Lazette Gifford's Blog, page 74

Flash Friday #90: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 38 -- Edmond Helps

(Link to Part 37)




I was ready when Sheriff Creston came straight at me, the rifle up. He didn't have a clear shot at me yet, but he would soon. Maggie --

We were standing in a very dark forest, filled with shadows. It was no wonder none of us saw the black cat hiding right in the path Creston was taking. I don't know how he got there, but suddenly a black shape leapt up from the

Gender choices for my characters: When it matters and when it doesn't

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Flash Friday #89: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 37 -- The Forest

(Link to Part 36)




"Get to cover!" I shouted and shoved Davis off to the side. I spun to Maggie but she was already darting for cover and the War Cows were taking flight up into the trees. I hard several branches snap, but the cows didn't fall down, which I took for a good thing as I ran under them.

I stopped at the first tree and looked back. Lord Snow and Edmond had taken cover as

Flash Friday #88: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 36 -- War Cows

 




(Link to Part 35)



Maybe I should have felt better since I finally had some answers, but they weren't helping right now. I was half fae -- but that made a lie of my entire life. I was a Protector, but only if I could be sanctioned by a council that clearly didn't trust me, or else they wouldn't have kept sending things out to stop me.

I was feeling sullen and annoyed.

But I kept

Flash Friday #87: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 35 -- Tests

(Link to Part 34)




I felt a claw tear across the back of my shoulder and down towards my spine, a quick hot pain that made me anticipate worse to come. From the corner of my eye, I could see the dragon's head jerking aside --

Something odd happened. The dragon gave a sound very much like a yelp and tried to scramble backwards so fast that he tripped on his own feet and sprawled sideways,

Flash Friday #86: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 34 -- Fire

(Link to Part 32)



It may not have seemed as though anything was settled, but for some reason I felt better as I followed Edmond out of the area. Yes, that was probably a sign of insanity, that I let the crazed cat lead the way. However, it did have one good side: I didn't have to make a decision. Neither did anyone else. Even Lord Snow had started to look shell-shocked.

I couldn't keep

Flash Friday #85: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 33 -- Connections

 




(Link to Part 32)




I could feel magic in the air.

I felt magic and intent moving all round us, and some not good. Something wanted to stop me and I still couldn't find out why. Emotions powered magic and they are not logical. They don't come with a list of points showing exactly the cause. Whatever had angered and worried my enemy, I wasn't going to find out by touching his magic.

Flash Friday #84: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 32 -- Magic 2

 



(Link to Part 31)



Davis's stared, his face pale. "I'm sorry."

As though he had failed. He went to his knees, his hand still on the shield, but the faint flicker of magic no longer held the walls at bay and they began to move towards us with the grinding sound of rock against rock. I had to turn sideways and Lord Snow shoved up against me.

Davis finally dropped his hands and the

Flash Friday #83: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 31 -- Magic

(Link to Part 30)




I never knew my father.

That's probably an odd thing for me to have thought in the moment when chaos rushed through me, but I realized that if I had known my father, or at least known about him, I might have been better prepared for the idea of having the power to do magic. At least having grown up near Elsewhere, I didn't deny magic existed like I'd heard they did

Flash Friday #82: Surviving Elsewhere, Part 30 -- Lesson 2

 



(Link to Part 29)



This had been a pleasant place to walk a few moments before, the street filled with curious, old-fashioned buildings. Now they began to change shape, to move -- and to grow. Buildings, when they move, make a grating sound; rock against rock, that sounds so wrong you can't help but react. I could even see little mushroom creatures running for cover.

The area behind