ihavestigmata

“I could easily forgive his pride, if he had not mortified mine.”
― Jane Austen, Pride and Prejudice

“SCP-682 yelled "FUCK YOU AND ALL THREE OF YOUR MOONS”
― SCP Foundation, SCP Series One Field Manual

“Maybe my etiquette is out of date-" Acton says.
His voice is suddenly quiet. Nobody else seems to notice.
"But I've always thought it was --rude-- to walk away when someone's talking to you."
There was no obvious threat in the words. Acton's tone seems pleasant enough. It doesn't matter. In an instant Clarke sees all the signs again: the reasoned words, the deadened voice, the sudden slight tension of a body rising to critical mass. Something familiar is growing behind Acton's eyecaps.
"Brander," she says quietly, "why don't you hang around and hear the man out?"
Behind her, the sounds of motion stop.
Before her, Acton relaxes ever so slightly.
Within her, something deeper than the rift stirs in its sleep.
"They're a snap to install," Acton says. "It takes about 5 minutes. GA says deadman switches are standard issue from now on"
I know you, she thinks. I don't remember but I'm sure I've seen you somewhere before...
A tiny knot forms in her stomach. Acton smiles at her, as though sending some secret greeting.”
― Peter Watts, Starfish

“Life evolves. Parasites evolve. Sex evolves to counter the parasites. Shuffles the genes so the parasites have to shoot for a moving target. Everything else—species diversity, density-dependence, everything—it all follows from those three laws. You get a self-replicating string past a certain threshold, it’s like a nuclear reaction.”
― Peter Watts, Starfish