Wednesday, January 15, 2020

Dress Shop

Name of the Enterprise The business name â€Å"Wedlock Trends† will display a wedding dress shop that will offer the latest and the hottest styles of wedding apparel of the season. Location The location of the business is at Door 4, 500 Gabaton Building, Elpidio Quirino Avenue, Davao City. The commercial space measures 5Ãâ€"14 sq. The space will be rented at P12, 000/month, exclusive of water and electricity expenses. The area is a perfect spot for a wedding dress shop for it is easy to find since it is located in the main road. Aside from that, the area is filled with office buildings, inns, schools, and other business entities nearby.Descriptive Definition of the Product Wedlock Trends shall cater to the needs of grooms and brides in a comfortable and relaxed setting. In its warm and intimate setting, the Wedlock Trends’ friendly and knowledgeable bridal consultants are available to help in finding everything that they need for their upcoming wedding. We offer bridal dresses and all the accessories as well as fashions required for the rest of the bridal party. Project’s Long-Range Objectives Wedlock Trends has been created with one main objective: to provide the bride with the ultimate experience in finding the perfect wedding dress!In 2016, Wedlock Trends will create tie-ups with the prominent photo studio and flower shop here in Davao. It will be convenient for our clients for they don’t have to waste their time searching for quality photos and videos as well as fresh and beautifully arranged flowers. Wedlock Trends will expand and cater other occasions as well. Elegant night gowns, classic dresses, up-to-date men’s suit, and a lot more will be added to our collection for parties, debuts, and other significant events. By doing such, it is expected that the number of employees in every department will be increased as well as the machineries used in the process.Feasibility Criteria The most important guidelines used to judg e the feasibility of the project is its marketing aspect and financial aspect. The marketing aspect tells what the project is all about, who the target market is, when is the perfect time to open the business, where is it located, and how is it going to compete with its competitors. It is also where the demand and supply analysis is, which will be a great criterion. The financial aspect provides the data that shows the projects profitability. It is important to know if the project is attainable, feasible, and profitable.Highlights Of The Project History Many young girls dream about what kind of wedding dress they’d like to wear on their special day so we have thought of creating a project that will certainly be desired by our target market. It’s a business that caters not only the needs of a soon-to-be couples but one that fulfills their dreams, to have a unique and remarkable wedding. This is an amazing business which has developed a strong, distinctive and individual identity with a reputation for both quality and service – very profitable business.This is a delightful business with bridal gowns to suit every style of wedding. It is fantastic opportunity to own a money making business in a very up-market industry. This business is not just a business, it is a life style choice with plenty of fashion. This very good business opportunity provides bridal wear, stocked with a superb range of designer wedding gowns, bridal accessories include jewelry, tiaras, stationery, gifts, to compliment any wedding reception which is excellent for add-on purchases. This is a business opportunity to own and grow a dynamic business .This is an amazing opportunity for someone who just wants to literally wants to jump straight in and continue the exceptional success achieved. It is a business opportunity that is highly profitable and offers great potential whether h global, national or local aspect. Project Time Table and Status The project is expected to be operational by May 2014. For now, thorough studies and research are being done to carefully analyze its standing once we enter the market. Nature of the Industry The wedding gown industry is one that is made up of multiple smaller enterprises like caterers, wedding consultants, dresses, various eauty suppliers (hair, makeup), photographers, favors/bridesmaids gifts, music, honeymoon related, etc. While the industry as a whole represents a lot of money, each of the component parts is much smaller — some smaller than others. These smaller composite suppliers can be very local and likely will be small and privately owned. Mode of Financing The source of funds of Wedlock Trends that will be used to put up the business is from the contributions of the four (4) persons who will be the owner of the dress shop.Each shall contribute P625, 000 for a total of P2, 500, 000. 00. A cash contribution is better than bank loans for it has a lower risk and high interest cost which will result to lower income. Investment Cost The funds allocated for this project is P2, 500, 000. 00. The proponents have agreed to form a partnership wherein four (4) persons merge to contribute for the capitalization of Wedlock Trends, with the intention of dividing the profits among themselves. Major assumptions and summary of findings and conclusion on the following: Market FeasibilityIn our Market Study, we identify who will be our customers, suppliers, and competitor as well as the number of demand that we will gain in the succeeding years. In our data of demand analysis the first year show lesser number of demands, it is because Wedlock Trends is new to the market and customers do not know the business yet. The succeeding years shows the increasing number of demand, it is because Wedlock Trends formulated a marketing program which to have a flyers, posters and streamers printing for the customer to be aware about the existing of the business. Technical FeasibilityWedlock Trends is a cl othing business designed to make wedding gowns, barongs, tuxedo’s and cocktail dresses. The business offer readymade dresses aside from made to order and customize clothes. The supply is high; there are many companies who supply such equipment. Financial Feasibility The Wedlock Trend Dress Shoppe shows an income statement of the cash flows the cash receipts such as profit, salary, capital and so on has an increase every year. It means that the business gaining a profit. For the balance sheet, there is also an increase and the total assets and the total liabilities and owners’ equity is well balance.For the ratio analysis, the profit ratio has an average of 41. 26% means there is a profit of . 43. For the payback capital computation, there is 2. 21, means the capital of the business can be recovered within 2 years. Socio-economic Feasibility The number of Wedding dress shop in Metro Davao is rapidly increasing. The more competition, the better it is for the market, beca use innovation, better products and service will be present. These industries will affect the economy as a whole on a much more scale. It gives employment to those who seeks job. Management FeasibilityThe structure of the business begins with the four (4) persons/partners who are also the owners of the business. The manager will handle the sales, manufacturing and service aspects of the business. In terms of salary scale, the manager will be compensated with minimum wage and the other employees are below the minimum wage. MARKET STUDY Clothing is a beautiful visual demonstration of the social and emotional needs of people wearing it. It also portrays in a clearly understood visual manner, what people of different cultures and styles want socially.Fashion, through times, has gone through so many rapid changes and bizarre extremes that it has examples of nearly every kind of clothing function, especially when it comes to wedding attires. The range of Filipino wedding dresses is remark ably wide, according to the vast cultures, geographical differences, purchasing capacities, influence of the western culture, and bewildering diversities of the ethnic groups. One has, therefore, to sift and isolate, and then relate and bring together, the ideas for creating various designs, which can fit in the context of theFilipino style, conservative, elegant yet still in trend. When it comes to the most special day of a couple’s life, we like to make a personal effort to make it all that it can be. The business will be a full-service wedding dress shop catering to customers who are searching for reasonable quality products at affordable prices. Our main focus will be quality in every process right from buying stuff, raw material selection, designer selection, stitching till the delivery of product to final customer in order to fulfill our goal of customer satisfaction.We will be providing standardized products as well as customized dresses according to ones needs. Geogra phical areas of dispersion The location of the business is at Door 4, 500 Gabaton Building, Elpidio Quirino Avenue, Davao City. The commercial space measures 5Ãâ€"14 sq. The rental price is P12, 000. 00 per month, exclusive of water and electricity expenses. Our Competitors are the Wedding Glamour, Wedding Channel, Wedding Avenue, and Knot’s Forever. Target Market The scope of our wedding dress shop is the people living within Metro Davao with a population of 1,449,296 (National Statistics Office, 2010).To be specific, most of the target market will be composed of couples of ages 18 years old and above, teenagers and young adults in high school and college, and young professionals, who belong to the middle and upper class. The middle class customers are those who have moderate income and have the capability to purchase products and services with high quality. The upper class customers are those who have high income and have the capability to purchase product and services wit h high quality, and look for luxury. Target Market |Age |Population | |Couples |18 – 64 years old |635,412 | |Teenagers |13 – 18 years old |255, 465 | |Young Adults |20 – 24 years old |117,083 | |Young Professionals 25 – 34 years old |186, 691 | |Walk-ins |18 – 64 years old |635,412 | Demand Analysis Projection of the number of the products to be sold. PRODUCTS |Year 1 |Year 2 |Year 3 |Year 4 |Year 5 | | | | |Bridal Gown |– inclusive headdress, 2nd veil, cord, (2) cushions, pouch bag | |Grooms’ Barong |– pinya jusi with embroidery (free makeup) | |Whole Entourage |(1) maid of honor, (3) bridesmaids, (3) flower girls | | |(1) best man barong, (3) groomsmen barongs, | | |(3) bearers (ring, coin, bible) | |Parents’ outfits of the couple |- parents of the couple | | |free pictures | |Bronze Special Package = P 20,000. 00 | | |Bridal Gown |– inclusive headdress, 2nd veil, cord, (2) cushions, pouch bag | | |free ma ke up | |Grooms’ Barong |– pinya jusi with embroidery (free makeup) |Whole Entourage |(1) maid of honor, (3) bridesmaids, (3) flower girls | | |(1) best man barong, (3) groomsmen barongs, | | |(3) bearers (ring, coin, bible) | |Parents’ outfits of the couple |- parents of the couple | | |free pictures | | |free video CD of the wedding | |Gold Special Package = P 30,000. 0 | | |Bridal Gown |– inclusive headdress, 2nd veil, cord, (2) cushions, pouch bag | | |free gown and make up | |Grooms’ Barong |– pinya jusi with embroidery (free makeup) | | |free male perfume | |Whole Entourage |(1) maid of honor, (3) bridesmaids, (3) flower girls | | |(1) best man barong, (3) groomsmen barongs, | | |(3) bearers (ring, coin, bible) | |Parents’ outfits of the couple |- dress & suits for the parents of the couple | | |free pictures | | |free video CD of the wedding | |Diamond Special Package = P 50,000. 0 | | |Bridal Gown |– inclusive head dress, 2nd veil, cord, (2) cushions, pouch bag | | |free gown, make up, bouquet | |Grooms’ Barong |– pinya jusi with embroidery (free makeup) | | |free male perfume | |Whole Entourage |(1) maid of honor, (3) bridesmaids, (3) flower girls | | |(1) best man barong, (3) groomsmen barongs, | | |(3) bearers (ring, coin, bible) | |Parents’ outfits of both couple |- dress & suits for the parents of the couple | | |free pictures with album | | |free video CD of the wedding | | |free picture publicity on Mindanao Daily Mirror | Competitor’s Analysis |Name of Competitor |Products/Services |Location |Store Hours | |Wedding Glamour |Gown & Entourage Package: |Door 1 Gahol Bldg. , E Quirino|9:00 – 5:00pm | | |1 Bridal Gown w/ accessories |Ave. , Davao City | | | |1 Groom Attire | | | |1 Maid of Honor Gown | | | | |3 Bridesmaid Gowns | | | | |3 Flower Girl Gowns w/ basket | | | | |1 Bestman Barong | | | | |3 Groomsmen Barong/Tuxedo | | | | |3 Bearer’s B arong/Tuxedo | | | | |2 Mother Dress | | | | |2 Father Barong | | | |Wedding Avenue |Gown & Entourage Package: |Front of Dep-Ed, E. Quirino |9:00 – 5:00pm | | |1 Bridal Gown w/ accessories |Ave. | | | |1 Groom Attire |Davao City | | | |1 Maid of Honor Gown | | | | |3 Bridesmaid Gowns | | | | |3 Flower Girl Gowns w/ basket | | | | |1 Bestman Barong | | | | |3 Groomsmen Barong/Tuxedo | | | | |3 Bearer’s Barong/Tuxedo | | | | |2 Mother Dress | | | | |2 Father Barong | | | |Wedding Channel |Gown & Entourage Package: |E.Quirino Avenue, Davao City| | | |1 Bridal Gown w/ accessories | | | | |1 Groom Attire | | | | |1 Maid of Honor Gown | | | | |3 Bridesmaid Gowns | |8:00 – 5:00pm | | |3 Flower Girl Gowns w/ basket | | | | |1 Bestman Barong | | | | |3 Groomsmen Barong/Tuxedo | | | | |3 Bearer’s Barong/Tuxedo | | | | |2 Mother Dress | | | | |2 Father Barong | | | |Knots Forever |Bridal Package: | | | | |1 Bridal Gown | |8:00 – 5:00pm | | |1 Head Dress |E. Q uirino Avenue, Davao City| | | |1 1st Veil | | | | |1 2nd Veil | | | | |1 Cord | | | | |2 Cushions | | | |1 Groom Barong / Tuxedo | | | | |Entourage: | | | | |1 Maid of Honor Gown | | | | |1 Maid of Honor Head Dress | | | | |3 Bridesmaid Gowns | | | | |3 Flower Girls Gown | | | | |3 Baskets | | | | |1 Best Man | | | | |3 Groomsmen Barong | | | | |3 Bearer’s Barong | | | Marketing Program Our means of advertisements are posters and streams printing, through networking sites, and fashion shows. Posters and Streamers Printing – This can also be a tool for advertising.We can put posters and streamers printing at malls and hotels and restaurants for them to easily recognize our product. Facebook & Multiply – Billions of people, foreign or local are users of Facebook. And these people logs in almost everyday for about an hour or more. Through Facebook and Multiply, it is easier to reach the right audience. It is easy, convenient, and costs no cent. Newspaper Ads â₠¬â€œ The oldest form of advertising is still an effective way to reach a large number of people. These ads can do a lot more than just advertise one item or one sale–each one can work really hard to bring in customers, and then bring them back again and again. They're a good way to reach a large number of people, especially those aged 45-plus who end to read the paper more frequently than younger demographic groups who tend to get their news from television, radio or the internet. And we can target our ads to the appropriate markets by requesting that our ads run in the section(s) that most closely relate to our target audience. MANAGEMENT STUDY Personnel Expertise Wedlock Trends will hire one (1) manager, two (2) sewers, two 2 (cutters), two (2) beaders. The descriptions of hiring employees are the following: |Manager – |Responsible for maintaining the store in order to ensure residents and visitors have access to necessary supplies and| | |accommodations. |Responsibi lities |Maintain customer services and facilities | | |greet customers and provide assistance | | |maintain cleanliness and order in the store | | |Maintain stock, supplies and inventories | | |take inventory | | |order groceries and supplies | | |mark prices on stock | | |restock shelves | | |Maintain accounts | | |record prices in the log book | | |operate the cash register | | |balance cash receipts | | |make deposits | | |record visa and debit accounts | | |maintain a manual general ledger | |Qualifications |Minimum 3 years of retail management experience. More extensive retail experience will be welcomed. Experience in | | |personal computer retail setting is preferred, but not mandatory. | |Must have an interest in fashion and have an eye for art. | | |Strong leadership skills. | | |Ability to effectively teach/develop others to next level. | | |Good merchandising skills and a flair for conceiving and implementing creative merchandising themes. | | |Strong operations exp erience in receiving, stock and inventory as well as front-end management and office management. | | |Ability to organize and prioritize multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment. | | |Strong interpersonal, motivational, communication and organizational skills. | |At least 25 years old | |Sewer – |Sewers cut, trim, sew and design clothing and accessories according to the company or client’s demand | |Responsibilities |Sew, trim and stitch gowns/suits and other tailored products. | | |Draw and design gowns/suits to present to the company or clients | | |Measure client’s vital statistics that will use as a pattern for the clothes. | | |Sew gowns/suits using sewing machine or other stitching machines. | | |Inspect finished product and do finishing touches. | |Hand stitch edges or linings | | |Iron gowns/suits | |Qualifications |Must have taken vocational or short course in tailoring | | |Must have at least 3-5 years experience as a sewer or tailor | | |Knowledg e in sewing, both hand and machine sewing | | |Knowledge and ability on different kinds of stitches and design | | |Knowledge in different kinds of cloths | | |Knowledge and ability to sew in different kinds of clothes. | | |Knowledge in fashion designing is a plus | | |Knowledge and ability to design wearable and appealing gowns/suits | | |Ability to use sewing machines. | |Pattern Cutter – |Pattern cutters create templates for the kinds of patterns that will be used in clothing lines, based on illustrated | | |designs created by the design department of the fashion company. |Responsibilities |Cut fabrics or textiles | | |Adjust cutting techniques to types of fabrics and styles of garments. | | |Adjust machine controls, such as heating mechanisms, tensions, and/or speeds to produce specified products. | | |Inspect products to ensure that specifications are met and to determine whether machines require adjustment. | | |Operate machines to cut multiple layers of fabric int o parts | |Qualifications |Must have an interest in fashion and have an eye for art. | |Must have good analytical skills | | |Must be computer literate | | |Must be able to work quickly | |Beader – |Beaders are responsible of putting beads and sequins on bridal gowns for accent. | |Responsibilities |Puts beads and sequins on gowns | | |Inspect products to ensure that specifications are met and to determine whether machines require adjustment. | |Qualifications |Must have an interest in fashion and have an eye for art. | |Preferably with 3 years experience in custom-made formal wear | | |With good moral character and working habit | Working Salaries and Benefits Below are the salaries and benefits of the employees. |PERSONNEL |PHILHEALTH |SSS |TOTAL | |Manager |P 301. 00 every quarter |P 225. 00 per month |P 9,030. 00 per month-based on minimum P 301. 0| | | | |daily | |Sewer |P 205. 00 every quarter |P 125. 00 per month |P 4,400. 00 per month | |Cutter | | | | |Beader | | | | |NOTE: |The sewers, cutters, and beaders are not based on minimum wages because they are not yet regulars. | Organizational ChartThe organizational chart of Wedlock Trends shows the structure of an organization and the relationships and relative ranks of its parts and positions/jobs. As a starting business, Wedlock Trends involve few personnel/staff. The manager assumes the leadership roles within the company and will be responsible for the daily operation, over-seeing marketing efforts, buying merchandise, managing inventory and all other administrative duties. The other staffs will assist the owner with assisting the customers and the sewers, cutters, beaders to maintain the dress will be good quality to the customers. Gantt Chart Below is the calendar of activities of Wedlock Trends. OOperating Activities | |Activities | |Activities | |Particulars |Quantity |Price |Acquisition Value | |Bridal Fabric (local) |5 rolls |125/m |P 34,375. 00 | |Bridal Fabric (imported) |3 rolls |395/m |65,175. 00 | |Bridal Lace (local) |5 rolls |280/m |77,000. 00 | |Bridal Lace (imported) |3 rolls |550/m |90,750. 00 | |Pants/Slacks Fabrics |5 rolls |145/m |39,875. 0 | |Dress/Gown (local) |5 rolls |55/m |15,125. 00 | |Dress/Gown (imported) |3 rolls |120/m |19,800. 00 | |Barong |5 rolls |108/m |29,700. 00 | |Tuxedo |5 rolls |125/m |34,375. 00 | |Buttons |5 kilos |250/k |1,250. 0 | |Beads and Sequins |5 kilos |300/k |1,500. 00 | |Embroidery Threads |5 boxes |360/b |1,800. 00 | |Embroidery Threads |4 boxes |1320/b |5,280. 00 | |Needle Book (kit) |5 boxes |6. 50 |32. 50 | |Sewing Thread |8 boxes |206. 5/b |1,651. 60 | |Zipper |8 rolls |33 |264. 00 | |Tape Measure |5pcs |4 |20. 00 | |Yard Stick |5pcs |22. 75 |113. 75 | |Garter |7 rolls |315/r |2,205. 00 | |TOTAL | |P 420, 291. 85 | | Office Materials | |Particular |Quantity |Price Per Unit |Acquisition Value | |Stapler |2 |P 120. 00 |P 240. 00 | |Scissors |3 |55. 00 |165. 00 | |Calculator |2 |390. 00 |780. 0 | |thumbtacks |4 |10. 00 |40. 00 | |TOTAL | | |P 1,225. 00 | |Office Supplies | |Particular |Quantity |Price Per Unit |Acquisition Value | |Long Coupon Bond |1 ream |P 168. 00 |P 168. 0 | |Short Coupon Bond |1 ream |158. 00 |158. 00 | |Pencils |15 pcs |6. 00 |90. 00 | |Pens |10 pcs |7. 00 |70. 00 | |Staples |5 boxes |15. 00 |75. 00 | |Folders |50 pcs |6. 00 |300. 0 | |Paper Clips |1 box |25. 00 |25. 00 | |Fastener |1box |35. 00 |35. 00 | |Record Book |1 pcs |89. 00 |89. 00 | |Binder Aids |1 box |32. 00 |32. 00 | |Adhesive tape |2pcs |22. 0 |44. 00 | |TOTAL | | |P 1,086. 00 | Machineries and Equipment |Machine | |Particulars |Quantity |Price |Life |Acquisition Value |Annual Depreciation | |Sewing Machine |3 |P 8,995. 00 |5 |P 26,985. 00 |P 5,397. 0 | |Embroidery Machine |2 |12,300. 00 |5 |24,600. 00 |4,920. 00 | |TOTAL | | | | |P 10,317. 00 | II – Equipment |Equipment | |Particular |Quantity |Price |Life |Acquisition Value |Annual Depreciation | |Computer Set |1 |P 25,000. 0 |5 |P 25,000 . 00 |P 5,000. 00 | |Printer |1 |3,500. 00 |5 |3,500. 00 |700. 00 | |Air Conditioner |1 |14,000. 00 |5 |14,000. 00 |2,800. 00 | |Water Dispenser |1 |4,200. 00 |5 |4,200. 00 |840. 00 | |Body Form |6 |2,000. 00 |5 |12,000. 00 |2,400. 0 | |Working Table |1 |3,900. 00 |5 |3,900. 00 |780. 00 | |Steel Cabinet |1 |5,700 |5 |5,700. 00 |1,140. 00 | |Electric Iron |1 |690. 00 |- |690. 00 |- | |Ironing Board |1 |350. 00 |- |350. 00 |- | |Electric Fan |1 |1,300. 00 |- |1,300. 0 |- | |Clotheslines Stand |5 |1,299. 00 |- |6,495. 00 |- | |Dress Bag |100 |49. 00 |- |4,900. 00 |- | |Hangers |20 |74. 75/set |- |1,495. 00 |- | |Coat Hangers |50 |69. 75 |- |3,487. 00 |- | |Soft Broom |1 |45. 0 |- |45. 00 |- | |Trash Bin |1 |89. 50 |- |89. 50 |- | |Dust Pan |1 |25. 00 |- |35. 00 |- | |Pail |1 |115. 00 |- |115. 00 |- | |TOTAL | | | |P 87,301. 50 |P 13,630. 00 | Utilities Consumption Operating Expense | |Particulars |Amount | |Lease Payment |P 24,000. 00 | |Office Supplies |13,032. 00 | |Dress Shop Suppl ies |420,291. 85 | |Repair and Maintenance |144,000. 0 | |Electricity Utilities |5,786. 00 | |Telephone Utilities |11,988. 00 | |Water Utilities |6,000. 00 | |TOTAL |P 625,097. 85 | FINANCIAL STUDY Project Cost Summary Project Cost Summary | | |Amount | |Capital Expenditure | | | |Furniture and Fixture |P 45,880. 00 | | |Office Equipment |87,301. 50 |P 133,181. 50 | | | |Direct Expenditures | | | |Feasibility Study (preparation) |7,000. 0 | | |Survey |3,000. 00 | | |Partnership Expense |5,750. 00 | | |Permit and Licenses |1,725. 00 | | |Legal Fees |3,500. 00 | | |Insurance |3,500. 0 | | |Advertising Expense |1,930. 00 | | |Office Material |1,225. 00 |27,630. 00 | | | |Working Capital (1 month) | | | |Salaries |26,550. 0 | | |Light and Power | | | |Electric Bill (482. 25) | | | |Water Bill (500. 00) |982. 25 | | |Communication | | | |Telephone (999. 00) |999. 0 | | |Lease Payments |2,000. 00 | | |Repair and Maintenance |12,000. 00 | | |Office Supplies |13,032. 00 | | |Dres s Shop Supplies |96,158. 77 |151,722. 02 | |TOTAL | |312,533. 2 | The total estimated Total Project Cost for WEDLOCK TRENDS is P312, 533. 52. |Wedlock Trend Dress Shoppe | |Projection Income Statement | |For the 1st year until 5th year | | |2014 |2015 |2016 |2017 |2018 | |Sales (sched. XI) |P1,754,400. 0 |P2,418,600. 00 |P2,891,040. 00 |P3,098,400. 00 |P3,576,000. 00 | |Direct Expense |27,630. 00 | | | | | |Salary (sched. VIII) |318,600. 00 |321,786. 00 |325,003. 86 |328,253. 90 |331,536. 44 | |Operating Expense (sched. XII)|625,077. 85 |643,830. 8 |663,145. 09 |683,039. 44 |703,530. 63 | |Depreciation (sched. I) | |20,806. 00 |20,806. 00 |20,806. 00 |20,806. 00 | |Earnings Before Income Tax |P 783,092. 15 |P1,432,177. 82 |P1,882,085. 05 |P2,066,300. 66 |P2,520,126. 93 | |Tax |274,082. 25 |501,262. 24 |658,729. 7 |723,205. 23 |882,044. 43 | |Net Income |P 509,009. 90 |P927,724. 56 |P1,223,355. 30 |P1,343,095. 43 |P1,638,082. 50 | | | |Assumptions = 3 % Operating Expense per annum | | | |1 % Salary per annum | Wedlock Trend Dress Shoppe | |Projection Cash Flows Statement | |For the 1st year until 5th year | |Cash Receipts |Pre-Operating |2014 |2015 |2016 |2017 |2018 | |Capt. Contribution |P 2,500,000. 00 | | | | | | |Sales (sched. XI) |- |P1,754,400. 0 |P2,418,600. 00 |P2,891,040. 00 |P3,098,400. 00 |P3,576,000. 00 | | | |TOTAL |P2, 500,000. 00 |P1,754,400. 00 |P2,418,600. 00 |P2,891,040. 00 |P3,098,400. 00 |P3,576,000. 00 | |Cash Disbursement | | | | | | | |Capital Expenditure |P 133,181. 0 | | | | | | |Direct Expense |27,630. 00 | | | | | | |Salary (sched. VIII) |- |318,600. 00 |321,786. 00 |325,003. 86 |328,253. 90 |331,536. 44 | |Operating Expense (sched. XII) |- |625,077. 85 |643,830. 8 |663,145. 09 |683,039. 44 |703,530. 63 | |Tax |- | |274,082. 25 |501,262. 24 |658,729. 77 |723,205. 23 | |Profit |- |P 509,009. 90 |P927,724. 56 |P1,223,355. 30 |P1,343,095. 43 |P1,638,082. 50 | |Total |P160,811. 50 |P1,452,687. 75 |P2,167,422. 99 |P2,712,796. 49 |P3,01 3,118. 4 |P3,396,354. 80 | |Net Cash Flow |P2,339,188. 50 |P 301,712. 25 |P 251,177. 01 |P 178,243. 51 |P 85,281. 46 |P 179,645. 20 | |Net Cash Flow Beg. |- |2,339,188. 50 |2,640,900. 75 |2,892,077. 76 |3,070,321. 27 |3,155,602. 73 | |Cash Balance Beg. |P2,339,188. 50 |P2,640,900. 75 |P2,892,077. 76 |P3,070,321. 27 |P3,155,602. 73 |P3,335,247. 93 | Wedlock Trend Dress Shoppe | |Project Balance Sheet | |For the 1st year until 5th year | | |2014 |2015 |2016 |2017 |2018 | |Asset | | | | | | |Cash |P2,640,900. 75 |P2,892,077. 76 |P3,070,321. 27 |P3,155,602. 73 |P3,335,247. 93 | |Furniture and Fixture |45,880. 00 |42,500. 00 |39,120. 00 |35,740. 00 |32,360. 00 | |(sched.I) | | | | | | |Equipment (sched. II) |87,301. 50 |66,684. 48 |49,288. 50 |31,862. 50 |11,436. 50 | |Total Assets |P 2,774,082. 25 |P 3,001,262. 24 |P3,158,729. 77 |P3,223,205. 23 |P3,382,044. 43 | | | |Liabilities & Capital | |Capital |P 2,500,000. 0 |P 2,500,000. 00 |P 2,500,000. 00 |P 2,500,000. 00 |P 2,500,000. 00 | | Taxation |274,082. 25 |501,262. 24 |658,729. 77 |723,205. 23 |882,044. 43 | |TOTAL |P 2,774,082. 25 |P 3,001,262. 24 |P3,158,729. 77 |P3,223,205. 23 |P3,382,044. 43 | Wedlock Trends : 4 partners and Capital Contribution of each is : Partner 1; P 625, 000. 0 Partner 2; P 625, 000. 00 Partner 3; P 625, 000. 00 Partner 4; P 625, 000. 00 Ratio Analysis |Profitability | | | |Average Net Income |P1,128,253. 54 |41. 06% |The profit ratio is 41. 06%, means that for every peso of sales, there is | | | | |a net profit of P. 41. | Average Net Sale |P2,747,688. 00 | | | | | |Average Net Income |P1,128,253. 54 |45. 13% |The ratio is 45. 13%, means that for every peso of sales, there is a net | | | | |profit of P. 45. | |Owners Equity |P 2,500,000. 0 | | | | | |Average Net Profit |P1,128,253. 54 |36. 30% |The contribution of total assets to the net profit is 36. 30% for every | | | | |peso worth of asset it has a profit of P. 36. | |Average Total Asset |P 3,107,864. 8 | | | | | |Liquidity | | | |Average Current Asset |P3,006,830. 09 |494. 65% |The liquidity ratio is 494. 65% or a peso of current liability is | | | | |supported by P 4. 94 or 5 worth of the current assets | |Average Current Liabilities |P 607,864. 8 | | | | | |Pay Back Capital | | | |Parnership Capital |P 2,500,000. 00 |2. 22 |The capital can be recovered within 2 years of appreciation which is | | | | |favorable. | |Average Net Income |P1,128,253. 54 | | | Schedules Schedule I – Furniture and Fixture Furniture and Fixture | |Particular |Quantity |Price |Life |Acquisition Vale |Annual Depreciation | |Sofa Set |1 |P 28,895. 00 |5 |P 28,895. 00 |P 5,779. 00 | |Office Table w/ Chair |1 |7,700. 00 |5 |7,700. 00 |1540. 00 | |Full Length Mirror |1 |2,300. 00 |5 |2,300. 00 |460. 00 | |Full Length Mirror |2 |1,600. 0 |- |3,200. 00 |- | |Plastic Chair/Monobloc |6 |390. 00 |- |2,340. 00 |- | |Jacket Stand |1 |995. 00 |- |995. 00 |- | |Umbrella |1 |450. 00 |- |450. 00 |- | |TOTAL | | | |P45,880. 00 | P 7,779. 00 | Schedule II – Equipment Equipment

Tuesday, January 7, 2020

We Need Look No Further Than The Final Seasons Of The...

We need look no further than the final seasons of the majority of one’s favorite television shows to realize the simple fact, what is newer is not necessarily better, in fact it is often far worse or more complicated. It is a common bias of modernity to assume superiority over any ways of thinking that ruled past cultures; however, particularly for a religiously-based course, that kind of thinking is highly problematic. For the purposes of this essay I will attempt to traverse the narrow line of objectivity and compare and contrast two worlds. These two worlds are the Old and New, and are heavily subjective and conventional in nature, but nevertheless this inquiry will continue as planned. The rise of soteriology and a new kind of guilt,†¦show more content†¦In a world where your past, present, and future is perfect, it is shown through the sky and translated to you by your ruler, there is no need for questioning, reality is reality and truth is truth. The future show n by the oracle bones is always correct, any issues or misreading’s were just that, mistakes on the part of man not that of truth nor reality. That brings me to the inevitable discussion of science that comes with this topic, the fact that there are indeed two conflicting definitions. Science in its truest sense, is by definition what is true; the modern idea of logical explanation and inquiry defining science is an enlightenment invention. Science of the â€Å"Old World† is allegory, the simple fact that heaven is the sky and all order in the world is prescribed to us by the stars and that there is a time and place for everything in the stars. Truth is far more elegant and understandable in this sense, it is axiomatic, what was true today was true yesterday and will be true tomorrow. The harvest comes shortly before the great winged horse â€Å"Pegasus† reaches its zenith in heaven, it always has, and it always will (for at least a few hundred years this will almost always be true). This is science, and it will never change, but it is not as perfect as its elegance would seem. While it would indeed be perfect for dozens of generations there is a grave imperfection to this science, things eventually do change. The modernShow MoreRelatedThe Athletes : Sports There Are 420000 Athletes Essay1531 Words   |  7 Pages There are 347 division 1 schools among 23 sports there are 420,000 athletes. Most days of Americas 420,000 athletes D1 athletes include of multiple interactions majority involving something to do with the sport they play. Waking up at 5:30 am for a 6:00 am practice for about an hour, then going to classes through the day which student athletes have to be full time students in order to be eligible to play so they are taking up to 4, 5 classes. Not to mention D1 athletes also have individual workoutsRead MoreAn Investigation Into The Effect Of Immunisation On Evolution Essay1134 Words   |  5 Pagessystem to battle newly evolved viruses, and similar. We are relying on our own productions to do it for us. Having had a quick glimpse into this idea in the past I decided that this was the perfect time to do some harder looking. The idea is an interesting one, however there isn’t much behind for study in humans. I thought that a good idea would be to look into animals, namely those that have a shorter lifespan and faster reproductive rate than us. Although it isn’t wholly accurate as this was andRead MoreCompany Description Of Pictures For Paws1620 Words   |  7 Pagesbusiness. The Company’s Mission Pictures for Paws envisions its mission as providing a peaceful, happy, memorable, place to come with your animals and leave with the memories in your hand - to never be forgotten. 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PR eventually gave us something The Office never did: real world issues, served up with clever wit. The fictionalRead MoreSexual Tension Among Members Of The North American People Essay1494 Words   |  6 Pagesbehaviours to gain approval from the opposite sex. The mating process for these natives begin with the displaying of an attractive physical appearance which then lead to the three stages of mating that involves meeting, revealing, and cohabitation The majority of men and women arise from their beds in the morning to commence a ritualistic routine of improving one’s personal hygiene and appearance. They have a separate room dedicated to washing and cleansing their bodies in a variety of ways. A bristleRead Moretransformational leaders in sports9224 Words   |  37 Pagesmost successful head coach in Tampa Bay Buccaneers history. He has also held assistant coaching positions with the University of Minnesota, Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs, and Minnesota Vikings. Before becoming a coach, Dungy played three seasons in the NFL. Dungy has been involved in a wide variety of charitable organizations, including the Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Athletes in Action, Mentors for Life, Big Brothers Big Sisters, Boys Girls Clubs, the Prison Crusade Ministry,Read MoreHow to Handle Violence in Youth Sports1498 Words   |  6 Pagessports. The child will learn how to make friends outside of school, church, and family. It will help develop self-esteem and physical skills. They discover what it means to be a member of a team, and how to win and lose with self-respect. Children also need to be active every day; exercise promotes growth and improves physical and emotional health. The Office of the Surgeon General states that active children are at less risk to high blood pressure, diabetes, heart disease as well as many cancers (OfficeRead More The Tragedy of Commercialism in College Sports Essay4106 Words   |  17 Pagesbroadcast from 10 different locations on March 12 (Hiestand). For fans of the sport ESPN has be come a college hoops haven. CBS may garner the most attention for its $6 billion 11-year contract, which gives the network exclusive broadcasting rights for the season-ending mens NCAA tournament, but it is ESPN, which is responsible for the games dramatic rise in popularity. Before ESPN launched in September of 1979, college basketball games on TV were hard to find and national broadcasts of the sport were

Monday, December 30, 2019

The Sickness Onto Death And Sartre - 1539 Words

Both Kierkegaard, in â€Å"The Sickness onto Death† and Sartre in â€Å"Being and Nothingness† present each existentialist’s view on the contemporary modes of inauthentic living that have been brought about by modernization. Kierkegaard’s explanation of inauthentic living stems from the notion of Kierkegaardian Despair, which he ties into his idea of â€Å"That Individual†. Not quite similarly, Sartre, through select chapters in â€Å"Being and Nothingness† conveys his perspective of contemporary inauthentic living through an idea he calls â€Å"Bad Faith†. Both Kierkegaardian Despair and Sartrean Bad Faith involve human suffering not at a psychological or physical level, but rather an existential level. I strongly believe that the individuals suffer more from Despair than Bad Faith, as there are aspects of nothingness and anguish of Bad Faith that intensify the suffering. â€Å"The Sickness onto Death† by Kierkegaard encompasses the notion of inauthentic living. Kierkegaard defines Despair as â€Å"the disrelationship in a relation which relates itself to itself â€Å" (Hackett, 80). It is, in other words, failing to or refusing to take on the challenge of trying to become, as Kierkegaard calls it, â€Å"That Individual†. Also, by doing so, we are failing to achieve authentic living in its simplest form. To understand how human beings suffer from Kierkegaardian Despair, we must understand what it is that causes that existential pain that comes from having an unfillable void in one’s existence. Kierkegaard assertsShow MoreRelatedA Connection Between Existence And Absence2238 Words   |  9 PagesHamm asks Clov if he has ever been happy. Clov replies â€Å"Not to my knowledge† which is extremely illogical. â€Å"When one discovers the self, one discovers freedom: for the self is freedom [†¦] For a man to be unconscious of himself as self is the sickness unto death† (Gravil, 65). Anyone should be aware of his emotions and that should the basis of our existence. â€Å"Man, say existentialism, is the being who can transcend himself [†¦] He is capable of various authentic and inauthentic modes of relations toRead MoreEssay on A Philosophy of the Impersonal5155 Words   |  21 Pagesquestions precisely on this point: at no time more than today do human rights, beginning with the right to live, seem so utterly denied. No right more so than the right to live seems contradicted by the millions of victims who die because of hunger, sickness, and war. How is this possible? Whats the origin of this drift in meaning of person that is taking place today when the normative reference to the value of the person is being affirmed in all languages and its flag raised high? One could respondRead MoreFeminist Approach to Witchcraft; Case Study: Millers the Crucible6554 Words   |  27 PagesThe Crucible, in an effort to deconstruct the phallologocentric sanctions implicit in Millers account of Abigails fate, Elizabeths confession, and Johns temptatio n and death.] Arthur Millers The Crucible is a disturbing work, not only because of the obvious moral dilemma that is irresolutely solved by John Proctors death, but also because of the treatment that Abigail and Elizabeth receive at Millers hands and at the hands of critics. In forty years of criticism very little has been said aboutRead MoreMetz Film Language a Semiotics of the Cinema PDF100902 Words   |  316 Pagesthe reader of Victor Hugo s Waterloo. (A. J. Greimas would say that the man with the radio is actually two actors: the demonstrating actor and the listening actor). We are approaching a concept that has been developed frequently since Jean-Paul Sartre made his studies of the world of the imagination: Reality does not tell stories, but memory, because it is an account, is entirely imaginative. Thus, an event must in some way have ended before its narration can begin. One might add that, in the case

Sunday, December 22, 2019

The First Ever Demonstration Of Artificial Embryo Twinning

Cloning is the process by which a genetically identical copy of an organism has naturally occurred or been created in a laboratory. A process of cloning can be completed on a wide range of biological materials, including genes, tissues, cells and entire organisms (Genetics Generation, 2015). The first-ever demonstration of artificial embryo twinning was accomplished on a sea urchin by Hans Adolf Eduard Driesch in 1885 (Oppenheimer, 2016), yet the most significant cloning example was attained in 1996, where ‘Dolly the sheep’, the first mammal clone was created by somatic cell nuclear transfer by Ian Wilmut and Keith Campbell (University of Utah, 2016). In 2002, the Council of Australian Governments agreed to ban human cloning and other unacceptable practices and regulate research involving excess assisted reproductive technology embryos. Cloning was banned in response to community concerns, including ethicality of the uses of human embryos. Changes to this legislation cam e into effect in 2007, to allow therapeutic cloning due to the increase in research from other countries (National Health Medical Research Council - Australian Government, 2015). However, in contrast to humans, animals have always been legally allowed to be cloned unethically and sold for their meat, as long as the meat complies with the food safety conditions and regulations of the world (Kelly L., 2005). Cloning is a contentious topic with multiple ambiguous viewpoints which can be discovered and observedShow MoreRelatedThe Human Genome By Ridley1617 Words   |  7 Pagesreader engaged and waiting to learn what comes next. Though he covers so many different topics within this novel, some of the most paramount topics would be those of the origins of life, the studies and findings of Gregor Mendel and the controversial, ever changing, and much-debated world of cloning. To begin this story of the genome, Ridley discussed the very origins of life on Earth. He began this discussion with the explanation of the Last Universal Common Ancestor, also known as Luca. Luca, â€Å"lookedRead MoreThe Controversy Of Cloning And Genetic Engineering Essay2004 Words   |  9 Pagesand Nature first made us what we are, and then out of our own created genius we make ourselves what we want to be†¦ Let the sky and God be our limit and Eternity our measurement – Marcus Garvey (1887-1940). Cloning and genetically modifying humans is now more attainable than ever due to strides made by science. With a relatively short history, cloning and genetic engineering have been a new concept for many people in society with the first proof of cloning being dolly the sheep, the first successful

Saturday, December 14, 2019

The Blue Sword CHAPTER SIX Free Essays

string(96) " space before the king’s tent; and as she watched, the outlying tents began to come down\." She remembered little more of that day. She settled herself on a heap of cushions a little way from the long table while the king and his men talked; and if they spoke at all of her, she did not know it, but she did notice that none but Corlath ever allowed his eyes to rest on her. The feeling she had had earlier, before she had tasted the Water of Seeing, that the closeness among the king and his men in some way supported her, was gone; she felt lost and miserably alone, and she decided that when there were eighteen people pretending you didn’t exist in a small enclosed area, it was worse than two people pretending you didn’t exist outside under the sky. We will write a custom essay sample on The Blue Sword CHAPTER SIX or any similar topic only for you Order Now The shadows nickered strangely through the tent, and the voices seemed muffled. There was a ringing in her ears – a ringing not like the usual fear-feeling of one’s blood hammering through one’s body, but a real ringing like that of distant bells. She could almost discern the notes. Or were they human, the shifting tones of someone speaking, far away? The taste still on her tongue seemed to muffle her brain. And she was tired, so tired †¦ When his Riders left, Corlath stood looking down at his captured prize. She had fallen asleep, and no wonder; she was smiling a little in her sleep, but it was a sad smile, and it made him unhappy. However much formal honor he showed her, seating her at his left hand, setting his household to serve her as they served him – he grimaced – he knew only too well that by stealing her from her people he had done a thing to be ashamed of, even if he had had no alternative – even if she and the kelar she bore were to do his beloved country some good he could not otherwise perform. Perhaps she could learn to see something of what made the Hills and their people so dear to him as a man, not as a king – ? Perhaps her Gift would bind her to them. Perhaps she would hate them for her lost land and family. He sighed. Forloy’s young wife had not wished to hate the Hills, but that had not helped her. Harry woke in the dark. She did not know where she was; the shapes beneath her were not of pillow and mattress, and the odor of the air had nothing in common with Residency air, or Homeland air. For a moment hysteria bubbled up and she was conscious only of quelling it; she could not think, not even to decide why she wished to bottle up the panic – her pride automatically smothered her fear as best it could. Afterward she lay exhausted, and the knowledge of where she was reformed itself, and the smell was of the exotic woods of the carven boxes in the Hill-king’s tent. But as she lay on her back and stared into the blackness, the tears began to leak out of her eyes and roll down her cheeks and wet her hair, and she was too tired to resist them. They came ever faster, till she turned over and buried her face in the scratchy cushions to hide the sobs she could not stop. Corlath was a light sleeper. On the other side of the tent he opened his eyes and rolled up on one elbow and looked blindly toward the dark corner where his Outlander lay. Long after Harry had cried herself to sleep again, the Hill-king lay awake, facing the grief he had caused and could not comfort. When Harry woke again, the golden tent flap had been lifted, and sunlight flashed across the thick heavy rugs to spill across her eyes and waken her. She sat up. She was still curled on and around a number of fat cushions; the back of the hand her cheek had lain against was printed with the embroidered pattern of the pillow beneath it. She yawned and stretched, gingerly pulling the knots of midnight fears out of her muscles. One of the men with a mark on his forehead approached her, knelt, and set a small table with pitcher and basin and towels and brushes before her. She saw nothing of Corlath. The tent looked as it had when she had first entered it the day before; the low tables had been removed, and the peak lamp raised again. When she had washed, she was brought a bowl of an unfamiliar cereal, hot and steaming like Homelander porridge, but of no grain she recognized. It was good, and she surprised herself by eating it all with good appetite. She laid down her spoon, and one of the men of the household approached again, bowed, and indicated that she should go out. She felt crumpled, in the same garments she had slept in; but she shook them out as best she could, observed that they didn’t seem to wrinkle horribly as Homelander clothing would have done, raised her chin, and marched out – to be met by another man with a pair of boots for her, and a folding stool to sit on while she fumbled with the lacing. She felt a fool, let loose, however involuntarily, in a highly organized community which now wished to organize her too: like the grain of sand that gets into an oyster’s shell. What if the grain doesn’t want to become a pearl? Is it ever asked to climb out quietly and take up it s old position as a bit of ocean floor? Did she want to go back? What did she have to go back to? But what was Dickie thinking of her absence? She had no more tears at present, but her eyelids were as stiff as shutters, and her throat hurt. People were moving hastily across the open space before the king’s tent; and as she watched, the outlying tents began to come down. You read "The Blue Sword CHAPTER SIX" in category "Essay examples" They seemed to float down of their own accord; all was graceful and quiet. If anyone was doing any protracted cursing over the recalcitrance of inanimate objects, it was only under his breath. Her brother should see this. She smiled painfully. She blinked, her eyes adjusting slowly to the bright sunlight. The sky overhead was a cloudless hard blue, a pale metallic blue. It was morning again; she’d slept almost a full day. To the left rose a little series of dunes, so gradually that she only recognized their height by the fact that her horizon, from where she stood, was the tops of them. Somewhere in that direction lay the General Mundy, the Residency, her brother – and farther, much farther, in that same direction, over desert and mountain, plain and sea, lay her Homeland. She felt the sand underfoot, nothing like the springy firm earth of Home, no more than the queer soft boots she wore were like her Homeland boots; and the strange loose weight of her robes pulled on her shoulders. The king’s tent was being dismantled in its turn. First the sides were rolled up and secured, and she saw with surprise that the rugs and lamps, chests and cushions, were already gone from inside; all that remained was the sand, curiously smoothed and hollowed from what it had borne. She wondered if they might have rolled her up like an extra bolster if she had not awakened; or if they would have packed up all around her, leaving her on a little island of cushions in a sea of empty sand. The corner posts and the tall central ones folded up on themselves somehow, and the roof sank to the ground with the same stateliness she had admired in the smaller tents. She counted ten of the household men rolling and folding and tying. They stooped as they worked, and the great tent in only minutes was ten neat white-and-black bundles, each a mere armful for one of the men. They walked to a line of horses who stood patiently as their high-framed saddles were piled with boxes and bundles su ch as those the king’s tent made. She noticed how carefully each load was arranged, each separate piece secured and tested for balance before the next was settled. At the end all was checked for comfort, and the horse left with a pat on the nose or neck. Horses were the commonest animals in the camp; there were many more horses than people. Even the pack horses were tall and elegant, but she could pick out the riding-horses, for they were the finest and proudest, and their coats shone like gems. There were also dogs: tall long-legged dogs with long narrow beautiful skulls and round dark eyes, and long silky fur to protect them from the sun. Some were haltered in pairs, and all were members of three or four separate groups. Sight-hounds, Harry thought. The groups roamed as freely as the untethered horses, yet showed no more inclination than they to wander from the camp. She noticed with interest that a few of the pack horses were tied in pairs, like the dogs, and reflected that perhaps it was a training method, a younger beast harnessed to an older, which could teach it manners. There were cats too. But these were not the small domestic lap-sized variety; these were as lean and long-legged as the dogs. Their eyes were green or gold or silver, and their coats were mottled brown and amber and black. One animal looked almost spotted, black on brown, while the next looked almost striped, fawn-pale on black. Some wore collars, leather with silver or copper fittings, but no leashes, and each went its solitary way, ignoring any other cats, dogs, or horses that might cross its path. One came over to Harry where she stood; she held her breath and thought of tigers and leopards. It viewed her nonchalantly, then thrust its head under her hand. It was a moment before Harry recovered herself enough to realize that her hand was trembling because the cat was vibrating as it purred. She stroked it gingerly and the purr grew louder. The fur was short and fine and very thick; when she tried, delicately, to part it, she could not see the skin. The cat had very long blond eyela shes and it looked up at her through them, green eyes half closed. She wondered how all the animals got on together: were there ever any fights? And did the big cats ever steal one of the green-and-blue parrots that rode on a few of the Hillfolk’s shoulders? The tents were all down, and she was amazed at the numbers of beasts and people that were revealed. She wondered if the people were all men but herself, thinking of the attempt by the men of the household to wait on her at her bath the evening before. She could not tell, now, by looking, for everyone wore a robe similar to her own, and most wore hoods; and only a few wore beards. â€Å"Lady,† said a voice she knew, and she turned and saw Corlath, and Fireheart followed him. â€Å"Another long ride?† she said, feeling a flush in her cheeks for being called lady by the Hill-king. â€Å"Yes, another long ride, but we need not travel so quickly.† She nodded, and a smile came and went on the king’s face, so quickly that she did not see it, as he realized that she would not plead, nor ask questions. â€Å"You will need this,† he said, and handed her a hood like the one he and most everyone else were wearing. She stood turning it over helplessly in her hands, for it was little more than a long tapered tube of soft material, and not too plainly meant as one thing or another to someone who had never seen one before. He took it away from her again and put it on her, then produced a scarf and showed her how to wrap it in place. â€Å"It grows easier with practice,† he said. â€Å"Thank you,† she said. Another voice spoke behind them, and both turned; a man stood with another horse at his heels. This man was dressed in brown, and wore leggings and a tunic above his tall boots and bore a small white mark on his right cheek; and Corlath told her that so the men of the horse, the grooms, dressed; men of the hunt, who cared for the cats and dogs, were dressed similarly, but their belts were red, and they wore red scarves over their hoods and their white mark of office was on the left cheek. â€Å"I – I thought all the Hillfolk wore sashes,† Harry said hesitantly. â€Å"No,† Corlath answered readily enough; â€Å"only those who also may carry swords.† The brown-clad man turned to the horse he had brought them. â€Å"His name is Red Wind, Rolinin,† Corlath said; he was another red bay, though not so bright as Fireheart. â€Å"For the present, you will ride him.† She speculated, a little nervously, about the for the present. She was pleased at the idea of not bumping on somebody else’s saddlebow, but as she looked up at the tall horse, and he looked kindly down on her, she collected her courage and said, â€Å"I – I am accustomed to bit and bridle.† She thought, I am accustomed to stirrups too, but I can probably cope without them – at least if nothing too exciting occurs. He looks like he’ll have nice gaits †¦ Oh dear. â€Å"Yes,† said Corlath in his inscrutable voice, and Harry looked up at him in dismay. â€Å"Red Wind will teach you how we of the Hills ride.† She hesitated a minute longer, but couldn’t think of anything further to say that wouldn’t be too humiliating, like â€Å"I’m scared.† So when the brown man went down on one knee and cupped his hands for her foot, she stepped up and was lifted gently into the saddle. No reins. She looked at her hands as if they should be somewhere else, rubbed them briefly down the legs, and then laid them across the rounded pommel like stunned rabbits brought home from a hunt. Red Wind’s ears flicked back at her and his back shifted under her. She closed her legs delicately around his barrel and he waited, listening; she squeezed gently and he stepped gravely forward; she sat back and he stopped. Perhaps they would get along. Corlath mounted while she was arranging her hands; I suppose they’ll expect me to learn to mount without help too, she thought irascibly; when she looked up from Red Wind’s obedient ears Fireheart moved off, and Red Wind willingly followed. They traveled for some days. She meant to keep count, but she did not have the presence of mind immediately to find a bit of leather or rock to scratch the days on as they passed, and somewhere around four or five or six she lost count. The days of travel continued for some time after the four or five or six; every muscle in her body ached and protested from the unaccustomed exercise, after months of soft living at the Residency and aboard ship. She was grateful for her weariness, however, for it granted her heavy sleep without dreams. She developed saddlesores, and gritted her teeth and ignored them, and rather than getting worse as she had expected, they eased and then went away altogether, and with them the aches and pains. Her old skill in the saddle came back to her; she did not miss the stirrups except while mounting – she still needed someone to be a mounting-block for her every day – and slowly she learned to guide her patient horse without reins. She could bind her boots to her legs and her hood round her head as deftly – almost – as though she had been doing these things all her life. She learned to eat gracefully with her fingers. She met four women who were part of Corlath’s traveling camp; they all four wore sashes. She learned the name of the friendly cat: Narknon. She often found her keeping her feet warm when she woke up in the morning. Narknon also, for all her carnivorous heritage, had a taste for porridge. Harry continued to eat at the king’s table for the evening meal, with the eighteen Riders and Corlath; she still sat at the king’s left hand, and she was still politely served and equably ignored. She began to understand, or at least to suspect, that Corlath kept her near him not only because the Hillfolk were not accustomed to dealing with enemy prisoners, but more because he was hoping to make her feel like a respected guest – he was quick to answer her questions, partly perhaps because she did not abuse the privilege; and there was often almost diffidence in his manner when he offered her something: a new cloak, or a piece of fruit of a sort she had never seen before. He wants me to like it here, she thought. She still slept in the king’s tent, but a corner was now modestly curtained off for her, and when she woke in the morning and put the curtains back, Corlath was already gone. One of the men of the household would see her, and bring her towels and w ater, and breakfast. She grew fond of the porridge; sometimes they made it into little flat cakes, and fried them, and put honey over them. The honey was made from flowers she had never seen nor smelled; the rich exotic fragrance of it set her dreaming. She never asked Corlath why she was here, or what her future was to be. In the mornings, after breakfast, while the camp was broken, or, if they were staying an extra day while messengers came from nowhere to talk to the king, she rode Red Wind and, as Corlath had told her, taught herself, or let the horse teach her, to ride as the Hillfolk rode. After her riding-lesson, if they were not traveling that day, she wandered through the camp, and watched the work going forward: everything was aired and washed or shaken out or combed, and the beasts were all brushed till they gleamed. No one, horse or dog or cat or human being, ever tried to stop the Outlander from wandering anywhere in particular, or watching anything in particular; occasionally she was even allowed to pick up a currycomb or polishing-cloth or rug-beater, but it was obvious that she was so permitted out of kindness, for her help was never needed. But she was grateful for the kindness. She spoke her few words of Hill-speech: May I? And Thank you, and the Hillfolk smiled at her and said, Our pr ivilege, slowly and carefully, back to her. Sometimes she watched the hunts ride out; the dogs hunted in their groups, the cats alone or occasionally in pairs. There did not seem to be any order to those who rode with them, other than the presence of at least one man of the hunt; and she never saw any return without a kill: desert hares, or the small digging orobog – Corlath told her the names – or the great horned dundi that had to be hung on a pole and carried between two horses. She was homesick in unexpected spasms so strong that Red Wind, who was a faithful old plug by Hill standards and could be trusted to children and idiots, would feel her freeze on his back, and toss his head uncomfortably and prance. She had not wept herself to sleep since her first night in the king’s tent and she thought, carefully, rationally, that it was hard to say what exactly she was homesick for: the Homeland seemed long past, and she did not miss her months at the Residency in Istan. She recalled the faces of Sir Charles and Lady Amelia with a pang, and she missed her brother anxiously, and worried about what he must think about his lost sister. She found she also missed the wise patient understanding of Jack Dedham; but she thought of him with a strange sort of peacefulness, as if his feeling for his adopted country would transcend the seeming impossibility of what had happened to her, and he would know that she was well. That sickness of dislocation came to her most often when she was most at ease in the strange adventure she was living. She might be staring at the line of Hills before them, closer every day, watching how sharply the edges of them struck into the sky; Red Wind at Fireheart’s heels, the desert wind brushing her cheek and the sun on her shoulders and hooded head; and suddenly she would be gasping with the thing she called homesickness. It would strike her as she sat at the king’s table, cross-legged, eating her favorite cheese, sweet and brown and crumbly, listening wistfully to the conversation she still could not understand, beyond the occasional word or phrase. I’m missing what I don’t have, she thought late one night, squirming on her cushions. It’s nothing to do with what I should be homesick for – Jack would understand, the oldest colonel still active, looking across the desert at the Hills. It’s that I don’t belong here. It doesn’t matter that I’m getting burned as dark as they are, that I can sit a horse all day and not complain. It doesn’t matter even that their Water of Sight works in me as it does in only a few of their own. It is only astonishing that it would work in one not of the Hills; it does not make that one any more of the Hills than she was before. There was a certain bitter humor to lying awake wishing for something one cannot have, after lying awake not so long ago wishing for the opposite thing that one had just lost. Not a very useful sort of adaptability, this, she thought. But, her thought added despairingly, what kind of adaptability – or genius – would be useful to me? She traced her life back to her childhood, and for the first time in many years recalled the temper tantrums that she had grown out of so early it was hard to remember them clearly; but she did remember that they had frightened even her, dimly, still a baby in her crib, realizing there was something not quite right about them. They had scared two nursemaids into leaving; it had been her mother who had at last successfully coped, grimly, with her and them. That memory brought into focus another memory she also had pushed aside many years ago: the memory, or knowledge, of not-quite-rightness that grew up after the tantrums had passed; and with that knowledge had also grown an odd non-muscular kind of control. She had thought at the time, with a child’s first wistfulness upon being faced with approaching adulthood, that this was a control that everyone learned; but now, lying in the desert dark, she was not so sure. There was something in her new, still inexplicable and unforeseeable life in the Hills that touched and tried to shape that old long-ignored sense of restraint; and something in her that eagerly reached out for the lesson, but could not – yet – quite grasp it or make use of it. There was, too, a reality to her new life that her old life had lacked, and she realized with a shock that she had never truly loved or hated, for she had never seen the world she had been used to living in closely enough for it to evoke passion in her. This world was already more vivid to her, exhilaratingly, terrifyingly more vivid, than the sweet green country, affectionately but indistinctly recalled, of her for mer life. She did not have much appetite for breakfast the next morning, and fed hers to Narknon, who gave a pleased burp and went back to sleep again till the men of the household routed her out when they took down the king’s tent. They were nearly to the foothills by the time they halted that evening. The scrub around them had begun to produce the occasional real leaf, and the occasional real leaf was green. For the first time, there was an open stream that ran past their camp, instead of the small secret desert springs; and Harry had a real bath in the big silver basin for the first time since her first evening with the camp, for there had been little water to spare since then. This time the men of the household left towels and a clean yellow robe for her, and left her, as soon as her bath was full. They made camp behind a ridge that ran into what was certainly itself a hill. The tents were pitched around a clear space at the center, with the king’s tent at one edge of it. That clear space always held a fire in the evenings, but tonight the fire was built up till it roared and flung itself taller than the height of a man; and as everyone’s duties were completed, all came and sat around it till they ringed it. The dogs’ pale coats turned red and cinnamon in the firelight; the cats’ shadowy pelts were more mysterious than ever. The wall of the king’s tent facing the fire was rolled up, and Harry and the king and his Riders sat at the open edge and stared at the fire with the rest. After a time no more dark figures came to join the circle; the fire shadows fell and sidled and swam so that Harry could not guess how many people there were. The fire itself began to burn down till it was no more than the kind of glorious bonfire she and her brother had had now and again when they were children and the weather and their parents’ mood had conspired together in their favor. Then the singing began. There were several stringed instruments like lutes, and several wooden pipes for accompaniment and harmony. She recognized ballads even when she could not understand the words, and she wished again that she could understand, and fidgeted on her rug, and glanced at Corlath. He looked back at her, intercepting her frustration, and while there was nothing particularly encouraging about that look, still there was nothing particularly discouraging about it either – as was usual with the looks he gave her now; as was also usual, there was an edge of wistfulness, or sheepishness, in his glance. He had either lost or, as she thought more likely, learned to restrain the slightly resentful puzzlement she had seen the night she had drunk the Water of Sight. She stood up and went over to him and sat down beside him, and pulled up her knees and put her chin on them and stared at the fire, and listened to the words she could not understand. She knew that there had to be at least one more person in the camp who spoke Homelander, the man who had acted as Corlath’s interpreter – and, as Peterson had guessed, unnecessarily – at the Residency, but she had never learned who that man was. Someone else who might have spoken to her, and taught her some more Hill words, that she might be able to talk to those around her – might be able to translate the words of the songs they were singing now. But someone who had chosen not to make himself known to her; someone who liked his skill so little that he felt no pity for her isolation: she, an Outlander, who did not belong to the desert and the Hills. Corlath was watching her face as these thoughts went through her mind, and perhaps he read something of them there, for he said without prompting: â€Å"They sing of what is past, hundreds of years past, when the possession of kelar was so common it was hardly thought a Gift, any more than the length of your nose is a Gift. â€Å"Those given the kelar are far fewer today than they were then. I – we – believe that we are soon to learn at our gravest cost the worth of what we have lost.† He thought, wearily, looking at her and unable to read her expression, What does she see? What do we look like to her? And with a flash of anger he thought, Why is it so arranged that I must hope for the comprehension of an Outlander? Why must it be an Outlander who carries so precious a Gift? A Gift she may choose to repudiate or – or use against us, who need the strength so sorely? Harry hugged her knees closer, and for a moment she saw again a bright narrow thread of riders trotting up a mountain way. So I have the Gift, she thought, but of what use is it to see uninterpretable visions? She came back to herself as Corlath said: â€Å"We sing because we have returned to our Hills; tonight is the first night we sleep again in their shadow. â€Å"Listen. They will sing a ballad of Lady Aerin, Dragon-Killer.† Harry listened, listened hard, with the muscles of her back and of her thighs, as if the Hill-speech were a fractious horse she might tame; and out of the firelight came a figure, wavering with the leap and flicker of the flames, and with hair that was fire itself. A tall broad-shouldered figure with a pale face, and in its right hand it held a long slim blade that glittered blue. Harry stared till her eyes felt as dry as sand, and then the figure’s face swam into focus, and it was a woman’s face, and it smiled at her. But it didn’t smile, it grinned, the wry affectionate grin of an elder sister; and Harry’s head swam with love and despair. Then the woman shook her head gently, and her aureole of hair flamed and rippled about her, and she reached out her empty left hand, and Harry found herself on her hands and knees, reaching her hand back. But a gust of wind came from nowhere an d whipped the fire as though it were an unruly dog, and the figure vanished. Harry fell where she had knelt, and pressed her face to the earth. One real dog sat up and howled. Corlath picked her up as gently as if she were a baby, fallen down after its first steps; and she found there were tears running down her face. He stood up, holding her in his arms, and she cared nothing but that Lady Aerin, Firehair and Dragon-Killer, had come to her and then left her again, more alone than she had ever been before. She threw her arms around the Hill-king’s neck and buried her face in his shoulder and sobbed. And Corlath, holding her, her tears on his neck, felt his resentment waver and dim and fall to ashes; and he felt pity instead for the Outlander, as he had felt pity when she tasted the Meeldtar. The Gift had been a hard enough thing for him, he who had grown up with it, had always known it existed and been trained from childhood in its use, or at least its acceptance. He had had his father to tell him what to expect, and his father had not scorned him when he wept as the Outlander now wept; had, in fact, cradled and comforted him and soothed the headach es the kelar brought. He would help this girl now, as much as he might, stranger and thief as he might be to her. He would do what he could. Harry woke up the next morning in her usual corner, behind the usual curtains, her face still smudged with dirt and tears, and she remembered what she had done rather than what she had seen, and she went hot with shame and swallowed hard, wondering if she dared show herself outside her curtains, even for water to wash in. She could not think about seeing Corlath again at all. She thought, He must have laid the sleep on me again, as he did when he first took me away; put me to sleep like an unruly child because I behaved like an unruly child. Narknon didn’t care; she walked up Harry’s legs and rubbed her head against Harry’s smudgy face, and Harry blinked hard and petted her fiercely. She put back her curtains with an effort, and washed her face, and ate her breakfast as she might have eaten wood chips, silent and stony-faced. A voice broke in on her sorry reflections, and she looked up, surprised, and was still more surprised to see one of the Riders: the short square grim man she had noticed during her first meal in the king’s tent: the one man who had tasted the Water and made no sign. He spoke to her again. Whatever the words were, they had the inflection of â€Å"Good morning,† so she said, â€Å"Good morning.† Some expression passed lightly over his face, and still he looked at her till she began to wonder if â€Å"Good morning† in their language sounded like a terrible insult and he was now considering whether to strike her dead on the spot or spare her ignorance. Maybe he was only musing on how best to handle an unruly child. But he spoke to her again, slowly, patiently, and she was distracted from her shame of the night before. He broke his words down into syllables; so she took a deep breath and said them back to him. This time the flicker of expression was definitely kin to a smile, although she would never have seen it if she had not been watching his face so closely. He corrected her accent, and she said the phrase again, and this time apparently she said it properly; for next he bowed, laid a hand upon his chest, and said, â€Å"Mathin.† She said â€Å"Mathin† back at him, and she knew his name already from Corlath’s speaking it and his answering. Then he stretched his hand out till the tips of his fingers did not quite touch her collarbone. â€Å"Harry,† she said, thinking that the two-syllable version of her impossible name would keep them both out of trouble; and Richard wasn’t there to disapprove. â€Å"Hari?† he said, a little taken aback; and she nodde d, and made him a small bow. It must have been a long day for Mathin. She knew he was one of the eighteen Riders, yet he did nothing till sunset but take her around the camp and touch various objects and speak their names. She also learned some useful all-purpose verbs, and the names – or at least she heard the names and tried to remember them – of about half of the men who sat around Corlath’s table. She knew Faran and Innath already, for she had picked out their names from Corlath’s calling of them, as she had Mathin’s. They met her eyes as they were introduced, and quietly bowed, as if she had nothing to do with the awkward baggage their king had taken from the Outlander town in their company a few weeks ago; as if they were seeing her for the first time. Forloy was the man with the scar on his chin; Dapsim rode the black mare who won the horseraces often held in the evenings, till the other riders would no longer let her run. She did not see Corlath that day, nor the next. The camp remained where it was, in the shadow of the Hills, though the evening fires were small again, and there was no more singing. The hunting-beasts went out every day, and returned laden with a far wider variety of wildlife than the desert had offered. Harry learned that Narknon hunted alone, and was famous for permitting no other beast near her; she occasionally made friends with a human being, but she was very choosy about such friendships. Harry felt flattered. As the days passed, lean faces and flanks grew a bit plumper on men and beasts; but Narknon still begged for her porridge. Mathin came for Harry after breakfast each morning. By the end of the third day she was speaking in sentences, simple, painful, and ungrammatical ones; but she found that certain Hill words were creeping into her Homelander vocabulary and staying there; and the few people besides Mathin she tried to speak to stopped to listen to her and to answer. She was no longer invisible, and that was the best of all. She was fascinated by the specialties of the language she was learning; there were, for example, a number of kinds of tent. The king’s great tent, with its internal grove of poles to hold it up, was called a zotar, the only one in this traveling camp. The smaller tents, where most of the people were housed, were called the barkash; the stable tents were pituin. Then there were several terms she didn’t have quite straightened out yet that referred to how the thing was made, how many corners it had, made of what material, and so on. A dalgut was a cheap, poorly made tent; there were no dalguti in the king’s camp, and to refer to another man’s tent as a dalgut, if it wasn’t one, was a profound insult. She woke up earlier than usual on the morning of the fourth day of Corlath’s absence, and, despite Narknon’s protests, went outside to stare at the eastern greyness that heralded the swift desert dawn. She heard the desert lark’s song, a little speckled brown bird the Hillfolk called a britti. The camp was astir already; several of the men whose names she could recall hailed her as Hari-sol. She’d heard this the last two days and wondered if it was a term of respect, of definition, or a way of spinning out a name she could see did not meet with unqualified approval. As the early light flowed down into the mountains, she saw the trees and rocky ridges pick themselves out of the shadows and assert their individuality. She didn’t notice till they rode into the center of camp that Corlath and three companions had returned. She turned around on her heel as she heard his voice, but her attention was distracted at once. Corlath still sat on Fireheart, who stood as still as a great red rock; and beside them stood another horse, riderless, as tall as Fireheart and a stallion like him, but golden, a chestnut as gold as the kicking flames of the bonfire three nights ago. She walked toward them silently, her bare feet in the still-cool sandy earth, but the chestnut horse turned his head and looked at her. She heard Corlath murmur something as she drew near, and at his words the horse took a step toward her, and lowered his head till she was looking into a calm, mahogany-brown eye. She raised her hands and cupped them, and she felt his warm breath, an d his soft nose touched her fingers. Corlath spoke aloud and a man of the horse appeared at once, carrying a saddle, golden leather only a few shades darker than the horse, with red stitching; and he set it delicately on the chestnut’s back. The horse ignored him, not even shuddering his golden skin as the saddle settled into place; but he lipped Harry’s fingers, and leaned his cheek against her shoulder. â€Å"I brought him back for you,† Corlath said, and she raised her eyes and found his resting on her; â€Å"I seem to have chosen well,† he said, and he smiled. The brown-clad man had girthed up the saddle and stood watching her expectantly. â€Å"Come, we will try his paces,† said Corlath. It wasn’t till she was tossed into the saddle and felt the great horse quiver under her as her legs found their places against the long supple flaps of the saddle that she realized that Corlath had spoken to her in the Hill tongue. It was a glorious morning; more glorious than any she’d known since she had awakened as a disheveled huddle on the lee side of a scraggy little dune – more glorious than any since she’d set sail from the Homeland. â€Å"His name is Sungold,† Corlath told her, and this he translated. â€Å"Sungold,† she said. â€Å"Tsornin.† Corlath sent Fireheart forward at a long-striding trot, as though they would leap into the dawn; and as soon as her legs closed against the big chestnut’s sides he surged forward to follow. She was, for the first few minutes, fearful of her own lack of skill, and of the strength of the big horse; but she found that they understood each other. She felt half grateful, half ashamed, of the time and patience the good Red Wind had spent on her; and at the same time she felt almost uneasy that it was too simple, that she understood too readily. But she was too caught up in the beauty of it to wish to doubt it long. If she thought of it at all, she drove it out of her head at once: didn’t she deserve something for all her bruises, of both body and spirit, over the last weeks? She could think of nothing better than the feel of Sungold’s mane as it washed over her hands. When the sun was almost overhead, and its rays were dazzling when they reflected off Tsornin’s bright neck, and the emptiness of her stomach was beginning to force itself into her attention despite everything, Corlath said, â€Å"Enough,† and wheeled Fireheart back toward camp. Sungold waited for her signal, and she stood a moment, first looking at Fireheart’s quarters jogging away from them and then up, where a brown hawk swung on an updraft, high overhead. Just to test the magnificence of her power, she kneed her horse a half-turn to the left and shot him off at a gallop; and just as he reached the peak of his speed she brought him back to a gentle canter, circled once, and sent him after Corlath, who had paused and was watching her antics. They stopped beside Fireheart and his rider, and the two stallions nodded to each other. Harry expected a lecture on frivolity, or something, and lowered her eyes to Sungold’s withers; but Corlath said nothing. She lo oked up again as she heard the ring of metal on metal; Corlath had drawn the sword that hung at his side. She watched, surprised, as he held it, point up, and the sun glared fiercely on it. She remembered that this morning, as he rode into camp, he had been carrying it, the first time she had ever seen him armed with anything more ostentatiously threatening than a long dagger, or the slim short knives all the Hillfolk carried to cut up their food and perform any minor tasks where something with a sharp point was necessary. She’d forgotten about it as soon as she’d noticed Sungold; and now that she saw it more closely she decided she didn’t much like the look of it. This was obviously a war-sword; it was much too unwieldy for anything but serious hacking and hewing. Corlath took the deadly thing in his left hand and handed it to her, hilt first. â€Å"Take it.† She grasped it, warily, and when Corlath let go it did not knock her out of the saddle, but it tried. â€Å"Lift it,† he said. And as she tried, â€Å"You’ve never held a sword.† â€Å"No.† She lifted it as if it were a snake that would crawl up its own tail and bite her. Corlath edged Isfahel out of harm’s way as her arm and shoulder experimented with this new thing. She swung it in a short half-arc, and Tsornin came suddenly to life, and bounced forward on his hind legs, neighing. â€Å"Ouch,† she said, as he came to earth again; his ears were tipped back toward her, and all his muscles were tense. â€Å"Sungold’s a war-horse,† Corlath said mildly. â€Å"You’re giving him ideas.† She turned to glower at him, and he rode up beside her and took the sword back. There was a gleam of humor in his eye as he returned her glower; and they turned back toward camp together. He said something that she didn’t quite catch, and as she turned to him to ask him to repeat it, Fireheart leaped forward into a gallop that flattened out to full stretch at once. After a moment’s shock she recognized the challenge, and Sungold bolted after them, and gained ground till her face was flicked by Fireheart’s streaming tail, and then Sungold’s nose drew even with Corlath’s toe; and then they were sweeping into the camp, and the horses steadied down to a canter, and then a walk. Their nostrils showed red as they breathed, and Sungold turned away from the camp, asking for more; but Harry said, â€Å"I don’t think so,† and Sungold heaved a sigh and followed docilely at Fireheart’s heels. It was only when she dismounted that she realize d she was still barefoot. Corlath and Harry had breakfast together, on one square of the long table. Harry did not speak, except to Narknon, who was inclined to be sulky; and Corlath’s attention was for the men who came to speak with him, about the minor things that had gone wrong in his absence, and about messages they had received for him; and Harry understood much of what they said, and wondered if Corlath cared that it was no longer entirely safe to talk secrets around his Outlander. After they had eaten, a man of the household entered the zotar and handed the king a long thin bundle wrapped in linen. He bowed and retired; and Corlath shook the thing free of its covering and held up another sword. This one was appreciably smaller than the one he himself wore, but Harry still watched it with dislike. Corlath ran a quick hand over the scabbard with the linen cloth and then offered her, again, the hilt. She took it reluctantly, and rather than drawing it smoothly out, she ba cked up awkwardly, so that it rang free with a sullen clunk. â€Å"You’ll have to do better than that,† said Corlath; and she was sure that he was amused. â€Å"Why?† she said, anger beginning to uncoil itself somewhere deep inside her and make its way to the surface. â€Å"Why? What have swords and – † she gulped, for she loved Sungold already – â€Å"war-horses to do with me?† He came a step or two closer to her as she stood with the point of the sword unhandily dug into the heaped carpets, and her arm out, as if to keep the undesired object as far from her as she could; and he looked, thoughtfully, into her eyes. â€Å"It is because of what you have seen,† he replied. â€Å"When you tasted the Water of Sight you saw a war-party coming to battle; I and all my Riders heard you cry out what you saw – in the ancient tongue of our forebears here, the tongue that was spoken when Damar was one land, a great and green land, before †¦ â€Å" Before my people came, she thought, but she was not going to say it aloud if he was not. â€Å"And several days past the entire camp saw the Lady Aerin come out of the fire to greet you, carrying the Blue Sword, Gonturan, with which she won back the Hero’s Crown and defeated the armies of the North.† He hesitated. â€Å"Aerin had not been seen since my father’s father’s day; and yet she has always looked after her country well, since she first rode out to face the Black Dragon, before Gonturan had come to her hand; and our dearest legends speak of her.† The bright bubbles of anger in her eyes burst and disappeared. She bowed her head; then bent her elbow and brought the sword under her eyes. The long wicked edge of it winked at her. It had a silver handle, nearly plain, with a few faint graceful scrolls on the underpart of the hand-guard, where it met the hilt. She stared at them unhappily: the sweep and arch of them seemed to her a more likely ornament for a church pew than a sword. Her wrist began to quiver with the unaccustomed weight. He said, as gently as he could: â€Å"Here, anyone who is granted the Gift of Seeing is given to what they see; it is thought to be a guide, a direction, a help sent by the gods; or by the heroes of our past greatness, who still care what happens to their children’s children. Children now sip the Water when they meet their tenth birthday, in the hope that they may be told what apprenticeship they are most fit for. Many see nothing, for, as I have told you, the Water does not work for many people; and then the simpler considerations of parentage and availability are allowed to decide. But all our priests were given Sight of the priesthood on their tenth birthday; each of my Riders saw himself carrying a sword †¦ many of them will only choose a war-horse the color they saw themselves riding in the vision.† She broke out frantically: â€Å"But this is nothing to do with me. I am an Outlander, not of your Hills at all. If it is war I have seen, my people have feared war too; it is not strange that even I should feel it. This thing you have done to me, I – † She choked off, for she had heard herself speaking: Outlander she had instinctively said, and she was speaking swiftly in the Hill tongue that she had only – or so she had thought and now desperately was not sure – begun to learn, haltingly, a few days before. She heaved a breath that had she been a year younger might have been a sob; but it was not. She stood, trembling, holding the sword, waiting for it to speak to her too, to tell her her awful destiny. Corlath took her right wrist in his hand and then turned her around till she was standing next to him; he rearranged her fingers on the hilt, curled her thumb under it for her. She felt at once, wearily, that this was the way it was supposed to be held; and wondered if swordsmanship, like riding a war-stallion and speaking a language strange to her, was suddenly going to awaken in her blood like a disease. â€Å"Lady,† Corlath said over her shoulder, his right hand still supporting her wrist, â€Å"I know it is difficult for you. Perhaps this may make it easier: you have given my people hope by your presence, by your visions, by your very foreignness. It is the first hope we have had since we knew that the Northerners would come. We need that hope, my lady. It is so nearly the only thing we have.† She pulled away from his hand on her arm so that she could turn and look up at him. She stared, appalled, and he looked gently down at her. A frown collected slowly on his brow. â€Å"What is it they call you – Hari? That cannot be your name.† She grimaced. â€Å"No. it’s a – † She did not know the Hill term for nickname and her mysterious sixth sense didn’t seem to want to provide it for her. â€Å"It’s a short-name. I don’t like my real name.† â€Å"And it is?† There was a pause. â€Å"Angharad,† she said finally. He turned this over on his tongue a few times. â€Å"We will call you Harimad,† he said. â€Å"Harimad-sol, for you are of high rank. Few See so clearly that others too may see, as all saw Aerin-sol come out of the fire. â€Å"Try to have faith: even in these things that are strange to you. My kelar told me to bring you here, and your kelar speaks through you now. Lady, I know no more of your fate than that; but I believe, as do all the people in this camp, that your fate is important to us. And Aerin, who has long been the friend of her people, has given you her protection.† That does not make Aerin my friend, she thought sourly, but when she remembered the elder-sister grin Aerin had given her, she could not believe ill of her. And Corlath’s kelar told him to bring me here. Oh dear. I suppose that explains something. Harimad. Mad Harry. I wish Aerin would stay long enough to talk to me – tell me what is going on. She looked up at him and tried to smile. It was a gallant effort; it was even almost a smile. But Corlath’s gold-flecked brown eyes saw more than just the gallantry, and his heart went out to her; and he turned away from her and clapped his hands, and a man of t he household brought the hot brown drink Harry had first tasted behind a scrubby small sand hill, barefoot and in her Homelander dressing-gown, and that she had learned since to call malak. That evening Corlath and the Riders and Harimad-sol ate a great dinner of many dishes, and Harry made first acquaintance with the Hill mustard made of the jictal seeds, which burned out not only her mouth and tongue, but her throat and stomach lining; and the front of the zotar was rolled up, and outside much of the rest of the camp sat on rugs before small low tables and ate also, under the moon and the white stars. Harry began pulling nervously at her sleeves and twiddling the ends of her belt as the end of the meal approached; there was a tension hanging over the camp that she did not like, and she hoped that the tooled leather bag was not to put in an appearance tonight. It did not, but she suspected Corlath of eyeing her nervousness wryly. The conversation went too quickly for her to catch all of it – or perhaps her sixth sense had overstrained itself and was resting – but she understood that the purpose of the journey they had been on was to discover how well, or ill, prepared the many small mountain villages, north, south, and east of the great central desert, were for holding off Northerners; and how many horses, arms and warriors, supplies and supply transport, each could provide. It had not been a very cheerful journey, not least for the western excursion into Outlander territory, where a stubborn and pompous old man had refused to listen to the truth; but Corlath had expected what he found and – she thought – saw no use in being discouraged. They were near the end of their trek now: in the Hills before them, although still several days’ journey hence, was Corlath’s city, where his palace lay, and where what there was of a standing army was quartered. Harry rather thought, from the way they referred to it, that â€Å"the City† was the only city in Corlath’s realm; his people were not much interested in building and maintaining and living in cities, beyond the king’s own, which had the advantage of being thick with kelar. But the Hillfolk were an independent lot; they preferred to hold their own bits of land and work them, and neither cities nor positions in a regular army appealed to them. As she heard the word often, Harry was beginning to understand better what the word kelar indicated. It was something like magic; a Gift was the specific manifestation of kelar in a particular human being. Kelar was also something like a charm or a sorcery that hung in the air in a few places in the Hills; and one of those places was the City, where certain things might happen and other things be forbidden to happen, in ways quite unlike the usual physical laws. When all else was lost, the Hillfolk could retreat to the City; if the Northerners took or laid waste to all else, a few might live still in the City, for in it was some of the strength of the Damar of old. She began to speculate about the City, to look forward to seeing it. Around her the Riders and their king spoke of repairs to be made, and new forging to be done, and the best blacksmiths – dhogos – and leatherworkers – parisi – in the Hills. Narknon had her front half in Harry’s lap, and was purring to rattle the bones of them both. It was very late. The Riders stared at their empty cups, the men outside stared at the stars; Harry was falling asleep, still listening to the hum in the air, and still unable to account for it. â€Å"Mathin,† said Corlath, and Harry twitched and woke up. Mathin looked up the table, and his eyes rested briefly on the golden-haired girl in the maroon robe before he looked at his king. â€Å"The laprun trials will be held six weeks from tomorrow on the plains before the City.† Mathin knew this perfectly well, but out of the corner of his eye he saw the girl look up at Corlath, puzzled, and then glance down the table at her patient language teacher. â€Å"Harimad-sol will ride in them.† Mathin nodded; he had expected this, and, having taken some measure of Hari in the days past, was not displeased. Harimad-sol herself swallowed rather sharply, but found she wasn’t too surprised either; and after a day of war-horses and swords could guess the sort of thing the trials (what was a laprun?) would prove to be. Poor Mathin. She wondered what he thought of the idea-six weeks to knock the rawest of beginners, even if kelar-guided, into shape – and resigned herself to not knowing. â€Å"We will ride out two hours before dawn tomorrow,† said Mathin. Six weeks, thought Harry. How much can you learn in six weeks, even if Aerin is keeping an eye on you? How to cite The Blue Sword CHAPTER SIX, Essay examples

Friday, December 6, 2019

Assemblage Age

Question: Describe the scales on which the actants in your stories act in the assemblage Discuss how these actions can enhance management functions Outline what issues/questions these actions raise. To achieve this, compare and contrast the viewpoints of a range of theorists and critics explored throughout the module. Conclude by summarising how your answers relate to the statement Contemporary computing can be seen as an assemblage. Answer: Introduction This essay is on Contemporary computing can be seen as an assemblage. It means that the latest and new technologies can be assimilated with the existing technologies. This assimilation can be beneficial for the market. The new technologies can be helpful for the organizations and give them a market advantage. The internet is a fruit of the latest technology. The internet is present in the world for a long time, yet the technology has boomed in the recent years. The advancement in Internet, many downsides of using technology appeared in the market. The most important one of them is hacking. This essay is based on two stories on cyber security. Ant ANT or Actor network theory is a way to deal with the social hypothesis and examination, beginning in the field of science studies, which regards objects as a component of informal organizations. In spite of the fact that it is best known for its questionable emphasis on the limit of nonhumans to act or partake in frameworks or systems or both, ANT is likewise connected with powerful investigates of routine and discriminating human science. It is an approach to managing the examination, and social theory starts in the examination of science is known as performing artisan framework speculation. There are three fundamental principles in the process of ANT. They are generalized symmetry, free association, and agnosticism. The first principle obliges and forces that each understanding made are unprivileged. The second guideline says that by using a lone coherent edge when decoding nonhuman, actants, and human. Examiners must clutch the registers to take a gander at individuals and affili ations, bugs and gatherers, or PCs and their product engineers. The last guideline presumes that by leaving any refinement between social marvel and regular. Banks play down cyber attack levels Banks are not reporting the digital extortion in light of the fact that they would prefer not to panic clients. A University of Cambridge scientist told a Treasury select board of trustees that the measure of cash being taken from individuals' records through digital wrongdoing is twice as much as what is accounted for (Ukfast.co.uk, 2015). One senior security proficient in the managing an account area said banks are by always being assaulted by digital culprits, and that banks play down the level of digital wrongdoing. human actant: customer; hackers; bankers software actant: algorithms; computer languages (c, java, etc.) hardware actant: computers; notepads; tablets; servers; networks structural actant: bank cultural actant: Hacking How the actants are working with one another: The banks are not correctly reporting about the cyber attacks on the public or the government. The bank officials took this step so that they do not scare away their clients. The customers of the bank will not feel safe and secure if there are cyber attacks on the bank. Most of the banks are digitized and have large sets of modern applications. Most of the banks operate in a digital environment to facilitate faster service to their customers. There is the group of hackers who hack into the system or network using computers. Hackers use a variety of computing languages, like C, C++, Java, etc. for performing decoding. The hackers retrieve the important information of the organizations and use them for distorting. Cyber terrorism: Cyber terrorism is the demonstration of Internet terrorism in terrorist exercises, including demonstrations of planned, huge scale interruption of PC systems, particularly of PCs connected to the Internet. It is performed with the help of devices like PC (Bayuk, 2012). Cyber terrorism is a disputable term. A few creators pick an exceptionally contract definition, identifying with arrangements, by known terrorist associations, of interruption assaults against data frameworks for the main role of making alert and frenzy. By this slender definition, it is hard to recognize any cases of cyber terrorism. Cyber terrorism is the utilization of PC, systems, and the open web to bring about decimation and mischief for individual destinations (Jayaswal, 2010). Targets may be political or ideological since this can be seen as a type of terrorism. There are three types of cyber terrorism. They are simple, advanced and complex coordinated structure. There are many companies and pu blic sector affected by this scenario. The cyber terrorists are trying to create an environment of chaos in the society. They disrupt the society for their selfish motives and goals. They create a social unrest as they completely shut down the system or partially shut down the system. This activity can be harmful to the public sector. The terrorist can hack into the system, retrieve important information of the company or government, and use it for his or her benefit. Threats in Banking sector: With the late terrorist assaults, numerous security specialists are worried about the risk to data resources in the United States. While data security has been a key concern subsequent to the expansion of PC systems, the expanded levels of concern has motivated to dedicate more assets to help battle this danger. The various threats that can take place are: It is a classic cyber threat that exploits human gullibility via the internet. It typically involves sending emails pretending to be from the user's bank to named account holders (Jayaswal, 2010). The email is designed to leverage fear, uncertainty or greed to entice the recipient to visit a realistic but bogus bank website and part with personal information and banking details. It is a combination of SMS text messaging and phishing. It exploits human gullibility via mobile computing devices like smart phones. As people use these devices for activities such as mobile banking, they can again be fooled into parting with their personal and banking details. It poses a significant cyber threat. It can not only infect customer systems, but it can also infiltrate the banking systems themselves. As we have seen, there are many easy routes into users' computers or smart mobile devices associated with phishing and smishing. When the victim is lured to malicious websites, scripts can exploit vulnerabilities in their devices to infect them with malware. Sear Phishing: It is a method by which malware infiltrates banking systems. It involves using social networking sites to gather information on bank employees, especially those who may have privileged access to banking systems. These individuals are then phished or smished using messages supposedly from their corporate HR or Security Managers. Cyber Essentials for public sector IT suppliers: pros and cons In the year 2014, UK government took an initiative and implemented the essential CES. This strategy was implemented in the public sector. It was implemented with a sole purpose of controlling the attacks of the system. There are various benefits and downsides of implementing cyber security in the public sector. human actant: information technology suppliers; government officials software actant: algorithms; computer language (c, c++, java) hardware actant: server; network; structural actant: public sector cultural actant: Hacking How the actants are working with one another: The government officials and the industrial sector are prone to cyber attacks. There are many initiatives taken by these organizations to get a grip on these situations. Many organizations are implementing and using security enhancement in their system. Many organizations hire ethical hackers to combat this situation. The ethical hackers use the organizations computers and server to get into the organizations network and check gaps in the system. It is their job to find loopholes in the system and fix the problems. There are many ways to tighten the security of the organization. The computers or machines are prone to malware, virus or Trojans attack. It can be combated by the use of good antivirus. The virus that affect computes are sets of code that are programmed to enter a computer system and disrupt the system. Antivirus are a set of programs that are designed to catch these virus and remove it from the computer system. Cyber security: Cyber security is a very important topic these days they are used to invent the new modules of computing in the industry (Mitra, 2010). The most important modules that need to be taken care of are the security measures of information technology. How can it be helpful for public sector: Cyber security is very essential for the public sectors. They contain a lot of information about the citizens (Carpenter, 2010). The more information technology is used to improve the business of government, the greater the public demand that personal data and critical infrastructure be managed safely and securely (US public-private partnership for cyber-security, 2010). From initial risk assessment to emergency backup and recovery, cyber security is a huge job that is only getting bigger. Agencies have a large and constantly expanding set of information assets and operations, each representing different levels of risk and vulnerability. These resources may be susceptible to internal threats, such as disgruntled employees, and external threats, such as malware, identity theft, hackers and more. Conclusion This report is on the impact of the modern technologies in the organization. There are two stories present in the essay. The two stories are based on the cyber terrorism and cyber security. The first story is on various banks that do not disclose the cyber attacks and the other is on cyber security implementation in the public sector. Hackers are present in the society for a long time. With the advancement in the technology, the activities of some hackers are disrupting the society. References Bailey, L. and Hills, M. (2014). Journal of Law Cyber Warfare, Volume 3, Issue 1, Spring 2014. Barnett, D., Sell, T., Lord, R., Jenkins, C., Terbush, J. and Burke, T. (2013). Cyber Security Threats to Public Health. World Medical Health Policy, 5(1), pp.37-46. Bayuk, J. (2012). Cyber Attacks. Computers Security, 31(2), p.251. Carpenter, S. (2010). Battling Cyber Threats. Science. Carr, J. and Shepherd, L. (2010). Inside cyber warfare. Sebastopol, Calif.: O'Reilly Media, Inc. Jayaswal, V. (2010). Cyber crime and cyber terrorism. New Delhi: RVS Books. Karake-Shalhoub, Z. and Al Qasimi, L. (2010). Cyber law and cyber security in developing and emerging economies. Cheltenham, UK: Edward Elgar. Mitra, A. (2010). Digital security. New York: Chelsea House. Pilling, R. (2013). Global threats, cyber-security nightmares and how to protect against them.Computer Fraud Security, 2013(9), pp.14-18. Probst, C. (2010). Insider threats in cyber security. New York: Springer. Ukfast.co.uk, (2015). Banks Play Down Cyber Attack Levels. [online] Available at: https://www.ukfast.co.uk/internet-news/banks-play-down-cyber-attack-levels.html [Accessed 7 Aug. 2015]. Appendices What are the pros and cons of the Cyber Essentials Scheme certification mandated for public sector IT suppliers? The UK government will require IT suppliers tocomply with the five security controlslaid out in itsCyber Essentials Scheme(CES) from 1 October 2014, but what benefits will this bring and is there a downside? The most obvious benefit is it will raise the overall level of protection by putting security in the procurement process, thereby creating a commercial reason for improving security. Adrian Davis, managing director for Europe at (ISC) believes this is a more positive approach than mandating security standards through legislation and regulation. It levels the playing field. If accreditation is carried out rigorously, all suppliers can be compared in terms of their cyber security efforts and it provides a baseline from which organisations can build, he said. Davis also believes this approach will make it easier and relatively low cost for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to improve their security posture. This is important because about 90% of our economy is based on SMEs which typically do not have the resources, the time or the skills to perform information security, he said.