I just love strong women with fighting spirit, Natany will make for a great partner☺️

Oh yes! I agree. She is an authentic person, with lights and shadows, like all those who are not chakats. I love Natany.

I hope Gerak can overcome whatever obstacles he has, and of course, confide in Natany, there’s no reason to hide away from someone who loves you.

By the way, what do you mean by “who are not chakats?”

According to canon, Chakats were psychologically molded with a higher sense of empathy. Therefore, they are theoretically less prone to negative attitudes or conflicts. The opposite is true for humans, and aliens like the Renzar, who do not have this conditioning in their personalities. I don't know if I'm explaining myself well.

Quite well, perfectly understandable! I guess a chakat character is more likely to forgive and show mercy to a wrong doer then, as opposed to holding grudges or struggling to forgive. (I was thinking of Ugkar when I wrote this, je je.)

Although Ugkar is not a Chakat but a Chakat-kind skunktaur. Although canon says that chakats and skunktaur share the same neurological network, it is not clear to me that skunktaur have empathy equivalent to that of chakats. I say this because, first, skunktaur underwent further neurological modifications when they were enslaved (chemical lobotomy). And second, well, I took the liberty of defining skunktaur as psychologically different from chakats. Because I think it would be very boring if skunktaur were as empathetic as chakats. A good story must have characters that break the mold. And for me, skunktaur can do it better than chakats. If skunktaur had the same empathy programmed in their minds as chakats, there would be no evil skunktaur like Ugkar (at the beginning) or Faise. Obviously, every writer has his own personal take on all this. And mine is this: Skunktaurs are more like humans than Chakats, in terms of empathy. Because that makes them more interesting characters.

I understand, I was just about to say that a conflict would end very quickly if the characters have so much empathy in their heart. In my opinion, empathy should grow gradually, not inherently programmed with it, because that would mean there’s very little we can do to make the character grow, I mean, character growth is what makes the story so interesting to read as well, like the journey of Ugkar, because hy was not inherently kind or empathetic, so there was a lot of potentials to write about and lots of scenarios to develop hys character. I think…you did the right choice by making skunktaurs more psychologically similar to the humans, that being said, if you hurt a human, he will cry, and if you take away someone dear to him, he will be devastated and possibly grow a grudge against you, so by making the skunktaurs as equally flawed as the humans, it makes the story a lot more interesting and give a the writers more materials to work with, I mean…there’s literally nothing to write about if the character is highly unaffected by negative emotions, je je.

(Btw, I was picturing Maine when I wrote this, she (hy) just fit into that description😂)

In that sense, characters like Vroeg are good, wise, and loving by choice, not because they have a tendency to be so programmed into their heads. That is, skunktaur are freer to choose how they relate to others and to the world. If you notice, the protagonists of my stories are skunktaur, not chakats. And that is the reason.

I respect that, and I think it would hurt me very much if Vroeg was programmed like that, and ultimately, I don’t think I would like Vroeg at all…the reason why Vroeg is so special to me, is because he was at the last stage of his life when Esteban came in, I mean, his life could end at any time, but there was no fear from him, only acceptance, and kindness for the young engineer, I mean, even at the end, he was more concerned about Esteban than himself, and that just made me emotional…I mean, he had very little time to live, and the last thing he decided to do in this world was to help another person, giving him as much guidance as he could, so thats why Vroeg is special to me; he was a dying flower, who had endured years of storms and hardships, and in his final moment, the flower gloomed more beautifully than any others.

(Je je, perhaps thats why I created Ping, I wished there was another person who witnessed the true beauty of this flower, in this case, I chose someone who had lived with him since childhood and had SEEN everything; like a witness.

Thank you so much for making this story and its characters something special.

Vroeg knew hy had little time left to live. And despite the advances in medicine in the 24th century, hy knew there was nothing else to do. Hy was at peace with life. Hys partner Maine had already left years before. And hys children Rena, Chorre (and Ping) were already adults and completely self-sufficient. Vroeg even got to enjoy hys grandchildren Cora, Teo and Holly, Rena's children.

By the way, I'm re-editing the story "Sunset in Amistad" in Spanish. So I want to incorporate Ping, somehow, into the initial story. I already did it in "Journey to Vika-B" where Chorre tells Ben that Vroeg raised a human child in hys youth, named Ping, with whom hy grew up. (I don't know if I mentioned it before or you read that part)

Well, it's exactly as you say. Vroeg was like a dying star that, at the last moment, shone brighter than ever, helping Esteban, caring for him more than for himself. And most likely he had Ping in mind when he helped him. And to do that, it requires, in my opinion, to be able to love even in the midst of pain. It requires having a higher level of consciousness. And Vroeg had it.

For that reason Vroeg is a special guy for me. An ideal to learn from. A true master of life. And I wanted Vroeg to be a skunktaur, and not a chakat as any other Chakat Universe writer would have probably done, for all the reasons I mentioned above, and also because skunks are usually despised in real life. They are humble creatures and very cute too heh heh.

Heh heh, thank you for such a prompt reply, and yes, I’ve read Vika-B, don’t you remember? You asked me if it was okay that the story is in Spanish, and I commented about how good you are at creating intimate and relaxing atmosphere, even got me a little excited at the end, je je 😂 In that story, Chorre confides in Ben and others about the secret of his elder brother and regrets about not being with his siblings when their father passed away, and that’s why he is so obsessed, and why he’s grateful that Ben has helped Bran Skunktaur (name?).

Well, if I may suggest, I think for “The Sunset of Amistad”, Vroeg could occasionally say things like “he looked a lot like you” or “heh heh, why don’t you give that idea a try? He certainly would, just follow your heart, Esteban” or “haha! Well Esteban, we all get scared, and by admitting that you’re scared, you’ve already made your first step as a surfer, just like he did. Now, go boy! Act while the idea is still hot.”

Well, though Vroeg couldn’t really tell Esteban about Ping, he could occasionally and subtly mention him, after all, his letter to his son remarks about how Esteban is similar to him, once confused and disoriented, like you wrote 😊And I think it’s beautiful that Vroeg has Ping in mind when he’s helping Esteban, it shows Vroeg’s love for his son, and the kindness towards this stranger.

Oh, that's right! Sorry. My mind has been very distracted lately. Tell me, could you translate from Spanish to English or Chinese? Yes, thanks for your suggestions. The idea is this: Vroeg doesn't reveal anything about hys adopted son Ping, but hy does make reference to him. In this way, the story connects with yours!

It’s okay, no worries 😉 and yes, since I couldn’t really read texts written in Spanish, I’d have to translate them to English instead, and I almost never translated anything to Chinese because nearly everything sounds so weird and…well, unnatural? It just doesn’t sound like what a Chinese would say 😂 I’m glad you like my suggestion by the way, glad to be of help 😊

Now, I have a dilemma regarding the re-release of Sunset in Amistad. The original book is written in the first person, meaning that Esteban is the narrator and tells the story from his point of view. But if I want to get into the minds of the rest of the characters, then the narrator should be omniscient as in the later books. And tell the story in the third person. What do you think?

Hmm, I think the narrator can still be Esteban, and if you want the audience to know what other characters are thinking or feeling, maybe you can have Esteban describe their facial expressions and body languages? I know it’s less direct, but it would still work, after all, our behaviours mirror what’s on our mind and what we are feeling, like this:

All this silence is making me feel really awkward, that’s it, I can’t take it anymore, I have to say something.

“So, do you come here everyday?”

“Of course, it’s the favourite place of my late lifemate. And it’s also the place where I met him…”

Suddenly, I could suddenly see a tender smile growing on Vroeg’s face.

“Ah yes…I still remember that day, it’s been so many years now.”

“What are you talking about?”

I’m confused, is he talking about someone?

“Well, maybe one day I’ll tell you.”

“Sorry, but this is very private, all I can say is that I met someone very dear to me.”

As he speaks, I could see Vroeg taking something out of his waist wallet, it is a children card game, he looks at it with a pair of fond eyes, and…I think I can see some small tears in his eyes.

“You would have liked him…he’s a great man, he has filled my years with so much joy.”

“And pride.”

My companion continues to look at it with a teary smile, while moving his fingers tenderly, and softly; he’s treating it like some kind of treasure.

“Well, you might want this.”

I take a piece of tissue paper from my bag, handing it to Vroeg.

“Thank you.”

“You’re very kind.”

Vroeg gently wiped away his tears, while smiling cheerfully at me…I just smiled awkwardly, to be honest, I’m not used to being thanked, In fact, when was the last time someone thanked me?

There you go, I hope it’s helpful to you, my friend😉I do agree that a third person narrative can make characters’ feelings and thoughts much clearer and easier to comprehend though, just like my stories.

By the way, theres something I wish to know your opinion, I know it’s been established that Vroeg and Maine raised Ping in secret, but I just realised it could be interpreted in 2 ways:

a. Nobody has ever seen this boy, not their friends, relatives, neighbours, anyone…

b. The foster relationship between Ping and these two skunktaurs is hidden by the Chakonian Government, that being said, Ping is registered as “son of Ling and Yao” instead of “adopted son of Vroeg and Maine.”

The reason why the government does so, is that if the criminals ever find out Ping is a TaRei survivor, the skunktaurs would not be targeted or hurt. So, for this option, the skunktaurs parents, the neighbours, the community, the friends, the relatives, all agree to keep Ping being Vroeg’s son a secret, and merely say “he is the child of Ling and Yao” the two officers from the government. However, it would mean that Ling and Yao would have to pretend to be his parents every time the boy goes out.

Tell me, which one do you prefer? For me it’s the second one.

(Ps: Vroeg and Maine still swore secretly to protect him even if the secret is found out by the criminals.)