Kevin L. O'Brien's Blog: Songs of the Seanchaí, page 42

Interview with Giovanna Mencia Borgia

In honor of her introduction in The Christmas Vampires, here is an interview with Team Girl's vampire BFF, Giovanna Mencia Borgia.

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•What is your full name?
Giovanna Mencia Borgia

•How old are you?
I was born in 1504, so I am over 500 years old, but I only look about 23, which was my age when I was turned into a vampire.

•Date of birth?
June 13

•Place of birth?
Atina, Italy

•Current Address?
Denver, Colorado

•How many brothers/sisters do you have? Older? Younger?
I was an only child by my mother Sancha of Aragon, but I have four half-siblings by my stepmother Maria de Mila.

•Which one are you closest to?
They are all dead now. In any real sense, Sunny and Eile are my sisters now, and I am close to both, though I suppose I am closest to Sunny.

•What is your overall health like?
Excellent, for a vampire.

•What type of personality do you have?
That is hard to say, since the vampiric parasites subdued whatever personality I had while human. I am also far more mature than the average human. However, the girls have reawakened my girly side.

•Zodiac sign?
Gemini, which oddly fits, since I am a human infested with the vampiric parasite, so I am like two people at once.

•Chinese zodiac sign?
Horse, whatever that is suppose to mean.

•Lives with?
I live alone, with no vampiric companion or human pet.

•Marital status?
Single, never married, though I have taken lovers on occasion.

•Ethnic background?
Italian, though if you go back far enough you will find a mix of Germanic, Frankish, and Roman ancestry.

•Preferred nickname?
None

•Current occupation?
You mean, besides being a vampire? Entrepreneur, and former spy.

•Dream occupation?
If I were human in this modern world, I might have been a doctor or scientist.

•Occupation you find the most revolting and would never do?
Housewife

•Religion raised as by parents?
Roman Catholic; my grandfather was Pope Alexander VI.

•Religion now conforms to?
Protestant, but no particular denomination. I found it...difficult to take communion so often.

•Political affiliation(s)?
I am a democratist and a libertarian, somewhat conservative. Mostly, however, I define my politics by what I oppose: I am anti-Fascist, anti-Communist, anti-radical, and anti-reactionary.

•Type of education received?
University; I have the knowledge base to qualify for a dozen doctorate degrees in philosophy, the Classics, the sciences, medicine, and law, but I have never been formally awarded with any.

•Hometown?
I grew up in Atina, then moved to Ferrara; currently I live in Denver and have since the Eighties. But as a vampire, I never stayed too long in any one place.

•Have/want children?
I never had children while human, and as a vampire I am barren, but considering how much I loathe the idea of being simply a wife and mother, I have always wanted a child. That is probably why I am so close to Connie and Liza, Team Girl' daughters.

•Have/want pets?
Animals instinctively fear me. I could take a human pet, but I have never felt the need, and the girls now fulfill all my desires for companionship.

•What do you like to do in your spare time?
I read and study, listen to music, watch movies. I particularly enjoy working with ceramics and glass. I also go clubbing with the Girls.

•How many hobbies do you have?
I suppose about a half-dozen I am really dedicated to.

•Are these hobbies old (from childhood) or new?
Clubbing with the girls is new; the rest I started doing as a child or picked up over the years.

•Do the hobbies take up a lot of time or cost a lot of money?
They cost as little or as much time and money as I care to spend.

•Do you follow through on your hobbies or do you start a lot of projects and never finish any of them?
I have had most of these of these hobbies for centuries, and I always finish what I start.

•What do you like? Enjoy? Love?
I love learning and the night. I enjoy my time with the Girls. And with my new-found powers, taught to me by Dracula, I am learning to appreciate the day again.

•What do you dislike? Hate? Loath?
Garlic; that stuff is like nerve gas to us vampires. Also, I do not like hunting for blood anymore, but I will do it if I have to. I never could stomach animal blood. And I really hate male chauvinists.

•If I were a month, I would be
[grins] October, naturally.

•If I were a day of the week, I would be
Before I met the girls, I would have said Monday; now I would say Saturday.

•If I were a time of day, I would be
Midnight

•If I were a planet, I would be
Io

•If I were a sea animal, I would be
A shark

•If I were a direction, I would be
All over the map

•If I were a historical figure, I would be
My grandfather, Pope Alexander VI

•If I were a liquid, I would be
Blood

•If I were a bird I would be
A shrike

•If I were a cat I would be
Hmm, not sure; maybe a Siamese

•If I were a dog I would be
A wolfhound

•If I were a tree, I would be
An ancient oak fed with the blood of Druid sacrifices.

•If I were a tool, I would
A Blackberry

•If I were a flower, I would be
Monk's Hood

•If I were a type of weather, I would be
A tornado

•If I were an animal, I would be
[laughs] A bat!

•If I were a season I would be
A tempestuous Spring

•If I were a holiday I would be
[grins] Hallowe'en

•If I were a color, I would be
Blood red and midnight blue

•If I were an emotion, I would be
Terror

•If I were a sound, I would be
The beating of your heart in your ears from mortal dread.

•If I were an element, I would be
Fire

•If I were a car, I would be
A Ferrari P4/5

•If I were a food, I would be
Blood sausage

•If I were a place, I would be
Transylvania

•If I were a body of water I would be
The Red Sea

•If I were a song I would be
The Mephisto Waltz

•If I were a book I would be
[chuckles] Dracula's Daughter

•If I were a gemstone I would be
A bloodstone or a bloody ruby

•If I were a metal I would be
Tungsten

•If I were a word, I would be
Hunger!

•What is your worst/greatest fear?
Garlic; superstition; wooden stakes

•Are you afraid of the dark?
No, I love the dark.

•Do you fear spiders?
As a matter of fact, I do think they are kind of creepy.

•Who do you fear the most?
Any vampire more powerful than myself. Oh, and amateur vampire hunters.

•What one event had the biggest impact on the fears you have today?
When I was turned into a vampire.

•Do you think you could ever overcome your fears?
Most of my fears are based on practical concerns, so no. As for the rest, I get by as best I can, as we all do.

•Do you sleep with the light on?
I do not actually sleep, but no.

•Do you faint at the sight of blood?
[chuckles] Well, if I did, I would starve to death.

•Was there someone whose life, perception of the world, or beliefs affected what you fear today?
Dracula, he turned me; and Lucas Cornelia, he taught me to be a vampire. Finally, the Girls, who made me realize just how lonely I really was.

•Who scares you more: God or Satan?
God; He can send me to Hell.

•Are you afraid to die?
We are all afraid to die, in one form or another. For myself, my fear has more to do with where I will go after death. I am still a Catholic girl at heart.

•What fear do you have that hampers part of your life to the extent that you really wish you could put an end to this fear?
Before I met the Girls, I would have said daylight; now I would say loneliness.

Medb hErenn as Noble Savage

A reader wrote to inform me that he believed Medb hErenn, and in fact any Iron Age Irish Celt, could be considered a Noble Savage. Intrigued by the suggestion, I did some research, but I have come to the conclusion that this is probably incorrect.

The term 'noble savage' was used by Romantic Primitivism to indicate an individual unspoiled by civilization, who had virtue and honor despite being untamed. In fact, the word 'savage' in this context did not mean bloodthirsty and cruel, but simply wild, as in a wild flower. Other terms often used for this person was 'nature's gentleman' and 'good savage'.

Though the concept can be traced as far back as the Roman historian Tacitus in the first century C.E., the term did not come into widespread use until the nineteenth century, when the figure of the Noble Savage became a stock character like the Virtuous Milkmaid and the Wise Chinaman. These characters share one characteristic in common: that the low-born can be more virtuous than their social betters. In fact, for much of its history, the concept of the Noble Savage was used to attack the idea that civilization was a benefit to mankind. The claim was that mankind had been corrupted by civilization, and that so-called civilized people were in fact far more barbaric and savage (in the sense of cruelty) than any wild man. It is therefore ironic that in the latter half of the twentieth century, the term Noble Savage came to be used as a derogatory term to criticize anyone who tried to present uncivilized people in a positive light. This was done by apologists for colonialism and scientific racism, but in time even professional anthropologists would use it to discredit and intimidate colleagues who questioned the prevailing belief that uncivilized cultures were inherently inferior.

To determine if Medb is a Noble Savage, however, we have to compare her characterization with the attributes of Romantic Primitivism:

Living in Harmony with Nature -- While this is open to interpretation, in the context of the Noble Savage this means living in the wild like an animal. He can still have shelter, clothes, and tools, but he does not take more than he needs, and he gives back as much as he takes. Though Medb has lived this way, this is not her style. She does not see harmony in nature, only a balance created by the fact that no living thing other than man has the intelligence or technology to fully exploit resources without consequences. She knows that when animals can, they will eat themselves out of house and home, and pollute their environment with their own waste. The only difference being that their population will crash as a result and restore the balance. Only man can exceed his resource base by using technology, and she sees nothing wrong with that. In fact, she would rather live in civilized comfort than in a pristine natural setting.

Generosity and Selflessness -- The idea here is that man is by nature generous and selfless, from birth, and that it is civilization which corrupts him and turns him greedy and selfish. Medb believes this view is ludicrous. She believes people are born amoral, and need to be taught right and wrong. This is done by instilling a sense of honor in a person, which can be done to wild men and civilized men alike. Medb acknowledges that she is selfish, but her code of personal honor requires that she be generous and selfless under certain circumstances.

Innocence -- This means free of sin. The Noble Savage can be violent, and can steal and kill, but does not murder or rape, and he is free of the vices of greed, envy, cowardice, hate, prejudice, sloth, lust, pride, etc. Once again, it is civilization that corrupts people and tempts them to these major sins. Medb also considers this ridiculous. She believes that anyone can be corrupted by anything, that it takes will to resist temptation, and that the presence or absence of civilization has no bearing on the ability to resist.

Inability to Lie, Fidelity -- Again, the idea is that the Noble Savage doesn't know how to lie or be disloyal, until he is taught by civilized man to do so. And again, Medb believes this to be false. She has found that all people can lie, and that all people know when they lie. At best, some people may not know lying is unacceptable, but they still know when they do not tell the truth, and they can tell when doing so hurts someone else. The same is true for disloyalty.

Physical Health -- The assumption here is that wild men are inherently healthier than civilized men, because they must be continually active and they live in a cleaner environment. Medb, however, believes that this is a matter of semantics. Wild men may be stronger and fitter, but they don't live as long, and they are more prone to accidents and disease. Civilized men may be exposed to pollution and are less active, but they also have access to more and better food, better shelter, better clothes, and medicine. Both lifestyles have trade offs that only technology can alleviate.

Disdain of Luxury -- This belief came about because wild men did not appear to possess the luxuries that civilized men had, and it was assumed they didn't want them, otherwise they would make them. Yet it is Medb's experience that wild men love luxury just as much as civilized men if not more, and they will go to great lengths to acquire as much as they can when the opportunity presents itself. And she would note that all austerity philosophies were invented by civilized men.

Moral Courage -- As before, the belief is that, being uncorrupted by civilization, the Noble Savage is a more moral person, and more willing to act in a correct moral fashion. Medb, however, has encountered moral and immoral wild and civilized men, and sees morality as a feature of the human heart, not lifestyle.

"Natural" Intelligence or Innate, Untutored Wisdom -- Finally, this belief stems from the assumption that formal eduction, being an aspect of civilization, can actually degrade native intelligence and wisdom. Medb understands that intelligence is a complex phenomenon, with natural and cultural aspects that must be melded together properly for someone to be truly intelligent. While she accepts that people can be born with enhanced natural aspects and that wisdom comes in part from experience, she also believes that knowledge is power, and takes every opportunity to learn as much as she can about any subject.

The conclusion would be that, while Medb does possess characteristics that are attributes of Romantic Primitivism -- generosity, truthfulness, physical health, and moral courage -- they stem from a completely different source than that of the Noble Savage, and other characteristics, such as her selfishness, avarice, deceitfulness, and love of comfort, put her at odds with the classical picture of the Noble Savage.

Next eBook: Gourmand Hag

The next story in my schedule to be published through Smashwords will be:

Gourmand Hag

Vlad Drakulya is teaching Sir Differel Van Helsing how to be a great monster hunter, but all his training proves useless when she is caught by a Hag who threatens to eat her. The only person available to help her is one of the subordinate chefs. But how can a cook protect her from a powerful paranormal being?

This will be another free ebook.

New eBook: The Christmas Vampires

I have just published my latest ebook:

The Christmas Vampires

Connie, the eight-year-old daughter of Eile and Sunny of Team Girl, is fed up. Her parents pay more attention to her sister Liza than they do her. She concludes they don't love her anymore and she decides to run away. She wants to become special, to teach them all a lesson, so she goes to Giovanna Borgia, a vampire and one of Team Girl's best friends, and asks her to make her a vampire.

Giovanna invites her to attend a vampire Christmas party in a nearby cemetery, and there she meets Angela, a child vampire her same age. They strike up an unlikely friendship, and Connie learns what it means to be a vampire, the bad as well as the good.

However, a group of vampire hunters decides to crash the party, and they have targeted Connie and Angela for extermination.

This ebook is free and can be downloaded from Smashwords.

The Propaganda Professor

I'm under the weather today, so instead of a longer blog I just wanted to tell you about a blog I regularly read:

The Propaganda Professor

While some people will dismiss his statements because they perceive him as a "liberal", I find his arguments rational and compelling, and he backs up his statements with facts.

Settlements in the Dreamlands

By definition, a settlement is any collection of families living together in an independent community for common cause. This distinguishes settlements from neighborhoods, which are dependent communities contained within a larger independent community. There are five types of settlements: villas, hamlets, villages, towns, and cities. Most begin when a group of families settles in a new area to practice a common trade or profession, such as farming, fishing, or mining. An exception are those seeking some form of freedom, such as the freedom to worship as they see fit. Another exception are the so-called market settlements, which are established to facilitate commerce, though it can be argued that the merchant founders bring or establish their own families once the settlement is created. Still another form of settlement is that which is created by soldiers who retire or are discharged while serving in a fort and decide to live in that same vicinity. These, too, however, will usually either establish families or bring their existing ones to the settlement.

Read the rest of the article.

Miranda Pendragon

Miranda is the sister of Differel's mother, Gwendolyn Pendragon. They were fraternal twins, with Mandy being born first. As the oldest, she expected to be trained to become The Pendragon, but their mother, Morgause, believed she was too unstable and chose Gwendolyn instead. Mandy was groomed to be manager of the Order, and was sent to college to get a business administration education. While there, she discovered a don was an adult Fomorian and she destroyed him. She was awarded a medal, and Morgause consented to her being trained as an Order agent, but she still would not change her mind about making Gwendolyn The Pendragon. Three years later, Mandy uncovered and stopped a plot to open a gate and admit an Archon into London. She was awarded another medal, but Morgause still refused to change her decision.

Then Sir Henry and Gwendolyn announced they would get married. Mandy was certain her sister would then step down and Morgause would make her The Pendragon, but Morgause decided Gwendolyn could remain as The Pendragon. For Mandy that was the last straw. She appealed to the Privy Council, asking them to prevent the marriage (she was in love with Sir Henry also) or force Gwendolyn to relinquish her position. They did not have that authority, however, and passed the buck to the Queen. She in turn decided to allow the marriage, and let Gwendolyn remain The Pendragon. However, to placate Mandy, she granted her a Life Peerage, in recognition for everything she had done for Britain.

After that, Mandy acquiesced and devoted her life to helping the Order in any way she could. After Gwendolyn died, Mandy became Differel's foster mother and raised her, while also helping to manage the Order. When Sir Henry died, she was made Director-Regent and took over Differel's training. As such, her traitorous attempt to kill Differel and take over the Order was inexplicable. Fortunately, Differel was able to kill her first, decapitating her with Caliburn. Though the body was recovered, it later disappeared, a mystery that was never solved, but the matter was considered closed.

What no one knew at first, however, was that the Don Fomorian nearly killed her instead, but hesitated. Seeing an opportunity to get a Fomorian into the Caerleon Order, he offered her a choice: death or being infected with a Fomorian embryo. She chose to live and accepted the embryo. After it assimilated her, Mandy ceased to exist, usurped by a being that stole her memories and personality. The Don arranged its own death so that Mandy would appear the hero, and later arranged the Archon plot for the same reason. However, when she failed to become The Pendragon, they switched tactics. Beginning with Gwendolyn, Mandy systematically eliminated anyone who stood between her and taking over the Order, or who might be a threat to that goal. Sir Henry was her final victim. She intended to infect Differel with an embryo so as to control her, but she escaped her, and Mandy had no choice but to kill her. Though the stable cat, Mr. Mistopheles, and Vlad Drakulya tried to protect Differel, Mandy subdued or killed them both, but Differel summoned Caliburn and cut off her head. Later, when Mandy's body disappeared, Differel assumed her Fomorian patron, who had posed as a nurse in the manor dispensary, had taken it to conceal evidence of Fomorian existence. It wasn't until two decades later that Differel would find out that the Nurse had reattached the head to the body, and the embryo healed the damage and resurrected Mandy. Mandy has worked ever since to destroy Differel and the Order.

Oddly enough, however, Mandy seems to hold no animosity towards Differel's son, Henry, and has protected him on a couple of occasions. This makes Differel wonder if some aspect of her aunt might still exist, and if she might be able to get through to it.

Richest Team Girl Characters

I was listening to NPR's All Things Considered one day, and I heard about how Forbes Magazine put out a list of the 15 richest fictional characters. Twilight fans were glad to hear that they placed Carlisle Cullen at #1 with an estimated worth of $34 billion.

The Forbes Fictional 15

It made me wonder what some of my characters would be worth, especially the ones that are supposed to be rich.

For example, Eile and Sunny's BFF Giovanna Borgia would probably be worth 3x Cullen, because she's older, and she invests in cutting-edge technologies like biotech, telecommunications, and new energy sources.

And then there's Medb hErenn. Having had some 3500 years to accumulate her wealth, along with the fact that she invests in almost everything, she may be worth at least a trillion.

So, here is a list of my wealthiest fictional characters, placed in order from richest to poorest, relatively speaking, and it only lists major characters, not secondary or minor characters.

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Medb hErenn
Protector, Mentor, Surrogate Mother

Net Worth: $1500 billion (minimum)
Source: Research & Development, Treasure; also Investments, Industry, Defense, Banking, Marketing, Transportation, Real Estate, Technology, Energy
Age: 3500
Marital Status: Widowed/Divorced >500 times; currently Single
Residence: Cairnsford, Colorado, USA

Slowly accumulated wealth through recovered hordes and war booty for nearly 2700 years; bought land, raised sheep for wool, created textile industries, then used the profits to provide banking services; established a series of R&D firms to create new technologies that led to new industries, then invested in them; heavily diversified to survive economic downturns; continues to support R&D and to widely invest while engaged in numerous business activities

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Kojoro
Fox Princess -- Seven Tailed

Net Worth: $1000 billion (estimated)
Source: Inheritance, Treasure
Age: 7500
Marital Status: Married; currently Estranged
Residence: Takama-ga-hara

Inherited share of family fortune; patron of arts and crafts, off which she makes numerous commissions

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Ceithlenn
Fomorian Sorceress Queen

Net Worth: $750 billion
Source: Treasure; also Investments, Banking, Industry, Crime
Age: 1.2 million
Marital Status: Widowed; currently Single
Residence: Emain Ablach

Accumulated wealth through tribute, war booty, and recovered hordes, but has lost significant portions of it due to downturns and reversals; has invested wealth in numerous ventures and used it to begin new industries and banks, as well as fund criminal schemes; more recently has made diversified investments while engaging in numerous business and criminal activities

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Giovanna Mencia Borgia
Vampire

Net Worth: $100 billion
Source: Technology, Energy; also Investments, Banking, Marketing, Real Estate
Age: 500
Marital Status: Single
Residence: Denver, Colorado, USA

Acquired wealth through gifts, rewards, and payments for intelligence services; has used it to invest in high-yield ventures such as privateering and the fur and slave trades, to purchase land, and provide banking services; has helped to create a number of new technology and energy industries; currently owns a biotechnology firm and several renewable energy companies, along with a marketing firm, numerous banks, and several lucrative parcels of land, as well as continues to invest

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Neo Ivor Zorndyke
Mad scientist, Supervillain

Net Worth: $8 billion
Source: Oil & Gas, Mining, Inheritance; also Investments, Industry, Defense, Technology, Crime
Age: 67
Marital Status: Single
Residence: Zernebog (mountain fortress, location unknown)

Inherited share of family fortune as well as ownership of an oil & gas firm and a few mining companies and a portfolio of investments; has started numerous industrial, weapons, and technology companies while investing in numerous criminal activities

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Marseilles Sheraton
Heiress, Celebutante, Criminal Mastermind

Net Worth: $1.2 billion Waking World
Source: Inheritance, Crime, Investments; also Industry, Technology
Age: 31
Marital Status: Single
Residence: Isla Sheratonata (Pacific island, location unknown)

Inherited share of combined family fortune through blackmail, which has been used to fund investments and criminal activities; has used profits to start a number of industrial and technology companies; currently heads an international organization that seeks world domionation through control of political, industrial, technological, and financial systems

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Sir Differel Van Helsing
Director, Caerleon Order

Net Worth: $0.75 billion Waking World
Source: Inheritance, Investments; also Real Estate
Age: 34
Marital Status: Widowed
Residence: Denver, Norfolk, UK

Inherited the Van Helsing and Pendragon family fortunes, along with a sizable investment portfolio and choice parcels of land; currently diversifying and expanding portfolio

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Elizabeth Rebecca Mabuse
Mad scientist

Net Worth: $0.50 billion
Source: Inheritance, Investments, Defense, Technology
Age: 54
Marital Status: Single
Residence: Boulder, Colorado, USA

Inherited part of her grandfather's illicit fortune and invested it; has used her inventions and discoveries to start a number of defense and technology companies; continues to invest and operate several business ventures

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Fael Cayleen
Female Alpha Lycanthrope

Net Worth: $0.25 billion
Source: Investments, Real Estate; also Treasure
Age: 257
Marital Status: Widowed; currently Single
Residence: Faelchusraid, Colorado, USA

Acquired wealth through homesteading and sale of land; supplements wealth through sale of artifacts; invests profits in stocks, bonds, and money markets

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Eile Chica and Sunny Hiver -- Team Girl!
Adventurers

Net Worth: $0.00 billion ($1.25 million)
Source: Royalties, Commissions, Box Office Receipts, Investments; also Treasure
Age: 25 & 22
Marital Status: Single; currently Cohabitating
Residence: Denver, Colorado, USA

Acquired wealth through design, research, and song album royalties, concert revenues, and the occasional treasure horde; invested profits in a highly diverse portfolio and created a number of money markets to hold 'nest egg' funds for emergency and recreational use; continue to live off of graphic design and Team Girl! Inc. income while letting portfolio grow

Medb hErenn the Barbarian

Ever since I posted The Way of the Barbarian page in November 2008, I have received a few messages chastising me for glorifying barbarianism, especially its treatment towards women. One fan was particularly nasty (and I have edited his or her saltier comments): "[How dare you] make heroes out of [murderers and pillagers]! Anyone who would [condone] the rape and enslavement of women is a [monster]. I [will never] read any of your...stories again!"

Well, you can't please everyone.

It is certainly true that historically, people we have labeled as barbarians have killed, raped, and plundered their weaker neighbors. But putting aside for the moment that the Medb hErenn stories are fiction, and fantasy fiction at that, the barbarian philosophy is an ideal that condemns such actions as improper. Though Medb, by her own admission, has not lived up to this ideal all the time, she would be the first to condemn murder, wanton destruction, and rapine as acts that serve no purpose. This is how she explains it to Röthgâr the Reaver in a planned sequel to "Barbarians R Us":

"Where’s the respect in wenching?"

"That is part of what you will learn from experience. For now, keep in mind that a barbarian wenches because he loves and honors women."

"What about all those barbarians who kidnap women and make sex-slaves out of them?"

"Like any philosophy, barbarianism is an ideal and a recommendation; it is not an immutable law that cannot be broken. There are always people who decide to reject its teachings, and there are always circumstances in which the teachings can be, even should be, ignored. Even I have done the latter, and on numerous occasions."

"Why bother then?"

"Why do people set ethical standards and create moral codes? They provide guideposts and establish limits, to help us determine right from wrong. We are free to disregard those guideposts and go beyond the limits if we wish, but we have no excuse if we do. We cannot say we were ignorant of them, and thus we cannot escape the consequences of our actions."

In other words, the philosophy is not to blame when people do not follow it. It's like blaming Christianity for acts committed by evil men who call themselves Christians. A true Christian is someone who follows the teachings of Jesus Christ, and since Christ did not condone their actions, and in many cases condemned them, they are not true Christians. Similarly, a man who attacks and rapes a woman in the name of barbarianism is not a true barbarian, because the barbarian philosophy not only does not condone such acts, it condemns them as well. And the same is true of murder and pillaging.

Next eBook: The Christmas Vampires

The next story in my schedule to be published through Smashwords will be:

The Christmas Vampires

On Christmas Eve, Connie Hiver, daughter of Eile and Sunny of Team Girl, runs away from home to become a vampire. Giovanna Borgia, the vampire BFF of Team Girl, invites her to a vampire Christmas party in a nearby cemetery and introduces her to a little girl vampire her same age.

Unfortunately, some humans who hunt vampires have decided to crash the party, and they have targeted Connie and her new friend.

This will be another free ebook.