Copyright Roger Bultot
More shots echo from the school.
From his roof-top position, Jackson sees his colleagues running low to surround the building.
Jackson has known Billie-Bob all his life. Weird kid, a tad geeky perhaps, but not always bad. Somehow time and life seem to have overwritten any good in him.
A shadow moves near the classroom window; Billie-Bob’s upper body is revealed, sunlight flashing off his gun barrel.
Jackson’s finger tightens on the trigger.
Control+Alt+Delete!
The system is restored, order is protected.
But Jackson will wonder, for the rest of his life, whether the kid had his hands held high.
Well, that’s November done, snow is falling on my website but in three more weeks the days will start to get longer. Winterphobic? Moi? No, Nyctophobic might be closer to the truth 🙂 The multi-talented Rochelle Wisoff-Fields, our celebrated Snow Queen, once more leads the Friday Fictioneers out onto the ice for a waltz or two. Thank you, Rochelle.
castelsarrasin 
I enjoyed the intrigue and the clever way you led me along Sandra, well done…
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Thank you. I didn’t understand your comment until others started coming in. 🙂
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Dear Sandra,
Your ending had me laughing with delight. As writers we murder so many darlings and the reader will never miss them. Love this.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Thanks Rochelle. It was a straightforward, everyday incident that we’re all used to seeing on our television screens, but couched in computer terminology. I think, judging from the comments that I’m being given credit for being cleverer than I thought I was being. 🙂
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I seem to have missed your intent, but I still stand on my comment. 😉 Accept that you’re brilliant and clever. Have you seen the movie “Wonder Boys?” The Ctrl Alt Delete made me think of it. If you haven’t, it stars Michael Douglas and it’s a must-see for writers.
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No I didn’t see that. I should go to the cinema more often but I can’t just sit and do one thing at once, and they didn’t like me knitting throughout the film. 😦 I’ll catch it when it’s on TV.
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That’s why I love DVD’s. I can hit pause for potty breaks or even parse out my watching times as I would a novel.
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Huh…for a second I was thinking Charles Whitman, then I saw CTRL+ALT+DEL and it was all…Counterstrike, again?!?!
Excellent use of suspense, then the tricksy ending. 🙂
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As I said to Rochelle above, you’re giving me more credit than I’m due. But I’ll take it. 😉
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Ignoring that CTRL+ALT+DEL, your story points to an excellent question: How can one deal with taking life, even in the line of duty? We are all humans, after all.
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The CTRL+ALT+DEL was just a euphemism for the point you’re making, Lore. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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My fictional world is littered with corpses. Microsoft is the real killer here. Nicely done.
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Thank you! I’ve a few corpses around the place too.
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If I’m not mistaken, this was a real killing in your story. That’s what I understood. It’s always tragic for a lawman to have to take a life. It’s even more tragic if some deranged or radical shooter kills.without being stopped. A lawman has to decide in a moment sometimes. Well-written story, Sandra. —- Suzanne
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You’ve hit the nail on the head, Suzanne. Thank you. 🙂
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Great story, loved the computer language … gave me two meanings.
One a computer game/program.
Two the mind frame a police officer goes into to cope with killing someone.
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I see how it can be taken two ways. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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I think it’s brilliant.
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Isn’t it great when readers catch things in your writing that you never intended to be there. But after they point it out you think, huh, that was pretty clever of me. I’ve had a few of these stories now where readers interpreted something I had no intention of needing interpreting. Their interpretation added so much to the story 🙂
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Yes, it was quite an eye opener for me. 🙂
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Very clever with a twist that took me unawares.
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Thanks, Liz.
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I like the idea you suggest, that it’s easier to think of killing someone as just trying to restore a balance.
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I wanted to try to use the ‘sysem restore’ aspect of computer language along with the other references. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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I was a bit confused by the ending : was it an author who deletes the character or was there a real shooting. I liked the phrase ” time and life seem to have overwritten any good in him.”
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‘overwritten’ was another computer reference. Thanks for reading. 🙂
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It makes sense now when reading it through all computer references – but the story felt so real – happening out in the world.
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I think I love the comments almost as much as your story. It (your story) can be taken more ways than one. Don’t you just love that?
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Indeed, quite a surprise for me. 🙂
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One of the best parts of this whole FF thing!
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If only we could restart our lives by using something as simple as ACD. Nice story
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Yes, sometimes I wish that too. Thanks for reading.
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I actually saw this as a very real killing.. and if the sniper is left wondering if the hostage taker might have giving up can haunt him for the rest of his life.. I read the computer-lingo more like a male sniper’s flippant language about ending a life….
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Exactly!
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I suppose these men (women?) who are trained for this job are trained to deal with these questions as well. I see it as being no different than a doctor who loses a patient.
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I guess they are. I hope they are, anyway. Thanks for reading.
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Always!
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Jackson has known Billie-Bob all his life. Weird kid, a tad geeky perhaps, but not always bad. Somehow time and life seem to have overwritten any good in him. Love this line.
I’m glad I made my decision about the meaning of your story before reading the comments. To me, CTRL+ALT+DEL meant Billie-Bob was dead. Well done in 100 words.
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Thanks Alicia, you got it! 🙂
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Oh my, I suppose the senseless killing today have me frozen for a comment. I’ll say I agree with Rochelle’s comments as I’m in a stunned state.
What is happening to society? 😂😂😂
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I’m just as puzzled (and horrified) as you, Isadora. Evry morning there’s something else…
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As much as I liked this story I absolutely loved your comment about knitting in the cinema. Did you get popcorn thrown at you?
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No, just dirty looks. 🙂
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weird… love it.
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Thank you!
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I wanted to read it as a computer game because I’m still under the impression of the most recent shooting in California. It’s a good story, seen both ways. Actually, I find it better seen realistically, despite it being painful, since it is a lot more thought-provoking. Great story, as usual.
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Yes, if there’s ever bad timing you can rest assured I’ll be in there with the wrong story. 😦
Thanks for reading.
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“American Sniper meets Call of Duty.” That first line is a truly great opening hook. Sadly, all too topical this week.
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I’m more of a Candy Crush Saga person myself… Thanks for reading Dave.
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Read the comments and your responses. Funny how what you intend and the reader interprets can be so different. Most of us took the “Alt-Cntl-Del” literally and you were writing this scene. Oh well, enjoyed your story and the conversation that ensued!
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Glad you enjoyed your visit, Lorna. 🙂
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I’m not sure Billie Bob would do such a thing. Maybe Cletus or a Frankie Wayne, between the two of them, they ain’t got enough brains to make one.
Oh well, he’s been deleted now. Like Daddy always says, “It’s easier to make another one than to clean that one up.”
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you have portrayed the mind of a sniper very well. control+alt+delete! added more credence to the story.
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This is striking a cord with me because we just had a mass shooting in California. I do think something goes wrong with the person who commits the shooting. I don’t know how the police feel about having to shoot someone like this. I hope that someday, soon, we will be able to prevent this from happening..that disturbed people end up killing so many others.
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A virtual take on real time issue. Made me think if there was a track2 in the time dimension from where we could delete and overwrite all the unpleasantness that occurs in track1 of time.
This was a great write.
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Quite a chilling story. I loved the line “Somehow time and life seem to have overwritten any good in him.”
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You’ve conveyed this terrifying story in a well balanced convincing manner … that ending with it’s computer jargon resetting the system is a fantastic touch that adds a realism that makes on shudder – and feel a certain amount of sympathy for both Jackson the law enforcement person and Billie-Bob. Haunting …
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I like this… if only it were that easy! *sigh*
Good story Sandra! 🙂
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We all have those characters we delete and then wonder about later. They just won’t die for some reason.
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I admit, Sandra, that your computer language threw some doubt into my mind as to if this was real or just a first-person shooter played online. But considering the mass media exposure these days, there might be some blurring of lines between them. Great story.
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I love how you’ve done this, Sandra. There are so many layers of meaning, as the comments show, and whichever way one reads it, it works.
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A timely story, Sandra. It’s a painful thing to consider this happens all too frequently. Still, I’m sure in the midst of it, it is chaotic and unpredictable and a police officer will most likely have to make split second decisions. Well told.
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Well done… The doubles…. Enjoyed.
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Actually these days the ALT+F4 keys will give you the option to shutdown. Only in pre-boot environment (before an operating system starts) or in DOS, Windows 3.0 and earlier versions of Windows or OS/2, the key combination rebooted the computer. 🙂
I know a kid who wanted to download from his brain what he had learnt in school. The future is looking interesting.
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Chilling and so compelling, particularly in light of recent events. Or, sadly, continuing events… the razor focus of a sniper, is something I’ll never get, but appreciate when it’s needed. (I must add, that I read the first couple of comments and thought I’d gotten it wrong, only to realize I was “dead on.”) Nice job, as always, Sandra!
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