Sunday Snippet: Lost in Translation (Crystal Shard Brotherhood)

Well, I think I get my vaccine this week. I'm actually rather excited they made it to my age range. I'll look forward to being able to be out and about more than I currently am.

Had a slower work week, which ended up being nice to get caught up on some writing and start some new projects that have been waiting in the wings. Also caught some television.

Ended up watching two arcs of Classic Who. I am in season fourteen and but I'm not halfway as I originally thought.

Caught two episodes of No Offence. I'm almost finished with the first season and it's getting really good. I'm thoroughly enjoying this show.

Watched the first part of Silent Witness and started the second. It's actually kind of a creepy episode.

Caught another episode of Peak Practice, which ended up being really good. I'm near the end of the second season and almost ready to start the third.

Started a new episode of Blue Heelers and it continues a bit from the previous episode. It's getting a little more into the personal lives of the characters.

Also watched several episodes of The Muppet Show. I'm having some seriously fun childhood flashbacks.

And that's pretty much it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Lost in Translation, a Crystal Shard Brotherhood novella.

Here's the mini-blurb:

A body dumped outside a fortress. A scroll located in twelve different locations. A trap sprung. But the brethren are too smart to take the bait. Jackson Alexander and Jacey Durham have to turn the tables on the nemesis trying to dismantle the Crystal Shard Brotherhood.

And a preview snippet…

The scary look on Jacks's face didn't deter Jacey from trying to remember what happened.

She thought back, the twinge of pain less intense this time. "I got a phone call." She left out the encoded part for now, better to hold the information back until she knew more about Jacks. "Left to meet the driver."

She had a memory of walking to the lift, going down in the empty tram, and heading through the lobby of her building.

The bump on her head started to throb, but she continued. "I was early so I waited by the doors." Things got a little fuzzier after that. "The car pulled along the curb so I exited and went out to meet it." She frowned. "The driver usually gets out and opens the door, but he didn't this time." Why hadn't he? She wished the details weren't so murky in her head.

Jack showed an interest in that statement. "That the first time that's happened?"

Jacey shook her head. "No. But it's not common." Her hand rubbed absently along the bruised area on her head.

Jacks noticed. "You okay? We can stop if you need to."

He clearly didn't want to. Curiosity warred with concern on his face. With a dash of wariness.

Jacey shrugged off the fatigue. "No. I'm fine. But there's not much more I can tell you." She pushed her limits. "The door popped open from the inside and I entered…" Jacey frowned again. She got a little more—a flash of a face—but nothing clear. The visage got shoved aside by the memory of a stinging pinch on her arm.

Her eyes widened and her hand went to the spot on her bicep. "I was injected with something." But what?

Her eyes flew to Jacks. "I think I was drugged." Buy why? She didn't have a clue who would want to do something like that. Or why they'd want to then beat her and dump her outside the keep.

Her head ached and now her arm throbbed.

I'm excited about moving ahead on this series. I don't have all the books plotted out but I do have some good beats jotted down so I at least know where things are going.

 

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Lost in Translation (Crystal Shard Brotherhood book one)

Geez, I'll be really glad when the back and forth weather is over and done. Snow days in March, man, haven't really seen those since the 80s. At least not that I can remember. The year after I graduated, we had a big storm in March and I almost didn't make it back for spring break. Planes weren't flying out of Atlanta to go north. Fun times.

This week, I played catch up with some of my television shows. Got Legends of Tomorrow up to date. Looking forward to Constantine being added as a regular. At least I hope he gets added. He's so much fun. And I really like Wally as a team member.

Gotta say, I'm kind of "meh" with this season of The Flash. I've grown to really like Ralph but I'm rather bored by the uber-smart Devoe and the constant body swaps. Here's hoping next season has better flow.

I'm not sure I'll be able to catch up on Gotham. Gotta find the first episode when it returned at the beginning of March. I hate it when on demand and the station websites remove the episodes before I have time to get caught up. Grrr.

I'm caught one of my missed episodes of Riverdale. I'm still a little on the fence about the whole mafia-style intrigue. Hiram buying the paper? Yeah, seriously, not down with that plot point. I'd rather watch Kevin and Josie deal with their parents and Cheryl deal with hers. Also, Chic. Ugh. I have no clue what to even think about that storyline. I want to love it, but I don't. I did love the Jughead rundown about how tangled their relationships are with their friendships. Too true, my man, too true.

I'm down to one episode left on Murdoch Mysteries. I'm a little heartbroken for William and Julia and I'm almost afraid to watch the next episode.

I took a week off from Jessica Jones. I'll be trying to catch more episodes this week.

Chicago Fire has some great crossover episodes. I'm excited about finishing up season five, but then I'll have to wait for season six—see not being available on demand or website. Bleh.

That's it for television this week. Tonight's post is from Lost in Translation, a Crystal Shard Brotherhood book.

Here's the mini-blurb:

Lost in Translation 10263 / 15000 A body dumped outside a fortress. A scroll located in twelve different locations. A trap sprung. But the Brethren are too smart to take the bait. Jackson Alexander and Jacey Durham have to turn the tables on the nemesis trying to dismantle the Crystal Shard Brotherhood.

And a preview snippet…

Blessed warmth.

Jacey thanked the heavens above. Then added the goddess to the mix. The next thing she registered was the quiet. The shrill whistle of the wind no longer screeched in her ears.

But the fuzzy echo, distorted roar was still there. And a throbbing ache screamed along her hairline.

Not pleasant.

She lifted a hand to rub at the offending spot and felt a twinge of pain. It zinged up her arm and made her eyes pop open. Her blurry vision noted the needle inserted into her vein and the tubing that wound around to a bag full of fluids.  

Hospital?

No. She didn't think so.

Her eyes scanned the room, taking in the richly colored décor done in blue and bronze.

Definitely not a hospital.

Somewhere nice though.

Her head still ached and her throat hurt, so she tried to call out. "H-hel-lo." It sounded like a croak, raw and scratchy.

She swallowed and made another attempt. "Hello." Jacey went to sit up but the throb in her head made her stay put. "Anyone? Hello?" Using her free hand, she massaged her forehead, trying to put her jumbled thoughts in order.

What did she know?

She wasn't cold anymore. Bonus for that.

Out of the elements. Big plus there.

She was getting medical attention, but not in a hospital. No points.

And she had a kickass headache that would not quit. Minus one hundred.

Her location topped the list of what she didn't know. And how she got there.

Did she have any other injuries? Probably a big yes since her body felt like one massive bruise. Not knowing the extent and severity had her slightly fearful.

Because the worst thing? She had no clue who helped her. The person or persons she'd gone to meet? Wait. Gone to meet? Okay, score another answer she had now.

Except she couldn't remember who.

Or someone else entirely could have offered the assist.

Captive or refugee?

Jacey had no idea which.

Great. Outstanding. Just perfect.

What she didn't know far outweighed everything.

She needed to get it together.

Jacey remembered a phone call, but not who made it. No… wait. A piece slid into place. The call was coded. She wouldn't know the caller, but she'd trust whoever placed it.

Not good… considering her current state.

Helplessness grabbed hold of her and Jacey decided to brave the pain and get some answers. Sucking in a deep breath, she forced herself to sit up. The room swam and everything went gray-black for a second but she leveled out pretty quickly.

Jacey waited a good thirty seconds before she opened her eyes again. The color was back. Blues and burnished bronze. It made her laugh. Which made her body ache.

Where the hell was she?

Time to find out. She reached over and peeled the tape off her hand. Got ready to take the needle out when a voice startled her.

"Whoa."

Her head swiveled around toward the speaker, the dull throb kicking back in again.

"I don't that's such a good idea. You probably shouldn't remove that just yet."

As far as first meetings go, Jacey could do worse than Jacks. I love these two together and can't wait to really sit down and plot out the rest of this series.

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Lost in Translation (Crystal Shard Brotherhood, book one)

Great news! Killjoys and Dark Matter will both have a second season. I'm doing my happy chair dance right now. LOL

The Last Ship appears to have delivered my greatest wish, but… I may have hoped too soon. I have a feeling a different foe will prove more formidable than those who will remain nameless for now. LOL I can't wait for tonight's episode!

I got to watch the season four trailer for Arrow and ohhhh… can't wait for October to get here. Looking forward to The Flash and Agent Carter, also.

Syfy has a couple of shows I'm going to try, but eh, their slate isn't what I'd hoped it would be. Maybe I'll be surprised, who knows.

Tonight's post is from Lost in Translation, the opening book to The Crystal Shard Brotherhood series.

Here's the mini-blurb:

A body dumped outside a fortress. A scroll located in twelve different locations. A trap sprung. But the Brethren are too smart to take the bait. Jackson Alexander and Jacey Durham have to turn the tables on the nemesis trying to dismantle the Crystal Shard Brotherhood.

And a preview snippet…

Cold.

No.

Frigid. Effing. Cold.

She couldn't seem to get warm.

Everything hazy, Jacey Durham instinctively knew it would hurt to move. Hell, it hurt to inhale right now. The cold air burned, stealing her breath.

Outside.

But where? How? And why?

She tried to draw air into her lungs and choked on it.

Keep it shallow, Jace. Gotta have air… just nice and slow.

Taking mental stock, she quickly surmised she'd have to move, find shelter or freeze to death.

But, holy goddess it would hurt like a bitch. Her muscles felt taut, tight, battered and bruised. Her insides ached. Her head throbbed and pounded… even her eyelids hurt.

Had she been beaten? Or worse?

What the hell had happened?

At least she lay on her side. But of course, the wind whipped along her spine, making the snow swirl and sting against the exposed skin along her waistband. But she wouldn't have as far to move to stand.

Good goddess, she didn't want to attempt it.

She could lay there a little longer, right?

Maybe until she could remember something?

Phone call.

She recalled the ringing but couldn't remember if she'd answered or not. And it hurt to think. Intensified the rapid fire drum beat staccatoing in her head.

Too much. Jacey felt the pull, the call of bliss unconsciousness would bring.

Dammit. She just couldn't fight it.

I'm looking forward to seeing how this one plays out. The first book is close to being complete, but I have to plot out the others and get started on them. Can't wait!

That's it for this week.

Cheers!

Skye

Sunday Snippet: Lost in Translation (Crystal Shard Brotherhood 1)

Week three and still on target. Is it too soon to count this as a trend? LOL

This week's Sunday Snippet is from a WIP that's been sitting on the sidelines for a little while. I'm hoping by making a sneak peek it'll jump start the sages and they'll let me finish it. :D

The concept with this one is twelve manuscripts with an overarching story to unfold in each book. Based on a twelve month calendar, it takes place on the planet Kendark. I'm going for a futuristic vibe, but the characters should have a feel of being descendants from Earth. The Crystal Shard Brotherhood has twelve brethren who maintain the planetary balance by renewing the shard hidden deep in the fortress. The first book is titled Lost in Translation.

Here's the tag line:

A body dumped outside a fortress. A scroll located in twelve different locations. A trap sprung. But the Brethren are too smart to take the bait. Jackson Alexander and Jacey Durham have to turn the tables on the nemesis trying to dismantle the Crystal Shard Brotherhood.

And the preview snippet…

It couldn't be a fake out.

Jacks dismissed the idea almost as soon as he'd had it.

No one could be so stupid. Yes, the Fortress monitored the perimeter 24/7, but it didn't take long for a body to freeze up here. Pure chance he'd caught sight of it when he did, even with the sensor alarms going full blare.

No, she'd either injured herself and had crawled onto the grounds, or she'd been dumped there and left stranded.

The former would be preferable. The latter meant she or someone she worked for wanted to draw attention. To the Fortress or themselves. Neither a good option.

Jacks made his way to the front antechamber and opened the huge wardrobe. He donned a protective head/face cover and snugged it up, leaving his mouth free for now. He added frost-proof goggleshades, a Brethren exclusive. They cut the glare of the sun that could be blinding during the day and provided night vision at night. Next he tucked his large hands into the thin, friction-activated gloves that would keep his fingers and palms nice and toasty. Finally he bundled into the heavy parka and pulled the hood up over his head.

He already had the fur lined overalls favored by the Brethren on along with his heavy thermal boots. The lug soles would be okay on the snow but Jacks popped his feet onto the snow shoeskis just in case.

The med kit contained a thermal wrap, but he grabbed an extra one on his way to the entrance. The blue tinge to the woman's lips had him concerned. More so than her presence did.

The Wise One wouldn't like that.

Did the guy like anything? Not lately.

Bracing himself for the first blast of cold, Jacks activated the release and waited for the massive door to slowly edge open. Impatient, he gave it a shove, knowing it wouldn't really help it move any faster.

Greeted by a frenzied flurry of snowflakes caught him by surprise.

"Shit."

Storms, even blizzards, cropped up fast sometimes. It showed how distracted he was that he didn't check before opening the door. Getting to the woman would be much harder in white out conditions. And he felt he needed to get to her fast.

She wouldn't survive long if he didn't.

She could already be dead.

Unsure why the thought bothered him, he shoved it aside.

Hefting the med-kit onto his back, he adjusted his goggleshades and keyed in the coordinates of the female's location. Confident the guidance system would keep him on the right path, he trudged out from under the protection of the Fortress and let the first blast of swirling snow hit him full force before hunkering down against the wind.

One step at a time…as quickly as possible.

Jacks will definitely have his hands full when he gets Jacey back to the Fortress. She's in a very bad spot and has no idea who to trust.

And that's it for this week's post. Stay tuned for more.

Cheers!

Skye