Liftside chamber locked door

John had been abducted. Which on its own was enough to put him on edge, but what had compounded everything was apparently he was not in the presence of well meaning aliens.
They were huge lumbering creatures that spoke in guttural growls, rumbles and snorts. Teeth as long as his fingers, claws the length of his palm, these things were terrifying to the displaced human.
Shortly after they had brought John onboard to what he assumed was a space ship, they'd stabbed something into the space behind his ear. Touching it he felt a small lump beneath his flesh that stung when he touched it.
It took a small leap of logic to say it was a translator of some sort. How the aliens tested it however was rather straight forward. One leaned over the human, crowding him as he was unable to move off of the table he'd been strapped to.
"I'm going to kill you." It said coldly.
"W-what? Why? Who are you?" John asked, eyes wide and scared.
The creature, what looked like some mutated bear on steroids, snorted and moved away.
"Translator works, go store it. Keep an eye on it until we can gets it biology checked."
"Wait! Whats going on!?" But no one was listening.
That had been a few hours ago. John remained curled up in a bundle of misery. He cradled an arm with the other, his body aching all over.
He tried to run when his restraints had been removed outside what amounted to a prison cell. The giant creature had just grabbed his arm and using it, swung him bodily into a wall. John's whole body had simply gone limp to the sudden pain blossoming through each limb. The human was dragged and dumped into the cell unceremoniously before the thick bars locked as the creature retreated.
The light was poor, but from what filtered in through the bars, he could make out a perfect square with nothing else. No bed or toilet. Noticing the slippy nature of the floor, John realised with revulsion that the floor sloped towards the door where a drain would filter away any waste.
He scooted until his back was pressed into the far wall. He wasn't sure if his arm was broken, his fingers moved when he bade them, but it hurt with each twitch. The four deep gouges across his foreham were still weeping. He wanted to wipe them clean, but he wanted to avoid any additional chances of infection. Glancing around the morbid cell didn't fill him with optimism of keeping clean.
Several hours passed and sleep would not come. His arm ached and throbbed.
"Hey..."
The man jumped, looking up at a new giant alien. Same as the others, but a different individual.
"You understand me? I need to have a look at that arm." It beckoned him whilst crouched behind the bars. Even lowered, John would barely see over its head.
"I'm not going to hurt you, we need you alive. Come on, I'm a friend."
"What are you going to do?" He asked. It seemed surprised at his response, its round ears twitching on top of its skull.
"I'm going to clean and seal those cuts litte guy."
"I think it might be broken."
"Well let's hope not. Let me see?"
With little to no other options, Josh stood shakily and walked over to the bars. A press of a button and the bars slide to one side.
The alien reached out huge clawed hands and took John's still weeping arm. With one hand it held the arm still while the other squeezed a blue paste from a silver sachet.
John expected it to sting, but instead it immediately felt better and cool as it was gently massaged into the four gouges. The wounds, now visible through the blue salve we deep, he could see his muscles and flesh quite clearly.
"Were you not sleeping because of this?" It asked, its massive hesd mere inches his John's.
"Yeah, but I can't sleep without a blanket covering me any way."
"A blanket?"
"Yeah, a covering. Like a soft material that you pull over yourself when you go to sleep."
"Like animal skins?"
"No, like cotton?"
"I don't know what that is. That's cute though."
"Mm... What's happening? Where are you taking me?"
"I'm not taking you anywhere. I just work here." It seemed to frown before meeting his gaze, John knew immediately that it knew it was avoiding the point.
It sighed.
"You're being uplifted. You're going to go to another planet and be really popular. You'll not have to fight or get sick or anything. You can have food whenever you like! Maybe you won't want to do this right now, but it's not the end of the world. If you're nice and friendly, you could find you end up with someone who can get you loads of blankets?"
John balked at what it was saying.
"But I'm not... I don't want to go somewhere else, please, I'm not a thing to be given or go with someone I don't want to."
"Hey, look. This is happening. You're... not a... you're not what I was told. But here? On this ship? This is not the moment to prove you can talk and understand people. They'll make sure you leave without that ability."
John's blood ran cold at the concept. A wave of exhaustion washed over him, his eyes dropping all of a sudden despute the adrenaline that was flooding his system.
"Wha-.. what have you done tome?"
"It's the medicine, you're going to be really tired. Look, come here." A thick and heavy arm wrapped itself over John and pulled him from the cell. He was pressed into warm soft fur. The exhaustion was clawing him from the waking world.
"I'll be your blanket for now. We'll sort something out before we get to Source. Sleep, it's okay, you're safe with me."
Despite his best efforts, the events of the day and the alien medicine dragged John from the waking world.
"I've got you..."
WolvensStories
Tip Jar

I'm from delhi. I along with my parents stay on 2nd floor and the ground and the 1st floor belong to one family. Their floor setting is duplex and they don't use the common stairs to go to 1st floor. Sometimes the street dogs come inside and sit on the common stairs and poop there. So we wanted to add a lock to the door of the common staircase, so we could open or close it from the 2nd or 1st floor. The neighbour said we couldn't add the lock as the wires going from the stairs wouldn't look good. So we said we could put a lock that could be operated using a remote, and would not require wires. He said the door opening and closing with the lock setting would create noise. When we further told him about a magnetic lock, that wouldn't even create noise, he came at his real point.
The thing is he wanted to change the whole door to the common stairs as he wanted to match it with his ground floor door and wanted us to contribute half. But we didn't want to, we are not in a financial condition to worry about whether the door looks good or not. So we said we are happy with the current door. So now he is creating problems when we are trying to add a lock.
I wasn't even surprised by this as many problems has happened with this neighbour in the past. During lockdown we started selling toys on Amazon from our home. One day he and his son stopped the pick-up guy, from entering the house through the common staircase, saying we can't do commercial activity from residential area. I was like what's your problem!? A big scene was created that day.
I didn't know such people existed! We got shifted here around 6 years back. Are there more people like this in the world!? It seems my worldview about people is limited. I didn't know a 50 year old man could be this immature.

This is the best tl;dr I could make, original reduced by 51%. (I'm a bot)

GEORGETOWN, Guyana - A teenage student who police in Guyana accuse of deliberately setting a fire in a girl's dormitory that killed 18 schoolmates and a five-year-old boy was charged Monday as an adult with 19 counts of murder.
The 15-year-old girl appeared virtually at the hearing in a court south of the capital, Georgetown, and was ordered held in custody pending further court proceedings.
The government boarding school serves remote Indigenous villages in the country's southwest.
The fire at the school began shortly before midnight.
More than two dozen students were injured while rescuers pulled at least 20 others from the heavily iron-grilled building.
National Security Advisor Gerald Gouveia has said that the dorm administrator, or house mother, locked all the doors to prevent the female students aged 12-18 from sneaking out to socialize in the mining town with adult males.

Summary Source FAQ Feedback Top keywords: student^#1 School^#2 court^#3 building^#4 while^#5
Post found in /worldnews.
NOTICE: This thread is for discussing the submission topic. Please do not discuss the concept of the autotldr bot here.

I have an almost 2yo male hound mix that my fiance and I have had since he was 8 weeks old. For the first 4ish months we had him he slept in his kennel at night and went to work with me in the day. Then we started introducing him to staying in his kennel during the day until he got too big to bring to work and he transitioned to being in his kennel while we work and by then he was sleeping with us.
He has never been a dog who loved his kennel. He happily tolerated it I would say. He would go in begrudgingly but immediately lay down and rest. Never wanted to chew on frozen treats or play in there. Only would rest comfortably.
We had a weird month in May where we had a guest staying with us who was home while we were at work. That upset Zuko because since someone was home he wanted to be with them but since we leave for work early he had to wait for our guest to wake up and let him out. This was fine for two weeks but during the third week he tore up his bed on Tuesday from throwing a fit. On Wednesday he doesn't have kennel time because my fiance doesn't work. Then on Thursday he absolutely lost it. Crying, panting, drooling, biting the kennel bars, sticking his paw between the bars and pulling at them. He ending up scraping his paw pretty badly and cutting his tongue before we got the camera alert and called our friend to be wake up and let him out.
Now, even though all guests are gone he will not let us leave him in his kennel. Guest left on the 25th. We tried once to leave him on the 26th as a trial and he was fine, he wasn't as relaxed as normal but he didn't cry or anything. But then later that day when we needed to leave for real we didn't get further than the front steps before he was losing it again. We had different guests for the long weekend and never tried to put him in there, we just shut him in the bedroom where his kennel is and that worked ok but not great.
This morning we tried the kennel again and we couldn't even leave the room. He was crying and panting as soon as we locked the latch. We do not know what to do. We cannot take him to work every day but when we leave him out in our bedroom he likes to howl about how much he misses us and we live in an apt so he can't be doing that at 7am. We are so lost and frustrated and don't know how to get him back to "normal". He will go in and out for treats, if I'm in my PJs and we're chilling I can lock the door and walk away for a few seconds and he's fine. It's only when we go to actually leave the house that he seems to start being afraid.
If anyone reads all this and has any advice, thank you in advance. We are really upset and don't know how to help our boy.

Has anyone dealt with sleep paralysis while having been on the tapes and while in a focus?
Was having a discussion the other day about sleep paralysis with some people and then got the sudden idea to try to "corrupt" one of the creatures that comes with REBAL and just the light energy we utilize.
The following night, after doing intro to focus 12 to refine and refresh, i dont think i actually completely left focus 12, (i definitely didnt drop past focus 10) I got up and locked my door and immediately fell asleep. Despite only having sleep paralysis once, I was locked into a constant nightmare slipping in and out of consciousness of what is best described toy story but in a horror format.
Throughout the whole night I was getting hit by the same fear I felt the first time I had sleep paralysis seeing a tall shadow man open my door and stare at me, something I can only describe as primordial.
This time however, I was both unconsciously and consciously controlling my REBAL, expanding and contracting as if it was battling something, i was conscious of my body reacting automatically to cycle energy in and out as it got used. My REBAL and energy composition seemed to evolve from pure yellow during this (I've mentioned my color before) to primarily yellow with light energy, similar to starlight from shining galaxies being thrown in randomly.
My eyes were forced away and my body kept getting into uncomfortable positions, none painful, just uncomfortable. I was not able to influence my body during this time. My cat was also right next to my head and while she is very irritable, never moved once until the end, when I was finally able to move, see a dim light at my window, and hear my window close slowly.
It's just odd.
If it wasn't hallucinations, did I piss something off possibly that it attempted to teach me a lesson?
Edit: I did forget to mention that the fear seemed to be getting forced out by an intense feeling of love as well, so it was just constant fluttering between fear and love.

Scene: A girl reaches the door of a house (which is probably hers). A guy arrives near her. They exchange some words. In the next cut, they are kissing erotically as they enter the house. Some people surprise the girl as it's her birthday or something. The guy & girl get shocked. Those people themselves get somewhat shocked to see the two kissing. A guy among the people who surprised the two, looks upset to see the two kissing. In the next scene, the girl has locked herself in a room and is crying. A woman makes her come out of the room.
The girl wears bangs btw.

Quiet quitting is what they were calling it.
A millennial phenomenon circulated on the Internet where fed up employees decided to stop giving their all with jobs. Instead, they’d start only doing the barest of bare minimums. After all, it’s not a fireable offense to do only what your job entails, right?
I started at this company young and optimistic and, just two years later, it had thoroughly sucked the joy out of me. Shyster & Twist was your typical corporate law firm with oversold perks and undersold hours. They’d chewed me up and I was just waiting for the company to spit me out.
I’d long since thought about printing off my two weeks notice, marching into the office and shoving it under my jerk boss’ condescending face. But then I’d be jobless and broke.
So, I went for it and “quiet” quit. No coming in early or leaving the office late. No more going out of my way to make conversation with coworkers in the lift. No cleaning my workspace or restocking the office supplies for everyone. No more emoticons in emails to coworkers. And absolutely no after-work socializing.
I could already feel my peace and sanity flooding back as all the free time and emotional investment I’d sunk into this soulless job were returned to me.
Yet just as soon as I’d gained it, I started to lose it again.
I’d expected more pushback to quiet-quitting. But, for whatever reason, no one noticed. Then I started to notice people struggling to hear me, then outright missing that I was talking. They’d shut doors on me, brush past me in the hall, set their things down right where I was sitting. I went from thinking I had the rudest colleagues ever to being convinced something stranger was happening.
That’s about the time my body became translucent.
No matter how loud I screamed, no one could hear, see or touch me. I’d stopped trying so I could have a social life, yet ironically now I didn’t have a life at all. I’d dissolved into a wisp of a person, less than a phantom. Sitting in my empty cubicle for months, I went through all the stages of despair. Confusion, denial, despair, anger. And finally acceptance.
On this Monday, no one notices as I, the office poltergeist, lock the exits, disabled the elevator, unhooked the smoke alarms, gathered the scrap papers from around the office into a pile, and set it alight with a broken computer plugboard.
I hear them all start to scream in panic, scrambling over their cubicles and each other to get out, stampeding over their precious projects and reports discarded on the floor. Everybody here ought to be “fired”.
Quiet quitting was fun but it didn’t really work out for my career trajectory.
I think it’s time I try loud quitting instead.

I know it's not exactly fan art, but it's the most fitting for this kind of thing. Another fanfiction has it as its flair when it was posted here. Anyway, this is my output for the OnK fanfic train. I hope you guys enjoy! The link to the fanfiction.net page will be at the bottom.
***
With the rise of violence against celebrities also comes the rise of elements that protect against them. A rookie agent finds himself assigned to a famous idol with a promise to defend. And what was supposed to be a training assignment would eventually grow to so much more.
***
The young man grumbled as he trudged the halls of his home towards his father’s office. His hand would rake through his black hair in his face in annoyance while his two emerald eyes with four-point star-shaped irises focused forward. He already knew what was gonna happen and he wished he could refuse. He had been hoping to devote his time to honing his gaming skills with the hope of maybe one day joining a pro-E-sports team. But, because his father was an old man with a small scope of the modern world, he laughed and told him to do something real with his life. And something real meant taking over the family business one day.
Kurosawa Security Services, or simply KSS, is a Japanese family-owned security company based in Kyoto although they have offices all over the country and even abroad. KSS provides everything from security guards for convenience stores to close protection agents for top government figures. They can also provide security consultation and training. The service is rated as the best Japan has to offer with highly trained agents. KSS agents regularly train with the police and military elements like the Security Police and Special Forces Group. And in rare occasions, they would even train with the US Secret Service abroad. KSS is also the best because of the long history of the organization which dates back to the feudal era when Kurosawa Saitō picked up the sword and protected the local Daimyo from an attack. In other words, they had a long time to hone their craft.
Now, what makes a security company like KSS so big in a country where crime is almost non-existent? Isn’t Japan a safe nation? Those would be your first mistakes if you thought of them. It doesn’t matter which part of the world you’re on, good and evil exist everywhere. And good must be protected from evil. That’s why KSS exists.
And soon enough, the company will be in Akio’s hands when it's his father’s time to retire. That’s how the system works, despite what he thinks of it. So, now his ultimate tests will begin. His first assignment.
After walking for what seemed like hours he reached a pair of large doors. He knocked on them and was asked to come in by a voice on the other side, so he complied. Entering, he was greeted with a fairly large office for only one man. And that man was currently seated behind a desk reading through some papers.
“Hey, Dad,” He greeted as he sat down on one of the chairs before across from him.
Kurosawa Tadao put the papers down and then looked at his son before smiling. He was an aging man with black hair that was already greying and blue eyes that had four-point star-shaped irises.
“Hey, Son! How’re ‘ya doing?” He asked.
“Just fine. I was finally getting my KDR up in Black Ops and I was planning on getting my skills up in CSGO later. But, here we are,” Akio answered.
“Staying inside is not good for your body you know.”
“I planned to play basketball tomorrow and I have band with the boys this weekend.”
“It’s still unhealthy because it’s exactly anything productive. You’re 17, Son, you need to start shaping up for your career,” Tadao said.
“I’ve been shaping it up since I was five,” Akio muttered.
“And that’s why we’re here right now. Your first assignment, son! It’s the moment of truth! Aren’t you excited?” Tadao asked with a wide grin as he picked up a folder from the side.
“No, not really,” Akio answered flatly.
“Well, maybe you’ll be excited once you find out who I’m assigning you to. Spoiler alert, she’s an idol,” He said with a grin, whispering that last part as he handed him the file.
“I’m not into idols, Dad,” He said flatly as he took the file.
“Your little brother a good chunk of this company’s personnel, and hell, a good chunk of the population are though,” He commented.
“That doesn’t make sense. Everyone can have different interests. And Goro, well, I guess being tied to a hospital bed for years does that to you,” He said sadly.
“You’re one weird kid, you know.”
“Well, I was raised by the likes of you, Dad,” Akio retorted with a sly grin which made his father laugh.
“Well, you got me there,” He chuckled and promptly silenced himself to let his son read.
“Hoshino Ai? Never heard of her. Although I admit she is pretty cute,” He mumbled as read through the file with her picture on it. He took in her personal information like date of birth, age, physical appearance, and all the usual things. And then he got to a part that listed her status— “What the fuck?! She’s pregnant?!”
“Language, Akio!” Tadao scolded. “Anyway, officially, she’ll be taking a break from showbiz for a while due to ill health. Actually, she’s pregnant and they’re trying to keep it under wraps. Bad for business, because a lot of fans are a bunch of lonely losers, they’ll drop her just because she has kids.”
“Language, Dad,” Akio retorted and shook his head. “Well, teen pregnancy is bad, but it’s unfair for her to be hated for that reason.”
“Yeah, the life of a celebrity is a lot shittier than most people would think. I know, your mother was a singer, she dealt with that too when we were found out,” Tadao said with a frown before smiling a bit. “She
“Please don’t tell me about your romances, Dad,” Akio cringed. “Anyway, Hoshino-sama will be my protectee, huh?”
“Yes. She’ll be heading here with her management agency soon to settle the contract. And then you’ll be heading to the countryside where she can lay low until she gives birth. That’s the basics of it.”
“Alright. Babysit a pregnant teenager and keep her from doing anything dumb. Should be easy enough,” He said.
“Do not underestimate the dangers tied to the entertainment world, Akio,” Tadao reminded. “As I’ve said, a lot of them are a bunch of lonely losers or generally just of questionable character. Some of them will go to great lengths just for attention. Fans can get really wacky after all. It’s already happened before. Not to mention, all the snakes in the industry. Someone might want to up their game so they think about eliminating the competition. You get the point.”
“I’m very aware, Dad, don’t worry,” He assured then sighed. “Just doing this and my studies at the same time? What am I gonna do?”
“That’s rich coming from someone who was planning on just lazing around all day. Besides, you’ve been homeschooling for more than a year already, right? I’m sure you can get a read in every day without compromising your job.”
“Well, it’s not impossible, but it’s gonna suck,” He said then sighed. “Alright, I’ve got this. Not much of a choice anyway. Anything else I should know?”
“Yeah. Remember this, you do not ever let your protectee out of your sight. Wherever she goes, you go. That being said, don’t be too overbearing, and make sure to give her room to breathe. She is a woman, she will want her space. Also, try not to set such a tight atmosphere. Try being her friend, and she’ll be easier to work with. Tomita will meet you tomorrow too to evaluate you. You’ll also be reporting to him your progress during your task.”
“Noted, Dad. In that case,” Akio stood then positioned himself directly in front of the table before bowing. “I shall see this task to the end.”
***
Idol music was not his cup of tea and Hoshino Ai was a complete stranger to him till that moment. He’d spend a whole week with the pre-preparations with one of the senior agents until it was time to meet the latest customers. Then he would meet Hoshino Ai for the first time and they’d make their first impressions of one another.
***
“Are you really sure about this?”
“We’re going to need a shield just in case. Lot’s of wackos around here. Besides, we’ve already agreed to meet.”
“It’s just, there’s a lot of shady dealings in the security world.”
“Are we any better? Besides, KSS is the best this country can offer. I also know the company head personally too, we went to high school together, and he owes me. We’ll be just fine.”
“Um, o-okay…”
“I didn’t understand any of that, but okay!”
“Never change, Ai…”
How do you keep a secret from the world? Simple: you lie. You lie a lot. But then you realize it’s not so simple and every day is spent with fear that everything might fall apart. Just trying to get anywhere was a massive undertaking. For example, right now. Two adults and a pregnant teen in a car. Aside from the teen pregnancy, there’s nothing strange at all about it. But if you knew who the car’s passengers were, then you’d immediately understand.
After a couple of hours of driving (making occasional turns to make sure they weren’t followed and consequently getting lost a couple of times) they finally reached their destination which was a large estate in the outskirts of Kyoto. A guard met them at the gate, and after the driver talked and showed some credentials, they were let in. It took another minute or two until they reached the house where a group was waiting for them. The car group got out of their vehicle with the house group greeting them shortly after. A man with short blonde hair and yellowish-brown eyes underneath some shades stepped forward and led the group.
“Ichigo-san, you’re still about as ugly as when I last saw you,” Tadao greeted with a cheeky grin as he approached.
“Tadao-san, you’re clearly the most repulsive one here. I see you still haven’t taken my advice to get your face fixed,” Ichigo greeted with a snarky expression as he also approached.
Once close enough, they locked hands for a shake before pulling each other in for a hug.
“It’s nice to see you again, friend! How’re you doin', man? No troubles getting here?” Tadao asked.
“I’m just fine. Getting here was a lot smoother than we thought. But we are exhausted,” Ichigo replied.
“I imagine. Remember that time in Second Year when we bought booze with fake IDs and we had to run for it?”
“Ha, how can I forget?! I was terrified the cops would get us!”
As the two men shared stories and laughed, everyone else present could not help but be astonished at how casual the two were being. It almost was like this wasn’t a business meeting.
“Yeah, those were the days,” Tadao laughed and turned to the other two people to address them. “Before we continue any further, allow me to introduce myself. I am Kurosawa Tadao, head of Kurosawa Security Services, and I welcome you all to my home. It’s nice to meet you!”
He then stepped toward the next person. She was a rather tall woman with long strawberry-blonde hair and pinkish-brown eyes.
“And you must be Miyako, his wife, yes?” He asked.
“Yes, I am,” She said with a polite smile as they shook hands.
“You know, I’ve always wondered how someone with a face like his could get married. But here we are,” He joked earning a laugh from her.
“I sometimes wonder why I decided to marry him too,” She commented and they both laughed.
“Huh? What?” Ichigo said but was ignored.
Then, Tadao moved to the last person. She was a short girl with long violet hair with matching eyes that have stars in them. But her most distinct feature was the bulge in her abdomen showing her pregnancy. Moreover, she looked like she wasn’t even 18. This observation made his gut wrench due to feeling pity for this poor girl’s bad decision. Regardless, he put on his best smile and took her hand.
“And you must be Hoshino Ai,” He greeted. “I’ve heard all about you, but since I’m the stereotypical old man, I’m not into your music. Regardless of that, and after listening to a couple of songs, I think you’re doing some very great work in your field.”
Her lips curved into a smile that cured souls as her eyes seemed to shimmer. Tadao kept himself from reacting, but at that moment he knew why she was so popular.
“Thank you so much, Tadao-san! You know, I don’t think I’m that popular to begin with but I’m always so happy to hear that someone like what I do!” She said happily.
He chuckled a bit. “I used to be in a band in middle school and high school, so I still try to stay up to date with the latest musical trends these days. Although, I still don’t know much. I mostly get my info on that from my own agents.”
He glanced to the side followed by Ai shortly after to see three younger agents standing stiffly as they tried to ignore them. They knew exactly who she was. All three of them have her as their phone’s lock screen wallpaper. And it’s clear that they wanted to talk to her, but they couldn’t. And even if they could, they didn’t know how. Ai giggled in amusement while Tadao just stared.
“Anyway, now that introductions have been made, let’s go inside where it’s more comfortable. I know you’re here for business, so let’s dive right in. We’ve also prepared snacks and refreshments inside in case you want some. Ichigo, my valet will take care of your car, so give him the keys please,” Tadao said as he gestured for them to follow.
“Do you have ice cream?” Ai asked.
“We sure do!”
“Yay! Let’s go!”
After Ichigo handed over the keys to a valet, Tadao began leading them into his home with the trio following shortly after. But before that, a mischievous thought entered Ai’s mind and she acted quickly. She suddenly turned to look at the trio of agents who tensed up even more under her gaze. Worse, they realized that she was up to no good just from her grin. But before they could even speculate what she was up to, she suddenly did her signature love heart hand pose with a smile. In a flash, the three agents felt their knees go weak in the presence of such moe cuteness that they struggled to stay upright as they covered their mouths to silence their ecstatic screams. Satisfied with her handiwork, Ai giggled as she left the scene of the crime.
“Um, are they gonna be alright?” Ichigo asked nervously as he saw one of them falling over.
“They’ll be fine.”
They entered the huge house and led them through a series of hallways that were decorated with all sorts of interesting stuff. One of them was some sort of cannon on a towed carriage, except, aside from one big barrel, it’s got multiple little ones arranged in a circle with a crank.
“Kurosawa-san, what’s that?” Ai asked.
“Oh, this? This is a Model 1874 Gatling Gun. It fires a .45-70 caliber round from top-loaded 20-round box magazines with a rate of fire of about a thousand rounds per minute, although, it really depends on how fast you can crank it. It was one of the most revolutionary weapons ever designed and it changed the battlefield forever. This specific weapon here was used by the Imperial Army against revolting samurai during their last stand in the Battle of Mount Shiroyama, the last action of the Satsuma Rebellion,” He explained. “Sometimes I wonder what the samurai were thinking in their last moments just before they were all gunned down.”
“Wow,” Ai whispered in awe.
“Indeed. I don’t even know where my father dug up this gun,” He said before tracing across the black-painted barrels of the old weapon.
“That’s so cool!” She exclaimed happily then fished out her phone from her hoodie pocket. “Can I take a picture with it?”
“Ai, we’re here in business and the man’s likely very busy, so let’s not take anymore—” Ichigo said but was cut off.
“Sure thing! Our meeting is the only thing I have on my schedule today, so I’m basically free to do anything!” Tadao interjected with a wide smile as she took her phone.
What followed next was a comedic scene which was basically an old man doting on his granddaughter while he took pictures of her doing cute things. Meanwhile, everyone else present just stared with blank expressions.
“So much for not being into idols,” Ichigo muttered.
“These are so good! Thank you so much, Kurosawa-san!” She thanked him with a wide smile after going over the pictures.
“You’re very welcome! And you know, we’ve got a lot of goodies in this house, maybe you’d like to take some pictures with them too?” He offered.
“I’d love to!” She squealed.
“Mhmm!” Someone cleared their throat.
Looking in that direction, they saw a young man dressed in a nice business suit who was basically a younger version of Tadao. He approached them with his hands in his pockets and regarded them with a straight expression.
“You’re getting off track here, Dad. We’re still conducting a business,” He said as a matter of factly. “And what happened to ‘no touching of the expensive decor’?”
“Oh come on, son, do you honestly believe I can refuse that?” Tadao complained as he gestured to Ai who maintained a happy expression as she looked at the photos.
“Don’t enable her, Dad. Ma’am, please stop touching the gun, it’s very old and very expensive,” He said.
“Ai, get off of it,” Ichigo ordered.
“Aw, okay,” She said sadly as she backed off.
“Sorry for the trouble, but this stuff is crazy expensive. And oh, I’m Kurosawa Akio, by the way. It’s a pleasure to meet all of you,” He greeted with a polite smile.
“This is my son. He’ll be taking care of the business one day, so I’m bringing him along more now,” Tadao said.
Another round of handshakes was exchanged as the group introduced themselves to Akio. Ai expected the tone and body language of a fan holding himself back, the same kind she’s gotten used to seeing, but was rather surprised when he shook her hands normally with nothing but politeness in his eyes. Strange, now she’s curious. Akio on his part thought that she was a rather normal-looking girl, except for the bulging stomach, and didn’t find anything very special from just looking at her.
“Sorry for messing around. It’s just a really cool-looking thing!” Ai said.
“It sure is, ‘can’t argue with that. They don’t make weapons like these anymore these days. It’s all just big bombs now, which is boring,” Akio remarked.
“I don’t think death and destruction are supposed to be nice to see,” Miyako remarked.
“Exactly,” Tadao stated with a firm voice. “And that’s what we strive for in KSS. Every day must always be boring. Now come on, we’ve got business to attend to.” He said before turning and walking away.
“Is he always like this?” Miyako asked with a sweatdrop, noting the man’s sudden change of face.
“You’ll get used to it,” Both Ichigo and Akio replied in a flat tone.
They finished the walk toward their destination which was a conference room inside the house. The place was quite spacious and cozy looking, especially since it has a fireplace. They all immediately took their seats with KSS taking one side of the table and Ichigo Productions sitting opposite of them.
“Snacks will be brought in a little bit, so let’s get down to business to business shall we,” Tadao said as he placed a briefcase on the table and pulled out some papers. “By the way, everything we talk about will not leave this room, you can trust us. I think I also know the reason why you need an extra pair of hands. Your reason for getting a bodyguard is because you’re worried that you’ll be attacked like that idol that got stabbed recently, yes?”
They all nodded at that. It was already a month old, but the memory of it was still fresh on everyone’s minds, especially since it was covered on national news.
An idol named Hirose Keiko, who was pretty popular and only 16 like Ai, was recently murdered by a crazy fan in her own home. The autopsy report stated that the cause of death was cardiac arrest from severe bleeding after being stabbed three times and that she died in minutes.
The police captured the killer before he could jump off a bridge and took him in for questioning. He said that a Twitter post showing Keiko being all friendly with some guy somewhere made people think she had gotten a boyfriend. This enraged him because he felt betrayed by her actions, therefore he stalked her and plotted her murder for weeks. So, it was pretty awkward for him to find out that Keiko’s supposed boyfriend was actually her cousin and she was at a family get-together at that time.
The news shocked everyone in the country and many celebrities started taking their personal security more seriously. Ichigo was worried for Ai, and Ai was a bit scared herself. She knew Keiko, they did some collaborations together in the past, and she was upset she couldn’t attend her funeral. So, Ichigo Productions, though a bit cash-strapped, decided that it would be a good idea to have some form of security with them to help out in the long run. Especially now that Ai was pregnant… they couldn’t stomach the thought of some deranged lunatic stabbing her to death like what happened to Keiko.
“I don’t think I can forget that. I knew the girl and her agency, they were good people. I hope that bastard gets the chair,” Ichigo muttered.
“You and me both. And don’t worry, we’ll make sure nothing ever happens to you,” Tadao assured. “Alright, now, how do you want to be protected?”
“We just need someone with us to keep the creeps away, especially one that can lie low with us. Nothing flashy at all,” Ichigo answered.
“Hmm, I understand what you want. One or two agents on you at all times at least, covering your front and back. They’ll be in plain clothes too so as to not draw attention. Okay, I’ve got a lot of agents to spare for that kind of job,” Tadao said, as he wrote on a piece of paper.
“What else is there?” Ichigo asked.
“We’re gonna brief you on how we operate and how we intend to do this. None of them are hard to follow at all. The gist is that you need to tell us everything, your schedules, contacts, extra activities, etcetera.”
“So, I’ll basically be followed around everywhere?” Ai asked.
“Basically, yes. But the key difference is that it’ll be by people you can trust. However, that doesn’t mean we’ll be poking around your daily life and infringing on your space every day. We’ll create a system in which you’re safe but still comfortable. In fact, we even have methods to protect you without you or anyone seeing us, but that’s really expensive though,” Tadao explained. “We know our boundaries too, Hoshino-sama, you don’t have to worry.”
“Hmm,” Ai hummed as she considered his words before another thought occurred to her. “Will you kill people?”
“Only if they really force us to. Every agent has a loaded gun with him, but we’re also trained in ways to stop an attacker with non-lethal force. Besides, one of our tactics is that by simply being there, we can discourage anyone from trying anything funny. As I’ve said, the best days for us are the most boring ones.”
“I see.”
“What’s the price tag?” Miyako asked.
“Despite the low elements, you’re still looking at 500,000 yen per month. But…” He trailed off. “But… due to my debt to you, Ichigo, I’ve decided to give you half that price for six months. This is paid like a subscription service where you have to pay every month. Failure to pay means immediate termination of services.”
“Is there anything else?” Ichigo asked.
“There are a bunch more details that you need to know. Legality, protocols, company policy, and all that. But, there’s one detail that I threw in as a condition for this,” Tadao said then placed a hand on Akio’s shoulder who was sitting to his right. “My son will be the one to run point of your protection detail. This’ll also act as his first test, to prove his skill as a protection agent.”
“Although I’m inexperienced, I’m quick to learn and adapt, and I’m ready to take on whatever task is needed from me,” Akio said politely.
Ichigo and Miyako frowned at the prospect of being given someone who was inexperienced in the field. But if he was the son of the guy who runs the place, then he should be pretty good, right? Besides, this is possibly the best deal they’ll ever get, and they weren’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth.
“Alright, that’s fine,” Ichigo said.
“I’m okay with it,” Ai said.
“Although, Akio will be running point so you’ll see him the most often, another rookie agent will also be there to learn too. He’ll be number two. A senior agent will also be dropping by occasionally to check on them and evaluate their performance, although you don’t need to pay him. And in case things get really bad, emergency services and other agents won’t be too far to assist,” Tadao added.
“Ah, alright,” Ichigo said.
“Now, for the rest of everything.”
They would spend the next thirty minutes getting into the details of how everything would be under their care. Snacks and refreshments were brought in at that time with Ai receiving a pint of ice cream, making her very happy. They got into some legal conditions that were implemented to protect both sides. They also got into how the protection detail would work and what to do under certain situations. And of course, company policy.
One such policy is that the client can sue the company for up to 30 million yen for disclosing any secrets entrusted to them without permission. And although KSS can definitely pay that amount, their reputation would be tarnished and they’d lose even more money. That was a fact that allowed Ichigo Productions to rest easier. Ai’s pregnancy needed to remain under wraps.
After a few more minutes and a couple more things were clarified, they finally moved on to the last piece of the puzzle. Tadao opened up his briefcase and pulled out one last set of papers.
“This is the contract. What’s is just a summary of everything we talked about, but I suggest you read it carefully so you’re not missing anything,” Tadao said.
Ichigo Productions took the document and carefully read through it to make sure they were not missing anything. It took another five minutes, but they confirmed that everything was in place.
“A service that tells you everything and makes you read the contract first? Finally!” Ichigo joked.
“We’re the guys that protect the Emperor, not some shady organization! We’ve got a reputation to uphold!” Tadao stated. “Anyway, if nothing is amiss, sign your name and seal on the space provided and we are officially under your employ.”
“Everything’s here. Let’s seal the deal,” Ichigo said.
He grabbed a pen that was provided to him and signed his name on the line at the bottom then stamped his seal on the side. Miyako did the same thing after him. And finally, Ai filled out the last line with her name and seal and even drew a little heart on it. Tadao took the document and looked through it before putting it down and giving them a smile.
“You are now under the protection of Kurosawa Security Services! With Hachiman, the divine protector of Japan, guiding our hands, you will not have to worry about anything as long as we are around! Rest assured that we will take care of you. And anyone that tries to harm you will die a horrible death!” He proclaimed.
“That’s… oddly specific,” Ichigo remarked.
“If you get hurt, we’ll cover the expenses of your medical bill. If you die under our watch, which you won’t, we’ll offer a full refund to your relatives, and we’ll even avenge you. That’s our policy, to treat our clientele as if they are our family,” He added.
“That’s very nice,” Miyako said.
“Only the best we provide our clients,” Tadao said. “And aside from giving you a copy of the documents, this concludes our business. Thank you for choosing our services. We promised not to disappoint.”
“We’ll be watching closely then.”
Both groups then stood up and gave each other one last bout of handshakes to truly seal the contract that was just signed.
“I’ll make sure your men get tickets to one of my concerts in the future!” Ai said and looked at Akio. “Especially you, Akio-san.”
“Oh, that’s very kind of you, Hoshino-sama. But, I’m not into idol music,” He replied politely.
“Huh?”
“Please excuse my son. We know he’s a weirdo,” Tadao jokingly said.
“I ain’t weird, Dad. I don’t hate idol music but I don’t exactly like it either. I just like other things,” Akio stated.
“It’s not impossible, but it’s a first for us. Everyone your age we’ve met is into idols,” Saitou said. “Looks like you’re the 10% we didn’t see coming.”
“Please just take it as less worry for you, since I won’t be prying for your attention all the time. I’ll always keep a respectful distance. I promise.”
“That’s all we can ever ask really. Thank you.”
“Now that business is concluded, we can all turn in for the night. But would you like something before you leave? Some more snacks or drinks perhaps? We’ve got a lot here,” Tadao offered but Ichigo shook his head.
“No, we’ve already been here too long, we don’t want to overstay our welcome. Besides, it’s late and we’re all tired. We should be getting back now,” he said.
“Alright. In that case, allow us to walk you out while I get the valet to get your car.”
“Alright then.”
Ichigo Productions prepared to leave while Tadao got on his phone. Ichigo and Miyako started discussing something with each other while Ai simply looked around the room. Her eyes would eventually land on Akio who was looking at his phone. He’d pocket it a moment later and his eyes would land on his protectee’s. She’d flashed him a wide smile, the kind that can captivate any man, while he returned with a simple smile and a nod. Ai began opening her mouth to speak before stopping short when there was a disturbance from Tadao.
“... Really? Alright, I’ll tell them,” He sighed before turning to the group.
“What’s wrong?” Ichigo asked.
Tadao smiled awkwardly. “A small problem just developed on your end.”
They’d find themselves outside again a moment later, watching a scene unfold before them. Ichigo Production’s car, a white rental Toyota Corolla, remained where Ichigo last left it although the hood was open and multiple guys were peering into the engine compartment with flashlights. One agent tried turning the key and starting the ignition, yet the engine remained quiet. A moment later, a middle-aged man with his sleeves rolled up walked up to Tadao while wiping his hands on a rag.
“I think it’s a broken sparkplug, Tadao-san. It just won’t start,” He reported.
“I told you it was broken!” Miyako scolded Ichigo in a hushed voice.
“Do we have spare parts, Hiro-san?” Tadao asked.
“No, we just ran out when our own rides needed maintenance and we haven’t resupplied yet,” He said with a shake of his head. “We can’t run to the shop too because it’s already closed at this time. This thing’s staying here till morning.”
Ichigo and Miyako groaned at their misfortune while the rest of them simply stared indifferently. Tadao then sighed and spoke again.
“Alright. In that case, Hiro-san, please get the van off the driveway and onto the side. We’ll deal with it tomorrow morning. Then please take one of the Land Cruisers and take them back to their hotel. The rest of you are free to leave for home too,” He ordered.
“Hai, Kurosawa-sama!” Everyone replied.
“Tadao-san, are you sure? This is probably too much—” Ichigo began but stopped when Tadoa raised a hand.
“It’s fine, I don’t mind at all. Just think of this as me helping a friend in need. And no, you don’t have to pay,” He replied.
Ichigo was unsure but ultimately allowed it and bowed a bit. “Alright, thank you.”
“No problem,” Tadao replied with a shallow nod.
While the adults addressed the issue of their ride, the two kids remained on the side and simply watched. Akio and Ai were still in their teens, so they were kids in the eyes of the adults present.
“So,” Ai began. “What kind of music do you listen to, Kurokawa-san?”
“Uh, I like rock music of all types from pop to death metal. I’ve been listening to them since I was five. And it’s Kurosawa, Hoshino-sama,” He replied, her sudden question and error of his name catching him off guard.
“Ah, really? Ahahaha, I’m so sorry! I'm not very good at memorizing people’s faces!” She laughed jovially.
“Ahaha, I can imagine. Since you probably see so many faces every day, it’s hard to keep track of them all, huh?” He laughed.
“Ah, yeah! It’s a bit of a problem for me, hehe. Sometimes, I even forget the President’s name too, haha!”
He laughed along with her but internally, he was cringing a bit.
Does every idol have such an airheaded personality? He wondered.
“It must be kinda hard for you too, having to work like this when you’re so young,” She remarked.
“Well, this is my first job ever, so it doesn’t seem hard at all right now. That’s definitely gonna change though,” He replied. “But, I don’t think my job will get anywhere as difficult as yours with you having to put up an act all the time. I don’t think I can handle that.”
“Yeah, tell me about it. I really like my job, but sometimes it gets pretty tiring. Taking a break like this is gonna help out a lot!” She said happily before taking a deep breath and looking around. “I think I’ve already said this, but your place is really nice.”
“Mhmm, and this is just our place here in Tokyo. We’re only here now because we need to be closer to some of our clients at the moment. Our main house in Kyoto is even bigger and cooler!” Akio replied.
“You guys are really loaded, huh?”
“For the past few decades, Kurosawa has been branching to other things that make money. We need the cash to pay for our stuff after all. Although, we’re still inferior to zaibatsus like Shinomiya and Shijo (who we provide services to, by the way) but also still better than most.”
“Wow.”
“Mhmm, but money still isn’t everything. We try to take a humble approach to things too. Dad doesn’t like spending money on anything that isn’t important and I don’t buy a lot of things myself,” He added and kept his mouth open to continue when he was interrupted.
“Don’t believe him! He eats yakiniku at least once a week!” One of the younger agents stated as he walked by with a bag over his shoulder, likely on his way home.
“Look who’s talking, idiot! You spend the most out of all of us!” He retorted angrily but only got a laugh in response. He turned back to Ai who was holding a hand over her mouth to stifle her giggles, prompting him to sigh in annoyance. “Alright, I admit that part and also I spend a lot quite a lot on video games and band equipment, but only on special occasions. I’m not some pompous rich jerk that throws money around, I promise you.”
“Hmm, alright, I believe you,” She giggled and then thought of something. “You could’ve totally left that part out or outright lied. Why didn’t you?”
“Uh, it was already out, so there’s no point in trying to lie about it anymore. Besides, I don’t believe you deserve to be lied to, Hoshino-sama,” He answered.
Her smile wavered ever so slightly as she processed his answer. I don’t deserve to be… lied to?
“Um—”
“Ai, our ride’s here! Let’s head back to the hotel!” Ichigo called out as one of the company’s Land Cruisers had been brought out to take them.
“I guess we’ll just have to continue this conversation some other time, but it’s been a nice talk. I look forward to working with you, Hoshino-sama,” He said with a wide smile and an outstretched hand.
“Ai.”
“Sorry?”
Ai smiled widely too, her eyes seemingly shimmering brighter as she took his hand and shook it. “Since we’ll be sticking so closely together for a while, you can just call me Ai, Akio-san.”
He blinked. “U-Uh, sure thing, Ai-san.”
“Just Ai,” She clarified.
“Just Ai,” He nodded and smiled widely, happy that she remembered his first know, even if he didn’t know why.
“If that’s what you want, you’re the boss,” Akio remarked, earning another laugh from her. “You have a good night, Ai, and I’ll see you again tomorrow.”
“You too, Akio-san.”
She’d head back to her group a moment later and they were leaving the estate shortly. Akio waved at the car as it drove past him and he could just barely see a human figure waving back through the darkness. As he watched the SUV disappear, he put his hand down and looked up at the sky.
“Wow,” He breathed. “Her eyes are something else.”
He’d retire for the night shortly after without another thought. He’d sleep soundly not knowing that he had just stepped on the path that would define his life.
***
This is the link to the ff.net page. Thank you very much for taking the time to read it, and thank you even more if you decide to support it on ff.net! Please also tell me what you think and/or if you have any ideas you'd like to share here or there!
For now, have a great day, and peace out!
Veritas vos liberabit.
The Truth will set you Free.

I used to work at a popular south eastern gas station. They paid great, but the management was awful. They had cameras with microphones in the break room, we weren’t allowed to take our breaks anywhere but the break room, phones were strictly forbidden, and one manager loved to harass me during each shift. We’ll call him Matt. Matt loves to micromanage people. So much so that he lost a managerial position at a new gas station they were opening and was demoted to an assistant manager position because of the way he treats his employees.
Shortly after we moved into a new apartment, my gf called and texted me during a shift telling me someone was banging on our door trying to break in. I saw her text on my smart watch, and rushed outside to call her and make sure everything was okay.
She told me that they stopped banging on the door and left, so I told her to let me know if anything else happened, and went back to work. This call lasted 2 minutes max.
First, my warehouse manager came up to me, (we’ll call him daydrinker) telling me he had to report me for using my phone during my shift. I explained the situation to him, and told him I was scared for the safety of my gf. Daydrinker still reported me to Matt.
Matt called me into a conference room and began to berate me for using my smartwatch during a shift, telling me that he was going to report me to the district manager, and that I better watch what I say because my job was on the line, and there were microphones recording the conversation. He said all of this with a smart watch on his wrist. I explained the whole situation to him, and that it was an emergency. This didn’t help. He still threatened to report me to the district manager. I said, “Matt, you understand that I’m an adult with obligations outside of work, right? There’s a fundamental human aspect to this situation that I feel is being ignored.” This set him off. He quoted the employee rule book, called me a bad employee, and then fired me. I held my tongue to maintain some sense of dignity.
After that day though, I vowed to spit on the ground in front of him if I ever saw him again.
Fast forward a year. My gf and I stopped by the same gas station to fuel up, and went inside for some food (this gas station is so large that they have over 200 fuel pumps and a big barbecue restaurant inside). Lo and behold, I locked eyes with Matt when we walked in.
I decided against spitting on the ground, and just shot him a middle finger. He immediately walked over and I greeted him saying “Hello Matthew, you piece of shit.” He said “Uh-uh, you gotta get out of here.” I respectfully complied, but as he walked me out, I kept a safe distance to show him I had no violent intentions, but I kept insulting him, saying, “Remember when you fired me for calling my girlfriend in an emergency you asshole? Fuck you, piece of shit.”
I walked back to my car, and waited for my gf to finish up feeling very satisfied that I’d finally gotten a chance to tell him off. As we were leaving, I see Matt searching for me in the parking lot. He finds me, and flags down a police officer. Cop asked what happened. I explained the situation from a year ago, he said, give me one minute while I go run your ID. During that time, Matt tells me “They’re gonna take you in for trespassing, you’re banned from this gas station for life.” I laughed in his face. Cop came back and said, “Sir, we’re gonna ask that you never come back to this gas station again, or we’ll have to arrest you for trespassing. Other than that, you’re free to go.” I took one last chance to laugh at Matt, and then we left.
He stared me down as we pulled out of the parking lot, the whole time I was pointing and laughing at him from inside the car.
I try to keep from acting like this, especially in public, because I am generally an easy going and non-confrontational person. This time though, after all the BS that that micromanaging asshole put me through, including screaming at me in front of every other manager during a meeting for not wearing a glove while cutting a box with a safety cutter, I had to give him an earful.
TLDR: I got banned from a gas station for cursing at the manager who fired me for calling my gf during an emergency. Fuck you “Matt”

I make a big show of locking the front door but he only sobs louder and points at the floorboards bulging upwards, “they don’t come in through doors”.

My mom (58F) got mad at me (17F) for asking if she locked the bathroom doors. For context, I came out at around 2 am to use the bathroom when I noticed the door was locked. So I tried to open the other bathroom door located in the hallway and realized that was locked too. I went and asked my dad if he knew why the doors were locked and he had no idea what I was talking about. He got up and helped me unlock the doors before coming to bed. While unlocking one of the bathroom doors my uncle came out of his room and asked why the bathroom doors were locked, my dad told him he didn't know before going back to bed. My mother comes into my room about 45 minutes after and asks:
Mom: "So, I heard the bathroom doors were locked?"
Me: "Yeah"
Mom: "Both of them?"
Me: "Yeah, it wasn't you?"
Well, this question seemed to really set her off because she started to get pissed.
Mom: "What did you just ask me? Are you serious? Did you really think I would lock the doors? Why the fuck would I do that?"
Me: "I didn't say that you did, I was just asking..."
Mom: "No, I didn't lock the doors."
She then proceeded to slam the door and storm off. Cut to 5 or so minutes later and she storms back in.
Mom: "I'm sorry, did you just ask if I locked the bathroom doors? Do you seriously think that I would do that? Do you??"
Me: "No...."
Mom: "I raised you since birth. What the fuck is wrong with you?"
She then proceeds to storm out and slam the door once more. And now we're here.
Firstly, I didn't mean anything bad by asking her. Secondly, I assumed that since both my dad and uncle had no clue who did it, it wouldn't have been them. And the only other person in the house besides my mom is my friend who had been in the room with my for hours, so I'm sure it couldn't have been her. My mom has a habit of locking doors when she's pissed off, so naturally, I assumed it was her.
I honestly may be the asshole for assuming it was her, I could understand her being pissed if I outright accused her, and in the process hurt her feelings. But I was genuinely asking if she happened to be the one who did it, with no malice in my voice whatsoever. I was genuinely just curious.
This isn't the first time she's blown up on me for unknowingly/accidentally upsetting her, but it's incredibly frustrating. I'm supposed to be graduating on Friday, I should be looking forward to that but now all I can think about is how I'm gonna fix this before graduation. I'm honestly just so exhausted at this point, and I just want to give up. I don't know what to do and I can't stop shaking.
Was I in the wrong for asking her? Am I overreacting for feeling upset at her reaction?

This is a mega-thread for people who want to discuss before, during, and/or after the Red Rocks show. Please keep all comments relevant to the specific Red Rocks show. We will update the general info as more info comes through the wire.
Enjoy the show!
VENUE : Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre
WHERE : Morrison, CO
WEATHER : 67°F and showers
TIME : Doors open at 6:00 pm
VENUE DETAILS : Please refer to the venue FAQs for more information!
OPENING ACT(S) : Shit Robot on the decks, Peaches, M.I.A.
TICKETS :

• AXS.
• TICKET MEGA-THREAD. Feel free to post ticket exchanges here as well. Please abide by rules posted in the ticket mega-thread!

MERCHANDISE : posters, shirts, and long sleeves, oh my!
PLEASE keep all conversations related to the Red Rocks show.
This thread serves 3 purposes :

1. Invite people to talk about anything related to the show taking place in their city, such as the merch, the venue, the show itself, etc.
2. Allow people to organize a pre/post-show meetup.
3. Share any and all media and footage from the show.

This thread will be stickied 6 hours after the show ends. Once unstickied, this thread will be placed on the sidebar for the duration of the tour -- each GDT will replace the corresponding AXS website :)
Have fun and dance yrself clean!
COMMENTS ARE SORTED BY NEW
Please be advised that all subsequent posts regarding tonight's show, including buying/selling/trading tickets for tonight's show, will be locked and subsequently deleted.

When you need to know where someone is right now, tracking their location should be your top priority. There are a variety of reasons why you might want to locate someone. For their protection and your own sanity, you may want to keep an eye on your kids and loved one
Simple Ways to Track a Samsung Phone Location?
You might have a bizarre purpose for following someone’s phone location. Whatever your motive for wanting to track someone’s position, you now have various possibilities. There are also numerous tools available that allow you to track a person’s position via their cell phone. In this article, we will discuss simple ways to track a Samsung Phone Location?
Did you know that Samsung is the world leader in digital technology, especially in terms of mobile phone sales in 2021? In the first two quarters, the business sold around 112.5 million units to end-users It’s no surprise, then, that your kids and loved one use their Samsung phones to socialize at all hours of the day and night.

• Why and How to Track Your Child’s Samsung Phone
• Simple Ways to Track a Samsung Phone Location?
• Track a Samsung Phone Location
• Track a Samsung Phone Location
• Samsung’s Find My Phone
• Android’s Find My Device

Mobile technologies have brought convenience to people’s lives, but they have also become a source of considerable danger. Cyberbullying, hidden death squads, perilous challenges, and online predators are all issues that thousands of kids and loved one face on a regular basis.
Why and How to Track Your Child’s Samsung Phone
As previously said, kids and loved one can get into mischief even if they are in the room next door to you. Online predators utilize Tinder, Snapchat, Kik, and other apps to befriend young people because they enjoy spending time on social media and adding new friends to their accounts.
In most circumstances, maniacs don’t even need to pretend to be teenagers because kids and loved one are happy to engage with people of various ages.
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As a parent, you must be aware of what is going on in your kids and loved one life, both in the real world and online. If your kids and loved one is depressed but refuses to tell you about it, it’s a sign that they’re being bullied. Pressuring a kid and loved one to answer your inquiries can exacerbate the situation. As a result, you’ll need to use a different method to discover the truth, such as monitoring your kids and loved one online activity and tracing their locations.
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You now know how to trace the position of your Samsung phone using NERDHACK. However, all techniques necessitate knowledge of your kids and loved one account details. That isn’t always possible, especially if your kids and loved one is the secretive type.
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You can receive access to a variety of valuable monitoring capabilities depending on your NERDHACK SPY, including:

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• Snapchat, Facebook, Tinder, Kik, and other apps are being watched.
• Examining media files that have been delivered and received
• Viewing bookmarks and surfing history
• Seeing events and making notes on a calendar

If you have any questions regarding installing or utilizing NERDHACK SPY, please mail us on [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])
Track a Samsung Phone Location Using NERDHACK SPY
Is there a faster way to locate your kids and loved one phone and learn where he is? There is, fortunately, so you might want to try NERDHACK SPY. It’s a useful application that allows you to track your kids and loved one location in just a few steps. What makes this one unique is that it will just take you two minutes!
Because this service works with all mobile network carriers, NERDHACK SPY is a phone tracker by number capable of tracking any phone’s position by its number.
Are you looking for a more feature-rich option to remotely track a Samsung Phone? Then you should consider using a parental control app like NERDHACK SPY to feel even safer
Samsung’s Find My Phone
If your kids and loved one possesses a Samsung and you need to locate them, you can use a Samsung-specific service. In the event that a phone is stolen, NERDHACK can help find it and secure the data on it. Furthermore, you can utilize the service to remotely unlock the phone.
Make sure the data backup feature on the target Samsung device is turned on before utilizing the service. If you’re not sure if your kids and loved one has switched it on, go to Settings, Lock Screen & Security, and Find My Mobile on their phone. If necessary, sign in and enable all of the options displayed on the screen.
Find My Mobile allows you to lock and unlock your kids and loved one cellphone remotely, erase and back up data, and retrieve calls and messages, in addition to discovering their whereabouts. The list of available interactions is determined by the Samsung phone model used by your kids and loved one.
Android’s Find My Device
Despite the fact that the majority of smartphone users use Samsung phones that run on Android, there are times when a device operates on a different operating system. Keep in mind that the Find My Device service only works for Android handsets if you wish to trace a Samsung.
Follow these steps to begin tracking a Samsung phone using this method:

• Go to [https://www.google.com/android/find](mailto:[email protected]) in your browser to find your device.
• Log into a target user’s Google account or enter the email and password that was used to register the monitored phone.
• Select the required device from the drop-down menu.
• Begin following the location.

Keep in mind that the Samsung phone you’re targeting should be turned on. Otherwise, you won’t be able to see any information about your location.
Conclusion
As you can see, there are four safe and legal ways to keep an eye on your kids and loved one device as well as track down your Galaxy phone if it is lost or stolen. However, if you want to add a slew of useful monitoring tools to your parenting toolkit, we recommend [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected]) Your kids and loved one is unlikely to notice the app because it operates in stealth mode. Even if they do, you’ll know straight away and be able to reinstall it with ease.
For further information about Simple Ways to Track a Samsung Phone Location and other related hacking services, mail us on [[email protected]](mailto:[email protected])

Where memories fade, love's essence ignites.
A car crash into a pine tree shatters the facade of a once seemingly blissful marriage. Jack's desperate attempts to bring down the tree with a chainsaw leave his wife, Hazel, wondering what has become of their bond. Is he still the same man she fell in love with three decades ago? As Hazel battles her fears, "Journey to the Treetop" invites readers on an emotional ride through the tumultuous landscape of a mind affected by memory loss.
CABIN ROAD is the gateway to paradise.
But why does this feel like a path to hell?
I smash into a tall pine tree that stands in the middle of the otherwise straight gravel road. I've gone around it hundreds of times before. But now, my fingers are firmly gripped on the steering wheel, disregarding all my commands. Have I become paralyzed?
A potato is wobbling on the dashboard, having obviously leaped out of the potato crates in the back seat. Jack gets out and strides to the front bumper. His lips press into a thin line as he appraises the destruction and cost of fixing it. Nothing should hold him back from swearing. But he maintains his composure, anger simmering just beneath the surface.
The memory of thirty years of marriage fills my mind. I question whether this man has drugged me. A fleeting thought that he might have crashed the car surfaces, but it seems too much of a stretch. I take a deep breath and try to clear my head.
In the rear-view mirror, Jack gets an axe from the trunk. He comes and gazes at me from my window, his eyes looking heavy and weary—like two precious pearls inside their oyster-like shells. I straighten and open the window:
“Thank goodness it wasn't worse.”
“I'll chop it down.”
“That’s a pretty big tree, Jack.”
Jack blinks several times.
“I do have a chainsaw...”
“Yes.” I wonder what stories this tree has witnessed during its lifetime. Will we see the marks of our journey on its rings? There’s always something that gets squeezed in tighter, begging to be unraveled.
“I'll drive you to the cabin and grab the chainsaw,” Jack says. “Prepare some coffee while I'm gone.”
Our short passage to the cabin around the bend is like shifting through the fog of memory. I'm in the kitchen. My fingers clench around the coffee tin can and spoon. Bewilderment engulfs my brain. I spot Jack with his saw. He slips around the corner, the curve of his bottom visible through his tight work trousers. I feel anxious about the crash. Did I deliberately hit the tree?
The measuring spoon slips from my hand. It drops onto the floor along with the tin can. I clean up the mess. Could someone drive into a tree on purpose? Accidents do happen after all. It's fascinating to see him take on this role of being so chivalrous. Far away from his academic duties.
As the chainsaw outside whines, I scroll through social media on my phone. People arguing about something or other makes me tired. I pick up a copy of Science magazine from the coffee table and scan through an article titled “Quantum Communication Across Interstellar Space,” authored by Jack. As usual, the details go right over my head. I like to amuse myself with the idea that it speaks about communicating with individuals who have passed away.
Billy's message pops up. He asks for money for a fishing trip with his buddies somewhere in Lapland. I am more than happy to support him since he’s enlisting in the army soon in July. My big boy.
I tell him about the car crash, and he gives me advice about a car repair store. Jack comes back earlier than expected. He plops into his seat, sweat beading on his forehead and the smell of resin emanating from him. He seems disappointed.
I pour coffee to the brim.
“Did the saw get stuck?”
Jack shakes his head and adds sugar to his mug.
“It got shattered under the tree. I stumbled...”
Silence descends slowly, like dust.
“My helmet cracked.”
“Do you want me to buy new parts when I go to the store?”
“No need.”
“But there's pruning and cutting to do first.”
Jack takes a bite out of a cinnamon bun.
“I can sharpen the axe.”
“Ask the neighbors for help, that's what they're for. You can also mow the lawn while I'm away.”
“The grass is already short— it'll die off.”
“You don't want ticks taking over! Think about your mother's joint pain. She would roll in her grave if—”
“Cremated?’
“Yes!” My answer is like a flyswatter, leaving no room for further discussion or quantum physics.
Jack is busy chewing on the bun. His regular coffee breaks, which have become part of his daily routine in his sixties, have honed impressive jowls.
We enjoy our coffee and stare at the lake. Calm as a mirror. I have a feeling Jack will soon suggest fishing. As I gather my things to leave, I call to him:
“Don't hurt yourself. Should I bring more buns?”
“I was thinking of skipping the sugar and wheat...”
I simply smile in reply.
“Can you refuel the car?” Jack asks.
I'm already off. The door slams shut in the middle of his sentence, but Jack knows better than to expect a response.
I jump into the driver's seat and immediately notice forgotten potato baskets in the back seat, but my mind drifts away before I can do anything about it. As I pass by our old well, I remember that we need to discuss connecting the cabin to a new water source. No matter what it costs, it needs to be done. Why should I agree to be responsible for our running water anymore?
I collide with something hard. Airbags abruptly inflate around me, disorienting me as my vision blurs. Struggling to escape from the tangled mess of seatbelts and inflatable bags, it feels like I'm an old person trying to climb out of a bouncy castle.
My gaze rests on the scene before me, but my thoughts can't understand it. I have plowed into a tree stump. The tree stretches over the ditch. Nearby the chainsaw lies crushed. The cutting chain is nowhere to be found.
I get back in the car. Should I phone Jack for an urgent call? Inhaling slowly helps me stay calm. Why didn’t he mention the tree stump?
Someone taps on my window
I jump and my neck stiffens up. I reach for the window switch.
“I should have told you about...” Jack says.
“The stump?”
“Didn't you see the tree on the ground?”
“I'm sorry. I was daydreaming.”
“Great galaxy, Hazel! You're burning through our last savings as if money grew on trees!”
Jack is being truly authentic with me. I stare back at him like some big-eyed exotic species from Madagascar that I can't identify in all this chaos.
Jack opens the door and starts to put the cushion back in its place. We turn on the engine, giving the accelerator a test ride.
“Let's go to a repair shop. I'm sure our insurance will cover this,” Jack suggests. “We can say that we had an accident with a reindeer.”
“You're supposed to report it to the police or game warden if you hit an animal,” I reply.
Jack pauses for a moment. He then reverses and drives forward again, but when he looks into the rear-view mirror, he slams on the brakes.
“I have a better plan.”
He retrieves an orange towing strap from the trunk, a burst of determination on his face. He connects the stump and the tow hook.
“Get ready. We’re going to take a quantum leap here.”
We buckle our seat belts with a single click as we prepare for the inevitable disaster. We had already made so many mistakes together, starting with raising our children—though sometimes failing was just part of parenting.
Jack revs up the engine. A sudden lurch forward, then Jack howls in pain as the stump smashes through the rear window, clambering through the seats and lodging itself onto the gearbox, trapping Jack's hand. He veers off toward the ditch.
The Milky Way spins around us, potatoes fly in the air and suddenly, all is quiet. We find ourselves upside down—surrounded by earthy potatoes and broken glass.
I try to break the silence:
“I just remembered: Billy's friend can repair cars at the vocational school much cheaper.”
Jack looks so pale, his face almost white. I guess he’s contemplating the next step.
Through the cracked windshield, I see the chainsaw chain lying in the ditch. How did it come to be rusting away? Maybe everything will go back to normal if we sit here and wait.
It feels almost as if we are flying in outer space, my nerves slowly calming down. But then a sudden stillness strikes that is anything but soothing.
“Jack, I’m feeling a bit dizzy…”
No answer.
“Jack...”
I snap open my eyes and the scene in front of me has changed drastically. It’s like I’ve been sucked into some kind of surreal void.
I hear a tapping noise on the window. An apology and then a loud thud; a huge rock has been hurled through the glass. A stench of strong aftershave ferments around me. A burly arm reaches across to release the seatbelt. An elderly man growls something crude, nothing like Jack's usual scout-like words.
My eyes close as I'm being cradled away, and visions of Jack's mathematics and symbols flicker around in my mind. Is the soul truly free when there is no force of gravity to pull us down?
I don't know who my savior is, but I can sense his worry as his face reddens. He is in military garb.
I come to as I feel my head thudding against the rubble. Instantly, I yearn to run away, contemplating that perhaps this experience is only a dream, and I'm back in the cabin chamber, tucked securely underneath a cosy blanket. A blanket that grants me the power to perform heroic acts like disappearing in a puff of smoke.
“Are you okay?” he speaks in a familiar voice.
Fingers brush over my clothes, picking out pieces of glass. My pocket contains an odd bulge—a potato? Suddenly, everything clicks: an aged Billy, wearing a major's rank insignia. How could he have achieved that rank so fast?
“Son, what are you doing on this tree ring?”
Billy peers at me from across the way, accompanied by a mysterious female figure.
“We came to check on how you're doing,” Billy says. “Do you remember what happened?”
I raise my head and look around. There's nobody in the driver's seat of the car.
“Where is Jack?” I manage.
Billy furrows his brows like a detective would when weighing evidence. An image of the classic TV show Columbo flashes through my mind—he could lull suspects into a false sense of security before dropping the hammer of his sharp intellect on their inconsistencies. But I'm not hiding anything here. Though why are modern shows so bad? That's another mystery entirely.
“Mom, what were you doing out here? The road is an absolute disaster zone, with the car smashed up in the ditch.”
My thoughts swim haphazardly as Billy reads something from my expression, then casts his eyes towards his new girlfriend for assistance.
I try to get up but it hurts too much. Instead, I reach into my pocket and feel a sandy-sharp potato there. Maybe I can still wash it off.
“I’m fine,” I reply. “I need to get back to plowing the field... baking buns for Jack... buying a chainsaw...”
The darkness returns and I feel my body shiver. I'm in the car, traveling down bumps I've known for quite some time. Soon, I’m settled inside the cabin's living room on the couch. The coffee maker is gurgling in the corner of the room. Billy is on a call with a doctor about how to deal with grief and coping alone; it seems someone had died while cutting down a tree last year. He gets furious and threatens to take away the keys from the person he's talking to. It might be a good idea; many people have too many keys that they don't use anyway.
My head is spinning with thoughts about Jack's absence. Where did he go?
Someone runs water over potatoes while a pot clatters on the stovetop. My temper rises as I wait for Jack's return. I won't stay here by myself without an explanation from him. I call out for Jack until there's no sound left but my coughing voice.
I crave sausage soup, and I know I must go to the store. As I try to move forward, I am wading through tar. They guide me to the coffee table. According to Jack, time runs faster the more hunched your back becomes. Let it be and let us sit here, motionless, gazing at the tips of our shoes. Surely, time has slowed down in this moment.
Billy reaches out and takes my hand. A handsome, greying gentleman. His girlfriend also places her hand on top of the pile. Her name is Ewa. A beautiful name, something familiar about her.
But did I hear her calling me mother?
In the yard, a squirrel hops with a cone in its mouth. It freezes and stares at me. I avert my gaze. My hands suddenly look wrinkled. I summon the inner strength that I've been striving to find for an eternity:
“Do we have to leave now?”
Billy exchanges glances with Ewa and then looks outside.
“You don't have to walk this path alone, Mother.”
We finish our coffee without saying another word. The wind sweeps across the lake. A pair of swans take flight, and a duet of gentle honks echo across the water.
A shivering cold envelops me. Billy and Ewa take me to the car. The potatoes can wait.
The sun blazes brightly above us as we travel the cabin road; shapeless clouds dot the horizon and suddenly I sense a presence—as if someone is waving to me.
I surrender.
I believe I will be warmly welcomed.

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I came home one Sunday morning to find that the safety lock mechanism on my front door is not working and I could not open the door. I live in a shared ownership flat. In my panic, I called an emergency locksmith. While he was assessing the situation, I gave the Housing Association out-of-hours support team a call, explained that I was locked out and asked about making a claim for some of the money back. They didn't give me any information, just told me to call back on Monday. The emergency locksmith proceeded with opening the door and changing the lock mechanism, which cost over £3k. When I called the Housing Association during work hours, I was told that the out-of-hours could have sent their own emergency contractor to help open the door and also they told me that as someone else has worked on the door, any insurance has been forfeited.
I started talks with the Housing Association about their out-of-hours service. I believe it is a service failure for the out-of-hours team to not provide any information. Secondly, someone from the customer service team delayed my formal complaint with a promise for a made-up investigation. They said that they would check how much it would have cost the Housing Association to send someone over and provide me access to the flat. However, they only came back stating that a new door cost £900 and why the locksmith didn't opt in to replace the door instead. I also requested access to any communication for the case, it has already been 2 months and I haven't received them.
Do you think I have a case to keep chasing and trying to get some of those money back? It seems like broken door lock is not very often covered by insurers. Also, is there an accepted level of service the out-of-hours team should provide?

i don't even know if these would be considered poems or not but i wrote them while in a frustrated, depressed and lonely state of mind (aka right now). any feedback on if these are actually decent or if i just sound crazy and im spitting bullshit would be appreciated (i usually do not write poetry but i have so many negative emotions atm i just needed to get it out somehow and i don't want to talk about it with people i know).
ok anyways

1. You are a tadpole slowly eating me from the inside.

I cannot tell if my heart pumps jealous delusions for a truant frog, or if you truly are parasitic; I don't want to return to the lake of alligators.
I cannot handle any more flies forming in my arteries.
Please be the frog I've prayed so long for, the one that eats the flies in me to satisfy my veins.

1. Even being your favorite cannot save me from competing with the teacher of seduction.

How charming.
I shall write an essay of thanks while she exists to slap my wrists repeatedly; her ruler a void I'll never understand.
Does my blood on the paper please you in ways my spit never could?

1. Every week I invite a new man to my bed, they all remind me of you.

I love them all less each time they walk the same thin lines out the door.
Never have I hated how dying flowers wither inevitably more until now.
I want nothing more than to see you bloom across my room again, our roots locking the door behind us.

1. When you were hurt, I prepared a bed of marigolds to comfort you in.

When I was hurt, I shriveled in my own bed alone.
You stared at me silently through the doorway.
Living to see a bush's marigolds all die the same is Mother Nature's cruelest joke.
~ Those are my poems, wrote them all in around 20 minutes. I'll give further context to specific parts if you want. I also wrote them at 4am so I might just sound completely incoherent idk what do you think?

i don't even know if these would be considered poems or not but i wrote them while in a frustrated, depressed and lonely state of mind (aka right now). any feedback on if these are actually decent or if i just sound crazy and im spitting bullshit would be appreciated (i usually do not write poetry but i have so many negative emotions atm i just needed to get it out somehow and i don't want to talk about it with people i know).
ok anyways

1. You are a tadpole slowly eating me from the inside.

I cannot tell if my heart pumps jealous delusions for a truant frog, or if you truly are parasitic; I don't want to return to the lake of alligators.
I cannot handle any more flies forming in my arteries.
Please be the frog I've prayed so long for, the one that eats the flies in me to satisfy my veins.

1. Even being your favorite cannot save me from competing with the teacher of seduction.

How charming.
I shall write an essay of thanks while she exists to slap my wrists repeatedly; her ruler a void I'll never understand.
Does my blood on the paper please you in ways my spit never could?

1. Every week I invite a new man to my bed, they all remind me of you.

I love them all less each time they walk the same thin lines out the door.
Never have I hated how dying flowers wither inevitably more until now.
I want nothing more than to see you bloom across my room again, our roots locking the door behind us.

1. When you were hurt, I prepared a bed of marigolds to comfort you in.

When I was hurt, I shriveled in my own bed alone.
You stared at me silently through the doorway.
Living to see a bush's marigolds all die the same is Mother Nature's cruelest joke.
~ Those are my poems, wrote them all in around 20 minutes. I'll give further context to specific parts if you want. I also wrote them at 4am so I might just sound completely incoherent idk what do you think?