Shift Comments Thread

[Andromeda]

This is a much better time for posting, yeah, I'm doing pretty good today as well fortunately. Chapter 171 is now available. The pacing slowed down a bit after everything that happened. I needed to do a little relaxing, things are still pretty tense, but the aftermath is only beginning. I have quite a number of things to address and this chapter begins doing that.

I've already touched on it in the last chapter and other chapters, but this one does end up bring things a little more to the front. The chaos that was caused. There's still some things I need to get to in later chapters, but the consequences of the fighting will continue to be shown and have lasting affects on people. It'll end up being the motivating factor for some.

I also finally explain what Chiharu was carrying and what Seiji had to do. I don't really think that it was much of a surprise, but it needed to be addressed. It will only end up making the situation more complicated in the future having one of the enemy with them. Though Nerine is going to be an interesting case. I've already got things planned for her.

The next chapter is going to focus more of some heavier matters that affect the group. So things will get pretty serious again. Eventually, I manage to get back to some more later matters. I'll probably toss in a couple of jokes to break up with is otherwise going to be some pretty dramatic issues. The first half of the aftermath chapters will probably end in about a month and I'll turn back to Team Yuki and their focus.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A little later than I planned, but still a pretty good time. Chapter 172 now available! This is a pretty heavy chapter and one that starts to confront matters very directly, rather than being round about in the past. All things said, it is very serious chapter with very little light moments, which only amounts to some good banter between Fumiko and Seiji.

I got to build a little more on Seiji's character with the conversation. Seiji's perceived as dumb, but he is actually pretty aware socially. He just doesn't have a clue when it comes to strategy or academics. But it has been seen several times in the past that Seiji is aware of how to interact and notice things when with others.

So I had a lot of fun with the dialogue between them. I really could get some things out in the air and drop some of the subtly. But it still manages to bring in the very heavy elements that both of them are dealing with. It is something easily overlooked. They were fighting in situations where their opponents could not be reasoned with and would never agree with them and in some cases really wanted blood. Not to mention that their fights had greater impacts than just with them. Everything that they have going on actually weighs more being in a foreign land and disrupting things.

I end coming back to Simonides and Demosthenes. I raise the bar and the threat level going into the reason of the arc. Everything is going to be different for them going forward. It is going to make the coming fights more increasing and deadly.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Back to a better and preferred time for getting these posted. Chapter 173 is now available for your reading pleasure. As I led in the previous chapter, this one focused on Chiharu and her problems. It also gave me the time to address somethings I never bothered explaining the previous fights. Plus I round out the conversation that left a pretty big cliffhanger.

Since I do so love writing stuff about Chiharu I ended up spending most of the chapter on her. The important things were acknowledging some strange things that happened in the two fights she had. As is usual and something that is deliberate, I avoid as often as possible, having the characters stopping to chat about how their powers function. I prefer to let their actions explain it and when necessary have some internal dialogue to answer questions. Otherwise, I leave things up to the reader to figure out. Then if I feel that it is really confusing or important, I'll explain it later. Such is the case with Chiharu, she did a couple of strange things that I gave no answers or even much of a hint on what happened. So I wanted to get back to them.

This is important for another reason as well. As I've been showing with everyone, their powers are continuing to evolve. This is a pretty standard trope for fighting series anyway, but all of the fighting that they are going through is quickly evolving their powers as a far faster rate than they expect, especially Chiharu. So being able to sit down and face it is good. Chiharu still has a lot of stuff that she has available to her, but is completely unknown to her. If she was as well verse in the tropes like Yuki, she would actually be even more powerful, but she doesn't know any of them. She is a realist and very well grounded in reality, unlike Yuki. So she would never think of what else she can do. So it is going to be fun and trying for Chiharu to get her to use the entire arsenal she had. The same goes for Seiji, who actually resists and very much despises the powers Yuki gave him.

The last part of the chapter focuses on Simonides. I've been building him up as a relateable antagonist and someone that you even sort of want to win. He is a caring man that looks out for his men and only wants to keep the peace. The initial representation of Atlantis is that they are evil and everyone that Yuki is fighting are the bad guys. However, I continue to display that as being nowhere near the case. It even makes you question who is in the wrong here, Yuki is storming into their land and spreading chaos. And then I have Demosthenes handing down orders to kill Ayumi/Eudokia. Leaving Simonides in a terrible position. Who is the villain and who is the bad guys. I do wonder what people think of Demosthenes since I've created two different images of him. He looks like a manipulative villain, but also someone that is determined and maybe even kind.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

I'm managing to keep up on my pacing, makes me glad. Anyway, Chapter 174 is now available. This is leaves most of the focus on Simonides and the Atlanteans with their problems. It is the setup for the things to come. There are still some things to settle before their part in the story comes to an end.

I worked on trying to keep the running over old ground to a minimum, but I wanted to have the discussion about Yuki and his friends with their powers among them. It is only a small part of the chapter, so it is not too bad. But it does give Simonides everything he needs and plants things for the future fight that is pretty easy to see coming at this point. So this meeting gives a sense of how dangerous the next fight is going to be since they understand them better. So I'm going to be having some fun with the things to come.

I end with a little bit of some lighter mood, which is sorely needed at this point. Make fun of Seiji a little, make some strong implications that he's found himself a girlfriend and let the teasing ensue. The aftermath chapters are coming to a close. I did not cover everything I wanted, but I found that I am going to be rolling some of the things into future chapters. So it is not a big deal. I highlighted the issues, but they won't be resolved yet. Since the aftermath is coming to an end, I'll be switch back to Team Yuki and his hijinks. So you can look forward to that and the story behind Ayumi soon as well.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Dearly beloved, we're gathered here today to give final rest and peace to the departed. They were always there for us keeping things from going too far. They always made sure there was a clear line between reality and fiction. Without you we would all be lost in the myriad of illusions. We put you to rest good friend to all, The Fourth Wall.

Yeah, I sort of didn't just lean on it or put a hole in it this time. I kind of blew the thing to kingdom come and back again. Poor thing is never going to be the same again. Still it was a fun introduction to the chapter and very much in the spirit of Yuki. Considering that is has actually been 50 chapters, still don't feel like it though. I totally didn't plan on it for that long. I spent an entire year writing the rescue, crazy, huh? Well it is over and we're back to Team Yuki! Chapter 175 is now available! RIP Fourth Wall!

So yeah, this chapter starts out with a bang on the comedy. I felt with everything that was so serious I really needed to light the mood a little. Yuki is always good for that, as he has a tendency to break the fourth wall more times than anyone else, not that the others do not have their moments. But with him being pretty genre savvy, it only makes sense. However, it doesn't really last for long does it?

Vangelis is already at the cliffhanger and we'll be getting back to some fighting again. I did promise it. And since there is only five of them and four of the Yuki's group it won't last for a long time like the rescue. I'm planning probably 2 or 3 chapters per fight and it'll be over. It is important, but not so important that I'm going to drop a lot of time into the fights. There are some necessary things to happen here to move forward some plot elements to the next stage, but then I'll be ending the fights and moving on to some plot developments and character developments. The primary being the development of Ayumi. I'll be getting to her story in this chunk of chapters with Yuki before I jump back to Yumi. I'm hoping, but I doubt it will work out like it, but the plan is to get the sub-arc finished in the next 50 chapters and move on to the next sub-arc. The next sub-arc is going to be largely fighting and Ayumi related stuff. So I don't believe it'll be as long as the current sub-arc. I'm guessing the next sub-arc will probably be like 70-80 chapters in length. The current sub-arc is already in that range and probably won't conclude until it is like 130-140 chapters. Then I'll finish up the aftermath sub-arc and the second arc will be over. So if I'm good at predicting, which for writing I'm not, then in about 140-150 chapters the second arc will be over. It is fortunate that the third arc is not as long, probably half the length or less.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A little earlier today, but not as much fighting this chapter. Chapter 176 is now available. It continues to bring the lighter tone for the moment, but it is clear that things are changing. I thought I was going to get to the fighting this chapter, but I was having a little too much fun with Yuki and company. I haven't had Yuki in a while and he is so much fun. It is very easy to get into some fun banter when I have him involved.

There is not a lot of reveals going on, but it is more about the building tension in spite of the lighter tone. Yuki sets a good mood with Vangelis, even though he is clearly a very bad person, Yuki can still manage to have a fun conversation with him. As long as the opponent isn't too serious, Yuki is likely going to have some pretty lively banter. It is just in his nature due to his delinquent days combined with his genre savvy nature, two really bad combinations.

I do get more chances to show off Yuki's intelligence though. This is something I continue to look for chances to do, to show him as being someone that is different from the usual head strong main characters. He ends up leaving those aspects to others. Though Yuki can be head strong about some things, he tends to be a more intelligent fighter.

I get to have Ayumi admit to things that were already known by the other group. This is the ground for pushing forward on her back story in the future. So I'm getting the pieces setup now so that I can roll into it later.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Got a little distracted by looking at other Shift stuff, but anyway, Chapter 177 is now available. This chapter finally makes good on actually delivering some action and setting things up for the rest of the chapters to come. It also addresses the same issue I always have to address when I'm dealing with Saki, not to mention the more practical aspects of just ignoring the fight.

Because Saki is the most pragmatic of the group, she does not want to deal with any unnecessary fighting. Which makes her even worse for me as a writer, since I gave her powers that make it very easy for her to actually carry out what she wants. And I tend to let her do that to an extent. However, I had to have a proper fight this time with everyone so I had to make sure to put her in her place. So I did the cheapest thing someone with said powers could do. Remove the air so that she could not breath and completely take her out. It is a pretty powerful statement, considering she has been one shotting everyone up to this point. But I've already been explore the flaws that exist in their powers and how people with real powers and people with reality bending powers interact in terrible and complicated manners.

I do manage to end the chapter on some good cliffhangers to cleanly put the bad guys on the side of being worthy opponents for those that they fighting. Plus I put Yuki back in the serious mode, so I'm going to be doing some fun things with him making look really cool in the fight. He's got too much power and he can take advantage of that to look very impressive.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Running a little late on this, but you can blame it on Zero Escape. >.> Such an addicting game. Anyway, Chapter 178 is now available. This one focuses on Saki, I already decided in the previous chapter that the stuff I set up I wanted to look at her first. There are a few things I want to play with her. So I went with her first.

Saki as always is a difficult one to motivate and deal with. She'll be easier in future arcs, because I'm not dealing with the same issues here. But Saki as I repeatedly said it a little broken when fighting against the MPs. So I've had to do specific things to make it so that she is not so broken. All of her scenes are very deliberately planned and set up to restrict the power she wields.

Kallias ended up being a little darker than I planned, but it still is good. Because I'm working on Saki and character development for her. So having these moments will be good for her. I believe I showed it off before, but I did end up showcasing more specifically, another aspect of their powers. Which is always good to do when I get the chance. I did have to remember a couple functions about the field though, since I almost let narrative style take priority over reality. I remembered that all of the water on Saki was part of his field. So when she left the field, she was dry again. It's a weird thing. In this specific chapter she is actually wet because of what I reveal. The last chapter she blew so far past him though, she would be dry.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

I ran afoul a few things. It delayed me quite a bit, but I was able to finish at least. Chapter 179 is now up. Saki's fight with Kallias continues to run its course. This one is the fight I planned to be a little on the longer said as I came up with something for Saki. Plus, she's been needing a real fight for quite some time. The last time she actually fought for real was over 150 chapters ago against the Plant Assassin. So she is overdue for a good fight, especially since her nature is to pummel things quickly.

Saki certainly makes things difficult. She is a lot like Seiji in many ways, though don't let her hear me saying that. However, unlike Seiji, where he will thrive in a fight and want to enjoy it, Saki does not care about any of that. Seiji has a sort of gentlemanly fair sportsmanship about fighting. He wants to enjoy it, he hates to lose, but he hates cheaters more than that. Saki only wants to end the fighting quickly. Her nature is to see the conflict ended before it can get out of hand. This comes from her nature of wanting to protect Yuki after he protected her so many times. So she makes sure things don't get crazy by ending things quickly. She also just doesn't have any enjoyment for fighting. She only learned to defend herself so that she didn't need Yuki to protect her. She didn't do it to actually win any fights. However, because of her nature she ended up learning quite well how to do just that.

I am doing a slow ramp on up the intensity for this fight because it is longer battle. So there is no need to jump into the thick of it immediately. Plus Kallias, like the others, really wants something that they'll remember. They have been stuck unable to use their powers in any real capacity for their whole lives. The only time that they can do anything with them is in capture people that won't put up much of a fight anyway. So this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to actually have a fight and truly test themselves. He ends up looking more evil than he actually is about the whole thing. The reality is a little different.

But I have started to hint and build up to more developments on Saki. The next chapter will end up expanding on what I started here. So you'll get to see a young Saki once again. And I'm going to guess the fight will conclude in another two or three chapters.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

I hit the seven page for the thread on the story! Means that I hit chapter 180 now, it is up and available. I'm a little behind, but it is still Sunday, so I'm all good. This chapter remains Saki focused, but I started going into her flashback. It ended up staying around one area longer than I thought, but it seemed worth the time. It worked on the relationship between her and her mother, which was often viewed as something closer to being antagonistic at times considering that most of the time with Saki's mother is after the rift developed between the two families.

So being able to show Saki's mother in a little kinder light is welcome. The whole flashback is certainly overly dramatic, but hey drama is fun. ^^ I make a pretty big deal out of Saki's hair cutting, which before was considered more of a footnote in the last flashback. But it was used as her resolve and considering this fight is about showing Saki's resolve it was rather important to come back to it. Saki has a pretty hard iron will about doing things in her current state, but I needed to show how she got there. This is the first steps she takes. Where she is still wavering and hasn't changed. It is the last signs of the old Saki and the door opening on the new Saki. So it was a very important moment in her life. Dramatic, yup, important even more so.

I do still manage to keep the fight going during the flashback as it help to cover up a little bit of something redundant. I'll be continuing the flashback into the next chapter as well. Since I still have to reach the points I brought up in the previous chapter. Those will be just as important as they show the character that Saki became. Plus it will show the adversity she faced in reaching her goals.

For those that remember, I did actually pull up the old lines from the previous chapters in the My Brother's Keeper Sub-Arc for the start of this flashback. So it is in a way a continuation of that old flashback while expanding on it greatly. So it is a fun little continuity nod for those paying attention.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Chapter 181 is now up for reading. The chapter continues as promised Saki's little flashback tale. It ended up changing a little while I wrote it. I realized by the end the point I wanted to make and so I changed things to fit with that rather than force something else. It made more sense this way.

The whole fight with Saki has been her struggling both with her unwillingness to actually indulge in the sort of fight that Kallias wishes, but resisting him. And showing the strength of her resolve to do what she wants when you sets out to do something. The next coming chapter will bring all of that to a head. Saki will have to face it and find a way to deal with Kallias. I've dealt a bit with the back story of Saki. Her commonality ends up being that she suffers from heavy prejudice as a child for being Japanese-American. It is an important part of who she is and the strength she created to stand on her own. She puts on a brave face while internally dealing with all of the hate directed at her. So she ends up being far more complicated. I would have like more time to fully flesh it out, but the flashback was getting too long anyway.

I'm going to be working to resolve the fight in the next chapter. I've got some stuff in sort of Saki and the whole fight should be pretty heavy on the action all around. So things will go out with a pretty big bang.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Chapter 182 is now up! Thus ends Saki's fight. I think it would have been pretty easy to drag it out to another chapter, but I don't think it was necessary. This one is pretty packed full of things happening, but the fight did not prolonged any further. The best problem I have to concern myself with in these sorts of fights is that the MP users have a limited combat time based on their mental facilities. So it is very easy for them to pass out if they go too far too quickly.

Saki got to show off some new moves which is nice. The fight is also the start of her evolving and improving her powers, it is not going to be clear what I'm talking about now. But I'll be putting in little pieces into her upcoming fights to continue to hint at where she will eventually go with her powers. And because I felt like with Saki was it was sort fitting, I put in a DBZ joke. Yuki remains the joke bringer in these cases, inserting himself into the scene.

I'll be shifting over Haruo's fight next since he has not been seen or almost heard from in like a hundred chapters. Yeah, he's always there, but he is just too anti-social right now. Fortunately, the fight will start to work on fixing and even addressing the reasons that he came, as obvious as it is to anyone. Still Haruo will be an enjoyable fight. Since he's not Saki either, the fight will be better balanced. ^^;

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Chapter 183 is now available for reading! As promised, this chapter starts the Haruo fight with Ligeia. Using Haruo made me remember one of the more difficult aspects of him. He's hard to motivate. Then I remember he's actually more like Saki than I realized. He's got no reason to fight, while she's got no reason to drag out a fight. Still I make it work, funny that I remember these facts when I start writing him as though it is the most natural thing, only to forget them until the right moment. Guess it means that I understand him.

Anyway, when I realized he was difficult to motivate I also found that he was easier to motivate. He made a fairly rash decision in going with Yuki. However, he doesn't know why it happened fully. He's made some excuses, but he understands that and is trying to figure it out. So it is good time to start looking at that.

It is hard for me know how long this fight is going to be at the moment. I want to explore things with Haruo, but I'm also feeling like doing a little with Ligeia as well. I get the feeling like it is going to be a 5 chapter deal. However, Ligeia is very different from Kallias. They are both driven by the same urge of wanting to test themselves, but they go about things differently. Ligeia despite how she presents herself here, is actually very lazy and bored. However, bored is a common for everyone, they want something to change their boredom. So I'll be exploring that with Ligeia. It is something I wanted to look at since you have all of these people that have super powers, but don't really get to do anything with them most of the time. Unlike other settings with super powers, they don't really have any real enemy to fight. So there is nothing to challenge them or to put them to real use. So they are left with nothing to do and feeling wasted all the time. It is a important aspect for them. How each person handles it is shown, but they all share the same thing in common. Yuki's invasion has them excited because something is happening. They haven't had a real fight or danger since the rebellion, bullying aside. And as shown, some are more desperate about it than others.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Back on schedule with the timing, chapter 184 is now available. Switching points of view, this chapter solely focuses on Ligeia and does not give Haruo view of the fight at all. Considering, his more silent nature it is not a bad thing. He's not going to be talking to her anyway.

This is a mix of character development and action. I've already gone over a number of times with past fights how the MP users are actually very excited about their chance to fight someone. They've been always doing the same thing and stuck in it until they die. However, I never really got to go too much into the details of an everyday life. I skip out on a lot of things, since Ligeia doesn't do anything. She's very lazy. But she did at least explain how things work and why she's so bored and wanted to fight.

Though like any sort of excitement that bring danger, you start to question why you're breaking from your routine of safe pattern for something dangerous. The moment Ligeia felt her life in danger she questioned it. She's not as bad as Kallias or Vangelis, she's just a bored person that wanted a chance to do something else, but never motivated enough to actually try. I like her a fair bit.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A touch on the slower side today, but it is still here. Chapter 185 now up for reading! This chapter returns a more balanced focus on both characters. Haruo gets a little more time than Ligeia, but it evened out now. I even rewrote the last few paragraphs of the last chapter from his point of view as a matter of point on how things changed. It is still the usual pulling a little from the last chapter to continue into the next, but I altered it to fit with Haruo.

Something that I have not really had much of the chance to do with Haruo is really show him in a fight. He only fought once before under special circumstances. Given his character, he would not enter fights anyway. Being anti-social, he doesn't even get to show off what he is like internally either. So it ends up being a big mystery, thankfully his background is explained so he is not a total blank spot. However, I haven't had the chance to show what he would be like in a fight where things were on a level field.

This fight has really helped to give me that chance. One of the interesting facts about Haruo, despite his size, he is actually highly intelligent. Aside from Chiharu, it is likely the smartest one in the group and the most tactical. Part of that comes from his ability to remain calm in a situation and evaluate it rather than reacting on instinct or emotions, something that everyone else does. So he ends up being the most level headed. Because of that he is actually a pretty dangerous person in a fight, not to mention he looks like a hulking beast that can take any hit you throw at him. An unusual, but dangerous combination. This chapter really helped to show off that part of him. The calculating side that thinks ahead and plans his moves. His only problem is that he's not used to fighting an offensive battle due to his nature.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Ah, the advantage of having this already written. I preparation for this week, I wrote this chapter last week. Chapter 186 is now available. Things are pretty clear this point, it is going to be a five chapter fight. I'll be wrapping things up next week. The fight will go pretty quickly and then we'll get their resolution.

This fight is a more of a back and forth. I like to vary things with the cliffhangers and fights. Some fights are fairly one sided, like with Saki always on the wrong end of everything. Or like with Haruo, where they trade off in an process of escalation. I don't all of the fights to feel the same. Not to mention everyone fights in different ways and motivations.

Haruo is still working through his problems. It'll be an ongoing thing with him. I'm going to be using it to help him grow and eventually become more part of the group. Yuki will certainly having his hand in it. Yuki will be the reason that Haruo changes and continues to change. They have a fun dynamic.

I got more changes to show off more of Haruo's intellect. It is always fun to be able to show that off for any of the characters. Not all of them are strategy smart, but when I get the chance I like to be able to show it off. They are more than just hot blooded warriors fueled by only emotions to win their battles. Though Seiji and Saki certainly function that way, but they are the standard Shounen Jump hero models, so if they didn't work that they it will be a little weird.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Back on normal weeks, Chapter 187 is available now! As promised, this wraps up Haruo and Ligeia's fight. Ending in a draw felt right for the two of them. Haruo's already been shown not to have an interest in winning, so it is a little odd for him to put in the final blow. Not to mention, both of them were pretty exhausted. Besides, I can't have everyone just win their fights, that gets old. I want people to lose and grow from their loses.

I got to show off more of Haruo's tactical way of going about battle. It is fun seeing the big large muscular man being the more intelligent in the group. I also teased a new ability of his, which is one of the reasons why Haruo was so drained, that and the lion drained a significant amount of his reserves. You'll get to see more of the teased ability in up coming fights as he learns more about it.

And their resolution ends up a little like how Seiji and Nerine's ended. Though Haruo and Ligeia's was more of a mutual agreement that they would never understand each other, but it is still nice. They make a fun pair as well. Maybe readers will want to ship them. ^^; Anyway, up next is the Yuki and Vangelis fight, yup, I'm not saving his for last.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Slightly delayed, but nothing too bad. I've got Chapter 188 up and available now! The promised fight between Vangelis and Yuki begins now. I haven't gotten too deep into the battle yet, but it was all an action chapter. This fight is going to be an interesting one since I'm going to be showing up some new potentials for the powers. So I'm looking forward to that.

I have not decided yet how long the fight is going to be. This one feels like a three chapter deal more than the others, but I'll see how it goes. Because Yuki was angry from what happened to Saki I had to address that in the fight. Given the sort of person Vangelis was, Yuki could not possibly will enraged. If there were more people around, I would have just had Yuki lose out right and be rescued, but that wasn't really something available. But it is also good just to see Yuki realize his mistake and fix himself, something that at times requires flashbacks or support from other characters to achieve. So it is good to have them independent.

This is going to be a good fight for Yuki, since the way Vangelis fights is very complicated. So Yuki will get a real chance to use his head to figure things out. I'll be able to showcase more of his intelligence this way, but Vangelis has some unique ways of fighting that have not been addressed yet in story. It is stuff I had plans for, but I've been holding back until I got back to Yuki to show them off. I also got to reveal a new technique called folding, which I've sort of hinted at in the past, but it is not something that even Ayumi addressed in the most straightforward means. It'll be explained in time, but folding is something that's very important.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

This is a little delayed, a few hours, but nothing too bad. I still made. ^^ Anyway, Chapter 189 is now up for reading! I continue to get even deeper into the fight between Yuki and Vangelis. Yuki continues to struggle to understand Vangelis and Vangelis remains his usual self.

The thing that is always complicated and difficult with fights between two MP users is that it ends up coming largely down to a one shot finish. Since their bodies are normal and their constitution is as well, same with endurance and stamina. I can't do a ton of crazy things with them, just because they would end up getting killed in a single chapter. Sort of kills the action if everything is settled by the first strike. But it is the nature of the powers that they have. So a lot of the fight ends up being tricking the other and a lot of dodging or deflecting until they're overwhelmed.

What makes the fight interesting with Vangelis is that he is doing something completely unique with the powers that I've never showed off before. So like with Yuki the reader is confused and trying to understand how it works. Vangelis is sort of fighting Yuki and the reader, which makes things interesting, because I do make sure not to give away his secrets. But I do give hints and tips on solving it in the future. The next couple of chapters will start putting things together on how he works. Vangelis is a rather fun character, evil and totally bad, but fun. And as he promised, he doesn't play fair at all. He's doing things that Yuki never would have expected. Which is sort of the point, I'm still exploring aspects of the power yet to be revealed.

I do end up leaving on a pretty dramatic cliffhanger note though. It leaves the big question of how Yuki will get out of this, but that is all the fun of the fight. Yuki is at a huge disadvantage in the fight and despite coming in as the superior fighter, stronger than anyone, he is actually turned back into the underdog here. He had to work hard for his victory. So it is fun going through this. The next chapter is going to be interesting.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Doing better today, I've got chapter 190 up and available now! It is becoming pretty clear now that this is going to be another 5 chapter fight. I've already got the remaining two chapters largely sorted out for the way the fight turns out. So it should not be too difficult. They will be the chapters that actually start explaining things that are either subtle are just not explained at all. Considering the way that Vangelis fights, he's never going to actually explain things, plus part of the fun of this fight is trying to figure out what he is doing.

I interjected a little comedy in the scene. It had been a while since there was anything funny, so I felt it was needed to lighten things up, even for a moment. Seiji is also good for that, and it gave me the chance to lampshade things as well as poke fun at a couple of things. It also is going to work to give some development for Yuki that I'll be addressing after the fights are over. I've got a some chapters lined up for the post-fight to allow for development. Then things will be switching back to the other group for the final round of fights of the sub-arc. Yeah, I'm actually coming to the end of the sub-arc, but it is still going to be another 30 chapters before it is over at the very least.

I will be addressing some things with Vangelis in the next chapter. They won't be huge reveals, but they will give a little more explanation to his character. So that will be good. Yuki will get to start turning things around more as the pace of the fight will change. There is some fun things in sort for him and the future chapters.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A slight be on the late side, but I still manage to get it in at a decent time. Yuki and Vangelis' fight has been trying at times, but I'm feeling better about it after I finished the chapter. So Chapter 191 is now available! The fighting continues and intensifies with them. I still keeping things a little on the unexplained side. Some of it can be figured out if you're paying attention. But I will be answering things in a more direct way in the next chapter.

I did another a more subtle flashback this time around. I really like how they worked out in the past. This one is even more subtle than others. It is also completely one sided with no actual feedback from Vangelis until the very end. In the beginning it is admittedly a little confusing, but I wanted it to work with the scene. Then after a couple of them you're supposed to pick up on what's going on. Then it is up the reader to piece together Vangelis past. He doesn't have a dramatic one or a sympathetic one, but he does have a past like everyone else. He's not one to heavily dwell on it either. It shaped him and so with fighting Yuki it brings it out. So he has flashes of things and it comes out like this. I think it works to fit the type of character that he is. So I really like it, but it is fun to make the reader work for the answer sometimes.

As I said before Yuki has been doing somethings that are clearly explained. He's been getting the edge on Vangelis in a few of the engagements. Most times Vangelis has figured it out pretty quickly. The guy is highly intelligent and adaptive. He is skilled and knowledgeable in the use of the powers as well. He has more than a few things in common with Yuki. So when Yuki starts doing things different he usually notices and lets the reader in on it. The fact that he hasn't figured it out means Yuki is doing something that Vangelis is having trouble understanding. Vangelis will understand it in the next chapter, but not before Yuki uses it to his advantage.

It is a going to be big drag out climax with the two forces clashing in a final showdown. It's going to be fun.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

I'm on time! Chapter 192 is now available for reading! This chapter concludes the fight between Yuki and Vangelis and in very dramatic, hopefully epic fashion as well. I tried very hard to make the battle seem very powerful and suitably scaled for two such opponents. And then I leave on a very dramatic cliffhanging note.

I ended up writing this chapter to a song from WKC2, which gave me a very action-y drive and it was a very epic song as well. So it helped to get my mood and writing in line with things. I packed a lot into the chapter, as it could have very easily moved into another chapter if I wanted. But I wanted to keep to my five chapter run. It just seem like it was too long if it went anymore.

I get to a couple of fun things with Yuki. I explain what he was doing to counter Vangelis. Something that was difficult to understand since it is a very invisible thing. But some important things happened for Yuki in the fight. The biggest one is learning about folding, but having fought with Vangelis, he's learned how different people can fight. There is also something that happened in the chapter that I won't get back to for a couple of chapters. It'll be a fun character moment.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Coming in a little on the later side, I finished Chapter 193 for everyone. As you are going to be quick to realize, the cliffhanger I left on for the last chapter is not resolved in this chapter. I'm mean like that. ^^; I'm moving on to Ayumi/Eudokia's fight. This is mostly because the fighting with Yuki is over and Yuki and Saki's uncertain fate are things to be address in the resolution rather than now, which is about resolving the four fights. Ayumi's is the last fight in the series of fights here, which has been going on for 15 chapters now, or almost 4 months. Not too bad, considering how long I spent on the others.

I'm pretty sure this is going to be a shorter fight just from what I have planned, but who knows I've said that before. Anyway, when I approached this fight and writing the chapter I realized a couple of things. One I haven't done a fight with Ayumi in it in like 150 chapters, which actually surprised me. When I realized that fact it left me a little dumbfounded for a moment. One of the primary characters hadn't had a fight since Fumiko was introduced. That's a long time. The second thing I realized was that I had not really showed off Ayumi in a fight. Sure, she's been in a fight, but I largely glossed over her parts and a lot of her remained very mysterious. Which meant that this was the first time she actually got a proper fight with no interruptions and no one else in the fight giving her aid.

When I realized those things I knew I had to do something really special for her fight. It really works out well that she is fighting Chariton, who's very nontraditional. It makes for a very interesting visual fight. I took a lot of cues from the first fight in Soul Eater, which I thought was nicely intense and quickly paced. I imagined these two really going at it in close range and with a lot of quick very skillful moves.

This is also the first time I really got to show off two skilled MP users actually fighting. Ayumi is the only skilled fighter in this type of fight and she had past fights, but it never was really something to showcase her abilities. It was to showcase what the powers could do. So this is the first chance to see to highly skilled fighters in an intense fight.

Chariton's method of fighting make for a lot of fun things I can do in the fight. One thing I wanted him to do provide was the more unusual nature of their powers. The truth of their powers is that they can make anything they want to be a weapon or deadly. They can do anything, so long as their imagination can dream it up. With Chariton I really wanted to show that off, since everything so off up to this point has been very normal. I wanted things to be largely normal for the time being while you got used to things. But I'm going to be starting to throw in more unusual things in future fights. Chariton is the first taste of that. The Omega Division is going to be the big bar for just weird stuff, because they are the most powerful MP users and that allows them to be highly unconventional while still being extremely deadly.

There are a couple of other things in this fight that I'm wondering if anyone will pick up on. I'm doing some very intentional things that are going to be hints to the future. Chariton's dialogue is the one clue that I'm giving away for free. I've been building up hints of distrust, but Chariton is making it very clear that Ayumi is hiding some things. There's a lot going on in the fight that is not about the fight, so it is important to pay attention.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Alright, the next chapter in the fight is now available, Chapter 194 is up. This continues the fight with Eudokia and Chariton. It is hardly much of a surprise that Eudokia was able to escape, but it did allow the stage to be set to up the power. Before both were not taking things very seriously, now Chariton steps up to change the balance and Eudokia is forced to respond.

I've had others in other fights have less direct means of fighting, but I think Chariton's "technicolor" outfit is one of the more interesting ones and one of the more problematic ones. As Eudokia already knew and discovered again, it makes fighting him very difficult as you're misjudging things. Not to mention it plays with your own balance leaving you feeling uneasy. It reminded a little of the opponent in Kenshin with the stripped shirt that used it to throw off your sense of distance. However, this is a more direct method and far more crippling one. If you can look at your opponent it is very difficult to fight and if you do you get sick.

This puts Eudokia in a terrible position and it is not something that is easily overpowered as it is what he is wearing. So it is the closest to his core and the strongest part of his power. So Eudokia will have to figure out way to deal with him. Plus she is going to be showing off something new that has not been seen before. I'm quite excited for the next chapter. It is going to be a very interesting and clever end to the fight I think. Which I think will be the best for two so skilled.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Doing better on time this week. Chapter 195 is now available! This chapter concludes the battle between Chariton and Eudokia, though it does leave things on a cliffhanger. But it is very clear that Eudokia is no longer in a suitable position to fight with the injuries she's sustained. And with everyone else out of commission, how will she get out of this situation? Sound a bit like the narrator at the end of a Dragonball Z episode? ^^

I got to show off some more of Eudokia's powers. The beast like form she has is something I've been holding in reserve for a while. It uses some similar principles as Yuki's does for the bursts of speed. Eudokia just has a more trained body to be able deal with the sudden acceleration on her body. However, it does still leave her hurting pretty badly just the same. Yuki is also a little out of practice. He hasn't been "training" for more than a year. So he's a little light on the physical condition needed.

The more intellectual side of the fight came out near the end. It was like a puzzle needing to be solved. I really liked the way things worked out with it. A lot of the fights between two people like this are figuring the other person out before they figure you out. Most fights are something of keeping all of your secrets to yourself and don't explain anything to your enemy. If your enemy knows how your powers work then it means that they can use that knowledge against you. So it produces a different dynamic for the faces. The grandstanding and monologuing about abilities doesn't happen because it would put them into a worse situation. It's a fun a little breakdown of things are very common in this type of story. I still do the explanations, but it is when they've figured things out. So part of it up to the reader to figure things out and part is explained to them.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Keeping with my timing, I've got Chapter 196 available now! If you go by the title of the chapter it might be easy to think that I continued the fight with Chariton and Eudokia, but it was sort still tied into it. So I kept with the convention for the chapter. It does finally answer what happened to Yuki and Saki, since I did leave off on a pretty mean cliffhanger right there.

The scene turned out longer than I planned on it being, but worked out. I got to have a little Yuki and Saki time, which is rare these days. They only get angry at each other these days because of everything happening. So it is nice for them to have a moment alone. Then things speed back towards the previous cliffhanger.

I did indeed have Saki throw Yuki into a headbutt to disable Chariton. It was a bit of a call back to Dragonball for subtle little reference. We'll she how many people actually pick that one up. But either way, I end on a rather important note with Yuki and Ayumi. It has him making are rather important decision it seems and some progress between them.

There is a lot of small things that happen in the chapter. It is a bit of a breather from all of the fighting. Which is important since I'll be jumping on the drama train soon after this. So it is going to be about the only pit stop before more things start jumping out.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

Back for another round of comments with Chapter 197 now available! Things get a little more serious this time around as promised. Not as serious as they'll get in time, but still Yuki is acting more serious than normal and you know that has to mean something. I do drop a couple of important things in the chapter though.

The group is back together finally and the fighting is over. Yuki gets to have a little bit of a cool moment where he intimidates the last two holds into not fighting and then acts cool by letting them go, having already understood the situation. I feel like he got some pretty good stuff in the chapter overall. He is showing himself to be more observant than before and smarter. They are all qualities that he has had before, but his more lighthearted nature blankets over them at times, making him seem more foolish than he actually is. It does not always mean a lot in real world situations, but Yuki's academics is actually better than Saki's. Yuki's not the smart in the group, but he is one of the smarter ones. Haruo is the smartest in the group.

And yes, I killed Vangelis. I killed him when Saki did her little finger flick on him. This is where things start to get serious again. The fun thing is if you notice, Saki knows she killed. She knew she killed from the moment she acted, but lied to Yuki about it. I plan on doing more with this development through the arc. It is something that is going to follow Saki.

I finally also explain what folding is in more detail. I left it up to the reader to figure out for a while, but I planned on getting to it eventually. If you didn't know what it is, you know now. It is a rather important deal as well, especially since the growth is not geometric. When you fold, you are reducing the radius of the field by half, but the amount of power is not doubled because is it not just surface area. It is volume. You're taking all of the volume and trying to fit into an even smaller volume. So the density increased dramatically, hence why you gain such power and why it is that most people can only do one fold. It takes a lot of mental concentration and control to force that much power into a tinier space. Yuki has a massive amount of reserves, so it takes a lot of focus to bring his power under control. He's currently only able to get around 50% of a single fold, which he peaked at during Vangelis' fight. It's not something he can do consciously.

And moving on to the next chapter. Ayumi's past is about to be revealed! I've been holding on to a lot of this stuff since the beginning. I won't be getting to a lot of the good stuff until later, but this is going to be the first of several flashbacks for Ayumi. You'll get to see her when she was younger and before things changed for her.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A little on the later side, but I still managed it at a decent time. Chapter 198 is now available! I am now getting started on Ayumi's back story. I do bring back some old dialogue from a past chapter. So for those that remember the scene Yori had inside Athene's mind, this is actually a fun a little thing. I play things out more and you get to see things from Ayumi's point of view. Since everything before was played from Yori point of view of Athene's memories, seeing it from Ayumi's side makes it interesting and worth going back over. Plus it plays into developing things for Ayumi.

One of the things I established a while ago was the isolation and general prejudice that the MPs receive from the regular soldiers. I illustrated that a lot with past characters, so Ayumi's is not something new. But it will go a little deeper into the matters, since this is going to be an in depth look at her. I'll be covering a fair bit of a time for her at the South Gate, so things are going to be starting slow. The next chapter will see things pick up.

Another thing I address to some degree is the fact that is a very strange for a child to be out in the patrol. Anime/manga are something that is not one to ignore placing children or teenagers into situations where they should not be, by the standards of the world that they are in. Most times it just does not make sense. Something I understand well enough, I've already explained the situation that MPs find themselves in. All MPs serve in the military regardless of age, it is something required. However, they has to be cases for when children get pulled in. They generally stay in the Academy until they are old enough to move into the regular army or they stay in the capital if they graduate. Ayumi's case in unique in the fact that she finished the Academy at a very young age and even came out to the South Gate of her own accord. She request the transfer, something that'll be explained more in the next chapter. Her presence in the South Gate is something everyone thinks is strange and a place she does not belong, which only makes her efforts more difficult, but they were shaping times for her.

And since I've bee needing to do it for a while, here is the military rankings for the Atlantean military.

General of the Army
Captain General
Lieutenant General
Captain
Commander
Lieutenant Commander
Sergeant Commander
Captain Lieutenant
First Lieutenant
Second Lieutenant
Captain Sergeant
Lieutenant Sergeant
Sergeant
Corporal
Junior Corporal
Cadet

Things to keep in mind is that all MPs start out at Second Lieutenant regardless of how they do in the Academy, this is because of their special status. All regular soldiers start out as Junior Corporal, but most will likely make Corporal in the first year. The Junior rank is more of a status identifying them as first year soldiers, only the worst soldiers get stuck at Junior Corporal, which likely means that they will be discharged. All Academy soldiers are Cadets. The Captain General and Lieutenant General ranks are generally assistants to the General of the Army and hold command positions of different parts of the military. The Captain General is almost always in charge of the regular military and the Lieutenant General is almost always in charge of the Omega Division. Both report directly to the General of the Army. It is nearly unheard of that the General of the Army or Captain General positions are held by MPs. It is common, but no required that the Lieutenant General position is a MP, which is why it is lowest General position. This means that Demosthenes position as General of the Army is something of matter of contention within the military and even the council.

It is common for most MPs to be between First Lieutenant and Sergeant Commander, due to their advanced placement. Most of the Omega Division are ranked between Sergeant Commander and Commander, with a few Captain ranked MPs. It is generally very difficult for a MP to reach Captain and usually takes years to reach Commander. The Omega Division helps to accelerate the process, but it is still not easy for a MP to advance.

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

A bit on the late side, but my overtime has begun at work. So now I'm having to squeeze in write to a near 60 hour week work. But I actually came in earlier than last week! Chapter 199 is now up, I'm so close to that 200 mark now! This chapter as you would expect, continues Ayumi/Eudokia's flashback during her time at the South Gate. This time without the interruption of Yuki.

This chapter explains a couple more things about the workings of the military. It is mostly about Eudokia settling into her new life. I did not want to spend a lot of time on it, but it was important that I show she is alone. She is considered a bit of a freak and an outsider. She is the target of many, but none of is direct. So she has to deal with a very unfamiliar environment for her. However, I also wanted to show that she is still a child inside as well. A lot of her is putting up a brave front so that she can get through each day.

Simonides presence here is near the start of his time as Captain at the South Gate since it was five years in the past. However, the bigger note is the cliffhanger I left out on. This should be a treat to those that remember, but this is Dareia's appearance. It means nothing to a lot probably, but she was the assassin from the Fumiko sub-arc that actually knew Eudokia. This is when they actually met for the first time. So the scene has a lot of importance story-wise, which is why it made for a nice little cliffhanger. She's back!

Enjoy!

[Andromeda]

It is about the same time, overtime makes things interesting. Anyway, chapter 200 is now available. The next milestone is here finally! I hit 200 chapters, a long time coming for me. It has been more than four years since I started writing Shift. It is a little weird to imagine that I've been writing the same story for four years. Apart from my hiatus, I have been consistent about it as well. I still have a very long way to go as you already know. So in another two years I'll be hitting the 300 chapter mark, with any luck. So long as I don't have another hiatus.

Focusing back on the chapter, this chapter is a continuation of the story that I started back on chapter 100. It takes places a few days after Demosthenes' visit to Japan and Yuki's birthday. This is a fun chapter because you really get to see a young Ayumi in a more carefree environment before the academy and military service changed her completely. You really can see that she actually was like a normal child at one point. It provides a nice little anchor point to see where she was and how he is now. The 200th chapter actually came at a pretty good moment to see the comparison between seven year old Ayumi and eleven year only Ayumi.

I did not do a lot of stuff in the chapter 100. I introduced the fact that Demosthenes and the King both clearly knew Yuki's family and had a close relationship. I don't really answer how they knew each other, but establish things. It was a more carefree chapter. Chapter 200 starts out more carefree, but changes in the second half. I do make a little nod to training here and explain why Ayumi picked Sudoku to train Yuki. It is a fun little continuity to have showing her father doing the same thing Ayumi did with Yuki.

However, the second half of the chapter really amp up the mysteries. I start tossing out a lot of things in a vague manners. I make it very clear there is a lot of pieces moving. The King and Demosthenes have a plan and that there are people very interested in Yuki. I make it clear that there are people in Atlantis that would want Yuki dead if they learned of his existence, something that came true as he predicted. It is a lot of foreshadowing and ominous future planning. There are a lot of pieces I put into play in the first arc and I wanted this chapter to help to start really strengthening the idea that there is a significantly more going on in the background of the story than any of the characters realized. The man that knows everything is dead.

There is also a little bit of a bittersweet hope mix in. He hopes Yuki has a happy childhood, while the reader already knows how bad things quickly turn for Yuki in a few years. It really makes his words feel really sad. Plus you get to see a little different Demosthenes, and more questions on how he got to his current state.

Enjoy!