Someone buying winRAR is, without a doubt, the wildest shit you've ever written. 

Women are really free to go wild in this story since Aaron and Amy just pop right back up when they die. It opens the door for some stuff that probably wouldn't fit well in your other stories. I do like how Cydea reassures them that she'll keep the pain to a minimum, keeps things nice and fluffy.

I wrote about having a hard time getting a read on Hinba earlier, but it seems I really was overthinking it. She really is just a manipulative, sadistic demon who eats people (out of necessity, I guess?) It really did feel like there was a chance that she was lying about her intentions, or all her actions were in service of something greater than herself, or that maybe she wasn’t really going to kill Tom because it was all a grand lie. Nope, she’s pretty much what’s advertised on the box. Disappointing in my opinion, not because it was poorly written (it wasn’t), but simply because of my own personal preferences in these types of stories.

I didn’t quite buy the attempts to make Hinba seem more sympathetic, mostly found in the epilogue but also sprinkled throughout the story. The occasional moments where she showed softness and sincerity seemed written to persuade the reader that she might not be quite as bad as she usually appears, but I just wasn’t sold. By the end, she still mostly comes off as pretty fucking cruel to me. 

I can’t believe Tom spent his 5 years working his ass off, both at his actual job and desperately trying to discover more about Hinba and her world. My interpretation was that he spent his time in the hidden room trying to either find a way out of his situation or a way to make himself useful to Hinba. What a waste to spend what were almost certainly the last years of his life like that. I assume that was a collar he offered her at the end, right? To show he’d be her pet. Although it was described as a small envelope, which wouldn’t fit one, so I may be misunderstanding.

Honestly, I feel like Tom should have used the bullet. Time and time again it’s been shown that winning against Hinba is practically impossible. Even this “triumph” at the end is really stretching the definition of that word. I understand he has a very strong will to live and the confidence to think he can find a way out of the situation. However, he’s gotta know that Hinba can make his life significantly worse than what he’s been through, which is saying a lot. The naga even warned him. He should have made his exit at the end of his five years. Can’t say the man lacks in hubris.

I hope nothing in this review comes off as harsh. I enjoyed this story a lot and will happily read whatever it is you write next, regardless if it's a continuation of this or something else entirely. This was a great first story.

Good start to this story. A few random thoughts:

That's an incredibly high mortality rate for naturals let into the academy. I'm surprised they let naturals in, unless there's a general disdain for them in this world and they don't really care about them dying. Is having a power in this world the norm or the exception?

I wonder is Summer abandoned Steve because she was panicking or because he's a natural, which makes him not worth saving in her eyes.

Superpowers in this world are really strong. Reconstructors seem pretty ridiculous and absolutely horrific. How long do people retain their consciousness when transformed? Would Steve even be able to die if he was turned into a bubble? Society must be a mess if there's a non-negligible amount of people with these sorts of powers running around.

I wonder what Locketopia's actually like. Probably a dystopia considering who made it, but it would be an amusing twist if everything actually was great in there.

Why did Steve lie to Venus? I understand he's scared after seeing Rodney get killed, but what's the harm in being honest about his situation here? I'm genuinely confused, to the point where I feel like I must be misreading.

Is reducing a one way trip? Venus talks about bringing Steve to a hospital to try and fix his condition. I guess they can't just grab another reducer to regrow him?

I wonder what the blue mark she put on Steve actually does. It's hard to imagine it's just for decoration.

Venus has a hell of a lot of different powers. Feels Superman-esque. Her personality feels decidedly not very superhero-ish.

Good start. I'm a huge sucker for redemption arcs, so I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes. If it wasn't for the gentle tag, I'd be worried this was some kind of elaborate setup to mess with Finn, but thankfully it looks like that's not where this is going,

Fun little story and a good introduction to these characters. Ashley seems to be a bit on the mischievous side, which should make for an entertaining dynamic between her and Gina. Hope to see more in the future.

Nice to see you back so quick with a second story. A few random thoughts:

I wonder what Hinba means about having a small piece of Tom. From the way it was described before, it seems like eating a soul is an all or nothing thing, not a gradual process. 

She's as lovely as ever, threatening to murder his coworker. Never a lack of new ways to be sadistic.

“Look, I’ll do whatever you want, just don’t hurt-“ That's a weird thing for Tom to say. He's going to do what she wants regardless. The only thing that ever really let him have any agency was the stone and that's gone now.

Hinba was already hungry at the end of the first story and she still needs to eat. Either some other human is gonna need to enter the picture or this story is gonna have a sad ending. 

I forgot to mention this in my review of the first story, but I wonder if Tom is missing out on an afterlife if his soul gets eaten. That would have provided even more incentive to use the bullet. It's always been a bit fuzzy on what eating a soul really means. The easy assumption is complete oblivion, but I guess there's a chance that Hinba gets to do what she wants with him after, as an afterlife of sorts.

This was really good. I like how the fairy doesn't seem malicious, but instead really does think that they'll have better lives with her. You weren't kidding about the vagueness of everyone's size, but who cares. Fairy magic: It Just Works.

Alright, here's how Laurie can still win;

Kidding. Great story. It was satisfying watching Eve gain confidence as the year went by and start living according to her own beliefs instead of others. Evan getting his mojo back that's been missing since he shrunk was a similarly feel-good  character arc.

The bit of revenge they got against Amber at the end is probably great for her in the long run. It was a real crash course in how awful it feels to be dehumanized like that, which should really let her empathize with other tines in a way she couldn't before. Her apology seemed sincere, so as sappy as it sounds, I'd like to believe she eventually becomes good friends everyone.

Laurie's confession was handled really well. It's refreshing to see both parties behave like functional adults for once in that kind of situation. I still think Evan is a bit crazy for not having developed romantic feelings for her, but hey, the heart wants what it wants. I feel bad for her, but I doubt she'll have problems finding a special someone in the future.

Another fun story. It reminded me of the Titan Empire universe in some ways (technologically superior alien species with mixed/evolving views on humanity, a faction of said aliens causing major internal problems, an alien threat that seems unknowable, humans proving their worth and equality by playing a pivotal role in fighting against that threat.) They were both influenced by Star Trek, among other things, so it makes sense there would be some similar themes. 

Author's Response:

I've never read the Titan Empire stories, they're on my to-do list lol. This one has a lot of influences like I said in the epilogue, glad you liked it.

Damn, this story is intense. It's nice to have some believable justification for people acting like psychos to each other. Hopefully they can come to some sort of understanding by the end of the story, but it's definitely gonna be a turbulent ride regardless of which direction this is going.

Author's Response:

Yeah, you know, it's like your classic Will-They-Won't-They... if both parties are completely bonkers and rather than falling in love the question is whether or not they'll will kill each other. So please remain seated with seatbelts securely fastened and make sure your seat backs and tray tables are in their full upright position, cause this plane's hurtling directly into a freakin' hurricane :)