Podcasts about anahit

In a change to our usual format, we review only one film this episode: the French coming-of-age film Holy Cow. Set in Jura, in the east of France near the Swiss border, it follows a wild 18-year-old lad who has to grow up fast and learn how to make some award-winning Comté after a family tragedy. The rest of the episode sees Peter, Anahit, and Jamie discuss what they've been watching on the big and small screen recently, from Black Bag and a Jacques Tati classic to Adolescence and White Lotus via a goofy-sounding show we're pretty sure Anahit has made up. TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching: Movies (Black Bag, Uptown Girls, Playtime) (2:14) Holy Cow review (17:08) What We've Been Watching: TV (Adolescence, White Lotus, Paradise) (25:34) Get us on Twitter, Bluesky, Instagram and Letterboxd  @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

The last days before the Great Hunt.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels.“Can the scorpion ever stop being a scorpion? “"Do we get our legally permitted weaponry back?" The bishop still held my hand."Sure. If it makes you feel better.""I would like to meet your people then," he gave my paw one last shake then released me. "Shall we go?""I will have someone take you to your car. I want to briefly meet with the President, of Havenstone, then I'll join you in the garage. We'll drive over to JIKIT and I'll make the introductions. Good enough?""That is acceptable," he nodded."What about you two?" I regarded the nun and the Swiss Super-soldier. The nun remained vigilant, and silent. The Swiss' eyes flickered to his boss before settling back on me."It is what I volunteered for," he stated firmly."Okay. Please never say I didn't give you a chance to take the sane way out. Also, Bishop Nicolö, circumstances have conspired to up my prospective wedding date to January 1st.""That will be more difficult. Why the change?" he remained grim."We are having twins. By March, this will be very visible.""That is, unfortunate," he shook his head."You have no idea," and then a brainstorm. "And I am curious about resurrecting the Order of the Dragon, the Societas Draconistarum." Technically that meant 'Society of the Dragonists' which was more appropriate than the literal Ordo Draconis."Precisely how do you plan to recreate a crusading Christian Order which was the purview of the Hungarian monarchs?" he didn't sound the least skeptical, just curious."I have billions of euros to fund such a thing," I winked. "Of far greater critical importance, I know where I can find the supernatural guidance and spiritual imperative for such an organization.""You are going to produce a dragon?" his eyes grew larger even as he fought down his fear. Good man. He was adaptive. He'd need to be."I never said such a thing. That would make me sound crazy," I smiled broadly. "Besides, when I say 'dragon', you think 'devil' and that's way too pedestrian for where we are going.""I am not a moral relativist.""Neither am I. I'm out to save lives and nurture the drive in the human spirit to reach for freedom, love and liberty. As you might imagine, I'm pretty freaking outnumbered.""I think you are crazy," he re-evaluated things."I just might be. In all honesty, you should back out now. Take your two compadres back to 25 East 39th Street (the Holy See's Permanent Observer Offices to the UN in NYC) and report 'Mission Failure'. You'll most likely live longer," I reasoned."I am not afraid to die," Sister Rafaela Sophia finally voiced an opinion."That's idiotic," I scoffed before the bishop could reprimand her for opening her mouth. "You should be.""My soul is in God's hands," she set her jaw."Does he talk to you?" I countered."His message is clear.""Not what I asked. I asked if he specifically directed you to toss your life fruitlessly away as an object lesson for the reckless, or careless?""This is uncalled for," Nicolö intervened."Nope. I bet you a phone call to my Brother to physically restore your bishopric that there are four people in this room who have murdered in cold blood," I kept eye contact with the nun, "and she's the odd one out. Right Juanita?""Yes, Ishara," Juanita slipped up. Her spycraft, like mine, needed work."You were in the military?" the bishop asked my bodyguard."Was? I am. Right now," she related. "I will be until I die."That earned me looks from the three Catholics."She is loyal," Nicolö nodded slightly toward her, referring to Juanita's declaration."Huh? To me? Nope. She's loyal to my office, which we shan't get into right now. Back to you, Sister Rafaela Sophia. Are you out to be a martyr, or has some saint, or angel, given you a directive the other two seem to be unaware of which causes you to devalue your life?""I am devoted to the One True God, Christ, our Savior," and Juanita snorted, "and the Virgin Mary," the nun stated firmly. "I don't hear voices in my head.""Juanita, that was rude. Apologize to our guest," I kept looking forward."No." Well, fuck you too."Gun," I commanded. I held out my left hand."What? No. I will not give you one of my guns," she resisted."Juanita, give me your primary weapon, or I will ask Pamela to beat you up the moment I depart for the Great Hunt. After yesterday's stunt, you know she will," I threatened. Fair, I was not. She drew a Glock-20 and handed it to me. I went through the routine, dropped the magazine then ejected the round before opening the door.Oh look, there were four SD chicks outside, ready to escort my visitors downstairs. I didn't even need to waste a phone call. It wasn't like the conference room wasn't being monitored."Excuse me," I took a half step out the door then hurled all three items down the hall. Looking back at Juanita. "Go fetch.""Fuck you," she snapped."And insulting her faith was as degrading to both her faith and her as me doing this to you is degrading to you right now," I lectured her. "It is important to her, therefore it is important to me because she is my guest in the same way it is important to me that I let my bodyguard do her job without being a total asshole all the time. Now go get your God-damn weapon," I barked. Off she went. I left the door open."Now Sister Rafaela Sophia, the point of all this is: I don't give a crap if you are willing to die for God. In fact, that makes you less than worthless to me and the team. I want to know if you are willing to put other motherfuckers in the ground so that Bishop Nicolá, or Mathias, might get to keep doing their jobs.""Murder is a sin," she declared."Go home," I sighed while shaking my head."She answers to me, the Church and God, not you, Mr. Nyilas," the bishop stepped forward."Then you can go home too," I shrugged. "I'm not asking for remorseless killers. I'm asking for people willing to kill to get the hard work done and best of all, for people who know the difference.""Everyone on JIKIT is a professional soldier, or killer?" he asked."No, but the ones who aren't don't carry guns and know to get down when things get funky," I bantered."I vouch for her," he insisted. Juanita came running back into the room."Cool beans. I don't know you either.""You apparently know my service history," he volleyed."Yeah. Ten years a foreigner in the service of France, then you went straight into a university which turns out Jesuits," I riposted."What turned your life around?" he evaded. That was okay. I'd gotten what I wanted. I was willing to bet he had read every bit of public information about me and it was rumored the heavy Catholic membership in the FBI had its benefits to the Church as well. Not so much as to give them insight into JIKIT, but,"Someone risked their life for me. It's been pretty much downhill from there," I confessed. It was the truth. After Katrina gave me the life line on Day Two, it had all spiraled to the revelation of my heritage, Dad's death, Summer Camp, the Hamptons, Romania and Aya's kidnapping."A person, a soldier, died saving my life," the bishop empathized. "Her story is similar. She seeks redemption. She is not suicidal. I am staking both our lives on it."Did he mean him and Mathias, or him and me? I wasn't certain. Still, it was good enough for now. I'd gotten a look at their emotional make up, even the relatively quiet Swiss."Very well," I agreed. "I have to go see the President about my new job description. I'll catch up with you at your car." To the SD team leader, "Take them to the garage. I will join the group of you very soon.""Yes Ishara," she nodded. I exited the room, Juanita in tow. Two SD entered. I was gone before the Papal team left. Upstairs we went, with one last chore to discharge. I had to check on Ms. French to be absolutely freaking sure it was Shawnee, because anyone else would spell disaster.{8:30 am, Monday, September 8th. Last day}A Room full of asistants:Well, there it was, the office of the Executive Director to the President, and not 'Executive Assistant', because this was Katrina's final 'fuck you, no, just her final 'fuck you' before the Great Hunt got underway. I shouldn't assume things, dang it!Anyway, according to the gray-haired matron running gatekeeper to the Office of the President, this was where I was supposed to show up. I shot Juanita a worried look. She glanced my way and shrugged, momentarily willing to not give me shit about the past 24 hours because where I was situated would determine how easily she could do her job.In we went. In the suite were three desks, the 'big' desk situated at the far end of the office space and two far more modest ones on either side of the entryway. The room expanded beyond the chokepoint formed by the two closest desks into a cluttered area. The walls were cluttered with inset bookshelves and portraits of women. Facing one another were a loveseat on my left with bookend plush chairs in an 'L' facing and a full sofa on the right. There were end tables at the ends of the sofa and the corners between the loveseat and each chair.As the door opened, I hadn't knock as this was my office, or so it seemed, the occupants, who had all been sitting in quiet conversation in the central section, began reacting. Oh look ~ Constanza! I nearly had a heart attack before I realized there were three other Amazons also in the room. Sadly, none were behind the 'big desk', so I couldn't tell who was in charge. Two of the other three choices weren't too much better. First off,"Ishara," Marilynn Saint John stood to greet me. I'd last seen her when I'd dedicated her grandmother's (Hayden's) spirit to the halls of my ancestors, not hers, after forcing the political crisis leading to Hayden's suicide ~ her taking herself to the cliffs and in doing so, destroying the Amazon Cult of Blood Purity. Marilynne was clearly still bitter with me. Umm, I could still incite passion in women I hadn't slept with, yet, woot?"Cáel," the senior-most and only friendly face in the room spoke next. Thank goodness it was Beyoncé Vincennes, Head of House Hanwasuit and House Ishara ally."Cáel Ishara," the third individual was deferential which I wasn't sure how to take as the last time I'd encountered her, yeah, things hadn't gone well either."Beyoncé," I started off with a smile. From there, I had to figure out, ah, Beyoncé's eyes flickered to Constanza then Sabia. I knew Marilynn, with her young age, had the least seniority, "Constanza, Sabia, Marilynn. How's tricks?"Glum faces by everyone except Beyoncé. I didn't ask about Sabia's particular well-being. It had been months since I'd beaten her into the mats of the Full-blooded gym. She'd attacked Yasmin, the Brazilian Hottie and my Brazilian Jujutsu sparring buddy, and I'd retaliated by ambushed her when she turned her back on us. Besides, she'd been giving me shit before I even could see straight.Constanza was minus her left eye because of her dire insult to me. If she wasn't capable of working, she wouldn't be here. If she appreciated my 'mercy' in sparing her life ~ her insult was worthy of her death ~ Constanza hid it well. I hadn't spared her expecting a change of heart. I hadn't felt words alone warranted anyone's death. I was a big boy and could take a few insults. House Ishara, as represented by me, could care less. These days, my sisters would be less understanding despite them knowing my heart."Constanza Landau of House Jaya and Marilynn Saint John of House Anahit are Assistants to President Shawnee French," Beyoncé eased things along, "so will be working closely with us, at least for the short term. Sabia Noel of House Guabancex, who I now think you know as well, has joined you as the other 'Assistant' to the 'Executive Director to the President', (that would make me an 'adept', but adept at what?), and since two of the three Regents are unfamiliar with the workings of Havenstone proper, Shawnee has asked me to perform in that role."Beyoncé was, or had been, Havenstone HQ's CFO (Chief Financial Officer). From what I was quickly piecing together, she would essentially be making all the day-to-day decisions concerning the running of Havenstone (how the Host made the majority of its money) until the Regents got up to speed.Only Buffy had actual experience with the New York office and, from what she had told me, solely within Executive Services. While ES knew 'who' did what inside Havenstone, they weren't aware precisely how those Amazons got their jobs done. That would have been an impossible task. Katrina could do it, but she knew it was beyond the ability of most of us 'mere mortals'. Since we were currently at war, the Host needed Katrina completely focused on her duties as Chief Spy-mistress, not baby-sitting the adults.Shawnee indeed had much gravitas among the other House Heads. Not only had she risen up to lead a First House, she had performed heroically during the final days of the last Secret War. Afterwards she had moved into the realm of Amazon jurisprudence and mediation. Until yesterday, she had lived in a House Arinniti freehold in Minnesota's Great Lakes region thus her desire for the 'Training Wheels' period.The Regency would not rule through telecommunication (the upper echelons feared being eavesdropped upon beyond the standard Amazon (read: paranoid) levels) and Havenstone: New York was the center best situated for the current war-fighting operations, so here she lived. I was sure a team from Executive Services was buying, outfitting/spy-proofing and fortifying a dwelling suitable for the President of a Fortune 500 company. Hayden's home would remain the domicile of Sydney thus Marilynn.The same rigmarole would be done for Rhada and Buffy (though I imaged Buffy would bitch endlessly). Publically, they were VP's of a company worth hundreds of billions of dollars and they had to present the public trappings of such leaders.Why did the Amazons do this ~ unmask their leadership to public exposure? Legal-simple: they could request and expect all levels of public and private security for their executives who happened to also be important officials of the Host. Certainly not all executives at Havenstone were officeholders, House Heads, or House Apprentices, but the high level of competence which permitted one often led to the other.Beyonce:As an example: Beyoncé wasn't the most 'bad-ass' lethal chick in House Hanwasuit. As she was preparing to be casted, her intelligence, creativity and diligence at her future craft, finances, was noted by the Host and the members of her House. In due time her name was circulated as Apprentice and the elders approved. When her elder cousin, the prior House Head, took herself to the cliffs, Beyoncé assumed the top spot. Beyoncé wasn't even one of that woman's three daughters.Mirroring her advancement in her House was her advancement in Havenstone's Accounting, Acquisitions and Banking Divisions until she was appointed CFO Havenstone HQ ~ the supreme financial authority inside Havenstone, though the individual regional branches had a greater degree of autonomy than you might normally expect from a 21st century conglomerate, or a Bronze Age autocracy.I had to constantly remind myself, despite the near-constant feuding, Amazons exhibited a phenomenally higher level of trust than I'd ever found in any other society I'd ever witnessed, or read about, before. Though technically Beyoncé could have gone to President Hayden to enforce her decisions ~ or now the Regency ~ she was far more diplomatic in her approach in dealing with the other 'continental' CEO's and CFO's.That meant she had to wrangle the aspirations and resources from:North America (including Latin America, the 'Canadian Arctic' and the North Pacific Ocean),South America (includes both the South Atlantic and South Pacific as far as Samoa),Europe (mostly Central Europe these days plus Antarctica, the 'Russian' Arctic and the North Atlantic),Africa (mostly West-central Africa),India (the subcontinent plus the vast expanse of the Indian Ocean) and,Southeast Asia (which includes Australia)All of which suggested Havenstone hadn't redrawn the Amazons' geographic demarcations since the late 19th century. As an example, an East African venture, say in Tanzania, was as likely to be under the purview of Havenstone: India (due to its control over the Indian Ocean) as Havenstone: Africa (which traditionally had no East Coast holdings due to their constant struggles versus the Arabic slave trade).Returning to Beyoncé: initially she had held the proper 'conservative' (aka man-hating) mindset. My behavior during that first Board Meeting began to change her opinion of me and the New Directive. After the Archery Range incident, Beyoncé became a vocal proponent of the New Directive and faced challenges within her ranks. House Heads do not have to accept challenges and Beyoncé didn't, reasoning with her detractors they had no alternatives save the 'Old Ways' which spelled doom for the Amazon Race.Bing-bang-boom ~ I became the Head of a resurrected House Ishara by the Will of the Ancestors and Beyoncé was vindicated. Not necessarily in the New Directive, but in her support of me thus the rebirth of a sister First House. The purge following High Priestess' Hayden's death was her ultimate absolution. The Ancestors and Destiny had spoken and shown Beyoncé had been piloting House Hanwasuit along the proper course all along.Back to my current circumstances:Oh, why was I Assistant to the Executive Director to the President? It gave me direct access to the finances of Havenstone which was a critical leg of the war-fighting stool ~ people, morale, money and equipment. As Chief Diplomat, I helped with all four of those in varying degrees, allied troops, allied victories, allied bank accounts and allied armaments.The Great Khan, my spiritual 'Blood-Brother', was ramping up his logistic support for my Amazons in Africa, Asia and the Americas. We were 'Allies in the Struggle' and he wasn't going to wait for the Condottieri to begin coordinating with the Seven Pillars to declare them to be his enemies. They were already fighting the Amazons and 9 Clans, his allies, so their fates were sealed.In Japan, my Amazons provided small yet highly effective strike groups which the Ninja families furnished all the support services for. Everything from food to bullets to medical attention as needed. Without reservation, we shared their death-grapple with the Seven Pillars.From the dispatches I was getting back from my family members and envoys in Japan, we were making serious diplomatic inroads with the Ninja. Once again, it was the Amazons shocking capacity for violence as well as their fanaticism, professionalism and proficiency which all impressed our hosts and terrified our enemies, and this from people of a philosophical mindset which had them historically battling samurai.The Black Lotus were running around like rhesus monkeys on crack cocaine unleashed in a China Shop and given RPG's. While the Amazons couldn't help them in China, Indochina & Thailand ~ the Khanate could and was. The Amazons were of more help in the Philippines, Malaysia and Indonesia, where the Black Lotus and Amazons were going everywhere on the offensive against the Seven Pillars while the normal tight cohesion and iron-clad confidence, traits which made the 7P's so dangerous ~ were shaken by their horrendous losses in the 'Homeland' aka Mainland China.Less we forget, the 'military intelligence' wing of their organization had been decimated by the Khanate's Anthrax attack due to members of the Earth & Sky sacrificing themselves by being injected with the toxin then allowing themselves to be captured, which always ended in torture and death.Furthermore, the People's Republic of China, while having a scary 18% of the population either captured, imprisoned, dead, or displaced due to the Khanate invasion, that had come with the loss of 63% of their landmass (they had lost all of Nei Mongol, Ningxia & Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Regions, Qinghai and Gansu as well as 90% of Yunnan, 80% of Sichuan and 20% of Shaanxi provinces) to the Khanate and the 'abomination' that was a free Tibet.Then came the Russian 'stab in the back' which entailed the loss of another 10% of their people falling under foreign dominion as well as losing 8% of their most industrialized territory, Manchuria (Heilongjiang, Jilin and Liaoning provinces ~ the Nei Mongol portion of 'Manchuria' was in the Khanate's greedy clutches, from the viewpoint of a Seven P's warrior).Don't get me wrong, they weren't about to throw in the towel. If anything, they were becoming more dedicated to trying harder, digging deep into their knowledge of every atrocity, inhumanity and perversion now deemed necessary to re-chart history back onto its 'correct' path. It was this willingness to act in an even greater sociopathic manner which was being used against them. After all, the 7P's had plenty of proxy allies, who were starting to get really nervous about what their paymasters were now asking them to do,We Amazons were getting some extra special help too. The Booth-gan (Do not call them Thuggee ~ the confederate 9 Clan member based out of India though long since ensconced within various Hindi enclaves across the Globe) had created an all-female group of ultra-fanatical Kali-devotees ~ a gift for the upcoming battle fomented by the Will of the Goddess herself.While Aya was our Queen and the Regency would rule until she wished to assume command of the Amazon People, the nuts-and-bolts of the Host's activities were handled by Saint Marie as Golden Mare (our Minister of War) (technically she held the top spot due to our State of War, though no Golden Mare had ever exercised such authority over a Queen (and she definitely believed Aya was our Queen)), Katrina (as Minister of Intelligence and Security), Beyoncé (as Havenstone (the multinational corporation) ~ our Treasurer/Economic Tsarina) and me (our Foreign Minister).Saint Marie had decided to forgo a public face in order to better facilitate her moving around to various battle fronts and holding clandestine meetings with her junior regional commanders. Her Havenstone corporate title was 'Chief of Security Training and Certification'. As an extra level of deception, the head of Security Services wasn't even a Director-level position, instead being folded into the duties of the Office of the President.To my current circumstances ~ I had been given Constanza's house name which could only mean she wasn't currently assigned to the Security Detail; a fact that couldn't have made her bad attitude any better. Marilynn had completely lost her way as an Amazon when I first met her, burying her pain and confusion in endless partying and intoxicants. I believed only her grandmother's status as High Priestess kept her from the severest of reprimands, or death. I didn't even know what Marilynn's caste was. Sabia,"While I'm sure you are both far more qualified than I, precisely how did you two get these jobs?" I had to ask my two non-coworkers. Constanza glowered. Marilynn flinched."I have an in depth knowledge of Havenstone security procedures and resources," Constanza replied."Shawnee requested me," was Marilynn's comeback. "I also have intimate knowledge of the City of New York and its environs.""Actually, Buffy Ishara recommended you both to Shawnee," Beyoncé corrected their misconceptions. I knew the score. I'd be working intimately with the tight community around the President (Shawnee) and Vice Presidents (Buffy & Rhada). Buffy wanted me to be surrounded by women who hated my guts, so I wouldn't end up boinking them. It rarely worked that way. All too often ladies who hated my still-beating heart ended up punishing me with sex. I wasn't sure why that happened, but it did."Beyoncé, didn't the Chief Diplomat of the Host have her own office? I'm pretty sure Troika had one before her unfortunate collision with Saint Marie," I felt entitled to inquire."Do you feel you've earned that office space?" she riposted."Oh, fuck no!" I waved my hands one over the other to accentuate my denial. "I was just wondering where I could stick Juanita while I'm hanging around, here.""She has the desk right outside the door, Cáel," Beyoncé smiled knowingly. "So there is no way you can sneak past her.""Oh," I grunted. "Buffy again?""No. Pamela Pile put in that particular request.""Oh, Sweet Mother of God, now she is conspiring against me too?""Yes. Some of us realize the greatest hazard to your health is yourself, Ishara," Beyoncé chided me. "We'd like to keep you around, so we listen to those charged with that nigh impossible task.""Is she going to be hanging around the office often?" Constanza asked, either myself, Juanita, or Beyoncé; I wasn't sure. She = Pamela."Please, Constanza," I attempted to intervene, "don't make Pamela kill you. It will upset Mona." Constanza's scowl was accentuated by the eyepatch covering her ruined left socket, the one Pamela had carved out when Constanza had insulted me and House Ishara on our first day of rebirth. I didn't tell Juanita this, because Juanita might just shoot Constanza over the insult before Pamela got a chance to finish the job.The tension was palatable."Mona and I have talked, about Romania, and other things," Constanza grudgingly allowed. It took me a second to realize there was a hidden meaning to what she said. Mona was part of my personal Security Detail bodyguard unit. If she felt Constanza, the woman who had raised her after her birth-mother had died, was a threat to me, she'd feel duty-bound to snuff Constanza first. Amazons were hard-ass bitches alright and I think Mona had made that clear."I hope things can improve between us," I offered to Constanza. "Beyoncé, I just stopped in to say 'hey'. I'm off to JIKIT and I've got three of the Pope's people waiting on me in the garage so,""Vice President Varma requested a moment of your time," Beyoncé smirked. "She is in 2604.""Who?""Vice President Rhada Varma, a moment of your time, alone?" she clarified."Sure thing," I backed out of the office. Once I had some space, I turned to Juanita. "Give me three minutes then bust in and say, I don't know, a tsunami is about to overwhelm the city, or something. Otherwise, I won't get out for at least an hour and I think I've put the Bishop and his people through enough delays as it is.""Are you actually asking me to stop you from having an in-office liaison?" she studied me intently as we walked in the direction of Rhada's office."Yes. It's not likely to happen often, believe me.""Oh, I do, in that you won't ask me to do it often," she grumbled. I'd deal with Juanita's morale problem later. Right now, I had to gird my loins so they wouldn't do anything else with Rhada. I had work to do, damn it!Rhada was sitting at her desk, working on something, stylus raised up so she could chew on the end. Her hair was pulled back in a half-ponytail, the type that captured the rear half of the hair in a ponytail while leaving the front and bangs free to flow down. Rhada's blouse was white & billowy and, as I was soon to discover, her pants were ultra-tight and contour hugging."Mr. Nyilas," she greeted me. "I would like a moment of your time," she relayed what I already knew. She was more than a tad nervous to boot."Vice President Varma," I started off."When in private you may call me Rhada," she interrupted."Rhada, you look more ravishing than ever."That got up her and coming around her desk, which revealed her ultra-tight pants with no sign of her wearing underwear. Yikes! My cock was preparing to do what a cock was meant to do and I just didn't have the time, Really!"Do you have any time?" she let her bosom heave."Not today, ugh," I groaned. See, Rhada took the stylus and dragged it down her chin, throat and in between her bountiful mounds.All of which exposed the top of her black bra."Are you sure, Master?" she enticed me by turning around and then leaning over her desk, point that ass in my direction. My mouth began salivating and my groin ached. I found myself quick-stepping to her and giving those buttocks two firm slaps, one on each cheek."No, damn it, though I'm going to make you pay for this when I get back," I rumbled."Master will make me wait?" she taunted me."That will cost you even more," I growled. "I have business which simply won't wait and here is my captive teasing me with the treasures of her flesh. Bad, war captive," I spanked her yet again, hard. "Bad!" and I spanked her a fourth time. With each beating, Rhada gasped in pain and then exhaled in pleasure."If I've been bad, Master must be extra harsh with me when he returns in triumph from the Great Hunt," she gloated. Rhada had gotten what she wanted, which was another affirmation of my lust for her and our 'game'. I could provide her the release she so desperately craved while allowing her the safety of remaining in the Amazon fold. It was a perfect pairing, for her.I had other problems, such as all the other baby mamas in my life plus the extra-marital affairs I was contemplating. I still took the moments we had to snuggle with Rhada, her grinding that tush into my rod while I held both her arms tightly to her side while raining kisses down onto her neck and head."Sir! A giant tsunami is approaching the city!" Juanita exploded through the door."What?" I coughed. I had a face full of hair."Huh?" Rhada pushed up and away from me. I let her go."Right now," Juanita insisted. She really needed to stop taking me so seriously when I gave her such advice."Really?" from Rhada. She shot me a curious look so I shrugged. What else was I supposed to do with such a flimsy lie forcing our separation? At least I got out of there on time?{9:50 am, Monday, September 8th ~ Last day}(JKIT HQ)"Is this a common occurrence?" Sister Rafaela Sophia whispered to the closest woman, who happened to be Wiesława, the Polish Amazon. Since she hadn't arrived with us from Havenstone, the nun might have assumed she was with the 'Americans', or British."What?" Wiesława responded evenly."Weapons combat, they look real," the nun clarified."They are real. We always practice with real weapons.""Really?""Of course," Wiesława smiled at her. "We believe a few cuts and scrapes now will save lives when the true tests come.""Oh, you are with, Havenstone?" Rafaela clued in."Yes. I am Wiesława of House Živa. I am currently assigned to Unit L, Cáel's unit within JIKIT," she offered her hand to shake. Despite being a full-blooded Amazon from a freehold, her 'human' skills were progressing nicely. The nun shook it."I am Sister Rafaela Sophia of the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, that is a Roman Catholic Religious Order." Pause. "Do you hate Catholics too?""Yes. We have lived beside your people for many centuries and found your clergy to be much more dangerous than your pagan predecessors. Still, Cáel thinks you can be relied on and he's proven we can trust outsider women, which I was raised to believe was unlikely, and outsider men, which was basically anathema, so I'm willing to set aside my prejudices and judge you as an individual," the Pole imparted."Outsider men?" Rafaela mumbled."Well, yes," Wiesława smirked. "You are a nun, right?""Yes.""So you set aside the World of Men to live mostly among women, right?""Not entirely," the nun chose her words carefully. "We still rely on priests for religious rights and of course obey the life teachings of Christ and follow the leadership of his Holiness, the Pope, a man.""No one is perfect," the Amazon bantered back."Do you know the teachings of our Lord, Jesus Christ?" Rafaela ventured into dangerous waters."Yes. He was the semi-historical Son of your supposed One True God. We are not monotheists. We are Polytheists. Živa is my House's matron Goddess. It is also the name of the first woman to lead the House, her birth name surrendered to Destiny so all the daughters who came afterwards would be equals.""Oh, is Mr. Nyilas also pagan?" she inquired."I am unsure. From what I have been told, he has commended the spirit of his fallen father to your Jesus in a sacred ceremony then, in the presence of your Trinity and the Goddess Ishara, brought in new members to his House. I suspect he may be both," Wiesława reasoned. "Why don't you ask him?""Because he's fighting for his life?" Rafaela looked my way.See, the entire time their discussion had been going on, I had been sparring in a spare room at JIKIT HQ with Estere Abed, the Hashashin assassin (rather redundant ~ like saying the Sahara Desert). I had two tomahawks while she had a scimitar and curved dagger. While we sparred using the furniture as obstacles, Agent-86 was briefing me on various World events to get my input.Addison Stuart (CIA) and Lady Fathom Worthington-Burke (MI-6) were having a chat with Bishop Nicolé de Santis, verifying for themselves he was worth adding to the team. Juanita was having a similar discussion with Rikki Martin (US State Department) concerning my earlier encounter with the Papal team. Nicolé's buddy, Wachtmeister Mathias Bosshart of the Swiss Guard, was getting acquainted with the other security personnel.In comparison, those two had it easy. Both men were in their elements. Nicolé was a spook who pretended to be a diplomat for the Pope and was well acquainted with terms like 'deniable assets', 'plausible deniability' and your direct superior referring to requests concerning your identity/diplomatic status by saying 'I never heard of him and if I had, I have no idea what he was doing when you caught him doing what I don't know what he was doing', or something like that.Mathias was in the company of military-security specialists, brother professionals who were introducing him to his 'sister' professionals. Our Homeland Security gang were almost entirely former military by now. They got along with our JSOC folks and both had gained a limited acceptance with the Amazon security contingent.They bonded over the fact they were forced to work with really shady characters ~ the 9 Clans menagerie ~ who didn't always appreciate JIKIT operational security. Without going into particulars, the Wachtmeister was given the impression the abnormal was the norm and if you didn't think there was a 'down-side' to being able to carry your personally favorite bang-bang (the SG 552-2P Commando in his case) with some serious attachments (read: grenade launcher) around in downtown Manhattan, you probably didn't belong on this team.Back in the room,"He's not fighting for his life," Estere laughed. "He is fighting for mine.""Right," I responded sarcastically. We went through a flurry of exchanges, ending up with me kicking a chair at her. Estere stepped over it, colliding with me.I blocked her dagger, disarmed her scimitar and,"You are dead," she panted down at me, smiling. I was on my back, her straddling me. She had a belt-knife to my throat. I hadn't see her draw it. The scimitar 'disarm' had been a distraction."Woot!" I exhaled."But you're dead," Sister Rafaela misunderstood my good humor."He survived a minute and thirty-four seconds more today than his previous record," Estere responded. She slithered off of me, doing my arousal no good whatsoever, then offered me a hand up."And that's better?""He's a rank amateur with a few months on the job. I've been training to kill people for nearly two decades," Estere smiled. "Care to have a go?""With him, or you?""Either," Estere offered."I don't have a knife, or any hand weapons," she stated."We'll need to remedy that," Wiesława stated. "You should at least carry a knife.""Really? Why?""It is a nearly universal tool," I verbally stepped up. "Even if you are disarmed, you should be able to find one relatively easily, people are less likely to miss a stolen knife than a purloined gun, and a concealed blade could come in handy.""Do you train in knife-work?" Rafaela eye-balled me."Absolutely. It is part of my culture," I grinned."Okay. Can we spar, hand-to-hand?""Sure," I nodded. I put my tomahawks in their harnesses then put my harnesses aside. Estere gave me a wink before giving us the fighting space."So," Rafaela began to circle, "are you Christian?""By your definition, or mine?""By the definition of the Catholic Church."Oh cool, she went for a Savate stance. This was going to get ugly.My "no," was followed by her kick and my block, lunge and grapple. She wasn't nearly as good as Felix. I had her down and in a choke hold within fifteen seconds.Perhaps she thought I'd take it easy on her. She tapped out. I released her, retreated and flowed back to my boxing stance. It took her a moment to realize this was 'practice', not 'an interview'. She hadn't failed in anyone's eyes. We were both doing this to get better."See, I really, truly believe I have talked to supernatural entities ~ some who are considered divinities," I continued. This time she was more careful, trading jabs and blocks with me. "They don't claim to be the One True God. I believe in such a thing, but I also believe having been given the Message, Humanity has been left to muddle things out for ourselves."Whoops, she popped me one."The Woman-Thing this morning?""Yep," I evaded another flurry. She got cocky and I landed three blows, dropping her to the ground. I didn't help her up. Instead, I withdrew and let her get back up on her own before deciding if she wanted to continue. She did."I believe I've seen dragons and ghosts. I have felt legions of my ancestors give me quiet encouragement when I needed it. I know the dead have been brought back to life," I came at her. This time we both went for body blows, knees, elbows and fists. She was not SD-caliber and she needed to be. I grappled and she was forced to tap out again. After she regained her feet, she held up a hand for a pause."Do you believe any of that?" she addressed Estere."I am an adherent of Ismaili Islam yet nothing Cáel has encountered is contrary to my belief system. The Universe is a complex place and the Divine Light is often seen through a fractured lenses," she counseled the nun."Among the escapees were lawyer Francisco Luemba, Catholic Priest Raul Tati, economist Belchior Lanso Tati and former policeman Benjamin Fuca who are serving jail sentences of between three and six years each for supposed links to the rebel group FLEC (Frente para a Libertaé'o do Enclave de Cabinda), which carried out the attack on the Togolese football team at the start of the Africa Cup of Nations in January, 2010," Agent-86 read off yet another bit of global minutia."We need to get to them," I half turned. Sister Rafaela punched me in the gut and I folded up."Oh!" she gasped. "I'm sorry.""Okay," I mumbled. I had to keep with the plan. "Those men. We need to contact our Coils people in Kinshasa and the Warden of the Mountain Ways ('she' was the Amazon Host's leader of Africa ~ in the ancient times, the mountain ways had been the routes of southern vulnerability for the Amazon tribe thus the name).""Okay," both Agent-86 and Estere answered."Why?" 86 added."The Coils and the Host have had a serious problem with no nation in Africa giving them even back room recognition so we are going to take over our own country, Cabinda. It's been struggling to be free of Angola since 1975 and, by latest estimates, we've got strike elements of over 2,000 Amazons ready and waiting next door in Cameroon, Gabon and the Republic of Congo.""So you are going to go to war with Angola?" Estere frowned. "Don't we have enough enemies?""Au contraire," I grinned wickedly. "The resistance movement is genuine," I ticked off my points, "they have tons of offshore oil, and after we set off some spectacular explosions in the two main Angolan ports which are just down the coast, we allow global panic to bully the UN into intervening before the Angolan military launch an effective counter-offensive ~ considering the Angolan Armed Forces (I'd been reading up on a ton of CIA & MI-6 briefings) will most likely involve attrition warfare since they can't beat us in a stand-up fight.""They, the Angolans, have no overland access, they are separated by 60 kilometers of territory belonging to the Democratic Republic of Congo over some sad ass roads Plus the Congo River itself which is freaking huge by the time it gets that close to the Atlantic, Cabinda rests on the Atlantic Ocean by the way. No bridges. The Angolan Navy is anemic. Let me think."I began pacing."Hmm, they have no paratroopers though they have some Special Forces, we will need to hit as many of them in the barracks as we can. Their last invasion was from the north, overland, from the Republic of the Congo, in 1975, not likely to happen this time, though I may have my 'Brother' weasel up a battalion of Indian paratroopers to act as convincing peacekeepers after the initial take over.""Perhaps we can recruit some Vietnamese. I'm sure they'll love fighting in someone else's jungle for a change. We'll need some of 'our' guys to seize the port of Soyo, it is on the wrong side of the river, but has the major refinery the Cabindans will need. Since the entire surrounding province are the same ethnic make-up as the Cabindans, we'll have to take that too.""Man-o-man, I bet by the time this is over they'll really wish they'd given little Cabinda independence back in 1975. As for their other refinery, it is in their capital, Luanda, a few big explosions there too will get the markets jittery. Check that ~ the complete and utter destruction of their major petroleum facility will create a stampede for Peace," I continued. I walked over as our resident computer intelligence genius worked his magic."Blowing things up, you mean killing people," the nun blanched."Yes. This is what I do," I spared her a sympathetic glance. "I've got a madman roaming around in my head who provides me truly epic military advice which normally, but not always, means blowing shit up and killing folks. Welcome to the team," then as the data appeared, "Holy Shit! Did they build their oil refinery in the midst of their ghetto?" I was staggered. The refinery in Soyo was isolated from the town so it could be easily (and safely) seized. It was the one in Luanda which was the 'Holy Shit' site."It looks that way," Agent-86 agreed nonplussed. "Hmm, yeah, here is the port facility then your neighborhood of shoddily constructed one- and two-story dwellings between the refinery and the inland storage tanks, the perimeter barrier appears to be a chain link fence. I'd hate to be their Chief of Security.""Oh yeah," I choked. Estere slipped around to get a look."Whoops," she snorted."What are these people thinking?" I continued. "The whole shebang is exposed to the northern quarter of the city. The storage tanks have residential dwellings on all four sides with numerous side streets. Two teams with RPGs and four rounds apiece, Holy Crap. Sorry Sister.""But I want to save lives," she sputtered."Limiting the collateral damage could be pretty tough," Estere frowned. She toggled throw a series of maps to multiple pictures."Oh, look (dripping sarcasm); they light up the refinery at night. You can sit off the coast in a speed boat under cover of darkness and attack from there," she noted."Damn. Those are a lot of lights," Agent-86 agreed."24-7 operation," I suspected."We will need some experts," the government agent nodded."Or we are going to kill a fuck-load of innocent people. Not just the workers, but can you imagine a fire spreading to those neighborhoods? Shit," I muttered."You can't seriously be contemplating doing something like this," the nun sputtered. "It is inhumane. Think of the families, the children.""Lady, yes I am. Do you have any idea what the Human Rights record of the Angolan Army in Cabinda is? It is truly horrific and in case you missed it, one of the guys in dire need of rescuing by me, due to him being a huge rebel leader who has managed to escape, is also a Catholic priest. He's going to be part of the new government we are going to install once we kill a few hundred Angolans ~ mostly soldiers (more like well over a thousand).""We are going to kill a few hundred so a few hundred thousand can live free, democratic lives without worrying about the local police and political establishment torturing and murdering them. It is all part of the plan.""I think I need to talk with the Bishop.""Hang on. Let me finish," I forestalled her. "He'll get briefed along with everyone else. After all, it is a majority Roman Catholic country as is Angola, so I'm sure your guy can be of immense help.""The people you are putting at risk don't deserve this," she protested."They never do," I nodded in agreement with her. "It rarely stops terrible crap from happening to them though."I felt sorry for the Sister. She thought the Bishop was going to put a stop to this. Poor girl; he was going to do the exact opposite. See, the two competing forces at play here were a communistic kleptocracy (currently ruling Angola) and Catholic liberation theology united with a Cabindan national identity dating back to 1885. At stake was 900,000 barrels a day of petroleum. That was a bunch of funding for somebody. Last I checked, the state run energy conglomerate had misplaced $32 billion, in just three years.Mind you, the Coils of the Serpent and the Amazon Host didn't want to help the People of Cabinda out of the goodness of their hearts either. They wanted cover for the importation of weapons and other war-fighting material so they could kill the Condottieri in Africa. If the rebel leaders-turned-legitimate government didn't play ball well, the Coils were in the 'assassinating people' business and somewhere along the line the survivors would figure out keeping 'us' happy kept them alive. Problem solved.It was Bishop Nicolé de Santis' job to facilitate that understanding. If certain people with Vatican credentials explained the 'facts of life' to the new regime a lot more lives could be saved, Catholic lives. In turn, he could work to make sure the new group in power wasn't nearly as corrupt as the gang we were tossing out. Better education and quality of life, improved infrastructure & security and a nice shiny cathedral, or two.We, as in JIKIT and our component members, didn't want to rule the country and dominate the people's lives. We needed the ports and the airfields with a blind eye turned to our skullduggery. Sure, there would be future considerations. Amazons and Coil members would be fighting and dying for these people's freedom ~ public recognition definitely not required. No; the Amazons wanted to be left alone in their deep jungle homes which was an isolation they basically already had. This was a future chit which said 'don't come looking'.The Coils? Let's just say in the future Cabinda would have embassies around the globe and if occasionally they wanted someone to slip through under diplomatic cover ~ they were good for it. And if the Cabindans ever needed help in the future they knew they had friends in dark places who were now invested in Cabinda's survival. It was a win-win-win, unless you were an Angolan big-wig, or one of their foot-soldier currently serving in Cabinda. Amazons weren't big on taking prisoners, or even giving the opposition the option of giving up.For me, it wasn't lunch yet and here I was plotting to overthrow yet another government in yet another country ~ though in only two, small provinces this time. Thank the Goddess I had the rest of the week

Guardian Goddess in Manhattan.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels."Our Princess grew up around a woman whose keen intellect we rely on to protect us from unseen enemies," Saint Marie's voice became deeper and more threatening. "At the age of ten, she," Saint Marie looked my way as my hand shot up mimicking Aya's identical plea for attention."Yes Ishara?" Saint Marie chose to acknowledge me."She's nine.""Fine. At the age of nine, she earned an honorific, Mamētu me eda, which I didn't accomplish until my 19th year." 'Yes Ladies, I'm an epic bad-ass and I've been out-performed by a child'."She was kidnapped along with the Head of House Ishara. They tortured her by clipping off two of her digits, one at a time, then seared the damage with a blowtorch. She gave them nothing. At the end of the encounter, the two of them managed to defeat thirty Seven Pillar's commandos, over fifteen she disabled personally.""After killing nearly half as many enemies as the 35 I have personally dispatched in my entire career, she crossed a mile and a half of barren rock in the midst of a Category 4 Typhoon. Cáel Ishara only helped her half of the way because he was engaged with the last two members of the Seven Pillar's team.""I have utter confidence the madness here today, while assisted by House Epona and Ishara, was the brainchild of Krasimira. I say 'assisted' because Cáel Ishara spared Kwenhamai's life on the battlefield. Katrina Epona removed Kwenhamai from Romanian custody to keep her out of the hands of those who wished us harm. I was aware Kwenhamai was in New York, but not her precise location.""My read on the situation is this:"Aya of Kururiyahhssi was aware of Kwenhamai and Krasimira's plot to adopt her into the bloodline of the first Amazon.""She was not aware of Kwenhamai's plan to exit the Host in the manner she chose. I read the shock and pain in, Aya's face.""Our Princess has not given me a single order and I am the only voice here today that matters, I am the Golden Mare and the Council has consistently failed to agree on a Regency.""Krasimira, why have you done this?" Saint Marie abruptly asked for either a denial, or acquiescence of her perception of events."As directed by the Ancestors, the statute of a goddess of a First House was recast then returned to her perpetual spot. It brought new light to a dark, sacred and painful place. In that moment I realized that for the first time in nearly 3,200 years, the descendants of every Amazon gathered before the walls of Wilusa (Troy) had been reunited.""I was troubled. Was this a portent the augurs couldn't divine? In their council (the augurs) then came up with the words 'speak to our eldest'."Oh shit, the rest of the Council was racking their minds trying to figure who was the oldest surviving Amazon. I knew for a fact they were overlooking the two top candidates."I sought out the eldest Amazon alive. They claimed to not have the answer for my worries. She had far more numerous things weighing on her mind such as her intimate demise. Though I hated sharing the same air with her, I asked her to tell me her greatest regret.""I had given up on the Amazon Race until an Amazon reminded me, through martial effort, valiant spirit and a kind heart, I was wrong to abandon my faith with my people. Now I will die, unable to pass on my renewed hope because the one Amazon I would trust with my legacy is equally childless.""I asked her the name of this Amazon she felt was worthy of her legacy. Then I informed her she was wrong and the Amazon in question did indeed have a daughter. She asked to meet the daughter,""Last night I requested the presence of a female child residing with members of House Epona," the Keeper of Records looked up at the Golden Mare. "I provided neither the resident female (Caitlyn, Aya's Mother), or the House Head with an explanation."Female childSince my revival, Amazons were using 'female' child a lot more often. This meant, the motheer had never told her daughter farewell. The true fate of Aya of Epona would never officially be recorded. She has been born, but never recorded as an Amazon of her true House."The three of us met alone. The two embraced; birth mother and daughter. The eldest of us proclaimed she saw the light of Kururiyahhssi in her daughter's eyes. Words were exchanged. The child agreed to be adopted then departed. Further arrangements were made without the child's knowledge as we have recently observed.""I testify that there is only one Amazon alive today who knows what transpired and I will take those conversations to my grave. Does that suffice?" Krasimira finished. I was already regurgitating my mental quandary with my Isharans. Was Aya really a daughter of Kururiyahhssi?"I will leave it to the others to contemplate your, bizarre actions, Krasimira," Saint Marie frowned. "As for the rest of you, Aya has impressed me. If she has not impressed you, I do not care. I think she is definitely influenced by those two," Saint Marie motioned to Katrina and me. "It is a given since Katrina was of her blood and she has risked much in the presence of a man she calls 'Atta' and he calls 'Duma'.""Katrina is a cold, heartless snake and I am convinced she is one of the best 'First Bearer of the Sun Spear through the Halls of Night and Death' the Host been served by in a long, long time.” Saint Marie paused then looked at me while she said; “ Cáel is a fool who leads with his heart when he should let better women take charge. Fortunately for the rest of us, he is reliably successful despite his multitude of handicaps."Was I upset about being insulted? No. The truth hurts and a Man needs to learn to roll with the punches. Buffy I could deal with. Katrina most likely appreciated being associated with a dangerous reptile. Saint Marie hadn't forgotten Katrina threating Saint Marie's daughter that was for sure."I am considering much of what our Princess would like me/us to do, because it is based in keen insight and well-reasoned thought. She wishes to spare our sons so we will have more warriors in the fight. We have already added men to Havenstone and one to the Council, as was the Will of the Ancestors.""Let me see, she wishes a bodyguard of fourteen (2 First House and 1 from Africa, Asia, Europe and North & South America, the Amazon presence in Australia was minimal and I doubted they would bring someone up from Antarctica, plus the seven matching Runners) without removing permanent members of any House and allowing all Houses to have access to our future Queen. I approve. It is a fine idea and I wish I had thought of it.""Should we add Runners directly into the Royal House? She doesn't think so and I feel this decision shows a remarkably insightful into the long history of our People and protects the Council's sensitivity on such matters. I approve.""Placing our sons into the care of the Royal House? We need to free up as many sisters as possible. Men under the care of the Royal House will be tradesmen and help-mates. Not a single weapon will be in their hands. If none of you have realized herlike will take two decades to implement, it only increases my eagerness to see her become 'casted'."Aya's hand shot up again.Yes?""I would hope the Council, or the Regents, will consider a 'like' which is not mine. It is a man's and it should be of no surprise the idea is Cáel's.""If you feel it holds merit, Aya, tell us," Saint Marie deferred."The 9 Clans have shown some interest in a children exchange programs among our youth as it would provide new techniques we can add to our arsenal an a new avenue to experiment with new ideas. I find the idea to be promising as the Host takes part in affairs beyond our own immediate needs. It would also supply partners between families to be shared for a season or two."Translation: Amazon women could breed with men of allied Secret Societies to reduce our dependence on our own, much smaller, male population. In the short term, it would go a long way to rectifying the Host's child-bearing problems.The Council's quarrelsome behavior was biting them in the ass big time. Saint Marie was right, the only opinion that mattered was hers until the Council elected a Regency. Had we not been at war, the Council would have ruled, but we were, so we took orders from the Golden Mare. Even if the High Priestess had been alive, she would have deferred to our designated War Leader on most things."Cáel Ish, Cáel Wakko Ishara is a very dangerous and devious male, Aya. Be careful of any council he gives," Saint Marie's caution was more playful than menacing."I'll be okay," Aya peeped. "He doesn't have sex with any woman until she is eighteen." That wasn't what the Golden Mare was cautioning her about. We all knew it. Aya was working to defuse a sticky bit of mental juggling, listening to a man's advice."On that we can agree," Saint Marie conceded. "Back to what I would 'like' to say. The New Directive is being implemented. I feel it goes beyond the purview of my mandate. I will leave it for the Regency to deal with. Katrina and Tessa have already invested in the groundwork in this endeavor, so I will endorse it if that is the decision of the Regency.""I have zero desire to add a single Runner to the Security Detail. I will open up slots in the training program if that is what the Regency demands. Each House's policy for dealing with the First Directive is their business, not mine. If any of you wish to consider something the Princess considers to be important, so be it. The idea of 1,000 Isharans does not appeal to me. Look how much trouble their tiny numbers have already caused us and take heed."Buffy began growling, which amused/worried the Houses on either side of us. Unlike me, Buffy didn't 'roll with the blows' and considered all manner of insults to me, House Ishara and her Isharan sisters to be answerable with violence. I loved her so. There was also no way I'd let her go after Saint Marie. The Golden Mare would crush her; I had no doubt."The unwelcome blood feud: are both House Heads ignorant of my forbiddance of such things? Apparently so. Both defied me by tossing insults back and forth. Considering we are at war with two of the most powerful Secret factions, I am angered by both for their idiocy.""The solution the Princess likes is rather novel," Saint Marie was punishing both Messina and me with her low voice and fiery gaze. Krasimira coughed."Yes?" Saint Marie suspended her anger."The suggested resolution is not without precedence," Krasimira spoke with a scholarly detachment. "In our early days, the Host settled such disputes in Spring and Fall gatherings by contests of foot speed, hunting, horsewomanship, archery and wrestling. If we revive the tradition, the competing Houses could nominate one woman for each contest to settle the matter. Only the hand-to-hand match would risk either contestant's health.""I will consider it and render judgement before the Sun sets today," Saint Marie nodded. "The final like pleases me greatly. Dealing with the 52 of you is, Cáel?"I was on the spot. I couldn't let down my fan base of one, Aya. Perhaps it was five, Buffy (who would never admit it), Daphne (who liked me), Katrina (because she liked fucking with my head) and Desiree (who was less likely to admit she found me funny than Buffy).I felt I gave a decent effort."'A ginormous pain in my hemorrhoids?' the basic one.""'More painful than having my cornea scrapped with a spoon?' more gruesome.""'Enough to make me want to give Sakuniyas a surprise French kiss?' most likely to be fatal.""'Worse than waking up to discover I'm related to Cáel Wakko Ishara?' most horrifying, for both of us.""'Inspiring me to toss it all away and take up Professional Bikini Mud Wrestling?' a personal fantasy of mine.""Why do we put up with him again?" one House Head remarked."Because I am worried that one," motioning to Buffy, "will stab me in the elevator after a meeting.""My First, are you acting psychotic around the Council members?" I looked over my shoulder at Buffy."Wakko Ishara, it is not an act. I am psychotic," she responded deadpan."Are you still packing that thermite grenade?""No Wakko Ishara. Daphne stole it from me and hid it," was her quick delivery."I love working with you two," Daphne whispered."What is it with you, your unsubtle sexual innuendo and me in a bikini?" Saint Marie stared at me."I find the combination of brilliance and lethality sexy. Just ask Elsa," I grinned. Then I grimaced as Buffy stomped on my toes. The House Heads and Apprentices on either side of me noticed and clearly expected me to do something, like to show outrage (because she was my underling), or start crying (because I was a guy)."Prestige," Daphne hissed quietly. "Prestige." She was reminding Buffy that beating me up in public made the other Amazons think even less of me than they already did."I will go with (B), the cornea scrapping," Saint Marie gave me a nod."Damn it," I muttered. I also got my foot out of the way before someone did any more damage to my phalanges.'Best Daddy Ever,' Aya mouthed to me. Back to the main action."It is not my place to order the rest of you to elect Shawnee, Rhada and Buffy to be the Regency. I do admit I admire the mixture of candidates," Saint Marie declared. I shot Rhada a quick look. She seemed really, really enamored of the idea of being part of the Regency, thus staying in New York for the next decade, or so."Before the idea is rejected out of hand, I suggest we ask the three people our Princess would like to be part of the Regency if they would accept the nomination," the Golden Mare continued. "Shawnee Arinniti?""I bow to the logic and reason of the proposal," Shawnee replied."Rhada Meenakshi?""I wish to join my sisters in battle, yet I accept the reasoning behind the proposal," Rhada nodded. "If my Head of House agrees, I will stay and do my part for our People." What was she saying to me? 'You are going to whip me, beat me, torture me, humiliate me and push me to beyond the limits of any pain I have experienced until I pass out ~ repeatedly'."I despair of finding any other compromise," Mahdi frowned. "If my Apprentice understands the greater difficulty she will face gaining prestige among her House-mates, I will consent to this proposal." Essentially a 'yes'."Buffy Ishara?""I was really looking forward to ripping the spines out of still living foes, but I would be a fool to go against Aya of Kururiyahhssi's smarts. If Wakko Ishara wants to walk out of this room unassisted, he will see the wisdom of this decision as well," she gave me a shark's smile. Daphne had surpassed her limit and punched Buffy."Hell ya, I agree," I exclaimed. "Now I know there will be certain times of the day when she isn't stalking me.""I'll work more pain into our limited schedule," Buffy grumbled."Are we sure he is the House Head and she is the Apprentice?" Yet another House Head joined the 'shit on me' train.It was telling of our group dynamic how we accepted the Pyramid of Pain. The underlings dispensed advice and violence as they felt necessary without their 'superior' getting pissy about it. Buffy felt totally justified hitting me and accepted being hit by Daphne, who continued to act unimpeded as Buffy's rapid-fire translator."If I was House Head, I'd handcuff him to me," Buffy clarified for her."What she said," I pointed a thumb Buffy's way. I'd have used a finger, but she might have grabbed, twisted and made me scream in pain."Perhaps the Council can vote on this as their second order of business," Saint Marie cloaked her command as a suggestion."Cáel Wakko Ishara, can I ask you a personal question?" Kohar of Marda caught my attention."Shoot, wait, probably not the best terminology in this crowd. Ask away," I replied."Have you faced a House challenge yet?""Yes. Just last night in fact. We free-climbed the north-face of Havenstone. I beat the next closest contender by three floors. I also had Princess Aya on the roof dropping bricks on anyone who attempted to get past me.""That means he isn't going to answer you," Beyoncé  interpreted for my audience."Can't you ever take these meetings seriously?" Febe Mielikki glowered."La, Febe, in the past few minutes I have watched the person I love most in the world get her life shat on," I shook my head."The only thing worse than seeing this happen to Aya is knowing this is her sole opportunity to not lose her soul, so I'm sucking up my heart's pain and putting forward a jester's persona so I don't put any more pressure on her than she's already been subjected to. Like me, she doesn't want the distinction of being a Person of Note.""Like me, she knows she must sacrifice her dreams for the sake of our People, the Amazon Host. Trust me, you would rather have 'me, the jester' than 'me, the Amazon' furious with the destiny that has foisted this pain on her'. Do any of you take responsibility for forcing the events of this morning?" I growled. If they wanted to see the other side of the Janus, so be it."Had you chosen a Regency in the fucking weeks you've been bickering, Kwenhamai could have been dealt with privately. The fate of the Royal House could have been put off a few years. Had you not all been so dead-set on being heroines of the Host, three of you would have sacrificed your bloodlust, your birthright and the future accolades you could recite on your final night (before taking themselves to the cliff), but none of you did.""Instead, you set the stage for dumping all of your indecisiveness on the slender shoulders of a nine year old girl most of you had written off as too fractured and frail to survive her 12th year only three months ago. So Febe how do you like the honest 'me'?" I finished off furiously.It was not lost on anyone in the chamber I was an Amazon raging against the cruelty of fate. Every other bitch in the room knew they had discarded my daughter's life as trivial and I was prepared to unleash violence on the next one to show an ounce of disrespect over Aya's surrendering of her destiny and my grief at failing to find a way to stop this from coming to pass. St Marie had just reminded them that I was 'reliably" successful despite my handicaps. Not an enemy anyone in the room wanted any part of. Saku would have been proud.A Note:I have been remiss in informing my readers of the names of the 53 Houses, even though I created it some time ago. I have made a few alterations to the original version as I've had to rethink certain parts of this tale, but here is the list I now use.List of Goddesses:The First Twenty Houses in no particular order :1) Ishara, Oaths, Medicine and War (to North America) (died out 450 CE; Reborn in 2014)2)   (Deceased) Anat, Goddess of War, Fury and Blood Sacrifice (died out 6th cent. BCE) ~ possibly resurrected by Sakunyias3) Anahit, water, wisdom and war (to North America)4) Arinniti, Sun Goddess (to North America)5) Hanwasuit, Sovereign Goddess6) Illuyankamunus, Dragon God (to North America) (Special Case)7) Inara, the Hunter Goddess8)  au ka, fertility, War, healing9) Kamrusepa, Healing medicine magic (to Africa)10) Lelwani, Goddess of the Underworld (to Africa)11) Hapantali, Pastoral Goddess.12) Hatepuna, Sea Goddess (to India)13) Hannahannah, Mother Goddess14) Moirai, Fate15) Selardi, Lunar Goddess (to Africa)16) Nammu, Primordial Sea, sailing, sailors (to India) (to Indonesia)17) Uttu, Goddess of plants (to Africa)18) Lahar, Cattle Goddess (to Africa)19) Ereshkigal, Queen of the underworld (to India)20) Istustaya and Papaya, Twin Goddesses of Destiny (to North America)Additional Houses, founded in Europe:(Code: Sc = Scythian; T = Thracian, P, Phrygian, C = Celtic, R = Roman, Sl = Slavic)21) (Sc) Marda, the One-Eyed Goddess/Vengeance {fantasy creation}22) (Sc) Farānak, A Scythian Goddess also known as the Lynx Goddess and the Silent Huntress (Dora)23) (Sc) Stolgos, Monstrous Slayer of Greeks (known to the Greeks as the Gorgon Stheno) {semi-historical}24) (T) Cotyttia, Thracian Goddess of Sex, War and Slaughter (to North America)25) (T) Bendis, Thracian Goddess of the Moon and Hunting.26) (T) Semele/Rajah, Thracian Goddess of the Earth and Birth (to India)27) (T) Hylonome, Centaur Goddess28) (P) Cybele, Phrygians Earth Goddess on Lion's throne (to the Amazon)29) (C) Andraste, War Goddess; also Goddess of the Moon and Divination; 'the Rabbit Goddess'30) (C) Epona, Horses (to North America)31) (C) Cyhiraeth, Goddess of springs whose war cry precedes death (to Africa)32) (C) Maeve, War Goddess, the Enslaver of Men33)   (Deceased) (C) Nantosuelta, Earth, Fire and Fertility (died out 1st cent. BCE)34) (C) Artio, the Bear Goddess (to North America)35) (C) Nemain, Goddess of War and Panic36) (R) Minerva, Roman Goddess of War & Strategy37)   (Deceased) (R) Diana, Hunting and Archery (died out in India 16th cent. CE)38) (Sl)  iva, Love and Fertility49) (Sl) Morė, Goddess of harvest, witchcraft, winter and death (to North America)40) (Sl) Zorja, The twin Guardians (Evening/Morning Stars)41)   (Sl) Oźwiena, fame and glory (died out in 1944)42)   (Sl) Koliada, Sky Goddess and deity of sunrises/dawn (died out 17th cent CE)43) (F) Mielikki, Goddess of the Hunt44) (N) Ska i, giantess, Goddess of bow-hunting, skiing, winter, and mountainsAdditional Houses, founded in In dia:45) (I) Mookambika, Demon Slayers46) (I) Bhadra, Goddess of the Hunt (to Indonesia)47) (I) Meenakshi, The Liberator (Rhada and Madi's House)48) (I) Durga (Dark Mother) (to Indonesia)49) (I) Chandala Bhikshuki, Queen of Night, Death, Destruction and Rebirth50) (I) Jaya (Goddess of Victory)51)   (I) Chelamma, the Scorpion Queen (died out 16th cent.)Additional Houses, founded in Africa:52) (A) Oshun, (Yoruba Goddess of Love, Sexuality, Beauty and Diplomacy; Lady of the Orisha ~ life spirits)53) (A) Yemonja, Mother of Rivers (to the Amazon)54) (A) Oba, Goddess of Betrayal and Exile55) (A) Ox ssi, Goddess of Hunting, Forests, Animals and Wealth56) (A) Jengu, Goddess of Jungles and Water SpiritsAdditional Houses: founded in North America(NT = Native Tribal)57) (NT) Uusheenhiton (noo'uusooo' heeninouhuusei hitoniho') (Arapaho), Storm Horse Sister {fantasy creation}58) (NT) Gahe, Apache (supernatural spirits who live in the mountains)Prospective House:59) New, (Hittite) SzelAnya, the Dragon's DaughterCurrent Number of Central Houses:12 in North America (9+Ishara from Europe and 2 native)10 in Africa (6 from Europe and 5 native)3 in Amazonia (1 from Africa and 2 from Europe)8 in India (3 from Europe and 7 native)3 in Indonesia (2 from India and 1 from Europe)17 in Europe6 Deceased{7:35 am Sunday, September 7th ~ Last day}Right where we left offMy rage over Aya wasn't called into question or challenged. Practicality had trumped tradition in the inevitable Amazon fashion. The only one elevated in anyone's eyes was Aya. Krasimira's apparent political adventurism was probably hard for the others to deal with. But in context, only Mahdi, Katrina and Saint Marie had seen her denounce Hayden, so this seemed a new side of Krasimira to most people in the room.Krasimira wasn't the spiritual authority, that was Hayden. She wasn't the Generalissimo, that was Saint Marie. Katrina and I were both appointed officials, we retained our House status. Saint Marie would die a member of House Inara and join her ancestors with pride. Her litany of accomplishments were well known to the Host.But Krasimira? She would die a member of House Cybele unheralded. The Keeper of Records recorded the feats of others, not their own. Nearly two generations ago, a young Krasimira had joined the Keeper's House as a guardian to an un-remembered (save by her) augur. The augur passed and she took up other duties within the house.When the old Keeper faced her final months, she elevated Krasimira to her spot. High Priestess Hayden had approved the choice without really knowing who Krasimira was. (No one outside the House of the Keeper had personal bonds with her anymore.) Seamlessly, she had sat in the old Keeper's seat and the Council kept chugging along.For the past eight years, she had sat quietly at Hayden's side and only speaking when addressed. Mostly, she did nothing overt. The actual note-taking was done by an underling. The Keeper took her own private notes squirreled away in her mind, to be written when she was by herself. Those notes would be handed over to her successor, for the Keepers' eyes and theirs alone.I don't think Krasimira knew me in particular when she dutifully followed Hayden into these chambers the day my death, or life in a cage, was bantered about. It was the day we first crossed paths. She would have known of Shawnee's request for the tooth of an Isharan, though she lacked the authority to ask why. (She wasn't a voting member of the Council.)But when Shawnee made her claim, Krasimira hadn't balked in her support, despite the oddity of Shawnee's declarations, I was indeed Ishara and my sisters could not dispose of me. The outrage of the others meant nothing to her. She pursued her obligations with true Amazon fearlessness both inside and outside of the Council.On the night of the 2nd Betrayal, a Keeper had sat there in silence as her fellow Amazons, the Ash Men, were sentenced to an unjust death. She'd had neither the numbers nor the authority to alter events, what else could she have done?So the Keepers kept track of the names of nineteen 'unaccounted for' Ash Men. For what purpose? An episode of Amazon history no one would ever want to revisit? Yet in my hour of need, coming back 2,600 years was the name 'Vranus of Ishara', sitting only a few keystrokes away. No one, save a few Arinniti diehards, wanted to know the truth of the Amazon Ash Men; and even they didn't want to remember us as individuals. To them, Vranus existed as a notation on the secret Charter of the Arinniti Sons.To Krasimira, Vranus had been a living, breathing warrior of the Host, not even dead, still mythically fighting the enemies of our race because his death had never been officially recorded. With my appearance, I stood in mute testimony to his death, and that of his sons and their sons for a damn long time.Still, I hated playing catch-up.With the Amazon custom of adoption, had no one asked if another possible Isharan heritage still persisted?I would bet they had. And I'd bet they had sought for that knowledge in the Rolls of the Host, always finding that pathway devoid of hope. But if the Keeper had known, why had she kept quiet?Pride, shame, Krasimira's words: we show anger when we should show humility. We are proud of our shame. We are arrogant of our weaknesses. We have heaped insult upon insult on our ancestors, yet are now aghast that they turn away from us, I had confused her soliloquy with that of an accusation, not the long held understanding of her office.Even staring extinction in face, the modern Host hadn't truly accepted the answer, the line of Vranus. Faced with the truth, the Amazons would have 'forgotten' the descendants of Vranus all those centuries ago in the same way they 'forgot' all the other Ash Men on the day I was brought into the Host.But the Keepers did something more than maintain the rolls and records of the Amazons, more than watch over the augurs and make sure their messages made it to the proper ears. They safeguarded the truth. No matter what the Council decided and the High Priestess commanded, the Keepers remained honest stewards of the real history of the Amazons.Why?The Amazons were terribly practical and the truth could run contrary to the needs of political reality. Honesty wasn't a highly stressed Amazon virtue, loyalty was. So was bravery. And thus generation after generation of Keepers had lied to the Council and the High Priestesses. Every time those august personages had committed something to 'the nothingness', the Keepers had defied them and not forgotten.The first heads of the first twenty houses had surrendered their names for the unity of their people, but the Keepers remembered. All twenty of those women had been of the Amazon tribe of the Pala people living on the southern coast of the Black Sea when the Trojan Wars began. Over time, their true blood descendants had founded new houses and been adopted into others.Aya was truly a daughter of Kururiyahhssi; I had no doubt of that anymore. Had she not shared the same blood as the first Amazon, Krasimira wouldn't have brought Aya and Kwen together. Resurrecting an ancient tradition in a complicated fallacious coup attempt wasn't in her; nor was such a maneuver even a necessity. The Host would elect a Regency eventually and Saint Marie was handling the war in a highly competent fashion.So Krasimira hadn't sought out the heirs of Vranus, yet when one appeared, she welcomed 'him'. And when she stepped into the President's office with Hayden while waiting for me to be brought upstairs to face judgement that night, I imagined sending Hayden to the cliffs was the farthest thing from her mind.The rest were playing politics, gender politics, and couldn't see the truth staring Krasimira in the face. The truth was a bitch and didn't play favorites, or worry about the sensibilities of others. Krasimira had seen her sisters refusing to acknowledge the ugly reality they had created for themselves.Krasimira wasn't an advocate for Ishara, that was my job, and my crappy performance was something between Dot and me. She wasn't an advocate for the males and the New Directive. That was what Katrina was for. No, like a hundred Keepers before her, Krasimira was the silent sentinel for the Truth and, the Truth didn't care about anything but the Truth."The assassin is indeed in this room. Its name is Amazon was a rather grand pronouncement from the Chief Librarian, wasn't it? Krasimira didn't chastise Hayden. That wasn't her place. Technically, neither was she disputing Hayden's ability to rule.This wasn't the climax of a dinner-theater 'Who Done It'. The crime before the High Priestess was High Treason and I was the pre-ordained guilty party. My 'ally', Katrina Epona, had not been an advocate for my defense. No. Again in my Hour of Need it was Krasimira.Lacking any true authority, she had defied her sisters and made her definitive statement. What truly transpired was Krasimira staring Hayden straight in the eyes and saying 'you cannot lie your way out of this one, High Priestess. We (as in all the Keepers past and present) will not let you'.Had she used those words, Saint Marie would have gotten around to asking what Krasimira meant. Krasimira would have rather died, because once those bitches discovered their nerdy sisters hadn't erased a damn thing in 3,000 years, they would insist they do so immediately. Krasimira wasn't about to do that. Thanks to the chaos surrounding Hayden's departure, no one had confronted her over her crucial action.To put it more precisely, the Golden Mare had been too busy and Mahdi had been wrapped up in Hayden's Decree and the resulting pressure on the Heads of House to pick the Regency. Katrina was probably a case of I'm not going to ask you so you don't have to lie to me. The only other living person in the room when Hayden's fate was sealed was me, and I'd had my hands full as well.I had to think about what I should and could do. I couldn't beat her up over Aya anymore than I could punish my Isharans for their misplaced arrogance. I decided to extend a 'thank you'; and not only for myself, but for every conceited bitch who had ever sat at this table, or all the other physical mediums the Council had used before this one.We held three votes: The Council couldn't collectively decide on how to implement Aya's other likes (1), so they agreed on her suggestion for a Regency instead (2). The final vote was to set a date for the next Council meeting (3). A date within 9 days of the Winter Solstice with the Regency to decide the precise date and give the House Heads two weeks warning.The last calamity at the meeting was initiated by a question of etiquette."How do we address the Princess at Council meetings?" the Head of House Hanwasuit inquired of Krasimira."There is no precedent for addressing the Iwaruwa alone. By our laws, she is not truly Dumalugal Aya either. She is Nasusara," Krasimira responded. Queen."She is a child," a third House Head declared, "not an Amazon.""No," Mahdi shook her head. "A, Aya is 'un-casted'. She bears an honorific presented to her by the leader of an established stronghold (Summer Camp) and confirmed by the Golden Mare minutes ago.""Congratulations my mamētu me eda," I winked to my past and present Princess, "you've just become a single-digit aged teenager.""Go Aya," Daphne and Buffy whispered behind me. Aya raised her hand, waiting for Saint Marie's recognition.However, Saint Marie moved steadily forward, declaring: "Until the Regency alters my decision, I decline assigning anyone to the Iwaruwa (heiress) whose sole purpose would be to stop her from sneaking off to endure her 12th Year Test. I judge it to be better we know where we placed her as opposed to failing to outsmart her as she needlessly proves to the Host she is, in fact, already an Amazon of the Host." Aya lowered her hand.Thus,'Yes, Aya is an Amazon of the Host' and 'Aya will take her 12th Year Test because she wants to take it, won't let us talk her out of taking it and the rest of us had better accept it'."So, she is our Queen then?"No one appeared to have an answer. Aya raised her hand once more."Yes?" the Golden Mare smiled down at her."Am I in charge?" Aya's other hand squeezed Saint Marie's as she spoke in a barely audible voice."Perhaps.""If I was in charge, I would like it if there was a law that declared the Queen of the Amazons would be officially represented by a Regency until she becomes casted, and antedate the law by one hour so this never, ever comes up again," Aya kept looking up at Saint Marie."Aya," Katrina exhaled.The council chamber was a mixture of awe, resentment and amusement. If Aya was Queen, she could make such a law. The Queen-ship was a Bronze Age autocratic institution designed to provide leadership to a 'state' in near-constant warfare with is neighbors.It was guided by oral traditions and military necessity, not written laws. As long as the queens provided successes on the battlefield and through diplomacy, she was deemed fit to rule. The traditional way of choosing a House Head was the same for the Royal House, the ruling Queen chose an heir.In the long list of Queens, less than half had been the 'eldest' child. No, those ancient War Leaders picked the bravest, smartest and most successful daughters to succeed them. Their wisdom in those selections showed in the fact the Amazons had held off a male-dominated world for over 600 years before fatally marching off to answer an ally's call to fight in the Trojan War."I advise against it," Saint Marie shook her head. "You are young. You are also the only Royal we have. Duty demands and sisters must always answer their sister's call."Translation: Aya was an adult now. It was similar to the first lesson Pamela gave me upon learning I was Ishara. We lived with bitches, it doesn't pay to play nice with bitches."Thank you," Aya nodded. She was 'thanking' Saint Marie for the lesson, no matter how hard it was to accept. Krasimira coughed."Now that the matter is settled," she spoke. The matter wasn't settled. Krasimira was steamrollering the discussion. "What do we call you?", to Aya."I, oh," in a very small voice. Aya's brow furrowed and her tiny nose wiggled. "I wish to be known by the legacy of my Anna (mother) and Atta (me, Cáel). I will be Assiyai hamai.""Love song?" Daphne murmured to Buffy."Assiyai hamai?" Krasimira asked for clarification. 'Love-song' was hardly the name of a 'fierce' Amazon Queen."The only other name I could come up with was Markappidusmene, which seemed less auspicious," she meeped. Markappidusmene meant 'Tiny Smile'."Perhaps Talliyahulla would be more auspicious?" Saint Marie nudged Aya. 'War Cry'."Oh no!" Aya balked. "That's your job.""What do you think your job is?" the Golden Mare questioned, suddenly realizing she'd made the mistake of making assumptions where Aya was concerned."To go to the cliffs with twice as many Amazon daughters, each equal to the likes of Saint Marie, Katrina, Oneida, Buffy, Elsa, Kohar and Tad fi as exist today. We must not 'survive', or simply replenish our numbers."We must become stronger because the World is a terribly messed up place," she raised her wounded hand and splayed her digits for the others to see the two she was missing, "and has become too small for us to seek safety in hidden freeholds any longer. If we cannot hide, we must rule openly. We are Amazons. Having no equals, we must rule alone. The only people we can trust, really trust, are the sisters at our sides."My job is to advance my People's cause with both compassion and cruelty and I will do so alone, because the Amazon Queen has no equals, only daughters."Not a sound. I could count out the individual fan blades recycling the air."Let our enemies tremble," Saint Marie nodded, repeating an earlier declaration."Assiyai hamai," Krasimira intoned, making Aya's royal name official before adding, "Assiyai hamai, you are mistaken about one thing. You are not alone. You have a mamētu me eda.""Oh," she perked up, shedding the gloom which surrounded her. She looked at me, our eyes met and we both grinned, then she giggled...and yet again, up her hand went."Yes?" Saint Marie looked upon Aya respectfully and then at me with much suspicion."Is the mamētu me eda of my mamētu me eda also my mamētu me eda?" Aya asked.Just like old times, only Katrina was ahead of the game. "Oh, by Epona," the Spy-mistress snorted."Cáel Wakko Ishara, who is your mamētu me eda, oh no," Saint Marie bristled."Ah, indeed," Krasimira nodded. "An unlooked for bonus.""Does someone care to enlighten the rest of us?" the head of House Nemain prodded."Oh!" That was Elsa."That's right!" Oneida, she was definitely a fan of me and my spasmodic lifestyle."Wakko Ishara's mamētu me eda, other mamētu me eda, is Temujin, Great Khan of the Reborn Mongol-Turkish Khanate and ally of the Host," Saint Marie let them know. "They are bonded by Cáel risking his own life to save Temujin's. It is actually a privately understood and publically declared fact.""In Temujin's words to the international press when our Cáel and our new Queen were kidnapped : I believe Cáel is still alive. If he wasn't, we would be seeing piles upon piles of dead enemy around him and his 'boon companion', clearly visible from orbit. Until they discover this carnal pit from Hell, I am sure they are both still alive," Oneida added. Rhada flashed ill-distilled hate her way."Shawnee, is your Apprentice's mind addled with the birthing hormones of their child?" Mahdi snipped. That was merely a cultural zing, not an attempt to expose my sinister erotic misdoings. Unfortunately, she was somewhat correct. Okay, she was totally correct."That was uncalled for," Shawnee graciously chided Mahdi, thus demonstrating her ignorance of the facts soon to be in evidence."Yes, I am carrying a child of Arinniti and Ishara," Oneida proclaimed loud and proud. "We share a Warrior's Love."I wasn't really sure how anyone else reacted to the news because House Ishara exploded into violence. That is the politic way of saying Daphne and Juanita were trying to stop Buffy from beating me to death. Here was yet another Ishara-baby and it wasn't gestating inside her. I was too stunned to defend myself.And the old refrain: 'and then it got worse'."Ta  ah kattanda!" (IN HITTITE for 'you pig's ass'), Rhada howled. I missed her drawing her blade, vaulting to the top of the table and lunging at Oneida. Most of the Amazons in the room stood, yet held their ground.They weren't shocked into indecisiveness, only trying to understand the nature of the conflict before intervening. This was not the first 'your Amazon did something my Amazon found infuriating' public threat they had to have dealt with. Rhada was more volatile than the average woman of her breed and station, true, but a violent in-chamber assault?That wasn't the 'worse' though. Oneida drawing her blade in an open challenge to Rhada wasn't the worse either, nor was her shouting."He loves me! He merely saved you!"Saint Marie yelling 'Ishara! Ishara!' over and over again, demanding I put my house back in order wasn't the end of my woes, nope.Me being yanked free of my House fur-ball into the volcanic gaze of Elsa as she seethed, "Rhada?" Oh yeah, Elsa's people and Rhada's people had a bit of a blood feud going on, how could I have forgotten that?But wait!"Not Fabiola!" gasped Messina, bizarrely assuming I slept with, okay, not such a huge assumption."Gael?" voiced by the Head of House Bendis, followed by Gael's "I'm late.""Damn it!" I pulled away from Elsa (slightly)."No. She only lets me ejaculate on 'safe days'," to Messina, Fabiola's Mom."Oh, come on! We had sex one time!" to Gael of Bendis, and finally,"Stop it!" to Rhada and Oneida, (deep breathe). "Really?" with my most believable happy face plastered on. "This is great news!"No. No it wasn't, and I could read the ugly emotional undercurrents on the faces of everyone present, except Aya, who kept the faith."Ishara," Saint Marie rumbled. I held up one finger to forestall her wrath."Oneida, Rhada and I have already decided to name our daughter Parvati. My daughter by Tad fi, ordained by the Goddess to be the first born, will be named Shala while my first son will be called Harki heni (White Hair, I'd call him Raider when we were in the 'outside' world).""My daughter by Miyako Yuri will be named Suwais-urāni, Fushichou in her Mother's tongue, in honor of Sakuniyas. My, other relationships," I would have liked to say 'none of your business', except Amazon mothers, or not, those children would be of Ishara's blood and potentially their kin.

Wrapping up loose ends and moving forward.Book 3 in 18 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the ► Podcast at Explicit Novels.Love is like a crossbow quiver. You only have so many bolts to shoot before it runs outThere was a long pause. Pamela took another long breath then an impish grin came to her lips."With your luck you'll get those, then end up in the Artic," she scoffed."Not the Antarctic? I've got a soft spot in my dreams for penguins.""Nope. You get to be chased by polar bears," she nudged me. I nudged her back playfully. She gave me a Charlie horse."Ow!" I yipped. The two SD chicks from the front of the plane looked back our way. I didn't care about their misconceptions. My muscles needed some self-massages."I was pretty scared," I whispered to Pamela."Good for you. You were also pretty lucky and I'm sure pretty pissed with your 'Albanian' attackers," she replied quietly. "I missed you too."I liked the way she read my mind about that. I would have liked it some more if I hadn't glanced to my other side, then fallen straight to sleep.{1 pm, Monday, August 25th ~ 14 Days to go}On Tuesday night, Aya got one of her wishes fulfilled ~ sorta. I slept in Caitlyn Ruger's bed and I wasn't alone. The Sandman had dropped a Scottish sand trap sized load of sand on me and there was more than enough spillover to flatten little Aya too. Because I lived among Amazons, Caitlyn woke me up at 5:45 in the A M and only so much lollygagging was allowed.Aya got to sleep for fifteen whole minutes more than I did. She hugged me and kissed my cheek (which amused her three Fatal Squirt compatriots to no end) while I stuffed away my breakfast. Desiree showed up to take me to work minutes later. While Aya showed off her battle scar to the pre-caste Amazons and her Aunt D. (they had not been awake when we showed up the previous evening), I was chided for being late for weapons practice.Yes. Life and death battle successes meant nothing to the Amazons. If you had a spare moment you had better be training, or working out your mind and/or body. We had no 'weekends', though we did get an quarter day off in celebration for the religious festivals based on the sacred days of the various matron Goddesses. A full day off didn't happen.7:00 AM saw me with the intern group, just as if nothing had happened to change our relationship over the past two months. Oh, we were different. They teased me about my sunburn and wanted to see my latest scars. I couldn't work with Buffy anymore, since I was her spiritual leader. Due to my 'high risk' status, Desiree was the only other Amazon Katrina trusted me with, so I got to get beaten at her hands for the last three days of the week.To be fair, I teased Desiree incessantly. I made her smile when she thought I was doubled over in pain on multiple occasions. Beyond that seven-to-five schedule, I exercised after work until six and then managed to bike home in a manner that avoided the paparazzi.I was easy to track outside of the building by the members of the press (who thought I was still somehow newsworthy) and despite my persistent desire to not talk to any of them. Felix had 'vanished', so I was the only man left. What had happened to him? Katrina allowed me to take a glance. He was at an Epona Wyoming freehold training for the Great Hunt and reveling in his 'lone man in a household of twenty-two single women' status.Unlike the three other members of our 'first class', Felix got to choose his re-location location and communicated with me daily because he wanted us to create a battle plan for the upcoming Hunt. It was official; it was going to be a two man vs. thirty Amazons affair and there was no rule that we couldn't work together though only two Amazons could win by capturing us and holding onto us until sunset on Sunday, September 14th.No one except Krasimira, the Keeper of Records, knew what terrain we would be hunted on so we could expect anything from swamps to mountain ranges. The Amazons were in the same boat. Already the House heads had volunteered one member for the Hunt. The ancestors would be consulted for the half who would actually participate. Krasimira had also added her own twists.House Ishara couldn't compete because technically, I was already their participant. With 52 houses halved, that equaled 26. The final four? Runners. If a runner won, the Keeper would consult the ancestors to see which house they would automatically be inducted into. Eight runners were nominated by the department heads and four of those would be chosen by the Augurs as well.In a normal organization it would have been thought that Krasimira was abusing her station since there was no High Priestess to oppose her decisions. Not in the Amazons. No. She consulted the Augurs and the Augurs worked the will of the Ancestors and that was that. No Augur would lie about the sacred communications imparted to them. That was inconceivable sacrilege.What that did mean was that at sunset on Thursday, September 11th, Felix and I would be inserted with a knife, map and clothing into the hunting zone. When the sun rose on Friday morning, the thirty Amazons would be put into the zone. No Amazon could attack another unless they, or their targets, 'possessed' a man. They could team up but only two could win. It was promising to be a great 'get to know your buddies at work' moment for all of us,What was Felix getting out of this besides his freedom? (His freedom was no longer in danger. House Epona would protect him.) No, for Felix, if he survived free until the sun set on Sunday, he would become a Runner. If he lost, he would have to spend another year as an intern. This convinced me that Felix was totally dedicated to avoiding capture. I was good with that.Meanwhile for me, it was Brooke Wednesday night, Oneida on Thursday and Timothy and Odette going clubbing with me on Friday night. Saturday was my first House Ishara group activity. We gathered in the early morning at Doebridge, me with a hangover and Buffy giving me crap at every opportunity. Fortunately the rest of my 'sisters' treated me with a great deal more reverence.Now they all knew about my Summer Camp role, Romania and my kidnapping. Even in their 'man-hating' ideology, I was the exception to the rule ~ I was reliable, dedicated, smart, lethal and worthy of their trust and respect. On the council front, Buffy hinted to me that there was a way around the deadlock for who would be foisted onto the Regency Triumvirate, but she refused to tell me what it was. That was a cause for concern.Sunday, I worked with JIKIT, did some Amazon diplomatic stuff and discovered Desiree was my new bodyguard. Katrina thought a full SD team would be cumbersome and my best bet was to remain unconventional and mobile. I agreed because it allowed me to play the field a little more. Speaking of playing the field,This bright Monday afternoon, I was standing in a hangar at Stewart International Airport waiting on my fiancée, Hana Sulkanen. She had flown from Tibet to London with the Dali Lama. That exalted individual had passed on the mantle of national leadership to the Tibetan Constitutional Committee and left the country with the stern decision that the country would move forward toward democracy and not backwards toward theocracy.Now he was playing the role of goodwill ambassador, encouraging the Tibetan Diaspora to spend a few months to a year back in their homeland to help rebuild and teach. He also was rallying support for Tibetan recognition and financial support. Already the UN had voted to send a small international group to establish border security against both the Khanate and the PRC.With the PRC treaty-obliged by the ceasefire to not oppose Tibetan freedom, the UN acted rapidly. The UN Tibet Force(UNTFOR) combat elements consisted of the UK (+ Gurkha), Chilean, French (+ French Foreign Legion), Germany, India, Italy, Romania, Spanish and Thailand each sending one battalion each. Algeria, Denmark, Chile, the Netherlands, Bulgaria, Canada, Cameroon, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Brazil agreed to make smaller contributions. The USAF would supply a serious level of logistics support for the mission.The UN also created the UN Tibetan Training Force (UNTTFOR) which provided a structure for giving access by Tibetan forces to German, Italian, Chilean and Romanian bases to train to E U standards over a five month period. The Khanate provided gobs of captured Chinese hardware to the creation of a tiny Tibetan Armed Forces, easing worries about adequately equipping the troops once they were trained.The Dali Lama was simultaneously arriving at JFK to public fanfare in order to thank the UN personally on behalf of the nation he loved. Hana was able to finally shed the limelight and was coming into a secure National Guard facility to finally take a step back to a 'normal' lifestyle. The last bit of oddity: the hangars used by the Marine Aerial Refueler Transport Squadron 452 of the Marine Corps Reserve was courtesy of JIKIT. No press was allowed, or expected.It was an odd grouping of us. Jormo Sulkanen (Hana's father), his chauffeur and Hana's daughter  Annela were in one car. Hana was traveling with Libra and Ms. Meacham, so they would need the limo he came in. My appearance was a simple moment for us to touch base in person, as opposed to over the internet, or mobile phone. The third group waiting was Sten Phillip M nnik (her ex-husband) and two unnamed associates.Sten was being a total jerk, which may have been due to me calling him Philip when we first met. Philip wasn't 'ethnic' enough for him, so he never used it. Because he hated it, Brennan (Hana's deceased step-brother) had used it constantly. I had overheard it and thus screwed up our first meeting. But Sten's current blistering hatred had two positive side effects: Jormo came over and stood by me, a suggestion of solidarity I hadn't expected, and since we were standing next to each other, we finally began the dialog that we needed if Hana was going to be family to both of us.We chatted about the thing that mattered most ~ Hana. He asked me if I had really hired a team of assassins to protect her, so I told him a little bit about the Ghost Tigers. He talked about how proud she was to be bringing peace to a suffering planet and I agreed that she looked spectacular doing so.Some things remained the same; I had set in motion the death of his youngest son who had paraded a raped lady in front of me. A bunch of other dilettantes had perished as well. Balancing that was the joy I brought to the child closest to his heart, his adopted daughter Hana. I also had proved to be my own brand of eccentric knight in tarnished armor. I meant well, and in Jormo's book that meant something.He also told me he would strangle me with my own intestines if I broke her heart. I looked him straight in the face and asked him how he felt about open marriages. He hit me. To be fair, I let him hit me. He didn't try to do me serious harm."Don't be an asshole," he grumbled."I'm not sure I know how?" I shrugged. I got another hard stare."She loves you," he said with surprising tenderness."I would rather face that typhoon again than break her heart. The thought of that scares me because I've never been all that good at romance," I confessed."That wasn't what I expected you to say," he harrumphed. "I recall those two ladies I first saw you with. Libra Chalmers and,""Brooke Lee," I said."Yes, her. Are you staying loyal?""She has never asked more than she thinks my current level of maturity can hope to achieve." He looked at me. "I'm discrete and mindful of her sensitivities.""You aren't trying to befriend me," he noted."I don't feel it is right to expect you to like me. I think we both know I'm supposed to be nice to you and you aren't going punch me again. I believe Hana would see thru any deception on our part."I paused. "I wouldn't mind us getting along. I'll try not to piss you off because that would be rude to you and cruel to her," I continued. "I'll never ask you to forgive me and I'll never feel like what I did was inherently unjustified. I am sorry that I caused you pain because I think you are a hard, courageous man, and she loves you.""That's her plane," he stated."Thank God," I muttered. And thank you Ishara. I was starting to blather. We remained thankfully silent until the plane had pulled into the hangar and the people started to deplane. The first out was a young woman with dark blonde hair and hunters glasses.No one else appeared until she had reached the bottom of the stairs and continued to look about for a moment. Hana came next, smiling at me, then her eyes were following Jormo as he moved to the car to retrieve little  Annela. Libra followed with Ms. Meacham on her heels. Libra still wasn't used to playing the second fiddle/personal assistant. A short Mongolian fireplug of a man was the last passenger down the stairs. He looked like, a wolverine with his feral, primordial energy and general hostility.I imagined the girl was his apprentice and he was the prime assassin. That was how the Ghost Tigers operated. They were doing me a deep personal favor by putting aside their normal role as hunters to take up body-guarding duties. According to Addison, they had also managed to get their fair share of killing people of various persuasions. Not only had the Seven Pillars tried to take her out more than once, Chinese Intelligence and some criminal cartels had taken an active interest in her too.The young woman scanned from me to Desiree, then to Sten. She had a good eye for threat assessment. Jormo was partially concealed, but would rather die than put Hana at risk. I was the ally of the 9 Clans, and she probably thought she could take me in a quick-draw contest. Desiree? She left Desiree for her mentor to worry about."Ms. Sulkanen?" Sten's closer minion walked her way. The bodyguards got in the way instinctively. The man reached into his coat and nearly died. The women did a palm strike to his windpipe then grabbed his tie, yanking him to the hard concrete floor of the hangar.(Russian) "He has a piece of paper," she stated in a detached manner"Sten, what is the meaning of this?" Hana worried. I moved toward the woman.(Russian) "I am Cáel Nyilas. Let me help."She did more than that. She retreated from the downed man and put her body between Hana and Sten.I was schooled enough now to realize that was the deception. I hadn't seen the older man draw a gun but I knew he now had one out. It was down by his side and he was using his body to shield it from view."Are these the kind of people you want around our daughter," Sten asked haughtily. I had an inkling suspicion. I wasn't alone.Desiree pushed past me and attended to the downed man. She had him standing, patted him on the back and frisked all inside ten seconds."He's a process server," she commented to the group."What he is here to do is serve you with papers, Hana," Sten grew angrier. "You are an unfit mother and have developed an unsafe environment for her to grow up in.""What?" Hana growled. "You don't like the fact that I've finally moved on and found someone new. You don't care a damn thing about our daughter.""We will let a judge decide that. Right now I have an order of detention for  Annela," he grinned wickedly."Ms. Sulkanen," the second of Sten's minions step forward more cautiously, "the Family Court in the State of New York has,"I laughed."Oh," Desiree looked my way then shared a sliver of a smile with me."There is nothing laughable, I assure you," the lawyer snapped."Really, what's your name?" I asked."Mr. Dornier, not that,""Where are we?""What does that matter?" then, "New York State.""Incorrect Dornier. You are on a Marine Corps base, dumbass. Look around you," I smirked."So? What does that mean?" Sten harangued us."This is federal property," I explained as I strode toward his car."Hey, what are you doing, I'm talking to you," Sten pursued me."Excuse me," I grinned. I flipped out my Amazon Honor Blade and slashed one of his tires."What?""Go for it," Hana simmered. "Touch Cáel and he will defend himself.""He has a knife," he countered. He didn't touch me. A second tire began to deflate. "That's assault with a deadly weapon.""It would be if he turned to face you, or anyone else," Desiree had her 'bored ~ don't press me' voice. "Right now he's being a vandal." She put her hand on the process server's shoulder and shoved him back toward Sten and Dornier. "You should know your jurisdictions, asshole," she told him."Hana, I will drive back with Cáel," Libra announced loudly. That was a cue for Hana to shoot me an apologetic look, which was odd, considering that even knowing me was putting her child custody at risk. It took me a second to realize what a bastard Sten could be. I also doubted he had three spare tires. I left one untouched as I headed for my car."Hana, I'll catch up with you after you talk with your lawyers," I called out. It was infuriating for me that this was her reception home. Sten had better be thanking his lucky stars we weren't alone or I would have pummeled his ass, and given him the nuclear wedgy of all times, jackalope."Let's go home," Libra tapped my arm. Desiree was watching Jormo's limo speed away. She didn't dawdle. The Marines would want their hangar back ASAP. We'd let them decide if they wanted to help Sten, or not. Desiree tossed me the keys. That was her way of telling me I need to blow of some steam, and not by getting frolic-ee with Libra on the hour long commute home.{11 pm, Monday, August 25th ~ 14 Days to go}{Late that night with Hana}"So, who was the guy who gave you this?" I looked over at Hana while running my hand over the silk scarf some lama in Lhasa had given her to give to me ~ a 'Thank You' gift for the liberation of his homeland and the aid package heading his peoples' way."I never got his name, but my translator said he had traveled for three days straight to be there for the celebration," she smiled warmly.I picked up my second gift and began to play with it. The object was a fascinating toy, all the more so because it was more than a child's plaything. It was a simple prayer wheel. I put the handle between my two palms and rubbed them back and forth, causing the two balls to beat against the drum heads."I think you find that thing more interesting than you do me," Hana pouted."Oh no you don't," I pounced on her. With one hand I tickled her while I placed my Tibetan gift aside. I didn't want us rolling over on it as we frolicked naked on her queen-sized bed. "You were a happy little camper ten minutes ago and you certainly drove your vigor home with this grand Lothario.""Eek!" she playfully tried to bat my hand aside. She began giggling hysterically.Even when I pulled away so that she could breathe, she kept snickering."What?" I worried. I had been ramping us up for a second round of sex. Round one had been 'comfort' sex, helping her compartmentalize her feelings for that bastard of an ex-husband and the threat he posed to her custodianship of her daughter,  Annela.Those were emotions she'd deal with later. Fretting about them tonight, her first night back in the States, was counter-productive. She knew that, which was why she'd accepted my dinner invitation. We had now been seen in public together for the first time since she became famous; afterwards we had traveled back to her place. How serious was I about cheering her up? I'd brought a spare suit, biking clothes and my bike. I was planning to spend the night and make my way to work my usual way come sunrise."I," she gasped, "asked Libra how you "compared" in her experience, which seems to be extensive, as a lover on the way over. And after several, very long, I must say, seconds of introspection, she told me you were indescribable and incomparable. I've been trying to put my thoughts together since Rome and, why are you scowling?""That was rude of you two," I now play-pouted. "I like to think I'm 'thunderous', though 'stunning' will do in a pinch."Hana helpfully pinched me. "Ow!" I squalled. And back to tickling I went. I quickly showed her my 'sheet-fu' was superior to hers, which meant I tangled her up in her sheets before she realized she was helpless before me. Or so I bragged. Hana played helpless well."Oh please, Mr. World-Conquering Wombat," she pleaded. Wombat?"Wombat?" I questioned her. "How have I become an irascible furry marsupial?""Well Honey, you need a shave," she teased me. "You are a little furry.""Romantically that is called a five o'clock shadow," I protested."It scratches my thighs," she murmured.I had a remedy for that. Sliding down to her hip, I turned my palms toward me, interlaced my fingers and positioned my thumbs pointing up. My chin rested on my fingers and the thumbs covered the sides, so when I stuck my tongue into the three-sided void created, my hands, but none of my scruffiness, touched her intimate flesh. Once I had this technique in place, I rolled over her thigh and got to work."I find," she gasped, "that you have the answer to that conundrum down pat. It makes me, ah, think I'm not your, ah, first girl." My dedication to my erotic task (and the carnal reward that waited) kept me from responding. Besides, my upper lip was busy rolling back and forth over her clitoris. There I let the bristles of my oncoming moustache teasingly tickle her. I was pleased when the pleasure I caused quieted her and she settled down to running her fingers across my crown as she ramped herself up toward a climax. 'Not my first girl' indeed.Forty-five minutes later, I was coming back to her room from the kitchen with a glass of tomato juice for her and rice wine for me (she was out of beer). I heard a noise from  Annela's room, so I deviated to make sure she was okay. I was in boxers, not totally naked.  Annela was out like a light, caught up in some sort of childish dream. By the cherubic grin on her face, she was having a good one.She was another delicate female issue in my life. I had made her existence harder by just being me. Hana let me know that nothing 'bad' had better happen to her ex-husband, Sten. I couldn't beat him up, threaten him, or sic any of my Amazons on him. Stupidly, I had asked if using the CIA was okay. She'd banned all of JIKIT intervening as well, negating the use of the best pest removal people on the planet, the 9 Clans."You are going to have to get used to children making sounds while they sleep," Hana surprised me. "You'll learn to tell the dreams from the nightmare.""In spades, I'm going to have to learn that in spades," I nodded.{4 pm, Tuesday, August 26th ~ 13 Days to go}My schedule had remained steady. I had firearms practice at 6 am every morning, was in Katrina's office by 7 and working my cue by 7:15. According to my regular morning briefings, I continued to be a menace to the foundations of freedom, civilization and the terrestrial biosphere. It was wonderful to stand there side by side with my fellow New Hires.At lunch, around 11 o'clock, I had a brief get together with the other members of the Amazon diplomatic corps since I was still Chief Diplomat of the Host ~ we were a small unit. Daphne, who now worked with JIKIT, would give me a brief briefing on what the 'office' was up to in my name. I gladly kept my distance from their regularly scheduled mayhem. The truce in China didn't stop the Secret War from raging on and on.My three o'clock knife training with Pamela was slowly evolving into a greater study of human fighting philosophy and anatomy. I still studied the techniques of a larger single bladed hunting knife as well as the hilt-less, double bladed Amazon Honor Blade. Pamela promised me she'd start teaching me how to do the 'long-distance' and 'short'/snap throw for the blades. She made it look so easy.Pamela also began educating me on the basics and basis of the Amazon personal hand-to-hand fighting style. The eight points of emphasis in Amazon combat were: the finger, fist, elbow, shoulder, foot, heel, knee and hip. It encouraged channeling both your energies and the energy of your opponents by using fluid blows and throws. It also worked well with the close-in knife fighting Pamela was teaching me. Working with her once more did her as much good as me. We had come to feed off one another's moods, which was a good thing.Tuesday, walking to the elevator at the end of the session, the door opened to reveal Rachel talking to an SD chick I barely knew, Meridian."Oh, it is great to see you, Rachel," I enthusiastically stated. Her hesitation as she replied worried me."It is great to see you too, Cael Wakko Ishara," she responded softly, compassionately."Ladies, can you spare Rachel and I some private time," I asked Meridian and Pamela."Come on," Pamela addressed the SD Amazon, "we have tons of nothing to talk about.""As you wish, Ishara," Meridian answered. She looked to Rachel. She stepped off the elevator as Pamela stepped on. Away they went."I heard you were back in New York," I told her."I heard you were off of JIKIT for the time being.""I was running on fumes psychologically and my body wasn't too much better. Javiera gave me a week off. I go back Thursday.""That was the right move, Cáel," she said. "You've been stuck sweating both the small stuff and being caught up in the big picture. That is a humongous burden to bear for someone with your training and background.""I know, I'm not ready for where my life has taken me.""No one is, Cáel. You have training that has let you get this far when most of us would be lost. You carry that weight, plus you've had to work the physical side of the equation. I get to focus on you. You've had to focus on all of us."Rachel was being both honest and kind. I felt a sudden renewed kinship with my primary guardian."Thanks for that, Rachel, can I tell you a secret? Something you can't tell another soul. Something I've never told another living person?" I could tell Rachel. I couldn't tell Katrina because she was so close to Hayden. Pamela, Pamela had already prepared herself for a miserable afterlife and wouldn't have connected with my pain for another.Since she was my 'sister' in Ishara, I couldn't really confide in Buffy, but only an Amazon would understand my thoughts on the matter. It had to be Rachel."I cannot betray the Host, but you know that. What is it you wish to share?""Hayden lived life as an Anahit, yet lives forever in the Halls of the Isharans." Since that was now well known, Rachel knew that couldn't be the secret."When I was trying to induct her, Dot Ishara refused her entry. I thought she was challenging me and I was right.""I recall that she wouldn't accept Hayden, even though her death was righteous in the name of the Host. Has no one ever asked you what changed Ishara's mind? Not Buffy, or Helena?""Neither one ever asked. I think it was because they sensed I didn't want to talk about it, nor insult them by not opening up. Ishara refused Hayden because of me. I was refusing to accept my place in the Host. I kept playing, pretending, I was not really one of you. I kept thinking I could divorce myself from the evil we did because I was special.""But you weren't special in the way I think you are using the word," she nodded. "You were chosen by the Ancestors to be one of us, man, or not.""Yeah. I stupidly put my life on the line because I wanted to be the 'good guy'. I've always wanted to be the 'good guy', even when I hurt people. I'd tell the girl it was my fault, yet I excused that behavior by thinking that I hadn't meant to hurt anyone, so I was okay. I have never blamed myself for any of the shit I caused.""That has always been a rather annoying quality of yours," she noted."When I was on the roof of Havenstone, daring Ishara with my life on the line, that's when I felt it. I owed and owned my Amazon heritage in that moment. I finally blamed myself for something, for not accepting sacrifices were being made for me and I was dishonoring every one of you by denying their purpose.""You are Ishara," Rachel stated firmly. That was her entire argument."I had to believe that. I had to believe I was nothing more than one Amazon in a long line of Amazons dating back to that first night of betrayal. I had to realize I was one of many, not someone special, with special rules. I wasn't getting to be the good guy, or even the bad guy. I was just, an Amazon. One more Ishara among the hundreds that stood in my place.""And it took that moment for you to realize what most Amazons know from the age of five," Rachel stroked my cheek. "It is easy for us to forget your bravery comes from a place that is uniquely you and you didn't grow up around the fires with tales of our mothers, grandmothers and all those who have come before. We see our honor is gold and sing the songs in the First Tongue. We live as Amazons.""I wanted you to know because," I faltered at the last memory."Charlotte. You want to make peace with me about Charlotte," she touched my cheek yet again. "Cáel, I told her mother and daughter about how she died. They want to meet Vincent when he is feeling better. They want to talk to you. They worry about you not understanding that Charlotte lives and will live on until the Sun dies and the stars burn out.""Charlotte was in the Warband that killed Ajax the Unconquered, Cáel. She fell on that ridge, looking down on Ishara's triumph over Ajax and her spirit took the news of that victory to the next life. She is a welcome exemplar to House Ska i. She will be remembered in the lists of the Security Detail, our Warrior Elite. Charlotte was my friend and I didn't wish her to die, but war is what we do. And she buried her enemies and saved our lives."Ska i was a j tunn and the Nordic goddess associated with bow-hunting, skiing, winter, and mountains. I had known her house. The SD didn't talk about their families much because of their devotion to the craft of war, so I had never known her mother was still alive, or that she had a daughter."She did much more than die, Cáel. She killed men so that when you finished with Ajax, none of them, left on that field, could avenge him," she added."I hadn't looked at it that way," I confessed. "I'd like to meet her family. You said she has a daughter. I didn't know.""You didn't need the distraction. We all knew you would have only done incredibly stupid things trying to keep us alive. If it helps, she is five and cried freely, deeply and long. Her mother is fifty-two and runs a freehold in Saskatchewan. She'll be around for a long time, trust me."Charlotte's mother had to be one tough D O B (daughter of a bitch) to see sixty. I did know she was the second of five daughters, with the middle one being in the Ska i House Guard."I am doing something for, well, for me, but for Charlotte too. Sakuniyas is leading seventeen House Isharans and two ladies from MI-6 in West Africa.""I'd heard about that," she smiled. "Charlotte's Fist." Four (the core of any war band) was a sacred number to the Amazons, as was five (the number of digits) so twenty was a classic warrior unit. It was also the number of the original houses. Normally these groups were referred to by their leader's name, but I wanted the Condotteiri to know they'd killed the wrong Amazon and Sakuniyas agreed to the naming convention.The Condos had sent Ajax to Hungary and Romania to kill me. Charlotte had died stopping them, but this was not a matter of revenge. This honored her and was a request for her to watch over those who sought inspiration from her when they went into battle. West-Central Africa was one of the three Amazon Homeland (Eastern Europe and Southern India being the other two) and was where the war was heating up.JIKIT (Joint International Khanate Interim Taskforce) became involved when the Condos and Coils of the Serpent (one of the 9 Assassin Clans) began killing local civilian and military leaders. The Condos did it to spread chaos for them to use as a smoke screen behind which they could hide the large numbers of mercenaries in the area hunting down the Amazons. The Coils attacked any official that was on the Condo's payroll.As the body count began to rise, the US and UK began having 'normal' covert agencies investigate the killings, yet they remained blind to the reasons behind the actions. It wasn't until a whole Condo 'training camp' ended up being extinguished that they realized there was a third player in the game (as opposed to the governments and the rogue mercenaries).The Coils of the Serpent were one step ahead of the intelligence agencies. And that allowed the Amazons to hunt down the Condos. We in JIKIT had estimated it was roughly 15,000 Condotteiri foot soldiers (consisting of mercs, local paramilitaries and the occasional regular army commander) versus the roughly 3000 Amazons and 1000 members of the 9 Clans. The Golden Mare was asking for Havenstone and the Freeholds in North and South America to raise up 'fists' to join the struggle in Africa. In Belize they would be trained for two months to ten weeks in jungle warfare before heading over."Are your people going to be ready?" Rachel inquired."We have done well in Japan," I replied. "The former 'Runners' actually do better moving through urbanized society than their Old School Amazon sisters.""I heard they are more prone to taking orders from the Ninja," she looked me in the eyes."I told them to. This is the Ninja's war and we serve them best by doing what we do best ~ taking the fight to the Seven Pillars when they expose themselves," I clarified. "And you got me off talking about Charlotte," I realized a second later."A long period of mourning is not our way, Cáel," she confided. "You were our friend, but you were our mission first and foremost. That hasn't changed.""Are you going to," I began to say 'remain my bodyguard'."Yes. I have a dozen House Guard members expressing a desire to join the Security Detail and be our new electronics expert. Eight of those I'm giving serious consideration to.""The other four?" I asked."Three are too young and are too interested in you for my taste. One is too old and a rather odd individual.""I like odd.""I will reconsider her then," she allowed."Are you saying that to make me happy?""No," Rachel grinned. "I admire your instincts. Do you know how soon you will be needing us?""I'm going to stay in town until the Great Hunt. After my stupendous victory, I'll see if I can get to Brazil, so mid-September.""It will take longer to integrate a member ~ the last week of November," she bargained. I really wasn't in the mood to argue. I was too much the boy who was glad to see his primary guardian standing before him. Pamela was by far the most loving and lethal one of the pack. Rachel was my rock. She kept me alive and I helped give her something to live for, even if it was a flawed 'me'."And Wakko, you don't need to give me a piece of your soul to replace Charlotte. What is hers is hers and what is ours is ours. I'll always miss her and I'm okay with that. She was a good friend and a proud compatriot and I loved her. I never had any sisters of the flesh. Mona, Tiger Lily and Charlotte have been the only real family I've had. I will find another sister and I can now accept that.""Is it alright if I still miss her?" I pondered."Of course, Ishara. Will you still be capable of taking my orders when required?""Yes. If I started ignoring your advice, I wouldn't have been worthy of leading someone like Charlotte into battle. I can honor her by letting you do your job.""Thank you. I still worry about you trying to save everyone, but now I'll worry a little less," she confessed."I still plan to do crazy stuff, hey, do you have a daughter?""No.""Want one?""I'm in the final drawing of lots for the Great Hunt," she smiled once more."You could just ask.""My way is more fun. This way I'll be sure you'll obey," she let her eyes sparkle with a mirthful fire."Don't think I'll go easy on you. I plan to win," I pledged."Of course not. Why would you change now?""I'd rather you bust my balls than mock me?" I pouted. "Instead of spending a moving moment, you are cheering me up.""It is my job to look after you, even now," she stroked my neck affectionately."Especially now," I added as I hit the elevator button."Let's catch up with the others. I need to tell Meridian that she's back in the running.""Oh, that is fortunate," I grinned. "Oh, we'll start our mission to Brazil on Thursday, February 12th.""Is there a significance of that date?"I laughed. I put an arm around her shoulder as the doors opened. There were two others Havenstone ladies onboard."Carnival in Rio de Janeiro!" I exulted. "Half a million tourists a day. Two million Brazilians. Everyone wears a mask. What's not to love?""You are so fortunate you waited until you had witnesses around," Rachel groused."Desiree says it's bad for my prestige to be beaten in public," I chortled. "I'm glad you agree.""Maybe we can spar on the mats today when you get off work?""Oh, I'd like to see that," one of the other Amazons remarked. "Weapons or hand-to-hand?""I'll let him use a weapon. I'll use my hands. I want him to think he has a chance," Rachel declared. My arm was still around her shoulder, so I knew she wasn't really pissed."Didn't you kill Ajax?" the other one noted."He tripped over his shoelaces and impaled himself on his own sword," I sighed dramatically.Since the two women looked at one another, then to Rachel, I knew I'd told the lie well."Cáel had an ally shoot a grenade overhead, Ajax died in the confusion, so whatever blow killed him is irrelevant. Cáel beat Ajax with his mind before a single blow was landed. He made his foe fight his battle and that was how Wakko Ishara won," Rachel responded."Like an Amazon," the first one nodded."With balls," I added."An Amazon with balls? I guess you are, but I don't think the testes mattered in that you beat our foe in a matter your ancestors can be proud of," the second one said."Well said," Rachel nodded."Thank you," I shook her hand. "I'm Cáel Wakko Ishara aka Nyilas.""Oh, I'm Wynona of Allatu," she answered. She shook my hand, I ran a finger over her pulse and got her to blush slightly. Allatu was the Goddess of the Underworld in Canaanite mythology and one of the First Houses."Behave," Rachel whispered."Not likely," I whispered back."Did I say something wrong?" Wynona worried."No. Rachel is my moral guardian. So, do you want to go fishing, I mean swimming tomorrow after work, say 5:15?" I inquired."Sure," her smile broadened. "I excel in the water.""Good, maybe you can teach me a thing or two," I answered. The door opened at the lobby and there stood Desiree."Here," Rachel shoved me out the door. "Take him before he fishes himself into more trouble.""I understand," Desiree grumbled. "Come on fisherman. Financial Investigations is working late tonight and we need to pick up Italian food for twenty-two.""Lead and I shall follow," I proclaimed."Why do you call him the 'Fisherman'," Wynona asked Rachel."Fish, barrel, I'll explain it to you on the way to the garage," Rachel sighed. The doors shut and off we all went.{7:10 pm, Wednesday, August 27th ~ 12 Days to go}"Will you still be having dinner with us once you return back to JIKIT?" Europa asked as Lorraine passed me some Cajun rice."Every Monday and Wednesday night and on Fridays early," I grinned."We are going to be spending some time in Doebridge over the Labor Day weekend," Europa griped. "Do you want to come with us and save Aya from retelling her ordeal to yet another band of pre-Amazons?""Aya, do you want me to run interference for you?" I asked."No," she smiled. "I want you to train for the Great Hunt. Aunt Katrina says Elsa is virtually a guarantee to be one of the thirty.""Ugh," I groaned. "That's the cherry on the top of a rather bizarre day.""Was today bad?" Loraine asked."Let me see, for starters I got to use a variety of weird weapons for firearms practice. I had a feeling I was part of a round-robin, the way they rotated their assistance to me. In the elevator, I was with Brielle and her buddy when we had a security drill. The elevator cut off, but the air handler went into overdrive, dropping the temperature. After a quick democratic vote, I lost my shirt to an impromptu fire to stay warm, alive," I chuckled. "Then we cuddled together for warmth. I was about to lose my undershirt and pants when the alert ended.""Security alerts last less than fifteen minutes," Caitlyn noted. "I doubt you were in any danger of freezing to death.""Brielle was under the impression security alerts could last hours, despite my questionable knowledge otherwise from the handbook I'd read. Since she had the seniority, I thought she knew better.""So now you are shirtless," Europe smirked."I had a spare shirt stashed in Katrina's office, but I was required to change during the meeting because we were running late. Oh, and yesterday I forgot to feed some genetically superior white rats at one of our labs. Apparently they gnawed through their cages, broke out and now are in the Manhattan underworld, plotting a rodent rebellion," I related."Oh, that was my idea," Loraine perked up."Do you sit around the table with Katrina thinking up this kind of crap!" I protested."Occasionally," Caitlyn admitted. "Most of those are pure Katrina though.""Glad to know my misery is a family bonding experience.""You should be glad to know we care about you," Europa beamed."Yeah, I'll remember that and once you are casted I'm going to absolutely abuse my authority in some serious payback," I faux-glared at her."I promise you we will make it fun," Aya pledged."You would betray your own sisters?" Caitlyn questioned."Sisters are sisters, Mother, but boon companions are for life," Aya countered."That's cool, Mom," Europa snorted. "We'll always be taller than Aya, and faster.""Only more proof she'll be smarter," Caitlyn shook her head. "So Cáel what happened next?""What makes you think the rest of my day wasn't mundane and boring?""According to Katrina, you are the best stress reliever at Havenstone since they put in the Jacuzzis. With it being open season on you today, I figured your day was one misadventure after another," Caitlyn smiled warmly."Fine, I had to go to Financial Investigations to discuss my expense account in Europe.""That doesn't sound all that exciting," Loraine said."We were in the pool swimming in the classic Amazon style, I swear, sometime I think I should go to work wearing nothing but a trench coat and a smile," I grouched."Did you make any babies?" Aya chirped."No, I can't have that kind of fun with any employees for another twelve more days. Anyway, they were quite cross with me not using their services and let me know for an hour and, thirty-six minutes. After that I had to get a reference physical.""You are as healthy as a horse," Europa neighed."Funny Epona," I sniffed indignantly. "You are a load of laughs, filly. After I had been turned into a prune they made me undress again. There was some nonsense about all the combat I had been in had made me shorter and given me muscle constriction.""That is a good one," Aya nodded. "I'm glad they were being as creative as you are, Atta.""Who is to say that I'm not being the creative one here?" I winked at her."Were your muscles 'constricted'?" Loraine snickered. Europa gave her a thumbs up for joining on the fun."Nope, all my reflexes are in working order and I can still salute on demand," I smiled. "Which was good because after that, I worked through lunch with Acquisitions discussing Khanate plans for Siberia." There was a pause."What was so horrid about that?" Loraine inquired, as if I had been tortured up until that point."We had to do the whole three hour routine on the practice mats. I was pinned grappled and I had something that was strangely reminiscent of a titty-snuggle. I mean, all that skin-tight clothing, close contact and sweaty bodies was murder on my concentration," I confessed."We aren't going to be investing in Siberia, are we?" Aya winked at me."I don't know. I spent three hours saying "I don't know" and "I haven't a clue.""You are good at that," Europa jibed. I flicked a pea at her, bouncing it off her chin. She was getting ready for a spaghetti & meatball counterattack when Caitlyn's cough brought her up short."He is the Head of House Ishara. He can act that way. You are Epona and we are better behaved."Europa stuck her tongue at me, I returned the gesture and this time Caitlyn's cough was aimed at me. She followed that up by rubbing her foot along my shin. I smiled at her, then caught Aya smiling at the both of us. Then I recalled Aya had set the table, damn it."I'll get us dessert," Aya beamed happiness my way. I was thinking about dessert alright, damn that girl.{Rhada Revisited}"I'm home gang," I exhaled. "Ready to go out?" and was promptly shot with a Nerf gun. "What did I do this time?"Timothy and Odette were getting off the sofa. Odette was taking aim while Timothy left his single-shot where he'd been sitting."We are going out. You are not," Timothy grinned. "You have company in the bedroom.""Man, I was looking forward to," then Odette shot me in the stomach with her six shot nerf repeater."You have company," Odette emphasized the 'company' part. To me this implied someone who I couldn't seduce with a few words, maybe get busy for half an hour then go out partying. That could only mean,I opened my door and there lay Rhada, completely naked, hogtied and bound. She had even been gagged. Her look of hate and loathing turned to, something else; part fear and part heartsick yearning. Could Timothy and Odette, really just Timothy, I loved Odette but she had the combat skills of a Tribble. Could Timothy defeat Rhada so thoroughly that she could be so bound?Not likely. I'd been neglecting her, What with being kidnapped, running off to Europe and generally doing my job, I'd neglected her well-defined physique, olive skin and athletic curves. I'd been a fool for letting her waste away while I'd been 'not' earning a paycheck. Hell, I was working too much. I'd played around in college and still managed to graduate with good grades, and it wasn't like I had been hired for my brains."Oh, I've been missing this," I relished her helplessness while rubbing my palms together."Mumph," Rhada protested. It was hard for her to move her body. Her legs were bound above the knee to her shins while her ankles were lashed together and then to the top of her thighs.Her elbows and wrists were tied behind her back, wrists to wrist. The ropes securing her arms crisscrossed above and below her breasts and looped around her neck. She looked tightly secured. A bit too secured. I couldn't see how to un-hog-tie her."Don't you dare go anywhere," I warned Rhada then backed out of the room hurriedly."I suggested the ass plug!" Odette smiled as I turned around. I'd missed that given the shapeliness of her buttock,"I color-coded the ends of the ropes for you. Pull the yellow, then green and then pink and she'll come undone just fine. I put some ointment by the bedside for after. It will help numb the burn and promotes healing without scarring," Timothy patted me on the shoulder. "Now that you've b

I'm Anahit Lou, a multidisciplinary designer, creative researcher, and educator with a strong affinity for modernism and a commitment to ethical design practices. Having initially pursued studies in corporate law, I redirected my path to follow my passion for design, dedicating nearly a decade to working as a designer, educator, and art director.

It's our now-annual recap of the year as Anahit, Jamie, Ellie and Peter pick out some of the favourite performances, moments, needle drops and hot boys of the past year in the kino. You know we love Challengers and Love Lies Bleeding, but did you know we also loved a slept-on Koreeda banger, a queer time-hop costume drama and shouting about bad romcoms? You did? Well this'll be right up your street... TIMESTAMPS: Underrated and surprising films of 2024: Timestalker, Monster, Occupied City, Red Rooms, The Wild Robot (1:30) Big Swings and Weird Sequels: The Substance, Megalopolis, 2073, Madame Web (24:35) Stupid, Sexy Cinema: Challengers, Love Lies Bleeding, Orlando: My Political Biography (43:30) Fun Ones: Evil Does Not Exist, Irish Wish, Look Back (1:00:30) Get us on Twitter, Bluesky, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

The great Francis Ford Coppola spent 40 years and $120 million of his own money making the epic saga Megalopolis. Was the years of toil and expense worth it? We also look at two stunningly original documentaries concerned with art: Mati Diop's Dahomey, which follows the process of 26 royal treasures being returned from France to their rightful home in Benin; and Mark Cousins's A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things, a poetic celebration of the undersung Scottish modernist artist Wilhelmina Barns-Graham. And given that Tilda Swinton narrates Cousins's film and will also appear soon in Pedro Almodóvar's The Room Next Door, we thought it a good time to discuss the career of this extraordinary Scottish actor.  TIMESTAMPS What We've Been Watching - films on planes, The Iron Claw, Our Friends in the North and LFF films (2:18) Anahit reviews LFF (11:55) Melalopolis review (19:10) Dahomey review (36:00) A Sudden Glimpse to Deeper Things review (51:10) The great enigma that is Tilda Swinton (01:03:29) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Intro/outro music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

This time, we're talking about one of Anahit's favourite films of all, Tarsem Singh's 2006 opus and Tumblr's Favourite Film™, The Fall. It's back, it's in 4K, and it's grrrreat. Elsewhere, we talk about the less successful but still-ambitious In Camera, and look back on some of filmmaking's biggest swings. Terrence Malick, Tommy Wiseau, big piles of white powder and on-retainer helicopter pilots – finally, a conversation with something for everyone. TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching: The Third Man, Lee, Twilight (2:10) In Camera review (9:50) The Fall review (23:10) Filmmaking follies: The Room, Days of Heaven, The Blues Brothers (37:40) Recorded at EHFM's Ground Floor HQ in Leith. Get a coffee and see radio/audio in action, @groundfloor__ Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Intro/outro music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

We're talking about obsession on this week's podcast after falling for the curious Quebecois courtroom drama/tech thriller Red Rooms. We also delve into a film that crosses two circles on The CineSkinny's Venn diagram of interests: folk horror and creepy puppets. That film is the 70s-set British horror film Starve Acre. We also receive a missive from Anahit, who's attending Venice Film Festival, where the weather is hot. Will that be the same case for the films, though? Note: this episode has a post-credits scene. TIMESTAMPS: Venice Film Festival: Babygirl, Queer and The Brutalist (2:38) Starve Acre review (7:27) Red Rooms review (24:23) Films about obsession: American Psycho, Peeping Tom and The Vanishing (41:49) Recorded at EHFM's Ground Floor HQ in Leith. Go there, get a coffee and see radio/audio in action, @groundfloor__ Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Intro/outro music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

The Edinburgh Festivals are back, baby, and there's none more relevant to this podcast than the Edinburgh International Film Festival. Ahead of opening night, Peter, Ellie, Anahit and Jamie discuss Nathan Silver's Between The Temples, Alice Lowe's Timestalker, and Maryam Moqadam and Behtash Sanaeeha's My Favourite Cake.  Because it's Festival time, we also make some Fringe recommendations, forget people's names repeatedly (pre-emptive apologies to Carol Kane) and come up with daring new ways of counting up to five. It's wild, it's feral, and it's only getting hotter, it's The Cineskinny. TIMESTAMPS: Edinburgh Film Festival first thoughts (1:35) Between The Temples review (6:45) Timestalker review (23:00) My Favourite Cake review (33:20) Our Edinburgh Fringe picks (45:55) EIFF, 15-21 Aug, programme and tickets: https://www.edfilmfest.org/ Recorded at Codebase, Peter's apologies for any weirdness on the audio. EHFM's Ground Floor HQ is now open, go get a coffee and see radio/audio in action, @groundfloor__ Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Intro/outro music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/gender-studies

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/sociology

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/communications

We're back to a full complement this week for a B-movie bonanza. Russell Crowe is back on his anti-demon beat in The Exorcism (bad), Dale Dickey is out for revenge in The G (better), and we all chat about some of our favourite genre movies. Anahit fills us in on Lina Soualem and Hiam Abbas' new documentary Bye Bye Tiberias so we can keep our arthouse credentials, then we fling it all away talking about the Minions and whether or not it's good to eat mud. For your consideration, it's The Cineskinny. TIMESTAMPS: WWBW: Bye Bye Tiberias, Fried Green Tomatoes..., Interview with the Vampire, Minions: Rise of Gru (2:00) The Exorcism review (14:20) The G review (27:15) Films With No Right To Be This Good: House, Pacific Rim, Speed Racer, Detour, The Running Man (40:10) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk; recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Friendships can be the foundation of our earliest memories and most formative moments. But why are they often seen as secondary to romantic, or familial connection, something to age out of and take a back seat to other relationships? BFFs: The Radical Potential of Female Friendship (404 Ink, 2023) by Dr. Anahit Behrooz is an examination of the power of female friendship, not as something lesser, but as a site of radical intimacy, as told through the cultural touchstones around us. From coming-of-age tales through physical intimacy and discovering personhood to break ups and parting of ways, Dr. Behrooz considers the vast significance of our friendships through the work of Toni Morrison and Elena Ferrante, Booksmart and Grey's Anatomy, Insecure, The Virgin Suicides and beyond. To have a life rich in love is often viewed through a specific lens; BFFs shows us that friendship can offer a more expansive and emancipatory understanding of female intimacy, and can be the most important, loving relationships in our lives. This interview was conducted by Dr. Miranda Melcher whose new book focuses on post-conflict military integration, understanding treaty negotiation and implementation in civil war contexts, with qualitative analysis of the Angolan and Mozambican civil wars. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/popular-culture

This time on The Cineskinny, we go running in the fields of streaming cinema. Anahit reviews Hit Man (good!), Jamie joins her for The Idea of You (bad! and weird!), then the whole gang discusses the good, bad and ugly of the streaming revolution. How many of Netflix's top ten films are actually elaborate pranks on this podcast? More than you'd think! We also discuss the inventive, intriguing and v freaky British debut Hoard ahead of its release in cinemas. It's a fun one this week – come for the serious film chat, stay for Jamie's list of 'older women he likes'.  TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching: Lost, Baby Reindeer, Blue Sky, Triangle of Sadness (1:45) Hoard review (12:35) Hit Man review (22:30) The Idea of You review (28:05) The Great Streaming Glut, aka Where Have All The Good Rom Coms gone? (35:15) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk; recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

The gang's all back, and this week we're talking all things Glasgow Film Festival. We've got vampires! Gunfights! Drag queens! Orthodox monks doing kung-fu! Other stuff! Ellie, Jamie, Anahit and Peter also have a chat about upstart film competition 'The Oscars', aka 'The Academy Awards'. See, they haven't even settled on a title yet, amateurs. Peter has a coughing fit, Anahit is jet-lagged and buzzed on Red Bull so won't stop playing with the sound effects, Ellie talks us through the finer points of animation studio politics, and Jamie tells us all about why Bradley Cooper shouldn't win an Oscar. It's The Cineskinny. TIMESTAMPS: The Oscars, aka 'How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Just Slag Off Maestro' (2:50) Glasgow Film Festival overview (12:35) The Vourdalak review (15:15) Jericho Ridge review (24:15) Solo review (30:50) The Invisible Fight review (43:00) Additional GFF picks (49:35) CINESKINNY FILM CLUB TICKETS: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/tickets Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter, Instagram, Letterboxd and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk; recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license  

Compositor italiano de origen noble, entra por su propia mano en un asilo psiquiátrico en los Alpes donde se entrega a la lectura de tomos de budismo tibetano y a la repetición, al piano, de una única nota. La experiencia determina el grueso de su producción (más de 150 obras) y le otorga la categoría de precursor del espectralismo._____Has escuchadoAlleluja: for violoncello solo (1970). Frances-Marie Uitti, violonchelo. ECM (2006)Anahit: poème lyrique dédié à Vénus (1965). Carmen Fournier, violín; Orchestre de la Radio-Télévision polonaise de Cracovie; Jürg Wyttenbach, director. Accord (1989)Konx-Om-Pax (1969). Orchestre de la Radio-Télévision polonaise de Cracovie; Jürg Wyttenbach, director. Accord (1988)Ygghur: for violoncello solo (1970). Frances-Marie Uitti, violonchelo. ECM (2006)_____Selección bibliográficaANDERSON, Julian, “La Note Juste. Julian Anderson Appraises the Work of the Enigmatic Giacinto Scelsi”. The Musical Times, vol. 136, n.º 1823 (1995), pp. 22-27*ASSAYAG, Irène, Giacinto Scelsi, musicien-poète du XXe siècle. L'Harmattan, 2017*CASTANET, Pierre-Albert, “Opus musicum angelorium: Quand la musique des Invisibles émerge aux confins du sensible. Hommage à Giacinto Scelsi”. Itamar. Revista de Investigación Musical: Territorios del Arte, n.º 5 (2019), pp. 85-107*CASTANET, Pierre-Albert y Nicola Cistermo (eds.), Giacinto Scelsi. Viaggio al centro del suono. Luna Editore, 2001DICKSON, Ian, “Towards a Grammatical Analysis of Scelsi's Late Music”. Music Analysis, vol. 31, n.º 2 (2012), pp. 216-241*DROTT, Eric, “Class, Ideology, and Il Caso Scelsi”. The Musical Quarterly, vol. 89, n.º 1 (2006), pp. 80-120*FREEMAN, Robin, “Tanmatras: The Life and Work of Giacinto Scelsi”. Tempo, n.º 176 (1991), pp. 8-18*PATRICK, Revol, Conception orientale du temps dans la musique occidentale du vingtième siècle. L'Harmattan, 2007*SCELSI, Giacinto, The Aesthetical Writings of Giacinto Scelsi. Editado y traducido por Franco Sciannameo y Alessandra Carlotta Pellegrini. Rowman & Littlefield, 2023SCIANNAMEO, Franco y Alessandra Carlotta Pellegrini, Music as Dream: Essays on Giacinto Scelsi. Scarecrow Press, 2013UITTI, Frances-Marie, “Preserving the Scelsi Improvisations”. Tempo, n.º 194 (1995), pp. 12-14*WANKE, Riccardo D., Sound in the Ecstatic-Materialist Perspective on Experimental Music. Routledge, 2022* *Documento disponible para su consulta en la Sala de Nuevas Músicas de la Biblioteca y Centro de Apoyo a la Investigación de la Fundación Juan March

This year at AWS re:Invent we are going to interview conference attendees, AWS Heroes, and AWS employees. We're asking them what they are excited about at re:Invent and what they are working on! Anahit is a Lead Cloud Software Engineer at Solita. Join us to hear the answer to these questions from some of the top minds in the industry!!! Resources: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anahit-pogosova/ https://twitter.com/anahit_fi https://www.solita.fi/ Intro music attribution: Artist - MaxKoMusic

It's the end of the year, sort of, so we're running through ten of 2023's best films. Peter, Jamie, Anahit and Ellie race through a list of challenging, exciting, engaging hits from the past year – with a pleasing number of narcissistic wrong 'uns for us to judge and mock. The Skinny's Top Ten films, upon which this whole pod is based: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/opinion/the-skinnys-films-of-2023 The Cineskinny Film Club tickets: https://theskinny.co.uk/tickets Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

On this week's episode, we discuss two great new films – Molly Manning Walker's energetic and unsettling How To Have Sex, and Justine Triet's topsy-turvy courtroom drama Anatomy of a Fall. In honour of How To Have Sex's unflinching portrayal of a neon-soaked jaunt to Malia, Anahit, Peter and Jamie discuss some of their favourite on-screen holidays – a lot of Italy, a lot of poor decision-making, all the classics. TIMESTAMPS: How To Have Sex review (2:45) Anatomy of a Fall review (18:00) Holidays on screen – Only You, The Talented Mr Ripley, The Heartbreak Kid (31:10) The Cineskinny Film Club tickets: https://theskinny.co.uk/tickets Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

TRACKLIST HERE: https://wearesoundspace.com/mix351-anahit-vardanyan Instagram: bit.ly/soundspaceinsta YouTube: bit.ly/soundspaceyoutube Facebook: bit.ly/soundspacefb Twitter: bit.ly/soundspacetweets Spotify: spoti.fi/3QKRWCl SoundCloud: @wearesoundspace Anahit Vardanyan https://soundcloud.com/anahitvardanyanofficial

On this week's podcast, Jamie, Ellie and Peter escape the heatwave with two films of varying quality – Celine Song's much-hyped Past Lives, and outsider artist doc A Life on the Farm.  We then get into a chat about films about films, cos we're cool like that, and Anahit saves the day by dialling in from Venice Film Festival. Molto bene, and so on and so forth. TIMESTAMPS: Past Lives review (01:55) We hear from Carmen Thompson of We Are Parable about new filmmaker programme Momentum (14:45) A Life on the Farm review (19:45) Anahit's Venice Diary (30:40) Films About Films (Day and Night, 8 1/2, The Sweatbox, The Blair Witch Project) (37:50) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

From Chummy Studios, Hye Jams Radio presents, "Paisan and Friends," brought to you by Haig's Kabob House. Some Armenian lady called your Italian Host Crazy at a coffee shop in Glendale. And for Paisan, that's the highest form of compliment. Check out the latest show called, “Այ Գիժ (Ay Gij)”, you're gonna love it. This episode features Brand New Hye Jams from Lilu, D'Litte and Anahit. Plus, Hits you know and love from Sammy Flash, Kolo, Rafo Khachatryan, Shprot, Arminka, Lilit Hovhannisyan, DJ Apo, Artash Asatryan, Karl Wolf, Super Sako, Iveta Mukuchyan, Aram MP3, DJ Davo, Tatul Avoyan, Armen Aloyan, Spitakci Hayko, Gims, Maluma, and Nare Ghazaryan — to name a few. Download the app now in the App or Google Play store and listen for free to a high energy, incredible show filled with your favorite Armenian Pop Music, playing the Best of the Best Songs. Ain't nuttin' but a party...right here on Hye Jams Radio!

Garo & Anahit Setian (Space Wars: Quest For The Deep Star) and Thomas G. Waites (The Warriors, And Justice For All, The Thing, Light of Day) join us on this episode of The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell broadcast live from the W4CY studios on Wednesday, August 16th, 2023.Support this podcast at — https://redcircle.com/the-jimmy-star-show-with-ron-russell9600/donationsAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Garo & Anahit Setian (Space Wars: Quest For The Deep Star) and Thomas G. Waites (The Warriors, And Justice For All, The Thing, Light of Day) join us on this episode of The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell broadcast live from the W4CY studios on Wednesday, August 16th, 2023.The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell is broadcast live Wednesdays at 3PM ET.The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell TV Show is viewed on Talk 4 TV (www.talk4tv.com).The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell Radio Show is broadcast on W4CY Radio (www.w4cy.com) part of Talk 4 Radio (www.talk4radio.com) on the Talk 4 Media Network (www.talk4media.com). The Jimmy Star Show with Ron Russell Podcast is also available on Talk 4 Podcasting (www.talk4podcasting.com), iHeartRadio, Amazon Music, Pandora, Spotify, Audible, and over 100 other podcast outlets.

This week, Peter, Jamie and Anahit (plus a remote assist from Lewis!) discuss the tale of one of the most pervasive and powerful forces even unleashed on the world, plus some film by that Inception lad about a sad scientist in a funky hat. Yes, it's Barbie and Oppenheimer, together at last – recorded in a real hurry to really give it that 'sugar rush, existential crash' vibe. Vive le cinema, and power to the striking writers and actors!  TIMESTAMPS: Barbenheimer as a cultural moment (2:00) Oppenheimer review (5:20) Lewis' Barbie review *a little bit spoilery* (17:00) The rest of the gang on Barbie (20:45) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license  

This time, Wes Anderson rolls into Asteroid City with every actor you've ever heard of, Annie Ernaux narrates some of her archive video to mixed results, and we have a Solstice-inspired chat about Folk Horror.  Elsewhere, Anahit talks about aesthetic hospitals and Jamie shares his beef with a particular cinema chain who shall remain nameless. Classic Cineskinny, 10/10. TIMESTAMPS What We've Been Watching: Death Race 2000, Black Mirror, The Gallows Pole (2:50) Asteroid City review (16:20) The Super 8 Years review (30:35) Folk Horror: The Wicker Man, Apostle, The Village, Night of the Demon (41:40) Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on Twitter and TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall – ehfm.live Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Episode Notes S4E18 -- Join us as we dive into the minds of the dynamic duo Garo & Anahit Setian. Garo is a multi award winning producer along with his award winning wife Anahit they will take us on their journey from Lionsgate to Spacewars- Quest for Deepstar... NEWS FLASH You can now purchase Toking with the Dead full novel here https://a.co/d/7uypgZo https://www.barnesandnoble.com/.../toking.../1143414656... You can see all your past favorite episodes now streaming on https://redcoraluniverse.com/ OR Show your support by purchasing FB stars. Send stars to the stars fb.com/stars This episode is sponsored by Deadly Grounds Coffee "Its good to get a little Deadly" https://deadlygroundscoffee.com ————————————————— https://www.stilltoking.com/ Check out Toking with the Dead Episode 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=awhL5FyW_j4 Check out Toking with the Dead Episode 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaUai58ua6o Buy awesome Merchandise! https://www.stilltoking.com/toking-with-the-dead-train https://teespring.com/stores/still-toking-with Sponsorship Opportunities https://www.stilltoking.com/become-a-sponsor or email us at bartlett52108@gmail.com thetokingdead@gmail.com ————————————— Follow our guest https://www.linkedin.com/in/garo-setian-652b59135 https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1138076/ https://www.instagram.com/garosetian/?hl=en https://www.facebook.com/garo.setian/ https://www.amazon.com/.../amzn1.dv.gti.aedae292-ec0f... https://www.imdb.com/search/title/?companies=co0536091 https://hungrymonster.co/about-us https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1972687/ https://www.facebook.com/anahit.setian/ ———————���———————— Follow Still Toking With and their friends! https://smartpa.ge/5zv1 https://thedorkeningpodcastnetwork.com/ ————————————— Produced by Leo Pond and The Dorkening Podcast Network https://TheDorkening.com Facebook.com/TheDorkening Youtube.com/TheDorkening Twitter.com/TheDorkening Dead Dork Radio https://live365.com/station/Dead-Dork-Radio-a68071 MORE ABOUT OUR GUESTS: Garo - I am an award winning trailer editor, former senior editor at Lionsgate and filmmaker. For over 15 years I worked at Lionsgate cutting trailers and television spots in their home entertainment division. Over my career, I have cut and / or produced over 370 trailers and television spots for movies, been nominated for 25 Golden Trailer Awards and have won three. My trailers have been nominated for "Best Horror," "Best Thriller," "Most Original," "Best Sound," "Best Voice Over," "Best Foreign Horror," "Best Original Score," "Best Trailer, No Movie," Most Original Foreign Trailer,” “Trashiest Trailer” and more. I have also won 3 Clio awards. I have cut every kind of trailer imaginable from big Hollywood Productions to low budget horror, to comedy, action, drama, romance, specialized indie features and documentaries. My own company HUNGRY MONSTER ENTERTAINMENT is a full service trailer vendor where I serve as the creative director, producer, writer and editor of trailers. Many of these trailers have been nominated for Golden Trailer Awards and have competed with some of the biggest and best trailer vendors in the business. HUNGRY MONSTER ENTERTAINMENT's first feature, the sci-fi / thriller AUTOMATION which I wrote, produced, directed and edited will be released at the end of the year through Epic Pictures. The film recently screened at the Hollywood Horrorfest where is won 6 awards, "Best Horror Feature," "Best Feature Director," "Best Feature Screenplay," "Best Actress," "Best Supporting Actress," and "Best Supporting Actor." Anahit -- Multi award winning actress and VP of Hungry Monster Entertainment Anahit Setian is known for Automation (2019), Ijé: The Journey (2010) and The Summer of Massacre (2012). Find out more at https://still-toking-with.pinecast.co

This week, we discuss the hyper-stressful work drama Full Time, the ubiquitous Local Hero, and a collection of films about, ahem, smart-mouth city folk going to the countryside. Also, Anahit finds Zorro in Corstorphine, Jamie plays 'Defamation Bingo', Lewis recommends a YouTube banger, and Peter gets interrupted by a motorbike. Twice. Recorded at EHFM, Summerhall: https://ehfm.live TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching (Winter Boy, Defunctland, Mark of Zorro) (01:00) Full Time review (05:40) Local Hero's 40th anniversary (15:30) City Slickers in the Country chat ft Our Daily Bread, Groundhog Day, Runaway Bride and more (25:20) TICKETS FOR MEDUSA DELUXE: https://theskinny.co.uk/tickets Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on TikTok and Twitter @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Today on #BTLRadioShow it's a day celebrating some talented and very happy and fun filmmakers and their latest films; ANDY FICKMAN talking ONE TRUE LOVES and GARO SETIAN & ANAHIT SETIAN talking SPACE WARS: QUEST FOR THE DEEPSTAR. Each of the filmmakers you'll hear from in my prerecorded exclusive interviews are brimming with joy and happiness as they talk about their respective films and their craft. And another commonality among them is their attention to detail in the making of their films. First up, take a listen to the oh-so-talented and oh-so-fun ANDY FICKMAN talking about his new film ONE TRUE LOVES. Starring Simu Liu, Luke Bracey, and Phillipa Soo, ONE TRUE LOVES is a tale filled with love, heartache, and happiness that is sweet, sentimental, and poignant as Emma (Soo) marries the love of her life Jesse (Bracey) only to lose him to a tragic accident a year later. But as time passes, she reconnects with her childhood best friend Sam (Liu) and falls deeply in love with him. But as Emma readies for a future with Sam, Jesse suddenly appears. How do you choose between the two loves of your life? And that's the journey that Andy takes us on and discusses in this interview with each aspect of the directorial process. Then get ready, as we blast off with director/co-writer/editor GARO SETIAN and producer/actor ANAHIT SETIAN and go deep into the making of SPACE WARS: QUEST FOR THE DEEPSTAR. A fun fun film that pays homage to the best parts of sci-fi fantasy films, SPACE WARS is the story of father-daughter space cowboys Kip and Taylor Corman as they travel the galaxies on an elusive search for something very precious. Along for the ride is a fellow space traveler named Jackie. As comes as no surprise there are bad guys in pursuit, an over-the-top very pissed-off female ship captain named Elnora, and plenty of creatures, aliens, space battles, and more! Starring Michael Pare, Sarah French, Olivier Gruner, Tyler Gallant, Jed Rowen, Sadie Katz, and ANAHIT SETIAN (who steals the film with heart and humor), Garo celebrates practical effects and buttresses that VFX and creature creations while always keeping his eye on character and story. http://eliasentertainmentnetwork.com

This week, the gang discuss the latest work by everyone's favourite staid purveyor of kicking people's heads in, John Wick. We also discuss the surreal and spooky Filipino action-comedy-drama Leonor Will Never Die, and talk about a few more films making exciting innovations in the field of Fightin' At The Movies. In case you hadn't guessed, Anahit was away this week, and it turns out Peter had a bit of a cold. Expect mid-energy and vibrancy! Also a surprising amount about horses! And more! TIMESTAMPS Our Indie Cinema Guide with Film Hub Scotland, and free MUBI screenings (00:30) Jamie on Glasgow Short Film Festival (2:20) Leonor Will Never Die review (6:00) John Wick 4 review (14:40) Kung Fu Hustle, Upgrade, and further watching (30:35) RETURN TO SEOUL AND MATINEE TICKETS: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/tickets If you like The Cineskinny, tell your pals! Leave us a five-star review! Share the episode on socials! Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at Upload Studios, uploadstudios.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Det har gått fyra år sedan magasinet Filters reportage Ohörda rop orsakade stor debatt. Anahit och Nermin vittnade om hur de som barn tvingats spela apatiska för att öka familjernas chanser att få stanna i Sverige. Vad har hänt i frågan sen dess? Har någon tagit ansvar för fallen av misstänkt barnmisshandel och varför är frågan fortfarande känslig? Med barnneurologen Karl Sallin, specialisten i barn-och ungdomsmedicin Ingrid Segerberg och överläkaren i barn- och ungdomsmedicin Johanna Dalström. Programledare: Magnus Thorén. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Det har gått fyra år sedan magasinet Filters reportage Ohörda rop orsakade stor debatt. Anahit och Nermin vittnade om hur de som barn tvingats spela apatiska för att öka familjernas chanser att få stanna i Sverige. Vad har hänt i frågan sen dess? Har någon tagit ansvar för fallen av misstänkt barnmisshandel och varför är frågan fortfarande känslig? Med barnneurologen Karl Sallin, specialisten i barn-och ungdomsmedicin Ingrid Segerberg och överläkaren i barn- och ungdomsmedicin Johanna Dalström. Programledare: Magnus Thorén.

Anahit's written a book! BFFs is about the radical potential of female friendship, so your best podcast pals are here for a pals' chat about a pal's book (except for Jamie, who is waylaid on another project we'll tell you about later...) Elsewhere, we take a big ol' honk on Hello Dankness, the latest from mash-up nouveau-agitprop legends Soda_Jerk, ahead of its Glasgow Short Film Festival screening, and Anahit fills us in on the lovely Rye Lane. Thanks to the Hippodrome Silent Film Festival for sponsoring The Cineskinny! hippfest.co.uk TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching (Rye Lane, The Origin) (3:30) Hello Dankness review (9:50) BFFs chat (20:30) GET YR COPY OF BFFs: https://www.404ink.com/store/inklings-bffs  If you like The Cineskinny, tell your pals! Leave us a five-star review! Share the episode on socials! Follow the team on Twitter @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq @lew_rob_, get us on TikTok @thecineskinny, email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Recorded at Upload Studios, uploadstudios.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Today's poem is Head of Anahit / British Museum by Peter Balakian.

Network Nation Podcast-ի 63-րդ էպիզոդի հյուրերն են ONEArmenia բարեգործական հասարակական կազմակերպության ներկայացուցիչներ Անահիտ Նազարյանը և Նարինե Աբգարյանը։Զրուցել ենք հետևյալ և այլ թեմաների շուրջ․◾ ONEArmenia-ի նախապատմությունը, մի քանի տարբեր ոլորտներում ծրագրեր իրակացնելը◾ մեկ ուղղությամբ կենտրոնացումը, փորձառական տուրիզմը◾ մարզերում առկա ծրագրերը, տեղացիներին վերապատրաստելը◾ Հայաստանը՝ Կովկասում համար 1 տուրիստական ուղղություն

Facebook: www.facebook.com/petofiradio/ Instagram: www.instagram.com/petofiradio/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@petofi_live?lang=hu-HU YouTube: www.youtube.com/@petofiradiozenebenelso

We kick off 2023 with a pair of excellent new releases – the *incredible* Nan Goldin documentary All the Beauty and the Bloodshed and Tár, starring the excellent Cate Blanchett. The gang also take a dive into Artificial Intelligence in cinema with some help from a Mr. ChatGPT, Jamie and Anahit talk about the new official 'Best Film of All Time', and Peter has some fun with puns. TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching (Jeanne Dielman, Summer of Soul) - 0:30 All the Beauty... review - 11:40 Tár review - 25:30 AI in cinema chat (Wall-E, The Matrix, Stepford Wives, I'm Your Man) - 37:15 Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_
 Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Anahit Fernández is the Producer and Studio Manager at Navegante, developers of Greak: Memories of Azur. Greak is a 2D platformer with combat, puzzles, and an emphasis on story. The game is available on Switch, PC, Playstation, and Xbox. I played it on my Switch and enjoyed it very much. The visuals and story are particularly great. In this episode we will discuss developing and releasing your first game, the role of the producer in game development, attending gaming industry events, acquiring a publisher, time management, scope control, QA testing, recording your music with a live orchestra, and much more. Greak on Steam Greak on Switch Greak on Playstation Greak on Xbox Greak on Twitter: @PlayGreak Greak on Instagram: @playgreak IGI on Twitter: @IndieGameINTL Consider becoming an IGI Patron: https://www.patreon.com/indiegameINTL IGI is a production of Su Madre Podcasts: https://sumadrepodcasts.com/

It's that time of year again. Anahit, Jamie, Lewis and Peter are rounding out 2022 by running through The Skinny's top ten films of the year, which include a few titles we didn't get to review on the pod, like Licorice Pizza, Happening and Nope.    TIMESTAMPS: Licorice Pizza - 2:46 The Worst Person in The World - 11:20 Happening - 14:04 Hit The Road - 20:52 The Banshees of Inisherin - 24:36 Nope - 29:40 Memoria - 40:16 Everything Everywhere All at Once - 43:25 Decision to Leave - 47:23 Aftersun - 49.59 Read more about The Skinny's Films of 2022 at theskinny.co.uk/film/opinion/films-of-the-year-2022 Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_
 Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Hogyan készült a Dope Calypso új klipje, és miért kellett újra felvenni egy lemezt? Erről is mesél Sarkadi Miklós a stúdióban. Megmutatjuk a Supergrass-frontember új szólódalát és a Blur-gitáros új zenekarát. Ilyen volt a Weezer, és ilyen most. Jön az Anahit új száma, Hegedűs Józsi új dala, és a Wolf Alice karácsonyi feldolgozása

On this week's episode, Jamie, Anahit, Lewis and Peter go on a festive rampage through some of their favourite Christmas movies. Cue a surprising amount of violence, the spectre of communism, the invention of the hula hoop, song and dance numbers, and just one reference to The Muppets Christmas Carol. Well, there was always gonna be one... TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching - 1:30 Klaus - 11:40 Gremlins - 17:35 Remember The Night - 24:00 Jingle All The Way - 27:50 You've Got Mail - 34:55 The Hudsucker Proxy - 39:10 Better Watch Out - 44:35 Anna and the Apocalypse - 47:55 Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_
 Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

In this special bonus mini episode of THE CINESKINNY, we're going back to August, and our review of the incredible new film Aftersun which hits cinemas this weekend. It's amazing, go and see it. Jamie, Anahit, Lewis and 'Friend Of The Pod' Xuanlin Tham discuss the film, by Edinburgh-born director Charlotte Wells and starring Paul Mescal and Frankie Corio. This initially went out as part of our EIFF live episode, which you can find in the feed. Jamie's interview with Charlotte Wells: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/interviews/charlotte-wells-on-aftersun  

On this week's pod, Peter Jamie and Anahit go long on Black Panther: Wakanda Forever, and discuss everyone's favourite elfin film boi, Timothée Chalamet, ahead of his new film Bones and All. Elsewhere, Jamie tries and fails to get his colleagues to watch Georgian fable What Do We See When We Look At The Sky?, Peter gets annoyed with James Corden, and Anahit tells us all about *checks notes* Looney Tunes: Back In Action… TIMESTAMPS What We've Been Watching (1:35) Black Panther: Wakanda Forever (7:40) What Do We See… (27:10) Bones and All (34:30) Timothee Chalamet retrospective (40:30) The Visual Effects Crisis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eALwDyS7rB0 Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_
 Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Jafar Panahi's a legend. On this week's tech-afflicted episode of The Cineskinny, the whole gang crowds into a meeting room to discuss the excellent No Bears, and celebrate the Iranian director's incredible 'post-filmmaking-ban' run of films.  Before all that, we review Billy Eichner's Bros and Henry Selick's new stop-motion movie Wendell and Wild. Peter goes off on a tangent about fish, the room gets hotter and hotter as we go on, and the mics each present their own problems, except for Anahit's lapel mic. It is, once again, The Cineskinny.----more---- savethefilmhouse.com TIMESTAMPS What We've Been Watching (w/ Peter's Fish Chat) (1:30) Bros (8:15) Wendell and Wild (20:00) No Bears (28:55) Jafar Panahi recap (38:05) Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_ Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod

En Arménie, près de 70 000 exilés russes se sont installés depuis le mois de mars pour s'éloigner de la guerre en Ukraine. Mais l'arrivée ces derniers jours d'une seconde vague fuyant la mobilisation partielle annoncée par Vladimir Poutine inquiète. Les Russes installés depuis plusieurs mois craignent que ces nouvelles arrivées entachent leur image auprès des Arméniens. Dans cette ex-République soviétique, beaucoup se plaignent d'une flambée des prix, voire d'un manque de civisme.   Depuis une semaine, dans les rues d'Erevan, Anastasia voit passer tous les jours des hommes seuls traînant leurs valises. Cette opposante au Kremlin, arrivée dès le mois de mars, est bénévole dans une association d'aide aux exilés russes. Elle ne voit pas d'un bon œil l'arrivée de cette deuxième vague massive. « La plupart d'entre eux n'en ont eu rien à faire de la guerre pendant sept mois, raconte-t-elle. Ils n'ont pas vraiment de conscience politique. Ils ont juste fui pour ne pas être envoyés sur le front et pour sauver leur peau. Et désormais, ils continueront à vivre leur vie ici comme si de rien n'était. » Dans un espace de coworking dédié aux télétravailleurs russes, les conversations tournent autour de ce même sujet depuis une semaine. Mikhail est arrivé au mois d'avril. Lui redoute que dans cette nouvelle vague, certains aient soutenu le Kremlin par le passé : Même s'ils sont peu nombreux, certains Russes arrivent avec la lettre Z inscrite sur leur voiture ou sur leur tee-shirt.Cela donne une très mauvaise réputation aux 99,9% du reste de la communauté qui est contre la guerre de Poutine en Ukraine. Anna, une moscovite, est installée à Erevan depuis plus d'un an, ce qui fait d'elle la personne à contacter. Chaque jour sur Telegram, elle reçoit des dizaines de questions sur l'Arménie. Certaines la dérangent : « Certains Russes se sentent ici en territoire conquis, et se comportent avec une sorte de snobisme colonial. Par exemple, on m'a déjà demandé : "Pourquoi on ne peut pas trouver de smoothie sans lactose à Erevan ?" Ou alors : "Pourquoi les sushis sont-ils si mauvais à Gyumri ?" ». ► À lire aussi : Arménie : les Russes affluent pour fuir la mobilisation Un ressentiment qui s'installe et des prix qui explosent  Cette gêne, Anahit, une Arménienne, l'a déjà ressenti. Dans son café, des Russes sont désormais attablés chaque soir. Et si la plupart montrent un fort désir d'intégration, elle a peur que les petits accrochages du quotidien empirent. « Il y a une attitude impérialiste présente dans la mentalité de certains, explique Anahit. Ils nous parlent en russe, alors que la plupart des Arméniens aimeraient qu'ils apprennent notre langue. Une fois, une jeune femme m'a lancé : "Mais quel horrible pays !" en parlant de l'Arménie, tout en me racontant combien la Russie était plus développée. » À ce ressentiment s'ajoutent les prix, qui ont explosé à Erevan. Pour une nuit d'hôtel bas de gamme, il faut dorénavant compter près de 150 euros, soit six fois plus cher qu'avant l'annonce de la mobilisation. Et cette soudaine inflation touche tous les aspects de la vie quotidienne. « J'ai des amis, leurs propriétaires leur ont demandé de quitter leur appartement, car ils pouvaient le louer beaucoup plus cher à des Russes, poursuit Anahit. Les Arméniens se plaignent beaucoup, car nos salaires moyens sont très bas comparés aux leurs. » Juste à côté de son café, des Russes et des Arméniens se retrouvent chaque soir pour ramasser les déchets de la ville. Anahit espère que ces initiatives, de plus en plus nombreuses, permettront de rapprocher les deux communautés. ► À lire aussi : Les Russes exilés en Arménie se battent pour aider leurs proches à fuir

En Arménie, près de 70 000 exilés russes se sont installés depuis le mois de mars pour s'éloigner de la guerre en Ukraine. Mais l'arrivée ces derniers jours d'une seconde vague fuyant la mobilisation partielle annoncée par Vladimir Poutine inquiète. Les Russes installés depuis plusieurs mois craignent que ces nouvelles arrivées entachent leur image auprès des Arméniens. Dans cette ex-République soviétique, beaucoup se plaignent d'une flambée des prix, voire d'un manque de civisme.   Depuis une semaine, dans les rues d'Erevan, Anastasia voit passer tous les jours des hommes seuls traînant leurs valises. Cette opposante au Kremlin, arrivée dès le mois de mars, est bénévole dans une association d'aide aux exilés russes. Elle ne voit pas d'un bon œil l'arrivée de cette deuxième vague massive. « La plupart d'entre eux n'en ont eu rien à faire de la guerre pendant sept mois, raconte-t-elle. Ils n'ont pas vraiment de conscience politique. Ils ont juste fui pour ne pas être envoyés sur le front et pour sauver leur peau. Et désormais, ils continueront à vivre leur vie ici comme si de rien n'était. » Dans un espace de coworking dédié aux télétravailleurs russes, les conversations tournent autour de ce même sujet depuis une semaine. Mikhail est arrivé au mois d'avril. Lui redoute que dans cette nouvelle vague, certains aient soutenu le Kremlin par le passé : Même s'ils sont peu nombreux, certains Russes arrivent avec la lettre Z inscrite sur leur voiture ou sur leur tee-shirt.Cela donne une très mauvaise réputation aux 99,9% du reste de la communauté qui est contre la guerre de Poutine en Ukraine. Anna, une moscovite, est installée à Erevan depuis plus d'un an, ce qui fait d'elle la personne à contacter. Chaque jour sur Telegram, elle reçoit des dizaines de questions sur l'Arménie. Certaines la dérangent : « Certains Russes se sentent ici en territoire conquis, et se comportent avec une sorte de snobisme colonial. Par exemple, on m'a déjà demandé : "Pourquoi on ne peut pas trouver de smoothie sans lactose à Erevan ?" Ou alors : "Pourquoi les sushis sont-ils si mauvais à Gyumri ?" ». ► À lire aussi : Arménie : les Russes affluent pour fuir la mobilisation Un ressentiment qui s'installe et des prix qui explosent  Cette gêne, Anahit, une Arménienne, l'a déjà ressenti. Dans son café, des Russes sont désormais attablés chaque soir. Et si la plupart montrent un fort désir d'intégration, elle a peur que les petits accrochages du quotidien empirent. « Il y a une attitude impérialiste présente dans la mentalité de certains, explique Anahit. Ils nous parlent en russe, alors que la plupart des Arméniens aimeraient qu'ils apprennent notre langue. Une fois, une jeune femme m'a lancé : "Mais quel horrible pays !" en parlant de l'Arménie, tout en me racontant combien la Russie était plus développée. » À ce ressentiment s'ajoutent les prix, qui ont explosé à Erevan. Pour une nuit d'hôtel bas de gamme, il faut dorénavant compter près de 150 euros, soit six fois plus cher qu'avant l'annonce de la mobilisation. Et cette soudaine inflation touche tous les aspects de la vie quotidienne. « J'ai des amis, leurs propriétaires leur ont demandé de quitter leur appartement, car ils pouvaient le louer beaucoup plus cher à des Russes, poursuit Anahit. Les Arméniens se plaignent beaucoup, car nos salaires moyens sont très bas comparés aux leurs. » Juste à côté de son café, des Russes et des Arméniens se retrouvent chaque soir pour ramasser les déchets de la ville. Anahit espère que ces initiatives, de plus en plus nombreuses, permettront de rapprocher les deux communautés. ► À lire aussi : Les Russes exilés en Arménie se battent pour aider leurs proches à fuir

This week, we're joined by Xuanlin Tham to talk through the Take One Action film festival programme. Mushroom-lovers and fans of Resisting The System, this one's for you. Meanwhile, Anahit has news of films she loved (and one she hated) at Venice, while back in the studio Peter loudly proclaims Strawberry Mansion to be great despite Lewis and Jamie's objections, but we all agree that Owen Kline's debut film Funny Pages is very good.  TIMESTAMPS What We've Been Watching – Tár, Heathers, The Moon Has Risen, Greener Grass (1:45) Take One Action preview (12:05) Funny Pages review (27:20) Venice Film Festival recap (37:40) Strawberry Mansion review (44:35) Take One Action programme and tickets: https://takeoneaction.org.uk Recorded at Upload Studios in Leith - https://uploadstudios.co.uk Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_ Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

A Beat Rádió exkluzív közönségtalálkozója a The Anahit zenekarral a Strand Fesztiválon! Az őszinte beszélgetés után, néhány játékkal is teszteltük! Hallgassátok meg az interjút!

Anahit Fernández parte del equipo de producción del estudio de videojuegos Navegante nos cuenta acerca de su juego Greak: Memories of Azure, jugo con el que el estudio esta debutando y que ha recibido premios y comentarios de elogio en todo el mundo

With regular host Peter away, things get a bit weird as Anahit, Lewis and Jamie go down a very strange arthouse rabbit hole this week as we discuss two beguiling and mysterious films from some truly original filmmakers. First up it's The Girl and the Spider from the Swiss duo the Zürcher Brothers. We also dig into the murky new film from French filmmaker Lucile Hadžihalilović. We also discuss Hadžihalilović's work more generally and we consider what she has in common with other women filmmakers working in the horror genre. Elsewhere, Anahit gets conflicted about Top Gun Maverick, Jamie laments the bagginess of TV shows and Lewis revisits a recent problematic fave. TIMESTAMPS: What We've Been Watching (01:35) The Girl and the Spider (13:20) earwig (26:10) Great horrors from women filmmakers (40:35) Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow us on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz @jamiedunnesq + @lew_rob_, or email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Paul Verhoeven is back, and this time he's blasphemous! Jamie, Anahit and Peter dive into the Dutch director's lesbian nun drama Benedetta, and rake through the entrails of Robocop, Basic Instinct and Total Recall to answer the question: Paul Verhoeven – a horny, crazy grandpa, or the horniest, craziest grandpa? Elsewhere, Peter watches The Devil Wears Prada, Anahit goes on an Anya Taylor-Joy marathon, and Jamie has complicated feelings about the hit television drama Euphoria. Liked the episode? Praise be! Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow the team on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz and @jamiedunnesq, or email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Hallgasd vissza a Petőfi Rádió legizgalmasabb műsorait! Mezgerélő, Mencseli Dórival • Anahit • 2022/02/22 Az Anahit zenekar énekesnője, Csányi Rita mesélt nekünk a formáció legújabb daláról. Facebook: www.facebook.com/petofiradio/?ref=pages_you_manage Instagram: www.instagram.com/petofiradio/ TikTok: www.tiktok.com/@petofi_live?lang=hu-HU YouTube: www.youtube.com/c/M2Pet%C5%91fiTV

A nemrég Petőfi Zenei Díjra is jelölt The Anahit csak a tavalyi évben nyolc dallal örvendeztette meg rajongóit, és úgy tűnik, 2022-ben sem lassítanak a tempón. A Még nem fáj újból egy nagyon intim szerzemény, amit a szöveg írója és a zenekar frontembere, Csányi Rita saját édesanyjának írt. Ritával és rajta keresztül az egész zenekarral találkozhattok legutóbbi Dalok Galopp műsorunkban, ahol a legújabb angol nyelvű daluk mellett egy - két hónapos magyar dalokkal is találkozhattok, na meg persze rengeteg olyan érdekes történettel, és élménnyel, amit e nem mindennapi énekesnő zeneszerző és szövegíró művész osztott meg velünk legfrissebb podcastunkban...

Peter and Jamie discuss Matt Reeves' new take on Batman, Jamie and Anahit talk through Sean Baker's excellent new film Red Rocket, and the whole gang airs their likes, dislikes, concerns and queries about the Superhero Movie Industrial Complex (SMIC). TIMESTAMPS: Intro, and some more Glasgow Film Festival picks (0:00) The Batman review (7:25) Red Rocket review (21:25) Our love/hate relationship with superhero movies, aka 'What Do We Talk About When We Talk About The Batman?' (34:35) Liked the episode? Yay! Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow the team on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz and @jamiedunnesq, or email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Let's all Glas-go to the lobby, as Peter, Jamie and Anahit take a look at this year's Glasgow Film Festival programme. Get ready for East African action auteurs, fashion-forward psychological horror, and The Most Iranian Man Of All Time… plus a bit of intel on where Jack Lowden does his shopping. GFF, and Film Festivals in General (2:30) Superior review (8:45) Zalava review (18:45) Once Upon A Time In Uganda review (31:40) Some more GFF picks (44:40) Leave us a five-star review, tell your pals, follow the team on @ptrsmpsn @anahitrooz and @jamiedunnesq, or email us at cineskinny@theskinny.co.uk The episode is supported by Glasgow Film Festival, find out more at glasgowfilm.org ----more---- The films we recommended, in full: Superior (8-9 Mar) Zalava (6-7 Mar and online) Once Upon A Time In Uganda (5-6 Mar) Benediction (7-8 Mar), Bergman Island (3-4 Mar), Farewell Amor (12 Mar), Futura (4-5 Mar), Happening (8-9 Mar), Hommage (12-13 Mar), Nobody Has To Know (10-11 Mar), The Girl with the Spider (5-6 Mar), The Hermit of Treig (5-6 Mar and online), Wild Men (11-12 Mar)   Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

8 Beat-es nap a Beaten! – A Beat stúdiójában Csányi Rita és Sashegyi Soma a The Anahit zenekarból!

Mikos Ákossal minden hétköznap 14-17 óra között találkozhatsz a Beat-en. Minden műsorban 15-16 óra között egy-egy interjút hallhatsz hazai zenészekkel. Ha lemaradtál volna a beszélgetésekről, itt visszahallgathatod!

This time out, Anahit, Jamie and Peter are talking about love, romance and relationships in The Movies. We review two films that deal with romance in very different ways: Joanna Hogg's follow-up to The Souvenir (11:21), and Ryusuke Hamaguchi's new anthology film Wheel of Fortune and Fantasy (23:53). There's a deep dive into the history and politics of the romantic comedy (30:40), through the lens of the conveniently-titled 2019 documentary Romantic Comedy. Plus bits on Keanu Reeves, Kenneth Branagh's Belfast (which we did *not* love), and some cool screenings to check out. Also, we're all together in one room! Next to a castle! Lots of love, The Cineskinny xx   FOLLOW THE GANG ON TWITTER: @jamiedunnesq @anahitrooz @ptrsmpsn   Music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

It's part two of our Films of 2021 round-up! Find part one in your podcast feeds!   Jamie, Anahit and Peter return to discuss cool French kids, the power of good framing, ruining your life through desire, milk stealing in the old west, and... *checks notes* why Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar is the funniest film of all time.   Follow the gang on Twitter at @ptrsmpsn, @jamiedunnesq and @anahitrooz   THE SKINNY FILMS OF 2021 LIST: https://www.theskinny.co.uk/film/opinion/the-skinnys-films-of-2021   Intro music: Too Cool by Kevin MacLeod (https://incompetech.filmmusic.io/song/4534-too-cool) License: https://filmmusic.io/standard-license

Szabó Istvánnal minden hétköznap 10-14 óra között találkozhatsz a Beat-en. Minden műsorban 10-11 óra között egy-egy interjút hallhatsz hazai zenészekkel. Ha lemaradtál volna a beszélgetésekről, itt visszahallgathatod!

Repeating the exact same hashtags reads like spam to the algorithm. If you're finding great hashtags only to copy them into your notes app and paste the same ones for every post, you're wasting time and limiting your reach. With Hashtag Slayer, you can play by the rules and make your posts more effective by increasing your reach with optimized hashtags each time you post. SHOW NOTES INSTAGEAMWEB Let's stay connected @vivalafloralive Thank You for Listening!  Leave us a Review and enter in a Book Giveaway. We truly appreciate your feedback and support!!!    ~Anahit    Thanks Our Sponsors & Supporters True Client ProFloral Business Academy Viva La Flora Designs 

Mikos Ákossal minden hétköznap 14-17 óra között találkozhatsz a Beat-en. Minden műsorban 15-16 óra között egy-egy interjút hallhatsz hazai zenészekkel. Ha lemaradtál volna a beszélgetésekről, itt visszahallgathatod!

Szabó Istvánnal minden hétköznap 10-16 óra között találkozhatsz a Beat-en. Minden műsorban délelőtt 10-11 óra között egy-egy interjút hallhatsz hazai zenészekkel. Ha lemaradtál a beszélgetésekről, visszahallgathatod az alábbi sorrendben: BRENKA: 00:00-10:46 The Anahit (Csányi Rita): 10:47-26:45 Mayberian Sanskülotts (Csordás Zita): 26:46-34:45 Barkóczi Noémi: 34:46-47:26

Sylvia from Royal Van Zanten  How do you get your voice heard as a female entrepreneur in a man's world... Lifting the shades and really taking a look at floral industry, specifically growing and distributing. SHOW NOTES   INSTAGEAMLINKDINWEB _ SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS:True Client ProFloral Business AcademyViva La Flora Designs FLEURVANA RETREAT SEP 20-21, 2021 Let's stay connected @vivalafloralive Thank You for Listening!  Leave us a Review and enter in a Book Giveaway. We truly appreciate your feedback and support!!!    ~Anahit 

Tanus Saab All the way from Brazil! How different is wedding and flower business in Brazil? But is it really... SHOW NOTES INSTAGEAMFACEBOOK Interview On YouTube __ SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS:True Client ProFloral Business AcademyViva La Flora Designs FLEURVANA RETREAT SEP 20-21, 2021 Let's stay connected @vivalafloralive Thank You for Listening!  Leave us a Review and enter in a Book Giveaway. We truly appreciate your feedback and support!!!    ~Anahit 

Sarah Campbell Things got really personal on this episode... how personal? Well going from Wedding Flower Queen that can do it all to Mother Of The Bride in the middle of a pandemic. MUST LISTEN! SHOW NOTES   INSTAGEAM Interview On YouTube _ SPONSORS & SUPPORTERS:True Client ProFloral Business AcademyViva La Flora Designs FLEURVANA RETREAT SEP 20-21, 2021 Let's stay connected @vivalafloralive Thank You for Listening!  Leave us a Review and enter in a Book Giveaway. We truly appreciate your feedback and support!!!    ~Anahit 

In this episode, Anahit Hakobyan shares how the Global Educational Student Chat has impacted her. Find out more about the chat at globaledsschat.com and connect with Anahit on Twitter @AnahitH03

Szabó István bevezető: 0:00-00:44 The Anahit (Csányi Rita): 00:45-12:31 Dope Calypso (Sarkadi Miklós): 12:32-24:42 Chain Bridge Pop (Hajdú Erik): 24:43-36:29 OIEE: 36:30-49:59

# Jeden Tag ein Set Podcast 089 # by Anahit Vardanyan Die inzwischen 89. Ausgabe der Jeden Tag ein Set Podcastreihe kommt heute vom sympathischen Multi-Talent Anahit Vardanyan. Nach einem Studium am Klavier in ihrer Heimat Armenien wanderte sie 2016 nach Deutschland aus, um sich dem Studium der Komposition und ersten eigenen Musikproduktionen zu widmen. Sie lernt verschiedene Unterstützer und Akteure der Hamburger Technoszene kennen und beginnt als DJ in Clubs und Bars aufzulegen. Anahit übergibt nach ihren Support-Gigs in kleinen und mittleren Clubs, wie z.B. dem Waagenbau oder Fundbereau, stets volle Floors an ihre DJ Kollegen und macht sich mit ihrem oft harten, aber warmen und teils dramatischen Sound einen Namen als überaus vielversprechende Newcomerin. Sie bespielte bereits zahlreiche Festivals wie das Helene Beach, Oldenbora, Antaris Project sowie auch das Deichbrand Festival u.a. mit Charlottte de Witte, Oliver Huntemann und La Fleur. Ihre ersten, großartigen Releases erschienen auf Labels wie Kitchen Recordings, Hydrozoa, Jannowitz und Made In Brussels. Für Jeden Tag ein Set gibt's nun einen frischen Techno Podcast von Anahit Vardanyan, der von Beginn an mit seinem Groove begeistert und mitreist. Viel Spaß damit! Anahit Vardanyan findest du unter @anahitvardanyanofficial Noch mehr Sets findest du auf www.JedenTagEinSet.de

The guest speaker of the DebeTalks series is again Anahit Hakobyan, the Village Programs Manager at COAF. Anahit is sharing with us all ins and outs of Debet villagers that the COAF team was able to gather literally walking from house to house.Website: www.coaf.orgFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/coafkidsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/coafkids/Twitter: https://twitter.com/coafkidsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coafkids/ 

✨Anahit Vardanyan SC: https://soundcloud.com/anahitvardanyanofficial ✨JANNOWITZ RECORDS SC: @jannowitz ✨KataHaifisch SC: @KataHaifisch GET IT HERE: Pre order // 26 April Beatport & Spotify // 10 May All Shops & Streams // 24. May

PRICING  Pricing for profit and not the competition is the key!  Yes, but where do you even start? How do you figure out "the formula? Is there a formula?... This talk I wish I heard before I started my business for sure! MUST LISTEN I promise.  SHHOW NOTES We want to see you succeed in your business! Let's stay connected @vivalafloralive Thank You for Listening! Don't forget to leave us a review, we truly appreciate your feedback and support!!!    ~Anahit   SPONSORS True Client ProFloral Business Academy 411 FloralFloral Success Institute    Viva La Flora Designs

In this episode, Anahit Pogosova answers 10 questions about cloud.Anahit works as a Lead Cloud Software Engineer at Solita. She is a software and data engineer working with cloud solutions and passionate about all things serverless. She is also an AWS Community Builder.MEET ANAHIT POGOSOVA➡️  Twitter: https://twitter.com/anahit_fi/​➡️  LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/anahit-pogosova/MEET PABLO PUIG➡️ LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/pablo-puig-433295171/PODCAST "10 QUESTIONS ABOUT CLOUD"➡️ Web: https://roopu.cloud/podcast➡️ Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/4kH3z7x0Eydh1lBlvncLyQ➡️ Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/roopu-clouds-podcast/id1539635929MEET ROOPU CLOUD➡️ https://roopu.cloud#cloud #cloudcomputing #aws #podcast #roopucloud

The guest speaker of the 2nd episode of the DebeTalks podcast series is Anahit Hakobyan, the Village Programs Manager at COAF.  Anahit talks about the ways we are transforming Debet village in the Lori region into a SMART village both strengthening the institutions and implementing infrastructure improvements. Join the exciting journey and keep up with DebeTalks.Website: www.coaf.orgFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/coafkidsInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/coafkids/Twitter: https://twitter.com/coafkidsLinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/coafkids/ 

Szabó Istvánnal minden hétköznap 10-16 óra között találkozhatsz a Beat-en. Minden műsorban délelőtt 10-11 óra között egy-egy interjút hallhatsz hazai zenészekkel. Ha lemaradtál a beszélgetésekről, visszahallgathatod az alábbi sorrendben: Szabó István bevezető: 0:00-00:56 LivingRoom (Pál Benjámin): 00:57-08:44 The Anahit (Csányi Rita): 08:45-17:26 Bohemian Betyars (Szűcs Levi): 17:27-31:23 VENI (Szász Veronika): 25:49-37:32 HERSELF (Bakos Attila): 37:33-49:47

S1|E5: Lemar joins guests and closest friends, Sophie and Anahit, and they reminisce some of their recalled middle school memories with their horrendous math teacher, wacky recollections, and crazy adventures. They also discuss some serious topics circulating the internet and on various social media platforms. Lastly, they discuss what life has in store for them and what they plan to be/what they'll be like when college arises/when they grow up and when the pandemic is over. 

Ma première interview audio, réalisée en plein confinement franco-arménien, pour le blog etourisme.info Anahit Davtyan est arménienne et francophone, nous avons parlé tourisme et confinement, entre autres...

On the second episode of DopeWomxn, Nadine and Kate dive into the stories of Sarah Breedlove (aka Madam CJ Walker) and Louise Aslanian*, two kick ass and take names kind of womxn. *Research guided by Anahit of Erebuni Wordpress (Instagram @anahitoferebuni) RECORDED on February 7th, 2020 Follow us on social media Facebook/Instagram/Twitter Music by Genevieve Eckel Mixed by Adam R. Macias Art by Nicole Kurtz

Feat: Alan Johnson, Dead Man's Chest, Mad Zach, Itoa, Sully, Sinistarr, Shield, Cid Poitier, The Untouchables, Indifferent, Onism Qi, Neurosplit, Imanzi, DJ Trax, Silent Dust, SelfSays, Naibu, Loomis, The Anahit, Tim Reaper, Joakuim, Magari's Kid, Mala, SubMarine, Max Cooper, Kimyan Law, Invadhertz, Alek SLK, Ethik, Dottor Poison, Kodin, Logics, Andyskopes, D-Legal, Filip Motovunski, Amy Steele, Icicle, Neva Faded, Changing Faces, Promenade, Sieren.