Mark Arbour

Basically, but I'm seeing Ben as being a bit more youthful, and a bit less raw.

Since Bacchante was brand new, she took longer. Valiant's conversion should take about three months, total, then some time for fitting out (rigging, stores, gold leaf, etc.). That's a little difficult to say, because in this era, size was limited by how much stress a wood hull could take, and that limited the length and width. The biggest frigates were ships like the USS Constitution and the French (then British) Pomone. They carried 24 pound cannon on their gun deck, as compared to other frigates, which carried 18 or 12 pounders. Ships like the Indefatigable and the Valiant are probably more powerful than the Constitution and Pomone by virtue of their larger scantlings (they were built originally to be ships of the line) and their larger secondary armament (they had 42 pound carronades on the upper deck); but in exchange for that, they weren't as fast and maneuverable, or as weatherly. So we would have to class Valiant as being one of the largest frigates out there. If I were to draw a more modern parallel, I'd say that Valiant and Indefatigable were analagous to the German Graf Spee pocket battleships. You didn't ask, but this is the ship that was, IMHO, the best British frigate built: HMS Endymion

I really liked the Vanessa Carlton song, but I think it works better when Matt is looking at Wade in the party. "Wasting my Time" was another really good choice. I'm not a big fan of Busta Rhymes and P. Diddy, but that's just me.

The latest installment in the CAP Series, Flux, has officially been launched. You'll find the prologue and the first chapter here. By the way, to get updates on this story, follow the link above, and simply click on "follow this story" in the upper right part of the blurb. If you follow all of my stories, you can actually get updates on everything, by going here and clicking on "follow this author."

May 31, 2002 Escorial, CA I walked down the hall, trying to fight my somber mood, but it was so hard. So fucking hard. It had been eight and a half months since I’d lost Robbie, eight and a half long, miserable months. During the entire time, I’d have moments where I’d be doing fine, thinking that I finally had a handle on things, that I’d finally managed to adapt to his loss, and then the grief would attack me from out of the blue. Sometimes it would be triggered by s

December 25, 2001 Escorial, CA “Come on, Wade,” I whined, but I smiled at him to show I was doing it to be funny. I was so close to my goal, I could feel it. I was like a lion stalking its prey, and I was just one big sprint away from the kill. “There is no way you’re sleeping with me,” he said firmly. “There are other rooms here.” “You won’t even let me crash with you?” I asked. It was way more than that, and he knew it. I want

Flux continues the CAP series in 2002, where everyone is still trying to cope with the horrible aftermath of 9-11, and is trying to move on with their lives. Many of the characters in this story were introduced in prior stories.

I've shot you up with Valiant heroin, eh? They won't find out if there are problems until they sail.

I can't see Winkler not going with Granger, not as long as Jacobs is along, and he seems more than willing to follow Granger. And it would be Lord St. Vincent. As history writes it, he'd almost due for a brief period of retirement, so we'll see how close to him Granger ends up being.

Thanks. I will do my best. It's funny, because there was such a contrast between the Prince of Wales, who was quite the rake in his younger days, and the stodgy, family oriented King. It's hard to visualize Granger having much fun at Windsor, but you never know.

Don't despair too early. We've got the Wardroom set up, but not the Gunroom. George hasn't picked his young gentlemen yet.

Thanks Kevin! I thought it would be nice to have some familiar faces around.

Thanks! We'll have to see where he ends up. I think that George is just stir crazy when he's home. There's a war going on out there, and he wants to be a part of it. When there is no war, I think he will be at peace too.

Thanks Alex. I still haven't decided where Granger will be going with this one, but I have a few ideas. ;-)

We'll have to see about Llewellyn. Let's hope he's not a lieutenant yet. :-)

The next story in the Bridgemont Series, HMS Valiant, was just posted. I'd been working on getting it online, so it may not show up in the story update thread this time, but it's there. I hope you enjoy it. By the way, to get updates on this story, follow the link above, and simply click on "follow this story" in the upper right part of the blurb. If you follow all of my stories, you can actually get updates on everything, by going here and clicking on "follow this author."

Thanks Jason. Ironically enough, your poignant and sincere review reminded me of Margaret Cho's comedy routine, where she talks about "The Gay." It's one of those evenings. ;-) I wonder if the lack of Gay infrastructure is not a reflection of the fact that gay men and lesbians have always been part of society, and are acknowledged as such at some level.

I'm so glad we could help you out! Thanks for sharing that! March 1.

Thank you! You are certainly correct in that there is no remuneration for this labor of love. It's nice that way. As for the (mostly) flawless aspect, that I owe totally to my team. They make me look good.

Thanks Bob. 9-11 was a global tragedy, but it hit us pretty hard here in the US. I'm glad I helped illustrate that. I love Australia! Been years since I've been there, but someday I'm going back. I am convinced there are more hot men per capita there than in any other country. ;-)

Thanks Kevin. You expressed yourself quite well!

Wow mm, that's some heady company you put me in, and while I don't deserve that, I do appreciate the sentiment. Six years...we've watched you grow up together! And a confession: I've never read either War and Peace or Les Mis in their entireties. That's way too much for my ADD to handle. ;-) You have to wait a few more days for what's next. LOVE, ma

"Proper" isn't a term I hear used much in reference to my writing, so allow me to pause and snaugh at that. :-) Thanks for expressing how vividly these characters live for you. Some authors like to take a lot of time to describe a scene, and I sometimes worry that I leave out too much, but then again, I think that if the emotions and the basics are there, it's better to let the reader paint in the details with their own impressions.

Thanks Miles. It really makes me feel good to hear you say that I've handled the losses responsibly. That was the thing I learned from 1968; you better have a damned good reason to kill off a key figure.

Thanks. It is a lot of work for me, but I'm glad you mentioned my team, because it's a lot of work for them too. Although it is kind of fun to flood Sharon with chapters. ;-)