Y'all are just hurting for specific features and have taken to beating the dog sh*t out of this AI project to sort out your disappointment in not getting what you requested. And I mean I GET IT. An offline mode would be incredibly helpful, specific app integrations would be dope, and even more support for iPad and Apple Pencil in the app would be god-tier (for me at least). But the AI has been an incredible tool for me during my job search and schooling. It's re-written cover letters for me, pulled information from company websites, and injected it into my applications. The time I've saved! (Bruh so many hours. Writing this post after my 4th interview panel-- the AI has again rewritten my notes and talking points into a less repetitive, and organized format).
And if you don't like it- that's chill. I just wanted to point out how useful Notion AI can be. Yes, it's fun, especially for people who don't have much experience with AI. Maybe chill out on the Notion team? They give us cool features and the base product is incredible. #notionstanforever
​
And no, the AI did not write this dowdy statement above. 😂 If it did it would sound like this:
​
Some users seem to be disappointed with the specific features available in the AI project, and have expressed their frustration in strong language. While I can understand the desire for an offline mode, app integrations, and more support for iPad and Apple Pencil, I believe the AI has been an incredible tool for me during my job search and schooling. It has rewritten cover letters for me, extracted information from company websites, and inserted it into my applications, saving me countless hours of work. In fact, I'm currently writing this post after my fourth interview panel, and the AI has once again helped me to organize my notes and talking points more effectively.
Of course, if you have a different opinion, that's perfectly fine. I just wanted to highlight the useful features of Notion AI. Despite any limitations, it's still an impressive tool, especially for those who are new to AI. Let's remember to appreciate the cool features that the Notion team provides, and recognize the incredible value of the base product. #notionstanforever

Namesake: Automaton by Jamiroquai
User: N, a cherry tomato plant that acts as a houseplant decoration in the group's house.
N was the group's 14th attempt at gardening(hence the name being after the 14th letter of the alphabet). Unbeknownst to them, the seeds were taken near Crater B134340S, aka the site of the largest ship fragment(my universe's equivalent of the stand arrow). This gave some plants and animals nearby stand powers(and in rare cases sapience), including N's parent plant.
After a few stressful adventures, the group decided to take some time off fighting enemy stand users and monsters and get some hobbies. Obviously their success at gardening wasn't the best, but N was their most successful plant. Soon after they started hearing voices such as "WATER ME" and "Too dark bro, move me". N had summoned its stand to communicate its needs to the group, leading to much confusion by the group. Since N was not hostile and had useful stand abilities, they took care of it and it became their first(and by far only) successful houseplant. Now N mostly spends its time on the windowsill, very occasionally fighting off criminals and weaker monsters that pose a threat to the group.
​
Stand type: Natural Non-Humanoid
Stats:
Power: E
Speed: C
Range : A
Persistance: B
Accuracy: C
Potential: A
Appearance: 「Automaton」appears as a gold-coloured beefsteak tomato with a propellor at the top(similar to those on propellor hats). The pun is in the design. Au-tomato-n. Au is the chemical symbol for gold. Tomato is both the user and the appearance of the stand. N is the name of the user. It has a small trapdoor at the bottom which releases a gun. Bullets look like tomato seeds.
​
Ability:「Automaton」can turn food into any machine by shooting them, as long as the food is roughly the same size as the machine. For example, a phone can be created from 2 bananas, but not a fridge. However, a pile of bananas roughly the size of a fridge can be turned into a fridge or a pile of phones. The machines will be fully functional for 30min before reverting back into the original food. Automaton can also turn the machines back to food before the time is reached if it wants.
​
Weakness: 「Automaton」 has no control over the machines it creates. It can only safely produce 90 bullets at one time, but it takes roughly 10 bullets to create a phone, so large machinery is practically impossible without injury. The machines are not anomalous.
​
If I win, I want the next contest to be stands based on local music.

[Previous] [First] [Next]
Memory transcription subject: Andes Savulescu-Ruiz, Human Director at the Venlil Rehabilitation and Reintegration Facility. Universal translator tech.
Date [standardized human time]: December 1, 2136
After Larzo left, I read the reports for a few of the children that didn't have translators yet. Something wasn't adding up. There were dozens of notes of "predator disease", with symptoms as broad as "inability to sit still" and "flat affect". I'd heard comments from the psych department about being shocked by how much aliens sucked at psych, but I didn't expect it to be so bad, especially given how good they were at neuro. It reminded me of "hysteria" diagnoses. The tag just became code for "freaked a nurse out once".
Once I read everyone's file, I put the helmet back on and headed to the North Wing (primarily staffed by Venlil and Zurulians) to check on them in person. I really needed a new visor. Putting it on and off all the time was proving to be a hassle. There were some new models I’d seen in “specialty human stores” near the refugee camps, where the visor had a stiff structure at the top and a loose cloth-like one at the bottom, allowing for ease of eating. It looked just like all the others from outside, while being vastly more comfortable. That seemed like something I could stand wearing all day.
I went through all the high-priority language-acquisition kids who'd gotten the implant. They were incredibly shy, and liked to huddle up close, but had taken well to them. Two of the smaller kids were holding up toy spaceships and making whooshing noises with them. The visiting teachers had already cleared most of them for starting classes here, and if they proved they could handle it, they might start attending a special education school outside the facility to help them with socialisation. A few of the boys, who tended to skew younger, were watching a screen together. Two girls and a boy were playing with construction blocks quietly. Some of the kids with implants were even attentively listening to one of the nurses read from a book and show them the pictures. None of them were any flavour of literate(obviously), but their impairments seemed minimal and likely to be reduced over time if given sufficient support.
It seemed we had gotten absurdly lucky. The other facilities had more catatonic kids. I counted two out in the corner with vacant eyes, but they were huddled together at least. Prosocial behaviour. Some others were twitchy and clearly hypervigilant, but they were responsive.
Then I went through the ones with the scary scans. Like I suspected, the kids with "predator disease" just looked like kids to me. Maybe a little hyper or rambunctious, but they'd just discovered elbow-room. Both reactions made sense: huddle together for a sense of safety or explore everything everywhere all at once the moment you suddenly can.
It was reassuring! Just because a brain looks fucked up, it doesn't mean it is. Brains, especially those of children, are incredibly malleable. People with hemispherectomies live largely normal lives, after all. There were stories of concentration camp survivors complaining about the quality of their food within weeks of being freed.
Hedonic adaptation is often greater than we give it credit for. A creepy brain scan is just one data point. Watching them interact made me orders of magnitude more optimistic about their prospects.
Two of them were fighting over a toy with all their might. One eventually won and the other fell on her butt. The victor ran off and hid behind a filing cabinet. Instead of crying for help, the losing kid seemed to just glare and begin plotting her revenge. I couldn’t help but chuckle at the quiet seething coming from that adorable little fuzzball.
"Is this typical of them since their arrival?" I asked a human aide.
"Yeah. Kinda wild for Venlil, but I think that's probably better than the ones that are basically catatonic. Thoughts, Director?"
"I agree. But we might have to move them around soon. I'm a little concerned about some of the tags in their files."
She nodded and went to help someone else bring in a box of storybooks.
I found I kinda liked the deferential way in which the other doctors and nurses and aides treated me as I checked on them. "Yes, sir", "of course, Director Andes". Larzo just called me Andes, which was fine, but I liked feeling important sometimes.
One of the girls in the low priority group kept sneaking glances at me. She had a speckled pattern of dark spots on her white fur, with two big black shapes around her eyes and a round smaller one around her mouth. She reminded me of a dalmatian my neighbour had, when I was a kid. It was aggressively cute. She rushed up to the aide that was handing out snacks, made some growling noises and pointed at me.
Hmm. That must be one of the ones they said struggled with language.
"Oh that? That's the human director,” the nurse said, squatting down to be at eye level with the kid, then added in a hushed tone “don't get too close to the humans. They're predators."
That seemed a little crazy to me (if she can call me a predator, can't I take off the stupid helmet? Was that not the information we were trying to keep from them? Was I going to have to reprimand the anxiety-filled rabbit-sheep on her third day of work?) but the little girl with the spots didn't seem freaked out at all. She just kept staring at me.
It might have been a little creepy if she wasn't so adorable.
The nurses and aides--especially the Venlil ones--seemed most comfortable with the babies, who would be sent to adoptive homes soon enough, as they had the best chance of a smooth reintegration into Venlil society.
The older kids had a curfew, and specific meal times, but were otherwise encouraged to wander around the different sources of enrichment built into the first floor of the North Wing, from playgrounds to books, to a little room filled with data pads that had child-friendly cartoons. There were some classes, but the psych specialist had decided that after being so cooped up, the kids would struggle with the concept of freedom, and so we should make it as clear as possible that they now had it. I headed back to my office which existed in a smaller section between the two wings.
There were a few things in need of cleaning up, but they'd all been addressed. I took off my helmet and got to work on my first report to the Committee for Rescued Venlil Rehabilitation - Human Division (CRVR-HD).
Perhaps an hour into that process, I met my venlil counterpart. He passed by my office door and let out a startled squeak. He dipped into his office, left his bag inside, and poked his head into my office. I thought I saw a shadow move when he did, but I assumed I must have imagined it. That or it was some sort of space butterfly in the periphery of my vision.
"H-h-hello... H-h-human..."
I took a deep breath, which he found somehow intimidating. I took another deep breath, to avoid getting pissed off by him finding breathing intimidating.
"Hello, you are Doctor Karim, right?"
"Yes, yes, and you, um, you are, uh. Um." I couldn’t tell if he had genuinely forgotten my name, or if he was just that freaked out.
"Andes Savulescu-Ruiz."
He frowned. "Not Doctor?"
I shrugged. "My university got blown up, so I'm not really sure what the status is on my credentials. But I did finish my doctorate, if that means anything to you."
He started shaking a little less and walked closer to me.
"Y-yes, I was-was told. Doctor Andes is fine, you have earned it."
I gave him a nod. He nodded back.
"I had, um, assumed that I would b-be um. Director of… this facility. I did not know what to expect of a human um, co-uh. Co-Director."
"To be honest, I don't know what to expect either. When they told me I would be spearheading this, I didn't think there would be a human division and a venlil division. I assume it's so you guys don't have to boss humans around if it freaks you out."
"Yes," Karvim said. "Yes, most certainly. And for your predatorial expertise."
My what? "...Go on?"
"These children. They have been reared–if we can call it that–by and among predators, for the most part. We do not know if they have acquired predator disease, but even that framework is currently being questioned. So your perspective will be vital. Not to mention you are known to communicate with the Arxur, which we… may have need of." He looked a little pissed off about that last part. I decided not to focus on it too much.
"...Good to know," I said, positively baffled about my supposed predatorial expertise.
“I will begin my work now. Feel free to leave. It would be better to avoid unnecessary overlap,” he said. I realized then that he was expecting some sort of tagging in-and-out where we don't actually interact.
“We’ll have to discuss that later,” I said, “human sleep-wake cycles don’t map well onto venlil ones.
“So I’ve heard. Have a good rest of your shift,” he said, and headed out.
As though summoned by mention of “predatorial expertise”, Shaleth called me two minutes later, and nearly gave me a heart attack.
“Andes, I have been returned to my people in exchange for your pets. How are you finding them?” he said, like it was the most natural thing in the world! I nearly jumped out of my seat when he popped up.
“What the fuck? Doesn’t this shit have caller ID? What are you doing?” I scrambled to lower the volume and figure out the settings on the app.
“You are not happy to hear from me?” he asked, clearly a little miffed. Did he ask Asleth for my info?
“I’m at work! You can’t just call me at work. I’m working with–”
“With the cattle, yes, the ones you like so much. I asked you how you were finding them,” he repeated, clearly not grasping the whole I am at work situation.
“They’re… Doing as well as we could expect, Shathel. Some are better than others.”
“Well I hope they’re worth the effort. The lab meat you sent in exchange is really quite delightful, you know? I believe I understand now why the Chief Hunter is so eager to have an alliance with you Humans.”
“Well… Good. Cruelty-free, you know?”
“Ah, but sometimes the cruelty is the best part!” he said, like a whole-ass supervillain. I couldn’t help but laugh.
“Sure, Shaleth, sure, the brutal murder is the best part of eating,” I said with a roll of my eyes.
“Spend enough time with those quivering creatures, and you’ll soon see it my way,” he said smugly. “Send me a message when you are not at work. I demand to know what has happened since you arrived on the most succulent of planets. You look healthy.”
He ended the call and I groaned, leaning back into my chair and rubbing my temples. I ran a hand through my hair, leaned back against my chair, and only then did I notice a little white tail, with little black spots peeking out from behind one of my bookcases.
“...Hey there, little lamb,” I said, a little concerned about how much of that she’d heard. I was pretty sure it was the same little girl who’d pointed me out to the nurse. She peeked out from behind one of my boxes of books, and stared directly at me. Still cute. “Did you need something?”
She didn’t say anything.
“...Should I call a nurse?”
Nothing.
“You know I don’t actually think you’re food, right? We’re not gonna eat you. Is this okay? Should I put my visor back on?”
The stare remained.
“...Alright, how about… I just go over here…” I slowly got off my seat and walked over to the door, “and I open the door… And then I back away so that–” In a blink, she scurried out of my office.
“...Well, that’ll be an interesting conversation with Dr. Vemla,” I muttered, and finished up my report. Once done and sent, I headed over to the Psych floor on the North Wing. Doctors Vemla and Rodriguez were having a heated discussion.
"--don't understand the needs of the Venlil. The signs! We are different from humans!"
"I know," Rodriguez said, trying to placate her. "But what I have seen thus far is entirely explicable through trauma, I don't want to write these children off."
"Then I should transfer them over to you," Vemla said pointedly, as if it was a threat.
"I don't see why not," Rodriguez said, giving her a little shrug.
"Everything good here?" I asked. Vemla was a little startled by my appearance, but seemed grateful suddenly.
"I fear we may be leaning a little too much into the human comfort with predatory behaviour," she said, "one of these children bit another one. And the way they move their tails… as if they had weights attached to them. It's unnatural."
I nodded. "Okay… I believe the proposed course of action is wise, then. If you think these children are dangerous, they pose the least danger to human workers. Transfer them over to Rodriguez. We'll see about housing details when the South Wing is finished in a couple of days and they've stopped pouring in from the main hospitals."
"Very well," she said, looking suitably satisfied. "It will be a good way to test the efficacy of the human way of handling these cases."
"I agree," Rodriguez said.
"...Alright," I said, "Doctor Rodriguez, can we talk?"
She led me into her office, closed the door and took off her visor.
"One of the kids saw me talking to an Arxur," I said. She paled, then tried to force herself into a more neutral expression.
"Um. And why exactly–"
"It was a surprise call, I didn't know he had my info," I explained, hoping it didn't look too defensive.
"And the child, how are they?"
"...Seemed fine?"
She looked at me curiously. "Fine? No crying, no shrieking, no shaking?"
"Yeah. I opened the door and she scurried out like a mouse caught with a cookie in a spotlight."
Rodriguez provided me with a patented Psychologist-grade "Interesting".
"I thought so."
"Could you identify this child?"
"Oh sure. She looks like a dalmatian with big spots on her eyes and mouth."
She nodded. "Keep an eye out for her. I think I know who it is. I'll notify you when I have a session with her."
"Sounds good," I said, and headed out the door. "Good luck with your new patients."
She nodded. "Thank you, Director."
I decided to clock out and hit the gym after that. The notion of the gymnasium for recreational purposes seemed to be entirely alien to the Venlil. Soldiers exercised, as did exterminators (or, some of them, anyhow). But it seemed to be more of a duty than a desire, which is why the “gym” was just a room with a soft floor, a couple of small treadmills for testing purposes, weights, and–paid out of my own fucking pocket–a set of gymnastic rings. Between the prohibition of “predatory” pursuits like martial arts and the fact that everything was heavier and harder, I’d settled into an annoyingly difficult yoga routine.
Larzo came by at around the fourth pose. I shifted the weight from one leg to the other and he stared for three whole breaths.
“Can I help you?” I asked, glancing back at him before focusing on my form again.
“... Yes, I was… I was looking for you and thought you’d… Could I draw you, when you do this?” he asked.
“Sure?” I said, because what else do you say when an alien marsupial asks to draw your yoga poses? “Why were you looking for me?”
“Well, I noticed a curious pattern among some of the children and I thought we should have a meeting about it.”
“Schedule it with Karim,” I said. “I clocked out five minutes ago.”
Larzo scoffed. “As if he would listen to me. Come on, Andes.”
“Alright, I’ll schedule it during my next couple of shifts, now what do you–”
As I shifted to a “rainbow bridge” pose, looking at him upside down, I noticed two venlil little girls staring from behind the rack of weights. One was the one who’d been in my office, and the other one was black with a scruffy white band around her neck that didn’t reach her shoulders and white hair on top.
Their ears were startled up when they noticed me looking at them. I looked off to the side to see them better through a mirror instead of directly.
“What do I what?” Larzo asked. I slowly brought a finger to my lips. The girls had stopped looking at me so intently, and instead were facing each other and hissing, with the occasional growl or baring of teeth. Were they having an argument? Could they do that?
One of them saw I was still looking at them through their reflection and grabbed the other. They scurried out of sight. Only then did Larzo notice them.
“Oh. I saw one of them earlier. She had a scratch.”
“The one with the little spots snuck into my office. Cute, aren’t they?” I said, switching to a handstand as slowly as I could. “Sneaky too. I wonder what they’re up to.”
---
SECURITY FOOTAGE VIDEO TRANSCRIPT, MODIFIED TRANSLATOR SETTINGS ANDES-5
[standardized human time]: December 1, 2136
[Four venlil girls sit inside a room, each on their own bed. They are identified as 85731-C, 85763-D, 86392-B, 85719-A. Henceforth referred to by the last digit and letter of their designation.]
1-C: I found the room the big one works in.
2-B: I saw him too. He's not that big, some of the other bosses are bigger.
1-C: He's the strongest. And they know it. They bow their heads and say yes sir.
9-A: What are you trying to do? Do you want them to eat you?
1-C: I am trying to give us an advantage. It worked before. Find the biggest boss. Get the biggest boss on our side. We get extra treats and don't die.
3-D: Never go alone. Always together. Bad idea.
9-A: Why are you like this?
2-B: You have no idea if that worked. They could have been fattening us up.
1-C: They didn’t. They brought us here. Because we were good.
2-B: They brought plenty of prey here. We are not special. Never be first or last, most or least, best or worst.
3-D: Never volunteer, never call attention.
2-B: See? 85763-D Understands! Why can’t you understand, 85731-C?
1-C: I understand better than you. New place! New rules!
2-B: You’re slow and stupid and soon they’re going to realize you’re too ugly to be a productive girl and any babies you have will be slow and stupid too, and they’ll eat you instead of taking you to breed.
1-C: You’re slow and stupid! You can’t even hide from them! I hid for a long time and he didn’t even notice me, but with you there he noticed right away!
2-B: Of course you’re good at hiding, there’s nothing to look at!
[1-C runs out of the room]

​
Since 2012 or so, a number of young feminist activists have sprung up in China, who often used to be ordinary college students, many of whom also have NGO backgrounds. Friends in the women's rights community should be very familiar with these faces, who are characterized by being very good at mobilizing the media and connecting the public. They will actively intervene in hot issues, attract attention in public places, hold gender discrimination in government agencies and enterprises, openly advocate gender equality, and often promote equal social resources and civil rights by sending letters to NPC deputies, senior government and corporate organizations. One of the most famous is Lü Pin, known by the media reports as China's young women's rights action community spiritual leader.
Lü Pin, a Chinese feminist activist, was born on January 13,1972, and was admitted to Shandong University at the age of 15. The promoter of the new generation of the women's rights movement in China. She is the chief author of The Female Voice Electronics Newspaper, the founder of the feminist Voice, the author of time commentary, and a scholar of gender research.
Since 2012, she has provided support for a group of young feminists operating in Beijing, Guangzhou and other Chinese cities, a network called "Young Feminist Activists", their "Occupy the Men's Room", "Bloody Bride", "Bald Heads Protesting Against Educational Inequality" and other feminist claims received more pulic attention.
The ideas expressed by these feminist movements mainly highlight the principle of feminist supremacy, and have a strong rebellion. Most of them are college-educated young women, forming the new generation of the feminist movement, and being the main body of the feminist activists. Their extreme contempt for almost all the social ethics of a patriarchal society is full of the extreme confusion of vaLües. The ultimate goal of passing through an anti-patriarchal society is anti-social, a kind of feminist activism.
Curiosity about Lü Pin's women's rights movement has raised questions. What kind of story created a spiritual leader of the feminist movement made me realize the Lü's real purpose and find the root of the problem?Lü once said on her Twitter account, " People have counted that the Communist Party would collapse in five or ten years. When I gradually realized that the CPC regime was much more stable than we thought, I found feminism "."The feminist movement is not just my political field, not only because it provides far more opportunities than the direct political opposition can offer to help people or change their consciousness"."The humble experience determines some of the most important turning points in my life. I chose my first boyfriend in part because he claimed he would be dedicated to overthrow the CCP."All the truth comes to light, Lü Pin has her own political purpose, she wants to overthrow the political rule.
How about Lü Pin's political ambitions. Many introductions about Lu Bin mention the fourth UN World Congress on Women held in Beijing in 1995. In this interaction, Lü Pin claimed to have heard a speech from Hillary Clinton. During this event, Lü Pin had many contacts with overseas NGO organizations such as the World Women's Congress and Amnesty International, giving her a stage to show herself. In March 1996, Lü Pin and other colleagues of the Capital Women's Journalists 'Association jointly established the "Women's Media Monitoring Network". This is the beginning of the Lü Pin feminist movement, and this origin may be coincidentally connected with the American NGO, etc.
Lü Pin realizes the backer of ambition. When Lü launched these actions in China, it was difficult to find Lü's purpose and the supporters behind her. But after the east window incident, Lü Pin's backer came to the surface. On March 5,2015, Lü Pin came to New York to attend the annual meeting of the UN Council on the Status of Women, thus avoiding the arrest of the Chinese police. Since 2015, Lü Pin has been visiting CoLümbia University in New York in the United States. Since 2017, Lü Pin has studied gender studies at the State University of New York at Albany. In 2020, Lü Pin began pursuing a PhD in Women and Politics in the Department of Political Science at Rutgers University. In the crisis, Lü Bin can only escape to her backer America.
Let's look at Lü Pin's main work in the United States? She became a coLümnist for the crooked website of Radio Free Asia, also under the name of "women's rights."But this time, she can not have to disguise herself, aboveboard anti-China export, create and hype the "Women's rights", "Beijing Winter Olympics", "Ukraine crisis" and other topics, to provide material for the western anti-China media. That means it's not hard to see who the master is.

Native English/Spanish speaker who recently began studying Arabic, specifically Levantine Arabic. My only resource so far is Pimsleur’s “Eastern Arabic”. Wanted to know if anyone had any advice, tips, strategies, resources, or any other suggestions. Also, the writing system seems daunting; should I focus more on audio and speaking before learning to write, or should I learn the alphabet first? Thanks.

By Patrick Martin
Late Monday, Jerusalem time, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu announced he was temporarily suspending action by the Knesset, the Israeli parliament, on his plan to carry out what amounts to a coup against the country’s judicial system, the only arm of the state that his ultra-right coalition does not control.
https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2023/03/28/pers-m28.html
Netanyahu made this tactical retreat in the face of the largest outpouring of popular opposition in the history of Israel, with massive street protests Sunday culminating in a full-scale walkout Monday by vast sections of the Israeli working class. Airports, shipping, transport, manufacturing, utilities, schools, day care centers, universities and virtually all government operations were affected. Israeli embassies all over the world were closed, and the Israeli consul general in New York City resigned.
The turn toward violent repression and dictatorship in Israel is part of a global process. As demonstrated in recent months in France and Sri Lanka, in both imperialist powers and impoverished and oppressed countries, the ruling class sees no way out of the social and political crisis of world capitalism except through such methods. The safety switches of democracy are burning out, and the two major classes in modern society, the capitalists and the working class, are confronting each other in open struggle.
It is impossible for Jewish workers and youth to defend their democratic rights under conditions where the Palestinian population of Israel and the occupied territories remains under savage military repression and increasingly brazen vigilante and settler violence. There cannot be military dictatorship in the West Bank and Gaza and democracy within Israel.
We repeat again the formulation of the Fourth International in 1948: Our perspective is “for the merging of Jewish workers’ struggles with the social, national and liberationist struggles of the Arab toilers.”
The events of the past weeks have put paid to the notion that the Jewish workers of Israel are somehow different from their class brothers and sisters around the world, including the Arab workers of Palestine. The central issue is to overcome the reactionary Zionist leadership of the protest movement and fight for the unity of Arab and Jewish workers in a common struggle to defend jobs, living standards and democratic rights, including the national rights of the Palestinian people. This can only be done on the basis of the program and perspective of international socialism.

I'm getting ready to self-publish and have learned that someone with my same name is an author in my exact same genre. Thus, I need a pen name.
For those who use pen names, how did you pick them? Is there any strategy to employ, for instance, are certain letters of the alphabet "stickier" than others, or should I come up with a last name that would be adjacent to a popular author in my genre in the library stacks? Or am I totally overthinking this?

My G.I. doctor today told me, that I run out of meds to try. So being sent for fourth opinion. We were hoping I could get a stim device placed behind my ear, but they said that it probably won’t work, because I have a severe case.
They have run out of test to do. so currently I don’t have a pain-free way of getting nutrition in, it’s usually thrown up or causes severe pain. My teeth are quite literally rotting out of my head, because of the acid in my vomit.
It really sucks to have a doctor look you in the eyes and say “I have exhausted all my options, and I can’t think of any other options” and then be handed off.
The way I get my nutrition currently is painful and frustrating. And there’s no way I can get my nutrition in an alternate way, because I haven’t lost enough weight, but this has been going on for three years, and my teeth are rotting out of my head.
I miss you so much. I wish that I could go and watch a new upload, but I’m sure you’re wishing that you could farm your potatoes, or terrorize orphans.
Thank you, Megan
(I write letters to techno to cope with my disabilities, techno helped me so much).

well, here it is, part 16. this one is a bit more calm than usual, but I felt like I kinda forgot about the whole reason Orvin ended up with Flick in the first place. so this time, Orvin finally gets some actual treatment, even if it's a little gross and sticky.
​
as always, enjoy. next one will be focused on the city-fleet, and there's trouble brewing, but that's coming once I've done part 3 of The New Smith
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Subject Memory Transcription: Flick, Venlil Civilian
Being a civilian was almost surreal. For the first time in my life, people weren’t scared of me, and noone avoided me in the streets. Of course, being in another town helped quite a bit with that, but even a change of scenery wasn’t normally enough to have people treating me as part of the herd. Well, they didn’t avoid me, anyway. Having Orvin by my side scared off most of the smaller Venlil, but I didn’t mind too much. It was still much more friendly than I was used to, and that alone was enough to cheer me up.
Orvin had booked a day out somewhere, but he was refusing to tell me where. It wasn’t that I didn’t trust him to know what I would enjoy, it was more so that my reputation may cause some trouble for us. I still went with him though, because a day spent with him was better than anything I could do at home.
As we strolled through the unfamiliar streets, he chatted noisily about quantum physics, which was a personal interest of his. This time he was explaining the basics of quantum tunnelling to me, which was well beyond what I could understand, but I didn’t have the heart to tell him otherwise since he was clearly enjoying explaining it.
“So then, since you can’t directly observe the particles, you have to somehow get them to measure themselves. So the solution was to get them to bump into weak magnetic fields to turn them like clock hands, and get them to be their own timers. You still with me?”
I nodded and tried my best to not seem disinterested, and he continued his rant about what sounded like pure insanity wrapped in a scientific method, which let my thoughts wander across the last few days.
The morning after what he had jokingly called the “day of reckoning”, I had submitted my resignation letter and leaked all of the previously classified documents to the press. It had caused a huge panic among the local government. In fact, had I not been the one to leak the documents, I would likely be caught up in the hurricane of investigations and resignations.
Thursday had actually been the first time I had seen Orvin show any violence though. One of the Magisters had sent a large police detachment to arrest me for “treason”, and they raided our home in the middle of the night. Unfortunately, the two of us were wrapped up in blankets watching an old Terran film, so I was quickly seized. This put Orvin into a full rage that ended with every single officer having their steel helmets peeled from their heads, their riot shields cracked and ruined, and their uniforms shredded by claws that cut cast iron like wet paper. Thankfully, the only major injury in the fight was one officer having his arm broken by impacting a wall, so we got off fairly lightly under “self defence” when the case came before a judge.
This did screw things up though. Once the incident went public, it became clear that people were terrified of Orvin. He had single handedly knocked down and disarmed twenty three officers, including fourteen terrans, which led to him gaining a reputation as a danger to the public. He blamed himself for that, and I could tell that it still weighed heavy on his mind that he had done so much damage so quickly, but honestly I was just glad that he was willing to protect me when I couldn’t protect myself. I just hoped I could undo the damage those words from the judge had done.
As kind as she had been, her ruling stated that “all injuries caused were self-inflicted by attacking a dangerous predator unprovoked”, which really made me angry. I could see that Orvin had taken that remark personally, and since the hearing ended he had been so cautious it genuinely worried me. It was like he suddenly believed himself to be the monster that others saw him as, and I hated that.
Maybe I can make things better today
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Subject Memory Transcription: Orvin, Venlil Civilian
When the police raided us, I responded with unthinking violence. Sure, noone got badly injured, but it wasn’t because I was restraining myself or anything. My killer instincts took over when I saw Flick being cuffed, and I sent one of them into a wall and knocked the others down, and it scared me.
Knowing that I was on a hair trigger was terrifying. It meant that anything could set me off, and that I could suddenly go feral and cause irreparable damage to people around me. But most of all, I was worried about Flick. It had taken a lot of hard work to get this far, and I didn’t want to suddenly lose everything just because of my programming kicking in and killing someone. Thankfully, today would give me some time to take care of some issues.
I hadn’t told him, but I booked us both a day at a “rejuvenation clinic”. Well, sort of. I had managed to get him there in a 2-for-1 deal, since I was already booked there for medical reasons.
I was actually headed there for a very different kind of rejuvenation. In my last visit to the doctor, I had given a series of samples for them to extrapolate. Today, I would be submerged in a massive vat of stem cells that had been growing since last week. The idea was that, by supplying unlimited amounts of stem cells, we could reactivate my body’s construction protocols and possibly repair the damage done to it. I wasn’t entirely sure, but I was more than willing to give it a shot, and since I wasn’t paying for it there was no real reason not to take a day out of my empty schedule and lie in a pool of my own DNA.
I bet it’s all slimy and gross
“Soooooo, where are we going?” Flick’s voice brought me back to reality. We were almost there, so I decided to tell him. “We’re heading to some rejuvenation clinic, for a relaxing day off. It was originally going to be just me going, but I managed to convince them to let you tag along.”
He gave me a confused look. “And you were headed there why exactly?” there was no point lying to him, but I just had to not get his hopes up, since this was very experimental. “The doctors are testing something. They’re going to get me to lie in a pool of my own stem cells in the hopes that my body’s construction program will restart and repair me. Of course, this place also does plenty of other stuff, so we’ll have a lot of time together, but don’t be too surprised if I get dragged away at various times.”
He smiled at me and rubbed my forearm with one paw. “If it has a chance at helping you, I really don’t mind. Just promise me we get to do something together for my birthday next week, okay?”
Oh shit, I forgot about that
“Sounds good. By the way, we’re here!”
Looking at the building, it was a sandy yellow concrete wave at odds with everything nearby, studded with seashells and bare of windows except for the flowing green glass roof that shone a single ray of sunlight down onto the front entrance. I stepped through the double doors, venlil in tow, and the gojid at the front desk handed us our cards without even looking up.
A pair of UN guards escorted me to the chamber I would be spending the next few hours in, and a tiny attendant took Flick to the hot springs. Once I was inside the room, a human scientist explained the whole experiment to me, and passed me an oxygen tube which I put into my mouth and strapped in place, before opening the steel lid on a circular vat filled with light pink goop.
Yep, gross and slimy alright
I took a deep breath, gave a thumbs up, and sank into the viscous pool. It was ice cold and thick like glue, but surprisingly comfortable as I found the seat and relaxed. Then, the lid came down, the lights went off, and the water level rose, submerging me in the dark, cold slime.
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Subject Memory Transcription: Flick, Venlil Civilian
Once Orvin was gone, a venlil barely up to my chest guided me through winding halls and into the main room. It was a beautiful garden bathed in filtered sunlight, with columns of steam rising from each of the fake volcanic baths. It looked like a magical place to spend an afternoon, but it was a sign on the other end of the room that really caught my eye.
Fur dye & styling
I skipped straight past all the warm water and other comforts, and straight into the salon. The female Krakotl at a desk clearly wasn’t expecting such a tall customer though, and visibly recoiled at the sight of me when I leaned on her desk and requested black dye.
She didn’t take long to recover though, since a paying customer was a paying customer. “Right this way sir, just take a seat in one of the chairs and we’ll set up the dye for you.” She ushered me to a cushioned reclining chair, and I positioned myself comfortably. She then fussed with a machine that was sitting just over my head, before giving it a slap with her wing and stepping back from me. “Just sit still, this will only take a minute to calibrate for you.”
There was a buzzing sound, and the chair under me vibrated as the machine above me traced lasers across my head and chest. I had no clue what was going on here, but it seemed like this was just a scanner of sorts to get measurements for something else. I sat still as what felt like robotic arms pressed against my back and neck, and closed my eyes as a line traced its way across my full face, then it dinged.
After that, I was escorted to what looked like a shower, or maybe one of those terran carwashes. I stood inside the machine while she put some code into it, then gave me a nod before flicking something that brought the machine to life. A screen blinked in front of me telling me to stand with legs apart and arms up, then to close my eyes and hold my breath. Once I did so, there was a whirring sound, and a cold mist sprayed across my whole body for what felt like an eternity.
Once the mist was gone, something brushed against me, and it felt like it was scrubbing my fur all over. It wasn’t an uncomfortable feeling, but it was not something I was used to either, so it was awkward as brushes went all over me and put what felt like some sort of oil into every inch of fur. It actually tickled a little, and took all of my energy just to resist the urge to move and swat at the brushes as they made their way across my head.
And then, it was over. Warm water poured over me and washed everything off, and I finally breathed a sigh of relief, before gasping for air as I realised I had empty lungs when I exhaled. I let my eyes adjust to the lights again, and took a good look at myself in the mirror on the chamber wall. It was certainly strange to see, but now I was jet black, and it suited me.
A tap on the glass brought me back to the real world, and I stepped out into the salon again. The Krakotl charged me for the dye, and gave me a tube of gel to seal my fur. I thanked her, and headed out to the pools to go for a relaxing soak while I waited for Orvin.
As I sank into the warm water, I could feel the bubbles massaging my sore muscles. I still had some bruises from the raid, but I didn’t want to worry him about them, so I hid my injuries. It still hurt, but at least this way he wouldn’t worry too much about me.
I just hope he doesn’t freak out over the makeover
I set a timer for an hour, and sank neck deep into the relaxing pool to take a short rest.
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Subject Memory Transcription: Orvin, Venlil Civilian
I was woken up by the sounds of metal clanging. It was still dark, but now the goop was warm and comfortable. I stretched out and almost yawned, only stopping myself when I felt the plastic bit hit one fang as a reminder of my oxygen tube.
As my limbs extended, I felt refreshed. It was an unfamiliar feeling as joints rolled smoothly, and tendons stretched perfectly across bone. I could feel muscles pulling with a renewed force, and my skin tingled slightly as it stretched and moved over my freshly repaired frame. It felt incredible as I tested each appendage, each claw, and every single one responded without any pain.
The hatch clanged open, and there were shouts as paws reached in to grab me, but I simply stood up and pulled myself from out of the gunk. Although it sucked and dragged, I still had enough strength to overcome it, and stepped out onto the grated floor of the off-white chamber. I blinked under the intense fluorescent lights, and stood still as I was blasted clean by hoses. The water steamed as it hit me, and I could feel myself cooling off under the tide of cool liquid.
“Alright, he’s stable, cut the water.” the human voice cut through the mental fog and kicked my brain into gear. “So, how are you feeling?”
I didn’t really know how to explain it, so I put it as best as I could into terms that ordinary people could understand. “Very refreshed, like I’ve just had a good sleep and woken up on a warm spring morning. I feel alive.”
Some of the venlil were taking notes furiously as another human circled me, taking assorted measurements. Then, he stood straight up in front of me, and opened my mouth to measure my jaws. Such a thing would be considered an invitation for a nasty bite if you did it to a normal Scion, but at least I was better than that. He then looked me dead in the eyes and asked me about my body temperature.
Scion temperature is extremely flexible. In fact, core temperature can range anywhere from 25 to 58 degrees, with surface temperature ranging from 3 to 87 degrees. This was because of our home planet having an extremely volatile environment. During the days, it would be well over 100°C, and nights would drop below -50°C due to the total lack of atmospheric insulation. This forced us to evolve fur to preserve internal temperatures, but also to be very flexible so we could hunt nights and days, as Scions ran on 26-hour cycles, while our home planet had 33 hour days, so we would often be out of sync with sunrise and sunset so as to catch all sorts of prey.
Of course, since I was submerged in that goop with all my cells working at full power, my body had naturally began heating up, so it was likely that they had stopped the experiment when I crossed the 50 degree mark, which explained the water blasting.
“Don’t worry about my temperature. As long as I don’t go over about 56°C core or 85°C surface, I’m perfectly fine.” I explained, as the venlil furiously crossed out and rewrote notes. The human nodded and guided me to another room where a set of machines were waiting for me. They were the same ones I had been tested on before being submerged, so I recognised their functions. The first one weighed me, the second one took a small tissue sample, the third one scanned for bone structure, the fourth for muscle-to-fat ratios, and the fifth for blood vessels and nerve pathways. Once they had the results of each, I was given a sandwich, a sugary drink, and sent back out into the day spa.
As I strolled through the halls, I almost tripped over a jet-black venlil, who seemed just a little shorter than Flick was, and quickly apologised to him. The venlil wrapped his arms around me though, taking me by surprise before it clicked in my brain.
“Hah, didn’t recognise you for a second there. What’s with the new colour?” I asked. He responded by twirling around like a showoff, letting his glossy coat glimmer under the white skylights illuminating the hallway. “I went for a bit of a makeover while you were busy. Do you like it?”
I loved it. He looked so fluffy now, with the freshly brushed fur puffed up from a hairdryer. I gently stroked his chest, letting myself enjoy the sleek, soft fluff, before remembering where I was and pulling back. “Sorry, yes, I love it. But why are you so small now?”
I already knew the answer, but I just had to hear it from someone else to really be sure about it. “I’m not small, you just got bigger. I’m guessing the experiment worked?” I nodded, and I could swear he blushed as I ruffled the fur on his head.
We spent the rest of the afternoon just relaxing in the warm water. It was certainly strange to not be wearing any clothes in public, but according to flick this was standard for most federation species. In fact, wearing clothes was mostly reserved for high-ranking titles or those who needed the extra warmth or protection. I wasn’t sure if I would ever get used to not having at least a shirt and some shorts on, but I could put up with it for a day.
I wonder how well that stuff did at restoring my eyes though? Because I really want him to see what they’re meant to look like.
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The session of the Armenian-Russian intergovernmental commission on military-technical cooperation has kicked off

"Opening the session and welcoming the participants, Deputy Minister of Defense Karen Brutyan emphasized the importance of strengthening and developing bilateral military-technical relations.
The Deputy Minister of Defense expressed hope that during the session there will be effective discussions related to the prospects of cooperation," reads the Facebook post.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107405.html

Speaker of Parliament meets Bundestag President in Germany, calls for sanctions against Azerbaijan

Speaker Simonyan said that Armenia attaches great importance to the implementation of the EU-Armenia Comprehensive and Enhanced Partnership Agreement (CEPA) and appreciates Germany’s support in this matter.
Speaking about the post-war situation and the need for urgent solutions to regional security issues, Speaker Simonyan said that the no less destructive developments happening in South Caucasus – around Armenia and the Armenian-populated Nagorno Karabakh – are overlooked by many.
At the request of Bas, Simonyan presented details on the crisis in Lachin Corridor, the danger facing the blockaded 120,000 Armenians of Artsakh and the multi-layered humanitarian problems.
Simonyan warned that Azerbaijan is seeking to forcefully displace the Armenian population before the eyes of the whole world by continuing its policy of ethnic cleansing and creating unbearable living conditions.
The Speaker of Parliament reminded that the United Nations’ highest court – the International Court of Justice (ICJ) – issued a binding ruling on February 22, ordering Azerbaijan to “take all steps at its disposal” to ensure unimpeded movement of persons, vehicles and cargo along the Lachin Corridor in both directions.
“We expect our German colleagues to take practical steps to ensure the immediate implementation of the court’s decision by Azerbaijan through the application of sanctions against Azerbaijan,” Simonyan said.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107385.html

Azerbaijani troops breached line of contact and advance into Nagorno Karabakh

In violation of the 9 November 2020 trilateral statement, the Azerbaijani forces breached the line of contact in the Shushi-Lisagor section on March 25 and secured some “positional advance”, the official Information Center of Nagorno Karabakh reported.
The Nagorno Karabakh authorities immediately notified the Russian peacekeepers on this yet another violation by Azerbaijan.
“The authorities expect the peacekeeping contingent to take practical steps for eliminating the consequences of this violation and preventing new violations,” the Information Center said in a statement.
“Azerbaijan’s false claim on the alleged use of the Stepanakert-Ghaybalishen-Lisagor mountain road for arms shipments is simply a pretext for their own renewed aggressive and destructive actions. They ambushed and killed three on-duty police officers and injured another on March 5 under this same pretext. The government of Artsakh has numerously said that in conditions of the ongoing blockade since December 12, the given mountain road is used for civilian, urgent connection between Stepanakert and four communities in Shushi region, which is carried out with [high-clearance] large vehicles, given the highly complex and hazardous terrain.
And the existence and normal functioning of the Defense Army doesn’t pose any danger for anyone, because it is envisaged exclusively for self-defense, taking into account the real and direct dangers and threats against the physical existence and safety of the people of Artsakh,” it added.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107223.html

Azerbaijan’s attempt to advance further into Artsakh territory foiled

On March 27, at around 9:00 am, units of the Azerbaijani armed forces tried to advance towards one of the heights adjacent to the Stepanakert-Lisagor road, Artsakh’s Defense Ministry informs.
The attempted advancement of the was prevented thanks to the actions of the soldiers of the Artsakh army on combat duty,
The incident was reported to the command of the peacekeeping troops of the Russian Federation.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/27/azerbaijans-attempt-to-advance-further-into-artsakh-territory-foiled/

Nagorno Karabakh reacts to Azerbaijani meeting offer

Below is the full statement issued by the foreign ministry of Nagorno Karabakh.
In connection with another proposal made by the Azerbaijani President's Office to hold a meeting between representatives of Azerbaijan and Artsakh in Baku in early April, we consider it necessary to reiterate the principled position of the authorities of the Republic of Artsakh regarding possible discussions with Azerbaijan, their modalities and objectives. The Republic of Artsakh has always advocated and continues to advocate for dialogue and a peaceful, negotiated solution to all existing problems. We have never refused contacts with the Azerbaijani side, which is evidenced by the meetings held between the representatives of Artsakh and Azerbaijan with the mediation of the command of the Russian peacekeeping forces deployed in Artsakh. The conditions proposed by the Azerbaijani side regarding the place and agenda of the meeting, as well as the context in which the proposal was made, indicate that the goal of the Azerbaijani authorities is not to have genuine discussion on existing problems, but to disrupt a possible dialogue or to impose their own political agenda through coercion, blockade, creating unbearable living conditions and the use of military force. In this regard, we consider it necessary to recall that three days ago, on 26 March, the Azerbaijani armed forces, in flagrant violation of the trilateral ceasefire statement of 9 November 2020, crossed the line of contact and moved further into the territory of the Republic of Artsakh, in the direction of the unpaved road Stepanakert-Lisagor. Moreover, on 27 March, the Azerbaijani armed forces made another attempt to take control of the mentioned road, which is the only possibility of emergency communication between the communities of Shushi region and other settlements of the republic under the conditions of blockade. We reaffirm our readiness, in line with the established practice of previous meetings, to meet with the representatives of Azerbaijan with the mediation and at the deployment site of the command of the Russian Peacekeeping Contingent in Artsakh to discuss issues of ensuring the normal life activity of the people of Artsakh and the proper implementation by the parties of their obligations, in particular, those related to the unimpeded functioning of the Lachin Corridor. In this context, we consider the reopening of the only road connecting Artsakh to Armenia through the Lachin Corridor and addressing the humanitarian, infrastructural and other urgent issues caused by the blockade to be a priority The authorities of Artsakh are also open to discussing other issues, which would not be aimed at imposing ready-made solutions on the part of Azerbaijan, but the search of mutually acceptable solutions to stabilise the situation and prevent further escalation of tension. We emphasize once again that the continued blocking of the Lachin Corridor and aggravation of the humanitarian crisis in Artsakh are unacceptable and in no way contribute to creating an environment conducive to dialogue. We are convinced that only proper implementation by Azerbaijan of its international obligations, both under the Trilateral Statement of 9 November 2020 and the order of the International Court of Justice of 22 February 2023, may testify to Azerbaijan's willingness and interest to address issues through dialogue and negotiations without resorting to coercion and the use of force. We reiterate the inadmissibility of politicisation of dialogue on technical and humanitarian issues and emphasise that the political issues of the Azerbaijan-Karabakh conflict settlement must be discussed in an agreed and internationally established negotiation format, based on the equal rights of the parties and the existence of solid international guarantees for the implementation by the parties of their obligations.”
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107369.html

Charles Michel conducts separate telephone calls with Armenian and Azerbaijani leaders

On 25 March, European Council President Charles Michel had separate bilateral telephone conversations with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan.
Following his last meetings with both leaders in Munich on 16-17 February 2023, President Michel raised with them various topics discussed in the Brussels process between their first trilateral meeting on 14 December 2021 and their fourth meeting on 31 August 2022.
Michel reaffirmed the EU’s strong commitment to helping the sides reach a long-awaited normalisation and sustainable peace and expressed concerns about the continuous crisis around the Lachin corridor, the recent casualties and sharp increase in tensions on the ground as well as accompanying negative rhetoric.
The EU top official urged his counterparts to look for compromise solutions and to refrain from any actions that could lead to risks of escalation.
In both calls, the leaders agreed to stay in close contact.
https://euneighbourseast.eu/news/latest-news/charles-michel-conducts-separate-telephone-calls-with-armenian-and-azerbaijani-leaders/

Armenia’s Constitutional Court greenlights ratification of Rome Statute

The High Court ruled today that the Stature corresponds to the Constitution of the Republic of Armenia.
The decision paves the way for Armenia to join the International Criminal Court.
Although Armenia signed the Rome Statute in 1999, in 2004, the Armenian Constitutional Court ruled that the Statute was partially incompatible with the Armenian constitution and could not be ratified.
The ICC is the world’s first permanent international court to prosecute war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide. Central to the Court’s mandate is the principle of complementarity, which holds that the Court will only intervene if national legal systems are unwilling or unable to investigate and prosecute perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes.
The Armenian Government greenlighted the ratification of the Statue at a sitting of December 29, 2022.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/24/armenias-constitutional-court-greenlights-ratification-of-rome-statute/

Opposition nominates candidate for Ombudsman

The two opposition caucuses in the Armenian parliament have nominated their candidate for Human Rights Defender (Ombudsman), a position that has been vacant since the resignation of Kristinne Grigoryan in January.
The opposition’s candidate is Edgar Ghazaryan, a former Armenian Ambassador to Poland and former Chief of Staff of the Constitutional Court, the chair of the human rights and public affairs committee Taguhi Tovmasyan said in a statement.
Ghazaryan is a vocal critic of the incumbent government.
The ruling Civil Contract faction earlier announced that its candidate for the position is Anahit Manasyan, the Deputy Prosecutor General of Armenia. Manasyan hasn’t been officially nominated yet.
Candidates must pass a confirmation vote in parliament to be installed as Ombudsman.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107345.html

United States expresses concern over Azerbaijani ‘military movements’

“Assistant Secretary Karen Donfried spoke with Foreign Minister Bayramov this morning and expressed concern over Azerbaijani military movements,” State Department spokesperson Vedant Patel said when asked to give updates from the situation on the ground regarding Armenia-Azerbaijan.
“She emphasized the U.S.’s commitment to Armenia-Azerbaijan peace negotiations. As the Secretary has also spoken about this quite repeatedly, direct dialogue is key to resolving this issue and reaching a lasting peace. There is not a military solution to this conflict. We’ll continue to facilitate discussions between Armenia and Azerbaijan bilaterally as well as with partners, and as well as throughout multilateral organizations as well,” Patel added.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107342.html

Khandanyan presents situation resulted by the blockade of Lachin Corridor to the delegation of Czech Foreign Ministry

According to him, now Armenia is in the continuous processes of democratic reforms and is consistent to the succeeded experience of the Czech Republic.
The Committee Chair noted that this year the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and the Czech Republic. According to him, during the past three decades, inter-state warm relations were succeeded to develop and at present, Armenia is ready to deepen the cooperation in all possible spheres of mutual interest with the Czech Republic.
As Sargis Khandanyan observed, the inter-parliamentary cooperation is rather active. He expressed conviction that the mutual interests will promote the strengthening of cooperation between the parliaments of two countries.
Armenia highlights the effective cooperation with the Czech Republic on the bilateral, as well as multilateral platforms, in the EU and multilateral formats, including the UN, the OSCE, the Council of Europe and other formats.
Jaroslav Kurfürst thanked Sargis Khandanyan for warm reception and words. He also emphasized the deepening of cooperation between the two countries, noting that on the occasion of the establishment of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations, a number of events and mutual visits are scheduled.
According to the Director General for European Issues of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, the cooperation in parliamentary format has an important role for enriching the agenda of inter-state relations and deepening of the existing friendly ties.
The Committee Chair presented the situation in Armenia and in Nagorno Karabakh, spoke about the illegal blockade of the Lachin Corridor, underlining that as a consequence of closing of the only road connecting with the outside world, 120.000 residents of Nagorno Karabakh is in full blockade.
Issues of regional security were also discussed.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107331.html

Armenian Prime Minister holds meeting with new Georgian Ambassador

PM Pashinyan congratulated Ambassador Sharvashidze on taking office and expressed confidence that his activities will boost the development of the Armenian-Georgian relationship, the Prime Minister’s Office said in a readout.
The Prime Minister praised the Armenia-Georgia cooperation course and attached importance to further expanding the economic ties and initiatives aimed at utilizing untapped potential.
Ambassador Sharvashidze vowed to make maximum efforts to strengthen the Armenian-Georgian ties.
PM Pashinyan and Ambassador Sharvashidze exchanged views around prospects of cooperation and discussed the trade-economic agenda. In this context they attached importance to active contacts and mutual-visits between business circles and their involvement in investment programs.
The importance of the signing of the agreement on introducing simplified visa-free travel requirements between Armenia and Georgia was stressed in terms of strengthening humanitarian ties.
Both sides attached importance to regional stability and peace.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107141.html

Canada calls on Azerbaijan to release Armenian POWs, reopen Lachin Corridor

“I share the concerns of Armenian Canadians and Armenians in Nagorno Karabakh. We continue to call on the Azerbaijani authorities to reopen the Lachin Corridor. We need to prevent the worsening of the humanitarian crisis. Canada supports the 2020 ceasefire agreement, including the return of Armenian prisoners of war. It is important that the ceasefire – which is supported by the EU monitoring group – be respected,” Mélanie Joly said in response to MP Jean Yip, who noted that it’s already been over 100 days that the Lachin Corridor is blocked and that many Armenians in Canada are worried over the tensions between Armenia and Azerbaijan and that the conflict in Nagorno Karabakh could soon escalate. She asked on the Canadian government’s position and efforts in this matter.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107367.html

Armenian Ambassador to UN debunks Azeri accusations on “child soldiers”, letter published as official UNSC, GA document

Margaryan wrote the letter with reference to the groundless, repetitive and false accusations by Azerbaijan which have already been repudiated on several occasions.
Read the full thing in the link, it's a long letter
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107193.html

Armenian Defense Minister calls for continuous enhancement of combat readiness given regional situation

The three-day assembly will feature reports, lectures and exhibition trainings, the defense ministry said in a statement.
Defense Minister Suren Papikyan welcomed the participants of the event at the Defense Ministry headquarters on March 28.
Speaking about the regional military-political situation and the military’s objectives in this context, the minister attached importance to continuous enhancement of the combat readiness of troops, implementation of frontline re-equipment and reinforcement works, and also discussed the ongoing reforms in the military.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107357.html

Due to the regional military-political situation, the Minister of Defense emphasized the increase of combat capability in the troops

According to the preparation plan for the academic year of 2023, on March 28, the three-day operational meetings held with the leadership of the RA Armed Forces started in the administrative complex of the Ministry of Defense.
Defense Minister Suren Papikyan welcomed the participants on the first day of the meeting. Touching upon the regional military-political situation and the problems faced by the armed forces in that context, the minister emphasized the continuous increase in combat capability of the troops, the implementation of frontline furnishing and fortification works, and also referred to the reforms launched in the armed forces.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1107357.html

Greek community of Armenia celebrates independence day

The Pontic Greek community of Yerevan organized a Greek national holiday celebration in the Educational-Cultural Center of National Minorities of the Prime Minister’s Office on March 26.
Greece celebrates Independence Day on March 25.
Colonel Gerasimos Avlonitis, the Defense Attache of the Embassy of Greece in Armenia, attended the event.
Eduard Polatov, the head of the Patrida Greek community of Armenia also delivered remarks
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107274.html

Armenian military builds new base intended for women recruits

Minister of Defense Suren Papikyan visited on March 25 a military base which will house the women’s regiment and a boot camp for women troops.
Papikyan surveyed the buildings and issued concrete instructions regarding the deadlines of the construction.
The Armenian military plans to introduce a new option of voluntary military service for women.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107216.html

Armenian patriarchate calls on Israeli authorities to take serious measures following attack on St. Mary's Church

Below is the full communiqué released by the chancellery.
“The Armenian Patriarchate of Jerusalem strongly condemns the attack on the St. Mary’s Church of Gethsemane, which according to the Status Quo of the Holy Places is under the joint control of the Armenian and Greek Orthodox Churches.
Though it was the first attack on St. Mary since the beginning of this year, the Christian Holy Shrines have been in constant state of both physical and emotional duress by rogue attackers. Had these previous attacks on the Christian Holy Places been swiftly condemned by the local authorities leading to the perpetrators’ punishment to the full extent of the law, there would not be an influx of new attacks on the churches and monasteries of these Christian communities.
Religious intolerance and hate crimes in all their forms and perpetrations will never allow the conditions of peaceful co-existence to manifest. In fact, their presence – especially when gone unchecked by prevailing authorities – will encourage other hateful crimes and intolerances to take place. These actions and their lack of condemnation lead to unsafe conditions for these communities and establishes a lack of trust between worshipers, tourists, and residents with the local authorities.
Therefore, we call upon the Israeli Government and the Police to take serious measures to prevent such attacks and to protect both the Christian Holy sites and their daily worshipers from further vandalism and suchlike attacks.”
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1106888.html

Nagorno Karabakh arrests two Stepanakert residents on suspicion of espionage

In a statement released Saturday, the Nagorno Karabakh Investigative Committee said “two residents of Stepanakert city established contact with agents of the Azerbaijani intelligence agencies” and regularly relayed classified information, including top secret data, in exchange for money.
Authorities said the suspects conveyed information on Nagorno Karabakh’s economy, the security of citizens, the social programs in response to the blockade, the changes happening in the composition of the government, the presidential orders and other information relating to the population - actions that constitute “high treason.”
The law enforcement agency did not mention how the suspects gained access to top secret information.
Both suspects are charged with high treason and are being held in custody.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107207.html

Russia, Belarus barred from upcoming Yerevan European Weightlifting Championships 2023 by EWF

The men’s and women’s teams of Russia and Belarus were not included in the final entry list of nations by the EWF.
The EWF European Weightlifting Championships 2023 are scheduled to take place 15-23 April in Yerevan, Armenia.
In 2022, the EWF indefinitely banned Russian and Belarusian athletes from participating in its events. Russia and Belarus nonetheless submitted bids to participate in the Yerevan championships but the EWF turned them down.
https://armenpress.am/eng/news/1107020.html

As a result of the Lernakert excavations, burials attributed to the phase of transition from the middle bronze to the late bronze were discovered.

Burials attributed to the phase of transition from the Middle Bronze to the Late Bronze Age (2nd half of the 16th century - 1st half of the 15th century BC) were opened, in which both the Middle Bronze Age Red Berd and the Late Bronze Age objects were found. These tombs of the transitional phase (Middle Bronze to Late Bronze) have a retaining wall-cromlech with a diameter of 5-15 meters. The cells are underground, oriented north-south. In the burials attributed to different phases of the Late Bronze Age, the remains were placed in the ways of burial and reburial. Accompanying possessions in these tombs are shells, rarely beads. The tombs belonging to the early Iron Age have retaining wall-cromlechs (8-20 m square), low mounds made of small stones and east-west facing slab cells. Group burials were documented in the Lower Iron Age tombs. It was discovered
On the eastern slope of the hill of the Iron Age fortress Vari Berd, a "wheel-shaped" structure consisting of other adjacent circular structures was confirmed by aerial photography. "Wheel" structures are famous in Armenia in the foothills of Aragats, where they are found in the context of monuments called "desert kites". Remains of the "Spinal" structure were also documented in the highest ancient site of Aragats Mountain, Karmir Sar, where excavations revealed a collection of dragon stone carvings in their original environment. The example of Lernakert is special in that it is documented for the first time in the context of the castle. However, the latter's function is not yet clear.
The Lernakert excavations are important in terms of the study of the Early Bronze Age society. In particular, the research of the ancient DNA of Lernakert has received a wide response, which shows that the skeletons discovered in burials made at the same time, but in different tomb groups, had no family ties. It proves that different superstitions lived in the communities.
The study of the dynamics of changes in the early Bronze Age landscape of Lernakert makes it possible to follow the formation and construction processes of the defense system with the data of two fortresses in one complex. Due to the combination of data from Lernakert burial site with data from Artik, Harichi, Horom, Mastara, Talin and Lchashen, the processes of formation of complex societies in the Late Bronze Age can be outlined. Groups of privileged people, soldiers, religious servants and merchants are noted in castles and burial grounds.
Articles on the results of the excavations were published in Armenian and foreign periodicals, reported both at local and foreign scientific conferences.
The Lernakert archaeological expedition was co-financed by the Shirak Armenological Research Center of the NAS of RA, the Institute of Archeology and Ethnography of the NAS of RA, the State Committee of Science and the National Association for Armenological Research and Studies (NAASR) within the framework of the theme "Trends of the Bronze Age landscape transformation of the northwestern slopes of Aragats Mountain".
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1107376.html

The President of the Republic of Armenia Vahagn Khachaturyan received the Chairman of the Constitutional Court Arman Dilanyan.

"I think the most important function of the Constitutional Court and the Presidency is to be able to monitor how well the Constitution works and is preserved in the Republic of Armenia. I would like to continue our conversation on this topic so that in the future we can decide where we have shortcomings, where we can make it more efficient and most importantly, do it together. I would also like to know your opinion in that regard," said Vahagn Khachaturyan.
Expressing his gratitude for the reception, Arman Dilanyan emphasized that the primary duty of the president is to follow the protection of the Constitution.
"In my opinion, it is the most important function of the presidential institution according to our Constitution. In other words, when we read the Constitution, the very first article is about the institution of the president, according to which the president follows the observance of the Constitution. It is not declaratory, it implies very specific powers. "It is the institution of the president that can fully highlight the national problems, analyzing these problems from an objective point of view and presenting them to the Constitutional Court as well," said the President of the Supreme Court.
During the meeting, Arman Dilanyan presented to the President of the Republic the ongoing reforms in the Constitutional Court and the programs of upcoming events. During the conversation, it was emphasized on both sides that the close cooperation of the Presidential Institute and the High Court and the harmony of the agendas of the two constitutional bodies guarantee the normal and uninterrupted functioning of the state bodies in the country.
During the conversation, reference was made to raising awareness about the activities of the Constitutional Court in social, educational and other spheres, raising awareness among citizens about the functions of the Constitutional Court.
A number of issues related to the training and training of personnel in the judicial system, the process and principles of recruitment were also discussed.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1107322.html

SC Secretary Armen Grigoryan had working meetings in Tallinn

The Secretary of the Security Council presented the security threats of Armenia to his colleagues, in particular, the possible escalation by Azerbaijan towards Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh.
The parties emphasized the security cooperation between Armenia and Estonia, as well as the processes of strengthening democracy in Armenia.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1107411.html

With the efforts of the Pan-Armenian Youth Football Association, 6 young football players from different countries will come to Armenia

The events are held in cooperation with the Football Federation of Armenia.
During the evening, world champion Yuri Dzhorkaef, Henrikh Mkhitaryan, FFA president Armen Melikbekyan sent video messages. National team football player Yura Movsisyan, SADA Systems president Hovig Safoyan, Arpinet LLC executive director Armen Muradyan, entrepreneurs, coaches who contributed to the development of Armenian football, football players, football fans took part in the event.
During his short visit to the USA, Hakob Arshakyan also met with the members of The Armenian Society of fellows council, scientists and entrepreneurs, and discussed the prospects of scientific and technological development of Armenia.
Meetings were also held with the head of the Los Angeles City Council, Paul Krekorian, community representatives, and a wide range of issues of bilateral interest were discussed.
https://armenpress.am/arm/news/1107364.html

Ruling Civil Contract faction nominates Anahit Manasyan for Human Rights Defender

The post of the Human Rights Defender has been vacant since Kristinne Grigoryan resigned in late January.
Everyone having attained the age of 25, enjoying high authority within the public, having higher education, having been a citizen of solely the Republic of Armenia for the preceding four years, permanently residing in the Republic of Armenia for the preceding four years, and having the right of suffrage, as well as having command of the Armenian language may be elected to the office of the Defender.
According to law, the Defender shall be elected by the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, upon recommendation of the competent standing committee of the National Assembly of the Republic of Armenia, by at least three fifths of votes of the total number of the members of the Parliament, for a term of six years.
The Defender shall assume office immediately after having been elected by the National Assembly by taking an oath.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/28/ruling-civil-contract-faction-nominates-anahit-manasyan-for-human-rights-defende

Armenian FM discusses regional developments with the Ambassador of Spain

During the meeting the interlocutors exchanged views on topics related to regional security and stability. Minister Mirzoyan touched upon Azerbaijan’s actions, including the recent aggressions againts the Republic of Armenia and Nagorno-Karabakh, the rhetoric at the highest level and the illegal blockade of the Lachin corridor by Azerbaijan, emphasizing that such actions of Azerbaijan do not contribute to Armenia’s efforts to establish lasting peace in the region. Ararat Mirzoyan stressed the importance of lifting the blockade of the Lachin corridor as well as the importance of sending an international fact-finding mission to the corridor.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/28/armenian-fm-discusses-regional-developments-with-the-ambassador-of-spain/

Armenia, Cyprus play a 2-2 draw in a friendly: Grant-Leon Ranos scores a brace

https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/28/armenia-cyprus-play-a-2-2-draw-in-a-friendly-grant-leon-ranos-scores-a-brace/

Armenia loses 1 - 2 against turkey in Euro Qualifier

https://www.espn.com/soccematch/_/gameId/655264

Dr Sophie Scamps raises Artsakh blockade in Australian Federal Parliament

Dr Scamps said, “A couple of weeks ago, I was treated to a surprise visit in my electorate office by students of the AGBU Alexander Primary School in Duffys Forest in my electorate of Mackellar. AGBU is an independent, co-educational, bilingual English and Armenian Christian school. While I’m absolutely delighted to have received a visit from these year 5 and 6 students, they came with a very serious message. The students presented me with a letter they had written, asking me to address the Australian parliament on a very important matter: the ongoing blockade of the Lachin corridor in Artsakh since 12 December 2022, as part of the ongoing conflict between Azerbaijan and Armenia.”
“The Lachin corridor is a road that connects the Republic of Artsakh to the Republic of Armenia. The letter went on to explain how the supply of food and medicine is running dangerously low as a result of the blockade, and gas supply between Armenia and Artsakh has been cut off.”
“There is a vibrant Armenian community in my electorate of Mackellar, and I’ve had many representations from those people in addition to the schoolchildren. On their behalf, I have made representations to Foreign Minister Wong’s office about this ongoing crisis and met with foreign department specialists to discuss the matter. The crisis affecting the people of Artsakh must not be forgotten or overlooked while the world is distracted by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.”
ANC-AU Executive Director Michael Kolokossian welcomed the advocacy efforts undertaken by the Year 5 and Year 6 students of AGBU Alexander Primary School.
“During this difficult time, every Armenian-Australian must be advocating for an end to this illegal blockade. It is heartening to see the youngest members of our community play a key role in standing up for their homeland.”
“We thank Dr Scamps for engaging with the Armenian-Australian community and bringing this issue to the floor of parliament. Her principled stance is greatly appreciated as we work to end this blockade,” added Kolokossian.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/28/dr-sophie-scamps-raises-artsakh-blockade-in-australian-federal-parliament/

Farmers in Artsakh targeted by Azerbaijani forces

The report states that at 11:30 a.m. on March 27, Alyosha Zakaryan, the chief specialist of the Martakert region of the Artsakh Republic’s State Inspections Management Committee, reported to the regional police department that March 26, the enemy targeted them in the administrative area of Martakert city. about firing erratically.
The police officers found out that on the same day around 11:30 a.m., while doing agricultural work in the pomegranate orchard belonging to the State Inspections Management Committee in the administrative area of Martakert city, Azerbaijani combat positions fired irregular shots from rifle weapons at the workers.
No one was hurt. Agricultural work was stopped. The police passed the information on to the Russian peacekeeping troops.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/27/farmers-in-artsakh-targeted-by-azerbaijani-forces-3/

Armenia participates in International Agroindustrial Food Fair in Cuba

Armenia showcases agricultural products, brandy and wines at the event.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/24/armenia-participates-in-international-agroindustrial-food-fair-in-cuba/

Sarsang water levels dropping at alarming rate amid blockade, Artsakh authorities say

Since January 9 Azerbaijan has been barring Nagorno Karabakh authorities from accessing and repairing the damaged power transmission line which supplies Nagorno Karabakh with electricity from Armenia.
“The only source of electricity we have now is the Sarsang Reservoir,” Ararat Khachatryan, the acting chairman of the Water Committee of Artsakh said.
“The water levels are over eight meters lower compared to the same period last year. Today the inflow is 4 cumecs, which is a very low indicator. The Tartar flow can reach up to thirty, forty or fifty cumecs. The consumption is a lot higher now. When water levels are high, less water is actually consumed for obtaining electricity, but when the water levels drop, pressure also drops and it takes more water to get the same amount of electricity,” Khachatryan explained.
“Since January 9, Azerbaijan has been impeding and barring us from carrying out repair works in the territory under its control where the high-voltage electricity transmission line supplying Artsakh from Armenia passes. Before the blockade, especially in winters, when the electricity supplied from Armenia was insufficient, we were using the Sarsang Reservoir. After the war we are left with only five small HPPs in Artsakh, which work only under 20% capacity,” Khachatryan said, warning that if the power line doesn’t get fixed soon there will be insufficient water levels in Sarsang.
Artsakh President Arayik Harutyunyan earlier warned that the significant decrease of water resources in Sarsang Reservoir (which had a capacity of 600,000,000 cubic meters) will lead to a serious crisis in spring and summer first of all for the Azerbaijani farmers themselves because the water resources won’t be sufficient enough for irrigating the 96,000 hectares in Azerbaijan’s Tartar, Aghdam, Bardi, Goranboy, Yevlakh and Akhjabad regions. The Artsakh authorities said that the residents of these regions should be aware that they won’t have irrigation water and will subsequently lose income and harvest thanks to their own authorities and the self-proclaimed “eco-activists”.
https://en.armradio.am/2023/03/17/sarsang-water-levels-dropping-at-alarming-rate-amid-blockade-artsakh-authorities-say/

Artsakh's human rights defender had meetings in the Uruguayan parliament

Gegham Stepanyan thanked the members of the friendship group and the forum for the efforts invested in protecting the interests of Armenia and Artsakh, as well as raising awareness of the current situation in Artsakh.
During the discussions, reference was made to the policy of ethnic hatred conducted by Azerbaijan against the people of Artsakh and the works being carried out to counteract it, as well as the issues related to the involvement and expected support of the international community in the direction of lifting the ongoing blockade. Further steps of cooperation in the specified directions were discussed.
link

Japanese sakura flowers will blossom in Yerevan (for some reason)

The Japanese Embassy in Armenia on Tuesday approved the funding program for the renovation of a building where the “Khikari” Armenian-Japanese Cultural Center will function. The $120,000 grant program is called “Khikari Center Improvement Project.”
“The preparation for the project took three years, but I am confident that nice and good dreams always come true if you continue to wait and believe,” she noted.
Piliposyan also extended her thanks to all supporters, which include the Armenian MFA, Ministry of Culture, Government-Affiliated Charitable Project Coordination Commission and, of course, Japan.
The aforesaid building will be allocated for fifteen years and free of charge. The Center also will have a small Japanese style garden. Moreover, they already have promised to bring Japanese sakura (cherry blossom) flower seedlings to Armenian capital city Yerevan.
The renovation is scheduled to be completed by the year’s end.
https://news.am/eng/news/146489.html

Illegal building being done next to this building in Yerevan

link

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What do you think are the best/worst letters using the NATO phonetic alphabet as far as clarity and intelligibility are concerned, especially in a contest? It was something I considered when I chose my callsign but I’m finding that my second to last letter “Yankee” is hard to say quickly and doesn’t get copied correctly a large percentage of the time. I think a letter like “Kilo” is one of the best, it’s short and has a good abrupt beginning that cuts through the noise and isn’t easily confused for anything else.
It’s easy enough for me to get a second callsign for contesting, what are your favourite and least favourite letters?

Hi, I’m hoping for some help identifying the origins of this Vesta case. I bought it for my dad for Christmas (he loves elephants), so even if it’s complete trash it’s still decorative and much appreciated by my pa. The hallmarks appear to be in the Cyrillic alphabet - which I don’t read. And, moreover, one letter looks more like a runic ”O” (depending on which was up you read the letters). All I was told was that it’s 1920s and from Russia. Also a little confused by the white colour of the metal - sort of looks like it’s made of pure magnesium! Any input from those who are far better versed in these matters would be much appreciated. Thanks for taking the time to read this. Please see separate post with pictures (it won’t let me combine pictures and text - sorry! First post…)

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Journal of Camille Lambert - April 14th (Part 4)
​
The screams of monsters who unfortunately were no longer beyond my comprehension echoed through the eternal night. I looked up to see one of the nearby warped buildings buckling, as the familiar shape of the Crab Nightwalker hefted its weight on top of it.
​
It looked considerably different from when I’d last seen it in Puriysk. It's now ill-fitting shell was adorned by glowing flowers, with red vines clinging to it like a sickness and hanging off of it like tendrils. In those tendrils, I could see screaming men, being pulled toward its maw. Pulsating flesh oozed out of the Crab's armor, as if it had overstuffed itself to the point where that armor could no longer contain it.
​
I watched as the Crab began to pry into the building it stood on, and as its tendrils probed through the windows, dragging out screaming men who shot hopelessly at it as if they stood any chance of killing it.
​
In the distance, I could see the beginnings of an orange glow as somewhere in Parsons a fire spread… not started by Nina this time. Progress? Looking down toward the street, past the out of place hardware store that Calhoun had escaped into, I could see various Nightwalkers fleeing for their lives, as their former brethren, newly marked by the Rosen Prince pursued them.
​
It was like something out of a nightmare… impossible horror after impossible horror, melded together and left to tear at each other's throats. The hellish monsters I’d known all my life versus the oppressive militia who I’d long since learned to fear, while a floral parasite ran rampant through the streets, consuming them all. The fact that the backdrop to this madness was now the twisted result of intersecting one town on top of another seemed trivial compared to the insanity that dominated the streets.
​
I turned, about to descend the stairs of the clock tower to throw myself back into the chaos when from the corner of my eye, I noticed Dom scrambling up the makeshift stairwell that Calhoun had formed out of the collapsed roof of the church. He had Gretchen slung over his shoulder, and Nina was coming up behind him. She hastily swapped out the magazine in her shotgun for a new one, before looking down frantically.
​
I ran to the far side of the tower to help Dom and Gretchen up through the broken clock face. She went first, followed by him.
“What’s going on down there?” I asked.
“Good news, the Bat thing is dead. Bad news, the Rosen Prince got it.” Dom said, reaching back to pull Nina up behind him.
​
Almost on cue, I heard yet another demonic screech from the hole in the church roof behind us and I saw another familiar face clawing its way up Calhoun’s makeshift stairwell.
​
For the most part, it looked like the same Horned Nightwalker we saw in Calhoun’s courtyard although now I could see the glowing flowers of the Rosen Prince adorning its arms and shoulders. Its hands had changed too, with jutting blades now protruding from its wrist. Gretchen looked back at the Horned Nightwalker with a grimace, before giving a sweeping motion with her hand. As the Nightwalker reached the top of the makeshift stairwell, I saw it buckle, then collapse, sending the creature crashing back down to the ground floor along with a significant portion of the roof. I hoped that might keep it down for a while longer.
“Holy fucking shit, what the hell happened here?” Nina cried, looking out over Parsons.
​
“The mist was already moving the town, I had to make do,” I said. “Don’t ask me how I did it, I don’t know! I don’t think any of the locals came through, though.”
Nina looked back at me, before shaking her head in exasperation.
“Well I hope to fuck they didn’t,” She said. “Cuz I do not have any kind of rescue plan.”
“What about Calhoun?” Dom asked.
“Wounded and on the run,” I said.
​
“Well let’s track his ass down and get the fuck out of here,” Nina said. “How badly did you hurt him?”
“I shot him twice in the stomach and he fell out the window,” I said and pointed to the broken clock face. Nina looked at it again, before looking straight down.
“Christ… and he survived that?” She asked.
“Evidently… since this pocket reality is still holding together,” Gretchen said. She rubbed at the back of her neck, wincing in pain as she did.
​
“How bad is it?” I asked.
“I’ll survive,” She said, “But let us deal with Calhoun first. If he is wise, he will recognize the futility of this engagement and seek to return to the Eldest. We cannot permit that to happen. Then he may be lost to us.”
​
I stared out of the clock tower again, looking toward Calhoun’s House a short distance away.
“Can you get there alright?” I asked.
“I’ll manage,” She assured me, although before we could decide how to proceed, another inhuman scream echoed from the Church below.
​
Nina screamed back at it in a condescending tone, then added: “Shut it, you vegetable fuck! We’re having a conversation!” As if in response to that, several crimson vines latched onto the sides of the hole in the roof, slithering outward to grab purchase onto the sides, before beginning to pull something up.
Gretchen sighed, rubbing at her temples and shaking her head.
“Why are you the way that you are?” Was all she asked.
​
A massive claw appeared on the edge of the roof, as the Horned Nightwalker… or at least what it had become, attempted to climb its way out. Its hands had already changed into sickle like claws that reminded me of the Horselike Nightwalker I’d seen in Puriysk. Several spider like legs rose out of the hole in the roof, lifting the new creature out of the ruined church and onto the roof as it dragged itself toward us.
​
“Such a bounty laid out before me!” The voice of the Rosen Prince snarled, “And I have you to thank, Gretchen Di Cesare! Yet, my hunger is not yet sated… for you have not yet joined with me, child!”
​
Nina readied her shotgun, firing into the new creature's face. Batlike wings unfurled from its back, closing around its body and taking the brunt of the fire.
“I grow ever stronger, from the wonderful creatures I have dined on. They offer me little in knowledge, but much in strength!”
​
As The Rosen Prince advanced on us, I noticed something else from the corner of my eye. The Crab Nightwalker was drawing closer to us as well. I know that Gretchen saw it too. Nina stopped shooting while shimmering blossoms with pale yellow eyes inside opened on the Prince’s wings as the fires quickly died down.
​
“Ah… ironic, is it not? To find you now in the same position you were in when you invoked me here. Cornered… Helpless... Desperate…”
​
Gritting her teeth, Gretchen gently pushed Nina aside, staring down the coming Prince.
“You presume far too much, my old friend…” She panted, before looking at us. “Grab something, hold it tight, and pray to whatever God may be listening.”
​
With a wave of her hand, Gretchen brought down more of the roof beneath the Rosen Prince. It did little to slow it down, but it did enough. Gretchen turned, grabbing the metal frame of the turret clock and letting out a cry of exertion.
​
I felt the ground move beneath us again, although this time it wasn’t something in the tower she was moving.
​
It was the tower itself.
​
In one swift motion, the clock tower had detached from the rest of the church and launched itself toward an adjacent building. The lower part of it lodged itself into the roof of that other building completely, causing part of it to crumble. Somehow though, the clocktower remained intact… for the most part. I imagined that had to be thanks to Gretchen.
​
“What the fuck are you trying to do?!” Nina cried, looking over at Gretchen with a new fear of God in her eyes.
“You told me to learn…” Gretchen hissed, “I’m learning…”
​
She strained again, looking back as the Rosen Prince spread his wings to take flight. Nina, Dom, and I grabbed hold of the frame of the turret clock since it seemed like the sturdiest thing to grab as Gretchen moved the tower again, launching it into another building, this one closer to Calhoun’s house.
​
The impact was too much for me this time. I lost my grip and was thrown to the ground, rolling toward one of the broken clock faces.
“Cam?” Nina called, before letting go of the clock to dive after me. She wasn’t fast enough.
​
The wind rushed past me as I fell out of the window, landing hard on the roof of the building below. I saw Nina looking down at me from above, before leaping down after me. She landed with a little more grace, and unevenly stumbled to my side, hastily putting a hand on my shoulder.
“You alright?” She asked.
​
I gave a half nod since despite being in considerable pain I was pretty sure I hadn’t broken anything.
“CAM!” I heard Dom cry, and saw him going to the window next. For a moment, I was sure he was about to jump down too, although Nina waved an arm to stop him.
“Don’t!” She said, “Stay with Gretchen! Get to the house, and kill that one eyed motherfucker if you see him! We’ll catch up!”
​
Dom hesitated, before looking to see that the Rosen Prince had launched himself onto the last building we’d been on. The Crab Nightwalker was almost on top of him now, and I watched as the two pressed together, their features sliding together as they formed into something new. Pieces of the crab's armor slid onto that twisted amalgamation of bodies, partially reinforcing its spiderlike legs. The batlike wings on its back grew larger to accommodate the new size of this creature, then split to form new wings. It morphed and changed, adapting to the prey it now hunted, becoming something draconic, arachnid, equine, humanoid, and floral all in one unholy mixture. Such a thing should not have ever been… and yet it was and when the change was complete, what was left was an armored creature three times taller than a man with several chitinous horse legs, segmented like a crab or a spiders protruding from its bulbous lower body. It had a hunched-over torso like a human’s, with thick arms ending in chitinous claws and a head that split open like a flower, with gnashing teeth in its center and antlers adorning its shoulders like pauldrons.
​
Of all the horrors I had seen in this world… this was by far the worst.
​
The flesh and armor it did not take from the Crab Nightwalker slunk away, pulsating and trying to reform into something new, while the body the Rosen Prince had made for himself spread its six draconic wings to give chase to Gretchen.
​
The tower moved again, launching itself toward another building and Nina grabbed my hand, pulling me toward the hole in the roof of the building we were on that the tower had left. I had just enough time to see the Rosen Prince take flight in pursuit of the tower before we made it inside the building.
​
After all the noise out there, the silence inside was almost jarring… and if I wasn’t absolutely terrified by the fucking flower dragon made out of every horrible thing that had tried to kill me in the past few days chasing after my friend, I might have even found it calming.
​
The building we were in looked as if it’d once been somebody's apartment. Nina looked around for a bit, before finding a door leading out into a hall.
“Come on, we should hurry,” She said, gesturing for me to follow her. I was certain that she had no idea where she was going, but to be fair I didn’t either so I followed her.
“Do all of your jobs go this badly?” I asked, as we headed for a door at the end of the hall.
“Not this badly, no,” She said. “This right here is a brand new record.”
​
We went through the door, heading down a flight of stairs, and out into the lobby of the building. Nina paused by the front door, looking out onto the street to ensure the coast was at least somewhat clear before moving ‘Somewhat clear’ being the operative term here.
​
The streets of Parsons were reduced to little more than complete pandemonium. I could see the burning corpses of the Rosen around us, along with one lone member of the Sheriff’s Boys who seemed too dazed to even realize we were there.
​
As the flames of the dead burned around him, devouring ruined cars and blackening the bricks of the buildings around him, he wandered aimlessly.
​
We all paused as behind us, one of the buildings that Gretchen had hit when she’d decided to turn a building into an airplane began to collapse. I could hear people screaming and felt a knot in my stomach tighten. The lucky sounded as if they’d been crushed outright… the unlucky just kept screaming.
​
Both the man on the street and I stared at the ruins of the collapsed building, and looking back at him I was hit with the knowledge that everyone in this miserable city probably knew that this was the end. They were all going to die here… whether it was at the hands of the Rosen, the Nightwalkers, or the destruction, they were all going to die. Maybe they all hadn’t accepted it as my friend on the street had… but it was a chilling truth.
​
This that had once been their paradise was now their tomb… and once Calhoun was dead, even that would no longer remain. I wondered if we were just as doomed as they were… and I wondered if we were just in denial about it.
​
Well… no time to think too hard about it now.
I felt Nina pulling at my arm.
“Let’s go,” She said. “I think the road up ahead is clear!”
The other man was looking at me now.
​
From behind us, I could hear the cries of the Rosen and looked back to see them sifting through the ruins of the collapsed building, looking for survivors. The man on the road just laughed, before calmly taking out his gun and putting it under his chin.
​
I heard the gunshot but didn’t see him die. By then we’d already moved on. But it still made me flinch.
​
The gate to Calhoun’s House was just up ahead, although it was not unguarded. I could see several more trucks, like the one Kevin had driven parked out front, with a few of the Sheriff’s Boys stationed around them.
​
As far as I could tell, the courtyard was pretty secure… perhaps they were waiting for Calhoun’s return. The clock tower was lodged in a building half a block away, and I saw it make its final push toward the twisted house, crashing into it head-on and shattering its malformed architecture.
​
In defiance of all laws of physics though, the clocktower still held together, despite jutting out of the front of that twisted building. The Sheriff’s Boys at the gate watched it with slack-jawed awe, before a familiar voice on a megaphone brought them back to attention.
“GUNS UP BOYS! COMPANY’S COMING!”
​
Between the cars, I could see Kevin holding his megaphone and pointing toward the building the clock tower had just jumped from. Of course Kevin was still alive. This day just hadn’t gone badly enough…
​
The Sheriff’s Boys manning the guns on their trucks got to work immediately, spinning to take aim at the Rosen Prince as he loomed over the nearby building, regarding the assembled prey with every eye on his sickly, pulsating body. I saw his wings spread wide as he began his final descent toward the courtyard. The bullets tore away chunks of his writhing flesh, but they did not slow him down. Instead, he simply folded his wings over his torso, shielding his body from the hail of gunfire as he made his advance.
​
The Rosen Prince lunged forward with one jagged claw, crushing one of the nearby trucks like it was made of paper. I saw Kevin take a step back, grimacing in rage before tossing his megaphone aside. Some of his men fled, but he stood his ground… probably because he physically could not run.
“You sonofabitch…” he growled, before pulling a gun from his holster. My eyes widened as I recognized it.
​
Gretchen’s revolver.
​
Kevin must have found it after we’d left!
​
I wondered if he knew what it did, and I got my answer only moments later. He pulled the trigger, striking one of the wings of the Rosen Prince.
​
The creature shrank back, letting out a hiss of pain, although seeming more confused than hurt. Pink mist rose up from its wing, and I saw the flesh begin to bubble and sear. The Rosen Prince recoiled, its flesh twisting as every eye on its body widened. Kevin kept the gun trained on the Prince, but didn’t fire again. The Rosen Prince retreated back up on top of the building. Its burning wing detached itself, although that didn’t quite seem to be enough. Entire chunks of what I suspect used to be the Bat Nightwalker sloughed out of its body as it tried to shed whatever flesh that Gretchen’s blessed bullet had destroyed.
​
“Keep shooting!” Kevin called, starting to limp back behind the remaining trucks. “Governor Calhoun is on his way! And get me somebody to help deal with that fucking flying tower!”
I looked over at Nina and saw her eyes narrowed as she watched Kevin leave. I watched her grip her gun tightly and put a hand on her arm.
“Don’t!” I warned, “Those trucks will tear us to pieces!”
​
I could see in her eyes that she wanted to argue, but clearly she knew better. Her eyes then darted toward the wall and I could see her doing the math in her head.
“Left side of the street, move fast, keep low,” She said. “We’ll jump the fence.”
That sounded like a slightly smarter idea, and I let Nina take the lead.
​
The trucks didn’t even seem to see us, and kept shooting at the Rosen Prince. I could even see a few crimson flares shooting up from some of the Sheriff’s Boys, catching the Prince’s body and setting his flesh alight as he retreated back atop the building again. Nina reached the fence first and I boosted her up to the top. She straddled it for a moment, reaching down to help pull me up before we dropped down into the courtyard together. She grabbed her shotgun again, keeping at the ready for when the inevitable shooting began.
​
The courtyard was in an even worse state than we’d left it in. The fountain was almost completely destroyed and had soaked the ground beneath us, turning anything that wasn’t protected by the cobblestone into mud.
​
Countless bodies, belonging to men, Rosen and Nightwalkers along with a few blackened things that I think were Nightwalkers, littered the ground. The truck that Kevin had used to attack us was crashed into a nearby wall and looked more or less completely totaled. We could see Kevin limping over toward where the clock tower was, looking up at it as he barked orders.
​
“Where’s my fucking explosives? We need to get back inside the house without letting any more of those things out through the fucking door!”
Nina stifled a laugh.
“Oh man… I forgot about the portal to hell…” She said under her breath, as if it was the funniest joke she’d ever heard.
​
The clock tower shifted, as the section of the house it had embedded itself in began to crumble. The tower sank down to the ground, still remaining intact. I took that as a sign that Gretchen and Dom were still inside.
​
“MOVE!” Kevin cried, ushering his men back as a cloud of dust flooded the courtyard. Nina and I shielded our eyes for a moment, although I realized as soon as she did the kind of opportunity that had just appeared for us. She gestured for me to follow, leading me toward the house under the cover of the dust.
​
“Whoever’s in that thing, I want them fucking dead!” Kevin said, coughing through the dust. He turned away from the clock tower, waving a hand in front of his face to try and escape the dust. Nina and I were almost at the front door now, and I already knew what she planned to do.
​
Honestly, I thought it was a terrible idea. But at this point, I was still on board with it.
​
Kevin looked up, noticing us just as we reached the door. Through the dust, I could see his eyes widen as Nina reached the front door and pulled it open.
“NO!” He cried, reaching out as if he could somehow stop us.
He couldn’t.
​
On the other side of the door, I could see reddish sands. I could feel the acrid heat and burning wind on my face. And I could see dark figures amongst the sands, looking up as soon as the door opened.
​
Not Nightwalkers… not Rosen.
​
Something else.
​
Nina fired a few rounds from her shotgun, forcing Kevin to try and run. He dove to the ground, crawling behind the shattered remains of the water fountain, as the Sheriff’s Boys turned to see that on top of all their existing problems, they now also had to deal with a portal to actual literal Hell. Because why not? I’m sure it really sucked to be them at that moment.
​
I saw the first of the blackened Demons charge through the door, snarling like a wild dog. It was torn to pieces by some gunfire from one of the Sheriff’s Boys almost immediately, but more followed.
​
There weren’t a lot of demons that poured out of that door… but there were enough.
​
I saw one of them leaping onto one of the Sheriff’s Boys. Its entire torso split open vertically, revealing a velvety mouth, full of teeth that clamped down on the poor man before he could do more than scream. As the Sheriff’s Boys tried to deal with the demons, Nina unleashed burning death upon them all, mindlessly shooting anything that moved. She paused only to pull the door closed, since I guess it made sense not to just leave that hanging open and unattended. I suppose it’s not like she needed even more Demons.
​
Behind the fountain, I saw Kevin struggling to stand as he tried to escape the carnage… and I started toward him.
​
Kevin saw me coming and hastily reached for Gretchen’s revolver, but I was faster. I raised my gun and fired twice, hitting him once in the arm and once in the chest. Kevin let out a cry of pain. The revolver slipped out of his hand and clattered uselessly to the ground. He left it where it lay, trying desperately to pull himself back as I pulled the trigger again, shooting him in the stomach two more times.
​
Finally, I was on top of him and pressed my foot down on his injured leg, earning a final cry of pain from him.
“What was that you said to me the other day?” I hissed, “When I kill you, I’ll have my boys do it… I’ll let them have their way with you first…”
My eyes burned into Kevin’s, and though he tried to keep a defiant face, I could see the fear in them.
​
“Where are your boys now, Kev?” I asked.
“It’s… Kevin…” He rasped, although I could still hear the fear in his voice.
I’ve gotta be honest… it was kinda funny.
“I know,” I replied as I squeezed the trigger one last time.
​
I might have only been using a .22, but it did the job perfectly. Kevin’s head jerked backward and he sank down into the mud, his eyes still open and staring quietly into infinity. I’d remember those eyes… but they would not haunt me.
​
I looked over at Nina, who gave a wide berth to the Sheriff’s Boys and the Demons trying to maul them as she ran to my side. She looked down at Kevin’s body, and I saw a wry smirk cross her lips, though as she reached down to pick up Gretchen’s revolver.
“Guess he shouldn’t have run for office,” She said, before looking toward the clock tower.
​
Through some of the crumbling bricks, I could see two figures limping out of the ruins.
“Dom…” I said, running toward him.
Gretchen was slung over his shoulder, but it was hard to say who was supporting who at that point. He collapsed down into a sitting position, and let her flop down onto the ground. The only indicator I could hear that she was still alive was her slight groan of pain.
​
“Oh my God, you’re okay?” I asked.
Dom just gave me a meek thumbs up.
“Next time… let’s… let’s not do… whatever that was…” He said, pointing vaguely at the clock tower. I pulled him into a hug, that he weakly returned.
​
“Hey… you good?” Nina asked, looking down at Gretchen and giving her a slight kick.
“Test results… sub-optimal. Do not recommend second attempt,” She groaned.
“Yeah, you’re fine. Get up, you big fucking nerdy baby.”
​
She reached down to help pull Gretchen to her feet again.
“Hot tea…” She murmured, as she leaned against the crumbling clock tower for support. “Hot tea… and a bath…”
She looked over at Nina.
“What are you doing when this is all over?”
“Oh, I’m gonna get fucking drunk and buy a lottery ticket,” She said. “I do not know how we’re all still alive right now, but I’m feeling pretty damn lucky.”
“Alcohol… yes… in tea…” Gretchen agreed, “You’re buying.”
​
With a trembling hand, she took her journal out of her jacket, turned to a fresh page, and in letters large enough for me to read wrote: ‘TOWER. NO.’
​
A distant roar pulled out attention back toward the gate. Above it, I could see the Rosen Prince descending from the building again for round 2. He was smaller this time, and had shed his wings… yet his form was otherwise unchanged.
Gretchen just closed her eyes in exasperation before sighing.
“Right… him…”
​
Through the gate, I could see the Sheriff’s Boys in the trucks trying to fight the Demons and the Prince to no avail. One of the trucks hastily sped off into the night. The other one stood its ground, shooting vainly at the Rosen Prince as he came for them. He brought one claw down like a hammer, crushing the men in the truck like it was nothing, then drawing it back to hit them again out of rage.
​
Hissing in satisfaction, we watched as the Rosen Prince continued toward the gate, his many legs going over it as he advanced into the courtyard.
“This night draws to its close, my old friend.” He snarled. “It seems you can run no more… while my strength, is everlasting. It is time… come into my ocean, as you were always meant to.”
​
“Oh fuck off already,” Gretchen huffed, before noticing Nina out of the corner of her eye, offering her the revolver. They traded a look before Gretchen took it and aimed it at the beast that advanced on us. The moment it realized what was being aimed at it, I heard it snarl with rage. Its body tensed as it lunged for us, trying to close the distance before she could shoot.
​
But it was already too late.
​
The gunshot echoed through the courtyard as the bullet hit the Rosen Prince square in the chest, and I saw his body begin to seize up. He clawed at his chest, many eyes going wide. A pained scream escaped him. Pink mist rose from the wound, causing its flesh to bubble and squirm. The Rosen Prince’s eyes fixated on Gretchen again as his body began to die.
“WRETCHED WOMAN!” It hissed, throwing its weight toward us as its body convulsed and boiled. “THIS WORLD REMAINS MINE… YOU SHALL NOT RUN FROM ME AGAIN!”
“Yes, this world is yours,” Gretchen agreed. “Enjoy it while it lasts. I imagine it won’t be for much longer. Your services are no longer required here. But thank you for your assistance.”
​
“TREACHEROUS WITCH!” The Rosen Prince snarled, desperately trying to crawl toward us. I saw the lower half of its body break away. Its legs curled in on themselves, twitching weakly in death. Only the Prince’s rotting torso remained now and Gretchen stared into its countless eyes, cold and unblinking.
​
As it tried to pull itself closer to us, one of its claws broke off. It’s movements slowed, as the amalgamation of corpses the Rosen Prince had assembled melted away. I could see the luminous flowers on its body starting to die, as the eyes turned white and fell away. In a few moments, the body of the Rosen Prince lay still as the flesh melted off of its bones… and silence filled the air.
​
“Is it dead…” I asked quietly, “Really dead?”
“No,” Gretchen replied. “The other drones will still be active, and I suspect he’ll be coming back for us shortly, once he can build something even worse to throw at us. We should leave now, while we still have the chance.”
“What about Calhoun?” I asked.
​
“If he’s not dead already, I vote we leave him to the Rosen Prince,” Gretchen said. She checked the cylinder of her revolver, “Seems whoever had this wasted the last of my ammunition… luckily I had foresight. Camille, you still have the bullet?”
“Right here,” I said, reaching into my pocket to take it out.
​
“Good,” She handed the revolver off to me, before turning away and heading toward the door. Her gait was slow and she gave the Rosen Prince a wide berth.
“I’ll remove the rune on Calhoun’s door. If we can find the room with the Eldest again, we should have a way out. We can use the last bullet on him, and see if it works… no promises, but right now I we’re low on options so it will have to suffice fo-”
​
A sudden onslaught of gunshots interrupted her. I saw Gretchen hit the ground with a pained cry, clutching at her side. Nina ran to her immediately, dragging her behind the ruins of the fountain, while Dom and I ran back toward the clock tower.
​
A single figure stood under the gate, shuffling past the ruined trucks with a heavy pistol in his hand.
​
Governor Calhoun looked significantly worse than when I’d last seen him. His skin looked a shade paler and his good eye seemed sunken. He’d stripped off both his shirt and suit jacket and I could see the bullet wounds in his stomach from where I’d shot him… although that was not what stood out the most. His skin was adorned with fresh cuts, with streaks of blood flowing from them like rivers. In his other hand, he held his ritual dagger.
​
“Leaving me for dead?” He asked, his voice hoarse and cold, “After all you’ve done… to ruin my world… to burn my temple and salt the earth upon which it was built, and you can’t even finish the job? Disappointing.” Nina tried to pop out of cover, but Calhoun shot first, grazing the stone by her head and sending her back down.
​
“It’s a shame it had to come to this,” Calhoun said. “I would have saved your world. I would have saved each and every one of you. But now after you’ve gone and wasted everything I’ve done… decades of good… I see now that there is no salvation for you people. There never was. I built paradise! And you’ve burned it! Corrupted it! Unleashed plague upon it! Why? I did no harm to you! I left you people be! And yet in stubborn defiance of my efforts to resolve this peacefully, you’ve-”
“Kill yourself,” Nina called, and Calhoun trained off.
​
“Excuse me…” He hissed.
“We’ve got you four to one, and you’re already looking like death warmed over… so cut the speech, Calhoun. Cut the theatrics… and let’s just get this the fuck over with you self-righteous fuck!”
I saw Calhoun actually crack a smile there.
“Ill-mannered until the end,” He said, before finally lowering his gun and tossing it aside, “Well… at least you were consistent, in life.”
​
He took another trembling step forward before sinking down to his knees. I saw Nina rising out from behind cover, while Dom and I did the same, our guns remaining trained on him. Calhoun looked at us, before slowly taking his knife and turning it toward his stomach.
​
Was… was he actually going to do it? Just like that?
​
Nina seemed surprised, pausing as she locked eyes with him.
“If there’s no salvation,” Calhoun said, “Then all that remains is death…”
With that, he drove the dagger into his stomach, sucking in a breath as he did. Nina actually flinched at the sight of it, but I stayed still, watching as Calhoun buried the dagger deep into his body, and as the blood dribbled down his hands.
“Holy Lugal,” he rasped, “I have no home to defend… no souls to offer. And so, I offer my own. Grant me retribution and I shall become yours.”
​
My eyes widened, and I could see Nina's doing the same. We understood all too late why he’d mutilated himself…
​
We fired on Calhoun, but it was too late.
​
A blinding crimson glow had already spread through his body, traveling along the carvings he’d made in his flesh and I could feel the air around us rippling. Somewhere in the distance, I could hear Calhoun screaming, followed by a faint voice over all of the noise. A voice I only barely recognized as Gretchen’s screaming:
​
“RUN!”

Epistle Yah'ahQoB [“YHVH Follows”, Jacob, James]   INTRODUCTION  

“… a Christian revision of a Jewish work.” (Easton, 1957, TIB p. XII 21)ⁱⁱⁱ
 
In Greek, Hebrew, and Latin the title is one form or another of Jacob (Iacobi, Ιακωβος [Yakobos], יעקב), but not in English. I read somewhere that James was substituted because Jacob was too Jewish. Even allowing for the torturous etymological path by which Yah'ahQoB is transmogrified into James (J [a sound that does not exist in Hebrew] for Y in Jacob was the first step, lord knows where they got the M an S) and even Pedro (retaining not a single consonant), the question remains, why is it that New Testament references to Old Testament Yah'ahQoB are Jacob, but New Testament characters are James in the King James Version? It only now [3/28/23] occurs to me that it may have been to flatter the king!  
James’ epistle is so Jewish that Clarke cites Talmudic sources for nearly every verse. The Interpreters’ Bible posits a preexistent Jewish “Book of Jacob” adapted to a Christian audience; rather than point out Jewish antecedents it highlights the less numerous Christian accretions. The traditionally ascribed author, James the brother of Jesus, remembered as pharisaically Jewish, ridicules Pauline rejection of the Torah.  
James, as is also the case with “certain other epistles, toward the close of some Pauline letters... and in Heb. [Hebrews] 13 [has] “sequences of sayings-groups and isolated sayings arranged with little apparent logical order… this form was very familiar in the contemporary Hellenistic world, where similar somewhat miscellaneous collections of general moral instructions were widely employed in teaching ethics. If these instructions were phrased throughout in the third person such a collection was called a ‘gnomologium.’ But if the second person (singular or plural) was employed, so that the teachings were addressed – either actually or as a literary device – to an individual or to a group, then the collection was termed a ‘paraenesis.’ And in James we have a perfect example of a paraenesis…  
While James is a paraenesis, as a whole and in all its parts, in many sections another highly specialized contemporary literary form is also evident – the form known as the ‘diatribe.’… for the present purposes it may be described adequately enough as copying the style of a speaker engaged in a lively oral debase with an opponent. Among ancient writers on ethics who use the diatribe form Epictetus is particularly notable; among Jewish authors the thoroughly Hellenized Philo often employs it. In the New Testament, Rom. [Romans] 3:1-8 illustrates the form admirably.
…
The fact that the Epistle of James is written throughout as a paraenesis, with frequent employment of the diatribe, shows that its author must be sought among those whose literary associates were with the Greek rather than with the Hebrew world. For the antecedents of true prose paraenesis among non-Greek-speaking Jews are so scanty as to be virtually nonexistent.
…
On the other hand, the content of James, as contrasted with its literary form, belongs unequivocally to the Hebraic-Christian, and not to the Hellenistic world…. James, as we have it, is unambiguously the work of a Christian author, whose rhetorical training was Hellenistic but whose religious background was firmly Hebraic.  
Can the ‘James’ whose name stands as writer at the beginning of the letter be identified with any of the other New Testament characters bearing the same name? Of these there are three (not including the James of Luke 6:16): the apostle James, who was the son of Zebedee, the second (very obscure) apostle ‘James the less’… and ‘James the Lord’s brother.’ Attempts to identify the author of our letter with either of the first two now belong only to the curiosities of the history of interpretation, but the theory that the third James was the author has held sway for many centuries.  
He appears in Mark 6:3 (Matt. [Matthew] 13:55) as one of the four ‘brothers’ of Jesus – the others being Joses, Judas, and Simon, of who we know only the names. The exact relationship implied by ‘brothers’ has been, and is still, the theme of often embittered controversy as among three alternatives: children of Joseph and Mary, children of Joseph by a former marriage, and cousins. The details of this controversy are for the purposes of this Commentary unimportant.
…
Even if the actual author of the epistle was not James the Lord’s brother, does the content of the writing represent the special type of Christianity of which James was the recognized champion? Or in other words, does our letter teach a Jewish Christianity?  
By ‘Jewish Christianity’ here is to be understood the ideal taken for granted in the declaration of James and the Jerusalem elders in Acts 21:20-25, where a sharp distinction is drawn between Jewish and Gentile believers. There are ‘thousands’ (literally ‘myriads’) of the former and they are all ‘zealous for the law’… so zealous are they, indeed, that they treat as an incredible slander the report that Paul has taught Jewish converts to forsake these customs; they ask him – and he agrees – to show publicly ‘that there is nothing in what’ his enemies have been saying about him, and that he himself lives ‘in observance of the law.’  
For Gentile Christians, on the other hand, no such observance of the ‘customs’ is required; it was sufficient for them to keep the four ‘necessary’ point laid down in Acts 15:28-29 (and repeated in 21:25); if they kept these, all would be well with them. From the standpoint of non-Christian Judaism this was a miraculous, even an incredible, concession – this admission that Gentiles might be dispensed from virtually all observance of the ceremonial law and yet be regarded as inheritors of salvation. But the concession was very far from complete. It meant that in every Christian community in which there were former Jews and former Gentiles there were two sharply distinct groups of believers: those who continued to observe the Mosaic ceremonies and those who disregarded them. And – this is the important point – the former regarded themselves as representing a higher and more complete type of Christianity than the latter. In particular, the Jewish Christians simply took for granted that the seat of authority in the Christian church was in Jerusalem, the heart of Jewish Christianity…
…
[Paul] refused absolutely and passionately to admit that the high ecclesiastical rank of James and the other pillars carried with it any corresponding spiritual authority. Their rank was given them by men, not by God, and so was to Paul a matter of utter indifference (Gal. [Galatians] 2:6, 9). Therefore not only were commands from James destitute of any real binding power but – as when he forbade Jewish Christians to eat with their Gentile brethren – they actually might be commands to commit sin, so that all who obeyed him were sinners (Gal. 2:11-21)!
…
Paul’s depreciation of the authority of James finds rather more than a vigorous echo in Mark, whose narrative depreciates James himself. A portion of Mark’s depreciation has been more or less mechanically copied by Matthew, but in a softened form. Still less of Mark’s depreciation has been copied by Luke, and in a still more softened form… But the Fourth Evangelist, to whom the freedom of Christianity from all Jewish legalism was an axiomatic dogma, goes not only beyond Mark but beyond Paul: James, far from being a ‘pillar,’ was one whom ‘the world cannot hate’ – in poignant contrast to its hatred of Christ (John 7:7). Here John is writing at a time when the Christians were so nearly universally Gentiles that their freedom from the ‘worldliness’ of the Mosaic ceremonies was assumed as a matter of course. So far had this concept progressed that the (comparatively very few) Jewish believers who still clung to the ceremonies were now regarded not only as reactionaries, but as dangerous heretics against whom relentless war must be waged; compare, e.g. [for example], Ign. [Ignatius] Mag. [Epistle to the Magnesians] 9:1, where keeping the Sabbath instead of ‘the Lord’s day’ is denounced as a deadly sin. And this conviction must have been immeasurably intensified by the Roman persecution of Christianity. From this persecution the Jewish Christians, because of their ceremonialism indistinguishable by the Romans from other Jews, were exempt, since at least outwardly they were members of a religio licita; [lawful religion] ‘the world did not hate them’ as it hated the church at large.
…
… while in the battle against Jewish Christianity much the most important figure was Paul, it by no means follows that rejection of Jewish Christianity involved acceptance of all that Paul taught… The letters of Paul, the great Apostle to the Gentiles, bulk so large in the New Testament that it is easy for us to think that all Gentile Christianity was Pauline. It was not. When the author of II Peter says of Paul’s letters that ‘there are some things in them hard to understand’ (II Pet. [Peter] 3:16), he speaks not only for his own and later ages but for the apostolic age as well. When Paul taught that for Christians circumcision was wholly needless, that Gentile believers were every whit the equals of their Jewish Christian brothers, this doctrine was avidly adopted. But the intricacies of the logic by which he attained this conclusion were quite another matter. When he wrote ‘Christ is the end of the law’ (Rom.10:4), he wrote a phrase that bewildered many. Surely, they reasoned, Paul could not mean Christ has put an end to the law ‘Thou shalt not kill’ or ‘Thou shalt not commit adultery.’ And similarly with the phrase so basic in Paul’s thinking, ‘We hold that a man is justified by faith apart from works of law’ (Rom. 3:28). Surely, men argued, Paul could not possibly teach that if a man’s belief is orthodox, his conduct does not matter.  
Of course, in both instances they were perfectly right; Paul meant nothing of the sort… A famous saying of Harnack’s (roughly paraphrased) states the facts not unfairly, ‘No one in the second century understood Paul but Marcion – and Marcion misunderstood him!’ This saying is, to be sure, not wholly correct; B.W. Bacon observed succinctly that it should read, ‘No one understood Paul but John – and John did not misunderstand him!’ But the genius of John, like the genius of Paul, soared far beyond the reach of the rank and file of contemporary Christians.  
The consequence was that Paul’s teaching was brought into the comprehension of ordinary believers by the explanation that by the ‘law’ Paul meant not the moral but the ceremonial law of the Old Testament.
…
To come now finally to the question at issue: Is the Epistle of James a technically ‘Jewish Christian’ work? Undoubtedly very much of its material is taken from Jewish sources… But this fact does not make it ‘Jewish–Christian’ in the polemic force of the term any more than its occasional use of traditional Stoic-Cynic ethical teaching, and its use throughout of the Stoic-Cynic literary forms of paraenesis and diatribe, make it a Stoic-Cynic treatise… Nowhere is there the slightest hint of two classes of Christians – the cardinal tent of true Jewish Christianity.
…
In the last decade of the nineteenth century … a French scholar [L. Massebieau] and a German scholar, [Friedrich Spitta] working wholly independently, published almost simultaneously conclusions that were identical. Both maintained that the epistle was originally a purely Jewish writing which has been converted into a Christian work by an editor who merely added ‘and of the Lord Jesus Christ’ in 1:1 and ‘our Lord Jesus Christ’ in 2:1. Both writers stressed in support of their theory the extraordinarily difficult grammatical problem offered by the Greek genitives in 2:1 … a problem solved at once by the theory of the interpolation. And they argued further that if this interpolation is accepted, a corresponding interpolation in 1:1 may be inferred; especially since 1:1, as it now reads, contains language unique in the New Testament… Then, since these two occurrences of ‘Jesus Christ’ are the only explicit Christian terms in the letter, the remainder, they argued, not only represented a use of Jewish tradition, but was Jewish tradition and nothing else.
…
… a generation later Arnold Meyer … [n]oting that in Greek, Aramaic, and Hebrew, ‘James’ and ‘Jacob’ are the same word … saw that if the Christian ‘interpolation’ in 1:1 was recognized as such, the original opening words could be read “Jacob, a servant of God, to the twelve tribes in the dispersion: Greeting.’… And for a letter from Jacob to the ‘twelve tribes’ a well-known biblical precedent was provided by Gen. [Genesis] 49, where Jacob addresses the ‘ancestor’ of each tribe in turn…. Meyer undertook to demonstrate that similar references to the twelve tribes can be detected in James.
…
But even if Meyer is correct in his contention that a ‘Letter of Jacob’ forms the basis of James, it by no means follows that he is equally correct in contending that the former can be recovered by eliminating minimal Christian additions in 1:1; 2:1; 5:12; and 5:14. He seems vastly to have underestimated the contributions of the Christian editor. This appears most vividly in the long section 2:14-26 on the relative value of faith and works. … Not only is the general trend of the argument in 2:14-26 one impossible in Judaism, but the details of its wording show that the argument is directed against a non-Jewish opponent – an opponent who can be identified definitely as Paul… Only one conclusion appears to be possible: 2:14-26 was written not by a Jew, but by a Christian.
…
Nor is 2:14-26 the only Christian passage in James.
…
If this is correct, we have the solution of a difficulty in Meyer’s theory for which he has no satisfying answer. If the ‘Letter of Jacob to the Twelve Tribes’ was really virtually coextensive with James as a whole, we should expect to find the tribal allusions fairly evenly distributed throughout the work. But this is precisely what we do not find.
…
Meyer notes, to be sure, that no one writing paraenesis would tie himself down to a rigid outline; it is characteristic of paraenetic style that it permits of all sorts of apparently unmotived digressions. …. Yet the digressions never bulk very large; there is no adequate basis here for accepting the almost grotesque assumption necessitated by Meyer’s theory, that more than four fifths of the entire work is irrelevant to its plan!” (Easton, 1957, TIB pp. XII 4-11)   END NOTES   ⁱⁱⁱ The Interpreters' Bible The Holy Scriptures in the King James and Revised Standard versions with general articles and introduction, exegesis, [and] exposition for each book of the Bible in twelve volumes, George Arthur Buttrick, Commentary Editor, Walter Russell Bowie, Associate Editor of Exposition, Paul Scherer, Associate Editor of Exposition, John Knox Associate Editor of New Testament Introduction and Exegesis, Samuel Terrien, Associate Editor of Old Testament Introduction and Exegesis, Nolan B. Harmon Editor, Abingdon Press, copyright 1955 by Pierce and Washabaugh, set up printed, and bound by the Parthenon Press, at Nashville, Tennessee, Volume XII, The Epistle of James [Introduction and Exegesis – Burton Scott Easton, Exposition - Gordon Poteat], the First and Second Epistles of Peter, The first, Second, and Third Epistles of John, The Epistle of Jude, The Revelation of St. John the Divine, General Articles, Indexes   An Amateur's Journey Through the Bible

Context: im not an arabic native speaker, obviously, and root word concept are new (im being exposed to it casually a few years back) to me and i thought all root words meaning is closely related in nature. I asked chatgpt on this and it says otherwise. Can someone confirm this and point me to the right direction? Im researching the word related to أَوسَام, to know about words related to it, and whether its a good baby name.
Me: Is وسيم derived from و س م?
Chatgpt: No, the Arabic word "وَسِيم" (waseem), which means "handsome" or "good-looking," is not derived from the root "و س م" (w-s-m) that gives rise to the word "أَوسَام" (awsaam).
The root letters of "وَسِيم" are "و س م" (w-s-m) as well, but with a different pattern. The root meaning of "وَسِيم" (waseem) is related to the idea of being well-formed or well-proportioned, and it is often used to describe someone's physical appearance.
It's important to note that while the roots of words can give us some insight into their meanings, not all words that share the same root have related or similar meanings. In some cases, words with the same root may have evolved over time to have very different meanings, or they may be used in different contexts or with different prefixes or suffixes that modify their meanings.

we all know that every major Linux update has a feminine name, in alphabetical order, currently at 21.1 aka Vera. what happens after letter Z ? do they reset or something 🤣

A text claims that the word iron in arabic has a gemetric value of 26, and 57 when you ad the 'Al' on. He also says how surah 57 is the surah mid way through the quran, and that the middle of the earth is iron. What response could we give to both of these claims, especially the first one?
Website says; In Arabic, every letter also has a corresponding gematrical value where each letter also represents a number, similar to roman numerals. Gematrical Values of the Arabic Alphabet If we look at the word iron in Arabic, Hadeed حـديد , we see that this word has a gematrical value of 26. While the gematrical value of Al-Hadeed / الحـديد has a gematrical value of 57. The Quran has 114 suras. If we divide 114 in half we see that the center sura is 57, which happens to be entitled Iron (Al-Hadeed / الحـديد). Similarly, if we cut the earth in half we see that the center of the Earth is also made from an iron core. https://qurantalkblog.com/2022/02/09/iron/
I'm not too sure how to respond to these. Anyone got any ideas?