Community Event / Creation Abraka Drabble The Old Official Drabble THIS IS AN EX THREAD IT IS DEADED

[Goose4291]

That was a tough topic to do, I can tell you!

Operation Sicarius

Fourier Retreat's city lights twinkled brightly, the outpost providing the only indication of civilisation within the Durius system

Four cold masses drifted unobserved through the security cordon.

Oligirio transmitted the order: “Execute.”

The four Gladius fighters powered up, launching their ordinance into the outpost’s exposed reactor, plunging the station into darkness. As they withdrew, Oligirio noted a few emergency lights straining to come online.

“Fretensis, this is Arcani flight. Code-word Prostrate. Over.”
“Solid copy Arcani flight. Fretensis Actual Out.”

The Imperial Interdictor Fretensis screamed from super-cruise above the now defenceless platform, her landing craft deploying and moving towards their objective.

 

[Frank]

One Way Trip

"You killed Cedendo! He only had 8 months left before he was free."

Ambulates looked at the floating mushy mess. "That might explain why when I told him our plan, he got... argumentative"

"He was our pilot!"

"Relax! Docking is difficult but I can handle the rest. We've got just enough fuel to make it to the Alliance. We radio them when we get there, throw ourselves at their mercy". He looked at the corpse. "They'll understand."

Their borrowed ship supercruised its way to a planet's shadowed crescent. They were horrified to see the tell-tale pattern of Imperial settlements' lights.

 

[Philip Coutts]

The Hunter

I really should just have called this "Bladerunner - A Shameless Rip Off" but I'll call it "The Hunter" instead
.
The Hunter.
.
The hunter crouched exhausted, nervously scanning the area. Another death on his hands another handful of credits in the bank. He slumped to the pavement, gasping for breath, the laser hanging loosely in his hand.
.
He was getting too old for this. He could feel his reactions slowing with every bounty, worse still he could feel the guilt gnawing at his bones.
.
He stared at the corpse in front of him as he waited for the clean-up crew. She was beautiful; he could see the city lights reflecting in her eyes. A teardrop fell, mixing with the androids cooling fluids.

 

[Darkoba]

Congrats, Kalryper, a great drabble.

 

[Darkoba]

An Horrific Hobby

In the comforting darkness of the power-cut, I seek my victim. My sabotage won't last long, my time in this city is limited.

My plan? Find a victim, do what I must, return to my Sidewinder and launch before discovery. Paid assassination has its rewards, but these spontaneous, random jaunts are my favourites.

Footsteps approach. "Ah! Come meet your fate, friend."
My blades unsheath, I ready my attack.

A whistling workman turns the corner, apparently carefree and satisfied.

I pounce.

The city lights all flash on simultaneously! Pain rents my optic-nerves. Ice cream* in blinded agony.

My jaunts are over.

____________________________________________________________________

* To reduce Psykokow's frustration at this week's subject not including aforementioned delicacy.

 

[Ian Phillips]

Scared of the not dark.

I'm 15,000 light years from anywhere important, scanning systems for valuable planets and adding to my collection of 'strange and wonderous sights seen'. Pink suns and green skies, all the colour combinations you can think of, I've got pictures of them all, but this is the craziest thing I have ever seen.

And it's got me scared. It's not your normal space fugue, I'm used to being alone!

This is the kind of scared that has got me scuttling for home as fast as I can go.

I've found an earth-like planet.

But this one has city lights on it.

 

[psykokow]

Weeks Theme
*City Lights*
Current Entries
*word count*
01 *100* - Goose4291 - Operation Sicarius : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1631626&viewfull=1#post1631626[/SIZE]
02 *100* - Frank - One Way Trip : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1631627&viewfull=1#post1631627[/SIZE]
03 *100* - Philip Coutts - The Hunter : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632025&viewfull=1#post1632025[/SIZE]
04 *100* - Darkoba - An Horrific Hobby : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632519&viewfull=1#post1632519[/SIZE]
05 *100* - Ian Phillips - Scared of The Not Dark : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632612&viewfull=1#post1632612[/SIZE]

 

[azdour]

Journeys End

The journey had been long, too long.

The pilots mind struggled with the sight before him.

Were his eyes telling him the truth?

Or was this a trick conjured up by years of isolation?

The pilot sat transfixed in awe at the multitude of eyes before him.

They weaved strange patterns and ebbed a warmth his soul was yearning for.

They lured the pilot towards them, exuding seductive imagery.

His face wore a smile as long as his journey, his cheeks wet with emotion.

The city lights flickered and welcomed back its lost explorer son.

For this was his home...

 

[@_JustinPinner]

Nice work so far. Here's my second attempt at drabbling about City Lights...

Real Hunters

The bounty hunter stood over his fallen mark, slowly removed a cigarette from a pack and lit up, eyes glowing in the matchlight flare.
Crouching, he turned the blooded, grimy face to the light. Surprised to find female features, he scanned her. The scanner pinged: target identified.
An uneven smile broke through the gore.
“Something amuses you?” asked the hunter.
A metallic “shinnng” preceded the hidden blade’s deployment. The hunter’s eyes saucered as he toppled.
The mark rose painfully to stand.
“Real bounty hunters don’t smoke City Lights” she growled as she brushed herself down and slipped into the shadows.

 

[Bleke]

Drabble Noir

All of you seem to be sharper than me in the hardboiled genre, but here goes nothing:


[drizzling rain] [slow, moody bassline]
Once the city lights would have been reflected in the wet pavement, but that was a long time ago. Now it was covered in trash which had fallen from the wealthy levels above. Just like my client.

I entered the bar [bar sounds] where we were supposed to meet and ordered a beer. It looked like leachate, but what else could expect from an establishment called 'The Dead Dog'? At least there was foam on it.

There was commotion in a corner. [breaking glass] Some thugs were browbeating what could only be my client. I decided to put my lacklustre beverage to good use.


Words in brackets are not part of the drabble, just sound effects as in a radio theater.

 

[CdrTwisted]

Onion City Limits

Harry Spur glared at the packets spilling out of the cargo canister.

"What the hell are these? I bought onionhead, not this... this..."

Co-pilot Vaart Vander picked up one of the brown paper cartons and sniffed it. He winced.

"This IS Onionhead, boss," he coughed. "The--" He coughed again. "--smell is--" He gulped back a sliver of sick. "--distinctive."

Harry cursed the smooth-faced Lucan trader who'd sold him the onionette packs, 142 lightyears from his clenched fist. "Damn son-of-a-tharg. People want full fat Onionhead Cities, not City Lights."

Vander vomited on the hangar floor. Maybe the Lucan had a point.

Edit: Darnit, just read Justin Pinner's piece. I'll do another for my entry.

 

[KalRyper]

Inheritance Tax

The weary father struggles to shepherd his boy, "C'mon lad, it's getting late."
The boy resists, transfixed by the sight of the planet and sparkling spectacle of the nearest city below.
Sticky handprints denote the boy's daily pilgrimage, accompanied by his unrelenting question, "I will get to visit there one day, won't I Dad?"

Avoiding the innocent, questioning eyes he responds as always, "One day son. One day."

Two soldiers watch them move off.
"Poor kid. He'll probably be crawling over our bones."
"Assuming those plasma fires have died down by then."

Their silent contemplation of the flickering lights resumes.

 

[Galactic Midden]

Road to Retribution

Descending across the terminator into daytime my transport approaches it's destination, sickly points of light dying on the surface below as a bloody dawn smears past. Once magnificent like the Decadents' homeworld, Reflection had become a dustbowl planet of toxic corruption and villainy; a fitting backdrop to my doom.

My source was Shadow-man, genetic weapons dealer and enemy of the Mal dynasty. "Remember, get away before detonation, these cloned-divines have enough Nuetroxin taint to light up a city".

Staring into eyes of innocence my heart falters, nodding, a tear breaks away as acceptance of the path I travel sets in.

 

[CdrTwisted]

Witchspace City


Old man Mackay never liked hyperspace -- a problem for a trader.

"It ain't called witchspace for no good reason."

We were talking in the bar at Lave Station.

"You know what you see?"

It was the day before his last jump.

"Witchspace city, that's what it is. Worse than goddamn thargs. Spend too much time in witchspace, they see you looking, and they take you."

He jumped to Diso, never arrived. A glitch, they said. Just bad luck.

"Never look, son. Never look at the lights. Witchspace City. Don't forget."

I won't, Mac.

Even though they sparkle like lovers' eyes.

 

[Galactic Midden]

Welcome CdrTwisted it's great to have you on board. Help yourself to a drink and remember we drabble not dribble. Strap yourself in over there, sit back, relax and let Frank our pilot take us to the next fly-in. After a quick vote we'll not wait long before our feature presentation begins - just to warn you it's like a very very loose remake of Hitchcock's Psyco with animals


Edit: I just read through the 11 drabbles submitted so far and I wonder, has someone dimmed the city lights? Everything so far has gone a bit dark, but I like it

 

[Winterwalker]

Thanks to Cmdr Kal for the head up .. I posted in the wrong thread, doh!
Making me (and as inspired by 'City Lights') ....

A Proper Charlie

You've seen that hapless Commander. So determined to make the life, struggling through that striving.
And so I advise; Commodities, Routes, pre flight your checks, stay core. And make it you will.
Big Universe, out here, space for each trader.
No luck though, no.

So true in a Sidewinder, there's little room for error.
Until that Anaconda rewarded me handsome, for the help of my guns to save half his cargo.
The other half gave, to me for assisting.
'Til I pass it on. Buying the helpless, "A Flower Girl."
A Cobra, to trade in.
Now look at her, grow.

 

[CdrTwisted]

Welcome CdrTwisted it's great to have you on board. Help yourself to a drink and remember we drabble not dribble. Strap yourself in over there, sit back, relax and let Frank our pilot take us to the next fly-in. After a quick vote we'll not wait long before our feature presentation begins - just to warn you it's like a very very loose remake of Hitchcock's Psyco with animals


Edit: I just read through the 11 drabbles submitted so far and I wonder, has someone dimmed the city lights? Everything so far has gone a bit dark, but I like it

Thanks very much -- I'm not one for messageboard introductions very often but I'll say hello to all the drabblers. There's some great writing here; a pleasure to read. Like many other Elite Dangerists, I'm trying to remember a bit of my childhood that I'd forgotten about, having reached the age of a Hitchhiker.

 

[paauggie]

Neon Tyrant

Orthios Bigboy Sr. pointed a quivering hand towards the sky,
-I’ve done it, I’ve finally done it!
-Done what?
-Those beautiful Federales have finally given me the power to transform that planet into my own creation. At last! I shall fill the heavens with commerce; light will pour forth from a million new cities, the surface will shake under the thunder of my enterprise...


-Ah! There you are Mr Orthios dear, I’ve been looking for you. Let’s wheel you back inside now shall we. Sorry if he’s been bothering you… Oh dear, it look’s like you’ve had another little accident...

 

[psykokow]

Welcome Pauuggie, great drabble to join us with... and this week is shaping up well again... 13 drabbles By the end of Monday!?!?!?

Weeks Theme
*City Lights*
Current Entries
*word count*
01 *100* - Goose4291 - Operation Sicarius : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1631626&viewfull=1#post1631626[/SIZE]
02 *100* - Frank - One Way Trip : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1631627&viewfull=1#post1631627[/SIZE]
03 *100* - Philip Coutts - The Hunter : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632025&viewfull=1#post1632025[/SIZE]
04 *100* - Darkoba - An Horrific Hobby : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632519&viewfull=1#post1632519[/SIZE]
05 *100* - Ian Phillips - Scared of The Not Dark : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1632612&viewfull=1#post1632612[/SIZE]
06 *100* - Azdour - Journeys End : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1634139&viewfull=1#post1634139[/SIZE]
07 *100* - @_JustinPinner - Real Hunters : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1634199&viewfull=1#post1634199[/SIZE]
08 *100* - Bleke - Drabble Noir : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1634982&viewfull=1#post1634982[/SIZE]
09 *100* - CdrTwisted - Witchspace City : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1635755&viewfull=1#post1635755[/SIZE]
10 *100* - KalRyper - Inheritance Tax : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1635514&viewfull=1#post1635514[/SIZE]
11 *100* - Galactic Midden - Road To Retribution : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1635666&viewfull=1#post1635666[/SIZE]
12 *100* - Winterwalker - A Proper Charlie : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1636061&viewfull=1#post1636061[/SIZE]
13 *100* - pauuggie - Neon Tyrant : https://forums.frontier.co.uk/showthread.php?t=5777&p=1636191&viewfull=1#post1636191[/SIZE]

 

[Frank]

That Lave radio shout out appears to have done wonders. Such a fantastic response to this week's challenge. And two great new Drabblers have joined the fold. CdrTwisted, you may have been done a favour. I think that second Drabble is much better than your first.