Argh! I missed your return. :(

Well, I'll catch up right now, one chapter right after the other...

"Robinson shuddered at the memory, the last time he had been under fire." Is the second part of this sentence really necessary? We already know that Robinson has been a desk jockey since Freya.

"The plan had been sound, but circumstances had seemingly compelled the President [...]" Gr. Politicians. I hope those circumstances were damn good. Here's hoping the President won't make such a mistake again when a time-critical op comes up.

"[...] oblivious to the nasty look that his XO (who was also present) shot him." Heh heh, jealousy again...

"[...] before she had been killed on the Amazons' first mission." I'd put a period after "killed" and erase the rest - the reader already knows that Domingo died on the Amazons' first mission.

"Honestly, I'm now more concerned about the men and women who will die if we choose to stay." Curious. Prothero seems unusually... mellow, considering his previous bulldog attitude. I understand that the size of the enemy fleet might make even him cautious, but even so I would have expected him to be more aggressive.

The action is rising... the tension can be tasted in the air... or vacuum of space whatever. Will the forces or arcadia prevail? read the next exciting chapter to find out!

I could be an announcer. Anyway good chapter. Coming up to a nice battle I hope. It's been to long since the amazons have flown. Cant wait to read.

Another good chapter. I liked seeing Alvin have to put his foot down and get across that they're all on the same side. Although nothing too much really happened this chapter, i was wondering, when is that annoying senator burgess coming back into the picture? Bring on the ass-kicking. I just hope Alvin doesn't lose too many...

great story so far keep writing like the romances but do put chip wiht his XO it just seems to work better that way

or i think so :) keep wriitng

Uh oh. They do have a problem there. Let's hope the Amazonians can step it up. Oh and I also hope you dont kill off anymore of them. Even the bad ones don't deserve it.

something seems to be wrong with my author alert, cause i didn't know you'd updated until i decided to do an author alert the simple way. on to my review

kick ass chapter as always. i'm just really really interested in seeing how everything is going to play out. i mean, now there's dieron to deal with and then what will be next? a charge on the soyuzan capitol? really anxious about seeing where that ends up.

Glad Rion Armada is getting a little more "screen time"... that guy is so kick ass. Sounds like one of those against odds kind of battles that's gonna test the mettle of our heroes is coming up.

Keep up the kick ass work.

M.C.

Excellent stuff; you must update soon!

~He Who Walks On All Fours

"Its date with destiny" eh? Sounds melodramatic... Here's hoping that that destiny doesn't involve being blown to scrap by Surorov's forces. It would be an even greater loss considering that the Soyuzans can absorb such losses much easier than the Arcadians.

Shouldn't the Amazons be flying CAP while the Dark Dreams are doing ground support sorties? The Amazons are certainly qualified for that, but it sounds like they've been doing nothing but cool their heels since the New Dawn mission.

I understand Alvin's reluctance to let his people perform ground support missions, but couldn't he at least allow Hankei to begin training them for such? Simulator practice wouldn't hurt anyone, and the Amazons would get the feeling they're doing something, even if they don't get the chance to use those skills on Dieron.

Damn. Staci has a gift for popping up at the worst moment for Alvin.

"It was almost as if she was acting like an overprotective mother, seeing Staci as some sort of bad influence on him." lol The word is "jealousy", Alvin.

Glad to see that jaygee Norbert managed to land his plane safely. ;)

Uh-oh. Sounds like the mood has been deteriorating between the Amazons and the Dark Dreams. I wouldn't be surprised if Alvin and Rion soon had to deal with a fight... Here's hoping Rion will got talk to Alvin about the trouble brewing between their squadrons before it gets out of hand.

on its own this chapter is bad for its lack of action, butg since the last two chapters were almost nin stop i think you are allowed to get away with it. I really cannot wait until the Amazons fly again. However if one pilot dies each flight it might not be such a good idea. Can't wait to see how it works out.

I have to admit I'm a bit surprised at the weapons used by the infantry on both sides - they seem to be using contemporary tech-level weapons. I hadn't noticed that before. I think nearly all this chapter could fit into a novel set in 2003, and no one would notice. Couldn't they have a few laser rifles and pistols, or use some advanced equipment, to show this is a sci-fi setting?

Guderian CEVs? I thought you'd mentioned they were main battle tanks. Or are Guderians multi-purpose tanks, able to switch from one version to another?

Anyway, this chapter was entertaining as usual, but it's not as fun as the Amazon chapters.

Sorry I haven't reviewed in a while, been following the story, I swear. I love it so far; no doubt you'll keep up the good work.

Regarding GUTB's comments: The kind of detail he describes would make the story read more like Jane's Fighting Ships than, well, a story. Daranak's suggestion to include a technical chapter or two at the end was a good one, if you're so inclined.

Also, some of your characters are kind of shallow and similar, but hell, *all* of Tom Clancy's characters are shallow and similar, and most of John Ringo's are too, so you're in good company:)

Keep up the good work!

~He Who Walks On All Fours

Hey man, sorry i haven't reviewed in a while. I've been following along with every plot twist. I really wanna see how Alvin is gonna subdue the tension between himself, Staci and Satoshi. (There I go again, stressing over the romantic elements in a Sci-fi story.) Maybe you could have Rion run some interference?

I thought the segment where Alvin and the Lieutenant (i think he was a lieutenant) from Dark Dreams looked in horror at the floating bodies. I thought that was really well written and conveyed a sense of the horrors of war as Danarak said.

Personally, I'd like to see a little more Rion, but your story still kicks major ass.

M.C.

Heh, I like this new Norbert character. ;-)

Good portrayal of the horrors of war with the description of the carnage of the Soyuzan convoy. The wrecked ships, the bodies - it really drives that point home, the way just a statistic wouldn't (in fact, Surorov later learning the scope of the disaster only reinforces the horror).

I wonder why Satoshi moved away so quickly. Maybe she was uneasy at the sight of Alvin and Staci together.

Ouch. The Soyuzans might now manage to strike back - and the Arcadians can't absorb the losses like their opponents. Here's hoping the Arcadians get wind of Surorov's intent (I have a feeling they will and Task Force Arrow will be the only force near enough to answer in time).

GUTB: You make interesting points, but IMHO adding capability, doctrine, etc. would bog down the tale far too much. I can think of several military sci-fi novels that I began to read then abandoned because the author was too into the technical side of things - one of the reasons I really like THC is because it moves at a smooth pace. I don't think I would read it if half or more of each chapter consisted of the technical description of this or that ship. I trust Deathworm to know that stuff well enough to give an accurate portrayal of the ships, and the amount of technical detail he currently includes in his chapters is quite sufficient.

I suppose Deathworm could add a separate chapter at the end of the story including the details you'd like to see.

As to your mention that the characters have flat personalities, I say you should let Deathworm develop them at least a few more chapters before making such a definitive and derogatory judgement. He has a large cast that keeps growing and can only put so much character development in an individual chapter.

All in all I'm satisfied with the pace of the characters' development so far, and content to wait for more.

Well, both GUTB and Freedomfighter have valid points though Freedomfighter, your method of 'defending' this work is a little disturbing. But I am glad too see people in the world feeling so strongly about serving their country. Well, let's not turn this reviews page into an all-out war zone, ok?

Anyway, Daranak! Thanks for being a faithful reader. And I must say, your loads of questions have certainly been very stimulating. It's a real joy helping you with your work. Yep, just had to say it for all to see. Keep the faith and keep on writing.

To hell with force dispositions, I say. War is war. Does it really matter how many William Tells the Arcadians have? Does it matter how many men died when a turret was blown away? This is a goddamn story, not a freaking battle report.

If u want all the numbers and orders of battle, GUTB, you ought to get off that butt of yours and go join the military instead of whining. Then you can go worry about how many cans of baked beans the Navy needs a day, or how many bullets a battalion carries into action. All that while actually serving your country.

Anyway, this is a fabulous story, Deathworm! The scale is truly mind-boggling so dun try to bog us down with all the details! Keep it up.