Tis the season to
battle nasty colds. Bleh. But it's a great time to catch up on my reading while
drinking hot tea. :D
Television this
week… The Walking Dead had a great
episode. I'm rather enjoying the way we have batshit crazy episode where people
are dying or might be dying then we follow it with a different pace, but no
less intense episode. Seriously, kudos to the producers because I'm still glued
to my screen each week.
Gotham and Sleepy Hollow again had
good showings. I'm kind of ready for the twisty dance of the new mayor of Gotham to be completed and his hand
fully revealed. And the same goes for Pandora on Sleepy Hollow.
The Flash is making me happy with several little twists. Having a different Wells
in the mix is actually pretty fun and I’m crossing my fingers he doesn't turn
out to be evil, but we'll see. I love how snarky he is towards everyone.
Arrow is also winding up with a great arc. I love the way the past is still being
woven in with the present. And I’m really intrigued with Diggle's brother and
what really happened. I have a feeling Darkh isn't being totally forthcoming,
because where's the fun in that? LOL
Agents of SHIELD… yeah, totally didn't see the reveal of
Lash coming. I should have, but I didn't. And now things are going to get
really interesting. I am sort of hoping Ward gets some additional development
and doesn't become a cardboard villain.
I watched the final
episode of Lost Girl and got weepy
because I’m going to miss that show so much. What a great run. I'll definitely
enjoy a full rewatch sometime in the future.
And that's it for
TV this week.
Tonight's post is
from Victory is Hollow, a novella
where my main characters have to face their differences and embrace them if
they want to move forward.
Here's the
mini-blurb:
Patience Clew and Del
Mindhapel are elite arms instructors for their training academy and have a lot
of tension bouncing back and forth. When two of their cadets go head to head in
an illegal duel and one ends up with a mortal wound, the top teachers are
confined to quarters and that's when the tension really goes out of control.
And a sneaky peek…
Patience Clew disassembled the
P20 sidearm and separated the parts on the table. "Listen up, boys and
girls, I'm only going over this one time." She put the weapon back
together, explaining each step of the process. "Now, the weight is lighter
than you're used to, so you'll have to adjust accordingly." She emptied
the clip, aiming at the target in the back of the room.
The classroom erupted into cheers
and applause. The students never failed to appreciate one of their instructors
offering a live demonstration.
Laying the spent weapon aside,
she placed her hands on the table. "Any questions?" She called on the
four or five usual individuals who routinely raised their hands.
After answering their queries,
she dismissed the class, reminding everyone to be at the range bright and early
in the morning.
The cadets filed out of the room
and her fellow instructor, Del Mindhapel, rose from his seat in the back. He
moved forward, meeting her at the halfway mark in the classroom. Based on his
carefully schooled features, Patience figured he had plenty to say about her
session this morning.
Her lips twisted in a smirk.
"Lay it on me, Del. I can't wait to hear your thoughts about my class this
morning." She planted her hands on her hips, ready for anything.
Del crossed his arm in front of
his chest. "You left out a few key cautions, didn't you?"
She grinned. "Yes, I did. On
purpose." Her methodology rarely failed and she liked to change things up
to keep the coursework fresh.
Del shook his head. "Clue me
in, Patience. What's the grand plan here?" He drew his words out with a
mocking tone.
Patience stood her ground.
"Look, they'll learn faster when they make mistakes." She turned and
went back to her table. "If they hold true to form, they'll be tearing the
weapon apart and putting it back together all day. By the time they reach the
range tomorrow, the logical conclusion is they'll figure out what I left
out." She shot Del a quick glance. "If they don't, it's a lesson they
won't soon forget." No doubt, Del would argue her point.
He quirked an eyebrow. "And
you don't see the big ass safety issue staring you in the face?" Not
waiting for an answer, he followed her to the head of the room. "The
consequences could have explosive results. You have to know that."
She did. But she also trusted the
class to figure out the potential pitfalls before they started shooting.
Lifting a shoulder, she slid the
P20 into her holster. "This is an intelligent group. I'm confident they'll
figure it out." If nothing else, her little group of question bees would.
Del stepped in front of her.
"Pretty big risk to take with twenty-two lives." He leveled his gaze
on her and wouldn't look away. "And it's not just your ass on the line.
Mine's right there, too. I'm running the range practice tomorrow."
He didn't understand, probably
never would.
She sighed. "I'm aware. But
it would be nice if you could back off, just once, and let me try my way."
He always played the safe bet. Always.
The military needed to push
boundaries if they wanted to keep their advantage. The hot spots they sent
these kids to never read the rule book.
Del's mouth thinned to a flat
line. "Your way is going to get someone killed." He turned and strode
from the room, the rigid line of his shoulders not budging an inch.
Patience shook her head. One of
these days she and Del would hash out their different teaching techniques. He
pushed the cadets hard on a physical level, she wanted to press them to use
their minds, to think outside the tiny, little box of the classroom and expand
their knowledge base by using common sense.
Del might just be surprised how
bright the students could be if the academy stopped force-feeding them
information.
I love writing characters that start out at cross-purposes
and eventually get them together on the same page. One of my favorite
scenarios.
That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.
ML Skye
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