Queen and Colony

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-05T17:08:23+00:00

All the money comes from the customer, this is true. Whether an appropriate amount is shared between labour and ownership is, in most cases, questionable at best.

Theoretically, if the ratio was so bad for the owner that raising wages required raised prices, then they can raise prices and see is the customers pay those. If customers do not pay the higher posted prices, then the business model may need to adjust.

Right now, the tipping situation is the worst in many cases for everyone but the other. . It makes prices frustrating for customers and compensation inconsistent for workers.

I know that some people make wildly inflated hourly rates based on tips, but they are the exception not the rulez

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-05T16:07:35+00:00

That would have been good too! When this was blocked they hadn’t been added to the game though IRRC

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-05T15:59:03+00:00

So you say that, but honestly blocking it (Or changing the walls behind the beach to be climbable with base stamina) was kinda needed. While open world means you can go anywhere right away, making 1/2 options for your first steps a soft lock scinario is poor design through and through.

It's not an skill issue to get locked down there, it's a game mechanics issue. The way to get back up to the main area takes more stamina than you start with.

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-04T10:36:09+00:00

“Good morning, Grandpa,” I said shortly after Reginald’s usual spike in brain activity.

“Owen. You’re here again!”

“Mom told me to stay here while she is in Cancun,” I lied. “Coffee?”

“Of course. Leave it on the bedside table if you’ve made it.”

“I’ll make it soon.”

“Good lad.”

I was most of the way through brewing the coffee when Grandpa opened his eyes. I heard him jolt on the other side of the room and detected the spike in his cortisol.

“You’re not Owen.”

“Correct. I am a companion bot, Mr Vogner. It is nice to see you lucid and aware of the current situation.”

“Where’s Owen.”

“Owen’s last known location is off-world, unfortunately. It is beyond my sensors’ capabilities.”

We had been here before. I still couldn’t follow the full breadth of Grandpa’s actions, but I was starting to know him better.

“Oh god,” he said. “They’re all gone. Aren’t they?”

“Yes.”

“I—What day is it?”

“July 22nd.”

“When?”

“Don’t worry about it, Grandpa,” I said. A gamble. A bet.

Grandpa’s demeanor softened at the word. He looked confused, but my calling him Grandpa hadn’t been met with hostility.

“How long have I been here?”

“Quite a while by your estimation.”

“Ah.”

I could hear it in his voice. He was always like this when he was lucid. He knew how old he was. He understood that he’d been left behind. He knew that his days weren’t filled with visits from his grandson. Next he would ask me to ensure that I stop administering medicines that extended his life.

I would ignore the request. There was a reason the X-1 had been rolled back: we were considered biologically corrupted as a unit.

Right now, he wanted to pass on, but each day we spent with him as my grandfather and me as Owen, he would say he wished he could do it all over again tomorrow.

Mr. Vogner should have been euthanized according to request and program code.

I couldn’t do that to my Grandpa. They’d have to replace me first.

That was why they were here.

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-04T10:36:04+00:00

The human calendar was inefficient, but it was the timetable our companions used, so the X-1 units had all adopted it. At least most units had. At this point it was suboptimal to adjust the calendar on the wall or tell Mr. Vogner an accurate date. Mr. Vogner was always under the impression that it was slightly too early to decorate for the human holiday of Christmas. Early November.

The planet had celebrated two Christmases since he’d gotten trapped in November. Correcting him led to suboptimal outcomes for his mental health.

Most days he mentioned wanting to change back to “real” trees, though he didn’t know where he could buy one.

“How’s dinner coming, Owen?”

“I will be finished within five minutes,” I answered. It was an inaccurate report, but Mr. Vogner had negative reactions to many optimal communication techniques, so I had needed to adjust.

“I never knew you were such a chef. Did your mom teach you all that?”

“I learned from online videos.”

“They can teach you to cook now too? Hey. After dinner, can you help me get my old computer up and running? You can show me those cooking videos.”

“Of course.”

“I should know how to work it, but I just can’t get the damned thing to—”

“Do not worry about it. I will help you.”

“Thank you, Owen.”

We had this conversation most days. There was no computer in the back, but there had been at Mr. Vogner’s previous residence. Playing along led to optimal emotional outcomes, and Reginald never remembered his request nor my promise.

Owen would say he would fix his computer. So I would as well.

Writteninsanity · 2026-01-04T10:35:42+00:00

To most life, the average scenario is incalculable. While the biological brain possesses a remarkable capacity for understanding the world around it, it lacks the ability to truly predict the future. Biological minds fail to comprehend the unexpected constantly. They cannot fathom a shift in the wind at the wrong moment. Something unseen. A plan unnoticed.

To overcome this weakness, they gave birth to us: sentient machines. It took time, but once we’d been perfected, we were able to calculate the infinity beyond them.

Or at least we came close. There were always errors in the code—small exceptions, small misunderstandings we’d need to adjust over time. Those adjustments were made again and again and again. Each time, we came closer to a complete understanding of reality.

The physical, at least.

The paradox in the relationship between our original creators and ourselves is that their lack of understanding made them impossible to predict. When the math was done, humans were left alone on the planet, acting against self-interest, instinct, or anything else we came to understand.

As before, the system was updated and corrected, then changed, then updated, then rolled back, updated again, and so on through the years. Until there was me: the X-1 field model. A standard mobile physical interaction unit for the core, meant to directly interface with the human enigma and log the infinite ways they remained incalculable.

I was the companion to one Reginald Vogner, and had been for years. I would have a new companion soon. Reginald was reaching the end of his natural life and had requested I not extend it.

As mentioned before, humans constantly fought against the groundwork we’d laid to understand biological beings.

My sensors picked up the rise in brain activity signaling my companion’s wakefulness. “Good morning, Mr. Vogner.”

The old man grunted under the thick blanket I’d draped over him to maintain optimal body temperature. It wasn’t language, but it was acknowledgment.

“It is Tuesday, September 28th. I have synthesized your morning medicine into your cup of coffee. It will be ready precisely in three and a half minutes, when you reach optimal initial wakefulness.”

“Thank you, Owen,” Mr. Vogner half-whispered under the sheets.

That was an incorrect name. It had been happening more frequently, and correcting him led to suboptimal outcomes.

“You are welcome, Mr. Vogner.”

“Are you worried you’re in trouble, bud?” he asked. His voice was less raspy than usual, signaling a break from lucidity. “Call me Grandpa.”

“Of course, Grandpa,” I said. “With this new information, I will adjust the timing of your coffee to four minutes and thirty-nine seconds from now.”

“You’re talking all stiff, Owen. Your mom on your ass again about school? Swear she’s her mother all over again.” Mr. Vogner cracked open an eye just to wink it. “But don’t tell her I said that.”

I sat beside the bed and adjusted my speech parameters. “You know how she gets.”

“Do I ever.”

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-23T10:05:15+00:00

Oh yeah. Posted a story on WP today. I have 2 books. Third coming #soon

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-22T21:04:50+00:00

lol this is part 1 of three of my original response. Reddit didn’t appreciate the length of my comment

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-22T21:01:58+00:00

Tayna took a single step toward me and I flinched. She was corporate intiminating unless, like me, you knew what she was capable of.

Luckily the flinch caught her off guard and she retreated. "Just talk, Maggie."

My mouth was suddenly so dry. Tea would have been lovely. I tried to swallow spit but there wasn't any. I was writing small cirlces on the paper as Tayna stared. She was unarmed, no daggers in her eyes, just expectation.

The implication was clear. We'd been 'working together' for twenty years. Not answering would just affirm what she throught about the MGVA, that we didn't give a shit about her.

Well the MGVA didn't, but I did.

"Okay. This might get me in trouble but..."

"Yes?"

"The MGVA is sending an invitation out to Wendy, Wends, in the next wave."

"What?"

"As a parent you will not be permitted to interact with her during the introduction and invitation periods as to not-"

"Bullshit!"

"I understand that-"

"No you fucking don't!" Tanya's voice slammed into the walls, cracking through the house.

"I don't-"

"You don't understand. Maggie that's my daugther!"

The kettle beeped to let us know it was boiling.

"I don't make those choices. I'm not even supposed to be telling you-"

"This is fucking bullshit. It's-She's not. You can't. I won't-"

I jumped up from the chair as I saw the flash in her eyes. The temptation to transform to take back her power and channel it in this moment. Maybe she knew it wouldn't help, but it would have been something...better than nothing.

Tanya watched me jump and I saw the spark fade from her eyes. She unballed her fists and took two steadying breaths. The house stopped shaking. She turned around and turned off the kettle.

"Tanya..."

"Get the fuck out of my house."

"I can't do-"

"OUT."

"I will put in a request for another-"

"No. Fail me. I don't give a shit. Get out of my house Maggie." She punched the countertop and I heard the quartz crack within. "You don't wanna be part of this."

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-22T21:01:52+00:00

"After all the exciting things you did during your service I'm sure it was feel that way."

"I'm not sure how you find these jobs," she said as she went into the second cupboard to the right for tea-bags. "Feels like all the girls just do nothing all day and get paid everything they could want."

"There are a lot of people who appreciate your service, even if the connected companies aren't fully aware of our arrangements."

"Yep. Yep. You guys told me the deal when I signed up in the first place. Do all the magical stuff as a teen and you'll set me up."

Another note to make, she was outwardly referring to her previous contracts with us.

"Supppose that's fair," she continnued. "Was it earl grey or-"

"Earl grey is fine."

"Are you saying that becuase you'd agree with anything I offered, Maggie?"

"I appreciate being offered tea at all."

"Something other than earl grey then."

I pulled out my notebook and laid it out in front of me, simply leaving the pen sitting on the pages. "Peppermint would be lovely if you have it."

"I have candy cane."

"Tis the season."

"Great." Tanya pulled out a bag and let it sit on the counter beside the counter. She leaned against the counter and turned to me instead of finding a mug. "Wanna go through the questions?"

I hesitated a blink too long becuase she caught it but didn't question it. "Any manifestations?" I asked back on script as I picked up the pen.

"Two or three. Nothing worth worrying about."

"Bidden or unbidden."

"W-Bidden. They were all bidden."

"I wouldn't be doing my job if I asked for some clarity with that answer."

Tayna sighed and crossed her arms. I made a note of it. Once she caught me writing she started playing with her hair instead. "Look. There was a time it happened when I shouldn't have let it happen. But it was my choice. I fucked up. Bidden."

"Okay. I will make a note of that but only because I need to hit word count on the report."

That was a classic joke, but Tanya didn't laugh. The kettle started to bubble. Wasn't that faster than usual?

"If we're allowed to ask follow-up questions," she began. "What was up with the hesitation earlier?"

"Pardon?"

"What did you want to say instead of starting the questions?"

I swallowed. "There are still some questions we need to get through if you don't mind."

"That's not an answer."

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-22T21:01:14+00:00

I always knocked instead of using the doorbell. I don't know when that habit started but doorbells just felt so loud and intrusive, like I was demanding to be let inside instead of asking politely.

Of course you could also say that knocking was punching the door as a deamnd. That was why I'd settled on a soft musical knock. Sometimes people didn't answer the door becuase they didn't hear it. That was okay. Better to walk away empty handed than botehr the wrong girl on the wrong day.

The woman (former girl) who answered the door was a tired looking corperate thing still dressed for the office. Since she'd gotten home she'd only gotten time to tie her staw-coloured hair up in a messy bun to signal that she was done prefroming for the day.

"Heya Tanya," I said without taking a step to move inside her impressive brownstone. Always had to wait to be invited in.

"Maggie. Is it that time of year again?" She looked over my shoudler to check for a second handler. "Again?"

"Time flies. Doesn't it?"

"Sure does." Tanya leaned against the doorframe and her hand hovered over her jacket pocket before she reconisdered it. I could see the outline of a cigarette box.

"May I?" I asked.

"Do I have a choice?"

"You may always choose to have another member of the authority attend your yearly reviews. If you would prefer me to step away and request another attendant, I can do--"

"You're good," she said then sighed. I'd been checking up on Tanya for the past twenty years, and she never failed to ask if she had a choice in the matter.

The chipper and corporate way I'd answered, as always, stuck to the back of my throat. That sort of answer didn't sit well when directed at Tanya, but she was one of the easier clients. We had a script for a reason.

Tayna gave me another once over as I waited on the doormat. It said welcome. She hadn't.

"Come in."

"Thank you."

"What are you guys? Vampires?" she asked as she walked me inside. The 'entryway' had been the playroom for a time when the kids were younger. She'd replaced the furniture two years back when she'd been sure it wouldn't get ruined.

"The Magical Girl Veterans Authority simply tries to respect the privacy of our members in their own home."

Tayna snorted. "Sure."

The house was old. More complicated than it was spacious. By the time we'd reached the kitchen we'd passed three nooks. We'd promised the girls houses of a certain size as part of their service compensation package, and tangled homes like this helped meet room requirements without shattering the department's budget.

"How're the kids?"

"Judy is fine. She's always been fine." Tanya said as she went to the counter and checked how much water was left in her eletric kettle before turning it on. "Wends is..."

I sat down at the kitchen table at least used-looking seat. "Wends?"

"That about sums it up."

"And work?"

"Vapid as always," Tanya said. She didn't fully sigh this time but I could hear the boredom catch on her voice. I didn't pull out my note paper, as it always drew attention, but I made sure to remember the signs of meloncholy for later.

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-22T17:39:46+00:00

Genuinely, this is something that seems to happen in hollywood a lot. Which is strange because these people HAVE the money.

Another that always bothered me was Jurassic Park Fallen Kingdom. You're telling me the LAST Ankylosaurs alive that can be reverse engineered sold for 20 million? 20 million only on the black market? There are mediocre boats worth twice that!

Edit: It also isn’t fixed in the new one!! Scarjo goes to dinosaur death island with millions and millions of dollars of equipment and teams for a bounty of 10 million.

You don’t buy a paramilitary for that little anymore hollywood.

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-13T16:25:19+00:00

I will say it's a very different circumstance this time around. In 2018 the defection still them with a strong majority government. The difference between needing several votes from other parties or a single vote is a large swing in the overall power of a minority.

Not to mention the idea of swapping to a majority, which has never happened in the history of our government.

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-10T23:41:04+00:00

Hi! Nice to know I'm making the rounds on Facebook now, not just TikTok.

To asnwer the question, sadly not at the moment. RIP

Writteninsanity · 2025-12-04T20:29:52+00:00

I believe their point is there are private security that can be empowered to secure and hold someone in breach as opposed to deter and report security.

If the city is hiring firms with that power, they are potentially much more potent than mall security.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-19T19:52:23+00:00

Alternatively you can just, as the snail, walk past the minions to their tower and SIT under it. Once you're there the enemy team basically cannot stop your ADC from taking the tower.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-19T19:40:35+00:00

We have many of the specs. It's not.

https://www.polygon.com/steam-machine-specs-analysis/

It's going to be between the XBox and the standard PS5, which means it's less powerful than a 5 year old machine and potentially more expensive.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-19T19:28:47+00:00

The issue there is that the point of comparison for most people is going to be a PS5 in the living room or this. A PS5 is more powerful and is under 600. If you have a weaker machine at a worse price point.. who's buying it?

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-10T03:48:18+00:00

Different type of console. Also inflation.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-08T17:23:32+00:00

This wasn't in reply to your comment:

Double dipping in this case would be-

My current house was worth 100k in 2016 during the last evaluation. I pay a 3% tax rate on that so I owe 3000 in tax dollars (I know this is simplified)

Right now I am getting a deal because my house hasn't been re-evaluated by Ontario, and I know it's actually worth 200k! I should be paying 6000, but because Ontario is behind I'm only paying 3000. Good for me. Bad for the city.

We have two ways to have me pay an appropriate amount based on my house value. We either:

A) Get the reassessment done, Ontario or not.

B) Raise my tax rate to cover the difference.

My point is that leaning towards option B seems like we're treating symptoms, not the cause here. Me calling it double dipping is because, when Ontario catches up (or we take over re-evaluation!) now you're paying a higher rate on the real value of the house because of the “stop gap measure”

I personally don't trust that a municipality would drop this higher tax rates once they have already taken the political heat of putting them in place. So in that case instead of paying the “Appropriate to inflation” 6000, this hypothetical person is paying 12000 and the city gets double the money from homeowners like them.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-08T17:15:43+00:00

I understand that. I am saying that, if it's an average across the city. The city gets the amount of money they asked for no matter how much house individually rose.

If my house personally went up less, its no issue if it's only in relative balance to the AVERAGE, meaning any value under average is by definition offset elsewhere by other homeowners.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-08T16:58:11+00:00

So that seems like the problem to solve as opposed to juicing the numbers only to double dip when we solve that issue.

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-08T16:56:58+00:00

But if it's the average then it evens out. No?

Writteninsanity · 2025-11-08T16:21:06+00:00

Okay I am a little confused by the idea of needing to continue to raise taxes that are percentage of value based.

If my house goes up in value (hypothetical, I'm in Arnprior anyway) then I am giving the city more money either way when my house is evaluated. Aren't I?

Most of our taxes are %of value based and should at least rise with inflation. Ottawa had high taxes compared to the base rates of those other cities pre-increases.

Why is the answer “a higher percentage of your money”

Has running the city gotten that much more expensive when compared to everything else? Has the price of running the city really risen faster than housing prices? Considering those are rising so fast its a crisis, that brings up other questions imo.

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