This is my second time participating in Flash Fiction Friday, and the second time FFF has cured my writer’s block. Thank you @flashfictionfridayofficial!
DISCLAIMER:I kind of failed this Flash Fiction Friday, because this isn’t complete at all, I just ran out of time and decided to post what I had so far anyway. I really like this concept, so I’ll definitely continue working on it over the next few days. And if it turns out okay, I’ll post the whole thing when it’s done.
The ants and I had a lot in common. We were tiny, fragile things, all gangly limbs and dark, beady eyes set in heads too big for our bodies. He liked us like that: small and unassuming.
He kept us contained, as deadly things should be, trapped inside four walls, watchful eyes following our every move. I watched the ants, flat on my stomach to be on their level; he watched me, lingering in the shadows like a ghost.
He was very careful with the ants, not at all like he was with me. He revered them, I could tell; feared them too. Pogonomyrmex maricopa were one of the most venomous insects in the world, he’d explained to me in the early days, a couple hundred stings enough to kill a grown man. There were close to twenty thousand of them in the basement with me, nothing but thin panels of glass between their venom and my skin.
I did not fear them, though. Most days I felt more bug than human, and I often dreamed of the ants taking me in as one of their own. I was convinced that, given the chance, they would take his life and spare mine.
As I did not fear the ants, he did not fear me. We were both foolish for that. A word to the wise: always fear deadly things.
Crawling out the jar, Helena’s eyes gaped upon the fluorescent lighting all around her, before retreating into her little shell. After so many years of failed experiments in order to procreate, the little girl emerged from her shell, just half an hour after closing time.
With wings of flesh and webbing like a frog’s, Helena tried flapping her wings for a moment, but only went up a foot before falling down on the glass. Glancing at the stretch marks across it, Helena felt it rub against her like a smooth
Leaping off of her containment, she felt the slick, plasticine desks slide underneath her webbed claws; her reptailian form obscured from her humanoid body. The clock ticked with a calming precision, though with each second passing, Helena retreated down to the pit of the sink. The lights dimmed further as the people outside decided nothing else would happen that evening, though when Helena turned her face back to the ceiling, she snapped her neck back to the sink.
Although the steel drain didn’t showcase her reflection, she kept on spinning around it, trying to find a way to the bottom. A drop of water fell, and she retreated back to the edge, wondering about its substance. Crawling, with her limbs making sense of their power in this little environment.
All of a sudden, somebody knocked on the door. The thumps startled this little creature, and so she struggled to get out of the sink. Her webs caught on the handle, and unleashed the tap water in a continuous flow. Startled, she leapt once again, only this time, to the cabinets.
Her hands slid towards the handles, and she clung onto the handles like a monkey swinging on bars. Her hair breezed through her face, trying to get a better glimpse of the darkening room, with only a sliver of light remaining.
“Hello? Did something go wrong with our Generation A?” The voice came out. Helena swung for a little bit, but only remained in the same place. To launch is to hunt down the enemy, and wrench out the life needed for her to sustain her own.
Fandom: Star Trek (OC-centric, based on concepts from DS9) Rating: Teen Genre: Angst/Tragedy Words: 993 Characters: Original Vorta Characters Content Warnings: Religious indoctrination, implied minor character death at the end Summary: There comes a time during every Vorta’s first iteration when they learn what is expected of them if they are to be considered truly loyal servants of the Dominion.
Avelan smiled proudly, though his pride had less to do with Tayli’s answers and more to do with the fact that he was about to have another success in this particularly delicate part of his profession. “This will be your first test. While you’re on your walk today, I want you to observe the rest of the group for any signs of defective traits. I understand how difficult it can be to observe those you’ve grown to care for this way, but this is how we learn that loyalty to the Founders must come before any other loyalty. Do you understand this?”
“I– I think I do,” Tayli said, hoping that her hesitation was brief enough that her caretaker didn’t detect it.
“Perfect. I knew you were the right one for the job.”
