G.M. Gray

@gmgray.bsky.social

1706 Followers 741 Following

they/them Writer. Artist. Gun metal gray. I am writing queer normative sci-fi blending literature, genre, and weeby anime fun! https://linktr.ee/gmgraywrites

“Legendary tavern crawls, Jiordson?” Alan asked in a leading tone. Valtra’s black eyes sparkled. Any earlier warmth she’d felt for Gunnar was replaced with heartless mischief directed at her captain. “What, Beringer? The Captain never told you? He’s quite popular with the shore lads. Dashing tales of piracy and all. They can’t resist ‘im.” Out the corner of his eye, Alan saw Gunnar starting to blush before busying himself with his tablet, but Alan was not as decorous. He arched an eyebrow at Sven. “Oh?” Sven looked a little embarrassed. He let out an awkward laugh as if to distract Alan from the picture Valtra wanted to paint. “Everyone loves dashing tales of derring-do, huh?” Sven was many things, and he had more layers to him than he let on, but Alan couldn’t picture him as a typical sea dog. A drinker and a carouser, yes, but Alan had spent almost two Standard Pyrean months in Sven’s bedroom. Outside of the whole “pirate captor holding an Elite inspector hostage” situation, Sven had been a perfect gentleman. When it came to Valtra, Alan had no trouble imagining her chasing tail on shore, but it seemed Sven had a libertine side of his own. This explained why Sven looked just a little nicer than he normally did. He was more cleaned up, wearing the same style of clothes but better tailored and more form-fitting than what he wore while sailing. Casual, but dressing to impress. Not that it mattered to Alan. “Well, if it’s the stuff of legends, who can argue with that?” Alan tried to keep his tone and body language light and teasing. It shouldn’t have mattered to Alan, but a small, hard knot had formed in his stomach despite himself. It felt a little like jealousy but what Alan was jealous of, he couldn’t imagine. That Sven hadn’t told Alan about his conquests? That Sven hadn’t invited him to the bar crawl? That Sven never once tried to seduce him? Alan discarded the last thought before it could fully form.
A screenshot of the head bureaucrat from Futurama saying "You are technically correct. The best kind of correct."
An illustration of a diabolically grinning man with black curly hair, a mustache, and yellow eyes seated on a red brocade couch, feet propped up on the table before him. He's holding a Colt Single Action Army revolver in one hand while his other arm is slung over the back of the couch. His shirt is open and he has a locket around his neck. There is a glass of whiskey on the table, with an attempt at caustics even being made, because I think he's super hot and deserves a little extra effort.
There were numerous emergency pods scattered across the ship, but he’d already decided on one of the single-person pods in a quieter side bay. Smaller pods had less tracking capability than the big ones, so it was easier to disable. Even with Ragnar secured, Alan doubted he had more than twenty minutes, and that was generous. Fortunately this particular bay was empty at this time of night. Alan opened one of the pods and took a seat before pulling out the tools he’d appropriated from Dirk’s kit. He didn’t work as fast as he had hoped, but it was fast enough. After clipping the last of the wires that connected the tracker, he reached down to begin the launch sequence. A gun cocked behind him. Alan froze. His hand was just a couple palm lengths from the hatch controls. If he was fast enough to hit the button… “I wouldn’t try it,” Sven murmured as though reading Alan’s thoughts. “Hatch doors close kinda slowly, and we already established I can pry them open if I feel like it. Which I probably will.”
“We’ll check out the city once we drop our stuff at the house,” Sven assured him. “It’s a neat place, huh?” “I never thought I’d set foot on Pyre,” Alan admitted. “It’s beautiful.” “It’s hot,” Sven countered. The train was an express from the space elevator, so only after they reached Central Station did it slow to a stop before settling on the ground. Sven didn’t waste any time, hopping out of his seat to pull down both his bag and Alan’s. “Come on,” he said, handing Alan his bag. “The family will be picking us up in half a bell.” They waited under one of the station’s awnings, but even in this shade, everything seemed overly bright. Sven remained unfazed by the sunlight as he eagerly pointed out sights visible from this spot and a number that weren’t. Alan did his best to keep up, but Sven was unquestionably rambling. Alan could almost feel the psychic whiplash as his partner yammered about one place then another then another, hopping between past and present and distant past as he covered what was starting to feel like the whole of pyrean history.
A picture of a calico cream colored guinea pig with Abyssinian rosettes. He is gently squeaking as a hand scritches him.
A description of the Bluesky Privacy Policy: Third Party Age or Identity Verification. Where required by law, Bluesky may use third-party services to verify that you are old enough to access certain features or content. This verification may involve one or more of the following methods, depending on your jurisdiction and availability: Government ID Verification: Uploading an image of a government-issued ID, which is checked for authenticity. Facial Age Estimation: Uploading a selfie or real-time facial scan used to estimate age via machine learning technology. Payment Card Verification: Providing a valid payment card to confirm age through a nominal transaction or validation check. Knowledge-Based Verification (KBV): Answering questions based on public records to confirm identity and age. Social Vouching: A verified adult vouches for the user's age using their own verified account or identity. Mobile Phone Verification: Using a phone number linked to a mobile carrier account to infer your age. Email Based Age Inference: Using publicly available data about an existing email account to infer your age. You will be able to choose from among available jurisdiction-specific options based on your preference. We do not retain any biometric data or facial images provided to third-party age verification vendors. The f section is highlighted as is the word "choose"
A picture of a young Black girl with type 4C purple hair in a cute blue dress with purples tights and a pistol in her left hand as she steps through a door frame with a glowing fluid-like portal. On the other side is what appears to be the same woman but older wearing the same shoes and tights but now in a purple business suit with ascot. She is carrying a submachine gun now. The background is dark and shadowy and there are ripples where their feet touch the "ground" though the ripples do not cross the doorway.
The cover of Triple Strike: Threads of Fate which is the first book in the series. It depicts the two lead characters, Alan and Sven, on the bridge of a ship. Alan is standing, leaning on his sword, while Sven is seated in the captain's chair before a ship's wheel. He has an iguana on a shoulder, and he's smiling up at Alan.
A handwritten page with two recipes for the French 75 and The Communist. Recipe as follows. French 75: 1 oz gin .5 oz lemon juice .5 oz simple syrup 3 oz sparkling wine Garnish with a lemon twist The Communist: 1 oz gin 1 oz orange juice .5 oz cherry brandy .75 oz lemon juice Garnish with a cherry and/or orange peel
A photo of the Nendoroid case for the Shang Bu Huan/Syou Fu Kan doll from Thunderbolt Fantasy by Good Smile
A picture of an armored centaur with a prosthetic leg carrying a nonbinary banner.
A character sheet of Natalia Jiordson along with several hair styles. The sheet says: Natalia Jiordson (she/her) pyrean mischievous, competitive, friendly 16 Standard Pyrean years 165 cm There are three hair styles. "Usual" is just her curly hair held back by two braids along the side, "Braid" is one single braid, and "formal" is a bunch of braids curling around a bun and before her ears. At the bottom it says "if this were a manga, Nat would have a different outfit/hairstyle in every issue, so feel free to go nuts...
A clip of the Art Fight connections for Valtra Segel. It says "Valtra Segel's Connections" and depicts connections between her and Sven, and her and Alan. Her to Sven: Sven is the captain of the Merry Swallow, and one of Valtra's closest friends. Sven to her: Valtra is the first mate of the Merry Swallow, and one of Sven's closest friends. Her to Alan: Valtra is fond of Alan even though he's a cop. Alan to her: Alan is fond of Valtra even though he's slightly afraid of her.
A character sheet of the character, Valtra, from Triple Strike. It depicts a elven woman in work out clothes with short blue hair and long black locks before her ears. The sheet says: Valtra Segel (she/her) pyrean diligent, cheerful, blunt 49 Standard Pyrean years 179 cm A picture of her bust has three arrows pointing to it. One points to her right ear and says "two studs in right ear." The arrow pointing to her left ear says "two rings in left ear" and a third pointing at her shoulder says "she's pretty yoked." There are two sketches of her mouth, slightly open and closed showing her teeth. The open mouth depicts several sharp teeth and the arrow says "lateral incisors + canines are sharp." The one depicting her closed mouth shows a hint of fangs and says "canines peek out"
A picture of Sven and Alan from Triple Strike blocked out in a solid gray, depicting Sven looking up at Alan, their fingers intertwined, as they smile at each other. Sven looks mostly the same has he does in the series, but Alan has long hair pulled into a braid suggesting some time has passed.
A character sheet for Sven Jiordson from Triple Strike. It features a full color picture of him, Eric the iguana, blocked colors on his sword, and inks of his head and his hand. The text says: Sven Jiordson (he/him) pyrean playful, outgoing, energetic 41 Standard Pyrean years 165 cm Eric (he/him) green iguana judgmental ?? Standard Pyrean years 132 cm Sven's chibi face is labeled with three arrows pointing to his ears and hair. The one pointing at his hair says "cuts his own hair." The one pointing at his right earring says "stud in right ear" and the one pointing at the left earring says "ring in left ear. Below that is his sword in blocked out reds and whites and it's labeled "Zimorodok (sister's rapier)" There's also a sketch of a right hand with a faint outline along the wrist and it says "right hand is prosthetic but is almost indistinguishable from original"
Sven looked vaguely offended. “I’m not that easy to impress.” “Believe what you want,” Alan laughed with a shake of his head. “Oh, Sven, by the way…” He picked up Kidnapped. “I didn’t know you knew English.” “I don’t.” Alan blinked. “But this copy is in English.” “Oh, Kidnapped? Yeah, I read it in United Pyrean as a kid. Absolutely loved it. Was my favorite book for years and years, so I picked up a version in the original language. This copy has pictures,” Sven added as if that explained everything. “It’s a fun novel,” Alan admitted. He enjoyed the old human adventure books of that era, but he couldn’t claim a deep obsession like pyreans had. “It is,” Sven agreed. His eyes turned just a little wicked. “Ever since I read it, I’ve wanted an Alan of my own.”
Alan picked up his watch, which was set to Standard Pyrean time, and confirmed it was well before the dawn bell. He forced himself to lie back on the bed, doing his best to ignore the adrenaline pumping through him. After a few minutes of counting his racing heartbeats, Alan realized sleep was hopeless. He turned on a small reading light by the bed and pulled out one of Sven’s paperbound novels at random. Kidnapped by Robert Louis Stevenson, and it was in the original English. Did Sven actually know English? Was this book’s presence coincidence, the Fates, or Sven’s deranged sense of humor? Hard to tell, Alan mused as he flipped to the middle. David was just about to encounter the Red Fox when the door to the hallway opened. Sven stood, silhouetted by the corridor’s dim lights. He remained comically quiet as if to avoid waking Alan, and only halfway through tip-toeing into the room did he notice Alan’s reading light. “Oh! Alan!” There was a long, awkward pause. “You’re awake!” “Mmm,” Alan murmured. “Strange as it sounds, I couldn’t sleep through what I assume was a shell strike.”
Clip of a Visual Novel style game testing a "conditional progression" choice system where n number of choices must be visited before the dialogue will automatically proceed.
Digital line work for Sven's outline on a gray background. He is smiling with his hands on his hips
A picture of Haworthia retusa aka star cactus in a shark shaped pot. The curve of the shark mouth and the spiky shark teeth may make it hard to safely repot the plant later if it needs that.
A character reference sheet that has two main pictures of Alan, with and without his coat. There are a couple additional sketches. One of his sword, a sabre with a dragon handle and winged quillon, and the other of his shirtless back and pony tail. The title text says: Alan Beringer (he/him) (mostly) human polite, introverted, dry sense of humor 27 Standard Earth years 180 cm Next to one picture an arrow points at Alan's face saying "default expression looks kinda judgmental." Next to the other picture, an arrow points at Alan's shirt saying "prefers loosely form-fitting collared shirts" Next to the shirtless back sketch, one arrow points at his very short ponytail "ponytail pointy like a shark fin" and other points at his tattoo "tattoo if for some reason you draw him shirtless" Finally the sword is labeled Drachewunden: family heirloom & sabre
A picture of a small footprint spinning book shelf with all seven current volumes of The Summer Hikaru Died next to the first few volumes of Dorohedoro. Some Mushishi, novels by MXTX and Blade of the Immortal are also visible so yes this is my weeb shelf
A bar chart counting times each character cried per book divided by "actual tears" and "verge of tears" The final tally is: Threads of Fate Actual Tears: 0 Verge of Tears: Sven (1) Pasts Revisited Actual Tears: Alan (1), Sven (1), Other (1) Verge of Tears: Sven (3), Natalia (2) A Gathering Storm Actual Tears: Alan (2), Sven (1), Valtra (2), Other (1) Verge of Tears: Alan (1), Natalia (2), Other (2) Threads Unbound Actual Tears: Alan (2), Sven (2) Verge of Tears: Valtra (1) Starfarer's Dream Actual Tears: Alan (2), Sven (1), Natalia (1), Ian (1), Shailen (3), Other (2) Verge of Tears: Sven (1), Shailen (1), Other (1)
A picture of a several charts and diagrams in draw.io labeled Minigames, Case File, Part 1, Part 2 and the rest is cut off. Colors coordinate between the minigames listed and the gameplay flow charts.
“Watch your step,” Jakob said, and Alan didn’t understand what he meant until he took a step forward. When he looked down, he almost stumbled. Alan had been on large ships before, but the bridge of the Therin was uncomfortably massive. Some near-transparent material, more imperceptible than the great stargazing panel over the Swallow’s stern, enclosed it on all sides. Below Alan’s feet, there was nothing but space and distant stars, and the only indication that the bridge wasn’t floating free from the ship were delicate pylons secured around the bridge in meandering but deliberate loops. This close, Alan could see the etched patterns — hieroglyphic images of birds and flowers and animals from across the galaxy. As beautiful as it was, this was as close to vertigo as Alan had experienced. “Inspector Beringer.” A low, pleasant voice spoke in International Human, coming from the end of a platform that ran the length of the bridge. Half a dozen ma’jenn lined this platform, seated before terminals more closely resembling termite mounds than computers, but these workers ignored their guests as they went about their duties. A single ma’jenn had risen from their seat at the main command terminal to regard them.
A picture of a draw.io workspace which has a number of flow charts/diagrams broadly organized into "Case File" "Part 1" "Part 2" and "Part 3"
A photo of a young roadrunner sitting on a stack of cinder blocks. It is crouched down because it noticed me pulling into the drive so it was trying not to move.
A video of a hand flipping through a lined paper notebook filled with a messy scrawl of text
A sketch of Olruggio’s bust from Witch Hat Atelier. He looks grouchy and sleep deprived. The following descriptors surround him: - unwashed - unshaven - vitamin D deficiency - bad back - bad posture - sleep deficit - body of a 50 yo - soul of an 80 yo
A picture of the OP’s fingers curled to show the gun metal gray nails.
Some sketch ideas of an unnamed character. There is a sketch of two kukri, a young-looking woman with wolf ears, a long braid, and a heavy coat that hides both her hands and then another sketch of the same character with the coat off in a simple chest cover with a collar. She is completely blank-faced.
Shang Bu Huan from Thunderbolt Fantasy with his torn umbrella in the rain grimacing as he reaches for his sword.
A pencil sketch of Shang Bu Huan and Lin Xue Ya from Thunderbolt Fantasy. Shang is lying in Lin’s lap chin propped on his hand as he regards Lin with only one eye open grimacing. Lin has his pipe in hand and is regarding Shang with a mischievous smile.
A pencil sketch of Ian and Tristan from Triple Strike. Tristan is grinning around a cigarette as he tilts his head toward Ian who is grouchily slouching toward him to light his own cigarette on Tristan’s.
She must have seen the doubt in his expression, because her lips flattened into a thin, irritable line. She regarded him with something close to incredulity. “Has it never once occurred to ya that’s why Alan loves and trusts ye still? Why I can’t stop lovin’ ya even when ya make me furious? Great Mother, ya must think both of us absolute fools if ya can’t see that much.“ A wave of warmth filled Colin’s heart, and the sensation was so tender, so earnest, it was almost painful. Never once, even before the incident, had Colin imagined Valtra’s friendship was something he deserved. Of course he’d accepted it. She’d offered her affection so freely, as a gift, and he’d been too selfish to turn it down. To know that she still loved him after everything — a love unexpected and undeserved… Though Colin no longer believed in God, twice now he’d been granted grace. It took all of his will power not to fall to his knees and sob at Valtra’s feet.
A physical zine style pamphlet for the short story “Last Flight of the Glamr” with the subtitle “an Event Horizon-but-cozy short story set in the Triple Strike universe” the cover features a picture of a futuristic space ship with a black, starry background. At the bottom it says “Writing and art by G.M. Gray”
“The universe is a big place,” Tristan murmured. “It’s a thoughtless place. Not cruel, but not kind either. There is no fairness or justice or meaning in who lives and who dies. It’s all up to chance where one is born, and how much life one is given.” “I…I know,” Alan muttered, turning away. “I think about that sometimes,” Tristan continued. “What’s happening right at this moment somewhere out there.” He jerked his chin up at the sky. “A species on the cusp of reaching the stars is falling into ruin. They’re burning down everything they have, and these choices they’re making are not just for themselves but for all of that sun’s descendants. One more civilization of thousands that has doomed themselves never to reach beyond their sun’s gravity well.” “It’s statistically likely, yes.” Tristan did not seem to notice the sullen sarcasm in Alan’s voice, because he continued, “Somewhere else out there, a sun is going supernova. Life is coming to an end across all of her planets just as a newborn is opening its eyes for the first time. That light will be the first and last thing it ever sees.” “Yes, I know.” “Or maybe there’s a bird, the last of its kind. It’s grown too weak to fly. It’s sung day after day, never knowing despair, though none of its kind will ever answer. But now, it’s over, and all it can do is wait for death.” “I know!” Alan shouted in a voice so loud, it was practically a scream. He whipped around to face his great-grandfather. “I know!” Both Huginn and Muninn raised their heads, chirping in uncertainty, but Alan ignored them, too overwhelmed with his own hurt to soothe them. Alan put his hand on his chest, and his fingers tightened as they tangled into his shirt. “I know! I know all that, so you don’t need to tell me, because I know! I know there was nothing you could have done to save Mama. I know life is unfair. I know I shouldn’t blame you. But I do. And even if I know there was no way you or Grandmama could’ve come with us to Earth…I still hate you …
If I have one message to give to the secular American people, it's that the world is not divided into countries. The world is not divided between East and West. You are American, I am Iranian, we don't know each other, but we talk together and we understand each other perfectly. The difference between you and your government is much bigger than the difference between you and me. And the difference between me and my government is much bigger than the difference between me and you. And our governments are very much the same. Quote by Marjane Satrapi
Pride Book Fair 2026 Bundle #4: A Good Day to Pride Hard Only Dark Edges Katie L Caroll; Winds of Destruction Karen Lykkebo; A Life in Too Many Margins S E Thomson; A Love Less Travelled E H Timms; A Touch of Unicorn Magic Kit Muse; Act Like This Isnt Normal Vin Kiva; Adamere in Swan A P Howell; Afterlight Tana Welsummer; Between Me You Moonlit Sea Linn Silver; Child of the Sun Audrey Simmons; Commit to the Kick Tris Lawrence; Crystal Gunslinger Oliver Laws; Dark Heart of Ilmoure Cara N Delaney; Darker Worlds Argento nox; Errant Wings S Jean; Fattening Fantasies FatFuckingFox; Fimbulvinters Fires A M Weald; Firewinds Accord David J Stuart; In Pursuit of M Lachance J W Croemner; Lock the Last Door Vincent Lore; Lust and Found Sylvie Helstaff; Manipulators War Elise Carlson; Mermans Delight Skyler Nightshade; Moth Woods Amara Lynn; Physical Magic William C Tracy; Sweet And Wild Alex Larkspur; The Dark Side of Super Matthew Siadak; The Dragons Keeper Moira Carn; The Fall of the Rose Princess DCS; The Flowers of Time A L Lester.webp' The Fractured Balance N A Soleil; The Lizards Dance Manyface; The Night Fair Pax Asteriae; The Space Ace of Mangleby Flat Larre Bildeston; The WineDark Sea Kris Madigan; Triple Strike G M Gray; Yelen and Yelena C M Rosens
“Considering what would have happened to me had you not, I’m going to disagree,” Alan replied. “Except for the parts where you dropped the key, lost your comm, and got cleaned out falling from a ladder, you were the picture of dashing.” He’d meant it to be a gentle barb, but Alan found his lips curling into a genuine smile, an unexpected feeling of warmth running through him. Any other time, he would have judged Sven, a pyrean Navy captain, for acting in such a reckless and impulsive way, but perhaps because Alan was still alive — and it felt so good to be alive — Sven never looked more charming. Yet when Sven met his eyes, rather than smile back and crack a joke as Alan expected, the captain’s long ears grew red. He turned away, busying himself with complaints about the Fates and his bad luck and how resignation sounded like a better and better idea every day.
Alan blinked when he realized what was happening. Sven was blushing. The man was normally so shameless, Alan hadn’t thought it possible. “Right!” Sven said, hopping off of the bed. “I haven’t thrown up in a while, so it’s about time I got back to the bridge, yeah?” “Jiordson, what are you —” Alan trailed off, realizing this was a statement, not a question. Before Katja or Daice could get between Sven and the med bay exit, Sven had made it into the hallway. Katja threw open the office door and took off after him, shouting that she hadn’t cleared him for duty. Daice, who had also poked his head out, looked after his captain and commanding officer before turning to Alan. For a long moment, they stared at each other. “So…” Daice said as if to make conversation in the uncomfortable silence. “You’re that Elite hostage?” Alan coughed. “Yes.” “Um, and the captain was, er, supervising you before now?” “Yes, I suppose you could call it that.” “So…I should put those handcuffs back on till he returns?” Alan didn’t mean to growl, but his next words sounded distinctively like a snarl. “Absolutely not.” Daice seemed to realize he didn’t need to press the point when Alan flopped back onto the bed and buried his face in his hands. Like many star sailors, Alan was agnostic, choosing to tentatively believe in all possible deities on the off chance that any one religion had the right of it. Thus, he started praying to every god, spirit, universal will, and fate he could think of, hoping beyond hope that the Elite would change its “no hostage negotiation” policy just for him. He was ready to go home.
An ink outline of a full page spread for a theoretical Triple Strike comic. Sven and Alan are lying next to each other on a single sized bed (fully dressed). Alan is gently smiling at Sven who smiles back sadly, the heel off his hand pressed against an eye as he says "All right. And now I have you insulting me on top of everything."
A discord conversation with the names and icons of the chatters blacked out. The first message (from G.M. Gray) says: Yeah I always feel like I'm too much of a freak for the normies but too normie for the freaks rip The next messages (from Noah) says: i agree this is exactly where i am normie/freak nonbinary There is an emoji of a XD face beneath this line
A demo of a dialogue system displaying rich text plus a choice selection system that can use either keyboard or mouse to navigate. It is set in the world of Triple Strike.
A Trello column that says "In Progress" The first item says "Add Alan with shirt on for all poses" The second item says "Set up Test Level for quickly verifying all Dialogue features"
“Oh, Sven! Sven!” Natalia gestured at an open seat next to them, but her brother didn’t seem to notice. He hurried from the mess hall, tray in hand, without a glance in their direction. Valtra heaved a sigh of frustration, and Natalia shoveled some food into her mouth before she could start laughing. A full-on Valtra Tirade was coming, which Nat intended to enjoy at least as much as the meal. “Off he goes. No time for his mates now,” Valtra griped. “I should go meet that Elite cabin boy, shouldn’t I? Find out what the fuss is about.” Natalia finished swallowing before propping her chin on a hand. She gazed at the door Sven had left through with a dreamy look in her eyes. “The fuss is that pretty face of his. Do you think all Elite are that good-looking, or did we just luck out kidnapping Alan?” “Not my type, Nat,” Valtra shrugged. “Wouldn’t know.” “You’re so distrustful, Valt,” Natalia said, taking another nibble of a fried fish strip. “He saved Sven’s life. Even Ian is okay with him having limited access to the ship. Greta says he’s been a model prisoner.” “Yeah, yeah, everyone loves the new human mascot. Attractive. Well-mannered. Completely harmless.” Valtra speared a vegetable and stared at it with the mistrust she yearned to direct at Alan in person. “He’s only behaving because he believes we’re still negotiating with the Elite. Any day now, he thinks he’s gonna get sent home as part of an under-the-table deal that the HIA never makes public.”
Alan cocked his head. After a moment of consideration, he said, “You’re right, Sven, but she’s been talking about piloting for as long as I’ve known her, and I’m sure since much longer than that. Why wasn’t it a concern before now? This isn’t really about her piloting, is it?” “Alan, are you taking her side?” Sven regarded Alan with a hurt look. “She’s just a kid. It’s too dangerous. What if…what if…” Sven slumped back onto the bed. He stared up at the ceiling with a pained expression. “I already lost one sister,” he admitted in a voice barely more than a whisper. Alan paused before joining Sven on his bed. He leaned back to stare up at the ceiling with Sven. “Pyrean sailors take pride in being fatalistic,” Alan observed. “You love entrusting yourself to the Fates — accepting the skein of your life. It’s hard for someone who’s mostly human to understand, to be honest.” Alan regarded Sven with a wry smile. “But the way you’re acting, Sven, it seems distinctly human to me.” Sven blinked, his unhappy expression fading into a self-deprecating grin. “All right. And now I have you insulting me on top of everything.”
“These gardens are beautiful,” Sven murmured in a sentimental tone, returning Alan’s thoughts to the present. “Bet your ships have nothing like them.” “That’s true,” Alan admitted as he seated himself beside Sven. “They are both impressive and pragmatic.” After a moment he added, “And yes, beautiful.” The aquaponic gardens were all of these things. The pyreans had created numerous technological wonders for space travel, but their gardening and bioengineering were what made extended, nomadic life in space possible. These gardens also made the indefinite time spent traveling on a starship bearable. When Alan worked on human ships, the unending gray and white of the walls grew oppressive after a couple months. The sight of so much green and the smell of the water, even if it was slightly musty as though from a swamp, revitalized Alan in a way he hadn’t imagined possible. It made the vast, indifferent maw of space feel almost cozy. Sven yawned, folding his hands behind his head as his eyes slid shut. “I should go collect Eric soon. The provisioning team always yells at me if he snacks too much on the foliage.” “I can’t imagine why.” Sven said nothing. After a pause, he murmured, “It’s not so bad here, right, Alan?”
The Chief Inspector continued, “Yes, an agreement has been reached, and technically speaking they are ready to free you.” “But…?” Alan cut in, unable to stop himself. “But,” she agreed, “part of the arrangement is the creation of a new position within the Elite: Attaché Inspector of Observation. This position will exist to promote cross-species exchange and foster better cooperation and understanding between humans and pyreans. And this position is only available to you, Alan.” Alan froze, unable to parse so much new, unexpected information. Each of the title’s words he understood, but put together… “Chief Inspector,” Alan mumbled with a shake of his head. “Forgive me if I’m being daft, and all of this is obvious, but am I to understand that you are giving me a new title, then leaving me on the Merry Swallow to observe a pyrean naval vessel, which is most certainly part of the Piracy Division, and this is something that both the IPC and HIA agreed to?” The Chief Inspector sighed. “It’s the ideal solution to everyone’s problems, Alan.” She gave him a pointed look. “You being the problem. The IPC no longer has to deal with an ongoing hostage situation, and the HIA saves face. The Elite get levels of access to the Pyrean Navy that has hitherto been impossible.” “And what does the Pyrean Navy get?” She regarded him for a long, hard moment. “They get back one of their own.”
The only book that seemed there specifically to mock Alan was a copy of Innocents Abroad in International Human. The translation appeared to have gone from English to United Pyrean before finally reaching IH making it an atrocious treatment of Twain, but the humor of the content, its butchered wording and all, wasn’t lost on Alan. During the day, Alan maintained a strict exercise routine for when a chance at escape came, before spending at least an hour or two trying to hack into the ship’s systems. He’d be the first to admit these attempts were half-hearted. His work in the Elite meant he knew his way around pyrean technology, but despite appearances to the contrary, Sven wasn’t actually stupid. Alan’s partner, Colin, may have had half a chance if he’d been captured instead of Alan, but Alan’s investigative specialties lay elsewhere. Yet Alan wasn’t planning on sitting around waiting for Colin to rescue him either. If Colin succeeded in finding him before Alan succeeded in escaping, Alan would never hear the end of it.
A picture showing all five covers of the Triple Strike Series against a starry background. The title is Triple Strike: A space opera light novel. Listed below this are the tropes/themes: - Found Family - Queer Normative - Sunshine x Grumpy - World-building Focused - Political Intrigue - Oblivious Ace Problems - Ensemble Cast - Swashbuckling Banter - Occasional Space Furries It also says "Series is complete!" at the bottom
A pale blue coffee mug with a picture of a capybara raising one sad paw as it thinks “Coffee, PLEASE” in shaky text along with a zzz
A ten frame “deep” box for keeping bees. A smiling Namazu wearing a bell has been painted on the front
A screenshot of ech0read's review on Storygraph (5 stars). Tagged as adventurous, hopeful, sad, and medium-paced Plot or Character Driven: A mix Strong character development: Yes Loveable characters: Yes Diverse cast of characters: Yes Flaws of characters a main focus: N/A Okay, I am slightly less emotional than when I finished the book, so I will try to write a somewhat coherent review, but I make no promises. I absolutely love this series. Something about Alan and Sven made me immediately latch onto them as my comfort characters. Alan being serious and methodical, but learning to have fun with Sven, and Sven being loyal to Alan no matter what, is such an incredible dynamic for them. They're so incredibly cute together. Whew. The exploration of grief in this book really messed me up (in the best way). [Wall of blacked out spoiler text]
A very old piece of lined paper titled "Zanzibarland Rules and Edicts - Talk about Zanzibarland as much as possible, because it's really fun and everyone should know - All dance clubs shall be known as "Dancitrons" - The Zanzibarland hamster is a national treasure (so is Idris Elba) - Tourism slogan is "Zanzibarland: the land of feelings" - As Official Zanzibarland TA, Sharky reserves the right to dock points from anything at any time with a red pen - The legal system will be TA-based (points deducted for crimes) using a red pen, while the military will be sass-based. Both point deductions and sass must be wielded at the volunteer's discretion and good sense - Costco is the only major corporation allowed in Zanzibarland - Traveling through time to team up with your younger selves is only allowed in kid's cartoons - Preying on people's addictive tendencies through freemium games is grounds for immediate explusion - Emoticons are not required but are strongly encouraged in casual written communication
A picture of blue bonnets and firewheel flowers scattered across the untended soil
A yellow dog next to two yellow cats on the couch with a blanket
tracks, while hawkers shouted at shoppers. The tents were nothing remarkable — most were just cloth awnings above a table packed with displays — but each had unique signs flashing advertisements in some subset of the international languages. The ma’jenn used Standard Ma’jenn of course, but the human and pyrean stalls varied from well-known languages, such as United Pyrean and International Human, to a number in specific languages including Arabic, Merdael, Portuguese, English, and Fimmelian. Very few were in Interplanetary Standard, which surprised Alan. Merchants on Delta 4 must have enough specific clientele they didn’t need to search for broader customer bases.