Flash Fiction Friday 2023 – Week 4
Flash Fiction Friday continues in 2023. New pieces appear every Friday on my Patreon throughout the year. The minimum pledge to read them before anyone else is $3 per month. and the number of pieces available is tied to the monthly pledge total so the more you support my efforts, the more you’ll get to read. Find out what they’re all about and check out some excerpts from this week’s update in this post.
Excerpts
A New World
Quentin woke up, startled, to the sound of wailing sirens and explosions outside his window. His twin brother sat at the edge of the bed, his silhouette lit up by blazing orange hues and a fierce resolve reflected in his bottle-green eyes.
“Cameron, what are you doing in my house? What’s going on?” Quentin asked.
“It’s happening,” his brother replied.
“What’s happening?”
“The End of Days. Everything is going down exactly the way she prophesied.”
“She…?” Quentin shook his head as if he couldn’t believe what he had just heard. “Oh, shit! Don’t tell me you fell for her crap, too.”
“It’s not crap. Like you, I had my doubts for many months, but she was right. I now believe that she will be the one to deliver us from this hell hole. Get dressed, we have somewhere we need to be tonight.”
“What? To go where?” Quentin got out of bed and headed to the bedroom window to peek outside. A pink mist enveloped the nocturnal sky and people were already panicking on the streets.
“We need to go to Allison. She’ll know what to do next.”
“Are you out of your fucking mind? I’m not going anywhere near that crazy bitch again!”
“That’s not what you called her when you used to date her.” Cameron threw a pair of pants at his face.
(…)
Befuddled
“0 words, 0 characters,” the computer program read. It was not a pretty sight and the one Isaac hated the most, but he still had time to rectify it. Mistress wouldn’t be back for another three hours, more than enough to finish the task and receive well-deserved praise. He loved when she complimented him on his efforts and being a good boy for her was a top priority. He moved away from the rotating chair to find his way into the kitchen, grabbed himself a cup of coffee, and returned to work, eager to show his worth.
Mistress Ruby’s latest assignment was simple: he needed to write at least five hundred words about what it meant to be her servant. He was to be as honest as possible and avoid excessive compliments for flattery was obnoxious and worthy of punishment. After being on the receiving end of her cane collection more times than he remembered, he had grown to fear such implements and would gladly give away any part of his anatomy if that meant never seeing it again.
(…)
From Within
The parasitic machine wriggled in Josephine’s latex-gloved hand, its tendrils cutting the air in front of it looking for its new host.
“You’re not putting that monstrosity in my head!” Rachel struggled against the tight ropes bindings her wrists and ankles.
“Honey, we’ve been through this a thousand times already!” her girlfriend replied. “It’s for your own good. Think of all the knowledge you’ll gain once your mind merges with it.”
“I don’t want that knowledge! There is a reason it’s been dead and buried for the last three hundred years! And if you’re so keen on getting it, why don’t you let it go inside you instead of using me as a guinea pig?”
“Because I can’t and you know it!” Josephine snarled. “It’s not my fault it’s coded to your blood type. I don’t want to die.”
“And I don’t want to become a freak.”
(…)
This Won’t Work
The crystal pendulum swung back and forth in Amelia’s right hand and it was as if it was leaving a trail of light with each passage. Mark blinked but tried to remain focused.
“So… is something supposed to be happening or not?” his mouth betrayed him.
“Shh… just relax… It works better if you’re silent and fixated only on the movement while ignoring everything else…” she replied
“I’m trying…” he muttered, visibly uncomfortable on the leather maple. He didn’t even want to be hypnotized but his cousin insisted she needed the practice and it was always hard to say no to her.
“Stop talking, please.”
Mark nodded. He hated being told what to do, yet Amelia had no qualms about being bossy.
(…)
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