OneWord #17 - Hallowed

A hallowed house - unlike a haunted one - is actually a quite pleasant place to live. Angels pass by every now and then, and occasionally a saint will show up and make sure all the blessings are still in place. The only drawback is the blinding light covering everything. Sunglasses only do so much.

OneWord #16 - Alibi

'My alibi is bulletproof, alright? It's fucking solid. They won't know what the fuck to do when they try to pierce this fucking alibi. They'll pick it up and go "What the fuck is this alibi even made of? How can we handle this shit?"'

'You have no idea what an alibi is, do you?'

OneWord #15 - Sliver

A sliver of wood fell from his fingers as his knife scraped along the piece of wood he'd picked up back at base. Far-away gunfire came from due west, towards the enemy HQ. He put his helmet back on. Just in case.

OneWord #14 - Poster

The poster showed the profile of a man. His jaw was strong and set in grim determination, as he looked up at a looming cloud of daggers, iron cogs and fire. Above the picture, the poster read "STAND STRONG". Underneath, "AGAINST THE IRON ABOMINATION".

OneWord #13 - Chapped

His lips were chapped and his body empty of liquid. The sun had practically burnt him to a crisp, and there was very little he could do about it. He tried to threaten the sun - did it know who he was? - but it mostly ignored him.

OneWord #12 - Scorn

Her scorn was almost palpable. He got to his feet on shaky legs, scooping up his gun where he'd dropped it. The marine sergeant snorted in contempt as he once again brought it to bear.

OneWord #11 - Sound

The sound of bullets ricocheting around a metal container was deafening, painful and fairly surprising to Jimmy. He curled into a ball, covered his head with his arms, and prayed to various gods that he wouldn't catch a bullet to any of his favorite organs.

OneWord #10 - Swan

The swan sailed through the air far above, gliding in gentle circles before landing in the small, still pond. Ripples flowed through the water and broke silently on the smooth stones that formed the pond's edge.

OneWord #9 - Sunglasses

The president grabbed his sunglasses, flipped them open and put them on. 'Time to take back the true American freedom,' he said and jumped into his mech. 'I'm coming for you, Richard!'

OneWord #8 - Earring

'Those are nice,' she said, pointing at a pair of silver earrings with green stones dangling from them. Her father ruffled her hair and presented his credit card to the clerk. 'On the card, please.'

OneWord #7 - Desk

She hid under the desk. It was nice down there. The chatter and noise of her classmates were distant and muted, and she could read her book in peace. She smiled at the thought of hiding under her desk until school was out and everybody would start looking for her.

One Word, Ten Minutes #1 - Capture

Similar to OneWord, only ten times as long. Also Francis draws something for ten minutes.

    'Capturing a human,' Roche said in the lecturing and slightly demeaning tone his students had almost grown used to, 'Is no different from capturing a wild animal. Same three key moves.' He made a prompting gesture. 'Which are?'
    'Track. Subdue. Restrain.' His students recited in unison.
    'Correct. Tracking a human is easy. They're clumsy, crashing through the jungle like a panicky rhino and leaving a track even a hatchling could follow. Subduing them is even easier. Those of you who have seen a real human can attest that they're little more than weak, hairless apes. No exoskeleton,' Roche said, counting on his fingers as he spoke. 'No claws, no fangs, no poison, venom or toxin. They can run half as fast as us and can't climb for shit. But they're crafty fuckers. I've seen one take out three Hunters with nothing but ingenuity and sheer fucking luck. So when you've got one of them cornered, what do you do?'

OneWord #6 - Entice

She was certainly and enticing sight. With her long, flowing locks of red hair and hourglass figure, Tom was powerless to resist her feminine wiles. He handed her another handful of chocolate and she patted his head as one would a dog.

OneWord #5 - Nourish

The nourishing fruit tasted delicious. It was green, orange and yellow and tasted like a mix of apples, oranges and watermelons. It was the last thing Jack tasted before the bullet split his head like a coconut.

Jane 2

    'Betty parked out back?' Jane asked, and Tank rumbled in acknowledgement. 'Alright. Get her fueled up and ready to go. I'll join you in a sec.' She heard tank lumber through the empty bar and disappear through the back door. Jane rose on slightly wobbly legs and pushed a stray lock of her purple mohawk out of her eyes. She hated when deals went bad.
   

OneWord #4 - Bitten

She'd been bitten by the dog, and it was starting to really worry her. Her arm had gone numb a while ago, and her shoulder felt little better. What if she got rabies? She didn't want to turn into a werewolf!

OneWord #3 - Puddle

A puddle of blood seeped through his travel-worn boots and turned his white socks pink. He didn't care much at the moment, since the knife at his throat was more than a little distracting. He cleared his throat nervously.

OneWord #2 - Pins

Pins and needles ran in waves over his skin. The bullet wound in his right shoulder was the epicenter, and he thanked god for the painkillers that took away the worst pain.

Jane

    Jane downed a sixth shot of rotgut and slammed the glass down on the counter, grimacing at the sensation of drinking what was essentially jet fuel. More than once she'd used her own brew to power Betty when the gas had run out. It was cheaper than the real stuff and allowed her to coax more speed out of the old girl, but it chewed through the gas tanks like acid. Tasted like it, too. 

    Someone tapped her on her shoulder and Tank's deep bass sounded close behind her. 

    'Deal's done, boss,' he rumbled, sounding nothing so much as bear with gravel for lungs. 'But Taglioni's boys are waiting out front with automatics. '

    'Told ya,' she said with a slight slur in her voice. 'Fuckers are too greedy f'their own good.'

OneWord #1 - Heartache

Oneword.com is an amazing site. You get one word to write about, and 60 seconds to write. This is what I wrote for the word "Heartache."


His heart ached like an orange that had been squeezed too tightly. Spurts of citrusy juice sprang from the crannies and crevices of his heart, and it stung like a motherfucker.