Welcome back to the home of Paranormal & Dauntless Romance. Today is Thursday and that means it’s time to start flashing. We’re nearing the end of our ninth year of weekly prompts. It’s amazing we’ve gone this long! This is Week 510 of #ThursThreads, the challenge that ties tales together. Want to keep up each week? Check out the #ThursThreads #flashfiction group on Facebook and the Group on MeWe.
Need the rules? Read on.
Here’s how it works:
- The prompt is a line from the previous week’s winning tale.
- The prompt can appear ANYWHERE in your story and is included in your word count.
- The prompt must be used as is. It can be split, but no intervening words can be inserted or tenses changed.
Rules to the Game:
- This is a Flash Fiction challenge, which means your story must be a minimum of 100 words, maximum of 250.
- The story must be new writing, not a snippet from something published elsewhere with the prompt added.
- Incorporate the prompt anywhere into your story (included in your word count).
- Post your story in the comments section of this post
- Include your word count in the post (or be excluded from judging)
- Include your Twitter handle or email in the post (so we don’t have to look for you)
- The challenge is open 7 AM to 8 PM Mountain Time
- The winner will be announced on Friday, depending on how early the judge gets up.
How it benefits you:
- You get a nifty cool badge to display on your blog or site (because we’re all about promotion – you know you are!)
- You get instant recognition of your writing prowess on this blog!
- Your writing colleagues shall announce and proclaim your greatness on Facebook, Twitter, MeWe, and Google Plus, etc.
Our Judge for Week 510:
Cat wrangler, master violinist, and Tea connoisseur, Muirlette #1.
And now your #ThursThreads Challenge, tying tales together.
The Prompt:
“Something’s wrong.”
All stories written herein are the property (both intellectual and physical) of the authors. Comments do not represent the views of the host and the host reserves the right to remove any content. Now, away with you, Flash Fiction Fanatics, and show us your #ThursThreads. Good luck!
Kelly tipped the cup and braced herself. He’d warned her that the first time was the hardest. Warm, she tried to swallow without tasting.
“Something’s wrong. Your fangs should extend with the first sip.” Her sire— her husband— gripped her head and pushed her upper lip so he could see her teeth. “We need fresh. Myrtle, can you send in Samantha?”
She wasn’t sure she wanted this at all. “No. I can’t take life.”
Mike whispered reassurances as he pulled her to his chest. “It’s okay. I keep donors. I’ll teach you to only take what you need. I waited thirty years for you to come back to me and another five to want this life. If it takes another thirty-five to teach you to feed on your own, we’ll endure— No. We’ll celebrate it as each day is another one that I have to love you.”
A woman with close-cropped blonde hair smiled and held out her wrist to Mike. “Doctor, it isn’t Tuesday. Do you need my vein already?”
“Not today. My wife is having trouble with the stored blood for her transitional feed. Will you consent to letting her drink from you?”
Kelly watched as the woman considered before offering her arm to her. “I like it when it’s high enough I can cover the mark with a long-sleeved shirt; if that’s okay?”
The woman’s heartbeat echoed in her ears and then in Kelly’s gums.
“That’s it. Those are your fangs. Just bite down. Don’t think.”
249 words
Twitter @miya_kressin
Loch stopped, holding his hand up in the universal signal for everyone to halt. He searched the surrounding terrain using all his senses.
Duke appeared at his back. In a voice not much more than a whisper, he said, “What’s up?”
“Something’s wrong.” Loch continued his scan, relying now on his Wolf senses. The woods had gone dead quiet. Not even the kids were making a sound. No birds. No wind rustling the leaves. His inner wolf wanted out to hunt whatever was out there. The man wanted to hunt too.
Duke turned to the next team member in line and in that same murmured voice ordered,. “Dalton, get the kids under cover.”
The older ones had already squatted down along the trail, and the younger ones followed suit. Meg crept up the line from the rear, urging them toward an ancient pine that had fallen against another tree to make a haphazard lean-to. Her heart broke for these children. War had taken a terrible toll on their lives and the idea that even the toddlers had stuffed their hands into their mouths to remain silent? Tears prickled her eyelids and she blinked them away. She would be as brave as they were, and it wasn’t like they didn’t have strong, competent soldiers guarding them.
Kin came up behind her and her heart turned a somersault when he squeezed her arm. “Stay with the kids. We got this.”
Nodding, she herded her charges undercover. Yeah, they had this. They would survive.
****
250 Hard Target WIP words
@SilverJames_
That afternoon, the path led Rose to a small house, on the edge of the forest, near the Black Mountains. She floated above the ground, hidden by the tree limbs and branches, and studied that house.
A few chickens were around it, a donkey, and a horse to one side. A cow on the other. She couldn’t see anyone. She stayed inside the forest, and moved to both sides of the house, as far as she could without leaving the trees. As she moved to the left, she saw a boy, and a girl, behind the house. They were standing next to a freshly dug grave. An old man stood across the grave from them. All three were crying.
“Something’s wrong,” Rose thought, as she left the cover of the trees, and floated toward the three people. She approached them slowly, so they could see her coming. As she got closer, she held up her right hand, and waved at them, “Hello.”
The children joined the old man on the far side of the grave from her. Rose looked at the grave, and whispered, “Show me.”
A woman appeared. She was milking the same cow that was at the house. As she was working, a second woman ran into the clearing around the house. She ran toward the woman milking the cow. She drew a knife from as she ran, and drove it deep into the back of the other woman, killing her.
Rose sank to the ground.
248 Words
@mysoulstears
Fed Express or Bust
I slammed on the brakes seconds after Henry Samuels did a poor version of a western roll in ejecting himself out of my car. Maybe I exaggerate. I’d stopped for the light. But my foot stayed on the brake.
My first thought was, “No, that didn’t happen.”
My second thought, once I fingered the guy behind me who was pouncing on his horn, was, “ It sure did.”
My third thought, once the guy behind me pulled out, passed, and offered a finger of delight, was a little more grounded. “Something’s wrong with this picture. Why would a family man who had been on the lam for almost a year suddenly bail on reuniting with his daughter when he was a few blocks from her home?”
Given how helpful and gutsy Samuels had been when we had invaded Solly Vapors criminal fortress hours earlier, this flight from an overdue reunion made little sense.
As I pondered the whole crazy event, I realized I had no idea where Samuels had hot-footed it to. More irate drivers were honking at me and offering their solicitous digits of outrage, so I pulled around the corner and parked. I then got out and surveyed the landscape.
Samuels was nowhere to be seen. It probably was useless to take a walk and try and spot him. I would have but suddenly, my arms were being held by two Feds and their smarmy boss, Grimshaw.
Now I knew why Samuels had bolted.
250 WIP
@billmelaterplea
“Shoot the evil little bastard, Lily.”
“It’s a baby squirrel, Maya.”
“Wait. How do we know it’s not an alien. Or a zombie?”
“It’s not.” Lily tucked her blaster into her waistband and checked her holographic watch. “Something’s wrong, Maya. Sector 14 is lit up in red. Let’s get the hell out of here.”
They flew the police chopper over the city’s skyline. Or what remained of it. It was still smoldering after a year. That was when the world ended. A lab experiment using Professor Avery’s twisted equation…and “boom”. Everything was vaporized. Well, nearly everything.
“Lily, look at this,” Maya said. “Well, I don’t mean look because obviously you’re busy piloting this thing. But, I hacked into the CIA’s encrypted files on Professor Avery. They knew what he was doing and they didn’t stop him.”
“That’s crazy, Maya. Why would they do that?”
Maya shrugged. “And they say we’ve gone rogue! Holy shit. The entire freaking intelligence community was part of the conspiracy.”
Lily swerved the chopper, narrowly missing a flock of Canadian geese. Lasers in various colors scanned the night sky. “They’re tracking us, Maya. We have to land this bird before they shoot us down.”
They made dinner from the few rations they had left, along with scraps they’d saved from canned foods they had found.
“This is surprisingly good,” Maya said.
“I’m happy you think so.” Lily finished eating and trained her eyes on the sky. “They’re coming,” Lily said. “They know where we are.”
Catherine Verdier
@CatherineVrdr
250 Words
Reposted to include correct prompt phrase:
There’s a changing in the weather
Cold winds blasting from the north
Birds flying to the tropics
Way past June
With no clouds up in the sky
And ice rain drilling down
We know that something’s wrong
It’s cock-a-hoop
We’ve sunshine after midnight
Bergs bumping in the Azores
Narwhals with opera glasses
Wear cummerbunds
The aliens are laughing
Surveying from above
We know that something’s wrong
Don’t touch that dial
I know there’s been some problems
Stephen Hawking would agree
A lack of sense and reason
Here on Earth
Ten billion voices shouting
Every language, everywhere
We know that something’s wrong
No-one in charge
Mister Flying Spaghetti Monster
Put a tentacle to the wheel
Steer us from this chaos
Dead ahead
And Conan, Great Destroyer
Please wield your mighty blade
We know that something’s wrong
Lord hear our prayer
139 words – twothirdsrasta.blogspot.com
Moriah stepped out of the restrooms and raised an eyebrow.
“Are ya all right? You look like something’s wrong.”
Riley shook his head. “Nope, just me making a fool outta myself. Again.”
She raised an eyebrow as she held the door open for him to proceed in front of her. “Again?”
“Yeah. I’m not known for my tact or social niceties. In fact, I kinda suck at them.” He grimaced ruefully. “It’s why I’m better at SAR than being around people for normal situations. I always say something wrong or rude or badly, and then people get pissed off at me.”
Moriah tilted her head. “Did ya piss off someone recently, then?”
Riley wrinkled his nose. “The owner of the café. I asked why they don’t require tips for the servers. Apparently, she pays them a living wage and I just stepped in it.”
She gave him a sympathetic smile. “Don’t worry yerself. Tatiana will get over it as long as ya remember the next time yer in. So where are ya headed for the rest of yer day?”
“Home to shower before going to the clinic. You?”
She nodded. “Same. I’d give ya a ride except we ran down into town, so…” She shrugged.
He laughed. “Then I guess this is where we part. I’ll see you at the clinic, yeah?”
“Brilliant. See you then, Riley.” She winked and set off back up the hill.
Riley enjoyed her ass headed away from him before turning for home.
248 ineligible #ElementalHearts words
@SiobhanMuir
“I’m sorry.”
Jillian turned her eyes toward her girlfriend, Jacqui, who she was reclined against on their couch. Jacqui’s brown eyes shimmered with the concern that had become too common since Crystal Lake.
“For what?” Jacqui stroked Jillian’s auburn hair.
Jillian sighed, “I changed.”
“Non,” Jacqui shook her head.
“Something’s wrong,” Jillian touched her fingertips to her temple. “Here. Thinking’s hard.”
The tears streaming down Jacqui’s cheeks would have spoiled her composed façade, even if Jillian didn’t know her well enough to see through it anyway.
“I’m the one who’s sorry! I never should have made you go with me to Crystal Lake! It’s my fault…”
“Not your fault,” Jillian turned on her side between Jacqui and the couch back to look her girlfriend in the eyes. “I don’t want to be a burden.”
Now, making full sentences was as exhausting as the worst math class Jillian had ever taken. But it already wasn’t fair to Jacqui that she’d put it off this long. Jacqui took Jillian’s hand firmly in both of hers.
“You could never be a burden; I love you.”
“I’m not getting better. Everything’s different.”
“Everything was going to be different when we graduated anyway. We’ll get through this together.”
They had always joked that Jacqui, with her business degree, would have to take care of Jillian with her arts degree. But this was different.
“Want to be useful.”
“That shouldn’t be too hard to arrange,” Jacqui kissed Jillian’s forehead.
It felt good having confident Jacqui back.
250 PRUDENT words
@DavidALudwig
I placed the body squarely on the plastic sheet and wrapped it tenderly saying a prayer for today’s victim. The quick lime was waiting near the cistern all was ready. I placed the body in the wheelbarrow and then pushed it.
The sound I heard was loud and couldn’t identify but I felt something’s wrong. I ignored it. It was just in my head, obviously my guilt but I had nothing to feel guilty about these people that were dead dissolved in the quick lime were all guilty of something. They crossed the wrong person and now they paid with their lives. It was my job to dispose of the vermin. I pushed the wheelbarrow closer and dropped the body and watched it spiralling down until it hit the bottom and the slushy muck down their leftover from the others. I turned to walk away and heard a sound that chilled me to the bone. A loud footstep directly behind me. I felt the shovel hit my head and tried to keep myself from falling down the cistern. My knees banged all the sides and then I hit the bottom. I wiped the goo from my face and then felt the shovel hit my skull and knew no more. When I awoke, I stared into the faces I recognized.
“Welcome to the party,” my last victim said, as I screamed, for I had stepped straight into hell.
237 words
@SweetSheil
Trouble on the Rise
“Something’s wrong.”
“Ya think?” Iggie asked as he pushed himself off the floor. “What was your first clue?”
“Well, there’s the fact that we’re laying on the floor.”
“Oh, good. I’d hate to think I’d missed a clue or something,” Iggie added as he offered his friend a hand up.
Together they surveyed the damaged lab.
“This is not good.”
“Boss,” Iggie sighed as he shook his head and poured them both a drink. “You are either the master of understatement or really good at overstating the obvious. I can’t decide, but if the next words out of your mouth are ‘We have to find him,’ I’m going to have to hit you.”
“Iggie, if you try I will knock you into next week.”
“I think our friend the good doctor already did that.”
Iggie looked out the tower window, realizing for the first time that there was no longer a window, but rather a gaping hole where the window used to be— and from it he could see torches approaching the castle.
“We’re too late, Frankie— I think someone found him…”
182 words not including title
@mishmhem
#ThursThreads Week 510 is now CLOSED. Thanks to everyone who wrote this week and I hope to catch you next week.