Archive | July 2014

Doomsday Academy; First Day of Law Class

Jul30

This is set in Cynara’s Doomsday Academy, several years after its founding. Kheper is a Year Nine Student.

Professor Kheper Agislaw strode into his Year Five Law class and posed.

He didn’t exactly think of it as posing, but he stood just inside the doorway, looking over the seven students who were fresh to the grown-up classes and, thus, fresh and new to him.

Four girls, three boys. The boys looked younger, impatient; the girls – most of them – looked solid and serious. At this age – they would be fourteen, plus or minus a few months – most of his students fit that pattern.

And they were all looking at him, even the most impatient boy. Kheper knew he was striking. He’d been striking since he hit puberty, and he’d had decades to polish the look.

Vain, Cya teased him, and he was fine with that.

This wasn’t Cya’s time, and this wasn’t time for vanity. He finished his walk into the classroom, his best smile touching his lips.

“Welcome to Introduction to Law. I am Professor Agislaw, and I will be your Law Professor for the next four years.” He waited for the predictable giggles to die down, counted to three, and reached behind him.

The first book thumped down on his desk with a meaty sound. One of the boys squeaked.

“This.” He gestured, indulging in his flair for the melodramatic. “Is the book of law for the city – it’s more of a town, really – of West Sands, in what was once Nevada.”

The next set thumped down, four books, each of them bigger than the single West Sands book. “These are the laws – the greater portion of the laws – of the Restored United States of America, on the east coast, in what was once mostly Virginia.”

He had their attention. He thumped down the much smaller book. Of course, she hadn’t had that many years to accumulate laws yet. “This is the legislation of Cynapolis, the city in which you are currently sitting.”

Pause. Pause.

The pamphlet hardly made a sound. “And this is the sum total of the Law of the Ellehemaei, which will occupy the vast majority of our time for the next four years.”

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/759111.html. You can comment here or there.

A little more Reynard – a new story taking place in Fae Apoc/Addergoole ‘verse

Jul30

Introduction here

Reynard swallowed hard. “Ah…?”

The woman ignored his question, as was her right. “What’s your name?” She was pulling a pair of leather gloves from her back pocket and sliding them on. He found her fingers facinating. Of course, she currently held his life in them. That was understandably interesting.

Reynard knew this answer. “Whatever you wish it to be, mistress.”

She made a noise like a laugh, and he found himself looking to her face. It wasn’t beautiful, he thought, but she still took his breath away. Pointed chin, high cheekbones, and a mass of dark hair, all of it framing the most sardonic smile Reynard had ever seen. “Somebody taught you your lines. Was it recently, before they put you in the box? Or was it back before?”

Box? He tried to look around, and found that, while moving his head was surprisingly painful, it was, in actuality, possible.

He saw a room, bare of almost everything except a big chalkboard and three big windows – the view was of a wheatfield, and behind that a stone wall. He saw the woman, and a small table, full of tools that made his heart drop out of his chest. And he saw the remains of a crate, if his guess was any good, most of it to the left of him.

Box? He looked up at the woman, whose expression suggested that, while she was waiting patiently, she wasn’t going to be patient about things much longer.

She wanted his name. And she wanted to know who had trained him.

“I pay attention, mistress.” With luck, that would be enough. “And, ah, they called me Reynard, when I was free.”

“Reynard.” She took one of his ears – fox ears, of course, or his name would have simply been ridiculous, and his Name as well. “I remember you. They called you Fox in the Henhouse.”

Next: http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/761398.html

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/758881.html. You can comment here or there.

Cali Prompts to the theme of “Space + Room”

Jul30

Thanks to http://www.wordgenerator.net/random-word-generator.php I have a random word, and I can come up with some interesting ways this could be used in Tír na Cali, soooo.

Leave me prompts in the Tír na Cali universe to the theme of “Roomage” and I will write at least 50 words to at least one of your prompts.

Definition of Roomage from www.merriam-webster.com/:

(N) space, accommodation

Definition of Roomage from thefreedictionary.com:

n. 1. Space; place; room.

July’s theme is Tír na Cali!
Want a say in August’s theme? Become a Patreon Patron at the $5 level or higher.

💞

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/758561.html. You can comment here or there.

Escape from Rochester – Camp Nano Day 28/29

Jul30

First Line of Monday:

I tried not to hold on to the railing too much as I exited the bus.

Last Line of yesterday:

“…The thing is – he’s way late for a Change, past twenty-one, and he never showed any signs at all before this. And, considering our group, I was watching.”

Current Word Count:
36,307

Words Monday/Yesterday:
977/888

Par:
37,050

Death Count:
I’ve lost count

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/757711.html. You can comment here or there.

Escape from Rochester – Camp Nano Day Twenty-Four – I’m not sure I should do July CampNano

Jul28

First Line of Friday:

The swallow echoed. “I, ah, I got bit.”

Last Line of yesterday:

“Um. Um, yeah. I’ll go talk to them.”

Current Word Count:
34442

Words Friday/Saturday/Yesterday:
,1,121/114/669

Par:
35330

Death Count:
9+

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/757476.html. You can comment here or there.

Kittens

Jul25

I asked for something fun to write here; this is to the 4th prompt, from Lilfluff (Second generation Cali-Cats as kittens. Kittens at play, what could be cuter?)

“And this is where we… well, you can see for yourself, your Lordship.” The slave acting as a guide gestured over the half door.

His Lordship frowned. He wasn’t used to that sort of talk, especially not from a costumed moddie. “What sort of… oh.” He didn’t quite manage to hide his smile. “Ooh.”

In the well-carpeted room, four – kittens? toddlers? – small moddie children tumbled, one of them, grey-striped ears and black-tipped ears, making little baby-growl noises. “They’re…?”

“Second generation, your Lordship. The one with the Siamese markings is my get.”

Leave me a prompt here

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/756844.html. You can comment here or there.

Inspiration post & an interesting piece on entitlement by K Orion Fray

Jul25

Rion posted this piece on entitlement yesterday, which I found interesting: what do artists owe their fans?

And ri has moved the Inspiration posts to the blog, so they are more readily accessible: here’s Wednesday‘s.

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/756609.html. You can comment here or there.

Kitty Escaped, Shortish version

Jul25

So, earlier yesterday we had our twice-yearly birdy-stuck-in-the-chimney (it’s a vestigial chimney that terminates in the laundry room, left over from when the house reasonably had two wood-burning stoves). T. got the bird out, but Merit caught it mid-air.

And then the boys surprised her, and she lost it, and eventually T. got the bird outside.

I have to think this was on her mind when she very uncharacteristically darted outside while Ri & I were getting ready for our walk.

The problem is, Merit’s a skittish kitty, and once she darted… well, usually, I can get around her and spook her back /into/ the house.

Not this time. She ended up in the hedgerow, I lost sight of her…

T. spent hours out there, calling her, talking to her, but she was too far freaked. When he came in, after dark, Rion went out and did the same.

(I am very lucky I live with people who can sit calmly for periods of time. I… can’t. <.<)

It was nearly 11 when Ri coaxed a none-the-worse-for-wear Merit back inside, and hugs were had all around.

But I shall be a bit more careful with the door for a while now.

This entry was originally posted at http://aldersprig.dreamwidth.org/756038.html. You can comment here or there.