Non-Drabble: Taking Time Off

 Hey, so I'm going to be taken a couple weeks off, real life stuff and then prepping for an RPG con, so my mind is elsewhere. I'm aiming for an Oct 8th return, but there's always a chance I'll come up with an idea and just have to post. But hey, there's thousands of Drabbles here, have fun, and I'll see you soon!

Drone On

The war was fought for 100 years, and also over 25 minutes.

The declaration was done over the inter-system communication array, a religious dogma on one end, a very long term expansion plan on the other.

Both systems then set in motion the plans, both of them launching drone strikes that set off on their journeys across empty space, towards the targets.

For decades, the massive payloads travelled, silently, until they finally arrived and connected in a complicated 25 minutes.

Unfortunately, by then, both sides had completely forgotten about the initial war, and it started all over again soon after.

That's Our Time

It was in the third session that my therapist had a rather subtle crash-out.

"Why are you here?"

I quickly worked through what I thought they could mean before I gave up.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, you clearly aren't looking to improve, so why are you wasting both of our times?"

"I'm open to improving!"

"So you'll consider meditation?"

"That crap doesn't work, I told you."

"Journalling?"

"That's just busy work."

"And gratitude practice?"

"What in my life do I have to be grateful for?"

"I repeat, why are you here?"

"Drugs."

"I knew it!"

"My mother's."

"... What?" 

Chased

I had chased the light in the sky to where it crashed a mile or so into the forest.

I had expected to find a crashed aircraft, and while I had, I had unconsciously included 'human' in my expectation and that had proven false.

I wasn't sure how to approach it, but then a panel opened up, and I was doubly confused when a regular looking guy in a nice dress shirt and slacks stepped out.

I went to say something and then --- I took over the new body and headed to their vehicle and escape before I was discovered.

Good Knight, Sweet Prince

Once upon a time, there was a prince.

This was a problem.

The King had been... 'resting' for several years, and the Prince had been content, at first, to focus on training with the knights during the day and at night running...

In any case, the Royal Advisers had been running everything quite well in their estimation, but the Prince was beginning to not only want to start running things, but even have his own ideas.

Attempts were made to deal with him, but he remained annoying and repeatedly awake.

And then the King woke up, causing even more problems.

As Far As

As far as ways to be woken up, a punch to the stomach is low down the list, but not at the bottom.

As far as people holding you hostage, masked thugs is actually pretty good, means they're scared you'll identify them later.

As far as demands from kidnappers go, codes to a bank intranet is pretty bad, on the assumption that you don't know them.

As far as cases of mistaken identity go, getting kidnapped is pretty low on the desired outcomes list.

And as far as rescues go, really, any you survive are a passing grade, I say.

21 Underground

I finished paying him out, and watched him leave. Once he was just out of earshot, the new heavy cracked his knuckles next to me.

"So you want me to go get our money back?"

I looked at him, quelling my first instinct to express amazement he could speak.

"No, we don't do that if a newbie gets lucky their first night, assuming they aren't cheating. It gets out we beat up successful gamblers, we get no new customers."

"Oh.

So what if he's lucky next time?"

"Then his luck will run out."

He stared at me until I explained.