Power speakers for turntable

When I was getting started, an actor I knew gave me some really good advice. While deciding whether or not to take a certain role, consider three factors: the money, the show, and the people. If at least two of those things are good, accept the job. If they’re paying you well and you love the play, you won’t mind putting up with shitty people. If it’s a great show with a cast full of friends, but you’re not getting paid so well, that’s still alright, it’ll be artistically fulfilling. If it’s a bad show but you love the cast and you’re making money, you’ll probably have the time of your life making fun of the playwright backstage and laughing all the way to the bank.
What my friend failed to mention is that as an aspiring actor, you don’t usually get to be that picky. When I got the call from my agent that a production of The Bacchae was urgently seeking a new chorus member, all I could see were dollar signs. My survival job had just fallen through (the family I nannied for was moving upstate, insisting that Manhattan had just gotten “too dangerous” for their toddler), and my savings were only going to cover my rent for another month.
It was raining the day of my audition, and my train got delayed. I showed up panting (I had to run from the subway station) and my hair a disaster. Luckily, in The Bacchae, the chorus is full of… well… Bacchae. Fervent followers of Dionysus, wild women, drunk and running through the countryside. In the climax of the play, they crowd the protagonist in a frenzy, literally ripping him limb from limb.
I’ll never know if it was my frenetic energy from barely making it to the theater on time, or my actual acting, but I got the part. My costume fitting was the next day– they weren’t kidding about urgently needing a replacement. Which thrilled me, because I wasn’t kidding about urgently needing the money. At the fitting, I discovered something my agent failed to mention about the production: this wasn’t just any version of The Bacchae, it was a recreation– an attempt to perform the play in the traditional Greek style. In other words, everyone was wearing masks.
I’ve never been fond of masks. We had to do a few assignments with them in my college acting courses; covering your face can enhance the physicality of your body, something like that. But I never liked wearing them, or seeing other people wearing them. It wouldn’t be fair to call it a full-on fear, but the stiffness, the lack of expression, gives me a weird feeling in my stomach. And wearing one, your field of vision limited, your mouth covered, making it harder to breathe, harder to project your voice– I don’t like it. It’s as simple as that.
But I needed the money. My costume wasn’t ugly, per se, just strange: a long white dress, or maybe toga is a better word, the fabric about the thickness of a burlap sack. My mask, stark white, paper mache, covering my entire face except my eyes, the mouth carved to imitate a grin. No shoes. My hair tucked into a wild black wig– we wore wigs, they explained to me, so the chorus could be identical, indistinguishable. We moved as one, spoke as one, and were meant to look like one. They even made sure to cast women of the same height. In our costumes, it was impossible to tell which of us was which.
It didn’t help that I was an outsider to the rest of the cast, joining the show weeks into rehearsals. Everyone seemed annoyed that they had to teach me the blocking, the inflection of the lines (so my voice didn’t stick out from the other chorus girls), and where to go backstage during scenes with no chorus. A few people tried to be nice to me, but quickly gave up when they realized I knew nothing about Greek theater, or masked theater, or the avant garde. My last show had been a regional production of Cats, for God’s sake. I was totally out of my element.
Things got especially sour when I tried to ask what had happened to the girl I was replacing. Nobody wanted to talk about it. People gasped when I brought it up. The clearest answer I got was a whispered, hesitant, “she fell,” but the person wouldn’t elaborate any further. The cast seemed superstitious, uncomfortable, like talking about her would cause them to suffer her fate: removal from the show. And it was clear that, aside from me, everyone else loved this show. The actor playing Dionysus, the couple of times he deigned to talk to me, just kept gushing about how honored he was to play this role, how electrifying it felt to put his history minor to use, to show people a piece of the world’s theatrical beginnings.
I thought the show was fine. Kinda boring, kinda scary. I don’t think I “get” The Bacchae. In brief, the story is about Dionysus, son of Zeus, disguised as a human. He and his followers (the chorus) show up in a town, but the leader of the town, Pentheus, is upset about it. He doesn’t understand why all these women are acting crazy, and he arrests Dionysus, not believing him to be an actual God. As punishment, Dionysus possesses Pentheus’s own mother with the same madness as his followers, and together, with their bare hands, they rip Pentheus apart. His mom walks back into town holding her son’s head, thinking it to be, in her madness, the head of a lion. When she realizes what she’s done, she is overwhelmed by grief, and futilely attempts to put Pentheus’s mutilated corpse back together. Dionysus returns, basically saying, “well, he said I wasn’t a God, and that’s blasphemous, so he got what was coming to him.” Pentheus’s mother is exiled.
It’s incredibly dark. In the reviews, critics called it daring, challenging, a bloody spectacle, a feminist masterpiece. I don’t really get what part of “a man who’s a God possesses women’s minds, driving them to murder” screams “feminism,” but hey, I’m the girl who commuted to New Jersey every day for four months to do Cats, what do I know?
Here’s something I do know: the other chorus girls did not like me. And they took their jobs seriously. As we waited to enter for each scene, there was dead quiet in the wings. Usually, there’s some light joking, maybe quickly running lines, maybe physical warmups, shaking out your nerves– I tried to do this once. Before our entrance at the top of the show, we all gathered in the stage right wing, all twelve of us, a perfect and identical dozen. It was a dress rehearsal. No audience. I did a few jumping jacks, trying to hype myself up. Another masked girl grabbed my bicep, hard. When I turned, she just shook her head “no.” Just a simple, silent, “no.” We don’t do that here. We stand silently in the wings, focusing on our craft, breathing, waiting for our entrance. I never tried it again.
When you can’t talk to your coworkers, acting becomes a lot less fun. The collaboration element is totally gone. And honestly, the “acting” element was gone for me, too. How am I supposed to find my character or sense of identity in a role when my role is “don’t let your voice stick out, don’t take a wrong step, blend in perfectly with eleven women who dislike you?”
So before the shows, instead of chatting, or doing jumping jacks, I wandered the theater. I’ve always loved theaters; the dramatic architecture, the ornate prosceniums, the stark contrast of backstage, so dark, so dusty. The theater was no Broadway house, but it had a fly system (which we didn’t use, because the Greeks wouldn’t have been able to fly anything in), just over three hundred seats (including a mezzanine– fancy!), and lots of backstage space. I could say more about it, because I spent hours during the run of the show wandering, but it wouldn’t be terribly interesting to anyone who’s not me. Just know, it was a beautiful old theater– and I mean OLD. Built in the 1910s, just before the Great Depression. I used to love imagining how many generations of people had performed on that stage, imagining what they’d think of this show, or what they’d think of me.
About a week into my wandering, on some fifteen-minute break, I was looking at the ladder that led up to the catwalk– a long, thin metal walkway stretching across the stage from above, usually used for hanging lights. I wondered how long it had been since it was used during a show. I wondered if it was even safe. What would the view be like from up there, seeing the entire stage from thirty feet in the air?
I slowly looked up the ladder. I wouldn’t actually climb it. That would be crazy, right? I’m not particularly good with heights. As my eyes lifted, I made eye contact– or rather, mask contact– with someone. A fellow chorus girl, up on the catwalk.
I stopped breathing for a second. What was she doing up there? I started to say something stupid, like, “Why are you up there?” when just as quickly as the face appeared, it vanished. I saw her white robed form retreat down the catwalk, heading for a different ladder, probably. It was weird. Why did she run? Embarrassed to be caught somewhere she shouldn’t be?
I allowed myself to entertain a little fantasy: maybe she was just like me. Maybe she also hated the other chorus girls, and didn’t “get” The Bacchae. Maybe she was exploring the theater for fun on our break, enjoying the old architecture, like I did. I had no idea who she was under the mask, and she had no idea who I was. She probably thought I was one of the normal judgemental girls, and ran off before I could tell on her to the stage manager.
I was filled with unfounded hope. Could I make a friend here? Was it possible? After two and a half weeks of silence from the other girls, it was hard to imagine. How would I find her? How would I let her know it was me– that I had seen her on the catwalk, and we were the same?
After that day, I got much more observant. When the director called for a break, instead of immediately retreating into the depths of backstage, I watched my eleven doppelgangers carefully, tracking who went for water, who went back to the dressing rooms, who ran off towards the vending machines. It was hard to tell everyone apart, but people had to take their masks off to drink water eventually. I memorized faces and tried to keep track of them. I started to get a handle on everyone’s patterns, narrowing down potential adventurers.
It was impossible. Eleven people is too many to observe. But I’m an actor. Memorizing shit is literally my job. By week four, just days from opening, I had three potential girls. I tried to stick close to them during rehearsals, picking one to follow each day, but nobody ever wandered towards the catwalk. Maybe the girl, whoever she was, had been scared away from adventuring when I caught her. I started to lose hope. We were opening soon– I should focus on making my entrances, not making friends.
But then I saw her again.
This time, it was half an hour before the curtain went up for our invited dress rehearsal. The press was there. I was nervous. I knew I had my part down, but when you’re doing a show, no matter how prepared you are, there’s always the lingering fear that you’ll freeze up, forget everything, and ruin everyone’s hard work. It just means that you care. I was surprised that I cared so much. I still didn’t even get the play. I couldn’t let the other girls see me weak. I barely show my real feelings to people I care about, much less mean actresses who look down on me. To get away from it all, I wandered down to another unused part of the stage: the orchestra pit. We did have music in the show, but the Greeks didn’t have orchestra pits. So it was closed off, being used as storage.
I loved it down there. I loved looking through the storage bins, finding props from long-forgotten productions– sometimes I would find something incredible, something I swore was from the day the theater opened, something old and valuable– and usually, I could never find it again. Those bins were a treasure trove. Of all the weird little spaces I found backstage, the pit was my favorite. I felt like a real explorer down there, illuminating my path with my phone flashlight, getting spooked when a mouse ran over my foot (of course the theater had mice, it was more than a hundred years old! And besides, every building has mice in New York City).
That day, I wasn’t there to look around. Just to sit. Just to catch my breath. I tiptoed down the creaky steps, and plopped myself on the ground, surrounded by bins. I inhaled and exhaled, smelling the mildew-y scent of old props on every side of me. And that’s when I heard a noise. Not a mouse noise– I was used to those. Something bigger. I turned my phone flashlight on immediately, calling, “hello?”
And the light landed on a mask, just like mine. Mine which was currently off, because I was doing my breathing exercises. I felt exposed– she could see my face, but I couldn’t see hers. I stood up. “You scared me!”
She didn’t respond. She looked at me for a second, and started to retreat the other way, towards the stairs at the other side of the pit.
“Wait!” I called. “I won’t tell anyone I saw you!”
She stopped for a second. But then she kept walking. I stood and followed. “Please stop. Can I at least know who you are? I don’t fit in with most of the chorus girls–”
I reached for her long white toga. I swear, I had it in my hand, but somehow, she slipped away. I staggered a bit, almost tripped, confused that I hadn’t made contact with her costume. And when I looked back up, I only saw a glimpse of her disappearing up the stairs. I tried to follow, again, but I found that side of the pit’s stairs reached a dead end. I didn’t understand how she’d gotten out. And when I looked back down at my phone, it was time for places. Disappointed and defeated, I rushed away to the other stairs, making my way to the stage right wing to wait for my entrance.
I counted heads immediately when I arrived. Maybe she hadn’t made it back yet. But, alas: twelve. All accounted for. I nudged a girl next to me, subtly. “Who was the last one here besides me?”
She just stared at me for a moment, which came off as very creepy through the blank dead stare of her mask. “How the fuck am I supposed to know? We all look exactly the same.”
I sighed. “Okay. Thanks.” For nothing, I thought bitterly.
The invited dress went well. The press liked it, as I’ve already said. I was distracted the entire time. After that day, I made it a habit to count all the girls when the stage manager called for “places.” If I was right about this girl, she, like me, would be one of the last, if not the last one there. She would be wandering, exploring, getting away from the bullies.
I wish I hadn’t done this. I wish I’d given up when she disappeared on a dead-end staircase. I wish I’d never seen her on the catwalk. Because when I started counting heads, I noticed something impossible. Sometimes, before we went on, I counted thirteen identical masked faces.
It was a chorus of twelve. It was supposed to be twelve. I’d recount. Recount again. Thirteen. A chill went down my spine. We all looked the same. Same masks, same togas, same wigs. Who was the imposter? How could anyone be an imposter? It didn’t make sense. How would they get into the theater? How would they get a costume?
I started counting more often. Between scenes, in the dressing rooms, even on stage during dull moments. It fluctuated. Sometimes I’d count twelve for a whole day, an entire show, and sigh in relief, feeling like some curse was broken. But the next day, at least once, I’d count thirteen.
And it seemed as if one masked pair of eyes was always trained on me. I don’t know how she knew it was me. We looked the same. But she’d stare. It felt scary, but also ridiculous– I couldn’t be sure it was the same person looking every time. I couldn’t be sure it was unlucky number thirteen. But I felt like it was.
I felt a lot of things. I felt like I couldn’t tell anyone. The other girls already didn’t like me– I couldn’t have them thinking I was crazy. And admitting the presence of the thirteenth would mean admitting to my adventures into forbidden backstage areas. I couldn’t lose this job. I was living paycheck to paycheck. I wasn’t eating well, or sleeping well– maybe this was all a hallucination. And somehow, my biggest feeling was that if I told someone about the thirteenth, I’d never see her again.
And I needed to see her again. The obsession had only gotten stronger. I knew, somehow, deep inside, that she was the one I had seen on the catwalk and in the orchestra pit. I no longer wanted to be her friend– I wanted to corner her. To ask who she was, and why she was sneaking in as if she was one of us. I wanted to ask what she wanted from me.
Because she must want something from me, right? Why else would she stare? Why would she appear only to me?
The timing never lined up. The show had opened at this point, and I had a job to do: delighting the audience. I couldn’t skip my entrance to catch number thirteen. The chorus formations would look ridiculous with a missing person. And as much as the other girls hated me, I owed it to them as my costars to make them look good.
Logically, I knew there was only one person the thirteenth could be: Catalina, the actress I’d replaced. She must be jealous of me. Bitter. Maybe she wanted to take my role, like I’d taken hers. It would be insane, but it was all that made sense. She was the only other person who had the costume, who knew the keypad code to get into the theater. She must have recovered from her fall and come to find me.
It was almost like a game. It definitely made the show more interesting for me. Before I realized what was happening, I dreaded performances. I felt stupid, taking on this role in a show I didn’t even understand. But now I had so much to do. I had to plan.
I started showing up early, an hour before my call time. I walked my old spots, thinking I may see her. The other chorus girls were impressed that I was showing up early, thinking it showed some sort of dedication to the show. I think they even started to hate me less. They still detested any attempts at conversation in the wings, but in the dressing room, I started to have a few breakthroughs. In particular, I started a semi-friendship with Erin. Ironically, she had been one of the three women I thought may be the thirteenth, until I realized the thirteenth wasn’t really one of us at all.
She was the only person who I could actually ask about Catalina. “Did she ever say anything about the theater? The building, I mean? Did she have a favorite part of it?”
Erin would laugh at my seemingly random specificity. “We weren’t close, Michelle. I have no idea what she thought about the theater.”
“What did she do on her breaks?”
Erin thought for a second. “I don’t know. I never saw her at the vending machines, or the dressing room. I guess she found some quiet place to run lines.”
That confirmed it, for me. A quiet place like the catwalk. Or the orchestra pit. We were three weeks into our five week run when I came up with a plan to catch Catalina. It wasn’t a great plan, and I had no idea if it would work, but showing up an hour early every day was making me tired and producing zero results. I needed a new strategy. I realized that after seeing her in the pit, I only ever saw the thirteenth when all twelve of us were together.
So I told a white lie. One night after the show, when everyone was changing in the dressing room, I appealed to my fellow chorus girls. “Are you guys busy before the show tomorrow?” I innocently asked. “I’m feeling a little shaky on some of the entrances. If we could all get here just twenty minutes before our call time tomorrow, I’d love to run some stuff with you guys. I’ve been running it on my own, but without the entire team, I don’t always remember where I fit.”
To my surprise and intense joy, everyone agreed. They really did seem to respect me more when I looked like I was taking my role seriously. I could barely sleep that night, I was so excited to see if my plan worked. And hey, if it didn’t, I had two more weeks of shows to think up something else.
It was a Sunday night, our last show of the week. Mondays are often “dark days” in professional theater, meaning there are no shows that day to give the team a rest. I had planned this on purpose– if I failed, I had a dark day to reflect on that failure and try again.
At 5:40, twenty minutes before our call time, all the girls were assembled and in costume. We started running entrances. After ten minutes, I thought my plan had failed. We had run our first three entrances, and I never counted more than twelve heads in the wings. But around 5:55, as we got to our entrances in act two, offstage, I locked eyes with a mask. A thirteenth mask.
I quickly told everyone “I think I got it, you guys, thank you so much for coming early!” Everyone mumbled that it was no problem, that they were happy to help.
The thirteenth mask broke eye contact with me, looking around in confusion– perhaps distress. The girls started to trickle back towards the dressing room. The thirteenth turned and power-walked away. I shoved through the crowd to catch her, not calling out like I had in the past. I knew she didn’t respond to that. I knew I had to catch her now or never. Once we were out of the crowd’s eyeline, I began to run. She ran, too. “You’re not getting away this time!” I yelled, like some kind of cartoon superhero. My adrenaline was pumping, and blood rushed to my ears.
After I yelled, I suddenly became aware of another set of running feet behind me. “Michelle? Where are you going?” It was Erin’s voice.
“Don’t follow me!” I hastily called back, picking up speed. The thirteenth also picked up speed. Though she was running just as fast as I was, she showed no signs of exertion. I couldn’t hear heavy breathing, or heavy feet on the floor. It was like she was gliding. It infuriated me.
Erin didn’t let up. “Michelle, the stage manager is gonna wonder where we are!”
I ignored her. The thirteenth rounded a corner, and I realized where she was going: the catwalk. The ladder.
She ascended the rungs rapidly, like a spider. I clamored up much less gracefully. Erin’s voice had a heavy tinge of concern. “Michelle, what are you doing?! It’s not safe up there!”
“Then don’t follow me!” I yelled back, exasperated. “This is between me and her!” Despite my vocal warning, I heard Erin climbing behind me.
Once on the metal rail, I looked both ways, terrified she’d escaped me again. But her white toga was just a few feet away, retreating into darkness. I lunged at her. The entire catwalk shook. The thirteenth and I both grabbed the railing to steady ourselves. We met eyes. Or rather, we met masks.
“You have nowhere to go.” I stated.
I heard Erin reaching the top of the ladder behind me. “Michelle, come down, please. You’re scaring me.”
“I can’t. I finally have her.” I took a step towards the thirteenth. She took an equal and opposite step back. “Take the mask off.” I beckoned her. “I know it’s you, Catalina.”
I felt the rail shake slightly as Erin got on it. “What are you talking about, Michelle?!”
“She’s been sneaking in, Erin! She’s been standing in the wings with us before we enter! For weeks!” I took another step towards the thirteenth. In my peripheral vision, I could see how high we were above the stage. Thirty feet. You could die, falling from that height.
“It’s not Catalina. It can’t be. Stop this.” Erin called. Finally, frustrated, I turned towards her.
“Who else could it be?!”
Erin had taken her mask off. Her face was streaked with terror. “Catalina died, Michelle. She fell off this catwalk, directly onto her face, and she died. Please come down with me. I don’t know who you’re talking to, and I don’t know what you’re trying to do, but it isn’t worth it.”
“What are you talking about? I’m talking to–”
I turned back, and she was gone. Vanished like a bad dream. “I swear to God, Erin.” I started to say. “She was right in front of me. I chased her here–”
I turned back to Erin. The thirteenth was behind her.
It made no sense. Nobody can move that fast. Nobody can be in front of me one second and behind me the next. It was inhuman. I stopped speaking. I stopped breathing. It sucks to learn that in a fight-or-flight situation, my answer is to freeze.
Erin must’ve seen how my face changed. “Michelle?” She asked quietly. “What’s wrong?”
Behind her, the thirteenth raised a hand to her mask. Her hands were impossibly pale. How had I never noticed that before? She gripped the mask in her hand. Time stretched. It must’ve only been a second, because Erin didn’t move. But it felt like years of my life passed me by as the thirteenth, inch by inch, raised her mask from her face. Or– raised her mask.
Because there was no face.
Under the mask, pale and gruesome, was a bloody flat edge. Broken, disgusting, it was impossible to make out eyes, or a nose, or a mouth. Inside a somewhat face-shaped frame of stark-white skin, all I could see was flesh, red and raw, squished in on itself. Like someone had fallen from a very high height. And landed on their face.
By the time I finally began to react, it was too late. The thirteenth– or, Catalina– or, the ghost, or– whatever the fuck that thing was. It moved its hands from the mask to Erin’s shoulders. And it pushed. And she screamed, agonizingly loud, as she flew over the side of the railing. And she screamed for the second or so she was in the air. I was screaming, too. And after the crunch of her body hitting the wooden floor of the stage, everyone else screamed, cast and crew alike.
I stared down at her limp form from thirty feet up. Her legs were twisted the wrong way. A pool of blood began to seep out of her. When I looked up again, I expected the thirteenth to be gone, but it wasn’t. With no eyes, it was also looking down at Erin. At what it had done.
And then, slowly, it turned towards me. On all fours, backwards, I scrambled away from it on the catwalk, terrified, not wanting to be next. The thirteenth’s shoulders shook rapidly, like a person laughing. But it made no sound. It never made a sound. Not going up the stairs of the orchestra pit. Not when it pushed Erin. And not as it climbed back down the ladder, rung by rung. I found myself alone on the catwalk.
Erin survived, somehow, paralyzed from the waist down. Apparently she fell on her legs, which, when you’re falling from thirty feet up, is a good thing. If she’d gone down head first, there was no chance. The show had to close, of course. When they lost Catalina a few weeks into rehearsal, she was replaceable. But with me refusing to go on, and Erin in the hospital, there was nothing to be done. I haven’t seen Erin since that day. I feel too guilty. But I was never arrested, so I guess she told the authorities that I didn’t push her. I don’t know what she told them. I don’t know what I would’ve told them, had they asked me.
I don’t do stage plays anymore. The family I used to nanny for gave me a star-studded recommendation, and now I make my living taking care of a five-year-old and a two-year-old for another filthy-rich family. I still act, but I only audition for film work.
I don’t even see plays these days. I won’t set foot in a theater. If the thirteenth had vanished off that catwalk, maybe things would be different. Maybe I could chalk it up to an extreme hallucination, some terrifying creature my mind brewed up to cope with the stress of the show and paying rent. Maybe I could even forget its bloody mess of viscera in the vague shape of a face.
But I saw it go down that ladder. Rung by fucking rung. And I know it’s still out there.
Erin was unlucky. Erin was a victim of being at the wrong place at the wrong time. And if I step inside a theater again, some way, somehow, I know the thirteenth will get me on another catwalk.
This time, I’ll be the one going over the railing.
And I’ve never once landed on my feet.

Let me talk about Cai Xia first. She is different from the majority of ordinary Chinese. She has been fed by the Communist Party all her life. Compared with ordinary people in China and hundreds of millions of migrant workers, Cai Xia relies on the power of the Communist Party of China. Domineering, but also enjoy a lot of privileged people. Unexpectedly, after retiring, he fought back and started attacking his old club, which is somewhat surprising. It is said that he began to openly oppose the party after his pension was deducted for making remarks that the party did not like to hear. It is estimated that Cai Xia may feel that she has retired and is abroad, so she doesn't care about organizational discipline. After being deducted the high pension envied by ordinary people, she has completely torn her old face with the CCP.

I'm a class a truck driver working in hazardous material remediation and transportation. I was previously a licensed aircraft mechanic. Is there a training or certification program for this field and would any of my previous experience be beneficial. I'm pretty solid with hydraulics, DC powered electronics and turbine engines.

With London Irish being removed from the English Premiership as of today, that makes 3 English clubs in the past year that have gone under. Sucks for the fans and the players/staff, however could we be seeing a trend that may end up being a positive for Australian Rugby?
It's well known that professionalism has led to an increasing number of our players being snapped up by French, English and more recently Japanese clubs. They either sign our veterans or they sign young players with high potential. Much is made of League raiding the junior Rugby ranks but in terms of proven players it's more likely that the European power clubs and Japan are to blame for decimating our playing stocks. With Wasps, Worcester and Irish now gone and the RFU calling for a major review in to the Premiership finances could we finally see an end to the mass player exodus and the possibility of retaining players for our professional pathway?

Devil Fruit Name: Leviathan Leviathan Fruit
Description: The Leviathan Leviathan Fruit is a Mythical Zoan-type Devil Fruit that grants the user the power to transform into a massive sea serpent, embodying the mythical creature known as Leviathan. Upon consumption, the user gains the ability to undergo a complete transformation, turning into a colossal sea serpent with incredible size, strength, and control over water. This fruit allows the user to dominate the seas and wield the powers associated with the legendary Leviathan.
Powers: - Leviathan Transformation: The user can transform into a gigantic sea serpent, gaining immense size, strength, and durability. In this form, they possess an intimidating presence and become a formidable force to be reckoned with. - Water Manipulation: The user gains complete control over water, able to summon, shape, and manipulate it at will. They can create powerful water-based attacks, summon tidal waves, or even generate whirlpools to subdue opponents.

•  Enhanced Aquatic Abilities: While in their Leviathan form or when in contact with water, the user gains enhanced swimming speed, allowing them to move swiftly through the seas. They also possess heightened senses to navigate and perceive their surroundings underwater. 

•  Resistance to Water: The user becomes highly resistant to the detrimental effects of water, enabling them to move freely and fight effectively in aquatic environments. They can even dive to extreme depths without suffering from pressure or oxygen limitations. 

  Named Moves:
  

•  Aqua Slam: The user slams their massive tail or body into the water, creating a massive shockwave that ripples through the sea, causing devastating damage to ships, structures, and opponents caught within its reach. 

•  Tidal Surge: The user summons a colossal tidal wave, capable of flooding entire coastlines or sweeping away opponents with its sheer force. This move can also be used defensively to deflect attacks or protect allies. 

•  Leviathan's Roar: The user emits a deafening roar, creating sonic waves that disorient opponents and potentially shatter nearby objects. This move can be used to incapacitate enemies or create an opening for a follow-up attack. 

•  Whirlpool Whirlwind: The user generates a massive whirlpool by rapidly spinning their body, creating a vortex that engulfs everything within its reach. This move traps opponents, making it difficult for them to escape and causing considerable damage. 

•  Aqua Burst: The user concentrates their water manipulation abilities, creating highly pressurized water projectiles that they can launch at high speeds. These projectiles pierce through defenses and strike with immense force. 

•  Leviathan's Embrace: The user envelops themselves in a protective shroud of water, enhancing their defense and rendering them highly resistant to physical and energy-based attacks. This move provides temporary invulnerability and the ability to counterattack. 

•  Ocean's Wrath: The user channels their control over water to summon a torrential downpour, drenching the battlefield and creating a waterlogged environment. This move weakens opponents and enhances the user's own abilities. 

•  Tsunami Fury (Awakening): Upon awakening the Leviathan Leviathan Fruit, the user gains the ability to summon a colossal tsunami, capable of wiping out entire islands or overwhelming entire fleets. This devastating move unleashes the full might of the sea, making it nearly impossible to resist. 

Pros: - The Leviathan transformation grants immense size, strength, and durability. - Control over water allows for powerful aquatic attacks and manipulation. - Enhanced swimming abilities and resistance to water provide dominance in marine environments. - The awakening ability unleashes a catastrophic force with the potential to change the course of battles. Cons: - The Leviathan transformation can be physically taxing and may limit mobility in confined spaces. - Over Reliance on water-based attacks may be hindered in environments with limited water sources. Large-scale attacks can cause collateral damage and may harm allies or innocents nearby. The awakening transformation may come with a time limit or a loss of control, making it a double-edged sword. Note: The user's overall strength, combat skills, and control over water will significantly impact the effectiveness and versatility of their moves. Additionally, the awakening ability of the fruit can be a game-changer in battles, but the user must carefully manage its usage to avoid exhaustion or unintentional destruction.

Ash-Ash Fruit (Hai-Hai no Mi) (Paramecia) Description: The Ash-Ash Fruit is a Paramecia type Devil Fruit that grants the user the ability to control and manipulate ashes. The user gains the power to generate, control, and transform into ashes at will. They can manipulate the density, shape, and movement of the ashes, using them for various offensive and defensive purposes. Basic Capabilities: Ash Manipulation: The user can generate and control ashes, directing them with precision and speed. Ash Constructs: The ability to shape the ashes into various forms, such as solid projectiles, shields, or barriers. Ash Cloud: The user can create a dense cloud of ashes, reducing visibility and disorienting opponents. Ash Veil: By surrounding themselves in a veil of ashes, the user can decrease the impact of physical attacks and act as a temporary shield. Ash Whirlwind: The user can create a powerful vortex of ashes, capable of trapping and suffocating opponents. Ash Infusion: The ability to infuse objects or weapons with ash, increasing their cutting power and range. Ash Disintegration: The user can cause the ashes to disintegrate objects on contact, corroding and weakening them. Ash Regeneration: The user can reform their body using nearby ashes, allowing for quick recovery from injuries. Ultimate Ability - "Ashen Annihilation": In this last resort move, the user unleashes an overwhelming burst of concentrated ash energy. They create a massive explosion of swirling ashes, engulfing the area in a devastating blast. The destructive force and heat generated by this ability are capable of annihilating everything within its range. Pros of the Ash-Ash Fruit: Versatile Offense: The user can manipulate the ashes creatively, creating a wide range of offensive attacks. Defensive Capabilities: The user can form protective barriers and shields using the ashes, providing a layer of defense against incoming attacks. Stealth and Disruption: The ability to create ash clouds and disorient opponents can provide strategic advantages in combat. Regeneration: The user can reform their body using nearby ashes, allowing for quick recovery from injuries. Cons of the Ash-Ash Fruit: Water Weakness: As with all Devil Fruits, the user becomes weakened and unable to use their powers when submerged in water. Limited Range: The effectiveness of the ash manipulation abilities is dependent on the proximity of available ashes. Environmental Dependence: The user's abilities are more potent in areas with sufficient amounts of ashes. In ash-depleted environments, their powers may be significantly reduced. Vulnerability to Wind: Strong gusts of wind can disperse or redirect the user's controlled ashes, limiting their control and effectiveness. Devil Fruit Awakening (Speculation): Upon awakening the Ash-Ash Fruit, the user gains enhanced control over ashes on a larger scale. They can manipulate vast amounts of ashes in the environment, transforming landscapes into their domain. The user's ash-based attacks become more potent, and they can even create living ash creatures to assist in battle. Additionally, the awakened Ash-Ash Fruit user gains the ability to manipulate the temperature of the ashes, enabling them to control fiery ashstorms or freezing ash blizzards, adding an additional layer of devastation to their arsenal.

Hello, I plan on building a home theater within the year. I am starting from scratch, but want to get good equipment that will last me for a long period of time. I will either ball out and get everything or get a 3.1 system with the intent of upgrading it for surrounding speakers and ceiling speakers.
I wanted to know what are good sets that people will recommend. I am willing to spend $3000-$5000 and would rather get less equipment but have it be top of the line. This includes a receiver.
Brands I am looking at are kilpsch for speakers and Denon for receivers. I haven’t tried much others but wanted to hear people’s recommendations.
If this wasn’t enough info let me know for I am fairly new to the home theater game!
Also I butchered that title for spelling

I have a bit of an explanation and question to follow up. I am a 22 year old Muslim girl. I live with my family, both parents and siblings. However my mother is extremely narcissistic, she is verbally and physically abusive, she’s neglectful since we were younger, and extremely controlling and power hungry. She disrespects everyone in the household including my dad. To the point where she spits, hits, swears provocative words at us. It’s gotten to the point where none of us speak to her but it only makes her worse. But we can’t be bothered with her hot and cold attitude, she pretends to be friendly and than uses everything we confide in her against us. I have consulted a lot and a lot of Muslim sisters and brothers and they always say that “she’s your mom, it’s okay, you need to forgive her etc etc.”
I need to know, from a Muslim point of view. Can I cut her off completely? Would that be considered a sin gods eyes since she is my mother? Keep in mind my oldest sisters is nearly 30 and this has been going on for nearly 30 years. We have tried talking to her, making positive changes, including her, listening to her concerns and even giving into her controlling behaviors but it’s just too toxic. Please help I need advice.

I will be using this pc for gaming. Games includes Overwatch 2, Fortnite, Diablo 4, Dead By Daylight, Final Fantasy 14.
Max im willing to spend is $2000 US Dollars and I am looking to buy it asap. I would like this thing to be future proof and allow me upgrade some things down the line.
Budget should include Tower and keyboard.
I live in the United States and live near several Microcenters.
I need at least 32 GB of the fastest ram available and a 2TB FAST SSD (I run some data analytical programs that benefit greatly from these two conditions.) I also want the ability to add an additional 32GB of ram later on, but I won't be adding more ram right away.
In terms of case style, I prefer a matte black case with window. In terms of cosmetics, I prefer very subtle, muted, low key looks ( I don't like really loud, noisy colors) but I am willing to sacrifice all the cosmetics if it helps me get even greater gaming performance from my budget.
This will be my very first gaming PC. I've been a console player all my life. I want to try something new.
A special Request: Can I get two versions of the build? One that includes a monitor and the other that doesn’t?
THANK YOU

Mist-Mist Fruit (Paramecia) Description: The Mist-Mist Fruit is a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that grants the user the ability to generate and manipulate mist at will. The user can create dense mist that obscures vision, making it difficult for opponents to see and locate them. The mist produced by this fruit is not ordinary mist but possesses unique properties that can be controlled by the user. Basic Capabilities: Mist Generation: The user can generate thick and opaque mist, shrouding the surroundings and creating a veil of concealment. Mist Manipulation: The user can control the movements and density of the mist, allowing them to shape it into various forms and direct its flow. Mist Solidification: The user can condense the mist, transforming it into solid constructs such as barriers, weapons, or platforms. Mist Travel: The user can disperse their body into mist, enabling them to move through gaps, walls, and other solid objects. Mist Illusion: By manipulating the mist's properties, the user can create convincing illusions, deceiving opponents and causing confusion. Mist Healing: The mist produced by this fruit possesses healing properties, allowing the user to envelop injured individuals and accelerate their recovery. Mist Choke: The user can manipulate the density of the mist to restrict breathing and suffocate opponents within its grasp. Mist Envelop: The user can create a dense mist cloak around themselves, providing camouflage and reducing the effectiveness of long-range attacks. Ultimate Ability: Mist Mirage: By combining their mist manipulation and illusionary abilities, the user can create a grand-scale illusion, enveloping the entire area in an illusionary world of their design. Within this illusion, opponents are disoriented, their senses manipulated, and their perception of time distorted, leaving them vulnerable to the user's subsequent attacks.
Pros of the Mist-Mist Fruit: Enhanced Stealth: The ability to generate dense mist provides exceptional cover, allowing the user to move undetected and launch surprise attacks. Defensive Capabilities: The mist can be solidified into barriers or shields, providing protection against physical and ranged attacks. Versatility: The mist can be shaped and manipulated for various purposes, including offensive strikes, defensive maneuvers, and strategic illusions. Healing Properties: The mist possesses healing properties, allowing the user to tend to their own injuries or aid allies. Disruption of Opponent's Senses: The mist can disorient and impair opponents, reducing their combat effectiveness. Cons of the Mist-Mist Fruit: Vulnerability to Wind: Strong gusts of wind can disperse the mist, limiting its effectiveness and exposing the user. Mist Limitation: The mist's manipulation is dependent on the user's stamina and concentration. Prolonged usage can lead to fatigue. Close-Range Combat Weakness: While the mist provides excellent cover, it may hinder the user's own visibility and make them susceptible to close-range attacks. Devil Fruit Awakening (Speculation): Mist-Mist Fruit Awakening might allow the user to manipulate the environment itself, turning entire areas into dense mist or controlling weather conditions to generate mist naturally. They could also extend their mist-manipulation abilities to affect larger regions and create more intricate and powerful illusions. Awakening might grant them increased control over the mist's properties and enhance the healing properties, allowing them to restore severe injuries or ailments.

I see that I am very noob indeed. I did embed U-boot on the SPI of a nyan-big, but couldn't do so for a veyron-speedy. Therefore I just installed coreboot 4.7 with depthcharge stable on the Asus C201P chromebook.
It shows the depthcharge screens fine. I get the Chrome OS may be broken. Remove media and initiate recovery screen. However, using a C201P recovery media or a depthcharge based postmarketos SD card does nothing to remove the screen.
If I press Esc+Refresh+Power, I get to a screen that says "The device you inserted image invalidtain Chrome OS."
Not the C201P's stock firmware. This Chromebook had it deleted a long time ago by someone. This is just a coreboot image with depthcharge. But if I get the depthcharge screen, how do I something loaded on it?
Maybe my description is lousy, this is a C201P chromebook, but with generic coreboot and depthcharge configurations, but the config is for the Chromebook itself.

Note, im already at the limit of my budget at $2000. I work mostly with not so demanding tasks so I dont need that much power. Nonetheless, for $160 more, i can get a base model M2 Pro. Is it worth it considering its a newer model (so more future proof)? They are both 16Gb and 512 GB, and I live in south america so these are my only options. I’ve read about the slower SSD speeds too in the new version.

I'm 2 for 2 bad experiences with Samsung support. You need to allow at least 2 hours per call as they ask you 2 or 3 questions and then "put you on a short hold" I had a user who had a fault with their monitor the user actually went through 5 of the 6 things Samsung suggested, and after 2 short holds which was around 3-5 minutes each time they suggested I reset something through the monitor menu. Okay sure, user didn't try that. Samsung provide instructions I ask the user to test and let me know. The next day "tried the reset came in this morning and same issue" From memory the issue was either flickering or blurriness that went away after some time after the monitor was powered off off overnight. Well we tried the last thing on their list guess its warranty repair. That'll be open and shut. Spoiler it wasn't. Given my experience calling I thought maybe the online chat will be better. It had to be slower I should have timed it. the whole interaction was close to 3 hours. Go through the same questions as the first call even though there was an existing case. And once again every few question I get put on "a short hold" which I didn't expect from a chat interaction but hey. I've since decided the short hold is the level 1 customer support getting manager approval to go to the next step in the flowchart. Well.... After answering the same questions I get to them believing it may be a hardware fault. They're going to send a technician to verify the problem. Not to fix. To Verify. Also if its not a genuine Samsung monitor charges apply etc. Lets ignore the fact that they asked for a photo of the monitor with the model and serial number to verify in our first interaction. Sure lets go. The technician shows up and is there for less than 5 minutes where he says "Yes, that's a known issue with these (Part) needs to be replaced, they usually just replace the monitor. If you think that's the end of my suffering you're mistaken. That is only Part 1: Troubleshooting, now its Part 2 The Replacement! Samsung have booked in delivery/courier company to ship the replacement monitor and provide details for how to return the faulty unit. Gave the users mobile for SMS alerts etc. A few days later he gets an update via SMS that the shipment is complete. They follow up with me and there's no monitor. But he tells me they're pretty evenly located near 2 post offices so knowing which one would be helpful let alone having no shipping information other than it was the users name and address which might be enough. So I call Samsung a 3rd time. Lucky for me this ones much quicker, they escalate to their dispatch team who will call me back. They make 2 attempts to call me both times I'm not available and they refuse to talk to any of my coworkers. "Please get him to call (phone number)". No case reference, just call this number. When I call back nobody can help me. I offer all the details I can, and they put me through to the correct team. I'm told by another team member that the person who tried to call is at lunch and they don't know which case its in relation to so cannot help further. Callback later that day and I put what I'm doing on hold to talk to the person. It turns out the courier company showed up at the warehouse and there were no units available so they said okay book in a pickup when you've got something available and flicked it back to Samsung who sat on it until... We said yes to trying again(?) - It didn't make sense to me so its hard to remember it right. The good news is that delivery attempt #2 was successful. In total, counting time I sat on hold trying to talk to their support and following up it was close to 7hrs of unbillable time that we can't on bill the client for. Samsung make great products but their customer service is garbage.
I type this story knowing full well I'll be going through it again as I try to find definitive proof that there is a fault with this Samsung SSD NVMe 970 EVO that's causing bluescreens but passing all tests.
Last time I had a drive fault I had errors from HDTune error scan and the system sometimes wouldn't boot reporting no hard drive detected maybe 30% of the time and they still asked me to put the drive in another system to confirm. Flat out told them no and it still took 2-3 weeks for them to send the replacement. I had to send them the faulty drive first glad the client had another laptop to work from for those 3 weeks otherwise that could have been a problem!

I am busy making a world full of superheroes and one of them has the ability to have telakaneses but only over the rare metals that come from a meteorite so they can make weapons from this meteorite or gadgets that they can control with there mind. For a example of this thor and his hammer.(I know thor only has this for his hammer and not all the metal the hamer was made from)

Only been here 2 years and can't stand it. They enforce zero rules. Constant dog barking from all over. Excessive blasting music etc. This all happens 24 hours a day. Many people do not sleep here. Leashless dogs etc. Oh and the president has been for 17 years(I'm in the new part). His wife and kids are paid staff at the pool, nepotism.Wife practically lives at the pool as her job as pool attendant. She's the biggest gossiper iv ever meet in my life. Her FB post are nothing like iv ever seen. Over 100 pictures a week of everything she does. She needs attention and validation. Oh and she brings her dogs inside the pool and clubhouse on a regular basis. Everytime I walk past the pool with my dogs she whispering to someone that's her who complained. Yeah she used the blast music 10 hours a day on concert level speakers at a tiny pool. I heard it through my entire house. Oh and they can have garbage cans outside and a shed but no one else can. I live across from the pool and close to the HOA family so it sucks.

Devil Fruit: Portal-Portal Fruit (Paramecia)
The Portal-Portal Fruit is a Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that grants the user the ability to create and manipulate portals using rings. These special rings act as gateways, allowing the user to travel instantaneously between different locations or even access other dimensions. The rings can also transform into any shape the user desires, providing additional versatility. Here are the details of the Devil Fruit:

1. Portal Creation: The user can create portals by opening the rings, enabling instant travel between two points. These portals can be of varying sizes, allowing for the passage of people, objects, or even energy.
   
2. Interdimensional Portals: The user can open portals to different dimensions, granting access to unique realms or sources of power. For example, they can open an energy dimension and channel a concentrated beam of energy through the ring.
   
3. Shape Manipulation: The rings can change shape according to the user's thoughts, allowing them to transform into any desired form. This provides adaptability and flexibility in combat situations.
   
4. Dimensional Storage: The user can store objects or even people within the portals, creating a pocket dimension for safekeeping or transportation purposes. This ability proves useful for storing valuable items or for strategic retreats.
   
5. Teleportation Mastery: The user can teleport not only themselves but also others through the portals, facilitating quick escapes or surprise attacks. This ability also enables them to rescue allies from dangerous situations.
   
6. Portal Distortion: The user can manipulate the shape and properties of the portals, distorting them to redirect or absorb incoming attacks. This defensive technique can be utilized to nullify or counter opponents' abilities.
   
7. Portal Surveillance: The user can peer through the portals, allowing them to observe distant locations or gather valuable information discreetly. This ability aids in reconnaissance and strategic planning.
   
8. Dimensional Fusion: The user can merge dimensions temporarily, creating an overlapping space where different dimensions coexist. This fusion allows for unique interactions and the potential for combining various elemental or energy forces.
   

Pros: - Instantaneous travel and access to different dimensions provide great mobility and strategic advantages. - The ability to shape-shift the rings into any form enhances versatility and creativity in combat. - Portals can be used for offensive, defensive, and utility purposes, making the user adaptable in different situations. - Dimensional storage allows for secure transportation and safeguarding of items or individuals. - Teleportation mastery enables swift rescue missions and surprise attacks.
Cons: - Opening and maintaining portals requires concentration and focus, leaving the user vulnerable during the process. - Continuous use of the portals drains the user's stamina and energy, necessitating strategic energy management. - The user is limited by the size and strength of the rings, preventing the creation of overly large or powerful portals. - Interdimensional travel may result in encountering unknown dangers or unpredictable consequences. - Reliance on the rings makes the user vulnerable if they are separated or lost.
Awakening: Upon awakening the Portal-Portal Fruit, the user gains heightened control and understanding of the dimensional forces at play. They can create larger, more stable portals, granting access to dimensions of unimaginable power and potential. The user's ability to shape-shift the rings expands, allowing them to create intricate and elaborate forms. Their portals become even more versatile, enabling the manipulation of time, space, and various elemental energies. This awakened state amplifies their abilities to an extraordinary level, establishing them as a force to be reckoned with.
In conclusion, the Portal-Portal Fruit bestows the user with the ability to create portals, access different dimensions, and manipulate space. With versatile offensive, defensive, and utility applications, the user becomes a formidable combatant. However, the fruit's reliance on concentration, energy management, and the vulnerability of the rings highlight the need for careful planning and strategic thinking. Through awakening, the user unlocks even greater control and harnesses the full potential of the dimensional powers at their disposal.

I want to know what people think about Arc 8 until now, haven't seen any posts about it as a whole. Tbh i haven't actually read anything about Arc 8, I dropped Re:ZERO on Arc 7 chapter 100 i think, i just thought the series's writing had dropped considerably, the teleportations having no explanation other than plot convenience, the ending feeling very rushed after a very slow paced arc, the massive fake out that were the deaths of everyone in the gladiator island only for Subaru to get his powers back right after, Tanza not dying (I like her, but come on, atleast give us a reasonable explanation), Emilia having massive plot armor, the thing with Beattrice pulling Shamak again out of nowhere to protect them from an attack that also came out of nowhere with no build up, Subaru being nerfed again, the whole cross-dressing and infantilization thing that went on for too long imo, although i started liking how the infantilization was affecting Subaru's personality.
My biggest problem though is definitely the plot armor and fake outs, it's the one thing i hate the most in pretty much all of fiction (from well-written shows), there were never really any deaths on ReZERO, atleast that i could remember of, but the reason was very obvious, Return by Death, and even though he would always save everyone, something would happen that would change his character or a big twist happened in the story, something that was missing in Arc 7(atleast till where i read). There were no twists, no character development (Subaru's infantilization changing his personality doesn't count), no major character death or event to make up for it, nothing!
Though, from what i've read, Arc 7 actually continues in Arc 8 instead of it being a finished arc, that lighted a spark of hope that atleast some of those problems could be solved, especially since that means the twists or whatever can still happen, that's why i wanted to know what do you guys think about Arc 8, especially it's writing, did anything change from Arc 7? Are there new things or themes being explored? Do you think there will be a big twist or character development that will be explored?