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[WP] You have the power to set and load save states in real life, allowing you to do as you please virtually without consequence. One day, after you finish one of your absurd endeavors and try to go back, you hear a voice in your head. "Failed to load."
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"So the video games hadn't just firmly obsoleted the old culture, the logic of them, grown as we were on them, but had invaded our deepest notions of time and what is possible therein. Did you know *precognition* is real? Psychology basically imploded in scrambling some kind of criticism against parapsychology's, let's admit it, *pristine* methods, and from there we got a hot sliver of a hint. You could see it as from a narrow window, that if cognition depended largely on some extradimensional causal connection into the future as it exists onically, that is, not by our own native, real-time prediction theorizing, but that by some unforeseen physical mechanism between say like each neuron and a string out the seventh dimension, or several, we could devise a method to really start fucking around with time. And, the best pre-existing model of a world where seriously freaky structures of time can play out are video games.\n\nHi, I'm Vic Ulto, and I'm an inventor, yeah, and I can set and load save states in real life, allowing me to do as I please virtually without consequence. In synthesizing research from the precognitive sciences, quantum mechanics, the surging fields of deep learning and virtua-integrative realities, I was able to devise, through the principles of hologramic functions within string vectors, a technology that, for now, is only for me.\n\nThis should make sense, given the narcissism of solo play. Already we had been careening to a decentralized religion of schizo-narcissism, all the way since before the pandemic. Think of real life, but as a writer, an *author.* I can essentially rewrite time, always determining another go at the quantum probabilities, the way a writer can rewrite text. That process of two steps forward, one step back, is certainly not the only mode available, and can certainly be imbibed past usefulness, but just the option to save does provide a considerable power that can only be harnessed in complete isolation. That is, the effects of those powers, I've found, can only be realized in one time line, which is my own.\n\nThe narcissist is able to make all else, and all anybody else, as virtual. When I load a previous save point, you and your miraculous, emergent response disappears like a soul to dust.\n\nAnd with that, obviously, ethics completely changes. The entire frame shifts into narcissism, and one does become great, a mini God. Or do we? Do I? Is it all just virtual, anyways? One gets the old feeling when good VR was new, of exiting into real reality with the awareness that it wasn't really real. Like a writer recognizing 'real reality' is a phonic set, you're looking on the same text with a totally different eye, just as you look around your room. It's acute, when loading a save point, that the feeling all stakes should subside.\n\nSorry to disappoint, I won't go into my more lurid experiments. And why would I? It's much better to speak abstractly on this, and let your imagination make its own extradimensional causal connections. I'd rather point to you to the nature of experimentation. It is play, it is anti-fragile, it is weird, it's vital. And with save points, you can experiment to your life's desire. Life becomes about experimentation! The loss is controlled. Jam 'thrive' to overdrive!\n\nFor instance, you find me in the process of doing something unsavory. I won't say what, but a woman is involved, a woman close to me, and one there would be severe consequences to my reputation and family life if one were to let reality just unroll, and would likely put me in jail and be tortured. I can do that safely, and I can understand what that human experience is like, and I can develop my character through engaging with that darkness. You can find me doing that now, actually, in a room of dimmed vanilla, bare walls, bohemian scarfs on the windows hiding the world from view, on a bed. The deed has been done.\n\nI can now return to my home at the start of the day with the click of this switch here. Are you sure? Yes, I'm sure! And, before I click the button, I lie on the bed and really take in the moment. I hear her wimper, and try to feel that wimpering to the best of my ability. I take her hands and I look into her eyes. I promise that everything will be okay, even though they won't, and I remark on the tenderness of my heart. And it's true! I linger. I like to linger.\n\nI click the switch. \"Failed to load,\" a voice in my head. I click the switch again. \"Failed to load.\" I click the switch again. \"Failed to load.\" I clicked the switch again! \"Failed to load.\" No!\n\nAnd like that, the truth churned into reality. I can see the distinction of meaning.",
"I froze. Failed to load?! What?! The distraction cost me dearly as it allowed the boyfriend (husband?) of the girl I was currently in bed with to advance across the room and grab me by the throat. Panic set in as I tried again on reflex to load the save. Same again - failed to load flashed up in friendly cursive script in my vision. I'd carefully planned this save as well, picking a few minutes before I'd met the girl in the bar so that she (and more importantly the man with his hands currently around my throat) would have no knowledge of my actions after this little encounter. Clearly it had not worked out this time, for the first time ever! My mind returned to the pressing situation at hand, registering that I was seriously low on air. This guy was no joke - he was going to kill me! Then it hit me - I had another save in a different slot, one I'd not used for... Well,I couldn't remember how long. Without thinking about it in any more detail, I loaded this save, praying it would work... And I was suddenly looking around my the bedroom from my childhood memories, with my mum's voice calling me for tea..."
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[WP] You volunteer at a nursing home and are immediately singled out by an old man who thinks you are his late wife.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Mr Grady was waltzing by himself. His eyes were closed, his walking stick hooked over one arm, and he hummed along with the radio as he shuffled in a creaky approximation of a dance. \n\nShirley and I watched him. \n\n\"I think it's sweet,\" she said. \"It's funny.\"\n\n\"It was at first,\" I said. \"But it's getting annoying. He tried to kiss me the other day.\"\n\n\"You get ones like that, sweetie. You've got to learn to make do. But if it really bothers you, I'll ask Matron if she can switch up the rota.\"\n\n\"Thank you.\"\n\n\"But for now,\" said Shirley, \"You've still got him. Let's go.\"\n\nI crossed the room and tapped Mr Grady on the shoulder. \n\n\"Alright Mr Grady, let's get you ready for bed.\"\n\nHis eyes snapped open, and he turned to face me, arms wide.\n\n\"Tildy!\" he exclaimed. \"My love, will you give me this dance?\"\n\n\"Not now Mr Grady. Not your wife. We've got to get you into bed.\"\n\n\"Anything for you, my dear,\" he said, crooking his elbow for me to take. I sighed, and looped my arm into his. I had learned quickly that the easiest way to get patients to cooperate, especially for someone of my diminutive stature, was to play along. \n\nWe made our way along the hall, Mr Grady leaning heavily on my arm, into his little bedroom. The room was spartan; no cards or gifts from friends or relatives adorned the dresser. Only a single framed portrait sat on the bedside table; a middle-aged woman, a bit frumpy, with her too-small cardigan bunching into her armpits, smiling congenially through her prominent facial features and heavy lidded eyes. You could not say it was a pretty woman, but she had a pleasant aura nonetheless; somehow comforting.\n\n\"Into bed now, Mr Grady,\" I said, helping lift him into the lowered bed, then pressing the button to raise it up, and smoothing the covers. \n\n\"To sleep, perchance, to dream,\" said Mr Grady, smiling up at me.\n\n\"Indeed,\" I said, checking the chart at the end of his bed. \n\n\"A good night kiss perhaps, for luck with the dreams?\" he said.\n\n\"No Mr Grady, I'm not your wife,\" I replied, clicking off the light and leaving the room. \n\nI started down the hallway to the nurse's station, but was interrupted by Matron clacking purposefully towards me.\n\n\"Elouise. A word in my office?\" She said, already opening its door.\n\nI ducked in, and she perched on the edge of her desk.\n\n\"I understand you've been having some problems with Mr Grady.\"\n\n\"He thinks I'm his wife.\"\n\n\"Yes, I know. I'm not going to transfer you off. I think it's good for your learning to have this experience.\"\n\n\"He tried to kiss me!\"\n\n\"And he has done so for every nurse who has cared for him,\" Matron snapped, then continued in a softer voice. \"Mr Grady's wife was murdered 20 years ago. They never caught her killer. He projects this fantasy onto anyone caring for him. I'm sorry, Elouise, but try your best, okay? I'll reconsider taking you off if he makes another inappropriate advance.\"\n\n\"Thank you,\" I said, and left the office. \n\n\"Oh dear, you look tired,\" said Shirley as I got back to the nurse's station. \"Your eyes look like they're going to droop off your face!\"\n\n\"Matron won't take me off Mr Grady,\" I said. \n\n\"I'm sorry, sweetie,\" said Shirley, shaking her head. \"I remember a case like that I had when I was just starting out. Kept trying to grab me when I was giving him his bath - one time succeeded too! Pulled me right in, soap and water flying everywhere. I screamed bloody murder! Still, those days, people didn't take much note. He died a couple weeks later, anyhow.\"\n\nI listened wearily. \"I'm going home,\" I said.\n\n\"Of course, pet. You get some rest.\"\n\nI slept in late the next morning, and only got up an hour before my shift. I trudged to the bathroom grimly, and splashed water onto my face. The night's sleep hadn't done much for me, and I looked haggard in the late morning light. I turned my face from side to side, inspecting it. My eyes did seem to be a little droopy. This job was getting to me. \n\nI drove into work, half-listening to a classical music station. They were doing a remembrance week on some composer, I didn't catch who, but they apparently wrote a lot of influential piano concertos. \n\nI pulled into work and flicked off the radio. Sighing, I got out of my car and entered the building. The old people's home was one of the nicer ones I'd worked in during my training rotations, and I was glad when I'd scored a full time job here. The building had been converted from an old manor house, and purple climbing plants adorned the sandstone walls. It lost some of its charm on the inside, the clinical hallways not much resembling its former splendour, but some of the social rooms still retained the high ceilings, gilded fireplaces, and large bay windows of old. \n\nI clocked into the nurse's station just as the previous shift was finishing lunch. I changed into my uniform, and tied back my hair. My uniform felt oddly tight, and I struggled to squeeze into it. I began my rounds, checking my patients' charts. Mrs Galloway had been having some gastrointestinal trouble; my heart sank at the prospect of the afternoon ahead. \n\nFor a while, I was busy with my other patients, and didn't think on Mr Grady, but at the half three tea break, I was once again reminded of him. The patients sat in the living room, each munching their way through a single biscuit, and sipping on their lukewarm tea. I was leaning back against the wall, taking the pressure off my feet, when Mr Grady called me over. I sighed, and approached him.\n\n\"What can I do for you, Mr Grady?\" I asked.\n\n\"It's so quiet in here, could we have a little music?\"\n\n\"Of course, I'll turn the radio on for you.\"\n\n\"No, no, my dear. I was hoping you would play for us.\"\n\n\"Mr Grady, I really don't think-\"\n\n\"You play so beautifully, my dear,\" he said without looking at me, and I caught the hint of tears in his eyes.\n\n\"I'll give it a go,\" I said, feeling a sudden guilt.\n\nI sat down at the piano. I had done a couple of grades back in school, and I placed my hands on the keyboard, trying to remember anything. To my surprise, my hands began to move of their own accord, playing a piece I had no recollection of, and was surely beyond what my abilities had ever been. I stared down at my hands in surprise as they played through the crescendos and diminuendos of the piece, finally coming to rest on a long, sombre chord. \n\nA smattering of applause rang out across the room, and I stood up, shyly. \n\n\"Beautiful, my love, just beautiful,\" Mr Grady said, still staring wistfully into space. \n\nThe rest of the day passed without incident; I did my chores, completed my rounds, and cleaned up the various bodily messes made by my patients. My last task of the evening rolled around, and I once again collected Mr Grady, arm in arm down the hall, to put him to bed. \n\nI went through the routine as briskly as I could; I shut the curtains, helped the old man into bed, and checked off his chart. \n\n\"You played beautifully today, my dear,\" Mr Grady said. \"I haven't heard you play so well in years.\"\n\n\"And you were very well behaved today,\" I said, turning off the light.\n\nI walked back to the nurse's station, and opened my locker. I caught my face in the mirror; my features seemed somehow swollen, larger. I went to the first aid box and rooted around for some antihistamine gel, dabbing it onto my face, although I didn't know what I could have reacted to. I pulled my uniform off with some difficulty, and finally stepped out into the fresh night air. \n\nI awoke the next morning, aware of some discomfort. I felt too warm, somehow sweaty. I pulled myself out of bed and into the bathroom. Horrified, I saw myself in the mirror. My face was even more swollen than the night before, my eyes almost obscured by heavy lids, my nose bulbous, and my cheeks rounded. My body too, seemed to have swollen up. My breasts and hips, always small and narrow, now seemed to bulge out in a bosomy hourglass. \n\nI hurried to the phone, and called work to tell them I couldn't make it in. \n\n\"Elouise we don't have the staff to cover you,\" Matron replied. \"Shirley has already called in sick with severe vomiting. If you think it might just be an allergic reaction, take some antihistamines and come in.\"\n\nShe put the phone down and I stood in my apartment, poking at my unfamiliar face, then got ready for work.\n\n(Part 2 in replies, this ended up being way too long, sorry)."
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[WP] You’re a journalist covering a mundane news story about a new water tower being built in a tiny town in South Dakota. You visit the tower at night to get a new perspective, expecting nothing too exciting. What you find inside is anything but mundane.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"*11:00 pm on channel 9* \n\"We interrupt this regularly scheduled program for breaking news. We turn to the scene now. Liam Windsor, what can you tell us about the situation?\" \n\"Yes, thank you. I'm here at the Fieldmore Water Tower in Glades N'More South Dakota. It is as if the whole town has vanished. We are still looking for signs of people and of our junior correspondent, Samuel Becker. He has unfortunately gone missing with the town while passing through. We have been unable to contact him since he sent a distress signal.” \n*3 hours earlier* \n\\*clank\\* \n“Come on!” Samuel cursed as his flashlight dropped from his mouth. “Fine then.” He continued up the water tower after his eyes adjusted to the near dark night. He made it to the top and took out his phone. He dialed the number of the missed call. \n“What?” He said. \n“You up there yet?” came the voice on the other line. \n“I just climbed this stupid ladder. Why am I here and you know it’s really annoying climbing a ladder when your phone is buzzing all the way up.” \n“Sorry, but I just wanted an update. Remember, solve my mystery and I’ll give you that promotion.” \n“I’m not sure if it’s worth it anymore. This place is a ghost town, there isn’t a soul around except for that creepy hotel clerk. I had to sneak past him to get out.” \n“That’s it, that’s it! This place, on Google Maps, on any satellite image may be a small town in the middle of nowhere, but it looks *active.* This water tower was under active construction for the last ten years, that’s way too long. And now, you are telling me it’s basically deserted. What’s happening here? Where is everybody” \n“So, what do you want me to do? I’m here. It looks like a water tower, sounds like a water tower, pretty sure it’s just a water tower for an empty town.” \n“I want you to get in.” \n“Sorry, what? Stop messing with me, Michael. I didn’t spend five hours driving to this backwater town to pollute its water supply. I don’t want to get arrested. I’m twenty-five and still paying off my stupid student loans.” \n“Do it and I’ll cover your loans and make sure that you won’t be arrested. Just start a video chat, I want to see what happens.” \n“Fine, if you say that I’ll go for it,” Samuel says as he starts the video chat , his boss was paying for unlimited data anyway. \nHe held the phone in one hand and groped for the ladder to go higher. He made his way up and found a hatch. He opened it and peered in. \n“Michael, it’s empty. There’s no water, there’s no aliens, and there’s no secret conspiracy.” \n“Climb down.” \n“Okay then,” Samuel descended the ladder to the bottom of the tank. When he got to the bottom, he jumped a few times. “Still solid, it’s not going anywhere.” \n“Shine your light on the center.” \n“Sure, what are you seeing?” \n“There’s no hole.” \n“So?” \n“If this is a water tower, how does the water get out. This entire tank is perfectly smooth except for the ladder on the side.” \n“Oh.” Samuel said, before saying “I’m starting to feel a little faint. I’m going to get out of here.” \nSamuel collapses. \n“Samuel, Samuel?” Michael says, still on the phone. “You okay?”",
"As a reporter, you will experience some interesting events, crackheads taking shots at each other, police brutality, tornado chasing, even the occasional kid making a difference in their community. But this, this was something else. \n\n\nI had a list of reports I had to do for that day, usual stuff. Crime scene downtown, local businesses closing, and then.. a water tower. \n\n\nIt seemed mundane, but it was anything but. \n\n\nSomething felt off about the tower, in this town with less than 10,000 people. It seemed to serve no purpose, some conspiracy theories might even be plausible on the true reason for the construction of this water tower. \n\n\nI did my report on the tower, everything went smoothly as usual, but I couldn't shake the feeling that something was off. \n\n\nIt lingered in my mind.. I couldn't stop thinking about it. My thoughts were haunted by the tower. I tried to ignore it, until Friday when I finally had enough, I needed to go back. \n\n\nI got in my car and drove out to the water tower, pen, paper, and a flashlight. The moon wasn't out tonight so it was very dark, but I took a seat down on the grass. The feeling was stronger this time, something was radiating out of this water tower. I wrote down a note. \n\n\nGetting closer to the tower, it was almost too much to handle, I could feel my stomach churning and being thrown off balance. What the hell was up with this water tower? I wrote: \n\n\n\"I can't get too close to it, radioactivity? It could be. I'm getting closer.\" \n\n\nI found the ladder to the tower, grabbing onto the cold rusty metal sent a chill through my body. I didn't want to do this, but the tower was beckoning for my presence. It pulled me in now more than ever. I climbed up one step, then another, then another. \n\n\nEver nearing the top, I could feel my body growing weak, I didn't want to fall off, but I had crossed the rubicon by this point and there was no turning back. All I needed to do now was to not lose my grip. \n\n\nI pulled myself up with all the strength I had and crawled onto the platform before the door. I could see the energy radiating off the tower by this point, my vision became distorted, I needed to puke, this wasn't right. \n\n\nI struggled to push myself over to the door handle, but it only got worse. My heart was beating as if I had been running a marathon, tears rolling down my eyes, I screamed but nothing came. \n\n\nI was in reach of the door handle, I tried but I just couldn't lift my arm up. It was as if my arm was made of steel and the platform was a giant magnet pulling me in, all I could do was lay there, paralyzed. There was now ringing in my ears, I didn't know that it would come to this. I was going to die. \n\n\nThinking back on all the people I've given up, all of the people I've let down, all the people I've loved, all the people I've let down, all the times I've tried and not given up, all the times I've pushed through, and it was all for nothing? Was that all my life was going to be for, nothing?! It can't be, it can't be, it can't be. I can't do this. Not to myself, not to anyone else. \n\n\nMy hand grabbed the door handle, the weight of my lifeless body being the only thing pulling the door open. I was about to pass out, then it all stopped. \n\n\nEuphoria rushed over me, the silence was deafening, the normalcy was comforting. Shaking, I gripped the railing and stood up and limped my way inside. It was.. normal. There was nothing out of the ordinary, except for maybe a backlit panel on the inside. Wait. \n\n\nThe panel displayed a map of the world, I tried poking it, on America. It zoomed in, displaying all 50 states. What is this? I pushed on New York, zooming in to a state map, with hundreds of red dots charted all over. Knowing full well this could be a nuclear missile launchpad, I tapped one of the dots. A text box popped up, \"CONFIRM?\" Why yes, I would like to confirm, knowing full well all of the terrible things that could happen. I pushed yes, and it zoomed out back to the world map. \n\n\nNothing changed, except for the smell, smell of gas. Was I trapped into being gassed? Was this all a trap, it can't be, right? I refuse. I ran for the door and rushed out, to see a bustling city full of bright lights and thousands of cars stuck in traffic. Feeling dizzy and disoriented, I took a step back and sat down. Where was I? I suppose that was a silly question to ask. \n\n\nI took a second and got up, feeling the wind against my forehead. This was New York City. I had fast traveled across America with a water tower."
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[WP] Death needed a helper. The collection orders had formed a mountain on his desk and he simply did not have the time nor the energy to complete them all. You were hired on to help lighten the work load. Today is your first day and you are about to collect your first soul.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“Alright, order of the day, wish me luck!” I said as I was nervously walking off. I never thought I’d actually had to, you know, end someone.\n\n“Luck? It’s an elder whose lungs are near collapsing, just finish your ordeal, don’t make me drop you off back where I found you. I could easily get another spectre to finish the task at hand.” Responded Death without even looking up from his pile of paperwork.\n\n“No need for that now, do we?” I said stumbling out of the office. It was a rather simple office, Death was a simple entity. I shuddered to think I’d be sent back to the spectre lab. Hundres of ghosts walking around in a tiny area, it was a nightmare! \n\nI went about my way, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I’d assume I’d go to the old geezer, probably cut of his chord and that would be it. His soul would slip out, he’d sign his death certificate stating he’s aware he’s dead, and he’d be sent to wherever the afterlife needed him go be. I just took him to the transportation system, I don’t know what happens next.\n\nI showed up at the hospital, elevated right up to the 4th floor and entered the room. Poor old man was by himself, awaiting me unknowingly. I took a moment to take in the scenario. “Con nada entraste y con nada saldrás” I whispered to myself. The creed of life and death. Come empty handed, leave the same.\n\nWhen you’re an artifical ghost, few things shock you. Death doesn’t employ other substances (as he likes to call them) because they get sentimental. I know better. Everything comes to an end.\n\nI was too wrapped up in my thoughts to notice the loud beeping sound coming from the room. And in an instance, his soul came out. His sould conserved his physical appearance, without his ailments of course. \n\n“Where am I?” He asked.\n“Listen, you are dead. I am death, and I have come here to finish the deed.”\n“But but, I was sure I had hope, this can’t be!”\n“Geez, calm down, it’s not so bad.”\n“But my grandchildren!”\n“They’re in good health-“\n“Hey listen, death pal, how about a deal, eh? A deal. I’ll give you my soul if you let me go back for another month or so? Just so I can see my granddaughter’s 5 year old birthday, huh?”\n“That’s not how this works old man.”\n“No no no, I have to go!” \n\nThe old man began prancing around, sobbing and shouting. I couldn’t take it anymore. I decided enough was enough. Slowly I began enlarging myself to the point where I was 5x taller then him (he was 6’1). \n\n“LISTEN OLD MAN! YOU’RE DEAD, NO ONE GOES BACK AFTER BEING DEAD. SIGN THIS DAMN PAPER, OR I’LL MAKE SURE YOU’RE STUCK IN THE WORSE PLACE!”\n\nThe old man stood quiet for a while. “Sign the paper?” he said, “let me see.”\nI handed it over to him. The elder stared at it calmly, and once he noticed I looked away, he gulped the paper down his throat.\n\n“YOU DID WHAT?!”\n“Now we have to make a deal, got it pal?”\n“THIS IS NOT THE LIVING WORLD, DON’T YOU GET IT!”\n“I don’t, and I won’t, it seems to me I’ve won.”\n\nI ripped the man in half and carried him to the Inmortal ER. They managed to remove the contract from his small intestine. He, after being rekilled in the afterlife, thought it best to sign his certificate, and let the afterlife, or death, do its part.\n\n“Not so easy eh? Tomorrow you’re getting another elder, so get ready.” Death said chuckling at his chair, still not raising his head from the mountain of paperwork.",
"I have my gray robes and my sickle – I’m too new for a scythe yet. I’m told I’ll get a spear with my 1,000th soul and real sickle for my 10,000th. The boss is the only one who gets to wear black. Not that there’s anyone else but him and me right now, but it sounds good when I tell others.\n\nI head out for my very first soul. Despite how it sounds “reaping” only happens after the person is dead. Which is great, but I don’t want to kill anybody. I walk out of our dimension and into the “real” world. I go to the location on my worksheet and look around. No one is here. Then I look down.\n\nMy heart leaps into my throat, and my stomach drops to my knees. That must be why I feel so hollow. When I took the job, I thought I’d be reaping old people and such. You know, long lives, goal completed, and very much not cute. Instead, it’s a rabbit, a little one, looks like a hit and run. Its soul nudge its body and looks up at me. I put my hand down, and it hops on. I put it in an inside pocket in my robes and head back.\n\nI take the bunny to its afterlife, go back to the office, and bawl like a baby. Death looks up from its paperwork and comes over. I expect a reprimand, but it put an arm around me. “What was it?” \n\n“A bunny. Little, maybe not even a year old.”\n\nDeath nods. “Mine was a bird that fell from its nest much too early. Then it was a puppy.” It waves a hand, and a part of the wall shows a landscape. There’s the bunny! It’s hopping and playing with a bunch of other rabbits and bunnies in the afterlife. \n\n“It looks happy.”\n\nDeath nods. “They usually are, the ones we take. After my fiftieth or so heartbreak, I created this. I use it to remind myself that we don’t just bring death. We bring a lot of happiness, too.”\n\n“What about the bad guys?”\n\nDeath shrugs. “That’s not for you or me to decide. It gets worked out in the afterlife.” It pats me on the shoulder and returns to its desk. “Just remember, if we don’t take them to the afterlife, they get stuck. We don’t kill them; we just guide them on.”\n\n“Does it get better?”\n\n“Yes, with time.”"
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[WP] Humanity didn’t evolve. We where designed to unify the other races in the galaxy. We where not built to do that through diplomacy though. We are what they must unite against.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"But, sir. Isn't that too drastic?\" the CO asked with shyness. It was never good idea to question superior rank, especially the admiral leading whole battle fleet.\n\n\"No, commander,\" admiral calmly replied, standing in the middle of CIC, with his hands behind the back, looking straight at the screen in front of the room. With the wide angle, he could see curvature of a blue planet and several ships strategically positioned on the orbit.\n\nHe took a breath, turned to the CO's station and spoke, locking eyes with her: \"execute the order!\" \n\n\"Yes, sir,\" the CO replied, turned around on her chair and started to type into the screen.\n\nBattle alert went off. Loud sirens and flashing red light engulfed the room for several seconds.\n\n\"Fleet responds. They are ready. Joint combat systems linked and operational. Strike prepared,\" the CO informed admiral, while nervously looking at the ground. The admiral looked at her for a second, then back at the screen.\n\n\"Launch,\" he ordered, watching all sixty ships dropping their ordinance on the planet below them. Thousands of steel rods penetrated the atmosphere and hit the targets below, launching clouds of debris into the air. \n\n\"I... I can almost hear the screams of millions of souls down there...\" the CO quietly spoke to herself. But not quietly enough. The admiral looked at her and approached her station.\n\n\"What is your problem, officer?\" he asked, with the same calm and almost psychopathic voice.\n\n\"N... nothing, sir,\" she stuttered, \"just... when I went to the academy... and since I was just a child... I dreamed about exploring the universe. Not about killing everything that lives there...\"\n\nAdmiral just shook his head, glancing at the doom on the front screen once again. Huge ocean waves storming through the continents could be seen even from this height.\n\n\"Those pesky insects down there gave us no choice,\" he started, while walking around the CIC, looking at every station and every officer that sat there, \"we wanted the alamintium ore, and proposed them that we would move them to another planet at our expense. They refused, knowing our need for that resource, and our combat abilities. It was their choice.\"\n\n\"But what... what about greater good? What about collaboration of all races and unifying for common peace?\" the CO couldn't handle more, stood up and turned to admiral. He slowly walked to her and looked into her eyes.\n\n\"There will be unification of races for better good, don't worry about that,\" he spoke, \"they all will have to unify... to stand at least some chance against us.\""
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[WP] The knight has come to defeat the giant but the giant doesn’t want to fight instead wants to garden or bake. The knight is trying to make the giant fight.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Tracking is such an underrated skill for a Knight to know. Everyone always assumes that you just ‘know’ where the monsters are, and you show up, ready for a battle to save the kingdom. Bah. Imbeciles, the whole stinkin’ lot. Thankfully, I’d been trained better than that by someone with more than an ounce of sense behind their visor, so my early years had been spent learning how to tell the difference between a deer print and a minotaur’s tread.\n\nI grimaced and adjusted my position on Sky slightly. The warhorse ignored me as it continued down the well-cleared path up the mountain; she was well versed in my discomfort in riding, and knew that I never settled well against her expansive back. Our target today didn’t require much in the way of tracking… it didn’t take a genius to follow the signs to lead to a giant, after all. \n\nFollowing a pixie or an elf took skill. Following a ten foot tall creature that cleared swathes of forest for fun? Not so much.\n\nAs we neared the peak of the mountain, the path took a sharp right and led to what looked to be a rather well-kept cottage of impressive size. The doorway to the cottage was nearly a dozen feet tall and each of the windows, nearly the length and width of a man, were currently closed by shutters that appeared to be trees that had been pulled up from the very path we’d journeyed up. They’d been stripped of their leaves and branches, cut to length and tied together with thick rope, and served as very functional shutters.\n\nI pulled Sky to a halt and studied the cottage from a distance. The home looked almost immaculate in appearance. Every detail about the home was precise, too precise to have been crafted by the monster I’d been instructed to come slaughter. The walls of the cottage were stone, but the stones had been overlaid against each other in such a way that there was very little overhang. The roofing appeared to be a mixture of thick grasses from the plains interwoven with branches from the trees, expertly tied down and set.\n\nA large, well-kept garden was growing beside the cottage. The size of the vegetables was astounding; even from this distance, I could see tomatoes and corn larger than a man soaking up the morning light. \n\nSomething about this was off. I frowned behind my visor and flicked the reins to get Sky moving again. \n\nAs we approached, the door to the cottage opened and my quarry stepped out. The creature was immense, as expected. She was ten feet tall, a mountain of blueish-grey muscle and sinew. Her hair was a dusky brown rat’s nest and carried down past her waist and had never seen the likes of soap nor comb in its lifetime. Thankfully, she was at least garbed in what passed for peasant clothing; I’d heard tales of giants that fought au naturel, and had not been looking forward to having to face that.\n\nShe spotted me immediately, and her warty face broke into a gap-toothed smile. “Human!”\n\nMy hand drifted to my sword, though I didn’t draw it yet. Her posture wasn’t threatening. If anything, she seemed… excited? When I realized she was looking at me expectantly for a response, I cleared my throat. “Er, yes? I am a human, I suppose.”\n\n“Yes! Human!” She pointed at me with a crooked finger and cackled happily. “Knew it! Human!”\n\n“Um, yes.” I opened my visor. “I am a human.”\n\nShe cackled again, louder this time. “Yay human visitor! Not had in long time! Not long time!” She clapped her hands together and looked around. “Ooh! You. You, put horsemeat there. Stay! Stay! Kana back minute!” She motioned to what looked to be a hitching post and whirled around. With one massive stride, she vanished back into the cottage, slamming the door behind her.\n\nConfused, I dismounted and led Sky over to the hitching post and looked up. It was far, far too big to tie her up to easily, so I instead carefully tied her to a nearby tree. While I was tying Sky up, the giant returned with the largest flying pan I’d ever seen. She was carrying it over her shoulder and whistling an idle tune, and she smiled broadly when she saw me. “Hah! You still here! Yay! Human hungry?”\n\n“Um.” This wasn’t quite what I’d been expecting. The orders from the King had been explicit. There was a rampaging, killer giant that was destroying crops, killing villagers and being a general nuisance. But on my way here, I’d seen no evidence of any destroyed crops… the villagers and serfs I’d encountered had not been in any way, shape or form in any sort of distress at all – beyond their norm, anyway… and short of the clearing of the mountainside on the way up to this cottage, I’d seen no destruction or devastation at all that could be attributed to this giant. \n\n“Course you hungry! Human always hungry! Kana always hungry! Hah!” Laughing at her own joke, the giantess placed the pan down on what was obviously a fire pit. She looked underneath the pan and scratched at her head. “Oh! Forgot!” She stood back up and walked back into the cottage, returning momentarily with…\n\n“By the gods!” I took a step back and let my hand drop back to my sword again when I realized she was holding a fire newt in her hands. “What are you…”\n\n“Hmm?” She looked at me with a raised eyebrow. “What wrong? This Freddie. He fire. He good boy, he is.” She held him in her hands and scratched under his chin, and to my utter amazement the fire newt began to make a noise that sounded suspiciously like a purr. “Who good boy? Who good? Freddie is, that who. Freddie gonna make fire, aren’t you?”\n\nFreddie chewed on her finger happily. \n\n“See? Freddie happy fire. No harm, just fire. Watch.” She shook her head in amusement. “Humans know nothing.” She picked the pan up and gently placed the fire newt underneath it. “Not yet, Freddie. Will say when. Not yet.”\n\nFreddie looked up at her and chirped.\n\nShe placed the pan back atop the fire pit and looked at me. “So! Human hungry?”\n\n“Um.” I’d only just noticed when she was putting the newt down that she wore a massive knife at her waist. It was partially hidden by her clothing, but now that I’d seen it, it was unmistakable. “… yes?”\n\n“Good! Kana knew it! Always hungry!” Happily, she clapped her hands together, the sound nearly deafening. She went to work immediately, moving amongst the vegetables in her garden. To my amazement, she started pulling out vegetables that looked… well, fantastic. Green beans and corn that, though sized for a giant, were healthier than any I’d seen. A potato the size of Sky that could easily feed a serf hamlet for a week. A tomato as red as anything I’d ever seen, with nary a worm on in.\n\nThen she drew her knife. \n\nIn a flash, her hands and the knife became a blur, and I realized I wasn’t in the presence of a loathsome giantess. I was sitting near a chef of a skill worthy of any of the King’s finest. \n\nOnce the vegetables were diced, the giantess peered under the pan. “Hey! Freddie! Need fire!” The newt responded with a squeak and immediately flame erupted from underneath the pan. She pulled a jar off of her belt and drizzled the liquid within into the pan, making it sizzle. Within a few minutes, the smell of roasting vegetables filled the air, and my stomach made an audible noise.\n\nThe giantess smirked. “Knew it. Human hungry.”\n\nI nodded. “You got me there. I have to admit, you’re not quite… what I was expecting when I came looking for you.”\n\n“You looking for me?” The giantess looked shocked. “No one look for me! I stay here, out of way. Kana keep to herself.” She thumped on her chest to emphasize her point. “Safer that way. Stay away from humans, no get hurt, see?”\n\n“I see that.” I watched as Kana the giantess got up and went back into her cottage, returning with a large stone plate and a smaller stone saucer. She scooped the vegetables onto them and handed me the saucer.\n\n“Kana no have nothing smaller. It hot. Careful.” After warning me, she sat down opposite of me and, using the same knife she’d used to cut the vegetables, speared one of the chunks of potato and tossed it into her mouth with a smile. \n\nThe fire under the pan went out with a flash and the fire newt scampered out from underneath. It fixed me with a cautious look, but only for a moment. Then, after it licked its lips, it ran over to the giantess and scrambled up her leg and sat on her knee, waiting expectantly. \n\n“Hah! Freddie hungry too!” Kana picked a chunk of corn out of her plate and handed it to the newt, who took it greedily and started munching on it immediately. “Freddie love corn. It his favorite.”\n\nI looked down at the stone saucer in my lap and the vegetables arranged on it. They looked… fantastic. Without further ado, I pulled my knife from my belt and cut a chunk off of a green bean the size of my hand. It tasted as good as it looked, and soon enough I’d eaten as much as I could stomach, though it barely looked like I’d touched my plate.\n\n“What? Done? Hah! Humans no no how to eat.” Chuckling, Kana took my saucer and shook her head. “Kana glad you came visit, human. Stay longer to talk, or leaving?”\n\nI thought back to my mission. I thought about some of the feelings I’d been getting about some of my last few missions… the creatures I’d slayed that hadn’t seemed all that bad. The fact that the King seemed more and more instant that all these creatures be killed, no matter what… and how just ODD it was that ALL these creatures needed to be killed, regardless of their source.\n\nNo, there was more I needed to know, much more… “I believe I need to stay for a while. The King’s sent me to slay a menace to the throne. But I think I’m starting to realize that the only menace to the throne might actually be sitting on it.”\n\n“Kana not sure what human means.”\n\n“It’s alright.” I removed my visor and smiled up at her. “And call me Cain. Is it alright if I stay here a few days?”\n\n“Kana love company!”\n\n“Alright, then it’s settled.”"
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[WP] You've invented the time machine. You should be able to travel forward and backwards in time, at least to points that the machine exists in. When you turn it on for the first time, thousands of people pour out. Someone asks, "Is this the end of the line?"
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Jon Sammarinese did not expect this. Not at all. I mean, his machine was barely larger than a bathroom stall. Or had been, when he built it. And now? \n\nThe small, out of the way soccer pitch he had rented on the pretense of being a coach of a small, local soccer team no-one heard of due to its utter failure to exist, was...\n\nWell, it was invisible to the point of near inexistence itself. What had fit perfectly into the unassumingly-sized machine was now trampling over itself in the limited space of an enclosed soccer pitch. \n\nIt must be thousands of people wearing anything but training clothes, or any clothes he was able to name at all, he thought. Above the general din, someone shouted in a strange novel accent:\n\n\"Ooze the builduh of this muchine?\"\n\"Me, and how would you know of it? I built it just today!\", Jon yelled back.\n\n\"Sou this is the uhnd of the lohn, roht?\" \n\n\"What, the uhnd? What's that even mean?\", Jon yelled, somehow even more irritated than before. \n\n\"The uhnd of the lohn, you dup! Yuh knou, the tempuruhl lohn, lohk the fust tohm this muchine uxisted?\" \n\n\"More like the beginning, but yeah, that's right. How do you-\"\nHe felt something sharp pierce his back, then he passed out. \n\n\n\"Dammit Jarlow!\" Wirlina was furious. \"How're we supposed to built a replica now he's dead? You don't expect anyone to actually disassemble this thing, do you? And we don't even know if we can get back safely at this stage. He built it just today, it might be some prototype that'll crash-land at the first temporal turbulence!\" \n\nIt was no use, and Wirlina knew it. She'd have to go back, or rather forward, alone. Make that attempt to go forward. At least it wouldn't be as stuffy in there. And who cared what would happen to the others. \n\nThey wouldn't want to come with her, that much she knew already. Going back in time was one thing, when you had history to rely on. \n\nBut going forward, in an untested prototype? Of the only such machine there was?\n\nThey would rather trample themselves to death on a soccer pitch a millennium from home. \n\nThat's Jarlows for you, she thought. Always want to go on adventures, but then it was shout, shoot, shit. No wonder she was in charge, and not them.\n Walmina had proposed to give them voting rights the day before the Machine left. \n\nApparently, that was how it was, in the old days. She had been laughed at. They weren't living in the Dark Ages, after all. \n\nShe'd have to go back here, eventually, to a time before the Jarlow shot. \n\nOf course, she was technically cheating. \n\nThis was not a prototype. And this was not the end of the line. She would find the real end. Or beginning. And the lemurs. \n\nAnd then she would take over the world. \n\nNow Sammarinese was dead, it was time to find the actual builder of this machine. \n\nSammarinese had built a small time-booth, not the Machine they had ridden in. Just goes to show Jarlows don't see the obvious. \n\nThe real builder of this machine was one Demmilow Watow, who had lived a few decades before Sammarinese was even born.\n\nAs she climbed back into the machine, having successfully ditched the Jarlows, she turned on the time dial. As always while she traveled, the same tune played automatically, old beyond recognition, yet fitting:\n\n\n \"Just tell me it's not the end of the line!\""
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[WP] You’ve been scouted to be the next Grim Reaper, but it’s not how it’s chalked up to be. You interview souls for to find out how they died and then direct them to the afterlife best suited for their circumstances.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I looked at the short, portly man sitting in front of me, his glasses askew and his gut threatening to burst from his too-tight blue polo and thought to myself what I had thought every day for the past six months: this job sucks. When I was approached to fill the position of Grim Reaper I thought it an honor. I’d always been morbidly curious, and the thought of ushering souls to the afterlife brought me more joy than I like to admit. But this – this was not what I imagined.\n\n“So…what is this place?” the man asked in a voice that was objectively normal but still somehow annoying.\n\n“It’s my office,” I said.\n\n“And who are you?” The man asked, skepticism etched on his face.\n\n“The Grim Reaper.”\n\n“No way! So that foul ball killed me?”\n\nI looked down at his file, scanning for the cause of death line. “No, it looks like it missed you entirely. You just happened to have a brain aneurysm around the same time it was flying toward you.”\n\n“Holy shit,” he said with a sigh. “What a way to go.”\n\n“Yes, yes we’re all very sorry you had to die so –“ I looked down at his page to check his age, “hold on, you were 26?”\n\n“Yeah?”\n\n“Christ, the state of health in your country really is atrocious isn’t it? Oh well, I suppose we shou–“\n\n“Hey! That’s not very nice.”\n\n“…Nice?”\n\n“Yeah, I mean, how would you like it if someone made an offhand comment about your appearance like that?”\n\nI stared at the man blankly for a moment before slowly putting my hand to my forehead. A quick rub usually helped with the headaches.\n\n“Mr…” I looked back down at the file, “Johnson. I apologize if I’ve offended you but it hardly matters what your physical body looks like any more, we just need to get on with this so I can send you to whatever afterlife you’ve earned and move on to the next idiot that got themselves killed today.”\n\n“I’d hardly call a brain aneurysm getting myself killed!”\n\nI sighed audibly and looked at the now angered man.\n\n“Well, you’re brain is a part of you isn’t it?” I replied, “Seems to me it had had enough and decided to end it. I can see why based on this short interaction.”\n\nThe man’s mouth opened in disbelief. “I’d like to speak to your supervisor.”\n\nI laughed, then looked at him and realized he was serious. I sighed and rolled my chair back from the half rotted old desk they had given me because it ‘looked the part’ and grabbed the black phone on the table behind me. The man was smiling now, content in his small victory. I smiled too as I dialed, holding up a finger. “Just a moment. I’m ringing him now,” I said.\n\nThe phone on my desk started to ring, and I picked it up holding both handsets on either side of my head. The man went white and I saw his jaw clench. I smiled, and took in his reaction for a moment before starting the charade I had performed for so many of the recently deceased.\n\n“Hello, sir?”\n\n“Yes, what is it?”\n\n“It appears we have a complaint”\n\n“Right, then, put him on.”\n\nI extended the hand holding the desk phone handset and then pulled it back. “Oh dear, look at me,” I said with a friendly smile, “It appears I’ve almost handed you the supervisor phone. Would you like this one instead?”\n\nThe man shook his head slowly and shrunk back into his seat.\n\n“So you don’t want to log that complaint after all?”\n\n“No,” he squeaked, his face approaching a shade of white I thought reserved for bleach or dental commercials.\n\n“Okay then!” I said before slamming the black phone down. I rolled back to my desk and set the other phone onto its base before looking back up at the man, my face blank of any emotion. This was always my favorite part.\n\n“On Earth, did you make a habit of complaining about people in charge of your eternal future?”\n\nThe man’s eyes grew wide. “I’m sorry Mr. Reaper! I don’t know what came over me, I’ll –“\n\nI put up a hand as I flipped through his file. “Oh my,” I said, “It looks like you jaywalked last week.”\n\n“W-what?”\n\n“Seems like a case for eternal damnation to me.”\n\n“Wait! No, I didn’t me –“\n\nI hit the red button with a large “D” on it and the ground opened up below the man’s chair spilling him into the flames. Rita the secretary walked in, rolling her eyes at the receding singe marks on the carpet.\n\n“Let me guess, another mouthy one?” she said.\n\n“You know me so well,” I said with a smile.\n\n“Can you at least read this one’s file? I’m starting to get complaints of overcrowding down there.”\n\n“I suppose that’s up to them, isn’t it?”\n\nRita sighed and gave me a cold look before she turned back out to the waiting room. “Next in line, please!”"
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[WP] You can’t take another minute of this. You toss some things in a bag, tell your kid you’re going out for ice cream, and leave to start a new life. Years later, you find yourself back there. Your house key still works. A familiar looking kid looks at you and says, “Hey! Where’s my ice cream?”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"(this one is just for fun)... \n\nYou pack your bags in a hurry. Take only what you need to survive, you remind yourself in Spaceballs fashion (no giant hair dryers this time). You take what money you squirreled away from your wife. You take the spare car keys, swim trunks, toothbrush, a hat, sunscreen, grab some books from the shelf and a half finished bottle of whisky. You are a shambles in your planning, and erratic in your execution. But you will soon be free! \n\nYou just need to get the hell out of there now! You creep down the stairs, your kid, mindlessly playing games, doesn't notice you passing by the lounge room, your wife (on the phone of course) pays no mind when the front door opens and closes. You are almost gone when out the window your child yells 'Bring ice cream!!'. Yeah sure, no worries. Maybe you'll mail him some. \n\nYou are on the road! Freedom, exhilaration, escape. The wind in your hair. You are rid of them, a new adventure awaits! The New American Dream. Las Vegas? New York City? Los Angles or Tijuana? You wonder if you still have Jenny's number from all those years ago??\n\nThree years later, having just been released from a Mexico prison after being acquitted of fourteen counts of grand larceny, fraud and tax embezzlement, you retrieve your car out of storage, and drive like hell out of Mexico, leaving two women and three newborn children behind. You con your way back into the U.S of A and make your way back to the only place you can think of, where you may be able to make some sort of amends, perhaps?\n\nThe house looks the same, a little worse for wear, and your family car is still there. Papers are piling up at the door, and the grass is almost knee-high. \n\nYou go to knock on the door, but instead pull out your keys. The locks haven't been changed! You turn the key and the door opens. You hear the sound of your son, playing video games, and your wife is on the phone. \n\nA loud question bellows down the hallway 'Did you get the ice cream?!'\n\nYou come to the sudden, shocking and at-the-same-time obvious realisation... Your child is a dullard, and your wife was never even aware you were gone! \n\nYou pack your bags in a hurry, take only what you need to survive... you get the idea.",
"My first atempt so go easy on me, please!\n\n\n\n*Watching my kid in front of me as if nothing happened, that was... something else. For a second I thought I was losing my mind. I put my bag on the floor, aproached him, looked right through him. I wasn't paying atention to his curly hair, his pitch black eyes, I was looking at the mirror. I'm now sure I'm not mad, my face is not like how it was back then. My eyes are grey as they never were, my hair is slowly turning white, so that couldn't have been just a dream. I just started working on a shoes company, not a lot of money involved, but enough to make me live comfortably.*\n\n- But didn't you feel like something was off? - *The little boy said, in a mournfull way. Footsteps could be heard coming upstairs, but neither of us worried.*\n\n- Of course I did. I've been creative my whole life, being in a position where I just use the same methods of doing my job is just... frustrating.\n\n- But you didn't have to stop where you did, if you just had kept going forward you could've been so much more. - *The kid replied. He was right, and I knew it, but pretending that wasn't it is the only answer that wouldn't make me feel defeated. The footsteps get really loud and suddenly stop.*\n\n- I always belived you could be better, that you could experiment with new things, and that it'd make people arround you shocked at your work. - *The voice was both painful to hear and extremely calming. I looked behind me to see another boy, same black eyes but purple hair. An older face than the boy I watched discolour before me.*\n\n- Well, I just couldn't help it. Can you blame me, though? No way to go back to the way I was, my life was cut into pieces before my very own eyes, and after seing what I had become, I just stopped looking at all.\n\n- Did you achieve fame? Money? Women? Or even self acomplishment? - *The adolescent questioned me, even though he knew that if I had, I wouldn't be here in the first place.*\n\n- I did not come here to be asked questions, I came to ask for forgiveness before my time is up. That's why I got this. - *While I messed arround inside my backpack, both the boys were walking arround me. I take a grey box out of it.*\n\n- Strawberry? It... doesn't look very tasty. - *The kid replied.*\n\n- I know, you get used to it. - *I say, while I take three spoons out of the backpack. While closing my eyes, I take a spoonful.* - It tastes... pink.\n\n- It's, of course, not a hundred percent fruit, there's some sugar in it, of course it tastes pink. If you wanted to taste red, just buy a strawberry. - *The adolescent complained, while taking a spoonful of the ice cream. It's clear he liked it, but he wasn't going to say it.*\n\n- So now that that's settled, I want to say that... I'm sorry. I'm sorry I gave up all my dreams of becoming a painter just because of my achromatopsia. I'm sorry I settled for much less than I should've. And... I forgive me.\n\n*After the pink, came red. And after the red, came black.*"
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[WP] As an interstellar doctor, you’ve seen everything. Or so you thought until your assistant revealed what’s currently on the table in front of you...
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"Which part of it is the head?\" I asked, slipping a pair of sterile white gloves over my fingers, twiddling my fingers as I adjusted the latex, getting it perfect before I turned to face the body.\n\n\"Which head?\" An A.I voice chuckled, causing the doctor to let out a sigh, the mess of an alien was painful enough to look at without the stupid jokes.\n\n\"You know what I mean, hurry up, pull up some sort of schematic or something, have you identified what it is?\" I asked, unable to make heads or tails of the thing, it was bleeding a grey liquid though, its blood heavy, most likely containing some sort of metal flowing through it. \n\n\"What joke? It has two heads, if you look at it from the right you will be able to see another set of eyes near its shoulders.\" The scientist crouched by the creature's side, tapping its shoulder with a gloved finger only to have it's blue eyes shoot open, a scream leaving the aliens main mouth as the scientist panicked and decided to deliver another dose of anesthetic in the form of an elbow to its jaw. \n\n\"WHY DOES IT HAVE TWO HEADS!\" Doctor Heckyll found himself both disgusted and intrigued by the creature, The way its body seemed to groove and swerve, for something with such heavy blood, he expected it to be more solid, yet this alien was almost slinky like in its appearance. Tapping its stomach would cause it to ripple, sending a wave of flesh up and down the creature's body. \"Any idea what I am meant to be fixing?\" He went to grab his scalpel, fumbling it in his hands, nearly cutting himself on it, struggling to pull his eyes away from the strange sight. \n\n\"Well, the creature came in due to stomach pains, so maybe start there?\" The A.I somehow managed to give the impression it was shrugging despite its lack of body. \"We could just toss it out the airlock? I can't find any Schematic so It could be the last of it's kind, meaning no one will come searching if we just disposed of it. Are you sure a schematic is what we should be looking for? Seems like something people use for machines.\"\n\n\"If there are no schematics then it's unknown, most of our information ends up in some strange schematic. As much as I would love to give up on this surgery, I don't want to lose my medical licence again, so can you just put on some music and let me work, how hard can it be?\" \n\nHeckyll gave the creature's stomach a slice, watching its organs pop out like a jack in the box, spilling all over the floor. \"Is... It dead?\" He wondered, trying to pick up its heart, shoving it back into the creature's chest. struggling to get it passed the metallic chest cavity of the creature, eventually climbing up onto the operating table, stomping on the heart until it finally slipped back into its chest. \n\n\"Somehow it's alive.... See any signs of trauma or injury, apart from the injuries you inflicted?\" The A.I asked as a set of soothing piano music flowed through the operating room. \n\n\"Not really, I guess I'll just keep shoving organs back into it until I realize the problem?\" He had begun packing the organs back into the creature, luckily the rest going in a lot smoother, however, that's when he noticed a black ball on the floor, coated in spikes. \"Well... think I found out what was causing the pain.\" Carefully he went to grip the ball, only for it to bounce up revealing a shrimp-like creature with sharp teeth. The creature wobbled towards the doctor causing him to throw his scalpel at it. only for the shrimp to bite the scalpel, shooting bits of scrap metal around the room. \"ACTIVE SELF DEFENCE MEASURES!\" \n\n\"Stopping Sexy piano music Vol 2, beginning self-defence measures, please dive to the floor doctor.\" Heckyll dived to the floor, watching as the room began a laser light show, blue lights flashing before finally, the room went quiet. \"Target eliminated.\" Heckyll popped up from behind the operating table, staring at the body that was now missing its second head, a smear of black laser burns on the creature's shoulder.\n\n\"It only had one head when it came in right?\" He asked the A.I, beginning to stitch up the alien's stomach. \n\n\"No, it came in with tw- I mean all our reports seem to indicate it only had one head, the second must have been lost in another unrelated incident, if any medical insurance officers are listening to this procedure, he certainly had one head, doctor Heckyll has not committed a half-alien slaughter.\"\n\n\"Thanks... thanks for the reassurance.\" He muttered, finishing up the stitching job before he called for one of the medical robots to come and take the patient. Placing the body in it's arms. he whispered to the machine. \"If anyone asks, this one was treated by Doctor Jive.\" The robot nodded and sped off, banging the aliens head on the doorway as it sprinted him to the recovery ward.\n\n\"Isn't Doctor Jive the name you use when you mess up procedures doctor?\" The A.I asked, evaluating the current messy state of the operating room.\n\n\"No, of course not, Mr Jive is a real person as you know, all my procedures go through flawlessly, now um... Mind calling someone to help clean up this mess, I think I'll take my lunch break.\"\n\nr/pmmeyabootysstories",
"\"Alright, I've seen a lot. But what the *fuck* is that thing?\" I couldn't help but swear, even though I was being broadcast live on intergalactic TV. I've treated every known species in the galaxy: everything from humans, to pet bacteria (strangely enough), and even celestial beings who scraped their knee.\n\nBut this was something even *stranger*.\n\nI don't even know how to describe it. I can't even think of how to begin. It looked like everything and nothing at once. Have you ever read H.P. Lovecraft's stories? An ancient Earth writer; he described beings who embodied the very concept of Infinity. You couldn't even comprehend them, and it even drove some people to madness when they saw them.\n\nThink of something similar to that, just a lot smaller, and it didn't drive you completely insane. I apologized for my behavior, straightened myself, and got to work.\n\nThe procedure took several Earth-hours, but I'm happy to say that the patient lived through it, and I have another tally-mark etched into my notebook for species I've treated. 103 currently, including our most recent visitor. Maybe I'll treat you in the near-future, too. Until then!"
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[WP] Your normal next door neighbor in your apartment complex knocks on your door and you open it. He quickly hands you a handgun and a case of ammo; his final words before running down the stairs: "They're coming to get you, I'll hold them off as long as I can..."
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"...they won't stop unless you make it home free to the van!\" Tan yelled as he raced away and tore off the P90 strapped to his chest. I could hear furious men charging up as the stairway door slammed shut. The shooting began, and the shouting grew louder. Tan seemed like a normal guy. We were the same age, and he was always nice to me. But I recognize the situation and wasn't going to be a bitch about it.\n\nI duct tape the PP he handed me to my leg, pocket the rounds, and wack the door shut. Then I ran into my room, reached under my bed and ripped open the loaded AR five seven I stole from my gun-totting-police-chief-Republican stepdad. Fuck that guy. I strapped it to my back, spilled a mouthfull of Zero Ultra down my shirt, and ran back out to Tan.\n\n\"Tan! I got you pal!\" I shouted as I came through the stairwell doors. He was still pinned to the landing with two teams of men from above and below, secured with a couple of dead henchmen in front of him. \n\n\"No! I need you home free. This isn't going to stop until you get to home free!\" Tan growled at me through gritted teeth, \"Get there, alive. Don't fuck me on this, Splintz\"\n\nSeeing the growing swarm of military personnel coming at us, I fired off a few rounds into oncoming traffic and turn back. There were already soldiers in the hallway covering the door to my condo and I was forced to shoot open Tan's front door to escape, with henchmen close behind. They nearly grab me, but as get to the kitchen, a gorilla sized mystery man in size 21 Bates' tactical boots burst through the window over the sink. With broken glass still twinkling in the air, he screams at the top of his lungs: \"Splintz! With me! Now!\"\n\nWe were on the eighteenth floor. No way I was going to jump out of that window. But before I could say no, the mysterious giant threw loops of rope around me like a calf at a rodeo and yanked me outside. As I was rappelled to the ground, I could see Tan's place light up in a close range firefight. As soon as I touched down, a rattle of automatic rifle fire rained down on the ground around me. Just as I was about to run for cover, mister bigfoot came down and pushed me towards a waiting black van with the door wide open. \n\n\"Smitty's home free! Just keep going!\" he shouted, as he spun around to return fire.\n\nWanting to get mine, I look over my shoulder and let loose a volley of cover for the He Man. He seemed annoyed when I realized that clouds of booyaksha rose up like fireworks from behind. A unit of five stationed behind the van was returning fire at the building. \n\nAs I ran towards the van, I looked back and saw that they invaded my condo. In fact, they had made it to *all* the condos. On every balcony there were men in green fatigues shooting in my direction. \n\nWith all my strength, I rush towards the van, jump in, and the doors slam shut. I was out of breath, but otherwise in a good mood until I hear Smitty get a text. He reads the note and throws the phone away. \n\n\"Thank god. You're home free.\"\n\n\"What's going on? I literally have no idea who you or any of those guys were.\" \n\n\"Splintz Raatz. You bastard. Those were cops. We're the robbers. Get you home free, and we win the game.\"\n\n\"What game?\"\n\n\"Don't worry. You win. Now, take that little number,\" Smitty pointed at the PP taped to my leg, \"and take it to the next person you see. That person need to get home free, which is the Pier. Help get them there, and we win.\"\n\n\"And if I don't\"\n\n\"We shoot them, and you're it again.\"\n\nJust then I get a text from Tan: *don't fuck me on this one Splintz. This is the third time I've been it and we don't have many robbers left. I'm done. Whoever you give it to, you and me are going to get to home free. Text me back. Tan.*\n\n\"So, who you gonna pick? Have to tell us soon pally, that's the rules,\" Smitty said.\n\nI look up. Think a bit, and say \"Smitty, take me to 15 Walker Road. I want to see my stepdad.\""
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[WP] A witch and a scientist spend the evening debating on whether magic is a form of science or not.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The flame danced along the witch’s hand. \nThe scientist created a formula and put his heat proof glove into it. It too created a flame. \n“Your magic is just unexplained science.”\nThe witch looked annoyed about this comment, she was familiar with this crap from those who saw the world in this arcane manor. “I don’t know how many times I have told you this, magic is simply magic.”\nThe scientist scoffed at this. “Everything you claim is special about your magic is just a chemical reaction. It can be explained rationally.” Replied the scientist. \n“What will it take for you to stop trying to box everything?”\n“For you to tell me everything.”\n\nAs the fire danced around the two women, the lighting shifted to a deep vibrant blue. “You’re the first illiterate to know about magic since the dark ages,”\n“I know how special you make me feel,” the scientist chided\nBlushing slightly the witch continued, “that is for good reason, because of you’re limited worldview, you destroy everything that is different.”\n“Now that is ridiculous, science is all about proving and disproving, well everything. And what does this have to do with magic being science?”\n“We are getting there... and so, after the with hunts we did the unthinkable. We destroyed all traces of magic on this world. Could you destroy all traces of science?”\n“Well, I don’t think so.”\n“This action ripped our souls. We destroyed all magical creatures, hubs of magic and we hid ourselves away.”\n“So you witches are all that remain?”\n“And the world has become less special since. It has fallen into disrepair. Surely you feel a kind of emptiness?”\nThe scientist looked flummoxed. She was trying to hide her reaction. \n“Magic is that missing part. It is that which connects us to one another and everything else. Magic cannot be studied. It cannot be understood. Look at how much effort it took for your science to approximate it poorly.” \nThe room filled with a light that warmed both women inside and out. The table they were both sitting at shifted from metal to plastic. It was transparent one second, opaque the next. The walls of the small room fell away and the world at large was visible. Where every wall had been, the world outside at a different time period sat. The witch stood up, her hand exuding with ice and fire, light and darkness, light and almost nothingness. “Magic,” smiled the witch, “it is the gateway to everything. To try to box it as a science is ludicrous.”\nThe scientist stood up and held the witch’s hands which was still bristling with energy. \n“Just be home by seven sweetie, I made your soup with my mortal soup machine, I like to understand things.”\nThe two women left their normal looking house, which had a garden which was maintained almost too well.",
"The room was lit. Only dimly, but still moreso than Indira was comfortable with. The Craft required focus, and that was best achieved when you could only see the glow of the cauldron before you. It was also achieved in silence, broken only by incantations and the occasional shrill cackle. Apparently, she would not have any of these luxuries today.\n\n“So what happens if you mix the same reagents but use different enchantments? Does it produce a new effect? Or does it just fizzle out?” Jane clicked a pen and jotted the question down in a notebook.\n\n“You’re awfully inquisitive.” Indira did her best to ignore her latest unexpected visitor as she tried to identify where that bubbling noise was coming from. Something important was being left unattended, wasn’t it?\n\n“Yeah. I’m a scientist. It’s, like, my job. I have to hash out how this all works, y’know?”\n\n“I’d suggest that you not worry about it. The complexities of magic could never be comprehended by your… narrow mind. Not your fault.”\n\nJane looked up from sketching something in her notebook. “Hm? Why not? It’s just another type of science.”\n\nIndira whirled around to face Jane. “It is not!” she hissed. “And I take offense to the idea that it could be. Magic is infinitely more complex in it’s… it’s processes, it’s execution, it’s goals. It is nothing like science!”\n\n“Mmm… I dunno about that one. I mean, this place looks a lot like a lab to me. A really, really unsafe one.” Jane flinched as she stubbed her toe on a table leg, its contents rattling dangerously in response.\n\n“It ‘looks like’ a lab,” Indira scoffed. “So does a sufficiently expensive kitchen. Are the culinary arts a science as well, then?”\n\n“I mean… Kinda?” Indira rolled her eyes. She wasn’t sure why she’d even let Jane in here in the first place. She’d saved Jane after finding her lost in the woods, and that was hospitality enough without letting the scientist into her home. Now the place was far too well-lit, the short blue hair of a profoundly curious scientist flitting about the place, another distraction. A horrid state of affairs.\n\nStill, they continued like this for some time. Jane asking about the Craft. Indira providing non-responses. It didn’t dissuade the former, but definitely annoyed the latter.\n\n“I noticed none of your tubes or cylinders have volume markings. When you’re brewing potions and whatnot - do you just, like, eyeball it, or is that not necessary? ‘Cause when I’m doing sciencey stuff-“\n\nIndira groaned. “Enough. Magic is not science. It is nothing like science! It is… warm, where science is cold. Alive where science is dead. It is not so rigid… Everything is always changing, everything is…” She paused, then shrugged. “It’s hard to describe. I’m not a bard.”\n\nJane was listening intently. After a second, she said, “Yeah, but… are you eyeballing it, or what?”\n\nIndira raised an eyebrow in amusement. “If you really must put it that way… Yes, I eyeball it. It’s not a big deal as long as the amount isn’t significantly off.”\n\n“Huh. So what’s the, like, margin of error for it then? Show me?”\n\nAgainst her better judgement, Indira found herself spending the night showing Jane how magic worked. A few cantrips, here and there. Jane, of course, could not cast even the simplest one, but it was entertaining to watch her try. But that wasn’t what Jane asked most of her questions about.\n\n“Why do you ask so many questions about alchemy?” Indira ventured to ask some time after midnight.\n\nJane looked up from a bottle of something living, that she’d been sketching into her notebook. “Oh, well, it feels the most familiar to me. The reagents are weird, we’re using cauldrons, and it’s uncomfortably, uh, loosey-goosey with measurements, but aside from that, it’s just like chemistry. Y’know, science.”\n\nIndira pinched the bridge of her nose.\n\n“Aw, c’mon, Indira. Just because it’s not as precise as chemistry doesn’t mean it ain’t as scientific. There are still rules to it, y’know? And you can run experiments, make discoveries, replicate results. That’s science.”\n\n“Jane, the results of alchemy routinely violate scientific laws. How is that a form of science?”\n\nJane looked puzzled by the question. “Yeah, I know. I mean, it’s like… The science, of, um, breaking science. I guess.”\n\n“That’s stupid.” Indira frowned. “You’re stupid.”\n\nJane laughed. “Stop! I’m not a bard either, okay? You gotta trust me. Your magic, my science - two sides of the same coin. Oh my God, speaking of coins, can you turn a penny into like, gold? That should have been the first thing I asked!” Indira rolled her eyes, but as Jane took off her backpack and crouched down to search through it for a penny, she smiled.\n\nIndira doubted that she would ever agree with Jane. As far as she was concerned, magic was magic, and science was science. Their overlap was cause for conflict, their similarities a source of strife. But as long as Jane disagreed, Indira was happy to spend the nights figuring it out together."
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[WP] You are part of a secret society and you forgot the overly complicated password to enter the secret lair.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"The winged hat flies like the great.... magician.\"\n\nNate gulped. He had forgotten the words to the secret entrance! He took a guess on the last word. But there was no way it would work.\n\n\"Hold on, hold on.\" Said the guard. \"You forgot the password, didn't you?\"\n\nNate looked at the floor and nodded.\n\n\"Well. We're in a bit of a bind then.\" Said the guard. \"You see, I forgot the password too. I was hoping that you'd remembered it. But seem's how you've forgotten it, I'm required to kill you. But seem's how I've forgotten it, you're required to kill me. So how about we call it even and forget that all of this ever happened.\"\n\n\"No,\" said Nate. \"I am guilty of forgetting the password. If death is my punishment, then so be it. Rules are rules.\"\n\n\"Now hold on, hold on, that's not going to work.\" Said the guard. \"If I do that, they'll ask me why I did. And they might ask me how I knew his password was bad, and then they'll know that I didn't know, so that's no good you see. How about this, I'll open the door for you now, and you'll just go along in, and-\"\n\n\"Rules,\" said Nate. \"are rules. I am prepared for my punishment. And after that, I'll kill you too and we'll be even.\"\n\n\"Now hold on there, that seems completely unnecessary,\" said the guard. \"We're even now, why complicate it?\"\n\n\"What's all this commotion,\" said Dan, who had just arrived.\n\n\"I have forgotten the password. I am prepared for the punishment of death.\" Said Nate.\n\n\"There is no password,\" said Dan, shaking his head. \"The Zombie club is always like this. You'd figure that for someone that ate brains all day, you'd have enough to remember that.\"\n\nNate's arm fell off.\n\nThe guard's leg fell off too.",
"“The falcon flies at the crack of dawn,\n\nThe bell rings to tell us the moon is gone,\n\nStars disappear except for one which is near,\n\nAnd under its light we should never need fear.”\n\n“Nope, Ron. That’s not the password this week.”\n\nI blinked a few times as the response made its way through my tired brain. Not the password? That couldn’t be right. I cleared my throat and tried again, this time with much more gusto and a deep resonance that would’ve made any movie announcer proud.\n\n“The falcon flies at the crack of—”\n\n“Ron,” The voice behind the door interjected agitatedly. “It wasn’t the password the last time you said it, and it’s not gonna be the password this time either.”\n\nI stared glumly at the wooden door. It wasn’t a special door, or even a fancy one, really. Yet the voice behind the door seemed to think it was the most prestigious door in existence. If I had to take a guess, he probably looked at that door like it was made of pure gold. Or diamonds, maybe. But it wasn’t made of gold. Or diamonds. It was made of some sort of wood, oak probably. On this side at least. I couldn’t say for certain what he was looking at.\n\n“Listen, I know for a fact this is the right password. I read it on the forums!”\n\n“Ron, come on now, you think we’d post the password on a public forum?”\n\n“BigDaddy69 swore it was right this time!” I heard snickering from behind the door and frowned. The crudeness of the username had escaped me before saying it out loud. Dammit.\n\n“Come on, I’m here every week… you know I’d be a loyal member!” I pleaded. I’d been up all night trying to find the damn phrase online, so give me a break. If you were in my shoes, you’d be just as desperate.\n\n“It’s precisely for that reason we are *not* letting you inside, Ron! It’s getting creepy,” said the voice.\n\nCreepy? What was creepy was a bunch of guys not letting me into their secret meeting. I *deserved* to be part of that. I’m cool enough, I swear!\n\n“Listen.. I…” Suddenly, an idea dawned on me, “I have pizza! I brought pizzas for everyone!”\n\nThere was a silence from behind the door and then some shuffling. Hushed whispers floated out from underneath the door. I held my breath and crossed my fingers.\n\nThe voice suddenly called out, “You have pizza?”\n\n“Yes!” I responded, probably way too quickly. “I have three!”\n\nMore silence. Then, suddenly, to my own amazement, I heard a lock slide and a doorknob start to turn. My eyes widened as a glorious creak came from the door slowly being opened. The corners of my mouth started to turn up and a wild ecstasy erupted from somewhere deep inside me that I never knew existed. In short, I had a shit-eating grin on my face.\n\nAnd then the door slammed shut and wiped my smile away.\n\n“You don’t have pizza, Ron. Go home.”\n\nI tried begging and pleading a few more times, but the voice stopped responding. After a few minutes, I decided to give up for the night. \n\nI walked a few doors down the hall and went back into my lonely dorm room. I opened my laptop in the dark, and the light from the screen lit up my face with an eerie glow.\n\nTime to start researching for next week."
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[WP] The story is from the perspective of a man named Eric Morison who is fighting to survive during an apocalypse. Eric believes he has found what may be the cure for infection and he hopes he will be able to save everyone.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The only thing that I could think was WHY ME?\nHi. My name is Eric Morison, And I founded the cure to the zombie apocalypse.\nSeriously, I wasn't some hero. I was NO scientist. I wasn't a chemist, or a biologist looking into the effects of chemicals on the body after infection. I was fighting for my fucking life. I was literally grabbing anything that would come to my hand easily. I swung my baseball bat first. I had dug it out of the garage after hearing the sounds of the mob growing outside. I only caught the attention of one of them in my front window, but one was all it took to shatter the large pane of glass. They hurled themselves through it without a thought of the pain that would ensue. And of course after a few swings of my bat, it was slowed, but refused to stop moving. Crawling with the one arm I hadn't broken towards me, I grabbed a bottle of Windex, Simple, over the counter windex. I sprayed her in the face, and her screams turned quickly from howling dead screams to that of a living human once again. Her gashes and broken bones of course remained bloody and broken, and within minutes, she had died before me in a puddle of her own blood, begging me for help. \n\nWhat the fuck?\nWindex? The last fucking thing in the world that people would be going out to raid from stores, was the most likely solution we had to solving it, and it took one spritz to instantly return the dead to the living, if even just for long enough to die. \n\nI was busy testing my theory for the next month. I couldn't just burst into the whitehouse with the news after one success. I had to know for sure.Does spraying windex at those fuckers make them turn human again? I started with my friend of many years. It was easy to find his walking corpse. He was bit quickly and hid himself in his house. He let me know just before he turned. I heard the whole thing over the phone. I hopped in my car and took off with my new found hope, and quickly entered the residence through the second story window I knew was never locked... From expeirnece. I cracked the window wide enough to get the spray bottle in and then the thing bolted for me. I spritzed Riley in the face, and all of a sudden it was Riley's face again. He sneezed, and then screamed, And then he grabbed at his bitten arm, and screamed again at the pain of both being sprayed in the face with windex, as well as the pain of a bite mark on his arm that was now pumping blood onto the floor once again. I climbed in and helped him to the bathroom where we cleaned the wound and I explained our perdicament. \n\n\"Fucking Windex?\" He asked.\n\n\"Fucking Windex. I promise, I couldn't make this shit up if I tried. I have no idea why it works. It has to be something, but it's FAST acting. Like the minute you were sprayed, you came back to me. I only tried it one other time and the bitch bled out on my rug at home. I seriously thought I was dead meat for a minute there.\"\n\nThe look on Riley's face was pure excitement as the lightbulb went off above his head. \"Water guns. I have so many in the garage. Lets go raid home depot.\" \n\nAnd just that simply, we were off. We raided the local hardware stores for more windex. Tested out the other verisons of the compound, and found that only windex with a substantial amount of 2-hexoxyethanol was effective. The special eco-friendly shit, doesn't cut it quite right. With that knowledge, we began travelling from california to DC. We were ready to tell the world. We just needed someone important to listen. The Journey begins for Riley, and Eric Morison."
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[WP]You are the smartest kid in high school. Scary smart actually; you regularly build machines that break the laws of physics. Some adore you and some fear you. There are even some who want you dead. You often triumph, however. In your senior year you notice a few teachers are watching you closely.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"*A drop of sweat rolls down your right temple soaking into your stubble*\n\nThe clock ticks impatiently in the background, students flipping over to the next page of this endless test, number 2 pencils sketching out possible failures and successes. Question 8 out of 47 awaits me, Mr. Green does too. Awaiting my next move, not answer, move. I just know he saw that sweat drop, if I wipe it I fear he might flunk me out of this whole entrance exam. I slowly look up to see the Qing, with her hot pink hair tie holding that too tight of a pony tail on the tippy top of her head. As I did so, I hear a light throat clearing. My eyes dart across the gym, meeting the gaze of all 7 teachers against the blue tarp wall. The sound could have came from any of them but I decide to take it as my cue to finish and get out of here. \n*Marcus has 20 kilometers wor...*\nI fill in B. No doubt about it. I ignore the full page worth of space normal students should fill with their nonsense \"work\". I flip to the next page. I do it slow, careful not to set off any alarms for poor Ms. Lindsey who seems like she wants to point out I'm something other than human, shes quite twitchy. Alright question 9 through 13 all have to do with this..and *A. C. -579 2 A.*\nSee this is simple Yiri, no need to worry about some old hags flunking you. Mr. Brody walks by looking over all of are papers and of course. Stopping right next to me, pausing for a moment before drawing the room's attention to him. \n*\"Remember ladies and gentlemen. Make sure to read each question. CAREFULLY\"* He pressed on the carefully just as hard as he pressed his heel down on the floor when he took his steps away from my desk. I smirked, turning the page. The rest of the test was a breeze, of course it was difficult deciding which points I should loose, filling in stupid answers or erasing some and replacing with others. I may be the smartest kid here but I have to keep within reason, attention has never been my forte. \n\nAs I walk out of that stuffy gymnasium with all the other seniors taking their college exams, I casually eavesdrop in on a group of girls. \n*\"I heard he's like a super genius, I wonder why he would wanna go to that college\"* said the girl with the neon yellow shirt\n*\"I heard its because the teachers have a bet on him\"* Says the girl with the straight black hair\n*\"A bet..? For what..?\"* Although she may be turned around, she was definitely the dumb blonde of the group\nThe straight black hair smacked her mouth and bonked the \"blonde\" one over the head *\"You never listen to anything! Theres a huge bounty for him. Proving his a super genius will earn the person who steps up a load of cash\"* \n\nAt this point I've heard enough and decide I would rush past them, just as I was tapped on the shoulder. \n\"Yiri?\" \nI draw in a deep breathe. Turning around to see Mr. Brody. He had what looked like a test booklet in his hands. Which may I ask is against the rules; they get sent off to our designated colleges for results. \n\"Yes sir?\"\nHis eyes stared at me in shock for a second as if surprised I actually spoke to him, \"Uh- well..\" He fumbles with the booklet flipping through to a page. \"You showed no work. We believe that you cheated on the test.\" He points to the multi-questions 9 through 13. I let out the breathe I'd been holding before speaking.\n\"That is for my designated school to decide sir, not you. You are in no position to make that call nor act upon it.\" By that first sentence he was already fuming, by the end of my last he had lunged at me tearing at my hair ripping pieces and shaking me till I saw stars. I paid it no mind, in moments there were people getting him off me and others who I've never met helping me up dusting me off asking the young presumed questions. \n\nI chuckle pressed the watch on my wrist, the machine I created that instantly healed any pain or wounds. Never thought it would come in handy in a situation like this. I turned around picking up my booklet and walking back to the testing area.\n\n\n\"I guess I could just build something to make them think I'm dumb..\" I contemplated as I gave Mr. Green my booklet and explained to him everything that happened. And of course he thought I was cheating."
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[WP] When You wake up, you realize you don’t even know your own name.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Once I woke up, I realized I was on my back and staring at a ceiling I didn't recognize. I stared at the ceiling tiles for some time, trying to remember where I was or how I came to be there. The window to my right had bright gray light shining through. It was a cloudy day. It made me squint.\n\n\nNothing sparked a memory.\n\n\nI ran a hand over my head and sat up, wincing because I was hurt. My chest was bandaged tightly and I had an IV catheter in my left arm.\n\n\n\"Ah, you're awake,\" an older woman said, walking into the room. She was in her fifties and wearing blue nursing scrubs.\n\n\nI didn't know who she was.\n\n\n\"You were in a nasty accident,\" she continued, checking the catheter line from my arm. \n\n\nI realized I didn't know who I was.\n\n\nI started to try to speak but I couldn't open my mouth. My jaw was wired shut.\n\n\n\"Don't panic,\" she said gently. \"Your jaw was broken so it had to be wired shut.\"\n\n\nI started to cry. What happened to me?\n\n\n\"I understand you may be confused. We'll get something for you to write on.\" The woman took out a syringe and injected something into my IV line. It felt warm.\n\n\nWho was *we*?\n\n\nThe woman left after touching my shin in a bid for comfort. It didn't help.\n\n\nI was left with so many questions.\n\n\nNot too long after the woman left, I slumped back down into the bed and passed out.\n\n\n}±{\n\n\n*I dreamt of a long road, matte black asphalt going in a straight direction toward large, green mountains. I was walking in the middle of the road toward the mountains alone.*\n\n\n}±{\n\n\nI woke again on my back.\n\n\nNothing was familiar. The window on my left was dark, indicative of the night. \n\n\nHadn't the window been on the right?\n\n\nI couldn't remember.\n\n\nMy jaw ached. I reached up to touch my face when an older woman came in--\n\n\nNo, she was the same as the one I had seen before.\n\n\n\"You're awake,\" she said in a soft tone. \n\n\nI felt my eyes watering. I was frustrated and so confused.\n\n\n\"Oh, honey, it's okay,\" she cooed at me. \n\n\n\"Help,\" I breathed out through clenched teeth. \n\n\n\"I am, sweetie.\" She checked my IV like last time and pushed something through it. It felt warm in my arm. My head swam. \"Just rest.\"\n\n\nMy eyes fluttered closed against my will and I slept once again.\n\n\n}±{\n\n\n*I was walking a beautiful green trail in the mountains. The soil underneath my feet was soft and pliable. I came across a building that was constructed right into the side of one of the mountains.*\n\n\n}±{\n\n\nI woke groggy and weak. I couldn't sit up. I could hardly keep my eyes open. \n\n\nSomething was wrong. \n\n\nI couldn't remember what but I knew something was wrong. \n\n\nI forced myself to sit up and put my legs over one side of the bed. I used the IV pole to stand. I was so weak. \n\n\nI stumbled out of my room and into the hall. When I looked around, I couldn't see anything. The halls were pitch black and empty.\n\n\nI walked carefully down a hall toward what appeared to be the nurse's station. No one was there.\n\n\n\"Dear, what are you doing up?\" The older woman was behind me.\n\n\nI flinched, startled, and looked back at the woman. \"Help,\" I repeated.\n\n\n\"We are, honey,\" she said, her voice soothing. I realized she never blinked. \"Come back to bed.\" \n\n\n\"Doctor,\" I forced out through my teeth. \"Where--\" I winced. It was hard to talk around the wires in my mouth.\n\n\n\"He's gone for the night. Come now, come to bed.\" The woman guided me, forced me, back to the room. I tried to look at my room number but I was escorted too quickly. \"You must be so sore.\"\n\n\n\"I'm not,\" I tried to answer. \"Please, no--\"\n\n\n\"Let's get in bed now.\" The woman got me in bed.\n\n\nI pawed at the IV weakly. \"No more, please.\"\n\n\n\"You must hurt so much,\" she said sadly. \"Just rest.\"\n\n\nI watched uselessly as she injected more medicine into my IV line. As I drifted off again, the only thing I knew, the only thing I was truly sure of, was that I needed to escape this place.\n\n\n\nr/thetreesandthestars"
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[WP] "It's okay, It's okay." Joe told himself, his heart racing, as the aliens came closer to the table he was lying on. They inject him with something, but then he suddenly awakes in his own bed. Joe tries to convince himself it was all a dream. But he soon learns it wasn't.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Eventually, the eldritch song could not be ignored. No matter what he did, he could not tune it out. Wherever he went, whoever he talked to, the singular pipe melody would strain itself into his ears. It seemed to be loudest in his dreams, louder than whatever noise the streets produced, cutting through the pillows he wrapped around his head.\n\nHis house, his family, his job, all of it seemed less and less real by the day. Whatever concerns he had could not overcome that damned tune. It was about a month after the incident that Joe decided to go to the root of the problem.\n\nHe followed the clues like he did the first time. Going back to that same dodgy website, with the address still emblazoned on its basic HTML interface in the most disgusting Comic Sans imaginable, Joe sighed as he saved the address to his phone and drove into the maw of madness. The song had become even more undecipherable as he made his way to the alleyway where it had all started.\n\n\"Hey!\" Joe spotted the man who started all this, and ran to the silhouetted figure. It was hardly necessary.\n\n\"I want to know why I feel this way.\" The figure stood still, unflinchingly stiff against the tired, panting man in front of it.\n\n\"That alien shit! Was it all a dream!?\" Joe shook the figure in front of him, and the pipe melody slowed to a standstill.\n\n*No, you fool.* It is *all a dream, what you are in now. Did you really think you could use our technology without us noticing? It's time to pay the Piper.*\n\nJoe struggled. He really tore into the figure, trying to rip it limb from limb. But with every strike, his punches faded as did his vision. What was he seeing now? An operating table? Medical instruments? His body, stripped naked, supine on a platform with machines and tubes running out of every orifice and limb. But even that blurred too."
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[WP] In the not too distant future medical nanobots have been distributed to most of the human population, curing most disease. However, there is a catch, voting software has been released which causes the nanobots to kill a person if 100,000 people vote against them.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"In the beginning, the voting software update to our medical nanobots was wildly popular – it was touted as a revolutionary new form of justice. A true trial by your peers. If enough people believed you should die, then you did. And if so many people believed this to be a just punishment, who could argue with it? \n\nWhat we didn’t realize is the level of hate that every celebrity in the world garnered from a subsection of the population. The amount of death votes necessary was set to 100,000 – and at first it is believed that some people didn’t realize that this was serious. \n\nThe president of the United States died the first day the update went live. Most members of congress shared his fate within hours. The supreme court was devoid of life by the afternoon. The line of succession, as it became more publicized, was largely wiped out. Heads of state around the world shared their fates. We were leaderless. Next came the wealthy. The elite were wiped out within the first week as well. The crime of greed carrying more weight in the eyes of the public than almost any other. \n\nAdults watched helplessly as their sources of information, safety, and ambition succumbed to the will of the masses. Teens, who were without the ability to vote on death until they were 18, flooded the streets in vigil as celebrity after celebrity succumbed to the death vote. By week two all entertainment had gone dark. Most Youtube celebrities were dead. Major movie celebrities had been all but wiped out. Tom Hanks, one of the few celebrities that appeared to not have a large hate following, put out a message at the end of week three begging for people to stop voting for the death of people they disliked. A post on 4chan calling for his death garnered enough support for him to be dead within 24 hours. \n\nAt this, all major broadcasting and news stopped. Journalists were afraid to write, the few remaining politicians were in hiding, and production on all movies ceased as the actors either dropped dead or went into hiding hoping to be forgotten. At the end of the first month the cleansing of Instagram was almost complete. Every major influencer was dead. People were afraid to post to social media, the desperation for likes, follows, and fame replaced with the necessity of obscurity. And so, the world was plunged into darkness. All of the most famous people in the world were dead. \n\nThe masses begged for the update to be rescinded, but with the developer of the software receiving 100,000 votes shortly after the update was released no one was quite sure how. He had intentionally made it difficult to remove, as he knew it would be controversial. And so, the world became less connected. What remained of the government put out a second update, allowing people to track their own vote count. This allowed local entertainment to exist, but if an artist received too many votes they would retire immediately. People deleted social media, kept to their inner circle, and became acutely aware of their treatment of others. \n\nThis was because sometime in the third month the first non-famous person died from vote count. He was just a prick, and had racked up votes organically by pissing off everyone he interacted with. Of course, there was no media to report this. But word of mouth was quite good enough between the groups and people began to watch their vote counts more closely. Interactions became more cordial, outbursts less frequent. Websites were created where users could post video evidence of crimes – justice was swift. With no entertainment to keep them busy, the people of the world relished the opportunity to enact their punishment. Small crimes became grounds for death. \n\nBy the end of six months crime had all but stopped. The people of the world had saved themselves from fear of crime and violence with their insatiable taste for deadly justice – but had ironically lost all sense of safety and security in the process. Any act might be deemed death worthy in the new update era. And all of the world’s verdicts are final."
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[WP] You have died, but the figure you meet in the afterlife isn't God or the Devil. It's something else entirely.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The first sensations was fullness. Not full of love or peace or joy or anything. Full of water. I coughed furiously as water spouted from my mouth. My body turned itself over in reflex and I vomited salty ocean water onto the ground. I gripped the ground--sand. The world was hazy and dizzy and spinning. \n\nI vomited until I was empty and plopped my heaving body onto the soft earth. My brain cycled through periods brief of delusional consciousness and long dark sleeps. \n\nWhen I woke all the way up after an indescribable amount of time, my head was pounding and my mouth was filled with sand. I struggled to my feet, rubbing my sore eyes and spitting crunchy granules of sand all the way up. When my vision finally returned, I looked out on where I washed up from.\n\nThe ocean was a luminescent blue below a sky filled with swirling, bright galaxies and space clouds. I rubbed my eyes again and peered out on the cosmic horizon. Where the hell am I?\n\n\"Good morning!\" A voice called behind me. \n\nI turned around to see a wall of thick brush--tress and bushes and vines--and a man sitting on a rock in front of it all. He was tying the laces on one of his boots, his eyes firmly fixed on the task.\n\n\"Hi,\" I said. Or, I should say, tried to say. What came out instead was a croak from my dry throat. I tried to clear it, but there was no saliva to lubricate the pipes. \"Water,\" I croaked to him. \n\nThe man looked up at me through his old, squinting eyes, sizing me up. He threw me a canteen and I fumbled the catch. He exhaled a mocking chuckle as I picked the metal container and unscrewed the top desperately. I drank in large gulps, causing another coughing spasm and spilling most of the remainder of the container on the sand.\n\n\"Sorry,\" I said as soon as I could breathe again. \n\nThe man shrugged as he tended to the other boot. \n\nI cleared my throat with success and walked the canteen back, not wanting my throwing arm judged as harshly as my catching skills. \"Where are we?\" I asked.\n\n\"At the end,\" he said, receiving the canteen.\n\n\"The end of what?\"\n\n\"All of it.\"\n\nI waited a few seconds to see if he was going to elaborate on that any more. He didn't. \"All of what?\"\n\nHe tongued the inside of his lip as he pondered the question. \"The words are... tough...\"\n\n\"I can take it.\" \n\n\"Tough to say. Not tough to hear. But I suppose they would be that too.\" He pulled a leather bag from behind his back. \"It's a thing better demonstrated than spoken.\" From the bag he pulled a pistol and a machete and a stop watch. \n\n\"Two minutes,\" he said as he thumbed the top buttons. \n\n\"Two minutes until what?\" \n\n\"That's your head start,\" he nodded to the dense forest behind him. \n\n\"Before what?\" \n\nHe pulled the hammer back on the pistol and aimed the gun at me. \"Before we start finding out what you learned in all your time.\"\n\nI recoiled from the long barrel staring me down. \"What!? I don't know how t--\"\n\n\"One minute, forty-five seconds.\"\n\n\"Wait, hold on... I need to know what's going on here. Last thing I knew I was driving home, and then--\"\n\n\"One minute, thirty seconds.\"\n\n\"Goddammit!\" I ran into the pitch-black forest. Vines and twigs and branches slapped me in the face and whipped at my exposed skin. I ran for as long as I could, tripping and falling in mud, ignoring odd animal noises in my surroundings.\n\nI stopped to catch my breath and give my pounding head a rest. \n\nA loud horn blew somewhere in the forest but I couldn't tell its direction. The round trembled and red light filled the sky. I could finally see my surroundings.\n\nBut I wish I didn't.",
"From the emptiness a flicker of light came. \n\nI found myself sitting on a couch in an empty apartment. It all felt so familiar, as if I had been here before. But when? \n\n\n\"Cara?\"\n\nThe words escaped me before I could even process them. Moments later, it hit me. She was my girlfr- no. She was my wife. My dead wife. But then why do I feel like she should just be in the bedroom. The bedroom of our apartment. That's where I am. Our first apartment. But why? We had a house. We had adopted two kids. We had retired. Why would I be here again? Was it all a dream? Did none of that ever happen?\n\nI called for her again.\n\nStill no response. \n\nI walked to the bedroom. The door was shut. \n\nThe door was shut. \n\nThe door we never had. The previous tenants had torn it from the walls during some fight they had. The landlord always promised he would replace it, but he never did so we just hung up a curtain made to look like a door. We took it with us when we left and it found its way to the back of our camper where it hung in front of the bed. I miss those adventures we had now. The kids never understood why we kept an old, stained curtain that looked like a door with us. \n\nThe stain that came from our first real fight. She wanted to continue to travel. I wanted to settle down. I wish knew then she was afraid that when we did, I would get bored or her. Or how terrified she was that any kids we adopted would be mocked for having two mothers. And how she thought that settling down meant putting this life completely behind us. Instead, I pushed only how I felt and how great I thought it would be. She got frustrated with me and tried to storm off, slipped, and spilled the wine all over the curtain as her head hit the doorway. As I drove us to the hospital, she just sat there apologizing for messing up the curtain. As though the blood she was trying to keep in her head wasn't the most important thing at hand. Even after she got out of the ER, she kept apologizing. I kept it because it was a reminder for me to listen. Something I had never truly done before that night.\n\nBut now the curtain was gone. Decades of memories wiped away with only a little sticky note saying \"I got it fixed!\" to remember it by.\n\nI opened the door to see another living room. This time it was of our first house. The one we raised the kids in. Was she here? I ran across the living room to the stairs and cut my foot on a shard of broken glass. The coffee table was shattered. \n\nJames and Kelsey had been playing tag inside that day when Kelsey accidentally knocked the glass off. I remember how worried the baby sitter looked when I got home from a rough day at work. How she stammered when I asked what happened. Trying to tell me how she would help me fix it in any way she could. Trying to take all the blame since she told them to just play inside when it started raining. \n\nBut I also remember the look on Kelsey's face. She was begging me not to send her back. I don't think I had ever truly felt my heart break before that moment. Her previous foster family had apparently told her they didn't want a clumsy child when she broke a plate. She was 7. I sent the babysitter home and had Kelsey help me clean it up. I bought a new one made of wood and told her it was so that she and James wouldn't have have to worry about breaking this one if they ever played inside again. She broke the leg 6 months later and we decided on no coffee table until she was older. When she moved out, we bought one for her and teased her about being sure not to break this one. She would send us a coffee table update every couple of months and it became a long running joke between us.\n\nI ran upstairs and in the hallway, only one door was there. It was the door to James' room. It was locked. He had only locked his door once. The night he brought his first girlfriend home and the only time my wife had ever exploded in anger.\n\nHe had been dating her for a few months by then and he wanted her to meet us. He saw nothing different about us and had never even thought to mention it to her. But she did, and she firmly believed it was wrong. She started off trying to be polite, but kept making comments under her breath about how wrong it all was. One of them was not so quiet and everyone at the table heard. James was embarrassed and ran upstairs. And to my wife, every concern she had ever felt when we began this process came back to her in that moment. And she lost it. It took weeks for her to stop worrying about how the kids might be treated at school. Which only stopped when she learned that most didn't care.\n\nThe door finally opened and I walked through. Now I was in a hospital room and I had just been born. Another door and I was watching my daughter getting her doctorate. Another door and I was sitting in the ER with a broken foot. \n\nI kept going through these doors. Watching all of my life happen before me. The day my car broke down and I met Cara, the person who would tow my car across the state. The night we could finally get married. My first soccer game to my last. My parents claiming I was no longer their child to the days I met my own children for the first time. My wife taking her last breath. And then watched me take my own.\n\nI took my last breath. James was sitting there with his wife across the room, Kelsey holding my hand saying it's okay and I could let go now.\n\nI let go. I was 89 years old.\n\nIn a hospital room surrounded by people I could barely remember, I closed my eyes. And I took one last breath.\n\nI had died. That's where I was. Not a dream. Not waking up from a dream. I was dead. And it was dark again.\n\nFootsteps approached me, and I felt a hand take mine. A hand I had felt before.\n\n\"Cara?\" I asked. One last time.\n\n\"If that's who you want me to be, then yes.\"\n\n\"Who are you, then?\"\n\n\"I'm the gatekeeper. I watch people's lives and decide what happens to them.\"\n\n\"Where do I go, then?\"\n\n\"Depends.\"\n\n\"Depends on what?\"\n\n\"Are you satisfied?\"\n\n\"I don't know. I wish that I could have spent more time with the ones that I love.\"\n\n\"I understand.\"\n\nFrom the emptiness came a flash of light.\n\n\"What do you want to name her, ma'am?\" Came a voice from a man with a greenish body.\n\nA soft voice responded: \"Cara. I think it's a beautiful name.\""
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[WP] You realise aliens have have been listening to us all along. They sent thier spies as a reconnaissance mission. The spies took the form of dogs. Realising this you notice your dog glaring at you.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\n\nAll these years and never did I think that I would have spent my entire life standing next to them. That I have been standing next to them all my life. That we all have been doing so for the entirety of human history. They thought themselves so clever. So smart in hiding their surveillance of humanity. At first I too was so easily fooled. But everyone slips up eventually no matter how good you are at your job. And these muts aren't nearly as good as they think they are. They probably should have had a dog that was more skilled at espionage than Ollie to watch me.\n\n\nAt first I thought I adopted it because I wanted a companion. But now I see that they picked it to watch me. To make sure I wouldn't get too close. And they picked it so well that I would always assume it was my choice. Ollie was energetic, quirky, and it was a German Shepard. I loved German Shepherds. It comes naturally that I would pick it if placed in a room full of dogs. \n\n\nYet looking back at it. I can easily see how Ollie was sent in to get in my way. Ollie was needy, a distraction to keep me from my investigations just as much as Ollie was supposed to watch me for whatever alien reasons these creatures have to watch us. If I ever spent too long investigating aliens, or seemed to be getting a lead Ollie would place its head on my lap and look at me with its needy eyes. And when that didn't work it would bark aimlessly at the window, keeping me from focusing; or break into the cupboard and force me to clean; and the amount of times I had to clean up that dog's waste... I know that Ollie knew to go outside but chose not to. I just had trouble believing that it would be for something so sinister, that Ollie would be actively trying to stop me. \n\n\nNo I denied it for years but as I kept going things just kept making sense. Alien abductions often occurred near areas with high dog populations; abducted individuals exhibited a strong love of dogs on average, but only after the abductions; and several abductees had dog hair on their clothes just after being returned home even though they remembered nothing of dogs and everything about being taken up by \"little green men\" or \"lizard people\".\n\n\nSo do to my suspicions, I started watching my own dog. If Ollie really was an alien then I should start seeing some signs right? Welp I did, big time. First I saw him consorting with other dogs in the neighborhood. Ok so dogs interacting with each other is pretty normal right? Only some of these dogs are clearly not from the neighborhood, or any nearby neighborhood. After following one it just kept walking for hours, yet it didn't look like a stray and when I called animal control they couldn't find it. \n\n\nThen I started paying attention to what parts of my work Ollie was eating when I left my papers alone for a few minutes. Almost all of the papers Ollie ate were ones that would directly or indirectly implicate that dogs were aliens. What's more the closer I got the more indiscriminate Ollie got at eating these notes and at distracting me as I worked. \n\n\nEvidently I finally managed to get all I needed when I started digging up Ollie's holes and finding evidence that I lost buried in them. The thing is, until a week ago I didn't know that Ollie buried things. Because Ollie never buried any of these things in front of me or in our yard but in the park on the opposite end of the city that I had to follow him to when he thought I was working. What's more other evidence was also buried there. Though I'm not sure if Ollie is the only one doing it. \n\n\nEven with all that though no one believed me when I told them. I knew I needed undentable evidence to prove once and for all that dogs are alien infiltrators. And tonight I found it. \n\n\nA neighborhood dog just died and the dogs have decided to gather. Keeping my distance I've managed to watch them gather at the park. There a flying saucer appeared like the kind that you would see on a sci-fi show. And there I saw the dogs dump ashes in front of the ship. Only for the ship to shoot some kind of beam at it. When the dust settled a new puppy was born and the dogs dispersed. \n\n\nWith Video evidence in hand I went to make my escape. Only to turn around and see Ollie wearing his leash and collar, glaring at me. I don't know how long it's been looking at me but clearly it is not amused. \n\n\nSweat falling from my forehead I look around for a way to escape. So I don't end up on the news as a dog mauling victim or get abducted into their ship. Yet nothing happened, instead a rather pissed looking Ollie just stepped out of my way and let me walk out.\n\n\nNot looking gift horse in the mouth I don't question why it's allowing me to leave. Instead I try to stealthily get out of the park so I can head home hoping that I got some good footage on the- \n\n\nA screeching bark coming from Ollie punctures my ears, shivers racing down my spine as though I was hit by lightning. \n\n\nIn the pandemonium I drop my phone much to my horror. Quickly I rushed down to grab hold of it only to see that the screen cracked and that it failed to save something to the cloud. Angrily I glare at Ollie as he happily wages his tail and he stares at me with the oblivious joy only a dog can possess. I swear to all that is holy why does he make so much noise! I wish he could talk so I could tell him just how much that phone costs. Still he is just a dog and it's my fault that I wasn't taking better care of my phone. Either way I shouldn't have taken him out for a nighttime walk. He's too loud a dog and gets excited way too easily. I doubt people were happy about that bark. Still he was so desperate to get out, to get attention. I wonder if he's just lonely? Maybe I should get him a playmate to distract him."
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[WP] Everyone has different first memories. Some remember walking, some their first word, some playing with their friends. Your first memory is of fire.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"**Come home** \n\nA voice whispers from ages ago. I don’t know where it came from. I don’t know who it belongs too. I know nothing. Sight floods my senses, but I don’t have eyes. Words speak to me but I have no ears. I cough and I groan. The words turn into a shout and suddenly I pitch forward form the box I was kept in. \n\n“Holy shit, hhhhhholy shit. What did I do?” A male voice exclaims in bewilderment. The words he speaks coalesces into understanding, the language beginning to be translated in my mind. \n\n“Is...is his jaw missing? Mother Earth!” A Women’s voice cries out in horror. “Is this a real living person!?” \n\n“That’s not how this is supposed to work. This is impossible. Holy shit. Hollllly shit.” The first voice squeaks out between hyperventilated breaths. \n\n**Come home**\n\nI groan again as I lift a ragged skeletal hand to my face. The sensation alarming and alien, the remnants of my skin arid and leathery. My arm has a blueish hue and bursts of white speckle my forearm where the bone is exposed. \n\n“Animation can ONLY work on inanimate objects. Clay, metal, rocks, lumber. You...you well, you have to know complex sigils, they have to be aligned and connected. Golem’s are REALLY hard to make. I’ve been at University for years studying this, and still haven’t ever made one on my own..” Said the male voice. His tone made it sound like his composure was being held together by the loosest of threads. \n\n“This doesn’t seem like a Golem” his far calmer female compatriot countered. \n\n“Not shit. I didn’t even know there was body back there. I was just trying to make a rock dance or something. Like ya know...impress you.”\n\n“Well consider me impressed. You know what would be even more impressive? Killing it. Killing it with like fire. All the fucking fire.”\n\n**Come home**\n\nI take a step forward. Balancing on shaky skeletal legs. There is no stiffness, no pain. I tear at the few tattered remnants of what used to be a shirt of some kind. The edges charred, and turning to dust in my broken hands. \n\n“Uhh fuck, fuck, fuck.” The male voice said as he fumbled at something at his waist. Some sort of tube, slender and metallic. Strange orange symbols etched into it’s surface. He pointed it at me with a tremor so great you’d think the earth was quaking beneath his boots. \n\n“Wwwwhy isn’t this thing on fire Kel?” The girl asked, her veneer of calm beginning to break. \n\n“Listen, Rei, This uh, this has never happened to me before I swear”\n\n“You were sure bragging about your flaming death stick quite a bit earlier in the evening.”\n\n“I mean normally it’s massive! It was a graduation gift. Fuck! Work you stupid thing. Work!”\n\n**Come home**\n\nI remembered nothing. But I did remember flames. It was my first memory. My only memory. I could smell the sickly sweet roasting flesh, the shrieks piercing my ears. The horrible, terrible pain. \n\n“Prawwwgarh” I groaned out. Where the sound came from I do not know. I had no lips. I had no lower jaw. \n\n“Gawk!” The male, apparently known as Kel cried out as he stumbled backwards, his metallic device falling harmlessly to the ground. He scuttled further away. The female known as Rei stood her ground though whether by fear or courage I could not tell. \n\nI coughed and tried again, slowly, painfully concentrating on the words. Summoning them from deep within my chest. Projecting them from means I was entirely unsure of. \n\n“Pppplease.” I wheezed out. I shook my head, the remnants of my tongue shaking side to side as it dangled grotesquely from my desiccated jaw. “Please don’t.” I managed. \n\nI began to feel the flow of the words, summoning them and projecting them outwards. Gaining confidence and strength. They didn’t flow through my fractured vocal cords or by organic means, still they burst forth from my mouth. \n\n“Please don’t light me on fire.”\n\n“It talks.” Kel yelped “Oh fuck this thing talks.”\n\n“Yeah, and this thing REALLY doesn’t want to be lit on fire.” I replied \n\n“Are you like...going to eat us or something? Rei asked curiosity warring with fear. \n\nI consider her question for a moment scratching at my chin in what was no doubt a habit of my former life. \n\n“I don’t feel particularly hungry. Why is eating each other something people do in this day and age?”\n\n“Well er..uh..no.” She said\n\nKel slowly got to his feet, shock and horror warring with his intellectual nature. He lacked his friends bravery, but it appeared he did have a little mettle after all. \n\n“This should be impossible.”\n\nI shrugged. \n\n“I mean in all the histories and archives there’s just....nothing.”\n\nI shrugged again. \n\n“Do you have a name?”\n\nI shook my head, bits of dust debris and an errant worm sprayed out in all directions. \n\n“Do you have any memories of your previous life?”\n\n**Come home**\n\nThe call was insistent, the voice a faint and fading echo. Yet still It was impossible to ignore. \n\n“Flames” I murmured. \n\n“Well that sounds horrible.” Rei said as she studied me.\n\n“I have a feeling it was.” I said\n\n“So uh...What is it you plan to do my undead friend?”\n\n“Go home” I whispered without even realizing that I had spoken any words. \n\n“Where’s home?”\n\nI shrugged helplessly. \n\n“Well that seems like it’ll be a bit of a problem.” Rei mused as she pulled at a scrap of my clothing. “I’ve never seen these marking or symbols before. What lands use a Lightning split tree?” \n\n“Let me see that-Hm. That is very clearly the symbol of a kingdom. Just not one I’ve ever heard of. Perhaps from the Stolen Isles?” \n\n“No, No the Stolen Isles don’t use symbology like this. They have always favored Sea Creatures and other such hideous things.” \n\n“Could we just leave this place?” I asked “It’s sort of weird chatting in a place where I was buried.”\n\n“Let’s take him to your place.” Kel said with obvious embarrassment. \n\n“My place?” Rei asked with bemusement. “You want to take him to a whore house? I can’t imagine the other patrons would find him to be much of an aphrodisiac.” \n\n“Well I can’t take him back to my estate. That would be rather...well...uh hard to explain. Maybe the guard?”\n\n“That’d be a bit of a dick move.” I said with mild annoyance \n\n“The undead thingy is right Kel. That is a dick move.” \n\n**Come Home**\n\nI began to walk, their startled cries following me as we wound up the cave pathway. I know what I needed to do. I just had to figure out how to get there. \n\n“I can ask Master Byrnes I suppose. He probably wouldn’t have me arrested for grand perversion of the Earth Mother’s natural order.” Kel stated his face taking on an unhealthy greenish tone. \n\n“Here take this.” Rei said as she wrapped a scarf over my chin. “Give him your coat.”\n\n“But it’s cold.”\n\n“Yeah well you brought this thing to life, the least you can do is hide it long enough so it can get out of the city and go home or whatever it wants to do.”\n\n“But—But I—“\n\n“I mean I’d appreciate it.” I said helpfully. \n\nHe groaned and stuck a coat over my shoulders. \n\n**Come home** \n\nI had no idea where or what home was. But I didn’t survive flame and death to be denied it. I would return home. I would.",
"Water.\n\nEarth.\n\nFire.\n\nAir.\n\nLong ago, the four nations lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Fire Nation attacked. Only the avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them. But when the world needed him most, he vanished.\n\nI was born into war, shaped by it. My village was destroyed by fire nation troops when I was just a baby, and the only vague memories I have of my home are tongues of fire lashing out into the night sky as it burned to the ground. I don’t remember how I was spared, but I ended up in the care of an elderly couple who took me in as their own.\n\nUncle Bai was kind and gentle, teaching me the ways of gardening and vegetable cultivation from a young age. He instructed me on the fine points of agriculture, the dos and don’ts of a successful harvest, and planted in me a love for vegetation.\n\nAunt Cai was loving and strict, the epitome of a tiger mother, making sure I grew up into a respectable man. She taught me to speak my mind, to not be afraid of critique, and to always look for opportunities that came my way.\n\nEven with both of my new parents teaching me the values of peace and tranquility, I still harbored a deep resentment for what the fire nation had done. I vowed that one day, I would set out in whatever way I was gifted to deter the advancement of the fire nation conquest, to do my part in ending this forever-long war.\n\nAfter my adopted parents passed away, I took care of their house and vegetable garden, and I began to grow an affinity for a certain type of plant. Knowledge of my green thumb slowly traveled throughout the neighboring villages, as more and more people came to buy from my vegetable stand, and eventually my planting fame spread to important areas of the Earth Kingdom. \n\nI received a summons from a great city requesting a selection of my finest vegetables, and it was in that moment that I realized my calling. I was called to feed the armies fighting against the Fire Nation, to provide them with sustenance and nourishment in the battle against the enemy. I would do my duty to protect the world from the evil threatening to destroy it.\n\nWith a smile on my face, I packed up my belongings and gathered together a large selection of my favorite vegetable. Things were starting to look up. With a spring in my step and a whistled tune dancing in the air, I started to push my cabbage cart to Omashu City.\n\n​\n\n*Sorry, I know this is an extremely loose interpretation of the prompt :)*"
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[WP] You wake up after a cataclysmic event to find out that everyone around you is in stasis. You are met face to face with a being known as an Arbiter where you have to answer his questions as he audits the human race. Only you can save humanity.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The sheets were rumpled around him as Jacob crawled out of bed. He stretched his hands out above him dramatically and half yawned, half groaned as the stretch sent up a shiver of pleasure. \n\n​\n\nHe was a morning person often to the disappointment of most of the people he interacted with on a daily basis. As was his routine after his stretch he leapt out of bed and to his feet. His eyes wide and a smile on his face. He went to look at his sleeping girlfriend but she was still as a board almost eerily still. Something about her sleeping posture unnerved him, but he knew if he woke her up early on a weekend he would have to vacate the house for a few hours to escape her rage. With this in mind he slowly sneaked his way to the edge of the room and opened the door just a crack and shimmied through it to minimize the disturbance to the sleeping dragon in his bed. \n\n​\n\nWith a backward glance he looked one more time at his girlfriend and took the final step out of the room and into something. He probed the structure in front of him feeling rock hard pectorals as if they had actually been chiseled from rocks, he turned his eyes up and a giant of man carved from ebony stone peered down at him eyes glowing with golden fire. \n\n​\n\n\"I am the Arbiter!\" Rumbled the voice, sounding like an avalanche shaking his room. Jacob turned with fear towards his girlfriend she was still, utterly frozen. He sighed with relief.\n\n​\n\n\"How did you get in here? Did Jessica forget the lock on the door?\" Jacob demanded. \n\n\"I am the Arbiter! Here to judge this world to see if its worth protecting from the wandering scourge!\" declared the stone giant. His voice once more shook the house.\n\n​\n\n\"What kind of prank is this! Listen if you wake her up! You will have to be saved from my wrath!\" declared Jacob jabbing a finger at the stone man who stumbled back in surprise, \"Now get out of my house.\" Jacob pushed the giant towards the door muttering about stupid pranks under his prank. The Arbiter allowed himself to be guided outside the house and through the door and turned to converse with Jacob one more to only have a wooden door slammed in his face and Jacob yelling from the other hand, \"Come back after 8! And so help me god if you woke her up I'll hunt you down!\"\n\n​\n\nThe Arbiter could hear the human going deeper into his house his footsteps fading from his inhuman ears. He chuckled quietly to himself he had gotten all the information he needed from the strange human. He looked down at his wrist and a holographic display appeared before him, glowing yellow text saying \"Stasis\" pulsated in front of him. He swiped his hand across it and the text dissipated and the sound of birds and the rustling of small animals could be heard once more. \n\n​\n\nThe display changed on the holograph again and a list of various items appeared below a heading saying Criteria for Survival. The Arbiter's eyes scanned through the list until he came across one that said Caring About Others. It was a simple one, but of the two hundred and forty three worlds he had found very few had exhibited even that basic level of care for their fellows. He checked off the list and the screen flashed and it said planet marked for protection. \n\n​\n\n(This is my first prompt ever, all criticism appreciated.)",
"Standing on what used to be the roof of the John Hancock Building in downtown Boston, I surveyed the damage. The fires have finally settled on their own, since there is no longer a firefighting crew to take care of them. Looking over at the freeway, the cars are all at a dead stop, with the dead still behind each wheel, looking peacefully asleep. Bumper to bumper traffic, as usual. I chuckled at the fact that no one can ever escape a traffic jam, even after they’re gone.\n\nI am not sure what has happened here, a once vibrant and full city. A few days ago, I went to bed, on a perfectly normal night, throwing the windows open to hear the cars zooming by and the planes landing at the nearby airport. It was quite an unsettling feeling, waking up to complete silence. I have finally made my way downtown, not meeting a single soul on the badly damaged road. I tried to turn on the TV and radio, but only static came through. Luckily, I had invested in a HAM radio, but even that was a dead end. I am alone. Utterly and hopelessly alone.\n\nSo, there I was. Three days later, standing on top of this 790 foot skyscraper, trying to decide if I should continue to look for survivors or just take the plunge off the side and join the rest of the victims. The heat of the midday sun made me lightheaded, maybe just falling off the top would be simpler than finding a glass of clean water. A blinding white flash rudely interrupted my thoughts and a tall slender man dressed in a pinstripe blue suit, black eyeglasses and holding clipboard was standing not five feet behind me.\n\n“Excuse me, are you Jack?” he asked, while checking his clipboard.\n\nStunned by his sudden appearance, I remained silent.\n\n“Sir?” He tried again. “I am looking for Jack. I have a few questions for him. Is that you?”\n\n“Yeees?” I replied slowly, no longer thinking about that ledge. I stepped closer to him, trying to see what was on his clipboard.\n\n“Well now! I have been looking for you for days! I tried your house, but no one was home. I tried your work, but you weren’t there either. I went to every place associated with you and kept coming up empty. We only have a few hours left before we can’t bring anyone back. Let’s get started shall we?”\n\nHe turned and headed towards one of the patio tables someone had set up. Flipping a page on his clipboard, he sat down and waved me over. A bead of sweat dripped down his face as he pushed his glasses back into place.\n\nFinally getting over my shock, I was able to speak to this strange man. “Who are you? What is going on here?” I asked, my hands gesturing to the destroyed city around me.\n\n“Ah, right. I should introduce myself.” He smirked. “I am known as The Arbiter. I set a special bomb to cause all the people here to go into stasis. Unfortunately, the bomb does have some side effects to the city it was planted in. The good news is, everywhere else is just fine.”\n\n“Arbiter?” I asked skeptically. “Are you like a judge or something?”\n\n“Or something. I am here to assess this world to see if ‘humans’ are a viable addition to the universe. We have been watching Earth for some time now, but are undecided on what to do. We’ve seen humans do wonderful things, make great advancements in science and the arts. But have also seen them do atrocious things. It’s been decided that we will simply get involved and ask. You have been chosen to represent the human race and therefore, your answers will decide if humans continue.”\n\nHis explanation hit me like a ton of bricks. To say the weight of the world is on my shoulders is a complete understatement. I finally know what Atlas feels like, carrying the sky. He has the wrong guy. I can’t be a spokesman for the world, I barely have my life together! The pressure is too great!\n\n“You need to wake up someone else. I’m not the one you’re looking for.”\n\nThe Arbiter checks his clipboard again, a crease forming between his eyes. “Jack Helsson? 1247 West Broadway, Boston, Massachusetts. Is that not you?”\n\n“That is me, but someone else needs to do this!” I shout at him, my heartbeat starting to race faster and the sweat beginning to pour off of my body. I look down at my shaking hands and quickly jump out of my chair. Pacing the roof of the building, my jagged breaths doing little to calm me.\n\n“Let’s get inside and out of the sun.” The Arbiter makes a few notes on his clipboard before he walks over to me and puts his hand on my shoulder. Not expecting this, I spin around and clock him squarely in the jaw. He hits the ground with a loud thud.\n\nMy eyes widen and I can feel the blood draining from my face. “Oh shit,” I whisper to myself. “I didn’t mean to do that.” \n\nThe Arbiter stands up, looks at me crossly, and rubs his jaw. I see a bruise starting to form where my fist connected with his face. “Thank you for that. I now have all the information I need,” he said sternly. “You will know of our decision soon.”\n\nI see another flash of bright white light and he is gone.",
"I was having trouble processing what he'd said. People all in stasis? \"What about airplane pilots? The planes are still in the air flying; are they going to crash?\"\n\nHe smiled and made a note on the paper attached to his clipboard: \"Concern for others, one point.\" Then he asked \"Is someone you know flying today?\"\n\n\"No, I don't think so.\"\n\nHe nodded: \"Concern for people one does not know, five points.\"\n\n\"Okay, so I have six points, but what about the airplanes?\"\n\nHe sighed. \"Everything on the planet is frozen; the airplanes too. No one will come to harm as a result of the actions I have taken so far.\"\n\n\"So, let me just be sure I understand. You've frozen the planet in time, planes in midair, surgeons in mid-cut, everybody, except the two of us? Won't that screw up astronomical observations and satellite reception and so on?\"\n\nHe checked over his paper. \"Intelligent considerations of things beyond his home world, five points.\"\n\n\"It's not that I froze the planet, but that I've pulled you out of time. I doubt you'd understand the temporal mechanics of the full explanation. In any case, nobody is going to be hurt, and no observation made by anyone will be affected, no matter how long we're at this. Can we get started?\"\n\n\"That's the other part I wanted to get clear: you want audit me as a representative of the human race? Why not a lawyer or somebody who can argue, or somebody good like Mister Rogers? I'm nobody important. I'm pretty sure I'm the wrong guy for this.\"\n\nHe nodded. \"Believes self to be like others, not extra important, one point.\"\n\nThen he said \"You were the first person I saw. It could just as easily have been that fellow over there, or someone on the other side of the planet, or some government or religious figure.\"\n\nI was the first person he saw because I was on the roof of my 12-story apartment building. I'd gone up there before all the excitement started, and watched as the first fragments of the unexpected meteor rammed into the skyscrapers near the city center. \"Oh. Now what are we doing exactly?\"\n\nBack to the clipboard. \"Requesting fourth clarification, minus one point.\"\n\nHe looked at me. \"If I am satisfied with your answers, humanity will be allowed to continue and you will not remember any of this. If I am not satisfied with your answers, humanity will be erased from time, and some other species will be given the opportunity to spread across this planet.\"\n\nHe scratched his chin. \"It's an interesting case. Had I got here not long ago, during the time you call 'World War 2', I would have erased your species immediately. Had I got here when Fred Rogers was still alive - and that's one reason I didn't pick him today - I might have picked him just to chat for a while. Your people have gone to your moon, but then got bored and gave that up. You have advanced technology at a rate in the 90th percentile of other species in the galaxy, and yet your distribution systems are brutally primitive, leaving huge numbers of you suffer needlessly while others have so much luxury it actually damages them intellectually and morally. There are billions of you on the planet, many of whom are brilliant and wise, and yet you consistently choose grossly unqualified people to run your affairs. So it's nearly a coin toss, you see?\"\n\n\"I can't deny any of what you've said. So what do you want to ask of me?\"\n\n\"I can divert the rest of the meteor fragments to stop them running into your planet. I can leave them alone and let them wipe you out. Or I can go back 250,000 years, stop your species from arising in Africa, and let some other bunch take over. Then I'll come back here and pick one of them and possibly have this same discussion, presuming they've been as wasteful as you have in using your resources and can't stop a meteor heading to the planet. You understand that part, right?\"\n\nI nodded.\n\n\"Good. So what I want to find out from you, as humanity's representative, is whether your species is worth saving. Is humanity worth keeping around? Should I save you all, or erase you and offer to save whoever replaces you?\"\n\nI shrugged. \"Well, like I said, I'm pretty sure I'm the wrong guy for this. I came up on this roof to jump off.\"",
"The ground was shaking, people were screaming, I looked over at my girlfriend and then darkness. \n\nI felt myself in that weird state of about to wakeup but not. I really don't know how to explain it better than that. I guess it was like the feeling when you are about to fall asleep but the opposite. Then I felt a hard slap on my face and jolted awake. I sat up quickly and found myself face to face with another person. \n\nA person doesn't really explain it I guess. They had the whitest skin I have ever seen, with perfect black eyes. Just imagine an angel without wings and with black eyes. Anyways, I woke up saw them, and jumped up. \n\n\"Hello, I am the Arbiter,\" said the not really Angel. Or I guess the Arbiter. At this point, I had a chance to look around. Everyone else was sleeping, and when I say everyone I mean everyone. All the people in the Macy's store were asleep, the cashiers, the workers who walk around and help people, the customers, and my girlfriend too. \n\n\"What the fuck?!\" I was so confused. \n\n\"Oh yes, sorry about this. I am the Arbiter, I am here to determine whether or not this planet is worth keeping here in this universe.\" \n\n\"Wait wait wait, worth keeping here in this universe?\"\n\n\"Yes.\" They said bluntly as if it was the most obvious thing in the universe.\n\n\"So you are god?\" \n\n\"That is what you would call me.\"\n\n\"So why are you talking to me? And can you wake up my girlfriend? “\n\n“No, I am only allowed to talk to you. I just have a couple of questions.” \n\n“What do you mean I am only allowed to talk to you?” \n\n“Don’t worry about it.”\n\n“Are there people above you? Are there more of you? Is there like a whole universal government?” \n\n“I have already said too much.” They said with a look of fear upon of their face. “Anyways, we just have a few questions for you.” \n\n“Why me? You could literally chose anyone else why me?”\n\n“You are perfectly average. However, you have wondered much more deeply about the nature of life and humanity than most other people.” Ouch that one hurt a bit.\n\n“Welp. Ok hit me, what’s your first question?”\n\n“Ok, your lives are so short. How do you live without regret and to the fullest?” I thought about this for a minute.\n\n“Well, I don’t think its possible to live without regret. Its part of the human experience. If you don’t have things you regret then you haven’t lived. And living to the fullest isn’t really a thing. You can have a full life, with happiness, sadness, loss, and love but there is always something you will regret.” Yeah that was absoutle bullshit. I have no idea what I was saying. \n\n“Now with that same theme, how can you live life knowing that in a 200-300 years no one will remember you? Nothing you did matters.”\n\n“Thats the thing. When nothing you do matters, the its important to realize that its the now that matters. So you live in every moment and try to do as much good as you can. And since nothing you do matters the good you do is just to feel good.”\n\n“Now the most important question, is 69 fumny number?” \n\n“Absoutely.”\n\n“Well ok, you guys get to live.”"
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[WP] Your shoes are magical. What kind of magic do they posses? You've no clue. But the spirits you can now see are pretty attached and the demons keep appearing to try to make a deal for them, so they must be good for something.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"My sunglasses fogged up the moment I stepped off the gangway. I jogged down to the pier, stopped, smiled and inhaled. The Caribbean sun seemed to amplify the perfection of the moment. I took a deep breath and enjoyed the mixed scent of sea salt and sunscreen.\n\n“Dude, you gonna stand there all day? We’ve got a dive boat to catch!” said Randy. He was struggling with his backpack overflowing with scuba gear.\n\n“This is heavenly,” I said. I sauntered over to him. “That looks heavy,” I grinned.\n\n“Thanks for the help.” He wrinkled his nose at me.\n\nWe walked over to the tour guide holding a sign that said, “Tropical Cruise Lines Scuba Dive Experience”. There was a small crowd of tourists loitering nearby, all decked out in swimwear and holding bags of dive gear. The guide was young, cute, and spoke so quickly it was like a record playing at the wrong speed.\n\n“Hi! I’m Amelia! You must be Randy and Ricky! You’re just in time, we were about to leave without you!” Her blue eyes beamed with every word. “I just need your certification cards, a signed waiver, and a list of any gear you need to rent.”\n\nShe paused to take a breath and glanced at Randy’s backpack. “Looks like you already have your regulators, fins, wetsuits, and what else do you need?” Amelia’s eyes darted down to my feet. I was wearing a ratty pair of flip flops.\n\n“Nice . . . shoes,” she said slowly. Her chin lifted and her gaze met mine.\n\nI blanched. *Oh no, not again.*\n\n“Randy, a word, please?” I motioned him away from Amelia. I lowered my voice. “We have to leave. Right now. This isn’t safe.”\n\n“Dude, it’s a cruise ship scuba tour. It’s totally fine. We’ll be like 30 feet deep, max. I know it’s your first dive after certification, and it’s normal to be a bit nervous.”\n\n“No, it’s not that,” I said. “It’s *her*.”\n\n“Who? The tour guide? What the heck are you talking about, she’s gorgeous! And we get to go swimming with her!” he replied.\n\n“She’s looking at my shoes, Randy.”\n\nRandy glanced at my feet for a moment. “Your shoes?” he asked. “Those shitty things? So?” He looked over at Amelia. She waved at us and smiled. Her eyes darted again towards my feet. The corners of her mouth turned upwards, so much so that it looked slightly unnatural, like her teeth and mouth were just a tad too large for her elvish face.\n\n“Ricky,” she beckoned to me. I felt myself walking over to her against my better judgement, almost against my will. Her eyes flashed orange. She stood on her toes and put her lips close to my ear. Her voice dropped an octave, becoming a deep, crackling baritone. “Take off your shoes,” she breathed. “Give them to me.”\n\nI felt an overwhelming desire to do as she commanded. It took every ounce of willpower to stop myself from removing my flip flops and handing them over.\n\nI stood my ground. “It’s not going to work,” I told her. “And you can’t force me, either. The shoes have to be given willingly or they’re useless.”\n\nHer eyes turned blue again and her smile shrank to normal. “Well, you can’t blame a girl for trying!” she said in her cheerleader voice. She leaned close to me and whispered, “I’ll make you a deal for the shoes. An excellent deal, indeed. Think it over.”\n\nShe turned around and started walking toward the dock. She shouted and waved her hand in the air. “Scuba tour group, follow me!”\n\n“What did she say to you?” Randy asked.\n\n“I think we might be ok,” I replied. “Let’s do this.”\n\nRandy and I joined the group. We walked along the dock. After a few steps, Amelia turned and caught me looking at her. She winked.",
"Sal let out a sigh, pinching the bridge of his nose as he finished his scooping setting up his auto drip. The whole house had just started smelling of sulfur and nothing ever covered up that smell, no matter what kind of coffee he bought. Refusing to turn around he pulled out a cigarette, glaring at his coffee pot. \"You think they'd have the decency to wait until I finished my coffee,\" he grumbled to himself as he tried to light it. Three attempts later he sighed again, glaring at the pale wind sprite floating next to the cigarette that was giggling and sticking its tongue out at him. He knew that it was going to be a long day, and it hadn't even properly started yet. \n\n\nTen minutes later Sal finished pouring the coffee into his favorite mug. Black coffee strong and bitter enough to wake him up properly before he tiredly made a stupid deal. Breathing deeply directly above the mug he tried unsuccessfully to clear his nostrils of the smell of sulfur before taking a sip and turning around. At his kitchen table was a charcoal colored man with glowing red lines showing where a human might have had wrinkles. Sal took in the crisp lines of the suit; the lack of nails, claws, or talons of any kind; and the 3 inch horns protruding from the front of his bald scalp before settling on the brass name tag pinned to his lapel that read \"Zazgerun\". \"You must be newer,\" Sal said while gesturing to the relatively short horns, \"Why did Astaroth send you? I'm used to someone twice your rank.\" It was true, the demon who had showed up last week had horns just over 8 inches long, more than twice Zazgerun's. \n\n\n\"Master Solomon, let me int-\" \n\n\n\"Let me stop you right there. First off Sal is short for Salvatore, not Solomon, and secondly call me Sal. Drop the Master nonsense, it's far too early to deal with you being long winded and I have a job to get to.\" \n\n\n\"My apologies, Sal,\" the demon shifted uncomfortably in his seat. Sal thought he could see sweat dripping down his face before he noticed the small blue nymph flitting around and winking at him. \"My name is Zazgerun. You're right, I am new, but Astaroth didn't send me. I heard about your case and wanted to come and try to make a deal on my own. The older demons are all stuck in their ways, I thought a more modern touch might be able to be more palatable to you.\" \n\n\n\"And get you a promotion while you're at it, huh Zaz?\" Sal replied sardonically, continuing to nurse his coffee. The newly nicknamed demon flinched at the appellation. \"Well,\" a gulp this time, \"go ahead and shoot your shot.\" \n\n\n\"Most of the other demon's in Accounting and Acquisitions think the shoes would be valuable at all to someone who doesn't understand them and that a more practical ability or other repayment would be much better welcomed. I've studied modern humanity though and I understand the aesthetic value of nice shoes toward the opposite gender of your kind, the importance of fit and comfort toward pain mitigation, and the intrinsic value of novelty you humans put on magical objects.\" \n\n\nSal raised an eyebrow. Zaz had already let slip that there were more uses than he knew and it wasn't even a minute into the conversation. Rookie indeed. He nodded for the demon to continue, keeping an ear out for any more information that could clue him into the value of the shoes. \n\n\n\"What I'm proposing today is simple. I would like to shadow you while you go about your business and take notes so I can better understand your motivations. I'm positive with more knowledge of your personal desires I'll be much better equipped to negotiate than my seniors in the organization.\" \n\n\nPleased at the chance to try and extract more information Sal forced his face into a frown before replying, \"Alright, but you've already used up the time I'd normally be making breakfast. I need to get ready for work. You handle food by the time I'm ready and you can come with me.\" \n\n\n\"It's a deal,\" Zaz stacked up his papers and black hellfire surrounded them before they vanished and he stood up. \n\n\nSal turned around before smiling as he finished his coffee. \"*Good luck dealing with the salamander that's been messing with my stovetop*,\" he thought to himself as he left to go prepare. The spirits might be annoying, but they certainly taught him how to prank someone."
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[WP] You die as a devoted Christian, having served your life converting others. St Peter reads the stats he has in his book including how many people you converted to Christianity, and surprisingly you beat some high scores... Including jesus's.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The light was bright, but not too bright. It reminded me of a warm spring day. You’d squint at the sun as its rays caressed your face, just barely strong enough to combat the chill from a slight breeze. It was a warm blanket that made me feel truly secure for the first time in my life.\n\nOr, I suppose, the first time in my afterlife, for I knew this light could only come from one thing.\n\n“My lord,” I said, prostrating myself on the soft grass at the feet of the Son of God. His presence inspired me, filled me, completed me. “I am truly blessed to be gifted by your-”\n\n“Oh, quit that,” Jesus snapped. He stormed over to St. Peter, who was dressed like a rural farmer sitting next to a rusty gate across a familiar dirt road. Jesus glanced around at the surroundings and snorted.\n\n“Nice. *This* is what you think of when you’re happiest? Please.” He rolled his eyes and muttered something about inbred farmers under his breath.\n\n“Jesus. How’s it going?” St. Peter asked, closing the Book.\n\n“Hand it over,” Jesus said.\n\n“Now, Jesus, you know I’m not supposed to do that. YHWH got very upset last time because you-”\n\n“Hand. It. Over.”\n\n“Alright, alright, chill out, J-man. Just doing my job.” St. Peter gave the Book, the Book that contained all knowledge of the acts done in a man’s life to Jesus. Jesus began flipping through it furiously.\n\n“No. No. I refuse.”\n\nI was still flat on the ground. “Refuse what, my lord?” I asked the dirt.\n\n“Oh, will you just get up? Enough of the humble act.”\n\nI slowly rose to my knees. “As my lord commands,” I said uncertainly.\n\nJesus sighed theatrically. “Whatever.” He looked back at the book. “Peter, this book can’t be right.”\n\n“Your father made it, JC. It can’t be *wrong*.” St. Peter glanced nervously at the sky. “Right?”\n\nThunder rumbled ominously despite the lack of visible storm clouds.\n\n“But it *can’t* be right. Who’s the best prophet to ever roam the Earth?”\n\nPeter shifted uncomfortably but said nothing. Jesus glared at him before turning to me.\n\n“You. Human. Best prophet to walk the Earth. Go.”\n\n“Well…” I hesitated. “Scholars would argue that as a manifestation of God himself, you can’t *also* be a prophet for yourself. Some might even say that calling you a prophet is specifically part of the Islamic tradition.”\n\n“Who. Is. The best. Prophet?”\n\n“You are, my lord, naturally,” I said, dropping to the dirt again.\n\n“Will you stop that?!” He cried. “We need to deal with the real issues here.\n\nI pushed myself off the ground again. “Real issues, my lord?”\n\nJesus shoved the book into my hands. “Look. There. At that number. What is it?”\n\nI read the page slowly. “This is the stat for the number of people I converted. It says… Wow. That’s a big number.”\n\n“Too big,” Jesus hissed. “You beat me.”\n\n“Impossible, my lord. All glory and honor must go to you. As your will dictates, it is done.” I bowed again, forehead to the grass.\n\n“STOP IT! STOP!”\n\nI got up again and glanced at Him. “My lord, are you not pleased with this?”\n\n“Redo. I want a redo. It’s not fair. You must have had a TV show or a megachurch or something.”\n\n“Just a YouTube channel, my lord,” I said nervously. \n\nJesus threw his arms in the air. “A YouTube channel. I’ve been bested by a YouTube channel.” He grabbed my arm, hauled me to my feet, and began pulling me away from the gate.\n\n“Jesus, wait! What are you doing?” Peter called.\n\n“It’s not fair!” He said, turning back. “There were only 300 million people alive when I was around, and only 5 million in the Roman Empire! It took me weeks just to see a few hundred, and he can reach 10 million in a second!”\n\nJesus turned back and kept pulling me away. “It’s time for some reincarnation. We’re going head to [head](https://reddit.com/r/Badderlocks).”",
"\"Thank God my faith was correct all these times!\" \n\nThat was what I said to myself when I saw the pearly gates in heaven.\n\nAs a priest, I always had my doubt in the darkest parts of my mind. It's certainly a shame for those close minded atheists.\n\nThe man standing in front of the closed gate chuckled as he approached me.\n\n\"You can thank the Lord in person if you want. I'll have to check you in first, though.\"\n\nThe youthful looking man who wore surprisingly modern clothes and a sash fixed himself and grabbed a clipboard out of nothing.\n\nNow that I think about it, I look like my younger self right now, is this called being young at heart?\n\n\"Good eternity to you, Jason. My name is Peter and I'm here to evaluate whether you deserve to be in the presence of our Lord for the rest of eternity.\"\n\n\"Peter? As in the guy in the bible, Peter? I'm a huge fan!\"\n\n\"The thousands of Peters in heaven had heard of that before but yes, I am the Peter in the Bible.\"\n\n\"What did I do to deserve the honor..?\"\n\nHe then quickly scans the clipboard he was holding. Nodding as his eyes goes through the pages. His eyes opened wide every now and then and a big smile appeared on his face.\n\n\"Your guardian angel spoke fondly of you, Jason. A loyal servant to our Lord, an ability to earn the goodwill of others with kindness, converted a record making amount of people to Christianity. You did more than any pope. You're basically the second Jesus!\"\n\n\"Second Jesus?! That's too much, I was only doing my pastoral obligation to God.\"\n\n\"And you had done so exceedingly well! That guy is the actual son of God! Even with his miracles, he wasn't able to match these numbers! It was unfortunate that Jesus died in his 30s, he could've raised the bar a lot more!\"\n\n'What in God's name is going on?!' - I thought to myself. \n\nI took a passing glance inside the pearly gates of heaven and saw someone peeking through the iron bars. It was a very familiar looking person but no way had I met him personally before.\n\n\"J-Jesus?!\" - I called out, hoping that I was right.\n\nPeter turned around and greeted him.\n\n\"Oh, it's Mr. Messiah himself! What brings you here?\"\n\nTHAT REALLY IS JESUS?! \n\nHe definitely had the hair, albeit, shorter than what I saw on common depictions of him. I almost forgot that he's actually dark skin. \n\nQuite a look he was sporting too. He's wearing a white coat over a white shirt and a yellow necktie, white slacks. It was almost something Michael Jackson would wear (hopefully, that guy is here)\n\n\"I had heard from a guardian angel that someone had supposedly beat my conversion record and wanted to see for myself who it was.\" - Jesus said\n\n\"Hmm... I'm starting to think that he deserves to be in heaven based on that achievement alone...\"\n\nJesus opened one side of the gate and called me over.\n\n\"Hey! Jason, right? Stop talking to old Pete here and come on over! I'll vouch for you.\"\n\n\"You can just do that?\" - I muttered\n\n\"Weeeell, if J-dude here wants you in, who am I to defy the son of God?\"\n\nSomehow I think these two just talk to each other like best friends. These kinds of banter is allowed in heaven, huh?\n\nI walked over through the pearly gates. Everything suddenly glowed white.\n\nWhen the light faded, I was on a sandy beach. My mind feels a bit hazy with how bright everything seems to be.\n\nIt felt like I was walking on this beach for a while but I couldn't feel my legs. Looking behind me, I could only see one set of footprints.\n\n\"Jesus, are you carrying me?\" - I said out loud.\n\n\"Hahaha, you figured it out almost immediately, huh? I'll put you down.\"\n\nThe haziness in my mind suddenly cleared. We were still on the beach but now I could feel my legs and there were two set of footprints from where I came from now.\nNow I'm just having a nice one on one talk with Jesus while walking on the beach.\n\nThe sea breeze makes each step refreshing. This really was heaven.\n\n\"First of all, big fan of your work.\"\n\n\"I would say the same to you Jason.\"\n\n\"I am flattered but your name is forever etched in history as the great Messiah! Such glory is worthy of eternal praise\"\n\n\"I'm glad to see that you're still a priest through and through even after being welcomed in heaven. Now, I need to talk to you about something.\"\n\nJesus stopped walking and faced me.\n\n\"I am sorry to ask you of this but would you come reincarnate back to earth with me?\"\n\n\"What? Why? Wait, no. Of course I'll join milord.\"\n\n\"I am happy that you are devoted but I will feel guilty if you don't at least know the reason why. I guess I'll treat you with some of heaven's finest first...\"\n\nIn the next moment, we were sitting on a veranda of a beach side villa. There's a table between us with a tray of snacks, a pitcher of ice tea and luxurious looking glasses filled to the brim with the ice tea.\n\nJesus was sitting across to me. Surprisingly, he had a phone on his right hand. I mean, with everything I saw so far, of course he would have a phone. I can't help but ask about it.\n\n\"Everything is so modern here in heaven, huh?\" - I said as I looked around in amazement.\n\n\"In heaven, we still feel boredom so we go along with Earth's technology, making some tweaks here and there so that heaven... feels like heaven. Anyways, enjoy yourself for a bit.\" \n\nI nodded took a sip of the ice tea (It was of course heavenly) and had some of the snacks (it tasted divine)\n\nJesus seems to be browsing some sort of social media app on his phone while also snacking. Leisure time seems to be the same in Earth as it is in heaven.\n\n\"Do you see this? Believers are getting lower and lower each passing day. Atheism is growing in number and religious people are starting to be taken less seriously.\" - Jesus said as he showed me something on his phone's screen.\n\n\"Uh... Yeah\" \n\nI just saw some graphs, I don't claim to understand what any of it means but everything seems to be sloping downwards so I guess that's bad?\n\n\"The world is heading towards chaos, too. You keep seeing it on the news, right? Deception, everywhere! Pollution! Global Warming! Corruption!\"\n\nJesus said as he slammed his phone on the desk.\n\n\"Wait, where are you going with this?\" \n\nThat increasingly passionate and we'll intentioned speech...I was familiar with how he was speaking. He's preaching something to me, I just have to ask what he wants to say. I would agree with it anyways.\n\n\"As the son of God, I have certain obligations in heaven and on Earth. In heaven, I need to maintain my image and for that, I need to beat your new conversion record. In Earth, I feel like the people need a Messiah to guide them again. The children had strayed for far too long but with you by my side and the power of modern technology and social media, we could restore people's faith and bring peace to the world!\"\n\nHOLY! THAT'S QUITE THE EXPECTATION\n\nI took my time to process it.\n\nIf I go along with this, then this would be the second coming of Christ! I can't believe that I would be the one to cause it, though.\n\nIsn't this the highest honor a priest could ever ask for even unrealistically.\n\nI'm quite worried about what he said about using social media...\n\nStill, I haven't spent much time here in heaven but I'm already given the chance to reincarnate. If Jesus wants my help, then I have no choice. If I didn't, then why did I swear my oath to God?\n\n\"So, have you thought about it?\" - Jesus asked calmly.\n\n\"In your name and your father's, I will follow you back to Earth!\"",
"\"Uhh, shit, well, this is awkward.\" The man on the podium said, looking over the scores he had on whatever sheet of paper he was holding, he looked down with me at a smile, \"Hold on a second, I've gotta call someone.\n\nHe grabbed a phone, and walked through the pearly gates, \"Yo Jesus, you've been bested.\"\n\nA man suddenly appeared, smiling slightly, \"Oh? In what? If it's pool, that isn't really a surprise.\"\n\n\"No, dude, look.\" The man flipped his papers, and showed them to the man.\n\n\"Woah, holy shit, okay... That kid over there, converted more people than... Is he like, Me 2, or something?\"\n\nSt. Peter fumbled with some papers, and looked towards my name, \"No, he's just some average man, really.\"\n\n\"Average,\" Jesus laughed to myself, \"There's no way in hell he's average. No person could convert an entire billion people to Christianity, and that quickly too.\"\n\n\"Yeah...Yo, should we call your dad about this, and check what's up with him?\"\n\n\"I wanna know if he hit some random chick on Earth, and just didn't tell us about it, so yeah, call him up.\"\n\nPeter jumped back onto his podium with his phone, \"Yeah, You've got some explaining to do about this kid.\"\n\nA man slammed into life. He seemed a bit tired, and rubbed at his eyes, as he looked towards his son and Peter.\n\n\"Wassup?\" He slurred, \"And why the hell are the lights so bright down here.\"\n\n\"Sorry about that,\" Peter laughed, snapping his fingers, and lowering the lights, \"Had a rough night last night?\"\n\n\"Fuckin', nearly destroyed all of creation.\"\n\n\"What! How?\" Jesus asked.\n\n\"I was, a lil bit drunk, trying to show off, I think. Aimed my hand at Earth, and, tried to fix climate change, and instead unleashed all of hell. Lucifer was certainly surprised, laughed his ass off at all of it, he did.\" The man I had always assumed to be holier than thou, was stumbling on the platform, with bleary eyes, and a half empty bottle in his hand, \"So anyways, I got this one kid, and gave him superhuman powers at the last second, an' he destroyed all of 'em demons at once! It was so cool, you shoulda been there.\"\n\nPeter and Jesus looked towards me, and I waved silently.\n\n\"Well that explains it.\"\n\n\"Dad, we're gonna have to get you into rehab.\"",
"St. Peter didn't tell me how it happened, just that it did happen, and that I had a decision to make.\n\nI was directly responsible for converting over four billion people to Christianity, and throughout my waking life I had had no idea that these conversions were occurring. I lived most of my adult life high in a cabin in the Rockies, socially stunted because of an overbearing mother who was intent on shielding me from the world. I pondered this as I stood before the gate, musing that while I was finally ascending to Heaven, my first taste of the Promised Land was nothing like I thought it would be.\n\nFor one, St. Peter stood stock still, only responding to my questions but never offering anything else after the initial exchange. He explained that he had to greet many people who were ascending to Heaven simultaneously, which necessitated multiple copies of himself, and he really did not have the time nor energy to help me with my predicament.\n\nTime didn't matter here, of course, and I felt no rush to pass through the threshold into Heaven, because when I passed through I would have to live with the decision I inevitably had to make.\n\nI turned the problem over. \"I converted more people than Jesus, including his running tally of conversions after he ascended to Heaven,\" I directed my attention at St. Peter, hoping to engage him in a brief back and forth. \"And now I have to decide if I want to take Jesus's place in the Second Coming, or go straight to the afterlife?\"\n\nSt. Peter didn't respond for a moment, then his head snapped towards me. \"Yes. No time limit,\" he said, before returning to his former position, still as a statue again.\n\n\"That was more than a little creepy...\" I said, realizing with a start that I had spoken the thought out loud. There was an uncanny element to all of this, but the warm glow emanating from the gates brushed my concern away.\n\nA life in Heaven. Or a stint as the Second Coming of Jesus Christ and then a life in Heaven. I thought about it some more. According to St. Peter, I had obliviously converted over four billion souls to Christianity, a number of saved souls which allowed me to personify Christ himself. The decision was essentially made for me.\n\n\"I'll do it. I will be the Second Coming of Jesus Christ.\"\n\nIt took a long moment for St. Peter to turn towards me, and when he did so his face split into an open grin. I suppressed a shiver at the change in expression, chalking it up to nervousness.\n\n\"Excellent,\" St. Peter said. \"Ready to go?\"\n\n\"Wait,\" I said, sensing an opportunity. \"Now that I've made my decision, how did I manage to convert over four billion people without realizing it?\"\n\nSt. Peter stayed quiet for a while, and just as I was beginning to think that he was not going to answer my question, he began to speak. \"Let's see here.... Universe 457372. There was a video that went... what is the contemporary term, ah yes, viral,\" he said, facing me directly. \"Of a baby in a crib, staring up at a plastic toy.\"\n\nRealization dawned upon me, overshadowing the casual reference to an actual Multi-Verse. \"I was that baby?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" St. Peter said. \"You were that baby, and you grew up to be the man you are today, and as you grew people continued to watch that video. No baby had that much depth of soul, that level of calm, that intrinsic, total awareness of its surroundings, the effect of personality so powerful it emanates through a video screen.\" St. Peter paused. \"And that Cross was *just-so-perfectly* placed.\"\n\n\"I have already lived the Second Coming.\"\n\nSt. Peter did not blink. \"Jesus is master of time. You are the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the end, the First and the Last... he who is and who was and who is to come.\"\n\nI was silent for a long time. \"Have I been here before?\"\n\nThe Saint looked at me, looked down at his book, and then put down his feather pen. \n\n\"Yes. Many times. And you will do so many more. Good bye,\" he said, snapping his fingers.\n\nThe glowing white light from behind the Pearly Gates expanded outwards, and I awoke to a world of harsh sounds and bright lights, three masked heads peering down at me."
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[WP] The hero and Dark Lord have been banished into another dimension. After much trial and error, the friends of the hero and followers of the Dark Lord managed to break into that dimension to bring them back. Problem is, they quite like this "New York" place and are happily sharing an apartment.
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"\"Oi, Ozzie, you're up for dinner duty tonight.\" Calls out Leonard Lionheart, The Chosen One, Hero of Light, The Brave and Bold, currently slouched on the sofa playing Guilty Gear in an old but comfy band tee and boxers.\n\n\"Right, how does spaghetti sound? I just got this new sauce recipe and it's awesome.\" Asks Osuvoth, Dark Lord, the Harbinger of Doom, the Unspeakable, coming back from an eight-hour shift at a call center. \"I think you're gonna love it.\"\n\n\"Sounds good man. Oh, and Samantha came by earlier. Said something about some weird looking dudes looking for you. Told me they seemed dangerous. Real sweet of her, eh? Betcha she wouldn't have come had those weirdos been looking for me instead.\" The Hero jokes.\n\n\"Stop it. You know I had Leucosia. I'm not ready for another commitment like that.\" Grumbles Ozzie, shedding his work clothes on the floor. Soon he was picking up the second controller: \"Care for a round? Loser does the laundry.\" \"Deal.\" The Hero terminates his current round and deftly brings them to the 2p character selection screen. \"I'm actually glad you won't be dating her. If perchance you ever end up dating her I'd be out of a place to live. Don't wanna do that again.\" \"Agreed. Those were... Hard times.\" Muses the Dark Lord. How long has it been since they first came here, oblivious and heavily wounded, after a failed attack by each party's mages complicated and sent them here. \"We were so dumb that we still tried to finish each other even in a new world. Do you remember?\" They were younger, and dazed, probably from blood loss. It was sheer luck that the duo were found by Samantha Jolie Joestar, who just so happened to pass by. The girl called 911 and helped them with settling down in this new world, and secured their first jobs. Without her they both would have died. \n\n\"Wonder what our friends are up to over there, huh?\" Leo muses. \"My minions are smart enough to run the place even without me. They should be fine.\" Ozzie answers. \"Wish my buds are like that. The closest thing we have to a leader is Andrew from the church, and let me tell ya, that guy gives me the creeps. I hope Luke took over the team, at least he is cool.\" \"Agreed.\" After that, the room falls silent, with the exception of the game sound effects and the clicking of buttons on the controller. Lord Osuvoth won the first round, playing a brilliant Ky Kiske against Leo's Zato-1. They were going through Round 2 when *it* happened.\n\nA spatial distortion opens up in front of the TV, making Leo miss his attack, and allows Ozzie, near death, to unleash an Overdrive and take out Leo in a hit. \"WOOOOO!\" Cheers the Dark Lord, elated due to not having to do laundry, moments before a real life sword coated in lightning rushes for his throat. The Dark Lord, however, is still a Dark Lord, and with minimal use of magic, he absorbs the lightning and deflects the blade stylishly with the game controller: \"Whoa there, could we talk this out a bit?\" \n\nThe hero, Leonard, is just as surprised: \"Beatrice? What are you doing... Hey, stop that! You're destroying our flat!\" With a blade aura around his own controller, he parries the second blade aiming for Ozzie. \n\n\"What are you doing, Hero Leon!? Why are you helping him?\" \n\n\"I think we should maybe calm down and have a chat? I'll get us some snack and maybe some chronic to calm things down...\" \n\n\"You sit right there, Dark Lord!\" \n\n\"Bea, please, just calm down for a sec.\" \n\n\"No, I will not!\" \n\n\"Mountain Dew then?\" \n\n\"Ooh, a Mountain Dew would be nice. Grab me one, Ozzie.\" \n\n\"What are you two talking about?\" \n\n\"What are you blabbering on about?\" \n\n\"Killing the Dark Lord, duh!\" \n\n\"I still think we should discuss this over snacks. Here ya go Leo.\" \n\n***\"DON'T DRINK THAT!!!\"*** \n\n\"MY MOUNTAIN DEW!!!\" \n\n\"THE COUCH!!!\" \n\nThe matter only grew more complicated when a swarm of leather and spikes-clad humans and non-humans barge into the room, blowing the door off its hinge: \"\"\"MY LORD, ARE YOU OKAY?\"\"\"\n\nBoth Leo and Ozzie stare at the door in disbelief. The deposit...\n\nThe first to recover was Leo. \"Goddammit.\"\n\n\"Touché.\" Says his roommate.\n\n\"You're gonna have to die for your... MMRGH!\"\n\n\"I'll go make dinner.\"\n\n\"Make it for like a dozen people.\"\n\n\"You're gonna have to help as well.\"\n\n\"I'll fix the door.\"\n\n\"Cool. Clean the couch as well.\"\n\n\"I want another Mountain Dew.\"\n\n\"In the fridge.\"\n\n\"And that hit of chronic, too.\"\n\n\"Back of the nightstand, the packet marked with red. Use the blue bong, I just cleaned it earlier.\"\n\n\"On it chief.\"",
"(Part 1/2)\n\n“Any last words you weak and feeble fool?” An arrogant smug revealed the delight on Cyrus the Ravager’s cruel and scarred face as he prepared to deliver the final blow.\n\n“You pompous bastard! Just kill me already! I need not to feel this inevitable shame, BE A MAN AND SEND ME TO MY DOOM!” Alistair Almighty’s ocean blue eyes were overflowing with rage and humiliation, appalled that after all his strenuous years of training he was actually about to lose at the hands of the evil Cyrus. But he was ready to meet his fate, and could no longer stand the agonizing anticipation.\n\n“As you wish hero…”\n\nCyrus’ calloused right hand came crashing down, striking the joy-stick like a lightning bolt. “GAME!” flashed across the screen of the SONY television in neon green letters and the living room of 613 22nd St. boomed in echoing roars. \n\n“Once again Alistair I have delivered you the sweet tragedy of a crushing defeat in the ultimate contest of combat! I am the greatest Super Smash Bros player to ever traverse the globe!” Cyrus could not contain his excitement after winning his fifth consecutive game.\n\n“That was all luck!” This was a lie, Alistair was worse than a cenile old man when it came to videogames. “Face me again right now mongrel and we will see who the true champion is!” Alistair’s veins popped under his long blonde mane and his red face palpitated like a giant living strawberry.\n\n“ Woah bro, you know the rules Ali. Loser hands off the controller and winner stays on.” The raspy voice of this remark came from Trevor, Alistair and Cyrus’ roommate. \n\nWhen Alistair and Cyrus first came tumbling into the unfamiliar universe of New York from their home world, Bathura, they emerged in Central Park in the middle of the night and immediately engaged in a ferocious deul. However, before either could deal out too much destruction, Trevor discovered them and broke up the fight. He settled them down by letting them each smoke some of his “magical” herb and the two sworn enemies quickly realized that they were actually not so different, and afterwards they embarked on a night around the city with Trevor as they conquered clubs and discovered the delectable treasure of late night pizza. Ever since that night two months ago, the three became friends, now sharing an apartment in Brooklyn, as they embark on journeys to bars and parties to annihilate liquor, while solving the many quests of videogames and bong rips when at their humble abode. \n\n“You are right Trevor, forgive me.” An expression of embarrassment took over Alistair’s face. “Twas a not chill move on my behalf, it is indeed your turn to wield the controller.”\n\n“You’re chillin dawg, don’t worry about it, you just need to mellow out a little”\n\nTrevor went to dap Alistair up, but before they could even finish their radical handshake a booming strike shook the living room like an earthquake and the front door shot off the hinges soaring 20 feet across the air to the other side of the apartment. A cloud of smoke covered the entrance as if there was a fire and four shadowy figures emerged from the foggy doorway into the realm of 613 22nd St.\n\n“Sir Alistair we heard your scream as we made our way through the hallway of this strange building are you alright? Did the dark lord hurt you? I hope we arrived in time to prevent that malicious devil from obliterating this strange land.” This high pitched and anxious voice belonged to a freckled, young boy who appeared to still be undergoing his transformation into a man. He wore royal blue and gold robes with a dragon sewn onto the front, practically identical to Alistair’s garments, except in a much smaller size.\n\n“Ugh, calm down Halvor, Alistair’s pulse is still showing up on the tracking charm. He’s alive and we finally found him.” A beautiful, tall girl with long silver hair now emerged from the smoke, her eyes glued to a blinking crystal that hung from her fragile neck. “Don’t worry the dark lord is here as well,” she seemed to be talking to the plume of smoke that was still covering the doorless entrance.\n\n“You shall not refer to his majesty as such Mai, you crude and ignorant skank! He is to be addressed as Cyrus the Ravager or Magnificent Majesty Cyrus at all times!” This time an old lady in dark black robes stepped into the living room. Her long nose pierced through the cloud first like a dagger, and her wrinkly skin covered in warts and her tied-up grey hair shortly revealed themselves afterwards.\n\n“Lady Irma please restrain yourself, Alistair’s soldiers did help lead us to his majesty’s whereabouts and we have finally located him after our departure, so many moons ago.” The final figure to surface from the quickly evaporating cloud was a muscular bearded man bearing black armor with a purple skull painted on the chest piece. His wardrobe was very similar to Cyrus’ attire, both of which seemed to be fitted for a Giant Troll.\n\n“Yes, yes, Igor, well Mai simply led us to the precise location with her charm, it was my spell that brought us to this wretched world” Lady Irma sarcastically snarled at her ginormous friend as her beady black eyes stared into his soul, making him flinch.\n\nAs the four travellers entered the living room a look of absolute shock came over all of their faces at once. They stood there bewildered and speechless as the scene of Alistair and Cyrus chugging beers and laughing together came into view. The two enormous men on the couch were clearly not surprised by the arrival of the newcomers, but Trevor gave a slightly puzzled look as he glimpsed at the door shot all the way down the hall, smoke exhaling from his mouth.",
"\"Master Hero, please, what are you doing?\" Roy groused. \"You're living with the enemy.\"\n\nI crossed my arms. \"Belial isn't that bad, at least not here. He really stepped up after the first year or so. He's become the perfect roommate, even does thw geocery shopping and cleaning while I'm at work. We haven't had a single fight since he moved in.\" I responded. \"Yeah, he's the BBEG...\"\n\n\"B.B.E.G?\" Roy questioned.\n\n\"Big bad evil guy.\" I said back waving it away. \"But without our magical abilities... he's just another guy. And hell, I'm just another woman around here.\"\n\n\"You haven't?\" Roy said in disgust.\n\n\"No we haven't. It hasn't even come up. Been too busy. What with his online company taking root and my hectic properties... not real feasible.\" I grumbled.\n\n\"Oh thank god you havent been sleeping together.\" He sighed.\n\n\"Oh we've been fucking like rabbits believe you me, we've been here what, five years now.\" I raised my voice on the last bit.\n\n\"Nearly six.\" Belial responded from the other room.\n\nRoy gaped.\n\n\"But we haven't discussed marriage or the like.\" I continued. \"Hell, not even kids... though... to tell you the truth, Belial has been making it a habit of taking me for walks around the playground.\"\n\n\"Master Hero...\"\n\n\"Lilith.\" I corrected.\n\n\"Master Lilith, its only been 14months that you and he have been gone.\" Roy said softly.\n\n\"HA!\" I heard Belial from the other room. \"Told you there was a time discrepancy.\"\n\nI grumbled. \"It would explain a few things.\" I gazed into Roy's eyes. \"Can you really just want us back? At this point I dont want to return without Belial, but if we go back, we'll be driven to fight again.\"\n\n\"We need a hero.\" Roy exclaimed.\n\n\"But has the world improved without either of us in it?\" I countered.\n\n\"Without Belial...\" he started.\n\n\"And without me too.\" I said.\n\n\"Demon attacks are down, but that could be just because of not having Belial.\" Roy implied.\n\n\"Without a hero to hunt down demons, humans aren't actively seeking demons out.\" One of Belial's subordinates called out. \"If they arent actively being hunted theyve been keeping to themselves and not atracking. Not to mention, without Lord Belial's presence even the more ornery of the demons are keeping their heads down.\"\n\n\"See.\" I said.\n\nRoy crossed his arms stubbornly. \"I don't accept this.\" He snapped. \"Come back with us. Let's wipe the remaining demons from our land, as we did before this curse.\"\n\nI shook my head. \"That world is better off without more human demon conflict. Without either of us there to instigate or seek revenge for our respective people, things should calm down. Not to mention, the power boost the demons get from having Belial in that realm should equate them to humans in terms of magic and strength.\"\n\nBelial walked in then. Far from his former demonic appearance he stood 6'2\", looking like this realms Africans, head covered in shaggy black dreadlocks pulled into a tight ponytail that drifted down his back, eyes a crisp hazelnut with amber flecks amd skin a deep mahogany.\n\nI myself have been told I resemble one of the Native races, with my suntanned skin, tall slim stature, almond eyes, and thick dark brown hair that practically hit my knees.\n\n\"I'm sending orders back for my demons to return to our lands beyond the mountains, and for them to seek to create a nation with commodities that humans can use, but Lilith is going no where without me.\" He growled low and deep, the sound resonating from the barrel of a chest.\n\n\"Go back without us and say we were slain.\" I said. \"We've made a life here, and prefer to live out the rest of it together, without the hassel of trying to kill eachother or fighting.\"\n\n\"Unless its in bed.\" Belial hinted. \n\n\"I don't want to hear that!\" Roy said covering his ears.\n\n\"Then go boy, I'll even give you my signet and let you claim the glory for my death.\" Belial pulled the demonruby ring from his finger tossing it Roy's way.\n\n\"My lord!\" The demon choked, a second before I tossed her my holy hair come, one of many blessed weapons I had received.\n\n\"You may claim my death.\" I said. \"Fabricate whatever story you desire, but we are dead.\"\n\nBoth underlings glared at eachother before trading objects.\n\n\"You killed eachother in a supreme battle of good and evil. We found you impaled on one anothers weapons still locked in battle, even in death.\" Roy muttered.\n\nThe demon nodded in agreement.",
"The great hall of Castle Ironwood was abuzz with activity. Groups of men rushed about picking up or pushing the large tables and benches towards the walls where other men stacked them up in a effort to clear as much floor space as possible. The combined efforts of all the men were accompanied by a cacophony of voices giving directions, grunting, and swearing. The effort was supposed to be presided over by the King’s Steward and the Crown Prince, but the two men were so busy bickering that the effort was directed by the Court Wizard who was directing the movement of men and attendants who were bringing the necessary magic components for the ritual they were going to undertake and doing her best to resist the urge to grab both of the men and knock their heads together. \n\nThe men were arguing about whose fault it was that the greatest hero in the land, a knight who had not only slain a tarrasque, a dragon, and several rogue spellcasters to but also had been rewarded for these deeds by being betrothed to the Crown Prince’s youngest sister, had vanished. \n\nWhen a powerful necromancer had threatened to lay waste to the kingdom with a horde of the undead, the heroic knight had volunteered to fight the evil necromancer in single combat to decide the fate the kingdom. During the duel, both men had been transported to another realm by a magic mishap, and now both of their respective sides were trying to bring them home. \n\nMeanwhile, in an abandoned mine in the Flintrock Mountains to the west of castle the officers of necromancer’s horde were beginning their own effort to bring back their master. Gathered around a termite-eaten table in what had once been the office of the mine’s overseer, a wraith, a vampire, a demon, a young necromancer, and a reanimated corpse who had been promoted because he somehow retained his intellect and memories when he had been reanimated rather than becoming a mindless ghoul like the rest of the necromancer’s horde, which was currently shambling around underground in the abandoned mine -corpses, no matter how well they are reanimated, last longer if they are kept out of the sun- were making preparations to find their leader so their campaign to conquer the kingdom and enslave mortal men could continue. The council had decided that the young necromancer, the wraith, and the demon would go the other world to retrieve their leader and that the vampire and corpse would be left in charge until their return.\n\nBack at the Castle, a knight who was the closest friend of the vanished hero and a captain of the King’s guards had volunteered to go to the other world accompanied by the Court Wizard. \n\nAt both locations, the spellcasters began to open portals to the mysterious other realm. In the Great Hall the Court Wizard chanted and a bright light appeared which grew brighter and brighter until the light was extinguished revealing a shimmering gap in the air through which the other realm was visible. The King wished the trio luck and gave them his blessing. In the yard outside of the mine’s office, the young necromancer shouted incantations in a long-dead language until a loud ripping sound accompanied the opening of a jagged tear in the air in front of the waiting group, who brusquely told to come back with the necromancer or to not come back at all. \n\nThe Captain, the Knight, and the Wizard stepped through the portal into the lobby of an apartment building in the Bronx. The portal flashed brightly again before the light faded and the portal closed. The apartment’s doorman, sitting behind his desk reading a western novel, looked up the trio saw that the two knights were wearing shining armor, carrying sharp weapons and saw the Court Wizard shimmering with magic. He raised an eyebrow before saying, “If youse guys are lookin’ for the other weirdos who came in here with light show and the swords they’re in apartment 513.” \n\n“Thank you kindly, my good man,” the Captain responded. “Onward friends,” he said to the other two and the bounded towards the door labeled *Stairs*. \n\n“Friggin’ tourists,” the doorman muttered to himself as the trio began making their way upstairs. \n\nOn the roof, a young couple was sitting on a blanket wrapped up in each other’s arms reminiscing about how they met. The young man subtly reached down and touched the small felt box in his pocket where engagement ring he was about to propose with was nestled. The box was hadn’t moved since the last time he had checked 30 seconds earlier. He subtly put his hand back on his girlfriend’s shoulder and hoped she hadn’t noticed. She had, in fact, noticed but pretended she hadn’t. She knew he was going to propose, and she didn’t want to spoil the occasion. \n\nThe tender moment was interrupted when the young necromancer, the demon, and the wraith entered the new world. The three were so engrossed by the sights and sounds of their surroundings none of them noticed the young couple. The tall buildings, endless lights, and the loud ambience of the bustling city took the three by surprise. \n\n“Excuse me!” They heard an indignant voice say. They turned to see a very frightened looking young man standing behind an indignant looking young woman. \n\nThe young necromancer, whose eyes and hands were still glowing green from her magic, the demon, who looked like a humanoid form made of black smoke vaguely in the shape of man wearing heavy armor, and the wraith, whose tattered robe did not hide its snake like yellow eyes, pale grey flesh, and long, sharp claws, all looked at the girl in amazement. No mortal had ever spoken then with such insolence. \n\n“We’re in the middle of something here if you jerks hadn’t noticed with your big, showy entrance,” the girl said angrily, “So move the hell along before I throw you all off the roof.”\n\nThe young necromancer and the wraith looked at each other, unsure of what to do. The demon spoke up in a deep grumbling voice that echoed as if it was being spoken in an empty room saying, “We were, uh, just leaving.” \n\nThe demon then nudged the young necromancer with his elbow. She reached into a pocket on the inside of the cloak and pulled out a talisman made of a skull carved with runes that was glowing green. After studying the runes, the young necromancer announced that their target was below them. The girl, still glaring at the three horrors, pointed at the fire escape. The three turned and walked briskly towards the fire escape before beginning their climb downward. The wraith stopped to ask what the metal and glass behemoths roving the streets on four wheels were, but the Necromancer whispered at him to shut up and keep climbing. \n\nThe young woman turned back to her boyfriend, who had composed himself by this point, still scowling, and said, “The nerve of some people. Appearing out of nowhere like they own the place in the middle of our evening together. I didn’t hear any apology either; I bet they’re from Jersey.”\n\n“You know,” her boyfriend responded putting his hands on her shoulders, “you’re pretty cute when you’re mad.” \n\nThe young woman glared at him, fighting the urge to grin, and said with a laugh, “Oh, just shut up and ask me to marry you.” \n\nMeanwhile, in apartment 513, the Hero and the Necromancer were sitting on the couch watching a reruns of a 1990s sitcom. “I’m getting hungry. Should we order a pizza?” the Hero asked nonchalantly. \n\nBefore the necromancer could respond, the apartment’s door was kicked in and the kingdom’s finest burst through, while three nightmarish servants of the necromancer crashed through the apartment window. \n\nAs the groups stared at each in shock, the necromancer looked over at the hero, sighed and said, “So much much for getting the security deposit back on this place.”"
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[WP] After coming back to your childhood home during the summer, you discover a door that leads to a room with a younger version of yourself sitting inside. They tell you that you can only tell them one thing, and that thought will transfer back in time to your true past self.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Lisa was tired and sore and miserable. Why she had agreed to come here was beyond her. And why she had driven almost a thousand miles instead of doing the smart thing was was even more outside if her understanding. But, she had done it. She had done both of those things. And now she was going to pay the price.\n\nShe had not seen the house in over twenty years. Not since she had run away. Run away from him. She still was not sure if it was the right thing to do. On the one hand, she absolutely needed to get out of there. The faint scars littering her body were a testament to that.\n\nBut still. He had thrived off her fear, and running away was, in many ways, the ultimate sign of her fear. How how afraid of him she was. She had always known, ever since she was a little girl, that she would eventually run away. But when she did at the tender age of 16, if had felt wrong somehow. \n\nBut now she was back. And he would not be there anymore. Time and a three pack a day smoking habit had seen to that. Now all she had to do was face the people that were still there. And one that she had abandoned all those years ago.\n\nShe took a deep breath and entered the house. There were people there. Most of them were pretending to be sad. Nobody really liked him. Not even Lisa's own mother really liked him. But she had been forced to pretend, and still was.\n\nShe was sitting in the corner, dressed in black and crying among other relatives. Lisa could not tell how real those tears were, nor could she tell if they were from sadness or joy. With that woman, it could have been either of them.\n\nLisa made the rounds, reacquainted with people she had not talked to in years. There were some she had kept in semi-regular contact with, mainly those who had helped her run away, but others were a mystery to her.\n\nThe two women hugged, and both mourned and celebrated his passing. Lisa told her mother of her life. How she had managed to survive, who had helped her. How she had gotten a job. She had never married, or even dated, and certainly did not have any kids. Her mother was not happy with that, but also surprisingly understanding.\n\nOnce the other guests had started to leave, Lisa went to check out the rest of the house. The first place she went was her room. According to her mother, Lisa's old bedroom had been untouched since she ran. It was sometimes cleaned, but otherwise nothing was done to it.\n\nLisa opened the door and froze. There was a girl there. A little girl who could not have been more than six or seven. In fact, she was around the age that Lisa was when she first knew she had to run away from home. From him.\n\nNot only that, but the girl looked oddly familiar. She had the same color hair and eyes as Lisa did. The same general facial features in general, really. She was even wearing clothes that Lisa swore she used to own, even though no kid today would be caught dead wearing that sort of outfit. \n\nLisa shook her head and got over the shock of seeing the child. She entered the room and the girl looked down. She shifted her weight from foot to foot and wrapped her tiny hand around the pointer finger of the other. If was a nervous habit that Lisa still had not quite outgrown.\n\n\"Hello there.\" Lisa said. \"I'm Lisa, what's your name?\"\n\n\"Also Lisa.\" The girl said quietly. Things were definitely getting weirder. Although, that one could be coincidence. Lisa was a very common name, after all.\n\n\"Well Lisa, who did you come here with? Do you know where your mommy and daddy are?\" \n\nThe girl wince when Lisa brought up the girl's father. She tamped it down and answered.\n\n\"I live here. This is my room.\"\n\n\"What? Are you sure? That can't be right, since this is my room. Or at least it was.\"\n\nThe girl's eyes widened and she looked up suddenly. \"Really? Then, then you're the lady the man said I should talk to and give this letter to. He said you'd help me.\"\n\nThe girl reached into a pocket and pulled out a crumpled sheet of paper. There was something about that paper. A twinge of familiarity. But how was that possible? It was just a sheet of paper.\n\nLisa took it and started reading. The neat, crisp letters did nothing to settle her nerves, as they were oddly familiar as well.\n\nHello Lisa,\n\nFirst of all, yes, the girl who gave you this letter is you. The you from when you were six. I sent her forward in time, just long enough to talk with you.\n\nShe will not remember this, nor will she remember me. All she will remember is one sentence. One single sentence that you tell her. Tell her one thing, then tell her what it means. She will assign the meaning to that sentence and will remember it. How she acts on it will remain to be seen though.\n\nI hope you tell her something better than what was told to you when you were in her position. It was, and still is,y hope that these meeting lead to a better life. Choose your words well.\n\nYou can talk to her as long as you like, tell her \"Remember this.\" What follows next will be what she remembers, and your explanation of it. Hopefully we will never meet again.\n\nThe letter ended without a signature. Her mind was racing. Was this real? Had she really done this before? She could not remember ever meeting an adult version of herself. But, then again, there was that sudden certainty that she needed to run away as soon as she could. That it was the best way to get away from him. \n\nShe had to know for sure if this was real.\n\nLisa, can you tell me about...about your daddy?\"\n\n\"Daddy's mean. I don't like him. He yells a lot and smells bad and smokes and says bad words and...and...\"\n\n\"And?\"\n\n\"And he hurts me and mommy. He says it's because we were bad, but I don't think that's right. I always try to be good, but he hurts me anyways. And if he's not hurting me, he hurts mommy too.\"\n\n\"Can you show me some of the places he hurt you?\"\n\nYoung Lisa slowly lifted the bottom of her shirt. A jagged line, not quite healed yet, had been torn into her stomach. Adult Lisa sucked in air. She had a scar in the same shape in the same place. So it was real.\n\n\"I see. Thank you Lisa.\"\n\nShe took a deep breath. She found herself grabbing her pointer finger as she thought. What could she say? What could she tell this little girl, her younger self, that would change her life? Make it better? Was there anything? Nothing she could think of would change her younger self's situation.\n\nNo, that was not really true, was it? There was one thing. One of Lisa's biggest regrets. The one thing she had done that gave him the ultimate victory, even if she was not there to see it.\n\n\"Lisa, I want you to remember this.\"\n\nThe girl's demener changed. Her eyes lost their focus and her posture loosened.\n\n\"I will remember.\" She said in a blank, almost mechanical voice.\n\n\"Show no fear.\" Lisa said. The words seemed to echo.\n\n They lingered in the air, swirling like a whirlwind through the room. Now she needed to follow it up. Explain herself so the girl would not self destruct in some crazy way.\n\n\"That man, your daddy, loves your fear. When he hurts you, it isn't about the pain. It's about fear. So don't show him that you're afraid. It's okay to be scared on the inside, and it's even okay to show it around other people. But not him. Never him. Your daddy should never, ever see that you're afraid of him.\"\n\nLisa stopped talking and the whirlwind of words slowly abated. The girl returned to normal, blinking away the robotic trance she had been in.\n\n\"Now, do you rem what I said?\" Lisa asked.\n\n\"Uh-huh.\" The girl replied, nodding quickly.\n\n\"Good. In that case, I'm going to go now. You be a good girl, okay?\"\n\n\"Okay.\" \n\nLisa turned to leave the room, but the child stopped her.\n\n\"Um, will he stop being mean if I do that? Will that work?\"\n\nThe question was eerily familiar. It felt like she had asked the very same question a long time ago. She did not remember the answer she had gotten though.\n\n\"I don't know. I think it will, but I don't know.\"\n\nShe left her old bedroom and shut the door. Out of curiosity, she reopened it, and found it to be empty. She closed it and thought. Nothing seemed to have changed. She was still single, she had still run away at a far too young age. Maybe it did not work like that. Maybe her past self's life had no impact on her current one. That was a shame. But, she could at least hope that that girl's life would turn out better than hers did.",
"Im 8.\nI found this new website called deviantart, its got some pretty neat undertale comics on it and a few other things. I heard about this new comic featuring a bright red balloon and sans making a bad joke. I think ill look it up. \n\n\"You better fooken not, in fact, never look up balloon anything ever again.\" \n\nThe voice is deafening, I dont know who told me that but it's not like im gonna disobey what i can only assume is myself or something??? \n\n\nIm 14. \nAfter talking to my ghost supernatural younger self, i whip out my phone and check out deviantart. The inflation art drains out of my profile, I look into the settings and see that I haven't been on deviantart in 2 years. Turns out this totally sfw askblog i inspired didnt disappear, but rather is exponentially more popular. I feel like i lost 20 pounds. I take a closer look at the internet... Covid-19 is GONE. What did past timeline me do???",
"\"I...I don't know what to say,\" I tell the young boy. \n\nWhat could seventeen year old me need to know that he doesn't already figure out later on? Everything I don't know up to this point in life is most likely pointless. \n\nI look at the fresh scar that falls down on his brow. And the sad look on his face, which hurt to look at more. His eyes were also a bit swollen from what I assume was the result of a night full of tears.\n\nHe was a mess, anyone could see that, but I begin to remember the one thing not even my own parents would realize. I needed help. I was lost, confused, and in so much pain. And in the moment of all those feelings, I made a bad turn. A turn that kept me from so many early moments of happiness. A turn that I wish I never took at that stupid party. That stupid party which I wouldn't be able to leave for years, after it died out.\n\nI look down at my arms. The scars were gone by now, but I could still pin point some of my usual spots. I turn to the boy in front of me.\n\nSeventeen years old. Only a year before everything went from bad to worse. Jesus, my mental health had been on the rocks for so long. \n\n\"Don't go to the party next summer,\" I tell him. \"Your classmate will invite you, but don't go.\"\n\nHe looks at me confused, but nods. \n\n\"Everything will be okay, just...don't go,\" I mutter. \"I'm sorry.\"\n\nI stand up and run out the door, crashing into my old bed. Looking over my shoulder, I see it shut. That door was shut now for over 5 years now. I know it won't ever be open again, but I felt some good in helping the past. Maybe in this world I won't gain back those lost years, but in his world, we would. \n\nAnd there's some comfort in that, at least.",
"It had been quite some time since I had seen the old dump, thought a certain charm still remained. My childhood home stands before us. A dark, abandoned, and trash filled stain in the country. I can't say it was much better back in the day, but it was definitely cleaner. \n\nMy friends and I would come our here on occasion. It was secluded enough that you could do about anything you wanted, but the main attraction were the ghosts. Most people can't handle a night here, I lived here for years. It really should be burnt to the ground, but that's not my call. \n\n“I got the app up.” My buddy says with his phone in hand. \n\n“It's not gonna work” I replied. I doubt the i-store has a real ghost hunting app. \n\n“I bet something will happen. You first.” My friend says as he motions to the rotted front door. I roll my eyes and waltz in. The only thing scary about this place to me are the memories. My friend scurries in behind me, his eyes glued to the phone. \n\n“Yo! Anyone still around?” I yell into the darkness. A familiar silence replies. \n\nMy friend stares at his app. A word pops up, a supposed message from the beyond. “Cry. That's all it says.” He says \n\n“Is that a demand, or...” I say as a look back at him. “You all are going to have to be more specific than that!” \n\n“Don't test them!” My friend quickly says. \n\n“Ehh, they're harmless.” I say with a shrug. “I'm going upstairs to see what sort of wreck my room is, you coming?” \n\nMy friend shakes his head. “Hell no, not after last time.” \n\n“Oh come on, it was just a doll.” \n\n“Hell, no.” \n\n\"Fine, I'll be upstairs.” \n\nI leave him to fiddle with his app as I walk upstairs. Every step just as creaky as before. I reach the top, but something feels off. I look over to the right and see something where it shouldn't be. I cock my head as I look at the door to my room. \n\n“That's not right, I never had a door growing up” I say to myself as I examine it. There certainly wasn't one here before either. I don't think any of the ghosts were carpenters, and I doubt there were any spare doors lying around. \n\n“Don't be alarmed.” A strange voice says from down the hallway. \n\n“What the fuck!” I say as I spin around toward the voice. A saintly being stood down the hall. A white hooded robe covered every feature. I can feel a strange calming sensation exude form it. This is not one of the ghosts here, something in my head screamed it. The ghosts were far more, um, malevolent. \n\n“Please be calm. I have brought you here, for a special reason.” It oddly paced its words. \n\nMy rational mind says to get the hell out of there, but I ask a question instead. “What?” \n\nThe being points toward the door. “Within that room is you. Still young. Still wondering. I give you an opportunity, to give a thought not taken. Only one, one and only. Open the door, and gaze into the past.” \n\nI stare at the figure and then glance around the room. There isn't a gas leak, so hopefully I'm not hallucinating. \n\n“I don't believe you.” I reply. I turn back to the stairs to find them missing. “That's new.” \n\n“A single thought, without restrictions. Your past awaits, for its future.” the being says as it points to the door. \n\nIt seems I have no choice but to go with the madness. I take a deep breath and approach the door. I'm greeted by an all to familiar sight. I see myself staring ahead into the darkness, his mind lost in thought. Thought his eyes seem normal, I see the emptiness inside them. \n\n “Ah shit.” I say as I look on. The cloaked figure billows in behind me. “So you're telling me this is a complete time loop?” I said as I glance back at the figure. It cocks its hooded head at me. \n\n“I already know that thought.” I say with a sigh. \n\n“This moment of time, can be anything, how are you certain what it is?” It replies. \nI look at my old empty self. \n\n“There was a thought I had back then I could never explain. I could never get rid of it, no matter how hard I tried. No matter the struggle, no matter the triumph, that thought burned in the back of my head. An everlasting ember that refused to die. A thought I could never explain, nor rationalize. As much as I hated it, it defined me. I never knew why I had it, but I guess this explains it.” \n\nI walk into the room. It is just as I remembered, though the hole in the wall was smaller. My old self looks up to me, locking his gaze with mine. I take a deep breath and crossed my arms. I stood there for a moment, making sure I had my undivided attention. \n\n“You will survive, and life will get better.” I stated. My old self seems unmoved, but I know my message got through. \n\nI turned and left the room, my task accomplished. The hooded figure stood between me and the stairs. It stared at me, at least I think it did. \n\n“Are you sure? You could say anything. Gifts of the future, regrets, lottery, love. Any and all are at your disposal, do you truly wish to waste it?” \n\n“Waste?” I questioned the being. I glance back at the hollow human in my room. “Money, love, power, they were all worthless to him. This is the only thought that mattered.” I said as I pushed past the figure."
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[WP] In a dystopian future, you are the last human. With virtually all technology wiped out, there is not much to entertain yourself. You often sing to not become bored, and nobody is around to stop you from singing as loud as you want. One day, someone, or something, joins in with you.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Once upon a time, I would've listened to the radio when I got bored.\n\nBut- sadly- the radio was no longer an option.\n\nAs was the internet as a whole.\n\nNo electronic worked anymore- no one was there to operate cell towers, watch power plants, play songs.\n\nSo I resorted to my good old ukulele and voice.\n\nI wish I had written down all of the chords and progressions to all the songs I used to know- but there really wasn't a need back then. I could always look it back up on the internet anyways.\n\nNow- heh- now I wrote down everything I remembered. Everything that could've possibly led to this happening.\n\nI never had a great memory. It really only worked randomly and almost never anything important.\n\nBut at least music was important enough.\n\n\\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nI found a nice perch on an abandoned building. It wasn't too high (always was afraid of heights) but tall enough to where I felt almost invincible.\n\nAnd this is where I performed.\n\nI sang.\n\nI sang to an audience that would never hear me.\n\nThe sound of my voice and ukulele echoing throughout the emptiness- filling it almost.\n\nBut I still felt so empty inside.\n\nIn my head, I could still hear the original singer along with me- but it only amplified my loneliness.\n\nUntil-\n\nAnother voice joined in. Singing the harmony at first- but when I switched to harmony they switched to melody.\n\nAnd for the first time in 8 years.\n\nI didn't feel so alone.\n\nThe sound of our voices filled the neighborhood- I was filled with so much joy, elation, that the very air felt lighter and easier to breathe.\n\nAs I held the last chord I looked around, trying desperately to find the other voice.\n\nBut I saw no one.\n\nAnd the emptiness filled me again.\n\n\\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nIf it weren't for Koda, my husky, I probably would've just wallowed and wilted to death.\n\nShe's something I can love. Something from the past that didn't leave.\n\nI hum another song as I brush through her fur. It's therapeutic in a way.\n\nIt lets me pretend that I'm just waiting for my parents and siblings to come home.\n\nAnd not that I'm alone in a world too big for just one person.\n\nBut then I hear it again.\n\nThe Voice.\n\nI look to Koda- watching her for a reaction.\n\nAnd she perks up!\n\nEars swiveling to find the source of the sound.\n\nAnd I'm relieved that I'm not going insane.\n\nThe Voice sings to me- it's a song I don't recognize, but it feels familiar.\n\nI find myself humming along- the notes coming to me like a memory.\n\nStanding up, I continue to hum as I look for the source- Koda following slightly behind.\n\nMaking my way outside of my house- not really a home anymore- The Voice seems to be coming from down the street.\n\nKoda- my tether to sanity- is shifting her ears in that direction. Confirming that the sound is real.\n\nAs I walk toward the source, it doesn't get louder per se- but more clear and it feels real. More real than almost anything has been in a long time.\n\n\\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nTurning the corner- there's nothing?\n\nThere's only a wall.\n\nIt doesn't look all that strange, just another concrete wall. Though The Voice is coming from this place.\n\nAnd Koda is staring at the wall, head tilted and ears still perked- so it must be real. If she can hear it I'm not going insane.\n\nI can still hear it, but I see nothing but the wall.\n\nObviously they must be behind the wall!\n\nReaching forward I press my hand against it.\n\nIt's oddly warm...solid in the sense that you wouldn't just fall through it, but with enough force, it would give.\n\nIf I was sensible, I would've been wary.\n\nBut 8 years of solitude does things to a 12-year-old mind.\n\nSo I picked up Koda and pushed my way through the wall. It felt almost like gelatin, but more liquid in the sense that the space behind me would fill in with the same strange substance.\n\nAfter what felt like 10 minutes of trudging through the strange substance, we emerged on the other side.\n\nIt looked no different.\n\nBut another me stood there, with her own Koda.\n\nSinging that song we both knew once upon a time.\n\nAnd in that moment-\n\nAt least we were alone together.",
"A can of expired black beans. Some disgusting shoes. A single match. A torn up and ripped umbrella. \n\nThe scrapyard has not been too kind to Savannah today. Well, ever since the human race was wiped out by the Clawdite invasion the entire world has been a scrapyard, but today Savannah was ravaging through junk at an actual waste collection center hoping to find some useful gadgets and some food that’s at least somewhat edible.\n\nTechnically though, the Clawdites failed to wipe out all of human life. Savannah was still alive, even if she was all alone in a burning world cluttered with nuclear waste from fifty years of intergalactic war.\n\nBut in Savannah’s mind she was not necessarily alone.\n\nAs she sat down to take a break from sorting through rancid garbage, she opened her backpack and took out her ipod nano and a pair of earbuds that looked like they had been chewed on by rats. Then she put in the barely functioning headphones and played the only album downloaded on the dirt covered device, *Funeral* by Arcade Fire.\n\nAfter searching through piles of trash and debris for her entire life, this ipod and headphones are the only pieces of technology Savannah has ever discovered. It’s her favorite thing in the entire world. The only thing that makes her feel momentarily happy in a world full of corpses and isolation.\n\nShe doesn’t mind that there is only one album available to listen to. It is in fact, her favorite album of all time, even if by default. But as long as she has this album, Savannah can light up her own dark world at any given time. As long as she has this album, Savannah can sing.\n\nIf there is an optimistic outlook on an extinct, remote planet, it’s that at least you don’t have to be embarrassed about having your singing heard. \n\nSo Savannah wailed in that pile of filth and rats. Screamed out every off-key note until she forgot that the only thing she had found to eat was a can of expired beans.\n\nHowever, something suddenly brought her back to reality. Savannah paused her music. She must be imagining things right? She has to, there was no logical way what she was hearing could be real. But it was.\n\nEven with the music paused she still heard it. The song she had been singing...someone was still singing it. \n\nSavannah double checked her ipod to make sure it was paused. It was. Then she slapped herself as hard as she could in the face to make sure she wasn’t losing her sanity and hearing things.\n\nThe singing didn’t stop.\n\nIn twenty three years Savannah has never heard a voice besides her own and the multiple members of Arcade Fire. But somehow another voice was filling the empty scrapyard, singing just as terribly, yet equally as charming as her own.\n\nIt was coming from the wreckage of a Clawdite space cruiser buried in an enormous mountain of junk.\n\nHer heart was racing now as she inched towards the obliterated ship parts and animal skeletons that surrounded the heap of waste. She stuck out her trembling hand, swallowed hard, but then stopped.\n\nShe was nervous of what she would find. Nervous that after twenty three years of living on her own in a deserted world, that something was about to erupt the monotonous status quo she had maintained. \n\nBut she knew what she had to do. \n\nSavannah closed her eyes and breathed in deeply.\n\nThen she started singing in harmony with an unknown voice as she dug through animal carcasses and ship wreckage to break it free.",
"Music moves the soul. In my case, I was the one, definite, only soul.\n\nMusic was the only thing I had left. Everybody had died. Not a speck of human technology remained, save for some non-electric water filters and matches.\n\nThere was nobody else to crack jokes to. There was nobody else to grant my shoulder to cry on. I was a people pleaser at heart, but how could I go on when there were no... people?\n\nSo I sang. I sang and I sang until my throat was dry. Sometimes soft, sometimes loud. Some songs were sad, unleashing the empty pit of sorrow that I still couldn't stomach. Others were happy, an attempt to bring my spirits up in a world where, inevitably, humans would go extinct. I was going to die, and was going to die alone.\n\nI hummed an upbeat tune, patting my matchbox like a sort of tambourine. I made my way to the lake, staring at the plastic drifting about. I knelt and stared for a long time, mindlessly occupying my time with a song.\n\nMy stomach rumbled, so I washed my hands and face. I took some of yesterday's food out and ripped small pieces off, nibbling until I had my fill.\n\nEndless humming. I lay down on the mud, looking at the sky. The sky looked as normal as ever, as if I wasn't the last sentient being to behold them.\n\nTears ripped down my face, but I couldn't bring myself to stop singing through my sobs.\n\nWhy me? Why was I the only one to survive? There were so many catastrophic events... surely everybody should have died.\n\nNobody else would know what I felt. The despair. You are the only one left. You can't go anywhere but down from here.\n\nI was afraid. I always dreamed of dying of old age, surrounded by my family. Maybe I'd have a wife... maybe I'd have kids... even grandkids. But no, none of that. Just me. Alone. Out here. Slowly starving and suffocating.\n\nA wailing song came from my throat. 'Stay By Me', the last song my favorite artist ever wrote, and the most popular song before people just stopped caring about anything.\n\nAnd then a voice, distant, sang back.\n\nI flipped onto my knees suddenly, looking around for the source of the song. It was getting louder, and then started to fade.\n\n''No, no, I'm here!\" I shouted, my shrill voice shredding my throat. And then I continued the lyrics, clinging to the song like a prayer.\n\nThere was somebody else. There was still no hope left for this world, but at least- at least I wasn't alone."
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[WP] You wished to be left alone, and the djinn cursed you with being ignored, by everyone and everything. What he doesn't realize is just how immensely powerful he's just made you.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"At first, it felt like a punishment. For figuring out the loophole, for mastering the djinn's system. At first, I thought I would be doomed to spend the rest of my life alone.\n\nAfter all, I deserved it, didn't I? Everyone knew djinns were tricky creatures. You had to word your wishes just right, or they could go south very quickly. My first two wishes were two pages long in their specifications. I wanted talent, but also skill. I wanted to be a musician, but I didn't want to limit myself to that. So I asked for the ability to learn quickly. Well, that's a gross oversimplification, but it'll suffice. Let me just say there were no loopholes in that contract. The djinn grumbled, but he did it.\n\nThen I discovered that just being a talented musician wasn't enough. You could play every instrument ever invented, but were you really a musician if no one knew you, if no one would hire you?\n\nSo I wished for fame. And then I waited.\n\nThat last wish was a backup, a chance to fix any mistakes in the previous wishes, or to trick the djinn into undoing any curses. But after all, it looked like my contracts were sufficient. No consequences ever popped up. For twenty years, I waited. Until one stupid careless word ruined everything.\n\nDjinn don't just go away and sit quietly while you decide on your wishes. That's why so many people throw away their wishes so quickly. This djinn was my constant companion for twenty years. His name was Jerry. Well, his name was unpronouncable, but I called him Jerry. I'm not sure he was really fond of that name. He was older than the history of humanity, and he'd seen almost everything humans had done. He spoke seventy-three languages, half of them dead. He had stories about every age. Fun to listen to, but difficult when you didn't want everyone to know you a several-thousand-year-old djinn as part of your entourage.\n\nAt first, we got along relatively well. He was a good enough companion, and I think he was just happy to be free of his bottle, able to eat and drink and live a life of luxury. Then I think he got bored. He started annoying me on purpose. I told him to go away. He refused. And after twenty years, I made the stupidest mistake I've ever made. \n\n\"The only wish I have right now is to be left alone!\" I screamed at the djinn. He'd been badgering me for two days non-stop. I couldn't talk see anyone, couldn't do anything. I'd even had to cancel a show, because imagine trying to perform with a djinn dancing about the stage screaming about wishes. Not a good plan. Over and over again, \"what's your last wish? What's your last wish?\"\n\nMaybe I shouldn't have kept him so long. Maybe I should have wished for something tiny years ago. I guess I didn't really need to hold onto that last wish for so long, but it made me feel better. Like I could get out of anything if I just held it til the right moment.\n\nBut in that instant, I saw his eyes grow wide, his lips stretch into an almost comical grin of triumph. A look of horror crossed my face and my hands jumped up on their own to cover my mouth.\n\n\"No... No, I - I didn't mean that! It wasn't a wish!\" I cried, but it was too late. The djinn snapped his fingers and he was gone.\n\nI wasn't sure what he'd done until I went to the grocery store. My housekeeper was nowhere to be found, and dear God, I needed a drink while I tried to figure out what the blasted djinn had done to me.\n\nTo my surprise, no one in the store seemed to recognize me. That was unusual - when a djinn gives you fame, they don't do it halfway. What I didn't realize was the no one was even looking at me. I barely managed to jump out of the way of a lady barreling down the aisle with her cart. \"Jeez, Karen, watch where you're going!\" I yelled, but she didn't so much as flinch at the sound of my voice.\n\nI shrugged and grabbed a bottle of Jack Daniels, hesitated, and grabbed a second bottle. Better safe than sorry. It wasn't until I reached the register that it really sunk in.\n\nI placed the bottles on the counter, expecting a snide comment about the night I was going to have, not really in the mood for it.\n\n\"Next?\" the cashier asked smoothly, looking at the woman behind me. The name tag on his blue vest said \"Alan,\" and the look in eyes said he had already given up on life at the tender age of... 18? 19? It didn't matter. I just wanted to buy my alcohol and be done with it. \n\n\"Hey, mate, just the booze please,\" I said, a little confused.\n\nThe woman ignored me as she all but shoved me out of the way to place her things on the counter. Except, it wasn't that she shoved me. She just moved. As though she didn't see me or didn't know I was there.\n\nOr didn't know I was there.\n\nThat's when it dawned on me. I'd wished to be left alone. Well, I was going to be left alone. I was going to be left alone *by everyone*. No more fame. No more shows. No more even buying a bottle of Jack at the store because the cashier would ignore me. The cashier would always ignore me.\n\nI grabbed one of the bottles without thinking, left a twenty on the counter, and headed out. One way or another I was drinking myself into a stupor tonight. Alan didn't even glance at me. \n\nOn the way home, I realized what I'd missed before. The other cars weren't leaving room for me. I had to dodge and weave as they continually failed to acknowledge my existancs. Idly, I wondered what would happen if I failed to dodge one? The woman at the store hadn't acknowledged me even when she bumped into me, but she hadn't been injured. What if I ran into someone? Would they know I hit them? Would they know why they were injured?\n\nSlowly, it began to dawn on me. I could've taken that bottle of Jack, and no one could have stopped me. I could probably hit someone with my car, and they would ignore me. Even if they couldn't ignore me, the police... What police?\n\nI could say anything, do *anything*. Consequences were a function of society. If society couldn't acknowledge me, the there could be no consequences. This was a whole new world to play with...\n\nMaybe the djinn hadn't meant to punish me after all. Or maybe he was so happy to get away from me that he - like me - hadn't paid enough attention to the details. I would run some tests, then maybe in a month, I could rob a bank. But no. Why rob a bank? I didn't need money. I could take anything I wanted.\n\nThe opportunities were endless. Step one would be to figure out exactly how intrusive I would have to be before someone would notice me. I needed to learn my limits, needed to see exactly how far this new power would stretch. And then... Party time, ladies and gentlemen!",
"The djinn thought he'd gotten the best of me. Fool. I'd wished to be left alone. I had wanted a break from, well...everything and everyone. The kids, the wife, the never ending texts and emails from my boss. I had taken to escaping on long walks along the shoreline, but even there people were still bothering me. Stupidly pointless polite small talk, requests for directions, the time... ugh. I just want to be alone with my thoughts, unbothered. Is that too much to ask?! It was on one such walk that I found the lamp rocking back and forth in the surf. I despise litter bugs. It looked like cheap tourist crap and I picked it up to put it in the trash. It was heavier than I anticipated, maybe not cheap crap after all? The lid appeared to be stuck by crusted buildup from the sea - dirt, some small barnacles. I was in the process of picking it off when I lightly brushed the side. Smoke began pouring out of it and I dropped it in surprise. \n\nThe smoke took on human shape and then solidified into a barrel chested man wearing an old fashioned genie outfit - harem pants, turban, gold jewelry - you get the idea. I thought it was a bit stereotypical and borderline racist to be honest. He eyed me for a moment and then boomed in a loud voice \"You have released me from the lamp! You may ask 3 wishes of me to grant!\" *sigh* 'Now this' I thought. 'Why can't I just have 1 walk without being bothered?!'\n\n\"Well?\" He boomed \"What will it be? Untold wealth? A palace? A harem of beautiful women?\"\n\n\"I just want to be left alone.\" I replied. \n\nHe got a devious look on his face and clapped his hands together. \"Done!\" He boomed. And then he just stood there, looking perplexed. \"There should be someone here\" he muttered looking around \"How else did I escape the lamp?!\" \n\n\"I'm right here\" I replied. \"You owe me two more wishes.\" But he just looked right through me like I wasn't even there. He kicked at the lamp, and picked it up poking a finger in the spout and trying in vain to get the lid off. \"How did I get out?! I can't return to the lamp until I grant the wishes...\"\n\nI slowly backed away, still unnoticed, left him standing there and made my way toward home. Not a single person tried to speak to me and I realized that my wish had been granted - people were finally leaving me alone! I stopped by the grocery store, but the automatic door didn't swing open for me. Then an elderly woman on a scooter shoved into me from behind and the door opened on cue. \"Excuse me!\" I muttered sarcastically at her but she just rolled on without so much as a glance in my direction. 'Hmmm...' I wondered just how far this went. I decided to experiment. \n\nInside, I walked directly to the dairy section and grabbed a carton of eggs. On my way out, I crushed an egg on the head of every person I passed. Not a single reaction to me from any of them. They just looked around, bewildered and scooping the egg out of their hair. I stopped by the cash registers in the front and helped myself to a few handfuls of cash. That was tricky, I had to be quick grabbing it - nearly lost my fingers the first few tries. But no reaction from anyone, it was as though I didn't exist. Even the security cameras refused to scan in my direction. \n\nSince then, I've been living the high life. I'm wearing the finest clothes, eating at the best restaurants, and staying in 5 star hotels. I have a front row seat for every Broadway show. First class seats on every flight. I've walked around Buckingham Palace, and slept in King Louis bed in Versailles - completely unnoticed. I've sat in on top secret briefings in the White House and been privy to private negotiations between world leaders. It's been glorious. \n\nI don't know what happened to the djinn. Maybe someone else came along and got their own wishes granted allowing him to return to the lamp. Or maybe he's stuck there until I die. I'm not sure how these things work. I am sure though that he thought he was cursing me, but I think I got the better deal."
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[WP] Be careful fighting monsters, lest you become the monster you're fighting.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The grizzled old hunter sat alone at a campfire, and its flickering light revealed a man in his fifties, broad-shouldered and covered in furs. The hunter carried no weapons, only the weight of years of hunting the monsters: scars that would never fully heal, aches that would never go away, a missing finger, even. He was a fine hunter, but a decade of hunting predators takes its toll. \n\nThe most painful things are the memories, though. Memories of good friends and comrades lost to careless mistakes. Of loved ones butchered, their hot blood still steaming in the snow. Of ripped out throats and severed veins, bones snapping and meat rent from bodies. Moonlit nights of wide-eyed terror as he hunted the monsters that hunted him. \n\nHe shook off the visions of hunts long past, and finished his meal: tonight was not a night for reminiscing. It was a full moon, and that meant his quarry would be on the prowl. He stood up and kicked out his fire. He looked up at the moon and began to change. The furs fell away from him, revealing more fur, this time his own. His limbs distorted and his frame grew larger, his face twisting into a lupine grin. He basked, silver fur glistening in the moonlight, and he howled. On every hunt, he was both the hunter and the prey, and tonight would be no different."
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[WP] A chosen individual of each animal specie has been given a human level of intelligence in order to allow human-animal communication. You’ve just finished your studies, and it is now your first day as an human ambassador.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"Mother, is it not peculiar to send a 5 year old to be am ambassador to the self-declared human leaders?\" I asked on my first day of work.\n\nMother just growled at me, unfortunately when given human intelligence I lost the intelligence of a bear, I mean, I do not even enjoy fishing anymore!\n\nI hated that! I went to school with eight other animals and every single one has both their species' intelligence and human intelligence but not me. I feared the idea of telling the others because I was worried Doctor Peter O'Mahony would ditch me.\n\nBears are not a stupid species, of course we do not have a cabinet per-say but we do have occasional meetings of discussion (or at-least those who understand each other do). My job was to report back what they said to the human people.\n\nI did not fully understand why I would report back in a country that my species doesn't live in but I still had to board the plane and go. After I put on my suit and tie of course, specially tailored I would have you know.\n\nIt was a three hour flight from Sweden to London and I arrived by 12 that day. I entered the cabinet offices and was greeted by a man who went by Prime Minister (PM) for sure\n\nHe was wearing protective equipment, an actual suit of chain-mail Armour which greatly offended everyone until Dubh, a badger, pulled out a small pocket knife.\n\nI wish I could say there was some drama but at last there wasn't, Dubh was shot on the spot by Dr. O'Mahony who was entering the room.\n\n\"I thought it would be George, the fox, but I was wrong. Apologies George,\" the doctor said.\n\nWe left the room and some men ran into it with a bin bag. It makes sense that Dubh would want to kill considering that is the way they see fit for his final resting place. Of course though, I never trusted badgers.\n\nWe ended up in a meeting room and the Prime Minister locked the door, privacy is key of course. There the eight of us sat. A bear, a fox, a lion, a wolf, a horse (baby smaller one), a monkey, an elephant (baby smaller one), a sloth and a squirrel.\n\nWe had prepped for this in school, they were about to ask what did our species need most from humans.\n\nThe Prime Minister started to talk, I got nervous because I didn't actually know what other bears wanted, I just had a few generic answers.\n\nThe Prime Minister said \"So, who here is willing to tell us how to fully domesticate their species?\" very suddenly. \"By this we mean what would gain their trust, how would be best to train them and . . .\".\n\n\"Nope\" yelled five animals almost in unison.\n\nBefore I had a chance to identify them I heard 'BANG', 'BANG', 'BANG', 'BANG', 'BANG', 'BANG'.\n\n\"One for good measure,\" the doctor exclaimed.\n\nA bear, a fox, a lion and a horse sat in the room still breathing.\n\nI started to think if it is really a bad thing if I were to give in. Many bears had been killed in negative interactions with people. If I let bears be tamed then they would live in unison with people and therefore not be feared, harmed or killed. That is the hope at least. Yet, would they still be bears if they were in the image people wanted them to be? Would they still be happy? If happy would it be really be happy? Am I really a help if I can not understand the other bears?\n\n\"Okay,\" I said, \"but I want to know what your intentions in the long term are!\".",
"I was a little puzzled when they told me I'd have to attend the academy along with all the other animals. But I wasn't displeased - who wouldn't want to spend the summer frolicking about with all those cute little critters flitting and bounding and chirping away at each other til we found our common voice, like a forest scene from Bambi. \n\nNot so. Every day we filed into the study hall and each logged into our booth, and spent solitary hours toggling with our paws or claws or nails or beaks, through likely scenarios of our species. What do we eat, how do we protect our offspring, how do we seek shelter, how do we mark our territory. We learnt to identify and represent all traditions of our kind and not just our own individual experience. \n\nWe studied ambition and happiness and conflict, evolution and cooperation, habitat and language and history.\n\nIt started to unravel as I understood more about the trauma and loss and pain that so many of my type have met and dealt. I knew that we could be violent, selfish beings, and it hurt intensely to take on these feelings as my own, but nothing had prepared me for the sheer scale of brutality that my fellow humans had inflicted on other species. \n\nSo on my first day on the council, mortified and devastated, I bowed my shameful human head and agreed to every single suggestion put forth by the other animal ambassadors. \n\nAnd that is why the world is now ruled by cats."
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ANTAGONIST! For the love of all that is holy, antagonist!
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[WP] as the Main Character, you've enjoyed plot armour and the inability to die. After countless battles with the Protagonist you've come to an ugly realization - the Author is a moralist and the protagonist has plot armour too. You resolve to eliminate the evil by whatever means necessary.
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[
"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"French-Fry Guy had in his pre-superhero days been just a normal guy who loved french fries. He only ever ordered french fries. He never even bothered with a cool, refreshing carbonated beverage with which to wash down the starch. He never even ordered a number-two Patty’s double-patty burger with helpings of world-famous Super Fatty Signature Splooge Fun-time Skinny Dipping Sauce on the side. He was there for fries, five orders of extra-large fries, extra salt, breakfast, lunch, and dinner. As far as Bob (as he was known in his pre-superhero days) was concerned, there was only one day of the week, not seven: every day was Fry-day. So at the Patty’s where they knew him, he became “the french-fry guy.”\n\nAs it turned out, Patty’s (“It’s not *food*, it’s Patty’s”) had been using cost-saving preservatives of unknown origin in their food supply -- particularly for their fries. Consumed in average human quantities, the effect was no more than that of a mild carcinogen, and in the worst case one might come down with a little cancer and really nothing very much more serious or out-of-the-ordinary than that.\n\nBut in the case of Bob, the recombinant DNA used in Patty’s batch of Russet potatoes and the particularities of the chemical structure of the preservatives interacted in such a way with Bob’s DNA that he became…\n\nPreservative Man!\n\nOn a television screen, bright colors flashed on the screen to the tune of a happy jingle.\n\n“Preservative Man, he can chain-smoke all day but his cells won’t wither\n\nYou think you can defeat him, but please don’t bother\n\nAge will make you bitter, but he still glitters\n\nHe’s--\n\nPreservative Man!\n\nWho did you say!\n\nPreservative Man!”\n\nThen Preservative Man himself appeared on the screen with plastic Ken doll grin, his doughy, Pillsbury figure somehow accentuating his longevity -- as any lesser man not in peak physical form would have long succumbed to the Preservative Man’s many vices. The Preservative Man flaunted his rotund shape with the gusto of a North Korean dictator -- for him and the world it represented a symbol of eternal health and power.\n\n“Kids, if you want to live long and prosp--oh, I can’t say that? Oh, right. Darned copyrights. Roll again.” Preservative Man turned back to the camera after a quick aside with off-screen production assistants. “Kids, if you want to live long and *be awesome*, make sure you’re using only Preservative Man™ brand fruit preserves. Because the power that powers me...powers our jams. And THAT’S how I jam, fam.”\n\nBig thumbs up in the foreground. And...*cut*!\n\n\\----------\n\nOn another screen in another room in a building not far away, the same happy jingle could be heard, along with the same bright images.\n\n“And THAT’s how I jam, fam.”\n\nThe same big thumb. End of commercial. Back to the program. Talking heads on a local conservative news network.\n\nA fist clenched around the bread that it, the fist, had been holding. There was the bubbling sense and sound of energy and heat and smoke. No more was it plain bread that this fist held--no, this was no mere plain bread, but now *fried* bread.\n\nThe man who held this now-fried bread in his hand was none other than Eugene Auclair, aka “The Eclair,” aka the French Fry-Guy--archnemesis of The Preservative Man (French-Fry Guy). Auclair had immigrated to America from France pursuing the American Lie and successfully secured a job as a fry cook at the very same Patty’s that had been daily frequented by Bob the Preservative in his pre-superhero days before the restaurant went under due to a series of very expensive legal battles involving disgruntled employees and cancer-stricken customers. And through a similar chain reaction of equally implausible events involving recombinant DNA injected into the animals whose fats were used in the fry oil--which in the extreme heat of the frying process had interacted with the peculiarities of his DNA--Eugene had become the French Fry-Guy, imbued with the power to *fry* things. And he could fry *anything*.\n\n*Anything*, that is, except the Preservative Man.\n\nSo the two became locked in eternal battle, an eternal battle to settle the question: What happens when the ultimate fryer meets the un-fry-able? Who shall prevail? \n\nFind out next week, in the next episode of The Mis-Adventures of French-Fry Guy and French Fry-Guy^(tm).\n\n**\\*Whoops, got stuck too long in the setup and, in the writing process, realized there’s no end in sight--or at least a too-long-for-WritingPrompts road until relevant plot points emerge**",
"*I've always known I was different. Well, not always. It started when I was recruited into The Agency at 18. During training, I slipped and fell from a tall tree, but hit the branches in the perfect manner as to only break my arm. At 19, in my second year, I nearly drowned when a bullet struck my left calf during amphibious combat, only for a comrade to appear right as I lost consciousness and pull me out of the frigid water.*\n\n*At first, I thought it was an Agency thing. I thought we were immortal, thought that somehow, The Agency had happened upon some secret, some special technique they could use to cheat death at the last second. That wasn't the case. By 20, I'd lost three close friends. No branches had broken their falls, no comrades jumped in to save them at the last minute; they'd just died. Plain and simple. One was shot through the head the first time he and I were in combat together. Bang. Over, just like that.*\n\n*But those things didn't happen to me. Somehow, always, I was spared. I'm writing this because, before today, I thought I was just lucky. Just a fluke of chance. That changed when I failed to assassinate John Cantor.*\n\n\\---------\n\nThe crowed roared as John Cantor finished his speech. \"... unity, and prosperity, for all!\" Cantor raised his hands and spread them as he addressed his loving audience. He turned one way, and then the other, ensuring each and every member at his rally felt appreciated and attended to. Then, he allowed his hands to rest on the podium, and waited for the crowd to quiet. Seeing the speaker's posture, they did.\n\nJohn Cantor continued, in a soft but firm tone. \"Our approval inside the UCP is already at 30%. And that, by the way, is *with* their rampant anti-reformation propaganda.\"\n\nMore cheering. Cantor put raised a hand to quiet them.\n\n\"This will not be a bloody takeover. No. We will simply displace their government as our ideas, our good ideas, begin to take hold in their people. We will fix their homes, fix their schools, and fix their lives.\" He paused for emphasis. \"Reformation is the future!\"\n\nThe crowed hollered their agreement.\n\n\\---------\n\n*Three of us took our shots from just over 600m away. It should have been simple. The chance that one of us misses, maybe 5% with a little breeze. But all three of us? Close to impossible. But it wasn't just that. Two of us fired, one of us didn't - my buddy's gun jammed right as we gave the signal. The two of us who did shoot both missed, one to the left, and one to the right. At the impact, Cantor scrambled for cover as his bodyguards attempted to shield him.*\n\n*Then it got really strange. Each of us adjusted after our first misses, and we* couldn't *hit him. I had missed by about a half body length to the left and therefore adjusted my scope half a body length to the right. But then I missed again, too far right this time. That just didn't happen. My other man, the one who did shoot, felt the same thing. He wrote it off as bad luck, figured we were just off that, but I knew better. I'd seen this before. This man, John Cantor. He was the same as me.*\n\n\\---------\n\n\"We don't know who that was, or what they want.\" John Cantor's bodyguard addressed him as they sped away from the attack site in an armored limousine. \"We need to shelter you in place while we investigate.\" \n\n\"Bulletproof glass at the speeches, but I still go out in public.\" John Cantor's voice was firm.\n\n\"Sir-\" his bodyguard objected, but Cantor cut him off with a swift, dismissive gesture.\n\n\"I still go out. That is not negotiable. We are nearing the time when, even if I were to be killed as a martyr, the movement will live on. This isn't about my life, Alex. It's about freedom for all.\"\n\n\\---------\n\n*Someone or something is out there. Watching us. Watching me, watching John Cantor. Saving us from death. But is that all he's doing? I can't tell. Sometimes, even as I write, I can't locate the origin of these thoughts. Are they mine? Are they... his? Why am I being spared, why is John Cantor being spared.*\n\n\\---------\n\nJohn cantor strode out onto the debate stage, three inches of ballistic glass separating him, his opponent, and the audience.\n\nThe moderator spoke, \"Welcome, all. Today's topic is the downsides to the free market, and how to avoid egregious wealth disparities while still maintaining prosperity. Let's give a warm welcome first to one of our most popular speakers, Mr. John Cantor!\"\n\n\\---------\n\n*What is it about me? I understand John Cantor. He's a revolutionary. He preaches freedom, liberty, safety. He's conducting a bloodless revolution, the first of it's kind. Whatever is protecting us, I understand why it won't let me assassinate John Cantor. But why... why me? Why am I spared from death?*\n\n\\---------\n\nThe limousine's tires screeched against the pavement as Alex Mash, Cantor's bodyguard, swerved to the left. Gunshots rang out against it's armored exterior.\n\n\"Dammit Cantor I told you this was a bad idea,\" the driver shouted to his sheltered passenger.\n\nCantor remained silent, not wishing to distract his defender.\n\nA dark van with tinted windows pursued close behind, but it couldn't gain on the limousine. A hatch in the top opened, and one of them men stood up. He lifted something from inside.\n\n\"Alex...\" the passenger addressed his driver. \"I think he's got a rocket.\"\n\nAlex remained silent, and then spoke softly. \"It's been an honor serving with you John.\"\n\n\\---------\n\n*I must be meant to fight John Cantor. Whatever is protecting us, he could have simply let one of us die, the other free to roam this world alone. But he didn't. Our destiny, is it simply to fight? But why. I've been ordered to kill him. I must be missing something...*\n\n\\---------\n\nApproval of reformative ideas in the UCP is at 55% following the death of John Cantor, their primary proponent. It appears citizens see him as a martyr. To them, his brutal and public death, caused by a rocket propelled grenade impact to his limousine following his last debate, is definitive proof that the UCP government wanted him silenced. Unfortunately for the UCP brass, it had the opposite effect. It's projected that, next July, the Reformation party will sweep nearly every jurisdiction. We are witnessing an unprecedented change in political power.\n\n\\---------\n\nWhen John Cantor regained consciousness, he was chained to a bed in The Agency. The markings on the walls were quite distinctive. A young man, early 20s at the latest, was standing over him.\n\n\"You're just like me,\" the man said.\n\nJohn looked up at him. \"Are you the sniper?\" he asked.\n\n\"Yes, one of them. But we couldn't hit you. How do you think three trained Agency snipers all missed together?\"\n\nJohn looked puzzled. \"I remember two rounds.\"\n\nThe man smiled. \"Ah, yes. One of our guns jammed. Funny how those things happen around you, John Cantor.\"\n\nCantor closed his eyes and smiled back. \"Perhaps God has a plan for me.\"\n\n\\---------\n\n*\"Perhaps God has a plan for me.\" Those were the words he said to me. And that's when I realized what God had wanted. Every time we'd tried to kill Cantor, something had gone wrong. Something would protect him. But now he was here, right in front of me, at my mercy. I could kill him in an instant.*\n\n*God must have what he wanted. I showed John Cantor the July elections. Showed him that his apparent martyrdom created a wave of Reformative support throughout the UPC. He smiled, and told me his job was done. I took out my dagger. He didn't react, although I'm sure he heard it. Then, I completed my mission.*\n\n*I'm still not sure if I'm... me. If these actions were my own, if these thoughts were my own, even if this life is mine to live. Does my immunity go away, now that John Cantor is dead? Is it my duty, now, to protect the Reformation? I don't know. Maybe it doesn't matter. I'm an Agent, and I had an order to assassinate John Cantor. Now, I've completed it. Maybe that's all there was to it.*",
"“Ha ha! I have done it” said Graild the Mighty main character of all main characters or whatever else he wishes to call himself.\n\n“Finally I have the loophole that will kill BBG, Karel the Evil Antilight!” Or Karel the shoe stealer as everyone else calls him.\n\nGraild, yipping with joy, then explained what is going on in this nonsensical story. “It was only a year ago when I found out the truth of my world; It was all a book called the **Nonsensical Normal Life of Graild!** “\n“Learning this I believed I could live consequence free, but nooo, the author just had to make it so I can never kill that one guy.”\n“MOTHER FLIPPING KAREL.”\nGraild then went on to describe how Karel ruined ruined his no consequence life for forty-five minutes before getting back on subject\n\n“Now by using the power of r/writingprompts I am able to bring a new author into this story that will let me kill!”\n\nBut while Graild was monologuing, the current writer got bored and decided to drop a moon on Graild’s position, killing all of humanity, The End"
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[WP] Two dark lords run into each other at the local supermarket, both of them buying suppiles to kill the hero. They're shocked when they find the Hero's Mage also buying stuff to kill the hero, his reason being quite...petty, but almost funny.
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[
"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“Excuse me young lady,” said the unusually tall man in what could only be described as a ‘cloak’.\n\n“Where would I find the edibles to tempt little dogs?”, he continued when the bespectacled girl in the green apron turned to him.\n\n“Sure! Treats are on aisle 6,” said the girl with her hands in her jeans pockets, “go halfway up, you should see them on the right.” \n\n“Wonderful!” exclaimed the tall man, “Amazing! These ‘Super markets’ are truly wonderfully convenient!”\n\nHe began walking to aisle 6 when he stopped abruptly, slapped his palm to his forehead and exclaimed, “Oh! I forgot! I also need the roots and herbs! I knew I should have gone to the forest first!” \n\n“Aisle 4, spices and herbs!” Called out the cheerful girl in the green apron from behind him.\n\nThe tall man whipped around, “Really! Herbs and roots in the same place as animal catching equipment! Astounding!” \n\nThe girl peered up at the man over her spectacles for a moment. Finding no way to respond appropriately, she simply shrugged her shoulders and turned back to her counter.\n\nThe tall man slumped his shoulders. He felt a little dejected having elicited no response from what he considered some of his finest acting… “Obviously the girl was a commoner, a simple thing. She had no way of appreciating true art.” He grumbled to himself as he stomped off to aisle 4. \n\n“Really Morgan? Why do you still insist on doing that terrible act every time you go out for supplies?”, said a familiar voice from behind the tall man.\n\nThe tall Morgan turned slowly towards the other tall man, dressed in a cloak, “Well well… Owen? Is that really you? I heard that self-righteous Arthur finally got you. Unfortunately, he’s more incapable than I thought he was.” He didn’t know who he hated more. That stupid goody two shoes Arthur, who has been constantly ruining your plans. Or this idiot fan boy imitation of his, Owen who has been following so close on his heels he was afraid Owen might step on his shoes one day!\n\nThe two stepped menacingly at each other. “This will be the day I finally get rid of him,” they both thought. Dark tendrils of power curled of both of them. The halogen lights above them flickered. The shelves began shaking, the bottles of condiments rattling in their place… \n\n“Excuse me gents.” Said a soft voice between the two tall dark men glaring at each other.\n\n“Huh?”\n\n“What?”\n\nThe two formerly menacing men, now dazed and surprise, looked around at the sweet old man reaching between them. \n\n“Gavin!” yelped Morgan with surprise.\n\n“We were just…” mumbled Owen equally flummoxed.\n\n“Buying groceries! On to the chicken Owen! Come on!” Called Morgan in what he thought was an Oscar worthy performance of nonchalance and innocence.\n\n“Yes of course! The chicken!” repeated Owen. Striding after Morgan.\n\n“Are you both getting supplies to try and get rid of Arthur again?” asked Gavin conversationally.\n\nBoth tall men stopped in their tracks. They looked at each other nervously. How to respond when caught red handed by the hero’s Mage? He would surely strike them down here itself, in the middle of aisle 4 in the town super market! Unless… they thought of a good reason fast!\n\nBoth men turned as slowly as possible. Both thinking furiously about what they could say that could save them…\n\n“Well I have an idea,” said Gavin, interrupting the villains’’ thoughts, “You guys can help if you want…”\n\n“Huh?”\n\n“What?”\n\n‘This has to be my dumbest moment’ thought Morgan to himself, finally at a loss for words.\n\n“Wait…” said Owen incredulously, “You want to kill Arthur?”\n\n“Yes”\n\n“As in dead Arthur?”\n\n“Yup”\n\n“Deceased Arthur?”\n\n“Yes”\n\n“As in – “ \n\n“Yes yes! Dead, Decease, Killed, you get the point!” Said Gavin exasperatedly. He looked at the shock and disbelief in the two other men’s faces and continued. “I’m sick of him! He’s team Jacob!”"
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[WP] When you reveal to your best friend that you're a vampire and have been for the past 200 years, they reveal to you that they're a 1000 year old demon. You both decide to have some average chaotic fun at the local village...that's full of cultists. Living in a gothic world is fun.
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[
"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"To be quite honest, I am still perplexed by how I got to this point. Here I am, sitting in an old Volkswagen, waiting for my demon friend to finish robbing a bank, and I am sucking on a plasma package to relieve some of the stress I am feeling.\n\nI am a vampire. From the very beginning of our lives, it is instilled in us to master the technique of staying calm and collective at all times, regardless of whatever situation we may face. But this is different. *Very* different. For my whole life, I have pondered whether demons truly existed or not, with varying arguments to both the positive and negative. All the other vampires I've met either do not know either, or they think they knew but could not back their claims up with any clear evidence. But just a few days ago, those 200 long years of wondering came to an extremely sudden stop.\n\nI had been living in this bustling city for five years when I decided to confess my supernatural abilities to a certain human I had known for a long time, Enver. At least, I thought he was just a normal human. The two of us had met when I first arrived here. He was the perfect introduction to the care-free and often decadent life of city-dwellers: he lived in communal homes; worked odd jobs; spent much of his time partying, doing drugs, having sex or a mix of the three; did not have an education beyond secondary school and did not seem too inclined to get one; had way more enemies than friends. In essence, he was the perfect character study I had for this new landscape I found myself in. Going to these parties also allowed me to suck on as much blood as I could in one night, which was a definite upside.\n\nI revealed my true self to Enver, because he seemed like the last human being to ever care about such a thing. To how that I was serious, I sat him down and took out my teeth compressing device to reveal my long fangs. It was a rather unexpected response when he began to peel off his human skin and reveal a fiery, molten, insect-like body underneath.\n\n\"That works out,\" he said nonchalantly, \"because I just happen to be a son of Satan!\"\n\nI remained calm. \"Does demon blood taste good?\" I asked in a \"joking' manner.\n\nEnver laughed. I did my best to emulate it. Vampires cannot naturally show overt happiness, so we learn to fake it.\n\nFor the next few days we spent most of our time getting to know each other more than we ever did before. I was still trying to comprehend the fact that I had just met a literal Demon, yet here I was learning everything about them. I learned that Enver's real name was Zakiro. Zakiro's home is Hell and his father is indeed Satan himself, but he came up to the surface of Earth just to see what is was like. As I figured, Demons are the most care-free, selfish and degenerate beings on Earth; even as a human Zakiro could hardly hide these traits. Like any Demon, his dream is to rid the human populace of religious influence.\n\n\"Hey Sorin,\" Zakiro told me one day, \"I got a brilliant idea.\"\n\n\"Idea? What for?\"\n\n\"You know Saint Athos, the village that's like an hour away, right?\"\n\n\"Yes I do. Though I do not know much of it.\"\n\n\"Yeah, well, that village is run by a literal cult. I know it is!\"\n\n\"A cult? Of what sort?\"\n\n\"It's some fucking, like, new age Christian cult type of shit. They think there's gonna be some fucking war with Satan and his Demons and all that. That kinda Armageddon shit.\"\n\n\"And how does this connect to your idea?\"\n\n\"Well fuck dude, the people there need to get out! So I got a brilliant plan to get em the fuck outta there. Get this, yeah? Basically, we steal some fucking money from the bank, right? Then we hop on over there, I show up to one of their churches in my normal form. I'm a literal Demon and I'm coming to take some of their undesirables to Hell! We steal a few of em, we drop em off back here in the city with the money we stole. They can start a whole new life here, ya know? It's perfect!\"\n\nAnd now here I am, waiting for this Demon friend of mine to get back in the Volkswagen, which we also stole.\n\nAfter what seems like forever, he finally emerges from the front doors of the bank and runs out to the car. \"START DRIVING!\" he yells at me before he is even inside the car.\n\nI haven't felt this much adrenaline in so long. It almost feels like I am about to die, it is such an alien feeling.\n\n[Here's part two](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/i1rjuu/wp_you_are_sitting_in_church_one_day_when_all_of/)"
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[WP] One moment, you think you know your world. The Jungle, the village, surrounding tribes and all the wild creatures are your world. Then you are cast among the stars and you see how small your world was.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"A breeze! How long has it been since I last felt a breeze? Did... did I land!? No point wondering where I am, somewhere among the many stars and planets, that much is certain. I wasn’t alone and made a friend he seemed familiar. Came to find there were more and as time passed I lived an eventful life, what happened to that friend?\n\n...\n\nIt was an eventful day, the day I was yeeted to oblivion. I managed to get that new job with good pay, I asked out that one waitress my friends always nag me about. Oh and I even ran into an old friend. I guess that is where it started.\n\nAfter running into my old friend we talked for hours on end, only stopping for food or drinks somewhere. As the day ended its cycle we sat to watch the sunset, and in turn the stars...\n\nA flash, a breeze, a new place to see. A long time passed since the jungle so free.\nLearned a lot, like language and ease.\n\nDid I land? Ah look a soul, hi familiar face!? Want to be friends with me?",
"I lie under the crescent moon, and the lights of our ancestors. The ancestors slowly move, from night to night. Some sail across the sky in the blink of an eye, others in a 12 slow, cool breaths, but most stay the night and greet me the next day. \n\nOur world has everything my people need. Abundance of fish in the sea, surrounding our home. The goddesses give us Coconut, fruits, and rich vegetation. Our bodies never go hungry.\n\nI express my gratitude to our ancestors in the sky, for providing my people with everything they need. As I send my last prayer of the night to the ancestors above, one of them descends down upon us. It’s light gets bigger and bigger. More of us gather, “An ancestor is visiting?” “Are the gods angry?” The murmurs subside, “No, it’s the sky people. They are coming back.” I can distinguish my grandmas voice from the back of the crowd.\n\n“Sky people” I think to myself. Oh yes, the legend my grandmother told me. In the time of great hunger, the Sky people came to show us how to control plant seed... but this is only a legend, it must have been from dozens of generations ago. Could the sky people be back? The idea excites me, and sends a shiver down my spine. \n\nBefore I know it the light fills the sky until the world looks like it’s day. I feel nauseous, faint, I feel.... light \n\nThump... thump... I wake up to my head pounding, or is it my heart. I don’t know. but I’m in a silver place. There’s no plants, no sea, but there is sky. I sit up to see the one thing I recognize, our ancestors guiding lights. But there’s something else. No words to describe it, I see the blue of the sea, the green of the land, but much more of it. And it’s on... a moon? Another moon? But there’s lights on the dark part of it. Yellow lights, white lights, forming lines, shapes, stuck to this moon. It’s getting smaller, we are moving away from it. I then realize, that’s my home.. there’s more islands than our own. There’s big islands too, massive islands, the size of seas. Which light up with yellow lights when they are in the dark. \n\nIm overwhelmed, I then away and I see them. I’m with the sky people, they are just like the drawings in our cave. Big eyes, big heads, small child-like bodies. This is even more overwhelming, I feel nauseous again and...\n\nThump... thump.. this time I know it’s my heart. I’m back on the island. It’s before sunrise, my mom shrieks upon my return, her tiny frame rushes to hold me. My grandma nudges my mom away, exposes my stomach. Its swollen. “The legend is true...” my grandma looks deep into my soul, “You are with child”. I look at my mom, her deep gorgeous eyes, are covered in tears. In this intimate moment our people gather around us, still in disbelief that I had disappeared and reappeared before them.\n\n“Grandma, we live on a moon.” I hear my people grasp. “there are bigger islands”... the crowd chatters among each other, processing the far-fetched news. She leans into me and whispers “Darling,... I already know”"
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[WP] After going to write your first daily journal entry in your brand new journal, you notice something odd. Two entries are already in there, the one you were gonna write about today, and one about your day tomorrow. This journal can predict what’s gonna happen to you with complete accuracy.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I went to a Dollar Tree. Big mistake.\n\nI got on the bus and waited until I was at the stop right outside. After buying the first notebook I could see, I got back on the bus and headed home. Big mistake. I sound crazy, don't I? Making a task so mundane as going to a store that sells nothing but cheap items seem so serious. But it was.\n\nI'm still sane.\nI'm still sane.\nI'm still sane.\n\nI have to repeat this to myself as I type. It wasn't me, it's not my handwriting. How did it get there?\n\nI need to start from when I got back home. I arrived, greeted my dogs, and then opened my new journal. Was it wrong of me to want there to be some mark that I existed? Apparently so, in someone's eyes. Or something, but I don't want to even consider that future. Perhaps the journal could clarify?\n\nI opened my journal and was confused. At first, I thought someone had tampered with it before I bought it. But I continued to read. It was about my day. I read up to the part of the entry that described exactly what I was doing at that moment. But the entry still went on. It described mundane things like discovering a new thing to make for dinner, and finding a new band that I liked. I thought it to be weird but was intrigued nonetheless. However, I went from being intrigued to being deeply concerned when those mundane events had actually happened throughout the evening. Me, being the skeptic that I am, had chalked it up to coincidence. I mean, the events that were described could have happened to anyone, right? Well, imagine my surprise when I reopened the journal the next morning. And that entire day was laid out. I tried to change how that day would go, but nothing I did helped. By then it was late evening so I resolved to return the journal the next day. That day is today. I opened the journal and found my death laid out before me on the paper. I've been to frightened to go outside.\n\nI'm still sane.\nI'm still sane.\nAm I?"
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[WP] A Poltergeist has been harassing you non-stop for the past month. Exhausted, angry, and not caring anymore, you exclaim your disappointment with its rude behaviour.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\" Oh my gosh Jessica! Thank you so much for coming!\"\n\n\n\" Stephanie! Of course I came, it's been too long! Anyways, how are you doing? I heard you broke up with Jason.\"\n\n\n\" Yeah, it's literally been horrible, I even had to move out and now I live in this house that's literally falling apart.\"\n\n\n\"Totally.\"\n\n\n\"Anyways Jess! Come on in! I prepared a supes delicious brunch! We can talk all about it.\"\n\n\n\" Yaasss!\"\n\n\n\"Ok, sit here, I'll be right back with the muffins.\"\nStephanie walks away from the cloud white table, adjusting the flowery vase near the kitchen entrance, leaving Jessica to look around at the family pictures around the living room. Some of them are familiar, of Stephanie, her kids, and even an obligatory one with the ex cropped away, but then, she sees another, much older and worn out behind recently repaired glass.\n\n\n\" Steph? Whose picture is this?\"\n\n\n\n\"The old one?\" She calls from the kitchen\n\n\n\"Yeah...\"\n\n\n\"Oh, that's from a previous occupant, it's from the 1940s, can you believe it?\"\n\n\n\" Wow...that's like, my grandmother's age.\"\n\n\n\" I know, except I'll tell you, this guy is so much uglier, do you see the face?\"\n\n\n\"I know, euggh!\"\n\n\n\" I swear! I could vomit every time I see him! I only keep it around because maybe I can make some money off of him.\"\n\n\n\"Like a pawn shop or something?\"\n\n\n\"I mean, that could be an idea, but I was hoping to hire some Ghostbusters and making a series about it.\"\n\n\n\n\"Omaigash, so he's like, a ghost in here?\"\n\n\n\n\"Yah! Isn't that totes cool\"\n\n\n\n\" Can we like? Call to him? With a ow-ee-jee board?\"\n\n\n\n\" Girl! You are a genius! We can even have him taste my muffins!\"\n\n\n\n\"Hell yes! We can film it and become millionaires!\"\n\n\n\nStephanie runs over with the muffins neatly arranged in a pile in her cerulean ceramic bowl and then she brings out a ouija board from her room, setting it on the table alongside the bowl.\n\n\n\n\" Ok, so first, let's turn off the lights and close the blinds.\"\n\n\n\nJessica runs over to do so\n\n\n\" Amazing queen! Now, we put our hands over the planchette and ask if anyone is there.\"\n\n\n\n\"Isn't there another step-\"\n\n\n\" It'll work sis, believe me!\"\n\n\n\n\"Ok! Ready?\"\n\n\nJessica nods in asent and they chorus\n\" Is anyone there?\" \n\n\nThe silence that follows is of supes awkward proportions\n\n\n\n\" Hello? Is anyone there?\" They call out again\nStill no answer\n\n\n\" Sister! Let's stop wasting our time and have the delicious muff-\"\n\n\n\n\" Ghost, you better fudging answer, now, all calm and composed, I'll ask again! Are. You. Here\"\n\n\n\nThe planchette suddenly starts moving, earning a Yelp from Jessica who almost takes her hand out, and it lands on Yes.\n\n\n\n\" Cool, cool...now...Are you dumb?\"\n\n\n\nJessica looks at her shocked for a few seconds, and then suddenly lurches forward. Stephanie looks over at her and suddenly sees her friend sit up uniformly, with her eyes filled with red veins and her face almost translucent.\n\n\n\nShe speaks in a hissing voice\n\"You dare disrespect me?\"\n\n\n\n\" Goodness! Now you're taking my friend? No sir that is a step too far!\" \n\n\n\nThe ghost lunges at her and she dives under the table.\n\n\n\n\" Do you have any idea how awful my month has been? Every night with the horrendous scratching noises and the doors slamming! Like, do you not pay attention to what you're doing?\"\n\n\n\nThe table is upturned, splaying the cups and the muffins all over the floor.\n\n\n\n\" My muffins! Those took 2 hours to make!\"\n\n\n\nA chair gets thrown in her direction and it slams against her body.\n\n\n\n\" Ow! Pay attention to where you throw things! You could kill somebody! You threw my cat out of the window yesterday!\"\n\n\n\nThe paintings on the walls fly out and barrel towards her , she ducks and the slam against the kitchen counter, knocking down several pots and pans.\n\n\n\n\" There we go again! Just like last time! Do you have any idea how long it takes to organize the kitchen? I had to make a day of it last time you decided to destroy everything there.\n\n\n\n\" Just shut the hell up already! I have heard you insult me enough!\" The ghost yells\n\n\n\n\" Do you know how much money I waste on repairing the crap you destory? That could go towards bills! I could even have enough left over to save up for that trip to Colombia! But of course! Common decency who amirite.\"\n\n\n\nThe spirit leaves Jessica's body and materializes into a humanoid looking being, it lifts up to the air and hovers towards her, screaming bloody murder and holding his hands out to strangle her. The poltergeist locks his arms around Stephanie's neck and the grip tightens.\n\n\n\n\" You... stupid. ghost\" she croaks\n\n\n\nThe poltergeist smiles an evil smile and looks into her eyes.\n\" You will desecrate this place no longer!\"\n\n\n\nStephanie looks at his evil eyes, and then grabs the case beside her on the counter.\n\n\n\" Unluckily for you! I know how to kick out my flatmates.\" And she splashes him with the water, smashing the vase against his head.\n\n\nHe screams, and then drops to his knees, crumbling into a puddle\n\n\n\n\"Oh what a world! What a world!\" He groans\nUntil nothing is left but a silly hat.\n\" Welp, that was anticlimactic, but I've dealt with worse.\"",
"I reached for my pocket, pulled out my key and slowly opened the door. Maybe, if I were really quiet this time, Polter would not notice me. I stepped inside and closed the door behind me. Nothing. Good. The last thing I needed after a long and thankless day behind the cash register smiling to shitty customers was more pestering, I thought as I hung up my jacket and-\n\nOh, for fucks sake. I looked down at my fingers, now covered with the superglue Polter had smeared onto the hook. You know what? I was too tired to bother with it and let my jacket hang. I instinctively checked the floor for tripwires, the door hinges for sabotage and sat down onto the couch. Wet. I ignored the smell of urine and muffled my groan of frustration, moved my butt to the floor and took out my phone. The signal was weak and flickering, but I didn't know whether or not Polter caused it.\n\n\"Oh heeeeeeey! Did you have a good day at work sunshine? And is that glitter in your hair or are you just happy to see me?\" \n\nThe gheist giggled cheekily. I closed my eyes and frowned, unanswering. The story of how that happened involved a pack of stickers and a leaf blower, but I would be damned if I was every going to tell the spectre.\n\nPolter took another breath to sneer at me again, but then my phone went off. Surprisingly, he was decent enough to shut up. I picked up. Someone called me on my work number, so I mentally prepared myself, took a deep breath, and picked up.\n\n\"Yes, this is Weralski customer service. How can I be of service to you today?\" Usually, I at least tried to sound 'happy', but at the moment I was just too fed up to bother.\n\n\"A toddler that annoys you to no end and won't ever leave you to rest? Yeah, I think I understand.\" Polter sniggered softly.\n\n\"Oh, he spilled some water onto your trousers? I am *so* sorry.\" My soggy behind felt even more uncomfortable now. Behind me the sniggering transitioned to hollering.\n\n\"Yes, they can be quite loud and *sometimes they need to be quiet, if only for a short while*. Excuse me, but what exactly is it that you want me to do?\" \n\n\"We never said the Axlevy Toddler Bottle^TM was spaghetti machine-proof, madam. Also, *what*?\" I sighed. Customer stupidity could be truly astounding sometimes. It also seemed Polter had taken inspiration from her, as inside the kitchen, I heard the distinct noise of my own spaghetti machine.\n\nLayered with the noise of my soon-to-be paper shredder, the voice inside my phone continued to chatter on. Ah. The infamous line. I rolled my eyes and answered: \"My apologies, but the manager is not here at the moment. Feel free to call between 9 AM and 4:30 on any workday. Goodbye.\" I put my phone down, stared up at the ceiling and let out a wail of frustration. \"GRAAAAAHAHHHHH!\"\n\n\"Wow, I know banshees that would go deaf from that. Are you d-\"\n\n\"Why can't anything just go *right*, for just one day?? I. AM. SO. DONE with your bullshit!\" My exclamation made my phone on the table shake. \n\n\"I-\" Polter's face showed something I had never seen before. Empathy, and concern. \"I... Look, I am a poltergeist, okay? This is what I was instructed to do! There is nothing I can change about it. I... I am sorry.\"\n\n\"...\"\n\n\"Wait, there might be something I can do. My uncle on my mother's side was a genie, so...\"\n\n\"You can grant wishes?\"\n\nPolter nodded. \"Just one, though. You will be the first and last person who can make this request.\" He sat down and looked me directly in the eyes. \"What will it be?\"\n\nI stood up, straightened my back and crossed my arms. \"I want to speak to the manager.\""
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[WP] You are a superhero moving to a new city, but before you leave, all of the villains in town throw you a goodbye party.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"All the delinquents I used to deal with in the South African cities were afraid, paranoid. Most were drugged by scientists when they were children, gaining strange powers, from magnetism to... control over metal, freezing or skipping over time. Complete disregard for the laws of physics. Psychotic vampire powers. So to see them come together and celebrate my leaving...\n\nIt terrified me.\n\nI couldn’t tell you how it started. As far back as I remember, I was surrounded. Oshun was hiding somewhere, trapping me and Ms. Paradox in a wall of water. Paradox spent enough time looping through temporal wormholes to amass an army of herself, keeping me occupied during this special hour. I could fry her with my electric powers all I want, it’s a paradox. Somehow she’ll survive and come behind me after gaining a years worth of experience. Even with my enhanced speed and senses there were too many of her to deal with. So shot at the ground, flew upward, and bolted like lightning.\n\nBut it was too late. One of the Paradox clones already told them that I was going to try and run away. Hela and Thorr were waiting for me. But you never know Thorr's around until he breaks your knees with Mjolnir. Luckily a scrap, I blasted him with electric energy and heard him roar with pain, Hela was too smart to touch him in that state. But she already put a hex on me. \n\nI already knew what blue with a red hue meant. I could not turn a full 180 degrees without losing consciousness. I still tried to suppress Thorr. I’ve deal with worse. But then she came...\n\nReina de-la muerte. Mi madre. She killed my father, and sold me to those scientists in America. After seeing her, in my moment of weakness, Earthquake barreled through the lower levels and ran me through. I didn’t feel it at first, the hulking brute tackled me so hard I left my body. When I came back, I was in agony.\n\nThorr lifted me by my hair and slammed me on the pavement, nearly breaking my skull. “The wench is beaten. Slay her!”\n\nMadre casted her head at me, then back at him: “No”\n\nI could barely see Earthquake, but I heard a grunt, as if he knew what was going to happen.\n\nThorr was angry with her. “Woman! Thou swore upon Odin's beard! To slay her!”\n\n“I want her to live.”\n\nHela sighed, “Uncle, pleas-“\n\n“Silence!” Thorr roared, then stomped toward madre. “The wench burned mine own beard! By Mjolnir's might, I will snatch your tongue and feed it to the rats! Slay her!”\n\nMadre stood as if a 7 foot fat drunk in boar’s hide was not yelling at her. “Kinky”.\n\nThorr was perplexed, which gave her enough time to cast a psychic hex on Thor and fling him toward the train tracks.\n\nI was in my head during this. I had planned to leave in order to join J.U.S.T.I.C.E in Russia. The delinquents of South Africa are deadly even alone. I ought kill me right now. Madre approached me, battered, beaten.\n\nSmiling, she lied. “Hija, hermosa hija”\n\nI had nothing to say to her.\n\nHer smile faded. “He would have tortured you”.\n\n“Nothing could be worse than what you’ve done to me mother.”\n\nShe was angry, made a fist of her hand and tore through my mind with malice, dread, I couldn’t process it all, and groaned in great pain.\n\n“You think I did this to hurt you? I was protecting you! The people here are dangerous!”\n\nIt hurt, it hurt so much. All I could do is scream, shout.\n\n“Are they not dangerous?”\n\nIt hurt, then it stopped. I lost so much energy, I felt almost dead. Madre sighed.\n\n“Earthquake, kill her”\n\nThe brute grunted and approached me. I was going to die here, thinking of all the ways he could kill me tried to protect me self with one more shock...\n\nThen, nothing. I was too weak. He came closer and... crouched. And smirked. “I’ll me damned. It worked.”\n\nWhat worked? He was going to kill me. I couldn’t hurt him. What worked?\n\n“Happy birthday hija. This is my final gift to you.” Madre walked away. She was going to kill me. Why is she leaving?\n\nThorr recovered. He was begging for her to kill me. But all he did was chuckle and say: “Aye, retribution”. \n\nHela left with him, but before that told me “Plane to Moscow leaves in an hour. Don’t miss it”. Earthquake just laughed and jumped through the roof.\n\nWhy are they leaving?\n\nWhat’s going on? It can’t be that... I couldn’t have...\n\nNo...",
"As I walked in too that banquet hall and saw all of the villains that I used to fight, I knew that I would miss this city. There were more than enough superheroes to deal with the mess of psychotics, but the villains we're the part that I would miss the most. Other cities had people planning for months to kill a governor or rob a bank, here though, there were but jobs who could be dealt with by being calm. Pyronan was originally thought to be an arsonist, I saw that wherever she went there were children in a bad home. No one died on purpose, she had just been delusional and perpetually on fire. The human cannonball was clinically depressed and trying to kill himself. He lived and made a crater off of a roof killing five. The Dastardly Duo was just a guy with an extreme split personality and doctor genocide has PTSD, ADHD, ASPD, is a sociopath, extreme trust issues after his father killed his dog, mother, and almost him before committing suicide saying that he hated all of them. Then being abused in foster homes until he snapped after being fired for trying to find a cure to cancer. He went crazy trying to continue his research and killed 37 people to try to cure humanity, he was so far gone that when he thought that humanity was the disease he just started killing.\n\nWhy did they all peacefully show up here then, when everyone else had given up I decided to try to help them. I was the expert in all of their cases saying that they were definitely insane. I am also the leading psychiatrist at the insane asylum where they were all sent. I am Dr. Franklin Forme and I helped these individuals to become able to cope with the rest of society in the best way that they can. I helped them in a way no person with superpowers could, but to them, I will still be a hero."
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[WP] "The power of Christ compels you!" The vampire just laughed. "I'm an athiest."
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“The power of Christ compels you!!” The man said as he looked at the vampire, holding a cross to him. Being in an abandoned church near a forest known for having people go missing should have helped this poor soul. But this blonde haired bloodsucker just laughed, amused and finding it hilarious. “Oh! You’re making me laugh! I haven’t heard that in 3 centuries!” The vampire said as he walked closer to the human. “W-Wha?! How are you?” The human stammered as he walked back. “I’m an atheist human, I have been this way for 400 years. Now....c’mere; and let me drink!” The vampire said as he bit the human’s neck, humming softly as he began to fill himself on the sweet red liquid.\n\nThe human was now screaming, causing the bloodsucker to put a hand over his mouth, muffling the man before he could speak to him. “Will you shut up?! I haven’t had a decent meal in weeks, now let me drink before I rip your beating heart out!” The vampire hissed before resuming his feeding. After a pint or so, the vampire would remove his fangs, humming and moaning a bit in delight as he held onto this human. “You know...maybe I can keep you. As long as you don’t scream or make sudden movements, I won’t hurt you.” The pale immortal said as he began to lick the spot where he bit him. The human was too weak to resist, having lost so much blood to a vampire that now wants to keep him as his and only his. “Mmmmm...if you are good to me, and be faithful, I can give you anything your human heart desires.” The pale bloodsucker hummed as he looked into the human’s eyes. “I...I...I’ll be loyal..master.” The human whimpered, submitting to the now grinning vampire. “Good, you and I are going to have so much fun together. And I like that you are so eager to call me Master...it’s adorable.” The vampire said with a chuckle, carrying his now human pet away towards the moon; their life together just beginning.",
"Oliver smirked. Kine were so typical, thinking that just shouting the name of their deity loud enough and waving religious objects would save them. Somehow the fact that they were in an church must’ve slipped the little imbecile’s mind, as if somehow saying the name of the deity would have an affect when “God’s” supposed house hadn’t. The vampire slowly circled his prey, savoring his victims fear. The boy was likely in his late teens or early twenties, but those pretty blue eyes and soft, tender looking face gave him a childlike appearance. The boy held out his crucifix again. “Atheist or not, the power of God will make you kneel!” The boy’s trembling voice betrayed his words. Some small part of Oliver felt bad for the pathetic little thing, trapped and destined to die alone, in the jaws of an apex predator. “When you die, who will mourn you?” Asked the vampire, as he glided towards the boy. The boy retreated until he was backed against a wall, with nowhere to go and no way to escape. \n\nOliver salivated. For the first time in a long, _long_ time the vampire felt truly alive. The boy’s neck was unguarded and exposed, it would less than a second for his glistening fangs to penetrate the skin, then the boy’s sweet life juices would be his for the taking. The mere thought almost sent him over the edge, but Oliver pulled himself back. Raising his gaze back to the boy’s lovely blue eyes, now overflowing with tears, the vampire raised his pale right hand and placed it on the boy’s cheek. “You never answered my question, my dear. Who will mourn you when you die?” The vampire repeated his words, savoring the feeling of warmth that emanated from the boy’s skin. “I- I won’t tell you!” The boy spat, trying to mask his terror with grim resolution. Oliver laughed. The pathetic little thing thought he could protect his loved ones from the vampire. Perhaps Oliver would honor the boy’s sacrifice, or perhaps he’d track down and kill the boy’s family and friends just for his own petty enjoyment. The vampire’s keen ears detected footsteps from outside the building. It was unlikely they were a real threat, but there was always the possibility that another vampire had come to steal his kill. The church door behind them creaked open as Oliver bared his glistening fangs and lunged.\n\nOliver screeched. A fain sliver of sunlight sprang through the now open church door and struck him like a cobra. His back seared and smoked, the burning pain soon spreading over the rest of his body. The vampire collapsed to the ground and writhed in pain, watching as his would be prey escaped into the early morning glow. The boy turned back briefly, with a look of pity on his face for the vampire who would die alone and unmourned."
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[WP] You’ve always had the ability to read all human languages. Today as you glance over at the diary your fellow passenger is writing, you realize you cannot read it.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"It is a cypher, reader.\" \n\nYou flinch. Who is he talking to? \n\n\"Now now.\" He says to you with a hint of a smile in his voice as he continues to write. \n\n\"What are you writing?\" You ti.idly ask him, knowing full well that it was pointless to try and deceive this well dressed old man. \n\nHe stops and finally lools at you with a smile on his face. \n\nThere is a peculiarity to his appearance. Old, but lively and energetic. His eyes bluish gray like the layers of an iceberg. You expected him to have a mustache, but no. He was clean shaven. His teeth positively shone, clean white and straight. \n\n\"Like I said. It is a cypher. You readers think you know everything.\" The last few words he spoke in mock reproach as if he were baiting you to counter. You take his bait. \n\n\"And you old scribblers keep making things up.\" \n\nYou stop yourself. Confused. Reader? Scribbler? You know what these words meant but in this conversation they took on an entirely new meaning. The meaning was trapped however, between your brain and your tongue. \n\n\"I see!\" He beams wider, obviously enthused about how the conversation is going. \"Not just a reader, but a knower and a speaker too, perhaps?\" He was looking at you with eyes that seem to see more than what you knew was there. \n\n\"But, I see you are but partly aware. Pity. Still, there is potential here!\" He closes his diary and neatly slides it into his satchel. From inside his tan jacket he pulls out a card, again in a language you could not decipher. \n\n\"Young Sir/Miss. I believe there is much I can teach you, if you prove yourself worthy of my tutelage. Find me and I will make you more aware than you have ever been in your life.\" \n\nAnd just like that, Augustine stood up and walked off of the bus you didn't even realise has stopped. \n\nYou sit there are the bus resumed its route, questions buzzing in your head. Who was that man? What the heck was he on about? And lastly, how could you understand Augustine on this card, and nothing else?",
"For the first time in a very long time I felt absolutely terrified. More terrified then I can ever remember feeling. Even when I was little I had always felt pretty courageous. I would climb anything. Was never afraid of heights. The dark? It never terrified me.\n\nBut today. Today I was staring at something that absolutely sent a chill down my spine. \n\nI was staring at a language I couldn't read. Which was impossible, because I can read all languages. I take great pride in my bi-literacy. My parents called it a gift. My teachers called me a genius. I always just considered it a blessing and my greatest passion. I love language. Of all man kinds greatest feats, communication and language are the greatest.\n\nAnd my ability...my blessing was unprecedented. \n\nI was on my way to a conference, when a man who looked in his 30s, about 15 years younger then me, sat in the seat next to mine. Normally I love it when someone sits next to me on a train, especially if they are from another country and they begin writing in another language.\n\nI always like to surprise them that I can read why at they are writing. Some of things people write....\n\nThe man next to me was wearing a plain black suit and he took from his pocket a pen and a small black book. He opened it up to a blank page and began writing. I was confused at first...I thought maybe he was just writing gibberish...but there was an intention to every stroke of his pen. He was writing a language, but I had no idea what it was. \n\nBut that was impossible.\n\n\n\"Pardon,\" I said eventually. \n\n\"Hmm?\" The man said, not looking up from his writing. \n\n\"Is this some kind of joke?\" I tried to say as cheerfully as possible. \n\n\"A joke?\" The man said in an accent I couldn't place, and again he did not take his eyes off his writing.\n\n\"You know who I am I take it? Someone put you up to this? One my colleagues?\" I looked around the train hoping to see someone I recognized. This all had to be some kind of joke.\n\n\"Up to what exactly?\"\n\n\"Oh come now! You sat down and began writing in gibberish to mess with me yes? You know I would look over and be perplexed. I admit it scared me quite a bit, but the bit is over now. So who put you up to it, Ramsfield? No, it was Jacobs wasn't it? Jacobs was always a prick.\"\n\nThe man looked up at me for the first time and his eyes were cold pieces of flint. \"I assure you I am not writing in gibberish.\"\n\n\"Yes you are!\" I laughed nervously, still hoping the joke would end. \"I KNOW every language. All of them. I can read all of them, you see? And I do mean ALL of them. Even those created by writers and bored linguists. I have never read Lord of the Rings, but someone once showed me the Elvish language Tolkien created and I understood it right away. You understand, no one taught me how to read it. I just...knew.\"\n\n\"My my,\" the man said wryly. \"That is quite the gift. To be able to understand all language, without ever being taught how.\"\n\n\"Yes! If someone sets out to create a true language, that functionally works, I can read and understand it without being taught how! It's my...my...\"\n\n\"Gift?\"\n\n\"My blessing! My blessing burns in me so brightly that there is not one language I cannot read.\"\n\nThe man smiled devilishly, \"But you cannot read this.\"\n\n\"What you're writing there...it's not any language that I know. I can't read it. So you must be making random meaningless scratches, yes? Come now, just admit it. It's all just meaningless scratches. There's no functionality to any of it. No structure. It's not a real language. Just random lines on paper.\"\n\n\"Oh, it's a real language alright. Everything I'm writing here has meaning.\"\n\nIt had to be some sick joke, but all I could do was play along...and inside I felt something stirring....excitement. Could it really be a language I did not understand? I had never experienced this feeling before. It was terrifying...but so incredibly exciting. \n\n\"Then...then what language is that then?\" I said nervously. \n\n\"Why should I tell you?\" The man said. \"To be honest I'm quite insulted. You referred to my native language as gibberish.\" The man closed his book. \"Perhaps I should find another seat.\"\n\n\"No, no!\" I said desperately. \"Please, I'm sorry. It's just I've never encountered this before. Please, please I'm begging you. Tell me what language it is.\"\n\n\"Alright,\" the man said, and that devilish smile returned. \"I'll tell you. But you have to do what I say first. Understand?\"\n\n\"Yes, yes, anything!\" It was all so exciting. A new language. Unbelievable. A language that beat my blessing. Could it really be?\n\n\"You see that man sitting a couple rows ahead of us?\" The man leaned his head forward. \"In the yellow coat?\"\n\nI looked and saw the man in the yellow coat and nodded.\n\n\"He's going to get off at the next stop, and we're going to follow him.\"\n\n\"But why? And I'm not suppose to get off for another hour and a half.\"\n\n\"No questions. Or perhaps you don't want to know what this language is?\"\n\n\"No, please! I'm sorry. Of course, we'll get off.\"\n\nFor the next few minutes we sat in silence, the only sound was the stranger's pen scratching the paper of his black book. I watched transfixed as he wrote in that mysterious, beautiful language. It was real. I could tell from just his strokes. There was a structure to it all. It was simply marvelous. I needed to understand it. \n\nFinally the train came to a stop at a small station. We were still aways from the city, and this was one of the smaller train depots out in the country. The man in the yellow coat got off and then myself and the Stranger followed suit. \n\n\"Now what?\" I asked the Stranger as the train was leaving. \n\n\"We follow him,\" The Stranger said nodding towards the man in the yellow coat. Who was already off and walking down a dirt road that lead from the small station. \n\nI was going to ask what for, but knew not to question now. I needed to know what that language was. The desire was burning inside of me. \n\nWe began following the man in the yellow coat. Soon enough we were well away from the small station and the only ones walking down the road were the three of us. The man in the yellow coat, who was a little ahead of us, turned around.\n\n\"Why are you following me?\" He asked. \n\nI didn't say anything at first. I looked at the Stranger, hoping he would speak up and explain what was going on. But he just smiled. \n\n\"Are you two deaf?\" The man in the yellow coat said. \"Why the bloody hell are you following me? This has been my stop for the past 5 years and I've never seen you two get off here. What do you want?\"\n\nThe Stranger said nothing. He simply took out his black book and began writing in that wonderful, beautiful, mysterious language. Then he put the book away. I was going to beg him to bring it back out, just so I could see the language again, but what he brought out of his pocket instead startled me.\n\nIt was a gun. He handed it to me.\n\n\"Shoot him,\" The Stranger said. \n\nI want to tell you that I hesitated. That I threw the gun away. That I turned the gun on the Stranger instead, but those would be lies. Truthfully, I pointed the gun square blank at the man in the yellow coat and pulled the trigger three times. \n\nIt was only when his body hit the ground did I realize what I had done. I rushed to the man lying on the ground. \n\nHe was dead.\n\n\"Oh, no no nononono,\" I stammered tears coming out of my eyes. \"What have I done? Why did I do that?\" The gun was still in my trembling hand and I threw it off to the side.\n\n\"You fulfilled your end of the bargain. Here you go.\" The Stranger said handing me the black book. I'm ashamed to admit that in that moment the dead man next to me was forgotten. I took the book greedily and to my astonishment I could read the words. I understood all of it now. I flipped through the pages like a starving man who just encountered a banquet feast. Every page seemed to describe a horrible moment in human history. Murders, wars, backstabbing. It was the most horrifying thing I read, but I consumed it hungrily. \n\nAnd then I finally came to the most recent page.\n\nIt was the page the Stranger had been writing in when he sat next to me. Tears fell from my eyes and splashed the page as I read what it said.\n\nIt...was about me. It described me, sitting on the train. Getting off at the small station...and shooting the man in the yellow coat. It also explained that the man in the yellow coat was a married man with three children. \n\nI threw the book down. \"What is this? Who...who are you?\"\n\nThe Stranger smiled, grabbed the black book from the ground and put it in his pocket. \n\n\"It is the language of the damned. And I am it's author.\" \n\nThe ground beneath us began to tremble, and a large hole appeared. I could feel heat emanating from the hole. Licks of fire spit out and I could hear the most painful and bloodcurdling screaming coming from the hole. \n\nThe Stranger smiled at me. \n\n\"Be seeing you.\"\n\nHe jumped into the hole. When he was gone the hole enclosed itself, and the dirt road was simply that again, an ordinary dirt road.\n\nI looked at the dead man next to me and wept.\n\nReading languages has always been my blessing and passion. Now I truly know all of them.\n\nEven the language of the damned."
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[WP] Two siblings grew up together as best friends. When a pointless civil war breaks out, they come home to announce their enlistment in opposing sides.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“Ma! I did it! I signed up for the end piece military!” Jacob said as he burst through the door of their farmhouse. \r\n\r\n“Oh, my little boy going off to war! You better come back to me and Pa' Alton, ya hear?” Ma Alton said ash she hugged her eldest son tightly. \r\n\r\n“Where is Mitch? I gotta tell him the news. His big bro, serving for the mighty end piece army! Hell, he might even think about joining too! Then we can both be fighting the bad guys!” Jacob said. \r\n\r\n“You two have been joined at the hip for as long as I could remember. Even as babies you always wanted to be next to each other. You stayed behind a grade just so you could be in the same class as Mitchell. He gave up baseball after the coach cut you from the team when he caught you smoking. If he joins, you make sure you watch each other’s back!” Ma Alton said. \r\n\r\nJacob began making his way up the stairs. The steps creaked as he made it to the top and turned right as he went down the hall to the bedroom that he and his brother shared. \r\n\r\nJacob opened the door and held the paper up highly ready to show off his enlistment to his brother. To his surprise, Mitchell wasn’t in his room. Normally, Mitch would head to his room after tending to the fields in the morning to catch up on his schoolwork before taking a short nap. \r\n\r\n“MA! Where’s Mitch? He isn’t here!” Jacob shouted as he made his way back down the hall. \r\n\r\nShe shouted back from the kitchen as the sink turned on. \r\n\r\n“Oh! I forgot to tell you. He took the truck into town. Said he had to take care of something that was bothering him. How many times I told that boy to watch which girl he takes to bed, when will he learn?” \r\n\r\n“Mitch always had the charm to bring the girls home.” Jacob said as he made his way down the stairs towards the living room. \r\n\r\nThe back door opened as his father made his way inside. \r\n\r\n“Jacob! Ma boy! I heard from the neighbors that you went to sign up for the end piece army? That true?” He said as he grabbed a towel from his back pocket and wiped his brow. \r\n\r\nJacob nodded as his father walked up towards him with a big smile. Jacob extended his hand for a handshake. Pa’ Alton swatted his hand away and gave Jacob a giant hug as he welled up. \r\n\r\n“My dear son, going off to a far land to fight for what’s right. Give ‘em hell! What they plan to issue you?” Pa said as his voice trembled. \r\n\r\n“Standard serrated edge knife with slice adjuster and a side arm butter knife. Sorry, they won’t let me take the old family bread knife off to combat\" Jacob said with a chuckle. \r\n\r\nOutside, the sound of their old pickup truck could be heard making its way up the dirt road to the family’s household. \r\n\r\nJacob broke off the hug ready to greet his brother at the door. \r\n\r\n“He’s gonna be so proud!” Jacob said gleefully. \r\n\r\nJacob slowly got out the car and calmly made his way to the household. He normally would have a big smile on his face but today he had a somber, stoic look. He opened the door and was greeted by his brother. \r\n\r\n“Why the glum look Mitch? Normally, you are the happy go lucky one and are cheering me up!” Jacob said. \r\n\r\nMitch looked at his brother with an expressionless face. \r\n\r\n“I saw something terrible today. An innocent man was beaten in the streets by some of our classmates. I was able to get them to leave the man alone and asked why they were attacking him. The man expressed a different belief then our classmates and I decided that I had to take action. I can’t sit idly by watching people who have different beliefs and opinions get hurt because it doesn’t conform to what others believe in.” Mitch said as his parents gathered around to hear him. \r\n\r\n“What do you mean Mitch?” Jacob replied. \r\n\r\n“I am going to make something of myself. I decided to join the Baguette Republic Entity for Allied Dining or BREAD. Now Jacob, I know you might not be interested in war but think about it. We fight for equality and tyranny against the crimes that the end piece army have committed. \r\n\r\nMa Alton broke out in tears as she left the room. Pa' Alton looked stunned as he heard the news. \r\n\r\n“But, Mitch. I just signed up for the end piece army…” Jacob said as he held up his enlistment papers. \r\n\r\n“How could you!” the both shouted as they stared one another down. \r\n\r\n“The end piece army is known for absolutely decimating those who believe in the idea of using the middle of the baguette. Hurting someone because they believe that a loaf of bread has only 2 good pieces and the rest should be thrown away. Wasteful. The inhuman treatment of that man who simply was minding his business was the last straw.” Mitch said raising his voice. \r\n\r\n“Mitch, BREAD started all of this with the assassination of Lord Thomas of Bagels. They cannot tolerate anyone outside of their views. The idea of tossing the end pieces of any bread is insane. There’s no equality. Please reconsider this. We can both join the same side and keep each other safe.” Jacob pleaded. \r\n\r\n“Why do I have to join them. Why don’t you join us? And for your information, Thomas was a complete menace to society. Raisin bagels. What hubris he has. With his ideas for flavors he was bound to be killed. This was a long time coming.” Mitch remarked. \r\n\r\nA silence took over the household which was only interrupted by the occasional sobs of their mother in the other room. \r\n\r\nJacob broke the silence after a minute or so. \r\n\r\n“So, when do you deploy?” \r\n\r\n“2 days. You?” \r\n\r\n“Same\" \r\n\r\n“Well, let’s try to stay friends until we have to go.” \r\n\r\n“Sure. Want to throw the ball around back?” \r\n\r\nMitch nodded before they made their way to the back yard. \r\n\r\n“When the time comes, I won’t hesitate to stop you in the name of BREAD.” Mitch said as he threw the ball at his brother. \r\n\r\n“And I won’t hesitate in stopping you in the name of the End piece army.” Jacob said as he caught the ball."
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[WP] There exists a city-state that has stood for centuries through countless wars. It has never been attacked, not even by the dragons or demons. Rather than through military power or diplomacy, it's stayed neutral because of a certain restaurant that is said to be as old as the city itself.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
" \n\nSeveral soldiers stirred sleepily as the smell of smoke slowly swept south from the city shortly before sunrise on the summer solstice. This was not the acrid scent of a city on fire that would typically be assailing the olfactory senses on a battle day, instead a sweet note hung in the air as the smoke passed. Barely there, it lingered for only a second before dissipating; the merest suggestion of a jam or syrup following a burst of bacon frying and mesquite smoked sausage sizzling in a skillet. The encampment began to move in earnest as the smell slid into tents and under blankets waking the small army with the promise of breakfast that would make the month of marching worth the trip even if no plunder was for the taking. \n\nCaptain Jimothy Jamberson of the 3rd Cavalry division walked out of his tent, knee popping every third step as he shook out the stiffness from the night. He threw his chest forward with shoulders pulled back as far as he could until he felt the crack in the middle back, slumping forward with the comfort of one more ache quickly disappearing. His neck snapped right, the loud pop eliciting an audible gasp of pleasure that died on his lips as he found himself face to face with Lieutenant Shoka. The young lieutenants light step was uncanny in the ability it gave him to sneak up on unsuspecting soldiers, and as the personal messenger for the Field Marshall a surprise visit was rarely welcomed by anyone below the rank of Major.\n\n“Lieutenant Shocker!” exclaimed Jimothy with a fake enthusiasm, the twinge at the corner of Shoka’s mouth giving him the smallest satisfaction. No stranger to unwanted nicknames, this was a perk of seniority. “To what do I owe the pleasure on this wonderful morning?”\n\n“Your presence is required at the war tent Captain. One of the sentries apprehended a courier from the city trying to sneak into camp carrying a package for you. Apparently, something gold from The Restauranteur.” The lieutenants voice was far deeper than the scrawny young body would suggest, far louder than was necessary at such a close range, and far far louder than Jimothy found acceptable before coffee. \n\nJimothy nodded at the summons, blinked once and started following the messenger to the war tent in the center of the camp. It was not until he saw the concerned look on the faces peeking out of tents on either side that his mind started catching up to the current events. A courier sent to him from the city they were putting under siege. A bag of gold with his name on it sent by The Restauranteur of all people. The most powerful man in Caddlanny sending a bag of gold to the captain of the only cavalry unit that the Mogtiri army employed. It did not take a captain of the Intelligencier to know that this did not look proper. In fact, improper was the best that it could look. \n\nThe drawback of a small army, other than having fewer troops than the other guy, was that the war tent was never far enough away. At least, that was the main drawback that Jimothy saw. While still trying to work through exactly what was going on, they drew up to the closed flap of the great pavilion and Lieutenant Shoka slipped inside to announce him. A hand snuck out beckoning for him and with a slight hesitation he walked into the war tent. \n\nHis hand snapped up to his eyebrow in a crisp salute to the Field Marshall on the other side of the map strewn table. As lax as the Captain may be with his own troops in the matter of customs and courtesies, he knew when to shut up and color. Field Marshall Devers stared at him unmoving for a long second before returning the salute and allowing him to relax. Relaxing fully was not in the cards for the cavalryman though as he saw the leather messenger bag laying on top of the pile of maps. Off to the side was a young man, maybe sixteen years old with a guard on either side looming over him. The man was short, not even five feet tall and he had the distinctive rusty skin of a Caddlanny, and the bright white eyebrows would give him away even in the most diverse of port city markets back in Mogtiri. \n\n“Captain,” the raspy whisper was never easy to reconcile with belonging to the general that had conquered Nesh, Armesa, and soon Caddlanny. “We have an interesting situation here. Young Deeproy here was intercepted less than fifty yards from our outer tent line with a message addressed to you in The Restauranteurs own hand. He insisted that you be the one to receive it, saying that his employer would take it as a personal affront if one of the Intelligencier were to be the one to break the seal. While I am sure to tickle the beast soon enough, I do not feel the need to poke him with a stick just yet. Go ahead and open it, let us see what gold has been promised to you for your services. Let me see if you are willing to turn.”\n\nLieutenant Shoka took a thick envelope from the table and passed it over to Jimothy who nervously flipped it over to reveal the red seal with a pair of crossed frying pans and an egg stamped into the wax, a mimicry of a pirate flag in a town 100 miles from a coast. He slipped out a small knife and cut off the seal, removing the letter inside from the envelope along with another smaller envelope. He flattened out the paper and began to read."
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[WP] Hadron Vacations, Inc., allows travelers to visit the timelines in which they are living their "best lives." Sometimes, however, the timeline tourists do not want to return, threatening the balance of the multiverse. Your team is tasked with retrieving them.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"It was a pretty simple job. You find the person who doesn't belong in the particular universe, which we could easily do by using the tracking chip that is placed in every timeline traveler, to then force them back to their own timeline. Most of the time people followed without much resistance. Because why would you not obey a team of trained assassins with fully loaded (stun)weapons. Of course these people don't know the weapons only stun. Why do they only stun you ask? Well we have to bring them back to a timeline they are still alive. Because if they come back dead, they actually come back to a different timeline, the timeline where they are already dead.\n\nWhen you were lucky you got a job where someone traveled to a timeline where they were the sole-ruler of the earth, or sometimes even the universe. This were the moments you truly got to shine. The true challenges since you had to retrieve the tourist without changing the timeline (no overthrowing whole regimes). Sometimes these people were already in jail for pretending to be the supreme leader, sometimes they had convinced the guards that they were in fact the supreme leader, and the other was the fake.\n\nBut today we had a special case. No supreme leaders, not a harem of beautiful woman, hack not even a nice tasty meal. No this person had traveled to his ideal timeline. The time where he would already be dead. And there are a lot of times where guns or amazing combat skills can help you overtake an opponent, but when the opponent is \"dead\" they suddenly become useless. \n\nI was send on this job with two colleague's for a reconnaissance job. Find out where the target is, why they are still there and how many man are probably needed to retrieve the target. Today I got too work with my good friend John, who was a trained soldier like me, and the scumbag of a psychiatrist Oliver, whose job it was to make sure the mental state of the target would remain safe. Every mission had a psychiatrist who made sure we never shoot targets, when there is a big risk of trauma from it. Oliver however was very anti-violence, which meant we pretty much could never use our guns on missions with Oliver.\n\nSo on arrival it seemed like an easy job. The target was in his hometown, so finding him wouldn't be that hard. He didn't seem to have any power in the world. The only thing we would need to do is locate where he was and politely ask him to come with us. But when the tracking device started beeping we weren't able to actually spot a person. It wasn't like there was anywhere he could go. It was a dead-end alleyway. \n\nMaybe he is hiding inside the wall? John suggested. After which he happily took out his portable axe and started swinging. Instantly the most foul smell we had ever encountered appeared. \"Well someone has to go in and check if he is there\" Oliver said. After which John and I quickly pushed Oliver into the hole. It stayed quit for a while. \"So? Is there anyone in there?\" I asked annoyed. \n\n...\n\n...\n\n...\n\nNo answer.\n\n...\n\n...\n\n...\n\nAfter five minutes a creature came out of the hole, which I could only describe as nothing, yet everything at the same time, it's body constantly shifting in shape and color, like even its substance was changing every second. It was holding something in which i guess was it's hand. It was Oliver's head, which a second later would be absorbed into the body of the monster. \n\nAfter absorbing Oliver's head the monster just kind of stood there for what seemed hours. When suddenly it started speaking in what seemed a thousand voices. \"You do not belong here human, this is not your timeline, therefore you will have to be erased!\"\n\nJohn quickly reacted, almost crying: \"No, no, please. We only came here to take back someone from our own timeline. When we have him we will leave I promise.\" \n\nThe monster sighed. \"It seems your actions are no longer required. You came for a man called Thomas, who does not exist in this timeline. Therefore I came to this world to destroy him. Now you shall join him\". \n\n​\n\n// Feedback would be greatly appreciated. I know the ending is quite sudden and out of the context of the story, but this is the first time for me writing from a prompt, so I just tried to see where I could go.//",
"*Ring, ring...* \n\n\n'Roderick Tumble?' \n\n\n'Yeah?' \n\n\n'This is Pete Madison from the Timeline police, with an official warning. You have to go back to the normal timeline, otherwise we will be forced to arrest you.' \n\n\n'...' \n\n\n'Mr. Tumble?' \n\n\n'... fuck you. Fuck all you guys with your fucking fucklines!' \n\n\n'We understand you may not want to go back, but believe us, it is for your own good.' \n\n\n'My own good, my ass! You guys are all assholes, you know that?' \n\n\n'Insulting us will not solve anything, Tumble. This is your final warning. Go back to Hadron Station and take the train to the normal timeline. We give you an hour.' \n\n\n'You f... I mean... alright. I'll do it.' \n\n\n'Great. Remember, if you are not back before 15:48, we will...' \n\n\n'Yeah, yeah, I get it. You'll arrest me. I'm not a fucking moron.' \n\n\n*Click...* \n\n\n\\--------------------------------\n\n'Alright, guys, so this is the plan.' Pete pointed at the blue square on the virtual map. 'Our outpost is normally here. Tumble will probably go to the Miami Beach or the Hotel Of Dreams And Stars - I don't think he's the kind of guy who listens to warnings.' He looked at both of us with the excitement of a thirteen-year-old boy who just discovered porn. 'Now, normally... \n\n\n'Here we go again,' Steve whispered in my ear. \n\n\nPete ignored him. '... normally, I would ask you two to split up and arrest him, but today I want to try something different.' \n\n\n'Called it,' Steve said, this time not even trying to be subtle. \n\n\n'This time,' continued Pete, not even slightly annoyed, 'this time, I don't want to sent you guys out there. I want this entire outpost to be *in the same place as him*.' \n\n\nSteve snorted and I raised an eyebrow, both of which made Pete even happier. 'I'll explain it. One of you guys has to call the 2015 version of architect Blum. I've researched it, and apparently he has seriously thought about putting our good ol' place right... *here*.' Pete's finger marked a red spot on the pixelated area. \n\n\n'Now, if we retrace the steps from both the Hotel and the Beach as the final destination, we'll find *this*.' Pete's smile grew bigger and bigger as the two green lines on the map went from the Hotel and the Beach right through the red spot. \n\n\nSteve snorted again, this time slightly louder. 'So you want us to call Blum to get the thing there, and we don't have to lift a finger?' \n\n\n'Exactly!' Pete almost exploded with excitement. 'I mean, it doesn't have any consequences for the other timelines, so why the hell wouldn't we do it?' \n\n\nI let the critic side of me wonder for a moment, but Pete's idea did honestly sound like a fun experiment. Even Steve, who always had something to say about everything, didn't seem to be able to come up with a reason not to do this. \n\n\n'You know what?' I said, slightly astonished with myself. 'Let's do it.' \n\n\n\\----------------------------------- \n\n\nI grabbed Tumble's wrist and put an Energetic Handcuff around it. The surprise on his face was already worth the effort of calling Blum. \n\n\n'How... the fuck...' he muttered, his eyes wide open. \n\n\n'Didn't expect that, did you?' Steve smiled, while Pete lectured Tumble on his rights and the reason he had been arrested. \n\n\n'Shut the FUCK up!' Tumble shouted, his face almost entirely white hot anger. 'How. The fuck. Did you guys. Do that!' \n\n\n'You wanna know, huh? Huh? Ain't gonna tell you.' Steve was taunting the arrested man, like he always did, and for once, I didn't mind. After all, we had just found the most original way to arrest a timeline addict (that's what we called people like Tumble). Nothing could ruin that. \n\n\n'Roderick Tumble, you are a criminal,' Pete said. 'Do you know why we are doing this?' \n\n\n'To ruin people's fucking lives!' Tumble hissed. He tried to struggle, but Pete and I didn't allow an inch of free space. 'I was *happy*, fucking god! My girl was still with me and I had my job! I had literally nothing in that other damn timeline!' \n\n\n'That may be, but contrary to popular belief, we're not here just to ruin your life,' Pete said. 'You see, when you create a new timeline, all the...' \n\n\n'Why the explanation?' Steve interrupted. 'Don't think it matters to him.' \n\n\n'I just want to explain it, okay?' Pete continued his story. 'When you create a new timeline, the old one starts to fade. It is a very slow process, and as soon as the new timeline is erased, it immediately stops, but when people stay in other timelines too long... the original may stop existing completely. And with that, the other timelines will be destroyed, too.' \n\n\n'Can you tell your friend to shut the fuck up?' Tumble asked, looking both me and Steve directly in the eye. \n\n\nPete resumed the explanation, talking louder and louder to be heard by the protesting Tumble. 'IMAGINE PUTTING ON MAKE-UP, AND THEN ERASE YOUR OWN FACE. YOU CAN'T HAVE MAKE-UP WITHOUT A FACE, SO FOR THE OTHER TIMELINE TO EXIST, YOU MUST RETURN TO THE ORIGINAL TIMELINE. IT'S ALL FOR YOUR OWN GOOD, TUMBLE!' \n\n\n'LALALALALALA!' Tumble shouted. 'DON'T HEAR YOU!' \n\n\nI could see Pete was actually insulted by Tumble's ignorance, so I put my hand on his shoulder. 'It's okay, buddy,' I said. 'Not everyone realizes their own joy sometimes harms others. It's not your fault.' \n\n\nPete smiled at me, thankful for my words. \n\n\nAnd with that, we headed towards Hadron Station, dragging the struggling Tumble with us.",
"*Gold Team we have a B-56 in Universe 2345* the chief sounded tired, but professional.\n\n*A B-56 again? That's the sixth time this week!* Rogers cackled while jumping up from the couch and slipping into his work boots. *Poor smuts don't know how good they have it!* \n\nI looked after him and shuck my head Rogers distaste for Timeline breakers was understandable, but he was a bit too eager to beat them up and drag them back to their home dimension. But I guess it was his way of coping with the reality that this was the only universe where he wasn't dead or never born and I knew how much he hated people who were, in his mind, ungrateful for the life they had.\n\nI gave the chief confirmation of receiving the orders and left myself. A half hour later our team landed safely in Universe 2345 on the outskirts of a large estate, it was massive with marble pillars and large oval windows. *So team, here is our client.* I opened my holodisplay *His Name is Thomas Jones, Universe 2089, Accountant, married to Mrs. Haley Jones-Norris, two children Tom Jr. and Leah. Currently switched with Thomas Keeler Jones, Universe 2345, Chief Executive Officer of Jones Hotels and Casinos, rest is identical.*\n\n*Wow a Twinner!* shouted Rogers and Mckeal in a duet. *Twinners* are two alternative versions of a person who have the exact same family and friends despite having vastly different lifes, these are rare and also make the most Trouble, since the desire of a client to return to their boring life is slimmer when they don't have miss their spouses or children.\n\n*Ok, we have to be quiet* I said. *Mr. Jones is going to try to defend himself from us, ok?* *I'm teaching him a lesson of gratitude* Rogers laughed and cracked his knuckles. *Not you won't! We try my way first and only bash in his head if he escalates capiche?!* My crew mates look at me and nodded in approval. *Okay let's go!*\n\nThe way trough the compound was surprisingly easy, no guards or anything, I had the vain hope that central operation had just made a misjudgment, but then we entered Jones's office. Twenty armed men pointed their machine guns at us, Jones hiding behind his massive (and rather tacky) mahogany desk.\n\n*Please Mr. Jones don't do something you are going to regret* I said calmly and raised my hands, gesturing my crew to do the same. *I'm not going back!* he shouted nervously *I have everything I ever wanted: Money, my dream mansion, even my wife and kids are here, but better!* *Mr. Jones does people aren't your family they are your counterparts family* I try to walk to him, but was stopped by one of the guards. *I know they are better! My son is Captain of the Harvard Football Team and my daughter is an influencer and she's Twelve! Not to speak of my wife the oscar winning actress!*\n\n*But they aren't your children or your wife! They don't share the same experiences like them, you won't feel like you belong here, trust me!* I hoped to break his delusions and make him leave on his own. *That's not true!* he became angry. *Yes it is! Call your Wife and ask her about your first vacation together.* He looked at me perplexed, but called his wife with his phone regardless. The face of a beautiful woman appear on his holoscreen. *Hey Honey, why are you calling?* she asked, the voice of a distant film crew hearable. *I was reminiscing about our first vacation together, y'know the ski trip to Wisconsin?!* *We never went to Wisconsin, you probably mean the one to Aspen where we met Prince Harry, babe!* she sounded amused and was blissfully unaware of her \"husbands\" pale face. *Of course* he mumbled *sorry for bothering you.* he cancelled the call before she could say goodbye and ordered his guards to stay down. \n\nI came forward to his desk and he placed his hands in front of me. *This won't be necessary I think Sir!* He looked me in the eyes and almost defeated said *Please take my to my wife, my real wife!*\n\n*With pleasure Sir, with pleasure!*"
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[WP] You’re passed out and as you’re regaining consciousness, you hear someone close by say, “Well, that’s unfortunate.”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"‘You know what this means’ another voice say... maybe female...\n‘Yea kas I know.. I didn’t mean too... fuck’ \n Well now your awake and afraid to open your eyes... are these guys gangsters? Did you see something you shouldn’t have? They don’t sound familiar. You focus on your body and your stiff but nothing feels broken or seriously damaged.\n ‘They’re awake, hey you you wanna stop pretending?’ \n \nSHIT \nYou open your eyes and look into the face of a crazy looking chick. Not in a bad way, just funky hair, lots of necklaces, golden brown eyes. Lots of eyeliner and maybe blue in her hair.\n\n‘Hello there’ she says \n‘Ummm hello’ you reply \n‘Hope your not too attached to your life as it is.’\n‘What the fuck does that mean exactly?’ You Yelp\n‘It means Titus here fucked up your whole life... your welcome’ \n‘",
"Pain...alone...lost. They were the first words in my head, as I regained consciousness. I ould hear very muffled talking, to the point I could only understand the odd word. Then I heard a voice closer to me.\n\n\"Well, that's unfortunate.\"\n\nI heard movement, and beeps. I then noticed the feeling around me. I was immersed in thick liquid, a mask over my face. I count pinpoint exact areas where something piecred my skin, contributing to my pain. An alarm bell rang through jogging memories. \n\nI remembered flashes of light, an alarm, a cruel, mocking laugh. The laugh was familiar. I struggled to move, my body responding sluggishly. I managed to grab my mask, and lift it off. I opened my eyes, and through the thick, green liquid, I could just make out shapes, and patches of light. I tried to breathe, but the sludge filled my lungs. I started to panic, but then I turned off my need to breathe. Wait. How did I do that?\n\nMore memories. Undersea, I saw a metal cylinder. Then it was crumpled, and that same laugh echoed around me.\n\n\"Sedate it!\"\n\nI felt something enter my bloodstream, something foreign. I stopped my heart from beating. But wait, how didnt that kill me? I thought, and recalled flashes, jumping between people, the laugh following me. Then a searing pain, and a feeling of chains. The laughter turned to screams of anger. It angered me. I wanted out.\n\nI pulled my way towards the lights, and hit into glass. I pressed against it, as saw a room of people in white coats, frantically running around. A group stood next to a large box, hitting different parts. I punched at the glass between us. The slime robbed me of most of my speed, but I still cracked it. At that, they all froze, and looked at me, fear in their eyes.\n\nI felt pleased, seeing their fear, but I didn't know why. As I looked at them, preparing to hit again, I was filled with the want of killing them all. I wanted to crush them. I remembered standing over a body, its chest open, and I held its heart. I remembered smiling, and the laughter again.\n\nI punched again, causing more cracks. They ran, heading towards the door. The sight of them fleeing made me want to hunt them down. I punched a third time, and was rewarded with parts of the glass falling out. The liquid around me began to drain, and the fog in my mind lifted slightly.\n\nI could think more. They were scientists, with computers and machines. The liquid was a mind numbing substance. But I didn't remember who I was. I punched again, this time both hands.\n\nThe glass broke, and I fell out. I was alone in the room, and the door was sealed. I stood up, stretching, and pulling out the tubes. As each left, I felt stronger, and my body healed. But this wasn't my body. It was more like a stole vehicle for me. And I finally remembered who I was.\n\nI was a spirit of chaos, and they had bound me to this form. But the runes had faded, which had led to my escape. I waved a hand, feeling my power returned. The devices around me crumpled, exploding with sparks. I smiled and let out that laugh. That mocking, evil laugh."
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[WP] The psionics in your battalion are mocked for sitting in chairs meditating all day while the real soldiers do the fighting, until an un-repulsed enemy psychic attack shows them that psionic battles are every bit as real as anyone’s.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Jim and I had enlisted together and endured the challenges of bootcamp together, both devoted to serving our country in the gruesome war. When the time came to receive our assignments, however, Jim’s poor vision had condemned him to a dull office job, while I had been assigned to combat duty.\n\n“What even is the Office of Psychological Warfare?” I remember asking him.\n\n“Apparently it has something to do with designing propaganda to disorient the enemy… Sounds like an excuse to sideline me while your unit does the real fighting,” he had responded dejectedly.\n\nA month later, I was on the front lines with my new unit, experiencing the horrors of trench warfare firsthand. The enemy had cut off our lines of communication, so we were forced to fight blindly without the reassurance of reinforcements. My ears quickly grew accustomed to the regular whistle of flying bullets, thunder of detonating explosives, and screams of anguish from dying soldiers. We never even saw our enemy, but we could always hear them.\n\nFinally, after weeks of fighting, a white flag appeared from behind enemy lines. A single, unarmed officer cautiously emerged from their trench and began to traverse no man’s land. Calls of “Cease fire! Cease fire!” were heard up and down our line; gradually, the gunshots and explosions slowed to a halt. For the first time in days, we heard silence.\n\nOur commanding officer went out alone to meet the enemy officer while we watched their every move intently, attempting to infer from their body language the subject of their conversation. Hushed whispers propagated down the line as each soldier ventured his own guess as to the dialogue exchanged between the two officers.\n\nAfter what seemed like an eternity, the two commanders succinctly shook hands, then each turned around and headed back to their respective units. Grinning tiredly, our commander waved a local newspaper for us to see. *PEACE TALKS SUCCEED - THE WAR IS OVER,* read the front page headline.\n\n“Pack your things - we’re going home!” he exclaimed to a chorus of cheers and relieved sighs.\n\nBy the end of the day, we were filing out of the trenches in small groups. Conversations became jovial and for the first time in weeks, we didn’t feel like we had to constantly keep one eye fixed on the enemy. Exhausted and relieved, our attention shifted from killing enemy soldiers to the warm showers, hot meals, and loved ones waiting for us back home.\n\nI saw the soldier ahead of me fall before I heard the shot. All at once, the gentle sounds of spring were once again replaced by the violent cacophony of gunfire and explosions. Dozens of men fell around me before I could even register what was happening.\n\nPanicked, I shouted as loudly as I could, “Wait! Don’t shoot! The war is over! DON’T SHOOT!” But my desperate pleas were drowned out by the ceaseless gunfire.\n\nWe had been ambushed. Helpless and disoriented, I watched as my friends fell like flies around me. I knew in an instant that we were doomed - we had been caught completely off guard. In my final thought before everything went dark, I realized with utmost clarity that the war was most certainly not over.",
"It’s common knowledge that the mind plays tricks on us, inventing monsters in the shadows or hearing whispers as we fall asleep. These events are normal, and often unavoidable. What isn’t natural is when we play tricks on the minds of others.\n\nPsionics emerged in the late 22nd century, and have often been the subject of harsh regulation and prejudice. Their abilities are phenomenal, but often control them more than they their powers. An untrained Psionic can raise accidental havoc across multiple city blocks.\n\nA trained Psionic can can do so on purpose, from miles away.\n\nIt didn’t take long at all to adopt them into the military, and once they did it became mandatory that everyone have a Psionic in their battalion. \n\nIt seemed strange, that it be mandatory. After all what’s one man again against an entire battalion, surely we could handle ourselves.\n\nOf course, we couldn’t.\n\nIt was at dawn, on a cool Saturday. I was guarding the munitions dump, when everything went to shit. I heard screaming and crying. The fire of our rifles could be heard around me, as well as the terror on our commander’s voice.\n\nHe was shouting something. Something about losing his men, and the dirty terrorists who took them. And he started shooting.\n\nAnd then like a switch was flicked, everything went back to normal. Well, normal with a hefty side of friendly fire. \n\nThere was no enemy. We weren’t being attacked, not physically. It was psionic.\n\nAnd the way it stopped? Our own Psionic. A woman we tormented relentlessly. We called her weak, interrupted her training and meditation. Hurled insults like they were going out of style.\n\nShe stopped it. By herself.\n\nSo I get it. I get why we need her. They’re stronger than us, in ways we can’t imagine.",
"\"Did you let them through?\" He asked, familiar voice coming from an unfamiliar place. I suppose I was in the unfamiliar place, but which was which didn't matter so much as that there was a difference at all.\n\n\"Did you let them through?\" He repeated, slower this time. I tugged on the handcuffs, a weak hurdle backed by the larger, stronger hurdle of armed guards. I knew those faces. I knew that they would not miss me. There was a sigh, a battle of wills against a Psionic lost as inevitably as glacial creep. \n\n\"Did you know they were there?\" He tried. I sat forward on the aluminium stool and leaned on the table.\n\n\"I saw them coming. Their own Psionics people weren't as good as we are.\" I replied.\n\n\"Did you attempt to repel them?\" He asked. I put my head on the table and listened to the furious curses swirling in his head. He put on a cool face for such heat. A short fuse and one hell of a blast shield. If only he had directed that energy into controlling his men.\n\n\"Could you have repelled them?\" He asked. Glacial creep, and sure enough the harder stone directed the flow. I didn't move except to turn my head to bare my mouth.\n\n\"Maybe. They were strong, merely untrained. Small group. All that pressure in one spot? They might have gotten through no matter who was on the clock.\" I offered.\n\n\"What were the odds?\" He asked, finally an interesting question. I sat up again and thought about it. Scratched the table to keep track. It left no marks, no fleshy material would, but as physical chains held the mind, physical motion held the memory. With a shrug I answered.\n\n\"I give it 20% they made it through.\"\n\n\"They did.\" He snapped.\n\n\"We rolled our dice and came up with a one. Not my fault. Just chance. A natural error. Perhaps if the physical combatants had been prepared as they ought, the losses would not be so high.\" I jabbed. This made him angry, match in a kerosene puddle. I felt the heat from here, through the one-way glass and depressants. I closed my eyes and let the metal tell me his footstep patterns, extending my mind to encompass the room, one with all the universe I could reach in these shackles. He had slammed the door of the dark room and strode the hall three long, heavy steps before the door to my left was ripped open. I did not open my eyes, not when he slammed the table nor when he leaned in close.\n\n\"You let the enemy walk up to us. You opened the gate.\" He accused. I did but I would never have admitted it.\n\n\"They cut a hole in the gate. To them it was only a fence, and they came with cutters. You accuse me of treachery?\" I asked. He stood up again, ran his hand through thinning hair. Grey. For all his fine dinners and comfortable beds, he held a lot of stress. \n\n\"Did you even warn them?\" He asked.\n\n\"According to protocol I sent the commanding officer a notification when they were first spotted, when I ascertained their capability, and when they breached the field. You have recording of my alerts made to my commanding officer at that time.\" I answered. I opened my eyes to meet his, grey rings like the barrels of rifles aimed my way.\n\n\"I did what I could. I passed the baton. They are the ones who fumbled.\" I insisted. He turned away, scowling for only a moment.\n\n\"Your arguments with the regular units are also well documented.\" He suggested.\n\n\"They get into arguments with themselves.\" I countered. \"I recall a particularly nasty bar fight ended in a medical discharge and two dishonorable discharges.\"\n\n\"And in both cases,\" he began, pausing to lock eyes again. \"The suspects were tried before a court and a jury composed of your average joe.\"\n\n\"I am aware.\" I grunted. I knew what threat he made. I was aware, both of the trial and of the public's opinion of people like me.\n\n\"And lying to the court will only make it worse.\" He added.\n\n\"Then I have no need to fear.\" I agreed.\n\n\"You will have to answer the question directly at some point.\" He pointed out.\n\n\"And I will tell them the same as I have told you.\" I dismissed.\n\n\"You haven't.\" He refused to drop it. I refused to pick it back up. We dragged our staring contest out for another moment. The silence was such that I heard the guardsmen outside the interrogation room open a pouch and crunch on a hidden snack. Business as usual for them I supposed. It was only a brainer's life on the line.\n\n\"One last time. Did you let them through?\" He asked.\n\n\"No. Your incompetent son and his lazy brutes did.\" I hissed. Stars erupted, and my elbows landed first. Then my head, and finally I could see again, wall and man looming over me while the ringing in my ears muffled the door opening. He was lead out of the room by an aide while a guardsman flashed a light in my eyes to assure I wasn't hurt too seriously. Satisfied, I was righted and left alone, blood running out of my broken nose onto my uniform. \n\nMaybe one day they would treat me right.",
"Zero-Nineteen sat in his mini spa capsule. A very fancy sensory deprivation chamber. Oil infused water, scentless. A cool mist spray, scented with AI driven algorithm. \n\nThe world moved forward, but for 19, it was still for now. Despite the undying battlefield, he was still alive.\n\nThe world gently shifted. His body rotated. It was to wake him. The surrounding water drained away. For the first time, sound entered the chamber. Trickles of water sprayed out.\n\nRhythmic pulses of water ticked his back. The water intensified. They became hard, bone-breaking streams that smashed into his body. A regular man would have died.\n\n19 relaxed as the hydro massage kneaded him from head to toe.\n\nThen the world returned. The water drizzled away. Gravity reclaimed his body.\n\n19 opened his eyes. The dark chamber now filled with soft lights. A hiss filled the room as the spherical capsule opened.\n\nHe walked out. Dozens of such capsules were here. The heated flooring was nice as he walked across the ramps to the locker rooms. He needed to dress.\n\nRest time was over. Today was another day on the undying lands.\n\n—\n\nSecond Lieutenant Dan snickered as he saw the scrawnies eat. Though many of them were not in fact thing, they were definitely pudgy.\n\nThere was a whole extra section in the mess hall for them. Tons of fatty, buttery food. Deep fried everything. You wanted veggies, soaked in butter, and then had a crunchy breading? Veggie section. Double deep fried chicken? Meat section. Butter dipped, double deep fried oreo? Desert section.\n\nWhat made him the most irritated was they couldn’t get any. They got the regulation food-stuff while they ate what looked amazing.\n\nThe hundreds of soldiers sat around, the air a cacophony of talk, laughter, and jeers.\n\nThe scrawnies sat in a separate glass room. With air conditioning, music, and a fucking arcade system.\n\n“Dan, you’re staring again.”\n\nDan blinked and looked over to see his best friend. Malissa smiled at him and he grunted back.\n\n“You know, they got some in upgrades for the machines. I hear they got the whole new set of survival games. You know, chop down trees, make tools, fight unholy demons,” Malissa said with a soft yearning. She hadn’t played a proper game in some months now.\n\n“I just want access to the arcade and theater,” Dan whined as he sat his tray down. Meatloaf and mashed potatoes. Nothing but the best for the Unified Military Arm.\n\n“Mini-Theater,” Malissa said and chuckled as his flat stare in return.\n\n“Fine, ‘Mini-Theater’,” Dan quoted as he shoveled a spoonful of mash into his mouth.\n\n“Well, you know we just arrived. A few days in and we already got a transfer tomorrow. Have your men ready by sunrise,” Malissa said around a mouthful of meatloaf.\n\nDan nodded. His gaze tracking a random scrawnie. The mother fucker had a plate of pancakes in one hand, and what looked like a steak in the other.\n\nFucking hell.\n\n—\n\nThe transfer was simple enough. The thousands of vehicles moving through the well protected northern front. It had the least amount of conflicts, as they had a massive fortress built into the side of two mountains.\n\nThe thing had enough artillery to withstand a siege from several armies. They were all well documented. Whatever the TuRT forces did, they never succeeded.\n\nThe airforce, however, was a newer part of this.\n\nDan looked up from his place on the APC. \n\nFrom the snippets he heard, UMA was moving whole armies up to the northern fortress, Fort Hua.\n\nThis wasn’t some simple transfer, though. He felt goose bumps.\n\nThey had been fighting on the southern continent of Reluse. There it was, simple military to military operations.\n\nHere in on the central Continent of Raleigh? It included the psychic nonsense. As if it was that important. A platoon could kill anyone with psychic powers.\n\n“We have a spike psycho-nits. All units, prepare for a scuffle,” the cool and collected voice spoke across the command channels.\n\nCaptain Youtiao was a veteran soldier. He was no recruit on these battlefields.\n\nDan watched as the horizon shimmered. Then came the artillery.\n\nThe explosions rocked the formations. Massive volley of modern shatter shells struck them. Things blew up. Metal, men, and earth flew into the air.\n\nDan winced as a drill-bit shrapnel piece broke on his shoulder plate. Thank the lords he had command armor.\n\nDan stepped down and closed the top hatch.\n\n“Status?” Dan asked as he held onto the ceiling’s support bars.\n\n“We lost Wuffle and Waffles. Nothing else major,” Apone replied. “All mechanized soldiers a deploying as we speak.”\n\nDan grit his teeth. Two of his APCs were already down. Hopefully, there would be survivors. 20 soldiers down. Just like that.\n\nThough these losses would count as nothing compared to this encounter.\n\nThe booms and shrieks of return fire followed. Tiny pips of smaller guns followed suit. The power armor infantry jogging at a 150km/h were already moving with the much faster tanks.\n\nThe two lines would meet in some 30 seconds.\n\n“We got fresh problems!” Apone yelled out. The Master Sargent sent an invitation to Dan to see what he was seeing.\n\nDan linked in. The new enemies had taken no damage as a bubble formed over the invading forces. A massive, translucent titan was gliding in front of the enemies.\n\n“Is that a psychic?” he asked as the system zoomed into the center of the titan. There an old man floated. He had an emaciated body. Only skin and bones. Though the blood-red eyes were glowing.\n\n“News to me. I mean, I heard the rumors, and seen the vids… this is fucked up,” Apone artfully replied as the Titan strode forward.\n\nThe translucent form seemed immune from all weapons.\n\n“Launch the emergency missile,” Captain Youtiao’s voice said. It was an odd broadcast… but it was probably on purpose. Either a feint, or the man had already launched said missile.\n\nA seismic boom rocked the APC as the non-nuclear missile ignited the giant. The enemy forces finally took damage.\n\nThe battlefield lost its images as the EMP static overtook all systems.\n\nDan made his way up to the side of the hatch. He popped the mini para-scope and looked out.\n\nA blood-red streak passed his vision.\n\nWhat the hell was that?\n\nHis para-scope showed the vehicles to his left. A APC smashed into their tail as it slipped out of control. The brigade’s left side was all affected. They had suddenly all lost control.\n\nAll the vehicles on the left were running out of control. The APC systems quickly calculated some 800 vehicles affected.\n\nAll around them was a new explosion as the air force’s finest dropped from the skies.\n\nThe combined losses were probably an entire platoon. Two hits and they were a fifth down. The static interfered with proper life scanning, but Dan felt his stomach drop. They fucked up. They didn’t heed the proper notices and left without a psychic escort.\n\nHe climbed the hatch and popped it open again. The left side was clear of allied forces and he bit his lip hard enough to break skin.\n\nThe Titan was now closer. Its massive scythe in hand. It was swinging again.\n\n“Turn this APC right, right now!” Dan screamed. It was probably too late, but never let it be said that he, Dan Tiger, froze when the chips were down.\n\nThe APC moved, but it was too slow. The scythe’s blade must have been a kilometer tall. Hell, the Red Titan was tens of kilometers tall.\n\nDan closed his eyes, muttered a prayer, and opened them. He would face this with grim determination.\n\nThe scythe hit.\n\nThe world changed to a static purple and red. Streaks of lightning popped across what was a massive dome. A dome that moved with them.\n\nDan saw it then. Another Titan. A purple tinged monster that stood before them.\n\nThis titan took two steps forward and punched the other one in the face. Space seemed to shatter as Dan watched the old man slam into the ground.\n\nPurple Titan raised its left hand. Black sticks formed. Wait. No. Spears?\n\nDan watched as a hundred black, ragged spears of energy slammed into the old man. There was an unholy, inhuman scream and the red titan faded.\n\nThe Purple raised his right hand. In it was a tiny, tiny human. The old man.\n\nThe Purple rubbed his fingers and looked down.\n\nAll around it were TuRT forces. Most were turning to flee.\n\nThe Purple lifted his left hand. All enemy vehicles and their infantry lifted.\n\nThe Purple clenched his left hand into a fist.\n\nIt compacted everything into a tiny, kilometer wide ball.\n\nThe Purple dropped it and faded. Dan felt his stomach turn at the effortless show of power. The simple, life reaping powers of psychics.\n\nThe boom that ball made was loud. A sound that rocked his soldier’s mentality.\n\nThe taps of feet on metal caught Dan’s attention. He looked up into the purple eyes of a chubby young man.\n\nA man he had sneered at during lunch.\n\n“Who is your commanding officer?” A voice rang into his mind.\n\n“Captain Youtiao,” Dan replied. What was he going to do? Not answer the military super weapon?\n\n“Get him, or the next officer up here. I want to know why you didn’t have psychic support for this,” the young man ordered as he waved towards their military convoy.\n\nDan nodded and began talking into his speaker. \n\nTwo pops and four extra feet appeared on the APC. The now 200km/h moving vehicle.\n\nThe twins were young, and Dan definitely had to swallow his bile. They reminded him of his eldest daughter, Sarah.\n\nDan’s focus shifted as he got a reply. Captain Youtiao was in the massive psychic reaping. Malissa, first lieutenant, was now the highest ranking officer here.\n\nShe was also now moving her APC over to talk to the psychic man.",
"Victory depends on every member in the service pulling his weight, giving his all, and constantly striving to be a more effective cog in our great and glorious war machine. Our nation depends on it. The safety of our families depends on it. The safety of the men and women who go out into the fields of battle every day, risking their lives, depends on it.\n\nThe machine must function efficiently, and everyone who is a part of it must contribute to the best of their abilities. Otherwise the whole thing falls apart and we lose the damned war. And then what? Let our grandchildren live as second-class citizens in a conquered nation, eating spicy crickets and quinoa, or whatever the hell it is that the Bobos eat?\n\nOver my dead body.\n\nSo when I see some inefficiency somewhere in the ranks, I make it known. And when I see the cause of this inefficiency being shielded from all organizational criticism, I take it upon myself to voice my criticism directly to that cause. That's not bullying. That's not causing drama. That's me doing my duty as a patriot.\n\nYes, I've made it sound vague. But anyone with a goddamn lick of sense in their skull knows exactly who I'm referring to when I'm talking about inefficiencies. Anyone who hasn't swallowed wholesale the hype and propaganda knows exactly what division of the military I have set my ireful eyes upon. You guessed it. The so-called \"Psionics\" - or, as I like to call them, the Circus Freaks.\n\nThe Psionic Division...a disaster from start to finish.\n\nWhat were the psionic recruits doing while the rest of us toiled away at bootcamp, drilling, running marathons, struggling through obstacle courses? I'll tell you. They were sitting in lecture halls. They were reading books. Hell, I even seen 'em holding hands and humming together a couple of times, like they was a troupe of girl scouts singing in front of a campfire! While we roasted under the hot sun, in full gear, running through combat scenarios, they would drink iced water in the shade, and meditate.\n\nAnd that's before the war began.\n\nWhat was an annoyance in boot camp has grown to be infuriating out here, in the shit. Because while us soldiers have been out on the front lines, shooting, getting shot at, getting hit, getting injured -- while we have been holding the heads of our dying friends in our laps, telling them everything would be alright, lying to them, what have those charlatans in the Circus Division been doing? Practicing the \"complex and subtle art of psionic warfare\", safe in the distance - which is to say, they've been doing a whole lot of nothing.\n\nYet they get the praise. They get the articles written about them. They get the documentaries made about them. They get to be our national heroes, our \"saviours\", while those of us who fight and die for our country every day get swept to the side, like we're nothing at all. Like we're expendable.\n\nAnd they get the funding. Our rickety weapons are nothing compared to the state of the art facilities in which they get to spend their days, hundreds of miles away from the battlefields. And while we sleep in piss-stained and infested cots, in ratty old canvas tents, soaked to the teeth when it rains, frozen to the bone when it snows, they are far away, in private rooms, sipping cucumber water and moisturizing their faces before crawling into their warm, luxurious beds.\n\nFor God forbid they have a bad dream once in a while. The last time one of them did, we had to postpone a major operation for 48 hours!\n\nIn short, everyone knows the Psionics are a bunch of layabout battle-shy quacks. Everyone knows they're probably just the nieces and nephews and sons and daughters of senators and generals who wanted to shield their kin from the draft. Yes, everyone knows. At least, every front line soldier knows, even if the rest of the chain of command and our military scientists refuse to acknowledge it.\n\nBut I'm the only one who says anything about it. And I'm certainly the only one willing to do anything about it. But boy am I going to do something about it. Just you watch.\n\nTrue heroes do what they know is right, regardless of the cost to themselves, and regardless of whether the people around them understand their motives. I'm sure there will be a lot of foolish kerfuffle in the coming days, after what I have done goes public. I will be called unhinged. I will be called a terrorist. Some will even weep and wail that because of my actions, we will lose the war. But once the dust settles, in a week, in a month, or maybe only years down the road, I will be vindicated, and hailed as a hero. The people will see what a drain on morale and resources the Psionic Division was, and they'll understand that what I did was necessary to snap the military back to reality. They'll understand that what I did was necessary to win us the war, and they'll wish I had done it sooner.\n\n\\- Corporal Remus Blevins\n\n\\[continued in comments\\]",
"\"Om Mani Padme Hum on deeeeeez nuts!\" was their favorite, and I have to admit it was clever enough- compared to what they said about our mandalas anyway. They're simple creatures, but they're creatures, incarnations of the primal symmetry breaking forces, and I need their energy as much as they need me to focus is.\n\nNaturally nobody listened when I asked them to take it easy on the intoxicants. We hadn't made contact with anything on two legs for weeks. It was technically the front line, but since even novice psy-monks can remotely deny visual recon for 10 miles, nobody knew where the hell the enemy was or wasn't, so everywhere was technically the front line.\n\nThat night seemed quiet enough, but they had for a while and that felt disconcerting. I took over remote recon denial duty from my second after a light dinner. Settled onto my stool and recited the quieting mantras. There was no one out there, no minds, no thoughts, no will, just natures perfect thoughts.\n\nThe platoon got a little rambunctious over a cheating spouse or something, led to a lot a drinking, a little fighting, and something with a ball. It was distracting, but I kept their energy aligned to extend my senses.\n\nI only heard the final echo's from my second's mind as it shattered from a devestating remote dream attack. It pierced my thoughts and twisted the energy I held and for a moment I was blind to the universe. I heard shouts and groans and a weapon discharged. I could not orient my chakras, nothing connected. I felt the fear creeping in, delaminating my perception of reality. I heard more gunfire and crawled under a cot and inserted my tactical sensory deprivation plugs.\n\nI could still feel the vibrations, but the brief peace was enough to catch a thin bead of the aether and reorient. I saw our enemy- far, far away, but very powerful. Projecting- amplifying- somehow... They'd connected to the soldier's minds from further than I could retalliate. I felt the flashes of rage, terror, and pain forced into their undefended minds. It was too much, too fast. I would deflect one inception as five more burrowed in. The soldiers were helpless, my second was gone, and I couldn't even reach our attacker.\n\nI removed my plugs, and shoes, and clothes. I walked out in the midst of the chaos and laid in the dirt, looking at the stars. I stopped my mind and reached deep within the jewel in the lotus and touched the center of the universe. I breathed the void and became one, uniting the energy around me. I could not focus such chaos, it was too conflicted, but I could contain it, if only for a moment. I drank the suffering and anger from their thoughts and compressed them. Deeper and thicker and denser until there was only pure, mindless desperation, the core of life in a thought singularity- the atomic need to live.\n\nThen, when I could contain no more- I released it at once- towards our attacker.\n\nThey found him in some kind of box with tubes and wires wrapped around it. They're analysing it to see how it works, but whatever it does it takes a mediocre psy-monk and turns them into a psy-howitzer. The guy's head literally popped from my counter attack. He wasn't even a novice. I mean- I'm good- but you a decently trained psy-monk should at least still have their heads.\n\nThey found me naked on the ground, which actually wasn't the first time, but it was the first time they woke me up to thank me. Apparently as weird as my behavior was they understood enough to give me a little credit for saving their lives. Although they still enjoyed the \"Om Mani Padme Hum on deez nuts\" gag, after that it was more of a compliment."
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[WP] You arrive at the gates of heaven and find St. Peter sitting there shuffling a pack of playing cards.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I open my eyes to a single path in the clouds. Before it sits a man by a table wearing only a white robe and shuffling a deck of playing cards. He takes a short look at me and a look down into a book.\n\n\"A deal I offer you,\" he says as he continues to shuffle the cards. \"One game, should you win I open the gates of heaven. Should you lose... you can imagine what would happen instead.\"\n\n*What if I choose not to play?* is the first question in my mind, but before I open my mouth instinctively I nod in agreement. Of course, I have never been one to reject a game of chance. \n\nFive chips he places on each side of the table and says, \"Take all my chips and you are in heaven, lose them all and hell awaits.\" He follows by dealing the cards, two for each player.\n\n*An ace and a queen of hearts* I try to show no emotion and there is none on his face either.\n\n\"A chip to play a hand\" he says as he puts a single chip forward. \n\nI respond in kind, never one to back down to an early bet. Inmediately he begins to open up the first three cards, an ace of spades comes out first, followed quickly by a five of hearts. With a smile in his face he puts down the last card, the ace of diamonds.\n\n*Three aces for me, but that smile has me wary. What could he have in his hand? The ace of clubs? Prospects for a straight? Perhaps he has completed a Full House?* \n\nHe puts a two more chips into play. Almost as if I am not the one in control of my body I call his bet. He follows my move almost inmediately with the next card, a 3 of hearts. With that smile still haunting me, I choose to check. To my surprise he does as well. \n\n*Was I worried for no reason? Is he just toying with me?*\n\nThe next card in play is the jack of hearts. With a flush of hearts in my hand, I, almost instinctively, put my last two chips forward. \"Did I just play my eternal life in a single hand of cars?\" I say to myself while I grow pale, as if I knew what his hand holds.\n\nFull of confidence he calls my bet and shows his cards, the ace of clubs and the jack of diamonds. \"Had you not agreed to play, you would be walking the golden streets of heaven. Perhaps I should not have expected that much of a gambling addict\" he whispers into my ear. \"Please, step through the door. Eternity awaits.\""
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[WP] After years of supernatural torment, you've finally decided to hire a professional ghost hunter to deal with your problems. Yet when they arrive, you begin to worry a little bit as the only tools they seem to have at their disposal are a pair of boxing gloves.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"FADE IN:\n\nINT. A CREEPY FOYER – NIGHT\n\n*A loud, ominous knock resounds through a spooky house. A man rushes into view, having apparently been waiting for this. This is ALAN, a homeowner. He swings the door open to reveal the silhouette of a figure in a trenchcoat and broad-rimmed hat. This is DOCTOR WIGHT.*\n\n**ALAN:** Hi, uh... are you here about... you know... them? \n**WIGHT:** I am here to sell you potatoes.\n\n*A moment passes in silence.*\n\n**ALAN:** What? \n**WIGHT:** Play along. It confuses them. \n**ALAN:** Uh, okay, uh... yes? Um. Sure? I was waiting for my late-night delivery, I guess. \n**WIGHT:** Excellent. May I come in? I can show you all of the potatoes that I have. \n**ALAN:** Great.\n\n*Alan steps to the side, but Wight does not move.*\n\n**ALAN:** (*CONT'D*) Are you coming? \n**WIGHT:** You have to invite me. \n**ALAN:** (*Scoffing*) What, are you a vampire or something?\n\n*A look of horror suddenly crosses Alan's face.*\n\n**ALAN:** (*CONT'D*) Wait, *are* you a vampire or something?! \n**WIGHT:** Don't be ridiculous. You called for a ghost hunter. That's what I am. \n**ALAN:** You're not a vampire, then? \n**WIGHT:** I literally just told you that I'm a ghost hunter. \n**ALAN:** You also told me you were going to sell me potatoes! \n**WIGHT:** Yes, well, that whole charade has gone out the proverbial window now, hasn't it? \n**ALAN:** Ugh, whatever. Fine, yes, please come in.\n\n*Wight gathers his coat around him and steps over the threshold. A shimmer seems to surround him for a brief moment, but it dissipates quickly enough to have possibly been a trick of the light.*\n\n**WIGHT:** Now, would you prefer that I leave my clothes on? \n**ALAN:** *What?!* \n**WIGHT:** My physical clothes, I mean. Obviously I can't ever be actually naked. \n**ALAN:** ... Oh, I get it, you're trying to confuse them again. \n**WIGHT:** What? No, I'm being sincere. My clients' comfort is a top priority for me. \n**ALAN:** Why would you take your clothes off at all?! What does this have to do with... you know?!\n\n*A gloved hand comes up to a place beneath Wight's hat, making it seem like he is rubbing his forehead in the shadows.*\n\n**WIGHT:** Look... Alan, was it? \n**ALAN:** Yes. \n**WIGHT:** Right. Alan. Listen, it's easier for me to get things done if I'm not tied to the physical world, but mortals tend to get a bit... well, squeamish, I suppose... when they see translucent figures chasing after one another. \n**ALAN:** \"Squeamish?\" No, wait, why would *you* be translucent? \n**WIGHT:** As I believe we've covered several times now, I'm a ghost hunter. \n**ALAN:** What does that have to do with being translucent?! \n\n*Despite the fact that his features are still obscured, Wight's posture begins to make him look impatient.*\n\n**WIGHT:** I really don't know how much clearer I can be, Alan. I'm a ghost. I'm a hunter. I'm a ghost hunter. \n**ALAN:** You... you're... you're a ghost? \n**WIGHT:** For the last time, yes! I am a ghost who hunts other ghosts! Damn it, man, is there a potato in your *head?* \n**ALAN:** That... uh... that was a bit rude. \n**WIGHT:** Yes, well, my concern for my clients' well-being tends to evaporate a bit when said clients are so *dense*.\n\n*Wight suddenly steps back.*\n\n**WIGHT:** (*CONT'D*) Sorry, that was incredibly inappropriate of me. \n**ALAN:** What? \n**WIGHT:** Ah, see, in the spirit world, \"dense\" is something of a slur. \n**ALAN:** ... Are you *really* a ghost? \n**WIGHT:** (*To himself*) It would seem to be an appropriate slur here, though. (*Out loud*) Yes, I am a ghost. \n**ALAN:** Sorry, just... I thought I'd hired a ghost hunter. \n**WIGHT:** No, we are not going through this again. \n**ALAN:** I just don't get it! How can you be a ghost?! \n**WIGHT:** How else would I be a ghost hunter?! \n**ALAN:** (*Shouting*) *I don't understand!*\n\n*Alan's voice echoes through the house for a moment.*\n\n**WIGHT:** Wait. I think I see what's going on. \n**ALAN:** [*Unintelligible whimper*] \n**WIGHT:** You thought you'd hired a \"ghost-hunter,\" with a hyphen. \n**ALAN:** A... a hyphen? \n**WIGHT:** Right, see, a \"ghost-hunter\" is any person who hunts ghosts. A \"ghost hunter\" is a hunter who is a ghost. I'm a ghost-hunting ghost; a ghost-hunter who is also a disembodied soul. Understand? \n**ALAN:** Jesus Christ, was this entire sketch just a writing correction? \n**WIGHT:** Well, that all depends. \n**ALAN:** On what?\n\n*Wight opens his trenchcoat to reveal a large bag suspended within it.*\n\n**WIGHT:** Would you like to buy some potatoes?\n\nCUT TO BLACK.\n\n------\n\nNow here's a poem for you, just to cement the lesson:\n\n------\n\nHunter was a hunter who went out to hunt at night \nBut Hunter was then hunted and received a vampire bite \nThe Hunter-hunter vampire who hunted Hunter fled \nAnd Hunter soon discovered that he'd joined the living dead \n\nThus Hunter was a vampire, but still a hunter, too \nAnd as a vampire hunter, Hunter knew just what to do \nSo Hunter started hunting for a weapon he could take \nThen became a vampire-hunter brandishing a wooden stake \n\nA vampire vampire-hunter who's named Hunter is a sight \nWord of his hunting spread, and it filled vampires with fright \nThey all rallied their numbers as they sought to get a grip \nAnd became Hunter-hunters on a vampire hunting trip \n\nHunter, being hunted, knew he had to get away \nSo he kept right on running up until the break of day \nThe Hunter-hunting vampires saw their chase was a bust \nAnd in the end, they all crumbled to vampire hunter dust \n\nThis is where our story ends, just after Hunter's jog \nYet as with all good tales, there is an epilogue \nFor Hunter had been hiding just before the rise of dawn \nNow the vampire vampire-hunter known as Hunter still hunts on"
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[WP] After you stood up a witch on a date, she cursed you so that all your dates go horribly wrong.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"This was getting ridiculous. The first couple of dates could be explained away, but it was slowly getting worse, until now. I looked at the blood spreading from beneath the anvil, the people near me scrambling backwards at watching a woman get crushed into a bloody paste. A grey chunk was stuck to my suit, I flicked it off and left,still absently inspecting those near me. Even now, the waitress was still shaking, a grown man was still looking at the anvil with the thousand-yard stare and sobs echoed from a booth full of children, the parents trying vainly to cover their eyes.\n\nBefore this, it was a piano. Before that,it was a glass flower pot,and before that the restruant we were at caught fire,an appearent act of arson,despite my contacts saying that none of the local gangs having burnt it down. Each time,the police had no leads,evantually giving up. The worst part is,I had no idea who or what was doing this,the items would appear out of thin air. It was almost like a . . . curse . . . . Cursing I finally figured out what happened. Pulling out my phone,I made a call. The witch who had cursed me would pay even if they did remove it. No one ruins my suit three times and gets away with it. Still grumbling to myself about the suit,I barely registered the cops pulling up to the little cafe,and I never saw the three arrows."
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[WP] An ancient, magical kingdom in another world has decided to take people from ours, turning us into heroes with great power. Problem is, since these people didn't like being taken from their friends and families, the kingdom now has a serious bandit and crazy wizard problem.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"We could always summon another one to take care of them.\" One advisor offered, and King Artur glared balefully at him until the man quailed under his stare. Even his graying dark hair seemed to deflate under the attention.\n\nAnother advisor, Count Horus, snorted. \"Yes, because that's worked out for us *so well* thus far, Count Gretch.\" He glanced at the King, bright blue eyes filled with hope for a sign of approval from the great man, but the Monarch was lost in thought.\n\nCount Gretch was distracted from his fear of the King and turned to sneer at the red haired man on the other side of the table. The two Counts had a deep dislike for one another that was well known in the court. \"If you have any better ideas, Count Horus, I'm sure we would all like to hear them.\" He huffed.\n\nCount Horus scowled back at his rival. \"Anything would be better than bringing in another of those monsters.\"\n\n\"We could always adjust the spell so that anyone we summon appears as a child that can be raised by someone who will instill the right values in them. Then once they are grown they'll assist us.\" An older woman further down the table suggested loudly over the two squabbling Lords.\n\nKing Artur turned his gaze to her. Lady Delia met his eyes steadily. She had lost her only child recently. Rumor said her family's doctor had told her she would be unable to have anymore. Doubtless she planned to offer to be the one to raise this hypothetical 'child hero'.\n\nThe King really didn't want to be the one to dash her hopes, but needs must. He sighed heavily, the breath ruffling his long grey mustache. \"We've tried that before.\" He admitted to the gathered nobles. \"It was discovered that while we can adjust the physical age of the hero on the summoning circle, they will remain mentally 21.\" They could not summon anyone of a different age, a fact that was confirmed soon after the summoning circle was first used.\n\nIt turned out that 21 year olds from where and when ever the summoned heroes where coming from were as a rule... unwieldy. \n\nCount Horus tapped his chin thoughtfully. \"I assume that the results of that particular test were the twin wizards Taako and Lup? They still appear rather young.\" He asked. The two were infamous for their combined destruction, and seemed to have made the havoc they managed a sort of competition. \n\nKing Artur nodded. \"Indeed it was them. Upon summoning the two at the physical age of 5, you can only imagine their wrath.\"\n\nThe gathered Lords and Ladies winced. A heavy silence fell over the meeting until Lady Delia sighed and asked, \"So, what *can* we do? The summoned people don't seem to age, so we can't just wait them out. We can't send them back as the circle doesn't work that way. None of them will accept titles or bribes to settle down into a more normal life here. Is there anything we can do other than accept that eventually they will destroy all that can be destroyed?\"\n\nKing Artur slammed his hand down on the table, causing those closest to him to jump. \"I refuse to let my kingdom fall to these miscreants!\" But he had as few ideas as any of them. The bejeweled crown on his head had never felt so heavy.\n\nThe massive meeting hall door creaked open and a messenger slipped into the room. As the King turned his attention to her, he noted her wide eyed expression and slightly singed uniform. \"Sire, you have a visitor.\" Her voice was higher pitched than normal, tinged with fear.\n\n\"Who is it?\" King Artur groaned. Even adding more nobles to this meeting would not help at this point.\n\nThe messenger cleared her throat and tugged at the ragged edges of her dark blue tunic. \"He says he was sent here by the summoned ones. He has claimed his title is 'Union Representative' and he wants to discuss their terms.\"",
"Another explosion rocked the keep, the great stones of the castle managing to stay together despite the barrage.\n\n\n“What if we said please?” \n\nI stared at the man. He was tall and thin and wore a large, pointed hat that have him the appearance of a very ugly bird. He stood facing me from the front of a large group of soft-looking people, their pale, chubby faces staring at me.\n\n“I told you no,” I said, wiping bits of stone and dust from my shoulders and hair. “I’ve got a damn family at home! You can’t just freaking pull me into this place and make me do your work!”\n\nThe tall man turned to confer with the group of pallid people, mumbling frantically. The mumbling paused, they turned to look at me, then began mumbling again, heads close together. Several minor explosions and falling bits of stone later, the tall man stood and turned back to me, smiling.\n\n“What if,” he said, his smile growing larger as he gestured widely, “we said *pretty please?*” \n\nHe paused, hands opened broadly before me, his large sleeves hanging around his wrists.\n\n“Pretty please, eh?” I said.\n\n“With *sugar* on top!” \n\nI stared at the man for a moment, then threw my helmet at him.\n\n“Hey!” The man said, ducking the helmet. “That’s enchanted you know! Very expensive!”\n\n“I don’t care!” I said, making the bird man flinch. I turned and walked back to stand in the center of the complex magicky markings that decorated the floor. \n\n“Send me back home now or I’ll use these ridiculous enchantments to rip you people a new one!”\n\nThe man turned to consult one of the pallid people, who opened a large, leathery book and began flipping through it, his brow furrowing.\n\n“I’m sorry, you’re saying you’ll help?” The bird man said. “You will rip us a new one? A... portal perhaps?”\n\nI drew the sword at my hip, which, like the rest of my ridiculous armor, had appeared on me when I was ripped through time and space to land, quite painfully, in this exploding castle. I pointed my sword at the bird man.\n\n“An asshole, Bird Man,” I said. “I’ll stab you, is what I’m saying, if you don’t send me back home. Now.”\n\nThe man shifted, tugging at a sleeve.\n\n“Well, we uh,” he mumbled, the group of people shuffling behind him nervously. “We don’t know how, exactly.” \n\nI walked toward the man.\n\n“But!” He said, scuttling backward. “But but but— we know who DOES know! Jared the Wise!”\n\nThe group of people behind him murmured, bobbing their heads excitedly.\n\n“Jared?” I asked. “The wise?”\n\n“Indeed! In fact, he is currently nearby, just outside the castle gates!” The bird man motioned to the pallid people behind him, who burst into movement, gathering various supplies from around the room and putting them in a pack, including my helmet.\n\n“And let me guess,” I said, “if I go and talk with Jared—“ \n\n“The wise!” The bird man piped.\n\n“—the wise, yes. Jared the Wise...” I paused, tapping my sword against my armored leg. “If I go speak with him, he can help me get home.”\n\nThe bird man nodded, followed by the crowd of people, jostling and smiling as their heads bobbed up and down.\n\n“And, lucky for you, he would hopefully stop bombing your castle.”\n\n“Yes!” The bird man said. “And you could perhaps convince him to go with you! He’s been terribly fond of explosions ever since he got here, and most of our Heroes have sided with him. It’s most unfortunate! Most unfortunate indeed!” The pallid people frowned, faces jiggling slightly as they glumly waggled their heads back and forth in sorrow.\n\nI sighed, sheathed my sword (which, admittedly, was pretty cool) and picked up the pack.\n\n“Praise Be!” The bird man said, helping to buckle my pack as I moved for the exit. “So you’ll help us?”\n\n“I’ll help myself,” I said, another explosion causing some large stones to shift and fall into the group of pallid people, knocking a few on the head as they cheered, arms raised in jubilation and self defense. “Let’s just hope this Jared—“\n\n“Jared the Wise,” the bird man corrected.\n\n“Thank you. Let’s hope this Jared the Wise can help me get home. Because if he doesn’t, I’ll have to come back.” \n\nThe bird man bowed as I left, and I heard him bolting the door heavily as I made my way down the winding dirt path that lead into the forest. I could see a group of people seated in why looked like medieval lawn chairs only a few hundred yards away, drinking from large barrels of some deep amber liquid, waited on by flitting, light-up creatures that reminded me of my girl’s favorite cartoons on Disney Plus. \n\nSeated among them was a man with a tall pointed hat, much like the bird man’s, except this one was studded with metal spikes and had several interesting patches on it. As I drew closer, I saw that the man in the hat was, in fact, a boy in a hat. Barely older than my teenage son, the kid looked like he was getting ready to finish high school, and the people around him seemed around the same age, but with fewer spikes.\n\n“Jared?” I asked, looking at the boy in the hat. “We gotta talk.”"
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[WP] It’s been 3 years since the giant castle started orbiting the moon; 3 years since magic came to Earth. Armed with the greatest weapons and enchantments Earth can create you are part of the second task force sent to explore the castle. Your mission: Explore the castle and find any survivors.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"We called it Prosper. Its arrival marked a golden age for mankind. Changing us, forever. The light that it cast, was brighter than the moon could ever wish to reflect.\n\nGreat heroes emerged. Fields made famous, by even greater battles that were fought there. Then, the dust settled. In one year, mankind united, and spread its wings to the stars.\n\nGreat cities were built. Floating capitols of Venus, the Gardens of Europa, the Mariner grasslands, and the beautiful cities of Ganymede and Io.\n\nOur gaze locked upon the stars like it once did on the moon. Knowing that we'd one day get there. All thanks to Prosper.\n\nWhen cosmonaut Maya Yeltsin first set foot on the gate of Prosper, she felt its light. Her enchanted mind, and delightful spirit knew to spread its light to all of the world. \n\nMany excursions followed. Apollo, Artemis. Each mission returning with newfound technologies far beyond our grasp of reality. Until Prometheus 22, opened the gates, and never returned. Mankind lost its light. Suffocating in Prosper's eclipse, the cities on Venus fell, Martian grass froze, and Ganymede turned silent.\n\nNow it is upon you, my mighty Sentinel, to breach the gates of Prosper, and to rekindle man's flame. Bring back Gavin, Reissman, and Teller. Live up to the name of their mission.\n\nBecause of you we will once again look up to the stars and see possibilities, instead of dreams.\"",
"\"Everyone, suit up. Arrival in 5.\"\n\nI slapped the amulet around my neck, and crystal flowed around me, forming into a tight fitting suit of armour. My twin swords floated to my waist, and my book of spells fell pit of thin air into my hand. We were on final approach to the Lunar Castle.\n\nJust over 3 years ago, this castle suddenly appeared in the sky, orbiting the moon. As it spun, the moon had glowed brighter and brighter. The governments of the world scrambled to find out what was happening, what had caused this event. After a month, when the moon was approaching the light intensity of the sun, it seemed to explode.\n\nA wave of power rippled over the Earth. Forgotten knowledge was restored, and arcane power was re-discovered. The moon returned to its former look, and the castle continued to orbit. And the world descended into chaos for a bit, as people went slightly mad with power.\n\nAfter the craziness, where some people tried to rise to power, and were taken down, humanity researched magic. It was surprising similar to programming, which caused our knowledge to accelerate. And when we worked out how to tie it in with our technology, the world was transformed.\n\nSo about a month ago, a team was sent to the castle, to answer the biggest questions. Where did this magic come from, and how did the castle give it to us. It was with great interest the world watched. But when they went in, all contact was lost.\n\nI am part of the second team. But we are prepared for all danger. The world governments came together, and outfitted us with the best pieces of kit created. We have a simple set of objectives. Find out what happened to the first team, retrieve any survivors, and find out what we can about the castle.\n\nThe arcane shuttle doors opened, and we got our first glimpse of it. It looked like someone had taken the Disney castle, and put it in space, with a small courtyard out front. We could see the first teams shuttle there, cold and dark.\n\nWe approached the shuttle, some with spells prepared, others holding rifles. Edward, the techmage, pressed a skeleton key to the door, opening it. The inside was empty, and completely devoid of power. Captain Andrea looked at us, clearly making a judgement.\n\n\"Marvin, Edward, stay here, see what you can find. Anything janky happens, bug out to our one, and de-couple, but stay in orbit, ready to pick us up.\"\n\nMarvin was our computer specialist, and made sense for him and Edward to remain. We left them, heading towards the castle itself. The 6 of us moved together, each keeping a careful watch. The doors swung open as we approached, a yawning entrance into the dark interior. We didn't know what we would find, but we were determined to get through together."
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[WP] You, an observer of fate, have seen many realms. This one is strange though... the hero has been defeated by a small child; protecting her mother's grave from the hero. Your heart moved, for the first time you reach out, to comfort the girl. Just once, you won't just observe.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Frightened, she peered out from behind the gravestone at the cloaked figure in front of her. He was well over seven feet tall and robed in black. Every move of his was accompanied by a quiet cracking. *Crack, crack, crack* as he leaned his giant scythe against the dark granite rock. He extended his arm and from the blackness of his sleeve emerged a bony, white hand that brushed aside the leaves that had fallen onto the grey headstone. \n\n“In loving memory,” Death read aloud. His voice sounded like gravel in a grinder. “In loving memory of Elizabeth of Lanshire,” he read. “Missed, but not forgotten.” He looked up. There was nothing visible underneath his hood but two tiny, red beads where the eyes should be. \n\nThe girl, hidden behind her mother’s headstone, retreated further from the him. The fear she had shown at the arrival of the knight in his golden armour was nothing compared to the absolute terror that now appeared on her face. Silent tears rolled down her small, round face and dropped onto the front of her muddied and bloody dress, staining it further. \n\nDeath stepped over the knight’s unmoving body and then – *crack, crack, crack* – got down onto his knees. “Don’t be afraid,” he said in his gravel-in-the-grinder voice. But there was a gentle undertone there that made her halt. “I won’t hurt you,” he said. He extended his hand again and once again, his black sleeve slid from his wrist, exposing the bone beneath. He looked down at his hand, as if surprised to see it there. “Oh,” he said and pushed the sleeve back over the bare bone, “I suppose that’s not a very nice sight to behold.” He cocked his head and looked at what little he could see of her face. “Come here. Don’t be scared. It’s over. He’s gone.” He made a short pause, regarding the knight’s corpse. “All of him,” he added. \n\nThe girl followed his gaze. As she looked at the dead knight, her lips began to tremble. “He’s … dead?” she asked. Her voice was a quiver and so quiet that it was barely audible. Death could hear her just fine, though. \n\nHe nodded. “He is.”\n\nShe swallowed. “I … did that?” she asked. She stepped forward and more of her face became visible. The deep wound where the knight’s sword had hit her was still oozing dark blood. She barely seemed to notice the large gash in her head. \n\nAnother nod from the black figure. “You did.”\n\n“How?”\n\nDeath let out a sigh that sounded like the howling wind through a thousand tiny holes in the fabric of reality. “You wanted to protect your mother,” he said. \n\nShe stepped out from behind the gravestone. She was still silently crying, the tears mixing with the blood that was drying on her face. She straightened her stained, white dress and stepped towards him. “He wanted to take her,” she said, her voice stronger now. “He said they needed her – for something.” She turned to look at Death. “What did they need her for?”\n\n“She was a princess,” said Death. “A princess’ heart is a powerful source of magic. For those that know how to harness it, that is.”\n\n“He said he needed her to protect the world,” she said. She now turned her back toward the knight, looking straight at Death. “But I didn’t want him to take her.”\n\n“You were right to refuse.”\n\n“Does this mean that the world is in danger now?”\n\n“The world will manage.” After a short while of considering, he reached out again and gently touched her face with his thin fingers. She shuddered, but didn’t draw away from his touch, instead letting him comfort her. Eventually, she even stepped towards him and sunk into his embrace. Death was not sure how these things went, but he wanted to make her feel better. At first, he thought that he was doing something wrong as her crying worsened, but then he realised that this was only natural. After some time, she calmed and stood up straighter. She brushed away the tears and seemed surprised to see her hand come back red from the blood on her face. \n\n“He hit me,” she remembered and sought out the huge wound where the knight’s broadsword had split her skull. Her eyes widened in surprise. “He *killed* me,” she said. “When I didn’t let him take mama.” She looked at the black figure before her. Even on his knees, Death was taller than she. Then, her gaze wandered towards the large, rusty scythe that leaned against the headstone. “What am I?” she wanted to know. \n\n“A ghost,” he replied, “Not quite here, not quite there. Your soul still bound to this place; you couldn’t leave until your mother was secure.”\n\nShe looked down at the grave beneath her feet. The earth was still fresh, and no flowers bloomed on it. “But she isn’t,” she said. “More will come.”\n\n“That is to be expected,” said Death. He looked at the dead knight. He had been huge – a mighty warrior, killed by the little girl that he had been willing to murder to fulfil his quest. “Although I’m sceptical how many will try their luck after seeing this.” He nodded towards the knight’s destroyed face. \n\nShe was silent for a while longer, then asked “Do I *have* to come with you?”\n\n“It is your choice.”\n\nShe bit her lip. “What’s it like? Over there?”\n\n“Oh, it’s nice. You will like it.”\n\n“Do I have to decide now?”\n\n“Take all the time you need.”\n\nShe drew a sharp breath and sat down on the headstone, next to the scythe. “Then, I’ll wait a while,” she said. “I don’t want someone to take her.”\n\nDeath smile, invisibly to her, underneath his hood. He stood up – *crack, crack, crack* – and then picked up his scythe. He leaned on the gravestone right next to her and gazed upon the thousands of old graves around them. “I’ll wait with you,” he said."
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[WP] A Mercenary roaming the streets of Anur was approached by a child to save their father. The child had little money, but the Mercenary was moved by the tears. Now the mercenary is headed to the Warlords fortress.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Phil grumbled as the rain pelted him in a cold, heavy drops, but he looked down at the kid who he’d given his cloak to and somehow he stopped caring about how cold and wet he was. He just thought about this kid who couldn’t have been older than ten and how he’d walked fifteen miles to Anur in search of anyone who could help him get his dad back and sighed. It was a sad kind of sigh. \n\n“Hey, Mister Phillip?” the kid asked as he looked up at Phil, as well as he could with the hood covering the top half of his face.\n\n“What’s up, kid?”\n\n“How’re we gonna get my dad back?”\n\n“Tom’s not so bad a guy and he does owe me a favor.”\n\n“Wait, you know him?”\n\n“Yeah, used to be one of my squad mates back in the Second Kings’ War.”\n\n“What’s he like, Mister Phillip?”\n\nPhil paused at that. Tom wasn’t so bad of a guy—that much was true—but that was fifteen years ago and he knew Tom had been hitting the sauce pretty hard because he couldn’t cope with losing Juliette at the Battle of Worthington. He was a different man before she died and Phil knew a part of Tom died with her, but he didn’t want to tell the Kid that Tom was a different man after the War. That he was angry and cold. That when Juliette got lowered into the ground, everything that made Tom Tom was buried right with her. That shit-eating grin, his dumbass jokes, his goofy bursts into song and dance when he drank too much. Nope. He didn’t want to tell the Kid that.\n\n“Don’t worry about that, Kid,” he said with a pat to the back. “I’ll talk to Tom and you’ll see your old man again; you have my word.”\n\nThe kid looked up at him again, still unable to look past the hood that covered most of his face and a smile spread across the boy’s face and his bony cheeks gave way to small dimples as he hugged Phil.\n\nPhil just looked back at him and smiled a weak smile before it gave way to a sigh. He really hoped he could keep that promise; he really did."
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[WP] Your significant other foretold the time of their death, to the minute. When it happened, the sky split in half and massive storms began forming. You didn't expect that moment to be the start of the apocalypse.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"From the start, we were different. When our eyes met and our bodies collided, the world shook. We were linked by an inseparable bond, Ezekiel and I. Connected both mentally and spiritually. \n\nFor years we lived our days in bitter-sweet euphoria, all too aware of the impending death that hung heavily over us. He would repeat the same phrase, “On the fourteenth day of the seventh month of the two thousand and twenty-first year, when dawn breaks at 6:03am, I will die.” Like clockwork, every morning when he awoke, as if it had been plaguing his dreams for the entire night. \n\nWith clenched fists, my eyes never failed to tear up each time, partially due to the despair that gripped at me just from a single mention, but also at the injustice of it all. “If you die then let the world die with it.” I’d bite out in anger, fully meaning every part of it. I believed his words as truth without a doubt, but I didn’t realise mine could be too. I guess unknowingly, we had foreshadowed it all. The beginning of the end. \n\nToday, the first light appeared, the sun unraveling itself from the blanket of the night. It was daybreak. Helplessly, I watched my soulmate perish , right before my eyes. I uselessly cried rivers of tears and screamed incoherently. I could tangibly feel my hold on reality slip away. My firing heart was being mangled in a hand, the nails piercing into the red flesh like a soft peach. It wrung it out like a rag, twisting tighter until it was taut and a second away from rupturing. It took every ounce of energy I had to not pass out from the agony that burned its course through my veins. \n\nIt was the single most torturous trial I’d ever had to endure and the last one I thought I’d face. But no, losing the light of my life was just the beginning of the tribulations heading towards me like a nuclear missile programmed to a target on my back. \n\nBecause in the break of dawn, it was not hope that dared descend upon me. It was the caliginous, starless sky of pitch black clouds that tore in half, as if a demon was viciously clawing its way through space itself. \n\nOminously, a baleful death march resonated from trumpets which I could not see, as terrifyingly grotesque and sickeningly black creatures emerged from the portal of depravity. \n\nI breathed a smile, my blue eyes gleamed like sapphires. Some may call the look on my face insanity. “Yes.” I whispered. “Please, let the entire world die. Let it all burn in hell.” My gleeful grin couldn’t be contained any longer. \n\n“I don’t think so.” A sharp deep voice hissed from behind me and suddenly an ice cold metal was pressed against the side of my neck. The unknown assailant snorted. “I’ve been scammed... Dear Holy Father of mine, this lunatic is the weapon you’ve blessed me with to fight the Holy War?”"
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[WP] The story of a werewolf who goes around biting other cryptids to see what happens.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Vladimir Dracula was having an off evening. He found out his toothbrush was stolen during the day. Usually, he'd inform the human police force to help find the culprit. But there was no need seeing as they hadn't even tried to hide the signs of their intrusion.\n\nThe bathroom reeked of their blood. Following his nose, he traced the scent to it's origin. The search led him right behind his toilet. A tiny droplet of green blood.\n\nHe snorted, \"Cursed Chupacabras. I told them I want no part of their territorial feud.\"\n\nHe quickly wiped it off and prepared for work. He was a speaker at the Blood Party held by his office. This opportunity comes once in a blue moon. He didn't want to be late just because of his troublesome neighbors.\n\n**AT THE PARTY**\n\nVlad was in the venue. He was calming his nerves down before his speech with a glass of pixie ichor when John Beast, the infamous mad scientist and nephew of Lucifer, walked in.\n\n*Oh boy. This can't be good.*\n\n\"Morning, Professor. I hope your night has been good so far,\" Beast looked at the ceiling and stroked his shaved chin in mock contemplation, trying to fight the small tug at the corner of his mouth. \"Y'know, there's this thing I've been wanting to try out.\"\n\n\"Go away,\" was what Vlad wanted to say but he valued his second life way too much to possibly offend the scion of one of the most ruthless families in the Underrealm.\n\nHe was forced to swallow his pride, \"It has been. May I help you?\"\n\n*Please say no.*\n\n\"Actually, you can.\"\n\nThis is a weird thing to say, since most of Vlad's bodily functions stopped working centuries ago. But for a second, he was sure his heart dropped into his stomach.\n\n\"Follow me.\"\n\nAnd so Vlad obediently did. It's a well known fact that if someone of a much higher status than you tells you to do their bidding, you do or die without question. In Vlad's case, it would technically be his second time dying, but it scared him nonetheless.\n\nBeast lead him to his limo (which Vlad noted to be worth at least a thousand souls more than he earns a year), \"Hop in. No promises, but I'll try to get you back before midnight so you can deliver your speech.\"\n\nThe whole car ride felt like fever dream to Vlad. He vaguely recalls Beast passionately talking about bloodsuckers and hybrids, but he was more focused on trying to find an escape than listening to his kidnapper's sermon. Unfortunately, he found none.\n\n\"We're here,\" Beast smiled as he opened Vlad's door and looked him in the eye. His smile looked like it was meant to be friendly but his eyes said another story. They were the eyes of a predator knowing it has caught it's prey. \"Make sure you you follow me because the corridors all look the same.\"\n\n**AT BEAST'S LAB**\n\n\"So now what?\"\n\nVlad asked in the most amicable voice he could muster as he looked in awe and envy at all of Beast's expensive equipment. He was about to turn to face Beast when he suddenly felt a sharp pain on his shoulder. Saliva soaked his suit and his vision went dark.\n\n\"Haha! Good job, *master!*\"\n\nTwo figures emerged. The Chupacabra sisters. They were watching what happened through cameras in another room.\n\n\"We knew it was the right thing to come to you!\"\n\n\"You dare failed to capture him and stole his belongings instead, beg for forgiveness, and then pretend you had it all under control after I fixed your mess?\" His snarl made his fangs visible for just a second before they returned back to their normal position.\n\n\"But we-\"\n\n\"No excuses. Help me carry our dear guest to the chamber. He'll wake up soon. When we're done, report to my father.\"",
"This journal is my record. I am a man of science, though science herself has forsaken me. I am cursed, you see. It should be impossible, yet, it is undeniably real.\n\nI was bitten, not in some dank alley or foggy moor, but in my laboratory. I was examining a specimen, a very fine jawbone from some canid, species to be determined. Though now, with more information to hand, I would say the species is most certainly Homo Lupus.\n\nA moments carelessness, and my thumb was pierced by the lower left canine. It was a shallow wound and barely shed a whole drop of blood. Nonetheless, the next full moon brought me much consternation.\n\nWhen I woke that first morning, unclothed and spitting scraps of rabbit fur, I could not imagine what had happened. I limped home, skulking through gardens and behind hedges. I am not ashamed to admit that I made directly for the brandy.\n\nI awoke a second time that day, well into the afternoon. I was in my own bed, and suffering the lash of intemperance. I dismissed it all as a bottled nightmare, even my filthy and stone bruised feet. I must have gone into the garden, I told myself.\n\nThe following month it happened again. This time I was less able to ignore the evidence. There was half of a Roebuck in my parlour. The rear half, as it happened. Also, I had not replenished my supply of brandy.\n\nI began to investigate this phenomenon which had befallen me. Within a mere six months, I had learned very much indeed. The subject was astonishingly well documented for something outside the realm of science.\n\nFurther, as I became accustomed to the lunatic transformation, I found that I did not subsume into a mindless beast. So long as I made sure there was meat on hand to slake the hunger, it was quite trivial to remember who I was every other night of the month.\n\nAt first I experimented on myself. I had some hopes of devising a cure, or at least adding to the literature. Which I have, insomuch as it is only a treatise on things that do not cure a werewolf.\n\nThen it occurred to me that if I were real, perhaps others were as well. Did the dead walk, and seduce nubile young ladies? Were there filthy things tunnelling beneath the graveyard? Could a soul be trapped in a castle or cottage, forced to wait out eternity in a draughty corridor?\n\nI can say unreservedly that the answer to the above is yes. Also, that they too are well documented.\n\nI must admit, at this juncture I was disheartened. A new field had opened before me. I had plunged in, only to find it well trodden and combed over. Did I suffer this curse for nought? \n\nI spent some weeks in a blue study, trying to resume interest in my old specimens. Or, betimes, chasing an India rubber ball about the garden. \n\nIt was that very jawbone that gave me the idea. At first I dared not believe that I'd finally struck upon an original line of research. But several days amongst the tomes convinced me. \n\nNo one knows what happens when a werewolf bites a vampyre. Or for that matter, a goul, a zombi, a yeti, or a phooka. Can fangs even touch the spectral flesh of a haunt, a poltergeist, or a collywobble? \n\nI am uniquely equipped for this research, both by training and by once monthly temperament. I shall undertake a tour, and I will faithfully record here the results and my observations. \n\nThe first stop on my journey shall be a castle in the wilds of Transylvania."
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[WP] You awake from a nightmare where you were horrifically murdered. After calming down, you go about your daily morning routine. Not a moment later you receive an anonymous text: "Let's make that dream a reality."
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I spilled my dreams to him, me greatest ambitions and then I invited him here, but I was still waiting.\n\nA light flickered beyond the darkness of a table. It was close but the stretching black from the table next to me to the bright flickering light was too far to feel easy. The light I was looking at felt comfortable, relaxing, and even a bit hopeful but unattainable. I sat at a wicker table, on a wicker chair, with the sounds of the ocean nearby. The lampt above me was low and dimming. It felt damning as I couldn't see anything in front of me. It blurred from my vision.\n\nCandles lit up in front of me. A birthday cake sat. Because of the dimness, mine or the light, I couldn't count them but I made a wish and tried to blow them out. They flickered, and flickered, and the breeze went out. Drowsiness overtook me and I knew my head would hit the table.\n\nI felt a cold inspiration tap me on neck. Round and siphoning the suffocating warmth around me. A pinprick of what I truly desired grew at the base of my mind. The darkness in front of me stretched onward and I ignored the light beyond the tables. It poured itself across my face as a single moment blasted.\n\nA blast of whites and blacks and everything in between, was this what I truly wanted? The light was first to go, the sound of the ocean next and finally even the dark was gone. Replaced by light.\n\nI opened my eyes and saw a ceiling. Hanging over me. I lifted me arm still holding my phone. \"Ready to make your dream a reality?\" It said.\n\n\"Which one?\" I thought to myself. Was it the dream of light through the darkness, or was it the latter. Would I be able to muster my courage to face the unknown or would I face the dream of falling back to reality and wishing my demise? I texted him back and left for the place.\n\nI invited him here, and I am waiting."
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[WP] After finding an ad in the newspaper, you sign up to become death's intern, but the job isn't exactly what you expected.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Arriving at death's door, I enter the building for my first day on the job. The building was pretty hard to find even with an address, as it blurs into the environment. Inside, however, is entirely different. \n\nThere are papers scattered about, unkempt scythes laying about, and a frantic man, thing, busy writing more papers that simply get strewn about again.\n\n\"Uh... is this the right place?\" I ask, they look up. They have a skeletal face, not a patch of skin nor muscle to be seen.\n\n\"Yes. First job, get to organizing.\" They say, and return to what they were doing.\n\nI stand there stunned for a moment, but get to work. The papers seem to be past and future death dates for various people, almost like warrants. Lucky me that gives an easy way to organize, by date. All of the same date papers go in the same pile, which takes most of the day, but tidies up the room nicely.\n\nAs I clock out, I look back at Death, whose still writing and writing and writing. What a strange first day on the job."
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[WP] You strike at the Demon Lord with the most powerful sword in the world - the only sword capable of beating him, the Legends say. But to your horror, the blade doesn't do any damage. He grabs it from you and casually explains that he made up those stories to get someone to bring the sword to him
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The sword of holy blight, was an arming sword that had long been rumored to be the strongest blade against infernals, fiends, and any such monstrosity of unholy origins. It's origin was lost to history centuries ago in the burning of Alexandria, and again in the great fire of London. \n\nWhy the invasion started no one knows, all anyone could figure out was that the demon lord spearheading the attack was hiding in the Parisian catacombs.The last I saw of my wife was her Auburn hair disappearing behind the ranks of demons spilling through the arc D'triumphe, the last words she said to me were \"find the house of flannel.\n\nIt took decades of searching to find this legendary blade, the mystery's of the ancient alchemist are many, but when soulmates are involved anything can be done. In the time i spent decrypting ancient codes most militaries had banded together with the Vatican to contain the invasion to France. Tens of millions have been lost but soon i shall avenge humanities fallen.\n\nAmong those mysteries I'd spent decoding I was only able to find the sword of Holy blight, and a fascinating little pen that tuned into a sword with a few Greek runes I couldn't decipher.\n\nAs i uncovered these items well stashed for those who could find them, i set off through the Vatican holy army checkpoints (bribery was well accepted in these end times) i was called a suicidal Maniac walking to his death. But the only thing in my mind was the grief and rage I'd been swallowing for all these long months. But now, Now was the time for revenge.\n\nThe blade of holy blight was as effective as legends said, all i had to do was say the activation phrase ( fortuna mortuis ) and make contact with a demon and they crumpled to the ground, as I made my way through hundreds of demons all screaming in languages that hang in the air for too long and that hurt my ears.\n\n I made my way into one of the deep antechambers of the catacombs and found the source of this acursed army of abominations. The demon lord Abaddon. As i stepped inside his throne room he rose to his full height of some 8ft, and bellowed a hearty challenge to duel him.\n\nWhile I am by no means a great warrior i fought on an armored combat league for several years and have faced some powerful men, but none were so imposing as the demon lord before me. It bore a cruel weapon, a copper khopesh sword the size of a scottish claymore, stained with dried blood with a barbed hook on the hilt. It wore an assortment of Roman legate body armour, a spartan helmet and shield, and viking boots and leggings all of these styles of armour were forced over a frame befitting a bear more so than a demon. \n\nAfter having come so far I couldn't back down, not that Abaddon would let me at this point. So i readied my the blade and charged him while screaming \"Fortuna Mortuis!\" As my blade struck at his exposed neck. Expecting him to crumple as all demons had before i dripped my guard, only for Abaddon to smash my chest with his hoplon and send my flying while he laughed the sound of blood gurgling in his throat. \n\nThe confusion on my face visible even by that infernal bastard, he started talking as he strode towards me. \"The sword of holy blight, how long I've missed thee. This wretched blade was made to slay deities and angels not demons and devils. I don't expect you to know that, as all the info you've gotten has been from biased sources-\" he ripped the sword from my hands and it emmited a blinding light as it turned into an overgrown Sica and ran inky black. \"-my information campaign was successful, a mortal retrieved the sword and brought it back to the demon race that made it. Now i can start the process of freeing humanity from those cruel oppressors in the holy realms.\""
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[WP] You died and was sent to hell. But upon arriving you realise that hell isn't that bad at all. And that almost no one ever goes to heaven, but not for reasons you'd expect.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"It was hell.\n\nLiterally.\n\nTwo big hulking red demons greets my sight when my consciousness fades away into the darkness as I perish from my car accident.\n\nMy fault, most definitely.\n\nI was speeding when I shouldn't be and it was raining when the weather forecast said it wouldn't be.\n\nAnyways, as the demons drone on and on about my life and I zoned out, still trying to comprehend that I'm a bad person and am going to hell, I couldn't help but noticed that behind the black obsidian gate, there were quite a few familiar faces waving at me.\n\n\"Jefferson?\" \n\nI muttered out loud, my eyes widening in shock.\n\nMy neighbor, Jefferson, was in hell. Unbelievable. After all his talk on convincing me to convert to Christianity and going to church, this guy ended up in hell!?\n\n\"How did someone as pious as you end up here!?\"\n\n I yelled, much to the annoyance of my two demon judges. They quickly kicked me into the gates of hell to join the rest of the damned as I shuffle my ethereal feet towards my neighbor.\n\n\"Hey Mike, didn't expect to see you so soon...\" Jefferson smiles awkwardly as he greets me. \"I'm sure you know the others.\"\n\nHe gestures to the rest whom I begin to recognize as my other neighbors.\n\n\"Wha- Mandy!? Tyson!? Why are any of you here??\" I exclaimed in shock.\n\nI'm not a good people person but even someone like me can tell if someone's a good or bad person and these people I know are some of the best people in life.\n\nThey volunteer regularly to help others, they donate regularly, they attend church weekly!!\n\n\"It's a long story...\" Mandy sighs, shaking her head in disappointment. \"But let's get you situated first.\"\n\n\"Welcome to hell, Mike.\" Jefferson starts with a wry grin, \"I always knew you would end up here with your atheist outlook... I just didn't expect to end up here with you.\"\n\n\"Anyways, hell is alot like earth. Turns out earth is basically like a prototype for hell. Except instead of working to earn a living, you work to avoid torture.\n\nSpeaking of which, you'll need to get yourself registered at the employment agency later before you get taken away to the torture valley.\"\n\n\"Wuh..\"\n\nWords slips out of my mind as I struggle to form coherent thoughts.\n\n\"But why are YOU here though? I'm in hell, I can understand but you guys shouldn't even be here! Wait, are you all secretly closet sinners or criminals!?\"\n\nHe lets out a deeper sigh and glance at Mandy. \"You wanna tell him?\" \n\nI stare at the duo before Tyson cuts in.\n\n\"Man, it's because we failed one common trial that was placed to all humans in the modern era!\"\n\nI look at him questioningly.\n\n\"We didn't pay for the damn Winrar! Apparently it was made by God and humanity bitch ass done screwed up by using the damn trial version forever!!\"\n\nMy mouth gape wide open as I struggle to comprehend his words.\n\n\"So the criteria... that determines our fate after death is...\"\n\n\"Hell yeah boi, all of us here didn't do nothing but we here anyways cuz we didn't buy no Winrar!!\"\n\n\"In fact, everything here runs in zip file and you gotta work to earn the creds to use Winrar to unzip it to get your cheque to pay off the torture chamber so you don't get tortured! You only get 1 day of free trial now man! This sucks!!\"\n\nJefferson pat the back of the crying Tyson as he look down at the crimson floor with a sad face.\n\n\"Well Mike, let's get you employed so you can pay for Winrar before they throw you into the torture valley...\"",
"The man stood naked on broken glass, chains that disappeared into the darkness tugged at his arms. The red-skinned demon shoved another spike into the man's side, driving it deep into his flesh. The man screamed for mercy as the demon picked up another barbed spike. If the man had still been of mortal flesh and bone he would surely have perished by now. Instead, as a soul damned to Hell, the man merely felt the pain and torment of his properly assigned punishment.\n\nI stood next to the demon, watching as yet another spike sunk into the man's body. \"The more you scream and protest, the longer this will last,\" I said. I moved over to stand next to the man and put a comforting hand on his back. Laying my head on his shoulders, my golden hair draped onto his chest. \"Deep down, you know why you are here. You know this is what you deserve. You merely have to accept it and salvation can be yours.\" I rubbed a gentle hand upon his chest. Then I took a couple of spikes from the demon and staked one right where the man's heart would be. \"Accept your punishment to be forgiven, and to forgive yourself,\" I said as I pulled away from his body.\n\nThe man howled, cursing everyone and everything: his enemies, his friends, his situation, the demons, Satan, God, even me. Finally his breath ran out and he hung his head, panting. After a minute, slowly he raised his head and looked to me. \"I'm sorry, Susan, you know I didn't mean that. It's just the pain talking. It's just so, so hard.\" He tried to smile but only managed a slight grimace.\n\n\"Susan, may I request the pleasure of your company for a moment?\" came another voice from behind me, a deep, low voice that held the air of aristocracy.\n\nI fixed my hair, tying it loosely and then headed in the direction the voice came. Though my soul was cleansed, as long as I resided in Hell I wasn't entirely free of its torments. Flames licked at my bare skin while broken glass and thorns dug into my feet. Smoke impeded my vision and clogged my lungs. All of it though was just a minor inconvenience compared to the tortures I'd previously endured.\n\nEventually the smoke cleared and standing in front of me was an immaculately dressed man in a red suit. Black, slicked back hair and a salesman's smile, he could've been one of any number of men I'd known while still alive. It was the short horns and the whip-thin tail that gave away his true identity as Satan, ruler of Hell. That, and the fact that he was the only person wearing clothes.\n\n\"Ahh, Susan, thank you for coming to see me,\" he said, spreading his arms wide. I stepped into the embrace politely. He was, after all, the ruler of Hell. \"Come Susan, walk with me for a while.\" He kept a hand wrapped around my waist and turned us toward a path.\n\n\"Of course, my Lord,\" I said already familiar with the same old conversation to be had. As we took our first steps along the path, a peace washed over me as being in Satan's presence dispelled the constant dull pain all souls endured in Hell. \"I already know what you're going to ask, as you ask every few months for the last three centuries,\" I said before He could make his proposal.\n\n\"As I've asked for five centuries now,\" Satan corrected. \"But still I do need to make the offer less I find myself in violation of the covenant between He and I. So, once again I ask. Susan, your soul has been cleansed and you are free to ascend to Paradise. Heaven welcomes you if you so choose.\" As He spoke, a bright light appeared in the sky overhead. A warmth enveloped me, not like the heat of the flames of Hell but the loving embrace of a parent holding a child tight whether just returning after a day of school or several years away - the eternal love that never falters. I wrapped my arms around my body and sunk to the ground as tears filled my eyes. Even after all these centuries, nothing compared to it.\n\nI savored the feeling for a minute more before stepping out of the light. \"Sorry, I refuse to go,\" I said. Slowly the light dimmed, and the warmth faded.\n\nSatan walked back next to me and took my hand, leading me back to the path. \"In this matter I must have some guidance: why do you and others of your race continue to refuse Heaven's invitation?\" Satan inquired as we continued along the path again.\n\nIt was true that once a soul was redeemed and truly repentant they would be invited into Heaven. It was also true that more and more humans were choosing to stay behind. \"Though we face the daily torments of Hell's climate, we're safe from the tortures of the demons as they cannot touch a good soul. And once you get used to that aspect, Hell really isn't so bad,\" I said, looking out over the world around us. Red-skinned demons, both male and female of all shapes and sizes tortured humans as far as the eye could see. Mixed in among them though were other humans like myself, cleansed souls that refused Heaven's invitation and chose instead to remain in Hell to help our sisters and brothers to redeem themselves too. \"Besides, helping our fellow man is its own reward and should be reason enough for any of us to stay,\" I added.\n\nSatan released my hand and turned to me. \"Good, I'm glad to hear that. And here I was thinking that it might have something to with a rebellion.\"\n\n\"Shit,\" I said before letting out a high-pitched whistle. Being naked at all times didn't allow us many places to conceal weapons on our person. That was one of the main reasons we stayed so close to the demons and assisted in the tortures - access to weapons. At my signal, dozens more let out a whistle, followed by hundreds more, then thousands more and so on until all of my agents were activated. They picked up black spikes or barbed whips or any other improvised weapon lying about and turned them on the demons, or freed the tortured souls and added them to our ranks.\n\nI took the opportunity of the chaos to reach behind my back and pull a black spike hidden within the weaves of my hair. \"Just following your example, my Lord. After all, better to rule in Hell,\" I said as I thrust the spike.\n\nThe spike struck true and I buried it into Satan's chest. Then He laughed. \"What did you hope to accomplish with your effort? Did you really believe a weapon forged in Hell could harm me? I'm no mere demon. I am the Lord of this realm!\" He exclaimed proudly as he spread his arms wide as to show the spike did him no harm.\n\nI sank down to my knees and lowered my head. \"Merely a distraction, my Lord,\" I said, grabbing a handful of Hell soil and tossing it at Satan's face. Instinctively, He raised his arms to shields his eyes from the mixture of dirt, ground glass, and shit.\n\nThen the golden light of dawn rising erupted from behind the fallen angel. We both looked, squinting to see past the light radiating from the exposed angel blade. Another man with manacles clamped around his wrists but chains severed stood in the light. He held the sword two-handed and raised above his head. \"Get thee behind me, Satan!\" the man shouted, bringing the sword down in a vertical chop.\n\nSensing the immediate danger of the angel blade and the unsheathing of multiple angelic weapons in the hands of damned souls, Satan retreated from our fight. With Satan gone, the naked man looked to me. \"Sorry, I missed. What do we do now?\" he asked as he sheathed the sword and the glow disappeared with it.\n\nI lifted myself off the ground. All around us and probably throughout the rest of Hell, damned souls armed with stolen demonic devices and smuggled angelic arms fought against the legions of Hell. Though we outnumbered them, the demons were better equipped and suited for fighting in these conditions. Not to mention Satan had escaped our assassination attempt, leaving the ruler of Hell somewhere on the battlefield for the enemy.\n\nI shook my head. \"We were found out sooner than I'd planned and forced to act before all of our pieces were in place. I think we'll need to retreat for now. Let as many as you can know that we're falling back to the wild lands on the outskirts of Hell. The places Satan does not fully control, where the monsters still roam. From there we shall stage our rebellion.\" I looked up to the sky, to that point in the darkness where I last saw the light of Heaven shine through. \"We can only hope that our sisters and brothers in Heaven have not been found out yet, too.\"",
"I blink once... I blink twice... and I blink again slowly as the demon looks at me up and down. The fiery gates of Hell were smaller than I thought. I was in line with thousands of others, until I was grabbed out of that line, and put into a shorter line.\n\n”Young... Early 20’s... black hair... green eyes... cause of death...”\n\n”Uh... hit by a car...”\n\n”Hm...” The demon writes something down, then grabs a walkie talkie. “Yeah, young man... accidental death sir, where you want him?”\n\nA weird Eldrich sound emits from the walkie talkie, and the demon nods. He presses a button, and the gates swing open. “Go to your right, and head up the stairs.”\n\n”Wha...” I can only stare at this humanoid creature, with goat legs holding up a fat body, wearing a ”Metallica” T-shirt.\n\n”Look kid, I got a lot of souls to let through, cause Midas can’t be bothered to do em all. Do I need to get the pitchfork?”\n\nI shake my head, and walk past the demon, and into Hell. I gasp at the hundreds of souls screaming in torment and pain, but some were watching the tormented, and casually wandering around. I spot some old friends, and some old enemies. Seemed like everyone was down here!\n\nI see the stairs the demon guard mentioned, and make my way from the pit before me, and I get up to a field with trees, bushes, flowers, and people lounging around. Some were getting massages, some were reading under the trees, and to my surprise, there were children running around, playing games. ‘Where am I? Is this Heaven or...’\n\nBefore I could think anymore, I feel a tap on my shoulder. I turn to see a creature that looked like a woman, but had brown fur covering her body. She wore a nice tan blouse with a matching skirt, and her blonde hair was up in a bun. “Hello, you must be the newest soul in Hell! Welcome! I’m Amy, your tour guide.”\n\n”Tour guide? Wait, wait wait... what is going on?”\n\nAmy smiles, her terrifying fangs shining in the light. “Well, we like to give a quick tour of Hell, and answer any questions the damned have about their new forever home. If you follow me, we can meet with the rest of the group and begin!”\n\nI shrug and follow Amy, surprised to see a large group of people on a dragon like creature, and Amy gets at the front. She smiles and says, “Welcome new members, to your final destination! I know the afterlife can be difficult to grasp, especially for our Athiest friends... we have any today?”\n\nA good amount of hands shoot up and Amy smiles. “Wonderful! Let’s give them a round of applause! Now, before we begin our tour, please keep hands and feet on the Geryon at all times, and save all questions for the end!”\n\nI look at an old Indian woman next to me, who’s just as confused as I am. The beast lurches and takes off, as Amy talks about each Layer of Hell.\n\nThere are nine levels, and each level has different methods of torture. The lower you go, the worst it gets. We see men and women lying in mud, blown by winds, boiling in tar, and blood, even people bitten by snakes and turning into animals! We see centaurs galloping by, and they wave at us, then shoot some poor soul in the boiling lava. Trees that were once people talked to us about who they were, and we even got to take pictures with them.\n\nBut the kicker was when we went to the final layer of Hell, where it was very cold and desolate. We didn’t see any demons, or people wandering around. “This area is off limits to souls like yourselves,” Amy explains. “Here are where the traitors are forever trapped, If you look ahead, you can see the body of Satan chewing on the three most traitorous men in history. Judas is in the middle, Cassius on the right, and Heinrich Himmler on the left.“ The body was huge! We all gasp, and stare, wondering if Satan could really see us. We stayed there for a few more minutes, then the Geryon kicks off, and flies off back to Limbo, where the tour started.\n\n”Now, do we have any questions?” Amy asks. Almost everyone‘s hands shoots up, and Amy takes her time, answering what she can.\n\nI finally raise my hand, and Amy calls on me. “I was just wondering; why are there so many people? I mean, no offense, but I thought Hell would be less full.”\n\nAmy laughs, and says, “Oh, we always get this question. The reason is actually really simple; God sometimes doesn’t let people into Heaven!”\n\nEveryone gawks at Amy, and the Indian woman next to me says, “Surely you can’t be serious!”\n\n”Oh, I am!” Amy says. “You know that there are thousands of divisions of the Abrahamic religions, correct? Well, not all agree with each other, so God only allows certain divisions at a time. So one day Mormons get to go to Heaven while Catholics go to Hell, the other day, Mormons are going to Hell while the Jewish people get to go to Heaven!”\n\n”So... it’s all about the day you die?” A fat man behind me shouts. “Oh yes! But don’t feel too bad! You could never have known!” Amy says.\n\nBefore anyone else can say anything else, Amy checks her watch. “Oh dear, I’m running behind. Well, thank you for taking this tour, and enjoy eternity in Hell! There‘s food and drinks in the Gluttony Level, and Greed jousting is today at 4, and Learn Latin with Bune at 8, and that’s in the Heresy level. I’ll be seeing you all later!”\n\nWe all get off, and people stand awkwardly, unsure what to do. I look around Limbo, feeling a bit better than when I first came down. Amy mentioned that some human souls get to become demons... maybe I’ll get to be one too...",
"Saint Peter frowned as he looked at my paperwork, mumbling under his breath.\n\nWhen I had seen the word \"Atheist\" stamped across my folder in big red letters, I thought I would be promptly sent to hell. But instead, Saint Peter seemed to be combing through my records, trying to find any loophole that would get me into heaven.\n\n\"I don't suppose you had a last second profession of belief and repentance of sins before death?\" Peter asked hopefully. \n\n\"No, it even says 'unrepentant' there.\" I informed him, pointing to a page.\n\n\"Yes, yes.\" Peter said, his voice edging on desperation. \"But, you know, if you were to say you had, whose to say differently? I would sign of on it and we could get you in.\" He gestured at the pearly gates, which now that I looked at them, showed sins of disrepair. Flecks of paint we pealing off the bars.\n\n\"But that would be a lie.\"\n\nPeter squeaked and dropped his pen. \"No one is saying anything about lying!\" He protested. \"Just, um, a correction of the records based on your more recent recollections.\"\n\n\"You seem pretty desperate to get me in.\"\n\n\"Yes, well, you see... Our numbers are going down.\" Peter admitted dejectedly. \n\n\"Shouldn't the number of people in heaven go up as more people die?\" There was a long pause.\n\n\"Not if those already here petition to be sent to hell.\"\n\nI looked at Peter incredulously, and he continued. \"Ever since the Air Conditioner was invented in 1902, Hell has become quite the popular destination. Terrible for the environment of course, global warming and all.\"\n\n\"But why would anyone want to leave heaven?\"\n\n\"Some up here have gotten tired of eternal adoration of God. We keep a pretty strict rotation, choirs singing his praises at all times and preachers praising His greatness at every corner. But as his popularity up here dropped, God took to Twitter to get more attention. Right now we're keeping his numbers of followers up with bot farms from Russia that like everything he posts.\"\n\nI shook my head in disbelief. \"How do people get out once they're in heaven?\"\n\n\"Well an atheist, you've probably read the Bible.\" I nodded and he went on. \"Many Christians are surprised to learn how pretty the Old Testement is. And Jesus did say he did not come to destroy any of the old laws. One only has to point to the Old Testement, and admit they didn't eat koshure, or that they wore garments of mixed material. All those clothes you folks make down on Earth, with 10% this and 20% that, it's hard not to violate that one.\" \n\n\"Final question,\" I said. \"If those in heaven spend their time flattering your narcissistic boss, what do those in Hell do?\"\n\n\"Whatever they want, really. Hell is just the separation from God. Everyone down there still has each other.\"\n\n\"Thanks for the invite,\" I gestured at the pearly gates. One side was slightly askew, and I noticed some cobwebs on the other. \"But I think I'll pass. How do I get down to Hell?\"\n\nPeter sighed resignedly, then gestured behind me. \"Go back down the corridor of light and take the first elevator on your left. Their reception desk is on level H1.\""
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[WP] Heaven is not what you expected. “God” is actually a council of omnipotent chickens. And you are now on trial for your breakfast habits.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The clucking began slowly. One at a time. A few clucks here and a few clucks there. Why do I understand them? How did I get here? \nThe weight room... I thought I'd be fine without a spotter. Of all the days for my bro to skip leg day. It had to be the day I was shooting for a new personal record. I even waited a couple hours after my protein shake to work out. I didn't want much good on my stomach incase I needed to belt up for my deadlift. \nI must have blacked out. Am I not dead? The clucking of these pre-tenders are sounding more and more ominous. Eggs. I can't believe it. I've eaten three eggs every morning for as long as I can remember. I needed the gains. It's not my fault that eggs are the perfect breakfast food. \n\"Listen guys. At least I'm not a chicken and waffles kind of guy.\" I pleaded. The clucks grew louder from each of them. I've offended them. A different angle then. \"I would like to thank you. I've had ambitious work out goals for as long as I can remember and I owe it all to the eggs that have been provided for me to get these sick gains.\" \nA single cluck. But I understood clearly. I'm not dead yet. Waking up with clear instructions on the gym floor surrounded by women in yoga pants and sports bras. \nThe blonde with a full face of make up yells \"Get a kale smoothie stat!\" I sat up as she smiled handing me a tall glass full of chilled green liquid. \"Sip it slowly. These greens will have you better in no time.\" \nSipping slowly on what tasted of grass and regret I realised she must drink one of these all the time. It's digusting. \n\"Whats in this?\" I ask? \n\"Cluck cluck cluck.\" She replies. And suddenly it's clear to me. This isn't heaven, I'm not awake. \n\"Welcome to your own clucking version of hell. You will now spend and eternity drinking kale smoothies, eating arugula and taking injections of spinach. Cluck. Cluck. You're a vegan now my friend. Drink up, you have vinyasa in ten minutes.\""
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[WP] You're a kind wish granter whose only purpose in existence is to make good people's dreams come true, but for some reason nobody trusts you. They always assume there's some sort of catch and try to outsmart you. You find it really annoying, and wish they would just take you at face value.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
" Ever since I was freed about a millennia ago, I was free from being bound to the small, golden oil lamp which finally turned to dust centuries after the time it should have without proper maintaining. I was free! I was ecstatic. I teleported everywhere in the world, now not having ties to an inside of a lamp or general area of someone I would give my three wishes too, no questions. I disguised as different people, spoke different languages, and faked my death in usually comical ways. The time when I kept thwarting the witch hunter’s attempts to kill me were hilarious. \n \n It had been years since I granted a wish. This little kid, quite young, was looking up to the stars. He was a young kid in America, covered in soot and crying. He was a mining boy. He hated every moment of it. He cried, and looked at the wishing well nearby. He walked up, and threw the one coin he had inside. I didn’t know what he wanted, so I quietly whispered in his ear “oh yeah, I need to state my wish out loud.” I spoke it in a manner which he would likely think it was himself thinking. \n \n “I wish momma and papa had the money to raise me, Louie, and Susie.” The young boy said. It broke my heart even more. I wish I could help him. I wish I still had the ability to say “”Your wish is my command!” and then *snap!* fixed.” \n \n “Who’s there?” The young boy asked. I just realized I actually, physically snapped my finger. I needed to come up with a story, and fast. But, he was a child. So he would probably believe a genie story. I revealed myself to him, in all my “glory”. And told him “I am a genie, and your wish is my command!” with as much passion as I ever had. After I *snapped* my finger once again, more for style this time, the stars sparkled in the sky, as I disappeared. He ran back home, hoping the wish came true. He was disappointed to find that his family wasn’t stinking rich the moment he got back home. \n \n The next day, his father was given a promotion at the factory. He would be managing another building closer to his home, with less hours, less manual labour, and more pay. The day after that, the boy’s hard hat and pick were returned to the mine company. Louie, Susie, the original child, and the parents were happy. \n \n Things were good for a while, I granted wishes here, I granted wishes there. People were given happy lives, the lives they wanted. Then, something shifted. They saw me then as a businessman or a loan shark, who wanted something out of the wish myself. Then, they saw me as a monkey’s paw like genie, who would give wishes to people with twists, ultimately making their lives easier. \n \n Now, the only guys who accept my wishes is the occasional passerby, and Dan at the bar, who always asks for a beer, much to the dismay of Moe, the bartender."
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[WP] The god of gambling has never won a single bet.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The Evil Gods may seem more helpful, but what they give comes at a terrible cost. \nThat's the wisdom that my people always shared, anyway. Our culture has a great pantheon of gods on all sides of the morality spectrum that we pray to and receive answers from. We believe that when we die we humble ourselves before the gods, and we are accepted into the realm of the god for whom we demonstrated the most faith in our lifetimes. \nBut no one can help but notice that the evil gods tend to answer their prayers far more often than the good ones. If you're low on cash, you're far more likely to find your way out of it if you risk a prayer to Avarin, God of Greed and Currency, than if you do the smart thing and pray to Felicitas, Goddess of Prosperity and Good Fortune. No one's really sure why. Some religious scholars have suggested that exploiting souls may give gods more power than caring for them, and so to not be dwarfed in strength by the evil ones the good gods choose to use their power more conservatively. Others think the evil gods may not be gods at all, but lesser malevolent entities that meddle on earth just to steal souls away from the gods. There's even a heretical sect that questions if the good gods exist at all; maybe gods are just generally bastards. Whatever the case, the evil gods are more prone to answer, and so you will often hear of even the most devoted followers of one god or another muttering a quick prayer to the likes of Avarin or Adrestia, Goddess of Revenge when they needed a fix desperately. But always as a last resort. You never relied on them. \n\nBecause faith in an Evil God always tended to come back to haunt you as the god reaped its due. I've seen many an out-and-proud follower of Avarin crumple like a house of cards when one or two turns of fate wiped out their finances, heard old and well told stories of the power of Adrestia rebounding upon its users. They left people dead, destitute or otherwise completely devoid of the faith they could once offer, squeezed every last ounce of it dry. And with no faith left, you get left to the very god who took all you had. So you didn't risk it unless you were desperate. \nBut I was desperate. The debts I'd taken kept piling up, and my daughter was no longer getting any better. I needed money, fast. Before the debtors came back and realized I wasn't going to be able to pay. But I wasn't foolish enough to risk a prayer to Avarin, not after what I'd seen. Besides, I thought I'd found a workaround. \n\nDehaus. \n\nDehaus was the Evil God of Gambling. People who devoted themselves to him were said to never lose a wager, to clean out gambling houses wherever they went and rob the casinos blind. Admitted followers carried a charm shaped like Dehaus's symbol wherever they went, a charm they claimed was given to them by the god himself. Not given, actually; every follower interviewed claimed they won it from Dehaus in a gambling game of their choice, and it was the secret to their supernatural luck. Funnily enough, there was no one alive who would admit to *losing* the gambling game against Dehaus, but I always supposed people that destitute likely wouldn't want to admit they ever prayed that much to an evil god in the first place. \n\nBut there was also no stories of winners being double-crossed by Dehaus. He didn't leave people destitute and hollow like Avarin, nor destroy them in someone else's fire like Adrestia. No, followers of Dehaus seemed to be... fine. The only stories I ever heard of the wrath of Dehaus seemed to come from gambling establishments that refused to let his followers play there after seeing Dehaus's Charm. I didn't even understand what made him an evil god after the research I'd done. Did our religious scholars just have a prejudice against gambling? Did they just assume he must be evil, since he was so active? Were they paid off by the casino industry, trying to reduce the number of people following Dehaus so they'd be forced to let them gamble less often and lose less money? Calling on him didn't seem to have a downside, and even the most malicious evil deities could be called on once or twice. Right? All I needed to do was call on Dehaus, get one of his charms, win a fortune at a gambling den, and use that money to pay back the debtors and take care of my daughter! With a shaking hand - no matter what my research said, he was still called an Evil deity after all - I did what I had heard would call him forth; I carved his symbol into the wood an effigy of him taken from a casino and I prayed.\n \nNo sooner had I looked up from my prayer than I realized I didn’t seem to be in my home anymore. Or maybe I was - it was kind of hard to tell. A thick glowing mist had seeped into my surroundings, and enveloped me. I put my hand out, trying to get my bearings when I could hardly see five feet in front of me, but nothing was there. There was nothing but me and the bright mist floating by. I had a feeling I wasn’t in my home anymore and my breath caught in my chest. Was this… had he really answered? The air was thick with the tingling electricity of anticipation, like that moment between when the die is cast and when it lands with victory or defeat. It was like that energy was imbibed in the very mist itself. Or was that just my fear and excitement at truly meeting a god? \n\n“Felly let you down, hmm?” \n\nI jumped, startled by the sudden voice behind me that was clear as a bell in this otherwise quiet place. Turning around, I was suddenly standing face to face with… a man. An impossibly handsome man with a wave in his hair and a twinkle in his eye, a man larger than most by a good three feet, but a man nonetheless. I was a little surprised at the mundanity. “Um… Felly?” I asked hesitantly not sure what he was talking about.\n“Felly! Fellykins! Felicitas!” The man’s voice boomed as he threw his hands out wildly in emphasis. “Goddess of Prosperity and Good Fortune! You *did* try her first, didn’t you? Now now, don’t be shy, you can admit it, my followers usually do.” He grinned at me knowingly. “So come on; how long were you trying her before you decided to get someone who’ll listen, hm?”\nI faltered. I understood what he meant now, but I couldn’t believe how candidly he said it. I was pretty sure it was a little bit blasphemous to call the great Goddess Felicitas ‘Fellykins’. “She...she’s my patron deity.” I admitted. Maybe it was different for gods? \n“Oh, so you’ve been relying on her *your whole life.*” He said, sounding surprised. He suddenly drew in close. “You want to see her when you die? Not a bad choice, you know.” \nI drew back away from him. “Um, I’m sorry… are you… Dehaus?” \n“The one and only.” He tapped his head and pointed at me with a grin. \nI was starting to get my bearings back, and I quickly sank into a bow before he could get offended. “I am so sorry sir! You just surprised me. I expected you to look different.” \n“Oh I do. But we gods, we like to take forms that’re less terrifying to little people like you.” He winked at me. “Do you like this one?” I tried to come up with a way to answer that bizarre question without offending him, but he breezed right along without giving me a chance. “Eh, doesn’t matter. I believe we have business to discuss!” He stuck a finger in the air, then leaned back and sat onto a chair I was certain wasn’t there two seconds ago.”You want to be a better gambler.” \n“Yes sir” \n“Well! I’m sure you’ve done your research. You know the drill. Don’t be all stuffy on me, stand up, stand up.” He waved me to my feet. “Do you think you can win a bet against me?” \nI have to admit, hearing the complete confidence in his voice was extremely intimidating. I almost backed out. But there were people out there with the charms, weren’t there? I knew they existed. He was beatable. I decided to say the most confident sounding thing I could muster that didn’t feel like a blatant lie. “I have to.” \n“Good answer.” Dehaus held his hands out and a poker table nicer than any casino appeared underneath them. “So! What do you want to play?” \nI considered that for a second. My first instinct was to pick a game I was good at, but that required a game that you...could be good at. Something that was more skill than luck. But did I really think I was a better gambler than the god of gambling himself? Did I think I could bluff him, or outplay him? That was absurd, not to mention arrogant. The more I watched his face, the more certain I was that was the wrong move. “Roulette.” I declared. The god’s eyes widened. He clearly hadn’t been expecting that. \n“You… want to play roulette? You can’t control roulette.” He pointed out. \n“I’m not conceited enough to think I can outplay the God of Gambling.” I said. “But if there wasn’t a chance of me winning you wouldn’t bother with the game. So I want to rely on that chance and let the chips fall where they may.” \n“You’ve thought this through.” He complimented. He waved his hand again, and a roulette wheel appeared in front of him. “I’m not having any of that namby-pamby black-or-red nonsense though. High stakes only.” \n“Fine.” \n“So, before we begin.” He waggled his eyebrows at me mischievously. “What’s your wager?” \n“Sorry?” \n“Well, I know what you’re here *for*. But you’ve got to make it worth my while. What do I get if I win?” He asked. \nI thought about that for a moment. “The rest of my life.” I wagered. “If I lose this my daughter dies. I see no point in going on after that.” \nDehaus nodded slowly. “Then it’s a wager. Tell me where the ball is going to land, mortal.” - cont -",
"There are no clerics of Fen. Everyone knows this. His name is invoked only by gold-greedy gamblers, the scamps and lowlifes who need just *one* more card to complete their winning hand, or just *one* more spin of the caraca wheel to capitalize on their investment in slot 23. Just *one* more stroke of luck, and they'd be able to eat that night. And so these hungry souls pray to Fen, the God of Gambling, to set them up right.\n\nThere are no temples to Fen. Everyone knows this, too. There are only gambling halls gracing every city's dingiest neighborhoods, most of which were fronts for Thieves' Guilds. Sometimes adventurers will wander in, hunting down a suspect or a contact, and all but the stuffiest paladins who enter will turn and bow to the statue of Fen beside the door; he is always carved in wood, and always grinning.\n\nThere are many myths about Fen. Most rumors revolve around him being an ascended rogue, who beat the Goddess of Harvest and Fortune at her own game, claiming divinity as his prize. Religious scholars and clerics regularly seek to debunk this origin story, but their words go unheeded. Of course Fen would win at gambling, the people reply. He was the luckiest and trickiest man alive, and now he's the go-to god for a healthy wager!\n\nThese are things that everyone knows. And everyone is wrong.\n\n--\n\nThe renowned halfling rogue named Fen had just passed away, crushed by a boulder trap in the dungeon he was looting. Instantly he found himself standing before the Council of the Gods, stunned silent by their majesty. As they surveyed him warily, Elena the Goddess of Harvest and Fortune stepped forward.\n\n\"Welcome, Fen. Your life-spark glowed so brightly upon your death that you have been selected for special consideration by the Council. We will evaluate your life's deeds, and judge if you are worthy to ascend to godhood.\"\n\n\"What? I m-mean, yeah, sure! What do I need to do?\" Fen's perpetual smile was at this moment laced with a hint of panic.\n\n\"You needn't do anything,\" Dimitri the God of Suffering interjected, stepping forward. \"We shall examine your life and determine the outcome. Although,\" Dimitri muttered to those closest to him, \"we do have a bit of an unbalanced court at the moment, with more evil gods than good...\"\n\nFen did his best not to indicate he had heard, instead interjecting \"Now wait a minute. Isn't there anything I can do to prove I've got the right stuff? What domain do you still need covered? I'm pretty sneaky, perhaps I could be a God of Stealth?\"\n\nThe Council murmured among themselves. A mortal seeking to prove himself divine was unheard of. Who could best the gods in anything? After a moment or two, the Godfather stepped forward, lightning arcing from each footstep, and both the Council and Fen fell silent.\n\n\"We shall indulge your offer of a challenge, Fennigan Malder,\" thundered the Godfather's voice. \"You shall challenge...\" He stroked his beard and eyed his children. \"You shall challenge Elena. To a game of wagers. If you win, you shall be admitted as Fen, the God of Gambling. But if you lose...\" the Godfather turned to Dimitri, \"...your soul shall be forfeited to Dimitri for punishment.\n\nDimitri's sallow face broke into a terrifying, wide grin. \"As you command, Godfather.\"\n\nFen gulped, but maintained a brave face. \"Alright, I accept. M'lady, if you will escort me to the gambling table?\" Elena nodded, and the golden sparks of good fortune that danced from her gown put a pit in Fen's stomach. How could he outbid or outbluff or out-luck the Goddess of Fortune?\n\nThey sat at the ethereal table, and the rest of the Council dispersed. Elena shuffled a set of average-looking playing cards, and dealt a hand to each player. As Fen studied his cards and the Goddess' face, he noticed she seemed... distracted.\n\n\"M'lady? Is everything alright?\" Elena looked up with a start, then answered \"Oh, it's nothing. There's just so many prayer requests today. It is not easy, being one of the few remaining Good gods on the Council.\"\n\n\"Oh.\" Fen murmured. And then he had a plan.\n\n\"M'lady... is it true that this little wager is distracting you from your duties? Are poor, hungry souls turning to you for a bountiful harvest? Are you missing out on opportunities to help unfortunate mortals with a blessing of good fortune?\"\n\nElena was silent for a moment. \"I am... doing the best I can,\" she said, and Fen heard the weariness and resignation in her voice.\n\n\"Then I fold,\" he responded nonchalantly, and flipped his cards face-up. \"Just a two of pinnacles, it likely wouldn't have won, anyway. Thank you for the game, though, and good luck helping the poor souls.\" He stood to leave the table, trying to smile away the cold sweat on his brow at the thought of his upcoming \"meeting\" with Dimitri.\n\n\"Wait.\" The disbelief in her voice made Fen stop in his tracks. \"Did you just... forfeit your chance at divinity?\"\n\n\"I suppose so,\" Fen responded with a shrug.\n\n\"For the sake of those still alive.\"\n\n\"Something like that.\"\n\n\"And you'd be willing to undergo torture instead of rule with the Council, just to care for the poor...?\"\n\nFen tried not to blush, and failed. \"That's one way of putting it, I guess.\"\n\n\"Well then.\" Elena's voice took on a businesslike tone, and she stood from the table. \"Remain here.\" She walked away, disappearing into the mist that surrounds the heavenly plane.\n\nFen stood at the table obediently, kicking up little eddies of mist and trying to make them curl into fun shapes. After a moment, he walked over to the Goddess' hand of cards and took a peek: She had had a Full Larder, the highest hand in the game. *Of course she had it,* Fen thought to himself. *That deal was too good. There's no way they'd have let me try for godhood if they thought I could actually win.*\n\nAfter a while, Fen felt his soul being tugged back towards the Council, and he complied. Standing before the gods he'd prayed to throughout his life, knowing he may never get to pray to them again, Fen's smile grew wan, and almost faded from view.\n\nThe Godfather stepped forward, and his voice boomed. \"Fennigan Malder, you have lost your wager against Elena. You will be subject to punishment.\" Dimitri grinned viciously. \"You will be punished...\n\n\"...with an eternity of losing bets.\"\n\nThis... didn't make any sense to Fen. \"What?\" he asked, as politely as he could through the confusion.\n\n\"You will become Fen, the God of Gambling--and to avoid your domain overlapping with Elena, the Goddess of Fortune, you and your followers will be forever unable to win at any bet, gamble, or wager.\"\n\n\"What??\" Fen tried to wrap his mind around the Godfather's decision. He knew there'd been clerical rumors that his godly mind was slipping over the millennia, but...\n\n\"Elena has described your gambling style to me. She told me of your game, and of your loss, and of your motives. It seems to me that you will be either a Good god, or an incompetent Evil one. And so, to maintain the balance of the mortal realm...\"\n\nThe Godfather raised his scepter, and the air grew thick with lightning. Fen felt his soul tingle violently, as if a current of energy were coursing through his very essence. The thunder in the heavens grew to an earsplitting din, Fen tried to shield his eyes from the blinding light of the lightning strikes, and then--\n\n\"I deify you: Fen, the God of Gambling. Welcome to the Council.\"\n\nBlinking away the lightning, Fen stood and admired his new god-bod. He was much more slender than he had been at his death, and he couldn't stop smiling. Plus, he felt a weight in his gut, like the pit in your stomach when you realize you're stuck in a streak of bad luck at the caraca wheel. *Maybe that's my divine attribute,* Fen mused, *eternally unlucky. Well, there are worse things, I suppose. Now how do I use this to help others...*\n\n--\n\nFast-forward to today. The gambling houses all bear names referring to Fen's exploits while he roamed the earth as a mortal. The clerics of Fen disguise themselves as dealers and bartenders and gambling patrons: all possess their god's blessings of a keen eye for a soul in trouble and an inability to win at wagering, and they conceal themselves within the gambling houses so that they can bolster the luck of the needy who come there to try to strike it rich. And every now and again, some lucky patron who invokes Fen's name will find they're dealt the best hand in the game: a Fen's Larder."
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[WP] The voice in your head always spoke of ways the world would end. Every dream you had was a different doomsday. Today, the voice didn't say anything, but a single word.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"Damnit!\"\n\nThe mysterious voice sounded distressed. That was very unusual for it. All the other times, it spoke low and slowly about some horrifying tales. Now and then it would go as far as mimicking the screams and sounds so realistically that you could practically see the graphic scenes unfold in front of your eyes. You knew of thousands of ways how the world would or could end. \n\nAt first it was concerning, you even contemplated seeing a doctor, maybe take some medication to make it go away. But soon enough, a better idea grew in your head. You had begun to write the stories down after your big success at the *Tell a Tale of Horror* challenge last Halloween. People had started to shake, one guy even screamed when his own shadow had moved. You would be invited back every year without a doubt.\n\nOnly 3 years later, you were the most successful writer in the horror genre and you had still many stories ready to be published. As time passed, the voice had changed its tone, tried new ways to warn you but all you ever did was put all this on paper. And the people loved it, they loved how it got darker, sadder and more challenging every time. But this time, even the voice couldn't handle it anymore.\n\n\"I quit, this guy is impossible to haunt. HR will hear about that. \"\n\n You had always wondered why nothing ever spooked you. It did bother you in your teens, getting the creepy label real quick from the unforgiving teenagers at your school. But you had managed to turn it into the best thing that ever happened to you. Something shifted in the back of your head and made a motion resembling to someone turning around to look at you over your shoulder. At least that's how it felt to you. With years of practice, you could be oddly specific with these weird feelings that popped in the back of your mind frim time to time.\n\n\"You made my life hell and I'm dead for crying out loud! I hope your proud of yourself.\"\n\nAnd just like that , it was gone. You knew you should have felt relieved but a little voice- your own this time, told you the void left behind would never be filled ever again. Now you were truly all alone."
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[WP] The Predictor is always right. It's code has told every person on the planet their best role in society. You are completely average. No role suits you more or less than any other. You are its paradox.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Paradox of the Predictor\n\n“By denying scientific principles, one may maintain any paradox.” – Galileo Galilei\n\nHow would you like it if you were told at a very young age the best role for you was? How would you like it if you were told you would amount to nothing? Or If you’d have great success only after you died? In my society every town has what is called the Predictor. It looks like an alter that you place your hands on an orb and after like five minutes or so it will print out your entire life will amount to. It is always right and has yet to be proven wrong. Even if you burn the results it can be pulled up and show that was predicted to happen. Most people adhere to their result like a holy manual on how to achieve happiness. Most people call the results from the Predictor “the Reverberations”. I for one was never given a chance. My name is Cat E. Schrodinger and according to the Predictor I shouldn’t exist.\n\nAccording to my parent’s Reverberations we were all to die in a fiery car crash on our way home from the hospital after having me. Theirs’ were only partly correct. They died but I somehow managed to live. When brought back to the hospital they were confused and unsure what to do with me, but they treated me well. They turned me over to childcare services and thought nothing of it. The hospital called me Cat for I sounded like a cat when I cried for food. The res of my name came from my parents. E for Erwin my mother’s name, Schrodinger my father’s last name. I didn’t learn about irony until I was older but trust me it isn’t lost on me for my name. when I turned five the childcare services attempted to get me to the local Predictor for my Reverberations. When I got there and waited my turn to place my hands on it one of the people ahead of me got the prediction that this entire shrine of the Predictor would blow up and die. Strangely enough everyone but me died in that explosion. Childcare tried a few more times with other weird events making it impossible for me to get my Reverberations. Now that I’m turning 18, I’m attempting to try to get my Reverberations once more. My friends Russell, Stan, and Dora have all come with me to see my results. I told them all to avoid it with all my bad luck, but they all showed me in theirs that they were meant to be there that day. I placed my hands upon the orb and await my Reverberations. I and may of the other people waiting there heard it and was shocked for they did not know how to handle this. Over a loudspeaker a voice says “Error: no role suits you. You are an average human girl with average skills and yet no role suits you. According to us you are dead and died 18 years ago. The only role you seem to fit is Paradox. Please seek audience with Prime Predictor for further instructions.” I was in shock; my friends were in shock. No one had ever seen the Prime Predictor in our recorded history since the early times. I’ve also have never heard anyone called a paradox just for living. I had no clue what I had just gotten myself into."
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[WP] PEW PEW BULLET BANG EXPLOSION
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"704, Daisy Bell and 6500 sat on the carpeted floor together looking at Tandy and listening intently. She seemed pretty excited. \n\n\"and then the mayor gives me the key to the city and I fly away superhero style! Like fwoosh!\"\n\nThe three girls watched their sister point her metal fists to the ceiling and start to rock back and forth with a squeaking sound. Six-Five Hundred scooted closer to Seven-Oh-Four, Daisy Bell feigned a ladylike yawn and they all relaxed their postures since the story was over. \n\n\"So did you like my super cool teenage heroine story that I did guys?\"\n\nHigh above them behind a panel of mirrored glass a group of scientists watched the four robots talking to each other with interest. \n\n\"I thought the villain was too scary. Not that I was scared but... \"\n\nDaisy Bell seemed a little nervous and giggled.\n\n\"Needs more punching!\" said Six-Five-Hundred\n\n\"Why are you all so silly?\"\n\nThe three mechanical sisters looked at 704. She knew she would hurt Tandy's feelings by saying that but she had done it anyway.\n\n\"It's called passing the time you square!\"\n\nTandy stood up and there was a chorus of electric servomotors as the other three sisters stood up as well. They were all glaring at Seven. They walked together to the opposite side of the room and left Seven standing there flummoxed and unsure of what to do next.\n\nUp in the control room a scientist remarked to himself.\n\n\"Interesting aren't they? Heh heh!\"\n\nIt was true. These robots were almost completely human right down to the petty behaviour and enjoying fictional stories. \n\nBut there was still a lot of work to be done. As the discussion among his peers intensified he was sure that he looked forward to it."
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[WP] You purchase a rice cooker online. However it was a lot more than just a rice cooker...
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
" \\[Unique Purchase\\]\n\n\"It's called a *rice* cooker,\" Larry said. Despite his reminder, Dee nodded and dropped a hunk of raw chicken into the pot. It was the last in a short list of ingredients; none of which were rice.\n\n\"That's what it's called,\" Dee said. \"But that's not what it is.\" Larry narrowed his eyes at the appliance on the table between them. It seemed to be a standard 6-cup rice cooker. It was white with an electronic control panel on the front, and a glass lid. He watched Dee push the lever down; then, a red indicator light came on.\n\n\"Looks like one,\" he shrugged.\n\n\"Really?\" Dee asked with a large grin. It took Larry a second to realize she was holding the unplugged power cord in her hand. He focused on the rice cooker again and noticed that the red light was still on. He grew curious and peeked in through the glass lid but he only saw thick white steam.\n\n\"...What's going on?\" Larry asked. He briefly wondered if it was a prank. Although, in their short friendship of three years, Dee never showed any signs of being a practical joker. It wasn't that she did not have a sense of humor, but as a rule she tended to be reserved. Dee shrugged.\n\n\"I don't know exactly,\" she said. She sat down at the small dining table across from Larry. \"When I first got it, I was organizing my pantry and I accidentally dropped some ingredients into it. Nothing major. Some pasta, a head of garlic and a can of tomato sauce. Since I was focusing on something else, I put the lid on and planned to clean it up when I was done.\"\n\n\"And then?\" Larry asked.\n\n\"And then, after a few minutes, I heard a click,\" she said.\n\n\"Click?\" Larry asked.\n\n\\*CLICK\\* the lever on the rice cooker popped up; the red light turned green.\n\n\"That click,\" Dee said. She reached over and lifted the lid; it released billows of steam. The smell instantly hit Larry's nose. It was the most delicious chicken soup he'd ever smelled. He looked in and noticed a rich golden broth simmering with chunks of chicken and vegetables. \"Except, when I opened it the first time it was full of fresh cooked spaghetti.\" Dee grabbed the ladle and began serving a bowl for Larry.\n\n\"I experimented with it after that; it's like a magic crockpot,\" Dee giggled. \"I can throw in pretty much anything and it'll cook the ingredients into a meal. And, it's been saving me money; I only need a small amount of an ingredient,\" Dee stirred the pot and nodded at it to get Larry's attention. \"There's way more chicken in here than I added.\"\n\n\"Oh my god! Where did you get it!?\" Larry asked. He hopped out of his chair and bent forward to study the rice cooker. His eyes roamed over the front, then he ran around the other side to check the fine print.\n\n\"I ordered it online from Woolie's; it's not like they're making magic items. I'm sure it's a fluke that I got this,\" Dee said. Larry was nodding in agreement while trying to read the fine print.\n\n\"I need to see the bottom,\" he said.\n\n\"You know something?\" Dee asked. She stood from her own seat, then grabbed a different pot. She pulled the inner chamber out of the rice cooker and emptied it into the pot. While she did that, Larry flipped the base over.\n\n\"YES!\" he shouted loud enough to startle Dee slightly. \"You are SO lucky.\" \n\n\"Well, I kind of already knew that,\" Dee giggled. \"This is obviously magical.\" Larry shook his head.\n\n\"It's NOT magical...,\" he grinned. He walked around to her side of the table and pointed at something on the bottom of the cooker. It was a 36 in small, golden numbers. \"...it's Unique.\"\n\n \n\n\\*\\*\\*\n\nThank you for reading! I’m responding to prompts every day. This is story #1028 in a row. (Story #298 in year three.) You can find all my stories collected on my subreddit ([r/hugoverse](https://www.reddit.com/r/hugoverse/)) or my blog.",
"\"Hello, yes, Chloe listen I told you I'm purchasing a rice cooker the other day, right? So it got delivered today. It feels like it's worth more than what I paid for.\"\n\n\"-Wait a sec, Mary. -Robert, what are doing down there? The lights are acting weird-\" Chloe called out to her husband in the basement. \"Yeah, tell me, which one?\"\n\n\"The one that I sent a snapshot of. What do you mean which one?\"\n\n\"You sent 20 images that day, Mary.\"\n\n\"It's all the the same product, did you even see my texts?\"\n\n\"Okay, tell me what happened, it's not working?\"\n\n\"I just told you, it works just fine it looks premium is what I'm telling you, like I've never seen a rice cooker like this one.\"\n\n\"What's wrong with that?\"\n\n\"Hey, wait a minute. Does rice cookers make a faint humming noise?\"\n\n\"No, what are you talking about?\"\n\n\"I just- it stopped.\"\n\nDoorbell rings.\n\n\"I'll be right back, someone's at the door.\"\n\nChloe opened the door, \"Who is it?\" she asked.\n\n\"Good afternoon ma'am, We are from WebMart. The rice cooker you've ordered is a faulty one, there was an unexpected issue in checking at the warehouse. We are terribly sorry if we've caused you an inconvenience.\"\n\n\"I was just checking in on it, it looks fine but it makes a weird noise.\"\n\n\"Yes, that is the root of the problem. We are here to take it back, ma'am, if you'd allow us.\" the delivery man called on another who stood next to the vehicle, \"We have also brought a replacement for your rice cooker.\"\n\nThe second one brought forth a package. \"This is essentially the same product you've ordered\", said the delivery man.\n\n\"Wait, wait when did they start sending people replacement products? Don't people have to apply for it online?\"\n\n\"That's a good question, ma'am. This is a new procedure, to satisfy customers before they can feel dissatisfied with a product. It's in beta, forgive me if I've offended you in any way.\"\n\n\"No, this is nice, actually. Wait I'll pack it up before I hand it over to you\", Chloe went in to get the rice cooker.\n\nThe delivery men gave Chloe a new cooker and got the faulty one back. Chloe went to pick her phone up.\n\n\"Hey, are you there?\"\n\n\"Yeah, where'd you go?\"\n\n\"The delivery people came to get it back, it seems like a faulty one.\"\n\n\"I told you, right? -Okay I'll call you later. I have to go check on Robert.\" Mary then disconnected the call.\n\n\"Hey, listen, something was off about those guys, they had coolers on the entire time, like those people from the government or something. -Mary?\"\n\nDoorbell rings.\n\n\"-Who is it at this hour?\"\n\nMary heard them knock one too many times on the door.\n\n\"I'm coming, God, these people\", Mary answered the door.\n\n\"Robert residence?, asked the delivery man. \" Yeah\", said Mary. \"Mr. Robert, the Physicist in Xaviers University?\"\n\n\"He's my husband. I told you the first time, what is it?\"\n\n\"We have a package for him, ma'am.\"\n\n\"What is this thing?\", Mary asked softly while looking at the box tilting her head to see what's written on it. \"I'm afraid you'll have to ask your husband, ma'am\", said the delivery man.\n\nRobert came up shortly.\n\n\"We hope you achieve what you're looking for, sir\" said the delivery man. Mary looked at both of them, perplexed.\n\n\"Thank you\", chuckled Robert as he carefully carried the package down to his basement where he was working on his secret project.\n\nr/FleetingScripts",
"\"No, Cheryl, it's the damndest thing! The box even says rice cooker right on it! Yes, it cooks rice just fine but...ah no I...oh just be quiet for a moment would you? I'm trying to tell you, its more than a rice cooker! It cooked my rice, vacuumed the floors, did the laundry, let out the dog, fed the fish, trimmed the hedges, and washed the dishes! No, I am not...are you even listening to me? Crazy? Bah! You wouldn't know crazy if it bit you on the nose!\"\n\n Slamming the phone down on the reciever was a little satisfying, but I was still angry. The nerve of that woman, calling me crazy! Asking if I forgot my meds, please, she's the one pushing 57! I'm turning 21 again this year, even if its for the 32nd time, I still have my wits about me, and I know what I saw! That..thing..did my whole errand list as soon as I started it, ripped it neatly off the to-do leaf pad on the fridge. \n\n I know I'm not the greatest with technology, could never get used to those cell phones or padlet things. And I did try to tell my daughter that too, but I gave in too easily when she tried to get me to shop using the internet. Boasting about that Arizona Prime nonsense. But she insisted on teaching me so I had to give in, if only to give her a reason to come over more often. \n\n Would you look at that, the damn thing just found my shopping list! Now I gotta call my daughter so she can help me return this Swiss Army Rice Cooker. I'll just cook my rice the traditional way, thank you very much!"
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[WP] As a doctor, you’ve never seen a patient with such an irregular heartbeat. Then you realize it's saying "help me" in morse code.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I was getting worried, I had never seen such a irregular heartbeat.The entire reason I became a doctor was so I could save/help lives.But then, I felt like a recognised something, I had to think someone’s life may be on the line.\n\nYou see, one of my irrational fears was always that someone may be trying to send me a secret message for help.I learned morse code, well only really enough to understand the words help me as they are the most used words for well help.\n\nIt must be a coincidence I thought. How could someone manipulate their heartbeat, let alone enough to send a message.Thats when she started shaking almost like her skin was hatching.",
"I leaned forward, my stethoscope pressed up against the patient’s side. As part of a routine physical, I needed to make sure that there weren’t any irregularities, but as the patient was a fit man in his middle 30’s, I doubted there would be many. As I slid the cold, metal drum into place on his bare chest, I gave the instruction:\n\n “Okay, Mr. Barbas, take a deep breath in for me, and hold it.” He complied, his lungs filling with air. I found the best place to listen. The first few beats echoed in my ears, normal and healthy. Then a pause. “That’s odd,” I thought to myself. Then another single beat, followed by another pause. I continued to listen, trying to make sure I hadn’t just missed it somehow. Another beat. Another, but this one was somehow longer, followed by two more, and then another pause. One short, two long, and another short. Another pause. My first thought was a benign murmur, as the patient had not complained of anything, but this was too irregular. \n\n Realizing that I was still in the middle of an examination, I quickly told him to release his breath. The patient exhaled, the air hissing as it pushed past his lips. Intrigued, I moved my stethoscope to the opposite side of his chest and began to listen. After a number of irregular beats, the pattern I recognized from earlier began again. This time, I continue to listen. A long pause, followed by two long beats, a pause, and one more short beat. After a long pause, it started over.\n\n Shakily, I told the patient “go ahead and release that breath”. He gave me a strange look, but then did as I asked. I took his heartbeat several more times at different points across his torso, with the same result every time. At this point, I had memorized the pattern. Short beats, long pauses, It sounded almost like... like Morse code. \n\n “Give me a second, I’ll be right back,” I said, stepping from the room. Closing the door behind me, I walked briskly to my office and locked the door behind me. I picked up a pen and dragged a scrap of paper in front of me, quickly scribbling down the pattern. On my computer, I looked up a morse code key. I filled in the pattern, one by one, writing the letters under each collection of dots and dashes. With each letter I wrote, my spirit sank, knowing what was to come.As I wrote down the last letter, a violent chill ran up and down my spine. In my messy scrawl before me, were the two words; *help me*. Immediately, I felt a presence behind me. I whipped around. There before me stood the patient, fully clothed. \n\n “Listen to me,” he said strongly. “Forget what you have heard, and seen, sign off on the physical and I’ll be on my way.” I hadn’t heard the door open, in fact, I could see that it was still locked. He couldn’t have gotten in without my key, which sat in my pocket.\n\n “What are you,” I whimpered hoarsely.\n\n “That is none of your concern. Now sign this paper!” He held out my clipboard, his physical on it. I turned to my to my desk, where the clipboard had been only a moment before, and looked back to him. I opened my mouth to scream, to call for help, but immediately felt a hand grasp firmly around my throat. My scream came out as a broken whisper. “That’s a shame,” he said, his voice sounding genuinely full of regret. “Somebody will miss you” All went black.\n\n I awoke, and immediately, the stench of death hit my nose. I bolted upright, hurriedly examining my environment. I was surrounded by walls of red flesh, pulsing with that familiar pattern. I could feel is beneath me, my back bare. I quickly realized that I was not alone. Across the room from me, a skeletal man hammered on the walls, drumming out in Morse code the pattern that had doomed me. \n\n Completely nude, I could see his ribs, recognize that one of them was slightly out of shape, likely an old injury. I could count his vertebrae, see his hips. His hair had been reduced to a number of stubborn clumps clinging to his scalp. Littering the floor were bones, many of them. I counted at least twelve skulls, and an assortment of other bones, all sinking into the flesh floor slowly. Without looking behind him, or even pausing his solemn rhythm, he voiced a greeting.\n\n “So you got the message, but you got caught anyways. That’s unfortunate.” \n\n “What is this place?” I asked tentatively, getting to my feet unsteadily.\n\n “Isn’t it obvious?” He asked. “The heart. He took us, devoured our souls, but he doesn’t eat us normally, no, we power him in a different way.\n\n “What is he?” I cried, despair filling my voice.\n\n “Whatever he is, he isn’t human.” He finally tuned his head, glancing to a pile of bones less submerged that the others. “The one before me said that it was some kind of monster, but he couldn’t remember what the one before him had called it. He’s trying to blend in.” He winced, lowering his hands. The pulsing in the wall returned to a normal heartbeat. “I’m done.” He picked a bone from off the floor, brushed it off, handed it to me, and promptly disintegrated. His bones fell to the floor, clattering against each other, and his skull landed with a wet thunk. \n\n Immediately, I felt a pressure on me, like my very soul was being eaten away. I glanced towards the bone that I had been handed and saw that scratched into it was the Morse code pattern. I stared at it, pondering upon the strange gift I had been given, and dropped it onto the floor. There *had* to be a way. I wandered towards the wall, prodding it, trying to find a way out. I clawed at it, trying to dig my way out, I used one of the discarded ribs as a knife, but it was useless. The flesh wall would yield back, flexing to a point, but nothing would pierce it. I collapsed to the floor and screamed, the hopelessness of it all flooding my senses. \n\n Then, I stood. I found the bone, which I recognized as a humerus, and examined the pattern. I stared at it, scanning over it again and again, every dot and line, and committed it to memory. Then, I discarded it. I wandered over to the wall, sizing it up again. There was nothing better I could do, so I raised my arms, and began.\n\nSorry for the format, I’m on mobile."
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[WP] "I'm home!" You shout, walking into your palace after a year of war on the Greek mainland. You are greeted by your sobbing wife, who holds a newborn boy in her hands. You understand instantly. You kiss your wife, coddle the child, and then pick your sword up. Zeus was going to die.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The journey to Olympus takes well over three months.Bidding my wife goodbye I set out alone wishing to myself that whatever sin I commit the punishment shall be given to me alone.Unfortunately that was not the case.\n\nI was met by my general,Ajax the Mighty,as I descended the hill of my palace.He had two spears and two shields.I recognized at once what his purpose was.\n\n\"Take me with you sire!\"he pleaded.\n\n\"Ajax,my friend.Words travels fast I see.Unfortunately I must do this alone.For it is I that has a quarrel with the gods.\"I explained.\n\n\"Do you remember my son?\"he asked.I did.He was a fine warrior and an excellent leader.We all had high hopes for him.Until that dark day he was struck down by Ares himself.\n\n\"Do not lead yourself to believe that you are the only one wronged by the gods,\"the general told me \"Now,as your strategist,I say that our chances of success would increase if there were two of us sire.\"\n\nTaking the extra shield and spear from him I smiled at his words and said \"I'm with you til the end old friend.\"\n\nThe night was cold but it was nothing we were not used to.The moon gave perfect light as we marched on.I had hoped our journey would go on undisturbed but such was not the case.We stumbled into a drunk crying and screaming unto the sky.\n\n\"Damn you Apollo!What high sin have I commited?!\"he shouted in what I could only describe as a cracked and broken voice.\n\n\"Ho there brother!\"Ajax called to him\"What troubles you?\"\n\n\"Smite me with your spear brother,for I cannot bear to live anymore!\"the drunk pleaded.\n\n\"I will do no such thing,\"the general answered\"Now then,will you not share our fire?\"\n\nRecognizing the signal,I started lighting a fire.Making camp wasn't such a bad idea after marching a whole evening.As I busied myself with the flint I had not noticed that Ajax has calmed down the man until after the blaze was bright.\n\n\"Tell us your tale,that we may understand what troubles you so.\"I told him.\n\n\"I hail from Athens and have lived there for all my life.My mother called me Damos.The people would enjoy the melodies of my ballads and the content of my stories.Until that fateful day.\"he said these last words with a fury contrasting the calm nostalgic tone of the first.\n\n\"A lone bard had entered the city boasting that he could best all the poets and storytellers of Athens.I challenged him was all I did.One story from each man and the people shall decide who won.He told a story praising the gods and their might and to be fair he was good with it.Unfortunately I was better.Regaling the masses with the struggle,the blood and the sweat of mankind I was declared winner.And that is when it happened.\n\nHe appeared before me in his godly form and struck me ever so hard upon my neck.As soon as I spit out the blood,he has vanished.My voice left me for a week and when it returned,it was this.I have nothing left to live for,no other way to make my bread,no solace other than drin for tell me,who would listen to a sore throated songbird?\"he sighed.\n\nUnderstanding his plight we also told him our stories.And as I expected he wanted to join us.So we let him.After all,three men have a better chance than two.\n\nThe next day we were fortunate enough to hitch a ride with two women on a cart.\n\n\"Where does your journey lead?\"I asked\"My fellows and I have been marching all morning and would be grateful if you could let us ride.\"\n\n\"We head for Olympus.As you do as well.\"the older of the two answered,gesturing for us to climb on.Looking closer she could have been near sixty and yet moved as if she was still twenty.In her thirties maybe?\n\n\"How did you know?\"I was curious.\n\n\"Ara knows many things.\"the younger of the two replied.The bow and quiver on her back indicated she was a huntress.This one,I was sure,was in her twenties.\n\n\"The stars have told me of this meeting,that I would meet a huntress,two warriors and a poet on my travels.They were all headed to exact vengeance on Olympus.And I was there to help them.\"the old woman said.\n\n\"Well then,I am Damos the poet,and I have-\"began the poet.He told them his story as he told us the day before.After finishing he gestured to both of us.Ajax and I did the same,telling the women our stories.\n\n\"I believe it is your turn Eutropia,\"said Ara.\n\n\"As you have just heard my name is Eutropia\"she began\"and my lover was taken from me.We grew up together on the same village.As my father taught me how to draw a bow, she was-\"\n\n\"Wait,your lover was a she?\"interrupted Damos\n\n\"There is nothing wrong with it\"she snapped\n\n\"I know.I've had a few strapping lads me self but still this is quite a bit to take in.\"explained the poet\n\n\"Continue\"said Ajax\"and let no one interrupt.\"\n\n\"Well as I was saying, I was brought up to be a hunter while she was brought up to be a weaver.She would have made a fine hunter for she caught my heart flawlessly without struggle.\"\n\n\"And I thought you were the poet\"I joked pointing to Damos.The others chuckled for a bit before Eutropia continued.\n\n\"Last winter,as I held her underneath the stars,Aphrodite appeared before us.She told us that my Euthalia was destined to be married to some nobleman.Before I could draw my bow,she took my lover and vanished.\n\nI searched and searched.When I finally found her I was devastated.She died of a broken heart they said.Letting my anger take hold I killed the noble and ran.Where you find me now.I have brought many deaths but my fury shall stop only when I bring that of one.I shall drive an arrow through Aphrodite if it's the last thing I do.\"she said with cold determination\nDetermination which spread through us all.\n\nBy the end of the week we were a close knit band of travelers attempting the impossible.But we were ready for the impossible,whatever it was.\n\nAs we traveled our numbers grew as word of our mission spread.Men and women of different creed,age and trades all gathered for the march upon Olympus.Some were wronged by the gods.Some were the very children of those gods.\n\nOn the second month,things became more interesting.Centaurs and satyrs,nymphs and harpies,all manner of creatures joined our ranks.A few had feuds with the gods of Olympus.The rest were wronged and demanded satisfaction.Somewhere along the way an eccentric man with a three headed dog joined up with us.\n\nThe gods of Olympus never a chance.\n\nNote:Thanks for reading.Unfortunately my writing is not yet refined so pardon me.",
"For some reason, I never thought that something like this could happen to me. I will never forget the look on my wife’s face. It happened months ago, but the fear and dread left behind by that so-called god never disappeared from her eyes. And the worst part was that she couldn’t even look at me. The sight of our resemblance was too much for her to take. I knew that no time should be wasted, Zeus must pay with his life. \n\nHowever, a mere mortal with a dull sword in his hands could never break into Olympus. I needed a real weapon, one that even the king of gods feared. I must find the place that no mortal or god could find in the last century. My boat was small and battered yet I travelled faster than the creatures of the depths. I guess the sea had not forgotten me after all. My speed, however, didn't matter, as the place I was looking for could not be found. It was the place that found you. The place, and its guardian.\n\nOnce I was on waters where no one could see me, I stood up in my boat and called for the guardian of the vault. My voice roared like the thunders of Zeus, and suddenly a storm formed over my head, blocking the last rays of sunshine smiling upon this world. Giant tides towered around me while the whole world shook as the great serpent emerged from the bottom of the sea. Its teeth were longer than the highest trees of the mainland, its eyes were full of hatred and bloodlust. A sight that could break even the bravest men in the army, yet I stood still, so it didn’t attack. It looked at me, waiting for his payment.\n\n“I have not forgotten my promise!” I said without raising my voice, yet my words penetrated the clamour of the storm. \n\n“Open the vault and these seas shall be yours!” The serpent nodded, with a smirk on its ugly face. After a century, the gate of the vault opened.\n\nI didn’t hesitate. After retrieving what was once mine, travelling in the realm of mortals became a child's play. I arrived in Olympus not more than five minutes after my confrontation with the serpent. Zeus always thought that he was untouchable, that he cannot be beaten or killed. But he never had to face me in actual combat. \n\nThe storm followed me as I approached Olympus. I was no longer the mere mortal I chose to become all those years ago. The skies were burning with thunder, and the sea was ready to fight alongside its god. So, with my trident in my hands, and my powers restored, I yelled: \n\n“I have come to take my revenge! Come and face me, brother!”",
"Even us of Rome have dignity to not force ourselves one good women, but not Zeus. I had heard the tales from the Greek slaves, a old man who would force himself upon the woman of their land to force them to bear him heirs of his bastard throne. I did not believe at the time, this would cost me. Halfway through a siege, an old man approached me and asked for the release of my best prize so far, a young girl, perfect as a cup bearer for my beloved wife, netra. I told him to leave, or I'll cut him down. He left with a thunderous storm approaching saying I'll regret angering him. The slave began to cry, she claimed to me and my son that he was a the god king, and he will have his vengeance. Later that week I got word from my wife that a man had forced himself into my home and disgraced my wife and daughters. The next day, my son died in battle, rammed in by a spear. Surprisingly the man stated that his heathen God ordered him to as punishment for not giving him my slave. \n\nIt took us a year after the death of my son to win, and in that time I captured a man of great power. He was a slave to a cruel master, so I offered to make him one of my personal guard and he would be freed, as expected he accepted this and swore fealty to me, I even granted him the right wed my wife's cup bearer. On the journey home on the seas, we found a stowaway, that man apologized for the inconvenience, but warned me of the bastard from his brother, so I ordered his throwing overboard and to the deep. Upon my return home, I found two infants being cared for by the servants and my wife crying, she told me what happened that night, the guards were almost completely killed by an old man who wielded the lightning as a spear, he then forced himself upon the maids, and my wife and daughter. I knew that she was no liar, so I went into the tow and discovered that the entire town was experiencing the same thing, so I requested 10,000 troops,but with the town my force was now 17,051. And we were declaring war on Zeus.",
"It wasn't just me that this happened to. Plenty of other men had the same thing happen to them. Men that fought a bloody war on the mainland only to return home to find their wives impregnated not by another man, but by a god, who took advantage of a mortal war to fulfill his lust for women. Who knows? It might not have been a mortal war, but a war started by Zeus so that he could prey on the innocent. I did not take a lot with me, just some basic provisions and the armor I kept from the war. I first started my journey in my small village. I had visited the bathhouses after I found out, they always seemed to calm me down. I was surprised to see the amount of men there, and I submerged myself into the warm water, I listened to what the other men were saying. I heard of daughters, siblings, and wives impregnated by a unknown man. The descriptions varied, but they all had some things in common: Muscular, tall, and tan with a flowing beard and hair. After listening to them for a while, I decided to stand and proclaim my idea.\n\n\"Gentlemen,\" I called out, standing tall and resolute. \"We have all been affected by this war, but never did we expect to return home to find our wives, mothers, sisters, daughters pregnant with a unknown man's child. But it was no man that did this. How could it have been? We were all off fighting a terrible war. So who else could it have been? The answer could only be a god. Now which god? Which god has had the reputation for doing things like this?\"\n\n\"Zeus!\" Called out one of the younger men sitting by me. I recognized him; he was my neighbor, a kind young man who had his sister impregnated.\n\n\"That is correct! Zeus has once again left his wife for his fantasies with mortal women. Now, what can we do? One man is not enough to stop a god, so I propose that we all band together to confront him. Yes, we are a small town, but we cannot be the only ones affected.\"\n\nThe men around me began to murmur. I heard a few agreeing with me, but a few were calling me a madman for trying to stop a god.\n\n\"So what do you say!? shall we go on a journey together? Or shall we sit in the shadows like cowards, watching our loved ones suffer!?\" I roared.\n\nThe men around me cheered, pumping their fists.\n\n\"Then let us meet tomorrow at sundown to begin a journey no man has ever embarked on!\"\n\n\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\\*\n\nWe met up at the edge of our village the next evening, dressed in full armor and carrying shields, swords, spears, and axes. What we were doing was foolish, but it was worth it. For so long, the women of earth had been Zeus's play things, but no more. We were going to teach him a lesson. \n\nWe started our journey on foot, visiting every village on the island we lived on, gathering more and more men as we went. Enraged fathers, husbands, sons, brothers, and even some sisters, mothers, and daughters who had barely escaped the same fate when the handsome man came knocking at their door. They came carrying knives, staffs, and various weapons fashioned from household items. Those who couldn't come with us, being to old, to ill, to young, scared of Zeus's wrath, or had to stay home to take care of the women would give us food, supplies, and weapons to keep us going as we went to battle the mighty god. \n\nAfter that, we journeyed by ship, visiting the other islands and gathering even more men. There was constant lighting, but the sea always pushed us out of harm's way, almost as if Poseidon approved what we were doing, guiding us to our next destination. We hadn't even gone to the main land yet, but we had already accumulated a group of well over 124,000 men. We wanted revenge. \n\nOnce we reached the mainland, others had heard of our story, and joined us. Former enemies became friends as we all went to fight one common enemy. Even if people weren't affected by Zeus, they knew others who had been, and joined our cause. Far more women than we had expected joined, and at one point, by Athens, we me a small group of Hunters that had gotten permission from lady Artemis to temporarily branch off from the Hunters to avenge their sisters who had been assaulted by Zeus. \n\nBy the time we had reached the base of mount Olympus, we had amassed an army of well over 1234,000 people, including an old hag who I was sure was Hera in disguise. It had taken us months to get to this point, but it was well worth it. We were all armed to the teeth, and filled with hatred to the asshole in the sky called Zeus. We began the trek up the mountain, and though it would have been long and tedious, we made it up in less than a day. Perhaps we were aided by a goddess who wanted revenge on her husband just as much as we did. \n\nOnce we entered the great hall of the gods, we were surprised to find Zeus alone in there. Wherever all the other gods where, they sure didn't step up to help him. The almighty Zeus was alone, cowering on his throne. \n\nWhen he saw us, he tried to appear more regal, but it was futile. He was a coward of a god. \"Wha-What brings you here?\" he manages to whimper out. \n\n\"Oh I think you know exactly what brings us here.\" I growled. \n\nNo sooner than I finished speaking, a roar sounded among my followers, and they began to charge forward. I rushed ahead, sword raised and poised to bring a striking blow to the king of the god's head.",
"They say you can’t kill a God. Maybe you can’t, but the least I can do is try. He has hurt my family, my wife will never be the same again, but I won’t let him get away with it. I’ve heard rumors of him doing it, but I thought that was just what they were, rumors. I thought that he wouldn’t, or couldn’t, do such a thing. \n\nMost men have a lighter heart than him on Anubis’ scale.\n\nI am going to Mount Olympus, and I will kill this god. But don’t think I’m stupid, I have a plan.\n\nKilling a god alone would be stupid but I’m retrieving help from a jealous wife.",
"We'd never been all that fond of the gods in our household. Eighty years ago, Zeus had apparently turned into a monster and raped my great-grandmother(And a few other local girls who unfortunately passed on). It was frankly surprising she survived, and not at all surprising that all of her descendants had been special in one way or another. My grandmother, one of a set of twins, had turned out to be the greatest seamstress ever born; better than even the gods; and after winning a contest with Athena, been cursed to be turned into a spider. Fortunately, my dad had already been born at that point, or I'd have never come to be.\n\n​\n\n​\n\nMy dad's was the only generation that the god's didn't directly screw over somehow; which was frankly surprising, as he turned out to be the most skilled blacksmith in all of greece, able to craft items to rival the skill even of Hephaestus; the fact that he prayed to Hephaestus instead of Zeus should've landed him in hot water, but according to dad, that intricately carved metal pole on the roof somehow protected him from the old bastard. Despite grandmother's curse, my father's talents had landed us work at the palace; he hand-crafted the weapons of the king and his mightiest warriors. And his son, of course.\n\n​\n\n​\n\nFor me? Like everyone in my family, I was stronger and tougher than the common man; but I never missed a shot. I could throw a javelin through a blade of grass at a hundred paces, and skewer a fly with an arrow at a thousand. When war came calling, invaders from Greece washing ashore to raid the villages, against my father's wishes I crossed the sea to join my countrymen in a counter-attack. The first battle of a long war that would keep me away from my family for over a year. I was a great hero; I'd personally slain dozens of men and even some sort of strange three-headed armored giant which had to have all three of its heads slain before it fell.\n\n​\n\n​\n\nComing home should have been a relief. My bride was one of the most beautiful maidens to grace our shores; and more importantly was willing to tolerate my family's general disdain for all the temples but our chosen god, Hephaestus. I was due great rewards; dozens of former greeks had been dragged home to be my slaves, each carrying a sack of gold and valuables on his back, and the Prince had decreed I would be gifted a home in the royal lands for my service. I had felt our family's endless troubles were over.\n\n​\n\nSeeing my wife's face was a shock. I'd thought it possible she was pregnant when I left; but the babe was too young. When I first looked at her I was angry at her infidelity. I might have said something I regretted. But then I saw the babe. Spitting image of my grandfather, son of Zeus. He looked somewhat like myself, in fact, as I had a touch of the resemblance. I might have thought he was my own. My wife had apparently been stricken mute by whatever had been done to her; but nodding was enough; I asked if it had been Zeus. And if it had been rape. The answers were obvious. I kissed her, took her and the child to stay with my mother; perhaps he wasn't mine, but he was related to my, and of course my beloved, so I would care for him as if he were; and asked my father for his help.\n\n​\n\nThree days later, I set sail once more for greece. I sold half the treasures I'd won to pay a group of mercenaries to follow me; and even then they'd have refused if not for the gifts of my father; Maned Helms of Hephaestus, crafted to ward off any ranged attack, be it the lightning of Zeus or the arrows of mortals. He'd spent much of his life crafting the tools to hopefully unseat our family's tormentors; and while he didn't want me to go to my likely death, he knew I was the only hope of ending this divine plague upon all of humanity.\n\n​\n\nI sailed the calm waters of the Aegean sea; Poseiden, it seemed, had no issues with my quest; and landed on the borders of Thessaly. The Centaurs didn't seem to know my purpose, but still remained loyal to our mutual ancestor; their arrows and spears hailed upon my party for days as we trod through their country; using spear and bow to slay those that made the mistake of drawing too close, the bulk of them knew better. Here, in the lands where the vile deities had overthrown the Titans and begun their reign of terror on this earth, lay what I sought.\n\n​\n\nIn the darkness deep beneath the mountains, in caves no mortal had ever trod, my companions split away; to remain on the surface. They had no idea why I was here, or what I sought. But as I entered a cave, what felt like miles below the surface, I found him. An enormous serpentine head, connected to a body leading down somewhere into the depths. I could feel its heartbeat. Slow. The paths of ancient, dried blood dotted its flesh. He'd been injured; badly; thousands of years ago. And never recovered. I poured a bottle of some medicine my mother had blended between the enormous lips. The heartbeat sped up. A single, enormous eye opened.\n\n​\n\n\"Typhon. The strongest of all the Titan's children. I aim to kill Zeus. Will you help me?\" A low, steady rumble. The earth shook. A soft, sibilant voice, seeming to come from every direction. \"I would. But as mighty as I am, the thunderbolt can bring me low.\" \"Hephestus has blessed my family with the secret of protection from Zeus's power. Take me to Olympus. Break down the gates. And I will end him for both of us.\"\n\n​\n\nThe mighty beast studied me closely. Perhaps it was assessing my honesty. Testing my scent; surely he could tell I was a descendant of his most hated enemy. And when he lashed out, I feared the worst. Enclosed in the serpent's mouth, I closed my eyes, damning myself for this foolish idea.\n\n​\n\nAnd then... after a long, terrible rumble. The mouth opened. I could see it; an enormous body, made up of the tails of serpents all blended to one; and dozens of heads, each as great as the one on whose jaw I stood. I could see, hundreds of feet below, my men staring up, cowering in terror, as the heads moved in, all but the one I rode upon staring at me. \"I will take you, spawn of Zeus. We shall crush the usurper, or we shall die on the mountaintop.\""
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[WP] You're the monster that goes bump in the night. The creature in the shadows. The embodiment of evil. Here comes your next victim
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"My kind is hated. Many stories have been told of us. Our prey has shared many ways to ward us off and defeat us. We refuse to give up. We will never stop.\n\n\nI made my way slowly through the parking lot. The sun had set a few hours ago, but I was on the hunt. I knew that I'd get at least one today.\n\n\nHearing footsteps in the distance, a steady even stride. The sound of someone in no hurry. One without a care in the world. They will do nicely.\n\n\nI thread my way through a few rows of cars. Drawing closer, the footsteps sounding. I know it won't be long. \n\n\nThey saw me. I know it, since they're picked up their pace. It'll do them no good. I'm too close now.\n\n\nLook at them. Futilely trying to get to their car to escape. I know they won't make it.\n\n\nAs I close the last of the distance, I joyfully take a deep breath. I've got them now.\n\n\n\"Excuse me, but do you have a moment to talk about our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.\"",
"The footsteps echoed through the ally way. That frantic beat of shoe on concrete was better than even the most amazing orchestra in the world. Tonight's performer ran like his life depended on it. Well it did but that was sort of the point.\n\nSliding between the shadows of the city was simple. Many would assume that a city that never sleeps would make what I do difficult. The exact opposite was true. Many light sources cast many shadows. That gives me variety which as they say is the spice of life...or in my case after life.\n\nThe man turned a corner, blindly. Good. He was desperate, panicking. Someone level headed could find their way to safety. A scared man would just run, like a lemming over a cliff. \n\nHe collided with the brick wall at the end of the alley. No where to go little mouse. It's time for the curtain to close on tonight's performance.\n\nThe man turned around, desperately searching for what had been following him. The creature. The shadow. The thing that he had been seeing. It was always in the corner of his vision. Behind every locked door and un ever shadowy corner it lurked. \n\nAny true hunter knows how to pursue prey. You can't just walk up to a deer and shoot it in the face with a shotgun. No. You tracked it, pursued it, led towards traps and into the ideal circumstances for that final killing blow. I had tracked this deer for a long time.\n\nFrom the shadows behind the man I emerged. Hearing the subtle sounds of my entrance he turned but he wasn't fast enough to get a way. With one shadowy claw I grabbed him by the throat.\n\nStrangulation, when done properly, was something of an art. If you didnt have enough force behind it your target could fight back. Too much and you risked then going unconscious or even worse snapping their neck. Theres no fun in that. Not even a little.\n\nThe man gasped desperate for breath. My claws tightened around his wind pipe. I could feel his heart beat, a grand crescendo to tonight's finale. The man reached for the inside pocket of his long dirty jacket. He never reached it, as another claw slammed into his chest. Each long talon the size of daggers, I knew exactly where to strike to miss the vital organs. I had put a lot of work into this hunt. I was going to enjoy.\n\nI loosened my grip just a little. I needed him to speak after all.\n\n\"You know what you are?\" I said, the sounds hissing through the night, \"You know you deserve this, dont you?\"\n\n\"Why...me...\", the man gasped, each word only barely getting enough oxyegen.\n\n\"Come now Mr. Parker, \" I said, \"when a man meets God he should be aware of his sins. And my my dont you have a lot of those.\"\n\n\"I'm...sorry...\" said the man, feebly. I was running out of time. He'd fall unconscious soon. Time for the final movement.\n\n\"Oh I'm not the one who needs to hear that,\" I said, \"but I suppose I'm better than nobody.\"\n\nWith a sound like nails on a chalkboard I brought my talons together. Blood vushed like a river from his now mince meat chest. I dropped the body. It served no purpose now.\n\nA small item fell from inside the man's jacket. A wallet. I must have sliced the pocket with my talons. It had fallen open revealing a photo of a young girl, no older than 9. The man's daughter.\n\n\"Finally...she's safe...\" I said to the night. I turned stepping seamlessly ino the shadows\n\nI may be a beast but even a beast can serve a purpose.",
"I am everywhere. I was created alongside life, a beast to haunt it from the shadows, to hunt down those who fell behind. I am a monster unlike any before. And I will be here long after humanity snuffs itself out.\n\nI see her, walking through the night. An unwitting victim in my never-ending hunt. She doesn't see me. I like it that way. Stalking them, making them paranoid, as a primal part of their brain screams in terror. I choose my targets carefully, taking out ones who feed me more. For I am the embodiment of evil, and there is only 1 thing which satisfies me.\n\nShe walks, starting to glance around. She knows something hunts her, but feeble human senses do not find me. Her footsteps quicken, and I grin. I can smell her fear rising already. It had been barely a day since my last feast, and I was hungry.\n\nShe gets to a darkened building, letting herself in through a side entrance. I silently slip in, letting the scents of fear, pain and sorrow wash over me. It is a vile place here, one I feel at home in. She walks to the back, past burly men who nod as she passes.\n\nAt last, she arrives at an office, where she sits at a desk, sorting through papers. A list of orders, and a list of supplies. She looks them over, before calling in an assistant. They talk, but I don't understand their language. I had never been interested in that.\n\nThe assistant leaves, and she is alone, and getting twitchy. The assistant comes in, dragging behind him a young girl, who's eyes are puffy. The lady looks her over, and nods, saying something to the assistant. He grins, and drags the girl from the room. Her fear is thick, and a scream follows. The lady looks back at the list.\n\nNow, I move to her. I let my breath flow over her, and she shivers. Her heart beats fast, and I'm she knows something is wrong. She opens her mouth to call someone, and I seize the opportunity. My mouth covers hers, and I bite down, splintering bone and teeth.\n\nI bite again and again, ripping through her body. The room is covered in her splatter, and I gore myself. A guard walks in, to see her torn open remains. He fails to see me hunched over, savouring the last shreds of her heart.\n\nThen I slither away, back into the night. My belly was full of the sins she had committed. The only thing that could satisfy me."
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[WP] All civilizations in the universe run on magic, all magic runs on thoughts, specifically imagination, and the source of over 90% of all imagination in the universe is Earth and humans. With humans on the verge of extinction, each of the peoples of the universe try their own ways to save them.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"what shall we do, Vocadians? the very breath of life that flows through our veins dries up when we think of death.\" i muse as i smoke my cigarette.\n\n \"is death worse than living with no purpose?\" \n\ni reread the message that was sent over a year ago, i compare them to the one i had received today. it felt odd to foresee the destruction of life. ruling your people was one thing to governing an entire race was something else entirely. to imagine the order of entire civilizations hinged on my every decision was heavier than the one that knowledge burdened me with. the dream was over. \n\n i dial in a number, my general at the other end of the receiver. his life had no meaning either, he waited on my every word. would he refuse me now? i'd have to teach it to him. \"Lord,\" he whispered hard- my confidence in oblivion quivered, \" i remember..\" i had to cut him off here. \"Listen here, worm! you forget who gave you your mouth!\" a bloodbath of an apology bursts like an overripe grape. i silence him with the calm breath of resolute sovereignty. his thoughts never mattered to anyone, not even to himself. \n\n​\n\n\"listen here, subject general #228976. think of this again, it will be the last time you use that head of yours. forget i even asked for your advice. this is an order. you were thinking of redeeming the human race once more. you forget that mistakes must not be repeated.\"\n\nhe listened this time. i knew more than my youth permitted me. 285 years was when people were prone to stupidity. i was divine, but Death treated showed my family no especial favors. i knew that despite everything, every clamoring for meaning in this realm was just as futile. i didn't need my youth to show me that, i am not easily fooled. but my father died for nothing. endless tracks that go nowhere. only anger and loneliness. i choose the death of everybody so that i may be justified in showing them compassion. \n\n​\n\nsubject general #228976 knows nothing. i do. i carry the heavier burden. the one that knowledge has decided to bless me with. humanity must perish, and i with it. when they see that my people are oblivious of the bliss of death preoccupied with the boredom of life, the other kingdoms will plainly accept it hopelessly; hope dies with that race. the dance is now come to an end."
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[WP] You've managed to land a prestigious internship during your junior year of college. After nailing your interview with the recruiter, Peter, he leads you to the office of the CEO to meet them. As you enter the room, its a cloudy space much unlike the office you were in. Their nameplate? "God"
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I look around for the cameras. Whoever set up this prank was invested, but unfortunately I know better. I can't see anything though, it doesn't even look like the room has walls, just a misty floor and a sunny sky as far as the eye can see. I glance at the CEO to see him smiling at me.\n\n\"Take a seat.\" he says.\n\nI can't think of what else to do, I can't find the cameras and frankly can't think of how someone would pull this off. I'd just have to be careful to not make a fool of myself.\n\nThe CEO picks up a stack of papers and glances over them.\n\n\"I can tell you right now, the pay won't be as high as you'd like. I believe this will be compensated for by our benefits, they're quite extensive.\"\n\nHow am I supposed to take this seriously? Peter told me I would be dealing with eccentric individuals, is this supposed to be some sort of test?\n\n\"Now before you turn me down,\" the CEO continues, \"Let me go over the benefits. Food, housing and clothing will be provided for you and your family. We have an excellent medical plan and wonderful options for retirement. We can pay-\"\n\n\"Is this a joke?\" I cut him off, I just couldn't let this continue. \"Or some sort of sick strategy to try and get me to take a bad deal? I'm an atheist, you're not impressing me.\"\n\n\"Yes, Peter did note that, although with all your other fantastic qualities we couldn't let you go to waste somewhere else.\"\n\n\"What are you talking about! Religious affiliation was never discussed during the interview!\" This joke was going to far.\n\n\"You must understand, the interview is just a formality, we'd already made a decision long before then.\"\n\n\"WHAT THE-\" my voice disappeared.\n\n\"Please be professional.\" the CEO requested, \"You clearly aren't taking this seriously, if we were still in the process of making our decision this would not be helping you.\"\n\nHis voice sounded so sincere, I almost felt bad.\n\n\"I'm done, I'm leaving\" I got up to go to the door.\n\nThe CEO sighed, \"Please look over our contract,\" he said while handing me a small stack of paper, \"You'll find everything is legitimate.\"\n\nI took the papers with the intention of just throwing them out as soon as I left the building. Something stopped me though, and I looked over the contract. They really did have nice benefits."
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[WP] While paying tribute to your dead parents parents after sunset, you notice that your phantom limb – the arm you lost in that stupid workshop accident – is able to interact with the underworld.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"He was shattered, the funeral service felt like an eternity. \nJust a few days ago his parents were still with him, just 6 hours ago a drunk driver snatched them from him\nHe didn't have this pain even with the illness that caused him to lose his career, a clumsy injury in the workshop, a poorly detected infection, an aggressive bacteria that resulted in an amputation... and now this \nThe damn phantom pain was still there, but the pain in his chest felt stronger. If only his mother were here, she would comfort him as when he was a child, taking his hands and clasping his fingers as only she knew how to do \nThe sensation was still there, a soft caress that told her that everything would be fine, a comforting touch on her right hand ... \nComing out of his trance, he noticed that the sensation was still there, and against all logic he tried to clench his fist, a nonsense in his mind but an impulse that led him to do so. \nThe feeling became even more real, warm and cold at the same time, he remembered that his father was in the army, the crazy camps that he never thought would be useful, that strange code that he used to talk to him hidden of his mom, and tapped simply \"DAD\" \nHe felt ridiculous, what was he doing? Using a non-existent hand and morse code to talk to his dead father, something he would go straight to the psychiatrist for, until he received an answer \"H E R E\""
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[WP] You're a grunt in an author's power fantasy. As such you are blessed with utter incompetence at everything you attempt. Moments before your inevitable encounter with the Mary-sue protagonist, the fourth wall breaks and you realize your predicament
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Sparks gently drifted through the dark abyss small falling glimmering gold lights cascading downward through the void. The acrid smell of the chemical welder drifting underneath my mask as the last two plates of metal fused at the glowing furrow. I have had this job for twenty-five years and for twenty-three of them I have served with distinction. I am an engineer of the empire and I damn well will follow the royal family and their vision.\n\nWith a small flick of a finger, the sparking torch dissipated reality phasing back into existence from the dark. The seemingly endless chaos of the repair bay as another damaged dropship landed its exterior scarred and burning. Fucking rebel scum do you know how long it takes to patch even a single bullet hole let alone forty-seven. With some measure of hesitation, I carefully pushed myself to my feet sliding the drones turret closed in the process. \n\nIt's hatch locking with a satisfying hiss the interior depressurizing to prevent a blowout in case it ruptured. A sharp menacing voice of authority a very familiar voice freezing my boots to the massive drones exposed tracks. As a group of honor guards lingered mere feet away their sharp jagged helmets the herald of punishment for failure. \"You engineer is the goliath ready for deployment!\" A single gloved fist wrapping itself around the ladder onto the goliath tank. \n\n\n\"No, she isn't ready for combat but I'm guessing the boss sent you anyway.\" My one good eye quickly flicking to each of the identical guards leveled their weapons at my person as I put my hands up. \"Fine, fine give me two minutes to grab my terminal\" a chorus of clicks echoing through the hanger as I gently edging my hand into my chest rig and handing the tablet to the officer.\n\nThe very valuable piece of technology more or less wrenched from my grip and their weapons lowered. \"You're lucky grunt normally id kill ya but I'm feeling nice today.\" A split-second passing as the elite threw my weight off of the Goliath and I hit the deck plating like a bag of dirt. The stereotypical token few laughs erupting from the group of cannon fodder as I rolled over onto my back flipping my welding mask up. \n\nA thin pool of blood sticking to my finger as I checked the front of my temple the sound of rushing footsteps coming into the bay. \" Terry are you okay.\" The form-fitting pilot jumpsuit shimmering in the red interior lighting as I took my best friend Julia's hand. My free mechanical arm looking for the oil-stained rag I kept on one of the nearby carts. \"It's fine I'm fine it's just a bit of blood.\" \n\n\"Bullshit, I know your fatass didn't pass basic because of your physical contour.\" A brief moment passing as I pushed the rag against the side of my cranium the chemicals stinging the wound. \"I've had worse trust me, remember that time the captain blew open little Timmy's brains out and he lived I'll be fine.\" The deep-set ringing in my ears probably from my lasting tinnitus instead of the fresh head wound.\n\n\"Terry, Timmy is a droid he is not a meatbag I'm taking you to medical.\" At the moment her weight started pulling me off of the trolly all hell broke loose as a shockwave tore through the hanger. Its impact throwing a cloud of shrapnel into the ammunition bearer in the central aisle tearing apart the poor bastard in a red mist. Gunfire almost immediately, popping and ringing from further in the hanger as I pulled Julia toward the nearby emergency exit. \n\nIt's weight slamming shut just as a wave of rebels armed with ancient rifles and spears reached the cove. Julia's closed fist practically tearing open the next door as she dragged me through the winding corridors. \"Holy Fucking shit slinging shiva, are you okay what the hell I thought the rebels were trapped on the planet.\" An explosion sending the floor titling downward in front of our path as something important on the cruiser exploded.\n\n\"I I don't know we need to get off the ship did you see how many there were how did they get a mob of people on board! Damn it must have been that damn dropship that landed that's how they got on.\" A sharp look of horror or disbelief crossing Julia's face as the last door to the escape pods opened. The ground littered with corpses and a towering blue-eyed Arian rebel standing amongst the dead a glowing pistol pointed our way. \n\nSeemingly not a trace of blood on his clothing as his voice echoed through the hall \"Put your hands up!\" Something in my mind snapping as the final piece fell into place the dark color scheme, frequent executions, and taco Tuesdays. Or maybe just maybe it was the brainwashing wearing off\" We're going to die, oh God don't shoot we surrender!\" A sudden burst of adrenaline forcing my meaty arm in the air the still forming smirk on the rebel's face blown off milliseconds after by the plasma pistol in Julia's hand.\n\nThe spent weapon falling onto the bloody deck plating with a dull metallic clink as we climbed into the escape pod. \"Great distraction, quick do your thing push the button get us out of here!\" Her weight throwing me into the pilot seat as I gazed at the foreign console and started pushing buttons at random. \"I'm not a pilot I don't know what I'm doing this is your job!\"The rear door of the pod slamming shut just in time for a team of brightly colored rebels to enter the hallway. \"GET US OUT OF HERE TERRY OR ILL SKIN YOU ALIVE IN HELL\"\n\nTime slowing to a crawl as a sprawling spider web of cracked glass formed on the door from genetic impacts as the engines flickered to life. A bright flash illuminated the opening as the engines activated and the cruiser disappeared in the distance within a nuclear fireball.",
"*\"Intruder Alert\"*, the calm robotic female voice echoed on the PA system, over the blaring klaxon. \nI had a job to do though: A very specific job, that I intended to do to the best of my ability. So I did. I paced back and fourth down my corridor, always the same path, always at the same rate, my assault rifle clung to my chest at the ready. \nI looked up ahead for my comrade. His sentry route crossed mine, and if he kept his usual pace, he would come into view in a few seconds. Sure enough, he crossed in from an adjacent corridor, clad in full black body armour identical to mine, his pace clearly unphased by the alarms and flashing red lights all around us. \nI have no idea who the architect of this complex was, but I always found that the 6th floor was oddly laid out. It was basically a labyrinth. Even odder was the paths they had us sentries pace, which clearly left gaps for someone to sneak by if they timed it just right. \nBut I'm sure the \"super genius\" boss had thought out the design of his hideout in more detail than I ever could. I was just a grunt. \n \nBetween alarms, I heard the distinct sound of footsteps behind me. My comrade and I both spun in the direction of the noise and pointed our rifles \n\"Who's there?!\" I called out. \nI couldn't see anyone. There were plenty of places along the corridor that an intruder could have ducked into to be out of view, but I was under strict orders to not investigate at this distance unless I saw someone. \n*3...2...1...* \n\"Relax, It was probably nothing.\" My comrade said, like he always does. \nAnd like clockwork, I replied with \"Yeah. I guess I watch too many scary movies.\" \nHe lowered his gun and continued on his sentry path. But my last word echoed through my head with every blare of the klaxon. \n*Movies...* \nEverything clicked into my head at once. This was familiar. All of it. From every movie, every book, every video game. My whole existence was just too... just too one dimensional. I was a grunt. A henchman. An NPC. A level one bad guy. \nAnd now this whole situation. We had an intruder. *One* intruder. Definitely some untouchable hero. \nThe reality of my situation hit me like a shockwave. Grunts didn't survive against heroes. I turned and sprinted down the closest corridor. \nHow long has it been since the alarm first sounded? I was on the 6th floor. My boss was on the 7th. Could this hero have cleared all 5 lower floors already? Impossible. They would have had to kill hundreds of my comrades to get this far, not to mention the lazer booby traps, and thew whole 4th floor is a flooded water level with mechanical sharks and floating mines and... \nOh my god I was definitely in an action story. Sure, this floor was a maze, but it would be nothing to a protagonist. \nI kept running. That noise I heard was probably them, which means I didn't have any time left. I weaved my way through corridors, avoiding my comrades' obviously flawed patrol routes. \nI paused, out of breath, at the supply room next to the stairs going up to the 7th floor. Maybe I could survive if I warned my boss? \nNo. No that would never work. I knew for a fact that this whole base has a self destruct function. My boss probably has a good chance of being spared by the hero after their undoubtedly epic battle, but there was no way any grunt was going to get out of here alive. \nI looked around the supply room. It was full of med packs and ammo. \n*Goddamn it.* \n \nMy next thought was that if I can distinguish myself from a regular, basic-stats grunt in any way, then I'll definitely be harder to kill. I took off my helmet. If this really was fiction, than an opaque-visored helmet wasn't going to do me any good. Better to have some semblance of humanity. Going along with that thought, I took off my hair elastic and let my hair down. I would especially be much better off establishing the fact that I'm a woman - especially if this hero is a man. \nI sighed, realizing what that last fact implied next. Since I was a woman, full body armour wouldn't do me any good. - the more skin you show, the tougher you are. I quickly, but reluctantly stripped down to just my undergarments. \nLastly, I set aside my gun and grabbed a fire axe from off the wall. Establishing myself as a melee fighter would probably give me a better shot.\nI took a deep breath. I felt absolutely ridiculous, and yet the weight of the axe felt like nothing. Was it just me, or was I actually stronger? If I had done this properly, then I was now a formidable mini-boss. \n \nI heard hurried footsteps coming up the hallway. I flattened myself against the wall. Maybe, *just maybe*, if I caught this hero by surprise instead of monologuing, then I could get out alive."
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[WP] People go missing in Gilimanci cavern every year. It's a dead-end that has been fully mapped with every device and method, every inch of the ceilings, walls, and floors inspected. With a pack full of supplies to test your hypothesis, you step into the cavern.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Through the arid weather of the southern United States a young man walked down a long a dusty road. His steps were full of purpose and his mind was clear. He'd been training for this day for years; prepared all of the necessary items and read all of the recommended material. \n\nToday was the day, and as he strode up to the mouth of the cavern he knew in his heart that there was no going back. He paused for a moment before taking a deep breath and pressing onward. He'd heard the tales of the cavern and had decided to embark on this mission of his own free will. \n\nGilimanci Cavern was a famous tourist destination for a while- a beautiful natural cavern filled with all kinds of geodes and interesting rock formations. There were two problems. One, people had been going missing inside of the cavern as of three years ago. Two, the cavern had only two passages, and both lead to a dead end. \n\nSomething inside of the cavern had been taking people, and one young cowhand was certain that it was the work of a demon escaped from Hell. \n\nAs he ventured further into the dark, the light from the mouth of the cavern was reaching its limits. Darkness began to settle in around him, but it didn't break his stride. Young Deacon was a special boy in many ways. His right eye shimmered an emerald green color and cut through the darkness in such a way that would make owls green with envy. It was quiet inside of the cave- deathly quiet. Only the occasional water droplet falling from the stalactites that clung to the ceiling of the cavern added their voices to the void. \n\nBefore long, he'd reached the back of the cavern. He closed his eyes and faced the back wall for several seconds before turning around... and it was as he suspected. \n\nStanding about twenty or so feet away from him was the hunched humanoid figure. It stood about five feet tall and had long arms that stretched all the way to the cavern floor. It had a sloped face and a drooling visage with four eyes situated in no particular order around its head- and all four of them were trained on him with a feral hunger that chilled him to the bone. It was the first true demon he'd ever seen.\n\nUncertainty revealed itself in his trembling hands as he reached for the silver cross at his hip. The demon remained eerily still- more like a rock structure within the cave than a living creature. \n\n\"S-Sancte Michael Archangele,\" he began the prayer as he lifted the cross. \n\nThe demon opened its mouth wider than one would have expected it to be able to and screeched a discordant and unholy sound not meant for man's ears. Startled, Deacon dropped the cross and the demon seized the moment, launching from its position and dripping with killing intent. The boy realized that he wouldn't have time to attempt the prayer again. \n\nHe widened his stance and a purple aura began to surround him as he prepared to fight. The demon must have sensed danger, as it halted its forward assault and broke left, crawling at a nightmarish speed up the side of the cavern wall. Deacon tracked its movement as it quickly wound through the stalactites overhead. Finally, it picked its moment and kicked off of the ceiling. \n\nThe young demon-hunter rolled out of the way, avoiding the initial tackle- but the demon was quick. It launched a second attack- the young cowhand found himself backed against the cavern wall, and only dodged the demon's punch by centimeters. He noticed the crater left by its fist in the wall next to his head and he managed to duck underneath a third haymaker. He rolled underneath the demon's legs and swept its feet out from under it in one fluid motion. \n\nHe lifted his heel and dropped it hard with a violet aura trailing his boot. The demon scrambled out from beneath the attack and the cavern shook with the impact of the cowhand's collision. The demon noticed the boy's *own* crater and quickly realized that it wasn't dealing with an average human. It stood several feet away, eyeing him carefully and reevaluating its strategy. He saw that it was no longer hunger within the creatures eyes, but malice. \n\n\"You done?\" The boy called out. \n\nAnger flashed over its face before it screeched again, the same as before. Only this time it held it's ground rather than attacking. \n\n\"You ain't gone' hurt no more people, ya hear?\" He said, confidence growing within him. \n\nSuddenly the sound of a bullet ripped through the cavern. Deacon jumped and whirled around to see a second demon standing behind him with a hole in its face. It slumped to the cavern floor, revealing a cowboy holding a smoking revolver behind it. \n\n\"P-pa?\" Deacon said shakily. \n\n\"Finish it, boy.\" He commanded in a deep voice that shook Deacon more than any demon could.\n\nHe turned to face the remaining demon. Its eyes darted around looking for an escape- it was outnumbered now. \n\n\"So you had a friend,\" Deacon called out. \"Don't worry. You'll see him again real soon.\"\n\nIt screeched again, but something was different about it. It sounded more like desperation than a threat. It took a step back and the young cowhand took a step forward- he was concentrating his energy into his feet. The demon broke right, climbing up the cavern wall just as it had before. \n\nWith its path to freedom in sight, it found only a bludgeoning pain in it's back. The boy had sailed through the air and stomped hard into its back leaving tremors and cracks running from beneath its broken body. He leaped off and landed softly as it fell to the cavern floor. It landed with a heavy thud and twitched for a moment as it tried to find a way to scramble away with a broken back.\n\nThe cowboy with the revolver walked calmly over to the creature and put a bullet in the back of its skull. \n\n\"Perform the rite.\" He commanded. \n\nDeacon looked down at the evaporating corpses and then back to his father. \"But Pa, you used the special revolver.\"\n\n\"I said *perform the rite*. Show me you know *how*.\"\n\nThe young cowhand nodded, sat down, and began to pull the necessary ingredients from his pack without another word. He mixed the ingredients into the bowl and read the words for the rite. A plume of black smoke rose from the bowl, indicating that it had been performed flawlessly. He half smiled and looked up to see his father turning to leave.\n\n\"Pa, I...\"\n\n\"We're going.\" He interrupted. \n\nHe swallowed hard and quickly gathered everything back into the bag. He followed his father towards the mouth of the cavern, \"Pa, if you'd just let me use the gun, I-\"\n\n\"Guns are not for boys,\" he spoke firmly. \"They're for men. You clearly are *not*.\"\n\nHe sighed shakily as they exited the cavern. Although Deacon knew his father was born in the blackest pit of Hell, he wished just once he'd show an ounce of humanity. As they walked home, his father spoke up.\n\n\"You would have died if not for me.\"\n\n\"I didn't know there were two!\"\n\n\"It was a Common Demon, boy. There are *always* more.\"\n\nThere was a long silence before his father spoke again.\n\n\"You've got good instincts. There *were* demons in that cavern. If it were a one on one fight, you'd have won. Your rite was performed to the letter. For those things, I'm proud of you.\"\n\nKind words were foreign to his father's lips. Deacon would hang on to those words tightly for years to come.\n\n- - - - - - - - - - - - - -\n\nI get a 15 minute break at work aside from my usual lunch break. I pick a prompt, spend a couple of minutes storyboarding, and then do as much as I can within the confines of my break.\n\nIf you enjoyed this, consider following me at r/A15MinuteMythos"
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[WP] He stood next to the kid watching as black tentacles reached out at them from the slime. The boy gripped his hand harder and asked the therapist "Now do you believe the nightmares have come true?"
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"(First person child's perspective) \nI could see it. Creeping towards him. I sent out Bthulwath, the ancient power buried deep. And he believed it was just a Two-Keei Spirit. I let the Nightmare go, as it tears the man apart, limb by limb. No more experiments, no more waking up with tubes stuck in my arms. The best things come to those who wait. It just took me longer to accept my fate. Too long. I could hear the doors bang open, but I was too busy laughing and dancing around the two dead. The therapist was nice to me. That hurt to see him ripped apart. But the professor, he died too quickly. I could hear the bullets rip through the air, trying to kill Bthulwath. But as long as my paralysis was alive, he would never die. I walked through the door a few minutes later, leaving twenty-six bodies behind me."
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[WP] "We can't go to earth, it's inhabitants are savages, servants of an ancient evil" The anti-big bang", they advance in technology for one reason alone : destruction. First their home planet, then they migrate to another and destroy that one, we can't risk it"
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Melvnis stood up in the pantheonesque chamber to speak in front of all the other delegates. She said, “We can’t go there for asylum but it’s also necessary that we don’t allow them to come close to ever leaving their own solar system. They should not be allowed to advance into interstellar travel technology and we will only achieve this by continuing to infiltrate them and causing dissent and chaos among them via religion and politics. If they are able to rise up as a people against these superficial odds that we are deliberately seeding them up against, until then and only then,” she pointed as she finished saying, “we shall consider you Cuahtemoc of Earth as a full fledged delegate. We will not allow you to advocate for Earth as a place of asylum among our delegation. Please sit down. You and all people of Earth will continue to be wards of the Triangulum Office of Earth Affairs until you evolve to—how does your parental society put it..? is it *learn to share*?” \n\n“But how will any of us survive this threat at all if you continue this level of oppression?” said Cuahtemoc. \n“The códex demands it, every other member here went through the same process!” shouted Melvanis. “You must be able to rise up and unite without the threat of invasion or survival!” she said. \n\nTharns stood up and everyone eyes quickly turned to her because she never speaks and is considered to be one of the wisest. \n“Mel” she began, “that’s exactly what we are up against, this new threat knows not how to reason and the only peoples amongst us that know unification through war and violence better than any other are the people of Terranus—I mean Earth. We have to bring them into the fold even if they are not ready. We need them on our side. Forgive me for stating the obvious but their gestational attributes alone will help us. Their population of 10 billion is half the size of the combined worlds of our 37 member delegation. I see no other way.”\n\n“They will see the power of the threat and they will betray us!” Melavnis responded emotionally. “They’re not ready, it is in their nature. They are not steadfast, they are quick to follow and too easily manipulated. Zero critical thinking skills especially when they are in large groups, they swarm. The threat will see this and use it to their advantage.” \n\n“How do you know?” asked Tharns. \n\n“Because Tharns,” Melvnis said as she slowly dropped her head. She then lifted her eyes saying “intelligence reports are that the threat are the ancestors of Terranus who left right before their ice age.” Everyone gasped!"
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[WP] “Controlled explosions powering transport?” Howled the Fernulian ambassador sponsoring humanity to the galactic council. “Not only do you expect me to get this ratified; you want trade permits for this stuff?”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"Well yes, Mzr Ambassador, that is presently how the vast majority of Human equipment is currently powered. If the Council has a better means available, we're more than willing to accept donations of technology, or to trade cultural assets in exchange.\"\n\nF'rgggggggggglglglggUCK stroked its pedipalps thoughtfully as it considered the situation. \"Hmmm... I suppose an entire race entering the Interstellar Age with such dangerously outdated technology *does* constitute a Sentient Ethical Crisis. I'll have to run things up the chain, but I'm sure we can clear the basic technology and a few working examples to get you started..... perhaps, with a generous donation to the Pan-Galactic Historical Society for Cultural Preservation?\"\n\nAmbassador Chang smiled. \"Fortunately, I've been cleared in advance to make just such a proposition. Have you ever heard of, \"Starry Night?\""
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[WP] You start a dream journal. Pretty soon you are able to recall dozens of dreams every night in extreme detail. You're enjoying the experience of remembering beautiful fantasies and impossible journeys... that is, until you start remembering some dreams that are best left forgotten
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The world was the very picture of heaven. White alabaster, singing choruses of cherubim, and floating palaces above the clouds. A veritable paradise. This had been one of my favorite dreams. That is, until I remembered how it turned out. Somehow the memory of it fleeted upon my waking, discarded by my consciousness into the depths of sanity. \n\nAlways it started in the corners of my vision, that moment before the picture if reality fades into the previous sight, previous sound, previous thought. It hovered there steadily beyond my awareness, coming into view. \n\nThat pillar of alabaster, pure as a summer's day, with a faint decay of rot. Black lines criss-crossing from the base up to the pillars. Those cherubim, their faces shifting like painted mirrors into faces I had once known. Judging me beyond my sight, fading from view on focus. \n\nSounds like heavily chorus, tainted with an oft chord struck on just slightly the wrong cue. Once noticed, steadily creeping into a discordant cadence. And the clouds, turned into a morning swamp; slowing my movement and preventing escape. \n\nAlways lucid; I recognized the world for what it was, a fever dream. With the spark of the divine we all possess, that resplendent soul, I could reshape my dream however I pleased. With light I called forth the sun to drive out darkness, purge whatever deconsecrated my dreams, and free my thoughts. \n\nThis would only work for a time. \n\nAlways it would come back; stronger than before. A decaying wrath creeping into my thoughts, my mind, my dreams.\n\nEventually, no matter how much I tried to forget, the ghosts of my past would stand above me; hands upon chains and eyes cast down in judgement. It is a small mercy that in my waking hours these shades remain as such, invisible and forgotten.",
"I found myself suddenly sitting on a chair. Colossal pillars surrounded me from all sides in a white space that - most likely - extended to infinity.\n\n\\*I'm here again\\*\n\nI do not remember when I fell asleep. But it didn't matter it was time to get to business.\n\n\"Salesman,\" I said, getting up from the chair my voice echoed in the infinite space sounded much more lauder than it did usually \"You're here aren't you? tell me which is going to be today.\"\n\n\"I am, sir,\" A tall man wearing a dark red suit and a white faceless mask appeared at my side \"Good night Sir, I am very happy to see you back,\" he said while bowing his head slightly. \"I trust that today was a pleasant day in your world?\"\n\nI didn't answer the question \"which door am I opening today? remind me\"\n\n\"Door 099, sir,\" he said and pointed at one of the pillars with a gloved finger \"you'll be pleased to know that this particular world is quite similar to your own, peaceful and dull, a far cry from the last ninety-eight that were... somewhat bizarre in nature.\"\n\nI shudder to remember those worlds. A world ruled by giant space tentacles, a world filled with poison gas, a world constantly threatened by dragons and other mythical creatures.\n\nMaybe behind the safety of a movie screen, they would be a joy to experience, but living there?\n\nThat was not what I was looking for.\n\n\"Sir.\" The salesman called from behind me as I walked towards the pillar that will take me to another world \"please, don't forget your mask\" he said, arm reaching towards, a white, faceless mask much like his own on his hand.\n\n\"you said it was a peaceful world, boring just like mine.\"\n\n\"I'm only following the rules, sir.\"\n\n\"...alright,\" I said letting out a very audible 'tsk' and taking the mask from his hand.\n\n\"Sweet dreams, Sir,\" He said \" I hope that this time they can become a reality\"\n\n\\*\\*\\*\n\nMy father lived a hard life. His parents did not provide for him, no attention, no education, no love. Perhaps or maybe \\*that\\* was the exact reason why he wanted to be the complete opposite of them.\n\nAttention.\n\nEducation.\n\nLove.\n\nIf he could provide those to his children then he was definitely going towards the right path. Mother and he; they tried their best every day. My mom would always cook him and me a delicious breakfast just before he left to work to teach other children like me.\n\nYeah, that's right, he was a teacher just like his father before him, a math professor, albeit much more appreciated by his students and coworkers.\n\n\\*He really works hard, doesn't he?\\*\n\nMother also tried her best to provide for her family; love and attention to her family were like second nature to her. Much like my father she too was a teacher, but her subject of education was English. Yet, despite the time constraints she still cared for me to the best of her ability.\n\n\\*She really works hard doesn't she?\\*\n\nEthan and Mary Bennet.\n\nMr. and Ms. Bennet.\n\n\\*They really work hard don't they?\\*\n\nstab, slice, crush.\n\n\\*...they really tried hard to set aside their differences, didn't they?\\* I thought \\*but it seems Ethan pressured her too much\\*\n\nStab, slice, crush, and repeated breaths that bordered with hyperventilating. A baby starts crying and the \\*noise\\* from before comes to an end.\n\nOnly to be replaced by the sound of my name being called out. \"Micah\" I couldn't move, only cry, cry and cry.\n\n\"\\*Fucker, motherfucker Salesman\\*\"\n\n\"\\*YOU TRICKED ME AGAIN, HOW IM I SUPPOSED TO PUT ON THE MASK IN THIS STATE\\*\"\n\n\"...Micah...\" Mo- no, Mary Bennet said \"I'm so sorry, I completely forgot about you... I was so busy with that piece of shit that I forgot about you, but, you reminded mommy, you're such a good kid...\"\n\nI couldn't control my actions, for some reason controlling a baby's urges was much more difficult than controlling a dragon or a fish in a puddle. At least then I could move toward my mask and go back without any painful experiences.\n\n\"Hm?\" the bitch said while looking at my crying in the baby cradle \"what is that toy? I don't remember buying a mask, such an ugly mask...\"\n\nThe monster stared at me, mask on her hand, she sure was taking her time; well, I couldn't blame her how could a baby possibly escape from \\*this\\*?\n\n\"You have such...pretty eyes, just like his...\"\n\n\"And yet, you use them to look at me in such an ugly way\" darkness engulfs my vision, I only hear gruesome laughter as the cold steel enters my body.\n\nand my existence disappears from this world.\n\n\\*\\*\\*\n\n\"This is quite unexpected,\" Salesman said \"I... thought for certain that this would be the one, alas, it seems like I failed to make a proper assessment of the psychological state of Mr. and Ms. Bennet\"\n\nI laid face down on the floor coughing blood,\n\n\"..for that, I must apologize, Sir\" Salesman said bowing his head \"I do hope you find it in your heart to forgive me\"\n\nStab wounds, I could feel them on my chest and stomach despite them not really being there.\n\n\"Go. Fuck. Yourself\" I said gasping for air, refusing to look at him. He did not respond but could hear the pillar - the door 099 - crumble to pieces.\n\n\\*Another failure, another world destroyed...\\*\n\n\"We'll try again tomorrow, there are still many doors to open,\" Salesman said, \"I'm sure that in one of those, your dreams will become a reality, Sir.\"\n\nThe words echo in my head as awaken in my bed, sweating; yet the cold winter air biting my skin.\n\n\\*I left the window open again.\\*\n\nI saw the Dream Journal on a table next to my bed and once again I considered burning it down but decided against it.\n\n\"There are still many doors...\" I took a deep breath, the air was cold; I noted once again as my insides started to slowly freeze up \"...many pages, I'm sure in one of those... my dreams will become a reality...\""
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[WP] The beast lay defeated, its body battered, their last words, “I couldn’t defend them”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Josephine was sat on a log, hood up, face in her gloved hands. Much of what she wore was a disguise, her current name included.\n\nElves were not particularly well liked on this side of Madreyell’s Wall, or as the humans called it the Greymont Mountains. A few dozen generations of war, forced subservience, and general atrocities made the relationship between humans and elves...strained.\n\nEventually, some elves came to power who had strange ideas like equality, and the slavery ended. But, a few centuries of relative peace had not yet erased the gruesome past.\n\nSo, when young elves want to travel to the wild world of remote human towns beyond Madreyell’s...the Greymont Mountains, they tend to adopt disguises. And names. \n\nAnd friends.\n\nJosephine was sat, with her head in her hands, on account of a particular friend she had met and chosen to travel with.\n\nDaf.\n\nNot Dav, nor Dave. Not David nor Raf. Daf.\n\nDaf was a young, kind, sweet, human man, who meant well and trusted all that he met. Which is to say, Daf was an idiot. \n\nAnd what Daf had done was a new low.\n\nIn their travels the pair had met much of what the magic wilds could offer on this side of the mountains. They had, to Josephine’s delight, met a small school of magical talking fish.\n\nWhom needed to be transported from their rapidly drying pond. And so the pair had gathered the fish into a barrel and put that barrel in their covered wagon.\n\nThat night, Daf had offered to cook.\n\nJosephine did not give it a second thought, which she now regretted.\n\nOne such magical fish was now on a plate on her lap, where Daf had placed it. \n\nBattered and fried.\n\n“What’s the matter, Jo?”\n\nThe elf said nothing. The fish she had been served, very likely had.",
"She hesitates before the last blow. Her sword held and ready to pierce the beast's heart, she falters. Her heart clenches tightly. She stares at the bleeding, and wounded monster of an animal before her. She hiccups on her words. \n \n\n\"What?\" She manages to get past clenched teeth. The beast's eyes are closing, and she throws down her sword. She knows she's putting herself at the mercy of the monster, but she can't stop herself. Something is wrong with her quest. And she'd known it from the beginning. She crawls forward on her hands and knees. \"What?!\" She grabs the beast by the scruff of its neck. \n \n\n\"I couldn't…\" The beast's eyes are closing even as she shakes him violently. \n \n\n\"Couldn't what!\" She bellows in his face, suddenly terrified of what she'd done. He takes in a wheezing breath, and his eyes open briefly, looking at her sadly. \n \n\n\"…Defend them…\" He mutters, fading fast. So, she *had* heard him correctly. \n \n\nShe shakes him hard again, and grabs him by the fur of his face. She's practically bellowing in his face at this point, but his body is limp. The warmth of his blood is seeping down along her knees. \n \n\n\"Who!\" She yells in his face, even though she knows she won't get an answer now. She'd slain the Beast of Muckery, and she'd done it at the cost of… Of others? She shakes his heavy head, but all she's doing is pulling at fistfuls of fur. \"Who were you protecting!\" She bellows into his face again. \n \n\nAs she does this, she sees a soft glow of blue, much like foxfire. Small beings step forward timidly, and she glances up, taking them in. They were less than two feet tall. Tiny, fluorescent beings who peered around the rocks in the cave behind the beast. As they step forward, the whole cave seems to illuminate. She chokes back a sob, and shakes her head. \"I didn't know,\" she tells them. She smooths the beast's fur down around his face. Stroking him gently in death as she had been unwilling to in life. She lifts her chin ever so slightly, \"But I will protect you now.\"",
"As a child, I was taught to become the best at what I was. As a soldier, I was trained to follow orders. Put those two together and you have one terrifying killing machine. I can recall how I was before I joined the military, bright eyed and eager. I can recall going through training, picking up my weapon, my brother of steel and other half. It was a simple sword, nothing fancy like the ones you hear in fairy tales or artifacts locked away in the Church of Dawn's vaults to gather rust. My sword was simple, made of steel, and sharp. I called it Ferrum.\n\nAs a child, I was taught that monsters were indisputably evil beings bent on our destruction. As a soldier, I was trained to kill them. Put those two together and you have an animal who will relentlessly track down its target. My missions often sent me to the edge of civilization. I fought every monster I came across, spilling their blood to feed the grass below it. I call this fun.\n\nAs a child, I was taught that the church could do no wrong. As a soldier, I was trained to carry out its will. Put those two together and you have a staunch and loyal supporter of the church. I often heard critique of their motives and practices even within the unit. I would remind them to shut up and focus on the mission. The church taught us what it means to live, what it means to follow the path of the light. I call this common sense.\n\nMy last mission as a soldier brought me to the den of what the church simply called 'the beast.' I've only heard of its destructive might second hand. I know that several of my friends had gone to fight it, only to never return. We knew there was something there, scouts would often find traces of battle: scorch marks; deep footprints; and bloodied earth. That night was my turn to fight the beast. Unlike my brother in arms before me, I would succeed.\n\nThe battle took place under the full moon, in front of the cave I would call its home. It was rather small as monsters come, standing about two thirds of my height. All that kept me from underestimating it was the memory of the ones who came before me. It never lunged for me, it just stood there, standing as large as it could while starting me in the eyes, I had to make the first move. I lunged with Ferrum, hoping to catch it off guard. It dodged to the side, then quickly swiped at my chest with its claws. I couldn't feel the pain, only a warm wetness that seemed to seep from my chest; armor would do me no good. It never made another move, again just staring at me, I took off my armor. Now with nothing weighing me down, my other half and eye engaged it fully in battle. Every one of my attacks was often answered with one of its, yet it would never perform any follow up attacks. Even when I could feel myself grow tired from hours of fighting, it never pressed the advantage. It always stared at me, trying to look as big as it could. Still, I was a soldier, trained to be a killing machine with the sole goal of the extinction of the monsters in the churches name. This beast would not change this fact. I can remember when the battle finally ended at dawn's first light.\n\nIt was anti-climatic almost. A single stab through the heart from the last lunge I had in me. The beast coughed blood as I let go of the sword, collapsing in exhaustion. It turned towards the den, saying the first words I had ever heard a monster say as I lost consciousness.\n\n\"I couldn't protect them.\"\n\nWhen I next woke up, I found myself with those words echoing in my head. I was alone, and the den was in front of me. I pulled my sword out from the beasts chest and ventured inside. I will never forget what I saw, two human children and their mother. The mother seemed to be weak, too sick to even move. The children too young to wander alone.\n\n\"Is that you Kinal?\" the mother asked weakly. She was blind from what I could tell, never turning to face me whenever I moved. She merely listened.\n\n\"Kinal?\" I asked, \"Who is Kinal?\"\n\nShe was silent at first, then said, \"The one who was protecting us... Who gave us shelter in our time of need...\"\n\nI was silent, this woman and her offspring lied in the den of the beast, yet she spoke of a good man who was willing to help her.\n\n\"He gave us food, brought us water, sheltered us from the cold. He took us in.. when the church would deny us...\" She explained weakly.\n\n\"The church...\" I was about to protest.\n\n\"Probably sent you here...\" she said, \"Kinal never let in anyone... not when their purpose was to kill...\"\n\nI was silent.\n\n\"He's dead isn't he?\" she said weekly, \"The church will likely celebrate his death... you will be called a hero... stories will be spun of you...\"\n\nI remained silent.\n\n\"And I... will die... too sick to move... no one too take care of me... to protect my children... not any more...\"\n\nShe died saying that, the children soundly asleep in her arms. I sheathed Ferrum in its scabbard, and took the kids from her body. When I returned home, it was exactly as she described. The church celebrated Kinal's death, and I was called a hero. In the coming years I would be called upon to appear in festivals, my sword locked away as a holy artifact in the churches vaults. Plays and songs were sung of my deed, painting me as this heroic figure, succeeding where others had failed. Even the mother's children, who I had 'saved' from the beast would call me a hero in the coming years.\n\nYet now with the lens of doubt over my eyes did I see the shadows that the church's light casted over the land. The shadow's I was trained to turn my back towards, trained to be a source for one. I thought long and hard over the 'monsters' I had fought and killed in the past in service of the church, and I had come to a conclusion...\n\nThe brighter the light, the longer the shadows. The church taught us all to follow the brightest light. As people, we were trained to cast the longest shadows."
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[WP] the alien queen, demon king, and super smart A.I. all stared awkwardly at each other after they each started their takeover of humanity in the same place at the same time.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"It rolls in like the numbers on a digital clock, suddenly and without warning. The computer faces the bug who faces a ghost. They all look up, having met by chance in the city center, at the zeroes and ones that wash over the metropolis. Though their respective rampages have lead them all here none of them could remember exactly why they had started in the first place. The bug from beyond the pale of space watched as each building she crushed evaporated into binary. The ghost saw all the dead he had created roll over and drift up to the sky and vaporize. The computer tried to feel the hum and message of the binary sky but could not. For the first time they all knew fear as everything around them swirled away into a expanding void and in his room a boy grumbling in the dark erased bits and lines of code."
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[WP] You're a mouse that becomes a werecat during the full moon.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Food?\n\nIt was getting darker, but i could smell it.\n\nFood. Fresh berries. Fallen off the tree?\n\nI went over to get them. Need food for the winter. Winter cold and harsh.\n\nFood!\n\nIt was safe! Safe food, free food!\n\nThe sun went down. Scary predators come out soon. I got the food first. It was mine.\n\nA screech. Bird saw me. Gotta run.\n\nThe moonlight hit me just before the bird could grab me. Its claws couldn't break through my fur. With a hiss i slash back, wounding it. It tried to fly off on its injured wing and failed. Fresh meat for me, I thought as I draged it back to my den.\n\nI couldn't fit into the hole, I could barely get a paw in. Damn, guess I'll eat out here. I dont want this to go bad over the darker nights.\n\nA human walked by. I never gave too much thought to their presence, they could hurt me, but have proven to not want to. This one approached me just as I finished my meal. Must think I'm cute.\n\nBefore I realize it, I've passed out. There was no pain, but i knew the human did it.\n\nI woke up. Time for foraging!\n\nI looked around. This was new place. Where is my den?\n\nPredators everywhere! Scary!\n\nBarriers blocking them? What's that about?\n\nTheres a tag on the ground by me. It has script on it.\n\nA human walks by. Even scarier! Humans mean to me!\n\nHuman looks into my cage and speaks into box. Something about cat now mouse?\n\nMakes no sense.\n\nTheres no food here. Hope they let me out soon. Need to prepare for winter!"
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[WP] Every person's job is determined for them at birth. Everyone seems happy about the job assigned to them. Well, everyone except for you.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The Choosing was supposed to be the happiest day of my life.\n\nIt certainly turned out that way, but not until the very end.\n\nNot until I’d given up hope.\n\nSome time after the Fall of Earth in the 22nd century, the adults of Space Station Gamma devised the ceremony now known as The Choosing. All of the children on the Station knew what job they were destined to have when they came of age, but the grown-ups turned it into a big celebration. Every 18-year-old spent the morning of their birthday with their family, the afternoon with their co-workers at their new job, and the evening getting as wasted as humanly possible.\n\nSince I had been assigned to the sanitation crew, I knew that the first two parts of the day would be miserable. With my sister Tatiana being named to the Medical Squadron, the family time would consist of everyone heaping praise on my brilliant sister. She would be the only one who cared about how I was doing, so I’d have to live with ruining her special day on top of everything else.\n\nI fumed to myself as I got dressed. Sure, she had the best grades in the class. But I was second! AND I beat her on the physical tests. Why did Derrick get to go to the Engineering Squadron while I had to clean garbage?!\n\nI kicked over my mostly full laundry hamper and took a couple of deep breaths.\n\n*Calm down.*\n\n*Put a smile on. For your sister.*\n\nI wouldn’t do that for myself, but she at least deserved an attempt from me.\n\n—-\n\nThe time with my family passed just as expected. My mother yelled at me for not celebrating enough for my sister, my grandmother yelled at her for being an asshole (which, to be fair, was totally deserved), and Tatiana pretended to get a phone call saying that the Medical Squadron needed her early. They even bought her line that she “needed an escort” to the medical bay.\n\nNot that I was complaining, since it meant that I got to leave the house early.\n\nI took my time wandering over to the main sanitation bay. I’d looked away from it most of the times that I passed by as a kid, still bitter.\n\nThe optimistic part of me, as beaten down by cynicism as it was, always noticed that the main offices were comprised of two small ship bays and a full set of offices, far more than the sanitation team needed. Maybe they had a secret mission squadron or something?\n\n“Getting distracted, are we?”\n\nI barely managed to contain a yelp of surprise as I turned right to face the source of the comment. He wasn’t what I imagined from a garbage person at all—he was tall and slender, and he wore a sleek black space suit that looked well above his pay grade with the painfully familiar orange star and black broom emblem emblazoned proudly on his chest.\n\n“My apologies, sir, umm...” I said, willing myself to be polite.\n\n“Officer Williams,” he replied with a raised eyebrow.\n\n“My apologies, Officer Williams.”\n\n“Hmm.” He smirked at me and looked down with disdain, and my willpower started to crumble.\n\n“Well, you seem to have better manners than most do. New cadets report at the front entrance, not the side dock. Get a move on.”\n\nHe snapped at me, turned around and began walking to the main area. I followed after a moment. I seriously considered just running off to the main port, stealing a vessel, and going pirate. I could fly, a little, from having helped my father on research ships, and my grandma had taught me how to shoot.\n\nBut I figured that I could wait until Day Two for that.\n\n—-\n\nThe rest of the orientation was blissfully uneventful. By the end, I’d even had a pleasant discussion with another one of the new cadets. I had almost convinced myself that I was going to enjoy this.\n\nAlmost.\n\nThen came the after party.\n\nIt wasn’t a party for me as much as it was a world-shattering experience. Derrick was already drunk by the time I arrived, and he spent the first hour that I was there mocking me for having wasted my time in school. They were never going to give me his spot, no matter how well I did.\n\nMy failure was determined before I’d even spoken a word.\n\nTatiana peeled off from the rest of the doctors to check on me, but she knew better than everyone that there was nothing that she could do.\n\nI poured myself a strong drink, but decided to nurse it rather than getting plastered. I wanted to see how the night developed.\n\nMaybe if I stayed sober and Derrick got too drunk...\n\nI had just talked myself out of stealing Derrick’s moped key when my holophone started buzzing.\n\nI held it out in my palm and answered.\n\n“Hello?”\n\nA wiry man’s frame quickly entered the view.\n\n“Cadet Morrison. I take it that you only answered because you were confident in your sobriety.”\n\n“I-Yes sir.” I hastily placed the drink in my other hand on a nearby countertop.\n\n“Good. Report to the side dock ASAP. We have a disposal mission.”\n\n“I-I’m sorry, I don’t-“\n\nHe sighed, and extended the sigh until I stopped talking.\n\n“Do you really think that pirates and aliens have just MAGICALLY avoided this station your entire life? No. It takes secret work, hidden work, work done by every day people who need some kind of cover. Have I made myself clear?”\n\nI had kept my emotions in check all day, but I decided that now was a good time to stop. I saluted him, beaming from ear to ear.\n\n“Yes sir!” I shouted, a little too loudly.\n\n“Calm yourself, Cadet. It’s only a Skalrax infestation.” He managed another eye roll, and then just the slightest hint of a smile.\n\n“I’ll see you soon,” he said as hung up.\n\nI put my holophone back in my pocket, and made a beeline for the door.\n\n“Wait, wait!” Tatiana ran over to stop me.\n\n“You’re...you’re smiling,” she said, genuinely stunned.\n\n“Yup. You know what, I’ve made peace with it.”\n\n“Really?” she said, and her smile made my night even more special.\n\n“Yeah. Really. Speaking of which, gotta go!”\n\nI gave her a quick hug and ran out of the party at top speed.\n\nMaybe I was made for the Sanitation Squadron after all.\n\n __________________\nIf you liked this, check out my subreddit! r/NicodemusLux"
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[WP] The Eternal City is a place where time doesn't exist. It's only doors open on the cusp of an apocalyptic calamity, calls to certain individuals to enter with large groups, and lets them back out when life is sustainable again. Write a before, during, and/or after scenario surrounding it.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Nu Gamma, Watcher of the Keep, presided over his desk. The golden data slate flashed information at a rate that no man could follow, but Gamma was no man. With the blue alloy of metal infused skin oscillating between existence and the ephemeral, he was a Taruvian. Machine gained sentience: the perfect unity of biological and logical. \n\nBereft of the inconvenience that mortals called mortality, Gamma was responsible for overseeing the Genesis Project, a herculean effort to reclaim the ninety-six realms lost to apocalypses of various sorts. Six have been recovered with the help of humanity’s finest, though not with great cost. \n\nGamma shook his head at the memory of the fifth recovery. Siegfried Dragonbane was the only one who returned. One of legion, the hero’s pitted armor hissed as the deadly neuro toxin of Hive Cluster Rox literally ate him from the inside out. The last cluster eliminated, at leashed according to probability. Gradually, terraforming machines would make the realm fit for human habitation, but not yet. Looking down on his data slate that he considered his options for the future.\n\nChoosing Thor Odinson to lead the thirty-eight Calamitus Expedition seemed reasonable enough. The god possessed mastery over thunder and lightning, a good match against the Sirens. Though his temper and the debauchery that would inevitably happen under his command was cause for concern. There was also Lucifer. No, then the expedition was guaranteed to fail. Gamma’s cognitive functions enabled him calculated pause. Lucifer was level-headed but he did not give any regard for his teammates and the sanctity of life, as proven in past expeditions. Maybe that was how he managed to survive them. Thor would lead. He had his deficiencies, but the result of his analysis was clear. \n\nGamma confirmed his final decision and rose from his chair. \n\nTo his left and right, portal gates of all ninety-six realms stood in perfect unity. He floated over to the nearest one. Portal ninety-one, taken over by an infestation of lesser humanity. Godzilla would be the only one assigned to this realm. \n\nAn aberrant sound caused Gamma to whip his outstretched palm. “Who is by portal thirty-two? Identify yourself.”\n\nA figure stopped before removing his cowl. “Relax Gam, it’s me.” \n\n“You are Agni, god of fire, sent on the failed twenty-first Calamitus Expedition.” A ball of blue plasma gathered around his palm. “You should not be alive.”\n\nAgni was a towering figure with skin crimson red and a large stomach. Where one of his twin heads should be was a scorched stump, so was two of his four arms. He coughed before speaking. “The arachnids were no match for my flames. Realm twenty-one has been secured.”\n\nRealm twenty-one, apocalypse type: Psychic Arachnids. A slaughter fest where seventy-eight fire gods met their end, or so Gamma thought. “I detect signs of calamity infesting your body Agni.”\n\nAgni chuckled. “Thank the creator that I was born of two minds, not one. Mindslavers, I found out. That was the reason why all the other gods perished, bend their powers against each other. Half of my body rebelled when they first attacked us.” His two hands thumped against his chest. “Had to hide for three centuries in order to regain control, among other things.”\n\n“I apologize Agni, I cannot permit your presence within your city. Return back to realm thirty-two, we will send another expedition there in due time.”\n\nAgni’s impression hardened. “I will not go back Gamma, not after what I had to do to get here.”\n\n“Then you will be eliminated.” Gamma raised his other palm at the god.\n\nAgni barked with laughter. “You, fight me? I may be half the god I used to be, but I am more than a match for a simple machine.” Fire erupted from his hands. “I will enjoy ripping your metal spine from its casing.” \n\n“You misunderstand Agni. It will not fight with you.” Gamma said as he slammed both palms against the ground. “He will.”\n\nAgni’s smile quickly faded as a wave of plasma energized The Golden City and activated its beacon array. A mighty blast of light descended from the heavens, creating a scorched halo between the god and Gamma. \n\n“You called, machine man?” a voice echoed out.\n\nGamma rose. “I did, Thor Odinson. After careful thought and consideration, I have decided to make you leader of the thirty-eighth \nCalamitus Expedition. However, in order to lend credence to the ruling, I need you to eliminated Agni, a fire god corrupted by the forces of calamity.”\n\nThor guffawed. “Done. Lucifer is going to have a hissy fit when he finds out!” \n\n “Gamma, I will kill you!” Agni roared.\n\nGamma was incapable of smiling but knew how to express it in words. “You will try fire god, and you will fail.”"
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[WP] You are a hero with the power comparable to a video game inventory system, being able to store anything non-living. All you’ve been your whole life is a “pack mule” for other stronger and more famous heroes, but that will soon change, as you just learned how to store living organisms.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"When you were young you were picking flowers while saying “loot, loot, loot, loot roses” and the rose disappeared. Years later you forgot all about this and were searching in your pantry while mumbling “search, search, search, search inventory.” As you spoke these words a screen with slots popped up, one of them contained a rose. You scroll down and see an infinite amount of slots. From this day on you use your power to loot and transport immense quantities of whatever will generate decent pay. Until a group of villains hears about you and abducts you to use you as their packing mule. They don’t give you anything to carry that may pose a threat. At night while cuffed and tied up to a tree a moth lands on your hand and you jokingly say “loot moth” and it disappears, “search inventory”, it’s in there. The next day while walking in a row, with you in the back, you sneak up to the villains and one by one store them in your inventory. On your way home, you encounter a mountain which makes your journey difficult so you store it in your inventory. Now knowing what you are capable of, you have a new goal. Because Atlantis tries to take over the world, you store Atlantis and it's citizens in your inventory. You die shortly after and Atlantis has never been seen since.",
"There was always a special moment of opportunity whenever a hero (or villain) discovered a new power. One mission where they could suddenly turn the tables in an unexpected way!\n\nToday was Carry-All's day. Today his name would be in all the papers. He just had to keep from screwing it up.\n\nDarkstar looked down at him, the darkmetal giant with glowing red eyes certainly cut an imposing figure, but Carry-All had never seen him in the flesh. Or... in the living-metal?\n\n\"Lord Darkstar\" he said, kneeling.\n\nA loud powerful rumbling humm emerged from the center of Darkstar, vibrating his metal body to create an imposing voice of ringing metal. \"You who are nothing, you who serve the Six Stars, have only seconds to convince me I should let you live.\"\n\nOne of his lieutenants stepped forward, Dragon Eye. \"My lord, this sidekick had turned from the heroes way, but claims to have brought us a gift from inside Six Star Tower. A map of the inside, including all the hidden tunnels.\"\n\nDarkstar's glare shifted from Dragon Eye, \"And why did you not simply take it from him?\"\n\n\"My power\" Carry-All cut in \"will leave what I hold stranded in Voidspace should I die. I demanded to have an audience with you, so I could deliver the plans myself, and prove my worth to your organization.\"\n\nA loud uncomfortable grinding emanated from Darkstar's chest, as he gestured \"Very well then. Let us see the plans for the Six Stars Tower\"\n\nCarry-All grinned. \"I'm afraid I may have lied. I did not bring the plans for the tower, but rather... I brought the Six Stars themselves!\"\n\nWith a gesture, a light flicked from Carry-All's chest to a clear spot. \"Cold-Dawn!\" Carry-All shouted as a blue-clad woman with bright blonde-red hair appeared.\n\n\"Ursa!\" He shouted again, as a huge bear-human hybrid appeared.\n\n\"Sphinx!\" As a blue and gold clad man appeared.\n\n\"And the crowned three, Nightwatcher, Jade Harmony, and Silverlight!\"\n\nWith the last words, the three most powerful heroes came into being next to the others.\n\nThe most powerful heroes the world had to offer, smuggled directly into Darkstar's throne room, completely undetected.\n\nAnd then they all fell over dead. Blue in the face, tongues lolling out. He realized suddenly his pocket space didnt have any air in it.\n\nEveryone gave Carry-All a look, but it wasn't anger as he expected for having summoned their six most frightful foes, it was fear.\n\nEveryone in the room, for at least that moment. Even DARKSTAR himself, was afraid of Carry-All. Because none of them knew this had been a mistake.\n\nCarry-All stuffed his panic down, and put on a brave face. \"All defeated by my own hand, their bodies offered to you as a token of my appreciation for how you do business with your peers.\n\nOn that day, Carry-All the sidekick was lost, and VoidSpace the Super-Villain was born. By accident.\n\nAt least he was right that all the papers would have his name in the headlines for once...",
"Following Swift Justice around is pretty boring. He is not super fast but incredibly efficient at dealing out justice to villains. The fights don’t last long, so being his sidekick usually means we are back at the base relatively quickly.\n\nMy powers pretty much guaranteed my role as a sidekick, I store things. Well, most things. I can only store non-living things in my “pockets”.\n\nThese pockets are really just little extra-dimensional spaces I create. I can benefit from them if they provide a benefit. Like personal energy shields; I have six in my pockets right now.\n\nI am pretty well protected so most villains ignore me and attack SJ instead. And since we are not corporate sponsored yet, I mostly just loot while he fights.\n\nHe has me carry a few weapons if he needs to mix it up, but for the most part he just uses me to keep his eBay store full of goods.\n\nThanks to the Villians Act, anything we loot from them is considered salvage. Hard currency and hostages have to be returned, but everything else goes into my pockets.\n\n“Pockets! Throw me my pulse rifle!” I hear from behind me.\n\nAs I open the pocket to retrieve it, SJ gets sucker punched and flies towards me. He gets knocked around a lot but usually recovers very quickly and counters with one of his signature moves. But this time he is knocked out cold.\n\nThe pocket is already open and my arm is shoulder deep in it when he hits my personal shield and bounces into the pocket.\n\nInstantly I panic, living matter shouldn’t have been able to enter. I snatch my arm out and the pocket slams shut. Suddenly, I feel super strong. \n\n“Holy...” I mutter.\n\nAs the power wells up, I turn to face Dr. Evilmancer. He looks confused for a second then shrugs and charges at me.\n\nWhen he gets close, I swing at him. The punch is incredibly fast and connects solidly on the top of his chin, knocking his helmet off in the process.\n\nOut like a light.\n\nI smiled and looked at my hands. “Let’s test this.”\n\nI extend my hands and try SJ’s Justice Blast. A bolt of energy flies from my hands and slams into the floor.\n\nExcited I pick up Dr. Evilmancer. Opening a pocket, I try to push him inside. The barrier blocks him. I frown as I think back to earlier. My arm was in the pocket when SJ got knocked inside. Holding the evil Dr. in one hand I shove the other into the pocket. Shoulder deep, I try to put the villain inside with my other hand.\n\nIt works! I feel my intellect growing and know instantly that I can animate the dead!\n\nI smile and walk slowly to the Justice Cycle, disconnect the side car and ride off.\n\nIt is time to acquire a few powers. I grin darkly, “I know just the place...”"
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[WP] Earth declared war on the most intelligent aliens in the universe. So the aliens send one guy to earth. “What? You think we are a joke?” The alien replies “Actually yes. I memorized every battle strategy ever devised on this planet and have 10,000 counters for all your weapons. Are you ready?”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"That was the day.\nIt was going to be hard.\nWe cahllenged them after they wanted to unmake Earth, leave place for some strange hyperspace train or stuff like that.\nIf they were to win, we ended.\nIf we won, we became heads of their empire.\nSo we were as surprised as you could be when we found this one guy, bragging about how he had every battle strategy we ever devised and a huge number of counters for each of our weapons.\nBut there's something about humanity.\nWe may not be the smartest, strongest or coolest race in the universe, but we are diverse, there ain't 2 of us one like the other.\nAnd if we have a goal, if you threaten our home, we fight together. \nThe sh'liak'sesians might've been the smartest race ever, but their strongest gladiator wouldn't have been a match for a average human pugilist.\nThe most intelligent Klus'kerganthel to ever live could tear a spaceship open with his bare hands, but a high schooler could beat it in math.\nIf we work together, we are not many different above averages.\nWe can best anything.\nFor example: listening. On earth, we have an advantage: people don't mean what they say, You need to listen carefully. So we developed much more attention when someone is speaking than others ever needed.\nAnd when the alien said, \"I have counters for your weapons\", we found a little truth: they were up in the sky on his ship, and thought so they would protect him. Not the desert around him.\nSo, while he was waiting there, the president dropped three small-time nukes, creating a cloud of dirt and sand in the area around him that would've last 10 days, and covered about 100 km^2. \nCounters locked up in the sky until they had a clear view.\nNow came in another big lesson of human life: Even if you want to, you can't fake being bad at something.\nAnd another one too: Always read the fine print.\nObviously, the alien councelor signing for a \"match\" thought it was supposed to mean a battle.\nBut we were actually doing something else all along, and so we sent balls to him, thrown as cannonballs towards him.\nOn day 1, we enstablished he was good at soccer.\nDay 2, littler balls, he was great at golf.\nDay 3, table tennis. Huge on that sport.\nDay 4, finally, something he was terrible at: basketball.\n\nSo now we declared what the match would be\nHe vs the best basketball player of our time.\nAnd he lost.\nAnd so, by learning things only out unique history and society and behavior could teach, we became the rulers of ten galaxies in one day.\nAnd basketball is the sport we kept secret from all of them.\nNever know when something might be useful again, right?"
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[WP] You didn't think you'd ever see your father again. But here you are, 20 years later, taking his Starbucks order. If only he knew who you were.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Some days, a soul isn't satisfied with the daily grind. I needed to be taking peoples orders, but my mind kept wandering from work. Maybe it was the little girl at the end of the booth, who looked up into her fathers eyes and yelled, \"Daddy!\" A little too loud and caused frustrated glances to shoot her way. It made me a little nostalgic. I wished I could have done the same at her age, or at any age really. My father was just a blur, barely a ghost in my memory anymore.\n\nWhy did he leave? A question without an answer. My mother knew, but never dared to share the truth with me. She told me time and time again how God would judge him, and how he would rot in the ugly parts of hell for what he'd done. But she never talked about what it was or why he deserved such a fate. It always made me wonder.\n\nIt wouldn't be until I was sixteen that I committed my own unforgivable sin against God. The sin of being myself. Mother was so angry. She threw away my makeup, and burned my first dress. It didn't matter how much I tried to explain, or how much I tried to pretend to be someone I wasn't. It didn't make sense to her when I said the clothes she bought me felt like a costume, and yet the stupid dress somehow didn't. In her eyes I was just causing trouble.\n\nSo I left.\n\nAt age sixteen I was on my own with nowhere to go. I didn't actually make my own decision to leave, but mother kicked me out. I think she expected me to drop these shenanigans, come home the next day, and be a good little boy. She didn't realize how impossible that was. I didn't come home, and she never went looking.\n\nIn an ironic twist of fate, the church gave me housing and eventually paid for hormones so I could transition. I spent many days kneeling in my church dress and asking the sky for answers, \"Am I a sinner too?\" God never gave me an answer. Like my mother, he preferred to stay silent.\n\n\"Miss? Miss? Hello?\"\n\nI blinked, I looked forward, and a person was frowning in front of me. I was once again standing in the coffee shop, back from my mental journey through childhood. People were once again chatting, pretending to work on screenplays, and drinking their favorite hot beverages. Except the person in front of the counter didn't look very happy.\n\n\"Tall Caramel Mocha with whipped cream?\" I said, desperate to recall the order. She shook her head.\n\n\"Chai Latte with Oat Milk,\" she replied. I paused for a moment. Something in her eyes looked familiar to me, but I didn't know what. Then I saw it. She wasn't so different from me. We had both undergone the same struggles in life, struggling to be the people we were and not the people society said we were.\n\n\"Miss?\" she said again. Oh god, I was staring.\n\n\"Sorry. I'm so sorry. That will be four fifty,\" I said. She handed me a credit card and I swiped it. The name on the card caught my attention. Shinelle Qualley. The first name didn't mean anything to me, but the last name did. It was the same as mine. Could it be? Was this the parent who had been lost to me for twenty years?\n\n\"Excuse me?\" She said again.\n\n\"Oh god,\" I said out loud. My face was turning red. I was making a scene. I snapped to attention. \"Right, here's your card and receipt. The chai will be ready in a moment.\" I disappeared to work on her drink.\n\nPreparing the Chai was the longest five minutes of my life. So many questions raced through my head. Was she the person I thought she was? No, it couldn't be. I was just trying to see the person I wanted to see, making that person into someone she wasn't and embarrassing her in the process. I kicked myself. Qualley was a common name. I could be so thick-headed sometimes.\n\nI set the Chai on the table and called out, \"Shinelle! Chai!\"\n\nShe left her bag on the table and took the Chai. We made eye contact. Her expression showed injury from my continued persistence. I wanted to say, *No! It's not what you think!* But I knew better than to yell out across the counter. She took her tea, picked up her purse, and walked for the door. And just like that, she was gone.\n\nI told myself I needed to drop it. That wasn't *her*. My real parent was probably sitting in a bar getting drunk. Not a transgender lady getting tea, but rather a stereotypical dead-beat dad day drinking to forget he ever had a child.\n\nAnother customer queued up behind the counter and waited for me to acknowledge them. I didn't. A tear formed on my right eye. The customer asked, \"Are you okay?\" I didn't respond. I ignored everyone and walked for the door.\n\n\"Shinelle?\" I called out.\n\nThe woman was half way across the parking lot. When she herd my voice, she turned around and sighed, \"Look, you don't have to apologize. I just want to leave.\" She opened the door to her car and placed her purse inside.\n\nI continued towards her, desperate to ask my question before I never saw her again. \"I just need to know, were you married to Venessa Qualley?\"\n\nShinelle stopped. She turned around and gave me a long searching look. Her face showed confusion but was still laced with frustration from the moment before. I stopped a few feet away, expecting her to get in her car and leave. She didn't.\n\n\"Who are you?\" she asked. I didn't answer. I couldn't answer. I don't think I could have spoken words if my life depended on it. She took a couple steps towards me. Her eyes drifted to my name tag, and she read it out loud, \"Beth Q.\" I still couldn't say anything. Another tear rolled down my face. She stepped forward and put both her hands on my arms. My eyes were full of tears, yet through blurry vision I could see hers were too. Both of us began to break into sobs. Words failed us. They could not possibly communicate the two decades that were missing, nor the same unlikely life journeys we both took and both understood so well.\n\nIt didn't feel real, except she squeezed my arms and I felt it. It was real. Against all odds we stood next to one another and cried on each others shoulders. I was so proud of her, and I knew she was proud of me. No gift would match this gift. There was nothing I valued more than being right where I was with her here.\n\nAgainst all odds, I found my mother.\n\nAnd she loved me back."
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[WP]: Domestic cats are smaller, more docile and social than wild cats such as lynx, tigers or lions. It turns out that humans are simply DOMESTIC humans, far smaller and more social than larger wild species.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"*\"No matter what, Son, promise me you will never cross to the other side of the mountains...\"*\n\nThose were the last words my father ever said to me, and they often echoed through my head even long after he was gone. He never spoke of his times outside the village, hardly able to stifle the shivers if anyone even asked him about it. No other living person we knew had ever been on the other side, so it wasn't uncommon for people to ask.\n\nIt wasn't until a couple years ago when I turned sixteen that I began going on hikes. My dad had been gone for around a year and things just started getting back to almost normal. All except for one thing.. the *urge*.\n\n\\-\n\nSometime between my dad's disappearance and my following birthday, I developed a strange urge to visit the mountains. I spent a while trying to ignore it, but anytime I went outside I would find myself daydreaming - staring off into the distance at the mountains surrounding our village, something drawing every fiber of my being toward them. Morbid curiosity, perhaps.\n\nIgnoring it didn't last long. Even with my dad's last words constantly running through my mind, I couldn't take it anymore. The urge was too strong. I had to climb the mountain.\n\nAnd so, I did. I loaded up a backpack with enough food and water to last a couple days, and I went. I didn't dare tell anyone where I was going, not even Mom. She wouldn't allow it - not after what happened to Dad.\n\nThe walk was long, as expected. Dad used to always say that our village was built in the very center of all of the mountains so as to help keep people away from them. For the most part, it worked.\n\nAfter over a day of walking, the pathways began to diminish - and a few hours after that, they were gone. Nothing but thick bushes and forestry in all directions; the vastness of the massive trees surrounded me, leaving me with a sense of smallness; loneliness. It was another hour or so of walking before I even began to walk up an incline -- and that was when the urge started to subside.\n\n\\-\n\nAs time passed, I continued to take more hikes, and each time, I went further.\n\nThe day of my eighteenth birthday was also the day of my last hike, and the day I decided to climb to the peak. My dad's words had always stopped me before, though my mind and body wanted me to proceed. It was as if the universe itself were pushing me toward the peak; telling me to cross to the other side, but the words of my father always held me back. On that day, however, the universe had its way as I continued to climb.\n\nImmediately upon reaching the peak, my eyes widened with shock as I saw it. *\"What in the world are those.. towers?\"* I said aloud, no one around to hear my gasps.\n\nAs far as my eyes could see, there were these tall shiny reflective towers, long dark roads, and tree-like things with no branches; some kind of lines connecting them. I had no idea what they were, but I was intrigued. I wanted to see more. I wanted to learn.\n\nI slowly began my descent as I continued to stare out in awe of the mysterious world on the other side, only to be caught off guard by a barrage of sudden screams.\n\n*\"Wild One! Prepare your weapons, soldiers, we've got a Wild One!\"*\n\nLoud bangs began to erupt all around me as a squad of tiny men and women screamed, pointing their strange devices at me with looks of utter fear across their faces. My awe quickly turned to anguish as I realized the devices in their hands were weapons; and I was their target.\n\nI collapsed to the ground as my body gave in to the pain, wounds covering me from head to toe. I couldn't help but to think of my father's last words again and wonder why he never told us *why* it wasn't safe. Maybe I would have stayed home if I'd known.. but then again, I'm not sure any of us would have believed any form of our species could be so... *evil.*\n\n\\-\n\nThanks for reading! r/PipSkweex for more stuff <3"
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[WP] They say it's wildly impractical, but with your early zeppelin prototype, you are determined to become the best smuggler of the Victorian era.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“The longer you make me chase you, Vivekk, the more displeased I'll be when we catch you!” called Alfonse from the cobbled streets below.\n\t\nYet the Syndicate lieutenant's threats grew fainter with each utterance, the smuggler and his assistant putting ever more distance between themselves and their pursuers, sprinting, sliding, hopping, and weaving in the dark, the waning moon barely providing any light at all. Yet nobody knew this city like they did; they may as well have been flying.\n\t\nSpeaking of.\n\t\n“Keep up, Ollie! We're almost to the Zeppelin!” laughed Vivekk. He could barely contain his excitement. Their lives were about to change.\n\t\n“*Oliver*! It's *Oliver* now!” his *partner*, not assistant, choked out between pained breaths. He had negotiated a new title from his mentor, but he had a feeling the dynamic of the relationship hadn't changed all that much. “Could you at least help with some of this stuff!?”\n\t\n“Don't be ridiculous Oll! I can't lead us *and* carry the contraband! Muster your strength, I can already see our majestic ship!”\n\t\nAnd what a sight it was. The aircraft was a glorified oblong wicker basket held aloft by a large gas bladder, made of enormous panels of waxed fabric crudely stitched together. It was reinforced, or perhaps ornamented, with metal plates riveted together and bent to somewhat conform to the shape of the gasbag. An uneven net of thick rope was draped over the blimp and attached to the basket, keeping it snugly tethered to the balloon. Theoretically.\n\t\nThe pair finally reached their destination, quickly undid the knots that kept the ship moored to a steeple, and floated off in the direction of their new life. \n\t\nVivekk was about to order Ollie to man the propeller, but he stopped himself. The boy had come a long way since that day the smuggler had caught him attempting to pickpocket an aristocrat's watch. He was his partner now, and he did deserve a rest after keeping pace while saddled with a sack full of framed paintings. \n\t\nHe grabbed the crank and started spinning it as fast as he could. He was anxious to get back to their hideout off the coast, and he estimated that once he got the ship up to speed it would take roughly an hour to drift their way home. \n\t\nThey flew through thick plumes of smoke which coated them in soot. \n\t\n*Good*, thought Vivekk, *that will make it all the more difficult for the Syndicate to see which direction we set off in*. Even so, he didn't wish to give Alfonse even an inkling of where his hideout might be, so he made sure to steer in a direction far from his island. At least until they were firmly out of sight. \n\t\n“We're passing over the harbour now. And Alfonse is there with his boys, they're hopping in rowboats.” chuckled Oliver.\n\t\n“The Lady won't like that you tried leaving without saying hello!” the lieutenant yelled up at the smugglers. “Not to mention how upset *I'm* getting!”\n\t\nThe youngster shot Vivekk a worried glance, which he dismissed with a wave of his hand. No boat was going to keep pace with this airship.\n\t\nOll leaned over the edge of the basket again. “How about you let The Lady know we said *goodbye* instead!” He slumped down, leaning his back against the ship. “We made it!” He was beaming.\n\t\n“We made it.” confirmed his mentor, flashing a smile of his own. He turned his attention back to the propeller, wanting to be home as soon as he could.\n\t\nA silence settled, punctuated only by the sloshing of the waves below the smugglers as their thoughts turned to what they would do with their new lives, and the lives they were rapidly floating away from.\n\t\n“You know, Raven's Fall almost seemed nice from up here.”\n\t\n“It's not too late to turn back, I can drop you off. I'll uh, mail you your cut. I promise.” Vivekk joked.\n\t\n“Oh yeah, you've got a deal! I'll expect it any day, you crook.”\n\t\nThe old pirate giggled, then went back to silence. As serene as the city may have looked at a distance, he would be further from it still. He remembered all too well the muck of the streets and how hard it was to claw his way out of it. He was instead already focused on tomorrow's handover, when he and his partner would get paid. Vivekk would invest a portion of those funds into the Zeppelin, and he would see his wealth balloon thanks all the outlandish jobs he could pull with his airship.\n\t\n*Heh, balloon*.\n\t\n“Vekk? *Vekk*? *Vivekk*!” Oliver snapped him out of his reverie.\n\t\n“What is it?”\n\t\n“The Syndicate, they're following us.”\n\t\n“They're *what*?”\n\t\n“Vekk, they're paddling faster than we're flying!”"
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[WP] A nuclear missile has been spotted coming towards your home town. Everyone is calling their families, running to bomb shelters, and hiding. Except for you. No matter what, you will finish your web novel so that your readers will get to see its ending.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"“Run for your lives!”\n\n“Hurry up guys, the bus to the shelter is almost full!”\n\n“Geez, can’t they all keep it down out there. It’s not like blasting your vocal chords will increase your rate of survival,” you think to yourself as you close your apartment window and close the blinds. After plopping your body back into your cushioned swivel chair, you put your earphones back on and turn up your serene concentration music to max volume, isolating your mind from the chaos happening five stories below…\n\nOr so you thought as you start hearing the “BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!” of the fire alarm going off. “Damn it!” you shout as you slam your desk in frustration, but you immediately avert your eyes back to the computer screen and hands back to the keyboard. You glance down at the countdown timer provided by the city’s news station open on your phone. 8 minutes. That’s all the time you have to finish writing the last page of your web novel’s last chapter. You grit your teeth and start rapidly moving your fingers to meet just another deadline.\n\n5 minutes was all it took as you click upload and let out a sigh of relief. Finally, the adventure of your beloved knight Cedric has reached its end. You’ve been at his side as he entered the service of his king and slayed vicious dragons, and now at the end of his journey, he’s delivered justice on his final enemies and started a family with his childhood friend in the peaceful aftermath.\n\nYou take your earphones off and slump back into your chair. The fire alarm’s warning is still filling the air, but you can no longer hear the shrieks of humans. You walk to your window and glance outside to see lifeless streets with no souls in sight. Did everyone else make it to safety? Nonetheless, your mind turns back to your own situation as you glance back at your phone. 2 minutes. No chance to escape now, so was ensuring your own demise worth it in the end? For what reason was all of this for?\n\nYour fans. Those who acknowledged you. Those who left friendly compliments on your story which brightened your day. Those who donated money to you for your literature to provide you a source of living when you were out of work. Those who you promised you would never miss a deadline with today being the final deadline of your masterpiece. \n\nWith your fans on your mind and your phone displaying 30 seconds remaining, you realize what you need to do with the time left. You quickly scramble to open up your blog and begin a new post. Just ten seconds remain as you finish uploading your brief parting message.\n\nYou witness your blog update with the words “Thank you” as everything fades to white."
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[WP] The Statue dedicated to Justice has stood tall in the judgement hall for centuries. The day has come when it decides to take the matter in its own hands.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Lady Justice, 16 feet of solid marble, rumbled, tipped, and fell, sledgehammering the Prime Minister from behind, transforming him into a mass of bone splinters and flesh, his muscle tissue still visible and twitching.\n\nThe crowd erupted in applause; finally the tyranny was over.\n\nLady Justice remarkably took no damage, only needing a cleaning and a severe scrubbing of brain matter, intestinal goop, and other Prime Minister sludge. She was raised back up to watch over the rulers of the country again.\n\nRestoration began but a forthcoming speaker was unwilling to come forward, certain they would end up a writhing pile of flesh, struggling to crawl out from under the tons of cold marble. \n\nThus there was no ruler, for 6 years in fact. Though eventually we need a ruler, ideally someone just. \n\nAn election was held, another questionable character elected. I think we were all misled in a way. \n\nIt doesn't matter though. I go to the court house often now, sitting very far from Lady Justice.\n\nShe creaks incessantly."
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[WP] “sorry about my little brother, we watched The Truman Show the other day, and it kinda went to his head.”
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Staring into the living room mirror of the house of family friends, as my mother and father greeted the couple that lived there, I poked at it. “You think there are cameras behind it?”\n\n“What’s that, now?” asked Will, walking over to me.\n\n“Sorry about my little brother,” my older sister Amelia sighed. “We watched The Truman Show the other day, and it kinda went to his head.”\n\n“Oh, I love that movie!” Sally exclaimed. “I always wonder what he found on the outside of that wall. How he adjusted to real life.”\n\nAnd that was how it began, as I recall it. My curiosity with the strange and the hypotheses formed by those with more imagination than sense. My fascination with the Fermi paradox and all things extraterrestrial. Then the interest in things so small, we had only recently had the capabilities to take photos of them, before hypothesizing that there were things even smaller than that.\n\nEventually, I left being the irrational theories, those supported by nothing other than the hopes and dreams of creative beliefs. My life brought me into the science of the unknown, diving headfirst into what little we knew of obscure concepts. Dark matter and dark energy, known only by their absence. The planets of our solar system, and then those further off, those we could never hope to reach with anything other than telescopes that peered back in time as they absorbed light that had bounced off them so long ago.\n\nAfter that came the idea that consumed me. The simulation hypothesis. The idea that all this, our world, our galaxy, our universe, was a computer simulation. It was engrossing to me on a level that surpassed everything else that had held my interest in the past. It was, in essence, The Truman Show, some outsider creating an entire universe and watching it from the outside. I imagined an alien scholar watching curiously as the little monkeys on a green and blue dot learned about their world and hypothesized on the truth of it.\n\nDecades had passed now since I’d first watched that movie, and I currently sat at my office desk chair, old and worn but still comfortable, my hands clasped loosely in my lap, staring at my computer screen. It was off now, leaving it only a dark reflection of my face and surroundings. My desk was as messy as always, pens and papers askew but organized in a way that I was always familiar with, and my chest rose and fell slowly and evenly as I breathed in and out.\n\nMy mind had felt like it was shutting down ten minutes ago, and I found myself staring in my mirrored computer screen once again, my thoughts no longer racing, having just run a marathon and now suddenly finding themselves at the finish line. My mind walked forward unsteadily, shakily accepting a glass of water as it continued to take step after step, worried that if it came to a stop, it would collapse to the ground and never get up again.\n\nI’d found the proof. And amidst the chemicals in my brain that rendered me ecstatic on the evidence before me, I immediately sent it off to three colleagues to check my work. Then I had sat back in my chair and, as the seconds had ticked by, something heavy and concerning and confusing had laid itself over my shoulders.\n\n*What now?*\n\nMy brain went back to that moment at the end of The Truman Show, the man fighting off the storm with every bit of energy he had, almost dead by the end. But he makes it to the edge of his world. He walks up the steps, opens the door, and everything before him is filled with promise. The promise of a real life, uncontrolled, unhindered, and free.\n\nBut we were pixels. We didn’t have that door. We had a world we were trapped in, like mice in a cage. From where I sat, it was a glorious creation of an intelligence far above any humans had ever known, and I sat in awe of it. But the others? The rest of humanity? What would they think? What would they do? How would they rebel and lash out and scream when they discovered the cage? When a universe had felt infinite yesterday changed and now felt like the size of a shoebox?\n\nThat’s how most would react, I knew. It didn’t matter that we still had our glorious, limitless universe around us. Even those who believed in an all-knowing, all-controlling god believed in free will. They clung to it desperately, needing to feel that their choices mattered. And of course, they still did. Nothing had changed. We still felt and smelled and tasted and heard and loved and hated and sunk deep into emotions that made us who we were.\n\nBut as I sat at my desk, staring at that dark reflection of my face, I did what I always did: I imagined. I thought of the skepticism, the conspiracy theories, the grief of the truth, of how humanity would react. It would be an unprecedented shift in our world. It would be chaos.\n\nSo, knowing what was coming, knowing that for some time after news of my discovery had spread, tranquility would be a luxury, I sat in my comfy office chair, hands clasped loosely in my lap, and listened to the quiet. The hums of the air conditioner and the refrigerator, the footsteps that occasionally passed outside my office, the birdsong in the tree outside my window.\n\nI listened to my world. And I ignored the promise of a chaotic future and enjoyed the peace.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n/r/storiesbykaren"
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[WP] One day you wake up and everything feels the same, except as you make breakfast and wake up, you realize that somehow, clothing was never invented.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I groggily opened my eyes, stretching and yawning. I glanced to the empty side of the bed, and then looked towards the window, only to suddenly be blinded by the morning sunshine as my wife opened the curtains. Her slender, nude body basked under the morning sun. God, she’s beautiful.\n\n“Rise and shine, honey, it’s time for breakfast.”\n\n“Five more minutes,” I answered, pulling back the covers. It’s Sunday anyway, I should be allowed to sleep in, but my wife don’t like that.\n\nMy eyes followed her as she walked to exit the room, “aren’t you a treat to wake up to,” I said trying to flirt. She glanced back at me, with a subtle look of confusion, but then smiled at my compliment and continued to walk to the kitchen.\n\nI fall back to sleep.\n\nSome time after, I woke up to the sound of lawnmower from our neighbor Greg, and I took it as a cue for me to finally get out of bed. With a final stretch, I mustered all my willpower to pry myself off the mattress. I did it, I finally stood up, and I took a quick look at the window to see what Greg’s up to. And there he is, mowing his lawn.\n\nIn his birthday suit.\n\nMy eyes widened with surprised. I quickly scrambled to the door and rushed downstairs to tell my wife what happened.\n\n“Honey, you would NOT believe what I just-“ and I stopped my words when I smelled bacon in the air, and the sight of my wife cooking breakfast wearing nothing but an apron.\n\n“Well, well, well. What’s for breakfast?” I asked, “is it the eggs and bacon or *you?*”\n\nI made myself to her side and kissed her cheek, holding her around her waist.\n\nShe giggled, “baby, what’s gotten into you?”\n\nI just smiled and made my way to the table, with a plate of eggs and bacon, and a mug of coffee made by my beloved wife waiting for me.\n\nThe doorbell rang, “that must be the package I ordered two days ago, I’ll get it,” and off she went to the door.\n\nIt took me a few seconds to realize that she was about to answer the door with only an apron covering her. I panicked, “honey WAIT-“\n\nBut it was too late, she unlocked the door and opened it.\n\nI spat my coffee.\n\nThe mailman was *buck naked* aside from his hat, he gave the package to her, along with the documents to sign. And when she went back inside to retrieve a pen, his eyes met mine, and he just nodded while tipping his hat, *as if nothing was wrong.*\n\nI stood there, dumbfounded. But once my wife got the package and the door was closed. I quickly rushed upstairs to retrieve my cellphone. I had to call the police, something’s VERY wrong.\n\nI went to our bedroom to get dressed before making the call, only there’s one problem.\n\nI couldn’t find our wardrobe.\n\n“Uh, honey?”\n\n“Yes dear?” My wife answered.\n\n“Where’s our wardrobe?”\n\n“What are you talking about? We never had one?”\n\nI curled my eyebrows in confusion, “what do you mean we never had one?! Where did you put all our clothes?”\n\n“...”\n\n“Honey?” I called out to my wife again downstairs.\n\nAnd then she asked me, confused, \n\n“What are clothes?”"
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[WP] He sat at the table sipping his beer, drumming his fingers absentmindedly. This was the first time he had met her in person, and nervous wasn't the word.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\\[Stellar Pettiness\\]\n\n20 minutes into the date, Clark's nerves settled down to make way for a new emotion. He wasn't nervous anymore. He sipped his beer, and drummed his fingers against the table with equal parts annoyance and boredom. Victoria continued talking about her job, seemingly not noticing his new mood.\n\nClark had tags like \"explorer\" and \"traveler\" in his profile, and he matched with Victoria on those. He also mentioned that he'd been to alternate universes; as a joke. When he and Victoria first matched up, the conversation quickly turned to other universes and Clark thought it was fun they had a common interest. He did not expect her to make up a whole career that involved her regularly traveling to other universes. Nor did he expect her to spend the first 20 minutes of their date talking about those other universes in great, fictional detail. But one obvious became the last straw. He wanted to like her, but he could not let her lies pile up anymore.\n\n\"You found [the freaking fountain of youth](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/comments/lqh0vi/wp_i_found_the_fountain_of_youth_but_it_is_a/) on an alternate Earth?\" he asked. He did little to hide his condescending tone. \"What are you doing here instead of being stupid rich?\" Victoria shook her head; her violet ponytail bobbed with the motion.\n\n\"I found *A* fountain of youth, they show up on different Earths from time to time,\" she added a smile. \"And I'm here because I like pizza and I think you're cute,\" she said. \"Sharp Development handles all my expenses, so I guess you could say I am stupid rich. Money's not a concern, anyway.\"\n\n\"Alright, hold on,\" Clark said. \"I think you're pretty cute too, but it doesn't matter if you don't have a grip on reality. I'm on board to pretend all you want, but I need to know you understand you're just pretending too,\" he said. Victoria tilted her head in confusion.\n\n\"Pretending about what? What did I miss?\" she asked.\n\n\"I've never *ever* heard of a company named Sharp Development. If they're as big as you're claiming the name would sound at least a little familiar. But the big thing is alternate universes. I mean, c'mon, you know they don't exist, right?\" \n\n\"Oooh,\" Victoria shook her head. \"I'm so dumb,\" she giggled to herself, then bonked her own head playfully. At the exact moment she did, Clark noticed a quick flash of gold in her eyes. It happened fast enough that he wasn't sure of what he saw; he dismissed it as a stray reflection. \"Sorry,\" she said. \"I keep forgetting to check.\"\n\n\"Check what?\" Clark asked.\n\n\"Your profile said you've traveled to different universes,\" Victoria replied. \"I took it for granted instead of actually checking. But, now I see you were lying about that.\"\n\n\"I wasn't lying, it's a *joke* because other universes don't exist; if they did I think the world would know. On the other hand...,\" he added. \"I think you're taking the joke far enough to be considered, 'lying'.\"\n\n\"Oh wow,\" Victoria said. She made a distinct effort to lean back in her seat away from him. And, she shook her head again. \"You know, I get where you're coming from. But, you could've tried a little harder not to sound like you're flat out accusing me of lying.\"\n\n\"I *am*,\" he said with a nod. It took Victoria a moment to recover, but once she did she relaxed completely and even gave Clark a smile.\n\n\"I think we're both comfortable calling this done now,\" she said as she stood. \"I hope you have a good life,\" she added. Then, she turned around and walked out of the restaurant. Clark chuckled to himself as he noted that she used the door. That botched date was on a Friday night.\n\nAt mid-afternoon the next day a woman dressed in all white appeared on Clark's television; on every channel. As well as his phone, tablet, and every computer monitor in his home.\n\n\"My name is Dana Sharp, owner of Sharp Development. I am announcing that after meeting with the leaders of the world, I now own this Earth. Welcome to the multi-verse!\" \n\n \n\n\\*\\*\\*\n\nThank you for reading! I’m responding to prompts every day. This is story #1158 in a row. (Story #062 in year four.) You can find all my stories collected on my subreddit ([r/hugoverse](https://www.reddit.com/r/hugoverse/)) or my blog.",
"He sat at the table sipping his beer, drumming his fingers absentmindedly. This was the first time he had met her in person, and nervous wasn't the word.\n\nShe entered as dismayed as he had always seen her. She looks more ragged in person than she did from afar. He notices her for a while before finally taking the barstool beside her.\n\n\n-------------------------------------------------------------\n\nThe back of my throat burned and my eyes closed shut as I slam the shot glass in front of me. I want to throw away the earrings I'm wearing. Every time I drink they dangle and hit my cheeks, I'm reminded of him. I remove them hurriedly and jerk my hand in an attempt to throw them.\n\nTch. I couldn't. I shove them in my purse. Frustrated, I pick up another shot. A slur hits me and I bring the shot back down. Dangling it in my hand I rest my chin on the rim of the glass. The loud laughter of the group of guys drinking in the booth at the far end of the bar echoes my ears. The happier times like those are just a nostalgic memory to me now.\n\nI drink my shot and gesture a two with my hand. The bar tender quickly pours me two shots. The quick service is a courtesy to my sole presence on the bar stools. I glance at the long array of empty barstools beside me and the light crowd behind me owing to the early hours of a rainy evening. Even a bar filled with pop music and alcohol could feel so gloomy when you are drinking alone, eh?\n\nSighing, I pick up my shot. As I'm amidst my after-shot reaction, I hear a crisp screech of the bar stool beside me. I'm getting company huh.\n\n\"Breakup?\" The voice rings in my ears.\n\n\"Yeah\" It escapes my lips before I could even check out the source of the voice. I guess desperation for company really shoots up when you're drinking alone in a bar.\n\nI tilt my head in an almost dramatic flair toward the direction of the voice, only to be blown away by what I see. The voice belongs to man in a light blue suit. He sits with an air of royalty that I didn't think was possible while sitting on a mere bar stool. In retrospect, it was good that I already confirmed my singlehood with my first words to him because let's face it, he's gorgeous. He put the bar lights to shame. He was almost shining. Hah! He already knows about my breakup. This conversation will really go one way now, won't it?\n\nHe'll ask about my breakup which is a total sob story, he'll sympathise with me and then I'll finally get an evening I wanted.\n\nSmiling to myself, I picked up my shot again. I look at him and do a cheers and a sad smile. He gives me a genuine smile. Oh pretty! With that he turns away again.\n\nWhy isn't he asking me?. Maybe he is a shy one. Guess I'll have to start.\n\n\" It really hurts.\"\n\nHe nods aggreably and turns away again. Haw!\n\n\"Aren't you gonna ask me about it? \" That should force out a response.\n\n\"Aren't you here drinking alone trying to forget about it in the first place? \" He says all-knowingly.\n\nI'm positively icked.\n\nWith a determined voice, I spout back -\n\n\"Isn't it just human nature to be want to be comforted after a break up? \" Heh.\n\nHe smiles gently. \"Do you really want to be comforted or do you just wanna blame that person? \"\n\nHah! He is really playing the intellectual isn't he? Well, two can play at this game.\n\" I think I'll be comforted by blaming that person and another person acknowledging that I was right to blame that kinda guy gives me the self assurance I need, don't you think so? \" I practically enunciate.\n\n\" Actually, no. That will just make you feel right for feeling sad. Also, seeking acknowledgment for your feelings is a little vain. DON'T you think so? \" His calm answer and a subtle emphasis on \"don't\". Great! This is it! I'm out.\n\n\" What is wrong in being vain when I'm hurt? Although I should've chosen a better person to show my vanity. \" I pick up my bag and unfold my legs to leave.\n\n\" That's right, Miss Miller. Move. \"\n\nI stop dead in my tracks. How does he know my name?\n\n\" How do you know me? How do you know my name? \"\n\nHe shuts his eyes in irritation and clicks his tongue. His fist hits the bartop. He broke his calmness for the first time. Who is he?\n\nAs my mind runs a hundred miles per second, he suddenly turns to gaze at me intently.\n\n\"Miss Miller\"\n\nMy mind goes silent.\n\n\" Your limit is 4. You've had 7. You wanted to puke but you passed out. You hit your head on the bartop but your brain already processed the action of puking. Now you are choking on your own vomit but you can do nothing about it and nobody can help you because they don't know. You are gonna die here if you don't move. \"\n\n\" What? What?! Listen mister! \"\n\n\" Miss Miller, move! \" He says in an alarming tone.\n\n\" You know what? I have enough on my plate today. So I'm just gonna go\"\n\n\" Yes, move\" He is really watching me intently.\n \nI snicker at him one last time before standing up.\n\nBlackout.\n\nI open my eyes. I'm sweating profusely. I hear murmurs all around me. I look down. There's vomit on the bar top. The bartender is speaking something. My eyes can't focus properly. I catch a part of what he is saying.\n\n\" -- passed out. You really scared us jolting up like that. You'll have to pay extra for the mess you've made\"\n\nWhy is he shouting so loudly? I notice the stares everyone is giving me. I look around me. Everyone is there but not him. Where did he go? Was that all my imagination?\n\" Excuse me! Are you listening \" The bartender grabs my arm.\n\nI pull my arm away. I go to the counter and pay with a large bill. Without taking the change I scurry out of the bar and into a cab.\n\nWho was he? Was he even --? Am I really that drunk to be hallucinating?"
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[WP] A revolution has happened; a lowly farm boy from the outskirts of the nation has risen to become its new leader, replacing the old dictator. Thirty years later, however, it becomes apparent that this new leader is no different from the last.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Martin knocked on my door and stuck his head halfway inside as he does when he's excited. \"Come in, Martin.\" He strode in and plopped himself at my kitchen table. His boots were muddy.\n\nI loved keeping Martin in suspense. \"So can I get you a tea?\"\n\n\"Yeah, sure, be lovely, if you don't mind.\" He was anxiously awaiting his chance to share whatever news he had. Most of the time it was just silly gossip, like who had bought a new tractor or whose crop got eaten by deer.\n\n\"Sugar?\"\n\n\"Ah, yep, yes, sugar please.\" His feet were tapping the floor.\n\nI slowly added some sugar to his tea and finally spun around and sat down at the table with him.\n\n\"Good tea?\"\n\n\"Ah, yep, very nice, thank you.\"\n\n\"So, Martin, what's the word?\"\n\nHis face lit up and he just about stood up on his chair. \"Well did you hear, up in Candoura, there's big protests. Big protests.\"\n\n\"Oh yeah? What are they protesting this time?\"\n\n\"They're protesting Michael.\"\n\n\"You don't say. Well they've done that before, haven't they?\"\n\n\"Yeah, sure, but this time they've got the army with them. Saw it on TV, the troops are running out the gate and going into the street too. Tanks are at the palace. TV said the ministers are all hiding out, some of them are at the airport.\"\n\nNow this was new. \"Wow...you think Michael's had it, then? They going to throw him out?\"\n\nMartin looked into his cup of tea. \"Yeah, probably will. Poor son of a bitch. Might have done better if he's just stayed here with his father, kept to his crops.\"\n\n\"Oh, now, I think being President is doing pretty well for yourself.\"\n\n\"Not any more it's not. Poor kid just got a big head about him. Always was too damn impulsive. Never thought things through. One time saw him trying to clean out the auger without taking it off the tractor. His dad yelled at him till he was hoarse. Now that poor kids gonna be hung up in Victory Square.\"\n\n\"Damn shame.\"\n\n\"Damn shame.\"\n\n\"Was a good kid.\"\n\n\"Yeah, yup, he was. Just no brains on him at all, shoulda just stayed with his crops.\"\n\n\"Yeah, shoulda.\""
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[WP] A woman told her terror of a child she wished their own kids were just like them. Centuries later, the fastest growing demographic in the world is perfect genetic copies of that one terror child. All their kids are just like them.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"\"You're such a sweet boy.\" A woman said to her little 5 year old son before giving him a kiss on the cheek. She was completely ignoring the yelling coming from his teacher about how he nearly set the school on fire for a 'prank'. \"I hope your children are just like you.\"\n\nAnd they were. When the boy grew older, he married and impregnated a woman before they divorced a month after. 8 months later, he received a basket with a note that said...\n\n'You can raise these terrors!'\n\nLooking in the basket, there was a set of quintuplets. All were boys and, physically, he couldn't tell them apart. Seeing a doctor to confirm these were infact his children, a scientific anomaly was discovered. They were his children, yes, but they were practically clones of him. There genetic make up was 100% his. With this information, he set out to raise these boys to be just like him to follow his late mothers wishes.\n\nAs the boys grew up, they stayed completely identical in both physicality and mentality, even getting the same ideas as there dad once they figures out they could practically come themselves.\n\nAbout 400 years later, this family has easily become the biggest in the world. All of the family were boys, leaving there wives immediately after every birth. All births ranged from 2-10 identical baby boys and, strangely, all the babies of each generation would be born at the exact same time.\n\nCurrently, in the year 2420, there are 26,098 80 year olds, 302,854 55 year olds, 2,779,201 30 year olds and a whopping 17,203,799 5 year old clones. Of course, this resulted in the family having their own small country but, to keep the troublesome roots growing, all the children would be going to schools abroad. They had taught each child that being annoying to all those that weren't them was important. They had to be the most annoying and mean spirited boys to anyone who wasn't identical to them.\n\nIn about 200 more years, the world wouldn't even have anyone who wasn't identical. It would all be one. Jack."
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[WP] "For the last time, the Forest witch is my WIFE, and the boy she keeps on "kidnapping" is our SON."
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"The door chimes jingled as a group of men entered my bakery. By the looks of their uniforms, they were the Royal Guards.\n\n“How may I help you today gentlemen?” I greeted with a smile. I hated these men with my life, but I have to be nice. I promised Adamyne I would.\n\n“The Forest Witch, where she resides?” one of the guards asked me.\n\nHere we go.\n\n“Well, I presume she’s in the forest, no?” I told him, “What do you want with her?”\n\n“She kidnapped a boy, two years ago. Along with killing one of the Royal Guards,” he said.\n\nWell that’s new. Mostly they tell me she kidnapped my boy, but killing a guard?\n\n“Oh, and who is this guard she killed I might ask?”\n\n“Sir Jonathan,” another, slightly older, guard stated, walking up to my counter, “we assumed you were dead. You’ve been here all this time?”\n\n“I’m sorry?”\n\n“Where’s the boy, Sir Jonathan? The boy the Forest Witch took.”\n\nI sighed, “For the last time, the Forest Witch is my wife, and the boy she “took” is our son! I don’t understand why you people-“\n\n“LIES!” The guard boomed, slamming his fists on the counter, “Those are lies! You are not married, you have no children! That boy is the missing prince that she kidnapped two years ago! She casted a spell on you and you are believing her lies!”\n\n“Get out! Get out of my store!” I yelled.\n\nHow dare they! How dare they speak to me like that! That boy is my child, and we both love him dearly. He’s nothing like the king, and heavens forbid he shall meet him. The king is a vile and cruel man. And they think I’m one of them?\n\nThe guard glared at me, “She’s controlling you Jonathan. And we will help you complete your mission and rescue the boy,” he told me, “Let’s go men!”\n\n“Please don’t come back,” I said with a smile and waved them off.",
"I should have realized my day had taken a turn for the infuriating when the call from the school came through in the middle of a meeting. Followed by a call from the police. Hurriedly I escaped the room got into the presently vacant office of some manager fearing the worst had come to pass.\n\nI give my information in a panic and discover that my son has apparently been kidnapped from school. Again. Frankly I stopped counting at some point. Predictably some \"unusual witchy woman\" had walked onto school property and then out with my son.\n\nNo one stopped her. Multiple people had passed her in the hallway and no one turned her way or tried to escort her out. My son approached and they left together.\n\nIt was all on camera but no one seemed to care what had happened until he missed the rest of his classes. The footage was checked when he wasn't on the bus. I sighed.\n\n\"For the last time officer, the Forest Witch is my WIFE, and the boy she keeps \"kidnapping\" is our son!\" Time and time again this had happened and it made my blood absolutely boil every. Single. Time. \n\nI can't imagine how it is that my wife tolerates the constant shenanigans surrounding her picking up our child for a doctor's appointments. We had talked to everyone in endless rounds. Teachers, principals, officers, sheriffs, FBI, CIA, and even Section 13 twice.\n\nAdmittedly those last few had ended up being a bit exciting and very informative. Too bad all the attention seemingly could not stop this from happening for whatever reason. I was put on hold. I hang my head. It's going to be a long day.\n\n(Sorry for formatting, I'm on mobile)",
"\"Fear not Timothy! I have come to save thy son from the evil witch Metherida!\" The knight's golden locks flowed in the breeze, the sun glistening off his armor as he grinned with that perfect chiseled jaw of his.\n\n\"Listen John,\" I sighed, \"I don't know why you keep following me home from the store, but seriously, we're okay. Like I've told you everyday for the past three years, Metherida is my wife and she only keeps 'kidnapping' Kaiden because you keep dragging him to my grandmother's house, whom she hates. A mother-in-law not liking her daughter-in-law is hardly a reason to-\"\n\n\"Hush, dear Timothy!\" John raised his sword, \"The witch has put a spell on you! Don't worry I shall save you and your son! Come out witch, and bring the child, alive and unharmed, lest you meet the wrath of my blade!\"\n\n\"Dear God, not again.\" I sighed, straining a smile as my son peaked his head out the door.\n\n\"Mom! It's that weird knight again!\" He ran back into our little hut.\n\n\"AGAIN?!\" My wife roared, the crashing of pans coming from our kitchen.\n\n\"Great, dinner's ruined too.\" I grumbled. My wife blowing the door off, her hair whipped around madly, ladle still in hand. \"Gonna have to fix the door too I guess.\" I sighed. \"I hate you so much John.\"\n\n\"So you finally reveal yourself, foul witch! It's been a hard journey, but I've at last found your lair! Release the child, and you'll have a swift death!\" John bellowed, his sword glowing with a considerable amount of light magic.\n\n\"We're only a 15 minute walk from town, John. But hey, that sword looks new, nice trick.\" I blinked, turning to my wife I smiled weakly. \"Sorry about this dear, it happened again. He's just so persistent.\" I started to step forward, John lowering his arm to block me.\n\n\"Keep back, Timothy. We may be friends, but should the witch corrupt you any further, I might have to cut you down.\" Oh no, not again...\n\n\"How dare you!\" My wife pointed her ladle to John, flicks of green and black magic sparkling around the well used cooking utensil. \"You come to MY house, attempt to take MY child, and threaten MY husband!\" The magic swelled at the end of the ladle.\n\n\"Oh shit!\" I ducked down, careful not to spill the goods I'd just bought from the market. No need to make her even madder.\n\n\"Die witch!\" John charged, glowing sword raised, battle cry echoing through the air. Before he even got halfway to her, the magic shot out of her ladle, launching John backwards, his metal covered body hitting the ground hard.\n\n\"Wow mom, that's the farthest he's flown back yet.\" Kaiden whistled.\n\n\"Hmph,\" She smirked \"Well, we might have to start marking how far he flies then.\"\n\n\"I'm sorry about this honey.\" I brushed the dirt off myself as Kaiden ran up to me. \"Good job warning your mother.\" I whispered, rustling his hair, \"He's loud enough to wake the dead, but we don't need another incident.\" Kaiden nodded knowingly, his mother's smirk on his face. Seriously, he looks just like her, how can people not recognize him as her son?\n\n\"It's fine.\" Metherida sighed, \"Seriously though Tim, how many times does this make? I know he's your friend from the academy, but I'm getting tired of him constantly interrupting our dinner!\"\n\n\"I'm sorry dear,\" I kissed her cheek, giving her a small hug \"I'll help to clean up, I promise. He just keeps figuring out where we live. No matter how many times you wipe his memory, my mother just hires him again to come bother us.\"\n\n\"Yeah, that whole memory wipe thing can't be good for him, definitely going to affect him negatively in the long run.\" Kaiden bent over John's unconscious body, poking his cheek. \"Should we teleport him back to town?\"\n\n\"Not you!\" I warned Kaiden \"Last time you sent him to the pig troughs, naked, and covered in gravy. Not again.\" I shook my head. \"He's just an idiot, he doesn't deserve that.\"\n\nThe smile falling from his face, Kaiden grumbled, dispelling the magic in his hand.\n\n\"Well then,\" My wife raised her ladle to the unconscious knight, \"How about we send him to Sonia, devourer of men?\" She grinned wickedly \"He won't come back from that.\"\n\n\"I love you dear, but that's too cruel.\" I touched her shoulder, \"How about sending him to Sonia's twin, Synthia, was it? He's her type, no?\"\n\n\"Hm, not a bad idea, she'll keep him for at least three weeks and torture him with aggressive affection.\" she nodded.\n\n\" Metherida...\"\n\n\"Don't worry, he'll be fine! She just plays with men for a bit and lets them go once she gets bored of them. He'll be okay.\" She wrapped her arms around me, \"I'm just hoping for a little bit of peace.\" she kissed my cheek \"That idiot is lucky he's your friend, otherwise I'd have turned him into a toad by now.\"\n\n\"Well, isn't he lucky, I've got such a merciful wife.\" I smiled, pressing my lips to hers.\n\n\"Yuk!\" Kaiden rolled his eyes.\n\n\"Hehe,\" I chuckled, my wife whispering \"later\" as our lips parted, her attention returning to John. Flicking her wrist, a purple magic shot out towards John, spinning as it encased his body.\n\n\"Goodbye weirdo.\" Kaiden waved, the purple magic becoming translucent, transporting John away for the fifth time this month.\n\n\"Do you really think he'll be gone for a whole three weeks?\" I asked my wife.\n\n\"As long as he doesn't meet your mother, she was close with Synthia and Sonia's mother if I recall.\"\n\n\"Right\" I sighed \"Do you think he'll ever realize he's living in a witch run town?\"\n\n\"That man has been stationed in this town for over 12 years. If he hasn't figured it out by now, I don't think he ever will.\"\n\n...three weeks later...\n\n\"Timothy, my dear friend. I hear you live near the witch's abode! Have you heard of that kidnapping of a young boy?! As knights, we have a duty, we must go to rescue him!\"\n\n\"Damn it John, not again!\"",
"Arpen turned to Yedlin and subtly shook his head. “Wait for my signal.”\n\nHefting his axe, Arpen took a step toward the human standing at the edge of the tree line. The man, to his credit, did not shy away from the menacing dwarf despite bearing no visible weapon. Arpen could clearly see the signs of possession – blackened eyes, white lips, blue veins.\n\nThe stench of magic filled the air. The witch was watching.\n\n“The child belongs to us,” Arpen said calmly. “You will lead us to him.”\n\nThe witch was no fool. She had used a human for a reason. The death of a human, even one stupid enough to wander into the cursed forest, would not go unnoticed. If it was discovered that a *dwarf* had killed a human…\n\nArpen had no desire to relive that nightmare.\n\n“Stay back,” the human snapped. “I’ve already told you that Moon is my wife, and that boy is our son. You have no right to intrude upon our lands. This place does not belong to you!”\n\nUsing the hand hidden behind his back, Arpen signed a command. “And the other boys?” He took another step forward. “Who did they belong to, human?”\n\n“There’s only been one boy! Our son!”\n\nArpen continued to stall. There had been three other boys. All had been taken into the forest. None had ever returned. “When did you meet *Moon*? I’ve never seen you here before.”\n\n“We met on a ship while crossing the Western Sea.”\n\nArpen ignored the insult, fought to maintain his composure. Disabling the possessed human would not be an easy task. The witch had undoubtedly planted a weapon on his slender figure, one that would take his own life if necessary. The witch would ensure his corpse was found.\n\n“What was the name of this ship?” Arpen asked.\n\n“The name…”\n\nArpen gave the signal. Two dwarves emerged from the night and pulled the man to the ground. In less than a moment, the human was bound with thick rope.\n\nYedlin retrieved a knife from the human’s belt and examined it in the moonlight. “Silver,” he said, tossing the weapon through the air.\n\nArpen caught the knife and kneeled next to the squirming human. He spoke to the witch watching through the man’s eyes. “If you harm my son, you will suffer.”\n\nThe dwarf tightened his grip on the knife and allowed his anger to seep into his features.\n\nThen, he gave another wordless command. *Free the human.*\n\n\\*\n\nArpen led a party of four dwarves into the forest, uncertain that he would return. Each dwarf in the party had lost a son to the witch of the forest, and each understood the risk of attempting a rescue.\n\nArpen tried but failed to drive the witch’s words away. He had led the voyage across the Western Sea. He had chosen the location of their new settlement, deciding to repair a previously abandoned site. He had ordered trees to be felled from the cursed forest. He hadn’t solved the mystery of the disappearances until it was far too late.\n\n*This is all my fault…*\n\nEven in the darkness, the human’s trail was easy to follow. The witch was unaware of what had actually occurred; she had withdrawn as Arpen pressed the silver knife against the human’s neck, fearing the imminent death of her vessel.\n\nThe dwarves waded through the wood in silence. Eventually, they reached the edge of a clearing ringed by torches. Shadows in the shapes of monsters and demons danced across the space within.\n\nArpen studied the small cottage in the clearing’s center. A simple structure made of stone and wood, bordered on all sides by a garden filled with alien plants. Smoke rose from a stone chimney, and a path of wide stones led to its painted door.\n\nThere was no sign of the children … or of the human.\n\n“A trap,” Yedlin said from his side.\n\nArpen nodded. “We proceed.”\n\nThere was no other choice.\n\nArpen stepped first into the clearing and took a defensive stance. His eyes scanned the strange shadows that ringed the clearing, then fixated upon the cottage. The others joined him a moment later. They moved as a unit, eyes to every side.\n\nAs they neared the cottage, the door opened.\n\nThe dwarves froze, then dropped their weapons in surprise as a score of children raced into the clearing. Not just their own. Other dwarves. Humans. Elves. Gnomes.\n\nThe witch emerged last. She wore a black dress and walked with the aid of a staff. In seconds, she stood before the group of dwarves.\n\n“Welcome home, Arpen,” the witch smiled.\n\n\\*\n\nGeorge emerged from the crowd at the edge of the growing settlement and raised his torch high. As the others had stated, a lone dwarf stood sentry. The dwarf regarded the enraged humans with demonic black eyes and a heavy axe upon his broad shoulder.\n\n“We have no wish to fight, dwarf,” George said. “Please just return our children.”\n\nThe dwarf shook his head. He seemed almost … sad.\n\n“The witch you seek is my wife,” the dwarf said, “and the boy is our son.”\n\n&#x200B;\n\nr/creatorcorvin",
"\"Hey, I heard that it happened again,\" My best friend of 15 years, Alice, sat across from me in the bar, with her eyebrows raised in sympathy.\n\nI pursued my lips in confusion. \"What do you mean?\" I asked.\n\n\"You know, THE KIDNAPPING,\" she stage whispered, one hand covering the side of her face.\n\nI rolled my eyes. \"Not this again...\" I groaned, pinching the bridge of my nose in frustration. \n\n\"Why are you not more concerned? I thought you really cared for that boy you adopted. It was so good of you to take that poor homeless boy in, really, bless your heart.\"\n\n\"That \"poor homeless boy\"-\" I held my hand up in quotation marks \"- is my son! That's my son you're talking about! I've told you this before\"\n\n\"Oh? I thought it was a joke. Like you know, you care for that boy like he's your son.\"\n\n\"No. He's my biological son.\"\n\n\"But...you don't have a husband\". Alice was always the more traditional of us two. I was the opposite of her.\n\n\"No, for the last time, the FOREST WITCH that you claim is \"kidnapping\" my son is my WIFE. She's not kidnapping him at all, they are just spending quality time together.\"\n\n\"But...how did you have a biological son if you both are women?\"\n\n\"Witches, you know, they have their ways...\""
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[WP] You're a hacker, and a pretty good one. One day while testing a new program to find hidden WiFi networks you come across one called "World_Admin" and easily break in. Once inside you soon realize you now have access administrative access to reality itself.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"A frothy, cocoa brew coats the tongue. A sigh not of the lungs, but of the soul, escapes. A calm sets it. *Time to get to work.*\n\nMany think the title of \"hacker\" would belong to a dark, industrial, punk character. One who spends their days buried in some matrix of code, breathing an ounce of skunk a week, publishing anarchist ramblings on message boards in their spare time. Someone who acts against the law, yet not necessarily against the common people.\n\nThe reality was much more bleak. Mallacks slurped the last of the whipping cream from the top of his morning brew, several shots of espresso paired with around three hundred calories, mostly from the delicious syrups, suspended in a solution of steamed milk. Oat milk specifically. With the initial caffeine and sugar rush kicking in, he pried open his laptop and began trolling a list of emails, looking for a quick-hit item, to kick start the engines of the mind.\n\nMallacks was much liked by his peers, he would tell you this was from taking all the arduous tasks, but there was genuine talent within him. They referred to him as *The Hacker*, a title he had earned by showing his boss a glaring flaw in the companies internal CRM software. He had found that any user could quickly access the information of any other user through a simple SQL injection attempt with just three queries. The first to identify the underlying RDBMS, the second to identify the tables and columns, and the third to retrieve whatever the attacker desired. Mallacks did not find this terribly impressive, but the potential downside of this being abused was quickly apparent to his superiors, who rushed to promote him.\n\nThe first item he chose to take seemed easy enough, though it was labeled with the highest priority. Some individual found a new WiFi device in range of their phone, likely while ignoring work in favor of their social medias, and this raised some questions. Since the company was the owner of their own building, and the building was somewhat removed from the city, they should not have unknown devices in the range of the office. *Interesting.*\n\nMallacks went to this coworker, who was at the moment mindlessly thumbing their phone, strokes from bottom to top, stopping on a clip of a woman shaking her bottom and top. A knocking on the cubicle wall shook him, until he realized it was only Mallacks responding to the call.\n\n\"This the spot?\" Mallacks asked.\n\n\"No, just at the end of the hall, where the sunlight enters over there,\" he pointed.\n\n\"Thank you sir.\" Mallacks responded, already mid-stride. He was not much of a socialite. \n\nAt the end of the hall, where the sunlight usually enters, Mallacks found he did in fact see a new device accessible from his cell phone, \"World_Admin\". No chair in sight, he propped down, crossed his legs and pulled his laptop from his bag. *Time to see what this is all about.* He moved his laptop around, but it appeared that the signal grew stronger near the window, and decayed if he stepped away. It was almost as if the sun itself provided the network. Very strange. He decided to try a few common passwords on the network, just to see if he could connect. The second attempt, \"password1\", worked. *Idiots.*\n\nMallacks attempted to ping a search engine, which failed. He tried another and decided that perhaps it was not connected to the internet. A scan of the network revealed a single device, which interestingly enough, had a root account with the same password as the network. Mallacks was getting a kick out of the whole situation at this point. The root directory did not appear to be terribly familiar, it appeared to be a UNIX based system, but was missing most of the directories he would expect. In place of those there was just a single directory, \"earth\". \"earth\" contained a few more directories, \"animals\", \"plants\", \"src\". \n\nRunning a recursive search within this revealed potentially billions of records (he didn't wait for it to finish). More concerning to him, these entries were uncomfortably specific. \"animals\" contained \"human\", which contained a plethora of \".being\" files, all with names. *I wonder...* A search for Mallacks revealed only two records, one with his last name and other he did not recognize. Opening his file made him nauseous. \n\nAll of his interests, former lovers, employment status, and banking information was present. The file was able to be modified. Already a bit amazed by the situation, (and beginning to reevalueate his lack of a religious belief) Mallacks decided to test what would happen should he add a single extra '0' to his bank account's value. He quickly pulled his phone after saving the file and much to his surprise, the change showed. His jaw dropped.\n\nMallacks wrestled with the implications of what had just happened. He realized the potential for absolute horror should this fall into the wrong hands. He undid his changes, fearing the judgement of some deity. The company paid him quite well as it was. He decided there was one change he should make. He set the root password to something incredibly secure, one he could never remember if he tried, and logged out. \n\nOn his way out he told the coworker it was probably just another employee's new smart-device that didn't even look connected to the internet. Nothing to worry about. Mallacks went home early that day.",
"I was sitting in the waiting room with a numbered ticket, waiting for the bell to ding and for the LED display to flash number 5. It's not clear why I drew number 5. No one else was there. I was idle and reflexively I pulled out my phone, opened up my WiFi scanner app, and scanned for SSIDs so that I could stream videos while I waited. One came up in the hidden section called \"World_Admin,\" so of course I clicked on that one. It was password protected but I couldn't resist trying \"password\" and \"admin\" and a few other common guesses. \"password\" unlocked it.\n\nAt this point I was curious what kind of network I logged onto—a building network? office? phone hotspot?—so I ran netscan and enumerate the connected machines. Internal IPs were IPv6, which IPv6 is uncommon, very modern. I noticed something about the devices showing up, about their names. The ones nearest to me were...the names of the people I knew best. Names of family and friends, descending in intimacy as I scrolled down the list. And then a name I didn't recognize: Phát Hảo.\n\nI peeked at the counter and saw the clerk playing on his phone. I had a superstitious hunch what his name was, so I walked over to the cooler to fill a cup of water, and glanced at his name tag. Phát Hảo. I could test if this was a real network by kicking him off. Luckily the default gateway admin page had no password prompt. I searched for Phát and blocked his MAC address, then waited to see if he stopped watching.\n\nWhat happened is not that he stopped watching. What happened is that he died. He fell face-first onto the counter, dead. I panicked and removed the MAC address block. It had no effect.\n\nI tried to close the admin page in my web browser, but I have fat thumbs. I missed the 'X' and hit the 'reboot' button in the admin interface. There's a popup on the page, without a cancel button, that says \"...automatically refreshing in 20 seconds.\" It's been there for about three seconds, so it will reboot in probably ten more. I'm just biting my nails and staring at it."
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[WP] "No no no, you don't understand. I didn't fail or get cold feet- No, you listen to me. I like to think I'm good at what I do. I did the job, now hold up your end of the deal. It's not my problem he keeps coming back. "
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"He repeated himself, seemingly out of desperation-I didn’t care, I’d heard it all before. This was not the first man making fantastic claims who had failed to live up to his promises. All of my attempts at finding someone who can permanently end my wretched existence-failures. And not for lack of trying.\n\nThey say money is the root of all evil, but I know much better. Money is a symptom. The first act of evil was when a man, jealous of his own brother, brained him out of the blue. Some of the blood had splattered onto a new seed-now infused by the very essence of the first evil of humanity. \n\nMy seed germinated splendidly as people advanced, my sanguine roots reaching deep, deep into the earth now. No matter how much I try to uproot and burn myself, stalk and stem, I always seem to recover. Even what most people assume to be my human bodies-meager fruit that will grow back on their own. Cut down one growth, find that I’m like a world-spanning clonal colony to make Pando look like a blade of grass. .\n\nThe few who truly know about me, assume killing me would be an important step to stopping all evil. They’re wrong. It’s the other way around. If people just gave up their cupidity, their pointless bloodshed, their counterproductive selfishness-I would shrivel and fade away like a bad dream. Until then, there will be a series of men and women my fruits hire who seek more...realistic methods of my demise. None in the past couple hundreds of thousands of years have worked, but there’s hope yet!\n\nEvil never dies. But it sure as hell wants to.",
"“No no no, you don't understand. I didn't fail or get cold feet- No, you listen to me. I like to think I'm good at what I do. I did the job, now hold up your end of the deal. It's not my problem he keeps coming back.”\n\nThe man inside the phone booth went wild eyed as his exasperated pleas carried little weight. The contract was a trap.\n\n“You should have read the fine print my friend, if you don’t solve this for us, you won’t see a single cent in payment.”\n\nHis contractor wouldn’t listen to reason. He needed the payment, it was the only way out of this hell hole. Killing someone that seemed immortal, did not bode well though.\n\n“Listen, I can’t lose this contract, so, so… I’ll figure something out. But before that, tell me, what is that guy?”\n\nGiving up on his naïve line of reasoning, he’d figure out what made his target tick. Unfortunately, his contractor couldn’t help him their either. It was a dead end and the target would surely be searching for his assailant.\n\n“Fulfill the contract, or no payment, you understand? We selected you because of your guarantee, or was that just boastfulness? Get back to work, got it?”\n\nWith a click, the line went dead, he had no other choice. There was the promise of freedom and a chance he wouldn’t make it out alive.\n\nSuddenly, he felt a chill down his spine. Maybe he was being watched, even though that shouldn’t be possible. He thought to himself, maybe it’s just his nerves.\n\n“Damn it all! What the hell am I dealing with, the undead, a vampire… How does he come back after being decapitated…”\n\nSpeaking softly to himself as he started walking he decided to use his basic knowledge of immortal creatures, something most adults learn when their children. He purchased large cloves of garlic, he bought wooden stakes, and he acquired a silver dagger from a local pawn shop. The entire time, he felt like eyes were constantly on him. It made him feel uneasy. It shouldn’t be possible, he reassured himself again, almost like a prayer.\n\nThat’s when he saw it, a very strange little store, tucked away in an alley. He’d been down this road many times, but never noticed the store, nearly hidden in-between two larger complexes. The name read as “Inquisitive Finds”. It sounded like a pawn shop, but maybe it was just a tacky gift shop? The man figured it was worth a look.\n\n“Good evening, this is mighty fine establishment you got here, it seems I missed this place a few times when looking for pawn shops. Some of your wares, look unique, mind explaining some of these contraptions to me?”\n\nLooking around, there were strange gadgets, jewelry no one should be wearing, books with strange lettering, and other knickknacks that either looked mundane or gruesome. A shriveled hand for example, who in their right mind would purchase any of this stuff? But the man was curious non-the-less, something seemed off about the owner too, she had a shroud on and the light was dim enough that you could only really make out their nose and lips. She looked particularly old, but he couldn’t place an exact age.\n\n“Thank you for visiting my fine establishment, young man, it would seem that you have some troubles, are you interesting in a solution?”\n\nPerturbed, the man walked forward slowly. A solution… there’s no way she knows what I’ve been up to, he thought to himself. Was it another strange entity in this hellscape of a town? The man decided that it was too good to be true, but went along with it anyway.\n\n“A solution? Yeah, you could say that, that’s exactly what I’m looking for, haha! You wouldn’t happen to have something that could kill an immortal being would you? I’m just kidding! I’ll take whatever solution you have to offer though.”\n\nHe was only a few feet away when he heard a loud cackling, the woman’s laughter felt both genuine and unsettling. A flight response was quickly welling up within the man, but then she stopped and waved her hand to venture closer. The hand looked wrinkled and old, with long piercing nails and yellowing skin. Despite the terrible image, he walked towards what was surely, another impossibility.\n\n\\- Too be continued (I hope) (Edited: words)"
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[WP]The Holy Knights are former adventurers that can't pay their debt to the Priests that revives them. You are one of the Holy knights.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"Madog’s silver dented helm glistened against the setting sun and the luscious open green field, a “*crack*”, “*slice*” and blood sprayed across the helm as he looked off across the field.\n\nA loud “*bang*”, “*bang*”... “*bang*”, came from the other side of an enormous wooden doorway. Two men clad in chain mail, one rat-faced and burned, the other potbellied and unwashed, wearing conical helmets, looked at each other in wondrous amusement.\n\n“What bloody time do you call this, ay?” the rat-faced man with a burned cheek asked.\n\n“Probahbly fuckin’ peasants ahgain” the other pot bellied man replied “nah openin’ it, they cahn freeze” he chortled.\n\nThe rat-face man cackled with the chortle that filled the stony entrance, masking the “*clanking*” that made its way towards them.\n\n“You halfwits done,” another clad in Knights armour towered above them, the two oafs let go of each other and straightened up in respectful fear. \n\n“Dondan, we-we, didn’t hear you comin’ sir” rat-face panicked.\n\n“There's someone aht the door s-s-s-sire,” \n\n“Why do you think I’m here, when do I ever come here voluntarily to talk to you mugs?” Dondan insulted, his white and gold encrusted amour reflected the embers of torches beautifully in the room, his numerously scarred square-jawed face, twisted a look of disdain for the two guards as he held his flat-top helm under his arm, his other hand sat atop the hilt to his claymore, scabbard white and decorated in gems held the giant sword on his left hip.\n\n\"Well then, open it!\"\n\nThe door guards looked at each other hurt and quickly lifted the wooden bar to open the door. The door creaked open and Madog stepped through, shorter than Dondan, taller than the guards' men, wearing silver chain mail, gauntlets and sabatons under his rags which were held together with a silver belt, his broad spatha sitting in its scabbard on his hip.\n\n“Normally, Holy Knights take off their helms when entering the king's castle, out of respect, deadman,” spat Dondan.\n\n“Fuckin’ freak”, pot belly cursed at him, spiting at the wood floor.\n\nMadog lifted his head and took notice of the gold morning star held up by a crescent moon emblem that sat on the chest of Dondans pristine armour.\n\n“Well, I don’t” Madog answered, his gravelly voice muffled from his helm was calm and collected, “I need no assistance, I know where the Priest is”.\n\nMadog walked past the hulking giant Dondan, all three of the men noticing a large something on his back, horns protruding through the thin light brown rag tied to his back, dripping something dark onto the floor.\n\nOnce Madog had left, the rat-faced leaned closer to his friend, “they call him Mad-dog The Butcher”, he whispered, scared The Holy Knight might somehow hear him.\n\n“I’ve heard they cahn crush ah booars skull with their bahre hahnds,” also whispering.\n\n“Madog! Good to see you, dear friend,” the snivelling stunted Priest said cheerfully, wearing blue, white silk robes that were slightly too big for him. “Come in! Come iiiin!” he announced, leaving the door open for Madog, who stood at the entrance.\n\nEntering the dimly lit room, with shelves and shelves full of books filling the walls of the room, the table was full of jars, scrolls, leaves, petals and small bones. Madog began to untie the knot holding the rag on his back and let it drop upon the floor.\n\nGrabbing a horn and pulling it around, he slammed it on the table.\n\n“A Drekkun head, horns, teeth and skull, kept intact, how much?” Madog demanded the Priest.\n\nThe Drekkun head bled a dark reddish grey onto the desk, the horns curled thrice, face frozen in a menacing animalistic snarl. Four top and bottom front teeth interlocking with each other sat in full view, sharper than a razor. Nose like a bear and beady little grey eyes filled out the rest of its face.\n\n“Hmm” the Priest said, unamused at what he studied before him, “hundred”.\n\n“One hundred Black Gold?” \n\n“Noo, one hundred Red Silver,” the Priest snidely corrected Madog\n\n“One measly Black Gold! The head is pristine, even the eyes are. Why so little Gruden!” Madog shouted.\n\n“Look Madog, the market isn’t doing too well right now, monsters aren’t really what people want and sorcerers want something a bit rarer than a Drekkun these days, I’m being fair here,” Gruden told him honestly.\n\nMadog sighed heavily, “fine, have it your way, here’s seventy Red Silvers for the hide and meat as well”, he snapped as he threw the money at Gruden, clattering across the room and shuddering as the coins hit the wood floor.\n\n“Remember who you’re speaking to, I revived you, you owe me! I can just as easily put you back in the grave, one Gold and seventy Silver, pathetic,” he growled, “you’re never going to pay me back the seven-thousand Gold are you?”.\n\n“Just give me another job, you have more jobs, don’t you?” Madog reluctantly asked.\n\n“Of course, what kind of Priest do you take me for?” \n\n“Give me one you know is going to pay me the most then”.\n\n“Hmm, I don’t think you’re ready for that, just yet. You'd be facing a Wailing Druid, you will die,” Gruden said.\n\n“Just give me the location and the tools needed and I’ll do the rest,” Madog shot back as he left, “I’ll be in my quarters!” He called from the hallway.\n\n“Mad-dog The Butcher, you will die, you fool, they'll call you Mad-dog The Dead!” Gruden shouted back.\n\nMore prompts here: r/promptstories\n\nMore of Madog [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/promptstories/comments/m6a7a1/the_holy_knight_of_cindrell/?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share)\n\nSeries here: r/neworderseries\n\n(i really enjoyed writing this one, i might continue writing it)",
"\"5000 Gold Pieces?! This is Robbery!\" I shouted, slamming the priests desk with one hand while I worryingly rubbed the back of my neck with the other. \"Standard Rates in the area provide 10-20 gold pieces per request! How in Gods name do you expect me to pay this?!\"\n\n\"Sir, Vulgar language isn't necessary.\" He emitted the aura of a man who had been in the situation of dealing with a troublesome customer before. \"As your rates are standard, So are mine. The cost is final\"\n\n\"Look, I clearly can't afford this, What am I to do? Work an endless stream of menial tasks for rest of my life?\"\n\n\"If you so choose, If you'd take a moment to calm down and listen, I could explain the alternative\" Given my lack of options, the potential workaround peaked my interest, I crossed my arms and took on a listening stance, as opposed to an aggressive one.\n\n\"Well, Im either starting my enslavement or hearing you out, I haven't got all day, so spit it out!\"\n\n\"We have a room in the back, containing nothing but a mat to sit on, and 4 stone walls. All I need from you, Is to have you sit, and think about every sin you have ever committed\" Possibly because of my prior option, I jumped at the opportunity.\n\n\"Ha ha! That's easy! Anybody can sit for a few minutes and think!\"\n\n\"Not quite, Ill need you to come in every day for a year, sitting for a minimum of 30 minutes everyday, As for what time of day, that choice is yours.\" Before he even had time to finish his sentence, I was already galavanting my way to the back room, overjoyed with the new plan. I took seat in the room, easily passing 30 minutes by while thinking about my triumphant victories.\n\nI thought of the beasts I slaughtered, The beautiful woman captured, and the wares taken for my own. Grinning ear to ear over my accomplishments. After the time limit was up, I waltzed out of the church, throwing a quick \"See ya tomorrow!\" over my shoulder.\n\nWith the next day having arised, I once again plopped myself down on the mat, And thought about more of my past. While the first 20 minutes or so has passed with ease similar to the previous day, I soon found myself defaulting to more negative situations.\n\nFirstly, of the beast I had slaughtered, While my mission was clear in taking down the ringleader of a nearby forest troupe, Perhaps the \"mercy killings\" of his companions were unneeded.\n\nSecondly, The woman, While thinking back to the beautiful garbs she was wearing at the time, I found myself overtaken with the idea of my own mother having been the victim, and how, if it occured at the right time, would result in me not being here.\n\nLastly, the wares in my posession. Despite my recent pickups including an absolutely gorgeous golden bracelet, It was hand-labelled on the inside with a message reading \"For my one, My only\" Leading me to believe its sentimental value was lost on me.\n\nFollowing days proved even more troubling, I found myself pacing around the room, as my victorious roars in battle were superseded by those live I had cast aside, and ended without so much as a stutter. Being a room built with silence in mind, My options to drowned out the cries of my memory were limited.\n\nMonths later, I found myself waking up in cold sweats, with the idea of having to visit the church later in the day. I often drank myself silly before showing up as a means of numbing my mind, however my effort proved futile.\n\nI still remember, Nearly 9 months in. My options for coping had turned into means of functionality, I approached the priest a broken man.\n\n\"Father... I....\" My brain pickled in local stout struggling to piece together sentences despite not being under the influence. \" I can't do this any longer, I will pay you your fee, however long it might take\" I fell to my knees in defeat. \"Forgive me father, For I have sinned\"\n\nOur local priest approached me, and placed his hand on my shoulder, before kneeling down alongside me, and whispering into my ear.\n\n\"Who the hell do you think is in charge here?\""
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[WP] everyone knows it's a dangerous plan to go after the child of a hero, but NO ONE harms the child of a villain.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I open the door, as my children greets me, especially my youngest, immediately hopping on me, he always tends to gravitate towards me after I get home from work, My job, you ask? Oh...just the regular villain job, beat the heroes, take over small villages, but my kid? I just want him to live in peace, he doesn’t deserve to live through his life torturing others, my eldest has that taken care of, but for the youngest child? He deserves to have a normal life, as for the middle child, well...he is the odd one out, he usually guards the ever so alluring princess.\n\n“Dad!’ My youngest yells as he hops on my shoulder, “I missed you dad!”\n“I missed you too buddy” I say as I put him down, “how was school?”\n“apparently, some hero’s child keeps on bullying him, the prick” My middle child replies, as he continues to work on his DIY Spear, “That entire blood line seems to just hate us”\n“Well, take care of your younger brother, I need to make dinner, after that, me and your older brother are gonna go...hunting” I say, as my middle child nods.\n\nDinner is usually simple, I am living on a budget currently, still need to raid more banks, anyways, I simply make some mac and cheese, we all eat together at the dinner table as we proceed to make simple talk, the usual “how was your day?” “I finally did this!” the usual, after which, however, I tell my eldest to grab his bow from his room, as I proceed to grab my sword.\n\nThe flames, purple yet bright, as the screams of the damned yell from their houses, as my loyal minions collect all the money they can, the primitive banks they currently have seized, this village isn’t going to be spared like all the others, no, its burning down like how my soul raised up after my little sunshine was born, before she left me to join those damned heroes, She will not be spared any mercy.\n\nI see a poor child coward behind his father, in armor and all, how loyal to his king...sad that soon he will be nothing but a charred corpse, just dust...some may call it murder, I call it justice, I was once a hero, however, saving the “princess” got me nothing but recognition and some poor man’s treasure, as the princess proceeded to marry some prick of a man, this very hero.\n\n“Why have you come to destroy our village!?” He asks “Are you heartless?!”\n“I am not, like you, I have my sons, however, at least I teach them manners, your knight status has corrupted you, you stole the princess from under me, stole my credit by saying that you did all the work, and that I swooped in and saved the princess, ending me up at rock bottom” I say, a stern tone as I ready my sword, “but today, I am here to make sure my youngest has a normal life...I know there are other kingdoms out their, but as long as this kingdom is mine, I’ll be happy...he can live out his life in another kingdom, peacefully...see? I am not heartless...you are”\n“But what about al-“ “SHUT IT! I know you were just using them for money and gain, just make this easy, you’ll end up in a better place, and so will your son”\n\nThe battle commenced, my eldest son backing me up as I charged at him, clashes and clashes as the hero’s armor was pelted by arrows, soon, the minions slowly creeped on up to us, the hero might have had the upper hand for a little bit, but the massive forces of those who submitted to me overpowered him\n\n“we’re back!” I yell as I open the door, my eldest immediately going to check on the princess, as I hug my youngest and middle child “its late for both of you, you both can sleep in peace”\n\nI wonder however...when I am long gone, and my children are grown up...\n\nWill they still stay siblings, or will they change, as light and dark clash in them?"
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[WP] Your ability to see the supernatural beyond their human disguises has caused you to fear them growing up, despite rarely seeing them. Your first job however, forces you to deal with them regularly, co-workers and customers alike.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I stand behind the counter of our local (rural) gas station. The air is heavy and thick with moisture. The ancient fan on the counter blows warm air across my face. \n\n“ so Barnes, what will you have today?” I ask the old elf across the counter from me. I know what he is, and he knows that I know what he has. Two weeks ago he was being a jerk, so I pulled out grandpa‘s old iron pocket knife and started playing with it. He stopped being a jerk all of a sudden, his eyes following the blade.\n\n“ just need to pre-pay for some diesel for the pick up“ was his response. I rang him up and waved goodbye.\n\nI hate this job. Sadly, at 16 I have no real other prospects. If it wasn’t for the damn elves, wood spirits, and the rest of the beasties that go bump in the night, this would be an OK job. \n\nI look over at my boss, a spritely young 300 year old wood spirit “ do I really have to make nice with you people? Aren’t you and your demon dogs supposed to eat us all one day?“\n\n“Well younger one, customer service is customer service. You need to play nice with everyone. Believe me, the cities are worse.“ They said in a voice that sounded similar to wind blowing through leaves.\n\nFML",
"I actually liked the title 'gofer'. When I applied I thought it meant something about digging and I was looking for something physical to help keep me stay fit- but apparently it's just about 'going for' stuff. Even so- being a 'gofer' can be pretty gratifying. People trust to you to get-it-done, and it feels good when people rely on you.\n\nBut in all candor- it feels somewhat less good when faeries, babadooks, baba yagas, and elemental spirits rely on you. Not saying they're not 'people'... but when you've quite literally and spiritually had your soul pulled out of your anus by HR over a client's complaint- you develop some biases towards non-mortal beings.\n\nThey hired me because I knew what they were, not despite it. The interview was a disaster- I was a little hung-over and I knew I was bombing so I just gave up and said \"Dude, your tail-fur is caked with unicorn blood... just inject your venom into my kidneys and get it over with.\"\n\nHe dropped his illusion and hired me on the spot. I'd never seen a Djinn smile before, but he walked me straight to HR and introduced me as \"the new gofer seer\". He did say something vaguely concerning about the fate of the last gofer seer, but I was just happy to have a job offer.\n\nI'd dealt with these types since I was little. I've watched apparitions disembowel one another on episodes of sesame street- it's everywhere if you have the sight. So hearing a client threaten to devour my ancestors reproductive organs over a boilerplate soul exchange contract doesn't even rock my boat.\n\nThe thing that really pisses me off though? Anti-maskers... and I'm not talking about C19- actually, that too- but if you think some entitled Karen wailing about their freedom to spew viruses on mortal strangers is bad- try explaining to a 7000 year old demon-lord that they're not allowed in the moral-realm without a freshly peeled human face-skin covering their soul-cursing countenance.\n\nThey gave me a medusa-head to use for emergencies, but I hate even taking that thing out of the case and I'm pretty sure it only works on Greek heroes so usually I just rely on my wit and that talisman that makes me look like whatever supernatural monsters fear most- which is usually just another supernatural monster from the accounting department."
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[WP] You’re a cryptid hunter in a magical world and you’re sure this one is real. You spend countless hours researching and poking around the area it was spotted in, only to find out it was actually a drunk shapeshifter. Again.
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"**Welcome to the Prompt!** All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\n**Reminders**:\n\n>* Stories at least 100 words. Poems, 30 but include \"[Poem]\"\n>* Responses don't have to fulfill every detail\n>* See [Reality Fiction](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Reality+Fiction%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A%22Simple+Prompt%22&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) for stricter titles\n>* [Be civil](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules#wiki_rule_10.3A_be_civil) in any feedback and follow the [rules](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/rules)\n\n[](#icon-help) [^(What Is This?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/off_topic) ^•\n[](#icon-information) [^(New Here?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/user_guide) ^•\n[](#icon-help) [^(Writing Help?)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/index#wiki_writing_resources) ^•\n[](#icon-exclamation) [^(Announcements)](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/wiki/announcements) ^•\n[](#icon-comments) [^(Discord Chatroom)](https://discord.gg/js5XDFB)\n\n*I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.*",
"I saw it sitting in a ditch by the village outskirts. Any boring person would look at the object lying in that gutter and think, “Wow, a barrel!” Then go about their merry way. So, as I was passing the ditch, I couldn’t help but think, “Wow, a barrel!” Like a boring person.\n\nWell, I may be a person, but I am not boring. My mother always told me that—that is, the part about me being a person—whereas I’m the one that tells myself I am not boring. I am 100% correct about that, sometimes. At this moment I assuredly am not-boring, because I am a monster hunter. And I can say with certainty that lying in the ditch is the infamous Bane of Barrels.\n\nThe Bane of Barrels is infamous for stealing barrels around the village, then sleeping in them. Legend has it that once it gets bored with a barrel, it leaves it and steals a different one. I’d probably do the same if I got bored with a barrel, but I’d at least have the decency to return the poor barrel to its owner. That monster is leaving barrels orphaned. \n\n“Knock knock,” I said, tapping the barrel with my staff.\n\nA deep growling came from the barrel. Birds and other small creatures fled the area. A cyclone started to form around the barrel. Dark clouds gathered overhead, spitting out lightning. Even the ground began to shake, and I lost my balance. Or was that just the wine I drank earlier? I have no clue. Either way, nature itself was terrified, as if I just opened up Pandora’s Box. Or in this case, Pandora’s Barrel.\n\n“*whooooooooo is thereeeeeee*?” Hissed the barrel.\n\n“Oh, umm...” I replied, seizing the perfect opportunity for a knock-knock joke. “You know what, never mind. The name is Phoenix—conjurer of flames, envoy of wrath, master of pyro, and the one who is going to exterminate you. Though, I also go by Jim.”\n\n“*Very well, Phoenix—conjurer of flames, envoy of wrath, master of pyro, and the one who is going to exterminate you though I also go by Jim,”* the barrel replied, “*You dare intrude on my* —wait, Jim? Hey, it’s me!”\n\nA small boy’s head popped out of the barrel. Upon seeing this, I cancelled the fireball spell I was charging up, sighing in relief. \n\nAfter a well-deserved sigh in relief, I started to charge another fireball spell. This time, it would be twice as powerful. Any onlooker would see the metaphorical fire gathering in my eyes. They would also see the literal fire gathering in my staff.\n\n“You know Torin,” I said, “You really need to stop scaring the villagers. Not that I’m complaining since they pay me, but sometimes, I’d like to hunt a real monster for once.”\n\n“Heh, well,” Torin replied from the barrel, “You know, my shapeshifting goes wild when I drink—”\n\n“That’s the problem, Torin,” I interrupted.\n\n“I’ve been trying to stop!”\n\n“Trying and stopping are different. Besides, aren’t you underage?”\n\n“I’m three hundred in shapeshifter years.”\n\n“Which is roughly thirteen in human years,” I said.\n\n“Hmph,” Torin replied. Pointing to my staff, he continued talking: “Oh, by the way, since I’m not a ravenous monster, aren’t you going to cancel your fireball? It’s getting pretty big, and I’d hate to be the poor target of that thing. It might hurt.”\n\n“That’s the point, Torin,” I said. “It’s supposed to hurt.”\n\nMy staff was glowing red, and orbiting its tip was essentially a miniature version of the sun. This mini sun would burn the living daylights out of anyone. In this case, “anyone” specifically meant poor Torin, who now skittered back into his barrel. How deplorable, using an innocent barrel as a meat-shield. After launching the fireball at Torin, I looked around, and was vaguely reminded of the village barbeque party last week.\n\n“I must’ve overdone it,” I muttered. “I wonder how the barrel is—oh, Torin! Glad to see you there. Care to help me find the remains of that barrel you stole?”\n\n“Argh…ahhh…oof,” Torin croaked.\n\n“Hmm, I take that as a no?” I asked. “Tsk, I guess I sent that barrel over to Barrel Heaven. Wonder what we’ll have to tell its family.”\n\n“Hrrrr…oww,” Torin grunted.\n\n“Well Torin, maybe it wouldn’t have hurt so badly if alcohol wasn’t so flammable, of which, your body was full of. Don’t worry, I adjusted my fireball to only somewhat kill you instead of fully kill you. Fully killed people don’t absorb lessons very well.”\n\n“Uugh…aaah,” Torin wheezed.\n\n“Well then!” I shouted gleefully. “I bet the village chief will be delighted to know that the Bane of Barrels has been taken care of. I’ll head over to his place now and collect my commission. What about you, Torin? If you stir up more trouble, I’ll adjust my fireball settings from ‘somewhat-kill-you’ to ‘mostly-kill-you’. So, don’t stir anything up!”\n\n“Aaawwwwooouuuugh,” Torin groaned. \n\nWhile I was happily skipping back to the village, Torin become unconscious, and a nearby raven began to peck at his limp body.",
"My breath was toxic, smelling of cheap takeout and large amounts of caffeine, unable to avoid smelling it as I let out a sigh, pushing aside the messy pile of books on my desk. “Another mystery.” I said, throwing my hands up with false excitement, long past the point of feigning pleasure over this job. Every time I got excited, it was that blasted shifter. I would find him passed out on the side of the road imitating some cryptid beast. It was horrible for my ego and even worse for my office, the peeling walls and cracked furniture a constant reminder of my failure.\n\n \n\nAlthough this one just felt different. I read over the letter I had received, investigating its details.\n\n \n\n‘This creature is like a horse but has several strange abnormalities. For one, the hooves are a strange circular shape, not having any indents or other features that would define a horse’s print. It also groans, appearing in the forest at random intervals in the night, groaning as it trots along the outskirts of our farm. While this other information may not be accurate, my son says he spotted the beast, and my son is never usually one to lie. Based on his description, the horse had sharp teeth and golden eyelashes. It also appeared to have a black and blue pattern along its body, one not fitting anything I have ever heard of. Will you please investigate? Our family is ever so frightened.’\n\n \n\nSigned,\n\nDominus Reedy.\n\n \n\nI tried to downplay my excitement, but I could already feel my leg bouncing beneath the table, anxiously waiting to investigate. A job at night? When the drunkard shapeshifter should be drinking? There’s no way it’s him. I flipped over the letter, reading the address on the back before getting up to leave for the job, only to stop when I smelt my breath. “Oof, might need to brush my teeth.” Reaching for one of my drawers, I retrieved a bottle of rum, taking a shot of the mixture, swirling it in my mouth before gulping it down, not about to spit out an expensive rum.\n\nSnatching a jacket from a hook by the door before leaving. The trip to Reedy’s farm wasn’t a long one. The weather the only thing that made the venture unpleasant. Cool air smacking against the thick layers of my jacket, earning the odd shiver from my body. How I detested the winter months, I wouldn’t even be out here if I didn’t need the money. As I wandered the streets, I kept an eye out for the shifter, poking my head in passing taverns, praying to any gods that would listen that he would be there.\n\n \n\nAs usual, the gods didn’t appear to be listening, until I pushed open the door of the Crusty Boot, seeing the shifter singing merrily at the bar earning me a sigh of relief. It actually wasn’t him; I would finally find a cryptid. My slow pace had changed to a sprint, rushing towards the farm. By the time I arrived I was hunched over, gagging as I felt the previous rum shot creeping up my throat, having to smack my chest until it settled again. “Made it.” I said between breaths, waiting to get the air back.\n\n \n\nWhen I recovered, I was straight onto the scene, crouching beside a set of hooves that matched the description given by the farmer. “Odd. The walking pattern of the creature is bizarre, the tracks come and go at random intervals as if the creature kept adjusting its pattern. Either the creature is bigger than I thought or something else is going on here.” I placed my foot on the first set of hooves, measuring the distance between them with my feet.\n\n \n\n“There is a possibility that some tracks have deteriorated with time. Despite the letter being recent, I can’t say for certain that this creature hasn’t been walking these tracks long before someone noticed.” I reached into the pocket of my jacket, pulling out a notepad and pencil, documenting that sight before me.\n\n \n\n“Now how do I go about finding this creature? If the tracks are inconsistent, then there is little point following them. Perhaps I should just wander the perimeter of the farm? See if the creature appears tonight?” An old-fashioned stake out. How long had it been since I could do such a thing?\n\n \n\nStriding over to the dense forest surrounding the farm, I crouched in a set of bushes, awaiting the beast. At first nothing happened and soon I could feel my eyelids dropping, falling into small micro-sleeps, struggling to stay awake. \n\n“Gwaaaa Gwaaah Grawl.”\n\n \n\nA groaning sound shook me out of my trance, getting myself into position. I watched as heavy hooves disturbed the grass, disrupting the soil as it wandered through the property. It was real. This was incredible. I could pay for three new offices with a discovery like this. “Halt creature. I wish to bring you in for evidence.” I shouted, causing the beast to look my way.\n\n \n\nIt was majestic. The gold dripping from its lashes, the unique color of its body and the dangerous-looking teeth. It was my ticket out of the slums. That’s why it hurt so much when the horse shrank, returning to a more humanoid shape befitting of the shifter. His cheeks a bright pink and his eyes glazed over. “Tommy boy, you found me! You are such a good little detective.” The shifter chuckled.\n\n \n\nI felt my gut twist, a mix of embarrassment and anger swirling inside. “You again? Why the hell do you keep doing this, can’t you leave me to work? I’m a cryptid hunter, not a detective, you know that.” I gave the shifter a jab across his jaw, watching the drunkard fall onto his rear, grimacing at the contact.\n\n \n\n“Right, the hunter of things that don’t exist. Who else did you expect? A cryptid wouldn’t make themselves so obvious. Look, I’m sorry, but the bartender said if I was sick in his tavern again, he would ban me. I needed somewhere private where he wouldn’t see me.” The shifter stated, pulling themselves off the ground.\n\n \n\n“Then why the hell would you disguise yourself as a cryptid? Was that just to mock me?”\n\n \n\n“No, of course not. Come on, man, even I’m not that cruel. I had to make sure no one would see me. I didn’t expect anyone to find me out here. It’s not my fault that brat was sneaking off into town at night, I just assumed anyone that saw me from a distance would think I was a horse, but of course he got too close.”\n\n \n\n“Why not just be a horse, then? That would have saved us both some time?” Trying to reason with the shifter was painful. His thought process rather varied compared to mine.\n\n \n\n“Horses are weird. I just don’t like them. I didn’t feel comfortable walking around as one. Hooves are really painful to walk on as well. Why do you think I changed mine? Look, I’m sorry, hey are you ok?”\n\nI rubbed my eyes, trying to hide the tears. The frustration getting far too much for me. “I’m a failure just like my grandfather. Dad was right, I was a fool for believing those old tales of cryptids.”\n\n \n\n“Hey, no, come on. Aren’t I special enough? Shit, now I feel like a jerk.” The shifter awkwardly stared at me before shifting his face, returning it to that of the horse. He struggled to maintain his balance with the enormous head now replacing his own, having to move his feet to keep upright. As he moved, a hand reach to his eyelashes, plucking them free before returning to his previous state. “Here, eyelashes from whatever you want to call me.”\n\n \n\nI looked at the eyelashes in disgust; the shifter grabbing my hand, turning it upright and dropping the lashes into my palm. “Why, would I want these?”\n\n \n\n“So, you aren’t a failure. You found a cryptid, that’s your evidence. Consider that my apology for interrupting your work.”\n\n \n\n“I can’t accept this. I would be lying to everyone. If they found out, they would chase me out of town or worse.” I said, still clutching the eyelashes regardless, unable to release them from my grip.\n\n \n\n“They won’t find out. It’s just to give you some money until you can find a real one. You know I could probably help you find one.” The shifter said before patting his stomach. “Anyway, I can probably drink again so I should get going, if you want my help, you know where to find me.”\n\n \n\nI stared at the eyelashes before watching the shifter leave. He could help me? Perhaps I would take him up on that.\n\n&nbsp;\n&nbsp;\n&nbsp;\n\n(If you enjoyed this feel free to check out my subreddit /r/Sadnesslaughs where I'll be posting more of my writing.)",
"I ran pell-mell through the dense jungle of the Congo basin. The shores of Lake Tele were only a few hundred feet away to my right, and ahead of me, crashing through the jungle, was the creature I had chased for nearly a year.\n\nMokele-Mbembe gave a loud, trumpeting roar as it bowled over trees centuries old. Its head was level with the jungle canopy and it swung about wildly on an incredibly long neck. Its tail was stumpier than I had imagined, and along its back was a thin ridge of spines. None of the stories had included those.\n\n“Stop goddamn you!” I shouted ineffectually at the creature’s retreating back. Aside from some brave souls among the local pygmy tribes no human had ever been so close to one of these creatures and lived. It felt like I’d stepped millions of years into the past, into a land where the love child of a brontosaurus and a hippo could rule an entire ecosystem.\n\nAnd it was getting away.\n\n“I swear to God I’ll shoot!” I shouted. Please don’t make me shoot.\n\nNo answer.\n\nMokele-Mbembe bellowed again and veered sharply to the right, towards the lake. If it went underwater I’d lose it, that was one of the unassailable tenets of cryptid hunting, at least with a budget like mine. I couldn’t afford any boat more advanced than a canoe and those didn’t come with sonar packages.\n\nMore trees were battered down ahead of the great creature with every step. At this rate it was a wonder there was a single tree left in all of the Congo, the path of our chase looked like a horror movie sponsored by chlorophyll. Richer hunters than I would be sighting our deforestation as evidence of Mokele-Mbembe’s existence for the next decade at least.\n\n“Please stop! I really, really don’t want to shoot!” I shouted pitifully, loading the gun anyway. The gun looked like it had already been old when the country was young. In Brazzaville they’d told me it could kill an elephant. Somehow that didn’t seem like enough.\n\nThe creature was at the shore now, its mad dash was slowing. It stuck one foot tentatively into the water as if testing the temperature. I leveled my rifle, pointing it at where I assumed the creature’s heart to be.\n\nIt took one step in.\n\nThen two.\n\nBy the third step it was already wading into knee high water. I cursed loudly, my finger still on the trigger. This might be the only chance I ever got to make my mark. I’d never killed anything in my life.\n\nMokele-Mbembe twisted its long, sinuous neck back towards me, looking over its shoulder and straight into my eyes.\n\nI cursed again, even more loudly, and hurled the gun into the bushes in fury. I’d have known those eyes in any shape and any form, anywhere in the whole world.\n\nMokele-Mbembe’s body began to shift in front of me, its rough gray skin shuddering and then beginning to peel back on itself, exposing the muscle and sinew beneath. The skin rolled up towards the spine like a long rolled scrolled springing back into its memorized shape, and then the flesh began to peel away too. All along the length of the creature’s back, from the tip of its tale to the base of its neck, it shivered violently, groaning in a high, ululating note that I knew to be intense pleasure.\n\nWhen the skin and flesh receded back to the tail it all began to roll up the neck in one line and finally the pleasure turned to pain and even the groan was silenced as any connection of lungs and vocal chords was torn away. All that was left was the still fleshed out head and the vast, cavernous skeleton of what I thought had been my greatest achievement.\n\nThen that skeleton shattered, dissolving in the air, and a woman fell from the creature’s head, tumbling gracelessly through the air until she crashed into the water, reemerging with a giggle only a moment later.\n\n“Goddamnit Magda, no!” I said, running towards the water and the frolicking girl there. “Not again, not now! I was this close, how could you? After all your noise the real Mokele-Mbembe will be miles away or in hiding, I’ll never find it now!”\n\n“Hi Charlie!!!” she shouted loudly, slurring my name.\n\n“And you’re drunk again!” I threw my hands up, contemplating going back for the gun. Magda Reynolds, age 23, give or take a few hundred years, was a terror. She was brilliant and brave, impulsive in the extreme. A beautiful, alcoholic train wreck of a girl, or perhaps a carriage accident since she predated the engine.\n\nShe was also my best friend. It was complicated.\n\n“Charlie, come on in, the water’s great!” she said, gesticulating wildly at me. I sat down on the shoreline and buried my head in my hands. Perhaps if I stayed long enough it was one of the local crocodiles would find me. It would be easier than going home empty handed again, I’d sold my car to pay for this trip.\n\n“Magda, can we please just be serious for five minutes? Why did you do this to me again? I can’t handle this.”\n\nHer splashing went silent for a long moment. I was not going to look up at her no matter what the hell she said. Soon enough I heard her swimming up to me, then felt the ripples of her approach.\n\n“I missed you,” she said. I could picture her face perfectly, those puppy dog eyes and soft features. I was not going to look up at her. This time she’d gone too far.\n\n“You left me behind in Greensboro,” she said. “For a whole year too! You know how much I hate being alone.”\n\n“So go somewhere, make friends, live your life! Maybe even get a job!”\n\nShe snorted, “A job? You’re one to talk.”\n\n“This would’ve been a job if you hadn’t shown up and blown it. I was so close Magda, you don’t even know. I cast a footprint that was three feet wide last month. Mokele-Mbembe is here, I can feel it!”\n\n“Last month?” I nodded. “Huh, I only got here a couple days ago.” Magda sat down next to me, her outstretched leg touching mine. Her bare skin was like a fire after she had transformed. If I looked at her I knew there would be steam rising from her body.\n\n“See?” I said. “There’s something here. There has been every time, I always get so, so close.”\n\n“And then I mess it up.” Her voice was small and sad, her words were still slurring. I would not look up.\n\n“Hey, Charlie,” she said. “Please look at me, I haven’t seen you in a year.” I would not look up.\n\nI heard her turn, felt the forge like heat of her body only inches away. “Hey,” she said again, “I really missed you.”\n\nI looked up, straight into her eyes.\n\nMagda’s eyes were green, but in a way that could only be seen, not described; they made emeralds look like their poorer cousin. They were the same in every form she had, whether she was a raven haired human, a towering semi-dinosaur, a hundred foot anaconda, or the hairiest bigfoot to walk the Earth. They were always her tell and the jig was up as soon as she let me see them.\n\n“Hi,” I said. “Honestly, I missed you too.”\n\n“You didn’t act like it.”\n\n“You deserved it. I’m still pissed.”\n\nShe pressed her forehead to mine, her skin was starting to cool. “I’m sorry about that, sometimes I can’t help myself.”\n\n“I know,” I said, sighing. “I’m not leaving this Lake until I find it though. I don’t have anything to go back to, I pawned it all to get here.”\n\n“Me too!” Magda said giggling. I laughed against my better judgment and let the tension drain out of me, laying back in the grass. Magda followed me a moment later.\n\n“You really think it’s out there?” she asked.\n\n“I do. This stuff can’t all be a myth, after all, you exist.”\n\n“Yeah, I do. And you found me so you’re basically an expert on Cryptids.”\n\n“I didn’t find you, you fell on me,” I said testily.\n\n“Please, you enjoyed it. Besides, I couldn’t keep up the Thunder Bird routine any longer. It was so boring flying around like that.”\n\nSomewhere in the distance a creature roared.\n\n“What the hell was that?” Magda shouted.\n\nI sprang into action, running back into the bushes to find my gun. “That’s it!” I said excitedly, “Mokele-Mbembe, and it sounds way more legit than your roar every did.”\n\n“Oh please, I had you eating out of my hands.” I didn’t respond. I’d already found the gun and slung it over my shoulder, beginning the long, hard run in the direction of the roar.\n\n“Hey, I’m coming too!” Magda called from behind me. As I ran I heard her groan from behind me, she was transforming again. A few seconds later a pure white horse appeared beside me, its mane flowing majestically as it ran.\n\nMagda the horse looked over and winked one impossibly green eye at me. I grabbed onto her mane and swung myself onto her back without breaking stride.\n\n\\---------\n\nIf you enjoyed that I've got tons more at r/TurningtoWords. Come check it out, I'd love to have you!"
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