Maralin is relieved to be away from the blood and the mud but he knows his respite will only be short-lived. The Captain seems willing to listen to his ideas and Maralin is sent out on a scouting expedition. Then, everything changes again...

(I'm no good at Gimp or Photoshop, you'll just have to imagine that Iris has thistle-colored eyes. Though I do now have an anime-ish avatar depicting Iris.)

This is a totally non-canon thought exercise, describing the first-time "transformation" of Peter and Luke to Ruth and Lucy, in my story "A Bikini Beach Summer." It was suggested by a Multiverse interpretation of Bikini-Beach reality shifts.

What happens to someone when they become the thing they most fear and loathe? Armsman of Joth by Penny Lane 2: Insanity

Maralin tries to make sense of the bizarre situation he finds himself in: a new body, one he would rather not have, and a new world where everything is strange and different.

Morgan, having been let out of the golden handcuffs by Erika, is offered a magic-enhanced massage by her older sister, Viola. Slowly but surely, reality kicks in. This isn't the body Morgan is looking for.

(This narration relies heavily on information penury, as well as continuous improvisation on my part. Because information penury doesn't work well when spoiled, minimum tagging is enforced (if the main character isn't aware of something in a given story part, then the corresponding tag won't be included until they become aware of it in a latter part).)

Part 4! Writing erotic scenes is something new for me (and probably not my forte), but hey -- I tried! Also, backstory for Viola and Erika.

UF-2 Book 2 Chapter 5
By Barbie Lee
Edited by Catherine Linda MIchel

Our heroes continue to try to enlist allies in case of a war with the Earth Alliance. They run into slavers, pirates and worse, oh my! A return to UF-2 leads to clues to an old acquaintance and a new ally. Family joins the resistance, against family wishes, but welcome. More action in this chapter than you can shake a stick at.

FROM LAST CHAPTER: "In my heart I knew that millions of lives were going to be lost. Humans had a very nasty record of making and breaking treaties as it suited them. There had to be a way out of this mess. The Earth Alliance had to understand that they could not ignore this treaty."

And NOW...

At the ending of the year there are two important occasions Garia must attend. First comes the last ever gathering of the Guilds of Palarand before they merge to form a new combined engineering institute. Then, as the old year ends, there is the festival of Midwinter's Night, where each family gathers together to remember the past and prepare for the new year to come.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

112 - Midwinter's Night

UF-2 BOOK 2 CHAPTER 3
BY BARBIE LEE
EDITED BY CATHERINE LINDA MICHEL

FROM BEFORE: Vin had been watching, along with everyone else in the bar. “Those girls are deadly. They handle those swords as good or better than any bounty hunters I’ve seen.” She looked over at Toni. “The chair by the Blonde disappeared when her sword touched it. It’s been a long time since I heard stories about the Sword of the Queen. I’m guessing I just saw the sword in action?”

A hint of a smile crossed Toni’s face. “It’s possible.”

Loads of action in chapter three. Brandy, Sherry, Tony and Meliss try to gather forces to help if war becomes inevitable, while fighting off slavers, pirates, and general scum. Strap in and settle back. UF-2 continues now!

UF2 Book 2 Chapter 2
By Barbie Lee
Edited by Catherine Linda Michel.

War is on the horizon and it's up to Brandy, Sherry, Toni, Meliss, the rest of the Pash, their allies and anyone else they can find to help prevent war, or win if all else fails. Can they do it? Can they convince enough races that war will be devastating to everyone? Only time, the author and I know for sure. you all will have to read to find out.

This chapter does contain some very violent scenes, hence the warning in the "Tags." It's necessary for the rest of the story.

FROM BEFORE: "As soon as I started to bring the sword up it shifted to this dimension. Now it was most certainly visible to everyone. As I brought it up I sliced through the middle of my neck with it. It was too late for them to react to stop me. Attuned to my molecular makeup, the sword would never hurt me but it collapsed molecular matter on everything else it touched. The sword never really passed through my body. The blade shifted back to another dimension where my body was. To those who were looking at me it seemed as if I had passed the blade through myself. The slave collar disappeared when the sword touched it.

“WHAT THU...” Len was staring at what he couldn’t believe. His slave was armed and no longer wearing a slave collar!"

AND NOW:

UF-2 The Seeds of War
by Barbie Lee
Edited by Catherine Linda Michel
Copyright April 2002

"His breath reeked of gin and spirits. It was probably the only mouthwash he ever used. He smiled, and his yellow teeth looked bright against the dark recess of his yawning gullet. His lips were thin. Probably from seldom being pulled into a smile. He held his knife to my throat. “I’m going to sell you to the slavers.”

Over the shoulder of the first man, I could see another man coming across the room. He was holding up a slave collar. A cruel device, it was guaranteed to make the person it was placed on, submissive. Voice controlled, the master didn’t need a transmitter. All the master had to do was give a command. If the slave didn’t respond the slave collar would give a cruel shock. I had seen slaves drop to the floor writhing in agony when they didn’t respond to a command from the master. Those slave collars were a product of the government for use on prisoners. Pirates and slavers found a new use for the government prisoner collars."

And off we go in Book two of UF-2 The Seeds Of War. Strap yourselves in and suit up for action in deep space. Pirates, slavers, alien races and war loom ahead for Brandy, Sherry and all the universes and dimensions. Can our heroes and heroines stave off war and win out against the worst that space has to offer? Well here we go!

Learning about familiars is an important first step to establishing a healthy familiar-Meister relationship. Trust is another vital ingredient; doubt is usually considered a hindering factor.

Morgan, still chained to the ceiling, is approached by another potential partner. A much more talkative one.

(This narration relies heavily on information penury, as well as continuous improvisation on my part. Because information penury doesn't work well when spoiled, minimum tagging is enforced (if the main character isn't aware of something in a given story part, then the corresponding tag won't be included until they become aware of it in a latter part).)

Breaking out of this place? No, I've long since given up on that idea. I have no idea why I'm here, but one sure is sure: unless someone decides to free me, I am going to be stuck here for a very, very long time. Unless...

(This narration relies heavily on information penury, as well as continuous improvisation on my part. Because information penury doesn't work well when spoiled, minimum tagging is enforced (if the main character isn't aware of something in a given story part, then the corresponding tag won't be included until they become aware of it in a latter part). Also, this first part is very definitely an introduction meant to present two of the main characters; the kinky parts are coming in the next parts. I am trying to write a powerful story with a lot of kinks, not the other way around, hence all the introspection and world building. Thanks for bearing with me!)

UF-2 BY BARBIE LEE EDITED BY CATHERINE LINDA MICHEL

As promised, here's Chapter 4, a longer chapter than chapter 3. In this one we get answers to a lot of questions. Who is Toni, really? Who released the virus that changed Bill and Sherri? What are Toni's plans for Bill/Brandy? All that and more in this chapter.

FROM BEFORE: "Sherry managed to push me to the bottom of the ramp and walked around me. “Plus, some dimensional side travel tossed in for good measure. We couldn’t phone home if we wanted to. We aren’t in our dimension any longer. Earth and all the worlds mankind has populated don’t exist any longer.”

“WHAT! YOU’RE KIDDING!” I was thinking about a hologram and some weird joke between Toni and Sherry.

“Brandy, don’t get me wrong. Humanity still exists, but not in this dimension. Toni’s species travel not only from star to star but through dimensions as well.” She motioned me to follow. “Let’s go see Toni’s home. It’s a rare invite. We are the only humans to be invited to a Pash home.”

“O… kay.” I followed Toni and Sherry into what I would call an Ivy covered entry."

AND NOW.....

FROM CHAPTER 1: "I had wandered down to the galley after reading the reports coming in from medical and control. All our efforts were turning up negative. Our search teams had yet to find the cause. Medical had yet to find a cure. I felt tired, physically and mentally. My mind was shut down from fatigue when David and Toni walked in. I was totally exhausted, as none of us had much sleep the past ten days."

“Want to see your infection carrier?”

“YOU FOUND IT!” I turned around so fast I almost fell out of my chair. "Them.” David held his hand over my table and hundreds of little black balls that looked more like BB’s bounced and scattered everywhere."

So, our brave crew has found the source of their "problem." What is it? Where did it come from? Why them? Settle in and begin to find out all those answers and more.

UF-2 BY BARBIE LEE
Edited by Catherine Linda Michel

This is a long one, folks. There are two books to this story and the total comes to just under 75,500 words, counting both books. Both books are complete and chapters will be posted three times a week through the end of Book 2.

So settle in and strap in for a space drama/love story/mystery that will transport you to a distant future and other dimensions. If you're not a big "info dump" fan, you can skip the first few paragraphs and go right to the story beginning, referring to the foreword as you find the info there relevant. There IS a lot of info there and you will probably be able to answer some of your "tech" questions by doing so.

WARRIOR PRINCESS
BY BARBIELEE CHAPTER TWO

Hold onto your hats kiddies. It gets really bumpy from here,

"So, they think humans are useless, huh? Well, I guess I should give 'em something to make 'em certain then. Wait'll they get a load of me!"

Garia finds a way to get Eriana, Gullbrand and Lars to the Armory, where Haflin sizes up their abilities with swords. There is also a need for somewhere larger for the group of women to perform their Tai Chi, and the search raises some questions about important matters Garia had overlooked. Finally, Garia's plan is aired and a decision reached.

Somewhere Else Entirely

by Penny Lane

110 - The Norse Irregulars

FROM THE EDITOR: Chapter Two. Our Trooper is being held(?) by the alien in a cabin that has gotten snowed in. He's WAY out of his element and is about to learn more than he ever dreamed, or feared, he would. Again, please remember to comment or kudo... preferably both, and thank you for reading. Barbie and I hope you are enjoying the tale.

SALAMANDER, n. Originally a reptile inhabiting fire; later, an anthropomorphous immortal, but still a pyrophile. Salamanders are now believed to be extinct, the last one of which we have an account having been seen in Carcassonne by the Abbe Belloc, who exorcised it with a bucket of holy water.
~ The Devil's Dictionary, Ambrose Bierce

(I'm no good at Gimp or Photoshop, you'll just have to imagine that Iris has thistle-colored eyes. Though I do now have an anime-ish avatar depicting Iris.)