Vengeance Drabbles
What is a drabble? It's just a little snippet of a story of approximately 100 words. The drabbles collected here are the result of the weekly challenge started by Lady A in April of 2003. The responses appear on several lists, by a variety of authors. Each week a new challenge is tossed out and responders have a week to answer. Most of the authors write responses in a variety of AU's. The drabbles posted here are those that were focused in the Vengeance AU. A link to each author's e-mail has been provided by clicking on the author's name with each snippet. To see the other challenges or the author's other responses to the various challenges please check out the archive at Lady A's Library: http://lalibrary.net/m7/index.html
The individual authors retain the rights to their stories. Standard disclaimers apply. None of the characters are used with malicious intent and no profit is being made by those having fun here.
Note: If you have a drabble in this AU that might have been missed and would like to have it highlighted here, please let me know. cinbg@yahoo.com.
Challenge No. 2 issued June 16, 2003 : (this is offered by LA) Start a drabble with these SEVEN words (and they do not count as part of the hundred) 'It was a dark and stormy night...'
It was a dark and stormy night.
Larabee squinted through the blowing rain across the storm tossed deck of Vengeance. For about the hundredth time in the last four hours, he once again wished they could have reached safe harbor before the storm caught up with them. Now, just like his crew, he prayed they would survive the gale with minimal damage.
The brilliant flash of fire across the sky highlighted the figure standing at the wheel. Stunned, Larabee could only stare at the ship's Master. Vin's hair, loose from it's cord, whipped around his face. His billowing shirt was torn open down the chest, flapping in the relentless wind. Yet as the stinging spray of rain and sea beat upon the venerable body, the man was smiling.
It was nature's child wrestling for supremacy and enjoying the game.
Challenge issued June 23, 2003 : Send one or more of the guys hunting. For... whatever.
Nathan stopped and stretched his back as the reason for his current herb-hunting expedition replayed in his mind.
The Vengeance had been doing well, at least until they ran across a ship where the crew had been sick with an illness Nathan didn't know. It had hit the men on the Vengeance hard. The major symptoms were chills, fever and an inability to keep anything down. Several of the men had had trouble breathing and Nathan had nearly exhausted his stores of herbs.
Determining he wouldn't be caught unprepared should such a thing happen again, he continued his hunt.
Challenge issued September 7, 2003 : Write a drabble about something they use—animate or inanimate—that breaks down. Example: gun won't fire, they have a flat, their horse runs off, computer won't work. Have them dealing with working without it, or getting it fixed, whatever.
Note:
In my job, a
workaround is doing making do, working without it,
getting it fixed, etc., at least five to ten times
a day.
Characters: Chris, Vin
Chris Mounted his horse.
"Yer a stupid fool."
"Wasn't my idea to race the steeplechase."
Vin snorted. "Fifth turn's slick."
"Aye."
"I mean it, Larabee. Don't hurt m'horse."
"Thanks, friend." Chris rode away grinning.
From the start, man and horse merged and took the lead.
On the fifth turn, the pair tumbled. The horse recovered first, and Chris swung himself back aboard. Both ignored the clinging, oozing mud to win the race.
"Ya ever want ta roll in the mud again, Larabee, I'll toss ya in the pig pen myself." Vin smirked, ducking the sludge tossed his way.
Chris laughed.
Challenge issued September 14, 2003 : Pick one of the following quotes and write a 100 word drabble, or do both if you like. This week..."My, my, my. So many guns around town and so few brains." From 'The Big Sleep' OR "Choose your next words carefully...they could be your last." From 'Goldfinger'
Character: Buck
He had two huge weaknesses – women and children. His friends and crewmates knew this. Usually they managed to keep him in check, but today, they just stood back and watched as Buck dangled the man over the shark-infested waters. “One more time. She says you have her child hidden away here. Where is he?” he shouted, shaking the man. He saw the vile creature open his mouth. Drawing the man closer, Buck stared into the man’s eyes, his own promising death. He felt the man shudder and read the fear in the pirate’s eyes as he hissed, “Choose your next words carefully… they could be your last.”
Challenge issued September 28, 2003 : Have the guys digging a hole. Dig something up, bury something or dig to some place.
The full moon
shone on the white beach. Scattered boulders
making dark shadows to hide in. The ocean coming
in high tide washed everything new and clean.
Vin stood sweat glistening of arms and bare chest
relishing the salt filled air and leaning tiredly
on the shovel.
“Tanner, what the hell did you do?” Came an angry
voice.
“Just what you tol’ me to Captain. I buried the
treasure so the red coats couldn’t find it.”
“Yea, but can we?”
Vin grinned, “Aye I can.”
Challenge issued October 6, 2003 : The boys are having fun with water/liquid – think wet!
The night wind whipped around the Captain. They
had been out for two days with no sight of the
pirate ship that plagued the area. The sky hinted
of coming storms and Vengeance was heading home.
Until then, Captain Larabee was enjoying the feel
of the spray and wind around him.
He felt the ship shudder slightly and turned the
wheel enough to compensate. The regular sailors
were below decks, land was not yet in sight, so he
pulled the black mask from his face and drew a
deep breath. It was times like this when he felt
most alive.
Challenge issued October 13, 2003 : The boys go home.
Vin sat in the crow's nest. His sharp eyes scanning the horizon. They'd been out to sea much longer than planned. Caught in a hurricane, swept off course. They were out of food, out of water and almost out of hope.
Buck and Josiah lay below deck caught in wound fever while Nathan hobbled between them. The healer swearing that the ankle was just bruised not broken. The others stumbled about their duties hoping for land soon.
Vin blinked, his eyes were so tired. He blinked again. Shading his eyes and he stared very hard. His heart skipped a beat. Was it? Could it be? Vin waited, then he was sure.
"Land ho! Chris, Captain, We're home."
Challenge issued November 17, 2003 : Use
the words:
"Hey, get your hands off of______."
Captain Larabee sank to his knees in the damp beach sand preparing to open the large chest he’d found. He was unprepared for the voice screaming. “Hey, get your hands off of my treasure.”
Jerking upright he felt the sword blade slide along his neck. “Easy sailor, I wasn’t trying to take your treasure.”
“I know you, your…” the pirate was cut off by a blow to his head.
“Need help captain?” Vin asked with a cocky grin.
“Chris rubbed his throat, “Shut up Tanner..”
Challenge issued February 23, 2004 : Clothing
Character: JD
JD looked at the trunk and sighed. They had taken much bounty from the pirate ship and most of it had been returned to its proper owners. There was just this one trunk left.
Replacing the item he had removed earlier, he wondered if he should ask the Captain taking it. He knew all the remaining cargo, at least that which was not used to restock the ship, would be sold and the proceeds split among the crew. Still...
"Penny for your thoughts," Josiah said quietly.
"Just thinking how nice that dress would look on Casey," JD sighed in response.
Challenge issued March 7, 2004 : Include the words, "What are you laughing at?"
Ezra stood gasping for air, his arms all but falling off and the muscles in his legs jumping from exhaustion. Looking up at the sound he gasped out, “You Sir. What are you laughing at?”
His fencing partner drew his blade up in a salute and wiping it clean put it away. “You Ezra. I tol’ y’, ya were out of shape.”
“You took advantage Sir, of my sleepless state.”
Nathan laughed again. “Sure I did.”
Challenge issued April 13, 2005 : One of the seven hits one of the other seven.
"You knocked the Captain unconscious Buck," Nathan growled.
"It wasn't my fault, I didn't see him there."
"How can you not see him?"
"Well, it's dark out, he is wearing all black, with a black mask, standing in the shadows. You tell me."
Nathan just shook his head. "He's going to be mad when he wakes up."
"Not my fault, he should wear something brighter."
Nathan rolled his eyes. "You just better hope, he doesn't remember who knocked him out."
"It was an accident."
Just then Chris started to groan. Buck looked down, and started to walk away. "Just tell him he ran into a wall Nate."