C James

But... it was just a little touch of tension, and I did admit that there would be a slight touch of tension and suspense. And the tension of running the shallows, and it's accompanying risk of getting stuck for a few hours or maybe even scratching some paint, was fully resolved by the end of the chapter. See? No worries. Thanks!!! The good news is that, all being well, we can count on weekly postings until the story is complete. Hrmmm... okay, based on what they know (remember, we know far more than they) where did they go wrong? It did look very suspicious regarding Joel being made the heir to Atlantis's insurance right before the bombing attempt, and it does look suspicious that he and Lisa are so cozy with Bridget, so... they developed a suspicion, and also a way to investigate it. Of course, Henry did just pull a con on Gonzalez and the State Attorney. If it works, it takes away the issue of their being on the run stopping the clock on the statute of limitations. And cliffhangers? There are no cliffhangers here!! :2hands:

Things are heating up... The secret of Trevor's location is in danger of being spilled a bunch of different ways.

They're getting warmer, but they are hindered; they don't know some key things that we do, such as Bridget's real motive for wanting Trevor dead. As for Joel, from their POV, based on what they know, he did look like a suspect.

A poll? Uhoh. Well, you pretty much need to have the poll in a thread of its own. It can be added to an existing one, but it gets messy as earlier posts make no sense, and the poll is always part of the first post. To start a poll, just start a new topic. Right below the topic title field and description is a blue button, in the center, that says "manage poll topic.". Press it, and it opens up the poll screen, which is pretty self-explanatory once you're in it. CJ

Marty spotted two errors in the chapter (both now fixed), one of which is major: I had December 17th, 2006, called a Saturday, but it's a Sunday, and that's plot-relevant. The other was a typo. Thanks Marty!! Marty!!! How can you read the chapter so closely, yet still think there are any cliffhangers!?!?!? One measly hitman does not a cliffhanger make, especially when he has a 50-50 chance of heading for the wrong Carnarvon! And we saw Trevor and Shane, safely through the shallows, happily en route for Carnarvon, with Trevor regaining his confidence and starting to get over his PTSD. He'll probably be fine, as long as he avoids stress. Uhoh, I see I made another typo: chucking should be chuckling. I'll fix it. Hrmm, you're worried about the phone call... but, who knows what they'll say? As they say down under, no worries!

Back in Command is up, and it's time to leave Rhys Lagoon.

Chapter 85: Back in Command Aboard Kookaburra, it was Sunday morning. Trevor and Shane were nestled together in bed in peaceful slumber, as the dawn lit the placid waters of Rhys Lagoon. Their rest was rudely interrupted, as the satellite phone in the navigation desk began to ring. Shane stumbled out of bed, heading for the salon, naked and grumbling. Trevor followed, and right after Shane answered, he handed the phone to Trevor. The voice on the other end was grating and insistent, and

No worries, as they say down under!! Circumnavigation is entirely cliffhanger-free, so there's no chance whatsoever of any cliffhangers in any coming, present, or past chapters. High levels of tension? Can't happen! The one thing Trevor needs to avoid is stress, so how could there be tension? Wouldn't that be stressful? And me, lie? Of course not! I'm as honest and pure as the driven snow. Awww, Marty, why must you doubt me so!?? You should take your own advice, print out my above reply, and hang it by your monitor. Then, you'll see; I was right! BTW, Back in Command will be online within an hour or so. And I'll be telling you "I told you so!"

ack!! More plots to kill poor, innocent me? :ph34r: It's true that there might be a touch of tension and suspense in coming chapters, but just a touch. We're heading for the big reveal of the entire backstory on Dec 17th, story time, less than two weeks away. And there are time jumps between now and then, where quite a few days pass in a chapter. Don't worry to much about the man known as Basingstoke... We don't even know which Carnarvon he's heading for, or how, or even when, and besides, how much trouble could he really be? We all know that nothing bad ever happens in my stories. CJ

Thanks! Let's see, about 2300 miles from Darwin to Carnarvon Bay, Tasmaina. And about 1500 to Carnarvon, Western Australia. Yep, closer, but... we don't know what mode of transportation he'll use yet. He could take a train to Melbourne, then hop on a ferry to Tasmania. (There's a rail line from Darwin south to Alice Springs to Adelaide and then on to Melbourne. It's called the Ghan from Adelaide to Darwin). There are no rail lines anywhere near Carnarvon. (well, except a narrow gauge line just a few miles long within carnarvon). And, he's flipping a coin to see where to go. So, nothing to worry about. And we know there's one thing he needs to avoid, and that's stress. So, good thing he doesn't know... but, he doesn't know, so he's not worried. Well, yes, there may indeed be a touch of tension coming. I do admit to using a bit of tension here and there.. it's only cliffhangers that I totally avoid. Party planning?!?!? I love that idea!!!! Thanks! Yep, things speed up... a lot. Trevor is in a fix... he needs the psychologist appointment, and that's in Carnarvon... either that, or he has to attempt a hard voyage without it. Winds shouldn't be too much of a problem; there are often strong winds in the region, though they are less where sheltered by terrain (such as Rhys Lagoon). Denham itself is known for it's continual wind, which adds a permanent slant to many trees there. Getting out of Boat HAven Loop should be faster then getting in, once they get to the main channel. Trevor laid in a GPS track, and known knows the difficult areas, so he could go faster. Maybe six knots in some areas where he came in at 3. Still, it's not easy, and will take time. He can't get out of Boat Haven Loop to open water for at least three hours, and then he has an approx 85 nautical mile run to Carnarvon, so even at a decent sailing speed (say, 14 knots) that puts him into Carnarvon 6 hours later plus 3 to get out of the lagoon and the rest of boat haven loop) so 9pm Carnarvon at the earliest. Of course, all this assumes that Trevor can still handle the very difficult exit from the lagoon. Something unexpected? Me? The story about to break in the press, and a hitman trying to find Trevor... what could possibly go wrong? And now, time to mention the title of the next chapter, "Back in Command".

That may be, but it still means that, much as you require a different seasonal calander and different time zones, one must take into account upside-down numbers. I just wonder how Australians cope with driving upside down... seems to me that'd be very hard on their car roofs. And on a serious note, I've always been able to read upside down or mirrored text, and I was diagnosed as dyslexic when I was about seven, but I didn't know the two were related until today. Thanks!! I can't watch video on this computer, so I have no idea what it says.. but, when dealing with an a story that has many chapters in Australia, is is clear that we must incorporate Australian math.

Taking care of Business is up. A few hours early, because I have a thunderstorm moving in that might keep me offline for a few hours. In this chapter, we see a lot of things in a lot of locations.

Not when some of it is in Australia, for then, we must used inverted mathematics (due to Australia being upside down).

Chapter 84: Taking Care of Business Atop the Zuytdorp Cliffs, Trevor and Shane lay together for over an hour, until well after the last traces of Trevor’s panic attack had abated. It had been milder than the one before, a fact in which they both took solace. Finally, Trevor eased away. “I guess we better be getting back. It’s a long way, and I don’t think I’m up for running all of it.” Shane nodded, gathering up their packs. “They used to wipe me out pretty good. We’ll just hike it.” T

Goats cannot count.

Do you think goats have fingers and toes!?!?!

It will be less than 100! However, you are evidently in need of a math lesson! Remember, Trevor is now in Australia, and therefor, we must use Australian math. It's similar to the time zone issue, also imparted by their geography. In December (it varies seasonally, due to some areas having daylight saving time) Florida is 13 hours behind Western Australia. But, is it? How can that be, when Europe is ahead of Florida? It's complicated, but, here's how it works out; 1 am Tuesday in Perth is Noon on Monday in Miami Florida and 5pm Monday in London. So, we are used to making adjustments for time going east to west. Going south, however, is complicated in other ways. Australia is in the southern hemisphere, and so is upside down relative to those of us in the northern hemisphere. This is why cyclones and other low pressure systems spin the opposite way, clockwise, down there. This is why their seasons are inverted too. There are a lot of things that are different due to Australia being upside down, and math is just one of them. The first thing we need to remember is that in Australia, 100 minus 75 = 35. It's all a matter of geography. To prove it, let's start with normal math: 100 - 75 = 25. However, in Australia, 6's are upside down and thus become nines. Now, bear in mind that Trevor's first full day in Australia was in chapter 60, so when you turn your monitor upside down to read 60 the Australian way, it makes it 09. and 09 - 100 is 91, so a difference of nine, so if you subtract 9 from 24, you get 15, so therefor, in Australian math, 24 + 84 is 99. (or, in Australia, 66) CJ

The Void? When I saw this thread name, I was thinking he meant the space between my ears! Umm, please be aware of one thing. I utterly suck when it comes to estimating the number of chapters. The story is outlined to the end, and has been since before it started posting, and the final two chapters are written, but that's all been true for over a year. (I like writing the ending early in a story) It's just that when I get down to the nuts and bolts of actually writing the text, it tends to take more than I thought. That's why my estimate for chapter number keeps growing. Circumnavigation won't be over before the end of (northern hemisphere) summer. We'll be seeing chapter 84 today. That means I have just 24 more chapters remaining to keep my promise to bring it in under 100. The good news is, I do not foresee any more chapterless weeks between now and the end. And... hrmmm... when Circumnavigation ends, I very much hope and plan to have another story ready to start posting that same week. I don't know what it will be quite yet, but there are several candidates. One possible delay though; I'm writing a story for GA's premium section, to go with "Jake" which is already there, so that has to be finished first, though it should be done fairly soon. (I'm writing it all in one large batch, so I can adjust early chapter foreshadowing better, before anyone, even my team, sees it).

Benji, I know that Eric from FTL is one of your favorites, so how about an FTL sequel focused on him, as he climbs the ladder of televangelisim?

I'm being misjudged...!! Honestly, it was said often, here in the forum, that one unstable bomb aboard does not a cliffhanger make. Wildone says it best below.. he read my mind! Yes indeed! The sun is, after all, a giant nuclear reactor, and a nuclear reaction is also what creates a nuclear blast.. now, the sun is fusion based, but there was a bit of fusion boosting used to pump up the yield on the Toowoomba device. So, that's sunshine! And yep, you got the bunnies part right too! I'm glad to see you're coming around and seeing things as they are.

Ahhem! Surely you've heard of Angora sweaters, Cashmere sweaters, etc? Those are from goat wool.

One possibility... Trevor, Shane, Lisa, and Joel don't survive, and the sequel is the further adventures of Bridget Bellevue.

Well, yes, Trevor was indeed fearful for his life, due to the bomb and then the pirates, but... he's been told by Gonzalez that the threat (motive to kill him) probably no longer exists. So therefor, he's probably not so worried. And thus, the continuing price on his head is unknown to him, so he's not worried. It's just like when he had the highly unstable bomb aboard in the Suez... He didn't know it at the time, so he wasn't worried. (and, as was also said here in the forum at the time, one highly unstable bomb does not a cliffhanger make). Of course not! Nothing bad ever happens in my stories... it's all sunshine and bunnies. Or it could be something quite innocuous... maybe Dirk sends someone in to reopen the Chandlery for business?

AHHA! I've got you now!!! Me, edit stuff in? I hope you know you likely have my team rolling around and laughing their asses off at that idea... I am known as the King of Typos for a reason! :lmao: Editing is something I clearly have not the skills for. I'm also dyslexic (seriously) so I am notorious for mixing up look-alike words. Waive-wave being one set, out-our another. There are many. So there.

Thanks!!! The good news is that, thanks to my wonderful team, I think I can keep up a weekly posting rate until the end. No more two week gaps.