Welcome back to the home of #ThursThreads for Week 679. Year Lucky 13! The last year of the cycle, the Moon Year. To those who keep coming back, I’m delighted to see you again!
Today is Thursday and that means it’s time to start flashing on #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 social media handle or email in the post (so we easily notify you)
- The challenge is open 7 AM to 8 PM Mountain Time US.
- 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, Bluesky, MeWe, and Mastodon, etc.
Our Judge for Week 679:
Scientist, Dad, and flash fiction author, Eric Martell.
And now your #ThursThreads Challenge, tying tales together.
The Prompt:
“Never seen it done before.”
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 in the Moon Year. Good luck!
That’s News to Me
I remember Conrad Klipster like it was yesterday. Smartest kid in the class. Every class I was ever in. Kindergarten all the way to grade ten before I pulled the plug and went to work for his old man at Klister’s Meat Packing Factory.
Not saying that was the best move I ever made but my old man had lung issues, smoked like Klister Ham he always said, and my mom cleaned houses but was weary all the time. My sister was a year older and liked school so we were betting she’d make something out of her life…which she did, became a dental technician, married her boss, has three kids and lives the Life of Riley.
Me, I stayed at the meat plant. Few years later, Conrad came back to town with his MBA and took over from his old man.
I worked my way up to foreman. Made good money. I was doing okay but Lucie, my wife, she got into some small group of ladies who believed eating meat was the wrong way to go.
Soon, we were eating beans. Boiled beans. Fried beans. Pulverized into mush beans.
I told her, “Luce, I’m a meat man. Meat puts…meat on the table.”
She smiled, baked more beans.
I asked guys at the plant. “Whaddaya think of this?”
To a man they said, “Never seen it done before. Not in my house.”
Lucie stuck to her guns.
I just don’t know if we’re gonna last.
250 Words
@billmelaterplea
@sterlings-son-2.bsky.social
The four men stared at the massive doors. Made of impressive slabs of oak, edged and hinged with cold iron, and secured with a series of intricate locks.
Ariel stood well away from it. Cold iron was a nemesis to the Fae like silver was to a werewolf. “There’s no magic that I can discern, just the metal.” He glanced at Caleb.
“Yes,” the werewolf agreed. “No magic but both silver and iron. He held up his hands. “I’m out. Sinjen?”
The vampire gave the two of them a look. “I’m not a thief. I’ve not a clue how to pick a lock. Too bad Sade isn’t here.”
“True,” Caleb said. “She’s got the touch.” He bent and looked closer. “Even so, not sure she could conquer that beast.”
The three of them turned to the fourth. Nikos returned their expectant gazes with a raised brow. “Why are you looking at me?” His voice was tinged with both arrogance and amusement.
“Uhm…dragon,” Caleb said, his tone dry.
“What is that supposed to mean?” The arrogance edged over into disdain.
“Dragon.” All three spoke in unison.
“Hoard,” Ariel added.
“Lair.” That came from Caleb.
Nikos turned his icy gaze on Sinjen. “Have you something to add?”
The vampire smiled, showing a hint of fang. “Rumor has it that there’s not a lock made that can defeat a dragon.”
“Fine.” Nikos inhaled. A torrent of fire melted the lock.
“Never seen it done before,” Ariel said.
Caleb had one word. “Cool.”
****
250 Penumbra Papers #6 WIP words
Silver James
http://silverjames.com
Kinetica moped over her newly furry form. Even when she went as a cat for Halloween, she never went for full body fur. No, she’d done the cat-ear headband and clip-on tail as accessories to set off an otherwise sexy ensemble. Plus a playful amount of face paint.
Her super suit was certainly never meant for even that level of cat cosplay. Being turned into a wolf-woman was no problem for the werewolf hero, Dela Luna. In fact, now that she’d added her silver muzzle, she looked the same as she always did when she wolfed out. Using her phone while muzzled was a totally unflattering look.
Dela Luna hung up with a heavy sigh and stowed her phone in her back pocket.
“Whatever this is, the whole world’s affected. Magic on this level? Even my abuela’s never seen it done before.”
“Can you change back?”
“I think so. It hit me like a full moon, but otherwise feels like a normal wolf out. Though that’d blow my secret identity.”
“What do we do now?”
Dela Luna shrugged, “Abuela will call back if she figures anything out.”
Kinetica mrowled discontentedly. The urge to groom herself was as unsettling as her appearance. If the superhero didn’t occupy herself some other way, she felt she’d go crazy. Wait!
“Azure Witch is the magic specialist for the Powered Response Unit! Let’s go see what she knows!”
“Heh,” Dela Luna barked. “Abuela and Azure never really got along. But sure, why not?”
247 The Adventures of Kinetica words
@davidaludwig.bsky.social
Ann expected him to say something else, but he didn’t look up. She blinked and shook her head with a bemused smile.
A guy who’s okay with sharing the space without talking?
She’d never seen it done before, and she found it refreshing. She opened the book she’d grabbed and let her shoulders relax as she started to read. She fell into the story and the afternoon whiled away until her phone chirped with a text.
Brendan looked up and she gave him an apologetic smile as she fished it out.
“Ayeshe.”
“Sorry to cut your R&R short, Thunder, but Circuits has a lead on Barrett’s location.” Mo’s voice came through the phone.
“Say no more. I’m on my way. Back in 40 mikes.”
“No, ma’am. We need you to meet us at a locale on the south side of Broken Pass. We’ll have your gear with us.” Mo rattled off the coordinates of the location as Ann reshelved the book. “Rendezvous at the location in thirty mikes.”
“Copy that. Did you pack Singing Hawk?”
“Yes, ma’am. She’s packed with your gear. See you in thirty.”
“Roger that.” Ann put away the phone and turned just in time to see Brendan’s hand raise.
“See you here again sometime?”
For some reason it sounded like a question so Ann nodded. “Yeah, see you around.”
His smile broadened and he nodded. That little interaction warmed her heart as she headed out to meet her sisters-in-arms to take down a serial killer.
249 ineligible #SirensInc words
siobhanmuir@socel.net (Mastodon)
“Never seen it done before,” the plumber standing in my kitchen said.
“Never seen what done?” I asked.
“This is all wired wrongly.”
“What?”
“The garburator! Someone has hooked it up so if you turn it on you get a heck of a shock, In fact maybe I ought to be calling the police. Someone was trying to kill you I suspect.”
“The sink was clogged. I didn’t think that was broken,” I commented.
“Not broken with the water the way it is you wouldn’t have been electrocuted.”
“But who? Oh, my goodness ,you don’t think…”
“Think what…?”
“That my soon to be ex-husband would kill me?”
“I’m calling the police lady and I think you should change your locks.”
Letting in the police, the plumber explained how the garburator had been tampered with and how I was lucky I hadn’t been killed. The police dusted for fingerprints and found the plumber’s and my ex’s. Mine were only on the tap not the garburator. They asked if I knew where Jordan was living .I gave them his girlfriend’s address.
The police arrested him and charged him with attempted manslaughter.
I’s been nine long months but Jordan has been convicted and will do seven years. Now that’s over I have to move on to his girl friend , Melanie. She will just make trouble for some other woman so I need to fix her too. What’s the best way to get her a prison sentence? Drugs of course!! She’d be sorry.
250 words
@sweetsheil.bsky.social