Podcast appearances and mentions of Chris Gilbert

On today's First Up pod: rain has helped put out the Tongariro scrub fire, we hear from local hapu about what restoration they would like to see; deputy prime minister David Seymour is here to catch us up on the week in politics and his fire station visit went and in Japan our correspondent Chris Gilbert tells us about a beautiful new attraction at Tokyo Airport. First Up - Voice of the Nathan.

To be continued in part 23, By FinalStand for Literotica. Christian College Sex Comedy: Part 23 Zane Spars with the minds of the Faculty In 30 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the podcast at Explicit Novels. "You are quite the James T. Kirk in this Undiscovered Country of Freedom Fellowship University," Doctor Scarlett eventually spoke up. I didn't know who that was but I had a feeling it wasn't a modern Christian author. "Who?" I asked. Doctor Scarlett blinked. "James T. Kirk, Captain of the Starship Enterprise, from Star Trek," she seemed confused that I didn't know who this guy was. "Wait, you mean that bald guy? I thought he was named something else," I wondered. "That's Jean Luc Picard, who was the captain in the second series called Star Trek: The Next Generation," she corrected me. It was somewhat amazing to me that the Vice Chancellor was a science fiction buff. Who knew? "Oh, wait, you mean that guy that Chris Pine plays?" I thought I figured it out. "Thank you; he is kind of hot." "No," she corrected, "that is the new series of movies, but it is the same character." I nodded as the pieces slowly came together. "Ah, the Green Orion Slave Girl," I finally clued in, "and that black babe who later showed up on Heroes." Sensing Doctor Scarlett's exasperation I added, "I remember ladies better than I do men." "Obviously," she noted. "I did not call you to my office to discuss trivia, Mr. Braxton, " "Please, call me Zane," I interrupted then, "and I apologize for interrupting. May I call you Victoria?" "Doctor Scarlett will do," she shook her head. "As I was saying, I asked you here to discuss your integration into this school so that we can avoid some of the problems experienced in the past." I looked at her; she looked back, expecting me to say something, but I didn't. "As the sole eligible male on campus, what do you see as your role here?" she pressed on. "Uhmm, Doctor Scarlett, I am a student here, that is my role. Are you implying that I'm looking for something special because I am a guy?" I questioned. "Mr. Braxton, Zane, you are a guy, you have remodeled your personal quarters into a bordello, and there is evidence of you having sexual relations with multiple female students," she responded. "How is that not 'something special'?" "The administration stuck me in the attic, then told me I could set up my room any way I saw fit," I clarified. "The vast majority of my room is set aside for my fellow freshmen to have a place to unwind and relax." "I've never violated any girl's Purity Pledge, though a few have reconsidered it after meeting me," I admitted. "I've been in a few fights, I'm not proud of that. I did as much as I could do to resist Chancellor Bazz, I am proud of that. What she was doing was ten shades of wrong and I don't run away from a righteous fight." "Zane, I am not condemning you for defending the women in your life, nor for having a healthy libido," Doctor Scarlett stunned me with a lack of blame being tossed my way. I worked that over in my mind until I figured out what was going on. "So, do you have any recommendations on what I could do differently to fit in?" I inquired. The problem was, this wasn't about me fitting in. She wasn't lauding my sexuality and she was trying to throw me off-center by the little annoying phone call game, followed by this sympathetic interpretation of my school life to date. I knew she wanted to manipulate me but I didn't know why. I had to get her to tip me her hand so I could figure out what the game was. "Are you familiar with the concept of Christian Female Tribalism?" Scarlett opened. "I get the feeling it has something to do with the six framed articles from non-Christian magazines hanging on your wall," I noted. "Also, you are clearly the darling of the Christian media," I added, as I tallied up the dozen other articles attesting to her fame. "I haven't dedicated my life's work for the sake of popularity," Doctor Scarlett smiled (sure, right). "I am looking into the relationship between Jesus Christ's teachings, men and women. My research has led me to believe that women exist in a more spiritually pure form when solely in the company of other women." "Where do men fit into this picture?" I questioned. "Men provide the ultimate guidance, of course, as well as their roles in procreation and raising male children past the age of eleven," Doctor Scarlett related. "Women are happiest and most effective when they form their own networks and hierarchies." "You don't date much, do you?" I had to ask. "Mr. Braxton, I have lived a chaste life in pursuit of my studies," she answered. "Outside of your father, Victoria, have you ever lived under a man's guidance?" I wondered. It was a calculated move to use her Christian name. "It is Ms. Scarlett, Zane, and I have relied on a variety of pastors for spiritual guidance over the years," she stated. "Okay," I stood up, "we have nothing to discuss then." She didn't yell at me as I headed for the door. "You've never been in love and I can tell you have a poor estimation of romance." "You would be incorrect, Zane; I have been in love but I chose purity over sinfulness," she countered. "My faith is based on God being love, without reservation, restriction, or guilt. I know exactly where you are coming from," I said with my hand on the doorknob as I looked over my shoulder. "You are seeking validation for the mistakes you've made over your lifespan and you are willing to sacrifice the young ladies at the school." I was getting angry. "I was hoping for something better but it seems like a different conductor but the same old music, Doc." "That is not so," Doctor Scarlett stayed calm. "I am not attempting to drive you or any other student off campus. I am not your enemy." "That is simple enough to resolve," I nodded. "What is your perfect women's society view and response to promiscuity?" "Lust is a sin; women should resist sin as vigorously as men," she countered. "The seven deadly sins are Catholic, not the words of Jesus," I grinned. "In fact, the first list wasn't even created until the 4th century after Christ." "That does not make them any less valid," Doctor Scarlett offered. "What is the cut-off date for Bible legitimacy?" I turned and faced her. "1000 Ace? Today, here, and now? Who is to say I can't create new scripture, then?" "I apologize, Zane," she mused, "but you hardly seem to be someone touched by the hand of God with a gift of prophecy." "Do I have to lay on hands to prove it?" I beamed. I had finally been able to interject sexual innuendo into the conversation. She didn't respond like a damn normal person, no. Doctor Scarlett stood up, walked around her desk and came to a stop barely a foot from me. I am not so easily deterred. I leaned into the doctor until my nose was at the crux of her neck and shoulder. I used my cheek to push her hair aside and sniff my way up to her ear. She was really ironclad in her control of her passions. I trailed my nose up to her eyebrow ridge, circled over the forehead, down past the other eye, and over to her lips. We didn't kiss but I did get what I wanted. "How about I call you Victoria when we are alone?" I tested her. "No; call me Ms./Dr./Vice-Chancellor Scarlett," she corrected. "You are my student." "Cool," I shrugged. "Is there anything more for us to discuss?" "I would like to discuss my plans for this school and the role I think you can take on," Scarlett persisted. "We've had that discussion, I chose a messy democracy over any sweet-smelling dictatorial existence," I declared. "Your belief system stands for the denial of self-determination." "It does not, Zane. If anything, it gives women more power over their lives," she explained. "But the basis for your system retains men in charge, with the added 'benefit' of women being more removed from the critical decision-making processes," I replied patiently. "Don't you enjoy being in charge of so many women here at FFU, Zane? You have certainly convinced dozens of women to do what you want, even to their own detriment," Doctor Scarlett drove her point home. I laughed; I couldn't help myself. "I might enjoy being in charge if any of the women would give me the opportunity, Victoria. Honestly, I allow the women here to safely experiment with their sexually," I explained. "Thing is, I really don't mind because I help these ladies become more comfortable in their skins, with their desires, and allow them to share things they have discovered about themselves. If I was with only one woman, what peer could she talk to? You've put your blinders on to the fact that women want to examine those urges they all have," I proposed. "They don't surrender to lust; they acknowledge it, explore those frontiers, and then decide how to use that knowledge," I continued. "Most of the women in my life here don't lose their virginity. I think by challenging their Purity Pledge, they become stronger in their convictions. I'm not taking any choice from them; they are exercising their own will concerning their bodies." "If you deny the male role in the Christian relationship, doesn't that emasculate you?" Victoria asked, and I noticed she didn't chastise me for using her first name this time. "I'm not going to fall into the trap of mistaking sexual activity for true masculine activity," I headed her off. "I would like to think I mediate disputes, help with our studies, and protect them physically if needed. I don't like to fight, but I will fight to defend my ladies. So no, I don't feel less of a man because I listen to, occasionally obey, and always try to respect women." "I see your point, Zane, and I will give it some consideration," Doctor Scarlett lied to me. "Oh, wow, that condescension was unwarranted, Doc," I shook my head. "You would never accept that I could be the man who would alter your lifelong path. You have an unrealistic expectation of what that man would be like but it allows you to pursue your goal without male guidance and still be a good Christian woman." "So now you think I am a hypocrite?" She gave a patient smile. "Nope. I think you believe the theory you are selling, Vic. You are clever, attractive, but somewhat annoyed that your looks give your ideas less credence though you still use your looks when needed. You are manipulative because you are sincere and you want to keep the argument based on rational discourse, not passion." "That would make you my opposite," she observed. "You embrace your gut instincts and allow your emotions to override what you think is the safe course of action. It is a pity you perceive me to be your enemy; I thought we could do great things together." "You are the enemy, but you are not the bad guy; I respect those who have faith, even if it is faith in something I don't agree with," I pointed out. "You believe women are better off without male interference in their lives. I believe there is nothing better in Creation than a man and woman in harmony with one another," I stated. "Don't you believe in safeguarding these young ladies' souls?" Victoria pressed on. "If the ladies were children I could understand your interference," I countered, "but they are adults, capable of making adult decisions, and you do them a disservice by stealing their destinies from them." "You see yourself as a better alternative?" she remained serenely calm, that's so hot. "Lady, my life is a mess," I grinned. "I have a hard time figuring out what I'm going to do much less what I should tell someone else to do." "But you are making the decision that my solution is the wrong one. How do you justify that?" she countered my grin with a smile of her own. "Just because I don't have the right answer doesn't mean I don't recognize the wrong one when I see it," I reposted. "As I said earlier, we have nothing to discuss." "Very well," she allowed, "but please tell me what the whole sniffing thing was about." "It was more than sniffing, Doctor Scarlett. I was looking for your pulse reaction, sweat, what kind of perfume and body soap you use, as well as facial tics and eye dilation." "That is certainly odd," she pointed out. "Well, it tells me you are a mid-thirties virgin who likes feminine things. Your skirt is finely woven wool, your shirt is silk, and your cross is 24 K, as is the necklace, with a real ruby inset. Your bra is a black half-cup, which is very nice if you are wearing a white shirt. Lastly, you are wearing stockings, not pantyhose." "Since neither you nor Ms. Reveal is a lesbian, you are wearing these clothes for your own enjoyment because you are not interested in any man right now," I told her. "You are still holding out for your Mystery Man which is oddly romantic for someone who denies romance." "Ms. Buchanan was right," Scarlett laughed softly. "You would be interesting to deal with." Right as I made ready to ask her what exactly Christina said, my stomach began rumbling. "I'm off to lunch unless you need me for anything right now," I sighed. Victoria turned me around and directed me out the door. Rio, Mercy and Vivian were waiting for me. It rapidly became clear that Rio was Doctor Scarlett's next appointment. "Ms. Reveal," I inquired of Doctor Scarlett's assistant who glared in response. "I'm heading off to the dining hall, and since I doubt you've been able to grab a bite to eat, do you want me to pick up something for you and the doctor?" I doubted that was what she expected. She typed away at her keyboard for a few second, checking out today's menu. "Mr. Braxton, could you get me the Caesar Salad and Doctor Scarlett the trout?" she said. "Zane," Rio snickered softly, "how far did you get? I'd hate to have to sex her up all over again when I can go straight for the main dish." "Smooth, Bro," I groaned while Marisol looked like she was going to staple Rio's ear to the desk. "The Doctor and I talked and that is all," I cautioned Rio. "I suggest you do the same and keep it simple." Rio snorted and followed Doctor Scarlett into her office. Before she dropped out of sight, Rio half-turned, pointed at Victoria's ass, and mouthed 'Wow' and made out the hourglass curves. She was really subtle; only Mercy, Vivian, Marisol and I saw it, which meant all of us. "Mercy, are you going to be okay?" I inquired once the door shut and Mercy had sat down on the bench outside the office. "I need to stay for Rio," Mercy sighed. "Vivian, can you wait for Rio while Mercy and I take a walk?" I asked my guardian. "Absolutely, Zane," Vivian nodded. She took a seat while Mercy followed me wordlessly out the door. "You don't have to do this, Zane," Mercy spoke up after a while. "Own up to all you do, Mercy," I replied, "and by that, I mean I brought you and Rio into a collision course so I am as responsible for your happiness as I am for Rio's." "I, umm, thank you," Mercy worked out the words. "Rio can be too much to handle at times." "Yes," I wrapped a very inappropriate arm around her shoulder, "she can be, but I feel she's worth putting up with the bull crap. Don't be discouraged by her fooling around with other women, or men; Rio is far more loyal than people give her credit for. She may do things to piss you off, that's a given, but she wants to be with you. In fact, who do you believe she was thinking of when she bought that ass plug?" "You?" she meekly mocked me. "Ha, ha, ha," I chuckled. "That is the reason I don't sleep on my stomach these days, Mercy. She plays rough. She loves rough too, so I feel it is an adequate trade-off. If you want to snuggle with someone else from time to time, you are welcome on my pillow any night." "Zane, do you think I'm a lesbian? What I am trying to say is, I think I may be a lesbian but I'm not sure," Mercy confided in me. "It doesn't matter what I think but in my experience, you are bi-sexual, not a dedicated lesbian. That could mean that you like relationships with girls but the occasional fling with a guy," I said. "You have had sex with me and I know you enjoyed it. You are not in an environment that allows many men so now that you are coming into your sexuality, you are confronted by women. Sexual orientation is one thing; sexual preference is another," I went on to say, "At Spring Break we should put your ideas to the test. Until then, don't worry too much about it." "Not being a virgin would be horrible enough," Mercy related. "If my parents thought I was homosexual, they would die, or kill me." "Mercy, do you think what you are doing is sinful?" I questioned. Mercy had to think about that for a while. We gathered up three trays and made our way back to the Vice Chancellor's office. "Yes, yes, I do, Zane," Mercy muttered. "I am afraid I'm going to Hell." "Mercy, you are not going to hell, at least not for what you've been doing the past few weeks," I comforted her. "Think about the good you've done for Rio." "I am still steeped in perversions," she moped. "Trust me on this; the battle between Heaven and Hell will not be decided by the playful use of a dildo, ass plug, or vibrator," I whispered into her ear. Mercy rewarded me with a wicked little smile. "What matters is the happiness you bring, the trust you earn, and the powerless you protect. Don't knock yourself out because you too are feeling pleasure." Mercy stopped walking which brought me up short. She worried her lower lip as she worked some things out in her head. "Do you think I'm really Rio's best hope at salvation?" she asked softly. "You more than anyone else," I responded. I could see a weight lifting off her shoulders. "Thank you, Zane," she smiled at me. We entered the Administration building and headed for the Vice-Chancellor's office. "I'm going to have to tell Rio about his conversation," I told her. Mercy looked uncertain. "Someone deserves a spanking, don't you think?" That wonderful little lusty smile crept onto her lips once more. More Monday Mornings   Doing the correct thing is good; doing right and confounding your enemies at the same time is golden. Blow & Arrow "You are getting better, Zane," Molly Travers told me after my rotation to the shooting line. "If you say so," I shrugged. "I've yet to hit the rings twice in a row." "But you are hitting the target every time," she pointed out. "Great," I chuckled, "if I ever get attacked by a rhino or a barn door, I'll do fine." "If it is a big barn door, a really big barn door," she snickered in sympathy. "So, uhmm, what do you think your chances against Hope are?" "Huh," I looked to her, "are you betting on me and Hope's sparring match?" "It's not really a bet, more like a wager," Molly grinned. "Betting and wagering is the same thing, Molly," I pointed out. "Okay, fine, we are betting on the outcome," Molly admitted. "So what do you think the odds of you winning are?" "Barring the intervention of large fighting robots, I'd bet on the cute Asian chick to win," I joked. "Arrows," Chastity called out. It was my job to retrieve all the expended arrows from the field, being the junior member of the team. After that we did one more round, then we cleaned up and made our way to either study period or our next club. Chastity held me back so that we could go to Karate class together. "Don't be too hard on Hope," Chastity abruptly told me. "I'm not all that sure I can beat her, Chastity," I confided. "Oh, there is no chance of that," Chastity assured me. "She's going to destroy you. I only want to make sure you are a good sport about it because she really likes you and she's worried you might take this beating the wrong way." I stopped and stared at her somewhat incredulously. "Oh, come on," I grumbled. "I have some sort of chance. She's not that good." "If thinking that makes you feel better," she patted me on the back. "Well, if you believe I can't win, you will be willing to make a wager on the outcome then," I challenged Chastity. "What would it be?" Chastity mused. "You in a little, itty-bitty French Maid's outfit for twelve hours of my choosing," I said. "What do I get if Hope wins?" Chastity countered. "What would you want?" I grinned. "Any one favor to be decided on later," was what she came back with. "Oh, please, my favor is relatively precise while you want the world," I pointed out. "Okay, I want one 'forgiveness' in advance," Chastity offered. I groaned. "You just have to keep busting my chops, don't you?" I sighed. "Fine, I'll make the bet." For a private sparring match, Hope and I drew a great deal of attention. Christina, Heaven, Chastity, and Faith were expected, as was Coach Gorman. I had kind of hoped Cappadocia would hang around so we could hook up when the fight was over. Everyone else was rather distracting. Both Hope and I went shirtless, me bare-chested and she with a black sports bra, as well as barefoot. We set up four meters apart with Hope doing something that mimicked warm-up exercises. It took a second of eye contact for the fight to begin. I kicked out viciously; she collapsed beneath the blow and swept my legs. My back slapped the mats and before I could move or mount much of a defense, Hope was all over me. It was arm bar and she had my head in a scissor lock and that was that. I tapped out before she could render me unconscious. No one said anything as I regained my feet. I was careful not to make eye contact until I'd backed up a bit. I had no clue to what kind of Monkey Kung-fu she had just worked on me but I knew that what little Thai Kickboxing I had wasn't cutting it, but I knew even less Karate and even less of what Gorman and Black had shown me. It boiled down to making use of what I did know to the best effect. This time I danced to the left using a little trick Gabrielle Black had taught me (with some pain added). At first Hope mirrored my movements so when I lashed out with my first kick it caught her off-guard since I'd also been slowly closing the distance between us. She tried to snake within my reach but I kept shifting and kicking to hold her at bay. When she finally did get inside, I hit her with every fist/arm/elbow strike I knew. I knocked her back, pursued her, and for a moment it looked like I had a chance. Hope kept maneuvering with the grace of a gymnast so I couldn't pin her to the mat. Once she got to her feet I sensed I was rapidly running out of options. I certainly didn't expect a chop to my temple and that was pretty much all she wrote. She jumped up, put her knee into my diaphragm and rode me to the ground. I managed to block twice against her strikes as she straddled my stomach. I almost knocked her aside, we wrestled, and that was the totally wrong thing to do. I knew crap about wrestling. My tapping out was a foregone conclusion once she got me on my stomach. For a second I lay there marveling how quickly I'd gone down, twice. I noticed that Hope was still standing astride my body so I rolled over in place and looked up. For a second she had this look that reminded me of staring into the pitiless depths of the ocean. "My head hurts," I emphasized with a deep breath. That set off a flash of light in her eyes. "The important one or the one on top of your neck?" she smiled from above. Hope crossed her arms and helped me stand. "Are we okay?" she suddenly seemed worried. "Oh, hell, no," I gasped. "I've got to learn me some of those moves. You were freaking awesome." That outburst gained me a snort of amusement on her part. "I am not a master so I would have to consult my master before taking on a student," Hope informed me. "Your Father?" I was curious. "No; my Father had to get permission to teach my sisters and me. My Master is back in Korea," she answered. Hope and I parted ways and various friends now felt free to join the party. "Damn, Bro, she kicked your ass. I'm ashamed to call you family," Rio mocked me. "Rio, now you know how he feels about you every day," Valarie shot back. "I think he did pretty good, all things considered," Coach Dana Gorman stated. "I don't believe Zane's ever fought against a 'soft' or passive style." "Fifteen or twenty more years and I would have had her," I chuckled. "You are right, Coach; I've never seen her precise style. I've tried some of the exercises monks use but those were primitive compared to what Hope showed me today. Now I think I'm going to take a shower." "Everyone will clear out now," Coach ordered as I made my way to the showers. ZETAS "Honestly, Zane," Sahara lectured me deliciously, "did you have to flush my phone down the toilet?" "Technically, I only dropped it in," I corrected. "I didn't hit the handle. Besides, you know your husband would only annoy us with his incessant phone calls." "I still feel a little guilty," Sahara sighed. "He knew when I would be over and where we would be going if he wasn't going to be kind enough to be there," I pointed out. "The only reason to call you would be to ruin the moment he could have pre-empted by showing a little consideration for your feelings." "That is not fair," Sahara countered. "My husband is a community leader with many responsibilities." "So would you be if people would wake up and see you as I do," I answered. "Zane, I don't want any misconceptions about me," Sahara stared at me intently. "I am loyal to my marital vows." "I don't doubt that for a second," I agreed. "Betrayal leaves its own scars and I don't see any on you." Sahara didn't immediately react to that, instead taking a long sip of her tea. "Certainly you have heard the rumors by now?" she said softly. "Yes, and I believe them," I responded gravely. I let that hang there for thirty seconds. "Aliens did land in Roswell, New Mexico in 1947, and they interred the bodies at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base before finally moving them to Area 51." Sahara didn't know what to make of that for a second but slowly began to smirk. "What? Was there another rumor that I should be giving a damn about?" I concluded. "Some people compromise for the easy way out, some people remain mostly steadfast and take the hard road, but you are the only man I know who gladly skips through a minefield because even the hard road is too much of a compromise for you," she commented. "I can only be me," I replied. "I couldn't be you; I doubt the clothes would fit." "Oh, you are such a strange individual," she tilted her head. Before she could explain our food arrived and she felt it prudent to wait until there were fewer prying ears. "Do you think it is appropriate for me to, ask about Ms. Vickers?" "No," I responded patiently. "If you ever feel like it is your business, she's in church every Sunday and she's nice, if a bit nervous considering the current circumstances." "It is only that I hear things about you when my husband talks to other people and, much of it doesn't make sense," she added. "For instance, I believe I'm the only one who sees it but I'm sure you are having an affair with Rochelle Wellington." "I'm neither confirming nor denying anything but how does that make you feel?" I countered. "Infidelity is a crime," she answered after a few seconds, "but Mayor Wellington is a horrible, horrible man." And this was coming from the woman married to that bastard, Pastor Bill. "I confess that I find the whole thing very amusing, to the point where I pray to Christ for forgiveness virtually every night. That includes using me as a distraction for Kendra's nosey little self." "That was not my intent if that's any consolation," I sighed. "I simply thought we had a lot in common." "Such as?" she smiled. "Well, before we moved here, we had no idea where Lancaster, Virginia was," I started. "We both know that waving a Bible around doesn't make someone holy; a custom may be fine for you but it isn't for everyone and we know what it is to be judged by people who have never gotten to know us," I completed. "I also wanted you to know that I know about Bill and we are not alone." "Know? What do 'we' know?" she asked confidently enough. "We know why he let them think you were the one who was unfaithful," I clarified somewhat. Sahara stared at me, her face torn by a plethora of warring emotions; loyalty, anger over being betrayed, and relief that she didn't bear this terrible burden alone anymore were all there. "Men handle such things differently than women," Sahara told me in a distant voice. "My father wanted boys." "I imagine your Father-in-Law wishes he had raised his boy to be a man too," I joked. "That's unfair," I corrected myself. "I have nothing against men of a different persuasion. It is bastards I have a problem with." "Please, Zane, he is still my husband," Sahara admonished me. "Well, he had better start treating you better or I may re-familiarize him with Deuteronomy 23:1 (ty-jw)," I responded. "Your loyalty to him should be met with respect. That is the deal we make when we get married." "What makes you think you know so much about marriage?" Sahara inquired after a bite, some savory chewing and a gulp. "I'm smarter than I look. Okay, that's not too difficult, but I'm usually smarter than people give me credit for." "Smart things like inviting Ms. Kennan to services yesterday?" she taunted me. "I actually didn't invite her but don't tell anyone; I revel in people's opinion that I'm irreverent," I grinned. Sahara tried and failed to fight down her own smile in response. "I've actually invited Belle, Ms. Kennan, to live with me and Jill as well as giving her a job." "I, I don't know what to make of that," Sahara worried. "She's very pretty, I imagine." "Sahara, you need to become a better judge of people," I said. "I wouldn't trust Belle with my car keys or my favorite cuff links, but I'd trust her with Jill's life or my own." "Sometimes it helps to remember we are still listening to the words of a poor carpenter's son who suffered through exile," I pointed out, "who wouldn't do what the authorities told him to do, died because he was betrayed by a close friend, and went to the grave abandoned by all those who said they understood him; not most people's first choice for founder of the world's largest religion." "When you put it that way, it sounds depressing," Sahara agreed. "It also sounds exactly as it played out. It often does not occur to most believers that the flame of Christianity almost fluttered out before it ever really came to life." She looked for me to say something but all I did was grin. A few seconds later I saw that flicker of understanding come alive in her eyes. "Here you are, the star of multiple on-line sexual misadventures, sitting with the preacher's disreputable wife in the most romantic restaurant in town and we are discussing morality and religion," she chuckled. "No one will believe us despite this being the truth. I find your perverse and bizarre sense of humor very enchanting, Zane." "The important thing is that you are having a good time, Sahara," I explained. She laughed out loud, drawing attention to our little candlelit alcove of the eatery. I doubted she cared and I certainly didn't. We finished our meal, I paid, and we headed straight back to her place. The game was, we left zero time for any possible hanky-panky to take place. We wanted the people who were going to accuse us of impropriety to make real asses of themselves when we revealed our timeline established by my filling up of gas right before picking her up, our valet ticket at the restaurant, and finally, our credit card receipt for the restaurant itself. I had outlined my plan to Sahara and she heartily approved. Unlike the time her husband had screwed her over, she could fight this scandal. I pulled into the Penny's driveway and I rushed around to get her door for her (thank you, Heaven, for that bit of etiquette). We walked through the front door only to see Pastor Bill a few steps away from the door. "Where have you been?" he growled. Sahara dutifully lowered her head. "We were at Zetas," I stated calmly, "right where I told you we would be." Bill ground his teeth and glared at Sahara. "What have you been doing?" he snapped. "Nothing," I now grinned. "I accidentally left the lube and the box of condoms on your kitchen counter." Pastor Bill was rendered speechless. "I was the one who dropped her phone into the toilet; don't blame Sahara," I told him. "Sahara, this was fun. I don't often get to have an adult conversation about the basis of Christianity. I do appreciate your insights. I gotta go now. You two have a good evening and I guess I'll see you on Wednesday night, Sahara. Bill, I'll see you on Sunday." "I doubt you will be seeing my wife again," Bill finally ground out. "Sahara, please give me and your husband a moment alone?" I asked her. "Of course, Zane, and thank you again for an intellectually stimulating night," was her own way at rebelling. I could tell ol' Bill didn't appreciate her pleasant tone to me one bit. When she had moved out of sight I leaned into my so-called religious leader. "Bill," I whispered to him, "between you, me and God, if something happens to Sahara, I'm giving you one year and a day, then they'll never find your body. You know the kind of low-lifes I hang out with. I'm not bluffing. The only other injustice will be that you won't suffer nearly enough. Am I absolutely fucking clear?" "I'm not afraid of you, you sleazy scumbag punk," he hissed. "Whatever, Bill, but you might want to know that the circuit board for your home security system is manufactured by a company I own," I lied. I had no idea if there was a circuit board for his system or who the hell manufactured it, but I was pretty sure he didn't know either. Bill and I were at an impasse. He was a bully and a liar who was used to manipulating people using both other people's faith and sins to get what he wanted. My advantage was that I was well known to be willing to inflict pain to get what I wanted (I just wanted to protect my ladies) and he was averse to actual physical confrontation. Belle brought a whole new definition to the conflict at First Anointed Free-willed Fellowship of Christ Church. There were a growing number of people willing to resist the order Bill had crafted for his own power. Now people defied him and the normal techniques of censor had little effect. His best hope was that Zane Braxton would get hung in another bizarre encounter and remove himself from the equation without Bill's interference. That was his hope, anyway. ON The CRUX OF CHANGE "Hey, Briana," I told my buddy from Colorado State. I was standing outside the door that led to my floor once more. "Hey, Future Slave to my Desires," she giggled back. She was a whole lot more playful than the last time we'd talked. "Gak!" I played with her. "I'm pleased to find you in higher spirits tonight. I hope that means you are doing better?" "Actually, I had a freaky weekend," she sighed. "I met my boyfriend's other girlfriend, it was a totally psycho-girlfriend moment too. She came at me when I was training with some sisters for a 5K run. She appeared in the parking lot and started screaming at me. It was scary. I had three sisters and she brought two wacked-out friends. A pair of off-duty firemen broke it up; sadly, one is married and the other is gay." "Briana, I have a confession: I'm a gay man in denial and I'm tired of hiding the real me," I stated sincerely. Briana's laughter rocketed through the connection, followed by some off-screen conversation, then the phone being handed around. "If you want that lie to be believable, tell us you are secretly a lesbian," Jarunee snickered at me in her native Thai tongue. "Give me a second and I'll come up with something more believable," I chuckled back in the same lingo. "How have you been?" "Pretty good; better than you since that little Korean girl wiped your ass all over the mats," she responded in English. "Okay, she's not so little, and I have it on good authority she was a champion on the Tijuana Midget Fighting Circuit while still in preschool," I covered my ass, then a fear began clawing its way inside me. "Is there any suggestion that she and I may have gone to bed together?" "Of course; this morning's upload," Jarunee informed me. "Oh, in that case, please tell the rest of the Kappa Sigmas that I won't be doing Spring Break after all," I groaned. "What, why?" Jarunee gulped, wondering what she'd done wrong. "Her dad is going to kill me," I related jokingly. "I won't make it to the end of this semester, much less to March. It was a nice dream, though." "Are you serious?" Jarunee worried. "Apparently Hope's, that's Hope Song who kicked my ass, father is some sort of a South Korean superman who eats two-bit punks like me for breakfast," I shrugged. "It can't be, and the phone was taken away. "Oh, my God! Was that one of Yeong Song's daughters you banged that can now be seen all over the internet?" a different girl babbled. "You really are a dead man." "Ooo-kayyy, who are you, by the way? I'm Zane," I started off. "Sorry. I'm Chrissy and my father is in the Navy and he does, stuff. I don't know how bad that man is but I've seen SEALs scramble to get out of that man's way faster than they would for any admiral." "What? That's absurd," I joked. "No one is that much of a bad-ass." Except for Gabrielle Black, I am so going to die at this man's hands, aren't I? "All I know is that the Navy decided it was safer to put him up at our house as opposed to a motel. Mom got upset because apparently the North Korean government put a huge bounty on his head since he killed so many of their Special Forces guys, no lie." I said nothing for the longest time. "Maybe he'll think I'm good son-in-law material," I tried to sound upbeat. "Yes," Chrissy tried to sound positive as well. I, of course, was desperately trying to remember how many times I had made Hope suck my cock, and our discussion of anal sex wasn't worth mentioning. Curling up into a fetal ball wouldn't do anyone any good either. "Very well, Chrissy. Can I talk to Briana one more time?" I asked. "Of course, Zane, and don't worry; the whole Kappa Sigma Sorority will start working on this problem. We will figure out something," she assured me. "Hey, guy," Briana sounded apprehensive, "are you going to be okay?" "Babe, it is just another day ending in 'y'. I've got this," I said confidently. "Good night, now." Briana said her good-byes and I took a moment to get my thoughts together before heading upstairs. It turned out I had over seventy ladies in my place, none more surprising than Coach Dana Gorman. She was paired with Valarie against Millicent and Raven in what looked like a close match up on the pool table. Another totally bizarre image was Vivian and Rio laying stomach first on the floor near one of the TV's, calves kicking in the air with Vivian helping Rio with something oddly akin to schoolwork. Mercy, Opal, Brandi, and Brigit were gathered around the closest table having formed some sort of study group as well. Magically enough, in the twilight of my life (no, I am not over-reacting!) it is good to see one of my plans actually work in almost the way I had intended. No one had noticed me arrive so I turned to go to the drink bar, and walked right into Paige. "Hi!" she squealed in excited delight. Her tight little albino body vibrated with orgasmic energy. "Hey, Babe," I kissed her on the lips lightly. She kept her hands tightly clasped behind her back. "You don't smell like sex," she grinned. "I went out to eat with the preacher's wife, Paige," I groaned. "Not every date is an inevitable sexual hook-up. We had a nice meal and talked about our church, morality, and religion, honest to God." "I believe you," Paige wouldn't stop grinning. "Cordelia is in your room, waiting for you, and thank you, thank you, thank you." Paige was undoubtedly ecstatic over the red marker on Cordelia's face that read 'Paige is smarter'. To see that was one of Paige's deepest desires. Cordelia was working away on her tablet as I slipped into my room. She was fully on my sleeping stage, lying on her back and tablet held up over her head as she worked on it. "Hello, Zane," Cordelia said. "I like your place; it is very you." "Cordelia," I managed to say back in a civil tongue. "Did you know who Yeong Song is?" "Of course I do," Cordelia answered without looking away from her work. I didn't say too much because I had little polite to say to the girl at the moment. After a minute she finished up working on her computer, put it down, propped herself up on her elbows, and smiled my way. Her pigtails swayed as she looked me over. "You are upset," she noted. "Why are you here?" I inquired curtly. "Oh, now we are in the 'you are angry with me but doing an admirable job controlling your violent impulses and going to reduce your interactions with me yet not going to let me alter your lifestyle in any way' phase," Cordelia sighed. "I am not fighting the fact that you are the smartest person on campus, maybe the smartest person I've ever met, but I think we are done playing around. When I drive out of these gates for the last time four years from now, I'm going to forget you and go on with my life," I told her. Cordelia smirked, then laughed. "Zane, I made you, you are my creation," she giggled. I was about to get pissed, then I got another boot to the head. "I was drawn to your family's tragic death years ago, saw your return to the United States as an excellent opportunity for us both, created several identities, talked to your aunt on-line about FFU, altered the admissions software so your application would be accepted, and made sure your medical records weren't examined until you were on campus." "You put me and Rio together," I pieced together; Cordelia nodded. "Iona?" "Ah, she's loyal to you, but it was easy enough to put her in your class. She is the type of girl who runs across traffic to save a turtle crossing the road," Cordelia smiled. "I knew she'd rally to your side, just like I knew that would be enough to keep you here until other events unfolded," she seemed terribly pleased. "Now the sorority and Christina are all you as well as the run-ins with the law, but you are my weapon to use on this campus, Zane. I could never beat Chancellor Bazz without creating a scandal that would break the school apart," she informed me. "Your rebellion was a possibility I explored but your ability to enlist Christina and the freshmen wasn't something I could facilitate; again, that was all your doing." "I have respected you and Heaven," Cordelia pointed out. "Because Christina and I would kill you," I countered. "No; I kept her secret because I am not needlessly cruel," she said. I almost believed it. "Wrong, Cordelia; you didn't betray Heaven because Christina and I would leave FFU," I stated. "Your game would fall apart; not because either one of us is special but because you don't like playing with dumb people, there is no challenge to it." Cordelia's smile only got wider. "You don't disappoint," she remarked, without a hint of shame or guilt. "Am I forgiven?" It occurred to me that no matter how absurd on the surface, Cordelia wanted someone to know and, in a way, understand her genius. "I think we may be past that," I murmured. "How about this; the Time Lord Mafia needs, I need your help," she confessed, but I was wary. "When Ms. Black came here I was suspicious that her record was too clean," Cordelia related, "so when you gave me that warning, I began digging very carefully. Well, this morning something happened." "Oh, crap," I muttered. "How bad and how likely is it that you will be tracked back to here?" "I set up a blind station in Lima, Peru," she said matter-of-factly, "all paid for in cash by people who don't know the real me. I had surveillance on the place as standard practice. Late last night, Lima time, three armed men broke into the small room and tore the place up." "Who were they?" I was now more intrigued. "They spoke perfect Spanish so I had no clue until one of them screwed up and a cheap shelf fell on him. He cursed in Hebrew." Cordelia exhibited real shock. "They were Mossad. I check up on some other stuff and I really think they are Israeli intelligence." What in the hell was Mossad doing hunting Gabrielle? What the hell was the only guy in an all-girls university doing getting involved with all this? Fuck it all, I'm a horny eighteen-year-old boy with more girlfriends than any two sane men would want. Wasn't talking to yourself one of the signs of mental instability? I was saved by the phone, sort of. "Zane, this is Doctor Scarlett," the Vice Chancellor said, "I am at your door and I need to come up and talk to you for a bit." "Of course, Doctor Scarlett," I responded as I caught Cordelia's eye. I hung up and the two of us headed into the main area. As soon as we exited the screens, Cordelia went toward the closest group of students to warn them and I travelled down the stairs. "Hey, Doctor," I greeted my latest guest. I screened the keypad from her view, asked the system for a new password, and read it off to her as it popped up. Doctor Scarlett reentered the code and had it scan her thumbprint without comment. "Thank you, Zane," Victoria greeted me politely. "I would like to see your domicile as well, if that is convenient." "Sure thing," I told her. "We have about forty-five minutes before curfew so it's pretty occupied." "It is your room," she nodded. "I have every reason to believe you are responsible with its use." I wouldn't say that, but then in the past five minutes my life had gone to hell anyway, and I had to put up a good face until bedtime. "Ah, the pictures I've seen do not do the view justice, Mr. Braxton," Doctor Scarlett exhaled. "Relax, take a walk around, and/or help yourself to some food, Doc," I offered. "After nine o'clock you may call me Victoria, Zane," she allowed in return. I was a little stunned. No one seemed overjoyed that Victoria was here but they weren't stampeding toward the door either. "You provide a great deal of stability," she told me softly. "Your presence provides your guests with a sense of peace and safety." "Perhaps you missed Coach Gorman giving two of your students pool lessons right over there?" I suggested. "Dana is your guest too, though I doubt her mood is swayed one way or another by your sense of calm," she grinned, then was brought up short. "Zane, there are two women in, bikinis in your, " "It is a hot tub," I provided the identification, "and I also provide the swim suits for those who need them." Victoria stared at me for a few seconds and I could sense her ready to finally explode on me with some righteous rage toward my overtly sexual ways. "Why would you have women's swimsuits?" she asked patiently. "I have one-pieces as well," I responded. "What would be the point of installing a hot tub, showers, and a sauna if I don't also supply the girls with swimsuits and towels?" Those words put her back on an even keel. Still -- "Doc, I have women coming in my second-story bedroom window back home in the middle of the night for the purposes of sexual intercourse," I sighed. "I hardly need to give students here revealing clothing to feed any vicarious thrill. Do you want a suit to take a dip?" "Let me think about that," she replied quickly. "How long does it take you to obtain a girl a suit?" "I have a suit for you already; you are virtually Vivian's size. And I even have one in red if that is your preference," I said. "Do you really want me to be in a red bikini?" she wondered. It was a trick question. "It is a one-piece, and all I want is for you to be as happy as you can be without trampling on the aspirations of others," I answered. "So you feel responsible for all the girls at this school," she stated. It took me a moment to realize this was a statement, not a question. "Good night, Zane," Victoria smiled. "Good night, ladies," she called out to the room. A chorus of 'good night's' were returned. She disappeared down the stairs and I felt a deep desire to be alone. Peace and quiet sounded good, yeah, I know. "Bro?" Rio snuck up on me. She gave me a quick once-over, then tenderly wove her arms around my waist and hugged me tightly. "I'm okay, Rio," I muttered. "Don't lie to me," she squeezed me tighter. "Trust me; I know that desperate, hopeless look well and I can see it creeping up behind your eyes. Zane, I don't know what's wrong and I'm not going to ask, but I want you to know that I'm here for you." I tilted my upper body back and met her gaze. "Who are you and what have you done to my Rio?" I grinned weakly. "Hey," she remained scarily compassionate, "you've soaked up my pain often enough. It is about time you let me carry some of yours." "What can I do?" Iona wiggled up to my side. A further miracle was delivered when Paige appeared within my field of vision at over five feet away. "Guys, do you think I can have the night to myself? I need to work out things in my head," I begged. "Consider it done," Rio and Iona stated together. Iona departed to spread the word. Rio departed as well, but doubled back to give me another hug. "Zane, don't leave me," she whispered into my chest. "Three seconds ago I was going to knock you out, roll you up in a blanket, and take you with me when I scaled the walls and ran home," I sighed. "To the bitter end," I gave Rio's and my own little motto. "To the bitter end," she mumbled back. After that, going to bed was surprisingly easy. "Zane," Gabrielle greeted me with a ghostly voice. I had called her and said we needed to talk. "Someone did some poking around on you," I told her, "and as a result, three Mossad agents broke into a false station they had in Peru. Is there anything we need to know about why Israeli Intelligence sent three armed men looking for you?" "Three," she mused. "The back-up squad was outside. Since you made no mention of a grenade, I assume they wanted me alive. What are the odds of them tracing the search back to Freedom Fellowship?" As she talked, she sat down on the bed next to me, next to my hip. "Since I have no clue as to what resources they can bring to bear, I would feel safe enough remaining here if they were after me," I answered. "What's your next move?" For a reason that went way beyond insane, I suddenly didn't want her to leave. "I wait. I do not have infinite exit plans or resources," she told me. "You are taking this awful well," I noted. "As opposed to wasting energy becoming pointlessly annoyed? You will keep me apprised of further developments," she commanded then rose to leave. "Gabrielle, do you know a guy named Yeong Song?" I blurted out. "I know of him but I've never met him," she stop

Christian College Sex Comedy: Part 21 Beyond Bed  Breakfast In 30 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the podcast at Explicit Novels.   Defiance is not common because to rebel is to become friendless            "What is it with you and butt-sex? Not that I mind, but you seem obsessed with it," Tawny asked. "I don't care one way or another, actually. I'm in a Christian school so vaginal virginity is a normal expectation, so it is oral and anal sex for me," I explained. "With Paige, my desire is based on her blanket rejection of the idea before we'd had sex at all. If I let her hold herself back because of an irrational fear, I would be doing her a disservice. I owe it to every lover to give it my all." "I hate Christina," Tawny muttered. "Why?" I inquired as we walked down the street. "We agreed that if either one of us were to sleep with you, we would warn the other one first," she regaled me with this bit of unexpected news. "I suppose that I could complain about you ladies making deals concerning my time and body without consulting me, or maybe how, having told me this, I won't sleep with either one of you, or perhaps I'll simply announce how I'm going to another school in another state next semester but I'm done with the bluster and pissy-ness for a while," I sighed. "Instead, I'm going to exact a promise from you two," I stated. Tawny and I stopped walking and stared into each other's eyes. "The loser has to get the winner's name tattooed on their ass. That's my condition." "That's nuts," Tawny chuckled. "I'm not going to have another girl's name tattooed on my ass." "Then drop out of your little agreement if you think I'm not worth it or that you will lose," I suggested. Tawny didn't reply, instead walking down the street once more. "We could have sex right now if you want," I said once we were side-by-side again. "You would break your pledge for me?" Tawny asked. "If you want to see Christina's ass with your name tattooed on it," I answered. "She'd never forgive either of us," Tawny noted. "Absolutely. She'd get the tat but she'd be very disappointed in us both," I agreed. "Is this how you repay me for saving you inside the warehouse?" Tawny questioned. "I'm not treating you like a sorority president or a graduating senior; I'm treating you like a desirable woman, a potential lover, and someone forced to think on an entirely personal, selfish level for once," I said. "I respect you enough to give you a moral challenge." Tawny stopped and pulled out her phone and dialed up a number but hesitated before sending it. "Hello, Christina; Tawny here," she started. "I have Zane with me outside the party and am seriously thinking about requesting him to have sex with me." I missed what Christina said. "Yes, I made him aware of the bet and he agreed anyway, but added that you would tattoo my name on your ass if we did it tonight. Is that acceptable?" Again, I missed Christina's comment. "Oh, he is very aware that you would be disappointed in him, and he did a good job of leading me on but he has no intention of following through on his little dare; he loves you too much. I almost fell for his ruse but then he revealed how much he cared about me and I figured it out," Tawny grinned at me, leaving me embarrassed. Christina spoke again. "Yes, I guess that means I might get 'Christina' tattooed to my ass. It is worth it," Tawny related to Christina. "I knew you would want to hear about this, he's still pining away for you." Christina got off a statement and Tawny laughed. "We should get together for dinner sometime, Christina, just the two of us. Take care now." "She wants you to know they won the game 3-1," Tawny told me as she put away her phone. "I'm not sure I want to marry you," Tawny mused. "You are very complicated and you could be a bit more truthful in your dealings." "My Uncle Tim sort of beat that honesty out of me but I'll make an effort on your behalf," I allowed. "Zane, that woman on the motorcycle is looking at us intently. Do you know her?" Tawny cautioned me. It was Willa and I didn't expect to see her tonight. "Willa?" I called out to the biker chick. She responded by waving a thin plastic card in my direction. It looked a lot like my fake ID I'd requested as a joke. "Tawny, hang back," I said in a serious tone. "Hey, Zane, I was curious to see your car parked down the street," Willa said as she dismounted her ride. "I thought you might be going to the Fallout Shelter and I wanted to talk with you first." "I wasn't planning on it," I replied. "Willa, this is Tawny. She's a senior at UV. Tawny, this is Willa; she's a Warlord motorcycle club member and she helped save Rio Thursday night." "Have you come to regret that decision yet?" Tawny asked Willa. Willa was uncertain for a second, then she smiled. "Not yet, but I haven't see her again either," Willa answered. "Please remember that Zane loves her dearly," Tawny said. "He'd become really upset if she ended up hospitalized or worse." "I figured that out when he took on thirty Warlords in order to rescue her after she made a colossal screw up," Willa informed Tawny. She handed me the fake ID, which I examined. "Hey," I complained, "this says I'm Ruckus Tanner, a sixty-eight-year-old black man." "No, it does not," she squawked as she ripped the card back and examined it. Since the ID said I was G. Zane Braxton, had my picture, and told the world I was 21, Willa looked up and glared at me. "Not funny," she snapped. I imagine she'd leapt through a few hoops with the Feds to get me this thing this quickly. "That's Zane being an ass once more," Tawny mocked me. "He does that to diffuse uncomfortable situations he finds himself in. The thing is, what is he uncomfortable about? Hi, we haven't been formally introduced. I'm Tawny Flores, President of the UV Kappa Sigma sorority." "Hmm, what was sex with him like?" Willa asked. "We've never had sex, she's just a friend, nothing to discuss," I interrupted. "No, I have not had sex with Zane, but I have been in bed with him totally naked. It is kind of a delicious memory I use from time to time," Tawny moaned sensually. "The thing is, what is your favorite Zane memory, and why didn't he tell you who I was?" "Zane, do you have a favorite memory of me?" Willa questioned me. "Your heels digging into my ass as you wrapped your legs around me and the tips of our tongues touched," I declared instantly. Willa blinked, somewhat startled at my accurate recall. "Do you have one of me?" Tawny inquired as she came up and put a hand on my shoulder as she positioned herself to my right side and slightly back. "Yes. It involves something about getting over 'that heartache'," I responded. Tawny squeezed my shoulder with some empathy for the memory. Willa looked to us for the context. "Him, me and his girlfriend, his real girlfriend, on another sister's bed; we were clothed and he was completely naked and totally aroused," Tawny smiled happily with the memory. "Zane, why didn't you jump her bones?" Willa looked me over. "I knew I was outmatched after that first kiss," I embellished the truth. "To be fair to Zane, he didn't have any clothes to put on and we weren't the two girls he'd been having sex with," Tawny snickered. "His confidence may have been shaken." "I find that hard to believe," Willa joked. I huffed and started down the street once more. Willa and Tawny fell in behind me in hushed conversation that I did my best to ignore. I walked down one more block, then turned to the left and entered a more occupied area. I also noted the sign for the Fallout Shelter. The Fallout Shelter I looked over my shoulder and caught Willa studying me. "Willa, do you know this place?" I asked. I figured she was actually hanging around to see if I was going to meet with Belle tonight and I was giving her some choices to make. "It's a nice place," Willa shrugged. "More of a college crowd hangout, though." "Tawny?" I inquired. "I've been inside a few times but they are more of an alternative rock crowd. But since we are here, we might as well take a look," Tawny reasoned. I was sure Willa wasn't happy with that answer but she followed us in anyway. As per custom, I was carded at the door by this solid-looking blonde guy named Bill running off toward premature baldness who could have used a few less beers and a few more days at the gym. By the look of his knuckles and face, he was familiar with fighting if not avoiding blows. He gave my new ID a cursory glance, almost handed it back, then froze. His eyes went from bored to furious in a second. Willa pushed me forward into the club before Bill could react We had to immediately race down a set of stairs because the Fallout Shelter had cut out the first floor so that the main floor was the old basement. Around the place was a series of catwalks that let you traverse the place above the chaos. Once on the main floor we migrated toward the bar. A band with a lot of volume and some sort of political message rendered largely unintelligible by the lead singer/bassist slurring or screaming his words was in the midst of their set so we got there quickly. Belle finished serving up beers to two girls who had this wiccan/goth thing going on, including dreadlocks. Belle's eyes took in the three of us, then settled back on me with a wicked gleam. "So, how did you get past Bill, who's the serious bitch, and I'm afraid I have to card you," Belle grinned. I handed her my new card. She looked it over, her grin becoming a smile. "This is a good one," she nodded, and handed it back. "Bill recognized me but Willa shoved us past him before he could punch me," I informed Belle. "He'll be down here soon enough. Lee, the head bouncer, knows about his temper and won't let him come down for a few minutes. Let me get you some drinks. Grab a table and I'll be right over," Belle told us. A small group of UV kids broke away from a table. One guy got sick, his buddy took him toward the bathrooms, and the boy/girl couple took their absence as an excuse to slip off. We grabbed their seats and took in an awkward moment. It was broken by the arrival of Belle and some beers. She put one down in front of Tawny and then Belle, then put two down in front of me. As I was figuring that out, Belle straddled me and sat so we faced one another. She had a seductive twist to her lips, part impish, part desire. She leaned in and started kissing me deeply without preamble and pushing her hips into mine. I had dire duo distraction of Belle having shed her bra behind the bar and her being in a crop-top red Harley-Davidson t-shirt. Belle kept pushing into me so I rested my hands on her hips and tried to push her back gently. Belle was having none of that. My seat began tilting back and I opted for a more aggressive strategy. I let my hands migrate up her waist and around to her back until I hooked both her shoulders. This had the added benefit of pulling the front of the shirt tight against her breasts. "Does this happen to him much?" Willa asked Tawny. "You've obviously never seen the footage of my sorority tying him to a cross out in the woods," Tawny responded. "So, yes, this happens to him more than any person I've ever known." "Does it bother you that we are both here on a Saturday night watching him make out with somebody else?" Belle inquired next. "I don't know about you but Zane needs me," Tawny mused. "He has a severe lack of guy friends so some of us ladies have to step up and be his wingman, woman." "Do you think he has a problem with male-bonding?" Willa questioned. Had I not had a mouthful of Belle's tongue pinning my own tongue down, I would have told them I had plenty of guy friends in Thailand and in my old private school. As this was going on my chair kept edging farther and farther over until it started to topple. Belle lashed out with her feet, catching the bottom of the table with her heels while her body pressed down on me. I slid my hand down her back to her jeans. I tried to wiggle a hand inside but her jeans were far too tight, a fact she gloated over. "Sorry," Belle teased me, "but you're not getting in." Me, I've always loved a challenge. I moved my hands around, popped her top button, and unzipped her pants slowly. I imagine three of us were waiting for Belle to drop the hammer on me but she didn't. When she didn't I slipped my left hand inside the front of her panties and snaked my right around to her ass-cheek. Belle was still doing her level best to overwhelm my breath control and take away my last breath. She might have forced me to break contact first if she had been able to stifle her own moan as my hands stroked her pubic hair and cupped her ass. Even as we went back to the face-dancing, I noticed more than a few covetous gazes being shot our way. Belle really was some kind of college-boy tease. I could now push my hands closer together by reaching underneath her. I rubbed against her clit with my middle and ring fingers, doubling back for the sensation before dipping into her thick, creamy, and steaming-hot cunt. My right trekked down and stretched the sanctity of her anus. Belle bucked up against me several times in rapid succession. "Should we get some ice to throw on them?" Tawny muttered. "Maybe we should get them a private room." Willa countered. For a counterpoint to the shit my other two women were giving me, I wedged a third finger into her cunt and began stroking her sweet spot. "Oh, hell no," Belle gasped. She stopped kissing me and dove into my ear which she worried with savagely applied teeth. I growled through the pain and increased my rhythm and depth of my attentions. Her anus gave way and I was fucking her from both sides simultaneously, causing her gyrations to become much more intense and erratic. Belle let go of my ear and rested her chin on my shoulder in one last ditch effort to stave off her climax. I turned on the pressure and the dam broke. I lashed up with my feet to connect with the table to stop us from falling over as Belle's body thrashed against mine and she screamed into my shoulder, the biting down with the teeth I could have done without. I was relentless and merciless to Belle now. I pinched and twisted her clit hard between my thumb and forefinger; at the same time I slipped the first digit of a second finger into her rectum. Belle hiccupped, gave a jolt, and began screaming and thrashing again. At the same time she started sobbing between screams, muffled somewhat by her fist, which she was chewing on. With the second orgasm over, I relented and let her nestle against my chest, breathing heavily. "I so need to get laid," Willa muttered. "Amen to that. And to think he's next door to me every weekend with easy access to his second story window," Tawny agreed. I began righting Belle when she pressed her hands against me and sat up. "Keep your hands were they are," she murmured playfully. "Best damn orgasm I've had in years," she directed to our table companions, "and then he stacked another righteous one on top of that. I hate to say it but Tara (her twin sister, the Sheriff's Deputy) was right about this guy; I want one of my own." "Don't you already have a boyfriend?" I mentioned. "Bill. Eh, he's got the equipment but he's a quick shooter. If I'm lucky, I get thirty seconds (ouch!) and then its 'get me another beer' or he rolls over and goes to sleep," Belle enlightened us. "How is his foreplay?" Tawny inquired. "He laps like a dog," Belle shrugged, "and his fingers are strictly in and out like a piston. Who are you again?" She addressed Tawny. Tawny finished her little spiel right when a shadow fell upon my life. Bill had arrived. "What the fuck?" Bill growled as he took in me, Belle, and what I was doing to her, mainly pumping her fore and aft at a slow, gentle pace. "I'm going to pound you," he directed at me. "Oh, shut up, Bill," Belle sneered. "If I'm going to steal one of Tara's men, I'm going to make it the new one. Besides, he's done more for me in ten minutes than you've done for me all year, and since he's not trying to bore me to death with all that sports talk, I guess this is time to say we are done. Bye-bye." "You sow," Bill redirected his anger and balled up his fists. Of course, insulting a woman makes me do stupid things. I started to withdraw my hands and stand when Belle put a finger to my lips. "Hush now, Zane," she smiled. "I got this." She looked over her shoulder at Willa. "Is that fucking chivalry or what?" she laughed at my attempted action. Turning back to Bill, "If I have to dismount this man, I'm going to stomp your ass, and you know I can. You hit me once and I put you in the hospital, or do I need to remind you?" she said evenly. "I got you this fucking job. I got you the fucking place you live in, Bitch," Bill snarled. "You can keep the god-damn job and I'll be out by the end of the month," Belle shot back. Bill clenched and unclenched his fists tightly before turning and storming off. "Okay, what was that all about?" I wondered. "Meh, this shit was getting old," Belle told me. "I'll crash with Willa until I figure out what I want to do next." Willa's look was not one of ecstatic expectation, I was positive that none of this had been planned out before we walked through the door. "Belle, I hope I haven't sent you the wrong message," I started. "I am in school and it is a girl's school at that. I only stopped in to say hi." Belle returned to her rocking motion on my lap. "Don't sweat it, college-boy," Belle grinned, "Scratch that, girl's college-boy; I do what I want, go where I want, and take what I want. So, now that you've got me off, what can I do for you?" "You, me, and Tara in a three-way," was my gut response. Belle stopped moving and Willa looked grim. Tawny, like me, was ignorant of what I'd done wrong. "Why?" Belle asked, with an undercurrent of menace that I didn't miss. "You two are like a volcano and the sea, opposites that I bet are explosive and sizzling when you meet," I related. "We are twins, Zane," Belle informed me. "On the outside, maybe, but inside, sexually, you two are very different. You are not polar opposites but more like two separate paintings that use the same canvas and set of paints but go in totally different directions expressively," I explained. "So who's better, Tara or me?" was her next question. Tawny snorted. "Two totally different women. I mean, with you, I'd like to fuck you in the coat room of a black tie affair with High Society one thin wall away," I said. I could see from Belle's expression she wasn't getting what I was saying, implying that I'd hide her away, be my dirty little secret. "You in sheer black stockings and matching garter belt and half-bra, yummy." "Whoa, I have to admit that sounds lick-able," Willa noted. Belle was also reassessing my intentions and smiled. "With Tara, I'd like to break into a bed warehouse and test out a few of the mattresses about the place, illegal and exposed to the public view," I grinned. "I'd pay to see that," Belle chuckled. "You are a keeper, Zane." "You only say that because you want to stick it to your sister," I countered. "Yeah, when I came over here, that was the main reason, but now I'm angry that she found you first," Belle bitched. "She always had better luck with the boys than I did." "Bill was 'better'?" I wondered. "He was a big football jock in high school and he didn't cheat on her too much. You can guess that I dated some real losers, mostly college guys like you," Belle smirked. If you know of another college guy like Zane, spill," Tawny teased. "I want to get me one to call my very own." "Funny, funny, funny, ladies," I coughed. "Now if I don't get Belle off my lap I'm going to hammer her here in front of the general public. Since my goal this weekend is to avoid fighting, public displays of amusement, and intercourse in general, I'm taking a walk." "Hey," Belle wiggled in on my crotch, "I'm all partial to being fucked on the table and show all these cocksuckers what they've been missing. We might even get busted by my sister and spend the night in a cell together." "With Deacon all busted up let's not do the jail thing," Willa chimed in. "Let's not make it three run-ins with the law for his first 30 days at school," Tawny added. "Three, Zane, who else has corralled your ass since you've been with us?" Belle asked. "Officer Campbell got me when I was driving back to campus," I confessed, since I was suspicious that Christina had given Tawny some of the details of that night. "Yeah, we know her too," Willa said. "Rumor has it she can get a bit frisky." "Oh, come on, I was on a date," I evaded. "She had mercy on me and I left with a warning." "You fucked her," Belle leered after studying me for several seconds. "So, did she use cuffs?" "Front, back, top, and bottom, I left her a wreck on the back seat and she was finger-lickin' good," I unloaded. "She was fantastic. She gave my date and I all we could handle." "You got Heaven involved?" Tawny gasped. "Man, my life would be so much easier," I groaned, "if the people talking behind my back kept me in the loop. Yes, I got Heaven involved. It was a hell of a way to wrap up her first date night. By the way, this doesn't go beyond us; okay?" Belle looked at me intensely once more. "Are you going to lie to me?" she whispered as she placed her forehead against mine. "Yes, to protect you if I must," I replied beneath the thumping of the bass. "That's my choice to make, not yours, Zane," Belle breathed a sugary-sweet beer aroma. "Friends sacrifice a part of themselves for the ones they care about," I told her. "Why do you care?" she asked with more than the usual curiosity. "You are worth it," I answered. Again, there was another intense stare. "Are you doing this for my sister?" she continued her interrogation of me. "Nope," I kept it simple. Yet another attempt by Belle to read my soul followed. "Let's get you cleaned up," she grinned. I pulled my right hand out slow and wiped it on my jeans. I was bringing my left set of fingers to my mouth when she intercepted me by the wrist and led me up to her lips. She sucked the juices off two fingers and then fed me the other two to take care of. I zipped her up and fixed her button before she dismounted and took me by the hand to the men's room. Being occupied by men didn't dissuade Belle one bit. She leaned against the sink while I washed up without speaking. In fact, she remained silent until we stepped back into the narrow hallway that led back to the club floor or out back by a locked stairwell. Belle led me to the door and appeared to be thinking something over. "I heard a sick rumor that your lawyers caught my sister and her buddy when they ganged up on you. The rumor is, you covered for them," Belle glared. "Why would you do something so stupid for someone you didn't know?" "Do you know that I'm jealous of you?" I responded. "Happens all the time; I'm a free-spirit that makes my own way in the world," she smiled, but it was overshadowed by her bitterness. "No. You have a sister, you have family, someone you grew up with. I have my aunt who is from another world, essentially, and that's it," I related. "That may be why I never commit to any one person," I added. "Something in Rio reminds me of my Mom and Iona reminds me of someone I wish was family but isn't. I guess I keep looking until I find what I lost." "Gone is gone, Zane; there is no getting it back," Belle told me, but this time she was showing some real empathy. "Yeah," I joked, "and that is why you always drive the speed limit and park within the lines, because that is what everyone tells you to do." "Has anyone ever told you that you're insane?" Belle's teeth shone through with her smile. "Never, you would be the first," I lied, and by the gleam in my eyes she knew it. It was well past one when I finally had the gang rounded up and headed back out to our rides. It took all of twenty seconds for a buzz-happy Rio to realize that Willa and a now unemployed Belle tagged along. When she did, her look was one of ferocity. "Oh, hell no!" she snapped, and turned toward the two Warlord ladies. "I'm going to kick your ass." "Last time I saw you, Bitch, you were half way to the city's sewage system," Belle laughed back. "Want to go the rest of the way?" Rio surged against Mercy and Barbie Lynn's restraining hands while Willa pulled Belle back, and I ended up in the middle holding them both at bay. "Calm down Rio, it is cool now," I told my buddy. "Belle, this isn't what you think." Speaking of thinking; I had to think fast to figure a way to turn this situation around. I'd hoped that Rio would be so happy, she'd have let it lie for the night, silly me. "Rio, I'd like Belle to give us motorcycle lessons for the trip this summer, and to personally give you self-defense training," I spewed forth my hare-brained idea. "What the fuck?" questioned Belle. "Fuck that noise," Rio spat. "I don't need this dink to teach me how to fight." I wasn't sure what a 'dink' was but I doubt it had positive connotations. "Rio, you haven't picked a martial arts instructor yet and I think Belle's self-taught style would be somewhat attractive to you," I guessed. I had no clue as to Belle's fighting background. "I'd rather teach a goat how to use a unicycle than teach this moron how to ride a bike," Belle growled. "I'll pay you fifty dollars an hour per four students," I offered Belle. "She's a skank," Rio seethed. Belle, on the other hand, seemed to be coming around. "Fifty bucks-, per four people? What would I have to do?" Belle inquired. She was job hunting after all. "Teach them how to ride, for starters," Valarie came to my rescue, "plus basic maintenance, road lore, and stuff like that. You'd also have to teach Rio how to not get her ass kicked." "I keep telling you people, I don't need this bitch," Rio repeated. "Fine, Rio, but tell me, who is going to be your instructor?" I countered. "It can't be Mercy." "Want your knife back?" Belle grinned as she reached into her boot and pulled out the butterfly knife Val had given Rio on Thursday. "I don't know," Rio grumbled, "have you been using it as a sexual aid?" Belle snorted. "Fuck, with Zane around, who needs one?" Belle smiled wickedly. "Two orgasms in ten minutes at a table on the club floor and that was only with his tongue and fingers." "He'd have nailed her in the bathroom if it hadn't been for that whole 'no sex' thing," Tawny added. "I should have stuck with you, Zane," Paige tugged on my arm. "See where you ended up?" "Who is the ghost?" Belle asked snidely. "I'm Paige and Zane is with me this weekend," Paige challenged Belle, bad move. Sometimes reactions pull you one way and instincts send you in another. I went with instincts and let events play out. Belle scooped Paige up under each arm and hoisted her up. "You are what, 100 pounds? A whole weekend with him and he'd break you in two," Belle observed. "He needs a real woman, not a bit of fluff." It was time for me to become involved. I reached an arm around Paige's waist and took her weight onto me. Belle was kind enough to let go so I swung Paige up until I was carrying her in my arms. Paige switched her gaze between me and Belle twice, then latched onto me. "Okay, I win," Paige announced. "I'm the bit of fluff he comes to again and again, after all." "You are the freakiest group of people I've ever seen," Hank spoke up. "A sorority president and sisters" (Leigh and Jersey had joined us), "two Warlord bikers, Christian school girls, and a porn star, no offense, Zane." "Just another day ending in 'y'," Iona whispered. I caught that zing and snickered. "No offense taken, Hank," I joked back. "I'd rather have the memories and suffer through the condemnations of those who don't know me than miss out." "Dude, if you ever need a stand in," Finn added to the joy. He and Ginger had indeed hooked up again, so we were good on that front. Ginger did playfully thump him in the chest though. "Finn, you are already sleeping on the sofa tonight," Ginger teased. "Would you rather be out on the welcome mat?" "Thanks for letting us spend the night at your place," Barbie Lynn added to the play. "What?" Finn squawked. "Oh, come on, Babe." Ginger detached from Finn and wrapped an arm around Barbie Lynn's waist, who reciprocated the gesture. "Oh, come on, Babe," Ginger mimicked, "We want a little girl time, ya know, one on one." Barbie Lynn turned her head and exchanged a heated kiss with Ginger that decidedly aroused me. I hated to think what Finn was going through. "Dudes, I'm going down to the river," Finn groaned. "Wouldn't a cold shower be better and safer?" Leigh asked. "I'm not going to cool down; I'm going to drown my stupid ass for stepping out on Ginger at the start of the night," Finn sighed. "I deserve this." "That's what I wanted to hear," Ginger gloated. She gave another quick kiss to Barbie then glided back to Finn. "It's okay, Honey, I forgive you." "Thanks Babe," Finn kissed her once more. "You are still sleeping on the sofa when we get home," she announced triumphantly. The lesson here is, if you are ever given a choice between fighting a man or a woman; fight a man. Men beat you up, gloat, then walk away. Women hold grudges, forever. "Any advice for our lovelorn?" Willa asked. "Everything fades, be it fame, passion or possessions, it all goes to dust and is lost," I said. "That's rather depressing," Willa noted. "The exact opposite," I countered. "All you are and will ever be is defined by what you do in the next few seconds of life. That is when you can mark yourself as a hero or a villain." "I can buy that," Belle mused. "Live for the moment." I could tell Iona was more uncertain about my words so I expanded. "I am not saying don't plan for the future, but don't live so much for what might be that you ignore what is going on around you right now, because no moment matters less than any other," I added. "That's my boy: Renaissance warrior-poet with the libido of Ron Jeremy," Rio jibed. "I like it," Tawny spoke up. "What would it be like to spend the whole weekend, or a whole week, alone with Zane? I wouldn't be bored." "I wouldn't be able to walk," Barbie Lynn giggled. "I'd enjoy the education," Paige noted. "I'd enjoy the peace and quiet," Vivian joked. "Zane, you have a little bit of a fan club here," Belle smiled. "Totally unwarranted and undeserved," I sighed. We arrived at the water tower and we went our separate ways. I'm sure Paige and Iona wanted to talk to me but they both fell asleep within three minutes of getting in the car. I took them up individually to my room and tucked them in before letting a sleeping Jill know we'd made it back and assuring her that we'd make it to church in the morning. Service and Supper We weren't feeling terribly chipper when Iona, Paige and I crawled out of bed, but we were conscious, ambulatory, and capable of speech so we passed Aunt Jill's inspection before heading out to church. For Paige, it would be a new experience as she normally spent Sunday morning at FFU's Assembly hall. Fortunately, she would be exploring the experience with Iona. My class was amusing as always. Somehow, no one had missed the little revolution we'd staged at university and there was varying levels of confusion, disgust, and anger with what 'I'd' done. Yeah, it was my entire fault because I was in the middle of 'God Made Man First' country. Oddly enough, Chris Gilbert stuck it out with me, jumping in on my side when more than two guys ganged up on me verbally. The second time Chris parried Mr. Coleman's insinuations of my corruption away, the gang gave up and actually got down to the lesson for the week, the Book of Samuel; namely, King Saul versus the Philistines. The lesson was that God abandons sinners. I hung on to the point that even when he knew he was going to die, Saul led his army out to fight the invaders of his homeland. I doubted any of those guys would know what kind of courage it took to fight a lost cause if the time came. "Do you make a habit of running off cliffs and into walls," Chris joked with me, then "Whoops, sorry about that, your parents and all." "It was mountain climbing," I shrugged, "so don't worry about it. Have a good week?" "Oh, peachy; I burned down a state park and robbed the Louvre," Chris stated, deadpan. "Dude," I laughed, "if you are trying to compete with me let me just say 'you win' and end the contest right now. You can have it and the grief that goes with it." "Does that include the girls?" Chris chuckled. It was odd having a real conversation with a guy nearly my age who had a clue where I was coming from. My response was overwhelmed by the crush of young ladies around us. What followed was a chorus of 'hey, Zane', 'hey, guy', and Iona and Barbie Lynn adding a 'hi, Chris'. "Hi there, ladies," and "Hello Barbie Lynn and Iona," followed up Chris. By the way he was looking at Barbie Lynn, I could tell that his perception of her had changed. He wasn't leering but there was a certain sexual curiosity that was new to his gaze. Barbie Lynn caught Chris' look, smiled, but then cuddled up to me to make the situation clear enough. Chris chuckled and shook his head mirthfully. "So is McHunky (Chris) part of the group now?" Rio broke through the politeness. "Chris is not treating me like I'm Caine so I'd hope he'd say yes if you ask him nicely," I answered. "I would say 'yes,' with the understanding that I'm older than all of you and like to live a slightly more private, video-free, lifestyle," Chris informed us. "Chris," Rio inquired, "what is the maximum number of girls you would take to bed at one time, and how many would you feel comfortable dating?" I wanted to kill Rio once more, considering we were clearly being overheard as we moved down the hallway leading to the Tabernacle. "Hmm," Chris thought it over. "Four in one bed, but I'd only feel comfortable dating one woman at a time. I'm old-fashioned that way." "That's not a problem," Rio grinned, "old-fashioned we can cure." "How about we respect different people for their differences, ya nut-job," I cautioned Rio. Rio's retort was cut off by our entry into the main area of worship. Chris waved good-bye and angled toward the front and his family. With Barbie Lynn in the lead, the rest of us moved to the far side where the FFU crowd sat together. I couldn't find Jill in her regular spot but Iona pointed out she'd joined Mrs. Wellington, the Mayor, Lance, and Felicity on the second pew, a few steps up in the world. We'd settled in after the first hymn and Pastor Bill had started the morning greeting when the two main doors to the church slammed open and a black clad woman strode in, it was Belle. It was also clear that Belle had never been in here before, had no idea where I would be seated, and was overwhelmed by the sheer number of parishioners. I don't think she cared that most of them were staring at her. She had dressed up, right? She had on a black jacket, black t-shirt, black jeans and black boots. She'd taken off her black sunglasses. I stood up, put two fingers in my mouth the way Heaven had taught me (Orienteering class, honest) and whistled loudly as I waved her over. Belle's head snapped my way and over she came. By long-standing tradition, Iona sat on one side of me and Rio took the other. This time, Paige had supplanted Iona. Belle decided that insinuating herself between Paige and I would require a crowbar and some leverage so she sat down on Rio instead. Rio grumbled, squeezed out from under Belle, and sat in Mercy's lap. Bill, with a final glare my way, picked up the service as best he could and droned on. Rio leaned into Belle and licked her cheek as a means of retaliation. Belle didn't punch Rio, for which I was grateful. I made sure to put a little extra on the collection plate, for God's sake, not the church's, when the time came around. The sermon was on the Israelites and their forty years of wandering before coming to the Promised Land. I think there was some confusion between myself and most of the flock here on who was the one farthest from the expected destination. At the end of the service my plan went into motion, with multiple women having a role to play. Oddly, despite this being a criminal endeavor, Belle was the only one close to me not involved. It was good fortune that put her at my side because with so many of the church elders gawking/fearing/lusting after her, they completely missed the real mischief makers. "Good morning, Rochelle," I greeted the mayor's wife. She turned, smiled at me, then looked over at Belle. "This is Belle, " "Belle Kennan," Belle finished up for me. I hadn't known her last name. "I know you," Rochelle was clearly thinking hard. "Did you used to collect golf balls off the greens at the country club years ago? You had a sister. Your father was a groundskeeper." "That was a while ago," Belle allowed. "Dad fucked it up with his drinking, like he did everything else. My sister, Tara, is now a Sheriff's Deputy around here." "What do you do?" Rochelle made conversation. "I'm Zane's, chauffer," Belle answered with a twisted grin. "Actually, I'm giving him and some of his friends motorcycle lessons." "That sounds promising," Rochelle continued. "Belle, can I have a few moments of Zane's time?" Belle gave me a suspiciously sexy raised eyebrow then went looking for another one of my female set. "Zane, you were right about that matter we discussed. I still don't know what I want to do with the news. Maybe we can discuss it Wednesday night?" "Absolutely," I nodded. "By the way, there seems to be a growing suspicion that you are not a very moral person," Rochelle leaned in and whispered to me. "Apparently there is some evidence of you and some other girls, " "I've never denied it," I told her. "I also believe that no one seems to care that I've foresworn sex for the weekend. I know it is not much by most people's standards but at least I'm trying to see how the other half lives." "How is that working for you?" Rochelle grinned. "Abysmally; I've been tackled, jumped on, stacked up in a shower, grappled at a party, and got a lap dance in a club," I groaned. "You should stay home more often," Rochelle advised. "I received the tackle, jumping, and the stacking at home, Rochelle," I related. "Maybe I should hide out at your house." Rochelle stared at me and I wasn't sure what to make of that. "I will see you on Wednesday; take care now," I broke the silence between us. I turned and went over to the gulf of isolation that was Sahara Penny. "Hello, Mrs. Penny. You look incredibly inspirational this morning." "Hello, Zane," she smiled, her white teeth brightening up her Lebanese features. "I was thinking that I could do the whole dinner thing with you and William tomorrow night, if that is okay with you," I looked her over. "Well, you could hardly become more of a pariah," she mused. "I would be glad to cook you a meal." "Wolves may get hunted but sheep always get eaten," I replied. "Are you a wolf, Mr. Braxton?" she teased. "I have to be worthy of your company," I retorted, which she found amusing. "I'll see you," I tacked on before heading toward the main gathering. I patiently waited for the main group of men to recognize my presence but today they seemed less than willing to. I must have really been a bad boy. I did catch Rio handing off a phone to Iona who was quietly but quickly working away on it. I had to wonder how long it would take for Lance to realize Rio had swiped it from him. Hell, I promised Raven I'd get her those books from George Mason's library and I was going to return his phone to him soon enough. "Hey, my little Butt-Monkey," Belle taunted me loudly, "are you waiting on this bunch of old fuckers for something?" The conversation stopped and heads turned our way: yay me. "Mr. Braxton," Pastor Bill snapped in a clipped manner, "when you invite some, person to our church you should consult with me or one of the deacons to see if they are appropriate." He was pointedly ignoring Belle, which I found to be both rude and unwise as Belle was the most likely person he'd ever meet who would gladly take his underwear waistband and pull it over his head and laugh while she did it. "I wasn't actually wise enough to invite Ms. Kennan but I should have because I was under the impression this was a House of God. I'll make her tithe if that's what you are worried about," I informed them. "The appropriateness of you being in this church is also in question," Mayor Wellington brought up. "How's Phillip?" Belle spoke up with a wicked sneer toward the Mayor; Phillip was one of his sons. "We had a lot of fun in high school. He was good enough to bring me by your house but he never brought me to your church." "He would have never dated someone like you," the mayor glared at Belle. "Technically we weren't looking for a relationship," Belle grinned, "but does that big four-poster bed of yours still have that dainty white dust curtain with the roses on it?" "You are nothing more than a low-down dirty whore like your mother," Mr. Gibson, the county's largest furniture seller, snarled at Belle. I wasn't sure what her response was because Gibson staggered into Mr. Lieber when I drew my hand back for a slap; everyone got quiet. Yes, I had almost committed assault in front of thirty or so witnesses who hated my guts. Oh, and one of them was a judge. "Braxton!" Pastor William thundered. "Hold that thought, Bill," I pointed to the reverend before turning back to Gibson, "Sir, you insulted a lady in my presence, so you can apologize to her or step out with me to the parking lot where we can settle this like men, because I'm morally opposed to causing needless bloodshed in a house of worship." "That's it, Braxton, you, Pastor Bill growled. "Zane!" a different, feminine voice interrupted. "Apologize to Mr. Gibson at once." "I apologize, Mr. Gibson," I grudgingly stated. "I should have you arrested," Gibson grumbled. "And I'll make sure that your little outburst with, the woman threatened. "Belle Kennan," Belle studied the newcomer and the girls around her. "Ms. Kennan goes all over the internet and is flagged with every search engine with your name and the name of your store," Christina finished. "I'll sue," Gibson fought back. "And I'll win," Christina kept coming. "This is clearly a First Amendment issue, both speech and religion. Now are we going to play nice and respect our fellow Christians or are we going to collectively forget we are all adults?" "He is not going to get away with this threat of force," Pastor Bill persisted. "Pastor Penny, are we truly basing our actions and reaction on what an eighteen-year-old playboy does?" Christina pointed out. "Clearly, leadership is called for, and since you men are the patriarchs of the church, you should be leading Zane in the proper course of action." "Mr. Gibson," Chris joined in, "maybe Zane could clean up your parking lot one afternoon as penance." I had to be sure he was helping me out here. "Gurr, alright," Mr. Gibson admitted. "That would satisfy me." I caught sight of Aunt Jill looking my way. I half expected her to volunteer my acceptance but she waited patiently on me instead, not a good sign concerning her dependence on me. "If it is okay with Mr. Gibson, I'll come over when he gives me a call and my school schedule allows," I said. "I hope that settles that," Mr. Gilbert, Christopher's father, announced. "Was there a reason for Mr. Braxton waiting around us?" He was covering for his son, not me. "I was agreeing to Pastor William's invitation to eat dinner with him tomorrow," I said. "I will have to look at my schedule and get back to you," Pastor Bill replied in a snide tone. "No problem, Mrs. Penny and I'll hit Zeta's tomorrow and we can work out something for later," I smiled. I turned and left before he could finish sputtering because not only was Zeta's one of the finest eating establishments in town, I heard rumors it was also highly romantic. I took eight steps before I nearly doubled over in pain. Christina had kidney-punched me, and hard. I turned fast enough to see Belle and Christina facing off. "Do you want to explain that to me, Princess?" Belle inquired with a false grin. "I'm Christina Buchannan and I'm wondering what you are doing here burning through what little good will Zane has with this congregation," the woman I love sizzled. "Zane, should I give a crap?" Belle joked. She didn't need me to tell her what to think. "She's the woman I love more than life itself," I explained to Belle, who regarded me curiously. "I occasionally like him," Christina remarked, "when he's not making an ass of himself." "I couldn't let them insult Belle," I countered. "If she slapped the guy, you know they would have screwed her over." "I don't need you to pick my fights, Dumbass," Belle mocked me. "These people and their opinions don't bother me. Hell, Mom whored around a lot and for all I know, Old Man Gibson might even be my Daddy. Now," she looked at Heaven, "why are you eyeballing me?" "I'm Heaven and Zane's my boyfriend," Heaven declared. "Oh, God," chuckled Belle, "when Tawny said your life was beyond description, she wasn't kidding." "If we can all agree to get along I have one last thing I need to get done and then anyone who wants can make for Jill's," I stated. I leaned in and kissed Heaven on the ear. She finally broke her glare directed at Belle to look up at me so I kissed her on the lips. "Are we okay, Babe?" I asked Heaven. She looked at me but seemed terribly upset by something that I was unclear about. She nodded and I broke away. Iona slipped me the phone as I approached Felicity. I now got to see if what I'd done had screwed up my relationship with her. "Hey, Felicity, do you know whose phone this is?" I asked Lance Wellington's fianc . "That looks like Lance's," Felicity took the device and examined it. "It is," she confirmed. "Are you going to George Mason anytime this week?" I inquired. "I was going up Tuesday to visit Lance for some kind of fraternity affair," Felicity said. "When you are there could you pick up some books for me? I checked them out but I'd have to find a way to make the trip myself and with my school schedule, that would be tough," I explained. "Zane, how does someone from FFU get books from George Mason?" Felicity leaned in and whispered. "I'm not breaking the law but I am doing it in an underhanded manner," I whispered back. "Okay," she smiled warmly, if in a rather complacent manner. "Thanks," I told her, before parting ways and making for the door. A tide of women migrated with me outside. As we split up, I caught sight of Belle putting on her helmet and sitting on her hog. "Are you coming over for supper (the midday meal in the Southeastern US)?" "Does inviting the poor outcast chick to the house make you feel better about yourself?" Belle teased me. "Does everything have to be about you and your vendetta against the Established Order?" I shot back. "I bet the girls have a blast tying you down because you can be downright irritating," Belle rolled her eyes. "We've already gone down that road with me, the cross and the sorority in the woods, so stop gloating. Now, are you coming to supper willingly or are you going to have to beat me up when I try and make you?" "Fine," Belle raised up her hands, "when I looked up 'dumbass' and 'stupid' online, they both had your portrait under the 'images of' section. If I walk in the door, you will know I've accepted your offer. Now step back before I decide you are more annoying than cute." I stepped back, joined Paige and Iona at the car, and travelled my dumb ass back home. Barbie Lynn, Valarie, Rio, and Mercy had already joined Aunt Jill in her heroic culinary efforts based on the talents of the microwave and a warm skillet. The parade of food was setting around the table when I noticed Paige had gone missing. As I scanned about, I saw Belle walk into the dining room, I hadn't heard the doorbell ring or a knock at the door. "Have we locked away the good silver," Valarie joked when she realized Belle was here. Belle didn't look amused by Val's ribbing. "It's for Rio," Valarie snickered. "Hey," snorted Rio, "Belle, you are stepping on my Bad Girl image. I'll take Grand Theft Auto and vandalism and you get burglary and guns; deal?" "Zane, Jill was looking for some explanation from me so I decided to see how far her new tolerance could be stretched. "I wanted to show Belle one of the guest rooms," I stated carefully, but with authority. "She doesn't have a place to live and since we have the space, I figure she could hang out until she puts some money away for a new place. Plus you would have someone home when you got off of work and the house would be safer. Belle can take care of herself and you, if something goes wrong," I finished. "Zane, you make my life easier one more time, I swear that I'm going to use you to redefine road rash," Belle promised. This declaration didn't stop Belle from stepping up and taking a seat. "Jill, is that okay with you? " I addressed the female lead of the Braxton household. "If you think it will be good for the house and make things safer, I wholeheartedly support your decision," Jill agreed. That done, I called out for the invisible Paige. "Paige, I don't advise you to sneak up behind Belle," I warned her. "She might not be in an understanding mood." Paige did heed my advice and appeared by me instead of behind Belle. "Your intellect may be downgraded to 'sub-par' if you keep this course of action up," she cautioned me. "Do what you will," I quoted, "for I do what I must." "The blade itself incites to deeds of violence," Belle countered to Paige. "Are you really such a fucking putz that you think you can separate Zane's passions into the parts that you like from the parts that you don't? To me it seems you are wasting your parents' money by going to college yet staying dumb as dirt." "Belle, language at the dinner table," Aunt Jill scolded Belle. I wasn't sure how Belle would take that but something else was going on at the same time. Everyone was looking at Belle too, but for a reason that had nothing to do with calling Paige names. "What? I can't quote Homer?" Belle shrugged. "I've read Sun Tzu too. Oh, and sorry about slapping the little bitch, Aunt Jill. I hang out with men of questionable parentage." "I apologize, Belle," Iona spoke up. "I thought less of you because of the way you talk and dress. That was unfair to you and a disservice to myself and the way my parents raised me." The apologies echoed around the table; Paige's silence being noted. I gave her one quick look, then joined the rest of the gang doling out the food and settling in to the routine of eating and dinner conversation. Heart Song After we ate and cleaned up the table and the kitchen, Jill to

Christian College Sex Comedy: Part 12 Heaven s clock is ticking In 30 parts, By FinalStand. Listen to the podcast at Explicit Novels.             There is no firestorm without a spark, no ocean without a raindrop         I opened the door and there stood Christina, looking pretty depressed. "Do you want to come in?" I asked. "I know you have company," she replied. "Can we talk outside?" It wasn't too chilly but I wasn't wearing too much either. "Of course," I walked onto the porch, leaving the door mostly closed behind me. "What's wrong?" "I've worked things out with Faith and the other girls," Christina paced nervously. "We are all going to keep quiet about what you learned and see how we can turn this to our advantage." I didn't say anything because she hadn't come to tell me the news of what had been the obvious move on her part so I was left wondering what was going on, then I saw it. I opened my arms to the side, palms forward, and waited. She saw the move and looked me over with obvious reluctance for what would come next. Finally, she stepped up to me and rested her forehead on my shoulder and let me encase her in my arms. It sucks to be alone, but it truly sucks being alone and being the one in charge even more. "God, Zane, I fucked up. I could have ruined Heaven's life," she sighed. "The others trusted me and I let them down." "You are not doing Heaven any favors by being paralyzed with doubt," I told her. "You had no idea who you were up against and even if you had, you would still have weighed what was best for Heaven against the risks and pretty much acted in the same manner." "You don't understand Heaven," Christina said. "You don't understand her home life." "Her home life is not my concern, Christina," I pointed out. "The Heaven here and now is my concern, though, and it is the concern of several more friends she's made since coming to this school, friends she wouldn't have if she stayed in a hole." "What if I fuck up again?" she worried. "So many girls are depending on me to keep the Chancellor at bay." "I fuck up all the time and I'm still here," I countered. "I know what you mean, though. Sometimes when these girls look at me like they expect me to have all the answers and I've got nothing, I want to run and hide." "We don't have that luxury. We chose to stand up and now we must carry on in our struggle. I don't know about you, but I wasn't raised to quit," I related to her. "I made a mistake, Zane. I don't make mistakes," she declared. "I'm confused; have we lost?" I questioned her. "No," she grumbled, "and that is not what I meant. I brought Faith in, I misread her, and we all suffered because of it. I was deceived." "Well, someone should remind Christina Buchanan from time to time that she's human, and a pretty smart woman at that," I replied. "You don't have to win every battle, only the last one." "That is what my grandfather said," she mumbled into my shoulder. "He sounds like a clever guy," I said softly. "He should go far someday." Since he was one of the richest men in America, I was probably right. "You can be a real jerk at times," she muttered, but I noted she wasn't moving. "I have to agree with you," I said, as I got up on my tiptoes and kissed her on the top of the head. I leaned back and tilted her head to me with a finger under her chin. "Christina Buchanan, would you marry me?" No one said anything for a minute. "Can I think about it?" she finally whispered. "Of course," I assured her. "How could I be in love with you if I couldn't wait for you?" "How can you love me when you don't even know me?" she asked. "That's why it is love and not like," I answered. "There are times you really piss me off but there is never a moment I don't want to be with you." "You don't like me?" Christina studied me. "Right now I like you just fine, but you can be a real pain at times. See, I know what's right and you refuse to know your place," I responded. "And what place is that?" she smiled. "Above me, smiling down," I leaned in for a kiss. "No," she shook her head. "No?" I pleaded. "We have a long way to go before I let you treat me like another one of your girls," Christina informed me. "Okay," I agreed. "No hard sell in my emotionally vulnerable state?" she mused. "You are safe with me, Christina," I assured her. "That's good to know, Zane. Now go inside before Rio blows a gasket," she smiled, slipped out of my arms, and walked toward her car. I still soaked up the marvel of her receding silhouette. Rio was leaning against the wall just inside the hallway when I got back in. "I don't get the two of you," she grinned. "I love her," was my only response. "That's good, because she's fucking nuts about you," Rio laughed. I couldn't decide whether she was kidding or not. Later, we lay together in bed, Rio partially over me where she alternated between listening to my heartbeat and kissing my shoulder. She also had a hand between her legs and was doing some serious vaginal stimulation. "Zane." "Yes?" I replied. "I had an abortion," she confided in me. "Oh, okay," was all I could manage to come back with. "'Oh.' Is that it?" she sounded a bit hurt. "I figure there is more to the story than you had an abortion. So are you going to tell me what it is?" I inquired. She mulled that over for a few seconds. "I did some really stupid shit, like getting shit-faced drunk at some parties with people I barely knew, and pretty much got used like a whore. I didn't really care, and eventually I got knocked up," she told me. "My parents, the big Pro-Lifers that they were, smuggled me out of state to a private clinic and aborted the kid. They never asked my opinion on the matter but I imagine that having a pregnant daughter who couldn't even name the father wasn't on their agenda," she recited bitterly. I wrapped an arm around her, rolled over on her, and kissed her gently on the lips. "I don't know what to say," I began. "I can't imagine what it was like to go through that." "Huh," Rio snorted. "My parents slapped me with anti-depressants and an implant, my 'friends' told me it was for the best, not being teen Mom material and all, and I treated myself like a whore." "Hell, I sucked and fucked the entire lawn crew once; I fucked my little brother's friends; and I became known as the girl who would ride bareback at my school. It is a miracle I didn't contract herpes or AIDS," she recited sadly. "I think I hated just about everybody." "You know that none of that matters to me; right?" I asked. "You are still that woman I woke up next to on day one." "To the bitter end," she recited. "To the bitter end," I affirmed, my promise to stand by her no matter what. "Why couldn't you be in love with me?" she sighed. "You are asking an eighteen-year-old how this love thing works?" I teased her. "I've been lucky enough to meet five women in the past two weeks I'd like to spend forever with, and I love the one I'm least likely to end up with. I'm clueless." "Me, Iona, Barbie Lynn, Christina and Heaven?" Rio guessed. I nodded, which made her snicker. "You really want to spend forever with Heaven? You are a glutton for punishment." "Heaven can be really nice," I defended my girlfriend. "She's got a permanent case of PMS. Hell knows what would happen if she actually had PMS," Rio teased me back. "So you don't want to spend any more time with her?" I inquired. "Fuck that," Rio giggled, "I like them brave, bold, and saucy in the saddle. I'd love breaking her down, or having her break me trying." "Fine," I announced after a moment's contemplation. "Fine?" she asked. "I'm not going to break my word to Jill but I can't wait to fuck you until we get back to campus, so how would you like to screw on Pastor Bill's desk before Sunday school?" I suggested. "I'd love to leave a little something extra on that gold-plated conman's desk," Rio purred. "Now, Zane, do you think you could bend the rules ever so slightly and finger-fuck me? I'm ever so horny," Rio pleaded. I figured it couldn't hurt too much; right? I rubbed and rubbed one hand down to her crotch where Rio had already pulled her soaked panties down to mid-thigh. With my other hand, I pushed up her top, exposing her ripe nipples, chain and all. I plucked a nipple into my mouth, letting my tongue play along the stud before sucking in more of the breast, increasing the pressure on the nipple itself. Rio was well worked up already and now began to writhe beneath me. My free hand passed below her carefully groomed chevron-shaped pubic mound and along her clit. Her folds welcomed me like molten gold, so hot yet silky smooth to the touch. As she started to moan, Rio stuck the meat of her palm into her mouth and bit down in order to keep quiet. I spent a minute playing with her two studs in her labia before working two fingers deep inside her, twisting them, and seeking out her G-spot. "Gak!" Rio convulsed as I stroked it. Oh, yeah, I thought, as I began to seriously work it over. Rio's fluids were sloshing around my fingers, her other hand began pressing my whole mouth over her breast, and she kept bucking up against me. I now began to alternate between rhythmically tapping her special place and brutally finger fucking her, driving two fingers in and slapping her clit with my palm. "Uh, uh, uh, ugh, ugh, umm," Rio began panting, then her body arched and she screamed into her clenched fist. "Oh, fuck, that's good," she finally managed to get out. Before I could respond, she grabbed my head and drew me up for a fierce kiss. She tore at my lips and tried to steal my breath away. "Tell me you want me," she pleaded with a desperate hunger tinged with fear. "I want you, Rio, always," I responded with my own heat and need. Slowly the passion ebbed from Rio's eyes and a playful demeanor replaced it. "You are such a dumb blonde, Glenda," she sighed happily. Glenda had been the name that had allowed me admission to school in the first place, Glenn Zane Braxton, Glenda. I answered by pulling my fingers out of her cunt, taking a lick, then pushing them through her lips. Rio daintily sucked on them, pulling them in and cleaning them off before biting down like the little bitch she is and making tears come to my eyes. "What the fuck!" I hissed. "That's for not giving me your cock, Asshole," she snickered. When I looked ready to explode, she pouted her lips, rolled onto her stomach and stuck her bare ass up in the air for a spanking. I grunted and rolled over onto my side, away from her. "Good night, you witch," I sulked. There was some rustling behind me a minute later, then Rio snaked an arm around me and pressed her body to my back. "I'm sorry," she whispered. "I act crazy at times." I rolled over to face her. "I know what I'm getting into, Rio," I comforted her. "That doesn't mean it doesn't hurt at times." I displayed my wounded fingers. She kissed my fingers, I kissed her lips, and we both finally went to sleep. Preacher William, Valerie, and the seeds of discord. Jill didn't know what to make of our prompt appearance Sunday morning for breakfast already dressed for church. I'd convinced Rio to not try a hard sell with my aunt, instead playing it calm, cool, and collected. The real reason we wanted to get to church early was because I'd come up with the idea of screwing Rio on Pastor Bill's massive mahogany desk before class and she'd become infatuated with the scheme. Gaining Definition We had to remember our Bibles before eagerly heading out the door. Mine went back to my missionary days while Rio's was brand new, a gift from Jill. She'd lost her old one on the trip from Arizona to Virginia, or so she'd told Jill. In reality, she had torn hers apart page by page and stuffed it down the airplane toilet during the flight, her way of spreading the gospel. Once at the church, we split up, Rio and I getting together a few minutes later. I was unsure about the security cameras in the hallway but Rio shrugged it off. She followed the wires to the closet the system was kept in, picked the lock, and deleted the last two hours of footage before deactivating the whole system. I was clever enough to wipe off all our fingerprints before we made for the pastor's office. This time, Rio's improvised, lock picks weren't necessary as the secretary kept the door unlocked. We slipped past her station to the larger office beyond and I chased Rio around to the 'big chair'. "So, Bad Boy, are you going to make me a Bad Girl?" Rio taunted me. I stepped up between her thighs and got ready to feast on her succulent cunt lips when she held me up. "I don't think we have time for that," Rio grinned. She slipped out of her panties, which I quickly pocketed (having learned from the first Barbie Lynn incident), and hopped up on the desk facing me. I unbuckled my belt, fixed the button, and unzipped my pants. My cock came smoothly out of my boxers and I lined up with Rio's slit. Her juices were already flowing by the time my cockhead graced her full lips. "Oh, that's what I've been looking for," Rio moaned, as I pushed forward inch after glorious inch inside her. She wrapped her arms around my neck and came close to doing the same with her legs around my waist by the time I was fully into her. I got a few half-thrusts into Rio, our faces only inches apart, when I began to push her back down on the desk. "No, I want to look into your eyes," she told me. I nodded and started driving my cock in a strong steady rhythm. "Rio," I said softly. "Yes," she breathed heavily. "I like saying your name," I explained. "I like the sound of it and the way it makes me feel." "I, I was sure she was fighting for a snarky reply but then she smiled and said, "Okay." "Oh. God, Oh, Fuck," Rio gasped, as we began, getting her close to climax. I stopped when I first heard the voices. "What?" Rio panted. I pulled her off the desk and looked for a place to hide. There were three other doors out of the room. I took the closest, yanked up my pants, and dragged Rio to it. It turned out to be a large closet with vestments, coats, and a few changes of clothing inside. Before I could finish shutting the door, Rio put her hand in the way. Before I could inquire why, the main office door opened and in came Pastor Bill and Lance Wellington. They were yammering on about something or other; I really wasn't paying attention. All that changed after Pastor Bill took his seat behind the desk and swiveled it to the side. Lance came around the desk and knelt before our spiritual leader. His body blocked my visual but I heard a zipper being undone and some clothes being pushed aside. What Lance proceeded to do was clear enough, though. Rio was between me and the door; she looked over her shoulder and grinned evilly. Before long, she had my cock in her hand and was maneuvering it back to her cunt from behind. I moved my hips down, she arched up, and I slipped back into the hole I'd been in not a minute before. I stayed still while Rio began to ride my cock up and down. There we were, two very different couples separated by less than a dozen feet, both fucking in different ways. Lance was giving Pastor Bill oral attention in a manner that dictated long familiarity to not only cock-sucking, but blowing Pastor Bill in particular. Rio had one hand placed against the door sill in order to stop us from spilling out of the closet while the other was tucked against her stomach. The four of us were pushing toward climax but Pastor Bill was the first one to the trigger. I was still feeling the oily smoothness of my cock inside Rio's cunt while rubbing both breasts through her shirt and bra when Lance began chocking and sputtering. The bastard hadn't even warned Lance that he was cumming. Good ole Pastor Bill reached across the desk to grab two Kleenex. As he did so, his other hand came down to rest on a slick spot Rio and I had left on his desk. He looked at his hand with disgust and wiped it off his hand before handing a tissue to Lance. "Get going to class," Pastor Bill told his cock-sucking companion. "Of course, Pastor William," Lance responded as he cleaned his face. As he headed to the door, he turned to the preacher. "Do I have to do another marriage counseling session with Felicity? She is so damn annoying," he whined. "Lance, you are going to have to keep up appearances and that means spending the occasional night with her," Pastor Bill lectured him. "As distasteful as she is, she is the socially acceptable choice for your spouse if you plan to have a political career." "I wish this whole marriage thing was over with already," Lance sighed. "Then I could stick her in the house and get her out of my life." "Remember, a woman is a duty, but you know how to get your pleasure. Take your pill when you have to lay with her, and if nothing else, use her back door," he chuckled. "I suppose so," Lance conceded, "but I'll have to shut her up. She blathers on and on incessantly and her voice is so grating." "Well," Pastor Bill laughed, "you can always use her mouth too." Lance snorted and left the room; Bill followed a minute later. For our part, the whole exchange between Pastor Bill and Lance got Rio hotter and hotter. She was rocketing back against me until I was afraid the slapping of our flesh would alert our host to our presence. Once he was gone, Rio went off. "Fuck me, damn it," Rio exulted. "I'm going to rape their asses." I wasn't sure how that would work. It wasn't like Rio's or my word would go all that far. I decided to spin her back around and kick her leg up over my arm so I could fuck her while gazing into her eyes. The first thing I noticed was the sheer joy etched all over her face. The second thing I noted was her phone in hand, set on record. There was going to be some severe damage over this and I had to do damage control, but first I had to screw Rio to orgasm. "Ah, ah, ah," Rio moaned. "You are churning me up inside, you fucking brute. This is so fucking good." "And the video?" I inquired. "Fucking brilliant," she panted, "My best idea yet." I drilled Rio several more strong strokes and she gripped me tightly and sexually exploded on me. She kept squeezing my cock with her vaginal muscles as I came in her as she was still cresting her wave. "Oh, Zane," she wept tears of joy on my shoulder, "You make all this other shit bearable." "No problem, bro," I sighed happily, "but we need to talk about the video." "Yeah," she snorted, "you have a plan. I'm going to bypass me having a temper-tantrum and get straight to you making me happy with how clever you are." "We find more ways to bring Felicity over to our side, then hit her with this when she's wavering," I detailed. "We still need credibility and that's going to take Barbie Lynn on our side. Once we get Felicity, we can get Mrs. Wellington too. That gives us access to everyone in the church." I set Rio onto her feet and handed her panties too her. Rio shimmied into them and grinned. "Now I'm all sloshy inside. Is that thing a damn fire hydrant?" "You weren't complaining a minute ago," I countered. "I'm not complaining, but all those bitches in class are going to know I've been fucked," she snickered. "Who are you going to blame?" I wondered. "Pastor William, our glorious shepherd; I can describe just what his cock looks like now," she grinned manically. "I think we are back to that whole 'credibility' issue," I reminded her. "You aren't going to let me have any fun," Rio pouted. "Well, work on this; I'm pretty sure Lance isn't the only guy here that the pastor is using. Lance was a tool, nothing more," I told her. "It could be fun to find out who his other toys are." "I hate you for having a better idea than me," Rio giggled, "but I love your deviant mind more." "I love you too, Baby," I said as I brushed her cheek. "Let's get to class before they get to ridicule us for arriving late." Rio grabbed my hand and sprinted with me out of the office. We were late to class but only just. This time I'd studied so Mr. Coleman wasn't able to humiliate me, though some wise-ass taunted me about being on a women's committee. "Yes, I do," I confirmed, "and what committee are you on?" "Athletics committee," he sneered. I gave him a shit-eating grin right back that gave him pause. "So I hang out with a bunch of MILF's, which is a pretty red-blooded American male thing to do, while you hang out with a bunch of guys, which is pretty homo-erotic," I chuckled. There was a deafening silence in the room. We had broken up for church service and a few guys were almost out the door. The target of my aggression was first stunned, then angry. "Mr. Braxton, that is quite enough out of you," Mr. Coleman snapped. "I'm sorry about that, Mr. Coleman. I thought he was ribbing me about my committee so I teased him back about his; I wasn't serious," I lied. Andy, the guy who'd given me a hard time, elected that moment to get in my face. "That wasn't funny, Braxton," he snapped. Mr. Coleman remained conspicuously silent. "Gosh, Andy," I quipped, "I don't know where to begin. How about, we are in a House of God and shouldn't be raising a fist against one another." "If that doesn't work, do understand that you get the first punch, then I break you like a twig," I continued with eagerness written all over my face. "You are an elementary school teacher and I have years of martial arts experience." Andy suddenly paled. "Mr. Braxton," Coleman growled again. "How dare you threaten somebody?" "Um, Mr. Coleman, Andy got in my face, so what exactly are you getting on my case about? Wouldn't the situation be better served if you stopped him in the first place?" I said. "Andy should be able to take a joke better," another guy in my class, Christopher Gilbert, joined in. "Besides, Zane's right; the wives on the committee are attractive and their husbands are lucky men." That seemed to end the matter because Chris Gilbert was the son of somebody and carried weight in this crowd. We continued to depart but I felt obliged to stop Chris. "Thanks, but I'm not sure why you just backed me up there," I questioned. "Maybe you're not such a bad guy," he grinned. I had to think that over. I barely knew Christopher Gilbert. He was 23, son of a big real estate guy, he was a property manager, whatever that was. "I have to appreciate the timing of your epiphany," I joked. "It came to me late Thursday night when I had a security issue at one of my properties," he grinned. Oh, crap. His daddy must own the mall where I had that little altercation. "Sorry if I cost you a good night's sleep," was all I could say. "Let me say that, 'damn, you're fast,' and it would have been mean of me to let Andy get his ass handed to him in front of all his friends," Chris related. "He's really not a bad guy either." "I'll keep that in mind," I nodded. We were making our way to the church hall when Rio, Iona, and Barbie Lynn intercepted us. "Hey, Ms. Masters," Chris said to Barbie Lynn. He looked at the other two girls. "Christopher Gilbert, this is Rio Talon and Iona Becket, two of my classmates and closest friends," I introduced my buddies. "So, Chris, how do you know Barbie-licious?" Rio smirked. "Huh?" Chris said. "Rio has an intense sense of humor, Chris," I intervened. "Pay her no mind." Before Rio cold make things worse, I placed an arm behind her and pinched her ass. "Behave," I warned her. "Okay, Zane," Chris chuckled. "Good luck with that one. To answer your question: I know Ms. Masters from a few years back at a youth retreat. We were both counselors. Take care now." He turned and walked off to his section of the tabernacle while the girls and I went off to ours. "So, Barbie, were you hot for Chris back at camp?" Rio persisted. "Chris? Nah, he had a girlfriend back then; they both went to the University of Virginia. I think they broke up right before they graduated but I'm not sure," Barbie Lynn informed us. "Besides, I had a fianc too." "Had? Have you tossed him over for Zane?" Rio teased. I sighed and Barbie Lynn blushed. "Nah, Shugah, I tossed him over for you," Barbie Lynn whispered into Rio's ear. "Just for that tantalizing tease, no Honey Glaze for those hot crossed buns of yours," Rio bantered right back. "Am I the only one who remembers we are in a church?" lectured Iona. "No, you are not," Christina surprised us. "Now stop trying to make a scene and sit down with the rest of us." We dutifully obeyed because three of us respected Christina and I had one of Rio's arms twisted behind her back. At the end of service there was no problem getting the gang to go down to the space between the pews and the podium where the important people gathered. I caught Pastor William shooting me a hooded look but I blew him off. I was here for someone else, as was Barbie Lynn and Rio. Iona was tagging along to make sure we kept out of too much trouble. "Hey, Sahara," I greeted the pastor's wife, who hovered near but wasn't part of the action. "Why, hello, Zane," she smiled. "Did you enjoy the service?" "I'm still a little fuzzy on the message of seeking wisdom in God's word instead of Man's technology," I grinned. "After all, I have an app that gives me helpful Bible verses on demand." "I think you missed the point, Zane," she shook her head with mirth. "We need to trust the Word of God over the simple technological solutions that fail to take in the moral implications of the results." "Wow, when you say it that way, it makes sense," I applauded. Sahara blushed and gave me another smile. Rio and Barbie Lynn had closed in on Felicity, allowing Iona and I to come up behind Mrs. Wellington. I put my hand on the small of her back and positioned myself at her side. "Hello, Mrs. Wellington," I greeted her. I knew her first look at me would define a lot about how she felt about last night. "Zane," she beamed at me. "How are you doing today?" "Better now," I grinned. "I just wanted to say that I'm downloading those files we discussed when I get to campus this afternoon." "Oh," Mrs. Bainbridge sneered, "is Mr. Braxton working on a special project already?" "Zane," Rochelle Wellington smiled to her rival sweetly, "send Kendra a copy of the notes you showed me. Kendra, Zane has a talent for 3-D imagery that the committee will find quite useful. I thought you might find it nice to have our newest member showing some interest." "Oh, it is his interest that I'm worried about," Kendra commented, with a pretty obvious look toward Sahara. Before I could respond to that jab, I felt a hand on my shoulder trying to pull me around. "Pastor William wants a word with you," Lance informed me. "Okay," I shrugged, then turned back to Kendra. "Mrs. Bainbridge, I admit that it is my fault that I find Mrs. Penny to be kinder, more compassionate, and more spiritually understanding than you. She is a gentle soul who better relates to what a young man needs." "Pastor William wants to see you now," Lance insisted. "That's nice, Lance. I'm talking to your mother," I said dismissively. "Rochelle, thank you for agreeing to mentor me; I appreciate you helping me understand this Church and this community by taking some of your valuable time to listen to my ideas." "Ladies, have a nice Sunday. Okay, Lance, let's go see what Pastor Bill wants now," I told him. "His name is Pastor William," Lance corrected me somewhat angrily. "No, his name is William Penny and he happens to be a pastor," I jibed. Lance's response was stymied by our arrival at Pastor Bill's circle of cronies. "Ah, Glenn," Bill greeted me. "I would like to invite you to dine with my wife and I tomorrow night." I was smart enough to know that wasn't really an invitation, but still, "I'd like to but this week is our first round of testing for the semester so I'm not sure I can break free," I answered. "You find time enough for other things, like jail," he lectured me in a personally degrading matter. "Pastor William, as you will learn about me, people who cross me or threaten the ones I hold dear, I beat bloody and leave broken on the ground," I smiled evilly right back. The confusion that threat caused was evident because I hadn't been quiet. "Jesus loves the Peacemaker," Pastor Bill bantered back. "Winners write the history books," I countered. "That is not very Christian of you," Mr. Wellington, the Mayor, pointed out. "Jesus Christ ended up nailed to a cross; Emperor Constantine, who converted the whole Roman Empire to Christ's worship, got to build his own city," I responded. "I won't be as famous but I'll do more and get to bury my enemies before I die," I added. "Are you sure you were a missionary in Thailand?" another church elder asked. "Oh, I was a missionary all right, but not a very good one. I left the hard work to my Uncle Tim and Aunt Jill," I informed them. "Did they convert many heathen souls to the World of our Lord?" a third man inquired. "It is not that simple. They taught people to read English and got them in the practice of reading the Bible," I explained. "They have over a thousand years of culture to work against and many of the tenents of Buddhism are close to our own Christian virtues so it is hard work." "So that would be a 'No'," Pastor Bill gloated. "Really?" I grinned. "When Uncle Tim went missing, 200 of his flock risked floodwaters in an eventually futile effort to save him. How many of us would risk drowning to save you, Pastor William? I would say that when lives were on the line, his flock did their Christian duty." I noticed Jill standing on the edge of the group listening, her eyes close to tears. Hey, I hated Tim, but I wasn't going to let these spineless bastards degrade the man in front of his widow, no matter how I felt. "I'm sure we would all rise to the challenge," Mr. Wellington pontificated. "Then you are as good a man as Uncle Tim," I trapped him with his own words. "Your Uncle Tim gave everything, including his life," Pastor Bill said with a smug, superior smile. "His willingness to give should be an example for all." "I'm already giving. The Festivities Committee's budget seems a bit anemic so I'm going to be funding some of their efforts," I enlightened him. "That is not how tithes are normally handled," Pastor Bill corrected me. "I'm not a normal guy," I grinned. "Pastor, I'll look over my schedule and call your house to let you know if I can swing dinner tomorrow. It has been a wonderful chat but I have to be going now." I turned and left them there, confident I hadn't made any friends among Bill's inner circle. The price of their friendship was way more than I was willing to pay and it wasn't just monetary. My girls swarmed around me, even Jill. "Thank you, Zane," Jill said softly. "Tim would have been proud." "Jill, I said that for you, not him. You stood by him and that shouldn't be trampled on by people who don't know any better," I comforted her. "I was getting ready to cry out 'Blood and Souls for my Lord Arioch," Rio grinned. "Why did you antagonize them?" Iona wondered. "They are used to bullying people and getting their way. I let them know I was more than willing to fight," I told Iona. "He also wanted the women to see what he was doing," Barbie Lynn said. "I saw a few females, Felicity included, who thought a great deal of how Zane handled the situation." "Girls love watching men fight over them," Rio laughed as we exited into the parking lot. "Is everyone coming to our place for lunch?" Jill asked. I took a quick look around the girls who nodded their approval. "Sure thing, Jill; we will be at home in an hour," I answered. Getting back to campus and into casual clothes wasn't a problem, nor was lunch with Jill. We sat around and shot the shit for an hour afterwards but school work demanded that we head back to school to do some actual classwork. I went by Raven's to pick her up because she'd left me a text (by way of Iona) that she'd made some progress over the weekend. "We really should study in the library," Raven told me as we headed to my room. "The last time I checked, the library didn't have a snack bar," I told her. Raven was less than convinced and a bit nervous until we opened the door to the bottom of the steps leading to the Solarium where I lived and the voices of multiple girls welcomed us. "You have company?" she questioned me. "All freshmen are welcome in my room, Raven. You'll see," I informed her. "Is there going to be anyplace for us to study, Raven began to confound me, then we came to the point where you could see past the side of the stairs into the Solarium. "Oh, God," she muttered at the scope of the room, "you, you have pool tables!" she ended up in a near squeal. "I love pool!" She took a few steps forward into the room before looking back at me. "What is all this? Where did this all come from?" "I was given the entire Solarium as my room, sort of, and I decided to convert most of it to a common area for the freshman class," I said. "How long has this been going on?" she wondered. "We did it yesterday," Iona said from the closest sofa. She put down her laptop and walked over to us. "Zane paid for the stuff and we students put it in. Let me show you around." "You do that, Iona," I told her, as I gave my diminutive friend a hug, "I'll be in my room." Iona led Raven deeper into the complex of entertainment while I headed to my room, which seemed to be the quietest place to study today. I passed around the Chinese silk screens that shielded my private area from the rest of the Solarium and saw my new monster-sized bed. I also saw the tall, honey-blonde Amazon reclining on it, looking my way. "Come here, my Love-Monkey," she said in a deep, husky voice. I'm sure my mouth gaped open. "Ah, I don't believe we've been introduced," I managed to finally say. She smiled and patted the bed beside her. "You are seriously hot and I'm positive I'd remember you if we'd met, but I don't and I do need to study so I'm going to ask you to please leave," I groaned. "Trust me, I really don't want to be asking you that either." I heard laughter from the far side of the bed and Rio slowly raised her body into sight. "Bro, the look on your face is priceless," she chuckled. "So this is really your room?" the other girl inquired. "I told you it was," Rio grinned. "Yes, it is," I responded as well. "In fact, this entire floor is mine, mainly because the Administration has nowhere else to stick me." "Rio, what's going on here?" I turned to my other friend. "Honest, Boss," she beamed, "I found her when I got home. She's my new dorm mate, your replacement." "You were her first roommate?" the newcomer asked. "For all of one night," I confessed. "Then everyone realized she had boobies, and I didn't, and I developed this current life of seclusion." "This is your version of seclusion?" she questioned. "What can I say?" I sighed. "I'm a man of creature comforts. That still doesn't explain you on my bed. Rio?" "She is Valerie Palmer, a new addition to the school," Rio started, "but that's not the cool part. She's a member of the Stormriders motorcycle gang." Seeing my lack of name recognition, Rio added, "They are a big deal in the West, Colorado, Wyoming, New Mexico, Nevada, and Arizona, of course." "Nice to meet you, Valerie." I knelt on the bed and extended my hand. "I'm Glenn Zane Braxton, but everyone calls me Zane. Welcome to FFU, and what brought you to us?" "Dad is a born-again Christian and he wanted me to come here, so here I am," she shrugged. Now, to me that made no sense, as she should have been eighteen, thus her own person, but who was I to press into her personal matters. "Damn it, Zane, I keep forgetting you were living in a cave for the past two years," Rio shook her head. "Her grandfather is Daniel 'Damien' Palmer." Again, I didn't know who that person was. "My grandfather is doing three life sentences," Valerie said with a degree of weariness. "Fine. I should take it the Stormriders are not a motorcycle club, then," I grinned at her. Valerie's eyes and mine locked for several seconds. "Are you arrogant, stupid, or really unconcerned?" Valerie asked me. "A little of all three," Rio chimed in. "You should never ask a man if he's arrogant because if he is, he won't know it," I responded. "I'm smart enough to get into this university, but them I'm dumb enough to be the only guy at this university," I continued. "I can honestly tell you I really don't care who you were before you came here. It is none of my damn business. If you want to be friends, I'm game." Valerie nodded. "Oh, and Rio is a nutjob, but if you hurt her, I'll make you suffer, I swear it." "Is that supposed to scare me, rich boy?" Valerie said, becoming very serious and sitting up, "because I'm not impressed." "I didn't say it to impress you, Valerie," I met her gaze, "I believe in fair warning. I don't care if you are damaged goods or you are one stone-cold, bad-ass bitch; you mess with Rio and I'll take her pain out of your hide." "Rio, I thought you told me this guy was cool," Valerie said to Rio while still looking at me. "Best guy in the whole God-damn world," Rio beamed. "Zane, have you ever stabbed somebody?" Valerie quizzed me. "On purpose or by accident?" I asked. "How do you stab someone by accident?" Valerie wondered. "You toss their ass into a stand of bamboo so hard the stalks break and they get impaled," I answered. "I take it you've done it on purpose." She shrugged. "Do you fight much?" she changed tact. "More than I should," I replied, "but I ass in where I don't belong too much." "Me too," Valerie nodded, "on the 'I fight more than I should' thing." "Well, I would rather talk shit upfront than spill blood later," I pointed out. "Like warning me about Rio," she nodded. "Please believe me, she's a nut and will get on your nerves, so please don't toss her out a window or down the stairs because I'm actually attached to her," I grinned. Rio flopped on the bed. "I should be mouthing empty denials but Zane's pretty much right," Rio snickered, "and if he hadn't fucked me silly on the preacher's desk this morning, I'd be in his face about this bullshit." "You had sex on your preacher's desk?" Valerie smiled. "Zane, what are these girls, what the hell?" Raven went off. "What kind of bedroom is this?" "Raven, you know Rio and this is her new roommate Valerie. Valerie, this is Raven," I groaned. "Hey, Raven," Valerie greeted her. "So do you normally walk into Zane's bedroom too?" "No," Raven blushed. "He invited me over to do some work on our English project." Iona stepped in behind Raven and waved to Rio. "Iona, Valerie; Valerie, Iona," I sighed. "Wait!" Valerie raised her hand and looked back to me. "Are you gay? Because I see a lot of girls strolling into your room and none of them have been identified as your girlfriend yet." "Technically, that would be Heaven," Iona volunteered. "She's a senior." "Can we get back to everyone being in Zane's room?" Raven grumbled. "And what is he doing with a bed as big as my entire room back home?" Valerie appraised the room. "Got it," she laughed. "You are sleeping with her (Iona) and her (Rio), but not you (Raven)." "Of course I'm not sleeping with him," Raven shot back. "I took a Purity Pledge, as should all of you." "I'm not a virgin," Valerie responded. "Me, either," Rio waved. "I am," Iona raised her hand. "That's nice," I directed. "Rio, Valerie, and Iona, please leave. I've invited Raven to my room so we can do actual classwork because I occasionally like to pretend I'm in college for an education." "On it, Zane," Rio snickered. "Come on, Valerie, let's go check out the hot tub. I wanted to show you to Zane so he could put you on his 'To Do' list." Iona shook her head and left. "I've got a boyfriend," Valerie clarified. "Thank God," I muttered, which drew looks from all three women. After Rio and Val left, Raven kept staring at me. "I, does this happen to you often?" she finally asked. "Yes, but I've learned to adjust," I pointed out. We sat down on the bed, Raven pulled out four library books on the period we were looking into, and we began going through them and taking notes. "Is Heaven really your girlfriend?" Raven asked after a while. "Yes, but it is more complicated than that. I love another girl but I don't know if she loves me, and I spend time with a dozen other girls here, plus I have friends at a Sorority House off campus," I explained. "And you sleep with Rio, who isn't a virgin, and Iona, who is," she stated, and I confirmed with a nod. "I was wrong. If you can keep all that straight in your head, you have a good grasp of details. We are going to do fine on this term paper." "Thank you, Raven," I smiled at her, and for a change, she smiled back. Gust Front I would have liked to spend the night with Iona and Barbie Lynn but Iona informed me that Coach Dana Gorman had tested her security code earlier in the day and I figured something was up; nothing good for me and my friends. Sure enough, at 12:10 in the morning, my little buzzer by the bed that informed me that a key code was being entered woke me up. I silenced the alarm (no sense in letting them know that I had it) and waited in bed. Shortly thereafter, the Coach and two female security guards came strolling in. "Alone?" Dana quipped. "You asking me out?" I grinned. "Get up; we need to check the bed, if that is what you call this thing," she motioned to my sleeping platform. I dutifully got out of bed. "What are you doing?" she snapped when she realized I was naked. "Getting out of bed like you asked me to. I sleep in the nude, or didn't you already know that?" I yawned. "Put some clothes on," she ordered. I picked up my robe and put it on while they stripped back my sheets and looked for bodily fluids under the dark light. I had been at my Aunt's the past two nights, so yes, my bed was still fresh. Unsatisfied, Dana and her two buddies began roughly going over my place. When they finally discovered nothing (my hiding places were specifically designed), the two officers turned and left. "I'll be keeping an eye on you, Zane. You can expect this to be a regular occurrence," she promised. I simply stared. We remained looking at one another for a minute because she knew I was up to something. "That's right, step out of line and make my job easier," she noted. Again I kept my silence. It would have been easy to take this personally but I'd told her this was War and I took that seriously. I doubted I was the sole beneficiary of their attention so I had to get ready to respond to their next move. "Nothing to say?" she asked. I kept staring. "Say something, damn it," she growled. "Good night, Coach," I obliged. She shook her head, turned, and walked away. When I saw the door close behind her I went back to my room and took out my phone. I made three calls to the concerned parties and a final call to Iona, to have her wipe my call log. I can't say I slept well that night. Showering in the morning was troublesome enough on normal days but this morning, Rio decided to invite Valerie to join us. I did my best to pretend to ignore her, which wasn't easy. Valerie was around six feet with milky skin where the sun didn't reach and tanned where it did. Her hair was golden-blonde and she was trimmed, not shaved. Her eyes were grey with a hint of blue around the edges; he breasts were a solid C without a hint of sag. There sure were a lot of blondes going to this school. I could see the mental calculations going through her head as she walked in and the other girls eyed her. In the hierarchy of this place, I didn't hold a place; proximity to me showed a girl's status among the crowd. Opal was top dog, but Rio and Iona were marked by their close relationship with me as well. Valerie clearly thought about walking away from it all to spare herself the drama and the grief. She countered that with the knowledge that she had to fit in somewhere in this school, and as non-traditional as she was, her best bet was with us. She answered that internal struggle by taking the shower one down from me, next to Opal. Opal expressed her dominance to Valerie by corralling me into a body massage and a show of mutual affection. I thought Valerie was unimpressed with those actions but as we got into it, I sensed she was intrigued by the notion of having sex without actually having sex, and the sexual arousal that came with it. As I settled in front of the sink to brush my hair, shave, and brush my teeth, Valerie took the sink beside me. "You don't seem to mind all these naked bodies around you," she noted. "Why should I? I enjoy them and they enjoy me. I like making them happy, and my presence certainly makes their lives more difficult so I'm glad to help," I explained. "So, do things ever go to the next level?" Valerie asked. "Not here, and not with most of these women; they are virgins and happy about that fact. They want to be virgins on their wedding nights and I respect that," I answered. "Rio makes you out to be some sort of sex-crazed stud monster," Val informed me. "Rio's not a virgin and her only plans for marriage involve her being a black widow to her old, rich husbands," I grinned. "Is she, bi-sexual?" Valerie whispered. "Yes, I can verify that she is," I replied quietly. "Has she hit on you yet? Wait, silly question, have you thrown her out of your bed yet?" "This morning I found her sucking on my nipple through my nightshirt," she smirked. "Rio needs constant reminding of where the boundaries are," I informed Val. "You two talking about me?" Rio came bouncing up. "Is there a three-way in our future? Who gets tied up?" Valerie groaned in response. "Rio, there is such a thing as personal space and acceptable roommate behavior," I told Rio. "Things like spontaneously feeling her up while she sleeps are Bad!" "God, damn it!" Rio squalled, "But did you see the size of those bad boys? They are huge and puffy and I swear, they were calling out to me across the room." "In my long and illustrious career with the female nipple, they have never talked to me. If you don't behave, I'm going to have to tie you up at the next orgy and make you watch," I warned. I couldn't threaten to take away something she had, like her piercings; that would make her dig in her heels. Instead, I went after the things she was looking forward to. "Don't forget to secure her hands over her head so she can't diddle herself," Valerie got into the sport of things. "Good point," I agreed. "Major buzz-kill, you two. Valerie, you are trying to make your first day here no fun at all," Rio teased. "Which reminds me; Valerie, has Rio warned you about Handmaiden's Duty?" I inquired. Rio looked offended that I would say such a thing while Val looked confused. "It is a tradition here that requires all freshmen to perform a task of a non-damaging nature for any and all upperclassmen. They cannot grab you in class or a dorm room, but anywhere else is fair game," I informed her. "My first task was to be a bench for someone to sit on," Rio grinned. "Mine was to kiss a girl," I nodded. "Kiss her? Cordelia damn near passed out, you kissed her so long and deep," Rio teased me. "The first one was very nice and chaste," Iona stepped up and added. "It was the second one that curled her toes and started the stampeded on Zane." "What do I do if a girl asks me to kiss her?" Valerie worried. "Tell her you are waiting for your herpes to clear up," Rio volunteered. "It isn't likely to happen," Iona came across with sounder advice. "Homosexuality is frowned on at this campus." "I'd tell you to kiss them and enjoy the moment, but I'm a guy," I shrugged. "I'm still not sure what is normal for this place," Valerie related. "Rio and Zane are aberrations," Iona offered. "Most of the girls here are fundamentalist Christian virgins who are looking to get married once they graduate this place." "What is your story?" Val asked Iona. "I was pretty much the girl I just described until I met these two," she smiled. "Now I feel that I have, options." "Options like prison time," Rio laughed, "or becoming a sex toy at an S&M club." "I was thinking more like taking a summer and roaming the country," Iona glared Rio. "Maybe I could teach you to ride a motorcycle and you can come with me," Valerie offered. "That would be wonderful!" Iona brightened up. "When could we start?" "This afternoon, if you like," Val responded. "My ride is in the parking lot." "You have a motorcycle, here?" Rio exclaimed. "Rio, it is hard to be in a motorcycle gang without a chopper," Valerie pointed out. "On that note, I have to go," I sighed. New girls were starting to migrate in, meaning I had to retreat to my room. "Take care, everyone." The crapstorm fell on us as we left the dorm. All kinds of upperclassmen snatched up freshmen as they appeared and shadowed Pro-Christina students they couldn't grab. Rio and I were able to shove off of Valerie before she was identified as being with one of us, so she made it to the Dining Hall unmolested. I didn't have to do anything too heinous, carry three backpacks while reciting the Gospel of Luke from memory (ugh). They made Rio sing 'Onward Christian Soldier' because it was the only religious song she'd admit to knowing. She did a horrific hack-job of it too. They had Iona going through the descendants of Noah; she knocked them back flawlessly, Brainiac. It got better at the Dining Hall door where Rhaine oversaw the removal of every electronic device from the incoming students, no phones, tablets or laptops, nothing capable of rapid communicat

We were chatting last week about monasticism and the commons, this week, we're diving into a bit about communes and socialism guided by a recent issue of the Monthly Review.Read the articles from Chris Gilbert here: https://monthlyreview.org/articles/socialist-communes-and-anti-imperialism-the-marxist-approach/Intro Music by Amaryah ArmstrongOutro music by theillogicalspoon https://theillalogicalspoon.bandcamp.com/track/hoods-up-the-low-down-technified-bluesSupport The Magnificast on Patreonhttp://patreon.com/themagnificastGet Magnificast Merchhttps://www.redbubble.com  

On today's First Up pod: the Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour talks about the possibility of more big concerts for Eden Park; in the Tasman region, reporter Max Frethey updates us on the 13 tonnes of hazardous waste at a residential property and heading overseas, athletes are battling the Tokyo heat at the World Athletics Championships and so is our correspondent Chris Gilbert. First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

ATLP Rewind - Originally Released September 3, 2024We've seen many prototypical railroads bought and sold over the years, but how about a freelance model railroad changing hands? That's how current owner of the Brownville & Ashland, Chris Gilbert, took ownership of this Maine based short line. Oh, did I mention he's also in the United Kingdom? Chris tells us how this transaction went down, how he made the B&A his own, and how he got into modeling American railroading across the big pond. He also shares his experience working with Christopher Palmieri on his now sold out Home Shops / Prairie Shadows 50' hi-cube boxcar. Learn more about this episode on our website:aroundthelayout.com/rewindThank you to our episode sponsor, Oak Hill Model Railroad Track Supply:https://ohrtracksupply.com/Thank you to our episode sponsor, Tully Models:https://tullymodels.com

On today's First Up pod with Melissa Chan-Green: we go to Japan where our correspondent Chris Gilbert has the details on bear attacks, and a local community's struggle with too many tourists trying to get a view of Mount Fuji; deputy Prime Minister David Seymour this week talks foreign buyers and housing density and they come in all shapes and sizes, producer Ross McNaughton goes for a ride-along with the team dealing with Auckland's abandoned vehicles. First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

On today's First Up pod: Japanese scientists found out what happens when you strap a camera to a seabird - Chris Gilbert explains; the government's scrapping the building consents regime, Deputy Prime Minister David Seymour tells us about it and we catch up with local leader Aayden Clarke in Wairoa, where they're getting ready for the legendary Ross Shield rugby tournament. First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

Asia correspondent, Chris Gilbert spoke to Lisa Owen about the 80 year commemoraiton of the US dropping the nuclear bomb on Hiroshima.

On today's First Up pod: our correspondent Chris Gilbert explains why pressure is growing on the Japanese Prime Minister to resign; in we hear about a 91 year old council candidate who's actually following his friends' advice NOT to spend his most of his remaining years at council board tables and the government's planning to replace NCEA, we ask uni students what their experience was like at high school. First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

Chris Gilbert, CEO of Springfield Township in Hamilton County, Ohio, and founder of Municipal Hospitality Advisors, shares how he's applying hospitality principles to transform local government. Chris reveals what inspired him to shift civic leadership from transactional interactions to meaningful moments of hospitality, highlighting practical ways he's building a people-focused culture within government operations. Listeners will learn how to effectively humanize their leadership approach, improve collaboration, and create organizations that people genuinely trust and value. A few more resources: If you're new to Hospitality Daily, start here. You can send me a message here with questions, comments, or guest suggestions If you want to get my summary and actionable insights from each episode delivered to your inbox each day, subscribe here for free. Follow Hospitality Daily and join the conversation on YouTube, LinkedIn, and Instagram. If you want to advertise on Hospitality Daily, here are the ways we can work together. If you found this episode interesting or helpful, send it to someone on your team so you can turn the ideas into action and benefit your business and the people you serve! Music for this show is produced by Clay Bassford of Bespoke Sound: Music Identity Design for Hospitality Brands

In this episode, we explore the pivotal role of communes in socialist construction and anti-imperialist struggles, featuring insights from writer Chris Gilbert and fellow VA staff member Cira Pascual Marquina. Gilbert and Pascual Marquina were guest editors of the latest issue of Monthly Review, "Communes in Socialist Construction." Our discussion delves into the definition and significance of Venezuelan communes, the reconstruction of Marx's theory of the commune, as well as the slogan "Commune or Nothing!" and its implications for anti-imperialist struggles in Latin America and beyond.

When his dog runs away, Chris Gilbert must follow him into the woods, which are reportedly haunted by shape-shifters... Listener discretion advised. Find specific content warnings at the bottom of this description (may contain spoilers). Patreon: ⁠⁠patreon.com/thewarningwoods/⁠⁠ Merch: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠https://thewarningwoods.myshopify.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ Written and narrated by Miles Tritle NOTE: The Warning Woods contains stories which include horror elements of all varieties. These may include, but is not limited to, graphic violence, murder, suicide, drug use, human and/or animal death, and other topics some viewers may find upsetting. Keep this in mind when choosing to listen.⁠ Social:  ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.instagram.com/thewarningwoods⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.thewarningwoods.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠www.milestritle.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ ⁠⁠⁠Copyright 2025 Miles Tritle The Warning Woods podcast contains original works of fiction. Some of the locations within the stories may be real, but the characters and events are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to real individuals, groups, organizations, or events, unless otherwise specified, is entirely coincidental. Any names or titles belonging to real individuals, groups, or organization are not used intentionally unless otherwise specified. Content Warning: Hit-and-run accident/traffic death Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

On today's First Up pod: our Tokyo correspondent Chris Gilbert updates us on the unfortunate trend of tourists getting stuck on Japan's mountains; we catch up with Black Ferns co captain Kennedy Tukuafu - after that nail biting draw against Canada on the weekend; we have the latest on the new deal between the UK and EU and with Budget Day this Thursday, Nicola Willis tells us she's sticking to tradition. First Up - Voice of the Nathan!

Japan correspondent Chris Gilbert spoke to Lisa Owen about a days-long effort to rescue a trucker stuck in a massive sinkhole in the Saitama region continuing.

Shiloh Bates talks to Chris Gilbert, the Head CLO Banker at Natixis. Natixis a leading underwriter of broadly syndicated and middle market CLOs. It was also the first bank to issue a reinvesting CLO after the financial crisis. Chris helped Shiloh with the book he published on CLO investing in 2023, CLO Investing with an Emphasis on CLO Equity and BB Notes. 

Asia correspondent Chris Gilbert spoke to Susana Lei'ataua about last weeks shock martial law order in South Korea, Japan taking further steps to criminalise cannabis use and New Years being cancelled for the city of Shibuya.

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 53-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 23,308 on turnover of 5.7-billion N-T. The market bucked the regional downward trend and traded higher on Wednesday, after tech stocks pushed the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq to more record highs on Wall Street overnight. Market watchers say the upwards momentum on the main board entered a third day, as investors shrugged off the short-lived martial law period in South Korea and amid continuing net purchases of stocks by foreign investors. Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum Scheduled for December 17 The Taipei City Government has announced that the 15th Taipei-Shanghai Twin-City Forum will be be taking place in the city on December 17. The announcement was also made simultaneously by the Shanghai City Government. The city says delegation of around 100 people from Shanghai will attend the event - which will be taking place at the Regent Hotel under the theme of "Smart governance (治理), sustainable future." The delegation from China will be led by Shanghai Vice Mayor Hua Yuan and will engage in exchanges with Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an. The Taipei City Government has previously said two sides will sign memorandums of cooperation in "smart medical care" and "zoo animal exchanges" at the forum. Taipei and Shanghai have taken turns hosting the forum every year since 2010. MOL Could Establish Hotline for Filing Bullying Complaints Labor Minister Hung Sun-han says his office is considering establishing a hotline for the general public to report workplace bullying after his office sets up a dedicated (專用) complaint channel for its own agencies. Speaking a legislative hearing, Hong said the move is aimed at prevent workplace bullying in the private sector. According to Hong, the labor ministry is also assessing the feasibility of creating a hotline for filing complaints and providing counseling regarding workplace bullying that would be available to the public. SKorea Defense Minister Resigns After Martial Law Fiasco South Korea's defense minister is resigning following the president's failed attempt at imposing (強制實行) martial law on Tuesday. There are also sustained calls for leader Yoon Suk Yeol to step down as he faces impeachment over the fiasco. Chris Gilbert reports. Canada Vancouver Stabbing Leaves Two Injured and Suspect Dead Police say a stabbing suspect is dead after being shot by police in the Canadian city of Vancouver in a convenience store. Vancouver Police say the suspect has died in hospital. Authorities say two people suffered injuries that are not thought to be life threatening. Witnesses say a man stole liquor and a knife from a restaurant then used the weapon across the street to stab (刺) people in a 7-Eleven store. UNESCO Lists Zinc Roof Restoration Techniques as Intangile Cultural Heritage UNESCO has listed the restoration techniques for the zinc roofs of Paris as an Intangible Cultural Heritage. The art involves removing old pieces of zinc, then measuring and custom-cutting new pieces using a Parisian folding machine, and assembling and fixing the pieces onto the roof. And the United Nations agency says "with nearly 80 percent of the roofs in Paris covered in zinc, the city is a living archive (檔案) of these skills that shape the unique identity of its urban landscape." Roofers are hoping the UNESCO recognition will inspire others to join their ranks and improve their working conditions. That was the I.C.R.T. EZ News, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 華碩商用電腦ASUS Expert 台灣市佔第一！ 通過多項美國軍規測試，以優異產品品質、高擴充性及完整的軟硬體解決方案，助企業降低擁有成本、簡化管理。 客製化保固與在地服務，IT專家華碩商用小隊是各企業、政教單位的最強後盾。 商用AIPC首選「華碩」，值得信賴! https://bit.ly/3CpbcSI

Click here to text DCMTBThis was the finals for the ages! Amazing people, amazing weather, and an amazing venue. We wrapped up the 2024 ESC enduro season with Chris Gilbert in the last race recap of the season. Put a bow on it because 2024 was an amazing season. Tune in to find out how the dust settled in the grand finale of the 2024 Dirt Church Race Recap series.Huge thanks to all the Eastern States Cup team and volunteers, We'll see ya next year!

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened down 11-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 22,273 on turnover of 3.2-billion N-T. The market gained ground on Monday as it extended momentum from the previous session on the back of strong momentum in the bellwether electronics sector - which continued to lead the broader market higher. However, turnover failed to register any significant expansion, with many investors opting to stay on the sidelines amid concerns of volatility on Wall Street in the lead-up to the U-S presidential election in November. US Executives Visiting to Explore Drone Tech Collaborations More than 20 executives from U-S companies that manufacture drone and anti-drone systems are visiting Taiwan this week to explore collaboration and trade opportunities. The trip has been organized by the American Institute in Taiwan and the U-S Department of Commerce's International Trade Administration. According to A-I-T, the delegation includes representatives from Northrop Grumman, AEVEX Aerospace and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, among others. A-I-T says the business development mission will help foster the relationships between U-S and Taiwan companies that are needed to increase global supply chain resilience (彈性). Forest Fire Drill Alert to be Sent out in Parts of Kaohsiung Friday And, The Forestry and Nature Conservation Agency is reminding residents of two Kaohsiung districts that they will receive a forest fire drill text warning on their phones this Friday. A message reading "Forest Fire Alert Drill. Please don't panic" will be delivered through the Public Warning Cell Broadcast Service between 2:30 and 3:30PM. It will be sent phone users in Tianliao and Cishan districts. According to the agency, the drill is part of the efforts to help raise awareness (提高認識) of forest fires in higher-risk areas in central and southern Taiwan, particularly during October's dry season. Japan Claims Russia Plane Violates Airspace Japan is protesting to Moscow after claiming a Russian plane violated its airspace on Monday. The incursion triggered (觸發) a Japanese Self-Defense Force jet to respond with signal flares for the first time ever. Chris Gilbert reports from Tokyo. Congo Prisoners Released Congo's minister of justice says nearly 1,700 ill inmates have been released from the country's largest prison as part of an effort to thin out Congo's overcrowded prisons. The operation took place Monday at Makala Central Prison in the capital Kinshasa. Severely ill prisoners received immediate medical care, while others were sent home on buses provided by the ministry of justice and a state-owned company. Makala prison, Congo's largest penitentiary (監獄) with a capacity for 1,500 people, holds more than 12,000 inmates, most of whom are awaiting trial, according to information from Amnesty International. The country's minister of justice says there are plans for the construction of a new prison in Kinshasa, without giving more details. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 遠東商銀Podcast節目《十樂不設

Click here to text DCMTBBlue Mountain DH recap time. We rocked it solo, as our warrior in the trenches (Chris Gilbert) was stricken with sickness. This one got a little loose, as we had no chaperone. None the less its the content that we are sure you have been waiting for. Sit back and relax, you're going to feel a pinch...

We've seen many prototypical railroads bought and sold over the years, but how about a freelance model railroad changing hands? That's how current owner of the Brownville & Ashland, Chris Gilbert, took ownership of this Maine based short line. Oh, did I mention he's also in the United Kingdom? Chris tells us how this transaction went down, how he made the B&A his own, and how he got into modeling American railroading across the big pond. He also shares his experience working with Christopher Palmieri on his now sold out Home Shops / Prairie Shadows 50' hi-cube boxcar. Learn more about this episode on our website:aroundthelayout.com/118Submit your answer to the Question of the Month:aroundthelayout.com/questionThank you to our episode sponsor, Spring Creek Model Trains:https://www.springcreekmodeltrains.com/

Chris Gilbert of Gym Informer joins The Weight Room Podcast. Tune in for a great chat! Find us on IG @theweightroompodcast @ gym.informer Gym Informer Website: https://gyminformer.com/about-us/ The Weight Room's Coaches Corner (Find your next coach!): https://www.theweightroompodcast.com/fitnesscoaches SPONSORS: TRM: Coaches and trainers, check out Trainer Revenue Multiplier if you want to take your business to the next level!: https://trainerrevenuemultiplier.com/ SMOKIN GUN COFFEE: https://smokinguncoffee.com/ USE CODE TWR10 FOR 10% OFF YOUR ORDER The Fitness Competitor's Guide for info on the Fitness division of bodybuilding: IG: @TheFitnessCompetitorsGuide YouTube: @TheFitnessCompetitorsGuide SUBSCRIBE to The Weight Room on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and anywhere else you listen to podcasts! NEW EPISODES EVERY MONDAY AND THURSDAY Thanks for all your support and if you have any questions, thoughts, or concerns please message @theweightroompodcast on Instagram or email theweightroompodcast@gmail.com

Click here to text DCMTBWild times at Mt. Snow last weekend! DCMTB is here to recap how the action played out. Chris Gilbert from the ESC joins us as we unpacked the weekend action. It was an emotional one as the bike community remembers a fallen shredder. Scott Huntley was an amazing person who had an impact on every rider he met. He will be missed, and our thoughts and condolences go out to his family and friends.

Chris Gilbert is a director of Archier, a Melbourne-based practice known for creating design experiences that contribute to a better quality of life. Chris first appeared on Office Talk in August of 2022, and we are delighted to welcome him back to the show.In this episode, Chris and Dave discussed:The power of cultural narratives, such as current attitudes around the risks of building, and whether it's better for architects to push back, or accept these powerful beliefs and adapt our approach.How Archier identified a pain-point in the design process, the endless hours spent pricing projects, then developed custom software to help speed up the process and drastically reduce the cost to the client.The story of starting Candour, a prefabrication and advanced manufacturing company helping architects to make off-site construction faster, cheaper, and more accessible.What impact a move towards automation, efficiency and accessibility could have on the brand perception of Archier, and architecture more broadly, as it challenges the traditional exclusivity of residential architecture.If you'd like to learn more about their studio, you can visit archier.com.au or follow them on Instagram at @archier_.Office Talk is hosted by Dave Sharp of Office D.SHARP, a strategic marketing and brand definition practice for architecture. We work collaboratively with clients across the globe. To learn more about our process and book a consultation, simply visit officedavesharp.com.Today's episode of Office Talk was edited and engineered by Anthony Richardson of Simple Dwelling Studio.This episode of Office Talk is supported by Mast Furniture. Mast is an established furniture design and manufacturing company based in Brisbane. In operation since 2012 and climate neutral certified since 2021, Mast has built a national and international reputation for producing original furniture of the highest quality. For Mast, the phrase ‘Good Design, made right' embodies who they are, what they do and what they'd like to achieve. Mast values enduring design, taking their time to develop well designed products both in house and in collaboration with established and upcoming designers. With all of their furniture being produced from their Brisbane workshop and made to order, the majority of their range is able to be customised in material, size and finishes to suit specific projects and spaces in both residential and commercial environments. To learn more about Mast, visit mastfurniture.com.au or check out their instagram @mastfurniture.

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 10-points this morning from yesterday's close at 23,888 on turnover of 9.2-billion N-T. The market rose by more than 300 points on Monday to close at yet another all-time high. That was on the back of strong investor interest in Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing and Hon Hai. Analysts say sentiment (觀點，看法) improved after major U-S indexes hit record highs at the end of last week. It was driven by expectations of a potential rate cut by the U-S Federal Reserve in September. High Court Rescinds Bail for Former Taoyuan Mayor The High Court has revoked a decision by the Taoyuan District Court to release former Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan on bail of 5-million N-T. Cheng was released on bail Saturday after being questioned by the Taoyuan District Prosecutors' Office in connection with an investigation into corruption (貪污，腐敗) while he served as Taoyuan mayor. The High Court has ordered another bail hearing because of what it's describing as several unanswered questions left by the district court in allowing bail. The Taoyuan District Court is holding a new bail hearing this morning. Hot Weather and Thunderstorms to Continue And, The Central Weather Administration says the current pattern of hot weather and afternoon thunderstorms will continue until early next week. Monday's highest daytime temperatures was recorded in Pingtung's Chun-Ri and Shi-Zi townships. The mercury reached 36.9-degrees there. The hottest area in the north was New Taipei's San-Xia District, where the mercury topped out at 36.6-degrees. Powerful thunderstorms Monday afternoon and evening dumped considerable (大量) rainfall in some areas. The heaviest rainfall was recorded in multiple areas of Tainan. 9.3-centimeters of rainfall was recorded in the city's Beihe District. While a weather station in Chiayi City recorded 9.2-centimeters of rainfall. SKorea Ends Punitive Measures Against Striking Doctors South Korea is ending all punitive (懲罰性的) steps against striking doctors. More than 12-thousand trainees have walked out since February in protest to the government increasing medical school seats. Chris Gilbert reports. Brazil Report on Bolsonaro Jewelry Embezzlement Unsealed Brazil's Federal Police allege former President Jair Bolsonaro embezzled jewelry worth about $1.2 million during his time in office. The report on its investigation was unsealed Monday by the Brazilian Supreme Court. It, alleges there was “a criminal association for the embezzlement of high-value gifts that were received due to the position of former President Jair Bolsonaro.” The jewelry included diamond-encrusted Rolex watches, a necklace, rings and cufflinks (袖扣), among other items. The report says some of the presents were given to government staffers acting on Bolsonaro's behalf during international trips. Bolsonaro was indicted last week charging embezzlement, asset laundering and criminal association in connection with luxury jewelry. The investigation adds pressure to the far-right leader who governed in 2019-2022 before losing his reelection bid to Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. He has already lost his political rights until 2030. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 城揚建設新推出的「陽明第一廳」 緊鄰三民區的明星學府-陽明國中 46~52坪，每層四戶兩部電梯 最適合有換屋與置產需求的你 讓生活中充滿書香、運動風，滿足食衣住行的消費需求 城揚建設 陽明第一廳 07-384-2888 https://bit.ly/4ckCQ0r -- 國立臺灣科學教育館Podcast節目《科科出來講》 有各種新奇有趣的科學小知識，破解生活中的科學小迷思 想聽知識含量最豐富的科學節目，就在《科科出來講》！ 以上廣告由國立臺灣科學教育館提供。 《科科出來講》https://bit.ly/3JXYZVr

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening Tai-Ex opening marginally lower this morning from Friday's close, at 23,550 on turnover of 4.2-billion N-T. The market closed slightly higher on Friday despite fluctuating (波動的) for much of the session as investors await June sales reports from some of the top listed companies on the Tai-Ex. Those monthly reports are due out on Wednesday. Former Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan Steps down as SEF Head Former Vice Premier Cheng Wen-tsan has stepped down from his post as Straits Exchange Foundation chairman. The move comes after the Taoyuan District Prosecutors' Office released him on bail of 5-million N-T this past weekend. According to the foundation, Cheng resigned in order to "avoid disrupting (擾亂)" the organization' operations and "will fight to clear his name through the judicial process." Cheng was summoned for questioning as part of an investigation into a corruption case during his two terms as Taoyuan mayor Although the prosecutors' office has not released further details of the investigation reports are saying the case involves the re-designation of land use. National Airborne Service Corps Called in for Miaoli Landfill Fire And, The Miaoli County Fire Bureau has been forced to call the National Airborne Service Corps for assistance in fighting a landfill fire. According to the bureau, they called for a helicopter to drop water on the fire some six hours after the blaze was reported and after it had spread to an area of over one hectare. The bureau says firefighters were unable to reach a part of the landfill where there were piles of mattresses (床墊) close to wooded area. The landfill is located in a suburb of Miaoli City and it's the second time in less than a year that is has caught fire. Japan Philippines to Hold Security Talks Japan and the Philippines are holding security talks in Manila on Monday. The meeting is expected to result in a new defense pact (協定) between the two countries. Chris Gilbert reports. Ecuador Rules Rights of River Violated A court in Ecuador has ruled that pollution has violated the rights of a river that runs through the capital, Quito. The city government appealed the unusual ruling, which is based on an article of Ecuador's Constitution that recognizes the rights of natural features like the Machangara River. Activists who filed the complaint said Sunday the decision is “historic.” The court ruled that while appeals proceed, the government will have to come up with a plan to clean up the Machangara. The city of 2.6 million people dumps all sorts of effluents and contaminants into the Machangara, which starts high in the Andes mountains. The river has average levels of 2% oxygen, which makes it difficult for aquatic (水棲的) life to thrive. Ecuador is one of the few countries that recognize the rights of natural features not to be degraded or polluted. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 城揚建設新推出的「陽明第一廳」 緊鄰三民區的明星學府-陽明國中 46~52坪，每層四戶兩部電梯 最適合有換屋與置產需求的你 讓生活中充滿書香、運動風，滿足食衣住行的消費需求 城揚建設 陽明第一廳 07-384-2888 https://bit.ly/4ckCQ0r

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 9-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 23,532 on turnover of $4.8-billion N-T. The market gained more then 350 points on Thursday to close at a new high on the back of increased investor optimism over the business outlook for Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing. T-S-M-C led the upturn on the local main board, while other tech stocks also steamed ahead to add to the rally. The rally by T-S-M-C comes as the company is set to hold an earnings call on July 18 Police Dog Finds Evidence in Money Laundering Case The Kaohsiung City Police Department says an electronic storage device detection dog has played a major role in locating key evidence in a money laundering case that led to multiple indictments. According to the department's Criminal Investigation Corps, the dog named, "Wafer," located two mobile phones that contained crucial evidence following raids on three site suspected of being used as bases for money laundering. Prosecutors have now indicted 12 people in connection with the investigation. According to prosecutors, the case centered on an individual who rented property in Kaohsiung and Pingtung to use a bases to assist with transfers of illicit cash from overseas gambling websites and Ponzi scheme websites. Police estimate that the group laundered over 5.1-billion N-T over a six month period. Wafer is Taiwan's first and currently only electronic storage device detection dog. Russia Announces India PM Visit The Kremlin says Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi will visit Russia next Monday and Tuesday and hold talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The visit was first announced by Russian officials last month, but the dates had not been previously disclosed (公開). Russia has had strong ties with India since the Cold War, and New Delhi's importance as a key trading partner for Moscow has grown since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in February 2022. Japan Survey Finds Groping on Trains Widespread Molestation on Japan's crowded trains is back in the spotlight (引起大眾關注) as new data shows one in ten young people have been groped. Chris Gilbert reports from Tokyo. Cambodia Welcomes Return of Sculptures Cambodia's culture minister is welcoming the return this week of 14 sculptures that had been looted from the country during a period of war and unrest. The items repatriated from the collection New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art were made between the 9th and 14th centuries in the Angkorian period and reflect the Hindu and Buddhist religious systems prevailing at that time. Cambodia's Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts described it as a 'historic homecoming (返家) of national treasures” followed several years of negotiations between Cambodia's art restitution team, U.S. federal prosecutors in New York, investigators from the U.S. Dept of Homeland Security and the Metropolitan Museum. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 城揚建設新推出的「陽明第一廳」 緊鄰三民區的明星學府-陽明國中 46~52坪，每層四戶兩部電梯 最適合有換屋與置產需求的你 讓生活中充滿書香、運動風，滿足食衣住行的消費需求 城揚建設 陽明第一廳 07-384-2888 https://bit.ly/4ckCQ0r

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 130-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 23,009 on turnover of 4.4-billion N-T. The market lost almost 180-points as investors rushed to lock-in gains in the bellwether electronics sector. Hon Hai led the downturn in the electronics sector, falling by 2.85-per cent, as its share price failed to return to its prior ex-dividend level. While Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing also moved lower, as it saw profit taking following recent solid gains on the back of investor interest in artificial intelligence development-related stocks. Domestic Carbon Credit Sales to Begin on TCX in September or October The Ministry of Environment says it expects sales of domestic carbon credits on the Taiwan Carbon Solution Exchange to begin by late September or early October. The statement comes after the exchange listed its first green carbon project earlier this week. That project was a reforestation initiative in eastern Paraguay and carbon credits for the project are now available for purchase. The government has also now publicly released the regulations on the trade and transfer of domestic carbon credits from voluntary (自主性) emission reduction projects - which are set to be introduced on August 15. Weekly New COVID-19 Cases Hit Year's Highest Level The Centers for Disease says a total of 932 new COVID-19 cases with complications (併發症) were reported last week - and that's the highest weekly level for this year. According to the C-D-C, the number of confirmed local cases reported between June 25 and July 1 was up 14-per cent from the previous week. Data shows there were approximately 100,000 COVID-19-related visits to emergency and outpatient departments made last week. The C-D-C says the pandemic will continue to rise and weekly visits to emergency rooms for COVID-19-related illnesses are expected peak in mid-July at 120,000 before subsequently declining slowly. Okinawa Protests Cases of Alleged Sexual Assault by US Personnel Locals in Japan's Okinawa region are protesting two cases of alleged sexual assault (性侵害) by US military personnel. The Pentagon says it's closely tracking the cases which have fueled local anger. Chris Gilbert reports from Tokyo. Chile White Rhino Birth at Zoo A 13-year-old Southern white rhinoceros has delivered a newborn calf in a rare zoo birth for the almost endangered species. The arrival of the male calf, named Silverio, just over a week ago was the third time that a white rhino had ever been born in South America. The zoo in Chile's capital of Santiago presented Silverio to the public on Tuesday as he took his first steps after 12 days of medical care in confinement (限、禁閉). The zoo hailed his birth as a “big achievement” for efforts to conserve the threatened species. Southern white rhinos, have been classified as “nearly endangered”, and there are just over 10-thousand individuals left in the world, the vast majority of them in zoos. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 遠見眼科 竹北高鐵屈光雷射手術中心 ➮ 數百位醫師的眼睛手術團隊 ➮ 德國原廠全球級顧問醫師 近視雷射/老花雷射/白內障手術 立即預約1對1術前評估： https://bit.ly/3L6Doe0

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. 2024 Han Kuang Exercises Focuses on 24/7 Drills The upcoming live-fire phase of the annual Han Kuang military exercises will be focusing on testing troops' responses to decentralized command, the updated Rules of Engagement), and 24/7 operational scenarios. This year's 40th edition began with the tabletop war games phase, conducted from April 19 to 26. The live-fire exercise component (部分) is scheduled to take place from July 22 to 26. According to defense officials, the live-fire exercises will prioritize tests on troops' capabilities to fend off Chinese invasion 24/7, grassroot troops' preparedness to launch counterstrikes individually, and troops' ability to follow updated R-O-E during counterstrikes. Fire at Hualien Pet Shop Destroy Five Two-Story Houses And, Fire investigators are looking into the cause of a blaze at a pet store in Hualien that destroyed five two-story houses. Officials say due to the degree of destruction, the exact cause of the fire has not yet been determined. According to the Hualien County Fire Department, it received a report Saturday evening that flames were spotted coming out of a house. The house was later identified as a pet store next to a Burger King chain restaurant. The flames quickly spread to the adjacent (鄰近的) stores, which were all between 40 to 50-years-old. More than 20 pet dogs were rescued from the scene, including 20 owned by the fire-hit pet store. One dog died. NKorea Could Ratify Russia Treaty This Week North Korean leaders are set to hold a key party meeting this week following the signing of a security treaty with Russia. The two countries on Wednesday agreed to mutually (互相) assist each other if they are attacked,. Chris Gilbert has more. Houthi Drone Damages Red Sea Vessel An aerial drone launched (發射) by Yemen's Houthi rebels struck and damaged a vessel in the Red Sea. The drone attack happened around dawn Sunday off the coast of the rebel-held port city of Hodeida. That's according to the British military's United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations center. The U.S. military's Central Command said several mariners on the bulk carrier suffered minor injuries from the attack. Hajj Pilgrimage Heat Sees Over 1Thousand Dead More than 1,300 people died during this year's Hajj pilgrimage as the faithful faced soaring (上升) temperatures at Islamic holy sites in Saudi Arabia. The Saudi health minister said 83% of the fatalities were among unauthorized pilgrims who walked long distances in soaring temperatures. Egyptian officials said more than 660 of the dead were from Egypt. The fatalities included 165 pilgrims from Indonesia, 98 from India and dozens more from Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco, Algeria and Malaysia, according to an Associated Press tally. Two U.S. pilgrims were also reported dead. Daily high temperatures exceeded 46 degrees Celsius, on some days. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____.

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 101-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 22,858 on turnover of 7.2-billion N-T. The Tai-Ex closed at another record high on Tuesday, led by solid gains posted by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing following a rally among tech stocks on Wall Street overnight. T-S-M-C's gains contributed about 180 points to the main board's rise to push both electronics and the semiconductor sub-index higher during the trading day. Weekly COVID Cases Nearly Double The Centers for Disease Control says weekly COVID-19 cases have nearly doubled. Data shows that a total of 623 new locally transmitted cases were reported from between June 11 and 17 - and that's up from 329 cases during the previous week. According to the C-D-C, the rise in domestic cases means that Taiwan is now in the pandemic phase - and mathematical modeling suggests the currently wave will peak in August and September, with a decline (衰退) expected after September. The C-D-C is encouraging people who have not yet received the X-B-B vaccine to get a shot as soon as possible. MOA to Cull Hens Amid Over Supply of Eggs The Ministry of Agriculture says it plans to cull 1.8-million hens on a monthly basis beginning later this month due to an oversupply eggs. The statement comes after a week after the ministry said it will be culling 1.2-million hens per month. According to the ministry, its hoped the move will cut daily egg production to approximately (大約) 120,000 crates, from the current 121,600 crates and will reduce the number of egg-laying hens from the current 35.7-million to between 33 and 34-million. The ministry says it chose to increase the number of hens culled as oversupply issues are continuing, despite the price of eggs dropping to 50 N-T a box at leading supermarket chains. Kim and Putin Meet in Pyongyang The leaders of Russia and North Korea are holding their first summit (會議) in Pyongyang in 24 years. Russian president Vladimir Putin arrived to a hug and handshake from his counterpart Kim Jong-un on Wednesday. Chris Gilbert reports. McKellen Looks Forward to Returning to Work After Fall Veteran actor Ian McKellen says he is looking forward to returning to work after toppling off a London stage during a play and being hospitalized. The 85-year-old actor known for playing Gandalf in the “Lord of the Rings” said on Tuesday that doctors had assured (保證) him his recovery would be “complete and speedy.” The actor said he was looking forward to returning to work. McKellen was playing John Falstaff in a production of “Player Kings” when he fell at the Noel Coward Theatre on Monday. The theater was evacuated (疏散) and the play was canceled. McKellen is one of Britain's most acclaimed Shakespearean actors, with roles including Richard III, Macbeth and King Lear. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 迎接十年一遇的存債良機，富養自己不是夢！ 中信優息投資級債【00948B】有「平準金」及「月配息」，小資也能輕鬆跟隊，【00948B】投資就是發！ 一同「債」現王者新高度，詳細資訊請見： https://bit.ly/3y7XL7A

Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened up 193-points this morning from yesterday's close, at 22,690 on turnover of 8.7-billion N-T. The market lost ground on Monday after initial gains were eroded. Investors took cues from a lackluster (黯淡無光) performance on Wall Street at the end of last week. Hon Hai managed to buck the downturn, to hit a 16-year high at the close. This provided some support to the broader market amid optimism toward the company's efforts in artificial intelligence development. ---------------------------- MOI Warns Against Chinese Influence in Political Parties In news from and about Taiwan this morning, The Ministry of the Interior is warning members of the public against forming political parties under the influences of foreign forces. The call comes amid allegations that a Chinese entity (實體) has recently attempted to recruit Taiwanese celebrities to establish the "Taiwan Pro-Peace Party." According to the interior ministry, people have the right to form political parties. But the ministry says they cannot accept instructions (指示) or funding from foreign forces. The ministry says that would violate the National Security Act and the Anti-Infiltration Act. ---------------- Consumers' Foundation to File Class Action in Fatal Food Poisoning Case The Consumers' Foundation has announced it has begun the process of collecting documents from victims of the Malaysian restaurant chain food poisoning outbreak. The foundation is set to file a class action. Foundation Chairman Wu Rong-da says 30 people have so far expressed support for the filing of a lawsuit on their behalf. This includes the families of the six individuals who died. The foundation's legal team says defendants in the case will include the restaurant chain as well as the chef, Far Eastern Department Stores, which hosts the restaurant branch and FoodRepublic, the company that runs the food court at the department store. ------------------------------- Russian President Putin Visits NKorea Russian President Vladimir Putin is visiting North Korea today, It's his first state visit to Pyongyang in 24 years. Chris Gilbert reports. ------------------------------------ EU Gives Final Approval for Nature Restoration Plan European Union countries have given final approval to a major and long-awaited plan to better protect nature in the 27-nation bloc. The Nature Restoration plan is part of the EU's European Green Deal that seeks to establish the world's most ambitious (要求高的；需要極大努力的) climate and biodiversity targets. Under the new law, EU countries will be required to restore at least 30% of habitats such as forests, rivers, grasslands, wetlands, lakes and coral beds deemed in poor condition by 2030. This percentage is set to increase to 60% by 2040 and 90% by 2050. The law also introduces specific requirements for measures to reverse the decline of pollinators. The plan was finally adopted at a meeting of environment ministers in Luxembourg after rallying the required support from a qualified majority. Austria's vote in favor of the plan helped to break the stalemate. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 中彰投分署為鼓勵轄區企業團體共同精進成長及經驗分享，廣徵各事業單位及團體在勞動力開發與運用或勞動力提升優良之提案，並透過本活動提供轄區企業團體交流學習之平台，一起為在地的人力資源永續發展努力。 [https://tcnr.wda.gov.tw/ContentList.aspx?n=B8A915763E3684AC] (https://tcnr.wda.gov.tw/ContentList.aspx?n=B8A915763E3684AC)

Good afternoon, I'm _____ with today's episode of EZ News. Tai-Ex opening The Tai-Ex opened down 36-points this morning from Friday's close, at 22,468 on turnover of 7.2-billion N-T. The market rose to yet another closing high last Friday to hit 22,500-points as investors were boosted by the continuing frenzy around artificial-intelligence technology. This sent the S&P 500 and the NASDAQ to record highs on Wall Street overnight. Lai Touts Whampoa Spirit at Centennial President Lai Ching-te has attended centennial celebrations of the Whampoa Military Academy in Kaohsiung. Speaking at the event at the R-O-C Military Academy, Lai said over its 100-year history, the institution has trained thousands of troops who have fought for the nation's survival. He says the spirit (精神) of "Whampoa" follows where the R-O-C goes. And he also vowed to further strengthen the nation's defensive capabilities while promoting peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait. Taipower to Adjust Power Capacity for Peak Travel Season Tai-Power says it will review and adjust its electricity supply for the outlying islands during the peak summer season. The statement comes Liuqiu Island lost power for an hour on Saturday. According to the state-generator, the power outage hit the island off the northwest coast of Pingtung at around 7:30PM. The outage was the result of hot weather and large numbers of tourists turning on electrical appliances. The result was power demand of 12,475-kilowatts - a record high. The system tripped because of the overload (超載), causing the blackout. Tai-Power was able to restore the area's electricity in about an hour. Seoul Uges Doctors to Cancel Walkout South Korea's Prime Minister is urging doctors to cancel a planned walkout this week. The strike is expected to escalate (加劇) a long running standoff between the government and medical community over wages, conditions, and staffing. Chris Gilbert reports. Countries Call for Ukraine Territorial Integrity in Peace Deal Nearly 80 countries have jointly called for the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine to be the basis for any peace agreement to end Russia's two-year war. Some key developing nations at the Swiss conference did not join in. The joint communique capped the two-day conference marked by the absence (缺席) of Russia, which was not invited. Many attendees hoped Moscow could join in on a roadmap to peace in the future. India, Mexico, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates were among countries that did not sign the final document. NewCaledonia Shortening Curfes The French Pacific territory of New Caledonia is shortening its overnight curfew. It's also reopening its international airport that was closed to commercial flights for more than a month because of deadly violence. The archipelago's high commissioner said Sunday the La Tontouta airport that links New Caledonia's capital, to Sydney, Tokyo and other Pacific hubs (中心) will reopen today. The commissioner also said the curfew is being shortened by two hours, its start pushed back from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Violence that flared on May 13-th over controversial (有爭議的) voting reforms led to nine deaths and widespread destruction of shops, businesses and homes. That was the I.C.R.T. news, Check in again tomorrow for our simplified version of the news, uploaded every day in the afternoon. Enjoy the rest of your day, I'm _____. －－－－以下訊息由 SoundOn 動態廣告贊助商提供－－－－ 迎接十年一遇的存債良機，富養自己不是夢！ 中信優息投資級債【00948B】有「平準金」及「月配息」，小資也能輕鬆跟隊，【00948B】投資就是發！ 一同「債」現王者新高度，詳細資訊請見： https://bit.ly/3y7XL7A

Click here to text DCMTBEastern States Cup returned to Glen Park, PA for the second enduro of the season. Chris Gilbert hops on the phone to run down the weekend and give us a taste of what we missed. Tune in to find out who was fast, who was last, and who got passed.

On today's podcast, I am joined by two guests, Dr. Chris Gilbert and Dr. Eric Haseltine, and we discuss Havana Syndrome from a technological and medical perspective. Dr Chris Gilbert is an Integrative and Holistic Medicine physician who has interviewed victims of these so-called Anomalous Health incidents, otherwise known as Havana Syndrome.   Dr Haseltine is a neuroscientist and author who worked as the NSA's research director before becoming the director of science and technology for the US intelligence community. He wrote an excellent book called “The Spy In Moscow Station”, which may well hold the key to what is behind Havana Syndrome. Dr Chris Gilbert Website https://drchrisgilbert.com/about/ Dr Chris Gilbert Blog https://www.psychologytoday.com/gb/blog/heal-the-mind-heal-the-body Dr Haseltine Website https://www.drhaseltine.com/ Dr Haseltine Blog https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/long-fuse-big-bang?page=3 Support Secrets and Spies: Become a “Friend of the podcast” on Patreon from £3 www.patreon.com/SecretsAndSpies Buy merchandise from our shop: https://www.redbubble.com/shop/ap/60934996?asc=u   Subscribe to our Youtube page: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCDVB23lrHr3KFeXq4VU36dg For more information about the podcast, check out our website: https://secretsandspiespodcast.com/ Connect with us on social media. BLUE SKY https://bsky.app/profile/secretsandspies.bsky.social TWITTER twitter.com/SecretsAndSpies FACEBOOK www.facebook.com/secretsandspies INSTAGRAM https://www.instagram.com/secretsandspies/ SPOUTIBLE   https://spoutible.com/SecretsAndSpies

We're back at it! Fresh drop of your first ESC race recap from Powder Ridge, CT.  Find out how the season opener went as Chris Gilbert joins us to run down how things panned out. Race season is here, don't forget to tune in every Monday evening after a race weekend to get the goods!

Its that time of the year again, race season is here, and the ESC kicks off next weekend. Chris Gilbert joins us to give us the run down on this years menu of venues. Find out what's to come as we dive into the series stops with Chris talk about some old favorites, new venues, and everything Eastern States Cup! Don't forget to tune in every Monday night after a race weekend for the DCMTB race weekend recap!

In the first half, Dr. Eric Haseltine, a former Director of Research at the NSA, and Chris Gilbert, an MD with a PhD in Physiology, discussed their new study of the science of UFOs. "My belief is that we aren't looking at one phenomenon," said Haseltine. Some of the sightings may involve secret military craft, others could be hobbyists with drones, and people trying to fake things for their own purposes, he mused, and yet he acknowledged that some UAPs appear to be completely inexplicable and represent a kind of physics or technology beyond current scientific understanding. In their work on the subject, Haseltine and Gilbert asked different questions about UFO technology, such as what if the objects had little or no mass, which would then take very little force to move. The US Navy actually has a patent on something similar, a laser holographic projector that creates plasmas in the air in various shapes, he noted.Gilbert looked at the issue through a focus on astrobiology and the intersection of medicine and UFOs. She pointed out that there are organisms that live in extreme environments and withstand such things as the vacuum of space, high radiation, and ultra-low or ultra-high temperatures, and this may be what we find with ET life forms. In fact, she continued, extraterrestrials may just consist of one cell, and could live in our body. She also cited how some people who have come into physical contact with a UFO have abnormal white patches that show up on MRIs of their brain that are similar to patients with multiple sclerosis. Haseltine talked about how certain metal compounds like bismuth, in combination with a strong magnetic field, demonstrate levitation properties and how bismuth is said to be one of the properties in allegedly recovered UFO material.----------Author, lecturer, and Fortean researcher Justin Bamforth has been investigating paranormal and high strangeness for over 20 years. In the latter half, he shared strange cases of Men in Black (MIB), doppelgangers, phantom photographers, and unexplained interactions. He believes that a degree of stress or a particular mindset can sometimes trigger the encounters that individuals report. The MIBs are sometimes described as exhibiting odd movements and robotic-sounding voice patterns. He recalled the account of Gary in the UK, who was doing physical training in a mountainous area, and saw a man moving at a very high speed yet showing no signs of exhaustion. Curiously, the man had no ears, just a completely smooth head and teardrop eyes.Bamforth recounted the tale of Andrew in Ontario from 1993, who had set up a video camera to record a meteor shower and instead caught a UFO. The next day, on a walk, he was approached by two men in dark suits and sunglasses, who had an unusual smell about them – "like rotten eggs sprinkled with cinnamon." One of the men brought up the video recording Andrew made the previous night, and said "What you saw was nothing. I advise you to get rid of the tape, and if you don't get rid of the tape, there's going to be some serious consequences." The men had an Asian appearance, with very tiny noses and lips, and their voices sounded slightly out-of-sync with a metallic timbre. Bamforth also detailed Tammy in Texas's missing time incident and how later she had an encounter with a similar-looking man to what Andrew described, who had a voice with an eerie reverberating quality. --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/georgenoory/message

Dr Eric Haseltine is Chairman of the US Technology Leadership Council and CEO of the tech startup MagneticWave. After 9/11, Eric left his post of Executive Vice President at Disney Imagineering to become Director of Research at NSA then Associate Director of National Intelligence and CTO of the Intelligence Community where he founded IARPA, the Intelligence version of DARPAHe is the author of numerous books on innovation as well as the true spy thriller, The Spy in Moscow StationBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/night-dreams-talk-radio--2788432/support.

Rod Babers and Coach Bob Shipley discuss what Chris Gilbert will bring to the Longhorns with his return, Sean McVay being named the keynote speaker, whether or not Sark should hire a football strategist and more on this week's Football Theory! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rod Babers and Coach Bob Shipley discuss what Chris Gilbert will bring to the Longhorns with his return, Sean McVay being named the keynote speaker, whether or not Sark should hire a football strategist and more on this week's Football Theory!

Bobby Burton and CJ Vogel react to Chris Gilbert returning to Texas, talk what the offseason hires will do, Gildert's recruiting impact and more! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Bobby Burton and CJ Vogel react to Chris Gilbert returning to Texas, talk what the offseason hires will do, Gildert's recruiting impact and more!

In this episode we welcome Chris Gilbert back to the podcast to discuss his new book, Commune or Nothing! Venezuela's Communal Movement and its Socialist Project.  Chris Gilbert is a professor of political studies at the Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela and creator and co-host of Escuela de Cuadros, a Marxist educational television program and podcast. Gilbert is co-author with Cira Pascual Marquina of Venezuela, The Present as Struggle (Monthly Review, 2020).  We've hosted three previous discussions with Chris Gilbert, one related to an essay that is a chapter of this book, which discusses the theoretical work behind seeing communes as building blocks of a socialist metabolism. The two others with Cira Pascual Marquina were on the book they co-authored. I just want to make a note, that we recorded this conversation back in September, prior to October 7th, which would've definitely warranted some attention in the conversation particularly as Gilbert talked about sanctions as total war and viewing Venezuela as a concentration camp, remarks that resonate with the Palestinian experience currently. This was also recorded prior to some of the recent developments in Venezuela including - among many other things - the Essequibo referendum, Biden threatening harsher sanctions against Venezuela, and the arrest of 32 people in alleged assassination plots. The best place as always to stay abreast of developments in Venezuela is to follow and support the work of venezuelanalysis.com.  We talk about many things in this conversation, but a few I will highlight are Gilbert's theoretical work, building on the work of feminist social reproduction theory, Marx's theory of value, to put forth the concept of directly social labor as a key to the emancipatory possibilities of the commune. Gilbert also shares some of the contributions of African Maroon communities and indigenous communal practices to the development of Venezuela's socialist vision. We also talk about why for Gilbert the commune represents a recovery of Marx, in particular the romantic Marx who saw revolutionary potential among the Iroquois Confederacy, Algerian peasants and Russian peasant communes. Along the way we talk about a commune that is geographically the size of Manhattan and discuss currency experiments, communal banking efforts, and the process of “de-alienation” that Gilbert sees in the commune. The book is out now from Monthly Review press, I highly recommend it, it was one of our favorite books that we read in 2023.  And if you like what we do please support us at patreon.com/millennialsarekillingcapitalism. We do have a study group that starts for patrons tomorrow night at 7:30 PM ET on February 8th studying the counterinsurgency manual, so this is a final call for anyone interested in joining us for that. Links: Purchase the book from Monthly Review Press. Previous conversation on a chapter in this book Part 1 & Part 2 of our discussion with Chris and Cira Aidan Elias co-produced this episode.

Rudy and Christian join Chris Gilbert for a discussion on his new book Commune or Nothing! Venezuela's Communal Movement and its Socialist Project. We cover the history of the Venezuelan communal project, and how it relates to previous attempts of the government to build a socialist economy including the Venezuelan cooperative movement or the drive to build state-run industry. We discuss the ideas of István Mészáros on how the commune centers the communal control of the labor process, and attempts to solve problems found during the socialist transition, before pivoting to ground data on the communes, the economic relationships between them and towards the outside, the issues with voluntarism, the problem of attracting the youth and the structure of the new Communard Union. We finish with an outlook for the future and a discussion on how communes center all around human development and have a more mystical side to them.

On today's episode, we present to you two new books on Venezuela. The first is “A War Without Bombs: The social, political and economic impact of sanctions against Venezuela” written and published by the Venezuelanalysis team.The book is now available to everyone to download for free on our brand new website. A War Without Bombs aims to provide Venezuelanalysis readers, internationalists, activists, and people committed to social justice with the tools to understand the devastating impact of the blockade on the people of Venezuela.Host José Luis Granados Ceja speaks with Venezuela Analysis' Cira Pascual Marquina about the thinking behind a book on sanctions, its content, and the stories within that detail what working people in Venezuela are doing to build a socialist alternative in a country under siege.We'll also look at Commune or Nothing! Venezuela's Communal Movement and its Socialist Project by Chris Gilbert, professor of political studies at the Universidad Bolivariana de Venezuela. Chris talks to us about the place of communes in Venezuela's socialist project, as well as their place as a site of struggle and resistance against the US economic blockade.Music: Embandolaos - Los Caimanes NegrosIskra - El Imperio mismo

We sit down and talk about Tri-County, Waterford and then discuss Chris past and present racing. --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/turn4podcast/support

For this discussion we welcome Manolo de los Santos to discuss the book Our Own Path to Socialism: Selected Speeches of Hugo Chávez.  Manolo de los Santos is the co-executive director of the People's Forum and is a researcher at Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research. He co-edited, most recently, Viviremos: Venezuela vs Hybrid War and Comrade of the Revolution: Selected Speeches of Fidel Castro. He is a co-coordinator of the People's Summit for Democracy. Our Own Path to Socialism: Selected Speeches of Hugo Chávez is the first book length English translation of a collection of speeches from Hugo Chávez. Chávez left behind thousands of hours of speeches, and this book collects seven of them, presenting his theories, perspectives, and his visions of 21st century socialism. An almost encyclopedic blend of songs, stories, and dreams of the Venezuelan people, his words are a tool for young people seeking to understand the ideas of Chavismo and the Venezuelan process of building socialism in South America. This conversation is a combination of thinking with Chávez as a historian, as a student of socialist practice, a theorist, and as a revolutionary in his own right. We talk a bit along the way about the example of Cuba, Chávez's relationship to Fidel Castro, the influence of Mao Tse-Tung on his thinking, Chávez's thinking on urgency, socialism and the climate crisis, and on the critical importance of study to the revolutionary process. The book is available from 1804 Books and we highly recommend it. We want to thank Manolo and the folks at 1804 Books for this book and conversation. We also want to thank PM Press for donating 35 copies of the Mohawk Warrior Society for our incarcerated reading group (in partnership with Prisons Kill and Massive Bookshop). Thanks to their donation and contributions from listeners last month we do have enough to cover that book and the postage to send it in this month. And if you like what we do bringing you conversations like this every week then please become a patron of the show. Our show is 100% funded by our patrons and you can become one for as little as $1 a month and find out about things like our Wretched of the Earth study group which is going to start later this month. Some of our other conversations on Venezuela and Chávez: "Venezuela The Present As Struggle" with Gilbert & Marquina "Chávez Has A Present In Venezuela" with Gilbert & Marquina Geo Maher On Revolutionary Solidarity with Venezuela "Commune or Nothing" with Chris Gilbert