Sunday Snippet Special: A Beautiful Nightmare

Image by PIRO4D from Pixabay

When Linus finally crept into the barracks, his whole body ached. It had been a tremendously long day. The lanky soldier overflowed the standard sized cots with his six-foot-five-inch tall body. He always had to draw his legs up towards his chest to fit into the uncomfortable bed.

Linus considered the possibility of taking his little tube of liniment to the privy and rubbing it onto his sore knees, but sleep overtook him before he had a chance to act on his thought. The darkness wrapped around him like a heavy blanket, and his spirit floated above his body.

Linus sat down on the edge of the bed. The interior of the barracks became a surreal film noir. The door opened and closed silently. A lithe figure moved slowly across the floor, his feet making whispered pats, his eyes glowing red like coals.

Linus withdrew towards his body, hoping to make himself wake up. He really didn’t need this fuckery. He hoped that he wouldn’t scream. His bunk buddies teased him mercilessly about his tendency to nightmares. He really didn’t want to add fuel to the fire, not tonight.

Soon, however, Linus found himself aroused rather than afraid. As the moon shone through the window, the spectral figure was revealed to be Ahmose, and although he was evidently something otherworldly, he was seeking a companion rather than a victim.

“Ahmose, you can’t be in here,” Linus warned.

“They can’t see us, we’re asleep,” Ahmose retorted as he straddled Linus’ lap.

Red tears ran down the beautiful little man’s face. Linus wiped them away. Ahmose opened his mouth slightly and Linus could see the tips of his fangs.

“You know you don’t need to hypnotize me,” Linus stated, running his fingers through Ahmose’s silky black hair.

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Prompts Used:

Notes:
This 296-word snippet is an excerpt from Naughty Netherworld Press' forthcoming release Caged Birds, due out on July 4, 2019, and available only from Kindle.
In this 13th installment of the Carnal Invasion series, 104-year-old Japanese-American vampire Ahmose Ike, his boyfriend Bernie Jaskolski (a 24-year-old vampire), second cousin Gregory Inoue (a 99-year-old vampire) and nemesis Mondo Katou (a 112-year-old vampire) have traveled through a wormhole taking them back to Manzanar, the internment camp where Ahmose, Gregory, and Katou were imprisoned during the early 1940s.
The group encounters Private Linus Honeycutt, who is the previous incarnation of Bernie Jaskolski. Ahmose and Linus fell in love during their time at Manzanar. The group arrives approximately a month prior to Ahmose and Linus' first meeting.
Ahmose explains as well as he can to Linus what is going on, then compels him to suppress the memory of their premature meeting. However, Linus' memories are triggered after he and Ahmose meet at the appropriate point on their timeline. At this point, Ahmose is not a vampire, but Linus dreams of him as such. The dreams magnify the regret that Ahmose felt at not being able to warn Linus when the attack that will end his life will occur.

Our most recent book:


Weekend Writing Warriors 30 June 2019 (LGBT, PA, RO, SF)


“You died too. You’re a revenant. How was your consciousness revived in this body?”

“A lucky stroke of lightning, my dear Count Katou,” Captain Botterill revealed, stroking a red nail over the vampire’s angular cheekbone. “Oh, very well, let’s pretend it’s Christmas. T’ is the season to be jolly. Let’s feed our darling little bloodsucking brood. But don’t be too lax with them! Remember, they need to learn to play nice before we allow them the run of the place.”

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Notes:
This snippet from our forthcoming tale, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds features a conversation between Captain Abigail Botterill, the debauched director of the Alien and Supernatural Search Squadron, and Mondo Katou, a 112-year-old vampire.
Caged Birds is due for release on July 4, 2019, only from Kindle.

Our Most Recent Book:

Weekend Writing Warriors 23 June 2019 (ER, LGBT, PA, SF)


“I can see where Agent Spitz might be related to you,” Katou remarked. “Is Agent Swallows as well?”

“Both were cloned from me. They used to adore me—to obey my every command. Then came the day that Projekt Untot had to be abandoned. Julie and Sarah were programmed to forget everything they learned here. My beloved mentor Dr. Ingrid Nagel and myself remained behind and fought. Sadly, she was killed, and her body too badly destroyed to be resurrected. I was…”

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Notes:
In this snippet from Naughty Netherworld Press' forthcoming release, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds, Mondo Katou continues his conversation with Captain Abigail Botterill, the corrupt director of the Alien and Supernatural Search Squadron after Captain Botterill makes a statement revealing a previously unrealized connection between herself, Agent Julie Spitz, and Agent Sarah Swallows.
Carnal Invasion XIII is due for release on July 4, 2019.

Our Most Recent Book:

Celebrate the First Anniversary of Carnal Invasion I with a FREE Copy



It's the one that started it all, and it's FREE from June 20, 2019 - June 24, 2019!
Don't miss out on your chance to enjoy this hot and hard-hitting slice of cheesy, sexy fun, only available from Naughty Netherworld Press on Kindle.

Weekend Writing Warriors 16 June 2019 (ER, LGBT, PA, RO)


“Captain Botterill, he’s becoming exsanguinated,” Mondo Katou protested. “We were supposed to make him submit to our will, not kill him.”

“I thought you said you wanted to make sure that Gregory would be all yours. Now you’re telling me you don’t want harm to come to your rival?”

“I want Gregory to love me. He isn’t going to love me if I allow harm to come to Ahmose.”

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Notes:
This is a snippet from our WIP, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds. The conversation is between Mondo Katou, a 100-year-old vampire, and Captain Abigail Botterill, the corrupt director of the Alien and Supernatural Search Squadron.

Our latest book:


On the Road to Manzanar

Image copyright the L.A. Times

Note: This is a chapter from Naughty Netherworld Press' WIP Novel, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds. 
Post contains crude language.

Ahmose, Gregory, Bernie, and Mondo Katou sat in a circle, holding hands. The image of a dirt road on an arid landscape appeared on one of the view screens. It grew more distinct until it appeared to lead right into the base.

“Come on,” Bernie ordered. “This is our chance.”

Ahmose broke his grip on Katou’s hand. The road became nebulous.

“Ahmose, you don’t have to trust me, but we do have to be of a mind when it comes to getting ourselves out of this quandary,” Katou pleaded. “I’m truly sorry for the terrible things that I did back at Manzanar. I understand why you find it difficult to put your faith in me. So, may I suggest that you don’t put your faith in me, but instead, we make a bargain to work as a team until we are reunited with your other companions. At that point, I will accept whatever you feel is a fitting punishment for the troubles I’ve caused in your life.”

“He’s telling the truth about wanting to help us, Ahmose,” Gregory interjected.

“Agreed,” Bernie said. “Repercussions for his past actions can wait till later. We need to be as one to keep this wormhole open so we can pass through.”

Ahmose reluctantly linked hands with Katou again.

“Very well,” he said. “For the purpose of this mission, I agree to work in tandem with you. I want to bring Theodoric back and to find our companions if possible. Our goals are in alignment. But you have much to answer for, Katou. You are responsible for a great deal of misery in all of our lives.”

“Agreed. I hope that during this mission I can show you that I am truly sorry for my past actions and that while you may never see me as a brother or a friend, you might at least come to see me as an ally. I swear to work in alignment with and protect each of you.”

The road again became cohesive. The quartet stepped onto it, and the control room disappeared.

“Well, here we are on the road to Hell,” Ahmose observed. “Do you think it’s wise for us to be out in the open like this? We’re three Japs walking along holding hands with a white guy between us in a very racist and homophobic era. You can well believe there was a buttload of buggery going on behind the scenes, but Gods forbid that any of the macho white saviors paying for a piece of Asian ass admit that he had the hots for Tom, Dick, and Harry rather than Thelma, Louise, and Mary. I think a good quarter of the camp guards preferred dick to pussy and at least another quarter of them was willing to fuck any hole regardless of who or what it was attached to.”

“I don’t care whether this is wise or not,” Bernie declared, wrapping his arms around Ahmose. “I love you so much and I know you’re hurting so bad right now. You never talk about Manzanar, and I’ve never pushed you to talk about it because I know it’s still an open wound 75 years later.”

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Prompts Used:



Our most recent book:

Troiku Challenge 2019: Day 7: Unlocked Fence


unlocked fence
walking towards the countryside
finally free

unlocked fence
will I find freedom outside
or more enslavement

walking towards the countryside
the world outside is alien
imprisoned so long

finally free
no more fences, no more guards
but such a high cost

~Chèvrefeuille & Cie~



Notes:
I could not help but think of the prison camps of World War II when I saw this image. We must never be allowed to sweep those horrors under the rug because they make us uncomfortable. 
I watched a program about the descendants of some of the leaders involved with the Holocaust. These are good people who want to prevent such a thing from ever happening again. They are not proud of being related to such terrible individuals as their ancestors. 
Rudolf Hess' grandson Rainer said, "if my grandfather were alive, I would kill him myself." 
Hermann Goring's grandniece Bettina and her brother both had themselves voluntarily sterilized.
Amon Goeth's daughter wasn't aware of her father's exact role in the Holocaust until she saw Schindler's List. The realization was so upsetting to her that it caused her to go into shock.
We must remember the Holocaust, and we must not allow other atrocities and mistreatments of our fellow humans to be swept under the rug.
Many people are not aware of the Armenian genocide.
The United States isn't too keen for people to remember that during World War II, people of Japanese ancestry, including those born in the United States, were locked in internment camps.
Think what is happening right now in the United States with migrant children being taken from their parents and locked in detention centers or placed with foster families, some of whom are abusive. Cheeto Hitler denies that any of the blame rests with him when it sits squarely on his lap. And no, I will not apologize for referring to him as Cheeto Hitler.



Working With the Enemy



Hey Kids!
Here's a happenin' 500-word selection from our WIP, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds. Hope you enjoy it!

“Ahmose, please, just trust me,” Mondo Katou begged, gripping Ahmose’s hands between his own.

Ahmose snarled, baring his fangs, and pulled his hands away.

“I would rather eat my own hand than work alongside someone like you!” he spat.

“Ahmose, please,” Bernie soothed, wrapping his arms around Ahmose. “I can’t say I trust or like him either, but something isn’t right. Not only do things just feel wrong, but I’ve been looking through these security screens.”

“My beautiful nerd boy,” Ahmose declared, giving an uncharacteristically nervous chuckle. “He can’t resist touching the tech. So, what have you discovered, my love?”

“Fucking hot in here,” Gregory complained, fanning himself with an empty cookie bag. “Is there a fan that you can turn on by chance?”

“I think it’s this one,” Mondo Katou mused for a moment before flipping a switch.

“Well, lucky you didn’t leave us all in the dark, I suppose,” Ahmose quipped. “Not that I’m sure it does us any good. You’re sure this is the monitor for the outside of the base, Bernie?”

“Positive. Those things that look like jewel shards floating in space are what appear to be outside. I heard rumbling a few minutes ago and was expecting to see rain, but…”

“Maybe it’s a screen saver,” Gregory suggested. He was clearly beginning to panic as he toggled the monitors.

“Hey, Gregory, it’s all right,” Ahmose said, gently but firmly gripping Gregory’s hands. “Come on, let’s focus on something else for a minute. What was the last song you remember hearing?”

“It was Amy Winehouse,” Gregory replied, sniffling as bloody tears began to run down his cheeks. “My girl Amy. Theo and I had taken his latest project out for a spin, and I plugged in my new MP3 player. Amy was singing “I’m No Good,” and we were riding along in Theo’s tricked-out 1910 Whiting Runabout. He did such a good job on it. You’d love it, Ahmose! But then this storm came up, and I guess we must have had an accident. I remember that everything went dark, and I was rolling and tumbling through storm clouds. There was such a strong smell of roses…oh, God, Theo gave me roses the first time we…oh, hell, I don’t even know what’s real and what’s a dream! Is my soul in hell because of my sins?”

“Gregory, we must have courage,” Ahmose insisted. “Things are messy at the moment, and whether it is magic or technology which has us in this predicament, I don’t know, but I am certain of one thing. We exist, in the flesh. We need to see if we can make our way around the base and hopefully find some of our companions. I know you feel vulnerable. Hell, I’m scared out of my mind. But you can lean on me and Bernie if you start to struggle. We’ll talk, we’ll say a mantra, we’ll tell stories, we’ll sing songs. Whatever you need to do to get through, that’s what we’ll do.”

~Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press~

Prompts Used:

Word Salad:
courage
exist
lean
magic
mantra
messy
soul
stories
struggle
talk
vulnerable
way


Our most recent book:

Weekend Writing Warriors 9 June 2019 (ER, LGBT, PA, RO)


This snippet is from Naughty Netherworld Press' WIP, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds. The speaker is Gregory Inoue, a 99-year-old vampire who is the former lover of Ahmose Ike.

“Hey! Let me out of here!” the panicked vampire demanded. “I’m fucking starving! I need to eat! Please, I won’t hurt anyone. I just need a little something. You can bring me a blood bag. This is some kind of medical place, right? Just a little blood, that’s all I need!”
“You do have a type, don’t you, Ahmose?” Captain Botterill jeered, pulling Ahmose’s head up from his chest by the hair.

Cie for Naughty Netherworld Press


Our most recent book

WEP Challenge June 2019: Caged Bird

Image by Mary Gorobchenko from Pixabay

When Bernie came to, he found himself in a five-foot by five-foot windowless metal cell. He tried to stop his claustrophobia from kicking in and throwing him into a panic, but the fear of being trapped in a confined space quickly overtook him. The young vampire screamed in terror and threw himself against the door of the cell until he was completely exhausted. He crawled into a corner of the box, weeping brokenly.
“Please, please, you can’t do this!” Bernie begged. “I’ll need to feed. I don’t need a person, I don’t want an animal, I’m pretty much a vegetarian. You can get me a blood bag, a nice sterile blood bag, like from a blood bank or something. Whatever you need, just let me out of here and I’ll cooperate with you. Let Ahmose go. He shouldn’t have to go through this. He was already a prisoner once. Please…OH GOD, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH AHMOSE???”
Bernie collapsed to the floor, sobbing brokenly. He thought of what Ahmose had said before their captors had separated them. Bernie watched, astounded, as the treacherous vampire sorceress Paraji prostrated herself before cold-hearted Captain Abigail Botterill, the head of the Alien and Supernatural Search Squadron and kissed Captain Botterill’s red-painted toes in deference.
“Never got the foot thing, myself,” Ahmose had imparted telepathically to Bernie. “Feet aren’t pretty, and mine, at any rate, are ticklish. I do appreciate a good foot massage, however.”
“I’ll give you a good all-over massage when we’ve been sprung from this trap,” Bernie thought, giving Ahmose a swift smile and a quick wink.
Moments later, Paraji’s Djinn guards had separated the captives, dragging them each into examination rooms. Bernie remembered fighting as technicians wearing protective suits attempted to strap him to a gurney, and then everything went black.
“Not quite so sure of ourselves now, are we, Bernard?”
Captain Botterill’s mocking voice piped through a speaker in a corner of the cell’s ceiling. Bernie looked up to see a camera beside the speaker, which didn’t surprise him.
“Captain Botterill, please, I’ll cooperate with your tests,” Bernie begged. “Just please, let me out of here, and let the others go. You can do anything you want with me. I promise I won’t try to escape again. It’s just that I don’t like being immobilized. It freaks me out. If you let me out, I’ll be good and quiet, docile like a lamb. You won’t hear a peep out of me.”
“I’m glad to see that you’ve learned a lesson, Bernie, but I’m still not sure I can trust you and your terrible sharp teethies near my luscious, swan-like neck,” Captain Botterill chuckled. Bernie could hear mocking laughter in the background, and his temper flared.
“Katou, you goddamn traitor!” Bernie snarled. “If I ever get out of here, the first thing I’m going to do is wring your cold, Undead neck! You’re no better than the goddamn hen who sells her sisters to the fucking fox!”
“Oh, Bernie, I’m awfully frightened,” the treacherous vampire Mondo Katou jeered. “But in case you don’t recall, it was me who came close to wringing your cold, Undead neck. You may be able to convince some easy marks that you’re a big, bad vampire now because you can bench-press your own weight of—oh, what would you say, Captain, 120 pounds?”
“Yes, Katou, I imagine you’re about on the mark,” Captain Botterill snickered.
“But in case you forget, Vamp Ingenue, you have been a vampire for a little over six months. I was turned seventy-five years ago. I could tear your heart from your chest, rip your head from your neck, burn you to ashes, and scatter you to the four winds. Do not test me.”
“Ahmose is gone in any case, Bernie,” Captain Botterill continued. “We made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. He very quickly forgot your wretched existence when we returned his beloved Gregory to him hale and hardy. The two of them are probably off in a luxurious motel somewhere having a passionate roll between satin sheets, sharing blood like wine, catching up on old times. He was tremendously swift to forget about you, I daresay. Why even I considered the cold-hearted way he tossed you aside without a second thought utterly brutal.”
“It isn’t true!” Bernie cried. “Gregory fell in love with Theodoric Elms back in Manzanar. Even if Ahmose wanted to get back together with Gregory, he wouldn’t abandon me. He’s coming back for me! He’s fucking coming back for me, you liars, you goddamn rotten liars!”
Bernie curled into a fetal position. Bloody tears soaked through the fabric of his hospital gown and ran down his legs. He wept until he could weep no more, and then he fell asleep and dreamed of the Halloween party where he had met Ahmose.
Bernie couldn’t believe that the gorgeous slim but muscular Asian goth guy in the tight leather pants and vest was checking his geeky ginger self out with obvious admiration. Bernie would never have had the guts to talk to a guy like that, but Ahmose was, fortunately, more self-assured. As the night went on, Bernie learned more about his sexy and mysterious admirer, including the fact that Ahmose was a vampire.
Being the lover of a brilliant, sweet, and smoking hot creature of the night was the sort of thing that Bernie assumed would only happen in the erotic fantasies he wrote on late nights spent in his own company, but come the morning, Bernie had been turned, and his heart belonged to his maker.
“Ahmose, you couldn’t,” Bernie sobbed as he woke, remembering Captain Botterill’s revelation which pierced his heart like ice. “After all we’ve been to each other, how could you?”
“Bernie!” Ahmose wailed, struggling to no avail as the silver shackles seared his flesh and the laughter of Captain Abigail Botterill and his old enemy, Mondo Katou, echoed in his ears. “Please don’t listen to them! It’s you for me, now and forever.”

~Cie & Lil~


Note:
This is the first chapter in Team Netherworld's WIP, Carnal Invasion XIII: Caged Birds. You lucky ducks (and whatever other waterfowl may be reading this post) may be used to our Weekend Writing Warriors snippets. Well, this time you've got an entire chapter to feast on!

True Colors Hidden, Beauty Forgotten


How can you say that you will show
Your inner truth like blood on snow
When you keep truth hidden inside
Rather than risk hurting your pride
How deep within does your pain go?

What you hide within cannot grow
The light in your soul will not show
Do you know what resides inside
How can you say

Do you think that your love can grow
Not letting your true colors show
Who you are is always denied
What you wish is hidden inside
Is a lie worth getting to know
How can you say

~Cie~

Prompts Used:


Click the banners to find out more about the prompts.

Note:
For tonight's exercise in self-abuse, I have chosen the Rondeau. I don't know about you, but I find this to be a challenging form.
Here is how you form a Rondeau.
(1) A A B B A (2) A A B with refrain: C (3) A A B B A with concluding refrain C. The refrain must be identical with the beginning of the first line.
Christine says that while she encourages pieces that touch on the lived experiences of those who identify as LGBTQ for the Pride Anthem challenge, it isn't a requirement. 
While I for one give not one single rip about anyone's sexual orientation and would ask that others return me the same courtesy, I will disclose that my poem was written from the POV of someone who hid their mental health issues for many years as opposed to someone who felt forced into the closet regarding their sexuality. However, the poem is for anyone who feels as if they have had to hide a key part of themselves in the often closed-minded world in which we live.

An Olive-Green Gown and Malachite Shoes #8Sunday #RainbowSnippets #SnipSun

    Genre: Poetry plus a supernatural coming-of-age story (vampires).  Buy Link: https://amzn.to/3vz8uXw   Publication Date: February 15, 20...