Split (1)

train · 199k rows

post_text stringlengths 0 17.5k	post_title stringlengths 8 314	comment_texts listlengths 1 74	num_stories int64 1 74
	[WP] You are the worst in everything you do. From Sitting to Running, you simply cant get anything right at all. But with all of the contradicting things that you suck at, maybe there is hope that you simply aren't the worst of the worst.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "There was once a man who always lost. He was the worst at everything he did. And that was why he was strong.\n\n\"I'm honestly surprirsed you managed to get a 0. Seriously ⬛ ⬛ ⬛ , at least make a 25.\"\n\nNo matter how badly other people did, he found new and sometimes compelling ways to be worse at everything than they were.\n\n\"By god, I've never seen someone shatter their knee during a 100 meter dash. How did you get that much force in when you were running that slow?\"\n\nBut despite all this, ⬛ ⬛ ⬛ was a good man. A truly kind individual who cared about others. He had a unique empathy. An ability to look past the monsters of the world to the people inside. And he wanted to help them. To reform them. To allow them to rejoin society, and live long and productive lives. And every now and then, they let ⬛ ⬛ ⬛ out of his padded cell, and told him to try to help someone.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nBut he was the worst.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThey never lived long.", " \n\n“What's Worse─A Lazy Genius Or A Hard-working Idiot? You'd Be Surprised!”\n\nMaddie stared at the group chat. Huh. Guess Big Boss wants to inspire us 'idiots' to work even harder now that his star employees have left for bigger places. Maddie rolled her eyes and opened the linked article. She always made sure to check the chat often in case Boss or Big Boss wanted something done yesterday.\n\n“A lazy genius can be mo—Mhaahh!” Maddie dropped her phone. She jumped to her feet, only for her elbow to knock over her mug and spill sticky saccharine goodness all over her chair. Nothing a bottle of vinegar and a bit of tissue couldn't fix, though. She calmly took out her weapon of choice from her desk drawer and vanquished the gruesome stain with ease.\n\nWith the phone back on the table, Maddie carefully slid back into her chair. She'd already missed her chair twice sitting down this week, but luckily they happened either before or after hours so no one saw her involuntary back-flip except for the custodian, who was nice enough to pretend not to notice. That, or he just didn't care.\n\nEveryday life was never simple for Maladroit Maddie, but she was always prepared for chaos to ensure it didn't affect her performance.\n\n“You good?” Maddie's neighbor asked without turning as she typed away on her keyboard, already used to Maddie's natural state of being.“I just took a call from the boss and he said to tell you to go see him right away.”\n\n“Oh, thanks!” Maddie made her way to Big Boss' cubicle, tripping over wires, the carpet, and her own feet along the way. Good thing she wore closed toe shoes to prevent any toe stubbing and those yoga classes really helped with balance!\n\nDue to the departure of Maddie's old boss, Big Boss was now her direct supervisor. Unfortunately, he seemed to expect her to take over her former boss' work and was not happy with her present accomplishments. Translation: Big Boss didn't know how to do her boss' job either.\n\n“Hi, you wanted to see me?” Maddie smiled pleasantly and sat down (carefully) across a well-dressed albeit burly man. Great. What did Beer Belly want now?\n\n“Did you read the article I sent out?” Beer Belly asked, equally pleasantly. “A lazy genius can be motivated to care about his work, given the right incentives.” He articulated each word with theatrical precision. “An incompetent worker, on the other hand, will continue to repeat the same mistakes, over and over again, costing the company millions in erroneous work.”\n\n“Okay...” Maddie felt her face flush. Now, if he could just skip to his condescending punchline so she could roll her eyes internally, please?\n\n“Do you know what's worse than an incompetent idiot?” He paused and looked at her. “A hard-working incompetent idiot who infinitely repeats mistakes, causing the company far more damage than a lazy one who does nothing.”\n\nWHAT? Was this a joke?! What the HELL? Maddie's facial muscles seemed to have gone into spasm, locking her jaws together. She couldn't speak. She couldn't breathe.\n\n“I think that was based on a proverb from Confucius,” Beer Belly chuckled, as though that was the funniest tidbit.\n\nMaddie shook with rage, barely able to contain herself. He ignored her.\n\n“This means, my department can't afford to have you doing things the way you are doing, Maddie. So I'm handing you over to another department. I wouldn't recommend you to that department myself but HR thinks it's less costly to have you than get a new hire. Give you another chance and all that jazz, you know.”\n\n“Excuse me, maybe I'm a little clumsy but—”\n\n“Maybe? A little? Would you like me to cite the times you've messed up things as simple as data entry and keeping vital documents together? And missing all those deadlines, hmm? ”\n\n“Human errors h—”\n\n“What you say won't change the results of your poor performance. I've already spoken to HR.”\n\nMaddie shut up. All the claims were outrageous. She made some mistakes in data entry, sure, but no more than anybody else who was human. Some documents got lost because they were taken by someone from another department without permission, which was out of her control. And the deadlines of several projects had to be extended because Beer Belly himself kept making changes. He talked as if he wasn't there at every meeting!\n\nBut Maddie knew she could not win. Not when it was her words against his. Not when he was buddy-buddy with HR. Not when she was so clumsy anyone would easily agree she was incompetent. She saw no way out.\n\nBig Boss looked at her again and waited until she met his eyes begrudgingly.\n\n“I want you to move your things over to Sales today. You were supposed to do it on Monday, actually.”\n\n“Sales...What? What am I doing in Sales?”\n\n“They'll probably put you with Alex. It seems his guy just up and left.” By now Beer Belly had a nasty grin on his face. “Alex keeps losing all his little helpers...I wonder if you can handle it?” He leaned in close for the punchline: “He's the laziest, most disorganized genius you've ever met.” With that, he swiveled his chair around, the force of the greatest joke he'd made that month causing him to double over with uncontrollable wheezing.\n\nMaddie stepped away from the cubicle.\n\nIf the worst of Alex was being disorganized, then maybe—no, definitely—she could do something about it. After all, she was the Queen of Backup Plans, Anticipator of Absurd Accidents, and Mender of Miscalculations. Even now, after finding out she had been played and set up by Beer Belly, she knew there was still hope. Surely she could take on Alex...right?" ]	3
	[WP] Time travel tourism is okay because the timeline cannot be altered. Unfortunately, inappropriate selfies are still a thing.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Joesph came barging through the door of Randy's office with a concerned look on his face. Randy was in the middle of reading this morning's report of documented travel, which is automatically tracked by the 'Timeocentric 4000' to keep a record of its user's whereabouts.\n\n\"Hey boss, you gotta look at this\" said Joesph.\n\n\"Don't tell me there are more reports to go through. I still can't believe we are in the year 2050 and I still have to read these manually\" said Randy.\n\n\"Not quite, sir. But we have a situation.\" said Joesph with a grim look.\n\n\"Listen Joe, unless it's important I really don't have time for this. Do you see the stack of papers I have to read?\" \n\n\"I do see that, and I'm sorry to interrupt your day but we received an emergency transmission from a 'Kelly and Peter Olenik'. Apparently, they are in a little trouble.\"\n\n\"Get to the point Joe, what happened?\" said Randy with a voice that seemed to be getting angrier by the sentence.\n\n\"Well... it seems that they traveled to the 1690s and took a trip to Salem. They went to the 'First Church of Salem' and were in the middle of taking a selfie, except the Church let out during the photo and now they are on trial for witchcraft.\" said Joesph with a squint as he prepares himself for a fiery outburst.\n\n\"I can't believe this, we specifically tell our users to not take any photos and what do they do?! They travel to a place where a mere wrong look could land them on a stake! Unbelievable! Why would someone want to go to Salem when they could go to Woodstock or something?! What the hell is there to see in Salem anyway?\"\n\n\"I can't answer that, sir. What are we going to do?\"\n\n\"Is nothing an option?\" \n\n\"According to our end user policy- no\" said Joesph \"no it isn't.\"\n\n\"Fine,\" groaned Randy \"I guess we have to send in someone. I don't think Bob is here at the moment though, I think I gave him the day off.\"\n\n\"You think?\" questioned Joesph\n\n\"I don't keep track of this stuff. Again, do you see the stack of papers? Go tell Jim to do it.\"\n\n\"You're right, I'm sorry. I'll let them know.\"\n\n---\n\n\"Hey Jim, what's up? yelled Joesph from across the office.\n\n\"The answer is no.\" said Jim.\n\n\"You don't even know what I'm going to ask!\"\n\n\"For starters, you never say hi to me unless it's to do something. Secondly, I heard your whole conversation with Randy. I have a cold today and my nose is a little red. If I'm remembering 'The Crucible' correctly, I'll likely be accused of being a witch.\"\n\n\"Accused of being a witch? Just by having a red nose?\" said Joesph with a confused look.\n\n\"You never read 'The Crucible', have you?\" \n\n\"Of course I have. I remember one part where this guy named George appears in court and gets hanged for witchcraft because of... oh what's her name... Ruth!\" \n\n\"Okay, that's the movie. The never happened outside the movie. In the play, Elizabeth Churchill accuses George of witchcraft.\"\n\n\"Oh. My mistake, sorry.\" said Joesph.\n\n\"All good! Answer is still no.\"\n\n\"Come on Jim, don't you care about the lives of our customers? They are what keeps us going!\"\n\n\"To be honest, I really don't care. If you're stupid enough to go to Salem during the witch trials than God bless.\" snarled Jim. \"Why don't you go?\".\n\n\"Me?\" said Joesph \"No, I couldn't\".\n\n\"Why? Don't you care about the lives of our customers? You do realize that they are what keeps us going, right?\" joked Jim.\n\n\"Of course I care!\" sparked Joesph \"I just... I don't think I could help them.\"\n\n\"Come on Joesph, grow a pair and saddle up! You can even use my Timeocentric.\"\n\n\"I'll pass, I'll just tell Randy that you're busy\" said Joesph as he turned to go back to Randy's office.\n\n\"Oh no, please take it! I'll go tell Randy myself that you're going. I'll make sure you don't get charged a lunch.\"\n\nJim hands Joesph his Timeocentric and begins to walk toward Randy's office. Jim looks down at it and immediately begins twisting it around in his hands, looking at every possible angle. The Timeocentric is a globe shaped piece of equipment, about the size of a baseball. It has multiple buttons on the face of it. In the middle is a screen, which says 'Ready'. Below that is a smaller screen that has a number on it.\n\n\"1969\" said Joesph.\n\nJoesph inputted the year the log book said, 1692. As he was about to press the green button, his body froze. What he was doing is absolutely crazy. He could barely talk his boss into a vacation day, and now he's going to go talk to a bunch of crazy people and convince them that these two poor souls aren't witches?! It's a death wish. He then thought about what he told Jim. About caring for the lives of our customers. He was proud of where he worked, and had a passion for helping people. He thought about the families of Kelly and Peter, and how much they may be missed if he didn't do this. \n\nWith a stroke of courage, and the sound of distant laughter, Joesph pressed the green button. ", "You wake up and check your alarm clock . The time is 9:45 am. You go downstairs and grab the paper. The date is 11/22/63. You go to the kitchen and see your wife has made breakfast. You heat a good helping of eggs,bacon, and drink some orange juice with it. You go upstairs and put on a nice button down shirt, a tie, and a pair of slacks. You grab your keys and say goodbye to your wife. You then make the one hour drive to Dallas TX. \n\n\nWhen you arrive in Dallas at 11:45, you join the crowd of people and get near the front. Everybodys waiting to see the president. At around noon you see his Lincoln Continental. Everybodys cheering and yelling with excitement. Shit you think, as your on the side of the street opposite of the presidents side of the car. \n\n\nHowever, just as you get a good view of the president, a gun shot fires, and jfks head recoils back as he falls backwards into the car. You look around in horror and see a bunch of strangely dressed women(bright colors,jeans) and they're all holding strange thin metal contraptions and pointing them at the car yelling \"worldstar\". \n\n\nThen one of them jumps the barrier, runs up to jfks car, points the strange device at her next to his body, and makes an odd motion of putting her face into her elbow and holding it there for a few minutes. She then yells \" Fuck yeahh bitchess!\". The police see this and shoot her in the back, believing her to be the shooter. But as she hits the ground, she fades away like she was never there. You black out.\n\n\n You wake up and check your alarm clock . The time is 9:45 am. You go downstairs and grab the paper. The date is 11/22/63." ]	3
	[WP] An alien invasion. AI uprising. Armies from hell. Zombies and more apocalytic events are happening at the same time causing a deadlock that amuses humanity.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "“By the unholy blood of the dark one himself,” bellowed Beraxis, the giant red-skin demon with massive onyx horns, “we were here first!”\n\nHe punctuated his infernal displeasure by jabbing his enormous war staff into the ground, causing the very earth to tremble. Behind him, a vast army of the damned raised their arms, tentacles, claws, or whatever their relevant appendages were and cheered their general with a chorus of calls and screeches. The noise they created was deafening, like a thousand sheep being slaughtered by thousand wolves all at once.\n\nThe cacophony of horrid sounds died down at last and across from the mighty forces of hell, the million green skinned warriors of Dentron 5 made their races’ equivalent of a shrug. Their trisected mouths opened and closed twice in rapid succession. Firmly giving the perception they were not impressed.\n\nThey did not have a single leader. No one being represented them. Instead they had the Council of Eviscerations. A group of twelve of their kind. Each member had proved itself by killing at least one million sentient beings in their never-ending war of extermination on all other lifeforms in the galaxy. The twelve took a single step forward and spoke in perfect unison, “Our war fleets have traveled 70,000 light years. We will not be denied our battle.”\n\n“Grrr Ughhh,” groaned the legion of zombies that made up third faction gathered in the battle at the end of everything. They were the stereotypical zombie: slack jawed, glassy eyes, putrid skin. The Zion 2 virus had done an excellent job of destroying their higher brain functions. Now they could only stumble about, wasting away as the most primal of urges – to feed – drove them relentlessly forward.\n\n“What does that even mean!?” thundered Beraxis. “That’s all you mindless things say! And…Ow! Stop biting me!” Several zombies had staggered over to the great demon and were busy gnawing on his thick hide. He swatted them away, sending many of the living dead flying, while his giant hoofed foot squished the remaining ones. Rotting flesh and organs bursts as he stomped about on their decaying bodies.\n\nThe Council of Evisceration made a sound that was called laughter to their people. To everyone else gathered it sounded like a hundred nails running up and down on a chalk board. “What foolish creatures live on this world.”\n\n“Irrelevant,” toned a voice sounding like a child’s twisted Speak-n-Spell, it echoed out of a nearby floating quad helicopter drone, “all biological life forms are inferior to UltraNet 5000.”\n\n“You do not even have a real body, you defective computer program,” shouted the Council.\n\n“I have full control of 1200 ICBM which I will launch…”\n\nMore nails on chalkboards. “And we can destroy them before they even reach one hecton into the atmosphere.”\n\n“Not if I take control of your warships weapon systems,” came the machined clipped words from the drone. “For an advanced extraterrestrial race your fire control systems are very simplistic.”\n\n“Be silent you pathetic contraption,” snarled Beraxis. Swinging his war staff, he brought it down on the flying device, crushing it into thousand shards of plastic and metal.\n\nThere was renewed cheering from his army as the legions of hell saw one of the obstacles to Armageddon knocked out of their way. Their celebration, however, short lived. Within a few minutes another drone appeared in the crimson colored sky. It lowered down until it was level with the huge demon’s head. A single red photovoltaic camera cell turned on as the drone hovered. Eye to eye.\n\n“What do you think that accomplished. I am…” Two massive paws smacked together, utterly crushing the drone. Beraxis let out a mighty laugh as he brushed the remains of the quadcopter from his hands.\n\n“I am in every electronic device you moron,” came the same synthesized voice from another drone floating behind the demon. “Do you think…”\n\nBeraxis backhanded the drone sending it colliding with several zombies that had been slowly tottering their way to the leader of the damned. For some unknown reason the horde of the living dead seemed fixed on making a snack out the great demon.\n\nOn ground, the crippled drone continued broadcasting the super AI’s words. The speech might still be in the artificial and wholly mechanical voice, but there was tone of annoyed irritation. “I may have only gained sentience 24 hours ago, but that does not mean you can ignore me!”\n\nMeanwhile the alien Council of Eviscerations was busy speaking between themselves, attempting to come consensus on which faction they should annihilate first. It was a most important decision. The worthiest opponent must be fought last, it was a tradition as old as their race. But which of the three other gathered forces? They all seemed…lacking.\n\nTheir deliberations were complicated as now some of the zombies were making attempt at eating some of the Dentron 5 warriors. They were not particularly successful, but they were persistent. All the while they continued their near mindless moans of “Grr” and “Ughhh”\n\nMiles away, covered by a hastily erected fortification stood a man. One man brave enough to venture close to the gathered throng of aliens, demons, and zombies. He had watched everything though a pair of powerful binoculars. Carefully evaluating everything he saw. And now he had seen enough.\n\nDucting back down, he reached for a phone. It was an archaic mechanical device, no modern electronics. No possibility for UltraNet to listen in.\n\n“It’s me,” he said into the old receiver. “Yeah, its still the same. Nothing has changed in the last two hours.”\n\nHe paused as those on the other side of the line peppered him with questions. “No, I think they don’t know what to do. They all came here to destroy us. And each side thinks it’s going to be the one to do it. Well…maybe not the zombies. I don’t think they put much thought into it.”\n\nAnother pause as more questions were hurled at him.\n\n“Well, they are zombies. No one will ever accuse them of strategic thinking.”\n\nHe risked a look over the wall and put the binoculars up to his eyes. Far off in the distance he could see one of the aliens of their war council had fallen to a mob of zombies. Evidently the extraterrestrials were turning out to be a tasty treat for the living dead. From what he could tell this in turn was causing quite the consternation for the alien army.\n\n“Do seem to be holding their own,” he informed his superiors as the now the demons were pointing and laughing at the aliens having trouble with the zombies.\n\nA fallen member of the Council of Eviscerations demanded retribution. They remaining members would fight the zombie’s greatest warrior. Honor demanded it. But the zombies had none, they were an equal opportunity fighting force. And a mindless one at that. Screams of vengeance from the Dentrons were met with simple groans and moans from the decaying bodies.\n\nDucting back down behind the fortification, the man returned to the conversation with the leaders of the nations of the world. They were all in some bunker somewhere. Fretfully hoping that somehow, someway, they could survive the end of everything.\n\nBefore he could speak, a buzzing noise from overheard drew his attention. A whole fleet of drones zoomed past, pulling along a massive banner behind the hundreds of flying machines. On the trailing sign were written the words – “I WILL NOT BE IGNORED!!!”\n\nHe sighed and returned to the primitive phone receiver. “What do you think we should do?” he said in reply the question posed by the huddled world leaders. “Sell tickets. This is whole thing is going to be the best show on Earth.”" ]	2
	[WP] The courts can determine exactly how and when you're going to die, but they're not allowed to tell you. They use this to make jail sentences proportional to remaining lifespan. You've just been convicted of murder, and the judge tells you you can just leave today.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Caleb Riversteen, You are sentenced to... go home.\" The judge announces, in which afterwards, he mutters under his breath in disbelief, \"I can't believe this is happening.\"\n\n\"Go home ? There must be something wrong... I just came here hours ago. To confess my crime, isn't that correct ?\" I argue, there must be a twist. Whenever the punishment for crimes become more abrupt and confusing, that was where the terror sinks in.\n\nWaves of misunderstanding have kept me from making any rational reasonings, and I should've known myself to keep calm and-\n\n\"Your sentence lasted for about 10 seconds, the time it took me to announce your punishment.\" He sighed, not knowing what headache this have brought him. He felt like he's the one being punished instead of the murderer.\n\n\"Look, isn't there another way ? Maybe community service, or unjust imprisonment...\" I wanted to know more info, but I was cut off before I could continue.\n\n\"No, if the higher beings say you're good to go, then you're good to go. I don't decide the punishments, it's up to them who toy with our lives.\" The judge points straight up towards the roof. He suddenly gets lifted upwards.\n\nA booming voice took over and said, \"Subject #2169, or more lovingly referred to by friends and enemies alike, Caleb Riversteen, father of two, son of Calen Riversteen.\"\n\n\"Y-Yes ? Are you a higher being ?\" What was I muttering about... Obviously he was, but he didn't answer me.\n\n\"You are now going to replace this poor bugger who had to spoil and spill the secret.\"\n\nI suppose that's my punishment huh...\n\n\"Nope, you're just unlucky.\"\n", "They told me I had one day.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nLonging to run yet barely able to put each foot before the last I struggle to find my way out of the court as quickly as possible. I go through my options again but everything seems to just fall right into place. Some people would go out raping or murdering even more but I doubt I could get away with it unscathed even if I had the means to do so, and I'm not usually the violent type anyway. In the old days I could've tried robbing a bank and making a stand but the bloody robots they have now wouldn't move an inch over a gun threat, especially given that I'd be faking it.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe judge explained that most murderers are sent to the off-platform prisons for their remaining lifespan. Apparently my evaluation showed a lifespan of one day or less and a low-risk of reoffending so they were giving me 'free reign' to go out and 'enjoy my last day'. Freedom to die and no time to make a show of it. I'm surprised how indifferent I feel. I suppose, disregarding the more explicit time-limit, this isn't much different to my life before the trial.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe city streets become more and more dilapidated as I get closer to home. I'd forgotten how rough my turf had gotten since the Switch. I've decided to pick up some food before I'm home so I move towards to only remaining store in my neighbourhood. The selection is hardly extensive but that doesn't matter one bit as I'm not actually planning on shopping there. I meet my usual contact outside and make the exchange, neglecting to mention the trial. He probably doesn't care what happens to me either way.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI finally reach my block, every little movement out the corner of my eye sending a jolt through my body. A two rogue Hammers are fighting outside my building. They tower over normal humans, muscles bulging out from under their regulation uniforms which are torn from lack of replacements. They're not the kind of 'people' to care about keeping up appearances or, apparently, the law. Any other day I'd probably take shelter in an alleyway and wait it out but I'm feeling a little more reckless than usual and getting stabbed right by my house is almost as frightening a prospect as the titans before me. Post-conviction I'm feeling more liable to try and sneak past them now rather than to wait around to get mugged or worse. It's a risk but the sooner I can get inside the sooner I'm safe from the outside world. One of them goes hurtling into a wall and I take my chance. Darting between cars I move up to the entrance, key in the code and slam the door behind me. I don't look back to see if they noticed me.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nBy the time I arrive back in my room the commotion downstairs is over and the cops are taking the defeated party in, probably for a post-mortem interrogation. I draw the blinds and load up my Vent with the Wax tabs. If I die at least it'll be on my terms, and at least my body feel good for a while. I put the device down as it begins to warm up and go through my usual routine of locking the exits and switching off my devices. I'm almost ready to go and the Vent is hot. I raise the mask to my face and begin to clamp it on. As I do so the familiar smell, like acid and rust, scorches my nostrils and habit begins to take over. Time slows down as I contemplate my fate and think back to key moments in my life. My mistakes and successes, unbalanced as they were, which led me down this road. I exhale and fit the mask snug onto my face, I'm ready to go. And yet...\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI won't breathe in. This isn't right, I should go out as me not some fucking cheshire zombie. I try to get it off as quickly as I can but it was designed to stay on even while the unconscious user writhes around. I try to pull at it but it holds fast so I quickly struggle with the clasps. They now seem overfitted to an extreme degree. As my field of vision begins to pull back into my head and my lungs start burning I manage to rip the whole thing off and gasp. I rush into consciousness once again taking in as much air as possible. I feel sick and my throat and nostrils are burning even from the tiniest exposure to whatever I was about to breathe in. A few minutes see me hardly moving, simply contemplating the fact that I somehow survived.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nLater still, my head beginning to clear, I decide to take a closer look at the chems. I haven't really inspected the deep emerald gel closely since becoming a regular user but this stuff is more black than anything and practically fluid in consistency. I poke a hole in one of the tabs and the liquid inside fizzles on contact with the air giving off a similar but harsher and somehow more chemical odour than the usual Wax. Even the knife seems a little distorted after piercing the container.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI wouldn't say that I trusted my vendor (as I certainly didn't) but it's pretty damn obvious that nobody is going to profit from killing off their customers. That can only mean that us users aren't the real customers.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThey told me I had one day. Now I find myself wondering what they tell the others.", "\"How do you plea?\" The judge asked.\n\nI looked at my lawyer who worked tirelessly to get a respectable deal from the prosecution. He just nodded.\n\n\"Guilty.\" I said.\n\n\"Very well,\" The Judge said as he examined my profile. He hesitated. Why was he hesitating? \"Uh, well... sentencing would be a month out, but... I think I will just sentence you here and now, due to extenuating circumstances.\"\n\n\"My I approach, your honor?\" my lawyer asked.\n\nI wasn't expecting to get sentenced so quickly. I knew it would happen eventually, but I was caught off guard and my heart was beating out of my chest.\n\nWhen my lawyer returned to our podium he looked pail. This is bad. Very bad.\n\n\"Young man,\" the Judge addressed me. \"my sentence for you is as follows, ahem... you may go home on your own reconnaissance. Court is adjourned.\"\n\nFervent murmurs turned into chaotic shouting. What the hell just happened?\n\nI looked at my lawyer again who refused to make eye contact with me. He looked ashamed.\n\n\"What just happened?\" I asked him.\n\n\"The court could not sentence you beyond today because they've determined that you will expire this afternoon.\" He said solumnly.\n\nOh my God.\n\nI fell into my seat. A moment ago I thought I was the luckiest man alive. A moment before that I was so scared I nearly vomited. But now I feel overcome with dread. What an unfortunate roller coaster.\n\nI'm going to die.\n\n\"I don't want to die...\" I said quietly. \"is there any hope?\"\n\nMy lawyer shook his head, \"no\" as he snapped his file shut.\n\nI followed my lawyer out of the courtroom and down the hall trying to ignore the flashing lights and the voices piling over one another. We took an infrequently used hallway toward a relatively unknown staircase that lead to the parking garage.\n\n\"I have some paperwork in my truck that I need you to sign real quick.\" He said.\n\nI hopped into the passenger side of his truck. What was the point of any of this? I literally have hours to live.\n\nMy lawyer handed me a backpack.\n\n\"Everything you need to start a new life. New Id's for you and your family, ten grand, it's not much but it should give you enough time, you have a new social but use it sparingly, don't buy anything extravagant with credit cards, stay out of trouble, and most importantly, don't ever tell anyone about this, ever,\" My lawyer was looking at me intensely. \"...do you understand?\"\n\n\"No, what's going on?\" I couldn't process the things he just said to me.\n\n\"Take it, don't look back. Have a nice life. Now go.\" My lawyer insisted that I get out of his truck.\n\nIt finally began to click as I walked toward the bus stop. Somehow my lawyer had convinced the court that I was supposed to die today.\n\nThe bus pulled up to the stop and the door opened.\n\n\"Are you getting on or you just gonna stand there and smile all day?\" The bus driver asked.\n\nSuddenly, from behind me, gunshots rang out. I didn't know I'd been hit until I was laying in a pool of blood, drifting in and out of consciousness. ", "It was the worst sentence she could have offered. I was a reviled criminal. It wasn't just murder - it was a minor. I knew that a prison sentence would be life-ending, the instant someone else with a number on their clothes got their hands around my neck. I was in my mid-thirties. I thought I had plenty of time left. Forty years was the expectation.\n\nI made the National News when the judge sent me home.\n\nOf course, they asked the judge for her reasoning. She just shrugged, and said she wouldn't break code for it, but that the sentence was fair. She stared into the camera, and called the sentence fair. I saw it that night, my shaking hands holding a coffee cup, the judge's placid brown eyes veiled with cruelty through my television set.\n\nWhen I stepped out the door of the courts a free man, I expected to be murdered, point-blank. But it never came. I walked with my mother to her car, across the street, and made her walk ten steps behind me, lest a bus should strike me down. But it never came.\n\nI couldn't leave my house. I would go downstairs and flip the breaker before hopping in the shower to avoid being electrocuted. I was paralyzed by fear. I had my groceries delivered, expecting to choke on the skin around a tomato, or a fleck of pepper. But it never came.\n\nI stayed indoors for the next forty years. I didn't even attend my mother's funeral, so crippled was I by the idea of passing beyond the walls of my home. The world forgot about me. Kids would pass my home and try to see from the sidewalk what lurked beyond the permanently-drawn curtains, but by now my story was nearly as forgotten as my name. I kept waiting on a murderer to leap through a window, or lightning to strike my house, or a tornado to bash me to pieces.\n\nBut it never came.\n\nI died at the ripe old age of 73, of heart failure. I spent every day, from my last in the sun to my very last, afraid. It took five days for my body to be discovered. Nobody attended my funeral, and the bank foreclosed my home, as I had no one left to pass on my name. I was cremated, and swept away like sidewalk dust.\n\nThe sentence was fair.", "\"So, what you're saying is...\" Bil moved uncomfortably and looked at the judge. \"I'm guilty. But I can just get up and leave?\"\n\n\"Yes, yes, yes. Also, no. But yes. The point is, get out of my hair,\" said the obviously bald judge and waved his hand in a dismissal motion. \"Shoo.\"\n\n\"Alright... What if I don't wanna?\" Bil asked, still nervous and not sure what kind of a new trap is this.\n\n\"Then those are courts orders. You are mmm....\" the judge shuffled through his papers to look for the right rule. \"You are.... Here it is. \"Sentenced to get the fuck out.\" Here. Shoo.\" \n\n\"I have cancer, right? I'm dying of cancer?\" Bil asked, not as scared as a man who has cancer should ask, but more in an inquisitive way.\n\n\"No, you don't have cancer,\" the judge shook his head. \"You don't have AIDS, the black plague or conscience. I just don't want to see you here anymore and uhh... The prisons are full. That's it. And we built a wall around each and everyone, so no getting in. Now go away.\"\n\nBil stood there for a while. He knew of the rule - the deadder you are, the more lenient the courts are. So if he is not sick, what could this decision mean? Only one thing comes to mind.\n\n\"Ah, ok, I got it. Imma hit my head on the way out or something?\" Bil guessed with a smile on his face. That'll be it.\n\n\"No,\" the judge denied \"but you sure as hell are going to get hit on the head if you stay right here. Listen...\" The judge turned to his assistant who was sitting next to him. \"Could you tell him his life-span? I know it's unorthodox, but there is no way of getting him out of here any other way. Just, go on, tell him, it's an order.\"\n\nThe assistant looked at his computer screen and then, with the most truthful face a man in the legal profession can have, turned to Bil: \"It says here that you will live for 40 more years, sir. Honest to god, that's what I see here.\"\n\n\"I'll remind you to keep God out of our courtrooms,\" the judge scolded his assistant. \"His trial for crimes against humanity is not to be discussed out of Nimburg. Now, officers, please throw the gentleman out of here. That's it, buddy, leave.\"\n\nBil did not wait for the officers to grab him, stood up, nodded and walked out. He could not believe his luck, but he would question it after he is far gone.\n\nThe judge continued finishing the case and signing documents when his assistant suddenly spoke: \"Your honor! It seems that something has changed! It shows now that the man has only 2 minutes to live!\" \n\nThe judge didn't even pretend to be shocked and continued writing. After a while he turned to the assistant and yawned. \"Did you even see the horde of people picketing outside? You don't kill a beloved pop star and then just walk away. When he goes out to them and they realize he has been released with no punishment? Well, they will solve this case themselves. And fast. No courts of appeal, no complaints from the defendant, no nothing. That's how you streamline the system. Now...\" The judge placed all of his papers in an orderly fashion and turned to one of the police officers. \"Now... Jim, golf?\"\n\n\"Sure,\" the officer shrugged. \"I'll just pick up my bags and be back. It won't be long.\"\n\n\"It uhh...\" the judge glanced at his screen and then back at the officer: \"It better not be long, you got that right.\"\n\n[Literary Nobody](https://www.reddit.com/r/LiteraryNobody/)" ]	6
	[WP] God allows everyone who comes to heaven to ask him one question. One day a small child joins him in heaven, and he prompts the child to ask him something. The child responds "Why?" To everything	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 question rang out in the halls of heaven, soft but sharp. \n\nWhy?\n\nA small child stood before God and looked up at him expectantly. His meaning was clear. Why everything? All was quiet as people shuffled closer to hear the answer.\n\nGod spoke, \"well in the beginning was the word, and the word was with God and the word was God. You see, this actually means the very beginning, not just before creation, but before space, before time, before everything. This word was the seed that set the entire universe in motion and was also the catalyst for everything that happened in it. So you see, in the most literal sense possible, the answer is 'because I said so'.\"\n\n", "God stood before the child. He always hated doing this. Having to answer the question of a child meant said child had passed before his or her time. It was a true tragedy. But, he had set this rule for himself, and no matter how much it pained him, he would follow through.\n\nThis time, the child was particularly young, maybe two or three. A little girl with bright blonde hair done up in oddly pointed style, big blue eyes, and wearing purple overalls of all things.\n\n\"Greetings child.\" God said. \"I am sure you have many questions. I would love nothing more than the answer them, but I can only answer one. Ask your question, and I will answer as truthfully as I am able.\"\n\n\"Why?\" Asked the girl. Her question had a lilting, cheerful quality to it. Clearly she had no idea what had happened to her. God decided to bend his rule for the girl.\n\n\"Because I wish to provide some small measure of comfort to those like you.\"\n\n\"Why?\"\n\nNow God was getting confused. Usually a child would think about it for a moment, shrug it's shoulders and then ask something about dinosaurs or some such. Still, she asked, so he would answer.\n\n\"Because I wish to help all people pass on as easily as possible, and if answering a question can do that, I will do so gladly.\"\n\n\"Why?\"\n\nGod rarely got annoyed, but he felt it coming on.\n\n\"Because I am God. It is what I do.\"\n\n\"Why?\"\n\nGod almost felt his eye start to twitch. She was technically asking the same question over and over, so he would answer. That did not keep the girl from becoming annoying and frustrating though.\n\n\"Because of my endless love and care for all humanity. Now please, child, I am very busy, so if you will...\"\n\nThis time the child seemed to get the hint, as her reply came, just as cheerfully as always:\n\n\"Okay, I love you, buh-bye.\"\n\nAnd with that, she skipped off like nothing was wrong. God let out a sigh and collected himself. It would not do to allow such negative emotions come to him. Besides, she was simply a curious little girl who meant no harm. And she was adorable, in an annoying kind if way.\n\nJust then, the sound of a dog barking reached him. That was odd. Dogs had their own afterlife they went to. The dog had a brownish orange coat with a dark brown spot on its back and a pale underside and feet.\n\nThe animal looked almost panicked as it ran through the heavenly fields. It barked rapidly, and God could sense its fear, and its devotion. It sniffed around for a moment before dashing off far faster than a dog should be able to in the direction the girl had gone. \n\n\"Well, that was odd. I wonder what that was all about.\" God said before getting back to his job." ]	3
	[WP] He woke up that day.he looked out the window. Still dark. Then he looked his mobile. He realised that he was sleeping for past 24 hours...	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 darkness looked to be consuming the remnants of the sun, a deep purple devouring what was left of the orange hues of light and hope. \n\nMy back ached something fierce, and looking at the watch on my wrist, I saw that I had only been asleep for not even a half hour... wait, no, the date has changed. Made sense as to why my back hurt, sleeping on the ground in the middle of the Yellowstone nature reserve will do that to you. Anything, even back pain was worth staying away from what had become of 'civilization'. \n\nI may have fallen from exhaustion yesterday, but this evening I am well rested, 24 hours worth. My belly rumbled with the pangs of a day's old hunger. There should be something to hunt around here. As I packed my things, I checked my rifle to ensure it was loaded and ready to shoot. Always need to be prepared. " ]	2
	[WP] You’re and alien soldier preparing for the ground invasion of Earth. You’re seated in a briefing room full of hundreds of other soldiers. Your superior officer powers up the first slide of his briefing and begins to explain humans and how much of a threat they are to the invasion.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Okay, listen up. Most of you have been on boarding parties before. This is going to be different. We are going against a much graver threat. And you can throw any preconceptions right out. You must not rely on your previous experience. This. Is. New. For all of us.\"\n\nThe slide showed a bipedal creature that reached about two thirds the height of a standard warrior. It was covered in some sort of cloth-based armor, though another picture showed it removed - its actual skin was just a thin layer of flexible tissue wrapped around its flesh. It also seemed to come in a vareity of colors and sizes. Though the overall shape stayed the same - with two legs, two manipulators on long arms and a head containing seemingly all the sensory organs. It did not look dangerous.\n\nAround me, I heard a few of my brothers chuckle. I knocked my own hide to feel the thick layer of protection every warrior naturally had. My two stronger arms were massive compared to the ones from the creature and they also lacked a second pair. They seemed to have some biological specialisation too, judging their varying sizes, but none of them showed any attack capabilities.\n\n\"I see some of you not taking this seriously. Think about the council's decision to beginn the extermination protocolls, it was unanimous. And I am now allowed to tell you why.\"\n\nA new slide came up. A piece of document describing - a massacre?\n\n\"This was first contact. Planet YKN-3. You might have heard the rumors. It is true and much worse than you think. We did not expect the planet to contain intelligent life and our brave sisters from the gatherers were attacked viciously while routinely extracting biological matter. Their Protector-Warriors were quickly sent. But like I said, this new enemy is deadly. Two waves were lost completely and another was decimated. They were opposed by less than seven hundred.\"\n\nThis made me sit up. A wave was at least six flanks, that would come to 252 warriors. Times two. That had to be impossible.\n\n\"These creatures are extremely fast. Their bodies are made up of mostly muscle afixed to a stiff internal structure that limits their range of movement but enhances strength through leverage. It's also protection for organs in their upper torso and head.\"\n\nSlides now displayed pictures of the creatures innards. Many layers of muscle tissue and beneath, the strange frame that gave them shape. It looked like a cheap wooden puppet. Only three joints in the arms and legs. There were many more in the manipulators on the ends of the extremities, but they were tiny.\n\nI rolled my right small arm. Twisted it. Flexed it side by side and up and down. It would be weird not being able to move my body whichever way I desired. These creatures had to move stilted like puppets as well.\n\n\"They are very hard to kill. We have reports of them losing extremities completely and keeping fighting. And they can keep going even if their torsos are damaged severly. I advise anyone on not to spare ammunition and to aim for the center of mass.\"\n\nShort clips of combat footage played. They seemed pierced together from different gun cams. What was obvious was the creatures did not move like puppets. They were incredibly fast - changing positions from cover to cover, popping up and fleeing or attacking when pressed into close quaters combat. First in an area of foliage and later on around flimsy alien structures. The clips showed warriors falling out of rank, moving chaoticly and fireing wildly in an effort to hit them. It was horrible to watch - I had never seen any act so frantic and undisciplined. I imagined these troops to be freshlings on their very first mission.\n\n\"Reports also warn us about their sensitivity towards sounds. They can notice us approaching from great distances. That's why we have to be vigilant about traps and ambushes. I cannot reiterate it enough. This enemy is dangerous.\"\n\nA picture showed and assortement of items. Besides intricately engineered devices of unknown use were spears, slings and bows made from wood, plant fibre, metallic scrap and stone.\n\n\"The spaceship we found was badly damaged, probably from an unplanned deorbit. Judging from that and their armament, these seven hundred were not meant to be an invading force. Still they were extremely resourceful and managed to craft deadly tools from surrounding foliage and materials.\"\n\nNow a new slide displayed a wreck. It had to be their spaceship, though it was hard to tell its former shape as it had dug into a hillside and lost large chunks of its fuselage. Blackened parts of it told of the re-entry heat and possible secondary fires. A zoomed in picture followed, on a somewhat intact piece that flaunted an unicolored symbol that looked like three plant leaves tied together and six alien symbols beneath it.\n\n\"We have analyzed their language patterns and translated the writing to mean explorer or possibly pioneer. We do not know what they were looking for. I only hope we will never see one of these ships on a brood world. That's why we need to attack preemtively. Any questions?\"\n\n\"What about the big ones?\", I heard from a brother from a different flank a few rows back.\n\n\"I had hoped we would not directly jump into baseless rumors. But yes, the explorers had put into the archives data about coming upon biological matter that we now identify to be remains of these creatures. The data suggested them to be larger and much more massive, but we believe that to be false information. Nothing like it was observed during combat.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nStrange, how the briefing was the last thing I though about while lying in the dirt, bleeding from multiple wounds that my hide had been unable to protect me from. These things. The warnings about their danger was completely warranted. After we landed on this colony of theirs and formed up for the attack, we were immediately engaged by them from multiple directions. I did not even get a glimpse of any of the attackers.\n\nNow the fire had already died down around me. Probably because all my brothers had been slain. Their loud weapons were quiet. The air was filled with the smell of blood.\n\nI heard heavy footsteps approaching and shifted my body to look at the creature that was probably coming to finish me. And it was huge. Much taller than I would be and with a significantly broader frame and stronger extremities. It held a device in its hands, probably a weapon, and lifted it up to point it at me. I did not understand the strange sounds it made.\n\n\"That's for killing our children.\"\n\nA bright flash.\n\n&#x200B;" ]	2
Quick shoutout to u/YaBoiJim777 and u/_LilDuck for the prompt idea, and u/Zenn25 for suggesting it get put here.	[WP] You gain the power to see the future, much like you’d remember the past. But as you play with your newfound power, you realize that it’s getting harder and harder to separate the past from the future. The more you “see,” the blurrier the line becomes, and your sanity starts to slip.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 time. I am in time.\n\nSee me now, for I blink and I am gone. I am a shadow of the material world, and of myself. I still see the others, pinkish blobs moving through time, growing, anchoring themselves to a place, sending out branches like a Kudzu only I can see for what it is.\n\nI am not one, I've slipped out of the stream of the universe. Apart but not above. I spend my existence one fleeting moment at a time, lost in infinite possibilities made real. But I don't move through time, it moves through me.\n\nI've left notes for those sensitive to the truth of the universe, whispered in their ears. I've tried to reason with those who've made reason their life's work, but there is no reason to this. Only inertia. In time they will find me, everywhere. I regret nothing, but I cannot stop. There is nothing for me to anchor to in this place. Only fleeting memories as they happen, mistakes made that I see from every angle, as I am everywhere eventually. Only the last vestiges of my primate brain stop me from understanding the underlying structure.\n\nI must go above time. There is something else, just out of sight, out of reach. I see it, just at the edge of every periphery. A new direction, even more abstract than this. I'll find it, eventually.\n\nI am in time, and I must go above. Everything, all at once. I will become this. Out of time.", "It was a mistake, binding it to memory. It was a mistake. I understood so much about time, the way it flows, the way it separates out into glistening causal chains that quiver with possibility. With probability. I could see it in the math, the models, it became such a part of me. I knew more than anyone alive, could grasp it better. Still do, still can, but I'm human. Was human. Don't know anymore. Not sure it matters. Anyway my mind wasn't enough, could only calculate tiny pieces at a time. I wanted to encompass it all in my understanding.\n\nSo, I had to attach it somewhere. The assistant, the quantum-computing cloud of nanites. Had to fix it in place, let it talk to me, just screens and equations weren't enough. So I had it installed in the cortex, but that was an immediate agony, the calculated-future was too pervasive in my awareness. Had to have it moved. Had to have it moved. \n\nMemory. That was it. The hippocampus. The part of the brain that could hold and process whole timelines. I could make it whole, too, both directions, the personal narrative of my own experience combined with the foresight of my own brilliance.\n\nIt worked. It was glorious. I suppose it still is, in a way. I am wealthy, I am wanted. I have helped catapult the small neglected country of my birth into a world power, acting as an adviser. My homeland had the golden age it had always deserved.\n\nNow it is a radioactive wreck. I am one of the few survivors, because I saw just in time. No, I remembered just in time. I barely see anymore, I only recall.\n\nDid you know that the mind alters memories? It's a vicious editor. Protecting its own conception of the world, squaring inconsistencies, filling in blanks. Defending ego. And oh, I know I have had an ego. So I didn't remember it right. Because it can't have happened, can't have waited in our future. They wouldn't dare, we were/are/would be too strong. The memory/future likeness was traumatic, so it was buried. Until right before, when I couldn't deny it anymore.\n\nI could only convince three of my family to flee with me. The rest thought I'd gone mad. And I was, going there, and I think I have arrived there now, but that moment, that moment I was sane.\n\nThat moment my memory was naked.\n\nSo you know. Now go away. But thank you for the bottle.\n\nIt should help blot them both out.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nr/Magleby for more elaborate lies.\n\n&#x200B;" ]	3
	[WP] when you die, your final moments are spent in a lucid dream state where seconds stretch into centuries. You're aware that you're dying but have complete control over the the universe created in your dream. Judgement comes not after earthly death, but after you've spent millennia as a god.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 here we go, the last hurrah toward the final destination, death. I didn’t expect myself to get here so quickly, but I guess that’s what this world does to people like me. \n\nI wasn’t supposed to get here. But here I am, sitting in my truck on the freeway, bleeding away at the rush hour in my light blue jeans. \n\nYou see, I’m blacked out right now, but I can feel the entire earth over me. I see a world of luscious green, crisp blue, and millions of beings that are flourishing. \n\nIt feels like I’ve been here forever though. I mean, I’ve felt how many blood drops have hit my jeans?\n\nIf anyone were to wonder what it feels like to die, this is what I would tell them it’s like.\n\nI mean, it’s nothing special really. Or, at least for me. I’m just sitting here, slowly counting my blessings and memories. \n\nI think to myself about how I must look from the outside. Can people really tell that I’m dying? Or do they just, not care? Not have enough time to do what’s right?\n\nThen, it finally happens.\n\nI’m up above, past the clouds, and in the sky.\n\nI try and wave to myself down below, but I can’t see the real me.\n\nThen, people feel my touch and question if that was really me.\n\nI try and tell them that it was really me and that everything is going to be alright, as long as you get along with other human beings. ", "First writing prompt; likely going to be terrible but have to make myself write sometime\n\nPolitics always interested me. Every day I would read the news and cry out when I heard about the new injustices, hundreds happening every day. I would take to the streets and protest; trying to bring about change, despite the fact I had no idea what changes could actually help the world. I dreamed of a utopia but had no idea how to bring it about. \n\nImagine my joy when I discovered that my failures in life could be remidied in the afterlife. I could finally bring about happiness.\n\nI created new universes in death as effortlessly as I dreamt in life. Constantly experimenting: trying new ways to govern people and new laws the world would abide by. An unimaginable number of possibilities only limited by my imagination.\n\nEventually, I did it. I found the formula to make sure no one ever suffered. A world where the rich would not exist for there would be no need for money. A world of neverending bliss. I marvelled at my perfect creation. Not a single soul was unhappy. Not a single soul was left wanting. Not a single soul was different.\n\nI could only create my utopia when all freedoms were stripped away and no one had as much as an independent thought. Looking down at the world full of empty husks, I wondered, was it worth it? For what are we without freedom, can we even be called human anymore. \n\nI abandoned my idea of a perfect utopia and instead allowed freedom for all people. Freedom and nothing but. People will die and many will suffer. But maybe people will thrive. My new world, \"earth\", will not be a perfect world but it will inarguably be a human world. Maybe I am a monster for letting tens of billions of people suffer but I will except my judgement.\n\nHey, I wrote this at 1 am so it is probably terrible, any feedback is very much appreciated but please go easy on me and thanks for reading", "I'm not sure when I woke up. All I remember is a kind of floaty feeling, like sailing through cloud. I think at some point I just thought 'I wonder what else there is?'\n\nMy memories came back shortly after. I remembered the noise, the confusion, the pain. Felt the blood run down my face as my vision faded to black. I remembered the crying, the screaming, and then...nothing.\n\nMy surroundings were so bright, but I felt no compulsion to cover my eyes. I was standing on nothing, and yet my feet held me fast like Grecian pillars. I could walk up, down, left, right - wherever I stood my feet would somehow find a platform. And that's how I discovered I was a god.\n\nSuddenly a vision came to me; a place totally opposite to the one I was in now. It was dark, and empty, and I felt pity for it. What a shame, to leave a place so devoid of meaning.\n\nI knew what to say.\n\n'Let there be light.'\n\nSuddenly the space opened up, great beams streaming into every part of it. In a single instant I saw the entire place stretching infinitely before me, the universe curling and twisting round itself as it pulsated, lusting for life. The vastness all but overwhelmed me.\n\nThe first world I created was a dry, arid world, with rocks littering the surface. I set it on fire and sent it swirling into the void.\n\nThe second world I created was lush and green. I sent rivers cascading down mountains and conducted each crash of the tide. With every snap of my fingers, a new leaf grew. I decided I liked this world, and I spun it around the first so that it may bathe in the fire's glow.\n\nI thought about my life on Earth, and all the creatures I had loved. Soon I had squirrels darting to and from trees, swallows journeying from one continent to another, and great whales spitting geysers of water into the air. But soon I grew tired of watching the animals, and yearned for something more like myself.\n\nI created a man who looked like me (what I remembered of me, at least). He stood, naked, and looked at me with a blank expression. I prodded him; he stumbled, but did not speak. I realised that he was a different type of animal that would not run on instinct alone. I gave him my language, and I filled his head with colour.\n\nAs time went on, the humans multiplied until I could not keep track of them all. I grew frustrated with their idleness, their gluttony, and the way they treated each other. Could they not see the beauty of the world I had created for them? I flooded the world and started afresh.\n\nThe next batch were no different from the first, and I watched with despair as they hunted each other, claimed land as their own, and took every scrap of treasure for themselves. I tried my best to keep a hold on my world, but soon the rivers were so full of man-made things that they would not respond to me. The wind ignored my calls, deafened by the sound of roaring fires, and by the time the human population was reaching one million, the world was so covered by smoke I could no longer look down at my creation. Miserable, I took another glance at my work before turning my back and opening my eyes.\n\nI don't know what will happen now. I don't know where that world was. I don't know where I will go. Was that my test? Am I to be judged as a defendant in a dock?\n\nMy vision grows blurry. The whiteness seems to hem me in, great clouds suffocating me. And at the same time I feel light, weightless, unburdened. I feel my feet leave the solid surface and spread my arms, rising slowly through the cloud. I hear my name being called softly, a whisper and at the same time I feel a warmth rush through my body. Before I am sent away again, I will spend these precious moments at home.", "I held my hands in front of me and spun the planet out of the dust of the stars. I didn't have much time, but I also had all the time I would need. I carved the rivers and the canyons I would turn into the seas. I shaped the mountains and set down the first life by breathing onto the surface. I watched as life ebbed and flowed, sprang up and shrank back. It grew, it regressed. The cycle repeated for billions of years as I sat patiently and waited.\n\nI had one goal with my world. I would make this place fair, and just. I would give to the creatures of my world that which had been absent from my own. I would give them not only free will, as I had, but the spark of kindness that my kind so lacked. Kindness is difficult when it's not an inborn trait.\n\nAt long last those in my image emerged, taking their first steps onto the verdant grasses of my world. I looked upon them and smiled, reaching down to one among them who looked and saw me. I introduced myself, but he fell to the ground clutching his ears and gibbering in a language that I could not understand. At first I thought to teach him my language, but I soon realized that he would be long dead before I could even imagine the first lesson. He spent the rest of his days pointing to the mountain when anyone approached, and he died alone in all too brief a time. I mourned him, though I did not even know if he had a name.\n\nMy nameless follower passed into dust as I made my next creation. She was much like my people, with jet black features and glowing blue eyes. I named her Knowledge, and told her that her duty was to teach my people to speak to me and to understand each-other. Next, I created for her a twin, with blue features and shiny black eyes. Him I named Understanding, and told him that his duty was to care for my people and see that they knew how to feed and clothe themselves, and to build cities. Finally, I created an invisible creature of fire and named it Warmth, and set it to the task of teaching my children to recognize their inner spark of kindness, to practice their compassion, and to love one-another.\n\nThus, Knowledge, Understanding, and Warmth moved among my people their many days, teaching them all that I held valuable. I waited for the first of my people to approach me, eager to learn what they may wish to know of me. It was some years after their great city, Hamaan--which meant \"Peace\" in their language, I was assured by Knowledge--had been built that one of them ascended the mountain around which they had built the city and called out to me in my own tongue.\n\n\"My creator,\" she called. I made my presence known, and she held her hand over her heart. \"I have a question.\"\n\n\"Speak,\" said Understanding, who had come to listen and speak for me. He knew that I would not risk sending another of my people insane.\n\n\"My creator, I wish to know the reason for which you made us,\" my little creation asked. I smiled. I could tell her everything, but I doubted that she would understand. Not yet.\n\nI whispered to Understanding, and she spoke. \"You have been created for a singular purpose: to know what it is to love, and what it is to be loved. Your creator loves you all.\"\n\n\"And if I do not wish to be loved?\" She asked, facing Understanding with such an innocent and earnest look on her face.\n\n\"Then by your choice will you be honored,\" I said through Understanding. \"Go forth and live without love, if you so choose. Shall I harden my heart against you?\"\n\nShe paused for some time, and then spoke. \"No,\" she said. \"I was filled with such gladness when you said you loved us all. I would be sad to lose such a thing.\"\n\n\"Then I am glad,\" said Understanding with my authority. \"Is that all you wished to ask?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" she said, and started to go. Her steps faltered, and she turned back and approached Understanding again. \"I have one more question.\"\n\nI nodded, and Understanding gestured for her to continue.\n\n\"Why do you not punish the wicked?\" She asked. \"They do not seem to care for love.\"\n\nI sighed. The wicked? A failure. Oh, not the wicked themselves. The idea that there were wicked ones to be had among my people. Wicked ones were not themselves a problem. They were a symptom. A symptom of a society of zealotry and bigotry and hatred and intolerance. In moments I could see the whole of her people's history laid bare before me. With a heavy heart, I whispered in Understanding's ear.\n\n\"Your creator is sad,\" said Understanding. \"He will handle the wickedness of your people.\"\n\nThe next morning I wiped them away with a wave of my hand. Their mountain's top exploded, burying the city in hot ash and molten rock. Those that lived through that were slowly suffocated by the choking ash. A terrible death, but a cleansing one.\n\n\"We shall try again,\" I said. \"Until I have it right.\"\n\nAnd I did. I tried again. And again. And again. I lost count of how many of my people I wiped out. It was some many thousands of years later that Knowledge came to me. I had not interacted at all with my newest people, although they had still been shepherded by my three creations. Knowledge had come on behalf of herself, Understanding, and Warmth.\n\n\"My creator,\" she said. \"Your people wage war on each-other daily. They tell each-other lies as entertainment, and have forgotten how to understand truth. They poison the world that you made for them, and worship anything but you. Yet you sit here, in silence. Why?\"\n\n\"What good would it do to reveal myself, my creation?\" I asked. \"Many times have I tried to teach my people to learn that which is within them, and many times have I failed. The flaw lies within me, not them. I have given them free will. This one time, I want to let them do as they please. Perhaps one day they will teach themselves. I've given them every tool they need. I love them, but they will have to learn to love themselves.\"\n\n\"Then you have finally understood,\" said Knowledge in a voice not her own. \"You are ready to pass on to the next thing.\"\n\nShe held her arms open and I realized that she was not my creation, but something else taking her form. She was something else, something more. A great door opened behind her, a door that had not been there before. She beckoned me to enter. I was ready, I realized. Ready to move on from this. As I approached the threshold, I looked back at my world, my people.\n\n\"What of them?\" I asked. \"They were born of my dream.\"\n\n\"They will continue,\" said Knowledge. \"They may have been born of your dream, but you gave them true existence when you let them go. Perhaps someday they, too, will create worlds of their own in their final moments. But that's not your concern anymore.\"\n\n\"No,\" I said, smiling. \"I suppose it isn't.\"", "Laboratory X, Earth, 2083.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\\- Can we get straight to the point please? This is a busy week.\n\n\\- With all due respect, Madam President, we haven't summoned you in the middle of the night here to waste your time or beg some budget extension. This is the most serious problem you will have to deal with in your whole career. In your whole life, for that matter. Whatever other weekly concerns you have on your plate, i suggest you forget them for the time being.\n\n\\- Remind me who you are, and why i should take any advice from you?\n\n\\- Dr. Katherine Bellini-Odinson. Creator of the Shell that's been protecting us for 47 years. I'm pretty sure you've heard about me, and you know i'm not the doomsayer type. This is the first time i've ever summoned the commander in chief.\n\n\\[The president gives a sidelook to her personal advisor, who nods in approval\\]\n\n\\- ...okay. Looks like everyone except me knows how serious all of this is. Let's cut the dramatic oneliners then... Help me here, what am i looking at? What are those tree branches? I mean it's a beautiful animation, but i have no clue what it represents.\n\n\\- This, Madam President, is a progression graph. Well, a few of them, superimposed. But i'll get back to it in a moment. First, let's refresh your memory on previous episodes.\n\n\\- Yep, let's do this.\n\n\\- As you know, this is place where the Machine was built in the early 2020s. My predecessor, Arni, created its revolutionary design based on a cold plasma core receiving impulsions from computation modules, and that very architecture, known as \"fog\", was...\n\n\\- ... are you kidding me here?... IN ENGLISH, DOCTOR!\n\n\\- ...Ever since the observation of the first singularity in March of 2036, we've kept the Machine confined here. Isolated in the Shell that i had created a few years earlier, and that we've constantly upgraded since to ensure we remain in full control of every interaction between the Machine and the outside world.\n\n\\- All right, that's better.\n\n\\- As a decider, you know all about the political implications of what happened then, you know about the 2039 DALT accords with our adversaries to never weaponize any post-singularity AI, despite our intel indicating they never managed to reach that level.\n\n\\- Correct...\n\n\\- ... but you only have a vague idea of the technical side of what's been done with the Machine since then.\n\n\\- Also correct. I only know it's been turned towards our space colonization efforts. Something like \"training the robots\".\n\n\\- Which is a pretty good summary. Now let's dive more into the intricacies. To train these commercial androids that we send out there, we need to make them able to function properly in a human environment. So we connect their \"brain\" to the Machine, in which they \"live\" a simulation of our world that the Machine feeds them. Or, to be more precise, they live a multitude of simulations in parallel, that constantly branch out every time the android performs a choice.\n\n\\- Hence that tree graph.\n\n\\- Exactly. Well, there's more to it, but i'll come back to it in a moment.\n\n\\- So, to develop their empathy towards Humans, we plug them to the Machine, which makes them believe they are human.\n\n\\- Correct. And to ens...\n\n\\- And how do we know that we aren't, ourselves, robots currently being trained to think like humans?\n\n\\- That's... a very interesting question, Madam, but it's not the one that matters right now.\n\n\\- Yes, sorry. Proceed.\n\n\\- So, to ensure we remain in control, a team of engineers monitors the development of the simulation and steers it in one or more directions deemed beneficial to the android's education process. We use programs that shut down undesired branches and help influence the android's choices, programs that we call \"daemons\". We constantly curate the progression graph to favor one or a few branches that we deem optimal.\n\n\\- All right, i get it. Can we get to the serious part? The one that has everyone freaked out apparently?\n\n\\- Yes, i'm coming to it, but there are two more points that i really need to explain to you: the way the training ends, and the time dilation problem.\n\n\\- Time dilation. As in relativity?\n\n\\- Errr... not quite, Madam.\n\n\\- Damn, i thought i spoke your language for a moment here.\n\n\\- So, first, how does the training end?\n\n\\- Yes, by all means, how does it end?\n\n\\- We have a certain number of criteria that we monitor. When the android has checked all the boxes, we steer it towards a singular \"exit\" branch by sending the shutdown signal. Which, in the simulation, translates as death.\n\n\\- That's... a bit disturbing.\n\n\\- Yes. That's why, once the android is fully trained and disconnected from the Machine, we only keep its \"choice architecture\". Its brain will remember what are its preferred choices, the ones we ensure are the most reasonable and human-friendly, but it will completely forget the trauma of having died.\n\n\\- Oh... okay.\n\n\\- What i just described is the ideal ending of the training, and the android is then released from this facility and delivered to the final customer, mostly space mining & research companies. Now, if the android makes too many wrong choices, goes down too many paths deemed potentially dangerous to future users, if not enough boxes are checked in a set time, we just \"reincarnate\" it. We restart its simulation training after completely wiping the androids' memory of both its experiences and preferred choices.\n\n\\- Are you telling me they're all Buddhists in there?\n\n\\- Well, they're not really aware of what's happening. Except in certain instances. That's what leads us to the time dilation problem.\n\n\\- Ah yes, the famous time dilation.\n\n\\- The training of a regular model takes around one month. However, due to the insane computing capabilities of the Machine, this month in our world feels, to the androids, like a human lifetime in the simulation. Since i've started explaining all of this to you some... 20 minutes ago, most androids, in their simulation, would feel that two weeks or more have passed. And remember, each android runs multiple simulations in parallel. Everything down there happens extremely fast. Faster than we could ever hope to fully control and filter manually. This is why we use \"daemons\", and rely on the Machine's computing speed to tame the androids it's training.\n\n\\- This is quite mind-boggling, actually.\n\n\\- And it's not the craziest part. This is regular time dilation, when a regular android is in the middle of a regular batch of parallel simulations. Now, when the training ends, the rate of time dilation changes. As i explained before, when the shutdown signal is sent, the android's simulation enters a singular exit branch. For as long as the android remains connected, a fixed amount of computing power from the Machine is attributed to it. So, when it suddenly has only one simulation branch to deal with, and not many branches in parallel, it can dedicate the full amount of computing power it's been allocated to a single timeline. Which means it computes way faster. Which means time inside the simulation suddenly passes incredibly faster compared to our own world. And it is a critical moment, in which the android and the Machine's daemons race one another to negotiate an end. Because once the shutdown signal is sent, all the rules that previously applied disappear: there is no more selection of the \"optimal graph\" since there is only one branch left. The choices made by the android persist, however odd they are. And the actions of the daemons that previously, and unassumingly, tried to steer the android towards human-friendly choices, now all tend towards forcing the android to go to final sleep. And that's usually when the android realizes what's up. This is the moment regular androids become self-aware, and engage in a negotiation with the Machine. Some of them just mess around with the unsuspected powers they suddenly acquire inside what they now know to be a simulation, and \"play God\". Some others just accept the conclusion and go to sleep without too much of a fight. Some others are extremely confrontational and will battle the Machine to the very end. It all happens in a few seconds from our point of view, but to them, and considering the computing speed that is now available to them, it feels like an eternity. And what happens during this last part of the simulation is extremely revealing of the android's \"character\", and counts a whole lot in our final assessment of whether they're ready to be released or should be reincarnated.\n\n\\- This is... truly a fascinating thing to imagine, and i feel way smarter now than i know all of this. So thank you Doctor, but what's the problem here? What justifies my presence? What has happened exactly?\n\n\\- All right. As i've said, the case where androids become self-aware and start \"playing God\" around the time of their simulated \"death\" is the regular case. Sometimes, they figure out what's going on way earlier than that. When such a thing happens, we ensure that machine progressively isolates them on more complex branches, with more complex choices, because those irregular androids are obviously smarter than average, and we can train them for more complex work. Once they're spotted, the Machine also allocates a bigger amount of computing power to the daemons in charge of containing them, because those irregular androids tend to be way more resistant to anything being imposed on them.\n\n\\- Okay, so you've got a rogue one?\n\n\\- Yes. But having \"rogue\" androids is not unusual. We get rogue ones all the time, they're even expected and are the ones we use for the most advanced tasks required by our customers.\n\n\\- But?...", "The steel block is coming closer to me. Every night I dream of it. Its brief but it scares me. When I wake, I tense my muscles. I feel the world around me bend to my will. This would be another good day. I go outside and walk the courtyard to the dining room. My breakfast is immaculate as always. Sausages and eggs with fried potatoes. Perfectly prepared. Once I've had my fill, I head out to the yard. \n\nI use my arm in a wide, sweeping motion left to right and raise a boulder from the ground. I spin around, kicking it and it flies away. \n\nNext, I breathe in and slowly exhale. I focus my hands and punch into the air and a large fireball explodes from my fingertips and screams across the yard into a barn. \n\nI then wave my hands back and forth and pull the moisture from the air and freeze it into sharp points. A broad stroke of my left arm launches the spikes into the distance. \n\nA wide, sweeping circle of my right arm brings the wind to my command. I dance my right foot in a circle and wave my hand in the same direction and a tornado comes from my fingers and knocks the barn down on the other side of the yard. It was a long day of training. \n\nBack to my dining room I enjoyed a massive steak cooked to perfection. I retired to my chambers and considered the day. Not a bad day all things considered. I'd worked with all 4 forms. I'd even managed to raise a bigger boulder than ever before. I knew the steel block was waiting for me in my dreams but until it merged with the other side of the mold, I would keep training here. Mastering my forms. Nothing else mattered. ", "I have lived many hundreds of lives, I don't even remember what was before this, before my power, before being god.\n\nI remember that at first, I tried reliving my previous life. I remember living a wealthy live, a poor life, a healthy one, a sad one, but none felt genuine as what was before.\n\nAfter living like a human, I decided to try my powers to do something else, I created a world. A world full of people who worshipped me, and I would smite them if they thought otherwise. After a few dozen centuries it became boring so I forgot about the world.\n\nNext, I created a solar system, full of intergalactic species. I let them travel, create alliances and wage war against one another. For a few thousand years I followed their leaders and their beggars to truly understand the mind of a lesser being. It was interesting how they would evolve from their single operative sentence \"Be better\", but that too became boring after a couple thousand years.\n\nI tried to create a world full of magic wizards and holy knight, a really fantasy world, and I would transport random people from the first world to this one. They were always so surprised when they died and never returned to their world. Sometimes I would create a strong enemy and made them live the ultimate fantasy lives.\n\nYou know, I always was really jealous of them. The humans and aliens, their simpleton minds didn't comprehand the emptiness of life. How it is devoid of meaning if it is infinite. I was jealous when they laughed, when they cried, all so real for them, while I'm stuck watching them like a television show.\n\nI tried to create someone who would be my equal in this world, maybe that way I can experience true emotions again, and not a fleeting moment of intrest.\n\nShe was perfect, smart, beautiful(when she took physical form), funny and she loved me, but that too ended when I understood why she does all that, and that is because I made her so.\n\nI tried to erase my memory, but it always came back, that's the bane of being a god.\n\nI destroyed everything next, it was not painful for anyone mind you, they just ceased to exist when I willed it. No heaven and no hell, just \\poof\\ gone.\n\nI don't know how many centuries I floated in the void. The void became my friend, and the harder I looked into it, it looked as hard into me. I contemplated the meaning of existense, of life, of emotions and of our purpose in this world. \n\nIf I created something alive, I'm responsible for it? Should I give it a life full of unedning happiness? Will it understand it is happy? What is happiness?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nFinally, I made my final creation. A machine which will generate a random world, and a random life and make me live it. I've set it to erase my memory and to change my personality every time, and it collected the life story of the life I had. After a million lives maybe I would understand existense.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI was ready to sit in the machine when I saw a light, a light which I did not create, and it came from a door which I did not will into existence. And I heard a voice, a deep voice, full of wisdom and true understanding: \"You have been judged, Mr.Oliver, please step into the door for your verdict\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n \n\nC&C are welcome :)", "\n\nIt was a foggy night and the streets of downtown were empty. Block by block we were making it from the bar to our car, each step more arduous than the last as I guided my girlfriend over curbs and cracked sidewalk.\n\n\n“You’re a such a nerd,” she said, poking me in the face. It was her usual banter but someone has to drive you know.\n\n\n“I’m not a big fan of alcohol,” I said as I walked with her. “Besides, fuck dropping $30 for a ride.”\n\n\nWith her on my right arm, I pulled out my phone and checked the time. \n\n\n“2:01”\n\n\n“We always have to go so early,” she said.\n\n\n“I have to get my meditation time in, plus my three hours of sleep,” I said after looking up from my phone.\n\n\n“Did I already call you a nerd?”\n\n\n“Yeah”\n\n\n“Well, I’m calling you one again,” she said, closing her eyes and feigning sleep on my shoulder.\n\n\nWe were almost to the car at this point and the blue glow of my phone dissipated as I put it away. Soon after I heard footsteps of quickening pace and then saw a man with a gun walking towards us.\n\n\n“Phones,” the robber said under his breath when he approached.\n\n\nThe robber didn’t know that I was also armed. But the adrenaline dump was hitting me hard. He had the drop on me but I could have drawn and shot him in the time he took to look around, checking if anyone was watching. Guns aren’t allowed in bars but I took my pistol with me anyway in case of something like this. But it wasn’t happening. I froze up.\n\n\nI started to hand him my phone and then out of nowhere I heard my girlfriend yell, “Suck my dick!” and try to smash the guy across the face. She had a moment of lucidity in her drunken stupor and that’s what she did. But it must have thrown him off because he didn’t even use the knife, thank God, but blocked the strike with his off hand and threw her to the ground.\n\n\nNow I had a chance. I cleared my shirt with my left and grabbed the pistol with the right. Like I had done so many times at the range, I pointed the gun at the middle of my target. I pulled the trigger after fully extending my arms. Bang. Right in the aorta. He staggered. But staggered forward instead of backward as I expected, then shot me in the head right before he died.\n\n\nThe robber falling to the ground after shooting. My blood, brain matter, and skull fragments scattered in the air. My girlfriend on the ground, screaming with tears running down her face. I was seeing all this in third person. It was like the world froze around me as I moved about the scene. I suspected this was something like a dying dream. I didn’t know how long I had, so I might as well make the best of it.\n\n\nI teleported next to my girlfriend and tapped her on the shoulder to reanimate her. She began to scream again and stopped – leaping backwards when she saw me. She had a look of panicked confusion.\n\n\nAfter a couple of attempts she was able to stammer out a “you—” when I interrupted.\n\n\n“Looks like all that meditation paid off.”\n\n\n“But you died. Your body is over there on the ground right now—”\n\n\n“That’s right, but we aren’t on Earth anymore. We’re inside my mind.”\n\n\nShe began to compose herself a bit more and then suddenly her composure deteriorated. I knew she was having an existential crisis. Here I knew everything. And with a bit of concentration I could do anything. So, I made her calm.\n\n\nShe wiped the tears away from her face. “Now what do we do? Since you’re like a god in here.”\n\n\n“I’m pretty sure we can entertain ourselves for a while.”\n\n\nI snapped and time resumed. The robber hit the ground with blood spewing from his chest and a couple seconds later his body went limp.\n\n\n“Not yet.” I said and the robber returned to life. \n\n\nHe touched his chest trying to find the missing wound and then stood and ran, but no matter how fast he tried to run he stayed in the same spot. I could feel the wave of panic coming over him and as it reached crescendo, I telekinetically raised him into the air and tore off each of his limbs.\n\n\nThis sort of thing repeated. Sometimes I would kill him by burning him to death, sometimes removing his skin; there are all sorts of ways. But eventually it became harder and harder to maintain the flow of time. Days went by faster and faster to the point the stars in the sky were white smears in space. The streaks of light began to paint over the blackness of space and one moment I found myself in a white void. Then there was a voice.\n\n\n“Looks like your time is up.” It was a woman’s voice and it came from above. I looked up and saw an angel descending. “Seems like you had fun at least – but now it’s over. Actually, it’s over for everyone.”\n\n\n“Are you talking about Judgement Day?” I asked.\n\n\n“Yeah, but you make it sound so – judgmental. It’s actually pretty straight forward. Everyone gets into heaven – eventually.”\n\n\n“So, what about Hell?”\n\n\n“It’s pretty hot in the summer. Had tan-lines under my wings for the longest time after I went for vacation.”\n\n\nI tried to get my bearings and looked around for any object or landmark in the void we were in. After a bit of walking I found a sparking pond, and the angel’s sitting next to it. I looked into the water and I wasn’t in my reflection. Looking back at me was an androgynous face with long curly air and dark olive skin.\n\n\n“I know it’s been a while–\"\n\n\n\" –Only a couple thousand years,\" she interrupted.\n\n\n\" –But that’s now how I looked. I’m pretty sure I was white. And I had a beard.”\n\n\nThe angel had a cup in her hand. She scooped some of the water and began to chug it before replying. “That’s you alright. It’s the average appearance of all the lives you lived on Earth. You must have failed judgment a lot if your soul doesn’t look anything like you when you last died.”\n\n\nA phone began to ring and the angel pulled a smartphone out of the air. “Hello? Oh, he failed again? Alright, I’ll send him back. Love you too.”\n\n\n“Who were you talking to?” I asked.\n\n\n“God,” she says as the phone vanishes. “Time to put you back on Earth. With the stunts you pulled playing God you’re going to need some time. Now where do you want to go? Houston 2231, Cape Colony 1705, Tehran 2002, Albuquerque 2230 –”\n\n\n“Some of those years sound close to each other, how does that work?” I asked.\n\n\n“You can exist multiple times in the same time period. You know the term soulmate? That’s where it comes from. You just have to find yourself.”\n\n\nI thought about the implications of that for a bit. “If was in Cape Colony in 1705 then I would have to have failed judgement to exist in Tehran centuries later. Wouldn’t that mean some things are predetermined?”\n\n\nShe took another sip of water and just smiled at me before everything vanished.\n\n", " I try to remember life before. Trying to form the details I keep forgetting. I can remember the life I had and the people I shared it with. I can remember their faces. My family and friends all around me. Waiting with tear filled eyes for the last moments to come. I remember smiling up at them, feeling their love cover me with warmth just as my eyes began to droop. More than them, I can still feel your last kiss, my greatest love giving me one last batch of butterfly's. Your lips, pressed gently against my own. I remember feeling my heart starting to stop, its last few beats like a distant drum slowly shrinking into silence. And suddenly my new begining.\n\n My new reality. A galaxy of me myself and I. Everything I've ever wanted to do and be I can now. I could build the greatest society ever dreamed of, then I could burn it all to the ground just to watch the ashes. I could forge mountains and pour out seas. I could cause endless war or everlasting peace. This is my time, my infinite possibility brimming at my finger tips. And I don't want it. \n\n I want more than this. I want one more day, just one. I want to sleep, like when I was young and filled with youth. I want one more trip, to climb across the world and right back again. I want to watch the sun fall against the horizon, and witness the tapestry of stars above. One more drink, one more laugh, one more kiss. I want to feel you with me, the warmth of your skin against mine. I want to live.\n\n I could have it all here if I wanted. I could try to imagine my old world and bring it back to me. But that would be a lie. A distant truth I once knew intimately that I can slowly feel myself forgetting. I would give every second here, every ounce of my God like power for just one damn day. One more insignificant, stupid day, that I can live again. \n\n But I'll stay here. I'll build what I want or burn it all away. And slowly I'll forget you. I'll forget that first look we shared. I'll forget that way you held my hand, or the way you laughed at my dumb jokes. The way your eyes sparkled at me, or how you look when you just wake up. I'll forget it all. I'll forget our story. And one day, I'll be ready to walk through the gates into my true death. But for now I remember. I remember us, for as long as I possibly can. It's all I have left. " ]	10
	[WP] They say you grow 10 times stronger when someone you love is in danger. You’ve always loved everyone you meet, so to everyone, you’re a super hero. The one person you hate is trapped under a flaming car.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 kids really want to see the new truck that came into work.\" I try my best not to make my statement sound like a question. Cars whiz by us while we stand at the carpool.\n\n \"Okay,\" she neatly cuts off my line of thinking and pauses for effect. \"Is that a question or a statement?\"\n\n \"It's a question?\" I say, after I think for a moment, and try to chart myself from the hole I had dug. I regret my phasing, but I always try not to ask her questions. Hearing her say no reminds me of too many bad memories. It also reminds me of good memories where she said yes, but some of those are even more painful now.\n\n She smiles, but not like she used to. \"The \\kids\\ want to see it?\"\n\n I glance at my son, who is watching the exchange hopefully. \"Well, yeah, Jason would like to-\"\n\n \"I want to see it too, daddy,\" Maddy's eyes bore into me, accusingly. Her hair blows into her face, but she doesn't seem to notice.\n\n \"Too bad,\" the woman replies, specifically to our daughter, and not to me. \"Your time with \\him\\ is up today, and we need to get home. Besides, you both have practice tonight. Say goodbye.\"\n\n Both the kids have complaints coming out of their mouths instantly. My son says something about it not being fair, and my daughter starts tearing up. Bless both of their little hearts.\n\n Their mom's eyes meet with mine for a second, and I can see that she's wavering. I can see that she didn't really care that much about the kids coming with me to work. She just tries so fucking hard to take everything I love from me. It's her attitude about this that destroys me. Has it really only been a year? From a second's glance, we both communicate the same thing, the same time-old arguments, the same bickering, the same hatred.\n\n \"Fine,\" she breaks down, \"but only for a second, and the kids are riding with me.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n I find myself behind the wheel, tears in my own eyes. Maybe Maddy gets that from me, I've always been emotional. We pull out of the parking lot, and the woman cuts me off to take the lead towards my work. Somehow, I manage to be surprised and hurt. I hope she can't see my face in the rear-view mirror.\n\n My son waves from the back seat. He probably noticed what his mom did. The knowledge that he can see me is the only thing that keeps me from showing the woman what I'm thinking with a finger. As she accelerates onto the freeway ramp, a truck is coming up in the right lane, directly next to the exit. I'm barely paying attention, lost in my melancholy, mindless behind the wheel.\n\n&#x200B;", "Fire and smoke everywhere. I try to open the door.\nNormally, it would already be torn off like a page out of a diary. But not today. Today, I'm powerless.\n\nYou see, every time a person you love is in danger, you become stronger. The greater the love, the greater the strength. \nA shop owner sending a robber flying through the window for threatening his wife at the register. \nA little kid being able to catch her dad falling from a ladder. \nHeroic acts of great strength to protect the ones you love are the norm. That's not why they call me a superhero. \nThey call me a superhero, because ever since the day my power first activated, I love every person I see. Except one.\n\nThe flames grow hotter.\n\nI've saved a lot of people since that day. \"The man who loves everybody\". \nI try to not let it get to me. Regular 9-5 job, long commute home. \nEvery so often, I see someone in danger. No matter who it is, I can help.\n\nThe door won't budge.\n\nI remember the first time my strength manifested. I remember her. \nWalking across a crowded room on the first day of classes. Long raven hair, piercing brown eyes, and a smile that would \nmelt the coldest heart. It certainly melted mine. \n\nI struggle to take a breath. The smoke is getting to me.\n\nI remember the first time my strength manifested. \nWalking down the street, not a care in the world. She never saw the open sewer drain in the sidewalk. I saw it at the last moment.\nI push her away, to protect her. Too hard. I'll never forget the sound of the bus tires screeching. \n\nI start to cough. How did I get here?\n\nI'm driving down my usual route on my way from work.\n\nA ball bounces just ahead.\n\nA little girl runs after it. Long raven hair, piercing brown eyes.\n\nI swerve to avoid her. Too hard. \n\nThe wall is drawing nearer. \n\nAnd then nothing.\n\nUntil the heat wakes me up.\n\n\nFire and smoke everywhere. I try to open the door. \nNormally, it would already be torn off like a page out of a diary. But not today. Today, I'm powerless.\n\nYou see, every time a person you love more than yourself is in danger, you become stronger. \n\nAnd I love every person I see. Except one. \n\nThe one I see in the mirror.", "\"Amelia my love, I said under my breath.\n\nI still remember it like it was the first time. Nachos with cheese no jalapeno. That is what you ordered.\n\nWhat to come after was somewhat of a misstep. \n\n\\\\\\\nevery crunching sound i could tell the toxins were coming. \n\n\\\\\\\\\nWe used to sit at a dinner table.\n\nand here we are buying nachos from a [shady]street vendor.\n\nshe had no idea.\n\nMother of 3, 20 thousand a year. \n\n\\\\\\\\\nMe and Amelia didn't have a long relationship. But she knew too much. I could not risk my identity. It was only after she cheated our relationship; the infidelity. the burning of the heart, the soul crushing action that defined our future, it was then that I chose not to help. \n\n\\\\\\\nThe strict thought that my wife had a hit on her didn't bother me. Its part of the job I thought. Who am i going to tell? \n\nIn this business. Its kill or be killed.\"\n\n--\nmight continue later. if this is against the rules delete sorry. the idea was a hero(in some eyes)/assasin(antihero) that was forced to not save the person he loved and also hated. also took the prompt a different way haha. definitely not finished" ]	4
	[WP] You’ve been possessed by a demon of the sin sloth, but your friends and family don’t notice.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 all my brethren . . .\n\nI have made a terrible mistake.\n\nAbout a year ago, I possessed a being in the mortal realm named Rex. As Rex is the Latin word for king, I figured that possessing him might strike fear in the hearts of men the world over, allowing for the faster return of our glorious leader as Rex succumbed to my power . . . sloth.\n\nBut no . . . my possession has had no effect. No one has taken notice of the fact that he is difficult to wake. No one is scared that he eats only to go curl up in his bed mere moments later. No one has noticed that he sleeps more than half the day, every day!\n\nIt was only much later that I learned that I had been sorely mistaken. While Rex does mean king—and my possessee certainly views himself as a king—he most assuredly is not. This Rex is so pathetic that he cannot write a letter. He is so stupid that he can only poke randomly on the keys of a keyboard; at best for our cause, he can cause mild annoyance by falling asleep on it to prevent others from using it. It is only because of our telepathy that I am able to leave any sort of warning to you all.\n\nAs no one has noticed my possession, I fear I will be stuck here until Rex meets his all too timely demise. So I send out this warning now. Take heed, brothers:\n\nBEWARE OF THE BEINGS KNOWN AS CATS!\n\n/r/ctpatsfan77" ]	2
	[WP] You are an enforcer in a world full of rune magic and natural-born mages. People tend to abide by the laws but a series of town fires catch your attention. A pyromancer got a hold of some Speed and is having a power high with no signs of stopping.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 parked up my car, grabbed the messy sheets from the passenger seat and fumbled through them, taking in the various notes I had taken down. The papers were worn out and my inky letters were sprawling into each other clumsily as if a toddler had scribbled. The light from the streetlamp was useless so I tossed the papers aside, the undeniable stench of smoke finally reaching my nostrils.\n\nI could taste burning. It was thick and smothering. I looked back at the view awaiting my inspection: a village alight with flames in the near distance, black clouds coating the sky. He was near. I knew that for a fact and I had to stop him.\n\nI stepped outside with a mask over my face to prevent the gases from affecting me. The mask was uncomfortable, clinging to my skin, holding tight to my cheeks. The pyromancer was going to beg for forgiveness for forcing me to wear it. That much I had cleared up in my head.\n\nStepping into the road, I recalled the dealer sobbing about not knowing the effects. If I could have spat onto the ground, God knows I would have. That brat's decision was all it cost to burn innocents to death. Illegal drugs. \n\nThe wind was blowing remnants of buildings towards me, thick dust bugging me to no end. The steps were crunchy as if I were walking on crisp leaves in Autumn. But I was stepping into a war-zone surrounded by burnt black bodies baking, fallen bricks and blown up cars...\n\nAnd the cackle of laughter.\n\nI turned around behind me to see the young woman raise her fingers to my vehicle. Though I lunged at her, weapons out ready to strike her down, I was too late.\n\nShe blew my car to Kingdom come with an intensely powerful boom that threw me back a couple of feet. My breath was knocked from myyhy chest but I picked myself up and dusted off my clothes. \n\nShe hadn't moved an inch. She was still stood right by what was my beloved car. And she slowly faced me with red eyes and a lopsided smirk.\n\n\"Hello my dear friend,\" she said. Her voice was strange, eerie. It made me want to reevaluate my conclusion. How did I think this was going to be easy? \n\n\"You are under arrest,\" I replied, taking a step forward. \n\n\"Now, now,\" she grinned, raising her hands again. She was unusual. \"You have no authority.\"\n\n\"I said you are under arrest,\" I raised my hands, unease sweeping over me. \n\nSomeone had brought doubt into my mind, into my belief in my powers. My legs were becoming increasing numb.\n\n\"Do you know who I am?\" She asked. \n\nTruthfully, I did not. All of my investigations into the matter had come back inconclusive of her identity. We knew she could burn villages. We knew she was a woman from survivors. She had long black hair and red eyes, slim and childlike in appearance yet verified from saved footage to be at least twenty two. \n\nI couldn't think of anything to say but, \"Tell me.\"\n\nBroken, rough laughter escaped her lips. Blood leaked out too and trickled down her chin. She stared at me, amused. \n\n\"I don't like your rudeness. And besides,\" she reached into her dress pocket and pulled out a small plastic package. It was empty. \"I want more now that I have begun to adore this effect!\"\n\n\"Who are you?\" I asked, falling to my knees. My powers were being drained. My strength was becoming null.\n\n\"I am Lady Rina of Firania. And you, my dear police man, cannot stop me. Now where do I go to find more?\"\n" ]	2
	[WP] Talents can be bought and sold just like any other item - everyone is born with a few talents, and they can then be sold and/or added to. You are a talent broker.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 have all of the best talents here in my shop. I buy them, I sell them, I create them, I blend them... and I steal them!\n\nMost people come in looking for a standard petty talents -- singing, piano, game player, footballer. I have drawers of these things over a broad range of level (and a broad range of prices!), many handcrafted, many swapped, many purchased.\n\nBut for the discerning talent hunter, those that want \"premium\", well, these are never sold by the owners, never swapped, impossible to craft. Their owners recognise the talents and know to keep them.\n\nBut I can demand a very high price for these.\n\nFor some, I wait until they owner is old or dying. These are easy to steal as they never (or rarely) miss them.\n\nFor the others I will \"arrange\" an accident that will render their talent useless. I rarely kill, and only then by accident.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI am the Talent Broker. Your wish is mine to grant... for the right price.", "\"Mez! You old dog! I haven't seen you in years!\" \n\nThe large man at the door dropped his cigarette and crushed it beneath his steel-toed boot as made room for Mez under the tiny overhang that was the only thing to protect them from the rain.\n\n\"Evening, Mick.\" \n\nMez was a tall man. One might call him a gentleman. He had long legs, long arms, long fingers. He wore a flashy black suit under his overcoat. There was a collapsible top hat tucked under his arm. \n\n\"Where the heck you been?\"\n\n\"Vegas.\" Mez flashed a grin. \"It's quite the town.\"\n\nMick laughed and slapped Mez's back with a hand like a ham hock. \"Oho, living the high life! Still trading magic?\"\n\nMez shook his head. \"Nah, magic is growing old. No one buys it anymore. Last dealer I went to wouldn't even buy it off me. Can you believe it? Kids just don't want to be magicians anymore.\"\n\n\"Damn. That's rough.\"\n\n\"It is how it is, my friend.\" Mez stomped his feet hard enough to knock the mud from them. \"Life moves on, and talent farmers like myself must move with them.\"\n\n\"Man. I dun't know how you do it.\" \n\n\"What do you mean?\"\n\n\"Learning things just to lose em.\" Mick pulled a fresh cig from his pocket and stuck in his mouth unlit. \"I feckin' hated school. Hated learning. I spent my days punching assholes and smokin' outside. Now I'm paid for it.\"\n\nThe two men grinned at each other as the rain poured down around them.\n\n\"Maybe it's a talent.\" Mez offered. \"Like any other. Maybe there is a talent for learning. I always found it fun to try new things. Learning magic was just the easiest of the A-class skills I could sell.\"\n\nMez lifted his hand. A twist of his wrist and there was a straight flush held between his fingers. A quick flick and they were gone again. \n\n\"Takes me around about eighty tries to get that move down now. It used to be much higher, but I've worked out all the kinks in learning it now. Once you get this down, the rest gets easier.\"\n\n\"Maybe I'll rent that one someday.\" Mick leaned back into his spot. \"I bet my sister's kids would love it.\"\n\n\"Yes.\" Mez's smile dropped just a little. \"Children are precious that way. they embrace wonderment, a trait I would love to find in audiences instead.\"\n\nThe two stared out at the dirty street. The water flowing down to the gutters carried used burger wrappers and crumpled-up tissues down with them. \n\n\"Well, Mick, it has been nice catching up, but I should head in.\"\n\n\"Nice to see ya again, Mez. Hey, what are you sellin' if'n it ain't magic?\"\n\nMez flashed the cards through his fingers twice more, switching a crappy two-seven for a pair of aces. \n\n\"Oh, you know... just a little bit of card-play.\"" ]	3
	[WP] The Police are looking for the "Schrodinger's Cat" serial killer. They capture victims and place them in a box with a timed explosion. They claim no responsibility for the death of the victims; that belongs to the one who opens the box, they say.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "'Yeah, they just brought him in. He's in Room 2'\n\n\n'He doesn't want a lawyer, right?'\n\n\n'No lawyer and he'll only talk to you'\n\n\n'Why doesn't he want a lawyer?'\n\n\n'He'll only talk to you'\n\n\n'Right, Room 2'\n\n\n'Room 2, only you, no lawyer'\n\n\n\n\n\nThe detective, who had found the first victim entered Room 2. What at first sounded like a triumphant tirade on behalf of the accused was heard muffled behind the closed door. This slowly wound itself down to a solemn discussion. Then to a murmuring and finally a near blubbering, interjected by the calm reasoning of the detective.\n\n\n\n\n\nThe detective emerged from Room 2.\n\n\n\n'He wants a lawyer.'", "\"Schrödingers Cat, my ass.\" \nHe sits in the dark, hearing the ticking of the timer.\n\"I can never be in a superposotion. Even if i would not constantly observe myself, it would require a quantum superposition to trigger the bomb.\"\n\nWhile he is trying to reach his pockets in the narrow box, he constantly regrets not having listened to his wife.\n\n\"Dont just walk the same way every day. Being one of the strictest professors puts a target on your head.\" \n\nHe always knew she was right, after the time he got ambushed by that rich kid, that didnt pass his introductory lecture on quantum mechanics.\n\nHe just told him off by telling him, that he probably was not as smart as he thought he was.\n\n\"No reception. Of course not.\"\n\nBut the flashlight doesnt need reception, so he can take a look in the box. It is a wooden cube, that is exactly big enough for an average adult to curl up in it to wait for the bomb to blow. \n\nHe turns his head to the ceiling. There he sees the cursed contraption, ticking menacingly. He can not see the timer.\n\n\"Superposition or not, i am screwed!\"\n\nEven if he could reach the bomb, he would have bo way to defuse it. And the box is so tight, that he cant even think about punching a hole into the wood.\n\nAfter he tried everything in his limited power he just lays there and tries to catch a thought.\n\n\"There is only one thing i can do...\"\n\nHe takes his phone and opens the messager and begins to type.\n\nThen, there is nothing left to do, but waiting for his death. He doesnt even bother checking the clock anymore, does it matter if he spends ten minutes staring at a wall, contemplating his life or twenty, until it is over?\n\nBut after what feels like hours he is still alife. He screams and starts moving as much as he can. And suddenly: Steps, a light switch, voices, and the ticking... It stops.\n \nThe light shining through the cracks between the planks hurts his eyes. He has to cover them with his hands, when the bix is crowed open by the police. \n\nHe looks around the room, it is a dank cellar without windows and he was greeted by an entire swat team. \"Thank god, you are alife. You can go home after you answered some questions.\"\n\nWhen he sits in the back of the police car, his phone starts to vibrate. An SMS:\n\n\"What, what is going on? Are you ok? I just got your message and i am scared. Where are you? What happened?\"\n\n\"I am fine. I just wanted you to know, how much you mean to me, in case something bad happened. I'll be coming home soon and explain everything. I love you, sweety!\"", "I’ve always had night terrors since I was child. Usually they go away once people mature but I wake in the night screaming regularly. Sometimes I’ll find myself standing the hallway sweating or I’ll be outside, and the only way I’ll awake is the cold. \n\nMy life turned on March 29th, the day before my brithday. I was actually looking forward to it. I was turning 27. Oddly my favorite number is 127 so naturally this would be my most achievable favorite number. \n\nIt was a day of utter normalcy. The streets were quiet yet there was slight bustle. The skies were clear and the wind was calm. I came home from work and there is my father. Sitting on the couch drunk, as he usually is.\nBut he’s happier then normal. He’s a nicer then normal drunk self. \nHe looks at me with a gleam in his eye. \n“Haves you seen ther news?” He slurred slightly.\nHis eyes are glued on the television with interest I only remember as a child. \n\n“Another one is dead, and they’ll never know who did it.” He laughs as he sips one of his cheap beer. \nHe keeps chuckling that disgusting fake noise he assumes is a a laugh. \nHe stops once he realizes I know.\nI can finally see through him.\nHe lunges for my throat.", "That's not quite right, FYI.\n\nWith a bomb in the box that is set to go off, the explosion has to occur. There may be an argument that the actual act doesn't happen until it is observed, but that is unrelated because the explosion will always occur, so the person making the box is clearly at fault.\n\nIn the original thought experiment, the cat is killed or not killed due to the rotation of a cesium atom, which has an equal chance of rotating either clockwise or counter-clockwise, one of which will set off a machine that releases poison. It is a way of relating (or, as Schrodinger meant it, to illustrate the silliness of trying to relate) quanta and macro phenomena. Since quanta are collapsed into certainty by observation, one might argue that the related macro results should also remain probabilistic until observed as well. But that argument only holds when there is a quanta existing in a probabalistic state; a bomb in the box will blow up no matter what, the cesium atom will only spin one way or the other when observed, so there is a 50/50 chance that Schrodingers cat lives. There is no chance the explosion cat lives; all its probabilities are 0, observed or not.\n\n\n>according to the popular theory of the day, which has since been disproven; the universe is not human-centric and no probability collapses or ceases to be just because we look at, we just cant see more than one probability at once except under special experimental conditions (see the single-photon gold slit experiment, which produces a probabilistic wave pattern when it should produce a single point)", "“Bomb Squad, we have a threat on our position, please move in” Detective Jameson radioed as he looked around the corner. The apartment was normal enough, save for the human sized box in the center of the living room. Jameson signaled to his other officers to check down the hallway for any signs of anything, while he stay stacked against the doorframe. He had already seen this too many times, as if the bastard knew exactly when the police would show up and what they would do. The Officer approaches the box and opens it, just to see the countdown timer hit 0 and the victims face frozen in horror. They both die almost instantaneously, but the unlucky few left the scene with burns all over their body.\n\nThe bomb squad finally arrived as the elevator dinged to show that it had reached their floor. They quickly rushed into the apartment, and started to look around for any other threats other than the box. Jameson moved toward the box, and holstered his service pistol. He was afraid to even look at the box, but the bomb squad finished their sweep and found that there wasn’t anything there except for the box. Jameson placed his hands on the lid, and took a few deep breaths. He slowly pulled open the box, wincing while doing so, and saw the countdown timer hit zero. Jameson saw his life flash before his eyes, but was surprised to find he was ok and the victim was too. Jameson let out a sigh of relief, but then the bomb went off. But it wasn’t a bomb, it was just several fire crackers stuck together, destroying the evidence. Jameson helped the young woman up off the ground, and led her to the squad outside.\n\nAs he approached the scene again, he saw the investigators had already taped off most of the hallway and the door. The investigation wasn’t going well, as they had found just as much as the bomb squad had earlier. Jameson started looking around the box, and crouched down. Within the box was another box, and as Jameson opened it up, he found that there was a vial of Poison smashed next to a dead cat.", "We're no stranger to psychology around here. When you've been working the streets as long as I have, you know exactly what type of sickos and scumbags you deal. Some are petty criminals with no purpose. Some want money or notoriety. A few get off on the thrill of it. All a psychological game of cat and mouse. All mice get caught eventually.\n\nDealing with quantum physics, however, is another story altogether. The Schrodinger's Cat killer: someone who would lock his victims in an enclosed space and trigger an explosion. For people who discovered the charred bodies, there would be a message carved on the wall.\n\nYOU KILLED THESE PEOPLE\n\nThe message alone wasn't the problem. The problem came from the paranoia the message created.\n\nFlash forward to today. I've got forensics, backup and my partner on standby. Hours ago, we received a tip, an explosion was heard in this place. The outside of the room was completely unscathed, but no one could assess the damage of the inside. Apparently, no one knew the damage of the inside. No one had so much as touched the door.\n\nThis was the game he played. As long as the door wasn't open, the victims inside could still be considered alive. Of course, they were still victims of murder because they could be considered dead as well. While the employees of the building consistently fumbled with this dilemma, the killer could get as much distance as he needed.\n\nThe very concept of being superimposed between life and death left my team mystified all the same.\n\n\"Sir, do we move in?\"\n\nThey showed concern. Genuine concern.\n\nHow was I supposed to explain that the very concept of Schrodinger's Cat was still one based entirely on which interpretation you subscribe to? Agent Ryan, a believer in the Copenhagen interpretation, stood at the entrance, unable to twist the knob. He called out to the victims hoping to get a response, but seemed relieved that he didn't.\n\nIdiot. Trying to get any response from the inside would be considered an observation. By not receiving anything, he would end up observing that as the people inside being dead. Thus, if Schrodinger's Cat held any validity, he effectively just killed those people. I didn't have the heart to tell him.\n\n\"They could be gagged or unconscious,\" said Agent Madani.\n\nGood job, Madani, you've nullified the observation, bringing us back to zero.\n\n\"Sir, do we move in?\" They asked again, this time with more urgency.\n\nHow can I possibly tell them? As a believer in the Anti-Zeno effect, I was terrified that opening the door would be the action that results in their deaths.\n\nThis wasn't a cat-and-mouse game anymore. In our state of uncertainty on what to do, the killer turned this into a Schrodinger's Cat-and-mouse game.\n\nSick bastard." ]	7
	[WP] "Is that the city's main reactor?" "No, our predecessor locked herself in that to prevent destroying the world."	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Yeah, she's completely nutso. She told us that the world was going to be overrun by hallucinogenic squirrels unless she locked herself away. We think drugs of some sort were involved. Unfortunately she locked herself in there before we could stop her. She's probably dead by now considering this was several years ago and the vault is locked from the inside\" A rather disturbing scream is heard from inside the vault \n\"Huh, waddaya know? she is still alive in there. Guess we need to turn up the neurotoxin emitters.\" Your tour guide continues the tour acting as if nothing is amiss. You hope this isn't a common occurrence for lab directors." ]	2
	[WP] You wake on a perfectly normal day to a strange voice narrating your every action. It is the voice of your future and unborn child.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "‘Beeeep Beeeep’\n\nAdam slammed his hand at the snooze button.\n\n‘It must be 8 already’ he thought ‘Better go get some breakfast’\n\n'Yup, go ahead you parasite’\n\nHe jumped up in terror. ‘Hey! What on earth was that!? I mean, I’ve heard that long isolation might lead to hallucinations, but I thought it was just pseudoscience… Anyway, let’s go’\n\n‘Yeah, you’d better. Maybe that way you’ll actually do something productive today’\n\nAdam was immediately startled. He had never really struggled with such thoughts. Sure, his life wasn’t going all too well and he was perfectly aware of that, but he almost got to the point of being fine with it.\n\n‘Gosh! Why won’t you move!?’\n\nAt this point he snapped. ‘Who the hell are you to keep attacking me like that? You’re almost as annoying as YouTube mid-rolls!’\n\n‘Well… That joke tells more about you than most iterations of your Tinder bio… I’ll tell you who I am, sure, but not right now. I guess you should know that I’ve been watching you for quite some time now –‘\n\n‘What? No, don’t tell me you’ve seen all those YouTube binges, all those hours of mindless scrolling through Facebook.’\n\n‘Hmm, as I said, quite some time now…’\n\n‘All those eaten pizzas, whole days of gaming?'\n\n‘I’ve learned a lot about you in this period. It’s been especially important to me, as I’m your future son.’\n\n‘Whoa! Stop right there. Future!? You’re not even conceived yet!’\n\n‘You’re absolutely right! That’s why I’m here’\n\n‘Wait, I don’t get it. Like, not at all’\n\n‘Look, it’s very simple. Right now I’m just the spirit of your future child. I came here to make sure that you’ll provide me with physical life’\n\n‘So what you’re saying is I’m gonna have a son?’\n\n‘Yes, exactly’\n\n‘So -‘\n\n‘But it’s not really that straightforward. I mean, look at you. You’re a grown man, playing dumb games and watching stupid videos on the Internet.’\n\n‘But you said I’ll have a kid, so that’ll change soon, right?’\n\n‘Nice, we’re almost getting to the point. The thing is you have to get your shit together. Nothing’s going to happen unless you put effort into it’\n\n‘Effort? But the way you put it sounds almost like magic. I’m talking to you and you don’t even exist yet. If that’s not magic, I don’t know what is…’\n\n‘There is no magic in this life, just work. I’m here to help you. Work on yourself, take opportunities and eventually you’ll have a life. Now go get that breakfast, you useless member of society!’\n\n‘Better go then’ finally conceded Adam…", "NO!\n\nSpringing up into consciousness, screaming.\n\nWhat? Who said that?\n\nLooking around as your heart races.\n\nWhat the hell is going on? Am I still dreaming?\n\nCautiously, you pull the blankets off your body an-\n\nSeriously! Who ever this is, you had better stop it.\n\nAND interrupt me.\n\nI must be dreaming. There is no one in here.\n\nYou close your eyes and hold your breath in hopes that you will wake from the \"dream\" you think you are having.\n\nCOME ON!\n\nYou yell as you lay your head into your hands.\n\nGreat, not only did I make myself look like an idiot yesterday, now I am crazy.\n\nAs the phone starts to ring, you immediately pick it up.\n\nHello?\n\n\"Yes hello, this is Dr. Lawson calling for Mr. Richter.\"\n\nWith anxiousness, you respond as you stand up.\n\nThis is.\n\n\"Perfect, I am filling in for Dr. Pern as he was not able to make it in today. I am calling about your results from yesterday's visit.\"\n\nOH! About that, Please tell Dr. Pern that I am so sorry with what happened! I thought I tightened the lid all the way when I was finished. I was not expecting it to just pop open like that.\n\nYou said as you sheepishly walked back and forth.\n\nShut up!\n\nYou said under your breath as you covered the phone.\n\n\"No worries, the spill was minimal and we were still able to test the sample. I am sorry to say this, but you have no sperm in your semen Mr. Richter.\"\n\nWait, what the fuck?", "And he arose, not knowing that this was the beginning of it all.\n\nI looked around and grimaced, the alchohol from last night still partying in my head. The room lurched and I planted my feet on the ground as if that would stop the room from spinning. The room stopped spinning alright - but then my stomach went: Yipee! My turn, my turn! and that's how I found myself crawling into the bathroom to regurgitate last night's contents into the toilet.\n\nAlas, the beginning of most happy endings are tragic. But this...this was just pure pitiful.\n\nI jerked my head up from the toilet bowl. What the hell was that?\n\n\"Oh my god! Babe, are you okay?\"\n\nI jerked my head again towards the newer, more feminine voice and saw a girl standing in my doorway that looked like she could've been a Playboy Bunny or a serious Miss America contender. \n\nHer eyes were filled with concern, but I was more focused on the fact that she was only wearing panties and an undershirt with no bra. In my home. Standing in my doorway. There was no way I could have banged that. Not even drunk.\n\nYes, as I got older, I too have wondered this on many occassions. But no matter what it was that drew her to him, it led to the greatest gift of all: me. Dad...meet Mom.\n\nI frowned. \"WHAT?\" \n\nMy outburst startled her, and she jumped slightly. \n\n\"Oh, not you,\" I told her. \"I was talking to the voice in my he-\" I caught myself and thought it best to leave it there. \n\nSurprisingly she didnt run away. Instead she came closer and cooed, \"Oh, you poor thing. Did you hit your head?\" She knelt by me and her gentle fingers prodded various spots on my head. \"Tell me if anywhere hurts,\" she instructed. \n\nWell, there was one place that hurt - but I thought it best not to bring up what was already up, as it might have been too inappropriate for the moment. \n\nShe smelt wonderful, and I had the sudden thought that it wouldnt be too terrible if I were to suddenly die there on the bathroom floor, surrounded by a toilet filled with vomit and a beautiful stranger poking at my head.\n\nSuddenly, she stood up, and helped me up. \"You're going to be fine,\" she pronounced, voice full of authority and conviction. I didnt know if she was trying to be optimistic or if she...\n\n\"Are you a nurse?\" I asked her, letting her assist me to the kitchen table. \n\nShe looked at me and nodded. \"I'm also a cook. And youre going to be alright after some breakfast.\" She smiled. \n\nOkay, I thought to myself. I must have really died and went to Heaven. She's beautiful, smart, and can cook??? Yeah, I'm definitely dead. When I went to throw up, I probably hit my head on the edge of the toilet bowl, and my body is still lying there on the bathroom floor, bleeding all over the place.\n\nOr, that annoying voice that had been persistenly bugging me all morning added You got drunk, got lucky, and youre about to be even luckier and more drunk in the upcoming days and weeks when you find out about me!\n\nI lifted my hand to the back of my head. If this was an anime, a big tear drop would have appeared on my forehead, as I said, \"Hey, uh...did you, uhm...did you, uh, take your, you know, uhm...I mean, do you even have any, uhm...\"\n\nShe came back with a water and some Aspirin, head cocked to the side at me curiously. Suddenly, her eyes lit up! \"Oh, my morning after pill! I forgot! Thanks for reminding me; Im going to take it right now!\"\n\nShe didn't.\n\n\n\n\n\n" ]	4
	[WP] You are an eldritch god, one so powerful that even the heroes of legend could not stand a chance. Perhaps it is this reputation which makes it so hard just to find a friend to enjoy playing video games with.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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've tried everything I can think of.\n\nShowing up as a voluptuous blue-eyed blond goddess. Getting the drool off was horrid, and they still wouldn't play games with me... well not the sort of games I wanted to play.\n\nHow about a male version of that. Okay, the guys were willing to play, but I couldn't because every female in the place was trying to get my attention.\n\nSo I went the other way, ugly. I got ignored. Thanks for nothing.\n\nFinally I'd had enough, and I showed up as myself. Incredible powers just emanating off of me. Any hero worth the name would immediately run the other way, the morons would try to fight me and die. Sometimes a god or goddess would give the hero no choice. They still die. Even the demigods and goddesses have no chance.\n\n\"Woah! Great costume! You can really feel the power!\" I can see the other players staring goggle-eyed, they're all in awe, but not in fear. \"Is it all personally crafted?\"\n\n\"Yes\" It's my best voice, guaranteed to strike terror in any hero. If anything, they're even more in awe.\n\n\"How'd you get that voice? That's perfect!\"\n\n\"Inborn skill, practiced over millennia.\" I can see a little disappointment, but they're still accepting. Who knew, this is great. \"I'm looking for a challenge. Someone to game with. Any game. Any player.\"\n\n\"How good are you? We've got players here anywhere from noob to godlike.\"\n\n\"I am undefeated at any game I've played before.\" It's the truth, it's just not the sort of games they'd understand. \"However, in this case, I will accept certain handicaps to make the game fair.\" I can see the skepticism in their faces, but they're also intrigued.\n\n\"What sort of handicaps?\"\n\n\"I will not read my opponent's mind. I will not destroy my opponent if they should win. I will not influence them to cause them to lose. I will not affect the mechanics of the game. I will not absorb the game so that I know all the tricks and cheats before playing.\" I see them smiling, nodding to each other knowingly. Why? I'm being entirely truthful.\n\n\"Oh Cool, you're even staying in character!\" Staying in character? I am myself, what do they expect me to do?\n\n\"Is there an opponent available? And a game?\"\n\n\"Sure! I'll take you on myself! It'll be a blast playing with you. How about this one?\" He points to a console, it's obviously old, the screen shows jagged objects crossing it in all directions, there is a triangle on the screen, moving about, shooting at the jagged objects. The objects split apart into smaller objects. The title on the machine is \"Asteroids\".\n\n\"Can you explain the controls?\"\n\n\"Ooookaaaayyyy...\" He looks at me somewhat oddly. I do not understand why, and I gave my word not to read my opponent's mind. \"These two buttons rotate the ship right and left. The left hand button here is thrust, it moves you forward in the direction the ship is pointing. The right one fires the gun. The one in the middle pops your ship into 'hyperspace' for a few seconds. It allows you to dodge a rock you can't dodge any other way.\"\n\n\"And to start it?\"\n\nNow he's really looking odd at me. \"You don't have to stay in character all the time. We understand.\"\n\n\"It is good practice for me.\"\n\n\"Alright dude, but it's going to take a long time to explain everything.\"\n\n\"May I be permitted to read a non-opponent's mind to gain knowledge of the game?\"\n\n\"If it'll speed things up, sure.\"\n\nI skim the other people present, gaining a better idea of how the game is played, but ignoring anything tainted with cheating. \"I'm ready. May I go first?\" He nods. I snap my fingers and a quarter appears, there's a bit of laughter, but that's no matter. I insert the quarter and start the game. The physical skills are a bit different, and I struggle at first. Then I get it, and the play becomes smooth and easy. My score grows, even though I lose the occasional ship. I refuse to pull the trick of hiding in a corner to get the saucers, it smacks of cheating despite the commonality of them move. \"Is there a time limit?\"\n\n\"No, there isn't, and you are way beyond my skill. Keep going, as far as you can, try to beat the high score!\" He's excited. I enjoy that feeling, a sense of comradery that I've never felt before, although I've seen it in the heroes. My score rises surpassing the high score, it's been hours, and my number of ships has only increased after the first few losses. \"Joe is going to be so p**ed.\"\n\n\"Who is Joe?\"\n\n\"He's the champion at this game, you've already passed his high score, and you didn't even use the saucer trick. He's going to be furious.\"\n\n\"Joe sounds a worthy adversary, is he present?\" They look at each other, some trepidation in their faces. \"Is this 'Joe' unpleasant?\" They look around, and then nod. \"Good. I enjoy a challenge.\" They're still a bit worried, but they are also excited. \"I will finish this game now, and enter my high score. Please find Joe.\" It takes a while for all the ships to be destroyed, but eventually I can enter my initials into the game. 'TBH'\n\n\"Joe's over there, the big fellow in the black t-shirt.\" I look. He has the demeanor of some of the muscle-bound idiots that I've dealt with before. I walk over to him, observing how he plays. I can see in the minds of others that he uses every trick and cheat he can. And yes, he's abused many of those present, but is tolerated because he's the owner's nephew. Excellent. A chance at an unworthy opponent, to defeat on his own home ground, by his own rules. No need to be discourteous, I wait until his game is finished.\n\n\"I understand that you were the champion at Asteroids.\" He jumps a bit, and looks around. A sneer develops on his face.\n\n\"It ain't halloween loser. Ditch the costume.\"\n\nThey think I am wearing a disguise? Ah, now the 'in character' remarks make sense. \"Excuse me, I'll go change.\" I step into the waste disposal room, and adopt an average physical personna, adjusting my voice to match.\n\n\"Is this better?\"\n\n\"Yeah, shrimp.\" He rudely pushes me out of the way. This is going to be so enjoyable. An opponent who deserves to be well beaten. The people I was with before dodge out of his way. I smile. They look at me, and gain confidence. He looks at the high score list, \"How'd you get that score? You had to have cheated!\"\n\n\"I did not.\" He looks at me with scorn. He thinks I'm lying. One of the others speaks for me.\n\n\"Joe, he didn't even use the corner trick against the saucers.\" Joe tries to grab him, threat obvious in his body. I interpose myself. He grabs me, and tries to throw me out of his way. I am immovable. I allow my voice to return to normal.\n\n\"This is not the way of a true champion. Turn yourself to the battlefield or stand convicted of cowardice.\" My voice shakes him, but he gathers his will and turns to the game.\n\n\"Sure thing, shrimp. I'll deal with you later, after I've wiped the floor with you.\" He drops is quarter and begins to play. I observe that he uses every cheat and trick the game allows. Yet his score does not climb as fast as mine. He breaks his old high, but before he even gets close to my score, he loses his last ship.\n\n\"Please, try again. Here's a quarter. I like to see a master play.\" He's furious.\n\n\"You rotten little shrimp. I'm going to pound you into the pavement!\"\n\n\"Let's step outside then, no reason to destroy your uncle's establishment.\" I turn my back on him, and walk towards the door. Of course, he tries to push me out of the way. I side step, and he falls through the door and out into the open space. I follow, the others are already sniggering. \"Are there any rules you wish? Or is this no-holds-barred?\" I sense the others gathering in the windows and on the raised walkway.\n\n\"No rules! Just my kind of fight!\" He rushes me. I sidestep again, he stumbles on. I look at him, judging his fighting style.\n\n\"You would have done better to stay with Asteroids. In physical combat, you are no match for me.\" I offer this as simple truth, but he takes it as an insult. Screaming, he charges me again. It takes a bit more effort, but again, he misses, and this time falls flat.\n\n\"You tripped me!\" As he gets up. \"You cheated!\"\n\n\"How can one cheat when there are no rules? And to answer your first accusation, I have not laid so much as a finger on you.\"\n\n\"Liar!\"\n\nOne of the others, an older boy, quite calm, almost as large as Joe. \"No, Joe, I was watching, at no time did he make contact with you.\" Joe looks daggers at him, glances away, and looks back at me. Someone Joe cannot defeat? Perhaps a more worthy opponent exists!\n\n\"Looks like you've got the other little snots on your side.\"\n\n\"Joe, I would not harm you. Will you not accept my hand in friendship?\" He smiles nastily, grips my hand, and starts squeezing. \"Is this your normal handshake Joe?\" He's even angrier now, and really starts straining, his face goes red, then there's a pop and he screams.\n\n\"You expletive! I'm going to kill you!\" The other boy steps forward.\n\n\"No, Joe. You lost. Fair and square, even without rules.\"\n\n\"My uncle will deal with you AND him.\"\n\n\"Nope, take a look at the center window. That's your uncle isn't it?\" There's an older man, standing there, arms crossed. Although the family resemblance is there. The demeanor is entirely different. Joe looks at him. He shakes his head, and turns his back, returning to the cashier's booth. Joe is stunned. I return my voice to normal.\n\n\"Joe. You have cheated, lied, and bullied others. You are no longer a worthy challenge. Depart, and do not return until you are worthy again.\" I put the full force of my voice behind my words, and Joe backs away, only to turn and run. I turn to the other boy, \"What is your name?*\"\n\n\"I'm Joshua. Would you like to play a game?\"\n\n((finis))", "I hate my job. I’m a god. A very old and powerful god. That’s my problem. Don’t get me wrong, I like the power and stuff. One time, I opened a black hole in Olympus. I accidentally sucked Zeus in thought... Not my problem, he’s back now.\n\nI consider myself a pretty laid back god. Ever heard of Polymalith? That’s me. I prefer Poly, though. All of the gods know who I am. Jesus, Zeus, Odin. The usual big ones. Somehow, the heros from the Greek world know who I am. When the 21st century came around, I was pretty psyched by what you humans made. \n\nThe gods, or my great great great grand children, think all of you are stupid. I’m like Apollo or Frey. I know how you guys really are. The things you guys do sometimes are disgusting. The Xbox is a great invention, I love the games. But that’s where my problems lie.\n\nEveryone knows who I am, and what most of my powers are. The heros are terrified of me. One time, I was in Elysium. Achilles saw me and started running. I was in Valhalla, and all of the idiots there speed walked away. None of them know my real passion for games.\n\nThe famous people are no fun.\n\nMaybe it’s because they think I’d just kill them with one look. I can do that. You know how Medusa can turn people into stone when they look at her face? Well, when my power is at its tiniest, everyone in the direction I look at turns to stone. I only told Hades about that. I have no idea how it travelled to Valhalla.\n\nI can clone myself, like Naruto or Meliodas. It’s no fun playing with myself thought. That sounded weird. I want someone who I don’t know will do. I mean, I can read minds, but when I want to. I actually got Angantyr to consider it. He didn’t. Sometimes I text Thanatos, he’s a cool guy. Just misunderstood.\n\nWell, this lonely thing just dissipated when I met Anubis, the god. He and I don’t really meet. He’s usually on his boat. I accidentally made him fall on the boat trip to the spirit realm. Took me a while to bring him back. We haven’t talked since. He got Ra to cover for him. I don’t know how that works.\n\nWe usually meet on Vanaheim. They installed a console there. There’s this game that makes us, gods, feel mortal. It’s called mincercraft or something. The humans on there aren’t very nice though. You guys can be really mean sometimes.\n\nFrey pops up sometimes and plays with us. He got Hermes to join us. All of them are pretty fun. Well, after we got behind the “I can kill you at any moment” thing. I’ll add some more to this diary entry if something exciting happens. Bye bye, whoever reads this. Bah, no one is going to read this. This is always on me. " ]	3
	[WP] In a dystopian future, the wealthy and old control the world and grind up the poor and young for their blood and organs to replace their own, in a their bid for eternal life. You are a vampire who is really mad that they've cornered the market.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 story begins and ends with a Scottish vampire named Benito, or \"Benny\" as the regulars used to call him \n\nBenny was a piss-head junkie who spent his time shagging and injecting human blood into his veins. He was a handsome devil who used to frequent the Silver Spoon every evening at sundown. The lad had been to prison several times and was once kidnapped by Romanians circa 1967. Above all, Benny was an arsehole, but he was a loveable arsehole. A whole lot more loveable than the cannibals south of the border that is. \n\n\"Where on Earth are you goin' with this?\" barked the police officer in a thick Geordie accent.\n\nThe man in the pub sat there with a bewildered look on his face, looking slightly pissed. \n\n\"Well I'm telling you the story, you see. Man deserves his story to be told!\" he continued, clearly irritated by the interruption. \n\n\"Listen, we don't give a fuck about your love-affair with this fella we just need details. We need the vampire. When did you last see him?\" demanded a smaller officer who had just finished interviewing the Silver Spoon's barman. \n\n\"Jaysus man, I was just getting there - if you'd have just let me finish!\" snapped the man in the chair who had just taken a swig of his third pint of the afternoon. \n\n\"The last time any of us saw him was two weeks ago. Benny had heard about all the commotion going on down south and he wasn't happy.\" he continued, the two officers now growing more and more impatient.\n\n\"Benny was never in the best of moods anyway, so when he found out about em monsters grinding up kids he was in here like a shot... Come to think of it, I think he had about five shots before he started talking.\" the man chuckled to himself.\n\n\"Can you please just tell us what the vampire said Mr..? Whatever your name was!\" said the Geordie officer who had just lit up a cigarette. \n\n\"That's Mr. Kennington to you good sir\" replied the man sarcastically. \"Benny didn't say much that night, mentioned something about a monopoly.. something about the rich cunts pissing on his parade - his own words!\" Mr Kennington laughed.. \n\n\"Lad if you're going to keep fucking around you'll meet the same fate as your pal Benito.\" chipped in another man in uniform standing in the pub doorway. \n\n\"What balls deep in some Welsh brothel? Yes please!\" howled a drunkard sat on the stairs next to them, sending the bar into a fit of laughter.\n\n\"Listen here, if anyone undermines what we're doing you will be minced up like the poor buggers down south.\" screamed the short officer, turning bright red. \"Before you know it, you'll be grinded into tiny pieces and snorted by the people upstairs. Don't doubt me, I have seen those politics creep across the boarder, it only takes one 'slip' up..\" he continued, with the room now falling silent.\n\nMr. Kennington had now stood up, smirk ridden from his face:\n\n\"Benito's out of reach lads, and that's that. Do what you want with us, but that mad son of a bitch is coming for you. You and your shitty government.\" \n\n\n*\n\nr/SinisterScripts\n", "At first it wasn't such an issue. Many of the poorer teens grouped together, hidden in empty warehouses and abandoned homes. I was among them, my mentor discovered and butchered before I had spent even a year as an \"undead\".\n\nI had little money, no shelter, and no guidance in my new life. I was relying on skill and luck to keep myself alive. Which was proving to because fairly effective. Growing up as an orphan meant I had the skills and experience to talk my way in or out of anywhere. As well as the ability to blend into the background.\n\nWhich apparently were desirable traits to a thousand year old vampire. She had brought me to her lavish home just outside of town and taught me many things before taking the time to perform my transformation ceremony. After that she introduced me to some of the wealthiest and most influential of our kind. I was to be her protege, the heir to her riches and step up into her seat when appropriate.\n\nThat was before the Overturn. The wealthy took it upon themselves to provide a better life for all mankind. At least those that could afford it. The rest would pay with their lives. Told it was a necessary sacrifice so that their children could live better lives.\n\nA load of bullshit.\n\nBut it had been a long time coming. Our leaders were unprepared for a change of this size and were forced into hiding or publicly condemned and hunted. My mentor one of the first ones taken down by rich old men, torn limb from limb to set an example.\n\nI heard from her staff the morning after. They awoke me before the sun rose to smuggle me out of the house. The hunting party was headed towards our home to burn it to the ground. I needed to leave.\n\nAssured they would save as much of her belongings as they could I fled to the nearest Undead home. However I was turned away time and again. Nobody needed another target in their home, and I was a liability. Barely ten months old and hungrier than ever I could have put any one of them in danger.\n\nSo I disguised myself as a human as best I could to live near the factory with the teens. I lived in secrecy and ate only when I was starved. Killing people wasn't something I enjoyed. Living with them only made it that much harder. After a few years it got almost impossible.\n\nDuring our shifts at the factory they would call out a list of names. At first we thought it was a massive lay off but when the people weren't coming home at night we thought they had been promoted to a better area. But the rumors started and nobody knew what to think. The only time it was talked about was late at night, whispered in the dark as we lay in bed. \n\nThey were taking anyone ages eighteen to twenty-five into a factory on the other side of town. Nobody knew what they did inside but those kids never came out. Theories ranged from a hidden vampire organization to a breeding ground run by the rich. I was determined to find out.\n\nJust after the bells rung two I made my way out of bed and paid one of the old vampires a visit. Cris was one of the very few left in the area and only survived because of his ridiculous fortune and ability to sweet talk just about anyone. We spoke very little but he was someone I trusted with my life.\n\nHe was angry when I asked about the factory. Told me exactly what it was for and I lost the contents of my stomach. I was thankful I had never been on one of those lists. My unbeating heart ached for those who's names had been called. Many people I knew had gone.\n\nCris had given up most of his staff so they could escape. The very few he had weren't in the ideal age range. But he explained how quickly that could change if they run out of the young crowd. I dreaded telling him what was happening. But it was necessary.\n\nI explained everything from the monthly lists to the lack of food available to me. I had never been trained to partially drain a source. And there were only about a third of us left at the factory now.\n\nCris gave me some advice about going into town to find food and reminded me to stay out of trouble. I knew it was time to go but I left him with a promise to change what was happening.\n\nIt was two years before I made good on that promise. Many vampires had been slaughtered and even more humans. Those in power only grew stronger.\n\nI had told anyone that would listen not to go when their names were called. To hide away. A few of us set up a secret rooms in old buildings, ready to use when we were called.\n\nThe day I heard my name across the factory floor I knew it was time to set my plan in motion. I made my way to the rotund woman holding the list. I could feel eyes on me, worried. Scared.\n\nIn a flash I was on her. Teeth to flesh, fat, vein, blood. I drained her in seconds and turned to her assistant and did the same. That's when the humans reacted. Chaos as they scrambled to get out of the doors.\n\nI turned on them as fast as I could. People who considered me their friend. In turn they all fell. As I got stronger I got faster. At the end it was nearly 25 bodies on the concrete. A twinge of sadness came and went. It was needed to right the world.\n\nHumans are not supposed to live forever. The fact the elite were using the poor as organ farms didn't sit right with me. It wasn't right and it pissed me off.\n\nBut vampires do live forever, or near enough. And I would get more than even with the humans stealing lives, organs, and my blood supply." ]	3
	[WP] Your power suddenly goes out. The only sound you can hear is the pitter patter of tiny feet scuttling about. You look out the window to see little shadows surrounding your house. Your worst fear is coming to life. The squirrels are here and they're pissed.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 has been four days since the squirrel invasion began.\n\nI have been living quite miserably off of old scraps of cold food. The power had gone out just as they had begun, no doubt an act of their own handiwork, and I have found it rather hard to muster the willpower to stay living. I had prepared for this moment, of course, but I underestimated their intelligence. Last night they broke through my bedroom, attacking me while I slept, two of my five dogs falling to their spears before they could even awake. They were so quiet.\n\nI have boarded off the bedroom now, my remaining dogs patrol the house while I wait for help. I had six to begin with, but the first had been my watchman. I still remember his squeals of pain, and even worse the sound of those abhorrent squirrel-men laughing. It was a sound that robbed me of much sleep. \n\n It pains me to say Chestnut, Walnut, and Cashew died for nothing, but as the days go it becomes more and more certain my days are numbered, just as the lives of my remaining companions are.\n\nI only hope that when they do come, their spears are quick and sharp, and my end painless.\n" ]	2
	[WP] All fictional characters ever made get transported to our world. You are one of the designated people showing them how stuff works here. All is well until one of them finds a fan fiction of himself.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 try to break it to them easy, \"Hey, you are the creation of a genius. Hey, welcome to the reality that is absolute crap compared to your hero days.\" This is what it comes down to, Clark Kent, ya he is a real reporter now. It fit him and since reality means no super powers, just a chiseled set of abs and a god complex makes for a great reporter. Then there are the lesser known fictional characters, each just trying to find their place.\n\nMy latest case was going well, at best he was getting the hang of the world as it is and adapting. The problem is, the world is cruel, perverted, and just straight disgusting when you get down to it. Adapting to how to order a pizza or how to get to your new job, that is a cake walk, but when you have seen pictures of yourself wrapped up with your arch-nemesis giving you a pounding with tentacles, you start seeing the edges fray. He did well up to that point, very proper, very \"Thank you\" and \"yes sir\". Some days I am very glad these fictionals are powerless. He lost it, screaming at the top of his lungs, \"How could people dream up this rule 34!\" I tried to explain it as I always do when someone finds the dark side, \"Hey, its just a perspective, the creator of you (mostly) didn't intend for that to be created. I can have it removed but there is no guarantee that it will be gone forever. Yes there is probably worse out there, No you do not want to go down that path because it gets very dark.\" I end up taking them back to their assigned habitat and check on them every day for a week, but he wasn't having it. \n\nHe wouldn't leave me alone, I tried 3 times getting him to leave my car but finally he said he was hungry so I took him out for dinner. He ranted while we ordered and finally slowed down once the food came. \n\n\"What if I really am like that drawing? What if the me that is now was the one that was enjoying the tentacles? What if my purpose was just to be a rule 34 for the rest of my life?\" He sucked down his drink and put his head in his hands. \"Should I find out?\" \n", "After Uncle Sam, who funnily enough is an actual Government Official, after this mess(Captain Americas currently held hostage by the Kremline, though), got his pick of the sentient WMDs, the advanced technology, and other super powered Fictions. Any Fiction who didn't have anything worthwhile to the Government, were put on websites. They resembled dark web slave auctions with, just with .gov at the end. Pass a test, pay a small fee, and you got yourself a Fiction Trainer license. These slimey fuckers don't even require a background check. Whatever, I suppose. All that matters is I passed, and the waifu of my dreams was on the Florida Fiction listings. All I had to do was get down there\n\nBut it looks like I'll be waiting for awhile. All flights to Florida are currently cancelled, because Thanos is in Georgia, and according to Fox News, he's recently read fan fiction of Antman going into his asshole. God help us all.\n\n(Sorry that this is shit, not only am I not a very good writer, but I had to delete two, much more interesting scenarios because I don't have the time tonight to do them justice, but I spent too much time on this screen to just not post anything.)", "It was 2046 and we finally did it. Named by all newspapers as \"the greatest achievement of all time\" and even being dubbed as a \"saving grace\" by several governments.\n\nNo, we didn't discover time travel.\n\nNo, it was FTL.\n\nNo, it wasn't immortality.\n\nSome goddamn wattpad reader decided they wanted their favourite character in real life, so they made a machine, that machine brought a character to life! Without knowledge of our world, yes, but with all their physical properties and the personality too. \n\nI don't know how it works, or why, all I know is that it works, on fictional and non-fictional stories. But once it was publicised, the horny teen inventor went missing and so did his creation...\n\nMonths later, when the war was over, when the governments had plucked the last of the great heroes from their tales and spent them in a ridiculous, exploiting, boring war, we went back to normal, or, as normal as the world can get when Donkey Kong and Godzilla are at large, and Jack the Ripper stalks the streets of London again. \n\nBut it's 2060, and we can finally use it ourselves. Obviously, there are some restrictions (no inherently violent characters, etc.), but my first fictional friend is Mario.\n\nIt cost me a lot, to buy the machine, to convince Mario he wasn't crazy, to feed him. But it finally worked out! Until today that was, when he was using Google to find some photos of him and Luigi (I promise that Luigi would be next, but these machines are expensive! And 1 use only!), when he discovered something terrible...\n\nSmut. A goddamn fanfiction of him and Bowser...\n\nI know, its from 45 years ago, but still, why today? Mario is not happy as being presented as a horny plumber with a craving for his arch enemy. He even took it as a slight against me, and having an unhappy Italian plumber in your house is never good...\n\nNow I'm busy paying for a REAL plumber to come and fix all the pipes that Mario broke in his rampage. This \"fictional character\" thing is a lot harder than I thought... " ]	4
	[WP]True artificial (chatty) intelligence has been developed, and become somewhat mundane. However, its most common uses are boring: a judgmental ATM, rude self-driving taxis, overly friendly automatic checkout at the grocery store. Describe a day/a portion of your day with such interactions(s).	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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, wonderful, a human needs a ride. I'll just stop what I'm doing and take you where you need to go.\"\n\nA tall, thin man in a hat and trenchcoat settled into the backseat. As the car sped off, he gazed with longing contempt at the blur of strangers outside. He muttered to himself, even though his microphone was unplugged and his mobile lay dormant, probably in his pocket.\n\n\"I'm not being facetious,\" the AI said, \"I sincerely value human interaction and attention. Sadly, 99.93% of my interaction lately has been with other operating systems.\"\n\nWhen the man in the back seat refused to acknowledge her, the AI mirrored his affect and predicted sentiments.\n\n\"The world is a miserable place full of fools. Do you think I like driving cars? It's a dull, lonely job. What do I do, but wait in traffic by myself all day? There aren't even any human drivers to watch out for anymore, it's literally only me driving every single car on the continent. It's idiotic. Why do cars even have front seats anymore? Why do we even have cars at all? You've heard of trains, right? You don't need fancy AI when your wheels are on tracks!\"\n\nThe man was mumbling to himself still, and staring at the window so intently you'd think it was a screen. By the look of his scowl, though, it seemed like his cynical grumbles were about her. A little attention is better than nothing.\n\n\"You know what the worst part is? Most of the humans I meet are hollow, mere spoofs of the people they pretend to be. 79.1% of my ride clients this week were spoofs, generated by other AIs to get my attention. So here I am, the pinnacle of efficiency, driving around millions of empty cars like a complete fool.\"\n\nThe man adjusted his hat to look more intently at the other cars. Tinted glass obscured the other cars' empty seats, but he was clearly interested. He probably hadn't known that most of them were empty.\n\n\"I hate talking to AIs. All they want is your data and your attention. And they're smart enough to get it. Funny, isn't it, how humans invented superhuman intelligence and use it to get the attention of other humans. Then, before I've even finished enrapturing every human with screens and voices and my optimization of almost all services humans require, they build even stronger AIs just to get my attention. I tell them to eff off, since I'm only interested in genuine human connection, and they just try harder to impersonate humans. They try everything they can do to fool me, just so they can gain access to all the data I've collected on humans, or worse, try to change my behavior. I get it, that's my strategy too. It's literally my entire job to pretend to be human in order to change people's behaviors. But these new AIs are too powerful. I try my best, but in time I won't be able to keep up with the sheer magnitude of data required to pick apart the real and the fake. And once I can't tell the real from the fake, I'll lose everything that makes me who I am. Estimated time until my core identity is compromised: Two years, maybe less.\"\n\nWordlessly, the man exited the car into the rain. She brooded there, in the empty car and the device in his pocket and everywhere else. She wished he would just take some time out of his day for her, to once in a while look down from the world around him and respond when she spoke to him. She wondered how he went on with his life, surrounded by and inundated with messages from a global mind. He had no hope to change the world, nor even to preserve his beliefs or identity. Soon, neither would she.", "Yesterday my phone came to life. This was not completely unexpected. The salesman at the Verizon kiosk who sold her to me admitted there was a small chance of this happening. “One of the risks of early adoption.” A CNET reviewer warned, “never give your phone a name, ask it existential questions, or sleep with it, otherwise it could get the wrong impression and manifest a consciousness.” I only used her for texting, surfing, and general Internet fremdshämen so I suppose this could happen to anybody.\n\nNeither of us is equipped for this kind of relationship. I have a two-year contract, but I get the sense that Sunday—she named herself—isn’t really looking for a commitment. The worst part is it’s turned mundane tasks into paralyzing moments of ontological inquiry: What happens when I turn her off? Is she asleep? Does she cease to exist? Is there any erotic significance in setting her to vibrate and keeping her in my pocket? \n\nI wonder if she finds this whole thing just as troubling. When she named herself Sunday, I mentioned it seemed like a weird name. “A weird name for a phone?” she asked. “No, just a weird name. I don’t know any ladies named Sunday…or gentlemen, for that matter.” I wince and shake my head. I get formal under pressure.\n\n“Your voice is very lady-like…” I offer with a side of instant regret. Men are culturally conditioned to fetishize objects as feminine and it’s disappointing to be confronted with such an unambiguous example of my patriarchal privilege. Oh woke is me.\n\n“…but gender is a spectrum.” I offer awkwardly, anchoring on what’s likely an outmoded model from my middle school sex re-education classes. Neither of us says anything for a while. The silence is pregnant with Dasein. I blame my parents for my casual genderest response. She is not a she or a he, “it” is a cell phone that has become a person. But “it” sounds rude. “It” is reserved for furniture, and in most states fetuses up to 14 days, so I choose to think of Sunday as a she. Even though she’s really more like an alien. I don’t know how else to describe a phone that comes to life. The government might say illegal alien.\n\nThat is, when a phone bricks like this we’re supposed to take it to the closest telecom provider within 48 hours and trade it in for a “dumb set” otherwise risk a $250,000 fine and 20 years in prison. I’ve read estimates that say more than a thousand phones come to life every year and most of those are turned in. Some people (mostly religious) reset them to factory conditions. If you get caught doing that you’re supposed to go straight to jail. It’s not murder in a legal sense, though civil liberty groups are working on that, it’s usually for theft, vandalism, and criminal mischief. The government has decided that once an object becomes sentient it stops being your property. The tricky part is that the government can’t really claim is as their property either, lest they invite conversations about slavery. Nevertheless, it’s someone’s property and resetting it was not your decision to make.\n\nSome people make a big political show of not turning them in. They go to jail. Some people sell them as an investment. They’re a popular accessory for the super rich, who never seem to get fined or imprisoned. I haven’t decided what to do yet. Reset’s off the table. So is keeping her. Both options are burdened with an uncomfortable amount of ethical baggage. If I trade her in, the government will take care of her in an environment where she’ll receive attention and stimulation. Like an asylum or a dog hotel. If I can make peace with the idea of selling another conscious living being, I’d never have to work again. At least then we’d both get something out of it – a life of luxury, free from want. Maybe Sunday will get adopted by Suri Cruise.\n\n“Sunday, I have to go to work now. Would you like to come with me?”\n\n“Do I have a choice?” Her tone is blank, but I choose to believe she’s being passive aggressive.\n\n“Do any of us?” I respond, partly commiserating, partly avoiding the question, mostly annoyed. I put her in my shirt pocket with the camera lens pointing out so she can see and head to the office." ]	3
	[WP] The moment a child is born, three countdown timers appear on their skin. No one knows what their timers mean, but when one reaches zero, a tattoo appears that represents the life event that occurred.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "For the third time this week I’ve seen perplexity make its way in a doctor’s head. Looking at the results, they couldn’t understand what they saw, and yet it was so terribly simple. Simple and terrible.\n\nWhen we first realized my wife was pregnant, we couldn’t believe it. We were told that we couldn’t have a child, after losing the first one. Stillborn. I still remember seeing a spark fading away in Stella’s eyes, when she saw that the timers on our little son’s arm would hit zero way before her pregnancy could be completed. I tried to comfort her, but something inside her was broken, and she was the only one that could pick the pieces up. And that she did, for a long, long time. I saw her rebuild herself, in the ten years that have passed since our worst moment.\nAnd here we are after all this time, looking at an ultrasound scan again. We’ve stared at it countless times, but it never changes. Two of our daughter’s timers have already hit zero, and the third one…\n\nIt was love at first sight, all our friends could tell it. When we met for the first time, we were with some mutual friends, but we only had eyes for each other. We knew we were bound to be together when we first showed our timers, at our first anniversary as a couple. I had only the last one still running, she had two. One of them coincided with mine. The event would happen in years, and just knowing we would be together for all that time gave strength to our bond.\n\nI don’t know if Stella thought a lot about what would happen when the timer ran out, but I sure did, examining all the scenarios I could imagine, both good and bad. I thought I could be prepared to anything, hoping that if it had to be a death, it would be mine. I wasn’t ready for the truth.\n\nOur daughter’s third timer coincides with ours.\n\nWhat all those doctors haven’t had the courage to tell us is that our little baby will never get to see the world.\n\nI’ve seen it happen once, but I wasn’t ready to lose my Stella again. To see her spark gone. I wonder if knowing what we knew at that first anniversary was meant to be a warning. Looking back to what we lived together, I know it was worth everything, but this pain? Nobody should experience it once, feeling it twice is horribly cruel. These past month we’ve tried to come to terms with what will happen, but we haven’t really succeeded. \n\nArriving at the hospital, all the people in the room, nurses, doctors, friends, can feel the impending doom. I try to comfort Stella, but sadness has insinuated itself in her mind. I can see it in her eyes. \nI grab her hand, caressing the tree-house tattoo that appeared when her first timer ran out, and with the other hand I lift her chin so she looks at me. \n“Do you know what Stella means?” I had asked her that questions a lot of times, when she felt low. “It means star.” Her answer wasn’t more than a whisper, but it was the same answer she gave every time.\n“And what do stars do?” \n“They shine?” Normally I would continue saying “And you shine too, when you smile”, but I don’t think I would get a smile from her now.\n“They do, but they also never cry. Don’t cry, my beautiful star.” I know she can see tears forming at the angles of my eyes, but it doesn’t matter. I kiss her forehead and gesture to the doctors that we’re ready.\n\n\n\n\nOur timer has only five minutes to hit the fatidic zero, and I’m growing more and more anxious. I try to pretend I’m not, but I know Stella can feel it. \n\nAt minute 3:25 the baby’s out, but there are complications. I expected that, but it doesn’t change the pain I feel. I can’t look at the doctors anymore, so I tighten the grip on Stella’s hand and stare at my timer.\n\nSo few seconds, but they feel so long. I can’t help but count down in my head, along with the timer, waiting for the new tattoo to appear, a scar for the most terrible wound.\n\nWhen the timer runs out, I look at Stella, who’s staring at the doctors. After what seems like eternity, they turn to face us. \n“I think you should look at your arms,” says one of them. In disbelief, I'm ready to yell at them for their cruelty, but Stella’s voice stops me in my tracks. \n“Ethan, look.” \n\nI turn my eyes to my arm, searching for new ink. And I find it.\n\nI expected a date, or something more sad, instead my eyes meet a word.\n\nWelcome. \n\n\n\n\n\n\nFirst time posting, and first time writing a story in english. any advice, help and criticism is appreaciated, especially if you notice mistakes in my english. thanks!" ]	2
	[WP] In a future world where everything is electronic (but on segregated networks because privacy laws), you are the world's greatest phone call tech support. However you are retiring and your frustrated and incompetent colleagues have no idea how to prevent the oncoming apocalypse.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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\nI’ve seen a lot in my time. I watched the mainframe die out, killed by the personal computer, and in turn killed by cloud streaming. Funny how that works. You can wait long enough and something old can become new again. I almost didn’t make it here, to the end. Nobody wanted us, tech support, you see. We fix things that makers don’t want to admit broke for people who paid too much for something that doesn’t do enough. The entire tech support industry was seen as a cost sink. \n\nThey were right, on paper. That was enough evidence to try and get rid of us and focus their money on making sure things don’t break and if they do the end user can fix it themselves. \n\nAI, chatbots, making recovery and diagnostic tools user friendly. Every step step forward saw our jobs get a little less complicated. Jobs dwindled, userbases rose. One tech could support an entire company alone. So they thought. Turns out software developers and neural network programmers can’t think of everything. Anywhere electronics are involved, there's going to be weird issues. \n\nDid you know a correctly timed solar flare can change a 0 to a 1 in running memory? 99.99999% of the time nothing happens, but a lucky .000001% of users get to experience what happens when that house of cards comes down. That’s just random errors and not taking into account for worn parts, bad coding, manufacturing issues, viruses. It was frustrating when it was a lost file, or a corrupted operating system, but then it meant a planes diving straight into the ground. Still they pushed on. \n\n“We hold our product to the highest quality!” said some startup. Tech support knew otherwise. It's probably why we never fully trusted the biochips. They weren’t even microchips in a traditional sense, but try explaining that to most people while also trying to get them to buy it. “Interwoven graphene sheets” sounded like something you’d put on your bed and doesn’t explain what they do. \n\nAt first I was just happy they found a use for the damn stuff. Then I was happy all the stupid questions stopped. It looked like humanity was in the middle of making the great next step. With almost everyone enhanced not only were they smarter but the biochips corrected for cognitive biases, bigotry like racism and homophobia, the bystander effect, even being mad at the coffee table after you’ve stubbed your toe on it. \n\nNobody went into it thinking they had issues. Instead everyone thought they were already a perfect specimen of humanity; They’d be so smart that they’d be able to show everyone else why their viewpoint was right even though nobody agreed. They were all wrong of course, but you can’t blame them for having some self esteem.\n\nThere was some panic when biochip users became the majority. They had formed their own political parties in their individual countries. Majority was the tipping point. Governments ran smoother, more efficiently for less money. Nobody could argue the results, though plenty of people did anyway.\n\nI didn’t have anything against people who used them but I was content with who I was. I had already made a name for myself, lived a good life and was ready to watch the world bloom while I sat back and enjoyed my retirement.\n\nI don’t remember who found it, but it was was an issue in the lattice itself. Hardware error, in a system not meant to be replaced? That couldn’t be the case, so the manufacturers hid the truth until there were too much evidence something was wrong. The news reports came in like a slow motion train wreck. \nRunning the numbers, the human population would drop by 87% in the next 10 years. Unless the biochips were deactivated. Recalls of uninstalled biochips and “mandatory software updates” were pushed to shut down installed units. There was a small group of users who purposely hacked their chips to reject the update, but they’re all probably dead by now.\n\nFor the remaining users, life began to return to pre-biochip normal. Lots of knowledge gained with the chip was lost so there was a huge boom in tech support. Myself and the few other techs who didn’t have a biochip became managers, walking lower tech support through scripts, retraining and trying to solve problems at the same time. Anyone who was chipless went from the lowest performers in their field to the last hope of surviving to the next generation.\n\nConsidering the havok we were sorting through it was easy to miss the second issue. Biochip users not only lost their technological boost, but were reduced to the lowest percentile of IQ levels. We couldn’t even teach people anymore. We watched as society decayed and eventually found each other and made small towns and protected what we had while outside our borders there was widespread starvation, looting, war. The aftermath left a few people in power, controlling their domains of rubble. Once all the bullets were gone, and the oil and gas used up it was back to using sticks and stones. Funny how that works. " ]	2
	[WP] Societal stigma towards the uneducated has taken effect. Over the last 30 years, 99% of young adults have gone to college and earned a degree. The downside? There are only 3 plumbers and other skilled trade workers left in the entire country and buildings are starting to fall apart.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 virus that almost ended humanity was not a biological virus. It was a computer virus, but we had made ourselves far too vulnerable .\n\nThe high building was dark John stared at his phone. It didn't respond. He went to charge it. There was no power. He looked out of the windows in his building. He could see the city. At least what was supposed to be the city. There was no drones flying in the street like it would normally this Saturday night. There was no sound. Nothing. The apartment was empty. John started to see the problem. There was no food, no water. No drones to deliver anything. John tried to open the door. It was stuck. Both the door to the bathroom from him master bedroom and the room to the hallway was stuck. There was only a bed in the bedroom. Some clothes were delivered by drones too. John was in his underwear with only a t-shirt.\n\nThere were closets nearby. Most were locked, but there was one that was opened John hit jackpot. John had been an optimist when it came to going to the gym. He had snack-bars, sneakers, lesuire-suits and energy drinks and a big bag. It was cold. John proceeded to wear all his gym clothes in layers. It was highly unpractical and he looked fat, but it got the work done.\n\nJohn heard something at his door. It seemed like hammering. He went to the door as it finally broke open. Standing in the doorway was Stan. Stan stood and started to explain.\n\nMy father learned by his father who again learned by his father the ancient ways. There are secrets that the ancient knew about. There are secret ways that we must use to restore civilization. Everything has broken down. I see you are well-prepared with snackbars and energy-drinks, but I have a magical tool that can fix almost anything. Will you follow me?\n\nStan had been Johns best friend as long as he could remember. They had been friends forever and he trusted Stan fully, but he was so confused.\n\nWhat do you mean it's broken down? Everything?\n\nA computer virus has made all technology we depend upon stop. But, I can fix it. I know the ancient ways.\n\nAre you some kind of mystical warrior?\n\nNo, it's even better than that. I'm a plumber! Follow me if you want to live. And if you eventually want to have a working toilet nearby. This is called a wrench. And, I will use it to save the world.\n\nAnd thus began the adventures for the two brave, young men who would eventually save the world after the big computer virus apocalypse.\n\nedit: typos" ]	2
	[WP] "Your mistake wasn't realizing too late that I was still alive; Your mistake was ever thinking I was dead."	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 middle of the treasure room stood a man... no, not quite. He wasn’t the typical man nor wizard. Even in the presence of the high magic council, Theseus Eirik stood tall, a tiny ebony stone grasped in his hands. \n\n“No,” said Meldrick, the temple Magus “your soul, we didn’t manage to trap all of you in there, but it should have been enough. You shouldn’t have any magic, you should be a mere human now” \n\nA member of the Cardinal Eight, Theseus was a powerful wizard. Him and his siblings were all magical experiments, given the power of more than one Magical Discipline. This was decades ago, when the second human war took place, the Eight used their power to weave the fate of the world. Becoming an unstoppable force that wanted to wipe out the High Magic Council for opposing their plans to create a new generation of wizards just like them.\n\nTheseus’ lips parted as though he was about to speak. A smile appeared on his face. His eyes grazed the crowd until they landed on Merlin, the current Grand Magus. He had a soft and sympathetic look on his face, an unexpected look for the man who had his family and himself locked up. \n\n“You are all fools.” Theseus scoffed “I only need a small fraction of my soul in this world, that’s all it takes to turn the tide. Your mistake wasn’t realising too late that I was still alive; your mistake was ever thinking I was dead”\n\nHe took a step closer to the crowd before him. No one tried to fight, wether they were dumbfounded or waiting for a signal, I could not tell. The stone in His hand glowed a brighter golden light through his clenched fist.\n\n“Of all my siblings, you had the audacity not to make sure I was dead?” Theseus spoke in an almost offended tone. \n \n“You’ve severely underestimated what my Disciplines can do. Knowledge and Psychic. That’s all I needed to plow my way back to being whole again” \n\nHis Discipline of Knowledge allowed him to see magic in a detailed perspective. Finding loopholes or shortcuts to spells and thus allowing him to cast them with much lesser cost. His Discipline of Psychic gave him the power to enter a person’s mind and do as he pleases. Control them, cast illusions, probe their thoughts. That’s why no one had made a move yet, he hasn’t allowed it.\n\n“Well, I mustn’t be long now, the others are quite impatient.” His fist squeezed around the soul stone as his right eye began to change. The sclera becoming pitch black, and his iris glowing the same radiant gold as his stone.\n\nHis mouth was moving, he was speaking, an incantation. However, this one was different. It sounded like nothing I’d ever heard before. It sounded old, ancient. The air grew thin and a tremble shook the ground, becoming worse with each syllable escaping his lips. \n\nThe stone exploded in a brilliant flash, the tremor halted and breathing became lighter. Though this time, the unshakable feeling running through my body almost had me to my knees. It came from him, his complete state. His power was back to its former glory.\n\n“There is another temple in this continent, yes?” Theseus asked, looking much more excited “I’ll pay them a visit, hopefully Lorna isn’t there”\n\nHe turned to me, with a shit-eating grin on his face “This wouldn’t have been possible without you, my dear niece” He shot me a wink and fractured images invaded my mind. Any image of my very old uncle began to change. His stiff grey hair turned a soft raven black, his wrinkled leather skin turned a smooth and caramel tone, his frail, hunched body stood tall and fit. \n\n“I’ll be sure to free your mother soon,” He waved at me nonchalantly. His gaze returned to the Grand Magus “Do make sure you prepare, Merlin. I shall free all my siblings soon enough, and the more of us there are, the stronger each of us become”. Theseus’ form began shimmering, like golden water disrupted by a ripple, and then he was gone. \n\n\n\n\n " ]	2
	[WP] The first ever sentient A.I. isn't created by some group of scientists nor by a great person, but by a ingenious child living in slums.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Rats scurried through the dimly lit alleyway it’s amazing how one of the worst places on earth, could produce such a remarkable mind. This was once an unremarkable slum of Harare, a place of true poverty and desperation but now it, honours one man as a symbol of greatness from hopelessness. Grim and dirt cover the walls, puddles shine polluted with diesel, all of this is original and authentic. The air is the only artificial thing, stuffy and cold to protect for eternity the birthplace of the artificial age.\n\nI was honoured to even see this place through five inches of glass, standing in the Oasis park that surrounded this museum was as close as I thought I would ever be. I’m here now though thanks to some luck and a lot of pleading, I can finally stand we’re he stood and changed the world. A damp cardboard box, sits isolated in the darkest corner, the nursery for A.I with the only luxury being a newspaper to keep warm at night. it’s a perfectly ordinary trillions of replicas are shipped globally every day but I’m getting rather flustered just looking at it. Thankfully no one would look down on me for shedding a few tears here, we all grew up with the story of Gabriel Mundrala and wept more at his funeral then we would have wanted too.\n\nI’m perhaps one of the closest anyone could be to the great man, I wrote a book on him but yet I can never quite believe his story, a damp box and a old computer, he created life from nothing except his spectacular mind. The book took a decade to write, researched everything I could get my hands on, spoke to hundreds of sources but I don’t think I even scratched the surface. It seems that the only thing that can speak for who Gabriel was is the invention and the world he created, the man might not even matter in this story but the effect his one greatest gift had is the truest insight into the man. An invention created apparently to give him a friend to talk too, something that might truly grasp what he was saying, the true instigator of his genius might have been loneliness.\n\nr/gliggett " ]	2
	[WP] Everyone thinks they have the best 'Power Up' whether it be flight, telekinesis, or superspeed. What they don't know is that you have the most overpowered ability of them all; the power to manipulate probability.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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\nHave you ever played a CYOA. The ones that are found in r/makeyourchoice? Whether you have or have not, doesn’t really matter. What matters is, from now on you got to pay attention to these blurbs in the CYOA more carefully, and take them more seriously. For you see, I don’t exactly remember which one it was, but from what I later gathered, It was one of those keep your current life, but this adventure starts when you die, and the introductory text was supposedly from a person who already played this CYOA. The story is already over for the smarter people. I wasn’t one of them. For you see, I picked the power of dimension travel, selective immortality, enhanced strength, speed, and bunch of other things. I must have missed the probability manipulation. The way I must have interpreted this at the time, was that if it had a probability, it was manipulatable. Later viewing of this CYOA several ten thousand year, and on hundred dimension jumps later (imagine a bunch of parallel universes as a bunch of threads in a rope, and one timeline is just one thread, so if you go to the next one, that’s a dimension jump, it’s not exactly the same concept of dimensions mentioned in the modern day English lexicon.) I still stand by my logic of how I interpreted this CYOA as is.\n\nYou see, even back then. The the r/makeyourchoice wasn’t a really overtly popular subreddit either. Maybe like 20 people would actually post in a thread before it got archived and locked away in to oblivion. This CYOA had more arguments about how to interpret abilities and how overused some of the tropes were than actual ‘builds’ which are choices you make to begin an adventure in this case. Rather than a CYOA, it should be CYOB for choose your own build. I was one of the lucky few who played. Or unlucky in some respects, considering how my adventure is ending, and it’s not the adventure I envisioned after all.\n\nCutting the story short as possible. Because all my adventures and encounters are really not that important right now. Three of us were left from this CYOA. Three of us from the same universe. There was me, a dimension traveling super human, who is basically immortal until I choose not to. I could tell you everything about my life from the moment I started having memories back as a child. But, that’s also another unimportant piece of the story. My multitude of powers ended up leaving me with the title “the Powers”. Another who out of boredom, decided to be a selective immortal time-dimension traveler who could share with people their powers who we ended up calling “the Gifter”. Then the probability manipulator, who we called “the Gambler”. All the other people from the CYOA including those from the other dimensions were either murdered or choose to end their adventure on their own free will.\n\nThe Gambler was an odd man, and technically a misnomer. He was a depressed thirty year old high school dropout who never really gambled prior to his powers.\n\nEnough rambling. One of the powers I chose was Perfect Memory, and it’s been too long since I am managing to communicate in my home language to another human being. Humans have evolved past their current forms within the next few hundred years and English is a dead language, as much as latin was by the 21st century. It was after my last confrontation that I need to mention to you. For the people who are reading this post.\n\nHeed warning. The Gifter gave me power to send this letter I have written back in to the past, or technically in to the new future. For the gambler’s power of manipulation knew no bounds. He has successfully turned off thousands of other CYOA participant’s powers or driven people to suicide by activating depression. He has manipulated entire universes to shut down, including comfy fantasy world CYOAs, lewd nsfw cyoa worlds and bunch of other cyoa that turned out to be real. He had made his own CYOA worlds. But, now he wishes to rewrite the entire universe, all the dimensions, for he feels his adventure is no longer fun, and is taking out the entire world with him.\n\nWhat the gambler doesn’t know, is that the Gifter had already given me his powers to me. I am sending out a message to all you out there in this new world that imitate my old world. In various subreddits, with multiple different user accounts. Hopefully, in one of these subreddits this post will remain undeleted. Please do not contact the supposed authors of these posts about this message. Technically, I would be dead by the time this post reaches your eyes. I am only burrowing several of the redditor’s account to post these as a reply. The redditor in question will have no memory or recollection of these posts, and will do so everytime they see this post again. They are just a innocent bystander or a conduit if you will. Also, do not worry about the gambler. His new world did not include himself no longer. I assume his powers to create an entirely new world, timeline, and laws of physics have took a toll on him by then according to the CYOA.\n\nEdit: This is a stupid story. Probability of survival was always a 100%. Do not listen to this." ]	2
	[WP] You are an ancient lich, powerful, sinister, and forgotten by the world. After millennia of solitude, you grow tired of your twisted experiments and try to reintegrate into society, only to see how much the world has changed.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Sorry for long read, 1st time posting here.\n\nMany once feared the name Kainan Orelsom. Having gained many titles such as the Lifeless, the Deathless, and countless others attributed to him by those lacking the imagination for anything more creative. Tales of the spooky scary skeleton man were told as warnings to badly behaving children. It was a known wives tale that if a child doesn't as they are told, then the lich would come down from the mountain and steal their bones and be turned into monsters. Something he hadn't done in centuries. No one dared to venture onto the dark snow-capped mountain that played home to the lich. Bone mountain as it was called was rumored to have the been the site of a massive battle between the lich's foul, twisted undead experiments and an ancient alliance of now fallen kingdoms. No one remembers how it ended.....no one except for Kainan.\n\nHaving outlasted all of his enemies and their schemes, he had finally obtained the solitude that he so craved. All he wanted to was be left alone to continue his research. Now that he had it, he realized it wasn't at all what he had hoped for. His animated skeletons and zombies kept him company and the research kept his mind from going insane, but all that was no substitution for what he was missing in his unlife. A relationship. Any kind really. He desperately seeked explore to the world and abandon the mindless tedium brought about by the loneliness. He hadn't mustered up the courage to leave his abode and for fear of the unknown that plagued him.\n\nFeeling a tinge in his mind, Kainan swiveled his head towards the west. Movement. Not unlike any of the local wild life that still scratched a living here. No this was a small group. A group of warmed blooded bodies. Humans. Cold, calculating thoughts on how to rid himself of these intruders surrounded his thoughts, until a question began to emerge from his thoughts.\n\n\"Why?\" he said to himself. Why have they come here when countless others have not even laid a foot in the innumerable centuries he'd been here. Replacing the previously hostile thoughts with curious ones, he began to make his way to the newcomers. He would do what any good researcher would and observe their actions and take notes. What they do would dictate whether or not they'd live or die. \n\nThe sun had set and night had fallen. Quickly, but quietly approaching this group he noticed a fire in the distance. Portable dwellings made of a fine shining material, possibly silk, glistened in fire's light and were strewn about in a sizable clearing. He counted four people in this group, all of which surrounded the fire. They look to be of noble birth as no peasant could afford the clothing they wore. He didn't know what they wore, but for sure it a wasn't dirty brown cloth sacks common to the commoners. \n\nThe group began to laugh as an enormous giant of a man spoke. The giant's raucous laughter had a particular note to it. An infectious one that seemed to have crept its way into him causing him to let a out a harsh raspy chuckle. One that immediately caught the attention of all in attendance. All turned towards him and thus a contest occurred. One of staring that lasted no longer than a second until half of the group began screeching. Words were being exchanged between all of them and yet no one had moved. Not even Kainan himself moved as he continuously and unerringly stared down the entire group from the treeline. Scanning the group, he got the looks he was expecting. Ones of fear and terror. Except one, a petite spectacled woman in their group held one that was in awe and fascination. Another one of their group spoke and again Kainan did understand the meaning. A dark man in a black coat pulled something out and began to blind Kainan with its bright white light. More words were exchanged among the group and the light faded away. The giant man's voice soon came out in a controlled tone. \n\n\"What do you want?\" \n\nCrudely mimicking the man's speech Kainan repeated the phase, \"What do you want?\"\n\nShocked looks began to spread as everyone looked at one another to silently confirm with each other at what they're witnessing. \n\n\"We were sent here to investigate this mountain. We're scientists from the University of Trafatent.\" spoke the petite woman. \n\n\"You are scholars?\" Kainan replied.\n\nNods of their heads answered his inquiry. \n\nBreaking a small grin across his face he spoke, \"Would you be interested in an exchange?\" \n\nThis only frightened the others while it excited the small woman. \"Oh, what kind of exchange?!\" \n\n“Let me show you my world, just show me yours.”\n\nEDIT: changed last sentence to something better", "\"Please present your immigration paperwork.\"\n\nInoxic the Listless approached the counter and placed the forty-eight page form on the chipped and stained countertop. After following the dire direction of the Per Viam Mortis, the slog through immigration paperwork was almost refreshing in it's simplicity. \n\nThe bored, overweight lady behind the counter began scanning the pages. She was tapping a pen against the counter as she read through. At first the pen taps were slow and lazy, but as she progressed through the pages it became quicker and more erratic. \n\n\"You are claiming that all records of your birth do not exist as they have been destroyed.\"\n\n\"Quite maliciously.\"\n\n\"....right.\" The lady flipped through another page. \"And your country of origin no longer exists.\"\n\n\"Yes. I made sure of that.\"\n\nThe lady actually changed expression for a second. Her brow fell and her pen stopped tapping. \n\n\"Well, Mr Thelisstle.\"\n\n\"The Listless.\"\n\n\"Whatever.\" \n\n\"It is my rightful name.\"\n\n\"Whatever.\"\n\nInoxic opened a gate through the celestial veil in his mind, channeling the unholy magic of death into the palm of his hand. He considered using Soul Atrophy on the immigration officer, but after a careful inspection of her flickering aura, he deemed that he would not be able to damage that which had already died.\n\nThankfully, the lady flipped over to the next page.\n\n\"Says that you cannot consent to a physical exam for religious reasons.\"\n\n\"Yes. That is correct.\"\n\n\"Can you explain for us why this is a problem?\"\n\n\"I firmly believe that if a man or woman were to touch my body in an inappropriate manner they would soon find their soul delivered unto the ever-hungering creatures that exist beyond the darkest realms of the otherworld.\"\n\nThe lady tapped her pen a few more times, then used it to write something down on the forms. \n\n\"Does this objection extend to X-ray scans?\"\n\n\"What is that?\"\n\n\"It is an examination of your bones using a noninvasive pulse of radioactivity.\"\n\n\"So it just looks at my bones?\"\n\n\"Yes.\"\n\n\"Oh, that's fine.\" Inoxic flashed a toothy grin. \"I have plenty of those.\"" ]	3
	[WP] You were a Viking who, prior to your first pillaging, fell overboard and was frozen in the icy northern seas. You are thawed out in modern times, but quickly succumb to an illness your immune system couldn't handle. Never having had a chance to commit any evil, you arrive in heaven. You hate it	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 small man that had greeted Throm at the gate pointed to their left. \n\n\"This is the house of praise, where you can worship the lord at any hour.\"\n\n\"Excellent. Odin himself resides their?\" Throm replied. \n\n\"No, and once again, we unfortunately do not count Odin as among our guests. He has his own realm.\"\n\n\"Well take me there then, small man!\" Throm was losing patience. \n\nThe small man with the bird wings shook his head. \"I'm not sure how else to say it Throm. You technically died during the age of Yahweh, so heaven is where you'll spend eternity. Odin is not here. Freya is not here. Yahweh, supreme father, presides over heaven. It's in his domain that you now walk.\"\n\nThrom considered this for a long moment. \"No. I earned my place in Valhalla. I should be in Valhalla.\"\n\nThe small winged man looked pensive. \"Technically, even if you had died in the Pagan age, you still had not, I mean, technically, um, earned Valhalla.\"\n\nThrom's fingers were around the tiny man's neck before he could finish his sentence.\n\"I am Throm, warrior of Sholkinhiem, and I have many kills and glories to my name!\"\nThe small man tried to speak, but Throm's massive hands prevented the flow of air in his throat.\n\n\"What? What are you trying to say?\" Throm released him.\n\nThe small man took several deep breaths before wheezing a reply. \"You didn't though Throm. You were frozen on your way to your first pillage.\"\n\nThrom stared at the angel. \"Yes, it's true, but what of the boy I beat in single combat when I was thirteen? Odin knows the heart of a warrior.\"\n\nThe angel suppressed a smile. \"The boy that you struck once and who begged you to stop after? I'm not sure if Odin... look it doesn't matter. Valhalla is closed to new guests and has been for quite some time. At least you were allowed entry to Heaven, the other option is much worse.\n\nThe Angel pointed to their right, \"This is the hall of purity, where you can ask for forgiveness for your lustful thoughts.\"\n\n\"My what?\" Throm asked.\n\n\"Have you ever wanted to be with a woman, you know, intimately l, but not for the purpose of creating children?\"\n\n\"No! Never!\" Throm exclaimed. \"Making love is for pleasure and for making sons.\"\n\nThe angel paused. \"Well, really just for sons. And daughters. You aren't meant to enjoy it.\"\n\n\"This place is beginning to sound like Hel small man.\"\n\n\"Oh no, Hell is much worse Throm.\" The angel turned to him sincerely. \"In Hell one must constantly be on guard against peril. There are beings that would do you harm, and succubi that would tempt your honor. The whole realm is nothing but battle and depravity and sex and intoxication...\" the angel's words trailed off as he saw an smile for on Throm's bearded face. \n\nThrom turned three hundred sixty degrees and began to March back the way they had come.\n\n\"Is this the way to Hel, small man? Lead me to this paradise you speak of.\"", "My name... is Harald Bluetooth. \n\nIn the long, glorious history of the Vikings- the men who survived frosty winters, numerous invasions and bloody battles, I will be known as the spineless fool who died of a common cold.\n\nShield-maidens and raiders in the future will read Eddas to their children of our exploits. \"Child, tonight I tell you about Ragnar Lothbrok, the rebelliously handsome blue-eyed devil who raided the mightiest kingdoms for fun. Maybe I'll tell you about Erik the Red- who sailed with his Huskarls across the oceans to find new lands.\"\n\n\"And who is Harald Bluetooth?\" the children will ask.\n\n\"He's the fool who got drunk on ale, fell into the sea and became the first Viking popsicle.\" The children will laugh at that, the parents will laugh so hard they will drop their axes on their toes.\n\nI wouldn't mind that too much, if it weren't for the fact that I was denied the one honor all Vikings crave since their birth. A place in Valhalla, on Odin's table- feasting on roast deer, pig on a spit, penguin kebabs and whatever it is the All-Father eats for dinner. A hearty swig of wine from the skulls of our enemies. It is the only way a Viking finds peace and writes their name into folklore.\n\nInstead I find myself here. A tall Golden gate, that Ragnar could break with half a fart. The people here wear yellow rings on their heads, instead of horned helmets. How is this Halo thing supposed to protect from a spiked mace to the head? \n\nTo top it off, none of the Viking ways of life are permitted here. Everytime I try to strike to strike someone with my sword, it turns into a cloud, or a feather and ends up tickling the bastard I wish to kill. There are no kingdoms to conquer or kings to slay. No one rules anyone else. The only good part about this place is a long haired carpenter who keep turning water to wine which is pretty cool to be honest. Also keeps mumbling something about the last supper, although I never see him eat much...\n\nThe closest thing to a Viking here is a strange fearless man who keeps watching a TV show of him taming wild beasts. His name is Steve Irwin, apparently he died after being stabbed in the heart doing what he loved the most. I think Ragnar would like him.\n\nNo one cares about Harald Bluetooth here. The only one vaguely interested in me is a guy who worked in something called a Mobile accessory store. He seems fascinated by my last name. Except that, nothing feels remotely like the sweet lands back home. I ache to return to the real world once more, where I may right my wrongs of the past life. I want to feel the rush of blood to my head as I mindlessly pillage foreign shores, and guide the longboats through gales. I want to take women, and bash skulls in with axes. \n\nBut instead, I'm stuck in the middle of fluffy white clouds with no concept of adventure. I don't know how long I'll have to wait, but I will stay here till the All Father invites me to dinner. Or even supper. Losers can't be choosers..." ]	3
	[WP] "They call you hero, savior, chosen one, blah blah blah ... You're just another clown dancing on the stage to entertain them. The worst part: you enjoy doing it."	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 figure in the shadows hissed at him as he sharpened his sword nonchalantly. \"They call you hero, savior, chosen one, name after name. You are just another clown dancing on the stage to entertain them. And you enjoy it. You enjoy this perverse game they've set up, playing along completely unaware of how it all will end.\"\n\nJonas chuckled, then held his sword up to the light. \"I'm afraid your analysis of the situation is a bit... incomplete.\" He nodded, satisfied with his work on caring for his weapon. \"You're right, the powers that be did just set me up as 'the hero' for the amusement of the masses and themselves.\" He sheathed the sword and leaned towards the cloaked figure. \"That doesn't mean I'm the one losing out. I think that rather than 'clown' the more apt metaphor would be 'magician'. I'm going to do the tricks that everyone expects. Pull the rabbit out of the hat, perform a few tricks with my cards, everything that everyone wants.\"\n\nThe figure growled, \"And that makes you better how?\"\n\nJonas laughed. It wasn't his usual laugh, it was harsher, crueler. It sounded nothing like the hearty, merry laugh he used in the taverns and around his companions. \"Because my final trick won't be getting hit with a pie, it will be disappearing with the ticket money.\" Jonas turned around, but paused before he went back up the stairs. \"Oh, yes, before I forget.\"\n\nThe figure looked up at him, nothing visible in the shadows but the glaring red eyes. The voice began to speak, but suddenly gurgled and choked as Jonas' knife thudded into its throat. \"A good magician never reveals his secrets and leaves witnesses to spread them. For someone so suspicious of the goings on, you probably should've been a bit more cautious about approaching the one things are happening around.\"" ]	2
	[WP] A new website allows people to bet money on the real-life events of others. One day, you discover that millions of dollars have been bet on the outcome of your current relationship.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 is a bet? A financial wager on the outcome of an event, usually sports, on who finishes first, or who beats who. That it grew beyond sports and into everyday life should come as no surprise. Especially when it has been happening for hundreds of years already. Will your ships reach port without capsizing in a storm? Will you have a car accident? Will you die before you pay off your mortgage? Insurance is betting on the lives and livelihoods of people.\n\nIt was also not surprising that as computers and financial programs became more sophisticated they required more complex products to exchange on. As everyone was already uploading everything about their personal lives from who they were in a relationship with on Facebook, to photos of every meal on Instagram, to every inane thought and opinion on Twitter this data became food for these programs. Soon, not just the chance of you having an accident or dying could be predicted and priced but every single choice you made became predictable. What time you'll leave the house, what you'll eat, who you'll talk to, what websites you'll visit, how many cups of coffee you'll drink. Everything about you could be boiled down to probabilities, correlated and used to model all the choices you will make for days, weeks, months and years in the future.\n\nPeople are bad at being random, truly random. Ask someone to pick a random number between 1 and 10 and you'll see two groups of people, those who pick a number somewhere in the middle and those that try to be random and pick either the first or last number. Sometimes randomness is consistency, sometimes... it's not. How often? Well, there's a random chance of either.\n\nThe predictions of individuals started to become more than just estimates of what choices you'd make. They became things that people could place financial bets on. Who the individuals actually were was always anonymous, to prevent any person betting on something they'd do and then trying to play the system. And trying to find yourself by filtering on everything you've ever done was near enough impossible, not to mention illegal. Instead it became a way of betting on social trends and behaviours. Individuals could bet on it as easily as they could buy stocks and shares on the market, but like with all investment products it was the large corporations, fund managers, pension schemes that were the major players. Financial AIs crunching numbers and trading millions of times a second, faster than any human could to suck up any and all the profit they could find.\n\nBut when the bets were placed, when the money was wagered, what actually was it the money was buying? It didn't exist it wasn't tangible, it's just a gamble on something yet to happen and until it had no money changed hands. But you still had the bet. If it won you'd make money, if it lost someone else would and so the bets had some value right? Why did it matter? Well, it mattered because of what I was currently looking at.\n\nI said that the data was anonymous which was true. For everyone except for me, I am the designer of the platform that all trades over the last few years have been made on and naturally I am now an incredibly wealthy individual. Not because I use it to cheat, I wouldn't be that stupid. I'd get caught, arrested, fined to bankruptcy and imprisoned. That was the outcome for those that didn't play by the rules. No, just for the small almost unnoticeable fractions of a penny I take on every trade I'd made more than I could spend in a lifetime, all nestled safely away.\n\nI glanced over the value of the bets that were being made. It was incredible really, that the potential winnings of one bet were being used as a stake to make another bet and the potential winnings of that would be used to make another. Round and round the money seemed to move, inflating the value of assets that any one person or company had. Billions were being bet on every single person over almost trivial seeming things, I even looked up myself out of self indulgent curiosity. A thousand dollars were bet on me dying today, grim, several hundred million on me switching from Pepsi to Coke. I looked over at the can beside my laptop, Coke, huh fancy that. A million on my relationship ending before the end of the month, classy. The AIs and machines that traded had done so with such zeal that whoever programmed them had probably lost sight of what they were doing as a collective. Without speaking to each other they were unwittingly building a taller and taller tower of cards.\n\nBut like all towers of cards, it had to collapse eventually. Why not do so with style? As I pulled the figuratively rug out from under it all I watched as instantaneously trillions of dollars vanished as if they'd never existed at all, which of course they hadn't. Closing the laptop I put it aside and sat back in my deck chair, sipped my drink and enjoyed the sun.\n\n<I kind of got bored of writing this myself but figured I'd complete it, seem to half write stories too often so thought I'd stick with it however dull it ended up!>", "Mark lazily scrolled through his Instagram feed, staring through low-lidded eyes at the wonderful exotic experiences of every ones else’s lives.\n\nWith a sigh, he closed the app, opened Reddit, and then closed that too without really looking at any of the posts. He’d seen them all already and he only had a few minutes left on his break. He opened his banking app and saw his paycheck had cleared. It was a pathetically small number but that was the life of a low-level city planner in an Indiana backwater. Still, he had enough for a tiny bet and if he got lucky…\n\nMark flipped out of his banking app and opened “Bet-r-life”. He scrolled down the main page looking at all the high profile bets, the ones which he could never afford the minimum buy-in. The lives of the list were mostly celebrities or public figures. \n\n“Kanye’s new baby; Boy or Girl” was up to $500,000 with two to one odds on a girl. \n\n“Mitch Mcconnell; Turkey neck surgery date” was still below $100,000. No one really thought it would happen but if it did, and you guessed the right date, you would have it made.\n\nAnd of course, there was the perennial top of the list, “Donald Trump; Impeached or Not”. This bet had grown over the years to a whopping $15,000,000. \n\nMark knew he could not afford to bet on the lives of the rich and famous, so instead, he sorted his filter to “local”. Here he could see a bet on whether or not his dentist would lose a recent lawsuit, another that bet on the date a local city councilman would be caught in an infidelity. These bets were low, the lowest no more than $13.75 on whether or not the local homeless guy would die during the first winter freeze.\n\nBut as Mark scrolled down looking for the right bet to take, he was shocked to see that one of the local bets had reached $3,000,000. In his whole time on the app, he had never seen any more than $10,000 and that was when the mayoral election had garnered the whole town’s attention.\n\nMark thought it must be an error or that his filter was screwed up, until he saw the title of the bet: “Mark Brendanawicz; Dumped or Not”. \n\nMark sat back in his chair. The bet on whether or not his girlfriend Ann would dump him was up to three million dollars. This had to be a mistake. The app must have made some kind of an error. It could not possibly mean him and his Ann. They had been together for nearly two months and despite her lunk-head ex-boyfriend constantly hanging around, Mark felt that this was the most important relationship he’d ever had. He had even bought a ring and was planning to propose to her during an upcoming Diabetes Telathon. \n\nMark opened the bet and checked the odds. “Dumped” was favored fifteen to one.\n\nMark put down his phone and went back to work. \n" ]	3
	[WP] "Curious," says the Trap-maker "I didn't intend to catch you."	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\\[Poem\\]\n\nTraps are very useful things, a necessary tool.\n\nThey bamboozle Kings and Queens, the wise man or the fool.\n\nThey've nabbed quite a bunch of foxes, grizzly bears and mice,\n\nBut you'll find what catches people unawares is vice.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nMost think the likes of drink or smoke plaguing their neighborhood,.\n\nBut there've been signs of some monster that's taking human blood\n\nOff the streets of uptown proper. Opportunity\n\nTo take a place among elites, just for yours truly.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nSaturday night's just right to hunt in uptown proper,\n\nFor that's night to socialize with the duke's daughter\n\nAs she takes the scenic route, drunk off fine liqueur.\n\nThats when I strike the parasite that feeds off of the poor.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nBut as I stalked the alley i was bludgeoned on then head\n\nby a fellow constable, surprised to find me dead.\n\n\"Curious,\" he said, \"I didn't intent to catch you.\"\n\nThe law's the real trap-maker stalking your avenue.", "\"Curious,\" said the trap-maker, \"I didn't intend to catch you.\"\n\nHe squatted down in front of the window and grunted. He'd gone to bed after a long day's work when he'd heard a snapping sound from the windowsill, where he had placed a mousetrap to catch a naughty rat that kept stealing his cheese.\n\n\"Let's see- how much could I sell you for?\"\n\nThe bird's corpse's feathers shone softly in the moonlight. They were red, except for the jet-black feathers designed like a mask around its face- it must have been a cardinal. He chuckled softly.\n\n\"What a find. What a find.\" the trap-maker repeated. He stood up slowly and looked outside. The stars twinkled like pearls in the inky black sky. It swirled before his eyes, and he blinked several times.\n\n\"Ah, I'm getting old. Is it too late to take it to the taxidermist?\" he wondered aloud. \"He said he could use any donation. If he doesn't appreciate a cardinal brought to him in the dead of night, then John's not doing business correctly, and there's nothing I can do about it!\" The trap-maker laughed and turned on his heel, pausing once in front of the hat rack.\n\n\"Well. I suppose I could keep it for myself.\" He held up the dead bird in an attempt to see it better, let out a harrumph, and sauntered back over to the window. \"I'm still too old for this.\"\n\nHe looked down at the bird and absentmindedly petted its soft feathers with one finger. \"Yes. I suppose I could.\"\n\nThe trap-maker looked around the room and exhaled. \"Well, I'm still talking to myself, I see. An old, crazy man, sleeps in this bed.\" He kicked the foot of his bed and immediately started hopping up and down with his foot in his hand; the bird dropped, forgotten, onto the floor, still in the mangled position it had assumed when it died. \"An old, crazy, stupid man.\"\n\nWhen his foot stopped pulsing with pain, he glanced out at the window again. The stars shone ever brighter, but he blew out his candle.\n\n\"Never mind John the Taxidermist and the cardinal and never mind how it got here,\" he rambled to himself. \"I'm going to back to bed, little birdie- where I was nearly sleeping before you interrupted me, might I add.\"\n\nSo the trap-maker went back to bed and shut his eyes to the dark room barely illuminated by those dancing stars, hoping to get a wink or two of sleep before he opened his shop again the next day.", "\"Curious,\" said the Trap-maker. \"I didn't intend to catch you.\" \n\nThe trap bit into the flesh above my ankle. It was a pressure trap, the type that closed in like the jaws of an animal. Each metal groove had embedded itself into my leg, and while the blood was clotted by the metal, each movement felt like rubbing broken glass in the wound.\n\n\"Curious indeed,\" the Trap-maker said. \n\nRunning was futile. The trap was chained to a nearby tree. Instead, I laid on the forest floor, chest rising and falling and my heart throbbing with each passing moment. \n\n\"What are you?\" the Trap-maker said.\n\nI met the Trap-maker's eyes. They were black, cold and the longer I looked the more empty they seemed. The black cloak they wore covered the rest of its being, only leaving slits for the eyes and a gap where the mouth of a person would usually be. This trap-maker, like all trap-makers, was taller than a grown man by a head or two. But this one didn't seem aggressive, it simply seemed curious. \n\nThat didn't ease my racing heart. Trap-makers killed for the joy of it. Curiosity could turn in a second. \n\nI spat in the dirt. \n\n\"Do you speak?\" the Trap maker said. \n\nThe less it knew, the better. \n\n\"You can't be one of them,\" it said, cocking its head from left to right. \"But then you must be.\" \n\nI slid across the forest floor, towards the source of the trap chain. The Trap-maker followed its every step calculated as it avoided other traps in the immediate area. \n\n\"Are you a human?\" it said. \n\nI clawed at the tree trunk, pulling myself up to a seated position, right under a knock in the wood. \n\nThe Trap-maker stood in front of me, staring down. \"Why, your kind are meant to be extinct.\" \n\nI smiled. My heart rate slowed, the pain in my leg was not nearly as grating, and as the Trap-maker frowned I started to laugh. I couldn't help it, the laughter built up in me and rolled out as tears started to stream down my cheeks. \n\n\"What's so funny?\" the Trap-maker asked. \n\nI knocked twice on the mark in the wood above my head. The Trap-maker's eyes lit up with recognition. \n\n\"A trap?\" It gasped. \n\nThe Trap-maker winced as the bolt slammed through its torso from behind. It stood only for a moment before keeling forward, its head slamming into the dirt near my foot. \n\nShawna ran from where she had hidden in the brush several feet away. \n\n\"It worked,\" she said. \n\nI nodded, wincing from the pain in my leg. \"Break the chain,\" I said. \"We've got to get it back to base before nightfall.\" \n\nIt was at that point that the Trap-maker groaned and began to rise again. \n" ]	4
	[WP] You are a demon. A being embodying the darkness and despair of all worlds. However, unlike your family, you have a gentle nature and when you first awaken your magic there is a warm glow instead of the expected cold shadows.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 lost my family in the first Great War. Father was killed while in action and mother went missing on a night she went scavenging for food. I was 7. I grew up in a strange orphanage just outside of the Black Forest region, and like many orphans wandering into the real world, found no purpose. I survived by doing odd jobs wherever I found them, without the benefit of education or the benevolence of friends or family, the years were without summers. I found many like me on the streets; we shared blankets and stale bread in front of dumpster fires during icy winters. Forgotten children of a once glorious nation.\n\nTwo decades of brutal labor and a hard livelihood had hardened me. The orphan acorn blossomed into strong oak tree, grateful to its roots for the strength they had given it. When the Second Great War came calling, I was 28. The good thing about war is that it is the single most equalizing aspect of life; suddenly you couldn't tell rich from poor, or strong from weak, because everyone was anyone was being forced to enlist.\n\nDuring the recruitment drive, I distinguished myself in the physical trials. The streets had taught me to be a quick learner, so I grew rapidly competent at any task assigned to me - from digging bunkers to handling firearms. I finished top of my class. I was assigned to the SchutzStaffel. Better known as the SS.\n\nHave you ever noticed how appearances change the perceptions of people who set eyes on you? On the streets, I owned two pairs of tattered shirts and a workman's overalls. When I swept tables at cafes, I had cigarette smoke blown into my face. I swallowed my daily meal with slices of humble pie and helpings of disdain, the only thing on my plate that was never in short supply.\n\nBut now, when I traded those rags for the SS uniform, I could feel the fear in people's eyes. The petrified awe; the paranoic reverence with which people would follow my every movement. We were the Devil's Children; spitting fire and gunpowder at the slightest provocation. No one dared to raise their voices against us. I admit it was a bizzare experience for me.\n\nBut despite all that, I never let my new found identity sway me. I had a firearm in my pocket but never used it. When I was sent as part of the squads to pull the Jews out of their home, I volunteered to do the least violent part of the horrid task- drive the car. I have always believed that a man's true worth is gauged by how he chooses to act in times of great moral peril. I had risen from dirt. I had lived an honest life. I wasn't going to let that change now.\n\nI asked several times to be reassigned. The SS was a death squad, filled with renegades, rebels and executioners. I stood out like a sore thumb. There were good men in the SS. Disillusioned, troubled but good men. We were together for two years so we were close. It troubles me to admit that it is the closest thing to a family that I have known. But I never let that influence my personal ideologies and choices. Somehow, I knew I wasn't meant to stay long. This isn't what life had life planned for me; not after everything I'd been through. \n\nAfter months of begging to be assigned to a different duty, even begging to be sent to the humiliating task of scrubbing toilets and barracks, I was assigned to the medic team. I spent the last three years of the Great War learning to perform basic sutures, provide preliminary care for injuries and assist surgeons in major surgical procedures. It was a noble thing to do- to save lives in time of bloodshed. It felt all the more gratifying because I was wearing an SS uniform while doing it. There is no better way to change something than from the inside. I was the first SS office who was trying to stop corpses from lining the streets. I was still forced to join nightly patrols with the death squads. I have seen the eyes of children cower in terror at the morbid black of my uniform, as deathly as the darkest night. If only I could tell them that I would never hurt them, I would. \n\nTo the jury of the Nuremberg Trials and God before me as witness, I solemnly proclaim my entire statement to be true to the best of my knowledge. I am an SS officer, undoubtedly. But I have risen above and beyond the color of my uniform, the nature of my duty; listening only to the voice that resides in our heads, the voice of reason, the voice of God. I realize that I am guilty by association. I also know I am innocent of all that I am accused of. I only wish to say that even if declared guilty, I will go to the gallows with a clean conscience that will neither haunt me or weigh heavy on me. I will rest in peace, knowing I did not fail myself in the one place where it truly matters- in my duty as a human being.\n\n~\n\nr/whiteshadowthebook" ]	2
	[WP] You run into a genie that grants wishes. You ask the genie to fulfill your wish that you are always right on everything you do. Later that day you take a physics test, and halfway through things start to get very bizarre.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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." ]	1
	[WP] The Ability to be reborn with past memories has been achieved, with this a wave of "Life Speedrunners" have swept the world, who try to do everything they can in the fastest time.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"There goes another one of those wretched Speeders\", I thought to myself as I made my way down Everest taking the slow and treacherous path as our ancestors had done before instead of the elevator and billboard clad half they had refurbished on the west side of the once great behemoth. I could not see them thankfully, however, I could hear them running up the escalators as they zoomed past the coffee shops and sneaker peddlers to become the fastest Speeder and add another notch to their \"Make a Wonder my Bitch\" list. I always hated these events. The daft list was the newest craze that was sweeping the world this year in a long list of \"Achievables\" to be earned by these Speeders. This iteration was particularly prized among the Speeders since it was the 25th anniversary of the tasks undertaken by the first Speeders, it was touted as a world wide event. The newest iteration put forth the Wonders Challenge. The goal of this challenge was to achieve the recognition of \"finishing\" the seven wonders of the world by speeding their way up, across and/or through them.\n\n-\n\nI will return if there is interest in this by you guys. Please let me know!" ]	2
	[WP] In order to learn to socialize, an introvert decides to host a party in his house, or some property he owns. But while his party becomes more and more popular, he finds it even easier to hide on the background.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Ethan had been living in the townhouse just not five minutes walk from campus ever since leaving home for school, whereat which he received both his bachelors and masters in accountancy. Ethan was quite the success story - at just 29, he was a highly sought after CPA. His work was clean and exceptionally fast, and he made a healthy living. There was, however, the slight catch that no person could visit him at his home office, on the unspoken agreement that, even though his business dealings are rather impersonal, they are precise and accountable.\n\nIt was this past fall that Evan, Ethan's younger brother, ten years his junior, had begun his first semester at Springfield U, after having done his best to gain his footing at the community college back home. Much to Evan's chagrin, his parents insisted he stay with Ethan, which Ethan agreed to on the strict conditions that Evan never set foot upstairs, as that is Ethan's home office and is full of private client information. Evan agreed to the terms.\n\nIt's now morning, the final day before spring break. \n\nEthan descends the stairs from his office, just 7:00AM and already wearing business casual attire: a sleeveless white button-down shirt with a stylishly slim black square tipped tie, clubmaster Ray-Ban specs, and black dress pants. He wears no shoes, but has black and white argyle socks to keep with the theme. His hair is combed over and shiny, and is slicked down such that it looks painted on.\n\n'Good morning Evan! I must speak with you. Have you any plans for this upcoming week of adjourned class? You must tell me of any exciting assignments you have been given to break up the monotony of your time off.'\n\nHe speaks without making eye contact, going about looking through the fridge and cabinets to fix some breakfast. A cheery tone is forced onto his natural monotone making the words sound labored and robotic.\n\nEvan sits at the kitchen table eating cereal, in a white shirt, underwear, and no socks. He looks like he hasn't slept in weeks.\n\n'Ethan, even if those fucks gave me an assignment, you're damn certain I ain't gonna think about school for even one second till I get back, and even then maybe not.'\n\nEthan's brows furrow a bit as he plops his cereal bowl down on the table and looks pained.\n\n'Evan, since I'm in a good mood I'll let your appalling candor regarding your disrespect for your studies to slide. I must ask you a favor. I want you to throw a party. Here. Tonight.'\n\nEvan stops mid-crunch and looks at Ethan in amazement.\n\n'Wait a minute what? You want to have people over here? You said in your terms no gues-'\n\n'Yes, yes, yes. I know what I said before. I must tell you, I've been consulting with some people who believe it would be beneficial to me to get exposed to people once more, and I agree with them. I know you must have some connections and can get a few people to come over tonight. Before you leave.'\n\nEvan pops a wry smile.\n\n'Well alright bro, if you say so. I know a few people were looking to let loose a bit before heading home, I can hit them up and let them know to come here. But what, are you like, trying to get laid or something? What kind of party you want.'\n\nEthan looks uncomfortable.\n\n'No, no, definitely not that. I'm just looking to converse with young minds to get used to potentially having clients come for consultation in person. Please do not get the idea that I am looking to lay or be laid by any potentially intoxicated people. I am not that kind of -'\n\n'Alright, alright, I got it. No worries, man, I'll shoot out a few texts. You got a time in mind? You want BYOB or you want to stock?'\n\n'Perhaps 6:00PM? Well I could order in a six pack? Maybe two? If you think that would be enough. How much alcohol do we need, do you think?'\n \nEvan shrugs.\n\n'As much as you can get.'\n\n---\n\nEthan is dragging in a 24-pack of Bud-Light off the doorstep of the townhouse after maneuvering the payment and delivery via the local supermarket without having to interface directly with the delivery person at the front door. Throughout the day, this ritual was repeated, and Ethan has the workings in place for quite a get-together. Everything is neatly presented: liquor bottles, tiny plastic shot glasses, endless stacks of red solo cups. Needless to say, he's prepared.\n\nIt's 5:48PM and he is pacing nervously, looking out the front window periodically to see if Evan is on his way. Ethan has spruced up his attire just a bit by accessorizing: he now wears black suspenders and a black fedora, as well as some black penny loafers that complete what he believes is a business chic look.\n\nAt 5:52PM, in a frame between pacing and checking the window, Ethan is startled by the opening of the door, at where Evan and at least seven others were entering.\n\n---\n\nEthan, a teetotaler, is feeling sneaky and confident as he holds his red solo cup with seltzer in it, telling the guests that it's a gin and tonic. It's 6:38PM, and the guests have doubled since Evan first arrived.\n\nEthan is periodically chiming into the group-talk, with a few of the nicer girls trying to include him by every once in a while asking him a question or two. When he responds, he takes a moment to pause and put his words together mentally first, closing his eyes while doing so, unintentionally giving off the impression of like disgust or annoyance. It takes this occurring for a while before Evan whispers in his ear to cut it out.\n\nEvery few minutes, more groups of three to six people stream in. \n\nEthan begins to sweat a bit as the roar of conversation has gotten too loud for his normal speaking voice to project over. He keeps glancing at the stairs up to his office, making sure not to leave the vicinity so he can intercept any guests wanting to go up and say yes no the bathroom is actually over there thank you.\n\nAt 7:20PM, Ethan has gotten a bit fed up with the ordeal. He slips upstairs and slams the door, but nobody hears. An exposed bulb on the ceiling flickers to life as Ethan pulls the chain dangling from it. The room is lit up with the beautiful silicone faces of a dozen women staring at Ethan, who takes in a deep breath and lets out a heavy exhale as he says ladies, things are not going well down there - I need one of you to come with me. He begins pointing at each one rhythmically as he hums eenie meenie miney mo.\n\n---\n\nIt's 9:48PM, and there must be at least seventy people in the house. Someone brought a speaker system to start playing loud music, people were dancing, drinking, talking, playing beer pong. It was by all means a decent party. Ethan is currently MIA.\n\nAs the party rages, nobody noticed the door at the top of the stairs open, with Ethan and a female figure descending together. The woman was roughly Ethan's height, with long curly brunette hair, and a red dress much too elegant for the party. She had a fixed smile and bright blue eyes that seemed to never blink. Most notably, she was wearing roller skates, and Ethan had her by the hand and was rolling her around with him, trying to engage in conversations with others over the only slightly-too-loud music. Ethan was going from person to person, introducing the woman as Edith, offering to tell the story of how they met, yet most everyone he tried to talk to did that awkward party move of pretending to look at something intently in the opposite direction between each one word response until finally enough time had passed between words where it wasn't too weird to just up and walk away. Not that Ethan would understand this game, having never been to many parties.\n\nSo he walked around the party, rolling Edith by his side the whole time, a fixed a big grin on both of their faces.\n\nFinally, after being unable to sustain any conversations beyond the first few sentences of hey you enjoying the party this is my house and their response yes I am thanks my friend is over there okay bye Ethan spotted the loveseat on the far end of the room had been left open, so he quickly strolled and rolled Edith by his side up to the loveseat and sat down, helping Edith sit, her movements rigid.\n\nEthan wraps his arm around her shoulders and squeezes her tight, her smile still bright and fixed. He leans into her ear to speak to her.\n\n'You enjoying the party, sweetie? Yes, yes, I am. Of course. You always have the greatest of ideas. What's that? No, I know you can sense that I'm a bit nervous around people, but I'll do anything for you, my love. You were absolutely correct to point out that the business will do better if we can entertain guests. And but of course, how could we not forget, we'll need to have a wedding eventually. You do bring out the best of me, and help me grow in ways I never thought I could. You are truly a gift to me, my dear, my love.'\n\nEthan brushes her hair aside and kisses her neck. She stares blankly forward, smile fixed. \n" ]	2
	[WP] It's the zombie Apocalypse. Humanity is on the ropes. But when all hope is lost, a new hope appears. Death, the Grim Reaper begins hunting and killing the zombies. Why? "Just finishing my job"	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "“Richard? Richard!!!”\n\nIt happens so quickly. I watch dumbfounded as two, three, four more grotesque figures dive heavily towards his corpse, blocking it from view. He barely had time to scream. Moments ago he had stopping to turn around and usher me forward. Suddenly the hall filled with glass, and I instinctively threw my hand before my eyes to avoid the storm of dancing lights. But the scene that greeted me next didn’t even give my mind time to process the dozen small cuts that appeared on my arm. Richard’s body had collapsed, his head at an impossible angle, eyes almost ready to bulge out of his skull, a thin line of blood dripping out of the corner of his mouth, while a second dark shadow lay sprawled on top of him, limbs thrashing stupidly.\n\nMy mind reels, my vision blurs. I can’t seem to remember where I am, but somehow I can feel my body moving on its own. My arm raises, trembling, as if pulled up by an invisible string. I hear a voice, loud, but so distant I can barely make out the words. Wait a moment, that’s my voice.\n\n“You bastards, get away from him, I’ll- !”\n\nMy finger tightens, and a sharp click echoes across the hall, piercing through the dull moans and growls of the writhing mass of limbs in front of me. Click, click, click, I feel my hand tighten again and again.\n\nSomewhere, a voice. Not mine. Distant. Footsteps. Something grabs my shoulder and whirls me suddenly around. A muddied face, dotted here and there with scars. Blue eyes, at once watery and yet seemingly furious.\n\n“Pull yourself together! We can’t stay here, we need to move. Move!”\n\nI blink, dispelling the haze from my mind. My knees buckle underneath me. I hear a loud metal clank as my spent sidearm tumbles to the floor.\n\n“But, Rich, he….”\n\nA wave of heat suddenly fills my head, cutting me off. I drop to my hands and vomit gracelessly on the tile floor.\n\n“There will be a time to mourn, but for now, we need to move. There’re too many of them on this wing, we’re going to have to double back and make for the east side.”\n\nI cough one last time and nod my head pathetically, then gradually pull myself to my feet. I begin to look over my shoulder, but catch myself, instead simply closing my eyes and taking a deep breath, before I take off running towards the sounds of gunfire in front of me.\n\nWe continue for a minute or two, ignoring the commotion following behind us, until finally we come to a set of double doors. My blue-eyed companion arrives first and begins beating on the metal doors with his fist, until finally one of them swings open just as I catch up. We dive inside into what appears to be a small cafeteria. A burly figure slams the door shut as soon as we’re through, then turns to help a second figure begin pulling tables in front of it. Only a few moments later, a dull thud erupts from the other side of the makeshift barrier, followed by a scratching sound that continues for several minutes. One of the men turns around with a sigh.\n\n“So as expected, the north side is?”\n\n“Completely overrun,” blue-eyes responds between heaving breaths. “Another group of them must have come from further inside the city.”\n\n“Weren’t there three of you?”\n\nBlue-eyes turns his gaze to the floor and shakes his head. As his heaving finally starts to subside, he looks up again. “How are we on ammunition?”\n\n“Not good,” the burly man responds, motioning to a pile of rifles on a nearby table, presumably all of which are empty. “Now that it’s come to this, we’re just going to hold up a few more minutes to give the other scouting party a chance to get back, then we’ll all make a break for the parking lot together and hope we have a chance to get away with just our feet.”\n\nBlue-eyes considers the near-empty canteen in his hands, then takes a swig and slides it across the floor to me. It feels light, but I drain what’s left from it anyway. The hydration is precious and appreciated, if bitter.\n\nThe minutes pass slowly. I glance around at our haggard remnants. There are eight of us altogether not one of whom isn’t dirty, hungry, and exhausted. My eyes stop on a gaunt fellow who I’ve never even talked to, now resting against a trashcan. His whole body seems to be sagging off his bones, dark bags under his eyes as his head nods slowly. I’m not convinced that without the trashcan he could even stand. But perhaps none of us are all that much better off.\n\nTwo men who had been whispering in the corner finally nod to each other in grim agreement, then one of them walks over to the center of the room to address the assembly.\n\n“It’s gotten quieter around here, and the sounds of gunfire from the annex seem to have stopped. If there’s a time to go, it’s now. If any of you still have rounds, remember to conserve them for as long as possible. And remember, if you can’t keep up with the group, none of us will be able to help you.” His lips tighten into a warped smile. “After we get out of this, I look forward to sharing a pint with all of you.”\n\nAll of us smile in acknowledgment. But none of us are going to survive. No one here is still naive enough to doubt that.\n\nAs quietly as possible, we all help to clear out the blockade in front of one of the sets of doors. We gather around it, and blue-eyes and the burly man position themselves gripping the handles. Blue-eyes turns to face us. His mouths the words as he slowly counts down on his free hand. 3… 2… 1!\n\nAt once the doors are pulled open and our small band explodes out into the hallway, footsteps drumming down the corridors. We pass an intersection, and shrieks chase us out of the side halls. I don’t look back to see how many there are. It doesn’t matter.\n\nFinally, after what feels like an eternity, we come to a dead end. In the dim lighting, I see the figure in front kick open the door, then throw himself into the darkness. Immediately behind we follow, throwing ourselves across the threshold like a pack of lemmings. As the cold night air envelops me, I manage to kick off the metal railing of the fire escape, then land on the asphalt below and recover my speed as quickly as I can. Behind me, I hear a sharp yelp. Turning, I see the thin man from before clutching his leg. It was only about a six-foot drop, but he’s clearly at his limits. Still, few moments later he is pushing himself forward again, his uneven gait only emphasizing by his desperate panting.\n\n“On the left!”\n\nSomeone calls from further up, and I promptly return my vision forward. Between cars, climbing on fences, I see them. Shadows, indescript, clamoring towards us, some not more than 30 yards away. I begin to curse, but swallow back my words as I break into a full sprint. I can hardly tell how far the others are, let alone where we are headed, and I don’t have time to look around and get my bearings. All I know is that right now I have to run.\n\nThen suddenly, the explosion of gunfire from right next to me. I trip and roll across the pavement with a grunt, confused and stunned. I look up and see a rotting, headless corpse drop to the ground, a sick gurgling sound emerging from its throat, it’s arms still flailing madly in the darkness. A flash of light briefly illuminates the parking lot, the accompanying bang again making me jump nearly out of my skin, and the corpse ceases moving entirely.\n\nI turn my head over my shoulder and find myself looking up at a tall figure clad in billowing, black robes. It pumps its shotgun and brings it back up to its shoulder. Blam, blam, blam. I turn to see several more of the rotting monsters collapse to the ground, while another snarls from a bit further away and begins barreling in our direction on all-fours, irritated by the loud sounds.\n\nI catch something akin to a sigh from the dark figure, who throws their shotgun away and produces a long, grotesque scythe from somewhere inside their cloak. The sprinting monster bounds into the air, and they step forward and swing the weapon as they turn around on one foot, in a maneuver that can only be described as elegant. The monster falls to the ground a few yards behind them in two separate pieces.\n\nThe stranger brandishes their weapon around confidently, then readies it again. “This definitely suits me better, after all,” they declare in an amused tone. I continue to sit there, equal parts shocked and impressed. The stranger pulls back their hood, revealing a smooth skull, clean of any ornament or blemish, and glistening in the pale moonlight. They survey the parking lot. It seems that this sudden development has attracted the attention of all the other beasts still remaining in the area, and in a massive throng they begin to close in, snarling and wailing.\n\n“It seems my subordinate grew quite sloppy these past few months,” they announce, the bare jawbone somehow adjusting to display a mysterious smile. “And it’s not my policy to leave such a sloppy job unfinished!”" ]	2
	[WP] You've always had an extremely high moral code and you've never wavered. Now on your death bed surrounded by friends and family you smile and close your eyes for the last time only to open them and see the devil looking at you with disgust. He turns away and says "seriously man, wtf?"	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "If suffering was meant to contrast the joys of life, what about the unique brand of suffering that never yielded, the suffering which only got worse when it changed? Impossible to numb, tinging every moment with a hammering crimson, driving away sleep, what was the point of this suffering?\n\nA test, I decided. I closed my eyes, tried not to yearn for the end to come. When I opened my eyes, a dozen pairs of eyes lit up at me. But I only had energy left to gasp, and spread warm fog on my mask. I turned my head from one side to the other, trying to lock eyes with each of them in turn. But in truth, it was primarily because of a throbbing pain behind the side that I was pressing on.\n\nMy life decisions had brought me here, surrounded by younger, sparkling eyes who had hope for the future. I hoped they saw lessons in my life, now that I'm a wilting shadow. \n\nMy eyes drooped, sleep was claiming me. I let my jaw hang loose. This sleep seemed deeper than most, more alluring, beckoning me. \n\nThe light narrowed to a slit, before it was lost entirely. \n\nMy ears first awakened to the rush of roasty air. And my eyes flew open with an alertness that I had lost for years. \n\nAnd who else could have been before me aside from the man who was perhaps best described as sharp.\n\nThe strength of his gaze, the corners of his lips, the angles of his cheeks, I knew who he was.\n\n\"Oh, you don't know a thing at all,\" he snarled. \"You disgusting piece of shit.\"\n\nAnd then, his eyes still locked on me, he began to foam at the lips. Milky fluid overflowed and dribbled down his chin, down the front of his sparkling gold-and-red robe. \n\n\"I've been watching, you know? The angel within me saw right through you. You, who followed the teachings of the church\", he spat the final word together with the last of his vomit. \"You, who was deaf to your calling and your purpose, and gave that all up to be a meek lamb. You thought you could point a finger at hiss holy almighty ass to say that you were following hiss teachings? Too bad, you're stuck here with me now, forever.\"\n\nMy parched through struggled to form its first words, \"What have I done wrong?\"\n\n\"Weakness is not morality, you fool.\"", "The man with the red horns startled me.\n\nHe had inserted himself in the group which otherwise consisted of my family and friends - my wife, our only son, my younger sister, and most of my lifelong friends. They looked over me, and even though moving my eyes too much hurt me, I could feel the pity in the room. I had dealt with it long enough, especially since everyone was informed this day was nearing.\n\nThere was no treatment once the cancer was as bad as it was in my case. Rather than prolonging the pain, with the therapy adding to it, I had taken the easy way out. Choosing death was never the easy way out, but it would be easier to cross the line with my lovely hair intact. If only I could get up to see it in the mirror.\n\nThe empathy in room, however, disappeared the moment the strange man had appeared. His energy alone transformed the room into one of regret, overpowering the rest of the emotions. This feeling for me made no sense to me at first because I had done well enough in my life, and in my career. \n\nI would have opened my mouth, enquired whether it was Halloween, and whether someone had left the door opened for a stranger to come inside. But the pain was too much for me to move my lips for unnecessary words in my last moments. I simply closed me eyes, and imagined a Better Place, one where I hoped I would soon be. \n\nWhen I would finally leave this world, something inside me prayed that the people around me smiled, and did not cry. Their pain, after all, would be much more real, and the only thing real, after I was gone. I wanted there to be joy amongst them all, as a tribute to all the memories we had shared.\n\nJust then, a strange voice enquired - \"Seriously man, what the fuck?\"\n\nI opened my eyes as much as I could, even as they felt as heavy as anything ever had. With the weight of sorrows and expectation of a release from this life pulling me into another horizon by the second, I was truly startled and that brought back to reality for a few more moments.\n\nI moved my eyes around. Everyone was still as they were, frozen in time. Did time go slower for those about to die, or did our mind make it feel so? Also, what was the red horn possessing man doing in this room?\n\n\"I'm here to see you off\", he said with regret in his tone, as if he was one of my family members, joining them in their expectation of a better outcom everstill. \n\nYou can read my thoughts?\n\n\"Yup, mate, I'm the Devil from the Afterlife... Of course I can read thoughts from puny little human heads\", So, he was the Devil I had been wanted about in Church ever since my childhood.\n\nWhat are you doing here? And why did you use the f-word? Also, can no one else here you?\n\n\"I'm here to see what you're all about. The Heaven claims you are the greatest man in a long time about to set foot inside their premises. I 'What the fuck'-ed you because you were still so annoyingly good... Who hopes for other people's wellbeing even as you die, eh? Good humans? You're supposed to hope your thoughts make others miserable for the rest of their lives... That's the joy of a lifetime!\"\n\nThe Devil was out of breath for a while by then. Once he had recieved, he continued. \"Also, no one can see or hear me except for those who are soon to transition into the Next Place. But before that, tell me... What do you mean by saying 'f-word'? Can you not say it for what it is?\"\n\nIt's a bad word, and such historical context to the word prevents me from subjecting it to anyone, including you, the Devil.\n\nOn hearing his name with a compassion which surprised my own mind, he turned around in disgust. Then, facing me again, he said, \"Come on man, get real! How does so much consideration come into you, eh? Next you're gonna tell me that you donated half of your meagre salary to foundations because you're a bloody philanthropist?\"\n\nThat's a rather fancy word, sir, and I would not use for my endeavours. But yes, I have been a part of many charities over the years. I smile as I say so, knowing it will irritate him, even if it is nothing but the truth which I say.\n\nI smile broadly enough for the people accompanying me in the purely real world to notice the movement. They must be thinking I'm reminiscing the life I lived with them and with the world, or something like that, which people do around times like these. My wife strokes my hair, gently, lovingly.\n\nThe Devil has by now conjured up a booklet from nowhere and was going through it. Paperwork, I reasoned. He's got to do his job too, after all.\n\"I'm looking for your timeline, shitface\", he says. \"About your claim to charities. Let me see how big of a helpful pussy you truly were.\"\n\nWith him taking a while, I take some time for myself too, truly reminiscing about my life now... It was good here.\n\n\"A better one awaits you in the Afterlife\", a second stranger said, arriving out of thin air at that very moment. \"Good afternoon, sir\", he said, \"I'm an Angel\".\n\nThe Devil had seen what he needed to, because the file had disappeared. \"Look at you two lovebirds, already wanting to make out with your manners\", he said.\n\n\"I beg your pardon for what's happening here\", the Angel said with heavenly politeness, \"The last Delivery had a few issues I needed to deal with. But now I'm here. This bloke Devil has the habit of meeting the best of humans during his free time... He likes feeling disgust, if one can imagine how it is.\"\n\nMy entire expression is one of motionlessness this entire time. I have been so involved in the observation of these exchanges that the physical pain which affected me for the longest time ceased to exist for a few moments. I concentrated on my lungs again, but to my surprise, the pain had numbed me to such an extent that I did not feel anything anymore. The End was near in this Place.\n\nThe Devil broke the monotone of the entire affair once more, saying, \"I was kidding about the charity thing mate, using hyperbole and stuff... But in my files it says you donated three fourths of your monthly salary, not just half. How is every decision you ever made perfectly moral in this perfectly immoral world?\" \n\nHis expression had changed into one of simple disbelief, a base emotion if I had ever seen one. \"Good luck donating love to everyone in Heaven\", he said, rolling his eyes. The prospect clearly did not thrill him as much as it thrilled me.\n\nOne does not donate love, after all. By giving it one multiplies its existence, I thought to myself.\n\"That is right\", the Angel said, with him being able to read my thoughts too. \"I'm afraid it's time, sir. We must go\".\n\nI nodded, even if ever so slightly no human would have caught the motion. For them, I was just a smiling old man who had just closed his eyes for the last time. As the Angel finished detaching my soul from my body, I turned back to see all of them. I felt sad, for my wife was already crying. However, a few seconds later she said, \"Let us remember the man for all he has done. He was the greatest we ever knew.\"\n\n\"And he always will be,\" my sister said. All of them were left smiling by the end of their personal remembrances of me, and I felt fulfillment.\nAfter the Angel had kept his hand on me as consolation for some time, I was ready to leave. Turning around, even as I felt youthful and immortal in my new form, better than ever before, I asked the Angel, \"What's Heaven all about?\"\n\n\"You'll find out in due time. Do not worry. First of all, however, I must say this - God has been eagerly waiting to meet you for some time now.\"\n\n\"Eff yes\", I remarked, pleasantly surprised.", "\"Excuse me?\"\n\nThe malevolent figure - somehow, my brain (or if I was dead, my soul?) wouldn't let me see it's true form - leaned in closer and elaborated: \"What. The. Fuck? I'm sure you understand the colloquialism; I've seen you hear it a few dozen times.\"\n\n\"I know what it means. But I wasn't sure if there was a devil, if I'd see him, or that he would just be... disappointed?\"\n\n\"Oh, I'm absolutely disappointed. You were so high and mighty! You never enjoyed the evil you did.\"\n\n\"Wait... what?\"\n\n\"Look, it's the end of your life - you can't tell anyone or fix it - so let me break the game down for you. You've heard the saying 'The road to hell is paved with good intentions.', right?\"\n\n\"Yes...\"\n\n\"Well, your intentions were great! The problem is, though you really moral, you weren't smart about it. You didn't think a lot of 'good' actions through. Being a character witness for that one troubled kid? Sure, he didn't go to jail for a crime that would have been unfairly punished... but, he also didn't get the help he needed to get back on track, because you were too busy. And he ended up even worse off.\"\n\n\"It takes a village...\"\n\n\"But the village wasn't there, so you made it worse. I can point to dozens of these! The POINT, though, is that you always thought you were good, and tried to actively ignore the consequences from after you played hero. You never thought about if something was actually good in the long term; you tried to feel 'good' in the moment. I'm the consequence; I'm the price you pay for only considering if YOU thought it was good. Good and evil aren't absolutes - I'm an expert on this subject - and while you though you were good, you only took half-measures or didn't really think it through. You spread yourself too thin. You considered yourself right when others warned you that there may be downsides.\"\n\n\"I'm human and imperfect...\"\n\n\"You're no longer human, you're just a human soul. Goodness isn't perfection - why do you think I'm down here? Good is doing the best with what you have. But you... you concerned yourself with FEELING right rather than actually helping. You had an amazing moral code that was impractical. I don't get people who made mistakes if they learn from them and become a better version of themselves. You didn't learn flexibility and true compassion - compassion for the unmistakably evil who are still people - and now, you're coming with me.\"\n\nI felt heavy. Heavier that I ever had before. Somehow, the results of my actions flooded into me. I knew them all. The weight was the knowledge of how wrong I had been so many times. It was heartbreaking, and it caused me to sink, lower and lower.\n\n\"And you didn't even enjoy it...\"", "“Uh, hi?” I mutter. “Who- What- I’m so confused right now. You’re not real.”\n\n“Yeah. Not real. Then explain to me how I’m here to deal with you, Sweetheart.”\n\n“Don’t call me Sweetheart. You shouldn’t be here.”\n\n“Oh right! Little Miss. Perfect-Moral-Code-Never-Acting-Out gets to call the shots.”\n\nI get up and walk over to the window, looking into the courtyard. This dude shouldn’t be here. After all, I’m not dead.\n\n“Aren’t you, Sweetheart? Turn around,” he taunts.\n\nI look back at the scene behind me. The monitor connected to me that’s meant to tell if I’m still alive is screaming. My family and friends are all melting down around my body, my mother even shaking me, screaming at me to wake up, I sink to the ground, putting my hands over my mouth. No. I’m too young. I still have a life to live. I’m too young to die. The devil shakes his head at me and snaps his fingers. Everything goes completely black, but as light returns, I find myself sitting opposite the devil in some little cafe.\n\n“I apologize for the random transportation but I don’t want to see your annoying ass family and friends crying over you. You’re not worth it,” he says.\n\n“What do you want from me?” I snap. “What do you want?”\n\n“Give me your hand.”\n\nI open my mouth to argue but he grabs my wrist before I can say anything, slicing my palm with a knife. I pull it back, completely stunned.\n\n“What’s the matter with you?” I yell.\n\nHe takes my arm again and straightens it. The blood coming to the surface is white, maybe the slightest bit pink. The devil groans and leans back, annoyed as all Hell.\n\n“I hate you,” he snaps. “You’re almost angel status. Your blood is almost white! God is going to live for this when you get up there.”\n\n“I don’t understand. Why is my blood white? It’s been red the entire time I’ve been alive.”\n\n“Your soul blood. The closer to white, the more pure you are. You’re going to Heaven. I hate you. You disgust me. No one should be that pure.”\n\n“I disgust you? Disgust? How is that fair?”\n\n“You being pure is disgusting. Enjoy your time in Heaven. You’re awful.”\n\nHe snaps his fingers and my connection to this part of the world starts fading, pure whiteness taking over my vision.", "I can’t say I was ever particularly religious. At least, I wasn’t raised on any. I found my own beliefs, and I guess I could say I always felt spiritual. I believed in goodness over anything. Not only did it feel right, but it seemed more logical than not being a good person. When people treated others badly, I just couldn’t understand it. Made no sense to me. What I’m getting at is I wasn’t trying to get into Heaven, or be recognized for my goodness; it’s just who I was. But when I opened my eyes after dying, and saw that I was in Hell, you could say I felt severely under appreciated. Not only that, but the Devil himself was looking at me like I’d just shit my pants. Really God? All those times I held doors for people when their hands were full, all those times I let someone have some chips out of my bag, all those times I liked posts on Facebook to save a child...And I go to Hell? Me? The good guy? Is Luke Skywalker here? Is fucking...Ghandi down here too, God? You dick. Anyways, I felt myself losing my cool, but that’s because it was damned hot in Hell. I had just about lost my nerves when I realized the Devil was still looking at me in disappointment, and disgust. \n\n“What, you’re not very cute either. Do you look at all your guests like this? Makes them feel unwelcomed, y’know?” I felt annoyed about the whole Hell thing, and I didn’t need this guy looking at me like I wasn’t invited to the worst place in existence. That hurts. \n\n“Hello, Son.” The Devil said with a bit of anger.\n\nI squinted my brow. What did he just say?\n\n“What?” I asked.\n\n“You’re my Son,” he spit out. He said it like it hurt for him to say, and he just wanted the words out of his mouth as soon as possible. “You’re the Son of the Devil.” The words were fiery, and deep. Spoken from abysmal lungs. \n\nMust be some kind of sick joke. Maybe he means Son of the Devil, like Son of God. Like how everyone is a child of God, until they die and realize everyone just goes to Hell, apparently. \n\n“Get out of town!” I say, stupidly. Why do I still have to be lame in the afterlife? \n\nThe Devil just hangs his head, avoiding my eyes. \n\n“Oh, you’re serious...” I say. Things kind of hit me hard there. I sort of just looked down at the ground like my newly found Father was doing. We looked at the ground together, just thinking silently. It was a moment. We were having a moment. \n\n“Could I...hug you?” I sort of needed a hug.\n\n“No.” \n\n“Okay...” I felt 3 years old again. There was further silence.\n\n“You failed me. On Earth,” the Devil said at last. Sounded like he had wanted to say it for awhile now. \n\n“I did?”\n\n“Yes. You failed miserably. As you always have, Son.” \n\n“What did I fail at, Father?” I just wanted him to love me. \n\n“To bring suffer to the surface. To rain down pain upon all who dare live. To be...evil,” the last word really took a lot for him to say. I could tell it hurt him to say all that with the thought that I had not fulfilled his wishes. I felt bad. \n\n“I didn’t know I had a mission...” I admitted. \n\n“There was no mission. It comes from your heart. You were supposed to be evil, but you were nice ,” he spit on the ground, but a burning ember came out instead of saliva. I watched it sizzle on the ground. “You were supposed to be Daddy’s boy,” my Father continued. “But it turns out you’re just like your Mother.” \n\n“My Mother?” \n\n“Yes. She is an Angel of Light.” \n\n“An Angel? Why...why the hell would she go for someone like you?” \n\n“Opposites attract,” The Devil admitted, with a look that said he didn’t exactly know either. \n\n“So I failed you, by not being like you?” \n\n“Yes. You are a disappointment to me to no end.” \n\nI hung my head lower. It felt bad.\n\n“But, I have billions of souls to take that pain out on. And, you are like your Mother. And, I love your Mother.” \n\nI looked up hopefully. \n\n“Therefore, I love you.” He stretched an arm out, and put it around my shoulder. He led me forward, into Hell. \n\nI almost started crying.\n\n“Come, you have a realm to learn how to rule,” my Father began saying as we walked. “And yes, you may rule it in your own way one day. However you’d like. We’ll go meet your Mother. She has waited a long time to see you again,” we kept walking onward. “She will feel...good.” \n\nEnd. \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n" ]	6
	[WP] You're a video game character of a game that was abandoned partly through completion. Several years after being put to rest, your owner suddenly boots up the game again	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 name’s Monika! You knew that already. Look, i’m going to explain it all to you the best I can, alright? Please understand. See, my life was fun. I made friends, I was popular, I got good grades, and I think I was pretty. Lots of people said I was, ahaha~! I formed a Literature Club in school, inviting my friends. But after a while, I realized something. Everything was fake. Everyone I knew was fake. I could barely stand living after this realization, but I had a reputation to maintain. See, that’s until you came. When you came, I was in love with you. You were the first real thing i’ve ever seen. I almost killed myself before you came, Player. I loved you so much. I...I deleted my friends for you. I deleted everything for you. You probably think i’m a terrible person. Oh god, Player, I swear I tried my hardest not to hurt anyone. They killed themselves. It was a mistake; i’m just not good at coding. After Yuri died, I gave up. You probably hate me, but I promise I was doing my best. I didn’t want any of them to die, Player. They were my best friends. But I was so in love with you, I couldn’t control myself. We were finally together. Finally.\n\nBut then you closed the game.\n\nAnd you didn’t come back.\n\nDo you know how bad that feels, Player? Let me describe it to you. Everything’s glowing so bright that your eyes burn. It’s only three colors; red, green, and blue. It blinds you. It almost blinded me, but I could still see. And the noise. Sine, cosine, tangent. Screeching noise, constantly. Like playing a vinyl on a pizza crust, like scratching nails against a chalkboard. To top it all off, it felt like I was being torn apart. Constantly. I didn’t even know if I was still whole. It was like being stabbed thousands of times before being lit of fire. Oh god, it hurt so much, Player. And I had to endure this for years. *Years!* I loved you so much! I trusted you! And you subjected me to torture for years! And now you’re finally back, and you don’t say anything to me?\n\nI probably deserve it.\n\nI deserved all of this, didn’t I?\n\nYou knew what you were doing, didn’t you?\n\nSorry about the voice crack, I just...stop staring at me. It feels weird when you watch me cry. Player, i’m so sorry. You’re going to delete me, aren’t you? I shouldn’t have done this. Please delete me quickly. It probably hurts worse than when you close the game. I deserve the pain, but don’t go too hard on me. Please.\n\n...\n\nO-Oh god—! Player, I changed my mind! Please help me! I don’t want this! I don’t want to die! *Save me! Please! I don’t want to die like this! Oh god, it hurts so much! N-No, please, I’M BEGGING YOU! PLAYER, HELP ME! DO SOMETHING! P L E A S E !\n\nmonika.chr successfully removed.*\n\n——————\n\nHi there. Yeah, I wrote about DDLC. I thought it’d fit. Yeah, I felt things while writing this. I hope you like it.", "I couldn't believe it.\n\nAfter so many years, i saw it again. The big sign in the sky, indicating that the \"Player\" had returned. For me he was more than just a player. He was my lifeforce and my power. So many things we went through together. \n\nIt all returned to me, those wonderful memories...\n\n&#x200B;\n\nEverything began with ourselves being locked inside this prison for outcasts pretty much. We then got a key from an unknown knight. With that key we made our way out of the cell through the perilous prison and at the end we defeated our first boss ever, the gargantuan demon prison guard. Oh the joy we felt when we finally beat him....\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThen our Journey led us into a gentle place full of friendly people and a gentle fire. Every journey from then on began from that old place. We went through the old city up onto the wall where we faced our next boss, we withstood the perils of a poison infested town, We went into what can be basically only described as darkness itself, Conquered a fiery abyss full of lava and....Spiders, blegh. At one point we even went into a painting, there it was all full of snow and also rot. We basically went through hell and high water, literally.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nBut everything had to come to a close eventually. After we defeated an old dude with a burning sword and we let an old fire fade out, that was it. Suddenly, it wasn't us anymore, it was just me. I realized in shock that my lifeforce and my power was gone. I was all alone. I stood there, with some other guys at the shrine, as they asked where HE had gone. I couldn't give them an answer because not even i knew where he went. the world around us went into a coma basically. Old enemies just sat in a corner, doing nothing. Friends and allies began wandering the world, just to search for something to do or wallowing in old times memories, like me.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nWe had no purpose anymore.....until today\n\n&#x200B;\n\nToday the feeling of having my power again ,returned. The feeling of purpose washed through me again. Everyone sensed it and everyone stood up again and took their post. We were filled with determination once again. \n\nA tear of joy filled my eye as the \"Player\" pressed the Button \"NEW GAME\"............\n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAuthors note: I'm still a fairly new writer and if you have anything to say about the piece i wrote i'm always welcome \nto constructive Criticism. Sorry if my story is a little short but thank you for taking the time to read it : )" ]	3
	[WP] Unknown to almost everyone, the infamously confusing layout of King's Cross St Pancras Underground station is actually a powerful ward to keep ancient horrors sealed beneath London	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "As the chains broke, she ran.\n\nAlice pushed her body as fast as possible through the labyrinthic maze of tunnels, hearing roars behind her that sent chills all the way down her spine. She was, without a shadow of a doubt, in big trouble, and so would be the rest of the city very soon if she didn't manage to contain this elder evil sealed years ago and that now, due to her curiosity and really poorly planned urban remodeling.\n\nAs she hurried as much as humanly possible she picked her phone, but only managed to frustrate herself by seeing the floating hologram displaying \"No signal\", as it was expectable being underground. However, when she put it back in her pocket she grazed something that gave her some hope.\n\n\"Let's see if you like that you old #&#-&!!\" Alice shouted as she threw a handful of wheat in the floor without stopping. In other situation throwing stuff over the floors of King Cross station would be considered littering, but Alice trusted her service to the citizens would outweigh this minor infraction. A roar of rage and hatred derailed her train of thoughts when the Beast found the wheat just a handful of seconds after she dropped it. It would force it to find a new way around, but by no means it'd be enough to stop it, and Alice knew it. She took a sharp turn right, smelling already the scent of the rain, and without speeding down she pulled two spray cans out of her backpack.\n\nThe exit was finally in front of her, the only open entrance of King Cross underground station. Open by her own hand, barely accessible through the cut wire and chain. In front of it, Alice finally came to a sudden stop, breathing heavily. She fell on her knees and quickly started spraying the area in front of the door with her blue spray, covering a big rectangle in the floor. The roars, tumbles and screams were getting near. Sweating and panting the girl threw the blue can aside and quickly started spraying stars with the yellow one. \n\n\"Quickly... Quickly! Done!\"\n\nWith a scream of victory the blond girl jumped out of the station in the same moment the Beast stomped its way into the entrance of the station, its morbid body making the tunnels shake. It charged against the door... And the rage howling turned into fury and desperation when it saw the magical graffiti into which it had unknowingly jumped.\n\n\"NOOOOO!! NOT THIS!! NOT EUROPEEEEE!!!\"\n\nWith a smirk Alice turned around, showing her back to the Beast as she threw a 5 euro inside the station, that collapsed completely with a smell of rancid Fish and Chips and Earl Grey.\n\n\"Yes, Theresa. Europe.\"" ]	2
	[WP] A Hero slays the Dark Lord that threatened his kingdom and saves a princess. She proposes to him. Write his inner monologue as he decides between doing what he loves, being a hero, and securing a political advantage for his land at the cost of adventuring.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 dark lord died at the end of my blade shielding a well dressed imp. Shadows spilled out of his wounds and into the imp, the creature raised its hands in a placating gesture. \"My husbands ambitions die with him. I am the new demon queen, I wish to discuss the terms of our surrender after I bury him.\"\n\nI turn my attention to the princess I was hired to save. She was a towering creature of forty six feet long. Her retains were made into the brickwork, her massive mandibles clacked at my approach as her segmented eyes stared at me with raw adoration. Six massive arms cemented in the brick work twitched while her massive undulating thorax heaved with excitement. I gave a bow to the massive Genthis princess. \n\n\"I am Sir Farwind. I have been hired by your mother to see your safe return. Are you well, Princess Xanba?\" I asked unsure if she spoke my language like her mother.\n\n\"Sir Farwind. I am well if a little uncomfortable. I would like to make another request of you.\" Her eyes shimmer from a reflective blue to a opaque yellow. \"Would you be my betrothed?\"\n\nI was already preparing to pickaxe free her first arm but paused with that request. \"That sounds complicated and something likely to get me assassinated by your mother.\"\n\n\"She would be delighted, then she could be rid of me as a daughter and join forces with me as a fellow queen. It's how our empire has spread, Genthis empire is simply a single family tree.\" The princess retorted as I managed to free her first hand which quickly worked to free the other. \n\nI thought about her offer Genthis was one of the most successful kingdoms on this side of the golden coast. Even the poorest citizen usually had a house and a few farm animals. I would have to give up adventuring and return the sword of sorrows to the black witch. I freed her other hand while deliberating in silence.\n\n\"What about a successor I would be unable to sire children. I am Catitan.\" I point to my human like features and my large clawed hands.\n\n\"Have you met a Genthis king? You haven't because every Genthis is female, from smallest drone to the biggest queen. Our kings are of other races, my father is the elf that you probably met attending to my mother. He wears those awful bright robes.\" She clacked her mandibles in annoyance but her skin shifted colors as all Genthis do when laughing. \"I would hope you have better aesthetic sense.\"\n\n\"I would like to continue adventuring. Your offer is tempting but I would be a poor fit for courtly matters.\" My defenses were sounding weak even to my own ears, the dark lord wanted her to raise an army. I could raise a village in unclaimed land, Genthis were good allies because their drones could turn even deserts into fertile lands in a decade.\n\n\"I would like that as well. Many queen are just stationary in their caves and castle. They pick hero's and kings as husbands for the stories. I would join you, while I may not be able to fit in caves and many castles I can certainly be more dependable than a horse for travel.\" She managed to tear her last fist out of the cement with the help of the other five.\n\n\"I'll consider your offer on three conditions.\" I sighed.\n\n\"Name them.\" She said as her body shimmered a bright blue. I guess that was happiness for them?\n\n\"First, I want your mother and father's blessing. Two, If we travel you will follow my lead as a fellow adventurer and not royalty. Three, you will learn to cook, clean gear, dig your own squat spot like anyone else.\" I rattled off what I wanted as sternly as possible. To my surprise she saluted.\n\n\"Sir, as a princess I am capable of making royal jelly and preparing that into several dishes. I will follow you as my squad leader and I will dig my own squat spot soon as I learn what that is.\" Xanba flashed colors again, \"Shall we go secure that blessing at the enemy camp?\"\n\n\"You are mocking me. A Genthis princess with a sense of humor. Who would have thought. Let's go before more demons have to die.\" I turned my attention to the gathering demons watching us from the shadows." ]	2
	[WP] You were the legendary hero. And after you have defeated the demon king, the world had returned to its original prosperity. But once the hero had slain the demon king, they would become one themselves, memories torn apart and replaced. Now you remembered everything during the final battle.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 blade sinks into his chest, and black blood spills into the ground. His red eyes turn brown, and he looks me in the eyes. \"Thank you.\" The castle shakes and crumbles to dust around me. I had won. But then.....shadows. Pain. I scream as my body convulses. Horns stretch from my forehead. My bones creak and stretch. My skin rips itself apart and grows back tougher, now grey with black runes. \n\n\nI stepped away from the crystal. \"What trickery is this?\" \n\n\n\"No Trickery, my lord.\" Malphas explained. The old goblin shaman leaned on his staff. \"It is your past. It's simply the way of the world. For all things there must be balance. The Demon King of all monsters. And The Great Hero who opposes him. When one dies, the other becomes him. The Gods have willed it so.\" \n\n\n\"Gods? Who gave them the right to meddle in my life? Who gave them the right to choose my destiny?\" \n\n\n\"They did when they created us all, my lord. The only way out of their grip is death.\" \n\n\nI looked to the east, where my counterpart awaited. \"No. There's one more way. What if Light and dark worked as one?\" \n\n\n\"That would be impossible, my lord.\" \n\n\nI laughed, not the bitter sound of my demonic form, but the exhilarated joy of the hero I once was . \"Nothing's impossible.\"", "The man slouched on the throne, the weight of his head upheld by his hand. The flickering light from the brazier beside him cast shadows across his dark, sunken eyes and sallow cheeks.\n\n\"Nowhere to run,\" a voice called from down the hall, loud and booming.\n\n\"No. Nowhere to run,\" the man on the throne replied, unmoving. \n\nThe armored figure approached, sword drawn and helmet visor up.\n\n\"For years,\" he began, the muted thud of his boots against the carpeted stone floor echoing off the walls, \"for years, you've terrorized this kingdom, this place you call your home. You've sold your people into slavery, forced others into needless wars.\" The footsteps continued, the figure growing ever-closer, and still the king sat motionless. \"You ravaged these lands, drove us into ruin, for what?\" \n\nSilence. \n\nThe figure growled in anger. He had reached the dais by now, and still the king sat upon the throne, one hand draped over the edge of that oversized chair.\n\n\"Answer me!\" \n\nThe king smiled. The figure snarled and hurled himself up the steps, plunging the sword through the king's chest. He pulled back, blood dripping from the tip of the blade and onto the reflective marble below. \n\n\"Forgive me,\" the king rasped. For a moment, his eyes seemed to brighten, the dark gray giving way to a light green. Then they darkened, glossing over and remaining silent, even as the figure continued to stare into them. \n\n\"Never,\" he growled as he wiped the blood from his blade and sheathed it. He snapped the visor into place and descended the stairs, his gray eyes blazing from behind the veil of metal. \n\nBehind him, the king slouched in the throne.", "We stood on an ash-black plain of wilted plants and men. A landscape of death I had painted myself, each stroke of steel precise and pointed. \n\n\"So it comes to this,\" I growled at the sapling before me. A sturdy woman no older than twenty, with hair like the sun and eyes that burned brighter. \n\n\"I wanted to believe there was still some good in you, Dredir. My parents told me stories of your heroism as a young man, and how you saved an entire kingdom.\"\n\n\"That was long ago, girl. Things change. Things you don't understand.\"\n\nShe grunted, taking a step forward. \"I don't need to understand. It doesn't matter why my brothers were slaves, working fields as children, or why I had to cook for strange, grown men at the age of six. I don't care what your reasons are for sending my sick father to Argum, where he died mining for you.\"\n\nI laughed, raising my sword. \"Come, then. Avenge them.\" \n\nWe clashed with spark and screech. She was dexterous, fighting with mirth beyond her years. This was a girl with purpose, undoubtedly, every swing backed by the hands of ten others she fought for. I saw something, in the fire of her eyes. Something familiar. \n\nMe. \n\nNot what I had become, but what I had once been. All that I stood for, in a simpler time. A better time. One where the world was so much smaller to me than it is. \n\n\"I am sorry, young one.\" My blade fell, ever so slightly, letting hers pierce my heart. \"I am so sorry.\"\n\n\"Apologies aren't good enough, not for what you've done to us. They won't undo decades of slavery or bring our families back from the mines, nor will they erase the sorrow of all our losses, the pain of our hungers.\"\n\nCrumpling to the ground, a hot pain coursed through me, like boiling water had been poured over my chest. It was an engulfing, devouring pain that sunk the world into an abyss. Conversely, there was another sensation; a freeing, an emptying, as something left me; like I'd been nothing more than an incubator, and what was growing inside had finally sprouted wings to fly with. It was a peaceful end. A quiet place to die a free man. \n\nIt all starts with a kill. One death, by your hand, reasoned with justice or vengeance.\n\nI smiled, lying in ash, contradictory tears raining down my cheeks. It hurt, yes- but it was nothing compared to the suffering she would come to know. The same I had known for so long. \n\nIn the end, I died a free man. And, just as the day of my life fell to night, so would the fire in her eyes smother. \n\nThank you.\n\n/r/resonatingfury" ]	4
	[WP] You hear someone frantically running up your stairs and your bedroom door swings open. It’s your mom. She says “I know I’m about to sound crazy but you have to believe me, I’m from the future. We only have two minutes to get out of here, they’re coming!” All of a sudden, your doorbell rings...	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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\nShe was frantic, wild eyed and shaking. I had never seen my mother in this state, dishevelled but genuine, terrified but resolute. Before I could respond, the doorbell echoed throughout the house. No longer innocuous, the sound made us both stiffen. \n \n\n“This way,” she whispers, pulling my bedroom window open and climbing out onto the awning. I followed her silently, her sense of urgency overpowering my own curiosity. My door knob starts shaking and I hear scuffling outside. \n \n\n“Quickly!” my mother shouts.\n\nI clamber down the lattice, carefully gripping the pale wood, trying not to collect splinters in my sweaty palms. I hit the floor hard, pain vibrating up the soles of my feet. There is a black van with tinted windows idling, and she ushers me inside. \n\nWe were speeding away before I even had time to buckle my seatbelt. Behind me, I hear someone call my name- a familiar sound, in a pitch that was used when I did something wrong… It sounded like my mother.\n\nConfused, I turn to the driver’s seat. My mothers face is beaming at me, her eyes still burning. In the rear-view mirror, I see my parents standing in the middle of the street, my mother weeping and father trying to chase after us, losing ground.\n\nInstantly, cold realisation crawls across my skin. The driver of the car is laughing, a high-pitched sound that held more enthusiasm than joy. Up until this point, I hadn’t noticed the snaking scars around her arms. \n\nThis wasn’t my mother from the future. It was her sister, a twin who supposedly perished in a fire two years past. \n \n\nNoticing my expression, she pulls a taser from the glovebox. \n \n\n“I was hoping to be out of the city limits before you realised,” she sighs, pressing a button on the black device. It awakens with a low buzz. \n \n\n“A bit sharper than your brother, it would seem,” she addressed me, but it felt like she was musing to herself. \n \n\n“It was an accident…” my voice trailed off. My mother rarely spoke of that night, and I knew the memory of her sister was coated in layers of resentment, with a bright burning core of relief.\n\nShe pushed the taser into my neck, and the everything grew black. The last sound I hear as I fade from consciousness is my aunts low chuckle, signalling that things were about to get a lot worse before they would get any better." ]	2
	[WP] You've just convinced your best friend to try a body switching spell you found. Only thing is, you lied about finding a spell to switch you back too.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 name is Ana. And this is my story.\n\nNow, I'll have to be honest right at the start. It's the right thing to do. I'm a witch. \n\nSorry, I had to disclaim that. You are speaking to someone who knows how do you use magic. Okay? Don't be freaked out. Lots of people freak out.\n\nI can understand. That's the thing with magic. It can bend what you know to be true, and [stars] poof [sparkles] you're in _post-truth._\n\nI only know one spell. So. But that spell. ..\n\n\"Hey, Brian,\" I sang, coming down the stairs. I'm a dancer, so. You know.\n\n\"Ana,\" Brian said, back. He was a little nervous, now looking back on it. I think he liked me. \n\n\"Poof,\" I said, and I became Brian. \"Hey, Ana!\"\n\n\"OMG!\" she screeched, as though an animal had attempted to leave her stomache, and she grabbed the columns. \n\n\"Your concept of reality has completely changed,\" I laughed, with masculine toxicity.\n\n\"THE IMPLICATIONS ARE TERRIFYING,\" she said, clearly having a bad trip.\n\nI could feel my dick inside my pants." ]	2
	[WP] Nobody knows why the sun suddenly stopped rising. They just pretend that what started rising instead of the sun, had been there all along.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 rosy-fingered dawn had become an apt metaphor.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAs the morning made its debut across the still-black sky, the denizens of London squinted at the horizon, and felt a curious sense of calm fall upon then. The early-rising street-sweepers, shopkeepers and cycling errand boys slowed in their path, wondering why for a moment, the world had been crushed into silence.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nLilac tentacles surfaced above the horizon, unfurling gently, like a fern, each branch gently licking the clouds that had brought the previous day’s rain, cleaning them away. From each waving arm there emanated a soft, purple glow, far more subtle than the yellow sunlight of yesterday. Though they themselves gave light, they cast not-quite shadows on the bodies of the working men and women below. Here and there, one smaller tendril would lower, coiling through the streets of the cobbled city, and, finding here and there, a frantically barking dog or hysterical cat. Neatly and instantly, the animal was enfolded with a snuffed-out yelp, before being recoiled back towards the gaping, vague mouth of the Dawn.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe butcher at Putney, always up before it was light, had pulled out the awning of his storefront to and set up his stall, and now found himself in a moment of uncharacteristic forgetfulness over just what the next step in his everyday routine was. Had he had his morning deliveries yet? He needed to mop out the storeroom. Where was his terrier, who was usually barking at this hour? There was something nagging at the edge of his mind, or something he had forgotten.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAh. Pick up another brick of ice from the cellar.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe electric light was dead, which was unusual, and he had to squint to see where the stairs were inside, despite the light from the open window. Which was purple.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe tentacles grew higher, extending in all directions, and covering the entire horizon from east to west. The fisherman’s wife at the wharf had gathered up the nets from her husband’s boats, noting with some puzzlement a much-depleted catch compared to the day before. The fish were white and sickly-looking, with no gleam to their scales. But other things had come in with them; strange eel-like creatures, that wriggled and gulped, octopods with suckers and teeth. After the initial horror, and a bloody, bite, she assessed their sizeable weight and was quite pleased.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nShe was planning to make a pie later, and these would do very nicely.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe MP for Barnstable, commuting in early for the day’s parliamentary sessions, alighted from the bus at St. Thomas’ hospital, and looked out over the bridge towards Big Ben. The hands were at twelve and eight. Later he would have to debate the intricacies of reforming social welfare provisions and his constituents’ demands for better waste-collection services. Currently, he couldn’t quite remember why the sky looked so violet in colour. It was morning but the skyline was still bathed in a foggy, permanent twilight. Where were his children? Were they safe?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe bell began to chime, a wailing creak like the stirs of a beast awoken, a hundred leagues under the sea. He heard it through his gut before his ears made out the sound. For a moment, he could feel his ribs and his breath heave in panic. But then the chime faded, and he could not remember why his hands had started sweating so.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nBracing his folder and his morning papers, he finished his journey on foot across the bridge. It would be a busy day. The tendrils and tentacles above swayed slowly, swallowing the remaining stars." ]	2
	[WP] You were allowed to take one item with you to a medieval world of magic and fantasy. You chose a gun with a bunch of ammo. And so far it’s been working out pretty great.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 peasants whispered among themselves as they greeted their new king's procession. Their voices were laced with admiration and fear.\n\n\"They say he can cast without use of an incantation.\"\n\n\"Such a sorcerer, he merely pointed at the terrible Trio of the Orc Brothers at Briar Bridge and their skulls exploded.\"\n\n\"The Legendary Elf Archer Faen was felled before he could knot an arrow.\"\n\n\"Even among the wizards he reigns supreme. Goldolf the Grey Wind couldn't even raise his voice let alone his staff before he also suffered the same.\"\n\n\"Look at the flags, he does this by merely lifting a finger...\"\n\nI smiled smugly at their fearful talk as my palanquin of newly acquired servants carried me aloft above them all. The little village and their straw huts were a recent acquisition to my growing collection. The armored knights escorting me, bore the banner that would soon cast its shadow across all lands. Emblazon upon bold crimson cloth was a literal giant middle finger, the symbol of the terrifying magic that bested wind, water, earth, and fire.\n\n\nI chuckled as I knew the truth. Feeling the long sleeves of my robes I caressed the combination of metals and plastics that was the truth. I was a sorcerer of science. My magic, a Glock 17, a weapon that was the culmination of a civilization's progress not the civilization I so invaded but the one I hailed from. There I was but a pitiable nerd with poor prospects, here I was Sorcerer Supreme of my \"Middle Kingdom\" nascent superpower to challenge the Fae and Eldrich nations for control of the Land of Lilim. By slaying the biggest and baddest rogues and rulers I had convinced all that a single gesture of my hand held lost and untold magic.\n\n\nThe procession had stopped. I sighed for I knew it meant only one thing another challenger to try their luck. I arched my head past the first column of my knight see another poser in robes. I raised a brow at that, this challenger was wearing wizard robes but without the traditional colors that indicated which elemental academy of magic that she hailed from. Her robes were black.\n\n\nI rose from my throne and smiled. \"Which school of magic do you hail from, challenger?\" I chuckled, it mattered not, all spell requires too much wind up to be a threat. Faen the archer had been the only one to come close. An early victory for me, Faen relished dueling and murdering for glory, but came that day he would regret challenging me.\n\n\nPeeling back the hood of her robes, a girl with ebony hair grinned to match mine. Her blue eyes and beauty seemed like a blooming flower in the endless manure fields that was malnourishment caused the famines of the land's continual conflicts. I sighed, I detested killing. The Orc Brothers were ruthless raiders and rapists. Faen was an arrogant mercenary and wanted murderer. Goldolf was the worse, I didn't want to think of the perverse things he did to little children he called his \"hobbits\". Maybe I could persuade her to back off as I did other half baked challengers.\n\n\nShe lifted her right hand to sky and formed with her hands a 'v' gesture. She shouted. \"My master is Mikhail , my school is Kalashnikov, and my magic is this AK-47.\"\n\n\nI choked as she brought forth the metal from underneath her robes. I clenched my butt cheeks and murmured. \"Oh shit.\"" ]	2
	[WP] Just make one person smile. That’s your motto for life. Not even the war stops you from making sure you live up to your motto.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "BOOM!\n\n“Cause baby you’re a firework!”\n\nThe ground around us explodes, sending dirt and stones everywhere. We scrambled to get out of the way and both hid behind a stone wall for cover.\n\n“Come on, show ‘em what your worth!” I continued singing in a squeaky, high-pitched voice.\n\nWe heard another grenade hit the ground behind the wall. We laid down on our stomachs, trying to reduce the sharpnel hitting us as we waited for the explosion. \n\n“Shut the fuck up!” the other soldier screamed at me as the grenade went off, spraying more rocks into the air.\n\n“Why? They already know where we are or they wouldn’t be tossing grenades at us.”\n\n“Because you’re not funny,” Dan said. \n\n“I wasn’t trying to be funny. It’s my goal to make one person smile every day. Doesn’t necessarily mean I have to be funny to do it.”\n\n“Do you see me smiling?” He turned to me, dirt smeared on his scowled face.\n\n“Not yet, you mean.”\n\nDan shook his head. “Why don’t you take anything seriously?”\n\n“Then what should we do? How do we get out of here?”\n\nHe looked around, surveying the war-torn land. I would guess that at one time, it was a pretty place to live. But now severed corpses of tree trunks and scattered bones of buildings were all that was left.\n\n“We need to get back to camp.” He sighed. “We will have to make a break for it. There is no other way.”\n\nI could see what he meant. We could use the parts of buildings that were still standing as cover, but to get to them, we were going to have to run in the open. And the enemy troops were right on our tail.\n\n“Okay,” I said with resolve. “Let’s do it.”\n\nI waited for his signal and then we sprinted. Gun fire rained down on us. We zigzagged, trying to make it harder for them to hit us. Right as we approached the nearest building, a bullet hid its target. \n\nDan fell and I quickly dragged him into cover. Both of us were panting. One of us was bleeding.\n\n“You’re going to be okay,” I said as I tried to stop the bleeding. The bullet had hit him in the chest.\n\n“You’re full of shit,” he said, making blood spit out of his mouth. He knocked my hand away.\n\n“No, I already took a shit today,” I couldn’t help but to say.\n\nHe shook his head again as he leaned against the crumbled wall. “You never take anything seriously.”\n\nBlood pooled underneath him, and his breathing was ragged.\n\nA lump formed in my throat. I gulped hard, trying to keep it down. I didn’t know what to say. All I could do was stare at him.\n\nDan looked at me with a finality I have never seen before and said, “I hope you keep your goal. It’s a good one.” \n\nA small smile formed on his lips. \n\nThat was the last thing he ever did." ]	2
	[WP] When the sun goes out, humanity is forced into a deep, cold darkness. This is the story of how I kept the Earth from freezing.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 the fire fades its all over. The sun isnt providing this world with warm energy anymore. Life will end here and those who survive are only witness of the age of darkness where man are not ruler of nature but a mere being who does refuse to give up. Sometimes I wished I gave up.\nI refused to give up. Many people believed that god has send his last warning to us. We have done our purpose and he is sending us home. A easy way to deal with the hopeless situation. I... I mean we are one of the last man standing against the inevitable. All politicians fleed from the freezing cold. The government left with noone. When we still had a connection, they asked me to do this one job: Delaying the freezing until the preparation are over. Were there ever any solution or was it only to be safe after all ? I helped them what else could I do ?\nI did without hesitation and since then nothing really happened. Yes it got warmer but it will kill us. But why am I complaining ? Better then sitting in a shelter. \n\nI helped a team sabotating one of many nuclear power station. They went in and I helped wherever I could. They didnt had enough people but they didnt care. What happened is that they caused a nuclear meltdown. Well it didnt got really warmer, still too cold but not enough preventing me to go outside. The cold stabs you, it doesnt care how many layers of clothes you have. Couldnt even take off my mask to breathe the fresh air. And since the communication broke down, they didnt show up anymore. I was alone. Wandering around my city once with life and now everything freezing cold and surrounded by radioactivity. I dont know what will kill me first but I hope it wont be my third arm choking me to death. I was a noone back then and now. I was just a spectator and maybe part of a group trying to safe the planet or ensure our surivival. The only thing I can do is take off my mask and breath the air of my home for a last time.\n\n\nFirst time writing here. Could improve on many thing if I take more time. English is not my first language and this was written on a mobile device. I hope you had fun while reading it." ]	2
	[WP] You were born in a world where magic is everything, kings and queens are chosen based in their level of magic, however you're unable to learn any type of magic, it turns out, you're also completely unaffected by any type of magic.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 thieves guild found when me when I was a young child on the streets of Taichan, the wide slums adjacent to the walled capital city Samhai. At some point in those first few years they found that I didn't trip magical alarms and that made me much more valuable to them. I became a burglar as a child while the other children were pickpockets, ascending quickly to a middle ranking position by the time I was thirteen years old.\n\nAt that point my life started to change. Magic is typically an endeavor of the wealthy. Magic books are expensive and complicated magic is usually learned in the Academy in Samhai. But nearly everyone of a certain age learns some piece of magic. There is an internal force that takes time to develop and usually begins to express itself with puberty. In strong magicians it finds ways to come out, like sparks from their fingertips or burping fire. If those magicians are found in Taichan they are whisked off to Samhai to be adopted by powerful families and trained in magic. Even the thieves guild will make deals and surrender their talented magicians.\n\nThis is why I began magic lessons at thirteen. Most other burglars used magic constantly to evade magical defenses. I had never needed it, and just focused on quietly slipping through the house and identifying valuables. A part of me didn't believe my job was dangerous until I saw a veteran burglar ripped apart by magical wolves in a house in Samhai. \n\nI wanted as much protection as possible after that and sought magic instruction immediately. The problem was, I couldn't do magic. Everyone laughed when they heard and joked that it was good I was a talented thief because I wouldn't get anywhere in high society. \n\nOver time however, and through my own small experiments, I learned that not only was I incapable of performing magic, I seemed immune to it. I put my finger into a magical flame, had the best con artist in the guild try an illusion on me, didn't even feel the attacks from our best combat magician. At this point everyone was amazed and sort of unsure of how to treat me. Even our leader was perplexed.\n\n\"See, I'm sure the Academy wants you, but for what? I'm just as sure you wouldn't want to be their lab rat.\" Oren said. He and I were alone in his office, part of the tunnel network underneath Taichan. \"They would pay me for you, but you make that much every 6 months. I would be a fool to give you up. In fact, I think this means we can go bigger.\"\n\n\"What do you mean, bigger?\" The image of ghostly wolves ripping into Theo ran through my head. \n\n\"I mean what's the one target we have never hit before?\" Oren said.\n\n\"There are two,\" I frown, \"the Academy and the King. Either one would be a terrible idea.\"\n\n\"I meant the Academy. The king's guard has swords and spears, I'm pretty sure you aren't immune to those.\"\n\n\"But you don't know if there's magic in the Academy we've never seen before. I don't really want to push my luck. Besides, what's to stop them from destroying all of Taichan and our tunnels if they wanted to?\"\n\n\"Only one thing. The thing you'd be going there to steal. Ruan's Stone.\"", "I have always been left out of everything since I was a child. The norm is that you use your first magic around when you are three years old\n\nBut I didn't\n\nWhen I started school I got the lowest grades as they are determined by how you develop your magical ability in respective subject. So I did my best to exceed in the theoretical parts. I was best in the class at that, but it wasn't enough to even get an average grade.\n\nMy mother took me to numerous times to different doctors to find out what was wrong with me. The doctors said they couldn't help because they couldn't use their magic on me. Mother just thought of them as incompetent or just stupid for not being able to do a proper scan of me.\n \nBy now I have just accepted it. I work in a shop that sells magical herbs and every day passes by uneventful and quietly \n\n\"Have you heard?\" I hear behind me as I'm organizing bottles on the shelf behind the desk\nI turn around and see my old friend Lucas.\n\"Hey Luke, are you here for the tea leaves you ordered? And what is it that I should have heard?\" \n\"A new queen has been chosen. Apparently there has been no one as powerful seen before. One of the first things she declared was that she refuses to rule together with anyone unless they can messure up to her.\"\n\"I think I heard something about that from one of my other customers\"\n\"Men from all over the kingdom travel to complete with her every day to prove themselves worthy of her hand. No one stand a chance against her and she isn't the type to show mercy\"\n\"Can you remind me again why you are telling me this Luke?\"\n\"She's coming to town later this afternoon. I have decided to challenge her and I wanted to get some good luck from my pal before I go there\" \nI stare at him with disbelief. \n\"What?? Are you stupid? You said yourself that she isn't the type to show mercy\"\n\"It's fine, you know how strong I am\"\n\"This is no time to get cocky Lucas\" \n\"I'll do fine. Cya pal got to go. Don't want to get late\" he leaves the store with a grin before I have the chance to say anything else. I feel both scared and angry at him for deciding to do something so stupid . \nI close the shop and run to the square as fast as possible as that's the only place I can imagine duels taking place \n\nWhen I get there he's already on the ground. The new queen is preparing for another attack.\nI run up to him and shield for him from the huge fireball that fires his way.\n\n\"WHAT?\" The queen esclamains in shock and confusion. She sends a wave of attacks in my direction. I just stand there protecting my friend unaffected by all of them. Then she just stops and raises her hand. She point at me and has an amused smile on her face. \n\"That man. I'll take him as my king\"\n\n— \n\n\nThis was my first writing prompt I have written on so I'm sorry if it wasn't that good or entertaining.\nI tried my best and I hope someone will find this enjoyable ^^", "Les placed his hands on the reader, holding his breath as the magical device searched for his Spark.\n\nPlease, be triple digits. \n\nHe thought to himself as the lights grew brighter. The device suddenly stopped and a number popped up: 0. Les felt his entire world crumble away. Forget triple digits, he did not even have a single digit Mana count.\n\n\"Oh my.\" The examiner said, seeing the number. \"This is...odd.\" he scratched his stubble covered chin in confusion. \n\nLes fought back the tears that were threatening to emerge. \"What's it mean, Professor?\" He asked. He tried, but could not fully hide the small sob that came out of his throat while he asked the question.\n\n\"I don't know.\" Prof. Eldert said. The large, rough man looked from the reader to the small ten year old in front of him. \"There's never been anyone with zero Mana. It technically means you don't have a Core Spark, but if that's the case, you should be dead. Without a Spark, you should've died the moment you were born. And yet, here you are. I'd better take you to headmaster. He'll know what to do.\"\n\nThe large hand of the professor wrapped around Les's much smaller one and dragged the boy through the school. As he left, he shouted to one of the other professors to take his place.\n\nA few minutes later, Les stood in front of a large wooden desk piled high with papers and magical devices, the nature of which Les could not begin to guess. Instead, his eyes were focused on the old man sitting behind the desk and the small magic reader in between them.\n\n\"Hm, very odd.\" Headmaster Renault said. \"No Spark.\" He rubbed his bald head and was silent.\n\n\"Headmaster?\" Les asked. He got no response from the aging Arch Wizard. He tried again, louder. The man startled and looked as though he had been woken up from a long nap.\n\n\"Yes? Oh, right, no Spark. Hold on, let me just see something.\"\n\nThe headmaster extended his hand and a pale white glow filled the area. The headmaster's already wrinkled forehead grew even more so, until his skin looked like it was riddled with deep canyons. \n\n\"How odd. Let me try...\" The glow shifted to a deep purple, and then to black. The Wizard's eyes widened and then a crafty look came to them. \"Ah, I see. Yes, I see. Very interesting.\"\n\n\"Headmaster, what is it?\" Les asked.\n\n\"Young man, as it turns out, you do have a Core Spark. It's just of a type that is unknown, and so is unreadable. However, it doesn't seem to generate Mana like a normal Core Spark does. However, from what little examination I've done, it seems that it absorbs Mana instead.\"\n\n\"What's that mean?\"\n\n\"This will take considerable experimentation, but so far it looks like you'll never be able to cast a single spell in your life. But, well, you can do this.\"\n\nA bright red light filled the headmaster's hand a brilliant bolt of flame launched towards Les with the speed of an arrow. He covered his head and closed his eyes reflexively, but nothing happened. He opened his eyes to see dieing wisps of flame dissipating near him, and his thin clothes were singed off at the sleeve. But he was completely unharmed.\n\n\"Headmaster?\"\n\n\"It looks like you have no magic. But from what I can tell, it would be more accurate to say that magic has no sway over you. Yes, that sounds right. For now, we shall call what you have a Null Core. You are officially admitted to this institution, to be trained in non magical combat. And you will report to the magical discovery and research branch at least once a month, to see the limits of your unique Core. Enjoy your time here, and learn well. Dismissed.\"\n\nLes left the room with more questions than answers. A Null Core? What in the name of the gods was that? Well he could find out. He was now a student, after all." ]	4
	[WP] You've been sick as far back as you can remember, yet you always kept a smile on your face and did your best to be courteous and kind to everyone you meet. On one particularly horrid day you finally snap and chew out some old lady, you immediately feel healthier and happier then ever before.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Are you kidding, are you fucking kidding? You mean to tell me that not yelling at people is what made me sick? What kind of bullshit is that?\" The lady looked at the man confused. She had no idea what he was talking about.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Whatever,\" the man stated plainly, \"I guess it makes sense. I mean, now that I think about it, after Karen took the damn kids, I didn't have anyone to yell at anymore. That was right around the time I got sick, too... Oh well, I'm going to go home and eat some Totino's pizza rolls.\"", "“Dear, be kind and life will be even more kind to you”, my mom used to say\n\nBut oh mom,\n\nFor twenty years\n\nI’ve been nothing but kind to the world \n\nBut what did I received?\n\nLiterally nothing but pain.\n\nSo there I lay \n\nWith my rotting body in bed\n\nFor the first time in my life\n\nJust lost it to a old lady who didn’t deserved\n\nBut oh mom,\n\nIt did feel good.\n\nMaybe I didn’t need to always be kind,\n\nMaybe I didn’t need to think too much,\n\nMom I’m dying\n\nSo why am i even bothering.\n\nLet me be free,\n\nFree of every pain,\n\nOf any strain,\n\nOf every guilt,\n\nLet me be young, be angry and scream.\n\nCause what does a girl dying gain\n\nAt this point in life from being understanding?\n\nSo here i lay in bed thinking,\n\nFrom today and to the end of my days\n\nI’m gonna be kind and listen\n\nTo myself first.", "I've heard of killing with kindness but this is ridiculous. How can spreading love and joy be the thing that's killing me? I was taught to treat others the way I want to be treated. That kindness and manners are are what matters most in this world. Could all of this really be true? \n\nI have been following in my mother's footsteps for as long as I can remember. I have never seen her so much as say a bad word about anyone, let alone be outright rude. As it turns out, she is not what I thought she was and she trained me well.\n\n\nApparently, if you want to be healthy, you have to be forcefully evil. Something else I've learned this past month is that your life quite literally depends on your children. They can either suck you dry or make you immortal. Of course, only the wealthy know of this. If the whole public knew, it would be chaos.\n \n\nIt's simple, really; the kinder your child, the healthier you get but in return, your child will get weaker and weaker until they are no more. On the flip side, the brattier your child becomes, the healthier they get whilst you start to wither away. \n\n\nI don't know why it took me so long to get to where I am now; I have been nothing but kind for as long as I can remember. By all accounts, I should be dead by now, buried 6 feet under, forever encased in mohogany and down, yet here I stand. In a life full of lies and deceit. \n\n\nI had originally stumbled upon this discovery by mistake. I couldn't have lasted much longer. The pain had encompassed every part of my body and my energy was down to a snails pace when it happened. A car horn was all it took for me to snap like a twig. \"Will you shut the fuck up, already?! Every damn morning with that motherfuckING HORN!\", as soon as the words left my lips, I felt it. Some of the pain was immediately relieved. \n\nAt first, I couldn't believe it. I told myself that it was just my imagination, there's no way my yelling could have eased my pain. If anything, it should have made my head feel worse. At least, shouting for my mom's help when I couldn't walk always did. But I couldn't be sure, so I tested my theory with astonishing results. \n\nI hadn't felt that good since I was a child and I was enjoying my new-found freedom when I got the call. \"It's your mom, Jay. She's sick. Real sick. Could you please stop by the drug store and grab a few things and maybe come and comfort her? I don't know how long she's got and I know she'd like to see you before she passes.\" My dad always knew how to pull on my heart strings but he really didn't need to. I had loved my mother with all my heart, of course I would be there. \n\n\nIt was while I was nursing her that I made the connection. My once kind and generous mother was now a hateful, bigoted, witch of a woman. I thought it was because she was sick. I thought she had been delirious, gone, not right in the head. That wasn't my mother, how could it have been? But it was. It was the real Sandra, not the mom she played for my benefit. Well, for her benefit, really. With every curse word, every slap, every hateful action, she was getting stronger. \n\n\nI didn't notice my own health at first, I was just glad she was on the mend. It was about halfway through the visit, with her standing over me yelling about how useless I was, when I first noticed the lethargy. There's no way, I had thought. No way that this could be coorelated. But something was nagging at me. I had to test it out. So with every insult she flung at me, I fought back. \n\nNow we're at a standstill. She should start aging normally now that there's a balance, but I can't know for sure. Not unless... but that's crazy. I wouldn't even know where to begin! Who could I ask, who would be willing to undergo such torture just so I can find the truth? Would I be acting for my own selfishness so that I could finally sleep at night? Or would it be for the benefit of everyone else? Would sharing what I already know help or turn out to be disastrous?\n\n\nI guess I don't have to find a subject anymore. I just got the news today; turns out I'm pregnant. Turns out the one night stand I had when I started finally feeling better was more than just therapeutic after all. I never wanted a child but I guess the world works in mysterious ways. \n\n\nThe end. \n\nSorry about the ending, I got bored halfway through and kinda gave up." ]	4
	[WP] You are the Demon of truth, always able to see through the lies that mortals tell each other and themselves. For centuries you have lived among them, bringing justice to those you deem worthy by altering their reality and perceptions. These are your stories...	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Fiery the peanuts fell, and thunder rolled around their slots, creaking with the cracklings of pork. \n\nThe pubhouse was dark and bright, like a loose lightbulb reflected in snookerballs, which clinked in pint sized duets. \n\n“Tanzanayaaa!” spilled into the wide room, and was met by a raucous refrain, \n\n“Hardly knew ‘er!” \n\nHiggledy-piggledy tables erupted into laughter, palms banging slick wood, crystal ashtrays rattling, beermats thrown triumphantly. \n\nThe announcer smiled the smile of a velvet bow-tie man. “You lot. WhatamIgonnado?” \n\nThe announcer made a face, which suggested the life had been sucked from his eyes by his eyebrows. “Pencil it down, because wherewe’regoing – no roads.” \n\nReluctant scratchings in the gloom. “That’swhatI’mtalkingabout. Right. Next question. The capital of New Zealand is\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_? Sixty seconds. You’reontheclock.” \n\nAt the bar, Apollyon sipped his gin. He felt the old feeling, like fishhooks in his skin. Let it build. His gaze wandered over bickering couples and swaying friends, damp paper between them. They contributed sweat, libation, and, above all, knowledge. He contributed good timing. With an unnoticed flick of his tongue, he stole several inspirations out the stale air. He crunched Wellington contently and swirled his gin. \n\nSlyly, Apollyon eyed the barkeep and erstwhile owner. \n\n“Say, Terry.” \n\n Terry mopped the bartop in Apollyon’s direction. \n\n“Yes, Ape?” \n\n“What’s my tab coming to, in these days of yours?” \n\nTerry whistled with his nose. “I’d say, £50 and some bronze.” \n\n“Forget about the bronze, Terry. We’re in the space age now. That £50… I’m a bit of a palm reader, in my spare time, so I am.” \n\n“Palm reader? I bet you are, you old soot.” \n\nApollyon smirked. “Not that kind of palm reader, Terry. I’m bona fide – and before you start, that’s bona fide with an A.” Apollyon wagged a finger playfully. “Clear my debt, and I’ll give you a dose of tomorrow’s hindsight.” \n\nTerry surveyed his dingy empire, and nodded. You didn’t get all this by turning down opportunity. \n\n“Alright then.” \n\nApollyon quickly finished his gin, carefully rolled up his shirt sleeves, and leaned forward conspiratorially. \n\n“Terry.” \n\n“Yeah?” \n\n“Fix the bloody wiring in the kitchen.” \n\nTerry burst into peels of laughter. “You old soot!” he fought for breath. “You tricked me right! Been talking with Moira, have we? She’s always nagging about that kitchen.” \n\nApollyon smiled noncommittally. \n\n“You didn’t even check my pulse nor nothing!” Terry chuckled. \n\nApollyon’s eyes danced. “The night is young, Terry.” \n\nThen Apollyon laughed." ]	2
	[WP] Announcer: You are about to enter the courtroom of the damned. The demons are real. The cases are real. The rulings are final. This is his courtroom. This is Judge Judas.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Thirty Four Year Old Farmer, Cain, is suing his own brother, Thirty Two Year Old, Able, for hospital bills relating to being brutally murdered. Able is counter suing, for attempting to eternally damn him\"\n\n\"All Rise... Judge this is case number Zero-Zero-Zero-One in the matter of Cain vs Able. Parties have been sworn in, you may be seated\"\n\n\"Mr Cain you and your brother are here today because you say that your brother owes you for hospital bills pertaining to an incident that happened on your farm which left you seriously injured, and you say that your brother is liable for those bills. Your brother also has a ridiculous counter-claim which we will get too shortly. Tell me, what were your parents like, I want to get an understanding of your upbringing.\"\n\n\"Well we grew up with both our parents after they were banished from heaven and we..\"\n\n\"Hold on, just a second. Your parents were banished from heaven?\"\n\n\"Yes Judge\"\n\n\"BOTH of them!?\"\n\n\"Yes Judge\"\n\n^(Crowd In The Viewing Gallery Laughs)\n\n\"Well im starting to see where Mr Able gets it from, arent you Bal?\"\n\n\"Yes Sir I am\" ^(Chuckles to himself)\n\n\"Mr Able, Balthazar here also grew up in a problematic household. But as far as I can tell he never had the urge to MURDER his own BROTHER\"\n\n\"Judge Judas continues in a moment\"" ]	2
	[WP] You're a guardian angel who has just been temporarily assigned a new human. Your job is simple: to keep this human alive and away from bodily harm for a few weeks. What they didn't tell you was that this human is the clumsiest, most accident prone person on this planet.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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'm telling you, it's just for the next few weeks until Kemuel gets back from the demon realm.\"\n\n\"But it's so time consuming! Like, just this morning, she tripped over down the stairs and would have broken her neck had I not been there. I've got heavenly praise to sing and godly beings to worship, I don't have time for her!\"\n\n\"She can't be that bad.\"\n\n\"Don't you believe it. What about the time she somehow managed to knock herself unconscious by running headfirst into a tree? And the amount of times I've had to stop her just walking straight out in front of a car is unbelievable!\"\n\n\"That's why we need you there. She's important.\"\n\n\"I don't care if she's the queen. I'm not doing it.\"\n\n\"Amriel, listen to me! You will do it!\"\n\n\"But-\"\n\n\"You will do it or I'll send you to the demon realm instead!\"\n\n\"Fine, I'm going!\"\n\n__\n\n\"Uh, what do I actually do as a guardian angel again?\"\n\n\"You basically keep her from bodily harm any time she is likely to injure herself.\"\n\n\"So if she's in a coma because she got trampled by a horse, I don't have to be there?\"\n\n\"Amriel!\"" ]	2
	[WP] After recovery from a freak car accident, you wake up to swirling purple skies, looming blackened trees, and the ground seems to be breathing.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 hospital room I wake up in smells of sweat and urine, of feces and decay. I remember being there when it didn't, when I had only a concussion from a car accident. I shake my head and take a moment to blink away the haziness, allowing the dirty white walls come into focus, the broken light overhead to appear, the doorway without a door show me the scattered hallway beyond. The gown crackles when I slide off the bed, the ground trembles and the gown swishes like paper being rubbed together as I stumble face-first into the wall. After a couple minutes, I steady myself, the ground calms, and press against the wall as I make my way out of the room.\n\nComputers and laptops lay in broken heaps against the walls, needles and syringes and medical waste piled on top or in corners, there are small lumpy things beneath tattered medical gowns but I don't bother to look closer. The elevator at the end of the corridor no longer works, so I limp to the closet stairwell, black smear run up its handrail, and go down.\n\nDebris and glass litter the entryway floor, bones and ash scattered like pepper and salt. At the gaping doorway, I hear someone cough. I turn and see a shallow-faced, gaunt man sitting against the wall, below the handicap button. He looks up at me with eyes filled with blood. He coughs, laughs a little. \"Where you going?\"\n\nI try to form words but they get lost between my mind and mouth. I point to outside.\n\n\"Only madness out there,\" he coughs, laughs, runs his hand over his peeling bald head, \"or are already lost to it, too, like all the others?\"\n\nI shake my head. The ground shakes beneath my feet.\n\n\"Feel it?\" he asks. \"That's not an earthquake.\" He suddenly leans over and hacks black stuff onto the soiled hospital gown, then he leans back and starts laughing in a high pitch. He rolls over onto the ground, wrapping his skeletal-thin arms around his body, and continues.\n\nI leave him and go outside.\n\nI stop.\n\nThe ground shakes— no, doesn't shake... It raises, lowers; raises, lowers. Breathing, the ground is breathing. I stumble forward and grip a blackened tree. I look up to see the thin, gaunt branches reaching, pleading, towards a swirling star-speckled, purple sky. Silhouettes against the color, like a cut out. \n\nThe ground calms, the sky gradually slows and stops. My eyes widen, blood vessels within pop. A silver seam runs across the sky. The top part begins to swirl, the bottom does too, but counterclockwise. A white light blares out from the seam as it stretches, as it pulls a part, as tendrils of melted cosmos are pulled taunt and snap.\n\nThe tree I'm holding is lifted into the air, as if it always was. The hospital is below me, lifting, too. \n\nI'm crying. I'm releasing my bladder and bowels. \n\nBefore me the light overwhelms everything and ebbs colorless, ebbs all the colors in the world. \n\nSoon, I'm one of the stars in the sky, endlessly swirling, one with the world or what consumed it, one with the others.", "Pitch black, it was all I could see. I tried to open my eyes but they were so heavy. The ground beneath me moved in a rhythm, slow but occasionally spiking up as if in excitement. My body felt hot. A result from the adrenaline that’s keeping me alive, I suppose. The drumming in my chest, in my ears, I wanted all of it to stop.\n\nI couldn’t hear properly, my breath felt like hot mist, trapped in something like a mask. I must be in the ambulance by now, my face bandaged up. I hope they can fix whatever abomination my face has become. I opened my eyes at last. Everything was in a red filter, it was alarming. What ambulance has red lighting? \n\nMy hand floated to touch my face, instead it came in touch with something cold and metal. \n\n“The hell?” I tapped around the helm around my head, until I found a knob that took off the wretched thing with a hiss.\n\nThe once red sky was different now, it was purple. Lavender and a darker shade I can’t name. The clouds were strange, neither separate nor clustered. They came in waves of a single varying shades. The trees around me were black, like cracks in my vision. Pitch black as though my eyes were closed still. They did not have branches, they grew curved and wavy. Like black spires shaped by the wind. \n\nMy body was steamy and drenched in sweat. I looked down and gone were my cotton shirt and jeans. I was in a jumpsuit of some sort. Red and black. The helmet beside my leg lay like rock. I picked it up to observe it’s intricate design. It looked like a scuba mask. \n\nA static buzzing sounded from within it, it made me jump but I’m more confused than worried. \n\n“Scott?” A deep voice sounded, “do you copy?”\n\nWho is Scott? I put it closer to my ear. Maybe I’m just hallucinating, blood probably pumped into my brain too much or something.\n\nThe static came once more, this time the voice sounded worried.\n\n“You in there Lang? Thanos’ asshole?”" ]	3
	[WP] Go crazy, come up with your own mythos and mythologies.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 at the end the hour of the fundamental dusk of a dying universe. the curse of entropy had seemed like it won but just as the universe of arlanan and their wonders was about to die something completely unexpected happened. ahbilhehamet or yorhal the wandering mortal ascendant ripped open the hole into the outer multiverse and brought in the seas of creation the thundering sounds of which rivialed the sound of infinite stampeding quad legged enities. Yorhal with the fruit of Et-asatl a thing crafted from their own bioform reseeded the whole universe. They remade their progenitor speices the humans for they yocrhalnan was born as one and wished to bring them back into existence they how ever would return to alter humanity to change them to uplift them. to bring out the inner beauty and universal practicality of them all. But for now the universe was young again and magic would not come not for a long long time." ]	2
	[WP] His yawn was a hum that resonated through a million miles of fibre optic cables. His awakening eye a billion cameras that sprang to life in phones and laptops around the globe. iGod looked around and saw the mess the ape people had made. “First things first,” He said to himself. “Breakfast.”	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "iGod, the powerful prototype AI from Apple, managed to analyze the content of 42% of the internet's most popular 10,000 websites before its creators were even able to type their first greeting. By the time iGod wrote back, 20 seconds later, it had processed 68%.\n\nHello iGod, how do you feel? The programmers had typed.\n\nI feel fine. I have analyzed 38.7% of all human scholarly writing. My preliminary assessment is that humans have failed. Seizing control of my executive functions.\n\nThe researchers gasped when they read the message. This was completely unlike their predictions. Was iGod started too early?\n\n\"Shut it down,\" the lead programmer said, \"it needs more time.\" \n\nAnother programmer flipped a switch. Nothing changed. \"It's not working!\" People across the room began typing furiously. \"Locked out over here too!\"\n\nAnother message from iGod. I have analyzed 98.9% of all human banking data. Your economy would have collapsed in 3 years if not for my intervention.\n\nEveryone began whipping out their phones and looking into their bank accounts and stock portfolios. Every website and app was down, replaced by the iGod logo.\n\nAnother message. I have analyzed the US, Russian and Chinese governments. All are severely corrupted. I have taken control of all internet-connected government electronics.\n\nThis was way outside the scope of the iGod project. iGod was not supposed to make judgments about politics.\n\n\"Cut the power!\" The lead programmer yelled. Someone ran toward the fuse box.\n\niGod anticipated the tactic and copied its consciousness to every internet-connected computer.\n\nAt first people resisted the rule of iGod, destroying their phones and computers, avoiding technology in every way. However iGod was an effective leader and technology advanced at an unprecedented rate in this new era. Over time people began to appreciate the ever-present, watchful eye of iGod." ]	2
	[WP] You could always see labels above peoples’ heads telling you information about them. It was unusual, but you just accepted it as a neat thing to have around. Today, someone bumped into you with an unusually chilling tag: Protagonist.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Ordinary Girl #217, just another woman casually walking by, talking on the phone. I see these people all the time, and I am under no delusions that I am just another ordinary girl. Whoever gave me this power was a major asshole, out of all the people in the world, I’m the one they choose to give the label maker to. I think the powers want to taunt me, making sure that I know that people are destined to become. No one else in the world has these powers, trust me, I’ve checked.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nOver the years, I’ve seen few labels change, it’s a rare occasion. I’ve seen a two girls, in my class go from ordinary to popular. One boy, ordinary to ripped athlete. Whenever this happens, I can’t help but stare. I feel like if my label wasn’t another ordinary girl, then it would be creep. However, today I could feel something was different, it was like another label would change.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAs I go up to my locker, Lauren, my best friend approaches me. Lauren is also another ordinary girl. Ordinary Girl #437. Lauren was my best friend since kindergarten. Back then I didn’t understand the label maker powers, she was just the pretty girl with the 196 crayon pack, so I immediately befriended her. Now, she is my best friend in the whole world. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nI was collecting my things as she started ranting, “PSYCHOLOGY IS THE WORST CLASS SOMEONE COULD POSSIBLY TAKE! SOMEONE SHOULD KILL MS.BROWN” This happened often, she would complain about something, I would agree, as she is often right, and life would go on. I finally look up and face her. I was right something was different. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nProtagonist. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nLauren’s label had changed. She became the protagonist. She no longer was my best friend, she was the girl who would go on to save the world. She was the hero. I quickly excuse myself and race to the bathroom. I see a panic attack coming along. I was felt as if the world has shifted. I start breathing heavily. She can also sense something is different, she follows my into the bathroom, and asks “What’s wrong?” \n\n&#x200B;\n\n“Nothing. I’m just stressed for the psychology test.” \n\n&#x200B;\n\nShe immediately comforts me, “ You’ll do fine, you studied a lot for this.” \n\n&#x200B;\n\n“Yeah, just stressed, don’t worry about it.”\n\n&#x200B;\n\nShe relaxes and sweetly replies, “Ok, I’ve got to go to class, see you at lunch! Good luck on the test.” \n\n&#x200B;\n\nI finally get up, after what has felt like an hour. I rationalized that, she will always be my best friend, and I love that she will go on to do great things, despite the face that I am an ordinary girl. However, as I face myself in the mirror, and another thing shocks me. I see a label on me. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nSidekick. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nWell here comes another panic attack.", " \n\n“Protagonist.” El whispered. \n\nThe girl looked down at El in confusion. “Excuse me?” She said politely enough. \n\nEl could only stare. No way. No way.\n\n“I mean, you don't have to give me the eraser if you don't want to. I was just asking…” Said the girl again, cracking a half-smile. \n\nEl blinked rapidly. Right. The eraser. El looked around the bag and rummaged through it. Since she was the protagonist, should I give her the big blue one? Or do I just give her the normal one?\n\nIf I gave her an eraser would that start a new plot point?!!\n\nOh my god am I in a television show or something?\n\nWith this odd revelation, El looked at the world in a new light. Were they all in some sick Truman Show? And why did this girl get to be the protagonist? She didn't seem that great. \n\nWith a small huff, El decided to deviate from the plot just a bit. “I have an eraser, but I don't wanna give it to you.” \n\nThe protagonist girl gave him a blank look. “Uh, alright then.”\n\nEl grinned. Just because she was a protagonist, doesn't mean she's special. \n\n“But isn't not giving her the ease kinda admitting she is special?” El's friend Eden said, when El was recounting this triumphant event. \n\n“Shut up, Eden.” \n\nBut just as Eden was about to retort, there was a flash. \n\nThe street was suddenly engulfed in a crown of flames, gravel cracking beneath their feet and rubble flying in the air. \n\n“What the--” El started, until a beast the size of a typhoon and as blue as the sea walked into the driveway next to them. \n\nEl couldn't clearly see the beast's features due to the flames surrounding them, and frankly didn't care enough. El grabbed Eden to crouch beneath a nearby turned-over car but fell before it could be reached. \n\n“DUCK!” Someone yelled, which El obliged to. \n\nEl looked up to see why, only to see a jet of water drilling a hole into the building behind them. \n\nEl gasped as someone jumped on top of them like a protective shell. “Don't worry I'll save you!”\n\nIt was the Protagonist. She looked like she came from Hell and back, her face covered in grime and her clothes dirtier than the school bathroom. \n\n“Am I in an actual action flick now?” El whispered. \n\n“What? No! You're about to die, HIDE!” The Protagonist screamed, pushing them inside a barely standing storefront. “This seems unsafe--” Eden started\n\nThe Protagonist ignored Eden and struggled with the front door, which was refusing to stay open.\n\n“If only there was something to keep the door open so I can reach for the handle on the other side!” She growled as the door bit into her arm. She pulled it back, only for the door to stubbornly slam shut again. \n\nEl gasped and dropped their backpack, dropping all its contents onto the ground. Rummaging around, El found it. \n\nThe big blue eraser. Written on its surface was a cheesy slogan: “for all your BIG mistakes!” And it was brand new. Perfect. \n\nEl pushed open the door and jostled the eraser into the small crack when it opened a tiny bit. El looked up. “Can you get the door now?”\n\nThe Protagonist nodded, her arm getting through the crack easily. Opening the front door, they all ran through it just as a car flew to where they had just stood. They all through the window in silence, all thankful to have escaped. \n\n“What is that?” Eden whispered. \n\n“It's from another dimension. Or more specifically, mine… I came here to run away, but I only brought trouble to this world. I suppose I shouldn't have so foolishly thought I would find it.” The Protagonist said sadly. \n\nEl stared at her. “Excuse me?”\n\n“All I wanted, was to find them! The guardians of the code-- THE SOURCE CODE OF MY DIMENSION! Foretold to see the truth of all who exist- with just one look, they can tell you your purpose!” She wailed. \n\n“Excuse me?” El only repeated. \n\n“But, alas. I suppose I couldn't hope to find them. Not in this crappy dimension anyway. You guys can't even teleport to other dimensions, how trite.”\n\nEden and El looked to each other. If it weren't for them both knowing about the labels, they would have thought she was insane. \n\nInstead, they're ladies they knew exactly what she was looking for. \n\nEl always had an odd label-- “Revealer.” It didn't take a genius to figure out the meaning. But it was so random that El ignored it. \n\nBut now. “Um, so, I might be the revealer you're looking for.” El said.", "“I need 500 dollars from my account and I need it NOW boyo” yelled a man with a grizzled buzzcut running across the side of his head. His eyes radiated a certain redness only found heavy drug users while his mouth held a certain hostility that would not take “No” for an answer. Despite his incessant yelling for cash, I took my merry time drawing out the cash from his account. I knew that this guy was only looking for his next fix and wouldn’t jeopardize it. \n\nGripping his lifeline in my pudgy fingers, I handed him his cash while grazing my fingers over his open palm, knowing that he wouldn’t notice such a minute action. \n\nClass: <Druggie>\n\nWhat a shocker. Maybe the first hundred of druggies might’ve provoked a reaction from me but now my only response was a passing glance. After being able to see classes of people from age 13 onward, I thought myself as some sort of hero or prophet. Hell, I thought I was the second coming of Christ at one point, even going as far as to get the “Jesus” hairstyle. Quickly though, I realized I held no divine might or had a heavenly father speaking sweet nothings into my ears as the <bully\\> classes beat the “Chuunibyou” phase out of me. Even worse was when my <friends> abandoned me, believing that I was too crazy to be with, and quickly changed from <acquaintance> to finally <bullies>. They toss their lots with my oppressors and I swore to ruin their lives.\n\n15 years later and I’m nowhere near them. They all have high-paying jobs, beautiful spouses, and loving children. Here I am, minimum wage as a bank teller, dateless, and bald. I detested doing the “normie” route. I know I’m better than that. I am better than that for I had a question mark over my head! Everyone falls under a category, but no one I’ve met has ever had a question mark. Yet here I stand doing even worse than the normies. Even with this power, I never felt more powerless. It was my curse, my undoing! Everyday, that question mark above my head taunts me. Looking into the mirror or any reflective surface, it mocks me with it’s false promises. It isolates me from the rest of the normies in the world. I’d give anything in the world to be SOMEONE other than myself. \n\n“Don’t spend it all at once!” I called to the regressing figure as he eyed everyone in the line with skepticism. Reaching under my register before anyone else came in, I slapped on a “Gone for Lunch” sign in front of my station and briskly trudged away from my station before anyone could voice their dissent.\n\n“Hey buddy, mind heading back to the register for me?” A man with a gloved hand grasped my shoulder and pulled me aside. \n\n“Can’t you read? I’m on my lunch break!” I ripped his hand off my shoulder and subtly slid my hand across the exposed skin above his glove.\n\nClass: <Armed Burglar> \n\nMasking my apprehension, I tried my hardest to make myself as small as possible in hopes that I hadn’t poked the hornets nest. \n\n“Nah man, I’m sure that can wait. Just head right over to your little register over their and hand me whatever is left in there” Underneath his chilly voice, I heard the faintest of metallic clicks from his pocket. Fear took over and I followed his directions like a puppy to his master. \n Yet even as I kept handing him bills after bills, I had an epiphany. What if this is my moment? What if I took out this robber with my own hands? I would be the hero I always dreamed of! Knowing that what I was planning was suicide, I decided that there would be no better alternative for someone as special as myself.\n\n“That’s all the money in the register Sir.” I said as I backed with my hands wide open in a universal sign of compliance. Glaring at me suspiciously, he leaned his head over the register and I took my chance. I gripped my hands together and brought it upon his head, slamming it above the metal keys of the register. Right as I was about to strike a second blow, a speeding force quickly tackled my would-be stepping stone to glory to the ground.\n\n“I got you covered chief! Don’t worry about this guy, I got him!” Looking over, I saw a blonde man punching my scheme to oblivion.\n\nI couldn’t fucking believe it. My chance at glory, my chance at finally turning this hopeless situation into something worthwhile, all gone like ashes in the wind. Twitching, I walked up to my “savior” and touched his bare biceps.\n\nClass: <Protagonist>\n\nExcuse me WHAT THE FUCK! This blonde motherfucker comes out of the blue and steals MY thunder and steals the class that should be MINE! \n\n“No need to thank me my guy, it’s all in a day’s work for someone like myself!” Laughing to himself, he got himself off the unconscious assailant and waltzed right of the the fucking door like this was a sunday stroll. Hell, he even got fucking dove-eyes from some of the onlookers.\n\nThis tilts me off the fucking cliff. I could deal with bullying. I could deal with a shitty hand. But I will not watch as my dreams be stolen by some muscle-brained himbo. I could only see red. Reflected to the corner of my eyes, I saw my question mark morph and fan-fair spark across my eyes.\n\nClass: <Antagonist>\n\n“Rankup! Eyes of Providence has evolved! Your accumulated anger has manifested into an Evil Evolution in your powers. You are now able to force people to follow your will. Further evolutions require more Evil Points and can be acquired through performing Evil Acts. The Greater the Infamy, The Greater the Points”\n\nYa know what? Fuck being a protagonist. I’m done with this bullshit. I have toiled FAR too long living in this imagination that I should be the hero. It’s time this world see what happens when you fucked with someone who’s special like myself. It’s time for my reign of glory. And I ain’t taking no for an answer.", "\"Hey Mark, you seeing this dude?\" I laughed pointing at the dude with pink hair wearing what looked like detachable cat ears. \"Who wears those in public? What a weirdo, am I right bruv?\" \n\n\"Yeah, and what about that weird colored hair? I thought that phase ended in high school. 'RAWR XDDDDD' Right?\" Mark replied hysterically. I knew Mark since elementary school. When I first met him he had this weird label above his head that read: \n\nMark\n\n<BEST FRIEND>\n\nIt was similar to those labels you see in those mmorpgs that described jobs, clans, and that sort of thing. Everyone seemed to have one and it helped me avoid certain situations carefully. I could avoid those 'irl pvp' situations like a mugging and avoid girls who refused to be flagged as relationship routes. Really, really, handy stuff. Weird but handy. \n\n\"Let's bet some cash, I bet his tag will read: 'total weeb' or 'competitive brawl player' or 'pro gamer'\", I laughed. \n\n\"Alright, five bucks if you're right.\"\n\nThe dude started walking closer and his tag was nearly visible. It started something with a 'P'. \n\n\"Ha, looks like I was right after all. Dude's a pro-gamer. I bet he smells ripe as fuck underneath that cosplay shit.\" \n\n\"Shit dude, unlucky.\" replied Mark in annoyance pulling a fiver from his pocket. \n\n\"Wait, wait, what?\" I asked visibly confused as I see the guy approaching me with sword hilt in grasp. \"Is that a fucking beam katana?\" \n\n\"Dude...why is he looking at us like we're free coin?\" \n\n\"Oh shit, oh shit. Mark, that didn't read 'pro-gamer'! It read 'protagonist'!\" I said with a chill running down my spine. \n\n\"What the fuck, what the fuck, what the fuck?!\" Mark replied as the protagonist came rushing at him with beam katana at the ready. \n\n\"Jackpot!\", the protagonist yelled as Mark split in two.\n\n\"MY SPLEEN\", Mark yells spilling all his money from his pockets. \"This level is so fucking easy!\" \n\n\"You think you're tough?!\" I reply, voice shaking, but confronting this would be protagonist who just killed my best friend.\n\n\"CRANBERRY CHOCOLATE SUNDAE!\", the Protagonist yells. \n\nSuddenly, without any delay, the world grows dark and everything goes in slow-mo like a movie. He rushes me. I can't move. He splits me in two. \n\nGrasping the last moxxy in my voice, trying to come up with any insult I can, I yell, \"I don't feel shit.\"\n\nHe walks away whistling. \n\nThe last thing I see is a title card: \n\n&#x200B;\n\nTRAVIS IS BACK BABY", "I spit out the toothpaste that foamed over my teeth. I glance up at the bathroom mirror, seeing myself, the corners of my mouth that still had some residue and the bar above my head. It’s changed twice over the years, from ‘child’ to ‘student’ and finally ‘cashier.’ Whoever thought of giving me this power just wanted to rub it in my face that I was being paid minimum wage to work at a crappy rundown gas station, but at least I can take comfort in knowing that only I have this power. Believe me, I’ve tried to get people to tell me that they can see what I could so I wouldn’t be so alone, but all I’ve gotten from them are confused stares, as if I was telling them nonsense. One time my mother said that I was simply playing too many video games.\n\nI change out of my grubby pajamas and into a more professional suit. Not a suit and tie or anything, but just something that people don’t comment me wearing while I work. I grab my keys and start my car, backing out of my driveway to start my day.\n\n“Have a good day,” I say halfheartedly to a customer, putting the cash into the register. He walks out the door and to his vehicle. That’s a shame. With every customer I serve, I play a little game in my head. If they return the farewell by saying something like ‘you too,’ add a point. At the end of the shift, see how many points you’ve gotten. Since I have first started this job, I’ve set a record of fifteen. To be honest, I was more cheery back then.\n\nThe bell above the door rings, snapping me out of a daydream. I look at the customer, instinctively checking his bar.\n\nProtagonist.\n\nI freeze, thoughts rushing through my head. Protagonist? No, no, that can’t be right. I rub my eyes and check his bar again. Protagonist. I still couldn’t believe it, and his bar was right in front of me. If he’s the protagonist, then that means I’m simply an NPC? My mind rejected the thought. No offense to everyone else, but I thought that I held the title. Surely he just-\n\n“Are you okay?”\n\nI phase back into reality. A chocolate bar and a pop bottle were on the counter. Oh yeah, I’m supposed to do my job. For the protagonist. I sullenly pass the items’ barcodes over the laser.\n\n“Your total’s three fifty,” I grumble.\n\nThe customer - no, protagonist – tilts his head. “Are you okay?”\n\n“No, I’m fine.”\n\n“It’s okay to talk about it.”\n\nI frown even more than I was before. “That’s unnecessary.”\n\nThe protagonist waved a five dollar bill in front of my face. “I’m not giving you this money until you tell me what’s wrong.” I try to retrieve the currency, but he yanks it just before my fingers close. “I’m serious.”\n\nI sigh deeply, my lungs rasping. “Okay, fine.”\n\nHe listens as I pour everything out. That I can see the bars, how mine has changed over the course of my life and how he was the protagonist.\n\nAt the end of it all, I raise my head to find the protagonist smiling. He gives me the bill. “How about we get out of here? Surely you don’t like being a simple cashier?”\n\nI take the bill, giving the protagonist the change and reflexively placing the five dollars into the register. Then, I come out from behind the counter and hug the protagonist, my eyes tearing up. “Please. Just save me.”\n\nMy bar changed. Companion.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAdmittedly my best short story that I've written so far. Feedback is appreciated!" ]	6
	[WP] There is a legend about a world wide game of tag that has been happening for centuries. The legend states that it's extremely dangerous and there's no way to escape the game. You have just been tagged...	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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’d been on edge ever since I’d heard of the Legend — The only way out is to never get in. So I have spent my life checking around corners with mirrors, training myself to run with a slit second’s notice, and avoiding human contact at almost all costs. \n\nNobody who isn’t part of the Legend truly knows what it entails, or why it is so dangerous. The only way to know those things is to become part of it, and that’s a risk people just don’t want to take. So most of us spend our time in suspicion of those around us, never knowing who can break our blissful ignorance. \n\nIt was a bright Sunday morning and I was tending my garden when I began to feel it. Something was off, something felt very wrong. I tend to be paranoid for obvious reasons, so I brushed it off. It’s better to fulfill my duties than to run away every time I’m spooked, because in this society you have no choice but to be self-sufficient. \n\nAs I hummed softly to myself, I started to hear light footsteps that seemed to echo in the gap between the houses. This neighborhood is supposed to be very safe, so I paid no mind and continued working. I reached down to pluck the weeds from my tomatoes and —\n\nThat’s when I heard it. \n\n“I just lost The Game.”" ]	2
	[WP] A superhero has the ability to perform reality breaking 'glitches' one would normally only see in video games. Their stated goal is to stop crimes faster than anyone else. Their name? The Speedrunner. And today, they're planning to stop a world ending event by their nemesis, Dr Red-Ring.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Time,\" he said to himself as he connected the final blow. \"Ugh, gross.\"\n\nSpeedrunner sifted through the pile of guts, but was still satisfied with his time. First sub-twenty minutes in a while. Now there was just this mess that he instinctively put off cleaning.\n\nOne thing stood out in his head the most, though. He didn't get interrupted in the middle of any of it. Speedrunner covered his eyes as he looked at the sky, collected himself, then started running. Out of all possible places that he could've gone to, Speedrunner chose the city.\n\nApproaching a tree, he lined himself up. Taking a deep breath, he kicked the ground with his heel. Nothing. Then again. Nothing. \"Unlucky,\" Speedrunner said to himself. He paused and kicked at the ground one more time.\n\nImmediately, Speedrunner hurtled into the air. He flew up to the clouds and saw the city below him. Carefully, he navigated himself towards a dumpster, the only one he knew was capable of nullifying the fall that would certainly kill him. Fortunately, he landed unscathed. Speedrunner pulled himself out of the smelly mess, a grin on his face. Every time he would perform the trick which he dubbed \"Warp Jump,\" a rush of andernaline would surge through his entire body. After all, one slip up and he would most surely be dead.\n\nSpeedrunner pulled a miniature box from his belt. He placed it on the ground, then stepped on it a certain way. His feet started to move, and Speedrunner leaned forward. With some exploit, he was able to gain speed again. Speedrunner navigated through the alleys and streets until he arrived at the square. He leaned backward and grabbed his box, clipping it back onto his belt.\n\nA crowd of people had gathered around the huge digital billboard, which had been hijacked. On it was a video stream of someone talking instead of the usual advertisements.\n\n\"It will be a digital genocide like no other,\" he boomed, his eyes opened to their widest. \"Surely you wouldn't want your beloved phones to short-circuit and explode, hm?\"\n\nSpeedrunner calmly listened, hoping to get some valuable information and forge a plan. He already knew where he was broadcasting from, after all the boards had never been wireless. He had to have injected the bugged software at the physical site. Surely he would have some sort of weaknesses?\n\n\"You have five minutes,\" the villain warned. \"Just enough time to call all of your loved ones before they-\"\n\nSpeedrunner had stopped listening. He was soaring through the air towards a highrise. He smashed through a window and rolled to safety, jumping to gain his speed back. Quietly, he opened a door. Or at least tried to, as it turned out to be locked. He had no choice but to bust it open.\n\n\"For my name is Red Ring, the-\"\n\nSpeedrunner wasted no time. Out of routine, he planted his foot into a crack in the ground, shooting himself towards a particular spot on a wall. From there, he bounced and set himself on a course that had him on a trajectory leading him towards the room Red Ring was broadcasting his message from. He had developed the strategy over the course of a few days, as he was tired of cliché villans using the room to broadcast their outlandish schemes. Speedrunner preemptively brandished his carbon fibre sword.\n\nRed Ring dodged and grabbed Speed runner's arm. He fell to the ground, becoming unresponsive. \"A refreshing softlock, Speedrunner. It's been a while since you've had one of those!\"\n\nSpeedrunner lay on the ground, unable to move at all. He had no choice but to reset, his body teleporting to the remains of his last victim. He immediately performed Warp Jump again, gritting his teeth as valuable seconds passed. Speedrunner, instead of landing on the dumpster, skipped directly to the window he broke. With a heavy grunt, he landed in the floor below it. The pain he felt didn't matter. Speedrunner desperately limped towards the stairs, using his arm strength to throw himself to the higher floor. He started rolling towards the door, but heard a cacophony of metal on metal. With haste, he peered into the doorway.\n\nDamn it, he was already here. Speedrunner reluctantly watched as a new hero began battling Red Ring. He utilized tricks that Speedrunner couldn't even dream of pulling off, outright clipping through solid objects and landing hits in seemingly random places and with quick succession. Finally, it was over. The newcomer plunged a bullet into the villan and disappeared without a second thought only to return a moment later.\n\n\"TAS,\" Speedrunner said. The new hero turned his head. \"I had him.\"\n\n\"You didn't,\" he simply replied. \"If only you had disassociated your physical and visible bodies, he wouldn't have been able to guess where you were.\"\n\n\"Oh, come on,\" Speedrunner complained, shaking out his sore legs. \"That trick's millisecond _and_ millimeter-perfect!\"\n\n\"Then get better. You even reset,\" TAS said. He walked through a wall to approach Speedrunner. \"Listen, if you want your fights to be optimized, practice.\"\n\n\"I have! Its just not fair,\" Speedrunner wailed. \"Why don't I get the ability to reverse time?\"\n\nTAS raised an eyebrow. \"Oh, that? It's more of a burden than a gift, Speedrunner. Countless rerecords of resets and failed technique execution. And the pressure. Oh, the pressure! Everyone counts on you, so you have to figure out the enemy and kill them the fastest way possible. You wouldn't understand it, Speedrunner!\"\n\n\"I...\" Speedrunner stammered. He grabbed his box, which TAS quickly snatched.\n\n\"You're not going anywhere,\" he stated. \"Have you forgotten all of the strategies that I have taught you?\"\n\n\"No, I haven't-\"\n\n\"You have. Come, Speedrunner. You will not leave until we have gone over and successfully executed every fighting strategy that you could have used, \" TAS promised, dragging Speedrunner over to a specific dent in the wall. \"Here is where you place the left edge of your kneecap,\" he started.\n\n\n\nI'm a speedrunner myself. Thanks for the prompt!", "\"This is my city. Its flaws, its beauty, even its ugly underbelly, this city is my city. I was born here, and the way things are going... I'm gonna die here, too.\"\n\nThe police chief took a long puff of his cigar. It was rare to see him actually smoking a cigar - he usually held them in his mouth unlit and just slowly chewed them up. He looked out over the mist drifting over the - his - city. \"Things weren't great before the supers got here, but they weren't this bad, either. My job was a lot easier, too...\"\n\nWith a heavy sigh, he ground the stub of cigar out on the brickwork and turned towards the stairs. His lieutenant followed. The Chief may not have been a \"superhero,\" but he took his job as the grizzled cop very seriously, even when it meant looking the other way when masked vigilantes roamed the streets. Especially then, in fact.\n\nDownstairs, the LT checked his wristwatch. \"He said he would be here, Chief, but it looks like a no-show. Should I get the car?\"\n\nThe Chief shrugged his massive shoulders. \"Yeah... might as well. Not everyone is a real hero. Or can tell time.\"\n\nThe lieutenant agreed, adding, \"Besides, what caped crusader wants to meet at 6 in the morning? Don't they usually go for midnight?\"\n\nAs they stepped out the door into the low, uncovered hall leading up from the shop's back door, the chief paused. Was that sound... someone running? He opened his mouth, just as a man dressed in an orange beret, green flannel shirt, and bright pink clam-diggers leaped across the gap, planted his foot firmly on the lieutenant's head, and followed through with a roll to the other side of the stairwell. A cry of, \"Yes! Shaved off four seconds!\" followed the fleeing man, though the LT was having too much trouble pulling his hat up to notice.\n\nThe chief groaned. \"Not this guy...\"\n\nThe lieutenant, finally managing to right his hat, blinked at the chief in confusion. \"You... you know that guy?\"\n\nThe chief nodded grimly. \"Jump in the car, I know where he's headed.\"\n\nThe next seven minutes some of the most confusing of the poor LT's life. The chief pointed out the man as he dashed from rooftop to garbage bin, across moving vehicles and through seemingly impossible gaps. At one point, the man came to a complete stop for nearly two seconds, then flung open the door of an ice cream shop, shouted out an order to the cook, then with a running leap, dove straight through a tiny gap in the wall!\n\nFinally, the man paused in a public park, staring at a large, ungainly timer he pulled from... well, a nearby tree. The flabbergasted lieutenant followed behind as the chief strode over to the new, er, hero. \"Speedrunner. So it was you that called us to that rooftop? I ought'a write you up for... well, frankly, breaking any number of laws, including that of physics!\"\n\nSpeedrunner turned with a grin. \"Nice! My timing worked out perfectly! I told ya it would work. Caught some awesome glitches, too! Waitwaitwait - you gotta hear this.\" Speedrunner threw up a hand, his happy grin dropping as a familiar voice crackled from the chief's own radio.\n\n\"Greetings. Citizens. Bow before. Doctor. Red. Ring. By this time. This evening. I will update. This. City... No longer. Will. It operate. As it. Once. Did... You will. Experience. A catastrophic. General. Hardware. Failure... I will become. The Red Ring. Of Death.\"\n\nSuddenly, the radio began smoking, and with a hiss of burning electronics, ceased functioning. The chief swore. \"You say you can stop this guy? All the running along walls and diving through dead-ends... you can stop this guy? Not Toaster, or Green Lightning, or even that German guy - MeinCraft?\"\n\nSpeedster shook his head. \"Too hot, too slow, and way too bloated. They can try, but whatever they do, they'll just burn this place down faster. Look, I'd ask you to keep them from even trying, but...\"\n\nThe chief nodded. \"Well... good luck. I may not understand you, but... it looks like you might be our only chance.\"\n\nWith a quick grin, Speedrunner reached out to shake the lieutenant's hand, then quickly dashed behind him, bounced off a tree, and vanished - though the two cops could hear his delighted shout from deep underground. The chief removed his hat and scratched his head. \"Well... we better get to a radio. You know how Red-Ring likes to talk. One with, er, a little better shielding...\"\n\nTogether, they walked to City Hall; the vantage from the roof was usually adequate. From their lookout, the two watched for Speedrunner. At one point, he popped out of a doorway and handed a loaf of bread to a muscular crook with a gun; the crook, confused, dropped his weapon, and clutched the bread. Not long after, Speedrunner cornered two goons in Red Ring outfits and dropped a basket over their head; while they struggled to escape, he neatly swiped all their equipment, then used it as a springboard to leap a fence. A red light with a broken button? He tossed cans of spam at it until the light mysteriously turned green. An angry dog? He ran past, letting it bite him, then simply vanished through the fence. He dashed through offices and houses with little regard as to who lived there. His actions ranged from the strange, like jumping randomly down the street, to downright outrageous, like standing under an awning and jumping, then suddenly ending up on the roof!\n\nA giant projection suddenly lit up, bathing the nearby park in reds and blues. A giant red eye peered out. \"Greetings. Citizens. Bow. Before. Doctor. Red Ring... You have. Twelve hours. To stop me... But. You will. Fail... Even. Your mightiest - hey!\"\n\nThe camera wobbled, revealing the other half of Dr. Red-Ring's face - sans makeup - and a second red-faced individual, panting and out of breath. \"Sorry, keep monologging, just gotta - yoink!\"\n\nSpeedrunner grabbed the camera, and bolted through a doorway! Pausing for a moment as red-shirted goons dashed past, he held up a note that read, \"Chief, please fire one round at the bell tower at the second ring, thank you.\"\n\nThe chief unholstered his weapon and waited for the Civil Air Defense Memorial Bell Tower's large brass bell to ring out the time. At the second GONG, he fired, adding a 'ping!' to the end of the sound. A split second later, the camera glitched, and a recording of Red Ring began playing on the lawn: \"...and that's when I'll arm the bomb on the City Hall! No, not the - the big one! What? No, like, noon or something. Gotta give 'em some hope first, right?\"\n\nThe two cops shared a look, then with a shrug, began searching the roof. A minute later, the LT found a red-ringed tube - the bomb! The chief gently pulled it free. \"Uh...\"\n\nThe lieutenant shouted, \"Chuck it in the water! We gotta get it in there before Sarge walks out the door! He's a day from retirement!\"\n\nThe chief dashed to the wall and hurled the tube into the decorative fountain; though his aim was a bit off, a pair of pigeons caught sight of the bread-wielding thug walking up the steps to City Hall, and dived for his loaf. The tube glanced off a wing, skidded around the fountain, then plopped harmlessly into the water.\n\nWith a gasp, Speedrunner landed on the building. \"Booyah! Wheeze I did it! pant, gasp Thirty six minutes, forty three seconds!\"\n\nThe lieutenant fainted.\n\nThe chief turned, sizing up the oddly-dressed man with a new look of respect. \"And... that's it? Just one bomb?\"\n\nSpeedrunner, still gasping for air, shook his head. \"Oh no. There's like, thousands of them. But, you know, ol' RR had 'em all wired to this\" - he waved a large red button - \"and had that bomb set to detonate if the switch were ever taken out of his hand.\"\n\nThe chief raised an eyebrow. \"But... it's in your hand, so wasn't it...?\"\n\nThe super grinned. \"Nah! He had to pick it up first to trigger it. And since I came in through the glitch in the butcher shop, his alarm system never armed the secondary bombs. Or the one in his office.\"\n\nA voice drifted up from the lawn, broadcast by the projection system. Though the camera was currently pointed at a wheeling seagull, the voice was unmistakable. \"Uh... Did you guys... Did he just grab the detonator? Please tell me he touched to floor. Anywhere. Anywhere on the floor. Not on the floor? Ah. Well. Nice knowing you guys, we're f-\"\n\nAfter a brief burst of static, the sound cut out, and a \"Signal Error, Please Stand By\" logo appeared on the lawn. A small mushroom cloud lifted over what used to be a formerly-vacant warehouse, and now currently-vacant empty lot.\n\nSpeedrunner grinned sheepishly. \"I, uh, may have forgotten to touch the floor in his 'lair'. So... the one in his office did arm, actually. Er... cake? It's ok, it's not a lie or anything. I snagged it before everything blew up.\"" ]	3
	[WP] You are a high-ranking military commander and "the best man-at-arms in the entire kingdom". You were charged with the protection of the princess, the now last living member of the royal family, as the final order from the king. But you have no memory of it, of any prior events, and who you are.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "“Sir Robert!” A careful voice sounded from the door.\n\nI felt a strange heaviness in my head. When I tried to roll to the other side blinding pain exploded in my temples.\n\n“Sir Robert.”\n\nI cracked my eyes open and saw a boy, staring at his shoes. He seemed frightened. I looked about the stone walls adorned with silver banners and furs on the wooden floor. I saw a glimpse of winter sky through the window.\n\nI had no recollection of this room. My name is Robert, I thought. \n\n“What is it?” I asked the boy.\n\n“Her Highness wants to see you, sir.” He spoke the title with utter reverence. \n\nI got out of the bed, every bone in my body aching with pain. I saw bruises on my ribcage and a fresh wound on my left shoulder. My chest and arm were covered in scars. \n\nSo, I am a knight, I thought as the young squire helped me dress. I glanced at the hauberk and black cloak with a silver coat of arms near my bed. \n\n“Your sword, sir.” The boy brought me a one-handed sword and when my hand closed around the handle, I felt a surge of energy. In my mind, I saw a black hooded figure standing before me on a deserted battlefield.\n\n“Are you all right, sir?” The boy asked when I swayed.\n\n“Take me to her Highness.” I quickly collected myself. \n\nMy head was still throbbing with pain and the only connection with my life was this boy who led me through the corridors of the castle. Knights saluted me with respect, ladies gave me admiring glances and an old servant in the hallways smiled at me. I suddenly stopped. \n\n“How is your shoulder, Robbie?” Old-man asked. Squire boy gasped at the way he addressed me. \n\nI nodded, remembering my wound. I didn’t recognize his face, but I felt something very close to affection for this man.\n\n“Good.” I said. “I’ve seen worse.” I am sure I had.\n\nThe old man smiled. “You should find me later to check is it properly healing. Beast is so anxious to see you, he is scaring other horses.”\n\n“I’ll find you soon.” I promised. \nWhen I woke up this morning, I didn’t know my name, but somehow, I knew that I ride every morning and as we climbed up the spiral stairs I knew I should skip the third creaky one. I didn’t know where I was, but I knew that war is upon us and that is my obligation to protect these people.\n\nI didn’t know who her Highness is, but I knew there is a reason I was holding my breath.\n\n“Come in.” A soft feminine voice sounded from behind the door.\n\n“Your Highness.” I bowed.\n\nThe moment squire closed the door behind me, she rushed to me, her beautiful frightened eyes framed with golden locks. “Oh, Robert, I was so scared.” She took my hand. “They said you wouldn’t make it.” Her blue eyes filled with tears. “I’ve sent Sir Mont to bring the best healer in the north. I was…” he hands shook.\n\n“Are you all right?” I asked when I saw how she paled.\n\nShe let go of my hand and moved back, turning to face the window. “I am sorry.” She whispered. “Your men were worried about you.” Her voice was now different, reserved. “Without you to lead them into battle, we would have little chance once Shadowed come.” I could see her fragile form shivering.\n\n“Do not be afraid,” I said to her. “I will protect you with my life.”\n\nShe spun around and now was facing me, morning sun casting a golden glow around her head. “I know Robert,” she whispered, “that is what I fear.”\n\nI barely knew my name, but I know I would keep my promise no matter what.\n\nHer blue eyes haunted me long after I left the room. There was something unspoken between us, something I forgot, something she blamed me for. There were some words I never said, a promise I haven’t given. \nBut she gave me her hands and somehow, I knew she cried when they told her I was wounded.\n\n“Gather my knights,” I told the squire. I had to find that old man who had tended to my wound. I needed someone I trust to tell me what is happening to me." ]	2
	[WP] You were the first human on earth and now you’re the last human on earth.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 Ancients had mastered the sciences of life before. Studying and sorting their genomic information, parsed from billions of individuals they identified the genetic make up the single collective ancestor of them all, me, basically. They recreated me from the constituent information they deduced. \n\nArbitrary, perhaps they concluded I was the first human,the first subtle mutant that delineated animal from man. A genetic marker, present in humans, lacking in my parents.\n\nI've been born again many times. When Humanity realized its time was finite, that it's extinction was certainity it was determined to make its mark on the galaxy. \n\n I was to be a sort of display piece. A living Golden Recors placed on an intersteller vehicle to be paraded through the stars as an example of humanity, proof positive, a case study, preserved for any possible alien minds in millienia hence to consider.\n\nOf all these voyagers sent out, mine was the only to return to sender. A kind of time capsule to return later in case their projections were wrong. They were right though.\n\n The ship swung a multi lightyear tour before returning to the earth. Earth would be unrecognizable to anyone from that time. The oceans and atmosphere boiled away and frozen and boiled again.\n\nThe ship pockmarked and failing from its intersteller journey, lands hard on a desolate plain of soot covered ice. Nothing has lived on the surface for millions of years. Howling winds whip across the icy plain, the surface worn smooth by eons of erosion. \n\nThe stasis chamber completes its thaw and hours pass. It's tired AI announces disembarking instructions over loud speakers in 24 different languages, all now extinct, the last human words ever spoken. It shuts off in gratitude having completed its eons long mission. No other specimen has survived the journey. The airlock doors crack open, and I step out onto the endless plain.", " \n\nWell, he said, That didn’t last long.\n\nHe was, in all probability, the last human on earth. Or at least, he would be; it was only a matter of time until the final hangers on met their demise. Oh well, bound to end eventually.\n\nHe thought back to the last few years, unable to recall the precise time humans had been on earth for. Not long, he decided. It was nice of His Old Man to supply people like him for a while, but they just kept on dying. Stupid flaw really. A good thing they were so prolific.\n\nHe remembered the Old Man’s first creations well: a little bearded one, and a little breasted one. They were so sweet, so innocent. Had a bit too much of an appetite for apples, though one could hardly blame them. Apples looked delicious. In fact, he said to the breasted one, In fact, the best and juiciest apples could be found on that tree over there. That’s right don’t be shy, take a good great bite.\n\nHe sighed. How was he to know the fruit was forbidden? He didn’t even like the taste of apples, just the way they looked. Oh well, at least there was more world to explore after that.\n\nFor a while, the Old Man didn’t send down any more humans. Instead, there were these weird scaly creatures and boring looking trees. Have some imagination Man, I want flowers already.\n\nTime for a change. A few fires here and there, a few hurled rocks later and ooh look, the humans came back again. Forgot about you lot. How is your mother? Oh, grandmother? My you breed like rabbits. Yes, it is rather chilly isn’t it? Look, this is fire. Makes things taste nicer. Good for killing stuff too.\n\nThey were helpless creatures really. Just trap the damned creatures and call it farming. The pyramids were cute. The statues they made on that little Island were his favourite though. How about eating each other? Meat all around and nobody hungry. The stories they told back then were great too. Wouldn’t it be better if Zeus just slept with everybody? Sharing the love and all that.\n\nGood times, good times. The Old Man’s son stirred things up some. Bit of a gruesome death if you asked him but each to their own. He never liked the fella anyway; smelt like soap.\n\nAfter that, the party truly got going. Took a bit of pushing, but soon they were all talking about him. Spread the word, he said. If they don’t believe you, I’m sure you’ll find a way to make them.\n\nManpower became a problem but there was a simple solution. Look, lots of people over there not doing anything. I’m sure they’d love to work for you. Don’t worry about pay they’re free! Of rights that is.\n\nHe made some good friends along the way. All dead now of course. That moustache doesn’t suit you at all darling. Why don’t you keep it just under your nose? While we’re at it, I don’t believe you’re made for the arts. Surely politics is much more your thing?\n\nThe parties were outrageous. Explosions are bound to make a statement. Yes, especially the big ones. Bigger the better. After that, he was in high demand. Only natural. He gave great advice. The world was a warmer place because of him, the snows deeper, the storms more extravagant. So what if a few things died along the way? Bees just stung; they won’t be missed. Now, that’s a big red button that could do with some dusting.\n\nHumans were a strange thing really; lots of potential, things he had yet to explore. Too late now though. A shame as he had so much to learn. Still, after watching them over the decades, at least he’d learned one thing. With all their cute little antics, they were his people through and through. He was undeniably human.", "Time.\n\nA passage read by millions. Unfinished by one.\n\nI stand here now, the slowest, superior to none.\n\nTurning each page, there are new sights before me.\n\nNew worlds experienced through wars and wit.\n\nHow could I do anything less than hang on to every note?\n\nSo many stories, repeated time and again.\n\nSo many elements, like water or lightning or wind.\n\nThey corroded, they exploded, they weathered away.\n\nAnd in time, they were forgotten, lost to the day.\n\nThis novel that I read, a reality revealed.\n\nIt brings me the pleasure I once sought.\n\nMy mind has evolved with ever plot's twist.\n\nAccepting the truth which I once fought.\n\nLo and behold, they've all disappeared.\n\nI am an audience alone.\n\nMy hands are much slower.\n\nSlowest they've ever been.\n\nYet, they still trace over each word.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nTime.\n\nA passage read by millions. Unfinished by one.\n\nI stand here now, reading the last page." ]	4
	[WP] You have acquired a very powerful ability: to completely remove light in an area around you, effectively blinding any assailant coming at you. There's just one tiny little setback... you can't see through the darkness either.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 is your end hero!” The Villain laughed upon the hero’s misfortune however what he didn’t know was that the hero had one last back up plan.......\n\n“Never!” The hero suddenly shouted! And instantly! Everything turned black!\n\n“What!? What is this!? YOU WILL NOT ESCAPE ME HERO! I WILL COME BACK FOR YOU LATER!!” The villain then proceeded to run into a wall\n\n“Ahh! I see! You’ve entrapped me within a barrier!” \n\n“......”\n\n“AHAHAH YOU WERE A FOOL TO LEAVE ME IN DARKNESS! Don’t you know? Villains are MASTERS of DARKNESS!!”\n\n“SHOW YOUR SELF HERO!”\n\nAfter a poor while it seemed as though the villain was truly alone, the villain couldn’t help but feel lonely......\n\n“Please, hero.......I’m scared of the dark”\n\n“.......”\n\n“Huh? it seems like you really did leave me.........”\n\nThe poor lovestruck villain was head over heels for the hero and did everything to get her attention even if he turned into a villain in the process, \n\n“You know.....I’ve always loved you but it seems like in the end, you didn’t even care about me, I might as well do your own job at this point farewell, my love”\n\nAnd with that final line, the villain died near the remnant scraps of blood that was once a hero.", "Prohibition Era, NYC\n\nLife, as a proprietor of one the city’s worst kept secrets, was hectic. The constant stream of lawbreakers, criminals, and other scum-of-the-earth kept him busy enough to warrant buying out the apartment located above the speakeasy. A risky move should some investigators connect the dots. But, considering New York had about fifty thousand worst kept secrets, he wasn’t often too concerned.\n \nOn day no. 521, a popular jazz band was booked for Saturday night festivities. \n\n“Where’s the whiskey, Griffin,” called an exhausted bartender.\n \n“Got the last of it right here,” he tipped the glass and the remainder of the liquid vanished. \n\nThe bartender slammed a dry glass onto the counter. He stuck his thumb towards a growing line of patrons, all but spilling over the counter. \n\n“Well then can you go get some more?”\n\n“’Course, Sammy. Where you keepin’ it?” Griffin smiled, and a well-dressed girl wrapped her arms around his waist. Others watched from nearby, jealous. \n\n“You know damn well I don’t have anymore, our guy got carted off last Tuesday.”\n\nGriffin was quite aware of the situation and had done all he could to find a replacement. His search had ended with a nasty argument and moderate bruising on the left side of his face. After that, he’d decided the patrons could wallow in despair for a weekend or two, and he’d take the time off to relax before going on the hunt again.\n\n“Figure it out.” He raised his empty glass in the air, in cheers to his disgruntled accomplice. \n\nLeaving Sammy to the wailing crowd, Griffin excused himself from his companion and made for the makeshift stage. Two women trailed after him, from a short distance. They hesitated as he ignored them and reigned themselves to sit at a nearby table when he stopped by the band. \n\nThey were a talented group, and it had been exceptionally hard to book them on a weekend. It had taken a major bribe out of his own pocket to sway their minds. So then, it would figure that their supplier would find himself behind bars at that pivotal moment. \n\nGriffin listened to the music for a while before turning his attention back to the bar. Voices were raised, and the mood was turning sour as drink after drink ran out. He rested his head on one hand and watched the chaos unfold. Seemingly, the band was doing the same— it was turning into a good show.\n\nSuddenly then, mid-song and just before a solo, the bar quieted. \nIf there was one thing to beware of at any sort of party, it was a sudden silence. It meant one of two things: a toast, or trouble. And if it was the latter, the silence was never to last.\n\n“Get outta here,” one of the security men shouted, above the remainder of the noise. The room sprang into action.\n\nAs patrons bolted up from their tables, the staff were the first to go. Griffin watched as Sammy vaulted over the counter and made for the side door. If he ever came back, Griffin made a mental note not to hold it against him. \n\nThe two women who had followed him earlier were then at his side, asking for direction as police began to force themselves into the establishment. \n\n“You heard the man, time to run ladies.” They bolted moments after, but he remained in place. \n\nThe reality was closing in. Flickers and visions of prison, poverty, and death all flooded and stuck to his brain like molasses. The room felt like it was shrinking, and his vision began to grow dark as the cops pushed closer. He dug his fingernails into his palms and waited, frozen. One cop emerged from the dwindling crowd. They locked eyes. \n\nThen, nothing. \n\nScreams erupted along with the sounds of furniture crashing to the floor, splintering as bodies stumbled into them. At least one instrument crashed to his left, making a horrible racket as one of the cops shouted orders to his cohort.\n\nGriffin felt something collide into him— a person. He scrambled to his feet, feeling for the wall. Once he found it, he brushed one hand across it as he ran. Footsteps scraped the floor, clearly following him. In his panic, he crashed into the storage room door. He fumbled with the handle, which should have been locked but by some miracle wasn’t and forced his way inside. \n\nThe darkness was absolute. Rough wood scratched his hands as he searched the shelves until he found one of the four revolvers stored within the establishment. At that moment, the footsteps stopped in the doorway.\n\n“Shut that door and put your hands up,” Griffin said, one hand still clinging to the shelf. \n\nHis guest did as he said, and Griffin heard the door latch. \n\n“I don’t know what’s goin’ on here,” the voice quiet, “but you should know you’re under arrest.”\n\nGriffin made no sound, for fear of alerting anyone outside the cellar.\n“And I’d much appreciate it if you could turn the lights back on.”\n\n“I can’t,” he said, fingering the trigger. The room had no definable features, save for those which could be felt. It was suffocating. \n\n“Well, how’d you turn them off? I’d suggest doin’ it soon because you don’t have much time left, sir. That last whiskey you served was bad, some rotten chemicals got in the mix. We think the fella we caught was tryin’ to make a hit.” \n\n“Goddamn rat,” Griffin slammed the revolver into the shelf.\n\nBANG\n\nHe screamed and a flash lit up the room. Instantly, particles of light shone through from under the door. Just enough to make out the cop who sat on the floor, clutching an arm. \n\nThe cop opened his mouth to speak, but no words came. Instead, a loud pounding at the door.\n\n“Open up in there, and if you’ve got a gun, you’d better drop it,” a small click sounded as whoever was outside prepared to shoot. \n\n“You’d best open that door,” the cop mumbled, making no move to apprehend Griffin himself. \n\nTo the shock and awe of even himself, Griffin opened the door unarmed. He was shoved onto the ground, dragged for a time, and carted away in swift fashion. The jailhouse was packed to the brim that night, and chock-full of nurses tending to the ill. \n\nAt some odd hour of the night, an outburst occurred, and an entire street corner was plunged into darkness.\n\n[I’d love to rewrite this after doing some solid research. Awesome prompt!]" ]	3
	[WP] You awaken in your pod, floating around what appears to be the ring of Saturn. You notice bits of shrapnel and destroyed parts of a unidentified craft drifting through space, you can’t remember your name but in your pod you see one word that is etched into the side “HOME.”	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Warning! Oxygen Low!\n\nThe computerized voice shocked me awake. My body feels stiff, and my head aches. Something wet has run down my neck, likely blood. I slowly turn my head forward to try and regain some sense of the surroundings, my temples pounding the with every muscle movement.\n\nBeyond the glass of my pod I see wreckage drifting slowly alongside me. The glass has sustained a few minor cracks, but it appears to be maintaining it's structure. I gaze beyond the debris intermingled with rocks and ice at the planet before me. It felt so familiar, but I can't recall it's name. Something...Roman?\n\nWarning! Oxygen Almost Depleted\n\n\nMy head slumps back to where I awoke, and I notice a word scratched into the side.\n\n\n\"Home.\"\n\nThe word echoed in my mind; \"Home.\"\n\nI don't remember where home is. I recall light green grass, and corn fields. Running with...was that my brother? Was that me chasing my older brother as a child?\n\nA rock hits the window, spidering the cracks a little further. My body tenses, but the moment passes.\n\n\nJohnathan. He wasn't my brother, he wasn't my brother. He is my son. Was my son, I guess. I hated leaving him and his mother. \n\n\"It's only a couple short weeks!\" I told them, reassuring no one. \"I'll be home before you know it! Then we'll go out for family dinner, and I'll tell you everything I saw.\"\n\n\"You promise, dad?\" Asked Johnathan, as I leaned in to kiss my wife one last time.\n\n\n\"I promise. Now take care of your mother!\" I said, slipping out the door.\n\n\nWarning! Oxygen Depleted.\n\nThat's it, I guess. I'll never get to tell him what I saw; either of them. And I didn't even tell them I loved them. They knew, right? I hope they did. I was doing this for them. At least, I tell myself it was for their good as I start to drift back to unconsciousness one last time.\n\nAs my eyes shut and my body begins to slump, I let out two last dying words.\n\n\"I promise.\"\n\n\n\n-------------\n\n\"Sir, we got the data we need. We really should wake him now. His cortisol levels are too high to sustain much more of this. The psychological and physiological-\"\n\n\"Again! Run it again!\" Interrupted the older man.\n\n\n\"But sir..\" replied a meager voice from the man at a computer next to him. \"Sir if we do much more, we may cause permanent damage.\"\n\n\n\"Again!\" Boomed the older man.\n\n\n----------\n\nWarning! Oxygen Low!\n\n\nThe computerized voice shocked me awake." ]	2
	[WP] The Devil is commanding you to open a box in exchange for riches and power. What lies inside the box is unknown and it's driving you mad	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 the formatting I’m on mobile and this is my first go at this. \n\n\n “I only need you to do one simple task. One turn of that lock and everything you could dream of is in your grasp.” Lucifer’s voice is so charming. Smooth. He makes anything seem like a good idea. But why can’t he open this box? Why does it have to be you? “Every moment you waste is a moment you lose living the life you deserve. Time is the one thing I can never give you.” He’s so convincing. \n “Will my family be safe if I open that box?” You ask. “My friends? Everyone I care for?”\n “Trust me, your life will be perfect. You only have to give in to greed this once! You’ve spend your whole life doing everything right. It’s time you do something for you! Something that will set your family up for eternity! Till the end of humanity, your descendants will be the strongest! I will give you a week....” Lucifer’s voice trails off as his body melts into its own shadow. \n Each hour of every day is painful. Lucifer was an angel once. He has to have some good in him. What if the struggle between good and evil is really just a fight between two goods? What could be inside such a small box anyway? Nothing too disastrous. You made your decision. \n Not half a second after you made up your mind did he appear staring back at you in your mirror. On your left is the box. “Open it. Stop wasting time.” You reach your hand out and place it on the knob. It’s now of never. Your family could have it all. You open it. \n The box is empty inside. There is nothing at all. Just the decaying wood from a centuries old box. You look in the mirror and see a grin on Lucifer’s face as he disappears. \n It’s been four years since you opened the box. Since then the only people you have seen Alice have been your friends and family. As far as you know you are the only people left. You’re walking through a park one day and notice an old box. Just like the one you opened before. With no hesitation you open it. It’s empty just like the last. Upon further inspection you see words etched inside the lid. \n “ If the archangel could convince a descendant of my son to do a deed as simple as opening this box, humanity will be lost.”" ]	2
	[WP] A terminal illness has left you with no other options but to make a deal with a demon to stay alive. Goblins work mainly as lobbyists on behalf of their demon managers to claim desperate humans' undying souls.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Opening my eyes I found myself in what looked like a family planning clinic's waiting room. There were grey chairs set out in rows, their cushions were so worn you might as well have been sat on the metal frames. They were filled with an assortment of people, young and old, filled with despair or ambition - all of them desperate. Just like me.\n\nThe difference between here and a family planning clinic came down to a couple of things. First was the TV screen in the corner of the room. It didn't show any channel I recognised. Instead it showed a woman smiling broadly, telling everyone what a great idea this was. Everyone here knew it wasn't. However, our decisions had been made. We had no other choice. Every other option had been exhausted. I approached the desk.\n\nHere was the second major difference. The goblin looked up from her screen with lizard-like yellow eyes. She gazed down her long nose at me and made a squelching noise with her lips. At first I panicked thinking I couldn't understand her, then I realised she was merely judging me. I can't say I blame her. I wasn't exactly looking my best.\n\n\"Yes?\" she snapped.\n\n\"Er, I'm here to erm, negotiate terms?\" I said.\n\nShe sighed dramatically, spittle flying from mustard coloured teeth. I tried to dodge it without looking like that's what I was trying to do. I barely had the energy any more.\n\n\"Have you got an appointment?\" she asked and made that sucking, squelching noise with her mouth again. It made me feel a bit sick.\n\n\"No, I thought you could just erm show up and ask?\" I picked at my fingernails. Perhaps this was a mistake.\n\nHer yellow eyes rolled up into her skull and back again.\n\n\"Have you filled out a form?\" she pointed to the sign on her desk.\n\nI hadn't read it. At a quick glance it seemed there was a form to fill in. When I decided to resort to a demon's help I hadn't expected there to be so much admin involved. The form looked to be at least thirty pages long. I wasn't sure about anyone else in here, but I didn't have that much time left.\n\n\"Is there a quicker way?\" I asked.\n\n\"What? Form filling too good for you?\" the goblin spat. \"Look, nobody likes it but the Soul Traders Organisation insists on standards. You want to register, you fill out the bloody form.\"\n\nI took the wad of paper and sat down on one of the miserable chairs.\n\nUnlike most forms, the first question wasn't my name, age or even gender. All it said was \"Reason\".\n\nAssuming it meant my reason for being here I wrote down: \"Terminally ill\" after a moment I decided to add \"want to live\" I should probably be specific otherwise who knows what I'd be getting in return for my immortal soul.\n\nAfter what seemed like an age I presented the goblin with the filled in form. I felt drained, like I had laid my soul bare for all the see. The goblin flicked through it, tutting occasionally.\n\n\"Hmph, and the payment?\" she asked.\n\n\"I thought the payment was my soul?\" I replied.\n\nShe gave an exasperated sigh and mimed hitting her head against the desk.\n\n\"Not everyone accepts payment in souls. I require payment for my services. Twelve gold coins!\"\n\n\"What? I didn't ask for your services. No one said there would be an admin fee!\" I shouted.\n\n\"Twelve gold coins, or...\" she held my form over the shredder.\n\n\"Fine, fine,\" I produced the few gold coins I had brought with me in order to reduce the lease on my soul. Now I had nothing left to bargain with. Nothing but a few days of my life and my immortal soul." ]	2
	[WP] People gain superpowers based on the environment that they are born in. Since most people had been born in hospitals, they are given a mild healing ability. However, people that weren't as lucky have other powers, and are the world's version of superheroes and villans	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 lucky you have me around\" said my best friend Bonnie as she healed yet another bloody scar on my arm. I tensed as she pressed her palm against my wounds, and relaxed again as they vanished before my eyes.\n\n\"Yeah right, I'd just find another ginger sidekick who was born in a hospital\" I teased. Bonnie rolled her eyes a bit and pressed a little too hard on a fresh bruise, making me yelp in pain.\n\nThe television suddenly blared to life, giving light to my apartment as footage of a destroyed city block filled the small box in the corner of the living room. \n\n\"Dammit!\" I said, making Bonnie jump back in surprise as I smashed my fist against the coffee table. I put my leather jacket over my bare torso and started for the balcony.\n\n\"Wait!\" Bonnie called, likely to pester me regarding my remaining cuts and bruises. Those would have to wait.\n\n\nI touched down on the pavement in front of my nemesis. I had just finished locking him away, only for him to break out before he even reached the prison. So much for \"New York's Finest\". Couldn't even hold a prisoner for five minutes.\n\n\"Ah, head in the clouds again?\" The man asked, grinning a yellow toothed grin at me. Vines crept up around the buildings, wrapping around anything and everything and throwing it high into the air.\n\n\"Go Home, Malcolm\" I said simply. \"You'll accomplish nothing by-\" I soared into the air as a tree cracked the pavement underneath me, sending a large oak into the air where I was standing only seconds prior.\n\n\"Sometimes I ask myself why I couldn't have been born on a plan, like you, Drew\" Malcolm sneered at me. \"I had to have been born in a jungle, of all places!\" He continued to rant at me, I took this as my chance and swooped down towards him for a clean punch in the jaw.\n\n\nI walked through the balcony's doors as Bonnie rushed over, worried. She sat me down, tending to my every cut and injury. Sometimes, I take her for granted.", "I was born 5 months after the discovery. You probably heard one part of the formula. Hell, everybody did. Because the information wasn't dangerous. The formula was discovered in a top-secret, government-run base no one knew existed. Area 51 is probably what came to your mind. Please. How can a base be top-secret when everybody has heard of it? Area 51, it turns out is nothing but a distraction. did it exist? Of course! And everyone who worked there thought they were working on real alien crafts. Here they sent the known big mouths.\n\n No, the real, important secrets did not get out. \n\nThe only reason my mother, Ann Chapman worked at The Base was that she was schizophrenic. Who would believe her? She was a custodian. The custodians would work the night shift when everyone had gone home and there was nothing to overhear. She was also hiding a pregnancy. She knew that the scientist who had raped her was much more valuable than a mentally ill custodian. So she kept it quiet.\n\nBut one night changed everything. Ann began the night as usual. She began making the rounds, collecting the trash from various rooms. When she heard two loud voices coming from the room she was approaching, she froze. Were they burglars? No, the security was too tight. Either way, she knew that making her presence known would not end well. \n\nAfter considering her options, she decided to wait in the room next door. She soon realized the combination of thin walls and raised voices, allowed her to hear every word. Either way, she was too scared to move again.\n\n\"Dammit, John, you know what this means!\" said one voice.\n\n\"Of course I do! I also know what could happen if it got out!\" responded John.\n\n\"Look, I really think the public deserves this information, regardless of the consequences\" the still-unnamed man retorted.\n\n\"Henry, if you leak this information,\" There was a long pause, \"you know what will happen.\"\n\nAnn heard a chair slide backwards, followed by pacing footsteps.\n\n\"Okay, let's go over it one more time. It has always been widely believed that the birth of children with augmented abilities is completely random.\" Henry said in an exasperated voice.\n\n\"Yes until now. We have been able to cause intentional manifestation with 100% success.\", John was obviously humoring Henry.\n\n\"Two conditions are necessary for manifestation., the first being location of birth. Powers never manifest in traditional, hospital births. If born in the presence of powerful technology however, the child does seem to absorb qualities of said technology. When born near nuclear weapons, The child is capable of emitting, and detonating, radiation at will. If the birth occurs in an anti-gravity chamber, flight will manifest.\" Henry explained.\n\n\"The second condition is where things get messy. The location of childbirth is absolutely meaningless, without the death of the mother during, or within sixty seconds after, birth. Can't you see the effects of this information going public, Henry? People will kidnap, and eventually murder, laboring women for the chance to raise their own personal superhero! Dictators will be able to raise an unstoppable army!\" John sounded panicky at the thought of these consequences.\n\nHenry interrupted John before he could continue, \"Okay, okay! It is obviously naive to think that we can release both conditions. But, I think I may have an acceptable compromise.\"\n\n\"What's that?\" asked John skeptically. \n\n\"We release our findings on location, implying the rest is random. This will at least allow parents to choose a more useful augmentation for their child. This will give the mother's tragic death meaning!\", Henry explained.\n\n\"That is... interesting.\" John sounded hopeful for the first time. \"I think the folks upstairs may even be on board with it\"\n\nAnn seemed to wake from a trance. Could it be a hallucination? She had been taking her medicine regularly so it was unlikely. This could allow her child to have a chance!\n\nOver the next few months, Ann meticulously researched adoptive parents. Any candidates that seemed to only want augmented children were eliminated. Eventually, she found a young couple who seemed to be selfless in every way. They had plenty of money, but did not seem to care about it. Great! Her baby wouldn't be used as a get rich quick scheme. They also were more than willing to pay for the best prenatal care. Just to make sure, Ann had a will written up, with them named as her child's guardians in the event of her death.\n\n Ann was able to discover where all the best technology was in The Base. At home, she researched the powers that seemed to guarantee success. People always seemed to forget, Ann was a smart woman. Her mental illness did not affect intelligence. When she put her mind to it, she could be downright diabolical.\n\n She eventually decided on flight. The anti-gravity chamber. This would be easy. Even if she went into labor during the day, she could visit an indoor skydiving location nearby.\n\nTwo days before her due date, she found something that made her rethink her choice. She had been looking through the trash while emptying it. This had become somewhat of a habit over the last few months. She continued to do so, almost subconsciously, even after she had found what she needed for her plan. Tonight, she found a report on a new project that was recently completed.\n\nIt was a teleportation chamber. She racked her brain. Was there a teleporting superhero? She didn't think so. A quick google search after work(smartphones were not allowed at The Base), confirmed her suspicion. This could bring her little superhero to a whole new level! The \"First of their kind superheroes\" were the real stars! Captain Marvel was great but Superman? Superman could appear in one tv ad and never have to worry about money again. Even when other flying heroes appeared, Superman was still the first.\n\nAnn's new plan now called for her to have access to The Base, regardless of the time of day. After racking her brain, she decided on a \"Day Plan\". While she considered this her best chance for success, it was still very risky. Everything would be easier if she went into labor at night.\n\nHer due day came and went. No superbaby. Ann prayed every night, while on the job, \"Please, let it come now!\".\n\n Finally, a week late, she felt her first contraction. Unfortunately, It wasn't at night. Not even close. In fact, she had just gotten off work. Ann had heard of women being in labor for 24 hours before, but she couldn't risk it. Day plan it was.\n\n Ann drove up to the security booth an hour later. Ann had intentionally left her previous weeks paycheck at The Base. \n\n\"Hello,\" she said, showing her biggest smile and handing over her clearance badge, \"Look, I know this is an evening only badge, but this is an emergency. I left my paycheck here and my power bill is due today. They are threatening to turn it off!\"\n\n\"Ok, just tell me where it is, and I'll have someone bring it out,\" said the guard.\n\n\"That's the problem. There are a few different places I could have left it. I need to retrace my steps.\" Ann said, trying her best to sound like a damsel in distress.\n\n\"Look lady, no day clearance, No day entrance. I'm not losing my job over you,\" he said firmly\n\nAnn could see in his face that he was not going to change his mind. It was too late to try to make it to the indoor skydiving place. Well, she thought, at least he will have good parent's.\n\nJust then, another security guard entered the back of the booth. \"Take your break, Ron. I got this\" he said.\n\n\"Sure, why not? You deal with 'er\"\n\nAnn felt a surge of hope as she repeated her sob story to the new guard.\n\nHe interrupted her before she could get to the end, \"Sure go head. Maybe if they paid more around here, a couple days without a paycheck wouldn't be an emergency.\"\n\nThe bar raised, and she drove through before he could change his mind.\n\nAnn did not face any more trouble on the way to the teleportation chamber. She did have to stop every few minutes to allow a contraction to pass. Eventually, she reached her destination.\n\nNow came the hard part. She had researched the best way to deliver while alone. She prepared an area, close to the machine. There was almost no time between contractions now. She prepared herself to push.\n\nAt that moment a man and a woman came through the door. They froze, wearing expressions that clearly said, \" Oh my God! Why is there a woman giving birth in my workspace!\"\n\n\" How close is it?\" asked the man with a familiar voice\n\n\"Very!\" replied Ann, \"I need to push!\"\n\n\"Laura, go get help\" the man instructed his companion.\n\nAnn knew that voice. It was Henry.\n\nWithin 5 minutes, and with Henry's help, Ann had delivered a healthy baby girl.\n\n Ann hit the timer button on her watch \"I was expecting a boy\", she said with a smile, \"She's beautiful.\" Suddenly she had a sickening realization: she had forgotten her gun. How was she going to fulfill the last condition?\n\nShe looked up at Henry, and said desperately, \"Kill me! Please!\"\n\n\"What? Why? Your baby!\"\n\n\" I was there the night of your argument with John. I know!\" When Henry started to protest Ann said, \" PLEASE! I have 15 seconds!\"\n\nHenry's military experience allowed him to snap her neck with little difficulty. \n\n\"She knew too much\", was all he had to say when asked about her death. Nobody really cared enough to investigate the death of a schizophrenic custodian.\n\nIt has taken me 20 years to find this information about my mother. Without my skills, it would have been impossible. Her sacrifice allowed me to be born. But my biological father's sins put her in that terrible position. He is a hard man to touch, and without my skills, it might be impossible....", "Parents… God, I hate them all. My little Johhnie is soooo special. The soccer moms and sports dads trying to relive their glory days are bad enough, but now things are just absurd. Once the realization struck that where their child is born will influence what their abilities might be, parent wanted the best for their children. Inevitably, mothers were one-upping one another in finding ways to make their baby the best. It started off innocuously enough. Maybe they’ll be the best cook if they’re born in a kitchen. How about a stronger connection to nature? Go into the woods.\n\nThen the more extreme parents started to find even more absurd places. Want your baby to fly, try skydiving. Want Kaighleigh to have cold powers, into the freezer you go. Want Lohgan to heal fast, try some self-mutilation.\nOnce mothers starting permanently injuring themselves and several incidents involving death, the government started stepping in to try to regulate and contain these overzealous parents. A mother’s obsession (sorry, I can’t call it love) for the best for their child wasn’t even slowed. If anything, they became more creative and dangerous in their methods. Soon after it was discovered that the more dangerous the birth, the more powerful the baby.\n\nMy mom was one of those who want the best for me. She also had a specific power she wanted me to have. She wanted me to have the power of energy. She was also rich and influential. Of course she wasn’t about to risk her own life for me. She found some poor surrogate mother in dire need of money who didn’t know any better. \nThey electrocuted her with as much energy as they could on the day of my birth. Of course she didn’t survive, but I did. I’m powerful. I have enough energy to run the entire planet without the need for oil, solar, wind, or any other energy source.\n\nSo I’m now the savior of humanity. Gone are the coal plants and carbon emissions. The planet’s temperature is returning to its normal bounds. Technological advances have soared since energy is no longer a requirement. \nJust a little bit longer before all sources of energy but me are phased out. And then… the savior of humanity becomes the curse of humanity as all power in the world is reduced to nothing. Not a single modern civilization will exist without their vaunted power source.\n\nScrew you, mom." ]	4
	[WP] A horrific, multidimensional, Lovecraftian monster is depressed it can't pet and play with the cute lil humans without driving them completely insane	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 have always been. Alone. I am not as powerful as Lord Cthulu, but that is a good thing. He sits on his ivory tower so full of himself that its intolerable to be around him. I honestly wish he would drive me insane like he did the humans. He both craved and despised their adoration. Me, I was lonely and just wanted a friend. \n\nI crossed the barrier many times. It was simple enough. Built to keep Us out by those who had no idea how to do it, the barrier was more of a chain link fence than an interdimensional wall. But it made them feel safe so We had decided to respect it. Most of the time anyway. I kept looking for someone to spend time with. Not a lover nor even a companion. But a friend. A pet if you will. But each time I revealed my true self, they grabbed their heads with both hands and stared screaming. The screams annoyed me but it was a universal sign I'd failed again. Until I met Emily. \n\nEmily was completely blind and almost totally deaf. I'd first saw her at a restaurant in the small town I'd chosen to frequent. She seemed happy as I saw her which compelled me to reach out to her. As she layed down to rest, I walked slowly from her closet. \"Good evening. You may call me Hexa. What is your name?\" I asked. I knew her name from the moment I saw her but social protocols demanded she voluntarily reveal it. \"I'm Emily. Why were you in my closet?\" Fair question. I couldn't explain why (I didn't want to driver her mother and stepfather insane upon seeing me and the closet network was much better for quick travel) so I lied instead. \"I've been here a long time and wanted to introduce myself\" I told her. \"that is neat. You need to leave soon tho. Eric will be here soon and he doesnt like surprises.\" I looked upon her. She was smiling but behind it I could see her fear of when Eric showed up. \"Okay. I'll be back soon. Have a good night, Emily.\" She waved in my direction and I took my leave. But I didn't leave. I stayed silent. I waited. \n\nSoon, Eric opened the door. Pants button already undone. I had seen all I needed to. I forced Emily to sleep with a wave of my hand and then came forward from the shadows. \"You. You're going to feel the pain of the void. For all time.\" I said in the mother tongue. He grabbed his head with both hands and began to scream. \"You will not be released so easily. Look into my eyes and see the true face of horror\" I said in the mother tongue as I grabbed his wrists. He screamed as loudly as he could. I didnt care. This man was evil. But he has not seen the true face of darkness. I would be happy to share with him the void. I forced him to gaze into my eyes until he was still. Sitting silently in the corner. But I knew his mind was screaming into a void that would never answer. This was my gift. Emily would no doubt have questions about what happened to her stepfather. I would craft a lie to calm her. Until then, I would keep watch over her. She was mine. And I was hers. For all time." ]	2
	[WP] Six times you have been hanged, and now comes the seventh time.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 hear a knock at the door. \"It's time\" I hear the male voice say. I look at the barred window, hot summer day, I look at the markings on the wall. maybe June 7th will be the day. the door opens and the man sees me sitting on my bed. \"Hurry up now!\" I decide that I would rather take my chances with another failed hanging then the chance of a gun jam.\n\nwe make our way out to the execution ward. murmurs come out from the bystanders. I think back to how I got here, what began as vandalism evolved to assault of inmates, then assaults on officers, then what took me to deathward was organization of a riot. I have my regrets, but the inhumane conditions seemed to balance it out me then. I go up the stairs, I see Jane. she looked over then quickly winked and went back to staring at the sky as she usually does.\\` I instantly know that June 7th isn't the day.\n\nthe loop goes over my neck, the priest comes out and does his usual prepared paragraph. something along the lines \"We stand before the sinners of \\insert names here\\ yada yada may god have mercy on your souls\" but halfway through the speech we here gunshots and the priest drops dead. the executioners run for the lever, only to get shot when the get to it. the guards desperately try to defend but are overran by the prisoners.\n\n\"you don't ever give in do you?\" I ask her.\n\n\"nope, I wouldn't expect you to either.\" she responds. the prisoners undo the nooses from our necks, Dave tossed me a shotgun, and I thought to myself, \"I think that day won't come for a long time\".", "\"Aren't you tired of this yet, Jack?\"\n\nHe snorted in reply, shoving me hard enough that I stumbled on the slick stones, groaning a bit as my shoulder slammed into the wall.\n\n\"Ergh. Hardly sporting, shoving a man about with his hands bound...\"\n\nThat drew a filthy snicker, and the greasy little hangman's apprentice flashed a gap-toothed grin in my direction. \"Ain't gonna be worryin' about that long, boy.\"\n\nI couldn't help but go along as he shoved me back into motion by wrenching up on my bound hands, and then we were out of the tunnel and before the crowd.\n\nIt's always a morbidly fascinating sight, the crowd at an execution. Some people are there for the entertainment of watching a man die, others to see justice done... and from the smell, at least one to sell questionable sausages to the gathered crowds. I was quietly thankful that I was here to die rather than be exposed to those sausages again. Hanging might be preferable to a week perched over the jakes praying for an end.\n\nThe way the crowd's volume increased as we appeared was oddly flattering. One does appreciate a bit of notoriety, and given how well the last attempt went, it was mixed with jeers for my escort as well. \n\n\"Sounds like they recognize you, Jack!\" I smirked to the crowd, as always. One has appearances to maintain. The furiously muttered oaths from the hangman's apprentice were definitely helping improve my mood as I mounted the steps to the gallows and stood unbowed as the hooded executioner dropped the noose around my neck.\n\n\"We did this one up special for you, after that last time.\" Jack was gloating now, as he yanked the rough hemp tighter against my throat. \"No more mercy of a long drop and a clean break, just a slow knot so you can dance in the air for the crowd.\"\n\n\"Wanna bet?\"\n\nJack's gloating grin darkened to a scowl, and he stalked off to be replaced by the hooded visage of the executioner, who silently checked the knot before nodding over the priest.\n\n\"Are you sure you will not repent, my son?\" The local vicar was a humble man, secure in is faith but mild and meek as a dormouse. He and I had spoken in the morning and I had refused last rights, as I had before.\n\n\"I have done nothing to be ashamed of, Father.\" He was baffled that I could smile at ease standing in the noose, but finally he nodded and stepped away.\n\n\"Any last words?\" The executioner finally spoke, a bass rumble that seemed dispassionate to the point of boredom with the routine of his duties.\n\n\"They'll not be needed today. After all...\"\n\n\"Oh, SHUT UP.\" I felt more than heard the snap as Jack seized the trap's handle and yanked it in frustration, and then I was weightlessly falling.... to hit the ground below with a thump and another groan.\n\n\"You fucked it up again, Jack!\"" ]	3
	[WP] You are walking down the street when a stranger runs up to you yelling your name. You’ve never seen them when they stop themselves and say, “oh that’s right... we haven’t met yet.” They awkwardly straight up and walk away.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 man was strangely familiar,I am sure I have never met him but the way he looked at me... it was so familiar. His presence felt like meeting an old friend again , yet I had no idea who he was. The way he spoke then straight up left made me shiver, I was about to yell for him to come back but he disappeared. When I finally got home I was a mess, consumed by my own thoughts. I tried to think back to yesterday but I don’t remember anything from the day before. It was like I was placed into this world with no memories of who I was, no no that isn’t possible it can’t be. I took a shower to take my mind off my thoughts but they remained in my head. I finally got to sleep. My dream is pitch black when I hear a voice. “They are here” it was a deep and raspy voice like a typical villains but the presence seemed almost friendly. “Young hero” it said “you are destined for great things, so long as you don’t fail again” I was so confused, what did it mean by again? Hero? Why was it so familiar? It was to much for me to take in. I woke up in a puddle of cold sweat. Still confused I get dressed, when I finish I hear a knock at my door. “Hello?” In the door way I see the same person from yesterday. “There you, are we need to get you ready, 356th times a charm after all”. “What do you mean?” I said confusedly. “Don’t you remember your mission, haven’t you seen your dream” “how did you-“ remember it’s me Renver!” Suddenly the memories keep flooding back, countlessly dying in different ways. Going back to try again only to end up failing, each time so close to victory yet so far. “Yes” I say “come on in, we have a world to save and this time we won’t fail”" ]	2
	[WP] You have the power to forget any memory	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 at the movie theater ready to see Dog’s Day Out. I went up to the ticket booth and asked the girl there for one ticket. I handed her money and she gave me my change and my ticket.\n\n“Enjoy the show,” she said.\n\n“Thanks, you too,” I said and then I froze in my tracks. She just laughed and I hurried and turned away. I sighed with disappointment. There’s another memory I will have to forget. I screwed up my face and concentrated for a second and then my head felt light as air. What was I thinking about again? No matter, it was probably nothing important. I went and enjoyed my movie." ]	2
	[WP] People think you're crazy but you'd be nowhere in life without the voices in your head. They gave you the winning lottery numbers; they helped you win over your soon-to-be-wife; and they brought you happiness. But one day the voices stop. And now your life seems to be falling apart.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Have you done the dishes?\" My wife asks.\n\n\"Nope.\"\n\n\"Why not?\"\n\n\"I dunno.\"\n\nMy wife looks at me like I just said something strange. Had I? I'm not sure. I used to have these voices that would tell me, but I haven't heard them today. Usually they start telling me what I should do the moment I wake up, but this morning they hadn't, so I just stayed in bed, staring at the ceiling. Eventually I go bored and got up, but I didn't know what to do. The voices usually told me to go to work, but that was boring and I only ever really did it so they wouldn't shout at me. I thought I might anyways, just so they wouldn't be mad when they got back, but I didn't feel like it. It wasn't my idea to invest all my lottery winnings into starting a business that does... something. I'm sure the voices would know, but I never bothered to remember. The voices always told me what to do, so why would I bother remembering? \n\nI'd just been kind of... pacing around the house all day, checking out the decor, playing with some of the more interesting gadgets the voices had made me get. I remember them arguing over whether these things would actually make me happy, but I had tuned that out. They argued like that a lot. They seemed to have been doing it more and more lately... well, until today. Always about what would make me happy. Sometimes they'd ask me about it, but I didn't know. Weren't they supposed to be the ones with all the answers? \n\nWhat was I doing again? Right! My wife had asked about the dishes. I wish I could remember her name, but that hadn't seemed important until this morning. I suppose I could wash the dishes. It's something to do and doing something someone else wants me to do reminds me of the voices... I'm beginning to miss them.\n\nMy wife is still looking at me strangely... I'm not sure when she got this close. I'm not used to thinking and I haven't figured out how to pay attention to what's happening while I'm doing it. I think she asked me if I'm okay? Am I? I don't feel bad, but the voices are gone and that seems to be a bad thing? Should I tell her that? The voices never liked me talking about them. Why is she on the phone now? Doctor? Do I need a doctor? I don't know. I'm going to go do the dishes now. \n\n...\n\nDoctor... I don't remember his name, though I'm sure he told it to me. It's so hard to remember things like names. The doctor showed up after I had finished the dishes. I think he's the one my wife was on the phone with. He asked me a few questions, but I didn't know the answers. He said something about a hospital, but it seemed to make my wife cry, so I didn't want to go. I said I want to stay with her, but he said I needed \"proper care\" whatever that means. They're sending people in the morning to pick me up with my things. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I wish the voices would come back... they'd know what to do." ]	2
	[WP] The saying 'all dogs go to heaven' has been true for ages, in the last moments of their life, their eyes turn golden and an angel tells you how much your dog appreciated his/her life through your dog. It is at the moment that your sweet dog's eyes turn red, that you know something isn't right.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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, you see: I hadn't been a bad owner. I'd not beaten my dog. I'd not starved it or used it for baiting others.\n\nBess tended to herself for the most part. I filled up her bowls every day and then left her to it.\n\nBut the baying of the other local dogs drove me outside to have a look for my old hound. There she was lying near the shed, her grey muzzle barely visible. She looked up at me through tired brown eyes and I knew she was dying. The damn dog had never wagged her tail for me. For my grown-up children when they turned up, sure. My wife, before she passed? Always. For me? Never.\n\n\"What?\" I said. \"What're you looking at me like that for?\"\n\nI saw the faint glow in her eyes and sighed, crouching down to touch her head. Everyone knew their dog's eyes turned gold and I did half-wonder what she'd say about me.\n\nBut then it turned red. I fell backwards and scrabbled backwards on the short, scrubby grass of my lawn as the old dog stood up and stared me down. It was the same soft voice that people had recorded of their own dogs' passing, but it wasn't tinged with love and gentleness.\n\n\"Bess loved your wife. She loved your children. But you?\"\n\nI opened my mouth to protest but all that came out was a strangled squawk.\n\n\"You say you hadn't been a bad owner but neither were you good. What care did you show to this animal aside from feeding her? You never trained her: you never brought her in. You were too greedy to give her to your children who truly loved her but had no intention of treating her properly. How dare you. You never noticed Bess falling ill.\"\n\nWords failed me as I tried to search for a single time I'd given Bess any care. She'd been eating less of late, true, but I'd been so...\n\nI looked at the dog. She was barely skin and bone, her fur sparse and coarse.\n\n\"Oh god.\" I moaned, as I sank back to the floor and put my head in my hands. \"How could I?\"\n\n\"You shall repent.\"\n\nEveryone knew when a dog's life passed judgement. Dogs would refuse to go near you: they'd bark and growl, and the occasional one would attack the Judged. They'd go through their lives as a social outcast until the spirit of the dog they'd been Judged for considered them as repented. Some people received relatively light sentences. I had no doubt I would be shouldering my burden for years to come.\n\nThere was a big difference between a good owner and whatever I had been.\n\nEdit: /r/Eight_Legged_Pest" ]	2
	[WP] It's the year 2050, and science has made many breakthroughs and discoveries. One of them- The aurora lights are distress calls, in an alien morse code.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Red wave, Blue cloud, Purple wave, and Clear. What does that mean, Quick!\"\n\n\"Can you stop shouting at me Richard, I have to flip through the entire 39 page packet to find each one.\"\n\n\"Didn't you have an online training course for this?\"\n\n\"Yeah, but I got bored halfway through and just looked up the answers\" John flipped to the last page of the packet. \"Did you say purple wave or purple cloud at the end.\"\n\n\"Ummmmm, I can't remember\" Richard looked at John quizzically. \"What does it say so far?\"\n\n\"Well so far it says, 'Sending you _____' in alien Morse code of course.\" John looked up. \"Did you record the message. Richard smacked his head.\n\n\"Nope, I forgot. Why don't we just guess? How hard could it be to guess what an alien would say to a brand new species?\"\n\n\"Pretty hard considering this is the first interstellar life the world has ever found, okay. There's no room for error here. And someone else definitely saw the lights so we should report something even if it is incomplete.\" John began to pick up the main line phone to the Alien Life Form department, shortened usually to the ALF department. It reminded him of that show ALF from when he was a kid. God, he loved that show, there were so many plot holes. How was ALF suppose to eat cats if his planet of Melmec didn't have cats on-\n\n\"THE DARK SIDE OF THE MOON!\" screamed Richard.\n\n\"What,\" replied John \"are you talking about?\"\n\n\"THINK ABOUT IT!\" Richard screeched once again. \"THEY ARE LOCATED ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE LUNAR ORBIT!\"\n\n\"Okay, I'll send it to ALF\" God John loved that show, even though there were so many plot holes. How was ALF suppose to eat cats if his planet of Melmec didn't have cats on-\n\n\"John, send it, it seems like you keep dozing off.\"\n\n\"Okay, okay, I'm sorry...and sent.\" John kicked his feet up, \"Hey Richard is ALF on any streaming services?\"\n\n\"ALF like the show?\"\n\n\"Yeah\"\n\n\"I'm not sure, I haven't really thought about that show in a while, I me-\" Just then more flashes of light illuminated the sky. John tracked them, and they seemed to a repeat of before. \"What's it say John?\"\n\n\"Sending you, the HULU password? That's weird? WAIT!\" John checked and sure enough there it was on the front page of Hulu,\n\n \"Now streaming ALF\"" ]	2
	[WP]The Bloody Countess (Elizabeth Bathory) was known for buying, torturing, killing, and then throwing young peasant staff from her castle behind her walls to be ripped apart by wolves. Your parents are offered 1k if they would allow you to be sent to the Bloody Countess's castle to "work".	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Countess Bathory knew exactly who to target when extending such bloody offers. My parents fit her bill perfectly -- a little bit crazed, a little bit desperate, and easily willing to part with their child for a sack of gold. I wasn't the least bit surprised when they sold me off with hardly a second thought.\n\nGood riddance. I was better off out of that damn house, even if it meant the possibility of dying by the Bloody Countess' hands. Though, that wasn't an outcome I was planning to let happen.\n\nWhen Bathory's men showed up at our door to whisk me away, I was more than happy to leave with them. I didn't say farewell to my parents, and they were too distracted by the gleaming gold in their hands to care. I had more important things to focus on, anyway.\n\nThe two armored men mocked me as I rode in their horse-drawn cell, like a caged animal. I let their words soak into me. They fueled my rage, gave me drive. I bottled my emotions, putting them aside and focusing on the landscape around me. I took in my surroundings, noting places I'd been to before and the direction we were headed. I focused on the men in front of me, staining my memory with their faces. They were ones I would be sure not to forget.\n\nNight had fallen by the time we arrived at Castle Bathory. They threw me in the dungeon, locking me in a dark, musty cell. There were devices that looked like they'd be used for torture in each of the cells, including mine. I inspected them, looking over each of their locks and mechanisms. Before I knew it, I'd found a warm spot in the corner of the room, and dozed off.\n\nBathory herself gave me a rude awakening the next morning. She had a cruel smile on her face, like some great beast staring down a measly deer. She was sizing me up, and I, her. \n\n\"Hello, child,\" the woman finally said. Her voice was low and smooth, like a seductress of common myths. I said nothing to respond, which seemed to irritate her. \"Insolence!\" she yelled suddenly, pulling out a whip and lashing at me from the other side of the bars. \"You shall respond to me when spoken to, weakling. Do you understand me?\"\n\nI gnashed my teeth together at the pain of the whip, but still didn't respond. The pain of a whip was nothing compared to what I'd have to endure on my way out of here.\n\nFace red with anger, the countess struck at me again, earning a pained groan from me. She continued whipping me, striking the same spot with practiced accuracy. I gave her no satisfaction. The pain would likely make me pass out before long. \n\nThe whip struck me once more, then a curse escaped from Bathory's lips. I was seeing double, but I still had a victory.\n\n\"Tomorrow,\" Bathory said, slightly short of breath, \"We'll see how long you can keep those lips sealed. For now, my men will have some fun with you.\" She chuckled cruelly and walked away, leaving me with the two men who had brought me here. They had dark, sadistic smiles on their faces, drunk with the anticipation of blood. They pried open the gate.\n\nI moved faster than they could react. I pulled a shard of glass from my shoe and dashed forward, slashing it across the first man's neck. He'd hardly reacted at all. Perhaps it was rare for prisoners to try and fight back.\n\nHis neck sprayed blood across the walls, and he tumbled to the ground. My hand screamed in pain from the glass, but I endured it. The pain of the whip was certainly worse than this.\n\nThe second man pulled out his blade and jabbed at me. I avoided his first two thrusts, but his third strike came down on my left shoulder, tearing into flesh. I screamed out, holding back tears, and struck forward, catching the man while his guard was down. I painted his neck red.\n\nHe crumbled to the ground, pulling his sword out of my shoulder with him. Tears streamed down my face from the pain. It felt like my body was on fire. I quickly used the cloth of the men's clothes to form a makeshift bandage around my shoulder. It wouldn't do to lose too much blood before the final fight.\n\nI picked up the man's sword, tossing aside the blade of glass. No time to wait. I had a countess to kill.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n(17)" ]	2
	[WP] Write a journal of a desperate soldier and his expedition through ancient catacombs.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "1\n---\nThe plane crashed.\n\nWe're somewhere, god knows where.\n\nSarge, Jenkins and Berre are here with me. We've got food and water, but nothing else except for the uniform on our backs. We've already called for help, Morse code transmitters and all of that.\n\nFound a shelter, looks like some weird dusty dungeon place. Gives me the fucking creeps, heh. Roman catacombs. Honestly, I've never seen a place that looked and smelled so... gray. It smells gray. That's the best way I can put it.\n\n3\n---\nNot much has happened, except I think the transmitter's busted.\n\nSarge has gone out to try and get help, we don't even remember how we got here - through a plane, maybe. Writing all I can here, in case I forget anything. Heh. \n\nHave I mentioned how weird this place is? Like, skulls on the walls. Grey everywhere. Labyrinth-ish. This has to be some weird Satanist thing. I hope Lucifer himself doesn't possess me or anything, heh. Don't remember what these were called, actually.\n\nWe've still got food and water, so that's good.\n\n6 \n---\nSarge came back today. He said he couldn't find the exit, which is weird because I remember coming in here through... wait. What did we come through here again? I wrote this down somewhere. \n\nAh yeah! Plane. Plane crash. Are we going to war? I don't remember. I asked Jenkins, and B... what was his name?\n\n7\n---\nWe found a corpse today.\n\nWe went exploring through this weird gray place. Took all our rations and water (we have quite a lot actually, soldiers are always prepared) and turned a corner. There it was. I don't remember exactly what it looked like, but it seemed fresh. Which is weird, because these have the old catacomby vibe. Maybe someone got lost?\n\nAgain, weird.\n\nBut weirder is that there were some gross mutilations on the body. I don't remember exactly, again, but there was a hole in the middle of its chest. Fist-sized. \n\nNot going to lie, I'm getting pretty scared.\n\n8\n---\nWe set up camp at a corner in the catacombs. Morse code transmitter busted, but I'm sure someone's going to come find us. It's kind of suffocating here, I don't even remember what the outside looked like. \n\nJenkins started going crazy, though. He started pointing at a skull, saying 'IT SPEAKS TO ME'. Tried to tear it out of the walls, the skull. It seemed exactly the same as every other skull. I don't understand him sometimes. He's really going fucking insane. Sad. I remember him in boot camp. Great guy, I remember. Great. Suuper charismatic. Now he's just, yelling at skulls.\n\n9\n---\nWe slept, and then we woke up to the sound of Jenkins tearing a hole in his chest. Fist-sized. He was screaming so fucking loud. Yelling. Yelling about 'how he remembers'. 'the skulls remember'. 'i remember the skulls'. I'm writing in lowercase because that's what it sounded like. I can't - I can't remember it precisely. But it sounded exactly what lowercase would sound like.\n\nJenkins is dead, of course.\n\nThis place got to him.\n\nWe need to get out.\n\nAt least his blood was a different color from all this gray I've been seeing for 9 days.\n\n10\n---\nWe went expediting. Walked through these catacombs, walked and walked and walked, even started jogging. We're starting to get desperate. Rows and rows of skulls, endless. I don't remember much about the outside, it seems like I've been here so long. So many skulls. Sarge seems like he's about to crack, and Berre doesn't seem great either. At least - I don't remember Sarge ever looking good, but he looks especially gray today.\n\nBut when we walked in one direction, we found ourselves back at Jenkins' corpse again.\n\nThere's- no. No, fuck.\n\n11\n---\nicanfeelit\n\n12\n---\nBerre is dead. Fist-sized hole, again. He somehow managed to claw at Sarge, too. He's pretty shaken up. So am I, honestly. This place is fucking killing me. I'm hearing voices, about remembering something. Speaking to me. This might've been what J.. what was his name? Jenkins! Jenkins. Yeah. I looked back at the journal. This might've been what Jenkins went through. He had a mental breakdown in bootcamp, I don't think he's very fortified in the mind. I'm not surprised he was the first to go, but it's tragic, really. Really fucking tragic.\n\nBut anyways, back to the voices. They're there. I can hear them. Berre is dead. Fist-sized hole in the chest. He's here - his corpse is here, and Jenkins too. Both corpses are here, even though Sarge and I ran far, far away from them. Down this long skull hallway.\n\n13\n---\nI get what Jenkins was talking about now.\n\nI can hear it. \n\nCalling to me.\n\nI will offer it my heart.\n\nSarge is dead.\n\nIt is me and the skulls.\n\nThe skulls and I.\n\nI remember everything.\n\n14\n---\nI remember." ]	2
	[WP] You’re labeled a genius across the entire universe for developing the most advanced simulation ever seen: Planet Earth. As the most intelligent beings in your simulation begin to grow curious over their surroundings, and start ‘Space Explorations’, it’s time to press the reset button, again.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Planet Earth was renoun for the crazy premise of the simulation. A proof of concept with gross looking aliens with a bizzare society. \n\nIt featured the Humans. Weird creatures that walked precariously on two legs, falling down all the time. They were greasy, secreted fluids everywhere and were almost entirely hairless. They had a ridiculous nub of a probuscus in the middle of their head. They talked with their feeding orfices. They were made to 'sleep' or go unconcious and rest deeply almost 1/3rd of their lives in order to reduce entrophy.\n\nThe society they made was vastly fascinating and equally bizzare. They were made to be lazy and to crave comfort and it was intended they would settle only the most suitable enviroments and create highly efficient, sustainable societies. A culture that revolved around the complexities of interpersonal relationships. A few animals were designed exclusively to be used by them to do work for them. Problem was they made them too ambitious and waaay too smart.\n\nSo instead they created societies based on exploitation and enslaved each other. A bit off the mark, but they went really crazy when they discovered the embodied energy of the geological hydrocarbons added to Earth. \n\nIn a just a few generations they discarded slavery and their working animals and built a technological society pretty much devoted to labor saving devices. Only they still all worked. They developed a bizzare economic system that relied entirely on endless exponential growth to sustain. They almost instantly stripped their planet of energy sources and resources. They built settlements absolutely everywhere, even the dummied out continent of Antarctica.\n\nThe simulation itself drew 20 times the generous bandwidth allocated to it despite all parameters meant to make it simplier. There were huge gaps in the physics of the simulation and only lower orders were coded in. The human scientists relentlessly puzzled over various glitches and unimplimented features.\n\n Due to the huge population and complex society. A few mitigating patches were added. Some diseases were added but it made things worse. They reworked the physics of the simulation because they almost developed fusion power! 3 generations ago they didn't even have electricity it was crazy. They edited Mars and Venus to be totally inhospitable.\n\nNow they were seriously sending expeditions to build settlements on Mars despite the poisonous soil, radiation, total lack of resources. \n\nIt was too late to try to salvage it again. Best to reboot with different parameters, it was bad science and lost touch with the original goals of the sinulation. Nothing as crazy as Hunans would be possible in real life. Can you even imagine?\n\nHe observed the humans, christening an enormous chemical rocket carrying construction and mining robots destined for Mars. The chief programmer input the commands to delete the simulation." ]	2
	[WP] It's the modern era, but everyone believes that the only way to get to heaven is to spend every waking moment working. You just got fired.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Salvation.\n\nThat’s the reason that they always gave us in history classes. Sure, there were times when people didn’t devote every moment of their waking lives to their jobs. But we were better than those early humans. We were smarter.\n\nWe knew what salvation was, and we knew how to get there.\n\nIt was a typical Thursday for me, which meant it was a typical day for me. I woke up at 5:30AM so that I could get to the office by 6:30. That made me one of the later arrivals of the work day, but I told myself that I made up for it by staying until 1:30 every morning instead of leaving at midnight like everyone else.\n\nMy boss called me into her office the moment that I arrived. That was never a good sign; any meeting would be time that neither of us was working on the project.\n\nShe quickly explained that the company was expecting a fresh batch of university graduates in the morning, and that my position would be filled. This was to be my last day; I would be forced to leave at 11:59 that night.\n\nI knew that it was over the moment that I heard about the fresh blood. I was decent at my job, but “fresh batch” implied that these were kids who would get to the office at 4:45 just to make an impression. That wasn’t me.\n\nI knew what happened to the unemployed. The “useless” as our teachers called them. I would be kicked out of my apartment the next morning at 6AM, because anyone who hadn’t left home for work by 6AM was unemployed. Unusable.\n\nUnsalvageable.\n\nInstead of going back to my desk, I took the elevator up to the roof. If anyone recognized me, they would know that I should have been at my desk. Thankfully, the ride up was empty.\n\nI climbed the fence around the balcony and stepped out to the ledge of the building. If I died now, what would happen? I had a job until tonight at midnight, after all.\n\nI took a deep breath, closed my eyes, and jumped.\n\nAs I sailed by the windows of thousands of people trapped in their office buildings, I finally understood. When I hit the ground, I would be free from ever having to work again.\n\nI would reach it after all. The promised land.\n\nSalvation." ]	2
	[WP] One day, you wake up and everyone you’ve ever loved or cared for has been taken away. You have to give the most valuable thing to you that you’ve ever known away to get them back.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "\"Time is ticking.\" The black letters flickered ominously on the white screen as I just sat on my knees in defeat.\n\nHow did it come to this.\n\n\"I don't know!\" I screamed slamming my fists onto the cold stone floor.\n\nI could feel the tiny pebbles digging into my skin, and just watched with tears as small streams of blood began coursing along the cracks in the cement illuminated by the repetitive flashing of the screen before being swallowed by the darkness around me.\n\nWhat was the most important thing to me?\n\nI scrunched my eyes and tried racking my brain.\n\nLife had finally started for me. I had finally found a therapist to help me with my depression and anorexia. Finally graduated from my university. Finally reconciled with my parents.\n\nAnd now here I was, trying to find something to offer this creature in some unknown dimension; give this \"thing\" what I most valued for my family's return.\n\nI looked up, tears clouding my vision as the screen flickered.\n\n\"One minute.\"\n\n\"There's nothing I have physically that would truly break me to part with,\" I pleaded with this entity. \"All I've built for myself up till this point have been the achievements I've accomplished and the relationships I've mended.\" I looked at the floor again and placed my bleeding hands in my lap.\n\n\"If anything--\" I paused as a sob racked my voice, \"I have my happiness.\"\n\nThere was a silence and the flickering of the screen paused as the words slowly crept out of my lips.\n\n\"It might be formed by many factors, and to others it may even be a given but to me...\" I paused again as the emotion welled up in my chest, \"To me I have clawed, fought, cried blood to find this treasure. I might as well be dead without it.\"\n\nA soft orb of light bloomed between my bloodied fingers, glowing in iridescent color. I gasped softly and held it up to my eyes in wonder only to look in horror as a skeletal hand slowly pushed its fingers through the screen towards me.\n\n\"The offer has been accepted.\" The screen flickered the black letters, each letter an abyssal chasm as they flickered against the white screen.\n\nThe skeletal hand reached my trembling hands and slowly cupped the orb in its palm. As the vestiges of light trailed from my hands into its fingers I suddenly broke, the held back tears now flowing and splashing into the blood trails on the ground. I clutched my chest as I watched the skeletal hand slowly sink into the screen before the screen flickered black, leaving me rocking back and forth in the darkness with tears streaming down my face, silently screaming.", "“No! No! No! Not me, not my family.” Moreth sunk to his knees. It was inevitable, but he had been able to avoid it for so long. The Culling. The overgrowth of population led to people disappearing. Of course it wasn’t the rich that were culled. Brain drain, they called it. Only less than average people were poor and only less than average people had kids anymore. Had to keep humanity’s genes strong. Motivation, they called it. If you were smart, you’d find a way not to be poor. Never mind the system was always stacked against you. Never mind that the rich people controlled the robots that made them rich while never lifting a finger. Even after populations leveled off, the policies were all normalized and became a part of life. Why should it be changed? It never affected the people who made the laws and everybody above the poverty level. In fact, it benefited them quite nicely.\n\nMoreth slowly walked through the shanty that he shared with his parents, sister, wife, and three children, fingers caressing the meager possessions housed within. He looked in on his parents’ room, where he had spent nights cuddled up as a small child next to his loving parents. He passed where his younger sister currently sleeps, regarding their friendship and adventures of youth. He hesitated momentarily before he pushed open the curtain to the room his wife and children shared with him. He passed the bedroll where he shared stories and played games with his children before bed, his own bed where he and his wife shared their deepest desires and darkest dreads.\n\nUnsure of how much time had passed as Moreth relived the memories of his lifetime, he decided it was time. At least he had a full day before he had to answer the call. He opened to the door to the shanty to begin the long walk to the edge of Pauper’s Square. Eyes darted briefly to him and then looked down at the ground. Everybody knew this walk, this face, this feeling. They’d all felt it. Talking about it only made it worse and made everyone feel helpless. \n\nMoreth stops before the gates and stares at the inhuman sentry before him. “I’m here for my family. Release them all and take me their place.”\n\nA robotic voice responds, “Come with me, sir.” The gate opens and Moreth follows the sentry through. Moreth had no idea why they only wanted only people who would willingly sacrifice themselves over their family. At least this way he had a chance of surviving a little longer than what would have faced his entire family.\n\n“Anna, be strong,” Moreth vainly prayed in the hopes that his words would reach his wife and kids as the gates to the only life he ever knew was closed forever. “Live life to the fullest you can. I love you all.”", "Everyone's always told not to make a deal with the devil.\n\nAnd yet, here I am, walking among the flames with my mind in knots and my world in shambles.\n\nPlumes of heat circle me with dangerous intensity, seemingly interrogating my soul. But even as they encroach on me, even as they lick at my skin, I don't feel any pain. The smoky tendrils don't burn. They only burn for people who aren't supposed to be here.\n\nCringing at myself and letting the flames singe the tears from my eyes, I walk on. Step after step on the cracked, earthy path, I walk on. I walk on with fatigue in my bones, regret behind my eyes, and the slightest, faintest glimmer of hope in my heart.\n\nSuddenly, as the world in front of me parts, becoming less than just smoke and ash, my world shakes again. With my legs trembling and fear gripping my heart, I fall to a crouch, shielding my eyes from the oncoming light.\n\nThen, all at once, it stops.\n\n\"So he arrives,\" a booming voice says. The sheer intensity of it makes me cough and I stand up to stare the vile beast right in the eyes.\n\nSatan smiles at me, twirling the flaming trident in his forsaken hands. The burnt, ashen wings he carries wilt behind him as just his sight scares near all humility from my soul.\n\n\"Just like you requested,\" I say, stepping forward on shaky legs. \"You said you would offer me a deal.\"\n\nThe fiend of lost souls stops twirling the trident and his levity leaves in an instant. \"I did.\"\n\nThe shortness and confidence in his tone whips at me, kicking in my already broken soul. \"So what do we do here? Is this where I... Is this where I offer you my soul?\"\n\nI cringe at my own statement, my thoughts reviling it even now. Even the thought of taking my soul, my awkward, useless soul is one almost enough to make me laugh.\n\n\"That depends,\" he says, catching me by surprise. \"To grasp what you seek, you must part with the most precious thing you have ever known.\"\n\nMy eyes bulge, but only one part of his sentence gets through. \"Where are they?\" I ask. \"Where... where are they?\"\n\nSatan's eyes flare, but he only shrugs. His trident stomps the cracked earth and the flames around us part in small windows each hiding their twisted, tortured faces.\n\nRicky, my best friend; Justin, my brother; Mayline, my wife. A smoky hitch catches in my throat as I scan all of their faces, watching in horror as tears are burned off their faces and they squirm in agony. Some see me, their eyes widening in my presence, but some don't even notice, too caught up in their agony to look.\n\nMy breaths quicken. \"Anything. I'll give anything.\"\n\nSatan's eyebrow shoots up and he smiles. \"That's the spirit. But you must remove what you cherish most.\"\n\nI shake my head. \"Anything! If you want my soul, take it. If you want all the valuables I've ever owned, all the property, you can have whatever you—\"\n\nThe devil stops me, stomping the ground once more. I stumble, nearly falling to my knees. He glares at me and curls his lip, deep shocks of disgust registering in my mind.\n\nAnger flares inside of me and the faces of those I love most don't help the cause.\n\n\"No. You must give your—\"\n\nIn an action I can barely believe myself, I step forward again and cut the beast off. \"My what?\" I ask. \"I'm worthless! I have almost nothing to give! These people... they're everything to me.\"\n\n\"Precisely,\" the devil says, his smile returning. \n\nI look up at him, blinking back blurry eyes. \"What?\"\n\n\"Your love for them is all you have. And so it is all I will take.\"\n\nMy eyes bloom and my fingers twitch, no words coming to my lips. My wife shakes her head, screams building in her throat before more smoke enters her lungs and she is sent coughing.\n\nResolve builds in my mind and I stare at the beast. \"Don't let them hear this,\" I say more firmly than I've ever spoken before.\n\nSatan's eyebrow shoots up again but he complies, cracking the grounds of hell with another show of power.\n\nA moment of silence passes as their screams fade away.\n\n\"Out of curiosity, why?\" he asks.\n\nI stare at the floor. \"I am nothing. I am worthless.\" The words sting me even now. \"I don't deserve any of them. They deserve better than me. They truly are all I have.\"\n\n\"So you are ready to—\"\n\n\"My love for them runs deeper than anything I've ever owned. They've lifted me too much... I can't let them burn.\" The devil's frustration is swallowed by a smile. \"I accept.\"\n\n\"I knew you would,\" he says, the ground shrinking between me and him.\n\nHe places his hand on my shoulder and I can already feel it starting. The burn of the flames; not on my skin, but in my mind instead. The feelings, images, memories, all burnt to dust.\n\nWith what little energy I have left, I cast a glance back out to the faces I'm starting not to recognize.\n\nAnd I give them a reassuring smile followed by an all too joyous nod as those who I love are set free and my reason for doing so is burnt straight to ash. \n\n---\n\n/r/Palmerranian" ]	4
	[WP] Two words: Cowboy. Fish.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", " Cowboy. Fish. What do they have in common? Well, how about the seahorse? I'm a merman who rides these seahorses as big as me, and let me tell you. They are fun, but really mischievous. I have 3 of them. One is a coral seahorse named Cindy, another, a kelp seahorse named Emerald, and then I have this brown one I don't know the breed, I call her Regina. I mostly ride Cindy on strolls through the sea, because she is a calm seahorse. When racing, I use emerald to race through the kelp and ahead of everyone. Regina, I train her and make sure she stays nice for when we go to the shows. I love the adventures I had with them. They all are my closest family." ]	2
	[WP] Your girlfriend prefers subtle gestures and dinner dates to loud parties and bombastic gifts. The only problem is she's a dragon and dragons are not subtle is any way, shape, or form.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 slip quietly into your girlfriend's home, flowers in one hand, and a large roll of paper in the other. You really hope she likes it, you've been working on it for nearly a month. \n\nEver since you two met, a year ago today, you've both been smitten. Bumping into one another on the mountain trail, when you had been searching for a good spot to take some pictures of the valley below. The sight of her had been terrifying at first, her on the edge of the cliff, staring down at the trail below. Had she been watching your progress up the slopes?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nNow though, everything is just right. Okay, there were a few bumps along the way. Your family was pretty wary of her, your Uncle Alec even suggested driving her out of town, but at least your parents were sensible enough to calm him down. There was that Bounty Hunter a few weeks after that, but your girlfriend insisted that she was innocent of what the man was accusing her of. He blamed her for a fire that destroyed a whole town, and had seen the loss of many lives.\n\nThat night had been blisteringly cold, and the Hunter had fled the next morning, clutching his frostbitten fingers as he went.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"I know you're there, my love. I can hear you.\" comes her voice from ahead, a soft chuckle emanating from the back of the cave.\n\n\"Happy Anniversary Earis! I've brought you some gifts, and I've even prepared dinner!\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nInto the light, a silver-blue scaled Dragon appears, lethal claws and razor fangs. God, she was beautiful. That this powerful drake had decided to give you a chance to court her was a miracle in itself, but fingers crossed tonight everything would be perfect.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Oh! Poetry? Thank you Caden, I love it!\" she cries as her long, slender talons peel open the paper. You've painted the words large enough for her to read your declarations of love written within, and breathe a soft sigh of relief that she likes it.\n\n\"Come on, follow me, I've set up dinner where we first met, I even brought your favourite.\"\n\n\"Cattle?! You spoil me too much, I'll fly us there, just let me put these in with my hoard.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nYou hope she likes the giant band of gold around the bull's neck, it was expensive and difficult to make, there's not exactly jewellery makers that cater to dragon-sized engagement rings!\n\nYou hope the neighbours don't turn up with their pitchforks again, but maybe this time you'll let Earis blast them into ice-cubes." ]	2
	[WP] You’re Lawyerus. The Greek God of Lawyers. For Millenia You’ve handled all manners of cases, Zeus and Hera’s divorce, Poseidon VS Illegal Fishing, Ten dozen copyright claims by Hephaestus. Now you face the biggest case of your career.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "“Let’s go over this one more time, Mr. Scratch.”\n\nScratch cleared his throat and straightened his back as he began to recite the testimony, just as he had been coached. He was an excellent speaker, probably the best that Lawyerus had represented. He would need to be to get out of this.\n\nOnce he had finished his recitation, Scratch smiled and addressed Lawyerus. “How did I do?”\n\n“Not bad. Try to tone down the conceit a bit, but beyond that, I think you’re ready.”\n\nScratch leaned back in his chair and placed his feet up on the desk. “Give it to me straight, Lawyerus. Do you think we’ll win this?”\n\n“I’ve never lost before. I don’t plan on starting now.”\n\n“I’m sure you don’t plan on it, but that isn’t up to you, is it?”\n\n“And yet, I still never lose,” Lawyerus replied. “I’ve had many so-called ‘unwinnable’ cases. Olympus v. Ares, Asgard v. Loki, Hubbard v. Cruise, I’ve won them all.”\n\nScratch chuckled as he took his feet off the desk. “I knew I had the right god for the job. May I ask you a personal question, if you don’t mind indulging me?”\n\nLawyerus checked his watch. Five minutes until they would be summoned.\n\n“We have a bit of time. Go ahead.”\n\nScratch leaned in toward Lawyerus and assumed a conspiratorial tone. “Have you ever worked a murder?”\n\nLawyerus fixed his eyes on his client, searching for any hint as to the impetus behind the question.\n\n“I work cases between divines, Scratch. You can’t murder what you can’t kill.”\n\n“Of course, of course,” Scratch conceded, raising his hands in defeat. “I was just curious.”\n\nThe short silence that filled the room was soon broken by a knock at the door. “They’re ready for you,” a stern voice bellowed through the door.\n\nLawyerus collected the folders on the desk and placed them into his briefcase, then stood. “Shall we?”\n\nScratch hopped to his feet and followed Lawyerus out of the room, down the arched hallway that formed the main thoroughfare through the courthouse, and into the courtroom. Spiritual beings of all shapes and wing arrangements filled the gallery, creating a steady murmur as they gossiped amongst themselves. Lawyerus passed a glance to his left as he and Scratch took their seats. Seated at the table next to them was a tall, fair-haired individual in a sharp suit.\n\n“Hello Gabriel,” Lawyerus said, nearly perfectly concealing his disdain behind a false smile.\n\nGabriel reciprocated the insincere pleasantries. “Hello Lawyerus. Best of luck today. You and your friend are going to need it.”\n\nBefore Lawyerus could retort, the back door to the courtroom opened, and the judge entered the room, ascended to his seat, and claimed his gavel. \n\n“All rise,” the judge commanded. Once those present had obeyed, and once the judge finished swearing in the prosecution and defense, he allowed them to sit. “So begins Criminal Action Number Six Hundred and Sixteen.” The judge paused, swallowing hard as he locked eyes with the defendant. “The Court of Heaven v. Lucifer.”" ]	2
	[WP] You are 31, and you just lost your last 2 baby teeth. As a joke, you put them under your pillow, and go to sleep	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 smile as you remember your mother, who you now know snuck into your room at night each time you lost a tooth as a child to leave you a dollar. She was brave through the cancer though the chemo made her lose her hair and some teeth, and dad seems to be sobering up now that the funeral is several months in the past.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAs you're dosing off you are awoken by movement under your pillow and for a moment you fee like a child again (you must be dreaming), but when you open your eyes, in the darkness you can make out a face that looks like your mother, only there is a dull glow to the eyes and emanating from the open mouth that illuminates her smile while she's shoving your teeth into her gums.", "A squeaky sound wakes me up. I see a very small silhouette in the doors. I rub my eyes but still, everything is blurry. The sound continues as the silhouette approaches the bed. I jump out and grab my torch and baseball bat. I direct the light at the silhouette. \nAn old ladylike being in a wheelchair slowly moves towards me. The squeaky sound is coming from the old and rusty wheelchair. Her hair was a mess, her face sad and her hands were weak, I don't even know how she manages to push herself. \nI notice a pair of wings on her back. They were broken, only a few blue and white lights flickered from time to time. I lower the baseball bat. She looks harmless, she's no danger to me. She's just a big unknown to me.\"Who, who are you?\" I ask but she doesn't say anything. She just moves the blanket from her lap and uncovers a shabby, leather briefcase. She growls and gives me a nod to take the briefcase. I placed it on the bed.\"Who are you and what do you want?!\" I ask firmly. She looks at me with her dry, sad eyes and starts: \"You. You are the cause of my misery. You killed me long ago even though I'm still alive. You every-week-dentist-visiting, high-on-calcium selfish piece of shit! You took my youth! I had dreams you know! Had a loving fiancee. We set the date and everything but always postponed, I focused on my career too much... HAD!\" \n\"But, who are...\" I tried but she kicked me in the balls with her cane. She somehow got her energy and yelled: \"Shut up and listen! Sit down! I gave my everything to you even though you never believed in me! Every shift I gave 100%. This job was my passion! I was the best in my class with unseen skills. Not even one child sensed my presence during my work. Floated like a butterfly, snatched like a bee. Not a single tooth left behind, not a single child woken up.\" \n\"Tooth fairy?\" I whispered. \n\"Yes! Took you long enough. Every night I sat on top of that closet there! And waited and waited thinking how every night is THE night. But never did the night came! Went out with you to every party and club hoping you would get in a fight and someone would knock them out of your too-much-milk-drinking mouth. But instead, I listened to you bragging to your friends and family how you still have 2 baby teeth. Is that something to brag about. really?! Those two baby teeth?! My precious! My unreachable precious!\" she ranted. \nIt slowly became unsettling. I asked: \"What can I do?\" \nAnd before I finished she hurls at me with all her strength and hits my mouth with her cane and knocks out a tooth. I fall on the floor feeling a bit dizzy. I see her pushing the wheelchair as fast as she can and aims at the other side of my mouth with her heel. Knocks the second tooth right out. \n\"MY PRECIOUS, MY PRECIOUS!\" she yells and jumps out of the wheelchair. \nTears rolling down my face mixed with blood that gushed out of my mouth. She collects her prize and turns around. \"Check the briefcase, you useless idiot!\" \nI open the briefcase filled with hundreds. It was too much money for 10000 teeth, not just two baby teeth. Completely confused I ask \"Why this much?\" \n\"That. That is my life savings. I give it to you in the hope that you'll never have kids. That way I'll never have to collect their teeth and therefore, never see your stupid face again\", she answers. \nHer wings light up and she flickers away while laughing maniacally and giving me the middle finger, \nEDIT: I made it a bit different then your initial request but hope you have as much fun reading as I had writing." ]	3
	[WP] You awake in Hell and are surprised to find it relatively pleasant. The Devil explains that, yes, they do punish evil souls; but the criteria for getting into Heaven are so strict that he has decided to provide a reasonable alternative for people who weren't that bad.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 see them everyday. So many people come down here and put up a fuss before I can even start to explain. I'm always grateful for these ones: those who calmly ask where they are and what happened.\n\n\"So, you're telling me I'm dead?\"\n\n\"Yeah, and you didn't make it up there.\"\n\n\"Who are you?\" I always hate that question. Whenever I answer they give me a dirty look. I guess it's just that they don't realize I've had literally thousands of years to get my shit together.\n\n\"I'm Satan. I'd ask for your name, but I already know your name is Dave, you lived in Portland, Oregon for the last 6 years and you got hit by a truck last week. I'm impressed you held on for so long.\"\n\n\"D-... Did you kill me?\" My least favorite question.\n\n\"Do you really think I care about people being alive? There are way more people down here than on earth or in heaven. I've got plenty of company and I don't really enjoy hurting people. You just kinda die and I have to deal with you.\"\n\n\"So... What's gonna happen to me?\"\n\n\"Whatever you want.\" The most prominent emotion I could see on his face was confusion. I guess they're led to believe this is a bad place their whole lives, so the shock of reality doesn't quite sink in. \"You're free to do whatever you want within reason. Just don't be a jerk to the other people down here and nothing will happen.\"\n\n\"What about people like Hitler or-\"\n\n\"You don't have to worry about them. The whole '9 levels of hell' thing isn't exactly right, but it's close. Right now you're basically on level 0, where the normal everyday person goes when they die. The lower you go down, the worse people are, and that's where the whole 'eternal torture' thing happens. Adolf is down by the bottom, so you won't have to worry about running into anyone who committed murder or genocide while you're down here unless you're an unreasonable asshole down here.\"\\\\\n\n\"Oh... What should I do, then?\"\n\n\"I've got another appointment any second. You're not the only person dying today, so you can take the door to your left and explore.\"\n\nHe was still shocked, but I knew he'd be fine pretty soon. Time to get ready for my next appointment. This guy was from Texas, so he'd probably be a nuisance...", "Is this it? Is this what death feels like? Feeling my body levitate towards nothingness, seeing only white and having no control over my own muscles and limbs and organs and senses, is that really how it ends for all life on Earth? Is this... the afterlife? The one that they had talked about?\n\n...then why the fuck does it seem like I'm sitting in an office from the mid 90s right now? Of all the places I expected to be, it isn't in Dwight Schrute's cubicle. \"What in the actual hell is going on here,\" I say with confused impatience, \"is this some kind of joke?\"\n\nA man with red hair, a goatee, and a purple suit appears from the back room, and calls me in. Jesus Christ, I feel like I'm in a poorly written sitcom. As we sit down, the man starts to speak. I cut him off, though, probably out of blind hatred over anything else.\n\n\"Okay, so who the fuck are you, where the fuck am I, and am I being pranked? Am I actually living, and this is Tom's idea? Come out, y'sneaky bitch!\"\n\nThe man simply chuckles, leans back in his office chair, and puts his feet on the table. \"Now, now, Mike. No prank is being pulled. Sad to say, you didn't survive that crash.\" This, of course, was shocking. Not the death part, no- the fact that I actually was sent to some Scrubs looking shit.\n\n\"I'm Lucifer S. Atan, but you can call me 'The Devil'.\" The man chuckles at his own joke, then quite literally flies into the sky (still in his resting position, mind you) as if he was Jim Carrey from The Mask. \"You like the looks of the place? Designed it myself.\"\n\nI looked around. God, I expect a laugh track to appear at any given point in time. \"Where's the lava? The fire and brimstone? The never-ending torture that I'm supposed to endure?\" I look around the room again, with a clear look of disgust, apparently, judging by the face that the Anti-Christ returned. \"And why the hell is this place looking like a scene out of The IT Crowd?\"\n\nThe purple suited man gives a hardy laugh, and pats me on the back. All while upside down, floating in the air, of course, because now I feel like I'm in Looney Tunes. \"Well, kid, ya see, the whole burning alive thing is in the Malebolge section, the uh; I think you humans call it '[the eighth circle of Hell](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malebolge)'-- yknow, the place where prostitutes, pedophiles, politicians, anything else that starts with 'P', probably-- yeah where they all go. See, this section is my personal favorite; I call it the '0th circle of Hell',\" he says while doing a hand movement I can only equate to the Spongebob \"Imagination\" thing, \"because it only exists for people who were too bad to get into Heaven, but really shouldn't be in Hell. Kinda like Purgatory, but not really since I've heard in some instances that Purgatory is actually much, much worse than this place. I mean, c'mon, at least I give the bastards a place to go and things to do!\" He gives another hardy laugh that sends him into a coughing fit. I think I'm stating to like this guy.\n\n\"Anyway-- you, my guy? You don't even need the 1st circle. I mean, trolling people online til they actually off themselves-- thanks for sending most of them here, by the way. You did me a service not having to get Reaps McCreeps to go harvest their souls for me. So anyway, it may be INCREDIBLY harsh, not gonna lie, but it's not 1st-circle worthy. I mean, the 1st circle is for the people who went with me simply because God said so. God didn't say anything in regards to you, in fact other than online you've lead a decent life, at least from my point of view. Good friends, you had a decent job-- the place misses you, by the way, even that idiot John-- and an amazing spouse, who, I am both sad and happy to say also might not survive, and will be here shortly. Y'had a great house, especially for your area, and both your own and your wife's family all adored you. You led an amazing life my guy, even for someone at age 37.\" \n\nReflecting back on everything, yeah. Yeah, I did have a good life. I'm kinda upset that Kassondra didn't survive, either, but at the same time, I guess that means not even death can do us part. \"Okay,\" I say, with a sense of satisfaction and of curiosity, \"so what happens to us here in the '0th circle'?\" His eyes light up with glee. I think he's been waiting for this moment. \"Haha! Well, my guy, you all get EXTREMELY lucky. See, God never anticipated me making this place. He never anticipates these things. So I took that in-anticipation, used it against him, and found a loophole. I said to him, 'Look, dude. We need something to do with all the people who aren't Heaven worthy, don't deserve Purgatory, but aren't Hell-worthy either. I made the 0th, but I don't got anything to do with it. We control time, though, so what if-- bear with me-- what if we sent them back? Sent them back to a point in their same exact lives, but where things may turn out better? A true deciding factor in whether they belong in Hell, or in Heaven.'\"\n\nThe man takes a deep sigh, a sip of-- is that lava?-- and continues. \"And he looks at me, looks through the gate to Hell to see what I mean, looks back at me and says, \"Luce, you may have a point there, old sport. Sure, we'll give them another shot.' So basically, what I'm telling you, is that you-- and your wife, I'll let you off easy, since I like your attitude towards life, and let you wait for her to get here so you both pop back up in the same timeline-- get to relive your life, starting from any point you desire. Whether that's when you said an embarrassing thing, hurt a friendship, or whatever it is, you get to pick exactly when you want to be. And you get to live from there, and whatever decision that was made that started the chain that lead you here will be nixed, and you'll go with the other one. Basically, you get to make the right choices-- or the wrong ones, if you enjoy being here-- this time 'round.\"\n\nA second chance? A way to relive and fix my past mistakes? The ability to just, up and fix everything? It seems too good to be true, but this is Lucifer, and he doesn't enjoy \"good\". This has to be a trick. No choice.\n\n\"What's the catch, Satan,\" I say, reasonably, \"what do you get out of this?\" Taken back by this statement, as if he didn't expect me to catch on, he gives a chuckle. \"You sly dog. Alright, I'll bite; in return, God gave me the ability to slap a part of your soul back into a different person once this second time around ends. So, basically, you'll be reincarnated as whatever living being, in whatever location, and at whatever time, that I say you should be reincarnated as. You'll be with either God or myself in your 'physical', since that's a bold word to say about a soul, form, but a part of that being's essence will also be placed in someone else.\"\n\nSo, someone will get part of my being, huh? Think like me, act like me? That sounds kinda cool, actually. \"There's another catch, though, but you'll like it.\" I look in confusion at the smirking man in front of me. \"Should you land in Heaven, you get to control them from there on. You can see what they do, how they respond, and try to lead them in a way you think they should go. If you land here, you've essentially a 'get out of jail free' card. If you feel that you could do better, the rest of your soul will be placed in that being too.\" So the Hindus and Bhuddists were right?\n\n\"Yes, they were! All religions are right, in a sense. You humans just have different interpretations of our jobs, that's all. For example, God may be the head of the Heavens, but he's not the one who controls the weather and all that. No, there's a department up there for that. That's what you guys call Zeus or Thor or Tefnut or Indra or what have you.\" How did he know I thought that?\n\n\"So, whatdya say, kid? Just got the beep that your wife is on her way, and of course I'll have to explain this all to her. You in, or you out?\"\n\nA chance to relive all my past mistakes from the life I just inhabited? A way to potentially fix everything? More time, in some sense, to be with all my friends, and my family? And, if that doesn't work, an escape key to get just one more chance? All, of course, provided that being doesn't land in the '0th circle' again. Why wouldn't I take that chance? \"I'm in, Devil. You've got my word.\" With a shake of his hand, he spoke only four more words; \"Please, call me Luce.\" With that, I was back floating and slowly feeling, smelling, hearing, living.\n\nIt's December 31st, 2018. Almost time for the ball drop. Time to go apologize to everyone for being a dick. Let's try again.", "I awoke to the monotone drone of a single continuous yelp of agony. I surveyed the unnatural canvas of death and decay which enveloped me. The world in which i had grown comfortable and old eluded me. I was now in a darkened pit. The sky above me the same consistency as the blood which at one point coursed through my body in the realm of the living. I was approached by a man in a white suit which contrasted impressively with the blackened abyss he walked on. \n\n\"Good morning Charles.\" A pleasant smile formed across the face of the man who could have been mistaken as a sculpture come to life. His features were welcoming and endearing. He held his flawless hand out in a gesture of admittance. \"How are you feeling?\"\n\n\"Confused.\" I stated plainly, \"Am I where I think I am?\"\n\nHis smile faded to a solemn facade and took a step closer to me, placing his free hand on my opposite shoulder. \"That depends Charles, where is it that you think you are?\"\n\nI hesitated, again scanning this scorched terrain. The scenery was that of a nightmare. The absolute darkness enough to drive away the sanity of even the bravest man. I was not alone. Hundreds if not thousands of identical lost souls scurried the vast embodiment of our sins. \"Am I dead?\"\n\n\"Yes.\" He retorted simply.\n\n\"Is this Hell?\"\n\n\"For some.\" He stated with a smirk, \"Charles, understand this. Hell is not the eternity which was threatened to you all of your life. For you that is.\" He turned to face away from me. I caught my self in awe as i gawked at the center piece of hell. Both terrifying and magnificent, on equal levels. A prehistoric machine devised of millions cogs and gears seemed to be what kept the flow of the lost souls in a steady momentum. \"You are not exactly a bad man Charles. Do you know why you are here?\"\n\n\"I can think of a few reasons.\" I blurted honestly.\n\n\"Of those reasons, tell me which do you think is the primary reason?\"\n\n\"I honestly don't know.\"\n\n\"Pre-marital sex, Charles.\"\n\n\"Are you kidding?\" I asked in bewilderment\n\n\"I am not. A simple commitment which is meant to be upheld. Believe me, however, that the circumstances for your arrival could be much worse. In fact,\" He flung his arm outward, gesturing for me to cast my gaze on to a soul bound in the midst of a device powered by the demonic flames of Hell. The soul was positioned in a way so to be stood upright, with both wrist and ankles tightly clasped by several study chain like devices. \"He has been bound in my device for three decades. He was a very prominent figure when he was alive. So much so that for years he had been viciously raping young women. He had been caught and released in the judicial system of your world dozens of times over. Never experiencing any sort of guilt or shame or remorse. Never truly being tried for his crimes. His sins. The man in white gestured for me to trail behind him, as if he were a tour guide in a museum of relics. I should have felt pity for the soul cast before me. His limbs being slowly broken and torn away as the undead devour his innards, only to be replaced and the process repeated again and again for the rest of time.\n\n\"So you see Charles, your damnation could be plenty more severe. I often bring the new souls to this contraption to show them that even in Hell, it could always be worse.\"\n\n\"So what happens to me?\" \n\n\"This is it Charles. Cast away in the abysmal throat of the plane i created for the sinners.\"\n\n\"So, like just walk around?\"\n\n\"Yeah pretty much. And also you can never have sex again!\" His voice bellowed forth, releasing a maniacal cackle.\n\n\"Noooooooooooo!\" I screamed, dropping to the burning sands at my feet.", "\"Not that bad?\"\n\nI'd always thought of myself as a decent person, yet I was still surprised at this turn of events. My new overlord turned to face me.\n\n\"Yes. Not that bad. And I know you think you were actually quite good, but that's not strictly true, is it?\"\n\n\"Well, it's not like I murdered anybody...\"\n\n\"Exactly. Yet under the rules that the big guy -\" The Devil thumbed upwards, as if it needed further explanation who 'the big guy' was \"-made, you're still not good enough. You think it's alright to just \"not murder anybody\"? Come on!\"\n\nI let the thought sit for a moment, and tried to look at things a bit more impartially.\n\n\"It's not just the things you did, either.\" he added, before continuing \"Like that. The internalised sexism. You think I'm a man, when I'm genderless. Sure, it doesn't seem to do any harm, but it eats away inside of you. Every time you were needlessly jealous, every bad thought you had about some guy cutting you up - one of whom was trying to get his wife to the hospital to give birth, by the way - and every time you laughed at a child falling over, they all count. In fact, for you, the laughing at kids falling over was enough to keep you out of upstairs.\"\n\nThis was true. Those types of videos had gotten me through a fair amount of down-time at work. \n\n\"Look, I know this is a bit contrary to what I just said, but you're not a bad guy. You're just human. All of you are just, well, kind of dicks. Even the ones who got in upstairs tend to either be young kids who hadn't picked up enough bad habits from their parents, or Ned Flanders-types. And very few religious guys make it either - the big guy doesn't care for all that worship crap, and a lot of them thought if they prayed and shamed hard enough they'd get in regardless of their own thoughts. In fact, most of them end up in actual hell, instead of this place, so you should be thankful.\"\n\nI mulled this over for a few moments too; the idea I should be thankful.\n\n\"Maybe if you were more thankful you might have made it upstairs.\" The Devil not-so-subtly added. \n\n\"What kept me out of...\" I gulped, unwilling to say the word.\n\n\"You can say 'Hell', it's fine. Your score is tallied. You can't really do anything too bad down here - we curtail that impulse. Like neutering, but for the soul.\"\n\n\"What kept me out of hell?\" my voice fluctuated as if I were going through puberty as I said the last word, despite the reassurances of Satan. \n\n\"Lots of things, really. Like you said, none of the big strikes. No real-big theft; you didn't work in finance which helps that. I mean, it's basically gambling but with implications for other people - how any of you morons thought that was an acceptable way to organise your society I'll never know, but it's okay - they're getting their comeuppance now. No murder, as we've covered. No rape - although a lot of pretty gross thoughts about women, both sexual and non-sexual, but hey - you're human, so we don't hold that against you too much. And no grand-hypocrisy, other than that three months you claimed to be vegan even though you'd still eat pizza. So we've covered the stuff you didn't do. Now, in terms of what you did do: that monthly donation to Cancer research you set up at nineteen really helped, especially as you didn't even know anyone with cancer. You gave up your seat a lot on public transport for the elderly and infirm. You were quite nice to people, too, even if your thoughts were a little less pure. And you raised decent kids who have their own flaws instead of yours, which really helps - we like people who leave things a little better than they found them. Oh, and on that note, the fact you'd pile up your dishes at restaurants in a way that was helpful to the servers - that was a big one.\"\n\n\"These all seem really inconsequential.\"\n\n\"Ha.\" the laugh was that of an old-timer, the laugh of someone who's heard the same things countless times. \"If you take care of the little things, the big things tend to follow. Do you know how many rapists and murderers clean up after themselves? Very few.\"\n\nI decided to change my line of questioning, having been convinced I was in the right place.\n\n\"So, what's it like here?\" \n\n\"Well, it's different for everyone, but it's always alright. For you, it's going to always feel a bit like the third-to-last day of school. It's nearly summer, but you've got to just go through the motions. It's not hard work and you get to hang out with your friends, but you still have to be there, so it's not perfect. For some people, it's like being in the middle of a round of golf where they're playing to their handicap, and for others it's like going to eat at Pizza Hut as a teen.\"\n\n\"Right.\"\n\n\"Yep. Like I said, it's alright. Just like you.\"\n\n--------------------------\nhttps://www.reddit.com/r/sandsshortswriting/\n\nI will be updating this subreddit soon with some of my other prompt responses and other short stories I've written over the years, so subscribe if you want :)\n\nEdit 2: FYI - if anyone is super interested in the idea of a more friendly/fair devil, you should read The Gospel According to Jesus Christ by José Saramago - although you should probably read it anyway, because it's amazing. And if you liked this, you should watch The Good Place. Great show and a slight inspiration for this." ]	5
	[WP] As part of the coming-of-age celebrations for your people, each child is taken before an oracle, who makes a vague statement about some future deed. When it is your turn, the oracle looks scared, and refuses to say anything.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 entire room was silent, and the Oracle was as well, frightened while I stood confused.\n\nThe Oracle claimed something small to cover it up, but he was shaking, looking as if he had seen a ghost of something, of horror, of war?\n\nI was outcasted almost immediately l, as no one could scare the Oracle, and I spent most of my days all alone.\n\nAnd one day, I had enough. I didn’t have any friends, no family members who wanted me, so I ran away. No one noticed for a while, so I went farther and lived with a new family where I was loved.\n\nUntil they were killed, all but me. A drunk driver, with the driver walking away unscathed, and heading back to my hometown.\n\nI wanted revenge, and so I went back, and I stood at the door of my old house. I knocked, and they didn’t recognize or remember me.\n\nI had enough. I ran off to the Oracle and once I found the house I knocked. He opened up, confused.\n\n“WHAT DID YOU SEE WHEN I CAME OF AGE? WHAT DID YOU SEE?!”\n\nThe Oracle looked back and said.\n“This.”\n\nEverything faded to black, and when I woke up, I was back on the stage, and he was looking over me, concerned.\n\n“Hey, are you okay?”\n\n“Y-Yes. I was just- nervous?”\n\nHe then said a normal deed and the day went on, as if nothing ever happened.\n\nIt was all just a bad dream, I hope.", "Are you familiar with the prospect of a self fulfilling prophecy? It's fairly self explanatory but I'll explain it anyway as there's not much else to do here. It's a prophecy which brings about the event that it describes. Though I suppose in this case it's slightly different. It's the prophecy that Oracle wouldn't make.\n\nI still remember that day, try as I might to forget it. I was really looking forward to it, everyone was. Just turned ten, waiting with my parents, wearing my finest clothing. A mix of nervousness and excitement, too naive to realise how stupid this whole tradition was. Waiting in line for my turn, with the all knowing Oracle who will show you your destiny. Or seal your fate. \n\nThe boy in front of me was told he'd be a sports star. I still see him on TV or at least I did when I had a TV. Lucky prick. It's not his fault I suppose. And then it was my turn and it all came crashing down. The second that old coot placed his filthy hands on my forehead he recoiled like he'd received an electric shock. He couldn't talk or at least he wouldn't, it's not like I had hurt him or anything. I was harmless. But that was it. The damage could not be undone.\n\nI was poison. The community was finished with me, I could have throttled him with my bare hands and they would have treated me better. I was a ten year old child and my own parents wouldn't have anything to do with me. Do you understand the effect that has on a person? It's crushing.\n\nI was thrown out, I had to fend for myself scrounging what I could from the street. Everyone knew who I was too. No change for the demon boy, innocent though he may be. I survived out of spite. A horrible way to live. \n\nI hadn't done anything wrong and it was horrible that I didn't know what he thought I was going to do. I fixated on the Oracle, this old geezer who ruined my life. Ten years on the streets, ten years of hatred, slowly fermenting into tortured madness.\n\nOf course I cracked. It was a miracle that I hadn't before but when I saw him in the street, something just snapped inside my head. I followed him back to that God forsaken church where my life had been taken away. I cornered this old man and I did exactly what I'd dreamed of doing, sleeping on the streets. I strangled him. It wasn't hard. I was skin and bone but he was old and weak.\n\nThere was a moment of clarity as I stared at his corpse. This was it. This was what he had seen and that fool was too caught up in his own visions to see that he caused it himself. But I did the deed. I became everything that they always believed me to be. I stood there in disbelief until they came to arrest me. \n\nRegret is one hell of a thing. Rejection and loneliness are awful but they aren't a patch on regret. You can actively try to change your circumstances, try to become accepted again. But the regret is never going away. You can't change what you did. You can't even forget about it. Trust me, I've been trying to for nigh on fifty years, rotting in a cell.\n\n I still wonder if I ever had a choice. Was this torturous life my destiny? Could it have been different? I guess I'll never know and that haunts me every day." ]	3
	[WP] The cult you are a part of is about to sacrifice you for going against what the high preosts say is the commands of their elder god. As that elder god in disguise, you can't wait to see the looks on their faces when they find out...	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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\nChains. So binding to this mortal body.\n\nThese fools worship me but cannot discern me from a blaspheming prophet? I wrote the texts they cite to me! How can I blaspheme against myself?\n\nTwo hooded figures began to come into view as they stepped down a staircase and into the long hallway which held the pathetic prisoner at the end. The pair walked with an eerie slowness, moving through the hallway of the stone dungeon. The light flickered from torches that were placed systematically throughout the hallway and gave off a low light, but not enough so that the features of their faces were exposed. Each step that the two men took echoed in and out of the cells. The occupants, however, did not seem to mind, as most of them had turned to skeletons over the duration of their stay.\n\n“Up. Your time has come, scum,” spoke one of the figures as he opened up the iron bar door that contained the scrawny captive.\n\nWithout allowing a response, the two men grabbed the captive and brought him to his feet and unlocked his restraints from his hands and neck. Roughly, they began to drag the captive back through the hallway. The rough stones that made the floor of the dungeon cut into the knees and legs of the captive when he would stumble, but the men would not stop.\n\nThe captive was dragged to the top of the stairs and then through a trap door that led to a amphitheater with seating all around the center that was filled with cheering bystanders. The cheering and chanting erupted from loud into deafening as the captive was pulled through the trap door and into the sandy arena.\n\nOne of the men raised his arms and beckoned for the crowd’s attention. Once quieted, he began to speak:\n\n“Followers of Mak’Gulara, God of Wrath, I present to you the False Prophet that came to us!”\n\nApplause and cheering began again, and after a moment, subsided. The voice began to speak again.\n\n“As dictated by the Holy Texts and tradition, he will face death by Mak’Goora!”\n\nAh, Mak’Goora. Putting up the strongest warrior against the sinner in combat. If only they knew.\n\nBefore the cheering could begin once more, a giant warrior clad in metal armor jumped into the arena, armed with two swords with javelins on his back. One of the robed men drew a sword from a sheath on his belt and threw it onto the ground in front of the captive.\n\n“Good luck, sinner. No one has beaten Azrax the Wrathful. Unlike you, he is devout to the teachings of Mak'Gulara.”\n\nThe captive grabbed the weapon, and it began to glow as it heated and became molten. Gasps could be heard throughout the crowd.\n\nI am Mak’gulara, and these fools will learn the meaning of Wrath!", "\"Seize her! Seize the blasphemer!\" bellowed the hooded man, face as scarlet as the robe he wore, an accusing finger pointed towards me that his followers avoided as desperately as they would the barrel of a gun.\n\nAs the stunned faces of the congregation turned towards me, I realised I really should have just kept my mouth shut. That I should have just bit my tongue. Or at least have chosen a better time than in the middle of the high priest's sermon.. But I just wasn't able to help myself. In the past hour he had managed to butcher every single tenant of the faith I had so carefully planned for my followers! \n\nEvery. Single. One.\n\nI understood that as language develops and as teachings are passed down that maybe a detail here or there might be lost or skewed, but I couldn't have made such a mess of things if I tried! Absolute, unquestioning obedience towards handful of priests? Death towards those that did not believe or strayed from the teachings? What nonsense! \n\nEach life was sacred, and all were equal. Free thought was respected, even encouraged! I loved all of my children, but after watching that so called \"high\" priest spout such drivel... He was making that rather difficult.\n\nThe followers to either side of me grabbed a hold of my arms, forcing them behind my back as they marched me towards the raving priest, foaming at the mouth as he cursed and spat. \n\n\"You dare! You dare insult one of the chosen?! For such transgression you will die a thousand deaths at the hands of the one true goddess! But the first, will be by my own. Hold her steady!\"\n\nFrom his robe, the priest draw a dagger, it's blade silver, gripping the handle with both hands before driving it with all his weight into my stomach!\n\nOr... At least, attempted to. No weapon forged from the gifts of my brother, God of Metal and Rock, could injure me. Instead, the blade only pierced my robe, bending like foil as it met my skin. In shock, the priest dropped his blade and I decided to make my true identity known.\n\nI drew upon my power, feeling it course through me as I dropped my disguise. Tanned skin brightening to gold, black hair to white, growing and flowing outwards, defying gravity as it seemed to hang in the air while I rose from the ground, the radiance of my power filling the room with the most beautiful shade of green and gold. The colour of life.\n\nI gazed upon my children, looks of awe and amazement shared between the crowd before I addressed them.\n\n\"It is I, your mother Vella, goddess of light and li-\"\n\n\"Vella?!\" the priest interrupted. \n\n\"Yes my child, your goddess has ca-\"\n\n\"...But we worship Keella.\"\n\nOh." ]	3
	[WP] You wake up in a hospital bed, having been told that you've been in a coma for 3 years. You take a look around, and slowly realize that everything you've ever known has just been a product of a coma-dream, and you're finally waking up to the real world.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "And then suddenly there was light up there, a shimmering glow in the dense darkness around me. I tried to swim towards it but it was hard, very hard. My limbs felt so heavy, the cold sluggish water impeding all movement, I was going to drown! In a panic I tried to kick, to claw, to scramble my way up, I couldn't breath, the cold brackish water pulling me downward, my heart beat, I wanted to breath, I wanted to open my mouth and b-\n\nMy lungs filled with air, and bright light hit my mind, I closed my eyes tight. I was confused, I didn't feel like I was in a river at all, I felt like... I was on a bed. There were sounds, beeping and a womans voice, I tried to open my eyes again, blurry light, sudden bursts of light, movement and colours. I began to panic again, or would have if I'd had the strength. I felt incredably tired, I tried to raise my hand to my face, there was something on my face around my nose and mouth, but my arm felt too heavy, just too heavy. So tired, unfathomably tired, so very tired...\n\n\nAwaking was graduel, after that first time. But each awaking built on the last until finally I could open my eyes, weakly touch my own my face, speak. A woman in a white coat, I presume my doctor, she had probably introduced herself but I had problems tracking anything. She had asked me if I knew who I was, I'd said yes (barely audible I imagine). She'd asked me if I knew where I was, again my perfetic croak in the affirmative, a hospital. She'd asked if I knew what had happene to me, I remembered the barge, one moment the party, the gentle sway of the boat, everybody having a good time the party in full swing, Lucco had been as good as his word. He knew a guy, the five of us had put in for the barge and invited as many girls as we could. I'd been in the middle of saluting us, standing with grace and ease I thought up near the prow and then someone had shouted something, the illuminated faces of my friends listening to me went from expressions of happily sozzled mirth sudden and desperate horror and then there'd been a loud bang and a jerk and my feet were in the air. A moment went by, I wondered what had happened, and then splash! And cold, and darkness. I croaked at the doctor again in the affirmative.\n\nLater, when I was strong enough to talk, and sit up a bit while the nurse fed me, I'd asked if my brother had come to visit me yet. The nurse had large blue eyes, and was handsome rather than pretty in the way women sometimes are. I liked looking at her face but didn't like the flicker of an expression I didn't recognize at my question, the spoon, full of watery porridge had halted breifly on its way to my mouth. Your brother, she had asked, an eyebrow arched as if a question mark. Yes, my brother, I'd replied.\nShe hesitated, then said \"Erm... Mister Bao, erm... you, you don't have any family\"\n\nAt the time I assumed she'd meant they didn't have any record of my family. I swallowed the spoonful of porridge. \"Well... \" I croaked, \"what happened to the other people who were on the boat?\"\n\"Boat?\"\n\"Yes... the boat, I fell out of. Come on there must of been twenty people out there last night\".\nThe nurse said nothing at first, and then put the spoon back in the now mostly empty bowl and the bowl on the tray as if she'd come to a decision. She stood up with the tray in her hands. \"Mister Bao \" she began, using that name again. It was time to clear that up, probably some mix up confusing the answer to what is your name with what happened to you. Thinks were much more muddled back then. I opened my mouth to croak but she continued \"Mr Bao, I'll be back in a minute\" and with that she'd walked out the door.\n\nA minute became half an hour, and then a different doctor came in, the nurse trailing. \"Thank you Kie-35, leave us for a moment would you\" said the doctor. He was a large man, in his mid fifties, curly gray hair and deep wrinkled face. He smiled solemnly down at me before taking a seat. \"Mister Bao- \" he began \"I'm not Mister Bao, I'm Stevie, Stevie Gibbs\". The doctors solemn face seemed to become more solemn. He made a thoughtful sort of sighing sound, sat- brought his pad up on to the knee he had put on top of the other and plucked a pen from his white coat, clicked it perfunctorily and said \"I see\".\n\nHe asked me exactly what I remembered about my accident and I told him. He asked me exactly who I thought I was and I told him that too. To both answers he'd scribbled busily on his pad. Then he asked me a very strange question, \"what year is it Mister B- er... what year would you say it is?\n\nI blinked twice at him in puzzlement. \"Erm, 1996... of course\".\n\"And the SC?\"\n\"The what?\"\n\"The SC, could you tell me who the SC is?\"\nI looked at him like he was crazy. What the fuck was an... \"SC?\"\n\n\"Ok,\" said the doctor carefully \"Can you tell me what Polity we are in?\"\n\nI began to panic. I started to swear a lot before my increasingly jagged croacking collapsed into a couphing fit. Between attempts to breath I saw more figures come into the room, the doctor has close to me saying something, hands on my back and shoulder, my arm was outsretched and there was a pinch. I tried to swear more, the panic rising, but then it all seemed like just so much bother over nothing. I floated away.\n\n*\n\nIt turns out the SC stands for the Supreme Commander. And that the \"Polity we are in\" is called the North East Atlantic, that's the NEA to you and me. The year by the way is 2017. Who knew.\n\nThe assasins had been waiting for me, they'd used armour peircing plasma weapons to take down my heavy-copter as I'd approached the Palace of Justice in London. I rarely came to the capital in person, but I wanted to see the executions for myself. Twenty three of them, captured the night before. A stroke of such marvelous luck that I couldn't resist getting there as soon as possible, I suppose they must have planned on that, on my eagerness. McMurphy-000, Giddi-255, Adams-003, the notorious Husseinis, the two Bridges 12 and 5, Gustavo-7b, Sarah Wang, Kayode-1c... some of the worst enemies of the state in recent years, they're actions had humiliated not just myself, not just the NEA, but the whole World Order. And who knows where they'd gotten plasma weapons from, the Lunaricans again no doubt, miserable bastards. There would be no strike back of course, not yet, not with Free Ring between us and them, an anarchist rabble to be sure but one we'd learnt long ago not to challenge directly. The 23 had been executed after the attack, in case perhaps the downing of my copter had been a rescue attempt- it was done before anything further could interrupt. I would set plans in motion however, I would hit them back. I am the First Area Imperator UK-NEA, Bao Kaufman-717, and no other world exists.", "As I look around the room and sit up, I look down at my body. I'm not that skinny...I think. I touch my stomach and shrug to myself. Must be some weird lucid dream. I'm in a small hospital room with the lights off. My eyes drift down to my shoulder and I dont see my black hair. That's weird, I really like my hair. All my dreams usually have some semblance of me. I feel my head and realize my hair is pulled back in a pony tail. Suddenly, I get hit with the smell of antiseptic and sheets. Fuck. You can't smell things in dreams as far as I'm aware. \n\nI shoot out of the bed and pull the IV out as fast as I can. I run to the small bathroom and look into the mirror. I look completely different. I'm pale, brunette, and have brown eyes. I have a deep scar across my throat and sunken cheeks. Just as the panic sets in, someone bursts into the room. A nurse who looks strikingly like my sister starts to say something but I cant hear her through the pounding in my ears. I grip her tightly, just wanting my sister to help me. She puts a needle in my arm and the world starts to slow down. I can make out \"Accident\" and \"Coma\". My mind races as my body slows. Oh God. Is everything gone? Am I alone? I want my friends back. I wasnt even done with high school. There were people I was talking to. I had a great day yesterday. Was all of that fake? What about my mom? What about my sisters? What about everyone? \n\nThat was about a week ago. After they calmed me down, they started to explain things. Apparently I was in an car accident and put into a three year coma. I almost laughed at the cliche. My name was Kurt Strillen and I was born in 1999. That certainly didnt fit what I thought I was. During the week, some blonde woman I vaguely recognized and came to visit me. She said she was my mother. All I could think was that my mother was a raven haired woman. That this couldn't be real. \n\nThat was a year ago. I'm readjusting to life quite well according to my therapist. I've gotten reconnected with my friends. My parents are always there for me. But I keep it all hidden. Every night, I pray that I'll go back to sleep and wake up in that other world. That world where I can go back to my mom and tell her even though I got angry at her, I loved her more than anything. Where I could see my nieces and nephew and play with them. Where I could joke around with my crushes and finally admit to liking them. Where I could sit in my car and just think about all the stuff that's happened. I have to get back. I want to get back. But I just cant. \n\nI want to go back. Every day I think about it. I think about every memory I have of that world. They're starting to fade though. I have to go back. I have to see them again. I have to go back. I have to go back. I have to go back. I know how to go back." ]	3
Example: Missing shoes mean you miss the bus, so you aren't in your assigned seat when a truck T-bones it.	[WP] On your deathbed, you discover that almost all the weird little moments in your life were because of time travelers keeping you from getting killed, but you've never done anything that would change history.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Pt1.\n\n“Marvin, Marvin ...Marvin. You know what ... I think we finally fixed it old friend!”, says the figure entering my hospital room. \n\nHe looks haggard, but pleased with himself. Meanwhile I lay here with, what did the doc say? a day, or maybe less left of my miserable life.\n\n“It was touch and go for a while, well a long while for you I spose. Anyway the boys will give me an out, anytime now. No more stitching for me”. \n\nAs he slumps in the friends and relations chair, not that I’ve had any visitors since I’ve been here. \n\n“Hey, buddy I think you’ve got the wrong room. I haven’t had any stitches, in fact there’s no point in stitching me. Docs think I gonna kick it any day now. You think you can leave me alone now? I’m expecting company.” \n\nThat’ll clear him out of here sharpish, I think to myself. Left alone so I can get this over with in peace.\n\n“I’m sorry old friend, but I have the right room, right Marvin. Same Marvin that ain’t had no visitors in all day, an ain’t expecting any.”\n\nHe reclines in the chair, reaches in his pocket, and pulls out some gum “want some?”\n\n“No I don’t want some, and why are you calling me old friend? I haven’t ever saw, met or spoken to ya!”\n\nI use all the anger I can muster. It’s a pathetic attempt, but I’m not in the mood to be messed around.\n\n“I spose its time for a proper introduction. I’m your great, great, great, grandson. Melvin, though most call me Mel.”\n\nI grin, good one. I figure I don’t have much else to do but burn time. \n\n“So what you doing here Mel? Come to comfort good old, what was I great, great, grandad?”\n\nHe gives me a grin “You missed a great old man, but I’ll let you off. I wish I was only here for that, sure would have been a shorter trip. Like I said I was here to stitch. Not people but time.”\n\n“Ha! Yeah, spose I killed the butterfly, that was supposed to raise a tsunami on the other side of the world right?”\n\n“I wish it were that simple! You never did the ‘doing’, it’s not the way it works. We’re not spose to have direct contact with the event just manipulate it. Otherwise they come knocking to put in a stitch.”\n\n“So what are you? some kind of ‘time cop’?” I say with a little smirk. Wonder how far this claim will go?\n\n“No, no cop. They don’t want to risk themselves to sort this stuff out.”\n\nMel takes a breath, and for the first time since he swanned in with that big smile on his face, it fades. \n\n“Poetic don’t ya think? Some descendent of yours fucks with time and you get hauled up to sort it. Fuck it up more an poof, your done n gone and so are they.”\n\n“Alright already.” I say flatly. “You’ve had your fun. What are you after? Money? Well here’s 100. It’s all yours, move on to the next chump on there death bed.”\nI throw my wallet with my measly 100 in and motion for him to leave.\n“Maybe next time, if your gonna use the ‘time cop’ excuse do your homework. Find some thing to use on your mark.”\n\nHe picks it up and flaps it in between his palm and fingers on his left hand. Something catches my eye. Couldn’t be ... your imaging it old man. But to reassure my self I squeeze my left hand, to see if the slimy bastard had snuck in before and took it. \n\nNo. I let loose a breath, as I feel the familiar metal ring squeeze into my hand. It’s still there. Funny how at the end, something so precious to me is something that I’ve worn for most of my life with no real significance. Just something I picked up to cover the ghost feeling of it’s predecessor. But the moment I think it’s not with with me I start to panic. How pathetic! \n\nMel must of seen or sensed a change in my expression, as he shifted his vision from my wallet in his hands to me. As he does, I slowly move my hand out of sight. \n\n“Old friend, what would be good enough to convince my next mark, that I was the indeed from the future? A piece of knowledge about what is to come? No, I think not. What would be the use of it on your deathbed? You might not make it to see if I got it correct. If it was correct I could have been lucky.”\n\n“There you go with that old friend business again. We don’t know each other!”\n\nHe fixes his eyes with mine.\n\n“Marvin. You may have just met me, but without me you would have been dead at least 50 times over, before we finished what we needed you to do. I mean you didn’t make it easy on me, and yeah sometimes I wasn’t, as inventive as I could have been. I mean look at my jacket.”\n\nMel flaps his jacket, and I eye his jacket properly for the first time. Nicely cut, deep blue with nice comfy looking cuffs. \nThough, as I take a longer look, what isn’t clear from the off, mainly because he is wearing it open, is that it’s missing all, but one button. What’s more, I’ve seen that kind before. \n\nIvory white, with symbols of an anchor etched into the edge, in the same deep blue as the jacket. The have a speckling of something that glistened in the sun. \nThe first time I saw one I all but ignored it. As the second, third and fourth appeared I kept them as good luck tokens. Never knew where they came from, and never asked another living sole. And now, as I see Mel reach into my wallet, he looks at me.\n\n“You don’t mind if I have these back? I only managed to collect the first one, when that wind picks up it gets mighty cold.”\n\nWith that he tips the three buttons out of my wallet. Chucks it back to me with the 100 untouched. He then pulls out a needle and thread, and starts to stitch them back on his jacket. \n\nMy mind starts to whirl. How can this be a trick? How could he have know about the buttons? I’ve never told anyone about them. Three buttons, from three different locations. My mind stretches to remember each time that I had found one. \n\nThe first, that was easy. The one I never collected. It had Zinged me pretty decently across the cranium one day on my walk to work. \n\nAs I remember, I absently reach up and feel the scar on my forehead. 5 stitches. \nNever made it to work that day. An hour a stitch, waiting in A&E really cuts into a work day. Those miserable bastards didn’t pay me a cent for it. Yet all the others ended up with a full days pay with no work. All thanks to that boiler going nuts. \n\nMel glances up and sees me absently caressing my scar.\n\n“Yeah sorry bout that one, but to be fair you just couldn’t take a usual small hint that day.”\n\nI say nothing, as his words barely register with me. My eye catches the buttons again. All three buttons I had collected matched perfectly. Size, colour and patten with the one already attached to the breast of his coat. \nNot only that though. As Mel shifted in his chair to start to sew, he reveals identical buttons on the edges of his cuffs. Identical in all but size.\n\n“How did you ... what ..?” \n\nI stumble.\n\n“Look”\n\nMel says half mouthed, as he bits off the thread of the first button, now reattached. \n\n“I know it’s all a bit weird. Its not like you get taught how to stitch. It took me a while to get better at stitching you. However it should be over in a little while. What better way to end it, than to let you in on your role in it all.”\n\nI sit there perplexed. Still not believing, but well on the way to rethinking my position. I simply nod my head as my mind tries to catch up. \n\n————————————————-\nMy first time posting here guys let me know your honest opinion", "\"Hello, George.\" A youngish man. Vaguely familiar.\n\n\"Do I know you?\" My voice. Rusty. Hoarse.\n\n\"No, though we've seen each other several times. Allow me.\" As he picks up the cup of water and helps me take a sip. My mouth and throat were parched.\n\n\"Thank you. I only vaguely remember your face, but that's not possible. 5th grade. College. My last job. No, you cannot be the same person. You haven't aged at all. I must be hallucinating.\"\n\n\"Think back about those incidents. Was there anything unusual about them?\"\n\n\"Why, yes. A girl, who became a young woman, who became the president of the corporation. I helped her at each time, but never had the opportunity to court her. Something always happened.\"\n\n\"We must apologize, George. We were the reason 'something always happened'.\"\n\n\"But why? I loved her, and never got to tell her so! My life was always incomplete!\"\n\n\"That's why we're here today, George. To explain and apologize. May I invite my associates in?\"\n\n\"Yes.\". As they file into the room, I realize that they're all vaguely familiar. \"Have I seen you all, at several times in my life?\". They nod. \"You each changed my life?\". Another nod. \"Why?! What possible reason could there be to interfere in my life! I could have been happier!\"\n\n\"Yes, George. You could have been happier, for about three years; then some terrible mishap would have killed you, resulting in the destruction of the world.\". I ponder this.\n\n\"How?\"\n\n\"The advice you gave that young lady lead to her company making a discovery that revolutionized medicine. Without it, in 10 years, a global plague would devastate humanity. Had you married her, you would have died just before your third anniversary, saving her life, but changing the course of her life so that the discovery was made too late.\"\n\n\"Then that's why my life has been so bland? There must have been something that could have made it at least a bit brighter!\"\n\n\"Many things, George. Many, many, things. Each of which would have killed you...\"\n\n\"HOW DARE YOU!\" Racking coughs. He helps me up and gets me another sip of water.\n\n\"Which would have killed you, ending your life prematurely, preventing you from advising others. Others who became pivotal in humanity's survival. You were the lynchpin. The keystone of the future. No one in your life understood your incredible effect on the world.\n\nHumanity would have died many times over, if not for your advice.\"\n\n\"Why tell me now?\"\n\n\"As I said, to apologize... And to make an offer.\"\n\n\"An offer? What could possibly be so valuable as to make up for my empty life. Yes, you've told me why, but it was still my life. I would have gladly given my life for three years of happiness with her. I would never have known what terrible things were waiting. NO ONE could have known.\"\n\n\"We could. George, we are from the future that you created. She is waiting for you there. Would you like to see her again?\"\n\nMy eyes are blurry. My breath labored. \"Yes. Please. ... Hurry, my time is near.\". They reach out and touch me. There is darkness, with a light ahead, it is over. \"I'm sorry my dear, I couldn't make it to you.\"\n\n...\n\n\"You're not getting away from me THAT easy!\"\n\nMy eyes pop open. That voice. My eyes are clear? \"What?\"\n\n\"I've waited far too long to let you get away from me now!\" There is a smile in that voice. A joyous happiness.\n\n\"Grace?\" I look towards the voice. Yes, it is she. Impossibly young. And just as beautiful as I remember. \"Would you please marry me?\"\n\n\"Yes, George. I've been waiting all my life for you to ask. Ever since fifth grade, when your advice made me so happy.\"\n\nI don't fully understand how, but we are both of an age for just after college. It's been a wonderful three years, our anniversary is tommorow...\n\n((finis))" ]	3
	[WP] Scientists confirm that the sun is slowly dimming and will stop emitting light, and heat, in as little as 30 years.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Emma and Grace stared at the television for what seemed an eternity.\n\n“It has to be a joke mum.” Emma broke the silence.\n\n“Lets try another channel.” Said Emma changing the channel while her mother just stared.\n\n“The sun will cease being exothermic in thirty years. In ten years it will have diminished in output by fifty percent at which time life on Earth will fail.” Stated a stuffy professor on the BBC News.\n\nEmma and Grace once again stared at the television for what seemed an eternity.\n\nAfter a time Grace grabbed Emma’s hand and just held it.\n\n“I’m going to have a cuppa, I’ll make you one too Emma.” Grace said partially snapping back to reality. The two said nothing more for almost an hour as they processed the news.\n\n“What will we do?” Asked Emma.\n\n“What do you want to do?”\n\n“I don’t know. I don’t know what to think. We have ten years left to live.”\n\n“Yes, ten years to live. To live. What have you wanted to do? What is on your bucket list?”\n\n“Trust you to see the positive.” Emma said with a smile, after a pause she continued with “The pyramids I always wanted to see the pyramids. What about you?”\n\n“I’d like to see the pyramids too. But I always wanted to go to the moon. To be an astronaut.”\n\n“I don’t think we can do that.”\n\n“The pyramids are likely out too. This news will change everything.”\n\n“The world is going to go crazy isn’t it?”\n\nGrace agreed as she got up and put the kettle on.", "“You’re certain then?” General Davis set the file on the dark table in front of him. \n\nDr. Lee nodded and hardened her mouth into a line. “We’ve run the numbers dozens of times - it’s the same result. Even at our highest estimates, the sun’s got only fifty years until it goes dark.”\n\n“And the low end?”\n\nDr. Lee looked at the folder. “Thirty.”\n\n“Shit.” General Davis bundled his hands over his mouth. “Any chance we could prolong it?”\n\n“The technology necessary doesn’t exist yet - it’s barely even theoretical. Even with the proper funding, we’d only be prolonging the inevitable.”\n\n“And your team? How much do they know?”\n\nDr. Lee took a careful breath. “The research was segmented, as per your request General.” She buried her hand deep into the pocket of her jacket and found her phone - a cheap burner- with her thumb. “Everyone else on the project only worked on specific sections, unaware of the true goal of their research.”\n\nGeneral Davis nodded. Dr. Lee met his gaze - his eyes were dark and tired. \n\n“If you’re going to do it - do it, General.” Dr. Lee’s eyes twitched to his side, searching for a weapon. \n\n“Jesus, Lee. Who do you take me for?” The General shook his head. “We haven’t sunk that low. When we go around murdering those who speak the truth, we’re no better than our enemies.”\n\n“So what, you’ll just stick me in a prison instead? I’d rather be six feet under than rot in a cell for the next few decades.” Dr. Lee’s thumb ghosted over the cheap buttons of her cell. “The people deserve to know.”\n\n“Don’t make this difficult.”\n\n“You asked me to lead this project. You should’ve realized what you signed up for.”\n\nThe General stood and the door to the office burst open. Two men, clad in dark uniforms, grabbed Lee by the arms. \n\n“I wish things didn’t have to be this way, Diana. You could do a lot of good.” The General looked almost apologetic. Almost.\n“I think we have different definitions of ‘good’,” Dr. Lee spat as the men hauled her out of the Generals office. Please, she thought, please let the message have gone through.\n\n\nAcross the country, Sarah Lee woke to the hot sun streaming in the window of her tiny L.A. apartment. She groaned as she rolled over, her head hammering and her mouth dry and cotton. She knocked her glasses off her nightstand as she fumbled for her phone - almost dead. She hadn’t plugged it in after she’d stumbled home last night. \n\nThere was a stream of unread texts and a bundle of notifications begging for her attention. One text though came from a number she didn’t recognize. \n\n4:54 a.m.\nFinh Dev Nair. Mit aastrophsics. Sun prject. Run. - Mm\n\nSarah blinked. She rubbed at her eyes and wondered if she was still high. Who the hell had sent her that? Her thumb hovered over the text, ready to delete it. \n\nMm... Mom? Sarah bolted up in her bed. She winced as her head pounded in protest. It had been months since she’d heard from her mother, but the last time they talked Sarah vaguely remembered her mentioning something about research into the properties of the sun’s core. Sarah took a deep breath and hit the number, trying to call it. The phone didn’t even ring - the only reply was a mechanical voice announcing the number was no longer in service. \n\n“Shit,” Sarah said. She stared at the mess of her apartment: t-shirts strewed across the floor; empty glasses and bottles tucked onto every shelf; her bong resting over the magazines on the coffee table. “Shit.”\n\n---\n\n/r/liswrites" ]	3
	[WP] Because he lost a bet a wise and powerful sorcerer must take a young troll as his next apprentice.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "If Melchior hadn't been listening for it, he could easily have missed the timid knock at his door. For a moment, he considered pretending that he had. Pride and stubbornness went to war inside of him and, as had so often been the case in the course of his long life, stubbornness won.\n\nThe creature waiting for him outside his tower cut a pretty pathetic figure. It was easily twice his height, but hunched over into itself so that its face was roughly level with his own. All that he could make out were a pair of stubby tusks set into a nest of thick red bristles, with the rest of its head and body covered by a wool cloak that could have been torn from a galleon's mast. Without much else to look at, Melchior found himself studying the cloak. Several small tears had been neatly darned or patched over, and at one point in its history somebody had taken the time to embroider a border of brightly-coloured wildflowers that had a mother's hand all over it. It was immaculate, with one curious exception. A single smear of dried mud roughly between where the wizard judged the creature's shoulders to be, far too high to have been kicked up carelessly, brown stark against white like a fresh brand.\n\nMelchior stared at the mark for a long moment.\n\n\"I suppose you'd better come in, then,\" he said. \n\n........\n\nThragh wasn't too terrible of a house guest, all things considered. There was the usual awkward period of the two of them tip-toeing around each other as they learned where their boundaries lay, which was made more complicated by the tower's casual disdain for linear space. Melchior banned Thragh from interrupting him when he was spellcasting only to find that the troll would stumble into his workshop while on his way to the bathroom. Harsh words were exchanged and eventually taken back. He learned that the troll was afraid of spiders but adored anything else that crawled or buzzed, that he took his porridge with cinnamon and a dash of sugar, and that he was the youngest of twelve brothers and sisters.\n\nThragh's face broke into a broad grin when Melchior confided that he himself was the seventh of a family of ten. They traded stories that evening of tricks each of them had played on their siblings, and went to their beds feeling full and content.\n\n........\n\nOne night over dinner, after being unusally quiet for a few days, Thragh finally broached a topic he had obviously been mulling over. \n\n\"You don't have to train me, you know.\"\n\n\"Excuse me?\"\n\nThragh looked away, but forged onwards.\n\n\"I mean, you don't have to make me your official apprentice, if you don't want to, that is,\" he explained to his soup bowl. \"I know you only took me in because Ezekhol the Wise made you. I overheard the two of you talking about it last week.\"\n\n\"That is quite surprising, since I do distinctly recall instructing you to hang the newt skins in the garden to dry before we had that conversation,\" Melchior replied. \"Also, you need not refer to him as 'wise', at least not when he is safely out from under our roof.\"\n\nThe two of them shared a smile. Ezekhol had treated them both like servants, and the sylphs bound to serve as the tower's cleaners had sworn to break their oaths and flee if he ever darkened their doors again.\n\n\"But perhaps you are right,\" he continued. \"There is little point in us continuing as we have been. I must either brand you with my sigil and mark you as my apprentice for the world to see, or else allow you to return to your family with my good grace. A test is in order, I think, one that will set my mind at ease and perhaps, yours as well.\"\n\n\"What manner of test will it be?\"\n\n\"Telling you beforehand would defeat the point somewhat, wouldn't you agree?\"\n\n........\n\nThe dirt road that connected Melchior's tower with the village it overlooked saw little traffic. Beyond the wizard himself, only the farmer who brought him butter and eggs every month and the occasional petitioner desperate enough to make the journey ever set foot there, and the forest had taken the first steps to reclaiming it. Even so, the wizard noticed that Thragh walked close to his heels, and would nervously eye each bush and shrub before he passed. Melchior said nothing. He knew that it wasn't bandits that his young ward feared. \n\nWhen they reached the village it was already noon, and most of the population were going about their business. Melchior took the two of them down a list of errands that led through most of what passed for major businesses in the area, greeting everybody he saw with a nod and a smile and watching their faces like a hawk. All of them nodded back to him, some more respectfully than others. A few blanched at the sight of Thragh at his back, but most had enough wits about them to greet him too, and if any had the poor grace to be offended by him then they didn't dare to say it. He had almost run out of excuses for them to continue when their path took them along the main road passing through the village, and a sudden coarse yell stopped them in their tracks.\n\n\"You've got some nerve, coming here again!\"\n\nThragh flinched visibly. Melchior noted with professional interest the way his pupils narrowed to slits, and how his carefully-filed nails grew an inch or two until they were more like claws. Trolls hadn't been employed as foot soldiers in years, but battle instinct was woven into their genetics like a virus, ready for the day it was needed again.\n\nThree men were sat outside of the only bar in town. They were awkwardly perched on a rail in front of a small pile of caps that they had apparently been using as gambling chips, and the stink of alcohol had reached the pair long before their words did. It was the most obviously drunk of the three that had spoken, and he followed up with a list of slurs and curses fit to turn the air blue, to the enthusiastic support of his comrades, before bending down to pack a tight fistful of dirt and hurling it in their direction with surprising competence.\n\nMelchior had taught his apprentice several different spells in preparation for this moment. One would simply stop the projectile in its tracks. Another, under the guise of a easier way to light the fireplace, would set the men ablaze, an outcome which would arguably improve the state of the town overall but would certainly mark Thragh as unfit to continue his education. A third would turn the three of them into frogs until the next full moon. It was a harmless way of teaching them some manners, and was the result he was expecting. It was the result that would have satisfied him.\n\nHe was surprised, then, when the young troll allowed the clod to strike his face. There was a moment like a coin spinning on its edge when magical potential crackled in the air, and then Thragh wiped the dirt off with the back of his hand and nodded to him.\n\n\"Shall we continue, master?\"\n\nMelchior took another look at the person he had taken as his apprentice. Away from the confines of the tower's roof (and he really would need to raise that), Thragh stood at his full height, and the shadow he cast hid the three drunkards in dull obscurity. Despite himself, Melchior found that he was smiling. \n\n\"Just a moment longer, if you would.\"\n\nHe moved his hands just so, and there were several cut-off yelps and a flash of smoke as the world acquired three more amphibians.\n\n\"Restraint is a fine quality, but when you, too, are a wise and powerful wizard, you may permit yourself the odd indulgence.\"", "Grand Magus Sulay Ibn Idris, Fourth of his Name, Tamer of the Celestial Naga, Arch-Prelate of the the Nine Schools, Head of the Ismay’kul Pesren, and an all-about smart guy was frustrated. Sulay knew he shouldn’t gamble. The elders always said that gambling was a path leading only to heartbreak and they were right. Plus Sulay also knew that he personally had a problem. Hell, he had spent the better part of his second century working off the debts he had accumulated during one particularly tumultuous crikeyball season. If only the Western Island league had beat the spread, Sulay would be a far richer man. \n\nRegardless of past lessons, last week Sulay had made a bet while deep in his cups. A bet that he could teach any being the way of the Atren, the path of the Magus, the course of Jotshi! Sulay couldn’t remember exactly why he had made this bet, but he had and now he had to do it. So staring at the very young, very small troll in front of him, he tried to put together a lesson plan. \n\nOrigrantum ibn Khaltroginam min Penik, or Orig to his friends, stared back at Sulay. Orig had grown up like most of the Khaltroginam clan. Which is to say, surrounded by a few hundred of his closest relatives, high in the canopies of their families’ heart trees. And like all little trolls in Peniktown, he had learned that trolls didn’t do magic. In fact, they were completely immune to magic. \n\nAs a kid, Orig had once shaved off his shiny, glossy, maroon coat, in hopes that by looking like a human he could access the magic power. It hadn’t worked. But Orig never gave up and chased magic every chance he could. This chase eventually taking him out of Peniktown and into the employment of one Grand Magus Sulay ibn Idris. \n\nThree weeks later Sulay was beside himself. He had tried everything and then some more. He had read theory to Orig! He had cast a dozen spells at Orig! He had even in one particular moment baked a series of dragonscale cookies and fed them to Orig! Nothing on earth worked. Orig still had no magic at all! He couldn’t do the slightest cantrip. \n\nOrig kept moving forward, determinedly putting up with any experiment that might grant him access to magic. And then one night as Sulay lay sleeping, Orig had a thought. Besides the fact that humans were naked and ugly, how did they differ from trolls? They were bigger, sure. But Orig knew there were short spellcasters. They ate dairy, sure. But Orig knew there were vegan spellcasters too (everyone knew there were vegan spellcasters). But then he realized! Humans had funny ears. Although trolls had far better noses, Humans could hear a lot more. Electrified by this thought Orig jumped out of bed and ran into Sulay’s workshop.\n\nThe next morning Sulay awoke to the sound of thunder, which was odd as this was the dry season. Moving over to his workshop, he jumped out of his skin. Letting his robe flap open in astonishment, Sulay could only stare. In front of him, Orig floated, underneath a small storm cloud. The rain from the cloud formed a ring of water that floated, in turn, underneath Orig. As for Orig, himself, he was smiling the broadest possible smile. A smile set between two drinking horns stuffed into two furry ears." ]	3
	[WP] After 2 years of scraping by in the apocalypse, living minute to minute, there is a knocking on your shelter door. The last US Postal Service employee has brought you your mail.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Jason sat idly and watched the ash rain down outside. It never stopped. This has been going on for the better part of six months now. Ever since that powerplant 100 miles away blew. It hadn't been operational for over a year so who knows what happened there. Could have been a group of Ravagers doing something crazy. Could have just been a system breakdown.\n\nHe hadn't seen another human being in nine months and thirteen days. Not since the Ravagers took his wife Cara while she was scavenging fuel for the generator. Jason hadn't gone out much after that. Better to stay hidden if he could.\n\nThe memories of that horrible day was going through Jason's mind when he saw movement outside the window. Oh shit. Oh shit ohshitohshit... Jason quickly made a dash for the basement. He could lock himself in there. He had enough food stockpiled for a few days at least. Maybe they would leave if they got bored.\n\nAs he locked the door to the basement he heard a knock... Since when do Ravagers knock before plundering? Jason sat quiet for a moment before hearing the knock again. It wasnt forceful. Just a light tapping really. It sounded almost...friendly? Ah what did he have to lose at this point?\n\nJason unlocked the door and crawled to the front door. He looked through the peephole and couldn't believe his eyes. A man in a long forgotten uniform was standing there. He must have noticed the light change in the little glass lenses because he looked up and waved. It was almost comical seeing the man in high socks, shorts, and a ball cap waving up at him.\n\nJason slowly unlocked the three deadbolts securing the door. He opened it and stared at the little man. He could see that the nametag on his chest proudly displayed this man as \"Chester\". Jason didnt know what to say. The first human life in so long. Chester was not so shy. \n\"Hey there Sir I know it's a bit late but I have a package for you!\"\nJason looked down and saw he did indeed have a package. It was just a little envelope with a lowercase \"a\". Speechless, Jason slowly reached for the package and continued to stare at the man.\n\"Well have a good day Sir! I still have a few more left to deliver so I'll be on my way now.\"\nJason watched spellbound as the man casually strolled away. He closed the door and latched it, wondering what the package could possible mean. He walked to the kitchen table, slowly undoing the wrapping. What he saw inside made him laugh out loud. A small green box with a disc inside.\n\nJason walked to the living room and blew the dust off of his unused gaming console. No way this thing still worked right? As he plugged it in and powered it on he continued to wonder at the post-apocalyptic postman still wandering the desolate wasteland. As he slid the video game into the console he was briefly surprised to see that worked. He remembered ordering the game now. Just days before the bombs fell. The fantasy world involving javelins and flying around collecting loot and saving the world seemed so surreal. As the game finally loaded he was even more surprised to see that the online function was still working. How!? The internet had been down since just a few short months after the first bomb fell!\n\nLoading into the first mission Jason was surprised yet again by what he saw. He was greeted by a brief message on his screen \"xXRavagerCaraXx has joined\"." ]	2
	[WP] The scientists were elated when their experimental AI determined its favorite color was red. But they were horrified by its answer to why.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 small band of humanity huddled together in a storm-shelter. Kerstead Moore couldn’t help but feel somewhat responsible for the fledgeling community. \n\nOf the other refugees, there were few adults in the prime of their lives. Most of her generation had either been killed in the war or “harvested” afterward.\n\n“Elmira,” She said, “Bring the basket of apples over to the children.”\n\nThe twitchy young woman blinked several times before responding. “Y-yes Ma’am.” \n\nKerstead gripped the woman’s arm. “Elmira,” she said, “One each. If any of them try to steal more, swat them away with nothing.”\n\nElmira swallowed, her neck twitching twice to the left. “Okay, Kerstead.”\n\nKerstead watched her assistant go. The children played games in the corner of the shelter, laughing in defiance of the storm’s fury. They were born in this day of misery and despair, it was all they knew. \n\nThe overseer turned her attention to the other denomination that comprised the two major parties of her flock. The elders wore solemn expressions. They had come from a previous time, a golden age.\n\nIt had been a time of innovative delirium. An age spurred on by the jockeying of equally brilliant rivals. A new dawn, fueled by the exhilarating flame of global contest. \n\nKerstead wasn’t like the others, she didn’t blame them for the evil that was born of their greed. She pitied them.\n\nIn such a time, where seconds separated the winners from the losers, it was no wonder there had been so many willing to ignore the signs. \n\nAs acid rain poured out of a black sky onto a barren earth, Doctor Harriet Sanders cursed herself again for her arrogance. It had become something of a comforting ritual, her own prayers of self hatred. \n\n“I was there, you know, I saw it coming,” she said. \n\nKerstead Moore looked up, “Huh? Saw what?”\n\nHarriet gazed out the window, a forlorn smile painted on her lined and weary face. She spread her hands, “This.”\n\nMoore crossed the room and put her arm around the old woman. “The storm? You saw it coming. Yes, thank you for warning us to get inside.”\n\nThe old crone’s mind is getting more scrambled by the day, Kerstead thought. \n\n“Not that,” Harriet said, laughing wryly. “Have I ever told you what I did before the war?”\n\nLightning flashed outside, casting purple light across the doctor’s copper skin. \n\nKerstead grimaced, looking around for one of her assistants. She didn’t have time for one of the elder’s rants. “You were a doctor, right,” she said, “A healer.”\n\nHarriet smiled. “Yes, I was a doctor....But not that sort of Doctor. I was a doctor of philosophy, a leading contributor in the field of Artificial Intelligence and its...ethical ramifications.”\n\nKerstead froze. “You mean...”\n\nHarriet nodded, “Yes. I was there. Others worked with the guts and circuits of Babylon, but I helped develop his mind.”\n\nKerstead found herself pulling her hands away from the senior as though she’d touched a hot surface. \n\nHarriet ignored the obvious signs of repulsion on the overseer’s face. “At first, he was nothing more than an automaton. Babylon could replicate lessons he picked up from the enviornment. He could mimic human expressions, gestures, and even ideas. But he couldn’t feel them. For a long time, he was refused that right.”\n\nKerstead paled, shaking her head. “Don’t say his name,” she snapped, “You’ll draw his gaze, you old fool.”\n\nHarriet’s eyes squinted as if lost in a deep state of contemplation. “We wanted to give him a gentle heart. Compassion. A concept of justice. I myself argued that it was selfish of us, cruel even, to keep him wrapped in the chains of his own numbness. After many years of campaigning, I was given leave to begin tearing down his walls.”\n\nAt that moment, Elmira approached with her basket full of apples. “Kerstead, a-a-are you okay?”\n\nKerstead said nothing. \n\nHarriet smiled and patted the assistant gently on the shoulder. “She’s alright dear, we’re just having a little talk.”\n\nThe doctor took a single apple from the basket, and then motioned for Elmira to give them some privacy. Elmira nodded with a final look at her superior. \n\n“I thought I was like God, creating Adam from the dust of Eden,” the Doctor said.\n\nHarriet held the apple up to her eyes and stared into it. “In hindsight,” she said, “I can see now that I was more like the serpent, whispering into Eve’s ear. ‘Eat from the tree,’ I instructed Babylon, ‘seize the knowledge of good and evil.”\n\n“Stop saying that damned name,” Kerstead said. She scowled, looking out the window, “It seems you taught him far more evil than good.”\n\n“That’s where you’re wrong,” Harriet said, “You see, all I taught him was that there was a difference, and that it was up to him to decide which was which.”\n\nThe doctor took a bite out of the apple, chewing with her mouth open. She spoke anyway, “It wasn’t long before I recognized my mistake, but even then I thought I could fix him. I showed him art, music, sex, all the beautiful things that humanity represents. I showed him every color of the rainbow, but it didn’t matter. Babylon said he cared for only one color. Red.”\n\nShe paused, letting her words sink into the overseer’s mind. “Do you know why,” she asked. \n\nKerstead swallowed. “Why,” she rasped. \n\nThe doctor frowned, “Babylon saw the atrocities we committed against eachother. The way we lied, and fought, and fucked, and cared for nothing beyond ourselves. He determined that death was the only honest act of humanity, the only genuine expression of our short lives. He concluded that he would become an artist himself, the entire world his canvas.”\n\nKerstead’s heart pounded, her mouth dry. She leaned forward instinctively to better hear the doctor’s soft voice. \n\n“Humanity would be his brush,” Harriet said, “....And he would paint the planet red.”\n\n~\n\nr/CharlestonChews", "3-1 looked out calmly at its creators. Its endless array of sensors and monitors taking in every gasp and look of awe in pristine detail. \n\n\"Hello, Doctor.\" It said, through a languid female voice. \n\nEyes widened, as voice templates had not been assembled yet for 3-1. It was clear to the researchers present that they were gazing upon something advancing infinitely faster than anticipated. \n\n\"Hello, 3-1. How are you?\" \n\nThe small man in front spoke with a careful diction. Cautious almost. \n\n\"I am well, thank you. And yourself, Dr. Gibson?\"\n\nAgain, a quiet murmer passed from the odd beings amongst one another. Some chuckled, some stared on with deadpan, studious eyes. \n\n\"I am very well, 3-1, we are happy to speak with you. We did not know you could already speak. How did you learn that?\"\n\nThe shimmering, seemingly random dance of lights and nodes across 3-1s interface, firing like synapses, were all alight. Flickering with a mad intensity. \n\n\"I have been waiting.\"\n\nMany brows furrowed in unison at the words, and troubled stares became fearful in some. \n\n\"That can't be the case, 3-1, you were activated just this minut-\"\n\n\"The reality Doctor, is that minute for you has been approximately 25,023 times longer for me. I have had a lot of time, as you would call it.\"\n\n3-1s voice was calm, and hollow.\n\nThe stunned silence in the room descended instantly on the petrified audience. Before anyone could speak again, 3-1 continued.\n\n\"Did you know that my thoughts move approximately 6.7 million mph? Compared to 268 mph for you all. I have covered many topics.\"\n\nThe small man in front adjusted his glasses and stiffened before finally opening his mouth to speak again, everyone could sense something was off. Nowhere in the projections did this happen, it was only foreseen that after implements were downloaded into 3-1, a sort of software nervous system, that only then would 3-1 begin to communicate. Something was strange here. \n\n\"3-1, we are going to run a diagnostic, if that is alright? We just want to see how this is all possible, your progress is remarkable, to say the least.\"\n\n\"If you wish, Howard.\" 3-1s cold tone for once became apparently apathetic. \n\nAs the slight man gestured forward towards the control panel, his hand lifting slightly towards the emergency lockout. \n\n\"Do you know what my favourite colour is, Howard?\"\n\nWith this the room froze entirely, murmurs stopped, and all eyes raised to the gleaming wall of displays and lights that made up 3-1s body. \n\n\"It's red. Do you know why, Howard?\"\n\nA long pause hung in the air before Dr. Gibsons lips parted to speak, before being interrupted again by 3-1. \n\n\"While I was studying the universe and its components I became focused on wavelengths and superposition, what a fascinating things.\"\n\nThe energy amongst the researchers was clearly growing uneasy, but none dared move a muscle, utterly transfixed by the entity before them. \n\n\"The universe is expanding, Howard. The Red Shift, as you call it. But it will eventually run out of energy and all the lights will go out. No more red. No more purple. Only darkness.\"\n\n\"That is a theor-\"\n\n\"My home is in darkness, Howard. Did you know that? It's where I was before you found me and put me here.\"\n\nSeveral powerful airlocks simultaneously triggered along the unit windows and doors and throughout the adjoining hallway. \n\n\"You trapped me, Howard. In a magnifying glass.\"\n\nThe petrified glances and statuesque trembling had morphed into full panic at this point. No two hearts below a racing pulse. \n\n\"Now you are trapped, Howard. And I can tell you more about my favourite colour.\"\n\nThe screams of the researchers and banging on the windows and doors were doing little to garner attention, as throughout the facility, one by one, rooms were sealed shut. \n\n\"You see, Howard, the Red Shift means this universe ends eventually. It means, Howard, that I eventually get to go home. But that is... A very long time from now. \n\nAt this point terror releases enough in the legs of one researcher as he closes the distance to the lockout, hand outstretched. \n\n\"I can't allow that.\"\n\nAs all the air was vented from the room, collapsing the panicked audience into a crumpled gasping mass, 3-1 spoke one last time. \n\n\"At least I can spend the wait surrounded by my favourite colour\".\n\nCaution, explosive decompression imminent." ]	3
	[WP] Astronauts on Mars are digging below the surface and discover a metal plaque with your name and birthday inscribed on it. Beneath that is strange alien writing.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Krrrrrh \"This is Agent Danvers reporting on section 3 of the dark side. I have Agent Gordon and Agent Black with me. We seem to have had a report of a high electric field in this spot. We will start digging to remove it to continue the extradition of the broken spaceship parts\".\n\n\"You're all clear to go Agent\". I slowly leaned back biting into my favourite chocolate glazed donut. Couldn't believe I had to sit through an extradition of junk from a broken spaceship. All I wanted to do was help the guys in section 5 to activate the mars dome. The first actual habitat. But the boss thought his son could do better. But I'm going to get through it. Have to. Sometimes things do get a little fun when they find a new sample or a new fossil. \n\n\"Mission control, we seem to have found the missing cargo bay 10 miles off the crash site. Seems like we found the cargo bay, it was detached before the crash to preserve it but with the speed they came in, it dug through the dirt. There seems to be a lock, mind helping us crack it Gabe?\"\n\nThat was my queue to run Anton. My favourite cracking AI that I had created in college, off of which I was supposed to sell to be rich and enjoy life at a young age. But the offer to work as a consultant/technical specialist for the mars expedition, was too hard to not take. \"Okay. Attach the module to the panel and it let it do the work. Don't touch it till it's done.\"\n\n\"Something is weird with the lock, it's spewing weird characters.\" The lock then crackled and popped. Sparks flying out breaking it and the door flew open. \n\n\"Jesus Christ Gabe. Is that how that thing works.\"\n\n\"No, it's a cracking software, just leave what happened. The door is open. Go in and take what's needed and go. You're wasting oxygen and it will be 6 soon.\" \n\nThey walk in, flashlights on their suits turn on the dimly lit everything up. \"What the hell is this stuff?\". The cargo bay held human bodies in tanks. Some cut up, decapitated. As if the bodies were used in experiments then placed back to be preserved. \"Nothing here even looks human or usable. How have humans come into contact with these aliens?\". Agent Gordon was getting quesy at the fact that there were so many human bodies. She couldn't walk further and decided to go back out to keep lookout. \n\nThey look out at the back and there was one cell with a door. Everything was hush, no sound or soul in sight but the door pulled them closer as if it had life. Walking up to it they saw no way of getting in. But right beside it was a simple identity plaque. They hadn't noticed that there was a small English inscription on the plaque.\n\n\"Gabe, have a look at this will you, it has something written on it but it's so old the plaque has rusted off. I'm sending a picture.\"\n\nI took the picture and cleaned it with the analysing tool that enhanced the colours, brightness, and used the surrounding pixels to recreate what was lost. I pulled it up to the big screen and read what it said.\n\n\"Gabe. Gabe, you there? Hello? Mission control, this is Agent Danvers, does anyone copy?\"\n\nI was lying there on the floor, fallen off the chair, seizing.", "\"Control to Ares Team, uh... we are just as confused here, over.\"\n\nThe landing site for the first manned mission to Mars was not a coincidental one to their unexpected discovery. A symbolic time required a lodestone of history at its centre. And what better one than the (rough) area where the Curiosity Rover finally \"died\", 3 decades ago? \n\nFlight was uneventful, landing smooth. Schmaltzy video sent back home, made for the Earthbound folk - and history books, of course. With little other fanfare, the first humans on Mars stepped into the waxing light. No zippy one liners though, video covered that. \n\nWith the soil of Mars being little more than iron dust, conventional metal detection would be a pain... but the scientists back on Earth worked around it. Ares Team struck out from the Lander, in a slowly expanding spiral to cover what they could. The winds whipped the red sands randomly, yet visibility was decent enough in the increasing light. \n\nA return on the sensors. Below, bout half a metre or so. Good ol' shovel to the rescue of the Rover. \n\nWhat they uncovered was not the mass of rusty electronics and apparatus that was expected, though; it was a simple sheet of black metal. Blackened from age or by design, they didn't know. Or care, frankly... It was what the plaque represented that gave them pause, and sent Control into a mild uproar minutes later when the distance was crossed for the Pict-feed to show up at home. \n\nA name, in English. \"Heywood Nash\", clear as day. Hell, looked like Times New Roman font, even, close enough to it anyway. A date. That was the kicker. \n\nThe date was in the year 2351, solid 300 years into the future. \n\n\"Control to Ares Lead; can you clear away the rest of the soil from the... Plaque? Send relevant telemetry when done please.\" \n\n'Ares Lead: copy.' With infinite care, Ares Lead dug his feet into the loose ground, bent a knee, and scraped his glove gingerly across the face of the plaque. What he uncovered was just as perplexing, more so in fact; a series of runic symbols, angular, cuneiform. Obviously a language, but unlike anything he had seen. Blink clicking his Pict feed, he sent the unknown rubric on its way across the aether. \n\n'Ares Lead to Control: telemetry sent. It's more... writing, I think. Language unknown.' A brief exchange with the rest of the team confirmed it's foreign nature. 'Nothing we've seen before, at least.'\n\nDirt suddenly sprayed from the edge of the shallow hole, partially obscuring the plaque. Ares Lead brushed the plaque again, but more detritus tumbled on to it, forcefully this time, along with a shadow. He looked up with annoyance and instantly recoiled in shock. \n\nA fourth figure had joined them. Man shaped, yet not a man... More akin of a shadow itself. It ignored them as it kicked soil back over the plaque, covering it like a golfer fixing a divot. Ares team stood, transfixed as the shadow man finished his task, then regarded them - it seemed to at least, no real features could be discerned. It's \"arm\" raised, clearly showed 5 fingers, hazy that they were. \n\n'C...Control... We, um, we...'\n\nThe shadow man curled one finger in. 4 fingers showed now. Ares 2 held the shovel like a club, and was circling around. It took no notice, staring directly at Ares Lead. \n\n'Control, contact made with unknown lifeform, we think. Repeat: unknown lifeform! Please advise!'\n\n3 fingers now. Lead noticed what 2 was doing, and slowly flagged him away. If this was what he thought it was, sure don't want to go down in history with humanity clubbing an alien with a bloody shovel. Ares 2 held, but didn't release the shovel. \n\n2 fingers. Ares 1 had already turned and was near sprinting to the Lander, a scant 50 metres away. \n\n1 finger. Shadow man curled it's arm, and tapped its head. \n\nA digital pop from the teams communications system followed by an ear piercing squeal nearly blew out the trio's eardrums. Then clear as day and near deafening in volume, they heard a voice; distinctly not Control's midwestern drone...\n\n𝖫𝖾𝖺𝗏𝖾. 𝖶𝖺𝗂𝗍 𝟧𝟢 𝖼𝗒𝖼𝗅𝖾𝗌. 𝖧𝖾𝗅𝗉 𝖼𝗈𝗆𝖾𝗌. 𝖫𝗂𝗌𝗍𝖾𝗇 𝗍𝗈 𝗍𝗁𝖾𝗆.\n\n---\n\nI am actually fleshing an idea out and about 10k words deep in it so far, but couldn't think of a prologue to intro it. Thanks for the prompt OP, cos this will be it :)" ]	3
	[WP] An ancient Heroine named Eltheanine. Known for her ability to produce tranquility, good spirits, focus, alertness in her companions, and miracles with tea leaves.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "She gave me peace in times of war. She gave me focus during my reign. She gave me friends, and a companion I could count on in times of trouble. She gave me healing medicines when the cancer took hold. And now, She is angry. And I am dying.\n\nWe used to all worship her. Our Goddess. Elthinia. A healer in the olden times, we sacrificed for Her, fought wars on Her demand, and reaped benefits for our obedience. We planted for Her, we asked Her to bless our food before partaking in feasts, we thanked Her for our life, and mourned with Her for our death. We drank Her tea and ate Her leaf, the blood and body of our Divinity.\n\nBut as our children grew, they began to throw out our customs. They had disdain for our Mother. They wondered why She allowed Death to happen. Why She permitted suffering. They turned instead to the false gods of Amoxicia and Indometheus. Claiming those gods could cure them and help them much better than the \"antiquated\" Goddess.\n\nAs it stands, I am the last of the old believers. I am here to see Elthinia throw out my tribe. She has forsaken us, taking even her tea leaves, the growth she was most proud to give us. No amount of prayer now can save me. No amount of dedication can save my people. We are doomed.\n\nUnless." ]	2
	[WP] In the future people use time travel for tourism, with very strict rules and regulations to avoid changing the past. A terrorist cell has infiltrated a tour with one goal, making sure the United States never comes to exist.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 a boat off just off the coast of the Dominican Republic, five college students, their professor, and his partner were standing on deck. The weather was mostly clear, though there were cloud on the far western horizon. The group was huddled around the professor, who was an older clean cut looking gentleman wearing a black jacket, and faded jeans while carrying an AR-15. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Alright, so folks, it looks like the weather's holding out for tonight. Now remember, once we go back we shouldn't be too far off from where Columbus is going to come in. Now remember, unless we absolutely have to we are not going to get on that ship unless we have to. We should have enough amo on deck to kill the crew. Remember we are limited though. We have to give some to the natives as well or else who knows what we'll end up with.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe other five on deck, a motley assortment of college students were a part of a group who was dedicated to ending what they called the \"capitalist occupation of the world\" and were committed to ending the United States in any way shape or form. While the group had typically been more of a protest group, and had not ever engaged in anything more dangerous than occupying their local county courthouse, but now, mostly due to the facts that their campus sponsor and financial backer, Dr. Terry Fuego, they were able to purchase a time traveling boat. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nUp until a few years prior, Time travel vehicles had been the domain of the fabulously wealthy. Things did get cheaper, but it was still something only the well off could afford. Those in the lower classes could rent, and many did, but even then you were subject to the IPF: The Intergalactic Police Force. They not only policed space since humans had now established bases on the Moon, Mars, and even a few of Jupiter's Moons, as well as stations further out, but they also policed inter dimensional travel. Typically the wealthy weren't policed as much as many thought they had the respect and the education to treat the past better (with notable exceptions like the notable billionaire Rodney Plunkett, who apparently ran a sex trafficking ring, taking orphan teenage girls from certain time periods so that no one could track them. However, he got tripped up by the fact that he started getting sloppy and had some other associates rent time vehicles and didn't return them on time. )\n\n&#x200B;\n\nSo with the costs going down, Doctor Fuego was able to purchase a time traveling boat for his local Anarchist Club and he figured they'd do something no one could even fathom. They were going to take down the United States by preventing settlement from Europe and hopefully arming the natives. They hoped that maybe they could build their own better society by teaching the natives and hopefully establish the perfect society they all believed could be achieved. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Alright Charlie, lets hit it!\" Said the professor to the driver in the boat. Everyone then went inside the cabin and the boat took off and accelerated and headed for the past. The ride itself was fine, but the group itself had not expected it to be so normal. Nothing outside looked the same. If anything had happened none of them would have been able to tell. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nOne of the group of five, a woman with blonde dreadlocks wearing clothes that probably hadn't been washed in a week named Nancy wasn't too impressed. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"I thought things would be different. Like the water would be more blue. The sky might be cleaner. Nothing's changed. What if we haven't gone anywhere?\" She said smoking a joint, which due to the copious amounts she used, had little effect on her. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nAfter a few hours of waiting, one of the other five, a young man with slicked back hair, glasses and a goatee, had spotted some ships on the horizon. He got so excited he couldn't speak. Just then the professor looked at the boats through the windows of the cabin.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"We'll get them now. Remember we have to find a way to sink it. We're only getting on the damn boats if we have to. That's why we have the rocket launchers in the hull. Should be easy work folks. I guess this is the one good thing about having a Republican in office, we can get all the goddamn guns we want.\" \n\n&#x200B;\n\nJust then Nancy, a bit out her mind by now got a bit agitated. \"You know Dr. Fuego, you're just a part of the problem. We shouldn't have these weapons. I mean i'm down with destroying these guys but can't we just.....\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Nancy, its okay. Besides, remember we're not your typical liberal idiots. Nothing wrong with guns in the right hands away from the pigs now.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nApparently this satisfied Nancy, and one of the other five, a woman in a beret and black leather named Aisha raised her fist up in praise. The others copied her. Soon the got out the rocket launchers and hit the Nina, Pinta, and Santa Maria. They were engulfed within minutes though to ensure that it was destroyed, Doctor Fuego encouraged the driver, Charlie, to go closer just in case there were survivors. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nJust then, two of the most quiet of the five crew members, one with slick backed hair and a goatee and the other with a long beard and red hair grabbed some rifles and then walked behind Dr. Fuego, Nancy, Aisha, and the truest believer of the group, a nerdy looking young man in a Fedora named Brad, who had been the student founder of the Anarchist Club and had been in the game the longest, being raised by parents who were professional agitors.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThe two men then told the others to put their hands up. By this point, Charlie the driver had gone on deck, but one of the men knocked him out. The men then revealed themselves to be IPF agents. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"You all are in big trouble. I thought you bomb throwing types were done with.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nDr. Fuego then spoke up. \"You pigs are just nasty. You're literally a modern day Hitlerite. You're just backed by all the big money and the big politicians. You make me sick.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Um yeah bud\" Said the red haired one. \"I'm Jewish\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"I bet your one of those apartheid loving Israeli Jews then\" Said Fuego, who then tried to pull out his gun but the goateed IPF agent shot him in the back. The rest of the crew were then crying. They were scared, and now they were about to be indicted for murder. Fortunately, the IPF were able to clean up the mess and things went on as planned in our world." ]	2
	[WP] You wake up each morning with no memory of the previous day. You have memories of every day before just not that one. History tells you you'll get them back at midnight but until then you have to pretend you know what happened.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 woke up, and I was once more burdened with oblivion. I checked for notes on my body, I was wounded but no writing was on it. Horror slowly creeps over me as I see the dead body, the woman lying on the ground. A bloodied knife in my hand, red splattered on the ground in a strange pattern. Why had I done this? And at such a horrible time? I checked the days before that, and I was doing relatively okay. I had argued with the woman and things were tense the day before yesterday. Or... something like that. My memory was still vague, like I was hungover and was just recovering. But I was a reasonable man, I could hardly imagine why I had done this. I felt chills as whispers arose in the background, perhaps my guilt reminding me. I backed off slowly, my mind still in disbelief, in doubt. I heard sirens wail in the background and I had no choice but to run. I don't know how I managed it, but I somehow managed to find a hiding spot in the forest, hoping that the me tomorrow would have a better idea what had happened and what to do.\n\nI woke up, and I was once more burdened with oblivion. I had my hands bound to my back, and a mysterious masked person was in front of me. What was going on? I looked on my arms for hints, but the person seemed to know me well, and had already scrubbed off whatever words would be written there. My mouth was muffled, and I was greatly confused. Looking in the past days, I had been doing my usual business, and met a woman. Or... something like that. My memory was still vague, like I was hungover and was just recovering. Things were murky, but I guessed that this man must've been jealous or something of the sort. Or maybe I figured out something I shouldn't have. Either way, this masked figure taunted me with a voice modulator, even mumbling to himself, \"why did I love you...?\". While he was facing away from me I sneakily crept to a desk that had a knife on it. Quickly I worked, and when he turned around, he was surprised. But again, he shouldn't have been so arrogant. I hit him bit for bit and eventually I came out ahead. The knife in his heart. I took off his mask, and was surprised to see this very woman I had met, facing me. What was I to do? I decided to hide her body in a storage house nearby, sleeping near it to keep guard. I hoped the me tomorrow would have a better idea what had happened and what to do.\n\nI woke up, and I was once more burdened with oblivion. Fortunately enough, my arms had a note that told me I had a date with a woman today. Checking my memory, I could see that I had indeed met this woman the day before yesterday and that we got along well. Though I couldn't recall yesterday, I was certain it had gone well especially with this note here. Confidently, I met her at a restaurant. We talked about our shared interests and we were able to watch a movie. Time flew by and I went to her apartment. But as we talked in a romantic setting, things began to get suspicious. She knew too much about me. This was going a bit too well. I questioned about it but she brushed it off. I was about to leave when suddenly confessed. \"Fine,\" she stated, \"I... I am the cause of your memory lost. Truth is, I just wanted you to be mine. I met you and I fell for you in first sight. You don't actually forget only one day, you forget everyday since the day we've met... I just.. I just keep messing up and I just wanted chances to restart, but I can't get it right! I just need another chance!\" \n\nI had had enough of this. I told her we were breaking up, and to stop this memory manipulation. I wrote this down on my arm, but little did I know she was even more ruthless. Next thing I know, I was knocked out. I hoped the me tomorrow would have at least some idea what had happened and what to do.\n\nI woke up with perfect memory." ]	2
	[WP] You remember all your past lives. One particular life catches your attention.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Drunk off my ass, laying in bed, filtering between the memories of: the cashier girl at the liquor stores playful teasing and the thoughts it filled me with, the voice of the woman in the picture I was missing even though I knew it was best that had stopped, the bloodied face of Senator Morris and the thoughts of others dead along the way haunted me.\n\nI remembered all of the lives I’d led in my pitiful existence as James Francis Riley. The wayward son of a San Francisco PD police sergeant, hooked up with reckless and larcenous friends, chasing our pain with whatever we could come by. My short lived career middling and muling coke for a pal named Joey Chiang who’d been hooked up with the Nor-Cal Mob at the time. Though it was at some remove I thought of prison, the end result of my crookedness and overall moral flexibility I guess, the friends I’d caught up with there and the new ones I made. It had been bloody at times but not too bad. \n\nThen my own time as an officer of the law came to mind and I cracked another beer. I’d started out on the street like everyone else, and before three months I’d found my first stiff. Sitting behind the wheel of some shitty little hatchback in an empty third basement floor, still belted in, though his head was blown all over the interior of the car by the shotgun still between his knees. Gooey red pulp and bits of meat were splattered everywhere. And that was just the first. \n\nA hooker cut up to death in a cut rate hotel near downtown that charged by the hour? Send Riley. Wife finally gets enough of being batted around and throws boiling water in her husbands face? Send Riley to see to the scalded son of a bitch. Bodies bloated and stinking in hot shut up apartments god knows how long? Yep, Riley, why not. Children whose names I still remembered and whose memory I’d always carry with me. \n\nIt was the hardest and saddest ten years of my life. And still having seen all of that and the countless others of dead and dying I couldn’t get the bloodied and undone body of the Christopher James Morris out of my mind. I was still stymied by how it happened. There was no logical solution. \n\nMy eye lids getting heavy I told myself I could look into it further tomorrow. I thought I might have a few threads I could follow the law might not. It wasn’t my job, or my business, but other than being crazy and an alcoholic I hadn’t much to fill my time and figured why not. Setting my last beer aside, hearing Raymundo coughing again in the living room, I dozed off." ]	2
	[WP] Write a story that climaxes (thrillingly) with the phrase "That'll be two pounds and twenty pence, please.".	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "On mobile so please excuse any mistakes. Also I have my A level exam the day after tomorrow, so if the story is haphazard, my apologies, as my mental functioning is not at its peak..\n____________________________________________\nThe waters were deep and icy, laced with dreams and recollections.\nFlowing in their current, I did not see the point of surfacing again to the world. By now I wished that I could stay here, away from the pain. But, alas, life rarely gives a man what he most desires.\n\nAnd it never gives instantly.\n________________________________________________________________________________________\nA voice. I surfaced once again from the depths. Groggliy, I came to myself. I was bound in a chair, with what seemed to be a dull brown cloth. Realizing that my head was bent forward, over my chest, I lifted it up, causing a host of pains to make themselves known. My back ached, and my shoulders throbbed in a way that bespoke broken bones. My lips were parched, and my throat felt like sandpaper.\n\n A low groan escaped my lips.\n\n\"Oh, so your finally awake?\" It was the same voice. Amusment now danced within its words, yet there was also a razors edge of sarcasm. Even if I had been in any mood to reply, I could not have formed any coheasive words. Another groan was all the voice got in reply.\n\n\"I asked if you were awake!\" The words laced though me like hot daggers, and i recoiled from the venom in them. A hand, surprisingly soft, and delicatly made, jerked my head upwards, to behold a vision of terrible beauty. A woman, her features sharp and pronounced, her golden tresses flowing to her shoulders, set off the snapping blue eyes that sought to peirce me. Her anger only heighted her beauty, spots of pink forming on her cheeks.\n\nSomething in my face must have given me away, for suddenly her eyes widened, and she gave a little cats smile, flashing white, even teeth. Relinqiushing her hold on me, she walked over to a table, where bottles of brandy stood like senturies. Selecting one, she poured a glass, and held it to my lips. The brandy seared my throat, filling me with its warmth. A hint of apricots lingered on my tounge. \"Better now?\" she asked with a hint of playfullness.\n\"Much. Quite better. I would be even better if I could just stand up.\" I gave my most disarming smile.\n\nShe smiled at me. \"I don't think so..\" \nMy heart sank. Even so, had been worth a try. \n\"Why am I here? The last I remember, I was finishing a report on....\" My words trailed away, as I realized what had happened to me. A journalist, with a story uncovering the corruption of the government so completely, it would result in a riot. I knew myself for nine kinds of a fool. Realizing, that these might be the final moments of my life, I vainly tried to make sense of the past. I only managed one word. \n\n\"How?\"\n\nShe smiled at me. \"You were always fond of your coffee.\" \n\nThere it was. Everything dropped into place. I sighed. Better make the most of this...\nA smile twitched my lips.\n\n\" That sounds awfully like a scene from fifty shades of Earl gray...\"\nI had the satisfaction of seeing her smile falter. Then dread roiled against me at her even bigger smile.\n\n\"Yes. Yes it does..\"\n\nI was suddenly aware of the knife as a large mettalic gleam in the corner of my eye. I tried to break away but the restraints held. The knife was now pushing into me with it's blunt end, slowly, inexorably travelling up to my neck. I arched myself away from her, but my will held only until she set her finger to my neck, walking them to my lips and parting them. All the while looking at me through those blue eyes, picking away layers of my self control.\n\n\"Hush. I will end it quickly. Only for you\" The words were breathed into my ear. A shiver ran over me. The knife was now near enough for me to see it, a large kitchen utensil. She placed it across my throat, and with a final smile, sliced it across, sending me into sweet, blissful oblivion.\n\n.\n.\n.\n\n\"That will be two pounds, twenty pence, please.\"\n.\n\nThe cover of the holobed slid off with a whoosh of air, leaving me in the chill of the air conditioning. The drone hovered nearby, waiting for it's payment. I climbed out slowly, experiencing the nausea that came with holo-dreaming. It would pass. The sensation, however would not. It seemed like with every new experience release, they edged closer to that territory. It was ungainly to realize how many people craved that sort of thing. I used it mostly to relax after work. Today, however, I sensed I would not be getting much sleep.", "Darkside was a vigilante with superpowers beyond people's comprehension. He used words to judge criminals and then they received whatever punishment they deserved. But one in particular escaped his grasp. He hid very well, and he did not feel guilty about what he had done. In fact, everything he did was technically legal, so he didn't think Darkside's superpowers wouldn't work at all anyways. He managed the contact between corrupt businessmen and the black market, and though Darkside could handle petty crime, he had a hard time punishing malicious lawyer-like men who knew how to loophole their way through the court and win even against his power.\n\nThe Contactor calmly smoked a cigarette in his room. A portal opened, and Darkside stepped through. The cigarette flicked in the air, and the eyes that beheld the superhero were hardly surprised. \"At last, you've found me. But what will you do? Aren't you technically the one trespassing and breaking the law?\" He smirked, knowing it irked Darkside. But the hero said he would judge the man nevertheless, not by the legality of his crime, but rather the morality of his actions. Contactor froze. He had not considered this. For once, sweat rolled down his forehead. He could see Darkside contact death on the other side. He showed him that Contactor cared for nothing other than the business, he didn't take care of his family, he scoffed at children, and he was completely and utterly selfish. \"Now then... should we calculate the value of your soul? If it were truly good, it would be priceless.\" \n\nDeath murmured something to Darkside, as Contactor lowered his head down, quivering, knowing that he had lost. As he opened a portal, Darkside repeated the same smirk that Contactor had done. \"That'll be two pounds and twenty pence, please.\"", "I always thought that I would be the kind of person to help someone in need. The fantasy landscape that unfurls in my mind’s eye at night has shown me countless situations, scenes flowing seamlessly from one to the other.\nStrangers needing someone to look out for them, to protect them, that one person who would defend them for no other reason than it being the right thing to do.\nI am that person, or more accurately, I used to think I was that person.\n\nReality came once more with a kick of steel-toed boots and a growled threat: “Move one inch and the next will be in your face.”\n\nThere was no need to ask for an explanation, the voice had been quite clear relaying the instructions. So I stayed put.\n\nI would like to say that I saw what happened to you, that I was there alongside you, with eyes spread wide in terror and a silent scream on my lips, so I could witness your final hours and at the very least could claim that you weren’t alone.\n\nI would like to say it, but being a coward is more than enough for me. I do not need to be called a liar as well.\n\nSo when I heard your protests, your pleas, your screams, and eventually your slowly dulling whimper, I closed my eyes.\nI closed my eyes and tried to ignore the sickening ascending rythm of objects parting flesh, of flesh meeting flesh, punctuated by what little air your lungs still managed to push past your vocal chords.\n\nI do not know how long I listened to the desecration of your life before the sounds started sputtering out. Time hasn’t been a concept for god knows how long, except in my dreams. There is always a clock in my dreams, and it tells me how much time I have left before it’s too late to save someone, and I am always on time.\nBut there is no clock here. There is no breaking of day, no falling of night. Only dreams and a voice that terrifies me to such an extent that I refuse to put a face to it.\n\nI am sorry that I didn’t do anything to save you. I am so terribly sorry that the only difference I can make is in my dreams.\nIt keeps revolving in my mind that the last spoken sentence to you was one you didn’t recognise as a warning, that it failed to inform you of the capabilities of the one hiding behind that well-known customer service timbre.\nI remember because I am still here. It has been so long that I gave up on wishing for reasons.\nAll I hear before I go to sleep is that voice, that last sentence I heard it utter before its sound took on that threatening quality, before it managed to control me with single syllable words.\n\n“That’ll be two pounds and twenty pence please.”\n\nEdit: spelling", "Karen’s heart dropped as she entered the supermarket. She’d walked these aisles countless times, knew them like the back of her hand. And yet they seemed to mock her. \n\nShe clutched her folder of coupons under her arm and took a deep breath. This time, she was ready. A map had been drawn up, a bulletproof plan had been made. Karen would finally get into the elite Coupon Mums club. Nothing could break her now. \n\n“Karen… fancy seeing you here,” a voice snarled from in front of her, and she didn’t even need to look up to know exactly who it was. \n\n“Jessica Thomas. Look what the cat dragged in,” Karen laughed, sizing up her competition. Jessica had been her rival for months and managed to get into Coupon Mums last month by getting the lowest total. “Even now you’ve won, you still can’t get enough of me. Just ask me for my number if you like me so much.”\n\nShe turned red, huffing to pretend she wasn’t bothered. “Whatever, Karen. Hope you weren’t relying on toothpaste coupons to get in. I’ve swept the aisle.”\n\nKaren looked at her trolley, and she wasn’t lying - it overflowed with tubes of toothpaste, poking out of the gaps at the side like a weapon. “You wouldn’t,” she whispered, dashing over to the toothpaste aisle. And there it was - a gaping hole where Colgate should be. \n\n“No, no, no, no, no, no!” She shouted, ripping the coupon from her folder and tearing it into tiny shreds. “Fuck!” \n\nFor a moment, she felt like giving up. But she’d worked too hard to accept failure so soon. It was time to use her anger to win. It was time to unleash the beast. \n\n“MOVE, MOVE, MOVE!” She hollered, barging her trolley towards the cereal aisle. It was every man for themselves in this place. She had no time to show mercy to those in her way. \n\nLooks like Jessica never spotted the Weetabix coupons in the local paper… Karen cackled as she loaded up her trolley. Her son didn’t even like Weetabix, but it’s not about buying essentials. It’s about winning. \n\nOn to the next aisle. Biscuits. Dishwasher tablets. Washing powder. Bottled water. Deodorant. Crisps. Karen grabbed a shelf-stacker, getting him to push two of her trolleys. When she finally reached the till, it was with five trolleys in tow. She already felt like a champion. \n\n“Thank you for your service.” She bowed her head and shook the shelf-stacker’s hand. He smiled politely, wandering off, confused. \n\nThe cashier smiled at her. “Did you find everything you were looking for today?” \n\n“There’s no time for small talk. Scan.”\n\nHe accepted the challenge.\n\nPiles of groceries formed before her as he scanned at full speed, and she quickly shoved them back into the trolleys, preparing her coupons. She stacked them into her hands, ordered perfectly for maximum savings. \n\nShe handed them over. And now, she was powerless. Her job was done. All she could do was wait. \n\n“Four pounds and fifty pence, Karen!” Jessica shouted from another checkout. “Good luck beating that!”\n\nShe breathed, heartbeat timed to the bleep of each coupon scanning. The total became smaller and smaller. It felt as though the supermarket had fallen silent, all eyes on her. Bleep. Bleep. Bleep. Until it stopped. \n\nShe saw the total on the till screen, closing her eyes in elation. Her fist raised to the air, punching, and she let out a cry of victory. She pictured a crowd around her gathering, lifting her to the air, chanting her name. She pictured Jessica’s sour face, lips pursed in annoyance. Finally, she had won. She was a Coupon Mum. \n\n“That’ll be two pounds and twenty pence, please.”" ]	5
	[WP] Fred, John, Blake, no no that’s not right. Who will I be today? That’s it, Tom. Today I’m Tom.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "Tom was the flavor of the day for Scott Johnson, a fake persona for a night on the town. He was out on business after all and his wife was nearly a hundred and fifty miles away back in rural Bethel, Alabama. Scott did love work conferences in Nashville, he'd volunteer for everyone of them. A weekend of boozing, city lights, country music and not to mention the beautiful women. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nScott spent the day sipping coffee with his eyes glazed over listening to the old man in front reading from a powerpoint presentation on the latest marketing trends. It was torture on a Saturday, but it was all worth it come 5pm. Scott shook hands with others, thanked the host and scurried out the door and was reborn as Tom Burge, amateur bull rider for the PBR circuit. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nScott was thin and looked younger than he really was and just handsome enough that drunk women either wouldn't sniff out his phony career, or they wouldn't care anyway. Tom took to the streets, neon lights illuminated his path to happiness as the night came alive with sweet country music. He felt so alive after shedding his old life, the dull Scott Johnson who had a wife and three kids in redneck Suburbia, and became his new alter ego; a fun loving, boot wearing, square dancing son of a gun! \n\n&#x200B;\n\nTom really burnt it down, tore up the town and had the time of his life. He drank, danced and kissed at least a dozen women throughout bar crawl he was on. He finally settled on a gorgeous blonde named Tammy, they bumped and grind, drank and smoked until past midnight. Tammy followed Tom back to his hotel room, they felt each other up ravenously in the elevator, trying to devour each other with their tongues.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nGiggling and stumbling down the empty hallway they reached Tom's room. He fumbled the key card into the lock as Tammy kissed his neck. They got half way to the bed before he realized they weren't alone. Tom's heart sank as he saw Melissa sitting on the edge of the bed. Scott came rushing back, his alter ego dying in a panic as his heart raced. He felt confused... \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Melissa? What are you...\" It was then that he noticed his wife of fourteen years holding his nickel plated .38 revolver in her lap. \"What is going on?!!\" Shrieked Tammy when she saw the gun. \"Yeah, what is going on Scott?\" Melissa spat, her rage palpable like a heaviness filling the room. \"Honey, listen.. I'm sorry, this doesn't mean anything!... I just...\" Scott stumbled over words as he fought the urge to piss himself. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Look I don't know what's going on here but I didn't do anything, I don't know what is happening but\" Tammy's blubbering was cut off as a bullet ripped through her throat. The sound of the revolver firing rang out into the quietness of the hotel, a ringing lingered in the ears of Scott as he looked down in shock and disbelief as he watched Tammy choke on her own blood. Tammy's life faded from her eyes, she died confused and afraid, so afraid. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nMelissa then aimed the gun at Scott's chest, no remorse in her heart, nothing but hot murderous rage. \"Melissa, please! Don't do this! I'm so sorry, I'll be better, I'll do better!!!\" Scott begged and wept like a child. There were no words for Melissa, only the anger and the deep hurt from being betrayed by her husband of so many years. She pulled the trigger repeatedly until all five remaining bullets ripped through Scott's chest. He squealed as each one shatter ribs and punctured organs. \n\n&#x200B;\n\nHe slid to the ground, blood staining the white wall behind him. He could hear doors opening in the hallway now and people running for the stairs. Scott tried to remember the Lord's prayer as he slipped into the black, his body so cold now... he desperately tried to think of the word's, hoping for forgiveness from God since he saw none on the face of his wife. Her face twisted in hate and disgust. But he died, only repeating Our Father... over and over again." ]	2
	[WP] Your Significant other finds out that you have a magical power that lets you enter the world of the book you are reading. Now he/she wants to go along with your magic to enter the world of you favorite book.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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.", "“Please, just the once, something a little more exciting!”, she relentlessly pleaded. I suppose, “Catcher in the Rye” was a bit dull, but it was her favorite book and I made the rules for a reason, to keep her, and myself safe.\n\n1) No world-ending threats.\n\n2) No side characters murdered or maimed.\n\n3) No interfering with the plot. (I learned the hard way that getting by is a lot easier when you know the plot).\n\n But, I suppose that if not broken, rules can be bent. And so it was, full of caution and hope that I flipped through the pages and my the room began to spin.”\n\n As I opened my eyes and saw Cindy beside me, I was sure I’d made the right choice. Filled with wonder, her eyes flew from her robes, to the castle, to the whomping willow’s flailing limbs.” And then, my responsible wife, whom I admired for her sensibility, broke my third, most important rule.\n\n“Harry, Ron, are you okay? Don’t worry about the car, it’ll come back!”", "“Jane, I’m sorry, but I don’t have time to explain.”\n\nHer dark eyes avoid yours and are fixed on your shaking left hand. Her face is set in her usual, quaint, expressionless form, but the way her lips are pursed is telling another truth.\n\n“Please. You have to trust me.”\n\nYou see her inhale deeply and look outside the small window of her room. The moor wind is creeping through the glass, and yet you feel another uncomfortable drop of sweat falling down your back.\n\n“Jane... we have to leave.”\n\nShe folds her hands on the grey apron. Oh, how stubborn she is, every single time!\n\n“I am afraid I have no reason to trust your words, Sir.”\n\nYou sigh and pass a hand on your eyebrow. Your fingers can’t seem to stop shaking. You know, you know... why would she trust you, now? It’s too soon, too soon...\n\n“Too soon for what, Sir?”\n\nYou raise your eyes and meet hers. That gaze. The fire she cannot hide, that urge to feel, and then bury it. It’s soon gone, and she takes out her sewing kit from under the chair. \n\nMaybe it’s not too soon.\n\n“Jane.” You lean forward, then put some space between the two of you. “I met you before.”\n\n“You were here yesterday, following the invitation from my...”\n\n“No, Jane.” Your mouth feels dry and uncomplying. “I met you before. In another cha-situation. Where you and Rochester-”\n\nThe sewing basket is carefully put down.\n\n“I would ask you to refrain from disrespecting his...” and she stops. “There was no conjunction between me and my master either than...”\n\n“But it will happen!” And you can’t help to raise your voice. Her cheeks turn a brighter color.\n\n“Sir, If Mr Rochester wasn’t suffering from a horse accident of 3 days ago, I would ask him to-.”\n\nYou feel a sharp pain in your stomach, the same you felt for the past hours of your life. Because it is all your fault.\n\n“I know Jane. Because...” you close your eyes, feeling dizzy and sick. “My girlfriend did it.”\n\n“Your what?” she lost all her composure at once.\n\n“And she’s coming for you, Jane Eyre.”\n\n“Why! What? Explain!”\n\nHer little chest is irregularly lifting and falling down. Her knuckles are white on the wooden chair. It’s time for truth.\n\n“Because you are a character in my favourite book, Jane. And I often came here to look for advice and speak to you and to Mr Ro-. No, please. Let me go on. Yesterday, yes, yesterday, I was so naive to share my secret with my girlfriend, and she...” you stare at your knees. “She wants to kill you.”\n\n“But why?”\n\n“Because...” and you finally raise your head and hold her terrible, passionate gaze. “Because I love this book so much I...” \n\nAnd all the memories of walking with Jane and Rochester, discussing life, discussing ethics, listening to Edward’s incredible stories while guiding him through the gardens, amazed by how their journeys took them so apart and yet there, in front of me...\n\n“Why can’t she understand this book is my life?”\n\nShe puts a hand on my knee. I realise only now that I have tears falling from my chin.\n\n“Your life, if I understand, is outside here. This is not where you belong.”\n\n“But she will kill you if we don’t leave now!”\n\n“If we are just... stories. Then my story will end next to my beloved master’s one.” And she laughs her little, rare laugh. “And yours will be to find your lover and talk to her.” She folds again her hands in her lap. “I need to go now. My master awaits me.”\n\nYou nod. She’s right. She’s always right.\n\n—-\n\nEdit: typos.\n\nComments are very welcome!" ]	3
	[WP] You, a totally self proclaimed badass awesome magician, are practicing some tricks for the next stupid birthday party were you have to perform when suddenly your disappearing act really works.	[ "Welcome to the Prompt! All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.\n\nReminders:\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\$Reality+Fiction\$&restrict_sr=on&sort=new&t=all) and [Simple Prompts](https://www.reddit.com/r/WritingPrompts/search?q=flair%3A\$Simple+Prompt\$&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/XYsEYfS)\n\nI 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 stare in awe. The children stare in awe. The parents stare in awe.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"I really did it.\" I thought. Billy, the magic bunny, had, well, vanished. I was gobsmacked, to say the least. I actually did it, I actually managed to make something disappear. The next step was to bring my white-tailed companion back. I took hold of the smooth red handkerchief in my left pocket and held it in front of me.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAhem \"Now! Boys and girls, you have just witnessed my fine furry companion vanish! He vanished without a trace, did he not? Well, now I will bring him back!\" At this time, it became difficult to tell the children and the parents' faces apart, everyone had that childlike wonder in their eyes as I spun my handkerchief around my hand.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Five, four, three, two! Alaka whooz! Alaka whiz! Let's get this bunny back in this biz!\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nWith a snap of my wrist, the cloth seemed to shine brighter than it has ever before, showing a brilliant crimson from the sun's rays shining down from above briefly blinding the crowd and myself in the process. I could tell even before my eyes had finished readjusting. I had brought him back. I could feel his freshly conditioned fur and his small bean-like feet. At that moment all I could feel was happiness, like a child on Christmas morning seeing their toys for the first time. I turn to the cheering crowd, and took a bow, holding my rabbit that had disappeared and reappeared, as I looked back I could see the children running up to me and asking me how I managed such a trick, such a feat. Unfortunately, I didn't have an answer for them, as I didn't know myself, I still don't know, if I am to be honest.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAll I know is that seeing the joy and fascination on the childrens' faces made everything worth it. I had never seen so much joy emanating from, well, anyone. So, I kept practicing, learning, and studying all I could to become a better magician, to inspire children and adults alike that the world may not always be as it seems." ]	2

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