Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Getting ready for the first date (which will have an unsuspected end)
From #MasterWatch
#writer #WriteSky #WIPSnip

He finished dinner, cleaned the dishes, got some nice clothes out of his closet and took a shower. He noticed his cheek prickled with short beard hair, so he took the time to shave.
Afterwards, his phone told him it was 6:25 pm, and that the battery was at 10%.
"It'll be enough," he told himself and prepared to go outside. His coat was dry enough, but his gloves were still damp, so he decided against them.
He walked out the door and skipped down the stairwell in childish glee. At the bottom, he realized that he had forgotten to lock his door. He shrugged. There wasn’t a handle, only a doorknob at the outside, so nobody could just walk in there.
“It's not like I have anything worth stealing in there,” he said to himself.
As he was walking, he tried to find some conversation topics. Hard to do. He barely knew her. Maybe a talk about her family or her hobbies could work; he nodded.

December 2, 2025 at 10:10 AM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

When it's 2019 and you have a ticket for the newest DC Movie
(I hope the sound works)
#funny #meme #shitpost #lordi #joke

November 29, 2025 at 12:47 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Can you picture a person you last saw when you were 5?
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

“Anything else that might help identify him? How tall was he? What was his body type? I know it was a long time ago, but you have to…”
“You know I have a photo of him, right?” He brought out his phone and entered the folder with his oldest pictures.
“Why didn't you lead with this?”
“It’s not a very good one,” Egon said, then handed Ava his phone.
She looked at the picture he could almost draw from memory. It was a scan of an old polaroid. It featured his baby self on the arm of his mother, who featured eyes widened with surprise at the photographer. His father's reaction was more extreme. He had attempted to throw his arms up to hide his face, just a moment too late. But because he turned away at the moment of the photo, his face was unrecognisably blurry anyway. One was still able to see that he had an athletic build and was not too much taller than his mother.

November 9, 2025 at 7:49 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Figured out how to make a little longer Snip in one picture, enjoy:)
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Ava released her breath, and with it a bit of tension. “She set up a fake address?”
The question was almost redundant. This was exactly something Sera would do.
“Yes,” Robert said. “I was wondering if you know where she actually lives.”
Ava shook her head. “No, I've never been at her home.”
Robert sighed. “Nobody has. I finally got hold of her mother - no luck either, they haven't been in contact for a while. The people she put down as emergency contacts were a little more helpful, though they seemed not overly concerned when I told them she was missing. Apparently, this wasn't the first time. By the way, what did she tell you about what she did on her holiday in the summer?“
Ava was taken aback by the sudden question. “Uhmm, she went hiking?”
Robert shook his head. “She told me she went sailing on the Gardasee. She told Britta that she made a city trip to Ljubljana. To others, she said that she was in Prague, or Bratislava, or Berlin. And that wasn't the only thing she said that contradicts. That girl is an enigma. At this point, I'm not even sure she's lactose intolerant.”

November 8, 2025 at 9:58 AM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Probably a bit of a spoiler
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Instead, he attempted to wiggle himself free somehow. He stopped when he felt something sharp press against the side of his throat.
“Don't try anything,” Sera said from behind him. From the corner of his eye, he could see the hilt of a kitchen knife in her hand. “Bloody subjugator.”
Egon didn't dare to breathe - any movement could mean his death, and Ava's and Sera's in turn. Sera removed the blade and stepped into view.
“Stupid. How have I not seen this sooner?” she said that more to herself, then turned to Egon. “Ava is your servant as well, isn't she?”
Egon tried to speak, completely forgetting the tape over his mouth. He nodded instead.

November 7, 2025 at 8:05 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Yes, this is also from my #SpyThriller #MasterWatch
There is a small supernatural element in there (though it is explained by science in the story)
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

“And you are sure that there was no foul play?” Britta said.
“I haven't found anything that would hint at that,” Sera said. “Like I said: a convenient coincidence.”
“Probably for the best,” Britta said.
Sera looked at her. “A person died.”
“And other people can sleep well without risk of falling under his spell.”

October 30, 2025 at 6:12 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Their are countless 'that' and 'hate' in my manuscript, sadly no hat.
I do have 'cap', though.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

During their conversation they'd left the building. The wind swirled the drops of rain into a mist that just begged to sap away all warmth from one's skin. Egon pushed his collar up, his cap over his ears and put on his gloves. With deliberate strides he headed for his bike. Luckily, he had found a place protected from the rain for the old wire-donkey. The lock opened smoothly when he put in the code, and he wrapped the solid chain around the linkage under the seat.
Egon put on his helmet and pulled his backpack more tightly. With a last weary glance at the sky, he swung himself on his bike. The first metres were followed by looks of a few students who thought he was crazy to be biking in this weather.

October 26, 2025 at 3:54 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

(There's a small life-hack in there)
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

He almost missed his stop, only pressing the optional stop button when he could already see it. He jumped out and jogged back up the street to his apartment complex. Without stopping, he hurried up the stairs. His breath grew heavier and heavier, but the quick beat of his heart willed his legs to run.
On the third floor, he fiddled with his pocket to get the key. The metal slipped through his fingers. The lanyard connecting his keys to one of the belt loops stopped its fall to the ground. On the second try, he managed to get it in the key hole. He quickly tried to turn it completely, but the key just stopped after turning a few degrees.
Shock ran through his already beaten body. It was unlocked.
He opened the door silently. He slipped in, grabbing the broom beside the door. He knew that weapon wouldn't help much if someone waited for him.

October 21, 2025 at 8:43 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

I hope you care for another #WIPSnips from #MasterWatch
#WriteSky #writer

“We're here,” Ava simply said. A clear sign: Taking care of Sera had priority over anything else.
They moved Sera into the building, then to the unlocked boiler room at the ground floor.
There wasn't too much room there with all the plumbing, but it was much warmer here than in the rest of the building. They would eventually move her up to Egon’s flat, but her current condition didn't seem to allow that right now.
Ava remained by Sera's side, while Egon hurried up the stairwell and knocked on the door opposite from his.
After about a minute, Daniel opened the door.
Confusion was written on the young doctor's face. “Egon? What do you want so la… “
Egon cut him off, “We need your help.“

“She needs to get to a hospital,” was the first thing Daniel said when he saw the scene.

October 15, 2025 at 9:02 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

I hope they learn to trust each other more...
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Crouching beside her the whole time started to hurt his knees, so he sat down on the bathroom floor as well. “Huh. Well, if it's inevitable anyways, what is the plan when it comes to that? Cooperate with the law and hope they reduce the sentence in some way?”
She shook her head. “That's not how this works. Your kind is too dangerous. You'll be thrown into a cell then they’ll throw away the key. I'd rather stay on the run forever, but that's not an option.”
“Why not?”
“Because you'd be caught within days, if it even takes that long.”

October 12, 2025 at 9:39 AM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

A scene I haven't written so long ago.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Egon didn't know what to do. Before he knew it, his feet started running and he fled. His hands were trembling as he fumbled with the lock of his bike.
“I need a drink,” he said to himself when the lock finally gave way, and he swung himself on his vehicle. The burner phone in his pocket vibrated, but he ignored it, simply speeding away.
He took a route home where he encountered no car. Thankfully; he wasn't sure he could act properly right now. He got to his destination safely, then ran up to his flat. On the top of the stairs he was out of breath, but did not stop to rest.
His still shaking hands managed to unlock the door, and without taking anything off, he got into the kitchen and fetched himself a cold bottle of beer. With the opener on his keychain, he opened it and took a few big sips.

October 7, 2025 at 7:25 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

I found one scene that isn't too much of a spoiler
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Egon sighed. On top of hiding his powers, which could ensure him a life in prison, he now got pulled into a thing that was way above him. The very department that would hunt him is undermined. But by whom? Someone like him? There was no way to tell. They could only hope that Sera can tell them more when she wakes up. If she wakes up.
Egon stared out of the window into the night. The floodlights of the city polluted the black sky, only the brightest stars managed to pierce through. For just a moment he stayed still.
“Damnit,” he finally said. The silence with nothing to do was unbearable.
He straightened and controlled the values on the pulsoxy-meter on Sera's finger.
This was going to be a long night.

October 4, 2025 at 2:19 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

The Danube is a river.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

The navi on her phone led her westward, following the course of the Danube upstream to an area she wasn't too familiar with. Her car sped through the unknown streets as fast as she could without raising too much attention.
Ava had never had a problem with focusing on a mission. As soon as her alarm rang, she was ready to follow her orders perfectly, with her mind sharp as an arrow.
Now, though, Egon’s words kept popping up in her mind.
… fairly normal, separate lives.
She couldn't decipher her own feelings about these words.

October 1, 2025 at 3:48 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

One thing they don't tell you is how annoying harbouring someone who is believed to be dead can be.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Egon refused to fuel her antics any further and finished eating without saying anything else. Sera, a bit defeated, did the same.
As soon as she was finished, she grabbed the newspaper, this time to do the crosswords.
“Oh no, you don't.” Egon said.
“Hm?” Sera asked.
“You're not going to leave me with doing the dishes alone.”
Sera yawned. “Oh, but I suddenly feel weak.”
“Don't play with me like this. If you're going to stay here for I don't know how long, you'll have to do your part of the housework.”
Sera looked at him, and he met her scary blue eyes with an unmoving stare, until she rolled her eyes.
“Fine,” she said, carrying her plate to the sink. “You could say ‘please’, though.”

September 24, 2025 at 3:32 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

From #MasterWatch

#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

A sound from the window took his attention for a moment. A storm outside had swept heavy rain against the glass, and he could see the first snow of the year mixed into it. He already dreaded heading home on his bike; it was best to wait until the worst was over.
“Uhm, Egon?” Ava asked. “What do you know about your father?”
Egon kept looking at the window, determined not to be overwhelmed by his earliest memories. How his parents taught him to swim, how they slept together tightly in their car, how his mother had tears in her eyes when he hugged him for the last time.

September 12, 2025 at 9:19 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

When she looked up again, Sera was gone. Ava looked through the few people that were out and about that late in December, but couldn't make her out anywhere.
Shit. She knew better than to let someone like Sera out of her eye for even a second. Her skills in hiding were first class, but she couldn't have gotten far in this short amount of time.
Ava let her eyes dart around, trying to pick out the red coat. It was nowhere to be seen. She did another sweep, this time not focussing on an item of clothing she could have taken off. Still, no luck. At this point it was more likely that she had snuck into one of the alleyways, or…
Ava was too late to react to the charge from behind. She only got a glimpse of Sera before she was within striking distance, and spanked her butt.

September 7, 2025 at 5:02 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Sera made a dismissive hand gesture. “Don't worry your pretty head about it, I'm quite capable of handling this on my own.” After these words, she straightened from her leisurely position, and leaned towards Ava. “When was the last time you slept?”
“Tonight.”
“How many hours?”
“Five and a half, not good, not terrible.”
Sera chuckled, turning to Egon. “See that, Egon? That is how you lie. Ava is very proficient in it. Look at her face, what do you see?”
Egon did what she asked. What was he supposed to see beyond her thin lips, cute nose and dark eyes? He noticed that she seemed upset at the accusation of lying, a reasonable reaction. He looked closer, he knew her a lot better than a few months ago. She did look tired, but not overly so.
“Nothing out of the ordinary,” he answered.

September 2, 2025 at 3:30 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Ah, young love.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

She stopped and looked up. When standing next to her, he was a full head taller than her.
"Yes, Egon?" she asked.
"I- Uhmmm."
Egon wanted to punch himself. He finally brought up the courage to ask a girl out, but he didn't have any plan of what to say. Any idea he had was now lost in her dark eyes.
He tore his gaze away to look for anything he could use. Quickly. Young people walked by with chatter; nothing that he could twist into something useful. Cold rain whipped against the large hallway windows with strong October winds.
"It's raining," he finally brought out.
"So?"
"Do you wanna go for a quick coffee or tea now and hope it stops?"
Egon heart seemed to stop. What a lame excuse.

September 1, 2025 at 3:52 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

Reading the news is important
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

Soon, the black beverage dripped into the transparent coffee pot under the machine. Sera didn't move to fetch some, she was too engrossed in her reading. So, Egon stood up and prepared her a mug. He put it on the table in front of her, and placed the lactose free milk carton beside it.
That finally elicited a reaction from her. Her nose twitched, and she put the newspaper away for a moment. After adding a small amount of milk, she took a sip, then added more.
“Thanks,” was the only thing she said before continuing to read.

August 30, 2025 at 12:02 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

This happens right after a WIPsnip I shared recently.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

$“I’ll let it slide once,” she seethed, then continued with her spiel. “Cheating. In real life, it will save your life. It's simple physics. You have broad shoulders and more mass than me, thus more momentum and inertia. So if I want to knock you out, it’s good if I have the element of surprise.” Within a fraction of a second, she lunged at Egon. He barely had time to raise his arms, sure that she would push him to the floor. Instead, she swerved at the last possible moment, slipping and falling on her knees beside him.$

August 28, 2025 at 5:27 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

I'm quite inebriated while making this cumulu (my term for post on BlueSky) I hope I didn't make any obvious mistake.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer

When Daniel stepped out, he sighed in relief. “She agreed that she doesn't want to go to a hospital or for me to call the police. That what you did yesterday was what she would have wanted.”
“Does that help you?
“Only a bit.” Daniel looked Egon straight in the eyes. “I was worried that you'd kidnapped her.”
“Kidnapped?”
Daniel nodded his head. From his perspective, it must've really looked like that.
“Now that she confirmed she would have wanted it the same way,” Daniel said. “I am at least morally satisfied. I could still lose my license over this, though.”
Egon pressed his lips together in guilt. The last thing he wanted was to ruin someone else's life. “I'm sorry. It will never bother you again.”

August 24, 2025 at 5:18 PM

Symon Pude

@symon-pude.bsky.social

My writing program tells me I should replace 'judge' with 'judging', which I won't do because I does know English to some degree.
From #MasterWatch
#WIPSnips #WriteSky #writer