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Life Art

By: xelliebabex



"Oh my God, You've got to be kidding me? You're pimping out your friends to keep your geeks happy now?" Kallah couldn't believe it and shook her head with a half-laugh hoping that Amber was kidding.

"It's not like that," Amber said defensively. "You said yourself you're in a rut and I thought you might like a change of pace. He's a great guy honestly."

"I am sure he is, but I am not sure I am I cut out to be a corporate whore, like you," Kallah replied a little angry that her friend had suggested it.

"Nice. You're all class, Kallah," Amber said stung by her words. "Forget I ever mentioned it."

"Mentioned, what?" Louise asked as she sat with them. 

"My wonderful corporate friend here was trying to set me up on a date with one of the geeks she babysits," Kallah explained.

"Wow! You really do go out of your way to offer full service in your HR department," Louise laughed. "You're pimping for the little brats now?"

"Thank you!" Kallah exclaimed, "It's pimping right?"

"It's not. I just like this guy. He's sweet. Comes from a good family, first time in the big bad city, doesn't know anyone, works a sixty-hour week because he is the new guy and has something to prove to all the other programmers. Drives a Porsche..." her voice trailed off as she left the bait about him being rich out there for them to mull over.

"Weighs two hundred pounds, large right forearm..." Kallah laughed thinking of the geeks she knew at work and mimicked a guy wanking.

"Now, now let's not be too hasty," Louise said with a sly smile, "Exactly where does this Porsche driver live?"

"He is so not your type Louise. He doesn't go to clubs or fabulous restaurants just to say they were thee with whatever celebrity is in town," Amber laughed.

"Urg why are the good ones always so shy and reclusive," Louise lamented, "Oh well did I tell you who I saw in The Zoo last night?"

The fourth of the friends, Donna, arrived and the conversation remained firmly on gossip about their lives where they had been who they had seen and the ever present husbands and boyfriends. The disparity in their ages didn't seem to matter and never truly had, Kallah, the youngest and Amber, the oldest of the group were step-sisters though they had not really grown up together. The two others ranged in the decade that stood between the two. Each brought something unique to their weekly gatherings, and each of them treasured the friendship that had blossomed with the other ladies.

As the raucous luncheon broke up, Amber turned to Kallah one last time and spoke quietly, "One date, I'll even chaperone with Bryan. You'll be surprised, I promise, his mother is some sort of artist too. So you will have something in common at least," she wheedled. 

"Okay, fine, but only because I haven't been on a decent date for forever, set it up and let me know when, my calendar is open most of next week," Kallah sighed rolling her eyes as she finally gave in as she always did with Amber.

"Perfect, we'll go somewhere nice but not too nice, comfortable okay?" Amber knew from experience thatKallah's stubborn, independent streak meant she would want to pay her own way and working as a research assistant did not leave much fun cash after taking out living expenses. Amber certainly didn't want her dipping into the money she had scrimped to save for an art school she had been wanting to go to for years. At least not for a blind date.

*****

Amber had been swift to set up a date; she hadn't wanted Kallah to overthink it and change her mind. Amber and her husband, Bryan, sat in a Japanese restaurant with Mason, her colleague from work. Bryan was his usual genial self and was easily able to find common ground with the quiet man who sat across the table from them and engaged him in conversation. 

Kallah walked in several minutes later smiling and apologising for keeping them waiting. She scooted into a chair but not before the young man seated with her friends had half risen at her arrival. Amber made the briefest of introductions before flagging down a waiter and ordering a bottle wine to share.

"How ya been, Kal-gal," Bryan leaned over and kissed her cheek.

"Pretty good, how's you, Bry?" She asked, "Amber forcing you to dress up again?"

"Yeah, but I scrub up all right so who can blame her," he winked at her. "I'm starving what about you Mason?"

"The menu looks great. Do you come here often?" Mason asked.

"We had our first date here," Amber answered taking Bryan's hand. "He scrubbed up well that night too." She leaned over to kiss her husband.

"Awkward," Kallah gave Mason a lop-sided smile. "So what's everyone decided on," she picked up her menu to browse through it.

"Well, as you have been here before what do you recommend?" Mason asked Amber.

"I love the tempura vegetables, but the Yankiniku or Sukiyaki is good here too, according to the carnivore," she smiled. She wasn't a strict vegetarian but had a preference for those types of meals.

"Oh yeah, Yakiniku for me, that Wagyu they use here is amazing," Bryan spoke mostly to Mason. 

"Sounds good, I'll go with what he said," Mason laughed. 

The waiter arrived with the wine, and they ordered. Kallah was surprised that Mason was far from the shy computer geek she had assumed was to be her date, going by the programmer title Amber had given him. Despite her reservations about this whole blind date thing, she found herself liking Mason more and more as the night went on. He was easy to talk to and didn't seem to have any agenda of his own that Kallah could see.

"So have you heard yet?" Amber asked Kallah during a brief lull in the conversation.

"No, but I am hopeful this year. I don't seem to have gotten the automatic  Thanks for your interest, but we are not accepting anymore applications letter that usually comes in around this time," Kallah said.

"Well, fingers crossed, Hun," Amber held up her hand showing crossed fingers.

"Every year she applies to attend some summer school for starving artists," Bryan murmured to Mason.

"Not every year just the last two years, and it's not a summer school," Kallah said defensively. "When I was in University, one of my professors talked about a small group of artists who got together at lightning Ridge at the beginning of every summer to offer workshops," She turned to Mason and explained further. "They take about a dozen or so talented people and offer Master classes for a couple of weeks, I heard one of my favourite artists was going to be there again this year, so I submitted a portfolio for consideration."

"She's pretty good," Amber added, "We've got a couple of her originals at home, haven't we?" 

"Yeah, we're just waiting for her to get all famous and stuff, and then we'll sell them for squillions" Bryan nodded and winked at Kallah with a teasing smirk

"What sort of art is your forte?" Mason was genuinely interested.

"I like pastels mostly, charcoals, sketching... painting sometimes. I haven't got an on-going theme, a bit of this and that," Kallah shrugged. "It's one of the reasons I really want to go, plus I could use a break from work."

"My mum dabbles a bit, she is more of a sculptor though, says she likes making the stone softer," Mason said, "She used to drag me through art galleries until I got old enough to rebel against it. I miss it now and then though. Maybe you can show me around some of the good ones here, I am pretty new to this city."

"Oh God," Amber groaned, "Don't feed her addiction she is already disappearing into those galleries far too often for far too long."

"Oh, I am not," Kallah swatted at Amber good-naturedly, "Sure I would like that," she smiled at Mason. "Now if you will excuse me, I need to go to the little girl's room." She stood from the table a little unsteady on her feet and looked at the second bottle of wine seeing that she and Amber had almost finished it by themselves.

"I'll come," Amber sang happily and leaned over murmuring to Bryan before she too stood up and walked with Kallah to the bathrooms. "So, he's nice right?"

"Yes, he's nice," Kallah agreed, "Just don't push it okay?"

"Okay," Amber grinned at her. "Don't get all mad and stubborn the way you normally do when we go out, Bryan is paying the check and the guys are meeting us outside so he can have a smoke before we get in the car." Kallah started to argue, but Amber cut across her words, "Just buy me lunch next time we meet up, okay?"

"Okay," Kallah agreed reluctantly.

*****

Mason had been pleasantly surprised by the blind date setup by Amber. He had agreed because of the relationship Amber had built with him since she had head hunted him from a smaller southern firm he had joined after leaving university. She had helped with his move to the northern city and had taken an interest in his life in general. When she suggested a date with a friend of hers, he had been sceptical. If a girl needed her friends to set her up on a date there had to be something wrong with her he had thought.

He had liked Kallah though; she was bright and funny, not to mention cute. He had called her the following day and setup a date for the following Saturday afternoon. She had suggested the Gallery of Modern Art, which she had called GOMA at first, confusing him. He felt dumb as she explained the acronym. She had just laughed and said she had forgotten he was not from the city.

He had decided not to be dumb again and had done some research about the city in which he now lived. He had liked the location of GOMA and began to look at the fact that it was directly across the river from the city as well as being nestled at the edge of the Southbank Parklands. There was plenty to do if the initial unchaperoned date at an art gallery went well, and they wanted to continue on into the evening.

Mason wasn't exactly the shy guy Amber thought him to be. He was just more a quiet watcher who liked to be comfortable in any given situation or conversation before saying anything. His father had always said it was better to be thought a fool than open your mouth and prove it to everyone. He smiled at the memory. His father had been an island of sanity in his crazy childhood with his free-spirited, eccentric mother who embraced life as an adventure to be lived to the fullest.

It was only as a young adult that he had come to know she was manic. Her highs were long and full of happy times, and her lows became the darkest of times for the whole family. Luckily, with his father's help those times did not last long and after seeing the toll it took on her family she would always agree to go back on her medication.

Believing she would be amused that he had a date with an aspiring artist, Mason decided to give his mother a call. She had laughed merrily that what he had rebelled against most within his own family was what he now found attractive in a possible partner. She had lamented once again the squandering of his own artistic gifts in favour of the lifeless metal and plastic boxes of his computers.

Mason had rolled his eyes and refusing to engage in the years long debate over where his talents lay and asked if she had heard of a summer school for budding artists at Lightning Ridge. 

"Oh Mason, finally!" his mother exclaimed. "But if you want to pursue your talent you don't want to go there, it's just an excuse for some so-called artists to get away for a few weeks and take advantage of their protégé's."

"Don't they invite applications, and run workshops?" Mason was confused wondering if perhaps he had misheard Kallah's explanation.

"Oh, they have to do that in order to get the whole thing funded by the arts council, but generally speaking, only their protégés succeed in winning those coveted spots, I go out there, now and then as a guest artist, but only for a day or two. It's not my scene," she explained. "Your Uncle Paul is the arts council director out there."

"Uncle Paul?" He questioned and hearing a murmur of assent went on, "Well surely if you are doing a workshop it can't be all about affairs of the heart, or dirty weekends in paradise," Mason said with a laugh, "Though with Uncle Paul you would never know for sure."

"I understand that young men don't like to think of their mothers as mere humans with needs, but I have hardly been a nun since your father's passing," she said, her voice fading off as if suddenly reminded of a painful event.

"Ew mum please stop! Plus Dad told me that you only ever had sex once, and that was to conceive me," he chuckled, "and that is what I choose to believe is still the case. The alternative is just all sorts of wrong." Changing the subject quickly again, he asked if she had any pieces on show at GOMA that he could check out while he was there.

Easily distracted she had spoken not only about a piece she had on display there but the work of other friends and artists that she knew and admired. It was much later when he finally said good night to her. He loved his mother, as any son would he supposed, but it had taken him some time to recover from his crazy childhood of artist colonies and his mother's bohemian friends inhabiting their home and stealing any form of normality his father had tried to give him.

At the onset of puberty, he had begun to rebel against anything art related and had gratefully gone off to boarding school far from the roller coaster ride that accompanied living with his mother, Patrice Gallagher: Sculptor. His father had died in a freak car accident during Mason's first year at university, and he had returned home to grieve and look after his mother during that dark time in their lives.

During that time, he came to realise how deep the friendships and feelings of his mother's friends were. He came to understand his mother better through her friends and their interactions, and he came to respect the dedication and emotional fortitude it took to put themselves on public display for other people to judge through their work. He knew he was not that brave or talented despite his mother's protests.

The small group who had stayed to rally around Patrice and her son were incredible at knowing when to push them into the living world again and when to sit back and let them remember and grieve. When it came time for him to return to university he knew he did not have to worry about his mother, his father had seen to it that she had a good agent, and a better lawyer who handled all their finances. She had her friends and a relationship with him that they both enjoyed far more than they had in years.

His thoughts went to the girl he had just met, and he wondered if she was brave with her art or if she was like so many modern artists who thrived on the shock value and revelled in public outrage as much as the art world's praise. Time would tell but what little he knew of Kallah he liked and was looking forward to getting to know her better.

*****

Kallah sat on a stone bench in the terraced garden outside of the northern entrance to the gallery of modern art. She loved it there looking out over the river where the city reared up on the far bank, all stone and glass reflecting the sun's rays back into her shaded spot. She looked at her watch. It was still early, but she looked around just in case Mason too had arrived with time to spare as well.

She looked down towards the parklands and imagined in her mind's eye the bright sails that would be being set up for the twilight markets that evening. She loved poking around the markets; all sorts of strange and unusual items and people could be found there, from palm readers to doll makers, musicians to aromatherapy oils and massages. Maybe, if all went well, they could wander through the markets after the art gallery and pick up something to nibble on as they walked around. That would be preferable than an awkward dinner for two, which was far too much like a real date than what she wanted right now.

He seemed like a great guy just as Amber had said, but she was always cautious when things seemed too good to be true. He was reasonably good looking, in that unkempt sort of way, wealthy, according to Amber, and had a good understanding of art and artists, what more could she ask for in a man? She knew there had to be some major flaw there, so she wasn't about to rush headlong into anything before she found it. ` "Hello there," Mason said as he stepped down onto the terrace she sat upon sitting beside her.

"Hi," she smiled, "They're setting up the twilight markets, have you ever been?" She pointed out towards the few brightly coloured sails being erected in the parklands.

"No, but then there is a lot of the city I haven't seen yet," he smiled. "I am looking forward to seeing the gallery though shall we go in?" He held out his hand to help her up from the spot where she sat.

"Sure," Kallah said and took his hand standing beside him. Neither let go of the others hand as they walk toward the gallery entrance. Mason opened the door and held it open for her, and they entered the cool air conditioned interior. Taking maps they began to walk around the gallery following the suggested tour. Mason talked easily and confidently about some of the works, and Kallah had begun to think he had done some research on the gallery in an effort to impress her.

Kallah sat on a padded bench in front of a sculpture and stared at it. She knew very little about the artist as she was quite protective of her private life, but she had seen her once as she had visited her art college and spoke to a packed auditorium about her work and how she had been discovered. Mason did not join her right away preferring instead to linger at some small sketches on a wall near her position on the bench.

When Mason finally approached her he stood with his back to the sculpture and asked if she was ready to move on to the next gallery. Kallah looked at him quizzically as she stood, "You don't like this sculpture?" 

"Far from it, I love that sculpture," he finally turned to look at it, "But I don't want to dissect and discuss it."

"How come? You have no problem talking about the other pieces you like or even the ones I like for that matter," she was curious.

"Amber told you my mother was an artist right?" It was Mason's turn to look confused.

"Yeah..." she blinked as realisation dawned on her, "Your mother is Patrice Gallagher?"

"I thought you knew," he laughed, "I mean isn't that why you sat there for so long?" She shook her head and gave a half laugh with him. "Amber said she told you my mother was an artist," he said again.

"No, just and artist and you said your mother dabbled in art. She certainly didn't tell me who she was, and you made it sound like she painted as a hobby," she turned to look at the sculpture again. "The other artists you talked about while we walked around, do you know them too?" She asked feeling a little guilty that she had thought he was just posing with some information gleaned from the gallery's website.

"Some better than others, but yeah, I know a couple of them. Most I have never heard of though, you know far more about this place than me," he shrugged as if everyone knew a few contemporary artists.

The tour around the rest of the gallery changed after that moment with Kallah listening to what Mason had to say about certain artists more carefully. Mason had enjoyed her obvious surprise; he had worried that knowing who his mother was had influenced her decision to see him again, but Amber had probably not recognised the name. After all, his mother was not particularly well known outside of those involved in the art world.

They had stayed within the gallery until almost closing time with Kallah wanting to revisit a few of the earlier works he had commented on and asking further questions about the artists. He spoke easily about growing up around a close-knit group of artists who, while not all successful in their chosen mediums, had friends of friends who were or who mentored and inspired them. Kallah became enthralled by the whole idea of growing up in such a household and how wonderful it would it have to be surrounded by all that talent.


Life Art



"You never wanted to follow your mother into the arts?" Kallah asked as they finally left the gallery.

"Good God, no," Mason chuckled. "My creativity lies in other directions. I seem to have been talking about myself all afternoon, Let's go grab a drink, and you can tell me all about you and how you followed in your parents footsteps." He continued to chuckle as she pulled a face at him.

Holding hands they crossed the street to a small wine bar and took a table on the sidewalk to enjoy the early evening breeze as the sun began to set. They ordered a bottle of a local variety and Kallah, quickly reached for her purse, "Let me get it," she smiled, "I've enjoyed this afternoon. Most people get impatient with me in galleries, so I owe you one for letting me take my time."

"Sure," he said, "I'll get dinner if we stay and you know somewhere close by that's good."

"That's not necessary," she smiled and saw a momentary flicker of disappointment cross his face, so she went on. "Maybe we could go down to the twilight markets and see if they have something yummy there to nibble on while we walk around? I mean if you don't have other plans."

"My night is wide open, so we don't have to do this polite dance. I am happy to follow your lead," Mason said brightly and picked up the bottle and glasses as she paid for it and poured them both a generous measure.

"I love the twilight markets here. They have such a good atmosphere," she smiled. "I still can't believe your mother is Patrice Gallagher. I saw her speak once when I was at college. She was so passionate about her art."

"Passionate is a good word. Probably better than some of the words I would use," he chuckled. "Enough about me and my crazy mother though, tell me something interesting about you?"

"I'm afraid I am very average and boring. I had a normal home and upbringing, well in this day and age. My parents divorced when I was about six, and both remarried. Amber is my step sister though we never lived in the same house. She was already out of school and out of home living her life by the time our parents got married. I never did great at school but didn't fail; I went to art school with grand ambitions and found that there were a lot of people with more talent and drive than me," she gave him a lop-sided smile.

"Art is in the eye of the critic. What some people love others hate," Mason shrugged. "I am sure you are talented or you would never have got into art school in the first place."

"I just want to know more, learn more, do more," she grinned, "It's why I want to go to the Lightning Ridge Summer Workshops so badly."

"Have you heard yet?" he asked thinking about what his mother had said.

"No, but it's a bit early, I should hear in the next month or so, going by last year," she sighed. "I suppose Amber told you that she thought I was crazy."

"Crazy people make the best artists as far as I can see," he laughed genuinely. "My mother is a prime example."

"She seems perfectly lovely to me. Sane, respectable but passionate about her style of art," Kallah defended the woman she didn't know and had only seen once in an auditorium full of art students.

" Amber has told me as much about you as she has obviously told you about me," Mason said seriously, "Which by the sound of things isn't much. I didn't even know you were sisters."

"We don't think of ourselves that way, more close friends," Kallah smiled, "I love her and her pushy ways. I would never have gone on a blind date normally, but I am glad she nagged me into a date a computer geek. You aren't exactly what I was expecting."

"Me too," Mason said genuinely enjoying Kallah's company. "I guess you were expecting a pocket protector and horn-rimmed glasses, something terribly stereotypical like that?"

"More like two hundred pounds and a large right forearm," she laughed as he spluttered the mouthful of wine he had taken. "Well, if you needed Amber to set you up on a date I had to wonder why."

"Well, I am new in town and I am not into loud bars or night clubs. I am too awkward to pick up a girl while doing the grocery shopping or on the bus to work, not that I take the bus," he seemed a little taken aback, but recovered with, "I guess I wondered the same thing about you. Why haven't you got someone in your life to stop Amber from setting you up on blind dates?"

"I'm fussy," she laughed and sat back in her chair with her glass of wine as if daring him to argue with her.

"Can't be too fussy, you're here with me aren't you," he laughed with her. She poked her tongue out at him and drained her glass of wine. They continued to banter through another glass of wine each talking about their lives and getting to know each other a little better.

Feeling relaxed and in a buoyant mood they walked hand in hand down to the parklands and the brightly lit kiosks of the twilight markets. They walked slowly, stopping often to look at the various displays. They found a small barbeque hut and got some chicken skewers to nibble on as they wandered through the myriad of brightly lit stalls.

Kallah became entranced with some beautiful handmade candles while Mason spent a lot of time talking with a garrulous old man who created puzzle boxes that appeared impregnable until the secret revealed itself. They barely noticed the passing of time as they moved through the rows of stalls until they finally broke free into the fresh air and walked back along the river bank back towards the gallery.

"Did you drive," Mason asked into the silence that had fallen between them.

"No, I hate parking in here. Amber said she could pick me up if I gave her a call. I hadn't realised we would be out so late though," she laughed. "This has been one of the better dates I have been on in a long time."

"I can take you home," he said lightly, then seeing her thoughtful expression added, "No ulterior motive, just a ride. It's only our first date after all."

"Okay, but it's our second date if you think about it. When do those sort of expectations kick in?" She teased.

"I believe there is a third date rule," he said seriously, "but then I am the socially inept computer geek your sister had to nag you into dating. So what do I know?"

"You're asking me, a fussy spinster?" Kallah laughed.

"You should call Amber and let her know you're fine, and then we can take our time walking back, and I will drive you home," Mason said guiding her to one of the benches that lined the river bank. He waited for her to dial the number and greet Amber before stepping a few feet away to give her some small amount of privacy. He could hear her laughing as she made a quick phone call and raised an eyebrow at her as she approached him after putting her phone away.

"She asked if you were coming back to see my sketches," she explained laughing lightly, "I told her you were such a gentleman you hadn't even tried to kiss me yet." Then she placed a hand on his cheek and leaned up to brush her lips over his. "Sometimes it's best to get that first one out of the way," she whispered and smiled. 

"That was nice," he murmured, "But I am sure we can do better than that for a first kiss." A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and he lowered his mouth to hers again. Kallah closed her eyes feeling the strength of his arm holding her close and the slow kiss deepening as she parted her lips under his. It was like one of those movie moments where the girls' foot popped up except of course hers didn't in reality. Instead, she melted under the intensity of that one long slow kiss. 

"Wow," she said a little breathlessly, happy that his arm had remained around her waist. "Better indeed." He grinned down at her before hugging her to him. 

"This had been one of the better dates I have been on, so relaxed and enjoyable. Thank you, Kallah," he finally let her go but kept an arm around her waist as they began to walk again. 

"I know what you mean," she smiled, "It's been easy just to be myself with you. I am glad we did this rather than going out to dinner or some typically awkward first date."

"We did the awkward dinner with Amber remember," he laughed. "You still owe me a dinner date though. When you got a bottle of wine, I said I would take you to dinner, and I don't think those skewers we had at the markets count."

"That would be nice," she smiled.

"Any preferences?" He asked.

"Well, as I took over today, with the gallery and markets, you can choose. I am not that fussy really. I would like to know more about what you like to do, unless of course, you really are an axe murder under all that gentlemanly charm. I am a bit squeamish about blood, and it takes forever to get it out of my clothes."

"There goes that idea then," he chuckled. "Okay, something with no blood, I think I can manage that if I have to. Anything else you're squeamish about, heights... bugs... snakes?"

"No, I can handle creepy crawlers if I can see them. Its only when bugs and spiders jump out unexpectedly I get a little worried," she laughed.

They continued to banter and laugh as they walked through the parking garage to his car. Mason opened her door for her but before she could slide into the seat, he pulled her into his arms again and kissed her deeply. Breaking the kiss he smiled down into her eyes and helped her into the car.

They drove back to Kallah's place talking about the city they lived in and where they both lived, which was surprisingly close considering the size of the city. Pulling up in front of her apartment block Mason got out and opened her door for her offering to walk her up.

"That's not necessary," she laughed.

"I don't want to ruin my gentlemanly reputation by leaving you here on the footpath like a stray cat," he took her hand and walked toward the building with Kallah shaking her head. At her door, he kissed her goodnight in a long deliciously slow melding of lips as he held her to him. He had a way of making her feel like a weak-kneed schoolgirl being kissed by her crush. She felt the fluttering butterflies in her tummy increase with the strength of his arms around her and his passionate kisses.

"So I'll pick you up tomorrow about three, we'll do something fun before dinner," he murmured into her ear as he hugged her close. 

"Mmhmm," she mumbled not questioning that tomorrow was too soon for another date.

"Good," he kissed her lightly a last time, "Sweet dreams, Kallah."

"See you tomorrow," she smiled and he turned bounding back down the stairs.

*****

The following day they had gone zorbing. She had started to protest, but he had teased her into being strapped into a big ball and being flung down the hill. She loved the experience so much that they did it several times each before he took her to a tiny restaurant right on the beach that she had never heard about before but had the best seafood around. They had then taken a romantic walk along the beach before returning to his car for the trip back to the city. Once again he had been a gentleman leaving her at her door with the promise to call her the following day.

They spoke each day and went to a small gallery opening for a friend of his mother's together during that first week. The following weekend they had picnicked in the botanical gardens where they ran classic movies in a public open air arena. Once again throughout the weekend the chemistry had been electric between them but aside of the kisses and some chaste fondling it had gone no further. They spent Sunday rummaging around in the country style markets on the northern edge of the town.

The weekly lunch with her friends had been excruciating for her as they dissected her first dates on so many levels, and she had realised that the issue of his wealth had never come up. She paid for things they did just as he did and aside of the sports car he drove he was never showy about it. He treated her like a lady and there seemed to be no expectations about when she would sleep with him much to Donna's disgust. 

"You have to sleep with him soon, if you're not compatible in bed then you will have wasted all this time on dating a dud when you could have been looking for someone who could rock your world," she had counselled Kallah.

"Well, judging by the kisses and well... stuff, I don't think that is going to be a problem," Kallah had blushed deeply and rolled her eyes at her friend. In her mind though, she wondered if she should test that theory this coming weekend. They had well over the obligatory three dates after all. She smiled to herself and considered how she would bring it up with him.

She decided she would make a move this weekend if he didn't, and considered whether she could suggest a weekend at home to him or maybe offer to cook for him on Friday night and see where it went from there. She called him after her lunch with her friends and smiled as she heard his happy greeting.

"Hello cutie. How was your lunch?" Mason had asked cheerfully

"Great thanks!" Kallah replied equally cheerfully. "I was wondering, would you like to have dinner at my place Friday night? We could rent a movie and have a quiet night in, just the two of us."

"Are you planning on getting me drunk and having your wicked way with me?" Mason chuckled.

"Maybe," she felt herself blush but it was what she wanted after all.

"That sounds wonderful, but there might be a slight hiccup to your plans to take advantage of me," he continued to laugh, "How about I pick you up after work this afternoon and explain it to you."

"Okay," she said dubiously and began to worry that he didn't find her attractive enough to sleep with her. 

"Great. Pick you up around five thirty out the front," Mason hung up. If he had picked up on her tone, he hadn't shown it, and Kallah worried through the afternoon if he thought she had come across as too pushy or he didn't like her that way despite the passion of their kisses.

At five thirty, she was waiting outside auction house for which she worked. She heard his car before she saw it and smiled as she climbed in beside him and leaned over to kiss him. 

"Where are we going?" Kallah asked as they pulled onto the freeway.

"My place," Mason said without looking for her.

"Oh," she was confused.

"There is something I have to show you before the weekend," he chuckled, "I am not planning on taking you up on your offer to get me drunk and take advantage of me, well, the afternoon." Kallah blushed and gave a small laugh. They pulled into the driveway of a well-kept house in a green leafy suburb that ran along the river. He rushed to open her car door for her and led her into the house through the back door.

It was remarkably clean and tidy for a bachelor's house she thought amused with her stereotypes of how bachelors lived, but she followed him through the kitchen to the living room where he guided her to the couch. She watched as he walked to an ornately carved chest and withdrew several albums before sitting beside her.

"You went to art school, so I know I don't have to explain this, but I feel like I should," Mason began sounding unsure of himself, "Naturalism as a style of art means being honest about a subject rather than idealising it."

"Yes realism. I did a paper on it," Kallah frowned wondering where this was going.

"Well, my mother and her friends tend to take the natural part of naturalism or realism a little more than most. Natural fibres, a natural diet, and being au natural," he smirked and handed her the top album. "This is my family, such as it is with assorted adopted aunts and uncles, etc...."

He sat back and watched her face as she opened the album and began slowly to turn the pages. She smiled after the initial shock, and he saw her linger over a photo in which he had posed. He wasn't embarrassed about it, but it felt odd. He had grown up around nudity; it was commonplace in his life and he thought little of it. For him, nudity was quite different and distinct from intimacy but he had found that very few of the women he had dated viewed it that way.

Mason like Kallah, and with her suggestion that perhaps it was time to become more intimate, he had decided to get this out in the open. Also, because he knew without a doubt in his mind that his mother would show up unexpectedly at the worst time to see a girl who was taking up so much of his free time and past girlfriends and not reacted well when confronted by his mother and her friends.

"These are wonderful," she finally whispered, "Whoever took them has a great eye." She held out her hand for the next album. "That's the first time I have heard nudism explained in terms of an art movement though," she grinned at him. "Has it ever worked for you before?"

"No," he said softly, "Mum and her friends usually scare away the girls I have dated. They can be a little over the top and pushy. Most girls think the nudist part is just weird, and more often than not too weird for them, but that eccentric bunch can be a little hard to deal with on a lot of levels." He took a deep breath realising he had made his point without having to say his heart had been broken more than once, and this was a major reason for it in his eyes.

"I've never dated anyone before who knew the difference," he chuckled, "I tend to stay away from those temperamental artistic types." She smacked his arm lightly and continued looking through the album. 

"So you're telling me about this now because...?" She asked focusing on the photos.

"Well, you intimated that you wanted to move this relationship along so to speak, and I thought you should know what you're getting into," he shrugged. "If we visit there," he pointed to a photo of a large country house, "Clothes will be optional, and if mum comes here and I have no doubt she will sooner rather than later she won't bother covering up much here at home."

"I see," she looked up at him. "I modelled for a life art class once. I think nudity isn't as shocking as it used to be." She wasn't sure about how she felt about visiting the home of a nudist, but it certainly didn't change the fact that she liked being with Mason a lot and wanted to see where it went from here. She didn't have hang-ups about her body, so it didn't bother her that much."

"So you aren't going to make polite excuses to leave now and then not return my calls because my home life is a bit dodgy?" Mason asked seriously making Kallah burst out laughing. 

"Were you hoping to scare me away with this little disclosure? You're going to have to do better than that of you plan to give me the brush off. Subtleties don't work on me," she continued to laugh.

He grabbed her then, taking her in his arms and kissing her deeply and murmuring, "You had your chance and didn't take it, now you're stuck with me."

"Until you run away from my crazy family," she grinned and leaned in to kiss him again.

Wrapping his arms around her, he kissed her gently but passionately once again. Kallah wrapped her arms around his shoulders matching his kiss with her own their tongues rolling in a delicious dance with each other. He pressed forward until she lay back on the couch, her head resting on the well-padded arm. Mason kissed down her neck and torso as he unbuttoned her shirt leaning back slightly as he peeled it to the sides revealing a pale pink satin and lace bra holding up her generous breasts.

Manoeuvring his hand beneath her to work at the clasp, he lowered his head to the soft flesh of the tops of her breasts kissing lightly there. The tight band of material holding the bra in place finally came free, and he pushed it up and exposed her chest fully to him. He took his time exploring each nipple, sucking them between his lips into his mouth and rolling his tongue around them sending tendrils of pleasure through Kallah. She closed her eyes and arched her back enjoying the sensation as he lowered his hands to begin to remove her tight pencil skirt without her getting up.




Life Art



Lost in the attention of his skilful hands and mouth Kallah revelled in the feelings he gave her. She felt the snap of a button giving way and the zip of her skirt lowering. She wiggled and manoeuvred at the touch of his hands so that he could move it down her bare legs and discard it. Placing a supportive hand behind her back, Mason pulled her up slightly and kissed her deeply as his free hand removed her shirt and bra and lowered her back to the couch hovering above her still fully dressed.

She moaned softly into his kisses as his hands explored her breasts and body lowering down to the panties she still wore. Her hands tried to lift the shirt he was wearing, so he sat up looking down on her nearly nude body and grinned as he pulled it over his head discarding it to the floor beside them. Remaining sitting he lightly ran his fingers up her ribs and around the swell of her breasts causing her skin to become goose-bumped. Looking up into his eyes Kallah could see the desire in his eyes, and it made her melt inside with the need that rose quickly within her, she reached for him then and he leaned back down to kiss her.

She ran her fingers down over his chest to the belt of his pants, and he rolled them both slightly, so he was lying alongside her on the wide couch. As she fumbled with his belt, his hand dipped under the band of her panties and began to rub gently at the smooth outer lips of her pussy. They continued to kiss as Kallah finally broke through the confines of Mason's pants and began to massage his cock through the soft cotton of his underwear. 

Mason's fingers began to move and press in under the folds of flesh in her pussy. He noted how wet she was from his teasing of her body, her pleasure even more evident to him now than the soft moans and mewling noises she made. He was enjoying this first slow exploration of the girl below him, and he ran his fingers over her swelling clit, smiling at the quiver it elicited in her body. He continued to tease her as her hand moved below the waistband of his underwear to circle his cock and stroke him gently eliciting a low groan of his own.

Kallah moaned and bucked as he left his thumb to rotate and tease at her clit, the fingers of his hand curling around her pussy and pushing one inside. Using their hands alone, each began the rocking, pumping motion of sex until with two fingers crammed into her tight pussy Kallah arch up and back calling out her orgasm to the room and shaking with its impact. 

Mason swallowed her cried with deep soul-searching kisses until she bucked up hard against him, and they fell to the floor below the couch. Grinning having fallen on top of him, Kallah began to follow the path that he had taken on her body. She kissed down his neck as her hands worked his pants down over his hips. She kissed down his chest as he stroked her hair, manoeuvring to kneel beside his legs and pull both his pants and underwear away. He lifted his hips and kicked the pants away as they reached his ankles.

His more than ample cock stood up from his groin proudly, and she reached out fondling gently and guided it to her lips. Surprising him, she did not take it immediately into her mouth but rather extended her tongue and licked from under the head of his cock, down the shaft and over his balls making him groan deeply with pleasure. She repeated the motion in reverse and swirled her tongue around the tip and flutter her eyelashes as she looked up at him. Over and again she teased him until finally she lowered her mouth over his cock and began to suck.

It took only a few minutes before he groaned and pulled her up wrapping his arms around her he rolled her to her back practically tearing her panties from her squirming body. He entered her without preliminaries and began to pound long deep and hard into her willing body. Kallah wrapped her legs up around his hips, overwhelmed by the aggressive passion in his fucking she rocked her hips to meet his thrusts and mewled loudly in pleasure.

"Fuck!" he roared as he came minutes later. Pushing into her harder and harder until he finally collapsed on top of her wrapping his arms around her. She buried her face in his shoulder breathing heavily and holding him tightly as they both came back down to earth. Mason rolled off her to his back letting her breathe again and smiled. 

"Wow," she breathed, "I was beginning to think you didn't want to sleep with me after your reaction to my invitation to dinner on Friday. I guess I got that wrong."

He chuckled and rolled back toward her kissing her deeply, "I've wanted to do that since the first night we met. Speaking of dinner though I am starving, come on let's see what's in the kitchen." Kallah stood and went to gather her panties, but he shook his head, "You may as well get used to being naked at home with me if we are going to be a couple." He grinned at her and raised a questioning eyebrow.

"I can handle it if you can." She replied with a grin to equal his taking the hand he held out to her. She hadn't felt this comfortable and confident with a boyfriend before, and she savoured the feeling at that moment. 

"Wait," Kallah attempted a straight face as she said, "Does this mean we can be facebook official?" Mason groaned and rolled his eyes at her. "I'll take that as a yes," she burst out laughing but continued teasing him. "Well, you being a computer geek and all I thought you would want all your geeky friends to know you have a girlfriend."

"They will make me their king, and then I will have no time to spend with you," he teased her in return.

"Better not then, I don't want to be shelved just yet," she winked.

*****

Kallah and Mason spent the next two weeks in the blissful coupling of new lovers, blocking out the rest of the world in favour of exploring each other. They rarely spent a night at Kallah's small apartment both travelling into work in the city and home again together. It had just been so natural and easy between them that when she had her weekly lunch with her friends and Louise pointed out that she should just move in with him and save the rent on her apartment she had blinked in dumbfounded recognition of the situation.

"You're more than just dating; you're practically joined at the hip," Amber had laughed. "What are you going to do if you get into Lightning Ridge this year? Take him in your luggage?"

"I don't know," she said contemplatively. "I haven't thought about it recently."

"It's a lot of money for art lessons, no matter who they are from, but I don't want you to give up your dreams for a guy," Amber said seriously.

"Don't be silly," Kallah rolled her eyes, "If I got in I would go. Of course, I would. I have wanted to go to Lightning Ridge for forever." She wasn't sure it was as important to her as it had been though. She had barely touched her sketch book or pastels in the last month that she had been seeing Mason.

"When was the last time you worked on anything new, even a sketch?" Donna asked shrewdly seeing Kallah's thoughtful expression.

Kallah looked at her friends and laughed, "Oh my God, is this an intervention?"

"No, but we are your friends. We love that you're happy but just don't lose the real you in favour of becoming us," Donna said.

"No matter how rich or well hung he is," Louise put in with a wink making the other girls laugh. The focus then turned to Louise and her latest conquest but Kallah remained introspective and wondered if she was losing part of herself in her relationship with Mason.

The lunch broke up shortly afterwards, and the women went back to work, Kallah though, spoke to her bosses and went home early. She called Mason and told him that he didn't have to pick her up and that she just wanted a quiet night at home alone to catch up on some stuff she had let slide while she had been spending so much time at his place.

He had sounded confused but agreed that a night to catch up on things was a good idea and said he would call her later. When she got home, she gathered her mail from several days of not being home and put it on the table. Then she went around opening every window in the stale apartment. First things first, she thought and began gathering her laundry and starting to clean the small space. She had never thought about just how small it was before spending so much time at Mason's house, but now as she cleaned she was grateful.

The sun had begun to set. She had the laundry in the drier, and her apartment smelled fresh and inviting for the first time in weeks. She went through her freezer and came up with some frozen leftovers to go with a bottle of wine she had and set them to defrost as she finally sat down with the small bundle of mail. Assuming most would be bills she opened her laptop on the table beside them and opened her online banking. She had barely spent anything in the last two weeks, and her account balance looked quite healthy but she also knew that was about to change. Remembering her father's financial advice about paying herself first, she transferred funds into her Lightning Ridge account. She had saved more than she needed to go, but the extra would come in handy for supplies and assorted other things she was sure. She then began to open her mail and pay the bills.

She pulled out the letters that she knew to be the telephone and electric bills first. Toward the bottom of the stack was a plain white envelope that had been addressed by hand, and she looked at it curiously. She couldn't make out the smudged stamp of the sender on the back of the envelope, so she opened it hurriedly hoping it was her invitation to the summer workshops.

"Dear Miss Kallah Sanders, Due to the overwhelming number of applicants to the Lightning Ridge Summer Workshops this year, we would like to invite you to further your application by attending a weekend life art workshop..."

Kallah squealed with delight, racing through the rest of the letter about dates and how to take up the offer made to her. An email address and invoice accompanied the letter, and she quickly accepted the offer and transferred the application fee, quoting the receipt number for them. Grinning from ear to ear she called Mason to tell him.

"Hey gorgeous, I was just thinking about you," Mason answered.

"I have the best news," she blurted and proceeded to tell him about the weekend workshop.

"That's great," he said but his tone was disapproving.

"I thought you would be happy for me," she accused.

"I am, I said it's great, didn't I?" Mason repeated in the same flat voice.

"Then why are you giving me that tone, Mason?" She was confused by his reaction.

"I just, well... I don't think it's the right sort of workshop for you..." he seemed to be measuring his words, and Kallah lost it.

"What I am not talented enough?" Hurt and anger coloured her voice.

"No, I mean yes, I just well, mum said that Lightning Ridge is just an excuse for old men to take advantage of pretty young protégé's and..." Kallah cut him off.

"So I am not pretty enough?" She accused.

"No, that's not what I said," Mason became frustrated. "I just don't want you to get into a bad scene that's all."

"Well, it's too late I have already accepted and sent of the application fee, so you can like it or lump it," she said angrily.

"You didn't even talk to me about it first?" It was his turn to sound wounded.

"Stupid me, I actually thought you would be happy for me," Kallah was close to tears.

"I am it's just..." he tried without succeeding as she cut him off again.

"Forget it Mason, you obviously don't know me at all if you ever thought I would turn down an opportunity like this," Kallah hung up angrily. "Fuck!" she swore at the empty room, "How could he not understand what this means to me," she picked up the letter and reread it, trying to find the enthusiasm she had before talking to him, but it dissipated completely. Amber was right, she lamented, she had been losing part of herself being so wrapped up in Mason.

Forgetting the food she had been defrosting Kallah poured herself another glass of wine and cleared off the table. Gathering her sketch book and supplies she laid them out on top of her old drop cloth and sat looking at a blank page. "I got in on talent not because some misogynistic pig wants to check out my ass," she said to the page and picked up a soft charcoal.

Kallah lost herself in the feel of the charcoal and the lines it created before being startled by heavy thumping on her door. She tried to ignore it, but it was persistent and finally she got up and opened it a crack.

"Let me in," Mason said softly. "We need to talk about this."

"I think you said it all don't you?" She gave him a flat unfriendly stare.

"You wouldn't let me finish a sentence. Now let me in, please," there was an edge to his voice. Kallah stood back and opened the door wider. "I know this means a lot to you, I'm sorry. The first words I should have said were congratulations, way to go, or something like that but they weren't and I can't take them back, but please let me explain."

"I don't understand why you couldn't just be happy for me. You know how much I want to do this," she said frustration clear in her voice.

"I am happy that you are chasing after the thing you want to do. I love that you have that passion in your life, but life art classes made me worry. I have been around artists and creative people all my life and things aren't always what they seem," he sighed loudly. "That's my baggage, not yours and I am sorry. You will be great, you'll be amazing, I know that. I am happy for you."

"Baggage?" She asked softly.

"Mum and I didn't always get on so well," Mason admitted not elaborating much. He watched Kallah carefully, "I really do care about you, and I just... well I would miss you." his voice faded off again, and he took a step toward her. "I know you're talented," he indicated the pictures on her walls that he knew she had done herself. 

"You said something about Lightning Ridge on the phone, like you didn't approve of me going there," she hadn't quite let go of her anger about the earlier conversation. "I am not some naïve little school girl I know what life art entails, I am not about to be seduced by anyone in an old paint-stained smock."

"Forget I said anything. It's your career, and you should experience all of it, I was just surprised by your call that's all. You sounded strange on the phone this afternoon and then you told me this news, I just... look I am sorry. I should have been supportive not raining on your parade," Mason apologised again.

"I'm sorry too," Kallah finally gave in, "I haven't had a boyfriend quite like you. Most of the guys I have dated would have been planning a macho bonding weekend with their mates by now."

"Well, that is on my to-do list for tomorrow," he smirked at her. "Right after you tell me when this wonderful weekend begins, and we have the obligatory makeup sex." 

"Not so fast," Kallah laughed and stepped back. "This was supposed to be my night to catch up on things, without distractions."

"I won't distract you much," he grinned and took another step toward her.

"You're already distracting me," she reached out and put a hand on his chest. "I can't think straight when you're around," she shook her head and gave a girlish giggle instantly regretting it as his arms wrapped around her and pulled her close to his body.

"No one has ever fit so perfectly in my arms," he murmured into her hair. If he was honest with himself, he had already fallen in love with her and the thought of losing her over this had felt like a stabbing pain in his chest. Her smile though and more so her giggle had lifted that weight and pain and he found him letting the tension subside as he held her to him. "I need to know we're good," he whispered looking down into her eyes.

"We're fine," she laughed. "It may not have been entirely your fault," she admitted thinking about the lunch that day and why she had come home to be alone. Mason looked at her curiously, and she explained about how she had felt after lunch with the girls and her worry that she was losing an important piece of herself.

"Why didn't you say something, if you felt that way?" he asked softly.

"I guess I didn't realise until it was pointed out. I love being with you, but we have been so wrapped up in each other that the things I would normally make time for I just haven't," she said. "It's not anyone's fault it's just what happened and then I got the letter and you seemed so against me going and doing the weekend down there... I guess I just felt... all wrong." Mason picked her up and sat them both on the couch, kissing her deeply.

"I would never make you choose, and I am so sorry you felt that," he sighed and held her hands in his. "I guess it's my turn to explain properly." He gave a lop-sided smile. "My parents had one of those truly, madly, deeply loves. It was ferocious in its highs and its rocky lows, and as I grew up, I saw how much my Dad compromised for her. I resented her a lot for her erratic moods and locking herself away with her art. For the dramatic tantrums and fights that occurred. It wasn't until after he passed that I began to have an inkling of just how much she had given up for him, or put up with from him."

"They met through my Uncle Paul; he had always been big on the art scene and discovered my mother's talent when she was still in school. They had a brief affair and then she met my Dad. It was the seventies, you know free love, sex drugs and hard rock. Paul never let that sort of life-style go, he is what I would describe as the epitome of a dirty old man; though he would probably prefer the term lothario." He could see her trying to make sense of what he was trying to say. 

"I know I am saying this the wrong way, but a visit from Uncle Paul and his cronies was always a catalyst to a huge fight between my parents. Mum was always a bit of a free spirit, and Dad had always tried to dampen that side of her nature, keeping her to himself out in the country away from her friends in the art world. It wasn't ever overt or mean it is just what happened," he shrugged. "I would never want to do that to you, I promise but onto the point of my story."

"Whenever Mum felt the need to escape she would run to Paul, and whatever artist commune he had to go to at that time. She was deemed too old for him by then probably. He likes his artists and models young and nubile by all accounts. They remained close though, and he always welcomed her with open arms. He eventually settled down and opened a permanent art colony of sorts. He got funding from the Arts Council to hold workshops twice a year and invited his friends to run the workshops. In reality though the artists and Paul himself chose young, good-looking people to attend along-side would be lovers and the whole thing usually dissolved into some sort of orgy by the end."

"And you think if I go to a summer workshop for artists it's going to be like that? You think I am so easily influenced into sex, drugs and whatever else you think goes on at these things? Lightning Ridge has a great reputation, nothing like that goes on there," she shook her head, "and if it did I am a big enough girl to just say no."

"Firstly, yes. I know you are very well equipped to look after yourself, I am not saying that," he said carefully.

"Then what are you saying?" She was becoming angry and frustrated again. 

"I just don't want you to find yourself in a compromising position, because you have ingested something you weren't aware of," he tried to put it delicately.

"Lightning Ridge has a great reputation, you're worrying about nothing," she tried to calm her feelings more than his. "Have a little faith in me."

"I do, I will, I just wanted to explain my initial reaction," he gave up stopping short of telling her explicitly that Paul Vaughn, the director of the Lightning Ridge workshops, was his uncle. She would find out for herself soon enough. "I'm sorry I over-reacted, I had thought that if you didn't get in again this year I could ask Mum and her friends to give you a Master class in what you wanted to do."




Life Art



"I want to go to the workshop because I am good enough to get in on talent, not because my boyfriend nagged his mother into putting on a workshop for me," she shook her head disappointedly. "Why would you do that?" her voice was scornful and accusing, "You just assumed I wouldn't get in?"

"I didn't mean it like that, shit, I am just trying to help you because I love you, and you keep on throwing it back at me like an insult. I can't believe I told you all that stuff, and you are still acting like the wounded party here. I give up. I've apologised and explained, and you haven't listened to anything I said properly. Maybe you were right... Fuck it, just forget it. I'm done," For the first time in years he had lost his temper with a girlfriend, "You're good enough. I know it. Your friends know it. You just have to believe it. You don't need validation from some horny old prick to make it so. You don't need validation from anyone if it's what you truly love to do!" He got up and walked to the door. 

"You couldn't even see what I was trying to tell you. Call me if you ever work it out," he left leaving her speechless with tears in her eyes.

"I love you too," she whispered at the closed door.

*****

Kallah hadn't called him the following two days. Instead, she had dragged herself through her work days and poured her misery into her art. She missed his presence in her daily life, but she didn't want to give up her dream of going to Lightning Ridge either. He hadn't exactly said, don't go, but he may as well have with his long story and worries about it. She could look after herself; she didn't need him watching over her and telling her what to do. 

He had said he loved her, and she believed she loved him but, she wanted to go, and she wanted him to be happy about it and she knew he never could be. Her mind flipped between missing him and acknowledging that she did indeed love him, to righteous indignation that he more or less said that she had been offered the weekend workshop because she you young and pretty rather than because of her talent. She was miserable, and she lay in bed late on Saturday morning replaying their fight in her mind again and trying to convince herself that it was for the best she found out how he really felt before it went any further.

She heard her door open and sat up bolt upright in bed, relaxing only as she heard Amber call out, "Tell me you aren't still in bed, it's almost lunchtime for God's sake." Kallah groaned and pulled the blankets up over her head. She could hear Amber rustling about in the other room, and she finally got up and walked out with a scowl on her face. 

"This is a bit more of Mason than I ever expected to see," Amber held up a pastel chalk drawing that Kallah had spent the night working on. "It seems he has more assets than I thought or did you take artistic licence with that part of his anatomy." 

"Jealous?" Kallah growled snatching the picture from Amber's hand.

"Not at all, a bit miffed that you didn't call me and tell me something was up though," she turned and took in the mess around her. "He isn't faring much better. He has been positively awful at work. So spill it," she commanded, "You know you want to tell me, may as well get it out of the way."

Kallah let everything out, coming home early after their lunch on Wednesday, finding the letter and her excitement, his reaction and her hanging up on him. Amber just let her talk it out as it ran through her mind. She heard about the uncle and story of his parents that seemed somehow disjointed from the rest of the story.

"Then he said he loved me, and if I ever worked out what he was saying to call him. I am not stupid I can see he was telling me not to go without saying it outright. It was just so weird, he said he was sorry and to go, and then he would warn me about... urg, it doesn't matter I am going. I accepted and paid the fee for the weekend workshop."

"Have you still got the letter?" Amber asked suddenly.

"Of course and an email acknowledging my acceptance and placement in the workshop," Kallah got up and rifled through a basket of mail to locate the letter, "See it's all official or are you going to tell me I am not talented enough to get in as well."

"Did he ever actually say that? Or is that your interpretation?" She looked at the letter and narrowed her eyes at Kallah, "You know you do that a lot assume you know what people are saying and not listen to anything they really are saying. I asked to see the letter not because I don't believe you got in, not because I don't think you have enough talent but because of this," she pointed at the signature on the bottom.

"Now I only got your side of the story and didn't hear all the details I am sure he gave you but it didn't take a genius to work out that his uncles orgy-fest was, in fact, at Lightning Ridge. Why else would he have reacted like that, why else would he have continued to try and warn you after apologising and trying to make it better? If he didn't care so much about you, he would have just let you go and find out for yourself rather than risk another argument."

Kallah stared at the bottom of the letter,  Paul Vaughn, Arts Council Chairman, Lightning Ridge. "His last name isn't Vaughn its Bell," she said knowing as she said it that it was a weak argument.

"For such a smart girl, sometimes you can be remarkably dumb," Amber shook her head. "The first thing you thought of when I asked for the letter was that I didn't believe you got into that school. When have I ever doubted that you would eventually? I may not have liked the amount of money it cost, but I never doubted you would. I didn't deserve that, and if you were that quick to judge Mason, I guess he didn't deserve a lot of the things you said to him either."

"Well, it's too late now I should have called him but I didn't because I didn't understand. He should have just told me, not given me a long winded story," she clung to the last shreds of righteousness she could. "I'm still going," she straightened her shoulders, "I can look after myself, I am not that dumb and naive."

"Right at this moment I am finding that hard to believe," Amber gave her a hard look. "Now the only way I will be happy about you going is if he goes with you, so find your phone and call him and tell him what a dumb ass you have been."

"I can't, I just..." Kallah looked lost, "I've left it too late."

"It's never too late. You obviously love him," she indicated the pictures and sketches littering the room, "He has said as much to you. What's your problem? Why can't you admit you were wrong and say that you're sorry?"

"I don't know what to say," she admitted.

"Be a grown up for once and just be honest. You're not at school anymore Kallah. You can't be the over-emotional drama queen anymore. What's the worst that can happen?" Amber began searching the counter top and table for Kallah's phone.

"He can tell me I am too high maintenance and to leave him alone," Kallah finally admitted to herself that she didn't want it to be over. Lying in bed that morning she had still allowed her assumptions to feed the hurt she felt and convince herself that she was better off moving on. Here with Amber as the voice of reason though, she knew she loved him and wanted to work it all out with him.

"I sincerely doubt that will happen. He has been such a sad sack the last two days at work." Amber encouraged her. "Now where is your phone."

"I have it on charge, what about all that stuff you and Louise said at lunch about giving up my dreams for someone else," Kallah said plaintively.

"He's proven the opposite hasn't he. He said he would ask his mother to organise a master class for you if you wanted it so badly," Amber called after her, "Or are you worried that you aren't good enough and trying to blame everyone else for your insecurities?"

"I am good enough I am going to this weekend workshop aren't I?" Kallah shouted angrily.

"Then stop worrying what everyone else thinks and do what you need to do for god's sake. If I listened to everyone else I never would have married Bryan, and that's the best thing I ever did," Amber shouted back at her. "At least you won't have that problem if mother ever meets Mason, shit, he will be treated like royalty." She rolled her eyes dramatically.

"Now who's being a drama queen," Kallah said scornfully. "Everyone loves Bryan."

"Yeah now, but it wasn't always that way," she smiled lopsidedly. "Honey isn't better that we care too much than not care at all. No one wants to stop you following your dreams, but it wouldn't hurt to listen to some advice now and then instead of taking it all as criticism." She hugged Kallah and looked at her seriously, "Call him, you know you have to, if only to apologise for not hearing what he was trying to tell you, because you were too wrapped up in what you wanted to do."

"Couldn't I just text him?" Kallah delayed.

"I give up," Amber fished in her bag and pressed a few buttons, "Hi Mason? Yeah, it's Amber; Kallah wants to apologise for being a dumbass, hang on," she held out the phone to Kallah who gave her a murderous look while taking the phone.

"Hi, I understand now," she said quietly shaking her head at Amber's frown of disapproval. 

"That's not an apology but I will let you get away with it as long as there is great makeup sex coming my way." Kallah could hear the amusement in Mason's voice and smiled. She should have known he would make it easy for her, but she had to tell him what was on her mind first.

"Well, that depends on how you react to the fact that I am still going. I will just be careful and more aware than I might have otherwise been thanks to you," she blurted quickly and held her breath.

"I knew you would still be going. All I wanted was for you to know what you were going to, I didn't want you to get in a bad scene," he said seriously.

"I realise that now," she admitted. "Amber had to take a bludgeon to my ego for a little while for it to sink in, but I get it. I understand what you were saying," she let herself smile.

"I'll be over soon so you can to make it up to me?" he said in a low voice.

"Yes," she giggled, "Just give me time to get rid of Amber and cleanup a little."

"Okay, I will count to ten and then I will leave," he laughed and hung up.

"I guess he is on his way over," Kallah couldn't keep the smile from her face.

"Now thank me and ask me nicely to help you clean up this mess," Amber smirked holding up the nude Kallah had drawn of Mason. "I am not sure he would like me to have seen this."

"I somehow doubt he is that shy," Kallah laughed but began gathering things and stacking them on the table with her art supplies. After a several minutes cleaning she suddenly realised how she looked and gave a cry of dismay, making Amber look up at her.

"I look dreadful. I can't do this now," panic began to rise in her voice.

"Go shower, I'll just clean these few cups and straighten up the last little bits," Amber offered.

"Thank you Amber," Kallah ran her hands through her tangled hair, "For everything."

"You're welcome, but one day you will have to put aside that stubborn pride of yours and admit you were wrong on your own," she laughed.

"I know but until then I have you right?" She hugged the best friend she had ever had, grinned and scooted off to the shower.

"For now," Amber called after her.

Kallah stopped briefly in her bedroom and pulled the bed together and rushed about picking up clothes from the floor. Finally satisfied, though not happy, she stepped into the shower, leaning forward, her hands pressed against the front wall of the cubicle. She closed her eyes letting the hot water cascade down over her head and body.

She heard the shuffle of the shower curtain and felt the presence of someone beside her, watching her. "Good morning," Mason said. "It just so happens that I was on my way over here when you called," She could hear the amusement in his voice without looking up. "Amber is letting herself out."

"Morning," she replied, hearing the rustle of his clothes as he began to disrobe. She still had not looked up at him feeling guilty for their argument after her talk with Amber. "I'll be out in a minute," she mumbled the cascading water taking her voice with it.

"That's okay I will join you. It's perfect finding you all wet and waiting for me," he chuckled. "This is a wonderful way to start making it up to me," he slid in behind her, "Just stay right where you are." Kallah felt the familiar excited butterflies fill her belly as he stood close without touching her.

Moments later she felt his hands on her head, massaging her scalp and temples. He was right behind her, their bodies barely touching. He reached up and unhooked the showerhead, so it dangled on its hose, spraying into the bottom of the cubicle. He took her shampoo and began to lather up her hair, massaging her head again again. She murmured appreciatively.

He first massaged the shampoo into the top of her head, then, with both hands on either side of her head; he massaged back from her temples, behind her ears and down to her neck. He worked his hands back up to her temples, retracing the same route. He reached for the showerhead. Holding it in one hand, he used the other gently to massage and rinse the shampoo from her hair. Once the last of the lather slid down the drain, he turned the streaming hot water on her body.

He aimed the hot water at the base of her neck, and then he swept it from left to right then back again, working slowly out over each arm then back to her neck. He started down her back, lower and lower with each pass. Her eyes still shut; she concentrated on the hot water splashing and streaming down her body, shoulder blades first, then middle back and finally her lower back. It was like a deep massage for her.

He had concentrated on her lower back for a few moments before he resumed his spraying back and forth again down over her ass, across the backs of her thighs and calves, down to her feet. Alternating again, he applied the hot water to her calves, thighs and ass once more in sweeping strokes, standing up as he did finally to redo her back. The water stopped and was once more spraying the bottom of the cubicle. Her skin felt alive, and her body tingled with pleasure. The soft, clean smell of soap reached her as he began to lather up a washcloth. He began to bathe her, starting with her right arm, which, along with her left, remained firmly on the front wall of the shower. 

He rubbed the soapy cloth up her arm to her shoulder then kneaded it back down to her hand, completely covering her arm in rich, aromatic suds. He repeated this on her left arm and then concentrated on her neck and back. She felt the soft cloth slide back and forth over her shoulders; his fingers following close behind, massaging and rubbing, releasing her tension. She tilted her head back slightly, breathing deeply, her mind following the washcloth lower and lower on her back, accompanied by his dancing fingers. He began to knead and massage her ass as he continued his journey toward her feet. He treated each leg individually, the top of her thigh, then behind her knee, lower to her calf and finally her ankle, then starting at the other ankle, all the way up to the top of her thigh. 

Her body was awake and alive, and finally, she stood at his prompting to face him, following his instructions to keep her eyes closed. Not being able to see him she focused instead on the hot steam, the aroma of the soap and the feel of his hands on her body. She felt his hand on her face tracing her eyes and nose, then her cheekbones, lips and chin. The soft cloth continued to apply the lather in small circles over her face, until he tilted her head back, and gently wiped the cloth over the delicate lines of her neck. With the utmost care, he rinsed the soapy film from her face and neck before moving on.

He was mapping her body, seeking out every nuance and curve, watching the way the water and soapy bubbles cascaded down her body. His hands and the cloth went then to her chest, just above her breasts, making long strokes back and forth from the shoulder to shoulder. He held the cloth in the middle of her chest just above her breasts and squeezed it, releasing a rich stream of soapsuds. He watched as the suds slid between her breasts, traveling slowly at first, gravity adding speed. They slithered down her stomach, just to the left of her navel, hitting the top of her thigh. There the suds slipped between her legs and travelled the rest of the way to the floor on the inside of her left leg.

He squeezed the cloth again, this time over each breast, depositing a healthy dollop of suds. She felt his hand delicately spread the suds out, his fingers dancing around her erect nipples massaging her breasts. Her body was tingling again but along with a noticeable quiver now. He spent some time enjoying the feel of the firm mounds of flesh and the hard nubs that almost begged for his touch. He heard her small whimper when he took his hands way making him smile.

He lathered the washcloth once more and returned to her body, starting just below her breasts on the top of her stomach. He washed in circles, around and around, feeling her feminine contours and working his way down, his free hand following close behind. The lower he got on her stomach, the smaller the circles he made. Her breath was beginning to shorten as he neared her pussy, the anticipation starting to take over. He reached her abdomen, just above her pussy, and then he stopped, eliciting another small whimper. 

Her eyes flickered and looked into his face for a moment before he shook his head, "Not yet, close your eyes and relax," he said in a low seductive voice which only made her hotter. 

He switched to her left thigh, starting high on her leg, washing up and down from the top to her knee on the outside working in, his freehand mirroring the washcloth. As he neared her inner thigh, she involuntarily opened her legs, her pussy already beginning to throb. The cloth slid up and down, barely brushing against her lips before sliding back down to her knee. He moved down to her calf, her body aching, wanting more. He bathed her calf and then washed her ankle. 

She steadied herself with a hand on his shoulder as he picked up her foot and massaged and bathed it. He splashed water on it to rinse off the soap to avoid her slipping. Still steadying herself, she lifted her right foot so that he could begin his soapy ascent up her right leg. He lathered up her calf, working his way toward her thigh. He started on the outside once more, long strokes from her knee to the top of her thigh. She opened her legs more as the cloth rode up and down her inner thigh, just brushing her soft pussy lips. 

Her eyes still closed she felt him standing in front of her. He placed the washcloth just above her pussy and with simple wrist movements he began to wash her pussy, sliding the cloth deep between her legs then back up to her lower stomach. She felt herself rocking her hips opposite to the motion of the cloth, rubbing hard against his hand as he moved back and forth and then he stopped. Her knees buckled a little when he removed his hand; she had been pressing into it so hard in her need. 

She stood there waiting, breathing hard and then she felt the soft hot spray of the shower on her chest. He rinsed her off, spraying back and forth, the water and soap cascading down her body, heading to the drain. He rinsed each breast individually his freehand caressing and playing. She felt his mouth intermittently covering each nipple, licking and sucking them, sending tingling chills up her spine. He sprayed and rinsed her stomach, pausing briefly over her pussy before continuing over the tops of her thighs, down her legs to her feet. 




Life Art



Breathing heavily, she turned and braced herself once more against the front wall of the shower, her body aching and beginning to quiver in heat and expectation. She felt the spray on her neck and shoulders sending hot water tracing down her back in streams. He sprayed slowly back and forth, rinsing the soap from her back, then down over her ass, rinsing and massaging each cheek with his freehand. He rinsed each leg in succession, from the top of the thigh to her feet. 

He let the showerhead dangle as he touched her hips, pulling her back from the wall. She slowly bent at the waist, still bracing herself against the front wall with her hands. He touched his hands on her inner thighs, and she spread her legs wide for him, arching her back. He picked up the showerhead and directed the spray at the small of her back, holding it there momentarily, before drawing a line directly between her cheeks, and over her ass until it sprayed only on her pussy. She pushed her hips back toward the spray and felt his finger find her clit, massaging small circles on it. She felt the hot water pouring into her as he held the showerhead close and the water almost filled her up. She pushed back harder against it and then it was gone. 

He replaced the showerhead in its cradle above her, directing the hot spray at the small of her back. Her eyes still closed she felt a light tapping on her pussy. She knew it was the tip of his cock. He traced her lips with his cock, feeling the water pour off her ass and splash on him. He rubbed the tip up and down the groove between her swollen lips. She felt this and immediately pressed back, taking him deep inside her, squeezing down hard on him. He grabbed her hips and started to pump his cock hard and deep inside her. She met each one of his thrusts by pushing back hard, feeling his cock drive deep inside her pussy while the hot water rained on the small of her back. 

Harder and faster, he pumped into her, the sweet smell of soap lingering in the air. Her pussy on fire and nipples aching for attention, she used the inner muscles of her pussy to grip his cock with each thrust. He reached for her shoulders for more advantage and drove his throbbing cock harder and deeper inside her as he come close to the edge. A few more deep thrusts and then he held his cock inside her, pulsing as he shot hot streams to mix with her cum. 

Kallah pushed back to him, her pussy contracting as she came with him, the hot pulsing water still hitting her back sending water cascading over her ass and his cock and balls. She used the wall to keep on her feet as her legs shook and eventually, she turned and faced him, opening her eyes properly for the first time. She fell into his arms, the water splashing in her hair. They kissed deeply as he held her tight to his body. 

When they released, he smiled at her and said "I've missed you." 

She kissed him again and grinned, "This make-up sex thing is amazing, what can we argue about next." He smacked her ass, it sounding loud in the small cubicle and she squealed more out of surprise than any sort of pain.

"Nothing at all," Mason said softly and bent his head to kiss her again.

*****

Over the following weeks, Mason and Kallah made an effort to give each other the space to pursue the things they liked both together and individually. They met each other's friends properly and became overall less insular while falling for each other more deeply. 

The weekend workshop at Lightning Ridge was less than a week away when they arrived home to Mason's house after work to find a small party in full swing out on the back deck over-looking the river.

"Darling," a big breasted semi-naked woman cried out approaching Mason her arms wide.

"Mum, you should have let me know you were coming?" Mason embraced the woman as Kallah, and the other members of the party looked on.

"What and ruin the surprise?" Patrice gave a full-bodied laugh, "You would never have let me meet this beautiful creature I have heard so much about." She released Mason and pulled Kallah into a close embrace. "It's wonderful to finally meet you," she grinned releasing her.

"Nice to meet you too," Kallah blushed at being hugged so tightly by a practically nude woman. The half a dozen people on the deck, laughing and sipping a sunset coloured cocktail, were all topless and had thin colourful swathes of material tied about their waists haphazardly.

"Why don't you kids go and get comfortable and I will pour you a drink," Patrice suggested, "Then you can tell me why my son has been hiding you from us all."

"It's not as if you live just around the corner mum," Mason rolled his eyes.

"That could be arranged you know," She smiled wickedly.

"Let's go get changed before she decides to move in here instead," he shook his head and steered Kallah away from the festive little group while his mother laughed merrily and returned to her friends outside on the deck.

"At least they tried to cover up a little for your benefit," Mason grinned.

"Lucky you warned me, or I might have done more than blush when she hugged me," she gave a soft laugh, "But when in Rome..."

Mason looked at her with a raised eyebrow as they walked into the bedroom, "You know you can stay fully dressed," He said softly, "Just because they don't, doesn't mean you can't wear a kaftan or something equally covering." 

"After all these weeks of keeping me nude when I am here, and now you tell me I can wear a kaftan?" she smirked at him.

"Not around me!" he amended quickly, "It's never worried me before, but I just feel like I want to keep you to myself for a while longer." He tried to explain. 

"That's all you had to say," she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. His words touched her. They were still figuring each other out, and it was hard to include other people in their world at times. "I don't know about a kaftan but I think my sarong will work and keep you happy at the same time." 

"Remind me to buy you a kaftan tomorrow," he laughed and released her. "Do me a favour?" He asked tentatively making her frown at him.

"Don't mention Lightning Ridge to Mum or her friends. She tends to interfere sometimes, and if you want to do this on your merit and talent, I don't want her to ruin it for you. She won't mean to but..." he shrugged, "I just don't want another misunderstanding."

"Thank you for telling me," She said softly knowing that he still wasn't happy that she was going but not standing in her way. "I won't mention it." She finished wrapping the colourful sarong around her body and tying it in place. Mason had stripped down to his boxers and had stood back to watch Kallah dress.

"You look great," he smiled and swept her into his arms. "Don't get too carried away with that mob though, we both have to go to work tomorrow." He kissed her and smiled, "Now brace yourself." They walked back through the house noting the mess in the kitchen before heading out onto the wide deck.

"Darlings," Patrice greeted them enthusiastically, "Come, come, grab a drink and get comfy so we can grill you." She winked at Kallah as Mason groaned audibly. "You had to know once your cousin met her, that I would be here to see who has been keeping you so busy and by the looks of things happy."

"We've met before," Kallah said taking a drink and moving towards the small group seated on comfortable padded chairs. "I attended a talk you gave to a group of ravenous art school students a few years ago. We spoke after it for a little bit. I was never a sculptor though. I would rather have a blank page to fill than try and get a block of stone or wood to talk to me," she laughed.

"Here, here," a middle-aged man in the party joined the conversation, "I'm David," he leaned forward to take her hand and brought it to his lips. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Stop flirting with my girlfriend Uncle Dave," Mason rolled his eyes.

"A little bit of competition never hurt anyone," David grinned at Kallah who couldn't help but giggle. "These sculptors can be such temperamental people. I'm a much safer bet." Recognition flared in Kallah's mind. She was sitting with David Fielding, and she froze momentarily unsure of what to say and not wanting to come across as a gushing fan of his work. 

"I saw some of your Golden Wattle series recently, but I have always preferred the Music and Angels series," she smiled in acknowledgement of his talent, "They must be amazing in reality I haven't ever made it to see an event featuring them."

"Get Mason to bring you down anytime. I have some that I didn't sell in the collection," he seemed pleased that she had recognised him and knew his work.

Each of the other four members of the party was an artist of some reputation though none as great in Kallah's eyes as David Fielding, and she sat back enjoying their company and sipping on the strong cocktail. She talked about working as an assistant researcher in an auction house and that she specialised in Antipodean and The Angry Penguin artistic movements.

This information was greeted with murmurs of appreciation from the group who then got into a debate over the original ideologies of the Antipodes. The artist who formed the movement did so to protest abstract expressionism extolling the virtues of figurative art and members of David Fielding's family numbered amongst them, so in the end they all deferred somewhat grudgingly to him. 

"So do you dabble yourself in the creation of art or are you more of a connoisseur like most art historians?" Dorothea Blackman asked Kallah.

"I dabble a bit, I like charcoals and chalky pastels mostly but occasionally I take on the oils and canvas when I have time," she smiled. "I thought I might do that next time I have a break from work."

"Good, don't waste your talent like that one," she gave a nod of her head towards Mason. Kallah was surprised by her words but said nothing, instead looking back into the kitchen where Mason stood deep in conversation with his mother and Brandon Smith while they prepared some food for the evening meal. "Now Annabeth, on the other hand, wanted nothing more than to be an artist like her Aunty Pat but just didn't have the talent. It's such a shame really."

Kallah liked Mason's flamboyant cousin Annabeth. To call Annabeth eccentric was to understate it, she owned a gallery they had visited for a show within the first weeks of dating and had since met up with her and her partner for dinner. She smiled at Dorothea, throughout the whole evening, Kallah never gave much thought to the fact that the four older women remained topless, and all six of the group wore only small swathes of material that barely covered their genitals and asses. It was only as Dorothea spilled a little of her drink and mopped her naked breasts with a napkin that Kallah came back to reality.

It was very late by that time she felt the first stirrings of fatigue and yawned discretely. She wasn't discreet enough though, and Mason appeared beside her, wishing them all a merry night and took Kallah to bed.

"I kept waiting for the grilling," Kallah laughed, "but they were all lovely, especially your mum."

"Of course, they were; they kept you busy while they grilled me," he chuckled and rolled into bed taking her in his arms.

"Aunty Dot distracted me by telling me you were wasting your talent, I didn't know you were an artist," she said softly.

"That's because I'm not. I'm a computer programmer. You know how family is, they think everything you do is wonderful," his hands stroked down her sides and back.

"Not my family," she grumbled then amended by saying, "Except Amber."

"So when do I get to meet this family of yours? You have met mine now," He said softly knowing she was not fond of her parents.

"I guess when I get back after the weekend," she said reluctantly, "or when we have time after that." She gave herself a loophole. Mason kissed her then, deeply and passionately, but she put her hand on his chest and broke the kiss, "We can't not with all of them out there," her eyes were wide. 

"Sure we can," he lifted her leg up over his hip so she could feel his erection between her legs.

"No, I really can't it's all I can think about, yuck," she pulled a face even though she knew he would barely see it.

"Fine but I am not going to pretend to be happy about it," Mason cuddled her close and gave a small chuckle, "You'll have to make it up to me."

"Again!" she feigned reluctance but she knew it was always as pleasurable for her if not more so when she had to make something up to him.

The following morning the house was eerily quiet. Kallah wasn't sure where they had all slept or who shared what rooms, but she tried not to think about it as they quietly stole out of the house. The went to have an early breakfast at the Coffee Club before going into work.

Mason took a half day at work and worked from home the rest of the week. Intrigued Amber called Kallah and fished for information about this sudden visit from his mother. They decided to go for lunch even though their weekly lunch with the girls wasn't until the next day.

They had been chatting and eating for some time when Amber said, "Tell me, is she really as crazy as Mason makes her out to be?"

"Gosh no, she's and her friends are just enjoying life. They certainly have some alternative ways but all in all; they are great people," Kallah enthused.

"Alternative how?" Amber pressed.

"Well, they believe clothes should be optional for a start," Kallah whispered.

"Ew, wrinkly old people in the nude?" Amber pulled a face.

"It's not as bad as that," Kallah said without thinking about it, "You don't even notice it after the first initial shock."

"You got naked with them!" Amber laughed loudly drawing attention to their table.

"No, I wore a sarong," Kallah blushed deeply.

"Oh my god, you have to invite me over," Amber exclaimed, "This is too fabulous."

"It's not my house or my family to do any inviting," Kallah grimaced.

"Oh, come on," Amber looked unhappy. 

"I'll talk to Mason," she said around a mouthful of pasta. "I'm not sure how he would feel about it."

"You talk to Mason tonight suggest a barbeque or something, a dinner out at a restaurant, I don't care I just really want to meet them," Amber pushed again.

"Fine but I doubt he will say yes," Kallah said and changed the topic. "Is Bryan finished looking at my old car?"

"Yeah, he says it will be good to go Friday morning he just has to replace the filter or something," Amber said not liking the change in conversation. "I know it's only a weekend but you will be careful out there won't you?"

"Of course," her phone rang and she grimaced and checked her watch. "Sure I will be back in five, I am sorry I just lost track of time, I was having lunch with a prospective buyer who... Yes I am on my way." She hung up and looked at Amber in panic, "They're at work!"

"Mason's mother?" Amber asked incredulously.

"Yes and asking for me by name," she groaned.

The two women grabbed their bags and hurried out of the restaurant and practically ran the block and a half back to the auction house. Kallah stopped at the doorway and looked at Amber, "Why are you here?"

"You had lunch with a buyer dumb ass; it's why you're late remember, duh!" She laughed and followed Kallah through the door.

"They walked into the floor room manager's office together and Kallah smiled, "I wasn't expecting to see you today," she walked forward and kissed Patrice's cheek and then David's. "Mason never said a word."

"Oh, he is busy working on a project. It's good to see him being creative again. He probably won't even notice we've left," Patrice laughed softly. "Now Darling when you told us about your work here, and your specialty in Antipodean art David thought it might be time to get some of his father's stuff appraised. It's just sitting around gathering dust in his storage room," she shook her head, "Such a waste when art like that needs to be looked at and appreciated."

"Wow really? I would love to see them, I mean if you give me the opportunity to appraise them for the auction house," she amended realising Geoffrey Andrews the manager was watching her closely.

"That's why I am here to see if they will let you visit me to appraise them rather than me having to box everything up and freight it here," David said. "I had Hermia email me through a few photos of some of the ones I have lying around. She's a bit excited that I am thinking about making some room in the old shack."

Kallah approached the desk where he had arranged the photos for her. Amber took the opportunity to introduce herself to Patrice, "Hello, I'm Amber," she said in a friendly tone.

"Hello Darling, are you a friend of Kallah's?" Patrice shook her hand warmly.

"Yeah, I have known her for a long time now. I know Mason too, I work with him," Amber laughed, "I introduced the two of them."

"Oh, well you're the one to thank then. I haven't seen Mason quite so happy in a long time," Patrice said quietly, a smile lightening her face." He has even started a project for the first time since he was a boy."

"He is working on a few projects for work from home, but I am not sure any of those is his, per se," Amber seemed confused.

"Oh no, a sculpture, he works in wood, says it feels alive under his hands. He never like the stone I work with, complains it is too cold and hard," she laughed, "I like it that way, like it's a frozen moment in time that I am creating."

"I didn't know he was a sculptor," Amber said confused.

"More of a carver but he's very good. He just hasn't shown any interest until..." she looked over at Kallah. 

"I don't think even Kallah knows that. Or if she does she didn't tell me, and she tells me everything," Amber frowned. "She is quite good too. She had an invitation to some workshop out at Lightning Ridge that's apparently extremely hard to get into." 

"Well, well, they didn't tell me that," Patrice's whole demeanour changed as she said, "I guess we all have out little secrets, the question is why?"

"So darling, what do you think, would you like to travel back with us on Friday? David lives quite close to our little farm," Patrice said walking over to the desk. 

"I can't this weekend I am sorry I am going to a wo... world away. I can't change the booking sorry, but next week sometime or the following weekend, I could come with Mason maybe," she offered helpfully.

Amber realised as Kallah stumbled over her words that she had said the wrong thing. They didn't want Patrice to know possibly because of Paul Vaughn and what Mason had said about his workshops. She looked at her watch and grimaced; she had to get back to work.

"I'm sorry I have to get back to work, call me Kallah," she said giving her a strained look before turning to Patrice, "It was lovely to meet you I am sure we will see each other again. Sorry to interrupt your meeting Mr Andrews, I only came to make sure she wasn't in trouble for my delaying her over lunch, and I am sure had we met it would be a pleasure." Amber smiled at David.

"Good to see you again Amber," Geoffrey nodded at her. As soon as she got outside she sent Kallah and Mason a text message confessing her disclosure. "I am not sure why you didn't tell her, and I didn't realise it was a secret, but Patrice knows Kallah is going to Lightning Ridge, so sorry."

"Shit!" Mason cursed loudly and stormed out of his makeshift studio in an old garage back into the house. He stared at his guests narrowing his eyes. "You couldn't have stopped her just this once?" Mason shouted at the startled faces that looked back at him once he had looked around and confirmed that his mother and David were both missing.

He picked up his phone and called his mother, infuriatingly she did not pick up. He called Kallah's phone letting it ring out twice before she picked up on his third call. "Hey Gorgeous," he said as she answered controlling the anger he felt. "I need to speak to mum urgently, and she isn't answering her phone, is she still there?" He waited as Kallah passed over her phone and heard his mother's uncertain greeting. 




Life as a Bitch



There were certain things in life that seemed to have a strange effect on those who were aware of their existence and importance, but at the same time not actually required to come into contact with them on a daily basis and the New York subway system was without doubt one of them. It had only been a few days since Ellie had read an article on the subject written by a journalist from back home, stopping over in the city before hopping onto a plane back across the Atlantic. The woman had somehow managed to stumble upon a fairy tale version of the subway that she described as a place where the highest and lowest of New York society rubbed shoulders because of a shared need to travel from one side of the city to the other. For her it had been a fascinating place which put on show the strata of different folk who lived on the same island and would never otherwise have come into contact with one another.

Ellie liked to think that the woman would have had a more cynical view of the place if she had to ride the subway twice daily and endure the unique torture that it was capable of throwing up on a regular basis.

She had often wondered if there was a particular breed of mental degenerate that actually lived on the subway full time, slowly evolving into a unique subspecies of humanity that never left the tunnels and gave up on the light of day. But perhaps it was more believable that such people were in fact in the pay of the authorities responsible for the subway, hired as a secret army of repulsive specimens with the sole purpose of making sure that no one wanted to hang around longer than they had to and so see the decay that was evident beneath the streets and lodge an irritating complaint.

Ellie could almost handle the ranters and the ravers.

The fumblers and flashers were worse, but there was always the chance of escape at the next station.

But it was the silent and the sinister that really made her flesh crawl.

Those individuals with whom she was hard pressed to define the quality that marked them as unnerving rather than simply odd in an innocent manner. They seldom said or did anything that could have been singled out as definitive proof of their status as a weirdo, but they were always there, giving her that uncomfortable feeling that she was being watched for some reason she was sure she did not want to discover.

That night in particular was no exception, the eyes of the man in question darting away in an attempt to disguise his interest for what seemed like the hundredth time since he had sat a little way down the carriage from her seat. The man made no attempt to hide behind a crumpled newspaper or glance at a mobile, instead he divided his attention between staring at her when she was not looking and the blank window of the carriage when she was.

He was nothing exceptional to look at, but then they seldom stood out from the crowd on account of having two heads. There was also the fact that although he was wearing a sorry looking overcoat, so many people did that it was by no means the uniform of the entrenched pervert that it had once been.

Had she been just a little less tired and weary from the exertions of the day and on her way home to something more welcoming than an apartment that her unemployed housemate kept as clean as a forgotten dumpster, she would not have been in the slightest bit bothered by the furtive stares that she was receiving. In fact there was a small part of Ellie's more rebellious mind that was flattered by the fact that she was considered worth the effort to which the weirdo was going. No matter how bad things might have seemed at any given time, at least she could rest assured that she had not fallen so far as to be beneath the consideration of the common subway lunatic.

As it was, she felt irritable and rather less than charitable towards his kind right there and then, bolstered in her resolve by the fact that she was only minutes from her stop and the thought of the fresh canister of mace sitting nestled between her purse and compact, just waiting to grace the features of the lowlife who pushed her that little bit too far.

Ellie was up and out of her seat as soon as the train came to a halt, pressing through the crowd as she made it to the platform amongst the usual sea of humanity. She glanced over her shoulder and saw that her weirdo had decided to disembark as well, following as best he could in her wake. Not that the sight worried her in the slightest, there being far too many people on the platform to make the prospect of reaching her hard enough let alone the reaction that a sudden scream from a sturdy young woman with a head of flaming red hair would elicit from those surrounding them.

As she was swept along with the rush, Ellie indulged her curiosity with another look back, just to see where her erstwhile shadow had made it to. At first she could not pick him out, but then the turning and bobbing of heads brought him into view. Despite the press of the crowd he was now closer than he had been before, no more than a few feet away although the distance might as well have been miles for all the good it would do him.

This was not the first time she had been followed by a strange man in New York and judged against the normal standards, this was a below average character when it came to the signs that made her afraid on the streets. Ellie tried to ignore the thought of him behind her and instead plunged onwards towards the stairs that would lead her up and onto the street and so one step closer to home.

It was on the first landing that she felt the sudden sensation of something piercing her skin.

There was no time to turn her head and so little pain from the jab that she hardly reacted at all before her thoughts began to taper away and she lost track of which direction she was supposed to be going.

Ellie's legs gave out beneath her as she tried to speak, numb lips able to do nothing more than produce a string of sounds that might have been mistaken as easily for nonsense as for words. The faces of her fellow commuters swam and ran into one another as the sound of their voices became nothing more than a confusing wall of noise. She was only aware of the fact that she was falling in the most distant of ways, the descent from her own feet seeming to stretch into a period of time that could have been infinite for all she knew.

But the ground never came up to meet her, hands gripping her beneath the arms and arresting her fall as they fought to pull her back to a vertical position though her legs were as limp as boiled spaghetti, refusing to take her weight for even a second.

"Damn," there were voices speaking over her, "is she okay, man?"

"It looks worse than it is," some were almost close enough to feel the breath that carried them, "she gets these all the time."

"You need me to call someone," she could hear the words, though the meaning escaped her, "a doctor or something?"

"No," did this voice belong to the person holding her? "She has injections for the condition...Look, she was trying to jab herself with this one just before she swooned."

"Well," something inside Ellie felt panicked as the more distant voice seemed to move away even further, "if you say she's fine, then I guess that's that."

"Don't worry," Ellie felt herself being braced against someone's body, "she'd be mortified to know she passed out in front of all these people. She'll be fine as soon as I get her home and put her to bed."

The next thing she could be sure of was the harsh light of a side tunnel shining down on her as a face looked over her. She recognised the face of the stranger from the train, his grey eyes studying her intently while his thin face remained neutral.

A moment later the face was gone, replaced by a confused procession of light and dark, punctuated by glimpses of familiar sights that should have made sense, but were rendered into a chaotic kaleidoscope of images moving too quickly for her mind to make sense of.

It was all too much for her to take and for that moment at least, her senses succumbed to the confusion and she lost all conception of the world around her.

It would not have been accurate to say that Ellie awoke, but more honest to describe the nauseating process by which she became aware of her surroundings as a gradual regaining of equilibrium and balance. Little by little the bombarding of her senses became less intense and she was able to claw back some small part of the ability to make sense of the information that they were taking in.

Not that there was anything dramatic to behold once she was able to do so, as she found herself staring up at a grey ceiling of bare concrete. She could make out strip lighting that accounted for the light in the room, but no matter how she tried, she was unable to move her eyes to take in more of the uninspiring view.

Her sense of panic began to grow as she tried and failed next to move her head, followed by neck, arms and legs. No matter the effort she expended, no muscle in her body would as much as twitch at her command.

Ellie fought to control herself, to stop her mind from being filled with the darkest thoughts possible. There had to be something more than a featureless view of concrete and the inability to move, those two things could not be the entirety of her world.

As she tried to think rationally, she became aware of the chill that was seeping into her from below, numbing her and almost distracting her from the all too immediate horror of her situation. It was bad enough that her limbs remained motionless, but now the feeling was slowly being drained from them as the cold sank into her flesh.

That was it, she thought in a moment of relief, there would have been no sensing the cold had she been truly paralysed. Whatever was keeping her from moving had not dulled her ability to be aware of and feel her limbs. And if there was an outside force keeping her from moving, then there was also the hope that it could be overcome.

But as soon as her hopes were raised of regaining the ability to move, the reality of what had happened to her dawned upon Ellie. She recalled the stranger pursuing her through the crowd, the sudden sensation of being pierced with a sharp object and the distant conversation that followed in a new light. The man who had caught her as she fell claiming to be a friend, explaining it all as a medical condition and even having a syringe at hand to prove his claims. It was all becoming clear to her as she lay there, unable to move. The man must have injected her with something that was responsible for her state of helplessness, passing the needle he had used off as medication that she had been supposedly trying to administer herself only moments before.

Ellie reasoned that from there the man must have carried her away from the crowded subway station and brought her here, wherever here was.

But the question that really scared her was why.

There was only one door to the room and it opened to admit the figure of a man who was heard before seen thanks to the form-fitting suit of latex that covered him from head to toe. The rubber was black and concealed the features of his face beneath a hood pierced only by holes for his eyes and the barest of slits to accommodate his breathing. These were barely adequate as he entered the room with his blood pumping and his excitement piqued, so that his breath sounded in ragged gasps, only serving to add to his disturbing appearance.

He was glad to be clad in the suit once more, feeling that it was more like a real skin to him than the one it covered. When forced to be outside of the space he called his home and deprived of his true skin he was vulnerable and ordinary, but now that he was back in his own environment there was nothing for him to fear.

Indeed, now he was the one to be feared.

Within these walls he was exceptional, a man to be obeyed and regarded as the master of all he surveyed. It was a title that he had grown fond of and one that he aspired to, something he wanted very much to be in the eyes of others.

And now he had the perfect opportunity to do just that.

He smiled beneath his mask as he laid eyes upon the form of the woman sprawled on the bare metal table in the centre of the room. There was no sense of urgency in his movements as he knew very well the effect the cocktail of drugs he had injected into her right buttock would have upon her and how long she would remain as limp as a ragdoll. The knowledge that she could see and hear him perfectly as he stood over her was almost as thrilling to him as the thought of what he intended to do with her while she was helpless.

"I suppose you think you're pretty clever," Ellie recognised the voice from the subway station despite the anonymous features of the mask, the harsh edge of a Brooklyn accent shaping the words. "You must think you're smarter than the average guy on the street to have been able to pull the wool over their eyes for so long."

For a second, Ellie was forced to wonder if the effect of the drugs that had fogged her mind had receded as far as she thought. She heard every word the masked man said to her, but there was no way she could turn them that made any sense.

What was he talking about?

The very real possibility that she was in the clutches of an even bigger lunatic than she had at first suspected loomed in her mind, but she pushed it aside to listen once more as the man was speaking again.

"I know you can't answer me," he shook his head. "But that's just the point, you shouldn't be able to speak up for yourself at all, now should you? You might be clever and full of tricks like that, but you don't fool me. I'm not like a regular Joe, I got bitten when I was really young, bitten so badly that I just can't be fooled by your kind anymore."

The man was getting more animated as he spoke, prodding and poking Ellie in the chest at the same time.

"You wear the clothes well and you learned to walk on your hind legs," he started to yank her coat off, pulling it from her arms and then out from beneath her. "But I know that under it all you're just a regular dog that got smart and I'm going to have to teach you to be obedient like any other canine with ideas above its station."

He thinks I'm a dog, Ellie was almost unable to mentally digest his words, he actually thinks that I'm a dog passing myself off as a human being. That was enough to convince her that the man was truly insane, filling her with trepidation as to just what he was planning to do with her now that she was within his power and helpless.

"We can start by learning the right way to refer to one another," by this time he had cast her coat away and was busy unzipping her boots. "All those fake cards and IDs in your purse had 'Ellie' all over them. I suppose that's not your real name, but I suppose it's not all that presumptuous for a dog in the grand scheme of things. So that's what I'll call you."

He tossed her boots over his shoulder and returned to the end of the table upon which her head lay, eyes fixed on the tight top she wore, revealed now her coat had been removed. Black in colour and made of a material that was opaque, the garment resembled the tights that covered her legs. Her breasts could be seen clearly beneath it, their notable size contained by a suitably sturdy bra. Unlike the rest of her rather conservative clothes, the sheer top was a small act of rebellion by which Ellie attempted to make a point of the pride she took in her larger figure, but now it seemed lost in the helpless nature of her situation.

"You'd be calling me master," the man spoke as he pulled the top up and over her head, "if you were allowed to speak, of course. You won't be, but that's the title that you should use when thinking about me. It'll be better for you the sooner you get used to the idea of just obeying your master and doing as you're told. But I expect you'll need to be disciplined along the way, like most dogs do."

The Master, Ellie could not help but attach the title to him now that he had mentioned it, was intent upon his task now and working faster. He unclipped her bra, allowing her breasts to fall on either side of her chest as she began to feel the cold of the metal more fully on her newly naked back. Her denim skirt was the next to go, leaving her wearing only tights and panties and they lasted no more than a few short seconds.

Now that she was naked, the chill in the air was as painfully apparent to her as that of the table beneath her. Ellie's breath shuddered slightly and she was sure that but for the effects of the drugs she would have been shivering with the cold. How the Master seemed to ignore the temperature in the room she could not begin to guess.

Suddenly she felt an even more acute sensation of cold between her legs, as though something wet and freezing had gripped her most intimate parts. She caught the briefest glimpse of a safety razor and then the caress of its edge as the Master shaved the hair from her groin, leaving it smooth and bald. He made to attempt to speak as he went, attending instead to his task in the same manner one might have groomed an animal with no thought for the object of his attentions whatsoever.

Once she was shaved and clean, the Master produced a pair of rubber shorts that he pulled over her feet and up her legs. They were a tight fit by the time they reached her groin, squeezing her flesh mercilessly, but he did not stop until they were in place. From there he probed her with the index and middle fingers of his right hand, guiding into her vagina and then anus the sheaths and tubing that would allow her to function in every important manner without removing the shorts.

Ellie felt the urge to twitch and protest as his fingers ventured inside her, but there was no way that she could resist or even show her displeasure. Once they had been removed she was left with a feeling that was unlike anything she had experienced before, a sense of having been simply taken and used with no thought for her own status as a human being. She would not have equated that feeling to rape, but in light of the manner in which the Master had been referring to her as a dog and lambasting her pretensions of humanity, she was almost sure that the experience would not be unique while she was in his power and the thought only added to her sense of dread.

In the time that she had been trying to digest his casual probing of her body, the Master had left the side of the table and returned with a far larger garment that while made of the same rubber, was visibly of a size to cover most of her body. She could see that the majority of the surface was white in colour, with smaller patches of brown in a random pattern that put her in mind more than anything else of the fur of an animal despite the smooth texture of the latex from which it was made.

He wasted no time in dressing her with the new garment, legs first so that her feet emerged from the bottom of the suit and their length was soon covered by a layer of rubber so tight that she began to lose the feeling that the drugs had left to her. The Master did not stop to ponder what he was doing, instead he pressed on until the suit reached her waist and then stretched it over her stomach as well. Ellie was not a thin woman, so the curving shape of her body was soon reflected in the way the thing stretched and clung to her thighs and belly.

Her heavy breasts required individual attention, as each was lifted with a hand and fitted into the sheaths on the front of the suit designed to accommodate them. Once they were slipped inside, they filled the space so completely that might have been shaped of rubber rather than simply coated by it. Even her nipples were recreated in the latex, now hard and erect in the cold of the room so that they stood out clearly.




Life as a Bitch



Ellie's arms went into the sleeves as quickly as had her legs and the next moment she found herself turned onto her belly. She could see nothing, but from the pressure creeping up her back she was able to surmise that the suit was being closed up from the base of her spine to the back of her skull. Almost the very same second the high collar was pulled together, the cold that had been chilling her to the bone was replaced with a rapidly growing heat. It built from almost nothing to an intense burning in no more than a few minutes and she could not begin to guess what the cause was as she suffered in silence throughout.

"This may not be your real skin," the Master was away from the table again, his back turned as he prepared what she thought would doubtless be some new form of torture. "But it's more honest than the one you've been wearing for a while now. I think that if you look like a dog, live like a dog and are treated like one then maybe you'll be cured of this delusion that you're anything more than a dog. Not that you really have a choice in the matter, the adhesive inside that suit is just about cured by now and it's not coming off without the skin underneath unless you have a degree in chemistry to cook up the solvent to melt it."

Ellie was no expert on the subject, but she knew without any further explanation what he was talking about. More and more she wanted to scream out as yet another element was added to the list of indignities that she was being forced to endure. She was being effectively mutilated by a seeming madman and now he had sealed her inside a rubber suit, intent upon making her believe his own delusion that she was not a human being but a dog in need of being reminded of the fact.

She heard the Master return to the table and then felt his hands seize her once more to turn her onto her back. She was able to see the items he had brought with him as her head flopped to one side and the sight of them made her heart sink even further. There were six in total, each one looking like a bodily feature that was present in a canine and yet absent in a human being, a fact that it seemed was about to be remedied in her own case.

He went first to the bottom of the table, where he slipped a pair of what could have been mistaken for boots over her bare feet. But once they were in place and Ellie again felt the building heat of the adhesive that had fused the suit to her body, it was clear that they were intended to resemble the hind paws of a dog. Long and rigid, they would force her to walk almost on tiptoe and so mimic the gait of a canine when she moved.

Next were her hands, lost beneath a pair of gloves that bore no fingers. Ellie was left with her digits curled in the centre of them, unable to spread them in any way. Worse she realised the implication as the same heat spread inside of them, understanding that she would also be denied the use of her hands as anything other than blunt implements upon which she might walk or make a pathetic pawing through the thick, rigid rubber.

There was a thankful moment of respite as she was turned onto her side and what seemed to be a long tail was clipped to the base of her spine. She had only caught a glimpse of the thing, but it had been of a shade so close to that of her own hair that she was almost convinced that it had been made from the locks on her scalp while she was deprived of her senses.

But if the boots and gloves that had transformed her extremities into paws scared her, the headpiece that the Master now lifted from the table was simply terrifying. It seemed to be a reproduction in rubber, almost down to the last detail of a dog's head. She could not have named the breed although the long brown muzzle put her in mind of a hound she had seen in more than one film when she was a child. The name escaped her, but the thought that she was about to become a rubberised rendering of the animal was almost too much to bear.

She would have little time to contemplate the issues though, as he brought the thing down over her head and temporarily blotted out the light. Ellie could do nothing as he worked the headpiece down to her shoulders, the light returning only when her own eyes were perfectly level with the holes within the mask itself.

Ellie stared down the length of the muzzle, for the first time seeing it from within. There was something pressing on the inside of her mouth and she almost gagged when the Master grabbed the two halves of the muzzle and worked the jaws of the mask. She felt something inside the rubber work her own jaw in response and could only conclude that the whole thing was designed to move in concert with her lower face.

There was no more than a few seconds in which to contemplate the implications of the mask however as she was suddenly aware of a painful sensation on the top of her head. Soon it was followed by another and then yet more as they began to settle into a discernible pattern across her scalp. The truth of what was happening only became apparent to her when a lock of her bright red hair fell over her eyes and she realised that it was being drawn through holes in the top of the mask. Soon her vision was framed by the familiar sight of red hair and she was left wondering why, when he had wanted to convince her that she was a dog, the Master was going to such pains to ensure that elements of her humanity showed through the costume in which he was trapping her. In that moment she had no way to guess what the reason might have been, but she was sure there must be more it than the crazed whim of random insanity.

When it appeared that he was finally done with her hair, Ellie felt the Master's hands reach around her neck and fasten something in place. It had the feel of a choker or necklace of some kind, but based on what had been done to her already, she almost certain that she knew what it in fact was.

Drugged and abducted in front of dozens of her fellow commuters, sealed from head to toe in rubber, transformed from a woman into a bizarre blending of woman and animal, Ellie felt herself being lifted from the table and into the Master's arms.

She had no way to know what lay in store for her or where she was being taken, but as he carried her from the room there was a fleeting chance for her to catch sight of her reflection in a mirror that leant against the wall.

Familiar eyes stared out at her from the face of a rubber dog, made all the more confusing and unsettling by the all too human locks that spilled from its head and down to its shoulders.

Around the dog's neck was a leather collar from which hung a name tag.

And engraved on the tag was the name: 'Ellie'.

If being mute witness to the process of becoming a rubber dog had been torture, the actual reality of being forced to live as such was a more akin to being condemned to hell. Ellie felt the effects of the drugs ebbing away to nothing only after the Master had deposited her inside a large metal cage that she soon realised was a crate intended to keep a dog from roaming around and allow them out only when a human willed it.

Though the ability to move had returned to her body, she was not returning to the body that she had known. Ellie found that the rubber suit in which she was trapped brought with it a unique set of issues and problems, though she was sure that each one was deliberate and intended to amuse her captor.

While she could see relatively well out of the eye holes in her mask, her other senses were dulled by the layers of latex between them and the outside world. The ears that now sat on top of her head were no more than rigid rubber shapes, her own hearing reduced to a vague impression of the sounds around her in a way that seemed to distance her yet further from reality. There was also little scope for her sense of smell, which struck her as odd after being forced to masquerade as a creature normally so prized for the acute nature of its olfactory prowess.

As for the sense of touch, that was a strange mixture of numbness and hyper sensitivity that was quickly driving her to distraction. Where the rubber was heavy and thick, such as her hands and feet, there was very little in the form of sensation save for the knowledge that she was either in contact with something solid or not. But in contrast, there were regions that felt as though they were almost on fire for a large part of the time. Her breasts and genitals were the worst and she was sure beyond any shadow of a doubt that this was a deliberate thing, inflicted upon her for the amusement of the Master.

Ellie had been forced to spend long periods of the time in which she was awake trying to find a way to relieve the constant itching and throbbing she felt in the most sensitive parts of her body. She rubbed her chest against the cold metal of the crate, hoping that the burning in her nipples could be eased by the chill. Her abdomen she tried to press to the concrete floor on which the crate stood so that if the sensation was not relieved by the freezing surface, it might simply numb the flesh altogether.

She wondered if this was what it felt like to be a dog in the grip of heat, caged with no hope of relief and constantly burning with unfulfilled physical desire to be released from the suffering.

While she had lamented at first the loss of her ability to speak behind the muzzle of the mask, Ellie now found that in a bizarre way she was somewhat thankful for it. Forced to endure the endless need for relief and tortured from one moment to the next, she found it impossible to remain quiet and instead voiced her feelings in moans and cries that were mangled by the effects of her rubber visage. Somehow it was easier for her to deal with the animalistic sounds that she made than even to think of what she might have been compelled to say otherwise, the desperate words the extreme situation in which she found herself might have wrung from her.

But that was not the only small mercy that she found in the anonymity of the mask.

The Master was present for perhaps an hour at a time, although she had no way to keep track of the time. He took a keen interest in her discomfort, snapping one photograph after another of her as she tried to relieve her suffering. There was no way that she could even try to remain still or deny him the material he wanted for his camera, the effects of the suit being too intense. Instead she tried to close her eyes and as much as possible forget his presence. As the Polaroid he used spat out ever more images of her degradation, Ellie was thankful that her human features were hidden beneath the layers of rubber.

Perhaps if she retreated far enough into herself, curled the vulnerable elements of her psyche into a tight enough ball, she could escape the irreparable damage that was already being done to her mind.

With every snap of the flash, every moment that she rubbed her crotch against the floor like an animal, she retreated a little more into the darker corners of herself.

And once the human being had withdrawn, what was left behind became ever more simple in nature and focussed on the satisfaction of the physical needs that plagued her.

Ellie was awoken from her troubled sleep by the sound of the lock on her crate opening. She gazed around and saw the Master beckoning to her from where he stood beside the open door, gesturing that she was to do as she was told and come to his side.

There was nowhere to hide and no evident way to escape the bare concrete room in which she was being kept. In addition she was tired and emotionally fraught after enduring hours of discomfort from her breasts and groin that sleeping had only postponed her having to face.

In an ideal world she realised that she would have been fighting back against what was being done to her, trying to escape or call for help. At the very least she would have refused to cooperate with the Master, remained in the crate and defied him.

But something was not right inside of her, she was becoming ever more aware of the fact as time passed. She could not have said if it was a reaction to her treatment, the constant need to relieve her physical symptoms, the experience of being trapped inside a canine mask or a combination of all three.

Regardless of the source, she knew it was creeping over her slowly and stealing her resolve. It made her almost cower at the sight of the Master, fearing what he was capable of doing to her should she make him angry so much that she was unable to muster any will to disobey. Instead she meekly crawled out of the crate on all fours, stopping when she was crouched in front of him and looking up at his black-clad face with a mixture of trepidation and resigned defeat in her eyes.

"Up," his voice was firm and yet not cruel in tone, just the way one would expect a person to address a dog that they wanted to obey through authority rather than force. "Sit up, girl."

Ellie placed her front paws on the floor and pushed herself up until she was kneeling before him, keeping her eyes fixed on his as she did so. He was directing her with his left hand while he kept his right behind his back, but she had no time or inclination to think why. For now he was being, if not kind, at least less than cruel and she was glad of the chance to be anything but afraid for once.

"Good girl," he bent forwards and stroked her under the chin.

The simple contact sent a spark of elation through Ellie's body without a warning, but by the time the feeling had reached the pit of her stomach it had turned into a sense of horrified shame.

What was wrong with her?

Was she so fragile and easily manipulated that one casual word of praise from this monster intent upon degrading her was enough to set her singing in elation?

In that moment, Ellie hated herself more than she could have put into words. The parts of her human self that had been hidden away for their own sake came quickly back from the edges of consciousness to add to the disgust she felt for her own reactions. Was this what it truly felt like to be a dog? Living from one moment to the next in constant fear of what a man would do to punish disobedience contrasted with the slavish devotion and manic adoration when he instead showed favour? She was sure that no sane human being could have remained so if forced into that existence of maddening extremes of emotion. Only the simple mind of an animal could have been battered in such a way and continued to function.

Is that what I have to become, she thought as the implications of that revelation sank in, if I can't escape this man and his delusions?

Ellie was torn away from her thoughts by the sound of an electric hum filling the air. She watched as the Master produced from behind his back a phallus that was the source of the noise as it buzzed crazily in his hand.

"Now," he said as her eyes followed the vibrator, "we're going to teach you how to beg."

Her attention focussed on the toy as it came closer and all thought of anything else banished from her mind, Ellie found herself seized by an urge that was similar to the uncontrolled sensation of gratitude she had felt when he tickled her under the chin. The difference was that this feeling was many times more intense, maddening and centred on the parts of her body that had been driving her to distraction since she was sealed into the suit. Thus far she had tried to relieve her suffering by numbing the afflicted areas in the hope of extinguishing all feeling, but now she saw that there was another possibility which lay in quite the opposite approach.

The Master knelt so that he could bring the vibrator within inches of her heavy breasts and she was able to do nothing but bear her chest and lessen that distance. Her nipples were hard and erect, straining against the rubber before the tip made contact and when they did she felt herself almost shake in response. He went from one breast to the other with the vibrator while his free hand massaged the side not being pressed against the thing at that moment and for the first time there was a blessed relief of the burning she had felt for so long.

"Up," he made her heed his words by withdrawing the vibrator, "now show me how you beg."

Being deprived of the toy was not something that Ellie could deal with at that moment, and before she could think what she was doing, she hung her arms in front of her in imitation of the dogs she had seen made to beg for a morsel by their owners. She raised herself on her knees, trying to look as though she was doing her best to obey, eyes wide and almost desperate with the effort.

"That's the way," he reached down between her legs and she felt his fingers stroke the lips of her vagina for a moment, then there was a surge of penetration as he slid the vibrator into her and held it there. She stiffened at the entry of the foreign object into her body, the muscles shocked and stimulated by the action. But there were only moments before the effects of the toy began to spread through the sensitive layers of her most intimate parts.

She remained in the begging position as he began to move the vibrator, the terrible burning in her replaced by an equally terrible and shaming pleasure. Ellie gasped and shook as he built her sexual energies up steadily, making sure that each minute the thing stayed inside her was more intense for her than the last. Small thoughts ran through her head, reminding her of the way in which she was being used and the awful source of the gratification she was feeling, but there was no hope of her stopping what was being done to her. She was too far gone and too deeply enthralled to be capable of doing anything other than submitting and riding the waves of pleasure that spread through her.

When she came, the sound that emerged from her muzzle was mangled by the rubber, sounding more like the cry of an animal than a woman.

As the warmth of her orgasm faded, Ellie felt the Master's hand grip her collar and begin to guide her back into the crate.

"In you go," he wasted no time in locking the door once it was closed. "That's enough fun for one day."

And with that he was gone, leaving Ellie alone with the memory of being used like an animal and the growing sensation that would return as the effects of her sexual exploits grew ever more distant.

Though she knew that time was passing by the needs of her body that she could not control, Ellie had no way of keeping a sense of the days that she had been kept like a dog. Her routine was mind numbing in its simplicity when it was not a humiliating round of experiences that were the norm for a canine. The combination of boredom and despair when she was idle and crushing shame when she ate clumsily from a bowl or was forced to make use of the newspaper in the corner of the room was such that she feared for the state of her sanity.

While she was able to have such worries, she at least knew that she was not yet in the true grip of madness. She was sure that had she been pushed over the edge, there would have been no doubt in her mind that she was sane. Was that not the cliché in every film? A prison full of men who claimed to be innocent, or an asylum where the truly crazy inmates where indignant at being labelled as insane?

The Master spent time with her almost every day by her shaky reckoning, normally waking her with the sound of the door opening or tapping on the bars while she slept. She was loathe to admit it, but his presence was a distraction from the terrible feeling of loneliness she experienced when left alone. There was a growing part of her that had begun to see his visits as a reprieve from the long periods of enforced solitude where she was trapped with only her own thoughts for company. It seemed that with every new visit, she forgot a little more that this was the man responsible for her captivity and came to see him instead as the only company for which she could hope.




Life as a Bitch



He played with her often, making use of the vibrator and other toys so that she made a spectacle of herself for his amusement. But the visit always seemed to come to an end too soon and bit by bit, Ellie began to learn methods of eking a little more time from him simply for the sake of keeping the inevitable return to her crate postponed.

She would begin by pawing at the bars when he entered the room, making pathetic noises that gave voice to her feelings of isolation and the more physical company she required. When he made her perform tricks, she put more effort into her performance with submissive glances and open displays of her body. When he seemed unlikely to reward her with the vibrator, she would roll onto her back, spreading her legs and offering herself to him and seldom fail to secure what she wanted.

This new tendency to play the role he had in mind for her seemed to ease his demeanour towards her, as if he were satisfied that she was bending to his will. She found that his tongue loosened in turn and he began to speak to her in a way that one might casually converse with a dog that was unable to understand or respond.

To begin with there was nothing apart from bland comments to either praise or scold her for her behaviour, but as time went on he became more used to the habit and so less careful of what he actually said. Ellie began to catch intriguing hints at the Master's frame of mind as he let slip the times he had been terrified of vicious dogs that were nowhere near as well behaved as she was proving to be, or told her that she was becoming honest and trustworthy than the other women who were simply dogs in disguise. She realised as he opened his thoughts in this way that there was a chance she could use his confidence against him, manipulate his expectations in order to make her own position stronger.

In a moment it came to her, the one thing that he had not done that all owners took for granted with their dog: he had not yet tried to walk her. If he was convinced that she was a dog and not a human being, then did it not stand to reason that the ultimate proof of her being broken to his will was to be able to take her out in public and have others see how she obeyed his every command? The fact that she was sealed in a rubber costume and he clad himself in a suit of black latex was not the point so much as the chance to get out of that accursed concrete room and into the light of day. From that point on the possibilities were so much more promising.

But how to convince the Master that she was broken in and totally subservient to his will?

As she lay awake in the darkness, the idea came to Ellie.

She only hoped that when the time came she could find the strength to make it work.

The Master took her by the collar and made to push Ellie back towards the open door of her crate, he was used to the ritual and so paid little attention to what she was doing at the same time. Finding that he was met with resistance, he glanced down to see what was making his normally obedient dog defy him on that occasion.

Ellie sat up on her haunches as he turned to face her, pawing at his thighs and pressing her muzzle into his groin. Her eyes looked up at him with all the submissive pleading that she could manage, hoping that he would interpret her attentions in the way that she wanted.

He seemed confused by her stance, as though he was not sure of what to do next. She may have been defying his wish to see her back inside the crate, but at the same time her actions seemed more a plea for attention than an attempt to rebel.

Seeing that she would have to take the initiative, Ellie went down onto all fours, turning her back to him as she went. Her arms spread out across the floor as her breasts pressed into the floor, filling her with the familiar chill of the concrete. At the same time she raised her buttocks and looked back over her shoulder, an emotion in her eye that she hoped he would interpret as her pleading with him, urging him on to take full advantage.

The Master knelt down behind her, his hands on her backside. He kneaded them through the latex in a motion that only served to heighten the strain that she was under, willing him onwards. One hand strayed to his crotch as he tried to make sense of the urges he felt towards her. At once he was unsure as to whether he could follow his instincts and use his dog in this manner and at the same time he was dangerously excited and in danger of losing control of his own appetites.

In the end his passions won out as Ellie felt his penis brush against her rubber sheathed vagina. He was fully erect and did not stop to question his actions as he pushed into her. The sensation was nothing at all like that of the vibrator entering her through the latex and she could not help but cry out as she accepted what was given. The Master was not a small man and he was filled with the urge to take her without pause or delicacy, riding her as if there was a chance he could be thrown off at any moment. His weight pressed her into the cold floor, only adding to the way in which she was overwhelmed by the act of being taken.

She had been made love to and she had simply had sex in her time, but this was neither of those things. Ellie was not an equal partner in the act by any means, rather she was being dominated physically in a manner that would have horrified her had she been in any other situation. But here she was not a woman, not even a human being. Instead she was a thing, a possession that had no say in the way that it was put to use. Her master dictated when she slept, ate and answered the call of nature, so why was it a step too far for him to control her in this manner also?

If he commanded she would beg, roll over or play dead at his command.

Just the same she would spread herself for him and be mounted at his pleasure, allowing him to say when and where she would be fucked as well as how hard and for how long.

This was not love and he was not expressing his affection for her, instead she was demonstrating her submission to him. The sensations of pleasure that mixed with pain and acceptance to form her experience of his taking her was the confirmation that she was his and that he would own her in all the ways possible.

Ellie closed her eyes and found that she could not turn her thoughts to the future or find refuge in memories of the past. Instead she could only remain in the here and now, shaking with the motions of her Master as he exhausted his passions upon her.

The morning was still a collection of greys and the hints of the dawn that was to come over the horizon when they reached the gates. Ellie had come this way before, back in the days when she had been a woman and walked on two legs. But those days were behind her now and she barely recalled them as she loped into the grass on the end of the lead.

Now that she had convinced him, now that she had worked so hard to win his trust and be allowed out of the freezing concrete room, she was ready.

Ellie had been waiting for this chance for so long, just hoping for the feel of fresh air and the sight of the open sky where she could run free and unfettered.

Sure that there was nobody around to see the strange nature of his pet and his own bizarre appearance, her Master let her slip the lead and placed his hands into the pockets of his overcoat.

Ellie ran across the grass as fast as she was able, filled with energy at being let off the lead.

She stopped for a moment, confused and unsure.

A vague thought crossed her mind, hinting at freedom and open spaces, the idea of running away.

But she shook her head and it was gone.

This was her chance, after all.

Her chance to show her Master that she could be trusted, that she was loyal to him.

His shrill whistle filled her ears, and Ellie turned to run back to him, her mind filled with only the thought of guessing his next command.

She was alive and she had her Master; what else did a dog require?



Life as a Bogan



This story is definitely not politically correct. It is an only slightly exaggerated story involving a sub-culture that lives in public housing estates in the outer suburbs of Australian capital cities, in this case Sydney. I hasten to add that the people depicted in this story are in no way indicative of all Australians, or even all public housing residents, just this particular sub-culture.

If you're offended by foul language, bigotry, racism, sexism and a whole raft of other isms, stop reading now. If you read this story and feel the need to tell the world that you are offended by it, that's your prerogative, just don't say that I didn't warn you. CM. 

*

Bogan: Person of a lower socio-economic status, typified by low education and personal development indicators. Appearance: Both Male & Female; Mullet hair-do (Short on top and long back and sides). Usually with a minimum of two front teeth missing, visible tattoos. Attire: Jeans, black, Tee shirt, Heavy metal tour shirt (stolen) Thongs (flip-flops) Habitat, public housing estates in outer suburbs, signified by rusting and stripped motor vehicles on front grass, (it could hardly be called a lawn because visits from a lawn mower are few and far between) and two old and non-matching sofas on front veranda. Language: English with regional patois, usually interspersed with profanities and obscenities. See also Feral and Houso.

Me (Dazza), Bazza and Shazza shared a house on Paradise Road in the San Souci Housing Commission estate in the outer Western suburbs of Sydney. San Souci is French for don't give a shit, which just about sums it up. The government don't give a shit about us. The cops on the other hand, give us shit all the time, hassling us about weed and ice and any other shit they can hassle us about.

When we have to front Centrelink (Social Security) because the fuckers are always trying to cut us off the dole, they call us by our proper names. I'm Daryl Winters, Shazza is me sheila Sharon Stone, and Bazza is Barry Jones, who just lobbed on us one day and never left. He roots Shazza when I'm locked up while the pigs try to find something to pin on me. We got a couple of kids, I'm not sure if I'm their dad or Bazza is, or maybe it's someone else. They say that the definition of confusion is Fathers Day on the San Souci estate. Child Services, the fucks, are all the time trying to take them off us 'cause they reckon that Shazza's not a good mum. What the fuck would they know, they probably don't have any kids of their own. She's a grouse mum, she's always made sure that Bazza and me don't do drugs in front of them, although she doesn't mind us hitting the piss when we have it. Lockie (Lachlan) and Randi (Miranda) have both managed to reach their late teens without spending time in a Detention Centre, which is rare around here, so we must've done okay.

It's getting hard to get any free piss these days, all the local bottlo's (bottle shops) watch us to make sure we don't nick (steal) any. We gotta go a long way to get any free piss these days and the Railway fuckers try to catch us for riding free.

Shazza makes sure that we have food at least once a day. She orders a couple of pizzas and when the delivery fucker knocks on the door she tells him she's got no dough and he can root her for a freebie. By the time he's finished we've eaten the pizzas. She's a good root, and I think the pizza guys look forward to rooting her, they keep coming back.

We had just finished the two party sized meat lovers when some cunt kicked down the front door. It was Johnny Rahuti, the big black Maori cunt from across the road. "What the fuck, can't you knock on the door like a proper cunt?" I yelled at him. You had to yell 'cause he used to be a Roadie for a thrash band and his hearin's shit.

"I did knock, how the fuck did I know that the fucking door would fall off?"

"Bazza, youse was s'posed to fix that fuckin' door, wot 'appened?" I asked him.

"I was rootin' Shazza." He seemed to think that was an okay excuse.

"What the fuck you want now?" I shouted at Johnny.

"No need to fuckin' shout, I can hear, I ain't fuckin' deaf. I need to borrow your wheels, mine fuckin' won't start."

"It didn't sound too flash when you got home last night."

"No fuckin' shit, it was boilin' its fuckin' head off, I think I mighta cooked the fuckin' donk (motor)."

"No fuckin' shit. When you gunna learn that ya can't run cars with a busted fuckin' radiator."

"I didn't know it was fuckin' busted did I?"

"Runnin' up the arse of that truck and havin' water pissin' out all over the road was a dead give-away don't ya reckon?"

"What do I know about cars?"

"Apart from nickin' 'em, not a lot. Why the fuck don't you steal a decent fuckin' car?"

"I was in a fuckin hurry weren't I?"

"Anyway, ya can't have my fucking car, Lockie's taken Randi to work at Maccas. He'll be home soon, d'ya want a beer or something?"

"Got any weed?" 

"Nah Mate, we smoked it all last night. Shazza had to work her cunt off, we had an attack of the munchies, and had to get two lots of pizza. I got some more weed comin' in this arvo (afternoon) if you can wait that long."

"I guess I'll knock the top off a stubbie then."

I tossed him a stubbie of Fosters, he looked at it in disgust. "Wot's this, fuckin' Victorian piss, since when've you been drinking this piss?"

"It's all we could get."

"Bullshit, let's 'ave a look in your fridge, I bet you've got some Tooheys stashed in there."

"You can keep you nose out've the fuckin' fridge. Wot I got in there is none of your fuckin' business. It'd be a different matter if you'd kick in for the piss you drink, but nah, you're tighter'n a fish's arsehole. You'll drink wot I gives ya and like it, orright?"

Johnny tipped his head back and poured the beer down his throat, "If I pour it down quick I don't have to taste it." He said, chuckin' the empty in the corner with the other empties.

"Wot you want a car for anyhow?"

"Gotta do a job for this bloke, he's gunna pay me for it."

"Bull fuckin shit, you Maori bastards wouldn't know what work was unless it bit you on the arse."

"Fair dinkum he is. I met him at the pub and he said he was lookin' for a couple of big blokes to help him load a truck with TV's and such, and it's gotta be done tonight."

"While your loadin 'em how's about stickin one in the back of the car. We need a new TV, Bazza got pissed off when the Wanderers (Western Sydney Wanderers soccer team) got beat and chucked a stubbie at the fuckin referee. Fuckin glass and shit everywhere."

"Why don't he get you a new one?"

"Wot with, he's never got any money, if he's not pissing it against the wall, he's bettin' on some useless nag. Talk about a fuckin' loser, the last horse he backed finished tenth in a nine horse race. Now the bookie's after him for money." 

The sound of a car engine shredded the air, it was coming fast and could only mean that Lockie was being chased by the cops. I slipped out the back door and picked up a screw driver and spare plates (Rego, license) knowing that he would come flying up the driveway and around the back of the house. If we were quick enough we'd have the plates changed before they get here.

He jumped out with the screwdriver he used for an ignition key in his hand, and began unscrewing the front plates while I did the back. We heard the cops drive past and then a few minutes later come back. When Sergeant Cox strolled around the back of the house I was under the bonnet (hood) listening to the motor. "Going a bit quick weren't you son?" He asked Lockie.

"Wot you talkin about, me and Dad have been here for the past hour tryin to get the fuckin donk to run sweet. It's all right for youse, you got mechanics to tune your heaps, we gotta do our own."

"So that wasn't you speeding down the road a couple of minutes ago?"

"How could it have been? We been workin on this shit heap."

"And you're prepared to swear that you and young Lockie here have been working on this vehicle for the past hour?" He asked me.

"Sure thing, would I lie to you?"

"I won't answer that. If you've been here all afternoon, who was it that I saw dropping your sister at Maccas?" He asked Lockie.

"Couldn't've been me Sarge, for starters I don't got no license, so how could I have dropped her off. It must've been the new guy she's fuckin'."

"Just watch yourself in future, all right?"

Shazza came out the back door. "Coxy, do you and your mate want to come in for a cuppa or a beer, or a root?"

"Jeesus Shazza, don't tempt me. Anyhow my new partner's a sheila."

"So? That'd spice things up a bit, or if she's not into a bit of three-way action she can always watch, and maybe learn a thing or two."

"I think I'll pass on the offer." He took out his note book and wrote down the Rego number. We knew that he was going to use the Rego Tracker in his car to check on it. As soon as he went down the drive we unscrewed the plates and put on another set from the stash we had in the shed.

"It would seem," he said as he came back, "that the plates on this car were reported stolen a month ago. Where did you get them?"

"Wot, these?" I asked as I pointed to the plates. "These are the ones that were on this car when I bought it, I've got the rego transfer papers to prove it." I went to the car, took the papers from the glove box and handed them to him.

He scratched his head for a minute, looked at the rego papers, then at the plates, then at his notebook. "But . . ."

"Wot's up Sarge?" I asked all innocent like.

"These weren't the plates that were on this car a minute ago."

"Are you sure of that?" I asked as I kicked the screwdriver under the car.

"I could have sworn that you had different plates on this heap of crap a minute ago."

"You'd better ease up on the piss Sarge, you're losing your marbles."

Shakin' his head he walked back down the drive. We pissed ourselves laughin' as they drove off. I tossed the screwdriver to Johnny. "Don't forget the teev."

"She'll be sweet, thanks." He climbed in and backed down the drive, knocking over the wheelie bin on the way.

"Fuckin' useless prick, where'd he get his license, in a raffle?"

"He hasn't got one." Lockie said. "He figures that if he hasn't got one the cops can't take it off him."

"He's not Robinson Crusoe there, Bazza lost his two years ago after his third driving pissed charge, but that hasn't stopped him."

A mob of Lockie's mates rocked up and he took off to somewhere. "Hey!" I yelled at him as he was just about to climb into their car. "Who's gunna pick Randi up from Maccas?"

"How the fuck would I know, you lent your only workin' fuckin' car to Big Johnny. She's just gunna have to find her own way home."

"She's a big girl, she'll get a lift from someone." Shazza said. She grabbed my cock. "Bazza's off with the fairies, he's been givin' the piss a nudge. Now's the time we can have a root without him buttin' in. I wish he'd find a sheila of his own and stop askin' me for it."

"You could always say no."

"Jeesus Dazza, you can say some stupid things, I got needs too, if you were man enough for me I wouldn't have to look for it anywhere else."

"Aren't the pizza guys enough, me and them?"

"I'm getting' fuckin' jack of pizza all the time, and Bazza's always around when I need it, you and them aren't."

"Bazza's always around, because he's got nowhere else to be."

"Let's forget about him, are you gunna fuck me or what?"

"After wot you just said you'll have to give me a head start."

"The things I do for you." She dropped to her knees in front of me and took him out. "Hullo stranger." She told him as she took him in her mouth. When he was hard enough she dropped her dacks and bent over the kitchen table. I shoved him in and began rooting her the way that she liked. She yelled out loud enough when she came to wake the dead, or in this case Bazza.

"That'd be right, startin' without me again." He looked out of it, but had his dacks down and tried to shove his cock into Shazza's arse.

"Get that fuckin' thing out of my arse, you know that's a no-go zone."

"If you think that I'm gunna stick him into your cunt while it's full of Dazza's spoof, you've got another think comin'."

"Well you're just gunna have to do without it, 'cause Dazza's going back in there as soon as he can get it up."

"What the fuck is it with you two, it's not as if your married or anything."

"We don't need any Priest to say that we're married, we love each other, don't we Darling?" She smiled at me and gave me a sloppy tonguey just to show him.

"I'm goin' back to bed, this is too much for me." He headed for his bed.

"That's all you're good for, sleepin' and fuckin'." Shazza yelled at his back.

"Bite me arse." He yelled back.

"Never in a million years is my mouth getting' near your spotty arse." She yelled and then laughed at her own joke. "That's tellin' 'im."

"I thought you liked him." I said to her.

"Wot, I only let him root me because I thought he was your mate, and he was always here and up for it."

"I thought that he was your friend, otherwise I would've told him to fuck off ages ago."

"I think he's been sniffin' around Randi lately, always talkin' to her when he thinks we ain't watchin'."

"He'd better keep it in his pants, if I catch him tryin' it on with her I'll cut his dick off and shove it down his throat and he can give himself a blow job."

"My hero. You tell him to stay away from her, or he can get the fuck out of our house."

Shazza and me were on our third beer and second cone, or was it second beer and third cone, who gives a shit anyway, we were pretty out of it when Randi came in. "Where was Lockie? He was supposed to pick me up at nine thirty."

"He's out with his mates. Anyhow he doesn't have the car tonight, I lent it to Johnny Rahuti."

"So how was I supposed to know this. I had to catch a train and walk home from the station."

"Sorry love, it won't happen again."

"I think I'll have to make other arrangements for getting home, I wouldn't get in a car with you in this condition, both of you are off your faces." She went off to her room. "What the fuck is he doin' in my bed with his hand on his cock?" She screamed.

"C'm here, you know you want this." Bazza slurred, shakin' his cock and leering at her. "Ya've been sniffin' at if for yonks."

"Dad, get this bastard out of my bed. Oh Christ he's been wankin' himself all over the sheets. Get this disgusting pig out of here."

I grabbed him around the neck and dragged him out of her room and threw him out the front door. "Fuck off and don't come back!"

"I gotta get some clothes."

"Stay there, I'll get 'em for you." I grabbed his dacks and a shirt and tossed them to him. "You can come by tomorrow and collect the rest of your things, they'll be waitin' on the footpath for you."

"I can't stay here, I'm going to a friend's house," Randi said, "I'll come back when he's gone from here for good. I don't know how you can stand having him around here." She looked at Shazza and me.

"We wuz just talkin about that. He's fuckin outta here."

"I'm still going to stay with a friend." She took a mobile phone from her bag and pushed the screen.'

"Where the fuck did you get that?" Shazza asked.

"I bought it with my own money. Hi Mel, can I stay with you tonight?" She looked at us as her friend squealed her acceptance of the plan. "Don't worry, I'll get there. See you, and thanks." She went to her room and emerged minutes later with a back pack full of clothes. "I'll call by on the weekend and pick up the rest of my stuff. Just so you know, I'll be starting Uni in a couple of months."

"What?" 

"You haven't cared what I've done with my life, so I haven't told you. For the past three months I've been working at a different Maccas. I got sick of Lockie and his mates coming in and telling me to forget about the burger and the salads, they wanted their roll with nothing on, shit like that. I asked to work at somewhere that I wasn't known. I told them that it was bad for their corporate image to have those fuckwits hanging around making suggestive remarks. They agreed and offered me another restaurant, they said that they didn't want to lose me, and that I was one of their best employees. They even offered me a position on their management programme. In the meantime I passed my year 12 exams and got into Uni."

"Why didn't you tell us? "Shazza asked her.

"You signed all of the paperwork, it's not my fault that you never read it, you even signed the agreement for my HECS loan."

"Our daughter the fuckin genius, who'd a thought it?" I said. I never realised just how smart she was. Shazza signed all her report cards, right from Primary School.

"See ya!" She waved to us as she headed for the road. "Don't worry, I can look after myself."

Miranda walked to the train station and caught a train the three stops to the station closest to Mel's place. She was just about to hail a taxi when a young man approached her. "You must be Miranda."

"Yes, who are you?"

"Simon, Melinda's brother Simon. She asked me to come here and look out for you. She showed me a picture of the two of you taken in one of those photo booths so that I'd recognise you. Before I saw your picture I was going to tell her that I couldn't do it. I'm glad that I didn't. Here we are." He indicated a not very young but still shiny BMW 3Series. He held the door open for her and admired her legs as she slid into the seat. "I hear that you're starting Uni soon, what are you studying?"

"A Business degree. I hope to get a job in the financial sector, playing with other people's money sort of appeals to me." She saw the shocked look on his face and smiled. "Just joking of course, apart from the prospect of earning the stuff, I'm not interested in it. That and Law are a long way down on my list of careers. I'm studying Environmental Science, I hope to save the world."

"Good luck with that, government priorities world wide would mean that you'll have your work cut out for you."

"What would you have me do?"

"If we rely on governments to act then we'd better not hold our breaths, they only get off their butts when forced to. I'm studying Ag, Science with the emphasis on sustainable food production. The world is going to need increased food production that doesn't deplete the natural resources. The slash and burn style of agriculture is no longer sustainable."

"I suppose that you're into the genetic modification of crops."

"If you look at Nature you'll see that it has genetically modified both plant and animal species over time to take advantage of the changing environment. GM crop science just seeks to speed up that process. It's the same with livestock grazing, we in Australia have, for far too long, followed the British principles of livestock grazing. That would be fine if we had the same climate that they do, but we don't. It's only in the last few decades that we have turned to drought and tick resistant breeds of cattle, and, with the decline of the wool market, into meat producing sheep breeds. We have alternate meat resources that require a shift in attitudes by the consumers such as camels and water buffalo, even crocodile meat. It's all good stuff and suited to our climate, so why aren't we taking advantage of these resources?"

Miranda was saved from comment as he pulled into the driveway of Melinda's block of flats.

"Has Simon been boring you about his pet topic? I should have warned you about that."

"No, I actually enjoyed it. He made several valid points."

"Okay, what's the story? Why do you need to get away from home?"

"I've been thinking about it for a long time, but when I got home I found this guy Bazza who's been hanging around like a bad smell for as long as I can remember, waiting in my bed for me. He had visions of me and him having sex. I found the whole scene disgusting and told my parents that I was going to stay with a friend and wouldn't come back home until they'd kicked him out."




Life as a Bogan



"Is that likely to happen?"

"I think so, Dad chucked him out and told him to come back tomorrow to pick his gear up from the footpath. But I don't think it'll change too much, they're set in their ways, and I can't handle that anymore. Can I move in with you, please? Just until I can find a place of my own."

"Stop looking right now. You can stay here for as long as you like. I need someone to help with expenses since Maccas have cut my hours back."

"Thank you for this. I won't be any bother, what with working and Uni when I start, you'll hardly know that I'm here."

"I will you know. Since he saw your picture, Simon has insisted on inviting himself around whenever he feels like it, and pushing me to hook the two of you up." She looked at him and he at least had the decency to look sheepish.

"Well he can forget about hitting on me, sex is the furtherest thing from my mind right now." The look that passed between them told Miranda that this might not be as easy as she expected. 

Simon gave up the spare bed that he used when he stayed over, and spent the night on the sofa. Miranda lay awake for the first hour or so, ready to scream if he made a move. Eventually tiredness took over and she dropped off to sleep.

While she slept things were getting out of hand at Paradise Rd San Souci. At ten o'clock a pizza delivery driver arrived with a thin crust supreme and an expectant smile on his face. "What the fuck, I didn't order a pizza." I told him. "Shazza, did you order a pizza?" I called to her.

"Nah, I don't want one, or a root from him." This was not surprising because, with Bazza not there and the house to ourselves, Shazza and me had been rootin non stop for the past hour.

"Sorry mate, looks like you've made the trip for nothin." That's when things got nasty. He was just about to leave when another pizza guy rocked up, this time with a meat lovers to go with his anticipation. 

"What the fuck are you doin here?" The first guy asked him.

"I'm deliverin' a pizza, what's it to you shit for brains?"

"I got here first, so you can fuck off."

"We'll see about that. Dazza, I'm here with your pizza, is Shazza in?"

"She is, but I've just finished tellin Jimmy here that we didn't order any pizzas, and Shazza's not gunna root you for somethin we didn't order. Looks like you both miss out."

"Fuck." Pete, the second guy said.

Before either of them could leave a third delivery guy rocked up. This time with a cheese crust pepperoni pizza. He didn't have a chance to put on his smile. Seeing the other two standing there, pizza in hand and a disappointed look on their faces, was enough to tell him that something was wrong here.

"Fuckin Bazza, just wait until I get my hands on him, I'll wring his scrawny fuckin neck." I said to all three of them, and Shazza who had just arrived in one of my 'Black Sabbath' tee shirts barely covering her pussy, to see what the commotion was about. I thought for a minute that the three guys were about to rush her and give her a fourway, but they all saw the look on my face and decided against it, that and the pick handle that I'd picked up from behind the door that we used to discourage the Jehovah's Witnesses.

Things calmed down, the three pizza guys decided that it was stupid to take the pizzas back, they'd only get thrown out, so they sat on the front veranda and shared them around. Shazza and me had a slice of each pizza, but she still wasn't gunna root them.

Big Johnny came down the road with my car and there was a big box in the back seat that I hoped was my new TV. In the front seat was Bazza, and he didn't look pleased to be there. "I got ya new Teev for you, and I found this prick up the road pissing himself laughin over somethin. He didn't want to get in the car but I persuaded him."

"Come here you fuckin prick." I yelled as I wrenched the door open and dragged him out. "Wot's the meaning of ordering all of these pizzas?"

"Who said I did?"

He had me there, I only assumed that it was him. "Who the fuck else would do something as stupid as this." I turned to the three pizza guys. "How much does this prick owe you?"

"Shazza usually lets us root her, but seein' as how she's not puttin' out tonight, we might just have to root him." 

Bazza took off, he wasn't about to be buggered by three pizza guys if he could help it. He didn't get far. For a big guy Johnny Rahuti moved fast. He crash tackled Bazza before he'd gone five metres. "Do you want me to hold him down while you guys do him?" He asked.

"Get the fuck off me you big Maori cunt!" Bazza yelled.

Big Johnny dragged his tracky dacks down. "Fuck that's an ugly lookin freckle, you wouldn't catch me shovin' my cock in that, but be my guest."

I decided around then that it didn't look good having my car sitting in the driveway with a stolen TV in it, so I drove it around the back of the house and shoved the TV in the shed. It was just as well, because things had gone from bad to worse.

Lockie's mates came screaming down the road and dropped him off, seconds before a police car made an appearance, lights flashing and siren wailing. Coxy and his new sheila cop got out. She waited by the car while he walked up to us. "Wot the fuck's goin on here?"

"Nothin' officer." I said in my best suck up to the cops voice.

"Cut the bullshit Dazza, We've had complaints from your neighbours, tellin us that there was an affray happenin' at this address."

"It's nothin Sarge, just a minor mis-understandin' between friends."

"Bull fuckin' shit. Wot do you take me for, stupid?" 

I was gunna answer that one, but on second thoughts, decided to keep my mouth shut. "I came home to find these three havin' a fight between them because they all wanted to root Shazza, and she must have the rags on, because she wasn't puttin' out for them. If I hadn't rocked up things would have gotten really nasty."

"What's Big Johnny doin' sittin' on Bazza and lookin' at his bare arse?"

"Don't ask me, I don't know what Johnny's sexual preferences are. As for Bazza, it would seem as if he's responsible for this gathering of pizza guys, he rang them all and placed an order to be sent here. He doesn't live here anymore."

"Had a lover's quarrel have you?"

"Nah, the bastard was hittin' on Randi, and she's gone and left home because of it, so I chucked him out."

"Probably the best thing you've ever done. Johnny, pull his dacks up and let him up. And as for you Bazza, you can piss off, and if I see you hanging' around here I'll run you in for stalkin'."

"Not so fast." The first pizza guy said. "Who's gunna pay for the pizzas?"

"Bazza ordered them, he's responsible for payin' for them." Coxy said.

"Fair go Coxy, I can't afford all of them pizzas. Anyhow, the pizza guys ate them all, with a little help from Bazza and Shazza."

"You ordered them, you pay for them. The fact that you didn't get to eat them is your problem, along with payin' for 'em."

"Dazza, you couldn't lend us the money, could you?"

"Who the fuck do ya think I am, Clive fuckin' Palmer?" (Clive Palmer is a billionaire mining magnate and politician). "I don't get me dole until tomorrow, and until then I'm stone motherless broke."

"How about you Shazza?"

"You've got a nerve askin' me for dough. If I charged you a dollar for every root you've had I'd have to go off the dole."

"Looks like you're up shit creek Bazza. The best I can do is to run you in on a vagrancy charge and lock you up overnight. You can sort it out with the pizza guys in the morning. Come on, I don't want to cuff you but if you make a run for it I will." 

"Hey Coxy."

"What?"

"Your new partner, she's got a good set of tits on her. Are you slippin' her a bit on the side?"

"She's got a husband."

"So? That never bothered you before."

"It hasn't stopped me this time either."

"Good for you. I'd hate to think what your missus'd say if she was to find out."

"Wouldn't make any difference, she fucked off a month ago."

"Shit mate, sorry to hear that. If you want any, Shazza'll help out."

"I'm fine for the moment." He walked Bazza to the patrol car and they all drove off.

I dragged the TV out of the shed and Lockie helped set it up for us. We had just finished tuning it in when there was a knock on the front door. It was a couple of cops, but they were not from the local station. "Mister Winters, do you own a grey Holden Commodore?"

"Yes, what of it?"

"We are investigating a robbery that took place a couple of hours ago in which a shipment of colour TV's were stolen. CCTV footage of the area revealed that a Holden Commodore, with the same registration number as yours, was seen in the vicinity of the warehouse where the robbery took place. Do you mind if we come in and ask a few questions, there seems to be a large contingent of neighbours taking an interest in proceedings." 

"I don't give a shit about those nosey neighbours." I leaned around him so that they could see me, and gave them the finger. "I suppose you can come in."

Shazza, Lockie and Big Johnny were sitting on the sofa watchin' some forensic geek look at a microscope slide and announce the time, place and perp in the murder case that they had been investigating for the last hour.

"Nice TV you've got there, that must have set you back a bit. Unless it just happened to fall off a truck. I don't suppose you have the receipt for it, do you?"

"Nah mate, never hang on to them."

"Pity, because I can almost swear that this is part of the shipment of TV's that were stolen this evening. You couldn't have bought it because this model hasn't been released onto the market yet. Where did you get it?"

"Bought it from a bloke at the pub."

"I don't suppose you know his name, do you?"

"He said his name was Bruce, but who knows, if I was called Bruce I wouldn't advertise that fact, would you?" That was the wrong thing to say. It was around then that I noticed his name badge read 'Sgt Bruce Crompton'.

"If you don't mind me asking, how much did it cost?"

"He said that it would cost me close to a grand, but he'd let me have it for eight. He gave it to me to try out tonight, and to pay him when I get my dole."

"Let me get this straight, someone, who you don't know, sells you a TV set worth close to two thousand for eight hundred, and then is willing to let you take it home to try it out on your promise to pay him when you get your dole. Do I look thick to you? I think that you, the lot of you, had better come down to the station and assist us with our inquiries. Constable, could you call this in, and while you're at it, request a cage car to come and pick this lot up."

Miranda woke to unaccustomed sounds coming from the kitchen. The sounds that usually greeted her in the mornings were those of her father farting his way to the bathroom. She scrambled out of bed, slipped into a pair of shorts and a tee shirt and headed for the source of the sound. It was Simon brewing coffee. "I can't come to Maccas coffee if that's what you were expecting, so you'll have to settle for fresh ground." He placed a cup under the spout and pressed a button. The machine dispensed a cup of coffee that smelt like nothing that she had had before.

"Mmm, this is good." She told him as she sipped. "What else can you do?"

"What do you normally have for breakfast?"

"This." She said, pointing at her cup.

"Come on, a growing girl like you can't live on coffee."

"That's just it, if I have more than this I will be a growing girl, not something that I look forward to."

Melinda rubbed the sleep from her eyes as she arrived in the kitchen. "I hope that you haven't drunk all the coffee." She turned the TV on. The morning news was in full swing. 

"Police last night made several arrests in what they believe is one of this country's biggest stolen appliance rings." The video behind the talking head showed police leading three men and a woman into the police station. "No charges have been laid and a police spokesperson said that those taken into custody were assisting them with their investigations."

"Fuck!" Miranda exclaimed.

"What's the problem? "Simon asked.

"Those people," She said, pointing at the TV. "It's my father, mother, brother and Big Johnny, the Maori bloke from across the road. I never thought that my family would get involved in anything like this. They're Bogans but are pretty honest Bogans. I've got to speak with them."

"I'll take you." Simon volunteered his services as a driver.

"I can't ask you to do that, it's my problem."

"You don't have to ask. I'm taking you, end of story. I don't care who or what your family are, they're your family, that's all that matters to me."

"You had better have a crash course in Bogan behaviour before you make any decision like that."

"I'm ready for my first lesson. You can tell me all as we drive."

"My father, Dazza, Daryl, had an accident on a building site just after I was born, he injured his spine. He received Workers Compensation payments for five years until some so-called medical expert declared that he was fit for work and the payments stopped. He might have been fit for work but there was no work for him, a Labourer who had suffered a back injury on the job may just as well have been a leper for all the interest shown by employers. He tried for six months but eventually gave up. He's been on the dole ever since. Mum tried to find work but she had no real experience. She basically went straight from school to a couple of years working for the Colonel serving up chicken and then parenthood, and with two kids before her twentieth birthday she had no chance to get experience. KFC wouldn't take her back because she was over 18 and cost them too much, especially as there was a ready supply of young girls around like she had been, work until they got pregnant and leave. And then we had this friend of theirs, Bazza, Barry, staying with us for years, and I have to tell you now that I could never understand the relationship between them, it was almost as if he was Mum's other husband, although I don't think that even Mum and Dad were actually married. Yesterday Bazza hit on me in a disgusting way and I left home to stay with Melinda. Dad kicked Bazza out of the house, but I told them that I would never return while there was the possibility of him being in the same house. Mum promised that he would not be allowed back."

"Is that all that there is?"

"Yes." 

"You've forgotten something, haven't you?"

"What?"

"The pizza guys and your mother, you've forgotten about that."

"Oh, you know about that."

"I work part-time as a Night Manager of one of the local pizza takeaways, and I've heard all about it."

"Oh." Miranda was at a loss for words. "Now I suppose that you think that I'm like my mother and you can get into my pants just as easily as the drivers get into Mum's. Well let . . . "

She got no further. "Stop right there. I know that you're not like your mother, Mel has told me all about you, all about what you have told her about your family. She has also told me that you're nothing like them, that you're still a virgin and want to remain in that condition for as long as possible."

"And you still want to know me?"

"Yes, I still want to get to know you. Miranda, I can't come to calling you Randi, I feel that I know you fairly well already from what Mel has told me, and I want to know more. You are an amazing girl to have gotten into Uni with little help from your family."

"Try no help at all. Mum didn't even know that I had made it to Uni until last night when I told her. They have both signed the necessary paperwork, but neither of them bothered to read it."

"Have you ever thought that if you told her of your achievements that she might respect you more?"

"When you hear the way that they talk about intellectuals you wouldn't say that. Anyone with half a brain is a wanker in their eyes. As far as I'm concerned, in their eyes I've always been punching above my weight, and will eventually end up a loser like them. It hardly registered that there were no 'F's' on my report cards, and it certainly didn't register that I got 'A's' for all subjects. As I was their first, Mum blames me for destroying any chance that she had of a better life, especially after Dad's accident and all of the medical bullshit that he went through as a result of it. They both seemed to give up and accept that they are losers." Miranda tried not to sound bitter about her parents, and the fact that they had given up instead of fighting for a better life.

They arrived at the police station and were led to an interview room where minutes later Shazza was led in. The policewoman sat with her. "Who's this?" Shazza said, pointing to Simon.

"Mum, this is Simon, he's Melinda's brother and he drove me over here as soon as we heard that the police had arrested you."

"Pleased to meet you." Simon held out his hand to her. 

Shazza looked at it for a while before deciding that she should shake it. "Likewise I'm sure."

"Mum, what has happened, how come you're in here?"

Shazza looked at the policewoman who didn't move. "Big Johnny arrived back with the car from the job he had last night. He told Dad that he had a present for him to pay for the use of the car. It was a new TV set, still in its box. He said that the guy that hired them gave them each a set as part payment for the work that they did at short notice. A rush job he told them, had to be done last night or they would lose shit loads of money. Big Johnny believed them and your father believed him. These guys," she said, nodding to the policewoman, "have said that they might drop the charges if he can help them with their inquiries. We gotta front the beak this morning, the Solicitor that they put on the case has said that they'll give us bail, so we'll be let go."

"What are the charges?" Simon asked.

"Receiving stolen goods. Big Johnny is also being charged with theft of property, oh and driving unlicensed. He won't get off that one, he's never had a license."

Shazza was led back to the holding cells. 

"What am I going to do?" Miranda asked Simon. "I have to find a way to keep them out of gaol."

"You heard your mother, they'll get bail and be out this morning. All we have to do is to make sure that they stay out."

"I can't ask you to get involved in my family problems."

"You don't have to ask, I'm volunteering my services, free of charge." 

"I think that this might be a good time for you to learn a little about what you can expect if you persist in getting to know me. It's about time that you learn about life as a Bogan before you walk out of my life for good. Any romantic notion that you might have about saving me from that life will disappear when you are faced with the impossibility of that task. Take me home and let me show you my world." Miranda had decided that it would be less painful for him to cut and run before her attraction to him got stronger.

"Okay, I'm up for it, tell me where to go."

Miranda directed him to her world. They had just turned into Paradise Rd and she pointed out her house to him. He pulled into the driveway behind the family Commodore. They walked over the front veranda and through the front door.

"Don't you lock your front door?" He asked.

"Waste of time, it's broken. Anyway there's nothing worth stealing, not even a TV it appears." She had noticed the space where the TV had once stood. She was unaware that the old, and broken one, had been replaced by the new, and stolen one, that the police had removed as evidence.

"This room has a patina of much use I see." Simon was attempting to lighten the mood by applying the terms used by antique experts on those shows on TV.

"By that you mean that it hasn't been looked after?"

"If you put it that way, yes."




Life as a Bogan



"My room is this way, and don't get any ideas." She led him down the hallway and into her room. Shazza had not bothered to change her sheets. "And that is the reason that I left home." Miranda pointed to the semen stain on her sheet. "That bastard Bazza was in my bed when I got home, and he had been jerking off. Filthy swine." 

Simon put his arm around her and pulled her close. "It's all right, you don't have to come back to this."

"But I can't leave them now, they're my family. Someone once said that you can choose your friends but not your family. Much as I've enjoyed staying with Mel, and you," She looked at him, deciding whether to tell him how she felt. "Especially you, this is my home and these are my people, and I don't really think that you can handle that, at least not for very long. Life as a Bogan has this habit of grinding the life out of you."

"You seem to have survived so far. You could always be a part-time Bogan, stay with Mel during the week and come home on weekends. At least that way you're closer to Uni and will have fewer distractions while you study."

"Are you trying to tell me that you won't be a distraction?"

"Only if you want me to be."

"See, I'll be distracted whatever I do. There is no way that you're going to leave me alone if I'm staying with Mel, and if I stay here I'll have all of the associated distractions to cope with."

"Are you trying to tell me that if you stay with Mel you don't want me coming around?"

"No. I won't be able to stop you, but if I want to succeed and find a better life for myself, I've got to concentrate on achieving that, and I'll never be able to do that if you're there all the time."

"You're forgetting one thing."

"What's that?"

"I too have a life, and I too have to concentrate on my studies, and to do that I will have to limit the times that I visit Mel. Anyway, it won't take her long to realise that when I come calling it is to see you and not her. She might not like that."

"What do you think about this?" Miranda had thought of a solution. "You limit your visits to a couple of times a week, and when you come we don't do anything stupid like slipping off to my room and leaving her alone. We can keep your visits completely platonic."

"Do you really think that we can do that?"

"No, but we have to try, because if we don't I know what will happen."

"And just what is that?"

"You and I will fall in love . . ."

"And we haven't already?"

"And end up making love. Then we'll get carried away and I'll end up pregnant and like my mother. Much as I love her, I don't want to end up like her. And yes, you could say that we have."

"Have what?"

"Fallen in love." Miranda found herself being crushed to Simon's chest, and her mouth being engulfed by his. She pushed him away. "Stop that!" She said firmly. He did not. "Stop that." She said less firmly. He relaxed his grip on her. "We have to get back to the Courthouse and see what we can do for my parents."

"I suppose so. But I have to tell you that you have this affect on me that isn't about to go away." Simon took her hand and placed it over his cock, his hard cock. Miranda smiled at him and grabbed his hand, pulling him towards the front door.

"That will have to wait. At least until we solve our immediate problems."

"Does that mean?" He asked hopefully.

"I'm making no promises. Let's leave it at that."

They soon found themselves seated in a courtroom. 

It took a while for me to register that Randi was seated next to Shazza, and that she wasn't alone. There was this poofy looking bloke next to her, and they seemed to be more than just good friends if you know what I mean. I didn't have long to think about this, my thoughts were interrupted by the Police Prosecutor.

"Mister Winters, you have been charged with receiving stolen goods, in this case a flat screen TV set that was a part of a shipment of electronic appliances stolen from a warehouse at Milperra last night. How do you plead, guilty or not guilty?"

"Not guilty. How was I to know that it was stolen?" I said to him.

"But you do agree that the serial number on the set matches one on the list of stolen goods from that robbery?" He says to me.

"Yeah, but I didn't have that list to check on when I bought it, did I?" I says.

"Where did you get it?" He asks me.

"I bought it from a bloke at the pub." 

"What was this man's name?"

"How should I know? But I don't think it was Watt."

"I didn't say his name was Watt."

"Yes you did, just then. You just said Watt was his name, but I don't think it was. He said his name was Bruce."

"Bruce what?"

"Nah, he didn't say his name was Bruce Watt. I don't know any Bruce Watt."

"I didn't say that his name was Bruce Watt. . . "

"Yes you did, just then. You're trying to confuse me."

"Let's forget about his name for the present."

"It wasn't a present, he sold it to me."

"Mister Winters, will you stop trying to muddy the waters."

"What's Muddy Waters got to do with it, he's probably dead by now."

"I am trying to ascertain the facts around this transaction. You say that you bought this set from a chap who called himself Bruce. Is that true?" He was getting' pissed off, I could tell.

"Yeah, he said his name was Bruce."

"How much did you pay for the set?"

"Nothing."

"What do you mean nothing? How can you buy something like this for nothing?"

"I didn't give him any money."

"Why not?"

"Because I didn't have any to give him. I haven't got me dole yet."

"But you did promise to pay him for the set when you got your unemployment benefits, didn't you?"

"Yeah."

"How much did you promise to pay this Bruce?"

"Eight hundred bucks."

"For a set worth close to two thousand?"

"I didn't know what it was worth when he offered it to me, did I?."

"That is the recommended retail price for this particular set."

"If you say so. All I know is that it looked to be a pretty good deal."

"Too good to be true perhaps?"

"Yeah, I suppose so."

"And that didn't ring any alarm bells in your mind?"

"Nah. I was just thinking that I wanted to get it home and try it out."

"When you were taken into custody you were asked to assist police in tracking down those responsible for stealing the TV set. Is this correct?"

"Yeah."

"And, in return the police would not charge you with receiving. Is this not also correct?"

"Yeah."

"But you have not been able to provide police with one shred of usable information, have you?"

"I don't know. I've told them everything I know."

"But it's hardly going to be enough to lead police to a conviction is it?"

"I wouldn't know about that. All I know is I've done me best."

"Your Honour, I would ask at this stage of the proceedings, that this witness be held in police custody on the charge of receiving stolen goods, in the hope that his amnesia will be cured."

The Magistrate looked sharply at him, and then at the solicitor that they gave us. "Mister Roberts?"

"Your Honour, my client is willing to assist the police with their enquiries, and he did not knowingly receive the goods in question and, on that basis, I do not believe that a custodial remand is warranted. We would therefore apply for bail."

"Very well, bail is set at two hundred dollars."

"Where am I going to get that kind of money?" I asked.

"You could always use your dole, now that you won't need it to pay for the TV set." The Police Prosecutor said with a smirk on his face.

Just then I noticed the bloke with Randi lean forward and talk to the Solicitor. "Your Honour, this young man has offered to pay my client's bail."

"Very well." He looked at the cop, who looked disappointed, then at me. "Very well, you may step down. Next case."

We stood around outside the courtroom while the bail money was paid. Randi and this bloke came back, he was stuffing his wallet into his pocket. "Dad, this is Simon. Mel's brother."

"Who is this Mel?" I asked.

"The friend I stayed with last night. She and I work together."

"How do you do Sir." He shoved his hand out. I shook it. For a poofy looking bloke he had a firm handshake, maybe he wasn't as poofy as I thought.

"Let's go home." Shazza said. She looked at Miranda, you are comin' aren't you, both of you?"

"Yes." Miranda said. "He's seen the place and it hasn't scared him off. At least not yet."

We called into a bottle shop on the way back for some celebratory booze, in this case a six pack of beers. Simon and Miranda both sipped their beers while I was givin' it a bit of a nudge. "Don't you think you should slow down on that beer?" She asked me.

"I suppose so, I'm just about caught up anyway."

Shazza stood up. "Randi, Miranda" She caught the look on Miranda's face. "Could you give me a hand to get some coffee?"

"Sure Mum." 

Trust the two of them to leave me alone with this stranger. What was I supposed to say to him? "What do you do for a crust?" I asked. Might as well get this part of the interrogation out of the way quickly.

"I'm at Uni and I work part-time as a Night Manager at a pizza takeaway."

"Which one?" I was hoping that it wasn't Pizza Hut or Domino's, or even Pedro's, because if he did this could get a little awkward, he'd probably know about Shazza rootin' the delivery drivers for free pizza.

"Pedro's. Don't worry, I know about the scheme you've got going with the drivers. They pay for the pizzas themselves. I guess that they figure it's still a pretty cheap root. Don't worry, Miranda and I have already discussed this, she knows that I know and that it hasn't affected our relationship."

"Speakin' of which, what is your relationship?"

"There's not a lot to tell at this early stage. We've decided to take it as it comes, that's the wrong word, take it one step at a time."

"I don't want you two makin' the same mistakes that Shazza, Sharon and I made. We did what all the kids were doin' around here back then, it was expected of us to start rootin' early and the girls getting' up the duff, and us havin' to marry, or at least live together, and have kids, lots of kids. The more kids you had the more dole you got. We had it sweet for a while, because I had a good job as a Brickie. It was hard work, and we gave the piss a nudge on payday, but there was enough dough to go around to pay the rent and get a decent car to go to work in. We weren't countin' on a scaffold collapsing and droppin' me ten feet onto a pile of bricks. Fucked me back up totally, I couldn't move properly for years, and before we knew it, we'd been kicked out of the good house we were rentin' and ended up here as 'Housos'. It's no life for a young family, let me tell you. Miranda wanted out of here from a very young age. We didn't let on that we knew how well she was doin' at school, but in our own way we encouraged her."

"She said that you didn't even know that she was going to Uni next year."

"We never told her that we knew, but we did. We figured that the more she saw of the life we lived here, the more she would want to succeed and get out of it. We just didn't want her to know it, that's all. If you're serious about Miranda, I want you to promise not to hurt her, because if you do, it won't be pretty."

"I will never hurt her, that much I can promise."

In the kitchen Miranda was undergoing a similar conversation with Shazza. "You and him, have you, you know, rooted yet?"

"No Mum. We have decided that I will move in with Mel, and that Simon would limit the number of times a week that he visits, and that we would not do anything, for fear that we might hurt Mel's feelings. I don't want to run the risk of falling in love with him before I get to know him better, and we become good friends. I want to be well on the way to a career before I even think about anything more than a casual friendship."

"I wish you luck with that. I had visions of getting qualifications and a good job, but then I met this handsome young Brickie and before I knew it you were on the way, and my dreams had become just that, dreams."

"Mum, much as I love you, I am not about to make the same mistake that you did. That's not to say that I'm not unhappy that you did. Where would I be if you hadn't fallen for him? But, let's face it, life as a Bogan just doesn't suit me, or is it being a Bogan doesn't suit my life?"

"So, you've made up your mind to leave. I hate to lose you like this, I had high hopes for you, what with Uni and all."

"I didn't think you knew about that until yesterday."

"I've been keeping track of you right through school." She went into her room and returned with a shoe box. "I've got all of your report cards in here, and the comments have all been along the lines of 'Miranda shows great promise for the future'. I was very proud of you when your Matriculation results came out and your Uni course acceptances were announced. You have achieved something that I had hoped to achieve, and I'm pleased that you want to get yourself established in a career before you consider getting married and having kids." She hugged Miranda and through tear filled eyes. "Simon seems to be the right guy for you, and I hope that it works out between the two of you. My advice to you is, before you two make love, get on the pill."

"I will Mum, you can count on that."

Miranda and Simon sat on the sofa watching TV and talking to Mel. "Will you two do something about this." Mel asked.

"About what?" Miranda asked.

"This, us sitting around chatting with the TV as background noise. I know that the two of you want to, you know. Go, go to your room and get it over with. I will be happy for you."

Simon stood up and helped Miranda to her feet. "You're sure about this?" He said to Mel.

"Go. You've been wanting to do this for months and have held back because you thought that I'd be hurt by it. I know that Miranda's on the pill, I've seen the empty packet in the rubbish. So go, get it over with."

He led Miranda into her room. "Are you sure about this?" he asked her.

"Never been surer of anything." She placed her arms around his neck and kissed him.

Simon returned her kiss and held her to him. It was not long before she could feel his hardened cock pressing against her belly. She moved her hips, rubbing against it. His hand cupped a breast and, even through the layers of her top and bra, he could feel her responding to him.

It took ages for them to strip off and explore their way around each other's body. Miranda pulled the sheet down and they slipped into bed and each other's arms. She lay on top of him, her legs either side of his body and the tip of his hard cock pressing against the mouth of her vagina. She pushed down on him, feeling the tip slide into her moist entrance. She pressed down harder until his head reached her hymen. She held him there for several minutes before pushing down on him, hard. With a sob she felt the sharp pain as he burst through her hymen and slid deep inside her. Simon grabbed her arse cheeks and held her to him, preventing her from pulling back, luxuriating on the feel of her around his cock, warm, moist and perfect. This was the moment that they had been waiting for for some months now, and at last it had arrived. "Miranda, I love you so very much right now, and it's only going to get better."

"I know my love, now, are we going to just lie here with your magnificent cock inside me, or are we going to finish off what we have started?"

"Finish off sounds perfect. Do you want it slow and gentle, or do you want it rough?"

"I'll leave that up to you." Slow and gentle it was, and when he eventually came inside her, she sighed and kissed him. "That was perfect." She said.

That was some time ago. Just after Miranda moved in with Mel, she went to the Women's Health Clinic and got the pill as soon as she could, she knew that she couldn't hold out for any length of time. It wasn't as if Simon was pressuring her to give in to him, in fact the opposite was the case, and that's what made her more determined that she would give in to him when he asked her to. Once she and Simon made love for the first time, all pretence of Simon coming over to visit Mel disappeared. He was coming to be with Miranda and that was the end of it. 

"I'm glad that I met you." Miranda whispered to him one night.

"Oh yes, and why would that be?" He whispered back, his hand between her legs, making her squirm.

"Because you've saved me from a life as a Bogan."

Life has changed on Paradise Road, San Souci Estate. We found that without Bazza there spongin' off us all the time, we didn't spend as much on food, or booze. When we order pizza these days we pay with money, and the pizza guys aren't too pleased about that. Shazza tells me that she's satisfied with just me these days, and I know I am with her, knowing that she's not rootin' every bloke around. Bazza never came back, and the last I heard was that he was in strife with some sheila's husband and is layin' low for a while. Lockie got a job as an apprentice Motor Mechanic and was chippin' in for his board. He wasn't goin' out with his mates as much. Most of 'em were out of circulation for traffic offences, non-payment of fines and such. He got his Drivers License and bought himself a decent second hand car. He even managed to stay out of trouble with the cops, so we see less of Coxy and his new partner. His old one got a little careless and lost track of what shift her husband was on, and she and Coxy got caught out. Her divorce is on the cards, and Coxy's kid is on the way. They told us that they planned to get hitched as soon as possible, his divorce having just been finalised.

Me, who'd a thought it, I got a job. Actually it was Simon that got me the job, as a handyman at his father's house. It turns out that Simon's old man was filthy rich, so I guess that him and Randi'll, fuck I forgot, she doesn't like being called that anymore, him and Miranda will never be short of dough. Anyhow I work five days a week and the job's not too hard on me back, in fact I haven't felt this good in years. Shazza, she's asked me to call her Sharon these days, and she calls me Daryl, she did this course and now she's working in retail. We both got rid of our mullets and had some dental work done to fill in the gaps in our front teeth, and we dress differently these days as well. We started by getting our clothes from the Op Shop, but lately we've been buying from proper shops, and they get washed after each use rather than like before, when they began to smell,

We both have to admit that this life is a huge improvement on our previous lives as Bogans.

As for Miranda and Simon, we see them at least once a week. They are still together and doin' great. Both are doing well at Uni and are already putting feelers out for jobs. They have their own flat now, and are even planning to get married. Miranda told Sharon that they weren't rootin', they were makin' love instead, and they'd been doing it for some time.

I guess that they'll never be Bogans. 



Life as a New Hire: Cast and Notes (May)



Cast of Characters [Note: Spoiler Alert - this includes updates that may ruin some plot points]

Life as a New Hire

By Nut Ranch and FinalStand

Impossible gratitude to Nut Ranch who not only made this list - he made it thrice. Only my ineptitude had kept the first two creations from the light.

As always, the subject matter is my responsibility.

If you like it, it is probably someone else's fault.

Below is a (Mostly) Complete list of Persons in this story, It is broken down into related groupings such as Known Amazon Houses, Amazons with (as yet) unknown House Affiliation, JIKIT, Government personnel, 9 Clans, Family groupings etc. Some of the groupings are a bit loose so be warned.

Amazons routinely go by 1st names, so some have no last name listed.

Question Marks (?) indicate uncertainty of identification.

Amazon/Non Amazon is the default Identification as some Characters have not (yet) been identified as either Full Blood/Poison Blood (Born Amazon,) or Lost Blood/Runner (Recruited into Amazon Society) in the story line. Half Blood is Born of an Amazon Mother and a male from outside of the Amazon Breeding Program

Some have not (yet) been Identified as to which House they belong to or specific positions within Amazon/Havenstone Society.

Specific relationships/positions have been identified where possible.

I hope this helps you keep track.

 Amazon ROYAL HOUSE  (Technically a Dead House) 

Penthesilea: Queen of the Amazons (Amazon Royal House) during the time of the Iliad, Mother of Kwenhamai (AKA Molpadia) disrespected/killed by Ajax and Achilles, Introduced Ch. 31

Antiope: Queen of the Amazon after her sister Penthesilea is killed, (Amazon Royal House) variously described as having married Theseus and abandoning the amazons or been kidnapped by him, later killed by her Niece Molpadia, Introduced Ch. 31

Kwenhamai: The Unconquered (AKA Molpadia) ('Death Song' in the Amazon tongue, Cáel calls her Kwen), daughter of Penthesilea, Princess of the Royal House of the Amazons. Resurrected as part of the Champion's (Ajax) retinue in order to try and restore her mother Penthesilea's Honor after Ajax and Achilles disrespected/killed her. Kwenhamai/Molpadia was later killed by Theseus, Tyrant of Athens after she (Kwenhamai) killed Antiope, the New Queen of the Amazons and Penthesilea's sister, Introduced Ch. 31

House ANAHIT 

Hayden St. John: High Priestess of the Amazons. Mother of Sydney St. John, House Anahit. 1st Named Chapter 1.

Sydney St. John: Mother of Marilyn St. John, Daughter of Hayden St. John, Havenstone S.D., House Anahit 1st Named Chapter 5

Marilynn St. John: Daughter of Sydney St. John. Grand Daughter of Hayden St. John, House Anahit 1st Named Chapter 1.

House ANAT  (Technically a Dead House) 

Artimpasa: Twin Sister of Shammuramat, Once Head of House Anat. Killed by Shammuramat for being selected to lead House Anat over her. Deceased for many centuries, Introduced in CH 28,

Shammuramat: first ever "independent" queen of a nation-state - Assyria, 9th Century BCE. Abandoned the Host after killing her twin sister who was chosen to lead House Anat, another now dead House. Introduced to Cáel as "The Friendless" the by the Amazon Augur Tadêfi after a vison. Referred to as 'Shammy' by Cáel before she accepts Sakuniyas or Saku, Also known as 'Salmu Eretu,' Sērkuēn, and various other names. Traitor to the Host, murderer of her twin sister Artimpasa and under a sentence of death for the murder of her twin sister Artimpasa. Introduced in CH 25, Named in CH 27

House ANDRASTE

Shawnee: Head of House Arinniti, One of the twenty founding bloodlines, 1st Named Chapter 16

Oneida: Shawnee's Junior/Apprentice of House Arinniti, youngest breeding female in House Arinniti, One of the twenty founding bloodlines, 1st Named Chapter 10

Priya Guerrero: House Andraste, S.D./Camp counselor at Camp Sahka Torchlight'. 1st named CH 26

Slayer of Testicles (SoT) #1 & 2: Amazon Full Bloods, Oneida's personal bodyguards, House Arinniti, Nick-Named in Chapter 17

House BHADRA

No currently Identified members 

House BENDIS

Gale: Junior/Apprentice of House Bendis, 1st Named Chapter 17 as Gale, In Chapter 18 as Gael

House COTYTTIA

Daphne Pile: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Sister of Brielle, Granddaughter of Pamela, House Cotyttia. 1st Named Chapter 1. She, along with Desiree, are the first people Katrina informs that Cáel can speak Amazon. 

Brielle Pile: Works for Olympia Shore. Havenstone Financial Investigative unit, Sister of Daphne, Granddaughter of Pamela, House Cotyttia. 1st Named Chapter 1. She and an unnamed compatriot make a game of ambushing Cáel in the elevator at the start of each day.

Pamela Pile: Retired, Havenstone Executive Services (Most lethal Amazon Assassin of the 20th Century) Cáel's Knife fighting instructor, Grandmother of Daphne and Brielle. House Cotyttia 1st Named Chapter 15. She is Cáel's soul-mate/psychic twin/surrogate Grandmother/Mentor/guardian/slayer of Cáel O'Shea, Cáel Nyilas/Ishara's Grandfather

House CHANDALA BHIKSHUKI 

No currently Identified members 

 House DURGA 

No currently Identified members 

 House EPONA 

Ms. Katrina Love: Head of House Epona, VP of Executive Services. Daughter of Sedona, Caitlyn's sister, Amazon title "'First Bearer of the Sun Spear through the Halls of Night and Death'," (Think Head of KGB, FSB, CIA, MI 5 & 6, GSG 9, Intelligence, Counter Intelligence and Assassination) 1st Named Chapter 1. She is revealed to be sterile, the sister/relative of Desiree & Caitlyn and the Aunt of Loraine, Europa and Aya. With Hayden and Tessa, she created the 'New Directive', though in a stronger format. She remains a close ally and Mentor of Cáel despite some crushing encounters.

Arwen: Katrina's Junior/Apprentice and cousin, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 16

Desiree Fredrickson: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Technically Half Blood but is Katrina and Caitlyn's maternal half-sister, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Sedona Love: Daughter of Andromeda. Mother of Katrina Love, House Epona. 1st Named Chapter 1.

Caitlyn Ruger: Mother of Aya, Europa and Loraine. Katrina's sister. House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3, 1st Named Chapter 4

Loraine Ruger: (age 16), Daughter of Caitlyn. House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3

Europa Ruger: (age 13), Daughter of Caitlyn. House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3

Aya Ruger: (age 9), Daughter of Caitlyn. Absolutely devoted to Cáel, Cáel feels the same about her. House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3. Cáel and Aya develop a father-daughter bond. Informally allowed to create her own War band the 'Fatal Squirts' at Summer camp (ch27). Also allowed an "honorific" name. In CH39 Cáel begins calling her Dumu (Duma is the OKH diminutive for 'daughter')

 House HANWASUIT 

Beyoncé Vincennes: Head of House Hanwasuit 1st Named Chapter 1. As of Chapter 5 she becomes a staunch supporter of the New Directive, Katrina and Cáel.

 House HYLONOME 

Hedwig: Head of the Hylonome band attacked by Ajax, (Presumed Deceased?) 1st mentioned in Chapter 34

Aliz Loma: Amazon That abandoned House Hylonome to marry Dr. Arsenije Loma: Mother of Dijana Loma, Vasilije Loma and unnamed son, Aunt of Zola, Sister of Anna (Deceased?) 1st introduced in Chapter 34

Zola: Amazon, House Hylonome, child of Anna (Presumed Deceased), Niece of Aliz, The Hylonome are dedicated Wanderers/Nomadic Amazon, Inconclusive if it was actually Kwen (AKA Kwenhamai/Molpadia/Death Song) that allowed her to escape to warn Cáel and Aliz, 1st Introduced in Chapter 34,

Kara: Amazon, House Hylonome, (Presumed Deceased) Sacrificed herself for Zola, 1st mentioned in Chapter 34

Anna: Sister of Aliz, mother of Zola, (Presumed Deceased) House Hylonome, 1st mentioned in Chapter 34

 House ILLYANKAMUNUS/SZÉLANYA 

Sabrina: Head of House Illuyankamunus, Introduced in CH37

Alkonyka: Real name Ildiko Lovasz, unknowingly member of the "Lost" Amazon House Illuyankamunus, (House of the Dragon) Sister of Angyalka Lovasz, Cáel has sworn to sponsor SzélAnya as Matron Deity the new House SzélAnya, Introduced Ch. 31

Angyalka Lovasz: unknowingly member of the "Lost" Amazon House Illuyankamunus, (House of the Dragon), Sister to Ildiko Lovasz (aka Alkonyka), Cáel has sworn to sponsor SzélAnya as Matron Deity the new House SzélAnya, Introduced Ch. 31

Dr. Arsenije Loma: (Sort of Amazon?) unknowingly a member of House Illuyankamunus through the Male line, Serbian Professor of Eastern European Studies, Father of Dijana Loma, Vasilije Loma and unnamed son, 1st introduced in Chapter 34.

Dijana Loma (Sort of Amazon?) unknowingly a member of House Illuyankamunus Through the her father and/or House Hylonome line through her mother, Daughter of Dr. Arsenije and Aliz Loma, 1st introduced in Chapter 34.

Vasilije Loma: (Sort of Amazon?)unknowingly a member of House Illuyankamunus Through the Male line, Son of Dr. Arsenije Loma, Brother of Dijana Loma, Boyfriend of Hajnalka (NLN) 1st introduced in Chapter 34

Bolu: Male Amazon, (Deceased) House Illuyankamunus/SzélAnya, Along with Vranus, one of the Two Adult Ash men to survive the 2nd Great Betrayal and continue the Legacy of the Male Amazon along with the last 3 Arinniti sons, 1st Mentioned in CH 16, 1st Named in CH 34 Male Amazon, (Deceased) 

House INARA 

Zarana: (age 14) House Inara, Teenager at Camp 'Sahka Torchlight.' Twin sister to Vaski. Initially insults Cáel but learns a valuable lesson. 1st named CH 26

Vaski: (age 14) House Inara, Teenager at Camp 'Sahka Torchlight.' Twin sister to Zaran: (Vaski is also Cáel's Grandmother's name) 1st named CH 26

 House ISHARA 

Cáel Nyilas: A 'New Directive' intern. Of Magyar and Irish Gaelic descent. The Magyar have cultural roots with the Finnish, Turks, and Bulgarians. Grandson of Cáel O'Shea (Deceased/Resurrected Illuminati Leader), Graduated from Bolingbrook College with a Business Major and a Philosophy minor. Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services, 1st Named Chapter 1. He speaks 4 current languages (English, French, Spanish and Russian) and ten dead languages (including Old Kingdom Hittite, which is also the native language of the Amazons) 

He is an oversexed, incredibly fit and morally ambiguous serial dater. His body bears scars from numerous romantic mis-adventures.

Later discovered to be the descendant of Vranus, an "Ash Man" of House Ishara during the 2nd Great Betrayal. Cáel becomes the Head of House Ishara, one of the 1st twenty Houses previously believed to have died out.

His Father is Ferko Nyilas and his Mother is Sibeal O'Shea Nyilas.

Cáel has an Aunt Stella on his father's side. She is a crab-fisherwoman living in Maryland. (Non Amazon) The Isharan House has been passed down through the MALE blood line.

He has 10 (unknown until Chapter 19) O'Shea Aunts and one Uncle. After Ferko's murder, Aunt Stella reveals that Sibeal did not die of cancer and is still alive and in hiding from her family.

Later becomes referred to as Ishara and Wakko Ishara. Aya calls him alternately Daddy, 'Fehér mén' (White Stallion) and Atta (OKH for 'respectful' Father) the term is largely religious and only used in the terms of female divinities referring to divine paternals. NOHIO (Number One House Ishara Official), HCIESI-NDI (Havenstone Commercial Investments Executive Services' Intern - New Directive Initiative), UHAUL - Unpaid Honcho Assigned to Unit L. HIs work with the Great Khan and the Khanate earns him the titles -Prince of Hungary and Transylvania - "Magyarorszag es Erdely Hercege" {Hungarian} - "Prinţul Ungariei şi Transilvaniei" {Romanian}, Royal Prince of Armenia and Georgia - "Prinţul Regal al Armeniei şi Georgiei" {Romanian} - "Armenia és Geoegia Királyi Hercege" {Hungarian}, Royal Prince of Albania - "Albánia Királyi Hercege" {Hungarian} - "Prinţul Regal al Albaniei" {Romanian}

Ferko Nyilas: Cáel's father (deceased Ch 19), technically should have been the Head of House Ishara, Named/1st Named Chapter 19

Buffy Dubois: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. 'Lost Blood' or "Runner" Becomes First new member of House Ishara after Cáel Nyilas and Cáel's Junior/Apprentice. 1st Named Chapter 1. Buffy retains an unsanctioned feud with Elsa. Buffy qualified for the Security Detail, but was denied entry by Elsa because Buffy wasn't a full-blooded Amazon. Becomes known as "Yakko Ishara" within House Ishara in CH 26, also is addresses as the 'First,' 'First' implies a deep, romantic relationship with the Head of House including possessing insight into the Head's mindset

Helena Shultz: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. "Originally Lost Blood" or "Runner" 2nd Person Cáel inducted into House Ishara, upon adoption into House Ishara becomes the Keeper of the House records, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Madori Yalda: Senior of the 'Runners' inducted into House Ishara after Buffy and Helena, First named in Chapter 22

Vranus: House Ishara, one of 2 Warrior Males members of the Amazon Host that were ordered to leave at the end of the 2nd Great Betrayal by House Arinniti, Cáel's multi-great grandfather, 1st Named Chapter 16

Marsha: Amazon 'Runner,' one of the twenty Runners inducted into House Ishara at Ferko's funeral, 1st Named Chapter 20

Wilma Draper: Havenstone Security team (NOT S.D.) Amazon 'Runner' inducted into House Ishara in CH 28, 1st Named Chapter 22

Jenna: Runner inducted to House Ishara, Havenstone Acquisitions, Part of the initial Amazon team assisting the Ninja Clans, 1st named CH 30

 House JAYA 

Charlotte: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) Amazon, Dies assisting Cáel in killing Ajax in Romania, House Jaya, 1st Named Chapter 18

Mona: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) Amazon, (House Jaya ID'd in CH34)1st Named Chapter 18, (identified as Constanza's foster sister in CH 28)

 House MARDA 

Kohar Marda: Becomes Head of House Marda when Ursula "Went to the Cliffs" after Hayden's final act as High Priestess. 1st named CH 26

Ursula: Former Head of House Marda, 1st Named Chapter 5. Hard-liner. Is killed as a traitor the Amazons by Hayden's last decree

Leona: House Marda, 1st Named Chapter 5. Killed by Hayden for defying the Council's New Directive.

 House MEENAKSHI 

Madi: Head of House Meenakshi, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Rhada: Madi's Apprentice, House Meenakshi, 1st Named Chapter 1. She is the 'apprentice' of Madi, thus her designated successor on the Amazon Council. She also develops a convoluted and socially dangerous sexual relationship with Cáel.

 House MIELIKKI 

Febe: Head of House Mielikki, Introduced in CH38

Caprica Mielikki, Leader of the S.D. group that picked up Cáel on his trip to see Aya at "Camp Sahka Torchlight'. 1st named CH 26

 House DOBRANI 

Messina Dobrani: Head of House Minerva, Fabiola's Mother, 1st Named Chapter 5

Fabiola Dobrani: Havenstone Executive Services (ES), Daughter of Messina, House Minerva 1st Named Chapter 1. Like her mother, Fabiola is a 'hard-liner', believing the Amazons should butcher their old, diseased male population and replace them by kidnapping new males.

 House MOOKAMBIKA 

No currently Identified members 

 House RAJAH 

Naomi: Havenstone S.D.: House Rajah, 1st Named Chapter 12

 House ŠAUŠKA 

Troika: Former head of House Šauška. One of the Head of Houses killed my Hayden's final Act, Formerly Head of Havenstone 'Diplomatic Corps', 1st Named Chapter 19

Konstantina: House Šauška, Havenstone 'Diplomatic Corps', Identified in CH28

 House ŽIVA 

Wiesława: Havenstone S.D., House Živa, 1st Named Chapter 22

 Amazon's Without Identified Houses/Havenstone Employees not already identified 

*****" St. Marie: Marshal of the Amazon Host, Commander of the Security Directorate (S.D.), Amazon Title "Mistress of the Golden Mare," Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 13, Cáel calls her Pony Lady though he is forbidden to call her that by Hayden.

Rachel Louis: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., (Chief of Cáel's security detail) House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Tiger Lily: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) House? Native American of Shoshone heritage, 1st Named Chapter 18

Velma: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's apartment security detail) House? 1st Named Chapter 19

Sabina: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., Last surviving S.D. member assigned to Ferko Nyilas', Cáel's father. Also the person who ultimately killed him by accident, House? 1st Named Chapter 20

Sophia: Amazon Full Blood, S.D./Senior 'Camp counselor' at Camp 'Sahka Torchlight'. 1st named CH 26

Genève: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., Camp counselor' at Camp 'Sahka Torchlight'. Introduced in CH26, 1st named CH 27. Younger Sister to Rachel (Cáel's SD head of security)

Crewe: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., House? 1st Named Chapter 2.

Aisha: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Stanica: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., House? 1st Named Chapter 12

Felicité: Amazon Full Blood, Havenstone S.D., 1st Named Chapter 22

Krasimira: Amazon title "Keeper of Records" (AKA Amazon Historian/Legal Arbitrator), Amazon Full Blood, House (?), 1st Named Chapter 16

Tessa Carmichael: Head of Havenstone Human Resources (HR). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1. She is a close ally of Katrina.

Umami Lhasa: Assistant to Tessa Carmichael, Havenstone Human Resources (HR), Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1

Farah Winters: Havenstone Human Resources (HR). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Rosetta: Amazon Full Blood, a Senior member of Havenstone Executive Services (ES), Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Paula Wadena: Havenstone Executive Services (ES.) Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Violet Maza: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services (ES). Sister of Traska, Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Theresa 'Tigger' Castro: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services (ES). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Julian Jameson: VP in charge of Acquisition. Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1

Brian Fung: Chinese-American 'New Directive' intern.' Graduated from Harvard. Works for Ms. Julian Jameson, VP in charge of Acquisition. Nick Named 'The Chinchilla' by his co-workers, 1st Named Chapter 1. The 3rd "New Hire" to be relocated and reduced to 'sperm donor' status.

Olympia Shore: head of the Financial Investigative unit (FI). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Trent Grant: "'New Directive' intern.' Blue blood, Graduated from Carnegie-Melon. Works for Ms. Olympia Shore, head the Financial Investigative unit (FI). 1st Named Chapter 1. It is eventually revealed that Trent lied during the application process, claiming no serious romantic entanglements and not even mentioning his long-term girlfriend, Brooke Lee. He denied her in Katrina's office and volunteered for the Far East Unit - aka washed out, the 2nd "New Hire" to be relocated and reduced to 'sperm donor' status.

Phalli Chandra: VP of International Finance (IF). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Khalid Adzharia: 'New Directive' intern.' African-American, Graduated from MIT. Works for Ms. Phalli Chandra VP of International Finance (IF). The 1st "New Hire" to be relocated and reduced to 'sperm donor' status 1st Named Chapter 1.

Tia Pharos: VP of Havenstone Business Management (BM). Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1

Felix Melena: "New Directive' intern." Salvadoran-American. Graduated from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Works for Ms. Tia Pharos, VP of Business Management (BM) 1st Named Chapter 1. He later gets into a feud with Cáel, seduces Brooke to get back at him then makes a public display of his deed on the main floor of the Executive Office Department. Cáel challenges him to fight and beats Felix in a matter of seconds due to Felix's overconfidence.




Life as a New Hire: Cast and Notes (May)



Elsa: Amazon Full Blood, Head of Havenstone S.D., House? 1st Named Chapter 4. She is an Amazon Traditionalist, worships the ground Katrina walks on and comes to desire Cáel as something besides a breeding male.

Constanza: Amazon Full Blood, Elsa's assistant, Havenstone S.D., House? 1st Named Chapter 4. Eventually another Amazon, Pamela, cuts her left eye out for insulting Cáel.

Tadêfi: Amazon Full Blood, Amazon Augur (Seeress), House (?) Cáel was directed to have sex with the 1st woman he saw (Tadêfi) by the Goddess Ishara after her communication with him in CH 24. Pregnant with Cáel's Daughter. Introduced in Chapter 24

Sikia: Amazon Full Blood, Personal Attendant/Guard for the Amazon Augur Tadêfi. Participates in Goddess directed sex between Cáel & Tadêfi. Future mother of Cáel's 1st son. House? Introduced in Chapter 24

Traska Maza: Amazon Full Blood, Sister of Violet, House? 1st Named Chapter 7. Havenstone Medical Division?.

Layla: Amazon, Physician's assistant at Havenstone medical clinic, Amazon, House (?), 1st Named Chapter 8, 1st Named Chapter 9

Astarte: Amazon, House (?) 1st Named Chapter 3

Sabia: Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Blythe: Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Tegan: Amazon Full Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Drusilla: Amazon Full Blood: House? 1st Named Chapter 10

Ngozi: Amazon Full Blood: House? 1st Named Chapter 12

Deena: Amazon, Cáel's pool buddy/conquest (?), Sharona's friend, House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Sharona: Amazon, Deena's friend (?) House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Alicia Holt: Amazon 'Runner' selected to be inducted into House Ishara but rejected by Ishara during the Induction Ceremony. Possibly she will be reconsidered, 1st Named Chapter 21

Esmeralda Carbone: Amazon Runner, 1st Named Chapter 19

Mosa Oya: (approximately age 9) Amazon Full Blood, Member of Aya Ruger's informally recognized War Band, the Fatal Squirts in Camp 'Sahka Torchlight.' 1st named CH 26

Yasmin Palhavã: Brazilian, Former state criminal inspector, recruited into Havenstone as a "Runner," One of Cáel's conquests, Later becomes a part of JIKIT, 1st named in Chapter 5

 The ILLUMINATI  

Cáel O'Shea; Cáel's maternal Grandfather, (Killed by Pamela/Resurrected,) Former/Current leader of the Illuminati, 1st Named Chapter 17 (Also known as "The FOE" in CH 25) One third of the original Baraqu's soul along with Alal, as revealed in CH 27, Determined to be reincarnated in CH 27(?)

Sibeal (O'Shea) Nyilas: [Prophetess], Illuminati, Cáel's Mother (Deceased then not?), Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 19. Using an unexplored intelligence network to plant Delilah Faircloth with Odette then Cáel.

Brianna O'Shea [strong], Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 17

Deidre O'Shea [Melancholy]: Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, sort of the referee that the other aunts don't respect, 1st Introduced Chapter 18

Baibre O'Shea [strange] Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 30 though she was (unnamed) at Ferko Nyilas funeral. Baibre is...nuts. The 'walks the hallways of the old manor house late at night having conversations with the portraits of her dead ancestors' kind of nuts. Definitely detached from reality.

Darcie O'Shea [dark]: Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, Not introduced as of CH 40

Imogen O'Shea [youngest]: Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 30 though she was (unnamed) at Ferko Nyilas funeral. An up-beat and perkily impish sort with the heart of a medusa.

Kelly O'Shea [War]: Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 30 though she was (unnamed) at Ferko Nyilas funeral. A cold-hearted, ruthless, professional killer.

Maitilda O'Shea [strong warrior maiden]: Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 30 though she was (unnamed) at Ferko Nyilas funeral. A cold-hearted, ruthless, professional killer.

Sadhbba O'Shea [wise]: Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, Not introduced as of CH 40

Una O'Shea [lamb]: Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, Not introduced as of CH 40

Fiona O'Shea [Hero]: Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 21

Carrig O'Shea: Illuminati, AKA Uncle Lumpy - Uncle Blockhead, Illuminati, Cáel's maternal Uncle, Son of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 21. Deceased in Chapter 24.

Faoiltiama O'Shea [wolf lady] (actually Great-Aunt): Illuminati, Not introduced as of CH 40

David Donoghue: Non Amazon, Ireland's Representative to the UN in New York and member of the Illuminati - the O'Shea faction. 1st named CH 30

Nicole Lawless: Criminal defense lawyer, Lawyer for the Illuminati but doesn't know it. One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 13. In Chapter 20 she becomes Cáel's attorney, but has been hired by the O'Shea Aunts.

Mr. Cherrie: Lawyer at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?) Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Heather Pulaski: Lawyer at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?) Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Mr. and Mrs. DeYoung: Senior Lawyers at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?) Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Topaz: Call sign of some CIA technician/operator that Cáel contacts when marooned on a Pacific atoll. Possibly a dedicated Spy satellite system with delusions of Self-Awareness that is operated by the CIA but is primarily controlled (secretly) by the Illuminati, Introduced in CH39

Winchell Sokolowsky: Unknown benefactor for Ferko Nyilas funeral reception, Probable Illuminati, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20

 JIKIT  (& Associated people)

Javiera Castello: Assistant Federal District Attorney assigned to Cáel's father's murder. Later becomes the Overall Head of JIKIT, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21

Riki Martin: Non Amazon, U.S. State Department representative when Cáel provides information of the "Anthrax", Later becomes a leader of JIKIT, Introduced in CH30

Susan Collins: Non Amazon, Sitting US Senator (R-Maine, Age 61), Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Addison P. Stuart: Non Amazon, CIA/National Clandestine Service (NCS) Specialized Skills Officer - Targeting (SSO-T), Replaced George Kresky. Member of JIKIT. Introduced in CH37

Lady Fathom Worthington-Burke: Non Amazon, Special Delivery Manager (SPD), of Her Majesty's Secret Intelligence Service (aka MI-6), Cáel refers to her s Lady Yum-Yum, U.K. Member of JIKIT

Mehmet Ali-Sharif: Non Amazon, Supervisory Program Analyst of the US State Department, National Intelligence and Research -Watch, Riki Marten's Intel back up, Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Nicholas Billings: Non Amazon, 'signals' Air Force Senior Master Sergeant detached to the DIA, Works for Mehmet Ali-Sharif as a Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Agent-86,Real Name UNK: Non Amazon, Pamela calls him that: Non Amazon, NSA Agent that 'works' with/for Mehmet Ali-Sharif as a Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Beatrice Ya Konan: Non Amazon, US State Department Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, a co-worker/subordinate of Riki Marten as a Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Anastasia Sandusky: Non Amazon, Homeland Security, assistant to Javiera Castello, doubles as a very credible bodyguard and a Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

Odette Sievert: Non Amazon, Restaurant server, One of Cáel's many conquests/ becomes a roommate, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 1. She eventually becomes one of Cáel's best friends and grounding point. Odette also provides information about Cáel to numerous, scary women. Ends up becoming a "Morale Officer for JIKIT "Unit L" paid by Havenstone.

Delilah (Fairchild CH30) (Faircloth CH34): Non Amazon, an active operative for MI-6 (Rank of Captain)(Britain's foreign intelligence service) that Sibeal O'Shea Nyilas, Cáel's Mom, has recruited by unknown means to help protect Cáel and keep her informed of what is happening in his life. Delilah does not know who she is ultimately reporting to, or even what her assignment really entails. (IN CH 34 Identified as a Royal Air Force Pilot) Probable but not specifically named JIKIT Member, First introduced in Chapter 24.

Charles 'Chaz' Tomorrow: Non Amazon, Colour Sergeant (Same as E6/SSG US Forces) British Special Reconnaissance Regiment (SRR) in CH 28) Body Guard to an un-named senior MI-6 Charge of Station. Pamela respects him. (Later a probable but unnamed member of JIKIT) 1st named CH28

Virginia Maddox: Non Amazon, FBI Special Agent , Selected by USA Javiera Castello to investigate the attack on Cáel at his apartment by Carrig O'Shea (aka 'Uncle Lumpy' ), becomes part of Cáel's traveling circus, (Later a probable but unnamed member of JIKIT) introduced in Chapter 24

Beatrice Ya Konan: Non Amazon, US State Department Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, a co-worker/subordinate of Riki Marten as a Member of JIKIT, Introduced in CH37

 US/UK/GOVERNMENT/LAW ENFORCEMENT PERSONEL (Possible but Likely NOT JIKIT) 

Jonas Baker: Non Amazon, Associate Deputy Undersecretary of Analysis for Homeland Security (ADUAHS} (Oxygen thief/ pompous bureaucrat) Briefly tried to have Cáel arrested, Head of the Joint Terrorism Task Force (?) 1st named CH 30

Victoria Nuland: Non Amazon, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs (ASSEEA), 1st Named in CH 35

Robert O. Blake Jr.: Non Amazon, Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs (ASSCAA) Non Amazon, 1st Named in CH 35

Daniel R. Russel: Non Amazon, Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (ASSEAP), Riki Marten works in his Department, 1st Named in CH 35

Tony Blinken: Non Amazon, Deputy National Security Advisor (DNSA), Introduced in CH40

George Cresky: Non Amazon, 'Senior Field Officer of a Joint Terrorism Taskforce?' i.e. CIA, 1st named CH27

Vincent Loire: Non Amazon, FBI Special Agent, Assigned to investigate the attack on Camp 'Sahka Torchlight.' Probably more. Widower, father of three adult daughters. Pamela likes him. (Possible JIKIT member after recovering from wounds) 1st named CH27

Street Moslin: Non Amazon, FBI Special Agent, Dumb ass, 1st Named Chapter 21

Theodora Chumwell: Non Amazon, FBI Special Agent, Brock Miklos partner, 1st Named Chapter 19

Brock Miklos: Non Amazon, FBI Special Agent, Theodora Chumwell's partner, 1st Named Chapter 19

John Rios: Non Amazon, Special Agent with the ATF, 1st Named Chapter 19

Horace Brewster: Non Amazon, Burnham PD Investigator, 1st Named Chapter 19

Lisa Capella: Non Amazon, Chicago PD Homicide Detective. 1st Named Chapter 19

Nikita Kutuzov: Non Amazon, NYPD rookie Cop, One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 3. Her mother is a Desk Sargent for the NYPD at the precinct that Marilyn St. James usually ends up at.

Skylar Montero: Non Amazon, NYPD Cop, Nikita's training Officer, 1st Named Chapter 8

Captain Moe Mistriano: Non Amazon, United States Army Medical Research Institute of Infectious Diseases (USAMRIID) representative when Cáel provides information on the "Anthrax", 1st named CH 30

Sir Grant (1st Name not revealed): Non Amazon, Her British Majesty's Representative to the UN in New York, 1st named CH 30

Whatever S. Handy, Mr. Knot, Mister, American Super Spy (aka Mr. A.S.S.) and Mr. Up: Non Amazon, Real name not disclosed. Undercover Agent for the US National Security Agency (NSA). Assigned to track major financial transactions between key global financial institutions relating to possible terrorism ties (i.e. secret societies) Introduced Ch. 31

Ms. McCauley (1st Name not revealed): Non Amazon, U.S. Diplomatic Security Service (?) Theoretical (but never becomes) replacement for Agent Riki Martin on Cáel's team, 1st Named Ch36

Lt. Toffler (1st Name not revealed): Non Amazon, US Navy pilot that picks Cáel and party from the Pacific atoll they have been marooned on. Introduced in CH39

Lt. Robeson (1st Name not revealed): Non Amazon, USMC Lt. that assists in picking up Cáel and party from the Pacific atoll they have been marooned on. Introduced in CH39

 RUSSIAN 

Major Maxim Stepanovich Bukhalo: Non Amazon, ASVR-RF (Foreign Intelligence Service of the Russian Federation) sent to intimidate/secure Hana Sulkanen's "cooperation" in contacting the Khanate, Introduced Ch. 33

Andrey Ivanovich Denisov: Non Amazon, 'Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Russian Federation to the People's Republic of China, Given the task of informing Russia was going to 'Assist' China by invading it. 1st mentioned in Chapter 34

Major Tatianna Semenina Volkov: Non Amazon, Russian GRU (Military Intelligence), Also Russian Military Attaché to Bucharest, 1st Named in CH 35

 9 CLANS 

The Vizsla: The Equivalent of an Amazon House Leader in the Black Hand in Hungary, Cousin of Matthias, Introduced Ch. 31

Selena Jovanović: Black Hand assassin, 1st Named Chapter 20

Matthias: Black Hand Representative that tried (unsuccessfully) to have Cáel's group ambushed by the Condottieri in Hungary. Cousin of the Vizla, Killed by Pamela for threatening Riki Martin, Introduced and killed in Ch. 31

Josef: Black Hand support member/driver that betrays The Vizsla by revealing her and Cáel's meeting location. Introduced and killed in Ch. 31

Miyako Yuki: Ninja. Cáel Conquest, Pregnant with Cáel's daughter, Non amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20

Estere Abed: Hashashin assassin, Probably pregnant with Cáel's child, 1st Named Chapter 21

 7 PILLARS  (or Chinese) 

Lady Zhen Duan: 7 Pillars Senior operative. Twin Sister of Duan Mu, Kidnapped Cáel and Aya, Zhen and Mu are the only survivor's besides Cáel and Aya from a Cyclone/Goddess induced plane crash on a Pacific Atoll, Aya named her 'Lúsìla ninda' (OKH for Cup Cake {as in Tasty Cáel treat}), Dot Ishara promised to make Zhen pregnant with Cáel's son if he could inseminate her, Introduced in CH39

Mu Duan: 7 Pillars Senior operative. Twin Brother of Duan Zhen, Kidnapped Cáel and Aya, Zhen and Mu are only survivor's besides Cáel and Aya from a Cyclone/Goddess induced plane crash on a Pacific Atoll, Aya named him Amar (Calf in OKH) as a play on Mu's name, Introduced in CH39

Tsu: 7 Pillars Gong tau Necromancer that learns the hard way not to fight three Goddesses, Briefly introduced then killed in CH 38

Lu Hao: 7 Pillars, Provincial Governor, Heilongjiang province, PRC. Introduced in CH37

Wang Xiankui: Non Amazon, The Provincial Head of the Communist Party in Heilongjiang province, PRC. Introduced in CH37

 AJAX  (and Crew)

Ajax: aka The Champion - is the Greek Hero Ajax from the Trojan War, Returned from the Afterlife to seek vengeance on the Amazon's for killing him, His resurrection is revealed to Cáel by the Amazon Augur Tadêfi after a vison. Major hate for the Amazon, Introduced in CH 25

Teucer: Mycenaean Greek, Half-brother of Ajax, Archer/Sniper, Returned from the Afterlife to seek vengeance on the Amazon's for killing him, Wounded by Pamela, Introduced in Ch. 31

Eruthros: (aka Red) Mycenaean Greek, member of Ajax's band, Returned from the Afterlife to seek vengeance on the Amazon's for killing him, Seems ok, likes Cáel, Introduced in Ch. 31

Augewas: Mycenaean Greek, member of Ajax's band, Returned from the Afterlife to seek vengeance on the Amazon's for killing him, Introduced and killed in Ch. 31

 EARTH AND SKY  (and associated people)

Temujin: Earth and Sky Society, aka The Conqueror/Great Khan - is the resurrected/reborn Genghis Khan, Revealed to Cáel by the Amazon Augur Tadêfi after a vison. Introduced in CH 25

Oyuun Tömörbaatar: Earth and Sky Society, Beg of the Earth and Sky Society - essentially a regional commander, Kazakhstan's 'Permanent UN Representative', Father of T. Sarangerel 1st Named Chapter 25

T. Sarangerel: Earth and Sky Society, Daughter of Oyuun Tömörbaatar, 1st Named Chapter 25

Iskender: Earth and Sky Society, 1st Named Chapter 21

Ferit Hoxha: Non Amazon, Permanent Representative of Albania to the United Nations, Not specifically Earth and Sky, Introduced in CH40

Mohammad Mangal: Major General of the Afghan National Army's 201st Corp Commander, Not specifically JIKIT or Earth and Sky, Introduced in CH37 

Ishmael "something": Non Amazon, Pakistani ISI (Inter-Service Intelligence) guy in New York, Not specifically JIKIT or Earth and Sky, Introduced in CH37 

 SULKANEN FAMILY  (and associates)

Jormo Sulkanen: Patriarch of the Sulkanen clan. Initially furious with Cáel, he decides to accept Cáel's verdict on his youngest son from his first marriage (Brennan), setting the young rapist adrift in order for his conflict with Cáel to escalate to the rest of his family. His third wife is named Misty and his youngest daughter is Karvala. Has two sons from his first marriage and three other children by his second and third marriages. First introduced in Chapter 23

Hana Sulkanen: Stepdaughter of Jormo Sulkanen, heir to his financial empire. Has an ex-husband named Sten Philip Männik, and a daughter Õnnela (Estonian for 'Luck'), Hana turns out to be one of Cáel' allies. Later becomes Cáel's fiancé in CH 30, First introduced in Chapter 23.

Misty Sulkanen: Third and current wife of Jormo Sulkanen, First introduced in Chapter 23

Õnnela Männik: Daughter of Hana Sulkanen, Introduced in Ch 23, Named in Ch 36

Brennan Sulkanen: Son of Jormo Sulkanen, Step Brother of Hana Sulkanen, Along with Anima, foolishly initiates a (disastrous) feud with Cáel by mis-treating Casper after being warned. Oxygen thief with delusions of entitlement due his father's money. First introduced in Chapter 23.

Sten Philip Männik: Estonian national, Hana Sulkanen's ex-husband, father of Õnnela, and business partner of Jormo Sulkanen, Introduced in CH23 as Philip Named in Ch 36

Ms. Meacham (1st name not revealed): Personal Assistant to Hana Sulkanen, Introduced in Ch 33

Orlando Keyes: MMA Fighter sponsored by Jormo Sulkanen's company 'Fitness Tech', Brennan Sulkanen's "muscle," (Deceased along with his un-named Fiancé) 1st Named Chapter 22

Anima (last name not revealed): evil, super-rich, debauchery enabler and destroyer of purity, virtue and innocence. Brennan Sulkanen's girlfriend. First named in Chapter 22

Donna (last name not revealed): Servant at the Sulkanen estate, non Amazon, introduced in Chapter 23

Mr. Dornier (1st name not revealed): Sten Philip Männik's lawyer, introduced in CH 40

 EVERYONE ELSE  (roughly in order of appearance) 

Timothy Denver: Non Amazon, Gay body-building, hunk, moderately famous tattoo artist from Queens, Cáel's Roommate. 1st Named Chapter 1. Timothy may be the finest, most understanding roommate who has ever lived.

Sovann Mean: Non Amazon, (Timothy Denver's gay date) Second generation Cambodian-American weightlifter, Introduced in Chapter 24

Dr. Kimberly Geisler: Non Amazon, Professor at Bolingbrook College, Cáel's 1st lover, taught him multiple dead languages, Contrary to some people's perception, Cáel and Kimberly maintained a four year affair. Kimberly ended it when he graduated. 1st introduced Ch 1.1st named in CH 4

Vienna Rothmore: Non Amazon (?), friend of Marilynn St. John, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Ms. Ulyssa Reichmann: Non Amazon, Aya's Teacher at a private academy, Nadia's sister, 1st Named Chapter 3. She is an on again/off again Sunday night hook-up for Cáel

Rachel Simpson: Non Amazon, Loraine Ruger's teacher at a private academy, 1st Named Chapter 4

Brooke Lee: Non Amazon, Trent Grant's fiancée (Until Grant's oopsie is revealed CH 9), One of Cáel's many conquests, 1st Named Chapter 4

Libra Chalmers: Non Amazon, One of Cáel's many conquests, Marla Chalmer's sister, 1st Named Chapter 4

Marla Chalmers: Non Amazon, One of Cáel's many conquests, Libra Chalmer's sister, 1st Named Chapter 4




Life as a New Hire: Cast and Notes (May)



Gene: Non Amazon, friend of Libra and Brooke, 1st Named Chapter 4

Nadia Reichmann: Non Amazon, Sister to Ulyssa Reichmann, 1st Named Chapter 7. She is an on again/off again Sunday night hook-up for Cáel.

Braulio Palhavã: Non Amazon, Yasmin Palhavã's (Amazon Runner) son, 1st introduced, Chapter 4, 1st Named in Chapter 18

Katy Lee Baker: Non Amazon, aka Delivery Girl, 1st Named Chapter 13

Jason (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Bar back at the yuppie bar, 1st Named Chapter 13

Zelda, Marsha: Phyllis, and Rivka Feinstein (ADA for New York County: Non Amazon, All friends of Nicole Lawless, probable future Cáel conquests, 1st Named Chapter 13

Evie (Bi sexual) and Samantha (Lesbian) (Last names not revealed): Non Amazons, girlfriends/lovers, long-time friends of Timothy Denver, Pair of Cáel's many conquests, 1st Named Chapter 15

Mr. Finnes (no 1st name revealed): Non Amazon, Cáel's neighbor, REALY hates Cáel because of all the women screaming in orgasm at his apartment, 1st Named Chapter 17

Winslow Pratt: Non Amazon, Cáel's (very temporary) Lawyer after his father Ferko is killed, 1st Named Chapter 19

Steve McCabe: Non Amazon, Desk clerk, Burnham Hotel, 1st Introduced CH 19

Cameron Sanders: Non Amazon, Assistant manager Burnham Hotel, Cáel's motivation to start working out when she cruelly rejected him in High School. 1st Named Chapter 20 [she'll be back, I promise]

Casper Winslow: Somewhat rich girl, party favor/gang rape victim of the sex party orchestrated by Anima and Brennan Sulkanen. First named in Chapter 22. Her last name is revealed in Chapter 24.

Anais (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Canadian Mounty (RCMP) Another Cáel conquest, 1st Named Chapter 25

Maya (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Canadian, Another Cáel conquest, 1st Named Chapter 25

Evian (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Parasitologist at Meadowlands Medical Center, One of the Dr.'s trying to understand the effects of the device used to attack Cáel by 'Uncle Lumpy'. Also a Cáel conquest, 1st Named Chapter 25

Baraqu: Non Amazon, Born the younger son of a potter in Ancient Sumer, Blessed/Cursed by Sarrat Irkalli, Sumerian/Goddess/ queen of the Netherworld who Tri-sected his soul into three parts. Baraqu, (Cáel O'Shea, Cáel's grandfather), Cáel (Nyilas) Ishara and Alal (the Destroyer) he who stands witness to the end of all he desires; their destroyer. Baraqu means 'struck by lightning' but also 'the idiot.' Identified in CH27, Sakuniyas refers to him as White hair in CH36

Alal: Non Amazon, ( aka the Destroyer) he who stands witness to the end of all he desires; One third of the Soul of Baraqu along with Cáel (Nyilas) Ishara and Alal. Identified in CH27

Umashau: Non Amazon, member of the Sadīdu tribe, first hired Baraqu as a body guard, family helped educate him over the (many) decades he served them Many centuries ago. Identified in CH27

Branko (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, White slaver that is responsible for kidnapping Angyalka Lovasz, Introduced Ch. 31

Orsi (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Hungarian, practical Electrical Engineering Student, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Jolan (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Hungarian, Barge 'Captain', economics major and the team book-keeper, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Katalin (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Hungarian, Interior Design Student, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Monika (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, German, Architectural Student, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Magdalena (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Slovakian Jewish, Art Student, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Anya Sarac: Non Amazon, Bulgarian, Mechanical Engineering Student, one of six Female College Students from the Czech Technical University in Prague that rescue Cáel and Pamela on their converted River Barge /house boat after a clash with Ajax. Introduced in Ch. 31

Emil (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Boyfriend of Divna, One of three Macedonians that regrettably insult and attempt to attack Cáel and Pamela in a Hungarian Guest House 'the Seven Fishermen's Guest House' in Mindszent, Hungary. Introduced in Ch. 31

Divna (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Girlfriend of Emil, Sister of Neven, One of three Macedonians that regrettably insult and attempt to attack Cáel and Pamela in a Hungarian Guest House 'the Seven Fishermen's Guest House' in Mindszent, Hungary. Introduced in Ch. 31

Neven (Last name not revealed): Non Amazon, Brother of Divna, One of three Macedonians that regrettably insult and attempt to attack Cáel and Pamela in a Hungarian Guest House 'the Seven Fishermen's Guest House' in Mindszent, Hungary. Introduced in Ch. 31 

Officers Gala and Kupec (1st names not revealed): Non Amazons, TEK (Hungary's Anti-Terrorism Law Enforcement Body) Non Amazons, Introduced Ch. 33

Dortmund Schuyler: Non Amazon, German National that Pamela 'convinces' to lend Her and Cáel his motorcycle, Introduced Ch. 34. 

Flaviu Molnar: Non Amazon, Agent of Serviciul de Informații Externe (SIE) (aka the Romanian CIA), Introduced Ch. 34

Master Corporal Menner (No 1st Name Given): Non Amazon, Master Corporal is roughly the same as US Forces E4/SPC/Corporal) Romanian Army 24th Mountain Troops battalion, Gives a BIG Assist to Cáel and SzélAnya in Killing AJAX, Ethnic Székely (Hungarian) Born in Romania, 1st Named in CH 34

Col. Giurcă (No 1st Name Given): Non Amazon, Romanian Army Officer (commander of 61st Mountain Troops Brigade) That assist in Killing Ajax's War Band, 1st Mentioned in CH 34, 1st Named in CH 35

Gedhun Choekyi Nyima: Non Amazon, Tibetan, the 11th Panchen Lama. Introduced in CH37

Key terms or Abbreviations as they relate to Havenstone/Amazon Society

A great perceived fallacy of Havenstone is the division of departments. Yes, every division has its 'day job'. They also cooperate across units boundaries without complication. Technically, all the division heads run their units independently with Hayden as CEO. Realistically, everyone reports non-business data to Katrina. The only 'public' division that does not share personnel is the Security Detail. Either you are SD, or you are not.

ES: Executive Service, Havenstone "gophers," also the Havenstone Counter intelligence/Assassination unit. This works primarily because Amazons don't have 'off hours'. They both run errands and train in espionage/counter-espionage.

SD: Security Detail, Security Department also Security Services, provides security guards, personal security details (Bodyguards), Armed rapid response teams. Full-blooded Amazons only. They are the Warrior Elite. All Amazons are fighters. The SD are the very best of the race.

FI: Financial Investigations performs public domestic intelligence operations. Also includes cyber-operations. They act as a distraction for ES covert operations in major metropolitan areas where Havenstone CI has a visible presence.

BM: Business Management. They balance accounts so that the finances end up where they are needed, obtaining outsider supplies and maintaining the illusion that Havenstone Commercial Investments is a capitalist enterprise.

IF: International Finances, International is the public face of Havenstone foreign Intelligence operations. They provide cover for ES covert practices in places Havenstone doesn't publically exist. They also handle the shipment of resources from base to base, though the 'work orders' go through ES.

MS: Medical Services, Provides general medical support as well as some undefined level of medical research/development. They not only handle in-house clinics, they also handle subsidiary medical corporate assets and maintain a massive database of historical medical data.

HR: Human Resources

First directive: The beginning of (semi) systematic recruitment of women into the Amazon society begins roughly in the 1950's. The initial plan was to bring in physically and mentally fit women into Amazon society, train them to Amazon standards and eventually induct them into the Host (the term the Amazons use to define themselves - present day it comprises only of House Amazons). Derogatorily referred to by Full-Bloods as 'Lost-Bloods' in Old Kingdom Hittite/Amazon. Since only Full-blooded Amazons are taught that language, the new women lived in ignorance of what they were being called until Cáel told them. Cáel began to refer to the new women as 'Runners', a practice that has been rapidly embraced.

New directive: The directive to recruit Males into Amazon Society begins roughly in present time. The initial plan by Katrina and Tessa was to recruit 100 ~ 500 men. The Council agreed on FIVE with the codicil that the men be 'morally tested' (sexually entrapped) during the intern process.

Ahhiyawa: The Mycenaean Greeks in the time of the Iliad and are held responsible for the 1st Great betrayal 3000 years ago. Due to the nature of the Amazon-Greek blood feud, Amazons do not utter the Hittite name for their foe out of some unknown fear. 

Second Betrayal: The destruction of Amazon society 2500 years ago is called the Second Betrayal. Having brought males into the Host to wage war on encroaching Celtic tribes, the women failed to adapt to the males changing role in their society. Many warrior males sold out the Amazons to their Celtic enemies. 

Ash Men: The Ash Men were the males of the Host that stayed loyal to the Host. The name comes from two sources. When the Celtic warriors and the traitors captured the loyalist men, they would burn them alive over an extended period as a warning to the rest. No loyalist ever betrayed the Host despite that punishment. The second source of the name comes from the Amazon crime of slaughtering the few loyalist males that remained when the Amazons migrated from their Second Homeland (present day southwestern Slovakia). Despite being honorable members of the Host, the Amazons killed them without trial thus denying them a proper death - taking themselves to the cliffs - instead they butchered them and burned them to ashes.

In a personal setting, equals use their own/first names. In the workplace/public, first names are always used as this helps Full-Blood Amazons to not stumble over their 'false' surnames. As an example, Katrina, Caitlyn and Aya are all House Epona and would internally (formally) be referred to by their first and house names - Katrina Epona, Caitlyn Epona and Aya Epona. To the public and for security purpose, Katrina's last name is 'Love' and Aya's is 'Ruger'. Any outsider looking for a member of the 'Love' family wouldn't be automatically drawn to Aya.

To be a member of the Host (Full-Blooded), you have to be born of a member of the Host in good standing, survive your 12th year test and be eighteen. In extremis, an Amazon born of an honorable member of a house is accepted as a member of the Host without the 12th year test if taking it is too risky/impossible. Remember, the Amazons spent a good deal of their history as nomads, thus the exception.

Women can be adopted into a house on the orders of the Head of House. Contrary to the current Full-Blood/Runner rift, throughout history Amazons have adopted 'outsider' women. House Epona was recruited en-mass from female Celtic Warriors (probably around 20 to 30 members at inception).

The source of the controversy is that around 1900 ADE, the Amazons rapidly moved from a feudal society to a centralized one. Every House Head had ruled as she saw fit. This made sense when High Priestess were only selected every thirty years, or so, and travel and communication between houses was dicey.

It was easy for the Head of Houses to be fanatically devoted to the High Priestess when she was nowhere close. Suddenly the globe shrank and if an Amazon had a problem with a Head of House, she could take her grievance to the High Priestess within a matter of days, or weeks. The power of the High Priestess and her officers (like Katrina) grew and the power of the Council decreased.

After WWII, the High Priestess of the time was taking in the Big Picture - Amazons needed more numbers than their society could produce, genetics were starting to become a problem, and the Host had a great deal of territory and wealth to manage. Since inducting Runners in WWII worked out so well, she, with the Council's consent, created the First Directive. Then the Council had the 'what have we done' moment. They 'rebelled' against the High Priestess by refusing to induct the Runners, using social shaming to keep the more liberal houses in line.

Before long, non-induction became the Status Quo. The Runners had no idea how induction worked and weren't given benchmarks to aim for. Every other year one Runner would get promoted to keep the others guessing. Things worked like that until Cáel arrives; clueless and shameless. Katrina alone warns the Host of the disaster on the horizon.

Full Blood and Pure-Blood are interchangeable, though Pure-Blood is far more common.

Poison Blood: a new, derogatory name used by 'Lost Blood/ Runners' for overly proud (Stuck up) Full Blood Amazons recently.

Lost-Blood: Derogatory Term for women recruited, not born, into Amazon Society by 'Full Blood/Full/Poison Blood' Amazons. See also 'Runner'

Runner: Name introduced by Cáel to replace the term 'Lost Blood' for women recruited into Amazon Society. Runners can be adopted into Amazon Houses becoming "Full' Amazon.

Cliff Walker: Amazons will "go to the cliffs' (commit suicide) when they can no longer effectively serve Amazon Society. Pamela went to the cliffs in her thirties, but then returned without explanation.

Random Information

Tumens: Unit of organization for Khanate (Earth and Sky) fighting formations. A Khanate army unit of 10,000 soldiers, approximating a US Calvary Division in manpower, mobility and firepower. The Khanate leadership prefer fighting a war of mobility with fast moving columns hitting enemy forces from the rear and flanks.

Mingghans: A Khanate army unit of 1000 Soldiers, somewhere between US Army Brigade and Battalion sized unit.

Zuuns: A Khanate army unit of 100 Soldiers, Approximately the same size as a US Army Company

UCAV/UAV: Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle/Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, remotely piloted aerial vehicles, primarily used for surveillance, remote airstrikes and recently, Air to Air Combat where manned missions are considered too hazardous. Aerial Combat/reconnaissance drone e.g. MQ-9 Reaper, 

JIKIT: Joint (US agencies) International (US/UK/9Clans/Amazon) Khanate Interim Taskforce (JIKIT). Comprised of three Sections. 

- Unit 'Xerxes', the 'Administrative' section - Responsible for the inter-governmental activities.

- Unit L, the 'Action' Section, Revolves around specific activities involving Cáel and his privileged information.

- Unit 'Urchin', Deals with Covert (BLACK) Operations and taskforce activities, i.e. attacking PRC infrastructure and resources. They are completely off the reservation. Neither the UK nor the US higher ups know what they were up to.

 Great Secret Societies 

Illuminati: Primary Goal, World Domination through Hyper Capitalism (as in anything to make a buck,) Enemies of the Amazon, Possibly Changing as Cáel is a member of one of the Illuminati Primary Families 

Condottieri: Primarily Mercenaries and Arms Dealers, Enemies of the Amazon, responsible for Ferko Nyilas death

The Nine Clans: Hashshashin, Ninja, Booth-gan (aka Thuggee), Black Lotus, Coils of the Serpent, Brotherhood of the Wolf, the Black Hand, Cult of the Jaguar and the Ghost Tigers. Primarily Assassins, open to most races or genders. Sorta kinda friends of the Amazon

Egyptian Rite Masons: the oldest enemy of the Illuminati. Primary Goal, a Global Autocratic Government. Open to any race or gender. Sorta kinda friends/not enemies of the Amazon

Earth and Sky Society: descendants of Genghis Khan, Primary goal, Reincarnating of Genghis Khan. Sorta kinda friends/not enemies of the Amazon

The Seven Pillars of Heaven: An ancient Chinese Secret Society. Primary goal- World Domination. To be a member, must be Pure Han Chinese and a man, or bound to one. Sorta kinda not friends/ Definitely enemies of the Amazon by Ch. 27 

Amazons: If you haven't figured this out yet, beat yourself to death with a large blunt object, preferably studded or spiked, until your head and shoulders look like the south facing end of a north bound mule [Storyteller's Note: I did not write most of this and certainly not the last bit, but I liked it so I kept it]

There are other, smaller secret societies, usually in small numbers, a lesser ability to impact events, and/or with limited regional activity.

 Comments/Explanations (from the Comments section of Each Chapter)

Amazon Command and Control

The closest, and by no means exact, example of the Amazon command and control structure is this: Hayden is the Pope - as long as she does not go freaking nuts, she has absolute authority. This is reinforced by their selection process - 80% mysticism an 20% political. What the story is witnessing is the gradual transition from a feudal hierarchy to that of a modern day, instant communication society. Plenty of geographic leaders feel the right to (almost) challenge Hayden because they are used to being isolated - thus orders from on-high were rare in coming, or easily misinterpreted (if it was something they didn't want to hear).

To add to the complex mess is the ideal of a Council. Traditionally, when the Amazons were one compact group roaming around, a council made sense. Later, as they fractured geographically, the council was something that met when summoned - sometimes as infrequently as the election of a new High Priestess due to the dangers of traveling and of bringing all the Heads of Houses together.

In the modern era, the Council can meet with a weeks' notice, making it a much more effective political body. This also forces Amazons with widely-varying political views to confront one another.

Another complication: Amazon High Priestesses are usually chosen in their early to mid-twenties, so they have a long reign (most Amazons do not 'take themselves to the cliffs' until their mid-sixties). At the start of their reign, they can be rather unsure - candidates for High Priestess have no idea they are in the selection process - and in later decades, they can be very opinionated.

Finally, Hayden's predecessor and Hayden have both expanded on the power of the 'bureaus' (it's the closest name that fits). They existed for some time, but were never unified into cohesive organizations until after WWII. These are things like the Marshal of the Amazon Host (as the idea that Amazons can now pull military assets from all over the globe has become a possibility). The Marshal position existed, but had become largely symbolic. 

More important to this story line is the Walkers in Darkness and Night - Katrina's group. Yes, they pick up food, laundry, new cars and play daycare and straighten up your house. They also bodyguard key targets, spy and assassinate enemies. They are both internal and external security. A century ago, they were a very arcane and secretive body with an informal organization. After WWII, this began changing. They became a true, modern intelligence network. Unlike other Intelligence agencies, the Amazons still keep a regional basis for their networks. An agent born in Chad is likely to work that region of Africa her entire life. She reports to Katrina. She also keeps the local West African Heads of House in the loop as common courtesy. This means Katrina does not have a 'lock' on information coming into Havenstone, but it also means that the regional Houses do not mess with her operations.




Life as a New Hire: Cast and Notes (May)



Lastly, not seen yet, are the Augurs and the Lore Keepers (one group). They keep the Amazon laws and traditions, plus help select the next High Priestess. Technically, they work for Hayden as High Priestess. More importantly, they are seen as impartial translators of the Ancestors wills. The Amazons do not separate their worship of their numerous Goddesses with the veneration of their Ancestors - it is all one Faith to them. Religion is key to Amazon society. It is the glue that holds them together. One the Ancestors have decided on a course of action, it is madness to go against it. This is why what Ursula did by sending Leona to kill Cael was so horrible in Amazon eyes and why no one, but Ursula, batted an eye when Hayden dispatched Leona - Leona had gone against the Will of the Ancestors and had to be put down as a dangerous lunatic.

Before anyone goes 'Ah, a wingnut religion', let me remind you that this is a Sci-Fi/Fantasy story. Do not expect fireballs and dragons, but answer me this: Cael is alive because he A) has more love than hate, and B) Aya missed her first arrow - the one that skidded to his feet. Had Cael callously ignored the arrow, or had Aya's shot been anywhere else, Leona would have killed Cael.

Since it is an issue... (on Clarifying Full Blood, Half Blood and Runners)

Okay. A Full-blood has as a Mother an Amazon of the Host (i.e. not Buffy, Helena and her crowd - 'Lost Bloods/Runners) who breeds with a male of their captive breeding population.

A Half-Blood has a Mother of the Amazon Host, but whose Father is an 'outsider' male, usually mated with out of love and affection. They are still members of their House, thus the Host, yet are sources of shame and ridicule to other members of that House. 

It is the mating out of affection that bothers the Amazons. Until the start of the story, it is a sign of weakness thus 'half' the blood strength of the 'fully dedicated, acceptable Amazons. Does this seem stupid? It should until you understand the Amazons are all about avoiding infighting and promoting harmony in their own ranks. Instead of doing this through tolerance, they do this by punishing non-conformity. Yes, this means Fabiola is the rule of Amazon of behavior, not the exception. The rest of Katrina's recruits were chosen for their 'independent' thinking.

To give an example how much of an uphill battle Katrina, Hayden and (kind of) Cael have. The 'First' Directive - the induction of non-Amazon women into the society took place 60 years ago. The process was supposed to work like this: a recruit works hard, proves themselves and is then inducted into one of the Houses. In reality: in 60 years only 50 'Runners' have been inducted into ANY House.

The 'New Directive' is supposed to bring in a new breeding male population. This time they are basing things on a male's intelligence, strength, resilience, spirit and drive. Their population is dying out and needs help soon. Their response - recruit FIVE males and set those men up for failure. That was the BEST Hayden, Tessa and Katrina could force the others to accept for Round One of the program.

That strong Traditionalist streak feeds back into why the status of 'Full-Blood', 'Half-Blood' and 'No-Blood' are so important. As with all forms of prejudice - its ability to distress any society is based on the number and power of the oppressed. In the same way this one Chinese-American hung out with the African-Americans in this small Iowa town back in the fifties, the Half-Bloods (always in tiny numbers) began hanging out with the 'No-Bloods'. Looking down and insulting those two was easy...while those were in small numbers. Now - now 'No-bloods' amount to half of Havenstone's population, yet they have no voice in affairs and little realistic hope of being 'elevated'.

Before you smugly sit back and think 'what a bunch of dumb broads' - what is the US Government' current deficit at? The People's Republic of China's One Child policy has resulted in a glut of sons...and this surprises anyone who understands an 'Eldest Son' based society? The WWF (that's 'Professional' Wrestling for those not in the US sphere of assimilation) has not even pretended to be real for decades yet still millions of people tune in three, or more, times a week to watch bare-chested men - and scantily clad women - roll around a ring (which is a four cornered sparing area) and touch each other. Cut the Amazons some slack.

Cáel's Pheromones

The pheromones are tailored specifically to work on his Mother's Sisters/his 'Aunts', not femininity in general. That would be highly counter-productive to have EVERY woman around you act like an addict. Cáel's Grandfather put that into Cáel's genetic make-up before he was born. It is far easier to tailor a gene before conception after all.

Besides, Cáel was a dating loser throughout High School as was indicated by his greatest humiliation. Then there is the Desk Sergeant where he keeps picking up Marilynn St. James, Desiree, Ursula, Leona, Constanza and Pamela. They may all eventually like him, but they aren't going at him with amorous intentions. 

Cáel's dating prowess is a matter of physical attractiveness, a powerful sexual charisma, seductive instruction and the dedicated study of the art of eroticism. According to this tale, anyone who exercised 2+ hours a day developed the confidence and spent enough time pursuing and studying receptive females could do what he does. It is not magic, or super-science that makes Cáel that way - it is the love of the female form that drives him to do what he does, nothing more.

Why wasn't Ferko named Head of House Ishara

A technicality of Amazon law came into play and that is the terminology 'of the Host'. Cael was clearly 'of the Host' since he worked at Havenstone. Ferko? He was the oldest, but not 'of the Host'. There is no precedent for this. You have seen exactly ONE Amazon not of the Host far and that's Pamela. Pamela took herself to the cliffs and didn't die. No one knows what to make of that. They honor her accomplishments, but she is of no House and has no House protection...yet she is considered full-blooded. 

You've heard of another Amazon not 'of the Host' - Desiree's Mom and that woman was labelled a traitor and put under a sentence of Death.

Ferko wasn't of the Host, wasn't a traitor and hadn't taken himself to the cliffs...Hayden didn't know what to do with him and his relationship to Cael. The only thing Hayden did know is that Aunt Stella did NOT carry the Ishara gene - so the only female in the family was disqualified from simplifying the situation. Getting Stella to leave her lifestyle would have been a fun conversation in and of itself.

Stella: "Right - cult of Amazons - ancient Goddesses - you think I'm the Chosen One - How nice, but I've got to be on board my ship at 3 a.m. so you land-lubbers need to get going.

Who is the Heir?

The question was addressed above - The Ishara genes carried in the Vranus line are Y-chromosome dependent. The line 'can' jump genders (back to female, thus the hope for Cael's daughters), but is very rare. Stella doesn't have the gene, thus is not a true descendant of Ishara. This is addressed in future chapters, btw. The readers are not alone in wondering why Stella isn't in charge (as most Amazons would prefer). The genetic information was provided to Cael by Shawnee Arinniti off-screen because this was an obvious complication (Stella being female and Ferko being Cael's father).

Stella and 22 (on resurrecting Dead Houses)

As for Stella - from Shawnee Arinniti's research from the DNA of Vranus, Ishara and a handful of remains from House Ishara male and females at that period, she determined there had become an independent, male Ishara, Y-chromosome dependent bloodline. Vranus was not the first male of the line. Others lived and died before he was born. From that, it was determined that Stella, not having the Y-chromosome, could not be considered an heir to Ishara. She could NEVER produce an Ishara offspring.

Now, this does imply two things: 1) the Vranus line can spread to the X-chromosome, thus there can be Ishara daughters once more. That was not the case with Stella. 2) Amazons possess the ability of 'genetic migration'. That means Amazons not born of a line can, over a series of generations, become of that main genetic line. Thus Buffy's great-granddaughter could inherit the Ishara gene. As an example, Tiger Lily, from Shoshone heritage, has her House genetic lineage as well. In turn, that means that almost every member of a house qualifies for Head of House. If not that Amazon, maybe her daughter. Spiritually, it helps bind the Ancestors together as they will all, eventually, be tied to the First Ancestor of their House.

This also means that Amazons actually NEED new blood from time to time, as all their genetics tend to narrow down to the 52, now 53, lines. Induction increases their genetic diversity in a never ending cycle. The current Amazon leadership is actually fighting their own nature - thus failed births and sterility from both the female and (pre-Cáel) slave male sides. Had the Amazons simply honored their promises to the 'Runners' this tale would not have happened. Cáel would have never been recruited by Havenstone.

Looking at it from that angle, Cáel could be seen as a contingency plan for Amazon survival hatched 2500 years ago.

Since it will come up, the same conditions exist for the 'lost' Arinniti sons and the older male warrior that protected those boys with Vranus. The males of those lines will be the generators of their House genetic identity, not their mothers, aunts, etc. 

Sorry you feel that way... (on killing Anima/Brennan)

Anima and Brennan were 'bad people', but this chapter isn't about them. Frat boys? I hope no one takes my portrayal of Trent and Brennan as the Fraternity norm. What they are/were is an example of extreme selfishness and an overblown sense of entitlement. That wasn't the point of the chapter. 

What was it about? The growth of Libra and Brooke. They aren't doing what Cael wants. They are doing what they think is right and looking back on their own ways of thinking. I am developing their characters. 

I don't feel poverty ennobles and that wealth corrupts. It falls to the individual to make their choices. 

What happens in 22 meshes with the actions in Chapter 23. I hope it clarifies things.

Oaths and Honesty

From the story's viewpoint: Cáel didn't make an Oath to Casper - He didn't swear to a higher power, or on something of value, to guarantee Casper's safety. He didn't swear by Ishara, his Ancestors, or on Aya's health. What Cáel did was make a promise to Anima that if something happened to Casper, there would payback she couldn't buy her way out of, or escape. She called his bluff only to learn he wasn't bluffing. No matter what the outcome, Cáel would be considered either honest, or dishonest, not an oath-breaker. 

What Cáel told Hayden the last time he saw her would be considered an Oath because of the issue (induction into House Ishara), his status as Head of House (thus speaker for his Goddess and Ancestors) and the audience involved. 

In the story, a true Oath involves the person making the pledge, the person/people, or ideal, they are making the declaration to, and the Higher Power they are asking to arbitrate the Oath. The Security Detail swears (as new members) to fight beside their sisters in the SD (both as leaders and followers), protect the Host and serve the High Priestess and Council. The Arbitrator of that Oath is the Goddess Ishara. If the SD member fails to support her sisters, acts in a cowardly manner, and/or betrays her leadership, Ishara punishes the oath-breaker - along with the rest of the Host providing mortal punishment. 

Now that House Ishara is active once more, the House itself would be tasked with seeking out and punishing wrong-doers on a specific level (think US Marshal's Fugitive Unit). I hope this clarifies the matter.

There is what you know and what you can prove

Put it this way: You and I have been friends for years. I go to the American Northwest. I come home and tell you I saw the real sasquatch. Okay, you have never known me to act crazy...so what do you do and think? 

Go the local Police Chief/Sheriff/Magistrate? Even if that individual has a good relationship with you, what would that official do? Call the Governor? The National Guard? The Army? In game context: who are Timothy and Odette going to tell who would both believe them and have the power to act on that knowledge? 

Yasmin was brought into Havenstone because she personally witnessed Amazon business and she was a trained investigator - a threat.

Adding to the events is the general attitude of Amazons toward 'Normal' society. Amazons don't consider themselves a criminal conspiracy - despite their mass murdering history, possession of a vast arsenal of illegal weapons and galactic case of Tax Evasion. 

Amazons believe in strength through training and vigilance. They want to birth the next generation of Amazons. They do not want to take over the world, sell drugs, commit acts of terrorism (in a conventional sense), or be involved with Murder for Hire. Amazons are not a threat to any federal, provincial, or state government. They may be a threat on a municipal, or county, level - again, in a self-defense capacity.

Now, if Cáel showed up with the location of mass graves and names of Amazon rural holdings, that would be different. That is concrete evidence. Otherwise, there are no male children, or grown men, missing in recent legal memory. Essentially, the Amazons are butchering people that have never existed.

In most ways the Amazons are their own nation-state with no ill-will toward any other established state (except Hellas). That is Javiera's current angle. There is little point in her eyes to try and ferret out the Amazons when she suspects several other, more insidious, conspiracies are at work. At Ferko's house, the Amazons acted both illegally and in self-defense. From Cáel's activities, she is making the calculated risk that turning Havenstone into a massive 'Confidential Informant' is the best legal course of action for the US. Katrina agrees.

So, what can Javiera take to court against Havenstone? Five, or six, arrests with the solid belief that none of those people will turn on the rest. By having a public, moving ritual, Cáel convinced Javiera that Havenstone was a cult/religion with the corresponding fanaticism/constitutional issues. Now, imagine Javiera explaining this to the US Attorney General. Oh, and wait, it is an 'international' organization that could possibly fold up overnight and end up in some other nation in a week. What then? "You see, Mr. President of this new country, you are harboring Amazon warriors who date their culture back to the Trojan Wars..." That is when they hang up.

By blabbing a bit, Cáel gives potential allies an edge in survival and the option of pursuing an information-exchange relationship. This is somewhat akin to the intelligence sharing between the US - UK - Soviets during WWII; hopefully more of a US - UK affair than one enjoyed with the Russians.

As for the Latin King clique and the dead super-rich. These are crimes Javiera would like to investigate, but to what end? In the future, Javiera may believe she can build a viable case against Havenstone and do some real damage to them/enforce the existing laws.

As for the 9 Clans and Oshea's - this is not something they don't know, or strongly suspect. Cáel's very existence is far more valuable to them.

I hope this mini-essay helps.

Is that right? (On Keeping Cael Alive after he starts fights with other Secret Societies and inducting 'runners')

I thought I covered that. If Cael bites it, what are the 'Runners' going to think? Gosh, Cael got gakked because he was stupid...and Goddess ordained? Or, those bitchy full-bloods offed the only one Head of House honoring their promise? I'm not sure why you believe Buffy could be either co-opted, or marginalized this side of death. Buffy is in Executive Services and she knows what they do. Offing her? Yeah...the President of the United States died in a parachuting accident today. In other news, the Vice President ate a tarantula and died of food poisoning...Cael's death not only doesn't solve the mess that is his existence, it makes things worse. 

Sigh - why is there a New Directive? Why was there a First Directive (the creation of the 'Runner' caste)? Amazons are DYING OUT! Killing Cael is the opposite of solving their birthing issues, it exacerbates them since Cael is their 'success story'.

Then there is that nagging little problem that there is a War coming. Cael is trying to build alliances, as is Katrina. Let's see...Cael makes some key introductions then ends on the wrong end of a poorly cooked Puffer Fish...yeah, that makes we want to trust the Amazons. Either they killed off their own emissary, or they couldn't adequately defend him...which is worse?

The blabbing I covered in an earlier response to a post.

There are two guiding principles in Amazon Society - protect the Host, breed more Amazons. Nothing else comes close.

NON FS Comment

I had a question about the SD team thinking they met Uncle Lumpy on the way out.

FinalStand gave me this reply that he allowed me to share with the rest of his readers.

The SD team and Delilah were going over matters at the SD apartment across the street. Sure, Cael can take her word for it, but the SD chicks don't. That was the hole in their security. SD was momentarily distracted, Estere was protecting Libra in a bad neighborhood late at night while on a food run, and Pamela, counting on the other two factors, wasn't around.

FYI: The scenes where the SD was running across the street to Cael's because they have his place wired and Odette's screams alerted them to the danger. The Feds/NYPD were monitoring the place visually - no warrant yet, and they see the four SD chicks, followed by Delilah, rushing in.

Fed: "Freeze! FBI!" (Flashes badge)

SD: (flashes their badges)"Havenstone Security - follow us!" (They are the ones in body armor, wielding PDWs after all)

Fed: "Huh...what the fuck?" (Decides not to shoot the women who are ignoring him)

Two SD weapons killed Lumpy (finally, though he was pretty much a goner when he showed up at Cael's anyway). Those are the two weapons Maddox refers to when she interrogates Cael at Havenstone. In fact, that is why she is allowed inside the facility. Katrina is working with Javiera on this matter. Javiera put the SD member wounded in Chicago in a Havenstone medical facility while under round the clock federal surveillance with some 'friendly' interrogation.

Katrina/Havenstone is not up to working with the US Federal Government, but they are willing to work with Javiera, which is a big enough step in, and of, itself.

Again my thanks to FinalStand for a great story. I am grateful to be a neer-do-well

Poor Uncle Lumpy

By the time Uncle Carrig arrived at Cael's building, he was dying from his wounds. The timing of events was critical. The team across the street was interrogating Delilah. The Federal Task Force team didn't understand the relevance of this seemingly drunk man going up the steps. Several groups had left the domicile so Cael had every reason to be anticipating company. Then there was the downpour, thunder and lightning confusing perceptions for everyone involved. 

The last bit of 'strange' was that Lumpy was so badly hurt, he rang the bell. Had he tried to knock the door in, Sovann, Timothy and Cael would have been in the living room and fought Carrig at the same time, greatly increasing their chances of holding out until the Feds and SD arriving less than a minute later. But no, Lumpy was in so much pain, disoriented by his injuries and by the force of his final directive that all he could muster was to ring the bell. Seeing Cael's face, reignited Lumpy's rage and the rest is history. 




Life as a New Hire: Cast and Notes (May)



Off-screen, yet hinted at, is that the SD arrived first, finished off Lumpy then surrendered their weapons to the Feds, hinting at some level of cooperation between Havenstone and the Feds established before the firefight. SD is detained, but not arrested (the issue of his 'four' bodyguards). Cael wakes up at Havenstone, not some regular, or military, hospital, but has a federal investigator close by. The World does not stand still.

A few things (or more than a few things)

First off, I, as an author, found the two scenes involving Hayden's demise painful to write. The driving forces behind that decision - 1) these are Amazons, not the Campfire Girls. They are a bloody and unforgiving people and 2) as Hayden said, she was able to regain her courage at the end. 

She started out wanting to save her people. When the New Directive was about to be implemented, she balked. Tessa and Katrina fought for an extensive policy. Hayden refused to defy the will of the Council and demanded the original plan be 'trimmed down' - her act of cowardice. The only person who could save the Amazon race was Hayden; it's her job. Had she stood up to Krasimira and Cáel, she would have won and they would have been shamed. Cáel and Krasimira would have compelled to take their own lives. Their deaths would not have solved any of the Amazon problems. Her death can...so she 'Amazon-ups' and faces her end like a heroine. 

Not only did she accuse enemies of the New Directive to be traitors, she declared the whole idea of opposing the New Directive as treasonous thought.

At most, Hayden would only reign for 10 more years. Instead of passing on a race clinging to the past and on the verge of extinction, she hands over a people embracing hopes for the future - the adoption of 'Runners' and some level of 'Warrior-Fathers'. Of course, the latter is still very much in the discussion phase about actual societal rights/duties, numbers, and...sons. Not even Cáel has discussed bringing a single man into Havenstone, much less House Ishara.

The Device

The object in Cáel's brain...okay. For starters - this encompasses both the Cyberpunk and Steam Punk genres. Essentially this is 'brain-taping' (actually, memory insertion, but the memories had to be recorded to begin with) with an electro-mechanical device. Do not try this at home. In fact, never try this.

First off you had the suction-like device. It created an air-tight seal when activated. It fired a thermite-style pellet into his head, specifically to pierce a precise amount of skin and skull matter. The heat was sucked up into the cup to keep the brain undamaged. 

Next, there was a one inch thick cylinder. Inside was a sonic device that created a primitive map of Cáel's brain, a long, thick needle, a stabilizing device to aim the needle, and a precise charge to propel the needle to a pre-determined depth between the two hemispheres of the brain, causing a non-disruptive amount of trauma.

Once in place, an energy cell inside the needle unleashed its power. The etching on the needle channeled that energy to certain areas of the brain. It also shut his brain down to a minimal level of activity to lessen the damage to his psyche/personality. In the story, channeling all that energy into so much neuro-matter at one time would have broken Cáel, or anyone else. To deal with this issue, the current flowed around the brain and was gradually transcribed into neuropathways - mainly to the long-term memory centers (things like languages) and muscle memory. That resulted in a week-long coma for Cáel.

[Spoiler Alert]

This is NOT the insertion of Cáel O'Shea's persona into his grandson. The guy had back-up plans for his back-up plans. With Lumpy's imminent demise, one such plan kicked in. Lumpy dutifully hunted the 'target' down and injected him. Cáel O'Shea's reasoning being his loyal and dutiful daughters would kill their brother unless they located his true 'heir', Cáel. Face it, why would the daughters want to bring the Old Man back, when they can have his half-baked substitute as a co-dependent slave? They ladies are smart and ambitious...and they've been terrified that their 'Dad' had a way to cheat death he hadn't confided to them in, because, you know, they are EVIL. They were right and that is the problem. Old Man Cáel was ALWAYS one step ahead of his brood. They can't live forever without him, but they don't want him back (yes, Cáel's aunts have lied to him. People do that.) 

Suddenly, some underpaid technician in some lab runs a genetic test and compares it to an international database. Procedure? Yeah, they were only to send it off in small samples, not the whole DNA sequence...but that takes too much of the tech's time. Ta-da! Bells and Whistles go off at Casa de O'Shea. They've found what they've been looking for. The new problem is the sample didn't read 'Cáel Nyilas'. It was assigned an alphanumeric code at Havenstone before they sent it out for testing. Breaking into the DNA lab won't do any good. They need to find out who gave the sample to the lab. Reenter Nicole Lawless - figuratively and literally. 

Then Briana turns around and looks into her father's eyes...and thinks 'now what?' Is this Dad? Is this one of Dad's experiments? Is this some sort of demented trap? And less the aunts forget, they are junkies, jonesing for some serious 'Daddy Time'. Everyone knows how calmly and rationally junkies approach a situation. In their fearful minds, Cáel Nyilas Ishara might actually be Cáel O'Shea playing yet another mind game, figuring who is 'loyal' and who isn't. 

Playing mind games? Brianna is seriously thinking about shooting this person (our hero) when 'Bazinga!' he works for...Havenstone...you know, the people who murdered him. Now think back to this woman having been raised by a genius, hyper-inventing Moriarty with a mean streak a mile long. What is real? What is the really, really Real?

At the funeral, the aunts think they've got the situation figured out. They now need to remove Lumpy (as they had planned all along) and retrieve their 'nephew'. Sadly for those little demonesses with flowing red-manes, ole Lumpy doesn't go down as easily as they hoped. Worse, by the time they tracked Lumpy down they are staring at Cáel's apartment and it is crawling with Feds, cops and Havenstone. To add some rat-droppings to their Béarnaise sauce, the Feds and Havenstone appear to be working TOGETHER. Wa-ha? 

Katrina and Javiera are two rather brilliant women and realize sharing at this point is best for both factions. But from the aunts' perspective...are those two also working, knowingly, or unknowingly, for 'Dad'? There are some days they want embrace their sanity, kiss it good-bye, put on their homemade Pterodactyl suit and just jump off the Empire State Building. Who knows? They might yet find happiness before they die. 

The Curse

(and please forgive me. I'm in a serious manic phase right now)

The Curse was placed on the Amazon Race by the Goddess Ishara. She had Cael vomit up a rather large yet symbolic amount of the blood Amazons have used to seal oaths over the years. The curse broke down the power of those oaths. In 'Real World' terms, it slowly altered how Amazons prioritized their lives. Your loyalty to friends and family remained the same, but your willingness to put aside your wants and needs for a faceless/unpopular fellow Amazon was diminished. Amazons began seeking out more 'me' time because their devotion to their department, caste, profession was lessened. 

As an example, Amazons are immaculate cleaners yet Pamela found dust in the knife dojo. Amazons take to assigned tasks eagerly. A 'Runner' told Desiree 'when I can get to it' as opposed to 'right away'. It starts with the little things. In the long term...Amazons swear Oaths to their Heads of House, to their caste and on major deals. Suddenly you feel fine with shirking duties the HoH gives you. Say you are the Armory guard...you think it is okay to take a coffee break. Katrina sends an ES operative to retrieve a piece of data. The operative decides that the challenge is just too exhaustive this time and comes back empty handed. In Amazon society, Oaths carry with them pride and dedication to their position. It has never come up, but the cleaning staff at Havenstone are Amazons. They dedicate their lives to keeping the building clean and pleasant to work in. It is how they feel they contribute. There is no 'overtime' or 'getting it done next time.' The woman emptying the trash is as diligent and proud of their work as a bodyguard, computer tech, or pilot. That is the power of Oaths in Amazon society and that is the realm of Ishara.

Finally, take a look at Ancient deities. They are a 'Don't fuck with us' crowd. Ishara, in her mind, made it abundantly that Cael was her designated heir, Head of House and rekindler of her name. She was HIS matron Goddess and to insult him was to insult her. That is Amazon Religion 101. The Amazon leadership got pissy and they earned her WRATH. Like ancient curses, there was also a way out. Like ancient curses, there was a heavy price to pay for angering the divinity. Saying 'I'm sorry' wasn't going to cut it. Besides, they weren't sorry...until it was too late.

Killjoy: "I confess to nothing!" (IN Reference to Cael being part of The Great Khans Genetic legacy)

Of course, such a thing is in the realm of possibility. The Mongols did invade Hungary and crush its army. They also ruled border regions of that kingdom for over a century afterwards. 'Tartar' mercenaries were used by various Central & Eastern European powers over the next few centuries. The best means of countering Mongol tactics was to hire some of your own. In turn, Chinese, Mongols, Turks, Koreans, Bulgarians, Russians, Poles, Lithuanians, Persians, Caucasians, Kurds, Arabs, Afghans and Indians all marched at some point under the Mongol banner.

fanfare:

(At the next Amazon Council meeting)

Cáel: "Let me get this straight - during a break in the middle of peace negotiations during the Trojan War, one Greek turned to another and said 'Look at the "Hot Flanks" on that one'...and that's the REAL reason for this 3000 year old feud?"

The councilwomen look around somewhat shame-faced.

Ngozi: "Well...it was rude and sexist. We take pride in the firmness of our thighs and buttocks as befitting those of all true warriors."

Madi: "Yes. Besides, you know what those Greeks were really thinking about."

(Pause)

Fatima: "I heard somewhere that Menelaus began humming 'Baby Got Back'."

(Every stares at her)

Fatima: "I heard it...somewhere."

Cáel puts his elbows on the table then bangs his head repeatedly against the hard, wooden surface.

Brain Power

I agree with your brain facts, Anon. I always meant the 'story facts' to be more of what Cáel translates what he is being told than the actual words he is bombarded with. When the rather baffled specialists are rudely interrupted by their patient, they dumb-down their statements/prognoses to answer his questions so that he will be quiet. They might have said "a 30% increase in the level of activity", or "this section normally registers as an '8', but now...a '30'..." which would make medical sense to the doctors while confusing the Hell out of Cáel. A more accurate explanation to what the doctors are saying is that Cáel's brain is working faster and harder than a standard brain. While a normal brain may replicate his cerebral functions, none could sustain his continuing level of intensity. Again, taken as singular bits of data, not one thing Cáel does is impossible. His brain is still a human brain. It is the Big Picture that has them stumped. Hmmm...it is comparable to him making love, speed-reading War & Peace, while memorizing the combined works of the Rolling Stones, sampling a complete Korean menu, racing a Formula 1 car in the Andes with lava bombs keep raining down on him. A normal brain would prioritize things. Cáel's is fully absorbing all that input as if he was doing each task individually. Does that help?

FYI, I have always had Cáel make bad deductions, leap to mistaken conclusions and selectively hear what he wants to hear. The story is from a 'Cáel's Eye View', not unfiltered reality. Aka - Cáel is an idiot...just a sexually God-like, very intelligent, fearless, multilingual, physically appealing and overly competent Idiot. This is comedic erotica after all.

Dracula was NOT an Amazon (not in my World anyway)

No. Dracula was Son of the Dragon and part of a knightly order that fought for Christianity against the Ottoman Turks, Tartars and Crimean Khanate in their time. 

The Primordial Dragon is a common theme in many cultures creation mythology. Now, since multiple faiths do exist in my modern fantasy, you may infer that there really is a draconic influence in that region of Europe. Don't think vampires and large, flying, fire-breathing reptilians. 

Think - Children of the Dragon: men and women with superior endurance, resistance to pain and poisons, vitality, long life (living to 90, or even 100 with most of their faculties) and great strength. We are talking about being at the extreme limits of human ability ~ not blatantly supernatural. 

If Vlad Dracul had been truly dragon-blooded, he would have exhibited those abilities. Combined with his charisma, ruthlessness and noble status, he would have been a truly terrifying foe to face on and off the battlefield. A Temujin of the Balkans.

Two diplomats - two different missions

The diplomat to the 9 Clans is to help long term cooperation with the 9 Clans on a global scale. Last time they were on the same side (WWI), they didn't communicate and tragedy happened. This time, Cael wants to build up an open line of communication.

The diplomat to the ninja has a much more immediate mission - keep the 7 Ninja families (maybe 6 now) in the fight. That means a quick infusion of Amazons to Nippon and requires much more in depth understanding, and greater trust. Amazons and Ninja are (hopefully) going to be fighting side by side in a matter of days, or weeks. As mentioned several chapters ago, the 9 Clans keep their distance...but if they ever declare you a friend, they are a friend till death.

Why Aksai Chin?

As has been pointed out to me, Aksai Chin is a veritable wasteland - I knew that. What Aksai Chin does have is a strategic road linking parts of Tibet and a history of being wanted (for some reason) by China, India and Pakistan. Natural resources? None that I know of. The issue it that it HAD a Chinese garrison - they are dead now - and that to recapture it quickly (before Pakistan and India get greedy), the Chinese have to move in forces from Tibet and Xinjiang...down to the far southeastern corner of China...along a very tenuous supply line to the ass-end of nowhere. Now, what does that do to the Chinese defensive capabilities in Xinjiang, which has large, oppressed Turkish and Mongolian minorities and a long, open border with Mongolia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan? Do you know of any pissed off Mongolian Warlords, or a 500 year old secret society bent on re-creating the Great Khanate? Do you have any idea how much Russian and Central Asian military hardware had gone missing since 2000? Do you have any idea how many Mongolian and Turkish men and women have been trained in their respective country's military then discharged? Don't forget those trained in Russia. Get the picture? [Don't worry - the goings-on in Asia are only a backdrop to the main story]

Fine

Cáel is Cáel. The memories are just that - memories. By embracing them, he can function as if he had those skills. He does not lose himself when he does so, though some experiences are overwhelming from a sensory standpoint. 

Alal is, in fact, back.

Pamela has the Baraqu-part of that soul, with this she could kill, temporarily, Alal. She didn't know until she took herself to the cliffs that if she died, he would get the Baraqu part back.

Cáel does have Alal's memories. This also means that he will eventually have the memories of Alal's plan. That means Alal WANTED Cáel to have those memories and the knowledge of what he is attempting to do. 

A theme in this story has been confronting fate. Destiny puts you in the place to do great things, but the choice to act, or how you act, is still your own. And, if you don't think that is the case, re-read Alal's story. Remember, Cáel is still essentially the same being he was in Chapter One. He made himself the man he is. He studied, worked out, romanced and embraced the challenges that confronted him. That is key because Cáel doesn't pass the buck. He guesses wrong occasionally, but he learns and moves forward. Whatever spiritual mumbo jumbo and steam-punk science (Alal was growing female clones of himself a 100 years ago) this story contains, it is still about a person making choices he hopes he can live with (and scoring as many chicks as possible).

As for Hana Sulkanen - just imagine the encounter when Aya knocks on Hana's door and asks to have a talk about Hana's fiancé/Aya's 'Fehér mén'.

"Lady, please don't hurt Cáel. If you do...well I'm only nine. Don't make me kill you."

One last thing - Cáel does make mistakes and since the story is told from his perspective, you are given his false assumptions as "Facts".

Cáel and the Ishara/Vranus bloodline

Back before the Second Betrayal, Isharan Amazons had male children. Some of those male children carried the Isharan genetic sequence with them so that their daughters COULD also be Isharans, so the line was recognized. Not all Vranus daughters had the Isharan bloodline though all the males did. Then Vranus is sent into Transylvania with the Arinitti male children (who possessed the Arinitti genetic sequence). Vranus was a member of the Amazon Host. It was thought that he died fighting the last battles against the Celts. Instead, he died honorably, fulfilling his orders. That duty meant his children of the Isharan/Vranus bloodline were automatically members of the Host as well, down through the ages.

Current day, Cáel is of the Vranus bloodline, thus can possibly have Isharan daughters. Cáel's paternal aunt doesn't have the 'Vranus' genetic sequence, thus doesn't qualify to be a member of House Ishara. Ferko, Cáel's Dad, did have it and technically should have been House Head. Not only was Ferko not part of Havenstone, Cáel's ascension happened so fast that Hayden and Katrina never had time to fix the issue. At Ferko's funeral, that is addressed by Cáel to his new inductees.

Day Count for Cael and the Great Hunt

The current story date is Sunday, July 13, 2014. He started work on Monday, June 2nd, 2014, so his count would be 42 days ~ half way through his 84 day intern period (3 x 28 days - internally the Amazons use a Lunar calendar). The 2nd through the 30th would be 29 days in June. The 1st through the 13th would be the other 13 (double-checking my math) which equals 42, thus 42 left to go. 

August 24th would be the last day of his internship so the 'Great Hunt' would fall on the weekend of August 29th, 30th and 31st. Most likely, Cael and Felix (yes, he will be a part of it and yes, they can work together) will be given a day or two head start to check out the terrain and make some plans. In the interim, the Amazons can narrow the field of hunters down to 30, or so. Now, only two Amazons can actually win, so alliances will be made and broken. If either, or both men remain free until sunset of the 31st, they win.

The actual prize has yet to be decided upon. The status award alone will be a big deal...and, if one of the winners also happens to be a candidate for High Priestess...

Chapter 36 and stuff

Where to begin? Cael's Mom hasn't come up because Cael is conflicted about whose side she might be on. First, she was dead, then she was alive in the shadows giving him aid...and then the level of control Alal was exhibiting over the time period he was 'dead' has become evident to our 'hero'. Strangely, that comes up in the first 2000 words of Chapter 36. Whether or not Cael CAN and WILL trust his mother is part of the story as it unravels.




Life as a New Hire: Cast of Personas (September)



Cast of Characters [Note: Spoiler Alert - this includes updates that may ruin some plot points]

Life as a New Hire

Impossible gratitude to Nut Ranch who not only made this list - he made it thrice. Only my ineptitude had kept the first two creations from the light.

As always, the subject matter is my responsibility.

If you like it, it is probably someone else's fault.

Below is a (mostly) complete cast of characters for this series as they appear by Chapter, as of Chapter 25.

Amazons routinely go by 1st names, so some have no last name listed.

Question Marks (?) indicate uncertainty of identification.

Amazon/Non Amazon is the default Identification as some Characters have not (yet) been identified as either Full Blood/Poison Blood (Born Amazon,) or Lost Blood/Runner (Recruited into Amazon Society) in the story line.

Some have not (yet) been Identified as to which House they belong to or specific positions within Amazon/Havenstone Society.

Specific relationships/positions have been identified where possible.

I hope this helps you keep track.

********

Cáel Nyilas: A 'New Directive' intern. Of Magyar and Irish Gaelic descent. The Magyar have cultural roots with the Finnish, Turks, and Bulgarians. Grandson of Cáel O'Shea (Deceased Illuminati Leader), Graduated from Bolingbrook College with a Business Major and a Philosophy minor. Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services, 1st Named Chapter 1. He speaks 4 current languages (English, French, Spanish and Russian) and ten dead languages (including Old Kingdom Hittite, which is also the native language of the Amazons)

He is an oversexed, incredibly fit and morally ambiguous serial dater. His body bears scars from numerous romantic failures.

Later discovered to be the descendant of Vranus, an "Ash Man" of House Ishara during the 2nd Great Betrayal. Leader of one of the 1st twenty Houses previously believed to have died out.

His Father is Ferko Nyilas and his Mother is Sibeal O'Shea Nyilas.

Cáel has an Aunt Stella on his father's side. She is a crab-fisherwoman living in Maryland.

He has numerous (unknown until Chapter 19) O'Shea Aunts and one Uncle. After Ferko's murder, Aunt Stella reveals that Sibeal did not die of cancer and is still alive and in hiding from her family.

Later he refers to himself as Cáel Ishara, Ishara and Wakko Ishara.

***

Brian Fung: Chinese-American 'New Directive' intern.' Graduated from Harvard. Works for Ms. Julian Jameson, VP in charge of Acquisition. 1st Named Chapter 1.

Trent Grant: "'New Directive' intern.' Blue blood, Graduated from Carnegie-Melon. Works for Ms. Olympia Shore, head the Financial Investigative unit. 1st Named Chapter 1. It is eventually revealed that Trent lied during the application process, claiming no serious romantic entanglements and not even mentioning his long-term girlfriend, Brooke Lee. He denied her in Katrina's office and volunteered for the Far East Unit - aka washed out of the program and reduced to 'sperm donor' status.

Khalid Adzharia: 'New Directive' intern.' African-American, Graduated from MIT. Works for Ms. Phalli Chandra VP of International Finance. 1st Named Chapter 1.

Felix Melena: "New Directive' intern." Salvadoran-American. Graduated from the University of Michigan - Ann Arbor. Works for Ms. Tia Pharos, VP of Business Management. 1st Named Chapter 1. He later gets into a feud with Cáel, seduces Brooke to get back at him then makes a public display of his deed on the main floor of the Executive Office Department. Cáel challenges him to fight and beats Felix in a matter of seconds due to Felix's overconfidence.

Ms. Katrina Love: VP of Executive Services. Daughter of Sedona, Caitlyn's sister, Amazon Pure Blood, Head of House Epona, Amazon title "Spear in Night and Death," (Think Head of KGB, CIA, MI 5 & 6, Intelligence, Counter Intelligence and Assassination) 1st Named Chapter 1. She is revealed to be sterile, the sister/relative of Desiree & Caitlyn and the Aunt of Loraine, Europa and Aya. With Hayden and Tessa, she created the 'New Directive', though in a stronger format. She remains a close ally of Cáel despite some crushing encounters.

Tessa Carmichael: Head of Havenstone Human Resources. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1. She is a close ally of Katrina.

Umami Lhasa: Assistant to Tessa Carmichael, Havenstone Human Resources, Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Daphne Pile: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Sister of Brielle, Granddaughter of Pamela, Amazon Pure Blood, House Cotyttia. 1st Named Chapter 1. She, along with Desiree, are the first people Katrina informs that Cáel can speak Amazon.

Brielle Pile: Works for Olympia Shore. Havenstone Financial Investigative unit, Sister of Daphne, Granddaughter of Pamela, Amazon Pure Blood, House Cotyttia. 1st Named Chapter 1. She and an unnamed compatriot make a game of ambushing Cáel in the elevator at the start of each day.

Dora Cartagena: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services, Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Fabiola Dobrani: Havenstone Executive Services Daughter of Messina, Amazon Pure Blood. House Minerva 1st Named Chapter 1. Like her mother, Fabiola is a 'hard-liner', believing the Amazons should butcher their old, diseased male population and replace them by kidnapping new males.

Paula Wadena: Havenstone Executive Services. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Violet Maza: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Sister of Traska, Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Theresa 'Tigger' Castro: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Buffy Dubois: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. 'Lost Blood' or "Runner" Becomes First new member of House Ishara after Cáel Nyilas. 1st Named Chapter 1. Buffy retains an unsanctioned feud with Elsa. Buffy qualified for the Security Detail, but was denied entry by Elsa because Buffy wasn't a full-blooded Amazon.

Timothy Denver: Gay body-building, hunk, moderately famous tattoo artist from Queens, Cáel's Roommate. 1st Named Chapter 1. Timothy may be the finest, most understanding roommate who has ever lived.

Marilynn St. John: Daughter of Sydney St. John. Grand Daughter of Hayden St. John, Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Hayden St. John: High Priestess of the Amazons. Mother of Sydney St. John Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Desiree Fredrickson: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. Technically Half Blood but is Katrina and Caitlyn's sister, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Vienna Rothmore: friend of Marilynn St. John, Non Amazon? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Beyoncé Vincennes: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1. As of Chapter 5 she becomes a staunch supporter of the New Directive, Katrina and Cáel.

Rhada: Madi's Apprentice, Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1. She is the 'apprentice' of Madi, thus her designated successor on the Amazon Council. She also develops a convoluted and socially dangerous sexual relationship with Cáel.

Madi: Amazon Pure Blood, Head of House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Julian Jameson: VP in charge of Acquisition. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Olympia Shore: head of the Financial Investigative unit. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Phalli Chandra: VP of International Finance. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Tia Pharos: VP of Havenstone Business Management. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 1.

Sedona Love: Daughter of Andromeda. Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona. 1st Named Chapter 1.

Dr. Kimberly Geisler: Professor at Bolingbrook College, Cáel's 1st true lover, taught him multiple dead languages, 1st Named Chapter 1. Contrary to some people's perception, Cáel and Kimberly maintained a four year affair. Kimberly ended it when he graduated.

Helena: Works for Katrina Love, VP of Havenstone Executive Services. "Originally Lost Blood" or "Runner" 2nd Person Cáel inducted into House Ishara, 1st Named Chapter 1.

Odette Sievert: Restaurant server, One of Cáel's many conquests/ becomes a roommate, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 1. She eventually becomes one of Cáel's best friends and grounding point. Odette also provides information about Cáel to numerous, scary women.

Crewe: Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 2.

Caitlyn Ruger: Mother of Aya, Europa and Loraine. Katrina's sister. Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3, 1st Named Chapter 4

Aya Ruger: (age 9), Daughter of Caitlyn. Absolutely devoted to Cáel, Cáel feels the same. Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3. Cáel and Aya develop something akin to a father-daughter bond.

Europa Ruger: (age 13), Daughter of Caitlyn. Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3

Loraine Ruger: (age 16), Daughter of Caitlyn. Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 3

Ms. Ulyssa Reichmann: Aya's Teacher at a private academy, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 3. She is an on again/off again Sunday night hook-up for Cáel.

Astarte: Havenstone employee, Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 3

Nikita Kutuzov: NYPD rookie Cop, One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 3. Her mother is a Desk Sargent for the NYPD at the precinct that Marilyn St. James usually ends up at.

Rachel Simpson: Loraine's Teacher at a private academy, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4

Elsa: Head of Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 4. She is an Amazon Supremist, worships the ground Katrina walks on, and comes to desire Cáel as something besides a breeding male.

Constanza: Elsa's assistant, Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 4. Eventually another Amazon, Pamela, cuts her left eye out for insulting Cáel.

Yasmin Palhavã: Brazilian, Former state criminal inspector, recruited into Havenstone, "Lost Blood or Runner," One of Cáel's conquests, 1st named in Chapter 5

Braulio Palhavã: Yasmin's son, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4, 1st Named in Chapter 18

Brooke Lee: Trent Grant's fiancé, One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4

Libra Chalmers: One of Cáel's many conquests, Marla's sister, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4

Marla Chalmers, One of Cáel's many conquests, Libra's sister, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4

Gene: friend of Libra and Brooke, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 4

Ursula: Amazon Pure Blood, Head of House Marda, 1st Named Chapter 5. Hard-liner.

Messina Dobrani: Amazon Pure Blood, Fabiola's Mother, House leader, House Minerva 1st Named Chapter 5

Sydney St. John: Mother of Marilyn St. John, Daughter of Hayden St. John, Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 5

Leona: Amazon Pure Blood, House Marda, 1st Named Chapter 5. Killed by Hayden for defying the Council's New Directive.

Sabia: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Blythe: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Tegan: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Rosette: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Aisha: Havenstone S.D., Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 7

Traska Maza: Sister of Violet, Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 7. Havenstone Medical Division.

Skylar Montero: NYPD Cop, Nikita's training Officer, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 8

Layla: Physician assistant at Havenstone medical clinic, Probable Cáel conquest, 1st Named Chapter 8, 1st Named Chapter 9

Oneida: Amazon Pure Blood, Shawnee's apprentice, youngest breeding female in House Arinniti, One of the twenty founding bloodlines, 1st Named Chapter 10

Drusilla: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 10

Naomi: Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood, House Rajah, 1st Named Chapter 12

Stanica: Havenstone S.D., Amazon Pure Blood House? 1st Named Chapter 12

Ngozi: Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 12

Katy Lee Baker: aka Delivery Girl, One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 13

Jason: Bar back at the yuppie bar, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 13

Nicole Lawless: Criminal defense lawyer, Lawyer for the Illuminati but doesn't know it. One of Cáel's many conquests, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 13. In Chapter 20 she becomes Cáel's attorney, but has been hired by the O'Shea Aunts.

Zelda, Marsha: Phyllis, and Rivka Feinstein (ADA for New York County,) All friends of Nicole Lawless, probable future Cáel conquests, Non Amazons, 1st Named Chapter 13

'*****" St. Marie: Marshal of the Amazon Host, Amazon Title "Mistress of the Golden Mare," Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 13 aka Pony Lady, though Cáel is forbidden to use it.

Farah Winters: Havenstone Human Resources. Amazon Pure Blood, House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Deena: Cáel's Amazon pool buddy/conquest (?), Sharona's friend (?), Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Sharona: Deena's friend (?) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 14

Pamela Pile: Retired, Havenstone Executive Services (Most lethal Amazon Assassin of the 20th Century) Cáel's Knife fighting instructor, Grandmother of Daphne and Brielle. Amazon Pure Blood, House Cotyttia 1st Named Chapter 15. She is Cáel's soul-mate/psychic twin/surrogate Grandmother/Mentor/guardian/slayer of Cáel O'Shea, Cáel Nyilas/Ishara's Grandfather

Evie (Bi sexual) and Samantha (Lesbian): girlfriends/lovers, long-time friends of Timothy Denver, Pair of Cáel's many conquests, 1st Named Chapter 15

Arwen: Katrina's apprentice, Amazon Pure Blood, House Epona, 1st Named Chapter 16

Krasimira: Amazon title "Keeper of Records" (AKA Amazon Historian/Legal Arbitrator), Amazon Pure Blood, 1st Named Chapter 16

Shawnee: Amazon Pure Blood, Head of House Arinniti, One of the twenty founding bloodlines, 1st Named Chapter 16

Vranus: House Ishara, one of 2 Warrior/breeding Males members of the Amazon Host that were ordered to leave at the end of the 2nd Great Betrayal by House Arinniti, Cáel's multi-great grandfather, 1st Named Chapter 16

Gale: Amazon Pure Blood, Junior/Apprentice of House Bendis, 1st Named Chapter 17 as Gale, In Chapter 18 as Gael

Mr. Finnes: Cáel's neighbor, REALY hates Cáel because of all the women screaming in orgasm at his apartment, 1st Named Chapter 17

Slayer of Testicles (SoT) #1 & 2: Oneida's personal bodyguards, Nick-Named in Chapter 17

Mr. Cherrie: Lawyer at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?)Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Heather Pulaski: Lawyer at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?) Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Mr. and Mrs. DeYoung: Senior Lawyers at the same firm as Nicole Lawless, Represents Illuminati interests (?)Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 17

Brianna O'Shea: one of Cáel's 10 Aunts, Member of the Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 17

Cáel O'Shea; Cáel's maternal Grandfather, (Deceased, Killed by Pamela) Former leader of the Illuminati, 1st Named Chapter 17

Bennie: Friend of Jason the bar back, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 18

Rosetta: Senior member of Havenstone Executive Services, Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Rachel Louis; Havenstone S.D., (Chief of Cáel's security detail) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Tiger Lily: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Charlotte: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Mona: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's security detail) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 18

Deirdre O'Shea: one of Cáel's 10 Aunts, Member of the Illuminati, Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, Sister of Brianna O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 18

Velma: Havenstone S.D., (Cáel's apartment security detail) Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 19

Troika: Amazon Pure Blood, House Šauška, 1st Named Chapter 19

Theodora Chumwell: FBI Special Agent, Brock Miklos partner, Non-Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 19

Brock Miklos: FBI Special Agent, Theodora Chumwell's partner, 1st Named Chapter 19

John Rios: Special Agent with the ATF, Non-Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 19

Horace Brewster: Burnham PD Investigator, Non-Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 19

Lisa Capella: Chicago PD Homicide Detective. Non-Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 19

Winslow Pratt: Cáel's (very temporary) Lawyer, 1st Named Chapter 19

Esmeralda Carbonne: Amazon Runner, 1st Named Chapter 19

Sibeal (O'Shea) Nyilas: Cáel's Mother (Deceased then not), Daughter of Cáel O'Shea, Sister of Brianna & Deidre O'Shea, 1st Named Chapter 19. Using an unexplored intelligence network to plant Delilah with Odette then Cáel.

Ferko Nyilas: Cáel's father (deceased), technically was the Head of House Ishara, Named/1st Named Chapter 19

Steve McCabe: Desk clerk, Burnham Hotel, Non Amazon

Sabina: Havenstone S.D., Last surviving S.D. member assigned to Ferko Nyilas', Cáel's father. Also the person who ultimately killed him by accident, Amazon, House? 1st Named Chapter 20

Cameron Sanders: Assistant manager Burnham Hotel, Cáel's motivation to start working out when she cruelly rejected him in High School. Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20 [she'll be back, I promise]

Winchell Sokolowsky: Unknown benefactor for Ferko Nyilas funeral reception, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20

Marsha: Amazon 'Runner,' one of the twenty Runners inducted into House Ishara at Ferko's funeral, 1st Named Chapter 20

Selena: Member of the 9 Clans, Black Hand assassin, Non amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20

Miyako: Member of the 9 Clans, Ninja. Cáel Conquest, Potentially the mother of Cáel's 1st child, Non amazon, 1st Named Chapter 20

Javiera Castello: Assistant Federal District Attorney assigned to Cáel's father's murder. Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21

Alicia Holt: Amazon 'Runner' selected to be inducted into House Ishara but rejected by Ishara during the Induction Ceremony. 1st Named Chapter 21

Carrig O'Shea: Illuminati, Cáel's maternal Uncle, Son of Cáel O'Shea, brother of Sibeal (O'Shea) Nyilas, Brianna & Deidre O'Shea, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21. Deceased in Chapter 24.

Estere Abed: Hashashin assassin, Member of the 9 Clans, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21

Iskender: Earth and Sky Society, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21

Street Moslin: FBI Special Agent, Dumb ass, Non Amazon, 1st Named Chapter 21

Anima (last name not revealed) - evil, super-rich, debauchery enabler and destroyer of purity, virtue and innocence. Brennan Sulkanen's girlfriend. First named in Chapter 22

Casper Winslow - somewhat rich girl, party favor/group rape victim of the sex party orchestrated by Anima and Brennan Sulkanen. First named in Chapter 22. Her last name is revealed in Chapter 24.

Hana Sulkanen - Stepdaughter of Jormo Sulkanen, heir to his financial empire. Has an ex-husband named Philip and a daughter (unnamed). She turns out to be one of Cáel' allies. First introduced in Chapter 23.

Jormo Sulkanen - Patriarch of the Sulkanen clan. Initially furious with Cáel, he decides to accept Cáel's verdict on his youngest son from his first marriage (Brennan), setting the young rapist adrift in order for his conflict with Cáel to escalate to the rest of his family. His third wife is named Misty and his youngest daughter is Karvala. Has two sons from his first marriage and three other children by his second and third marriages. First introduced in Chapter 23

Delilah - an active operative for MI-6 (Britain's foreign intelligence service) that Sibeal O'Shea Nyilas, Cáel's Mom, has recruited by unknown means to help protect Cáel and keep her informed of what is happening in his life. Delilah does not know who she is ultimately reporting to, or even what her assignment really entails. First introduced in Chapter 24.




Life as a New Hire: Cast of Personas (September)



***

Key terms or Abbreviations as they relate to Havenstone/Amazon Society

A great perceived fallacy of Havenstone is the division of departments. Yes, every division has its 'day job'. They also cooperate across units boundaries without complication. Technically, all the division heads run their units independently with Hayden as CEO. Realistically, everyone reports non-business data to Katrina. The only 'public' division that does not share personnel is the Security Detail. Either you are SD, or you are not.

ES: Executive Service, Havenstone "gophers," also the Havenstone Counter intelligence/Assassination unit. This works primarily because Amazons don't have 'off hours'. They both run errands and train in espionage/counter-espionage.

SD: Security Detail, Security Department also Security Services, provides security guards, personal security details (Bodyguards), Armed rapid response teams. Full-blooded Amazons only. They are the Warrior Elite. All Amazons are fighters. The SD are the very best of the race.

FI: Financial Investigations performs public domestic intelligence operations. Also includes cyber-operations. They act as a distraction for ES covert operations in major metropolitan areas where Havenstone CI has a visible presence.

BM: Business Management. The balance accounts so that the finances end up where they are needed, obtaining outsider supplies and maintaining the illusion that Havenstone Commercial Investments is a capitalist enterprise.

IF: International Finances, International is the public face of Havenstone foreign Intelligence operations. They provide cover for ES covert practices in places Havenstone doesn't publically exist. They also handle the shipment of resources from base to base, though the 'work orders' go through ES.

MS: Medical Services, Provides general medical support as well as some undefined level of medical research/development. They not only handle in-house clinics, they also handle subsidiary medical corporate assets and maintain a massive database of historical medical data.

First directive: The beginning of (semi) systematic recruitment of women into the Amazon society, begins roughly in the 1950's. The initial plan was to bring in physically and mentally fit women into Amazon society, train them to Amazon standards and eventually induct them into the Host (the term the Amazons use to define themselves - present day it comprises only of House Amazons). Derogatorily referred to by Full-Bloods as 'Lost-Bloods' in Old Kingdom Hittite/Amazon. Since only Full-blooded Amazons are taught that language, the new women lived in ignorance of what they were being called until Cáel told them. Cáel began to refer to the new women as 'Runners', a practice that has been rapidly embraced.

New directive: The directive to recruit Males into Amazon Society begins roughly in present time. The initial plan by Katrina and Tessa was to recruit 100 ~ 500 men. The Council agreed on FIVE with the codicil that the men be 'morally tested' (sexually entrapped) during the intern process.

Ahhiyawa were the Mycenaeans in the time of the Iliad. Held responsible for the 1st Great betrayal 3000 years ago. Due to the nature of the Amazon-Greek blood feud, Amazons do not utter the Hittite name for their foe out of some unknown fear. 

The destruction of Amazon society 2500 years ago is called the Second Betrayal. Having brought males into the Host to wage war on encroaching Celtic tribes, the women failed to adapt to the males changing role in their society. Many warrior males sold out the Amazons to their Celtic enemies. 

The Ash Men were the males of the Host that stayed loyal to the Host. The name comes from two sources. When the Celtic warriors and the traitors captured the loyalist men, they would burn them alive over an extended period as a warning to the rest. No loyalist ever betrayed the Host despite that punishment. The second source of the name comes from the Amazon crime of slaughtering the few loyalist males that remained when the Amazons migrated from their Second Homeland (present day southwestern Slovakia). Despite being honorable members of the Host, the Amazons killed them without trial thus denying them a proper death - taking themselves to the cliffs - instead burning their remains to ash.

Ishara, Hittite Goddess of Love, Medicine and Oaths. Later she evolved into the Goddess Ishtar. Cáel is attempting to refer to her as Dot Ishara as of Chapter 25, something the goddess does not approve of.

Ishara is also the name of the 1st Matriarch of House Ishara, surrendered her name to unite her House. Cáel is attempting to have her referred as Yakko Ishara. The ancestor's view on the matter is unknown as of Chapter 25.

House: How Amazon Society is organized. There is one Woman in charge of A House with an Apprentice/2nd in Command. House leaders are often addressed by their House Name rather than their personal name to differentiate between them and their position within the House and the Host. Cáel is addressed as 'Ishara.' Total of 53 Existing/Living Houses, 6 Dead Houses.

In a personal setting, equals use their own/first names. In the workplace/public, first names are always used as this helps Full-Blood Amazons to not stumble over their 'false' surnames. As an example, Katrina, Caitlyn and Aya are all House Epona and would internally (formally) be referred to by their first and house names - Katrina Epona, Caitlyn Epona and Aya Epona. To the public and for security purpose, Katrina's last name is 'Love' and Aya's is 'Ruger'. Any outsider looking for a member of the 'Love' family wouldn't be automatically be drawn to Aya.

To be a member of the Host (Full-Blooded), you have to be born of a member of the Host in good standing, survive your 12th year test and be eighteen. In extremis, an Amazon born of an honorable member of a house is accepted as a member of the Host without the 12th year test if taking it is too risky/impossible. Remember, the Amazons spent a good deal of their history as nomads, thus the exception.

Women can be adopted into a house on the orders of the Head of House. Contrary to the current Full-Blood/Runner rift, throughout history Amazons have adopted 'outsider' women. House Epona was recruited en masse from female Celtic Warriors (probably around 20 to 30 members at inception).

The source of the controversy is that around 1900 ADE, the Amazons rapidly moved from a feudal society to a centralized one. Every House Head had ruled as she saw fit. This made sense when High Priestess were only selected every thirty years, or so, and travel and communication between houses was dicey.

It was easy for the Head of Houses to be fanatically devoted to the High Priestess when she was nowhere close. Suddenly the globe shrank and of an Amazon had a problem with a Head of House, she could take her grievance to the High Priestess within a matter of days, or weeks. The power of the High Priestess and her officers (like Katrina) grew and the power of the Council decreased.

After WWII, the High Priestess of the time was taking in the Big Picture - Amazons needed more numbers than their society could produce, genetics were starting to become a problem, and the Host had a great deal of territory and wealth to manage. Since inducting Runners in WWII worked out so well, she, with the Council's consent, created the First Directive. Then the Council had the 'what have we done' moment. They 'rebelled' against the High Priestess by refusing to induct the Runners, using social shaming to keep the more liberal houses in line.

Before long, non-induction became the Status Quo. The Runners had no idea how induction worked and weren't given benchmarks to aim for. Every other year one Runner would get promoted to keep the others guessing. Things worked like that until Cáel arrives; clueless and shameless. Katrina alone warns the Host of the disaster on the horizon.

Pure Blood and Full-Blood are interchangeable, though Full-Blood is far more common.

Poison Blood: a new, derogatory name used by 'Lost Blood/ Runners' for overly proud (Stuck up) Pure Blood Amazons recently.

Lost-Blood: Derogatory Term for women recruited, not born, into Amazon Society by 'Pure Blood/Full/Poison Blood' Amazons. See also 'Runner'

Runner: Name introduced by Cáel to replace the term 'Lost Blood' for women recruited into Amazon Society. Runners can be adopted into Amazon Houses becoming "Full' Amazon.

Cliff Walker: Amazons will "go to the cliffs' (commit suicide) when they can no longer effectively serve Amazon Society. Pamela went to the cliffs in her thirties, but then returned without explanation.

***

Great Secret Societies

Illuminati: Primary Goal, World Domination through Hyper Capitalism (as in anything to make a buck,) Enemies of the Amazon, Possibly Changing as Cáel is a member of one of the Illuminati Primary Families 

Condottieri: Primarily Mercenaries and Arms Dealers, Enemies of the Amazon, responsible for Ferko Nyilas death

The Nine Clans: Hashshashin, Ninja, Thuggee, Black Lotus, Coils of the Serpent, Brotherhood of the Wolf, the Black Hand, Cult of the Jaguar and the Ghost Tigers. Primarily Assassins, open to most races or genders. Sorta kinda friends/not enemies of the Amazon

Egyptian Rite Masons: the oldest enemy of the Illuminati. Primary Goal, a Global Autocratic Government. Open to any race or gender. Sorta kinda friends/not enemies of the Amazon

Earth and Sky Society: descendants of Genghis Khan, Primary goal, Reincarnating of Genghis Khan. Sorta kinda friends/not enemies of the Amazon

The Seven Pillars of Heaven: An ancient Chinese Secret Society. Primary goal- World Domination. To be a member, must be Pure Han Chinese and a man, or bound to one. Sorta kinda not friends/ enemies of the Amazon

Amazons: If you haven't figured this out yet, beat yourself to death with a large blunt object, preferably studded or spiked, until your head and shoulders look like the south facing end of a north bound mule [Storyteller's Note: I did not write most of this and certainly not the last bit, but I liked it so I kept it]

There are other, smaller secret societies, usually in small numbers, a lesser ability to impact events, and/or with limited regional activity.