As I started planning 2017’s 4 Black Ocean missions, I realized that the main story is coming to a close. But even though the characters have decided to spread their wings, and live off-camera (for at least a while), I wanted to make sure the end is satisfying to the most important audience: readers. So I polled my audience to see which characters they wanted to hear more about, and what unanswered questions–and, in some cases, wild theories–they had.

First and foremost, thank you to everyone who responded to my Survey. I received 83 responses, and many of you took the time to send me thoughtful comments and analyses of the series. Without further ado, here are the results!

Favorite Missions

Mission 7: Seige of Mortania (30%)

“The two that really stick out in my mind are Siege of Mortania and Alien Racer. The first because it is an awesome wizard’s duel, and the second because it is Carl at his best with all the scheming and double crossing.”
“#2 (A Smuggler’s Conscience) is where the series really found its footing, but when people ask why they should read these books I hand them #7: Siege of Mortania.”

Mission 5: Alien Racer (20%)

The racing scenes are some of my favorite scenes in the black ocean and the heist is a lot of fun

Mission 1: Salvage Trouble (18%)

The first book really hooked me into the Black Ocean. Carl is basically honest but always looking for an angle – legal or otherwise.

Favorite Characters

You kept the ensemble Supporting Cast just large enough to be fun without forcing me to keep a notebook to keep track of everyone

Esper has been my favorite storyline. She started out naive and inexperienced, but changed just a tiny bit in each story, until the last book she is a badass and it’s revealed that the other crew members are a bit scared of her.

Least Liked Characters

This was interesting for me. Turns out there are a couple of you who really can’t stand Tanny and Kubu. Who knew?

There were a few other characters, like Yomin, Shoni, Rai Kub and Archie who show up in the later missions who received a lot of “Huh? Who?” votes.

Keep reading, guys! You’ll get there. Those of you who have completed all the missions, rest assured that these characters will continue to play a strong role in the remaining missions.

Loose Ends

Here are some of your biggest open questions. Your instincts were spot-on here, folks! These are indeed the big mysteries still to be answered in the final 4 missions of the official Black Ocean series.

• Did Mort’s son read the Tome of Bleeding Thoughts, or resist temptation? (Hint: Does anyone ever avoid temptation in a story?)
• What happened to Tanny, Mriy, and Kubu? (Hint: Tanny is a Rucker, after all, and blood is thicker than…)
• Will the Convocation get what it deserves?
• Will Don Rucker and Chuck Ramsey get what they deserve?
• Can Roddy overcome his alcoholism?
• What’s the future for Carl and Amy?
• Does Esper get a happy ending?

Predictions

One of my favorite parts of the survey responses was your predictions for the future of Black Ocean. Some of them were WAAAAAAY out there; some of them were brutal. All of them were fun! Here are a few of my favorites:

• Mort put into a robot body: irony at its best.
• Tanny and Carl were never married; these were false memories implanted to protect Tanny from pursuing a relationship with Carl after her previous crime-lord boyfriend fought to the near death over her and neither would relinquish their infatuation.
• Kubu eats Carl.
• Esper leads a bloody coup to take control over the Convocation, becomes Arch-Mage of the galaxy, and begins her reign of terror.
• Carl isn’t real, but is actually a physical manifestation of Mort’s imagination.

And of course, one person acknowledged that it’s really hard to predict, since Carl is inherently a loose cannon, constantly doing the unpredictable. Oh, how well you know Carl!

As 2017 progresses, I promise you tons more fun–and outrageous antics–from the crew of the Mobius. Check out the series to get caught up.