Sunday Snippet: Outcasts

March 25, 2018

Geez, I'll be really glad when the back and forth weather is over and done. Snow days in March, man, haven't really seen those since the 80s. At least not that I can remember. The year after I graduated, we had a big storm in March and I almost didn't make it back for spring break. Planes weren't flying out of Atlanta to go north. Fun times.

This week, I played catch up with some of my television shows. Got Legends of Tomorrow up to date. Looking forward to Constantine being added as a regular. At least I hope he gets added. He's so much fun. And I really like Wally as a team member.

Gotta say I'm kind of "meh" with this season of The Flash. I've grown to really like Ralph but I'm rather bored by the uber-smart Devoe and the constant body swaps. Here's hoping next season has better flow.

I'm not sure I'll be able to catch up on Gotham. Gotta find the first episode when it returned at the beginning of March. I hate it when on demand and the station websites remove the episodes before I have time to get caught up. Grrr.

I'm caught one of my missed episodes of Riverdale. I'm still a little on the fence about the whole mafia-style intrigue. Hiram buying the paper? Yeah, seriously, not down with that plot point. I'd rather watch Kevin and Josie deal with their parents and Cheryl deal with hers. Also, Chic. Ugh. I have no clue what to even think about that storyline. I want to love it, but I don't. I did love the Jughead rundown about how tangled their relationships are with their friendships. Too true, my man, too true.

I'm down to one episode left on Murdoch Mysteries. I'm a little heartbroken for William and Julia and I'm almost afraid to watch the next episode.

I took a week off from Jessica Jones. I'll be trying to catch more episodes this week.

Chicago Fire has some great crossover episodes. I'm excited about finishing up season five, but then I'll have to wait for season six—see not being available on demand or website. Bleh.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Outcasts, a novella that started out a short fanfiction and spun into an original story.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Frannie Boyd and Thorn O'Reilly are stuck in a bad situation with no way out. But when the people they love are threatened, they'll play hardball to protect what's theirs, even if they have to go up against an admiral to do it.

And a sneaky peek…

Frannie Boyd tried to do her bit and make the pilots of the Gaspra welcome. Fifteen minutes into the tour and she wanted to crack all their heads together. She'd worked with obnoxious people before, hell, she had a rep herself, but holy shit, the group of pilots from the other ship could write a manual on asshole behavior.

If one more person boasted about how many enemy raiders they'd taken out or bragged about coming out here to save the backwater crew of her ship, she'd maim someone. And it wouldn't be pretty. Babysitting detail didn't sit well with her anyway.

But the commander asked and she wouldn't say no to him. She took the pilots down to the hangar bay and regretted it the moment they hit the deck.

Barney Japps, the top gun for the Gaspra searched the plane from nose to end. "Where are your kills marked?" He turned to his crew members who fell in with the same question.

Frannie rolled her eyes. "The Deimos doesn't post kill shots on the planes." With so much more to flying than how many raiders a pilot took down, why would they?

Besides, who wanted to become a target? She definitely didn't.

Barney snorted. "How do you tell who the top gun is?" He wore a look of smug superiority, no doubt thinking his title would never be challenged.

Frannie shrugged. "We vote. Plain and simple." Every month unless they had a big campaign.

Which they hadn't had lately… because stealth mission.

Barney sneered. "Yeah, it's simple all right." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Who's your top gun?" If he got any cockier, he'd crow like a damned rooster.

Frannie sighed. "I am." This conversation would end badly, but she might as well play it out to the end.

The smugness returned. "Right. A popularity contest for whoever kisses the most ass…" He nudged the pilot next to him. "Or maybe it's whoever sucks the most dick." He made a slurping sound with his tongue against his lips.

Yep, definitely gonna end badly. Her fuse lit, Frannie drew back her arm to punch the fucker in the face when the Gaspra CAG, Jones Millfort, cleared his throat.

He pushed his way between them. "I wouldn't, Captain. It won't look good on your already banged up record." He held her gaze, all but daring her to proceed.

Frannie lowered her arm. "Can I help you, sir?" Maybe show you the way off my hangar deck?

Millfort nodded. "You can, yes. I'm looking for Captain O'Reilly. I've got a problem with these fitreps." He showed Frannie the stack of reports.

She glanced at the date on the top. "I did the ones you've got an issue with. What seems to be the trouble?" She could pretty much guess, but why not make him spell it out?

Millfort pressed his lips together. "That's exactly the problem. The CAG is responsible. Your fingerprints shouldn't be all over these reports." His mouth twisted into a grimace.

Frannie's lips curved in a sweet smile. "And the deputy CAG can do them if delegated. Which they were." Thorn pulled double duty as a command officer.

Millfort frowned. "Well, they shouldn't have been. They're sloppy and incomplete." He slapped the files against his palm.

Frannie blew out a long breath. "We know our pilots, know what they can and can't do. You haven't been out here. You've got no idea what we've had to deal with." Her voice took on a hard edge. "For all we knew, we'd be out here until time ended and—" Millfort grabbed her arm and dragged her away from the Gaspra pilots.

He made a harsh shushing sound. "The Gaspra crew isn't privy to the nature of Deimos's mission." He bit the words out in terse bursts.

Frannie's eyes went wide. "Why the hell not? Why aren't they in the know?" Unbelievable… and downright stupid.

The Gaspra CAG lowered his voice. "Naught's orders." His tone indicated he didn't appreciate leaving his pilots out of the loop.

With damned good reason. Their arrogance and asshole mentality would keep Millfort on high alert.

He reined his temper in. "I don't like it, but you'll find I'm a true blue, follow orders kind of solider."

Frannie shook her head. "All righty then." She walked back and forth. "You're gonna have a bigger issue than sloppy reports because keeping this under wraps won't be easy. As I said, we've been out here a long time." She shrugged. "I don't get it. Anyone out here is in the need to know camp." Her gaze pinned the CAG. "But it's not my problem because my pay scale doesn't come close to Admiral Naught's." Only…

The funny thing about that? Frannie had been doing the job of someone several grades higher. Hell, they all had. And now Naught came blazing in and the Deimos crew were all supposed to dumb it back down? Frannie had a feeling that would blow up in the admiral's face. But far be it for her to try and convince the tight ass Millfort of that glaring fact.

No longer in her job description. She'd happily go back to being a deputy CAG and regular pilot.

Frannie jerked her head toward the corridor. "You'll find Major O'Reilly in the office… signing off on my fit reps." She gave Millfort a mocking salute and stalked back to her wayward group. "Tour's over boys and girls. You all need to head back to the ranch." The chorus of moans and groans had her amending the statement. "Your CAG's orders. Take it up with him."

She turned on her heel and exited the hangar deck, leaving the Gaspra CAG to deal with his whiny pilots.

I like the dynamic Frannie has with Millfort. It's antagonistic right now but she might just find an ally in him later in the story.

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Out of the Box, Into the Burn

Ugh, what a week. The crazy weather has me completely out of sync and my sleep patterns are trashed. Here's hoping spring gets here and I find my footing again.

I missed Legends this week and need to catch up. Same goes for The Flash, Black Lightning, and Riverdale. Seriously, my head wasn't into it at all. Gotham is also still on my catch up list.

I did watch two more DVDs of Chicago Fire. I'm really loving season five, through every heartbreaking moment even. And, man, there's been a lot this season. LOL

Also up to episode six of Jessica Jones. Gotta say I'm pretty happy with how the season is progressing. It's good to get the backstory of Jessica became "super". I will say I'm not quite sure about Griffin, friend or foe? The whole engagement think might be a red herring, yeah?

Got to catch the latest Passionflix movie The Matchmaker's Playbook. Loved it! I'm excited for the next installment, especially with W. Tyler Johnson. While I enjoyed him in Afterburn / Aftershock, he truly rocked in Matchmaker. Now if they'd only cast a few of my other fave actors, I'll be thrilled to death.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Out of the Box, Into the Burn, a novella that plays on the combination of thinking outside the box but potentially landing from the frying pan into the fire. It's a fun little story.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Parry Thrum, a superior pilot, is sidetracked with an injury and relegated to planning a mission on an enemy outpost instead of flying in to save the day. When one of her superiors rejects every parameter she comes up with, Blake Bradley, another excellent pilot, steps in and backs her up—the out of the box, into the burn approach is just the thing to take their opponent by surprise, and a very Parry plan.

And a sneaky peek…

Colonel Carbine growled. "Are you seriously signing off on this?" He pinned Blake with a harsh stare.

Blake folded his arms over his chest. "I am, yes." He braced for the explosion of temper.

Carbine didn't disappoint. "Are you insane? This is the stupidest thing"—he jerked his thumb over his shoulder—"she's come up with yet."

Parry pushed away from the wall but Blake held up a hand. He had her back. Always would.

He shifted his gaze to Carbine. "Actually, the plan is brilliant and it's time for you to dial back the bluster, shut up, and listen." Moving to the planning area, Blake set out the miniature mockups of the pieces involved.

Carbine snarled. "You're dangerously close to insubordination, Bradley and—"

Blake cut him off. "And you're dangerously close to dereliction of duty. We've got a limited window of time to get this done." He put several ships on the lit-up screen. "You've shot down every single parameter Lieutenant Thrum has suggested and we're now down to the wire." He paused and met Carbine's glare. "Your issues with her should've been checked at the door when Commandant Wagner gave her the order to plan the op." Setting up more of the layout, he went in for the kill. "Since you haven't put the animosity aside, I can only assume you either don't care about this mission or your reason is something more sinister, like deliberate sabotage." The accusation should get Carbine's attention and drive the point home.

They needed to nail the plan down and execute, regardless of Carbine's issues with Parry.

Carbine's face turned a mottled shade of red. "You're accusing me of wrongdoing?" He slammed a hand on the table, scattering pieces to the floor.

Blake shrugged. "Not directly, no. I'm trying to figure out why you're so goddamn set on trashing every single idea—good or bad—Thrum has. Because, from where I'm standing, you've not only delayed a critical mission, but you've also come close to making it impossible for Thrum to obey a direct order, which puts her in jeopardy of a reprimand." He pinned Carbine with a hard look. "With all due respect, sir, it's petty bullshit and it ends right now." Sinking down, Blake collected the miniature ships again then stood back up. "If you refuse, I'll have no other option but to invoke UC 832 and file a formal complaint that a superior officer is actively working to undermine his subordinates and keep them from doing their jobs." He shot a glance toward Parry who stood with her mouth hanging open.

Blake squashed the urge to laugh out loud. Not often he could stun her enough for a jaw drop. He'd held this part of his strategy back from her. And he'd put himself in Carbine's line of fire, which she would've nixed. Parry didn't like anyone to fight her battles.

Carbine blew out a long exhale. "Bradley, you've got a brass set on you. I'll give you that one. But I'm not gonna let you go with this—"

Blake shook his head. "You are, sir. And here's why." He launched into the overview of the mission. "Standard tactics won't work. The enemy knows our moves, because they trained at the same facility. If we don't go way out of the box, we're going to lose people due to our own stupidity. And you know where the blame is going to rest if we do?" He waited a beat. "At your feet and nowhere else. Even with your animosity toward Thrum, you have to recognize she won't be the one everyone looks to when the mission either fails or succeeds." The one and only appeal Blake had… directly to Carbine's ego.

Carbine opened his mouth then snapped it shut. He spun around, pacing back and forth. The man really couldn't refute Blake's words. Ultimately, no argument the colonel might make would hold up, not when the stakes were so high.

Parry finally came around to stand beside Blake. She began arranging the mockup of the first stage on the lit table. Carbine mumbled under his breath, but stopped pacing and joined them. Folding his arms across his chest, he gave a terse nod.

Parry, for once, didn't gloat.

She got right down to business. "Here's where we begin…"

Blake stepped back, giving her the floor. He couldn't be prouder of the strides she'd made with putting aside the past and her grievances with Carbine to work for the best possible outcome. She'd heard Blake's message to the colonel loud and clear.

And she'd taken his words to heart.

Progress. Again. Finally.

I'm so happy with how the preview scene turned out. I'm still plotting the full course of this story, but it's so much fun to work with these characters.

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Organic Chemistry (Uncivil Revolution book two)

Well… I'm coming off a bittersweet week. I got to spend my birthday with almost my entire family, which is terrific, but the reason not so much. We buried my beloved Gram on Wednesday and, being in Ohio, the weather ran the gamut from rain to snow to a sleet / hail mixture. Finally, the sun came out toward the end of the day.

Television had a good week. Legends had a great episode even if I can't quite decide if I actually like Damian's campy antics or if I really hate them. It's pretty much a toss-up.

Tuesday's shows are on my list to catch up on. The draining day left me with little to no brain power to watch television. The same goes for Riverdale on Wednesday.

I did catch Arrow and, as always, I enjoyed the episode. I rather like how they keep changing up the versions of Laurel. And having Roy back is always kick ass. I've missed him. I'm also interested in seeing how things play out with Dinah and Oliver. In all honesty, I'm a little on the fence about the Dinah character. Her thirst for vengeance isn't one I bought into, but I'll finish watching to see what happens.

I need to catch up on Gotham also. Totally forgot it returned at the beginning of the month.

Watched a little more of season five of Chicago Fire and still love the show. Looking forward to another DVD this week to see what else happens.

Started Jessica Jones this weekend and season two feels like it's going to be a wild ride. Can't wait to see what else the show has in store for me.

I'll be playing catch up on Murdoch Mysteries again, but I did see episode fifteen and thoroughly enjoyed.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Organic Chemistry an Uncivil Revolution novella.

Here's the tagline:

Dominic Marinelli and Etta Morgan meet under very difficult circumstances, but form a relationship built on one basic need… sex. When Etta decides to strike out on her own, Dom has to figure out why it bothers him so much.

And a sneaky peek…

Etta's shoulders hit the wall. "That." The word gasped out just when Dom pushed her up against the surface.

And then shoved his tongue down her throat.

No prelim, no tenderness, pure animal lust. It hit almost every kink she had. And she loved it. Craved it.

Wanted more.

She responded in kind. Inhaling him, kissing him back with wild abandon. Her boobs tingled and a burst of instant hot wetness pooled between her folds. Her clit throbbed when his hand cupped her, pushing the seam of her jeans roughly against it. It wouldn't take much to have her writhing in orgasm if he kept it up.

Between bruising kisses, their tongues tangled and dueled for dominance over the other. Dom won the battle when his other hand found her tits, grabbed onto one and applied pressure. Not enough to hurt… oh, no, just enough to arouse.

A groan escaped and he won by default. She couldn't fence tongues when she had to gasp for air.

As abruptly as it started, it ended. Dom flung himself away from her and threw his head back. He won his war for control and tossed out a challenge.

"That dirty enough for you?"

Mouth gaping, she could only answer. "God, yes." Her body literally screamed for more.

A look of almost pain crossed his face and he shook his head back and forth. "Right. So… we fuck like animals and then what?"

Tamping down her raging desire, she struggled to act nonchalant. "If it's good—and, trust me, it will be—we each have something to take the edge off."

"And when it's done?"

She shrugged. "I won't go weeping woman on you, if that's your concern. You go back to wallowing in Unrequitedville and I find another willing participant."

Dom arched a brow. "That easy, huh?"

She nodded. "Yep. If I want it to be."

"I don't think that's true."

She pushed off the wall. "You want truth? Here it is. Charlotte doesn't love you. You'll never feel her legs wrapped around you in lust, love, or anything else. That's true." She watched him flinch, but held her ground.

"And your point is?"

"You can be Mr. Dark and Stoic. I don't want sweeping romance." She walked slowly toward him. "I don't need flowery love words or grand gestures." Stopping in front of him, her voice went husky. "All I'm looking for is a hard cock and a willing body." Her hand cupped his erection. "Like it or not, you definitely fit the bill."

Dom eased away and pondered her a moment. "You've got a deal." He stuck out his hand to shake on it.

The antiquated notion surprised her. Less than two minutes ago, he'd had his hands all over her, his tongue down her throat, and she'd been this close to coming. And now he wanted to go all honorable?

Sensing the importance of the handshake, instead of brushing it off, she accepted the overture and sealed their deal, applying firm pressure when she grasped his hand.    

Dom cocked his head sideways and studied her.

Did he doubt her word? Maybe not, because he gave her a curt nod.

"Okay then." Letting go of her hand, he brushed past her and headed for the door.

The door? But, she'd thought. "Uh, I thought… when are we—" Gonna get laid. She really wanted him now.

He paused, hand on the knob. "Tonight. 2300. I'll come here." His lips twitched. "You didn't think I'd let you call all the shots, did you?" He'd thrown her and he liked it.

Heaving a sigh, she gave him an honest answer. "I had hoped."

His face went dark and dangerous. "Two-way street. Equal partnership." His eyes flashed. "This won't happen any other way."

She studied him a moment. Could it be possible she'd underestimated him?

Not completely certain, she caved anyway. "I'm down with that. 2300. Knock twice, then once, so I know it's you."

He gave her a two-fingered salute. "Done." And then he was gone.

Sinking down to the mattress, she wondered what she'd gotten herself into.

I'm excited about this series and I need to dive back in and get things organized. I've a bit of a quandary about whether to introduce the couple in book four in the opening book or not. Once I figure that out, I hope to finalize the outlines and finish up the series.

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

ML Skye

Sunday Snippet: Operation Moot Point

My incredible and awesome gram left the world at around 1AM this morning. She gave me the very best adventures while I grew up and I'm going to miss her something fierce. As she said the last time I had the chance to be with her, "It's no picnic getting old." But she aged with beauty and grace. Considering I'm pretty much the spitting image of her, I hope I have the same experience.

It was a pretty great week for television. Legends of Tomorrow had a great episode. I loved having Wally and Rip together for an adventure and the whole pirate scenario kicked ass. I'm always sad when the show gets nitpicked to death. That said, it's not perfect, but I like that it isn't.

I missed the new episode of The Flash, but I'll catch up soon. Black Lightning turned out a good hour. I like having more of the pieces and outing the new kid on the block to her parents ended up being way better than I expected.

Arrow broke my heart. This is still one of my very favorite shows and having the two teams battling each other kills me. I'm not sure where the whole Laurel storyline is going, but I'm interested in seeing how it plays out. I'm really excited to have Roy return even if he'll probably get tortured… again.

I'm almost finished with season four of Chicago Fire. Still pretty thrilled with the overall arcs of the characters and I loved Mouch and Trudy's wedding. I have a new DVD to watch tonight and then I think it's on to season five.

I finished the first season of The Punisher. Gotta say I thoroughly enjoyed it. The guy I actively wanted to die at the end is still kicking but I'm okay with that. The other one I wanted to see die a horrible death got what he had coming, so there's that. Here's hoping there's a season two.

I have to play catch-up with Gotham's newest episode. I'm also getting a few of my foreign shows lined up. Murdoch Mysteries and Marcella are on tap when I can find a few spare hours. Looking forward to both!

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Operation Moot Point, a sexy short featuring two main characters tasked with pulling off a surprise party and the fun and games ensue.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Zia Rogue and Keb Belova are highly trained soldiers and put in charge of Operation Moot Point. Between them and their specialized skills, they should be able to plan the surprise party for the base commander—if they can stop arguing long enough to actually get the work done.

And a sneaky peek…

A crazy plan landed in Zia Rogue's brain and wouldn't let go.

"If someone doesn't break through the communication barricade, the battle will be lost."

Her crazy-ass plan might blow up in her face, but her squadron barely held their own against the enemy ambush. The blinking satellite on the tower almost begged for use… and turning the enemy's equipment against them had a poetic justice to it.

The only problem? The base rail guns on the ground and the enemy squadron between her and the tower. Shitty odds on a good day. And today didn't count as good in any way.

Zia hit her thrusters. "Fuck it. We're all dead if I don't try." She made an end over end flip and dropped as close to the hard deck as she dared, staying just above the enemy flak.

Keb Belova's voice crackled over the short range comms. "Zephyr, what the hell. Get back in formation." He said her call sign with a long emphasis on the 'Z' the only indication of his frustration.

Right. Because SOP tactics were working really well right now. Not.

She flipped the switch over to ship to ship. "Look, Krypter, we've gotta get word out about the ambush. Cover me so I can get through." She hit her turbo thruster and shot forward.

Keb launched into a major tirade. "Don't even think about doing something stupid. You don't have a way—"

She cuts comms so she could concentrate on her task. "Okay, Wheezy. We've got a bit of tricky flying to do and I need everything you've got." Her affectionate name for her ship came from the sound it made when lowering to the hangar deck.

No, she didn't care what anyone thought. Naming her ship kept her in the air. Rational thought didn't have to enter the equations.

Zia rode the turbulent air, keeping just above the enemy counter fire and below the main action above her. Keb did his part, providing cover while Zia ran the gauntlet. She almost freaked out when she hit the halfway mark.

Letting out a surprised laugh, she powered forward. "Looks like I might just pull this insane stunt off." Another burst of speed after dodging fire from a repositioned rail gun and she wanted to take back the confident talk. "Dammit. That's too close." Why did she think up this crazy stuff?

An explosion to her left caught her attention and she glanced over, giving a relieved sigh to see the remnants of a weapon spread out over the ground. A silent thank-you to Keb went up to the universe. The man rarely missed when he fired his long-range missiles.

When she burst free of the chaos, she exhaled a harsh breath. "Yes! Now I've got you." Idling close to the satellite, she quickly keyed a coded message to the fleet. Ambush on asteroid base. Backup needed. Full squadron. She added the coordinates to bring them in from the right flank.

Once she sent the missive, the cold realization hit her. Of course she didn't think about how the hell to get back on her side of the line. Only her singular plan mattered.

Until now.

She closed her eyes. "That's what Keb started to say." She'd cut communication before he got the words out.

Well, hell. She angled her ship around, but didn't engage the thrusters. At this point, she'd pretty much be waiting for death. Wouldn't take long for someone on the base to reposition the counter fire in her direction. She might avoid some of the hail of bullets, but not all.

Her mouth dropped open when she spotted Keb dropping out of formation and heading her way. The lunatic hit his turbo burst and shot forward.

Zia shook her head. "And he thinks I'm insane."

I love writing crazy plans and dropping the characters into the middle of them.

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

ML Skye