Al Norris

I started reading this chapter, almost as soon as you posted it, Bill... But then I had to use Google Earth to look up the petroglyph site, then the Loretto Chapel, and the Pueblo site! It's incredible how much time I just browsed around. LOL! Anyway, it was nice to learn about some of the native cultures I wasn't familiar with. Thanks for that, Bill. Oh! And the chapter!!!

Yes. Three, three-book trilogies! Start of a trend?

Ok, what the heck is a 'light shifter?' At least Someone finds Caleb and saves his life, even if he doesn't want saving.

Being in the wrong place at the right time.

I would say that with that Xpress blurb, Matty just might find his hands full, so to speak!

Not exactly ringing the doorbell. Not even close.

No. But Kyan could have let Perry know that now was time for the kids and then they would discuss things in the morning. Instead, he simply turns a cold shoulder and goes off to bed. That is how I viewed it. But Perry doesn't know it was the kids. All he knows is what Kyan said on the phone. Kyan could have given a very abbreviated explanation to Perry, instead of the cold shoulder Perry got. In essence, Kyan just acted in the same manner that his own parents acted with him.

Everyone else has pretty much said what I wanted to say that was good about this chapter. However... While I accept what happened because I have gotten to know the characters, I am still pretty miffed at Kyan as a reader. It was Kyan who got all butt-hurt and walked out on Perry. It was Kyan who was miffed that Perry hadn't called when it was himself who did the walking away strut! Perry didn't call because he wasn't at all sure of what had just happened and wanted to give Kyan breathing room. As it happens, things then went south... Until they didn't. Kyan finally got his head out of his posterior and called Perry. It was Kyan who wanted to see Perry. Now, not later! So Perry drops everything and rushes over, then what happens? Kyan does nothing to remedy their relationship. Instead, he allows the kids to have time with Perry, yet doesn't even hint at what he feels or wants to happen, going forward. Kyan simply leaves Perry to wonder what this is all about. I don't give a rats behind! Kyan should have said something, instead of acting all stand-offish for that so-called reunion. That whole scene just pisses me off and leaves a very bad taste in my mouth.

Hmm, the long-awaited (by some) Caleb story! And true to fashion, a cliffie! Um, who didn't see this coming? @Mrsgnomie, do you want us to decide which of you is our favorite author? Then stop posting Dichotomy!

I see that you made the immediate connection. What I found interesting is that within the Combined Desert Realms, being a Drow doesn't appear to have the negative connotations it does in the other two stories.

So the creature was an evil Skin Walker, as I thought. Yay for me!!! Bill, I liked the explanation you gave for the demise of the Skin Walker. It made sense. As fast as Mac is taking to his transformations, you have me wondering about the length of time it will take to learn the cougar and the coyote. I'm also perplexed by Mac's trepidation in living the life of a Skin Walker. It seems to me that this would be giving him more confidence, rather than less.

Having grown up in a staunchly LDS environment, I can understand how Emmitt felt. Knowing you are different, but never being able to express it, let alone experience it. Good start to the story, @TriadSync.

Perry is Dyna's OLDER brother. Let's try to keep up, Terry. Then there are the types of parents who try to raise all their children as if they all came from the same mold. Both styles can be and usually are wrong. This is an instance where the parents finally see what they did was wrong but don't admit it until everything is falling apart. Was it difficult for Jed? Of course, it was. But at least he is now trying to put things right. Even getting Kyan's kids to help, may or may not work. It is worth a shot, though.

And then some people insist on instigating minor feuds and then stepping back to watch! But of course, that wouldn't be me!!!

I just love how some fights start.....

And here, I was thinking that the comment section of @kbois stories was nuts! They don't hold a candle to you guys! So the gang goes from not seeing (or caring) the hurt surrounding Matty, to outright support? Call me confused. I'm still of the opinion that Matty needs to turn in his cat-boy suit. Only now, as soon as the door is answered, Matty should place the costume into the hands of whoever is there, stomp a foot, twirl around on a heel, snap his finger, and walk away.

Without the DNA imprint, how thick (and strong) are the bones? The musculature? Etc, etc. I can easily see how Devin did this. After all, he had way more experience in dealing with these types of shifts, without the specific DNA to guide his shifts. But right now, Mac only knows about this stuff because he has absorbed the animal's DNA to guide his shifts. I'm not trying to be a pain, Bill. But as the author, you have tied all this learning to the DNA of the subject of the shift. If Mac no longer needs DNA to properly shift (because of an innate ability), then he no longer needs to train, other than how the animal he shifts into, acts and reacts to the world. Whether it be out of fear, an innate ability, or some combination of the two, Mac has evolved into something more than a mere Skin Walker. I can see that I'm the only one that has thought of this, so I won't harp on it anymore.

Honest critique: When Mac copied Devin and changed into a Bigfoot, he went way beyond his current level of training. Granted that changes have become easier for Mac but nothing, so far, explains this level of advancement.

Yeah, that makes much more sense!

Hmm, are you trying to tell us something about the next chapter, Bill?

I'm pretty sure this is one of those evil Skin Walkers! Mainly as it simply batted the bears out of its way. It's interesting that Mac could copy Devin's Bigfoot, without even a second's thought! I hope we see in the next chapter that this creature goes belly-up! We hunt mostly hunt Mule Deer up where I live. We must travel a couple of hundred miles north to find whitetail deer. There must be more hunting pressure up there, as those deer are much more wiley than the muley's I'm used to!

Gads! I suppose I should go back and read the first story.

Because we are operating in the Kandric Universe, this is where having read the Kandric Saga comes in handy. You would already know about Greens and shifting. Be that as it may, more will be revealed in this segment of the overall story.

The characters will take us where they want to take us. Laura is merely the vehicle by which they express themselves.

I agree, 100%. If I were Matty, I would take my cat-boy suit, and ring the doorbell (or knock) at the house. I would not say a word. Just hand the suit to whoever answered the door, turn around and walk away.