Good Evening all!
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As part of our recent opening, we would like to extend our hand to many of you who have joined our server discord in recent days and weeks with the invitation to get involved and see what Revolution RP is really about!
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From 7pm today (UK Time) all new characters created on our server will receive a new player bonus on top of the 10k you already receive to help you start your new life within Revolution!
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If you are new to servers such as this, the opportunities for what you have available to do are endless! You could go down the route of being a law abiding citizen which could join the Police or Ambulance services; or alternatively you could be the one causing trouble by stealing cars, getting involved with established gangs and making top dollar!
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There are a range of different things to do when starting; you may find that you enjoy our city hall jobs such as garbage collecting to earn some money before you can buy your first car or if you fancy fishing that is available too and very exciting as you level up!
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The players that have joined us so far have been fantastic, the atmosphere and general socialising within Revolution has been nothing but friendly and highly engaging with plenty of friends to make.
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So what are you waiting for?
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I look forward to seeing some new faces and characters today at 7pm and the staff team are always available to help out! https://discord.gg/revolutionrpv


FINANCIALS

Period: Q2/2023
Filling Date: 2023-06-02
REVENUE:
Revenue: $53.82M
Gross Profit: $12.58M (23.38%)
Result: $991 000 (ebitda)
EPS: $0.0581
Outstanding Shares: 6.49M
BALANCE:
Cash: 63.92M
Debt: 8.79M
FINANCIAL EVALUATION/SCORE:
Financial Score - Altman: 3.53
Financial Score - Piotroski: 5.00
Company Description:
Hurco Companies, Inc., an industrial technology company, designs, manufactures, and sells computerized machine tools to companies in the metal cutting industry worldwide. The company's principal products include general-purpose computerized machine tools, including vertical and horizontal machining centers, turning centers, and toolroom machines. It also provides computer control systems and related software for press brake applications. In addition, the company offers machine tool components, automation integration equipment, and solutions for job shops; and software options, control upgrades, and accessories and replacement parts for its products, as well as customer service, training, and applications support services. It serves independent job shops and specialized short-run production applications within large manufacturing operations, as well as precision tool, die, and mold manufacturers in aerospace, defense, medical equipment, energy, automotive/transportation, electronics, and computer industries. The company sells its products under the Hurco, Milltronics, and Takumi brands through independent agents and distributors, as well as through its direct sales and service organizations. Hurco Companies, Inc. was incorporated in 1968 and is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana.

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First Chapter
Chapter Fifteen
“Thank you, Ms. President, and Mr. Secretary-General. It’s my privilege to come and speak to everyone present during such a momentous time in human history. One which, I hope, will lead to a brighter future for us all…”
US President Correa’s boilerplate beginning flowed out as she scanned the room. Behind her rostrum sat a larger dais tiled with green marble, behind which sat the UN President, Secretary-General, and Under-Secretary-General. Two huge screens flanked the dais, and those screens now showed Correa’s face as she continued.
“…and we are committed to our country’s pledge to finding a peaceful and just way for Coalition technology to be incorporated worldwide, and to not attempt any reverse-engineering of our own. Make no mistake; we do not do this out of any sense of altruism or fairness, as pleasant as that may sound. We will hold this pledge sacred for the simple reason that, if the United States were to attempt such efforts the rest of the world would, without a doubt, find out. That, of course, would lead to a great instability.”
‘Great instability’ was diplomatic-speak for ‘the rest of the world then gangs up on the USA and then everything goes to hell’.
“I know there has already been a great deal of debate in this august hall as to the best way to proceed forward, in a fair and impartial manner. We believe that we have found what one might call a ‘trial run’ which will allow us to work out such matters.”
The general murmuring from the many semi-circular rows of desks in front of her increased.
“To begin with, during the first weeks after first contact we wanted to make sure our guests from the Coalition would not starve to death. Much like humanity’s own ships during the Age of Sail, Coalition exploration vessels store enough provisions for years…but such provisions never last. They have very advanced recycling, but mostly for water and even that is only a stop-gap measure. It is unknown even at this time as to how long it will take to repair the Exultant Finger of Rithro, and we did not want to risk the crew running out of food.
“Therefore, we undertook an emergency effort to have their ship’s medic examine various Earth foods to determine their compatibility with our guests’ varied biochemistries. I am pleased to report that there are quite a few Earth foodstuffs which are indeed compatible, although there are some specific items which act as allergens amongst some of the Coalition species. During these efforts, we did learn a bit about how their alien biochemistries work…information which has been duly published and is now openly available. We also began to get glimpses of something wonderful, and asked the Coalition crew for more details. They supplied us with some general ideas of what their medical technology can accomplish; I must emphasize that we do not possess any knowledge of how they can perform such miracles.”
Now the murmuring got quite a bit higher, but not quite to the point where they’d have to call for order.
“Yes, I use the word ‘miracles’ advisedly. For example, take Captain Sadaf. You have all seen her, and how she moves like a person in the prime of their life. Now. What if I told you that she is a little over four hundred years old?”
The murmuring died down into a shocked silence.
“Her species, the auhn, is no more long-lived than we are…but they are able to regenerate and remove the effects of aging. I hope the esteemed ambassadors can see what I am driving at. I propose that we set up a research institute, international in scope, to be placed at a neutral location which is still to be determined. The purpose of that institute will be to study and adapt Coalition medical technology for use in humans.”
Now the murmuring started again; she hoped they were actually listening instead of hatching side-deals with each other.
“You all have families and friends. I’m sure you have at least one family member, one good friend, who died of some horrible and unnecessary affliction. Think of what this means to the world, to us. It is also an excellent way to determine the inevitable issues and frictions which will arise from such a concerted international effort, and that, in turn, will inform our efforts in mutual reverse-engineering of other Coalition technology.
“I know this is, in many ways, a frightening time. Change can be frightening. But I am convinced that you will all know the right way forward, and that you will all see the need for us to unite in this matter, even if others may not be so clear-cut. I thank you for the opportunity to speak.”
As she stepped away from the rostrum, the UN President cleared his throat.
“We will now begin the debate on Madame President Correa’s proposal. Paper copies, with specifics of the proposal, are now being distributed to you all. We’ll now begin the debate period…yes, the gentleman from Portugal…?”
__________
Correa’s Chief of Staff was a shorter, tubby man with an olive complexion by the name of Pablo Rosas. He and Correa sat in a White House conference room, staring at a big screen which now showed the results of the UN vote. “Well, I suppose that went about as well as we could expect,” said Rosas.
“Yep. I was surprised they even agreed with our asking them to kick in some money.”
Rosas chuckled. “Keep in mind that all of this new medical tech will be available for anyone patent-free. Should be air-tight legally, since nobody here on Earth invented it; we’re merely adapting it. I think that was the sweetener we needed to get it passed.”
The president gave a brief nod, then tapped a few keys on the controls in front of her. The screen now showed a world map. “Now we just have to figure out where to put the damn thing without everyone getting butt-mad about it.”
“Hmm.” Rosas laced his fingers over his substantial gut as he regarded the map. “Someplace not ‘the usual’, then.”
Correa growled in frustration. “I keep thinking Switzerland, but I know there’s gonna be a lot of shit flung about that it’s too European-centric. Taiwan would be great; they’ve got both a good tech base and excellent transport infrastructure.”
“But way too controversial, for obvious reasons,” replied Rosas. “Japan?”
“China will, again, kick up a fuss. Huh. New Zealand?”
“That might work. They tend to be more neutral…but then again some might say they’re in too close with Australia, and that this whole effort is too Western-centric.” His eyes flicked back to north on the map. He was about to move his gaze elsewhere, but then he paused. “What about Iceland?”
“Iceland?” Correa almost scoffed, then looked more thoughtfully at the map. “Okay, they’re a NATO member which is a minus. But they tend to remain mostly neutral, which is a plus. Decent transportation infrastructure…don’t we have a naval air base there?”
“I think so, let me check…” Rosas tapped at his phone. “Hey, Jack? What can you tell me about any US naval air bases in Iceland? Just the highlights.” After a couple of minutes, he responded with a curt, “Okay, that’s enough, thanks.”
He put his phone away. “We kinda-sorta have one, at a place called Keflavik. The base there used to be a lot bigger during the Cold War. Then we shut it down after the Soviets were no longer a going concern. Iceland uses it now, and they allow us to fly submarine-search aircraft out of there, but a few years ago they nixed the DOD’s request to rebuild it into a more permanent base.”
“That does work in their favor. It makes for better optics if they’re known for keeping NATO at arm’s length.”
Rosas sat up. “Think the UN will go for it?”
“We can only try. I’ll have our ambassador in Reykjavik make some discreet inquiries, let’s see if they’d be okay with our proposing them as a candidate.”
The Chief of Staff smiled. “If it goes through, this institute will be pumping well north of a billion dollars per year into their economy. That should make it more than ‘okay’.
__________
Agent Cécile Savoie sat in a secure-location breakroom, silently grumbling as she held an as-yet un-drunk mug of coffee in her hands. As the agent-in-charge of the security detail during the Camp David incident, she’d been put on administrative leave, right alongside every other agent who’d been there. But it wasn’t like she had much down time; the inquiry board into that incident now summoned her damn near every other day for yet another round of tedious questioning.
“Hey,” said Hanson as he strolled in, looking just as sour as she felt.
She looked up in surprise. “Hey yourself. I thought you were assigned to the alien detail.”
“I was,” he said as he seated himself across the circular table from her. “Guess being in Alabama when the shitshow went down wasn’t far enough away to be completely out of suspicion. I just finished running my own gauntlet. But the rumor is, I’m getting it easy compared to everyone who was at Camp David, including the special forces people. Especially you.”
“Yeah, it’s pretty much a colonoscopy every day,” she muttered. “Going over the timeline, where I was at which times, who I had direct line of sight on, who I was in radio contact with.” She finally sipped her coffee.
Hanson’s sour expression deepened. “Do you really think it was one of us?”
She sighed. “It has to be. My gut tells me that there’s more than one mole and I told the inquiry board as much. The fuckers who got in knew too much about our patrol patterns, where everyone was, when they’d have a clear shot at an infil. That means someone with access to our methods and comms, and as to the latter we don’t use CB radios.”
The other agent leaned back. “Fuck. I wish I knew why any of us would do that. We’re supposed to be quiet professionals, not frothing radicals.”
Savoie turned the mug in her hands. “Not to tell tales out of school but, through the whisper network, they’ve been leaning hard on the captured dudes from the attack. Apparently one of their main ‘objections’,” and here she made some one-handed air quotes, “is that they think the whole Breaker thing is a ruse. It’s all smoke and mirrors, so that we’ll beg the Coalition to come and save us. And then…well, it gets vague after that but I guess they claim that at best we’ll get turned into the galactic equivalent of a Native American reservation. Worst case, we all get harvested for our precious bodily fluids.”
Hanson stared at her for a moment in disbelief. “That is, if you will forgive the uncouth term, utterly retarded. For chrissake, the Hubble got some beautiful shots of their ship once they’d spun that shield around to reveal it to us. I mean, I’m no spacecraft expert but even I could tell it had gotten the shit pounded out of it.”
She responded with a shrug. “Hey, Flat Earthers are still a thing.”
“Flat Earthers don’t stage FUCKING mortar attacks in our nation’s capital,” snapped Hanson. Then he subsided and spoke more softly. “Sorry, I shouldn’t be so on edge. This whole thing just pisses me off.”
“Join the club,” said Savoie as she sipped more coffee. “I just don’t get it, though.”
Hanson made a gentle ‘continue’ wave of his hand.
She leaned forward. “Okay. Our comrades in the CIA managed to identify the four who made it into the compound. They were all mercenaries, each with at least ten or fifteen years of experience in kicking ass around some of the worst hot spots in the world. Syria, Burma, bunch of places in Africa. One of ‘em even turned out to be ex-Wagner group.”
“Okay?” It was a leading single-word question, but not an unkind one.
“So why was the rest of the attack made up of nothing but a bunch of goddamn shit-kickers? And that includes the aborted attempt in Decatur. I’ve seen the files of those we rounded up in the Camp David attack. They were all low-life idiots just banging around, maybe they might have once held a gun in their lives. Hell, from what I’ve heard, the shootings that triggered the alarm at Camp David were an accident; those intruders were supposed to sneak around that patrol, not kill them. They all had the same top-of-the-line kit, so we know whoever is behind this has deep pockets. Why not hire an entire bunch of competent people instead of doing it onesy-twoseys?”
“It is a puzzle.” Hanson got up and set a styrofoam cup of water into the nearby microwave. As the cup turned within its electromagnetic prison, he leaned against the nearby counter and pondered her question. “Maybe the team in the woods was intended just as a distraction?”
“That’s what I thought at first, but then I reconsidered. I mean, what if the four who went in failed? You’d still need a proper backup plan. Same thing with the Decatur bunch. By the way, did they ever catch them?”
Hanson let out a dark chuckle. “Decatur PD found a pile of vests and rifles, hastily wiped down. They were able to pull a few partial prints off of ‘em. My guess is they’ve fled to the proverbial four winds, hoping to lay low for the rest of their lives. We’ll nab ‘em eventually.”
The microwave dinged and he retrieved his hot water, then pulled a tea bag out of his jacket pocket as he re-seated himself.
Savoie smiled. “I never figured you for a tea guy.”
He unwrapped the bag and with a bit of ceremony dunked it into his cup. “Well, I used to be a coffee guy, but my gut doesn’t agree with the acidity.”
“We do have tea here, you know.” She pointed to the storage bins behind him.
“Yeah, but it’s cheap-ass stuff. The brand I like is expensive, but worth it…” Hanson’s eyes widened as he trailed off.
She raised an eyebrow. “Hanson? Do you smell burnt toast?”
“They couldn’t afford it,” he said in a near-whisper.
Savoie was about to tell him to stop being overly dramatic, then she realized he might be on to something and that she didn’t dare distract him. “Keep talking.”
He leaned forward, his forearms on the table. “Okay. Imagine you’re a hard-bitten mercenary. You’ve been in the literal shit, in every nasty conflict anyone cares to name. Somehow, someone finds you and comes to you. They say ‘hey, these aliens are bad news, do you want to kill them?’ Even if you, as the hypothetical mercenary, are down with the cause…”
“From what the intruders were yelling, they were,” said Savoie.
“Yeah but even then, our mystery financier is asking you to infil and exfil out of one of the most heavily guarded pieces of real estate on the planet. Oh, and kill a bunch of special-forces-maybe and aliens-definitely in between. What do you do then?”
She replied with a grim smile. “If I’m that mercenary, then I ask for a metric fuck-ton of money. And there were four of them, they would have all done the same. Hell, they must have been doing collective bargaining.”
Hanson dunked his tea bag as he thought it through. “Okay, so our mystery mastermind has a lot of money, but not billions on hand to hire a literal army of hard cases. Huh. So those other dipshits might indeed have been a distraction.”
“Maybe. They must have also spent quite a bit on the mortar attack. That wasn’t made by some hobbyist in their bedroom, they knew what they were doing. Given that nobody saw them set up the launcher or leave, they were more pro.” Savoie hoped that the FBI’s efforts to track the various mortar components turned up something soon. Thus far, those efforts were bogged down; as it turned out, quite a few companies had ordered the identified components, and tracking the subsequent second-hand purchases was time-consuming.
“And those mortar-making pros would be more expensive.” Hanson sipped a bit of tea. “Did they ever get anything off of the launcher itself?”
“Sadly, no. Turns out the whole damned thing was homemade, constructed out of tubing and other off-the-shelf components. It was also wiped down thoroughly, no prints. Like I said, pros.”
“But limited in resources,” said Hanson. “Which explains one of the things that’s bugged me. Namely, that our OPFOR didn’t use some proper artillery. If they have a couple of moles in the Secret Service, then it should be easy to recruit and pay some military dudes to slip ‘em some gear and alter the logs. They could stow a howitzer inside a semi-tractor-trailer. You could park that thing anywhere up to 25 miles away. Use a single 155mm Excalibur GPS-guided munition, boom. That would have pretty much obliterated the stage and everyone on it. Then you just re-stow the howitzer and toodle off all innocent-like, right when everyone is freaking the hell out.”
“So they couldn’t afford that type of arty strike,” she said. “Or they simply didn’t have the contacts to pull that off. Hmm. I wonder if our moles are getting paid at all?”
Hanson resumed his thousand-yard stare. “The mortar attack must have been planned first. The other two attacks feel much more like rush jobs.”
“Eh? Oh, I get it. Sadaf’s speech was known well in advance. It was going to be one of her first big public appearances since the initial presidential speech. They were broadcasting it online to the world. Having her get turned into chunky red salsa, in real time, would be one helluva statement. So that’s what they focused on.” She drank a bit more coffee, and now it was time for her eyes to widen. “Our mole or moles didn’t arrive at Camp David until after Sadaf’s speech was announced.”
“That…oh, yeah, that makes sense. Originally the mortar attack is the OPFORs’ only focus, but yet somehow they’ve suborned one or two Secret Service agents and they have ‘em in their back pocket. Then one, or better yet both, of the moles gets assigned to the Camp David detail, and they realize that now that they have a golden opportunity to get at the other aliens as well. So they go off and hire four pros for the actual attack inside, plus a bunch of chucklefucks to act as a distraction, because that’s all they can afford since the four pros are asking for some serious money.”
Savoie leaned forward. “When did Chao and Grakosh leave Camp David?”
“It was, ah, three? No, four days after we got everyone settled, both the aliens and the special forces types.”
“Okay, so then the OPFOR gets word, courtesy of our moles, that one of the aliens is now heading to Alabama. But now they’re stretched so thin that they can’t afford anything other than to hire another bunch of dipshits to make a run at them and hope for the best.”
“And then the second bunch lets the FNG drive.”
They both laughed, but that humor settled down as they both thought through the chain of inference.
“It is pretty thin,” said Savoie at last. “There’s a lot of assumptions in there.”
“Yeah. But I do like the idea of our moles getting assigned at the last minute.”
She rubbed her forehead. “We had a bunch of new people come in when they decided to stow the Rithro crew there. Seven, no eight in all.”
“It’s a place to start,” said Hanson. He finished his tea. “C’mon, let’s see if we can get a meeting with the inquiry board.”
__________
A little while later and not very far away, three people sat in a well-lit but otherwise deadly dull room. At least the chairs were somewhat comfortable. Matt and Martinez sat at two chairs against one wall, while across from them McCoy sat sprawled sideways on another with a foul look on her face. She glowered at the far beige-painted wall. “This completely sucks. Why can’t we have our phones? I could at least play some mahjong.”
“This is a secure location, Corporal,” replied Matt. “Ixnay on the onephays.”
Martinez’s leg jittered. “How long are we gonna sit here? They said they’d call us in, like, an hour ago!”
“Dunno, it’s some kind of last-minute interview thing,” replied Matt with Zen-like calm.
The corporal looked over at Matt. “I don’t get you, man.”
Matt grinned. “Nobody gets me. I’m like the wind, baby!”
“That’s not…I mean, I watched you open up a dude like he was a bag of fuckin’ Doritos using nothing but a fuckin’ knife. Now you’re being all Caine from ‘Kung Fu’.”
“It’s good to know that the classics are still appreciated,” said Matt.
Martinez pointed at him. “If you start calling me ‘Grasshopper’ I will shoot you.”
McCoy turned her glare to the ceiling. “Maybe it’s a psychological test. They want to see if we crack under pressure and start yakking secrets.”
“I mean, I’m sure they’re recording us right now,” replied Matt. “But it’s merely as a precaution. I am also five-nines certain that none of us are suspects. We weren’t integrated into the compound’s overall security, and thus it would be unlikely that we could have let our four attackers in.”
“Not to mention, we were the ones to kill ‘em,” added Martinez. “Well, except for the one that Takh took care of.”
“Yep. This is…I won’t call it a formality, but the board just wants to know where you were and what you saw. Walk them through your personal timelines, understand? Tell them only what you know. If you don’t know something, then say so.”
McCoy turned herself around so that she now sprawled the other way. “This whole bullshit just bugs me. Takh and the others are off with a bunch of strangers and I…I mean, we aren't there to help protect them.”
Matt and Martinez shared a meaningful glance. “From what I heard, Takh is quite capable of taking care of himself,” said the latter with a grin. “You told me he pitched that one dude across the room like he was throwing a softball.”
For once, the petite corporal looked a bit flustered. “Yeah, but, I mean, what if some other potential bad guy gets the drop on him with a gun? I don’t like not being there. I just wanna know that he’s okay. I should be there, just to make sure.”
The smaller man snapped his fingers in the face of the taller, who sighed and took out his wallet. With great ceremony, Matt pulled out a five-dollar bill and placed it upon the now-upraised palm of Martinez.
“Told ya,” said Martinez with a grin.
She sat up and glared at them both. “That doesn’t mean anything! Takh is a good guy!”
“Nobody said he wasn’t,” replied Matt as he stowed his wallet. “He is indeed a good guy.”
“Yeah, seriously, we’re glad you two hooked up,” added Martinez. “Takh’s solid. Hell, I’d let him date my sister.”
“I. Am. Not. Hooked Up. With ANYONE.” McCoy now looked furious enough to chew nails.
Martinez stroked his chin. “Kissing might be a problem, though.”
Matt performed a similar chin-stroking action. “Hmm, indeed, Corporal, I do believe it might be a serious issue. One has all of those mandibles to contend with.” He hooked his fingers next to his mouth in an approximation of an udhyr’s face. “Still, I think that, with enough will and effort, one could figure it out. Like the man said, life finds a way.”
“But how much tongue is he packing?” posed Martinez. “You know what the man also says. Big dude, big tongue. Could make things more interesting, all around.”
The woman did not look amused. “Martinez, Toke? You are now both officially gigantic flatulating assholes.”
“C’mon, McCoy!” protested Martinez. “Think of it this way. A few years from now, let’s say we filthy humans are now part of the Coalition and I’m at some meet ‘n greet, and I just so happen to spy me an oh-so-very-fiiine udhyr mamacita from across the room. Now, I wanna do my bit for my species and approach her, and get some good old inter-species cultural interaction going on. But there’s all sorts of questions. How do I compliment her without insulting her culture? How am I supposed to get in good with her? How do the mechanics work? How do the various bits line up? We need details! You’re at the tip of the spear, we all need good intel!”
McCoy slumped back into her seat. “Over seven hundred billion Dimmadollars of defense spending, and yet somehow I wind up stuck in a room with you two fuckos…oh, by the way, Toke,” she added, pointing a finger at Matt, “why the hell can you and Sarge never go back to Okinawa?”
“Nice distraction, McCoy,” said Martinez. “My guess is some sort of wet-work shit.”
Matt just smiled. “Oh for fuck’s sake, I don’t kill everyone I meet. I was a Second LT at the time, managed to somehow leapfrog my way into officer ranks all the way from enlisted. Anyways, the Okinawa affair was merely a case of, well, one particular case of rye whiskey. The good sergeant…was he a sergeant then? Oh yeah, we had done some other stuff I can’t tell you about in someplace I can’t tell you where, and we were celebrating Shaw getting his third stripe. We’d got ahold of the previously-mentioned case of whiskey and then we began toasting to each other’s good health. We did a lot of toasting. Quite a lot of toasting. As you can imagine, the toasting went on and on until we, um, well we did some unwise things. It started out with us sparring-for-fun with each other in public and escalated from there. No locals were harmed, and nothing we did was hella illegal, or I would’ve never made Captain. Buuut the local government would definitely throw a shitfit if me or, God forbid, both of us set foot back on the island.” He chuckled. “Hell, the Okinawan customs people probably still have both of our pictures taped up inside their booths with a big old sign saying ‘DO NOT ADMIT THIS PERSON, YOU FOOL’ written above them.”
“What did you do?” asked Martinez. His eyes were big and soulful, like a kid asking for yet one more story before bedtime.
Matt shrugged. “I mean, I don’t remember much for obvious reasons. I’m almost sure we didn’t piss on any monuments, that would have definitely been cause for a serious demotion. We did do a number on some shrubbery, that I do remember. We decided it needed to be trimmed back, and so we did so. Using our bare hands. Seemed like a good idea at the time.”
A fearsome light came into McCoy’s eyes. “Martinez, do you know what this means?”
He looked at her all uncertain. “Um, Toke and Sarge have cast-iron livers?”
“No, you fool. Blackmail material.”
Matt pointed back at her. “Hey, now, I told you that in confidence. Besides, Shaw has a lot more to contend with right now.”
The reminder of the sergeant’s current crippled state brought the elevated atmosphere of the room back down. McCoy nodded as her smile faded. “Right. Hey, did you see the Prez’s speech at the UN?”
“Yep,” said Matt. “From what I’ve read, the political wrangling after it seems pretty tame compared to the usual.”
Martinez snorted. “No shit. Did either of you see the laundry list of shit that we might be able to do? Anti-aging, limb regrowth, cancer treatments which work well and which don’t half-kill the patient…hell, maybe even Alzheimer’s could be in our rear-view mirror. The grand high muckity-mucks are falling all over themselves to get that out into the world, for themselves if nobody else.”
“You’re way too cynical, Martinez,” said Matt.
“Oh fuck off. What if…okay, I know this sounds like a cheesy sci-fi concept, but what if they hoard all of the good shit for themselves and we peons get just the crumbs?”
Matt lapsed back into his meditative demeanor. “In that case, my dear corporal, you or I or McCoy or someone like us will show those hypothetical elites that, while they are indeed long-lived, they are not in fact immortal.”
The trio fell into silence for a few minutes. Then Martinez leaned over towards Matt. “Ah, a little birdie told me you were involved in questioning the prisoners we nabbed at Camp David.”
“I merely facilitated certain conversations,” replied Matt.
Martinez sighed. “What the fuck does that mean?”
“Ask me no questions and I will tell you no lies…Corporal.”
McCoy let out a growl. “Well, I heard these terrorist assholes are saying that the Breakers aren’t real, that it’s all fake videos from the Coalition.”
“Just to play devil’s advocate,” said Matt, “our AI image and video generation is already getting to the point where, soon, we puny humans could manufacture such evidence.”
“What?” Martinez looked as if he was about to launch himself at Matt.
Matt held up a calming hand. “I’m not saying it is fake. The Hubble pics are damned convincing.”
Martinez hiked up one foot to place it on his seat, then rested his chin on his knee. “Fuck. I guess it didn’t convince everyone.” He mused for a few moments. “Wait. What if we made it even more convincing?”
“How?” asked Matt.
“We send some humans up to the Rithro. Two or three at least. The boats can still make it up to the ship, right?”
For once Matt looked uncertain. “I think so? Dunno how many times they can come and go without recharging, we’ll have to ask ‘em.”
“Right, so we set up an even better publicity stunt than the Hubble pics. Choose a few people, from all over the world. We have ‘em travel up to the Rithro, take pics and video up close showing the damage. Even take ‘em inside the ship and get a full tour, maybe…if the crew is okay with that, of course.”
“Huh.” Matt sat back and pondered the idea. “That’s a really good idea, Martinez. I guess you aren’t as dumb as you look.”
The corporal responded with a slight smile at the verbal jab. “We’d need to choose the right people, though.”
“They’d have to be trustworthy…or at least someone that the entire world will consider trustworthy,” said Matt.
“Well known,” added McCoy. She no longer looked vengeful. “With recognizable faces and voices, and then they can go on all the talk shows after and say that, yes indeed, I got a tour of the ship and it is indeed quite banged up.”
Martinez stared at the far wall. “Some kind of celebrity? Heh. You think Tom Cruise would be up for it?”
Matt laughed. “That beautiful maniac? Hell, he’d insist on shooting an entire movie up there, with at least one action scene where he’s hanging off of the outside of the ship.”
They all smiled at the resulting mental image.
“Chao could work,” said McCoy into the silence. “She’s kind of a celebrity now. After all, she was the first human to come into contact with aliens, eh?” She gave Matt a big and very un-subtle wink.
To skirt the rather…unconventional methods used to achieve a positive First Contact, Matt’s role had been very much demoted in the official story. Now every recounting of the tale included a bit of ‘…oh, and there was also another person who stumbled across our brave woman in the midst of her attempts at informational exchange with the aliens…” His exact identity was also not published, under the screen of ‘he wishes to remain anonymous’.
“Oh bite me, McCoy, it’s fun,” replied Matt. He waggled his eyebrows. “Besides, I work better in the shadows!” He threw his forearm across his face like a half-assed Count Dracula trying to hide behind his cape.
Then he dropped his arm. “Yeah, Chao would be good as a current social-media darling. Of course, she might not want that. She strikes me as more of the wallflower type, for the most part.”
“We need more people,” said Martinez, as he stared at the floor. “Chao might be good on her own, but she’s got that motor-mouth talking thing when you get her going. It’s one or the other. Either she’s trying to shrink into a corner and take up as little space as possible, or suddenly you’re getting pulled into another corner for a doctoral dissertation on how minimal-energy transfer-orbits work.”
Matt pondered for a moment. “Wait, when did she do that? I never sat through one of those lectures.”
Martinez looked away and…well, Matt hoped that their supposed overlords were indeed recording this particular moment in time because the hard-bitten Hispanic special-forces corporal actually blushed.
McCoy, of course, realized a golden opportunity for payback and immediately pounced. “Why, Corporal Martinez,” she purred. “Doooo tell us. When did Chao Me Chu, heh, pull you into a corner? Hmmm?”
“She’s…she’s just real nice, that’s all,” replied Martinez. “I asked her a couple of questions, and she answered them. That’s all. We both love classic sci-fi, like Asimov and shit. I guess we bonded over that.”
Matt cleared his throat. “Aaaaand may I remind you two and everyone listening in that we have all been cooped up nuts-to-butts for awhile? Don’t mistake familiarity for romantic bullshit.” He pointed over at Martinez. “But you. If you can follow at least half of what she talks about, then you are absolutely without-a-single-fucking-doubt wasted as a corporal, even if you’re in a low-drag high-speed outfit like this. You hear me?”
“Um, yes sir.” It was the first time in McCoy’s memory that anyone had addressed Matt as befitting his perhaps-former rank.
“Good. You get your ass into college, somehow. You’re a smart guy, you’ll figure all that shit out. And as for Chao? Just give it room to breathe. Let her know you’re interested, but don’t press the matter.”
“Let her know?” For once Martinez looked completely lost. “How do I…” he trailed off. “I mean, I like her…and yeah, I mean I like her in that way, but she’s so damn smart and pretty and I’m just some dipshit meathead.”
“Hey, don’t sell yourself short,” said Matt. “You’re our dipshit meathead.”
McCoy’s vengeful smile faded. “Martinez…no, Luca.”
Martinez looked up in surprise at her use of his first name.
She continued. “Just talk to her. Neither of you have any clue as to what ‘normal’ social interactions look like. In your case, it’s because you’ve been a soldier for all of your adult life. In her case, it’s because she’s, well, because she’s Chao. So just walk up to her and be straightforward. Trust me, it’ll be like a breath of fresh air for her to not have to navigate social cues. Just say something like ‘Hey, I really like you, do you like me and do you want to go get a coffee sometime’? Start with that. Chao’s good people, the worst thing she’ll do is say no. She won’t yell at you or talk shit about you online. Buuuut, some sixth sense is telling me she won’t say no to getting some coffee with ya.”
Matt smiled. “McCoy, I think you might have a calling after you leave the military.”
She snorted. “Oh yeah, I’ll hang up my match-making shingle on the internet and start raking in the big bucks. Martinez is right, though. If we try to do a publicity stunt up at the Rithro, then we’ll need somebody alongside Chao to win the world over. Somebody well-known, but preferably someone not in the traditional Western pop-culture sphere. That’ll make it more palatable…”
Her voice trailed off and she stared into space. The two men now looked at each other in genuine concern until she spoke again a few moments later.
“Guys? I think I just had the best idea ever.”

Results?

The building had a reputation for being haunted. Kids would dare each other to go inside, but unlike other places around town, they would actually see something- or at least claim that they did.
Little Jamie Curry, 9-years-old, went into the basement of the abandoned Leatherman’s complex on a dare and saw a zombie. He said he knew it wasn’t just some guy in an outfit because the zombie had a grapefruit-sized hole in its chest, and he could actually see right through the middle of the thing. He had run right past his group of friends who were patiently waiting outside, screaming and wetting himself as he went.
Another young kid from my town, Alicia DeSilva, 11-years-old, said it was all a bunch of garbage, that she wasn’t afraid of a run-down factory building, except for maybe the asbestos which her uncle told her “rots your lungs from the inside”. She had said she would even go inside it at night. Why not? After all, there were no such things as ghosts or boogeymen.
One of her friends told Alicia that if she went inside Leatherman’s main building at night, grabbed something from the basement and brought it back out for their mutual inspection, the friend would pay Alicia five dollars. Alicia had gasped. Five bucks was a good amount to someone like her. With five dollars, she could even get a kit so that she could finally fix her bike tire. They all met in front of the building, and Alicia disappeared into the dark fire doors on the side of the building, full of bravado and still laughing as she went inside.
Except unlike Jamie Curry, Alicia never came back out screaming and wetting herself, never had a chance to tell some unbelievable story about what she encountered in the fetid basement of that place. Her body was never found. The police were called after a few hours, and they searched the entire building from top to bottom. They were able to follow some fresh footprints in the dust that might have been Alicia’s, but when they got to the basement, the prints just disappeared- as if the person making them had simply gotten sucked up into the ceiling. And yet they did find one thing, the only real evidence left in the entire building that night. What they found still gives me nightmares sometimes.
One of her eyeballs was inside a snowglobe. The glass and foundation of the snowglobe were all intact, and there were no signs of foul play anywhere on the decoration. It was as if it had been manufactured that way- with that blue, staring eye floating lazily next to plastic mountains and white glitter snowflakes.
In my nightmares, I often see an old woman shaking that snowglobe, an old hag who cackles and whose split lips form into a dreadful smile as she stares directly at me. The eye and the glitter all hang suspended in the water for a moment, then begin to fall slowly, the eye spinning rapidly as it drifts down the front of the globe. And when it’s stopped, I see it is looking directly at me, and it still looks frightened.
***
OK, so that last paragraph was pretty dark. But what I’m trying to communicate is just how terrifying that place is. The kids in school know what’s going on, though, at least in a general way. After all, Alicia and Jamie came from among them, and they’re not the only ones. Others have gone into the building before. And Matt wants me to go with him tomorrow to look at it.
Maybe that’s why the dreams are getting worse. Maybe that’s why I’ve woken up screaming twice in the last few hours. Because there was something else, too, something else I saw in my nightmares. In that building, around the back walls, there were dozens of kids. Their skin was chalk-white, their hair and eyes all pure black. They were dead. And then thousands of “Missing” posters started to fly down, all of them of smiling children. I looked between the ones surrounding me and the posters and noticed that some of them showed these same kids. I turned to run but little rotted hands started pulling me down and then, I was sitting straight up in bed, yelling and pleading.
I really don’t want to go in that building tomorrow.
***
OK, so Matt and I went inside the doorway. No way was I going in the basement. But just the front doorway… well, that wasn’t too bad. I even stuck my head in and looked around inside.
Matt didn’t see it, but I did. There was something huge in the front hall. It wasn’t much more than a silhouette. It looked like a very tall, very thin man in a suit whose neck was all twisted and strange. It came off his chest like a snake’s, turning and curling back on itself, and at the end it had this reptilian face. Everything about the man was hairless and slimy. I could smell the strange stuff on his skin.
But by the time I had gotten Matt’s attention and pointed it out to him, the guy was gone. I don’t know how he disappeared so fast.
Matt was making fun of me as we walked home afterwards, pointing at random alleyways and asking, “Do you see him there, too?” and then laughing. It wasn’t that funny. I’ll prove to him there was someone in there.
***
I convinced Matt to come back with me. I need to see what’s in there. He wasn’t thrilled about it, but I told him an older kid offered to pay $10 for a souvenir from the place, and that I’d split it with him if he went with me. All of this was total crap, of course. But I want to see what was in there, and I definitely want these dreams to stop.
“You know, you’re lucky you have a friend as brave and manly as me,” Matt said, puffing up his little bird-chest. “After what happened to those other schmucks, everyone has been avoiding this place like the plague.”
“Yeah, but unlike all of them, you know it’s just a building,” I said. He gave me a funny look then.
“It’s just a building, but you know something actually happened,” he said. “I was talking to my dad about it, and he said maybe a homeless guy was living there, totally deranged, and maybe he cut out Alicia’s eye and kidnapped her.” He stated this was the seriousness of a news anchor recounting bits of total bullshit for the audience. I smiled at his grave expression, repressing an urge to laugh. He looked over at me disapprovingly. “It could have happened, you know. Homeless people are homeless because they’re crazy. My dad says so. Maybe one of them just went really crazy and started taking souvenirs off of people’s bodies.”
“I guess,” I said. We were most of the way through the old industrial part of town now. Shuttered factories and condemned buildings stretched out on both sides of the street. A fat, limping raccoon walked lazily out of a nearby alleyway. He gave us a sideways glance, stopping for a moment, then kept on maneuvering his round frame forward. Something that Matt had said had given me pause.
“You know,” I said, “it’s kinda weird that we don’t have homeless people out here. We have all these empty buildings, yet most of them camp out on the sidewalks on Main Street. I’ve never seen a single homeless person sleeping in one of these buildings, and I’ve never seen one even close to the Leatherman building. It’s like they have some sort of sixth sense to avoid the place.”
“Clearly they’re smarter than you and me,” Matt muttered. We were walking past the rusty metal chain link fence around the property. He looked pale and his eyes were wide. “Are you sure you want to do this?” Right then, my instincts screamed at me to run.
“Yes,” I said simply, walking in first, taking the flashlight out of my pocket. “I need to know. For sure. Either way, I’d like evidence. Either it is my imagination, or something supernatural actually exists within and around this building.” An old, musty smell permeated the huge hallway. I looked up and down it, wondering what was missing. Then I realized- it had no graffiti. It had to be the only abandoned building I’d ever been in without tons of graffiti scrawled on the inside.
In some places, the walls had begun to buckle, and whole sections were crumbling and coming down. Farther ahead, the ceiling had collapsed inwards, blocking half of the main hallway off. Downstairs, lights started turning on, and the entire building started to come to life. I looked at Matt, who was looking dazed.
“Bro, what the hell is that?” he asked. I had no idea.
“Someone’s in here with us,” I said. “Let’s go check it out.” He looked at me like I was insane.
“Are you mad? What if it’s cops? What if it’s tweakers pulling out all the metal?”
“We’ll be quiet, and just peek around the corner,” I said. “I think we’re meant to see this. Don’t you want to know what’s going on here?” He scowled.
“I’d much rather get home alive,” he said, but he followed me reluctantly. There was a rhythmic hum coming from the floors now, as if machinery were coming to life. A sign, dirty and covered in spiderwebs, pointed to a staircase on the right. I looked down it, seeing bright light flood into the stairwell corridor, despite the fact that there was no electricity running to this building. We started down the staircase to the basement level. There was a smell of ozone in the air, a cyclical rhythmic humming that popped and buzzed. I took a deep breath, wondering what I would see down here. Then I poked my head around the corner.
There were conveyor belts stretching against the basement, their legs embedded into the cracked concrete floors. Beams and pillars ran up from the floor to the ceiling every ten feet or so. And it looked like there were countless workers just sitting on each side of the conveyor belts, sitting in crooked wooden chairs with splintering legs and backs. But it was the workers who caught my attention most of all. They looked… strange.
“Does something look off to you?” I whispered to Matt, who had been standing behind me only a moment earlier. But I got no reply. I figured he was too engrossed in the bizarre nature of what we were seeing to respond.
The workers, if that’s what they were, looked blurred, as if in an overexposed picture with a long shutter speed. Their skin appeared to writhe and crackle, some of their heads constantly turned from side to side, and their limbs… all of them appeared to be missing limbs. I saw pale, white bodies without arms, without legs, even without heads, but they all still continued working in unison, moving in that jerky, blurred way.
“Jesus, Matt, do you see?” I asked suddenly, my eyes widening. “Do you see what they’re doing?” I looked forward in horror as I saw human bodies rolled down the conveyor belts. The people were still alive. They were naked, many of them crying and covered in blood. As they passed by the workers, the blurred hands quickly took pieces of their skin off. Glistening sheets of it were raised by other workers walking along between the lines, and they would give an admiring look at the large pieces of skin, smiling eerily as their heads writhed from side to side and blurred in my vision.
And I saw the kids from my dream, the kids from the missing persons posters, all in the corner. They were huddled, emaciated, with wide, staring eyes. They trembled and cowered as some of the workers came over to grab them and throw them on the belts.
I turned to get the hell out of there, and that was when I realized Matt was no longer behind me. I caught a glimpse of something dark and massive moving at the top of the stairs, disappearing around the corner. I was alone. I know I should have stayed and looked for Matt, but instead, I ran. I got out of that place and went home and hid under my blankets.
I thought 13 was old enough to deal with this, but it has gone way beyond what I thought.
***
Matt’s parents are calling. My parents stand at the bottom of the stairs, my mother holding the landline in her thin hand, my father looking disturbed. They tell me that Matt is missing, that he never came home last night. What should I tell them? Certainly not the truth. If I started talking about the things in that building, I would be forced into a psychiatric ward before the week was up.
The police stopped by and asked me a few questions. I told them all straight-up lies. “No sir, I haven’t seen him, and I have no idea what happened to him.” But what else could I say? That he was taken by something from a nightmare?
I have to go back. I have to try to rescue Matt. I shouldn’t have ran like I did, but seeing those things cutting up people like that… it scared the shit out of me. Tonight, once my parents go to sleep, I’m going to sneak out, and everyone will think I’m a hero if I bring him back. If I don’t, I’ll probably end up as just another stupid missing kid who ended up way over his head.
***
I went back. I made it out, but I think they’re coming for me. There was something in the basement.
All of the conveyor belts were gone, the lights were off, the rhythmic hum had disappeared. It was as if the other night was all a hallucination- except for, of course, Matt is still missing. His parents are freaking out, and I can’t even tell them I know what happened to him, kinda.
Going into the building alone was terrifying. My legs felt like wood, and I kept glancing behind me every second as if I were hearing imaginary pursuers. But I walked through to the staircase, and I saw nothing.
I went down to the basement, peeking my head around the corner. It was just a mostly empty basement, some broken furniture and old boxes stacked in one corner. I shone my light all over and saw no one. But there was a light coming from the far corner, a faint, glowing, orange light. A feeling of dread came over me.
I crept slowly forward, trying to find the source of that light. A faint smell of smoke and roasting meat seemed to creep through the air. Off past the last line of boxes, I saw what looked like a small crater on the floor. There was a hole there with glowing fire underneath. Cracks spiderwebbed out from it in all directions for a few feet. More curious than afraid now, I peered forward and looked down.
Beneath the abandoned building, there was another world. It had fire licking the walls and ground, and in the middle of this inferno, I saw Matt. His face was a map of blackish-purple bruises, his head was cocked at an unnatural angle, and I saw blood pouring out of his ears and nose. He looked up at me, and the bones in his neck grated together. I saw his spine was broken and his entire throat was crushed inwards.
“Help me,” he croaked. “You brought me here, now help me. You can’t leave me. They’ll come for you next…” All around him, I saw hands reaching up- the pale, jerky hands of those strange workers. They grabbed Matt and dragged him back down to the fire. I saw other horrid creatures in the flames, some laughing and insane, others shrieking in agony. Large, black insectile silhouettes moved through the smoke and flames. And then, like one, they started coming up towards the hole, coming up to the building where they would be free.
I ran then, and I never went back. I know now that Matt is dead. I can’t sleep. Every time I look out the window, I see shapes in the front yard- blurred humanoids with missing limbs, hiding in the bushes and trees, and constantly inching closer.

As I've been lurking around this forum for quite a while before going, I thought I'd write a report of how our trip went to give back to this amazing community.
First of all, I'd like to say thanks to everyone here for all the extremely useful information!
Me (M30) and my wife (29F) had the chance to travel through Japan for about 18 days. We are both Muslim so we kept to a halal food regime (seafood and some halal places here and there).
General tips: - JR Pass: I'd say the JR pass is only worth it if you use the shinkansen (bullet train) for long distances a lot. That being said, it also provides a form of comfort and ease of mind. We had an unexpected change in our itinerary which made us stay an extra night in Tokyo, having the JR pass made this easy for us to just go on another train the next day. We also used it quite a lot in Tokyo and Osaka for smaller distance trips (protip: use the Navitime app to see if your itinerary is covered by JR pass). You could just take a 7 day pass and activate it during the period you would be doing all the long distance travel.

• Get an IC card (Suica/Pasmo). Easy to use and charge and can be used in convenience stores and in a lot of other places.
  
• don't overcharge your itinerary. Japan is beautiful and has a lot to offer, but try to keep it cool and enjoy the things you will visit. We did an average of 20-25k steps daily and we were not even rushing things.. (pack decent shoes)
  
• Navigating through train stations might be hard and overwhelming at first (especially the big ones like Shinjuku) but just find your base point and always follow the colors. Google maps is also very handy as it provides detailed information about platforms and what exits to use, etc..
  
• Google lens came in quite handy at times!
  
• luggage forwarding! Such a thing of beauty. Most hotels will help you with the procedure but if they don't, you can just go to a post office or most of the convenience stores help you out with it as well. The prices depend on the size of your luggage from what I've experienced, the distance doesn't seem to matter.
  
• Reservations: so basically, if you know you wanna go somewhere in Japan, try to book as soon as possible. Almost all of the activities we did (Usj, Disneysea, karting in Tokyo, Teamlab, Ghibli museum) needed reservations well in advance. In kyoto, we even had a hard time finding places to eat because all the good looking restaurants were constantly fully booked. Keep this in mind when going.
  

Halal food tips : - Honolu Ramen (Osaka) - we only tried the one in Osaka and the ramen with the chicken karaage was really good. Highly recommend. - Curry Coco (they have locations everywhere) (not halal but provides good curry and seafood/veggie options) - Osaka PANGA Yakiniku (Osaka) - halal, good food and they have halal Wagyu.
Alright so here we go :
15/05 - 20/05 Tokyo
We stayed at the APA Hotel Higashi-Shinjuku Kabukicho Tower. Rooms were pretty small compared to European standards (no closets) but overall the room was clean and all the amenities you'd need (wifi, hair dryer, tooth brush, shampoo, etc). As for the location, Shinjuku station was about a 10 minute walk from the hotel and Shinjuku is a cool place to be at generally speaking. It does get a bit hectic at night so depending on what you're into, you may or may not appreciate the vibes.
15/05 - arrival day:
We arrived at 6pm at Haneda Airport and immediately took a shuttle bus to Kabukicho Tower. Just ask the tourist information point at the airport and they'll guide you. It was 1300 yen per person and it led us almost straight to our hotel. After a long flight, this was a welcome comfort. We checked in and went for a walk in the neighbourhood but we were pretty tired so we went to sleep pretty early.
16/05 - Shinjuku neighborhood, Sumo fighting and karting through Tokyo
We started off our day having some Japanese brunch in Shinjuku, visited the Don Quijote and went to ryogoku to go see Sumo wrestling (really cool experience and if you stick around the arena you'll see the Sumo wrestlers walking to the arena, they are mostly very friendly and they will accept to take pictures with you). After that, we headed to the karting office and we went for a karting ride through Tokyo (shibuya, harakuju, etc) which was an amazing experience. It was already dark out so driving through these streets with all the flashy Tokyo lights is a must do in my opinion.
17/05 - TeamLab, Asakusa and akihabara
We headed to teamLab in the morning. It was a fun experience and I certainly don't regret doing it. Some of the exhibitions are really impressive. It was a bit crowded. We headed to Asakusa and wandered around the streets while heading for Senso-ji temple. Really cool temple. After that, we headed to Akihabara to stroll around and see some anime/manga/gaming related stores. We saw a few cool things and spent some time in the arcades but I was a bit disappointed by the lack of merch for the older manga and games. Everything seems to be about the new and popular anime which was a bit of a let down for me. Headed back to Shinjuku for dinner and called it a day.
18/05 - Disneysea Tokyo
My wife was super excited to go and see Disneysea so we did and boy we did not regret it! Sunny weather, not too many people and an overall fun experience. Contrary to what most people seem to be saying here, we actually arrived around 10.30 am and the gates were empty. We walked in, downloaded the app and just went to the attractions that had the less waiting time and we ended up doing almost all of them. Thrill wise I'd say we have way better attractions in Europe, but the scenery and details of the park are incredible. The rides are very immersive and beautifully done. I'm not a Disney fan at all but I really enjoyed my time there. A lot of the rides are meant for children as well so you can skip those. I really enjoyed the Indiana Jones, the horror tower and the volcano one.
19/05 Ginza & Shinjuku
Originally, we had planned quite a lot for this day, but my wife wasn't feeling great in the morning so we decided to sleep in and head out a bit later. We went to Ginza, visited the huge Uniqlo and did some shopping there. We then headed back for a calm night, had some fun in the arcades and finished up.
20/05 - Kawaguchiko
We took a bus in the morning at Shinjuku station to kawaguchiko and stayed in a Ryokan with a public onsen with a view on Fujisan. We really loved the atmosphere here as it was completely different from Tokyo. So calm and peaceful. We stayed at the hotel, we booked a private onsen and had a relax day/evening.
21/05 - kawaguchiko lake & arakura Sengen Shrine
We checked out of our hotel, headed to the station and took a train to the arakura Sengen Shrine stop. We went up the stairs (not too hard but it was hot so stay hydrated!) and enjoyed the magnificent view of Mt. Fuji with the shrine. It was a bit crowded and it was getting worse as time passed on. We decided to head down and go to Honcho Street. Nothing special about the street in itself, it just has a pretty cool view of fuji. Please be aware that fuji can get shy at times and is not always visible on a cloudy day. Don't lose hope, the clouds move around and you'll get to see fujisan. After that, we decided to head to the kawaguchiko station, rented some electric bikes (highly recommend) and we did the full tour of the kawaguchiko lake. It took us about 2.30 hours with stops and the electric bikes made it an easy and enjoyable experience. Cycling around the lake with the different parks and the mountains and mt fuji in the background is a magical experience and I would highly recommend it to anyone going to this region.
We headed back to the station, took a bus back to Tokyo and we were supposed to head to Kyoto but due to traffic delays, we missed the last shinkansen and booked an extra night in Tokyo.
This is the first part of our trip, I'll get back to the next part (Kyoto and Osaka) another time but please feel free to comment if you want more details on some aspects.

Hundreds of Indiana doctors are rallying to defend Caitlin Bernard, an obstetrician/gynecologist, who was recently censured by a state licensing board for discussing her involvement in providing an abortion for a young rape victim.
The healthcare community response: Doctors of various specialties have expressed concern over the board's decision, suggesting it might have dangerous implications for public health. * Doctors are warning that the decision sets a "dangerous and chilling precedent." * Indiana's Medical Licensing Board has not responded to requests for comment.
Origins of the case: Dr. Bernard came under fire after sharing her experience of performing an abortion for a 10-year-old rape victim who had to cross state lines due to Ohio's abortion ban. * The case was taken up by the licensing board after Republican Attorney General Todd Rokita complained, which led to the board reprimanding and fining Bernard $3,000.
Physicians' open letter: More than 500 Indiana doctors have signed an open letter asking the board to reconsider its decision, which is set to be published Sunday in The Indianapolis Star. * The letter emphasizes the need for physicians to educate the public on controversial issues such as abortion.
Potential consequences: Some doctors fear they may get in trouble for discussing similar cases, affecting public awareness of controversial topics and health risks.
View original article on NPR
This summary was created by an AI system. The use of this summary is subject to our Terms of Service.

This is the best tl;dr I could make, original reduced by 86%. (I'm a bot)

State Auditor Rob Sand responded with a blistering statement describing the legislation as "The worst pro-corruption bill in Iowa history."
"The genesis of this is, in my first term we uncovered more waste, fraud, and abuse than any other state auditor ever had, a record amount," said Sand.
Alongside the cultural battles, Sand believes Reynolds and other Republicans in the state are consolidating authority and eroding democratic norms.
In his conversation with TPM, Sand pointed out instances of the legislature passing measures late at night and "Logrolling" - a practice where unpopular measures are bundled with other bills - and a law signed by the governor that allows the state attorney general to take over a criminal prosecution without being asked to by local county attorneys.
To Sand, some of the changes wrought by GOP leadership in the state are antithetical to Iowa's values.
"We have issued reports that have exonerated Republicans, at times including the governor. We've also issued reports that have been critical you know, we've found that the governor spent twenty million dollars of CARES Act funds on a software program for state government and that plainly didn't qualify. We also found that she put half a million dollars into her staff in the governor's office and that that didn't qualify," Sands said.

Summary Source FAQ Feedback Top keywords: Sand^#1 state^#2 auditor^#3 Iowa^#4 governor^#5
Post found in /politics, /politics and /worldpolitics.
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Where on the office computer do you go to get the barcode?

If this weren't a video game, I'd be on my way to prison!

Gex

After the successive deaths of Gex's father and uncle, which happened to leave him a large inheritance, Gex entered a deep depression, unable to leave the house. He used his cash to buy himself a big TV and cable, and spent his days as a couch potato in front of the screen, a hopeless addict. One day, when he swallowed a special bug sent by the villainous Rez, he was pulled inside the world of TV. Now, with only his natural gecko abilities to help him, Gex goes on an adventure to defeat Rez and escape from TVland, all the while spouting off extremely dated pop-culture references.
As a playable character in the game Mad Dash Racing, Gex is capable of performing any feat another character in his racer class (Dasher) can do, as well as any feat performable by the other two racer classes (Glider and Basher) as long as he’s carrying 10 green meteor chunks. Overview of racer classes from the manual. Feats that Dashers can perform will be marked with “MDR” for Mad Dash Racing while feats Gex would need ten meteor chunks to perform will be marked with “Tri” for “Tribrid.”

Gecko Abilities

Tongue

• Snatches a bug out of the air with his tongue
  
• Picks up powerups with his tongue
  
• Pulls his entire body onto a platform with his tongue
  
• Pulls himself up onto a tree branch to avoid automatic fire.
  
• Pulls himself up to a tree branch twenty feet above his head to escape cannibals and a tiger.
  
• Pulls himself up to a conduit fifty feet above the ground to avoid an attack from Rez.
  
• Catches his fall and reels himself back up to a platform after Rez knocks him off it.
  

Climbing

• In the first game, Gex can climb along any surface, including walls and ceilings
  
• From the second game onwards, Gex can only climb on specially marked areas
  
• Uses the suction-cups on his feet to cling to a tree against the blast of four tank shells.
  

Power-ups

• Invincibility
  
• Super speed that makes Gex leave afterimages
  
• Super jump that lets Gex jump high into the air
  
• Fire breath that incinerates foes
  
  • Burns down a giant spider creature
  • Incinerates a human
  • Burns a pile of counterfeit money
  • Breaks a lock on a gate
• Flaming aura that lets him light a fuse (Gameboy version)
  
• Ice breath that freezes foes In the novel, it pierces Rez’s chest and knocks him back into a pit of static.
  
  • Freezes an enemy in a huge block of ice, which is then pushed
• Multidirectional lightning breath that incinerates foes
  
• Spitting attack Uses it to knock Rez off a wire, make a car skid, and immobilize three gangsters.
  
• Temporary Herculean strength
  
  • Breaks cracked columns
  • Pushes a tall column
• Temporary superhero strength which can shatter stone
  
  • There's also a superhero costume that lets you glide

Costumes

• Bunny costume
  
• Space suit
  
  • Another space suit
• Caveman outfit
  
• Indiana Jones costume
  
• Police costume
  
• Winter clothes
  
• Firefighter costume
  
• Pharaoh outfit
  
• Army uniform
  
• Cowboy costume
  
• Akuji the Heartless costume
  
• Toga
  
• Pirate costume complete with peg leg
  
• Wrestling costume
  
• Tin Man costume
  
• Scuba gear
  
• Gangster outfit
  
• Lifeguard outfit
  
• Superhero costume
  
• Vampire costume that lets him glide through the air
  
• Red riding hood that lets him glide
  
• Robot suit that lets him glide In the novel, it makes him a transformer who can shapeshift into a bucket, a forklift, a jet plane or a helicopter with a rotor strong enough to chop up a heavily armoured giant robot.
  
• Sherlock Holmes costume that lets him analyze his surroundings and... shrink?
  
  • Shrinks into a sink to pop bubbles
  • Shrinks into a pool table to fight giant pool balls

Mad Dash Racing Powerups:

• Psycho Chicken: a chicken-shaped guided missile that homes in on foes and explodes.^MDR
  
• Blob Bombs:, which are green glowing blobs that can be set down which explode on contact like mines.
  
• Bouncy Fruit: bouncing explosive projectiles shaped like fruit.
  
• Ribbon of Pain: A tron-like trail of energy that trails behind him, stunning anybody who touches it.
  
• Disco Ball: A shield that gives Gex temporary invincibility plus a speed boost.
  
• Freeze All: Freezes all other racers on the track, forcing them to struggle to escape with a button prompt.
  

Gear

• Spy watch which he can communicate with Agent Xtra with
  
• Whole lab full of technology
  

Vehicles

• Camel
  
• Kangaroo
  
• Alligator
  
• Donkey
  
• Snowboard
  
• Tank
  

Strength

General Strength

• Diverts the path of a slow-moving rocket
  
• Holds onto a large firework as it flies into the air (Gameboy version)
  
• Holds onto a rocket as it flies through space
  
• Uses a mounted machine gun without experiencing recoil
  
• Hits a golfball so hard that it leaves a trail of fire when it lands.
  

Tail Strength

• His tail whip attack is described as being able to dismember enemies and even disintegrate them
  
• Bashes through a large cluster of blocks with one hit from his tail
  
  • Does the same thing by bouncing on them from above
  • Breaks cartoon world blocks
  • Breaks stone blocks in a temple
  • Breaks blocks in Rez's world
  • Breaks large metal blocks
• Breaks metal containers
  
• Destroys a satellite dish
  
• Destroys a radio tower
  
• Breaks flying TVs
  
  • Breaks a TV (Gameboy version)
• Breaks giant dominos
  
• Breaks giant, evil pool balls
  
• Breaks a giant metal locker door
  
• Breaks a sarcophagus-themed wall covering
  
• Breaks the Ark of the Covenant (Gameboy version)
  
• Breaks the arms off a statue
  
• Breaks metal grates
  
• Breaks a brick house apart with repeated strikes
  
• Tail-whips a skull offscreen
  
• Tail-whips barrels
  
• Tail-whips and breaks strings that are holding up anvils
  
• Tail-whips a large mushroom (Gameboy version)
  
• Tail-whips a cooler of blood (Gameboy version)
  
• Tail-whips a sentient piece of machinery (Gameboy version)
  
• Tail-whips an Asian vase (Gameboy version)
  
• Tail-whips a set of double doors
  
• Tail-whips a bookshelf cover
  
• Tail-whips some giant bones
  
• Tail-whips a crystal power cell
  
• Tail-whips a sandcastle
  
• Tail-whips wooden boards
  
• Tail-whips tents
  
• Tail whips a car-sized boulder back at the cyclops who threw it, knocking them back into a mountain.
  
• Tail whips a desk into splinters.
  
• Sends Rez flying with a tail whip. Rez is very large and made of metal.
  
• Defeats a troop of alien warriors with his tail-whip.
  
• Defeats six ninjas at once with a roundhouse tail-whip.
  
• Sends Moo Shu Pork, a mutant cow/pig hybrid, flying with a kick, and is then implied to eat him. Moo Shu Pork is considerably larger than Gex.
  
• Knocks over a mech walker
  
• Deflects a thrown present out of the air hard enough to stun Evil Santa (Gameboy version)
  
• Dismembers a Frankenstein's monster
  
• Can defeat a dinosaur (Gameboy version)
  
• Activates a cannon by striking it (Gameboy version)
  
• Spins a gear to raise a large platform
  
• Spins a crank to pull out a bridge
  
• Rings the bell on a test-your-strength machine
  
• Tail slams so hard he shakes a mountain, causing part of it to collapse onto a cyclops.
  
• While giant, breaks apart a skyscraper with repeated strikes
  
• Shakes a giant tower inside a space station with a tail slam.
  
• Sends shockwaves through the ground with a tail slam, defeating two sumo wrestlers.
  
• Casually knocks aside robotic drones.
  
• Sends a roman soldier flying out of a chariot with a tail swipe.
  
• Knocks down a twelve foot tall cyclops.
  
• Knocks down a very large man with a tail swipe.
  

Push/Pull

• Pushes a block of ice
  
• Pushes a large boiler and its stone foundation
  
• Pushes a large barrel
  

Mad Dash Racing

• Can defeat a Tremmel (a spikey headed monster) with one hit.^MDR
  
• Can stun other racers and knock them into the air with a tackle.^MDR
  
• Can smash through thick sections of foliage.^Tri
  
• Can smash through rows of crates.^Tri
  
• Can smash through a larger pile of crates.^Tri
  
• Can destroy large underground roots.^Tri
  
• Can destroy large stone tiki heads.^Tri
  
• Can bash through cracked stone blocks.^Tri
  
• Can smash apart a metal barricade.^Tri
  
• Can smash apart a barricade made from large metal barrels.^Tri
  
• Can smash through a large door.^Tri
  
• Can smash through a cracked stone wall.^Tri
  
• Can destroy a large rock spire.^Tri
  
• Can destroy large stone boulders.^Tri
  
• Can bash apart huge sections of rock.^Tri
  
• Can beat Hex in a boss fight. Hex is strong enough to smash through huge stone walls and shrugs off a massive explosion in a cutscene and says he’s feeling “okay” afterwards. Although any playable character can play through Mad Dash Racing’s story mode and fight Hex, the cutscene for winning does change to reflect who you picked^MDR and there’s not really any canon for this game
  

Mobility

Agility

• Can bounce using his tail
  
• Can jump surprisingly far
  
• Jumps from his chariot to another while in a race.
  
• Jumps from satellite to satellite in space, using his suction cups and sticky tongue to help him.
  
• Can clear long gaps with a karate kick
  
• Can do a one-handed handstand
  
• Can run, climb, and swim^MDR very quickly.
  
  • Can do this through tight gauntlets of obstacles like floor spikes, swinging braziers, spinning fans, and attacking enemies.
• Can also climb arm over arm hanging from a net ceiling very fast.^MDR
  
• Can perform a “Powerslide” while turning in order to charge up a burst of speed. In action.^MDR
  
• Can grind quickly across thin surfaces like guard rails, vines, and ropes.^MDR
  
• Can glide through the air a good distance by flapping his arms.^Tri
  

Speed

• Counters an attack from a cow-pig hybrid with a pair of nunchuks, then disarms him.
  
• Dodges swings from Rez. Does it again.
  
• Runs while avoiding spear thrusts from cannibals chasing him.
  
• Jumps over a crowd of zombies, then dodges a knife-swing from a slasher villain.
  
• Can jump over a ninja's shuriken while fighting him (Gameboy version)
  
• Leaps out of a tank to avoid four enemy shells.
  
• Dodges gunfire from three gangsters.
  
• Runs away from a POW camp while avoiding gunfire from the guards.
  
• Ducks behind a car to avoid a driveby shooting.
  
• Can aimdodge automatic fire from a gangster’s tommygun.
  
• Can jump over a hunter's cartoon bullets while fighting him (Gameboy version)
  
• Can run around hunters with homing bullets (Gameboy version)
  
• Can move around slow-moving energy blasts
  
• Can dodge rocket blasts from Rez
  
• Avoids a bunch of homing missiles from Rez.
  
• Jumps onto a missile after it’s fired and steers it through a TV and into Rez’s chest.
  
• Deflects a thrown present out of the air hard enough to stun Evil Santa
  
• Can run extremely quickly after a golf ball he’s launched; in this case, covers about 180yds in a few seconds.
  

Durability

• Unhurt by jumping through glass
  
• Unhurt when the rocket he's riding blows to bits
  
• Unhurt by an impact that destroys the wooden crate he's in
  
• Deflects blue fireballs
  
• Gets slapped into the side of a building by Rez. Rez is strong enough to shake a huge tower inside a space station with one hand.
  
• Gets hit by Rez again, knocking him off a platform.
  
• Gets slammed in the skull by an FBI agent with a crowbar, although it knocks him out
  
• Gets pistol whipped in the back of the head by a mobster.
  
• Gets blasted into a wall by a robot’s beam attack.
  
• Gets shot by a giant robot and crashes into the ground hard enough to damage his jet-boots.
  
• Has an exploding bouquet of flowers go off in his face, blasting his head the wrong-way around.
  
• Gets thrown high up a mountain by a cyclops.
  
• Can crash through a large neon sign without slowing down.^MDR
  
• Can be hurled a long distance from a catapult and hit the ground running.^MDR
  
• As a mandatory section of a race course, falls from high up and hits the ground running.^MDR
  
• Can be hit by a giant rolling boulder and is only stunned for a second.^MDR
  
• Can take a hit by the Tremmel King in a story mode cutscene. As a Basher type racer, the Tremmel King is strong enough to smash apart large obstacles.^MDR
  
• Can take hits from Hex during his boss fight. Hex is strong enough to smash through huge stone walls during scripted sections of the fight.^MDR
  
• Can get speared by a floor spike trap and walk it off.^MDR
  
• Can be hit by a swinging bladed pendulum and walk it off.^MDR
  
• Can be blown up by a land mine and walk it off.^MDR
  
• Can be burned by a spray of hot steam from a pipe and shake it off.^MDR
  
• Can be burned by a jet of flame from a giant tiki and shake it off.^MDR
  

Other

• In the first game, can spend an indefinite amount of time underwater
  
  • Can swim in freezing water with no ill effects
• Can spend an indefinite amount of time in space with no suit or air supply Same in the novel.
  
  • However, in a later game he needs a regular air supply
• Gets charged up with an energy that lets him activate jump pads
  
• Fucking murders people with a tommy gun
  
• Can kill ghosts
  
• His tail seems to be somewhat prehensile, picking up, unfolding, and putting on a pair of sunglasses.
  
• Carves an ice sculpture with tail whips (Gameboy version)
  
• Is pretty good at golf.
  

Hey, cool. I wonder what's on HBO...

I need labels for my 12 pack drinks and can’t seem to find them anywhere on my planogram list, can anyone help?

this is not to discourage anybody at all, this is just to vent out my frustrations and tell you all why I'm quitting real estate After 9 months in the business.
Before i go on about why I'm quitting, it only makes sense to tell you why i joined in the first place. To start I'm 21 years old, never went to college because I wanted to take on an Entreprenurial career path that i could start immediately on my own. So I managed to save enough money start an ATM and vending machine business at 19 years old. Needless to say, that didn't work out, because i did not take into account how often ill need to repair each machine, the cost of Maintenace, and taxes (smh on me).
So, After closing my business, I naturally discovered the world of endless possibilities...real estate. So of course, I took a liking to being a real estate agent. The rewards are worth my time after all. From the outside looking in, it seemed like the job for me. Thought to myself, well shit I have a strong drive, commitment, grit, etc. I don't see myself quitting at all. This.Is.Meant.For.Me. Did all the studying and binge watching of real estate content on YouTube as much as I can, as I was working on getting my license. once I finally did, It took me a while to figure out just what the hell to do and how to start, in terms of prospecting and figuring out whether or not I should join a team (FYI for newer agents. Fuck what anybody says, join a fucking a team...before its too late) Any way after figuring out a business plan and deciding to try things solo because I found someone to mentor me and because of course, my manager persuaded me not to join a team. I was off to the races I did everything. open houses, door knocking, cold calling, cold approaching, networking events, posting flyers, sending newsletters, farming, name it. eventually I began to build somewhat of a clientele for myself. Of course, Ive had my few hiccups, and bumps ...actually just straight misses to be honest with you.
​
Now what went wrong? truthfully i have no clue. Most of the clients that I was convinced were serious, ended up ghosting me, blocking me, or going with someone else. maybe its my babyface. If i had to guess i would say maybe the first impression i leave. all my life ive battled depression, issues having a low self-esteem, etc. perhaps people could tell that not only was i new but i come across as unconfident. Irl i sound a bit quirky i guess you can say, I'm not best at articulating myself however i can very much get a point across. What they don't tell you, is that people are extremely Judgy. perhaps its too obvious to say, but first Impressions are EVERYTHING in this business. Not only upon clients but upon realtors as well. Of course, it is tho, and i have no complaints about it. You have to suit the role. Physically and mentally.
​
Naturally ive fallen into deep depression. I still have people im helping out here and there but they're not ready to buy at the current moment, I can tell. thinking about quitting real estate or putting it on the side now because I'm just sick and tired of it all. I'm not myself. I've lost myself. I've lost the innate passion for success i use to have within myself. I feel like a whore for cash. Especially when waiting for hours for a client only to realize ive been ghosted at a showing. Everyday has become a battle between me and my psyche. Im daydreaming on all of my mess ups in the business. Why did i do this and not that. What if i told her this and not that, I should've done this, should've done that, what is it about myself, why am i like this, am I retarded,etc. I've come to realize everyone's journey to success in the business is completely circumstantial. I've tried contacting numerous team leaders about joining their team, they've all scoff at me and talk to me with their nose up, in "disbelief" that i haven't closed on a sale yet. "We prefer agents more seasoned, quality over quantity, when I started, I did 20, 30, transaction my first year, I wanted it more than you," I completely don't give a fuck about real estate anymore. For those looking for a secure career path, do what they tell you and follow the crowd. Go to school or get an actual education for fucks sakes. Become valuable to society. I used to think that those millions that quit the business are a bunch of pussies..well if majority of ppl are doing it there's a good reason. and sure, some people have done well for themselves their first year. cool. But again, I believe its completely circumstantial. I believe it takes the perfect mix of charisma, knowledge, and just being there at the right time, kind of thing. You can very much succeed in this business. It's a long-term game. but im looking to retire my mom by 25 and not 30. Guess ill have this on the side or back burner for now as i enter a real career. Will still be prospecting and doing the things i usually do. or just say fuck it, go for broke and buy some 1,000 dollar zillow leads.
​
Anyway, because of real estate I hate people more than ever now. You really start to see how people in general, are absolutely fucking selfish and that includes your fellow realtors. Say what ever you want trust me idgaf. feels nice that i can finally get this off my chest. peace.

I admire your luck, Mr...?
Bond. James Bond.

Special Agent 007, James Bond is the star agent of MI6. Always cool under pressure and licensed to kill, James is sent to infiltrate enemy organizations and destroy them from the inside. Over the decades, James Bond has gone from serious to campy and back again, but always manages to get the job done through wit, physical ability and superior equipment.
Bond generally wields a sidearm with lethal efficiency, along with a number of incredible gadgets developed by the geniuses at Q Branch. With his remarkable physical ability and ever-changing bag of tools, there isn't an international crime organization that Bond has failed to take down. The only thing that could possible distract Bond are his own vices: women or booze, both of which have gotten one over on him in the past.
James Bond Respect Threads by Actor
Sean Connery- 1962 to 1967, once more in 1971. Physically strong, numerous gadgets disguised as everyday items. Adept in traditional spy skills, like infiltration and observation.
George Lazenby- Once in 1969. Very similar to Connery in his craftiness, skilled specifically in winter sports.
Roger Moore- 1973 to 1985. Downright campy, making use of almost cartoonish skills that actually work in-universe. Skilled driver and pilot with a variety of gadgets.
Timothy Dalton- 1987 to 1989. Colder and more quick to become violent than the others. Usually carries a firearm and a lethal gadget to kill enemies.
Pierce Brosnan- 1995 to 2002. Best variety of gadgets of any Bond. Great feats of endurance and athletic ability.
Daniel Craig- 2006 to 2021. The most realistic Bond, yet has some of the most impressive physical abilities in any of the movies. Low variety of gadgets, but excels in gunfights.
Hover over a feat to see the film it’s from. Additionally, the name of any gif on Gfycat contains the last name of the actor that accomplished it.

Physicals

You have a nasty habit of surviving.
Well, you know what they say about the fittest.

Strength
Striking

• Breaks a wooden board with a downward strike
• Tackles a man through two bathroom stalls
• Barrels through a temporary construction wall
• Punches through drywall and wood to access a hidden room

Lifting/Throwing

• Picks up and throws a chair at a man, knocking him out
• Fights off an attacker with a couch
• Picks up and slides a man across a table
• Tosses a chain onto a low-flying helicopter to cause it to crash
• Holds a man above a ledge by the hair

Grip

• When he’s held underwater by two women, Bond surfaces and holds both of them underwater with one hand each
• Holds onto a small plane while the pilot tries to shake him off
• Catches a rope on a blimp and holds on even after it rises high into the air
• Holds onto the top of a speeding car, even when the driver attempts to shake him off
• Avoids falling out of a plane’s airlock by grabbing onto some netting
• Holds onto the outside of a moving seaplane, even after the pilot attempts to shake him off
• Holds onto the bottom of an elevator car as it rises up a skyscraper

Pushing

• With one other guy, Bond rolls this large concrete column
• Knocks over a large bookshelf

Other

• After being buried in snow by an avalanche, Bond climbs out and is relatively okay about a minute later
• Wrestles with a large constricting snake before killing it with a poison injector

Endurance
Blunt Force

• Keeps fighting after getting a wooden chair broken over his back
• Stays conscious after strikes from Oddjob
  • Oddjob RT
• Fights on through hits with a fireplace poker
• Jumps from a bridge to a passing boat, falling through the roof and onto a wedding cake
• While hanging onto a blimp, he’s smacked into the Golden Gate Bridge and quickly starts climbing up
• He’s knocked down a ladder, but recovers by the time he gets to the bottom rung
• Continues fighting Stamper after a number of blows to the face
• Falls from a low hot air balloon onto a domed structure, and he recovers by grabbing some nearby cables
  • Bond suffered a dislocated collarbone after this fall, however
• When jumping off a low crane, Bond stumbles, falling into a metal air vent. He’s up and running moments later.
• Recieves cock and ball torture by Le Chiffre’s rope, at first barely responding, then laughing in his torturer’s face
• Falls one or two stories onto the top of a bus, but gets up quickly
• Fights on after being hit across the back with a metal pipe four times
• Keeps fighting through repeated strikes from Hinx, like getting thrown into walls or getting thrown through thin walls
  • Mr. Hinx Respect Thread found here
• [Limit] Has a recurring weakness to blunt force trauma to the back of the head

Piercing/Cutting

• Keeps running despite being shot in the calf
  • He’s later seen patching up his calf in the bathroom, so he was definitely hit by a bullet
• Keeps fighting after being cut across the chest and being shot up by a nail gun
• Gets shot in the shoulder by a handgun, but operates mostly unimpeded

Other

• Resists being garroted long enough to grab a knife, stabbing his attacker and turning the garrote wire back on him
• Takes over 12 Gs of force before destroying the machine with an armor-piercing dart
  • Real-life astronauts are typically trained to withstand up to 9 Gs of force.
• Gets electrocuted with a gauntlet that can output 100,000 volts, which leaves him writhing in pain but conscious
  • Scene describing the electrical weapon, where the 100,000 volt figure is from
• Bond is shot by a sniper rifle and falls off a high bridge into water. After three months, Bond is mostly physically able again, although his aim is more noticeably affected.
• Endures having a small surgical drill bore into the back of his skull and into the part of the brain that deals with recognition, seemingly to no negative neurological effect

Agility
Movement

• Chases down an assassin, tackling him
• Takes a running jump up to a rising platform
• Catches up to an aircraft taking off on the runway
• Runs and jumps into a closing metal door
• Catches up to an airplane during takeoff, jumping into the plane through the landing gear
• Catches up to a fleeing truck on a runway, although it obviously hasn’t accelerated to full speed
• Escapes a CIA squad with just a moment's warning
• Runs away from a fireball caused by a house-sized explosion

Reflexes

• While on the ground, he dodges katana swings
• Dodges a thrown knife, then pulls it out of the wood behind him to kill the assassin
• Dodges a dune buggy at close range
• Evades shotgun fire from a pursuer
• Evades rifle fire, then shoots the enemy gunman
• Evades handgun fire with a roll, then avoids some distant machine gun fire
• Dodges a harpoon underwater
• When a man attempts to shoot Bond’s knees from nearly point blank range, Bond moves his legs to avoid the shots
• Uses an enemy to block gunfire
• While sitting in the passenger seat, Bond grabs the driver’s arm before they can shoot him
• Rolls away from an incendiary grenade’s detonation moments after noticing it

Combat Skill

Problem solver?
More of a problem eliminator.

Unarmed Combat
Quick Knock Outs

• Judo flips an attacker, then punches him
• Dispatches a guard with a neck strike
• Silently KOs a man, then steals his equipment to blend in with a scuba crew
• KOs a guard with a judo chop
• Stealthily KOs a guard from behind cover
• Knocks a man out with one kick to the head
• Ends an attempted fistfight with an elbow and then slamming the man on a table
• Knocks out a man by slamming him into the walls of an elevator twice
• Punches a guy out in two strikes
• Consistently one-punches goons
• From a sprint, Bond jumps and kicks a man in the face to knock him out

Against Individuals

• Breaks a hold from behind by a man who wrestles alligators
• Fights evenly with Grant in a train car, with both men getting in hits before Grant begins garroting Bond with a concealed wire
  • Grant is a trained Russian assassin who no-sells strikes to the stomach with brass knuckles
• Sweeps Pussy Galore to the floor, then reverses her judo throw attempt
• Wrestles with Hans before flipping him into a piranha pond
• Flips a man with judo throws twice
• Defeats a strong, tough guy in the hotel
• Has an awesome fistfight with a heavyset henchman, ending with Bond punching him off a rooftop
• Fights an assassin while dangling outside of a moving plane
• Has an extended fistfight with Alec Trevylyn, former agent 006, ending with Alec grabbing a handgun to hold Bond at gunpoint
• During a fight, he breaks a man’s arm, then punches him off a ledge
• Brawls with a martial artist on the outside of a crane

Against Multiple Attackers

• Knocks out six men when fleeing on a rooftop
• Starts thrashing technicians until one pulls a gun
• Defeats four guards in hand-to-hand combat
• Knocks out two attackers who ambushed him
• Drops about four men in a bar fight
• While handcuffed, Bond knocks out four surrounding MI6 agents in an elevator
• Drops two guards with one strike each

Against Armed Attackers

• Kicks away a gunman's gun, then beats him up in the ocean
• Disarms an armed woman with one hand
• While unarmed, Bond fights with a knife-wielding villain, with Bond disarming him and tackling him into water
• Disarms a woman and puts her in a painful armhold
• Disarms a gunman and knocks him down some stairs
• Has an extended fight with a man with a machete while in a confined space. Bond himself was unarmed, although he did ball up his jacket to block some strikes.
• Takes out a CIA riot officer with an elbow to the face
• While completely unarmed, defeats a man wielding an axe, even tricking him into slicing his own foot
• Brawls with an assassin armed with a sniper rifle before dropping him out of a skyscraper
• Intentionally breaks the ice on a frozen lake to bring a gunman down into the water, then Bond chokes him to death with his leg

With Weapons
Blades

• Kills a man with his own knife in one maneuver
• In just a few moves, Bond defeats a henchman in a machete fight, throwing him into a container full of snakes
• Steals a man’s knife, then pins his tie to a nearby counter
• Swordfights with a trained fencer, eventually switching to broadswords, where Bond draws first blood from the torso
• While being held at knifepoint, Bond turns and kills the man with his own knife after a struggle

Blunt Objects

• Breaks a man’s neck with a fireplace poker
• Disarms a diver, then uses the harpoon gun to shatter their goggles
• Using an oar, Bond fights off a man with a large hook
• Uses a ski to knock a man off of a cliff, then kills another man after a struggle
• While unarmed, Bond is attacked by an assassin with a knife, but manages to kill the assassin with a pair of scissors
• Spots an attacker in the reflection of a bronze decoration, then uses the decoration to bludgeon them
• Fights off four men who were beating him with a bat moments before, making heavy use of furniture and blunt items

Unorthodox Items

• Defeats three men in the confined space of a cockpit
• Throws flammable alcohol onto an assassin, igniting him
• Beats down a guard with a door, then five strikes
• Takes out two motorcycle-riding assassins with a long plank of wood
• Uses a ski pole to set a trap for a motorbike-riding assassin
• Knocks out a prison guard while handcuffed, at one point using the cuffs on the man's face
• Defeats two men in a crumbling building, using exposed wiring and a nail gun to dispatch them

Environment Focused

• Brawls with an assassin in a hotel room before throwing him into a bathtub and knocking a fan into the water, electrocuting him
• Kills Oddjob by using exposed electrical wiring on a metal cage that Oddjob was touching
• Tricks Jaws into hitting a wood column, knocking a wooden structure over himself
• Brawls with Jaws atop a cable car
• Fights off three hockey player assassins in a hockey rink, taking one out with the zamboni
• Judo throws a goon onto a bed of spikes
• While pinned to a wooden door by knives, he opens the door and kills an assassin with one of the knives
• Smacks a henchman with a plane’s antenna, throwing him off the plane
• Tosses maggots at a gunman, then knocks him out and judo throws him into the maggots
• Bond drags a guard into water and drowns him
• Bond ties a rope around Mr. Hinx’s neck and attaches it to a weight, then kicks that weight off the train to pull Hinx away

Accuracy

You wouldn’t kill me. You’d miss me.
I never miss.

Pistols

• Grabs Goldfinger’s gun and fires on an airplane window, sucking the villain out of the plane
• Shoots a gunman despite their being behind a column for cover
• Right after waking up, he shoots a ninja in the dark
• Poses as a wax figure and shoots Scaramanga
• Shoots three soldiers with his Walther P5, two of them being headshots
• Accurately hits a gunman from a moving speedboat
• Shoots a gunman through a wooden floor
• Uses a human shield to block bullets, then returns fire, killing a gunman
• Turns and fires on a man before he can fire
• Shoots a man while hanging upside-down by the leg
• Disarms and shoots two policemen
• Disarms the man holding him at gunpoint, then kills four other armed men in seconds
• Shoots two fire extinguishers to obscure the room and allow hostages to safely escape
• While handcuffed and at gunpoint, Bond steals the gun to shoot his captors

Against Vehicles

• Uses the Walther PPK to shoot out a dune buggy’s front tire
• Fires a Taurus PT92 into the engine of an oncoming Jeep, disabling it
• From a speedboat, Bond accurately hits a helicopter’s engine enough with a handgun to cause it to crash

Rifles/Submachine Guns

• Using a sniper rifle, Bond shoots a man in a helicopter, causing him to drop his grenade inside
• Fires a rifle, killing three goons, while sliding down a bannister
• Kills at least 8 men with a submachine gun in a short timeframe
• Turns around and shoots a gunman before he can kill his hostage. Note that Bond turns and fires right after the gunman receives orders to kill the hostage.
• Spots a sneaking soldier dressed in black and kills him with a rifle
• Fires on a guard before the guard can fire his weapon
• From a speeding hovercraft, Bond hits small land mines to detonate them on his pursuers
• Uses a Sa vz. 58 Compact to escape Blofeld’s facility, killing nearly a dozen guards, even at extreme range

Other Firearms

• Turns and immediately shoots a harpoon gun, killing a stealthy assassin
• Takes out a distant sniper by firing a shotgun
• Accurately shoots a sniper’s rifle with his own, rather than kill her
• Escapes a crowd of divers by stealing a harpoon gun and firing it into a nearby seaplane, pulling himself away

Non-Firearm Accuracy

• Throws three scalpels into a man’s arm and chest
• Throws a knife into a specific date on a calendar from across a room
• When the auto-targeting system fails, Bond manually shoots down a capsule full of viruses with a laser cannon
• Kills a man with a climbing spike

Other Skills

I always enjoyed learning a new tongue.
You always were a cunning linguist, James.

Athletics

• Dives off an oil rig into the ocean below
• Avoids machine gun fire while skiing
• Continues skiing after losing a ski
• While skiing, Bond jumps and twists to smack two gunmen with his skis
• Goes rock climbing on a nearly vertical rock wall
• Temporarily outswims the pull of an industrial fan before destroying it with his air tank
• Performs a HALO jump into water, then immediately begins scuba diving
• Swims outside of a submarine, scaling the surface until he can re-enter the vessel on the other side. He had to hold his breath for almost two minutes while scaling the outside of the submarine.
• Infiltrates North Korea by simply surfing onto the coast of the country
• Parasurfs off a collapsing iceberg
• Leaps from a crashing plane, catching up to his partner and using her parachute to save them both

Driving/Piloting
Driving

• Weaves around a parking lot, causing a dozen cop cars to crash into themselves, walls or parked cars
• Briefly drives on two wheels to slip through a narrow alley
• Drifts a double decker bus, causing a couple cops to crash their motorcycles
• Jumps over a river in a car using a broken bridge as a ramp
• While driving, he knocks over barrels onto enemies, then drives on two wheels to block bullets
• Drives a car over a ramp, onto a bus, then back to ground level

Piloting Aircraft

• Picks up a villain's wheelchair with a helicopter, then drops him into a smokestack
• Avoids a heat-seeking missile while piloting a small plane, redirecting it into an enemy hangar
• Dodges a stinger missile by driving a semi-truck on only the left hand wheels
• Starts a helicopter in midair and lands safely
• While flying a much less maneuverable plane, Bond tricks a fighter jet into crashing into a mountainside by producing smoke from a damaged engine
• Ejects a pilot from a helicopter, then pulls the helicopter out of freefall

Other

• Jumps a speedboat over a small patch of land
• Drifts a tank, then drives through a building to cause untold property damage

Traversal

• Performs a front flip off a ledge
• Traverses a ski lift wire with nothing more than a pair of mittens
• Traverses the underside of an oil rig by swinging on a rope, then walking a tightrope
• Jumps on the back of a couple alligators to escape a swamp
• Swings on vines like Tarzan to escape pursuers
• Traverses the side of a moving train
• Uses a long pole to safely travel down a building, then releases the pole to smack a pursuing officer
• Performs a combat roll down stairs to avoid handgun fire
• Runs up a crane to reach the top of a building under construction
• Climbs up a vertical I-beam
• From the top of a moving truck, Bond runs and flips through the open windshield
• Jumps down a story onto stone, rolling to avoid impact damage

Stealth

• Uses a hollow reed to hide underwater from guards and dogs
• Hides in plain sight by pretending to be making out, but it’s actually just his own arms wrapped around himself
• Evades a crowd of police
• Lowers his heart rate to trick medical staff and an EKG, then dispatches the staff and escapes the hospital
• Broke into M’s house to use her computer

Other

• [Observation] Notices an attacker in the reflection of a woman’s eye, then uses her as a human shield to block a strike
• [Foreign Language] Learned several Asian languages at Cambridge
• [Alcoholism] Can tell the temperature of alcohol after one sip
• [Deception] Poses as a genealogist under the pseudonym Sir Hillary Bray. After a few days, Blofeld sees through the ruse and has Bond captured.
• [Underwater] Ties a boat to a large rock with the rope he’s bound in, causing the boat to break the rope, freeing Bond
• [Sleight of Hand] Switches out a priceless Faberge egg for a fake copy
• [Animal Commanding] Commands a wild tiger to sit, and it actually listens
• [Gambling] Wins a quarter of a million dollars at a high stakes gambling table
• [Invention] Descends a tall building with some rope and an unconscious body
• [Seduction] Seduces a married woman to learn more about her husband’s criminal activity
• [Preparation] Puts shotgun shells under the floorboards in order to fire on intruders when they step on them
• [Observation] Identifies a hidden door based on a tiny sliver of light through the crack

Equipment

Right, now pay attention 007. I want you to take great care of this equipment. There are one or two rather special accessories.
Q, have I ever let you down?
Frequently.

Weapons
Firearms

• Carries a Walther PPK, a discreet pistol with excellent stopping power
• A collapsible Armalite AR-7 sniper rifle with an infrared sight, allowing for use in the dark
• Bond carries a S&W model 29 revolver in early Moore films, then later switches to his iconic Walther PPK, then, finally, uses the Walther P5
• Carries a very small firearm, the Beretta 950 Jetfire
• Has a firearm disguised as a camera. Additionally, the device is programmed to Bond’s own palm signature, meaning only he can fire the weapon.
  • The camera gun can be outfitted with a scope and tripod for long range fire
• A suppressed UMP-9, used to fire on Mr. White’s leg at range
• A Walther PPK with a palm-print sensor coded to Bond’s hand, meaning only he can fire it
  • Sure enough, when someone else tries to use it, it just doesn’t fire
• A heavily modified Glock 17, with laser sight and microphone attachment

Other

• A combat knife
• A projectile launcher disguised as a cigarette, gifted to Bond by a ninja master
• A grenade disguised as a ballpoint pen
  • By tossing the grenade pen into a pool of fuel, an explosion and destructive fire is formed
• A grenade disguised as a lighter
• A flashbang explosive disguised as a handgun, used to stun three gunmen, allowing Bond to dispatch them

Gadgets
Mobility

• A grappling gun and cord that attaches to his pants, allowing him to scale the outside of a skyscraper
  • Can be outfitted with metal projectiles and used as a firearm instead
• Briefly wore a ninja outfit with suction cups on the palms and knees, used to scale down metal walls
• Flies away from a fight with a jetpack
• A belt with a hidden high-tensile cord, enough to support Bond’s own weight
  • Using the belt cord, Bond swings Spider-Man-style across a room and out a window

Reconnaissance/Infiltration

• A small explosive, used to blow a lock off a cell door
• Has a small safe-cracking device disguised as a cigarette case
• Special glasses to see through tinted glass
• Photocopier disguised as a checkbook
• A digital skeleton key disguised as a gift card
• Binoculars built into a pair of glasses
• Sunglasses with built in X-ray vision, allowing Bond to detect concealed weapons and see through women’s clothing
• A powerful camera, used to identify the faces of high profile criminals with just a few pixels
• A cell phone that acts as a fingerprint scanner, a powerful taser and as a remote control for a BMW

Continued in Comments

Linked my account yesterday and I'm just wondering how long it takes for the 5k to be added to my account, also I'm totally new so any beginner tips are appreciated, especially because I keep getting killed and I'd like to be good before I hit rank 11 and start losing things, I've survived 2 games and am rank 7

Hi all,
I live in a blue state in the USA. I am very lucky to have basically the best transgender protections/social environment in the world. I wrote a letter (email) to my state representatives. I wanted to share it here in case other people want to take a similar tactic. I am mostly looking to create change/pressure in my state, but I wanted to share it here as well in case anyone else wanted to do the same with their (sympathetic) representatives. Happy to take any feedback or input y'all have.

Hello,
I am a resident of [My town]. I am emailing my state representatives today to advocate for change. While the country is locked in turmoil over transgender rights, the nation is looking towards blue states as an example of how to be. Generally, we are doing better than most other places in the country, but there is still room to grow. I believe that if we can drive home substantial legislation in blue states, it will increase the political will in the rest of the country to further codify and cement our rights and protections into law.
To that end, I would like to request than you try to pass a bill which requires insurance providers to cover all treatment recommended in the WPATH (World Professional Association for Transgender Health) Standards of Care (SoC) version 8.
WPATH is the world's authority on transgender healthcare. The organization is not without its criticisms, but as time as gone on, they have improved their stances and helped solidify what is acceptable healthcare coverage for trans people. Their latest version of the Standards of Care was published in September of 2022. There are some changes, including an expansion of what medical treatments are covered. This is the most modern and up to date, evidence based guide on what treatments transgender people need to survive and thrive. Despite this, I have been fighting tooth and nail to get any form of reimbursement for expensive facial hair electrolysis treatments from my health insurance provider. These treatments should be covered according to SoC8, but my health insurance provider ([My provider]) does not cover them. I am forced to pay thousands of dollars our of pocket for treatment in order to feel comfortable in my own body. This is not fair to me, and it is structural discrimination against trans feminine people.
I implore you to push to have the minimum requirements for transgender health coverage codified into law, and kept modern and up to date as time and standards of care change. I do not suggest using language that holds insurance companies to the latest version of WPATH SoC, however - as I said, the organization faces a lot of criticism from the trans community, and we are always worried there will be a backslide in treatment guidelines as the political landscape shifts. I do suggest explicitly specifying SoC8, and revisiting the language (with transgender community input) when SoC9 is eventually published.
I am happy to speak further on this issue, thank you for taking the time to read this email. Please give them hell for us. Happy Pride.

P.S. I used this website to find my local reps and their email addresses: https://openstates.org/

I'm planning to sell most of my index fund capital soon to put the money into buying an apartment. But I still wish to keep some passive exposure to the market and not miss out entirely on what I expect to be a bull run for more or less the rest of the year.
My idea is that I'll use a much smaller dollar amount and put it into 2-3X SPX mini futures and hold for at least the rest of the year until I've accumulated more capital from my salary income.
That will give me similar leverage as my current index fund hodings and no fees (except the bid/ask difference when I enter and exit). Obviously I'll lose money faster if I'm wrong on my general prognosis, but are there other downsides to using mini futures in this way?