Stellar

Oh, if you think there's commotion now, then just you wait until later! It will get worse before it gets better, of that you may be assured. I wish to note here that you are perhaps one of the only readers who explicitly noticed and named all five 'beacons' at this early stage of the second book. The assumption that Yugan might possess aqumi is a sound one, and the question of Konstantin's role will be answered before too long. I am glad you are enjoying it!

Ah yes -- Yugan is seeing something very dire in the future of this alien he's connected to. The question is if he's done anything to avert or warn about that bottleneck. Thanks for reading! I love that you're enjoying it.

The second book's plot expands quite a bit to include other places and characters not seen before. There's Earth, with the complexities of politics and human infighting, and you will see a lot more of this through Konstantin's eyes -- and also through others he meets. There are Elia and Nyx, who are indeed still on Lucere, having experienced an awakening not unlike Mira's own. There is the alien Mishith youth Yugan on the world Dagen's Grace. Lastly: Shay and Mira. They will appear, but it won't be straight away. There's a reason for this, and it will become clear once you do see them.

No problem. First-time readers tend to have commentary along the lines of 'how could you do that to Mira?!' only to take it back after chapter 12. Your reaction is completely normal!

I am not shy about graphic violence and uncomfortable material. If that's not to your taste, then that's unfortunate but it is still an integral part of the story. Konstantin was not captured, as I'm sure you have now realised. He managed to escape the initial encounter.

You're welcome, thanks for reading. It's true, the Herald just doesn't want to die. Literally throwing a planet at it doesn't seem to have been enough. As for Iskandar masquerading as Amal, there is definitely that chance. He does seem to be a rational human, and it's certainly a possibility that he could be made to realise how pointless human infighting is when the alien threat is right there. Thanks once again for reading. With any luck, chapter seven will have a much more reasonable production time.

Hah, of course you did. It's been a while, I know. This is very much the case. Shay doesn't want the trial of finding a way to end this thing, but with these three, his confidence is as high as it can get. Oh, and yes -- if you think this Lovecraftian moonlet is going to die offscreen, then you severely underestimate my penchant for a grand climactic spectacle. When the Herald meets whatever fate is coming, you -- the reader -- will definitely see it happen. Hedging your bets is a wise choice with me, because you never know when I'm doing the subverting expectations thing. It does look like Amal (Iskandar) is the guy, but could it be possible somebody else is the betrayer? Or might it also be possible I'm just saying this to gaslight you and make you doubt your own read of what Dagen told him because it's exactly as it appears? Or is Dagen being a manipulative alien mastermind and lying to him to get some other undisclosed result?! Narrator's warning: take all statements from the author known as Stellar at your own risk, he may in fact be fucking with you. Fair assumption!

Thank you for reading. It does certainly seem that Iskandar, the CorpSec double agent, is the subject of Dagen's implication. However, there's a counterweight here: do you believe that I'm about to kill him so soon after his somewhat consequential introduction in Ukraine and subsequent infiltration via Moldova? Admittedly, it is certainly possible, since I've certainly offed other characters in shorter order -- some within the same chapter, or even same scene as their introduction -- but Lucas has yet to meet him. Our Greek soldier is a man of professional discipline and reason, so he will want to at least judge this newcomer rather than prematurely act. Naturally, given that Iskandar's job involves deliberately deceiving people for intelligence-gathering purposes, this could make for a complicated interaction with some mind games involved. However, he is not a two-dimensional corporatist drone, so how he deals with any information about Nyx's identity might not be quite so cut-and-dry either. It is intended to be somewhat profound! In a philosophical sense, certainly, but also in other ways. Without being too heavy-handed through the author's 'Eye of God' perspective and going too deep on physics, I would say that it is a particularly Mishith framing, and not naturally an easy thing for humans to conceptualise. What Yugan is trying to communicate is some part of aqumi existing at any location in potentia, in theory able to be projected/manifested anywhere at all because there is 'no distance' -- a thought that explains such things as linking the gravity wells of stars, quantum network nodes existing between solar systems light years apart, and mental projection from Dagen's Grace to a feisty kitten on Lucere. This does have some serious implications if you consider that, with the right (or wrong) approach, certain physical limitations of scope and scale might be ignored completely. Oh, that's a neat idea, but it's nothing quite so esoteric. Shay knows the Herald will follow them wherever they go -- that much is inevitable. He just didn't want them to be sitting at the bullseye when he dropped Yahet on the leviathan's head, so he told Mira to jump them elsewhere in the Milky Way right before a planet's worth of molten rocks arrived.

Chapter 6 is now available.

The destination we arrived at was a familiar one. There were two stars, in a distant binary configuration -- a slightly larger orange dwarf and a smaller red. Both were remote, their light muted, but it was the revisited image of the planet that caught our attention on arrival. A lone planetary satellite of this solar system, the super-Earth sat far from its sun, the annual period multiple human years. On an outlying orbit, it was a lifeless, rugged world, wreathed in frozen ammonia and how

It seems like you're looking at the date of the book's creation, as if you check the fifth chapter, it was added on June 15, 2022, about four months ago. The sixth has been slow to write and is taking me more time than I would like. So yes, it is in actuality going to be finished. Since this is -- to my memory -- my first and only engagement with you as a reader thus far, I will try to be as gracious as I can with my response. I understand frustrations when something you enjoy is incomplete, but this fiction is not easy to create. I would encourage you, before commenting in this way, to consider how saying such a thing appears to the author -- especially considering it is our only interaction. If this is an inconvenience to you: my apologies, and I have another novel full of dragons instead for the meanwhile.

You had a feeling that another Hartley was going to appear despite there being no indications through the entire book until now? Well if so, your foresight is excellent.

Perhaps my favourite part of this book because it's all just him -- though some of the later chapters are strong contenders too. Nonetheless, Mira's solo journey has a lot of charm to it. What's not to love?

What, you don't think nuclear weapons are a good thing? Here I was, imagining them as a positive force of change in the world. I jest! Seriously though, there are multiple plot threads occurring here; the two girls on Lucere, the alien dagenithi Yugan, and what Konstantin is going through. The atomic destruction of Yakutsk was a specific targeted act, but to understand why, you'll need to learn more of Earth's politics. More to come on that in future chapters.

I got asked the question 'where are Shay and Mira?' quite a lot for the first few chapters of Veil of Shadow when it originally came out. Know that there's a good reason you don't see them right away, but when you do ... well, it'll be in their usual fashion that's highly dramatic and steeped in many shades of their starcrossed love. The status of Earth after the last couple of centuries of history -- and how the war against the alien foe is going -- are complicated topics. You'll learn a lot more about these things over the coming chapters, and boy is it a mess.

The map links are something I have fixed more than once, and I thought they were functional this time, but I guess I'll have to come back to that. Lily's fate was tragic, but it also an illustration of what happens to so many survivors on Lucere. It's inevitable this will happen to everyone who's a carrier someday, it's just a matter of when.

Thank you, though I still get comments and reactions intermittently, and there is also a sequel to it already complete, Veil of Shadow, and a third book incomplete at this time.

I cannot remember offhand canonically what Hartley's age is, but it's somewhere around the early 30s.

I wish to say that it takes strength of character to put oneself out there and address what was said, because not only is any public apology difficult, but especially when most others cannot bring themselves to speak a word in either direction -- that can be a daunting thing. I appreciate that you have chosen to do so, and I must add that I also appreciate that you have previously commented on my work and involved me as an author. I notice those who seem to be making a genuine effort, and I try not to forget their honest engagement. For all of this, I should thank you. Your compliments, also, are very kind. I don't want to come off as fishing for approval, but it can be very uplifting to hear, or read rather, that somebody holds what I do in high regard, with no demands nor conditions attached. Perhaps I am a vicarious soul in some ways, but it is personally fulfilling to know that a reader's emotional need, or intellectual curiosity -- or both -- has been satisfied because of something I created. After all, isn't that why art exists? To inspire feeling and thought in others? As for the ending to Spirit of Fire, this may be a bit of a tangent from your response, but it's strange -- I would have been fine with people telling me they didn't like it, over just ... not saying anything at all. I might have debated the merits of the reasoning if they couldn't fairly justify a criticism, but I can respect an honestly expressed opinion, even if it's one I disagree with. I think probably the reason was the book might have felt unsatisfying because of where it stopped -- and I get that -- but you can say exactly the same about Veil of Shadow. The plots of both are absolutely unresolved by the closing paragraph of the final chapter, and events are poised to be dramatically worse -- and in both cases that is clearly and obviously by design. Whether it's the invasion of Earth or the rebirth of a god, there HAS to be more to follow -- does anyone truly think I'm just going to drop it right there and not continue? Perhaps the only difference between the two is I said outright from earlier on that Veil was the middle part of a trilogy, whereas Spirit of Fire having a sequel wasn't mentioned until (I think?) after its completion, so people may have been taken by surprise. Still, that shouldn't have mattered, because I am playing the long game with both series. Either should ultimately be read together, as halves, or thirds, of a single greater whole. Nowhere have I stated -- or hinted -- that I'm going to leave anything unfinished. Quite the opposite, actually, because I hate when other artists do this to their audience. I just wish those who found the ending wanting considered it was never meant to be judged in a vacuum, and if they are doing that, they should reconsider investing their energy into anything at all that has multiple parts and is incomplete. That, or realise that sometimes you simply have to wait to get what you want. Okay, tangent over with. I will finish with: thank you for taking the time to say what you did. I sincerely value the sentiments expressed therein.

One of my personal favourite moments is their first kiss.

Well, there is a lot more Shay could tell Konstantin about his experiences so far, but he's still playing it careful with his situation. As for Mira saving the day, this won't be the last time you see him do so. Not even close.

One can judge by the chapter ending and Sofia's absence, that some kind of altercation must have happened. You'll get an answer on that count soon enough, but not before a little more drama, of course.

Well, Konstantin is a humane individual in a ruined world full of scavengers and rogues, so he is somebody you'd want on your side. Mira, however, is beginning to make Shay feel ... something new, that's for certain.

Lucere is a dangerous place. There is so much left to uncover though.

Thank you. I hope you will enjoy the rest of Hidden Sunlight as much as you have the start.