Chapter 14, 15

"Staying cautiously in his spot, Bask soon gave in to trying to listen in on the stories exchanged around the fire. It didn’t work; he was too far away. Why did he care so much about the words being said over there? He knew they couldn’t be important; even from the tone he could tell that. But something pulled him, there was something critically important being discussed, he felt, something he couldn’t put his finger on, like the insects hiding in the shadows over here."

Chapters 14 and 15 finished. Not much to say, except summer is unfortunately soon over. I wish I had more time, but I'm going to have to work at the slow school-year pace to finish this book.

200 pages

" Although, I was having a significant degree of trouble justifying this one. It was just that the heavily armed walker in front of me didn’t look like a tool for helping mankind. Just think of it as a scientific instrument, is what I told myself, eventually resolving the problem. This device will help you learn incredible things.
And that was that."

Over halfway there, while it looks like I won't finish drafting this summer. A pity. Lots of littler chapters recently, different things going on at once, time for some character exposition, development, bonding. Good stuff.

13 Chapters

"Great. I leaned my head against the rock I was tied to and let the heat fry me. If I’d been those Fire villagers, I’d a’been trying anything to appease that mountain spirit, too. I could fight a dozen more Rock Kami and still not get enough experience points to be able to beat that thing. “Gimme’ a break!” I yelled. “Just, c’mon! This is what I get for killing one monster?” I thought about Bask. He always was right.
Rose was thrashing around trying to break the ropes. “I hate you, Bask!” she cried. “I hate you I hate you I hate you Ro-yaru!” A few folks stared at us. If they were payin’ any attention to what we were saying at this point, they didn’t care."

Almost 200 pages. It's nice things are starting to get more serious for Jack; I've had some great ideas for things that will catch up with him later and really make it tough. But at that point in the story the reader'll be invested, so he can be, heck, suicidally miserable without causing too much trouble. Certainly a transformative experience. Must be strong for a 12-year old...

Chapter 9 (10)

"Was morning. Sun still rise. Yay-yay looked for anybody, scary, friendly, big, small. Nobody! So she slip out of the rope tied on her and look over edges of metal table. Hoped men wouldn’t be mad she leave ropes. Wanted her to stay. Ktchue-ktchue-ktchue!"

""...And I don’t want anyone taking revenge for me. I’m a Ranger!”
Bask sneered. “This has nothing to do with you. I’ll take revenge for me, and when I feel like it.”
“You don’t care abut being a Ranger!”
“Keeping the peace? No. That’s an empty phrase for featherheaded fools.”
“I don’t think so.”
“You? Really? I wouldn’t have thought it.”
A sorta’ side door popped open on that helicopter, and five guys with pretty mean looking guns jumped out onto the plaza. Just me, or was it getting a little crowded up here?
They marched towards us all menacingly; Bask leveled a business end of his staff at ‘em. “Come and get it, dogs.”

I've finished the equivalent of chapter 10 just now. The big city story is finally over; now I move people into the wilderness for a good long time.