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ragingpancake · 3 years

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Performance Fleece (Ooh It's Fine)

AN: In which John is sick and a thief and Rodney doesn't actually mind. There’s not a lot that escapes Rodney’s notice. Okay, scratch that. There is often a lot that escapes Rodney’s notice, mostly just because he’s too busy saving their asses and generally just being brilliant, but. When it comes to John Sheppard, Rodney’s pretty sure he’s even got the man’s bathroom schedule memorized. It’s not weird, okay? They’re teammates! Buddies! Compadres! Plus, you know, there’s the little matter of the massive crush that Rodney’s been harboring since, oh, probably the moment that Sheppard plopped his un-initiated ass down in the control chair back on Earth and showed Rodney where they were in the solar system. Anyway. Off topic. They’ve gathered in the meeting room for their latest mission debriefing, the one that John had requested to postpone, after returning from M4-X465, or, the planet that never stops fucking raining. So anyway, they’ve gathered, all of them except John and frankly, Rodney finds it a little unfair that they have to sit through re-hashing everything from the latest mission, down to the time he whipped it out and peed on a tree, when Sheppard gets to skip out. And then (and this is where Rodney’s attentiveness to Sheppard’s usual habits come in handy), he realizes that John has never actually skipped debriefing, no matter how many times he’s threatened. “Where’s Sheppard?” He asks and he mentally gives himself a high five for how disinterested he sounds. “He’s not feeling well,” Elizabeth answers like that shouldn’t be concerning in some way, shape or form, because Sheppard doesn’t do sick and even when he does, it doesn’t keep him from handling his duties while suffering in manly silence.

“So he’s just not going to show up?” Elizabeth lowers the tablet and glances at Rodney with a raised eyebrow. “It was my call,” she says. “Now if you don’t mind, I’d really like to get started.” Rodney tunes her out after that. -- He spends the next forty five minutes catastrophizing the situation. He analyzes it, tries to figure out exactly what had been meant by “not feeling well”. Was this turning into a bug not feeling well? Harboring an alien consciousness again not feeling well? So many horrors, so little time. When that doesn’t work, he switches to hacking into the camera system and pulling up the one specifically in John’s quarters but that doesn’t get him anywhere either because at least that very moment, John is nowhere to be found. Huh. Elizabeth finally finishes up and while Ronon is usually the first one to the door, this time, Rodney beats him by a solid five seconds, shouting over his shoulder about some made up situation in the lab. Totally, completely disinterested. He also completely misses the look shared by the others in his haste. -- To his credit, he does actually go in the direction of the labs, but only because that’s the quickest way to John’s quarters. He also manages not to just barge into John’s room (thanks to the almost disastrous towel incident, but Rodney is resolutely not thinking about that in this moment, no sir, no way). Instead, he stops outside of the door and bangs on it, a little more insistently than usual. It takes a second longer than he would like and so, fearing that perhaps John had maybe slipped and fallen, perhaps brained himself on that stupid old guitar, he palms the door open and--. What the hell is that? For a second, he doesn’t even recognize it, because how long has it been since he’s last seen it? He blinks, checks to make sure he’s actually in the right room and then allows his gaze to resettle on that that god awful orange fleece, the one he’d sworn that he’d burn once he was off of that frozen rock. The one that is currently wrapped around a very miserable looking Lieutenant Colonel, who glances up at him with a look that almost dares Rodney to say something. “… id was cold.” “You’re a thief,” Rodney says in response and he steps further in the room, letting the door slide closed behind him. “Where did you even find that thing?” “I wend down to the lab for sob of dat tea you hoard from the maidlad a’d found it id your bottom drawer.” Huh. So that’s where he’d put it. “Well,” Rodney says charitably, “whatever helps, I guess.” “Thags, Rodney,” John says and when he sneezes, it’s the second most god awful thing Rodney’s ever heard, second only to John’s braying donkey laugh, and by ‘god awful’, clearly he means, you know, acceptable because it’s John fucking Sheppard and well… anyway. “I suppose I should leave you to it,” he says finally and he gestures a little dumbly to the door. “You know, leave you to your bed of germs and, and, and--.” “You dond have to go if you dond want to,” John says and Rodney really, reallyshould not stay because first of all, as he’d mentioned, germs and secondly… Well, Rodney’s a hard time finding a second point, mostly because he wantsto stay. “I suppose I could, for a bit,” Rodney says airily, “if only to make sure you don’t slip out of bed and die. Or at least to ensure that my fleece finds its way back to where it belongs when you’re done. Completelywashed and disinfected, of course. “Ob course,” John agrees, like maybe he’s just humoring Rodney at this point. “…I’m never getting that fleece back again, am I?” “Nod a chance, buddy.” Well, truthfully, Rodney supposes he doesn’t mind. After all, there are two positives here: a.) to be completely fair, the fleece looks better on Sheppard anyway and it’ll save him the trouble carrying out his self-made promise to burn it. And b.)… well, Rodney’s never seen Sheppard wear anyone else’s clothes. It gives him something to think on, at least. Perhaps… Well, perhaps this one sided crush is not quite so one sided

after all… Huh. Who woulda thought?

#fandom: sga #sga fic #stargate atlantis #sga #mcshep #pre-mcshep #rodney's orange fleece #rodney mckay #john sheppard

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arastarboy · 3 years

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The Sparrow's Heart

Chapter 1 - Death

The bells rang ever so loudly in his head, their harrowing sounds growing evermore present, like an incessant nuisance. Until this critical juncture, where they at last silenced themselves. He found peace at last. The droplets of rain striking his smeared visage cleansed of the impurities that stained him, but there was an untraceable bitter taste that lingered on his tongue where the rain fell. The coldness spread from his core to the extremities, swallowing him whole. It wasn't long before the calming touch of the rain he relished mere moments ago, now felt like nothing at all. Genji turned his gaze from the endless cloudy sky to where he felt some sensation. He looked down, to see his severed arm paint the earth with a sorrowful crimson. A blade impaled through his sternum, the sparrow still felt the steel extend its reach beyond his bareback. Weakness overcame him but in a moment of solace, as he accepted his faith and prepared for departure to the endless nothingness that awaited him, he mustered the strength to grasp the hand that wielded the bane of his existence with the arm that remained tethered.

"Are you at peace, Hanzo?" The Sparrow muttered, an inquiry met by damning silence. "You've fulfilled your duty and slain your only brother." Still, he was met with silence and with frustration mounting a second wind sparked new life within. A grip that fixated on Hanzo's wrist now took him by the collar drawing Hanzo closer to his brother, as death's grip tightened around Genji. "You're despicable. You didn't learn a thing from our father. You let the elders played you like some pawn."

The blade from Genji's abdomen was extracted, at last, the venom in his dying words finally began to take effect upon the apathetic Hanzo, invoking the turbulence of emotions, he so desperately attempted to suppress, to surface. Angered, Hanzo gave his brother one final push, forsaking him to the earth. A solemn vow to fulfill his duty to the clan he valued above all else, including the life of his brother, upon which he metaphorically spit on with a last act of disrespect. "You're but a disgrace to the clan. You are not fit to be Shimada. You have forgotten the burden the name carries. We can no longer abide by your childish behaviour, Genji."

Turning heel the last living Shimada departed, kicking dirt onto the body that would soon be a corpse. It was only mere moments ago, that he could appreciate the colourless darkened sky in all its glory. It was monotone and drab, but there was beauty in simplicity. Beauty that slipped from his grasp with each passing second, slowly the crying skies above became nothing but a hazy reflection until it became nothing at all. An endless void from which light could not escape, the eternal nothingness. Genji verbalized nothing for he damned his faith, he did not embrace death willingly and it is only in his twilight he came to realize. Death had forced thyself upon him. How he longed for the pleasures of the flesh that he once drowned in, without a thought for consequence. A female companion wrapped around one arm and a drink that would make any man far more honest than he was capable of being in the other. Even the sounds of the arcade machines now played in his head like an addictive melody, even if such sounds were anything but. "I don't want to.." But the choice was not one for him to make.

"Calling Overwatch HQ, Agent ID: X-90843. Operation: Dragon's Breath. Code Alpha: Requesting immediate medical assistance. The subject is in critical condition. EMT has stemmed the bleeding but the wounds still prove to be fatal. Transporting subject to Tokyo facility. Priority: Valkyrie."

"Out of the way!"

"Operating room now!"

"Where is she?!"

"She's on her, ETA 15 mins. Tracer is with her."

"He won't make the 15 mins."

The hands of time mercilessly marched on. With each second that was lost to the sands of time, Genji's spirit communion to the great beyond intensified. A pitiless existence, transfixed onto the great divide between life and death, unallowed to cross into either.

"Even if she gets here now, there's nothing she can do.."

"Then it's a good thing Overwatch's medical research is ahead of its time wouldn't you say?"

A voice commanded the attention of the room as the doors to the operating room flung open. The committer, however, was careful not to contaminate the cleanroom and abide by the strict protocols set in place, dressed in a white lab coat, flaxen hair tied up and away from potentially hindering her work, a stethoscope slung around her neck. She walked with purpose and urgency, just a pace short of running. Approaching the patient with one glance she assessed his condition, the accompanying report was studied just as quickly and put to the side, which only served to reinforce what she had already predicted. "You over there!" She commanded personnel as if this was a battlefield and she was the presiding commander. Beeps of all kind sounded off, each one indicating one critical condition after another. They were cascading, mounting, becoming overwhelming.

"He's going into cardiac arrest!"

Even as the room around her descended the spiral of chaos, she stood steady at the eye of the storm, steadfast and resolute, armed with the skills and knowledge to navigate the storm. With two paddles she marched onto his bedside. "Move!" She demanded. "Clear!" She carried as she imposed the two paddles onto his chest. The electrocardiogram detected no significant change. So she tried again. "Clear!" And again. "Clear!" And Again. "Clear!"

"Dr. Ziegler.." A nurse placed a hand on her shoulder, to distract and detract but the same complexion of determination persevered. "Clear!" She slowly retreated the paddles. Perhaps it was time to admit, admit that even for all the advancements in medicine she made, all the times she stubbornly defied the odds, there are some souls the grim reaper was unwilling to let loose once more onto the world. It was then, the eternal void answered her remorse. The monitors once more established a steady pattern. The heartbeat she read was weak, but it was stable.

"Induce hibernation for at least a month." She directed. "Providing he can maintain this heart rate for another hour we can proceed with the operation. We'll need to amputate both legs. The tissue has already begun to die, we need to act quickly before an infection sets in. Ready the therapeutic cybernetics, we'll install them right away, as long as the neural interface is successful he should wake up feeling as if nothing has changed."

Drawing a pen from her pocket, she recovered a holo pad upon which she scribed all her directives and approved with her impression at the bottom, before handing it off to the appropriate staff to follow through.

"Prepare the healing pod. There's not much tissue left, but we'll at least be able to regenerate what remains."

The doctor turned to the patient once more, sapphire hues carefully studying what remained. From what patches of skin not stained by crimson, she could deduce the man either maintained an effective skincare routine of sorts or was blessed by genetics. He was an ideal "specimen" so to speak, a good bone structure served as the framework for his figure, upon which he maintained an ideal muscle tone. Perhaps the picture of health so frivolously the media often advertised. Yet for all his physical virtues, he'd now be forced to forfeit nearly all to cling to what little life still sparked within. A sense of remorse now burdened the prodigal doctor. The man appeared to be around the same age as her, uncertain as she didn't have the opportunity to study identity details yet, being consumed by the severity of his injuries. Despite his youth, he was massacred, defiled, what remained was a husk of who he once was. Wounds so deep it cut to the bone, and in some instances wounds, the cut bone was openly exposed to the contaminant-less air of the operating room. Angela bit her lower lip, a growing frustration burrowed in her chest, this was more than attempted murder this was all-consuming hatred unleashed onto another, an act of sincere evil.

Irrespective of the therapies that would restore his body's full functionality, in some instances enhancing his capabilities, allowing him to discard the limitations of the fragile human body, the extent of the mental trauma he'd now be forced to cope with remained an uncertainty. He'd continuously tread the line between man and machine, would he be able to establish equilibrium? The porcelain skin of her thin digits caressed the edges of the gaping wound upon his chest. It was a prayer if anything. Not that she invested much faith in an omnipotent force beyond human comprehension, but if there ever was such a thing, let it show him mercy. There she felt some reassurance, an answer to her prayer of sorts, a strong steady rhythm to his breathing as if he was stubbornly defying the odds and clinging to life. The crestfallen doctor found some solace, at last, which manifested as a subtle smile that curved to her pale lips. "Don't give up." She whispered

"Dr. Ziegler. Commander Morrison, Blackwatch Commander Reyes, and Captain Amari are here to see you." She turned her head in surprise, seldom did the three heads of Overwatch convene. To add to the exceptionality of the moment, the three gathered to addressed her, whereas more often than not, her correspondence with top brass involved exclusively Morrison. Intrigued Angela pried herself away from the table and departed the room. "Prep him for surgery." She instructed before her impromptu exit.

"Commander Morrison, if this is about the situation in Switzerland my team there is more than capable of handling it." She quickly commented, taking a stab in the dark as to what pressing concern would warrant such an intervention here.

"It's not about that Angela. But this a sensitive matter, let's find somewhere quiet." The air in the atmosphere suddenly grew heavy. Angela felt the temperature of the room plummet and her bones grow stiff. Something ominous hung between the two parties convened here, She studied their expression and she could already deduce whatever the matter was, it was something she wouldn't be able to stomach. The doctor sighed, venting the doubts that restrained her before she followed the three into an isolated room and as the door shut behind her the sense of tension only wrung tighter.

Nearly an hour had passed.

"No way!" She stated thunderously, her voice carrying to the nearby halls, warranting the few curious eyes to wander to the room through the glass window. All such gazes were met with a scornful one from Reyes, that immediately re-directed them back to their duties.

"Angela, calm down. This benefits Overwatch and the people of Japan. We haven't gained any ground in our fight against the Shimada, this is our best chance." Morrison interjected.

"I won't!" She protested with vigour once more.

"Angela, you're being stubborn." They presented a unified front, with even Ana echoing their sentiments. Angela felt as if she was being cornered, forced to do their bidding or else, but she was not so easily toppled, she'd stand her ground and uphold her morals. Superiors or not, she had no intention of following through.

"Stubborn!? I developed that technology to increase the survivability of our soldiers on the front lines. The technology isn't even finished, neural compatibility caps out at 75% on even the most trained soldiers who have been using enhanced augments for 10 or more years and prolonged connection could permanently damage the nervous system. But you're asking me to administer an upscaled version of that technology to a patient who barely escaped death. You're trying to turn him into a living weapon for your war and I won't do it! It's unethical and that putting it mildly." Angela explained, all the details laid bare before top brass, every argument a sound objection against their stance. Yet even after sharing a glance, they appeared to remain unmoved. "He doesn't deserve this…"

"Yes but I understand that the cybernetics can shock his nervous system awake once initialized it might even bring him out of his hibernation state," Morrison added.

"I-" Angela prepared to defy them one more, dissuade them if possible, open their eyes to this corrupted train of thought but she was interrupted by a hand being hammered onto the table that divided the two sides. Reyes, at last, stood from his seat and approached, the taller man now towering over her. Eyes that knew no compassion attempted to pacify her but it was met with a gaze deterministic gaze that did not crumble to such petty displays of power. Angela stood her ground against that scowl.

"Angela-" But Reyes was quickly interrupted. "It's Dr. Ziegler."

"Fine." After a huff, he continued, unperturbed by her open defiance. "I am the one responsible for Genji Shimada, as I am the leader of the operation, assigned by that man right over there." An extended index pointed to Morrison sitting across the table and the doctor's vision tracked to meet an apathetic gaze. "I allowed you to save him but if you won't do as you're told I'll easily give that to someone who has the stomach to do what is necessary since you do not."

"It's not a matter of having the stomach for it, it's about wanting to do what's right, and it's my technology," Angela answered his blatant insinuation of her cowardice. A slap to the face, how she would like to respond in kind but such an action would only weaken the position she fixed herself in. Ethics guided her judgement, and she could not comprehend why it didn't at the very least guide Morrison and Amari as well. Her response was met with a satisfied smirk from the Blackwatch commander. More than an insult, now he was mocking her. She didn't have the power to stop the proverbial train travelling at Mach speeds and he knew. So through his mannerisms, he provoked her, provoked her to do something imprudent and permanently validate him. Ziegler clenched her fist, ready to do just that.

"All technology you develop while working in Overwatch belongs to Overwatch. All I have to do is hand over all this tech to someone who sees things a little differently." Reyes carefully navigated the dynamics of power in this conversation, slowly robbing Angela of all of it. If this were chess, he'd be but one move away from checkmate and now he reached for the final piece to do just that. "But I wonder. Can you trust someone else to do it right? Are you willing to play with someone else's life just to defy a direct order, doctor?"

Enraged, Angela gritted her teeth, canalizing all her rage into that right fist, ready to unleash it all unto that smug face and permanently free him from his arrogance. Faith intervened however, a device mounted to her wrist sounded off an alarm, reminding her of her priorities and keeping her grounded in this trapped cage. She looked at Reyes. "You're despicable." She said with conviction, before marching through him and shoving Reyes aside with her forearm to exit the room.

"That was over the line Reyes," Amari commented, reflecting on his conduct before the doctor. It was met with nothing more than a shrug of his shoulders as a retort.

"Over the line or not. She has no choice now." The Blackwatch commander triumphantly remarked, without a thought to his methods.

Morrison simply observed, in silence, hesitant to the leap to the defence of either of his friends. As he saw it, the objective they established was accomplished, however crudely it may have been achieved.

Angela slowly traversed the halls to her destination, her thoughts all-consumed by the situation imposed onto her. She tried to internally reconcile the two opposing sides with an explanation that was sufficiently satisfied but she couldn't conjure on. From every which angle she approached this problem, it was unjust. She just simply couldn't do it. She soon turned her gaze up from the floor, her team was ready to undertake the surgery. What deliberations she had regarding the previously discussed subject would have to wait, as now this required her unbridled focus. As she entered the room a nurse had offered her a mask, one she placed against her face and the automated features of the masked worked to secure its position there. Angela looked down at her gloved hand where the sensation lingered, the feeling of his beating chest, the feeling of him fighting for his life. She was unsure why she clung to that feeling but it gave her some respite at this moment. Ste stepped forth, and beyond the curtain, there he was; Genji Shimada.

Links to this Chapter on:

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/13817101/1/The-Sparrow-s-Heart

https://www.wattpad.com/amp/1025065233?__twitter_impression=true

#genji #gency #overwatch #overwatch gency #angela ziegler #mercy overwatch #romance #drama #fanfic

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primrose-path-of-dalliance · 4 years

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prim’s wildemount map scale adventures

i apologize in advance to the folk that use screen readers for this post’s reliance on image references, i will do my best to make my logic and the contents of the images comprehensible in the text portions.

this post isn’t about spoiler territory either, so i won’t go into detail about how recent developments with e111 were the initial reason i started thinking about distance on the official wildemount maps. besides, i think plenty of people will understand when i say that my digging got a lot bigger than the initial question itself lol. regardless, i’m making this post in the hopes that it might be a little helpful for anyone dealing with the same confusion.

see, i realized the funny thing about the official wildemount maps is that they don’t have any scales. as a basic explanation, scales are those funky little bars usually found on maps that illustrate what distance on the map is equivalent to what distance in ‘reality’—AKA the scale of the map.

however, for whatever reason, matt and co. did not create any for the broader wildemount maps like of the menagerie coast or the zemni fields.

[id: two images from the explorer’s guide to wildemount. the first depicts the region of the menagerie coast and related islands in the lucidian ocean. the second depicts the zemni fields, which is the central area of western wynandir and the dwendalian empire at large. map scales are absent from both images. /end id.]

this was a little baffling and unhelpful, but i’m not here to judge matt about his choice to not include scales, considering how it would give people on twitter even more ammunition to rudely question his dming with.

but then i discovered that the maps of the major cities do have scales.

(continuing past a readmore.)

[id: an image from the explorer’s guide to wildemount. it is a map of the city of rexxentrum, the capital of the dwendalian empire. in the lower left corner is a compass rose illustrating the cardinal directions and a scale. /end id.]

at first, i was excited. maybe i could use the city’s map scale to approximate a scale for the larger maps. it wouldn’t be super accurate, especially as things got bigger and errors grew larger, but it would be a little better for some thought experiments than no scale at all.

but then it got weirder.

since the map of rexxentrum takes up a full page, the resolution of the image makes it difficult to read the map scale. so let me zoom in.

[id: an image at a higher resolution of the lower left corner of the rexxentrum map, clearly displaying the compass rose and the scale. the scale is a thin horizontal bar separated into four equal lengths of alternating black and white, with indicators claiming that each part represents 500 miles for a total bar length of 2000 miles. /end id.]

so. maybe some of you can already tell what the problem is.

for those with slightly worse spatial understanding though, that map scale is measuring in miles. and a mile is pretty damn long.

let’s have a comparative illustration from real life to show my point. los angeles, california, is the city in the united states where the critical role cast live and work and stream us their wonderful d&d games. the los angeles area as a whole is massive. anyone who lives there understands what i’m saying and has probably wept before while in traffic (and i’m sorry).

if we use the google maps function to get a distance in miles between two points in the los angeles area...

[id: a screenshot of a google maps route for traveling on foot from the olive view-ucla medical center in the far north of the los angeles area to the los angeles international airport in the southwest. the route is fairly direct as the bird flies due to the on-foot nature of the route and is labeled to be a distance of 31.1 miles. /end id.]

this is a pretty good representation of the distance from one end of los angeles to the opposite end. a modern city with a population of about 4 million people, filled to the brim with urban sprawl and suburbs.

and that distance is 31 miles, or about 50 kilometres.

that scale in the corner of the rexxentrum map? its claimed length of 2000 miles (over 3200 km) measures less than a seventh of the apparent width of rexxentrum. according to the scale, you would have to travel a distance of over 14,000 miles (over 22,500 km) to get from one end of the city to the other.

simply put, that scale at face value is nonsense lol.

[id: a screenshot of discord messages with no identifying account attached. the messages begin with, in all caps, “EXCEPT THE SCALE FOR REXXENTRUM MAKES NO SENSE” (new line) “WHAT IS THIS MATT MERCER?????” an image of the lower left corner of the rexxentrum map follows. below that is the final visible message which reads, in all caps, “DO YOU KNOW HOW BIG A MILE IS SIR. DO YOU KNOW HOW FAR TWO THOUSAND MILES IS SIR.” /end id.]

so. maybe you are wondering if matt, huge nerd that he is, is making some oblique historical reference to a previous measurement of a “mile” that is way shorter than the modern standard mile. that was the first possible explanation to occur to me! unfortunately, based on the wikipedia article on the mile throughout history, there is no prior known definition of a “mile” short enough to make this scale make any sense.

so maybe the explanation is a unit error. maybe it’s meant to be a smaller unit of length, like a metre or a foot.

i spent a bit of time trying to guess which unit it might be by comparing details of the map to each other, since there are detailed individual buildings and roadways illustrated. it quickly became obvious, though, that the details were more for artistry and not to a reliable scale.

so it was time to dive into the transcripts.

i looked for a point where matt not only described the length of time it took for the mighty nein to travel from point A to point B within rexxentrum, but a point A and a point B that i could locate with confidence on the map. i found a scenario that fit the bill in e86, “the cathedral,” when the party raced from the cobalt soul branch in rexxentrum to the chantry of the dawn.

MATT: [...] And you've stepped out from the Rexxentrum Archive of the Cobalt Soul into the wet, slick cobblestone streets of the city, heading eastward towards the base of the Shimmer Ward, where it is believed this cathedral, known as the Chantry of the Dawn, stands.

this bit (beginning 13:39) is the first clue in matt’s narration to locating the endpoints on the map. the chantry of the dawn is located near the base, suggesting the immediate south, of the shimmer ward, and is in an eastward direction from the cobalt soul. this is consistent with the relevant textual descriptions in the explorer’s guide to wildemount: the rexxentrum branch of the cobalt soul is located within the court of colors on the west side of the city, while the chantry of the dawn is near the southern wall of the shimmer ward.

[id: two images of the rexxentrum map. the first is composed of the center and western area of the city, displaying the labeled wards of the tangles and the shimmer ward along with individual points labeled “R7,” “R6,” “R3,” “R1,” and “R2″ from west-most to east-most. at the bottom is the map scale, added for reference, that measures about a fifth of the entire image.

the second image is the legend of the map, which defines a few of the illustrated details and clarifies the R-series labels. truncated to relevance: R7 is the court of colors, R6 is the vigil’s circle, R3 is the academy grounds, R1 is castle ungebroch, and R2 is the candles. /end id.]

as the party made their way to the chantry, matt revealed a few more notable details on where precisely they’re traveling through (17:18).

MATT: [...] Your [Caleb’s] eyes train on the rising walkways and towers of the Soltryce Academy that are peeking over the walls of the Shimmer Ward that you can just make out on the horizon as you pass by a series of buildings where the roofs are a bit lower than the other ones you've been rushing by. You can see pale yellow walls that surround the Shimmer Ward of the capital.

You begin to approach the exterior of the Vigil’s Circle, which is a region between where you are and your destination, as noted by the network of ring-like streets that denote the circular marketplace, some varied shops, and industries that normally fill this area, as well as the mini-fortress of gray rock known as the Tower of Writ.

the view of the soltryce academy is consistent with an approach from the western side of the city, since the academy is located along the inner side of the shimmer ward’s northwest wall. the placement of the vigil’s circle in between the cobalt soul and the chantry is also consistent with their depictions on the map, as the vigil’s circle is both labeled and illustrated through a pattern of circular roads with an apparent depiction of the tower of writ in the center.

anyway, the mighty nein had traveled a little ways into the outskirts of the vigil’s circle from the west when they were abruptly stalled by a giant purple xhorhasian worm coming out of the ground.

at that moment in time is when liam gets a travel time from their current location to the chantry (21:26).

LIAM: Caduceus just asked how far we are from the chantry. Would I know that?

MATT: You would know you're probably about, I'd say, depending on— with it being pretty empty, maybe seven minutes.

this brings me to getting a precise location on the chantry of the dawn. both the explorer’s guide to wildemount and matt’s narration only describe the chantry as located within the tangles and near the southern wall of the shimmer ward. that’s a wide potential area to be seven minutes from.

there’s a pretty helpful pattern in the map details, though. most landmark buildings are visible—the soltryce academy campus is clearly delineated, as well as the colorful tower rooftops of the candles and, as previously noted, the top of the tower of writ. castle ungebroch stands massive in the center of the shimmer ward illustration.

so if the chantry of the dawn is both a huge structure and a significant landmark, that should merit a visible illustration of it on the map.

[id: the image of the western and central area of rexxentrum plus map scale appended to the bottom, edited to include my personal labels. R7 is encircled in red with the label “cobalt soul,” R6 and the visible circular road complex is encircled in blue with the label “vigil’s circle,” and a large rectangular rooftop by the southwest corner of the shimmer ward is encircled in red with the label “chantry to [sic] the dawn.” /end id.]

the position of this large building fits the details of the narration and its description in the explorer’s guide—it’s near the southern wall of the shimmer ward, it is eastward of the cobalt soul, and streets of the vigil’s circle lie on the direct path from the court of colors to this building.

so there’s the approximate location of the chantry of the dawn. we also know the approximate location of the mighty nein on this map.

[id: an image, almost identical to the last, of the marked-up western and central area of the rexxentrum map plus map scale, but with a further addition of an orange star in the northwest corner of the vigil’s circle labeled “mighty 9.” /end id.]

since they had entered the outskirts of the vigil’s circle from the direction of the cobalt soul, they would be within its northwest area by the time they were interrupted via purple worm shortly after.

two approximate locations with a travel time in between means that now i could estimate a distance in length. so i took a look at the d&d official rules for movement speed:

a fast pace is about 400 feet per minute,

a normal pace is about 300 feet per minute.

for campaign 2, matt as a dm tends to follow the official rules. so taking into account how the urgency of the situation had the party moving quickly, along with the emptiness of the streets eliminating the variable of a slowed pace through crowds, the mighty nein are likely traveling between 300 and 400 feet per minute to get to the chantry.

with matt’s provided estimate of 7 minutes, that means the on-foot distance from the party’s current position to the chantry is somewhere between 2100 to 2800 feet.

[id: a zoomed-in image of the marked-up western and central rexxentrum map, focused on the vigil’s circle and the chantry of the dawn. imposed beside the orange star representing the mighty nein’s location and the chantry is the map scale edited to remove the ‘miles’ indicator. its position allows a viewer to measure the distance between the mighty nein and the chantry to about “1500,″ or three-fourths of the total length of the scale. /end id.]

since the scale there measures distance as the bird flies, comparing it to the probable distance the mighty nein had to travel needs to account for the twists and turns of the streets.

with that in mind, though: an as-the-bird-flies distance of around 1500 feet sounds like a pretty good approximation of the estimated on-foot distance of 2100 to 2800 feet!

so with that, it’s probably safe to guess the map scale meant to claim feet instead of miles as its unit of length.

so far i haven’t puzzled out how i might translate this into a makeshift scale for the larger maps, since none of the cities like rexxentrum are clearly illustrated on them. but if anyone was very confused about the unit of length for the city maps’ scales, i think i’ve reached a reliable conclusion that it should be feet.

hopefully some of you find this helpful!

#cr #critical role #rexxentrum #maps #wildemount #wynandir #prim post #prim says some things #long post #VERY long post #readmore #enjoy this dump of what i spent a few hours on thursday night out of sheer curiosity and frustration

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indiavolojones · 4 years

Text

anon it’s like you’re LOOKING at my diary ヽ(｀Д´)ﾉ

2.5kish, gen, dia/luci.

“Before you do anything stupid that involves my permanent work on your body," the distaste radiating off of Lucifer is palpable, "Try an ear piercing first. It's plenty shocking to you business types, and a helluva lot less painful.”

“So, what do you say, Lucifer?"

SPECIAL THANKS TO @canonlucidia FOR BEING THE LUCIFER TRANSLATOR WE ALL NEED TO ELEVATE OUR FICS

“Huh,” Diavolo tilts his head, “I would have never guessed you were over eighteen.”

Lucifer's ID shows none of the telltale signs of forgery, nor does the man look like a teenager. Diavolo just likes to have fun with people that seem too serious for their own good.

Besides, it would be impossible for Diavolo to misjudge the man in front of him as a child—there are no children with eyes as hard-edged as Lucifer’s. Lucifer’s drenched coat is slung over his arm, the layers beneath thankfully still dry. His long hair is twisted up in a messy, haphazard bun—something about this man makes Diavolo think this is unusual.

Probably the impeccably tailored, expensive-looking vest and suit jacket. The watch peeking out from underneath his shirt sleeve is worth at least a couple hundred dollars, if Diavolo’s instincts are right. Minutes within meeting Lucifer and he already knows that this is a man that takes an incredible amount of pride into his appearance.

Lucifer narrows his eyes, but the effect is less than intimidating to Diavolo, who has faced far worse than severe looks. Besides, the dark, exaggerated bags under his eyes can’t lie. The proud jut of his chin and squaring of his shoulders be damned; Diavolo can sense his bluff a mile away. Lucifer is more likely to pass out from exhaustion than start a brawl.

“What an interesting business model, insulting your potential clients like this.” Lucifer retorts, and Diavolo thinks he’s probably terrifying when he’s had at least eight hours of sleep.

“There are plenty of other tattoo parlors around town,” Diavolo offers with another disarming smile, his arms crossing. An asshole customer is an asshole customer, no matter how pretty their mouth is.

“No,” Lucifer insists, “It has to be this one.”

“Okay… Then you’re going to need to relax a little, because it’s not often that I have people come in during a storm demanding a full back tattoo out of nowhere,” Diavolo shrugs, passing Lucifer’s ID back to him.

"I wouldn't do any work on you today anyway. You haven't paid the deposit and we haven't had a consultation meeting. Sorry, it's my policy." Diavolo shrugs, not very sorry all and Lucifer can tell. Lucifer looks like he's about to spin on his heel and march out the door, and Diavolo, damn his soft heart, holds up his hands.

"But… if you'd like, we can set you up for a piercing session. We've got an open slot and I'll give you a returning customer’s discount."

"I want the tattoo." Lucifer says, like Diavolo's stupid for offering anything else and he has to stamp down his own mild tinge of annoyance.

"And I get that. If you can afford my rates, I'm willing to discuss." Damn it, Diavolo knows the man is trouble, but Lucifer's mouth is so pretty when it frowns, as if affronted at the possibility of him not being able to pay. "But I can tell this is some kind of act of rebellion. I see types like you all the time."

"Types like me—" Lucifer repeats, suddenly furious, and Diavolo holds his hands up placatingly.

"Hear me out." He says, and Lucifer's mouth snaps shut at the interruption.

"You’d have to be blind to not see that this is part of some… bigger thing for you," Diavolo gestures at all of Lucifer, "And you're an adult that can make your own decisions. But for now, before you do anything stupid that involves my permanent work on your body," the distaste radiating off of Lucifer is palpable, "Try an ear piercing first. It's plenty shocking to you business types, and a helluva lot less painful. So, what do you say, Lucifer?"

Lucifer doesn't look keen on it, but he at least seems to be seriously mulling over Diavolo's offer.

More time passes where Diavolo grows more and more convinced that Lucifer is about to tell him to fuck off and walk out of his life. At this point, it would probably be for the best. Diavolo is a sucker for sullen, gorgeous businessmen with obvious emotional baggage—not that he'd realized that until a scant ten minutes ago, but Diavolo's always been a bit of a masochist.

As if the day's events have finally, truly weighed down on him, with a barely visible slump to his shoulders, Diavolo sees when Lucifer relents before he hears it.

"Fine."

Barbatos' workstation is immaculate as ever, and the other works with maximum efficiency to prep his required instruments.

“You’re the one that pierced my brother, Mammon,” Lucifer says, and something in Diavolo’s brain clicks. Mammon. Lucifer’s brother is Mammon—the very thought almost makes Diavolo burst into laughter.

Barbatos is nothing if not polite as he tips his head to the side, as if trying to remember Mammon. He snaps his gloved fingers, and nods.

“Ah, yes! He’s the one that passed out, I believe.” Lucifer looks strangely… delighted by that.

“I’ll be over there, then,” Diavolo says, leaning against the door frame and gesturing back behind him at the front office. Diavolo almost laughs again when he sees the clear alarm in Lucifer’s eyes, can hear the silent why aren’t you doing it before it’s said out loud.

“Barbatos is one of the best piercers I’ve ever worked with, you’re in expert hands,” Diavolo hums, soothing.

It somehow works, because Lucifer is lowering himself into Barbatos’ chair. Not a word escapes from Lucifer as Barbatos finishes prepping the earrings, two black studs that Lucifer had chosen from Diavolo’s display case. Lucifer actually looks a little pale, and Diavolo thinks it’s adorable.

“Unless… you’d like me to hold your hand, if you’re scared?” He teases, and Lucifer’s eyes narrow in purposefully unconcealed fury for one beautiful, brief moment. It shutters away as fast as it comes, and Lucifer is staring impassively at the wall before him.

“You may leave.” Lucifer dismisses Diavolo.

Diavolo hangs out, just to be a dick. Lucifer does not flinch, or sway in his resolve past that one moment of weakness. Barbatos finishes one ear—Lucifer does not react in the slightest—and moves to the next. He tilts Lucifer’s head gently to get better access, and it makes Lucifer have to look at Diavolo in the doorway. Diavolo gives him a brilliant smile, but Lucifer glares at him the entire time.

Diavolo loves it.

Diavolo doesn’t see Lucifer for one week; but he hasn’t received any terrible reviews on Yelp, and no department official has come knocking down his door with a surprise audit, so he thinks he’s in the clear. All in all, he chalks the experience up to some kind of weird twist of fate. He’s perched on a stool behind the register at the display case when the automatic doorbell chimes. Diavolo’s lips part to welcome the guest even before he looks up.

“Hey, how’s it—oh,” Diavolo says, finally glancing up from his newspaper, “You got bangs.”

Gone is the messy, windswept bun that Lucifer had his long hair tossed into, and instead, a short, layered cut has replaced it. It makes him look younger, somehow. Or maybe he’s just gotten more sleep. Lucifer reaches up to card a hand through his hair, pushing the now loose strands out of his face.

Diavolo spares a moment of silence to mourn that he never got to see how long Lucifer’s hair was in person, “It looks nice.”

He places his cheek in one palm, grinning at his client. It would be easy to miss the light blush on Lucifer’s cheeks at his comments, but Diavolo is more perceptive than most.

The blush on Lucifer’s cheeks intensifies, and he coughs into his fist. “Thank you. The hair was a nuisance, so I cut it off.”

Silence passes, and Lucifer blinks, as if he’s not quite sure why he overshared. Diavolo takes pity on him, and tries to continue the conversation.

“How are your ears healing, then? Are you—”

“I’d like to set up a consultation meeting.” Lucifer breathes, and Diavolo blinks at him. Then he sighs.

“Before that… I suppose I should apologize for my impudence the other day, Mr. Morningstar.” Diavolo says, finally, elbows propped up on the glass counter. He watches for Lucifer’s reaction like a hawk.

“How did you—” Lucifer’s lips remain tight, before realization dawns behind his eyes. "You saw my ID the other day."

He glares, no doubt wondering if Diavolo gone to the press with information of his spontaneous request. It would be like dumping chum into shark infested waters for them to hear how the otherwise resolutely tight-lipped eldest brother is doing. Too many people are already trying to pick at the man’s psyche for more garbage to feed the greedy masses.

“I barely even noticed your last name," Diavolo waves his hand in the air dismissively, "However… it's a little hard to ignore a face like yours when it’s been plastered all over the news,” Diavolo spins the newspaper around, sliding it across to show the grainy picture of Lucifer and three of his younger brothers at the last company gala. Lucifer's proud, intimidating stare is unmistakable in its intensity.

The headline ‘FALL FROM GRACE: Lucifer Morningstar Leaves Celestial Industries over Disinheritance Scandal with Brothers’ stretches across the page in blocky, damning font.

"I didn’t reach out to any media outlets. You can relax,” Diavolo huffs, “But really? Your first move after all this is to go and get a tattoo?"

“Do all of your consultations feel like interrogations?” Lucifer shoots back, lips turned down in a frown. He does not look down at the article, his gaze keeping level with Diavolo's.

Diavolo laughs, and holds his hands up, “No, not really. I only try to make sure my clients understand that this is too permanent and expensive of a decision to make on an emotional bender. Tattoo removal is possible, but it’s costly.” Diavolo lets his own eyes narrow in the slightest, “Considering you don’t have the fortune of a multi-billion dollar corporation to fund your whims anymore, I doubt you’d have the money to spare if this is something you regret.”

“Why are you antagonizing me over this,” Lucifer grits out, hands fisted at his sides.

“I take pride in my work, Morningstar.” Diavolo stands, inherently pleased to see that Lucifer’s furious gaze has to tilt up in the slightest to continue meeting his eyes, “I have no desire to see someone else's terrible work slapped over something I created."

"If you get paid, what does it matter?" Lucifer spits, clearly reaching his wit's end. Diavolo stares at him, silent, and Lucifer shuts his eyes. He exhales through his nose for strength, and cards a hand through his hair again, clearly unused to it still. When he speaks, his tone is genuine, and he sounds tired.

"I apologize," Diavolo blinks, not expecting the other to deflate as they have. When his eyes open again, they are alight with a fervor that Diavolo's breath catches at. “I have had…. An interesting week.” His smile is wry, too tangled up with hidden meanings that Diavolo isn’t sure if he should consider it a smile at all.

“I understand that this is permanent. As permanent as being disinherited publicly.” Lucifer’s stare is unflinching, his resolve ironclad and as spirited as Diavolo’s own, “Which is why I have come to request a consultation appointment, rather than demand you do it today. You are the only one who I want for this.”

Why rests on the tip of his tongue, but Diavolo knows the hard look in Lucifer's eyes, the kind of determination that refuses to be ignored, denied. It's entirely possible that Lucifer himself does not know why, only that he must. Diavolo keeps his gaze for another moment longer, fingers suddenly twitching for a habit that he quit long ago. Barbatos would kill him if he started smoking cigarettes again anyway.

Another moment, and Diavolo allows himself to smile.

"You could have scheduled a consultation online, you know," Diavolo laughs, and moves from around the counter towards his small side office.

"Come on," Diavolo says, but Lucifer does not move, still staring Diavolo down from his place in Diavolo's front desk area. Diavolo looks up at the heavens, exhaling ruefully, "I'm assuming you have an idea of what you want."

Lucifer only takes a moment to shake himself out of his stupor, the cool, almost snobbish expression back on his face.

"Of course."

Diavolo's laugh shakes the walls of the small office, and Lucifer's face is, amazingly, deep red. Diavolo is hunched over, hands gently sifting through the sketches.

"You're insane. Your first tattoo and you want a fully detailed back piece? Not to mention it's huge."

"We’re looking at somewhere between twenty and thirty hours of work. What if you can't handle the pain? Back tattoos can be rather painful, depending on where I'm working at the time."

"That won’t be an issue." Lucifer sniffs, back straight as he sits across from Diavolo.

“It’s going to cost you,” Diavolo warns. He knows what his work and experience is worth, and charges appropriately.

“Everything does,” he says, simply. He catches the quick glance Lucifer tosses at his now bare wrist, and remembers something about Lucifer wearing one of those fancy watches last time he’d seen the other. Had he sold it?

Diavolo hums, before looking back down at the sketches in front of him.

"Did you draw these?" Diavolo asks, impressed with the amount of detail. It'll be a challenge for sure, but if Lucifer wants to keep the tattoo exactly like the source drawing, Diavolo's confident he can do it justice. However… if Lucifer allows him to add his own touch... it'll be spectacular.

"My sister," he hesitates on the word, and Diavolo knows there's a lot to unpack behind that, and immediately labels that as 'definitely do not touch', "She was the artist of our family."

Ah, was. Lucifer's gaze darkens as he stares down at the papers, and Diavolo sighs. He runs a hand through his short hair, and leans back on the couch. Crossing his arms, he huffs when he looks at Lucifer again.

"Alright, you're crazy, but it's your money."

Other assorted headcanons/thoughts:

Not exactly sure what Lu’s desired tattoo is but it’s something like this pic

Lilith has like, Just Died. Is v sad.

Getting his ears pierced felt like absolute nothing to Lucifer, but having no point of reference he’s allowed to be a lil apprehensive. (“It’s like a shot, just… really close to your face!” Thanks, Mammon.)

Mammon has awful tattoos from different artists, but ever since he discovered this Diavolo fellow, they've all been coming out beautifully. Asmo has also gone! Lu doesn't trust online reviews, and while he takes what Mammon and Asmo say with a grain of salt, he can’t deny the quality he's seen of Diavolo's is phenomenal.

Diavolo's art style is similar to Lilith's.

All the brothers are around in this lil universe. for certain Reasons, it's just Luci/Mams/Levi/Asmo that have all been disinherited for now.

It's been several years since I got a tattoo so I pulled details out of my ass sorry for the inaccuracies

as always ty for reading (ノ°∀°)ノ⌒･*:.｡. .｡.:*･゜ﾟ･*☆

#obey me lucifer #obey me diavolo #obey me barbatos #obey me fic #writing #dialuci #ch: lucifer #ch: barbatos #ch: diavolo #pr: dialuci

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starry-sky-1 · 5 years

Text

Jungkook's little adventure

Spinoff of this lovely series by @lil-meow-meow-goes-rawr who let me do this!!!! Lotso love to her and kookie who I couldn't resist writing uwu.

----------------------------------------------------------

“JK, JK wake up” Seokjin sighed as he shook the human bundle of blankets for the umpteenth time. The little Hatsune Miku figurine alarm clock on the bedside table chimed a dainty 8:30 am as the bundle in question groaned and shriveled into a tighter ball.

Seokjin stood, arms akimbo, and pursed his lips. “Yah! Jungkook-ah you have to wake up or did you forget its your turn to bring the groceries today? Its your free day so I understand you were up playing Overwatch till 3 am but breakfast is getting cold. I made hash browns with eggs benedict and that bread you’re fond of.We even have Banana Milk.”

Hearing about banana milk, the bundle rumbled and sat up, a head popping out of its recesses like a bunny, puffy doe eyes that were closed, revealed a mop of fluffy hair, sticking up in all directions as Jungkook let out a cute yawn before rolling on the other side and getting up, stubbing his toe in the process.

The shock of pain, made him wince and his eyes flew open, clutching the now sensitive toe in his hand.

“Ow, Ow, OW”

The elder had an amused smile on his face as he watched the entire scene unfold.

“Sometimes I wonder how you’re related to me Jungkook-ah, a graceful, beautiful human like me, sculpted by the finest, who ladies die over, and then there’s you.”

“Way to boost my confidence, hyung” He muttered and grasped his spectacles, promptly putting them on. “I’ll meet you down in 15 minutes.”

Seokjin nodded and moved to the door, kicking a one piece themed sweatpants pair that was lying on the floor for god knows how long and shut the door behind him.

Jungkook stretched, cracking his bones and made his way over to the ensuite bathroom, both brothers had their rooms connected , in a small apartment unit above the bar.

He made his way down to see Seokjin on a call, recently they had been getting quite a number of assignments. The aloof bartender was a former secret service agent and one of the finest in the nation. He knew and dealt with secrets, disillusioned by bureaucracy and corruption, leaving after finishing one of the most difficult assignments ever with him as the only survivor.

“Yes Yoongi I’ll be more than happy to babysit the squirt as you and Hoseok plummet yourself into another dangerous mission, I mean wasn’t Mist enough for you?”

Ahh Mist, that brought back some memories, quite the adventure.

Jungkook scarfed the meal on the table, marvelling at his hyung’s cooking, the meals he cooked could make him a celebrity chef and yet here he was, dealing with dangerous stuff.

“To each his own I guess” he muttered and rinsed his plate, putting it in the right place before moving to the coatstand, his trusty hooded jacket would be perfect for the crisp nip in the air. He shuffled his shoes on and went down, deciding to explore the city a bit before he would fetch groceries and then munch on snacks as he played Overwatch again, he had a score to settle with NoobMaster96.

Patting his pockets, he checked his phone, keys and wallet before making his way downtown. October would be here soon and the parks would be full of leaves in various shades of reds, oranges.He loved those.

The public park was near the older market with a lot of old shops who sold stuff the traditional way, he found the square market to be too boisterous, the stores too fancy with their automatic doors, self checkouts, the crowd too predictable. He would rather source his seaweed chips and ramyun packets from the old lady who would almost always mistake him for her grandson and give him a mangatteok whenever he dropped by.

Speaking of ramyun, he was running low on his nutrition source with cans of energy drink, that’s how he survived those gruesome matches and lived to tell the tale.

He was just rounding the corner near the store, when a police car caught his attention, the small group of people gathering near it obstructed his view from what was happening. He slipped his hood on and slipped into the gathering with practiced ease and noticed his old lady angrily ranting off to two policemen who he knew very well.

Jimin had on a strained smile as he tried to ease the temper of the lady while Taehyung stood flabbergasted, asking questions to an old man who answered them. He turned on his heel and looked at the crowd when his eyes landed at an all too familiar face. Jungkook ducked, having been caught by Tae who flashed him his signature boxy grin and walked towards him, swiftly pulling him out causing Jungkook to squawk.

“Well, well, well if it isn’t my favourite Dongsaeng” he said.

“I’m the only dongsaeng you know from school, hyung” Jungkook pouted as Tae ruffled his hair, causing his cowlick to stand once again which he had spent a lot of time setting.

Jimin noticed Jungkook and pinched his cheek, smiling his infamous eye smile “Still as grumpy as ever.”

“And you’re still as short as ever.”

Jimin’s smile dropped while Tae guffawed and slapped him on the back. Jimin kicked Tae’s shin and then smacked Jungkook’s neck causing the younger to cry out in indignance.

“Yah! Is this how you talk to your hyung after everything we’ve done for you, brat?”

Jungkook gave him a mischievous smirk and rolled his shoulders.

The crowd had begun to disperse and it was then he turned to look at his allies slash friends and asked them what was with the crowd?

Tae looked at him and sighed, “Recently there have been a lot of petty theft incidents here by individuals dressed in all black with helmets or masks and riding gloves. They snatch handbags, briefcases, anything that they can land their hands on. Moreover we can’t ID them as they have blurred their motorcycle number plates and move on a very common design, the physical build is also more or less the same so we can’t say if it’s a single person or a group.”

Suddenly his eyes shone and his grin came back, Jungkook knew that look all too well.

“No Hyung, I am not helping you in this case again, I have to defeat NoobMaster96” He whined.

“Consider it payment for helping your eccentric psychopath friend and his cute ward. Oho she’s too adorable for her own good.”

Jimin added “The coverup alone took us so much time, we hardly slept for a month and it almost cost us our current titles. I NEVER want to work on the desk again” He said with a shudder.

Jungkook nibbled on his lower lip, On one hand he knew he was obligated to help Hoseok hyung and Yana, who he considered his own little sister, on the other hand he still had to game…….

“Fineeeeee” he replied, huffing.

“I knew if there was anyone who could help us, it would be our dear little Kookie” Tae chimed and Jimin smiled as well, highfiving his partner.

“But I need the details you have, the police files and access to the traffic security cameras”

“Consider it done”

“And I want 5 packets of chili ramyeon and nori chips as thanks”

“Whaaaa”

“Don’t question him, Jimin, and done.”

Jungkook moved to their car and Tae fetched a brown paper bag with the words confidential written on it.

“Now lets move to someplace less public and discuss with fewer ears” Jimin suggested and both nodded and followed him to a cafe owned by an ex policeman.

The little bell chimed as they entered and the owner flashed the 2 detectives a toothy smile as he continued to wipe a mug in his hand. They moved to the little private cabin which he held for “special” customers and took a seat. Jimin and Tae knew it was soundproof on the inside meaning no noise from the cabin would go out but they could hear everything on the outside clearly.

Jungkook spread the files on the table and quickly went over them, clicking a few pictures of evidence on his phone, whose camera he had upgraded to give better resolutions. Taking pictures of the suspects from the traffic cameras, he placed them back into the folder.

“I’ve sent you a link that would help you get into the mainframe. I hope you know the drill. Do NOT leave any evidence of your presence, you know SPD’s IT team is getting better at tracking illegal hacking or data hostage attempts.”

The younger only rolled his eyes when there was a knock on the door. Jimin tapped in confirmation and the owner came in, placing two cups of cappucinos for the boys and a hot chocolate for him, closing the door on his way out.

They discussed more details as they took their respective drinks and Tae told him he’d told the owner to bring hot chocolate for him since he knew that Jungkook couldn’t stand the strong taste at all.

Jungkook remembered he had to get groceries and once finished, Tae and Jimin helped him fetch stuff from the aisles at the next door mart and told him they’d drop him off before going back to the station to “work”. He whined when they did not get his snacks telling him that would be his reward if he could give them the missing link to the case and close it.

Clutching the full bags, Jungkook managed to balance them as he slid his key in and went inside. The lights were off which meant Seokjin was out and should be back soon to prepare for opening the bar.

He deposited them on the kitchen counter, placing the perishables in the fridge and moved to his room, opening his laptop as he decided to copy the data from his phone. Maybe Namjoon hyung could give him an insight on this? Ahh no he’s busy so he mustn’t be bothered.

Jin returned and noticed that Jungkook was home a little earlier than usual. The boy would never drop in before 8 pm, just in time for dinner on his days off. So it was surprising to see him back so soon.

He knocked on his door “JK, did you have lunch?” the boy didn’t respond. Jin knocked louder this time. Jungkook fumbled with his headphones and peeped from the door.

“Yes?”

“I asked if you had eaten lunch yet?”

“I had a cup of hot chocolate”

“Yah! That doesn’t count as lunch! I’m making fried rice, come down in 10, irrespective of what you’re working on” Jin said, motioning to the laptop and the wires attached to his phone.

Jungkook swiftly nodded and closed the door, resuming the transfer of data as he waited. He checked his phone for messages, finding none. Of course who would message him, he smiled ruefully before checking progress of the tapes downloading in his system.

As soon as there was a single minute left to 3:10 pm, he went down in the kitchen, just in time to see Jin plating 2 servings, his being smaller than what he had poured for the younger one.

The smell was heavenly and before he knew it, the plate was wiped clean. Jungkook rose to put them in the washer but Jin shook his head.

“You have homework, right kiddo? Don’t worry hyung will handle it”

Jungkook smiled at him brightly before running upstairs, almost tripping on his feet before he plopped himself on his table again, working on a short code that would narrow his search to the bikes of the model, the perpetrators used. It would limit his view time to 5 hours. Something he was sure he could manage. He carefully scanned the now shortened footage and noticed that the perpetrators would always, exclusively be downtown. It was as if they knew their chances of escaping were better there. He also noticed how they seemed to know where to go, irrespective of whether they were on foot or bike. The alleys where the cameras could not record their further movement. Also not a sliver of skin was exposed so nothing could be said about their build, complexion or looks, even gender. All the footage looked the same.

He ran his fingers through his hair, pushing his glasses up, there was no clue, how could he help Jimin and Tae, when suddenly one of the bikes went too close to the pole. Jungkook narrowed his eyes and played the footage again. On the back of the bike was an imperceptible symbol, which he enlarged and screenshot.

One thing that he understood was that the perpetrator(s) had a good idea of the alleys, secondly they knew how to conceal their identity well so it would be physically impossible to identify them, thirdly they chose their victims randomly and finally another bike had yellow paint on its tires, from the footage of a day ago, the one with the old woman whose bag was stolen.

Jungkook knew that there was renovation going on in the eastern part which meant that atleast one of them had entered via Incheon.

He zoomed the footage as he spotted a man push the woman and snatched her bag in broad daylight as he sped off, the old woman screaming at him, which caused the few shopkeepers around to come out. Jungkook noticed that this bike was devoid of the same symbol but had another one in the same design.

He searched them and discovered 2 numbers, in a snake font, 13 and 55.

Weird!

He quickly overlooked the dates of the events and discovered that the dates were in fact a sequence! Running them through the algorithm detector he found that they were Fibonacci numbers and the

snake fonts actually represented their positioning on the cartesian plane.

He had heard Hoseok talk about a gang in town, slowly acquiring power through meticulous attacks, they hadn’t done anything severe, but their attacks were random enough to confuse the police. To make matters worse nobody knew of their arrival or departure, they chose less populated areas to target and left no evidence behind.

Putting the dates in sequence, Jungkook knew when the next attack would take place, coincidentally it was a free day for him as well. It wouldn’t hurt to give a little tip off to the detectives.

The only problem was how to confirm his suspicions, what if he was wrong? He couldn’t afford to let down another of the residents at downtown or undermine what was at stake for Tae and Jimin. He knew the pattern of such gangs all too well, it would slowly evolve to bigger crimes including shootouts and murders once they’d amassed enough power and terrorised the locals. It was an ugly spiral in the Criminal Underworld.

It was almost 11 pm by the time he had finished. Shoot! Just on time his stomach rumbled as well. He hadn’t had anything since lunch. He padded downstairs, knowing Jin would be at the bar but he’d chew his head off the next day for ignoring dinner. There was a plate of samgyeopsal with rice and clear soup, left for him. Jungkook felt a rush of affection for his step brother rise in his heart, who took care of him more like a parent than a sibling, never once questioning when he was dumped at his door out of nowhere and readily gave him a roof to live in and made sure all his needs were fulfilled.

He sat and ate dinner in silence and cleaned the kitchen up before wiping the table. Jin rarely let him in the bar, being fiercely protective of the younger one, wanting him to live as normally as possible.

He shut the lights and formulated a plan in his head. Oh he couldn’t wait to see it all unfold.

The D day had Jungkook nervous as hell, Tae had bombarded him with questions all week about his progress but Jungkook said it was difficult with lack of data but nonetheless sent him the designs on the 2 bikes just to not rouse his suspicions too much. They had thankfully bought the little lie and were busy running for matches through their databases.

He waited at the eastern end on his bike which he had borrowed from Yoongi, the sleek model was very flexible for driving in narrower lanes or taking sharp turns. The only condition was that he had to hack into some company’s financial statements, an easy job.

Hiding in the alleyway, he waited until it was just a few people out on the streets. If his calculations were correct, there would be an incident any time now. His notice turned to one of the shops in his direct line of vision, A girl with curly hair, sunkissed skin exit the cafe where had been the last week.

She had long, pretty legs clad in a pair of skinfit jeans and a white blouse tied in a knot above the highwaist as she put her slingbag around her and moved. He spotted movement on the peripheral of his vision.

Bingo! There were 2 people on the bike this time, heading straight for the woman who now had her headphones on, moving to whatever beat it played. Jungkook revved his own and gave chase right as one of them broke the bag from its sling and ran, clutching it tightly.

She screamed and gave chase, but wasn’t as fast enough as the person. Jungkook knew he’d take the alley with limited access to the traffic camera and his friend would be there, taking a quick shortcut he locked the bike and hid in the thick shadows knowing the person would be there anytime soon, as his friend waited at the other end.

The person came in, huffing as the outfit proved too much for the weather. Jungkook pounced on them, taking them down in a tangle of limbs as he subdued them. Their partner long gone when they realised that the ally had been subdued. He took the helmet off to reveal a young man with a nasty scar across his eye.This wasn’t an injury, no it was a deliberate slash. Quickly he found some spare plastic ties near the dumpbox and tied the man down. He dragged him over to the main footpath and saw the girl jogging up to him.She was even prettier up close and he blushed a bit. He dialed Tae and said

“Hyung, I have a certain present for you, come down quick” as he gave him his coordinates.

Taehyung cursed and kicked the table as his partner raised an eyebrow in question.

“That damn brat” was all he said before nudging Jimin into the car, speeding off.

Jungkook dusted the bag and gave it to the girl who muttered a “thank you”. Heck even her accent was cute and her voice had a lilt to it.

Before he could say something, the siren indicated that they were here. He looked down at the bound man who was glaring daggers at him.

Jimin stepped out first looking at Jungkook and then the man. “why am I not surprised? Of course you would throw yourself in harm’s way with 0 afterthought, Seokjin would have our skins as doormats if anything happened to you,brat.”

Taehyung looked at the man, amused.

“Can’t believe a kid took you down and those are some good knots, if I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re into some hardcore Shibari shit, Jungkook-ah”

Jungkook only reddened in response as the girl smirked at him.

Taehyung then looked at her and asked if they could ask her a few questions, she was free to go then. She nodded in assent and answered them, truthfully as Jungkook watched in rapt attention.

Jimin noticed and winked at him, wiggling his eyebrows, making Jungkook squeak and turn his head.

The detectives, satisfied thanked Jungkook after taking his statement as well.

“We’ll get all from him, but kiddo, next time you pull a stunt like this, do give us a call before jumping blindly, what if the other man was armed? and do mail us all the evidence you found, your ramyun and chips will be at your door by evening”

He smiled and waved them off before realising the girl was still there.

“So how does coffee sound?”

“Truthfully, Yakult is better than coffee, coffee is too strong for my nose” he replied, tapping his nose and shrugging. He looked at his watch.

“Oh dang I’m late for lunch again, hyung’s going to break my legs but I don’t need to buy snacks now so yess” he mumbled to himself.

The girl shook her head in amusement.

“I-I gotta run, have a nice day.Be safe” he bowed to her before taking off, picking his bike up and speeding his way over to home. Oh he was so dead today!

OMAKE

“You mean she asked me out on a date and I messed it up?” Jungkook groaned as Seokjin burst into laughter at his obliviousness.

Maybe he could spot her next time he was in downtown? It wouldn’t hurt to have her number. He flopped on the bed groaning and cursing. Atleast his Miku chan was still by his bedside to cheer him.

The End!

#btsau #bts friendship #bts fluff #bts fic #bts jhope #bts jimin #bts jin #bts taehyung #bts jungkook #hackerkook #fluff #jungkook is a baby #uwu

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wistfulcynic · 5 years

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Another Brick In The Wall: Chapter 8

a/n: Effusive thanks to @hollyethecurious for the artwork! I love it so much! Thanks also to everyone for reading, commenting, kudos-ing, and reblogging! I'm so pleased by the way people have been engaging with this story. Love you all xxx

Summary: Emma Swan, sheriff’s daughter, mayor’s niece, quarterback’s girlfriend, is the undisputed princess of Storybrooke High. She is smart and confident and used to getting what she wants. What she wants is Killian Jones, the new boy in school. But Killian is not easily manipulated, and reluctant to allow the dark secrets in his past to touch the girl he is rapidly falling in love with.

Rating: T

Tags for: @darkcolinodonorgasm @jennjenn615 and @resident-of-storybrooke

Chapter 8:

Killian was out of school for a week, for a “mental health break” he called it with a chuckle, apparently a term he’d gotten from Dr Hopper. He saw the psychiatrist daily during this break and spent the rest of his time at the harbour with Liam, working on their boat, reading, playing his guitar, and talking with his brother about everything that had happened.

“We’ve hashed it all out in excruciating detail,” he told Emma as they sat together in the boat’s cabin, she working on her college essays while he practiced a new song. “It’s such a relief to be able to really talk to Liam again. There was a time when we had no secrets between us. He showed me all the information he had collected on Milah and her situation. Apparently her divorce is almost finalised and next month she’s starting a job teaching English in Japan.” He smiled. “She’ll like that, a chance to travel. What she always wanted.”

“Hmmmph,” said Emma, glaring at the screen of her laptop as she typed rapidly.

“Swan,” he admonished, giving her a mock scowl as he strummed a chord at her.

Emma slammed her hands down on the keyboard. “Killian, I just don’t know how you can be so forgiving after what she did to you.”

He set the guitar aside and his expression became serious. “I have to be, don’t you see?” he asked, looking at her intently. “I can’t hold on to my anger or it will eat me alive. I didn’t even realise how angry I was until Dr Hopper helped me see it, and how by not acknowledging it, allowing myself to feel it, and then letting it go, I was only hurting myself. Besides, I did genuinely care about Milah, and I’m glad she’s finally in a place where she can be happy.”

“Hmmmmph.” Emma concentrated on deleting the gibberish she’d produced by her attack on the keyboard.

“A place that doesn’t include me,” said Killian brightly, picking up the guitar again and plucking out a cheery tune. “That’s good, isn’t it Swan?”

“I suppose so,” she grumbled. “Though I’d still prefer if the place was dark and scary and full of nettles.” He laughed heartily at that and she couldn’t hold back an answering smile. “Hey, I’m nearly done with this, will you read it over and make sure it’s okay? Just check my grammar and punctuation and stuff.”

“Of course, love, though I’m sure it’s already brilliant.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Freed from the weight of his worry and guilt, Killian gradually began to smile more easily, and his witty, teasing nature (“cheeky git,” Liam called him, his voice irritated but with a relief so profound it bordered on joy in his eyes) came more readily to the fore. When he returned to school the following Monday, he moved through the halls with a swagger that Emma had never seen on him before. Unlike the arrogant, bullying one that Neal always had Killian’s evoked a simple self-assurance that she had to concede looked really good on him. Despite how much emotional baggage he still had to work through he clearly wasn’t burdened by shame anymore, and equally clearly did not intend to take any crap from anyone.

This made itself evident that morning when he shut his locker and turned towards his first class, only to find himself confronted by Felix and Rufio.

“Really, chaps?” he said, raising an eyebrow at them. “You couldn’t even wait until after school so you could chuck me into the bins, like proper high school bullies?”

This mockery went clean over the other boys’ heads, and they continued to block his path, trying to look intimidating while also trying not to be intimidated by Killian’s calm demeanor and his amused expression.

Felix, the sligtly cleverer of the two, suspected he was being laughed at but couldn’t put his finger on why. He didn’t like it.

Bristling, he sneered at Killian. “Bet you think you’ve won,” he snarled. “Now that Neal’s in jail and out of the way. Now you can move in on Emma like you did on that—” he broke off as Killian stepped into his space. There wasn’t much difference in height between them, but somehow Felix had the impression of Killian towering over him, his face calm but his eyes darkly furious, and for once in his life he felt a stab of genuine fear.

“I’m only going to say this once,” growled Killian in the new, lower register his voice had taken on more often of late, “So you’d better listen carefully. Your mate Neal is a criminal, and not even a good one. He’s in jail because he’s stupid, and that’s nothing to do with me. I have no doubt it’s where he’d always have ended up eventually. Bit of advice: If you’re going to steal confidential information, don’t take pictures of the evidence on your phone, and definitely don’t then show those pictures to the sheriff’s daughter. Neal got what he deserved. I now consider this matter closed, and if you or anyone else—” he raised his voice so that the rapidly assmbling crowd of onlookers could all hear, “—tries to take it any further, you will not care for the repercussions.”

Felix wasn’t sure what “repercussions” were, but the hint of repressed violence in Killian’s manner made him keen not to find out. He had always been content to follow Neal, less out of respect for the other boy than a simple unwillingness to make a thing out of Neal’s belligerent insistence that he should be the one in charge, but he’d always sensed that there wasn’t much substance underneath Neal’s bluster. Killian however didn’t bluster. He simply stated facts, and Felix could tell that he was not the sort of person to make a threat he couldn’t back up with action. Perhaps it was time to step out of Neal’s shadow, thought Felix, and take over leadership of their little gang. He certainly couldn’t do a worse job of it than Neal had, and escalating a pointless conflict with a guy who looked prepared to fight dirty if necessary was much more Neal’s style than Felix’s. He nodded at Killian, and stepped back. Rufio looked surprised but followed his lead.

Killian nodded back then transferred his glare to the crowd of onlookers, which had grown considerably in the past thirty seconds and now included Emma and Ruby, he could see out of the corner of his eye. “As for what you may have heard about me,” he said, loudly enough for all to hear. “It’s all true.” He smirked for a moment as a gasp went through the crowd, then his expression hardened. “It’s also no one’s business but mine, and those in whom I choose to confide. This is all I have to say on the subject. Now, if you’ll all excuse me I don’t wish to be late for class.” He slung his satchel over his shoulder and headed down the hall, turning his head briefly to shoot Emma a wink. People moved aside to let him pass and as soon as he had turned the corner furious whispering erupted in his wake.

Ruby pursed her lips. “I may have underestimated him,” she remarked.

Emma’s heart was pounding, a familiar occurrence where Killian was concerned, but this time it felt different. She’d been worried about how he would react to the ineveitable curiosity and questions from their classmates, but this smooth handling of a potentially explosive situation instead of calming her fears instead filled her with the wild desire to run after him, to fling herself into his arms and kiss them both breathless.

“He’s just so wonderful,” she sighed, and Ruby laughed.

“Down, girl,” she teased. “I’ll grant you this one’s worth your time, unlike the douchemaster general, but remember we’re in school. No one wants to see that.”

Emma rolled her eyes and gave her friend a shove, but the butterflies continued rhumba-ing around her insides, this time accompanied by an odd, hollow sort of ache as she remembered her resolution not to pursue Killian anymore. She was now all but certain that she loved him, that beyond the hot, tingly sensation she always felt in his presence lay a profound devotion. She would do anything for him, sacrifice anything to give him what he needed, and that terrified her. For the first time in her life Emma felt vulnerable, exposed, as though her chest were torn open and her heart lain bare to the mercies of fate and one gorgeous, troubled boy. She hated it. Even knowing that Killian would never intentionally hurt her was no consolation when the truth was that he could hurt her simply by caring deeply for her as a friend. If that was all she could ever have from him she would take it, she knew, without pushing for more, but it would be a wound on her heart that would never heal.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“He’s a bully,” shrugged Killian at lunchtime, when Emma, this time accompanied by a very inquisitive Ruby, found him in the library. “Bullies are just cowards at their core, and cowards are easy to intimidate. He won’t do anything because he won’t want to call my bluff. I might not be able to back it up but he’ll be too scared to risk finding out.”

“And what would you have done if he had called your bluff?” inquired Ruby.

Killian shrugged again. “Probably got the shit kicked out of me.”

“Would you have, though?” Ruby pressed, watching him through narrowed eyes.

He returned her stare with a look of wide-eyed innocence. “There were two of them to only one of me. Seems inevitable.”

“Does it?” Ruby’s disbelief was almost palpable, and having fenced with Killian for months now Emma shared her friend’s suspicion that he was deliberately underplaying his fighting skills.

“Let’s hope we never have to find out,” said Killian with a small smile, in a tone of voice that made it clear he would answer no more questions on the subject. “I quite like my face arranged the way it is.”

“It is a nice face,” said Ruby with a wolfish grin that widened as Killian’s ears turned pink. “But I didn’t come here just to flatter you. Victor asked me to ask you if he could have your phone number.”

“My number?” Killian blinked in surprise.

“Yeah, there’s some concert in Portland and he doesn’t have anyone to go with and he thought you might be interested.”

“Um, sure, I guess.” Killian rattled off the number and Ruby sent Victor a text. A minute later his phone buzzed and he looked at it, snorting as he read the message. “Bit of a wanker, your boyfriend,” he remarked to Ruby.

“I don’t know what that is but I’m somehow sure that Victor is one,” smirked Ruby. “Is that gonna be a problem?”

“Not at all, I’m rather fond of wankers,” said Killian absently as he typed his reply. “My brother is one, after all.” His phone buzzed again almost instantly and he raised an eyebrow at what he read on it.

“Ems, I think maybe we should leave the boys to their chat,” said Ruby, and as much as she hated to sacrifice free time with Killian, from the way he was fixated on his phone, his expression almost gleeful as he typed rapidly, Emma had to admit she was probably right.

“Okay,” she said. “See you in class in a few minutes, Killian. And maybe hang out after school?”

“Hmmm? Oh, I have an appointment with Dr Hopper at four, but I can text you when I’m done.”

“Okay.” She smiled at him but his attention was back on his phone, so she followed Ruby out of the library trying not to feel too disgruntled. Killian should have other friends, she told herelf firmly, male ones who shared his interests. That was normal, and he could use some normal in his life right now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Over the next few weeks, things at school settled back into a routine, albeit one that was markedly different than it had been. Neal had been officially arrested after David’s investigation, charged with burglary, theft, and theft of a medical record, and was facing up to five years in prison. His parents had put up their house as collateral to pay his bail, but weren’t allowing him to return to school.

“Not much point when he’ll just go straight back to the slammer after he’s sentenced,” said Ruby viciously. “So much for that football scholarship he was so cocky about.”

Emma tried to find some compassion for Neal and what was basically the wreck and ruin of his future, but couldn’t dredge up a single particle of it. He had committed several felonies for no other reason than to stick it to Killian for outsmarting him and for becoming her friend, and he’d committed them flagrantly and with no thought to the consequences. He’d probably thought there wouldn’t be any consequences. Killian was right: Neal deserved everything that was coming to him, if only for being so colossally, arrogantly stupid.

People still whispered about Killian as he walked through the halls but true to character he paid little attention. He did, however, gradually began to open up more and allow more of himself to show through his defences, willingly participating in classes and talking to people other than Emma and Ruby. By the time finals week arrived had actually made a few friends.

Killian reflected wryly that in a twisted sort of way Neal had done him a favour. With all his secrets now out on the open he was free to embrace the opportunity for a new life he’d found in Storybrooke. Not that there had been anything particularly wrong with the old life, at least since his father had finally left. He’d been a mean old drunk, Brennan Jones, and by the time he’d been forced to flee his creditors for good, stealing a boat from Bristol harbour and melting into the offshore underworld, his sons had been glad to see the back of him. Killian thought about what he himself had been like back then, before Milah, and even though it had only been about a year since he’d first become involved with her so much had changed both in his circumstances and in himself, he feared that hopeful, enthusiastic boy was lost forever. Who exactly had taken his place was the question Killian had asked himself daily for weeks now, and he still wasn’t sure how to answer it. He’d become so used to holding everything in, to keeping such a tight rein on his thoughts and feelings that letting them out, accepting that it was okay to express them had become almost unbelievably difficult. The only person he felt even remotely comfortable being fully himself with aside from Liam was Emma, whose support and friendship remained unwavering as he bumbled and struggled thorough the reclamation of his life, and he remained intensely grateful for it.

Only one thing about Emma troubled him-- that she no longer seemed to be interested in anything beyond his friendship. All the little hints and cues she had been giving him since they’d met were suddenly gone, and while he was relieved to be free of the added stress of constantly resisting something that part of him desperately wanted, he couldn’t help wondering if there was a darker motivation for this abrupt about-face. Perhaps, whispered an evil little voice in his head, Emma was actually more disgusted by his past than she let on and was simply too kind to tell him directly. Maybe the thought of him touching her turned her stomach now. He certainly couldn’t blame her if it did.

“What do you want from your relationship with Emma?” asked Dr Hopper one afternoon, after Killian had finally brought himself to mention the change in her behaviour. “Do you want it to be romantic?”

Killian frowned, struggling to sort through the complex tangle of his feelings about and for Emma. “I don’t want a romantic relationship with anyone,” he said finally. “I still feel too messed up for anything like that. But I— I’m still really attracted to her. I think about her all the time, about how we kissed at her party, and I want to kiss her again pretty much constantly, but then I remember Milah and how I thought I felt about her, and I just—”

“You don’t trust your judgement.”

“Yeah.”

“Killian, it’s important for you to remember that you have a much more equal relationship with Emma than you ever did with Milah.”

“Equal, with Emma?” Killian snorted. “You have met her, right?”

Dr Hopper smiled patiently. “I understand that you feel she’s beyond your reach, and that’s a separate issue, but what I mean by equal is that she’s your age and at your stage of life. With Milah you were constantly struggling to relate to her life and her experiences, and when you couldn’t you attempted to make up for that by offering her the affection and sexual attention she craved. You forced yourself to offer these things even though you didn’t genuinely feel them because you feared the consequences of not offering them. But with Emma there is no need to manufacture anything. She is placing no demands on you and therefore any attraction and affection you feel for her is genuine.”

“But what should I do about it?”

“Why should you have to do anything? You said you’re not ready for a romantic relationship, and that’s fine. Let yourself heal. The process is slow and frustrating, but believe me you are making progress. Let your feelings for Emma and your relationship with her develop at a pace that is comfortable for you. From what you’ve said it sounds like she will still be there when, if, you’re ready for more.”

“It’s more than likely she no longer wants more. And even if she did, what happens when she meets someone who isn’t so hopelessly fucked up? Then where does that leave me?”

“Why don’t you worry about that if —not when— it happens?”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On the last day before winter break, Emma nervously approached Killian’s locker and handed him an invitation to her parents’ annual Christmas party addressed to him and Liam.

“It’s just a thing they do every year for their friends and our neighbours,” she began to ramble as he examined the card, certain he would refuse and wanting to delay that painful moment. “My mom loves to entertain, and my dad says it’s good for building a rapport between law enforcement and the community, and—”

“Swan,” interrupted Killian, giving her that soft, indulgent look that said he knew exactly what she was thinking. “I’m sure we’d love to attend. Thank you for inviting us.”

The butterflies soared in a grand jeté, and she felt like she was flying with them. “Great,” she said trying to keep her voice calm, “I guess I’ll see you then.”

Her delighted smile made his breath catch, and his answering grin set her heart galloping. Their eyes met and held, and as the end of semester chaos whirled around them they stood a breath apart, swathed in frustrated yearning and brittle tension, the only two people in the world.

Then the final bell rang, and they leapt apart, Emma smoothing her skirt with shaking hands while Killian ran his own trembling fingers through his hair.

“So, onion rings at Granny’s?” ventured Emma, wanting to kick herself for making him nervous again, after all her resolutions, hoping desperately he wouldn’t pull away.

Killian sighed in relief, tinged with a hint of disappointment. Granny’s was safe. “Sounds perfect, love,” he said.

#cs au ff #high school au #teenage captain swan #captain duckling #lieutenant duckling #another brick in the wall #profdanglaisstuff

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tech-specialist98 · 3 years

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iPhone XR Review

Apple gave everyone a glimpse at the future of the iPhone with last year's iPhone X, positioning it at the top of its lineup. With a “notch” and Face ID, the iPhone X was the iPhone of the future, and it came with a price tag that required you to pay EMIs well into the future.

The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus were meant to be the more accessible offerings, continuing Apple's “business as usual” model of delivering solid, incremental updates at prices that were only marginally higher than their predecessors.

With 2018, however, it seems the future is here, as Apple has gone all-in with the iPhone X (Review) design language across the entire lineup. For the second year in a row, we get not two but three new iPhone models, but this time, they all look pretty much the same — like the iPhone X, but at different sizes.

Physically, the iPhone XR₹ 47,900 sits between the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max. It's priced in iPhone 8 Plus territory, which means Apple has eliminated the iPhone 8 (Review) price band altogether. This makes this year's most affordable new iPhone nearly Rs. 13,000 more expensive than last year's point of entry, which seems to be in line with Apple's push to increase prices across all its product categories.

It's not all doom and gloom though, as the iPhone XR is available in a variety of colours, to make you forget the hole that buying one is likely to leave in your pocket. While the “most affordable” new iPhone of the year offers more colour options than its more expensive brethren, Apple has removed certain features from the iPhone XR in a bid to keep its cost low.

Does this make the iPhone XR a compromised device? That's what we aim to find out in our review.

iPhone XR design and display

The last time Apple brought colours to the iPhone lineup in any sort of meaningful way was with the poorly received iPhone 5c. Launched alongside the iPhone 5s, the iPhone 5c (Review) — just like the iPhone XR — was the most affordable new iPhone on offer. However, its price tag wasn't as low as everyone expected hoped it would be), and the fact that it shipped with older technology obviously didn't help.

Apple has managed to avoid the same trap with the iPhone XR by making sure it ticks the same boxes as its two more expensive siblings, at least as far as the most important specifications are concerned. All three phones are powered by the same SoC, have the same primary rear camera, and come with other modern technologies including Face ID (the iPhone 5c famously missed out on Touch ID, introduced with the iPhone 5s).

That's not to say the iPhone XR is just like the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max₹ 99,265 in every respect. Its frame is made out of “aerospace-grade aluminium” compared to steel on the more expensive iPhone models, though it feels nearly as premium.

Both the front and the back of the iPhone XR are all glass, though Apple notes that only the front packs “the most durable glass ever in a smartphone”, so the back has to make do with something less expensive, like the second-most durable glass ever in a smartphone, perhaps. Both the fronts and the backs of the iPhone XS are iPhone XS Max have the aforementioned “most durable glass ever”. The iPhone XR is IP67 rated, just like the iPhone X, while the other two 2018 iPhone models are IP68 rated.

Physically, the iPhone XR sits between the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, and while we believe the iPhone XS form factor is ideal for most people, the iPhone XR represents a possible middle ground for those looking to experiment with a bigger iPhone without stepping up all the way to the iPhone XS Max, which can be rather too much to handle.

The iPhone XR is wider than some of today's other popular large-screen Android smartphones and at 194g, it's certainly one of the heavier ones as well. It is also noticeably thicker than the two more premium iPhone models of 2018, and the bezels around its display are a little more pronounced than those of the iPhone XS, though most users won't be be bothered by the latter.

Where you will have to settle for last year's technology is the display itself — and it's not even display technology from last year's most expensive iPhone, as the iPhone XR uses the same LCD tech as the iPhone 8.

This means you miss out on the richer blacks that the OLED displays on the iPhone X, iPhone XS, and iPhone XS Max deliver. The LCD panel offers a lower contrast ratio and lacks HDR as well as Dolby Vision. That in itself isn't a huge deal, but the relatively low resolution (828x1792 pixels at 326ppi) also means that text doesn't look as sharp as it does on some other iPhone models — and, indeed, other smartphones out there. Unless you are making the move from an iPhone 8 or a really inexpensive smartphone, you will almost certainly notice that the quality is, at best, just about good enough.

“Just about good enough” is, of course, not what you expect when you pay north of Rs. 75,000 for a smartphone, especially when some phones that cost 10 percent of that amount sport higher-resolution displays. Granted, the panel on the iPhone XR is up there with the best LCD panels in other respects, including viewing angles and colour accuracy, but that doesn't take away from its relatively low resolution.

The other way in which Apple has cut costs is by eliminating 3D Touch. Some people probably won't even notice it's missing given that it wasn't always easy to discover its presence in older iPhone models to begin with. Some popular 3D Touch features such as the keyboard's trackpad mode and the ability to preview notifications have been implemented without 3D Touch, for those who did come to love those little touches.

The iPhone XR is available in yellow, white, coral, black, blue, and (Product) Red, which is a welcome change compared to the usual options available from Apple and other manufacturers. While we really appreciated the understated finish of our black review unit, we also quite liked the yellow and blue options in the brief time we spent with them at the global launch event.

iPhone XR performance, software, and battery life

The iPhone XR is powered by the same Apple A12 Bionic chip inside the iPhone XS duo, so it's no surprise that its performance is pretty similar. It handled everything that we threw at it with aplomb, something we've come to expect from a new iPhone, and indeed other smartphones in this price bracket.

PUBG Mobile defaults to the ‘High' frame rate and ‘HD' graphics settings, but we bumped them to ‘Ultra' and ‘HDR' respectively, and playing the game was still a pretty smooth experience. Extended sessions of games such as Asphalt 9: Legends were not a problem either, and we didn't run into any heating issues.

Benchmarks show that the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max both have 4GB of RAM, while the iPhone XR has to make do with 3GB of RAM, the same as the iPhone X. While this didn't really prove to be a problem in our experience, it's something to bear in mind if you like your devices to be “future proof”, as would be the case with the more expensive iPhone XS duo.

For the first time, iPhones now feature dual-SIM support, but instead of adding a second physical SIM slot, Apple has taken the eSIM route. This means that unless you purchased your iPhone in China, Hong Kong, or Macau — where Apple sells “true” dual-SIM iPhone models — your iPhone XR, iPhone XS, or iPhone XS Max includes an embedded SIM that can be activated as and when desired, in addition to a regular physical SIM slot.

In theory, this is meant to make things more convenient by letting you switch from one provider to another without having to swap physical SIMs. In practice, however, it adds an unnecessary level of complication, at least in its current form.

For one, only select operators — Jio and Airtel, at the moment — support eSIMs in India. This means that if your second SIM is from Vodafone, Idea, or any other operator, you have no option but to port your number to one of the aforementioned duo, which might not be be possible (or desirable) for everyone. Second, even the operators that do support it, don't make it easy for you to get an eSIM activated.

You can't get a new number activated on an eSIM — with both Jio and Airtel, you need to go to a retail store, do the necessary paperwork, get a physical SIM, and then convert it to eSIM so its number can be used with your iPhone. That's like going to your neighbourhood store and mailing yourself what you just purchased to get the “e-commerce” experience.

At least some of that is down to India's KYC norms, more than any technological limitations, but from the end user's perspective, the experience is far from ideal.

Even if you already have a physical SIM with all KYC procedures completed, Reliance Jio requires (at least at the time of filing this review) you to go to one of its retail units to get your SIM converted to eSIM, which is the next level of bonkers.

Thankfully, if you are on Airtel, the experience is a little better. You can initiate the “conversion” of your physical SIM via a text message and then just follow instructions that you will receive via email. We found this part to be relatively hassle-free.

As for actually using the iPhone with two SIMs on a daily basis, the experience is pretty much in line with what you get with Android phones. By default, your physical SIM is labelled “Primary” and the eSIM “Secondary”, but you can change these to whatever you like.

You can have multiple “Data Plans” — as Apple calls them — attached to your eSIM, but only one of them can be active can any given time. The term Data Plan, of course, is a little bit misleading, as you can have a voice-only plan as well.

You need to designate one of these to be the “Default voice line”, and the same (or the other) needs to be the default line for mobile data. Both lines support 4G at the same time, and the iPhone will let you use mobile data from one line while you are on call using the other.

Call history in the Phone app will show a label indicating the line that was used for each call, and tapping the entry will dial that number or contact using the same line. When initiating a new call, you can choose which line to use via a dropdown at the top, with your default line already selected.

However, there seems to be no way to choose which line is used when composing a new SMS message, which seems to be a big oversight. Existing conversations in the Messages app will default to using whatever number was used last in that thread. (Edit for clarity: It's possible to choose which line to use if you've never exchanged messages with a number but once a conversation starts, there's no way to change the number being used.)

Only one of the two numbers can be associated with iMessage and FaceTime at any given time, which is also a bit of a disappointment.

iOS of course also doesn't have the “dual apps” capability that some Android OEMs have added, which means you can run only one instance of apps like WhatsApp, further limiting your dual-SIM experience. You can use either of the numbers with WhatsApp and other services.

The iPhone XR offers the same “wider stereo playback” as the more expensive iPhone XS duo, and the resulting sound is pretty impressive. However, the iPhone XR lacks the “Gigabit-class LTE” found in the other two new iPhone models. This might be a problem some day, but that day isn't coming anytime soon given the pitiful state of networks in our country.

Though iOS 12 brings a host of new features, the experience using of using an iPhone in countries like India is less than ideal due to the features that apps like Apple Maps lack in these regions, something we've noted time and again. We encourage you to read our iOS 12 review to read our thoughts about new features including Screen Time, Shortcuts, and more that will greatly enhance how you use your iPhone.

In terms of battery life, our real-world experience was pretty similar to what we got with iPhone XS Max, in that the iPhone XR easily lasted us a full day, even when our workload was heavier than usual. In our HD video loop test, the iPhone XR lasted an impressive 13 hours and 19 minutes.

Though the iPhone XR is “fast-charge capable”, according to Apple, the company provides no fast charger in the box, which is a big disappointment. Wireless charging is supported.

iPhone XR cameras

The iPhone used to be the best camera phone in business, but that probably hasn't been the case since the days of the iPhone 6 Plus. It started with companies like Samsung taking a lead in low-light camera performance, and since then we've seen the likes of Huawei and Google surpass Apple when it comes to building a phone that's a solid overall performer when it comes to still photography.

Google has been somewhat of a flag bearer in this department with its Pixel range of flagships. While all three generations of Pixel phones might have been plagued by a host of reliability issues, there's been no denying their photography chops.

Even as other manufactures have relied on two, three, and even four sensors in a bid to deliver better image quality — often with mixed results — Google has stuck to a single sensor, while doubling down on machine learning algorithms to enhance the resulting images.

Given Google's success with this approach, it's no surprise to see Apple and others go down the same path, even if it seems that Cupertino is merely dipping its toes instead of going all-in. While the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max continue to feature dual rear cameras, the iPhone XR packs only one sensor at the back.

This, pardon the pun, serves dual purposes. First, it obviously reduces the cost of the more “affordable” iPhone XR, but more importantly, it gives Apple a device with which it can experiment a bit with its machine learning approach to photography.

As we noted in our iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max review, the more expensive duo also rely on machine learning in the form of Smart HDR to deliver great images, but the iPhone XR takes this a step further. Similar to the Google Pixel 3 and a bunch of other phones, the iPhone XR uses machine learning to offer Portrait Mode with the rear camera, which was earlier limited to iPhone models with dual rear cameras.

Even with a single rear camera, the iPhone XR does a good job when it comes to edge detection and the Bokeh effect in portrait mode, but it's not as good as the results we saw with the iPhone XS. We also noticed that some portraits taken with the iPhone XR had less detail compared to similar shots taken by the iPhone XS.

In the absence of a telephoto lens with 2X zoom, we noticed that we needed to be physically closer (than with the iPhone X/ XS/ XS Max) to the subjects of our shots to activate portrait mode. The resulting shots are actually wider, since the standard lens is being used rather than a narrow telephoto lens.You do get Portrait Lighting modes as well, though you are limited to three modes — Natural, Studio, and Contour — with Stage and Stage Mono still exclusive to iPhone models with dual rear cameras. Also note that portrait mode on the iPhone XR will work best with humans and not animals or objects, since the machine learning algorithms have been optimised for the former.In all respects aside from the obviously missing 2x telephoto lens, the performance of the iPhone XR's camera is identical to that of the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, which is to say it's now up there with the best in the business. Read our reviews of the iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max, as well as our comparison of the iPhone XS with some of today's best Android smartphone cameras, for more details.VerdictLet's go back to the question that we started with: is the iPhone XR a compromised device? It isn't; not in ways that would matter to most users. While we are not fans of its display, it does its job without being particularly great. In other areas such as performance and camera quality, the iPhone XR more than holds its own, and is a match for the more expensive iPhone models as well as other flagship phones.That brings us to its price. We've made it abundantly clear that we are not fans of the upward trend that we've seen across the entire range of Apple products. As we noted in our iPhone XS and iPhone XS Max review, even with the promise of regular software updates and better resale value, it's getting increasingly difficult to justify the price tags that Apple's phones command.With a starting price of Rs. 76,900, the iPhone XR isn't exactly a bargain, but it's better value for money than the iPhone XS, and certainly the iPhone XS Max. Heck, even the speaker grille at the bottom is symmetrical, so it shows no one was napping at the wheels while designing this one.Though Apple has discontinued the iPhone X in some markets, it's still very much around in India and available at pretty much the same starting price as the iPhone XR. As much as love the display on the iPhone X, the camera improvements that Smart HDR brings tilt the balance in favour of the newer iPhone, which also brings other niceties like dual-SIM support and a faster processor. The iPhone X is only for those who truly value the deeper blacks on the AMOLED display or are put off by the size of the iPhone XR, and cannot afford the iPhone XS.If you don't mind looking beyond the iPhone, recent months have seen the launch of plenty of great Android flagships including the Samsung Galaxy Note 9 (Review) and Huawei Mate 20 Pro (Review), as well as a host of other phones earlier in the year. Or you could go pick up a “value flagship” like the OnePlus 6T (Review) and save a bunch of money in the process.With that said, a new round of Android flagships is just around the corner as well, so you won't have to wait too long if nothing catches your fancy right now.

#iphone #iphone xr #apple ios #latest technology

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bitcoinminershasrate · 3 years

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AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT VS GTX 1660 Ti and RTX 2060: Review| Set-up| Hashrate

AMD Radeon RX 5600 XT review versus GTX 1660 Ti and RTX 2060: who is in charge of FullHD? | Video Cards | Reviews For a long time, the answer to the question from the title was quite unambiguous: GTX 1660 Ti . The eldest among the cards on Turing chips without hardware RT cores turned out to be very, very successful in itself, and, moreover, turned out to be in the most favorable conditions for itself. After all, it had to compete only with cards based on the Polaris architecture - RX 580 and RX 590. The new AMD family of cards based on Navi chips focused on invading the top price segment and playing games at resolutions higher than the running FullHD. But, of course, this could not go on for long. And back in early 2020, AMD introduced the RX 5600 XT - a more budgetary version of the card based on the older Navi 10 chip, aimed at the most massive segment. The novelty was intended to be a faster solution than the younger RX 5500 XT and the rapidly losing relevance RX 580/590, and compete with various versions of the GTX 1660 that literally flooded the market. What happened in the end - we will consider in today's review. Meet the participants At the time of this writing, the prices of video cards in the stores of the CSN of St. Petersburg were as follows: On the example of a test card from Sapphire, it turns out that for the price of an AMD product, you can buy either a GTX 1660 Ti or an RTX 2060, with the former being at the top of the market - that is, being one of the top options in an unreferenced design, and the latter being respectively, at the bottom. There are, of course, cheaper versions of the RTX 2060, equipped with compact coolers with one fan, but remember that if the GPU can eat up to 160 watts under normal gaming load, such a card will be quiet and cold only in the comments. RX 5600 XT and BIOS firmware An interesting precedent has taken place with the RX 5600 XT entering the market. Already when the cards began to be produced and the first batches went on sale, AMD decided to change the characteristics of the card, raising the GPU and memory frequencies to the level of the reference RX 5700. There is nothing exceptional in this - in fact, in fact, the new RX 5600 XT is a slightly simplified version of the RX 5700. But it turned out that on the market, as well as at the disposal of reviewers and ordinary users, there could be two different cards. However, at the moment, versions of bios with increased frequencies have been presented by almost all vendors. If you have a card with old firmware, updating is not at all difficult: In this case, the tests were carried out exclusively on the new firmware, since in tests on the old version it makes no more sense than buying a GTX 1660 Ti at the price of an RTX 2060. Sapphire Radeon RX 5600 XT PULSE The test card, as you might have guessed, was made by Sapphire and belongs to the budget Pulse line. There is no need to dwell on its packaging and configuration - apart from the documentation, there is nothing in the box. Appearance and design The map itself is of much greater interest. It doesn't take long to realize that the RX 5600 XT shares the same design as the RX 5700/5700 XT from the same Pulse line. And this is not surprising. Since the card uses the Navi 10 chip on which the RX 5700 and RX 5700 XT are based, and the "narrowing" of the memory bus to 192 bits was achieved by simply removing two chips from the board, there was no point in inventing a new design for the RX 5600 XT. As a result, the reference Radeon RX 5600 XT only exists in the form of pictures at AMD's presentations. The real cards on sale use the boards and cooling systems previously developed for the older Navi 10. The back of the card is also covered with a backplate and it is still metal, it removes heat from the VRM zone through thermal pads. But if you look at the video card from the side, the first difference will be noticeable. No, the BIOS switch is in place and the card can also work in two modes, but only one eight-pin connector remains from the additional power connectors. The set of interface connectors is also similar to the older models, and this is rather a minus. Three DisplayPort and one HDMI - but the most popular DVI connector is missing, owners of corresponding monitors will have to buy an adapter. Cooling system and PCB The cooling system from the RX 5700 Pulse line has not undergone any significant changes, but we will still break it down and take a closer look. The main feature of Sapphire cards is the removable fans, which have not gone anywhere either. If you just need to clean the heatsink from dust, you won't need to disassemble the entire card. A full-fledged analysis must begin with the removal of the backplate. It is fastened with 7 spring-loaded screws and a plastic casing with fans is attached to it with the same screws. Having removed the backplate, you can see that it removes heat from both the VRM zone and the PWM controller (International Rectifier IR 35217), which is located here on the back side of the board. The solution may seem strange, but the controller still heats up less than the power circuits themselves, and it is quite possible to cool it with a separate element. After removing the backplate, the plastic casing is no longer secured by anything and is removed after disconnecting the power connector. From the point of view of aerodynamic optimizations, the radiator of the cooling system does not represent anything interesting: this is a completely ordinary array of aluminum fins, except that the relatively large intercostal distance allows one to hope for efficient operation at low revs. The heatsink is attached to the board with four screws and a cross. Two screws are sealed, this step during disassembly already voids the warranty for the card. But the design of the radiator, borrowed from the RX 5700, is quite interesting. Three U-shaped heat pipes with a diameter of 6 millimeters are responsible for the distribution of heat throughout the array of ribs. This is not much, but they are well distributed and transfer heat to the zones of maximum air flow from the fans. A copper heat sink is responsible for removing heat from the GPU, the tubes are connected to it by soldering. Separate removers are provided for VRMs and memory chips, which also remove heat to the main heatsink. And so we got to the printed circuit board itself. It's not hard to guess that it also inherited the RX 5600 XT from the older Navi 10-based cards. Only the number of GPU power phases (from 7 to 5) and on-board memory (from 2 to 1) has decreased. But the element base remains the same: both the GPU and the memory are served by power cascades, each of which is capable of passing a current of up to 50 amperes. Considering that the card should have lower power consumption than the RX 5700, and definitely lower than the RX 5700 XT, this should be sufficient with a large margin. Installation in the case The Sapphire Pulse is one of the most compact nerefs around. The card is only slightly longer than a standard ATX motherboard, so if the motherboard fits into the case, the video card will also fit. The card occupies a little more than two slots in height, but this can hardly be called a minus. Crossfire is not officially supported, so few people will build multi-GPUs from the RX 5600 XT, and the need for additional expansion cards is a purely special case. Rivals In this review, the competitors for the RX 5600 XT were selected solely on the basis of cost. Much cheaper GTX 1660 Super (from 18 thousand at the time of this writing) are not of interest here, since they play in a completely different league. As well as the more expensive versions of the RTX 2060 - for 26-28 thousand, you can already consider the RX 5700, and not the younger 5600 XT. MSI GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GAMING X Palit GeForce RTX 2060 Dual Test stand and testing methodology The configuration of the test bench is already familiar to readers from previous materials: - CPU: AMD Ryzen 9 3900X - CPU cooling system: ID-Cooling SE-224-XT Basic; - Thermal interface: Arctic MX-4; - Motherboard: Gigabyte X570 Aorus Master - Disk subsystem: SSD Gigabyte GP-ASM2NE6200TTTD + HDD Western Digital WD10EZRX-00A8LB0; - RAM: G.Skill SniperX F4-3400C16D-16GSXW, 2x8gb; - Case: Corsair Carbide 270R - Power supply: Cougar GX-F 750. During the tests, the frequency of the central processor was fixed at around 4200 MHz, and the RAM was overclocked to 3800 MHz while maintaining the standard timings. Of course, with the simultaneous overclocking of the Infinity Fabric bus to 1900 MHz, thus maintaining a 1: 1 ratio between the frequency of the RAM and its controller. Tests were conducted under Windows 10 Professional build 1909 with the latest updates as of April 18, 2020. For the video card we used Radeon Software drivers version 20.5.1. The games were tested in two resolutions: FullHD (1920x1080) and QuadHD (2560x1440). In 8 games from the test suite, high graphics settings were used, in The Outer Worlds - the standard profile is "very high", and in Deus EX: Mankind Divided, World of Tanks and War Thunder - the maximum available parameters. The built-in MSI Afterburner benchmark was responsible for performance monitoring, in-game monitoring indicators were not taken into account. Frequency model, temperature control and overclocking Radeon RX 5600 XT On the new BIOS version, the test copy of the RX 5600 XT has a power consumption limit of 160 watts, the memory frequency is 1750 MHz, and exactly the same value is the upper limit of the GPU frequency. In fact, in gaming mode, the chip frequency is usually kept at around 1730-1740 MHz. In tests like Unigine Superposition - 1690-1710 MHz. Under these conditions, the parameters of the map are as follows: The peak power consumption of the GPU during the Superposition test is 135 W, the peak temperature is 70 degrees, and the fans spin up to only 1562 rpm, which makes the card extremely quiet. Usually AMD products have good overclocking capabilities, but with the RX 5600 XT, alas, it's not so simple. Using the example of the older cards on Navi 10, we could see how these cards operate at 2100-2200 MHz on the GPU and technically there is no reason for the 5600 XT not to overclock in the same way. However, the overclocking of the junior card on Navi 10 is limited at the driver level. Yes, the More Power Tool does its job: with its help, you can raise the frequency and power consumption limits to any desired values, and the result of this will even be displayed in the driver. But, as soon as you try to apply the changes, the driver settings will be reset to the standard ones, and the card will go into power-saving mode altogether and remain in it until the PC is restarted or the frequencies are manually changed in the driver. Alas, no way has been found to bypass this limitation at the moment, so owners of the RX 5600 XT will have to be content with standard limitations: + 20% to the power consumption limit and raising the GPU frequency to 1820 MHz, and memory to 1860 MHz. Since it is difficult to call this overclocking, you can try to lower the voltage on the GPU, which will reduce power consumption and temperatures compared to the standard mode. The test card agreed to operate at 0.93 volts, while the nominal voltage was 1.017 volts. As a result, the GPU frequency in game mode is 1770-1780 MHz (by 0.95 volts, for example - 1750-1760 MHz), and in benchmarks - 1740-1750. The results are logical: The results in synthetics hardly change, but energy consumption naturally drops: up to 125 watts. At the same time, the GPU temperature remains at the same mark of 70 degrees, but the cooler rotates even slower - 1440 rpm. However, in the absence of overclocking, the RX 5600 XT is by no means alone ... GTX 1660 Ti The test card under load starts from 2000 MHz on the GPU, but immediately drops to 1950 and further - 1920-1905 as it warms up. At the same time, the peak GPU temperature is the same 70 degrees, the consumption is 132 watts, and the fan speed is 1976 rpm. However, low-profile turntables are used here, so there is also very little noise from them. The card's power consumption limit can be raised by only 7%, which does not allow us to speak of effective overclocking. Only +115 MHz was added to the base frequency of the GPU, which resulted in 1980-1965 MHz under synthetic tests and 2025-2010 MHz in games. At the same time, power consumption remains almost unchanged, the GPU temperature rises to 71 degrees, and the cooler revs slightly rise to a little over 2000. RTX 2060 The card starts from 1905, but as it heats up, it lowers the frequency to 1860-1845 MHz. In game mode, it is most often kept at around 1875. The peak power consumption is 162 watts, the peak temperature is 73 degrees, but the fan speed is 2350 rpm, and the noise from them is very noticeable. The power consumption limit does not allow to raise the card at all - only to shift the temperature limit to 87 degrees. However, for budget versions of RTX 2060, this is rather logical: you can recall an example of a version from Asus with a turbine cooling, which theoretically could be overclocked, but after overclocking it instantly rested at 87 degrees on the GPU and began to drop frequencies. Although the base frequency of the GPU was raised to +140 MHz, this did not lead to a serious increase in the final frequency. 1965 MHz at the start of the test and drops to 1935-1920 as it heats up. Power consumption does not change naturally: 163 watts, 73 degrees at the GPU at its peak. Only the revs increase - 2525 rpm, and the card cannot be called quiet. For convenience, we will summarize all the performance data and map parameters in visual tables: Option of the article for those who are too lazy to read Tests in games Assassin's Creed: Odyssey DeusEx: Mankind Divided Metro: Exodus Project CARS 2 Red dead redemption 2 Resident evil 3 remake Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order The outer worlds Total war: three kingdoms War thunder The Witcher 3 World of tanks findings The RX 5600 XT with the current BIOS is not a competitor for the GTX 1660 Ti or even younger Nvidia models, but for the RTX 2060 without the Super prefix. Among the test games there is The Outer Worlds, where it loses noticeably - but there are also Project Cars 2, Red Dead Redemption 2 and Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order, in which the AMD card clearly feels more confident. Thus, you can put an equal sign between these cards. Both of them represent the ultimate solution for Full HD gaming and allow you to play quite confidently in 2K resolution. Yes, not at the maximum graphics settings, but just play, and not just see how everything is there, at a new level. Of course, this conclusion was made on the example of the test RTX 2060 Palit Dual, which is not less overclocked than the RX 5600 XT itself. It is quite possible that versions of the RTX 2060 with more efficient coolers and the absence of restrictions on power consumption will show more outstanding results ... but such versions will cost not 23, or even 25 thousand rubles - and there it is already worth asking whether you need an RTX 2060 at all at the price of RTX 2060 Super and RX 5700. And the answer to this question will be quite obvious. As for the GTX 1660 Ti, everything is easier and more difficult with it. It clearly cannot compete with the RX 5600 XT in performance - it simply lacks strength, even if we are considering almost top-end versions of this card. But this card does not need to compete with him. It needs to hit the gap between the RX 5600 XT and the RX 5500 XT, where the GTX 1660 Ti simply won't have any competitors, because one is clearly faster, and the other is just as clearly slower. In this case, the Nvidia card will be clearly in its place. Unfortunately, this is not happening at the moment: the prices for the GTX 1660 Ti are either equal or higher than the price of the RX 5600 XT, the level of which this card does not reach even if the game is well optimized for Nvidia. In such conditions, the RX 5600 XT looks like a very interesting option for its money. Moreover, it makes sense to buy it just at the bottom of the market: until a way to bypass the overclocking limit has been found, the top versions of this card are simply devoid of any sense. Read the full article

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dailynewswebsite · 3 years

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PlayStation 5 versus Xbox Series X: Which new console should you buy?

They’re lastly right here. After years of rumors and anticipation, Microsoft (MSFT) and Sony (SNE) have formally launched their newest next-generation consoles. The brand new techniques, dubbed the Xbox Sequence X and PlayStation 5 (PS5), promise a variety of related enhancements over their predecessors together with ray tracing know-how for extra spectacular graphics and super-fast solid-state storage drives to chop down on load occasions.

All of which means you’re seemingly asking your self, “What’s the distinction between the 2 and which ought to select?” And that’s the place I are available. So let’s break down the large variations and similarities between the 2 techniques to provide you a greater concept of which is best for you.

The largest variations come down to cost, the PS5’s spectacular new DualSense controller, and, understandably, the sorts of unique video games you possibly can anticipate from the 2 techniques. And that final one will seemingly be crucial distinction that determines which console you finally select.

Two variations of every console

The very first thing you’ll want to know concerning the new Xbox and PlayStation is that there are literally two variations of every console. The $499 Xbox Sequence X is the high-end mannequin, whereas the $299 Xbox Sequence S is the entry-level providing.

The primary distinction between the Sequence X and the Sequence S comes right down to graphics efficiency. With a extra highly effective processor, the Sequence X can run video games at true 4K resolutions. The Sequence S, in the meantime, runs video games at a decision of 1,440. For avid gamers who need an extremely sharp viewing expertise, the Sequence X is probably going the way in which to go.

The system seems just like the love baby of a VCR and Alien. (Picture: Sony)

Nonetheless, the Sequence S can play video games at 120 frames per second, identical to the Sequence X, and may output video at 8K resolutions with HDR, although you’ll have to buy an extremely high-speed HDMI cable, one thing the Sequence X contains in its field.

The Sequence X additionally will get a bigger 1TB solid-state drive, whereas the Sequence S has a 512GB drive. What’s extra, the Sequence X contains an optical disc drive, so you should purchase bodily video games, whereas the Sequence S doesn’t. That means, you’ll have to obtain your entire video games for the S.

Story continues

Microsoft’s Xbox Sequence X is a beast of a machine. (Picture: Microsoft)

Sony additionally gives two distinct variations of its console: The $499 PlayStation 5 and the $399 PlayStation 5 Digital Version. The distinction between the 2 is actually of their names. The usual PS5 comes with an optical disc drive so you possibly can play bodily media, whereas the Digital Version sacrifices its disc drive for a pleasant worth reduce.

Outdoors of that, and a slight aesthetic change as a result of Digital Version’s lack of a drive, the 2 consoles are equivalent.

Graphics and efficiency

Microsoft touts the Sequence X as essentially the most highly effective console ever made. Each the Sequence X and the PlayStation 5 run on AMD’s (AMD) Zen 2 processors and use that very same firm’s RDNA 2 graphics processing unit. However Microsoft squeaks out a number of extra teraflops than Sony, 12 teraflops to 10.28 teraflops.

What the heck is a teraflop? In a nutshell, it’s the measure of the efficiency of a graphics chip. But it surely’s not the top all be all strategy to decide which system has extra oomph.

Sure video games are certain to play higher on one system or the opposite, no matter energy, so counting on teraflops isn’t one of the best ways to have a look at issues right here.

‘Spider-Man: Miles Morales’ helps the PS5’s new capabilities shine together with its ray tracing and extremely quick load occasions. (Picture: Sony)

As a substitute, it is best to take a look at what the techniques provide by way of general capabilities. They each function ray tracing know-how, which permits video games to generate extra practical lighting results; can play video games at as much as 120 frames per second making for much smoother gameplay; and help HDR and 4K gaming.

In actuality, the techniques are stacked up fairly evenly. And after taking part in video games on each, I can confidently say they provide unbelievable graphics and efficiency, with actually little distinction.

New controllers

Now right here’s the place issues get actually attention-grabbing. Each the Xbox Sequence X and the PlayStation 5 get brand-new controllers. The Sequence X’s is a sort of beefed up model of the Xbox One X controller however options an improved directional pad, Bluetooth Low Vitality to hook up with your PC or different units, and lowered latency. All respectable upgrades.

Sony, nonetheless, went only a bit additional with the PlayStation 5’s DualSense controller. Not solely is that this a heftier distant than the PlayStation 4’s DualShock 4, nevertheless it options some actually spectacular new capabilities.

The brand new DualSense controller is chunkier than the DualShock 4, however options modern adaptive triggers that add stress to button presses. (Picture: Sony)

There’s the haptic suggestions actuators that change the previous rumble motors and provides gamers a extra correct sensation of what’s occurring of their recreation, whether or not that’s trudging via sand or firing a rocket. In my expertise, the controller modulates suggestions much better, so you possibly can really feel slight vibrations for small in-game interactions and highly effective shocks for in-game moments like crashing a automobile or firing a tank.

Higher than that, although, are the DualSense’s adaptive set off buttons. Now, the L2 and R2 buttons construct stress once you attempt to depress them relying on the state of affairs. In “Spider-Man: Miles Morales,” as an example, the triggers construct stress once you press them to fireside your net shooters.

From a gameplay standpoint, I can see this impacting the whole lot from horror video games to racing titles and the whole lot in between. It might be as large of an development as including vibration suggestions to controllers, although that each one will depend on how builders take to it.

What concerning the video games?

Proper, crucial query you in all probability have. Properly, out of the gate, you’re not going to see many exclusives for both console. Microsoft’s greatest launch title “Halo: Infinite” has been delayed till subsequent 12 months attributable to COVID-19-related slowdowns, a serious letdown for the corporate.

Sony, in the meantime, has “Spider-Man: Miles Morales” and its “Demon Souls” remake, however nothing that’s actually a brand new must-have masterpiece. Each consoles, nonetheless, take pleasure in some high-flying new third-party titles in “Murderer’s Creed Valhalla” and “WatchDogs: Legion.”

Each consoles additionally provide backwards compatibility, with Microsoft promising video games way back to the unique Xbox will work with the Sequence X and Sequence S. PlayStation says PlayStation Four video games will work with the PS5.

‘Watch Canine: Legion’ options DirectX Raytracing, which creates a much more practical visible expertise. (Picture: Ubisoft)

Microsoft’s ace within the gap, although, is its GamePass subscription service, which lets you play greater than 100 titles in your Xbox at any time you need for $9.99 per thirty days. It’s a ridiculously whole lot, and one I can’t advocate sufficient when you’re an Xbox gamer. Soar as much as GamePass Final, and also you get entry to those self same video games and Microsoft’s cloud gaming service, which helps you to play your titles in your smartphone, pill, or laptop computer.

Sony has its personal service known as PlayStation Plus, which will get you two PlayStation Four video games a month. And with the PlayStation 5, Sony is including the PlayStation Plus Assortment, a bunch of 20 of one of the best PlayStation Four video games that get improved load occasions and extra steady body charges.

‘Murderer’s Creed: Valhalla’ is likely one of the greatest launch titles coming to the Sequence X. (Picture: Ubisoft)

Sony’s providing is definitely spectacular, however you actually can’t beat Microsoft’s GamePass deal, and that offers Microsoft a slight edge out of the gate. On high of that Microsoft is anticipated to shut its deal to amass ZeniMax Media by the center of fiscal 2021, which is able to give Microsoft entry to titles from the likes of Bethesda and Id.

Which console do you have to get?

Ah, crucial query of all. Just like the divide between Android and iPhone customers, Xbox and PlayStation customers are loyal to their favourite console model. When you’re that sort of particular person, you already know what you’re going to get.

For everybody else, it comes right down to the longer term titles these techniques have to supply. With crossplay, wherein gamers on Xbox, PlayStation, Nintendo, and PC can all play collectively, turning into extra widespread, third-party video games shouldn’t be a difficulty. In that case, it comes right down to the exclusives. And with Microsoft getting ZeniMax, it has critically bolstered the Xbox’s video games library.

However Sony pumps out a number of the greatest first-party titles within the business, so you possibly can by no means depend them out.

I’m a fan of each, and so would get each. But when that’s not for you, take an in depth take a look at what the consoles have lined up for future releases, and base your judgement on that. And don’t neglect, have enjoyable!

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asfeedin · 4 years

Text

Apple iPhone SE (2020) In-Depth Review: Buy This iPhone

“The new iPhone SE is the fastest phone you can buy for $400.”

Light, compact design

Class-leading performance

Loud, enjoyable audio

Great camera

iOS is excellent

Not a great display for $400

Battery life is just OK

Apple designs devices to last, and not just because it pleases customers. It also lets Apple polish up an old device with fresh specs and sell it as new. The iPhone SE is the latest example, but hardly the first. Apple took a similar approach to the iPhone 8, and still sells a MacBook Pro 13 with Touch Bar that’s essentially identical to the model launched in 2015.

It’s a polarizing strategy, and the new iPhone SE created a schism the moment it was announced, for all the usual reasons. Some see smart reuse of a great design that still has purpose. Others see lazy rebranding of an obsolete phone. People in both camps tend to have their opinion ready before ever laying hands on the phone in question.

Whatever your thoughts going in, one fact is indisputable: The iPhone SE ($400) is the least expensive iPhone, and that makes it important, no matter its design or hardware. Plenty of people will buy it because it’s the new default choice.

But is it a good phone?

Design

I’ll get an awkward admission out of the way. As a tech reviewer, you might expect me to upgrade my gear every year. I don’t. My everyday phone is an iPhone 7 Plus, which despite lacking many knockout features you’ll find on more modern devices, is still a nice phone.

The one thing I don’t like about it is a drawback it shares with the iPhone SE: Chunky bezels around the display. They’re massive compared to other modern phones. Every Android competitor in this space offers slim bezels that maximum screen size for a given footprint.

Can you live with them? Certainly. I have for years. Still, this is easily the biggest problem with the iPhone SE’s design. You’ll feel a tinge of jealously when a friend pulls out a Google Pixel 3a or Moto G Stylus. While the iPhone SE is replacing the iPhone 8, its design is rooted in the iPhone 6 — a phone that came out in 2014. It’s not unfair to say that the new iPhone SE looks like a six-year-old phone.

Thankfully, that’s where the bad news ends.

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

Despite its bezels, the iPhone SE remains a slim, sleek, pocketable device. It’s 5.45 inches tall, 2.65 inches wide, .29 inches thick, and weighs only 5.22 ounces, making it the lightest of the current iPhones. The Google Pixel 3a, which is among the smaller mainstream Android Phones, is still a half-inch taller, more than a 10th of an inch wider, and a 10th of an inch thicker — though it does manage to weigh the same.

You’ll find more of a difference when comparing the iPhone SE to a beefy Android phone, like the Moto G Stylus. That phone, which packs a 6.4-inch display, is three-quarters of an inch taller, a quarter-inch wider, and far thicker. It’s also about 30 percent heavier. That’s a difference you’ll easily notice, and I complained that the G Stylus felt too heavy and thick in my review.

As a small phone, the iPhone SE answers the prayers of those preaching the path of one-handed smartphone use. I’m 6 feet, 1 inch, and never needed two hands to use it — in fact, placing two hands on it feels a bit silly.

Owners under 5-foot, 4 inches might find reaching the top edge a stretch, but the maneuver is still possible with a slight shimmy. In that sense, the new iPhone SE falls short of the supreme one-handed utility of its 4-inch predecessor. Still, it’s small enough that I don’t think most people will find this a problem.

All the usual buttons are here: Power, volume up and down, and a physical switch for turning vibration on or off. They’re all made of aluminum, like the chassis, and feel great to use.

The Touch ID sensor, which provides flawless fingerprint login, continues to serve double duty as a home button. This a subtle but significant design choice. Because it has a home button, the iPhone SE doesn’t use the new gesture navigation system found on other new iPhones. I like this. Gesture controls are clearly the new normal, but I like having the button, which I think is more intuitive.

As for ports, well, you get a Lightning connector – a proprietary dead horse that I don’t feel the need to dig up and flog. Just know that you’ll need either wireless audio or a Lightning-to-3.5mm audio adapter, which isn’t included in the box.

Display

The iPhone SE has a 4.7-inch IPS multi-touch display that serves up a 1,334 x 750 resolution (or 326 pixels per inch). It’s a True Tone screen (meaning it adapts to the light in your environment) with wide color support, haptic touch, and reaches a maximum brightness of 625 nits, per Apple.

Is a 4.7-inch screen too small for a smartphone sold in 2020? No … but it’s close.

This is an undeniably small screen next to what you might find elsewhere. Plenty of Android competitors offer 6.2-inch to 6.5-inch screens for the same price, and some might even be OLED. I won’t say those displays look more “realistic,” but they’ll please your eye in a way the iPhone SE’s 4.7-inch IPS screen can’t match. They’re bigger, of course, and often have a punchier, more vibrant look.

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

Let me put it another way. The new iPhone SE’s screen is about 23 percent smaller than a Google Pixel 3a’s, and 40 percent smaller than that of a Moto G Stylus or Samsung Galaxy A51. It’s also 33 percent smaller than that of Apple’s iPhone 11. It’s a lot smaller than other phones you’ll be looking at in this price bracket.

I didn’t have a problem using it on a daily basis. In fact, normal day-to-day use is where the smaller size feels more comfortable.

The new iPhone SE is a great device for thumbing out a quick text reply, snapping a couple photos, or popping up Yelp to see what food is nearby. It’s small, nimble, easy to reach, and displays just enough information to get the job done.

The longer I used the device, though, the more I felt constrained. This starts on the Home screen, where apps are icons sit noticeably closer together than on most iPhones. Text can be harder to read, since it’s smaller, and you’ll need to scroll more while navigating websites.

Then there’s video. Mobile video consumption is a big deal for many people, and it’s a place the iPhone SE must make a sacrifice. Viewing a video on the 4.7-inch display isn’t nearly as enjoyable as it is on a larger 6.4-inch or 6.5-inch screen. Even the 5.5-inch display on my iPhone 7 Plus is in another league.

Audio

While the iPhone SE’s display left me precisely as whelmed as I’d expected, its audio quality delivered a surprise. This little phone can rock.

The iPhone SE delivers stereo playback with enough volume to fill a living room with sound. There’s even a hint of bass, which opens the soundstage and reduces distortion during complex tracks.

Listening to lo-fi hip-hop beats, I noticed a depth of sound that I don’t often hear in a midrange smartphone. It sounds like an older Oontz speaker I frequently use, though the iPhone SE’s maximum volume is much lower.

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

The clear mid-range helps in movies as well. Big explosions and deep bass soundtracks tend to wreck smartphone speakers, with smaller and less expensive phones suffering the worst of it. The iPhone SE isn’t free of muffled dialogue, particularly in action scenes where explosions and dialogue often occur simultaneously, but it does better than most.

And yes, it’s a huge upgrade for anyone still stuck on the original iPhone SE.

As mentioned, there’s no 3.5mm audio jack here, so you’ll need wireless audio or a Lightning-to-3.5mm audio adapter to use external audio devices.

Camera

Glance at the specs, and the iPhone SE’s camera doesn’t look impressive. It’s a single-lens system with a 12MP shooter. It has optical image stabilization, portrait mode, panorama mode, and Smart HDR, among other features, but none of that truly stands out.

Apple claims the secret sauce is its image pipeline, powered by the powerful A13 Bionic’s Neural Engine. And you know what? It’s good sauce. This is all the camera I’ll ever need on a phone.

Outdoor image quality

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

The new SE takes pleasing outdoor photos. I wouldn’t call its look neutral, but the iPhone SE is less prone to dramatic, vibrant shots than most Android phones. That can leave the iPhone SE looking flat, but the iPhone largely avoids excessive color saturation. Photos look realistic and balanced.

I must praise the new SE’s ability to handle bright lighting. This is a place where midrange Android phones often fall short. It’s not perfect, but blue skies are less likely to overwhelm a photo’s background, and the new SE usually settles on the right white balance without the need for finicky adjustments.

Indoor image quality

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

I was less inspired by the new SE’s indoor quality. The phone still settles on the right white balance. However, its tendency to take neutral, realistic shots can leave some photos looking flat.

This is a different problem from the noisy, grainy images you’ll see on a subpar smartphone camera. I think the photos look plenty sharp. They just lack the wow factor you might see from a flagship smartphone.

However, I still think the new SE performs well for its category, and you can take excellent indoor photos. I don’t like to stage test photos, and I did nothing to improve lighting. Simply turning on a lamp will significantly improve your results.

Low-light image quality

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

I can’t fault the iPhone SE’s low-light performance. Color saturation and contrast remain wanting, to be sure, but I’m a little surprised by how clear and sharp these photos turned out. You can see grain in the photo, but it’s not so bad that the photo looks downright ugly – which is certainly true with some midrange phones.

Remember, however, that the iPhone SE has no Night Mode (or anything similar). If you try to take a photo outdoors at night, you’re going to see a whole lot of nothing.

Zoom image quality

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

As a single-lens shooter, the iPhone SE lacks a zoom lens to help taking shots of far-off subjects. It only supports digital zoom up to 5x. Yet I’m not sure that’s much of a disadvantage.

Adding an optical zoom lens felt like a big deal when it first came to phones, but reception of the idea has cooled over time, particularly if the lens is merely a 2x, 3x, or 5x zoom. I’ve found them hard to use and have largely come to ignore them when I’m not testing their quality.

I think the new SE’s zoom performance is fine, even solid, for a midrange phone. Zooming all the way in certainly results in a quality hit, but the photo is still sharp enough to be usable. That’s better than some inexpensive phones I’ve tried.

Front-facing camera image quality

The iPhone SE has a 7MP front-facing camera, and it didn’t impress me. It struggles indoors, often delivering grainy, flat photos. Take it outdoors, and it struggles with white balance and contrast. It’s a functional shooter that can take good photos in ideal situations, but it’s not great for snapping quick selfies. The saving grace is the fact that all phones in this price range have similar issues.

Portrait image quality

3. Portrait mode on front facing camera

Portrait mode remains stunning.

Suddenly, photos from the front-facing camera are elevated from disappointing to not bad. The main camera, meanwhile, can take awesome portrait photos. Remember, I am not staging the accompanying photos. I’m not using any special lighting or even turning on a light in a room to make photos better. Despite that, I’d be happy sharing the photos I took in portrait mode with friends.

It’s not perfect. Portrait mode is handled entirely in software, and it can make mistakes. Look closely at my curly locks and you’ll see they’re sometimes blurred when they shouldn’t be, a common problem for single-lens phones that attempt depth of field.

On the plus side, you can manipulate the images after taking them in all sorts of ways. You can change lighting and aperture or omit the background entirely. It all happens with surprising speed and is a lot of fun to play with.

Photo quality: iPhone SE vs. Google Pixel 3a

The Google Pixel 3a is priced at $400, just like the iPhone SE, and is often considered the champion of mid range phone photography. Fortunately, I have a Google Pixel 3a XL, so I could compare them head-to-head.

iPhone SE (left) and Google Pixel 3a XL (right)

1. iPhone SE (2020)

2. Google Pixel 3a XL

3. iPhone SE (2020)

4. Google Pixel 3a XL

5. iPhone SE (2020)

6. Google Pixel 3a XL

7. iPhone SE (2020)

8. Google Pixel 3a XL

I prefer the new SE, but it’s not a blowout. I think Apple’s phone does a better job with white balance. This is most evident in the photo of the pizza logo against a partly cloudy sky. The iPhone does a much better job delivering an accurate photo, while the Pixel 3a XL’s color temperature ends up too cool.

The new SE also takes the lead in portrait mode. I think image quality is comparable – but look at my ‘fro! The Pixel 3a XL’s algorithm is clearly less aggressive. While the iPhone blurs some wayward locks, the Pixel 3a gives me an odd halo.

Apple doesn’t win every photo, though. I prefer the Pixel 3a XL’s photo of the lush garden sidewalk. It’s more vibrant, yet still looks natural. You can almost smell the crisp spring air. The iPhone SE’s photo is too flat and fails to capture my memory of the scene.

Photo quality: New iPhone SE vs. original iPhone SE

You might wonder what 4 years of progress will get you. What’s the answer after pitting the 2016 and 2020 versions of the iPhone SE against one another? A lot.

iPhone SE 2nd-gen (left) and iPhone SE 1st-gen (right)

1. iPhone SE (2020)

2. iPhone SE (2016)

3. iPhone SE (2020)

4. iPhone SE (2016)

5. iPhone SE (2020)

6. iPhone SE (2016)

7. iPhone SE (2020)

8. iPhone SE (2016)

9. iPhone SE (2020)

10. iPhone SE (2016)

The new SE’s huge improvement in white balance and color temperature stands out most. The original iPhone SE suffers in many outdoor situations. It can’t even handle a cloudy sky. This leads to overly bright images that lack color, contrast, depth, and any other trait you’d associate with a good photo.

The indoor photo of a hearty slice of coffee cake shows less difference in lighting and color, and you might confuse the photos from each SE briefly. Look closer, though, and it’s obvious the new iPhone SE’s photo is much sharper.

Portrait mode isn’t available on the original iPhone SE, of course, and that makes a big difference. Portraits from the new iPhone SE look sharper, with better contrast and far better focus on the subject.

iPhone SE camera quality summary

The new iPhone SE has a great smartphone camera. I think it beats the Google Pixel 3a, commonly considered the benchmark in this category, by a hair. It works well in most situations and can deliver some truly excellent shots.

I do somewhat miss the lack of any additional camera, such as an ultrawide, to improve versatility. You can find that on some competing phones. However, those phones won’t keep up with the iPhone SE’s main camera.

What the new SE lacks in versatility, it makes up for by snapping solid shots with little preparation.

Video quality

You can shoot 4K video up to 60 frames per second on the iPhone SE, or extended dynamic range video up to 30 fps. Optical image stabilization helps keep shots steady, and digital zoom works up to 3x. The phone also supports slo-mo 1080p video at up to 240 fps.

I don’t frequently shoot video on phones — or at all — so I’ll admit I’m not the best judge of quality. I think it looks great, particularly at 4K. I imagine most casual users will, too. Professionals and enthusiasts may have a different opinion.

What stood out most wasn’t quality, but speed. The new SE is a snappy performer, even when recording 4K 60 fps. There’s no lag to begin recording and no lag while recording. That’s definitely not true for midrange phones, some of which can’t shoot 4K at 60 fps.

Performance

Apple’s decision to buy P.A. Semi in 2008 easily ranks among the most important in the company’s history. Excellent performance is a key trait of Apple phones and tablets across all price points.

The iPhone SE is a testament to that. Though it starts at $400, and is considerably smaller than other recent iPhones, the SE has the same A13 Bionic processor you’ll find in the iPhone 11 and iPhone 11 Pro. That’s paired with 3GB of RAM.

Geekbench 5 Single-Core: 1,324

Geekbench 5 Multi-Core: 3,192

Antutu: 484,479

3DMark Sling Shot: 4,024

The iPhone SE might be a mid-range phone, but its performance is equivalent to a flagship. The new SE’s single-core Geekbench 5 score of 1,324 is nearly four times quicker than a Google Pixel 3a, and its multi-core score is nearly two-and-a-half times better. The iPhone SE’s CPU easily defeats the more expensive Google Pixel 4 XL. It goes toe-to-toe with the Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra and the OnePlus 8 Pro, winning in single-core and nearly tying in multi-core.

All this performance is thrown at a 4.7-inch screen with a resolution well below 1080p. The iPhone SE doesn’t merely fly. It shrieks through apps and games like a supersonic jet. Its performance is as close to perfect as I’ve ever witnessed. It’s not just great. It sets a new high bar for mid-range phones, one I doubt Android competitors will hit within the next few years.

The iPhone SE doesn’t merely fly. It shrieks through apps and games like a supersonic jet.

This is the part where I’d normally try to dig deeper and highlight a few nitpicks that detract from the experience. Not here. I have nothing to add. It’s perfect.

Storage

The basic $400 iPhone SE comes with 64GB of storage. You can upgrade to 128GB for $450, or you can choose 256GB of storage for $550. You’ll need to pick the right amount from the start because, as with other iPhones, you can’t add more storage later.

Unlike some past entry-level iPhones, the new SE’s base storage is adequate. My iPhone 7 Plus has 256GB of storage, but I only use half of that, and well more than half of what I use is old podcast episodes and unnecessary photos. I think a lot of people can get by with the 64GB model.

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

That said, spending an extra $50 on the 128GB model is not a bad idea. Storage is something you won’t care much about until you run out, but once you do, it can be annoying. The 128GB model lets you rack up podcasts, photos, and apps without constantly deleting old files.

I don’t recommend the 256GB model. Anyone using that much storage is a serious smartphone enthusiast, and the iPhone SE’s small screen takes it out of consideration for most heavy users. I know there’s a handful of die-hard small phone enthusiasts who will want the 256GB model, but it’s overkill for most.

Wireless connectivity

The iPhone SE isn’t a 5G phone. Apple has been slow to embrace 5G, and the tech hasn’t filtered down to this price point yet. This makes little difference to me, and most buyers, because 5G availability is limited. As far as I know, I’d have to travel more than 250 miles to get a 5G signal.

This is a dual-SIM device, which can be useful for travelers, and is a bit surprising given the phone’s price. The iPhone SE supports Bluetooth 5.0 and the Wi-Fi 6 standard.

Battery life

A 1,821mAH battery powers the iPhone SE. Apple quotes up to 8 hours of battery life while streaming video, or 13 hours when playing video from the phone’s local storage. The phone supports fast charging with an 18-watt adapter (unfortunately not included) and supports wireless charging via Qi chargers.

Like all iPhones, the new SE sucks down very little juice on standby; I suspect it could last a week, though I haven’t had it for long enough to test that out.

As a PC geek at heart, I’m not a heavy smartphone user. My personal iPhone tells me I tend have the display on for between one hour and one-and-a-half hours each day. Its been years since I last tested a phone that can’t last me all day, and many can last me two. The iPhone SE is no exception.

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

I suspect heavy users would have more trouble. A half-hour benchmarking the phone knocked 12 percent off a full charge, for example. If you like to play demanding 3D games, or you use the phone to watch streaming films, you might find it necessary to pick up a midday charge.

As I mentioned earlier, the iPhone SE doesn’t target those owners because its small display size isn’t ideal for either gaming or movies. If that’s what you want to do, buy a larger phone.

But let’s be real: Android phones can crush the iPhone SE’s battery life, just as the iPhone SE can crush Android’s performance. The Moto G Power, which I recently reviewed, has a 5,000mAh battery. It could last two to three days in my hands. The iPhone SE certainly can’t match that.

For me, however, battery life isn’t a problem. The iPhone SE can last all day in my hands, and I gain nothing from a phone that lasts longer.

Software

The iPhone SE, of course, runs iOS 13. It’s the phone’s killer feature. I’ve swapped back and forth between iOS and Android phones ever since I bought my first “real” smartphone, the HTC Thunderbolt, in 2011. I’ve always found iOS preferable.

Apple’s iOS is quicker, more secure, and more attractive. I despise the bloatware and barrage of pointless notifications that assail most Android phones. Yes, it’s possible to configure Android in a way that (mostly) fixes the problem, but I’d rather not have to.

I’m not going to cover every aspect of iOS 13 here, but there are a few important features you should note.

The iPhone SE of course runs iOS 13. It’s the phone’s killer feature.

Switching from another iPhone is an absolute breeze. Place the new and old phones beside each other, then snap a photo of a pattern shown on the old phone’s screen with the new phone. This starts the transfer, which can take minutes if you have an iCloud backup available. Your apps and files make the leap, and while you’ll have to log back into some accounts, this isn’t true in every instance. I had the iPhone SE ready to go, with all my previous data available, in 20 minutes flat.

Because it lacks Face ID, and has a Home button, the new SE doesn’t use the new touch-gesture navigation found on the iPhone X and later models. If you own an aging iPhone like me, you won’t mind. If you own a new model and want to downsize, however, beware. You’ll have to unlearn everything you learned about navigating new iPhone models. That could be a frustrating experience.

The iPhone SE also lacks Face ID. I love facial login when it’s fast and secure, as is true on the iPhone, but it’s pure luxury. Touch ID is fast, fluid, and secure. And again, the iPhone SE is targeting people who own older phones. If you’ve never used Face ID, you won’t miss it.

Warranty

Apple ships the iPhone SE with a one-year limited warranty. That’s the industry standard.

You can purchase added protection through AppleCare+, which extends the warranty and covers some accidents. AppleCare+ is $80 for 24 months of coverage, or you can pay month-to-month for $4. AppleCare+ with theft protection is $150, or $8 monthly.

I don’t recommend AppleCare for this phone. This is an inexpensive phone, and a small phone that (in theory) you’re less likely to drop. Just slap a case on it and call it good. Breaking a phone sucks, but it’s not likely in this case, so you probably won’t have need for AppleCare service.

It’s worth remembering that Apple, unlike most brands, has a large network of physical stores that can provide service. I’ve had better luck solving issues with a visit to an Apple store than through the phone support provided by other brands.

Our Take

Matthew Smith / Digital Trends

The iPhone SE is a good phone, and well worth $400. It’s not for everyone, but it’s great for many, and I’d seriously consider it if I had to buy a new phone right now.

Is there a better alternative?

Google’s Pixel 3a is the clear competitor. It’s a great Android phone at a low price. The iPhone SE is faster and has a better camera, but the Pixel 3a has a larger display, and you can opt for the Pixel 3a XL for a slightly bigger one. Right now, the Pixel 3a XL is just $420 on Amazon. I prefer iOS, so I would buy the iPhone SE, but you might go with the Pixel 3a if you’re a fan of Android.

The wild card is Google’s Pixel 4a, which is anticipated but not yet announced. It’ll likely bring camera improvements and an even better display. It will still lag in performance, however, because nobody’s silicon can outgun Apple’s A13 Bionic right now.

You might also consider the Samsung Galaxy A51 or the Moto G Stylus. These midrange Android phones throw more features at you, some of which are nice to have. The Galaxy A51 has a lovely OLED display and the Moto G Stylus has, well, a stylus. They’re larger phones with big screens that cater to heavy users despite budget pricing. They’re solid phones, but the iPhone SE offers a more cohesive, intuitive device, with a processor that runs circles around both.

Some shoppers will consider the iPhone 11. It’s significantly more expensive, but has a much larger screen and an ultrawide camera. Make no mistake, the iPhone 11 is a better phone. The $300 gap between the iPhone SE and the iPhone 11 is sizable, though, and not everyone will find the bigger phone’s advantages worth the bump in price.

How long will it last?

The iPhone SE is a five-year phone. Its performance is excellent and Apple, unlike most Android brands, delivers OS updates for years after a phone is released. The only issue to note is battery life. It’s merely OK and, after five years of wear and tear, you’ll probably have to deal with midday recharging.

Should you buy it?

Yes. The iPhone SE is a solid entry-level iPhone. You can buy a better device, but you don’t need a better device. If you, like me, consider a smartphone to be just one of many gadgets you could spend money on, opting for the $400 SE can make a lot of sense.

Editors’ Recommendations

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suzanneshannon · 4 years

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The 2020 Guide to Creating Quality Technical Screencasts, Presentations, and Remote Meetings

I've had a lot of people ask me to write up a guide to creating great technical screencasts. This is an update to my 2011 post on the same topic.

What are you doing? STOP and reassert your assumptions

Hang on. You're doing a screencast or sharing your screen in some way for a meeting, presentation, or YouTube. What does that mean and why did I suggest you stop.

This isn't a stage presentation or even a talk in a conference room. Screencasts and remote meetings have an intimacy to them. You're in someone's ear, in their headphones, you're 18 inches from their face. Consider how you want to be seen, how you want to be heard, and what is on your screen.

Try to apply a level of intentionality and deliberate practice. I'm not saying to micromanage, but I am saying don't just "share your screen." Put your empathy hat on and consider your audience and how it'll look and feel for them.

Initial setup and tools

You can use any number of tools for screen capture. They are largely the same. My preferred tool is Camtasia. Other valid tools are CamStudio (a free and open source tool) and Expression Encoder Screen Capture. You can also use OBS to record your screen and webcam.

When you're using Skype/Zoom/Teams to record live, you're already set as those tools will share for you as well as record.

Windows Look at Feel

At the risk of sounding uptight, how you setup Windows and your environment is the difference between a professional and an amateurish screencast. It's shocking how many folks will start recording a screencast without changing a thing, then wonder why their 1600x1200 screencast looks bad on YouTube at 360p or low bandwidth on a phone. If you find yourself doing screencasts a lot, considering making a custom user (maybe named Screencast?) on your machine with these settings already applied. That way you can login as Screencast and your settings will stick.

Resolution and Aspect

First, decide on your aspect ratio. Your laptop may have a ratio of width to height that is 3:2 or 4:3 but MOST people have a 16:9 Widescreen system? A VERY safe resolution in 2020 is 1280x720 (also known as 720p). That means that you'll be visible on everything from a low-end Android, any tablet, up to a desktop.

That said, statistics show that many folks now have 1920x1080 (1080p) capable systems. But again, consider your audience. If I was presenting to a rural school district, I'd use 720 or a lower resolution. It will be smoother and use less bandwidth and you'll never have issue with things being too small. If I was presenting in a professional environment I'd use 1080p. I don't present at 4k, especially if the audience is overseas from where I am. You're pushing millions of pixels that aren't needed, slowing your message and adding no additional value.

On Windows, consider your scale factor. At 1080p, 125% DPI is reasonable. At 720p (or 1366x768, using 100% scaling is reasonable).

Background Wallpaper and Icons

Choose a standard looking background photo. I prefer to use one from http://unsplash.com or the defaults that come with Windows 10 or your Mac. Avoid complex backgrounds as they don't compress well during encoding. Avoid using pictures of your kids or family unless it feeds your spirit and you don't mind mixing the professional and personal. Again - be intentional. I am neither for nor against - just be conscious and decide. Don't just accept the defaults.

Hide your desktop icons. Right click your desktop and hit View | Show Desktop Items. Also consider whether we need to see your desktop at all. If it doesn’t add value, don’t show it on the screencast.

Fonts

Try to use standard fonts and themes. While your preferred font and colors/themes offer personality, they can be distracting. Consider the message you want to present.

If you're using Visual Studio or Visual Studio Code, remember that your audience likely hasn't changed their defaults, and if you show them something fancy, they'll be thinking about how they get that fancy widget rather than your content. In Visual Studio proper, go to Tools | Options | Environment | Fonts and Colors and click "Use Defaults."

In all your text editors, consider change your fonts to Consolas Size 15. It may seem counter-intuitive to have such large fonts but in fact this will make your code viewable even on an iPhone or Tablet.

Remember, most video sites, including YouTube, restrict the embedded video player size to a maximum of around 560p height, unless you go full-screen or use a pop-out. Use the font size recommended here, and use Camtasia’s zoom and highlight features during editing to call out key bits of code.

Don’t highlight code in the editor by selecting it with the mouse UNLESS you've deliberately change the selection background color. Defaults are typically hard to read editor selections in video. Instead, zoom and highlight in post production, or use ZoomIt and practice zooming and emphasizing on screen elements.

Browser Setup

Unless your screencast is about using different browsers, pick a browser and stick to it. Hide your toolbars, clear your cache, history, and your autocomplete history. You'd be surprised how many inappropriate sites and autocomplete suggestions are published on the web forever and not noticed until it's too late. Don't view pr0n on your screencast machine. Be aware.

Toolbars

Your browser shouldn't show any, and this is a good time to uninstall or hide whatever coupon-offering nonsense or McAffee pixel waster that you've stopped being able to see after all these years. Remember, default is the word of the day. Disable any Browser Extensions that aren't adding value.

If you are using Visual Studio or an IDE (Eclipse, Photoshop, etc) be aware of your toolbars. If you have made extensive customizations to your toolbars and you use them in the screencast, you are doing a great disservice to your audience. Put things to the default. If you use hotkeys, tell the audience, and use them for a reason.

Toast

You've got mail! Yay. Yes, but not during your screencast. Turn off Outlook Gmail, GChat, Twitter, Messenger, Skype, and anything else that can "pop toast" during your screencast.

Clock and Notifications

Go to Start on Windows 10, and search for System Icons and turn off the Clock temporarily. Why? You can't easily edit a screencast if there's a convenient time code in the corner that jumps around during your edits. Also, no one needs to know you're doing your work at 3am.

Clean out your taskbar and notification area. Anything that visually distracts, or just hide the taskbar.

Audio and Voice

Use a decent microphone. I use a Samson C01U. You can also use a USB headset-style microphone but be aware that breathing and "cotton mouth" really shows up on these. Test it! Listen to yourself! Try moving the microphone above your nose so you aren't exhaling onto it directly. Use a pop filter to help eliminate 'plosives (p's and t's). You can get them cheap at a music store.

Be aware of your keyboard clicks. Some folks feel strongly about whether or not your keyboard can be heard during a screencast. Ultimately it's your choice, but you have to be aware of it first, then make a conscious decision. Don't just let whatever happens happen. Think about your keyboard sound, your typing style and your microphone, and listen to it a few times and see if you like how it comes together.

Avoid prolonged silence. There should be ebb and flow of "I'm saying this, I'm doing that" but not 10 seconds of "watch my mouse." Speak in an upbeat but authentic tone. Be real.

Also be calm and quiet. Remember you are a foot from them and you're their ear. It's a conversation with a friend, not a presentation to thousands (even if it is).

Don’t apologize or make excuses for mistakes – either work them in as something to learn from, or remove them completely.

If you are editing the presentation - If you make a mistake when speaking or demonstrating, clap your hands or cough loudly into the mic and wait a second before starting that portion over. When editing, the mistakes will show up as loud audio spikes, making it easy to find them.

Camtasia has decent automatic noise reduction. Use it. You’ll be surprised how much background noise your room has that you, but not your audience, will easily tune out.

If you must overdub a portion of the audio, sit in the same position you did while recording the original, and have the mic in the same spot. You want your voice to blend in seamlessly.

Preferred Video Output for Prerecords

Your screen capture tool should be produced at the highest reasonable quality as it will be compressed later when it's uploaded. Think of it like producing JPEGs. You can make a 5 megabyte JPG, but often a 500k one will do. You can make a 10 gig screen capture if you use uncompressed AVI encoding, but often a high bit rate MP4 will do.

The trick is to remember that your compressed screencast will be recompressed (copies of copies) when it is run through the encoding process.

Edit your screencast, if you do, in its recorded native resolution which hopefully is what you'll publish to as well. That means, record at 1080p, edit at 1080p, and publish at 1080p. Let YouTube or your final destination do the squishing to smaller resolutions.

Personally, I like to know what's going on in my production process so I always select things like "Custom production settings" in Camtasia rather than presets. Ultimately you'll need to try and find what works for you. Use an H.264 encoder with a high bitrate for the video and 44.1kHz/441000Hz 16 bit mono for the audio. Basically make a decently sized MP4 and it should work everywhere.

Do you have enough bandwidth?

In my opinion, if you are doing a live call with Video and Screensharing and you want it to be high definition, you'll need 4 Mbps upstream from your connection. You can check this at http://speedtest.net. If you have 5-6 Mbps you've got a little more headroom. However, if someone in the house decides to get on Netflix, you could have an issue. Know your bandwidth limitations ahead of time. If it's an important stream, can you dedicate your bandwidth to just your one machine? Check out QoS (quality of service) on your router, or better yet, take your kids' iPads away! ;)

Conclusion

Take some time. I put about an hour of work into a 15 min screencast. Your mileage may vary. Watch your video! Listen to it, and have your friends listen to it. Does it look smooth? Sound smooth? Is it viewable on a small device AND a big screen? Does it FEEL good?

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The 2020 Guide to Creating Quality Technical Screencasts, Presentations, and Remote Meetings published first on https://deskbysnafu.tumblr.com/

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