Adventure
A day at the cricket
A day at the cricket. A normal life. The orchard snoozed away the afternoon sun. The warmth of an English August lulling even the bees into silence. The pear tree stood among the Apples, being a conference it did not need a pollinator buddy tree; the Coxes Pippins ripened earlier and the Bramley later, so the pear was in the middle of everything. The gentle breeze was so very gentle it did not even move the tips of the grass which grew between the trees. Stillness and warmth, after yesterdays rain, slowly but surely, swelled the fruit and gave peace to the world. Two people lay in a small clearing, a blanket between their bodies and the lush grass. They lay still and silent, seemingly so taken over by the ambiance that they too were part of nature at rest. The human dressed in summer skirt and flimsy blouse, pulled herself onto her side, rested her head on a hand and spoke. “Will you still be here when it's harvest time, will you help with the apples and pears?” “unlikely” came the soft spoken reply, without stirring from his rest, the older man continued “this is too good to last, orders will come, and I will be on the march again.” These two, despite being so very different, are actually brother and sister; the orchard was part of their family home. A sprawling twenty acres of gardens, outbuildings and a large old farmhouse, one that has seen better days but was still loved and lived in. The days of live in servants had long past but they still had a gardener and he still lived in the proverbial gardeners cottage but now one of the outbuilding housed a complex array of mechanical devices that allowed this one gardener to do the physical work that used to employ ten others. The gardener's wife helped out with the laundry and the bed making while the two family daughters helped out with the catering and cleaning, whenever they came back home. Other wise the patriarch fended for himself, now that his wife had died. Both father, and son were military men, and like the gardener, they are ex special forces. The father and the gardener had served together and had that unbreakable bond that only men who fought side by side, experiencing death and survival, together, can have. The son was a generation later but shared similar experiences, he was officially retired and now a civil servant with a desk job in an obscure government department based in London. Only here at home, could he relax and not have to be constantly on guard, so careful about every word and action. Only here was he among people who knew and understood his real work well enough to never ever ask questions.
By Peter Rose3 years ago in Fiction
Salvation
The taste of salt water and blood filled his mouth with each passing stroke. His limbs were becoming heavy, and he struggled to keep his head above the waterline. Before him he could see his salvation, but exhaustion was taking hold, choking what little hope he had for survival left. Shock kept the pain from the gash in his leg from overtaking him, but Samuel knew that slowly blood was flowing from him, mixing with the water of the dark salty sea, and ensnaring him in the cold grip of the unknown. Only the raft ahead of him could save him, but it was drifting further and further away. Every time he breathed, fresh saltwater rushed in to fill his lungs and he spat it back out when he surfaced again, but he was losing the battle against the tide. He couldn’t believe it, until in a moment of panicked strokes, his fingertips collided with the hardwood of the raft, its coarse and splintered hull ripping into his waterlogged and pulped fingertips.
By Jonathan Medrano3 years ago in Fiction
Blizzard
Ella It was a particularly cold day in January. I had decided to walk to Mr. Anley’s house. I was taking care of his dog Bruno. I had my own dogsitting service. I would be staying there overnight for the next couple of nights. Anyway, walking there, was the big mistake. When I first walked out of the house, it was just flurrying. A snowflake here, a snowflake there. Nothing much to worry about, really. I almost slipped on a patch of ice about twenty feet from the house, but I had incredible balance, so I did not fall over.
By Margaret Walsh 3 years ago in Fiction
Costa Valiente
It took all of three hours for my father to round up each and every one of Costa Valiente’s fishermen in the village square. Many of them came prepared, harpoons and nets already in hand, but all of them looked angry, practically frothing at the mouth.
By Sean M Tirman3 years ago in Fiction
Xonda's Green Light
Jzohn had to find that Trexdi before the end of the day. He knew he needed to get back to his home on Planet Xonda before sundown. Xonda was a planet known for its resources of fine stones. Each stone correlated to the parts on a person's body. The stones were, turquoise, garnets, peridots, moonstones, emeralds, and quartz, and many many more. Jzohn knew he'd have to worker harder to catch up with the schedule of mining on Xonda and to make for the time away. He loved living and working on the planet Xonda. He felt safe. His work on Xonda entailed laying the precious stones into the life source grail for the safety of planet Xonda. Every inch of Xonda's ground, buildings, or environment had to be inlaid with the precious stones. The stones ensured that the Ghoke would not enter into Xonda's atmosphere. The Ghoke is a Death Air; and the stones would weaken the Ghoke's grip tremendously and keep the Ghoke away.
By Sandra Wilson3 years ago in Fiction
Anticipation
My fathers figure looked large standing in front of the sliding glass doors to our dining room. He was looking out towards the paddocks of our property, with his hands in his pockets and his shoulders shrugged upwards slightly. You could feel the anticipation of the temperature running through his body. It was COLD!! Not just a little bit cold, it was “bloody freezing” according to my Dad. I stood up and walked over to the glass sliding doors and took in the view in front of me.
By Karen Hodder3 years ago in Fiction