"The Last Ride of the Wowboys"

This is a little something I scratched out between calls at work, titled "The Last Ride of the Wowboys."

A little background...

Ever hear a song titled "Mama Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to be Cowboys" by Waylon Jennings (I think). It's been used recently in a car commercial (don't ask what make and model). One night, while working at my desk at home, the commercial came on the television. Instead of hearing "cowboys," I misheard it as "wowboys." My mind twisted it around until I came up with the title, "The Last Ride of the Wowboys."

Don't ask me what a Wowboy is 'cause I don't know...yet.

Anyway, after a few days of bouncing around in my mind, this came out. So, to quote Joel Robinson...wha'dya think, sirs?

******

“The Last Ride of the Wowboys”

            There are those who would call me a traitor, if they knew.

            In retrospect, I suppose that would be true.  My actions, as well as those of my fallen comrades, could easily be called into question.  To say we skirted propriety and engaged in activities that could only charitably be called legal would be an understatement.  We did what we believed to be in the best interest not of ourselves but of the world at large, the billions of souls we shared this world with.

            I only know that we did what we thought was right, and I alone remain to pay the price for it.

            Except that’s not quite true.  I’m not completely alone.

            Now I sit alone in the ceph-pod, adrift like a bubble in the aether between universes.  It’s rather comfortable for a prison cell.  One spacious room that serves as bedroom, living room, kitchen and study, filled with comfortable furniture.  The muted colors of the walls brought a sense of calm, easing the dread that sometimes comes.  The walls could be rendered transparent, should I ever wish to view the expanse beyond the pod.  In the center of the room was a central pillar, rising from floor to ceiling.  One side was a standard VR immersion rig.  The other…

            The other was the reason I say I’m not completely alone.

            While it did serve as a second VR rig, it was also a life support tube.  Within it floated the twisted remains of a single human body, the only person I ever truly loved.

            Harley, my dear Harley.  It should’ve been me in that tube.

Campfire Stories

Campfire Stories is a collection of eight stories, ranging from the far distant past to the not-too-distant future. These are stories of self-discovery, exploration and duty, and the consequences of each. From a research project gone terribly wrong, to a an author finding out there's more to his childhood friend than he thought, to an investigator searching for someone who can hide in plain site...these stories show people striving for more and the consequences that brings.

The eight stories in Campfire Stories are:

“The End of Seconds" – A research project to answer an age-old question goes terribly wrong, with consequences that reach across time;

"Games of Life and Cold" – While exploring an uncharted planet, a group of genetically engineered beings finds themselves in a life or death struggle with a race that considers them little more than animals;

"If You Listen Softly" – What if the world around you changed and you were the only one who noticed it;

"All My Yesterdays, Remembered" – An author finds there’s more to his childhood friend than he ever thought;

"Symmetry" – Rosalind had no idea how she came to be on the subway, with the conductor the only other rider, and she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer;

"Signpost" – A planetary survey sends Tamara on a journey of discovery and wonder;

"Last Light" – Carly and Alexa were on their way to lunch…then they walked into a hostage crisis…then it fell to Carly to end it;

"The Shape of the Truth" – As an investigator, Dari had to find a suspect who was able to hide in plain sight and also prove his innocence.

Campfire Stories is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes, NOOK & Lulu. Also available as Print On Demand from CreateSpace.

Find the links here:

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

 

With Eyes Open...

There are more things in Heaven and Earth

Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy.

Hamlet, Prince of Denmark

Mira Frayne thought she was going to make a change in her life. Despite a career spent helping people take control of their lives, she found she had been used and lied to, that she had been drawn into someone else’s deceit. Breaking free would lead her to changes she never anticipated or wanted. She would learn there is more to the world than she ever imagined. The Adityas would not be denied. They would have what they wanted no matter the cost to Mira. In the not too distant future, the consequences of those changes would still be felt.

In the late twenty-second century, former government researcher Mandalay Jones had been looking forward to a change in career but finds herself dragged back into the fold to resolve a critical situation. Her ex-husband’s research had gotten out of control and it falls to Mandalay to recover the research, and save her ex-husband and his staff. Along the way, she finds her efforts aided and abetted by a mysterious woman named Mira.

With Eyes Open… is available from Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes, NOOK & Lulu. Also available as Print On Demand from CreateSpace.

Find the links here –

http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

Looking for something good to read? Want to escape from the real world and enter worlds where most anything is possible?

Now you can!

All six of my books are available through Smashwords, Kindle, iTunes, NOOK, Lulu, Sony, Kobo, Diesel, Page Foundry, Baker & Tyler Blio, txtr, Library Direct, Baker-Tyler Axis360, OverDrive, Flipkart, Oyster & Scribd. Print editions can be found on CreateSpace and Amazon.

The books range across the history of the universe, from the distant past, into the far distant future…

With Eyes Open… ($2.99/$5.38) - Mira Frayne thought she was going to make a change in her life, to try and make a better life for herself. Her life did change...but not in any way that she expected.

Campfire Stories ($5.99/$7.99) - Campfire Stories is a collection of eight stories, ranging from the far distant past to the not-too-distant future. These are stories of self-discovery, exploration and duty, and the consequences of each.

A Bright Symmetry ($4.99/$6.99) - An archaeological expedition leads immortal Scott Madigan to reassess and change his life...though nothing compares to the changes undergone by his lover, Zoe Baird.

The Fault Lies Not… ($3.99/$5.99) - In the late twenty-sixth century, a serial killer roams the city of Naufolk.It's up to EarthGov Security Special Agent Lin Sillo and her partner, Special Agent Vincent DeBurg, to stop him

Rae ($2.99/$5.99) - EarthGov Security Special Agent Kevin Martin and his partner, Probationary Agent Rachael (Rae) Mercer, thought they had been assigned an open-and-shut case. Things begin to spin out of control when Rae is severely beaten and Kevin is accused of the attack. Who is trying to stop the murder investigation? What is connection between the suspect and the victim? How does the secret Rae is keeping tie into it?

On A Cold Wind ($4.99/$6.99) - Special Agent Caralynn (Carly) Adrasteia and her partner, Special Agent Murphy Greenfield, she is assigned to track down two escaped criminals who threaten a newly established colony. There is a link between Carly and one of the criminals, one that only Carly's division director knows.

Find links for the books on my website, Wordboy’s Words… - http://wordboy1.wix.com/wordboyswords#!books/cnec

I had to finally admit that I'm a bit stuck right now. When I turn to any of the projects I'd been focusing on, I just stared at the pages. So I'm going to change gears a bit and focus on a project I've let languish for a while.

Broken Memories is the story of Special Agent Alexandra Sinclair, a courier with Division Five of EarthGov Security. It-s comprised of two stories, "Wanderer" (which is complete) and "The Endless Road" (which is mostly missing...but it has to be almost completely rewritten). It's half rewriting/half first drafting.

I'm hoping that working on this will help get the other stories back on track.