Sunday, February 7, 2016

Sunday Snippet: Yanking the Pipe

Well, the big super bowl game is on tonight and I’m watching a Star Trek Next Gen marathon instead. LOL Don't get me wrong, we still have all the food and trimmings, like WAY more than we need, but with several televisions in the house, the game can be merrily playing in the kitchen and living room while I hunker down in my writing cave and watch something totally different. If anything really exciting happens, the family will let me know. :D

So, next week The Walking Dead returns and I'm not sure if I'm super-excited or not. I think I am, but won't know until I see the new episode. And Bitten is coming soon, February 15 on Syfy. Definitely excited for more of that show.

My usual shows all had great episodes. I completely forgot to mention The Magicians in last week's post, but I'm seriously liking that show. And Lost Girl is in its final run of episodes. I've seen the way it ends and I'm definitely watching the last hurrah. I hope another show with fae-releated characters turns up sometime.

The Flash ended up surprising me, which I'm always thrilled to have happen. Arrow also threw in an interesting reveal and I'm speculating like mad now. Legends of Tomorrow mixed up the teams and I'm down with them doing that on a regular basis.

Agent Carter has such a great mix of humor and tension. I almost wish there could be a longer season, but I'm also kind of happy with the brevity, mainly because the writing stays pretty focused and doesn't dart off on too many tangents.

Last but not least, The X-Files had one of those instant classic episodes that I could watch over and over again. I can't wait to talk to my brother about it. Teen Wolf, again, feels rather choppy, but I've been thinking about that and have come to the conclusion it's supposed to feel that way, especially since the creepy doctors can warp time, or whatever it is they do. So yeah, I just needed to have that last little piece click into place. LOL

And that's it for television this week.

Tonight's post is from Yanking the Pipe, a novella that got its start with the prompt of "pranks gone wrong", followed by the challenge of showing the fallout for the characters.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Sammie Shields and Firth Fairmountain have fun yanking the pipe—pulling anonymous pranks—until one of their fellow soldiers gets injured. Their commanding officer gives them a choice—transfer to a marine unit to learn discipline or get busted down a rank. Sammie opts for demotion, but Firth chooses the alternate and finds a new mission.

And a sneaky peek…

Commander Barnabas Fairmountain cut an imposing figure on a regular day. But when he had a head full of rage built up, he took on a scary visage that took Sammie Shields' back to her childhood. She blinked to clear the bad memories from her brain.
Fairmountain slammed his hand on the desk. "Dammit, you two. I expect better from you." He directed his gaze to the man next to Sammie. "Especially you, Firth. When my own kid pushes things too far, how can the rest of the crew respect me?"
Sammie winced. Ouch. At least she only had to face memory lane when she screwed up. Firth had to live under his father's thumb every day.
The commander crossed his arms over his chest. "You're latest stunt landed one of my pilots in sickbay. I can't overlook this stupid yanking the pipe bullshit anymore." He turned away, putting his back to them.
Firth spoke up. "Permission to speak, Sir."
Sammie's eyes widened at the formality. Usually, when they got in trouble and Fairmountain dragged them into his office, they still had a casual demeanor with each other. After all, she and Firth were notorious for pulling pranks and practical jokes, yanking the pipe in military speak.
The commander glanced over his shoulder. "Granted. I'd love to hear what you have to say for yourself." He faced the back wall again.
Sammie wouldn't mind hearing what Firth had on his mind either.
Firth relaxed, but only a little. "Obviously, you can't let us slide on this one, but you have to know we didn't mean for anyone to get hurt." He slid a Sammie a sideways glance.
She found her tongue and seconded Firth's statement. "Right, Sir. No one should have been around when the—"
Farimountain whirled to face them. "But they were! And that's not the point." He came around his desk. "You two know better and I can't let you get slide anymore. I've got to make an example of you." His face betrayed the difficulty he had with the spot they'd put his dad in.
Sammie didn't blame Firth, but her heart landed in her stomach. The way the elder Fairmountain exhaled on a long, slow breath did not bode well for either her or Firth. When Nabas didn't bluster and blow his stack, the outcome tended to be bad.
The commander cleared his throat. "You have two choices. Demotion or transfer to a marine unit." He stared straight ahead, waiting their response.
Firth closed his eyes, his shoulder slumping. Yeah, maybe he could accept defeat, but Sammie had no plan to do so.
She growled. "Are you kidding me?" Pacing back and forth—without permission to do so—she let her mouth rule the day. "You cannot be serious." She didn't doubt her CO, but she wouldn't go down without any kind of resistance.
Barnabas directed his gaze her way. "Very serious. It's one or the other."

Sammie's path won't be an easy one but she makes the only choice she thinks she can. And Firth's choice throws her into a tailspin.



That's it for this week. Catch everyone on the flipside.

ML Skye

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