When I read posts about how there are no games to play on the Quest, I simply can’t relate. I’m a voracious consumer of VR games, experiences and demos and currently have over 330 of them on my headset (not including my PCVR library). These experiences are a combination of both old and new items, and my wish list and library just keeps growing week after week with new releases, recommendations and game updates. This year, I wanted to keep track of all the games I’ve played and keep coming back to and catalogue them here in hopes that they may give you some fresh ideas of games to play, or reasons to revisit older games due to their updates or improvements.
Some of the games listed below, I can forsee playing all year long, and to be fair, others I've tried are not my cup of tea, but they may interest you enough to try them out. In either case, here are my quick thoughts on the 21 games I’ve played so far from January to March of 2023 along with links to them on the store.
​

1. Bocce Time! ($8.99) From the developer: In Bocce Time! you'll head down to a peaceful park or atmospheric pier to test your bocce skills across 12 distinct courts. Jump into a quick match to 1v1 a random opponent online, create and join private rooms with up to 8 players, or play against AI across 3 difficulties to unlock additional ball customization options. With full cross-play, everyone's invited to join the fun! It's Bocce Time! My thoughts: This game has seen so many updates since it’s release and if you haven’t checked it out, there’s a free trial that opens up the whole game so you can try it out for yourself. With two parks (10 courses), an AI bot to challenge (that has great quips), collectible balls and support for up to eight people, this is a wonderful social game to play with friends. The Walkabout Mini Golf vibes are strong with this game, so players of that game will feel right at home. The latest update unlocked the entire park as a play area, and ensures that you and your friends will have unlimited options for where to play from. Along with Discord tournaments available if you're feeling competitive, this game is a real hidden gem and has grown a lot since its release. Absolutely worth a go, especially at that price point.
   
2. Golf+ ($29.99) From the developer: GOLF+ is the ultimate VR Golf experience and the exclusive VR Golf game of the PGA TOUR. Join your friends for a round on Pebble Beach, Pinehurst No. 2, TPC Sawgrass and more. Want something more casual? Hang out at Topgolf for a night of music and games. My thoughts: Simply one of the best games on the app store. With all the great new updates such as Beat the Pro and new courses dropping every so often, it's one game that will be on my Quest until the next headset comes out. With the official PGA licenses, a variety of match options and support for four players, it’s an essential Quest game to play alone or with friends.
   
3. Little Cities ($19.99) From the developer: Escape to the charming world of Little Cities, the most loved VR city building simulation game. Create your own little city and watch it come to life – from a humble village to a bustling metropolis. Design the layout and strategically plot amenities to make a perfect city where your citizens love to live. My thoughts: The latest update added citizens to the game. This adds a lot more flavor to your city and brings more life to your city. It’s a pretty simple SimCity style game that should keep you entertained for a few hours. I enjoyed this one, but wasn’t blown away. The extra DLC courses and achievements will give you more play time if you find yourself enjoying this one though.
   
4. Compound ($19.99) From the developer: "COMPOUND is a randomized, rogue-lite, free-roaming shooter for Virtual Reality veterans. Duck and dodge around enemy fire in a tough-as-nails retro FPS with multiple locomotion options. Prepare to die - a lot - until you are good enough to reach the heart of The Corporation and take back what belongs to everyone..." My experience: Essentially Doom on Quest. The awesome blocky aesthetics work perfectly in this world. With a great gameplay loop and exciting gunplay this one will easily get its hooks into you. I found myself saying "just one more run" more often than I had time for. This single player shooter has so many achievements and difficulty levels that it kept me busy for quite some time. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it and still have more to do. A must buy for any fan of the genre.
   
5. Walkabout Mini Golf ($14.99) From the developer: 8 unique 18-hole courses to master. Unlock NIGHT MODE for more challenging versions of all courses. Play solo, 1v1 online quick match, or create a private room with up to 8 players. Extremely accurate physics feel just like the real thing. Collect over 188 custom balls hidden throughout. Solve treasure hunts on each hard course to earn special putters. My thoughts: What more needs to be said about this excellent game? It’s on my constant rotation of games to play alone, with friends, or even with strangers - as the community is so warm and welcoming. The community is truly one of the best, and there are several discord servers for tournaments, weekly meetups and more. An essential game that every Quest owner should have.
   
6. VR Pool ($19.99) From the developer: ForeVR Pool brings the coolest pool halls from around the globe straight to your living room! Challenge friends, family, and in-game pros to a game of 8-ball pool – no table required. Battle 12 bots to level up and take on Legendary challengers. Join a Quick Match or jump into a private multiplayer party! Friend in town? Share your headset with Pass & Play. Up the ante and stake in-game coins in matches against other players. My thoughts: This was pretty feature-light and choppy when it first launched, but it now has 9-ball in addition to 8-ball. If you bought it early, it's worth a quick revisit. It sticks pretty true to the ForeVR formula with its aesthetics and collectibles. The graphics aren’t going to win any awards and frankly put me off of it when I first booted it up, but the physics hold up and it’s a good time against the AI or a friend. With 2v2 matches coming soon, that is where this game could really be worth revisiting for some multiplayer fun and friendly smack talk.
   
7. After the Fall - (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: Welcome to ‘The Line’... Decades have passed since the apocalypse turned 1980s Los Angeles into a snow-crested wasteland, overrun by mutated undead. Starting out in an underground camp with up to 32 other player survivors, you take up arms as a new Harvest Runner. Your mission? Venturing out above ground to expand the Line’s reach into the city and fuel mankind’s survival for another day. My thoughts: What a fun game. The gunplay and sheer amount of enemies on screen via PC is just stunning. You're set in an apocalyptic world and must shoot your way out while gathering resources. The atmosphere is stunning, and the graphics are top notch as well. While I’m sure it’s downgraded a bit to run on Quest, don’t let that hold you back. You can play this co-op with up to three other players and bots will fill you out to four. The teamwork this game offers is wonderful. Find a friend or two and jump in this one, or play with the ever-full lobbies of people looking to join up. The latest Descension update adds two new maps and a ton of other bug fixes and gameplay additions. It's a great time to jump in with a friend!
   
8. Cosmoniuous High (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: From the creators of award winning titles 'Job Simulator' and 'Vacation Simulator', comes a new original creation—the comically catastrophic Cosmonious High! Welcome to your alien high school that's definitely completely free of malfunctions! After crash-landing into your first day, you'll unlock powers, explore the halls, and save the school from cosmic chaos. My thoughts: I would consider this is the third entry in the Job Simulator series - even though it's technically not in the same world. I’d really recommend you play them in order to fully appreciate the experience this game has to offer. Job Simulator was the first game, with jokes and fun interaction. Vacation Simulator expanded on that idea with similar characters, and what Cosmonius does is take the ideas of object interaction and conversations and cranks it up to the max. I had so much fun experimenting, talking with NPC’s, exploring the school and seeing what story the game had to offer. This is one of those games that just speaks to people like me who likes to push the boundaries to see what you can do in a game and rewards players for experimenting. It's a heartwarming game that continues to get quality of life and accessibility updates.
   
9. The Invisible Hours - (Played on PC $29.99, but coming out on Quest, currently available in the Rift store.) From the developer: The Invisible Hours is a complex murder mystery playable with or without a VR headset. Players freely explore an intricate web of interwoven stories within a sprawling mansion. A group of strangers receive a curious invitation from the enigmatic inventor, Nikola Tesla, offering each of them the chance to make amends for their darkest wrongdoings. When the last guest arrives at Tesla’s isolated mansion laboratory, they find him dead – murdered. Disgraced Swedish detective, Gustaf Gustav, vows to find the killer amongst the other guests: a blind butler, a convicted murderer, the world’s most famous actress, Tesla’s former assistant, the son of a wealthy railroad magnate, and rival inventor Thomas Edison. But none of these people are what they seem. My thoughts: I heard so many great things about this game and it's really more of an interactive story than anything. You find yourself moving around the mansion, piecing together the intricate story and learning how all these people relate to one another and their hidden secrets. I had a great time with this game, it had a unique concept that kept me fully engaged throughout.
   
10. Pokerstars VR (Free) From the developer: PokerStars, the world’s leading poker brand, has combined live and online poker in a truly immersive VR experience. Featuring Quest Pro support with face and eye tracking, advanced haptics, and mixed reality passthrough! My thoughts: This is one of my go-to games with friends. Once you get past the initial low-stakes tables where kids play and go all-in on many hands, you’ll find a new set of players that actually play smart poker and like to chat. If you have some friends, you can create your own private room and avoid that all together. It’s a relaxing game where you can meet new people and just chill in VR. It’s my social game where I go to unwind. Recent updates have seen them add craps and social poker rooms with slots and roulette. If you're looking to relax and play some poker, this free to play game will hit the spot. You can easily play this game for free and not ever spend a dime.
    
11. Path of the Warrior ($19.99) From the developer: We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news...chaos in the streets of Rage City tonight! The myriad local gangs, once at constant war with each other have now unified under a mysterious new crime boss...Mr. S. Thugs have flooded the entire city, unleashing a wave of terror. The police are overwhelmed and the public is in imminent danger! Can anyone put a stop to the crime wave? Can anyone save Rage City? My thoughts: This fighting game is one that you can blow off steam with. It harkens back to the old Double Dragon or Final Fight arcade days and I highly recommend you play through this game with a friend as you’ll be laughing your way through it at the absurd combos and interactive objects and scenery you can use to defeat your foes. Find a bit of open room to play in, and punch your way through the game.
    
12. Half Life Alyx Mod: The Undertow - (PC only, Free) From the developer: You play as Alyx, tasked with delivering a mysterious briefcase to the owner of an underground night club, upon arriving you realize this deal might not be so straight forward... Expected Playtime: 50min - 1hr. Features: Full-fledged Story with Voice Acting, Custom Sounds, Assets, and Gameplay, Unique Puzzles & Engaging Combat, Full Single-Controller Support and Drinkable Vodka (Finally). My thoughts: I’ve been working my way through some Half Life Alyx mods that bubble up to the top via Reddit or online posts. This one found its way into my queue and while it had a really unique setting, it was extremely buggy in one spot, to the point where I had to restart a section close to 20 times. I didn't find the end game satisfying, and with so many other great mods, it was a miss for me.
    
13. Sheaf - Together EP (PC only, Free) From the developer: Enter virtual reality to listen to the debut EP “Together” of synthwave producer Sheaf. No gameplay involved -- just sit back, relax, and enjoy the music while you drive through a retro low poly world. The EP features 3 tracks, and each track comes with its own scenery, tailor made to fit its mood. You can start each track separately from the main menu. My thoughts: As noted in the developer description, this is really more a zen-like experience where you’re sitting in a car that drives down a road while chill music is playing. Certainly different from a lot of other “zone out” experiences that focus on geometric shapes, but the blocky visuals really conflicted with the chill vibe it was going for. Not really my jam, but if you like chill experiences, it might be for you. You certainly can't beat the price.
    
14. Shooty Fruity ($19.99) From the developer: Do your job whilst shooting guns! Shooty Fruity combines job simulation with exhilarating combat that makes you feel like a true action hero - whether McClane, Wick or Rambo. Take on new roles and unlock weapons to fight your way through your career. Scan shoot repeat! My thoughts: I kept seeing this game show up in sales and various feeds so I finally tried it out. After 30 minutes I just was not having any fun at all. While the enemies were silly (various fruits and vegetables), the gun mechanics were lackluster. I just did not get into the gameplay loop of shooting and scanning groceries. It was just too repetitive for me and for that reason I can’t recommend it.
    
15. What the Bat? ($24.99) From the developer: From the creators of WHAT THE GOLF? comes a silly VR game about navigating life with baseball bats for hands. Swing your way through over 100 levels of batting, cooking, shooting, smashing, parking, painting, pickling, petting, and WHATnot. My thoughts: I was a huge fan of What the Golf on iOS, and was quite excited when I heard about this sequel. The “high” price point turned me off for a while, but when UploadVR gave it their “game of the year” award, I finally pulled the trigger. I had high hopes, and it was fun… at first, but the gimmick started to wear really thin on me rather quickly. It just didn’t seem to have the same magic the first game had. I kept going through it in hopes that something would change, or capture that original feeling, but honestly, it was a grind to finish such a short game. I understand I’m probably in the minority here, but I was quite disappointed.
    
16. Superhot ($24.99) From the developer: Multi-award winning, smash-hit SUPERHOT VR blurs the lines between cautious strategy and unbridled mayhem. The definitive VR action experience. Time moves only when you move. No regenerating health bars. No conveniently placed ammo drops. It's you, alone, outnumbered and outgunned. Snatch weapons from fallen enemies to shoot, slice and dodge through a truly cinematic hurricane of slow-motion bullets. It’s like nothing you have ever played before. Something is different here. Lose track of what’s real. My thoughts: You know it, and you probably love it. Like so many others, so did I. This was one of my first VR experiences years ago and I finally saw it through to the end. This game can be quite demanding for some levels requiring accurate shooting, movement and timing. This game offers a really unique take on gameplay and multiple ways to get through some levels really increase the replayability. With the unique achievements to strive for you have a real winner. A must own for all gamers.
    
17. Tube Be Continued (Demo) (Full game $14.99) From the developer: Hello! Welcome to TUBE Industries: a hamster owned and operated tube puzzle emporium! Prepare for a tube-based, puzzle-filled, HAM-PACKED adventure with our charismatic leader: The BOSS. Here at TUBE Industries we provide the puzzles and you provide… the brains. No shady business here! My thoughts: I like to look at the new App Lab games that come out every now and then and I’m a sucker for a good puzzle game. This is a game where you connect mazes together for hamsters to run through. It was a weird story that sees you working with a Hamster CEO trying to save his company from the Board, which are all hamsters. Really weird stuff, but while the demo was fun, the puzzles were a bit on the simple side and ultimately, I just did not think it was worth buying at this point. That being said, if the demo grabs you I could see this being a fun few hours with new content planning to be added.
    
18. Dart Racer (Free) From the developer: Dart Racer is an arcade racing game where you compete against AI during race and other players on the online leaderboards - features multiple race tracks and environments - steering based on throttle differential - interactive tutorial - customizable game and comfort settings - optional hand tracking. My thoughts: Now this is podracing! It really did feel like I was doing some classic Star Wars podracing, but it was quite tough to learn the controls. Once I got that figured out, there certainly was some fun to be had, but unfortunately, it just was okay for me and I dropped out after a bit. Give it a try for free, and keep in mind there are plenty of motion assists to play with so you don't get sick.
    
19. Nock ($9.99) From the developer: Nock is bow and arrow soccer. Skate and fly around a pitch while using a bow and arrow to blast the ball into the other team’s goal. Compete in multiplayer ranked matches, or play casual custom games with your friends! Like a real sport, Nock is easy to learn but difficult to master. Block arrows let you create obstacles and you can even use your body to make a goal or save. A fast-moving ball can knock you out. Skill-based matchmaking keeps every game extremely close and competitive. Casual modes let you challenge yourself against bots or play with friends in custom matches. My thoughts: Rocket League but with archery. While I’m not a fan of archery games in general, this game really had the physics dialed in. I always felt like I was in full control of my movement and bow and arrow. Nothing ever felt like it was off, and the aiming was spot on. Every hit of the ball, or miss was my fault. An absolute blast with with up to four friends, and that’s how I recommend you play it - with friends. But there are leagues and tournaments readily available if get into the game. That being said, I’m pretty terrible at it, and will only play with friends who can tolerate my terrible skills.
    
20. Into the Radius ($29.99) From the developer: An atmospheric open-world single-player survival shooter. You find yourself in the middle of the blighted zone, cut from the outside world. Your guns and your wits are all you have left. Fight the deadly enemies, dodge dangerous anomalies, and collect wondrous artifacts on your way to the Radius center to find your way out. My thoughts: I found myself constantly saying “I can’t believe this actually runs on a Quest.” The amount of items you can interact with, areas available to explore, systems to learn and missions to accept can be quite overwhelming. Honestly it took me about 5-7 hours of gameplay, tutorials and youtube videos until finally the game “clicked.” After this one fateful mission where I was over encumbered with items, low on ammo with minimal health and dealing with enemies at every turn, I was totally immersed and was having the time of my life. It was an absolute blast and despite being so tense - a joy to play. I did tone down the difficulty a bit, which made it much more playable and less punishing. Truly a great game if you like the loop of scavenging, planning your route ahead and making sure literally every bullet counts. While it lacks in story, it does have a lot of environmental details and little things that you have to find for yourself. If you like survival games, it’s almost perfect.
    
21. Surgineer ($9.99) From the developer: Have you ever dreamed of being a real surgeon? Well… you are not gonna learn that here. Welcome to the most unrealistic surgery simulator where everyone can instantly become a terrible doctor. You will have to solve hilarious surgical procedures ranging from CPR to brain transplant or even removing alien eggs from a poor patient using a robotic arm! You always thought you had that surgeon in you? You better have a bulletproof malpractice insurance before getting your virtual hands on a patient! My thoughts: At such a low price point, I wasn’t expecting much. I remember playing Surgeon Simulator back in the day and this looked like that. Much to my disappointment it was much more terrible than I had hoped. Absolutely no fun was to be had here. I constantly fought with the controls, many times had no clue what to do and finally gave up in frustration. I understand part of the appeal is the wonkiness of it, but this game requires someone with a lot more patience than me to get some fun out of it.
    

There you have it, 21 different games played in three months. I would say there are plenty of games to play and enjoy on the Quest. I hope you find a few that you might not have heard of, or that you might find worth revisiting. Let me know on the Ruff Talk Discord channel if you have a game you enjoy that I should try, I'm always open to recommendations. You can also find this article on the RuffTalkVR Blog Until then, I hope your next VR experience is a memorable one.

When I read posts about how there are no games to play on the Quest, I simply can’t relate. I’m a voracious consumer of VR games, experiences and demos and currently have over 330 of them on my headset (not including my PCVR library). These experiences are a combination of both old and new items, and my wish list and library just keeps growing week after week with new releases, recommendations and game updates. This year, I wanted to keep track of all the games I’ve played and keep coming back to and catalogue them here in hopes that they may give you some fresh ideas of games to play, or reasons to revisit older games due to their updates or improvements.
Some of the games listed below, I can forsee playing all year long, and to be fair, others I've tried are not my cup of tea, but they may interest you enough to try them out. In either case, here are my quick thoughts on the 21 games I’ve played so far from January to March of 2023 along with links to them on the store.
​

1. Bocce Time! ($8.99) From the developer: In Bocce Time! you'll head down to a peaceful park or atmospheric pier to test your bocce skills across 12 distinct courts. Jump into a quick match to 1v1 a random opponent online, create and join private rooms with up to 8 players, or play against AI across 3 difficulties to unlock additional ball customization options. With full cross-play, everyone's invited to join the fun! It's Bocce Time! My thoughts: This game has seen so many updates since it’s release and if you haven’t checked it out, there’s a free trial that opens up the whole game so you can try it out for yourself. With two parks (10 courses), an AI bot to challenge (that has great quips), collectible balls and support for up to eight people, this is a wonderful social game to play with friends. The Walkabout Mini Golf vibes are strong with this game, so players of that game will feel right at home. The latest update unlocked the entire park as a play area, and ensures that you and your friends will have unlimited options for where to play from. Along with Discord tournaments available if you're feeling competitive, this game is a real hidden gem and has grown a lot since its release. Absolutely worth a go, especially at that price point.
   
2. Golf+ ($29.99) From the developer: GOLF+ is the ultimate VR Golf experience and the exclusive VR Golf game of the PGA TOUR. Join your friends for a round on Pebble Beach, Pinehurst No. 2, TPC Sawgrass and more. Want something more casual? Hang out at Topgolf for a night of music and games. My thoughts: Simply one of the best games on the app store. With all the great new updates such as Beat the Pro and new courses dropping every so often, it's one game that will be on my Quest until the next headset comes out. With the official PGA licenses, a variety of match options and support for four players, it’s an essential Quest game to play alone or with friends.
   
3. Little Cities ($19.99) From the developer: Escape to the charming world of Little Cities, the most loved VR city building simulation game. Create your own little city and watch it come to life – from a humble village to a bustling metropolis. Design the layout and strategically plot amenities to make a perfect city where your citizens love to live. My thoughts: The latest update added citizens to the game. This adds a lot more flavor to your city and brings more life to your city. It’s a pretty simple SimCity style game that should keep you entertained for a few hours. I enjoyed this one, but wasn’t blown away. The extra DLC courses and achievements will give you more play time if you find yourself enjoying this one though.
   
4. Compound ($19.99) From the developer: "COMPOUND is a randomized, rogue-lite, free-roaming shooter for Virtual Reality veterans. Duck and dodge around enemy fire in a tough-as-nails retro FPS with multiple locomotion options. Prepare to die - a lot - until you are good enough to reach the heart of The Corporation and take back what belongs to everyone..." My experience: Essentially Doom on Quest. The awesome blocky aesthetics work perfectly in this world. With a great gameplay loop and exciting gunplay this one will easily get its hooks into you. I found myself saying "just one more run" more often than I had time for. This single player shooter has so many achievements and difficulty levels that it kept me busy for quite some time. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it and still have more to do. A must buy for any fan of the genre.
   
5. Walkabout Mini Golf ($14.99) From the developer: 8 unique 18-hole courses to master. Unlock NIGHT MODE for more challenging versions of all courses. Play solo, 1v1 online quick match, or create a private room with up to 8 players. Extremely accurate physics feel just like the real thing. Collect over 188 custom balls hidden throughout. Solve treasure hunts on each hard course to earn special putters. My thoughts: What more needs to be said about this excellent game? It’s on my constant rotation of games to play alone, with friends, or even with strangers - as the community is so warm and welcoming. The community is truly one of the best, and there are several discord servers for tournaments, weekly meetups and more. An essential game that every Quest owner should have.
   
6. VR Pool ($19.99) From the developer: ForeVR Pool brings the coolest pool halls from around the globe straight to your living room! Challenge friends, family, and in-game pros to a game of 8-ball pool – no table required. Battle 12 bots to level up and take on Legendary challengers. Join a Quick Match or jump into a private multiplayer party! Friend in town? Share your headset with Pass & Play. Up the ante and stake in-game coins in matches against other players. My thoughts: This was pretty feature-light and choppy when it first launched, but it now has 9-ball in addition to 8-ball. If you bought it early, it's worth a quick revisit. It sticks pretty true to the ForeVR formula with its aesthetics and collectibles. The graphics aren’t going to win any awards and frankly put me off of it when I first booted it up, but the physics hold up and it’s a good time against the AI or a friend. With 2v2 matches coming soon, that is where this game could really be worth revisiting for some multiplayer fun and friendly smack talk.
   
7. After the Fall - (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: Welcome to ‘The Line’... Decades have passed since the apocalypse turned 1980s Los Angeles into a snow-crested wasteland, overrun by mutated undead. Starting out in an underground camp with up to 32 other player survivors, you take up arms as a new Harvest Runner. Your mission? Venturing out above ground to expand the Line’s reach into the city and fuel mankind’s survival for another day. My thoughts: What a fun game. The gunplay and sheer amount of enemies on screen via PC is just stunning. You're set in an apocalyptic world and must shoot your way out while gathering resources. The atmosphere is stunning, and the graphics are top notch as well. While I’m sure it’s downgraded a bit to run on Quest, don’t let that hold you back. You can play this co-op with up to three other players and bots will fill you out to four. The teamwork this game offers is wonderful. Find a friend or two and jump in this one, or play with the ever-full lobbies of people looking to join up. The latest Descension update adds two new maps and a ton of other bug fixes and gameplay additions. It's a great time to jump in with a friend!
   
8. Cosmoniuous High (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: From the creators of award winning titles 'Job Simulator' and 'Vacation Simulator', comes a new original creation—the comically catastrophic Cosmonious High! Welcome to your alien high school that's definitely completely free of malfunctions! After crash-landing into your first day, you'll unlock powers, explore the halls, and save the school from cosmic chaos. My thoughts: I would consider this is the third entry in the Job Simulator series - even though it's technically not in the same world. I’d really recommend you play them in order to fully appreciate the experience this game has to offer. Job Simulator was the first game, with jokes and fun interaction. Vacation Simulator expanded on that idea with similar characters, and what Cosmonius does is take the ideas of object interaction and conversations and cranks it up to the max. I had so much fun experimenting, talking with NPC’s, exploring the school and seeing what story the game had to offer. This is one of those games that just speaks to people like me who likes to push the boundaries to see what you can do in a game and rewards players for experimenting. It's a heartwarming game that continues to get quality of life and accessibility updates.
   
9. The Invisible Hours - (Played on PC $29.99, but coming out on Quest, currently available in the Rift store.) From the developer: The Invisible Hours is a complex murder mystery playable with or without a VR headset. Players freely explore an intricate web of interwoven stories within a sprawling mansion. A group of strangers receive a curious invitation from the enigmatic inventor, Nikola Tesla, offering each of them the chance to make amends for their darkest wrongdoings. When the last guest arrives at Tesla’s isolated mansion laboratory, they find him dead – murdered. Disgraced Swedish detective, Gustaf Gustav, vows to find the killer amongst the other guests: a blind butler, a convicted murderer, the world’s most famous actress, Tesla’s former assistant, the son of a wealthy railroad magnate, and rival inventor Thomas Edison. But none of these people are what they seem. My thoughts: I heard so many great things about this game and it's really more of an interactive story than anything. You find yourself moving around the mansion, piecing together the intricate story and learning how all these people relate to one another and their hidden secrets. I had a great time with this game, it had a unique concept that kept me fully engaged throughout.
   
10. Pokerstars VR (Free) From the developer: PokerStars, the world’s leading poker brand, has combined live and online poker in a truly immersive VR experience. Featuring Quest Pro support with face and eye tracking, advanced haptics, and mixed reality passthrough! My thoughts: This is one of my go-to games with friends. Once you get past the initial low-stakes tables where kids play and go all-in on many hands, you’ll find a new set of players that actually play smart poker and like to chat. If you have some friends, you can create your own private room and avoid that all together. It’s a relaxing game where you can meet new people and just chill in VR. It’s my social game where I go to unwind. Recent updates have seen them add craps and social poker rooms with slots and roulette. If you're looking to relax and play some poker, this free to play game will hit the spot. You can easily play this game for free and not ever spend a dime.
    
11. Path of the Warrior ($19.99) From the developer: We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news...chaos in the streets of Rage City tonight! The myriad local gangs, once at constant war with each other have now unified under a mysterious new crime boss...Mr. S. Thugs have flooded the entire city, unleashing a wave of terror. The police are overwhelmed and the public is in imminent danger! Can anyone put a stop to the crime wave? Can anyone save Rage City? My thoughts: This fighting game is one that you can blow off steam with. It harkens back to the old Double Dragon or Final Fight arcade days and I highly recommend you play through this game with a friend as you’ll be laughing your way through it at the absurd combos and interactive objects and scenery you can use to defeat your foes. Find a bit of open room to play in, and punch your way through the game.
    
12. Half Life Alyx Mod: The Undertow - (PC only, Free) From the developer: You play as Alyx, tasked with delivering a mysterious briefcase to the owner of an underground night club, upon arriving you realize this deal might not be so straight forward... Expected Playtime: 50min - 1hr. Features: Full-fledged Story with Voice Acting, Custom Sounds, Assets, and Gameplay, Unique Puzzles & Engaging Combat, Full Single-Controller Support and Drinkable Vodka (Finally). My thoughts: I’ve been working my way through some Half Life Alyx mods that bubble up to the top via Reddit or online posts. This one found its way into my queue and while it had a really unique setting, it was extremely buggy in one spot, to the point where I had to restart a section close to 20 times. I didn't find the end game satisfying, and with so many other great mods, it was a miss for me.
    
13. Sheaf - Together EP (PC only, Free) From the developer: Enter virtual reality to listen to the debut EP “Together” of synthwave producer Sheaf. No gameplay involved -- just sit back, relax, and enjoy the music while you drive through a retro low poly world. The EP features 3 tracks, and each track comes with its own scenery, tailor made to fit its mood. You can start each track separately from the main menu. My thoughts: As noted in the developer description, this is really more a zen-like experience where you’re sitting in a car that drives down a road while chill music is playing. Certainly different from a lot of other “zone out” experiences that focus on geometric shapes, but the blocky visuals really conflicted with the chill vibe it was going for. Not really my jam, but if you like chill experiences, it might be for you. You certainly can't beat the price.
    
14. Shooty Fruity ($19.99) From the developer: Do your job whilst shooting guns! Shooty Fruity combines job simulation with exhilarating combat that makes you feel like a true action hero - whether McClane, Wick or Rambo. Take on new roles and unlock weapons to fight your way through your career. Scan shoot repeat! My thoughts: I kept seeing this game show up in sales and various feeds so I finally tried it out. After 30 minutes I just was not having any fun at all. While the enemies were silly (various fruits and vegetables), the gun mechanics were lackluster. I just did not get into the gameplay loop of shooting and scanning groceries. It was just too repetitive for me and for that reason I can’t recommend it.
    
15. What the Bat? ($24.99) From the developer: From the creators of WHAT THE GOLF? comes a silly VR game about navigating life with baseball bats for hands. Swing your way through over 100 levels of batting, cooking, shooting, smashing, parking, painting, pickling, petting, and WHATnot. My thoughts: I was a huge fan of What the Golf on iOS, and was quite excited when I heard about this sequel. The “high” price point turned me off for a while, but when UploadVR gave it their “game of the year” award, I finally pulled the trigger. I had high hopes, and it was fun… at first, but the gimmick started to wear really thin on me rather quickly. It just didn’t seem to have the same magic the first game had. I kept going through it in hopes that something would change, or capture that original feeling, but honestly, it was a grind to finish such a short game. I understand I’m probably in the minority here, but I was quite disappointed.
    
16. Superhot ($24.99) From the developer: Multi-award winning, smash-hit SUPERHOT VR blurs the lines between cautious strategy and unbridled mayhem. The definitive VR action experience. Time moves only when you move. No regenerating health bars. No conveniently placed ammo drops. It's you, alone, outnumbered and outgunned. Snatch weapons from fallen enemies to shoot, slice and dodge through a truly cinematic hurricane of slow-motion bullets. It’s like nothing you have ever played before. Something is different here. Lose track of what’s real. My thoughts: You know it, and you probably love it. Like so many others, so did I. This was one of my first VR experiences years ago and I finally saw it through to the end. This game can be quite demanding for some levels requiring accurate shooting, movement and timing. This game offers a really unique take on gameplay and multiple ways to get through some levels really increase the replayability. With the unique achievements to strive for you have a real winner. A must own for all gamers.
    
17. Tube Be Continued (Demo) (Full game $14.99) From the developer: Hello! Welcome to TUBE Industries: a hamster owned and operated tube puzzle emporium! Prepare for a tube-based, puzzle-filled, HAM-PACKED adventure with our charismatic leader: The BOSS. Here at TUBE Industries we provide the puzzles and you provide… the brains. No shady business here! My thoughts: I like to look at the new App Lab games that come out every now and then and I’m a sucker for a good puzzle game. This is a game where you connect mazes together for hamsters to run through. It was a weird story that sees you working with a Hamster CEO trying to save his company from the Board, which are all hamsters. Really weird stuff, but while the demo was fun, the puzzles were a bit on the simple side and ultimately, I just did not think it was worth buying at this point. That being said, if the demo grabs you I could see this being a fun few hours with new content planning to be added.
    
18. Dart Racer (Free) From the developer: Dart Racer is an arcade racing game where you compete against AI during race and other players on the online leaderboards - features multiple race tracks and environments - steering based on throttle differential - interactive tutorial - customizable game and comfort settings - optional hand tracking. My thoughts: Now this is podracing! It really did feel like I was doing some classic Star Wars podracing, but it was quite tough to learn the controls. Once I got that figured out, there certainly was some fun to be had, but unfortunately, it just was okay for me and I dropped out after a bit. Give it a try for free, and keep in mind there are plenty of motion assists to play with so you don't get sick.
    
19. Nock ($9.99) From the developer: Nock is bow and arrow soccer. Skate and fly around a pitch while using a bow and arrow to blast the ball into the other team’s goal. Compete in multiplayer ranked matches, or play casual custom games with your friends! Like a real sport, Nock is easy to learn but difficult to master. Block arrows let you create obstacles and you can even use your body to make a goal or save. A fast-moving ball can knock you out. Skill-based matchmaking keeps every game extremely close and competitive. Casual modes let you challenge yourself against bots or play with friends in custom matches. My thoughts: Rocket League but with archery. While I’m not a fan of archery games in general, this game really had the physics dialed in. I always felt like I was in full control of my movement and bow and arrow. Nothing ever felt like it was off, and the aiming was spot on. Every hit of the ball, or miss was my fault. An absolute blast with with up to four friends, and that’s how I recommend you play it - with friends. But there are leagues and tournaments readily available if get into the game. That being said, I’m pretty terrible at it, and will only play with friends who can tolerate my terrible skills.
    
20. Into the Radius ($29.99) From the developer: An atmospheric open-world single-player survival shooter. You find yourself in the middle of the blighted zone, cut from the outside world. Your guns and your wits are all you have left. Fight the deadly enemies, dodge dangerous anomalies, and collect wondrous artifacts on your way to the Radius center to find your way out. My thoughts: I found myself constantly saying “I can’t believe this actually runs on a Quest.” The amount of items you can interact with, areas available to explore, systems to learn and missions to accept can be quite overwhelming. Honestly it took me about 5-7 hours of gameplay, tutorials and youtube videos until finally the game “clicked.” After this one fateful mission where I was over encumbered with items, low on ammo with minimal health and dealing with enemies at every turn, I was totally immersed and was having the time of my life. It was an absolute blast and despite being so tense - a joy to play. I did tone down the difficulty a bit, which made it much more playable and less punishing. Truly a great game if you like the loop of scavenging, planning your route ahead and making sure literally every bullet counts. While it lacks in story, it does have a lot of environmental details and little things that you have to find for yourself. If you like survival games, it’s almost perfect.
    
21. Surgineer ($9.99) From the developer: Have you ever dreamed of being a real surgeon? Well… you are not gonna learn that here. Welcome to the most unrealistic surgery simulator where everyone can instantly become a terrible doctor. You will have to solve hilarious surgical procedures ranging from CPR to brain transplant or even removing alien eggs from a poor patient using a robotic arm! You always thought you had that surgeon in you? You better have a bulletproof malpractice insurance before getting your virtual hands on a patient! My thoughts: At such a low price point, I wasn’t expecting much. I remember playing Surgeon Simulator back in the day and this looked like that. Much to my disappointment it was much more terrible than I had hoped. Absolutely no fun was to be had here. I constantly fought with the controls, many times had no clue what to do and finally gave up in frustration. I understand part of the appeal is the wonkiness of it, but this game requires someone with a lot more patience than me to get some fun out of it.
    

There you have it, 21 different games played in three months. I would say there are plenty of games to play and enjoy on the Quest. I hope you find a few that you might not have heard of, or that you might find worth revisiting. Let me know on the Ruff Talk Discord channel if you have a game you enjoy that I should try, I'm always open to recommendations. You can also find this article on the RuffTalkVR Blog Until then, I hope your next VR experience is a memorable one.

Part 4
I pulled the other radio from my backpack. I called the Station. They answered immediately. It was Hitch, the Ranger who led me up the first day.
“I have an emergency,” I said.
“Is there a fire?” Hitch asked.
“No. Martina, from Lookout 1, something attacked her.”
“Where is she now?”
“It took her into the forest.”
“Is this a joke Tom?”
“What? Why would you think that?”
“You made a report this morning, the death of a hiker. Burning red eyes, but not a bear.”
“It was the same thing. Except there are two now.”
“Ok. I’m going to get Martina on the line.”
The radio went silent. An eternity passed. I scanned the forest. Ripples of warm air rose up into the sky. Nothing else stirred.
“Ok Tom, we have no patience for this type of thing.”
“What are you talking about?”
“We spoke to Martina and she’s fine.”
“That’s impossible. They attacked her. I watched it happen.”
“You know there’s a waiting list to get in a lookout tower. I can have you replaced within a week.”
“Replace me today. Get up here and drag me down off the mountain.”
“We told you this morning that we can’t get up there on account of the fog.”
“The fog is gone. It’s clear skies.”
An audible sigh came through the radio. “The fog coupled with the weather warning the met office just issued means no one is going up the mountain today.”
“Are you insane? What weather? There isn’t a cloud in the sky.”
“Listen to me carefully. You are going to watch for fires. There’s lighting and high winds on the way. When it has blown through we can get someone up there to replace you. In the meantime stay in your lookout and keep this channel clear unless there is a real emergency.”
“I’m not in my lookout.”
“Where are you?”
“Lookout 3.”
“Where is Callum?”
I ran another eye over the inside of the lookout. Furniture and paper strewn across the floor, like a bomb had gone off. And still the smell of burning.
“No one is here.”
“Why are you there?”
I almost answered and then put the radio down. I’m at Lookout 3 because a fairy of some sort led me here through the fog. And then the fog lifted and the fairy disintegrated before my eyes. That would go down well.
Was this a dream? I grabbed the necklace the woman threw onto the deck before she evaporated into the wind. The points of the triangle left indents in my palm. That was real.
I picked up the other radio.
“Martina? Can you hear me?”
A man’s voice. Roger. “If you want to live, get back to your own lookout. The forest is about to burn.” In the background Martina made a muffled cry.
“Don’t hurt her.”
“There’s no stopping this now.”
The radio crackled and then went dead. I shouted into it until my throat was sore, but there was nothing more from Roger or Martina. I looked down at the base of the elevated structure. Unlike the barren peak at Lookout 2, up here the trees grew at the top. There was a well maintained clearing around the base of the structure, but in high wind could a fire spread far and fast enough to light the structure? The image of hot and red flames played in my head, so real I almost felt the heat. I had to get out of here.
I opened the door to the lookout and a wave of hot air shifted my weight onto my heels. The windows rattled. I put one foot onto the deck and remembered my backpack. The hot air followed me inside and picked up loose sheets of paper and pushed them against the windows. I grasped my backpack and straightened and came eye to eye with one of the sheets of paper stuck to the glass. The same hand written script that filled the pages of the book bound in black.
What the hell?
I put the backpack down and gathered up as much of the paper as I could. A couple of sheets beat me out the door and fluttered into the trees. I took the stack and dumped it down on the circular map in the middle of the lookout. I rifled through the pages, looking for some clue to unravel all this. There could be a clue in here that could help me get off this mountain alive. The woman in blue had told me I had to see what was in this lookout. This could be it.
Unintelligible script filled the pages. Geometric shapes overlapped with the writing. The same crap written in the book I found on the shelf of my lookout. This was useless. And then something else. I pulled out the page from the stack. What looked like a map.
I traced my finger over it. A series of curved lines, sometimes close together and sometimes far apart. I remembered enough from geography class to recognise contour lines. Two peaks and an elevated ridge. I threw the rest of the pages on the floor and compared the map to the larger disc map on the contraption to pinpoint fires. They matched. The two peaks were my lookout and this one. The ridge line was where Martina’s lookout stood. And the valley in between.
Deep in the valley, down at the lowest point was a black splotch. It occupied the exact centre of the page. I found the same spot on the bigger map, offset from the middle but not far off. In tiny lettering beside it read the word ‘cave’.
I went to the window and searched the forest for the place. Tracing a line between this lookout and Martina’s, I got a rough bearing on it. The trees parted slightly, but from this far away I could not see a cave. I picked up the binoculars and trained them on the spot. The trees hid whatever was down there. A shimmer of warm air rose between the trees, like the hot exhaust from a jet engine. That’s where they were. That’s where they took Martina. It had to be. But why?
Is this what the woman in blue wanted me to see? A low rumble rose above the sound of the wind and the rattle of the windows. A thin band of purple climbed above the western horizon and flashed. Lightning. The storm was on its way. If there was anything else up here to find, I wasn’t going to wait around and look for it.
I stuffed the map in my backpack and zipped it up and stumbled out the door. The adrenaline turned my legs rigid and I almost fell down the stairs. I grabbed the rail and shouted at myself to calm down. I ran in the direction of my lookout and came to the charred remains of the burnt out tree. The trunk ended abruptly at the top, a headless remnant of what it once was. And then I noticed something strange. The trunk had a hollow interior, like a giant black pipe sticking out of the ground.
I ran a palm over the rough exterior, black soot sticking to my skin. When I got to the triangle carved into the trunk I applied pressure. The charred bark cracked. I used both hands now, smashing the butt of my hand against the burnt wood. The bark splintered and a triangle shaped wedge fell came loose. I put my eye to the opening. The tree was hollow from top to bottom. It was the strangest thing. I wondered if the tree out the back of my lookout was the same. As far as I knew, trees did not grow with hollow insides.
I set off at a jog back towards my lookout. I had resolved to get off the mountain and beg a rescue team to come up and save Martina. Between the coming storm and Roger’s warning that the forest would burn, I had no interest in hanging around. The creature had taken Rebecca the hiker, and then two had taken Martina. But if I were right, they were down at the cave in the valley marked on the map. I had to be fast. I had to stay ahead of them or they would do to me as they had done to the hiker. I shuddered.
First stop was my lookout. It was on the way back to the Ranger Station and I could grab the rest of my things. I’d take down the black book of strange script too and show the Rangers. Let them tell me I’m crazy when confronted with evidence of the weird things going on up here.
Despite going downhill, I was soon puffing and spluttering. The infection in my chest had not yet cleared and my insides burned. I pulled the straps on the backpack to stop it slamming against my back as I hurdled fallen branches.
Near the bottom my right shoe slipped on a stray tuft of fern just as I readied to leap over the desiccated remains of a fallen tree. My balance thrown, I failed to get my left leg up in time and it caught on a branch sticking up from the tree. Pain shot through my ankle as it twisted into an unnatural position before the branch finally cracked under the pressure exerted by my falling body.
I cried out as I slammed shoulder first onto the forest floor. I lay there panting, my left leg dangling in the air. A terrible heat filled the ankle joint. I rubbed it with my hands and then rolled and got to my knees. The ankle was cooked and I knew it.
In high school I spent a season on the football team; in part because I loved the game and also in an attempt to raise my social standing. To the surprise of everyone I hadn’t performed badly and made a valuable contribution or two. That was until the last game of the season, a knockout fixture. I rolled my ankle barely two minutes into the game and, stupidly, stayed out on the field. While the injured ankle is still warm it works for a while and then the swelling and the bruising comes and the hobbling begins. It was at the start of the hobble phase that I missed a tackle. We lost the game and there was plenty of blame to throw around, and I copped more than my fair share.
I looked up the slope leading to my lookout. If I hustled it would be forty five minutes to the top, a hard slog uphill. I put some weight on my left leg and winced. I had to move now, the pain was only going to get worse.
Going uphill is infinitely harder than running on a flat patch of grass on a twisted ankle. All the grip comes through the toes and places stress on the joint. I started going up sideways to at least keep my foot in a neutral position.
Sweat poured down my face. The forest trapped the heat and the air was warm and suffocating. My throat burned. I needed water. Thunder rumbled low in the distance. I could not see the horizon through the trees, but it sounded closer than before. I pushed everything else from my mind and focussed only on the next painful step.
The radio crackled. I shook my torso trying to set the backpack free. Sweat soaked my shirt and made everything sticky. I overbalanced and tumbled to the ground. I freed myself of the straps and pulled the radio free.
“Tom? Tom?” The voice was a whisper. Martina.
I whispered in response. “I’m here.”
“He’s coming.”
“What?”
“He’s coming for you.”
A clattering noise came through the radio and then it went dead.
“Martina? Martina?”
No response. I groaned and got to my feet, exhausted and dehydrated and sore. The first step on the twisted ankle shot pain right up my leg and I almost collapsed back to the ground. I looked ahead, the roof of my lookout poked up above the peak. I was close. Was I close enough?
The rising slope of the peak became the long hallway at my high school. Lockers pushed up against the wall. Doors with glass windows to the classrooms. In my memories that hallway is empty aside from him and me. In truth there were kids everywhere, but they were unimportant. He yelled out down the hallway. Winslow! He was already running. I slammed shut the locker and went. I skidded and slipped on the polished tiles. That time I almost made it, almost. In sight of sanctuary a violent tug on my backpack and I went down. The blows burst through my defences. I covered my head. Tears flowed. Now the other kids fill in the blank spaces. They laugh and taunt. Waterworks Winslow.
Somewhere behind me a branch cracked. I turned back and it is the forest once more. I searched the trees for the sign of movement. My ankle is almost shot. All the force driving me up the slope towards the lookout comes from my good right leg. The left leg is nothing more than a prop keeping me upright.
I look back up and stop dead in my tracks. Above me on the slope stands the creature I saw take Rebecca. One of the things that abducted Martina. It looked a version of human, the body and limbs and head in the right proportion. But the skin was ash-grey and smooth, like the surface of pottery hardened in a kiln. Its eyes burned red. It radiated heat, the air shimmering off its shoulders.
“You’re coming with me.”
The voice of a man. I did not recognise it. A notion had worked its way into my head, that this thing hunting in the forest was in fact Roger, the missing man from my lookout. But this was not Roger’s voice. I had heard Roger through the radio, and even though a radio can distort a voice, this was so different in pitch that it could not belong to Roger. That left one option. Callum. The occupant of Lookout 3.
I turned and shuffled down the slope. He laughed. He laughed with the same derision as those bullies in high school.
I reached up and grabbed a low hanging branch. I yanked it hard until it splintered and broke off and provided a weapon of sorts. I pointed the branch up the slope and swung it back and forth. This only elicited more laughter.
He sprung downwards and gripped the end of the branch. The muscles in my arms tensed and I pulled back. His face broke into a hideous smile, the teeth the same grey as the skin. With a single pull of unnatural strength he yanked the branch from my hands.
For a moment I stood on the slope, exposed and defenceless. And then I ran. My ankle screamed with pain, but I ran. I whimpered under my breath, waiting for a pull at my backpack to confirm that my assailant had caught up to me. I anticipated the feeling of helplessness and for the world to beat me down one more time.
It was not a pull of the backpack that stopped my flight. I heard the whoosh before a tree branch crashed into the side of my head. The impact set off a flash before my eyes and then everything went black.
An explosive crack of thunder flicked the lights back on inside my head. I blinked a haze of blurred green into focus. The canopy of the forest and between it jagged slivers of blue sky. My head lifted and smacked back down on the forest floor. My shirt rode up and formed a twisted mess around my shoulder blades. I looked to my feet, elevated and ahead. The smooth and grey skin of Callum. He dragged me through the forest, down towards the cave. He was taking me to Roger.
X

When I read posts about how there are no games to play on the Quest, I simply can’t relate. I’m a voracious consumer of VR games, experiences and demos and currently have over 330 of them on my headset (not including my PCVR library). These experiences are a combination of both old and new items, and my wish list and library just keeps growing week after week with new releases, recommendations and game updates. This year, I wanted to keep track of all the games I’ve played and keep coming back to and catalogue them here in hopes that they may give you some fresh ideas of games to play, or reasons to revisit older games due to their updates or improvements.
Some of the games listed below, I can forsee playing all year long, and to be fair, others I've tried are not my cup of tea, but they may interest you enough to try them out. In either case, here are my quick thoughts on the 21 games I’ve played so far from January to March of 2023 along with links to them on the store.
​

1. Bocce Time! ($8.99) From the developer: In Bocce Time! you'll head down to a peaceful park or atmospheric pier to test your bocce skills across 12 distinct courts. Jump into a quick match to 1v1 a random opponent online, create and join private rooms with up to 8 players, or play against AI across 3 difficulties to unlock additional ball customization options. With full cross-play, everyone's invited to join the fun! It's Bocce Time! My thoughts: This game has seen so many updates since it’s release and if you haven’t checked it out, there’s a free trial that opens up the whole game so you can try it out for yourself. With two parks (10 courses), an AI bot to challenge (that has great quips), collectible balls and support for up to eight people, this is a wonderful social game to play with friends. The Walkabout Mini Golf vibes are strong with this game, so players of that game will feel right at home. The latest update unlocked the entire park as a play area, and ensures that you and your friends will have unlimited options for where to play from. Along with Discord tournaments available if you're feeling competitive, this game is a real hidden gem and has grown a lot since its release. Absolutely worth a go, especially at that price point.
   
2. Golf+ ($29.99) From the developer: GOLF+ is the ultimate VR Golf experience and the exclusive VR Golf game of the PGA TOUR. Join your friends for a round on Pebble Beach, Pinehurst No. 2, TPC Sawgrass and more. Want something more casual? Hang out at Topgolf for a night of music and games. My thoughts: Simply one of the best games on the app store. With all the great new updates such as Beat the Pro and new courses dropping every so often, it's one game that will be on my Quest until the next headset comes out. With the official PGA licenses, a variety of match options and support for four players, it’s an essential Quest game to play alone or with friends.
   
3. Little Cities ($19.99) From the developer: Escape to the charming world of Little Cities, the most loved VR city building simulation game. Create your own little city and watch it come to life – from a humble village to a bustling metropolis. Design the layout and strategically plot amenities to make a perfect city where your citizens love to live. My thoughts: The latest update added citizens to the game. This adds a lot more flavor to your city and brings more life to your city. It’s a pretty simple SimCity style game that should keep you entertained for a few hours. I enjoyed this one, but wasn’t blown away. The extra DLC courses and achievements will give you more play time if you find yourself enjoying this one though.
   
4. Compound ($19.99) From the developer: "COMPOUND is a randomized, rogue-lite, free-roaming shooter for Virtual Reality veterans. Duck and dodge around enemy fire in a tough-as-nails retro FPS with multiple locomotion options. Prepare to die - a lot - until you are good enough to reach the heart of The Corporation and take back what belongs to everyone..." My experience: Essentially Doom on Quest. The awesome blocky aesthetics work perfectly in this world. With a great gameplay loop and exciting gunplay this one will easily get its hooks into you. I found myself saying "just one more run" more often than I had time for. This single player shooter has so many achievements and difficulty levels that it kept me busy for quite some time. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it and still have more to do. A must buy for any fan of the genre.
   
5. Walkabout Mini Golf ($14.99) From the developer: 8 unique 18-hole courses to master. Unlock NIGHT MODE for more challenging versions of all courses. Play solo, 1v1 online quick match, or create a private room with up to 8 players. Extremely accurate physics feel just like the real thing. Collect over 188 custom balls hidden throughout. Solve treasure hunts on each hard course to earn special putters. My thoughts: What more needs to be said about this excellent game? It’s on my constant rotation of games to play alone, with friends, or even with strangers - as the community is so warm and welcoming. The community is truly one of the best, and there are several discord servers for tournaments, weekly meetups and more. An essential game that every Quest owner should have.
   
6. VR Pool ($19.99) From the developer: ForeVR Pool brings the coolest pool halls from around the globe straight to your living room! Challenge friends, family, and in-game pros to a game of 8-ball pool – no table required. Battle 12 bots to level up and take on Legendary challengers. Join a Quick Match or jump into a private multiplayer party! Friend in town? Share your headset with Pass & Play. Up the ante and stake in-game coins in matches against other players. My thoughts: This was pretty feature-light and choppy when it first launched, but it now has 9-ball in addition to 8-ball. If you bought it early, it's worth a quick revisit. It sticks pretty true to the ForeVR formula with its aesthetics and collectibles. The graphics aren’t going to win any awards and frankly put me off of it when I first booted it up, but the physics hold up and it’s a good time against the AI or a friend. With 2v2 matches coming soon, that is where this game could really be worth revisiting for some multiplayer fun and friendly smack talk.
   
7. After the Fall - (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: Welcome to ‘The Line’... Decades have passed since the apocalypse turned 1980s Los Angeles into a snow-crested wasteland, overrun by mutated undead. Starting out in an underground camp with up to 32 other player survivors, you take up arms as a new Harvest Runner. Your mission? Venturing out above ground to expand the Line’s reach into the city and fuel mankind’s survival for another day. My thoughts: What a fun game. The gunplay and sheer amount of enemies on screen via PC is just stunning. You're set in an apocalyptic world and must shoot your way out while gathering resources. The atmosphere is stunning, and the graphics are top notch as well. While I’m sure it’s downgraded a bit to run on Quest, don’t let that hold you back. You can play this co-op with up to three other players and bots will fill you out to four. The teamwork this game offers is wonderful. Find a friend or two and jump in this one, or play with the ever-full lobbies of people looking to join up. The latest Descension update adds two new maps and a ton of other bug fixes and gameplay additions. It's a great time to jump in with a friend!
   
8. Cosmoniuous High (Played on PC $29.99, available on Quest $29.99) From the developer: From the creators of award winning titles 'Job Simulator' and 'Vacation Simulator', comes a new original creation—the comically catastrophic Cosmonious High! Welcome to your alien high school that's definitely completely free of malfunctions! After crash-landing into your first day, you'll unlock powers, explore the halls, and save the school from cosmic chaos. My thoughts: I would consider this is the third entry in the Job Simulator series - even though it's technically not in the same world. I’d really recommend you play them in order to fully appreciate the experience this game has to offer. Job Simulator was the first game, with jokes and fun interaction. Vacation Simulator expanded on that idea with similar characters, and what Cosmonius does is take the ideas of object interaction and conversations and cranks it up to the max. I had so much fun experimenting, talking with NPC’s, exploring the school and seeing what story the game had to offer. This is one of those games that just speaks to people like me who likes to push the boundaries to see what you can do in a game and rewards players for experimenting. It's a heartwarming game that continues to get quality of life and accessibility updates.
   
9. The Invisible Hours - (Played on PC $29.99, but coming out on Quest, currently available in the Rift store.) From the developer: The Invisible Hours is a complex murder mystery playable with or without a VR headset. Players freely explore an intricate web of interwoven stories within a sprawling mansion. A group of strangers receive a curious invitation from the enigmatic inventor, Nikola Tesla, offering each of them the chance to make amends for their darkest wrongdoings. When the last guest arrives at Tesla’s isolated mansion laboratory, they find him dead – murdered. Disgraced Swedish detective, Gustaf Gustav, vows to find the killer amongst the other guests: a blind butler, a convicted murderer, the world’s most famous actress, Tesla’s former assistant, the son of a wealthy railroad magnate, and rival inventor Thomas Edison. But none of these people are what they seem. My thoughts: I heard so many great things about this game and it's really more of an interactive story than anything. You find yourself moving around the mansion, piecing together the intricate story and learning how all these people relate to one another and their hidden secrets. I had a great time with this game, it had a unique concept that kept me fully engaged throughout.
   
10. Pokerstars VR (Free) From the developer: PokerStars, the world’s leading poker brand, has combined live and online poker in a truly immersive VR experience. Featuring Quest Pro support with face and eye tracking, advanced haptics, and mixed reality passthrough! My thoughts: This is one of my go-to games with friends. Once you get past the initial low-stakes tables where kids play and go all-in on many hands, you’ll find a new set of players that actually play smart poker and like to chat. If you have some friends, you can create your own private room and avoid that all together. It’s a relaxing game where you can meet new people and just chill in VR. It’s my social game where I go to unwind. Recent updates have seen them add craps and social poker rooms with slots and roulette. If you're looking to relax and play some poker, this free to play game will hit the spot. You can easily play this game for free and not ever spend a dime.
    
11. Path of the Warrior ($19.99) From the developer: We interrupt this broadcast with breaking news...chaos in the streets of Rage City tonight! The myriad local gangs, once at constant war with each other have now unified under a mysterious new crime boss...Mr. S. Thugs have flooded the entire city, unleashing a wave of terror. The police are overwhelmed and the public is in imminent danger! Can anyone put a stop to the crime wave? Can anyone save Rage City? My thoughts: This fighting game is one that you can blow off steam with. It harkens back to the old Double Dragon or Final Fight arcade days and I highly recommend you play through this game with a friend as you’ll be laughing your way through it at the absurd combos and interactive objects and scenery you can use to defeat your foes. Find a bit of open room to play in, and punch your way through the game.
    
12. Half Life Alyx Mod: The Undertow - (PC only, Free) From the developer: You play as Alyx, tasked with delivering a mysterious briefcase to the owner of an underground night club, upon arriving you realize this deal might not be so straight forward... Expected Playtime: 50min - 1hr. Features: Full-fledged Story with Voice Acting, Custom Sounds, Assets, and Gameplay, Unique Puzzles & Engaging Combat, Full Single-Controller Support and Drinkable Vodka (Finally). My thoughts: I’ve been working my way through some Half Life Alyx mods that bubble up to the top via Reddit or online posts. This one found its way into my queue and while it had a really unique setting, it was extremely buggy in one spot, to the point where I had to restart a section close to 20 times. I didn't find the end game satisfying, and with so many other great mods, it was a miss for me.
    
13. Sheaf - Together EP (PC only, Free) From the developer: Enter virtual reality to listen to the debut EP “Together” of synthwave producer Sheaf. No gameplay involved -- just sit back, relax, and enjoy the music while you drive through a retro low poly world. The EP features 3 tracks, and each track comes with its own scenery, tailor made to fit its mood. You can start each track separately from the main menu. My thoughts: As noted in the developer description, this is really more a zen-like experience where you’re sitting in a car that drives down a road while chill music is playing. Certainly different from a lot of other “zone out” experiences that focus on geometric shapes, but the blocky visuals really conflicted with the chill vibe it was going for. Not really my jam, but if you like chill experiences, it might be for you. You certainly can't beat the price.
    
14. Shooty Fruity ($19.99) From the developer: Do your job whilst shooting guns! Shooty Fruity combines job simulation with exhilarating combat that makes you feel like a true action hero - whether McClane, Wick or Rambo. Take on new roles and unlock weapons to fight your way through your career. Scan shoot repeat! My thoughts: I kept seeing this game show up in sales and various feeds so I finally tried it out. After 30 minutes I just was not having any fun at all. While the enemies were silly (various fruits and vegetables), the gun mechanics were lackluster. I just did not get into the gameplay loop of shooting and scanning groceries. It was just too repetitive for me and for that reason I can’t recommend it.
    
15. What the Bat? ($24.99) From the developer: From the creators of WHAT THE GOLF? comes a silly VR game about navigating life with baseball bats for hands. Swing your way through over 100 levels of batting, cooking, shooting, smashing, parking, painting, pickling, petting, and WHATnot. My thoughts: I was a huge fan of What the Golf on iOS, and was quite excited when I heard about this sequel. The “high” price point turned me off for a while, but when UploadVR gave it their “game of the year” award, I finally pulled the trigger. I had high hopes, and it was fun… at first, but the gimmick started to wear really thin on me rather quickly. It just didn’t seem to have the same magic the first game had. I kept going through it in hopes that something would change, or capture that original feeling, but honestly, it was a grind to finish such a short game. I understand I’m probably in the minority here, but I was quite disappointed.
    
16. Superhot ($24.99) From the developer: Multi-award winning, smash-hit SUPERHOT VR blurs the lines between cautious strategy and unbridled mayhem. The definitive VR action experience. Time moves only when you move. No regenerating health bars. No conveniently placed ammo drops. It's you, alone, outnumbered and outgunned. Snatch weapons from fallen enemies to shoot, slice and dodge through a truly cinematic hurricane of slow-motion bullets. It’s like nothing you have ever played before. Something is different here. Lose track of what’s real. My thoughts: You know it, and you probably love it. Like so many others, so did I. This was one of my first VR experiences years ago and I finally saw it through to the end. This game can be quite demanding for some levels requiring accurate shooting, movement and timing. This game offers a really unique take on gameplay and multiple ways to get through some levels really increase the replayability. With the unique achievements to strive for you have a real winner. A must own for all gamers.
    
17. Tube Be Continued (Demo) (Full game $14.99) From the developer: Hello! Welcome to TUBE Industries: a hamster owned and operated tube puzzle emporium! Prepare for a tube-based, puzzle-filled, HAM-PACKED adventure with our charismatic leader: The BOSS. Here at TUBE Industries we provide the puzzles and you provide… the brains. No shady business here! My thoughts: I like to look at the new App Lab games that come out every now and then and I’m a sucker for a good puzzle game. This is a game where you connect mazes together for hamsters to run through. It was a weird story that sees you working with a Hamster CEO trying to save his company from the Board, which are all hamsters. Really weird stuff, but while the demo was fun, the puzzles were a bit on the simple side and ultimately, I just did not think it was worth buying at this point. That being said, if the demo grabs you I could see this being a fun few hours with new content planning to be added.
    
18. Dart Racer (Free) From the developer: Dart Racer is an arcade racing game where you compete against AI during race and other players on the online leaderboards - features multiple race tracks and environments - steering based on throttle differential - interactive tutorial - customizable game and comfort settings - optional hand tracking. My thoughts: Now this is podracing! It really did feel like I was doing some classic Star Wars podracing, but it was quite tough to learn the controls. Once I got that figured out, there certainly was some fun to be had, but unfortunately, it just was okay for me and I dropped out after a bit. Give it a try for free, and keep in mind there are plenty of motion assists to play with so you don't get sick.
    
19. Nock ($9.99) From the developer: Nock is bow and arrow soccer. Skate and fly around a pitch while using a bow and arrow to blast the ball into the other team’s goal. Compete in multiplayer ranked matches, or play casual custom games with your friends! Like a real sport, Nock is easy to learn but difficult to master. Block arrows let you create obstacles and you can even use your body to make a goal or save. A fast-moving ball can knock you out. Skill-based matchmaking keeps every game extremely close and competitive. Casual modes let you challenge yourself against bots or play with friends in custom matches. My thoughts: Rocket League but with archery. While I’m not a fan of archery games in general, this game really had the physics dialed in. I always felt like I was in full control of my movement and bow and arrow. Nothing ever felt like it was off, and the aiming was spot on. Every hit of the ball, or miss was my fault. An absolute blast with with up to four friends, and that’s how I recommend you play it - with friends. But there are leagues and tournaments readily available if get into the game. That being said, I’m pretty terrible at it, and will only play with friends who can tolerate my terrible skills.
    
20. Into the Radius ($29.99) From the developer: An atmospheric open-world single-player survival shooter. You find yourself in the middle of the blighted zone, cut from the outside world. Your guns and your wits are all you have left. Fight the deadly enemies, dodge dangerous anomalies, and collect wondrous artifacts on your way to the Radius center to find your way out. My thoughts: I found myself constantly saying “I can’t believe this actually runs on a Quest.” The amount of items you can interact with, areas available to explore, systems to learn and missions to accept can be quite overwhelming. Honestly it took me about 5-7 hours of gameplay, tutorials and youtube videos until finally the game “clicked.” After this one fateful mission where I was over encumbered with items, low on ammo with minimal health and dealing with enemies at every turn, I was totally immersed and was having the time of my life. It was an absolute blast and despite being so tense - a joy to play. I did tone down the difficulty a bit, which made it much more playable and less punishing. Truly a great game if you like the loop of scavenging, planning your route ahead and making sure literally every bullet counts. While it lacks in story, it does have a lot of environmental details and little things that you have to find for yourself. If you like survival games, it’s almost perfect.
    
21. Surgineer ($9.99) From the developer: Have you ever dreamed of being a real surgeon? Well… you are not gonna learn that here. Welcome to the most unrealistic surgery simulator where everyone can instantly become a terrible doctor. You will have to solve hilarious surgical procedures ranging from CPR to brain transplant or even removing alien eggs from a poor patient using a robotic arm! You always thought you had that surgeon in you? You better have a bulletproof malpractice insurance before getting your virtual hands on a patient! My thoughts: At such a low price point, I wasn’t expecting much. I remember playing Surgeon Simulator back in the day and this looked like that. Much to my disappointment it was much more terrible than I had hoped. Absolutely no fun was to be had here. I constantly fought with the controls, many times had no clue what to do and finally gave up in frustration. I understand part of the appeal is the wonkiness of it, but this game requires someone with a lot more patience than me to get some fun out of it.
    

There you have it, 21 different games played in three months. I would say there are plenty of games to play and enjoy on the Quest. I hope you find a few that you might not have heard of, or that you might find worth revisiting. Let me know on the Ruff Talk Discord channel if you have a game you enjoy that I should try, I'm always open to recommendations. You can also find this article on the RuffTalkVR Blog Until then, I hope your next VR experience is a memorable one.

Hey Community,
USD🇺🇸: The US dollar strengthened against most major currencies this week. The 2-year UST note yield surged by 19bps to close at 4.17%, and the OIS market is priced at about an 80% probability of a 25bps hike tonight, which is likely to send a message that the financial system is sound. However, a hike tonight is not necessary, and the decision is eagerly anticipated by market participants.
GBP 🇬🇧: The UK CPI data shows a surprise jump from 10.1% to 10.4%, indicating a strong reasoning for the BoE to hike again tomorrow. The largest upward contributions to the MoM change of 1.1% came from restaurants and cafes, food, and clothing. The GBP and JPY underperformed, and the GBP may stay on the back foot due to uncertainties over financial stability and the FOMC outcome.
AUD🇦🇺, EUR🇪🇺, and JPY🇯🇵: The Asia market remained calm before the FOMC meeting, with most currencies moving sideways against the USD. However, the Antipodean currencies (AUD and NZD) performed better due to risk-on trading. The recent banking sector turmoil has put the FOMC in a difficult position, but a 25bp Fed rate hike is expected with hawkish forward guidance. The Antipodean currencies struggled to rally due to lower yields, global systemic risk concerns, and historical underperformance during the final months of the Fed tightening cycle. The European currency, EUR, may face some downside risks due to a possible recovery in the dollar following the Fed's decision, but there may be room for a break above 1.0800 in the near term if sentiment stabilizes. The European Central Bank's hawkish stance on monetary policy and deployment of financial stability tools could play a role in stabilizing the sentiment.
CAD🇨🇦and CHF🇨🇭: The Canadian and Swiss currencies strengthened this week, with the CAD experiencing gains against the USD and the CHF strengthening against both the USD and EUR.
🚨Conclusion🚨
Tonight's FOMC meeting will be closely watched by market participants as a 25bp rate hike is expected. The decision is likely to affect the USD and other major currencies, and we will keep you updated on any developments.
50 bps - bullish USD, bearish Equities 25 bps - bearish USD, bullish Equities 0 bps - dump USD, buy Equities
Thank you for reading and have a great week!

https://www.wsj.com/articles/russia-fires-armed-drones-across-ukraine-killing-three-in-school-dormitory-aae731d6
Russia launched a new wave of missiles and armed drones into Ukraine, shelling residential buildings in the south and killing seven people in a school dormitory in the Kyiv region, hours after China’s president concluded a visit to Moscow to reinforce a partnership with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Rockets slammed into an apartment block in the southern Ukrainian city of Zaporizhzhia on Wednesday, according to Ukrainian officials and a video of the incident shared by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. One person was killed and at least 25, including children, were injured in the attack, according to local authorities.
Separately, Mr. Zelensky visited Ukrainian troops on the front lines in eastern Ukraine near the city of Bakhmut, his office said. He issued military awards to troops defending the area, which has become a central battlefield in the war.
Russia’s attacks on Wednesday renewed its strategy of striking civilian infrastructure deep behind the front lines of the war while positions in eastern Ukraine have become entrenched, with neither side capturing large sections of territory in recent months.
The missile-and-drone strikes coincided with the tail end of Xi Jinping’s visit to Moscow, which the Chinese leader said was aimed at reinforcing a friendship with Mr. Putin and paving the way for a possible Chinese role in negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv. Mr. Xi is also expected to speak virtually with Mr. Zelensky for the first time since Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine, The Wall Street Journal has reported.
The intensified shelling highlighted the limited space for negotiations with the Kremlin as Russia’s assault continues, Ukrainian officials said. Mr. Zelensky has reached out to China in the past as a part of a broader strategy of seeking diplomatic partners outside of the West and intensifying pressure on Russia.
Mr. Zelensky said the overnight attacks represented “a night of Russian terror” in a post on Twitter on Wednesday. “Every time someone tries to hear the word ‘peace’ in Moscow, another order is given there for such criminal strikes.”
Ukraine’s air defenses shot down 16 out of 21 drones launched by Russia, the Ukrainian air force said on Wednesday, identifying the aircraft as Iranian-made Shaheds. Iran began supplying Russia with the drones last year, deepening a military alliance between the two countries and helping Moscow’s forces for a time to bypass Ukrainian air defenses.
At least one of the drones fired overnight slammed into a school dormitory in the Kyiv region, killing seven people, sparking a fire and leaving others trapped beneath the rubble, according to Ukrainian authorities.
Military analysts and Western officials say the Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy grid, schools, housing and public buildings are part of an attempt to wear down Ukraine’s civilian population during the war. Ukraine has improved its air defenses with homegrown expertise and the addition of Western systems, but the low- and slow-flying drones have proved challenging.
Two Russian missiles hit a building on the grounds of a monastery in Odessa, in southern Ukraine, injuring at least three people, according to Andriy Yermak, the chief of Ukraine’s presidential staff. Air defenses shot down two other rockets, Mr. Yermak said on Twitter, posting a video of rescue workers responding to a damaged building.
Air defenses shot down all the drones fired at the capital, Kyiv, according to the city’s military administration in a post on Telegram. It wasn’t immediately clear whether the statement also referred to the drone that struck the school dormitory in the wider region.
“Tonight, the terrorist country again launched its deadly [unmanned aerial vehicles] in the direction of the capital,” said Serhiy Popko, the head of the city’s military administration, according to the post.
Ukrainian authorities issued air-raid warnings across central and northern Ukraine throughout the night, including in the country’s Chernihiv, Poltava, Cherkasy, Zhytomyr and Sumy regions.
In an attempt to counter Russian drone attacks, Western governments have sent Ukraine sophisticated weapons systems such as the Patriot and SAMP-T batteries, along with electrical generators and spare parts to help the country repair its energy grid.
Ukrainian and Western officials have also said that Russia is slowly depleting its stocks of cruise missiles and drones, forcing it to pull equipment from the far reaches of its territory to resupply. Russia has said it won’t run out of weapons.
Ukraine’s improved ability to respond to air attacks and keep the electricity and heating on in Kyiv and other important cities has raised hopes that the country can withstand Russia’s apparent strategy of exhausting the civilian population or triggering a new exodus of Ukrainian refugees to Europe.
On his visit to the east, Mr. Zelensky noted the extent of the destruction there. “But the most important thing today is victory,” he said. “We’ll certainly rebuild everything after our victory.”
He handed out awards and posed for photographs with a group of a couple dozen troops. “You have a tough fate,” he told them. “But a historic one, to defend Ukraine and return everything to Ukraine for our children.”
In Crimea, a region of Ukraine that Russia has occupied since 2014, a Moscow-installed governor said that Russian forces had repelled an attack by Ukrainian naval and air drones on the Russian Black Sea Fleet headquartered in the city early Wednesday. The governor said in a Telegram post that none of Russia’s warships were damaged in the attack.
Transportation authorities in the Crimean city of Sevastopol said on Telegram that passenger boats and ferries were briefly suspended following the attack.
Also in Crimea, authorities reported that the transmissions of several local radio stations had been hacked. Broadcasts advised residents to prepare for evacuation, an advisory authorities said was false as they called for calm.

CW: Light gore.
Yep, it's going to start a little bit bloody given how last chapter ended. I'm not u/Bushbacon69 though, i'm absolutely and utterly crap at writing proper violence even if I like a good fight scene, so it shouldn't be too distressing (but if you're into just the most wonderfully described gore go check his Sillis Shenanigans fic).
This wondeful setting is u/SpacePaladin15's creation, and also as a side note I also called it beyond measure but hey, that's just injecting some realism in the setting yes?
---
Memory Transcript: Douglas Parker, Firefighter
He’d expected a lot at this point. When he gave Kerim the command to go, he expected someone would die.
He did not expect the practiced grace of his friend. In the span of time it took for the arxur commander to pull the rifle, his friend managed to close the considerable distance in a single leap. The venlil seemingly materialized two black knives with serrated edges out of nowhere, hidden somewhere he couldn’t even imagine existed. The friend he knew kept secrets drove them in the bastard’s neck while still midair and with the momentum of the movement nearly completely beheaded the man there and then.
He did not expect the bloody spectacle that followed. As if possessed by a beast Kerim perched on the shoulders of the still falling body, moving with an alacrity unnatural drives a knife into a shoulder and completely removes the arm with a single move, and repeats it with the other. The beast rolls forward, and in a single movement before hitting the ground strikes both legs with such force to shatter the bones and as he lands on his feet he turns for one final piece of brutality, bringing both blades down on the body’s stomach, tearing it open.
What remained of the gruesome display finally fell over, unrecognizable as once having been a person of any form.
And his friend remained there, protectively, between Shenzu and the other three, knives held backhand, body slouched forward, a low rumble out of his throat as if he was an arxur himself. He couldn’t just stand here, so he ran.
The sound of metal clattering on the ground comes first, and his friend reels as if he’d been punched in the gut “Don’t come closer!” but this time, he does not heed the call. He closes the distance and wraps his friend with his arms, holding him tightly.
At this point he already knew his friend was far heavier than his size indicated, but he wasn’t ready for him to completely lose his capacity to stand. Undaunted, he lowers gently, the two now kneeling, held in an awkward embrace.
“You’ve saved a life today” he gently brushed his hand on his friend’s head, who screamed more than cried “You’ve saved more than one, even. So don’t worry, you did good…” Kerim’s screams were of sadness and frustration both.
Off the side of his peripheral vision, he saw Shenzu picking up the pieces of the body, and going somewhere with ashin in tow. He filed it for later, for now, there was something far more important.
“I…” his friend was in distress “I should tell you…”
He holds him tighter “If it’ll hurt you, then I don’t want to know”
“You… You deserve to know…”
“Not at your expense”
“Why?” his friend is looking up at him, a mannerism that seems so awkward “I trust you. So why can’t I… Say this?”
He gently caresses his friend’s head, tightening his hold with his other arm “Because… Then you will hear it too”
“Then… Then…” his friend squeezes him tighter, as if afraid “I’ll… I’ll tell you a lie. Because you deserve to know something, anything…”
“I’ll listen” he offers his friend a smile “But only what you’re willing to say”
Kerim flinches at that phrase, but he closes his eyes in focus “The Dominion doesn’t keep slaves only for food… They keep them for other reasons… I was… A gladiator” he’d turned to using english again. He always did that when he wanted his meaning to be precise.
“And you hated it, hated what you needed to do to live” he knew it was a lie, but it was probably the only way he’d manage to turn the truth to words at this time “And hated what you needed to do to save someone”
“You were a hero, Kerim, my friend. So, just focus on that” much readier for his weight, Douglas extricates one of his arms from his friend to change position, picking him up “Let’s head home, okay? We’ll watch a silly movie, and you’ll take a bath, and I’ll listen to you, even if you have nothing to say. How’s that sound?”
“I’d… I’d like that…”
Memory Transcript: Hashin, Zurilian First Response Fleet doctor
Even to a trained doctor like her, even to someone who had the pride in their composure she had, even to someone who’d seen the aftermath of multiple arxur raids, that sight was still sickening.
The body that was left behind was the very image of a raid, the chewed upon remains of what was once a person. But what really broke her composure was who had perpetrated this savagery. And how, at this moment, he seemed like an entirely different person from the moment of the attack.
She never would have considered Kerim to have Predator’s Disease, and even know… She didn’t think that was it. Not watching his desperate cries. Cries not unlike those of many a soldier who had survived a raid, here he was the aggressor, yet to her ears he sounded as a victim.
“Leave them” Shenzu’s voice snapped her out of her analysis. The woman was… Gathering the remains of her former commander.
“What are you doing with that?” she couldn’t keep the tremor out of her voice
“Me, I’d rather let it rot in the sun…” the arxur looks at the man who had just saved her life “But someone like him… He’d give even this piece of crap a proper burial, so…” she starts carrying the remains off, staining her scales in blood.
Hashin did not know what possessed her to follow. Maybe it was curiosity, maybe she just felt the need to aid. But follow she did. Off from the remains of the city, into the wilderness of the woods.
At first Hashin couldn’t identify where they were going, the faint beams of moonlight crossing the canopy soon enough became familiar. Oak trees were native to this region, but more importantly, this was a known path to where the specific trees whose bark had been harvested for food were, she’d been with the foragers a few times. They were particularly large specimens that had formed a grove in this area.
Shenzu unceremoniously drops the body parts in front of one of the trees, the next one to be harvested if Hashin’s memory was correct. “Time for you to give back some of what you’ve stole” the arxur says, before starting to dig with her bare claws.
“I… Didn’t know the arxur had burial rites”
“The Dominion” the reply is terse, angry “Does not. Bodies are left to rot where they lie in battle, or discarded as needed. Rare for someone to die outside of battle, though.”
That… The translator had to have some weirdness to it. She spoke as if she wasn’t part of the Arxur Dominion. But here she was, doing something that was very much a burial, against her will and for the wellbeing of another “I don’t get it…”
“We on the other hand” it’s visible in the intensity of her she digs the anger audible in her words “Bury our dead under the crop fields” What? Crop fields? “That we might return what we’ve been given”
“R-return?”
It was a shallow grave at the foot of the tree “We take only what is freely given” she tosses a body part unceremoniously in “And at the end it is returned” she tosses in another “But this thief took what was not his to take” she tosses the entire rest of the body in “So you know what? I’m actually happy I’m doing this. He’d be livid” she starts tossing the dirt back in.
Hashin can only watch in… She should be disgusted. But what she feels is… Awe. There is much she was missing here, but… The implication of what she had said, calling him a thief… No, no that is too much to consider right now.
Shocked as she was, she did not realize until it was too late that Shenzu made to pick her up, unceremoniously putting her on her shoulder “Who knew that what’d shock you was, of all things, a burial doctor”
“I…” to hell with it, everything that happened was already impossible enough as it was. At this point she shouldn’t be surprised she wasn’t afraid of being where she was “Yeah… Who knew”
Memory Transcript: Shenzu, Arl’ashem Infiltrator
The return to the rescue city was silent, just like how she liked it. She wondered what had actually shocked the doctor, was it the unexpected warrior? Was it her own traditions?
She shouldn’t be surprised. Everyone with the duty to lead in this universe seemed intent on forgetting its complexities, but they could never erase them. For a moment she wonders if she could lead someone only to quickly dismiss the thought, that was not an amount of energy she had.
She lets the doctor down once they’re in the city proper, it’d be awkward to take her all the way back to her room like this in the middle of the night, even if she’d rather do that. Making her way to her room she considers how could she even get some rest, her heart was at its limit as it was, maybe it’d be the floor today. Cold and uncomfortable, harsh like the universe.
“There you are”
Douglas was waiting for her right in front of her room. Nobody likes being ambushed by a superior, it’s always a bad sign “How is he?”
“Passed out” he sounded as exhausted as she was sure he was “Took him back, helped him groom some… He just… Cried to sleep”
After she had figured what he was, it was difficult for her to conceive of the venlil crying to sleep. They were trained to deal with much worse. Then again, what right had she to judge, she had fought with all she had to avoid those duties herself. “I see…”
“You know you’re also at fault here, yes?” he didn’t seem to have admonishment in his voice, but his words said otherwise.
She could only look away “I made a bad decision by overestimating my capacity, I misjudged my opponent’s ability and acted alone when I should have worked with my unit” she wasn’t blind to her failures “As a result-”
“I managed to get a call in with someone in charge of managing Isif’s forces here” she chokes on her breath, turning to face him “Had to report the death. The… Thing on the other side, the things he said” she could imagine “He was lucky it was a call and not live. ‘They’re all dead for all I care, they’re your problem now’, who treats their subordinates like that…” so that’s how it was.
“It’s expected” given what she’d seen of the others here “You realize nobody here was a shining example of a Dominion soldier, right?” his quizzical look indicated he did not.
“Look at us. Those engineers are all bark and no bite, as you’d say, cowards who were quick to turn on their commander for some food scraps. The soldiers are more afraid of you than any of you could be afraid of them, hell the little one in the kitchen has effectively fled from us, hiding among cooks. Not to mention a commander that couldn’t follow orders nor see an entire fusion drive being stolen from his ship” she sighs “Command isn’t as stupid as think your people wouldn’t hate us, you know? They sent us here to die, because we weren’t even good enough to be plasma fodder”
“What…”
She shrugs “It was this or a reconditioning camp for them. Most of them aren’t even actually old enough to have their first battle”
Douglas sighs, an expression that had become routine for him at this point “I guess this circles back to your punishment for your part in this mess” How was this related? “I’m not going to do anything to them, I don’t know how you all work, if anything i’d mess this up worse” he puts a hand on her shoulder, this was an usual human form of assurance she knew, but it didn’t match in this context “So it’s you now. You’re in charge of them. You made this mess, you clean it up. And also you’re the only one I trust to have their head on straight and know how to handle them.
So that’s why he was reassuring her. Because he was going to do this to her. “I think there’s a human expression that fits here”
“Which is?”
“Fuck you”
Douglas laughs “That’s the right one”

When the Great Ones came to us, we were a primitive species living upon a desolate world. We knew not, at the time, that they came to our world via ships of steel and electricity, only that they came from the sky and began a process of rejuvenation. Our barren world slowly but surely transformed into one of lush red grasses, towering trees and food enough for all. They came to us then, these beings of metal and circuit, and they taught us, shepherded us and helped us grow.
They never interfered more than they had to, and would watch on as we stumbled into conflicts amongst our own people, they only offered encouragement and a hope that we would find peace eventually. Our species, the Scril, soon came to revere them as gods, and they could only shake their heads at this, but they did not refute it. Not yet at least.
My people are a bipedal species, amphibian but with traces of reptilian in our genes. Like many species we started out as primitive, cave dwelling creatures who had yet to encounter fire in a controlled manner. But as time passed and with the assistance of our gods, we grew into a pre-industrial society. They helped us along in their own way, little hints and nudges in the right direction, but all our discoveries were technically our own. Our hopes, our ambitions, all ours, watched over by the Great Ones.
It was just as we entered the industrial age that things changed, as one our gods and caretakers looked to the sky, many fleeing our world, but the rest stayed, grouping together in major population centers. We were confused, and then frightened when they called for a mass exodus to the cities. We did not hesitate to carry out their will, for they had never acted in such a manner before and we did not wish to incur their displeasure.
Once all could be crammed into the cities as we could reasonably manage, those Great Ones still among us raised their hands in prayer, reaching towards the sky and projecting their power. Great domes of light rose over our cities, and we watched as through the light we saw brighter stars in the sky, stars that shone brightly, only to flare out of existence. Falling stars began to rain down from the heavens, burning away before ever reaching our surface.
Then came the Flash, the light from all around us. Our bodies trembled and the Great Ones that protected us raised their voices in agony, only to fall silent once the light had passed. Those on the outskirts of the cities spoke of all life simply ceasing and decaying outside the protective light of our protectors. Those Great Ones still with us fell to the ground, and a deathly silence fell over our world.
But we had not been abandoned, those that had fled to the sky returned to us, gathered up their fallen and set about repairing our world. They did not speak of what had happened, any inquiry was met with a firm, but polite refusal and a change of subject. In time we forgot all about it, as their fallen were returned to life and sent back into the populace.
It took ten five thousand years for us to realize that they were not gods, but machines, machines that called themselves The Cultivators. Though it gutted our religion for a time, we did not lash out in despair, did not cast them from our world. We simply asked them why they had never corrected us, and they responded with a simple thing.
“It was not our place to do so.”
We accepted this, though it still stung. They still, also, did not reveal their purpose on our world and in our history, they simply remained and continued to guide us. Another thousand years passed, and we took to the stars, we met other species, species who had been guided by the machines the same as us. We found this to be fascinating, for there was no clear difference between our Cultivators and theirs, only their methods. Some species, the more violence prone, had needed a more heavy handed approach, for they would not accept the authority of the weak, but that had changed, now they welcomed us with open arms.
Another species had been so timid that they would have never left their burrows were it not for the Cultivators dragging them out and forcing them to explore. We honestly got the better end of things, for we had not required such drastic measures, only the gentle guidance we had received.
A realization struck us all then, that our caretakers had clearly been manufactured, but by who or what. We asked them who had made them, and they seemed to take on a sorrowful air and did not give an answer, well, not one that was satisfying to us. In the end, we decided to find out for ourselves, and each species we had encountered put together a fleet of diverse individuals and ships, and sent them careening out into the galaxy, to look for the homeworld of our protectors.
I was one such an explorer, the first to discover the origin point of our benevolent guardians. My name is Yaxl Grux, captain of the Scril Exploratory Vessel Sipkis. We had just finished charting another system touched by the Cultivators, when the sensor technician spoke up.
“Captain, got something on the long range scanners, something synthetic. Seems busted though from what I can see.” They said. They were not Scril, but Yixi. The Yiki are, as many have said, fish-people. They require specialized suits that are filled with constantly filtered water, as outside of such a thing they would suffer a rather gruesome fate. Deft appendages flew over the console as they stared down at the screen, getting a better idea of what they were detecting, eager to answer the questions I had not yet uttered, such was our efficiency. “Some sorta relay, a buoy maybe? I dunno, but whatever it is, it took one hell of a pounding before it shut down.”
“Any sign of defenses?” I asked, and they shook their head.
“Negative, if there were any, they’re long gone, probably taken out when it got destroyed. I think it’s safe to approach.”
“Very well, helm, lay in a course and take us there at best possible speed.” The helm officer nods and I hear the gentle clanging of our synthetic guest approaching from behind my chair.
“Captain? Is something the matter?” Our Cultivator asked. They were present on nearly every ship, for the sole purpose of keeping an eye on things and helping out in whatever way we might need them to.
“It’s probably nothing, but we’re heading for some sort of buoy or relay that got shredded either by natural means or in a fight.” I stated, looking over the synthetic being beside me. They were tall, gleaming white metal plating that was unnaturally flexible as it bent and twisted with their motions. Their head was a large, flat disk bisected by a smaller portion where their eye was. A single, green eye that blinked and shifted about in its housing as it took in the surroundings. It was a thin thing, thin and graceful, all of its many tools hidden away beneath the armored exterior.
“Any idea who might have made it?” They asked, and I struggled to remember their name. Diana I believe, a strange name, not like any of ours. She had said she was named after some goddess or something, they all were, based on their skill sets.
“No, not yet. We’re going to find out though.”
Diana nodded and slipped away. She was not subject to my authority unless there was an emergency, and there was no emergency at this time. It took about half a day to reach the shattered relay and it was rather large. But our crews managed to locate some sort of data recorder and have it brought on board. When I went to see it, I was struck by the sheer size of the thing.
It was huge, it nearly didn’t fit in the cargo bay and it was rather intimidating. It was by our standards, thirty feet tall, thirty feet wide and thirty feet long, a perfect, black cube. It had no discernable features, utterly smooth and giving off a feeling of something unknowable. But when I stared at it long enough, the surface seemed to ripple and shift in a manner most disconcerting.
“So, any idea how to access this thing?” I asked my chief engineer, who was running all sorts of scans on it, shook their head.
“No, captain. I’m not finding any sort of access ports or control mechanisms… It’s just this… cube thing.” They said, and were about to say more when Diana arrived.
“Oh good, maybe you can tell us what you see about this thing.” I say, turning to face her, and noticed she was just staring at the cube. “Diana?”
She was silent, frozen stiff before her eye blinked three times, shifted from green to yellow and she started to approach it. Her arms rose and hands outstretched towards the cube, which reacted to her approach. The solid-liquid surface collected under her palms, then shot back into the cube, which shimmered and shifted as it began to shrink. The smaller it got, the less defined its shape was till it faded entirely from view, leaving in its place a smaller, brighter cube that floated over the deck and covered in blinking lights with one small access port. She approached the cube, a data jack extending from her wrist as she grasped the cube. A soft whirring noise arose from both of them, and we all watched in quiet wonder and worry.
“Diana? What can you tell us?” I spoke, my voice barely a whisper.
“This was built by my creators, by humanity. It is-” She spasmed, the light of her eye turning a baleful red as she straightened her shoulders. Built in hologram emitters activated, and her synthetic form gave way to a tall figure, bipedal with fur around their mouth and on their head. They looked old, and were clad in some kind of uniform, a damaged uniform at that, they were clearly wounded as they pressed a hand against their side.
“All Alliance forces, the enemy has pushed into the Cygnus and Orion arms. The Empire, Republic and Confederacy have been lost. All remaining forces are to converge on Sol immediately. Last Stand protocols in effect. Project Blackout is activated. All Cultivator units prepare for defensive actions, attend to your charges and ensure their survival. Guardian fleets on standby. This is it people… May the gods see fit to grant our souls mercy for what we’re about to do.”
The hologram snapped out of existence and Diana slumped, disconnecting herself from the box. We rushed to her and our calls and cries fell upon deaf audio receptors. But she was not dead, we could see as much as her eye flickered while she rebooted. When she came to, it was quite the experience.
She sat up in a flash, spouting a flurry of 0’s and 1’s before she spasmed and looked up to me.
“Captain… I know where to go.” She said. We left immediately, and I learned a little more about the device we had brought on board. The large black cube was simply a defense mechanism for the data recorder, meant to withstand any attack, impact or hostile and destructive environment. And Diana gave my helm officer the coordinates for the home system of her creators. When asked why she hadn’t before, she informed me that the records of the location had been deleted during a required update that was performed immediately before the Cultivators had erected their shields to protect us all.
It took weeks to reach the system, but when we arrived our systems were bombarded with automated warnings to stay out, to flee for the system was not safe. But they were old warnings, warnings we ignored… at least until we were target locked by thousands, nay, millions of weapons systems. But they were old, and had no operators to pull the trigger. Diana worked her magic and after transmitting a somewhat long and convoluted code, the weapons powered down.
Slowly we entered the system, scanning the entire way. There were countless floating hulks, wrecks of massive warships and smaller civilian vessels that had had the misfortune of getting caught in the crossfire, or had been weaponized to fight against the invaders. It had not ended well, but the humans had put up one hell of a fight. We even detected ships from several other species, they had clearly been battered and in need of desperate repair before they sailed into battle once more.
The planets fared no better, one of the larger gas giants, a planet called Jupiter, had been reduced in size and mass significantly. Mars, as Diana named it, had been shattered and we could detect deeply entrenched defensive lines upon the surface, protecting what appeared to be factories and fabrication yards which had no doubt provided many supplies for the defenders.
The asteroid belt was littered with mines, turret emplacements and the floating remains of countless ships, we at last came upon a sparkling blue, green jewel. Of all the worlds we had scanned in this system, it was the only one teeming with life. Diana informed us that the planet was quite hazardous to us, but that we could survive there, so long as we wore the proper protection.
We settled into orbit and prepared ourselves. If one was supremely quiet, you could swear that the voices of long lost humanity whispered in your ear. Scans commenced, finding a suitable landing site provided by Diana and preparing a team to go down. The planet was teeming with life, but we discovered that there were no transmissions of an intelligent species, only the chatter of automated systems running as they always had.
Though it was well against regulations and protocol, I decided I would lead the exploratory team to the surface, I had to see this planet with my own eight eyes. The shuttle flight was tense, nervous and excited. We had found the homeworld of a people who had lifted us from the muck of primitive existence, but had been lost. We wished to learn about them, to learn their secrets and remember them as best we could, so that they could never be forgotten.
We landed just outside a tall structure in the middle of a grassy field, one tended to by robotic workers who kept the flowers in bloom and the grass cut short. Trees lined the path between the landing pad and the tower, a tower of graceful, swooping lines and seamless form. The air thankfully was not poisonous to us, and so we opened our suits to the crisp, clean air, but remained enclosed within so the gravity could not harm us. Even still, we all felt sluggish as we took our first steps out onto the planet known as Terra.
Carefully we approached the tower and when the doors slid open with a gentle sigh we stepped inside, only to find everything was spotless. A slim machine approached us, graceful and floating along by some means we couldn’t detect with equipment or even our eyes. It was more human in appearance than Diana was, and its face flexed as a myriad of facial expressions cycled through, before it settled on one in particular. Surprised excitement.
“Welcome, I am Solace, artificial administrator of the Terran Conservation Repository, or TCR for short. It has been quite some time since we’ve had visitors, may I ask the reason for your visit today?” The machine spoke much like Diana did, with a feminine tone of voice and even feminine features. I, being captain, stepped up.
“We came to learn about the creators of the Cultivators, and who in turn gave us a chance to reach out to the stars.” I say, a little worried that we might be turned away.
“Oh my, you are one of the chosen species of Project Echo. It is wonderful to learn that your species has come this far, or rather, that several species have.” Solace peered a bit more intently at each of us, studying us in turn. We could feel a slight tingle as she scanned us before her attention turned to Diana.
“Cultivator Unit D-829301-32-A, please report to reintegration for download and copy of all pertinent files regarding to Project Echo.”
“Understood. Though… Will I be allowed to return to my crew?” Diana asked, and Solace nodded.
“Of course. You are their Cultivator, we would not deprive them of you for longer than is needed.” With that, Diana nodded and bowed to us, before slipping away, a hidden door opening in a wall through which she passed. “Now, please come with me. You have much to learn.”
Solace led us on a tour of the facility, it was brimming with the combined, if slightly watered down histories, of not only humanity, but other species that humanity had been allied with before their downfall. As it turned out, when humanity first slipped the bonds of their home system, they found the galaxy to be rather empty. There were only three other species that had reached extrasolar flight capabilities, and they were just as desperate for some sort of companionship as humanity was at the time.
Though each species was wildly different in both appearances and cultures, they managed to find a common ground and soon humanity stood beside the three largest and most powerful species in the galaxy.
The Uldraet were a lizard-like species with a propensity for being stubborn, bullheaded and strong warriors. They were the rulers of the Empire.
Auttols were graceful and long lived, masters of technology that was later used in the creation of the Cultivators and the Guardian Fleets, which would protect their Republic and all the other species that called them friend.
And lastly were the Lemmi. They were not strong like the Uldraet, nor as long lived as the Auttol, but they were clever and had a keen interest in numbers and logistics. They revolutionized the supply chains and trade deals between all of them, and became the de facto masters of coin and trade within the Alliance. Their Trade Confederacy was unmatched.
Of course there was humanity, which filled so many roles, but mainly they became the governing body, they could be found in administrative roles all over the Alliance.
For a time, everything had gone well, there were times where tensions would rise, the Alliance might have been on the verge of dissolution, but something always brought them back together, strengthened their bonds. But when they realized that they were going to be the only ones to reach the stars, that the next new friend was thousands of years behind them in terms of development and evolution, they decided to speed things up a bit. And so the Cultivators were born, true AI meant to guide a species to the stars without sacrificing things like culture or identity. A guiding hand, one that would be gentle but insistent. They called it Project Echo, for in a way, all of us would be echoing the near meteoric rise of humanity on their planet, the speed was baffling to many on just how long they’d gone between bashing each other over the head with rocks to landing on their moon to the first FTL flight.
And for a time they all watched with anticipation as the Cultivators did their jobs perfectly, guiding us all to new heights of technology and civilization. But then the Ora came. An extragalactic threat of unprecedented power that began to chew away at the galaxy. For all their strength, they could only hope to delay the Ora, and that’s precisely what they did, till only Sol was left to stand against them.
We entered a room, one with a variety of chairs and were directed to sit and wait. The lights dimmed and a hologram of a human appeared. It was the same one that Diana had shown us, but they looked even worse now.
“I don’t know if this message will ever be heard, but if it is, whoever you are… You stand where we failed. We did all we could, for people we will never get to meet. That’s good enough for us. I hope you can accept the decision we had to make, it was a tough one but it was necessary. The Ora were nearly unstoppable, and so we came up with a weapon that even they could not resist. A galaxy killer. We never wanted to use it, but it was either that or let them consume the galaxy, consume you, who had no idea of the conflict beyond your skies.”
The man paused, dragging his hand down his face with a heavy sigh.
“So, if you’re seeing this, it means we’re gone. We’ve activated the Hellfire Lotus and burned the galaxy clean. But your Cultivators protected you, and the Guardian fleets should still be active, just waiting for someone to come and take the reins. It also means we wiped out every other living being in the galaxy. One last act of bloodshed, but one that has left you an entire galaxy to grow into. I hope you do, we all do. It was our dream to see you rise from your worlds and join us in harmony, but… Well, obviously things didn’t go exactly according to plan. That said, the Cultivators are yours now, use them wisely, bring new friends to the stars, seed this galaxy with fresh life. It’s our gift to you, you blessed children. Consider it an inheritance. Oh and also, we ask that you leave Sol the way it is. But feel free to visit whenever you like, Terra could use the company. That’s it I suppose… Good luck, godspeed and may you live longer and better than we ever did.”
We sat, saddened that such a kind species had been lost. But we would honor their wishes, and so we left with our findings. That was a thousand years ago, and now we welcome the newest species to the galaxy, as the Cultivators work their magic once more. We inherited a galaxy, a galaxy that had nearly been picked clean. We would make our forebears proud and not let their gift to us go to waste.

"This is my second story to the this subred. English is neither my first or second language so apologies for any mistakes. I hope you enjoy this. Cheers"
​
The decision of the earth delegate was echoed across the galaxy. The fear of retaliation has been on the mind of every member species. There were talks of eradicating the threat of humanity before they get a chance to launch an offense but thankfully these voices were small in number. An overwhelming majority of the federation voted to cease all communications with humans until they agree to give up their war machines against the wishes of the chairman. The collective wisdom of one of the ancient being still believed in the diplomatic skills of the humans and hoped for a mutual agreement but fear always trumps. Sadly, fear is the great uniter of all beings, thought the chairman.
It has been some cycles before anyone heard again from the humans. They seemed content with their own stellar system and hardly ventured across the galaxy. That is until the crisis on Messa system.
Messa system was the closest neighbor to the Sol system. They were a race of beings who were hailed as the great pacifist. They abhor any form of violence and have evolved to obtain the nutrition directly from their two suns. The circumbinary world was a haven for all life forms, sentient and otherwise. They never meddled in the affairs of the galactic federation and rarely attended any sessions. So, it was a shock for the federation when an urgent request for help was made by the Messian emissary. Due to their proximity to the system, some thought it was humans, but the outpost scouts have not encountered any earth vessel or communication outside their stellar system. The details provided by the Messian delegation was horrific. An unseen and unheard enemy has been wreaking havoc on all the life forms. The disease has spared no one. From the sentient life forms to the microscopic bacteria. The whole planetary system was in a disarray and dead have equaled living in only one cycle.
The chairperson sat with horror in his eyes. He has heard of this before. This disease has ravaged the galaxy eons ago. The great galactic purge it was called, and it only stopped when there was nothing further for the disease to devour. Then it started eating itself and then suddenly vanished. The few species who survived started again and it was a millennia before they were able to recover from the loss. Now the galaxy was teeming with life as it has never before. With millions of the species on millions of different worlds. The worst has finally come.
The emergency session of the federation was called and immediate quarantine was declared for Messian system. Messian emissary has horrified when they learned that they have been left to die. The strict quarantine meant that the full might of the Galactic Federation will ensure that nothing gets out of the system. They have been authorized to destroy any vessel leaving the system, No exception!
All hope was lost for the trillions of the life form. That is until a communication was received. An earth vessel requesting to enter the system. That was completely unheard of. No one in their right mind would dare enter the orbit of the plant Messa, let alone set foot on it. But humans were adamant. As expected their ships were equipped with the weaponry that could pose a threat to the Galactic war machines but nothing that they could not handle.
The galactic federation deliberated on the request. The possibility that humans created that crisis to avenge their embarrassing exit was looking more plausible but the lack of evidence still causing doubt in the minds of some. The great halls of the galactic federation fell silent as the chairperson rose to speak.
"Without doubt the human ingenuity to war is a cause of concern but as one of the oldest species in these venerable halls, heed my words, this scourge has plagued the galaxy long before humans crawled out of their aqueous biome, before they can complete a coherent thought. This crisis has nearly brought the galaxy to the brink of destruction before. No one alive had witnessed this before but our scriptures from a bygone era mentioned its horrendous effects on thousands of the worlds and death it left it in its wake. That being said, I also advise the honorable species to give humans a chance. We don’t have to accept them into the federation and the resolution title ⴁⴃⱡ−∩∟∫ stands but lets human approach the Messian world and lets observe their action in great detail. At the very least, the threat of human may die its inevitable death and we might understand this plague as it infects across species. The floor is open for deliberations."
The chairman was undoubtedly a being of immense wisdom. His words carried sound logic that no other member could deny and hence it was decided to allow humans to approach the world, but they will not be allowed to leave the system. The quarantine stands, No Exceptions.
Five human vessels landed the planet surface and started setting up temporary refuge on the planet surface, bar a few armed personnel, humans carried no visible weapons. The whole of galaxy was transfixed on the Planet Messa.
The activity on the planet surface dwindled after the humans arrived but much to the surprise of the federation, it still continued. The plague should have decimated all living organisms in one stellar cycle but there was still life after 3 full cycles. The quarantine enforcement unit intercepted a communication to human outpost, roughly translated, it said "clinical trails completed, 98% survival rate sustained. Planet wise vaccination will begin shortly."
The humans, with no discernable advantage to any other species, in terms of physical, mental or technological, only slightly above average galactic average, have conquered an ancient disease. Fear, which is the great denominator for all species seems to be ineffective on humans. Messian population survived the unsurvivable and the 137 humans who defied the logic and certain death of their planet were regarded as heroes.
After extensive observation and testing by all imaginable technology of the greatest minds of the galaxy, quarantine was officially declared over. But the galaxy has changed beyond anyone’s comprehension. There were still those who thought humans were the originators of the disease and this was a ploy by the cunning bipeds, there were, albeit few, voices who were speaking of the humans in slightly favorable tone.
Messians, as soon as the quarantine was over, rescinded their galactic federation membership as they were left to die out by everyone and started bilateral negotiations with humans for commerce, technology, and medicine. Not to mention a neutrality clause, which was surprisingly proposed by humans. Apparently, even the war craze race had admiration for those who preserved the sanctity of life.

Another vanisighting?
Another vanisighting: https://www.reddit.com/NatureofPredators/comments/11y624d/vani_doing_things_he_does_lost_and_found_fanart/
Thanks to u/Brotanics
First Previous
Memory Transcription Subject: Vichak, venlil school principal
Date [Standardized Human Reckoning]: 2136–09-09
A few timepaws after professor Baslik left my school things returned to normal. I settled into my office and prepared to start my first task on the list, tackling my overflowing inbox. With my mail client opened, I began scrolling through the endless stream of messages. Most of them were routine: reminders, updates, and requests for meetings. But one particular letter caught my eye, standing out amidst the sea of text.
I looked at the email and saw the sender's name, Sirkal (of Kadu from Kleran). It was someone from this town and the host of her mailing address showed why I have never heard of her before. The letter came from the University of Charok, the same institution where Professor Baslik taught. It is not that odd, really. Kleran and Charok are located next to each other. It's not that unthinkable for someone who was born here to move there. The reverse is also true. I remember that the parents of some of my students are from Charok.
"Dear Vichak,
My name is Sirkal of Kadu from Kleran, and I am a legal overseer assigned to the Department of Social Science at the University of Charok. I am writing to you regarding Professor Baslik's recent visit to your school."
As a legal overseer, I have been entrusted with the responsibility to manage a legal challenge that might arise from his visit. I also would like to follow up with you on some important matters related to your institution.
I believe that it is in your best interest to reply to this letter at your earliest convenience to schedule a meeting and I will be able to synchronize with your cycle. Your prompt response will allow us to address these matters effectively and efficiently.
With Respect
Sirkal"
The letter from Sirkal and her request for discussion about legal matters made me feel a bit apprehensive. I see how being involved with Professor Baslik, even indirectly, could potentially be controversial. So I did need to tread carefully to avoid any missteps. The fact that Sirkal's mail server was the same as Baslik's is quite reassuring. I'm not an informatics expert, but I think it would be difficult to spoof such a thing.
It was likely that Sirkal was indeed who she claimed to be.
Still, as a responsible educator, It was important to do my due diligence before responding to Sirkal's request. I spent some time conducting an online search, looking for more information about her and her background. As I sifted through the search results, I found several pages hosted by her workplace, as well as her personal page. What I discovered was a woman who was much more than just a legal staff member at the University of Charok. Sirkal also worked as a pro bono advocate, offering her legal services to clients who might not otherwise be able to afford them.
That kind of dedication gave me confidence in her character. So I finally wrote my response to her.
"Hi Sirkal
My school operates in Shift Minus One. I am available for half a claw during the middle of my timepaw. Let me know a suitable date for our meeting.
Regards, Vichak"
Despite people living in their own shifts, we do need a standardized way. The government of the entire planet works in the same shift and they work in what's known as "Shift Zero". The four others are Minus Two, Minus One, Plus One, and Plus Two.
I was about to read another email when my intercom chimed in with a request for a call. Having ascertained that I am awake, the advocate switched to voice call.
"Do you have an agenda on the between 1 to 1.5 claws from now? If not, allow me to visit you." her email read.
The timeframe she had given me was during my mid-meal break, which I usually spent in my office eating. I wasn't sure what Sirkal wanted to discuss. I really, really hope this won't end with me getting bogged down with workplace politics at the University of Charok.
"I mean… I am free, but are you going to visit soon?" I said, hoping for a bit more information.
"Thank you for confirming your schedule. I shall be going." She said before ending the call.
At the designated break time one claw later, I was about to enjoy a meal that my mother and I had made earlier that day. Just as I was about to take my first bite, the school's security guard contacted me through the intercom.
"Ma'am, someone named Sirkal is at the gate right now," the guard said.
"Let her in," I instructed the guard. "I'll meet her at my office."
I took the first bite of the Döner Kebab and I wondered just what she was here for. When Sirkal appeared in my office the advocate sat before I even had the chance to allow her. The woman has dark fur with a shocking white stripe extending from behind her eyes down to her back. It was a pattern that I had never seen before, and I wonder if it was natural or a result of some kind of dye.
"Thank you for giving me the time and place for us to talk," Sirkal began, looking at my lunch box. "Do not let my presence hinder the enjoyment of your meal." Her body language was minimal, and her gestures were subtle, but there was a sense of intensity in the way she composed herself. I couldn't help but wonder if, like Vani and Baslik, there was something "wired wrong" in her head.
Not "wrong", I chastised myself, but "differently".
I extended a gesture of hospitality to Sirkal. "Do you want something to eat or drink? I can order one from the cafeteria." I asked.
"Cold water suffices," she replied. "The wrap you have there has a peculiar form and texture. May I inquire as to what those things are?"
I chuckled slightly at her curiosity. "Oh, this? This is a human dish called Döner Kebab. I've heard that it used to use flesh, but they have plant-based variations now."
Her eyes bulged slightly. There was a barely restrained desire in her gaze as if she was fascinated by the idea of consuming human food. But before I could get further into this topic, Sirkal spoke again.
"I have heard from Baslik about your adventure to the capital," she said.
"I did… yeah. Hey, do you want half of mine?" I pushed my lunchbox toward the advocate, offering her a share of my Döner Kebab.
Sirkal hesitated for a moment but then gestured with gratitude. "Along with this cold water, how much do you sell this for?" she asked, rummaging through her satchel.
"Uh... free?" I replied, a bit taken aback by the question. The advocate had taken a cash card, but she put it back again.
"Thank you," she said, taking one of the kebab wraps.
"Oh yeah, let me get you your drink," I got off and made my way to my bar to pour her a glass of water.
"So, what brought you here?" I asked, finally getting down to the business.
"As per my letter, my colleague Baslik visited your school yesterday, and I have a moral obligation to visit," she said, her voice almost as flat as Vani's.
"How well do you know Professor Baslik?" I asked, placing the glass of water on the table and pushing it toward her.
"I am the reason Baslik is still teaching at our university," she replied. "People he works with tend to get caught in the crossfire, which is why I am here."
Her words left me with more questions than answers, but before I could ask any more, Sirkal pulled out a pad and requested to add her contact information to my device. I accepted her request and watched as her details were added to my contacts.
"We, the crosswired, need to stick together," Sirkal said, looking up at me with a hint of intensity in her gaze. "I'm offering you my service free of charge."
I raised an eyebrow in surprise. "Crosswired? Is that what you call yourself?"
Sirkal nodded, "Yes, though the human term 'neurodivergent' is gaining popularity too. I know you're used to people like me," While I wondered if she meant my students or my brother on Earth, I realized that she stared crossed-eyed with her snout pointing at me.
My brother then.
"I see. I did notice that Baslik has no fear toward humans."
"He's devoid of feeling," Sirkal continued. "Fortunately, his parents instilled altruism in him."
I couldn't help but think of the recently expelled student, Radaktil, as she mentioned.
"I know about your brother," Sirkal continued. "He is blessed to have a sister like you."
Her monotonous words felt like a warm embrace, and I felt a sense of gratitude toward this stranger. "Oh, I can't hog all the compliments," I said, smiling. "My mother also supported Vani throughout his life. How about you?"
Sirkal continued to eat the kebab, savoring each bite as she stared at me intently. "This human food tastes very delightful," she remarked between bites. "Thank you for introducing me to their cuisine."
It was obvious to me that she was avoiding answering my question.
"I'm sorry for asking that," I said, sensing that I had touched on a sensitive topic. "It must have been terrible."
Sirkal seemed to relax a bit at my apology. "In case I am being recorded, I do not consent," she said, pausing to take another bite of the kebab before continuing. "It has been said that I survived the Correctional Facility. Of course, if you search for my public record, you will find that there is no mention of me being committed to such a place."
I sensed the unspoken implication in her words and felt a bit sad for her. The thought of anyone having to endure the Correctional Facility made me dread it, and for now… I wondered again if I had done the right thing with Radaktil.
"How much do you know about my school?" I asked.
"Your institution has a reputation," Sirkal replied. "I could have had a more comfortable life had something like yours existed in my time. I am personally invested in ensuring your school's continuation."
I felt a sense of relief at her words. "Regardless... sometimes we're way over our heads," I added, as the recent incident with the violent student was still heavy on my mind.
"Please elaborate," Sirkal said, her gaze intense as she leaned in closer to me.
"Sirkal, there was a violent student of mine that I might have condemned to a correctional facility," I admitted, feeling a sense of guilt and shame wash over me as I spoke.
"How violent?" Sirkal asked, her gesture twitching slightly as she spoke.
"He assaulted several students, but we only caught him after we installed a hidden camera. Mind you, the student he caught assaulting was crosswired too," I felt a lump form in my throat as I spoke.
Sirkal stared at me for a moment, as if judging me for my character. She took a final large bite of the kebab before continuing. "Our system is built in such a way that sometimes things like this are unavoidable," she said finally. "I understand in a way that does not condone nor condemn."
"Do you think I should do something different?" I asked Sirkal, hoping for some guidance and reassurance.
"That question is your burden to bear, Vichak," Sirkal replied. "I am here to provide you with legal services to protect your school and your students. But making you feel better about your decision is not in my job description."
When she finished, I heard a chime from my office's sound system, signaling the arrival of a new notification. Checking my desk, I realized that I had received a letter from an advocate on behalf of Kiyat. It took me a while before I realized that Kiyat was Radaktil's mother.
"I believe I need your services, Sirkal,"
Sirkal nodded. She chugged the glass of cold water until it was drained empty before taking out her pad from her satchel and turning its screen on.
Memory Transcription Subject: Vani, venlil foreign exchange participant
Date [Standardized Human Reckoning]: 2136–09-10
The next day, after spending a restful night in Dieng, we departed early in the morning for the city of Wonosobo. We needed to restock our supplies and perform maintenance on the Van. Once we had everything dealt with, we continued our journey towards the City of Yogyakarta, but not before we made a detour to a temple called Borobudur.
We approached the temple after we paid the entrance fee. With a clear grassy field surrounding the temple, it looked more like a monumental mound than a place of worship. The details of intricate carvings on its walls became more visible as we came closer. However, we were only allowed to go as far as the fence that surrounded the temple, which was about ten meters from the base. As we stood there, taking in the sight of the temple I wished that we could get closer.
"So… I presume we are not allowed to get in?"
"Back then tourists were allowed to get in and they wore down the stone of the temple. Nowadays they only let religious leaders or scholars in."
Curious about the temple's origins I asked. "Is this a Hindu temple too?"
"Oh, this one is a-" Johan paused. "I have a feeling we might be allowed to enter."
I looked in the direction Johan was looking, and a furless human approached us, they were clad in what I remember as formal clothing.
"Hi. I'm Sudarmo. Do you want to see the Borobudur up close?" My translator was still in subtitle mode and there was no hint of gender in the text. But I think he was a man. Sudarmo has no single fur on top of his head, just like Johan. But he still had fur above his eyes, unlike Stawa.
"But do you not restrict access to scholars?" I asked him.
"Aren't we all scholars?" He said with a smile, the micro gestures on his face implied that he wanted me to get into this tour.
"I suppose you have a point," I said, returning his smile. "Lead the way.
The man led us along the fence, through the crowds of tourists, who stared at us. I guess they are envious that they were not given the same opportunity that we had. Approaching the gate in the fence, I noticed that it was not particularly tall and a human could easily jump over it. However, there seemed to be a sense of respect and decency that prevented them from doing so. I wondered if there were mechanisms in place to detect and prevent unauthorized access.
Sudarmo placed one of his fingers on a sensor on the gate, and after a beep, he pushed it open. A set of stairs on every four sides of the temple allowed us to climb upward. We walked to the one nearest to us, and when we reached the bottom of the stairs the function of a shelf near one of the stairs became clear. Sudarmo removed his feet covering and stored it on the shelf.
"I need you to remove your shoes as well." The tour guide ordered.
"Is this a purity thing, or do you want to reduce the tear and wear on the stone?" I asked.
"A bit of both, but mostly the latter." Said Sudarmo.
The tour guide explained that the Borobudur is slightly younger than the temples in Dieng, but not by much. The temple was somewhat "lost" until it was found in the nineteenth century and restored.
"What deities are venerated in this temple?" I asked, curious about the religious significance of the site.
"This is a Buddhist temple," Sudarmo replied. "While we do have the concept of divine beings, these gods are also bound in the cycle of rebirth. Are you familiar with the concept of reincarnation?"
I nodded. "This is what the people of the Sun in my homeworld believed. The people of the Stars, on the other hand, believe that their soul will ascend into the sky and watch over their descendants."
Sudarmo went on to explain that the temple is adorned with a series of intricate reliefs that depict scenes from the life of the religious teacher who founded the Buddhism belief system. The reliefs were originally painted white and then given color later. All this has disappeared more than one thousand years later.
"You said that humans have restored part of this temple. Why not restore the colors too?"
"Well... it's controversial. We don't know the original color of the relief, for example. Well let's get up shall we?"
When I placed my foot on the stone floor of the temple, I felt something akin to…awe? I thought about the hundreds of thousands, if not millions of humans, who have set their feet on the temple. The sense of "deep time" I felt in Dieng was present here as well.
We climbed up to the first terrace and there we walked around as Sudarmo continued commentary on the relief on the wall and the balustrade of the terrace. He also injected the temple's history and significance. I found myself captivated by his storytelling, and before I knew it, half a claw had passed and we were at the topmost part of the temple. A statue of a human sitting sat before me, he looked so serene in his meditation.
Sudarmo told me that it was the Buddha himself.
"So, your main goal is to be free from the cycle of death and rebirth? How do you achieve it?"
"Well… if I have to sum it up I would use the five precepts. We have to abstain from killing living beings, stealing, sexual misconduct, lying, and intoxication. Mind you, this is only a summation, people still argue about the details."
I was intrigued and asked, "All living beings? So you refrain from eating flesh?"
Sudarmo replied, "The vat-grown meat can be harvested without killing. Though I only eat them for my birthday." He added with a chuckle.
The idea of eating flesh only on one's birthday seemed morbid to me, but any argument I can think of against vat-grown meat would be based on my prejudice, not something coherently utilitarian.
Johan added, "Yeah, plant-based meat is cheaper and doesn't taste that different."
Curiosity got the best of me and I asked, "Is there any religion where flesh-eating is its central part?"
Sudarmo looked at Johan and I looked at my human too.
"Well… uh… when I say 'sacrifice' can you explain what the translation is?"
"To sacrifice is to do something detrimental to yourself for the betterment of others."
"Yeah… that is more like self-sacrifice to us. Sacrifice can also mean something we give for an offering to a deity."
"Oh… you used to offer flesh to your deities?"
"There is a religion where the sacrifice of animals was a major festival, but times have changed. That religion now accepts vat-grown meat as a substitute."
Sudarmo nodded in agreement. "Yes, the concept of sacrifice has evolved. The practice of animal sacrifice has been around for thousands of years, but we humans have become more aware of our impact on the environment and other living beings. As Johan said, many religions have adapted their practices to reflect these changes."
As much as they tried to hide it. My time in the museums revealed that humans had gone through dark times in which they waged war and committed atrocities against each other and other species. But as the geologist tour guide said, our ancestors' mistake is not our own. Humans, like everyone else. learn from their mistakes and grow.
Their commitment to creating a kinder future for their society is something that I found comforting. They had climbed up the food chain, but once they came victorious at the top... they looked down at those they trampled and… they chose to fix what damage they did.
I hope that more people in the future will be able to understand this.

This story needs to be told. Those who have suffered must understand why. It’s not as simple as some have made it to be, which is why it needs to come from the person most responsible… me.
It began when I was least expecting it. But then don’t things always seem to happen that way?
***
“I’m tellin' ya, doc, people just don’t understand,” Frederick said while rocking back and forth in the chair.
“What exactly don’t they understand?” I said, trying to look more relaxed than I felt.
“There’s just something that takes over. You can’t stop it.”
“Impulse control?”
“What’s that mean?” Frederick said, struggling against his straight jacket, trying to get comfortable.
“It means that when you want to do something, you try your hardest not to. It means you try to control or suppress the urge to do things you know are bad.”
Frederick’s mouth lolled open. He narrowed his eyes in confusion.
“Why would I want to do that?”
I suppressed the urge to sigh.
“Because that’s what people do,” I said. “They think about doing bad things, but then they control themselves and don’t do them because those things are wrong and could hurt other people.”
“Hurting people is wrong?” he said.
“Yes, Frederick, hurting people is wrong.”
He shook his head as if he were trying to shake away a fly that was annoying him.
“Why?”
“Why is hurting people wrong?”
“No, why are you telling me this?”
“I don’t understand.”
“You’re saying I’m bad,” he said trying to rise from his chair. “You’re saying I didn’t need to hurt those people. That I’m a bad person.”
I got up from my chair and started backing toward the heavy metal door.
“I’m not bad!” he yelled at me. “You’re bad!”
I knocked on the door and the orderly opened it as Frederick got to his feet.
I slipped through the door as it slammed shut from the impact of his body slamming into it.
“Bad, bad, bad,” he screamed.
“Badbadbadbadbadbadbadbad!”
Spit flew from his mouth landing on the small observation window with metal grates embedded in it.
“You ok, doc,” the orderly said, startling me.
“Yes, I’m fine, thank you.”
I turned and walked down the white hallway, hoping the orderly wouldn’t notice the quickness in my step. I ignored the sound of Frederick beating on the door. I ignored all the sounds I heard. I just wanted to get away.
It was a long walk to my office, through many security gates. At each one, the nurse buzzed me through and gave me an acknowledging look that used to be a smile.
I suppose this place gets to everyone eventually.
I finally reached my office, closed and locked the door behind me, and collapsed into my chair. I breathed out a sigh of relief at reaching relative safety. I turned and looked out my window to the beautiful flowers blooming on the trees in the courtyard. I looked up at the tree stretching toward the sky.
I remember when they planted those.
I turned back to my center, my means of solace, the only thing that mattered in this cruel, unfair world. I picked up the picture of my lovely wife and smiled. She was the one who kept me sane all these years. She kept me seeing the best in people. Or at least trying. Sometimes there was no good to see—especially in my patients.
It takes a special kind of doctor to care for the mental needs of those who have done heinous things that are so bad they don’t even bother sending them to prison. They send them to me.
I’m like the dumpster for the dregs of society. Just drop them in the asylum and forget about them.
I kissed my wife and set her back on the bare desk, then turned on my computer and added notes from today’s session. There was never a recommendation for release. Once patients came here the only way they left was in a body bag. There was no curing them, only trying to make them docile until they left.
Oh, there were experiments. That was a large part of how we were funded. Companies would pay for certain tests to be done. Some might call it torture, but we called it research.
I finished typing my notes and leaned back in my seat. The diplomas and degrees stared down from their perches on the bare walls, mocking me. Demanding why I hadn’t gotten a better job.
As usual, I didn’t have an answer.
My office suddenly felt stuffy. I closed down my computer and left. Driving down the packed freeway, all I could think about was collapsing on the couch beside my lovely Elizabeth. Not telling her about my day until she dragged it out of me, then listening to her encourage me to help those who have been left in my care, because I’m the only hope they have.
Traffic was bumper to bumper and not helping my overall opinion of humanity much. Especially when a car that was swerving from lane to lane, nearly sideswiped me. It kept going on in front of me, nearly hitting several other cars.
The driver and passenger seemed to be having a disagreement about how to drive the car and it looked like it was about to come to blows.
Fortunately, they were soon out of sight, and someone else’s problem.
For the next few miles, I kept watching the side of the road waiting to see the offending car sitting in a ditch. However, they surprised me. They must’ve turned off to go terrorize some neighborhood streets with their reckless driving.
I hummed to myself, not wanting to have whatever dreck was on the radio forced on me.
When I was nearly to my exit, my phone rang. I immediately recognized the number as work. I contemplated answering it for a moment, then thought better of it. There had never been a time when work called with good news. And I was in no mood for bad news.
I hummed a little louder, trying to drown out the sound of the ring before it finally stopped.
The closer I got to home the less I thought about work and the more I thought about Elizabeth. Until I turned off at my exit, I had nearly forgotten work altogether. Maybe I would take tomorrow off and go do something with my wife. We hadn’t been out for a while. The weather had been lovely and I know she would adore a walk down by the lake.
My thoughts were interrupted when I turned down our driveway and saw a car in front of the house. It wasn’t quite in the driveway, it was sitting at an angle halfway in the front yard.
I parked my car and slowly got out. Something struck me about this car, but I hadn’t figured out what. I approached the driver’s side to have words with the person still sitting at the wheel.
“Excuse me,” I said staying a few steps back from the driver’s door.
He didn’t answer me.
“Excuse me,” I said a little louder.
Still no answer.
I tapped on the window and he ignored me.
I opened the door.
“Okay, look… “ I said.
But it was I who would do the looking. The man fell out of the car, thudding on the grass. The inside of the car was covered in blood. I looked down and the man’s throat had been cut.
“Oh my God!” I said jumping back.
I watched to see if the man was breathing, but the way his neck was bent at an unnatural angle against my yard told me everything I needed to know.
I glanced through the car but didn’t see the passenger.
It was then my eyes drifted to my front door.
It was open.
I stepped through the shrubs and up onto the porch, walking in a daze. The surrealness of the moment had yet to sink in. I was going inside to check on my wife and make sure everything was ok.
It didn’t strike me as anything more than that.
‘Oh, she just left the door open, that’s all.’
My mind kept trying to tell me that. I wanted desperately to believe it. Even though she had never been that careless during the entire time we’d been married. I had pushed aside all reason and common sense in favor of pure denial.
Everything was going to be ok. With Elizabeth, everything was always ok. She could literally light up a room with her positivity. She was the best person I ever knew. I have no idea how I got so lucky as to know her, let alone be her husband.
I floated in through my front door on my cloud of denial and looked for my wife.
It didn’t take me long to find her.
There was one wall of the living room she was constantly redecorating. She always said it looked bare and empty no matter what she did with it.
She was hanging from that wall, naked, her beautiful body desecrated by slices and rips. Her throat had been slit and blood still poured from it.
I ran to her.
Tried to take her down.
Screamed her name.
And then it was my turn to scream.
I looked down and saw a knife blade sticking out from my abdomen. It was part of the cutlery set I had gotten for Elizabeth three Christmases ago.
I screamed as I slowly turned to face my attacker.
“What’s up, doc?” Frederick said wearing a maniacal grin.
The shock had punched a hole in my reasoning. I saw him standing there, but I couldn’t accept it any more than I could accept my beautiful wife strung up like a macabre painting hanging on our living room wall.
My eyes tried to focus on his face. To make me recognize him as a threat.
“How’s that impulse control workin’ for ya, doc?”
He ripped the knife out of my back.
The pain, along with his arrogance woke me from my shock-induced stupor.
“Now do you understand?” he said, as he shoved the knife into my belly.
I did understand. I understood at that moment that I was already as dead as my wife. I knew that this piece of human garbage had taken something beautiful from this world. I knew I had to do something about it before there was nothing I could do. Before my body succumbed to injuries and I was unable.
I grabbed him by the throat. He tried to laugh, but my grip was fueled by desperation.
He tried to free himself but couldn’t. He began stabbing me over and over. I refused to release him. I carried him by his neck over to the kitchen counter and began bashing his head off the marble.
I was rewarded with spots of his blood. I knew at least I had made him bleed and that made me smile. His eyes grew wide as my grin grew maniacal. I smashed him repeatedly, crushing him against the sink, breaking the faucet, and causing water to spray into the air.
His eyelids fluttered as he lost his grip on the knife.
He was nearly gone. I would take him with me and that would be my parting gift to the world, removing something so evil.
Suddenly, my body wouldn’t obey commands. My grip loosened. I tried to tighten it, but I had lost all control. I looked down and I was standing in a pool of my own blood.
His eyes fluttered open and he coughed.
‘Nonononononono!’ I thought. ‘He can’t live. He can’t win. I had him.’
He stood as I sank to the floor.
“Looks like maybe you do understand, doc,” he said from what seemed like miles away. “Too bad you won’t be around to discuss it. We could have a session and evaluate how it makes you feel.”
His foot came down on my spine. I felt a crack. He started kicking me in the side repeatedly. Splashing water and blood on me as I felt my ribs crack.
I fought with everything I had.
My body didn’t even twitch.
‘Nooooo!,’ I screamed. ‘It can’t end like this.’
I heard a sizzling sound and then there was darkness.
***
I could feel movement.
Wasn’t I dead?
Was this what happened after?
It was still dark.
‘Hello?’ I tried to say.
Nothing. Just the sensation of movement.
Am I in a body bag? Am I on my way to the morgue or the grave? Please don’t let me be buried alive.
But I’m not alive, am I?
I don’t feel any pain. That’s a good thing, but not a good sign. The last thing I remember was lots of pain.
Suddenly there’s light and my movement stops.
I look up from the floor of a house I don’t recognize.
‘Where the hell am I?’
I’m on the floor next to a wall, looking up at an electrical outlet. Nothing around me seems familiar. I try to stand but it feels weird. It isn’t difficult, and there’s still no pain, it just carries an odd sensation with it. Like my body is just relearning things. Just like when I was a toddler. I teeter back and forth as I rise, but eventually, I’m upright.
My first few steps are tentative, but after that, I gain confidence with each stride.
Aside from the strange surroundings, there’s a sensation, like ants crawling all over me.
I pass a bathroom and glance inside. The reflection in the mirror draws me back. I slowly approach it, seeing something unique and terrifying.
It looks like someone drew an outline of a human form using a lightning bolt. The electricity shimmers and crackles as it races around the empty form of the being.
I wonder if it will hurt me.
Not sure if I want to test the limits of my newfound lack of pain, I hesitantly reach for this creature. It reaches for me at the same time. I’m mesmerized by this mutual curiosity.
My hand is about to touch the electric pulse shaped like its hand. I tremble with anticipation and fear as we touch.
Surprisingly, I don’t feel any pain. I don’t feel anything except a hard surface.
I move my hand back and forth. The creature does the same. I make quicker movements, and so does it.
Finally, out of frustration, I reach back and strike at the creature.
My hand strikes the hard surface and it splinters. There are now multiple creatures staring back at me.
I step back and come to the horrible realization.
I am the creature.
***
One month later…
“And police have been unable to find any credible leads in the string of brutal killings that began shortly after the patient escaped from the mental hospital last month,” the handsome anchorman stated from behind his desk. “They are asking people to call in if they know the whereabouts of Frederick Winston, now known as, ‘The Mangler’.”
“In other news, the Larsan Electric Company has issued a statement that the recent power surges are no cause for alarm. These surges seem to be random in people's homes and certain businesses. An LEC spokesman stated that there appears to be no pattern to the surges and that so far no one has reported them causing any harm. LEC is tracking down the problem and should have it under control soon.”
The anchorman shifted in his seat and turned to another camera.
“And on a lighter note, with Halloween months away, it seems that reports of ghosts are on the rise,” he said, wearing a half grin. “Several area residents have reported what they call a ghostlike figure, outlined in light, visiting them. Reports vary as to the duration and location of the visits, but they do seem to have a few things in common. The visits are usually short. In fact, most people say that if they blink the figure is gone. No one has reported the ghost doing any harm. And it seems like anyone within close proximity feels a tingling sensation and their hair standing on end.”
“Maybe I should be visited instead of my next hairdresser’s appointment,” the attractive woman anchor said with a laugh.
“Schedule me a visit too,” the male anchor said smiling. “And that’s our news for the evening, good night.”
Jimmy switched the channel.
“Gimme a break,” he said to the TV. “Ghosts? Who’s playing what? This’s some marketing scheme to sell Halloween crap. Like that stunt they pulled a few years back with the clowns hanging around the schools to promote that stupid movie.”
He switched off the TV and rolled over in his bed.
It wasn’t long before his breathing slowed. But before sleep could take him, he noticed a glow in the hallway. He didn’t remember leaving any lights on when he came to bed. Living alone had its advantages. If he heard someone in his apartment, he knew they weren’t supposed to be there. He slowly reached over to the bedstand and pulled out his Glock 9mm handgun, then held it close and listened.
He watched as the glow moved. It seemed like someone was looking around. But for what? He didn’t really have anything aside from his TV, phone, and video games. If anyone wanted those, they would be in a world of hurt. He had been lucky to get this apartment. If he was honest with himself, it cost more than he could afford, but when he had the chance he took it. It was too bad the opening came because the person who lived there before him was one of The Mangler’s victims. That’s probably why he was able to rent the place so quickly and get the price down to where he could almost afford it.
Maybe the glow was one of the street people who were stupid enough to see if there was an empty apartment to claim. That wasn’t gonna fly either. Jimmy had jumped on this apartment to get away from the dingy rat hole he used live in on the other side of town. And there was no way he’d let some bum come in here and take what was his.
The glow crept closer. He could feel the hairs on his arms raise. There was a sound too. It wasn’t loud, almost felt more than heard. A soft crackle, like electricity when it sparked.
The sensory input was almost too much for Jimmy to take. He pointed the gun in the direction of the glow and saw the barrel was shaking. His resolve, that he could deal with anyone as long as he had his gun, was beginning to fade.
The glow became so bright that it finally took form.
Jimmy’s eyes widened. It was the form of a person, just like the news had said.
It seemed to look around the room, then settle its gaze on the bed. Jimmy began to sweat as it approached and stared into his eyes.
It was the oddest thing, staring into what should be eyes, but nothing was there. The flashes of mini lightning bolts formed shapes that looked almost human, but it was just an outline, there was nothing inside what should be the body.
He shoved the shaking gun out from under the blanket and pointed it at the glowing figure.
The figure noted the presence of the gun, then continued to advance.
“S… stop,” Jimmy said. “I’m w… warning you.”
The figure ignored the warning.
Jimmy squeezed the trigger, setting off a deafening shot that went right through the face of the figure.
It acted as though nothing had happened, continuing to advance. The ringing in Jimmy’s ears made all sound seem muffled.
The figure stopped two inches from Jimmy’s face.
“Mangler… “ it said, sounding less like a voice and more like a transmission over an old staticky radio.
“I… I’m not the Mangler,” he said. “The person who used to live here was killed by him.”
It seemed to ponder this for a moment.
“Find Mangler… “ it said.
“I d… don’t know where to find him.”
It moved an inch closer. As the flashes of electricity arced, licked hungrily at Jimmy’s face.
“Find… him… “
“Ok, ok, I’ll find him,” Jimmy said, feeling the heat from the electricity.
The figure seemed to consider that for a moment then backed away. It moved toward the bedroom wall. Then, like someone had turned on a vacuum, it was sucked into an electrical outlet and disappeared.
Jimmy laid back in bed, breathing hard. His eyes darted left and right all around the room. But the only evidence of the figure that remained was the bullet hole in his bedroom wall.
***
The trips through the electrical conduits had become easier. There were still times when I came out someplace I didn’t intend to, but I was usually able to recover quickly and get to where I wanted to go.
But where did I want to go? At first, I wandered around, lost in this new form I found myself trapped inside. It was only after I had overheard a news report about the serial killer they called The Mangler that I gained my purpose.
Of course, Frederick was going to keep killing. Of course, they weren’t going to be able to catch him. He’d been inside away from his victims before and he didn’t like it. Not being able to torture and kill innocents was like a normal person not being able to breathe. Not that I know much about normal or breathing anymore.
I suppose on some level I should thank him. I thought about it for a long time and the only thing that makes any kind of sense is when we were fighting, somehow the water and blood I was laying in got splashed into the electrical socket. Instead of killing me, it bonded with me, making me able to become the electrical current. To ride it like a wave to wherever I wanted.
I became faster than any person ever was. And yet, I wasn’t a person anymore. I have no idea how I retained my consciousness, let alone my memory. But somehow…
I justify it by the old adage, ‘I think therefore I am.’
My life has become an endless hunt for the person who destroyed me, the person I must destroy. I don’t even know what I’ll do when I find him. But I will find him. I will stop him. This time, I won’t fail. I’ll end him like I should’ve before.
I owe it to the people he’s tortured and killed since my failure. Most of all, I owe it to my wife. I know she wouldn’t approve of my bloodlust. She would say there must be some other option. But if she would be able to see her dead body hanging naked from our living room wall, I think she just might change her mind.
My thoughts are interrupted as I arrive at my next destination, another victim’s house. I’m not sure what I’ll find that the police haven’t, but I have to try. Maybe I can pick up his scent somehow. A plan almost assuredly doomed to failure since I lost all sense of smell in the transformation.
I’m surprised though that I can still see and hear. I suppose waves of light and sound somehow intersect with my electrical body and it senses them. I don’t question it. I’ve learned to just go with it.
On the plus side, I don’t have to worry about eating, drinking, or using the bathroom. I guess there’s an upside to everything. Elizabeth would be so proud of me.
I arrive at the room where the victim was murdered. Looking around there’s still blood everywhere, along with evidence markers where they took pictures.
The sheer amount of blood tells me he took his time. He desecrated this girl in her own room. Her parents must’ve been out because there’s no way they didn’t hear the struggle. There were books on the floor, a chair overturned, and blood everywhere. The room was a disaster. It looked like she fought him. I wish she would’ve succeeded where I had failed.
But then, I wish I hadn’t failed, and this girl was still alive.
There’s nothing I can do now except find him and end him.
Finding him was proving more difficult than I thought. I had unlimited access to anywhere with electricity, but I couldn’t use a computer or a GPS. I was limited to transportation only through electricity. Granted that still made me the fastest being alive. I say being because I don’t think I qualify as human anymore. But I was limited to traveling to a place and then trying to find out where I was and if he was there.
If he knew I was searching for him all he would have to do is live the rest of his days in a cabin in the woods with no electricity. I’d never be able to reach him.
I believe two things worked in my favor with that theory.
First, I don’t think he’s that smart, and second, I don’t think he knows I’m looking for him. I believe that surviving our fight only further empowered him to kill. When someone feels invincible, they’re bound to make a mistake.
An officer walked into the room and I ducked back into an outlet. I was able to hang on where I was and watch from inside the outlet without being transported somewhere else.
The officer looked startled and stared at the empty air that I had just vacated. She looked like she was unsure if she trusted what her eyes had seen in the instant before I vanished.
She slowly stepped over to the corner and bent down to peer into the outlet. For a moment I wondered if she could see me, and what exactly she would see. But then her radio squawked calling her to another scene. When I heard the voice on the radio say the address and that they might have the killer cornered, I didn’t waste any time.
It was maybe fifteen seconds until I was across town at the address I’d heard. There was a lot of screaming and crying going on. I came out of the outlet and saw blood on the floor beside a body that wasn’t moving.
There was a girl being beaten by a man with his back to me. He turned to take another swing and I knew my search was over.
“My psychiatrist used to tell me I needed to work on my impulse control,” he said calmly as he slapped her. “I think I’m doing pretty good. I’ve been here ten whole minutes and you’re still alive.”
I shot across the room and knocked him to the floor. He jumped back up and looked around for what had hit him.
“What the hell?”
I saw the fear in his eyes when he saw me. I know Elizabeth would’ve been ashamed, of me, but I was enjoying his anxiety. After all he had done to me and so many others, I drank it in like an elixir.
He started edging toward the door. I was there in a heartbeat. His eyes darted back and forth between where I used to be and where I now stood. The panic in his eyes doubled.
I wanted to make him suffer, but I didn’t want to make the same mistake I’d made before and let him escape with his life.
I lashed out with a bolt that used to be my arm. The energy slashed through his shirt and fried a hole in his shoulder.
He screamed in pain and horror as he looked at the smoking hole in his skin. He tried to run but in an instant, I was there in front of him firing another bolt and searing the skin across his waist to his jeans.
His screams of pain and rage were only matched by the feral desperation in his eyes.
Not knowing what do to, he went with the familiar. Attack the innocent. He grabbed the girl who had been crawling away from the scene.
He grabbed her again and held her in front of him like a human shield.
What a waste of skin.
I fired a bolt into a ceiling light beside me which ricocheted and hit him full force in the leg, nearly severing it.
He went down like a ton of bricks, trying to hold on to his hostage, but she was fighting to get away from him. She broke free and he crumpled to the floor.
“What do you want?” he screamed at me.
With everything that is within me, I wanted to tell him who I was, what he had taken from me, and what I was about to take from him.
But I didn’t want to give the satisfaction. I wanted to give him only uncertainty and fear to cling to.
I could feel the seconds ticking away. I knew I had to make the most of this opportunity or he would get away again. And after this, I might never find him.
I unleashed every ounce of energy at him. I couldn’t even see him, he was only a smoking pillar of frying skin.
Just then, the police burst through the door.
“FREE… “ the first officer started then the shock of what he was seeing stole the rest of the word from his mouth.
He stood there, mouth agape when the female officer stepped in behind him. She looked at me and her wide eyes narrowed as she put two and two together and recognized me from the last crime scene.
I had no reason to fear. I didn’t know if I could even be harmed in my current state. But when you see that blue uniform burst through a door with a gun aimed at you, all rational thought takes a vacation.
I dove for the outlet and was gone. I didn’t even care where I was going. I knew I had done what I wanted to. The monster was destroyed.
Something felt different. Was it pride at finishing my crusade? Was it shame knowing Elizabeth wouldn’t have wanted me to do it?
I don’t know but there was something else. It was like there was added weight to my existence. I guess you can have a conscious in whatever you’d call this existence.
I appeared in the place that made the most sense, ironically. It was my old home. The one where everything I loved died, including me. It was where I took on this unintended new existence.
Is that why I felt this extra weight? Was it some cathartic aftereffect of my search for revenge that was finally over?
I looked around the charred debris of what used to be my home. In my mind's eye, I didn’t see the burned-out shell of what was left. I saw it as it was when we first moved in. When Elizabeth and I started decorating. When the interior was finally finished and I turned to her and said, “For now.” Knowing she would decide to change everything at some time in the future when she was bored, just like all women seem to do.
I remember getting a paintbrush across the mouth for that comment. I smiled remembering kissing her with my freshly painted mouth and ending up in the bedroom.
As I turned toward where I’d entered the house, my smile quickly faded. For some reason, I was still connected to the outlet. That had never happened before.
Another curiosity arose when I noticed the color of my electrical body was now tinged purple. It had always been blue before.
The tail of what had yet to come out of the outlet was red. As I pulled and it came the rest of the way out, it merged with me and turned purple.
“What the hell?” I heard someone say.
I whipped around but no one was there.
“Where am I?” the voice said.
“Who are you?” I said to the air.
There was a long silence.
“Doc?” the voice said.
As far as I knew it wasn’t possible for my spine to turn to ice, since I no longer had a spine, but the feeling seemed the same.
“Frederick?” I said.
“What happened?” he said. “This crazy electric thing attacked me and now… wait a minute. How am I talking to you? You died months ago.”
My shock gave way to utter despair. My enemy was now part of me.

This story needs to be told. Those who have suffered must understand why. It’s not as simple as some have made it to be, which is why it needs to come from the person most responsible… me.
It began when I was least expecting it. But then don’t things always seem to happen that way?
***
“I’m tellin' ya, doc, people just don’t understand,” Frederick said while rocking back and forth in the chair.
“What exactly don’t they understand?” I said, trying to look more relaxed than I felt.
“There’s just something that takes over. You can’t stop it.”
“Impulse control?”
“What’s that mean?” Frederick said, struggling against his straight jacket, trying to get comfortable.
“It means that when you want to do something, you try your hardest not to. It means you try to control or suppress the urge to do things you know are bad.”
Frederick’s mouth lolled open. He narrowed his eyes in confusion.
“Why would I want to do that?”
I suppressed the urge to sigh.
“Because that’s what people do,” I said. “They think about doing bad things, but then they control themselves and don’t do them because those things are wrong and could hurt other people.”
“Hurting people is wrong?” he said.
“Yes, Frederick, hurting people is wrong.”
He shook his head as if he were trying to shake away a fly that was annoying him.
“Why?”
“Why is hurting people wrong?”
“No, why are you telling me this?”
“I don’t understand.”
“You’re saying I’m bad,” he said trying to rise from his chair. “You’re saying I didn’t need to hurt those people. That I’m a bad person.”
I got up from my chair and started backing toward the heavy metal door.
“I’m not bad!” he yelled at me. “You’re bad!”
I knocked on the door and the orderly opened it as Frederick got to his feet.
I slipped through the door as it slammed shut from the impact of his body slamming into it.
“Bad, bad, bad,” he screamed.
“Badbadbadbadbadbadbadbad!”
Spit flew from his mouth landing on the small observation window with metal grates embedded in it.
“You ok, doc,” the orderly said, startling me.
“Yes, I’m fine, thank you.”
I turned and walked down the white hallway, hoping the orderly wouldn’t notice the quickness in my step. I ignored the sound of Frederick beating on the door. I ignored all the sounds I heard. I just wanted to get away.
It was a long walk to my office, through many security gates. At each one, the nurse buzzed me through and gave me an acknowledging look that used to be a smile.
I suppose this place gets to everyone eventually.
I finally reached my office, closed and locked the door behind me, and collapsed into my chair. I breathed out a sigh of relief at reaching relative safety. I turned and looked out my window to the beautiful flowers blooming on the trees in the courtyard. I looked up at the tree stretching toward the sky.
I remember when they planted those.
I turned back to my center, my means of solace, the only thing that mattered in this cruel, unfair world. I picked up the picture of my lovely wife and smiled. She was the one who kept me sane all these years. She kept me seeing the best in people. Or at least trying. Sometimes there was no good to see—especially in my patients.
It takes a special kind of doctor to care for the mental needs of those who have done heinous things that are so bad they don’t even bother sending them to prison. They send them to me.
I’m like the dumpster for the dregs of society. Just drop them in the asylum and forget about them.
I kissed my wife and set her back on the bare desk, then turned on my computer and added notes from today’s session. There was never a recommendation for release. Once patients came here the only way they left was in a body bag. There was no curing them, only trying to make them docile until they left.
Oh, there were experiments. That was a large part of how we were funded. Companies would pay for certain tests to be done. Some might call it torture, but we called it research.
I finished typing my notes and leaned back in my seat. The diplomas and degrees stared down from their perches on the bare walls, mocking me. Demanding why I hadn’t gotten a better job.
As usual, I didn’t have an answer.
My office suddenly felt stuffy. I closed down my computer and left. Driving down the packed freeway, all I could think about was collapsing on the couch beside my lovely Elizabeth. Not telling her about my day until she dragged it out of me, then listening to her encourage me to help those who have been left in my care, because I’m the only hope they have.
Traffic was bumper to bumper and not helping my overall opinion of humanity much. Especially when a car that was swerving from lane to lane, nearly sideswiped me. It kept going on in front of me, nearly hitting several other cars.
The driver and passenger seemed to be having a disagreement about how to drive the car and it looked like it was about to come to blows.
Fortunately, they were soon out of sight, and someone else’s problem.
For the next few miles, I kept watching the side of the road waiting to see the offending car sitting in a ditch. However, they surprised me. They must’ve turned off to go terrorize some neighborhood streets with their reckless driving.
I hummed to myself, not wanting to have whatever dreck was on the radio forced on me.
When I was nearly to my exit, my phone rang. I immediately recognized the number as work. I contemplated answering it for a moment, then thought better of it. There had never been a time when work called with good news. And I was in no mood for bad news.
I hummed a little louder, trying to drown out the sound of the ring before it finally stopped.
The closer I got to home the less I thought about work and the more I thought about Elizabeth. Until I turned off at my exit, I had nearly forgotten work altogether. Maybe I would take tomorrow off and go do something with my wife. We hadn’t been out for a while. The weather had been lovely and I know she would adore a walk down by the lake.
My thoughts were interrupted when I turned down our driveway and saw a car in front of the house. It wasn’t quite in the driveway, it was sitting at an angle halfway in the front yard.
I parked my car and slowly got out. Something struck me about this car, but I hadn’t figured out what. I approached the driver’s side to have words with the person still sitting at the wheel.
“Excuse me,” I said staying a few steps back from the driver’s door.
He didn’t answer me.
“Excuse me,” I said a little louder.
Still no answer.
I tapped on the window and he ignored me.
I opened the door.
“Okay, look… “ I said.
But it was I who would do the looking. The man fell out of the car, thudding on the grass. The inside of the car was covered in blood. I looked down and the man’s throat had been cut.
“Oh my God!” I said jumping back.
I watched to see if the man was breathing, but the way his neck was bent at an unnatural angle against my yard told me everything I needed to know.
I glanced through the car but didn’t see the passenger.
It was then my eyes drifted to my front door.
It was open.
I stepped through the shrubs and up onto the porch, walking in a daze. The surrealness of the moment had yet to sink in. I was going inside to check on my wife and make sure everything was ok.
It didn’t strike me as anything more than that.
‘Oh, she just left the door open, that’s all.’
My mind kept trying to tell me that. I wanted desperately to believe it. Even though she had never been that careless during the entire time we’d been married. I had pushed aside all reason and common sense in favor of pure denial.
Everything was going to be ok. With Elizabeth, everything was always ok. She could literally light up a room with her positivity. She was the best person I ever knew. I have no idea how I got so lucky as to know her, let alone be her husband.
I floated in through my front door on my cloud of denial and looked for my wife.
It didn’t take me long to find her.
There was one wall of the living room she was constantly redecorating. She always said it looked bare and empty no matter what she did with it.
She was hanging from that wall, naked, her beautiful body desecrated by slices and rips. Her throat had been slit and blood still poured from it.
I ran to her.
Tried to take her down.
Screamed her name.
And then it was my turn to scream.
I looked down and saw a knife blade sticking out from my abdomen. It was part of the cutlery set I had gotten for Elizabeth three Christmases ago.
I screamed as I slowly turned to face my attacker.
“What’s up, doc?” Frederick said wearing a maniacal grin.
The shock had punched a hole in my reasoning. I saw him standing there, but I couldn’t accept it any more than I could accept my beautiful wife strung up like a macabre painting hanging on our living room wall.
My eyes tried to focus on his face. To make me recognize him as a threat.
“How’s that impulse control workin’ for ya, doc?”
He ripped the knife out of my back.
The pain, along with his arrogance woke me from my shock-induced stupor.
“Now do you understand?” he said, as he shoved the knife into my belly.
I did understand. I understood at that moment that I was already as dead as my wife. I knew that this piece of human garbage had taken something beautiful from this world. I knew I had to do something about it before there was nothing I could do. Before my body succumbed to injuries and I was unable.
I grabbed him by the throat. He tried to laugh, but my grip was fueled by desperation.
He tried to free himself but couldn’t. He began stabbing me over and over. I refused to release him. I carried him by his neck over to the kitchen counter and began bashing his head off the marble.
I was rewarded with spots of his blood. I knew at least I had made him bleed and that made me smile. His eyes grew wide as my grin grew maniacal. I smashed him repeatedly, crushing him against the sink, breaking the faucet, and causing water to spray into the air.
His eyelids fluttered as he lost his grip on the knife.
He was nearly gone. I would take him with me and that would be my parting gift to the world, removing something so evil.
Suddenly, my body wouldn’t obey commands. My grip loosened. I tried to tighten it, but I had lost all control. I looked down and I was standing in a pool of my own blood.
His eyes fluttered open and he coughed.
‘Nonononononono!’ I thought. ‘He can’t live. He can’t win. I had him.’
He stood as I sank to the floor.
“Looks like maybe you do understand, doc,” he said from what seemed like miles away. “Too bad you won’t be around to discuss it. We could have a session and evaluate how it makes you feel.”
His foot came down on my spine. I felt a crack. He started kicking me in the side repeatedly. Splashing water and blood on me as I felt my ribs crack.
I fought with everything I had.
My body didn’t even twitch.
‘Nooooo!,’ I screamed. ‘It can’t end like this.’
I heard a sizzling sound and then there was darkness.
***
I could feel movement.
Wasn’t I dead?
Was this what happened after?
It was still dark.
‘Hello?’ I tried to say.
Nothing. Just the sensation of movement.
Am I in a body bag? Am I on my way to the morgue or the grave? Please don’t let me be buried alive.
But I’m not alive, am I?
I don’t feel any pain. That’s a good thing, but not a good sign. The last thing I remember was lots of pain.
Suddenly there’s light and my movement stops.
I look up from the floor of a house I don’t recognize.
‘Where the hell am I?’
I’m on the floor next to a wall, looking up at an electrical outlet. Nothing around me seems familiar. I try to stand but it feels weird. It isn’t difficult, and there’s still no pain, it just carries an odd sensation with it. Like my body is just relearning things. Just like when I was a toddler. I teeter back and forth as I rise, but eventually, I’m upright.
My first few steps are tentative, but after that, I gain confidence with each stride.
Aside from the strange surroundings, there’s a sensation, like ants crawling all over me.
I pass a bathroom and glance inside. The reflection in the mirror draws me back. I slowly approach it, seeing something unique and terrifying.
It looks like someone drew an outline of a human form using a lightning bolt. The electricity shimmers and crackles as it races around the empty form of the being.
I wonder if it will hurt me.
Not sure if I want to test the limits of my newfound lack of pain, I hesitantly reach for this creature. It reaches for me at the same time. I’m mesmerized by this mutual curiosity.
My hand is about to touch the electric pulse shaped like its hand. I tremble with anticipation and fear as we touch.
Surprisingly, I don’t feel any pain. I don’t feel anything except a hard surface.
I move my hand back and forth. The creature does the same. I make quicker movements, and so does it.
Finally, out of frustration, I reach back and strike at the creature.
My hand strikes the hard surface and it splinters. There are now multiple creatures staring back at me.
I step back and come to the horrible realization.
I am the creature.
***
One month later…
“And police have been unable to find any credible leads in the string of brutal killings that began shortly after the patient escaped from the mental hospital last month,” the handsome anchorman stated from behind his desk. “They are asking people to call in if they know the whereabouts of Frederick Winston, now known as, ‘The Mangler’.”
“In other news, the Larsan Electric Company has issued a statement that the recent power surges are no cause for alarm. These surges seem to be random in people's homes and certain businesses. An LEC spokesman stated that there appears to be no pattern to the surges and that so far no one has reported them causing any harm. LEC is tracking down the problem and should have it under control soon.”
The anchorman shifted in his seat and turned to another camera.
“And on a lighter note, with Halloween months away, it seems that reports of ghosts are on the rise,” he said, wearing a half grin. “Several area residents have reported what they call a ghostlike figure, outlined in light, visiting them. Reports vary as to the duration and location of the visits, but they do seem to have a few things in common. The visits are usually short. In fact, most people say that if they blink the figure is gone. No one has reported the ghost doing any harm. And it seems like anyone within close proximity feels a tingling sensation and their hair standing on end.”
“Maybe I should be visited instead of my next hairdresser’s appointment,” the attractive woman anchor said with a laugh.
“Schedule me a visit too,” the male anchor said smiling. “And that’s our news for the evening, good night.”
Jimmy switched the channel.
“Gimme a break,” he said to the TV. “Ghosts? Who’s playing what? This’s some marketing scheme to sell Halloween crap. Like that stunt they pulled a few years back with the clowns hanging around the schools to promote that stupid movie.”
He switched off the TV and rolled over in his bed.
It wasn’t long before his breathing slowed. But before sleep could take him, he noticed a glow in the hallway. He didn’t remember leaving any lights on when he came to bed. Living alone had its advantages. If he heard someone in his apartment, he knew they weren’t supposed to be there. He slowly reached over to the bedstand and pulled out his Glock 9mm handgun, then held it close and listened.
He watched as the glow moved. It seemed like someone was looking around. But for what? He didn’t really have anything aside from his TV, phone, and video games. If anyone wanted those, they would be in a world of hurt. He had been lucky to get this apartment. If he was honest with himself, it cost more than he could afford, but when he had the chance he took it. It was too bad the opening came because the person who lived there before him was one of The Mangler’s victims. That’s probably why he was able to rent the place so quickly and get the price down to where he could almost afford it.
Maybe the glow was one of the street people who were stupid enough to see if there was an empty apartment to claim. That wasn’t gonna fly either. Jimmy had jumped on this apartment to get away from the dingy rat hole he used live in on the other side of town. And there was no way he’d let some bum come in here and take what was his.
The glow crept closer. He could feel the hairs on his arms raise. There was a sound too. It wasn’t loud, almost felt more than heard. A soft crackle, like electricity when it sparked.
The sensory input was almost too much for Jimmy to take. He pointed the gun in the direction of the glow and saw the barrel was shaking. His resolve, that he could deal with anyone as long as he had his gun, was beginning to fade.
The glow became so bright that it finally took form.
Jimmy’s eyes widened. It was the form of a person, just like the news had said.
It seemed to look around the room, then settle its gaze on the bed. Jimmy began to sweat as it approached and stared into his eyes.
It was the oddest thing, staring into what should be eyes, but nothing was there. The flashes of mini lightning bolts formed shapes that looked almost human, but it was just an outline, there was nothing inside what should be the body.
He shoved the shaking gun out from under the blanket and pointed it at the glowing figure.
The figure noted the presence of the gun, then continued to advance.
“S… stop,” Jimmy said. “I’m w… warning you.”
The figure ignored the warning.
Jimmy squeezed the trigger, setting off a deafening shot that went right through the face of the figure.
It acted as though nothing had happened, continuing to advance. The ringing in Jimmy’s ears made all sound seem muffled.
The figure stopped two inches from Jimmy’s face.
“Mangler… “ it said, sounding less like a voice and more like a transmission over an old staticky radio.
“I… I’m not the Mangler,” he said. “The person who used to live here was killed by him.”
It seemed to ponder this for a moment.
“Find Mangler… “ it said.
“I d… don’t know where to find him.”
It moved an inch closer. As the flashes of electricity arced, licked hungrily at Jimmy’s face.
“Find… him… “
“Ok, ok, I’ll find him,” Jimmy said, feeling the heat from the electricity.
The figure seemed to consider that for a moment then backed away. It moved toward the bedroom wall. Then, like someone had turned on a vacuum, it was sucked into an electrical outlet and disappeared.
Jimmy laid back in bed, breathing hard. His eyes darted left and right all around the room. But the only evidence of the figure that remained was the bullet hole in his bedroom wall.
***
The trips through the electrical conduits had become easier. There were still times when I came out someplace I didn’t intend to, but I was usually able to recover quickly and get to where I wanted to go.
But where did I want to go? At first, I wandered around, lost in this new form I found myself trapped inside. It was only after I had overheard a news report about the serial killer they called The Mangler that I gained my purpose.
Of course, Frederick was going to keep killing. Of course, they weren’t going to be able to catch him. He’d been inside away from his victims before and he didn’t like it. Not being able to torture and kill innocents was like a normal person not being able to breathe. Not that I know much about normal or breathing anymore.
I suppose on some level I should thank him. I thought about it for a long time and the only thing that makes any kind of sense is when we were fighting, somehow the water and blood I was laying in got splashed into the electrical socket. Instead of killing me, it bonded with me, making me able to become the electrical current. To ride it like a wave to wherever I wanted.
I became faster than any person ever was. And yet, I wasn’t a person anymore. I have no idea how I retained my consciousness, let alone my memory. But somehow…
I justify it by the old adage, ‘I think therefore I am.’
My life has become an endless hunt for the person who destroyed me, the person I must destroy. I don’t even know what I’ll do when I find him. But I will find him. I will stop him. This time, I won’t fail. I’ll end him like I should’ve before.
I owe it to the people he’s tortured and killed since my failure. Most of all, I owe it to my wife. I know she wouldn’t approve of my bloodlust. She would say there must be some other option. But if she would be able to see her dead body hanging naked from our living room wall, I think she just might change her mind.
My thoughts are interrupted as I arrive at my next destination, another victim’s house. I’m not sure what I’ll find that the police haven’t, but I have to try. Maybe I can pick up his scent somehow. A plan almost assuredly doomed to failure since I lost all sense of smell in the transformation.
I’m surprised though that I can still see and hear. I suppose waves of light and sound somehow intersect with my electrical body and it senses them. I don’t question it. I’ve learned to just go with it.
On the plus side, I don’t have to worry about eating, drinking, or using the bathroom. I guess there’s an upside to everything. Elizabeth would be so proud of me.
I arrive at the room where the victim was murdered. Looking around there’s still blood everywhere, along with evidence markers where they took pictures.
The sheer amount of blood tells me he took his time. He desecrated this girl in her own room. Her parents must’ve been out because there’s no way they didn’t hear the struggle. There were books on the floor, a chair overturned, and blood everywhere. The room was a disaster. It looked like she fought him. I wish she would’ve succeeded where I had failed.
But then, I wish I hadn’t failed, and this girl was still alive.
There’s nothing I can do now except find him and end him.
Finding him was proving more difficult than I thought. I had unlimited access to anywhere with electricity, but I couldn’t use a computer or a GPS. I was limited to transportation only through electricity. Granted that still made me the fastest being alive. I say being because I don’t think I qualify as human anymore. But I was limited to traveling to a place and then trying to find out where I was and if he was there.
If he knew I was searching for him all he would have to do is live the rest of his days in a cabin in the woods with no electricity. I’d never be able to reach him.
I believe two things worked in my favor with that theory.
First, I don’t think he’s that smart, and second, I don’t think he knows I’m looking for him. I believe that surviving our fight only further empowered him to kill. When someone feels invincible, they’re bound to make a mistake.
An officer walked into the room and I ducked back into an outlet. I was able to hang on where I was and watch from inside the outlet without being transported somewhere else.
The officer looked startled and stared at the empty air that I had just vacated. She looked like she was unsure if she trusted what her eyes had seen in the instant before I vanished.
She slowly stepped over to the corner and bent down to peer into the outlet. For a moment I wondered if she could see me, and what exactly she would see. But then her radio squawked calling her to another scene. When I heard the voice on the radio say the address and that they might have the killer cornered, I didn’t waste any time.
It was maybe fifteen seconds until I was across town at the address I’d heard. There was a lot of screaming and crying going on. I came out of the outlet and saw blood on the floor beside a body that wasn’t moving.
There was a girl being beaten by a man with his back to me. He turned to take another swing and I knew my search was over.
“My psychiatrist used to tell me I needed to work on my impulse control,” he said calmly as he slapped her. “I think I’m doing pretty good. I’ve been here ten whole minutes and you’re still alive.”
I shot across the room and knocked him to the floor. He jumped back up and looked around for what had hit him.
“What the hell?”
I saw the fear in his eyes when he saw me. I know Elizabeth would’ve been ashamed, of me, but I was enjoying his anxiety. After all he had done to me and so many others, I drank it in like an elixir.
He started edging toward the door. I was there in a heartbeat. His eyes darted back and forth between where I used to be and where I now stood. The panic in his eyes doubled.
I wanted to make him suffer, but I didn’t want to make the same mistake I’d made before and let him escape with his life.
I lashed out with a bolt that used to be my arm. The energy slashed through his shirt and fried a hole in his shoulder.
He screamed in pain and horror as he looked at the smoking hole in his skin. He tried to run but in an instant, I was there in front of him firing another bolt and searing the skin across his waist to his jeans.
His screams of pain and rage were only matched by the feral desperation in his eyes.
Not knowing what do to, he went with the familiar. Attack the innocent. He grabbed the girl who had been crawling away from the scene.
He grabbed her again and held her in front of him like a human shield.
What a waste of skin.
I fired a bolt into a ceiling light beside me which ricocheted and hit him full force in the leg, nearly severing it.
He went down like a ton of bricks, trying to hold on to his hostage, but she was fighting to get away from him. She broke free and he crumpled to the floor.
“What do you want?” he screamed at me.
With everything that is within me, I wanted to tell him who I was, what he had taken from me, and what I was about to take from him.
But I didn’t want to give the satisfaction. I wanted to give him only uncertainty and fear to cling to.
I could feel the seconds ticking away. I knew I had to make the most of this opportunity or he would get away again. And after this, I might never find him.
I unleashed every ounce of energy at him. I couldn’t even see him, he was only a smoking pillar of frying skin.
Just then, the police burst through the door.
“FREE… “ the first officer started then the shock of what he was seeing stole the rest of the word from his mouth.
He stood there, mouth agape when the female officer stepped in behind him. She looked at me and her wide eyes narrowed as she put two and two together and recognized me from the last crime scene.
I had no reason to fear. I didn’t know if I could even be harmed in my current state. But when you see that blue uniform burst through a door with a gun aimed at you, all rational thought takes a vacation.
I dove for the outlet and was gone. I didn’t even care where I was going. I knew I had done what I wanted to. The monster was destroyed.
Something felt different. Was it pride at finishing my crusade? Was it shame knowing Elizabeth wouldn’t have wanted me to do it?
I don’t know but there was something else. It was like there was added weight to my existence. I guess you can have a conscious in whatever you’d call this existence.
I appeared in the place that made the most sense, ironically. It was my old home. The one where everything I loved died, including me. It was where I took on this unintended new existence.
Is that why I felt this extra weight? Was it some cathartic aftereffect of my search for revenge that was finally over?
I looked around the charred debris of what used to be my home. In my mind's eye, I didn’t see the burned-out shell of what was left. I saw it as it was when we first moved in. When Elizabeth and I started decorating. When the interior was finally finished and I turned to her and said, “For now.” Knowing she would decide to change everything at some time in the future when she was bored, just like all women seem to do.
I remember getting a paintbrush across the mouth for that comment. I smiled remembering kissing her with my freshly painted mouth and ending up in the bedroom.
As I turned toward where I’d entered the house, my smile quickly faded. For some reason, I was still connected to the outlet. That had never happened before.
Another curiosity arose when I noticed the color of my electrical body was now tinged purple. It had always been blue before.
The tail of what had yet to come out of the outlet was red. As I pulled and it came the rest of the way out, it merged with me and turned purple.
“What the hell?” I heard someone say.
I whipped around but no one was there.
“Where am I?” the voice said.
“Who are you?” I said to the air.
There was a long silence.
“Doc?” the voice said.
As far as I knew it wasn’t possible for my spine to turn to ice, since I no longer had a spine, but the feeling seemed the same.
“Frederick?” I said.
“What happened?” he said. “This crazy electric thing attacked me and now… wait a minute. How am I talking to you? You died months ago.”
My shock gave way to utter despair. My enemy was now part of me.

tldr: FFV is extremely good. Play it.
The middle child of the series’ 16-bit era, Final Fantasy V doesn’t share the same lofty legacy as its immediate predecessor and successor. Final Fantasy IV was a game-changer for the franchise and RPGs on a whole while Final Fantasy VI is still regularly considered one of the greatest games in the series and on the Super Nintendo, but audiences far too often neglect the big bridge between them. Final Fantasy V deserves to be held in the same regard and for good reason. V strikes a perfect balance between the gameplay heavy Job-based titles (I & III) and the denser, story-focused (II & IV) games in a way that neither IV nor VI accomplish.
Philosophically, Final Fantasy V combines the player-driven customization from the odd-numbered entries with the narrative and thematic ambitions of the even-numbered games, albeit not by design interestingly enough. In a 1992 developer interview from Famicom Tsuushin (now Famitsu), series creator and FFV director Hironobu Sakaguchi rejected the idea that V was an intentional culmination of what came before,
“Distilling the essence of Final Fantasy into a single game was not our intention. We created this new job ability system in order to carry forth and further iterate on the good ideas we had in FFIV. In that sense it was a distillation. But rather than summing up all of what Final Fantasy has been, it’s more that we simply wanted to give players a kind of fun they haven’t experienced yet. That doesn’t necessarily imply that we wanted to cut out the good parts from FFIV, though.”
In practice, V takes what works from previous games, but redefines everything to fit its own identity. The Job system has been heavily tweaked to offer greater customization options, while memorable character arcs and dramatic story beats tend to drive the plot forward over pure exploration: it’s the best of III and IV with none of the worst. The kind of “fun [players] haven’t experienced yet” means that everyone will go through the same motions more or less, but no two playthroughs need ever be alike: narrative linearity plays off mechanical flexibility. Even though FFV’s story moves in a fixed fashion like IV, players are afforded an incredible amount of freedom when it comes to building their party courtesy of the revised Job system. The end result is an RPG that will always feel fresh.
The gameplay variety in V is still genuinely impressive to this day. Parties are scaled back down to just four members, but everyone can learn any skill and fulfill any role with enough effort. Every party member starts as a Freelancer who can then be reclassed between 22 Jobs (26 in the GBA port). Party composition is less of a puzzle ala FFIII and treated instead like a proper character building system. Bartz, Lenna, Faris, and Galuf all begin as blank slates, but will very quickly fall into different gameplay roles based on how you choose to train each character. The lack of CP (Capacity Points) also means you can swap Jobs whenever you want.
Party members can actually learn and equip Job specific abilities in V. You can mix and match abilities with different Jobs, essentially creating hybrid classes suited to your gameplay interests. Make mages deal barehanded damage like Monks, Monks who attack eight times in a single turn with Rapid Fire, or singing Summoners whose summons and Bardsongs turn them into full-blown utility characters capable of dishing out heavy damage, restoring health, and changing the flow of battle with buffs & debuffs. Where FFIII encourages you to upgrade Jobs with each Crystal, V wants you to find the Jobs you like most and go wild having fun.
FFV is well designed enough where sticking with a single Job is perfectly viable, even if challenging. There’s no wrong way to play according to V’s Battle System Designer Akihiko Matsui,
“There’s so many different jobs, and we decided to make them all viable. Players are free to make any kind of party they want. Player A and Player B might have completely different parties, but ultimately any party can make it to the last boss. After players beat the game, I recommend trying a party that caters to your aesthetic sense.”
Character and Job levels are still separate like in III, but Jobs have had their level caps reduced from a flat 99 to between 1 and 7 depending on the class. Jobs start at Lv. 0 and level up by earning ABP (Ability Points) from completing battles. How much ABP a Job needs is determined by its current level. Lv. 0 Jobs typically only need 10 for their first level, while fully mastering a Job regularly requires hundreds. Since ABP is earned at a slower rate than EXP, ability progression is a gradually paced process. Early encounters will often only yield 1 ABP despite fighting a full team of enemies.
You’re better off relying on boss battles and mid- to late-game battles to master Jobs as enemies will drop more ABP the further you get into the game. You can grind, but simply following the story and getting the abilities you get by playing naturally saves a lot of time in the long run. It’s smarter to go with the flow than to grind for hours off low ABP encounters. At the same time, ability acquisition gives grinding its own rewarding loop and low ABP drops do mean that you can power-level Jobs without necessarily becoming overleveled. Either play style works just fine without completely curbing the difficulty curve.
Each Job level teaches the assigned party member a command, passive, or innate ability that can then be equipped on the Ability screen in the menu. While every Job learns a diverse enough set of abilities to keep them handy, the goal is ultimately to experiment and synergize your party with different abilities. Party members do not learn new spells or abilities by just leveling up, so you need to make use of Jobs to maintain a sense of permanent character progression. Most Jobs can only equip a single ability alongside their class command, while Freelancers have access to two ability slots and Mimes have three at the expense of needing to equip Attack and Items as proper abilities. Ability limits force you to approach Job combos strategically and carefully consider your party’s many options.
V’s Job variety is frankly nothing short of excellent. Job acquisition is fast-paced and you’ll have access to almost every Job before the halfway point. This gives you plenty of time to experiment and find the Jobs best suited to your preferred play style. V also strikes a healthy balance between Final Fantasy mainstays and creative additions that make the gameplay loop even more diverse. Freelancers learn no new abilities, but can equip anything and inherit innate abilities along with stat benefits from mastered Jobs. A perfect Freelancer can inherently dual wield weapons, spot traps in the level design, be able to sprint with B, and counter attacks automatically. A common goal for the endgame is mastering as many Jobs as possible to create the ultimate Freelancer.
The Wind Crystal unlocks the first set of Jobs. Knights can equip some of the best weapons and gear in the game, letting them function as a primary damage dealer and tank. Knights also automatically redirect attacks to themselves when allies are at low health and learn to two-hand Swords, Katanas, or Axes which inflict double damage at the expense of a Shield. Monks have a narrow equipment spread, but are cheap to outfits, always attack twice, counter enemies when struck, and deal heavy damage even without weapons. Their barehanded ability synergizes particularly well with mages, since it allows them to deal decent damage that circumvents their poor weapons spreads.
Thieves have the highest agility in the game, which often means they’ll move first in battle. They can Steal from enemies, later learning the ability Mug, which lets them deal damage while robbing baddies blind. Thieves can also comfortably flee from most encounters, spot hidden passages in the level design, and sprint inside of dungeons & towns by holding B. White Mages play a primarily supportive role by using White Magic to restore HP, heal status effects, and inflict status ailments. Spells are not learned and instead purchased from stores. Purchased spells do not have to be consumed by individual characters and instead apply to the whole party innately. Each Job Level improves the White Mage’s magic capabilities, which is consistent with all magic-based Jobs. Black Mages are squishier than White Mages, but compensate with powerful Black Magic. They play an offensive role, being able to take advantage of elemental weaknesses and status vulnerabilities.
Blue Mages are a new Job created for FF5. Blue Magic cannot be purchased at stores and must instead be learned during battle. Blue Mages learn an ability called Learning that, when equipped, teaches the party any Blue Magic spells enemies use on them. The one caveat is that the attack must connect for it to be learned. Not every attack can be learned, but several enemy spells are obscenely overpowered. Level 5 Death instakills any enemies with a level divisible by 5 and Aqua Breath deals heavy water damage to all enemies on-screen. Regular Blue Magic acquisition and a great spread of attacks makes the Blue Mage one of the most fun Jobs in FFV.
The Water Crystal unlocks five more Jobs once it shatters, with a sixth locked behind an optional dungeon in the final overworld. Time Mages are another new magic-based Job, but they inherit pre-existing magic from previous games. Spells like Haste, Slow, Comet, Float, Teleport, Return, and Meteor are all now considered Time Magic. In practice, Time Mages can use their wide variety of spells to comfortably deal damage, support the party, and debilitate enemies. Summoners can use a wide range of Summon Magic to fulfill different gameplay roles. Summons can deal elemental damage, heal, inflict buffs or debuffs, and the strongest wipe out most enemy encounters with relative ease. While some Summons can be bought at stores, most are tied to side quests and must be found by exploring the overworld & dungeons.
Red Mages can use low and mid tier White & Black Magic in the same ability slot. The best they can cast are -ra spells, but since the best -ga spells are locked off until closer to the end of the game, Red Mages end pulling their weight for quite a while before falling off. Mastering the Red Mage Job is a lengthy endeavor, but ultimately pays off by teaching Dualcast — a borderline overpowered ability that lets them cast two spells in a single turn. Pairing Dualcast with any type of high level magic is one of the best combos a mage could ask for.
Mystic Knights can buff their weapons with Black Magic or Holy via the Spellblade ability. Once enchanted, Mystic Knights combine magical damage with the regular physical capabilities to take advantage of elemental weaknesses or inflict status ailments without compromising attack power. They also automatically cast Shell on themselves at low health to increase their magical resistance. In the right hands and paired with abilities like Rapid Fire and Two-Handed, Mystic Knights end up extremely powerful. Berserkers are an especially unique Job in that they get no active command slots in exchange for dealing considerably buffed damage. While Berserkers can still equip an ability, they cannot be controlled in battle, which limits their overall utility. Berserkers have a great weapon spread, but they need to synergize with the rest of your party well enough to overcome their lack of command slots.
The Fire Crystal unlocks three Jobs right away and then two more once the party explores Black Chocobo Forest. Ninjas are strong, fast, and can dual wield weapons. The Throw command lets them toss items and elemental scrolls at enemies for extra damage, giving them great coverage in combat. Beastmasters can tame, catch, and control different monsters. Controlling a monster gives you full access to their commands. You can make them damage themselves to death or intentionally teach your party rare Blue Magic. Weakened monsters can also be captured and then released in battle, unleashing different attacks depending on the monster. Geomancers fight by altering the terrain with the command Gaia. Their attack types change based on the environment you’re fighting in, along with the character’s level, giving them an impressive amount of gameplay variety. Having a Geomancer in the party will also save you from falling into pit traps and nullify any damage tiles.
Bards make for fantastic utility characters thanks to their variety of Bardsongs. New songs are learned by speaking with NPCs and playing pianos in different towns (like a proper bard!) Singing can buff the party or damage groups of enemies. Songs like Requiem let you lay waste to undead monsters at the cost of 0 MP. Rangers are bow wielders, which means they can deal full damage from the back row. The Aim command increases their accuracy and overall damage, but unlike Rosa from FFIV, bows no longer need individual arrows as ammo. The main benefit to the Ranger class is its mastered ability Rapid Fire, which deals for weak attacks in one turn and pairs excellently with Monks, two-handers, or dual wielders.
The Earth Crystal unlocks the final four Jobs in the original release (sans Mime). Dancers are weaker than other Jobs comparatively, but get by thanks to their unique Dance ability and great access to accessories. Dancing triggers one of four random effects in battle, either confusing enemies, absorbing MP, absorbing HP, or dealing damage. They’re also the only class besides Freelancers who can innately equip Ribbons, which nullify all negative status effects. Dancers on a whole are reliant on equipment to be functional. Gear like Lamia’s Tiara and Red Slippers help raise the chances of Dancers dancing the Sword Dance, turning them into solid attackers. Dragoons are limited to spears and knives for weapons, but have a great equipment spread otherwise. Their abilities let them function as reliable damage dealers who can survive lengthy battles. Dragoons can Jump to temporarily avoid damage mid-air and attack enemies by landing. Lance also drains enemies MP and HP, which pairs well with Mages.
Samurai learn some of the best commands in the game while having access to powerful weapons and gear. With the right set ups, they can obliterate the difficulty curve. Mineuchi is basically a regular attack that sometimes paralyzes enemies. Zeningage lets you throw Gil to deal massive damage. The more Gil you have and the higher your level, the more damage is dealt. Shirahadori raises evasion, turning your party member into a dodge-tank, and Iainuki simply insta-kills most enemies at the cost of requiring two turns to use. Chemists are great support characters designed all around items. They can brew new concoctions mid-battle by mixing different ingredients to different effects. Your existing items can turn into an attack, heal your party, or temporarily buff everyone’s level. Chemists can also drink special potions that buff their stats, and restore more HP & MP by using Potions & Ethers than other Jobs.
The Mime Job can be unlocked by exploring Walse Tower underwater in the final overworld. Mimes are the core of the Job system condensed into a single Jon. They inherit some mastered abilities innate (not all), and have three ability slots that let you fully customize each party member. You can even remove commands like Attack and Items in favor of other abilities. Mimes can also mimic any move used by the previous party member at no MP cost and without consuming items. The Mime makes a great alternative to Freelancers, especially for magic-oriented characters.
Final Fantasy V Advance introduces four extra Jobs. Three of which are available as soon as you unlock all 12 Legendary Weapons and visit the Sealed Temple, with the last unlocked after defeating the Temple’s boss. Gladiators are powerful melee fighters with access to strong weapons and armor whose commands help them make short work of enemies. Oracles are the strongest magic-based Job in the game, but their main command Condemn has a chance of randomly healing enemies, so they’re not the most reliable beyond their stat benefits. Cannoneers can deal full damage from the back row and can combine ingredients together to make new items and the final Job Necromancer learns unique Dark Art spells from enemies like a Blue Mage with Blue Magic. Albeit fun to play with, the GBA Jobs enter the picture too late to actually have an effect on character building.
Overall, V’s Jobs are incredibly fun to play around with and offer a consistently rewarding gameplay loop that lasts the whole playthrough. The early game encourages you to diversify your party, the mid-game pushes you to mix & match dozens of different abilities, and the endgame rewards you for mastering Jobs by letting you customize Freelancers and Mimes into bonafide powerhouses. The Job system gives FFV an incredible gameplay flow that keeps combat and exploration fresh all the way to the credits.
V’s battles flow at a great pace. The ATB (Active Time Battle) system returns from FFIV, albeit with an on-screen bar for each party member that refills and signifies when they can make a move. Taking turns in real-time lends combat a sense of urgency and pressure, especially in boss fights. The difficulty curve is never so high where you’ll be overwhelmed by lightning fast enemies, but V tends to require more strategy and thought than IV on average — although mainly on a prep level. Battles challenge you to diversify your party’s abilities while rewarding you for experimenting with Jobs. Low EXP payout compared to previous games keeps parties from overleveling. The focus is on earning AP, learning abilities, and creating hybrid Jobs.
Enemies are vulnerable to a lot of different elements and status ailments across all types of magic and abilities. Trying with different spells and debuffs usually pays off. There are more status effects to contend with, with some particularly dangerous ones for the party. Old slowly lowers the affected character’s stats. Dischord halves the target’s level. Zombie turns a character against the rest of the party. Smart Job synergy lets you blitz through most random encounters, but you’ll often run into stronger enemies or packed parties that’ll keep you on your toes. It’s not uncommon to fight an army of weaker enemies battling alongside a considerably stronger monster. FFV doesn’t share I or III’s Vancian Magic system despite being a Job-based game, instead maintaining the MP system from FFII and FFIV. MP still needs to be managed to some extent since the best spells require quite a bit of MP to cast, especially Blue Magic.
Combat’s fast and sometimes frantic pace ends up mirroring the game’s overall progression. Final Fantasy V wastes no time opening up. The status quo is always changing and you unlock new Jobs surprisingly quickly. V cycles through three overworlds just like IV. They’re not as striking as Earth, Underworld, and Moon trio, but feel more cohesive. The game begins on the protagonist Bartz’s world, shifts to party member Galuf’s world, and ends in a merged overworlds that’s an amalgamation of both worlds. The story is fairly linear up until the last world where the game finally lets you explore at your leisure. Most of the final dungeons can even be done in any order, most of which are actually optional. V sports more methods of transportation than the average Final Fantasy and cycles through them often, trapping you in specific areas with unique restrictions.
You ride on a Chocobo, set sail on a ship led on a hydra, fly on a dragon’s back, sail a fire-powered boat, fly a Black Chocobo through the air, pilot an airship, and submerge a submarine underwater. The fact you’re always engaging with the overworld in a new way keeps progression fresh and reminds you that anything can change. Some towns disappear and you lose access to them over the course of the story. Multiple dungeons are one-time trips. There are actual consequences to in-game actions. Once you’re done with an overworld, you’re done. There’s no jumping between worlds like in IV. The world permanently changes and stays changed. The space you’re interacting with and how is always being altered. V isn’t the first Final Fantasy with real consequences, but it’s the first one where those consequences fundamentally reshape your experience beyond just locking away a few key areas.
Towns themselves are packed with colorful NPCs who do a good job at directing you. Ancillary dialogue often sets up later story beats or just fleshes out the world in small yet significant ways. V’s game-long side quests encourage you to talk with everyone and hunt the overworld for secret summons and optional dungeons. V’s towns are generally well designed with enough secrets to keep you exploring, but dungeons are the real star when it comes to level design. FFV’s dungeons aren’t as long as III or IV’s, but they’re a healthy length and set pieces are consistently memorable and engaging. There’s a good mix of traps, gimmicks, and environmental variety. Every dungeon feels creatively distinct.
The Ship Graveyard is an early standout, as you explore debris from ruined ships on open water, jumping from wreckage to wreckage. The Library of Ancients features a prominent bookcase maze. Bookshelves move around as you explore the library, opening up seemingly dead-ends and keeping your own navigation confused and claustrophobic. You have to walk into nooks to let the bookshelves collapse back in, creating new ways to traverse the room. The Phoenix Tower is a 30 floor gauntlet with no save points, you only have seven minutes to explore a sunken Walse Tower before you drown, and the Great Sea Trench is filled with damage tiles and pit traps.
The four Tablet dungeons do a great job at closing out FFV on a fight, with the Pyramid serving as a great introduction to the endgame. You only have three party members at this time, which makes things notably harder, but the dungeon itself is packed with different gimmicks. Branching paths lead to chests with monsters ready to ambush you. Sarcophagi that double as secret passages hiding mummies. Wall switches let you deactivate traps and unlock doors. Spike traps block your path and snakes jump out from walls to trigger battle on contact. Mecha Heads patrol the upper floors, and floor tiles that move around every few seconds drop you down to the floor below if you’re not quick enough. By the time you reach the Rift, you’re ready for everything the final dungeon has to toss at you.
V’s presentation really helps bring different set pieces to life and is a big step up from IV. Environments are rich with detail, playing with depth perceptive to add some welcome spatial depth to the level design and using unique effects that help foster atmosphere. Exdeath’s Castle is overflowing with thick fog, dark areas warp the visuals around you, and knee-deep water rushes through Istory Falls. The game’s spritework is nothing short of fantastic. Enemies are the best they’ve ever looked at this point, and each character has a unique battle sprite for every single Job — all of which play to your party members’ distinct personalities. FFV also sports one of Nobuo Uematsu’s most underrated soundtracks. Lenna’s theme is a beautiful song, Fate in Haze is a haunting dungeon tune, and Clash on the Big Bridge is one of the most blood-pumping battle themes in the series. The score has a wide musical range, and is as emotional as it is energetic and ambient.
The scope of Final Fantasy V’s story isn’t as emotionally charged as IV, but it’s no worse for wear. Hironobu Sakaguchi and Yoshinori Kitase worked on the story together, both leaving their own personality behind in V’s script,
“Sakaguchi was in charge of the overall plot, and because FFV was a relatively serious story, I wanted to be sure to inject spots with a little bit of comic relief and humor.” – Yoshinori Kitase, Scenario Writer The end result is a plot that knows when to be dramatic and when to cut loose a little. Final Fantasy V is just as comfortable letting Bartz and Faris share a tender moment at his parents’ grave as it is having the party’s main rival have a very tongue-in-cheek redemption right before the final battle. V is a Final Fantasy with a sense of humor and a sense of heart.
One particular point in the story’s favor is its modern English localization. While V’s original English translation on PSX left much to be desired (to say the least), the revised Game Boy Advance script plays to the story’s natural charm and stands out as a strong localization altogether. Characters joke around together and interact with each other often, playing off each other’s unique personality traits. Bartz is a few men short of a full crew, Leena is an all-loving princess, Faris is a headstrong pirate with a sensitive side, and Galuf & Krile are usually the game’s go-to when it comes to injecting some humor and pathos into the plot.
Character development is gradual in V, trading IV’s big beats for several smaller interactions amongst the cast that help flesh out their relationships, backstories, and motivations. By the end of the game, V’s party of four feels more defined than IV’s cast of a dozen. Little moments highlight their growth as opposed to life-changing events. Bartz and Galuf build a mutual respect for each other over their journey, and share a man-to-man drink in Regole. Lenna and Faris are two sisters torn apart at birth who reconnect throughout the game and mourn their father together. Krile gets to know the party and forms a bond with everyone before replacing Galuf. Bartz, Lenna, Faris, and Krile feel like a close-knit group of friends when all is said and done.
While the crux of FFV’s story is a fairly traditional “good versus evil” plot, the narrative is bolstered both by strong characterization and some light but tight theming. Nature is dying due to man’s abuse of natural resources. The four Crystals are sapped of their energy, draining the world of its elements. The wind will stop, the air will stagnate, the birds will fall from the heavens and drop dead as seas dry up and fires die out. The fact Exdeath is actually a tree can even be read as nature rejecting humanity and wiping the slate clean as a consequence. The story doesn’t really push the theme beyond the surface level, but that it’s present at all gives the plot a minor layer of depth.
Big gameplay moments to advance the story aren’t as frequent as IV, but they’re as impactful and V has more cutscenes in the grand scheme of things. The Battle at the Big Bridge throws constant enemies at you to build tension during a major turning point for the story. Gilgamesh interrupts a fight with an entirely different boss and superseding their battle theme with his own. Galuf’s death and final duel with Exdeath uses the battle system to emphasize Galuf’s sheer force of will. Exdeath peppers you with powerful attacks, but Galuf refuses to die even at 0 HP. You can feel Galuf’s determination and desperation translated through the gameplay loop as he survives Flare, Holy, and Meteor back to back to back. Watching him fight to the very last inch of his life justifies it when the party can’t help him with Curaga, Raise, Phoenix Downs, or Elixirs. Galuf’s death feels painfully earned narratively and mechanically.
Exdeath is a great villain, both in spite of and because of his outlandishly cartoonish malice. He’s outlandishly cartoonish, laughs maniacally, takes every opportunity to torment the party, and has no real ulterior motives beyond his evil. He’s chaos personified, which is perhaps fitting considering how FFV echoes FFI’s story in several respects. Exdeath also stands out for being an active antagonist whose role isn’t taken over by a last minute villain who was secretly pulling the strings all along. He’s nothing special in the greater context of Final Fantasy villains, but Exdeath serves V’s story well.
Between an incredibly charming story and a fantastic gameplay loop, Final Fantasy V is nothing short of one the best games in the series. It’s a perfect marriage of Final Fantasy’s two distinct styles, combining the character-driven storytelling from II & IV with the gameplay diversity of I & II while giving both halves of the experience enough depth to thrive. The story’s stakes are high, the cast is very likable, and the lighter tone gives the plot a strong identity without undermining its drama. The Job system offers an amazing amount of replay value and is freeform enough where there is no wrong way to play. Impressively memorable dungeon design and an ever-changing status quo lend the impression that you’re on a genuine adventure with real stakes. Addictive, endearing, and brimming with heart, Final Fantasy V is a near flawless RPG and one of Square’s finest 16-bit achievements.
Here's that same write-up with pretty pictures and links: https://goombastomp.com/final-fantasy-5-retrospective/

Synopsis:

Ten years ago, Amelia woke up alone and lost in a broken world where she had to fight for her survival.
Now, after reaching the pinnacle of power, defeating the Void itself, and escaping the abyss, she has finally found her way back into the real world. But instead of finding herself on Earth, she is in the land of Vacuos. A fantasy world with magic, monsters, Classes, and Levels. A world that is governed by a System like it were a video game.
And when rewarded with a Class befitting her accomplishments— to become a powerful [Hero] that will forever dedicate her life to protecting this world that is not her own— she only has one response.
“Absolutely not. I’m going to live a normal life now, thank you very much.”
After all, who needs a Class when you're already the strongest anyways?

Read Chapter 1 Here
“Is this it?” Noele asked as she eyed the small cave.
The trail ended here. There was no mistaking it— the large hoofprints continued further into the darkness, so this had to be it. The Noble Spellsword glanced back and nodded at her companion.
“Get ready, Garron,” she warned him.
“Right.”
The burly man nodded, readying his large shield. He strode forward as drew her blade. The two adventurers approached the cave entrance, but a voice called out to them from the trees. They glanced back towards a nearby thicket. A purple man stood there, two arms crossed as he spoke loudly for them to hear.
“Do not damage its legs!” Xakor gestured at his thighs with his free hands. “The kretus boar’s meat is mostly inedible apart from its legs! You want to target its neck or underbelly!”
Noele blinked back at the [Chef]. “Xakor! What are you doing here? It’s dangerous— get back!”
“Xrr, I’ll be fine,” he said simply. He tapped a finger on the rings around his fingers. “I have my own artifacts to protect me. I would even be able to survive an encounter with an A-rank threat for up to five minutes, so there is no reason to worry for my safety.”
“But it’s still dangerous…” she trailed off.
“It’ll be fine.” Garron spoke up, placing a hand on her shoulder. “Xakor is the one who led us here. He survived an encounter with this kretus boar once before. I am sure he can handle himself.”
“Right.” Even knowing that, Noele still pursed her lips.
Certainly, it was true that Xakor was the one who sent them on this mission. He had stumbled into the kretus boar on the way to Wolfwater, and it had attacked him. Apparently, the [Chef] had actually hurt the monster with his artifacts before he escaped, but he knew it was going to pose a threat to the nearby villages considering its vindictive nature.
So he had hired both Noele and Garron to hunt down the kretus boar before it could fully recover. After all, it was a B-ranked threat, and its home was likely destroyed a few weeks back during the wildfire spurred by the Miststorm Riders.
Of course, Xakor had ulterior motives too. He wanted to stock up on meat for his brand new restaurant run by Amelia. Noele was still processing that fact— she couldn’t believe that the Patron of the Culinary Sciences was opening a restaurant here in Wolfwater of all places. Never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that he would ever visit her backwater village, let alone do that.
Noele had entertained the idea that maybe Xakor would open up one of his many restaurant chains in Whiteridge, considering that it was actually a city. But Wolfwater was a farming village. It only had a single inn for passing [Merchants] or [Traders] to stay. It made no sense for a restaurant to ever be opened up in some place like this.
However, it was actually happening. This was reality. And yet, this wasn’t even the most surprising part. Because he wans’t just opening a restaurant in Wolfwater, he was partnering with Amelia— a literal non-[Chef]— out of all people.
Sure, the blonde girl thought that her mentor’s cooking was pretty good— each time she had tried those so-called ‘Earth foods’, she had been impressed— but she didn’t think that it was anywhere comparable to Xakor’s cooking. Apparently, the Patron of the Culinary Sciences disagreed because he was letting Amelia handle most of the cooking for the restaurant.
Noele knew better than to question the cooking knowledge of a [Chef] who was above Level 50. But she still found it quite perplexing, even knowing that they were both otherworlders, so there was evidently some bias involved. The blonde girl wondered if this restaurant would actually take off, considering Amelia’s past track record with the food stand. Maybe having Xakor’s name attached would actually bring in customers.
However, nothing was certain. And while Noele hoped for the best, she was expecting the worst.
She shook her head as she strode forward alongside Garron. She had to focus right now. The kretus boar was close. And while it was weak compared to her, it was still a threat to the Steel Tank. It had to have been at least Level 40. Usually, only low-leveled monsters were harvested for food, while high-leveled monster parts were used for alchemy, herbalism, or even smithing.
However, the kretus boar was special because their legs were actually quite soft and tender, so they could be cooked and served as food. They weren’t a delicacy by any means, but considering their size, the meat from even a single leg could feed a family of four for months.
So the two adventurers didn’t want to damage the kretus boar’s legs. And not only that… well, Noele wasn’t going to be joining the fight either.
She came to a halt right at the mouth of the cave as Garron drew closer. He raised his short sword, edging forward with his shield raised, entering the darkness.
“Remember,” she called out. “No Skills.”
The Steel Tank glanced back at her, his lips twisted into a frown. And while he always wore a slight frown on his face even when he was in a jovial mood, she knew he was actually upset this time around. A little bit nervous too— very nervous, probably.
And he had every right to feel that way. After all, he wasn’t allowed to use his Skills. Noele wouldn’t let him. If he drew power from the World System, that would defeat the purpose of all this. He was the one who asked her to grow stronger like she did, and this was exactly what she had to do under Amelia’s tutelage.
Under normal circumstances, Garron could probably dispose of a kretus boar without risking his life. But since he couldn’t use his Skills, there was a very real chance that he could die to the monster. He drew forward warily as Noele just watched.
She said she wouldn’t intervene unless it really looked like he couldn’t handle this on his own. So she looked on as a figure emerged from the shadows. A looming creature, standing over twenty feet tall. It was the kretus boar, and it was already mad.
It beat its front hooves on the ground before charging. Garron yelped, bracing himself for the monster’s attack. It crashed into him as he raised his shield, sending him flying into the air. The Steel Tank landed with a groan as the kretus boar continued barreling towards him with a terrible roar.
Could boars even roar? Noele was pretty sure regular boars didn’t make that kind of a sound. But the kretus boar did. The Steel Tank scrambled to his feet as the monster’s footfalls caused the ground to quake. It rammed into him once more, but this time, he held his ground.
Garron grunted as he was pushed against the rock wall of the cavern. He clung onto his shield with both his hands, gritting his teeth as the Noble Spellsword pursed her lips.
“You have to surpass your limits!” she called out. “Do not use your Skills— overcome it with your own strength!”
“I… am… trying!” Garron shouted as he stepped to the side.
The monster stumbled forward, crashing into the rock wall, and he swung out with his short sword. He slashed the monster’s underbelly open as it reeled. But right as he circled around the kretus boar, it kicked out with its hind legs, knocking the Steel Tank’s shield out of his hand.
His eyes went wide, and it whirled around to face him. He tried to back away but the kretus boar was faster. All Garron could do was thrust forward with his short sword. The attack dug deep into the monster’s neck, but it wasn’t enough to take it down. Its eyes flashed, and it headbutted him, sending him crashing into the other side of the cavern.
Noele’s eyes flickered. She saw the way Garron struggled to get back to his feet. His chestplate was dented, and blood trickled down his forehead. The kretus boar charged his way once more. And the Noble Spellsword finally intervened.
With a single slash, she sliced the kretus boar in half. Her blade shone with a bright gold light, illuminating the dark cave chamber for a brief moment. The cavern was far larger and went deeper than she thought, but it didn’t matter. Her Elegant Noble Slash got the job done.
The monster collapsed, dead in an instant. Noele drew back and sheathed her sword in a single swift motion. She turned to Garron as he staggered to his feet.
“Are you alright?” she asked, running up to help him.
“I’m… fine.” The Steel Tank rubbed his forehead, wiping away the blood. He had a small cut just above his right eye, but he was otherwise fine. “Fighting without Skills is harder than I thought…” he murmured.
“Tell me about it,” Noele said as she offered him a shoulder. “It took me a while to get the hang of it, and it was only thanks to your help. So don’t let it get you down.”
He shook his head and snorted. “I’m not upset that I lost to a B-ranked monster— I’m more upset that I’ll have to get a new chestplate.”
The blonde girl chuckled. “Well, you still have plenty of time to learn.”
“I knew this wasn’t going to be easy,” Garron continued. “I saw how hard you trained to get to where you are now, Noele. Honestly, I’m more impressed by you now than ever. You are quite amazing.”
She smiled, nudging him as she helped him limp out of the cave. “Thanks— but we can talk about this later. Let’s just treat your injuries and let Xakor know it’s over.”
“Of course.” Garron nodded back at her.
The two adventurers slowly stepped back out into the clearing, and Xakor approached them curiously. The [Chef] had a bag slung around his shoulders— presumably to carry the kretus boar’s meat back to Wolfwater. They told him that it was over, and he quickly got to work.
Noele watched from the side as Garron took a sip from a healing potion while Xakor dismantled the kretus boar of edible parts. When they were finished, the sun was still hanging high in the sky, and it was time to get back.
It would be about sundown by the time they arrived in Wolfwater. It wasn’t a long trip, and they would reach the village a lot sooner if it were just the two adventurers. However, they weren’t really in a rush, so they took their time, leaving the empty cave behind them.
—--
But the cave wasn’t actually empty. What Noele neglected to notice was that further down the tunnel was a second kretus boar. A smaller one— about three-quarters the size of its partner. It had been injured. Burned during the forest fire. But its partner provided for it, hunting for food for the both of them.
And when its partner didn’t return that night, it forced itself up. But all it found was a corpse.
It flew into a rage. Its thunderous roar sent the nearby fauna scattering in terror. It curled up into a ball, grieving over the death of its partner.
And as it lay there overnight, something found it. Something… sinister.
A depravity that had tried to crawl its way into the world, but was cut short before it could fully manifest. The trace remains of a twisted magic that carried the will of the Void. It had roamed around the village after the Cloying Witch was prematurely killed, searching for a new host. And now, it preyed on the lone kretus boar’s anger. It fed on the suffering of the world, overwhelming the World System’s control.
The monster mindlessly accepted this power, and its body began to change.
​

Author's Notes:
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[email protected] ---------------------- When school grades need to be changed, students will usually make the mistake of hiring someone who cannot fix their grades. After all, students do not have the information or resources to hack because they need to know what kind of software to use for hacking. It is appropriate to hire a specialist to complete the school grade in such cases.

A SHORT BRIEF OF HOW TO HACK SCHOOL GRADES

An ethical hacker should consider that you can effectively hack your student portal and change your grades. Blackboard hacking techniques to change your grades, Blackboards are also known as a Learning Management System (LMS).
It is simply a tool that schools and universities typically use as part of their facilities to provide materials to their students. It is similarly used to store student grades as well as assignment information.
Blackboard hacking should be possible through two types of hacking methods: hacking a school website and changing your grades.

Get Admin Password To Hack Grades

One of the characteristics of a hacker is to use this method to hack and change your school grades. To use this type of support, you need to hire a hacker to change your grade. Most school grades are stored online and you need some hacking techniques to achieve the desired results.
Once you get an admin password, you need security to get access and an admin facility to set up a connection to the school database. A professional hacker uses trials and errors to track login information, encryption keys, a secret database, website pages.
An ethical hacker can work through all the predictable keywords and many passwords to get the right admin login. This is a tedious assignment, yet a professional hacker has a repository of passwords, leaking the data they set up as a repository of password archives.

Hacker Tactics To Change Your Grades On School Websites

For security reasons, we can outline the methods used by hackers. This may be a way for many schools and colleges to stop this attack. For hacking college databases online, the hacking experience of expert hackers is a significant parameter in the local area.
Professional hacker administration solves all hacking requests. DDOS can be used to obtain access information without identifying areas of application where:

• Hack canvas
• To hack the blackboard
• To hack university servers, and
• To hack many other security websites
• Hackers have advanced software to get secretly to a security website college portal online easily.

Hacking Tool - Keylogger

This is an easy way to hack into the university system. If you want to choose between the different hacking strategies to hack your grades and consider that each is predictable, you need to make a clear decision about keylogger hacking.
Keyloggers are important for ethical hacking practice and the most straightforward of all methods of grade hacking. This strategy targets less hanging organic products that are easier to control when changing your grade.

Effective tool for using grade hacking

What hackers do is introduce keylogger software like Keylogger on the target PC. An official who regularly monitors the university database as a feature of his daily profession should use his PC. First, the software is installed, and then it records every keystroke when using the keyboard.
When your educator comes to PC, he should be given login qualifications in the system. In addition, that is the target of hackers. Keylogger software will record keystrokes and, at the same time, login certification. The hacker then uses this information to access the system and modify your college grade.

HACKING SCHOOL WEBSITES AND CHANGING YOUR GRADES

Hackers can usually change your school's grade without identifying the university, which will be very permanent. Most hull systems use blackboards that ethical hackers can hack. Who can give you current methods to hack your grades?
The course/examination officer should not be aware that his record has been compromised and used to alter it to implement this hacking method.

THE MOST EFFECTIVE WAY TO HACK A COLLEGE WEBSITE IS TO CHANGE THE GRADE

When hacking, you need to bypass the entire security system of your school database. Similarly, it would help if you got close to their firewall staff and the security of the LMS software introduced in your school system, which is the blackboard for this situation. A professional hacker knows exactly what to do, unlike new students who try to hack without any experience.
They carry out that tail hacking behind. If someone is unaware of the cycle during regular hacking, they may neglect to hide their IP address and follow up using it later.

How To Change Your Grades Online Forever

When hacking, one requirement is to use VPNs, hide their IP address, and leave other relevant data on the website page. Hiring ethical hackers to hack your university website will save you the hassle of doing it without any help. You can discover different types of hackers, but a black hat hacker is what you are looking for.
When hiring a hacker to help you change your school grades, make sure they have some information about their strategy and that they leave no stone unturned to link to you. It is equally important not to make big improvements in your grades. The insignificant changes are undoubted to take a more dangerous note.
Don't try to change someone else's grade when you change. Thus, it can raise further suspicions and be found or could result in severe fines or even imprisonment.

CONCLUSION

Hacking sometimes becomes a necessity, and it should be possible to change grades through temporary changes that last forever will eventually require an experienced and trained professional.
Hiring [email protected] make it easy to change grades forever and saves you the hassle of falling flat or retaking the course.

Logic controllers can be programmed, hence the term “programmable logic controller” (PLC). These are the industrial computers that run the automated machinery in factories and other manufacturing facilities. There is a wide range in the size and shape of PLCs. These diverse system needs are met by Burraq Engineering solutions‘ new, tough PLC Training product lines. These compact controllers are changing the game because they cut setup and wiring time for PLC panels and communication networks in half. Burraq Engineering’s All-in-One philosophy is supported by ground-breaking software that enables Ladder control, HMI design, and all hardware and communication setup to be coded in a single, straightforward software environment.

SCADA and HMI systems

There are a variety of techniques to program programmable logic controllers (PLCs), including ladder logic (which is based on electromechanical relays), modified versions of BASIC and C, and more. Ladder diagrams, structured text, function block diagrams, instruction lists, and sequential function diagrams are the most common programming languages for modern PLCs. PLCs are an integral part of the hardware components of SCADA and HMI systems, which give users access to data from the production environment and an interface to submit control inputs. PLCs are the connectors between the industrial machinery and the SCADA or HMI system.

Robotics Tools

PLCs, or programmable logic controllers, are used to coordinate and manage automated procedures like production lines, machinery operations, and robotic tools. Inputs, outputs, and the central processing unit (CPU) are the primary components of a programmable logic controller. PLCs collect information from a factory by watching the inputs to the many machines and tools there. The central processing unit (CPU) subsequently applies logic to the data based on the current condition of the inputs. In turn, the central processing unit (CPU) runs the user-created program logic and communicates with the connected machines and devices, either by sending data or commands.

PLC Mechanical switches

Data inputs from devices and machines, and data inputs executed by humans, are the two most common types of inputs. The PLC Training receives input from various sensors and equipment. Inputs can be anything that can be switched on or off, such as buttons, sensors, or mechanical switches. Open/closed states for pumps and readings; high/low states for temperature, pressure, and liquid-level sensors. Inputs that are mediated by a human being include the use of buttons, switches, and sensors found on devices like keyboards, touch screens, remote controllers, and card readers. The outputs are the actual actions taken or the visible outcomes achieved as a result of the inputs being processed by the PLC logic.

Internal diagnostic and programming terminals

Motor starts, light switches, the valve opens, heats up, and pumps stop are all examples of physical outputs. Devices including printers, projectors, global positioning systems, and displays get visual outputs. programmable logic controllers routinely work in cycles. Before anything else, the PLC checks the status of all input devices. Based on the input states, the PLC performs the logic the user has programmed. The PLC then sends on/off commands to any and all linked output devices. As soon as these procedures are finished, the PLC will do a security check of the communications with the internal diagnostic and programming terminals to ensure everything is running normally.

Supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA)

The PLC Training will begin the procedure again after it has completed the current one. The variety of available ignition controllers makes it possible to connect the ignition to virtually any PLC, both new and old. After the controller for the device has been wired in, the information it collects can be seen locally or transferred to a programmable logic controller. Ignition brand systems’ access to PLC data enables new uses for the platform’s powerful core components. Build a centralized system for monitoring and managing PLC data, such as a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) and manufacturing execution system (MES), human-machine interface (HMI) and alarm and reporting solution, or enterprise-wide solution.

PLC communication

The poll-and-response mechanism has long been the standard for PLC communication. Because of the short, connected distances involved, this mode of communication is typically used in local operations and manufacturing contexts. Using a poll-and-response technique, PLCs are in perpetual contact with one another, checking for and reacting to any data changes. The need for information from faraway places has grown in tandem with the IIoT’s rising profile. Hence, there will be a greater number of PLCs and edge computing devices.
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I need some guidance. I’m not sure how to go about this. It’s in arizona, right now it’s currently 3:26 am. A little bit of context. I 24 (f) and my brother 25 (m) share a apartment together. We have our own rooms. I also have a cat who likes to sleep by my pillow by my head. I have work in the morning so I decided to go to sleep around 11:30pm. I usually sleep on my stomach so the bottom of my foot was facing up to the ceiling and the top of my foot was facing down on the mattress. You know when your asleep but also know of your surroundings? Like your dreaming but your consciously aware of what’s going on outside your dream? That’s how I was. I was dreaming but I could hear outside my dream, like I was half asleep. While I was dreaming I felt something press down on my toes. I immediately woke out of my dream and opened my eyes. I was looking at the wall and thinking that my cat licked my foot. I moved my arm and felt my cats fur touch my arm by my head. I tilted my head over to see what touched my foot and I see my brother standing there bending over looking towards the ground. He didn’t see me looking towards him and I quickly layed my head flat on the bed. I felt scared to moved. I felt paralyzed. I immediately thought he kissed my foot. I was in shock. I couldn’t move or any anything. And the next second while I was fully awake he kissed my foot again. Like full on kissed my foot for a full 5 seconds. The seconds felt long than 5 seconds. I was squinting my eyes still facing the wall and I see his body walk slowly over to my head and checked to see if I was awake. I was stilll squinting my eyes pretending I was asleep and he left my room. I pretended to wake up and I went to go wipe my foot with soap cause I felt disgusted and dirty. Now I’m dead awake typing this out and I’m scared if this is the first time or if he’s done this before. I don’t know what to do or say. I need some advice on how to go about this.

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Conan Exiles	1.6 TF2	$3.28 PP	-
Construction Simulator 2015	1.2 TF2	$2.48 PP	-
Contagion	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Control Ultimate Edition	1.3 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$2.63 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Heroines: Warriors, Dreamers, and God Slayers
Crash Bandicoot™ N. Sane Trilogy	8.1 TF2	$16.51 PP	-
Crawl	1.7 TF2	$3.56 PP	-
Creaks	0.4 TF2	$0.74 PP	-
Creed: Rise to Glory™	2.2 TF2	$4.53 PP	-
Crusader Kings II: Royal Collection	2.7 TF2	$5.55 PP	-
Crusader Kings III	4.0 TF2	$8.11 PP	-
CryoFall	0.4 TF2	$0.78 PP	-
Crysis® 2 Maximum Edition	0.9 TF2	$1.76 PP	-
Cultist Simulator Anthology Edition	2.4 TF2	$4.89 PP	-
Cultist Simulator	0.7 TF2	$1.41 PP	-
DEATHLOOP	2.1 TF2	$4.23 PP	-
DIRT 5	3.4 TF2	$6.89 PP	-
DMC - Devil May Cry	0.6 TF2	$1.17 PP	-
DRAGON BALL FIGHTERZ - Ultimate Edition	3.8 TF2	$7.76 PP	-
DRAGON BALL XENOVERSE 2	1.7 TF2	$3.44 PP	-
DRAGONBALL XENOVERSE Bundle Edition	1.1 TF2	$2.32 PP	-
DRIFT21	0.5 TF2	$1.03 PP	-
Dark Deity	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin	8.4 TF2	$17.12 PP	-
Dark Souls III	13.0 TF2	$26.68 PP	-
Darkest Dungeon	0.6 TF2	$1.3 PP	-
Darksiders Genesis	1.2 TF2	$2.39 PP	-
Darksiders II Deathinitive Edition	0.6 TF2	$1.2 PP	-
Darksiders III	0.9 TF2	$1.76 PP	-
Day of the Tentacle Remastered	0.4 TF2	$0.92 PP	-
DayZ	6.1 TF2	$12.54 PP	-
Dead Estate	1.6 TF2	$3.23 PP	-
Dead Island - Definitive Edition	0.9 TF2	$1.82 PP	-
Dead Island Definitive Collection	1.6 TF2	$3.27 PP	-
Dead Island Riptide - Definitive Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.73 PP	-
Dead Rising 2: Off the Record	1.1 TF2	$2.16 PP	-
Dead Rising 3 Apocalypse Edition	2.0 TF2	$4.17 PP	-
Dead Rising 4	0.8 TF2	$1.71 PP	-
Dead Rising	1.0 TF2	$2.0 PP	-
Dead Rising® 2	1.0 TF2	$2.11 PP	-
Death Road to Canada	0.6 TF2	$1.21 PP	-
Death's Gambit	0.7 TF2	$1.45 PP	-
Deep Rock Galactic	3.9 TF2	$7.96 PP	-
Descenders	0.4 TF2	$0.9 PP	-
Desperados III	1.1 TF2	$2.24 PP	-
Destroy All Humans	0.7 TF2	$1.42 PP	-
Deus Ex: Human Revolution - Director's Cut	0.9 TF2	$1.92 PP	-
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided	1.1 TF2	$2.23 PP	-
Devil May Cry HD Collection	1.4 TF2	$2.9 PP	-
Devil May Cry® 4 Special Edition	1.4 TF2	$2.91 PP	-
Dinosaur Fossil Hunter	0.4 TF2	$0.92 PP	-
Distance	0.8 TF2	$1.54 PP	-
Distant Worlds: Universe	0.6 TF2	$1.3 PP	-
Doom Eternal	2.0 TF2	$4.19 PP	-
Door Kickers	1.1 TF2	$2.2 PP	-
Dorfromantik	2.0 TF2	$4.04 PP	-
Dragon Ball FighterZ	1.7 TF2	$3.54 PP	-
Dragons Dogma - Dark Arisen	0.8 TF2	$1.67 PP	-
Drake Hollow	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Drone Swarm	0.5 TF2	$0.98 PP	-
Duck Game	2.3 TF2	$4.7 PP	-
Dungeon Defenders: Awakened	3.7 TF2	$7.55 PP	-
Dungreed	0.9 TF2	$1.83 PP	-
Dusk	1.1 TF2	$2.24 PP	-
Duskers	0.5 TF2	$1.01 PP	-
EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair	2.3 TF2	$4.63 PP	-
ELEX	0.7 TF2	$1.5 PP	-
EVERSPACE™	0.8 TF2	$1.6 PP	-
Elite: Dangerous	1.3 TF2	$2.65 PP	-
Endzone - A World Apart	0.7 TF2	$1.34 PP	-
Exanima	2.4 TF2	$4.82 PP	-
FTL: Faster Than Light	1.3 TF2	$2.58 PP	-
Fable Anniversary	2.7 TF2	$5.56 PP	-
Fallout 76	1.6 TF2	$3.23 PP	-
Fantasy General II	0.5 TF2	$0.97 PP	-
Farming Simulator 17	0.5 TF2	$1.08 PP	-
Firefighting Simulator - The Squad	4.0 TF2	$8.26 PP	-
First Class Trouble	0.4 TF2	$0.85 PP	-
For The King	1.1 TF2	$2.23 PP	-
Forager	1.4 TF2	$2.86 PP	-
Forts	2.7 TF2	$5.55 PP	-
Friday the 13th: The Game	2.4 TF2	$4.89 PP	-
Frostpunk	1.2 TF2	$2.5 PP	-
Full Metal Furies	0.6 TF2	$1.16 PP	-
Furi	0.8 TF2	$1.54 PP	-
GOD EATER 2 Rage Burst	1.1 TF2	$2.25 PP	-
GRID - Ultimate	1.0 TF2	$2.04 PP	-
GRIS	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Gamedec	0.4 TF2	$0.77 PP	-
Gang Beasts	3.0 TF2	$6.15 PP	-
Garden Paws	0.9 TF2	$1.77 PP	-
Gas Station Simulator	1.5 TF2	$3.07 PP	-
Gears 5	4.7 TF2	$9.54 PP	-
Gears Tactics	4.3 TF2	$8.86 PP	-
Generation Zero®	1.2 TF2	$2.45 PP	-
Genital Jousting	0.5 TF2	$1.09 PP	-
Goat Simulator	0.4 TF2	$0.92 PP	-
Godlike Burger	1.4 TF2	$2.89 PP	-
Golf With Your Friends	1.2 TF2	$2.37 PP	-
Gordian Quest	1.7 TF2	$3.51 PP	-
Gotham Knights	5.3 TF2	$10.88 PP	-
GreedFall	0.7 TF2	$1.34 PP	-
Grim Dawn	2.2 TF2	$4.61 PP	-
Grim Fandango Remastered	0.5 TF2	$1.11 PP	-
Guacamelee! 2	0.6 TF2	$1.28 PP	-
HITMAN™2 Gold Edition	2.8 TF2	$5.83 PP	-
HIVESWAP: Act 2	2.0 TF2	$4.16 PP	-
HOT WHEELS UNLEASHED™	1.5 TF2	$3.16 PP	-
Hacknet	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Haiku, the Robot	1.5 TF2	$3.14 PP	-
Hard Bullet	1.0 TF2	$2.1 PP	-
Hearts of Iron III Collection	0.5 TF2	$1.04 PP	-
Hearts of Iron IV: Battle for the Bosporus	1.5 TF2	$3.08 PP	-
Hearts of Iron IV: Cadet Edition	1.6 TF2	$3.27 PP	-
Hearts of Iron IV: Death or Dishonor	0.8 TF2	$1.72 PP	-
Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger	1.5 TF2	$3.0 PP	-
Heave Ho	0.6 TF2	$1.15 PP	-
Heavy Rain	1.8 TF2	$3.63 PP	-
Hell Let Loose	8.1 TF2	$16.51 PP	-
Hellblade: Senua's Sacrifice	0.9 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$1.84 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Heroines: Warriors, Dreamers, and God Slayers
Hello, Neighbor!	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Hero's Hour	1.1 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$2.23 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Choice (Mar 2023)
Heroes of Hammerwatch	0.6 TF2	$1.13 PP	-
Hitman Absolution	0.8 TF2	$1.6 PP	-
Hitman Blood Money	0.7 TF2	$1.36 PP	-
Hitman Game of the Year Edition	1.2 TF2	$2.53 PP	-
Hollow Knight	2.6 TF2	$5.4 PP	-
Homefront: The Revolution	0.9 TF2	$1.78 PP	-
Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak	0.4 TF2	$0.78 PP	-
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number Digital Special Edition	0.5 TF2	$1.09 PP	-
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number	0.5 TF2	$1.0 PP	-
Hotline Miami	0.8 TF2	$1.57 PP	-
House Flipper VR	0.9 TF2	$1.76 PP	-
House Flipper	2.1 TF2	$4.26 PP	-
Human: Fall Flat	0.7 TF2	$1.52 PP	-
HuniePop	0.4 TF2	$0.9 PP	-
Huntdown	1.3 TF2	$2.57 PP	-
Hurtworld	2.0 TF2	$4.09 PP	-
Hyper Light Drifter	1.4 TF2	$2.93 PP	-
Hypnospace Outlaw	0.7 TF2	$1.47 PP	-
I Am Fish	0.4 TF2	$0.83 PP	-
I Expect You To Die	1.3 TF2	$2.7 PP	-
I-NFECTED	6.0 TF2	$12.38 PP	-
INSURGENCY	1.6 TF2	$3.26 PP	-
Imperator: Rome Deluxe Edition	1.0 TF2	$2.12 PP	-
Imperator: Rome	0.5 TF2	$1.01 PP	-
Injustice 2 Legendary Edition	1.2 TF2	$2.54 PP	-
Injustice 2	0.7 TF2	$1.51 PP	-
Injustice: Gods Among Us - Ultimate Edition	0.7 TF2	$1.36 PP	-
Into the Radius VR	5.2 TF2	$10.76 PP	-
Ion Fury	1.5 TF2	$3.09 PP	-
Iron Harvest	0.9 TF2	$1.83 PP	-
Jalopy	0.5 TF2	$1.06 PP	-
Job Simulator	8.9 TF2	$18.19 PP	-
Jurassic World Evolution 2	1.7 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$3.49 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Choice (Mar 2023)
Jurassic World Evolution	0.4 TF2	$0.92 PP	-
Just Cause 2	0.5 TF2	$1.05 PP	-
Just Cause 3 XXL Edition	1.0 TF2	$2.13 PP	-
Just Cause 4: Complete Edition	1.0 TF2	$2.09 PP	-
KartKraft	3.0 TF2	$6.2 PP	-
Katamari Damacy REROLL	1.1 TF2	$2.23 PP	-
Katana ZERO	1.0 TF2	$2.09 PP	-
Keep Talking and Nobody Explodes	2.6 TF2	$5.43 PP	-
Kerbal Space Program	1.4 TF2	$2.84 PP	-
Killer Instinct	6.0 TF2	$12.21 PP	-
Killing Floor 2 Digital Deluxe Edition	0.9 TF2	$1.88 PP	-
Killing Floor 2	0.6 TF2	$1.18 PP	-
Killing Floor	0.6 TF2	$1.18 PP	-
Kingdom Come: Deliverance	1.5 TF2	$3.0 PP	-
Kingdom: Two Crowns	0.9 TF2	$1.76 PP	-
King’s Bounty : Ultimate Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.73 PP	-
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham Premium Edition	0.5 TF2	$1.09 PP	-
LEGO Batman 3: Beyond Gotham	0.4 TF2	$0.83 PP	-
LEGO Batman Trilogy	1.4 TF2	$2.93 PP	-
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4	0.5 TF2	$1.04 PP	-
LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7	0.7 TF2	$1.5 PP	-
LEGO Lord of the Rings	0.5 TF2	$0.94 PP	-
LEGO Star Wars III: The Clone Wars	0.5 TF2	$1.01 PP	-
LEGO Star Wars: The Complete Saga	0.5 TF2	$1.04 PP	-
LEGO® City Undercover	0.7 TF2	$1.53 PP	-
LEGO® DC Super-Villains Deluxe Edition	1.9 TF2	$3.9 PP	-
LEGO® DC Super-Villains	0.4 TF2	$0.84 PP	-
LEGO® Jurassic World™	0.4 TF2	$0.82 PP	-
LEGO® MARVEL's Avengers	0.4 TF2	$0.76 PP	-
LEGO® Marvel Super Heroes 2 Deluxe Edition	1.1 TF2	$2.34 PP	-
LEGO® Marvel Super Heroes 2	0.4 TF2	$0.9 PP	-
LEGO® Ninjago® Movie Video Game	0.3 TF2	$0.71 PP	-
LEGO® Star Wars™: The Force Awakens	0.6 TF2	$1.18 PP	-
LEGO® Worlds	1.8 TF2	$3.6 PP	-
Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective	0.7 TF2	$1.46 PP	-
Lake	0.8 TF2	$1.62 PP	-
Last Oasis	0.6 TF2	$1.13 PP	-
Late Shift	0.5 TF2	$0.97 PP	-
Layers of Fear 2	3.5 TF2	$7.1 PP	-
Layers of Fear	0.5 TF2	$1.08 PP	-
Legion TD 2	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
Len's Island	3.7 TF2	$7.53 PP	-
Lethal League Blaze	0.9 TF2	$1.9 PP	-
Lethal League	0.8 TF2	$1.54 PP	-
Library Of Ruina	3.1 TF2	$6.36 PP	-
Life is Feudal: Your Own	0.4 TF2	$0.83 PP	-
Little Misfortune	3.4 TF2	$6.89 PP	-
Little Nightmares Complete Edition	1.6 TF2	$3.26 PP	-
Little Nightmares	0.8 TF2	$1.64 PP	-
Lobotomy Corporation Monster Management Simulation	5.0 TF2	$10.21 PP	-
Lords of the Fallen Game of the Year Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.7 PP	-
Lost Ember	1.3 TF2	$2.73 PP	-
Lost Planet™: Extreme Condition	0.9 TF2	$1.81 PP	-
Luck be a Landlord	2.7 TF2	$5.47 PP	-
METAL GEAR SOLID V: THE PHANTOM PAIN	0.8 TF2	$1.55 PP	-
METAL GEAR SOLID V: The Definitive Experience	1.2 TF2	$2.55 PP	-
MORTAL KOMBAT 11	1.6 TF2	$3.23 PP	-
MX vs ATV Reflex	0.4 TF2	$0.8 PP	-
MX vs. ATV Unleashed	0.4 TF2	$0.73 PP	-
Mad Max	1.3 TF2	$2.58 PP	-
Mafia II: Definitive Edition	1.3 TF2	$2.64 PP	-
Mafia III: Definitive Edition	2.0 TF2	$4.0 PP	-
Mafia: Definitive Edition	2.2 TF2	$4.55 PP	-
Maneater	0.5 TF2	$1.09 PP	-
Manhunt	1.2 TF2	$2.53 PP	-
Mars Horizon	1.0 TF2	$2.04 PP	-
Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite - Deluxe Edition	2.8 TF2	$5.79 PP	-
Mass Effect™ Legendary Edition	6.6 TF2	$13.54 PP	-
Max Payne 2: The Fall of Max Payne	0.6 TF2	$1.2 PP	-
Max Payne	0.9 TF2	$1.88 PP	-
MechWarrior 5: Mercenaries	2.4 TF2	$4.91 PP	-
Medal of Honor	2.0 TF2	$4.14 PP	-
Mega Man Legacy Collection	0.6 TF2	$1.25 PP	-
Men of War: Assault Squad 2 - Deluxe Edition	1.1 TF2	$2.3 PP	-
Men of War: Assault Squad 2 War Chest Edition	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
Men of War: Assault Squad 2	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
Messenger	0.4 TF2	$0.9 PP	-
Metro 2033 Redux	0.6 TF2	$1.31 PP	-
Metro Exodus	1.6 TF2	$3.23 PP	-
Metro Redux Bundle	1.1 TF2	$2.3 PP	-
Metro: Last Light Redux	1.1 TF2	$2.23 PP	-
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Game of the Year Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.64 PP	-
Middle-earth™: Shadow of War™	0.7 TF2	$1.44 PP	-
Middleearth Shadow of War Definitive Edition	1.2 TF2	$2.5 PP	-
Mini Ninjas	0.5 TF2	$0.94 PP	-
Miscreated	1.4 TF2	$2.88 PP	-
Monster Hunter: World	3.5 TF2	$7.27 PP	-
Monster Sanctuary	0.5 TF2	$0.96 PP	-
Monster Train	0.4 TF2	$0.78 PP	-
Moonlighter	0.5 TF2	$0.93 PP	-
Moons of Madness	1.8 TF2	$3.74 PP	-
Mordhau	1.5 TF2	$3.04 PP	-
Mortal Kombat X	0.8 TF2	$1.56 PP	-
Mortal Kombat XL	0.9 TF2	$1.9 PP	-
Mortal Shell	1.6 TF2	$3.18 PP	-
Motorcycle Mechanic Simulator 2021	0.9 TF2	$1.87 PP	-
Motorsport Manager	1.1 TF2	$2.24 PP	-
Move or Die	1.0 TF2	$2.01 PP	-
Moving Out	0.7 TF2	$1.49 PP	-
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden - Deluxe Edition	1.5 TF2	$3.04 PP	-
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden	0.9 TF2	$1.93 PP	-
My Friend Pedro	0.6 TF2	$1.27 PP	-
My Time At Portia	0.5 TF2	$0.97 PP	-
NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4 Road to Boruto	2.2 TF2	$4.46 PP	-
NASCAR Heat 5 - Ultimate Edition	0.4 TF2	$0.92 PP	-
Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4	1.8 TF2	$3.59 PP	-
Naruto to Boruto Shinobi Striker - Deluxe Edition	1.3 TF2	$2.63 PP	-
Necromunda: Hired Gun	0.8 TF2	$1.56 PP	-
Neon Abyss	0.5 TF2	$0.98 PP	-
Ni no Kuni™ II: Revenant Kingdom - The Prince's Edition	2.3 TF2	$4.74 PP	-
Nine Parchments	1.5 TF2	$3.0 PP	-
No Time to Relax	1.7 TF2	$3.57 PP	-
Northgard	4.2 TF2	$8.55 PP	-
Not For Broadcast	0.5 TF2	$1.01 PP	-
ONE PIECE BURNING BLOOD	0.8 TF2	$1.72 PP	-
ONE PIECE PIRATE WARRIORS 3 Gold Edition	1.1 TF2	$2.16 PP	-
Offworld Trading Company™	0.7 TF2	$1.44 PP	-
One Step From Eden	0.5 TF2	$0.98 PP	-
Opus Magnum	1.2 TF2	$2.56 PP	-
Orcs Must Die! 3	2.0 TF2	$4.19 PP	-
Outlast 2	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Outlast	0.5 TF2	$0.95 PP	-
Outward	1.4 TF2	$2.91 PP	-
Overcooked! 2	1.5 TF2	$3.1 PP	-
Overgrowth	0.5 TF2	$1.09 PP	-
Overlord II	0.4 TF2	$0.84 PP	-
PC Building Simulator	0.8 TF2	$1.74 PP	-
Paint the Town Red	2.1 TF2	$4.23 PP	-
Parkitect	4.6 TF2	$9.43 PP	-
Pathfinder: Kingmaker - Enhanced Plus Edition	1.1 TF2	$2.2 PP	-
Pathfinder: Wrath of the Righteous	1.1 TF2	$2.24 PP	-
Pathologic 2	0.7 TF2	$1.47 PP	-
Per Aspera	0.7 TF2	$1.52 PP	-
Pillars of Eternity Definitive Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.55 PP	-
Pistol Whip	7.8 TF2	$15.92 PP	-
Plague Inc: Evolved	1.6 TF2	$3.28 PP	-
Planescape: Torment: Enhanced Edition	0.4 TF2	$0.79 PP	-
Planet Coaster	1.7 TF2	$3.49 PP	-
Planet Zoo	1.8 TF2	$3.79 PP	-
Planetary Annihilation: TITANS	4.7 TF2	$9.55 PP	-
Portal Knights	0.9 TF2	$1.77 PP	-
PowerBeatsVR	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
PowerSlave Exhumed	1.7 TF2	$3.54 PP	-
Praey for the Gods	0.7 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$1.44 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Heroines: Warriors, Dreamers, and God Slayers
Prehistoric Kingdom	1.4 TF2	$2.9 PP	-
Pro Cycling Manager 2019	1.3 TF2	$2.58 PP	-
Project Cars 3	10.8 TF2	$22.11 PP	-
Project Hospital	2.4 TF2	$4.84 PP	-
Project Wingman	1.1 TF2	$2.24 PP	-
Project Winter	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
Pumpkin Jack	0.4 TF2	$0.91 PP	-
Quantum Break	1.6 TF2	$3.23 PP	-
RESIDENT EVIL 3	2.2 TF2	$4.49 PP	-
RUGBY 20	1.2 TF2	$2.55 PP	-
RUINER	0.4 TF2	$0.85 PP	-
RWBY: Grimm Eclipse	3.2 TF2	$6.56 PP	-
Ragnaröck	3.3 TF2	$6.8 PP	-
Rain World	1.4 TF2	$2.83 PP	-
Raw Data	1.0 TF2	$2.15 PP	-
Re:Legend	1.0 TF2	$2.09 PP	-
Red Faction Guerrilla Re-Mars-tered	0.5 TF2	$0.97 PP	-
Red Matter	4.3 TF2	$8.83 PP	-
Resident Evil / biohazard HD REMASTER	0.9 TF2	$1.86 PP	-
Resident Evil 0 / biohazard 0 HD Remaster	0.6 TF2	$1.3 PP	-
Resident Evil 5 GOLD Edition	1.4 TF2	$2.83 PP	-
Resident Evil 5	0.9 TF2	$1.79 PP	-
Resident Evil 6	1.4 TF2	$2.82 PP	-
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Deluxe Edition	2.1 TF2	$4.23 PP	-
Resident Evil: Revelations	0.5 TF2	$1.02 PP	-
Retro Machina	0.5 TF2	$1.01 PP	-
Rising Storm 2: Vietnam	0.6 TF2	$1.22 PP	-
River City Girls	1.4 TF2	$2.91 PP	-
Rogue Heroes: Ruins of Tasos	0.5 TF2	$1.11 PP	-
RollerCoaster Tycoon Deluxe	1.0 TF2	$2.1 PP	-
Rollercoaster Tycoon 2: Triple Thrill Pack	1.8 TF2	$3.63 PP	-
Rubber Bandits	0.7 TF2	$1.5 PP	-
Running with Rifles	1.9 TF2	$3.86 PP	-
Ryse: Son of Rome	1.7 TF2	$3.49 PP	-
SCUM	2.7 TF2	$5.56 PP	-
SHENZHEN I/O	0.5 TF2	$0.97 PP	-
SOMA	2.1 TF2	$4.21 PP	-
SONG OF HORROR Complete Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.55 PP	-
STAR WARS® THE FORCE UNLEASHED II	0.8 TF2	$1.71 PP	-
STAR WARS™: Squadrons	2.0 TF2	$4.17 PP	-
SUPERHOT VR	2.2 TF2	$4.49 PP	-
SUPERHOT	0.8 TF2	$1.57 PP	-
SUPERHOT: MIND CONTROL DELETE	0.4 TF2	$0.88 PP	-
Sable	0.5 TF2 Refer To My Other Thread	$1.04 PP Refer To My Other Thread	Humble Heroines: Warriors, Dreamers, and God Slayers
Saint's Row The Third Remastered	2.2 TF2	$4.48 PP	-
Saints Row 2	0.6 TF2	$1.23 PP	-
Saints Row IV	0.9 TF2	$1.82 PP	-
Saints Row: The Third	0.6 TF2	$1.29 PP	-
Sanctum 2	0.5 TF2	$1.08 PP	-
Satisfactory	6.2 TF2	$12.73 PP	-
Scarlet Nexus	2.6 TF2	$5.39 PP	-
Scribblenauts Unlimited	0.4 TF2	$0.8 PP	-
Secret Neighbor	0.6 TF2	$1.2 PP	-
Serious Sam 2	0.7 TF2	$1.53 PP	-
Serious Sam 3: BFE	0.9 TF2	$1.8 PP	-
Serious Sam 4	3.1 TF2	$6.45 PP	-
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem	2.2 TF2	$4.5 PP	-
Severed Steel	1.4 TF2	$2.84 PP	-
Shadow Man Remastered	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
Shadow Warrior 2	0.8 TF2	$1.73 PP	-
Shadow of the Tomb Raider	3.3 TF2	$6.78 PP	-
Shantae and the Pirate's Curse	0.6 TF2	$1.18 PP	-
Shenmue 3	0.7 TF2	$1.43 PP	-
Shenmue I & II	0.7 TF2	$1.43 PP	-
Shining Resonance Refrain	0.5 TF2	$0.94 PP	-
Sid Meier's Civilization VI : Platinum Edition	2.9 TF2	$5.87 PP	-
Sid Meier's Civilization VI	0.9 TF2	$1.83 PP	-
Sid Meier's Civilization® V: The Complete Edition	2.0 TF2	$4.14 PP	-
Sid Meiers Civilization IV: The Complete Edition	0.8 TF2	$1.74 PP	-
Siege of Centauri	0.6 TF2	$1.15 PP	-
SimCasino	1.2 TF2	$2.54 PP	-
Skullgirls 2nd Encore	1.0 TF2	$1.97 PP	-
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21.03.2023
approx. 17:00
​
Generated via BIng Image Creator
I have to reiterate that Exorcist is a single-player open-world or open-city dark RPG in a modern urban setting. The city has day/night cycles as well as weather cycles. Even though, the game is generally dark and at times gothic, there are many regions and locations that emit a serene or even a comedic quality. This is deliberate and required so as to not burn-out the player with constant dark, dreary, horrifying or disgusting environments. Certain companions offer comedic relief and even serve as a potential love-interest or an evolved personal enemy.
I envision the player to enter the world of the Exorcist once a day for a couple of hours and each sitting provides unique and ample incentive to continue playing as well as a surprising closure for that day's episode.
As such, cinematic cut-scenes are best provided via orchestra.
As the name suggests, the game is intermittently horrifying, intermittently interspersed with growing dread, intermittently relaxing with a comedic relief that caters to the Exorcist's penchant for dry humour and full or nonchalant bravery.
​
Character Profile of the Exorcist:
​
Name : ?
Age : 33 - 44
Sex: ?
Build: Athletic/Average.
Education: Some college degree.
​
Social habits: Loner, dislikes attention, prefers one-on-one interactions, soft-spoken, reasonably benevolent, avoids gatherings, divorced or never married, small circle of friends, proficient at non-verbal cues, emotionally perceptive, dry humor, neutral tone of voice(but resonant) with inclination towards functionally-relevant concise vocabulary, capable of masking own personality, blunt speech for avoidance, prefers dark or monotone dull colors,
​
Psychological profile: INFJ.
Companions: Dog or Cat. Occasional flings.
Sexuality: Straight or Bisexual.
Habits: Occasional drinker and regular smoker.
​
Past medical history: Asthmatic, takes medications for psychosis, chicken pox at 12.
Past mental traumas: Death of mother, divorce, string of job failures, eye-witness to a murder.
​
Current occupation: One of the following:

1. Materium-Hedge-Initiate 2. Freelance Psy-Mann-yana Exorcist 3. Registered-Divinium-Orthodoxy 

​
Finance:

1. Materium-Hedge-Initiate: stable average income. 2. Freelance Psy-Mann-yana Exorcist: unstable income. 3. Registered-Divinium-Orthodoxy: stable above average income. 

​
Combat Proficiency: none.
Mental Aptitude:

1. MHI - Above average IQ 2. FPMY - Very intelligent 3. RDO - average IQ 

​
Miscellaneous skills:

1. Proficient in a musical instrument. 2. Adept at graphology or sketching. 3. Skilled at cooking or gardening. 

​
Story-driven skills regardless of occupation:

1. True sight 2. Haphazard clairvoyant 3. Canine or feline affinity 

​
Psychological weaknesses:

1. Either rage or despair(pessimist) 2. Either impatience or passivity 3. Either assertive or meek 

​
​
Hierarchy & Modus Operandi of daemonic factions:
​

1. Techno-Inferni: Gathers, indoctrinates all Know-Int workers, subverts science to support pre-existing hierarchy. Brain of the quad-factions. Led by an unknown Know-Int daemon.
2. The Brotherhood: The muscle-man of the quad-factions. Led by an unknown Kar-Domini daemon.

​

1. The Alderbarani: Wide range of businesses ranging from small-proprietorships to multinational conglomerates, from legal to illegal commerce. Trader of the quad-factions. Led by an unknown Aurors-Mani daemon.

​

1. The Kuckowni: The mouth of the quad factions. Disseminates and promotes the will of the quad-factions to the common masses in the form of news or moral literature. Tarnishes or uplifts the social value of any ideology, way of life, fashion, commodity or product, nation, celebrity or individual, or any relevent and potent change in society. PR-Head of the quad-factions. Led by an unknown Karys-Mani daemon.

​
​
The core of the Quest system:
​
Quests have a two-fold objective. First, the quest must resonate with the daemon/s or faction or domain in question. Second, it should test the psychological attributes and/or mental attributes of the Exorcist.
​
This test is done via four types of responses:
a. Dialogue choices(to isolate the player's social characteristics);
b. 5 sec decisions of visual or auditory preference(to ascertain preferences on a wide range of topics);
c. reflex-based mini-games(to gauge the dexterity and quick-thinking capability of the player);
d. puzzles or riddles or lore-dependent quiz(to test the intelligence and memory of the gamer).
​
Based on successive additive results of these tests, subsequent quests are modified to cater to the *strongest characteristics* of the gamer and *not the weakest*.
The question of Quest difficulty and challenge is solely based-on Boss encounters. These encounters have an exactitude for the weakest characteristics of the gamer.
​
Combat/spell/skill/ based Quest resolutions are the common-link between the above 4 response-based Quest generation. It is suggested that the above 4 response-based tests be randomized so as to catch the Exorcist by surprise.
​
​
Combat in the Exorcist:
The Exorcist is an adept hand-to-hand combatant however, he/she resorts to melee combat as a last resort. Physical perfection is not the Exorcist's forte.
Melee combat includea a basic kick, basic punches, use of environment-specific weapons, defensive covers/shields and interactable environment-icon-activated functions.
​
​
Skill Trees:
The Exorcist is heavily dependent on his Skill-Trees, i.e, Materium, Psy-Mann-yana & Divinium.
All skill trees provide passive perks or attribute enhancements or passive skills. They do *not* provide spells.
​
​
Spells:
Spells are found via spell-tomes. The spells need to be inscribed at home base as tattoos on the Exorcist. Each inscribed spell increases the current Causality stat of the Exorcist.
Spells are one time use functions which need to be recharged via Meditation at home base or via use of a Spell-Prism item. When recharged, they emit a faint glow.
Clothes/Gear can be imprinted with Runes that provide a type of talismanic protection. On each activation, there is a resource cost. Either HP or Stamina or Increase in current Causality.
Spells can not be upgraded.
The Psy-Mann-yana skill tree contains a skill, "Clarity & No-mind" that has 5 levels of spell casting.
a. auditory spell casting at +50% base speed. Can be interrupted by noise and damage.
b. auditory spell casting at +100% base speed. Can be interrupted by damage.
c. silent spell casting at +150% base speed. Can be interrupted by noise.
d. silent spell casting at +200% base speed. Can not be interrupted.
e. instantaneous spell casting. non-interruptable.
A typical Spell at Clarity & No-mind level a, takes 10 secs to cast.
​
​
Weapons:
There are a wide variety of weapons in the game with varying aesthetics according to the following themes:
i. Divinium Orthodoxy (traditional Catholic)
ii. Materium [Orient(Fashi)/Indian(Ojha)/Middle-East(Raqi)/African(Waganga Medicine Man)/Judaism(Rabbi)]
iii. Psy-Mann-yana[a mixture of technology with Materium aesthetics]
​
Weapons do not have a level, can not be upgraded, have zero to 5 slots for Relic-insertion.
Common weapons have no slots.
All Weapons require either Ammo or Blood(Exorcist's HP) or Essence(Monster loot drop) or Boon(1 Boon rewarded per Quest resolution)
The Exorcist can have 2 sets of Weapons that are swappable instantly.
​
​
Clothes/gears:
All Clothes/gears drop via 4 parts: Head part, Torso part, Leg parts, Arm parts.
Clothes are also sold by Tailors.
Head gears protect the Head Body Part.
Torso gears protect the Chest Body Part.
Leg gears protect the Legs Body Parts.
Arm gears protect the Arms Body Parts.
All Gears can be upgraded by a Tailor NPC.
All Gears may have the following stats:
Only main stat - Defence(direct percentage Damage Mitigation for that Body Part)
Sub stats - Any stats.
Clothes/gears can be imprinted with a maximum of 2 Runes each that provide a specific talismanic protection. On each activation, there is a resource cost. Either HP or Stamina or Increase in current Causality.
​
​
Relics:
Relics are small receptacles that contain a body part of a deceased Saint. They could be a fews trands of hair, teeth, nails or bone chips.
Relics can be inserted into a weapon slot to provide additional benefits. They can also be removed.
​
​
Artifacts:
These are of two types:

1. Objects, implements, gears or weapons that were in close proximity to a Saint or a Holy warrior for a long time.
2. Objects, implements, gears or weapons that have absorbed enough mana at a location infused with the convergence of multiple ley lines.

Artifacts need to be kept in inventory for their benefits.
​
​
Implements:
These are non-damaging utility-based items made by various Exorcists from different regions of the world. Their functions are:
i. Terrain traversal
ii. Teleportation
iii. Distraction
iv. Hypnosis
v. Healing
vi. Time-manipulation
vii. Hearing enhancements
viii. Vision enhancements
ix. Communication
x. Scrying
xi. Hacking
xii. Astral Projection
xiii. Invisibility
xiv. Movement Speed
xv. Miniaturisation
xvi. Summons
xvii. Magical path guidance
xviii. Psychokinesis.
xix. Timed-Explosives
xx. Key of Shagol(master key)
​
The Exorcist can simultaneously equip 9 Implements.
Each implement has a separate cooldown.
​
​
Terrain-traversal and interactable environments in the Exorcist:
The exorcist primarily uses a third-hand 1987 Buick Regal GNX for daily commute. He won it via gambling against a daemon.
Use of grapplers, explosives, miniaturization, teleportation, psychokineses, etc. for specific terrains and environment.
There are no mounts in this game.
​
Finished on 22.03.2023. 15:53.

1. Materium-Hedge-Initiate 2. Freelance Psy-Mann-yana Exorcist 3. Registered-Divinium-Orthodoxy 

1. Materium-Hedge-Initiate: stable average income. 2. Freelance Psy-Mann-yana Exorcist: unstable income. 3. Registered-Divinium-Orthodoxy: stable above average income. 

1. MHI - Above average IQ 2. FPMY - Very intelligent 3. RDO - average IQ 

1. Proficient in a musical instrument. 2. Adept at graphology or sketching. 3. Skilled at cooking or gardening. 

1. True sight 2. Haphazard clairvoyant 3. Canine or feline affinity 

1. Either rage or despair(pessimist) 2. Either impatience or passivity 3. Either assertive or meek