Scorched Earth

New Harmony, Utah

Sunday 2nd October 2016, 13:56 PM

The waiting's the worst part, Mike decided as he paced from room to room, deep in thought. Not that there was anything he could do about it; it was too risky to go there during the day. Two men, likely engineers, would be assigned throughout the day and would eventually leave soon before midnight.

That was his best time to try and get in. In the meantime, he had napped, planned out any possible escape routes, and read the letter his father had left for him again and again.

Until Mike had his moment to attempt an infiltration of this underground facility, he could only wait-

He nearly jumped as the house phone began to ring. Staring at it with wide eyes, he hesitated. Being a new homeowner had left some things up to him. I guess that means answering the damn phone, he mused before finally stepping towards it.

Clearing his throat, he answered, "Hello?"

"Hi, Mike, it's Charlie." She answered on the other end, a little nervous and unsure, "I'm not catching you at a busy time, am I?"

He couldn't help his smile. "Not at all, Char. What's up?"

"Well, it's just…do you remember John? He was over at my Aunt Jen's house when you came to visit."

"Right, yeah, the uh…writer?"

"Yep, that's right. I told him all about you the other day and…"

Mike nearly winced, "Ah. How bad?"

"Oh, no, no, nothing like that! No, I was telling him that we were like cousins, but I hadn't seen you in a couple decades. I…I don't have a lot of family around apart from Jen, so he was just wondering if you were open to meeting up. For dinner tonight, I mean. He says he'll pay."

When Mike didn't answer for a few moments, Charlie's voice came back, concerned. "Uh, Mike? Sorry, are you still there?"

"Oh, yeah, yeah, sorry, Char." Mike answered quickly, but his thoughts fumbled into one another. It didn't take his mind long to come up with all the things that could go wrong, not just being recognised as a wanted man.

On top of that, his upcoming expedition was less than twelve hours away. Was a night out really the best course of action?

But she's your cousin, Another voice in Mike's head reminded him, and she's the only family you've got left, too.

"If the both of you are okay with it," He eventually answered, "sure, I can meet up. What time are the two of you thinking?"

Her voice seemed lighter and a little happier at that answer, "We're thinking about sixish. You can meet us at our apartment and we'll go from there. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, that works for me." He grinned, "I'll see you there."

A quick nap later and making himself look semi-presentable, Mike was in his car heading up to Cedar City. With Charlie having given him the address beforehand, it took Mike not too long to find it. Giving a trepidatious sigh as he got out of his car, he headed up, feeling nervous.

Once he was at the apartment door, he knocked lightly and waited for the door to be answered. It opened and a man perhaps just a few years younger than Mike greeted him.

"Hello." The man nodded, "You're Mike, right?"

"I am." Mike smiled politely and shook his hand, "And you're John?"

"Yep, that's right. You want to come on in? We'll be ready to go in just a few minutes."

"Thank you." Mike said gratefully as he stepped in. The apartment was clean enough, now worse than his own house. Getting the feeling that they had only moved in recently, he thought to mention it, but decided against it.

Calmly, John shut the door and with his hands in his pockets, shrugged, "So…I've uh, heard things about you, Mike, but can't say I've met you before."

Mike nodded, a little sheepishly, "I last saw Charlie back in…1983?"

"Probably explains it." John nodded, "I think Charlie and I only met when we were six. Where'd you go?"

A little unsure, Mike was about to come up with an excuse when Charlie stepped into the room, smiling at the sight of him. "Hi, Mike."

"Hey, Char." The two quickly embraced, "So, can't say I've been to Cedar before. You've got a spot?"

"Yeah, there's this bar just five minutes away." John explained, "Food's good. Do, uh, you want to drive, or are you okay with me taking the wheel?"

Mike shrugged, "Entirely up to you."

Not long after, they were in John's car heading up to his bar. Mike, sat in the backseat, found himself occasionally glancing around the street cautiously. It seemed that John picked up on the awkward silence and decided to break it.

"Charlie," He asked, "I didn't want to say anything, but didn't Aunt Jen seem a little…I don't know. Off?"

"I guess." She answered, "I wouldn't know."

"It's just…Mike. I hate to ask this, but did something happen between the two of you?"

"John…" Charlie sighed, "It's…"

"Complicated." Mike answered for her, giving her a reassuring nod, "Listen, John, you seem like a smart guy. I doubt it's a state secret who my father was, especially around Washington County. If Aunt Jen doesn't like me, I can't say I blame her."

John seemed to accept that answer and didn't question him further. Not long afterwards, they were in the bar waiting for their food, the conversation slowly becoming more open.

"...and we didn't see each other again after." John explained, moving his hands as he spoke, "Not until…well, the reunion."

Mike raised an eyebrow, "Reunion?"

It was Charlie who answered that, a little subdued, "It was the one back in 1995. It was…to remember. Remember the Missing Children's Incident."

Sucking in a breath, Mike faintly nodded, "Oh. Right."

"We were…" John struggled to say, "We were there that day, you know. June 26th, 1985. Any of us could've been taken. I mean, one of us…"

He stopped with that and Charlie took over, looking at Mike sadly. "One of us was. A friend of ours…"

"It's okay." Mike assured them, "You don't have to say any more."

"It's just…" John sighed, shaking his head, like he was fighting back tears, "I just keep thinking about it. All the time."

Mike nodded, "What happened there was evil. Unforgivable. Unfair."

With a painful smile, John told him, "I'm sure Jen has her reasons…but you…you're not him, Mike. You know that, right?"

Though Mike returned a grateful nod, he could only think, someday I might believe that.

The Bunker, Utah

Sunday 25th June 2017 19:24 PM

"Just…" Samantha sighed, feeling worry dwelling within her, "the moment you can, you retreat. Okay? This isn't a fight we should be aiming to win."

All Tyler did at that was grumble. "Great; not only do I have to babysit a zombie, we'll also have to scamper away with our tails tucked between our legs?"

She shot him a stern look at that while Mike, to his credit, barely reacted apart from a sideways glance she couldn't help was shot at nobody. Then he looked at her, concerned, "Whatever happens…just keeping moving. Alright? You've got Spencer, he'll keep you all safe."

As they talked, she noticed a phone ringing. With a shaky hand, Spencer dug his phone out of his pocket, looked at the name, and hesitated. "Give me a minute…"

"Who is it?" Tyler demanded.

"It's Charlie." Spencer answered, before holding the phone to his ear, "Charlie? What's up?"

A response came and Spencer winced, "Hold on, hold on, slow down…"

"Speaker." Tyler said, "Put it on speaker."

Spencer did so and Charlie's voice, which made Mike straighten, came over the phone, "-just south of Salt Lake. That lead you gave us, we're sure of it."

"Your friends?" Spencer asked, holding a hand to his head.

"It has to be. We think your people were right. It's some sort of…blacksite. Run by the same people who were after us. We're heading there now."

Closing his eyes, Spencer's voice went quiet, "Now?"

"John and I don't think we have any time left. If they're moved, we might never find them again. Spencer…I know you've already done so much for us…"

At that, Tyler vigorously shook his head. "Spence, no."

"I…" Spencer bit his lip.

"No. We can't. Not now."

Even as much as Samantha wanted to interject, to tell Spencer what he wanted to hear, she knew she couldn't. As much as it broke her heart. By the way Mike raised his hands to his face, she knew he felt the same.

"Charlie…" Spencer stammered, struggling to keep his voice from trembling, "I'm sorry. I can't…I won't be able to get to you in time."

"It's okay. Spencer, thank you for everything."

"Whatever happens, please…keep yourselves alive. Once things are clear here, I'll come find you."

"You too, Spencer."

With that, the call disconnected and she could see how much doing that had crushed her son. Before she could go to him, to try and alleviate the guilt he was feeling, Lincoln stepped into the room.

"Sam." He spoke quickly, "They're not just coming by road. Our scanners have picked up air traffic."

Gritting his teeth Tyler spat, "Helicopter. That damn chopper. If they've got eyes in the sky, it won't be easy getting distance. Whoever the chopper pursues will need to shake them."

"How many routes do we have planned?" Mike asked.

Wearily, Lincoln said, "We've got maybe seventeen different routes planned. Thirteen of those will need to use the main roads at some point."

"Then we'll need to play it by ear." Loading up his rifle, Tyler turned to Mike. "At least you know how to use a gun, so you won't be entirely useless. Just follow my orders and try not to get someone killed."

"Of course." Mike bowed his head, taking it in stride, before following Tyler out to the front of the Bunker with his own rifle in hand. With apprehensive steps, the others followed them and Samantha knew in her heart that she would not be seeing at least one of those faces again.

Rubbing his face, Lincoln turned to Samantha. "I'm staying here as long as possible."

She shook her head, "No, Lincoln, come with us."

"You'll all need eyes and ears. Once it's clear, I'll catch up. People are going to be left behind no matter what we do here, Sam."

"I know, but…"

Before she could argue any further, she felt the bunker itself rumble as the security protocols kicked in. Then over the radio, the words they knew would signal the next few moments that would decide their fate.

"They're here, over!" Tyler cried out into the radio and the crackle of gunfire before the call cut out confirmed it.

Pointing at her as he began to dart out back into the control room, Lincoln told her, "It's not up to discussion. Get yourself, your family, and the other staff to the evac point. Whatever happens, you get to the Red Flag!"

Then he ran to the communications station and began to operate as overwatch. Feeling sorrow, she obeyed. "Spencer, make sure Harry and Katie are ready to go."

Shaking himself out of his own sorrow, Spencer left the room. "Will do."

As she was left alone, Sam used the breathing exercises she had followed for years to steady herself. Stick to the plan, she reminded herself. Whatever happens, stick to the plan.

"Okay." She breathed before stepping out to look at the faces of the staff trained not for combat, but for the other operations that had kept their little crusade afloat. "You have all been briefed. You know the risks. Just stick together and keep moving forward."

As they finished preparing, forced to sabotage or terminate whatever they couldn't carry with them, Samantha led the staff of AESIR towards the emergency exit of the Bunker. There, Spencer was waiting with a rifle in hand, a terrified Kate and Harry with him.

"I think they're handling the first wave." Spencer told her, "But the helicopter's circling the area. It's going to be tight."

"Then we keep low." She reminded him, before forcing herself to lighten up as the touched her younger children's shoulders, "Just stay with me, okay?"

They both exchanged her frightened, but trusted looks. Turning to Spencer, she nodded, "You lead the way. I'll keep an eye on our backs."

"Got it." Then Spencer popped the emergency exit door open and slowly made his way out. Once he was sure that they were clear, he waved them forward. As they stepped out into the open, they all heard the gunfire on the other side of the treeline.

He's handled worse before, Sam reminded herself. They both have. We didn't survive the Nightingales just to die here.

Clicking her headset in place, she moved forward, keeping at the back whilst Spencer led the way, her children and the other staff sandwiched in between.

"Lawrence, to your right!" Tyler ordered over the radio, "The three of you, keep an eye on your perimeter, damn it!"

Forcing herself to move forward, Sam scanned the trees rapidly. She could hear the helicopter in the distance, but couldn't see any shape moving in the dark sky.

"Alright!" Tyler nearly laughed, "Hah, looks like first wave's clear! Well in, people! It's not over yet!"

Feeling hope growing, Sam picked up the pace. That quickly fell apart when she heard Lincoln's voice come next.

"Sam, I'm detecting movement on the south-western border." He spoke through gritted teeth, "I think they know what we're trying, or they've executed a pincer attack. If they see you…"

We're not taking on an entire squad on our own, she finished in her head. "Keep an eye out. If you see anything else…"

"I'll keep you in the loop."

They made their way west, though a hand signal from Sam to Spencer communicated the need to divert a little. Changing direction a little more north, he led them through the terrain closer and closer to their evac point.

Then, all of a sudden Spencer stopped in his tracks. In a second, he signalled for them to all get down. Reaching her other two kids, Sam urged them down into a crouch. Waiting a few moments, Spencer gave another signal.

We're being tracked.

Sure enough, as they stayed in the midst, Sam could hear the crunching of leaves somewhere back from where they'd come from. Hearing it too, Spencer turned to her and gave rapid signals that she was fortunate to understand.

You take over. Keep moving.

"Okay." She whispered, "Come on, just a little up ahead." She urged her children followed and the other staff followed, with Spencer staying behind. It was all Samantha could do to fight the fear of losing a child as she passed Spencer, knowing it was up to him.

Her headset crackled again as Tyler's voice came over, "Aye, that's a lot of them. Squeeze! Keep an eye on our backs!"

Then, as the moments dragged, she heard the gunfire again. When it dawned on her that it was much closer, she knew what it meant. "All of you." She raised her voice just enough that the frightened staff around her would hear, "We don't have much more time. We need to move. Now!"

Their crouched walk sped up and Sam knew it held the possibility of them having to abandon any semblance of subtlety. After a few moments, the gunfire behind them ended and she knew it meant one of two things. Feeling terror in her chest, she continued.

That terror only grew when she heard over the radio, "Young, check on Fredricks! Is he still breathing?"

She heard an answer over the radio that sent a stab of pain into her. Tyler's voice returned, "We can't hold them much longer. The chopper's circling over westbound. You need to get this done, now!"

Okay, she breathed. They were running out of time. Forcing herself forward, all she could hope was that Spencer would catch up with them.

If he was still alive.

"Sam, they know!" Lincoln's voice returned, "You've got two convoys and the chopper heading your way! Just get to the evac point, now!"

"Lincoln, you need to get out." She spoke, hushing her voice, "We'll wait as long as we can-"

"That's not an option. Get there and get out of here. To those still with us, Sam."

"Lincoln, please…"

But his voice didn't return and the knowledge his mind wouldn't be changed tore her asunder.

"God damn it!" Tyler yelled, "Alright, you three, keep with me. Mike, lead-"

Then another voice yelled out in the distance from Tyler, one she did not recognise.

"Tyler Caine!" He roared over the gunfire, "I've come for you, you limey bastard!"

Then Tyler gave his orders, "Fall back! We're routed, fall back-"

And with an explosion of static, Tyler's radio stopped responding. No, she denied, no, he's fine. They're fine.

Perhaps if she kept telling herself that, she would eventually believe it.

One of the staff stopped a little in front of her. "I can see the car. We can-"

Then the man was rocked by the bullet that went from his head. He stared at her, eyes wide, before toppling to the ground.

"Oh, my God." She moaned, before signalling to the others, "Run! Run for it!"

But as she turned, she saw the second bullet strike the woman who urged Harry and Katie forward. Her two kids screamed as she was shot in front of them. Screeching out in rage, Sam grasped her pistol and fired in the direction of the shooters.

Then she urged her crying children forward, towards the car. As they made their way to it, Sam saw the gunman emerge from the treeline, rifle in hand. Instinctively, Sam put her own body in the way…

…and watched as the gunman was shot in the neck. Unable to stop, Sam pushed her kids forward, towards the car. As they got in, she spotted Spencer rushing from where he'd shot her would-be killer, holding his wounded arm as he reached them.

Spencer practically threw himself into the front seat as Sam got the car into drive and got them onto the road. Feeling the fear and sorrow that rode with them and trying her best not to look at and listen to her wailing children, Sam forced herself to focus on driving.

Back at the Bunker, Lincoln forcefully destroyed the only feed still active on his monitors and he knew he was alone.

But not for long.

Hearing the explosion as the mercenaries destroyed the door, he grabbed his pistol and shot at the first two men that came through. Then the third fired before he had a chance to even blink.

All Lincoln felt as the bullets ripped through him was a warm feeling, before darkness came over him and he toppled to the ground.

Lowering his rifle, Jones entered the room and scoffed at the former last man standing. "Ten minutes was all it took for us to bring your little rabbit hole crashing down, you sons of bitches."

Joining him, one of the other mercs said, "Orders, sir?"

"Orders?" He smirked, "Orders are, we chase the runners and put them down. First, though, make sure they don't have a hole to come back to."

As his men prepared the explosives that would tear the bunker apart, Jones left, ready for the next fight.

Washington County, Utah

Sunday 25th June 2017 19:24 PM

Before Caine had set off, he 'd made sure that he was briefed on exactly what he was facing. As best as Henry had been able to tell, his daughter was heading to a blacksite ran by this Blackwood.

"She's been looking for her friends." Henry had explained, "I don't know how many there will be, but she's in over her head."

"Then I'll make sure she gets out of there with it still on her shoulders." Caine promised, before instinctively reaching to check his guns. When he didn't find them and remembered, he winced. "You wouldn't happen to have a gun to spare?"

"I do." Henry nodded, opening a safe in the room and retrieving a revolver, well-preserved but nothing outstanding. Checking the barrel, he winced. "I've got four bullets left."

"It's enough." Caine assured him before taking the revolver, holstering it as best he could with his belt.

They then drove into the outskirts of town and Henry dropped him off at a car park he chose. Haven't hotwired in a while, Caine mused as he exited.

Once he was back on the road in his own car, he clicked the button on the radio Henry gave him. "You reading me, over?"

"I am. You got the coordinates, over?"

"Aye. Both for the Blacksite and the location you want to meet up. Over."

"Good. We should drop out of contact in a few minutes, so if there's any questions, please ask them now. Over."

"Well, I have one." Caine admitted, "This Blackwood…I can't say I'm familiar with them. Who are they, over?"

"Mercenaries. Soldiers of Fortune. Smalltime, up until a couple years ago. They came from all over, the earliest of them being veterans. After Dutch Lawson massacred most of the managerial staff of Fazbear Entertainment, they were hired and considered invaluable, over."

"Who hired them?" Caine inquired, "A private army motivated by profit, left unchecked, can be the deadliest and most unpredictable force on Earth under the right circumstances. Over."

"It was a decision I agreed with, at the time." Sighing, Henry hesitated, "Naturally, it was a decision I came to regret. Over."

"Well, let's hope that comes rarely." Caine said to him calmly, "Out."

As he drove, Caine could already feel himself feeling weary. That wasn't good; he knew how important it was that he remain alert in the next few hours. It was a long journey up to Salt Lake City and the last thing he needed was to fall asleep on the road.

A couple hours later, Caine knew he was approaching the place Henry had reported. A diner, off close by to a forest, which seemed silent enough. Pulling up, Caine parked the car nearby and scanned the other cars for what he was looking for. Upon spotting the SUV with the right licence plate, he climbed out quickly. They can't be too far away.

With a map Henry had packed in his bag, Caine began to follow the direction towards the coordinates, knowing he had to be quick. If they had already decided on some hazardous rescue operation and acted on it, saving them would prove to be a lot more difficult.

As he got closer to the coordinates, he continued to keep an eye out for any signs of tracks. Such a task would have been difficult enough if he was back to full strength and had the use of both his eyes, but in the darkness of night it was virtually impossible.

Not to Tyler, if he were here, a critical voice reminded Caine. But he didn't have that luxury.

Making good time, he spotted the sight of the facility and began to make his way around the perimeter. There were armed guards in the facility, of course; about thirteen of them. Keeping himself low, he made his way to the most elevated spot that was hidden. If they're anyway, they would've gone there.

He was right. Spotting the figures in the darkness looking over the camp, he approached them, listening out carefully. When he could finally make out their voices, he waited.

"Through that wall?" A male voice asked, "I can't see it?"

The other voice, a woman, responded. "Do you have any better ideas?"

"No, but this-"

Caine spoke up as he approached them. "I wouldn't recommend it."

Both of them spun to face him, shocked. Immediately, the woman raised her hands up, "Wait, please, we weren't doing anything, we were just-"

"It's okay." Caine assured them, "Charlie and John, right?"

The guy, John, watched him cautiously. "How did you know that?"

"I'm here to help. A friend sent me. What's this about?"

The two of them exchanged concerned glances and Caine was sure they were about to deny everything. Then, with John slumping and Charlie steeling herself, she answered, "It's our friends. They're…they're in there, we think. They've been kidnapped."

"By Blackwood?" Caine inquired patiently.

"Yeah. For intel." John nearly spat, "They've been looking for us, so they went after our childhood friends. Who does that?"

"Very angry people with little qualms when it comes to morality." Caine answered, then paused. "And I'm supposing if I asked you to come with me back to safety, you won't?"

"Like hell." John answered.

"Even if I told you that Blackwood are probably on there way here right now, tracking you?"

Though surprised by that news, Charlie shook her head. "We can't. They're our friends."

Never an easy day, Caine thought to himself. "Well, alright, then. Let's go rescue your friends."

They both seemed even more shocked by that. Staring at him, Charlie asked, "Why? Who are you?"

"Just a very tired, old man." Caine answered before stepping past them and getting a better look over the blacksite. Taking extra care to look over every inch of the site, a plan began to formulate in his head. "Okay. From what I saw, it looked like there were about thirteen of them. Did you have the same headcount?"

"That sounds about right." John agreed.

"Okay." Narrowing his eye, Caine searched for what he needed to target. "Communication relay on the roof. Looks like it's linked into that side building. We take that down, they can't call for help."

Nodding as he listened, John asked, "What about the guards?"

"Aye, the guards. We're not taking them all down without a fight breaking out. For every one we eliminate silently, it raises the chance that the rest realise something is amiss."

"So," Charlie asked him quietly, "what do you suggest?"

"Best guess?" Caine took a breath before answering, "I can't see any other way than to sneak in, get your friends, and all of us get back out without them being any the wiser."

John stared at him. "Okay…and have you done anything like that before?"

"Can't say I have." Caine admitted, "But there's a first for everything."

Without another word, Caine kept low and made his way back down the vantage point towards the only exposed point his trained but rusty eye could find. Not long after, he was making his way over the wall, albeit with more difficulty than he remembered.

Okay, he told himself, stick to the shadows. It was not the detective training nor his combat training that led his way. It was the skills taught to him in a life a long time ago.

First, the relay. Though he very much wanted to avoid a fight, if it came to it, he wanted to make sure they would've have every other merc in a five mile radius heading their way.

Getting into the building with the relay, Caine saw that it was unmanned. Amateurs, he smirked before doing as best as he could to disable it. Once he was reasonably confident it had worked, he left.

Now for the difficult part, he reminded himself. He clung to the walls, watching out for any of the guards as he made every effort to avoid risk. Reaching the centre building, he looked around, spotted the ledge he could use, and scaled it into the open window on the second floor…

…nearly landing a little too rough, enough so that a guard on a watchtower heard. The guard lazily looked in the direction, didn't see anything, and returned to what he was doing. Allowing himself to relax, Caine proceeded.

He headed downstairs until he saw the ominous side room. That looks just about right. He made his way inside, before closing the door, and scowled at the sight.

It was an interrogation room, that much was clear. The sight of a chair with shackles and a set of pipe wrenches, car batteries, pliers, and jerry cans told him everything he needed about the enemy he was facing.

Then he stepped a little further into the room and heard the whimper, followed by a hushed voice. His head darted towards the voice and saw the barred door. It was a holding cell of some kind. Getting closer, he looked inside and saw the figures trying to conceal themselves in the shadows.

Mouth tightening, Caine took another glance to make sure he was alone, then raised a hand up to them. "It's okay. I'm not here to hurt you. I'm a friend. Where's the key?"

The figures remained in the shadows at first, before one of them took a risk and left the shadows, to the fear of some of the others. He approached the door and Caine could see the wounds on him. "Who…who are you?"

"My name is Thomas Caine. What's yours?"

The man hesitated, "My name is Lamar. Please, sir, one of us…one of us are really hurt. He needs medical attention."

"We'll get him it." Caine promised him, "Do you know where the key is, Lamar?"

"One of the guards has it."

That's not good, Caine winced. "That's not going to work. Okay…let me see…"

Looking around, he saw the screwdriver and pliers. Nodding, he searched and found the necessary tools. Lamar watched, dumbfounded, as he returned to the cell door. "What are you…?"

Wordlessly, Caine set to work. A few moments later, he heard the cell door click and he quietly opened it.

"Alright." Caine couldn't help but smirk as he patted Lamar on the shoulder, "Let's get you and your friends out of here."

There were five in total including Lamar and when Caine saw the state of the older man who was being cradled by the others, he winced. "Can he walk?"

One of the men, holding the injured one alongside one of the women, shook his head, "No, no, he can't, we need-"

But the older man spoke up and stirred, "Just…just lead the way, I can…I can walk."

He's tough, Caine decided and helped them assist him to his feet. "Okay. Follow my lead."

Then Caine led the group of scared, wronged people back out into the main facility, knowing his decisions during the next few minutes would either save them all or get them killed.

With our heroes scattered and the walls closing in, you can imagine that things are going to get dicey over the next couple chapters.

TU4QU0I53T4IAN6L3: In a way, Thomas' time in the Sanctuary was a sort of unwilling vacation. Away from all the stresses of fighting and solving crimes, witnessing horrifying events. Only downside was that he didn't have his family with him. But now that he is back up, he hasn't got much time to adjust, which unfortunately will come back to bite him. I will be going into exactly how Thomas' own situation works, considering that coma patients don't usually bounce right back. Tyler and Mike still have many unresolved issues, issues which will be addressed. As things begin to descend over the last two chapters of the act, they will need to do so. One of the issues that I'm definitely needing to balance are the amount of characters, because like you said, it's getting awfully full. More so now that Charlie, John, and their friends are joining up. The next act will be a sort of transitioning period, so not all of them will be here for the entire story. Especially when I'm wanting to have a focus on certain old partnerships that laid the foundation of this series.

Vaitle: Thank you, I appreciate it! The first story was rough, I'll be fully admitting that. When I do eventually rewrite the series, Joy of Creation will be the one getting the most revamps. I'd want to spend more time focussing on the Fazgang and the characters. A lot of the early stories was experimentation, trying to establish an overall writing style which I feel I've made a lot of progress on. Caine's temporary leave of absence from the series was a difficult albeit long planned decision, but I agree that it gave way to other characters being able to be fleshed out. Having multiple POV characters is important because, like you said; it can be difficult for characters to stand out when they are muddled together. I'm glad that you've enjoyed the series so far and hope that this finale of sorts proves to be a fitting part.

Two chapters remain until the end of the act. This one has been a little congested I will admit, so I'm, hoping that the next one can at least breathe a little better.