Sunday Snippet: The Souvenir

Yeesh, it's practically winter again. We had a bit of sun, rain, and snow today. Crazy. But I got to meet up with my two high school best friends for our last excursion before we hang back and wait to see what the global pandemic ends up doing.

Had a lighter than normal work week and got some cleaning done. I had some decent viewing also. Started out with finishing up the second episode of Strike Back. It ended up being a darned terrific episode. I have a nasty feeling how the series will end. Anytime a blood feud is mentioned … just saying.

I caught several episodes of Danger Man, putting me about halfway through the first season. Really like this show.

Watched an episode of Arrow and thoroughly enjoyed revisiting Russia. Also loved how John brought Roy back into the fold. I should be getting close to the big crossover event.

Got the Halloween episode of Riverdale in. Gotta say the whole Jason thing really creeps me out. Mr. Honey also creeps me out. I'm a Reggie fan even though he can be something of a douche canoe. I loved the Archie and Veronica storylines. But the best probably had to be the Betty and Jughead bits. Stonewall or whatever the hell the name of the prep school is has some dark twisty people. And, of course, Betty's ordeal with the prank phone calls ended up being well done. I'm not sure what the hell Charles is up to but here's hoping it's not something truly crappy. The little end caps with the flash forwards keep me intrigued.

Also watched an episode of Murdoch Mysteries. Loved the clip-show angle and revisiting the Meyer / Clegg rivalry. I had a true suspicion Clegg wasn't actually dead. That said, I'm not sure I like the fact he's not. Just saying.

Started a new series for me … The Heart Guy. I'm giving it a test run to see if it's what I want to dive into now that I've reached the end of Midsomer Murders for now.

And that's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from The Souvenir, a novella that got a start with writing community prompt and book two of the Academy of Light series.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Melick Traynor and Ramona Peartry, childhood friends and top students in the Academy of Light, compete for prominence in their respective classes. But when Melick throws out a challenge, Ramona takes an insane risk to prove him wrong and winds up tangling with the dragon plaguing campus grounds.

And a preview snippet…

She cursed her own stupidity. No one knew she'd come out to the secondary practice field. Against the rules, but she always bent them to suit her whims. And usually got away with it.

But not this time.

Her nose thumbing would have to bite her in the ass… and right after she'd pulled off the ultimate coup.

Stupid, stupid, stupid. Ramona knew better. She'd lost track of time and stayed out too long. The giant dragon had plagued the Academy of Light for six long months. Sometimes more than one beast rained fire and destruction on the campus grounds, but it always happened just around dusk when the sun started its descent toward the horizon.

And the beasts always eluded capture. None of the traps laid for the creatures seemed to lure them at all. It had the upper levels in a state of perpetual frustration.

And here she came… out for some extra practice and boom! The damn thing finds her. Okay, okay, she could work with this. She only had to survive the encounter.

The beast hurtled past and made a surprisingly agile turn to come back at her. Ramona had to do something to slow it down. She bobbed up and down, hovering and weaving back and forth to stay out of its line of fire.

She didn't have any weapons and probably couldn't control a beast the size of the dragon with a spell. Not on her own. But she might be able to do some damage with projectile missiles. She whispered a hasty incantation and called on the surrounding rocks and large stones to line up beside her. One by one she sent them flying toward the huge beast as it got closer and closer to her. It dipped and spun around, snarling and growling, spewing flames and heat, several streams only narrowly missing her.

Dammit, she had to do something to bring it down.

Ah ha! Perhaps a combination of the projectiles and a seeking spell? What could it hurt? Ramona gathered up more debris and held it, ready to hurtle toward the beast. She reached down deep and spoke the ancient words of the incantation, adding a twist of her own.

"Find the weakness and bring it down." She sent the thought out to the hovering arsenal then flung it toward the dragon.

The beast continued its flight directly toward her, tail swishing back and forth with angry snaps. The rocks followed its path but the beast showed keen reasoning skill, flapping huge wings to increase its speed. Closer and closer, it got to Ramona, who realized it nefarious plan almost too late. She'd be caught in the line of fire… what hit the dragon would hit her too.

Piss and bones. That would teach her to underestimate the intelligence of a foe.

Options limited and panic rising, Ramona put as much space between her and the dragon as possible. She urged the debris to shape itself into a singular weapon and let out a cheer when it targeted the soft underbody below the column of the dragon's neck. The weakest spot. She hoped.

When the large pile hit the area, Ramona hovered safely in air. The dragon jerked, stopping short and made a pained roar. Puffs of smoke belched out its nostrils but no flames followed. The short-lived victory didn't last long. The dragon dropped like a stone, rolling end over end with a speed she hadn't expected. She attempted to get clear, but its spiked, scary tail flipped wildly and caught her just below the knee. Shooting daggers of agony spread out, running up her thigh and down her calf. Damn, hurt like a bitch. The zing of pain broke her concentration and Ramona let out a startled yelp then got pulled into the dragon's trajectory.

Oh, no. They were gonna land hard on the field. Thinking quickly, Ramona muttered a shielding spell and kept the bulk of the dragon's weight from crushing her. But she also trapped herself underneath the huge beast with no way out. If she broke the spell, she'd be flattened. And if she didn't … she'd eventually run out of air.

Stupid, stupid, stupid.

Melick would shake his head and chastise her for nothing thinking her plan through. The guy had contingencies for contingencies and drove Ramona mad with it. Although she sorely wished she'd heeded his advice to always have one strategic backup in place.

She had no doubt she'd hear all about her lapse when she got back to the academy. If she got back. Pushing her fear aside, Ramona lamented her situation. She had almost no wiggle room. She could lie down or stay bent in a perpetual squat. Her knee ached and throbbed, she had to get the pressure off the joint. Easing onto her side, she groaned and tried to get comfortable.

I love this fun series. Ramona and Melick are friendly rivals that become more and it's one of my favorite tropes to write.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye