Chris Hechtl's Blog, page 35
July 21, 2018
Liberty or Death Snippet 5
Okay sitrep: I just sent Rea Liberty or Death. I held out until today to give everyone who had it a chance to chime in. (I've had complaints I'm rushing the books through proofreading)
Also, I sent Wayne the first 2 acts of Full Circle last night.
And, I watched Pacific Rim Uprising last night. Not much character development, I hate how they have the usual soft dialog and then blasting sound FX. It had me scrambling through the entire movie. I have no idea what happened to some of the cast of the first movie. It was more of a kids movie, the mecha were cool but the plot had such large holes in it! You could drive a... well, jaeger through a couple of them!
-Like how a 15 year old could build a Jaeger on her own. Forty feet tall??? Not just a genius kid but holy crap! Super strong too!
-or how they have that 1 bit in the plot about how during the last war all of the Kaiju were headed to Japan. They all came from the same portal in the first movie. I guess some got lost and went to California, Alaska, Hong Kong???
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Chapter 4
Antigua
Admiral Irons nodded as he listened to the latest briefing. “Finally something is going right.”“Yes sir. We've got De Gaulte on the defensive. Garth has been decimated. According to our psych profile of him he'll try to fight forward for as long as possible. Rattling him with scouts and then a coordinated assault will bounce him out.”“I'd rather catch him and finish him. But I know what sort of battle that will mean,” Yorgi stated as he set his coffee cup down. “A fight to the death is bad but he's been ground down pretty hard. Our forces have been reinforced and can recover quicker and better than his. I think if Admiral White switches from a battle of attrition to one of annihilation he'll win.”“It's not just winning I'm concerned about. It's what comes next,” Admiral Irons said. “He'll get hurt, and yes I know that is the price of doing business,” he held up a restraining hand to curb the intelligence officer. “But, I'm more concerned strategically. If they battle to the death yes it leads the road open to Horath. We can see that, but so can the enemy. They might panic and send a massive fleet out and catch Second Fleet off guard.”“If they do sir?” Captain Sprite asked.“Then he'll have to fight another battle of attrition at each jump point and give ground as he does in order to preserve the bulk of his forces. But we'll have to fight again to take back that ground later. We also can't reinforce him.”“I believe you still wish to send him the SDs correct sir?” Yorgi asked. Admiral Irons nodded. “But that's it.”“That is it until Admiral Creator of Things can get some breathing room and my people can play catch up,” Sandra'kall, the Centaurian Secretary of Industry stated from her holographic pedestal.Admiral Irons grunted in agreement as he looked at the latest report on the fleet on his HUD. Phil, Odette, Yorgi, and Georgi were right; he'd gotten a bit carried away in his deployments. That had to change, the navy didn't have a bottomless well as far as ships and personnel were concerned.He still intended to send the quartet of super dreadnoughts to Amadeus, and a draft of personnel to Pi though, they would be needed to man any captured ships and facilities there. But, a follow up draft to Tau was now off. He couldn't afford it at the moment. Shelby was on her own until they got sorted out. He was certain she would understand.“Shh, the press conference is starting,” Emily Berkheart, the Secretary of Labor stated, pointing to the big screen. All eyes turned to it expectantly as the Neocat press secretary took the podium.===<>===“Good morning, and I hope everyone had a good weekend. I certainly did,” Liobat said as she took the podium from her assistant. She smiled her thanks briefly as the other woman left silently.“First off, I'd like to wish Bundy a happy birthday,” she said with a nod to the reporter near the rear of the room. He blinked as the group broke into a smattering of applause and well wishes. “So, the first question will go to him when we get to that point.”Bundy blinked and then nodded, looking a bit nonplussed at being singled out but eager to get the first salvo in.“To open things up, the markets are ticking away smoothly. The economy continues to pick up and improve as each star system adds people to the job market as well as materials. Goods are exchanging hands on an increasing basis, so much so that Captain Broken Antenna finally has something to do other than to count paperclips,” she said.There was a soft chuckle over that.“Seriously, we all know that. There is no new news from the war front. The holdouts on Dead Drop are still refusing to surrender. To date Admiral White hasn't taken any action against them. We are still in the gathering intelligence phase I believe. Any further questions in that regard I will refer you to the navy's press secretary.”“There are no high level scheduled meetings with other governments to negotiate their return to the Federation at this time. I'll refer you to progress on that front with the State Department.”“No news is good news?” a reporter in the front row quipped.Liobat flicked her ears. “Sometimes we get the softballs and get to enjoy a good day,” she said.“Lucky,” the reporter replied with a smirk.“No, just good looking and really good at talking other people to death,” Liobat said. “I believe they refer to that as chatty,” she said, pretending to preen. There was a chuckle from the group. “Now, the military will be launching another ship later this week. You can pick up the details on the brief ceremony from my office or from the navy. The navy will give you stock footage if you require it. Due to heightened security they will not allow any live craft near their precious ships,” she said.There was another soft chuckle. “I believe the term, you break it you buy it comes into mind for some bean counter in the bowels of naval accounting,” she said to a smatter of additional chuckles.“The president is in good health and is most likely watching this press conference with the cabinet in their weekly meeting. So, without further ado, let's get to the question session so I can cut this short and get in there. I want to make sure certain parties don't eat up all the canapés before I get at least one,” she said to more chuckles.“Bundy that's your queue,” she said, pointing a stylus to the reporter.The Neochimp rose slightly and looked at his tablet. “We still haven't heard anything about the massive arrests several months ago. No one has heard from any of the accused. They've simply disappeared. There is some concern, especially since one of the people who went missing is one of my colleagues. Can you tell us any progress on that case? When will we hear their side of the story?”Liobat kept her face impassive. He would start things off with a question about that and even hint about April O'Neill she thought in mild annoyance.“I again will refer you to speak to the DOJ spokesman on questions relating to this matter. I will tell you that any investigation will be followed until its natural conclusion. Only then will charges, if any will be presented. There is no clock on the process unless two circumstances are met; one, if a statute of limitations is involved, or two, a person of interest is leaving the jurisdiction. Otherwise, a good investigator, be it a reporter,” she paused to indicate her audience and even smiled and flicked her ears slightly. “...Or law enforcement individual will keep generating and following leads until the picture is complete. As to why they are in custody, some are a threat to themselves or others. Some are potential witnesses who have had threats against them.” There was a smatter of clicks as old fashioned still cameras as well as modern ones went off. “I believe there is a gag order on talking to anyone during an active investigation. That is standard procedure in any case. Any further questions you need to talk to the DOJ,” she said firmly. “Now, who's next?” she asked, waving her stylus like a conductor's wand.===<>===
Also, I sent Wayne the first 2 acts of Full Circle last night.
And, I watched Pacific Rim Uprising last night. Not much character development, I hate how they have the usual soft dialog and then blasting sound FX. It had me scrambling through the entire movie. I have no idea what happened to some of the cast of the first movie. It was more of a kids movie, the mecha were cool but the plot had such large holes in it! You could drive a... well, jaeger through a couple of them!
-Like how a 15 year old could build a Jaeger on her own. Forty feet tall??? Not just a genius kid but holy crap! Super strong too!
-or how they have that 1 bit in the plot about how during the last war all of the Kaiju were headed to Japan. They all came from the same portal in the first movie. I guess some got lost and went to California, Alaska, Hong Kong???
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Chapter 4
Antigua
Admiral Irons nodded as he listened to the latest briefing. “Finally something is going right.”“Yes sir. We've got De Gaulte on the defensive. Garth has been decimated. According to our psych profile of him he'll try to fight forward for as long as possible. Rattling him with scouts and then a coordinated assault will bounce him out.”“I'd rather catch him and finish him. But I know what sort of battle that will mean,” Yorgi stated as he set his coffee cup down. “A fight to the death is bad but he's been ground down pretty hard. Our forces have been reinforced and can recover quicker and better than his. I think if Admiral White switches from a battle of attrition to one of annihilation he'll win.”“It's not just winning I'm concerned about. It's what comes next,” Admiral Irons said. “He'll get hurt, and yes I know that is the price of doing business,” he held up a restraining hand to curb the intelligence officer. “But, I'm more concerned strategically. If they battle to the death yes it leads the road open to Horath. We can see that, but so can the enemy. They might panic and send a massive fleet out and catch Second Fleet off guard.”“If they do sir?” Captain Sprite asked.“Then he'll have to fight another battle of attrition at each jump point and give ground as he does in order to preserve the bulk of his forces. But we'll have to fight again to take back that ground later. We also can't reinforce him.”“I believe you still wish to send him the SDs correct sir?” Yorgi asked. Admiral Irons nodded. “But that's it.”“That is it until Admiral Creator of Things can get some breathing room and my people can play catch up,” Sandra'kall, the Centaurian Secretary of Industry stated from her holographic pedestal.Admiral Irons grunted in agreement as he looked at the latest report on the fleet on his HUD. Phil, Odette, Yorgi, and Georgi were right; he'd gotten a bit carried away in his deployments. That had to change, the navy didn't have a bottomless well as far as ships and personnel were concerned.He still intended to send the quartet of super dreadnoughts to Amadeus, and a draft of personnel to Pi though, they would be needed to man any captured ships and facilities there. But, a follow up draft to Tau was now off. He couldn't afford it at the moment. Shelby was on her own until they got sorted out. He was certain she would understand.“Shh, the press conference is starting,” Emily Berkheart, the Secretary of Labor stated, pointing to the big screen. All eyes turned to it expectantly as the Neocat press secretary took the podium.===<>===“Good morning, and I hope everyone had a good weekend. I certainly did,” Liobat said as she took the podium from her assistant. She smiled her thanks briefly as the other woman left silently.“First off, I'd like to wish Bundy a happy birthday,” she said with a nod to the reporter near the rear of the room. He blinked as the group broke into a smattering of applause and well wishes. “So, the first question will go to him when we get to that point.”Bundy blinked and then nodded, looking a bit nonplussed at being singled out but eager to get the first salvo in.“To open things up, the markets are ticking away smoothly. The economy continues to pick up and improve as each star system adds people to the job market as well as materials. Goods are exchanging hands on an increasing basis, so much so that Captain Broken Antenna finally has something to do other than to count paperclips,” she said.There was a soft chuckle over that.“Seriously, we all know that. There is no new news from the war front. The holdouts on Dead Drop are still refusing to surrender. To date Admiral White hasn't taken any action against them. We are still in the gathering intelligence phase I believe. Any further questions in that regard I will refer you to the navy's press secretary.”“There are no high level scheduled meetings with other governments to negotiate their return to the Federation at this time. I'll refer you to progress on that front with the State Department.”“No news is good news?” a reporter in the front row quipped.Liobat flicked her ears. “Sometimes we get the softballs and get to enjoy a good day,” she said.“Lucky,” the reporter replied with a smirk.“No, just good looking and really good at talking other people to death,” Liobat said. “I believe they refer to that as chatty,” she said, pretending to preen. There was a chuckle from the group. “Now, the military will be launching another ship later this week. You can pick up the details on the brief ceremony from my office or from the navy. The navy will give you stock footage if you require it. Due to heightened security they will not allow any live craft near their precious ships,” she said.There was another soft chuckle. “I believe the term, you break it you buy it comes into mind for some bean counter in the bowels of naval accounting,” she said to a smatter of additional chuckles.“The president is in good health and is most likely watching this press conference with the cabinet in their weekly meeting. So, without further ado, let's get to the question session so I can cut this short and get in there. I want to make sure certain parties don't eat up all the canapés before I get at least one,” she said to more chuckles.“Bundy that's your queue,” she said, pointing a stylus to the reporter.The Neochimp rose slightly and looked at his tablet. “We still haven't heard anything about the massive arrests several months ago. No one has heard from any of the accused. They've simply disappeared. There is some concern, especially since one of the people who went missing is one of my colleagues. Can you tell us any progress on that case? When will we hear their side of the story?”Liobat kept her face impassive. He would start things off with a question about that and even hint about April O'Neill she thought in mild annoyance.“I again will refer you to speak to the DOJ spokesman on questions relating to this matter. I will tell you that any investigation will be followed until its natural conclusion. Only then will charges, if any will be presented. There is no clock on the process unless two circumstances are met; one, if a statute of limitations is involved, or two, a person of interest is leaving the jurisdiction. Otherwise, a good investigator, be it a reporter,” she paused to indicate her audience and even smiled and flicked her ears slightly. “...Or law enforcement individual will keep generating and following leads until the picture is complete. As to why they are in custody, some are a threat to themselves or others. Some are potential witnesses who have had threats against them.” There was a smatter of clicks as old fashioned still cameras as well as modern ones went off. “I believe there is a gag order on talking to anyone during an active investigation. That is standard procedure in any case. Any further questions you need to talk to the DOJ,” she said firmly. “Now, who's next?” she asked, waving her stylus like a conductor's wand.===<>===
July 16, 2018
Liberty or Death Snippet 4
Sitrep: I'm still driving Wayne nuts but skipping around with writing Full Circle. Getting there though, faster than ever. Mainly because I added a lot of crossover material.
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Still in chapter 3:
Nuevo Madrid
Colonel Valenko Kodiak received the news of his impending movement with typical Russian fatalistic charm. He shrugged it off when his staff reported it. “I'll believe it when I see it.”“Yes sir.”“It is months away. They were supposed to get them moving months ago. So, we'll make do as we always do.”“Yes sir. So, we're overseeing the security of the new line of elections coming up. They are the primaries, so projections on turn out are mixed.”The bear grunted.One of their jobs now that the planet had been declared more or less secure was to make sure it stayed that way. His marines were spread out with militia groups securing strategic locations while turning control and the day to day management of towns and cities over to the natives.But big events still had their interest. It was ripe for trouble, so his people were on hand to quell any activities, hopefully before it got out of hand. The natives were grateful for their work in making certain the Horathians and their partisans didn't get too feisty with their brand of domestic terrorism.Given that they were releasing the news from the ansible about the war he knew that a lot of the reactions had been killed. Why go through the trouble of making yourself a target if the Horathians were losing the war? According to his intel team, the pirates were having a hell of a time retaining their people let alone recruiting replacements or getting supplies.That didn't stop them from causing problems anyway though, he reminded himself. He had no intention of becoming complacent. Which was why he kept a keen eye on things.There were several political movements ongoing on the planet. One was enthusiastic about joining the Federation and breezily assured him and others that everyone would fall into line when they saw the benefits. State Department was involved there but overworked.He took that one with mixed feelings and a healthy dose of salt. The same with their polling numbers. They still had to send people to go door to door to gather information and he doubted they were getting accurate numbers. Especially when sometimes they were doing it in the dead of winter.The second major group wanted their star system to remain neutral. A faction of it wanted both sides, both the pirates and the Federation kicked out. He sympathized in a way.A third faction was aligned with the Horathians, but had taken a less strident tone. They were aligned with the neutrals to some degree but still spouted some of the rhetoric from the Horathians. His spooks had talked him into letting them be. It sickened him to see such drivel, but it was important to let them speak their minds.Besides, they were a small group and they were being closely watched. The moment they stepped out of line he'd step on them. He was certain they knew it. They also probably knew his people were watching for signs of coordination or communications with any surviving pirates out there.Which made them very respectful of the bear, he thought with a brief mental smirk.“We're two weeks out from the primaries and no clear sign of who will come out on top. We also have some issues with some of the players involved, not that we can come out for or against anyone in particular at the moment,” Captain SG Demi Aliana, their resident staff intelligence officer stated.The bear grunted again, this time in irritation. You know what they say about underdogs. Everyone rooted for them from time to time so you couldn't quite count them out. In his line of work, it was smart to pay attention to them. There was no telling what they might try to do. Probably something stupid. “The local law let us know yesterday evening that someone was sniffing around their armories,” Demi went on.The bear blinked. “When did this come in?”“After midnight. They spotted a few people casing the joint during the day. They didn't think it was important until someone tried to pick the lock that evening. They sent over the footage. The computers are processing it now.”He nodded once. That explained why she looked a little tired. He wanted them to get a jump on such activities. “What sort of thing do they have in their inventory? Anything we need to be worried about?”“It's a sheriff's armory. Ammunition, some non-lethals we gave them. Some flashbang ordinance, some armor and tools of their trade. Dangerous, but not as dangerous as a militia group or one of our armories.”“Still, it's pretty ballsy of someone to case the joint. Could it be misdirection? See if we react?” Major Chase Rice, the Neodog XO asked.“Possible. I'm taking it seriously since we want to establish good ties with the local law. But we're playing backup, I don't want to come in and step on their toes. There is no sign of corruption,” she pointed out.The Neodog flicked his ears and nodded once. He turned to the bear. “I say we let her play it out sir,” he said.Valenko nodded. “Agreed. I think we can let people know the army is on their way too. But make sure they don't know the timetable.”“A problem of victory disease sir?” Captain JG Leena Chen, the head of logistics asked.“No, more of a reminder that we've got backup coming and it's not wise to start something they know they can't finish. How are we with the outreach program?”“Better with the medical and schools than in other ways. We've had some invitations to play games or visit people recently. Some of it is politically motivated of course. And recruiting is up...”===<>===Pyrax
Commodore I'r'll stood at attention as Admiral Subert pinned her new pips on during the promotion ceremony. The ceremony was brief; Admiral Subert wasn't that much of an orator and they all had work to do.Still, it was nice to be acknowledged, and the promotion to Senior Grade made her feel all of the long nights and days were worth it. It also meant that the navy saw her potential and were grooming her for bigger and better things eventually.Which was no surprise, though she was surprised when the news came in that her promotion to Commodore came with a ticket on the courier to the war front. That news came in the following morning when she reported for duty.She immediately alerted her staff and then called Admiral Subert as she scanned the orders again.“Commodore? I see you received orders,” Admiral Subert said as his A.I. informed him of the likely reason for the call. His fleshy appendages the humans called lips seemed to frown slightly. He was clearly not amused by the lack of foreknowledge on his part. “I see the orders came from Antigua. I thought for a moment there I did something wrong,” the newly minted Veraxin flag officer stated. She should feel elated over the reprieve from him and from being under the thumb of some of the Bekian flag officers who had just came in. But she wasn't, not quite.“No, you didn't. You did something right, which is a part of the problem I suppose,” Admiral Subert replied dryly. He shook his head. “Seriously Commodore, you did good work. Which is why you are being rewarded. At least, I assume it is a reward. I don't know what your mission will be. I don't even know if the brass know.”He'd pushed hard to get her the promotion with the review boards. He'd even passed over Admiral Irons favorite Captain Sindri in order to make sure I'r'll got her just deserts. He hadn't known it would cost him her services though.“I saw that my orders were open ended. I assumed I'd spend time in the yard in Antigua. Now I'm wondering if it is Senka or some other posting.” The Veraxin signaled first degree uncertainty. “Well, I suppose I'll find out when I get to wherever I'm going. Without any time off I might add.”“I'm more concerned about what they want me to do. Am I supposed to run a tender? A mobile yard or something? Protodon has a small yard. It'd be a bit of a letdown to go from this to that.”“True. I understand Senka is also agitating for its own yard. Perhaps Admiral Irons has that in mind.”“You don't know sir?”“All I know at this point is to get you in motion. Training your replacement is going to be a pain in the ass.”“Yes sir. I understand there are several yard dogs coming in from Bek.”The admiral cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Yes well, we'll see.”“Yes sir.”===<>===Admiral Subert hit the disconnect and then sat back. The more things seemed to settle down, the more someone had to throw a monkey wrench into things. It was as if someone didn't want him to become complacent and comfortable. He had to admit, it was a failing of his, to coast. Losing the Veraxin was irksome, but there were replacement officers now. Not one he felt he could trust as well as her, but he'd have to learn to adapt. But that wasn't the only source of his ire. No, he was increasingly not happy with the parlous state of affairs with Third Fleet. He did have to admit he had more carriers than Home Fleet. But his force was a paper tiger, a shadow of its former self.And TF 3.2 and all the deployments were to blame. They had to get a handle on things, and soon. He couldn't keep being pulled in different directions.There was one spot of good news in that he was getting dibs on the Bekian ships that were coming out of the rapids. Each of them had to come to Pyrax for rest and refit, and then work through training and working up exercises. He did admit that some of the crews were good. They had steerage and sublight tactics down.He also wondered how long he'd be allowed to keep them.
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Still in chapter 3:
Nuevo Madrid
Colonel Valenko Kodiak received the news of his impending movement with typical Russian fatalistic charm. He shrugged it off when his staff reported it. “I'll believe it when I see it.”“Yes sir.”“It is months away. They were supposed to get them moving months ago. So, we'll make do as we always do.”“Yes sir. So, we're overseeing the security of the new line of elections coming up. They are the primaries, so projections on turn out are mixed.”The bear grunted.One of their jobs now that the planet had been declared more or less secure was to make sure it stayed that way. His marines were spread out with militia groups securing strategic locations while turning control and the day to day management of towns and cities over to the natives.But big events still had their interest. It was ripe for trouble, so his people were on hand to quell any activities, hopefully before it got out of hand. The natives were grateful for their work in making certain the Horathians and their partisans didn't get too feisty with their brand of domestic terrorism.Given that they were releasing the news from the ansible about the war he knew that a lot of the reactions had been killed. Why go through the trouble of making yourself a target if the Horathians were losing the war? According to his intel team, the pirates were having a hell of a time retaining their people let alone recruiting replacements or getting supplies.That didn't stop them from causing problems anyway though, he reminded himself. He had no intention of becoming complacent. Which was why he kept a keen eye on things.There were several political movements ongoing on the planet. One was enthusiastic about joining the Federation and breezily assured him and others that everyone would fall into line when they saw the benefits. State Department was involved there but overworked.He took that one with mixed feelings and a healthy dose of salt. The same with their polling numbers. They still had to send people to go door to door to gather information and he doubted they were getting accurate numbers. Especially when sometimes they were doing it in the dead of winter.The second major group wanted their star system to remain neutral. A faction of it wanted both sides, both the pirates and the Federation kicked out. He sympathized in a way.A third faction was aligned with the Horathians, but had taken a less strident tone. They were aligned with the neutrals to some degree but still spouted some of the rhetoric from the Horathians. His spooks had talked him into letting them be. It sickened him to see such drivel, but it was important to let them speak their minds.Besides, they were a small group and they were being closely watched. The moment they stepped out of line he'd step on them. He was certain they knew it. They also probably knew his people were watching for signs of coordination or communications with any surviving pirates out there.Which made them very respectful of the bear, he thought with a brief mental smirk.“We're two weeks out from the primaries and no clear sign of who will come out on top. We also have some issues with some of the players involved, not that we can come out for or against anyone in particular at the moment,” Captain SG Demi Aliana, their resident staff intelligence officer stated.The bear grunted again, this time in irritation. You know what they say about underdogs. Everyone rooted for them from time to time so you couldn't quite count them out. In his line of work, it was smart to pay attention to them. There was no telling what they might try to do. Probably something stupid. “The local law let us know yesterday evening that someone was sniffing around their armories,” Demi went on.The bear blinked. “When did this come in?”“After midnight. They spotted a few people casing the joint during the day. They didn't think it was important until someone tried to pick the lock that evening. They sent over the footage. The computers are processing it now.”He nodded once. That explained why she looked a little tired. He wanted them to get a jump on such activities. “What sort of thing do they have in their inventory? Anything we need to be worried about?”“It's a sheriff's armory. Ammunition, some non-lethals we gave them. Some flashbang ordinance, some armor and tools of their trade. Dangerous, but not as dangerous as a militia group or one of our armories.”“Still, it's pretty ballsy of someone to case the joint. Could it be misdirection? See if we react?” Major Chase Rice, the Neodog XO asked.“Possible. I'm taking it seriously since we want to establish good ties with the local law. But we're playing backup, I don't want to come in and step on their toes. There is no sign of corruption,” she pointed out.The Neodog flicked his ears and nodded once. He turned to the bear. “I say we let her play it out sir,” he said.Valenko nodded. “Agreed. I think we can let people know the army is on their way too. But make sure they don't know the timetable.”“A problem of victory disease sir?” Captain JG Leena Chen, the head of logistics asked.“No, more of a reminder that we've got backup coming and it's not wise to start something they know they can't finish. How are we with the outreach program?”“Better with the medical and schools than in other ways. We've had some invitations to play games or visit people recently. Some of it is politically motivated of course. And recruiting is up...”===<>===Pyrax
Commodore I'r'll stood at attention as Admiral Subert pinned her new pips on during the promotion ceremony. The ceremony was brief; Admiral Subert wasn't that much of an orator and they all had work to do.Still, it was nice to be acknowledged, and the promotion to Senior Grade made her feel all of the long nights and days were worth it. It also meant that the navy saw her potential and were grooming her for bigger and better things eventually.Which was no surprise, though she was surprised when the news came in that her promotion to Commodore came with a ticket on the courier to the war front. That news came in the following morning when she reported for duty.She immediately alerted her staff and then called Admiral Subert as she scanned the orders again.“Commodore? I see you received orders,” Admiral Subert said as his A.I. informed him of the likely reason for the call. His fleshy appendages the humans called lips seemed to frown slightly. He was clearly not amused by the lack of foreknowledge on his part. “I see the orders came from Antigua. I thought for a moment there I did something wrong,” the newly minted Veraxin flag officer stated. She should feel elated over the reprieve from him and from being under the thumb of some of the Bekian flag officers who had just came in. But she wasn't, not quite.“No, you didn't. You did something right, which is a part of the problem I suppose,” Admiral Subert replied dryly. He shook his head. “Seriously Commodore, you did good work. Which is why you are being rewarded. At least, I assume it is a reward. I don't know what your mission will be. I don't even know if the brass know.”He'd pushed hard to get her the promotion with the review boards. He'd even passed over Admiral Irons favorite Captain Sindri in order to make sure I'r'll got her just deserts. He hadn't known it would cost him her services though.“I saw that my orders were open ended. I assumed I'd spend time in the yard in Antigua. Now I'm wondering if it is Senka or some other posting.” The Veraxin signaled first degree uncertainty. “Well, I suppose I'll find out when I get to wherever I'm going. Without any time off I might add.”“I'm more concerned about what they want me to do. Am I supposed to run a tender? A mobile yard or something? Protodon has a small yard. It'd be a bit of a letdown to go from this to that.”“True. I understand Senka is also agitating for its own yard. Perhaps Admiral Irons has that in mind.”“You don't know sir?”“All I know at this point is to get you in motion. Training your replacement is going to be a pain in the ass.”“Yes sir. I understand there are several yard dogs coming in from Bek.”The admiral cleared his throat uncomfortably. “Yes well, we'll see.”“Yes sir.”===<>===Admiral Subert hit the disconnect and then sat back. The more things seemed to settle down, the more someone had to throw a monkey wrench into things. It was as if someone didn't want him to become complacent and comfortable. He had to admit, it was a failing of his, to coast. Losing the Veraxin was irksome, but there were replacement officers now. Not one he felt he could trust as well as her, but he'd have to learn to adapt. But that wasn't the only source of his ire. No, he was increasingly not happy with the parlous state of affairs with Third Fleet. He did have to admit he had more carriers than Home Fleet. But his force was a paper tiger, a shadow of its former self.And TF 3.2 and all the deployments were to blame. They had to get a handle on things, and soon. He couldn't keep being pulled in different directions.There was one spot of good news in that he was getting dibs on the Bekian ships that were coming out of the rapids. Each of them had to come to Pyrax for rest and refit, and then work through training and working up exercises. He did admit that some of the crews were good. They had steerage and sublight tactics down.He also wondered how long he'd be allowed to keep them.
July 13, 2018
Liberty or Death Snipped 3
Sitrep: Still plugging along with Full Circle. There is a lot of crossover material with LOD and Pi Fight.
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Chapter 3
Agnosta
Lieutenant General Jersey Forth received the request for a planetary invasion with mixed feelings. On the one hand, it was nice to be appreciated. Of course it would be nicer if they'd been given some advance notice. And it would have been nice to have some intel to go along with the request.He frowned and then put through a series of requests for more information even while he checked on the status of the forces he had in motion. The closest available was in Nuevo Madrid, Valenko's division.In order to handle the invasion of Dead Drop they'd need downtime, resupply, and perhaps another division to go along with them. And after that he had to plan on the invasion of Garth. That meant he needed to coordinate with the Army. Fortunately, he knew just who to call about that.===<>===Newly minted Brigadier General Archibald Pendeckle was in something of a dilemma career wise. He already missed exercising direct command of his division.As Jersey's deputy he was nominally the second in command of the entire Marine Corps. Politics were starting to crop up as they slotted in personnel from Bek though. The good news was that he was given the task of handling his old division while overseeing the formation of a new one. Recruits were still flowing in, though not as much as he'd like to see. He knew many felt the same way.And now the request for forces to invade Dead Drop. Not good. His division could go, but the second division was far from ready. He didn't want to go off halfcocked like last time with Protodon. But, they may not be able to wait long.He decided to block out some time to explore the problem. He was aware though that Jersey was most likely consulting the army as well as other brass. Somehow he needed to get his hands involved.===<>===Brigadier General Pasha 1010111 shook his head as he read the report. The promised transports had finally arrived, so boarding could commence once they got the logistics sorted out. It looked like the handover of Nuevo Madrid was going to go as planned.Even if it was a bit late. But, better late than never he reminded himself.From what he understood of the master plan, the plan was for Valenko's division to fall back to Protodon to rest and regroup and then either go all the way back to Agnosta, or move on to Garth. Based on what knowledge he had, the unit hadn't suffered the losses seen in Protodon or Destria. Most likely they'd have a small refit and rest cycle and then move on.He felt for some of the men and women in that unit who wouldn't get to go home to their families. They could be gone for years on deployment. Those that had kids, they'd miss a lot. They might miss their entire developmental cycle. And there was no way they could call home and visit either. The ansible wasn't up to that bandwidth.But, it was up for other brief conversations he thought. He needed to seek counsel from older and wiser heads. He requested some time and was grateful to get it during a brief opening in his schedule.That meant he didn't have to move anything around. It was nice that he and Henrick operated off the same wave length despite the distances involved.“So, Pasha, you wanted to talk? Talk?” a familiar voice growled through the ansible as it came online. After a moment the grizzled holographic bust of the general came forth. He instinctively stiffened in his seat.“I wanted to keep you abreast of deployments sir.”“And why is that?”Pasha had to remind himself the other man was on Nuevo. He might be old but he was pretty sure there was nothing wrong with the man's mind or memory. That meant he was being set up. He decided to wade in to the conversation with a blunt frontal assault. “You do realize, you are the ranking member of our branch of the military correct sir? They are going to want you in Antigua eventually. So, I need to make sure you know what is going on. And get your stamp of approval or input where needed.”“I thought you were going to say in Agnosta there for a moment,” General Anheuser replied.“I would love to have you here. In fact, when you pass through, I fully intend to give you the full tour and pick your brain.”“Funny that. Well, I've seen some of the images.”“You have sir?” General 1010111 said, wrinkling his nose in confusion.“Ships come and go from Nuevo regularly now. We get news downloads too, including video footage you know Pasha.”“Oh,” Pasha replied, embarrassed by the minor oversight.“Not a big deal. As to Antigua, I don't know. As I said, I won't go without Gabriella. And she's set on staying here with the kids.” He left unsaid that she was starting to have health and mind issues. “But, she keeps pushing for me to go.”“Follow your heart or your head sir?”“Right.”“How goes the war?”“You mean the one here? Not bad. We took some casualties of course, we always do. But the Spacebees and the care packages Admiral Irons passed on made a world of difference this go around. And with enough time under our belt before the next swarm we'll do even better.”“Ah. I see.”“I suppose it is all about managing our people and equipment effectively, and with the new tech on our hands we can do that.”“Yes sir, there is certainly that.”“I'm struggling to handle it to be honest. I'm not a Neodog, but the old saying about teaching an old soldier new tech still applies.”“Old soldiers never die they just fade away. But we need your wisdom sir.”“I know that. It's one of the reasons I've stayed on this long. That and I want to see this through, and to be honest I don't think Gabriella would let me live long in retirement. She's repeatedly said if I didn't find something to do she'd wring my neck in a heartbeat. There are only so many places we can go and visit before we're both bored to tears.”Pasha chuckled.“We'll see on the future and where it might lead. For the moment I'm trying to balance sending you flexible people while hanging onto some here to help run things as we reorganize. Any requests?”“I think I like being surprised sir,” Pasha replied after a moment of thought. He didn't want to say that he didn't have any at the moment.“Cute. An officer who likes getting surprised. Most people would consider that nuts you know that? I for one would want everything in triplicate. And I don't like to be surprised. It might keep you on your toes but it's a good way to get your ass handed to you.”“True. But I get the reports on who you are sending anyway sir. I find out about them long before they get here.”“Eh? Oh, the ansible. This thing. Forgot that.”“Organic memory is fallible, which is why we have supports. No one can keep track of it all, trust me.”“I'm learning that myself all over again. Do you really have units moving all across the sector?”“Yes sir. Plus bases to manage. Protodon, New Texas, Nuevo Madrid, Antigua to name a few.”“Yeah, and you want me to take all that on?”“As I said sir, there are supports. That's what a good staff is for.”“You mean you are feeling overwhelmed and want to pawn it off on me. I see where this is going.”“To be honest sir, I'm still feeling my way forward. I think most of the Federation military; no matter the branch is doing that too. Even the old hands are feeling out the new situations as they arise.”“Ah. Well, I guess I'm in good company then.”“Yes sir.”“I'll let you know one-way or another. Eventually.”“Thank you sir.”
Anyway, on to the snippet:
Chapter 3
Agnosta
Lieutenant General Jersey Forth received the request for a planetary invasion with mixed feelings. On the one hand, it was nice to be appreciated. Of course it would be nicer if they'd been given some advance notice. And it would have been nice to have some intel to go along with the request.He frowned and then put through a series of requests for more information even while he checked on the status of the forces he had in motion. The closest available was in Nuevo Madrid, Valenko's division.In order to handle the invasion of Dead Drop they'd need downtime, resupply, and perhaps another division to go along with them. And after that he had to plan on the invasion of Garth. That meant he needed to coordinate with the Army. Fortunately, he knew just who to call about that.===<>===Newly minted Brigadier General Archibald Pendeckle was in something of a dilemma career wise. He already missed exercising direct command of his division.As Jersey's deputy he was nominally the second in command of the entire Marine Corps. Politics were starting to crop up as they slotted in personnel from Bek though. The good news was that he was given the task of handling his old division while overseeing the formation of a new one. Recruits were still flowing in, though not as much as he'd like to see. He knew many felt the same way.And now the request for forces to invade Dead Drop. Not good. His division could go, but the second division was far from ready. He didn't want to go off halfcocked like last time with Protodon. But, they may not be able to wait long.He decided to block out some time to explore the problem. He was aware though that Jersey was most likely consulting the army as well as other brass. Somehow he needed to get his hands involved.===<>===Brigadier General Pasha 1010111 shook his head as he read the report. The promised transports had finally arrived, so boarding could commence once they got the logistics sorted out. It looked like the handover of Nuevo Madrid was going to go as planned.Even if it was a bit late. But, better late than never he reminded himself.From what he understood of the master plan, the plan was for Valenko's division to fall back to Protodon to rest and regroup and then either go all the way back to Agnosta, or move on to Garth. Based on what knowledge he had, the unit hadn't suffered the losses seen in Protodon or Destria. Most likely they'd have a small refit and rest cycle and then move on.He felt for some of the men and women in that unit who wouldn't get to go home to their families. They could be gone for years on deployment. Those that had kids, they'd miss a lot. They might miss their entire developmental cycle. And there was no way they could call home and visit either. The ansible wasn't up to that bandwidth.But, it was up for other brief conversations he thought. He needed to seek counsel from older and wiser heads. He requested some time and was grateful to get it during a brief opening in his schedule.That meant he didn't have to move anything around. It was nice that he and Henrick operated off the same wave length despite the distances involved.“So, Pasha, you wanted to talk? Talk?” a familiar voice growled through the ansible as it came online. After a moment the grizzled holographic bust of the general came forth. He instinctively stiffened in his seat.“I wanted to keep you abreast of deployments sir.”“And why is that?”Pasha had to remind himself the other man was on Nuevo. He might be old but he was pretty sure there was nothing wrong with the man's mind or memory. That meant he was being set up. He decided to wade in to the conversation with a blunt frontal assault. “You do realize, you are the ranking member of our branch of the military correct sir? They are going to want you in Antigua eventually. So, I need to make sure you know what is going on. And get your stamp of approval or input where needed.”“I thought you were going to say in Agnosta there for a moment,” General Anheuser replied.“I would love to have you here. In fact, when you pass through, I fully intend to give you the full tour and pick your brain.”“Funny that. Well, I've seen some of the images.”“You have sir?” General 1010111 said, wrinkling his nose in confusion.“Ships come and go from Nuevo regularly now. We get news downloads too, including video footage you know Pasha.”“Oh,” Pasha replied, embarrassed by the minor oversight.“Not a big deal. As to Antigua, I don't know. As I said, I won't go without Gabriella. And she's set on staying here with the kids.” He left unsaid that she was starting to have health and mind issues. “But, she keeps pushing for me to go.”“Follow your heart or your head sir?”“Right.”“How goes the war?”“You mean the one here? Not bad. We took some casualties of course, we always do. But the Spacebees and the care packages Admiral Irons passed on made a world of difference this go around. And with enough time under our belt before the next swarm we'll do even better.”“Ah. I see.”“I suppose it is all about managing our people and equipment effectively, and with the new tech on our hands we can do that.”“Yes sir, there is certainly that.”“I'm struggling to handle it to be honest. I'm not a Neodog, but the old saying about teaching an old soldier new tech still applies.”“Old soldiers never die they just fade away. But we need your wisdom sir.”“I know that. It's one of the reasons I've stayed on this long. That and I want to see this through, and to be honest I don't think Gabriella would let me live long in retirement. She's repeatedly said if I didn't find something to do she'd wring my neck in a heartbeat. There are only so many places we can go and visit before we're both bored to tears.”Pasha chuckled.“We'll see on the future and where it might lead. For the moment I'm trying to balance sending you flexible people while hanging onto some here to help run things as we reorganize. Any requests?”“I think I like being surprised sir,” Pasha replied after a moment of thought. He didn't want to say that he didn't have any at the moment.“Cute. An officer who likes getting surprised. Most people would consider that nuts you know that? I for one would want everything in triplicate. And I don't like to be surprised. It might keep you on your toes but it's a good way to get your ass handed to you.”“True. But I get the reports on who you are sending anyway sir. I find out about them long before they get here.”“Eh? Oh, the ansible. This thing. Forgot that.”“Organic memory is fallible, which is why we have supports. No one can keep track of it all, trust me.”“I'm learning that myself all over again. Do you really have units moving all across the sector?”“Yes sir. Plus bases to manage. Protodon, New Texas, Nuevo Madrid, Antigua to name a few.”“Yeah, and you want me to take all that on?”“As I said sir, there are supports. That's what a good staff is for.”“You mean you are feeling overwhelmed and want to pawn it off on me. I see where this is going.”“To be honest sir, I'm still feeling my way forward. I think most of the Federation military; no matter the branch is doing that too. Even the old hands are feeling out the new situations as they arise.”“Ah. Well, I guess I'm in good company then.”“Yes sir.”“I'll let you know one-way or another. Eventually.”“Thank you sir.”
July 11, 2018
Liberty or Death Snippet 2 plus Valenko Squad
Okay, I'm humming along with Full Circle. But, I remembered to take a break for a moment to upload this.
First, Valenko's Squad, the final images.
Sorry about the picture quality, the camera in my phone isn't all that it's cracked up to be.
Each of the figures were printed when I had first started with the 3D printer. I was curious to see if something I made could be printed. I made a lot of mistakes with them. I learned a bit later, like orienting them to reduce support material, cutting back on filler, etc. I also made the mistake of trying to prime and sand them over the hot acetone method. (I used that and body filler on the 2 heavy worlders)
I admit, my paint job is a bit rough. Oh! The base is a picture frame trick I learned about on Youtube. It worked out far better than trying the magnets or other methods I'd failed at.
Hurrana broke off of Ox's back so I had to glue her back on last night. So, her pose doesn't match the original one on the cover of Jethro Goes to War. Sorry.
Yeah, Sergie's stripes leave a lot to be desired.
I added some rocks from my yard to the foam base. The base is stippled in various acrylic shades.
Overall, I think they came out pretty cool. They are now taking up a corner of my curio cabinet.
If I ever did more figurines (for instance as a business) I'd probably go with the industry standard and buy a resin printer. I just saw Angus's review (Maker Muse on Youtube) of one. It was interesting.
In other news I'm in the various stages of mourning...
For my lawn.
No, it's not that the heat is baking it. We had code enforcement Nazi's come around and tag everyone who didn't have a perfect lawn. (we don't live in an HOA!) I've tried to keep it up but it's not easy when you start with a dirt patch. I can see them tagging a few of my neighbors but I only had a few dirt patches where the sprinklers couldn't reach. Many of the neighbors had given up and had just dirt all over.
After we installed fresh sprinklers a few days ago, my landlord decided to go the cheap nasty route against our wishes and rip it all out and put crappy rock in. That's happening Monday and I'm not happy about it.
Okay, on to the snippet!:
Chapter 2
TF 3.2
Rear Admiral V'r'z'll noted the update from Second Fleet as well as the orders from Admiral White. Technically he had no jurisdiction in ordering her around, no matter their difference in rank. She was outside his chain of command. Not that she had any intention of bucking his orders or asking for clarification up the chain of command.She had realized she needed to keep a low profile. Her fleet train was still making good on the damage to her remaining ships after the debacle of her first actual battle. It still rankled on several levels that they hadn't taken their objective. If they had, De Gaulte would have been broken.Standing in place and coordinating the assault with Second Fleet made sense. She noted her staff were attentively waiting on what she had to say.“As much as I'd like to, they are right, we can't go in right now. Not with De Gaulte going back there. We'd show up, get our licks in only for him to chase us out. Or, we'd get in, tear up what's there, and then have to chase him out.”“Why is the latter a problem ma'am?” Commander Sunil Pizey, her chief of staff asked.“Because, I believe Admiral White wants a knock out. He wants to break De Gaulte. So, we play it Admiral White's way. Order the prowler forward. We need the intel. If we're lucky, De Gaulte will come in and keep running, pulling everything and everyone out with him. Then we can walk in and take over,” she stated.“And the odds of that happening ma'am?” Commander T'rll, her staff Tactical Officer asked dubiously.“I'm not certain. We would need to check his psych profile. Given that he just faced antimatter weapons for the first time, they destroyed two of his capital ships, and he had been defeated again, he might decide to preserve what he's got and run home with his tail between his legs,” the admiral stated. “Why do humans even use that expression? It's not like they have one to begin with,” she said signaling first degree annoyance mixed with second degree amusement.The humans on her staff chuckled softly or smiled politely.“Never mind. Cut the orders for the prowler to jump in at a large distance. At least four AU out from the jump point. Then go dark. They can stay on station for at least a week correct?”“Up to ten standard months actually ma'am, depending on how deep they go in,” Commander Pizey replied.“Good. Let them know that there will be another prowler in the star system. Coordinate with Admiral White, let's see if they can work together to spook the enemy.”“Keep them on their toes to wear them down ma'am?” Commander T'r'll asked carefully.“Something like that. Being on a continued readiness state will wear on them and their equipment over time. I'm not certain if it is Admiral White's objective, but I'm okay with it if he is. This is his show now.”“Aye aye ma'am.”===<>===Commodore Zachery Binks flicked his whiskers as he received a report from a lieutenant. He glanced at it, scrolled down and then double checked to make sure everything was in order. When he was certain there were no hidden booby traps he scrawled his signature with a fingertip at the bottom and then handed the tablet back.“How are we with repairs?” he asked, turning to Captain Troi, his flagship captain.“Getting there sir. The biggest issue is that our fleet train took a big hit too. We lost a lot of supplies and both of the surviving tenders are damaged as well. The mobile shipyard slip didn't get hit but she's useless for the big fish.”“I know. Which is why the admiral let us get first dibs on her,” the Commodore replied. He felt his ebony black fur rise slightly as a sailor worked on welding a strut. He turned away to preserve his vision just in time. “I thought all the repairs were complete?” he asked.“Oh they are. That's ongoing work and maintenance,” Commander Silverfish, Enterprise's XO stated, coming over to them. “Sir, ma'am,” he said, nodding to each.“Commander,” the Commodore murmured.“Number one,” the human murmured.The calico XO's tail flicked gently, then moved as if on its own will to get out of the way of a passing work party. “They found a minor leak. But, to get at it, they have to do some major surgery.”“Ah,” the Commodore said with a shake of his head. “Nothing serious I should hope?”“No sir. A very annoying water leak actually. But, it's best to fix such things before they become bigger headaches,” the XO stated.“Standard practice. Fix small problems before they become bigger ones,” the Commodore replied with a nod and ear flick. “Good work. Carry on,” he said as he left them.Commander Silverfish turned to the captain. “Ma'am, is it true we're supposed to be sending the prowler in to Garth?”“That's the plan,” she replied mildly.“One question, where did it come from? It was just here when we got here?” That was the big question roiling around the fleet. More than 1 person had been a bit unnerved by the sudden appearance of the ship a week prior.“Ah, well, I can only tell you classified. As in, I don't know.”“Oh.”“Keep your nose short and your butt moving Commander,” the captain said as she left him.“Aye aye ma'am,” the XO replied.===<>===
First, Valenko's Squad, the final images.
Sorry about the picture quality, the camera in my phone isn't all that it's cracked up to be.
Each of the figures were printed when I had first started with the 3D printer. I was curious to see if something I made could be printed. I made a lot of mistakes with them. I learned a bit later, like orienting them to reduce support material, cutting back on filler, etc. I also made the mistake of trying to prime and sand them over the hot acetone method. (I used that and body filler on the 2 heavy worlders)I admit, my paint job is a bit rough. Oh! The base is a picture frame trick I learned about on Youtube. It worked out far better than trying the magnets or other methods I'd failed at.
Hurrana broke off of Ox's back so I had to glue her back on last night. So, her pose doesn't match the original one on the cover of Jethro Goes to War. Sorry.
Yeah, Sergie's stripes leave a lot to be desired. 
I added some rocks from my yard to the foam base. The base is stippled in various acrylic shades. Overall, I think they came out pretty cool. They are now taking up a corner of my curio cabinet.
If I ever did more figurines (for instance as a business) I'd probably go with the industry standard and buy a resin printer. I just saw Angus's review (Maker Muse on Youtube) of one. It was interesting.
In other news I'm in the various stages of mourning...
For my lawn.
No, it's not that the heat is baking it. We had code enforcement Nazi's come around and tag everyone who didn't have a perfect lawn. (we don't live in an HOA!) I've tried to keep it up but it's not easy when you start with a dirt patch. I can see them tagging a few of my neighbors but I only had a few dirt patches where the sprinklers couldn't reach. Many of the neighbors had given up and had just dirt all over.
After we installed fresh sprinklers a few days ago, my landlord decided to go the cheap nasty route against our wishes and rip it all out and put crappy rock in. That's happening Monday and I'm not happy about it.
Okay, on to the snippet!:
Chapter 2
TF 3.2
Rear Admiral V'r'z'll noted the update from Second Fleet as well as the orders from Admiral White. Technically he had no jurisdiction in ordering her around, no matter their difference in rank. She was outside his chain of command. Not that she had any intention of bucking his orders or asking for clarification up the chain of command.She had realized she needed to keep a low profile. Her fleet train was still making good on the damage to her remaining ships after the debacle of her first actual battle. It still rankled on several levels that they hadn't taken their objective. If they had, De Gaulte would have been broken.Standing in place and coordinating the assault with Second Fleet made sense. She noted her staff were attentively waiting on what she had to say.“As much as I'd like to, they are right, we can't go in right now. Not with De Gaulte going back there. We'd show up, get our licks in only for him to chase us out. Or, we'd get in, tear up what's there, and then have to chase him out.”“Why is the latter a problem ma'am?” Commander Sunil Pizey, her chief of staff asked.“Because, I believe Admiral White wants a knock out. He wants to break De Gaulte. So, we play it Admiral White's way. Order the prowler forward. We need the intel. If we're lucky, De Gaulte will come in and keep running, pulling everything and everyone out with him. Then we can walk in and take over,” she stated.“And the odds of that happening ma'am?” Commander T'rll, her staff Tactical Officer asked dubiously.“I'm not certain. We would need to check his psych profile. Given that he just faced antimatter weapons for the first time, they destroyed two of his capital ships, and he had been defeated again, he might decide to preserve what he's got and run home with his tail between his legs,” the admiral stated. “Why do humans even use that expression? It's not like they have one to begin with,” she said signaling first degree annoyance mixed with second degree amusement.The humans on her staff chuckled softly or smiled politely.“Never mind. Cut the orders for the prowler to jump in at a large distance. At least four AU out from the jump point. Then go dark. They can stay on station for at least a week correct?”“Up to ten standard months actually ma'am, depending on how deep they go in,” Commander Pizey replied.“Good. Let them know that there will be another prowler in the star system. Coordinate with Admiral White, let's see if they can work together to spook the enemy.”“Keep them on their toes to wear them down ma'am?” Commander T'r'll asked carefully.“Something like that. Being on a continued readiness state will wear on them and their equipment over time. I'm not certain if it is Admiral White's objective, but I'm okay with it if he is. This is his show now.”“Aye aye ma'am.”===<>===Commodore Zachery Binks flicked his whiskers as he received a report from a lieutenant. He glanced at it, scrolled down and then double checked to make sure everything was in order. When he was certain there were no hidden booby traps he scrawled his signature with a fingertip at the bottom and then handed the tablet back.“How are we with repairs?” he asked, turning to Captain Troi, his flagship captain.“Getting there sir. The biggest issue is that our fleet train took a big hit too. We lost a lot of supplies and both of the surviving tenders are damaged as well. The mobile shipyard slip didn't get hit but she's useless for the big fish.”“I know. Which is why the admiral let us get first dibs on her,” the Commodore replied. He felt his ebony black fur rise slightly as a sailor worked on welding a strut. He turned away to preserve his vision just in time. “I thought all the repairs were complete?” he asked.“Oh they are. That's ongoing work and maintenance,” Commander Silverfish, Enterprise's XO stated, coming over to them. “Sir, ma'am,” he said, nodding to each.“Commander,” the Commodore murmured.“Number one,” the human murmured.The calico XO's tail flicked gently, then moved as if on its own will to get out of the way of a passing work party. “They found a minor leak. But, to get at it, they have to do some major surgery.”“Ah,” the Commodore said with a shake of his head. “Nothing serious I should hope?”“No sir. A very annoying water leak actually. But, it's best to fix such things before they become bigger headaches,” the XO stated.“Standard practice. Fix small problems before they become bigger ones,” the Commodore replied with a nod and ear flick. “Good work. Carry on,” he said as he left them.Commander Silverfish turned to the captain. “Ma'am, is it true we're supposed to be sending the prowler in to Garth?”“That's the plan,” she replied mildly.“One question, where did it come from? It was just here when we got here?” That was the big question roiling around the fleet. More than 1 person had been a bit unnerved by the sudden appearance of the ship a week prior.“Ah, well, I can only tell you classified. As in, I don't know.”“Oh.”“Keep your nose short and your butt moving Commander,” the captain said as she left him.“Aye aye ma'am,” the XO replied.===<>===
July 9, 2018
Liberty or Death Snippet 1
Sitrep:
I'm ankle deep in Horatio Logan 3, Full Circle. So far progress is being made in my usual round about way. AKA: Pick a comfortable area, plop down and write. :)
(It drives Wayne nuts lol)
Anyway, I forgot to post the snippet so here it is:
Act I
Chapter 1
Dead Drop
Vice Admiral Amadeus White was proud of his people. They had successfully taken the star system and had taken out three enemy capital ships and driven off the Retribution Fleet in the process.But, it wasn't quite as perfect as some thought. His fleet was still dealing with the aftermath of the battle some six-weeks later. They had just set up the ansible and reported in. But, he had one mess left to deal with. Well, two, he thought, turning a sour brown eyed look to the wreckage distributed through the inner and outer star system.His own people had shattered the enemy space platforms in the outer star system. At the time they had been following his orders, so he couldn't fault them for that. Nor could he fault them for what had happened in the inner star system. The Horathians had scuttled every station, every platform, and every wounded ship they'd had left in the inner star system in a brief but spectacularly violent act of self-immolation designed to deny him the rewards of his victory.In other words, it was a mess. It was also something he would have done in their place, so even though he wasn't thrilled about the results, he held a sort of grudging respect for the officer who had ordered it. That person had put their career on the line to do what they thought was right. For the first time he actually thought good of the enemy in some small way.Which also made him feel a bit odd.Not that it made his job any easier. It just made it clear that he had to secure the planet. Which was the biggest snag in his plan; the bastard had retreated to it and was holding out there. Another point he grudgingly had to respect.Not that it was going to do the little shit much good in the end. Not if he and his people had anything to say about that.It seemed that his command team was shaping up nicely. So much so that he'd allowed Commodore Dwight Harris to command the force guarding the Garth jump point on his own. Commodore Trajan Vargess's carriers were off the jump point, poised to act as the second tier in the defenses while his own capital ships resided in the inner star system, overseeing the fleet train as they tried to scrape up the wreckage.He wanted to grind his teeth together in annoyance but instead turned and listened with half an ear as Kelly tried to talk sense into the Horathians again.He gave her chances of success about even with their own chance of holding out indefinitely.===<>===Lieutenant Sri Savenan wasn't happy about being left in charge, but he had to make due. A part of that was dealing with the enemy. It wasn't a duty he liked, but it was one he had no intention of leaving to a subordinate.Even if he thought Ensign Smith might be able to handle it, there was no way he was going to let her get into trouble or potentially give something away to the enemy.They had learned to communicate with the Federation forces in orbit only through an air gapped computer. He had ordered every communication system to be air gapped. That had been the easiest and yet hardest order to implement successfully. They were still finding and plugging gaps in the network. Hopefully before the enemy A.I. found them and found a way to get in and exploit the oversight.“You have to know it's over. You've lost. Admiral De Gaulte fled. It's over,” the Neogorilla said.“Maybe. Then again, maybe not. My orders are clear.”“The same orders that you followed in destroying everything in space you mean?” Lieutenant Kelly Gaudino stated in annoyance.Sri allowed himself to smile ever so briefly at the enemy's annoyance. That little bit was something to warm his aching soul. He knew there would be hell to pay over scuttling everything in orbit but at the moment he didn't care. “We all have our duty.”“And yours is to surrender and prevent more needless loss of life. It's over.”“Not while I and the soldiers here live and breathe it isn't. I formally refuse to surrender my command or control of the planet. We will contest any landing; we will obliterate them on the ground. If you try to land a shuttle we will shoot it out of the sky.”“That sounds ominous in theory, but you and I both know there are other alternatives to force your surrender. Or the next person in line. I wonder how many KEW strikes it will take to get someone to see reason?” the Neogorilla growled.Sri thought about it. There was a reason he was using a distributed array to communicate with the enemy. And another reason for being inside a mountain. “I don't believe you'll bomb us into oblivion. We have our orders to contest this ground. I'm so informing you again. This is Imperial territory. You will pay in blood if you land here.”“Huh. And here I'd thought you'd quote history with a simple statement like 'Nuts' or something equally heroic and ultimately stupid,” Kelly replied.Sri's lips couldn't quite help but curve upward in a smile. He could actually like the woman on the other end. “It's not stupid if it works.”“Sure. Keep telling yourself that,” Kelly replied before she cut the channel.===<>===Amadeus heard about the report and then shook his head. “I know it's futile, but I've got some grudging respect for someone who says nuts in the face of what is in orbit over him. It's stupid yet brave.”“Yes sir,” his chief of staff stated.“But, ultimately futile and thus a pointless gesture. Okay, time to send in the Marines.” His lips puckered at an old naval rule of gunfighting. Adopt an aggressive posture, drink coffee, and send in the marines.“Only one problem sir, we don't have enough on hand,” Commander Ch'v'tt, his Veraxin chief of staff stated.“Then we'll have to get them. Get on that,” the admiral stated.“Aye aye sir.”“In the meantime, have your people draw up a list of targets. We can strike them from orbit. Maybe getting a few rocks dropped on them will make someone change their mind,” he said turning to Kelly. She nodded. She was already plotting every potential target but she was very much aware that they wouldn't get them all. The priority targets were command and control, clusters of enemy soldiers and equipment, as well as their long range sensors and SAMs.“Sir, we can do that, but every factory we bomb into oblivion is one less we can use later. Also, the enemy may be using slave labor. We might be killing civilians,” the Commander warned, signaling first degree uncertainty mixed with reluctance.The Neochimp admiral grimaced at that reminder. “Have ONI look into it. If we have to, go with military only targets until we can deal with them. Find out how much resistance we're talking about.”“Aye aye sir.”“What about the spaceport and capital? If we poll the ship's companies can we make a scratch unit up to secure the capital?”“We could probably do it, but it would be tight. They would also need resupply and wouldn't be used to coordinating with each other. It would be Protodon all over again. To be honest sir, other than taking a stand politically I don't see the point.”“I do. It is the principle of the thing.”“Yes sir. But it would be putting our people into harm's way for little return,” the Veraxin warned.The admiral scowled and then nodded once. “Get them moving now. We'll sort it out before they drop, if they drop.”“Aye aye sir.”===<>===
I'm ankle deep in Horatio Logan 3, Full Circle. So far progress is being made in my usual round about way. AKA: Pick a comfortable area, plop down and write. :)
(It drives Wayne nuts lol)
Anyway, I forgot to post the snippet so here it is:
Act I
Chapter 1
Dead Drop
Vice Admiral Amadeus White was proud of his people. They had successfully taken the star system and had taken out three enemy capital ships and driven off the Retribution Fleet in the process.But, it wasn't quite as perfect as some thought. His fleet was still dealing with the aftermath of the battle some six-weeks later. They had just set up the ansible and reported in. But, he had one mess left to deal with. Well, two, he thought, turning a sour brown eyed look to the wreckage distributed through the inner and outer star system.His own people had shattered the enemy space platforms in the outer star system. At the time they had been following his orders, so he couldn't fault them for that. Nor could he fault them for what had happened in the inner star system. The Horathians had scuttled every station, every platform, and every wounded ship they'd had left in the inner star system in a brief but spectacularly violent act of self-immolation designed to deny him the rewards of his victory.In other words, it was a mess. It was also something he would have done in their place, so even though he wasn't thrilled about the results, he held a sort of grudging respect for the officer who had ordered it. That person had put their career on the line to do what they thought was right. For the first time he actually thought good of the enemy in some small way.Which also made him feel a bit odd.Not that it made his job any easier. It just made it clear that he had to secure the planet. Which was the biggest snag in his plan; the bastard had retreated to it and was holding out there. Another point he grudgingly had to respect.Not that it was going to do the little shit much good in the end. Not if he and his people had anything to say about that.It seemed that his command team was shaping up nicely. So much so that he'd allowed Commodore Dwight Harris to command the force guarding the Garth jump point on his own. Commodore Trajan Vargess's carriers were off the jump point, poised to act as the second tier in the defenses while his own capital ships resided in the inner star system, overseeing the fleet train as they tried to scrape up the wreckage.He wanted to grind his teeth together in annoyance but instead turned and listened with half an ear as Kelly tried to talk sense into the Horathians again.He gave her chances of success about even with their own chance of holding out indefinitely.===<>===Lieutenant Sri Savenan wasn't happy about being left in charge, but he had to make due. A part of that was dealing with the enemy. It wasn't a duty he liked, but it was one he had no intention of leaving to a subordinate.Even if he thought Ensign Smith might be able to handle it, there was no way he was going to let her get into trouble or potentially give something away to the enemy.They had learned to communicate with the Federation forces in orbit only through an air gapped computer. He had ordered every communication system to be air gapped. That had been the easiest and yet hardest order to implement successfully. They were still finding and plugging gaps in the network. Hopefully before the enemy A.I. found them and found a way to get in and exploit the oversight.“You have to know it's over. You've lost. Admiral De Gaulte fled. It's over,” the Neogorilla said.“Maybe. Then again, maybe not. My orders are clear.”“The same orders that you followed in destroying everything in space you mean?” Lieutenant Kelly Gaudino stated in annoyance.Sri allowed himself to smile ever so briefly at the enemy's annoyance. That little bit was something to warm his aching soul. He knew there would be hell to pay over scuttling everything in orbit but at the moment he didn't care. “We all have our duty.”“And yours is to surrender and prevent more needless loss of life. It's over.”“Not while I and the soldiers here live and breathe it isn't. I formally refuse to surrender my command or control of the planet. We will contest any landing; we will obliterate them on the ground. If you try to land a shuttle we will shoot it out of the sky.”“That sounds ominous in theory, but you and I both know there are other alternatives to force your surrender. Or the next person in line. I wonder how many KEW strikes it will take to get someone to see reason?” the Neogorilla growled.Sri thought about it. There was a reason he was using a distributed array to communicate with the enemy. And another reason for being inside a mountain. “I don't believe you'll bomb us into oblivion. We have our orders to contest this ground. I'm so informing you again. This is Imperial territory. You will pay in blood if you land here.”“Huh. And here I'd thought you'd quote history with a simple statement like 'Nuts' or something equally heroic and ultimately stupid,” Kelly replied.Sri's lips couldn't quite help but curve upward in a smile. He could actually like the woman on the other end. “It's not stupid if it works.”“Sure. Keep telling yourself that,” Kelly replied before she cut the channel.===<>===Amadeus heard about the report and then shook his head. “I know it's futile, but I've got some grudging respect for someone who says nuts in the face of what is in orbit over him. It's stupid yet brave.”“Yes sir,” his chief of staff stated.“But, ultimately futile and thus a pointless gesture. Okay, time to send in the Marines.” His lips puckered at an old naval rule of gunfighting. Adopt an aggressive posture, drink coffee, and send in the marines.“Only one problem sir, we don't have enough on hand,” Commander Ch'v'tt, his Veraxin chief of staff stated.“Then we'll have to get them. Get on that,” the admiral stated.“Aye aye sir.”“In the meantime, have your people draw up a list of targets. We can strike them from orbit. Maybe getting a few rocks dropped on them will make someone change their mind,” he said turning to Kelly. She nodded. She was already plotting every potential target but she was very much aware that they wouldn't get them all. The priority targets were command and control, clusters of enemy soldiers and equipment, as well as their long range sensors and SAMs.“Sir, we can do that, but every factory we bomb into oblivion is one less we can use later. Also, the enemy may be using slave labor. We might be killing civilians,” the Commander warned, signaling first degree uncertainty mixed with reluctance.The Neochimp admiral grimaced at that reminder. “Have ONI look into it. If we have to, go with military only targets until we can deal with them. Find out how much resistance we're talking about.”“Aye aye sir.”“What about the spaceport and capital? If we poll the ship's companies can we make a scratch unit up to secure the capital?”“We could probably do it, but it would be tight. They would also need resupply and wouldn't be used to coordinating with each other. It would be Protodon all over again. To be honest sir, other than taking a stand politically I don't see the point.”“I do. It is the principle of the thing.”“Yes sir. But it would be putting our people into harm's way for little return,” the Veraxin warned.The admiral scowled and then nodded once. “Get them moving now. We'll sort it out before they drop, if they drop.”“Aye aye sir.”===<>===
July 7, 2018
Liberty or Death
Well, I wanted to leave Pi Fight up on the blog a little longer but it looks like most of the betas who wanted a crack at LOD have reported in. Only 2 are out standing. So, I better let everyone know about the next book.
Here is the cover to Liberty or Death, the next book in the Federation Reborn saga.
I've wanted to use that station for years but kept putting it off. I finally had a scene to justify it's use. :)
(And hey! not a battle scene!)
I'll try to post the first snippet this weekend. I've been forced to reduce my PC time, it is blistering hot here right now. Currently 108. Yesterday it topped out at 118. Even with the AC on my room temp can hit 90 by 2pm. That is going to hamper things a bit, but it's to be expected.
I've started writing Full Circle, the next book in the Horatio Logan/Pi Adventure series. (They are merging) It is slow going so far, but, I just started yesterday. I'm shooting for a short book.
I hope everyone had a great Fourth!
Here is the cover to Liberty or Death, the next book in the Federation Reborn saga.
I've wanted to use that station for years but kept putting it off. I finally had a scene to justify it's use. :)(And hey! not a battle scene!)
I'll try to post the first snippet this weekend. I've been forced to reduce my PC time, it is blistering hot here right now. Currently 108. Yesterday it topped out at 118. Even with the AC on my room temp can hit 90 by 2pm. That is going to hamper things a bit, but it's to be expected.
I've started writing Full Circle, the next book in the Horatio Logan/Pi Adventure series. (They are merging) It is slow going so far, but, I just started yesterday. I'm shooting for a short book.
I hope everyone had a great Fourth!
June 6, 2018
Pi Fight is publishing ... NOW!
Whoops!
I totally forgot to post snippets! Rea and Goodlifeguide blew through it so fast, it blew my mind! (That and I've been rather focused on drama plus writing LOD at the moment)
Anyway, Pi Fight is publishing now! I'll post the links to B&N and Amazon when they go live.
The reborn Federation has begun to expand into neighboring sectors, but with that expansion comes new challenges. New challenges in the form of new members who wish to exert their own politics. New challenges in the form of new dangers, namely the pirates and their activities.
The pirates do not understand that the Federation is up for the challenge. They there to stay, and are moving in. Get ready for a Pi FIGHT.
For those of you not in the know, it picks up where In Search of Pi left off. It also introduces some old familiar faces to the sector.
Edit: Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DKMR9PS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1528316159&sr=1-1&keywords=hechtl+pi+fight
Edit 2: B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pi-fight-chris-hechtl/1128881170?ean=2940162103967
Wow! Everyone is moving fast these days!
I totally forgot to post snippets! Rea and Goodlifeguide blew through it so fast, it blew my mind! (That and I've been rather focused on drama plus writing LOD at the moment)
Anyway, Pi Fight is publishing now! I'll post the links to B&N and Amazon when they go live.
The reborn Federation has begun to expand into neighboring sectors, but with that expansion comes new challenges. New challenges in the form of new members who wish to exert their own politics. New challenges in the form of new dangers, namely the pirates and their activities.
The pirates do not understand that the Federation is up for the challenge. They there to stay, and are moving in. Get ready for a Pi FIGHT.
For those of you not in the know, it picks up where In Search of Pi left off. It also introduces some old familiar faces to the sector.
Edit: Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DKMR9PS/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1528316159&sr=1-1&keywords=hechtl+pi+fight
Edit 2: B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/pi-fight-chris-hechtl/1128881170?ean=2940162103967
Wow! Everyone is moving fast these days!
May 21, 2018
Pi Fight
Sitrep:
Okay, first off, I wanted to leave the previous post up as long as possible to let In Search of Pi sink in.
Second, I finished Pi Fight 2 weeks ago. I also did the cover art. Several of the first Betas have come in with their reviews. If any Beta wants a crack at it, please let me know ASAP.
Here is the cover:
Oops? I almost uploaded a StarCraft image. lol
The top is an external image of Port Royal. The bottom I think you can figure out.
Anyway, I took last week 'off'. By off I mean I got caught up on some other projects. That included painting Valenko's Squad.
Yes, my camera sucks. I need to get my brother-in-law with his fancy one to do the shots. And yes you can see bits of Artanis and other things in the background. :)
I goofed up their camo, I was supposed to go with brown digicam. Instead I did a tan and then adapted it with black, green, and brown stripes. It was the closest I could get to digicam with a paint brush.
I tried and failed at painting fur. And yeah, I suck at tiger stripes. Well, technically he is a Liger, half white lion half white tiger so I dunno if I got them right or not.
I learned a few things while doing them. One important thing is to print in ABS with a 5% infill if possible. It cuts down on the plastic. Don't use the gray plastic, it sucked on Miles and Asazi. Printing them upside down helps too.
I did use hot acetone vapor with the 2 humans over the prime and sand method I used with the others. I wish now I'd done that from the start! So much better and easier! Though both still needed plenty of putty work to fill in some issues. :P
Also, only a few are really set up to stand on their own. Gusterson, Chirby, Schultz, Asazi, and Jethro want to fall over. Ox and Sergei want to rest on their laurels, and I had to glue Hurranna to Ox later.
Chirby has replacement legs. Gusterson and Schultz lost a part of their ears when they toppled over onto the floor. Hurranna lost her 2 fingers. I've had to glue both of the Neodogs back together so there was some much gnashing of teeth involved there. (What can I say? I'm a klutz! Or they are!)
I still haven't finished the base. Right now I have that acrylic sheet you see them on top of glued to a piece of poster board. I am going to figure out how to mount them (most likely with magnets) to the base, then paint the base with acrylics the best I can.
Last bit of news. Well, 2 more.
1: I'll be posting snippets of Pi Fight when the last Beta gets their input in and I send it to Rea. Expect that next week. I'm shooting to publish this next month.
2: I 'officially' started Liberty or Death this morning. I am aware I probably should have went with Horatio Logan 3, (it takes place between TTT and the end of LOD) but I've got more invested in LOD right now, so I ran with it. I added some bits yesterday (which turned out to be 16 pages lol) so I started with a healthy 80 pages of notes and blocking this morning. Fun.
I added 11 pages today (so far) I'm trying to not brown out early. No Wayne, no finished chapters...yet. :)
Oh Agents of Shield, where to start? I had so many lingering questions! What happened to the Theta helicarrier? What happened to the Iliad and crew? What happened to Lola? All the bases? The other members of Shield?? Why did Deathlock and crew stay out of the final battle? Why not have Hunter and Bobby in on things? If they are the most wanted, hell, why not bring them in? Misery likes company right??
What happened to Deek? There are probably a million more. The producers said all that happened right up to just before the events in Infinity War. (Which I haven't seen, nor Black Panther so don't spoil em!) I doubt we'll find out an answer to many of those questions, if any of those in the summer of 2019. Oh well.
Summer of 2019. Geesh.
I am curious. I have a couple theories, including 1 outlandish one that Coulson is the biological son of Howard Stark and that they worked on Lola together as mentioned. That would explain how he got into Stark tower in the Avengers. I also have another one, where this big secret about the next movie is where they bring the universes crashing together. Which may or may not include Deadpool and the X-men. Just my idea with no proof though.
It was cool to see the AOS art people use the same ship I've used for 1 or more of the book covers. That's right, that ship you saw crash into Chicago is the same one on Renderosity! Someone did a little tweaking, but yup, same ship. I told Simon and Skynet that. I think they were amused.
That is all, for now!
Okay, first off, I wanted to leave the previous post up as long as possible to let In Search of Pi sink in.
Second, I finished Pi Fight 2 weeks ago. I also did the cover art. Several of the first Betas have come in with their reviews. If any Beta wants a crack at it, please let me know ASAP.
Here is the cover:
Oops? I almost uploaded a StarCraft image. lolThe top is an external image of Port Royal. The bottom I think you can figure out.
Anyway, I took last week 'off'. By off I mean I got caught up on some other projects. That included painting Valenko's Squad.
Yes, my camera sucks. I need to get my brother-in-law with his fancy one to do the shots. And yes you can see bits of Artanis and other things in the background. :)I goofed up their camo, I was supposed to go with brown digicam. Instead I did a tan and then adapted it with black, green, and brown stripes. It was the closest I could get to digicam with a paint brush.
I tried and failed at painting fur. And yeah, I suck at tiger stripes. Well, technically he is a Liger, half white lion half white tiger so I dunno if I got them right or not.
I learned a few things while doing them. One important thing is to print in ABS with a 5% infill if possible. It cuts down on the plastic. Don't use the gray plastic, it sucked on Miles and Asazi. Printing them upside down helps too.
I did use hot acetone vapor with the 2 humans over the prime and sand method I used with the others. I wish now I'd done that from the start! So much better and easier! Though both still needed plenty of putty work to fill in some issues. :P
Also, only a few are really set up to stand on their own. Gusterson, Chirby, Schultz, Asazi, and Jethro want to fall over. Ox and Sergei want to rest on their laurels, and I had to glue Hurranna to Ox later.
Chirby has replacement legs. Gusterson and Schultz lost a part of their ears when they toppled over onto the floor. Hurranna lost her 2 fingers. I've had to glue both of the Neodogs back together so there was some much gnashing of teeth involved there. (What can I say? I'm a klutz! Or they are!)
I still haven't finished the base. Right now I have that acrylic sheet you see them on top of glued to a piece of poster board. I am going to figure out how to mount them (most likely with magnets) to the base, then paint the base with acrylics the best I can.
Last bit of news. Well, 2 more.
1: I'll be posting snippets of Pi Fight when the last Beta gets their input in and I send it to Rea. Expect that next week. I'm shooting to publish this next month.
2: I 'officially' started Liberty or Death this morning. I am aware I probably should have went with Horatio Logan 3, (it takes place between TTT and the end of LOD) but I've got more invested in LOD right now, so I ran with it. I added some bits yesterday (which turned out to be 16 pages lol) so I started with a healthy 80 pages of notes and blocking this morning. Fun.
I added 11 pages today (so far) I'm trying to not brown out early. No Wayne, no finished chapters...yet. :)
Oh Agents of Shield, where to start? I had so many lingering questions! What happened to the Theta helicarrier? What happened to the Iliad and crew? What happened to Lola? All the bases? The other members of Shield?? Why did Deathlock and crew stay out of the final battle? Why not have Hunter and Bobby in on things? If they are the most wanted, hell, why not bring them in? Misery likes company right??
What happened to Deek? There are probably a million more. The producers said all that happened right up to just before the events in Infinity War. (Which I haven't seen, nor Black Panther so don't spoil em!) I doubt we'll find out an answer to many of those questions, if any of those in the summer of 2019. Oh well.
Summer of 2019. Geesh.
I am curious. I have a couple theories, including 1 outlandish one that Coulson is the biological son of Howard Stark and that they worked on Lola together as mentioned. That would explain how he got into Stark tower in the Avengers. I also have another one, where this big secret about the next movie is where they bring the universes crashing together. Which may or may not include Deadpool and the X-men. Just my idea with no proof though.
It was cool to see the AOS art people use the same ship I've used for 1 or more of the book covers. That's right, that ship you saw crash into Chicago is the same one on Renderosity! Someone did a little tweaking, but yup, same ship. I told Simon and Skynet that. I think they were amused.
That is all, for now!
April 26, 2018
In Search of Pi is publishing...NOW!
Wow!
Okay, so, yesterday I got the manuscript back from Rea, ran through it, added the TOC and stuff, and then sent it off to Goodlifeguide.com with the full expectation of not seeing it again for 3-10 business days.
But, in the email I added BitCreator's plea. I didn't think much about the chances of it, but apparently they heard! Heard and answered! Last night I got the email with the manuscript back. I'm still in shock.
I also just finished publishing it on Amazon and B&N. :D
About:
Over the years the Reborn Federation has grown despite being at war with the growing Horathian Pirate Empire. Seeing a trend, the crew of the Io 11 went in search of new frontiers in the neighboring Pi sector. Fleet Admiral John Henry Irons sent along warships to scout the sector and begin putting an end to the piracy rampaging through the galaxy. It isn't going to be easy though. Pi is a vast sector with a lot of resources but also a lot of dangers. But, the various people like Emily Meia, Captain Mags Vivian, Captain Yasuno and others from Rho are up for the new challenge! So, yeah, there are more people involved of course, and some many familiar faces plus crossovers with the other books. I'll post the links when the manuscript goes live at each place.
Edit: Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CP53H9C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1524781457&sr=1-1&keywords=in+search+of+pi
B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-search-of-pi-chris-hechtl/1128560696?ean=2940159074492
Enjoy!
Okay, so, yesterday I got the manuscript back from Rea, ran through it, added the TOC and stuff, and then sent it off to Goodlifeguide.com with the full expectation of not seeing it again for 3-10 business days.
But, in the email I added BitCreator's plea. I didn't think much about the chances of it, but apparently they heard! Heard and answered! Last night I got the email with the manuscript back. I'm still in shock.
I also just finished publishing it on Amazon and B&N. :D
About:
Over the years the Reborn Federation has grown despite being at war with the growing Horathian Pirate Empire. Seeing a trend, the crew of the Io 11 went in search of new frontiers in the neighboring Pi sector. Fleet Admiral John Henry Irons sent along warships to scout the sector and begin putting an end to the piracy rampaging through the galaxy. It isn't going to be easy though. Pi is a vast sector with a lot of resources but also a lot of dangers. But, the various people like Emily Meia, Captain Mags Vivian, Captain Yasuno and others from Rho are up for the new challenge! So, yeah, there are more people involved of course, and some many familiar faces plus crossovers with the other books. I'll post the links when the manuscript goes live at each place.
Edit: Amazon:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CP53H9C/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1524781457&sr=1-1&keywords=in+search+of+pi
B&N:
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/in-search-of-pi-chris-hechtl/1128560696?ean=2940159074492
Enjoy!
April 25, 2018
ISOP Snippet 3
Sitrep: I just finished going through the edits from Rea, adding the TOC and missing bits, and then sent it off to Goodlifeguide. We shall see when it comes back.
In other news, I'm calling the tiger figure finished. I'm too lazy to hook my phone up to my PC again right now, so I'll upload the photos later.
Skipping ahead:
Meridian
Lieutenant JG Bright Day checked the log and then the ship's course. So far so good. One of his eyestalks swiveled to check the engineering status boards. Nothing was yellow or red, all good there.The bug sat back in his saddle and reflected for a moment. It was never good to remain idle for too long. He knew the XO or skipper would be coming around sometime soon, but he sometimes needed a moment to think, even when on duty.The changes in his life were far from routine. He had been raised by a T'clock hive after his family had died in a rock slide. He had even taken on a T'clock style name since it had been far easier for his foster parents to speak.When he had entered the academy, he had felt rather lonely until he'd somehow made a friend in David Hamerschtel. They'd jokingly referred to themselves as the dynamic duo. He'd followed David into the various courses after the academy including the ONI course.Sometimes he regretted David's sudden insight that had led the human to discovering the Daikokufind, getting a commendation, which had led them to this mission. David's insight had been a bit more than a blessing from Lady Luck, but also good fortune since it had pushed the two of them up the ladder a little bit ahead of their classmates. David's commendation had gotten him a promotion to JG a few months ahead of Bright Day. He didn't resent his friend's good fortune, but the occasional ribbing David did over the subject was a bit wearing."Everything okay in here?" a familiar human voice asked from the open hatch.The Veraxin swiveled a rear eyestalk to the XO while his forward-facing ones checked the status board. Sometimes it paid to have multiple independent eyes. "Yes, sir. The board is green. All boards are green. We are on course and on schedule," he stated."Ah, good," Lieutenant Glen da Souza said as if by route. "Working on anything interesting?" he asked."I finished a couple of problems. I was taking a break for a moment, sir. I don't like to get too deep into a problem and then go off shift. They tend to haunt me," the Veraxin replied.The XO nodded sagely. "Especially the tricky ones. Okay, gotcha. I'm not pushing the due date back though," he warned."Understood, sir. I'll get the assignment in on time.""Good. You've got an hour before you are relieved?""Yes, sir. Ensign Iwazaru will be on deck once he's finished his downtime," the Veraxin said, referring to the ship's A.I. He wasn't certain how other ships ran it but Captain Yasuno had insisted the A.I. stand a watch just like everyone else. And since he was an officer, he stood a bridge watch.Glen nodded once. "Okay. I'm going off shift. Ring me if you need me but it better be important.""Right," the bug said, making a note in the small duty log that the XO was going off shift. Technically, the XO and skipper never went off shift; they were always on call. But everyone needed sleep, even the ship's A.I.He heard the human's receding footfalls fade off into the distance and then returned his attention to the ship's systems. Three passes were all he could stand at looking at the numbers, so he brought up the problems one more time.Maybe if he took a different approach …{#}^{#}Lieutenant JG David Hamerschtel remembered Admiral Irons' speech when Meridianlaunched several years prior. Out of boredom he brought the file up and replayed it to refresh his memory of the time, that heady time of triumph he'd felt.They'd been assembled as a crew for the first time. Meridian hadn't even finished her building trials yet. Right up until he'd been assigned to her he'd thought he'd been assigned to a different ship. To the current day, he still didn't know if that had been a cover or he'd been a last-minute addition.It didn't matter. None of what had happened then really mattered anymore. He would like to think he'd grown a bit since then. He was definitely a little bit older and hopefully a little bit wiser. Though sometimes, when he got called out by the skipper, he had doubts. His finger hovered over the button before moving the slider to the bookmarked place. He then hit the play button and sat back to watch."The job of ONI is a thankless one. You sift through petabytes of data, interviews, video and audio files, images, decrypt files, stare at star charts until your eyes bleed, and do so much more for that one nugget of information that will make the difference."Admiral Irons surveyed the group. "And you have to do it all the while keeping the enemy and sometimes the public unaware of what you are doing. On the public's behalf, I thank you.""I'm not going to lie to you, what would be the point? You are going into a long-range, difficult, and some would say, impossible mission. You will be away from your friends and family for years. You might never come back. Hopefully, that doesn't happen, but the risk is there. A lot can happen in the outer dark and running into pirates is just one danger among all too many.""The Ptah mission has been delayed multiple times. Your ship is going to blaze a trail for her and others to follow. We have already sent a single, oversized mixed squadron of cruisers in to the sector, but you will be going far farther than any of them. We have identified the possible locations of four of the six known pirate bases in the sector. It's up to you to confirm them. It is dangerous; I won't lie to you. That will take you away from your friends and families for years. I thank you for your sacrifice in that regard."David snorted and hit pause. Yeah. You thank us he thought. But we're the ones making the sacrifice. I was an idiot for volunteering he thought with a pang of regret."Sour grapes?" Bright Day, his partner, asked as he scuttled into the room."You know me so well," the human said as he flipped the tablet down."Yes. We have been roommates for years after all. I know when you snore and when you need a break. And other times, like that time you caught a glimpse of some human females on a beach …""Yeah," David interrupted hastily. He'd had a hard time with that one, almost literally and almost embarrassingly in front of the skipper. He'd learned the hard way not to zoom in to planets and especially nude beaches.And it wasn't just the fear of being caught as a voyeur either. It was the remorse over not being down there with them, living it up.Two years. Two years in the ship. Two long years with no shore leave. No time off and their fresh food had gone in the first six months. Two years of breathing the same stale air, dealing with the stink, the boredom, and the same faces. They had gotten to Pi, jumped up the chain and verified Daikoku. Along the way they'd identified a pirate-only known jump route. He didn't regret that part. But did the skipper really have to go the long haul to verify allof the bases? All in one go?At least the skipper had insisted on dropping the occasional buoy or updating ones they ran into with their logs. That way the intelligence they were gathering would get into the navy's hands in theory. If all had gone as planned, at least one of the buoys had been stripped and its contents were on their way back to the Federation."Anything happen?" he asked as Bright Day removed his duty harness and then scuttled into the head."No. The usual. You can check the log.""Ah," David replied in a slightly disappointed tone of voice. "Of course not.""Trust me, Dave, you don't want something interesting to happen while in hyper. Interesting things tend to make you dead. Usually with the ship too. I'll take my chances with being bored and alive, thank you very much," the Veraxin replied from the head."You would. That's the problem with you. You are lazy," David retorted in mock exasperation."I'm not lazy; I just like playing it safe. Risks are only worth the reward when there is one to be had. Taking risks without need is just asking for trouble. Wasn't it one of your species’ ancestors who came up with the curse about living in interesting times?""Yeah. Sometimes I wonder about that," David muttered remembering the Chinese curse. "I'd rather have a little action then be bored to tears.""Really? You've been crying?""It's an expression," David said testily as the bug flushed and then turned the sink on to finish up. He was well aware of the fact that he was being teased. "I think we've hit every movie in the database at least twice. Some more than ten times.""Time to create mash-ups? Or pursue other entertainment? Virtual games or something?""When you spend so much time staring at a computer screen … I don't know," David said with a shake of his head. "I just don't know.""And it doesn't help that this is a dry ship. I know I miss going to the bars," the bug said, surprising David as he scuttled out. "Yes, I know that is your line. I'm going off script."David thought about it and then snorted. "Okay, so we've had this conversation before.""Yes and will likely have it again. My suggestion is to either rack out or go for a walk.""A walk.""Yes, move those pudgy legs of yours—the fleshy extremities," the bug said with a wave of one lobster claw."You know I technically outrank you," David mocked as he put his feet down on the deck."So? Oh, wait, are you now threatening me to get some of the action you want? A captain's report?""Yeah, no, pass," David said with a shake of his head. "I wish we had more than the usual four bulkheads to look at.""True. You could hook up a VR headset and have it guide you down a forest lane. I understand Yoki does something like that when she is jogging. Or you could do something else. Or go meditate in one of the cargo bays.""In other words, anywhere but here?" David asked, amused as he caught on to the bug's thrust."Exactly. I just ate after coming off shift. I don't want to hear your gripes and have them ruin my digestion," the Veraxin said, indicating second-degree truth with third-degree amused exasperation. "I'm going to rack out unlike you. I plan to work out before my next shift tomorrow.""Okay, okay. Maybe I'll hit the gym or something. No walks though, the XO sees me wandering and he'll think I'm bored and need extra work to keep my mind occupied again.""I could put in a good word," the Veraxin suggested as the human slipped his footwear on. The bug buzzed in amusement as David threw his pillow at him. He easily fended it off and then picked it up to toss it back on the human's bed."Right," David said as he pulled out a towel. "Be seeing you.""Not if I'm not awake and don't wake me," the bug said as he settled himself for some much-needed rest.{#}^{#}
In other news, I'm calling the tiger figure finished. I'm too lazy to hook my phone up to my PC again right now, so I'll upload the photos later.
Skipping ahead:
Meridian
Lieutenant JG Bright Day checked the log and then the ship's course. So far so good. One of his eyestalks swiveled to check the engineering status boards. Nothing was yellow or red, all good there.The bug sat back in his saddle and reflected for a moment. It was never good to remain idle for too long. He knew the XO or skipper would be coming around sometime soon, but he sometimes needed a moment to think, even when on duty.The changes in his life were far from routine. He had been raised by a T'clock hive after his family had died in a rock slide. He had even taken on a T'clock style name since it had been far easier for his foster parents to speak.When he had entered the academy, he had felt rather lonely until he'd somehow made a friend in David Hamerschtel. They'd jokingly referred to themselves as the dynamic duo. He'd followed David into the various courses after the academy including the ONI course.Sometimes he regretted David's sudden insight that had led the human to discovering the Daikokufind, getting a commendation, which had led them to this mission. David's insight had been a bit more than a blessing from Lady Luck, but also good fortune since it had pushed the two of them up the ladder a little bit ahead of their classmates. David's commendation had gotten him a promotion to JG a few months ahead of Bright Day. He didn't resent his friend's good fortune, but the occasional ribbing David did over the subject was a bit wearing."Everything okay in here?" a familiar human voice asked from the open hatch.The Veraxin swiveled a rear eyestalk to the XO while his forward-facing ones checked the status board. Sometimes it paid to have multiple independent eyes. "Yes, sir. The board is green. All boards are green. We are on course and on schedule," he stated."Ah, good," Lieutenant Glen da Souza said as if by route. "Working on anything interesting?" he asked."I finished a couple of problems. I was taking a break for a moment, sir. I don't like to get too deep into a problem and then go off shift. They tend to haunt me," the Veraxin replied.The XO nodded sagely. "Especially the tricky ones. Okay, gotcha. I'm not pushing the due date back though," he warned."Understood, sir. I'll get the assignment in on time.""Good. You've got an hour before you are relieved?""Yes, sir. Ensign Iwazaru will be on deck once he's finished his downtime," the Veraxin said, referring to the ship's A.I. He wasn't certain how other ships ran it but Captain Yasuno had insisted the A.I. stand a watch just like everyone else. And since he was an officer, he stood a bridge watch.Glen nodded once. "Okay. I'm going off shift. Ring me if you need me but it better be important.""Right," the bug said, making a note in the small duty log that the XO was going off shift. Technically, the XO and skipper never went off shift; they were always on call. But everyone needed sleep, even the ship's A.I.He heard the human's receding footfalls fade off into the distance and then returned his attention to the ship's systems. Three passes were all he could stand at looking at the numbers, so he brought up the problems one more time.Maybe if he took a different approach …{#}^{#}Lieutenant JG David Hamerschtel remembered Admiral Irons' speech when Meridianlaunched several years prior. Out of boredom he brought the file up and replayed it to refresh his memory of the time, that heady time of triumph he'd felt.They'd been assembled as a crew for the first time. Meridian hadn't even finished her building trials yet. Right up until he'd been assigned to her he'd thought he'd been assigned to a different ship. To the current day, he still didn't know if that had been a cover or he'd been a last-minute addition.It didn't matter. None of what had happened then really mattered anymore. He would like to think he'd grown a bit since then. He was definitely a little bit older and hopefully a little bit wiser. Though sometimes, when he got called out by the skipper, he had doubts. His finger hovered over the button before moving the slider to the bookmarked place. He then hit the play button and sat back to watch."The job of ONI is a thankless one. You sift through petabytes of data, interviews, video and audio files, images, decrypt files, stare at star charts until your eyes bleed, and do so much more for that one nugget of information that will make the difference."Admiral Irons surveyed the group. "And you have to do it all the while keeping the enemy and sometimes the public unaware of what you are doing. On the public's behalf, I thank you.""I'm not going to lie to you, what would be the point? You are going into a long-range, difficult, and some would say, impossible mission. You will be away from your friends and family for years. You might never come back. Hopefully, that doesn't happen, but the risk is there. A lot can happen in the outer dark and running into pirates is just one danger among all too many.""The Ptah mission has been delayed multiple times. Your ship is going to blaze a trail for her and others to follow. We have already sent a single, oversized mixed squadron of cruisers in to the sector, but you will be going far farther than any of them. We have identified the possible locations of four of the six known pirate bases in the sector. It's up to you to confirm them. It is dangerous; I won't lie to you. That will take you away from your friends and families for years. I thank you for your sacrifice in that regard."David snorted and hit pause. Yeah. You thank us he thought. But we're the ones making the sacrifice. I was an idiot for volunteering he thought with a pang of regret."Sour grapes?" Bright Day, his partner, asked as he scuttled into the room."You know me so well," the human said as he flipped the tablet down."Yes. We have been roommates for years after all. I know when you snore and when you need a break. And other times, like that time you caught a glimpse of some human females on a beach …""Yeah," David interrupted hastily. He'd had a hard time with that one, almost literally and almost embarrassingly in front of the skipper. He'd learned the hard way not to zoom in to planets and especially nude beaches.And it wasn't just the fear of being caught as a voyeur either. It was the remorse over not being down there with them, living it up.Two years. Two years in the ship. Two long years with no shore leave. No time off and their fresh food had gone in the first six months. Two years of breathing the same stale air, dealing with the stink, the boredom, and the same faces. They had gotten to Pi, jumped up the chain and verified Daikoku. Along the way they'd identified a pirate-only known jump route. He didn't regret that part. But did the skipper really have to go the long haul to verify allof the bases? All in one go?At least the skipper had insisted on dropping the occasional buoy or updating ones they ran into with their logs. That way the intelligence they were gathering would get into the navy's hands in theory. If all had gone as planned, at least one of the buoys had been stripped and its contents were on their way back to the Federation."Anything happen?" he asked as Bright Day removed his duty harness and then scuttled into the head."No. The usual. You can check the log.""Ah," David replied in a slightly disappointed tone of voice. "Of course not.""Trust me, Dave, you don't want something interesting to happen while in hyper. Interesting things tend to make you dead. Usually with the ship too. I'll take my chances with being bored and alive, thank you very much," the Veraxin replied from the head."You would. That's the problem with you. You are lazy," David retorted in mock exasperation."I'm not lazy; I just like playing it safe. Risks are only worth the reward when there is one to be had. Taking risks without need is just asking for trouble. Wasn't it one of your species’ ancestors who came up with the curse about living in interesting times?""Yeah. Sometimes I wonder about that," David muttered remembering the Chinese curse. "I'd rather have a little action then be bored to tears.""Really? You've been crying?""It's an expression," David said testily as the bug flushed and then turned the sink on to finish up. He was well aware of the fact that he was being teased. "I think we've hit every movie in the database at least twice. Some more than ten times.""Time to create mash-ups? Or pursue other entertainment? Virtual games or something?""When you spend so much time staring at a computer screen … I don't know," David said with a shake of his head. "I just don't know.""And it doesn't help that this is a dry ship. I know I miss going to the bars," the bug said, surprising David as he scuttled out. "Yes, I know that is your line. I'm going off script."David thought about it and then snorted. "Okay, so we've had this conversation before.""Yes and will likely have it again. My suggestion is to either rack out or go for a walk.""A walk.""Yes, move those pudgy legs of yours—the fleshy extremities," the bug said with a wave of one lobster claw."You know I technically outrank you," David mocked as he put his feet down on the deck."So? Oh, wait, are you now threatening me to get some of the action you want? A captain's report?""Yeah, no, pass," David said with a shake of his head. "I wish we had more than the usual four bulkheads to look at.""True. You could hook up a VR headset and have it guide you down a forest lane. I understand Yoki does something like that when she is jogging. Or you could do something else. Or go meditate in one of the cargo bays.""In other words, anywhere but here?" David asked, amused as he caught on to the bug's thrust."Exactly. I just ate after coming off shift. I don't want to hear your gripes and have them ruin my digestion," the Veraxin said, indicating second-degree truth with third-degree amused exasperation. "I'm going to rack out unlike you. I plan to work out before my next shift tomorrow.""Okay, okay. Maybe I'll hit the gym or something. No walks though, the XO sees me wandering and he'll think I'm bored and need extra work to keep my mind occupied again.""I could put in a good word," the Veraxin suggested as the human slipped his footwear on. The bug buzzed in amusement as David threw his pillow at him. He easily fended it off and then picked it up to toss it back on the human's bed."Right," David said as he pulled out a towel. "Be seeing you.""Not if I'm not awake and don't wake me," the bug said as he settled himself for some much-needed rest.{#}^{#}
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