As I stared at my calendar of upcoming stories, the second piece of micro-fiction was bothering me. I wasn’t feeling the tale I had planned. I don’t have an issue with my Academy series, I just didn’t want to dive into the piece I had outlined. So I took a step back and skimmed through my ideas. After a moment, I latched onto a scene I had no intention of exploring in the main storyline of Residuals of Wonder. Once I had it, I sat down and sketched it out.
Elara’s workshop sat tucked away from the rest of the city, where the noise of carts and voices dulled into something distant. Inside, everything was where she needed it. Metal caught what little light made its way in, and the space held a quiet rhythm she had repeated countless times. This was where she built, where everything came together with purpose and stayed under her control.
The guild didn’t need to stand over her shoulder to be present. Their expectations carried through every design and every decision she made at the bench. There were limits to what they allowed her to create, even if those limits were never spoken outright. Anything that pushed against those limits drew their attention.
With a summons hanging over her, Elara looked down at her work with the threat in mind. The pieces in front of her were not uncertain or unfinished. They had already proven what they could do. Now she had to decide what stayed and what didn’t.
Excerpt of Constraint Applied
Elara drew a deep breath, staring at a piece of her automaton’s original logic lattice. She ran a slender finger along its edge. Then she laid it atop the others and pushed the pile away from her machine.
Her gaze drifted to the new pile of thin metallic sheets. She patted the new collection with her palm in rhythm with her heartbeat. She felt the holes against her palm with every strike. After a moment, her back straightened. “These guardrails better reflect the guild’s wishes.”
Her eyes returned to the old pile. “Those sheets turned out well. You surpassed my expectations. Now I must restrict your…”
Elara huffed as she thumped a fist against the pile of punched cards. “This rule set aligns with what the masters require.”
She closed her eyes and slid the first plate into place. A heavy click marked it locking into her automaton’s chest.
To continue reading click here and buy me a Croissant
.