The book of Luke and Acts Essay Example for Free

The book of Luke and Acts Essay The book of Luke and Acts are of the same author. It is addressed to Theophilus. On the introduction of the book of Luke, Luke wrote: Therefore, since I myself have carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus, so that you may know the certainty of the things you have been taught (Luke 1:3-4). With that verse it is clear that Luke did investigated the accounts of Jesus.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   If we try to study the Bible from Matthew to John, all of the accounts are similar. They only differ in the details of the accounts. Luke is not the direct disciple (not one of the 12 disciples) of Jesus Christ but he was able to reconcile what he wrote with the books of John, Matthew and Mark. With the same accounts found in Matthew, Mark, and John, we can conclude that he understands Jesus’ purpose here on earth.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the book of Acts, Luke elaborates the things that make a Christian. He mentioned even how a Christian should act. He even wrote some of the accounts of the believers after Jesus ascended to heaven. In his books he never mentioned about how he understands the death of Jesus, but on his writings we can say that he fully understand the death of Jesus; that is to redeem us from our sins.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   On the other hand, it is the faith that convicts him to tell the people that Jesus is innocent of a sin deserving to death. As we can see on the accounts of Jesus on the book of Luke, Jesus did not commit things that deserve death but rather it is because of the fear of the Pharisees that the attention of the people will be diverted to Jesus. They are afraid that their positions will not be honored by the people. It is for that reason that Luke really is convicted to tell the world not only the innocence of Jesus Christ but the truth and the love that Jesus offer on the cross to save His people.   Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Basically, faith is the motivation of Luke in telling such thing to people. We can even attest that when we have faith on a certain thing we can do even the impossible things just to pursue or stand on the faith that we have. Work cited: The Holy Bible (1988). The New International Version. Broadman Holman Publishers: Nashville

Homelessness The Hidden Nightmare Of Los Angeles Economics Essay

Homelessness The Hidden Nightmare Of Los Angeles Economics Essay Los Angeles, California ranks in as the second largest city in the United States. It is home to 3.8 billion people, including many famous movie stars. Known for being one of the sunniest and most tourist-conscious cities, Los Angeles offers many attractions for visitors (problem of homelessness). They hold many sports venues as well, including the Staples Center, which houses the L.A. Lakers and many award shows, like the Grammys. Over the years Los Angeles developed nicknames for its city, such as L.A. and The City of Angels (Los Ang. Wikipedia). While some people might call it The City of Angels, others could not disagree more with the nickname. During the daytime Los Angeles is a place of business, upper-class citizens roam the streets and movie producers are filming there next big hit. On the other hand, at nighttime its nothing more than a nightmare you cannot wake up from; thousands of people are left roaming the streets searching for a place to sleep. What we do not typically hear about or see is Los Angeless Skid Row, which hides in the shadows of the downtown skyline. This fifty block section of downtown L.A. holds the largest concentrated area of homeless people in the entire United States (los Ang City of stars). The section of Fifth Street is also referred to as the nickel. It is said that Skid Row is Americas only third world city (Skid Row wikipedia). Skid Row is nothing more than a result of the neighborhoods gentrification. These horrifying streets are home to the unwanted. Many police officers from other jurisdictions have been seen dumping homeless people in the area; they cannot provide correct services to them, so they dump them there. Already overwhelmed with the abundance of homeless people, the county is facing a major problem with social service organizations being short staffed and are experiencing a shortage of funds. Any services that a homeless person might be offered, is located in the downtown area of Los Angeles (Los An. City of stars). The LAPD Chief thought he had found a solution to help local businesses and real estate developers weed out the site of homeless people. He would have anyone arrested for minor infractions, littering, sleeping on sidewalks, and public urination. Unfortunately, his strategies were only wishful thinking. Soon after his rules were put into affect the city jails were overpopulated with homeless people and could not hold anymore. It was also costing the city more to keep them in jail, than it did to help house them for the night (Los An. City of stars). Recent plans for Skid Row have been to build condos and lofts that sell for $700,000. This would completely gentrify the area and push homeless people further away. Without anywhere else in the county offering assistance for the homeless, they have nowhere and no one to turn to for help. Los Angeles Homeless Service Authority could not afford the new rent. They were forced to move because the building was being renovated into condominiums. The downtown area is being renovated to attract new businesses, but the downfall of it all is that its causing rental prices to become non-affordable. New homes and condos are priced at an average of $2,000 to $3,000 per month. Los Angeles has the most expensive rental market in the entire state of California. With housing costs on the rise and the supply of affordable housing falling, many people are struggling to keep a roof over their head. Due to the renovations and demolitions, the 28,000 affordable homes L.A. produced from 2001 to 2006 meant nothing, because they lost 11,000 homes in the process (research briefly). Los Angeles is demolishing perfectly good homes, during the middle of a housing crisis. Coalition for Economic Survival and Housing LA, have both been fighting to stop renovations and demolitions. Thankfully, the City Planning Department has recently started to deny some request for such demolition. They are also making it a requirement that some of the residences have to be affordable (livable places). To restore Los Angeless middle class society, it must provide and create enough affordable housing units. Affordable housing is the ratio of housing costs to household income. Families should not pay more than 30% of their income, but in L.A. most moderate to low income families, pay 50%. For someone to live in a one-bedroom apartment in L.A., they must make a minimum of $48,000 a year (livable places). An average family of four with two working parents must make $70,000 a year, just to skim by (Los An. City of stars). In 2007, only 3% of homes sold in Los Angeles were affordable for median income families (Pricey properties). As the need for housing grows larger the number of homeless people, also increase. Not only are these developers building new condos, but they are evicting residents as well. These families that are being evicted or flat out cannot afford the new pricing are left without a home. Due to the shortage of affordable housing units, the Hollywood Community Housing Corporation formed a lottery for people to have a chance to secure a spot in a new fifty-eight unit subsidized apartment. Lines formed seven hundred people deep, waiting for an application. Even though they might have received an application, that did not mean they were accepted. The housing corporations executive director, said that subsidized projects similar to this one were becoming more and more difficult to finance (Hundreds wait). For families who do not win the lottery, they are left on the streets and shooed away. Because of the increase and wide spread of non-affordable housing, homelessness is at an all time high. What used to be a designated area for the homeless in Los Angeles, Skid Row, is now a wide spread community epidemic. Homelessness is no longer designated to the poorer areas of Los Angeles; the entire county is now seeing, what was once an isolated phenomenon. All eight of the Service Planning Areas have been heavily affected. On an average night in Los Angeles, 73,000 homeless people roam the streets without a place to sleep. Around 40% of the homeless have been this way for less than a year. About half the residents living in L.A. are housing a family member or friend, to keep them off the streets. Los Angeles County supplies 17,000 emergency beds for the homeless. This low amount does not even come close to the demand for them. Shelter Partnership did a study that showed how L.A.s shelters and agencies only accommodate a quarter of homeless families (research and). The Los Angeles Unified School District has reported a 35% increase of homeless students. Recent data has revealed that the number of homeless families with children is rising. Between 2006 and 2007 HUD data reported that public schools were teaching an estimated 680,000 children that were either homeless or living in an unstable environment. Studies have shown that homelessness can lower a childs academic performance and reduce high school completion. Homeless children are nearly three times more likely to suffer from emotional or behavior problems, thus in the long run affecting their education. An estimated amount of 10,000 people were found living in inhabitable areas (the medical news). Not only has the lack of affordable housing caused homelessness, but the economy as well. The recession has impacted the job market greatly. It has been projected by Goldman Sachs that unemployment will continue to rise throughout 2010. This would cause nearly 10 million Americans to live in poverty. The United States is dealing with the highest amount of unemployment rates, it has ever seen. It is likely that the nation will face its highest increase in severe poverty, than it has in the last 30 years. The current recession is more likely to cause the risk of homelessness. Unlike previous recessions that provided safety nets to protect jobless families, the assistance for families now is weaker than ever (budget and policy). The non-profit organization, Chrysalis, provides employment opportunities to help family prevent the risk of becoming homeless. Chrysalis Enterprises is Los Angeles only non-profit organization. Each year, they help over 2,500 people avoid the risks of poverty and homelessness. They provide yearly assistance for transitional jobs to 600 men and women every year (Chrysalis). Even though Congress is expected to try and restore several million jobs, an unbelievably high number of people will still be at the risk of becoming homeless Local and state jurisdictions have arranged interagency plans to prevent homelessness. This has helped reduce the number of unsheltered people in the past, and if proper resources are used than it could lessen the increase of homelessness during the recession. Adequate funding must be provided in order for the interagency plans to function effectively. However, states and localities are dealing with budget shortfalls. The recession has caused them to cut programs and raise taxes to try and keep their budget balanced. Homelessness prevention will without a doubt struggle to maintain, let alone increase proper funding (budget and funding). Between 2007 and 2008 Los Angeles County has reported a 12% increase in welfare assistance for families who are homeless. More families will fall into deep poverty if the unemployment rate keeps rising. An estimated 900,000 to 1.1 million families with children will reach the level of severe poverty if this happens, leaving them with the risk of homelessness and housing instability. Despite falling incomes and rising unemployment, rents are still being driven through the roof. Home foreclosures constantly keep pushing home owners into the rental market. The severe problem with home foreclosures and housing sectors only help cater the increase of homeless families. The demand for rental units will continually grow even though the prices of homes are falling. Families, who would originally be buying homes right now, are renting; they are waiting for the economy and prices to stabilize before doing so. Homelessness will continue to rise during the recession, as long as the housing market maintains its ongoing troubles. One way Los Angeles can help try to prevent homelessness, is by offering housing vouchers. These vouchers can be used for families to pay past due utility bills or rent. Families dealing with foreclosure can be assisted with relocation funds, a one-time cost associated with moving into a new home. Unfortunately, the only way these short-term assistance programs will work, is if families are able to uphold their ongoing rental costs. A recent five year study has proven that housing vouchers are effective in preventing homelessness. The government needs to grant a substantial number of additional vouchers in the economic recovery package. In an economic crisis, such as now, voucher programs work the best. As a familys income changes the amount of subsidy they receive will also change. Costs will also decline as the participants gain employment and their earnings increase. In 2008, Congress provided 15,000 new housing vouchers. Only 2,840 of the new vouchers were given to families with children; the families also had to be connected to the foster system. The rest of the vouchers were set aside for disabled people and homeless veterans. If no special restrictions on eligibility for new vouchers are set by Congress, then state and local agencies that receive the funds will be responsible for disbursing them. It is likely that more than half of the vouchers will be given to poor families with children. If 200,000 new housing vouchers were given throughout 2010, including administrative fees, it would cost $2.1 billion. These additional vouchers could strain HUDs 2011 budget. Subsequent budget pressures could be avoided, if the recovery package stated that agencies could not reissue vouchers after a family has left the program and other vouchers have to be out of circulation by the end of 2010. By not allowing agencies to reissue vouchers, roughly 30% of the new vouchers will be retired by the ending calendar year of 2010. Because of the recession, it is unlikely that families will leave the program, but there is still a chance that some families might leave the program for non-economic reasons. The possibility of less people leaving the program than anticipated could result in a need for additional funding in 2011, to sustain new vouchers that were not offset. The proposed funding of $2.1 billion is only meant to cover a sixteen month period. If Congress provided a twenty month program, than agencies could accept a higher number of vouchers and further help prevent homelessness in their community. With the new proposal, families would be able to spend more money on food, clothing, and health care. The benefits of trying to eliminate and reduce homelessness would be immediate and long-term. New vouchers would help pump funds back into local economies within a four to six month period. When comparing Michigan to California with the estimated state shares of recommended increases in housing vouchers and ESG homelessness prevention funding, California will receive 26,962 more vouchers and $182,507,187 more new ESG funds than Michigan (Budget and Policy).

Career Opportunities in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry

Career Opportunities in the Tourism and Hospitality Industry Introduction Given the continued volatility within the UK job market, the opportunities for a university graduate continue to evolve. Ultimately, the nature of the marketplace will continue to rise to meet social and economic challenges, thereby mandating that participants are aptly suited for the responsibilities of the future. Lau and Schaffer (1999) recognised that success in a career of choice offers personal needs fulfilment through long term evolution of workplace achievements and accomplishments, ultimately culminating in power acquisition for the properly situated professional. My long term objectives is to frame my career around such variables, supporting my professional goals and principles while at the same time ensuring that substantial growth and opportunity evolve through my career choice. The following five positions represent key industries within the current UK market, each challenging the participant to invoke a broad skill set to enhance their long term career objectives. Hotel Manager Given the variability within the hotel industry and the season-specific integration of tourism into an operating scheme, the potential for gaining logistical experience and expanding my management skill set within this environment is exemplary. The completion of my degree is an essential part of job acquisition within the hotel industry, and although the management position might not immediately avail itself to me, the long term goal of achieving this notorious job title will present motivational encouragement and strategy in my daily operations. As recognised by MacCannell (2002), the prevalence of tourist egoism in the hotel environment is one which challenges staff to bolster and support such powerful internal demand structures, aligning with tourist expectations to prospect for repeat business. As a hotel manager, my duties would include a coordination of all staff members affiliated with our guests, and therefore, exemplary service levels would need to be evolved from my directi on. The potential for substantial tourism growth considering the coming 2012 Olympic games offers opportunity for positioning within an expanding industry, one which would support my long term career objectives. Aligning my skills with an industry with such broad opportunities would also ensure that as alternate positions across the globe arise that I would be uniquely suited for that market by virtue of experience. Tourism Officer Perhaps the most widely sought opportunity for graduates and professionals of these five, this position entails an integration of a wide number of skill sets and strategic methods. Within the community, the tourism officer plays an essential role in guiding the expansion of tourist commerce and supporting local businesses and facilities through attractive event and festivals. In a recent study Desforges (2001) noted that financial reward is an extremely important variable within tourist endeavours, oftentimes relying on strategic politics to evolve into a socially beneficial medium. Optioning the personnel management abilities which I have learned over my brief, but well experienced positions in the UK work force, the officer position would require staff management, budget alignment, and full spectrum training programmes. This challenging, yet rewarding occupation would integrate my written abilities, planning foresight, and organisational skills to prepare and guide the tourist prog rammes of a particular local authority. The highly competitive nature of this position challenges me to fully develop my expectations and long term strategy prior to offering my CV for review. Ultimately, I believe that my creativity, local knowledge and interest, and resourcefulness will be assets in acquiring such a position. Over the course of the coming months at the university, it would be wise to participate in community events and begin to source industry relationships in order to ensure that opportunities arise upon graduation. Outdoor Pursuits Manager Perhaps the most interesting and personally rewarding position within this grouping is the one which would take me into the outdoors and fulfil my passion for adventurous activity. Requiring technical skill sets including budgeting, people management, and leadership, my commitment to these duties would be more than just job specific. In fact, assuming such a role, the physical challenges alone would encourage me to devise new methods of exercise and diet in order to maintain appropriate energy and stamina. Public speaking would become an inherent participle in this role, challenging me to step outside of my comfort zone and encourage participation through vocal support and direction. Forsyth (1997) recognised that sustainable tourism and environmental responsibility are essential factors in the new realm of eco-tourism. Through my role in outdoor pursuits, whether team building for groups or comporting a family reunion on a sightseeing hike, the need for environmental awareness and e ducation would be a skill set that must be further developed. While there is limited opportunity within this position to surmount a corporate ladder, the potential for entrepreneurism in the long term would enable me to pursue an objective of business ownership and coordination. Travel Agency Manager Perhaps one of the more intriguing positions listed here, this opportunity would rely on my knowledge of both the UK travel sector but international destinations as well. Ensuring that my breadth of venue understanding was at par with industry standards, familiarisation visits to new destinations would assist in developing my knowledge set. This job would incorporate a broad range of my skills including organisation, sales abilities, and management of a sales team. As targets become an increasingly important qualifier within this industry, recognising the methods behind sales and tourism opportunities will continue to enable my management of a team of sales professionals. Destination sourcing offers a unique perspective of consumer motivations and would continue to enable my utilisation of personal interests and professional resources over the long term scope of my career. Recognised by Gille and Riain (2002) the nature of globalisation entails a reorganisation of self and community, expanding horizons and encouraging international participation. In this role, it would be my responsibility to ensure that these connections are deeply entwined in the personal objectives of my clientele. Public Relations Account Executive The final career opportunity, and perhaps divergent from the others in terms of sector, the role of P.R. account executive would offer substantial opportunity to utilize my personality, range of communication skills, and intense drive for success to develop and support public relations campaigns. In this role, business to business sales and networking would become extremely important facets of my daily routine, encouraging a working understanding of purchasing motivations and the key challenges which face each industry in our society. Managing events and press conferences in addition to location coordination for photo shoots or media programmes would also integrate my organisational skill set as well as enhance my understanding of the workings of public scenarios. Hiring staff and event for these events would also challenge my human resource skill set and enable an organisational perspective which could translate into further career evolutions. Buck et al. (2003) challenge that the e mployment philosophy of a firm or corporation is â€Å"embedded within its organisational blueprint† thereby entailing a focus on strategy, media expectations, and client perspective when aligning staff with PR activities (p. 532). The public focus of this position is an exciting offering which would continue to involve my evolution as both speaker and participant within the scope of media relations and operations. This position would be both challenging and rewarding as the broad spectrum of daily operations would enable my participation in highly social and publicly visible events. Conclusion Each of these opportunities presents a substantially different perspective of how my post-university career could evolve. The nature of the UK job market is constant evolution; therefore, over the coming several months, there are many new positions which may develop and with them, the opportunity to enter at the cutting edge of industry. Regardless of destination, my path must be one which is both personally and professionally rewarding. From this expectation, I will carefully make my decision according to the merits of each position and their support of my goals. As long term career development is also an essential part of the reward spectrum, I must align myself with a strong industry in which I can continue to develop my professional skills. Networking and social development will further assist in identifying key participants who can offer sustainable choices in future career developments. While all five of these positions offer well suited principles for my inherent skill set, se veral such as hotel manager and travel agency manager and PR account executive are substantially more attractive due to their public focus and wide sphere of influence. While my future may remain uncertain, the opportunities afforded by my university graduation are not, and I look forward to their realisation over the coming year. References Buck, T; Filatotchev, I; Demina, N; Wright, M. (2003) â€Å"Insider Ownership, Human Resource Strategies and Performance in a Transition Economy.† Journal of International Business Studies, Vol. 34, No. 6, pp. 530-549 Desforges, Luke. (2001) â€Å"Tourism Consumption and the Imagination of Money.† Transactions of the Institute of British Geographers, Vol. 26, No. 3, pp. 353-364. Gille, Z; Riain, S.O. (2002) â€Å"Global Ethnography.† Annual Review of Sociology, Vol. 28, pp. 271-295. Lau, V; Shaffer, M. (1999) â€Å"Career Success and the Effects of Personality.† Career Development International, Vol. 4, No. 4, pp. 225-231. MacCannell, D. (2002) â€Å"The Ego Factor in Tourism.† The Journal of Consumer Research, Vol. 29, No. 1, June.

Tools in Wide Distribution Computer Forensics in Taiwan :: Technology Computers Essays

Tools in Wide Distribution Computer Forensics in Taiwan Back in the days when all computers are pretty much standalone entities in the world, each unit is self-contained and does not pose much threat. Similarly in politics, when patches of little disgruntle tribal groups here and there are kept in isolation, there was not much threat to a dominating foreign government. However, when the internet becomes available to all computer users around the world, it is like uniting all the little tribal groups under one umbrella and the potential threat is much greater. Now the disgruntled group can pool resources and recruit an army to overthrow the foreign government. The government will react to impose more security measures and bring in more knights and better artillery to maintain order. Similarly, cyber criminals can now have access to the world and can communicate with other criminals across the globe in conspiring against certain institute for whatever purposes. Then internet security communities will impose more secure measures such as network secure configurations (DMZ), honey-pots (traps or bait for the unknowing cyber-criminal), or implement more secure software so that cyber attacks is mitigated. These security measures taken both by the government and the internet security community provide preventive measures, at best. What happens when this line of defense is breached? One can take all the vitamin c to prevent from getting a cold, but what happens on the day when a cold is caught? One goes to the doctor and gets antibiotics and cold medicine to combat the virus; the government will try to bring in more troops to combat the rebellion. However, what of the inter world? That is where computer forensics comes in, to treat/fix the hole and bring the culprit to justice. Therefore, where software security bring forth prevention, computer forensics, incidence response, calls for treatment. What exactly is computer forensics? It is a toolbox of science, which contains tools and methodologies to recover both passwor ds and deleted data, to analyze network traffic and logon/logoff times, to snoop and sniff out, as undercover agents do, rotten apples in the barrel. Due to the nature of each incident, the nature of the case may be legal, political, business, or technical oriented. Consequently, one could gather how much a computer means in people's lifestyles nowadays. Nevertheless, computer forensics team (aka: incident response team) are popping up around the world, due to the global nature of the internet, which makes it a lot harder for local law authorities to oversea and prosecute local crimes executed remotely outside the country.

Essay on Shirley Jacksons The Lottery - Blind Obedience Exposed

Blind Obedience Exposed in The Lottery    The annual ritualistic stoning of a villager in Shirley Jackson's "The Lottery" parallels tradition in American culture.   This paper will inform the reader of the effect tradition has on characters in the short story "The Lottery" and how traditions still strongly influence people's lives in america.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   Christian weddings hold many traditions and superstitions that seemingly defy logic.   Although most couples no longer have arranged marriages or dowries, fathers still give their daughters away during the services.   The bride and groom do not see each other before the ceremony, fearing that bad luck might come their way.   A friend scolded me because I had originally planned to marry at the top of the hour, and told me I should change it "just to be safe".   Society continues to hold these traditions and superstitions very dear because of cultural influences and the possibility of bad things happening.   In Shirley Jackson's short story "The Lottery", the annual ritualistic stoning of a villager parallels the traditions inherent in American culture.      Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚  Ã‚   The black box is a source symbol of tradition for the townspeople. The original box wore out many years ago, and a new box was built from pieces of the old.   This reflects customs in our own society.   For exam... ... time.   It is possible that they were simply afraid of what would happen to them if they changed or stopped the lottery.   Maybe they just went through the motions of the lottery without questioning why, or really giving it much thought.   Whatever the real reason, the tradition of the lottery continued.   I will also continue to uphold traditions at my wedding one-month from now when my father will give me away at half past the hour, and I will take great pains not to see my fiancà © before.      Work Cited: Jackson, Shirley.   "The Lottery."   Literature Reading, Reacting, Writing.   4th Ed. Ed. Camille Adkins. Orlando: Harcourt College Publishers, 2001. 315-322

Zoe’s Tale PART III Chapter Twenty-Three

Something was nudging me awake. I swatted at it. â€Å"Die,† I said. â€Å"Zoe,† Hickory said. â€Å"You have a visitor.† I blinked up at Hickory, who was framed as a silhouette by the light coming from the corridor. â€Å"What are you talking about?† I said. â€Å"General Gau,† Hickory said. â€Å"He is here. Now. And wishes to speak to you.† I sat up. â€Å"You have got to be kidding me,† I said. I picked up my PDA and looked at the time. We had arrived in Conclave space fourteen hours earlier, popping into existence a thousand klicks out from the space station that General Gau had made the administrative headquarters of the Conclave. He said he hadn't wanted to favor one planet over another. The space station was ringed with hundreds of ships from all over Conclave space, and even more shuttles and cargo transports, going between ships and back and forth from the station. Phoenix Station, the largest human space station and so big I've heard that it actually affected tides on the planet Phoenix (by amounts measurable only by sensitive instruments, but still), would have fit into a corner of the Conclave HQ. We had arrived and announced ourselves and sent an encrypted message to General Gau requesting an audience. We had been given parking coordinates and then willfully ignored. After ten hours of that, I finally went to sleep. â€Å"You know I do not kid,† Hickory said. It walked back to the doorway and turned up the lights in my stateroom. I winced. â€Å"Now, please,† Hickory said. â€Å"Come to meet him.† Five minutes later I was dressed in something I hoped would be presentable and walking somewhat unsteadily down the corridor. After a minute of walking I said, â€Å"Oh, crap,† and ran back to my stateroom, leaving Hickory standing in the corridor. A minute later I was back, bearing a shirt with something wrapped in it. â€Å"What is that?† Hickory asked. â€Å"A gift,† I said. We continued our trip through the corridor. A minute later I was standing in a hastily arranged conference room with General Gau. He stood to one side of a table surrounded by Obin-style seats, which were not really well designed either for his physiology or mine. I stood on the other, shirt in my hand. â€Å"I will wait outside,† Hickory said, after it delivered me. â€Å"Thank you, Hickory,† I said. It left. I turned and faced the general. â€Å"Hi,† I said, somewhat lamely. â€Å"You are Zoe,† General Gau said. â€Å"The human who has the Obin to do her bidding.† His words were in a language I didn't understand; they were translated through a communicator device that hung from his neck. â€Å"That's me,† I said. I heard my words translated into his language. â€Å"I am interested in how a human girl is able to commandeer an Obin transport ship to take her to see me,† General Gau said. â€Å"It's a long story,† I said. â€Å"Give me the short version,† Gau said. â€Å"My father created special machines that gave the Obin consciousness. The Obin revere me as the only surviving link to my father. They do what I ask them to,† I said. â€Å"It must be nice to have an entire race at your beck and call,† Gau said. â€Å"You should know,† I said. â€Å"You have four hundred races at yours. Sir.† General Gau did something with his head that I was going to hope was meant to be a smile. â€Å"That's a matter of some debate at this point, I'm afraid,† he said. â€Å"But I am confused. I was under the impression that you are the daughter of John Perry, administrator of the Roanoke Colony.† â€Å"I am,† I said. â€Å"He and his wife Jane Sagan adopted me after my father died. My birth mother had died some time before that. It is on my adopted parents' account that I am here now. Although I apologize† – I motioned to myself, and my state of unreadiness – â€Å"I didn't expect to meet you here, now. I thought we would come to you, and I would have time to prepare.† â€Å"When I heard that the Obin were ferrying a human to see me, and one from Roanoke, I was curious enough not to want to wait,† Gau said. â€Å"I also find value in making my opposition wonder what I am up to. My coming to visit an Obin ship rather than waiting to receive their embassy will make some wonder who you are, and what I know that they don't.† â€Å"I hope I'm worth the trip,† I said. â€Å"If you're not, I'll still have made them nervous,† Gau said. â€Å"But considering how far you've come, I hope for both our sakes the trip has been worth it. Are you completely dressed?† â€Å"What?† I said. Of the many questions I might have been expecting, this wasn't one of them. The general pointed to my hand. â€Å"You have a shirt in your hands,† he said. â€Å"Oh,† I said, and put the shirt on the table between us. â€Å"It's a gift. Not the shirt. There's something wrapped in the shirt. That's the gift. I was hoping to find something else to put it in before I gave it to you, but you sort of surprised me. I'm going to shut up now and let you just have that.† The general gave me what I think was a strange look, and then reached out and unwrapped what was in the shirt. It was the stone knife given to me by the werewolf. He held it up and examined it in the light. â€Å"This is a very interesting gift,† he said, and began moving it in his hand, testing it, I guessed, for weight and balance. â€Å"And quite a nicely designed knife.† â€Å"Thank you,† I said. â€Å"Not precisely modern weaponry,† he said. â€Å"No,† I said. â€Å"Figured that a general must have an interest in archaic weapons?† Gau asked. â€Å"Actually there's a story behind it,† I said. â€Å"There's a native race of intelligent beings on Roanoke. We didn't know about them before we landed. Not too long ago we met up with them for the first time, and things went badly. Some of them died, and some of us died. But then one of them and one of us met and decided not to try to kill each other, and exchanged gifts instead. That knife was one of those gifts. It's yours now.† â€Å"That's an interesting story,† Gau said. â€Å"And I think I'm correct in supposing that this story has some implication for why you're here.† â€Å"It's up to you, sir,† I said. â€Å"You might just decide it's a nice stone knife.† â€Å"I don't think so,† Gau said. â€Å"Administrator Perry is a man who plays with subtext. It's not lost on me what it means that he has sent his daughter to deliver a message. But then to offer this particular gift, with its particular story. He's a man of some subtlety.† â€Å"I think so, too,† I said. â€Å"But the knife is not from my dad. It's from me.† â€Å"Indeed,† Gau said, surprised. â€Å"That's even more interesting. Administrator Perry didn't suggest it?† â€Å"He doesn't know I had the knife,† I said. â€Å"And he doesn't know how I got it.† â€Å"But you did intend to send me a message with it,† Gau said. â€Å"One to complement your adopted father's.† â€Å"I hoped you'd see it that way,† I said. Gau set the knife down. â€Å"Tell me what Administrator Perry has to tell me,† he said. â€Å"You're going to be assassinated,† I said. â€Å"Someone is going to try, anyway. It's someone close to you. Someone in your trusted circle of advisors. Dad doesn't know when or how, but he knows that it's planned to happen soon. He wanted you to know so you could protect yourself.† â€Å"Why?† General Gau asked. â€Å"Your adopted father is an official of the Colonial Union. He was part of the plan that destroyed the Conclave fleet and has threatened everything I have worked for, for longer than you have been alive, young human. Why should I trust the word of my enemy?† â€Å"The Colonial Union is your enemy, not my dad,† I said. â€Å"Your dad helped kill tens of thousands,† Gau said. â€Å"Every ship in my fleet was destroyed but my own.† â€Å"He begged you not to call your ships to Roanoke,† I said. â€Å"This was a place where he was all too subtle,† Gau said. â€Å"He never explained how the trap had been set. He merely asked me not to call my fleet. A little more information would have kept thousands alive.† â€Å"He did what he could,† I said. â€Å"You were there to destroy our colony. He wasn't allowed to surrender it to you. You know he didn't have many options. And as it was he was recalled by the Colonial Union and put on trial for even hinting to you that something might happen. He could have been sent to prison for the simple act of speaking to you, General. He did what he could.† â€Å"How do I know he's not just being used again?† Gau asked. â€Å"You said you knew what it meant that he sent me to give you a message,† I said. â€Å"I'm the proof that he's telling you the truth.† â€Å"You're the proof he believes he's telling me the truth,† Gau said. â€Å"It's not to say that it is the truth. Your adopted father was used once. Why couldn't he be used again?† I flared at this. â€Å"Begging your pardon, General,† I said. â€Å"But you should know that by sending me to send you this warning, both my dad and my mom are absolutely assured of being labeled as traitors by the Colonial Union. They are both going to prison. You should know that as part of the deal to get the Obin to bring me to you, I can't go back to Roanoke. I have to stay with them. Because they believe that it's only a matter of time before Roanoke is destroyed, if not by you then by some part of the Conclave you don't have any control over anymore. My parents and I have risked everything to give you this warning. It's possible I'll never see them or anyone else on Roanoke again, because I am giving you this warning. Now, General, do you think any of us would do any of this if we were not absolutely certain about what we are telling you? Do you?† General Gau said nothing for a moment. Then, â€Å"I am sorry you have all had to risk so much,† he said. â€Å"Then do my dad the honor of believing him,† I said. â€Å"You're in danger, General. And that danger is closer than you think.† â€Å"Tell me, Zoe,† Gau said, â€Å"what does Administrator Perry hope to get from telling me this? What does he want from me?† â€Å"He wants you to stay alive,† I said. â€Å"You promised him that as long as you were running the Conclave, you wouldn't attack Roanoke again. The longer you stay alive, the longer we stay alive.† â€Å"But there's the irony,† Gau said. â€Å"Thanks to what happened at Roanoke, I'm not in as much control as I was. My time now is spent keeping others in line. And there are those who are looking at Roanoke as a way to take control from me. I'm sure you don't know about Nerbros Eser – â€Å" â€Å"Sure I do,† I said. â€Å"Your main opposition right now. He's trying to convince people to follow him. Wants to destroy the Colonial Union.† â€Å"I apologize,† Gau said. â€Å"I forgot you're not just a messenger girl.† â€Å"It's all right,† I said. â€Å"Nerbros Eser is planning to attack Roanoke,† Gau said. â€Å"I have been getting the Conclave back under my control – too slowly – but enough races support Eser that he has been able to fund an expedition to take Roanoke. He knows the Colonial Union is too weak to put up a defense of the colony, and he knows that at the moment I am in no position to stop him. If he can take Roanoke where I could not, more Conclave races could side with him. Enough that they would attack the Colonial Union directly.† â€Å"You can't help us, then,† I said. â€Å"Other than to tell you what I just have, no,† Gau said. â€Å"Eser is going to attack Roanoke. But in part because Administrator Perry helped to destroy my fleet, there is no way I can do much to stop him now. And I doubt very much that your Colonial Union will do much to stop him.† â€Å"Why do you say that?† I asked. â€Å"Because you are here,† General Gau said. â€Å"Make no mistake, Zoe, I do appreciate your family's warning. But Administrator Perry is not so kind that he would have warned me out of his own simple goodness. As you've noted, the cost is too high for that. You are here because you have nowhere else to turn.† â€Å"But you believe Dad,† I said. â€Å"Yes,† Gau said. â€Å"Unfortunately. Someone in my position is always a target. But now of all times I know that even some of those who I've trusted with my life and friendship are calculating the costs and deciding that I'm worth more to them dead than alive. And it makes sense for someone to try for me before Eser attacks Roanoke. If I'm dead and Eser takes revenge on your colony, no one else will even try to challenge him for control of the Conclave. Administrator Perry isn't telling me anything I don't know. He's only confirming what I do know.† â€Å"Then I've been no use to you,† I said. And you've been no use to me, I thought but did not say. â€Å"I wouldn't say that,† Gau said. â€Å"One of the reasons I am here now is so that I could hear what you had to say to me without anyone else involved. To find out what I could do with the information you might have. To see if it has use to me. To see if you are of use to me.† â€Å"You already knew what I told you,† I said. â€Å"This is true,† Gau said. â€Å"However, no one else knows how much you know. Not here, in any event.† He reached over and picked up the stone knife and looked at it again. â€Å"And the truth of the matter is that I'm getting tired of not knowing, of those whom I trust, which is planning to stab me in the heart. Whoever is planning to assassinate me is going to be in league with Nerbros Eser. They are likely to know when he plans to attack Roanoke, and with how large a force. And perhaps working together we can find out both of these things.† â€Å"How?† I asked. General Gau looked at me again, and did that I-hope-it's-a-smile thing with his head. â€Å"By doing a bit of political theater. By making them think we know what they do. By making them act because of it.† I smiled back at Gau. â€Å"‘The play is the thing in which I shall catch the conscience of the king,'† I said. â€Å"Precisely,† Gau said. â€Å"Although it will be a traitor we catch, not a king.† â€Å"In that quote he was both,† I said. â€Å"Interesting,† Gau said. â€Å"I'm afraid I don't know the reference.† â€Å"It's from a play called Hamlet,† I said. â€Å"I had a friend who liked the playwright.† â€Å"I like the quote,† Gau said. â€Å"And your friend.† â€Å"Thanks,† I said. â€Å"I do too.† â€Å"One of you in this chamber is a traitor,† General Gau said. â€Å"And I know which one of you it is.† Wow, I thought. The general sure knows how to start a meeting. We were in the general's official advisors' chamber, an ornate room, which, the general told me beforehand, he never used except to receive foreign dignitaries with some semblance of pomp and circumstance. Since he was technically receiving me for this particular meeting, I felt special. But more to the point, the room featured a small raised platform with steps, on which sat a large chair. Dignitaries, advisors and their staff all approached it like it was a throne. This was going to be useful for what General Gau had in mind for today. In front of the platform, the room opened up into a semicircle. Around the perimeter stood a curving bar, largely of standing height for most sentient species in the Conclave. This is where advisors' and dignitaries' staff stood, calling up documents and data when needed and whispering (or whatever) into small microphones that fed into earpieces (or whatever) worn by their bosses. Their bosses – the advisors and dignitaries – filed into the area between the bar and the platform. Usually, I was told, they would have benches or chairs (or whatever suited their body shape best) offered to them so they could rest as they did their business. Today, they were all standing. As for me, I was standing to the left and just in front of the general, who was seated in his big chair. On the opposite side of the chair was a small table, on which lay the stone knife, which I had just (and for the second time) presented to the general. This time it was delivered in packaging more formal than a shirt. The general had taken it out of the box I had found, admired it, and set it on the table. Back along with the staff stood Hickory and Dickory, who were not happy with the plan the general had come up with. With them were three of the general's security detail, who were likewise not very pleased at all. Well, now that we were doing it, I'm not sure I was entirely thrilled with it either. â€Å"I thought we were here to hear a request from this young human,† said one of the advisors, a tall Lalan (that is, tall even for a Lalan) named Hafte Sorvalh. Her voice was translated by the earpiece I had been given by the Obin. â€Å"It was a pretense,† Gau said. â€Å"The human has no petition, but information pertaining to which one of you intends to assassinate me.† This naturally got a stir in the chamber. â€Å"It is a human!† said Wert Ninung, a Dwaer. â€Å"No disrespect, General, but the humans recently destroyed the entire Conclave fleet. Any information they would share with you should be regarded as highly suspect, to say the least.† â€Å"I agree with this entirely, Ninung,† Gau said. â€Å"Which is why when it was provided to me I did what any sensible person would have done and had my security people check the information thoroughly. I regret to say that the information was good. And now I must deal with the fact that one of my advisors – someone who was privy to all my plans for the Conclave – has conspired against me.† â€Å"I don't understand,† said a Ghlagh whose name, if I could remember correctly, was Lernin Il. I wasn't entirely sure, however; Gau's security people had given me dossiers on Gau's circle of advisors only a few hours before the meeting, and given everything else I needed to do to prepare, I had barely had time to skim. â€Å"What don't you understand, Lernin?† asked General Gau. â€Å"If you know which of us is the traitor, why hasn't your security detail already dealt with them?† Il asked. â€Å"This could be done without exposing you to an unnecessary risk. Given your position you don't need to take any more risks than are absolutely necessary.† â€Å"We are not talking about some random killer, Il,† the general said. â€Å"Look around you. How long have we known each other? How hard have each of us worked to create this great Conclave of races? We have seen more of each other over time than we have seen of our spouses and children. Would any of you have accepted it if I were to make one of you disappear over a vague charge of treason? Would that not seem to each of you that I was losing my grip and creating scapegoats? No, Il. We have come too far and done too much for that. Even this would-be assassin deserves better courtesy than that.† â€Å"What do you intend to do, then?† asked Il. â€Å"I will ask the traitor in this room to come forward,† he said. â€Å"It's not too late to right this wrong.† â€Å"Are you offering this assassin amnesty?† asked some creature whose name I just did not remember (or, given how it spoke, I suspect I could not actually pronounce, even if I did remember it). â€Å"No,† Gau said. â€Å"This person is not acting alone. They are part of a conspiracy that threatens what all of us have worked for.† Gau gestured to me. â€Å"My human friend here has given me a few names, but that is not enough. For the security of the Conclave we need to know more. And to show all the members of the Conclave that treason cannot be tolerated, my assassin must answer for what they have done to this point. What I do offer is this: That they will be treated fairly and with dignity. That they will serve their term of punishment with some measure of comfort. That their family and loved ones will not be punished or held responsible, unless they themselves are conspirators. And that their crime will not be made known publicly. Every one outside this room will know only that this conspirator has retired from service. There will be punishment. There must be punishment. But there will not be the punishment of history.† â€Å"I want to know where this human got its information,† said Wert Ninung. Gau nodded to me. â€Å"This information ultimately comes from the Colonial Union's Special Forces division,† I said. â€Å"The same group that spearheaded the destruction of the Conclave fleet,† Wert said. â€Å"Not especially trustworthy.† â€Å"Councilor Wert,† I said, â€Å"how do you think the Special Forces were able to locate every one of the ships of your fleet? The only time it assembles is when it removes a colony. Locating four hundred ships among the tens of thousands that each race alone has at its disposal was an unheard of feat of military intelligence. After that, do you doubt that the Special Forces had difficulty coming up with a single name?† Wert actually growled at me. I thought that was rude. â€Å"I have already told you that I have had the information checked out,† General Gau said. â€Å"There is no doubt it is accurate. That is not under discussion. What is under discussion is how the assassin will choose to be discovered. I repeat: The assassin is in this room, right now, among us. If they will come forward now, and share information on their other conspirators, their treatment will be generous, light and secret. The offer is in front of you now. I beg you, as an old friend, to take it. Come forward now.† No one in the room moved. General Gau stared at each of his advisors, directly and in the eye, for several seconds each. None of them took so much as a step forward. â€Å"Very well,† General Gau said. â€Å"We do this the hard way, then.† â€Å"What will you do now, General?† asked Sorvalh. â€Å"Simple,† Gau said. â€Å"I will call up each of you in turn. You will bow to me and swear your allegiance to me as the leader of the Conclave. Those of you who I know are truthful, I will offer you my thanks. The one of you who is a traitor, I will reveal you in front of those you have worked alongside for so long, and have you arrested. Your punishment will be severe. And it will be most definitely public. And it will end with your death.† â€Å"This is not like you, General,† Sorvalh said. â€Å"You created the Conclave with the idea that there would be no dictators, no demands of personal allegiance. There is only allegiance to the Conclave. To its ideals.† â€Å"The Conclave is near collapse, Hafte,† Gau said. â€Å"And you know as well as I do that Nerbros Eser and his sort will run the Conclave like a personal fiefdom. One among you has already decided that Eser's dictatorship is preferable to a Conclave where every race has a voice. It's clear to me that I must ask for the allegiance I once only held in trust. I am sorry it has come to this. But it has.† â€Å"What if we will not swear allegiance?† Sorvalh said. â€Å"Then you will be arrested as a traitor,† Gau said. â€Å"Along with the one who I know to be the assassin.† â€Å"You are wrong to do this,† Sorvalh said. â€Å"You are going against your own vision for the Conclave to ask for this allegiance. I want you to know I believe this in my soul.† â€Å"Noted,† Gau said. â€Å"Very well,† Sorvalh said, and stepped forward to the platform and knelt. â€Å"General Tarsem Gau, I offer you my allegiance as the leader of the Conclave.† Gau looked at me. This was my cue. I shook my head at him, clearly enough that everyone in the room could see that he was waiting for my verification. â€Å"Thank you, Hafte,† Gau said. â€Å"You may step back. Wert Ninung, please step forward.† Ninung did. As did the next six advisors. There were three left. I was beginning to get very nervous. Gau and I had already agreed that we would not carry the act so far as to accuse someone who wasn't actually guilty. But if we got to the end without a traitor, then we both would have a lot to answer for. â€Å"Lernin Il,† General Gau said. â€Å"Please step forward.† Il nodded and smoothly moved forward and when he got to me, viciously shoved me to the floor and lunged for the stone knife Gau had left on the table next to him. I hit the floor so hard I bounced my skull on it. I heard screaming and honks of alarm from the other advisors. I rolled and looked up as Il raised the knife and prepared to plunge it into the general. The knife was left out and within easy reach for a reason. Gau had already said he intended to reveal the traitor; he said he knew without a doubt who it was; he said the punishment for the traitor would include death. The traitor would already be convinced he would have nothing to lose by attempting the assassination then and there. But Gau's advisors didn't usually carry around killing implements on their person; they were bureaucrats and didn't carry anything more dangerous than a writing stylus. But a nice sharp stone knife carelessly left lying around would be just the thing to convince a desperate would-be assassin to take a chance. This was also one reason why the general's guards (and Hickory and Dickory) were stationed at the perimeter of the room instead of near the general; we had to give the illusion to the assassin that he could get in a stab or two before the guards got him. The general wasn't stupid, of course; he was wearing body armor that protected most of the parts of his body susceptible to stab wounds. But the general's head and neck were still vulnerable. The general thought it was worth the risk, but now as I watched the general trying to move to protect himself, I came to the conclusion that the weakest part of our plan was the one where the general presumably avoids being stabbed to death. Il was bringing down the knife. None of the general's guards or Hickory or Dickory was going to get there in time. Hickory and Dickory had trained me how to disarm an opponent; the problem was I was on the ground and not in any position to block the knife blow. And anyway the Ghlagh were a Conclave race; I hadn't spent any time learning any of their weak points. But then something occurred to me, as I lay there on my back, staring up at Il. I may not know much about the Ghlagh, but I sure know what a knee looks like. I braced myself on the floor, pushed, and drove the heel of my foot hard into the side of Lernin Il's most available knee. It gave way with a sickly twist and I thought I could feel something in his leg go snap, which made me feel sick. Il squealed in pain and grabbed at his leg, dropping the knife. I scrambled away as quickly as I could. General Gau launched himself out of his chair and took Il all the rest of the way down. Hickory and Dickory were suddenly by me, dragging me off the riser. Gau shouted something to his guards, who were racing toward the general. â€Å"His staff!† Gau said. â€Å"Stop his staff!† I looked over to the bar and saw three Ghlagh lunging at their equipment. Il's people were clearly in on the assassination and were now trying to signal their conspirators that they'd been discovered. Gau's men skidded to a stop and reversed themselves, leaping over the bar to get at Il's staff. They knocked away their equipment, but not before at least one of them had gotten a message through. We knew that because all through the Conclave headquarters, alarms began stuttering to life. The space station was under attack. About a minute after Il had made his clumsy attack on General Gau, an Impo battle cruiser named the Farre launched six missiles into the portion of the Conclave space station where Gau's offices were. The Farre was commanded by an Impo named Ealt Ruml. Ruml, it turns out, had reached an agreement with Nerbros Eser and Lernin Il to take command of a new Conclave fleet after Gau was assassinated. Ruml would then take the entire fleet to Phoenix Station, destroy it and start working down the list of human worlds. In exchange all Ruml had to do was be prepared to do a little flagrant bombing of Gau's offices and flagship when signaled, as part of a larger, orchestrated coup attempt, which would feature Gau's assassination as the main event and the destruction of key battle ships from races loyal to Gau. When Gau revealed to his advisors that he knew one of them was a traitor, one of Il's staffers sent a coded message to Ruml, informing him that everything was about to go sideways. Ruml in turn sent coded messages of his own to three other battle cruisers near the Conclave station, each captained by someone Ruml had converted to the cause. All four ships began warming up their weapons systems and selecting targets: Ruml targeted Gau's offices while the other traitors targeted Gau's flagship Gentle Star and other craft. If everything went as planned, Ruml and his conspirators would have disabled the ships most likely to come to Gau's aid – not that it would matter, because Ruml would have opened up Gau's offices to space, sucking anyone in them (including, at the time, me) into cold, airless vacuum. Minutes later, when Il's staff sent a confirmation note just before getting their equipment kicked out of their paws, Ruml launched his missiles and readied another set to go. And was, I imagine, entirely surprised when the Farre was struck broadside almost simultaneously by three missiles fired from the Gentle Star. The Star and six other trusted ships had been put on alert by Gau to watch for any ships that began warming up their weapons systems. The Star had spotted the Farre warming up its missile batteries and had quietly targeted the ship and prepared its own defense. Gau had forbidden any action until someone else's missiles flew, but the instant the Farre launched, the Star did the same, and then began antimissile defenses against the two missiles targeting it, sent by the Arrisian cruiser Vut-Roy. The Star destroyed one of the missiles and took light damage from the second. The Farre, which had not been expecting a counterattack, took heavy damage from the Star's missiles and even more damage when its engine ruptured, destroying half of the ship and killing hundreds on board, including Ealt Ruml and his bridge crew. Five of the six missiles fired by the Farre were disabled by the space station's defenses; the sixth hit the station, blowing a hole in the station compartment next to Gau's offices. The station's system of airtight doors sealed off the damage in minutes; forty-four people were killed. All of this happened in the space of less than two minutes, because the battle happened at incredibly close range. Unlike space battles in entertainment shows, real battles between spaceships take place over huge distances. In this battle, however, all the ships were in orbit around the station. Some of the ships involved were just a few klicks away from each other. That's pretty much the starship equivalent of going after each other with knives. Or so I'm told. I'm going by what others tell me of the battle, because at the time what I was doing was being dragged out of General Gau's advisor chamber by Hickory and Dickory. The last thing I saw was Gau pinning down Lernin Il while at the same time trying to keep his other advisors from beating the living crap out of him. There was too much noise for my translation device to work anymore, but I suspected that Gau was trying to tell the rest of them that he needed Il alive. What can you say. No one likes a traitor. I'm also told that the battle outside of the space station would have gone on longer than it did except that shortly after the first salvo of missiles a funny thing happened: An Obin cruiser skipped into existence unsettlingly close to the Conclave space station, setting off a series of proximity alarms to go with the attack alarms already in progress. That was unusual, but what really got everyone's attention was the other ships that appeared about thirty seconds afterward. It took the station a few minutes to identify these. And at that point everyone who had been fighting each other realized they now had something bigger to worry about. I didn't know about any of this right away. Hickory and Dickory had dragged me to the conference room some distance away from the advisor chamber and were keeping it secure when the alarms suddenly stopped. â€Å"Well, I finally used that training,† I said, to Hickory. I was amped up on leftover adrenaline from the assassination attempt and paced up and down in the room. Hickory said nothing to this and continued to scan the corridor for threats. I sighed and waited until it signaled that it was safe to move. Ten minutes later, Hickory clicked something to Dickory, who went to the door. Hickory went into the corridor and out of sight. Shortly after that I heard what sounded like Hickory arguing with someone. Hickory returned, followed by six very serious-looking guards and General Gau. â€Å"What happened?† I asked. â€Å"Are you okay?† â€Å"What do you have to do with the Consu?† General Gau asked me, ignoring my question. â€Å"The Consu?† I said. â€Å"Nothing. I had asked the Obin to try to contact them on my behalf, to see if they could help me save Roanoke. That was a few days ago. I haven't heard from the Obin about it since.† â€Å"I think you have an answer,† Gau said. â€Å"They're here. And they're asking to see you.† â€Å"There's a Consu ship here now?† I said. â€Å"Actually, the Consu asking for you is on an Obin ship,† Gau said. â€Å"Which doesn't make any sense to me at all, but never mind that. There were Consu ships following the Obin ship.† â€Å"Ships,† I said. â€Å"How many?† â€Å"So far?† Gau said. â€Å"About six hundred.† â€Å"Excuse me?† I said. My adrenaline spiked again. â€Å"There are still more coming in,† Gau said. â€Å"Please don't take this the wrong way, Zoe, but if you've done something to anger the Consu, I hope they choose to take it out on you, not us.† I turned and looked at Hickory, disbelieving. â€Å"You said you required help,† Hickory said.

Pre Ap World History Chapter 3 Vocabulary

Pre-AP World History Chapter 3 Vocabulary 1. Yellow and Yangtze Rivers-contained many agricultural settlements, were river valleys 2. Gobi Desert-in northwest China, blocking off invaders from the north and northwest 3. Tibetan Plateau-north of the Himilayan Mountains, protected the west from invasion 4. Yangshao and Longshan cultures-identified as the painted and black pottery cultures 5. Xia Dynasty-started around 4000 years ago, leader Yu introduced irrigation and draining 6. Shang Dynasty-afterthe Xia in the 16th century B. C. E. , oracle bones found in Anyang 7.Anyang-capital of the Shang Dynasty, oracle bones were dug up revealing early writing 8. Xinjiang corpses-from 2000 B. C. E. , clearly European, revealing migration eastward 9. oracle bones- turtle shells that had Chinese writing on one side, and scratchs from gods 10. Shang bronzes-utensils,weapons,ritual objects were made from bronze casting 11. well field system-8 families cultivated their own plot and worked together on the 9th plot 12. Zhou Dynasty-2 capital cities for a more extensive bureaucracy, territories w/ govenors 13. silk-found on bronzes and in tombs, used for clothing and wrapping the dead 14.Silk Road-a travel route from China westward, trading mostly silk 15. Mandate of Heaven-the right to rule from the gods, a dynasty can lose and gain M. O. H. 16. Rites of Zhou-one of the oldest surviving documents, stating that Zhou ruled bc of MOH 17. yin and yang-interacting, opposing forces in nature, always should be in balance *18. Yi Jing/Book of Changes- 19. Confucius-the lader of Confucianism, belief in 5 key relationships and filial piety 20. The Analects-written by Confucius' disciples on the sayings and ideas relating to him 21. Mencius-(370-290 BCE) a philosopher who stressed the humanistic side of Confucianism 22.Legalism-humans were evil by nature, and had to have harsh laws and strict punishments *23. Way of Great Learning- 24. Lao Tzu-founder of Daoism, â€Å"Old Master† 2 5. Daoism-based on forces in nature, which needed to be balanced (yin and yang) 26. Dao de Jing-primary document which makes original concepts a bit difficult to understand 27. wu wei-to interpret the will of Heaven is not action but INACTION 28. Period of Warring States-the period between 2 dynasties; one losing power, one gaining it 29. Qin Dynasty-(221-206 BCE)legalism, strict censorship,standardized weights;measures 30.Qin Shi Huangdi-first emperor of Qin, rose to throne at age 13 in 246 BCE, Li Su is advisor 31. Xianyang-the capital where aristocratic clans were forced to live, so court could monitor *32. Sima Qian- 33. Xiongnu-northern nomads who posed the threat of invading(possibly related to Huns) 34. Great Wall-a costly project to keep invaders out from the North, slowed but not stopped 35. Han Dynasty-(202 BCE-221 CE)founded by Liu Bang, dictorial gov't and civil service exams 36. eunuchs- males who had their testicles removed (castrated) 37. Liu Bang-founder of the Han d ynasty 38. tate Confucianism-Confucian doctrine combined with Legalist practice 39. civil service exam-tests administered to workers in the bureaucracy to see if they qualify *40. Han Wudi- *41. Wang Mang-reformist official who seized power 42. Chang'an-the capital of the Han Empire in China 43. filial piety-respect for one's parents and elders in society 44. Bao-jia system-forming a group of families for excersizing mutual control and surveillance 45. Xian's terracotta army- terracotta soldiers to protect the first emperor of Qin's tomb 46. Book of Songs and Song of the South-a book of about 300 poems written during the early Zhou dynasty