Clearview dental of round rock photos

On the planet Hoxxes IV was a dwarf who made a stand,
Had a beard made out of granite, and a pickaxe in his hand,
No one knew about his business, no one dared to take a sip,
For the miner there among them had some pig iron on his hip, pig iron on his hiiip.
​
It was early in the shift when he rode that drop pod down,
He came landing on the south side with the glyphids all around,
Hey that drunken fool went runnin', said a driller with a quip,
But he's there to do some business with some pig iron on his hip, pig iron on his hiiiip
​
In this cave there lived a glyphid that they called the dreadnaut queen,
Many dwarves had tried to take it and that none had ever seen,
It was vicious and a killer birthing spawn of many more,
And the tally of those killed numbered one and twenty four, one and twenty foour,
​
Now the miner started fighting, made it plain to dwarves around,
Was a seasoned toughened worker but had never once been downed,
He had came to take the queen down and did it all for scrip,
And he said it didn't matter he had given Lloyd his tip, given Lloyd his tiiiip,
​
Wasn't long before the story found its way both far and near,
This one dwarf with such brave action was drunk on thirty beers,
Twenty dwarves were sent to save him, twenty dwarves had made a slip,
Not a one could make it to him, dwarf with pig iron on his hip, pig iron on his hiiip,
​
The mission passed so quickly it was time for them to meet,
and miner faced the glyphid queen no misstep in his feet,
Folks were watching from the scanners everybody held their breath,
They knew this rugged miner was about to meet his death, about to meet his deeeath,
​
There were forty bugs between them when he ran to make his play,
And the strength of that one miner is still talked about today,
In a clash that shook the caverns glyphids torn and quickly ripped,
And the miners rage was deadly with his pig iron on his hip, pig iron on his hiiip,
​
It was over in a moment and the dwarves had gathered 'round,
On the scanner showed a cave-in and the miner had been downed,
Though the miners fate was unknown, had he found his way back home,
The dwarves upon the station gave a big old rock and stone, big old rock and stone...

I am suddenly extremely hateful of everything... and I can't understand why...
Ehh... probably just one of THOSE days...
Enjoy!
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Memory Transcription Subject: Marcel Fraiser
Date [Standardized human time]: November 13, 2136
God… Dammit… construction isn’t even completed, and we already have a riot…
GOD FUCKING-...
I hate the fact that I’m already having to deal with this so soon… I sighed as I turned to walk over to a part of the wall where I had a hidden compartment. Pressing in the code on a concealed keypad revealed a hidden compartment where a special pack was kept. I slung the pack along my back and clipped a special bracelet interface on my wrist.
I hope I can deter them away, I really don’t want to use violence if I can avoid it.
“M-Marcel?! What are you-? Are you planning to go down there?!” Slanek spoke up with much concern in his voice. He was always someone who cared greatly for my safety.
“Don’t worry Slanek… I’ll be fine. I’ll handle this.”
I walk out of my office and make my way to the security office where I see the many cameras of the parking lot. The rioters waved their signs which had the shapes of humans on fire and earth with a cross over it… These fuckers…
I take my seat next to the security officer, and begin to speak into the intercom. “Cease your aggression, predatory behavior from you lot will not be tolerated.'' The moment I speak through the intercom, the rioters seem to show offense to the idea of me calling the predatory. I continue, “You are transgressing on human institutions which are meant to improve your ways of life, and deter you away from the horrid practices of the Federation, your anti-human sentiment is unacceptable under new development. You are to disperse immediately, failure to comply will be met with defensive action against you.”
I let the words hang as the people in the crowd seemed to reconsider the course of action they should take. A Venlil spoke up however, “See?! THIS IS EXACTLY WHY WE ARE AGAINST THEM! They will use violence against us if we don’t get them off our planet!”
…
Fucking idiots…
The riot went back to what it was doing before…
I checked to see the status of the defensive perimeter of the station, the turrets were loaded with the standard bean bag rounds and the water cannons were ready to fire highly pressurized water. The water heated quite a bit as well…
“I will give you one last warning… disperse immediately… your behavior is predatory in all ways and will not be tolerated.”
They did not cease… if anything they just got worse, they began to hurl rocks into the building. They were breaking several windows and seemed to be getting closer to the main door. I saw that a few had what seemed to be hair spray and lighters…
… So be it…
I nodded for the security officer to activate the defensive grid to rid us of this riot. I watched from the cameras as six turrets were revealed from their underground storage containers along the building and began to fire into the crowd. Bean bag rounds were fired from gatling turrets and launched tear gas from along the top into the largest parts of the crowd. The water turrets began to blast the crowd with heated water, blasting them back and causing many to drop their signs… They began to scream as the turrets began to fire, many in the crowd began to bolt out of the parking lot to escape the barrage of water and beanbags. Many were stumbling as they began to scramble and scatter. Once the smoke cleared, it revealed at least a dozen that were in the parking lot splayed out on the ground.
I got worried and figured the best course of action was to notify the paramedics regarding the riot. Maybe provide government officials with a recording of the riot as well… Not even until construction is completed… Fucking-...
I’m just… Tired…
Memory Transcription Subject: Jasuri, Zurulian Paramedic
Date [Standardized human time]: November 13, 2136
The Headquarters was fucking rioted… Their headquarters was fucking rioted!
…
They’re going to murder us all!
These morons! They riot and bring us closer to death with every bit of anti human propaganda they spout! Don’t they understand what they’re doing? Do they not have brains to think with?! Humanity was enraged enough as is! To dare to step on a twig while they’re sleeping is a recipe for extinction! People like them have already done enough!
We pulled up with three ambulances outside of the parking lot of the Police Headquarters. I burst open the ambulance rear door and ran out with the stretcher… There are several people scattered across the parking lot. I wheeled it over to the nearest person, a krakotl, who seemed to be a young adult.
My partner and I carefully lifted her onto the stretcher and began to wheel her away. We began to roll her over to the ambulance before I looked back at the entrance of the building. Walking over to us was the Overseer, Marcel…
Oh Great Protector be with me…
I was the higher ranked paramedic among my peers so they gestured me forward to converse with the human… I was terrified, but he seemed docile. I was lucky he didn’t express any anger. His facility was rioted, yet he seemed, collected.
“Hello there… M-Marcel… I am Jasuri… is there anything I-I could h-help y-you with?” I stuttered as he stared at me with a blank face.
“I am simply concerned… I don’t want anyone to have suffered fatal injuries…”
…
Really?
I would have figured the human to be furious with the offenders… to show empathy for them when they were assaulting a human institution. I found that baffling… Humanity clearly had empathy, and Marcel clearly showed that they had the most with how he seemed to care for transgressors.
“Oh… From what we can tell. They should make full recoveries… No one seemed to have suffered lethal damages…”
“I’ll leave you to it then…”
The human then proceeds to walk back to the entrance of the building… I didn’t know what that was all about. How Marcel seems to show so much concern for people like this…
…
I really hope he’s not the only human that’s like that…
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
(LORE DUMP!)
:: Exterminators a more controversial topic now more than ever... With humanity calling them enforcers of the federation's will, many have begun to think upon their words with actually curiosity... quite a few has begun to dive into research, and without exterminators around to silence them, it's only a matter of time before things about exterminators begin to become revealed... ::
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
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• 1/10 Oz .999 Silver bars - (Mermaid/Viking) - $5.25 each - (qty avail: 35)
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My betta fish (his name is Fork) has what I think is fin rot and I’m not sure what to do. I’m super worried about him and have been doing a lot of research but online says a lot of different things. I will link a photo below also. Some info:

• he’s a half moon betta
• 4 gallon tank with a heater (78*), filter, and bubbler
• I change out 1/3 of his water and clean everything in his tank about once a week
• I’ve made sure all his plants aren’t sharp - most of them are silicone and he has one log
• he’s still pretty active and has his appetite
• the fin rot looks like it’s mostly on his back fin
• so far I’ve treated him with 2 rounds of API fin & body cure (I followed the directions on it exactly) but haven’t seen any improvement. It’s been about 2 weeks since this treatment
• now I am trying to treat with Melafix but I didn’t take out the activated carbon because then his tank gets pretty dirty and I’m afraid of stressing him out more

Please help!! I love him so much and I just want him to get better :(

Found this rock in Nova Scotia and was really curious what kind of mineral is causing the purple band.
In the 3rd photo you can see where I tried to break the rock to see it's cross section.

On July 14, 1976, 42-year-old John Grey, a courier for Indianapolis, Indiana’s Bankers Dispatch Corporation, made an unexpected and startling discovery during his route. At 9:30am, John turned down a secluded lane just off of Spring Mill Road in nearby Carmel, Indiana to relieve himself when something caught his eye. Lying in a wooded area approximately 40 feet off of the road, John saw what initially appeared to be a roll of opaque plastic. However, upon closer inspection he noticed a pair of feet slightly protruding from one end. Using his car’s radio, John notified his dispatcher who in turn, contacted police.
The unidentified person was found just northeast of the intersection of West 116th street and Spring Mill Road in a small densely wooded area. A sparsely populated area at the time, the only residence nearby was an abandoned farm. The unidentified body, found wrapped in several layers of thick construction grade plastic and tied with three electrical cords, was taken to a nearby Noblesville, Indiana hospital for autopsy.
Beneath the plastic “shroud,” was the severely decomposed body of a young man estimated to be in his early 20s. He was completely nude and wore no jewelry. The autopsy revealed that he suffered a blow to the head that had caused a bruise on his skull, however the injury was not severe enough to cause death. No other injuries were found. While the hospital’s pathologist awaited the results of a toxicology test, police set out to learn the identity of the unknown victim, who for “health reasons,” was quickly buried in a Carmel cemetery.
Three days later, the body was identified through dental records as 22-year-old Michael Dean Riley, a psychology student at Muncie, Indiana’s Ball State University. Michael had been reported missing by Ball State University staff on July 9th after he failed to attend the start of his summer classes. Police learned on July 2nd, Michael had finished his shift at the United Consumers Club then caught a ride home from a fellow employee. After changing clothes, the employee dropped Michael off along Interstate 69. Michael then hitchhiked to a friend's home in Indianapolis.
According to the unnamed friend, Michael stayed at his house that evening and the following night. On the night of the 4th, the pair attended a Fourth of July party together. Michael supposedly left the party on foot, presumably to hitchhike back to his Muncie home. After that, Michael dropped out of sight until the discovery of his body 10 days later.
Several witnesses came forward claiming they had smelled a strong odor in the area for several days. They had, however, written the smell off as nothing more than a dead animal. Another person told investigators they had seen an older car parked near the lane about a week prior. According to the witness, two men were inside the vehicle. One got out, opened the trunk, and took something into the woods before emerging a short time later.
When the toxicology results became available, it was determined that Michael had overdosed. Alcohol, along with a large quantity of Doriden, a sleep aid normally given to people with insomnia, was found in Michael’s bloodstream. It was estimated he had consumed between 10 to 13 1mg tablets of the medication.
Michael excelled academically and was considered a model student at Ball State. He had no disciplinary problems, and had never been arrested. Though Michael was known to occasionally drink, acquaintances denied having ever witnessed Michael consume drugs of any kind.
Michael had gotten married two years prior to a woman named Rebecca, however I could find no additional information about their relationship. Michael’s father had passed away in 1960. His mother, Mary, and stepfather, Forrest, lived in Florida at the time of his death, however returned to Indiana for a short time during the investigation. After Michael’s body was exhumed and moved to a cemetery in West Lebanon, Indiana, the pair returned to their home in Florida.
The investigation into Michael’s death continued for a short time. However despite conflicting stories from party goers that evening, no arrests were made. Michael’s case was eventually taken before a grand jury. The final report read in part;
“After interrogating some 17 or 18 witnesses, it is the consensus of the grand jury that Riley died of an overdose of drugs, either self-induced, accidentally taken, or by a prank played on him. The jury concludes that because of the drug use going on among the deceased associates an election was made for disposal of the body……someone thus conceived the plan to mysteriously dispose of the body in a secluded place. There is little doubt assistance was required in ‘packaging’ the body.”
The report concluded by determining that because the drug use had occurred in Indianapolis, the case would be turned over to the Indianapolis Police Department for further investigation. Unfortunately, no suspects were ever named and no arrests ever came.
The murder of Michael Dean Riley remains unsolved.
Sources
Photos, Death Certificate, Clippings- https://imgur.com/a/e6kVcrW
Find A Grave Michael- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27606213/michael-dean-riley
Find A Grave Mary (Michael’s mom)- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/150471518/mary-elizabeth-scott
Find A Grave Forrest (Michael’s Step Dad)- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/150471485/forrest-lavern-scott
Find A Grave- Virgil (Michael’s Dad)- https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/27606245/virgil-d-riley

issa really long one. Sorry.
Background:
I (37f) had a kid (6f) with my (ex)bf(38m) when I lived in Wales. She was my 3rd child and his 1st. He didn't want to stop partying like a single man with no responsibilities and I ended up resenting him for living his best life while I gave up a lot and raised our child. We argued about this issue a lot and it led to our break up. Daughter has medical issues and I had no other family in Wales, so I moved back to my hometown two hours away to be with my family and friends.
I stayed good friends with my ex. He became a much better and involved parent. I trust him 100% with her. For visitation for 2yrs I would either go get him n he would sleep at mine for a week or I would drop her off in Wales (4hr round trip). I drove, he didn't (until 2yrs ago).
I am single but he is now exclusive with a woman (37?). I think it's been about 9mths. I really like her and hoped he would get with her. She is amazing with our daughter and our daughter loves her.
There is no set visitation. He can have her whenever he likes and we mostly meet exactly half way. Sometimes he comes 3/4 of the way and sometimes I go 3/4 of the way. Sometimes I go all of the way and vice versa. We take each other's plans, problems and commitments into consideration and help each other out, be it making the whole journey or sometimes paying towards the other one's petrol.
The problem:
He is chronically late by an hour or 1.5hrs every time. I planned the meeting spot so we would both only have an hour's travel. Even if I wait til half an hour after he has set off, he is still always very late. He always gets mad at me and defensive when I call to see how long he's going to be. He tells me he is ten mins away at such and such a place and then rocks up 40mins later. The lies bother me more than the lateness tbh. His chronic lateness has affected mine and other people's plans many times. I have considered not even leaving til I know he's there but I don't wanna make our kid wait for an hour in the car.
The straw that broke the camels back was last weekend. We met halfway the weekend before for him to get her. He wanted to give her back the Saturday just gone cuz he had plans for a meal and a sesh. He knows I leave for work at 3.30pm every Sat and I'm on til 4am Sun.. Our kid normally stays at my sister's when I work. I reminded him of this a few times and he said we could meet at like 11am Saturday or he would drive all the way to take her to my sister's in the afternoon. On Saturday, I slept in til 1pm. He hadn't called so I assumed he was gonna go with Plan B. He rang at 2.45pm and wanted me to meet him halfway (2hr trip for me). Told him there was no way I could do it. He told me if I skipped getting ready n left right then, I could go meet him and just be 15mins or so late. I told him I couldn't be late, want going into work looking like a tramp and that I didn't trust him to be on time anyway. He very moodily told me he would cancel his night out then n keep her til Sun. I rang my sis n said there was no need to babysit. So she made arrangements to go out for a meal.
About an hour n a half later I got a life360 notification that my daughter was on the move from the place where I meet him when I drive 3/4 of the way and she was heading home. Ex n his gf didn't answer their phone. I rang daughter n asked where she was going. I heard her ask her dad n he said to her auntie's. The problem was, he hadn't rang me or anyone in that household to let them know he was coming up. Everyone was out. When he finally answered his phone I told him nobody was there n he said "well I'm at X already" (about half an hour away from me and he said it in a way that meant "tough shit").
I told him that was a lie cuz I could see him moving on the map and he was only 1/4 away from his house. He doubled down (still won't admit the lie days later).
When he realised my sis wasn't cancelling her plans, he went home n told me angrily that I had to come all the way for her on Sunday.
I went all the way for her and he STILL wasn't there when I arrived! I told him that from now on, he has to come all the way to my house to pick her up and I will go all the way down to his to pick her back up. That way it's completely fair and he can't make me late for stuff.
He said absolutely no way and wants to keep it as it is. We haven't spoken since last weekend so he obviously isn't coming to pick our daughter up.
I feel bad cuz our daughter is missing out seeing him but I also can't let him continue the way he is. AITAH?

First, Previous

Rex

Paltdorf/Taltha jointly-owned habitat

“New Cadenza”, O’Neill Cylinder

The Ganthulls were wanting to break the entire planetary system of the gas planet Hepiter from the control of a shadowy cabal of Grand Houses based in the inner solar system. Step one is breaking the grip of their more loyal vassals operating within Hepiter’s system. Step one of that is sowing chaos and confusion among them, turning them against each other and leaving the cabal with no tools to use. Step one of THAT involves us being jammed into panel vans as tightly as possible disguised as gangers.
The tight confines were about to bring us to our breaking point, but then John yelled “Aight boys, let’s go!” over the radio and it was time for step two. Three panel vans flung their doors open and Gallowglasses dressed in a riot of colors and crazy masks jumped out with automatic rifles and charged the Taltha security barracks. It was shift change, and about twenty of the expected fifty personnel were outside in the courtyard area. Most of them went down immediately, a few tried to shoot back and died. A few ran inside and we followed them. Tires squealed behind us as the vans sped away and more whipped in to dump more of our guys. John got to the door just ahead of me and wrenched it open as Johnson’s team finished off the thrashing survivors outside. The poor aelflung trying to lock the door got dragged out with it, and I swatted him aside and to the ground. Tippery double-tapped him in the face and I pounded into the room and hooked left, dropping the guy in my way with a burst before he could line up a shot with his pistol. I shot the only other guy in the room in the back as he was beating on the door leading out of the lobby and into the back. I dumped the rest of my magazine through the wall to each side of the door as John rushed in, followed by Tippery, Thriktikt, Attrull, and Buster. I rocked in a fresh magazine and slapped the bolt closed on my rifle while Buster rolled a grenade through the gap under the bulletproof glass over the entry desk and onto the floor behind it.
There was a short scream before the grenade blew, so Buster rolled another one in to be certain. It blew and John blasted the hinges out of the door with his shotgun and kicked it in savagely. What was left of the hinges tore chunks of cheap plasterboard out of the wall as the thin metal door buckled and flew into the next room, followed by a flashbang. John whipped into the room after it blew, me right behind him. He shot the first enemy in the hip and then through the chest before he could fall, spun the next one around with a shot to the shoulder that nearly tore his arm off, and gave the third one a “canoe” with a shot to the forehead. A fourth enemy darted out of the room deeper into the building and John fired his last two rounds through the wall after him. I finished off One Arm and John slung the shotgun and drew his pistol, darted to the door and finished off the wounded guy he’d shot through the wall. I covered him as he holstered the pistol (the normal one, a priceless blaster would be at odds with our disguise) and stuffed a fresh magazine into his shotgun.
Johnson’s team joined us and we finished clearing the building. Most of the security force inside had run and set up outside with a large group of Paltdorf reinforcements, about forty guys in total. We had two doors and several windows to shoot out of, but we held our fire and stayed out of sight. John radioed for the vans out front to go, and when the security personnel heard them speed off they started walking back to the building. When the first one was fifteen yards from the door Meatball and Wiggles raked them with machine guns from a hidden position down the street. Everyone else who wasn’t driving something or in our building hit them from that same flank, and when the enemy turned to face our guys we charged out into the street.
They didn’t have a chance to react before we were right on top of them. I buried my dirk to the hilt in the first one and took the second’s arm off at the elbow before slashing him across the throat. I glanced to my right and saw John with an aelflung pinned to the ground under his boot. He grabbed a handful of the alien’s hair and snatched, tearing the scalp from the skull with a ripping sound before crushing that skull under his boot. I turned to my next target and lunged, but his shot grazed my forearm and caused my to drop my dirk. My momentum carried me forward and I crashed into him, slamming him into the next guy and all three of us went down in the street. They struggled to get back up, I punched the nearest one in the jaw and rocked him. I grabbed the other one by the legs and dragged him closer. I got his pistol away from him and smashed him across the face with it. The cheap plastic frame broke like his teeth, and I grabbed him by the head and smashed it into the pavement until I felt a CRACK and he started twitching. I spun around to finish of the first one, but he’d recovered quicker than I expected. He lunged drunkenly with a knife of his own.
I caught his knife arm by the wrist and wrenched it away, and let his momentum bring him into range.
I bit him across the face, tearing through the skin of the forehead so the blood would flow into his eyes and blind him. I elbowed him in the eye socket with my free arm and clamped down on the forearm holding the knife. I jerked and shook, feeling his muscles and tendons tear and pop in my mouth. He couldn’t hold the knife any more. I shoved his head head back and went for the throat, crushing the soft tissue until I felt the bones of his neck under my teeth and shook him like a toy, then ripped out everything forward of the spine and spit it out. I grabbed my fallen dirk and scalped him with it, I’d never mastered John’s grab-and-snatch method.
The fighting had moved on. Enemy reinforcements had arrived and were already falling back, on the verge of a rout. John was holding the severed head of the Taltha security chief aloft and fired his shotgun one-handed while belting out wild rebel yells. The rest of our assault force advanced with him, yelling and screaming their own taunts and war cries. I unslung my rifle and howled, joining them in the press.
Gods, it was just like the old days!

SEVERAL HOURS LATER

The Taltha and Paltdorf forces were in complete disarray across the entire station. The civilian population was panicked and the local criminal groups were taking full advantage of the chaos. The intra-planetary trade and finance summit the Ganthulls were officially here for had been postponed and the delegates sent back to their lodgings. They felt the current state of affairs left them feeling that the threat of us reporting to them in person immediately was low, so here we were walking through the front door of a building in a compound much like the one we were billeted in. Elissa’s frilly-necked seneschal met us, visibly recoiled at our appearance, and led us to the small conference room our clients were in. I could hear the news feed inside and the chatter as the occupants discussed it. This was going to be interesting.
John walked through the door before Fancypants could open it and announce us, and I followed on his heels. The conversation stopped as we marched our filthy asses in.
John walked directly up to the table and pulled one of the two bottles out the ice bucket in the middle and dropped the House Taltha security chief’s head in it’s place before filling up a ridiculously delicate looking goblet with wine and handing it to me before filling one up to himself. He filled them all the way to the brim, knowing full well that you’re supposed to leave room.
Ok, full belligerence it is…
John plopped down in a chair and kicked his filthy, blood-encrusted boots up onto the table as he leaned back. I pulled a chair of my own out and pulled up close so I could set my overfilled glass down and lap out of it like it was a puddle. Dried blood and the grime of fighting in the streets flaked off of my violently yellow shirt. Well, it used to be violently yellow.
“So, what’d’ja think?” he asked with a tilt of his glass, before pouring half of it directly down his throat. He looked at it quizzically, “Will that yield the desired results?”
Elissa sat immobile, either in shock at our actions or disgust in our appearance. Or vice versa. Maybe both. Great Lord Jakkris Ganthull sat completely still except for a single finger tapping the tabletop, with an absolutely neutral expression on his face. Chrastoff was wearing a look of utter shock, which changed to fear, which quickly flashed to anger as he stood up.
“W-why did you do those things? That went far beyond engaging the foe, that went beyond even cold-hearted murder! You mutilated the dead! You mutilated the LIVING! You took trophies? You-you…” he trailed off as he gestured at the bodiless chilling in the now-red ice. John had emptied his goblet, and he dropped his feet and leaned forward to take the other bottle out the ice. Red drops splatted on the table as he refilled first his goblet, then mine when I drained it and held it out for him. He took a sip, the streaks where the bloody water had washed away some of the filth on his hand making it even more noticeable.
“Yes. Please explain these… actions,” Old Man Ganthull added.
John locked eyes with Chrastoff “You hired ‘savages’, did you not? Is ‘savage’ not what you wanted when you hired us and called us ‘savages’?”
Chrastoff sat down shakily, at a loss for words.
OMG nodded. “Point taken. Your capabilities are certainly not in doubt and,” he looked over at his son pointedly, “you WILL be afforded the respect you are due. You AND your people. Is that correct, children?”
“Yes, father” they chorused.
“Now, tell me why you chose to do these things."
John looked back at OMG. "The entire goal of this operation is to concentrate House Taltha and House Paltdorf resources here on their home turf, thereby weakening their presence elsewhere in Hepiter's system, correct?"
OMG nodded, and John continued.
"We didn't just create a scene, we created a panic. Vicious alien thugs scalping and beheading and murdering security personnel in the streets, during broad daylight hours! We didn't just threaten their security and authority, we threatened their very legitimacy. They're already unpopular with their lower and middle classes, and a brazen attack like this will not only make that worse, but will embolden criminal and rebellious groups. They aren't going to have a calm, measured, well thought out response to this. They're going to overreact and pull way more resources back than they need to. They're going to rip this place apart looking for a continued threat that no longer exists, and they won't believe they aren't finding it because it's no longer there and they're going to make a whole new slew of problems because of that."
"You think that your spectacle will achieve that?" the old man asked.
John just pointed at the wallscreen, where the news anchor was reporting that Central Habitat Security was withdrawing forces from several other habitats and installations to "ensure the safety of those of us here at home on New Cadenze".
"See, my children? I told you they would meet our needs," Great Lord Ganthull smiled as he stood to leave. "Just make sure that you keep them occupied with our cause. And by the Blessed Sky of Aelvald, make sure you pay them."

Unfortunately, my job means that I spend a lot of time reading and writing dense documents, so I've kinda lost my instinct to write clearly. I'm trying to streamline my lore statements as a result. I'm currently working on this template. I don't want it to sound patronizing, but I don't want it to require too much effort to decipher either.
===---===
The places I build are my fantasies of how Louisiana/New Orleans culture could evolve if it was allowed to make the most of its diverse origins. Optional further reading here and here. It's kinda an alternate history, but it might be a simulation or even a future setting. I keep it vague, because I like ambiguity.
My settings also draw a lot from the blues, jazz, rock and roll, oldies music in general, midcentury (1945-1970) pop culture and history, and voodoo/West African diaspora religion and philosophy. These are also cool things that draw from many different continents and that have a New Orleanian tinge to them. The themes of people with ancestry from different continents getting together and sharing their cultures are the same themes I see in the early years of jazz, blues, and rock and roll/soul music as well as in that of late colonial and early American New Orleans.
I try to stay away from the supernatural, although I have lots of folklore and cryptids. The most fantastic part is that these places are accessible by boat, plane, or tunnel from either our world (January 2020 onward) or somewhere close enough to it. This includes some dystopian bad futures that draw even more from Transformers lore and fanfics than our own timeline does. (Shout out to the newest honorary Autobot, Boston's own Spot.)
People from our world are a major immigration source, and also provide perspective and an excuse for any anachronisms that may sneak in.

"My son's babysitter came from a Transformers fanfic based in the 2050s, which is why we know what To Kill a Mockingbird is."

Some robots and machines for life safety purposes in particular have also joined them. Schools also circulate a small number of Transformers storybooks and comics, so that the locals don't attempt to lynch self-parking cars, conduct exorcisms of robots, or shoot down peaceful drones.
I often, but not always, have a final point of divergence around the time of Chuck Berry's arrest in December 1959. (I like round decade breaks.) However, anachronisms can sneak in, which is why migrants from January 2020 on are useful to me as a creator.
===---===
How is this from a readability perspective? http://readabilityscore.com/measure puts it at <10 on the grade level index, which is what I've been shooting for.

Timestamp: https://imgur.com/a/l4DNkYK
Photos are in the timestamp album above.
Perroz Low Profile Slick Plate Carrier, Large, Ranger Green
Includes the laser-cut cumberbund, 3x 5.56 mag pouch, and slim shoulder pads. Size large. Some salt but perfectly functional. $250 shipped $225 shipped $200 shipped $190 shipped
P365XL OEM Grip Module and Mags
OEM grip module, 2x OEM 15 round mags MAGS SOLD, Talon Granulate on everything. $125 shipped $115 shipped Will take ~~$80 $75 shipped for the two mags $30 $25 shipped
FN Takeoff M4 Stock and A2 Grip
This was taken off of my SRP G2 as soon as I came home from my FFL. $25 shipped $20 shipped SOLD
Magpul AFG, M-Lok
Very little salt, is as you would expect. $15 shipped $13 shipped
Vortex Crossfire II
Minimal salt, I think the only firearm this has ever been on and actually been fired is my Ruger 22/45 Lite. Comes with both mounts, the star hex key thing, battery installed, and rubber lens cap. $100 shipped $90 shipped SOLD
16" Complete Upper
There's a lot to go over here. In ( ) beside each part, I am going to list the approximate new price for reference. I tried to check at least 3 vendors for every item and went with the lowest advertised price.

• Muzzle device: Helius Tactical 1776 Brake ($17.76). I have put 0 rounds through this, got it on here a couple of years ago now. Installed with a jam nut because jam nut > crush washer. Timed properly (or the best I could get it, anyway).
  
• Barrel: Roscoe Bloodline, 16", Midlength gas, 5.56 Nato ($135). I have put 0 rounds through this. Previous owner said ~300.
  
• Gas Block: Kaw Valley adjustable gas block ($30). This has 0 rounds through it, which means it will need adjusted if purchased; you will need to remove the handguard and adjust the gas block to your buffeammunition; because of this, the handguard has not been torqued to spec yet; I will be setting this up for an H1 buffer and IMI M855 this weekend most likely
  
• Gas tube: Unknown, appears to be a melonite? ($15). See Rosco barrel above.
  
• Upper receiver: Aero Precision, non-M4E1 ($70). See Rosco barrel above.
  
• Handguard: Midwest Industries G4M15 ($210). This was taken off of my FN SRP G2. Very light salt. Was on the FN for <100 rounds.
  
• Dust Cover: Strike Industries Overmolded ($20). See Rosco barrel above.
  
• Forward Assist: Strike Industries "Strike" ($20). See Rosco barrel above.
  
• Charging Handle: Breek Arms Warhammer ($45). Very low salt, 0 rounds on this upper, was on my FN for <100 rounds.
  
• BCG: Toolcraft Nitride C158, w/Logo ($83). This has 0 rounds through it. It has never been installed in an upper other than this one. I bought it for this upper less than 2 weeks ago, haven't shot it yet.
  

The total cost to build this upper buying new parts, before any shipping and/or tax, would be approximately $646. It will include the pictured 5 slot poly M-Lok rail. I am asking $450 $430 shipped with the BCG and charging handle, not looking to separate these unless person who buys upper does not want them. If you want something like the Crossfire II above, let me know and we can see what we can work out.
ADD ONS

• ERGO Adjustable Gas Block set screws: $2 for each package FREE WITH ANY PURCHASE. Bought these, ended up not needing. There is a 4 pack of set screws for the bottom of a gas block to keep in place on barrel, and 3 of the set screws to adjust the gas itself. I do not know if these are made in a "universal" size, but their website shows the necessary info.
  
• TruGlo Glock front sight tool: $5 FREE WITH ANY PURCHASE
  

Housekeeping Notes, PLEASE READ
Everything is sold "or best offer". Comment with "dibs", "pm", etc and then PM me; chats will be ignored. "Dibs" implies you are taking it at the above listed price. As of this time, I am not willing to accept any forms of payment other than PayPal unless the buyer has flair that is equal to or greater than mine. As typical, no notes on PayPal.
Another note: I work third shift. I go to bed around 1200/noon EST and sleep until 2000/8pm EST, give or take.

Some of the people on the Discord created a lit of achievements. How many do you have? Will update this list with the best suggestions (some achievements also still need names), but also feel free to track your own ones.
Copyable version of the Discord's list: https://pastebin.com/7Bjup2D3
And my achievements, this one is a working list I will update as people suggest more good ones:
[X] No other way to test it: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face with a light within 5 minutes of using it for the very first time.
[X] That's not a light... that's a light.: Have someone show you their new ULTRABRIGHT 50,000lm TACTICAL FLASHLIGHT and promptly blow it away with your EDC.
[X] No, you don't get it, CRI is important too: Show someone a high CRI light (e.g. 519A), explain CRI, only for them to be more impressed by the output
[X] Will ship accordingly: Order a secret menu Hanklight
[X] Many important things to do: Ask a light maker 2 or more questions in one email and receive an answer that could have applied to two different questions without specifying which it is for (e.g. "yes that is fine")
[X] ???: Order a light autographed by its maker
[ ] Day at the zoo: Order a Zebralight
[ ] I didn't think it'd happen to ME!: Get burned by bad customer service from nealsgadgets or armytek
[ ] ???: Receive an incorrect order from Fireflylite
[ ] There are at least two of us!: Meet another light enthusiast in person at random
[X] Bacon mode: Burn yourself on a powerful light
[ ] They said money would do this, not lights!: Burn a hole in your pocket with a light
[X] Infinite loop: Buy more batteries because you don't have enough for all your lights... then buy more lights since you have spare batteries.
[X] I'm helping!: "When I said turn a light on, I meant a ceiling light!"
[X] Initiation: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face
[X] Happens to everyone: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face 10 times
[X] You get used to it: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face 50 times
[X] You should buy sunglasses: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face 100 times
[X] Seeing spots: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face with a light with 10,000lm or more
[ ] ???: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face with a light with 25,000lm or more
[ ] Like staring at the sun: Accidentally turbo yourself in the face with a light with 50,000lm or more
[ ] ???: Own 50 batteries
[ ] ???: Own 100 batteries
[X] Two is one and one is none: Own 2 lights
[X] ???: Own 5 lights
[X] Prepared for anything: Own 10 lights
[X] ???: Own 25 lights
[ ] Well, I had to complete the set: Own 50 lights
[ ] Collector, not hoarder: Own 100 lights
[X] Hotrod: Own a light with 10,000 lumens or more
[ ] ???: Own a light with 25,000 lumens or more
[ ] Portable floodlight: Own a light with 50,000 lumens or more
[ ] Top 3: Own a light with 75,000 lumens or more
[X] No, your Maglite can't do this: Own a thrower with 100,000 cd intensity or more
[X] Kilometer: Own a thrower with 250,000 cd intensity or more
[X] Food-delivery beacon: Own a thrower with 500,000 cd intensity or more
[ ] Giga-thrower: Own a thrower with 1,000,000 cd intensity or more
[X] Lightsaber: Own an LEP flashlight
[ ] Unlimited power: Own a light with 3 or more SBT90.2 emitters
[X] Showerhead: Own a light with 15 or more LEDs (edit: No, aux don't count)
[ ] ???: Own a light with 30 or more LEDs
[X] ???: Reflash lights 5 times
[X] ???: Reflash lights 50 times
[X] ???: Reflash lights 100 times
[X] ???: Run a development build of anduril on a light
[X] ???: Find a bug in anduril
[ ] Restomodder: Make a light run anduril that did not originally come with it (driver swaps count)
[ ] It's just like DOOM: Mod a light that did not originally come with anduril to run it, using the original driveMCU
[X] Firmware developer: Provide a bugfix or new feature for anduril
[X] 31337 h4x0r: Run a modified version of anduril on a light
[X] Cosmic ray detected: Have a bad MCU flash even with with perfect contact with the flashing pads
[X] Shelf queen: Run a battery from full to 3.5V or less in a light of at least 18650 size without once bringing it outside
[ ] ???: Emitter swap a light
[ ] Hydra: Convert a single emitter light into a triple
[ ] Surgery on a LED: Modify an emitter by slicing/dedoming
[ ] Steady hand: Assemble a light with RGB auxiliary LEDs.
[X] White, with extra steps: Own a set of three throwers in Red/Green/Blue
[X] Toner: Own a set of three lights in Cyan/Yellow (inc. amber)/Magenta
[X] I didn't think they still made those: Have someone mistake a warm LED for an incandescent
[X] Warmer than a candle: Have a light with a CCT below 2000k
[ ] Old-school: Have a high powered incandescent flashlight
[ ] They don't make them like they used to: Buy/assemble a light with a discontinued LED (219b, XHP35HI, MT-G2, etc)
[X] Forgotten something?: Go back home after leaving specifically because you forgot to bring a light with you
[X] Time to get the lube out: Spend 30 uninterrupted minutes lubricating and maintaining your lights
[ ] Micro-celebrity: Get a light modified by a well-known modder (Vinh, Bob, Cheule, Artie, Adair, Sakowuf, etc)
[X] Don't use it in a hotel: Own a light with a UV-A emitter
[ ] Blindness beam: Own a light with a UV-B or UV-C emitter
[ ] ???: Own a light with an IR emitter
[ ] ???: Own a light with a far red emitter
[ ] Sleeper: Install a high powered LED and li-ion power inside a low powered 1.5V cell light (maglite, child's light, etc.)
[ ] Swings both ways: Own a AA/14500 dual-chemistry light
[X] Efficiency: Own a light with a buck or boost driver
[X] Special materials: Own a light made out of something other than plastic or aluminum: titanium, copper, brass, stainless steel
[ ] Four elements: Own at least one light made out of each of Aluminium, Copper, Titanium, and Zinc (brass).
[ ] Heavy metal: Own a light made of Zirconium
[X] Best friend: Volunteer to walk a dog specifically because you get to use your lights
[X] Gateway drug: Gift an enthusiast-grade light to a non-enthusiast
[ ] ???: Buy a light from another community member
[ ] ???: Sell a light to another community member
[X] Unfortunately fortunate: Get to use your lights in a power outage at night
[X] Worst case scenario: Experience a power outage during a sunny day
[X] Elite Four: Own at least one light using LEDs from each of: Nichia, Cree, San’an (inc. Luminus), Osram
[ ] Just as good: Own at least one light using LEDs from each of: Samsung, Seoul, Lumileds, Getian
[ ] ???: Own a light with chinese mystery emitters (eg: SFH, SFQ, SFS, L50 (round die) series)
[X] Beta-tester: Own a prototype light from a well-known brand
[X] It's who you know: Own a special/limited edition of a light that was not offered to the general public (e.g. BLF versions, limited-run lights)
[X] One light: Read at least 10 different "if you could only have one light..." threads on /flashlight
[ ] Patron of the arts: Commission a modified version of anduril from a community member
[ ] Exotic chemistry: Own a light with a battery chemistry other than alkaline, lead-acid, zinc-carbon, lithium primary, Ni-MH, Ni-Cd, Li-ion, LiFePO4, or Li-Po (e.g. LiMn, LiCoO, mercury oxide, solid state, etc.).
[X] Lights and light accessories: Purchase community-made accessories for a light (diffusers, new parts, etc.)
[ ] Creator: Design/create flashlight accessories for the community
[ ] Recycling: Harvest lithium cells from a laptop, vehicle, or powertool battery
[ ] Enthusiast favorites: Own at least one light from each of: Emisar, Noctigon, Convoy, Sofirn, Wurkkos, Lumintop
[ ] Mil-spec: Own a light from any one of: Surefire, Modlite, Streamlight, Armytek
[ ] Mil-spec at home: Make your own potted light, from a convoy host or something similar.
[X] Adopted: Add a cheap no-brand light to your collection
[ ] Windy: Own a fan-cooled light
[ ] Like a PC: Build a watercooled flashlight
[X] Right tool for the job: Use one light to look for the different light you wanted to use for another task
[X] Should have brought two: Use a light for the opposite of its intended purpose (e.g. trying to read a book in the dark with a large thrower)
[X] Datalogging: Own measuring equipment to record the CCT, DUV, and intensity of a light
[ ] Texas-Ace: Own measuring equipment to record the lumens output of a light (integrating tube or sphere)
[ ] Tint snob: Own measuring equipment to record the CRI and R-Values of a light (eg: Sekonic C800)
[ ] ???: Go caving, visit a mine, or otherwise explore the underground and bring lights with you
[X] Dual wielding: Stick two different lights together end to end using magnetic tailcaps
[X] Meme value: Take a photo of your lights with a crab holder
[X] ???: Repurpose something not intended for lights as a light accessory
[ ] Some people get to have all the fun: Attend an IRL light enthusiast meetup

Excerpt from a written reading I had recently- super fascinating past life as an alien
This place is almost entirely covered in water with bits of stone peaking out into the surface. Under the surface there were intricate natural structures to be found.
Many years ago your people crash landed here. Their home world had been invaded by a force they could not match, and so many evacuated with hope they could return one day. There were several pods of people. Two of the pods fell out of the proper orbital pattern and into a different stream, which brought you here.
I hear that as they crashed they went through a molecular change to adapt to their new environment. It was something their species was very capable of doing. Where a human would take an incredibly long time to evolve, these people could do it almost instantly. Except they couldn’t do so over and over again. So when they adapted to this place, they knew it meant that they were there to stay.
You were the first birth on this planet. Your mother was in the early stages of pregnancy while on the ship.
They crashed into the water, and as they did they grew gills, webbed feet and hands. Some struggled in the change and lost their voice, others adapted too far and their brain changed too much to remember their people, and they basically became large fish. It apparently wasn’t a perfect process.
Since you were the first birth, you had a more natural ability to exist on this planet. You seemed to know how to find foods and materials for building. From a very young age you guided your people through the ropes. You could feel what to do, like a strong urge or an impulse. You had this ability to hear the planet, and you always wondered why no one else could or why everyone else seemed in awe that it came so simply to you.
After a few years, your group found the other pod. They had adapted similarly. Their speech patterns were slightly different from your groups. There was this huge sense of relief, like finding your long lost brother, when the pods became one.
Previously there wasn’t a whole lot of intelligence in life here. Lots of small critters and bugs. Some large swimming beings, but they were all simple minded. There were lots of elements and materials, but no intelligent minds to bring something out of it like art and inventions.
By trial and error you all learned how to live here. The previous home was very structure based, there were intricate cities, buildings and transportations. None of that came easily here. The people’s core nature was to have a safe structure to live in, and not having it caused anxiety in the group.
First they made these egg-like structures out of vines and seaweed. They weren’t cozy and the current would often sweep them away.
One day you heard the planet's whispers again, and you swam down into an abandoned mining rig, next to a cave system. Unsure of what it was you brought the group down, and they were shocked. They came to the conclusion that there were alien visitors sent here to mine at some point, but never made it out. Your people took the remains of technology and crafted it into useful trinkets. While they focused on the metals, you were drawn to the caves.
Inside there was a blue glow from an algae that stuck to the walls. The algae would even grow on snails and would move around. It was comforting here and nicely lit. You didn’t know how, but you knew this would be your home.
In one of the caves there was a black hole that went downwards. It was terrifying to look at, but you kept being drawn to it over and over again. Logically going into the hole was a terrible idea. When you dropped some of the glowing algae into it it would sink for a few feet and then the light would disappear. But each day you heard this calling to go into the hole. Your mother forbade you from it so you tried to resist, but day after day the whispers brought you there, and at night you dreamed of the black hole.
One day you couldn’t take it anymore. You watched your mother’s sadness as she picked at a clam, and could feel the weight of everyone’s homesickness. Again you feel the hole beckoning you.
So you sneak off and approach it, and you dive in. It’s very cold, and the farther down you go the colder it gets. It’s pitch black. Then you feel the slimy cave walls brushing against your belly as you swim down. You start to get nervous, but you hear in your head “keep going, keep going”. The tunnel suddenly veers out to the side instead of down, you follow it, your nerves kicking in. The cold makes breathing harder here. It narrows and narrows, when suddenly you swim into a warm open space. You reach your hand upward and feel air.
Your head bobbles up above the water, totally disoriented. You don’t know how to register the pressure difference. You gasp and feel this weak pull of oxygen through you and you are surprised that you can breathe the air at all.
As you orient yourself the next surprise hits you - sunshine. It makes it hard to see. Many of your tribe mates would float to the surface to breathe and bask in sunshine, but it never appealed to you.
Above your head is a large sloping rock. Very high up, at the top is a round-ish hole that lets the sun in. In front of you the water reaches a stone shore, and there’s a wide, flat space ahead. Ahead you can see a hole in the wall, a tubular structure that curves out of view.
You move to the stone. Breathing feels very weird and you crave the water. You worm your way onto the surface, you do not know how to use your legs so you kinda crawl. You don’t have strength built up enough to walk properly either. You make it to the edge and see etchings in the wall, carvings of a tall and slender figure with angular features.
You crawl to one of the tunnels and see another huge cavern through it, this one had small puddles (or probably like really deep pits of water) amidst the floor.
You knew you had found it, home. Before exploring more you head back into the darkness to inform your group.
You found your mom scavenging with the others. You announced that you had found something that would change this world for the better for all of them. They all turn to look at you with a serious expression on, they had learned to listen to you a long time ago.
You bring them to the cave and take the ones who will fit down (more entrances will be found later for the larger ones). You emerge into the air once again, and hear the people start to come up. Your mother gasps, and you look as she places a hand on her mouth and her eyes glaze over (I think this is how they cry). Some of the men move to the surface and attempt to stand with shaky legs. The atmosphere changes from glum to pure joy.
They were able to create lasting structures, weave baskets, hang fish, and develop their society. As they grew, they expanded and found more caves and tunnels to live in. One became a sacred site, others became more like city living. You watched as your people began to blossom.
You could only stay out of the water for so long before an overwhelming need to dive in came over you. Some of the people were okay only breathing air, most needed to go into the water now and again to keep healthy, you more than most.
The water no longer felt like a prison to people, it was now a place of exploration and fun. They had their structures, their home, and then they used the water for food finding, farming even. But also sports were developed, race tracks created. The society grew and bloomed.
You had this odd relationship with it. The old generation bonded over the memories of their previous world. The new generation only knew life in the caves and got to grow with the development. You were somewhere in between and felt more like an outsider, or a guide standing on the edge of everything.

I'm looking for long-term friendship. You don't have to like the things i do but please show an effort so we can at least try to work it out. I am from EST time zone. Not a must but similar time zones around that would work better because there'd be less time difference.
Couple of my interests:
-Metal, rock, house kinda music
-Anime, movies, and shitty reality tv shows (Kitchen nightmares, 90 day fiance, my 600lb life, extreme cheapskates etc.)
-For anime genre; isekai, action, or anything with magic basically
-Just recently started reading manga&manhwa. My first manhwa was solo leveling and it was the best (still couldn't find anything as good as that).
-I like photography as in, i basically take pics of anything (it is usually buildings, nature, or anything i think it looks cool).
-I also love Harry Potter, Fantastic Beasts, Star Wars (recently started).
-I love random photo trade like things you took pics of, random junks you found at a store etc etc.
-I have weird curiosities like how do wizards make galleons in Harry Potter? (I know they work but how does that economy run etc.)
-I have a small humanmade skull collection such as skull rings, candles, globe etc.
-I have a small pokemon card collection collection (recently started so nothing fancy or good)
Please send a chat request with introducing yourself a little

Mint / Used 3 times MAX. Leica Q2 "Ghost" limited edition for sale. It was purchased from HODINKEE on 11/15/2022. This edition is limited to 2,000 units worldwide.
I'm a watch enthusiast, bought this on a whim and quickly realized I'm not that into photography. Selling for $5,300 shipped CONUS. I paid $6,400 after tax.
Photos and timestamp here: https://imgur.com/a/X8YR7di
I'm new to /photomarket, but have many references/transactions for watch sales at a similar price point at Watchexchange, and I'm happy to hop on the phone / zoom to discuss. Here's more info about this amazing camera:
Product Information
Key Benefits
Color scheme similar to the very successful Leica M10-P "Ghost Edition” in light grey finish
Full grain cowhide armoring: Grey color, natural texture, and special coating to protect it against environmental influences
Comfortable and practical: carrying strap woven round from gray thread with sturdy key ring binding
No red Leica logo on the front of the camera
This special edition will be limited to 2000 pieces worldwide.
Leica Camera AG in partnership with Hodinkee, the leading destination for all things watches and horology, announce a new special edition: Leica Q2 “Ghost” by Hodinkee.
This release expands on the successful collaboration between the two brands which began in 2019, with the introduction o the special edition Leica M10-P “Ghost”. The timeless design of the Leica Q2 “Ghost” by Hodinkee pays tribute to an iconic diving watch known among connoisseurs as “Ghost Bezel”. Leica designers together with Hodinkee have partnered to create an elegant, discreet coloring for this Q2 special edition model, paying homage to the legendary classic watch with its rare grey bezel and providing creators with an alternative color scheme of the sought-after camera during this holiday season.
The stylish grey leather covering made of fine cowhide with a natural texture is provided with a special coating to reliably protect the Leica Q2 “Ghost” by Hodinkee against environmental influences. The top cover and lens are painted in an unobtrusive light grey while the red Leica logo has been deliberately omitted. Additionally, the special edition includes a woven grey yarn carrying strap with a stable key ring binding.

Looks like it might be time for a cast list refresher! So let me reintroduce the chummers!!!!
OP (c’est moi!)
Female, late 20s
Grad student
Perky emo girl with purple hair
Likes crass humor
Nerdy, petite, beard bait
Decker
​
Funky P. Beard (FPB)
Male, early 30s
Bona fide psycho piece of shit
Street Samurai
​
Mori
The GM
Male, early/mid 30s
Hypersexual kinky bastard
Likes exhibitionism, vomit, and illegal substances
Charismatic, cult-leader vibes
Very amusing, always nice to OP
The only person who seemed capable of getting FPB to behave
​
Axton
Male, late 20s
Grad student
Sexy, pleasant to be around
Has a sense of humor that meshes well with OP’s
Usually able to ignore FPB’s psycho behavior
The primary target of FPB’s jealousy
Rigger
​
Sage
Male, early/mis 30s
Assistant GM
Host of the gaming weekends
Typically level-headed, but losing patience with FPB
Skilled in martial arts
Mage
​
Athena
Female, early 30s
Sage’s girlfriend
Co-host of the gaming weekends
Increasingly intolerant of FPB
Petite, pretty, friendly... probably also beard bait
Shaman
​
Snorlax
Male, early 30s
The funny fat guy (NOT a neckbeard)
Easy-going, friendly, rarely directly involved in the weekend’s drama
Stoner
Adept
​
Chapter 5: The Lap of Luxury
We had been moving back and forth between the garage and the living room (it wasn’t the “War Room” until the gaming began) for the past hour or so. This was actually my favorite part of the weekend. I wasn’t exhausted yet, nobody was plastered yet, and I was genuinely getting to know FPB’s buddies. Snorlax told me about his former career as a semi-pro wrestler, and how an injury had forced him to start working as a mall cop. Athena and Sage were both pharmacy techs, and they were considering opening their own gaming shop. Mori was a paralegal for an LGBT law firm and ran a fairly lucrative fetish website on the side. Axton was going to grad school for social work and was the bass player for a classic rock cover band. Damn it, we had genuine common interests. Why couldn’t he have been a parolee or a gong farmer?
And I was able to chat comfortably with all the team members because FPB had taken to the master bathroom upstairs to get “re-ready.” Not only did he desperately need to change his “dew-covered” underpants, but he also needed to take a full shower (using Athena’s bathing products, of course). He would then spend nearly a full hour blow-drying, flat-ironing, and spiking his jet-black hair so that he emerged looking like some bizarre mash-up of Hagrid and Discount Tom Sandoval.
I’m also assuming that he manscaped, and I sincerely hoped he’d brought his own pink razors for this task. But as for his bushy behemoth of a beard? He took absolutely NO care of it. I never understood the statement he was trying to make by being fastidious AF with every aspect of personal grooming, save his defining feature. No matter. He was absent, and I was finally having fun! Alas, the fun wouldn’t last. The time for pre-game was approaching, so Sage and Athena went to the kitchen to arrange the shots.
Athena: How many do you want, OP?
Me: I think I’d better stick with two since I’ve already had a beer.
A freshly showered and finally dressed FPB turned to me, “Yeah, you need to stay sober.”
Oh, now that bullshit made me want to drink...
Me: Athena, make it three for me.
FPB shot me a menacing look.
Me: What? I’m not gonna get wasted off one extra shot.
FPB: I’m saving you from yourself. You could at least TRY to appreciate my chivalry.
Me: Right...
But then I had second thoughts about angering the already rage-prone beast. I didn’t want to ruin the evening for the other team members. And FPB’s temper tantrums definitely had the potential to ruin the evening for everyone in attendance.
Me: I’ll shoot two and just sip on the third one. Does that sound reasonable?
FPB shrugged.
Me: Come on! I feel like such a sissy compared to the rest of you.
FPB: Whose fault is that? You didn’t take advantage of your years and years and years of being a “student” to practice handling your liquor?
Me: No, mostly I studied. And when we partied, we did drugs. We didn’t drink. Not like this, anyway.
I was getting pretty mad, and I did NOT want to have a full-blown screaming match with FPB in front of everyone.
Me: Do you mind if I take five? This isn’t something we need to argue over. I really am trying to learn how to play, and to play the way YOUR TEAM plays. The guide books were no help at all.
FPB: If I catch you asking Mori for coke, so help me...
Me: I just need some air. That’s not code for anything untoward. I just want to go outside.
FPB: I’m coming with you.
Snorlax stepped in.
Snorlax: Bro. Just let her go outside. I’ll stand by the door and make sure Mori doesn’t follow her.
FPB: I don’t care about Mori! You make sure that dick-wipe Axton doesn’t follow her. I *know* he’s trying to bang her.
I could hear all this rancor on my way to the back door.
Me: Dude!!! Chill! I’m not going outside to get drugs. I’m not going outside to shag anybody. I just want five fucking minutes of peace!
Mori stood up. He was shirtless that night, wearing nothing but ultra-sheer light pink boxers that complemented the pink streaks in his bedazzled beard. But despite his wispy attire, the group still kowtowed to him.
Mori: I hereby grant OP *TEN* minutes of solitude on the back porch. FPB, you will use this time to meditate. Think about what it means to be kind to your significant other. Think about what it means to show empathy and acceptance. Think about what it means to enjoy the company of your fellow chummers.
I slipped outside and inhaled the pleasant dusk that was beginning to fill the air. And I found myself feeling indebted to Mori and wondering if this was some sort of cult indoctrination malarkey... or if he’d just known FPB longer than any of the rest of us and had learned how to effectively handle him. And then I decided that it didn’t matter. I finally had the peace and quiet I so desperately needed.
But how *did* FPB know that Axton was flirting with me? I thought we’d both been pretty covert about it. Uhhh... In front of FPB, at least. I decided that he didn’t actually know. He was constantly accusing male friends of “trying to bang me” when there was not even the slightest hint of attraction on anyone’s part. It was a numbers game. If you throw out hundreds of accusations, one might happen to stick. And then you can say, “I TOLD YOU SO.”
I often felt like an alternate universe version of Anne Boleyn, imprisoned by a skinny and even madder version of the famous king. FPB certainly fancied himself a regal figure, worthy of everyone’s fealty. Wait... was Henry VIII the OG neckbeard??? (note... I thought I had made an original observation here, but I came across a year-old post on ReddXReads from u/Raidan1084, so props to you for beating me to this observation!!!)
My unfocused mind ran amuck for a bit longer, and the ten minutes were almost up when I heard a quiet voice calling my name from around the side of the house.
I rounded the corner to answer.
It was Athena.
Athena: OP, I know it’s none of my business, but FPB is a douchebag. That girl who came to the door last night? She’s one of his hook-ups.
I laughed a little. “I know. He’s got loads of them... Hey, do you mind if I ask you a stupid question that I ask myself all the time?”
Athena: Sure.
Me: Why do you guys put up with his shit?
Athena: He and Mori have been best friends since before the team formed. He’s kind of a “package deal.” If we want to keep Mori as our GM, we have to accept FPB. And Mori does run a really fun campaign.
Me: So if he ever crosses a line with Mori, he’s out?
Athena: That’s what we’ve all been hoping for! But Mori’s insanely patient with FPB.
We sighed and returned inside.
FPB was sitting in sulky silence, staring at his polished Chelsea boots. I took a seat on the other side of the room, next to Mori.
Mori: You good?
I nodded.
Mori whispered, “You want some coke?”
Me: Shhhhhh!!! No, I don’t do that!
Mori mouthed, “Adderall?”
I smiled and mouthed, “Later.”
Mori stood. “Tonight, we are making a seating chart. There are six numbers on the floor. You will each draw a number from my underwear, and you will sit on the corresponding number. Is that clear?”
Everyone bellowed in unison, “YES, GAME MASTER.”
This was exciting! I had a decent chance of not having to sit by FPB that night! I was completely fed up with his constant criticism of my character sheets and his suggestions for future moves. He was messing me up more than he was helping.
Mori took a seat on a throw pillow, shoved 6 folded pieces of paper down the back of his boxers and called us up, one by one, to draw our numbers from his drawers.
Being the newbie, I was the last to draw.
Mori: Get all the way up in dat crack, OP.
I laughed and fished the paper out of Mori’s boxers.
FPB took a loud breath and fumed, “MORI, YOU FU...”
Sage put a hand on FPB’s chest, and said very sternly, “Take it down a notch.”
Mori: Tonight, we will find peace amongst ourselves and rain fire and terror on the mega-corporations! Are you with me???”
“WE’RE WITH YOU, GAME MASTER.”
Mori: Then inspect your numbers and take your seats. You should also feel free to sniff the papers.
No one did that.
I got #3. Motherfucker. FPB was sitting to my right. But at least Athena was sitting to my left. I felt like I could trust her, and I felt like she would call him out if he pulled any more of his rage crap. Tragically, Axton was sitting to FPB’s right. That wasn’t going to go well. Snorlax was sitting to Athena’s left, and Sage was in his usual spot, as Mori’s right hand. So it went: tech, muscle, tech, magic, muscle, magic. Not ideal.
Mori surveyed the room. “Not at all how I had hoped,” he muttered. “But nevertheless! The team has been assembled. The time has come...”
“PRE-GAME!!!!!!”
I actually knew what to shout this time. I remembered to pound on my chest, and I looked to Athena in an attempt to learn the tribal dance. I got close enough.
We charged into the fuel station. I stood by the non-threatening triad of shots, while all the other team members stood before their seven shots.
Mori: Fireball. Each tincture shall light a fire in our bellies, improve out spell-casting, and lead us to victory. Chummers... DRINK!!!
I slammed two shots and picked up the third to nurse during the game. Just like the night before, all the other players downed their seven shots with astounding ease.
We returned to the War Room and took our assigned seats.
Mori: The Rules!
Everyone groaned, just as they had previously. Apparently, this was customary.
Mori: If you glitch, you must take a shot of Fireball to boost your skills. OP, you may take a SIP of an alcoholic beverage. You may also do a bump of coke.
FPB clenched his fists, gritted his teeth, and growled. This was delighting me to no end!!! Not only might I get a little taste of my former favorite drug for the first time in YEARS, but Mori also seemed to be actively antagonizing FPB. It was delicious.
And here’s one for the philosophers: AITA... If you’re antagonizing the asshole, doesn’t that kind of make you the hero?
Mori: The second time you glitch, you must kiss my staff or endure a smack in the face from my staff. FPB, you must suffer The Lap of Luxury upon your second glitch... Or if you misbehave.
FPB: Explain that.
Mori: It will become clear in good time, my sweet little Samurai.
FPB shifted uncomfortably. I bit my lip to keep from laughing.
Mori: All subsequent glitches will result in escalating staff punishments, the anal gaze, removal of armor, or a spanking. Anything the team deems an epic success shall be rewarded with a shot of Johnny Walker Blue. And my trusted Assistant GM has a few new rules to add, just for the time being. Sage the Mage, the floor is yours.
Sage: We can’t afford to pay for another round of professional cleaning for... the time being. We are now asking that ALL team members please use the restroom if you must pee, poop, or puke. Gentlemen, feel free to pee in the backyard, but please refrain from peeing on the porch. Thank you. Back to you, Game Master.
Mori: Place your hand on your chest and pledge your loyalty if you agree to this; and take off your pants if you object.
FPB put his hands near the button of his trousers. Everyone watched him with bated breath. But then he placed his hand on his chest.
Mori: Then we continue planning the station takeover... NOW!
We had barely gotten through two combat turns when Mori decided it was time for leftover Taco Bell, more liquor, and pornography. Tonight, Snorlax rolled for Bat Pussy, an older film that is widely considered to be the Plan 9 from Outer Space of porn. It was definitely on the “softcore” side since no one ever actually banged. It’s a spoof on Batman, and the main character gets a little “twitch” DOWN THERE whenever she needs to go fight crime. I found it wildly entertaining!
In fact, I laughed hysterically throughout the entire movie. Most of us did. FPB even snorted once or twice. As the main character was bouncing on a hippity hop alongside the highway, wearing a cheap costume, I was howling with laughter. Possibly because everyone was a little drunk and the drunken laughter was contagious, possibly because it really was absurdly funny. Or both.
FPB: It’s not THAT funny.
Me (gasping): I can’t help it! This is bat-shit crazy!
Mori: We gotta get OP a Batgirl costume and a hippity hop!
Me: You’re ON! I will absolutely do that! When can we film it???
FPB: You’re gonna recreate a scene from a PORNO??? With MORI???
Sage: Dude! WHAT is sexual about this scene? It’s ridiculous. That’s why we’re all cracking up!
FPB: You have to understand. I’m an intellectual...
I was painfully familiar with the insufferable tripe that typically followed this statement. Apparently, so was the Shadowrun crew. Everyone groaned dismissively. And then something vaguely resembling a sex scene started up, and Mori shushed us all.
Mori: Shhhh! It might finally get good!
It didn’t. Not in the way Mori meant.
The movie ended, most of us lit a ciggy, and we all returned to our assigned seats.
Mori: Shall we refuel before we resume?
A chorus of “HELL YEAH” rang out. I wasn’t in the mood for booze. I was once again beginning to fade around this time, and I needed to find a way to get some Adderall from Mori without FPB noticing. It had already been an incredibly long day for me, even though I had been having fun (aside from having to tend to FPB’s nonsense). Maybe the beardo boyfriend was the reason I was getting exhausted at these gatherings.
Constantly having to talk him down from a temper tantrum, having him constantly looking over my shoulder and scrutinizing my every move, suffering through his ceaseless (and useless) suggestions for my next move, having to defend myself for not drinking enough, then having to turn around and defend myself when I decided to have an extra shot, enduring his seething wrath every time I so much as spoke to Mori or Axton... It was exhausting.
As everyone was refueling, FPB had managed to trap Sage and Athena and was lecturing them about why it was disrespectful to FEMALES to combine humor with sex.
FPB: To make a mockery of the female anatomy, and then to depict sexual acts so crudely is offensive to me as a feminist.
Athena: YOU’RE a feminist?
FPB: Obviously. I would lay down my life to defend the sacred honor of the feminine spirit.
Sage: I’m pretty sure it was just a bad movie. Plus, the superhero was a woman, so...
FPB: But they had to make her superpowers connected to her genitals. That’s objectification. It’s not funny, even if it’s meant to be “so bad, it’s funny.” I’m offended.
I wasn’t part of the discussion, but I interjected, “I feel like humor can be sexy. Being able to laugh during sexual experiences can create a bond. And if both partners are deliberately goofing off, what’s offensive about that?”
Axton raised his glass in approval. I couldn’t help smiling at him.
FPB: Oh, Miss Sex Therapist knows everything.
Me: I don’t know anything. Clearly. It’s just an opinion. Based on research. That I learned in graduate school.
FPB: Some idiots actually researched LAUGHING during sex? That can’t be a real thing.
Me: I’ll print out the articles.
FPB: From where? Hustler?
I didn’t have the energy to argue with him.
Me: Yes. I cite Hustler in all my papers.
Axton: I’ve read the same thing. Laughing releases endorphins. Sex releases endorphins. Plus, why do you think adult novelty stores are always so funny? The elephant trunk underwear?
Mori: I have a pair of those.
Of course he did.
FPB: You want a bottle smashed over your head, Axton? STOP TALKING TO MY GIRLFRIEND ABOUT YOUR DICK.
Me: FPB, he literally said nothing about his dick.
FPB: WRONG. He was *agreeing* with you. He’s trying to ingratiate himself. Because he’s thinking with his DICK.
I rolled my eyes.
Mori saved us by clapping his hands. “Back to the War Room, chummers!”
We headed back, and Mori was following close behind me. He tugged on one of my pigtails. I turned around to see him holding an Adderall in the palm of his hand. I glanced over my shoulder to make sure FPB wasn’t watching. He was too busy staring daggers at Axton. I snatched the pill, thanked Mori, and slipped it in my mouth.
When my turn came around, my sleaze failed, and the security subnet sent my coordinates to the mainframe. It was my first glitch of the evening, and I didn’t want to pile cocaine on top of Adderall. So I had to take a sip of an alcoholic beverage. Since I didn’t have one of my own, FPB offered me his Jack & Pepper (Jack Daniels and Dr. Pepper... 90% Jack, 10% Pepper).
Me: Is anybody drinking a beer? Or something a little less potent?
Snorlax offered me a sip of his beer.
Me: You’re sure you don’t mind?
Snorlax: It’s all good. Have a sip.
FPB was fuming again.
Snorlax handed me his beer and I took a sip.
Me: Thank you.
FPB: You’re drinking after another man??? You didn’t even wipe off the mouth of the bottle first? UGH! It’s like you’re kissing him!
Snorlax started making kissy sounds at me. I made them back. Everyone laughed. Everyone but FPB, of course.
Please remember that this was in the Before Times...
I sat back down. FPB pulled me into his lap and growled, “Snorlax now? Really?”
I twisted to look him in the face and said through clenched teeth, “It was a sip of beer.”
FBP kept one long arm tightly wound around me and used his free hand to slug back loud gulps of Jack & Pepper. I dared to glance over at Axton. We locked eyes for a few seconds, but Axton abruptly whipped his head around to face Mori.
FPB roared, “WERE YOU JUST LOOKING AT MY GIRLFRIEND, FUCK-WALLET???”
Sweet Athena spoke up.
Athena: Funky. Seriously. We’re supposed to be a team. We can’t even look at each other? Mori, can we outlaw the outbursts? We’re never even gonna get past the planning phase if FPB keeps screaming at every single person who interacts with OP.”
Mori: I’m inclined to agree with you, Athena. FPB, why did you invite your girlfriend here if you didn’t want her to play our game and get to know us?
I felt FPB take a deep breath in preparation to react inappropriately to Mori’s innocuous question.
Mori was able to effectively silence him by simply lifting his hand. Dude, he was gonna have to teach me his tricks!
Mori: We’d like to be able to get to know her in peace. OP, would you like to get to know us in peace?
Me: Yes. I really would.
Mori: FPB, these outbursts have earned you a new punishment... The Lap of Luxury. Get on over here, Tall Boy.
Mori patted his lap.
FPB: Are you serious?
Mori: I am. You sit right here until I say you may rise.
FPB didn’t move.
Mori: Should you refuse, OP can come sit in my lap. (Better Mori’s lap than FPB’s.)
FPB scrambled up, sending me flying out of his lap. I gleefully lit a cigarette and made googlie eyes at Axton that were sure to go unnoticed by the incredibly incensed FPB.
FPB awkwardly folded himself into Mori’s lap, grunting and grumbling the entire time. The rest of the team was desperately trying not to laugh (which of course, made it even funnier).
Once he had settled in (as much as he could), we continued the planning phase. Athena was successful, so was Snorlax, so was Sage. But Axton glitched. This was sure to be a problem. Mori was stuck under FPB, so he was unable to “whip it out” and administer the customary punishment.
Mori: Axton, remove a piece of your armor.
Axton reached around with one hand and pulled his t-shirt off in a single fluid motion. I’m quite certain that my pupils noticeably dilated. The rest of the room “whooped” like we were at a Chip ‘n Dales show.
FPB looked like some sort of cartoon villain who had just been foiled. As he sat indignantly upon the Mori Throne, he twitched and shifted, snarling curses, teeth gritted. And then he froze. His eyes widened. He started to stand, but Mori wrapped his arms around him tightly, trapping him in the Lap of Luxury.
FPB: YOU HAVE A HARD-ON, BRO. LET ME THE FUCK GO.
I squealed with laughter. And it seemed that I had been right about Mori letting people off the hook when they were legitimately uncomfortable with the “gross-out” punishments, because Mori loosened his grip, allowing FPB stomp off to the back porch.
“OP! OP! OOOOOOOO PPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!,” FPB screamed from the porch.
Mori: OP, you’re free to go tend to his meltdown if you want to. But I’m happy to handle him if you need a break.
Me: I definitely need a break.
Mori got up to tend to the bearded ball of rage.
I heard a bit of unintelligible yelling, then the door slammed. We all looked at each other with something across between nervousness and bemusement, waiting for someone to speak. I decided to break the silence...