Merry Christmas! (+Chapter 97 preview!)

I would suspect that the technology will be acquired by Irrilith, with a twist. Yes perhaps the Tashana/Irrilith psi combo will see needed on the way out of the Brimorian system, or perhaps to forestall the retaliation. Which makes Jade's situation more important as they can't just cut and run without recovering her. Or of course her Intel on what she's about to discover. Tefler is probably going to pull another thread change and delay resolving that, just to make us stew on it for a while. Otherwise the narrative will get too far out of sync in the parallel stories.

Smart wombat

Well, I was sorta right. John did get a less than warm reception from the Brimorians. Now to see how the negotiations go, if they even happen.

Jedi Khan

Now to see how close you were... Read! :-)

Evan

Crazy doesn't think, so I'll have to answer for him. In the second half, I imagine that the Brimorians are going to give John the cold shoulder treatment. He may have been able to trade freely with them in the past, but given the TFed's past relations with the Brimorians, I don't think they're going to simply let John conduct business as he would have before he bought the Invictus, since it's obviously a warship and not an innocent freighter. Plus there's the fact that he's now the Lion of the Federation; that pretty much guarantees that John won't get the red carpet treatment from the Brimorians. However, I have a feeling that the Brimorians are going to take note that John is coming out of Maliri space, which normally wouldn't be a note worthy thing except for two things. First, the Maliri are known for not allowing travel past their border stations. Second, a Maliri fleet just came out of Maliri space for the first time in 900 years. And now a TFed warship, one belonging to a known hero (or war criminal, depending on your viewpoint), comes strolling out of Maliri space following almost the same flight path as the fleet, just a day or two later? Yeah, that should have the Brimorians wondering what kind of mojo John has with the Maliri, and hopefully that will lead the Brimorians to wonder if their treatment of John could end up affecting their relations with the Maliri. As for the bots fixing the heavy cannon? No, I don't think they'll be able to, at least not without dry dock assistance. Remember, those are big ass guns, with the barrels being nearly 40 meters in length. It's not like Dana can assemble one using just her little workshop. Even if she could, it's no easy task installing it, especially if she has to repair the lift mechanism first. That would likely involve opening the hull, stripping out the damaged components, checking for any other damage that wasn't visible on first inspection, then replacing everything that was removed. It's a long, complex process that's best done with the assistance and safety of a dry dock.

Jedi Khan

So what does Crazy think is going to happen second half....and do you think the bots were able to fix the heavy cannon lift mechanism?

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

Jedi: If it will help I can come up with some possible scenarios or perhaps some munitions or shielding suggestions so you can give me a hard time and talk about how none of it would work. :-)

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

*sigh* Last work shift of the year for me, and no new chapter to help pass the time. It's gonna be a lonnnggg night.

Jedi Khan

Yeah I played quite a bit of Elite: Dangerous and I was inspired by quite a few things from there. As you say, the gameplay has no depth at all, but taking my Fer-de-Lance out to dogfight with pirates was good fun. :-)

Tefler

Oh and i forgot to ask, is this universe by any chance influenced by the game Elite:Dangerous? what triggered the question was the reference/use of Nav Beacons. i know its a common troupe in scifi but the descriptions of the various stars through-out the series has had me wondering too. i could see that game firing ones imagination for stories as it is a mile wide and only an inch deep in the gameplay. you really gotta like space to appreciate the game.

So in mourning of my upcoming departure from the pc based interwebs i bought the first 2 books. Tefler i gotta say you are the first writer i have ever purchased anything from and that should speak volumes as i generally er..well i acquire additions to my digital archive through less than legit means. no regrets in supporting you though man keep on keeping on and i hope someday in the (distant..VERY DISTANT,lol) future we all will see the Truckstop series take off like this one has. i will still keep the patreon going though for as long as i have data on my smartphone. you have made an honest man out of this digital pirate. ( but only in this rare case,lol).

Sounds good. The preview really wet the whistle. Also, unless I missed it, let us know how the sale of your books are going

TranceR

Sigh!

There's still a bit to go, so it'll be in the early hours that I finish the chapter, or perhaps tomorrow lunchtime. No need to wear out your F5 keys. :-)

Tefler

*sigh* Damn it. I want the chapter now! I currently working through book 2, but it's slow going because I keep coming back here and hitting refresh every few minutes.

Jedi Khan

8:42 am London time on the 30th. We might see the full chapter in the next 12 to 15 hours. If not, then tomorrow definitely.

Jedi Khan

It will look like a pearly white grim reaper if he shoots it😝

Couple things people are forgetting or overlooking. The Ashanath, Lenarans, Maliri, and Trankarans are all races designed to be slaves. Humans were an experiment Mael did while bored. Also, what do you think the Invictus will look like to the Brimorian commander, especially after he made that comment about finding easier fish to fry. At this point we would have to assume he knows that the Kintark are going to smack the living shit out of the Terran Federation.

Cody Strong

It could happen illilith came out of the astral plain with black goo on her leg in a chapter ages ago so if that can come out with them why not a ship lol

Jim lynch

Alyssa and Jade are linked by a two-way telepathic bond, yes. They have been able to communicate with each other for a long while now. It's only after John did the full upgrade of Jade that Jade now has a full two-way telepathic bond with John, like Alyssa and Edraele do. I don't think Jade can communicate with Edraele like Alyssa does, though.

Jedi Khan

yep rest time for me but im parking my browser here so i can hit refresh later when i stumble past on my way to the coffee pot.

good morning 01.30 am I'm sure tef said he was hoping for the 30th its that time where is the next installment lol

jade feeding john; frowny-face...

keen_FlattendHedgeHog

Big Dude....I believe now that with Jade's latest upgrade she & John , Alyssa & Edraele can communicate . I think Jade is still able to funnel her eldritch power thru Alyssa but also might be able to feed John directly . Just my understanding of where it stands now .

bigdawguw65

Didn't Alyssa say to John she missed Jade's eldritch power as she was asleep for the 14 hours when John and the gang was fighting the Kirrix along with the Trankarans? Therefore wasn't Jade bound to Alyssa? Alyssa would telepathically call Jade to clean out a teammate to feed the others as needed with John's spunk! Now that John as upgraded Jade, Jade and Alyssa can communicate to each other as Alyssa and Edraele do right? Or am I confused here? My four farthings!

Big Dude

I can see Tefler setting up the Jehanna scene something like this... He gets the Brimorian shield technology while being alerted that Jehanna is missing. How that shield technology acquisition happens is Tefler's knack of surprise. 1) Faye doesn't see Jehanna on the TFNN News. 2) Her boss calls John 3) Faye notices Port Medea is gone and calls for Jehanna. The other TFNN reporters ask WHAT? Then it gets interesting. A possible scenario: John gets dissed by the Brimorians because they hate the Terrans for what they did at the border. They reject the raw ore on the ship as trade bait. So Alyssa and Irillith pilfer the shields. John says thanks to the Brimorians. While on the way back to Terran space, Dana gets a full John load or two or three and figures out how to improve the shields to FULL POWER PROTECTION and they install this to the two other power sources to keep the Nova Lance power source free. Then they fly into the battle; or John flies to the Kintark home world and Kintarks the Kintark! The Kintark perform an about face and head back to try and take care of the Lion of The Federation!

Big Dude

John, gravity would not be a factor, true, but mass might still be an issue. The bots might not be able to handle a mass that great.

Evan

Tefler: With the bots changing out the Gauss cannons, I would think it would be pretty simple for them to also be able to Do the fixing necessary for the one heavy cannon while they were at it...unless you have some dramatic plans there. At this point, the space walk would actually be easier than a dry-dock visit for such a repair since gravity would no longer be an issue.

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

Another option, is for Faye who pretty much monitors everything. Is to notice that Jehenna has been absent from the news broadcast. And mention it to John. John would then try contacting Jehenna and/or her boss. Everyone keeps assuming there will be a large time delay before Jehenna dissaperance comes to the crew attention. It doesn’t have to drag out for that long and it does not have to be something the crew cannot discover on its own.

MJHSharkbait365

Well, there is no link connecting Jehenna to Alyssa right now, or else Alyssa would already know that Jehenna's in trouble. As Tefler has mentioned in previous comments, it takes 3 doses of John's spunk to link most women to Alyssa. Jade and Niskera are the exceptions, having only one dose. Apparently, they play by different rules according to Tefler, as do the Maliri connected to Edraele, but what those rules are, we don't know.

Jedi Khan

Maybe they'll find headlines from TFNN that she is missing, the head reporter would be worried.

Forbsey

Jedi, I think it will be a line connecting Jehenna and Alyssa and Sukura will be able to see it is not leading to Terra. Also, I think John will try to contact Jehenna and that is when the crew will find out from her work that she has been missing for a while.

Nickcap

I'd love to reply to all your questions! Unfortunately I can't do so without loads of spoilers... :-)

Tefler

Glad you enjoyed the preview Alberto! I'll do my best to make sure I finish the chapter before New Year. :-)

Tefler

No problem!

Tefler

Hopefully it should only be a couple more days. :-)

Tefler

Thanks!

Tefler

Of course, knowing the crew's normal MO, they're probably just going to ride to the rescue and extract Jehenna and the Nymphs by force.

Jedi Khan

Just had a thought. When and if the crew starts looking for Jehenna, is Alyssa familiar enough with Jehenna's mind/presence to be able to track her down without having a mental link? We know that Alyssa can go visit the Ashanath command web at will now without a link, but I wonder if Alyssa can translate how she does that to finding a single, non-psychic individual? If she can, can Alyssa also project her presence into Jehenna's cell so she can have a look around and even talk to Jehenna, maybe even interrogate...er, I mean consult the resident doctor? I have this scene in my head of the guards watching Jehenna in her cell on the CCTV and then suddenly Alyssa's Astral projection pops into the cell for a chat. I can just imagine the double take the guards will do when they see two women in a cell that's only supposed to have one. Or maybe a guard doing rounds spots Alyssa's projection in the cell, but because Alyssa isn't actually there, the cameras don't see her, and the guard's sanity is called into question when he tries to raise the alarm. If Alyssa can control her inevitable rage after finding Jehenna, I imagine she could have a great deal of devilish fun starting a psychological warfare campaign against the guards and everyone else involved. A few inexplicable accidents/events, maybe a possession or two, some ghostly sightings, and you have the makings of a spirit back from the dead to seek revenge for what was done to it at the lab. And you just know that at a black ops facility like that, there's already going to be whispers among the staff of the place possibly being haunted, so Alyssa's psych ops campaign should be very effective.

Jedi Khan

Good to know. Should make for some nice reading during the New Year's celebrations.

Jedi Khan

I've written 24k words of chapter 97 so far, so I'm hoping to be able to wrap it up in a couple of days. :-)

Tefler

He did, it was when he woke her up

Forbsey

'either got very good' -> 'either gotten very good'

Evan

Tefler, in addition to what you've already received, I have a couple of new ones (I think) for you. "...stroking the sleeping girl's arm." followed by a new line followed by "There's no free medical care..." -- The new line should be a new paragraph, instead. Later in that same paragraph, it says: "S-parks never went into detail..." Did you mean to have a hyphen there? Since it is a line break, it's not clear and looks awkward.

Evan

Did John ever officially restore Edrael's memory regarding Tashana and clear the air, or is that still to come?

ncamferd

Our thoughts are with you

Wookey

You can always be nice to the visiting relatives

Wookey

Any news on part 2? ETA before or after new year? Serious withdrawal issues here. I have to distract myself with cleaning and housekeeping, which isn't going to last forever.

Just give in! You know you want to! *devilish grin*

Jedi Khan

Going through withdrawals here.....read preview and books 1 and 2 and I keep checking Patreon to see if there are any new updates.....Tef type faster......lol

I'm trying my best to wait on the full chapter how much longer until it's done the withdrawal is so severe 😵😵😵😵😵😵😵😥😥😥😥😥

Mark Hall

somehow i missed the link to the font page..man there goes the rest of my evening. hope everyone had a happy holiday and happy new year to you all as i will be leaving the web for the most part come Jan. ( still gonna have smartphone data but that is such a pain compared to 2 desktops side by side and cable interweb.

The naughty kind?

Forbsey

Already read it, it was glorious

Forbsey

Am I the only one wanting more Giant/Giantess content in the Astral Plane?

George41

Tefler thank you for a wonderful Christmas treat a two/fer at that , ebook & thrilling preview to boot .One question though .will John be able to become a giant now or was this only because he was in Alyssa pocket realm . Before he would expand his abilities once Pro-John did something but think this might be different . Also , Jade we have seen her increasing her forms & their size before as John powered her up ,but will she be able to recreate her Dragon in the real world , hope so . A real life . full sized Jade Dragon ...wonderful!! The astral creator of that realm must be wondering just what he pulled into his world about now . I was wondering though , does he live in that realm or just control it and the monsters he populated it with ? One might wonder just where he was from ? Progenitorville ? John never really saw what it looked like , just felt it's abhorrent & inhuman evil.

bigdawguw65

Don't know if the lasers would have worked, even on Alyssa's plane. Faye attacked with lasers on New Eden and it did absolutely nothing.

Ditto

MJHSharkbait365

Just remember that this "half a chapter" is longer than some of the first chapters of this epic.

Truthfully, when the narrative stated lightning breath, my first thought was Godzilla! ... with wings! ROFL!

Anybody else want to vote for Jade's default form as being a dragon? Tigers are cool and all but, man.... dragons!

Dennis Aston

not touching preview waiting for all ch 97

Had a wonderful one! Hope you did as well!

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

I've just been catching up on my emails since I got home. Thank you for all the kind comments, I'm glad you enjoyed the preview and I hope you all had a great Christmas! :-)

Tefler

Does anyone want to stand behind?” stay?

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

Alright, everyone get it out of their system.” You go from 1st person to 3rd in the same sentence. Perhaps it should read, "Alright, everyone get it out of your system.”???

PLRus--Founding member of the TSM F5 club.

I don’t want to admit that I am addicted but I went to sleep on Xmas eve like a kid waiting for Santa and when I heard the notification chime on my phone at 4:10 am on Xmas day I was up to unwrap my present. Thanks tefler, Just what I wanted!!!! Now I cannot wait to welcome the new year with my phone in one hand and a glass on the other.....lol. Happy and safe holidays to everyone.

Endangered Ch. 07 has arrived!!! yay! oh, and thank you very much Tef, loved it. read it twice, that in and of itself is rare for me (in entirety).

keen_FlattendHedgeHog

... Only Tef can turn a half chapter preview into a cliffhanger. /MOAR!

thanks for the preview tef!

Congratulations Tefler, another fantastic chapter. Can hardly wait for part 2. I hope it'll be here soon. Keep up the great work.

Congrats!!

ETNSosa

Congratulations Tefler

Wookey

Tefler could easily be throwing a wrench by letting the attack happen and John being blamed for it and solving it by having the other Alien counterparts reveal the planned alliance (after John has completed it)

Forbsey

Maybe an Astral Fortress?

Forbsey

So enjoy seeing them realize their real power taking the battles where they need to go...always a delight to see what you come up with next.

Arrowglass

A very relaxing read after becoming food comatose yesterday. And congrats, just 4 more for 1500 followers, an amazing achievement

*maybe* requests for data coming from Malari space are treated differently than from TFed com networks, resulting in a lack of insight. This seems like a stretch, but given how paranoid TFed is, it's not unreasonable for them to limit access to their network from Malari origin. Perhaps when they cross the border into Bromian space, that'll all change in an instant?

Dennis Banfield

Great partial Chapter Tefler. I have a question on the timeline. At the end of this partial chapter they are nearing the boarder of Brimorian space. As best I can decipher it has been 2 1/2 days since the ambush at Iota Leonis system. If I was a Kintark commander I would want to surprise the Terrans and get to Terra as soon as possible. If I recall it took the Terran fleet in the past about 3 days. That doesn't leave much time for John to come to the rescue. I know John got distracted a bit. Regards

Cignal

Oh and Tefler lovely partial chapter thank you. I read this as my grandson was being born. Nathaniel.

Grimlakin

The was awesome. Now all we need to do is for Dana to make a super ship in the ether, John to tear a hole and Dana to fly it out. Boom instant super ship. ;)

Grimlakin

Outstanding chapter. Definitely enjoyed the departure from Sci-fi to a more Fantasy type setting. Would be very interesting to see what would happen if they go to the Astral again. Now that they have positive confirmation of "the only limitation is your imagination". I would love to see what Dana could do if she really cut loose. Was almost a bit disappointed she didn't shoot fireballs out of her eyes ;-p

VycronDyz

Bravo Telfer that was one bad ass scene, fuck you astral monsters!

rich ed

Merry Christmas to all you 3SM fans I hope you all prosper in 2018.

Jim lynch

Are you from Vulcan by any chance :-)

Jim lynch

Merry Christmas from Yorkshire England

Jim lynch

Merry Christmas Tef. Hope your day was as good as mine

Mick Peaper

Now that was a battle quite different from the normal battles but just as good in my opinion. Why didn’t any of them imagine two of those massive beam lasers as guns that would have kicked ass lol. I’m so looking forward to the next instalment please let us have it as a New Year’s Eve gift if your not too busy over Xmas to write. P.s. thank you for the best gift I wanted this Christmas tefler.

Jim lynch

Merry Christmas to you and yours. Thank you for the preview.

Merry Christmas to you too, Tef!

Thanks for preview. Merry Xmas to all TSM fans

Merry Christmas and thank you for the present.

Steven Allen

Tefler, I hope you and yours are having a very Merry Christmas. Thank you for the preview, and for finally kicking some ass in the Astral plane! So, I know Faye has been a bit preoccupied with getting her new body and all... But she was she not also tasked with monitoring TFed networks? Surely something as abrupt as pulling all fleets back to Terra should have, at least, made her ask John about it. I would think.

Nice to see some great action again. I always enjoy Jade going Godzilla. I can imagine the next 3 to 5 chapters will be full of great action. One question - do you think we will be able to see "Giant John" in the real world? If Jade can do it why can't John? Everyone else in the astral plane was using same skills out of it except maybe Dana. I vote yes!

Mark P

You are a Gentleman and a Scholar, Happy Holidays to You and Your Family! May you live and prosper!

Roy Meyer

Thanks Merry Christmas and a Happy New year to you and yours looking forward to seeing where the story goes from here

wildcat 1986

I was wondering when Jade was going to start busting out mythical creatures. Thanks for the Christmas present, and Merry Christmas!

Yes to that!

Very well put. I liked it a lot!

WOW! Double wow!! This chapter is above your normal standards! I understand about the special font and it was a really nice touch in making your point. Merry Christmas to you and yours. My wife, while I was reading this tease on Ch. 97 purchased the second book for me. What a Xmas! A new chapter and a new book! Has your wife decided her parents can read all of this wonderful work of yours? (He he!) You know Mama wants a new dress and shoes so maybe you shouldn't take more than a couple of days off.

Thank you, Tefler. I wish the same for yourself and your family.

Evan

Fk yeah taste Johns blade

Forbsey

I would also like to get an idea of how much time had elapsed in this section. The last chapter ended at 10 pm, right? And according to Alyssa, they'd arrive at Brimor at 8:13 am the next morning. Maybe John can glance at the clock in the next section.

Jedi Khan

Eh, it's not bad. I can think of better: a full chapter! ;-)

Jedi Khan

The best Christmas present - thanks

Kim Biel-Nielsen

Well, that was certainly a fun read. However, a question has come up: what is Faye's perspective on what happened? She's sitting right there watching the group in the bedroom, and since we know that physical effects carry over, did Faye see anything?

Jedi Khan

Also, HAPPY HO HO, may you HO HO BE HAPPY!!!!!!

Muledrvr

A battling we go, a battling we go, hey ho the psychic plane, a battling we will go..... Awesome half chapter.

Muledrvr

Merry Christmas from Florida!

Big Dude

Fantastic, almost reads as a standalone special, I loved it :) Merry Christmas, hope everyone gets what they want (or maybe 'deserve' is a better word in the case of certain astral horrors...)

SpamSpamBacon&Spam

Thanks Tef, i'll read it later. Have a Merry Crimbo

doofus67

Merry Christmas

Richard de Leeuw

I'll be away for a couple of days, but I hope you enjoy the preview! Merry Christmas!

Tefler

Her robotic body is a reproduction of her holographic one. She's always been 5' tall since she got the Nexus server.

Tefler

Okay, this might be a stupid question, but why doesn’t Faye have the Progenitor body shape?!? I’d always assumed that she did, at least since her upgrade to human size dimensions! If nothing else, Faye’s infatuated with John, so I can think of no conceivable reason why she wouldn’t adopt the body type she KNOWS he loves. The body type every other girl that John’s committed to (which she wants for herself), as been transformed into. Unless she’s planning on slowly transforming like a real girl (no that that makes much sense, what with the time it took Dana to make her body in the first place)?!?

7OO Tnega Terces

Outstanding! Tefler, I salute you.

Thx Tefler

Forbsey

i installed the font then downloaded the preview and did a quick check through the chapter and he does use the font in a few places

Awesome thanks! This plus Doctor Who make it a great Christmas.

yay

Muledrvr

Merry Christmas Jedi and to all of us addicted to FSM.

Chris

What's with the suggestion to install a font? By the way, Merry Christmas all!

Jedi Khan

Damnit, 4th

Third

Viktor Hauge

Third

Anthony Kester

Second, and I haven't even finished chapter 11 of the ebook yet!

Jedi Khan

YAY!

Amathew2