Gambit, Crucible, and their tired father with psychopathic tendencies
Sorry I’ve been away, I’ve been posting on twitter a lot more frequently than I do on any other social lmao. So I’ll be cross posting occasionally from a few of my socials
By the way, I do love that the "Everything you touch breaks" statement from Jamato to Spoke comes right before Jamato mentioning that Purgatory ran perfectly before Spoke arrived, because it really does exemplify how much this man genuinely only pays attention to Spoke.
Before Spoke arrived, there was already a Black Market. There were already people placing hits on each other (that's how Vix got all of his armor). There was a prolific smuggling business. There was a gladiator pit. And there were people making their plans of escape all the same.
Spoke changed nothing. Spoke did nothing exceptional beyond revealing Jamato's identity (which happened later). The very presence of an execution chamber and such harsh solitary that, according to Found, people do not return from, implies that Jamato should know that there were problems.
But if Jamato admitted that there are problems other than Spoke (that the world out there is falling apart perfectly well without Spoke in it, too), then what's all he's doing for? And, even worse, what would that mean about him being so willing in the past to doom the entire server for Spoke's sake if he's not that important?
Of course, for Jamato it makes sense to assign Spoke so much value when he's basically the only person he interacts with. He talked with Wemmbu once and it went horrendously. Who else is he meant to obsessively latch onto while emulating the source of his trauma? (Because the parallels between NULL and the Invisible Mafia as well as between Jamato and Ash are undeniable atp. Jamato even tried to frame Spoke in a very similar way. He just didn't keep in mind that Spoke has grown and learned and he knows how to deal with power-tripping nerds with a fear of responsibility).
Making fun of Jamato aside, I think that's also why he's been executing and trying to execute people around Spoke the entire time. We know Spoke is not the only one of his kidnapping victims who tried to run away. Obviously, it's quite natural to try when, again, they've all been kidnapped. And yet I wonder how many of them got outright executed for it before Dev got involved with Spoke. Vix is another story entirely, because the justification for executing him was even flimsier. It was literally just to hurt Spoke and to drive home the point that everything he touches breaks... except from the point of view of the abuser smashing his things in front of him and telling him he's to blame.
Which actually ties neatly into the fall of the rebel groups, too. Because, like, objectively, Spoke there had been given two wrong choices. He was being blackmailed and he knew Jamato was behind NULL. He could let himself and his friends get kidnapped or try to find allies to fight back. Those were his options, neither would have brought him anything good, and under stress as he was, he chose one of the two wrong ones instead of trying to think more outside the box. He could have revealed the truth, too, but chances are that would have just delivered Jumper and Mapicc straight to Jamato, so it's only another wrong option.
And in the end, Jamato is the one who was blackmailing him and who put him in this impossible conundrum. He was the one attacking the rebel groups. He was the one deciding all of that. And yet he acts as if Spoke brought upon them a natural plague he's unrelated to. Because, Jamato will do anything but admit he has agency and he makes choices of his own. Cruel and violent ones, for the most part.
Just like Ash, Jamato sits back and points at his clean hands while his invisible army does his bloody bidding
This is a big, giant list of Youtube tutorials that will teach you all the basic life skills you need to know in order to be a functional adult. There are a lot of important skills that aren’t included in this list, but this should be enough of a basic guide to get you started and prevent you from making a total mess of yourself. Happy adulting!
Household Skills:
How to unclog a toilet without a plunger
How to fix a blown fuse
How to fix a leaky faucet
How to clean soap scum from your tub and shower
How to escape from a house fire
How to make a budget and stick to it
How to sharpen a knife
How to clean a self-cleaning oven
How to clean red wine stains from carpet
How to clean blood stains from fabric
How to clean grease stains from fabric
How to do a load of laundry
How to iron your clothes
How to test your smoke detectors
Cooking Skills:
How to tell if produce is ripe
How to know if food is expired
How to properly sanitize a kitchen
How to cook an egg
How to make rice
How to make pasta
How to put out a kitchen grease fire safely
How to use a gas stove
How to use a convection oven
How to cook meat safely
How to use a stand mixer
How to use kitchen knives properly
How to make mashed potatoes
How to make grilled cheese sandwiches
Health Skills:
How to stop bleeding
How to treat a burn
How to do CPR (on an adult)
How to do CPR (on a child)
How to do CPR (on a baby)
How to help someone who is choking
How to save yourself if you are choking alone
How to read a nutrition label
How to treat frostbite
How to recognize when someone is having a stroke
How to maintain a healthy sleep schedule
Mental Health Skills:
How to calm down during a panic attack
How to help someone who is suicidal
How to meditate
How to stop self-harming
How to recognize problem drinking
How to choose a therapist
How to deal with disappointment
How to cope with grief
How to raise your self-esteem
Relationship and Social Skills:
How to apologize
How to cope with a breakup
How to accept criticism
How to deal with bullying
How to argue in a healthy way
How to ask someone out
How to break up with someone
How to recognize an abusive relationship
How to rekindle a damaged friendship
How to speak in public
Job Hunting Skills:
How to tie a tie
How to write a resume
How to write a cover letter
How to dress for a job interview (for women/femmes)
How to dress for a job interview (for men/masculines)
If there’s ever anything you want that isn’t on this list…youtube it. Everyone always comments on my handiness, but everything I know comes from an old guy and his iphone.
looking back to when it all began, it's fascinating to see the transformation of things: ideals we fought and died for, people who came and went, the narratives that intertwine with each other and keep in the dark. yet the only thing constant is the aftermath, the effects of our actions, and the end of the path that this cycle led to. because that is to be expected: consequences.
and when you look at where you are now, all of that becomes part of you, it changes you. being subject to the nature of the server and therefore its cycles, you have been changed.
looking at two individuals who run their morals parallel to each other, sharing history and experiencing loss that could never be compared or measured, defying the destructive nature of the server and being the change the server needs, choosing goodness and kindness despite the world denying a place for morality, they must look at each other and ask what change looks like.
because the most difficult conversation you can have with someone who is stuck in the cycle with you, and the system they created with you, is convincing yourself that you did change, and the other person reminds you that you didn't — that the civilizations and people you lost had no part to the change you went through, that what you've done trying to achieve your goals and doing what's right while believing you were right didn't matter, that your journey and your epiphanies along the way meant nothing.
in uu!parrot's pov, having such a heavy shadow of what people are truly capable of, change is not only a big thing, but it's also scary. it challenges everything you've known, everything you're familiar with. it means that before, you were truly powerless and naive.
and because you're weak, you find other ways to survive. you find your way out of the false dichotomy. you tug at the loose thread in between the lies and watch everything unfold. you keep yourself safe from the gray area that bothers you, that you can't control. and so you move on anyway. you must change, or you're dead.
you think you've changed.
in uu!lettuce's pov, the destruction that the nature of the server promises followed you home, and the fact that nothing you can do to change it angers you. it means that injustice is what they call collateral. it means that you were always capable of change, you were just afraid of what that means for you.
and because you can take the first step, your anger is finally satisfied. the part that loves you, that recognizes that this server is insane and filled with madmen who, at a whim can drop an orbital strike canon or take over civilizations, is celebrating their punishment. and you feel guilty that you don't feel any remorse for it. at least, that's what you believe you're doing.
you think you're a better person now.
but look at yourself. look at your own hypocrisy and don't turn away from it. you killed as much as your enemy. you manipulated as much as the people you hate. you forget to love the people you're supposed to protect. you tried it your way, and you failed — that is the cost of your change. your change is not enough.
your view of justice is not what it once was. your view of second chances is no longer recognizable to you. what you once thought was wrong makes you question every single action you've done in your ignorance. your own morals and friends have become strangers to you. worse, they became your stepping stools, your obstacles.
but you keep moving, because the cycle demands it. you keep changing, because the destructive nature of your universe expects it. you delude yourself into thinking you are better now, in front of yourself and others, because you made a promise to yourself that you will no longer be weak.
uu!parrot may have acknowledged the gray area in between the black and white, but even his tolerance must be perfect. this tolerance masked by the dichotomy he set between acceptance and rejection in its entirety. by making himself the third path he subjects himself to the dichotomy.
uu!lettuce may have kept his anger and destruction at bay and closer to his heart to serve the justice he promoted, but his own weakness seeps through the cracks. every hesitation, every time he couldn't bring himself to the edge, he could no longer deny the fear he has of change.
either one of them could say: i changed.
but the other will look at what they've done, the aftermath of them, and say: no, you compromised.
I was feeling agitated and artblocked yesterday so I decided to give my brain a rest by watching TV and then the next thing I knew these were in front of me
vaporwave
theartofmadeline
yousharknotpass
izzy806
blakekathryn
jbbartram-illu
turnnoffyourmind
germansingergirl
areudirty
jacobvanloon
