Keeper of Death is quite a fitting name for a villain, and yet Lythienne finds herself as the only Fae who can save Iverbourne.Born as an Empty Fae, she is sent into the Eternal Mountain, a prison designed for the most malicious, blood thirsty and cursed creatures alive. Her crime, along with so many other creatures, is being Lesser than the grand High Fae who rule the divided lands above.Aether rules Iverbourne, a whimsical land ravaged by long held prejudices, unkind to all those without magic. The Others are a mysterious court to the south, kidnapping and murdering all those on their path through the continent. Only a Fae without Aether can wield the mysterious Harbinger, a weapon of mass destruction needed to defeat the epic evil taking over the realm. The elegant call of immense power corrupts most, especially those who have been mistreated. Dangerous lust, high stakes adventure and loyal companionship are thrust into Lyth's life, but can she be the Hero after playing the Villain for so long? After all, why would you want to save a world that wants to see you buried six feet under?Perhaps this isn't a hero saves the day story. Perhaps, this is the origin story of the Deadliest Fae alive.

Victoriana comes to Sydney, Australia in an alternative 19th Century, bringing dark Dickensian factories and even darker souls. Mages too, practising heart magic and skin magic, along with shapeshifting Earth spirits, demons, and automata. Included in this mix is a mad scientist, a touch of romance, strong female characters, diverse characters and a magic system playfully based on a real life 17th Century description of virtual reality: "The Monadology" by Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz: A woman with the strength to rebel.? A shapeshifter who wears the souls of the dead.? Together, they face a lethal enemy.Em helped create it. Now she must craft its defeat.In a city owned by industrialists, Em sells her magic to make ends meet. The extraction procedure is brutal and potentially deadly. Desperate for change, she joins an underground resistance movement to weaponize her magic and stop the abuse of workers.Meanwhile, a mysterious voice wakes Ruk from a decades long slumber and compels him to become human. He wants to break free but is torn between his shapeshifter instincts and the needs of the soul that sustains him.On streets haunted by outcasts and predatory automatons, a new danger emerges - an ever-growing corruption of magic and science. Em and Ruk must put aside their differences and pursue it - each for their own reasons.What they discover will forever change their lives?Or end them.

In a time of uncertainty, humanity has touched the stars and claimed vast worlds under the unified Nations of Earth. Yet beneath the heels of the Mother World, the colonists grow too strong. Soon after, a war unlike any seen before would last for twenty years wherever independence had a voice. Towering machines, known as Unit Fighters, were piloted by the brave as historic battles were fought. And after nine years of peace between the newly established Pride Systems of Devoir-Con passed, the scars of such a mad war were not only left on the worlds they shed blood on but on the soldiers and soon-to-be combatants of Devoir. These are just a few of their stories as, once again, the torn and gritty flag of Devoir-Con will be raised among the controversies of war, peace, love, struggle, and innocents lost.

Keeper of Death is quite a fitting name for a villain, and yet Lythienne finds herself as the only Fae who can save Iverbourne. Born as an Empty Fae, she is sent into the Eternal Mountain, a prison designed for the most malicious, blood thirsty and cursed creatures alive. Her crime, along with so many other creatures, is being Lesser than the grand High Fae who rule the divided lands above. Aether rules Iverbourne, a whimsical land ravaged by long held prejudices, unkind to all those without magic. The Others are a mysterious court to the south, kidnapping and murdering all those on their path through the continent. Only a Fae without Aether can wield the mysterious Harbinger, a weapon of mass destruction needed to defeat the epic evil taking over the realm. The elegant call of immense power corrupts most, especially those who have been mistreated. Dangerous lust, high stakes adventure and loyal companionship are thrust into Lyth's life, but can she be the Hero after playing the Villain for so long? After all, why would you want to save a world that wants to see you buried six feet under? Perhaps this isn't a hero saves the day story. Perhaps, this is the origin story of the Deadliest Fae alive. Excerpt from The Eternal Machine Hundreds of blood thirsty Fae eyes burn on me, and every step is carefully placed. Lifting brass and leather goggles on a burgundy nest, I halt before The Machine. A massive undertaking of ancient technology, with spider-like copper arms weaving into the abyss below. Copper gears tower to the top of the stone chamber, making the labor camps behind me minuscule in comparison. Metal cranks together, belts purr, and purple smoke fills the air above, never ceasing. I trace along the cliff's edge, passing the ladders leading down into the trench reserved for Keepers, the only engineers allowed so close to the beast. While inspecting for malfunctions or leaks, the gauges on my leather and tech-covered wrist spin out of control. The lingering familiar stench changes, sweetness replacing death hanging in the air. Exhaust vents huff speckled night now, instead of the purple haze. In a place far from here, High Fae are Power. High Fae are Magic. We are not in a place far away though. We are right here. We work for The Eternal Machine, the beast conjuring magic and fueling the lands. Crimes of all kinds are welcome in this mountain, but you leave your magic behind. Rather, it is taken from you. Not that I know what that feels like. Minutes pass, the only sound is made by leather boots and a whining engine. I pause, halting before the foreman. A Grasshopper before a Bear. I snatch his dark matted beard and yank him down, tough knees meeting rock. Dull emeralds shine for a moment, his jaw tightening. My soft face brushes against his filthy cheek, my full lips meeting a pointed ear, a lover threatening sweet nothings. "Darling, what's this?"

There is no discipline more austere than that imposed by the worship of Eros, for it involves not only the ordeal of pain, but the more perilous ordeal of pleasure. -from "Androgyne" One of the most extraordinary figures of the popular intellectualism of the early 20th century, Claude Bragdon was an architect and designer who turned his mathematically fueled artistic bent toward the metaphysical... and anticipated the new quantum physics with a philosophy of existence that bridged the rational and the transcendent. This poetic consideration of human love in light of modern scientific wisdom was first published in 1930 but feels fresh and relevant today. Bragdon's discussions of romantic love, life-affirming sex, and the duality of marriage is extraordinarily insightful, and may make you look at yourself and your own relationships in a whole new way. Other works by Bragdon available from Cosimo Classics: Yoga for You, Four-Dimensional Vistas, Projective Ornament, The Beautiful Necessity, Architecture and Democracy, Episodes from An Unwritten History, and A Primer of Higher Space (The Fourth Dimension). American architect, stage designer, and writer CLAUDE FAYETTE BRAGDON (1866-1946) helped found the Rochester Architectural Club, in the city where he made his greatest mark as a building designer with structures including Rochester Central Station, Rochester Institute of Technology, and the First Universalist Church; he also designed Peterborough Bridge in Ontario. In later life, Bragdon worked on Broadway as scenic designer for 1930s productions of Cyrano de Bergerac and Hamlet, among others.

Summarizes and illuminates two decades of research Gathering important papers by both philosophers and scientists, this collection illuminates the central themes that have arisen during the last two decades of work on the conceptual foundations of artificial intelligence and cognitive science. Each volume begins with a comprehensive introduction that places the coverage in a broader perspective and links it with material in the companion volumes. The collection is of interest in many disciplines including computer science, linguistics, biology, information science, psychology, neuroscience, iconography, and philosophy. Examines initial efforts and the latest controversies The topics covered range from the bedrock assumptions of the computational approach to understanding the mind, to the more recent debates concerning cognitive architectures, all the way to the latest developments in robotics, artificial life, and dynamical systems theory. The collection first examines the lineage of major research programs, beginning with the basic idea of machine intelligence itself, then focuses on specific aspects of thought and intelligence, highlighting the much-discussed issue of consciousness, the equally important, but less densely researched issue of emotional response, and the more traditionally philosophical topic of language and meaning. Provides a gamut of perspectives The editors have included several articles that challenge crucial elements of the familiar research program of cognitive science, as well as important writings whose previous circulation has been limited. Within each volume the papers are organized to reflect a variety of research programs and issues. The substantive introductions that accompany each volume further organize the material and provide readers with a working sense of the issues and the connection between articles.

In The Eternal Paddy, Michael de Nie examines anti-Irish prejudice, Anglo-Irish relations, and the construction of Irish and British identities in nineteenth-century Britain. This book provides a new, more inclusive approach to the study of Irish identity as perceived by Britons and demonstrates that ideas of race were inextricably connected with class concerns and religious prejudice in popular views of both peoples. De Nie suggests that while traditional anti-Irish stereotypes were fundamental to British views of Ireland, equally important were a collection of sympathetic discourses and a self-awareness of British prejudice. In the pages of the British newspaper press, this dialogue created a deep ambivalence about the Irish people, an ambivalence that allowed most Britons to assume that the root of Ireland’s difficulties lay in its Irishness. Drawing on more than ninety newspapers published in England, Scotland, and Wales, The Eternal Paddy offers the first major detailed analysis of British press coverage of Ireland over the course of the nineteenth century. This book traces the evolution of popular understandings and proposed solutions to the "Irish question," focusing particularly on the interrelationship between the press, the public, and the politicians. The work also engages with ongoing studies of imperialism and British identity, exploring the role of Catholic Ireland in British perceptions of their own identity and their empire.

In his sermon "What Is Man?," John Wesley spoke of the human being as a "curious machine," reflecting the eighteenth-century view of the person as a set of complex mechanisms animated by the soul. The rapid rate of technological development in recent decades is opening toward a future in which the centrality and uniqueness of human beings is undergoing a shift. Developments in robotics, artificial intelligence, surveillance, autonomous weapons, human enhancement, and genetic modification raise an array of questions for the Christian tradition. The awareness of the negative impact of human activity on the natural environment is challenging the traditional view of humanity as having a uniquely privileged role at the heart of creation. This collection of essays addresses Wesleyan and broadly Christian voices that explore the theological, philosophical, biblical, ethical, and practical implications of emerging technologies, their impact upon different aspects of human life, and the possibilities that are opening up toward a posthuman future.

In a time of uncertainty, humanity has touched the stars and claimed vast worlds under the unified Nations of Earth. Yet beneath the heels of the Mother World, the colonists grow too strong. Soon after, a war unlike any seen before would last for twenty years wherever independence had a voice. Towering machines, known as Unit Fighters, were piloted by the brave as historic battles were fought. And after nine years of peace between the newly established Pride Systems of Devoir-Con passed, the scars of such a mad war were not only left on the worlds they shed blood on but on the soldiers and soon-to-be combatants of Devoir. These are just a few of their stories as, once again, the torn and gritty flag of Devoir-Con will be raised among the controversies of war, peace, love, struggle, and innocents lost.