ReaderPaul

As I once heard someone wordily say, "The fecal matter is about to het the rapidly rotating oscillating device." Chris' family is in for some rough times ahead. Possibly Roman and Camille are in for a tough discussion. The Marines and security personnel are more familiar with Marc and his reputation than Camille and Roman seem to be. Good chapter. Perhaps Roman has more inside him than he thinks he has in the way of determination and bravery.

Is "top from the bottom" similar to being a "power bottom"? Where someone who is being penetrated nevertheless calls most of the shots?

Good chapter as Quinn learns .of the plans Orion has.

@R. Eric -- I see you thought of a similar situation on replying to the message I did! Don't send the message from the true location. I would suggest that some of the reply message(s) come from above and below the plane of the galactic presence and above and below the plane of Sol's ecliptic. (For those who need a reminder, Sol is the name of Earth's sun, even though the name Sol is rarely used -- just as Luna is the name of Earth's moon, again a name rarely used.) I look forward to seeing what the reply message says. I am guessing that -- at this point -- Ark II will not reveal what it knows about Ark III and Ark IV.

I worked with a guy for two years. Gradually he revealed more about himself over the years. From the time he was about 12 years old he was raised by his mother and stepdad. When he turned 18 his stepdad offered to adopt him, and he was happy about that. A few years later, he put together remarks he overheard through the years and figured out that his mother and stepdad agreed to adopt him AFTER THE LAST CHILD SUPPORT PAYMENT WAS PAID BY HIS BIO-FATHER. Greedy persons don't always SEEM greedy --- at the time. His stepdad and his mother had plenty of money and could have adopted him at any time without hardship. Another guy I know was divorced by his wife without notice and she married a guy fairly well off. Every month or two after the divorce the ex-wife would run a request through the court trying to get more child support as a form of harassment. The state in which I live allowed that often of that at the time -- I don't know if it is still that way now. I think the custodial parent can only ask twice a year now.

@Anton_Cloche you are right -- especially in Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Kansas, and several other states. And this story takes place in Texas....

Fantastic authors and writings on this list. Such a diversity! Fascinating variety of writers such as @AC Benus -- @Altimexis -- @quokka -- @W_L -- @Headstall -- @Mikiesboy -- @Parker Owens -- and others. Thank you, @Myr, for these Deep Dives.

After the last few paragraphs of the chapter, I had to give the chapter a "Laugh" emoji, even though most of the rest was serious. What do we know of Brandon's piloting ability? Not a lot, yet. Is he older than Marc by much? Good chapter.

Hence, no crime. In Texas, a minor can be the sole owner of a bank account. Parents can have a veto power over children's accounts if they go through certain letter-writing steps -- but they have to know about the account first. For information see -- https://houston-probate-law.com/can-a-minor-child-open-a-bank-account-in-texas/#:~:text=In Texas, the law permits minors to open From the article: Minors Can Have Deposit Accounts in Texas In Texas, the law permits minors to open bank accounts and be the sole owner of the account. According to Texas Finance Code § 34.305, the disability of being a minor is waived for the purposes of contracting with the bank. This means that minors can enter into contracts with banks to open accounts without requiring parental or guardian approval. However, the contract is voidable if the minor disaffirms the contract within a reasonable amount of time. Banks May Have Other Requirements It is important to note that some banks may have additional requirements or restrictions when it comes to minors opening accounts. For instance, they may limit the types of transactions, require parental approval for specific services, or request a parent to be a joint account holder. To ensure that the account is appropriate for their child’s needs and financial goals, parents and guardians should discuss these restrictions with the bank and their child. Parents Have Veto Power Parents or guardians still have veto power over the minor’s account to ensure that their interests are protected. They can restrict the minor’s ability to control, transfer, draft, or make a withdrawal from the account by writing a letter to the bank. This provides parents and guardians with a level of control over the account while allowing children to learn about financial independence and management. Much more information in the link above, @P. E. Knapp and @Al Norris and @akascrubber.

The story is set in Texas.

Good chapter. Will wait to see what happens next.

It was stated in an earlier chapter that Camille had penetrated Roman with a strap-on, but Roman was not interested in penetrating Camille. Marc arranging for Hugo and Janek and Rory together on one ship was another example of Marc's caring concern for connected companions he loves. I look forward to careful confrontation concerning Christopher.

Fascinating chapter. Marc is more self-sufficient that most persons near his age. Part of that is temperament; part probably from other factors. The twins, however, have almost always had others or each other near. This type of background makes consistent separation for days at a time a challenge. Interesting conversation with the parents of the twins. Interesting conversation with Christopher coming -- probably. Hopefully, the family of Chris does not have their own extensive spy network.

I am curious how the sudden availability of gold is being explained when it is cashed in. It is not a necessary component of the story, but to finance the upgrades, remodeling, and property acquisitions, there has to be quite a bit of gold being brought onto Earth. I am also in admiration, @quokka, of how organized the planning and upgrades to the Embassy properties have gone. When will the next approach to Australian authorities be made, and how? Will that be in another chapter or two? Also, are the construction personnel working on the upgrades being required to sign a video recorded NDA (Non Disclosure Agreement)? Further, since you said no mixing of stories, I guess that Jacob Simba Blackwood and/or Uncle Nate will not be showing up to investigate.

I have had several that I did not finish. One book by a favorite author I read half of and the book got ruined in a freak accident. I did not like the story enough to get a replacement copy. Another I DNF was a book of mathematical history which, by halfway through, had math I did not have enough training in to understand some of the concepts. I did read the first four chapters multiple times, however. A story I read on Nifty and do not remember the title -- I read about 8 chapters and lost interest. The story went from interesting and intriguing to stale cliché, staler cliché, and then descended into asinine incomprehensibility.

The slightly mysterious co-owner obviously has some pull in addition to wealth. (Of course, wealth has pull in and of itself.)

Warning: If you are having a bad day, wait to read this story until you have a moderate to good day. That said, this is a sensitive handling of a serious subject, and should help one think about the potential end of someone's life. If someone close to us, or we ourselves, may be facing potential or actual end of life, this is a sensitive and thoughtful (and quite brief) commentary on possibilities. Less than fifteen hundred words, it is very well worth reading.

A sensitive handling of a sometimes delicate subject. My father was not connected to anything when he died, but my brother, mother, and myself were with him when he passed from this life. The memories are not the same as this story, but both this story and my father's passing were good. He was out of pain and feebleness. Well done, @Mancunian

Good to see the plans coming together. I hope Brett and Hugh and Joyce and Susan all have security plans in place. Have Susan and Joyce been issued special watches yet, with emergency teleportation capabilities? Will any plants from the other star system be planted on the Embassy grounds, after checking to see if they are similar enough to Earth plants to not be immediately obvious, and that they will grow in Earth soil? Or is that for a year or two down the road?

I am wondering the same thing, or might it be that in this future society Children can come from multiple combinations of parental partners? Looks like the Malachi family was worried that Marc knew more than they thought when he got mad at Christopher----

Much of that depends on the state laws of the 50 states and Washington, D.C. It varies a lot from state to state. In most states, a child 14 or older can express a preference of which parent the child wishes to live with, but the judge presiding over the divorce does not have to allow the child their choice. Other factors include the mental conditions perceived by the court of the child or children, and the mental/emotional condition of each parent or guardian, whether either or both parents have previous convictions or accusations of drug use, child abuse, moral turpitude, etc. Sometimes it can also come down to the mood of the judge at the time of his ruling. provided he keeps the ruling within legal guidelines. Appealing the ruling of a judge in a divorce case is usually very time-consuming and expensive, and one must have the right lawyer or lawyers except in the most outrageous cases.

Unfortunately, in the US, the large majority of states give preference to the mother in child custody cases, in spite of the laws of some states stating that fathers are to be given "equal" consideration. Unless the father is very wealthy, and can afford to hire very expensive lawyers, or has a lot of legal and other influence, mothers are presumed to be better caretakers of those below the legal age of adulthood. It is often not logical, but it is very true.

I like the developments of this chapter. Plans are coming together. Simeon and Travis will make interesting staff additions. Hugh is turning into an organizer of good administration. Also, Preston, I am interested in seeing how the gold from the Amixorpians is turned into Australian money. One minor thing -- in this chapter, Joyce is mentioned as Tibbert, and part of the time as Tibbet. Which will it be? Do the Amixorpian watches also allow teleportation into other dimensions or parallel worlds, so that some of the persons from the Deep Space series might turn up? (Yes, I know that would be a stretch, but if anyone could make that happen, it would be you, @quokka.)

Ah, I forgot the time was 2004. Many fewer cameras then, anyway.

If Quinn is still officially in the custody of the mother, Orion could be charged with kidnapping, if there are security cameras to catch them together -- and the school probably has them. I think there are still wrinkles to go.