“Right. We’ll have plenty of time to get into position and observe their movements. I’ll loiter outside the council’s meeting place and see what the dynamic is there. You keep an eye on the merchants. Got it?”
“Got it.”
“And Klyra?”
“Yes?”
“You do have a plan for distracting them?”
“I’m trying to decide between about five right now. I’ll make the other four backups.”
Chroma smiled. “Good luck.”
“They have one bargaining chip, and that’s the alliance we want,” Chroma said, examining the vegetables they’d been given. Most were whitish or brown roots served cold, others cooked mushrooms. “That’s an all-or-nothing. Each side loses that bargaining chip as soon as they reject us, or the other side swoops in and takes it. That’s what gives us the power. They can’t deny us our alliance without losing us entirely.” … More The Hundred Foot Drop of Klima — Scene 12
Chroma held one edge of the tray and spun it lightly counter-clockwise. When the swing had twisted as far as it would go and threatened to spin back the direction it had come, Chroma thrust her hand out to grab it. She scanned the available fruits now in front of her and picked a plump purple one.
“I think the idea is that when you pick a bigger one, you’re less likely to bite off the whole pepper,” Flor told her. “And the game gets steadily spicier as we dwindle down to the small ones.”
“You seem surprisingly fine, Flor,” Chroma commented, “for having nearly died twice in one day.” She took the largest bite of the purple fruit as possible. Her face twisted in pleasure at the peachy taste, quickly turning to curiosity and then to panic. She held a hand to her mouth, as if about to spit something out, but ended up swallowing (both the food and large gulps of air).
One of my roommates once asked me, “Do you feel like you’ve actually learned anything in college?”
Oh, oh friend… I have learned so much in college. Some of the things I’ve learned have been mind-boggling. Here is a countdown of the most perspective-changing courses I’ve taken at UT Austin.
The Internet has given all of us great power: the power to spread misinformation, and the power to properly fact-check information. This guide is a summary of what I have learned in college about searching for reliable sources, how to tell the good from the bad, and how to do it quickly enough that you don’t throw up your hands in exasperation. … More Guide to Finding Reliable Sources
These are the stages you will encounter if you decide to write a fiction novel or start a research project:
Today’s entry is an actual research article published in the Journal of Zoology, titled, “The energetics of lactation in the Northern elephant seal, Mirounga angustirostris.” These dedicated 1986 researchers wanted to figure out how much weight mother elephant seals lost while fasting and nursing their pups. The answer was “a lot.” Maybe I should’ve posted this on Mother’s Day… … More The energetics of lactation in the Northern elephant seal, Mirounga angustirostris
You start off the game as a 2-year-old wolf in Yellowstone Park who has left their natal pack to carve out a living away from the nest. Your primary goal is to survive by hunting prey and avoiding competitor species such as bears, mountain lions, and the enormous wolf packs that hold territory around you.
The hunts are thrilling, all the competitors and potential mates are engaging, and it’s honestly just cool to zoom around with the speed of a greyhound (when in real life I can barely climb the stairs without feeling winded). … More WolfQuest: Anniversary Edition by Eduweb (2019)
The next thing they knew, the dancers were bowing, adults were clapping, and young children were carrying bowls of stew out to Klimans all over the tree. Dozens of skillful, grinning young faces, overjoyed by simply being helpful. Many of them raced each other to see who could deliver the most wooden bowls to the various homes on a bough. Many children even intercepted the recipients of the meal by giving bowls to the residents of a platform that dangled between two branches, stealing the opportunity of the children on the other branch from delivering the food. Chroma chuckled as she watched. … More The Hundred Foot Drop of Klima — Scene 10
The last rope bridge sloped downward, but not enough to bring it all the way to the forest floor. Instead, it sloped downward just enough to rest among the branches of a tree as wide as it was tall. The diameter from the northernmost to the southernmost leaves must have matched that of a small town. The massive tree formed an expansive clearing beneath it, holding back competing trees and blocking sunlight to the plants below.
Between its boughs, countless meshes of planks and organic matter formed platforms where people lounged, worked, and played. The central crook of the tree was in sight, and had been partially hollowed out and lined with stones to form a large fire pit, above with hung a collection of spits as long as a hull of the Gladiator.
The color orange was everywhere: in the watercups that grew along the branches of the tree; in the paint coating the wood and various wooden bowls, toys, and instruments of Klima; in every single person’s clothing; and in the large banners hanging from the side of each bridge leading to the town. … More The Hundred Foot Drop of Klima — Scene 9
