Six paragraphs from PAYA, Tarakka, Book 1, a dark sci-fi romance.
1. “Take just the stunners, not the disrupters,”
Ivan ordered. “In case we’re accosted by any of the locals, palm your weapons.
Don’t display them, or they’ll be taken as threats. The last thing we need is
for these aboriginals to think we’re the bad guys.”
2. The impact was worse than horrific. The pain was
indescribable, enveloping and infusing him from head to foot. Every nerve burned.
The blood in his veins and arteries boiled. His heart rate tripled, and
breathing was nearly impossible. He couldn’t move, couldn’t think, couldn’t do
anything in those handful of seconds when the rays slammed into them.
3. “You don’t have to say anything. I’ll do all the talking,”
Paya declared. “That way, if the truth does come out, you can tell them… Dralk
it.” Lifting her wings, she perched her hands on her hips and used her
authoritative voice. “I hereby order you not to say a word about Ivan and his
men or their ship. If the Docents learn the truth, you can tell them I ordered
you not to say anything about it.”
4. She glanced at the man helping to keep her
erect. At least she believed he was a man. He looked more like a Kuu male but
without the wings. And his skin was… She lightly squeezed his arm. He threw a
small smile at her and squeezed back. He said something she didn’t understand,
yet she did. He was reassuring her. It wasn’t so much the words but how he said
them. The sound of his voice. His tone. The expression on his face.
5. Roy slid the ship into place with less than a handful of
seconds to spare. The Ya fired in a blistering pass over them, the whine from
the ray nearly deafening. The ship vibrated like it had been hit with a small
earthquake. At the same time, it was knocked from its static hover and began
plummeting toward the planet’s surface. Under Roy’s expert hands, the vessel
leveled off less than a kilometer from the ground, leaving the crew with
roiling stomachs. On the side monitors they could see the central portion of
the town had been spared, but the outskirts were decimated. As the townspeople
realized what was happening, they took to the air in fear and panic to escape
certain death and devastation.
6. She already missed the feel of his
arms around her, and the revelation shook her to the core. Normally, she
abhorred a male’s touch. Now more than ever. Yet, Ivan’s touch was different.
It didn’t bother her when his hand stroked her. Or when his arms held her.
No comments:
Post a Comment