Captain Yakov Hightower - Space Pirate - Chapter 3

I apologize for leaving you all hanging the past two Saturdays. I am afraid life got a bit in the way of writing. My 92 year old dad, who lives with me, was in the ER last Saturday. I am happy to report he is home and doing well, though wearing a heart monitor. I accused him of horning in on my AI story. He looks as though he is wired for the part.

So, let us continue with Yakov's adventure. I look forward to giving you another episode next week to reveal is mission for the Valarians. 

~*~

I must admit I was excited as the shuttle approached my ship at the docks on Refitting Station Dynasty. The Zephyr looked brilliant in her newly fitted solar sails. She also had a shiny new paint job, black as the vast universe with a sprinkling of stars across her bow and down her sides.

My crew was waiting when I boarded.

Od, my first mate, stood upright and saluted with a new appendage of his own. Where once there were mechanical hands with three fingers, there were now five fingers on the two sets of his top arms. “It is good to have you home, Captain.”

“Good to be back, Od. I like the new digits.” I wiggled my own at him.

“Handsome,” he complimented.

Captain Yakov Hightower - Space Pirate - Chapter 2

“Okay, Captain, show me what you’ve got,” my rehab tech challenged me.

I was on my last day of physical therapy with my new arm and hand made of programmable matter. I flexed the very realistic looking appendage via the implanted nano-bots in my bloodstream. In all appearances it looked and operated exactly like my real arm and hand, with one huge exception, with concentration I could change the shape. After all, programmable matter was very malleable. The Valarians were masterful in their tech, way beyond the rest of the verse, and they had invented it.

“What are you waiting for, Yakov?” Mialki asked.

When Worlds Collide - The Book of Remy - Stalled

Dear Readers,

I am going to do something I have never done on this blog in the past twenty-plus years, I am going to stop a story before it is finished. Remy has found this recounting of his past very painful and is currently refusing to enumerate any further his earlier misdeeds.

His pact with Morrigan in order to be with Nithbeth, in his estimation, was the worst choice he ever made. It led to a series of events which bought vampires into existence and into our folklore. Even I do not know the details.

So, until our taciturn Willow Gate Keeper deems to talk to me, I am without recourse in the matter of listing his past achievements, good or bad.

I hope you will forgive Remy and me.

Until then, I give you a short story previously published in 2015, which some of you might have missed. And next week we will go off on another adventure with Yakov Hightower. The captain is always willing to chat with me about his exploits. Much like a dragon, he has a bit of an ego.

So on to, “Yakov Hightower and the Glitter of a Pirates Booty”.

Yakov Hightower and the Glitter of a Pirate's Booty

My friend, Cheri Matthynessen, an author in her own right, has a wonderful little contest running on her blog Challenge the Writer. Readers are challenged to give Cheri a (1) Character Type (2) Specific Place (3) Situation and (4) A Random Item.

I love this kind of thing to get the old creative juices moving. I immediately challenged her with:
(1) A hunchback prince with a gift for gab
(2) The imaginary land of Sand & Stone
(3) A torturous climb
(4) A sentient mute snake

I think she felt the pressure so she turned right around and shot one of her own personal challenges to me: