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The Mercurius Affair - Discussion


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#1 MkB

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Posted 01 August 2008 - 12:08 AM

COMING SOON

The Mercurius Affair


Here's a little teaser! :tup:
With many thanks to Harry Fawkes and MHazard, whose advices have been of invaluable help to me!
This little fanfic is intended as my humble tribute to Fleming's creation: I have read all the Fleming novels over the last two years, and it deeply modified my understanding of Bond, which was so far only shaped by the film franchise.
I hope you'll enjoy it!

She addressed him in a quite distant manner, but she had that mischievous look he had noticed at the end of their first meeting.
- “I didn’t suspect you were interested in music!”
He answered with a semi-serious smile:
- “I’m interested in every beauty.”
As he had expected, the hackneyed compliment made her give up her reserve. She laughed heartily:
- “Did you take this phrase out of the MI6 instruction manual?”
- “Of course. It’s on page one of the Field manual for turning a foreign agent. But I’m afraid it’s a very old edition...”
She smiled.
- “And what is on page two of this manual?”
- “Something about inviting the agent to a nice dinner. Some champagne might be involved – but it’s classified intel...”
A flicker of vacillation passed through her eyes. She bit pensively her lower lip, imperceptibly tilting her head, and observed for a few seconds this strange man who had so unexpectedly appeared in her life. He certainly had good looks, a fine presence and disarming self-confidence. But beyond his sophisticated, suave and witty demeanour, there was something dark and almost feral in him, something that made him look dangerous. And terribly appealing. She made her decision.
- “Well, then, what about meeting me in fifteen minutes in the entrance hall, downstairs? You’ll teach me the rest of the procedures.”


#2 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 01 August 2008 - 12:26 AM

Looks intriguing! You've got me wondering what's it all about. Can't wait to see more! :tup:

#3 MkB

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 12:22 PM

Thanks ITMP! :tup:
It's a story I started writing last September, I think, as a very short story, then I ended up developing it in ten chapters, following the full pattern of a Fleming Bond novel. It was a very interesting writing drill to me, and I hope that maybe others could enjoy reading it :tup:
I intended to submit it for the Centenary short story collection, but it was a bit too long for this format, and needed some fixing too. I think I'll post the full story on August 12th, to commemorate the 44th anniversary of Fleming's death.

Here's another random extract :(

It had been a good day. A “clean” job had marked the end of his assignment, and those who had to die had now rejoined those who should have lived in the indifference of death. He could now leave Prague and its share of memories behind.

It had been a good day. And still... Seated in a deep leather armchair, in a dark corner of the wood-panelled bar of his Mala Stranà hotel, James Bond was patiently waiting for the sickening feeling to pass. In a professional manner, he forced himself to close his mind to the nagging image of his last target, to the incredulous gaze of the man, and to the silent scream of his dead mouth. He knew the feeling, and he knew he couldn’t wash his soul with vodka. But at least, he could anaesthetize his brain. The pool of dim light shed by a billiard lamp, the hammering of the rain on the windows, the deep carpet and wood-panelling of the room, the soft and quiet atmosphere, everything contributed to let him retire in his inner citadel and close the door. Leaning over the table in front of his armchair, he slowly poured himself another drink. The movement made him grin... Instinctively, his hand reached for the large dressing applied to the left of his torso, under his shirt. But he quickly pulled out his hand and put it flat on his knee. It was no time to pay attention to his wounds. He had enough to do with his old scars.

On one of those scars at least, he could put a name: Lenka Čermáková. Looking absent-mindedly through his glass, he remembered her tall figure, her short jet-black hair over a large forehead, and the green vivid eyes.
He remembered the softness of her midriff, the kiss of her mouth, and the grasp of her hands when they made love.
He remembered the drab cemetery in the outskirts of Prague he had visited this afternoon, her name engraved on the tombstone, and the small pebbles he had left on top of it.


#4 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 06:01 PM

:tup: :tup: :) :(

Nice passage there, now that really has me intrigued!!! Nicely done, with plenty of rich atmosphere.

I'm glad you've saved this for the fan fic forum, I can't read the pdf files, :D so I'm missing out on Forever Yours With Regret along with some other fine works. Joyce Carrington sent me her Off Balance which I've been working through.

Again I say there are so many talented writers here! It's wonderful to be among such company. :D

Now I'll wait until August 12th, what a great memorial idea. :)

#5 MkB

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 11:33 PM

I'm glad you've saved this for the fan fic forum, I can't read the pdf files, :( so I'm missing out on Forever Yours With Regret along with some other fine works. Joyce Carrington sent me her Off Balance which I've been working through.


I shall post both: plain HTML on the forum, plus links to PDF and LIT eBooks (this way, to each his own, and nobody will have any excuse for not reading this story! :tup: :tup:).
By the way, if I may, you should give a try to Past Bearing (vol. 2) once you're through Off Balance, it's even better.

#6 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 03 August 2008 - 11:42 PM

I'm glad you've saved this for the fan fic forum, I can't read the pdf files, :) so I'm missing out on Forever Yours With Regret along with some other fine works. Joyce Carrington sent me her Off Balance which I've been working through.


I shall post both: plain HTML on the forum, plus links to PDF and LIT eBooks (this way, to each his own, and nobody will have any excuse for not reading this story! :( :tup:).
By the way, if I may, you should give a try to Past Bearing (vol. 2) once you're through Off Balance, it's even better.



Cool! Yes, for some reason my Vista hates Adobe and won't open PDF files. I tried using FoxitReader but I don't know how to use it with the files, it just wants to open using Adobe which warns me they are not compatible. :tup: Hitch had to listen to my Vista/Adobe issues already, bless him. Joyce e-mailed me Off Balance as a works file, I've been reading it in chunks now and again when I get a chance. I think it's pretty darn good. If it doesn't put her out too much as soon as I'm finished I would love to read Past Bearing as well. :D

#7 MkB

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Posted 07 August 2008 - 09:49 AM

Only 5 days to go... :)

Here's another random extract of what awaits you :(

The obsessive beeping sound of the monitor crept into his head, filling all the space of his drug dozed mind. For a long time, he concentrated on this tiny, regular spot of sound guiding him like a beacon on the path to consciousness. But it was the characteristic smell of an aggressively clean room mixed with medicines that made Bond realise he was in a hospital, long before his eyes opened.


#8 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 07 August 2008 - 03:47 PM

Another fine puzzle piece! :) :(

#9 Harry Fawkes

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Posted 09 August 2008 - 10:50 AM

Beautiful.
It is summer here in Malta and I am practically lazing about, literally. You know how it is: sandy beaches, BBQs in the evening and more sun and heat than one could ever ask for. And the deep blue Med Sea.
Bellisimo con un grande B.
Not to mention the fine fan fiction works like The Mercurius Affair & Destroying Angel!

Ah, what a sinful life :(

Roger AKA Harry

#10 MkB

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Posted 10 August 2008 - 12:26 AM

Only two days to go :)

Here's the last of the extracts before the whole story is posted on Tuesday!

Gathering his last strength, Bond leaped on the closest assailant in a desperate effort. His hands locked around the man’s throat were too weakened to do any serious harm, but the weight of this dulled body wildly knocked against him put the man off balance. They went over the wrought iron banister of the balcony, but Bond was already unconscious when their bodies crashed together eight yards down on the gravel courtyard.


And a special bonus: the list of the chapter titles :(

CHAPTER 1 – NEVER LOOK BACKWARDS
CHAPTER 2 – ‘WE WISH YOU A PLEASANT FLIGHT’
CHAPTER 3 – STRANGE CASE
CHAPTER 4 – ALLEGRO CON SPIRITO
CHAPTER 5 – A MAN OF POWER
CHAPTER 6 – A TOO FAMILIAR FACE
CHAPTER 7 – OF KNIGHTS AND PAWNS
CHAPTER 8 – SOMETHING IN THE AIR
CHAPTER 9 – A TRUE SCOTSMAN’S DEATH
CHAPTER 10 – AWAKENING


#11 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 10 August 2008 - 02:27 AM

I can't wait! Love the chapter titles! :(

#12 MkB

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Posted 12 August 2008 - 07:36 AM

It's online! :(

http://debrief.comma...showtopic=48486

I hope you'll enjoy...

#13 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 12 August 2008 - 12:20 PM

I'm reading it chapter by chapter. Love it so far! Nice mood and atmosphere set up right away. :) I'll let you know more as I read more! :(

#14 Harry Fawkes

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Posted 12 August 2008 - 08:15 PM

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaat! :(

#15 MkB

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Posted 12 August 2008 - 08:51 PM

I'm reading it chapter by chapter. Love it so far! Nice mood and atmosphere set up right away. ;) I'll let you know more as I read more! :(


Thanks ImTheMoneypenny :D I just hope I'm not wasting your time too much!

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeeaat! :)


:)
Thanks Harry! As I said in the first post, this story owes a great deal to you and MHazard! :)

#16 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 13 August 2008 - 11:30 AM

I'm reading it chapter by chapter. Love it so far! Nice mood and atmosphere set up right away. :) I'll let you know more as I read more! :(


Thanks ImTheMoneypenny :) I just hope I'm not wasting your time too much!


Wasting my time? Never! ;) I'm enjoying it! I'll be reading more today!

#17 Trident

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Posted 13 August 2008 - 12:28 PM

It's online! :(

http://debrief.comma...showtopic=48486

I hope you'll enjoy...



Ah, finally! Fantastic artwork, great tidbits and appetizers! You're going to hear about this again...

#18 MHazard

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Posted 13 August 2008 - 03:35 PM

I've read it and srongly recommend it. It has one of the best Bond girl names in fan fiction and a totally marvelous Bond in the hands of the villain scene near the end. More than that I will not give away. Nice work MkB

#19 Harry Fawkes

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Posted 13 August 2008 - 08:25 PM

One would be mad not to read this fine work!
Mkb's writing is cool and measured, fast paced and imaginative. The mesmerized reader is held captive till the very end.
Clever and exciting.


Harry Fawkes

Oh yeah, thanks for the version one can print easily and without problems. :(

#20 MkB

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Posted 13 August 2008 - 10:47 PM

Wow. Thank you all, guys... I'm blushing now! :)
About MHazard's comments: thinking about it, my preferred chapters are indeed the 1st and the 9th. This scene with the Villain was tricky to write, but I hope the ideas finally work well.
See? Keep on reading, the best is near the end! :(

PS: Harry, if you ever seek a PR position... just gimme a cal! :)

PPS: Trident, glad you liked the artwork! It's in no way to be compared with Mr Asterix's covers, or those by Icephoenix, but I just had a little fun with Gimp (an open source Photoshop equivalent).

#21 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 14 August 2008 - 11:48 AM

I'm up to chapter 4! Good stuff! :(

#22 MkB

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Posted 16 August 2008 - 04:34 PM

If some of you are interested: I tried to keep alive Fleming's tradition of forging more or less discretely "meaningful" names in his novels. Here are some keys to the names used in The Mercurius Affair!

Things and places:
  • Dexedrine: I didn't forge this name, it's a real-life medicine, and in fact the modern equivalent of the Benzedrine mentioned in the Fleming novels, which doesn't seem to exist anymore.
  • Oppeln Hotel: fictional hotel in Budapest, named after a very complicated private joke...
  • Sárkány: means “dragon” in Hungarian. Fleming made frequent allusions to dragons in his novels (Hugo Drax, Blofeld's lair compared to a dragon den in YOLT etc.), making Bond a figure of St George

People:
  • Čermáková: frequent Czech surname, meaning “red robin”
  • Col. Cowley: it was the name of the British military attaché expelled from Hungary in 1957 (accused of spying)
  • Pjeter Dobroski: name reminiscent of the head of an Albanian drug gang in Prague, arrested some years ago.
  • Hughes: surname of a friend of Ian Fleming (Richard Hughes), to whom YOLT is dedicated
  • Kiss: very frequent Hungarian name (no, really!), meaning “little, small”
  • Nekovář: frequent Czech surname, meaning “a smith who is better to keep out of the way”
  • Šlesinger: a Czech friend of mine, who lives in Prague :) (but I must do him justice and say he doesn't look at all like the MI6 Šlesinger! :(). Also a tribute to John Schlesinger (different spelling, same pronunciation), who directed the spy thriller Marathon Man.
  • Somerset: David Somerset was Bond's alias in FRWL
  • Vukasin ‘Vuk’ Stojaković: Vukasin is a Serbian first name, derived from Serbian "vuk", "wolf"
  • Maxim Fokin: Maxim comes from the latin superlative maximus, ‘the biggest / highest’; it sounded like a good first name for a tycoon!
  • Sokolov : Sokolov means ‘falcon’s’ in Russian


#23 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 21 August 2008 - 12:37 PM

[*]Šlesinger: a Czech friend of mine, who lives in Prague :) (but I must do him justice and say he doesn't look at all like the MI6 Šlesinger! :)). Also a tribute to John Schlesinger (different spelling, same pronunciation), who directed the spy thriller Marathon Man.


I love that movie! My sister is an Olivier fan so we've watched it a million times, that and Boys From Brazil.

Sorry I haven't been on in a little bit, getting over a massive head cold, and the brain fog it causes. :(

#24 MkB

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Posted 22 August 2008 - 03:39 PM

I hope you're getting better, IMTP! :) My own brain is a little bit foggy too today, but not because of a cold! :(

#25 Scrambled Eggs

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Posted 23 August 2008 - 11:10 PM

I hope you're getting better, IMTP! :) My own brain is a little bit foggy too today, but not because of a cold! :(


Tut.

I like the scene at the concert. A romantic flight of fancy but one that stays very Flemingesque.
You've created a very sexy scene by cutting to the aftermath of the lovemaking. Implying whats gone on is so much more effective than a blow by blow (ahem) account isnt it?
Coal industry hiding an intelligence etwork is a cleer idea. Had you thought of entering organised crime at a consutancy/planning level?
And I really like "You have guts. Enjoy them while you can."

Only quibble: would Bond really say "My friends call me James?"

#26 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 24 August 2008 - 04:00 AM

I just finished another chapter! I agree the concert was a great scene and the celebrations later were very well done too. :(

#27 MkB

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Posted 25 August 2008 - 08:23 PM

Tut.


Not what you think. Really! :)

Why, thanks guys! ;)
Yes, the concert scene is more on the "romantic" side, but don't worry, things get more "down and dirty" on the "spy thriller" side just after this chapter! :( Glad you liked it, anyway! Maybe the "Bond-Girl-with-a-physical-defect-that-makes-her-stronger-and-special" thing is a bit overdone, but well, after Fleming coming up with a limp (TB), a broken nose (DN) etc., I thought it would be nice to have something different.

Oh and about organised crime consultancy... just PM, any reasonable proposition will be examined! :)

#28 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 28 August 2008 - 01:33 PM

I'm knees deep in painting. I thought I could get away with painting all day and being here at night, but I've found I've been painting until bedtime. As soon as my work is all finished up, I will get back to you and Harry's stories! Can't wait to get back to it. I'll hurry up! :(

#29 ImTheMoneypenny

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Posted 04 September 2008 - 05:26 PM

I'm up to chapter 9 now! :( Twists and turns aplenty! I'd say more but I haven't got my spoiler tag available!

#30 MkB

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Posted 04 September 2008 - 08:28 PM

I'm up to chapter 9 now! :) Twists and turns aplenty! I'd say more but I haven't got my spoiler tag available!


:(
Chapter 9 is one of my preferred parts, IMTP, I hope you'll like it :)