“Class,” Mr. Hujimoro said as he stood up from his desk, “I have to run this document to the administration building. I’ll be gone for a few minutes, but I trust you will all be able to continue reading the chapter without any probloms?” he raised a questioning eyebrow at the class, and when he was satisfied that no one was going to oppose him, he walked out of the room. Tenchi watched him go, and went back to reading the chapter in his history book. Another voice from the front of the room grabbed his attention again, however, and his head snapped back up. A student stood in front of the class, one by the name of Ketso, or Ket for short. He adressed all of his class mates in a cheerful tone, “Attention everyone! As most of you know, my birthday is in just a week. To celebrate this wonderful event, I’ll be having a party, while my parents are out of town for the weekend. You are all invited. Bring everything and anything you can!” he smiled as the class cheered and then took his seat again. Tenchi went back to reading his book, not bothered by, or caring that Ket was having a party. “So what are you gonna’ bring to Ket’s party?” one of Tenchi’s friends asked another of his friends as they sat around eating lunch in the back of the room. “My brother will probobly let me bust open his stock of imported booze...” the student who was questioned ansawered. “I know this guy who deals some really good shit... I think I might put in a mass order...” another student grinned ear to ear at the thought of the party, and what he was planing on bringing. “What about you Tenchi?” “Hmm?” Tenchi looked up from the meal he was eating. Sasami even packed him great food for lunch, and he was totally absorbed in his meal. “What are you bringing to Ket’s party?” “Oh, I don’t think you guys would want me there... I’m kinda’ boring...” “No way! You always whimp out on us! You’re comming this time!” “Yeah Tenchi!” “Comon, man! What are gonna’ bring?” Tenchi thought for a moment. It wouldn’t hurt to go to the party... as long as he stayed out of trouble. That left the problom of what he should bring. He tried to think of something he had a lot of so that no one would really notice when some of it went missing. Carrots? No, Ryo-Ohki would notice those.... and the girls would notice anything else. He sure had a lot of girls. He laughed and said softly to himself, “I could bring a bunch of women...” “WHAT?!?” his friends all shouted in unison and grabbed him. “Tenchi, please tell me you just said what I think you just said!” a friend by the name of Yokimi said. “I... uh...” Tenchi stammered then shut his mouth. Well? Why not? He wouldn’t have to worry about the girls finding out about his sneaking off to a party if he took them with him. “Yeah, I know some girls who might be interested... I’ll ask them today.” he sat back and smiled while his freinds all commented on what a pimp he was and how they never espected him to be such a player. “Are they hot?” “Yeah...” Tenchi grinned, “And they’re all hot for me too!” “Damn!” Yokimi said, “You are one smooth son of a bitch!” “Yeah, I know.” Tenchi grinned. “You want to take us to a party?” Ryoko asked with a gleam in her eye. “Yeah, all of you. Except Sasami...” Tenchi caught himself quickly, “Sorry Sasami, but it’s a high school part, and there wont be any kids your age there...” “That’s okay Tenchi, I can stay here!” Sasami always understood perfectly. Tenchi smiled at her. “When is this party, Tenchi?” Kiyone asked him. “It’s in a few days, Friday.” “When? I don’t want it to interupt our schedualed patrol time.” “It starts at 8:00 pm.” “That’s good. We’ll be back by then.” “But Kiyone,” Mihoshi said, “Don’t we have to work on Friday night?” “Yes we do,” Kiyone scowled at her, “But you’ll have gotten us fired by then, so we should be able to go.” “Oh!” Mihoshi brightened up, “Okay!” “Lord Tenchi,” Ayeka asked, “What kind of a party is this? I want to know what I should wear...” “It’s a casual party, so a simple dress or some jeans and a shirt of some kind should be fine. You’re kimono probobly wont go over too well...” “I don’t know if I have any casual earth clothing....” Ayeka said, slightly dismayed. “I’d be suprised if you have any casual clothing at all!” Ryoko laughed. “What was that?” Ayeka looked at her rival with a burning hatred in her eyes. “Nothing Princess! Just commenting on how you’re so stuck up and royal all the time that I wouldn’t be suprised if you didn’t have any thing to wear, and had to stay home on Friday, just because of that!” “And let you go to that party with Tenchi alone? I’d die first!” “If you want it that way...” Ryoko floated up into the air, and Ayeka’s power logs started to form around them. “Oh no!” Tenchi yelled and started to run. “Take cover!” Kiyone yelled as she dove behind the couch. “What’s going on in here?” Washu asked as she walked in. Her eyes grew wide when she looked up and saw Ayeka and Ryoko about to blast one another right above her. “Shit.” she mumbled. After persuading a slightly singed and chared Washu to change Ryoko and and Ayeka back from the small sprite like things she had turned them into, Tenchi asked Washu to attend the party with them as well, and she agreed happily. So Tenchi had five woman he could take, and make his friends happy. Maybe one of them would accually meet someone they liked at the party, and then whoever that poor sod was would have to deal with the girl instead of him. This was looking to be a good party indeed... The few days to the party passed quickly. Kiyone and Mihoshi were fired, as was predicted by the more unlucky of the two woman, so they were free on Friday. Ayeka and Ryoko spent the time compeating to find the best outfit for the party, and Washu developed a partical distortion ray that focused on the genes of any organic matter that it hit and changed the genes for the eye color to green and the hair color to red, just like hers. No one had any idea what Washu’s invention had to do with preparing for the party, and when asked about it, she replied that she was bored and just wanted to throw it together for fun. Tenchi adressed the five woman as they got off the bus in town, a block from Ket’s house, “Now listen! There’s gonna’ be booze, so drink in moderation. There’ll probobly be some other stuff too... don’t touch any of that.” he frowned. They weren’t listening too well. He just hoped they were all smart enough to avoid any potentially dangerous situations. Then he remembered who he was with, and discarded those thoughts. Tenchi knocked on the door of Ket’s house, not sure if anyone would hear him over the extreamly loud music blaring from within. Apparently someone had good hearing, because a girl he’d never met before opened the door and yelled at them to come in. The five woman and one very nervous teenager walked into the house and looked around. What they saw inspiered many different reactions from them. People were dancing, sitting, walking, talking, and doing other things normally not done in private. Ayeka stared slack jawed at a couple shamelessly making out and taking off one another’s clothing sitting on the sofa. Another teen with a video camra was recording the action. Mihoshi looked over at a group of people in the corner who seemed to be playing video games and smoking something. She wandered over to see what game they were playing. Kiyone didn’t see her partner wander off because she was absorbed in watching several boys who seemed to be playing a game of who-could-do-the-stupidist-thing. One guy stood still and firmed his stomach while another ran up and whacked him with a long wooden stick. He fell to the floor, crying out in pain but laughing all the same. Ryoko didn’t seem to notice that people were getting naked all over, and so she didn’t try to pass a comment on to Tenchi about it at all. She just floated over to the table where four full kegs had been tapped. She grinned ear to ear. Washu rubbed her hands together and reached into her pocket. Removing a small mettle book, she started off in the direction of a group of young men who were passing around a joint. She was going to make a killing tonight, with her special brand of safe (in a manner of speaking) drugs that weren’t addictive, and had no side effects. Tenchi looked around and immedietly regreted bringing the girls to this party. He regreted comming himself. He was about to tell everyone that they were leaving before anything bad happened when Yokimi and Ket grabbed him and yanked him aside. “Way to go Tenchi!” Ket yelled in his ear, slapping him on the back. His breath stank of beer. “No shit dude!” Yokimi yelled as well, “You brought some fine chicks tonight!” his breath didn’t seem to hold any bad oders, but his eyes looked funny to Tenchi... “Uh, well, I was just going to go make sure they were all still okay... don’t want anything to happen to them now...” Tenchi laughed nervously. “Are you scoring with all of ‘em?” Ket asked. Tenchi reeled back, “No! No, not any of them!” “Great! More for us then!” Yokimi nudged Ket and they laughed. “No! Don’t try anything! Trust me, I live with there girls! They’re all nuts!” Tenchi was almost pleading with his frineds. They didn’t get past the first part of his sentence. “You live with them, and you aren’t banging any of ‘em? What the hell is wrong with you?” Yokimi slapped Tenchi upside the head, and started dragging him across the room. “Where are we going?” Tenchi shouted. “Over to the room where they give out the good stuff!” Yokimi shouted back. “I don’t want any good stuff!” Tenchi yelled. If Ryoko had been able to hear Tenchi yelling, she probobly would have dismembered Yokimi right there in the middle of the room, but she was quite occupied. Four young men already lay on the floor at her feet, and she wasn’t even feeling tipsy yet. The fith was just about to go. Earthlings were too easy to beat out in a drinking contest. She smiled and slammed back another shot. Ayeka was feeling very confused. She didn’t know what was going on, but when she ripped her eyes off the porn movie in progress, she turned and found that she stood in the doorway with Kiyone... and no one else. “Kiyone!” she squealed. The GP detective turned to her with a start, “What is it?” she asked. “Where did Tenchi go?” Ayeka looked about franticly. “Shit, where’s Mihoshi?” “I see Ryoko, she’s easy enough to find by the booze,” Ayeka scanned the room, “and there’s Washu... selling drugs...” “What?” Kiyone instincfully reached for her blaster, but thought better of it. No need to start a fight now... she’d talk witht he divinutive scientist latter. “Mihoshi is playing video games.” Ayeka said, spotting the blond, “That leaves just Tenchi...” “Alright, I’ll look upstairs, you look around down here....” Kiyone pointed to a stair case where several drunk girls were staggering up to bed rooms with several more drunk young men. Ayeka briefly wondered why the guys out numbered the girls, but decided not to dwell on the thought for too long. “Right.” she nodded and started for the stairs. Kiyone watched her go. Now to check on the others.... “Ryoko!” Kiyone yelled in the space pirates ear, “How are you doing?” Ryoko tured and looked at her as she slammed home yet another glass of beer, “I’m fine.” she said simply as the young man in front of her fell to the floor. She looked down at him, then back up at Kiyone, “Six!” she said happily. “You are truely a testiment to the power of excess.” Kiyone shook her head. “Hey, we all have to be good at something...” Ryoko said as she motioned her next challenger over. Kiyone walked to Washu. “How are things?” Washu called over he shoulder as she collected a wad of Yen from a student buying a small red pill. “Fine except for the fact you’re a drug dealer now!” Kiyone screamed in her ear. “Hey!” Washu stumbled away from the angry GPO and shouted back, “I’ll have you know that my special pills are compleatly safe, and have no lasting addiction or long term side effects!” “So what do they do?” Kiyone folder her arms across her chest. “They make you see things mostly, and they’re desinged to adapt to the resipentients body chemistry, eliminating the chance for a bad trip!” “You’re a pyscopath Washu.” Kiyone said. A firm bonk on her head from Washu’s little mettle book made her stumble back, “What the hell?” she yelled, reaching for her blaster. “That’s Little Washu!” Washu screamed at her. Kiyone backed away from her sudden rage and wandered over to Mihoshi. She saw that her partner was playing some sort of skateboarding game. “What’cha playin’?” she asked the blond. “Nothin’ really...” Mihoshi replied in a drab voice. Kiyone looked at her, and saw that her face was relaxed and she had no smile, and she wasn’t bawling. What was wrong with her? “Are you feeling alright?” Kiyone put a hand to her forehead. She felt a little warm, but looked alright.... Mishoshi giggled as the rest of the guys around her laughed, “I’m fine, Kiyone, I’m just stoned out of my fuckin’ mind!” Mihoshi busted up with the rest of the guys and they all fell about the floor. Kiyone stumbled back from her partner. She had to find Tenchi and get them all the hell out of here.... Ayeka made it up the steps and some how manadged to avoid being pulled into the room where the orgy was now taking place. She straightened her shirt with disgust as she walked down to the other end of the hall, where there were two open doors. One of those boys had touched her... she suddered at the thought of where the boy had touched her and adjusted her shirt again. She stopped and stood where she could look into both rooms. Looking left, she saw four young men and two girls with nedals scattered about them, all talking in jibberish and swating at things while they wandered around the room aimlessly. She gulped and looked right. Her eyes went wide as she saw four young woman crawling all over one another, naked, and enjoying themselfs. She turned quicly and started to run. Tenchi was most definetly not up here.... As soon as she turned, she ran right into a young man who had been comming up behind her. He caught her as she started to fall, and helped her to stand. “Sorry, I didn’t mean to startle you. I saw you looking around and wondered if maybe you were lost?” he asked her. She looked up and saw a very handsom young man, with brown eyes, and short black hair. He wore loose fitting black clothing, and held in his hand a glass of what looked to be acuall wine. “No, I was just looking for someone...” she replied. “Oh, well, I guess you didn’t find them?” he said with a smile. “No, I did not...” “May I ask what your name is?” he smiled warmly. It seemed so inviting. “Ayeka Juri...” she said, “and yours?” “My name is Adam.” he said with a smile. “That name sounds quite odd... where is it from?” “My grandfather. He was an American that met and had a child with my Grandmother durring the war. When it was over, he stayed, and here I am today.” Adam smiled again, “I guess some would say I come from a slightly strange back ground, but I think comming form a bond of true love is one of the best things in the world...” “You’re quite poetic...” she said with a sparkle in her eye, “Tell me more about yourself..” they walked back down the steps, talking about where they were from, and what they were like. Tenchi sat in a chair and looked about him. Four other young men stood around with various drugs in hand. “Pick your fun, Tenchi!” Yukimi said happily. “Um....” Tenchi didn’t see a problom with maybe, for once in his life, cutting lose and having a little fun. He inspected the drugs on hand. The nedal was diffenitly out, he didn’t want fun to hurt. The joint seemed to be the weakest of the drugs, but he didn’t know how to smoke and didn’t want to embaress himself in front of his friends, so he passed that one as well. The next choice was a hit of acid. Tenchi almost shuddered at what he’d heard that drug could do to you, so he looked at the last one. It was a small red pill, with a crab symbol on it. He blinked. So that was what Washu was selling... well, if Washu had made it, then it couldn’t be that bad... she would never intentionally hurt anyone, right? Tenchi gulped back his fear and grabbed the pill. He looked at it, and before he could change his mind, popped it into his mouth and swallowed it. “Hell yes Tench!” Yukimi said, “That’s the newest shit around! You hardcore son of a bitch!” he punched his friends shoulder. Tenchi stood up. He didn’t feel any different... maybe it would kick in soon. “What’s it like?” one of the guys asked. “I don’t feel a thing...” Tenchi said. “Man, that shit hit everyone else hard less then a second after they took it!” the guy replied. That sounded like Washu to Tenchi, but he still didn’t feel any different. “Maybe Tenchi’s just so fuckin’ hardcore that it doesn’t even faze him! Give him another one...” Tenchi took the next pill and tried to feel something. But nothing came. “Well, shit...” he murrmered, “Give me another one...” Kiyone pushed through the crowd in the kitchen. Where was Tenchi? She had to find him before those guys caught up to her... “Hey babe!” a voice from behind her said. “Fuck!” she yelled and spun around. It was one of them. He dangled a condom at her, “Come on! I bet you can take all three of us!” he said with a grin. “You’re damn right I can!” Kiyone shouted back, and slugged him in the nose. He fell on his back and didn’t move. His two buddy’s behind him looked up at her dumbly. She hit one in the temple with her fist, and then punched the other one in the gut. The first young man fell to the ground in a heap, and the second doubled over. She slammed a knee into his face, and he flipped to his back as well. “Hey! Whoa!” Ket yelled as he walked up, “No fighting! If there’s a problom, just come get me, alright?” “Oh, fuck you!” Kiyone screamed, “You’re probobly just as horny and drunk as they were!” she needed a drink. Reaching over to the counter, she grabbed a glass of booze that a guy had been mixing something into, and slammed it back. She glared at everyone in the room, then stormed off to find Tenchi. “What was that chick’s problom?” Ket asked. “I don’t know,” the guy who’d been mixing the drink said with a huge grin, “but she’s gonna’ be real fucked up in a minute...” Tenchi had taken four pills and still nothing. What was wrong here? The door to the room burst open and Kiyone stumbled in. She looked up at Tenchi and slurred out, “Oh! There you are! I’ve been looking all the fuck over for you!” Suddenlly, Tenchi felt something... like a burning in his pants... He looked hungerly at Kiyone’s body. “I’ve been looking for you too...” he said, “Gentalmen, if you would please excuse the lady and myself, we have some things to... talk about...” he winked at Yukimi, who grinned and wagged a finger at Tenchi. As he walked out of the room, he slapped a condom into Tenchi’s hand, who slapped his frined’s shoulder in responce. “Come on over here, Kiyone, so that we can ‘talk’ properly...” he said, and curled a finger at her. She got a sultry grin on her face and started to sunter over to him... “So you manadged to get away from the cops and not get caught?” Ayeka asked with a burst of laughter. Adam just shrugged his shoulders, and grinned. He looked at her with a burning desire in his eyes that she didn’t notice. Hadn’t that shit he put in her drink taken effect yet? “Adam!” a voice from behind them called out. He turned to see who it was, and got a wooden stick across his head. He tumbled to the floor and hit it hard, out cold as soon as he did. Ayeka looked to see the boys who’d been playing the stupid game earlier all laughing and exchanging money. She shrugged. Oh well, he was getting boring any way. Now where were thouse girls in that room upstairs? They seemed to be having a good time... Washu sat in the corner and counted her cash. Not that she needed it at all, but Nobuyuki would be happy to have the extra to help fix the house.... She suddenly looked up and wondered where the others were. She got up and walked over to the TV, where she saw Mihoshi. She looked at the blond and discovered that she was stoned silly. Drool dripped from her chin as she excecuted a perfect flip in the skateboarding game she was playing. Washu pulled a hypospray out of her pocket and injected the blond GPO with a seditive. She fell over and started snoring. One down... Next she found Ryoko. The space pirate was drinking yet another beer, and a small pile of bodies layed at her feet. Washu poored a glass from the keg and added a special powder to it, which she had pulled from her almost bottomless pocket. “Here you go!” she said to Ryoko, giving her the glass. “Oh,” Ryoko’s eyes were blood shot and she wavered in her seat, “Thank’s Little Washu...” she drank the whole glass in gulps, and looked down at the red haired genius, “Hey! Wha’d ya’ put in this stufffffff.....” Ryoko slumped off the seat and fell on the floor at Washu’s feet. “Only enough seditive to knock out a Ramcarian Rhino!” Washu cackled. Ryoko was one tough cookie, that was for sure. Now the others. Washu opened the door to the upstairs bed room and looked it. The other two hadn’t produced very positive results and this one wasn’t looking to either. That’s when she saw Ayeka. Naked. And just about to engage in the most embaresing thing she’d ever done in her life. Washu rushed into the room and tackled her from where she was just about to kneel on the ground. She opened the princesses eyes wide and looked at her pupils. She checked her pulse, and shook her head. “Date rape drug.” she said in disgust. It was a good thing she had gotten to Ayeka in time. “Did you come to join us?” Ayeka said as she grabbed Washu’s left breast and started to massage it. Washu jumped off of the naked princess and pulled her hypospray out, “You’ll thank me for this when you wake up...” she said, and hit the Ayeka right in the throat with it. The Jurian fell back and landed with a thud. “Now to get you dressed and somewhere safe before you get rapped by these things...” Washu said, throwing a disgusted look over one shoulder. The short red head dumped Ayeka outside the house next to Ryoko and a snoring Mihoshi. Hopefully they would all be fine here.... she had to go look for Tenchi and Kiyone now.... of all of them, she knew those two would stay out of trouble. As she climbed the steps back into the house, she didn’t notice Ryoko opening one blood shot eye, and grinning. She’d get that little brat for putting that shit in HER drink... Washu had barely made it through the kitchen without stepping on the three guys who were laying on the floor. Someone had beat the piss out of them, and she was betting it was Kiyone. She just hoped that hadn’t led to something more violent, and that the GP detective hadn’t been able to handle. She saw Tenchi’s friend from earlier standing and talking to a girl, and walked over to him. She tugged on his sleave and he looked down at her. “What’s up, babe?” he asked her. Reconizing her from when he had greeted Tenchi at the door. “Have you seen Tenchi or the dark haired girl we came in with?” she asked in a sweet voice. “Yeah, they’re both in there...” he said, pointing to a door down the hall with a grin. “Thanks!” Washu said. “I don’t know if they want you to disturb them though!” he called after her. “Uh...” Washu turned and looked at him with a frightened look on her face, “Why’s that?” “They’re kinda’ busy...” he grinned even wider, “I guess those little red pills that Tenchi took were just the thing he needed to loosen up a little...” “What?!?” Washu ran back over to him and dug in her pocket. She yanked one of her pills out, “Like this pill?” she asked. “Yeah!” “How many did he take?” she aksed turning pale. “Um... four I think...” he replied, “Why? Is that bad?” “It is for Tenchi...” she said and ran back to the door. Those pills had been desinged for humans to take, not Jurians! If her calculations were correct (and they always were) then instead of turning him into a VERY high student on a good trip, they would turn him into a major sex fiend who would want the first woman he came into contact with... and it looked like that was Kiyone... “And he took four of them!” she shouted as she kicked the door open. She screamed in frustration at what she saw. Kiyone was naked, and Tenchi was quickly getting there. She held his face, buried in her breasts, and moaned softly. They both looked over and started when they saw Washu. The red haired genius did note that Kiyone’s eyes were dialated, and that her hands shook quite a bit. So someone had slipped her something too... that made her feel a little better, but it didn’t fix the situation. She didn’t know if Tenchi would get violent if she tired to break them up. It may have been a stroke of luck then (or unluck, it was really hard to say) that Ryoko chose that moment to spring on the divinutive scientist. She never made it to her mark however, becuase she stopped and floated in mid-air, staring with her mouth open at Tenchi and Kiyone. “Oh, hi Ryoko!” Tenchi said casually. Washu felt all the blood drain from her face and she looked straight up at the very VERY angry space pirate above her. Ryoko held both of her hands out and energy started to gather there, “You get the hell away from MY Tenchi!” she screamed. “Ryoko! You can be next!" Tenchi said. “I’ll arest you if you blast us!” Kiyone yelled. “Oh, fuck me!” Washu said and sat down on the ground as she called up a force sheild. Ryoko screamed in pure furry. “Oh, Bujuku...” a teen girl sighed as she settled back into her boyfriend’s arms, “I’m so glad we decided not to go to Ket’s party tonight. They stared out over the lights of the city from a hill out side of town, and felt content an in love. “Yeah,” he replied, “I bet anything the cops show up and bust the whole thing up, and everyone gets arrested...” “Yeah!” the girl laughed. Just then, at about the spot where Ket’s house was, they saw a huge red dome of energy expand quickly, and then a huge explostion rocked the night. Fire and smoke billowed into the sky as both teens stared slack jawed at the city below them. Washu checked Ayeka’s pulse one last time, and then dismissed her with a wave of her hand, “You can go now. There was no lasting side effects of the date rape drug.” she said. “Thank goodness.” Ayeka said as she pulled her Kimono back on, “Oh, and Washu?” “Yes, Princess?” Washu said as she preapred for her next guest. “You do relise that if you ever tell anyone what I was about to do before you saved me, I will kill you.” “My lips are sealed...” Washu grinned. “Very good.” Ayeka frowned at her. “Send in Tenchi when you go.” Washu ordered. Ayeka left and Tenchi came in a few seconds latter. He was covered in small burns and bruises, but he seemd to be fine other then that. “Hello Little Washu...” he said. “Hello, Tenchi.” she replied with a smile, “Up on the table!” He jumped up on the examining table in the med bay of Washu’s lab and let her go through a short examination. She nodded. “No lasting side effects, as I predicted. Though you know...” she said with a sly grin, lifting a hypospray, “I would like to see what that drug will do in it’s more concentrated form....” she started to advance on him. “Washu!” he yelled, “Little Washu! Stay away from me with that thing!” Ryoko slammed through the door. She glared at Washu. “I haven’t called for you yet!” the diminutive scientist said. “You stay away from MY Tenchi!” Ryoko yelled, and powered up another blast. Kiyone and Mihoshi sat in the waiting room and watched as the explostion erupted out of the examination room. They both sighed. “I guess Ryoko’s still okay...” Mihoshi said. “Yeah...” Kiyone replied and looked down at her hands. They weren’t shaking any more. Good. “Do you think Tenchi will ever take us to another party?” Mihoshi asked. “Mihoshi,” Kiyone replied with a slight laugh, “I really hope not...” “Why not?” Mihoshi asked. Kiyone slapped her forehead as Tenchi ran past with his clothing in tatters, screaming the whole way. Washu followed with a hypospray in one hand, yelling something about reserch perpouses only, then Ryoko flew past cursing up a storm at Washu. “You are so dence...” Kiyone said to her parner. Mihoshi stared at her blankly. And that’s it. Hope you found it at least sorta’ funny in a twisted sort of way. Feel free to tell me how out of character everyone was, and how much this sucked. Not one of my better works.... -Jacob McDonald, author