Hmm, with the ongoing silence and today's prompt I have to surmise that you're currently on a seek-and-destroy mission and maintaining radio silence until it's all done. Donald Trump appears to have survived his State of the Uniom (haha) address so you can't have been planning on assassinating him. So you're doing something more surprising... are you assassinating Chris Pratt?!?
In enemy territory "Without the mathematical background it gets boring," said Sberychev. "Boring is fine," said Snake. He closed his eyes and hummed, stretching his hands out in what he hoped was a pose that made him look enlightened. "Well then," said Sberychev. "When we were in the quantum prison and I built the atlas that allowed us to escape, we became quantum entangled." There was a long pause, and then Snake lowered his arms, uncrossed his legs and frowned. "You go from unintelligible because there's too much detail, to unintelligible because you've missed all the important bits out," he said. "Are you doing this on purpose?" "Probably not," said Sberychev. "Let's leave it at that. OK, so the ransom note wants us to be in the Mohave desert by 5pm local time. Assuming that our ransom-demander isn't in the mood for a three hour drive that would mean that they'd have to be within a roughly 60 mile radius of that spot. It's just after midday now, so that should be enough time to scout it out." "Where exactly are we at the moment?" Snake looked around, though all he could see was the purple haze that constituted this mathematically idealised realm. "At the ransom spot," said Sberychev. "I told you, having higher dimensions means we can take shortcuts." "You might think you told me that," said Snake. "It's certainly not what I heard. So what? Are you going to put windows in this thing so we can see out?" "It doesn't work like that," said Sberychev, ignoring Snake who was clearly mouthing the words back at him. "We'll have to drop out of this realm and have a look around. We can come back in again when we know where we want to go." "Uhuh," said Snake. "Doesn't this count as enemy territory now, though? Is it really safe to be walking around here when they're expecting us to turn up?" "That's a good point," said Sberychev. "Oh god, don't tell me that's actually a new idea for you? Sweet jesus, dude, did you think these people were just sitting there doing the crossword for five hou-- you did, didn't you?" "Ok," said Sberychev. "Ok, shut up now." "Dude--" "I'm not a dude. No, I mean, I am a dude-- oh, just be quiet for a moment. Let me see how close I can get these worlds to be." Snake sat back down and crossed his legs again. He was reasonably certain that disturbing Sberychev when he was messing around with reality like this was a bad idea. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine he was sat on a sunny beach with the ocean nearby. When he opened his eyes he jumped violently and bit his tongue. All around him appeared to be grey, dirty beach. "Good enough for a window?" asked Sberychev. "I think it might be unhealthy for anyone in the real world who's too close to us though." "It's enemy territory," said Snake, blood spilling over his lips. "What do we care?"
Hm, I got nothin’, I thought, using slang from old Hollywood movies imprinted on my brain in my childhood. Oh, I loved them all... Westerns, Black ‘n’ White war movies, colourised romances and Hitchcock mysteries with that tiny “scare factor” he built in as his trademark.
Now, usually, I feel inspired and can wax lyrical, if not in person, then certainly on paper - or tablet screen, now. Well, it is 2018, you have to get with it. Bypass the the word processor, it’s right into Dictation Mode nowadays, complete with Spell-check, (if you can trust it).
In enemy territory, in enemy territory... I imagine a soldier being dropped down into the jungle in full fatigues and backpack, dropped from a small military cargo plane moments before, his support system long gone, he’s on his own, now. What would he do? Oh, I guess the usual scenario would ensue... thrash through the foliage in stealthy silence, reach the edge of a canyon, overlook the village below, load his Kalashnikov with a full round, then start pummelling the inhabitants with bullets in the hope that this actually was the camp that housed the leader of the insurgents that matched the coordinates on his GPS finder he’d memorised from the briefing earlier at 0600 back at base, and then he’d have to escape this enemy territory by lunchtime to rendezvous with the pickup truck out near the plains to take him home, again.
Yeah, but it’s all so cliched, isn’t it? It’s been done, done to death like a flogged horse. Nah, I can’t write that. I need something fresh but I just haven’t got it today. I feel like my writing muse has sabotaged me - like it’s in enemy territory, in Stealth Mode - it just won’t come out to play.
4 comments:
Hmm, with the ongoing silence and today's prompt I have to surmise that you're currently on a seek-and-destroy mission and maintaining radio silence until it's all done. Donald Trump appears to have survived his State of the Uniom (haha) address so you can't have been planning on assassinating him. So you're doing something more surprising... are you assassinating Chris Pratt?!?
In enemy territory
"Without the mathematical background it gets boring," said Sberychev.
"Boring is fine," said Snake. He closed his eyes and hummed, stretching his hands out in what he hoped was a pose that made him look enlightened.
"Well then," said Sberychev. "When we were in the quantum prison and I built the atlas that allowed us to escape, we became quantum entangled."
There was a long pause, and then Snake lowered his arms, uncrossed his legs and frowned.
"You go from unintelligible because there's too much detail, to unintelligible because you've missed all the important bits out," he said. "Are you doing this on purpose?"
"Probably not," said Sberychev. "Let's leave it at that. OK, so the ransom note wants us to be in the Mohave desert by 5pm local time. Assuming that our ransom-demander isn't in the mood for a three hour drive that would mean that they'd have to be within a roughly 60 mile radius of that spot. It's just after midday now, so that should be enough time to scout it out."
"Where exactly are we at the moment?" Snake looked around, though all he could see was the purple haze that constituted this mathematically idealised realm.
"At the ransom spot," said Sberychev. "I told you, having higher dimensions means we can take shortcuts."
"You might think you told me that," said Snake. "It's certainly not what I heard. So what? Are you going to put windows in this thing so we can see out?"
"It doesn't work like that," said Sberychev, ignoring Snake who was clearly mouthing the words back at him. "We'll have to drop out of this realm and have a look around. We can come back in again when we know where we want to go."
"Uhuh," said Snake. "Doesn't this count as enemy territory now, though? Is it really safe to be walking around here when they're expecting us to turn up?"
"That's a good point," said Sberychev.
"Oh god, don't tell me that's actually a new idea for you? Sweet jesus, dude, did you think these people were just sitting there doing the crossword for five hou-- you did, didn't you?"
"Ok," said Sberychev. "Ok, shut up now."
"Dude--"
"I'm not a dude. No, I mean, I am a dude-- oh, just be quiet for a moment. Let me see how close I can get these worlds to be."
Snake sat back down and crossed his legs again. He was reasonably certain that disturbing Sberychev when he was messing around with reality like this was a bad idea. He closed his eyes and tried to imagine he was sat on a sunny beach with the ocean nearby. When he opened his eyes he jumped violently and bit his tongue. All around him appeared to be grey, dirty beach.
"Good enough for a window?" asked Sberychev. "I think it might be unhealthy for anyone in the real world who's too close to us though."
"It's enemy territory," said Snake, blood spilling over his lips. "What do we care?"
Too old to live alone
The nurses stalk me, checking
My health and eating.
A fresh challenge each day
Avoiding the aides with questions
While enjoying the sun.
In Enemy Territory
Today’s word prompt is: in enemy territory.
Hm, I got nothin’, I thought, using slang from old Hollywood movies imprinted on my brain in my childhood.
Oh, I loved them all... Westerns, Black ‘n’ White war movies, colourised romances and Hitchcock mysteries with that tiny “scare factor” he built in as his trademark.
Now, usually, I feel inspired and can wax lyrical, if not in person, then certainly on paper - or tablet screen, now. Well, it is 2018, you have to get with it. Bypass the the word processor, it’s right into Dictation Mode nowadays, complete with Spell-check, (if you can trust it).
In enemy territory, in enemy territory... I imagine a soldier being dropped down into the jungle in full fatigues and backpack, dropped from a small military cargo plane moments before, his support system long gone, he’s on his own, now. What would he do? Oh, I guess the usual scenario would ensue... thrash through the foliage in stealthy silence, reach the edge of a canyon, overlook the village below, load his Kalashnikov with a full round, then start pummelling the inhabitants with bullets in the hope that this actually was the camp that housed the leader of the insurgents that matched the coordinates on his GPS finder he’d memorised from the briefing earlier at 0600 back at base, and then he’d have to escape this enemy territory by lunchtime to rendezvous with the pickup truck out near the plains to take him home, again.
Yeah, but it’s all so cliched, isn’t it? It’s been done, done to death like a flogged horse.
Nah, I can’t write that. I need something fresh but I just haven’t got it today.
I feel like my writing muse has sabotaged me - like it’s in enemy territory, in Stealth Mode - it just won’t come out to play.
Oh well.
Greg - well, I'm pleased to report that no men in dark suits have come knocking at my door as a result of your comment :P
Hah, I'm liking Snake more and more as this goes on.
Morganna - ah, I love this interpretation of the prompt! This scene just makes me so happy :D
Dragonfly - I rather enjoyed this wander through the enemy territory of your mind :)
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