All Comments on 'Ebb Tide Ch. 04b'

FS,

Having grown-up in Vegas, I love this story. So much of it is real, in its own way.

Thank You.

Ron

I love reading your stories.

About fucking time

It's nice to see this story get picked up and continued. Please keep the new chapters rolling in.

Welcome! Action! Excitement! Love it!

Hope you are doing better, and looking forward to more chapters.

It is a remarkable achievement of your writing skills that you are maintaining this quality of creative storytelling.

Any timeline of new releases of LNH or Nanites to Amazon?

You do put a lot of detail, including the technical stuff, into your writing, this, in my opinion makes for a far more interesting read. Thank you.

... re-reading Ebb Tide from the begining before delving into the latest chapter (and still wanting more, of course!).

One thing caught my attention though:In Ch 3, V knows about the existence of Circe and Thulsa Doom and says to Reagan "..so there are five others still out there I haven't pissed off yet?" Reagan 'silently' confirms his deduction. He *clearly* doesn't know about Baphomet or that its Lloyd Pharris. (but she does, so her confirmation must have been regarding the '5 others' part rather than the 'haven't pissed off' portion.)

In Ch 4b: "In the long game, I would need as many as possible of the Vice Lords at least ambivalent to my intentions of destroying one of them (Pharris)."

Maybe I missed it, but I missed the point where V was told or figured out that Lloyd Pharris was a Vice Lord. I would have thought that would be a memorable moment ("wtf have I gotten myself into now??"). Reagan tried to warn V off of Pharris, but I can't believe she would go as far as to reveal his identity/position, considering how paranoid her mother and she were about their own security. It would be a gross betrayal of a fellow Vice Lord, to a civilian no less, that neither would be ready to commit (yet).

A minor quibble, to be sure. When you have a hero who seems to know a lot about everything, I'm sure its easy to sometimes lose sight of what he doesn't know. :-)

I wish you continued good health and many, many productive and creative hours this summer! Thank you very much for sharing your talent with us.

Your return to writing was another epic tale, thank you for sharing with us !

That is pretty much all I can say. This chapter was definitely worth the wait. 5* obviously. Great blend of a tacticians mind, believable combat scenarios, and just a great read the whole way through. There were a few minor grammar/spelling issues, but very few. This is now my new favorite chapter that you have written of any of your series. Thank you!!!!

James, your level of effort & detail is amazing.

Here's to your continued good health.

We can't wait to see next chapter of Life as a New Hire

I too re-read the whole thing when I noticed the post on LAaNH regarding this chapters submission. Glad you're back J. Glad you're feeling better. Can't wait for "Monday Morning Meltdown"

Yep, I screwed up the bit about Vance learning Lloyd Pharris is Baphomet, Vice Lord of Envy. That's a problem when I write, self-edit and then re-write various scenes. Some scenes I remove from line up, expecting to place them in later then forget to do so and this was one.

It was supposed to come at the end of Chapter 3 then I moved it to 4 ... then decided to rewrite 4 into 4a and 4b ... ugh.

James aka FinalStand

You do a great job & for no charge!

We have no right to be critical. Just appreciative.

James, don't beat yourself up over it. Once V knew there really were 5 more vice lords in existence, figuring Pharris to be one of them would not have been much of a leap considering the power and influence he threw around. Actually sort of obvious once you know the VL aren't urban legends. I just missed seeing how you would have handled his reaction because I imagine it would have been amusing: "hmm, it seems I declared war on a Vice Lord last week.oops. oh well, nothing to be done for it."

Welcome back, James. Outstanding chapter. Hoping greedily for more. Keep up the good work.....

Glad you're back writing again. Hope your health issue is gettin sorted. Thanks for the stories.

That would be ureter, as opposed to urethra. And wee bit farther away from the Greater Mesenteric Artery from what you're describing. But hey, I'm not one to pay excessive attention to minutiae.

Thank You for coming back

Great chapter but I kinda miss the follow up where the vice lords discuss with their deputies what Vance's activities mean for them. i.e. what the Lord of Wrath and Jo or Circe and Reagan intend to do to London

After all the attack on Reagan and Jo can not be allowed to stand....

You are right. I had meant to do that include the conversation between Circe and Sycorax with them in teleconference with Thulsa Doom deciding her and Jareth's fates. I went with the side of the conversation from Vance's perspective instead ... and I was already thinking this chapter was too long.

I know what you mean though.

James aka FinalStand

James,

It the scene you described is already written can we have it published as a comment?

I enjoy the snippets you offer us in LAANH which sometimes come from your research.

If not no worries

Jon

Sorry, but no. That conversation is in the tumbled ziggurat of my mind. Suffice it to say, Sycorax is on borrowed time and Jareth's clock is running out. As far as Thulsa Doom is concerned the Compact which united the Vice Lords was broken when they threatened Jo's life.

Reference what Vance told the Tempest Witch about Love and Loyalty and her not appreciating those qualities. Unlike the rest, Thulsa is willing to see Las Vegas burn to the ground to get his revenge ... and that wasn't something the others were planning on. Xaltotun was aware of this ... eccentricity. It was his 'Insurance Policy' should he, or his heir, ever be removed ~ a final 'Fuck You' to the others.

He knew eventually one of them would cross the new Thulsa Doom and chaos and bloodshed would ensue. The others wouldn't get to profit from his creation if they betrayed him ... which Lloyd/Baphomet did by having his heir murdered. He could have named another heir, but he didn't. He simply died before he could figure out which one of the others did the deed (and kill them) before he himself passed ... and now, finally, Xaltotun gets his revenge from the beyond the grave.

But then there is Vance ~ who no one counted on.

I hope this helps,

James aka FinalStand

When do you think your next story is coming out?

And which one

Nice job on this one james.... nice to see you coming back... enjoyed it alot

Was nuts, crazy, convoluted and a whole other plethora of 3, 4 and 5 syllable words.

Way to go man, keep it up

JC

In the fight between the girl and the three Dobermans with the tire iron, which of the dogs had the tire iron, and how would a dog use a tire iron effectively?

Grin

The one with the thumbs ... and the somewhat belated yet terribly lethal Guardian Angels. After all, she is going to wake up under Circe's watchful gaze (though still in the hospital). After all, if Vance made the effort to save her, it is worth Circe's effort to keep the girl safe, comfortable ... and close.

As for the 'Evil Tranny Praetorian' ... he's realizing he's the only one left Vance said he'd kill who is still alive ... and that was an awful long list of armed men (plus the two dog handlers). Oh yeah ... he's starting to realize life is not looking all that bright right about now.

James aka FinalStand

For such a good writer, why so many dropped stories. Doesn't exactly instill the urge to start reading your "entries" when we know you'll just drop it before it's completed.

I'm insane. I have been diagnosed with an extreme version of bipolar disorder since 2006. The medication I have taken in the attempts to keep me from going completely off the rails have done bad things to my liver to the point I have 'Fatty Liver' disease as well with those accompanying health concerns. They have removed my gall bladder for no good purpose. I have lost all my teeth because of the 'dry mouth' side effect from my medication as well.

I'm a freaking loon. It is in my bio.

When I write, it is like plucking leaves out of a tornado. I keep hoping to keep plucking leaves from the same damn tree until I finish something yet that often is NOT the case. If you think you hate it, please try to imagine how I feel for a moment ~ those fragments of stories are all still inside my head, clambering for release. I simply am unable to focus on any one long enough to make serious, if any, progress.

Every single time someone posts in a story asking for me to resume it, I re-read the material as well as my story notes to see if anything sparks. It worked in One in Ten, so I have hope. Too often, I am left frustrated with the lives of my characters remaining in Limbo until someone else calls out for me to take another stab at freeing them.

Mind you, if I was sane, I wouldn't be a writer. I'd be a US Rural Courier for the Post Office. I wouldn't have the time to write at all. I only took up writing because, as my name hints, it was my last attempt to fight off the urge to commit suicide ~ my Final Stand.

James aka FinalStand

It was actually a good feeling to find yet another part of "Ebb Tide". Keep the pace, FinalStand! (whenever you feel like doin' it).

Son of an emotional basket case!!!

I can only speak for myself, but your work is truly great. While I would love to see more on a consecutive basis, I prefer to have you be ok . That's my two cents, stay safe and as healthy as you can be.

I certainly do not come close to your personal struggles with physical and mental heath problems. Compared to your turmoil, my problems are petty change.

But, I have found myself on the cusp of a creative dilemma. Frozen in place by my own inadequacies. Facing a large slush-pile of unfinished short-stories. The stories that I have posted to Literotica, I knew from the start, how I wanted those stories to end. Before I filled in the words between the title and the end..

Now I face the frustration of an excess of story ideas for which I do not have satisfactory endings. And I find myself paralyzed by my innate laziness from accomplishing anything more with what I have accumulated.

Unlike for you James, I do not have a fanbase pressuring me to produce. However, I have always written to please myself and my bloated egotism cares little for other peoples opinions. Perhaps, my energy restored I'll come back to Literotica, perhaps not. But first I have to please myself.

So, the decision I have made, is to change direction and write something completely different. I find distasteful much of the repetitiously cliched ebook fiction that are available online.

I am resolved that, whether or not I can sell anything. To make the effort to write a couple of books ideas, I have had percolating for a while.

And that, James, is my suggestion for you. To escape the speeding assembly-line that you are chained to. Find something else to do for a while, that will make you happy.

If it is a new book, you know that I will buy it unseen. I have always admired your writing style. It is comfortable to read. Selfishly, I want you to continue the Nanites series. As I think they are refreshingly original.

However, it has to be your choice. If not writing perhaps another hobby or amusement? Express your innate creativity with a paint brush or draw a comicbook? Write a song or take up gardening or bonsai. Or hell, why not flower arranging? Tai Chi or meditation making tea?

This was a lot of lip-flapping, do not concern yourself with having to reply. I just wanted to gift you a different perspective to dealing with life's foibles.

With respect and regards - fanfare

For all the contributions you have made to my works ... you are a wonderful creative talent who has contributed to my tales on numerous occasions. Hell, the entire misadventure in Central Europe in Life as a New Hire was transformed by a series of e-mail exchanges between the two of us.

Then there is "Happy Tibetan Independence Day!" which was as much 'you' as 'me'.

I feel one of the most serious complications for me this summer has been the kids being home the entire time. Normally they take a week-long vacation with the wife to the Outer Banks around the first of July, but not this year. With people constantly so close by so consistently, I've felt the 'walls closing in' way too much. I love my family, but my mental difficulties have left me somewhat of a hermit and not getting 'alone time' has eroded my already pathetic concentration.

My pain management still hasn't gotten the job done either so ... yeah ~ not a good time for me.

As for external projects ~ it is an alternative history novel about World War II. One of my greatest loves really is RESEARCH.

Thank you for your words. I do appreciate them. Hopefully with the school year having finally started yesterday, the 'peace & quiet' will allow me to find focus and do what comes naturally ~ nothing forced.

Take care,

James aka FinalStand

As with all your stories, I couldn't put it down, and the ending was perfect. It's well written, the fight and sex scenes are on point, and I love most of the characters. Hate a couple too but that's what artists do. I know this year has been epically bad. I know I am ready for 2018 and for the universe to stop kicking myself and my friends. I know you sent me a message of encouragement and I can't find it (I swear I'm technically savvy but the messages don't show up on my phone for some reason). I appreciate it all the same.

As to the pressure you are feeling from is, your fans, for that I want to apologise. I hope you can see that through our want of finished stories, our love for you and the characters. I appreciate the blood, sweat, and tears that goes into your writing. I know the physical and mental issues face have been tough. We, as fans are selfish and we can take more than we give back, with our constant demands of more, More MORE!!!

Thanks for not just telling us to fuck off. Hugs! C

I hope there is going to be another chapter soon, this series is pretty good

... my creative impulses have been about as useful as a comb-over in a Drag Queen Contest, developing Were-Gopher powers in the Super-Hero Lottery, or the grim discovery all you have in your arsenal is a Glitter-Gun when your enemy launches a Nuclear Exchange. So basically .... nothing yet. I certainly hope things will change soon though.

James aka FinalStand

Don't want to rush you. I know about the creativeness being blocked if you try to push it forward.

... thank you. Sometimes it is hard to express this, to me, goes beyond word count, pages published, or ... most sadly ... deadlines. In reality, I only have one chance to get it right and I want to make that chance ~ for both of us ~ reader and author - Golden.

Take care,

James aka FinalStand

Can't wait to read the rest of this story 😘

I searched and searched for ages for some good Spec ops stories. Finally found what I was seeking. This series has the potential to beat John Ringo’s Paladin of Shadows hands down. And your main character is DEVGRU no less :D

Also please tell me we’re gonna see some Russian SSO and British/ANZAC SAS actions/characters soon.

FS - I hope you have an idea in the work for continuing the story. Actually I watched John Wick chapter 1 and 2 yesterday and I thought Vance could be his cousin. If you haven’t seen the John Wick films yet, I really recommend them. Thanks for the story!

... I absolutely love the world-building in John Wick. In my other story (LAANH), there is plenty of John Wick in Pamela Pile ~ just a bit older and wiser.

As of Vance and John Wick ... if John showed up broken and bleeding - in desperate need of healthcare - no questions asked - Vance would be the man he would choose for the job as somewhere in the past, Vance owed John and Vance ALWAYS pays his debts. For his part, Vance would never pry and doesn't give a crap about John being a (former) hitman. A debt is a debt.

Also, it would be kind of neat to see them "bonding over retirement" with a beer in the backyard, or something like that.

James aka FinalStand

Thank you for another excellent chapter.

I’m happy you came back to this storyline. I like it a lot, and feel it has a lot of potential.

but quit using your illness as an excuse for a) being lazy about your writing, b) not being sure where or how you want to finish your stories. c) maybe not really giving a damn if you finish any of them at all. And last of all using your illness to garner sympathy.

I have been caring for my wife for 20 years now since she was first diagnosed as bi-polar. its not the end of the world, doom and gloom you describe unless you let it be. it takes effort to make things happen but they can happen. one big thing is everyday you have to excersice no matter what walk a couple miles with your daughter or wife. I said your daughter because she to now suffers from it and she's young. build a bonding experience with it. use the time with her to get to know her deeply. include your whole family even in this. but after just 1week you will see a difference in your mood . another thing is to eat what are known as super mood enhancing foods, yes they help. get rid high fat foods like bacon " yes I know sacrilege" but after a month of being on a new diet you will notice it. last item maybe ask your doctor to adjust your meds, your body could be developing tolerances to your drugs. Espeacially as you say your health is down as a result. my wife's last med adjust worked wonders and helped my sanity if you know what I mean.

just food for thought. and sorry about the harsh lead in but shock is often the best motivated, now finish Eb Tide, the last chapt of new hire, and ccsc, and any of the other stories that you think deserve better. PLEASE!!

No disrespect here either, but unless you're James' doctor, you don't know what will or won't work for him. Even if you are in fact his doctor, you're not perfect and the literotica comments section is not the best medium for a diagnosis.

I also hope that James will do everything he can to be as healthy as possible, but we don't get to tell him what to do. And, if real life demands his attention, I don't think we should give him grief for it. I'm always happy to see more stories but we're not entitled to them.

sali6435, I understand your frustrations.

Please understand - my bi-polar condition has degraded my mental abilities since the drug which stabilized me - Lithium Carbonate - decided to start killing me. I was suffering liver and kidney damage so I had to decide between my relative sanity and my life. They took out my gall bladder which was meant to help with my liver issues. It didn't help.

Instead I developed two other conditions. During my withdrawal from LC, I began retaining water, especially in my legs and feet. This resulted in severe nerve damage to both my feet ... so I am now denied 'going out on a walk with my family' - which I used to do. My feet are in constant pain and I am at the point, despite my fear because I come from a family of addicts and alcoholics, I am going to go on opiates soon because I'm am simply at the end of my rope. Maybe on opiates I will be able to concentrate better. That is my hope anyway.

Secondly, after the removal of my Gal Bladder, I developed Fatty Liver Disease and swelled up like a balloon. My body, for no God-damn reason any specialist has been able to tell me, began storing sugar as fat in my liver. I am now roughly 60 pounds overweight. My liver now functions within acceptable norms though there is no way short of extensive surgery to get the fat out. The hope is, over time, my body will harvest them as fat reserves. Until then - I look pregnant with an nice, solid mass beneath my rib cage ... and a beard.

I don't eat fatty foods. Even if I could have bacon in my diet, I would have a tough time eating it because I have no teeth - the LC caused Dry Mouth which caused them to all rot out and it is too expensive to have them replaced, or get dentures. It seemed more important to get my children braces instead so I go without. It isn't so bad, but some foods I simply can't chew - like bacon and pizza. I really, really miss eating pizza.

I also can have very little sugar in my diet which mean I now drink no sugar /no calorie sodas which taste like crap but are better than water, I guess. I've always hated straight water. I also drink milk, but not too much because even 2% has some fat in it as well. Other fruit drinks have sugar, so they are out.

I don't write any of this out of some desire for sympathy. I feel you, the readers, are owed an explanation. Saying "I'm sick" simply feels a bit lame to me so I give a more in depth analysis of what is going on and what I might be doing to correct it. My wife and children give me all the comfort I need. Hell, I even stopped going onto Facebook because I felt my life had become so damn depressing.

Quite frankly, what I want is to feel better. I want to get these story ideas out of my head and onto the page. I really do.

bumpercars, thank you for coming to my defense. I appreciate it. All the more reason for me to hate leaving all of my readers hanging on too many tales. Ugh.

James aka FinalStand

I'm not sure if I told you this in the comments section of one of you other stories, but you are my favorite author on this site. I constantly check the message boards of your more recent chapters, not just for an update on when one of your stories will come, but more so, because I actually enjoy and appreciate the fact that you get back to your fans in a timely fashion. I, genuinely, think I owe you an apology.

Like so many of your fans, I can be a bit sycophantic and impatient, while waiting for your next chapters and while, I don't think I was as pushy as some, up until now, I honestly don't believe I fully understood the severity of your illness. Most people will claim to know someone who is bi-polar,(me included. My sister was actually prescribed LC a while back, for her bi-polar disorder.) we tend to undercut how serious your illness is. I, myself, I have a severe case of ADD/ADHD that has only gotten worse with time, to the point that I am constantly in need of reminder of what I'm doing or even saying, at times. Growing up, I had to find ways to cope with it or be bombed out of my mind from the constant and endless doses of medications that were prescribed to combat my behavior and lack of attention span. Reading became that coping mechanism for me. It allows me to slow my mind down enough to center myself so that I can focus on tasks soon to come.

I didn't mean to go off script, but that happens more often than not. As I said, I genuinely believe, I owe you an apology. I genuinely lost sight of what it means to have something you can't control(regardless of what people think) dictate the way your mind works and how debilitating it can be. I'm sorry. I don't believe that I was unkind or rude, but I do understand how difficult to be to put words together in a way that is not only meaningful to others, but gratifying as a sense of accomplishment to ourselves. I actually tried my hand at writing years ago and three-quarters into my manuscript, I lost my focus and I've never been able to finish it, now 10 years later.

I know this comment is very long-winded, but in conclusion, take care of yourself and your family, James. As best you can. The masses screaming for your works can wait or go find something else to do in the meantime. The absolute most important thing for you to consider is your health. Whether you finish these stories or not, I've truly enjoyed them all and I'm proud that you have completed what you have so far. I've seen bits and pieces of myself in several of your characters. I've laughed and even cringed at some of the dialogue(You and I have actually discussed certain words and terms.), but all in all, I have enjoyed every single thing that you've posted on this site and, even purchased the 8 volumes of Life as A New Hire that are on Amazon. You have a gift, sir. And I thank you for sharing that gift with all of us.

Happy New Year to you and your family, James.

So, where's the ending? Please don't tell me what is there is the ending. If it is, it's a piss poor one at best. Not a proper, "Sailors" ending.

... my physical and mental health has been declining precipitously over the past two years to the point I'm in near-constant pain and the latest regimens of mood stabilizers have not only not worked well, but have resulted in an unhealthy weight gain (~ 280 lbs. as of Monday afternoon). I haven't 'dropped' any of these stories. I'm simply unable to generate the creative energy to continue at this time.

James aka FinalStand

First, demand that the doctors abide by their Hippocratic oath (first, do no harm). Depakote and lithium are almost worse than the disease. I KNOW! The mood swings can be next to impossible to prevent. For myself, I prefer to control the worst with sedatives as needed. The mood swings are part of who I am. For me, lack of sleep is a definite tell so that I can use some lorazepam to sleep off the worst of the mood swing. You need a cooperative doctor who will help you as a person instead of just another crazy. Sorry.

Dear James,

Your's is a great writing talent which you, against all odds, developed into a great skill set.

Thank you for sharing.

Now I have prayed your full physical recovery with Holy Spirit Peace & Joy which exceeds our human understandings for you, for your family, and all whom you love.

God's Blessings for you,

Craig

I love your inventive mind in this and other stories, but we need the next chapters.

Obviously, we don't have the same circumstances. But over the last two years, I have had my share of pain killers, nerve pain killers, muscle relaxers, anti convulsants, mood stabilizers, sedatives, energy pills(?), and sleeping pills, just trying to get relief. I lost over 50lbs and gained it all back between switching medications. Plus, the insurance keeps cutting out doctors. It's been one hell of a ride.

Your stories are great, and I can wait to know that you're doing better. Thank you for giving us what you have so far. We will be here when you get back.

For yet another 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ wild ride! Literally takes my breath away. You are amazing! Your strength and courage are inspiring.

I hope that there are another 4 or 5 chapters left in your imagination

Please update all your stories. You always leave the story uncompleted.

Please finish, this is most excellent

Hhh

Undoubtedly one of the best action oriented Erotic Couplings stories on Lit, with more of a focus on action than the actual sex scenes - a fact which I also love. Would love to see the rest of the story come about someday. I also noticed Jo is an echo of Flame from One in Ten, and I like that fact.

Hang in there. I know it can't be easy. Much love and respect.

-DR

checking back occasionally to see if the muse has inspired additional chapters to this captivating tale. Maybe someday.

stooopid...

Still waiting after all this time for more

Re reading for probably the 5th time IDK

Fantasizing of the day another chapter posts

~Enkidu

Please finish up this story 5 stars as always!

Yowsa

Could you possibly erase stories you don’t want to finish? It’s hard finding a great story like this just to see no work done for 5 years. So no intent to add more chapters. Amazing story done just right. Rather not read any of it without an end or at least promise of ending coming.

Love it. Are we ever to see a continuation?

Please continue this

This can't be finished

Yet another un-finish story. Nothing since 2017 on this one disappointed as it vwas a good story.

Great but no ending

Great story. Very entertaining. More please...