#freedomhacker

[controversialchristiandude]

Jonathan Montoya 9 5 Freedom Hacker review

[suziecheel]

How will you be today know all is possible? #dreambig #betruetoyou #freedomhacker #trustinyourself

[newagehipster333]

I'm currently working through @kimraluna's #48hourdigitalcourse to make something super cool for you guys and I'm constantly getting this guidance because I keep getting bogged down by perfectionist tendencies! ✨ . As #lightworkers (or whatever you want to call yourself!) we can get so caught up in making things perfect that we end up not doing them at all. ✨ . We are human. We are not perfect. Our creations will never be perfect. Let's do them anyway! ✨ . What are you working on that you just need to get done?! ✨ . #perfection #perfectionist #spiritual #guidance #freedomhacker #freedomhackers ✨

[cobra-helmed-wilybot]

Ashes

"Keep your shoulders back, old man, I've taught you way better than that. Kid, watch your footing; if you trip, it's on you for having an off stance."

This wasn't a sight most people would be able to see in their lifetime- not one Axl, but two locked in hand to hand combat with one another, sharp green eyes focused in on equally intense teal. And who better to observe and advise them than a unit who had been built and programmed for hand to hand combat, after all.

Granted, having two people in the same room with the same name was making things...interesting.

Seeing one Axl punch another in the face was amusing, all the same, and brought up several opportunities for 'stop hitting yourself' jokes, none of which Skrah was willing to take advantage of lest he get punched in the face himself. "Faster, kid," he said, age being just about the only way to tell the two apart verbally. "You're getting sloppy; tighten up and focus."

He turned his head slightly when he heard footsteps loping past the room; seeing as how they weren't running an active simulation, there had been no need to shut the door. "Good afternoon, Forte," Skrah called over. "You're welcome to join us if you want."

"Ehn? Oh." Forte shook his head, looking rather unusually subdued- especially at the thought of sparring. Even Gospel seemed quieter than normal, the wolfbot's normally bright gaze dulled and distant and his tail low instead of up and wagging. "Can't right now. Gotta go turn in a report."

"You okay, cobra?" the younger of the two gunners asked, nodding at his alternate to break from their spar for a bit. "You look like hell."

"Hell don't even begin to describe it," Forte said with a bitter laugh. "Offworld incident no less."

The younger Axl frowned, opening his mouth to question only for Forte to interrupt before he could say anything. "It wasn't him, Ax, relax. It-" The Wilybot drew an almost shuddering sigh. "It's a long story."

"We've got time," the elder of the gunners said quietly. "I need a break from kicking my alt's ass anyway."

"More like a break from getting your ass kicked," was the younger's muttered response.

Forte sighed again, tucking his datapad under his arm and shuffling his way over to stand with them, Gospel slinking along quietly at his side. "Went t'visit Hana a couple days ago, me'n Xav. Day off for both of us, figured she'd appreciate joinin' us for some chocolate."

"I'm guessing there wasn't a lot of chocolate involved, judging by the look on your face," Skrah put in.

"Not a bite," Forte said with a snort. "Shit was goin' down when we pinged 'em. Apparently...Hana had some...sleeper programming in her code. Second personality, looked like. Fuckin' anti-synthetic asshole got close enough to her t'activate it."

He was well aware of both Axls paling visibly at 'second personality', even Skrah twitching an eyebrow in surprise and concern. "He used her," Forte said, his voice dropping a note. "She...or...whatever personality coding...thing was in control, killed a human friend of hers and...and we got there just in time y'see her plant a knife in Sakura's chest."

The Wilybot watched the older of the two gunners cringe, the younger gasping audibly and Skrah crossing his arms over his chest as if to hold himself back from a stronger reaction. "Xav got Sakura out of there," Forte went on. "Just in time, too; she made it through alright after some medical attention. Hana...whatever was controlling her apparently wasn't keen on giving up yet."

He swallowed, feeling as if there was still an all-too-heavy weight in his chest. "I managed to subdue her. Heh...pressure points. Go figure, right?"

To his mild surprise, Skrah reached over to ruffle his scruffy blond hair, though the Wilybot reflexively swatted him off regardless. "You've been practicing," Skrah said quietly. "I'm glad it's paying off."

"You'n me both," Forte sighed. "Anyway, at that point the bastard what pulled all this was still on the run. Me'n Xav..."

He paused, rubbing the back of his neck with a soft cough. "We...caught him before he could get too far. Let's just say he won't be hurtin' anyone again. Ever."

"I'm guessing that's a large part of why you had to file a lengthy report," the younger gunner said, deciding not to pursue the details of that imagery further- at least for now. "Is...is Hana okay?"

"Depends on your definition of okay. She looked...dazed as fuck when she woke up. An' she broke down after a few minutes."

"Judging by that," the elder Axl said, his voice quiet even in comparison to his usual calm, "I'm betting she was at least...semi-aware of what went on." His younger alternate muttered an agreement in Russian, green eyes distant with thought and worry. "She's going to need a hell of a lot of help to get through this."

A pause.

"Are you okay, Forte?" the aged gunner added softly.

"More or less," Forte murmured. "I've just...fuck, it feels like too often lately I've seen someone gettin' into someone else's head, fuckin' with 'em and usin' 'em. It just ain't right."

Gospel gave a low whine as if in agreement, and Forte shifted to scratch him behind the ears with a faint, fond smile. "Helps havin' Gos around," he said. "Dumb mutt's dragged me through more emotional turmoil'n I care t'calculate."

"He's your support unit, correct?" Skrah piped up, even his expression unusually...well, expressive in the face of the news Forte had given them. "I assume that means he's coded specifically for you, in a sense?"

"Yep," Forte said, his smile strengthening just a little at the change of subject. "Hard-coded wireless connection. We can kinda share thoughts, and emotions to an extent. It's...it helps sometimes havin' that silent support when things are tough, y'know? No need to explain or ask, he's just there."

Skrah nodded in understanding, seeming to drift into thought for a few moments before speaking up again with, "Does Hana like dogs?"

"Yeah, 'specially pups," Forte replied, blinking inquisitively. "She-"

Skrah raised an eyebrow, and Forte's eyes lit up as a lightbulb seemed to go off in his head. "I'll bring it up," he said with a thoughtful nod. "Ain't a half bad idea..."

He straightened up with a grunt, giving Gospel one more affectionate pat on the head. "Anyway, I gotta get this report in an' all that."

"You're welcome to join us after, if you want," the elder gunner mentioned, casting his alt a worried glance. The younger of the two Axls had gone all but silent, apparently lost in his own thoughts.

"Maybe," Forte said. "I could stand t'let off some steam, honestly..."

"You think you're getting out of hand-to-hand practice that easily?" Skrah asked, the faintest gleam of good humor in his eyes. "I applaud you for subduing a non-combat unit but all the same..."

Forte snorted, rolling his eyes and ignoring Gospel's quiet huff of amusement. "Yeah yeah. Gimme half an hour, I'll be here."

And he'd definitely have to go speak to Sakura again soon, and bring up the idea of a combination support unit and therapy dog…

Once Forte had left the room, the elder gunner turned his attention to his silent alternate, his features still soft with concern. “Are you alright…?”

“Y...yeah,” the younger redhead murmured. “Yeah, I’ll be alright. It just...hits too close to home. I mean hell, I still haven’t fully recovered from...what happened. And that was about two years ago…”

“She’ll appreciate the support,” the elder of the two pointed out quietly. “Need it even, I’d imagine.”

The younger nodded in agreement, silently promising to himself to make something extra sweet and chocolatey and visit in the next few days, as soon as he had some time off. He knew damn well, better than many people, how fucking terrifying it was to be a prisoner in your own mind, and watch your body be used to hurt the people you loved.

Calling it one’s worst nightmare would be an understatement.

[elder-sharpshooter]

"Your aim's better than I give you credit for."

[elder-sharpshooter]

"...You are so weird."

[arcadian-patriarch]

Christmas Tartlets from the Hacker

Merry Christmas, Xander. I’m doing a bit of experimenting with recipes- fruit and cheese keeps coming up in the cards I’ve been flipping through. I hope you enjoy them.

Happy Holidays

-Skrah

Xander was, quite admittedly, more than a little worn out from the Gala. Between speeches, playing host, being bounced around for the first hour or so from dignitary to dignitary--and when had Naya Zindagi had the voting session that put a new Advisor into office?--and then spending much of the rest of the event on the dance floor.

Still, it had been nice to see his daughter and his middle son again, even with the knowledge that they'd be back out on patrol on the 27th.

The gentle scent floating through his apartment initially confused him, and he took a moment to figure out that the smell was coming from his dining room. Moving to the doorway, his eyes went wide at the assortment of gifts that had been left for him.

He knew that the tartlets, surprisingly still warm--Skrah must have been by quite recently--weren't going to keep as long as the rest of the dishes, and he left the room only long enough to get himself a small plate, a fork, and a knife. Well, a few knives, given that he was going to be sampling everything.

Slicing the first tartlet in half, Xander took a small bite, savoring the mixture of the sweet pears against the more pungent blue cheese.

He was going to need to ask Skrah for this recipe.

[rockman-xavier-blog]

Merry Christmas, kid. I hope this keeps your mind and your hands occupied when you’re restless.

-Skrah

Happy holidays, Xavier! A little something soft to keep your ears warm~

-Axl

Xav stared at the round rubik’s cube that Skrah had given him, smirking as he wasn’t at all surprised that Skrah had gifted him with a puzzle. “I could probably spend a bit of time on this…”

He set it down before he pulled on the hat that the Axl from Skrah’s world had given him, tucking it around his ears. It was really nice and warm…