Month: March 2025

New Pai, 14. End

A bit abrupt. But, 1) this is a raw MS, and 2) it is part of at least one more book; the likely war which may involved two planets and the space in between. I’d like to have that finished by late July, but, honestly, I don’t see it. Instead, I’ve some RealLife things to get done in the spring. So, maybe I’ll just play with some micro story ideas. Some of those have turned into novels, so I never really know where I’ll be led.

I’ve gone back and broken this 52k word story into chapters. Sixteen plus an epilogue. There are still some bracketed notes at the very end as well as on paper just to my right. Like I said: raw MS. Also, while doing the chapters, I realized I’m introducing a lot here, even for those passingly familiar with Machine Civilization. So, a bit more material; but, this was designed to set the stage for the coming war, and I think it accomplishes that. Thanks for coming along for this journey.

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New Pai, 13

Interestingly, this underminds my entire arc for these two books. If Luce is banished from the DMZ, then one leg of my “religious war over the Fusions” is knocked out. Oh well, this is what I was shown to write, so I’ll work it out one way or another.

I think I’ll gloss the entire trial scene, esp as everything will be happening behind the scenes, anyway. Also, I know there is some significance to Luce’s reluctance to give up her staff and coat, but I don’t yet know what it is. Generally, a staff indicates authority and a coat or robe much the same (“I’m wealthy enough to keep warm”). How this novel wraps up, that is, the very last scene of the epilogue, will be a little odd, even for me.

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New Pai, 12

Yes, it’s been three weeks. Standard excuses for the first two: couldn’t see the ending, DayJob… The third excuse was a surprise: in my dotage I’ve suddenly developed a shellsfish allergy, so the scallops over butter noodles from Friday/Saturday before last attempted to kill me. My wife wanted to take me to the hospital but I was a mule and said no. Even so, bedridden for three days, with no food, then barely moving for two with a little toast. At one point when my wife came home from work, she said, “You like like you aged a year in a day.” Thanks, Honey.

But, just like falling off your horse’s bicycle, you get back on something. In fact, I realized one glaring and one minor issue from Part 11: glaring, that did they go off and leave the body behind? Are you kidding me? Minor, that I wanted Pai to clarify to Graf just how latently dangerous he might be. While I have rewritten that in the MS, I didn’t really see a reason to repost everything here, as these are supposed to be raws to make me think, anyway.

Having said all that, let’s get into the Epilogue. Luce finds out you do not piss off the matriarch of an entirely new race, and we catch a glimpse of Graf’s talent.

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