Sunday Snippet: Flesh and Blood

Seriously, the back and forth of warm then frigid weather is the one thing I hate about March. My sinuses rebel in a big way and it's never pretty. LOL

The Walking Dead had a great episode last week. Nice to see Rick and Michonne working together. Rosita on the warpath is also pretty great to watch.

The Flash is speeding along to the reveal of the big bad and I have a sneaky feeling I'm not going to like who it ends up being. We'll see what happens.

Legends of Tomorrow finally brought Rip back from the edge of evil… or did they? It's never one hundred percent certain with this group. Looks like a great episode coming up.

Arrow had the week off and I missed my Wednesday night fare. I'm not a huge fan of these stupid three-week hiatuses. Just show the damn episodes already.

Riverdale also had a great episode. This series is fast becoming my number two show. I loved getting some background about Fred and FP. That said, if Fred had a band in high school, why was he pretty much unable to connect with Archie about his music? Little things and details like this can make or break a show for me. Here's hoping there's some improvement there. I love sneaky Betty. Cheryl's right about Betty betting a terrible liar, but she's got some game with her clueless parents. On a side note, the seeds being planted for a messy situation with Betty, Jughead, and Archie make me happy. I'd like to see a little more Dark Betty emerge.

I finished up Jessica Jones and ended up loving how things played out. As hard as it is for my brain to wrap around David Tennant playing a raging asshole, I gotta give him kudos for being completely creepy. Started a rewatch of one of my favorite Australian series, City Homicide. I love that show. Also need to catch up on X Company and Murdoch Mysteries.

And that's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Flesh and Blood, a novella that started as a "what if" fanfiction and blossomed into its own story.

Here's the mini-blurb:

An AI that spouts philosophical mumbo jumbo, a past that may not be all it seems, and a link between both sends Peta Jones on a quest to figure out the truth. It's a good thing she's got Abe Cantrell along to act as her voice of reason.

And a sneaky peek…

"Are you insane, old man? Have you seen her?" Abe stalked after his grandfather, following the man to the back corner of his quarters where he kept an ancient desk. The old man sat down and thumped on the top twice, the bottom drawer slid open and he dug out the half full bottle of scotch.

He twisted the cap off and poured a healthy amount into two mugs. "I've seen her." The fuller of the two made its way in front of Abe. "Sit, take a drink, and calm down." He put the bottle away. "She's fine. Handled herself well under the circumstances."

Abe choked but didn't yell like he wanted to. Instead, he drained half the mug and calmly asked. "What the hell were you thinking? She almost died in there?"

His grandfather met Abe's eyes. "I'm aware of that." He heaved a sigh and Abe got it. Peta's injuries weighed heavily on the old man. And he would bear the responsibility, and the brunt of Abe's anger, because the guilt tore him up.

Williamson drained his mug. "Did you catch the footage around fifteen minutes into the interrogation?" His hand shook, only a little, when he set the cup on the desk.

Abe settled back and let the pissy attitude go. The commander didn't need Abe's antagonism right now. "The sentient stuff? Yeah. What of it?" The whole interrogation video creeped him out.

The old man pinned him with a concerned look. "It got to her there. That's when she let it in." He shook his head.

Abe thought about the tense exchange. He couldn't argue the point. Hell, even he'd been almost convinced by Bensalem One. He'd like to find the human who wouldn't be.

His grandfather heaved a sigh. "What happened to the days when the enemy was flesh and blood and bone?" He poured another finger of scotch. "I miss them."

The old man had a point. No one had seen the revolt of the AIs coming. But they should have. Complacency never won out over tech. The price paid in human blood already high, Abe couldn't see an end to it.

Peta almost became one of the casualties.

Abe leaned forward. "Peta didn't let it in, Pops. It barged its way past her boundaries." He leveled his gaze on his grandfather's. "The stuff about Peta's mom? That's not in any database in the solar system. The woman lived off the grid. How did it get that information?" Peta never volunteered personal details on official records.

Gib shook his head. "I don't know, Abe. But I'm going to find out." He laced his fingers together and studied his grandson. "The spiritual undertones of the AIs ramblings concern me. Maris Gradin-Jones was a grand dame in the guru community. Peta's well known in those circles, small though they may be, and someone could have been persuaded to provide personal details."

Abe didn't like the gut punch he got. "You think she's a target? That the AI went after her specifically?" His head jerked. "No. Not possible. It couldn't know you'd send her to interrogate it."

Williamson shrugged. "I don't know what I think, yet. But I know I don't like any of it." He leaned back in his chair. "This business about the AIs thinking they're sentient has been going on for a long time. The new twist about their Creator allowing the humans to construct them is a new avenue to explore."

Abe nodded. "What about the consciousness stuff? That they never really lose it unless they can't find something to download it into? We should have the tech crew run diagnostics on every single device that has memory, right? If you're looking for an inside source, I'd start there."

Gib agreed. "Already in the works. I'm also having everything scrubbed. If they think they come back stronger each time they download, we'll see if they can manage to get past a sweep."

Abe wondered aloud. "And if they can?"

Williamson confirmed Abe's fear. "Then we've already lost."

"Shit." Abe's shoulders slumped against the back of his chair.

Gib changed the subject. "Look, Peta got released from the infirmary half an hour ago. Go find her."

Abe already planned to do so. "And then what?" The old man had a reason, above and beyond concern for their girl.

"Just…" Gib paused and looked away. "Make sure she's not taking that thing's ramblings too seriously."

In other words, find out if Peta had bought into what the AIs wanted to sell.

Abe frowned. Spying on someone he cared deeply for didn't settle in his gut well. But his grandfather's concern might be warranted.

Abe sighed and stood. "Right. I'll track her down." He turned to leave.

Williamson called softly. "I wouldn't ask it of you if I didn't love her. And know you do, too."

Abe paused. He should've known the old man would pick up on it. And Abe would have said something if the discovery he really loved Peta hadn't just hit him. "I know, Pops. I'll watch out for her."

His grandfather nodded and poured another drink. The day's events finally catching up to him.

Abe exited quarters and headed for the bunkroom. Peta would head there first and if he got lucky, he'd catch her before she tried to hide away and lick her wounds.

Abe's not going to have an easy path in this story. Peta never makes anything simple.

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

ML Skye