Do What You Gotta

Do What You Gotta — Blue Ink Alchemy

It's an unfortunate truth: we don't all have the luxury of doing what we love all day, every day. Some do, and that's wonderful. The world needs more people who come fully alive and do what they love for the benefit of others as well as themselves. I support them wholeheartedly. But we can't all do that. Some of us toil. Some of us put aside what we want to fulfill our obligations and make ends meet in a more expedient but less satisfactory fashion. You have to remind yourself that this is okay. There's nothing wrong with committing to a bit of the old day-in day-out. Being as present as possible where you physically are can help make a better future for yourself. Employers like to see reliability and adaptability in their assets, and these attributes can make future employment opportunities easier to secure. From that perspective, putting aside other ambitious is a worthwhile sacrifice. You also have to remind yourself not to give up. Our dreams matter, and are worthy of being pursued. Having goals beyond the mundane day-to-day helps us see beyond the inbox, work through the frustations that come from tasks that ultimately have no real impact on us, and give us hope for the future. Our problems are temporary. To paraphrase Theodore Parker (who was himself paraphrased by Martin Luther King Jr), the curve of history is long but it bends towards justice. If you can hold onto what's good in your life, and strive towards your goals even if your steps on that journey falter, you will see that your setbacks and failures do not matter anywhere near as much as your joyous occasions and your successes. In the end, our measure is not truly taken in the unfortunate difficulties that hinder us and the oversights and mistakes we are bound to make. We're going to get in our own way. We're going to leave aside what we've put aside for the sake of our sanity and decompression. These are forgivable, human, and ultimately temporary conditions. If we keep moving forward, if we persevere, if we eventually reach that goal towards which we strive, all of the frustation and all of the shame and all of the despair will evaporate, and satisfaction is all that will be left. Tomorrow will be a new day, no matter how badly today might go. Try to remember that, especially when the days begin to turn sour. You can make it. And you will. Until then, do what you gotta do.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

500 Words on Philadelphia

500 Words on Philadelphia — Blue Ink Alchemy

I literally grew up looking at Philadelphia's skyline. Granted, it was on the television. One of the local news affiliates, the one my parents preferred, had a window out on the buildings beyond. At least, I think it was a window. These were the days before green-screen was really a thing, so it was either a window or a very well-done matte painting. I remember the lights on the PSFS building flickering, though, so I think it was a window. Or maybe a screen? Regardless, I grew up looking at that. There's always been an allure to the city, the pulse, the teeming masses. I've visited New York, walked around Chicago, gotten to know Baltimore and Boston and Pittsburgh. The only city that's made me feel more at home than Philadelphia does is Seattle. And in Philadelphia's case, it's familiarity. It's proximity. It's been home. I know it won't be home forever. And when I see that skyline lit up, I think of the places I've been within the city, the people I've met, beers I've sampled and pretzels I've scarfed, games I've played and sights I've seen... and yeah, I'm going to miss it. Sure, it's imperfect. I'm nowhere near the level of committed to its sports teams that will keep me following every move they make. I was huge into the Phillies when I was a kid, and I own a t-shirt with Mike Schmidt's number on it, but I'm not one for the NFL or NBA, my interest in other sports has somewhat waned, and I'm a little afraid that wearing my Union blue and gold outside of Philadelphia in another stadium might incur physical harm. I'll have to try and take in a Union game before the summer ends. Those are good times. Philly will always have problems with crime. What city doesn't? Get enough human beings gathered together in one place, and some will be more desperate than others. I'm not saying it's okay or totally safe or anything, I'm just saying that a city should not be avoided because you might get hurt in it. You might get hurt walking out of Wal-Mart in the suburbs. Or cleaning your gun in your bunker. You could slip in the shower, choke on your breakfast, eat a bad taco. You can't let fear hold you back. I remind myself of that, too. As much as I'll miss Philadelphia, I can't let that feeling keep me from doing what I have to do to take the next step in my life. As good as it feels to see the skyline of Philadelphia emerge from around the hills as I drive in (that's another thing, the traffic sucks), I need to put that skyline in my rearview mirror eventually and for good. We can't stay where we are forever. We have to keep evolving. I will never forget everything Philadelphia helped me do and be and create. But soon, the City of Brothery Love will be a memory.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Tabletalk: Let's Tell A Story

Tabletalk: Let's Tell A Story — Blue Ink Alchemy

As someone who writes tales about people who don't actually exist, the process of telling stories fascinates me. While working alone allows me to be the final arbiter of what does and does not happen, some of the best storytelling experiences I've had come not from a word processing document, but from other books and dice. The methods and weight of rules might vary, but the experience is always unique. Some games are built specifically to emphasize their story and characters more than anything else. Fiasco and Shock: are my two go-to examples of tabletop games firmly in story mode, while Maschine Zeit and Farewell to Fear maintain some more traditional dice-rolling rulesets not to define gameplay, but to reinforce storytelling. The emphasis in these games is on who the players' characters are, not necessarily what they do. On the flip side are games like Dungeons & Dragons and any of the titles within the World of Darkness universe. The 'background' portion of a given player's character sheet is entirely optional, and the emphasis is on the stats depicted on the front. These games are built to generate epic moments, memorable feats of daring-do, and nail-biting suspense as the dice roll. And then, there are those games with what I'd like to call 'emergent storytelling'. Quite a few board games try to work atmosphere and elements of storytelling into their gameplay, like Pandemic, Elder Sign, or Escape!, but the nature of these games' mechanics tend to get in the way of actually telling a story. Boss Monster and Seasons, on the other hand, give players enough breathing room to give their on-the-table representatives a bit more personality. Between turns, you may decide that your adorable forest-dwelling bunny wizard is actually bent on world domination, or that your towering and malevolent gorgon dungeon master actually wants to flip her dungeon so she can go on a long-awaited vacation. The towns built in Suburbia can't help but take on some personality ("Why is that high school right next to a slaughterhouse?"). And the excellent Battlestar Galactica has you not only taking on familiar faces, but pitting them against one another in new ways as you try to determine who among you is a Cylon even as you struggle to survive. There's nothing quite like throwing the Admiral in his (or her) own brig just on a gut feeling your character has. Finally, there are those who would advise you not to play Twilight Imperium with role-players. If a gamer take the honor of their race seriously, there may be a major grudge that plays out over the game's many hours if you do something like occupy one of their systems or assassinate one of their councilors. Who says politics is boring? What games do you feel cater more towards storytelling? What emergent gameplay do you enjoy the most?

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Movie Review: Frozen

Movie Review: Frozen — Blue Ink Alchemy

It can be difficult to keep up when life throws things into upheaval. Most of the time it's a matter of distractions or relaxation opportunities slipping away as we get pulled into one direction or another by so-called 'adult responsibilities'. Sometimes the circumstances are a bit more tragic. And sometimes you just get born with a power over the elements that you can't control and is tied closely to your emotions so things like insecurity and panic cause localized cataclysms. You know, typical teenager problems. Frozen comes to us from Disney, and instead of just one princess, they give us two this time around. Elsa and Anna are the daughters of the king and queen of the cold land of Arendelle. Elsa, the older daughter, was born with the aforementioned powers, in this case giving her dominion over snow and ice. At first, this is fine, and fun for Anna as this means the sisters can build snowmen and toboggan indoors. However, an accident leaves Anna without memory of her sister's ability and Elsa without her freedom, locked away in the castle away from Anna. A tragedy leaves the sisters without their parents, which leads to Elsa needing to be crowned queen at a time when she is both emotionally vulnerable and reuniting with her sister in the midst of all sorts of ancillary drama. As you expect, this all goes swimmingly and nobody runs into any problems whatsoever. I kid. The whole thing collapses like an awning buried in snow. Disney continues to set the standard for visual impressiveness in animated features. Moving from hand-drawn animation to CGI has been greatly aided by the addition of Pixar to their stable, and the influence shows. The style skews more towards realistic humans in their proportions and structure, emulating the drawing styles of classics like Beauty and the Beast, but the computing power of the Pixar folks allows for some truly impressive snow and ice effects. It's easy to believe that Elsa's powers are truly magical when we see how she creates what she creates.
The characters feel very human despite their computerized construction. I'm being deliberately vague and skimping on details, but that's because Frozen surprised me, and if like me you've been hemmed in by winter already and haven't gotten out to see the film yet, you should be surprised, too. It wasn't a surprise in the style of a bait and switch, either. What pleasantly shocked me about Frozen was its whip-smart writing and its ability to present two very different female leads as both strong and empathetic. We understand Elsa's struggle to both accept herself and present herself to the world, and we admire Anna's upbeat attitude and the fact that she needs no permission to do what she feels is right. She's more than willing to take things on all by herself, and her determination is inspiring. Disney films in this vein are famous for their songs, and Frozen has got some good ones. There's a reason 'Let It Go' has been so prominent for so long. However, the film feels front-loaded with its singing numbers. They come and go somewhat quickly, almost as if the film is in a hurry to get them out of the way so we can focus more on character and plot development. With characters and writing this good, it's somewhat understandable, and it doesn't really hurt the movie in any way. It just struck me as odd that the balance across the running time seemed off.
There are great lighting and weather effects, too. Frozen feels confident. Much like its leads, the film is going to say what it needs to say regardless of how it's received, and it's admirable for that. The film itself is quite good, and young girls especially should be seeing it. While its overall quality doesn't quite match the wit, pace, heart, and pure fun of The LEGO Movie, and its Pixar-esque qualities also invite comparisons to the superior Wall-E and Up, Frozen is by no means a film to be missed. The characters are fantastic, the songs are memorable, it doesn't overstay its welcome, and its message is one that deserves to be shouted from the balcony of any ice castle anywhere. If you have a family with young ladies, or just want to see what female empowerment looks like within the 'princess' genre, Frozen is right up your alley.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Movie Review: Frozen

Movie Review: Frozen — Blue Ink Alchemy

It can be difficult to keep up when life throws things into upheaval. Most of the time it's a matter of distractions or relaxation opportunities slipping away as we get pulled into one direction or another by so-called 'adult responsibilities'. Sometimes the circumstances are a bit more tragic. And sometimes you just get born with a power over the elements that you can't control and is tied closely to your emotions so things like insecurity and panic cause localized cataclysms. You know, typical teenager problems. Frozen comes to us from Disney, and instead of just one princess, they give us two this time around. Elsa and Anna are the daughters of the king and queen of the cold land of Arendelle. Elsa, the older daughter, was born with the aforementioned powers, in this case giving her dominion over snow and ice. At first, this is fine, and fun for Anna as this means the sisters can build snowmen and toboggan indoors. However, an accident leaves Anna without memory of her sister's ability and Elsa without her freedom, locked away in the castle away from Anna. A tragedy leaves the sisters without their parents, which leads to Elsa needing to be crowned queen at a time when she is both emotionally vulnerable and reuniting with her sister in the midst of all sorts of ancillary drama. As you expect, this all goes swimmingly and nobody runs into any problems whatsoever. I kid. The whole thing collapses like an awning buried in snow. Disney continues to set the standard for visual impressiveness in animated features. Moving from hand-drawn animation to CGI has been greatly aided by the addition of Pixar to their stable, and the influence shows. The style skews more towards realistic humans in their proportions and structure, emulating the drawing styles of classics like Beauty and the Beast, but the computing power of the Pixar folks allows for some truly impressive snow and ice effects. It's easy to believe that Elsa's powers are truly magical when we see how she creates what she creates.
The characters feel very human despite their computerized construction. I'm being deliberately vague and skimping on details, but that's because Frozen surprised me, and if like me you've been hemmed in by winter already and haven't gotten out to see the film yet, you should be surprised, too. It wasn't a surprise in the style of a bait and switch, either. What pleasantly shocked me about Frozen was its whip-smart writing and its ability to present two very different female leads as both strong and empathetic. We understand Elsa's struggle to both accept herself and present herself to the world, and we admire Anna's upbeat attitude and the fact that she needs no permission to do what she feels is right. She's more than willing to take things on all by herself, and her determination is inspiring. Disney films in this vein are famous for their songs, and Frozen has got some good ones. There's a reason 'Let It Go' has been so prominent for so long. However, the film feels front-loaded with its singing numbers. They come and go somewhat quickly, almost as if the film is in a hurry to get them out of the way so we can focus more on character and plot development. With characters and writing this good, it's somewhat understandable, and it doesn't really hurt the movie in any way. It just struck me as odd that the balance across the running time seemed off.
There are great lighting and weather effects, too. Frozen feels confident. Much like its leads, the film is going to say what it needs to say regardless of how it's received, and it's admirable for that. The film itself is quite good, and young girls especially should be seeing it. While its overall quality doesn't quite match the wit, pace, heart, and pure fun of The LEGO Movie, and its Pixar-esque qualities also invite comparisons to the superior Wall-E and Up, Frozen is by no means a film to be missed. The characters are fantastic, the songs are memorable, it doesn't overstay its welcome, and its message is one that deserves to be shouted from the balcony of any ice castle anywhere. If you have a family with young ladies, or just want to see what female empowerment looks like within the 'princess' genre, Frozen is right up your alley.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Flash Fiction: Extraction Team Seven

Flash Fiction: Extraction Team Seven — Blue Ink Alchemy

I was challenged to tell a story in Ten Little Chapters.

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Lieutenant Richards looked up from the orders with a frown. "I don't like this, sir." "What's to like?" The colonel didn't look at his subordinate as he circled the map on the table in the center of the room. "They've got intelligence, they're pinned down, and they need extraction." "This is deep in enemy territory. In a civilian area, sir. And we may need to work around hardened positions equipped with anti-air." "That's why I bought you in, Richards. You and your team are legendary for this sort of thing." Richards shook his head. "Don't use that word, sir. It'll go to their heads."

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"You told him this is bullshit, right?" Richards looked at Sergeant McNally. The enlisted woman had her arms crossed, and her freckles were scrunched in a frown. "Not in so many words, but yes." "Should've used those words," Corporal Collins offered. "Easier than beating 'round the bush." "So what's the plan, then?" Corporal Nicheyev was never one for waiting. "Surely you have one, sir." "Of course he does," McNally said, "and don't call him 'Shirley'." "Seriously. The four of us, this bunch of fortifications, and no air support?" Collins frowned. "This had better be good, boss."

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Collins listened closely to what he was being told. After a moment, he turned to the others with a shrug. "He's asking for a hell of a lot of money to show us the way." "He's probably afraid he'll catch a bullet." Nicheyev shrugged, adjusting the rifle on his shoulder. "I would be." Richards rubbed his forehead, pushing the turban back a bit. It kept falling towards his eyes. "Collins, pay the man." "Sir..." "Don't argue." "You can win it back from me next time we throw down some Hold 'Em," McNally said with a nudge. "You all suck." Collins paid the man.

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"I want to go record that this plan sucks ass." "What was that, Collins?" "You heard me, sir!" "Half the town will hear you if you keep that up," Nicheyev reminded his compatriot. "Fuck you. We're at least a klick outside of the town, I'm waist-deep in sewage, and I'll need to shower for a damn year after we get these geeks out of Hotel de-" McNally hissed, holding up her fist. The four of them froze, lowering their weapons from where they'd carried them over their heads. The truck above them shook gravel loose into the sewer.

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The nice thing about civilized areas is that they needed to put down walkways for sewer workers. The bad news was, the rusty grilles were noisy at anything faster than a slow walk. "Nicheyev, get some eyes up there." The corporal slipped past Richards, the snake-like camera in his hand. He gently worked the tube up the pipe and took a look. "Anything?" "Not yet. Seems to be a bathroom." McNally glanced over her shoulder. "Hostage-takers gotta shit, too." "I know, but... hang on." There was a pause. Slowly, Nicheyev pulled down the camera. He blushed at the others. "Wrong house. Definitely."

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Richards really wanted to ask Collins if this was any better. Instead, he crept forward another inch, gently probing with the barrel of his weapon. The lights from their shoulders were hooded, and they didn't want to risk more. That, however, made tripwires harder to find. Like the one Richards found with a soft, deadly click. He froze, and the three others behind him did the same. "Claymore," he hissed after a moment. "Nicheyev, you're on." The corporal slipped past him, pulling tools from the pockets on his vest. "Don't move, sir." Richards started to sweat.

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The manhole cover slid back, and one by one they climbed out into the street. It was dusk, and by Richards' watch they were just about on schedule. They took positions outside the house's back door, and waited. The voice rang out around them, calling the faithful to prayer. Richards nodded at McNally. The sergeant thumbed the safety on her .45 and raised the suppressed pistol as she entered the door Collins opened for her. Under the cries from the mosques, Richards heard the metal clangs of silenced gunfire. When it was over, they swept inside.

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"How many, Collins?" The corporal on the other side of the door poked his head out to look, only to jump back as cackling automatic fire peppered the wall and doorjamb with rounds. "Two at least, sir!" Richards touched the radio control at his neck. "Nicheyev, did you hear that?" "Copy," was all Nicheyev said. Richards said a silent prayer of thanks for this being a two-story house, and leaned out to deal some suppressing fire across the street. When the return fire started again, it stopped abruptly after two loud shots from above. "Got 'em, sir." Richards turned to McNally, who held the CIA man up on her shoulders. "Shall we?" McNally gestured towards the door with a grunt. "After you, LT, by all means."

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His ears were still ringing from the rocket blast. Richards tried to keep the pace up, but he could go no faster than his sergeant. The operative was still delirious from drugs and torture, unable to walk on his own. "It isn't right," Collins lamented. "We shouldn't have left him." "If he survived, he can take care of himself," Richards replied. "If he's dead, we can't help him." Collins was going to protest more, but then he stopped and turned back, carbine raised. "We're not alone," he hissed.

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Richards kept the ice pack on his head as the Colonel read the report. "I'm telling you, Richards... legendary." "We got lucky, sir." "Your man Nicheyev survived a rocket attack, son, that wasn't luck." "He also nearly lost a leg, sir." "Did Collins really carry him the kilometer back to the extraction point?" "He and McNally took turns with carrying duty, sir." "Unbelievable. I'll see to it you all get full honors for this." "Thank you, sir. Even if we can never talk about it." The colonel nodded. Richards reached for the bottle.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

From the Vault: Gratuitous Failure, 80s Style

From the Vault: Gratuitous Failure, 80s Style — Blue Ink Alchemy

You know it's a rough day when a post doesn't go up until the evening. Oof. Anyway, here's a bit I wrote about failure. Probably appropriate! My actual review of Hotline Miami can be found here.

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I've been writing a lot about failure lately. This is partially because I believe that we do learn more from our failures from our successes, and also because I know there are folks out there who like to know they're not alone in the struggles they're encountering. I am, admittedly, one of them. I continue to maintain that the important part is not the failures, but rather our reaction to them; does failure prevent us from moving forward, or inspire us to redouble our efforts? I often find a microcosm of this frustration and determination in video games, especially uncompromising ones like Hotline Miami. For those of you unaware of the game, here's a quick overview. It's the 80s, an era infused with bright neon colors and oversaturated sound, and you are cast as a nameless individual taking job offers from your answering machine. They sound innocuous enough: babysitting, taking out the trash, and so on. But it's all code for killing. You're a contract killer and you walk into house after house, punching and bludgeoning and shooting your way to victory. You do so while wearing a rubber animal mask, just one of many indications that whoever you are, you aren't right in the head. What sets Hotline Miami apart from other games is the overall feel and timbre of the gameplay. You enter the homes of your targets from a top-down perspective, something not often seen in modern games, and everything is pixelated and vibrant in color, rather than rendered in 3D and drenched in modern, realistic palettes. This is probably a good thing given the level of brutality on display. People, human beings, are punched hard, have their bones broken, get their skulls smashed repeatedly against hard floors, and are shot, stabbed, bludgeoned, and sliced to death. They even get savaged by dogs. And more often than not, this will be happening to you, since you're not going to get it right the first time. You're going to fail. Much like Super Meat Boy, the appeal of this game comes from the challenges it presents the player. Without hints, without cheats, without even a clear indication of how the player should proceed, the game sets up the pieces and lets the player have at it. I think this is part of the reason that the graphics look the way they do: the violence is not the point. Oh, it's visceral to be certain, but reduced to this fidelity it verges more on goofy than disturbing. The true meat of the game is in its challenges, not in blood and bone and bullets. It doesn't teach players to shoot people with different skin; it teaches them to keep trying even after you fail over and over and over again. The message of Hotline Miami is not one regarding violence or madness or the 80s being even more fucked up than we remember. Those are just the trappings, the rails on which the story hums along. Within that story, through its mechanics, the game's message becomes more clear: You're going to fail. Keep trying anyway. Bludgeon the challenge the way you bludgeon that mook with a shotgun. Sooner or later, you'll get it right, and it will feel awesome when you do. I'm not sure what this says about me, but I'm okay with turning a few pixelated faces to paste to get that awesome feeling. And I know I'll get it in other areas, too.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

500 Words on Space Dandy

500 Words on Space Dandy — Blue Ink Alchemy

Space Dandy is a dandy guy. In space. One of the first anime directors I was introduced to many years ago was Shinichirō Watanabe. Folks who know the genre will likely recognize his name as the man behind Cowboy Bebop and Samurai Champloo. He's worked with legendary anime studio BONES before - this is the studio that gave use Fullmetal Alchemist and Wolf's Rain - and their latest collaboration is truly something to behold. The series is called Space Dandy, and its lead character of the same name is, in fact, a dandy guy. In space. Space Dandy hunts aliens. Specifically, he looks for alien species that have not yet been documented, as registering new alien species earns you a substantial reward. Dandy's dream is to use that cash to buy a chain of themed "breasteraunts" known as BooBies so he can hang out there for free. He flies a ship called the Aloha Oe, and is aided by his souped-up Roomba-style robot, QT, and a Betelgeusean (read: space cat) beatnik named Me#$%* - everybody calls him 'Meow'. Oh, and there's something about an intergalactic conflict and Dandy's being chased by some malevolent monkey-person wearing a hat pilfered from Bootsy Collins who takes orders from a twenty-foot tall dude with a flaming skull. In case you haven't noticed, Space Dandy is not a series to be taken terribly seriously. Where Cowboy Bebop was, by Watanabe's own math, 80% serious and 20% comedy, Space Dandy is the opposite. There are hints of a narrative through-line here and there, but it really never imposes too much. Or at least, it hasn't yet. The show is still being shown both in Japan and here in the United States. That's part of what's so fascinating about it. On top of the absolutely breathtaking and smooth animation, and plenty of legitimately funny moments, there's something to be said about the fact that new episodes are premiering on the same day on opposite sides of the Pacific Ocean. The nature of the collaboration has lead to very similar quality in terms of dialog when it comes to the subtitled version one sees on services like Hulu and Crunchyroll, and the dubbed version on Adult Swim. For someone who grew up with some truly wince-inducing dub work in early entries back when it was called 'Japanimation' on what used to be referred to as 'The Sci-Fi Channel', this is really impressive stuff. There's a lot to like in Space Dandy. Every alien we see is the brain-child of a different animator, the Narrator frequently forgets key information he was supposed to dispense while also confirming that in space there is no fourth wall, and the whole thing feels steeped in the sort of ray-gun aesthetic you'd get if Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon hung out in Margaritaville. It's a lot of fun to watch, and I'm very curious to see how the series continues to develop. It's music is catchy, too, but this is Watanabe we're talking about, so that's a given....

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Tabletalk: Your Table's Real Estate

Tabletalk: Your Table's Real Estate — Blue Ink Alchemy

Courtesy Theology of Games Space at your common table, be it in your dining room, den, or boudoir, is precious. It needs to be used wisely when it comes to entertaining. You need room for everyone to sit and be comfortable. Room for refreshments is always welcome. Games that occupy the table should make good use of whatever remaining real estate their is, holding the attention of your guests and keeping them involved and interacting. This is one of many reasons why Monopoly sucks - most of its board is full of negative space. It also never changes. Board games that I'm finding myself thoroughly enjoying have gameplay that varies from session to session. When a galaxy in Twilight Imperium is created by the players around the table, it is going to be completely different from any scenario setup or previous galaxy, adding another element to the strange brew that makes it fun to devote eight hours to a single game. Quantum is similar in that the 'board' is mutable and can be altered or changed drastically to change up the experience. Games like Mage Knight, Archipelago, and Escape: The Curse of the Temple take it one step further by making their boards what would be called 'procedurally generated': the board is revealed and assembled as you play, guaranteeing a fresh experience every time. Other games like to decentralize the action. Galaxy Trucker may have a central board to track everyone's position in the convoy, but all of the real action happens on the players' individual boards, as meteors and laser blasts render your cobbled-together space truck back into the shoddy spare parts you used to build it in the first place. Suburbia gives each player their own space to build their SimCity-esque metropolis, with its bank and goals in a central location. Seasons may have a calendar in the center of the table and a single, shared scoreboard, but players will be interacting with their own decks, tokens, dice, and boards to manage the careers of their chosen adorable aspiring forest-wizards. While board games continue to provide new and interesting ways to make the most of your table's real estate, card games remain some of the most economical entertainment to grace that same area. While deck-builders like Dominion and Eminent Domain centralize the pool of cards players have to choose from in constructing their decks, Boss Monster takes the route of games above that sees players focused on individual areas just as much as the center of the table. Chez Geek and Munchkin encourage players to keep track of both their own area and those of other players as competition for victory becomes more and more rapid and cut-throat. Finally, hidden role games like Bang!, One-Night Ultimate Werewolf, The Resistance: Avalon, and Coup bring the eyes of the players up from the table and into those of the other players, the game play arguably more about bluffing, gambits, and deductive reasoning than any information provided at the center of the table. Just to reiterate a point made earlier in this post, Monopoly sucks. Its gameplay never changes and its board consumes too much real estate on the table. Many games make better use of the space, even with similarly sized central boards; Pandemic, Ticket to Ride, SmallWorld, Lords of Waterdeep, and Battlestar Galactica are all examples of recent games that require a good chunk of your table's space but make the most of it by varying gameplay elements, getting players involved and interacting, offering challenges or emergent narrative, and so on. It's these things that make the game I've mentioned well worth the space on your table (and your shelves), and will more than likely bring people back for more, time and again.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

My Board Gaming Future

My Board Gaming Future — Blue Ink Alchemy

Courtesy Theology of Games For those of you who don't know, Shut Up & Sit Down is an excellent show about board games. Most of them are reviews, but there are a few Let's Plays and specials sprinkled in. Paul and Quinns are great hosts, breaking down game mechanics and thematic elements in concise and entertaining matters, and games feel truly reviewed, not just discussed. They are also, however, horrible bastards. There are a few games out there I simply have to acquire in the future, and I blame them entirely for making me aware of said games. I unfortunately have not played NetRunner in some time. As it is a two-player game, it can be difficult in my situation to nail down a convenient time for myself and another person inclined towards asymmetrical living card game play with a dystopian cyberpunk theme to throw down. However, it still very much appeals to me, and more expansions have been added since I last played. I want to experiment with these new cards and find both the most fun and subversive Runner deck and the most obstinate and dastardly Corporate deck I can build. I like deckbuilding, I like Blade Runner and Snow Crash and Deus Ex, so NetRunner remains a winner. One of SU&SD's most recent reviews was Tales of Arabian Knights. I'm a great fan of storytelling, especially in a collaborative setting, and Tales seems particularly inclined towards creating new tales with fun and interesting twists. The fact that the game is pure cooperation like Arkham Horror but with more chances for your friends to be directly involved in your actions is also an idea I like. I like games where players are encouraged to work together, even if there can only be one ultimate winner. It seems to me that, in Tales, everybody wins if the stories told make everybody laugh or keep everybody interested. So that's a co-op game. But what is this "semi co-op" distinction I've heard? Archipelago is such a game, according to the boys, and it centers around representing colonialism in a very thematic way without referencing direct historical events. The game begins with exploration on the open sea, and players travel to new undiscovered islands to expand their holdings. The land must be exploited to get ahead, and while there is no true extermination to make Archipelago a true 4X game on a board, it feels so close to the likes of Civilization and Master of Orion that I've nearly bought it a couple times already. You and the other players do need to prevent disaster and uprisings to keep the game going, but in the end, only one of you will acquire enough victory points to be the winner. Terra Mystica has no co-operative elements whatsoever, but the elements it does have really appeal to me. In the review, it's clear that progression is a balancing act, weighing the potential to win points over the speed of future expansions. In Terra Mystica, your fantasy race must transform the very land itself in order to expand its holdings, sort of like if the races of SmallWorld took up agriculture (...and sorcery and elemental worship and aggressive territorial expansion through real estate). I can see chess-like move-countermove action happening in this game, as well as unexpected twists like casting the right spell at the right time or the sudden rise of a cult. It's one of those games where it seems no two games would be alike, and that is right up my alley. Last but certainly not least is just about any game designed by Vlaada Chvátil. I've played Galaxy Trucker once, and I'd love to do it again, this time focusing more on my opponents' misfortune than my own. It's that kind of game; there's just as much fun in a little schadenfreude as there is in building spaceships. Mage Knight has strong appeal due to its theme of powerful wizards striding across the world doing battle to win glory and power, and as intimidating as the rules might be, wrapping my mind around them seems like a worthy challenge. Then there's Space Alert. I've heard it is an intense, challenging and ultimately hilarious game, much like Artemis for computers or Spaceteam for mobile devices. We shall have to see! I've said it before, and I'll say it again: I like board games. I like them a lot. I want to play more of them, and in fact, I've been contemplating some ideas of my own that may or may not get developed in the near future. My challenge is finding people to play with. I appreciate a solitaire experience as much as the next gamer, but sometimes, you want to share the game with at least one other person, and let strategy, interaction, laughter and the occasional verbal deluge of caustic profanity fill your evening. At least, that's what I want.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

From the Vault: Moderation in Geekdom

From the Vault: Moderation in Geekdom — Blue Ink Alchemy

Reposting this as it is still relevant today.

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If this is the most important thing in the world to you, it's time to have a talk. I've said in the last couple days that I am either in love with or obsessed with Enforcing. I don't take that sentiment lightly. As rewarding as the experience was, as wonderful as making so many new friends makes me feel, as affirming as it might have been to be helpful, useful, and enduring throughout the weekend, it would be unhealthy of me to make it the entire focus of my life. Geeks have a tendency to obsess, something I know through some experiences I am loath to repeat. Don't misunderstand me, enthusiasm is a good thing. I'm quite enthusiastic about Enforcing, as well as writing, gaming and game design, movies, music, and so on. Enthusiasm is what keeps people interested in their passions and their arts, that helps them endure the drudgery of the day so they can experience what they enjoy later. Enthusiasm is not the enemy, and should even be encouraged, as being dispassionate is just as unhealthy as being obsessed. In fact, obsession with one thing can lead to a lack of passion or interest in other things, which are arguably more important. As much as you might think your World of Warcraft guild's raid schedule might be, you do still have to do your homework, laundry, or other household chores. You can't flit all over the country for conventions and hangouts when that money should be used for medical procedures, care of your family, or paying the bills. You might think that being in a teleconference with your corporate cohorts in EVE Online is the most important thing, but that couldn't be further from the truth if your wife and kids are feeling neglected and marginalized while that's going on. I'm not saying don't have fun. I'm not saying gaming is the enemy. That's the sort of knee-jerk reactionary rhetoric you'll get from some supposed news outlets and sensationalist narrow-minded pundits masquerading as journalists. I am not a journalist. I'm just another geek, and I know from experience that geekdom that becomes obsession leads to broken homes, shattered dreams, fractured hearts, and even damaged minds. I've spent the better part of ten years coming back from one of the worst blows dealt to me in my entire life, and it came from my own brainpan, my own neglect, my own obsessions. I'm saying, my friends, that we must be mindful of what draws us in and lights our fires. It's good to be warmed and illuminated by those flames, but if you don't manage that fire, it will consume you. Take the time to get your life right. Sort things out and make sure you're not losing anything crucial by pouring yourself into something insignificant. That purple loot, those enemy ships, your favorite star or the latest episode or the next event or release - none of it matters, in the end, if it costs you friends, family, or sanity. And even if you think you're fine, take a moment to look at those around you, at your spouse or children or co-workers or close friends. It only takes a moment, but it can change, or save, your entire life.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

From the Vault: Moderation in Geekdom

From the Vault: Moderation in Geekdom — Blue Ink Alchemy

Reposting this as it is still relevant today.

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If this is the most important thing in the world to you, it's time to have a talk. I've said in the last couple days that I am either in love with or obsessed with Enforcing. I don't take that sentiment lightly. As rewarding as the experience was, as wonderful as making so many new friends makes me feel, as affirming as it might have been to be helpful, useful, and enduring throughout the weekend, it would be unhealthy of me to make it the entire focus of my life. Geeks have a tendency to obsess, something I know through some experiences I am loath to repeat. Don't misunderstand me, enthusiasm is a good thing. I'm quite enthusiastic about Enforcing, as well as writing, gaming and game design, movies, music, and so on. Enthusiasm is what keeps people interested in their passions and their arts, that helps them endure the drudgery of the day so they can experience what they enjoy later. Enthusiasm is not the enemy, and should even be encouraged, as being dispassionate is just as unhealthy as being obsessed. In fact, obsession with one thing can lead to a lack of passion or interest in other things, which are arguably more important. As much as you might think your World of Warcraft guild's raid schedule might be, you do still have to do your homework, laundry, or other household chores. You can't flit all over the country for conventions and hangouts when that money should be used for medical procedures, care of your family, or paying the bills. You might think that being in a teleconference with your corporate cohorts in EVE Online is the most important thing, but that couldn't be further from the truth if your wife and kids are feeling neglected and marginalized while that's going on. I'm not saying don't have fun. I'm not saying gaming is the enemy. That's the sort of knee-jerk reactionary rhetoric you'll get from some supposed news outlets and sensationalist narrow-minded pundits masquerading as journalists. I am not a journalist. I'm just another geek, and I know from experience that geekdom that becomes obsession leads to broken homes, shattered dreams, fractured hearts, and even damaged minds. I've spent the better part of ten years coming back from one of the worst blows dealt to me in my entire life, and it came from my own brainpan, my own neglect, my own obsessions. I'm saying, my friends, that we must be mindful of what draws us in and lights our fires. It's good to be warmed and illuminated by those flames, but if you don't manage that fire, it will consume you. Take the time to get your life right. Sort things out and make sure you're not losing anything crucial by pouring yourself into something insignificant. That purple loot, those enemy ships, your favorite star or the latest episode or the next event or release - none of it matters, in the end, if it costs you friends, family, or sanity. And even if you think you're fine, take a moment to look at those around you, at your spouse or children or co-workers or close friends. It only takes a moment, but it can change, or save, your entire life.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Why Take This Matters

Why Take This Matters — Blue Ink Alchemy

It's dangerous to go alone. Take this. Some of the earliest, most indelible memories some of my generation has when it comes to video games involve taking a sword from an old man who just spoke those fateful words. "It's dangerous to go alone." The world is going to try and kill you. Monsters prowl in the shadows, ready to destroy your body and devour your dreams. Perils you won't see coming are fully prepared to swallow you whole. You need to defend yourself. You must be prepared to combat your challenges and overcome your obstacles. "Take this." We didn't know it at the time, but this wasn't just advice that applied to the world of Hyrule. It applies to our world, too. We may not have to deal with the extant threats in many video games, but the world is still going to try and kill you, spiritually if not physically. I'm not talking about religion specifically, but rather in terms of the human spirit. The singular and the extraordinary are far, far too often pushed and held down by society at large, and it's easy to fall into a pattern of conformity and 'normal' behavior, just to get by. But not everyone can pull off acting 'normal'. For some, it's a daily challenge, and some days, it's an hourly one. I've both faced this struggle myself, and done my utmost to help others cope with it. It's easy to think, in our darkest hours, that we're facing these challenges alone. And it's dangerous to go alone. The fact is, however, that we are not. Take This is, according to their site, "a charitable organization founded to increase awareness, education and empathy for those suffering from emotional issues, their families and greater institutions with the goal to eradicate the stigma of mental illness." While not exclusively dealing with the gaming community, the founders work within that community, as journalists and organizers, and so focus a great deal of their outreach to gamers, through sharing stories via their website and holding panels at events like PAX. I'm a little lucky, when you get right down to it. I share my stories all the time. I have some skill at articulating myself and the means to do it. I let myself take the time to breathe, to contemplate, and to share. Not everybody is so lucky. Not everybody feels they have a safe place to unburden themselves of the pain and anxiety and uncertainty and loneliness they feel. And the fact is, everybody should have that. That's why Take This matters. They're just getting started, and I want to see them grow. Their first PAX Prime panel last year was a great success, as was their first ever at PAX East 2014, and they're returning to Boston next month (PAX East 2014, Arachnid Theater, Friday 12:30 PM, BE THERE). Their site is full of stories that have needed to be heard, they're going to be looking to grow as much as possible, and they can't do it alone. None of us should be alone in this fight. Our chances of survival are much greater if we face our challenges together. The world is a dangerous and cold place. Emotions and mental imbalance can topple even the best of ideas when the world gets involved. It's dangerous to go alone. But you don't have to be alone. Take this.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Why Take This Matters

Why Take This Matters — Blue Ink Alchemy

It's dangerous to go alone. Take this. Some of the earliest, most indelible memories some of my generation has when it comes to video games involve taking a sword from an old man who just spoke those fateful words. "It's dangerous to go alone." The world is going to try and kill you. Monsters prowl in the shadows, ready to destroy your body and devour your dreams. Perils you won't see coming are fully prepared to swallow you whole. You need to defend yourself. You must be prepared to combat your challenges and overcome your obstacles. "Take this." We didn't know it at the time, but this wasn't just advice that applied to the world of Hyrule. It applies to our world, too. We may not have to deal with the extant threats in many video games, but the world is still going to try and kill you, spiritually if not physically. I'm not talking about religion specifically, but rather in terms of the human spirit. The singular and the extraordinary are far, far too often pushed and held down by society at large, and it's easy to fall into a pattern of conformity and 'normal' behavior, just to get by. But not everyone can pull off acting 'normal'. For some, it's a daily challenge, and some days, it's an hourly one. I've both faced this struggle myself, and done my utmost to help others cope with it. It's easy to think, in our darkest hours, that we're facing these challenges alone. And it's dangerous to go alone. The fact is, however, that we are not. Take This is, according to their site, "a charitable organization founded to increase awareness, education and empathy for those suffering from emotional issues, their families and greater institutions with the goal to eradicate the stigma of mental illness." While not exclusively dealing with the gaming community, the founders work within that community, as journalists and organizers, and so focus a great deal of their outreach to gamers, through sharing stories via their website and holding panels at events like PAX. I'm a little lucky, when you get right down to it. I share my stories all the time. I have some skill at articulating myself and the means to do it. I let myself take the time to breathe, to contemplate, and to share. Not everybody is so lucky. Not everybody feels they have a safe place to unburden themselves of the pain and anxiety and uncertainty and loneliness they feel. And the fact is, everybody should have that. That's why Take This matters. They're just getting started, and I want to see them grow. Their first PAX panel, at Prime last year, was a great success, and they're holding another one at PAX East next month (Arachnid Theater, Friday 12:30 PM, BE THERE). Their site is full of stories that have needed to be heard, they're going to be looking to grow as much as possible, and they can't do it alone. None of us should be alone in this fight. Our chances of survival are much greater if we face our challenges together. The world is a dangerous and cold place. Emotions and mental imbalance can topple even the best of ideas when the world gets involved. It's dangerous to go alone. But you don't have to be alone. Take this.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Flash Fiction: Burned Out Souls

Flash Fiction: Burned Out Souls — Blue Ink Alchemy

Jack climbed the stairs to the apartment in question. He didn't mind the Lower East Side, never had, yet some other detectives avoided it like crazy. He could understand why - shambling husks of former human beings were enough to put any normal person off their lunch - but to him, it was just another annoyance between him and a case. The case in question was a young couple murdered in their home. Jack's partner, Sam, was already on the scene, trying to make heads or tails of it. Sam was slightly overweight and never tied his tie properly, but he was a good cop and the salt-of-the-earth sort Jack needed around to remind him of why this job was worth doing. There was also the fact that Sam, a full-blooded human, handled scenes like this better than Jack. There were to victims. The husband sat at the breakfast nook's table, and the wife lay near a shattered carafe of coffee. Both had burns on their hands and forearms, blood on their faces from their mouths and noses, and dark, smoking holes where their eyes should have been. "I will never, ever get used to this shit," Sam said, taking a sip of the convenience store coffee in his hand. "Give it a few more years," Jack replied. He was twenty years Sam's junior, yet stood shoulder to shoulder with the seasoned homicide detective in terms of rank. Jack absently rubbed one of the short horns that curled up towards his hairline, kneeling by the woman's body. He dipped a finger into the blood that had oozed from her face, bringing it to his nose for a sniff. Under the tangy copper and surrounding smell of burning flesh was the unmistakable scent of home. Wiping his fingers clean on a handkerchief from his pocket, he turned his attention to the mail and its pile of past-due bills. "What've you got, Jack?" "These two were close to going Soulless," Jack told his partner. He opened his mouth to say more, but he looked at the corpses again and he began hearing the Choirs and the sunlight coming in through the window really bothered him and he stepped outside, covering his mouth with the handkerchief. Sam followed, a hand on the shoulder of Jack's tailored suit. "C'mon, partner, let's hear the facts." Jack smiled. "Thank you, Sam. Anyway. The pair of them gave up their souls for something, and have either been waiting for delivery or got played. Judging by the mail and the state of the apartment, their earthly concerns have been less and less important to them. Finally, their bodies are starting to take on aspects of the damned. They're malnourished, their skin isn't in great shape, and their blood's taken on the smell of brimstone." Sam bit back his initial response, which Jack assumed would be an invocation of the name of Jesus. He appreciated his partner's sensitivity. "Same as the last two?" "Seems that way. I think I may know how we can find out more, though. Friend from the 'old country'." Sam narrowed his eyes. "Which is your way of saying I shouldn't be there." "Why, Sam, with skills like that, you could be a detective!" Sam gave Jack a bit of a shove. "Smart-ass. Okay, fine. Go talk to your source, I'll report in with HQ. And get a meat wagon down here." Jack nodded, heading down the stairs again. In the alleyways outside, he could hear the soft moans and occasional grunt or outcry from the Soulless. He got into his car, gunned the engine and headed downtown. The city had definitely changed, even since Jack was born. Years before that, three archdemons - Asmodius, Aziraphon, and Azazael - had taken human form to offer mortals connections with dead souls in exchange for their living ones. Musicians got to commune with passed luminaries of the art. Comedians could channel the mannerisms of lost favorites. Actors took on the air of former glories of the silver screen. And all at the price of a measly human soul. He turned towards the high-rises of Manhattan, rubbing one of his fangs with his tongue absently. Heaven seemed to be waiting to see what happened next, save for incidents like this. There was talk on Jack's father's side of a coming reckoning, of New York itself becoming Armageddon, a second Babylon for the Heavens to smite into oblivion. Some were even eager for it, a showdown millenia in the making. Jack was of a different mind. He pulled up to the valet, dropped the keys for the Astin Martin in the young man's hand, and took the elevator inside to 33rd floor, and walked past the receptionist into the austere office beyond. He tried to ignore the way the sunlight made his scalp itch. She was waiting for him. "Hello, Jack." "What's next, Sandy, a family of four? We need a better way to communicate." Sandalphon got to her feet, buttoning the jacket she wore as part of her well-cut suit. "I dispatched a pair of nearly soulless sinners and sent you a message. Two birds with one stone. A shame, really - we could have helped them here." Jack swallowed. His skin was crawling and something inside of him screamed to flee. He stood his ground. "Is it going to be soon?" Sandalphon looked away, out across the city, a crestfallen expression on her face. "Yes. The Choirs are gathering strength. It won't be long." Jack set his jaw. He tried to put aside his unease at the same time he ignored how beautiful the angel was, how cute her blonde hair looked in its pixie cut, how he loved the fact she could take him in a fight the way no mortal could. He reminded himself that he trusted her, and that they were this planet's only hope for survival. "What do we do?" Sandalphon turned to him, smiling a little. "Close the door, handsome half-breed, and we'll talk." He closed the door.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Tabletalk: Minions in Twilight Imperium

Tabletalk: Minions in Twilight Imperium — Blue Ink Alchemy

Pictured: The Admiral (top), General (center left), Agent (center right), Scientist (bottom left), and Diplomat (bottom right). You may think, Your Excellency, that taking control of the galaxy is a lonely prospect. Looking at your home system and the expanse of space spreading out towards the throne world, huge fleets floating silently in the void, environmental hazards callously standing between you and your goals - it can be rather daunting. Thankfully, you aren't as alone as you seem. You can and will have assistance, even if you have to pay for it. Twilight Imperium provides options for several 'minions', as I like to call them. Not military units per se, they are supplemental facets of your bid for dominance. The systems they add to the game are rather straightforward, but can take a bit of explaining, so let's begin.

Leaders

Each race can include three 'Leaders', luminaries of your people that help you in various ways. Like your Ground Forces and PDS units, Leaders are always considered either on a planet or being carried by a ship. However, a Leader can be transported by any kind of ship, and never counts towards the ship's capacity. Leaders are powerful, but fragile: they can be captured or killed if their transporting ship is destroyed in a Space Battle, or if an Invasion Combat in which they're involved fails. Captured leaders can be ransomed and sometimes executed, provided you are unable to rescue them. Let's leave out the particulars of such operations for now, and learn about the five different types. Scientists increase technology discounts provided by planets, add to the build capacity of nearby Space Docks, and add to the defenses of a planet their own, preventing bombardment from War Suns. Diplomats delay incoming invasions and allow fleets (with permission) to pass through enemy space. Generals allow re-rolls during Invasion Combat, make bombardment much more difficult, and give a bonus to defending Ground Forces. Admirals give the ship they're on one extra die, increase the movement of a Dreadnaught they occupy, and prevents defenders from retreating (unless they also have an Admiral). Agents help invading Ground Forces avoid enemy PDS fire, allow you to take over enemy Space Docks and PDS units, and can be sacrificed to take the role of a 'Sabotage' Action Card, preventing an opponent's Action Card from happening.

Representatives

When the Assembly is called, instead of voting on referendums yourself, you can send a Representative. You are, after all, a very busy potential potentate. At the start of the game, you will get three Representative cards. Each one adds a number of votes and sometimes have special abilities, like gaining you extra Trade Goods or forcing someone to vote a certain way. Most of them are Counselors, but some are either Spies or Bodyguards. At the Assembly, each player chooses one Representative and sends them in face-down. Starting with the Speaker and going around clockwise, any Spies that were sent are revealed and their abilities resolved first. If the target of a Spy is a Bodyguard, it may also resolve an ability as a result of being targeted. After all Spies are resolved, non-Spies are revealed in the same way. Players can then offer one another Promissary Notes before voting occurs. These are special, binding agreements that may help a player get what they want out of the Assembly. Either way, if a Representative is assassinated or otherwise killed (by a suicide bomber, for example), he or she is removed from the game entirely. Bodyguards cannot be assassinated, but can die by other means.

Mercenaries

Attracted to money and opportunity, Mercenaries are available for hire to anyone activating the Trade III Strategy card. When executing the primary ability of Trade, the active player looks at the top two cards of the deck of available Mercenaries, chooses one, and returns the other to the bottom of the deck. Each Mercenary card has a corresponding token, with one side for Space and the other for Ground. The active player places his new hire Ground-side up on any friendly planet. Mercenaries can switch between Ground and Space during a Tactical or Transfer actions, as well as specifically from Space to Ground during Invasion Combat. While they can add to your forces and abilities, Mercenaries cannot hold planets on their own. Any planet robbed of its Ground Forces reverts to neutral even if the Mercenary survives. Some Mercenaries have Evasion, allowing them to live longer in combat. However, if your Mercenary is killed, both the card and the token are removed from the game. We've looked at the core concepts of Twilight Imperium's Tactical Actions, the different Strategic options, and now we've covered Leaders, Representatives, and Mercenaries. The biggest outstanding question remains: How do you win the game? Read on...

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Blue Ink Alchemy

500 Words On Gravity

500 Words On Gravity — Blue Ink Alchemy

I finally got around to seeing Gravity, one of the most lauded films of last year. In fact, I've seen it twice. The first time I saw it was at a friend's who has a 3-D television, and I have to say I'm a little sorry I missed seeing the film in IMAX. I don't miss the fact that I saved on the IMAX markup, to be sure, but the visuals in Gravity are absolutely breathtaking, even in 2-D. If you've followed my blog for any amount of time, you know what a stickler I am for story and character. I do make some exceptions for guilty pleasures (Flash Gordon for example), but for the most part, a cinematic storyline usually has no excuse for skimping on these important elements. Pacific Rim has a somewhat simple story and some of the characters are a bit arch, but their presentation and informing the audience through action and emotion rather than wordy exposition overshadows those aforementioned potential drawbacks. Gravity isn't quite that lucky. As good as the performances are, our two leads are barely more than sketches of characters. And the story, despite taking place in the unique arena of outer space (we'll get to that), couldn't be more watered down. Gravity is a survival film. It's the last half of Titanic, or the entirety of The Poseidon Adventure or The Grey, just in space. It shatters a seemingly peaceful scene with a disaster and narrows the field of players to one, who must survive and evade an oncoming calamity - water in the boat movies, wolves in The Grey, space in general in Gravity. As tense as Gravity is, in the back of my mind my inner critic was saying, "Space is still trying to kill Sandra Bullock. Somehow, all of space is still trying to murder Sandra Bullock." Okay, enough belly-aching, let's get to the good stuff. This is one of the hardest sci-fi movies I've seen in a long time. It's up there with Moon and 2001: A Space Odyssey in terms of its depictions of outer space. Instead of classical music, exterior shots are accompanied by a haunting and driving soundtrack. Some of these shots are utterly amazing in their length and composition. The silence adds to the tension and pulls us into the plight of the survivors. It's paced very well, and arch as the characters are, they're likable enough that we don't want to see bad things happen to them. This film somehow accomplishes the feat of invoking both agoraphobia and claustrophobia at the same time. Space can be a scary place, and Gravity drives that home without a single laser blast or monster. All in all, I really enjoy Gravity, and while its narrative and characters are not as strong as Moon and its impact won't match that of 2001: A Space Odyssey, I would still recommend it for any sci-fi fan or folks interested in tales of the human spirit triumphant. I need to see The Grey.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

500 Words About Gravity

500 Words About Gravity — Blue Ink Alchemy

I finally got around to seeing Gravity, one of the most lauded films of last year. In fact, I've seen it twice. The first time I saw it was at a friend's who has a 3-D television, and I have to say I'm a little sorry I missed seeing the film in IMAX. I don't miss the fact that I saved on the IMAX markup, to be sure, but the visuals in Gravity are absolutely breathtaking, even in 2-D. If you've followed my blog for any amount of time, you know what a stickler I am for story and character. I do make some exceptions for guilty pleasures (Flash Gordon for example), but for the most part, a cinematic storyline usually has no excuse for skimping on these important elements. Pacific Rim has a somewhat simple story and some of the characters are a bit arch, but their presentation and informing the audience through action and emotion rather than wordy exposition overshadows those aforementioned potential drawbacks. Gravity isn't quite that lucky. As good as the performances are, our two leads are barely more than sketches of characters. And the story, despite taking place in the unique arena of outer space (we'll get to that), couldn't be more watered down. Gravity is a survival film. It's the last half of Titanic, or the entirety of The Poseidon Adventure or The Grey, just in space. It shatters a seemingly peaceful scene with a disaster and narrows the field of players to one, who must survive and evade an oncoming calamity - water in the boat movies, wolves in The Grey, space in general in Gravity. As tense as Gravity is, in the back of my mind my inner critic was saying, "Space is still trying to kill Sandra Bullock. Somehow, all of space is still trying to murder Sandra Bullock." Okay, enough belly-aching, let's get to the good stuff. This is one of the hardest sci-fi movies I've seen in a long time. It's up there with Moon and 2001: A Space Odyssey in terms of its depictions of outer space. Instead of classical music, exterior shots are accompanied by a haunting and driving soundtrack. Some of these shots are utterly amazing in their length and composition. The silence adds to the tension and pulls us into the plight of the survivors. It's paced very well, and arch as the characters are, they're likable enough that we don't want to see bad things happen to them. This film somehow accomplishes the feat of invoking both agoraphobia and claustrophobia at the same time. Space can be a scary place, and Gravity drives that home without a single laser blast or monster. All in all, I really enjoy Gravity, and while its narrative and characters are not as strong as Moon and its impact won't match that of 2001: A Space Odyssey, I would still recommend it for any sci-fi fan or folks interested in tales of the human spirit triumphant. I need to see The Grey.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Tabletalk: Winning in Twilight Imperium

Tabletalk: Winning in Twilight Imperium — Blue Ink Alchemy

We've come a long way, Your Excellency. You've become acquainted with the galaxy surrounding the ruined throne-world of Mecatol Rex, you've learned how to command your fleets and transfer forces between systems, you're familiar with a variety of strategies, and you know how to issue commands to your Leaders, give referendums to your Representatives, and hire Mercenaries. But all of these are mere building blocks on your path to victory - how do you walk that path? Victory in Twilight Imperium is not necessarily contingent on having the most planets, beating an opponent into stardust, or even acquiring the most Trade Goods (currency that can be used for production or influence). Victory comes in the form of Objectives. Players are competing to be the first to achieve a certain number of Victory Points. The means to earn those Victory Points are dicated by cards that define different Objectives. Some are Public, and some are Secret. Public Objectives are made available to all players throughout the game, one at a time. These vary from having a certain number of Technologies and spending Influence, to occupying systems or even Mecatol Rex. At the end of each game round, any player can claim one of the available Public Objectives. A player who takes the appropriate Strategy can also claim one, giving them an edge in Victory Points. Temporarily, at least. Secret Objectives (and their smaller cousins Preliminary Objectives, available in the expansions), on the other hand, are dealt to each player at the start of the game. These are worth more points than the starting Public Objectives, but are more focused and harder to obtain. Often they will bring players into direct conflict. Like Public Objectives, they must be claimed at the end of the round. Finally, it is worth noting that neither Public nor Secret Objectives can be scored if the player's Home System is occupied by another player. There are other ways to acquire Victory Points, be they ancient artifacts or unique finds uncovered on distant suns, but for the most part, the Objectives are what you want to aim for. Watch for them when they appear, and plan your strategies accordingly. Best of luck, Your Excellency! You're going to need it.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Film Review: Mr. Peabody & Sherman

Film Review: Mr. Peabody & Sherman — Blue Ink Alchemy

When I was young, between daily corrals of mammoths and making-fire-with-rocks lessons, my mother introduced me to The Rocky and Bullwinkle Show. As amused as I was by the antics of the moose & squirrel, the segments that stuck with me the most would have to be Peabody's Improbable History. I can't recall exactly, but I think I was introduced to the singular genius dog Mr. Peabody, and his boy Sherman, long before I read The Time Machine or saw my first episode of Doctor Who. It's entirely possible that these short tales of historical fiction and education were my first exposure to time travel. Many years and several stories later, Dreamworks has set about the task of bringing Mr. Peabody & Sherman forward to our time, before sending them back to the past on more adventures of a modern audience. The story goes that Mr. Peabody was born in a pound, like many dogs, but had a hard time finding a home. Apparently people don't like having a dog that talks back, especially about things like particle physics and differential calculus. But rather than let such things get him down, this extraordinary canine devoted himself to intellectual and physical perfection, eventually becoming such a player on the world stage that, instead of a boy adopting him, he instead adopts a boy. To educate the orphan, named Sherman, Peabody invents a machine he dubs the WABAC (pronounced 'Wayback') to introduce his boy to historical periods in the past and the figures prominent in them. But when Sherman tries to go to public school, things go awry, and Peabody must show that his home is exemplary, even as Sherman seeks to use the machine to impress a fellow student. There were a lot of fears that the creators of Mr. Peabody & Sherman would miss the point of the original animation. This is a fear founded in some of the frankly deplorable adaptations of the works of Doctor Seuss and other franchises of yesteryear. Thankfully, despite what seems to be at first a purely aesthetic connection to the source material, within the first few minutes of the film's opening it's clear that the writers and animators did more than glance at a few pictures from the original show.
There are some great gags and visuals here. Not long after the movie opens, the first trip back in time happens, and it easily could have been lifted from the old show. While the look and feel of things has gotten an update, the 'DNA' of the core concept is very much intact. Peabody and Sherman learn about where they are and who they're around, the situation escalates, hijinks occur, and Peabody cracks at least one pun. Even after that, the movie has a consistent tone. Peabody is well-meaning but high-minded, Sherman isn't the best student in the world even if he is good-natured, and the two of them really do need and compliment one another. What's interesting is that around the usual space-time shenanigans, we get to see how the world reacts to Peabody. It's cute, to be sure, and it does feel loyal to the tone of the original shorts. There's also plenty of slapstick as our heroes stumble across historical figures doing what made them famous. While Mr. Peabody & Sherman does not fall into the trap of repeating the same gag over and over again for its running time, it does seem that the slapstick outweighs the puns and 'dad jokes'. It's definitely helpful to keep the attention of the kids, but it does take something away from the core concept and the interplay of the characters. The gags are funny in the moment, but in retrospect there might have been time for another historical stop if some of the antics had been cut. Then again, the third act of the movie kicks off with a very interesting take on the nature of time travel paradoxes, which I couldn't help but appreciate.
The relationship is very cute, organic, and endearing. This is a film that definitely relies on the chemistry between the leads, rather than leaning entirely on its jokes or conceits. In addition to their arch characterizations, the interplay between Mr. Peabody and Sherman is geared in such a way that both characters are equally sympathetic and equally central. Mr. Peabody's dilemma with Sherman is born out of genuine affection, even if he can't always fully articulate it, and Sherman's actions are framed in that same affection being reciprocated, even if the boy doesn't think his plans all the way through. This relationship feels organic and natural, a feeling backed up by excellent voice work and animation that preserves the general tone of the original material but is most definitely modern and geared towards making use of the overabundance of 3-D. It's hard to come away from Mr. Peabody & Sherman and not feel a sense of satisfaction. While it lacks the seemingly boundless energy of The LEGO Movie, and the true emotional punch and poignancy of WALL-E or Up, the film is an utter and unquestionable success in how it modernizes the cartoon shorts on which it's based. It can be difficult to simultaneously educate and entertain, and while the education merit of the film is somewhat pushed aside by the time the third act begins, the hope seems to be that kids will at least ask questions and hit up Wikipedia after they see the movie. The writing's smart, the characters are very well presented, the action is slick and inventive and doesn't feel repetitious, and there are a few gags and jokes clearly aimed at older audience members that don't feel pandering or out of place. Its tone is consistent and light, it honors and exalts its heritage, and it doesn't overstay its welcome. Overall, I'd recommend Mr. Peabody & Sherman, especially if you were a fan of the cartoon growing up. It's nice to know that not all reworked concepts in family entertainment are going to the dogs.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

An Open Letter to Online Gaming Fans

An Open Letter to Online Gaming Fans — Blue Ink Alchemy

Dear Mr. or Ms. Online Gamer: I'm writing to express my disappointment in your behavior towards games journalists and reviewers. How you behave within your games is your business; if I object to how people are treated within a game, chances are I won't play that game, unless I find it really compelling on its own or several friends of mine play. However, how you behave outside of games is something that needs to be addressed, especially when it comes to people trying to inform and protect you. Let me be perfectly clear. Yes, games journalists and some very fortunate reviewers do, in fact, get paid. They get paid to report on games, to discuss them and inform you of their merits and flaws. And 95-99% of games have both: few and far between are truly peerless games like Portal or true ludonarrative abortions like Ride to Hell: Retribution. The crux of this letter is, however, the following:

Video game journalists are not paid by video game companies to write particular reviews.

There are a lot of reasons a particular feature is not mentioned in a review. The review could have been rushed. It could have been based on an early build of the game. The feature in question, for example the number of maps in the game or the available customization options, might not have factored into the reviewer's reasoning and therefore was excluded from the review. You know what none of these things indicate? Greased palms. Roger Ebert never got a payout from MGM for a positive review of a film. Rolling Stone doesn't get sacks of cash from record companies or bands to talk up a particular album. Amazon reviewers aren't given gift cards for five star reviews. I could go on. Games journalists do have privileged positions. Nobody would deny that. Press passes and junkets do exist, and in some instances, companies will hold events or parties to try and ingratiate themselves. That's part of business. But direct payouts between companies and journalists rarely, if ever, happens. And when these incidents do occur, any journalist worth their ink would scoff at the offer and stick to their wordy guns. I think you can look at the back history of any games journalist out there to see evidence of said journalist's integrity. I've had the privilege of working with a few of the people in this industry. I can tell you first hand that they work hard. They often have to work uphill against public opinion to discuss the truth. And as much as fat sacks of industry cash would make paying their bills easier, the ones I know wouldn't take it. Their dedication isn't to making money. Their dedication is to the truth, and to you, the video gamer at home, and whether or not your cash is going to be well-spent on a particular game. Shame on you. Shame on your inflammatory words and questions of journalistic integrity. Stop being blinded by your loyalty to a particular game, and look at the situation objectively. Remove your inflated ego from the equation and realize that not everyone is going to share your opinion. There are other, more positive ways to get the attention you are clearly seeking, and all you do when you accuse an establish games journalist of this sort of unscrupulous behavior is come off looking like an absolute prat at best, and a bullying cretin at worst. You can do better than that. And you should. Best wishes, etc.

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Blue Ink Alchemy

Flash Fiction: Flight 666

Flash Fiction: Flight 666 — Blue Ink Alchemy

According to Terribleminds and the Die of Fate, this story must contain "a talking cat" and "a plane or train ride".

---

"This is your captain speaking. We've reached our cruising altitude, and forecast for today calls for clear skies all afternoon. Feel free to unfasten your seat belts and move freely about the cabin, and we'll let you know if we're in for any chop or how the Bears are doing. Thank you, and enjoy your flight." I don't move, not at first. I glance to my left, to see if either of my fellow passengers need to get up, but the couple is looking out the tiny window into the vast beyond, through the 30,000 feet of air to the planet below. It's a good thing that they are actually enjoying the flight, because I sure as hell won't. Big metal tubes hurtling through the void bother me. Not necessarily because of the flying itself, but because with so much technology compressed into one place, something is bound to go wrong at some point. And that's not even taking into account the things that normal people can't see. The carrier in my lap vibrates ever so slightly. I figure she's fallen asleep. The cat doesn't like to fly any more than I do, but considering everything she's been through, both before and after she came into my life, some pressurized air and rapid movement aren't enough to spook her. I crack open the well-worn book I brought with me. It's one of the Star Wars novels. I'm not a big fan of fiction - my own life is interesting and weird enough, thanks very much - but once in a while, I like to take my mind away from the worlds around me and invest some time in a place and time when things are simpler. Heroes and villains are easily defined, even if the so-called heroes engage in wholesale slaughter under some flimsy justification. I have to laugh sometimes. It's a lot easier than you might think to shove something or someone that isn't you into the category of 'other' and build up your opposition to it. Plenty of wars get their starts that way. Believe me, there are times when I wish it was that simple. "Something to drink?" I look up from my book and smile at the stewardess. Flight attendant? I can't keep the PC terms straight anymore. I ask for a tomato juice. The couple beside me both get pops. I watch the woman as she pours, and I think I catch something in her eyes. The carrier in my lap shifts. Either her sleep is restless, or she feels something. I wait until the stewardess is gone and then down my tomato juice as quickly as possible. I'd have asked for a bloody mary, but I didn't want to shell out for the liquor and I hadn't thought to grab a tiny bottle of vodka from the duty free store. Whatever. I set the plastic glass down a final time and open the zipper on the carrier. "About time, human." The voice is small and scratchy, the whisper nearly lost in the roar of flight. Just as well; normal people aren't necessarily prepared for aspects of my life like this. "Did you feel something, Crowley?" "I still can't believe you gave me that name." "You wanted more distance from your True Name, I'm providing it." "There are lots of goddesses of wisdom or knowledge, you know. Neith, Athena, Vör..." "Is there a goddess of changing the subject?" Yellow eyes glared at me from within the shadows of the carrier. "Yes. I felt something." "The stewardess?" "They're called 'flight attendants'. Don't be sexist." "Who's being sexist? Guys can be stewardesses too!" "It's a sexist term, jackass." "Crowley's a gender neutral name." "It's the family name of a male -" "It's gender neutral, you're changing the subject again, and we're on a goddamn airplane. Are we going to do this or are you going to keep sacrificing tuna privileges?" There was a pause. "Okay, I concede. You win this round. Let me out so I can sniff around." "Give me a second." I pick up the little plastic cup, with tomato-covered ice still rattling around, and return my tray table to its upright and locked position. I set the cup (with apologies) on the guy's tray next to me. He doesn't care - he's holding hands with his pretty ladyfriend and they're watching a movie. I unzip the inner portion of the carrier and set it opening-first towards the aisle. Crowley is sable-black, pouring out of the carrier and onto the floor carefully, like an oil spill with legs and a tail. Her fur is actually quite soft, and she's got a weakness for that spot at the base of her skull between her ears, which always make her start purring whether she wants to or not. But I don't have time to coddle the cat. I unbuckle my seat belt and rise to follow her, heading towards the front of the plane. I get some dirty looks from the people in business class. I'm shattering the illusion that their affluence separates them from the plebs back in coach. I'd linger to make more of them uncomfortable, but I'm on a clock. Crowley's definitely on to something, and I have to be there to back her up. As much crap as I give her, I really can't live without her. We find the stewardess in question tucked away working on the in-flight meals. She glances at me and smiles a little. "You should return to your seat." I cross my arms and lean on the wall. "Crowley?" The cat jumps up onto the counter, startling the woman. Yellow eyes peer at her and the cat's nose twitches. "Nebiru," Crowley says finally. "Are you sure?" "Yep. Brimstone and stardust, moreso than just about anything." The stewardess shakes her head, backing away. "I don't want any trouble." "You're on a flight full of mortals. Why?" "It's my job." "Come on, you took part in the creation the Universe, it's gotta be more than a job." The stewardess nods. Her nametag says 'Angela'. "I've heard of you. You're the one who sends us back to Hell." "Talking cat give it away?" "It's probably your boorish attitude." "Shut it, Crowley." "I'm tired," Angela says. "Tired of conflict, of choosing sides. I just want to see the creation. Wonder in what was wrought." "You're here as a sightseer?" "Is that so hard to believe?" "Crowley, what do you know about the Nebiru?" "Oh, now I can speak?" "Out with it, cat." She sighed. "Nebiru were celestial angels before The Fall. They set stars in motion and plotted the courses of galaxies. Not many sided with Lucifer, but those who did often find themselves summoned by accident when idiot mortals tap into Lovecraftian ideas of old gods born of the stars." I look evenly at Angela. "Is that what happened?" The demon nods. "I took the body of one of the participants in the ritual. I told them their Old Gods did not exist. They didn't believe me. I showed them the cosmos as I'd seen it, back on the First Day. They couldn't take it." "You killed them?" She shook her head. "They're blind and babbling. They spout equations they'll never understand. They see stars burning and dying and exploding to burn again over and over again in their minds." She turned away, towards the window over her shoulder. "It was too much. I should have simply escaped." My hand is in my pocket, the Medallion heavy in my fingers. One press to Angela's forehead and the demon would be sent screaming back to Hell. Option A, here, was that I was fast enough to get it on her before she knew what was happening. In my experience, that rarely worked. That left Option B: I go for it, she tears out of her human meat-suit, and we fight on a plane 30,000 feet in the air with the lives of hundreds of innocents hanging in the balance. Thankfully, there's a third option, one I rarely take. "I'm going to pretend I didn't see you." Angela blinks at me. So does Crowley. "Crowley has your scent, now, and I'm going to take a lock of your hair. If anything ever seems off with you, we'll come for you. Do you understand?" Without a word, Angela reached under her hair, produced a pair of scissors from one of the cabinets, and clipped a lock, which she handed to me. "Thank you." "Just stay out of trouble, all right?" I pick up Crowley and walk back to my seat. "That was uncharacteristically magnanimous." "Now you're just showing off." "Azariel's going to be pissed." "Maybe, but she's not stupid. She'll know a Nebiru on a plane's no threat." The rest of the flight was quiet. And, wouldn't you know it, Angela brought some free vodka to my seat along with another can of tomato juice. I don't get many good days on this job. I'll take what I can get.

---

Blue Ink Alchemy

Flash Fiction: Flight 666

Flash Fiction: Flight 666 — Blue Ink Alchemy

"This is your captain speaking. We've reached our cruising altitude, and forecast for today calls for clear skies all afternoon. Feel free to unfasten your seat belts and move freely about the cabin, and we'll let you know if we're in for any chop or how the Bears are doing. Thank you, and enjoy your flight." I don't move, not at first. I glance to my left, to see if either of my fellow passengers need to get up, but the couple is looking out the tiny window into the vast beyond, through the 30,000 feet of air to the planet below. It's a good thing that they are actually enjoying the flight, because I sure as hell won't. Big metal tubes hurtling through the void bother me. Not necessarily because of the flying itself, but because with so much technology compressed into one place, something is bound to go wrong at some point. And that's not even taking into account the things that normal people can't see. The carrier in my lap vibrates ever so slightly. I figure she's fallen asleep. The cat doesn't like to fly any more than I do, but considering everything she's been through, both before and after she came into my life, some pressurized air and rapid movement aren't enough to spook her. I crack open the well-worn book I brought with me. It's one of the Star Wars novels. I'm not a big fan of fiction - my own life is interesting and weird enough, thanks very much - but once in a while, I like to take my mind away from the worlds around me and invest some time in a place and time when things are simpler. Heroes and villains are easily defined, even if the so-called heroes engage in wholesale slaughter under some flimsy justification. I have to laugh sometimes. It's a lot easier than you might think to shove something or someone that isn't you into the category of 'other' and build up your opposition to it. Plenty of wars get their starts that way. Believe me, there are times when I wish it was that simple. "Something to drink?" I look up from my book and smile at the stewardess. Flight attendant? I can't keep the PC terms straight anymore. I ask for a tomato juice. The couple beside me both get pops. I watch the woman as she pours, and I think I catch something in her eyes. The carrier in my lap shifts. Either her sleep is restless, or she feels something. I wait until the stewardess is gone and then down my tomato juice as quickly as possible. I'd have asked for a bloody mary, but I didn't want to shell out for the liquor and I hadn't thought to grab a tiny bottle of vodka from the duty free store. Whatever. I set the plastic glass down a final time and open the zipper on the carrier. "About time, human." The voice is small and scratchy, the whisper nearly lost in the roar of flight. Just as well; normal people aren't necessarily prepared for aspects of my life like this. "Did you feel something, Crowley?" "I still can't believe you gave me that name." "You wanted more distance from your True Name, I'm providing it." "There are lots of goddesses of wisdom or knowledge, you know. Neith, Athena, Vör..." "Is there a goddess of changing the subject?" Yellow eyes glared at me from within the shadows of the carrier. "Yes. I felt something." "The stewardess?" "They're called 'flight attendants'. Don't be sexist." "Who's being sexist? Guys can be stewardesses too!" "It's a sexist term, jackass." "Crowley's a gender neutral name." "It's the family name of a male -" "It's gender neutral, you're changing the subject again, and we're on a goddamn airplane. Are we going to do this or are you going to keep sacrificing tuna privileges?" There was a pause. "Okay, I concede. You win this round. Let me out so I can sniff around." "Give me a second." I pick up the little plastic cup, with tomato-covered ice still rattling around, and return my tray table to its upright and locked position. I set the cup (with apologies) on the guy's tray next to me. He doesn't care - he's holding hands with his pretty ladyfriend and they're watching a movie. I unzip the inner portion of the carrier and set it opening-first towards the aisle. Crowley is sable-black, pouring out of the carrier and onto the floor carefully, like an oil spill with legs and a tail. Her fur is actually quite soft, and she's got a weakness for that spot at the base of her skull between her ears, which always make her start purring whether she wants to or not. But I don't have time to coddle the cat. I unbuckle my seat belt and rise to follow her, heading towards the front of the plane. I get some dirty looks from the people in business class. I'm shattering the illusion that their affluence separates them from the plebs back in coach. I'd linger to make more of them uncomfortable, but I'm on a clock. Crowley's definitely on to something, and I have to be there to back her up. As much crap as I give her, I really can't live without her. We find the stewardess in question tucked away working on the in-flight meals. She glances at me and smiles a little. "You should return to your seat." I cross my arms and lean on the wall. "Crowley?" The cat jumps up onto the counter, startling the woman. Yellow eyes peer at her and the cat's nose twitches. "Nebiru," Crowley says finally. "Are you sure?" "Yep. Brimstone and stardust, moreso than just about anything." The stewardess shakes her head, backing away. "I don't want any trouble." "You're on a flight full of mortals. Why?" "It's my job." "Come on, you took part in the creation the Universe, it's gotta be more than a job." The stewardess nods. Her nametag says 'Angela'. "I've heard of you. You're the one who sends us back to Hell." "Talking cat give it away?" "It's probably your boorish attitude." "Shut it, Crowley." "I'm tired," Angela says. "Tired of conflict, of choosing sides. I just want to see the creation. Wonder in what was wrought." "You're here as a sightseer?" "Is that so hard to believe?" "Crowley, what do you know about the Nebiru?" "Oh, now I can speak?" "Out with it, cat." She sighed. "Nebiru were celestial angels before The Fall. They set stars in motion and plotted the courses of galaxies. Not many sided with Lucifer, but those who did often find themselves summoned by accident when idiot mortals tap into Lovecraftian ideas of old gods born of the stars." I look evenly at Angela. "Is that what happened?" The demon nods. "I took the body of one of the participants in the ritual. I told them their Old Gods did not exist. They didn't believe me. I showed them the cosmos as I'd seen it, back on the First Day. They couldn't take it." "You killed them?" She shook her head. "They're blind and babbling. They spout equations they'll never understand. They see stars burning and dying and exploding to burn again over and over again in their minds." She turned away, towards the window over her shoulder. "It was too much. I should have simply escaped." My hand is in my pocket, the Medallion heavy in my fingers. One press to Angela's forehead and the demon would be sent screaming back to Hell. Option A, here, was that I was fast enough to get it on her before she knew what was happening. In my experience, that rarely worked. That left Option B: I go for it, she tears out of her human meat-suit, and we fight on a plane 30,000 feet in the air with the lives of hundreds of innocents hanging in the balance. Thankfully, there's a third option, one I rarely take. "I'm going to pretend I didn't see you." Angela blinks at me. So does Crowley. "Crowley has your scent, now, and I'm going to take a lock of your hair. If anything ever seems off with you, we'll come for you. Do you understand?" Without a word, Angela reached under her hair, produced a pair of scissors from one of the cabinets, and clipped a lock, which she handed to me. "Thank you." "Just stay out of trouble, all right?" I pick up Crowley and walk back to my seat. "That was uncharacteristically magnanimous." "Now you're just showing off." "Azariel's going to be pissed." "Maybe, but she's not stupid. She'll know a Nebiru on a plane's no threat." The rest of the flight was quiet. And, wouldn't you know it, Angela brought some free vodka to my seat along with another can of tomato juice. I don't get many good days on this job. I'll take what I can get.

---

Blue Ink Alchemy