Sunday Snippet: To V or Not to V (a V-World novella)

Whew. It's been a week, right? I finished up several projects and got a couple of new ones lined up. My workload is changing in a lot of ways and I'm happily adapting to the new lineup. Change is good, even when you (meaning me) don't like it. At least that's what I've discovered lately.

Had a very solid week of television viewing. I have something of a pattern and I watch shows on a bit of a schedule. This week everything kind of seemed to speed along.

I ended up getting in three Snoopy in Space: The Search for Life. I'm enjoying the second season of this show. The episodes are pretty short and fun to watch.

Finished up the Queens of Mystery second part and thoroughly enjoyed the episode. I'm a little frustrated by the overarching mystery of Mattie's mom but I'm very willing to give this show a lot of leeway.

Watched three episodes of Silent Witness. The second two-parter ended up being pretty enjoyable. I like the vibe of having the forensic science mixed in with the pathology. After fifteen seasons, it's probably past time to introduce that into the mix.

Enjoyed two more Classic Who episodes. I actually kind of like the format for this season with Six being on trial. It's a nice change of pace and something a little different from the norm.

Caught two more episodes of The Muppets. Weirdly, the show really started to gel for me in the last couple of episodes. It's more inclusive and somewhat similar to the older format. And it's fun.

Watched two more episodes of The Alaska Triangle. I'm very much into the unknown mysteries that haven't been discovered there yet. Dinosaurs, UFOs, weird paranormal encounters. This show has everything.

I'm loving Harrow. I got two more episodes watched and the walls are kind of closing in on the bigger arc of who killed Robert Quinn. I'm kind of excited to see where it ends up.

Caught another episode of Peak Practice and the characters said good-bye to David. It's about halfway through the seventh season and I'm interested in what will follow and what the fallout will be.

Enjoyed two more MasterClass lessons with Es Devlin. She discussed mazes and patterns and the audience and both classes were very interesting. If nothing else, she's given me a new way of looking at projects and I'm here for that.

Got two episodes of Paranoid in and, wow, things are heating up. This is a very twisty and turny mystery and I like how things are playing out. I also love that the three leads are kind of a total mess but still get the job done.

Caught two episodes of Classic Rugrats. While none were my faves, they were great to watch as I'd kind of forgotten them. Nice to be reminded.

Watched two episodes of Chicago Med and I really, really don't like the COO person. As a foil for Sharon, I get the need to have her but, yikes, she's awful, terrible, and rage inducing.

Enjoyed two bonus episodes of The Brokenwood Mysteries. A behind-the-scenes short and an interview with the two leads. I finished out everything that's currently available and I'll have to find a new show to start this week to go along with Queens of Mystery.

Got the first of a two-part Blue Heelers watched. I have a sneaky feeling this might be Wayne's swan song. The episode ended up being better than I expected. Can't wait to finish it next week.

Star Trek: Discovery once again kind of blew my mind. I love the interaction with Spock and Michael. The same goes for Michael and Ash. Actually, all the relationships on this show are amazing. Seriously, amazing.

That's pretty much it for this week's update. Tonight's post is from To V or Not to V, a V World novella.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Mallory Biden and Surge Tempest work side by side to police crimes in V-World, a virtual reality recreation area where anyone can live out their wildest fantasy. But when Surge goes rogue to track down an old nemesis and enters the Void Zone, a dangerous, untraceable place he helped create, Mallory will risk getting trapped inside to pull him out.

And a sneaky peek…

Surge Tempest battled his way through the murky depths of code. "Geez, you'd think I had a death wish." He'd put himself in dangerous territory.

To right a wrong and fix a past mistake.

An old friend—now enemy—had lured Surge into a showdown in V-World. Surge didn't see it coming, didn't expect anything out of the ordinary. A new recruit, a green kid, paid the price, his mind forever lost, no chance of recovery. Surge barely made it out and wouldn've suffered the same fate as Nathan, the new recruit, if Mallory hadn't found Surge sprawled on the floor—unconscious and hanging by a thread. His habit of dancing close to the flame had finally landed him in the fire.

"I probably deserve to be burned." But those who worked with and loved him—the few there were—did not.

And he definitely didn't want Mallory caught in the crossfire. She'd want to kill him if she knew where he'd gone.

The VZ. His old stomping grounds.

Slipping between servers, he grimaced. "It's worse than I remembered." Back in the day when he helped set the place up.

At the time, his hacking skills went to the highest bidder. And Surge decided to never be picky about the work he acquired. If someone would pay, he'd set up the play.

He didn't care if the job skirted legal boundaries. They changed so frequently and so fast that Surge made it a priority to be five steps ahead. Christ, life had been so much easier then.

Until he couldn't be five steps ahead anymore.

Because he got out—after meeting Mallory. She'd come thisclose to nabbing him. No one had ever gotten as far as she had.

What else could he do but join her outfit? He helped Mallory track down people similar to him, ones who lacked the knowledge and skill he had. He'd got out of the creating game and didn't regret it at all. Mallory's band of motley mercenaries turned do-gooders had given him a home. And a purpose.

For five years.

And then he got sucked back in.

By his arch rival and sometimes former employer, Nemesis Sisemen.

"Now, it's game on." Cat and mouse. Hunter and hunted.

Surge didn't want to be in the VZ. But he'd keep going until one of them ended up dead or out of commission.

Nemesis wouldn't shred anyone else Surge had a connection to, or get near anyone he loved.

Nemesis had scored first blood, but he wouldn't win.

"Not if I can help it."

I'm honestly loving how this story is coming together. I wanted something with a bit of a cyberpunk feel but with a futuristic vibe also. So far, I'm pleased with how this is shaping up.

 

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

ML Skye