Day 15: 7630 (21778/Dancer -- 123,863 total)

Half way!

We've crossed the midway mark for NaNo. I don't know if I'm happy that we've gone this far already, or worried that I'm running out of time. The second novel is going very well, though. I just know that I will have less time to work on it as the month progresses.

We'll see. So far I've managed to get a few other things done around the NaNo madness. Not enough, but I'll start focusing on them again, and see what I can get done.

I hope others are having fun with the work this month. I always enjoy the rush of NaNo!

Here is a snippet from Dancer:

They were headed out the door into a cool, bright morning. Cha stepped out first with his bag of gadgets slung over his shoulder, and Dancer followed, holding to the cane with one hand and limping still, but moving a little faster. The morning seemed too quiet to her, but then they always did on this world. Even the military base didn't have the same constant noise of the other worlds where she'd been. It seemed as though the world of Forest required quiet, and as Devlin came out of the building, even she carefully pulled the door closed so that it didn't make much noise.

And she realized, as she started to turn to join the others, that someone came around the side of the building toward them. She spun --

But Dancer moved far faster. He dropped the cane, spun on one foot, and brought the other up until the heal of his left foot rested against the neck of a very surprised, but unhurt, man.

"Idiot," Dancer said and pulled back. "You should know better than to sneak up on a bear dancer."

It was something Devlin certainly intended to remember. The man though, and the two women with him, paid no attention to Dancer at all. He could have been invisible, and Dancer, just a little tired of the game, apparently, shook his head in disgust and started to pick up the cane. Cha got it for him instead.

"We are here to point out to you that you are acting in ways that are not acceptable on Forest," one of the women said. She had the tone of an old-fashioned school teacher, and the look she gave Devlin was probably meant to quail any question of her authority. Devlin, though, wasn't much impressed and she could see Cha wasn't, either. "Your behavior can have serious repercussions if you don't take our suggestion and remove yourselves from the company of this person."

Devlin stepped up beside Dancer. Cha moved to the other side of Dancer, and by doing so, the people were forced to at least acknowledge that Dancer was present. It annoyed the woman, who's piggish eyes narrowed as her face colored.

Devlin ran a hand down her uniform jacket. "You see this? It means I am not one of your people. Neither is Dr. Cha Hao San. You may be able to play these kinds of game with you own people, but don't bother us again. We have work to do."

"We warned you --" the woman began.

"No," Cha said, cutting her short. "You didn't warn us; you threatened us. And you didn't do it very well, either. I suggest that you go make a study of diplomacy. In the meantime, as Lt. Devlin pointed out, we have work to do."

The man reached for Dancer again and looked back in shock when Devlin suddenly caught hold of his arm. "Don't do that again," she said.

He took her seriously this time. The three backed up and watched as they went to the aircar. Cha used the commlink to key it open and she slid in over to the pilot's position, though she really didn't want to be the first one in. Dancer slid into the backseat again, but from the look on his face, he plainly didn't know if this was a good idea or not. Devlin didn't give him a chance to change his mind. As soon as Cha was in and seated, she keyed the aircar on. Belts slid into place and she took them up, giving a quick glance to the three by the building. They were already walking away, and she didn't think they need worry about Cha's equipment.

"You handled that very well, Cha," Devlin said with a nod toward him.

"I have plenty of practice." He leaned back and gave a little shrug, settling his equipment on the floor beside him. They were already sweeping past the last buildings of Woodvine and over the fields. "People are often worried when I examine the systems that will keep them alive. They get surly and rude."

"What if you find something wrong?" she asked, taking them up a bit higher.

"I always find something wrong. We're aliens everywhere we colonize. We bring change and it's rarely good. I'm there to find the balance and make certain that things that are going bad don't get worse. I'm saving them from disaster."