in response. "What are you guys doing here?"
"The little ones were getting restless, so we decided to bring them out for a bit before bedtime, tire them out some."
"Same," Jerry deadpanned.
"Go play, you too," Inanna said to her kids, shooing them off. She concentrated, summoning a sliver of magic and forming it into a mental warning to the girls.
Anyone who harms the two little kids will get the exact same treatment your aunt got when she ate your sister. And I want to hear fourteen acknowledgements.
A few seconds later, a chorus of fourteen voices chanted the lesson Jerry had impressed upon them at the onset. "Children are friends, not food."
"I meant it!" Inanna shouted.
She kept her eyes on the two little ones, just in case. Several of the girls peeled off and began chatting them up. Within moments, they'd been roped into some sort of game that involved the players chasing each other around screaming "Zombie! Om nom nom!"
"Man," Eddis said as he took a seat on the bench. Yarm Junior offered a hand to Aaina, who took it. He pulled her up and led her to the playground as she laughed at something he said.
"I don't know how you guys do it. I mean, I hear your kids are pretty well behaved from Mom and everyone who knows them, but..."
"They do tend to run you ragged," Jerry commiserated.
"You get used to it," Inanna added.
"Man, I sure hope so. I've always dreamed of having a family. Being a dad, you know?"
"You're gonna be the best dad one day, Eddis," Inanna told him. "Your brother, too. You're both such amazing young men."
"I gotta hit the bathroom," Jerry said, standing up. "Are you guys good without me for a minute?"
Inanna counted heads. Sixteen girls, two boys. "Yup," she said. Jerry nodded and walked over to the bathrooms.
"You mom's gonna love being a grandmother," Inanna said. Eddis laughed. "Yeah, if I can ever find the right girl."
"Don't tell me you're still a virgin," Inanna gasped. Eddis gave her an incredulous look, and then pulled out and tapped his phone a few times. He showed it to her, the screen displaying his contacts. About three quarters of them were women's names with heart emojis at the end. Inanna laughed.
"You certainly take after your father in that regards."
"Yeah. Dad and mom had it a little easier, though. There were only a few people in the tribe, and you pretty much had to pair up young back then."
"Do you remember much of the tribe?" Inanna asked. Eddis shrugged. "Yeah, a bit. Junior doesn't really remember much. We both prefer it here though, I can tell you that."
"Me too," Inanna said.
A moment later, she added. "Well, the bright side is that there's no pressure on you to find the right girl who wants to settle down and have a family."
"What do you mean?" he asked. Inanna pointed to the trees surrounding the park, where Aaina and Yarm Junior could be seen kissing under the canopy.
"Oh!" Eddis gasped.
"You'd better go break it up before Jerry gets out the bathroom. He's liable to have a heart attack, after the evening we've had."

Forget pre-rolling dice for PCs or rolling attack and damage at the same time.
Just Fill the in-between.
They say what they are going to do, you describe it while they go for their dice. You know their class and weapon/spell, describe the setup.
PC: "I run up and stab that guy" (starts rolling) DM: "on the approach you step left and go in for at a low angle targeting just below their arm in that sweet spot". Miss: it goes wide. >now your set up for the next description (they are in a low squat, easy for an enemy to now slam down on them). Big dmg: your sword slices into them piercing inches in and knoching out a bone. Small dmg: your sword catches skin and you see it tear as blood soaks a patch of their shirt.
What this does is give players not in combat, something to listen to and excited for their turn amd the acting player symbolism of action amd excitement and them doing more than just a pt number of damage.
+advice, ask them, later on when they get the idea, to describe their approach to an attack to get everyone rollplaying. ++advice, once the monster is bloodied and near death, let them describe their approach and killing blow for the bigger monsters OR to give some PC that hadn't had one, a feel good.
Let me know your thoughts!

Hi everyone.
To Kill a Predator is a work of fan fiction set in the Nature of Predators universe originally created by SpacePaladin15 whose Patreon you should subscribe to.
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Depiction does not equal endorsement.
Hope you enjoy it!
[First] [Previous]
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Memory transcription subject: Martin Russo, Human Refugee
Date [standardized human time]: December 14th, 2136
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The initial search through the offers is not going well.
“What about John Hopkins University?”
“Pre-approved for their internal loan program.”
“University of California Berkeley?”
“Pre-approved for their internal loan program.”
“Dartmouth?”
“It’s pronounced Dartmouth, and they’ll help talk to the bank to take out a loan.”
“Are there any universities in your entire tribe that don’t want us to take out huge expensive loans?!”
“No.”
With a frustrated yell, Vilek throws herself on a chair. Thiva sighs and crosses more names off the list.
I was expecting this. The US and its wretched predatory profit-based educational system is a non-starter. I am not saddling the lambchops with about a million dollars of debt. Each.
At least I’m unlikely to have to pay my own student loans back, what with my debt holder being a smoking crater.
“Hey, this is promising!” Thiva’s ears perk up. “I told Johan we were looking into education on Earth and he said he’d see if he could talk to some people at Lund University. They sent us an offer, check it out!”
“Lund University. That’s in Sweden…” I’m reading the letter rapidly on Thiva’s pad and getting more excited the more I read. “They’ve got both therapist and engineering courses. And they’re willing to transfer your credits and give you both full-ride scholarships, as long as you’re willing to start the term early and ‘establish a baseline of knowledge’. And they’ll split your classes into morning and evening so you don’t have to run double-claw studies like we usually do… And they’ll even have the UN pay for housing and transportation to Earth? Jesus Christ, that’s… really damn good.”
Vilek perks up too, both of them watching me closely now with wagging tails. “So what’s the catch?”
I read it again. Slowly and carefully. And I find myself faced with a bastard of a choice. “Well for a start… this says nothing about me.”
​
Vilek and Thiva are running the math. It’s not looking good. “What if we sell your house? That should give us plenty of money, right?”
“Vansi still owns it, even if she’s never setting foot there again. How about a loan?”
“Nah, that was the first thing I checked. Banks aren’t issuing loans right now. Even taking out any money is hard. With the economy in freefall they don’t want to encourage a bank run.”
I chime in unhelpfully. “And I don’t think they want to give out a loan for a one-way ticket someplace they can’t make us pay it back.”
Thiva pouts with frustration. “That too. Ughh, this was such a good opportunity, too!”
“It is. So maybe you girls should go anyway.”
Thiva’s eye locks onto me right away. “No.”
“I’m just saying-”
“No, I’m not leaving you alone here! I can just finish school here, and…”
“…and leave Vilek alone on Earth instead? No, you two should stay together. I can house-sit Thiva’s place and try to find a job. Maybe get enough money for you girls to head back during summer and winter breaks.”
“I told you it’s not my place, it’s Vansi’s.”
“And she’s welcome to it as soon as she gets out of jail.”
Vilek flicks her tail-tip with uncertainty, ears moving thoughtfully. “…Are you sure this is our best bet?”
“I’m pretty sure it is. And we don’t have a lot of time to look for alternatives. Says here you guys will be working with a pair of tutors to make sure your knowledge base is up to spec, and that’d start in just a few days.”
They’re my friends, and they have an amazing opportunity here. I have to be strong. It’s what’s best for them. It’s just a year or two.
It’s not like I’ve barely survived the last month and a half on this wretched rock.
​
Date [standardized human time]: December 15th, 2136
​
Today’s physical therapy session is in my room. If I were hoping that’d lead to less pain, I would’ve been wrong. “C’mon, keep pulling your leg back! That’s the way!”
My arch-nemesis is currently leaning on my leg and levering it back toward my torso with her entire weight, and is encouraging me to pull back with both arms too. I’m pulling like a beast, teeth gritted so hard I think they might crack. “don’t… fucking… say it…”
My vision is blacked out from the sheer goddamn agony, while Chasa cheerfully encourages me. “Gold star, Martin! Do it for the gold star!”
But it’s the only way I’ll be able to restore a normal range of motion without lopping my limbs off and going for prosthetics. “mother… fucking… hate you…”
Which I can’t afford. And besides, upper prosthetics are nowhere near as advanced as people think. “That’s the way! Alright you can let go now, you did an amazing job!”
I collapse back immediately and straighten my leg. Opening my eyes I can see white stars dancing in my vision. Chasa pads up the bed and licks her paw before stroking it through my hair, giving me another cowlick. “Good boy, I’m so proud of you!”
I am defeated. “…thanks.”
“Hey, uh, is this a bad time?”
I blink at the familiar voice and turn my head. Mosun’s standing there with a confident expression, and Jarkim is right beside him. They both look good, far better than me at least. Jarkim’s got bandages on his leg and Mosun’s got a clavicle brace, but they’re both mobile.
Chasa gingerly climbs down from the bed and moves over to my file. “Nope! We were just done for the paw, except I was gonna give Martin his gold star~! He loves the gold stars!”
“…I am going to eat you.”
Jarkim squawks with alarm at my threat to my Zurulian nemesis. She is undeterred and cheerfully says “No you’re not.”
Jarkim speaks up. “Aren’t you… concerned, about him using that sort of language?”
Chasa stretches idly before placing the shiny sticker on my file. I’ve still got one for every session. “Nah, he doesn’t mean it. Threats and cursing are proven to help human pain responses, that’s all! He’s a big softy; I’ve got him eating out of my paw.”
I try to sound disagreeing but it comes out as a rather pathetic whine. “…I’m an apex predator…”
​
“So you were both discharged?”
Mosun flicks his ear affirmative. “I was in for a paw longer than Jarkim was, but we’re out and healing now. It’ll be another thirty-ish paws before my collarbone’s fully fixed up, but I can return to daily life.”
That’s an insanely short time to recover from a shattered collarbone, but I suppose the medi-teddies are the leading health care providers in the galaxy for a reason.
I nod. “Well, that’s good. The rest of the posse doing okay?”
Jarkim moves a wing in the positive. “Hanya got in contact with that human you mentioned, doctor Eriksson. She seems positive about it. Slavik’s back on their farm.”
I nod. “So what are you guys gonna do? I, uhh, I don’t know what you do for work, Mosun, but I think Jarkim’s out of a job.”
Mosun grins, before getting a thoughtful look and tapping his leg a few times on the floor. “I drive around stocking vending machines, so nothing that matters. But I’ve been teaching Hanya a little, like she asked. And I think… I think I’d rather like to start a Dance school. So I’ll be saving up a bit and getting it set up while I heal.”
It’s clear he doesn’t mean ballet, but I make sure to censor myself around Chasa just in case her cheerful disposition toward humans doesn’t carry on to ‘primitives’. “I think that’s a fantastic idea. I know there are a ton of humans who’d be lining up for a chance to learn your culture’s Dances. Yotul too, obviously. And Hanya’s shown there’s interest from other sapients too…”
Jarkim clacks his beak twice before speaking. “I’ll go work on Slavik’s farm for a while to pay them back, and to stay airborne. But after that… I want to help people. And I’ve still got contacts. So I was thinking of setting up a sort of troubleshooting agency. People could come to me with problems, and I’d try to help them out.”
I laugh, but quickly reconsider as my body protests the action. It’s the most stereotypical ex-cop thing he could do! “You’re gonna become a freaking private eye?!”
Jarkim looks me dead-on and deadpan. “…What’s a private eye?”
​
Date [standardized human time]: December 19th, 2136
​
My fingers run through Vilek and Thivas’ fur slowly. I have been discharged from the hospital, but I’m still going to be in for physical therapy every other paw for the foreseeable future. Right now, though, I am relaxed. “How long, now?”
Vilek answers. “Half a claw.”
That’s not a lot of time, but I am determined to not ruin it with a foul mood. “Mm… You girls all packed?”
“There’s not a lot to pack. We’re getting most everything once we’re there.”
“Mm.”
Thiva’s currently quietly crying onto my shirt. “I’ll miss you.”
“I’ll miss you too, lambchop. But I’ll feel better with you two together, and doctor Eriksson is in Lund, so you can have in-person sessions.”
“And you’re sure you can’t come with?”
I shake my head. “Unless you got any new ideas. Besides, moving between human nations is a pain in the ass. I can’t get in as a refugee. Sweden’s been strict about refugees since before the Satellite War: I set foot on Venlil Prime first and VP’s been willing to house me, so that means according to Sweden and most other nations that I have to stay here until I can go back to the US.” Fucking ‘first safe harbor’ laws. “And since I’m a citizen of the United States of America I can’t move to Sweden on my own anyway. At least not without having a job or family or something there.”
Thiva looks up at me and says softly “…We’re family, right?”
Oh, wow, okay. I bite my lip for a second to keep from crying. It mostly works. “Yeah, of-of course we are. But that’s not how they see it. Don’t worry, we’ll try to figure something out. We just need to be patient.”
She gives a soft and sad sigh. I scratch behind her ears and look over at Vilek.
​
Vilek gives a soft beep and leans her head against my other hand. “Do you know a lot about the place?”
I shake my head. “Almost nothing. Lund’s a city in Sweden, and Lund University is around five hundred years old. Before going to Venlil Prime I had never left the US, which is almost as far from Sweden as you can go before you start getting closer again. But it was practically untouched by the extermination fleet, and the people are famous for being friendly.”
Even that much I had to search online to learn. The stereotype that Americans can’t tell Swedes from Swiss might not be true but it’s apparently not as far off as I thought.
“You’ll be studying one claw, then a break claw, then another claw of study, then you have three claws off. These six-claw periods are a day. You’ll study five days, then have two days to yourselves.”
Vilek whistles a soft laugh. “So there’s a lot of time to recover.”
“Remember, humans tend to sleep for eight hour stretches. So most people sleep eight hours, study or work eight hours, and have the remaining eight for transportation and personal stuff.”
“Hopefully that’s not going to be a problem…”
“I managed to adjust to VP’s time, I’m sure you’ll manage Earth’s. Worst case scenario, there’s coffee. Every student lives on coffee. And there’s soda, and potato chips, and curry. There are so many tasty things that you girls will adore trying on Earth.”
Thiva wags her tail softly, looking up at me. “You make us sound like gluttons.”
“No, I’m saying I miss those things because Venlil food sucks.”
Both girls play-push me and bleat with protest, making me laugh.
Mary mother of God I am going to miss them.
“Speaking of that, it smells like the food’s done.”
“Huh? I don’t smell anything?” Thiva gives me her most deadpan expression of confusion, and I roll my eyes at her and gently pinch the tip of her ear to pay back her jest. That elicits an adorable little squeak, and I smile while I get up and grab my crutch. I won’t be able to walk unaided for a long time, perhaps ever. I’m okay with that. I kinda want to have a walking stick anyway. A classy wooden one, like Tom’s.
Maybe I can be the first human with a walking stick made from Venlil wood?
​
I put out the spread. Cooking has been an extra pain in the ass with my injuries, but I’ll be damned if that’s going to stop me.
I present the plated-up meal on the table by the couch with a small flourish. “Here we go, girls. This is the meal I was going to make for you before things got… hectic. Tomato focaccia and pasta alla norma. And to drink, wine. That’s a fermented drink from the juice of grape berries. This particular wine is a variety called Nerello Mascalese, from my family’s ancestral home of Sicily.”
Vilek wags her tail as she leans forward. “This focaccia looks sort of like Strayu, but with a bunch of stuff on top?”
“It’s a sort of bread, almost all human cultures have some variation on bread. I’ve topped it with cherry tomato fruits, rosemary herbs, and kosher salt.”
The lambchops look at it with excitement, and Thiva’s the first to tear off a bit and place it on her outstretched tongue. She rolls it into her mouth and starts chewing, and her ears perk up and her tail wags at once. Her eyes half-close and she looks like she’s melting. “Ohhhh Protector… it’s so sweet, and salty, and juicy, and-and-and-”
Vilek excitedly tears off a piece for herself and plops it into her mouth. I’m rewarded for my hard work with an adorable squeal of joy from her, and she takes a second piece and shovels it into her mouth too. Only after swallowing does she focus an eye on me. “If I didn’t already want to mate with you beforehand, this ‘focaccia’ would’ve sealed the deal!”
I find myself blushing rather hard, and simply take a small bit of the bread for myself wordlessly. Thiva and Vilek both whistle a laugh.
​
After having thoroughly sampled the bread Thiva pokes at the pasta dish with a claw. “So what’s this other stuff? It looks utterly wild!”
I smile at the two, letting my explanation cool my jets a bit. “Pasta is made by combining a ground wheat powder with water, and then shaping the resulting dough and boiling it. Here I’ve combined it with a sauce made with tomato fruit and herbs, as well as a spongy and nutritious plant called eggplant. You guys don’t seem to mind bitter plants, so I figured it might be a good idea. Finally, it’s got a vegan ricotta made with almond nuts, lemon juice, and garlic powder… and basil, a wonderfully fresh leafy herb. This is a classic meal from Sicily, modified the tiniest bit for my herbivorous lambchops.”
The two take a pair of spoons and scoop up some of the mixture, making sure to get a bit of everything. They look at each other and, on an unspoken signal, put the food in their mouths.
They squeal and gasp. Vilek even squirms happily in her seat, while Thiva just wags her tail rapidly and moves her ears in slow little circle motions as she chews. Vilek’s the first to speak up. “…this is absolutely crazy, there are so many flavors… all at once! But I can taste each one…”
I pour some of the wine into their glasses, wincing a bit at having to awkwardly brace the heavy bottle in both hands.
I know the Venlil can hold their alcohol well enough to make the Irish blush, so I’m not concerned about that part. Having tried Venlil drink once, I am mostly curious as to if the lambchops will be able to appreciate the complexity of something that doesn’t taste like everclear and paint thinners.
As they take small sips, I needn’t have worried. Thiva in particular bleeps with joy and perks her ears. “Oohh… that’s rich! There’s sweetness, and acidity, and a sort of dried herb taste underneath it all?”
Vilek adds her own opinion, but is slower with it. “There’s a sort of earthiness… and I can taste it a little differently just by holding my mouth near the glass… that’s wild. It goes really, really well with the food too…!”
I laugh quietly. “Heh… I’m glad you girls enjoy it. Just make sure to leave some room for dessert. There will be chocolate cake.”
Thiva tilts her head. “You humans have meals for after your meals?”
“Only for special occasions. Don’t worry, you’ll love it.”
​
“It looks like dirt.”
“Wet dirt.”
I wait patiently with a small smile. They load their spoons with some of the moist, spongy chocolate cake and the rich frosting that I’ve so lovingly slaved over. And into their mouths it goes. I wait for the reaction.
It does not disappoint.
“MMHH!!!” “MMFF-MFFH!!”
They immediately start devouring their dessert, while I grin. “Well girls, If you don’t want the ‘dirt’ I’ll be glad to take it off your paws.”
They quickly protest. “Don’t you dare!” “Yeah, we’re keeping the whole thing! This stuff is better than mating!” “How would you know? You’ve never even done it!” “Yeah okay, but am I wrong?” “…I didn’t say that!”
Laughter and whistling fills the room. As far as last meals together goes, this one is going about as well as I could’ve hoped.
​
We’re standing outside. We’re beside the politely impatient cab driver that’ll take the girls the first leg of their journey to the space port and on to Earth. Thiva’s crying again and clinging to me. It hurts, but I grin and bear it.
Vilek smiles, the human expression looking a bit foreign on her face. “…You promise you’ll be okay? I… I need to hear you say it.”
Thiva flicks her ear and tail. “Yeah. W-We can still change our minds, if… If you need us.”
I have no goddamn idea what I am going to do after you girls step into that cab.
I smile at my beloved lambchops, give them a warm hug, a pair of quick kisses on their cheeks.
And I lie to their faces.
“Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine without you.”
---
This is the penultimate chapter of this story. Thank you for reading so far!
[First] [Previous]

I'm not really sure how to start this post. I guess I can start by saying that I really enjoy this forum and listen to your podcast almost daily. Also, I must apologize, as this is kinda long, but I didn't want to leave anything out. So, here goes....
I'm a 40 year old male and I pride myself on being fairly successful in my life. That's not to say I'm filthy rich or don't have my problems, which we'll get to in a minute, but I have a life that many would be happy to live. I have a beautiful and loving wife, two wonderful kids from a previous marriage, and a job that is not only fulfilling, but allows me to live comfortably. Most people wouldn't suspect some of the things I've dealt with in my time, but I wanted to share this aspect of my past in hopes it will help me work through it.
All my life I've lived in the South, Mississippi specifically, and as one might suspect I've grown up going to church. This has never bothered me, although some of the experiences I could've done without (I'll looking at you youth choir). When I was a young child, probably 7-8 (the exact age escapes me, possibly blocked out for my sanity's sake) my family attended a Baptist church in the boonies which we lived on a family farm. It was your typical southern style church, we had service every Sunday morning, night services that would include business meetings, and RA's every Wednesday night. For those unfamiliar, RA's (short for Royal Ambassadors) was an organization very similar to the Boy Scouts of America. Granted, we didn't have all the same types of awards or taskings they did, but the group would study the Bible and how we could apply the teachings to serve the community at large. Every year we had a couple camping trips and nature hikes we would attend, but no merit badges or anything. I suppose now would be good to introduce our characters in this story. Myself, whom I'll call Addie, my brothers John and Steven, and a young man named Robert. Obviously, these aren't the real names, but you get the idea. Robert was the leader of my RA class and always seemed to be a fairly cool guy. He was probably in his mid-twenties and seemed to be really in tune with all the youth group. Robert was very well known to all the RA classes, as we all would meet in the fellowship hall after the individual classes were done, typically to have an activity as a large group before going home. My brothers and I seemed to be of a particular interest to Robert (And yes, as a grown man I look back and see the absolutely wrong and inappropriate nature of this) and he would always seek us out Wednesday nights to joke around or tussle. This type of behavior went on for a long time, not really sure how long as I've already said, but it was long enough for our parents to feel comfortable with him around us. Before any one starts trying to throw stones my folks way, you have to remember this was in the late 80's and society was far more trusting that it is today. As such, people in the church were thought to be mostly good people and it never entered into anyone's mind what could have been going on behind the door those nights.
I remember some nights where Robert would forgo the weekly lesson, instead opting to "play games" with all the boys in his class. These games were always posed as innocent enough, but always involved....well....things that boys shouldn't be doing with other boys, let alone in the presence of a grown man. This is bad enough, but one of Robert's favorite young men was my oldest brother, Steven. As I would come to find out, Robert had cornered my brother on multiple occasions and assaulted him. One of these times, my brother and I were walking through the church on a Wednesday night, no one else in sight. I honestly can't remember what we were doing (Possibly running an errand or something) but without warning, Robert rounds the corner. Apparently, he had seen us leave the fellowship hall and decided to follow. When he saw us, something about his facial expression gave me and Steven a chill. He looked excited, almost giddy, and had a big smile on his face. He started walking towards us, saying something about he was going to get us or some garbage like that, and that prompted us to run. We bolted back down the hallway and through the sanctuary, with aim to get out the front door and make our way down to the safety of the rest of the group (As our father was one of the teachers and we knew he was there). To give an idea of the layout we were traveling, the sanctuary sat on a hill and the fellowship hall was at the base of the hill. Also, the church was in the process of building a new sanctuary next to the old one, so we had to run around this giant construction zone to get down the hill. So, we exit the front of the church, sprinting to the right as fast as we could, past the construction, and down the hill. When we rounded the corner, we were looking straight at the door to the fellowship hall. We pick up our pace, the sound of Robert gaining from behind, but we keep a good lead until we get to the door. Now, you would think this should be the end of the story right? We fling open the door, the throng of people see our predicament, and rush to our aid. But no, we grab the door handles and find them locked. We ran to the side window, trying to get our father's attention, but to no avail. By this time, Robert had caught up to us and was blocking our way to go back. Things get hazy at this point, mostly coming in flashes, but the jest of it is clear enough. My brother attempted to run past or through Robert, but he ends up being lifted in the air and carried away from the building. He stopped at the far end of the parking lot and began to assault my brother right in front of me. I remember trying everything to get him to stop. I kicked Robert in the ribs, jumped on his back, screaming at my brother to do things to make him stop. But nothing worked. This man was violating my brother right in front of me. This particular memory is as clear in my head as what I had for breakfast today. I don't remember much of my grandfather, the majority of my Christmas holidays, or a thousand other things from my childhood, but this freaking memory sticks out like a billboard. Fast forward, it turns out (not surprisingly) Robert had been doing the same things to lots of other kids, John and I included. When everything came out, my father threatened to beat him to death, Robert was thrown in our state penitentiary, and put on the offender's registry for life.
For years I would check the registry, making sure that Robert was still behind bars. One day, fifteen years later or so, I checked it and found he had been paroled, now living close to my old hometown. It was a gut punch, as I hoped he would never breathe free air again. But by this point, I was grown, big into weightlifting, and trained by the military so I felt confident in my ability to handle myself. If I'm being honest, I actually had concocted an entire scenario in my mind that if I ever saw him in Walmart or something, I would confront him and throw him a beating for everything he had done to my family. Well, the years came and went, I got married, and welcomed the birth of my sons into the world. I also started a career in nursing, eventually earning my master's degree and becoming a nurse practitioner. Having kids of my own gave me a new perspective on life and truthfully gave me a different outlook on life and I never let my guard down when it came to my boys. Eventually, after almost 15 years, my wife and I divorced. I moved back to my hometown to be closer to my support system. This opened up an opportunity to manage and practice medicine in a clinic nearby. I did this for almost two years until I was given the chance to work back in the ER of a hospital system and decided this was a better fit for me. So, I'm working my last few shifts at the clinic, when I went into a room to see a patient. The patient was an older woman, a little older than my parents, and as old folks often do, she wanted to talk about anything but why she was there. I've always been somewhat of a people pleaser, so I typically would just let these type of people talk. I think about how my grandmother and how she lived alone for almost 30 years after my granddad died and how lonely she would get at times. I figured, if someone wanted to ramble and it would make them feel better, I was more than happy to lend an ear. Well, she asked me where I was from, if I was married, if I had kids, etc. Just typical stuff really and I answered everything she asked as it wasn't terribly strange stuff. She remarked at the beginning that my name was familiar, but she couldn't place where from. I told her who my parents were, where they worked, and where I had grown up. Eventually, it came around to where I had gone to church as a child and after I told her, her face grew stoic. Seriously, it looked like someone had pulled the drain plug on her face and emptied it of blood. I looked into her eyes, curious as to what caused this shift, and she started to cry. I was obviously stunned at this drastic turn of her demeanor and asked her what was wrong. She replied, "I know where I know your parents from, where I know you from. I don't know if you would remember my son, you were so young, but I don't want to tell you." When she said this, my brain jumped back to the start of her inquiry about me, at which time she had told me her children's names. I looked at her chart, searching frantically for her last name. When I found it, everything clicked and the name of her youngest child left my lips quietly, Robert.
The realization that I was looking at the mother of my childhood monster was, sobering to say the least. She began to apologize over and over, telling me she had prayed my brothers and I had led normal lives and hadn't been "ruined" by what her son had done. Now, it's important to clarify that while we all have been successful in our chosen fields, all three of us have carried scars from what he did to us. I, personally, have had difficulty with relationships and trusting other people. I can't say for certain what John and Steven endured in all these years, but I know that none of us were ever "normal" after what happened. However, as this woman had nothing to do with her son's atrocities, I didn't want her to feel attacked or responsible. I leaned in and tried to comfort her, reassuring that we all turned out well and had moved beyond the past (Despite this not being entirely the truth). This seemed to give her peace of mind. As she dried her eyes, she spoke again, "I'm glad to hear that. I know what he did was wrong, horribly wrong. He never could tell me why he did it, he told me he knew it wasn't right but he couldn't seem to stop himself. I know he went to prison, and he suffered there, but he's done so good since he's come home. He's not a bad man, he's so good to me." She kept talking, but by this point, I was tuned out. I felt sorry for her, truly I did, but I was ready to get out of that room. Then she said something that made my heart sink and my guts implode. "He's so good to me, he even brought me today. He's out front right now."
I stood up, my legs were numb, and I felt short of breath. I quickly told her what her treatment plan entailed and left the room. I walked to the front of the clinic, looking through the check-in window out into the lobby, and there he was...Robert was sitting not even 10 feet away. My mind raced, all of my rage and anger that had been pent up for over two decades boiling inside me. That memory, the one I spoke about, played in my mind like a bad snuff film (As if any snuff film is a good one, but I digress). I walked back to my office and sat down, trying to rationalize what was going on. All these years, I have had a clear and focused plan for how things would go if I ever saw him again. I rose from my chair, walking towards my car and the gun I always kept inside. I told my nurse to keep all the patient's in their rooms and not to let anyone out to the lobby. She asked me why and, for some reason, I told her everything. She looked into my face and said, "What are you gonna do Addie? What are you going to tell your boys when you go to jail for life?" Her questions stopped me in my tracks, like my feet were bolted to the floor. She continued, "He took something he never should have, no doubt. But don't let him take you from your boys, you're a better man than that." As soon as it had come on, my crazy idea to deal with this guy like I had always wanted evaporated from me. I asked her to discharge the old woman and I went back to my office. I stayed in there until they had both left and then continued with my day. I called my fiance and told her what happened, making sure she knew that I hadn't done anything stupid. She told me that she was proud of me and the rest of the day went by without incident.
I never thought the day would come where I was face to face with this guy. Despite my blustering, I'm no killer and he wasn't threatening anyone in that moment. Since that day, I've started my new job and haven't seen Robert again. I told John about the whole situation, and he echoed my fiancé's opinion, glad I had let him leave without incident. I've since told my mother about it, yet again, was told I did the right thing and that she was proud of me. I wish that I could say I was proud of myself, but I can't. I feel like, I dunno, that I somehow betrayed my brothers by not doing something...anything. Granted, no matter what I did to him, it wouldn't have been enough. Even if I un-alived him, it wouldn't do anything to remove what had happened or the impact we all have endured. But still, I can't help but feel guilty I didn't dish out the punishment I feel Robert deserved, the justice I feel the kids he messed up deserved.
I guess if anything, I'm writing this to hopefully let other people who have been through similar circumstances they're not alone. And to warn everyone else, no matter what you think, there really are monsters in this world and they look like everyone else.
s

I have a Raspberry Pi 4 running Awesome connected to a monitor (no keyboard, no mouse) and would like to have it run a little kiosk application at boot. The idea is simply to cycle through defined applications with a certain delay. I've gone through the documentation, but I cannot figure out how to make it work. Here is what I came up with:
```lua awful = require("awful"); KIOSK_DIR = "/home/pi/Kiosk/" DELAY = "2"
local kiosk_apps = { app1 = { cmd = "electron " .. KIOSK_DIR, active = false, name = "app1" }, app2 = { cmd = "feh " .. KIOSK_DIR .. "cat.jpg", active = false, name = "app2" } }
-- init for _, app in ipairs(kiosk_apps) do awful.spawn.easy_async_with_shell("sleep " .. DELAY, function() awful.spawn.with_shell(app["cmd"], { tag = mouse.screen.selected_tag, maximized = true, focus = true }) end) app["active"] = true end
-- cycle -- while true do -- focus on clients in cycle -- end `` I am not yet very familiar with Lua and would definitely like to learn it. I am launching usingcat kiosk.lua awesome-client` through ssh. Nothing happens on the monitor. Some help would be appreciated !

Hey Homies,
I've been a long time lurker, but only recently joined and first time posting.
Id like to create some merch using the HydroHomies slogan. I will try to sell said merch in my Pod store (still being built). Would you all be cool with that?
If yes I'd like to ask for the community for 3 things.
Design ideas. Don't actually need to send any but I'd like to do the sub justice
A charity that truly reflects this sub. Portion of all proceeds will go to this organization.
Last but not least, your blessing. I think this might go terribly wrong knowing reddit but I thought I'd ask. I'd rather face your wrath now rather than later

I really don’t want to be discouraging. I work in a small department in the hospital and I absolutely love my job and my speciality. I’ve been a tech for almost a year now. I really am just struggling experiencing how techs get walked all over. Putting in so much work and effort to get nothing is really discouraging. I really had no idea how bad it was until I started working and understood why so many techs were leaving in the main OR. They can’t even give us 20 an hour. Also the treatment compared to nurses and techs is extremely discouraging as well. I take call 7 days a week split with another tech. The nurses split 4 days a week. Nothing is fair in this field. I appreciate nurses and all they do, but why can’t we have fair treatment? Every time I have to come back over the weekend for call, the nurses will say “oh well at least you made so much money” Which is really just a slap in the face to me. Because why do we have to work all these extra hours exhausting ourselves, putting strain on our bodies just to make decent money. I have even thought about doing nursing myself because I’m just so tired of the low pay and little to no appreciation. But I love scrubbing and being a scrub tech. I really just want to know if it will ever get easier. I have considered traveling in the future. I would like to know if anyone else has felt the same way and what they have done about it?how do you deal with constantly being treated like you’re not important even though we very much are?

"Look at ya, nice costume boy hug? Didn't want to get mixed up in the vigilante business and now what you wanna beat up a clown because he robbed an amusement park or something? What you think this is the comics where you toss a batarang from a mile away? No! Ya gotta get right up on their face and badabing get their clown paint all over your nice bat suit."