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Author's note: If ever there was an epic fail.

At the ending of the year there are two important occasions Garia must attend. First comes the last ever gathering of the Guilds of Palarand before they merge to form a new combined engineering institute. Then, as the old year ends, there is the festival of Midwinter's Night, where each family gathers together to remember the past and prepare for the new year to come.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

112 - Midwinter's Night

UF-2 The Seeds of War
by Barbie Lee
Edited by Catherine Linda Michel
Copyright April 2002

"His breath reeked of gin and spirits. It was probably the only mouthwash he ever used. He smiled, and his yellow teeth looked bright against the dark recess of his yawning gullet. His lips were thin. Probably from seldom being pulled into a smile. He held his knife to my throat. “I’m going to sell you to the slavers.”

Over the shoulder of the first man, I could see another man coming across the room. He was holding up a slave collar. A cruel device, it was guaranteed to make the person it was placed on, submissive. Voice controlled, the master didn’t need a transmitter. All the master had to do was give a command. If the slave didn’t respond the slave collar would give a cruel shock. I had seen slaves drop to the floor writhing in agony when they didn’t respond to a command from the master. Those slave collars were a product of the government for use on prisoners. Pirates and slavers found a new use for the government prisoner collars."

And off we go in Book two of UF-2 The Seeds Of War. Strap yourselves in and suit up for action in deep space. Pirates, slavers, alien races and war loom ahead for Brandy, Sherry and all the universes and dimensions. Can our heroes and heroines stave off war and win out against the worst that space has to offer? Well here we go!

Sweet Dreams-59

Chapter 59

*Before…

I look around the caf and it’s just a sort of morbid kind of curious look and I’m looking not at the kids around me in the whole popular side of things but over to what would have been me…you ‘know the loners and the geeks and the sort of like unpopular kids that don’t really fit the popular and semi popular high school tribes and I’m kind of looking for.
Yeah…it’s there.
I see them and they see me and some of them sort of do the don’t look right at it thing with me but some of them are doing the glare and don’t like me because I’m one of “Them” looks.
Sigh…fuck.
I knew it was bound to happen and yeah if I was a shitty person and all self-absorbed and shit I’d trot out the they’re just jealous crap but I’ve been there and they’re coming at this from places of being likely treated like dogshit by some of these popular people and stuff.
So…I’m going to need to change that.

*And Now…

Hopscotch…A Jump in Life 1

Chapter 1

Beep…
Beep…
Beep…

My throat hurts…

There’s a flicker in the darkness… a jingle of keys? Seeing them falling slowly into a hand and a feeling of excitement.

I see a blue car, a muscle car and we’re all running towards it.

We…I’m with a bunch of guys getting in the back seat.

I can feel a forward pushing me back feeling going fast.

I don’t think there was any like drinking or stuff but there was yelling.

The screech of tires and a girl screaming.

Me?

Garia spends a day meeting people all over the palace. Plans are made, ideas are discussed, decisions taken, and a surprising offer comes from an unexpected direction.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

111 - Five Conversations

UF-2 Book 1 Chapter 6 By Barbie Lee, Edited by Catherine Linda Michel

FROM CHAPTER 5

She made the motions of drawing an X over her heart. “Nope, God’s own truth. He turned of age yesterday. That meant two things for him. He was allowed to marry without his parents permission, and he ascends to command of his clan. His dad, your father in law, has stepped down as leader of the clan.”

“Honey, you married into the Number One Clan. Toni is head or leader of all Pash as of yesterday.”

FROM THE EDITOR: So now we know who Toni actually is. In this final chapter we will witness Brandy's acceptance of the life that fate has brought her, the final showdown with the Trag, and Brandy's rise to Queen of the Pash.

Book 2 of this great space opera is about done with editing and will follow as soon as possible.

Snakes and Ladders-33

Chapter 33

I take a ragged breath as I’m sniffing and I’m just honestly so surprised really that he’s acting this way towards me and everything. I was expecting stern and commanding and all sorts of things I guess really I was not expecting an elf, a Sylvan man with hazel eyes and thick long brown hair with really dark brown deeper in and the outside of it lightened by being out in the sun.

I was not expecting him to smell like red clover and the best parts of a sawmill.

I was not expecting the hug like he’s a dad.

UF-2 BY BARBIE LEE EDITED BY CATHERINE LINDA MICHEL

As promised, here's Chapter 4, a longer chapter than chapter 3. In this one we get answers to a lot of questions. Who is Toni, really? Who released the virus that changed Bill and Sherri? What are Toni's plans for Bill/Brandy? All that and more in this chapter.

FROM BEFORE: "Sherry managed to push me to the bottom of the ramp and walked around me. “Plus, some dimensional side travel tossed in for good measure. We couldn’t phone home if we wanted to. We aren’t in our dimension any longer. Earth and all the worlds mankind has populated don’t exist any longer.”

“WHAT! YOU’RE KIDDING!” I was thinking about a hologram and some weird joke between Toni and Sherry.

“Brandy, don’t get me wrong. Humanity still exists, but not in this dimension. Toni’s species travel not only from star to star but through dimensions as well.” She motioned me to follow. “Let’s go see Toni’s home. It’s a rare invite. We are the only humans to be invited to a Pash home.”

“O… kay.” I followed Toni and Sherry into what I would call an Ivy covered entry."

AND NOW.....

Garia finds a way to get Eriana, Gullbrand and Lars to the Armory, where Haflin sizes up their abilities with swords. There is also a need for somewhere larger for the group of women to perform their Tai Chi, and the search raises some questions about important matters Garia had overlooked. Finally, Garia's plan is aired and a decision reached.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

110 - The Norse Irregulars

Our 5 friends are now at university researching different subjects but living together to support each others disabilities. Their progress is described and Beverly's family history is revealed. (A bit emotional in parts.) Our friend fall to discussing ways to solve their disabilities and the Sci-fi aspect of the story starts to develop.

Mare's Tales - by: Beverly Taff

Chapter 12

I had recently moved in with my Mother-In-Law (she is 70 and I am 50) due to financial pressures and, the wife had taken a job in another State. We got along very well, I would help her around the house, with cooking and cleaning. She thought it would be fun to teach me to sew and the lessons were going well.