ReaderPaul

This antagah reminds me of a more aggressive Borg Collective from Star Trek: The Next Generation and Star Trek: Voyager. The Borg absorbed people against their will, and not all were as fortunate as Captain Picard and /or Seven of Nine. This will be a fascinating adventure. Too bad Pacha and company is not there. One of these adventures, @Geron Kees, you implied we would meet more of the Kifta. Oh, well, maybe the next adventure....

Oh, man! This is going to be a major adventure! I'm glad Horace and Bob are going with them and Ragal and Casper as well. What about Durapar? The idea of Engris lighting up? Wow. Just -- wow.

I had whooping cough as a kid. It is certainly NOT fun! I hope no one else on here ever had that.

How about both, @Geron Kees? When Charlie, Ricky, and company met Horace in "Every Boy Should Face His Demons, Charlie Boone!" it was established that Charlie's second presence can go to other universes, and Ricky can tag along somewhat. So Charlie and Ricky could end up in the Doors universe, and the rest tag along. If Keerby and/or Nicholaas goes with them, they could get back. (Perhaps Max has learned enough by now to get them back, as well.) I still think it would be neat if only Cally can see them in the Door's universe, because he has some skwish. Unless, of course, they can become physically present in the Doors universe. However, another one to twenty-nine stories in the Doors universe would be great, as well. If the series never connect, I will still keep reading. Ricky's little brother (Roger? Trebor? Ronyx? Traveler? Tracer?) has a talent for translating himself and others to alternate universes, something like teleportation, and it will start to show up. And, it could be something only Ricky, Keerby, Nicholaas, and Max (and possibly Robin and Amy) understand at first? That could be a Doors story -- Derry, Cally, and Mike Hamlyn having a young boy of 11 or 12 show up on one of their adventures, and it be Ricky's younger brother, and Uncle Bob's nephew! You could do "side Door" adventures like the side Charlie Boone stories! Thanks for sparking the idea, @G90814!

Fascinating chapter, @R. Eric. I mourn the loss of Chuck. I'm hoping Stan has an undamaged mind. I am also hoping that you write more chapters on Ark II soon, then Makrovia, then Ark II again, then Bluebloods, then Ark II -- (hint, hint). I am enjoying all of them.

I agree with @drsawzall and his analysis of the situation. I also think Joel and others on the leadership team will still have to watch for selfish and bull-headed tendencies among the persons of the Ark II. However, this may have defused it a bit. Humans will still have some human failings, even transplanted to other planets. Good chapter, R. Eric. I hope we see more chapters of this soon.

Good chapter, R. Eric.

I am not surprised egos and selfishness are appearing. Very human traits.

well done, R. Eric.

Very good chapter. I agree with Joel -- better to be prepared and not need it than need it and not be prepared.

I can see the same potential problems that Joel saw. I think Hank and some of the others should figure out how best to use Athena's sensors to watch for potential other spacecraft from Earth, but still watch for other, non-Earth, craft as well. I had a lot of things happen to keep me from reading this chapter in a timely manner. It is my hope to catch of quickly. @drsawzall has excellent observations on this chapter.

Yes, some questions are still unanswered. But that gives our own @Wombat Bill a hook to start the next story with (as if he needs one). In real life, many times things are not answered or resolved in a timely fashion -- and sometimes never.

A good ending to this story, @Wombat Bill.

@Bill W, you have written many great stories. But I read many of them an another web site, which is very difficult to comment on. Eventually, I have a long-term goal of reading all of your stories on GA and commenting. You are especially good at holiday themed stories, such as Thanksgiving and Christmas, much better than the average writer when holidays are involved. Sorry, but I have a tendency to lavish praise on authors I like.

Good story, @Bill W. More interesting than the majority of Halloween stories I have read. I enjoyed this story almost as much as my favorite story by you, Crash Landing. Both are excellent stories.

@VBlew, I'm not sure Thomas is fully on board with traveling yet. I think he will enjoy it when they go, but he has so many things on his mind now, it is distracting him from the potential. I'm not sure how long it usually takes to get a passport in Australia. This chapter is full of surprises. I didn't expect Yashuki to ride away. Dante suggested foreign travel; Thomas realized that a permanent solution to the lifeguard situation is needed; Lachlan is surprised to learn that Thomas things that he (Lachlan) isn't pulling his weight; Thomas is expressing his feelings more honestly. Our favorite wombat is keeping us guessing. Well done!

I'm not quite as optimistic yet, but I think Yashuki may be developing actual feelings for Thomas. For Dante -- I am not so sure. After all, he did use Dante to get a job at Crystalline. True, @VBlew. We DON'T know yet what Yashuki is thinking or feeling yet, but we can see that he has exhibited some caring for Thomas -- even if it is for the selfish reason of solidifying his job at Crystalline. But I think he is developing more feelings for Thomas than he ever had for Dante (other than physical desire and greed). At this point, I think Dante is feeling a taste of his own medicine. He is feeling a bit "let down" by Thomas inviting Yashuki into the relationship, but on the proverbial other hand, Thomas was let down by Dante and suspected it even before it was confirmed. But now, Dante will be aware that both Thomas and Yashuki will be watching him for signs of straying. Thomas will also watch Yashuki for indications of roving and roaming. Throuples, open relationships, polyamorous, and monogamous relationships all have challenges. I look forward to seeing what wonderful wanderings and warpings our @Wombat Bill will do to the plot to pleasure, prolong, and prod our prodigious imaginations intensely and inventively.

What, @Wombat Bill, no teaser this time? It should be an interesting discussion among the three of them. I am interested to see the thoughts of @chris191070 and @Summerabbacat and @VBlew, and anyone else who is willing to join in.

I'm glad Virginia and Cook have had some clearing of the air. But the teaser for the next chapter has me wondering -- whose and what divided loyalties? Interesting comments from Virginia about the types of glasses used for the champagne. I don't think Virginia understands the feelings of Desmond. She thinks she does, but it is only a partial understanding.

Dante is a confusing person. I think he is upset that Yashuki is now into his relationship with Thomas, but also showing some of the confusion Patricia has in relation to her sons. Yet he has been perfectly willing to cheat on Thomas. I still do not trust Yashuki. I have to stop commenting now. Too much physical pain has hit me this morning.

This story further develops the "Charlie Boone" universe but without the direct involvement of Charlie, Kippy, Adrian, and Ricky. However, it is so well written that one can read it and enjoy without knowing about the rest of the related stories. As Pacha'ka, Mike, Bobby, and Kontus travel together to explore clues about ancient civilizations and events, they discover something which seems impossible to exist. More events happen, and soon they are on an unexpected rescue mission A well-thought-out, rapidly-paced adventure, well worth reading.

Interesting characters, both Rodney Smith and the priest. They may deserve each other.

Fascinating, @Summerabbacat and @chris191070. Interesting speculations. I think Rosemary Cook was being partially sarcastic. I think Rodney Smith was the main killer, but the previous damage to Patrick's body greatly contributed to his death. Also, we may still not have all the suspects who contributed to the death. Some of that might indeed be that Patrick was thought to be Dante. I still think that, @Wombat Bill, TWO person need to be trained in lifeguarding and pool maintenance, and the CCTV power supply should be on a separate circuit from the rest of the pool equipment. On ONE thing I do trust Yashuki. I trust him to ultimately do what he feels best for the long term interests of Yashuki.

@Geron Kees, there is a logical inconsistency in this chapter Here is the passage: Ricky took a step towards the blue cylinder, and every gun in the room came up to point at him. But one of the newcomers immediately raised a hand and yelled, "Neniu pafado! Via municio nur resaltas de ĉi tiu. Vi eble difektos la aparaton!" Ricky swore under his breath. He'd taken out his translator back in the mountain and put it in his pocket. And now he couldn't even touch the pocket! But it seemed clear the man was warning the others not to shoot. Still, Ricky decided to stand still until he better knew what was happening. "Charlie?" If Keerby's change of Rick's state included his clothes, then he could reach into his pocket. If not, they would have shot his clothes off earlier, when he was being shot at but the ammo was bouncing off of him -- but not necessarily his clothes. If there is a logical way of explaining this as written, I would love to see it. If not, I'm just going to say "Emerson" -- as Isaac Asimov used to say when there was a small inconsistency in his writing that would take WAY too much rewriting to fix, and would probably wreck the point he was trying to make. Then I will ignore it.

Chandler wrote forty to sixty books, and some short stories. He lived from 1912 - 1984. Many of his books are available again on Kindle. I hope someday your stories are available on Kindle or in book form.