"I need Chocolate!" -- Knitnan

"Attempted security breach detected in junction B-9," intoned the computer. Security Operator Vic stumbled out of his bunk. Why did this shit always happen on his rest cycle? He scrubbed the grit out of his eyes and attempted to focus on the screens. Which were needlessly tiny, lowest-bid, grainy-as-flakk monitors from the absolute dawn of screen technology. The only thing stopping the corp from using Cathode Ray Tubes was the radiation restrictions for the fluffiest Havenworlders on board.

It took quite a lot of interpretation to figure out the ghostly monochrome figures as they blended into each other at - it seemed - four frames per minute.

There was, indeed, someone messing with the food printer. Hacking it. Vic could barely make out a jury-rigged datareader and some cables. There was some shadowy thing on the floor that had to be some removed panels.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

I finally got the cover art ready to roll, so now it's a question of working around my various editor program's quirks to get a legible copy into LibreOffice. For example: Copying from Ellipsus directly into LibreOffice will give me GREEN TEXT where the italics are For Some Fucked Up Reason... so I had to copy it into GoogDocs, copy from Googdocs, and then pasta into Libre.

And then I had to make sure all the text was the correct font and size.

Next time I do this, I'll try the "export into DocX" feature and see if that goes any better.

Place your bets now, but I'm betting that it will all go pants because technology and I are locked into an eternal battle.

I also need to get a new Peertube account somewhere stable [the Blahaj one died of hackers] so I can post my art progress video.

Expect the links in the menu over there to be updated real soon now.

Today's story happening sooner than that.

The human had a warning sign on their quarters: "Do not enter without mask". They had sealed their air vent and brought in their own supply. When one of the crew came in, they understood. The human was hand-pollinating a hybrid plant they were trying to develop, and was taking all precautions. -- BKF

Humans know they're dangerous when they're bored. Those knowing they were destined for long-haul travel got involved in long-term hobbies. Alternately, Humans who have long-term hobbies are destined for long-haul travel. It's hard to tell. They find each other nevertheless.

Human Keefe's hobby was botany. There was a bonsai that he coddled like a fussy child, and an entire lab's worth of strangely interesting plants.

Including carnivorous ones because some Deathworlders really like to rub it in.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

I shall get rattling on today's tale and the Promptcast entry anon.

I'll definitely be treating my stupid fucking ankle today. I have no idea why I didn't do it yesterday other than inconvenience.

I can tell you right now that the pain from skipping treatment is worse than the inconvenience of doing the treatment. And I have the potential to finish up my book cover while I'm there.

:sparkles: Motivation! :sparkles:

Next one, I'll start on ALL the nonsense early. Like... the instant I get an idea, early.

Onwards to fiction creation, I guess. With a diversion for ankle.

They saved a young hellkin who had fallen into a pit-trap years ago. Now, they were sick and their farm was struggling, and a party of hellkin and halfbreds came and helped them. -- BKF

Fifteen years ago...

"Hey! Hey out there! Help! Please?" The voice was young, tearful, and on the very edge of utter despair. It was coming from a patch of weeds beyond the verge of the road.

It was because Naesel Dirgeye had been having a good day that he stopped. He was in a charitable mood when he headed towards the brush where he narrowly avoided falling in.

Where a small Hellkin had fallen in, forlorn in the shade of a mulberry branch. "Are you all right, sir?" said the child. "Please, I didn't mean to make you tumble. Please don't be mad?"

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

...and I plan on trying to enlist the writers on Tumblr later today.

I'm doing my best to get as many words as possible towards that 1 million total.

It's nasty hot, but I also have my post-shopping ice cream to keep me cool enough. And a clever trick with my humidifier and a cross-breeze. Huzzah.

I shall be getting on with getting on very shortly.

Story soon.

Ereshkygal herself talked a young teen out of self-harm. -- BKF

It was a long way down. They said a lot of things about the heights of Pinnacle Peak's tallest towers. Some said that a copper coin tossed from the top could kill an innocent civilian below if it hit. Some said that if you jumped from the topmost parapet, you would be dead before you finished falling.

Tevan leaned on that parapet and stared down at the streets below. Further below than the street by which ze entered the tower, because it stood at the edge of a cliff.

From here, anyone could see the curve of the world.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

The story will be occurring after that.

My ankle hates me, and treatment takes time away from moderating. Fortunately, I have various means of easing the hatred.

I'm going to have to do a little bit of shopping tomorrow. Nothing huge. Just quality of life things. So therefore nothing overtly expensive.

I am almost-nearly done with the cover. I need to do a bit of precision shading. And then it's title and byline stuff. Yay.

Small joys, the little things that lift your heart when all the world seems grey. -- Knitnan

Some people have all the luck. This is just as true as when that luck is only bad. A very unfortunate few get the kind of luck that is never enough. Enough bad luck would allow Hope to gain help. Enough good luck would mean that she would be managing well enough to not have a need.

Well, not many needs that could easily be overlooked.

As things stood, Hope was the one who was easily overlooked. It took a lot of effort since ze was a bright orange Hellkin. Her horns could easily be a spectacle, if people weren't determined to ignore her presence. Nobody liked a beggar, and a devilborn beggar was even worse. Ze couldn't even stay in one place and plead. She had to keep moving.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

We've figured out a way where I don't need anyone's help to do the hot/cold pack swap. Huzzah?

I shall be working on leaf rendering while treating my stupid fucking ankle. Which will be for roughly ten minute sprints at two hour intervals.

So far, so good.

We did just have an income, so there's less to stress about. Huzzah. Next time I'm in Costco, I can afford to renew. And I can pay for my memberships. Yay.

But for now... I continue working on my nonsense.

The laughing game. The point of the game was to get people to laugh. BUT, it had to be laughter that was in good taste and kindness, not cruelty. For each person to gain an honest laugh was one point. Insults and hurt feelings meant losing points. Winner got a very nice prize, but most important was the fun! -- BKF

People assume that the followers of Loki are as evil as they think the god is. People assume wrong. Loki is the god of clever-clogs, smartasses, and the protector of children. He is the patron of ever wily soul who uses clever deception to get around their problems.

Nobody loves a good joke like the Temple of the Trickster.

Especially on the Festival of Fools. Which, despite being about a god of chaos and chaotic things, has definitive rules. The devotees of Loki are not allowed to mock people for their appearance, nor make them feel ashamed. Laughter is the goal, and all pranks must be harmless. Many agree that the Hellkin have already been through enough and therefore only get jokes thrown their way.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

The marines had picked up an escape pod with a young deathworlder child. They looked up how to care for them, how to help ensure their scales were kept clean, taught them to read and write. The child was one of the best protected kids in their sector, and had a whole bunch of unties. -- BKF

They were supposed to be in the middle of nowhere. A part of the spaceways that existed solely as a transit point. Yet they also picked up a distress beacon on a vector from absolutely nowhere-nowhere.

Of course they picked it and the survivor inside up. Even though they were on their way to a conflict. They had facilities to keep civillians safe aboard their transit.

They were completely unprepared for a Saurian infant. They were pre-verbal, and none of the translator software on board could recognise the documentation in the pod. So the CRC Intervention Marines were facing a dependent whilst headed into a conflict zone. Their ship was protected, but it was also going to be landing.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

And I need to find a handful of minutes to talk to my lovelies about treating my stupid fucking ankle. Because I need help to swap the cold pack and the heat pack out and maybe even refresh the temperature a smidge.

I should go do that now.

Also in my PLNs... finishing that layer of fuckin' Kudzu in my cover art. So I can finally fuckin' publish Not With a Bang. Yikes.

And of course the daily tale. If I have the spoons after all of that, I shall consider my next Weird Writer Wednesday.

But only if I have the spoons.

It's looking pretty spoonless out here.

The young humans, carrying fur-brushes, began hunting all of the skitties in the small station. Their mission? Give them all a full brush-out. Needless to say, the skitties enjoyed the attention. -- BKF

There's a very Human saying - the devil finds work for idle hands. Translated from their ancient superstitions, it boils down to: "Don't let your Humans get bored." Humans have a knack for finding trouble before it gets lost.

Especially the younger Humans.

This particular band were allegedly part of the Order of Hitchhikers. They did have a towel, and wore the pin. And in the station named Backwater, they also had pet grooming brushes and a self-made mission: Give every Skitty in Backwater Station the love and attention that every kitty deserves.

Support me on Patreon / Buy me a Ko-fi

Continue Reading

Prompts remaining: 37 Submit a Prompt!
Ask a question

It's looking like a very fun day, for interesting definitions of fun. At least some of my time-shaving habits will have me working on my cover art, today, with hopes of having it done today or tomorrow. Dependent on time windows.

What I do know is that I always manage to cram this shit in somehow. It will get done.

And then I publish the thing with as much discount as I can manage for the release week only. Huzzah.

Queue up the William Tell Overture and wish me the best of luck. The story will likely be short and late.