Epilogue: April 26, 2077
Harlow was turning thirty years old tomorrow.
He didn’t look it, though, and hadn’t for a long time. His hair had long since completed its transition; he sported a striking shade of silver now.
Many would consider thirty to be a milestone, but celebration was the furthest thing from his mind. On this particular Monday morning he paced around the table in the Council Chamber, as he did at every weekly briefing.
The full Council was in attendance, and Victor filled his seat, as always. They’d created a new tradition in that gesture—one all their own.
“General Gray,” Harlow said, “I’ll tolerate no further unprofessional conduct or rudeness. You’ll be respectful, or you’ll be ejected from this meeting.” Their eyes met, and Harlow held his gaze. “I don’t know how many times I’ve had to remind you, but this will be the last. I’m not going to say it again.”
Nobody questioned his place in this room anymore.
He was staring at a man nearly fifty years his senior, and his tone left no room for argument.
General Gray looked as if he had a few choice words in mind, but something in Harlow’s expression made him avert his eyes.
“Understood,” he said quietly.
“Good,” Harlow replied. “Now, let’s proceed without further interruption, please.”
There was no time to waste. He had a job to do.
✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦
In conclusion...
Thank you to everyone who's stuck around to the end of this story. I enjoyed writing it very much, and I appreciate everyone who's made it this far. This wasn't so much a writing exercise as it was a journey into a fictional universe, and I'm glad you're here with me as we go on this ride together.
This is hardly the end - in fact, it's just the beginning. Delights of Eden is the standalone prequel to the Europa Station Chronicles, and there's much, much more where that came from. The main series takes place in the same universe, has longer storylines with multiple POVs, and features more worldbuilding and sci-fi elements. I've even got an idea for a spin-off series featuring a character you haven't met yet, but that's a long way off :)
This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.
So, yeah. I've already outlined the next few volumes, including storylines with other characters (and possibly even some you've already met. After all, who doesn't want to hear General Howard's origin story, lol. But I digress...)
But wait, there's more!
The next volume, which is the beginning of the main series, is currently in the works. It's actually the one I wrote first (before I even started Delights of Eden), and it's mostly drafted. However, it still needs some polish and revision, so I'm putting the story on temporary hiatus while I send it off to an editor. I'll still be posting content in the meantime, though, in the form of a lengthy bonus chapter that bridges the gap between volumes, as well as the prologue for the next one. My posting frequency will be way down during this time, at the rate of a chapter every couple weeks or so. I'm hoping to launch of the next volume by the end of the summer, and when I get a date worked out I'll update the series introduction. After that I'll resume posting on my regular schedule.
This break isn't just for writing, either. I'd like to spend time with my family, especially during the summer when everyone's off school. We've got several birthdays and family visits coming up in the next few months, and I feel like pushing myself to write during that time would lead to the worst of both. I wouldn't be able to enjoy family time, and my writing wouldn't be at its best. So I'm stepping back, enjoying the time we've got together, and cleaning up my drafts so that when I start posting again, they're the best they can possibly be.
But in the meantime, I've got another exciting announcement. Delight of Eden - the full, uncensored version - is going to be released on Amazon on June 11th, and the preorder is live! If you'd like to own a copy, click the link below!
Preorder Delights of Eden here!
(Note: the preorder is only for the ebook. If you want the paperback version, you'll have to wait until release day).
If you'd like more updates and further info, Instagram is my primary form of outreach. You can find me there at @chris.writes.books, and I'll be posting regular updates about my writing progress as well as announcements for the next volume. Oh, and I've got a Discord server too. If you'd like a link, DM me.
What's that? You want teasers for the next volume now? Okay, here you go...
* It's a much longer story - I estimate the next arc to be at least 120k words - and it introduces several new characters. It also has its own self-contained storyline, and rather than a dual-timeline narrative with past/future perspectives, it has two main protagonists with dual POVs.
* It goes much harder on the worldbuilding and sci-fi aspects of the plot. However, I've still gone to great lengths to preserve the character-driven nature of the story, hence the word count.
* While General Lin was an absolute powerhouse of a villain, the source of conflict in the next volume is far more obscure. Don't worry, it's still there, but the enemy is harder to fight when they're impossible to see, and even harder when it could be anyone - even one of your closest allies. I'll leave it at that.
* It's got a female lead.
* Mega-corporations behave badly sometimes, and it makes sense that they'd want to preserve their stake in space exploration at all costs.
* Black holes. Infinite voids. Spacecraft disappearing without a trace.
For now, that's it. I've got my work cut out for me, and my next order of business is to take the draft of the next volume and bring it up to an acceptable standard.
I can't wait to share it with you.
Until next time...
-CL