Author Check-in 8/12/25

Hey everyone! i'm realizing that I haven't done a regular update here in a while and I'd like to get back into that habit.

So for right now, chapter 10 is definitely going to be the last chapter of book 1. I will be getting started on book 2 as soon as possible. There shouldn't be much of a delay in between, as I want to keep up the pace I've had for the last year or so.

Chapter 10 right now is at about 11k word count wise and it is half-ish done.

In reality, it could probably be broken up into two chapters pacing wise, but that would just make two really short chapters, so I'm not going to bother.

Right now, the outline breaks up into an action scene that caps off some of the loose ends from chapter 1. You'll very quickly meet two new characters and at least one of them will be recurring from now on. I haven't decided on the other. They're both people from Carter's past.

The second half of the chapter is the fallout from the first and the bulk of it will be a talk with your RO choice. If you've chosen to enter a relationship with either R or Z, then that will be the conversation you have. I'd offer to give you guys a choice between that and a convo with Carter, but the last scene with regards to Z and R does have some significance to your romance (especially Z's scene), so it's necessary.

Those who haven't chosen an LI yet, will have a choice between Carter and the Kestrel. The Kestrel's scene might include their a lock in moment for their romance arc, I haven't fully settled on that. I'll give you guys a heads up if that turns out to be the case.

Right now I have the beginning of the chapter and R's path finished and I'm about half way into Z's. I've never really thought of this before, but I did realize the other day that Z's arc will need a few trigger warnings for mental and physical abuse and a few other things. None of it will be very graphic, but it is core to Z's background.

Anyway, I have tomorrow off, so I will be very busy writing.

Thanks for reading! Bye bye