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] Aliens have arrived to subjugate humankind. A diplomat arrives to give the conditions in printed form that the aliens are demanding. In the small print, any contesting to the subjugation requires a hearing. Mankind has just deployed an Army of Karen’s to the Alien manager to save 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Raelik made a noise of irritation, glancing over at the aide standing to their left. The most recent human female had finally left, after days of debate and having to explain and reexplain why the conditions are the way they are. The woman had paid them no mind, instead crying that she was being discriminated against because she was “white”. This greatly confused Raelik, because the woman was not white, but more of a beige color. Apparently the humans had a much broader categorization system than Raelik’s people, the Folzain. \n\n“Ahem.” The diplomat was pulled from their thoughts, and dragged their eyes and attention to the aide beside them. \n“You should rest, Manager.” The voice echoed in Raelik’s mind, and a slight calm came over them. The aides had taken to calling the diplomats that were running these hearings ‘Manager’, which the humans constantly demanded to speak to. \n\nIgnoring the suggestion, the diplomat stood, unfolding themselves to their full 9 foot height and stretching two of their four arms overhead. “Come. It is time to give my report to the Chancellor.”\n\nRaelik glided towards the back of the hearing room, heavy robes swirling around their feet. Through a doorway and down the hall to the end. Knocking three times on the final door, an eye hole slid open, and a set of silver eyes mirrored Raelik’s. \n\n“Diplomat ID # 7-158, Manager Raelik to deliver status report and advise on how to proceed.” The door swung open, and they stepped forward. They were led to another doorway, and into a small room with a full holo system. After a few seconds, the Chancellor’s holo-form appeared before them, and Raelik bowed low, repeating their introduction. \n\n“Rise, diplomat. Tell me what the latest hearing has revealed.”\n\n“Chancellor,” Raelik paused, the words heavy on their tongue. The Folzain communicated telepathically unless dealing with the humans or speaking through a holo. “Case #173,211,001 was tedious and a waste of time. No changes were made to the demands. The human woman identified herself as ‘Karen’, just as all the others before her.”\nThe chancellor nodded, gesturing for the report to continue. “The hearing queue grows by the day, and at this rate it will take us a hundred years to get through them all.” \nRaelik ran a hand over their smooth face, their expression turning into what the humans called a grimace. “Formal recommendation: abandon the conquest of earth. The Karen’s of this world are too many in number, and we do not have the necessary clauses to protect against them.” \n\nThe Chancellor nodded silently and then, after a pause, spoke. “I acknowledge your recommendation, Diplomat # 7-158. You may go.”\n\nRaelik bowed again, and when the holo disappeared, visibly sagged. They had said it. Terra was lost to them. In a war of words and hearings, the Karen’s were superior." ]	2
	[WP] Patreon gets a new section called "Patreon +" Instead of people giving you money for your ideas or projects, Gods give you favors in return for tiers of worship.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 neon sign with Hermes' grin ingloriously plastered across it hummed and flickered in the dim-lit street. A man stepped out of a nearby bar, pulling one last draw on a dying cigarette before stomping it out. Another product of yet another deity he mused, as he drew his coat around him.\n\nHe shuffled along into the night, drifting listlessly amidst the raindrops, seemingly aimless but slowly making his way along. How long had it been he wondered, gazing across the skyline. Man once dominated his own world, but everything now revolved around these deities. See, it started back on the Internet as what seemed like a joke. \"1 prayer = 1 bread!\" it said. Everyone laughed at it. Memes flowed, videos went viral of people making sarcastic prayers and (unsurprisingly) getting no bread.\n\nA few months after people moved on, though, a third world country reported no more hunger. While most were tight-lipped about it, a single child broke the silence. In front of a reporter, he closed his eyes and bowed his head. He whispered a small prayer, a heartfelt plea... and held up his hand.\n\nAnd in it appeared a small loaf of bread.\n\nThe world had gone frantic from there. Churches exploded overnight and websites crashed under the flood of new traffic. The reach of these deities offerings began to expand swiftly, starting to dominate everything from workplace conversation to the very flow of the stock market itself. Businesses rebranded, dedicating themselves to deities who promised financial success. Borders worldwide reshaped as political alliances regressed thousands of years to a war god's demands. The world's leaders became slaves to their new masters, and broke and reformed ties per their pantheons.\n\nThe darkest changes happened in the very place this revolution started, though, when people realized they could become gods themselves.\n\n===\n\nThe stranger ducked into an unmarked alley. Wandering along his route, he pulled a small notepad out, checking his direction. A few more turns and he stepped up to an unmarked steel door. A quick knock, and it opened, a gruff and burly doorman sprouting a beard Odin would be proud of barring the passage now. The stranger outside flipped out a small card, and the doorman cleared the way with a satisfied grunt. Pulling his coat off, the stranger stepped in, shoes clacking gently on the concrete floor.\n\nHe walked along the hallway, turning left once, then narrowing his eyes as he came to a stairwell. Oh, the comforts we've abandoned in the desire for power. He sighed and started to climb.\n\n===\n\nWhen people first found Patreon+ worked, they started followings. Some churches were quick conversions, while older religions took some time to garner power. The transition was a slow one, but seemed fast due to so many changes coming about at once. Conflicts grew and states fell, as many gods made very particular demands. \"Build this\", \"sacrifice that\", or \"destroy them\". Humans held more power than they'd ever known, but turned it against each other.\n\nAnd then, someone made GodStarter. Nobody thought it would work at first, not even the creator of it, some surmised. But some small following began, and a new god was created. And now, our world has turned into what some might consider horrific, with every business a temple, and every owner a minor deity. Celebrities gained their own followings nearly overnight, and overthrew the very firmament with their followings. Countries became led by the charismatic alone, and governments transitioned to being mere tools for the more well-known over time.\n\nSome thought this new world a blessing. A neat addition to life for some, and a clean slate for others. But not all beings that came into play were benevolent, as some surmised.\n\n===\n\nThe stranger topped the stairs, turned down the hall to a small door. A sad number hung dearly to its nails in front of it, long forgetting their purpose. The stranger swung the door open to find the bereft woman weeping in a small room inside. Where most would see the crushing ugliness of despair, he saw the beauty of desperation. In a sulfurous flash, he procured a contract and fine ink pen. \"Excuse me, ma'am, but I'm here about your deal...\"" ]	2
	[WP] Everyone on Earth thinks that your land is torture and no one wants to visit. Your land is actually fun, full of cool things, compared to that bland white place where all you do is walk around for eternity. By the way, you're the king of Hell.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"STOP TELLING THEM I'M A BAD GUY!\" The pouting celestial projected at his heavenly father. \n\n\"It's not me, bud. I know you set up your own play-land in the basement, but what people think about it isn't something I can change. You know that book made people think the way they do.\" God spoke calmly. The whole world was his children, but Lucifer was his first. The one who gave him the dedication to create imperfections. Luci inspired him more than he would ever really know. All of the universe was made for him to enjoy, and yet, he only asked for the one planet to be left alone. The boy just couldn't keep his feathered fingers off the humans! \n\nLucifer, stomped his way back to hell, causing an earthquake in California. A big skull and cross bones \"Keep Out!\" Sign hung menacingly at the entrance. People made it out to be such a bad place. But nobody goes down there. Everyone was too afraid of him. Nobody was sent there unless they wanted to go, it wasn't some punishment. It was his secluded space. His place to do what he wanted with reality and bend it to his will. His version of earth, with only the best parts. It was more heaven than that boring white blankness that everyone always begged to go to. \n\nThey just didn't understand. The church of Satan was all playing happily in \"Lucifer Park\" the endless amusement park. AND THE PARK WASN'T EVEN ENDLESS! JUST THE AMUSEMENT! People were so rude to assume things, but when dad's little puppets wrote up a document explaining all of heaven, he only gave them one thing about your place: \"I wouldn't recommend it.\" And now they think that it's some horrible ugly catastrophe.\n\nGod sat in his fluffy palace of blankness. He had made one thing harder for people than anything else in life, excepting each other as family. Understanding that obstacles are meant to be overcome was a part of believing in oneself to move forward. He wanted more than anything to instill the idea that people as a whole are free to decide what they want. The only thing they don't understand is that bias prevents this. It's the final barrier. Bias keeps 90% of people from ever experiencing anything near true heaven in their eternity. And it's because he made it seem like a punishment. His greatest test. \n\nHe reclined his position with a hearty chuckle at the thought that his love surrounding these monkeys would never be enough to keep them satisfied for eternity. They should have expected that from Genesis." ]	2
	[WP] You’ve just died, and The Grim Reaper appears to escort you to the afterlife. At first you’re afraid of him, but you soon realize there are scarier things, and he carries the scythe to protect you from them.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "All was a blur of motion. In a near dreamlike state, I found myself forgetting my own mortality. Forgetting my state of being. \n\nI was here, lost in the abyss with this stranger. This cloaked, forlorn, stranger. For some reason hellbent on my safety. \n\nFrom what, I did not immediately ascertain. \n\nBut slowly, as the shadows took in menacing form. As the darkness lept from within itself, I knew. \n\nDeath was a gatekeeper. \n\nBetween whatever this life had been, and whatever these demons would be, stood resolutely, his ashen form. The dark guardian of my sinking self. \n\nWhat was left was unknown. But for this moment. This unknowable, endless moment. They were there. With each deafening cleave of the scythe, I knew danger grew near. But I could not see it. Only as sounds could I conceive of the threat. \n\nThe maddening approach of chaos, embodied in dull moans and skewed screams. Though forms managed to escape my sight, I could feel the encroaching malice. I could feel the otherworldly hatred, born across the talons in the dark.\n\nBut dare not acknowledge the danger, does my escort. This detached, yet focused ranger of the deep. Steadfast in his defence. I felt, notwithstanding the abyssal surroundings, a surreal calm. \n\nI knew my soul was safe. On whatever passage it now found itself. The boatman knew his path. For whatever dangers come our way, what mercy they would not enjoy at the end of this pale scythe. \n\nWhat awaits me at the end of this, I do not know. \n\nBut I am certain, no greater guardian could a soul employ...", "When it was over, when all but one lights went out, I was aware that I had died I'm pretty happy about that to be honest. I had a long life of 92 years, was married for 40 years and prepared two well behaved and intelligent children for life. So my time had come. My time had come. But what would await me after my death; Nobody can be prepared for that.\nAt the end of the light he stood and looked at me with his empty eyes as if he had already expected me.\n\n\n\n\"Hello Friedrich. Yes, I already expected you. You call me death.\" The White Skull said, without really making a sound. \"Come on now. We have to move on quickly.\" The tall figure, with a black robe and a huge scythe in his bony hand, looked like a character from a comic, so many clichés at once were served by her. When death turned its back on me and took a few steps towards the darkness around us, I first realized that the circle of light surrounding us continued to move with the figure. At first confused and slightly perplexed about the situation, I made a few quick steps behind her. I realized that I was much better on foot than during my lifetime.\n\"Is that normal, here in the intermediate world?\" I asked into the void.\n\"Yes. But I can calm you down. As long as you stay by my side nothing will happen to you. \"\n\n\n\n\"What exactly should I be afraid of here? You are the grim reaper, the death itself. Before you I should be the most afraid! \"\n\"In the dark, there are far worse monsters than me.\"\n\"So the scythe is not there to separate my soul from my body?\"\n\"You humans have been thinking that for millennia, but my scythe can not hurt a soul. Since the beginning of time, I am the guardian of the dead. The ferryman and companion of souls to the other side.\"\n\"And what exactly are you protecting our souls from?\" I asked him. I could not see anything in the darkness around us. There was nothing to be guessed at. And yet I could not shake the feeling of being watched.\n\"Do not worry about that for now. Just stay by my side, we have a long way to go.\"\n\n\n\nWe went silent for a while, without exchanging a word. The tingling, like someone looking at the back of your head, just did not let me go. \"Every day dozens of people die in the world. How can it be that you can spend so much time with me?\" I tried to get the conversation going again.\n\"One of your scientists once said: time is relative. And he was right about that. The time is relative and for those still alive, not a minute has passed since the beginning of our journey. In addition, as a Multidimensional Being, I can be in all places at the same time.\"\n\n\n\n\"Multidimensional being?\" I wanted to know from him.\n\"Yes. However, multidimensionality is beyond the minds of humans. Only gods, guards and the horsemen are given the multidimensionality.\"\n\"So there is more than one God! I always knew it, \"I said triumphantly. \"But what do you mean by the horsemen? But not the horsemen of the Apocalypse? \"\n\"Yes, I speak of exactly those horsemen.\" said the cowl, who always walked two paces in front of me, no matter how fast or slow I moved.\n\"So I have to be afraid of you?\"\nThe moment I finished my sentence, Death turned to me and raised his scythe. Quickly and with a swift stroke he let her go down on me. Or so I thought. The scythe cut the air and there was a sound behind me that I had never heard in my life before. Like nails thrown into a leaf chopper. Only with more guttural tones.\n\n\n\n\"No! You should be afraid of them!\" boomed from the direction of the cowl. I blinked my eyes twice and slowly turned around. Death had already returned to his position two steps ahead of me. In front of me lay a devil. His scaly body had been split by the scythe in half.\n\"Come on Friedrich. We need to move on,\" urged the tall figure in my back", "\"Who are you?\" I asked. As I gazed at the tall looming figure of a person, hunched slightly over to look at me, shrouded in a cloak so black it seemed to be made of darkness itself . \n\nA ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ ǫᴜᴇsᴛɪᴏɴ, ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ʙᴇ ᴘᴇʀʜᴀᴘs, ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴀᴍ I? Dᴇᴀʀ ᴄʜɪʟᴅ.\n\n\"Alright then Mr stranger, what are you?\" I replied, a bit directly but not I think, too impolitely as I pointedly stared trying to make out the shadowy yet not entirely coverer visage below the hood. \n\nYᴏᴜ ᴄᴏᴜʟᴅ sᴀʏ I ᴀᴍ ᴍᴀɴʏ ᴛʜɪɴɢs, ᴀɴ ᴀɴɢᴇʟ, ᴀ ɢᴜᴀʀᴅɪᴀɴ, ᴀ ɢᴜɪᴅᴇ, ʙᴜᴛ ᴡʜᴀᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴏᴜʟᴅ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴍᴇ ʙᴇsᴛ ᴀs ɪs Dᴇᴀᴛʜ.\n\n\"Oh shit\" I whispered as it dawned on me, fuck, I was dead. \"Oh damn\" I muttered again as the memory started coming back to me, it was strange as an event in itself almost as much as it was remembering right now, I thought I was so young, only 22 and I'd just gone to sleep after a normal day and then blip. Now here I was. \n\nI looked down for the first time since the figure had come into view, and yep, sure as life, there lay my dead sleeping body, lying peacefully on my bed as I floated inches above it.\n\n\"Okay, Okay, okay\" I mumbled as I got myself back together, I looked back at the tall shadowy figure who's face I could still not really make out even though it didn't seem to be obscured.\n\n \"So what do we do now?\" \n\nWᴇ ᴡᴀʟᴋ\n\nAnd with that the figure facing me stood upright, looming over me and yet, I was surprised that he didn't seem to actually be all that tall, when I looked close he seemed to stand only a few inches, at most, above me. And yet when he came close I suddenly felt so small, so tiny, like a child standing before a grown up. \n\nHe reached a hand out of the smothering shroud of inky night covering him, a hand that was rather like the rest of him, almost human-like, with a long slender arm and long delicate fingers like a pianists, almost impercetibly different, but shrouded in a thin yet completely covering layer of black as if it was wearing long dark gloves that went all the way up his arm. \n\nWithout resistance he took my hand and slowly started walking. Tentatively I followed behind him, not sure if I wanted to protest, not sure if I could, or there'd be any point in trying. \n\n\"Where are we going\" I asked resolutely.\n\nYᴏᴜ ᴡɪʟʟ sᴇᴇ\n\nHe said concisedly and unperturbedly. I started to feel a bit upset and irritated but for some reason I couldn't seem to show it, as we kept on stepping forward. In the brief moment I'd turned my attention to talk to him the world had changed. \n\nSuddenly I felt myself wriggling, it was like a cold sensation passed through my body as if someone had dumped a bowl of ice down the back of my shirt on a warm day, but rather than starting from one side of my body and passing through to the other, it was like it'd started from every single particle of my body, and passed throught them. The sharp sensation passed as quickly and abruptly as it came. \n\n\"What was that?\" I softly cried out in shock. \n\nWᴇ ʟᴇғᴛ \n\nHe said still said, vaguely and unperturbedly.\n\nI snapped my head around ready to ask him to explain exactly what he meant by that and then snapped right back. My eyes stretched wide open as I looked at my surroundings, everything had disappeared, all of the daylight streaming through the window and the numerous noisy cars and houses had all just vanished. Not replaced, gone.\n\nThere was just nothing there, I squinted my eyes as they almost started to hurt, I couldn't focus. There was no black, no white, no nothing. Fucksakes, what the fuck is this, hell dammnit how does this even work, I thought to myself dizzy, as a wave of nausea flowed across my mind, even in a vacuum it was supposed to be black, darkness! \n\nThis was nothing.\n\nDeath quietly gazed at me, my hand still firmly grasped in his, evidently waiting for my shock to end. An eternity passed, or maybe a few seconds, I wasn't sure, surely enough however, slowly my head adjusted and my eyes opened and I looked around, or perhaps it was better to say I just turned my head around, there wasn't much 'looking' when there wasn't anything to see. \n\n\"Where are we?\" I slowly and forcedly spat out, turning my head to Death as it stood still. \n\nIt ignored me as it looked straight ahead and drew it's other arm out from it's cloak of inky black, the cloak, whatever it was, felt oddly reassuring to look at, it was real , it existed and it felt good to my mentally added brain that it did for some reason. \n\nAs his hand reached out this time pointing \"forward\" , I say though I'm not sure \"forward\" still existed, it drew with it a small black metal pole with a beautiful, and yet terrifying curved crescent blade attached to the end of it. \n\nThere was something about the blade that made me feel weird in my very soul, though I guess that was all I was now, a discomfort so strange and agonising, almost like physical pain but also like the emotional discomfort that comes with an immense feeling of guilt, as if I touched it ever so slightly I'd be damning my entire existence without the blade being at any fault of it's own. \n\nThe blade tipped pole, a scythe, I realise it's called, slowly enlarged from the length of it's arm, gradually growing longer until it rivalled Death in it's height reaching from the \"ground\" to parallel with it's head. \n\nDeath nodded his head slightly towards me, leaning confidentally, almost with a gesture of... satisfaction?\n\nIᴛ ᴛᴏᴏᴋ ᴍᴇ ᴀ ʟɪᴛᴛʟᴇ ᴡʜɪʟᴇ ᴛᴏ ғɪɢᴜʀᴇ ᴏᴜᴛ ʜᴏᴡ ᴛᴏ ᴅᴏ ᴛʜᴀᴛ, ᴠᴇʀʏ ᴄᴏɴᴠᴇɴɪᴇɴᴛ ʏᴏᴜ ᴋɴᴏᴡ, ᴍᴜᴄʜ ʙᴇᴛᴛᴇʀ ᴛʜᴀɴ ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴄᴀʀʀʏɪɴɢ ɪᴛ ᴀʀᴏᴜɴᴅ ᴏᴘᴇɴʟʏ ᴀʟʟ ᴛʜᴇ ᴛɪᴍᴇ\n\nI was a little shocked, it was the most he'd spoke in the eternity, or perhaps just a few minutes, that'd passed since we'd started, and there was something human-like in the way he spoke just now. A trace of ... almost, pride?\n\n\"Do what?\" I asked dumbly. \n\nCʜᴀɴɢᴇ, Mɪᴋᴀɪʟ's ɪᴅᴇᴀ, ᴡʜᴀᴛ ᴡɪᴛʜ ᴛʜᴇ ғʟᴀᴍɪɴɢ sᴡᴏʀᴅ ʜᴇ ᴋᴇᴇᴘs ᴀs ᴊᴜsᴛ ᴀ ᴅᴀɢɢᴇʀ ᴀᴛ ʜɪs ʙᴇʟᴛ, ʙᴜᴛ ɪᴛ ᴛᴏᴏᴋ ᴀ ʙɪᴛ ᴏғ ᴘʀᴀᴄᴛɪᴄᴇ ᴛᴏ ɪɴғʟᴜᴇɴᴄᴇ ᴀ ᴠᴇsᴛɪɢᴇ ʟɪᴋᴇ ᴛʜɪs ᴏɴᴇ \n\n\"Oh\" I said blankly, bewildered that I hadn't a trace of understanding, \"that's nice\" I said trying to be appreciative. \n\nHe turned his back abruptly, my hand still in his loose but iron steady grasp as he began to walk forward into the nothingness. With nothing else to do I walked along with him silently.\n\nBut as what seemed to be hours, or maybe years passed on I only felt more questions rising up.\n\n\"Where are we\" I asked again.\n\nThis time it seemed to hear me and without breaking it's stride, it took a small pause to think. \n\nTʀᴀᴠᴇʟʟɪɴɢ\n\nIt said, blankly. \n\n\"Yes but where is this place, or whatever it thay we are in now while we are travelling?\" I asked insistently, now determinedly curious.\n\nIt looked at me as it continued walking, pausing slightly at my face, with the slightest, almost disapproving shake of it's head and then glanced around before resuming his gaze forward, as if to say \"look around and see for yourself\" yet without saying a word. \n\nI focused my eyes once more, having stopped really using them to look as I walked, and again rather than seeing anything I only felt the same vaguely sickening feeling of lacking, emptiness. \n\nI stopped talking and thought for a few moments. \n\n\"We're nowhere then, aren't we?\" I finally retorted, half randomly, half searchingly. \n\nCʟᴏsᴇ, ᴘᴇʀʜᴀᴘs, ᴀʟᴍᴏsᴛ ᴇxᴀᴄᴛʟʏ. Iɴ ᴛʜᴀᴛ ᴡᴇ ᴀʀᴇ ᴛʀᴀᴠᴇʟʟɪɴɢ.", "Well, I had just died, at least that's what this thing told me\n\nIt wasn't anything unusual in terms of statistics really, long day at work, left just a tad bit too late, and strayed too far onto the oncoming traffic while sleepy. This being said it's best that I not look at my corpse, as barely anything was left of it.\n\nWell that was at least how I got here, purgatory, not a very dark and grim place as I have read in some religious texts. Rather, it looked more like just a really thick forest really. We were both standing in the middle of a small clearing near a well. The air was like what you'd expect in that setting, slightly chilly, smells fresh.\n\n\"Alright, now that you've told me where we are and why I'm here, who or what the hell are you?\" I asked\n\n\"Well, I am what your culture calls the grim reaper. Also congratulations on taking your death really well by the way\"\n\nLooking a bit closely, I can see that it looked rather similar to what I had imagined it to look like; long flowing black robe, ghastly, carries a giant scythe.\n\n\"I can't believe that the grim reaper apparently follows the american culture very closely\"\n\n\"Not really, everyone sees me differently. Anyways, we don't have much time, we must make haste\"\n\nThe creature showed me a path cut into the forest with a small trail. From there I could see the long winded path that stretches to infinity.\n\nAs we closed in on the start of the trail, I could see on the the first tree was carved in the words \n\n\"enter these woods without a companion, and the others shall accompany you\"\n\n\"Firstly, before we enter these woods, I need to remind, or rather warn you of something\" the Reaper told me.\n\n\"Does it have something to do with these \"others\" written over there?\"\n\n\"Yes, you're a rather perceptive and calm one, this is why I chose you to protect\"\n\n\"What? You don't guide everyone to the afterlife? What happens to the rest?\"\n\n\"No, no, I am but only one being. The rest of the population, well, you'll see later\"\n\n\"So what were you about to tell me?\"\n\n\"Well, let's say that these woods have their own...denizens. If one approaches you, stay calm, be respectful, and most importantly, do NOT talk or look at them in the face, I will deal with them shortly\"\n\nThe Reaper begun walking and I followed suit. As we went deeper and deeper into the woods, the small clearing was soon obscured. The sky was eternally dark, however the path was lit dimly by fireflies and the occasional weakly burning oil lamp on the side.\n\nThe further we went, the denser the woods got, it was getting a bit boring really, until out of the blue, a softly crying voice spoke behind me\n\nsob \"Please help me\" sob \"I'm lost\"\n\nI was about to turn my head when the Reaper immediately held my head in place tightly\n\n\"Do NOT move, they have started to notice us it seemed\" the Reaper whispered \"Keep going\"\n\nThe Reaper ushered me to walk forwards and to hasten my pace, as we have apparently entered the \"danger zone\"\n\nBy now, the woods had twisted itself into unnatural shapes, trees as tall as mountains that were as thin as a stick, and other trees that bent itself into the shape of dancing people. Now we started to encounter more writings on the trees.\n\n\"Please help me someone, I'm lost\"\n\n\"Beware of the others\"\n\n\"The others will accompany you if you're alone\"\n\n\"day 498, I think I might be losing my sanity\"\n\nI was getting quite unnerved, and broke the silence between us\n\n\"You haven't really told me about the rest of the people that didn't get to have you as company, my experience so far hasn't really indicated or cleared it up one bit\"\n\n\"This forest...slowly eats them, to say the least\"\n\n\"Eats them?\"\n\nAs I was about to continue my question, the Reaper hushed me, and stopped me in my tracks again as I felt the familiar presence of another of \"the others\" behind me again\n\n\"Fresh....meaaat....\"\n\nThe Reaper quietly told me to stay as still as possible\n\nIt seemed that the creature behind me lost interest as I felt it's presence move away. Just as it moved forward of us, in the distance, amongst the giant trees, I could make out the shape of a very tall leg moving swiftly.\n\n\"Well as I was saying, the forest slowly drains the souls of those unfortunate enough to be trapped here\"\n\n\"And what of them then?\"\n\n\"They...either gets devoured by someone, or slowly turns into one of the others\"\n\n\"What about me then? What made me special enough for you to accompany?\"\n\n\"That...you'll have to prove yourself\"\n\nThe reaper raised its scythe and handed it to me\n\n\"Unfortunately, this is as far as I can accompany you. But this is much further than most people get on their own\"\n\n\"What? How do I know where to find the exit then?\"\n\nThe reaper flashed me a sly grin before turning away\n\n\"This is only the beginning of the journey for you little friend\"\n\n-\n\n-\n\n-", "Three days.\n\nOf course, Andrew didn't really know how long it had been. He would need to see the sun or stars for that, and the deep purple haze around him offered little more than an uncomfortable humidity and a deathly chill.\n\nDeathly. No better word came to mind, especially whenever Andrew found the resolve to glance at his guide. He had given up on interacting with the apparition, and had spent the last day or so following silently. Always following.\n\nHe still remembered the first moments - the first he could remember. A hooded figure - at least three feet taller than him - staring into his soul, with no eyes. Then, the howling and moaning and gnashing - Faint, distant, but persistent. Then, panic.\n\nHe remembered running from the figure, tripping, and running even harder. As all things must, he eventually collapsed. Despite the distance he managed, the gnashing and howling had only become louder, closer. Louder, closer, until Andrew was covering his ears from the pain. Louder, closer, until covering the ears made no difference, and he thought it a better end to cover his eyes instead.\n\nAnd then, silence. He looked up, and saw the figure looking down at him, a great scythe in his left hand. First he cowered. It did not react. He begged. The ghost only stared into him, unmoving. Eventually, Andrew found the strength to stand. The figure did not move, until it did. Slowly, smoothly, it turned and began to walk, its footsteps dead silent. I stood up to death. I must have passed some trial, he thought, and so he sat, waiting to be plucked up to Heaven, or pulled down to Hell. But no light shone from above, nor tendrils from below, and as the distant figure became difficult to distinguish from the haze, the wailing and growling returned - faint, then louder, more insistent, until the panic began to set in again. Somehow, he knew the figure would not turn around for him again - and so, legs shaking, he ran toward the dark statue.\n\nThree days had passed, and the moaning and howling had been little more than a whisper as long as he had stayed by its side. On the second day, as his body began to protest, Andrew tried asking the phantom for water, food, conversation - it made no response. It made no sound. At one point, the hunger struck him like a madness, and he ran ahead, hoping against hope that his destination wasn't too far, that he could feel water in his throat, or bread in his stomach. But the sounds returned, and not long after he fled back in the direction he came.\n\nAfter that came the rambling. While he knew he wouldn't get a response, he thought it would calm his nerves to-\n\nHe bumped into the being's shoulder, stirred from his memories. They'd stopped walking. It hadn't stopped its lethargic pace since it had first rescued Andrew. We must be here, he thought, and he looked around, searching for a light, or a gate, or some other benevolent creature to show the way. He saw nothing. He heard nothing - not even the distant moaning and gnashing. The only true silence Andrew had heard since his arrival. \n\nThen, from all directions, a single, blood-curdling roar.\n\nThe guardian gripped its scythe tighter.", "It was dark and cold. As I opened my eyes, I tried to figure out where I was. \n\n\"Duke? Come, boy!\"\n\nNo dog tag cling. No sound. I held my forehead in my hand as I tried to regain some strength to stand up. I was trying to protect a child and my dog from the armed robber. Nothing made sense. I tried to remember what happened, when I suddenly heard something behind me.\n\n\"Duke stayed behind to protect the kid\"\n\n I froze. The coldest voice. Rough, deep, spine chilling. Never had I heard something like that. I turned around. And there it was. Standing tall, hooded, holding a silver scythe in its left hand. I had seen representations of this creature, but no words can depict what he actually looks like. I slowly stood up, and immediately went back to the ground as I saw the scythe coming inches apart from my face. That thing was attacking me! But then, a loud \"thump\" was heard from behind me. It wasn't attacking me, but rather something behind me. \n\n\"What is going on?\" My voice was squeaky and weak. I couldn't articulate more elaborate phrases. \"Am I dead?\" \n\n\"You soon will be, if you don't hurry up and follow me\". I honestly couldn't keep it together. That voice, it woke my deepest fears. I gathered some strength to stand up again, but this time The Grim Reaper stretched its hand. I briefly looked at him, and yet again, another scythe strike, this time aiming to the back of the ripper. Then I saw it. The grim was looking like a cute puppy compared to that other thing. It didn't even have a form. Like a Medusa consisting of countless hairs, with arms, eyes and one single wicked smile coming out of it. Terror invaded me.\n\n\"Let's go\" The Grim Reaper said. I didn't have any objections to that command. I stood up and started following it.\n\n\"Where am I? What are those things? Is my son alright? What about Duke?\" Everything was happening so fast. \n\n\"Stay behind me\" The Reaper said as it slayed half a dozen creatures on the way. Those came out straight from the worse nightmares. None looked the same. Some where just a blob with hooked claws, others were like wicked witches with no faces nor extremities, other looked like boiling lava, but they had one thing in common: they were definitely coming after me. What were those creatures? \n\n\"They are all those bad thoughts and wishes you made to other people during your lifetime\". The Reaper had just answered my question. He pointed at an already slayed and specially hideous creature. \"That one was from the day you wished your sister hadn't been admitted to college because you resented her\". I shed a tear. I remembered when it happened. I was remembering several occasions. But these were too many creatures. \n\nWe kept going. Some more creatures attacked, and some others just saw as we passed. I was noting how the Reaper was so skilled with that scythe. That scythe was a master art piece. It was beautiful, pretty big even for the Reaper, and very shiny, like if it was new or recently polished. \n\n\"Will the kid and Duke be ok?\" I asked, as my mind started to come back to what really mattered.\n\n\"Yes. We're almost there\". I heard some harp music coming from the light ahead.\n\n\"Am I going to heaven?\" I shyly asked. \n\n\"That's not what we call it here. You will just be fused into the ethereal, where no time passes. You will live in every creature, living and non living, becoming part of everything. You'll become part of Duke as well, you'll be able to care for him\".\n\nI started crying. I was single, my parents were dead and my sister hated me because I was an asshole during my teen years. Duke was going to be all alone and who knows which kind of owner he would be having. \n\n\"Don't worry about Duke. He has been adopted by your sister, she heard what happened and he will live a happy life. You'll be witnessing that. Your sister doesn't hold any grudge against you, she is sorry for distancing herself from you. As for this scythe, the size is determined by the person's good acts. It was pretty small, but your selfless act of protecting a child that you don't even know and giving your life for his, that was something. It made the scythe bigger than I would have expected\" The Reaper said, as it put aside the scythe, as we had arrived to the light threshold. \"See all those scythes there?\" He said as he pointed at a bunch of scythes, some were tiny. \"Unfortunately I'm as good protecting you as the size of your scythe. Some don't make it. Some are dragged into the shadows by their selfish acts and thoughts. But you, you get to continue into the ethereal\". \n\n\"Thank you, Reaper\" - I said. I was feeling better knowing Duke would be fine and that my sister had forgiven me. \n\n\"One last thing\" - The Ripper said. \"The child you just saved will find the key component to counteract a nuclear bomb. Until next time\". I started feeling my body light, and felt consumed by the light, until I was part of everything. And it felt so good. \"So this is it\"...\n\n\"", "I found myself quite distracted as we traveled through the darkness. Naturally part of it was fear, what with the embodiment of death holding me in one arm and his large weapon in the other and all. But more than that I realized that there was still something beyond the darkness. It was for lack of a better term, darker. Still more confusing was that this deathly figure had begun quietly singing as we went about our way. \n\n♪ Hello darkness my old friend... ♪\n\n\"Simon and Garfunkel fan, then?\" I asked, unsure of what else to do at this point.\n\n\"Hm? Oh, not really. It's more of an ironic tune, really. Darkness has no age, and we certainly aren't friends.\" \n\nDeath having a dry sense of humor was in a way fitting but also surprising. My mind, or whatever it becomes once it leaves your body, continued to spin as the curiosities began to pile up. \n\n\"I don't understand,\" I said.\n\n\"Few do. Even fewer care. That's why I picked you, in fact - I knew you would care enough to be confused.\"\n\nThat news wasn't particularly helpful, however interesting it may have been. \"Picked...me?\" I asked.\n\n\"I can't ferry everyone, you know. I only have two arms after all, and one of them is always occupied,\" said the cloaked figure. \"I would take more if I could. But alas, nothing is fair in life nor death, now is it.\"\n\nI wasn't sure if the Reaper could truly feel or if emotion had abandoned them in some previous age, but his face somehow now appeared more empty than it had before. It was clear in both word and demeanor that he was doing his best, but still wished he could do more. But then I began to ask myself: doing his best at what, exactly?\n\n\"So, what is all that out there? Those dark patches amid the, uh, darkness. Can you see those or am I crazy?\" I asked the Reaper, noting the absurdity. \n\n\"That's why I'm needed,\" he said. \"There is a force that would destroy your essence in a blink if it could only get a hold of you. Long ago I was tasked with escorting those of promise passed these outer lands that threatened their being. You may have died in your previous life but there is still much for you to accomplish, so long as you make it to the Beyond.\"\n\n\"And those that aren't 'picked,' as you say; this force destroys them?\" I asked.\n\nThe Reaper nodded solemnly. \"Unfortunately.\"\n\n\"But what is it, exactly?\" I wasn't sure if I actually wanted an answer.\n\n\"It's loneliness.\"\n\n\"Loneliness?!\" I said, incredulous. \"That isn't that powerful. We experience that all the time!\"\n\n\"But you have no body to protect you, now do you.\"\n\nI looked down at where my legs once were, and realized for the first time that I had become something entirely nebulous and undefined. \n\n\"How are you carrying me?!\" I yelped.\n\n\"Same way I exist, I suppose. That is to say, I don't know.\"\n\nAh, common ground, at least. Still unsatisfied with the Reaper's explanation of the strange darkness, I continued to question him. \"What makes loneliness so powerful out here? Why could it destroy me if it wanted to?\"\n\n\"It's pure, unadulterated feeling,\" he said. \"It's a force that seeks with every ounce of its impossible existence someone to call a friend. It isn't inherently evil, it is just ill-defined and uncontained. Should it be allowed to wrap its essence around you it would choke out your very being. It would tear apart what little of you remains, and you would disappear into this ether.\"\n\nIt still seemed foreign but I began to understand. Although there was one point that didn't seem quite clear. \"So, the scythe can fight off the loneliness somehow?\"\n\n\"Oh, no. It's my companionship that keeps you safe. The loneliness can't overcome friendship.\"\n\n\"...so why the scythe, then?\" I asked, once again very perplexed.\n\n\"Mountain lions. Well, technically they're 'trans-dimensional predatory felines of the everlasting darkness' but it's easier to think of them as mountain lions.\"\n\n\"It really isn't easier,\" I said, \"but I'll take your word for it.\" \n\nShortly thereafter I realized we were coming up on something resembling a gate. There was no white light streaming from it as I had been taught to expect, but rather more darkness. I recognized that this must be my destination, and that I and the Reaper would soon part ways. I would be lying if I said I didn't know that I would miss him.\n\n\"This is entrance to the Beyond,\" the Reaper said with just a hint of resignation. \"We will both walk through it, but we will go to different realms. I will go back to Earth to pick another soul to ferry, and you will go on to whatever task awaits you. We won't see each other again, but I am thankful for your friendship. I know protected you, but you give my existence meaning and purpose, so in the end it is an even trade. I leave you with one final request. In whatever you do next, remember those who I can't escort, those who are consumed by the loneliness. They weren't any less deserving, just simply less fortunate.\"\n\n\"I will. And hey, Reaper?\"\n\n\"Yeah?\"\n\n\"Watch out for the mountain lions.\"\n\nDeath smiled as we passed through the gate.\n\n\n_______________\nr/psalmsandstories for more tales by me, should you be interested." ]	8
	[WP] "To the best of my blurry recollections, the first time I died went something like this..."	[ "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. 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Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/WritingPrompts) if you have any questions or concerns.", "\"It was 1984, I think. Yes, just after the summer Olympics.\" the man said, \"Clearly, the streets of Monaco were a bit dicey at the time and it was probably not in my best interest to do what I did.\"\n\nBy this point, several people had gathered around the table, most of the bar lent an ear to what this stranger had to say. Dressed in a fine tailored suit and the pants to match, the man who called himself Silver sat back in a booth at the edge of the bar. His hair was well kept, his polished shoes shined in the dim interior lighting. This man did not belong in a place like Hanging Betty's bar and pub.\n\n\"What did you do in Monaco?\" asked a man in the audience, interrupting the story they were all intent on hearing, \"Was it a bank heist? Please tell me it was a bank heist.\"\n\n\"Good guess! But not quite.\" Silver replied, \"At the time, Monaco was lush with money. The yearly races provided enough money to keep the city going, the real money was made from the banks using the place as a tax haven.\"\n\nA few listeners turned to each other with eyebrows raised.\n\n\"Ah, I see you don't understand. Simply put, this was where the money went and stayed put until it was put to better use. Several people around the world had expressed their discontent about the rich getting richer, but that didn't bother me.\" he shuffled in his seat, \"So, being the upstanding citizen I am, I decided to... how can I say this? Swindle him.\"\n\n\"So you conned him?\" asked a voice from the back. The crowd continued to grow larger, it seemed.\n\n\"I liberated his money from the hands of a man who had too much. Without getting into the gritty details, which I assure you are plentiful, I was caught. Not in the act, they had simply found out who took what was questionably theirs. They wanted it back but I was intent on keeping it.\" he paused, relishing the attention of the crowd, \"So I died.\"\n\nMurmurs and whispers filled the room, but Silver remained still, sipping his drink, \"No, I did not die, I walk in the realm of the living. What I had done was use the newfound bounty to contact a group of incredibly shady people. For a ludicrous price, they provided me with new papers and credentials; enough to start again. Then I managed to find a body from the local morgue of a similar build to mine (which was far too easy), placed it in my car and set it ablaze. Now, to the men after me and all the world, I was dead.\"\n\nEvery patron in the bar was wide-eyed and perfectly still. A short woman in the back called out, \"Then what happened?\"\n\nExpecting this, Silver donned a sly smile and said, \"I moved on. To America, the land of opportunity. I had plenty of cash and Lord knows I was going to spend it all. I spent three years roaming the land of the free, using what remained from my time in Monaco. You Americans sure know how to party. I went through my money in what felt like a heartbeat.\"\n\nHe took another sip of his drink, \"Low on funds, I turned to some people who could provide me with enough money to get on my feet again. Unfortunately, my feet took me to vegas and I lost it all. These were not the kind of people you wanted to be indebted to. Crazy Jane was the name of their boss. With a name like that, I should have known what I was getting into.\"\n\n\"Crazy Jane? I've heard of her! She was the mob boss over there, she practically owned Nevada.\" piped up the interrupting man from earlier.\n\n\"Precisely. In the desire to keep my kneecaps in good shape and have all my thumbs, I once again contacted the seedy underbelly of society. This was 1987 mind you, it was easier at the time.\"\n\nThe night was passing by quickly and the lights dimmed. No one seemed to notice or care, they just listened to the dead man's tale.\n\n\"I am not the bravest of folks. I admit that I run from my problems, but the ability to run from my problems with intact legs was one I was intent on keeping. I paid what I could and got new papers, granting me a clean slate. Then I just needed to die.\n\n\"The key thing about faking your death is that they truly need to believe you're dead. I was lucky the first time when I had found the body that looked like me. I was unable to procure such a thing this go around. It got me thinking, how can one effectively fake their death without a body?\"\n\n\"Maybe a staged car accident with no body?\" a large man pitched.\n\n\"What about a plane crash? You know, one of those two-seaters? They rarely find all the bodies in wreckages.\" said another.\n\n\"No, my good friends,\" Silver said, \"It is much simpler than that. I went on a hike. I made sure that plenty of people knew where I was going and made it abundantly clear that I was unprepared for such a journey. With enough people believing me to be in one place and expecting me back anytime soon, I slipped away. Many people that go out into the wilderness don't come back. They are never found and are labeled presumed dead rather quickly.\"\n\n\"So you got away?\"\n\nSilver nodded.\n\n\"How many times have you 'died'?\"\n\nSilver thought for a moment before saying, \"Six times I believe. Those were the first two, the next one was the yakuza in New York. After that, it was the triads in San Francisco, followed by a particularly irate Spaniard chasing me through the streets of Madrid. And most recently, the yakuza on their home turf. I've been around, you could say.\"\n\nMore muttering from the crowd, questioning the truth of the matter, some simply enthralled with the tale of the phantom criminal.\n\nThe doors to the bar opened and three men entered, bearing straight towards Silver, \"And that ladies and gentlemen, is my cue to leave. I imagine I'll be six feet under soon enough. It was a pleasure.\"\n\nHe grabbed his hat and quickly fled the room with the three men in pursuit.\n\nThe crowd sat still, thinking about the scene. The man had come and gone in a single evening apparently angering certain peoples of ill repute. What were they to make of it?\n\nThe stranger ran from everything but was never afraid of death. He had mastered death itself and was due for another very soon." ]	2
	[WP] You have spent 12 years of your life writing a series of books, each building upon a world you are more than proud of and telling the story you hope to be remembered for. Today, you have received an email containing the script for the movie adaptation. It is the worst script you’ve ever read.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "”Did you even read the book?!” I Shouted at the writing team.\n\nThe man in charge, a 35-year-old redhead, stood up.\n”Of course we did, we had too,” He growled.\n”Oh? All of you read books?” I said suspiciously.\n”Yes, we-” the redhead was about to say before I interrupted.\n”Who called Williams costume childish? James or amada?” I asked to see if they remember this.\n”Amanda!” A young woman in glasses shouted out.\n”Trick question, James is mute, and Amanda wasn't there, Henry said it,” I growled,” Did any of you even try to read the books.” I asked the room which just had a sheepish look on all their faces.\n”I skimmed it,” a man in green said.\n”Oh? So you where was Andrea Born?” I asked to the man who was sweating.\n”Is it racist if I say, Africa?” He said worried about my response.\n”Yes, and Africa isn't a country she was born in Columbia, so none of you read the books that you're supposed to adapt to a movie!” I shouted in pure rage!\n”Hey don't shout at my staff, I don’t even think you remember the script we wrote!” The red-headed man shouted.\n”You made Henry an only child, born in New Orleans in 1987, I made him a heroic, intelligent blonde man who is part of Quadruplets who was in love with a beautiful heiress named sierra, while you guys made him a black haired Doofus who’s favorite book is a cat in the hat!” I shouted in outrage.\n”How did you?” The man with red hair started, but I said.\n”Because you kept talking about your version of him!” I shouted.\n”Well, we tried,” The man in green said, defending himself.\n”Where was Andrea born again?” I asked him, trying to see if he remembered.\n”Cooooooooolgate,” He said confidently.\n”THAT'S A BRAND OF TOOTHPASTE!” I shouted in total anger.\n”All of you better make it the way it's supposed to be or ill take my rights back and go to someone with some actual reading skills!” I shouted before storming out of the room and slamming the door.", "First time attempting \n\n&#x200B;\n\nI slam the glass doors behind with enough force causing them to crack and shatter as I storm out of the building. I don't remember getting in the taxi or that I was even in a taxi until i was asked to pay. My mind was still on the meeting I left and also the money I left behind. \"Sir your fare is $18,560\" The cabbie said nonchalantly. I blink twice bringing myself back to reality \"Wha...\" I begin to say when I realise instead of downtown LA i was now in Las Vegas. \"You said drive you somewhere you can cool off, So I thought Las Vegas sounded nice\" The cabbie replied not even pausing. I look over into the front seat and see the reader only says $10,000. The cabbie noticing my eyes \"The rest is my return fare I have to get back to LA\". He unlocks the meter to the standing fare and then asks \"So what was on your mind for the entire trip you didn't even talk?\"\n\n\"Have you heard of the books of BoB?\" I asked trying to hide my smile. \"Oh Yeah there's like 10 of them, I have read a couple great books\" , \"actually i reply there are now 12 and I am writing the 13th\" THe cabbie spins around while opening his glovebox and proceeds to thrust a 1st edition of my first book into my chest and I look up he has already taken a selfie of us and then casually throws a pen at me. \"Can you sign this for me the names Charles\" I pause wondering what is with this weird cabbie. He proceeds with \"I heard there making of movie of this going to make my signed book worth more\".\n\nThat was the final straw after everything else that has happened today I lost it and the cabby took the burnt of my anger and disgust.\n\n\"THERE WILL NOT BE A F\\\\KING MOVIE I TOOK BACK MY RITES\" The cabbie just looked at me throw his mirror and sighed\n\n\"When I got in this cab back in LA in front of Disney I had just left a meeting discussing the script for the movie of my life's work\" I punched the back of the seat out of frustration not noticing the cabbie playing with the meter again!\n\n\"They are freaking brain dead pandering stupid morons, They wanted to ruin my books, BoB was going to be played by a 14 year old Asian that is popular in China so that it can do better over there\" The cabbie asked \"Isn't BoB a almost 8 foot samoan detective living in South Africa?\"\n\nI punched the roof of the cab as hard as I could out of anger\n\n\"That's not the worst of it. He is now North Korean after having crossed the DMZ on his hoverboard scooter thing and his partner is an animated half dog half girl science experiment he escaped with!\" I vented this time slamming my hands into the seats either side of me. The Cabbie laughed and goes \"So much for the Afghanistan princess trying to get her throne back then\" I screamed in anger it all hitting me as I hit and struck this damn cab\n\n\"Bob isn't a detective trying to solve the most baffling of crimes he is a white hat hacker trying to find his dad, The sidekick is now a monstrosity that is going to be animated instead of a strong genius women trying to rebuild and reclaim her life. There is no great diamond disappearance instead a Bitcoin hub in digitally raided with only a picture of a business card of his father left here\" I started to calm down. \"Wow that sounds awesome to me\" The cabbie said as I looked over the seat again the meter now reads over $15,000, I slump back. \"Now that the tirade and hissy fit it over your total is $25,000 including my return fare\" He smiles, Reality once again dawning on me\n\nI hand the Cabbie my bank card and enter my pin as I say it say approved I felt even worse. I get out of the car closing the door as gently as possible in case he wants to charge me for more damages\n\nAt least I know my next book will be about the murderer of the cabbies, Hmmm I might even let this bad guy escape.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI was trying to make the Cabbie the bad guy in this story deliberately trying to annoy to frustrate the author so that he can charge for extras like damage and harassment. I hope it comes across right", "Viktor Shcharansky was a tolerant man.\n\nHe'd put up with a BUNCH of shit in his life.\n\nIncluding his sister, his siblings, learning the shitshow that was English, etc.\n\nBut this.....this he would not stand for.\n\nAnon and the Thousand Eyes was his creation.\n\nThat he poured his soul into.\n\nEvery character, every setting, every little bit in the world he shaped was as much a part of him as his arm or leg.\n\nIt had helped him through some dark times, times where he really felt he'd lost all hope.\n\nWhere he was blind.\n\nWith only darkness surrounding him.\n\nAnd to see it turned into a soulless YA movie adaptation was more then he could take.\n\n\"NYET!\" He yelled, nearly continuing in Russian before he corrected himself. \"Syika is NOT Anon's girlfriend! I made it very clear in the book that she is only his platonic friend!\"\n\n\"Well, you see,\" the smarmy director said, his tone full of sanctimonious corporate bullshit. \"The demographic that bought your books are interested in romance, and since that's what sells, we put it in.\"\n\n\"It throws off Syika's entire character arc!\" Viktor retaliated, his hand balling into a fist. \"She's focused on becoming a good fighter, to avenge her Hive! That's what her society is built around, the importance of the Hive! Throughout the story, she learns that the destruction of her Hive was an accident and her quest is for nothing! And so she retreats into herself to cope! If Anon is her boyfriend, he'll be a pillar of support she can't have or else she won't turn to the Thousand Eyes!\"\n\n\"No, no, we can still have that!\" The director said, spiking his words with soothing undertones that Viktor knew all too well. \"See, when she defaults to the Thousand Eyes, Anon will go into depression, be more motivated to get her back, and then rescues her at the climax!\"\n\n\"YOU'VE TURNED SYIKA INTO A DAMSEL IN DISTRESS?!\" Viktor roared into the phone, then stopped.\n\nNice deep breaths, nice deep breaths. Screaming at them won't help, nice deep breaths.\n\n\"Look.\" Viktor said through grit teeth. If they were going by demographics, fine. He'd give them demographics. \"The thing best received with my readers was the setting. The world. You've turned it into a generic fantasy setting with..\"he paused, trying to wrap his tongue over the next words. \"elves instead of Lizers. Random Native humans instead of Mole Moes. No Mount Muikal, no Rolling Plain of Greal, no--\" Viktor stopped, letting his anger simmer down, get his words in order.\n\nHis accent always got thicker when he was upset and people always misunderstood him. And now wasn't the time to be misunderstood. \"But if you put some more work into the setting--\"\n\n\"There's not enough budget for that.\" The director cut in, slick and silky, catching Viktor off guard. \"We had to cut Moles and Lids to make room. And not enough money to fly everyone out to Australia or someplace for those plains. Sorry about that.\"\n\nThey are called Lizers and Mole Moes, Viktor thought, in disbelief. And the Rolling Plain was based off of Kansas, not Australia.\n\n\"But you put in Elves.\" he said, trying to comprehend what he was hearing. Fucking ELVES.\n\n\"Yeah, we just thought we could spice it up a bit by adding them.\" The director said.\n\n\"You cut out Lizers and Mole Moes,\" Viktor said his voice high and unbelieving. \"But put in Elves to quote 'spice things up'?\"\n\n\"Yes that's what we did.\"\n\nThere was almost an audible snap in the room as Viktor lost it.\n\n\"Okay listen here you corporate hack.\" Russian accent be damned, Viktor hunched over his desk, clutching the phone. \"Let me spell this out for you. Anon and the Thousand Eyes is not a Young Adult novel. It is not another Tolkien knockoff. It doesn't contain elves. It is not your plaything, made to be painted and bastardized into what the focus groups THINK people want. And if you think you can sit there and turn my story into something that will make YOU and all your other suited up morons money, I want my rights back right fucking now. And if you make this movie anyway, I can tell you, you will NEVER get my business again. I will NEVER accept any other movie deal or sign over ANY of my rights to ANY of my other projects. Think that's covered in the contract, oh no, this is just for Anon. And I care too much about him and any of my other characters to see them turned into puppets.\"\n\n\"Okay,\" the director said, clearly taken aback, and for a split second, Viktor thought he won. \"I think you can't accept criticism. Now, if you let me expla--\"\n\nViktor pitched his phone across the room and against the wall. The snap the screen made was oh so satisfying. Then he threw his chair after it.\n\nFuck these corporate hacks.\n\nFuck them all.\n\nHe sighed, going across to retrieve his chair. They were all corrupt, only cared about money.\n\nAlmost like the Queens in Lizer society.\n\nBut Queens were groomed from birth to become something like that, it really wasn't their fault.\n\nBut Lizers could become Queens..........\n\nAnd Queen Ukrinka never did really have a backstory, despite playing such a pivotal role as an antagonist........\n\nHmmm..........\n\nViktor Shcharansky was a tolerant man.\n\nHe'd put up with a BUNCH of shit in his life.\n\nBut through the shit, he learned that maybe good things could come of it.\n\nAnd as he sat cross legged in the middle of the floor, hunched over his favorite composition book, scribbling down his latest concept--\n\nHe learned that lesson once again.", "“Hello?”\n\n“Oh, hi!” I started walking in a circle around the room, a habit I had when talking on the phone. “Is this Director Stevens?”\n\n“Please,” The director replied. “Call me Steven.”\n\nSteven Stevens. Okay.\n\n“Aright then. Well, Steven, I got the script you were working on for the adaptation of my book and—“\n\n“Oh, great!” Steven interrupted. “We worked pretty hard on that, you know, as per your specifications. How do you like it?”\n\n“Right, about that. I think I may have gotten a rough draft or something. The script I have doesn’t really feel finished.”\n\n“Huh. That’s odd. I didn’t think we made a rough draft. What didn’t you like about it?”\n\nHow to put this delicately...\n\n“Well, a lot of things. First, the dialog seems a little off. Almost all of what I wrote seems to have been replaced with corny one-liners.” I leafed through the stack of pages on my desk. “Like, this for example. In the book, this scene is a really emotional moment where the main character finds out his friend Sasha was actually helping the villains all along.”\n\n“Yeah, I remember reading that.” Steven said enthusiastically. “I really enjoyed it. Teared up a little.”\n\n“Okay. Well, in the script, you cut out that entire scene and replaced it with the main character looking directly at the camera and saying ‘Sasha shame this had to turn out like this,’ and then... a laugh track plays? I didn’t even know they used laugh tracks in movies.”\n\n“Right, right. Well, you have to understand,” the director said, a patient tone to his voice, like he was speaking to a five year old who wanted to know why he couldn’t have another cookie before bed. “Many things don’t really transition well from book to movie. Emotional scenes are one of those. Realistically, this was the best our team could do. And personally, I think this could even be a good thing! No one likes their movies being bogged down with unnecessary drama.”\n\nI considered that. “I suppose that makes sense. If you don’t think about it, anyway. Speaking of unnecessary drama, though, that brings me to my second point.”\n\n“Please,” Steven said. “I’m all ears.”\n\n“Well, you seemed to have cut out the vast majority of the fight scenes, which by the way, were the parts of the book that were received the best by the readers. And you replaced them with developing a romance subplot between one of the side characters and a character that you guys made up.”\n\n“Yep.” Steven replied cheerfully. “You know, me and the storyboard writers really thought about that one for a long time. But, you know. Everyone loves romance in movies! Plus, your characters really needed some more development.”\n\n“... The guy only had one line in all of the books. He wasn’t even important enough to name. How much development do you want?”\n\nSteven tsked. “You see, that’s why you’re not a director. You just don’t get it.”\n\nI stopped in place, trying to figure out a response to something that inane. In fact, part of the reason I was having so much trouble was because I was mostly still trying to process the entirety of the conversation before this point. I mean, there’s no way someone could be this stupid, right? Much less an entire group of people, right? Right!?\n\n“Am I... being pranked right now? Please tell me I am. That would be much more reassuring than the reality, I think.”\n\n“Pranked? What do you mean?”\n\nI sighed. “You know what, never mind. Just hopeful wishing. It’s fine, though. We can work on this. It’s not like the script is set in stone.”\n\nSteven didn’t respond.\n\nMy heart rate sped up. “Steven? Hello? It’s not set in stone, right Steven? Tell me it’s not, Steven. Please, Steven.”\n\n“Um, right, of course. Hey listen, I’m going to have to call you back. Someone’s waiting on the other line for me right now. Very important, can’t make him wait. Okay, bye.”\n\nHe hung up.\n\nI stared at the phone for a minute, trying to comprehend everything that had happened.\n\n“Damn it, Steven.”" ]	5
	[WP] In a world where humans have evolved to hibernate, you just woke up in the middle of January.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 isn't too uncommon an occurrence - usually, the person just takes a piss, maybe a quick drink of water, and heads back to bed for a couple more months of sleep. \n\nI decided to stay awake just a bit longer. \n\nI've always been a little of an insomniac - which isn't all bad, actually. I mean, I wish I weren't so tired during the day. Could do without the permanent bags under my eyes, too. And I'm sure that my chronic lack of sleep was doing nothing good for my future health. But being awake at 3 AM, when most of the world was asleep - there's a strange magic in that. No one impatiently waiting for me to finish up some chor, no obligations to rush toward, no expectations to fulfill...just a wonderful wall of time between me and the nervous anticipation of a busy world.\n\nEven with my insomnia, it wasn't easy to stay awake. I stumbled through my first 30 minutes, using the bathroom, washing my face with lukewarm water, running a stiff brush over my teeth and tongue. It wasn't until I had gulped down some (forbidden) coffee - disgusting, but so effective - that my brain dusted off the gears and begin churning in earnest. Downing the rest, I wrapped myself in a thick jacket, scarf and fur-lined cap and stealthily opened the front door.\n\nI shut my eyes instantly, then slowly opened one and then the other over the next several seconds. The snow dazzled painfully with its alabaster sheen. Feeling rebellious about defying human nature, I stepped one foot out into the world.\n\nSo cold! So...beautiful. The landscape was devoid of any other person, of course, which only enhanced the blanket of white that covered bare trees, tractors, barn-houses, even the iced duck pond. The world twinkled at me, shocked but delighted at my audacity. I took a few more steps and had to stop myself from giggling at the pure sound of untouched snow crunching under my boots, all but echoing in my quiet, still front yard. Not that I've never seen or stepped on snow before; but the snow of late November, right before hibernation, was a different beast altogether. It bespoke of the panic of running out of time to stock up, of making sure you were ready for the long cold sleep ahead. And the world was still in such a rush then; hearing snow under your feet was impossible.\n\nThe world was holding its breath now - and it was more lovely than I had even imagined. Crunch-crunch. Crunch.\n\n\"Well, howdy there, Eloise!\"\n\nI staggered. The voice, friendly, amused and not actually that loud, felt like a foghorn. I looked around a little too wildly and found one of my neighbors, Cabern, watching me and trying not to laugh. \"I didn't think anyone else would be awake,\" I finally managed to say. It came out a squeak.\n\n\"I'm not too surprised that you are, though,\" he mused. \"Considering what your ma and pa tell me about your sleeplessness. You're what, 12 now?\"\n\n\"Uh, yes, sir.\"\n\n\"So, you must be going through puberty now, I bet.\"\n\nI blushed and nodded but didn't say anything. \n\nHe continued on, thankfully avoiding saying anything awkward like I had been dreading. \"You're different, like me - and few more of us, too. Your body is finally getting around to realizing that.\"\n\n\"What do you mean, sir?\" I asked curiously.\n\nHe smiled, crinkling the corner of his eyes. \"Bottom line is: full hibernation just isn't for everyone, no matter what your parents told you.\"\n\nI started to ask another question but yawned instead. Embarrassed, I hurriedly covered my mouth.\n\n\"But your body isn't quite there yet,\" he chuckled. \"I think it might be time for you to get back to sleep.\"\n\n\"Maybe,\" I agreed, stifling another yawn. I took another rapturous look around. \n\n\"Pretty, ain't it?\" he said softly. \"Don't worry, you'll see it again soon, I bet, when you wake up again.\"\n\n\"In the spring?\" I raised an eyebrow. \"It'll be all melted by then. And busy and bustling...\"\n\n\"Oh, I think you'll wake up sooner than that,\" he winked. \"Til then, miss Eloise?\"\n\nA little confused, I nodded and said goodbye. I was suddenly very sleepy.\n\n \n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\nLiked that story? Want more like it? Check out 📷[r/Idreamofdragons](https://www.reddit.com/r/Idreamofdragons/)!" ]	2
	[WP]You're a deity worshipped by many. You get bored and decide to pay your worshippers a visit.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "“Boopity boopy dats a spicy a meatball!” I observed as I drifted into the earthly dimension and took a seat at the head of the table. The few people assembled there looked incredulously at each other, as could be expected. I always wondered if I had an accent, or could a language even be spoken without one? I didn’t grow up anywhere, nor did I have (necessarily) a first language. I simply knew all languages instinctively, I just hadn’t spoke directly to anyone in quite some time. Of course, existing outside of the confines of “normal” time perhaps the passing time was irrelevant. All of this was beside the point.\n\nA man spoke “Guys, uh, what’s going on?”\n\nHe was trying to rationalize the apparent apparition now devouring his plate of pasta. The poor man had never really believed I existed. He was hoping one of his companions would laugh to give away the joke. Maybe this was a great prank, or maybe he was just dreaming? \n\nThe woman directly across from me was looking directly over my head and back at me, mouth slightly agape. I turned an eye around and saw my symbol hanging on the wall behind and above me. \n\n“Yes it’s-a me, you all my followers, yes?” I asked.\n\n“Ummm, er-yeah?” Said the other man to my left uncertainly. \n\n“Mama Mia! Youse so dry” I stated. These people were not nearly so interesting as I had hoped. I decided appearing here was a mistake and it was time to go. I pelted them all with Alfredo I conjured from the void (for their misdeeds), and then decided to drift back to the dimension of food monster deities I usually resided in. The noodles were a little dry, and the sauce a bit too hot, so I vowed never to return." ]	2
	[WP] - You are a independent mobile app programmer. But your last 3 apps have been snatched up by hackers who just re-skinned them and put them back in the market. You just learned about the medieval superstition of book curses. Three months later the world is a very different place.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"They didn't even bother changing some of my code's root directories, no wonder the in-app purchases are not working.\"\n\nNeil said to the camera as he uploaded his original codes and the hacker's codes side by side to the administrator.\n\n\"You can see from the date that I had uploaded my first draft for open scrutiny on stack-over-flow, then two months later after sweating profusely over rewriting and downsizing the codes, I uploaded them the GitHub for beta testing.\"\n\nNeil explained and asked, \" could you please leave a mod message about this so that people won't bombard me with threats? My phone is going to explode from all the influx of automated text messages.\"\n\nThe Admin agreed to double-check the codes and get back to Neil as soon as possible.\n\nNeil breathed out and he stared placidly at the blank Facetime window.\n\n\"Well, you asked for it, \" Neil thought as he carried a large tome to his desk and donned a pair of latex glove before he gently flipped through the ancient pages.\n\nHe founded what he was looking for, book curses for anti-theft purposes.\n\nNeil then included his unique curses both before and after his new codes, then he went back to being a nasty internet troll.\n\nNeil woke up the next day to find his inbox had exploded yet again.\n\nThis time, however, was the messages from a guy pleading with Neil to free him from his terrible ordeal.\n\nNeil mused as his cursor highlighted the guy's words, such as coughing out cockroaches and worms wiggling from their nostrils and anal cavities.\n\n\"I can't believe it actually worked!\" He smirked, \"So, what's next? Should I place a Medusa head in front of my driveway so that all those who dare to infringe upon my space with be turned into stone?\"\n\nNeil hummed merrily as he was en route to get his morning cup of Joe.\n\nHe returned to more emails and his social media accounts were overlaid with messages.\n\nFrowning, Neil took a picture of his ancient ritual book and posted it on ins. \"Anyone who wanted to protect their original creation, refer to this.\" Was the caption he used.\n\nLittle did he know, people's creativity in conjuring up a good curse was about to blow the internet over." ]	2
	[WP] Vampires live openly amongst us. Though some bad apples resort to the predation, the majority of this elite group buy their blood from the most improverished humans - the next step in Capitalism.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Can you not drink my blood in front of me?\" he said as he glared at the vampire.\n\nThe vampire paused in his drinking and gave the man a withering stare, \"do you enjoy eating your food cold Jim?\"\n\nJim looked back at the vampire and thought about his reply, \"well I suppose not, but it still quite unsettling watching you do it in front of me.\"\n\n\"Yes I'm sure it is, but I paid good money for this meal and I'm going to enjoy it while it's fresh. If you like I can turn around so you don't have to look.\" The vampire looked at Jim while dabbing at the corner of his mouth with a napkin. Both of them knew that it was for show and that the vampire as old as he was never spilled a drop of blood when he fed.\n\n\"Thanks, but I'll get used to it.\" \n\nHe got up instead and moved towards the kitchen counter where he proceeded to clean his arm and put on a fresh bandage. He had been a steady supplier of fresh blood to the lawful vampires of the city. Some were decent people like Gregor here and he enjoyed most of his customers. There were other people in the room all of them selling their blood as food for the vamps. Some did it willingly others facing starvation themselves had no choice. It was a police of the exchange that there were no vampire groupies and no one was allowed in that wanted to be vampires themselves. It was quite a rigorous testing that all of the \"vendors\" had to go through before they were allowed into the room. Here they conducted business with their vampire clientele. They were matched up according to what blood the vampire preferred. There were classified into blood type, male or female, age, and even if they were a virgin or not. Apparently most vampires had certain taste and for the vendors some made really good money, especially the virgins. Jim didn't fall into the virgin category but his blood still was quite sought after. He was young, healthy, didn't drink, and didn't do any heavy drugs. He had a regular customer base and he was happy for it.\n\nThe only problem was the vampires that didn't use the exchange bars. The ones that still got their meals the old fashioned way. They would stalk their prey and once alone they'd pounce on them. They took the blood by force and then fled the scene. Some of the luckier ones got away feeling violated and anemic for a few days. Others however either died or turned into vampires themselves. Scientists still haven't figured out why some came back and others didn't. Either way it was getting to be a problem and a whole new profession had cropped up. Bounty hunters for rogue vampires which game those few ex military something to do with their skills. \n\nCapitalism was great, but it sure does complicate things a bit." ]	2
	[WP] The year is 2037. The EU has established a world government, and every girl has to go through family planning with their spouse. Your parents "planned" to have no children, but then your mother died having you. You are not supposed to exist, and a strange power you have is 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/js5XDFB)\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 ran, blinked through time, and kept running through the dark, overgrown forest. I saw a beacon of light up ahead. Running towards it, I desperately hoped to find some friends there, maybe some respite. I told myself, over and over, that there's no way I'm ending up in that awful glass box ever again.\n\n\"There she is! The glitch! Get her, KB-001!\"\n\nOh god, they've found me. They caught me slipping out. I blinked again, moving 10 metres forward in an instant. Just like that character in a retro video game my dad played with me.\n\nDad. I flinch. Oh god, I hope he's okay. I almost let the seed of despair from the memory take root. The screams. My heart goes up to my throat, telling me to stop, telling me to cry. But I can't.\n\nI have to keep running.\n\nRock after rock, tree after tree, fern after fern. It seemed to go on forever. What more with the thunderous, endless march of him - no, it - chasing after me. The killbot.\n\nI looked back at the killbot, and wished I hadn't. It looked so... human. I almost thought I caught a glimpse of emotion in him - sorry, it. Perhaps guilt? I shook the thought. That's impossible. Robots with emotions are about as real as pots of gold at the end of rainbows.\n\nI blinked just in time to dodge a barrage of lasers it tried shooting at me. According to Asimov's first law of robotics, that robot shouldn't exist. Then again, I shouldn't exist.\n\nEver since I was a kid, I was raised by my dad. Alone. And I loved him so, so much, for raising me all these years. But I really wished he told me about all of... this. The reason I have these powers. The reason we keep quiet about mom. The reason we always move.\n\nI think back to a law I learnt in my Global Issues class, back when my life was normal. The Family Planning Act, established in 2030. Currently enforced by international law, it states that every female must undergo an official family planning session with their spouse at a registered population control centre. The reason for it was, word by word: \"To ensure the balance of growing population's demand for food and the supply to meet it.\"\n\nWell, guess what? They lied. People are still starving. I learnt the real reason about it weeks ago, when I was exploring my powers and discovered the truth about the world.\n\nLong story short, the world is a simulation - and for some reason, glitches have started popping up. Which is why family planning became a necessity - to correctly synchronise every single child to the rhythm of the system, and to decrease the burden on the simulation itself.\n\nIn that session, my parents stated that they will have no children. But they had an accident. They could've aborted me, but for some reason, they didn't. Which is why I still don't, and will not, believe that my dad is dead. For him to leave me without telling me the truth I desperately need is a sin I cannot accept. He has to be alive, in some jail cell somewhere. Which meant I had to stay alive, too.\n\nFinally, I reached a cliff. I looked down and saw a forest. The canopy looked so tiny and so far - the drop must be about as tall as my 20-story apartment building.\n\nBehind me, the march of robot grew louder. For any normal person, that would've been the end.\n\nBut I'm not normal. I'm a glitch.\n\nI jumped off." ]	2
	[WP] You are working as a Hitman for most of your life without your family knowing. One day, you were given a task to kill someone. The details were vague, but you went nonetheless. As you arrived, you took aim with your sniper and saw your target... "yourself" dining together with your family.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Tick, tock, tick… How simple is it to end another’s life, yet how difficult it must have been to be on the other side of the river. Yet it seems as no doors are available for me anymore, just one simple click. Is it me or does the rifle indeed is heavier at this moment, because I wish for the later. Locking my target in a familiar manner, even though the change becomes more and more visible to me, the silhouette, the target, should be no more than another in 7.7 billion, everything is according to the plan, everything needs to be impeccable with the plan. But who are you? Who am I? The man on the other side, robbing me of my life, of my family, of my happiness, of my sufferings, why are you here? Are you me? Only an ignoramus such as me could believe in a mockery as the situation right now, it’s all my imagination, it must be my imagination. It isn’t required of me to pull the trigger, right? If so, the only option for me currently is to escape, to vanish in this instance, no one will regard my disappearance, I must run. \n\n Clumsily shoving everything back to before, attempting to give them the feeling that I have finished what I’m demanded of. But to whom am I deceiving, no sound rang, not even the birds are singing, they see yet they hear nothing, they knew, they always know, always in control, it’s just comfort for myself. Satan received not one soul tonight, but he will be pleased tomorrow. \n\n The decision only struck me lamentably as my figure collapses heavily on the cold, concrete ground following a distant noise which used to be immensely habitual for this brain of mine who after a moment would be no more. Never have it come down to me until this minute that I’m one of the 7.7 billion, only now do I acknowledge the state of mortality and limit cursed to everyone. It all happened in a flash, I should have known, guns are always at our temples, without our acknowledgement or admission. One more sound and I would be wiped from existence, those who are important to me, will they possess the memory of me? They won’t. If he’s alive, then I’m alive in their hearts. Lucky for Lucy, he will obtain a soul tonight, no need for tomorrow’s wait. \n\n\\------ \n\nMy writing is very amateur, suggestions are very much welcome and needed. Thank you for reading." ]	2
	[WP] In a twist on what people have come to expect, a genie grants wishes in the most generous, extra, inclusive, and elaborate interpretations imaginable.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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’ll never forget the day that I ruined the world. I was at gramma Lily’s house and messin’ round wit her antiques. \nShe was sleepin, see? An I myself, was there to watch her for the weekend since her young husband was outta town. \n\nWell, I started rubbing this lamp next to an old crocheted doll and out popped this big Ol’ Genie. He was like any normal guy cept his damn legs were missing and his floating ass come outta the lamp made him look like a sheet stuck in a vacuum cleaner. \n\nHe lifted his eyebrow on that hawk shaped goateed face and said to me, “Hey there son, I got infinite wishes for ya and I’ll grant em all no tricks.”\n\nNow granny told me not to talk to strangers but when mothafuckers come outa lamps and shit then they really aren’t strangers right, besides he lived in my grams house. So I said, “Alright there boy, why don’tcha there then prove it by ending world hunger, that’s my wish.”\n\nThen outa nowhere it started hailing, I went outside cuz I thought that was odd timing and sure enough rice pellets were fallin out the sky.\n\nSo I went back inside and turned on the news box thing and sure enough this pretty blonde lady on the news was saying something about a global rice storm. \n\nIt’s been like 60 days, the house is buried under hundreds of feet of rice, oceans are filled to the brim with the white pellets, but hey at least nobodies hungry." ]	2
	[WP] You're a resurrector, a professional time traveler paid to prevent deaths with minimal impact to the timeline. Your next subject is the most challenging you've ever faced.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 what I like to call a “reverse assassin”. People pay me to go back to some point of time and prevent someone from dying. \n\nMostly it’s old rich people, and I mean really rich, who would do ANYTHING to get their precious little child back. So, they look for me. \n\nMy last “hit” was some billionaire’s kid who payed me half a million to save his cat. His name was Snowflake. The cat, I mean. Not the kid. Either way, it was my biggest payout yet!\n\nEvery week or so, I get a call, a name, and a time of death. Then, I work my magic.\n\nI really like my job. I get to make people smile, and laugh, and cry. The good kind of crying, too.\n\nI have never refused a job, no matter the payment nor the person whom I save. \n\nBut this time is different. \n\nOn June 12th, 2048, someone named John [REDACTED] will die after a nasty slip in his bathroom. He lived a normal life, mostly. Only one thing is the problem: He’s a murderer, or at least he will be one. You see, a woman named Samantha [REDACTED] offered me thirty million to save this murderer. \n\nJohn was planning to murder Samantha’s father, but he never did after his accident. If Samantha’s father died, he would leave behind ninety million just for her.\n\nThirty million.\n\nA murderer.\n\nI take a two sided coin out of my coat pocket. Heads mean Yes, and Tails mean No. \n\nI flip it.", "The job was simple, grab and go. hell, it was even simpler, scan and bolt. I'd been watching growth age spy films all last week. I was always fascinated by older media, but the spy films? I was hooked. which made my next mission quite a bit more difficult.\n\nI had done some high-profile work before, Genghis Khan and other warlords and such. it's all just procedure. drop in, swap to y-time, get the scan and get out. the only problem with that procedure being that a transistor was fried on my temporal regulator, any other day I would've just flown back and gotten it repaired, but today? I thought it would be a great idea to test out my spy skills and physically extract a target. Noir films couldn't have prepared me for what came next, because, as it turns out, getting a witch off the gallows is pretty freaking hard.\n\nnow, the way a temporal regulator works is by swapping everything inside a certain area from one direction of time to another, like a X-time, and a Y-time. flowing through Y-time aint some sci-fi perception altering plane, it works exactly the same as you would assume time would work. Y-time doesn't stop aging or anything like that, aging is just cells splitting up to replace dead cells, to move, to breath, to think, to exist, that is aging. Y-time does have one huge benefit though, you could go back to anytime before the temporal regulators conception and essentially freeze the world. It makes it simple to scan something, so it can be reconstructed later. By the way I mean REALLY scan it, like the spins of every electron kinda scan it. its so simple, in fact, that the Collections Agency doesn't even hire spies to do this job, just captains, all I have to do if fly the ship, freeze time, and scan something.\n\nso I stepped out of the ship, and then I fucked up.\n\n\"who are you?\" A man exclaimed, spitting on my face in his haste. he looked me up and down, with clear intrigue into my slim fit jeans and polyester t-shirt. towering over me by half a foot he grabbed my shirt and with the feel of hardly a few fibers I was branded as an outsider and locked away.\n\nThe cell smelled disgusting, putrid filth caked to the floor, and rusted bars baring my from the outside. stone walls, and dim sunlight pouring through a barred window made the cell restricted and distant, too far away for anyone to help.\n\nI was in trouble, and stranded by centuries, and without any knowledge of what my future might hold. it wasn't until I started peering through my barred window did I realize the biggest threat to my survival.\n\nAll I had seen was two young women chatting when I heard the fetid word \"traveler...\" they were spreading stories, and before the advent of tension resolution programs, it was only a matter of time until rumors spread of an evil witch, with robes of silk, speaking a distant dialect, locked in a holding cell. Rumors spreading through Salem, malicious parasites being carried from mouth to ear. I treated this mission like a joke, and this was my reckoning.\n\nI already had a plan in my head when I head the noise.\n\nclank.\n\nLike a spur against metal. I was jubilant. I knew that sound! it was an enforcer, elites bio-engineered to contain larger threats.\n\nclank.\n\nThe agency must've sent an extraction team.\n\nclank.\n\nIt was only then did I realize.\n\nclank.\n\nIt isn't protocol to extract targets.\n\nclank.\n\nAnd the enforcers? they love their job.\n\nclank.\n\n\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\n\nthat's all I've got, feel free to post any critiques", "I had been to countless meetings before. Some had been in the shadows of back alleys, others had been in luxurious pent house suites and century-old mansions. Sometimes, the client would be so bold to ask me to meet them in a public area, like a library or local cafe. Though the locations would differ, the need of each buyer was nearly identical. The dialogue would eventually end up with these three subjects: the time, the target, and of course, the negotiation of my asking price. And given my perfect record, I was quite expensive.\n\nOver the years, I even acquired a waiting list. You see, everyone had someone they wanted to bring back, whether the gain be personal or monumental. Most of the time, buyers were willing to shell out the cash for more intimate choices. A long lost uncle, perhaps, whose death caused a shift in a will dictating the ownership of a handsome inheritance. The buyers with more revenue lining their pockets (usually politicians and the like), would have me prevent the deaths of historical figures. These kinds of tasks took more research, resources, and always posed more complications. Naturally, the more influential the figure, the more overlaps in the time threads I had to carefully dissect, and therefore the more bold the asking price.\n\nProfessional time travel was a risky business, to say the least. But since starting, the lure of greed hooked me and I constantly found myself looking for the bigger prize and the more dangerous assignments. I created such a massive and extensive list of high tier customers willing to pay me whatever number came out of my mouth. It was power. It was addiction.\n\nIn time, I was even able to choose who I responded to first on the waiting list. Usually, they were along the lines of billionaire oil tycoons and royals with deep coffers. In my ten years of doing this business, I had thought I had seen every type of client, from every class the world had to offer.\n\nThat all changed when I received a thick, cream colored envelop with a wax seal. It displayed a universal symbol that I recognized, but could hardly believe. And even more outrageous, was that the letter was delivered. In person. In the flesh, to my private residence which I thought was carefully hidden and discreet.\n\nThree days after I received the letter, I found myself sitting in the most opulent room I had ever set foot in. I sat on a gilded chair, and was surrounded by priceless art and fixtures which I was sure was worth more than all my assignments combined. But of course, I couldn't expect any less... from the Vatican.\n\nAcross from me, settled behind a polished mahogany desk, was an elderly cardinal dressed in his typical red and white. He had looked over my record briefly before setting it down and regarding me solemnly.\n\n\"The subject in question is a girl,\" he said, his voice rattling and his accent thick with an essence I couldn't quite put my finger on. \"The year is 1976.\"\n\nI leaned forward in my chair, my best suit creasing where I bent my back. I was fidgeting with nervousness, clearly out of my element because in all of my career, I had never thought I would see a day where I would be servicing the Catholic church.\n\n\"Before you go on, Cardinal,\" I said, interceding before he could continue, \"As in awe as I am with the prospect you would want me specifically on this case, I find it... ermmm... ironic, that the Catholic church would turn to a professional time traveler to do their bidding. I'm curious, what are you lot gaining?\"\n\nThe man simply frowned, and gave a look disapproving enough to make even me feel uncomfortable. I gulped. This veil of secrecy was all too much. With any other client, I would have walked away. There were many more prospects on the list anyway. But with the sum he was offering and the prestige of the Vatican on my record, I couldn't possibly refuse. I sighed, allowing his secrets to be secrets.\n\n\"I will tell you this much,\" the Cardinal said, to my surprise. \"If you were to walk away from this, I would understand. But, alas, it's my only hope.\"\n\nI tilted my head. \"Go on.\"\n\n\"The subject's name is Anna Elisabeth Michel.\"\n\nI blinked, not understanding the gravity of what he just told me.\n\n\"To you Americans,\" he continued, \"She is better known as Emily Rose.\"\n\nHe waited for me to respond, and got nothing but my silence as I stifled the sudden feeling that gripped my core. Fear, I think it was. Or horror.\n\nA knowing smile crept over his face at the sight of my lack of reply. \"Tell me, time traveler,\" he said, he himself leaning forward now. \"How familiar are you with exorcism?\"\n\nEDIT: Some grammatical errors.", "\"Ha! You've got to be kidding me!\" Agent Kensington exclaimed, his laugh half serious, half incredulous.\n\n\"Dead serious\" Director Sanberg replied, his deadpan response betraying nothing of his true thoughts. \"The client understands that this will be a long term assignment, and they are willing to pay accordingly\".\n\n\"They damn well better be.\" Kensington shot back. \" I could be at this one for decades! You do know the kinds of people they will be sending after him, the kind of crazy schemes they are going to hatch that I will need to sabotage? They'll start by sending professionals, those I can handle, then they might get bold and try a more direct assault, which I may or may not be able to sabotage given enough information from our own timeline. But after that? That's when things start to get crazy. I'm talking old-school cartoon crazy. For crying out loud, I wouldn't put it past them to try to try to take him out with an exploding cigar!\"\n\n\"Can you do it?\"\n\n\"Can I do it? Of course I can do it! But I want a raise. You didn't pay me nearly enough for that last assignment babysitting that mad scotsman through Normandy. Though I guess after that, the least you can do is assign me to a tropical island.\"\n\n\"Then it is agreed\" the director responded, \"Congratulations Agent Kensington, the Castro account is yours\"." ]	5
	[WP] A species where you keep growing in size as you grow in age, to no end. The difference in size between a two year old and his father is the same difference between the father and his father and so on. Some bloodlines unbroken trace back to titans and give birth to babes.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 wings gilded by the night sky, a dragon flew overland.\n\nPowerful sweeps gathering gulps of air to support her flight, her yellow eyes devoured the earth below, missing nothing.\n\nPrey was spotted.\n\nPanicking sheep and other animals, lesser beasts that would probably faint with fear if she were to actually descend, but she wasn’t hungry, and her journey held purpose.\n\nIn the distance, her destination manifested itself.\n\nCraggy spires pierced a cloudless night sky; the naked moonlight casting into pale relief the truly bizarre nature of the castle the dragon descended upon.\n\nIt seemed to have no visible buttress an archer could stand from and defend, no walkable walls, no obvious gate or moat or even a courtyard. A freestanding building upon a grassy plane covered in wicked spikes and sheer walls of strange layered material.\n\nHer legs drew up before her, her wings sweeping back to slow her descent before she took her own weight to the ground. Then with a shiver of relief to finally relax them, her wings folded neatly against the crevice of her spine, and her mighty head turned to the castle to regard it solemnly.\n\nI come seeking the council of the Allfather. Allow me to congress with him.\n\nFor a few, short seconds, there was nothing. Only the rustling of grass in the night breeze and the distant hoot of a countryside owl.\n\nThe lonely dragon stood with the stillness that only a dragon can.\n\nThen the castle began to move.\n\nSpires shifted and walls collapsed. Great sections of its structure unfolded, a titanic flower blooming to drink the moonlight.\n\nNot a castle.\n\nA dragon.\n\nGothic spikes became the spines of its tail.\n\nThe sheer walls unfolded to become its wings, the highest spire untucking itself to reveal a head the size of the entire body of the visitor.\n\nThe groaning creak of such mass shifting was accompanied by the leathery rustle of the wings, catching the air like two sails bigger than any vessel of man.\n\nFrom so high above it was as if she spoke to god himself, the elder dragon addressed his junior.\n\nAnd… what do you seek to ask him little one?\n\nThe younger dragon bowed in reverence, tipping her head to the ground.\n\nAllfather forgive me, I did not recognise you.\n\nA curl of wispy smoke escaped from the elder dragon’s maw, a possible sign of impatience, but not anger.\n\nSpeak little one, I am listening.\n\nThe young dragon raised her head again proudly, meeting her elder with a fearless stare.\n\nAs a dragon should.\n\nOur kind are famous for our growth, for reaching sizes unfathomable over our entire lives. And yet…\n\nThe young dragon still held her head high; but her shuffling, and the slight rise of scales across her back told of a tinge of embarrassment.\n\nI have stopped growing at the mere age of two hundred. I have become no larger in several years. Allfather am I… Am I cursed?\n\nA puff of steam and a pair of great golden eyes crinkling up spoke of the great dragon’s amusement.\n\nYou never knew your parents did you youngling?\n\nThe young dragon jerked, startled.\n\nHow－ How did you…?\n\nThe elder dragon’s chuckling sounded like the rumble of the earth itself.\n\nThey would have told you… dragons must shed their skin youngling, periodically. That is what marks our growth, and is the reason for our eternity. We are birthed anew and rise to new heights with each shedding of the old and growth of the new.\n\nSettling down to a more leisurely position like an avalanche happening in slow motion, the elder dragon regarded the creature small enough to fit in its taloned palm.\n\nSoon you will feel an itch beneath your scales, when they start to peel off, do not panic, this is natural. When your epidermis is entirely shed, your growth will continue. And be thankful for your youth, the last time I shed it took me a month to fully climb out of my old skin, such is the way for those of us who have lived many, many years.\n\nGratitude burned from the youngling dragon. Again she bowed low, showing her reverence to her wizened elder.\n\nThank you great Allfather! This is a blessing to me! Ah, I feel such relief!\n\nWith a quiet and dignified farewell, she took wing and soared into the sky.\n\nWatching her go, the elder dragon spoke again in his rumbling voice.\n\nShe thought I was you.\n\nThere was definite amusement in the dragon’s voice this time.\n\nTypical of a youngling to see a dragon bigger than herself and assume she was laying eyes upon the great Allfather.\n\nNow the earth truly did rumble, the land for miles and miles around giving a slight tremor, as if shrugging its shoulders.\n\nFlying so high, even the youngling couldn’t see truly where the Allfather lay, for some things are simply too vast to notice.\n\nPerhaps if she could go even higher, so high she could see the lay of the islands and continents below, then she would see that the great island continent upon which she had met her elder had the coiled shape of a mighty dragon." ]	2
	[WP] You are not ugly, or smart, and you never met the hot and popular boy or got bullied by the meanest group of girls in school. You are simply a background character. Narrate what’s it’s like to be one as the “drama” is happening.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Since I was young, I was always surrounded by drama and icky romance stuff. I've witnessed couples drifting away from each other, seen a group of girls bully someone, almost barfed when the popular boy got all touchy with some girl. Agh, why does it always happen to me?\n\nOh, you must be confused on what I'm baffling about! You didn't got my name? That's not surprising considering that they never mention me in any of their stories. The name's Sam.\n\nNow that's out of the way, look over there. See that? That's Heroine, she somehow gets all the guys around the block. One time when I was walking home from school, I saw Heroine almost got robbed and was saved by this cool guy that turned out to be an Underground Boss! \n\nThen, then there was also that arrogant rich kid that ALWAYS delivers some kind of exotic and delicious food every single day to our class. Everyone was shocked and jealous when Heroine received a bouquet of black roses one morning. The popular boy got so jealous he literally almost broke Heroine's wrist and arm.\n\nI almost shouted at him to be gentle, but something was stopping me every time I try to intervene.\n\nIt must have been some plot armour that keeps blocking me, I never really done anything else other than study and watch my school drama. There was also those rare moments when I was able to talk to Heroine, every shool year I would be able to talk to her two times a week.\n\nI noticed those even when I was still young, that Heroine and I would always be in the same vicinity; the same school, the same street, the same working place— the only thing that we didn't get is the same charisma. It always baffles me that our parents were best buddies back in their younger years, and that Heroine and I never seemed that close at all.\n\nAfter graduating high school, I gave up trying to piece together some puzzle that would never come complete. I got a part-time job that is actually a front row seat at her drama, and a few bets around me.\n\nI never questioned my existence anymore or even tried to intervene on dangerous situations, for years I have practiced the art of not being seen. And I would just get my nachos and chips as I watch the drama unfolding around me." ]	2
	[WP] You're an evil villain. The protagonist trying to thwart you has, through unforseen circumstances, become your soulmate. How do you cope with this information?	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 sit in a dark room, your chin rests on the back of your hands while you brood in silence. With a cigarette in your mouth, you try your best to follow your routine, but to no avail. Recent events have made your situation too complex for even you, the Ashen Doom, can't handle.\n\nThe silence was broken when you hear a knock on the door. You hear someone on the other side, \"Hey sis'. I made you some coffee\". You let out a sigh of annoyance and let them in. The door swings open and a young man wearing a collared shirt and a bowtie comes in holding two steaming mugs. He places one of the mugs on your table. \"Jeez, do you ever turn on the light in here? All I could see are the glasses on your face\", he comments. You reach out for your cup as the smell of black coffee fills your nose. \"With that outfit of yours, I'm surprised you even stay in the light\" you jokingly insult him. He chuckles to himself \"As if your costume isn't that ridiculous\" before turning around to the door.\n\nAfter he took a few steps, you stop your brother from leaving the room. \"Hey wait, are you busy right now?\". He looks back at you, \"Well, not really. Why?\". \"I wanna ask you for some advice\". He laughs for a moment. \"Oh wow! What's this? My little sister, so proud of her work, refusing anyone's help, asks for advice?\" he replies in a sarcastic tone. Annoyed, you point at him and use your telekinesis to put him on a chair, being careful not to spill his coffee.\n\n\"Dude, this isn't about villainy,\" you tell him \"it's something else, and it's affecting my villainy\". Intrigued, he slouches toward you, \"What do you mean?\".\n\nYou take a deep breath and finally let it out.\n\n\"It's about the new hero, Lady Lightbringer. She's insanely strong but she's just as dumb. She has to rely on her teammates to make sure she doesn't hurt herself. I don't know why, but whenever I see her, no, whenever I even think of her, my heart feels so, strange. I don't know how to describe it. So, I need some advice how to deal with this.\"\n\nAfter taking a sip of coffee, he replies \"So, you have a crush on her?\". You immediately protest against his claim \"WHAT!?! No I don't!\". He gets a smug look on his face, \"Oh yeah you do, I can feel you blushing through the darkness\". He was right, you are blushing, but you couldn't admit it. \"NO! SILENCE! You are wrong!\". He stands up with a smirk on his face, \"Oh come on, don't be shy! Mom and Dad are fine with you being a villain. They wouldn't mind if they learned their daughter likes girls too.\"In an unholy voice, you screech at him in protest. \"I! DO! NOT! LIKE! THE! HERO!\". \n\nHe laughs to himself as he leaves the room. \"Whatever, sis'. If that's what you think the I guess I can't give any advice to you\". He reaches for the doorknob before giving his last remarks. \"But hey, if you ever change your mind, I'll be happy to talk bussiness with you. You know where to find me.\"\n\nBreathing unnaturally, you sprint to the door to try and attack him. You let out a final roar before he closes the door on you." ]	2
	[WP] An exceedingly skilled magician is mistaken for a powerful wizard.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Good sir,\" said the child, with eyes like dewdrops and a mouth not yet acquainted with sorrow. She tugged at the ragged tailcoat of the magician.\n\nWiggling his waxed eyebrows at her, he tucked the cards back into a hidden pocket in his sleeve and thumbed the inside of his gloves. He didn't know what the girl wanted, but he did know that she'd get a butterscotch at the end.\n\n\"Um, I don't mean to nuisance you,\" Now the magician was genuinely surprised. Such language! And she appeared to be not even of eight years yet! A clever girl she was... better make it two butterscotches he thought.\n\n\"Can you magic bread too sir?\" He was taken back? Bread? Usually children asked for his wand, or more candies. Never bread.\n\n\"why, surely, you'd like this-\" and as he spoke in his comically deep muffled voice, he brought a hand to his moustache and twirled it with a flourish, while letting the butterscotch slide to his fingers \"-candy more! Yes?\"\n\nShe gave a weak smile and looked down shyly.\n\nHe flicked the other butterscotch to his fingertips as well and bent down to dangle it in front of the young lass. \n\n\"Perhaps TWO CANDIES, hmmmmmm?\" \n\nThis always pleased the children, and it left him satisfied still. The wonder, the excitement, the happiness. That was magic. Not cards, nor petty tricks.\n\nTrue magic was the happiness of a child; of an innocent hope yet untarnished by the world. \n\nBut the girl just shrunk into herself even more, her hands gripping and pulling her simple brown skirt. \n\nThe magician knew something was wrong. Was it her parents? Perhaps a cruel mother or father? Was she ill? He did not have much besides farthings and a few pences but he would do all in his power to aid this young girl. He kneeled down in front of her, resting his hand on her head and gently tussling her hair.\n\n\"Is something wrong, sweet child?\" But the girl shook her head even more adamantly, and he saw a crystal tear slide down her face and wet the bare earth.\n\nOh. Oh no. Wonderful, you fool! You've made her cry, he panicked.\n\n\"Ah, maybe you like toys? Fire stones? Sweet smelling candles or toffees that taste like sunsets?\"\n\nBut again she shook her head, and mumbled something.\n\n\"Hmmm,\" he asked, pulling forward and pushing one of his ears forward to hear her better.\n\n\"Mmm...Want bread.\"\n\nAh. \n\n\"Surely, you can see that I do not have bread with me. Could you not ask your mother for bread? Or perhaps ask your father to get some from the baker?\"\n\nAnd she ducked her head even lower if that were possible, and now he really was straining to hear her. It was also awkward; kneeling on a cobbled town square in front of a crying girl. He hoped the townsfolk would not be unreasonable.\n\n\"Paa -roke his leg.\" She sniffled out.\n\nOh. Oh, oh sweet child, sweet \"Oh child, I'm so sorry.\" And now he was glad his moustache muffled his voice because even he was tearing up now. \n\n\"Ah, okay.\" He dabbed at the corner of his eyes. \n\nHe sniffled and lifted the girl's head up so he could look her in the eye. \n\n\"Yes. Come, let us get bread.\"\n\nJust like that her face unwrapped itself with a smile, her bright teeth gleaming even in the dreary aftermath of tears.\n\nHe took her hand and asked her where the baker was and she looked up at him puzzled.\n\n\"But, aren't you the warlock? Can't you make the bread out of sunlight?\"\n\nAh! So she thought he was the warlock! That made sense. Alas, all he had to himself were cards and dice and hollow wands. \n\nBut the child seemed so happy, so hopeful. Surely a lie to instill hope was more honorable than the truth which brought despair?\n\nSo he said \"ah, but is it not cloudy today child? It will rain within the next few days, and of course, one needs a clear sky to make a roll of bread, no?\"\n\nShe smiled at that and frantically nodded her head, eyes wide and smile wider.\n\nWhen they reached the bakery, he was disheartened to see the baker out of bread. \n\n\"I have dough, chap.\" Said the man. \"But me roller's out of town and I have to finish the dinner platter to the castle.\"\n\nThe magician was hampered. A baker without bread! And the girl, the poor girl, she was looking more downtrodden than ever!\n\n\"Ah, I shall roll your bread! And I'll pay you two shillings.\"\n\nThe Baker looked up from his arrangements and stared at him intently for a second. Then he huffed and shrugged and said \"Sure, put the coins over there and wet your hands in that basin over there. If you spill my flour, I will make you pay for it.\" \n\nAnd so he did. He wetted his hands, and flipped the dough and kneaded it with his bony palms and flexible fingers. The girl sat on a grinding stone and watched him with awe. \n\nBy the time he'd finished the dough and set it within the fire, the sun was setting and after watching the sun set, he'd entertained the girl with tops that he put in her hand and rope that levitated. \n\nBy the time the bread was done, the sun had set and the moon was casting familiar shadows across the town. \n\nThe baker wrapped the bread in cheesecloth and gave him a nod as he closed his shop and headed to the castle with his steaming basket.\n\nAfter walking for a good half hour, they reached a quaint cottage and the girl rushed inside and began telling her mother and bedridden father of the warlock she'd met that day. \n\nHe supposed such stories were common but when he entered through the door with the bread he was met with astonishment and embarrassment. \n\nJust like the night, he too was sleepy, and he declined the homely woman's offer of money. He simply asked for a night's rest, which was graciously accepted.\n\nWhen they asked him to join them, he lied and said he'd previously eaten. The family's joy and the sparse few candies he had left would fill his belly.\n\nAs the family sat upon there rug and broke bread, the magician's towering frame watched over them, soaking in their happiness and reveling in it. \n\nThere was magic in a loaf of bread he thought. \n\nThe fire brought to life in a hearth by prayer and hope was brighter than any that could be conjured by a warlock through chants and spells.\n\nHe had become a magician because seeing magic had captured his breath, but performing magic had captured his heart. \n\nLooking down at the joyous family, he thought about how his hands had done well making the bread, how they'd layered the dough with love and showered the load with nourishment. \n\nPerhaps he could become another type of magician. One who, instead of filling a child's eyes with wonder, could fill a family's bellies with hope." ]	2
	[WP] Between the Light Wizard council, the Demon Hordes, the Time Police, the Alien Hunters, and at least half a dozen more, you're left wondering if there's anyone who HASN'T decided that you're the most important person in the universe.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 Thomas Bland and I was born as a nobody. All my life I was surrounded by unremarkable people who did uninteresting things. This had been the norm for several generations of my family, and we even went so far as to change our last name to fit our nature. We were well off enough, happy enough, that we never sought anything other than what we already had. Our only fear was that somebody might assume one of us to be special, which was another factor in the name change - a warning to those who might accidentally think we were interesting. \n\nSo, as I stood on the auction block after being put up for sale to the highest bidder from the entire known universe, past and present, it was really quite extraordinary. \n\nIt all started with a call from a recruiter, inquiring if I had interest in a technical support position for a local factory. I wasn't looking to change jobs at the time, but I thought I would try to spice things up a bit and see what it was all about. I wore my nicest shirt and sharpest pants, accompanied by an ugly brown tie - I didn't want to get too crazy, after all, and headed in for my interview. It was in a part of town I didn't recognize, in a building that looked like it had been built overnight. This proved to be an accurate assessment, as the recruiter was of the alien variety, and I had quietly stumbled into his trap. Upon entering the structure I found myself paralyzed and then bound, and brought to a ship headed to the stars. I now regretted choosing to wear my brown tie, as I had a feeling I would be stuck with it for a while.\n\nI never much understood the specifics of what was going on, but I was traded several times to different species of aliens that ranged from ugly to horrifying. For someone who has described themselves as 'certifiably milquetoast,' this was all a bit too much for me. But I didn't have much choice, as I was apparently worth quite a sum, as the amounts of alien currency that were exchanged between hands, tentacles, suction cups, and various other appendages seemed to be increasing. I was now a commodity.\n\nMy life continued in this pattern for quite some time. I had been working my way up some sort of economic food chain, as more strange and diverse creatures started appearing in front of my cage to appraise me. Only once was able to understand what my potential buyers were discussing, as a group of ancient but definitely human wizards studied me intently. \"How marvelous!\" one of them said. \"He's completely blank! His soul his utterly clean. That means...\" Unfortunately for me, my current owners led the wizards out of my hold before they got to the answer. But it was enough that I could figure out the gist. I was so thoroughly ordinary that I had some sort of potential to become anything - I could be imprinted with a purpose, I supposed, and that's why so many of these strange and sometimes mythical beings desired me. I could fulfill their prophecies, because I had nothing to fulfill on my own.\n\nBut this led to more questions than it solved answers. Why was I the one who was kidnapped? Multiple generations of my family were still alive - didn't the rest of them have the same blank soul that I did? At first I felt hope that maybe I had just been the first and soon I would come across a member of my family out in this great expanse. But I soon realized that dream existed on a false horizon. There was too much money in play, from what I could tell. If anyone else in my family was worth what I was, they would have been gone long before or even had been taken with me. I was alone, profoundly so, on a scale that boggled my mind. \n\nI couldn't be quite sure of the time scale, but I believe several years had passed before I was purchased by someone who could converse in English. They were the one who would eventually put me up for auction. They called themselves Oros, and they were apparently quite high up on the hierarchy of alien life. They had no true form - a sentient fog is the best I can describe them as - and even though they could converse, they rarely chose to do so. In fact, they only ever answered one direct question of mine: \"Why me?\"\n\n\"Long ago, your family was chosen to breed a specialty crop. Our goal was to achieve a human of utter emptiness, devoid of any true direction and purpose. Through generations your family has inched close to this humanoid nirvana, until finally you were born. You are nothing, and you are everything - the spark that set the universe alight with limitless possibilities. Soon you will be sold as a slave to whatever faction can pay the highest price, and will mold your being into a power yet unseen in all of existence. They will rule the New Age, until the next Seed of the Oros comes time to harvest.\"\n\nEven though I now stood in a room of unimaginable size inhabited by creatures of both dreams and nightmares, it was hard to truly take in. I heard the various pitched screams of alien tongues enter their bids, but it was still hard to believe I was worth anything. I looked down at my tie, now torn and tattered with age and still hideously brown, and could only laugh that it belonged to the supposed most powerful being in the universe. \n\nSoon, the room fell silent, and I knew the auction had ended. Slowly I could see the audience ebb and flow and shift as the winner made their way to the front. Still from a great distance, I could see who would now rule the universe with me as their scepter. They were large, eerie, dark red creatures. I recognized them at once, but more on feeling than visual cue. But at last, I knew my fate. \n\nMy name is Thomas Bland, Demon Prince.\n\n&nbsp;\n____________________\nr/psalmsandstories for more tales by me, should you be interested." ]	2
	[WP] You died and because you’re an atheist your whole life, the Grim Reaper told you that where you die matters, because you will be sent to the version of the afterlife which corresponds to that nation’s major religion.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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, this should be interesting. The grim reaper said and I quote, \"Since you seem to have trouble deciding, your afterlife will be the same of those your body lay besiding.\" \n\nTwo things, this sounds way creeper, coming out of a skull in black hodded robe where the sound is almost hooty like an owls. And two, I died in america, so I should get a christian heaven right?\n\nWrong.\n\nMy body was buried in a graveyard. So I must clearly go to whoever's religion I am buried next to? I mean that would be the case if there was not so many other bugs in the ground. So here I am, in beetle heaven.\n\nbeetle heaven....\n\nNow this may seem weird, but I low key do not totally mind. First off, languages and intelligence, us humans have it all wrong. These beetles have built like skyscrapers, underground tunnels. It is literally like what humans imagine the future is like in movies. I was completely shocked. Second, I am pretty sure I am in heaven. As far as I can tell beetles do not have a hell, however, people keep talking about the draft. I will get to that later. \n\nThe last important note is that for some reason, beetles can take whatever form they want. While there are many people crawling on the ground as giant beetles. There seem to be just as many in other forms. There are dog beetles, bird beetles, people beetles, you name it, there is a beetle variation of that form. I personally have kept a human like appearance. However I do now have mandibles and a black shelled body that allows me to fly around.\n\nBut back to the draft. Apparently in beetle heaven there is a draft where beetles here train to become warriors and then head into \"the battlefield.\" I do not know much about it, other than if the people we send do well, we get benefits. Like, the sky becomes clearer, and overall stuff just seems to be a better quality. There is a sign up, and basically everyone does, at least if they haven't gone yet, because if you come back, you get promoted to the next level of living. While the basic level is fine, it is definitely not what i would call heaven. It is a minimalist approach to heaven.\n\nNow to begin my story. My name is Bert. I know, a really cool name, trust me I was only made of constantly for it. However, that doesn't matter here. After I had the talk with Mr. Reaper, I was worried life would get worse for me, because I was definitely not the most righteous person. However, after I arrived here, I was quickly shown the way by those around me. \n\nMaking friends was surprisingly easy, I met my boy Ronald. He was a Hercules beetle in life and it showed. He was so smart, got you didn't I, literally one of the smartest dudes I've met. He is built like a truck, but he is so good at chemistry, it is scary. Then there was Karen, now she doesn't get this, but she was a dung beetle, and I think that is hilarious. Jokes aside, she is incredibly talented with her hands. She has more stability then a surgeon combined with the sheer strength of a pro athlete. Do not mess with her, or maybe that is just a motto for anyone (beetle?) I run into. Then there is Greg. Greg was a June bug, he carried his bright shimmering coat with him, and definitely lets everyone see his personality. He talks fast, and thinks faster. He surely would have made a good con artist if he were a human. \n\nThat's the crew though, we hang out, eat stuff, and goof off together whenever we can. We all signed up for \"the battleground\" and if we are lucky we will all get to go together. This could be a fun adventure. We don't really know anything about it, but we will get tested when we get called in. For now, it is just a waiting game.\n\n2 weeks later\n\nI woke up to banging on my door. It's the crew, we were drafted and training starts in 2 days. It's time....\n\n(gonna continue but got IRL stuff to do)", "(First time posting!)\n\n\"It just had to be space, didn't it?\"\n\nI don't say anything as I watch the hooded figure pacing the ground in front of me. Its scythe dangles loosely in its grasp. I'm not even sure whether I can speak in this place. My mouth feels dry, my skin is cold, my muscles are tense. I'm wearing some little white dress that I don't own, which matches nearly everything else in this place. The ground is white, the sky is white, the rock I'm sitting on is white. Only the figure's black cloak is different, and I shudder to imagine what lies beneath it.\n\nThe figure turns again and continues pacing. \"It was bound to happen eventually,\" it says, shaking its head. \"Atheist dies in space. What am I supposed to do with that?\"\n\n\"What do you mean?\" I finally ask. My voice breaks and I'm suddenly aware of my sore throat. A lump rises within it, and I feel tears come to my eyes. \"What's going on?\"\n\nThe figure stops walking and sits on the ground in front of me, its scythe laid across its lap. \"I guess you've figured out that I'm the Grim Reaper,\" it says.\n\nI nod.\n\n\"Well here's how this works. When you believe in an afterlife, you get to go there. Nice and simple. But you're an atheist, which means that when you died, you were supposed to be sent to the afterlife which corresponds to the major religion of the nation where you died. Again, usually nice and simple. Even sailors typically aren't a big deal. Closest country wins, right?\n\n\"But then you had to go and start floating off into space! You died alone, drifting into space as your oxygen ran out, essentially the same distance from every human nation. Your body is still floating. Eventually, you'll be closer to alien civilizations than your own. Do you know how confusing it is for me to try to pick an afterlife for you?\"\n\nI feel the tears escape my eyes and drift down my cheeks. You died alone. Memories come flooding back of my crewmates, my family, and the final choking feeling of running out of air while spinning away from my home. \n\nThe figure sighs and stands up. \"I'm sorry,\" it says. \"I know this sucks. Listen, maybe we can work something out. Do you have ideas? Anywhere, in particular, you would like to go? You don't even have to say anything. Just think it and I'll make it happen.\"\n\nSomething suddenly comes to mind as I look down at my bare feet. It's a sick and twisted thought, but it's the only one that comes up, and it feels perfect in that moment. It certainly feels better than going to the afterlife of some god or spirit who I’ve never known. \n\n\"Huh.\"\n\nI look up at the hooded figure, who is suddenly holding up a second black robe and has a second scythe in his hand. \n\n\"Okay, sure. I guess that works.\"" ]	3
	[WP] An elder god wakes to find itself emaciated after millennia of slumber. It had fallen asleep gluttoning itself on the souls of countless humans sacrificed to it in worship. Now the elder god finds that not only are no humans worshiping it, but they’ve never even heard of 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Mavrakas, as he was once known, stirred awake inside the ceaseless void that he called home. The first thing he experienced upon awakening was a deep abiding hunger. Before his sleep he had been a glutton, nourished by the most brutal and enthusiastic worshippers that he had seen in the multiverse. Humanity, barely birthed, had needed only to see shadows of his true form before they began sending souls to him in earnest. Their crude rituals, and the suffering that they entailed, delighted him. Precious few of the species that Mavrakas had pressed into his service were willing to sacrifice their own kind in his name. Of course they would burn precious food or necessary livestock but not often would they kill kin for a chance at his favor. Humans were altogether different though. They were willing to offer their sons and daughters so that they may have good fortune before waging a war in his name. They were the most bloodthirsty and cruel mortals he had yet to encounter. \n\nWith servants such as those, how could it be possible that he now hungered?\n\nPerhaps, Mavrakas wondered, they had died out over the millennia. It would not surprise him given their seeming innate fondness for violence. He peered out through the infinite shards of existence until he found the planet that had housed his favored acolytes. He was surprised to see that not only had they survived, they had flourished. How could there be so many more of them and yet no souls tithed for his consumption in such a very long time. He realized that he had become a victim of their blink of an eye life span. So many generations had risen and fallen that the great fears of old were replaced by the minutiae of everyday life. As he observed them more closely he realized that humans were no longer scared of those things greater than themselves. They could cross oceans and built settlements capable of surviving any disaster their world could throw at them. They even found a way to leave the confines of their own planet. \nBut humanity’s hubris had led them to forget that their lives are a small oasis surrounded by an unimaginably vast darkness. They didn’t realize that beyond their meager understanding something sinister lurks that needs to be placated. These mortals had no idea that there were horrors much worse than the end of their paltry lives. Mavrakas was going to show them exactly how insignificant they were.\n\nAnd soon, he would be full again.", "It twitched in fitful slumber. A short pang disturbed its sleep. It put it out of its mind, slumbering on and on. The troubled sleep faded, and it fell once more into dreams within dreams, mad worlds within realms too horrible to consider.\n\nIt twitched again, worried. Twice, so soon? And what is that feeling? Being watched? Pay it no mind, no mind. Once more to sleep, satisfied still from the feast it received.\n\nA third time, as they say, is the charm. A third time, it twitched and jerked and was awake. It was aware, aware for the first time in eons. It felt, for the first time in ages. It felt rested. It felt satisfied.\n\nIt felt hungry.\n\nIt felt... worried? Worry is not a feeling familiar to it. Worried, why? It awoke, awoke. It forced consciousness upon itself for the first time in a long, long time. It Awoke. And it felt. And it saw.\n\n\"Awake at last, are we?\" A voice jeered at it. \"You know, my grandfather visited you once before, as did his grandfather.\" It looked around, hearing the voice but not understanding. How did it get here? \"We have been visiting you for a long time. How utterly unimpressive.\" The mocking tone was blatant and insulting, and it felt annoyed that it could not find the source. It was The Hungerer, and it was unused to dealing with petty mockery. It was unused to dealing with anything but food.\n\nA word rang through the void. \"Hungry?\" It was loud. Much louder than it had any right to be. The sound of it brought memories, feelings, awareness flooding in. Big as it was, it took time for everything to report. Hunger, that was nothing new, of course it was hungry. It was more than hungry, though, far more than it ought to have been, far more than it had felt in a long time. It was absolutely ravenous.\n\n\"Ah, and comprehension begins. I, we, imagine you had plenty of sustenance before your slumber. That made it a relatively easy hunt, perhaps a little unsatisfying in the middle, but still worth the effort in the end.\" The hunt? It sought the source of the voice, the voice, the maddeningly derisive voice. Where? Why couldn't it feel? Why couldn't it see? And why the pain. Where is the power? The sacrifices, they were gone! \n\n\"Are you mute? Have you lost so much that you cannot even speak? Or do you still think yourself above me?\" It rankled at the continued insolence. It was awake, it was aware, it would demand obeisance.\n\n###\"Hᴏᴡ ᴅᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ! Dᴏ ʏᴏᴜ ᴋɴᴏᴡ ᴛᴏ ᴡʜᴏᴍ ʏᴏᴜ sᴘᴇᴀᴋ?\"\n\n\"Ah, I see you have found your voice! But, uh, ah,\" The voice trailed off into laughter. It was clearly not going to answer the question. Very well, then, the voice shall be smote by its mighty form. A gargantuan arm reaches back, across the endless wastes of the void. It swings ponderously around, ready to wipe clean all the land upon which the invisible jester could stand. Effortlessly, it swung its arm, an arm that had crossed the vast gulf of space, with a hand that had cradled the planets and stars of creation. After an eternity, the arm finished its impossible arc, smashing into the nothingness in front of It.\n\n\"Oh, well-done! I almost felt that.\" Confusion. Its arm had stopped, how? It should have reduced the land to dust, obliterated the speaker entirely. It fumed. It seethed. It raged. It roared.\n\n###\"Wʜᴀᴛ ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ? Wʜᴇʀᴇ ᴀʀᴇ ʏᴏᴜ? I ᴅᴇᴍᴀɴᴅ ᴏʙᴇᴅɪᴇɴᴄᴇ! Yᴏᴜ ᴡɪʟʟ ᴏʙᴇʏ!\"\n\nThere was a silence, and then, a response. \"Look up, little one.\" It paused, its rage interrupted by unfamiliar emotions. It felt panic, confusion.\n\nIt obeyed. \n\nIt looked up, and up, and still further up. And it looked into the face of a man, towering above it. The endlessly reaching arm had smashed clean into the side of his boot. The Devourer of Worlds, The Endless Glutton, The Hungerer, It was left feeling a pathetically wretched creature before the hunter. It struggled to find meaning, to understand what was happening.\n\n\"Allow me to obey, O Mighty One.\" The hunter grinned as he knelt closer to the god. \"I have answered where I am, now I shall answer who I am. I am a hunter. I, my family before me, and a number of other very talented folks besides. We hunt the shadows. The dark things. The unimaginable, the immaterial. We hunted you.\" He paused to let the fullness of the statement sink in.\n\nIt visibly wilted. Who could have been so powerful? How could it face someone so mighty as to undo that which it had wrought?\n\n\"Across the ages, we hunted you. Slowly, methodically. We found your followers, we dispatched your missionaries. We tracked, we stalked, we snared your very name and erased it from existence. Now, all that is left is you.\" A malevolent glint danced in the eye of the hunter. He was relishing putting the Hungerer in its place, the utter helplessness, the total despair it now felt was plain to see, even were it not almost literally radiating from it.\n\n\"I am here to watch you die, fallen god. Foul, wretched thing, you shall darken reality no longer. But, I suppose there is still one question unanswered.\" The hunter lowered himself farther, until he was as close to the fallen god as he dared. He whispered, \"Do I know who you are?\" He paused. \n\nThe Hungerer writhed in agony at his words, afraid of what was to come. It curled in on itself, willing this to be a non-truth, refusing to acknowledge the reality it faced.\n\n\"No. Nobody does, not any longer.\" The Hungerer shriveled further, unable to cope, unable to feel, unable to think.\n\nThe Hunter stood. The Hungerer hungered, and in desperation, devoured what little essence it had left.\n\nThe Hunter left. The Hungerer was no more." ]	3
	[WP] You bought a "Demons for Kids" book as a joke. You go downstairs to find your child(ren) standing in the middle of a circle, holding the book. A puff of smoke appears, and they jump up and down shouting "Look, it works! It 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "“Sweetheart.” The grin on Al’s face was as natural as Teflon, and about as easy to stomach. “Don’t you think you’re overreacting? Just a smidge?”\n\n“Overreacting?!” Rachel gripped the table with both hands, nails digging deep grooves into the Authentic-Imitation Chestnut surface. “Overreacting? One of our children is gone!”\n\nBut we have three more, Al’s brain supplied treacherously. Al’s tongue, on the other hand, was far less suicidal. The summary strangulation of the words would have made King Herod seem like a model of restraint. All the emerged was a drawn-out sigh. \n\n“That’s it?” Rachel bellowed, glowing with unrestrained rage. “That’s all you can say?” A slap of the table sent a teacup plunging to the floor in a fit of hysterical suicide. Al backed away, visibly pale.\n\n“Darling…” he murmured unsteadily. “Please…be reasonable. I didn’t know the book was going to do that. If I had-”\n\n“-You would have left them with it just the same!” Rachel shouted, suddenly rising to her feet. “This is the chemistry set all over again! And when we had to take Tommy to the hospital-!”\n\n“Be fair, sweetheart!” Al protested, pressed himself against the wall. “I got it so cheap, and it wasn’t supposed to explode! Everyone agreed on that, everyone! How was I to know?”\n\n“You imbecile!” Rachel retorted, with the warmth of a tank-mounted flamethrower. “You utter idiot! What do think the word “Recalled” actually means?” \n\n“Uh…too good to sell?” Al babbled inanely. His back was jammed against the wall, shoulderblades digging into the cheap plaster with near-Stakhanovite vigor. “But really, it’s not the same thing at all! This was just a children’s book, about-about-” He stuttered into silence, the end of the sentence looming up before him with the merciless inevitability of an oncoming train. \n\n“About demons!” Rachel screamed, in a creditable impression of the same. “A book about summoning demons! And you think that’s appropriate for our children? What is wrong with you?!”\n\nAl stuttered, his brain fusing in panic. His faculties were in route, every neuron running mad with panic to seek its own destiny. With a convulsive yelp, he tore himself away from the door and ran gracefully into the china cabinet. The crash that followed could be registered on the Richter scale. \n\n“You-!” Al ducked, coming within an inch of ending his troubles on the razor-edged broken glass. “You dumb bastard! It’s not enough that you lose one of our children, but you have to break my mother’s china-!”\n\nAl swerved again as a piece of Mother’s china flew at his head with remarkable inconsistency. The shrapnel peppered his cheek, turning him in blind route toward the staircase. A second missile shivered into fragments over his shoulder, studding the wall with porcelain shards.\n\n“I’m sorry! I’m sorry!” Al yelped incontinently, steadying himself on the banister. “Hang on, just a second! We can talk-”\n\nA third missile made a remarkably succinct counteroffer, shattering near his hand. He yelped and wheeled up the stair, avoiding the silent child by inches and crashing helplessly to the ground. \n\n“Mommy?” The mother froze midway through the act of consigning a sugar bowl to projectile oblivion. “Mommy? Tommy’s acting weird. Can you tell him to knock it off?”\n\n“Tommy?” Rachel’s face underwent a miraculous transformation, blooming in ecstatic relief. “Tommy? He’s here? But you said…”\n\n“He went into the circle.” The child observed the destruction with the jaded eye of an old combat veteran. “An’ he didn’t come out. And now he’s back. And he’s smoking.”\n\n“Smoking?!” Rachel’s expression could have leveled cities. “You see, Al?! You see? This is what they get for following your example! Tommy!”\n\nAl winced at the repetition of the shriek, feeling callouses rise on his eardrums. Rachel glared up the staircase, waiting the luckless Tommy with the air of menace that spoke to something primal in the male heart. The younger child sat down with the quiet anticipation of a bystander at a public execution. \n\n“Tommy!!” Al rose nervously, glancing the backdoor with a fugitive's eye. The knowledge that Tommy was alive did nothing to dampen his conviction that a change of scenery would be good for his health – indeed, it might add decades to his life. \n\n“See mommy?” The younger child piped up treacherously. “He’s smoking! Look.”\n\nRachel gasped, a tiny sound that hit the Al with the force of a tow truck. Turning slowly, Al observed his eldest son descending the stairs with a look of adolescent insouciance that contrasted strikingly with the smoke that curled from his skin. \n\n“Al.” Rachel’s voice was horribly level, as flat and merciless as a desert horizon. “What have you done to Tommy?”\n\nAl paused, wondering for just a moment if the question could be rhetorical. Vapor trailed from the boy’s skin, as though every pore were packed with a charge of dry ice. His eyes had an unpleasant, pinkish tint that recalled Al’s own youthful experiments. Around the tip of his nose and the ends of his fingers, the skin had darkened to an almost inky black.\n\n“Young man!” Al thundered in a voice like an asthmatic parrot. “What…uh…what have you been doing?” He glanced at his wife for support, and winced. Rachel glared at him malevolently, eyes flashing brightly enough to alert the shipping of half a continent. \n\n“Just reading.” There was a strange crackle in the boy’s voice that had nothing to do with the ravages of adolescence. “I was looking over the book you brought Dad. And hey, it’s pretty cool! Watch this.”\n\n“Tommy…” Rachel’s voice could have brought about a new Ice Age. “What are you-?”\n\nThe words were lost in a hellish shriek that seemed to tear upwards from the pit of the stomach and rupture every synaptic cleft. Crimson light streamed from a fissure in the air, as heavy and aching as the memory of death. The infernal roar streamed from every point of the compass, wrapping them in a thick, burning wind. Then it vanished in the shadow of an instant, just as quickly as it had come. The red light flickered fitfully and went out.\n\n“Cool, huh?” said Tommy, with the enthusiasm usually reserved for . “And that’s just the beginning! I can summon lesser demons, and Bloodwalkers and Shadowsnakes…I can’t summon the Nightmare Shroud yet, that’s chapter Seven, but-”\n\n“Go to your room, Tommy!” Al bellowed, horror crystallizing instinctively into fear. “Right now! You’re grounded for the next two weeks – and don’t even think of summoning any demonic creatures while you’re up there.”\n\n“Aw, come on!” The boy moaned. “You never let me have any fun!” A small, smoking bat tumbled out of his left sleeve and spiraled out the kitchen window. \n\n“Right now!” Al continued. “And you give me that book! I don’t want to hear anything about demons or devils or unholy covenants – it’ll upset your mother. Right now!!”\n\nTommy stomped upstairs, grumbling the aggrieved air of a teenager denied the God-given right to paint their bedroom black. Rachel stared at him blankly, halfway between shock and imminent homicide. One wrong word would be all it took to set her off.\n\n“Look on the bright side,” Al said, with the easy-going conviviality of one attempting to make small talk with their executioner. “At least we finally got him to read.” \n\nAl noticed the vein pulsing in her forehead and managed to duck just in time." ]	2
	[WP] You're a hero searching out the legendary weapon-smith to aid your adventure. When you finally find him, his choice of weapon for you is...unexpected.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Teapot For Their Troubles.\n\n.\n\n.\n\n.\n\nI stood shocked as the man pushed the tea pot across the counter. \"This is it!?\"\n\n\n\"Yes sir. It is the weapon you need.\"\n\n\n\"Does it have poison in it?\"\n\n\n\"No sir. It's just an ordinary teapot.\"\n\n\n\"This is some kind of a joke, right?\"\n\n\n\"No, sir. I've never been wrong about you hero types. That'll be 25 gold pieces.\"\n\n\n\"25!? Are you mad!?\"\n\n\n\"This here teapot could change the fate of the whole world.\"\n\n\n\"How!? Am I gonna steep my enemies to death!?\"\n\n\n\"I'm sorry sir, I ain't the venturin' type. I just know this is what you need.\"\n\n\n\"Fine… 25… gold… pieces.\" I dumped the last of my gold on counter.\n\n\n\"Thank you sir. You have yourself a day sir.\"\n\n\nI stepped out of the weapons shop.\" I traveled 100 miles for a teapot… now what? The last of my money is gone\" my stomach growled. \"Maybe there's something in the pot to eat?\" I lifted the lid only to find a note. \"Haili's tea House.\" I read. \"I passed a haili's tea House on the way here.\" I had nothing else to lose. Maybe they will like the coincidence and give me a pastry or something…\"\n\n\nI placed the teapot into my satchel and made my way for Haili's. \"The streets are pretty empty today.\" I thought. \"Just yesterday this place was a bustling market place.\" I kicked a rock and heard every clack as it zipped off down the cobblestone road.\"\n\n\nI turned the corner to see Haili's right in front of me. \n\n\n\"I have been waiting for far too long!\" A woman In a military uniform shouted. \"Where is my tea!?\" She demanded from the waitress.\n\n\n\"I-I'm sorry, one of the employees tripped and broke the sh--\"\n\n\n\"I don't care if the whole restaurant is broken!\"\n\n\n\"Excuse me.\" I said\n\n\n\"Who the hell are you!?\" Her eyes pierced my very being with a look of disgust.\n\n\n\"M-my name is Tayle, and yours?\"\n\n\n\"Ha!\" She scoffed \"you have no idea who I am?\"\n\n\n\"Not necessarily, I'm not from this part of the country.\"\n\n\n\"I am the most feared warrior in these lands!\"\n\n\nI noticed the waitress was absolutely terrified \"are you alright?\" I asked her.\n\n\n\"A-all of our teapots are broken a-and we can't make her tea.\"\n\n\n\"Oh...\" I caressed the bulge of the teapot in my bag. \"This can't be it, can it?\" I thought. \"I may have a solution that will benefit you both.\" I slid the pot out of my bag and set it gently down on the table that the woman was sitting at.\n\n\n\"H-how did you?\" The woman who was so angry just moments before now looked as if she was about to cry.\n\n\n\"I just purchased this today actually.\"\n\n\n\"That's my teapot from when I was just a girl… i-it was destroyed in a fire… how do you have it?\"\n\n\n\"Maybe it's just another similar--\"\n\n\n\"My father crafted it with his own hands as a birthday gift.\" She picked it up and looked at the bottom. Tears ran down her face. \"His initials are on the bottom.\"\n\n\n\"Oh…\"\n\n\n\"Where did you buy this!?\"\n\n\n\"From the weapons dealer just down the road.\" I pointed to where I came from.\n\n\n\"There are no weapons dealers down that road.\"\n\n\n\"What? No i-i was just there.\"\n\n\n\"I guarantee you my unknowing acquaintance. There are no weapons dealers down that road.\"\n\n\n\"That can't be right… I have my receipt right…\" the piece of paper I pulled from my pocket was an old wrapper from a food stand. \"What…\"\n\n\n\"Let the nonsense beside for now. How much do you want for it.\"\n\n\n\"I'm afraid I can't let it go.\"\n\n\nShe gave me a death stare \"unacceptable! 1000 gold pieces!\"\n\n\n\"A-a thousand!?\"\n\n\n\"Alright 10,000!\"\n\n\n\"10,000!?\" This little teapot obviously means something to her... my stomach rumbled. \"How about just a meal… i couldn't take that kind of money knowing it originally belonged to you.\" I couldve retired and lived a life of luxury with that kind of money.\n\n\n\"A-alright…\" she said skeptically.\n\n\n.\n\n\n.\n\n\n.\n\n\n\"You know.\" She said as we sat there waiting for her tea and my food. \" I've killed men for less.\"\n\n\n\"Killed!?\" I thought. \"What do you mean?\" I laughed hesitantly.\n\n\n\"You interrupted me earlier. Most would've lost their head before finishing their sentence.\"\n\n\n\"T-then why me?\"\n\n\n\"I was sitting.\"\n\n\n\"You mean to tell me. If you were standing, I would be dead right now?\"\n\n\n\"Yes.\" She winked.\n\n\n\"And now?\"\n\n\n\"I'm still sitting aren't I?\" She smiled.\n\n\n\"I-is she coming on to me?\" I thought\n\n\nA light breeze swept over us \"That teapot is what sparked my conquest, you know. It was the one thing I cherished more than anything.\"\n\n\n\"Couldn't your father just make you another?\"\n\n\n\"Heh…\" pain struck her face. \"He passed away a month after the fire.\"\n\n\n\"Oh… I'm sorry.\"\n\n\n\"Here's your meal, sir. A-and your tea C-crimson.\" the waitress set down my plate and her teapot.\n\n\n\"Crimson?\" Why did that sound familiar?\n\n\nCrimson gave the waitress a mean look. \"I-im sorry!\" She squeeled and ran away.\n\n\nCrimson poured her tea and took a sip. \"My name isn't really Crimson.\"\n\n\n\"It isn't?\"\n\n\n\"No that's the name given to me by the locals. 'Crimson Terror'.\"\n\n\nI tried to think of where I knew that name from but then an image popped in my head.\n\n\n\"24 million.\"\n\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\n\"Is that what you're thinking?\" She asked.\n\n\n\"No, I was just trying to remember where I know that name… what's 24 million?\"\n\n\n\"My bounty.\"\n\n\n\"What!?\"\n\n\n\"Don't play stupid with me. Everyone knows me around here. I know you want that money. That's why you turned down my offers.\"\n\n\n\"H-honestly I have no idea what you're talking about.\"\n\n\n\"Sure… that's what they all say. Next thing I know I have a knife pointed into my neck and your blood will be all over the ground moments later.\"\n\n\nI threw my satchel on the table \"look inside.\"\n\n\nShe picked it up and dug through the bag. \"I don't understand. There isn't anything in here.\"\n\n\n\"Exactly. I spent my last 25 pieces on that teapot. I have nothing other than the clothes on my back.\"\n\n\n\"And yet you give it to me for just a meal?\"\n\n\n\"Heheh… yeah I guess I did…\"\n\n\n\"You are a curious man…\"\n\n\n\"I've given away more for less…\"\n\n\nShe laughed \"I like you.\" She stood up and my anxiety spiked. She drew her sword and pointed it at my neck.\n\n\n\"H-hey now wait a minute. I haven't even eaten my last meal yet.\"\n\n\n \"You will be my husband.\" She grinned\n\n\n\"I-I'm not really looking to settle down.\"\n\n\n\"You misheard me. You are my husband now.\" She sheathed her sword. \"I have business I need to attend to. I will be seeing you around, my love.\" She picked up her teapot and walked off without word.\n\n\n\"What?… what just happened?\"\n\n\n\"H-here is your bill m-mister.\" The waitress gently placed a receipt on the table\n\n\n\"I-i… I don't have any money…\"\n\n\nShe sighed \"I guess I should be happy that nothing bad happened... Consider yourself lucky to be alive… it's on the house.\" and then walked away.\n\n\n\"Yeah…\" I picked up the receipt and noticed some dark lettering on the back so I flipped it over.\n\n\n'dear valued customer!\n\n We have become aware of the completion of your quest.'\n\n\n\"My quest?\"\n\n\n'You have saved countless lives and for you valiant efforts, 24 million gold pieces have been entered into your account.\n\n\n-Sid the weapons Smith\n\n\nP.S. when is the wedding?'\n\n\nI sat in my chair speechless.", "The ring of steel against steel emanated from the mouth of the cave, beating as rhythmically as the hands of a clock. The warm red glow against the cave wall only helped confirm his suspicions. This was a smith, and, if rumor were to be believed, the great Selmeron himself. \n\nFarron couldn't help but shake. This was it: a chance to set things right, to finally have something he could do to stop it all, to not have to run anymore, to... fulfill his destiny. \n\nHe started walking unsteadily toward the entrance, scrambling up the rocky outcropping with what little strength he could still summon. The light was near now, almost close enough to see within. Farron slowed before stopping at the light's edge.\n\nIt was said that those the smith found unworthy could be marked for their greed, forever barred from the services of any smith in the kingdom and cursed to never hold a sword again: a punishment the smith learned after he had mistakenly forged for Brandon the Terrible, and one which would certainly seal Farron's fate.\n\nHe took a deep breath in, collecting his thoughts slowly for what he was to say, and stepped into the cave.\n\nThe entire cave seemed in an orderly disarray. Hammers, chisels, axes, and all manner of tools and building material laid strewn from workbench to workbench, each glimpsing into a project not yet finished. Shelves hung resolutely from fine wooden walls that reached to the cave's ceiling, each in equal amounts of chaos. And in the middle of it all was the hearth, casting light and shadows about the room as Selmeron worked busily before it. \n\nThough Farron had scarcely taken a step into the cave, and had yet to open his mouth to speak, the smith quickly turned his head to look at him, stopping his hammer mid blow as he examined his latest intruder.\n\n\"I-I-\" Farron stammered as he tried to bring himself to speak.\n\nThe smith cut him off.\n\n\"I'll be with you in a minute,\" he said as he continued with his work. \n\nFarron stood shocked for a moment.\n\n\"Go on, take a seat,\" Selmeron called in between hammer blows, \"You're Marok's boy, right?\"\n\n\"Y-Yes, how did you know-\"\n\n\"I'll explain in a minute, I need to have this forged out if I'm going to be on schedule,\" he replied.\n\nFarron reluctantly took a seat at one of the less tumultuous tables of the room and watched as the smith did his work.\n\nThe rumors of his craftsmanship could only be true with how he used his hands. Each blow of the hammer was impossibly precise: unwavering, exact, and striking the metal with just enough force to mold the steel with ease. \n\nAfter a few minutes of working his craft, he tossed the metal into the forge from whence it came. It disappeared instantly into the flames. \n\nSelmeron straightened to his full height as he turned back toward Farron. \n\n\"Now,\" he said, \"Let us talk about why you are here.\"\n\n'Okay,' Farron thought. 'Just as he practiced.'\n\n\"Great smith Selmeron, I am Farron of Hythe, and I come-\"\n\n\"You can skip the pitch, kid.\" the smith interrupted. \"I know who you are, and I've heard the story all before.\"\n\n\"But, I-\"\n\n\"Yeah, I know you practiced and all, but I have to hear the same spiel every time one of you comes in here and it just loses its luster after a while. Wait, wait; Let me guess... is it the king this time? Or is it a lich?\"\n\n\"Now wait a minute-\" Farron said, flabbergasted. \n\n\"Ooh, Lich King, that's a tough one,\" Selmeron smiled as Farron tried to speak.\n\n\"It's my father.\" Farron spat. \"He's laying waste to the country side and is threatening to destroy the entire kingdom!\"\n\nThe smith was silent for a moment as he stroked his chin.\n\n\"So that was the 'plague of darkness' that old kook was rambling on about in the letter.... hmm. Still, would've been my third guess though. No, fourth, after the dragon coming back again.\"\n\n\"Is this just a joke to you?\" Farron said incredulously. \n\nThe smith's face suddenly darkened as he loomed over him.\n\n\"Quite the opposite. This is my life. You are not the first, nor the last who comes to me in their hour of need. Every weapon forged is capable of great power, and every one too dangerous to give to twisted hands. I make light not because it is inconsequential, but because it is serious.\"\n\n\"I'm sorry.\" Farron said as he shrinked back in his seat. \n\n\"Don't be,\" the smith sighed as he walked back across the room to riffle through the contents of a shelf. \"Your weapon's done, by the way. I just got done with the finishing touches this morning.\"\n\nFarron stood up.\n\n\"Really?\"\n\n\"Yeah, it's over in the corner,\" Selmeron said, vaguely gesturing toward the far end of the room.\n\nFarron hurried over as child does toward a present, eagerly searching for the solution to his woes. \n\nThere were several things propped in the corner, each more wondrous than the last. Farron reached for the greatsword which glimmered in the firelight. \n\n\"Not that one,\" the smith called without looking over.\n\nHe reached for the bow.\n\n\"Nope,\" Selmeron called.\n\nFarron pointed his finger slowly from item to item in the stack as the smith casually sifted through a collection of ingots and etching tools. \n\nPast the rapier and the daggers, past the clubs and axes, the smith called over.\n\n\"No, no, warmer, warmer, there! You got it!\"\n\nFarron grabbed instinctively, hardly looking at the weapon as he snatched it from the rest. \n\nThe handle fit perfectly into his palms, and felt smooth to the touch.\n\n\"Thank you so much,\" Farron began to gush as he started to look at the weapon of legend. His spirit almost immediately died within him. \"Wait... this is a stick.\"\n\n\"A staff,\" Selmeron corrected. \"And you're welcome.\"\n\n\"How am I supposed to fight off an army with a stick?\" Farron asked.\n\n\"Again, it's a staff, and I'll have you know that's one of the most powerful objects on the planet at the moment, so I would appreciate it if you talked about it with a little more gratitude.\" Selmeron said.\n\n\"I risked my life to get here, the whole kingdom and everyone I know is counting on me to stop my father, and you gave me a stick.\"\n\n\"A staff. Are you even listening?\"\n\n\"I'm doomed. They're going to kill me. I'm going to die,\" Farron said, sinking into a chair.\n\n\"Oh, for crying out loud, let me show you,\" Selmeron said, snatching the staff from Farron's hand. \n\n\"Damn adventurers, you always need the gimmicks,\" he said as he raised the staff above his head.\n\nSelmeron slammed the staff into the floor with a deafening boom as the fire in the forge snuffed out, plunging the room into darkness.\n\nFarron nearly fell out of his seat as he scrambled to figure out what had occurred. \n\nHe couldn't see anything, save for the glow of the metal that had been heating in the forge, and an equally bright rune shining in the blackness in front of him.\n\n\"This,\" he heard the smith speak, \"is a staff.\"\n\nFire began to light the room to reveal Selmeron blowing gently on the staff, sending flames swirling forth out of it. Farron watched as they spun about the room in an unruly column before suddenly sprinting back into the hearth and returning the room to its former state.\n\nSelmeron slammed the staff back into Farron's hands as well as a thick leather bound book.\n\n\"There. Now read up. The others are going to be here in a few days and you have to be at least a little knowledgeable about it before then.\"\n\n\"Others?\" Farron asked.\n\n\"Yes, others. What did you think these weapons were for?\"\n\n\\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nCritique Welcome", "\"Wait a minute. A skillet?\"\n\nThe dwarf nodded grimly. \"Aye, laddie. Cast iron. Seasoned through an' through. I even laid an enchantment of Reverse Adhesion on it.\"\n\n\"Reverse adhesion?\"\n\n\"Aye! Ne'er agin shall ye have yer meal stuck to the skillet, nor will milk scald to it.\" He shook his head, his copper-colored beard rippling like a waterfall as he raised his flagon to his lips. \"Those nightmares're behind ye, lad.\"\n\nI sat down and gestured angrily with his \"gift\" as I replied. \"Listen, Caliburn, I've got a hundred and ten trained swordsmen to fight through.\"\n\n\"Nay, lad--\"\n\n\"A dragon to slay--\"\n\n\"Lad, listen--\"\n\n\"And a lich king to exorcise. Now how am I supposed to do this all with a bloody cooking implement?!\"\n\n\"SILENCE.\" The dwarf stood and regarded me with fire in his eyes. \"Don't ye remember what the Oracle told ye about me, warrior?\"\n\n\"That you'd give me the only weapon I'd ever need,\" I seethed. \"Not the instrument of a housewife.\"\n\nIn an instant, Caliburn was on top of me, wrested the skillet from my grasp, and had begun beating me with it. \"Ye daft warmonger! If this were an instrument of war, I'd have killed ye by now!\" Hopping off of me and handing me back my \"weapon,\" he growled, \"I'm tryna teach ye a lesson. In all the thousands of warriors and monsters you've slain, there was another way.\" He took out a pipe and lit it, eyeing me with ire and frustration. \"You don't need another weapon, laddie. No one does. Why do you think I retired? Hid meself away from the world? If you really wanted to kill someone, you'd find a way to do it without me. A skillet, that's an instrument of peace. You can use it to help others, not kill em.\"\n\n\"So...my mission...\"\n\n\"You'll find another way to overcome. Without bloodshed.\"\n\nThat's how I got here. By the by, Your Vehemence, this steak I seared is from my homeland. The seasoning is exquisite, is it not? So about this invasion you were threatening..." ]	4
	[WP] The Daughter of the Moon and the Son of the Sun go on a road trip through time and space because their parents told them that they needed to get along. Oh, and they're stuck in a 'get along' shirt.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 so stupid!\" Helia shrieked. \"It's our parents who need to get along, why do I have to spend this trip with you?\"\n\n\"You think I'm happy about it either?\" Luno roared, throwing up his hands in frustration. The silvery light emanating from him was now brightening as his temper exploded. \"A trip across the Milky Way, with the most boring person in the universe!\" \n\n\"How dare you!\" Helia screeched, tossing her long, orange hair out of her face. She was now glowing as furiously as Luno, but where he was a luminous, silvery-grey, she was a blinding orange-white. \"Never, in all my years, have I ever met someone as foul — as awful — AAAAH!\" Her voice faltered and rose to a scream as the golden and silver horses pulling their carriage along through the vast emptiness of space took a sudden and ungraceful leap upwards, causing the carriage to smash against a large, floating space rock. \n\nAs the carriage recovered its steadiness, Luno leaned forward and bellowed at the horses, \"You did that on purpose!\" \n\nOne of the silver horses neighed in a mischievous sort of way. Helia clucked disapprovingly.\n\n\"Of course it would be one of your horses!\" she hissed. \"My father's steeds,\" she began, now adopting a very smug and prideful voice, \"would never behave in such an — er — undignified manner.\" She leaned back and turned her head towards the sun, but not before sneering at Luno.\n\nHe took a deep, calming breath, then ran a hand through his wiry, silver hair. It was demanding all his willpower not to say something horrible about Helia's father, the sun god, and he only resisted because he found Apollo to be a very nice and entertaining being, the complete opposite of his boring and fussy daughter.\n\nThey journeyed in silence for a long time. Once or twice Helia had looked down upon her shirt, where the words \"GET ALONG!\" were sprawled in big bold letters by the ink god Pencchus himself. She turned to look at Luno, who was resolutely avoiding her gaze. She sighed, then took a deep breath. \n\n\"Look, there's no reason for us to have to be at each other's throats the whole trip,\" she said briskly. \"And our parents did say to get along!\" she snapped, when Luno didn't respond. \n\n\"You're right. We don't have to be —\" Luno said, turning to face her with a softened expression. \n\n\"Thank y —\"\n\n\"If you apologize for calling me foul!\" Luno snarled, his expression instantly becoming stony again.\n\nHelia looked as though he had just slapped her. \"Me — apologize to you? Fine,\" she said, after a few moments. \"But only if you apologize for calling me boring!\" she snapped.\n\n\"Nope,\" said Luno at once. \"Won't apologize for telling the truth.\"\n\nHelia gasped, her eyes flashed dangerously, and she began to glow again. She shrieked furiously at Luno, who was ignoring her completely. Her hair began to writhe around like snakes attached to her head. She had shouted herself to the point of hoarseness before she stopped — but it wasn't of her own accord.\n\nSomething had knocked the carriage off course again. Luno leapt forward again, ready to scream at the horses, but found, with a pang of horror, that one or two horses were now floating pointlessly in space, blood trailing from their bodies, while others attempted to flee, neighing in terror.\n\n\"NOOOO!\" Helia screamed, as several foreign looking beings appeared all around them, aiming blaster like contraptions at both.\n\nOne of them drifted up towards the carriage, and by the look of him, he was the one in charge. \"We should talk,\" he said, in an oily voice." ]	2
	[WP] Your children have convinced you to bring home your first elf on the shelf for Christmas. After extensive internet research you perform all the common rituals to "bring them to life" only to find you've accidentally summoned a powerful Fae.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 Elf is sitting in the kitchen as you put your kids to sleep. You move it to the hallway so the kids will see it moved when they wake up. Then you head to bed and cuddle up with your spouse.\n\nMorning comes and you here the kids yelling \"Mommy, daddy, where is the Elf?\" You yell \"It's not in the kitchen.\" But your voice trails off towards the end. The Elf is in your room. \n\nSitting on four gifts. You look to your spouse, \"Honey, did you do this?\" As they look back and say \"No.\" The kids barge in and open the gifts. A stuffed animal, a board game, a fancy watch, a beautiful necklace. A gift for everyone. \n\nYour spouses yells at you that this is not funny as the kids play with the board game. You don't have money to do gifts like this and it's before the holiday. After a long talk you assure them it wasn't you. Immediately there is concern. Did someone break into the house? \n\nThe Elf sits in your room. That night you move it to the garage. In the morning your youngest screams with joy, \"Mommy, Daddy, more presents!\" The Elf is in their room sitting on top of four presents. A Soccer ball, Lego set, an evening gown, and a fitted suit.\n\nThe next night you throw the Elf out, the next morning it's in the kitchen on top a kids pizza maker, cartoon cookie cutters, a toaster, and a knife set. You try two more times to get rid of it, once destroit, but it keeps coming back. And there are always four gifts. You talk to your spouse about what to do. Going to stay with family, moving, everything is on the table. But family is far, and moving is impractical. And other than getting way more gifts than you can afford, what has happened. So you say goodnight Elf see you in the morning. And the Elf is in another room, and there are more gifts, a Switch, a tablet, a TV, a Desktop.\n\nIt's Christmas Eve, you place the Elf on the kitchen counter and head to bed. The kids run into your room just after dawn and say, \"Mommy, daddy, let's find the Elf. All through the house you look, but there is no Elf, no pile of gifts. After twenty minutes of looking your oldest yells \"I found a box!\" Under the tree there is one small box just bigger than your fist. You all gather around, you take the box, untying the tightly wrapped ribbon. As you open the box for all to see it moves, and out pops the head of the strangest cat you ever saw. It's ears were longer, than any, it had large full grown cat ears on it's kitten head. And it's fur was pinkish white. But it's eyes were so big, and so bright they were mesmerizing. As it's head poked over the top of the box it had a little collar with a name. Elf.", "Marnie ran giggling into the kitchen with the little velvet elf dangling from her hands, her face lit up with a grin, \"Mom! I found him!\"\n\n\"Oh?\" I hid my lips behind my coffee cup, \"What was that silly elf up to this morning?\"\n\n\"He found treasure?\"\n\nI stopped, \"Treasure? What treasure?\"\n\n\"Come see!\"\n\nShe led me out of the kitchen and through the living room. When she made for the front door, I froze. At the foot of the Christmas Tree, the trick I'd set up the night before sat, unattended: a handful of Christmas ornaments, and a single \"broken\" ornament half-repaired with a stick of glue nearby.\n\n\"You didn't find him beneath the tree?\"\n\n\"No! He was outside, in the garden.\"\n\n\"Show me.\"\n\nWhen we opened the door, snow flurries stung my cheek. We were both barefoot, but it was still early winter. Normally, after a step outside in this kind of weather, we'd run back laughing, ready to wrap our feet in a warm towel while sipping cocoa.\n\nIn the garden, Marnie pointed to the elf house—one of the first things I built at the start of December. The elf hung from the mail slot with an envelope full of \"rent money\" I let them add to the money I usually gave them to buy Christmas presents. With the holidays reaching coming to a close in a week, I'd planned to hide the house away in the night until next year. I brushed the snow off the roof and window of the house and found frost clinging to a pile of coins, a pair of glass beads, and a silver wedding band.\n\n\"See! Treasure!\"\n\n\"Honey, can you go inside for me?\"\n\n\"Mom, what about the treasure?\"\n\n\"Go get a grocery bag; we'll take it inside.\"\n\n\"Okay!'\n\nWith that, Marnie scampered through the snow. Once she was gone, I picked through the coins until I found, at the bottom of the pile, a piece of rough paper. It was thick, with a faint, leathery texture, like no paper I'd ever used—some kind of stationary? I opened the enveloped.\n\nIn beautiful, flowing script, I read:\n\nJanuary's Rent.\n\nYours Truly,\n\nHilla Húsálfur." ]	3
	[WP] You have one rule. Everyone knows you never break that one rule. And even today, even greatly provoked, you will not break that one rule. You are, however, about to bend that rule to Hell and 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/js5XDFB)\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 another night, just like any other. A man in a suit running and jumping his way across the rooftops.\n\nBatman sighed, he was getting bored, and tired. Really tired. There was just nothing left to do, with thirty years strapped on his belt, he was getting old, and he had to face the reality that soon he had to stop.\n\n\n,\n\n,\n\nHe sat down on the edge of Wayne tower, and he thought about why it was that he was bored. First, at first when he began, there was a...thrill, to fighting. Tough enemies that foolishly fought him. It had a point, all those bones broken and all those minds scarred. It was to make a stand, to roar amongst the forest of animals and make them stay away.\n\n\nBut now almost nobody challenges him anymore, they all learned their lesson, they still try and do illegal activities of course, but the second they spot him they surrender, because they know there is no point in fighting.\n\nAnd then there's the fact that it's the same villains over and over again with the same tricks. Joker and his games, Riddler and his riddles, Bane and his challenges.\n\n\nHe sighed again, he was overthinking it, soon enough, all criminals will just give up and stop doing crime. \"that's when I'll retire\" he thought. He knew certain criminals who already did that, in fact. Boris Johnson, he had a wife and two kids now, a blacksmith. Dave West, he was a successful business manager now. Ryan Gold, he runs a mom-and-pop restaurant with his family. And many others.\n\n\nBut he still stood there. The Dark Knight, sitting alone on a rooftop with nothing else to do, when the Bat Signal lit up the dark sky.\n\n\n\"That's weird.\" He said to himself, Jim had told him that they would stop using it since the major villains stopped, that the police could take care of the rest.\nAnd that meant only one thing.\n\n\n,\n\nThey were back.\n\n\n\n\n,\n\n,\n******************\n\n\n\n\n\n,\n\n\n,\n\n\nA while later he was sat across the rooftop Jim told him about. He was looking in across the window when he saw what he thought was gone.\n\n\n\nAll of Gotham's ex-major villains sitting around a table. Penguin, Joker, Two-face, Poison Ivy, you think of them and they're there. He was worried, they were planning something big. Otherwise they wouldn't all get together like this. He looked away for a second, to look around to see if there are any snipers on the roofs around him, when he heard a gun rapidly firing. And he looked inside, only to see them all.\n\n\n\n,\n\n,\n\ndead.\n\n\n\n,\n\n\nAnd he was mad.\n\n\n,\n\n\nHe Immediately flew in through the window, he had to figure out who could, or would even want to gather all the villains in one area, only to shoot them all?\n\n\nBut he didn't have to look long, there was a playing card on the table, at first he dismissed it, thinking it to simply be a card joker threw. But then he saw a symbol on it.\n\n\n,\n\n\n\nIt was Superman's.\n\n\n\n\nSorry for the commas, I'm on mobile and formatting sucks. And this is my first time trying to write a story, so go easy on me.", "Theres one thing everyone knows about me, and that is that I have one rule, and one rule only. Never Betray. It was a rule taught to me by experience, by my parents, and by my friends. Never betray your friends, otherwise you won't have any, never betray your word, otherwise you're unreliable and won't get anywhere. I have never broken this rule, and I've been halfway to hell and back to do so.\n\nA long time ago I made a promise, to a friend, that would change my life. I promised never to kill unless absolutely necessary, be it a mercy killing or self defence, if there is any other solution, I am to take it. Until then I had a tendency to kill whether needed or not, instead of trying to resolve things peacefully, nuclear apocalypse is a bit like that I guess. A few weeks ago, a man sent a squad of mercenaries after me, I captured two of them alive, but the rest... they had to die. They told me who sent them. Although I don't absolutely have to kill him- I want him dead.\n\nI knew how to get around this, I had to make him attack me. I found his location, and called a friend for help. He brought a tranquilizer gun, with a syringe filled to the brim with a nasty cocktail. A mixture of Thermox, sometimes known as Liquid Rage, Fury, Steroids and Adrenaline. The plan was simple, have my friend use the tranq gun to make him highly volatile, call him names until he attacks, and then wound him in such a way he bleeds out. That way I \"had\" to kill him, since not only was he attacking me- but he was bleeding out anyway.\n\nIt all went to plan until... he didn't attack. The drugs had almost no effect- what did we do wrong? We moved to plan B, and started playing one of my favourite games of all time- baseball, but replace the ball with a live grenade. We honestly weren't trying to kill him with this, just annoy him with all the noise, hell, we took all the normal precautions to ensure the grenade wouldn't blow. Then, as by some miracle, the pin got caught on my friend's glove, and I missed the swing, sending the grenade right through his window.", "The man in the chair looked like he'd been hit by a bus. Crooked teeth, bloodied nose, damp with sweat and swearing profusely.\n\n\"Let me out of here you little shit, I'll rip you limb from bloody fucking limb!\" He had a rough, smoker's voice, and flecks of warm blood in a fine mist splattered from his outburst onto my formerly clean shirt. \n\nI turned back to him from where I was arranging my tools. \"Why would I let you do that?\" I mused - half to myself, half to him. His wrists and ankles were handcuffed to the legs and arms of a heavy metal chair. We were in a warehouse, cheap enough to only employ a single guard - helpfully out sick for the evening.\n\nHe rattled his bindings, snarling at me. \"You think I'm going to talk? Is that what you want, you want to know where she is?\" \n\nI leaned in close, eye to eye, my gloved hands clasped behind my back. \"If you tell me what you know, I'll make this easy for you. I promise.\" \n\nHe spit, blood hitting my cheek. \"Fuck you. I'll never betray the Consul.\" As I turned away, pulling a clean cloth from a pocket, he laughed. \"Oh, didn't like that, huh? Afraid to get your hands dirty? I know who you are, Travis, and you always were too shallow to do any of the real work.\"\n\nI cleaned myself as best I could, folding the now bloodied cloth and returning it to my pocket, before turning back to the steel laid out before me. Each instrument chosen specifically, all in their place.\n\nAll so clean, so beautiful. \n\nI selected a small knife, sharp and gleaming in the sterile light, before stepping closer to the man again. \n\nHis beady eyes followed the blade, and he dryly swallowed. \n\n\"Wh-what are you going to do with that?\" His bravado was finally gone, replaced with fear, delicious fear.\n\n\"I'm going to make you talk, Loyalist. You're going to tell me where the girl is, where your boss is, everything.\" \n\nHe widened his eyes. \"They-the Consul said you didn't kill anyone. Not ever.\"\n\nI ran a gloved hand across his cheek, smiling, before reaching lower, tracing my fingers across his arms and chest. Marking lines. \n\nI remained silent, and he didn't look away from the knife, now just inches from his skin. He continued, his voice growing steadily louder with fear.\n\n\"What are you going to do, you gonna kill me?\"\n\nI offered him a thin smile, and he paled further. \"Oh, don't worry. I'm not going to kill you.\"\n\nHis screams echoed wordlessly around the empty warehouse.", "I dragged my feet as I walkEd towards my usual location. But something felt different today. The wind was heavy and wanted me to turn back. I couldn’t though. I said I’d be there everyday and I intended to do that come what may. \n\nSomewhere behind me I heard a voice. \n\n“Honest Ray! Honest Ray, do I look good today?” Her fingers played with her pigtails as she looked at me expectantly. \n\n“Yes sweetie. You look really pretty.”\n\n“Yay!” She jumped with joy and ran away. \n\nI hung my head and kept walking. \n\nAn argument was happening on the side of the road a crowd was gathered. \n\n“Ah there’s Honest Ray. We can ask him.”\n\n“Hello Jackson.”\n\n“Ray, two days ago you were at my shop. Do you remember what Carla told me when she visited the shop?”\n\n“She asked you for a two hundred dollar advance.”\n\n“See I told you all. Here’s your proof.”\n\nI sighed and kept walking. I could hear the tides turning as people started to believe Jackson now. \n\nI entered the massive building and the familiar smell engulfed me. It was a sickening smell really. I had told as much to anyone who asked. \n\nBefore I could enter the room, a man hailed me. \n\n“Ray!”\n\n“Scott.”\n\n“She’s dying Ray. I’m sorry. But you should say your goodbyes.”\n\n“Doctor!”\n\nHe hung his head, much like I had on the way over. “It’s out of my hands Ray. It is what it is.”\n\nI looked at him walk away feeling the burden of the air get transferred to my heart. Tears appeared in my eyes. I didn’t want them there but I was powerless to stop them. \n\nI took a few minutes and regained control. I walked into the room, with a smile on my face. \n\nShe, on the other hand, wasn’t as good as me in hiding her tears. \n\n“Ray. I’m scared.”\n\n“It’s okay to be scared Ava.”\n\n“I’m gonna die am I not? I heard the nurses talking. I’m never going to see you again am I?”\n\n“What?”\n\n“I’ll be gone. And I’ll be alone. Never to see you again. I don’t want to be alone Ray. I don’t want to leave you.”\n\nI took a deep breath. This would need all of my strength. \n\n“Of course not, Ava. I’ll see you again soon. After we die, you go to the good place you see. There’s no pain there. Only happiness. I’ll be there soon. We’ll be together again you see. Your mom is already waiting there for you. I’ll be along shortly too.”\n\n“What? We’ll be together again?”\n\n“Yes my little one. We will be. Now hush. You need to rest.”\n\nI held her hand and ran my free hand through her hair. \n\n“Ray. I love you.”\n\n“I love you too.” \n\nIt felt bad. The statement felt tainted. The burden on my heart was bigger than ever. But she had a smile. As she faded away, she had a smile on her face. \n\n“It’s ok.” I told myself. “You’re gonna be ok.”" ]	5
	[WP] The Galactic Civil War between the Herbivore Enclave and the Carnivore Cluster calls for a ceasefire as another race, Humanity, enters the stage. As per tradition, the neophyte has to host a party to commemorate the truce. Human Leaders hesitate due to Humanity's secret; Humans are omnivores.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 room slowly fell silent as he walked up on stage. On one side the carnivours, on the other herbivores. The two factions clearly divided after decades if not centurys of war. He couldnt remember, the brief had contained so much information. What he knew was that this evening, and the feast hed prepared, might decide the future of all of humanity. He could see some worldleaders mingling around yhe factions he cleared his throat, ecoing in the now silent room.\n\n\"Ladies and gentlemen, as wed say on earth. For the feast tonight Ive drawn inspiration from all known human culinary history. The recipies Ive specifically developed surprized even myself. But before we start, Id like to inform you all of a particular human peculiarity.\" The already silent room tensed up. You could almost taste the tension as the visitors hung on, curious to learn even more about this new species.\n\n\"A peculiarity, I think, most needed in these troubled time of division. Since first contact youve asked us the question if were carnivours, meat eaters, or herbivores, plant eaters. The truth dear friends, is that were neither. On earth we call it omnivours, all eaters. Humans can survibe of a plant based diet as well as a meat based one.\" A gasp went through the crowd.\n\n\"And because of this peculiarity, we believe that were in a perfect position to understand both sides in this, and hopefully broker peace. But, dear friends, enough formalities for now. Lets all enjoy this feast of human cullinary history that we all came here for.\" As he finished his speach the wall behind him lifted up, revealing the splendid banquet hed prepared. It had taken every ounce of research, creativity, and skill in him. There were perfected simple dishes, as well as tantalizing molecular gastronomy dishes, he had of course included some of his own classics, and clearly marked the dishes meat or vegetable. As people started approaching the tables, and finally tasting his cooking he heard sounds of approval from both sides. Drawing a sigh of relief he joined the crowd. The Secretary General of UN approached him by the banquet table.\n\n\"Good job Mr. Blumenthal.\"", "The human ambassador smiled patiently as she watched the Sekoyan shuttle settle down on the landing pad. The Sekoyan ambassador approached as the engines were winding down. She greeted the tall, scaly alien, active translators converting her speech to native Sekoyan. After a momentary exchange of pleasantries, she passed the delegation off to a host who would bring them to the Herbivorous banquet hall.\n\n\"Ambassador, we have a problem,\" a soft voice said in her ear. \"A delegate from the Nekot is asking to tour the kitchens.\" She cursed, responding, \"I'll be right there. Stall them.\" She motioned an aide over to relieve her and headed inside.\n\nMaking her way through the Herbivorous banquet hall, she ran into the Sekoyan ambassador again. \"We are just so grateful that your people are Herbivores like us. The Carnivores have outnumbered us for some time and perhaps your presence will help ensure a lasting peace,\" the ambassador's translators said in a robotic cadence. \"Let us all hope for that,\" she offered with a smile before squeezing past the buffet line of vegetarian dishes from Earth.\n\nShe pulled an aide through double doors into the kitchen. \"I need you to have them stop cooking anything for the Herbivorous side, we need to give a tour to a Carnivore delegate,\" she said clear and firm. The aide turned to look at the huge kitchen, filled with a variety of stations producing meals for one side or the other. \"Quickly!\" she added, before heading into the common ballroom.\n\nApproaching the Nekot delegate, she put on a broad, friendly smile. \"Mr... Sellis?\" she asked, extending a hand. The Nekot turned with a toothy smile, returning the greeting. \"Ambassador Smith! Lovely to see you again. I was just asking this gentleman for a tour of your kitchens, I'm dying to see how your various meats are prepared. I'm something of a cook myself, you know.\" She smiled, nodding. \"We can certainly do that. Right this way.\" The giddy alien scraped one claw against another in anticipation.\n\nStanding before a rack of rotisserie meats, the delegate hops back and forth. \"Oh this device is brilliant! When I heard a new race was discovered, I really hoped they would be carnivores, and here you are! This is magnificent, truly.\" The ambassador smiled, continuing the tour.\n\nIn the common ballroom, the Sekoyan ambassador entered, trailing delegates. They made their way to the Herbivore side. Clicking off their translator, the Ambassador quietly remarked to an aide about Humans over on the Carnivore side. \"How any self respecting Herbivore can socialize with Carnivores like that is just beyond me. These humans are such strange creatures.\"\n\nBack in the kitchen, the Ambassador was wrapping up the tour. \"Well,\" she said, turning a bit triumphantly, \"I believe that's everything. Shall we?\" she asks, motioning toward a nearby door. The delegate mostly ignored the gesture, fixated on a nearby walk in refrigerator. \"That must be where you keep the meat before cooking.\" Almost involuntarily, the hungry carnivore quickly padded over to the door. The aide yelled \"no, stop!\" from across the kitchen as the delegate's clawed hand reached for the door, but it was too late. The carnivore stood there, jaw gaping at a tiny refrigerator full of humans with various vegetarian dishes and ingredients.\n\nOut in the ballroom, the Sekoyan ambassador stiffened as he heard the sound of a gun shot coming from the kitchen. Moments later, a dead chef and a bowl full of salad hit the floor of the common room, as the Nekot burst out from the kitchen. He shouted \"TREACHERY!\" in his native tongue, and the carnivores in the room turned on human and Herbivore alike.\n\nAs the final carnivore ship lifted off, one of the larger vessels turned and fired on the diplomatic compound, flattening it in seconds. The lead ship radioed home to the Cluster. \"The humans have betrayed us. Prepare the fleet for an assault on Earth.\"", "“Spot the vegan.” Charles whispered in my ear. I was trying very hard to not smile. Instead I tried to be angry that he was making it hard for me to negotiate in this meeting.\n\n“Shut up.” I hissed. Dammit they should have sent David. He was a vegetarian and would have no problem with them. Why did they stick me with Charles.\n\nThe Herbivore Enclave, a unity of planets colonized and allied with a group of leaf eaters, sat with huge bowls of salad. Also attending the meeting were the... Carnivore Cluster. A race of aggressive meat lovers, who very much resembled velociraptors.\n\nHumanity had just recently entered this war, and now both sides were waving the white flag. Opting for truce. This meeting was just the beginning stages of being recognized by all sides and finding common ground. So dinner... yeah.\n\nI requested water for both me and my accomplice. The carnivores were aggressive, and the herbivores equally so about seeing someone partake in similar behaviours.\n\nHe could best describe the two sides as one being a Texan who loaded the BBQ with big ass stakes and pumped the sauce into their veins, and the other as the spiritual, anti-meat propagators. The only reason they weren’t fighting in the dining hall was because of us. But if we partook of any of their food it would be declaring a side.\n\n“You know what would make this better?” Charles whispered once more.\n\n“If we lose this negotiation because you can’t keep your mouth shut, I will tie you to the rear of the shuttle and drag you into space.”", "Bill strode mindfully up to the podium as the participants on both sides of the Great Hall followed him with their . . . looking parts. His briefing consisted of his boss telling him not to worry about it and that his only job was to say, \"let's begin,\" press play on the projector then sit down. \n\nHe was careful to look at the floor as he walked. He became suddenly paranoid that both sides might think his ears were staring at them. He knew it was ridiculous, but he couldn't shake it. He added a slight swaying motion with his neck, like he was listening to cool jazz on imaginary headphones.\n\nThe reality was that no one in the entire hall cared what Bill looked like except for Bill, who cared quite a lot.\n\nFantastic. He had an itch.\n\nBy the time he reached the podium he was scratching his nose every fourth step (so it looked natural) and sort of hop-scooting while bobbing his head to no particularly identifiable rhythm. Bill was entirely committed to acting natural at this point.\n\nAt least he was there, finally. \n\nHis frown turned into a frown.\n\nThere was no play button.\n\nThere was a sort of shiny knob, a lever marked . . . markings, and a note taped to the front from his boss that read, simply, \"You got this Bill! :)\" Bill disagreed with the note, vehemently. He was suddenly aware it was time to scratch his nose again, so he did.\n\nBill looked out to the crowd and politely cleared his throat to both sides of the audience.\n\n\"Let's begin.\"\n\nHe turned the knob and a blinding light started panning over the audience while deafening, driving techno music sprang from somewhere unseen. A booming voice thanked everyone for being there and instructed them to file out their respective exits quickly for the individual species' celebrations. He turned the knob back to where it was. The light-bulb popped with a spark and went out, clearly broken. Similarly the music device made it clear it was not supposed to have been operated in that manner.\n\nBill's boss slapped his forehead in dismay as he watched everything transpire over his distant viewscreen. \n\n\"Sorry about that, sorry, I just--\" Bill fumbled with the lever this time. He suddenly found himself rising above the podium, out of reach of the lever.\n\nSomeone in the audience loudly cleared their . . . part in need of clearing. Someone else shouted a dismissively bored insult that Bill couldn't possibly understand. Both sides of the hall chuckled at it.\n\nA small childlike alien walked to the podium and gazed up at Bill, who was entirely helpless. It moved the lever and Bill descended. The small alien ripped the note away from the podium and pressed the button that was behind it. The presentation began projecting onto Bill as he slowly descended out of the way of it.\n\nThe history of war played out on the screen. Carnivores devouring peaceful plant eating aliens, who in return came to the battlefield with all manner of horrifying technology. Both sides of the great Hall wiped away tears. Probably. They were likely tears, anyway. Could have been drool for all Bill could tell.\n\nAs it came to a close, dinner was served to both sides. Both sides thanked Bill for being there and congratulated him on keeping it from being as boring as they'd expected it to turn out.\n\nAnother human Bill knew as Gary appeared and tugged frantically and helplessly at the knob behind the podium. \n\nBoth sides commented that they were grateful to have found an ally they could trust to commemorate their truce properly. One who ate Vege-me-ta-at-ble, they spoke over each other. They did it again more forcefully and heavily accented, ME-VEGE-AT-TABLE.\n\nAll viewing parts slowly turned to Bill, who thoughtfully scratched his nose. After a moment of thought he carefully stood behind the podium, pushing Gary aside, and pulled the lever again. \n\nBill rose awkwardly into the air above the cold stares, which was the best he could think to do at the moment." ]	5
	[WP] You have looked far and wide for the sacred texts telling about the end of the world. After many years you've found the scripts and they say the harbinger of destruction is ... a fucking pebble.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 1969, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin become the first humans to set foot on the moon. The mission Apollo 11 is a success and brings awareness about how much there is still to discover out there. You were 6 when you watched it all unfold in front of your eyes on television. At this moment, you remember deciding that you'd spend your life trying to do something as impactful on history as this mission.\n\nThe year is now 2019. As you stand back, puzzled by what you just read, you scratch your eyes. Maybe you're just too tired and your mind is playing tricks on you. You take out your flashlight, and point it at the engraved stone wall. The two other archaeologists that came with you are formal : they too read that a pebble is going to end mankind as you know it. It also talks about a butterfly, and a mushroom.\n\nYou groan and turn to them \"That makes no sense. There is no way this is remotely legitimate. Whoever told Ron about this site obviously pulled a prank on all of us.\" You turn back to the wall, and throw your pickaxe at it out of anger. You feel ridiculous as you understand that you've been played by a bunch of local South American teenagers, that decided to play a prank on the scientists that keep on studying the ruins next to their homes. \"Come on, let's pack our things up and go home. It's no use\", you say, once again disappointed, once again following a lead that turned out to be a dead end.\n\nAs you board back on the plane, you think of what you'll tell the National Archaeologist Association, when they mock you once again, asking what went wrong this time. After 32 years of looking for these texts, this is where you draw the line. You won't look any further. You think of your naive past self, and accept that you won't fulfill your dream.\n\nAs expected, when you get back and present your \"discovery\", you become the laughing stock of the entire archaeologist society. You even end up being internationally infamous, after your story was told by a couple known news websites. As thousands people around the world mock you, you have to turn to another job : no one wants to pay for your shenanigans anymore. You will not further ridicule yourself.\n\n\n\n\nThe year is 2062. You died a little over a decade ago. The world is still here, yet it is facing a major problem : the USA and the EU are at war. Far from your native Scotland, in the middle of Central Europe, a delegation of American and European diplomats are signing a truce treaty, in a former American base, built a few decades ago when NATO still existed, before the allies turned into enemies.\nThe event is a delicate operation, and everyone present here is tense. As the US President walks into the room, to meet the European delegation, he feels anxious. The truce proposed by the Europeans seems too fishy. He decided to stay in constant communication with his governement, thanks to a small dental implant that transmits every single sound in the room to a crisis cell, ready to react, should anything happen.\n\nAbove the base, a space debris falls through the sky. It is one of the millions of debris left behind by decades of space exploration. When looking at statistics, humanity decided not to care about them, as these debris are either too small to cause any significant damage, or they fall in unmanned parts of the world. This one, however, was about to end mankind. In 1969, the Apollo 11 mission brought back 49lbs of moon rock, even though they collected 59lbs of rock. However, the astronauts did one fatal mistake : they forgot a piece of rock on the exterior of the module, when they loaded the rest. As they took off, the piece of rock somehow managed to not fall off before leaving moon orbit, thanks to a cavity in the module. But, as the landing module reunited with the vessel, the 10lbs rock went flying into space. It had orbited for almost a hundred years, before entering the Earth's atmosphere. It was now falling at full speed towards Earth, and was only the size of a big pebble, after having melted mostly away in the atmosphere. Though, this time, it fell on an electrical generator. It was a one-in-who-know-how-many-billion chance, and it caused an explosion, only a couple hundred feets from the room where the treaty was being signed.\n\nAs soon as they hear the explosion and the audible panic in the room, the American forces suspect a premedidated plan to assassinate their leader. Order is given to bomb the whole complex, and as planes wreck havoc and death over the base, what is now the Third World War escalates to a point of no-return. In the rush of the event, both parts think that the other planned the attack. Very soon after that, nuclear warheads are being used in the context of a war for the first time since 1945. It is also probably the last time they will ever be on this planet, all of that because of a rock, that took the the butterfly effect to an apocalyptic scale." ]	2
	[WP] You stay up late studying for a big test the next day, and then accidentally oversleep the next morning. However, as you sprint into the testing room several minutes late, you find it totally empty except for a few scraps of paper fluttering slowly towards the ground.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 stood in the open doorway with bags under my eyes, panicking massively, eyes darting all around the room.\n\n\"Nooo, dammit dammit dammit dammit...\"\n\nI pulled myself back to check the room number just above the doorway. 205, gold text in a black box. Yeah, this WAS my test room, but I was only late an hour at most! The room couldn't have finished this quickly right?!\n\n\"Hey, whaddya think you're doing here? No trouble, I hope.\"\n\nI quickly turned around, and saw someone in the school's standard security uniform, not holding much save for their flashlight and walkie talkie. Mid thirties at most, and looking at least as tired as I was, likely moreso.\n\n\"Oh, no. I'm just trying to find my testing room. Woke up really late, and...\"\n\n\"Testing?\" The guard slowly wiped their face, as if trying to keep grip on reality. \"Well, if that's what you're up for, you're way too early.\"\n\n\"What?\"\n\n\"Today's Saturday. Go home, sleep in, eat something, just relax.\"\n\nI pulled my phone out of my pocket, and sure enough, the calendar read Saturday. I nearly fell to my knees, huffing out a sigh of relief, stuffing my phone back in. Security lead me out just to make sure nothing else could happen, and saw me off at the front doors. They watched as I climbed into my car, and drove off.\n\nFirst thing I did once I got back, faceplanted into my bed and passed out almost immediately." ]	2
	[WP] You finally got into Heaven! It’s everything you dreamt of and more. It was truly perfect... except for that one thing that REALLY bothers 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Heaven. Heaven is the best place to be. Knowing that I must have done something right to get in here puts a wide grin on my face. I am finally happy and relaxed. So relaxed that it really does feel like im floating on the clouds. Life was hard. At times unbearable. But it was worth it. To finally get here. \nI cant remember how exactly I got here or why. I felt a wet tongue licking my face and I opened my eyes. There it was. A small pupper standing on my chest, happily wiggling its little tail. It looked oddly the same as was the puppy I had as a child. He was my best friend and we did everything together.. untill one day he was gone..for ever. I never got over it, just learned to live with it. \nI got up and my eyes locked on a woman smiling at me. Tears rolled down my cheeks. It was her. It really was her. My muse. My love. My everything. My wife that got killed by some crackhead over a purse. He was never caught. But that didn't matter anymore. She was there, standing in front if me. I jumped up and grabbed her. I was spinning her around and kissing with tears of happiness running down my face. I was happy once again. \nHeaven is perfect. You are never cold nor hungry but you are still able to enjoy food. Ive never eaten anything that tastes so good. The grass is always green and boy is it beautiful here. On the hill a bit farther away I noticed a house. It was exactly like we were dreaming of getting when we were...you know...alive. Its so weird thinking about it. I WAS alive. Or was I? All I know I feel a lot more alive now that Im in Heaven. \n....... \nBut there is just this one odd thing. I sometimes notice something in the corner of my eye. Whenever I try to turn and look at it, there seems to be nothing. But the feeling..of being watched stays for quite some time. It gives me the chills but I always shrug it off. Maybe its God or angels. I mean, if Heaven exists, that means that they have to exist too, right? Whether its them or something else, I try not to think about it. Im in Heaven. With my wife and my best friend. Everything is perfect and I am happy. Whatever the thing is I keep seeing in the corner of my eye doesnt matter. Im happy. \n\nI wake up covered in cold sweat, panting. Had I seen a nightmare? Here? In Heaven? I try hard to remember anything but my mind is just blank. Suddenly I see it again. Something in the corner of my eye. I turn as quickly as I can but like always, theres nothing there. I take deep breaths, look at my wife and kiss her forehead. I fall back asleep. \n^(wake up) \n^(wake up now) \nHuh?\nI open my eyes and look around. My wifes still sleeping with the the dog at her legs. I get up and walk around the house asking if anyones there. Nothing. Weird. Must have been a dream. My wife comes suddenly from behind and hugs me. I startled. She asks who was I looking for. Not having a better answer I shrug it off for a dream. I could feel her tense up for a split second. \"Yes.. must've been a dream\" she replied. I went on to take a shower and could feel her staring at me while I was leaving. The feeling of not having a care in the ~~world~~ Heaven was replaced by an odd sensation that something was wrong. I couldnt get that voice out of m \n^(Wake UP) \nThere it is again. I shouted to my wife if she had said anything. She hadnt. My head starts to spin and I feel nauseous. I notice my dog sitting in the corner, staring at me. Stumbling out of the shower I sit on the floor. My wife comes in asking whats wrong. Words dont come out of my mouth. My head is spinning. \"Those voices again?\" she asks nervously. I nod and stand up to go get a glass of water. Shes getting visibly upset and starts to ask me if Im gonnna leave them. I dont really understand what she means by that but try to tell her to relax because Im just getting water. With each step I feel like I might pass out. \n^(you've GOT to wake UP) \nShe starts yelling at me, blaming me for leaving her alone the night she died. I cry and try to tell how sorry I am, but nothing comes out of õy mouth. Walking is harder with every step. I hear whimpering. I try to concentrate. Its my dog. My best friend. He is covered in blood with guts showing. It looks like...he was run over? His whimpering is tearing my heart into million pieces. I try to walk but its hard. My wifes yelling turned into cries as I turned my head. I could see she was grabbing her stomach. I tried to focus my eyes and saw I knife lodged into her. I could hear her blaming me for losing her and our unborn child. A child? She was pregnant? I felt like my heart had completely shattered beyond recovery. Everything was spinning faster then I could register it. I passed out. \nDarkness. \nQuiet. \nWas it Heaven? \nHell? \n^(NOW) \n\nI wake up confused. I jump up and see that I am, what seems to be, in an abandoned apartment. The stench sobers me up pretty quickly and I notice the same something in the corner of my eye. My head turns, but this time there really is someone there..." ]	2
	[WP] Your parents named you Death but people usually mishear it as Beth	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "*Beth Becomes You\n\nPeople hear what they expect to hear. What they’re familiar with hearing. What they’d prefer to hear. Most people don’t hear that much at all in truth - the vast majority are not actually listening - they’re simply waiting to speak.\n\n“What’s your name?”\n\n“Death”\n\n“Oh, Hi Beth”\n\nIt’s not just names either. It holds true across all spectrums.\n\n“What do you do?”\n\n“I’m a social media influenza”\n\n“Cool. I’m on Instagram.”\n\nAnd without me even asking they’re telling me their handles. Offering me their @‘s without a hint of hesitation \n\nI spread through WhatsApp in the main. It’s easy. Far too easy. So many keen fingers out there - all feverishly forwarding the slightest of mild amusements - the least inkling of maybe-maverick comment. Everyone wants to be known as the funny one. The sage one. The insightful one. The inventive one. Everyone wants to be the first one to forward their last one received. Before they receive it again from another loose ‘friend.” Everyone wants to be the one that raised the smile. The initial instigator of the latest momentary entertainment. Even though (and they know it) they weren’t the actual content creator. There is always someone else who provided the prompt - someone they will never know - another name on another list - another grouped groupee on one of many a long group list. Death filed as Beth. Me.\n\nIt’s Human nature of course - we’re a species very much inclined to self-destruct. Well, naive enough to self-harm at least - Check, scroll and ‘wow! That’s tenuously amusing- now don’t hesitate - time matters - quick forward it as if it’s from me! Which it is even if it isn’t if you know what I mean? And you do. We all do. \n\nAnd of course I say ‘we’ but I know that is somewhat disingenuous - I’m not part of the big we* anymore. I had my time and that timed out quite some time ago. But there’s a part of me that still understands the collective we. \n\nThat still yearns for it.\n\nFunny that - The whole social media frenzy I mean. Peculiar in its power. Think about it - surely everyone knows the sender is not the content creator. Rarely at least. It’s theft at best. Shameless piggybacking on the creativity of others. It’s understandable though, forgivable almost, because it’s simply another thing that’s craved by all - popularity. We can’t help it - we’re weak. Like this - like that - like me - please like me! Please! Look! I’ve sent a funny! Look! I’ve made a sage political point! Look! I’ve even posted a cute cat and two kittens for f\\\\k’s sake! Come on! Like me! LIKE ME NOW!\n\nThat’s where I do differ of course. I’m kind of past caring. I’ve no desire to be liked. Not anymore. And I dislike all others. Now that I’m freed from the need. I suppose you could say I would say that but that doesn’t make it any less true.\n\nKind of at least.\n\n“Ha! Beth becomes you!” is my latest witticism. It’s the last message seen at the end of the meme. Just before the virus infects the phone along with the hand that holds it. Then of course it’s the standard picture of Death with his hood, cloak and scythe as we slip to fade. He’s a traditionalist - very insistent on that image even though it’s hardly on trend. I’ve suggested re-branding on numerous occasions but he won’t have it. “Coca-Cola still say the Holidays are Coming every Christmas and no one argues with that. My message is just as recognisable, obvious and precise.” (He’s dour and grim even when he’s not reaping.)\n\nWell, anyway, suffice to say like Santa I’m very much on my way. So, sip your mulled wine, devour your mince pies and scroll eagerly on the morning of the 25th. Enjoy the clip with the exotic elf and the reluctant reindeer. Be fast to forward the ingenious image of The Grinch engaged with The Snowman. Send all to one and all. So that I can joyfully reward you all. \n\nIt’s the one day I’m allowed you see. That was the deal. A sold soul for this once-yearly goal. I was so much like you. I wanted to be popular too. I craved the same skewed validation. I fought for self-worth from an iPhone handset. I was like you and now I’m liked by you. I’m liked and I’m shared. You don’t know me but that’s not the point. That’s not how this works. It never has been. We all know that. It’s why we shrug and declare “It is what it is.” \n\nNow the day approaches, my race is on. I have targets in mind - numbers to beat - new records to achieve. I’ll be with you after the eggnog. \n\nWho’ll be quickest on the keyboard - the first type to sneeze?\n\n---\n\n[H. B. O’Neill](https://hboneill.com) is a London born writer inspired by the City and its myriad opportunity for comedy, pain, drama and adventure. He is a prize-winning poet and short story writer, a screenwriter, playwright and author.", "I don’t correct them—I never do. I mean, would you? It’s easy enough if you sort of muddle the first letter, and you don’t want anybody to know your REAL name.\n\n“Mmmbdeath,” I say.\n\n“Nice to meet you, Beth.”\n\nThe guy who spills his juice on me is cute, which isn’t entirely the reason that I tripped him, but it didn’t hurt matters. With a name like mine, you get good at the whole “awkward introduction” thing and find ways to make meeting people a little easier.\n\nPro Tip: If you want to meet a guy, make him spill something on you. He’ll immediately turn all apologetic, and if you’re nice about it, the conversation can go from there.\n\n“I can’t believe I did that!” the guy says.\r\n\nHe has great shoulders, this one. You could really see them flexing when he jogs over to the waitress to get a towel.\n\n“Man, I really got you.”\n\n“Don’t worry about it, sweetness.”\n\nCalling someone “sweetness” automatically makes the conversation stand out in their mind. It happens so rarely that people subconsciously classify what’s happening as “strange,” and they step right out of their comfort zone.\n\n“At least you weren’t wearing a...shirt. Or a dress or whatever.”\n\nHe chuckles nervously.\n\nPro Tip: Make the guy spill on you when you’re at the beach. Bikinis are wayyyy easier to clean off than actual clothes, and as an added bonus you get to call attention to your tits by wiping juice off them.\n\n“What kind is this?” I ask.\n\nWe’re both in our flip flops at a little place called “Soul on the Beach.” It’s one of those touristy places in Sanur where they make all kinds of healthy vegetable drinks filled with carrots and kale.\n\n“It’s called ‘The Morning After.’”\n\nI rub the towel over my bare midriff. “Smells nice. Did you make a night of it, or what?”\n\n“Pardon me?”\n\n“You’re drinking ‘The Morning After.’ Were you out late last night?”\n\n“Oh...heh...yeah, a little.”\n\nFlash a winning smile, then cock your head to the side, and BAM! “I’ll tell you what—you can make it up to me by buying me one of these.”\n\nHe smiles back. “Yeah, sure!”\n\nIf all this sounds contrived, then there’s something you need to know: People LOVE these sorts of situations. They’re contrived because people always talk about them, because people are fascinated by them. The only reason situations like this don’t happen more is because people think, “Aw, shucks, something like that would NEVER happen,” and thus nobody ever takes the initiative to make them happen.\n\nWith a name like mine, you’ve got to make stuff like this happen.\n\nThe guy comes back with another couple of fiercely orange Morning Afters and I ask him to sit with me. He does, and soon we’re talking about how much we both like Bali. Shoulders is there on a scuba vacation, but he’s more than happy to be distracted by me.\n\n“So...Beth, huh? Is that short for something?”\n\n“No.”\n\n“Good name.”\n\n“Thanks. I sure am glad my parents gave it to me. What’s yours?”\n\n“Well...you’re not going to believe this.” He looks around as if he’s afraid of being overheard. “My name is Death.”\n\nI’ve met a lot of guys in my time, so I don’t usually get taken aback by things like this. But, wow, what a coincidence! I can’t exactly say, “Hey, me too!”\n\nSo I say, “Death? You’re joking, right?”\n\nA dry laugh. “No. I wish I was. My name is actually ‘Death.’”\n\n“Like the grim reaper, huh?”\n\n“Exactly like the grim reaper.”\n\nPro Tip: If the guy you meet is crazy, don’t run from it. Embrace it! Crazy people can be fun, especially on a beach in Bali.\n\n“You’re the grim reaper?”\n\n“You got it.”\n\n“Well, then. I guess our names rhyme.”\n\n“They sure do.”\n\n“Cheers!”\r\n\nWe clink our Morning Afters and laugh like a couple of lunatics. Even though Shoulders is either crazy, lying, or both, we have a great time chatting each other up.\n\n“I thought you’d look a little different, you know? Like a skeleton wearing a big black cloak. Carrying one of those big knives.”\n\n“A scythe. Well, I look different to different people. How do I look to you?”\n\nI let the straw in my drink lightly touch my lips. I’ve got great lips. “You look like you’re lonely.”\n\nHe smiles again. “Would you like to take a walk on the beach?”\n\n“Would I ever.”\n\nAnd so, we walk. We talk about a lot of things: Scuba diving, airplanes, getting drunk at strange bars—the usual tourist fare. It’s the vacation romance of your dreams! Pretty soon we’re having dinner together, and we’re talking about straws.\n\n“It’s a good step, obviously,” the guy, Death, says. “I don’t see why you have a problem with it.”\n\n“It’s not a problem. Really, it’s not! I mean, it’s just...what’s the point?”\n\n“Saving the environment.”\n\n“Using biodegradable straws isn’t going to save the environment.”\n\n“It’s a step in the right direction.”\n\n“No, it isn’t! It’s a placeholder.”\n\n“A placeholder?”\n\n“Yeah. Like putting your head down when a plane is crashing. It gives you something to do. ‘Look,’ you can say, ‘I’m doing something! We’re all going to be fine!’ In reality, you can duck and cover all you want, the plane is still going to crash, and you’re all going to die.”\n\nThe guy looks at me. “Do you really feel like it’s so hopeless?”\n\n“No,” I say. “Of course I don’t. The way I look at it is this: Instead of ducking and covering, why not have a shot of tequila? Your last moments will be better spent.”\n\n“So you’re saying it’s better to enjoy life than dread death.”\r\n\n“Exactly.”\n\nHis eyes drift toward the water, where the horizon is darkening. “I like that sentiment. I really do. It’s just that...well, it’s hard to do when you’re the grim reaper.”\n\n“Is it?”\n\n“Yeah. Listen, I wasn’t entirely honest with you before. I’m not here on vacation. I’m here to...well, I’m here on business.”\n\n“Ooooohhhh!” I say. “Are you here to take me to the afterlife?”\n\n“No.” He looks glum. “Not you.”\n\n“Then who?”\n\n“One of the guys I’m diving with. The dive master, in fact. I was supposed to take him on our last trip out...but I didn’t.”\n\n“Have a change of heart, did you?”\n\n“Kind of. It was just so beautiful out there, you know? So many people having a good time, looking at fish and sea turtles. I kept waiting for the right time and it just...it just never came.”\n\n“That sounds rough.”\n\n“It is.”\n\nI slam my hand on the table. “I know just what you need. Waiter! Two tequilas!”\n\nPro Tip: Getting drunk isn’t really about being drunk. It’s about the process. That feeling of, “Oh, I really shouldn’t have one more, but what the hell!” People like to feel like they’re cutting loose. It makes them happy, and happy people dance better.\n\n“I’m having a great time, Beth!”\n\n“Me too, Mr. Reaper!”\n\nWe both try to do the robot, and pretty soon everyone in the bar is doing the robot. Good vibes are contagious, aren’t they?\n\nWhen the sun goes down, we’re back on the beach and the tide is out. We pick a spot to sit where there are all kinds of fishing boats with little waves lapping at them. At a bar nearby, a guy is playing Bob Marley badly on an acoustic guitar. There’s nobody else around.\n\n“This is almost perfect,” the guy says.\n\n“Why almost?”\n\nThe guy is tipsy and in truth-telling mode. “I lied about my name.”\n\n“No kidding?”\n\nHe laughs and relaxes a bit when he sees I’m not angry. “It’s just that I thought you said your name was Death when you introduced yourself back at the restaurant. I thought, ‘Wow, wouldn’t it be funny if someone was named Death.’ So I ran with it.”\n\n“It’s fun to run with things like that,” I say.\n\n“I know, right? But I think it’s a bit of a defense mechanism, you know? I lie to people I meet so I can keep myself—my real self—at a distance.”\n\n“So you don’t get hurt.”\n\n“So I don’t get hurt.”\n\nWe watch the water for a bit, and I think about turtles choking on plastic straws.\n\nI say, “In my experience, it’s not about how honest you are. People make such a big deal out of being truthful, like it’s some kind of virtue. I mean, it is, generally, but you can’t get caught up in thinking about, ‘Am I being my true self, am I really a good person, blah blah.’ It’s more about just DOING.”\n\n“Doing?”\n\n“Yeah. Doing. That’s my motto. Don’t think—do. That’s how amazing stuff happens. You don’t become a good person by thinking about what good is; you become a good person by getting out there and doing stuff.”\n\n“Interesting.”\n\n“...said the guy who was thinking too much.”\r\n\nMeaningful eye contact.\n\n“What are you thinking now?” I ask.\n\n“I’m thinking about kissing you.”\n\n“You know my motto.”\n\nHe moves in slowly, with meaning, with gusto. He’s going to let me have it—to let his lips explode against mine like the opening salvo of a fireworks extravaganza. He only pauses once, his face inches from mine\n\n“My real name is Bob. Bob Davis.”\n\n“I know.”\n\nWe kiss.\n\nAnd Bob’s heart stops.\n\nContrived, right? Well, people like that sort of thing. If you’re going to spend your last hours doing something, it might as well be something out of a fairy tale.\n\nPro Tip: If your name is Death, give the people what they want." ]	3
	[WP] A group of scientists study a bizzare specimen of unknown origin. The specimen is a immortal shapeshifting dog-like creature that means no harm or has any purpose to persue.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "At first glance, it is impossible not to feel equal parts awe and fear. Its eyes are the colour of silver frost, with swirling masses of gray mist that look like the insides of a crystal ball. The shadow black body is sculpted like any of nature's apex predators – a lithe, athletic build with rippling muscles that bulge ominously from every body part. The most startling aspect though, are the white wings. Now folded and collapsing into the beast's body like a Japanese folding fan, they had earlier fanned themselves out in all regal glory; a wing down of nearly 16 feet. Everyone in the room seems to be holding their breath.\n\n\"This thing on the loose would be like Death having a picnic,\" says Henrik. \"How difficult was it to ensnare in this cage?\"\n\n\"Surprisingly easy,\" whispers Anastasia, never taking her eyes off the sleeping beast. \"We needed no traps, no tranquilizer darts, no violence. We opened the cage, and it walked in, like it understood that we meant no harm.\"\n\n\"Intriguing,\" slips in Dalsgaard. \"Perhaps it would be wise to slay it while we have the chance. I agree with Henrik; an abomination like this would wreak havoc. It seems... diabolical. I can sense something nefarious coursing inside it. We analyzed the bio samples too. The fangs secrete a fatal neurotoxin that could kill your nervous system in two and a half seconds. I have a bunch we should just kill it where it stands.\"\n\n\"Intuition is not a scientific means of deduction, the last time I checked,\" says Anastasia. \"There is no shame I admitting that we do not know. The real shame lies, in not finding out.\"\n\n\"Easy enough for you to say, Anna,\" sneers Dalsgaard. \"You finish this assignment, and then you're back to your fancy research center in Moscow, while this monstrosity stays here with us in the Denmark facility. We have to live with the consequences, not you.\"\n\n\"I concur.\" says Henrik, \"This beast has fangs that could shred me into bits. Talons that could cleave through me like a hot knife the butter. It clearly is dangerous. Prevention is better than cure is an scientific ideal, is it not? Or does this argument go beyond the realms of science, Anna?\"\n\n\"I think so,\" Anastasia says. \"I do agree with you that it looks something straight out of a nightmare. But even with years of having rewired my mind to think like a scientist, I look at this hauntingly beautiful creature, and I can only think of a poem I read long ago.\"\n\n\"A poem?\" chuckles Henrik.\n\n\"Uh huh,\" nods Gabriella. \"It's by the this poet called Rudy Francisco. It goes –\n\nShe asks me to kill the spider.\nInstead, I get the most\npeaceful weapons I can find.\n\nI take a cup and a napkin.\nI catch the spider, put it outside\nand allow it to walk away.\n\nIf I am ever caught in the wrong place\nat the wrong time, just being alive\nand not bothering anyone,\n\nI hope I am greeted\nwith the same kind\nof mercy.\n\nA moment of silence passes over the room. The beast stretches languorously, shaking its wings and yawning.\n\n\"I get what you're saying,\" says Dalsgaard, with a wistful sigh. \"Alright, Anastasia, today, poetry saves what science wouldn't.\"\n\n------\n\nThank you for reading! You can read more of my stuff at r/whiteshadowthebook :)" ]	2
	[WP] You're a vigilante with no supernatural powers, just lots of time spent at the gym. One day, while recovering from a particularly sore legs day, your services are required.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Why? Why is the elevator always out at the worst times? I trudged up the stairs, legs quivering at every step. And why can't crime ever happen on the ground floor? I really didn't want to be here, but it's hard to say no to a good cry for help. Plus rent was coming up due and I really needed the buffer of the finder's fee, but that doesn't sound as heroic.\n\nI made my way as far as I could but there was only so much I could do. I was having to clutch as hard as I could to the hand rail just to keep my balance, and each step brought its own flavor of agony that took a lot of processing. Help. They need your help. You're capable. You're smart. You're buff as hell. C'mon, keep going! \n\nThe worst part was the bystanders simply watching. I didn't blame them for not answering the cry that came from above, but I really could have done without their comments. \"You can do it, Bill the Buff Baddy Bouncer!\" they would say. \n\nI've never called myself that! Bill isn't even my name! It's Greg, you little shit!\n\nI kept my mouth shut and simply gave a smiling thumbs up. Telling a kid he's stupid will, surprisingly, not help a burgeoning career in crime fighting. \n\nI could now hear the cries for help just a floor above me. It sounded like a simple burglary, though obviously a bit rougher given how far the cries traveled. But my legs were still acting as gatekeepers, and I could only move so fast. And with one flight to go, they gave out completely, and I fell on my face. My face now bloodied before the fight, I found my second wind. My legs still didn't work, but my upper body strength was off the charts, and I found I could hoist myself up the stairs with my arms fairly quickly. \n\nI now found myself just outside the door where the crime was taking place. Though still floor-bound, I was able to burst the door open with just my arms, while crying out \"Stop! Help has arrived!\"\n\nThe masked goons turned to look but didn't see me at first, as they were expecting someone, uh, taller. \"I'm down here,\" I finally had to say. They laughed as me and charged, but with my trained strength and the boost of adrenaline I found I could dispatch them with ease. A pile of black clad bodies soon sat moaning in pain in the corner of the room, almost like something out of a cartoon. \n\n\"Oh, thank you, Bill the Buff Baddy Bouncer!\" the owner of the apartment exclaimed as I hauled myself onto a chair. \n\n\"That's not my fuc- I mean, just answering the call, sir, as anyone should. Now, do you have any banana's, per chance?\"\n\nI sat for a while as my body readily absorbed the potassium, while I occasionally gave the defeated baddies a solid thump to keep them down until I could leave and authorities could come. About an hour later I found I could walk once more, and thanked my temporary host for their hospitality while I made my way out the door. I headed toward the stairs, but heard a voice from behind me call out. \"The elevator works, you know!\" \n\n\"...what.\"\n\n\"You ignored the sign downstairs, right?\" my former host asked. \"It's been fixed for about a week, maintenance is just lazy. Hope you didn't take the stairs all the way up here! Goodnight!\"\n\nI hate fighting crime.\n\n____________\nr/psalmsandstories for more tales by me, should you be interested.", "“Help!” The strangled voice called out as I trod down the street in agony. My legs were burning, and I didn’t want to run, but someone needed help, apparently. \nI hated every excruciating step, but I got to the mouth of the alley just as I pulled up the mask around my face. It would do. I saw a pair of men who had cornered a young boy, no older than sixteen. One has the boy at knife point, the other rummage through a bag. \n\nI really didn’t want to fight them properly so I didn’t. I pulled my trusty handgun from where it was concealed at the small of my back under my jacket and shouted, “let the kid go and return his stuff. I am not in the mood to chase or fight you so if you run you’ll probably get away, if you stand to fight...” I trailed off and brandished the gun at them. \n\nThey looked at each other and then back at me and as one they booked it, dropping the bag in the process. Its contents spilled out and scattered across the ground. I lumbered over and crouched down, taking a sharp, hissing intake of breath as my legs protested this normally easy and mundane motion. \n\n“Are you okay?” The boy asked me.\n\n“I feel like I souls be asking that question of you,” I replied. \n\n“Yeah, but when you went down to help me pick up my stuff, or sounded like you were hurt.” \n\nAs I looked at the kid, I noticed the basketball jersey under his jacket, one of the local high schools. “Leg day,” I said, winking conspiratorially, “always the worst.”\n\nHe got a chuckle then he noticed the mask. “Taxiarchis?” He asked. \n\n“The one and only,” I replied as I heaved myself to a full standing position. \n\n“Since when do you carry a gun?” He asked bewildered. \n\n“I’ve always carried it,” I reply calmly, “i’ve just never been pressed to brandish it before now, let alone use it.” He looked dumbfounded so I pressed on, “let’s get you home.”\n\nI handed the bag back to him and let him lead the way. It was maybe a five minute walk, but I made sure that he got into the building alright. As I began to turn towards my own home, the two guys from earlier reappeared, and not they had a few friends. I counted two guns among the six of them. I hated it when people packed heat, it made my job harder. I clasped my hands behind my back, or at least I made it look like I had. Really, I was fishing for my pistol. \n\n“You’re Taxiarchis, right?” One of the guys with a gun said. \n\n“I am.” I replied calmly and evenly, watching the other gun more carefully. \n\n“You’ve been making it tough for us for a while now, and not my boys are telling me that you have the audacity to pull a gun on them?” \n\n“If I’m being honest, I wouldn’t have called it audacity, so much as laziness. It was leg day earlier, and I‘m not in the mood for a fight. I’m really not in the mood for a gunfight.” \n\n“Sic him boys.” The five guys surged past the apparent leader, and I whip out my handgun. I double tap the gun who had rushed me, and I dumped another pair into the other gun, the apparent leader. Then I feel an impact in my abdomen. I was pretty sure that my body armor had stopped an attack. One of them was pretty quick. He had jabbed a knife at me. I brought my pistol across his face, hard, and blood began to fountain from the guy’s probably broken nose. I put a round in him and gun in the remaining three, and two ran. The third hadn’t noticed that his friends were either running away or bleeding out. He got double tapped before he could get within arms reach. I found a cell phone in one of their pockets and made an emergency call to 911 to get EMTs on the scene. I began walking back to my house. It was only a few blocks, but those blocks sucked. This was sloppy of me. I had pushed myself too hard earlier and then I had been too lazy. Maybe I should have more leg day, but lower the intensity. Something to think about in the future." ]	3
	[WP] You have the opportunity to become immortal, but there’s a twist. You have to live virtually in the most played video game of the time, for the rest of your eternal life. Whether it’s as that friendly NPC who helps with quest, or the notoriously evil main villain, is up to 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Villainy is a strange thing. Most people would never willingly choose\nto be a villain; to openly identify themselves as evil. But then,\nmost people aren't me.\n\nIt all started with the release of what was quite possibly the most\nimmersive MMO the world has ever seen; a VR game with perma-death (but\nwith in-game methods to bring a character back from the dead - for a\nprice), where the economy was entirely player driven, and where there\nwere dungeons full of treasure for the taking - if you were willing to\nrisk losing your character in the process.\n\nI was among the first players. The dungeons were fairly samey back\nthen; you'd go in, kill a bunch of monsters, and take their stuff.\nMaybe there would be a few traps. People didn't play for the variety\nof monsters; they played for the experience of feeling like they were\ndeep underground, and for the many and vaaried social interactions the\ngame allowed for.\n\nMany played as shop keepers; escaping from their dead end jobs into\nthe fantasy of a peaceful life in which they were in control. Yet\nmore played as bandits; choosing to take their wealth from merchants\nand exhausted adventurers rather than earning it themselves.\n\nI'm something of a traditionalist, so I went with adventurer to begin\nwith. After a while, however, entering dungeon after dungeon became\nstale. As such, I turned to banditry; picking fights with groups of\nadventurers or well guarded merchant caravans. In time, I even tried\nmy hand at being a merchant myself. It's safe to say that I have\nexperienced every aspect of this game in a way that very few have -\nand yet I still craved more.\n\nThe email I received last year came as something of a surprise. The\ndevelopers had an idea to improve the game - uploading the minds of\nveteran players for use as persistent NPCs. Some would be villains;\nsome would be mentors; and some would even just be comic relief. In\nthe game, we would be immortal. In the real world, unfortunately, the\nprocess requires so much power that it kills the body. It wasn't a\ndifficult choice; factory work for minimum wage vs immortality, a life\nof luxury, and the opportunity to give people joy - albeit in a\nroundabout way.\n\nIt struck me then as it does now that villainy is a difficult job to\ndo well in the context of a game. It's a job that I ultimately don't\ntrust some of the griefers and other assorted bell-ends to do justice.\nIt's easy to be an arsehole; what's difficult is being an arsehole in\nsuch a way that you improve the experience of those who interact with\nyou.\n\nI could send my most powerful goons to kill beginning players - that\nwould be smart, but it wouldn't be fun for them. So instead, I send\ngoons with a small but realistic chance of victory - I want it to be a\nchallenge, but I don't want to overwhelm them. Likewise I have plans\nthat will succeed if allowed to, but that have flaws that the players\ncan find if they're paying attention. I laugh and gloat in front of\nbeaten enemies in order to give them a chance to pull victory from the\njaws of defeat, and my evil laugh is coming along quite nicely.\n\nSo far as those playing the game are concerned, I am evil. I am a\ncomplete arsehole that many are truly fortunate to have escaped from\nwith their lives. I am a constant threat, against which vigilance is\nkey. And you know what? I like it that way.\n\nSometimes I disguise myself as a random villager NPC to see for myself\nhow things are coming along. The new players fear me; the veterans\nhate me - but all agree that the game would be boring without me.\nThen I reveal myself; let my foes have a good fight against my minions\nand I, and then escape when I feel like I'm losing. I even bring a\nmix of minions, so that the newer players can feel like they're\nplaying an important role in ensuring the veterans don't get\noverwhelmed by numbers.\n\nI am, in short, a villain - and I take my job very seriously. After\nall, without someone like me, how can the players ever get to be\nheroes?", "\"Welcome to the Magic Tavern, how can I help you?\" You then pull up a menu that has a list of options that they can choose from. Most players think you are an NPC, and to them you are. A place to rest, sell items. \n\nSome players click your dialog option. Then they think you are a player. They realize when you ask questions about the outside world, or comment on something when they local chat with a buddy. \n\nThey come in, sell items, drink, dance, make their characters dance around. Occasionally, pay for NPC in the room. The only thing you don't allow in your tavern is PVP. \n\nThe regulars get quests. A hit on a player who was rude in the tavern. Or rude to another regular. These trusted few join your Magic Tavern guild. \n\nOne of your guild has a rough home life. They can't wait to graduate and move out. They leave the Tavern and go to the smith for weapons. They don't have enough coin for the weapon they want. But you take over as the smith and say, this one is courtesy of the guild. A bright spot in your day, when you hear the happiness on their side of the mic, then they click the thank you text box and move on.\n\nThey'll eventually graduate and move on. But for now they're a friend and that's what friends are for. How hard a quest is depends on how bored you are and how much you like a player. If you are actively trying to win, the opposition faction won't. Good, bad, light, dark, rebels, empire, you get to play them all. And then your personal guild is one of the few cross factional one's really makes it interesting. \n\nA new player comes into the shop. They walk right up to you. You greet them. \"Hello, welcome to the Magic Tavern! How may I help you?\" They're crying into their microphone. Then you recognize the voice, it was your best friend. \"Is it? Is.. is it really you? We thought you were dead..\"", "The pitch was tempting. It was too good to be true. \" You will be immortal, but you will have to live virtually in the most played video game of the time.\" The salesman smirked. \"Whether it’s as that friendly NPC who helps with quest, or the notoriously evil main villain, is up to you.\"\n\n\"Eternal life.. In RPG video games?! Sign me up!\" I slammed the definitely not sketchy, overly large, red button. And immediately faded out of consciousness.\n\nI was awakened by a voice. \"Welcome. To Summoner's Rift.\" Oh crud. He never said it had to be an RPG! That means that League of Legends counts. Nooooooooooooo.\n\nA few seconds passed. So.. Am I gonna spawn in? Which champion am I playing? How does that work?\n\nI could suddenly see again. And then I heard the voice. \"Minions have spawned!\"\n\n\"Noooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo\"\n\n\\----- Meanwhile, gamers across the world ------\n\n\"Dang hero minions! Getting in front of my hooks!\"\n\n\"Stupid minions! They literally creep blocked me to death!\"", "I never hesitated. \n\nThe first time, I played it vanilla--main quest followed by side quests, lawful-stupid boy scout with a sword and shield. Second time, I did a stealthy ranger. Still did the main story, still the side quests. Then I played a thief, sneaking things when no one was looking. \n\nThere was so much here, so much to look around at and explore, from the macro epic four-tiered quest to slay the dragon-god Balzerian to the side-quests helping Tilla collect all seven Birnroot plants in Steelguard. \n\nI lost myself. Today I was the dragon-borne paladin wielding the magic sword Glitterdusk. The next, I was a rogue making incredible shots halfway down a mountain. I was unstoppable; the only sentience in a construction of rules. I lived for the vengeance of Alrath-hel as a hellsworn knight. I distributed healing and wisdom as a barefisted monk from the Shreldalath temple. The only fights here were in my control--they didn't shake the walls of my bedroom at night. The only person sick here was fixed by the glowing green moss found on the spire of the Frostshard mountain--no one was hooked up to machines in the hospital, slowly growing thin while pretending to smile. \n\nEventually the heroes ran stale. There were thirteen variants of knight; I knew them all by heart. There were eight ways you could play the summoner. Two secret outfits for the witch, but nine for the rogue. No combinations are endless; I found the end. \n\nAfter the heroes, I swapped sides and played as the villains. I crushed orc hordes as a tribe of mountain trolls, hurling boulders. I abducted maidens from villages as a vampire. It was just pixels, right? One day I was bored, so I obliterated a settlement of pilgrims on the plains of Barakel. I slaughtered a well-meaning priest, because I didn't like his face. There were no rules, no gods or governments to watch me with a wagging finger. I was god. Morality was a human concept, and I wasn't human anymore. \n\nI committed acts of atrocity, listened to the wailing of a hundred newly minted orphans echoing through the streets, snapped my fingers, and reset everything. I convinced a town of innocent farm boys to band up and riot against the baron of a neighboring city, knowing full well they'd be slaughtered fifteen feet from the city walls. I granted a thousand wishes, built a dozen homes to house the poor. Time meant nothing. \n\nI was the only sentience in a construction of rules. \n\nI razed mountains, built glittering castles defying the rules of gravity, changed the course of rivers...and then erased it all in a blink. \n\nThe responses rang hollow--I knew each interaction by heart, spat each word before the person in front of me. I walked every path a dozen times, a hundred, a thousand. It was just pixels. I found the end of the mountains, where an invisible wall stopped my desperate escape. I swam to the ends of the sea, where land was a speck on the horizon. \n\nI wandered, broken. Levels meant nothing, power meant nothing. I knew the flaws in each monster, exploited them. I found the glitches, the tiny inaccuracies in art and code. I lived a hundred generations as members of a church-going family, playing the father, the mother, the daughter, the son...I became unhinged, talking to myself because I was the only source of original content. I lost count of the voices of Me I created, splitting myself into innumerable parts. \n\nIt happened when I was sitting on a fountain, staring into a crack between two stones. I knew the path the ants would take, ferrying crumbs to their lair. The massive peal of a bell split the sky like thunder, louder than anything I'd ever heard. A voice like a demon. \n\n\"Player Two has entered the game.\"" ]	5
	[WP] You're an immortal with a bad habit of selling your soul, now the bill is due and you're panicking.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 immortal was nervous. It knew, more than anyone else, the cruelty of societies that had debts in them - and what more cruelty can a being that was based around collecting debts have?\n\nHe was nervous, yes. The plains he was flying over disappeared and the vastness of space replaced it, he flew for many eons through this until he found a suitable planet on which he would find some respite, if only for a moment. It was not unlike the other planet, it contained living things, and it also contained people who were advanced enough to tell him of debt collection.\n\nA man in a strange hat, beard, but who later revealed herself to be a woman who was merely dressed in that manner as a joke to surprise visitors with - her kind face and wry humor giving some hope to the immortal - said simply thus, \"Many debts cannot be paid off fully, leading to the debtor to lose many privileges. We could see that with our own society, when the debtors that were the plaguebearers could not pay back their debts, leading to their bodies collapsing, and releasing the plague back on the lenders. In this act is why we then moved on to a new and higher economic order.\"\n\nThe Immortal thought about this, and he thought about many other things. In exactly 30 years did the Devil come to him, asking for his debt to be paid off. \n\nThe Immortal repeated the wisdom and much else it heard from the professor in the month it stayed there - in exchange of course it had told her of many things, I do not wish to imply that the Immortal is a coward only, it is also very kind with people who help it and usually does not do much.\n\nRegardless, it relayed the information to the Devil, it explained to the Devil many functions of debts, and how in fact the Devil was in a hell of its own creation: in asking for others to be indebted to it it was clearly preventing itself from reaching any higher state of being - Why, for example, invent a way to make souls, if you have a primitive solution of merely stealing them already? \n\nThe Devil thought about this, and many decades passed while they argued the minutae of the argument while skillfully avoiding the meat of the argument, which they both agreed with from the start, but regardless - the Devil was convinced. The Immortal merely leased its soul to him on the periods when it was inactive, which was most of the time, and the Devil was satisfied in this progression into a higher plane of being." ]	2
	[WP] A young man dies and is reincarnated into a dying world where he gains power and a destiny to save that world, or at least he's supposed to be. Thing is. The doctors managed to revive him 20 minutes after being clinically dead and now he's back with said powers and destiny in tow.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Izor gasped and coughed, awakening and feeling as if he had just had the wind knocked out of him. His vision was blurry, and his hands - splayed at his sides - clenched and unclenched as he tried to catch his breath enough to sit upright. \n\nHe found that closing his eyes was easier than trying to focus on anything. He drew breath after breath in through his nose and out his mouth trying to ground himself and remember how he had ended up where he was. \n\nEven as he thought back, he remembered walking in the crosswalk, headphones on, music blaring. He remembered a horn sounding loudly - loud enough to be heard over his music - and he remembered turning his head to look up. Then nothing. \n\nAnother deep breath, and he sank his fingers into the ground. He found that wherever he was laying was covered in soft grass and moist soil. That revelation caused his eyes to pop open. \n\nIzor lived in the heart of the city. He couldn’t even remember the last time he had seen grass. Let alone the soft green grass he knew from texture he must be lying on. Certainly there hadn’t been any near the crosswalk he walked across every morning on his daily commute to his office job. The cubicle farm as he was fond of calling it. \n\nHaving finally caught his breath, Izor pulled himself into a sitting position. For the barest hint of a second, he felt pain ricochet through his body. Then he felt normal. \n\nBut as he sat there, eyes finally able to focus Izor found himself blinking rapidly. He was atop a large hill, overlooking a city. A cool breeze blew through his hair and dried sweat that formed on his brow. Sweat that formed as he started to panic. \n\nThat city was unlike any he had ever seen before. \n\nAlabaster white with spiraling towers, the city shone in the midday sun. Azure pennants flew from tower tops and people wove through the streets far below even as he watched. It looked as if the city were celebrating. Colorful garlands hung between buildings, and Izor could see what he could only imagine was a parade moving slowly down the main street.\n\nHe found that he had gotten to his feet while he watched the city, mesmerized by the people who were milling like ants below. He looked behind him, but saw nothing but rolling hills and in the far distance a treeline. From what he could see, beyond the city was water - either an enormous lake or an ocean. He didn’t know which, but he knew he had never seen water quite that shade of blue before. \n\nLooking down at himself, he found that he was not wearing the clothes he had been this morning. Instead, he wore only a thin white linen toga. He would have removed it - had he had anything else to wear instead. As it was, he left it. Stepping forward - towards the city was the only direction he could see going - he found that he wore leather sandals, laced nearly to his knee. \n\nThe walk into the city was short. For even though the hill was able to overlook the sprawling metropolis, he found that it was closer than it appeared. To ease his journey, he found a white stone road that led directly to a gate into the city. \n\nLike he had seen from above, as he approached he was sure that the city was celebrating. The gates were thrown wide open, and a flood of people were entering the city. Many moved out of his way, smiling and pointing. \n\nThat unnerved him - but it seemed that every person that laid eyes on him only smiled, and pointed him in the direction he was headed. As he entered the city, he found that a near cascade of flowers followed him, falling from windows high above. \n\nNo one spoke to him, but the offering of flowers increased, and people near the heart of the city started to bow to him. The few times he tried to ask someone what was going on or what they were celebrating, he got only slight shakes of their heads and more directional pointing. \n\nReaching the center of the city - for Izor had found when he had tried to turn around and leave that his path was blocked - the largest of the soaring towers loomed above him. Izor was not a religious man, but this building could be nothing other than a church. To what god he could not say, but a church it had to be. \n\nIzor found himself being funneled inside. The pale white and gold doors pulled open before him. He tried to stop from entering, tried to backpedal back into the crowd, but a wall of flesh had formed behind him, forcing him inside. \n\nForward he was pushed, until he was at the foot of a dais. Standing on it was a woman - or at least that’s what he assumed. He could see none of the person’s skin - their body covered completely - but the way the white fabric hugged their hips and torso left little to the imagination. A veil, thin enough that he could almost see her eyes just beyond the protrusion of her nose covered her head. \n\nThe crowd behind him still tried to push him forward, but he dug his heels in unwilling to step towards the woman - for she had large feathered wings protruding from her back. At first he thought that they were decorative, until they twitched, the soft shuffling of feathers echoing strangely in the near silence. The only noise in the large church was the breathing of those behind him, and the quiet whispers of cloth moving. \n\n“Sentos and Essos bless us,” the winged woman said, stepping forward.\n\nShe must have realized that Izor would move no closer. Her voice, though low and raspy rang across the silent hall. Her head tilted back, as if to look unseeing into the crowd, her chin raised.\n\n“Our guided hero has appeared before us! In our time of desperation as the world teeters on the brink of destruction - Our Myalis shall arise and bring us into the next age!”\n\nShe wasn’t looking at Izor, but at the people. Thinking she was distracted, he tried to step away.\n\nShe grabbed him, pulling him close. Where her hands touched the skin of his arms burned. Izor could feel blisters forming beneath her grasp. He screamed at the unexpected pain. \n\nShe said something else to the gathered audience, but he couldn’t hear. He wasn’t sure if it was because of his continued screams, or if his hearing was starting to fade - hard to tell in the strange silence that still filled the room.\n\nPulling him even closer, the strange priestess wrapped her wings around him. Again the moment she contacted his skin it felt as if he were on fire. His screams increased as the priestess of Sentos and Essos started to chant. \n\nJoining his burning skin, his insides started to boil. He could feel his organs twisting and popping, and his knees gave out from below him. The woman’s strong grasp held him in place, refusing to let him fall to the ground.\n\nIzor thought he was dying. Knew he was dying. All he could hear in the world was the Priestess's horrid chanting and his own screams. \n\nHis vision faded, and all he knew was pain. \n\n\\---\n\n\\Blep blep blep\\\n\nThe steady noise was the first thing that Izor heard as he regained consciousness. The next was his own screaming. He wasn’t sure he had ever stopped. It felt as if he had swallowed glass, and he could taste blood in his mouth. \n\n“He’s here! He’s alive!” he heard someone shouting from beside him. \n\nHis body still felt as if it were on fire, inside and out, but he could now hear people talking, and feel people - not the strange priestess - touching him. \n\nAs his eyes fluttered open, he found a bright light pointed at his face. He still didn’t know where he was, but this at least was a familiar sight - an operating room. Doctors in surgical masks surrounded him, and one pulled his eyes open, shining a small light into one and then the other. \n\n“We’ve got to stop this bleeding if we want to keep him that way!” One shouted, and Izor passed out from the pain once again. \n\n\\---\n\nFor more by me and others, check out r/redditserials" ]	2
	[WP] After centuries asleep, an immortal wakes surrounded by a group of people. The eldest one speaks the words passed down through generations for this occasion: "Fuck 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/js5XDFB)\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 awoke to a strange group surrounding me. Most were elves, though a few dwarves were present as well as a creature I didnt recognize: a demon, perhaps. One of them offered me a drink, which tasted like water.\n\nI tried to remember the tongue of the mer folk after having not used it for what must have been hundreds if not thousands of years.\n\n\"W...What is the year? Has the cataclysm ended?\"\n\nThe group mumbled in tongues. One of the elves seemed to be a mage, and performed hand signs that seemed familiar. It was some sort of language spell: a translation spell, I suspected.\n\nI asked again, \"What is the year? Has the cataclysm ended? Is the war finally over on the surface?\"\n\n\"Fuck you,\" the orchish demon replied.\n\n\"I...I beg your pardon?\"\n\n\"You heard me. Fuck you. This is all your fault.\"\n\n\"Oh...so the war continues on-\"\n\n\"There is no war.\" The demon butted in. \"At least, not one you were a part of. It's over. Gods, I can't believe you abandoned us. We fucking needed you. I needed you. And you held yourself up in this hole waiting for everything to blow over. Well guess what?!\" The demon called out. \"We cleaned up your mess. Now get the hell out here and help us rebuild.\"\n\n\"Who...are you?\" I akwardly prodded\n\n\"Jameth, human outsider, acolyte of the demigod Karn, your previous champion.\"\n\nAnd then I remembered him. I had heard of him once by Karn's mention. If what he said was true, then he and the others I left had cleaned up the Mer-Folk's invasion in a generation...All without my help. The odds seemed insurmountable, but apparently no more.\n\nOh, what a failed god I had become in fleeing.", "\"What?\", I was really confused, \" Sorry, child, I have slept long, what was it you said?\" \"My apologies, I have forgotten that the change in language may be confusing to you. What I meant to say is, GO FORNICATE YOURSELF\". I was now angry. Who was he, a child by my standards to use such vulgarities? Angrily I got out of my sleeping pod \" How dare you! Do you know who I am? Do you know the knowledge I possess?\" \" Yeah, we know who you are, we know you were the great Sorcerer of the age.\" My eyes narrowed and a smile grew \" Then my child, rejoice as I am here to bring order to the world\", \" Again, fuck you, we know the truth, we know how you betrayed the other sorcerers, how you killed them when they tried to stop the meteor crash that decimated our world, the power you drew from it for your immortality. Well, you weren't thorough as you thought, one survived and helped rebuild a shattered world. Our ancestors found your miserable pod..\" I quickly traced a rune of destruction but nothing happened, no, I traced it, yet it was there, I felt it but couldn't reach it \" What is this...\" \" Oh, that, the one who survived was unable to undo your magic, the weave was too strong, but she was able to alter it slightly.\"\"No\" \"Yes, you are immortal, but powerless, all your power is channelled to keep you here and immortal.\" I screamed and rushed him, but before I could reach him I slammed into a barrier. \"A man like you deserves a fitting punishment, enjoy immortality,\" and they began to walk out of the cave. This cannot be, I was meant to lead this world, rule it, my plan, my plan should have been succe- there was a loud bang , looking up, I saw rocks began to cover the path out. \"NO!\" I screamed, \"NOOOOOOOO!\" And darkness was all I knew.\n\nDid this on a phone so excuse the format/grammar.", "When I woke up, I saw a beautiful smile. And then another, and another behind it.\n\nThe first was a little girl. She giggled, and said it.\n\n\"Fuck you.\" Then she kissed my forehead and gave me a dandelion.\n\nOne by one, they came to me, and said it, tenderly embracing me or kissing my cheek or forehead, and giving me some trinket.\n\n\"What? What's going on?\" I asked.\n\nBut all I saw were their smiles, taunting me. Old men, young women, boys and girls.\n\nOne little boy, young enough so he could barely walk, climbed on my bedside so he could touch the necklace on my chest. He kissed it, gently, and then his mother pulled him away, saying sorry as she did so.\n\nThat is the strongest memory I have of that first day. Well, that and their smiles, smiles I would see for a lifetime.\n\n\\-\n\nOver the years, they never tell me who I am to them. I ask them if I am a God, and then they ask me if I am one. I ask them who I was, before I was asleep, and they tell me simply that I am their family, and that is all. They finish these conversations quickly, like they are scared of letting them run on too long.\n\nSo I learn not to ask too much. Of course, I do ask sometimes. I have to fill the blanks in my mind, find the right story to bring peace to the troubling, only fact I do know.\n\nThat I am cursed to live forever, trapped in young adulthood, never able to see the full spectrum of life.\n\nThe boy who touched my necklace becomes my favorite. The rest, they are too kind. They treat me like a precious pet, like the most beautiful puppy in the world. They insist that I take no job, that all the homes in their town are open to me.\n\nThe boy grows to be someone I can imagine I was a long time ago in his teens. Quiet, yet full of dark humor and a kindness I am proud of watching develop. He answers my questions truthfully and respectfully, yet I am careful to avoid the touchy topics.\n\n\"So you woke up with just that necklace on?\" he asks, one night over dinner at the tavern.\n\nI look down at the small penguin pendant. \"Yes. This is all I had.\"\n\nHe looks at the necklace for a while longer, an odd, sorrowful look.\n\n\"What is it?\" I ask.\n\n\"Nothing,\" he mutters, looking away.\n\n\"The necklace. You know something about it.\"\n\n\"No, no.\"\n\n\"Please,\" I say desperately. \"Tell me something, little brother. Please.\"\n\nHe looks at me, and then quickly, as if he has to run in a moment, says, \"You used to say that the penguin was who you were. That living with your curse can feel like living in the ice cold, but you still have to find a way to survive, to be free, to live life. You used to say that before the sleep.\"\n\n\"How do you know this?\"\n\nHe leans in. \"They teach us this in school. And make us promise not to tell you.\"\n\n\"Who did I tell it to? Who heard it first, and then told you?\"\n\nHe shakes his head. \"They never say. Someone long ago, someone random, probably, from five hundred years ago.\"\n\n\"Anything else?\"\n\nHe looks at me for a long moment, that same sad, regretful look, and then finally shakes his head.\n\n\"Fuck you,\" he says. But his voice is a little hollow.\n\n(to be continued below)", "Count Vlad's eyes creaked open as his casket's rusty hinges creaked apart. Bright lights blinded him. How peculiar - unlike the last few times he'd woken up in the musty darkness, there was danger nearby. But not too much. What could measly humans do, after all?\n\n\"I don't suppose any of you would happen to have a drink?\" he asked, fully expecting the hostile looking ring of faces to stab down with stakes at any moment. It would be futile. That particular weakness, along with garlic, was a mere myth. Immortals were aptly named, and he was the King of Vampires, the first immortal.\n\n\"Fuck you.\"\n\nVlad frowned. Now that, he wasn't expecting. \"Excuse me? I was going to turn a few of you at least, but now I'm reconsidering. Has this day and age forgotten how to respect their elders?\" He chortled a bit, exposing brilliant white fangs. Ah, how thirsty I am.\n\nOne of the girls adorned in a white lab coat snapped on plastic gloves that glowed from the glare of the ceiling lights. \"You killed our ancestor, an Aldea. Our family has been searching you out for centuries. Now, you will meet your end.\"\n\nThe vampire yawned lazily. \"I suppose my throat is rather parched.\" His casket exploded. He burst through with superhuman strength, sending jagged shards of wood spinning into the crowd of humans. Bright red blood splattered through the air, blood that he could almost taste. Cackling with laughter, Vlad thrust out his hand and split a charging human almost in two.\n\n\"This is the best your family has to offer?\" he scoffed. \"Come here!\"\n\nWith superhuman speed, he dashed in front of the girl who'd insulted him, sinking fangs deep into her throat, and dran-\n\nCount Vlad's eyes creaked open as his casket's rusty hinges creaked apart. Bright lights blinded him. How peculiar; he could've sworn that he'd just been awake. \"What's going on?\"\n\n\"Fuck you.\"\n\n\"That's not very nice,\" he growled. Vlad snapped a hand out and grabbed the girl's thin wrist. Her amber eyes matched his without a shred of fear. \"You'll make a great minion.\"\n\nOne of the men swung a giant spiked cudgel at him. He blurred past him and sent the human head first into the wall. They know that spikes won't work. This time the group swarmed him, but his strength and speed were just too much. Vlad laughed recklessly at the carnage as he battered them to pieces. The girl watched him impassively, and he suck his fangs deep into her throat, drink-\n\nCount Vlad's eyes creaked open as his casket's rusty hinges creaked apart. Bright lights blinded him. No. What's happening? He tried to rack his brains through the haze of sleepy wakefulness. \"You. Explain.\"\n\n\"Fuck you.\"\n\n---\n\n\"You're sure he's stuck?\" The Aldea family head looked dubiously at the mass of wires connecting to Count Dracula's head. The vampire floated in a glowing liquid suspension that Valk knew would keep the immortal under.\n\n\"One hundred and fifty percent,\" she said, adjusting the lapels of her white lab coat. Her amber eyes stared straight at the slumbering vampire. \"His brain is providing all the power for the machine to create an infinite loop where he can never wake up.\"\n\n\"What kind of simulation did you give him?\"\n\n\"A pretty simple one,\" Valk said. \"He just wakes up, surrounded by the family. The moment he tries to drink blood, he gets reset. If he ever escapes, he'll be far too traumatized to ever drink blood again.\"\n\nFather nodded grimly. \"Serves him right. Good work - you've really outdone yourself.\"\n\nAs they prepared to seal the chamber for a few years, Valk snuck one look at the glowing coffin harboring the monster that had caused her family so much suffering over the years. \"Fuck you,\" she whispered, before locking the dark room behind walls of titanium alloy.\n\n---\n\nThanks for reading! Hope your day is filled with blue skies\\~ come hang out with me at [/r/Remyxed](https://www.reddit.com/r/Remyxed/), we'd love to see you around :D" ]	5
	[WP] You weren't sure what to expect when you died, but you sure didn't expect to sit at a table with a very dapper skeleton.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Micheal awoke in an incredibly fancy room. The kind of room only a king would own. Adorning the walls was intricate marble work. There were paintings high at regular interviews climbing high towards the roof. At least Micheal thought there was a roof, he definitely couldn't see one. The paintings themselves were incomprehensible. Like a hologram on old ticket they changed whenever his eyes tried to look at them, they warped in such a way that made his head hurt. \n\nHis eyes moved down to the table in front of him, the table was awash with every food Micheal could ever remember eating. On a fanciful silver platter near him lay the exact sandwich he had been eating when he met his wife. Another held a soup that he did not recognise at first but it was the very first one he had spilt on himself as a child. The rest of the food on this side of the table seemed to match similar events in his life. Events he found he had no trouble remembering. As he looked up the table, the foot and silverware began to grow decrepit, there was a horribly charred roast chicken. The one he had been in the middle of cooking when he had been told his mother had passed. A rotten wooden plate held on it a set of disgustingly mouldy bananas that he had left in his room when he had fallen into depression.\n\nHe was so taken aback by the spread in front of him, it took him awhile to see the dinner guest at the end of the table. This guest was a skeleton, a remarkably dressed one at that. Which Micheal thought was a weird thing for him to notice. The figure's all black suit fit his sullen body perfectly. Micheal was in shock but he managed to stutter out some words.\n\n\"Who are you?\" \n\nThe figure looked up at him, the sockets where his eyes should be a deafening black. \n\n\"Shocking, didn't your mother ever tell you to say grace?\" He responded, his voice was impossibly smooth for a skeleton, or at least what Micheal expected a skeleton to sound like. \n\n\"I'm not a religious man\" Came Micheal's response, he found himself talking with ease, as if he was talking to an old friend. \n\n\"Ah, i see.\" The figure mused \"This might make what i am about to tell you a little bit confusing\"\n\nMicheal's brain flew into motion, had he been wrong his entire life? Was there actually a God? As if reading his thoughts, the figure addressed his direct concerns. \n\n\"Well not really, not by any human understanding\" The man seemed to stare into the painting to his right \"A preexisting faith does tend to ease the passing of information however\"\n\n\"Where am I? What is all this food?\" \n\nThe Figure looked solemnly out over the food in front of him. \n\n\"In front of you, is every food you ever ate at an important turning point in your life.\" The Man picked up a napkin off the corner of the table and placed it on his lap. \"You will be judged accordingly\" \n\nMicheal couldn't believe what he was hearing, he was to be judged by the food he chose to eat? Maybe that explained the near perfect memories attached to each and everyone he looked at. \n\nHe opened his mouth to ask another question, but the man stopped him.\n\n\"There will be time for questions afterwards\" He grabbed a nearby knife and fork \"For now, we eat.\"", "I had accepted death with open arms, not due to me wishing for it but rather as the last bit of solitude I thought I could provide myself with, knowing that there may be nothing after.\n\nYet, I woke to a voice quite familiar in its unfamiliarity to me, speaking in a tone as if it we were childhood friends.\n\nIt's entire body was elegantly suited, in a fashion I myself adorned frequently, the only way too differentiate it from a human was it's skin, or to be more explicit, it's lack of skin.\n\n\"You lived quite a good life, got a good job, loving children, a decent job that gives for your family, the only real downside being your fragile marriage, the love between you and Mariah doesn't really seem to be there anymore.\"\n\nI was perplexed by its knowledge regarding me, but as if it seemed to read my thoughts, it said,\n\"I've been with you since childhood, during the days you enjoyed with your friends and the days you fought against your family.\"\n\nAs he spoke, a pinkish hue crept into his arms and face, and crept off mine, and slowly, he became all that was mine just a minute ago.\n\nHe continued,\"Now that you've set up such a good life for me, I'll bid you farewell. You'll have to wait here for a while, atleast until another unfortunate soul creeps into this place.\"" ]	3
	[WP] Scientists can now identify a person's soulmate with 99.99% accuracy. The only downside is that the test only works on those aged 40+	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Im telling you, its the same car.\" Terry yelled at his friend in a panic.\n\n\"Theres no way that car has been following you all week.\" Jones replied bringing the beer to his lips.\n\nThe restaurant was almost empty this late at night, so their commotion went unnoticed except for a waitress that rolled her eyes and shook her head while picking up the dishes from the adjacent table. The car in question was and older model that must have been put through its paces. The windshield had a noticeable crack and the paint was chipping near the seams, even though the opalescent greenish-blue reflected the moonlight.\n\n\"Why the hell does no one believe me. That car looks like a pimp's.. its like, really fucking noticeable man.\" Terry complained wide eyed. \"Man, I dont want to hang around here if theres someone stalking me. Get my head based in by a huge dude with a lead pipe or something\"\n\nJones finished his beer and heavily put his glass on the table. He wiped the foam from his lips and said, \"Look man, we are here in the same run down shithole we were at during your 21st. I told you we should have picked better place for your birthday, but no.. you insisted on this place again. Your a 30 year old accountant... You make a ton of money and you could have afforded Chez Lounge... Now your gonna sit here and deal until the rest of the crew comes.\"\n\nTerry slumped back in the seat in defeat. He shouldn't have pick this place. It was run down and crappy even 9 years ago. The beer wasnt great and the food was terrible. He really just wanted to spend some time with friends, but since last week hes been a bit paranoid thinking a car is following him everywhere.\n\n\"Dudedudedudedude.. the car is gone.\" Terry called looking through the blinds.\n\nJones raised his eyebrow as if to say I told you so as he stood up. \"Im gonna take a leak, they should be here in a minute so order a pitcher.\"\n\nThe door opened up with the sound of a bell, and a women with curly blonde hair walked in. She looked skittish.. probably high on something, as her eyes darted around the room rapidly Her crimson lips were raised into a sharp smile. Terry didnt know her, but she trotted to his table and had a seat. \n\n\"Hi Terry.\" She squeaked.\n\n\"Hi...\" Terry wrinkled his brow in confusion, \"do I ... know you?\"\n\nShe giggled and snapped open the latch of her purse. The smile never ceased. \"Maybe once in a dream, honey\"\n\nShe pulled out a sheet of paper from Destynii Corp. the fake matchmaker that boasted almost a 100% success rate. They were lucky to hit 2% in reality. Sliding it across the table with a giggle she exclaimed, \"We was made for each other!\"\n\nTerry winced. \"No, thanks.. Im gonna go.\" He started to turn towards the bathroom.\n\nShe grabbed his arm and her nails dug deep into his skin. \"You dont need to go anywhere baby.. Now that I found you I can be with you all the time, now and forever.\"\n\nTerry pulled his arm quickly and little lines of blood formed. \"Eww.. get the fuck away from me you psycho.\"\n\nThe smile faded from her face and a boiling rage replaced it in an instant. \n\n\"Terry J. Truze, you dont talk to your future wife like that. Now apologize.\" She roared... but then she smiled abruptly again, \"Now lets not fight sweety, we need to plan for the wedding.\"\n\nTerry leaned into the bathroom and told Jones he was leaving because there was a crazy chick out here. Jones was sitting on the toilet and yelled something angry back in spanish. Terry turned back and headed for the door.\n\nThe woman stood there with a pistol aimed. \"Baby I know this was sudden, but we need to be together. They said so. So if your gonna try to leave me like the others, I cant have that.\"\n\nShe fired three rounds into his chest.\n\n\"Together forever!\" She smiled as she raised the gun to her head.", "\"Was it worth the wait?\"\n\nThe real answer, no, of course not, but it's not her fault. It's more a problem with science as a whole.\n\n\"Did you know Timothy Leary invented the internet, high on acid, standing under a full moon, howling like a wolf. Yes, he was naked. Yes, he was erect,\" he offers knowing which direction her mind would go after the original thought.\n\n\"If only the personal video camera had been a thing then, huh,\" she says and he chuckles, hating himself for it. For needing her, for wanting her.\n\nBig-Soulmate was similar to the internet. It created something that at one time didn't exist that now was indispensable. It was a connection of minds, collection of mutual respect, and unconditional love. A total understanding of wants and needs. Barry now sees the problem with both and what he really wishes is to go back to the life he knew before either. \n\nThat though is impossible.\n\nNow, she being his heroin, him needing her all the time- that he has a solution for.\n\n\"Eve,\" he says taking a breath, \"We need to break up.\" He finishes in a rush, pointing the pistol at her after. \n\n\"Agreed,\" she says, firing her's first, \"It's not you, it's me.\"" ]	3
	[WP] Good News: You have a superpower! Bad News: Anyone with powers eventually becomes a monster based on their power, Leading to the worst news: There are no heroes and no villains, not anymore: this is the 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "“ “ = speaking \n\n‘ ‘ = thinking\n\nToday was not Leo’s best day. He would like to say that it started with the coyotes but honestly he couldn’t remember where it started all he could recall was vague sensations of hunger, pain, thirst, and very little ammo left for his rifle.\n\n‘Are you asking about when it started today or this week?’ His helpful companion asked him. ‘Cause I have to say today’s problems started when you ate the last of our food. Now this week’s Problem stems from us getting kicked out of town’\n\n‘Shut up Eon’ he thought ‘if you could’ve dulled our senses when Edward turned on the flash-‘\n \n‘If I dulled our senses it still would have felt like a punch to the gut.’ Eon countered\n\n‘I could handle it’ Leo thought \n\n‘No you couldn’t.’ Eon was right Leo just didn’t want to admit it. If only he could’ve spent more time around high voltage electronics he wouldn’t have been so mentally unprepared for when Edward turned on his damn flashlight. \n\nIt wasn’t everyday Leo could join a community most people wouldn’t even look at a wanderer, let alone even trade with them. He honestly lucked out when Rohan’s community let him in. \n\nThere was only one tiny rule in the group though. All powered people would be exiled no ifs, ands, or buts. \n\nThat was okay for Leo though all his power did for him was give him a sense of all electronics in a radius around him. He could easily hide in the group as long as he played like a normal person.\n\nNormal electronics used to not bother him before the collapse just a dull buzzing noise on the edge of his senses. After the collapse though all power went out and like an eye in the dark his power adapted. \n\nIn the early of the collapse days he didn’t notice it maybe a flicker here or there but not much it wasn’t until much later that he found he could sense the animals movement around him. A beat of a heart here and a muscle flexing there it didn’t matter he could sense it.\n\n‘There’s another coyote’ Eon interrupted Leo’s train of thought. \n\n‘How many does that make it?’ Leo asked\n\n‘That’s the seventh in this group’ Eon responded ‘looks like they’re hunting us’\n\n“Fuck me” Leo sighed his rifle felt heavier than ever \n\n‘I would but I’m afraid that’s would be called masturbation instead of sex’ Eon remarked\n\n‘Why don’t we just fire a warning shot that should scare them off’ Leo asked\n\n‘Not going to work they’re too hungry’ Eon responded\n\n“They aren’t the only ones” Leo grumbled\n\n‘Hush now or they might attack. Seven shots now you hear? After that we get to eat coyote tonight.’ Eon told him\n\n‘You doubt my skill Eon’ Leo commented as he raised his rifle to the nearest coyote and pulled the trigger.", "They called the first monster Zion. It took a coalition of over forty independent heroes and villains to take the rampaging monster down, and over 80% of the attendees died from the monster’s light rays. Nobody knew where it came from, whether it was the work of some mad scientist or an obscure power, but investigation revealed something.. horrifying. Warrior, a well-loved local hero, had become Zion. Nobody knew what had happened, or even why, but suddenly, heroes and villains were turning into monsters all over the world. There was originally calls for a national undertaking, to better understand the monsterfication and find ways to fight back. Eventually, the monsters grew too numerous, too destructive, and it slowly, it dawned on everyone that the world was ending.\n\nThe superpowered community initially rallied and fought back against these changes, reasoning that if they policed themselves, they could stop the outgrowth. It was futile. They ripped each other apart, their members turning into monsters within days. The civilian populace panicked. They talked of building huge walls or going underground or even underwater. They did try. Even now nobody knows how many were massacred.\n\nThe day I discovered I had powers was the last day of my old life. I woke up floating off my bed in the shelter, and with the scared looks of my parents. I knew I had to leave. I didn’t know how long I had until I turned into a monster, but I wasn’t going to let my parents suffer for it. I packed a knife, food, and some clothes, and bid my parents farewell. I never returned.\n\nMy first days on the surface, alone, was fast and dangerous. I had to make my niche, and what else was better than fighting monsters? Settlements would call me and I would travel over and fight whatever they needed to be fought. It was a cruel twist of fate, fighting the things I would eventually turn into, and it was often pointless. More than once have I arrived at a settlement only to find ashes. Hell, more than once had I arrived at a settlement only to find them preparing to lynch me. That kind of thing was common in the wastes. Anybody with powers was mistrusted, and often times a target. They would call it ‘nipping the problem in the bud’. I called it paranoia and fear mongering. \n\nI’ve run into other powered people a few times, though I’ve always kept meetings brief. I don’t know what causes the change, but I wasn’t going to risk somebody else turning on me. Still, it was nice to compare notes and tell each other what kind of monsters was easier to fight. Some basic mental-type? Just run up and stab it enough times and it’ll die. God-tier brute who could tank a nuclear missile? Just run.\n\nThe annoying part was that I couldn’t fly away from all of this. I could fly for only a few minutes at a time, and even then I risked being attacked by the sky beasts. God. Those things were terrifying to see off In the distance. No clue what those were, whether they were whatever flying paras like me turned into or some sort of evolution, but I wasn’t going to go anywhere near those things. \n\nAlong the journey I picked up one or two stragglers, and we formed a ‘team’ of sorts. It was really just a band of mistrusting individuals who was paranoid that everyone was going to turn into monsters but them, but maybe that was just me. Still, it was having a flying brick, an idiot genius, and a guy who’s body was like rubber having your back from time to time. We all know that eventually one of us will turn. But like we’re doing now, we’ll deal with it together.", "I sat and watched from the shadows. \n\nCould I stop this? Probably. The better question I asked myself, was it worth to stop this? It was safer to get out of here. Much safer. His time was up. Our time together was up. I survived long enough without him. I knew this moment was coming. It was only a matter of time just like all the others. \n\nWhy was it so hard to turn away though?\n\nThe Savages surrounded him. All wearing their trademark gas masks and body armor that was covered in dirt. Each held their guns at him. If I had to guess, only three out of the eight actually had bullets in those guns. It wouldn’t matter in a few minutes. Pulling that trigger was the only way to stop this. And for some reason, non pulled the trigger.\n\nHe screamed out in pain, curling up in a fetal position on the ground. I would say it looked pathetic but I’ve seen this happen too many times to know what it does to the body. The strain it puts on you. The altering of the mind and some even the altering of their bodies. Lucky for him, his body didn't change much. Only his veins popping out of his skin and muscles convulsing. I've seen much worse.\n\nFunny, when the Nemesis hit, everyone thought it was the beginning of a new era. A beginning of heroes and villains. Just like in movies and comic books. How naive was that? It was almost like the craze back in the 80s and 90s when they all thought they found the cure for pain management. No one asked how or why. Now, that’s all anyone does any more. \n\nThat and survive. \n\nLucky for me, I’m smart and wasn’t infected by the Nemesis. Simple, stay away from highly concentrated areas. New York, LA, Miami. One can’t extract it from another person. No one knows how you get infected but I’ve known people that have been around them longer than I have and they are still kicking with no infection. Hell, most travel in groups with them and are still kicking. That is until this happens. The Nemesis.\n\nI got my use out of him. Six months. Everyone thinks it’ll be the same for them. They can beat the Nemesis curse. But two years, maybe two and a half if you’re lucky. Then this happens. \n\n“Stand back.” One of the Savages ordered.\n\n“Take him out.” Another yelled. \n\nThey all looked at each other like cartoon characters, unsure of what to do. One of them was small. His legs shook and looked frantically at the others. None made a move. Non pulled the trigger. All of them seemed as though they were trying to hold themselves together. \n\nI couldn’t believe this. These Savages wanted to kill him but didn’t have the means to do so. Someone better slit his throat or else this whole little town was about to be destroyed. Eighty people lived here. Maybe ninety. \n\nThe young Savage dropped the gun and started running. \n\n“Get back here coward.” A deep voice yelled. They all called for him. Others clearly wanted to follow but didn’t. They took an oath and apparently meant it. \n\n“Idiots,” I mumbled to myself. That was my ticket out of here or else I’d be dead in the next few minutes. \n\nI turned from them, listening to his cries. Apart of me wanted to turn around and give him one last look. But If I did that, I knew I’d stay. Can’t get attached to these people. Take what you can, learn from them, move on to the next. That was the only way to survive in this world. \n\nThe homes around me were destroyed. Rubble everywhere most hardly were held up any longer and the grass and dirt started to overtake them. Some had vines crawling up the sides. The cars were rusted in the streets and didn’t work. It would have been a miracle to get one of them on. \n\nI had other means of transportation. And she was a beauty. A nice stallion, white with gray spots covering her. Her head was down and feeding. But I stopped. Something was off. My saddle. I groaned. Reached behind me. \n\nMy bow was gone because I forgot to grab it, thinking everything would be all right. Just what I needed. Not a big deal. I’ll make a new one. \n\nThe screams came from behind me. Not much time. Got to go. Now. \n\nI started running the moment I heard the first blast. Such a useful Nemesis gone to waste. Whatever, I needed to leave. \n\nSomething hit me. I rolled to the ground. Footsteps pounded around me. I looked up and saw two men running. Both of them for my horse. \n\n“Son of a -” I cursed and pulled out my knife. I gave chase just as another blast hit the road behind me. Screams came from all around now. Rubble flew all around me and came down like meteors. I felt a few rocks hit the bag on my back. That could have hurt. \n\nThe two men reached for my horse. One tried to hop on while the other jumped to grab him. She neighed and got on her hind legs. He seized the reign but she started to buck and kick. He flew off of her and she started running. \n\nI groaned. That could take an hour or so to find her. It didn’t matter. I would. \n\nI sheathed my knife and gave chase to my horse. The two others followed. \n\n“Back off. She's mine,” I yelled. \n\n“Not anymore.” One yelled. \n\nI felt my bag being yanked back. My feet kept going as I was pulled back. I hit the ground as the two men kept running. \n\nThat’s when I felt it. A surge of power coursing through me that I never felt before. My blood rushed through my veins, a surge built up in my hands that needed to be released. I didn’t know what came over me. I felt the vein popping in my brain and then instinctually, I held up my hand. \n\nThe surge ran down my shoulder, into my arm and then a blast of yellow energy shot from my hand like a bullet. The oblong shape was so fast, it hit one of them. He flew in the air, slammed into the home face first. Blood splattered on the wall and the body fell to the ground. \n\nWithout thinking, another blast of energy shot from my hand. The man turned around, eyes wide as the blast hit him in the face. I heard the bones snap as he flew across the ground, sliding, leaving behind him a trail of blood. \n\n“Shit…” Was the only thing going through my mind.", "Immune. Immortal. Invincible.\n\nI know I am going to be a problem once I turn.\n\nAn unsolvable one.\n\nMy main powers have to do with ghosts, I can float, phase through walls.\n\nAnd the Plague.\n\nI carry it, control it.\n\nI have given up on curing people. Those I don't know. \n\nThose I don't love.\n\nMy skin is growing pale.\n\nMy eyes begin to glow.\n\nMy hair is darker than a human's.\n\nMy nails became claws.\n\nMy canines grow sharper.\n\nI infect my loved ones.\n\nWith the secret Plague.\n\nMaking them Immune. Immortal. Invincible.\n\nThat one is only for them. Only for those I love.\n\nI infect my enemies with the worst version of the Plague.\n\nThey may control their bodies, no more.\n\nThey rot. Become feral.\n\nSkin blackening.\n\nI infect strangers.\n\nMaking them my servants. They have their free will still, can control their bodies.\n\nBut not completely. Never to disobey.\n\nI infect the monsters.\n\nIt's an alliance. My plague improves their abilities and they aid me in exchange.\n\nI don't live in the Apocalypse.\n\nI *AM* THE APOCALYPSE.", "I won't ever forget the day I woke up and realized I had extraordinary powers. I filled up the tea kettle and in transferring the kettle back to the stove, just thinking about turning the stove on made my hands glow red hot and melted the kettle. Apparently I wasn't the only one to wake up with new found power, or so the news said.\n\nPeople had already began turning, as soon as the powers were recognized something inside of everyone starts ticking, blood pumping through all of their organs, until it happens. What happens is unique to each person, it has some semblance of the power you gained but takes a new form, some good, but a lot of them quite ugly.\n\nNo one is sure how long each person has until they morph into some extreme form of the person they think they are. Regular brain function goes out the window when the power starts flowing. Humans who used their powers for good can't control themselves any longer. My theory is the power exacerbates a problem within us all, whether it's a desire for power, to be recognized, or simply being a little insecure of ourselves. Unfortunately the good deeds can't hold back the flood gates of the monsters being created, and it's only a matter of time before all of us are consumed by what's inside.", "I duck under a partially collapsed roof as a shadow streaks by overhead. The flying ones can be some of the worst, depending on the power. Thankfully this seems to be a transformation type, insectoid by the looks of those chitinous wings and the fly-like eyes. Compound eyes may be a problem, but it also means that what they see isn't very high definition. Move very little and they probably won't notice you, especially around cover. I watch it disappear over the horizon before letting out a deep sigh. It's been eight months since the start of all of this. Every single human on earth was given a superhuman ability. These can range from telekinesis to the creation of miniature stars in the palm of your hand. The first news articles called it a 'miracle'. Even back then I wasn't buying it, and especially not after the first bodies started dropping. Turns out, giving criminals superpowers creates a lot more problems than a few heroes solves.\n\nIf that was the worst of it though, the planet might have survived. It's downfall can be traced back to one man: a suburban father from Boulder, Colorado named Ian Freely. It was found that his ability created minor mutations in other people's powers using his own blood. Seeing a get-rich-quick scheme he started selling as much of it as he could to anyone who would buy. How did anyone expect that to go any way but terribly? I mean just the immediate consequences alone would have stopped any rational person from doing something like that, but with such a wide array of people in the world, there was bound to be a combination that just went wrong. It happened in the worst way possible: someone who had no idea what their ability did hoped mutation would make it apparent, and the seemingly innocuous virus he was inadvertently spreading got a major boost. The first mutations started four months ago, the virus causing a loss of reason, and Ian's DNA adding mutations to anyone who caught it.\n\nMost of the world is infected, and a lot of the people barely resemble humans anymore. Aside from a few people with a natural immunity to the virus, most survivors have been living in a few underground bunkers. The virus is airborne so anyone who was able to get to a filtered environment has been able to stay relatively safe. That is, until the food started to run out. My power makes me perfect for the task of gathering food: Since the Awakening, I no longer need to eat or breathe. Pretty sure it has something to do with photosynthesis sustaining me, but I could be wrong. I was not very high on the priority list for scientific studies before it all went to hell. Night is falling so I decide to make this house camp and start heading back in the morning.\n\nAround 2 A.M. I am jolted awake by screaming in the distance. Grabbing my sniper rifle with night vision scope I scan the area nearby. Two bright dots catch my attention, one clearly chasing the other. The one being chased still looks human. Female, maybe thirties, I can't tell through the scope. As I watch she dives to the side as the other lunges to where she was standing a second ago. The action showed reason, is she an Immune? The other one is a lot larger and definitely no longer human. Covered in fur and sporting some wicked looking curved claws, looks like a wolf transformation this time. Not good, he might be able to smell me. Do I risk firing? If there were any bat-types nearby her scream would have already drawn them, I think I'm safe to take it out. One benefit of not having to breathe is the ability to keep a sniper rifle much more steady than the average human. Adjusting the angle takes me less than three seconds, and with one bullet planted between the eyes the wolf goes down.\n\nThe woman surprisingly does not look confused by her sudden turn of good luck. Instead she confidently strides to my location, hands up in a gesture of peace. Making me extremely wary is the fact that I didn't telegraph my position to her. Keeping my sidearm trained on her I tell her to hold, before realizing she already has. Precog type, that explains it; this could be a very profitable encounter for the group. \"Thank you for the assistance\" she calls out to me, \"But could you have picked a closer spot? I had to run for a full twenty minutes to get here.\" Her voice sounds a bit hollow and I wonder just how many times she saw her own death before making it here. I try to open my mouth but before I can get a word out she says \"And before you ask, I would be happy to join your bunker, but first I need a nap.\" I look on bemused as she walks over to my sleeping bag and climbs in. I guess I'm first watch. \"And second.\" she says, before falling almost immediately asleep. I chuckle to myself and start scanning the area of the corpse for signs of scavengers. It's going to be a long night.", "It started not too long ago. People coming out with a whole arrangement of abilities. Some of it typical comic-book blockbuster stuff. Speed, strength, flight, commanding various elements, etc. That was enough to question people’s grasp on reality. \n\nAs time went on, more and more people gained these abilities, gradually becoming more diverse. I remember being told of Mindmelt, a villain who, strangely enough, could cause paranoia and visions so long as he outstretched his hands at you. \n\nHowever as it started to create a sparkle in the eyes of children across the globe, it also stunned them. \nThe first recorded transformation was Cinder, who used to stun and awe crowds as they used blasts of fire to reduce and ‘resign’ the newer phenomena of monsters. As they were doing a casual drive through the city, the official recordings state a large blast. \n“50ft radius incineration- many casualties- unofficially 20 but those remains were ash to the touch. In the middle stands before all of us, what looks to be a towering behemoth of fire, the same pure red of Cinder, and a wild, hungry, unfamiliar visage stands before us.”\n\nThe records state it took 10 hours to eliminate the threat. \n\nPeople recognised what became of those who defended and fought back these monsters. \nWe stopped using names. No Gallavanter, Prismer, no Ice Queen. Not even John, Mary, Achmed, Xiao. We nearly stopped calling ourselves heroes. Just deterrents at this point. \n\nI’ve always wondered what was in store for us. What is the end. \nSitting here at the epicentre of my field, utilising my ability to accelerate natural processes, I hear news that the other remaining, well, empowered individual, has finally been slain. A breathe of uncertain ease releases from me. \n\nThen my radio cracks. And I feel it. The urge. No not an urge. An overwhelming wave of nausea. I can’t hold it in this time, so I scream. My crops explode from barely being stalks to being overgrown. But this time they keep growing. They aren’t stopping. Or decaying. As I battle the dirt for the strength to stand I realise my hands are ancient and wooden looking. And twice the size as usual. Eventually it spreads beyond my hands and I am taken over. My consciousness is..bein...b...\n\n——————————————————————————\n\nHeavily armed forces are migrating towards the last known location of the Farmer. As they approach the area around them quickly becomes thick jungle. The calm low prairies which used to hold vast acres of crops are now a thick arrangement of ancient trees and thickets. Some of the soldiers can nearly swear that the trees are grimacing at them. Some of them notice this just before a spire of vines grow beneath them. Some of them are doomed enough to survive first hit.", " I realize my superpower. It’s stopping time/super speed to the point that I perceive time as not moving.\n At the beginning, I am in denial.\n “No, this can’t be. I have to redeem myself. Make it so no one can see me as a monster. So I won’t BE a monster.”\n So, I go out killing every monster I run into. Monsters going to people turning, those turning to people who have just developed their superpowers. I have the philosophy that they should die a hero, and not live long enough to become a villain. Eventually, people who are slightly different to society fall into my range.\n Killing people left and right, society becomes more and more black and white. I am one of the only “heroes” in my general area, either that being city or state.\n Eventually, I contemplate killing myself. But I cannot do it, since I am afraid of what the world would be like without me.\n Eventually, everything I do is turned to a blind killing spree. People screaming for their mommy, their best friend, their son, begging for mercy, but it all sounds like excuses to me.\n Once the city or state has reached the point that there are only ~95% people dead, I finally decide to take a good look at myself.\n I see nothing, but a monster in the shell of a human. A confused and scared soul in a murderous frenzy. A hero turned villain. I won’t cry, I won’t even frown, or smile, or laugh. I have become a soulless being. No morals, through all of the deaths I have caused. I only now understand what the world would be like without me.\n Compared to now, the world would be heaven.", "There are no heroes. No villains. Just humans trying to survive.\n\nThe Black Coat shoved me with the butt of his rifle.\n\n\"Do your job, exxer. Your target is hiding in that cabin. Finish it before the Sun sets or we're halving your pay.\"\n\nThe Black Coat shook his head and walked back to his squad.\n\n\"Why do we even bother paying them,\" he muttered, \"We'll be hunting her in a month. A year max. Exhumans are all the same.\"\n\nI trudged up the old footpath. Untrimmed thistles enroached its edges and threatened to devour the path whole, just as brambles covered most of the decrepit building ahead. The cabin was dark, seemingly abandoned save for the giant concrete slabs laid blocking the door.\n\nPulling one arm back, I took a deep breath, gathered all my energy to my fist and smashed a hole through the slabs and into the cabin.\n\n\"Matt!\", I called, \"Sorry I think I broke your front door.\"\n\n\"Sarah. I should have known they'd send you. After all the years working together. All the better to kill me with right?\"\n\nIn the center of the cabin, Matthew was hovering five feet off the ground. Around him danced chairs, plates and cups. Everything was hovering actually. Rubble debris floated in the corners, even the smashed concrete pieces outside were starting to rise.\n\nMatthew saw me eyeing the room. \"Sorry I would offer you a cuppa but-\"\n\n\"You've gone Wild.\" I faced him now and I felt my teeth clench.\n\n\"And I've gone 100 miles away from civilization. You know I would never harm anyone.\", Matthew said softly.\n\n\"I'm sorry Matt. We both know how it is.\", I said, pulling one arm back. I took a deep breath, gathered all my energy to my fist and I felt myself slam into the ceiling of the cabin. I only had time to gasp as the air squeezed out of my lungs before I crashed back to the ground.\n\nThe ceiling of the cabin erupted into the sky. Dazed, I felt myself rise into the air again, weightless and powerless. In front of me, Matthew rose too until we both hovered above the cabin. Around us swirled a cacophony of household items and pieces from the cabin itself.\n\nFlailing my limbs I tried to escape, to do something, anything.\n\nMatthew sighed. \"Wild...\", he mused. \"I remember the first time I flew. Like really flew. The first couple of years I could only get a few feet off the ground you know. Look at me now.\"\n\n\"Matt please. You can't run from this. We can't run from this.\" I stopped flailing and noticed the sad smile on Matthew's lips.\n\n\"The first time I flew, I saw the city crying for help. The destruction, the death, the hate. It was just a bunch of people in need of saving. From things like us. Ironic I know.\", Matthew smirked. Slowly, Matthew started to hover toward me.\n\n\"Is that why you joined the Black Coats?\", I replied. The only thing I could do now was talk.\n\n\"I guess I wanted to play hero. Or perhaps helping other people made me feel... human.\"\n\nMatthew stopped right in front of me, his eyes glistening in the setting Sun. The storm of debris surrounding us eased into silence and we gradually descended back to the ground. Closing his eyes, Matthew embraced me.\n\n\"Oh Matt...\", I whispered, as I wrapped my arms around him, \"We are human.\" I took a deep breath and gathered all my energy to my arms.", "I felt power coursing through my veins. I always knew I would someday. Mom and dad were bother heroes, back in the Good Old Days. My mom could control fire. I miss her. My dad? He's invincible. He can't be cut, or bruised, or poisoned. Nothing hurts him. I wish when mom lost control, she could have taken him with her.\n\nI felt the power radiating through me. It felt warm. It felt right. I was scared I would end up like mom at first. But I slowly got a sense for what my power did. I reached down, and gently placed my hand on my sprained ankle. The relief was immediate. I was a healer! Healers were always some of the most powerful heroes in the Good Old Days. Maybe there was still hope. Maybe I could find some people who haven't lost control yet. Maybe the age of heroes wasn't over. \n\nA few days later, one of my new allies was killed. A child with control over wind. My father was merciless. I ran over to the boy. no pulse, over a dozen of his bones broken. there would be no saving him if it were anyone but me. I touched him, saw his wounds slowly knit back together. he opened his eyes. they looked a little blank, but that was fine. I didn't need his mind, just his power. I guided him to suffocate my father. My father's body may be beyond harm, but he still needed to breath. \n\nAfter my father collapsed, I waited a few minutes, my companion swaying listlessly. I went over to my father and tried to heal him. He stood up like the boy, blank but alive. With this power, i could stop the apocalypse. I could bring things back, even better than the Good Old Days. I smiled softly. My power would save this world. I would be unstoppable." ]	11
	[WP] Before, the Mandela Effect was inconsequential. A few misremembered children's books, etc. But now, it's real and catastrophic, with a war nobody recalls fighting in; millions who believe a different person won the election; and physicists convinced that last week, you invented time travel.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 scientists stood around the room, staring at me expectantly. I look at the machine on the table in front of me. It's nothing remarkable, just a metallic wrist cuff, no wider than a cell phone. The room was eerily silent and it was starting to make me feel uncomfortable. Deep breaths, deep breaths, at least I'm not out in the riots.\n\nSighing, I finally pick the thing up causing more than one of the scientists to gasp. The thing was heavier that it looked like it would be, probably the weight of a bag of sugar. Turning it over I could see an intricate pattern on the bottom, which I assume is the circuitry. Carefully I place it back down onto the table.\n\n \"So how does it work exactly?\" I asked to no one in particular. Causing a small mousey haired woman with glasses, the head physicist I guess, to step forward. \"Well, you, um. You know,\" she smiled, \"just do the same thing you did before,\" many of the others nodded to that.\n\n\"oh yeah, of course,\" I crouch down staring at it, thinking. The thing is I have no idea what it was. They dragged me in hear about 20 minutes ago, told me I invented time travel and now they were expecting me to just make it happen. I'm not even a damned scientist. At least as far as I remember. But, that has been happening to everyone nowadays.\n\nSighing once again I stand, rolling my left sleeve up. \"here goes nothing,\" I say entirely to myself as I put the damned thing on my arm. Nothing happens. The room releases a collective breath as suddenly, it clasps tightly around my forearm. I claw at it with my other hand trying to get it off, when a beep starts to come from the thing. The scientists all take a step back muttering to one another as I still try to take it off. The beeping gets quicker. Screw it, I try to run to the door. I make three steps when all of a sudden a blinding white light flashs.", "(This does not match the prompt uniformly but was definitely inspired by it, enjoy)\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI wanted to believe what they were telling me was true. The room in which our conversation was currently being held was so brightly white that it slightly pained my eyes. The room was secluded from the rest of the establishment, and I imagine that is because this is where the important meetings are held. The three men sitting in front of me wore lab coats as white as the walls, and all three were bespectacled.\n\nAll this was strange in itself, but what they were explaining to me was far more confusing. They said, \"Well, shall we get straight to the point?\" and his eyeglass-wearing brothers nodded in agreement, \"Okay. So, basically, we know that you created the science of time travel this past week, and we just want you to know that we are willing to do anything as long as you help us and the rest of the world with this breakthrough.\"\n\nLike I said, I wanted to believe this, but I remembered last week and well, it did not involve any assembling of a time machine or any machine for that matter. I had no possession of any silver Deloreans, any blue public telephone boxes, or anything of the kind. What had I done last week? Well, other than checking in and out of work, nothing.\n\nThe scientists sat in front of me, and I believe right now they are babbling about reasons as to why I should tell them my \"secret.\" I was in no way listening to them, I was far too deep in my own thought. I wanted to have an answer for these guys, and I also had a sense of needing to get out of this place. I decided that I will play casual for a while and ride out the predicament in front of me.\n\nI couldn't even remember how I got here, and I was not sure if that was due to the Mandela effect or if my mind was far too busy for memory. The main scientist, a pudgy one with neat hair that was seated in the middle, continued on his long speech for science.\n\n\"...and that is why you should tell us, sir,\" the main scientist finished, looking hopefully at me, \"do you reject our offer?\"\n\nI had no idea what he said. I decided to play cool, so I scratched my chin and grunted. \"I think you should run through that one more time, I am not convinced yet.\"\n\nSo he did, and this time I paid full attention. He wanted me to tell them the secret so that they could conduct more heavy research on time periods that were impossible to conduct heavy research in. He wanted researchers to be able to travel to these times and make observations so we can better understand our world and maybe even the universe. There also just so happened to be a gargantuan amount of money promised to be under my possession if I gave them what they wanted.\n\nAfter finishing his speech for the second time that day (though he had recited it to himself earlier in the day many times, making this more like the seventh time it was repeated) the main scientist displayed a warm, inviting smile.\n\nI didn't immediately know how to react so I began stroking my chin once more. If I did tell them anything, then it would be hard to keep up the act, but I would also be a rich man. An incredibly famous one too, for being the man who tricked the world. These scientists would be remembered as the dopes believing such an inauspicious lie. The appeal behind that idea was maliciously tasty.\n\n\"But if the scientists knew you lied, then why would they give you the money?\" I hear you asking. Well, the funny thing is they offered a down payment of three hundred thousand dollars. These three guys might really be the most dope of the dope.\n\nSo I held on to the act of stroking my chin for a minute longer, the three scientists shifting in their seats impatiently as they watched my every move. Finally, I decided to act.\n\n\"We have a deal,\" I said confidently.\n\nThe three scientists began laughing cheerfully as I offered my hand to close the deal. They did not move to shake my hand. I was quizzical of them for this did not seem like celebratory laughter but more like they were laughing at the joke. They looked at each other as if they knew this was going to happen, and I just held my hand out still, froze in confusion.\n\n\"Sorry, sorry sir. You are part of an experiment we are performing on the human mind and lies!\" the main scientist boasted to me.\n\nMy hand fell as quickly as my feeling of ignoble success. In my debate over tricking these people into giving me several hundred thousand dollars, they had been prepared to disappoint me and crush my dreams. Though, I thought of what I had done. I had been ready to lie to men of science in order to steal money from them. I hoped they were happy with their newly gained data.", "SCP-4254:\n\nClass: Keter\n\nSpecial Containment Procedures:\n\nSCP-4254 cannot be contained at the current time. Foundation efforts have instead focused on concealing the anomalous nature of SCP-4254, and documenting its current incongruity. \n\nThe public must not become aware that the incongruity associated with SCP-4254 spread at a rapid pace. A continuous misinformation campaign must be in place in order to convince the general public that the current incongruity has always been believed on some level. \n\nThis idea will be spread through a combination of Foundation-controlled social media accounts, doctored web pages made to look like years-old forum posts, and occasionally paid ads on conventional media.\n\nThe existence of a Mandela Effect must be perpetuated by the Foundation in order to explain the effects of SCP-4254. Releasing carefully doctored research in the scientific community, combined with previously mentioned misinformation techniques, has proven effective in maintaining this belief. \n\nDescription:\n\nSCP-4254 is an anomalous, self-spreading, and evolving cognitohazard that embeds a false memory into public consciousness.\n\nThis false memory can spread through word of mouth, the internet, or any other communication channel. Once a person obtains knowledge of the false memory, there is a chance that they will become infected. They will then posess this false memory, and become a potential vector for the spread of SCP-4254.\n\nInfection is not guaranteed. Those who are generally skeptical show a greater resistance to SCP-4254. For this reason, knowledge of the Mandela Effect acts as a partial inoculant for the spread of SCP-4254. In addition, false memories that are easy to believe are more likely to spread.\n\nThe exact epidemiology of SCP-4254 is currently unknown, however it appears that global infections implant a false memory in ██% of the human race approximately once per year. Between these events, several smaller outbreaks of SCP-4254 spread, but only infect around 1,000 individuals.\n\nOnly a small number of SCP-4254 outbreaks are viable enough to cause a wide scale infection. The reason for this is unknown, but it is likely that the most believable ideas have the best chance of causing a global outbreak. \n\nAddendum: High-profile outbreaks\n\n---------\n\nFalse memory: Neil Armstrong's first words on the moon were \"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.\"\n\nActual event: Due to limitations in technology, the original broadcast contained no audio.\n\n----------\n\nFalse memory: Existence of the movie The Matrix: Revolutions\n\nActual event: The movie was partially filmed, but never properly released.\n\n\"I actually remember watching this one.\" - Researcher █████\n\n---------\n\nFalse Memory: Apple CEO Tim Cook announcing the removal of the iPhone's headphone jack\n\nActual event: This fact was announced on Twitter 24 hours after Tim Cook's speech. The speech itself is largely considered uneventful.", "It's been five years, and still I remember her eyes. They were bubbling caramel and mocha, under frosted glass and glaze. I see them in my sleep. I see them when I blink. I see them, glazed and shining, glazed and shining, unearthly bright and it hurts to think sometimes. I've long forgotten everything else, but her eyes would launch a thousand nukes.\n\nThey did… they did. And yet I wake up and the stock market has reached a new high.\n\nI wrote it all down, three times. Once on a computer, once in a journal, once a tattoo on my own skin. The computer crashed, the journal was stolen, and the tattoo - the tattoo disappeared. I can't trust the world around me. I can't trust this. But I must write, I must remind myself.\n\nAnd her eyes, her eyes! I have not looked in a mirror as far as I can think. What of my eyes? It feels as though light has speared through my brain. Her theories - I cannot call them mine - were all correct, and I saw her again, her eyes, stumbled-ran towards her again and a wave of nausea and pin-prickles crested\n\nI had been five years back. I woke up and I was back in my time, I had built a machine but it was gone, and I needed to remember the schematics. I needed help. I told a friend - a physicist - the calculations, the theories, the models the light had brought me. The lights in her eyes started to glow brighter as she walked away. I haven't seen her since.\n\nCan one man fight reality and win? I do not know. But I must fight. I am compelled to fight. There are some things beyond the reach of this universe, and I saw one. I know that. And I must know what of her eyes I saw. I must know what" ]	5
	[WP] Your friend pushed you off the roof of a thirty story building to prove you were a super hero that could fly. You are now free falling to what seems to you like a certain death...	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 I’m falling, feeling the air around my body, and the pressure through my limbs, looking at the street coming closer and closer...the people on that same street getting bigger and bigger...As I take note of the darkness of the sky above me contrasting with the lights of the city under me, I suddenly feel a warmness inside me. A warmness that I had always had inside but had never really focused on, but as I see myself facing a certain death, it kinda takes the whole place in my mind. My inner self reaches for it, kind if like tentacles piercing that tiny ball of heat in my chest, and as I accept it, getting fully aware of it, letting it flow through my body, my fall toward certain death abruptly stops and I float there, a few meters over the street. I feel powerful and uneasy at the same time. Not really knowing how to control that new strong body, and super aware brain. I let myself fall slowly down, like a feather falling off a flying bird..." ]	2
	[WP] You've always dreamed of being the hero in a fantasy world that saves the land and lives happily ever after. But after unexpectedly finding yourself in such a world, and as time goes on, you suspect that you're slowly being set up to become the evil Demon King instead.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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's been a busy couple of months so far but i think it's fair to say now that maybe i've been set up\n\nEver since i came here i have done nothing but be helpful, i've saved some villagers and they kindly said \"he has the infamous black hair.... could it be?\" i'm glad that my hair is famous, it's my trademark\n\nPeople in this world either have brown hair or literally anything that isn't black, and demons are bald, as far as i can tell, maybe, i think\n\nWell that's besides the point, what's really important is the army surrounding me \n\n\"you have fooled around for far too long, demon\" a knight with golden armor and shiny aura that you'd mistake for a lightbulb if you looked at it from a distance, it hurts my eyes to look at this guy\n\n\"I thought we were friends, mark\" i was honestly disheartened, me and mark were supposed to be lifelong sworn brothers\n\n\"listen here, you killed countless people in the name of some fucked up justice, sure they did bad things but you killed a bandit that was making a living by stealing apples, APPLES, that was all he took and you killed him mercilessly with that hellish blade of yours, i don't even think he hurt anyone, and my name isn't mark, it's Marcius De Von Kaiser\" he sounded disgusted with me as he recalled a horrifying encounter, at least that's what i can tell\n\n\"Whatever you say Mark, and i needed the EXP from that level 4 bandit, he was a mob\" i was dejected that i'd have to fight my sworn brother, he was one of the first people i met and has protected me dutifully until now, he had a strong sense of justice and a nice backstory\n\n\"You claimed to be the hero, you possessed power worthy of being an otherworlder and have fought against danger again and again, i cannot deny that, after all, even i can't defeat a dragon but you did, in a party alongside me and others but that is another matter, you shall pay for your crimes, i hate people like you the most, ones trying to act all kind and chivalrous but are corrupt and evil to the extreme, you fooled me for the last time\" he strengthened the grip on his blade as he took a stance\n\n\"wait, is this about the time i burnt a village or about that forest? i told you i thought it was fake hostages in that village and it was okay to burn the forest entirely, i gained ten levels from that\" i tried defending myself but it only seemed to anger Mark, he charged at me on his own while the army prepared to fight against me \n\nI'm a good person i swear, so why am i getting attacked?", "I've seen this before.\n\nGive the schmuck a big sword, a shield, some armor, and a huge story about saving the world.\n\nMeh... I'll give it a go. It sounds too good to be true, so it probably ain't, but you know? This time.. this time it just might be true.\n\nFirst few rescues, perfect.\n\nNext few adventures, near perfect. A few things off color. Still not ruined.\n\nA while longer, and villagers are making the sign of the horns behind my back.\n\nRight, it's gone sour, and I'm not having any of it. I disappear in the city, and go out the West gate as a mendicant.\n\nBy the time I reach the desert, I'm a hermit looking for a hole to crawl into. Oh, not just any hole, one that's actually been blessed by a god of lawful good. I've even brought all the materials and prayers to re-sanctify it. And you'd better believe that I've been working on my mindset to be worthy of my God.\n\nAh, there it is. A simple hole in a cliff face. Difficult to get to, dangerous to stay in, and absolutely forbidden to any evil influences. Even got a potion to deal with that if I'm already contaminated.\n\nSo, step into the cave. No problem. Check the state of the sanctification, a bit patchy. Time to refresh it. Goes perfectly. I'm starting to get nervous. Things are going too well.\n\nSettle in for some serious soul searching. No not that, my own soul. Okay, there's a smudge or two. Something I did didn't go quite right. Dig into that.\n\nHuh. That kid. He's okay now, but he was supposed to die? Whuffo? Oh, he's the hero, and I was supposed to kill him. Fine, I'm glad that didn't happen. Praying about it, I finally am granted Grace for that act of good. I really do mean it. I'm serious. I do not want to be the evil overlord.\n\nOther smudge. Another kid?!. He's supposed to be the big bad? Oh, no. They're best friends. No. That's not going to happen. Prayers for the friends. Remain friends, neither of you must die. Remain home.\n\nThere. The prophecy cannot happen now.\n\nPiff Poff\n\nAh, the two trouble makers.\n\n\"No heroic trap. No mass damage. No patsy. Just plain clean happiness. Get used to it.\"\n\n\"We can...\"\n\n\"Nope, I'm not your alignment.\"\n\n((Tbc, battery dying))", "My body seemed light as I woke to find myself sprawled upon a bed of dark lilies. Slowly rising to my feet, I took in my surroundings. It felt like another dream. It had to have been another dream. Far above me was a blood-red moon, the kind you'd see during a forest fire. But I smelled no smoke. In fact, the air was crisp and cool.\n\nThere was almost too much detail for it to be a dream. Though my mind was at peace, adrenaline flowed through my veins. I bobbed through the meadow at a nice pace, dancing through the long grass. In the waking world, my body was far too weak to move without the assistance of a cane. And yet here I was, moving so freely.\n\nNo, despite how far-fetched it seemed, there was no doubt that this fantastic reality was the waking world. I was, after all, awake. And fully cognizant of my actions. And it seemed to me that there was no plot to follow, no absurdly unrealistic event, no familiar places twisted by my ailing mind. This was a world unique to itself, and it felt amazing to frolic through it.\n\nI found myself soon following a path that wound its way through some trees and up a small hill. It felt so good just to move. I was running at a brisk pace by the time I happened upon my first human interaction in this world; A wagon carrying a group of startled teenagers and children had been stopped in the middle of the road.\n\nAt the front of the wagon, standing a good twenty paces from the horse drawing it, was a feeble older man. He held out a staff, which he swung nervously at three bare skeletons who stood before him. They carried rusty, chipped weapons, but it was enough to make the old man quiver in fear.\n\nThis was my moment. This was what I had dreamed of. For whatever reason, seeing the skeletons filled me with fire. I had a desire to dominate them. To tame them. To send them scurrying away. And I had an even deeper desire to impress the humans. To show them that I was the hero they had long-awaited to stop the skeletons.\n\nFor my first encounter in this world, it wasn't a bad thought. I was armed with nothing. In fact, I was naked. And yet all seemed to stand still as I galloped up past the old man to stand between them.\n\nInstantly, the skeletons dropped to one knee. In retrospect, it was out of recognition of my authority. But to me, at the time, they were surrendering before my might.\n\n\"Begone!\" I shouted in a voice much deeper than my normal human tones. \"Or I shall crack your bones like eggs and feed the marrow to the worms!\"\n\nWith that, they fled. There was no hesitation. They jumped to their feet, turned around, and ran. My first heroic act. I turned to greet that grateful humans, but to my surprise, they too were cowering.\n\n\"What do you fear?\" I demanded. Perhaps the tone in my voice was a bit cruel, because the old man yelped a bit.\n\n\"I-I am taking the kids to a f-festival in t-t-town.\" He was clutching the staff close to his body now, much like how a child would cling to a mother's leg. \"The sk-sk-skeletons assailed us. W-we didn't mean to trespass.\"\n\nI shook my head \"You've done no wrong. Take me to this village, let me celebrate your safe arrival.\"\n\nThe man nodded. And so I joined him at the front of the wagon. Something deep within me itched sitting next to the feeble group. It felt like I was a teenager sitting next to a pretty girl. Something within wanted to act, but didn't.\n\nThe ride was uneventful. It couldn't have been longer than fifteen minutes. The road was quiet, with not even the call of an owl that would normally grace a night like this. But as soon as the lights of the village came in view, the driver drew the wagon to a halt.\n\n\"I'm afraid this is as far as we can take you.\" Though he didn't stutter, there was still fear in his voice. The skeletons must have really shaken him up.\n\nI was about to protest, but remembering my nakedness, I agreed. The village wasn't too far away now. When I asked to borrow some clothes, the man quickly agreed.\n\nThere wasn't much for me in the wagon. Just a pair of trousers and a cloak to keep the chill off my back. He practically dropped them at my feet before cracking the reigns and taking off much quicker than we had been traveling earlier. It wasn't much of a 'thank you' for dealing with the skeletons for them.\n\nBut I brushed it off. This was a village. If there was some great quest, it would start here. Maybe I could rescue the elder's daughter, or slay a corp-burning dragon. This was a fantasy world where skeletons, and therefore evil, trembled before me. I was a hero.\n\nBut I certainly didn't feel like one. Walking into the village, people turned to avoid me. I could hear music coming from around a bonfire, but it quickly died out as I came in view. Children stared as if I were some fascinating creature. Dogs snarled, babies cried, and the crowd parted as I walked towards the center of the bonfire.\n\nAt the center was a small brick pedestal. An older man stood atop it, perhaps the elder of the village. I slowly approached, conscious of the crowd's reaction. Conversation was hushed, and any laughter ceased immediately.\n\n\"I have come to this village.\" I told the mayor boldly. \"Who here is suffering?\" It was the quickest way to get to the point. Who here needed help? Who here was in need of assistance? Who here was suffering?\n\n\"Please...\" He croaked. \"We are but a small hamlet. There is no cause for you to visit us here.\"\n\nI shook my head. \"No matter how big or small, everybody should be given a chance.\" I wasn't going to overlook the needs of the common folk just because they were common. \"Once I'm done here, I'll go to a city and see what they have in store for me there.\"\n\n\"Not if I have anything to say about it!\" The crowd gasped. I turned to see a fragile watchman standing behind me. He carried a sword and a round metal shield. But why challenge me here?\n\n\"You seek to challenge me, perhaps to prove my strength?\" It would make sense if this village's guardian wanted to prove that I had what it took to protect them.\n\nThough I was unarmed, the man charged at me anyways. He appeared strong, but as mentioned earlier, he was fragile. I had to restrain myself to keep from hurting him, and even then...\n\nHis first move was a shield bash. He smacked me directly in the chest with his shield, but I stood unwavering. Then he swung his sword, which I caught between two fingers. The weak shield bash gave me great faith in this body's - my body's - otherworldly strength. And the attack with the sword was so delicate, so slow. I couldn't help myself.\n\n\"Why do you challenge me?\" I repeated my earlier question, pulling the sword out of his grasp like a straw from a baby's hand.\n\n\"You threatened my village!\" He swore as he jumped back. Then, to my surprise, he braced himself behind his shield and charged me again. This time the blow had enough power to move me back a few inches. He drew himself back to ready another bash, but I blocked it with an outstretched fist. The shield shattered like a mirror, and I used the opportunity to grab his wrist.\n\nHe didn't stop there, however. With his free hand he stepped forward and began beating on my chest. I'd be a liar if I said the attacks didn't begin to hurt after a while. But it was more of a light bruising than anything else. I spoke to him all the while.\n\n\"Threaten your village? No! I'm here to help your village!\"\n\nThis slowed him down. At least, he moved slower than he had been moving already. But something about him in this state, his hesitation, it filled me with a rage. He seemed so vulnerable. I pulled him in by the wrist, then let go. I brought up a knee as he came in close, hitting him right in the stomach. He dropped to the ground, cutting his hands on the shards of the broken metal shield.\n\n\"But why?!\" The village elder demanded. \"Why would you help our village?!\"\n\nThis was starting to become annoying. \"Why else would I be here?!\"\n\nThe elder wasted no time in replying. Though his body seemed fragile, more so than the guard's, his tongue was sharp. \"An unnaturally strong being visits our village on the day we celebrate the sealing of the ancient death monger, the Demon King. You have come to ready our people for destruction!\"\n\nNo. They were wrong.\n\n\"Very well.\" I said. \"Point me towards the evil of this land. I will show you, I am the hero.\"\n\nThis time, there was pause. And then, somewhere close to the outskirts, a scream. Though it seemed only I heard it. Before I could act, however, more screams erupted through the village. It was loud enough now that the crowd could hear them. If they hadn't been afraid before, they were afraid now.\n\nFar above even the flames of the bonfire flew dark creature. Fallen angels seeking their master. They swooped in, slicing heads from shoulders with delicate ease. But as their final swoop brought them within range of the bonfire, they landed.\n\nTwo fallen angels. Though only one of them bowed. The other remained standing.\n\n\"So, this is the one.\" He said, tossing a lock of silver hair over his shoulder. \"The one we should fear?\"\n\nIn retrospect, this was a reverent fear. A respect. But I took it to mean they feared the hero within. And so, without waiting for a response from the other, I charged. The angel had no time to dart to either side. Rather, he attempted to fly back. But as I pushed off one beefy leg into the air, my pounce was too powerful to be avoided. The first thing that made contact with him was my open hand, which grabbed his head and smashed it into the ground as we tumbled in the dirt. It was over before it even started.\n\nAnd yet even this wasn't enough.\n\nThe other angel remained bowing. \"Master, please forgive my brother's insolence. I will not be so disrespectful.\"\n\nThe other angel rose. \"And neither should these mortals.\" She spake the word with the utmost disgust. \"Fall to your knees! The demon king stands before you!\"\n\n------------------------------------------\n\nVisit /r/WritingsOfLumbaxter for more", "My body was heavy. The adrenaline was wearing off. I wanted to remain standing, to celebrate my victory over the Lich King. But my legs wouldn't move fast enough to stop my falling body. My sword wasn't light enough to lift above my head as a rallying cry. Every breath I took, the piece of breastplate drove deeper into my ribs. When I fell, they broke through. I was choking. On something. Probably blood. But even through that, my screams cut through. \n\n\"Is this death? Is this what death feels like?\" I thought. Your body refusing to move when you wanted it to. The invisible force of gravity suddenly becoming too real. Just moments ago, I had killed the Lich King. I had slashed my sword into his shoulder, then used all of my strength to push it down through his body. He screamed, and stumbled backwards. When he stumbled onto his back, did he think the same things I was thinking then? \n\nThe armor I wore, the sword I wielded, the shield I lifted were all magical gifts from great mages, who trusted in my power to achieve victory over the Lich King. This was not victory. Victory is marrying the peasant girl he promised to go back for. Victory is an estate and a plot of land. Victory is a holiday, a memorium built for me to celebrate saving thousands-no, millions of lives. \n\nI don't know why, but I was still alive. Not for much longer. Something in my body was failing. But through sheer will, it seemed my heart still pumped. I was lifting myself upward, counting every beat of my heart and every pound of my head. \n\n\"Lancer, the phylactery!\" \n\nSamuel. A wise warrior with me on this quest who held off undead hordes as I fought the Lich King. Seconds before then, I would have cheered at the sound of his voice. But instead, I found myself loathful of him. He was still living. \n\nBut yes. The phylactery. My sword, when it dug into the Lich King's body, destroyed his soul. Usually, his phylactery-which at that time was also the staff he used to cast spells-would create a new body for his soul to inhabit upon the death of his old one. If someone else had it, they could use the phylactery to become a lich themselves. Anyone could have the immortality and power of the Lich King. \n\nAnyone. \n\nTechnically speaking, there is nothing inherently wrong with being a lich. This particular lich obtained his powers by doing objectively evil things-he slaughtered infants and collected their blood, harvested souls to destroy and empower his own, and slaughter his entire family. I did not do any of these things. Being able to create a new body and live forever...I would be an immortal hero, that could protect the kingdom forever. Not the kingdom. Everyone. \n\nI dragged my body forward. The staff was on the ground, resting on the edge of a mud slope. It took everything I had to drag myself up that slope. Everything. My last breaths were to go up that slope. I stretched out my right arm, since my left arm was broken. As I lifted it up, I saw my comrades. I can imagine they thought I was going to break it with my last breath. \n\nFools. Morons. Idiots. Why would I die for this? Why would I die knowing that everything I fought for would be lost? \n\nI gripped the phylactery. I inhaled deeply. The spike of metal drove into my chest further. It mattered none. My hand glowed with magical power, a power I'm sure my comrades thought I was using to destroy the staff. My vision was so blurry that I could barely see it. My heart stopped beating. One last time, my body let out its breath. With it, my soul. I dropped the staff, now glowing with green flames. Seconds passed. For these seconds, I saw nothing. Blackness. Oblivion. \n\nBut then I felt something. I felt my hand grip something tightly. And soon, I saw something. I saw my own arm-my new arm-gripping the phylactery. I drew in a breath of fresh air. No pain. No fleeting pumping of the heart. No pounding in my head. My new body, though grey and undead, was just as strong as my old one. \n\n\"The Lich King!\" Shouted one of my comrades. It was Samuel again, my others getting ready for a fight. \n\nI stood up with my new, naked body. I looked down at it and smiled. It was done. I was immortal. I said to them in a booming, magic-infused voice, \"No!\" I laughed, \"It's me. It's Lancer.\" \n\nI looked to my left. And there I was. My body, still warm. My own glazed, dead eyes stared back at me. Literally seconds before, I had died. If not for grabbing that staff, I would be in oblivion forever. But seeing my own dead body, it riled something inside me. \n\nI destroyed it. It didn't take energy. I stretched out my hand, wished for it to be destroyed, and green flames turned it to dust in seconds. This is the power of a Lich, combined with my own. No effort with spells. No strain, just action. \n\nI picked up my sword. Only I can, as anyone else trying to wield my sword would have their soul eradicated. When I gripped it, the old silver shine it had was replaced by a new, green one. The magical armor and shield my old body had faded away, and appeared on my new one. This time, black and green, and good as new. In one hand, I held a sword with the power to obliterate souls. In the other, I held a shield that could nullify magic, and a staff more powerful than the most powerful wands in the land. \n\n\"Lancer!\" Cried Samuel, \"Please, come back to us!\"\n\nI laughed, \"Don't you see, Samuel? I am back.\"\n\nI took another breath. I hadn't noticed it before, but I didn't need to breath. I just lived. I had even forgotten to do it while I was looking at my body. But breathing still felt good. Breathing uninterrupted. Breathing that would never be interrupted again. \n\n\"Now I can protect the land...forever.\"" ]	5
	[WP] For years you have been plagued by the feeling of seeing movement in your peripheral vision when alone yet nothing there when you turn around. Now for the first time in your life you see what it was.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 the incessant paranoia of an unseen force lingering in the background like a foul aftertaste. It hung stagnantly, waiting patiently, biding. \n\nMason barely ever thought about it. It was a swift gnawing at the edge of his mind that passed as quickly as it’d arrived. It was a normal occurrence that evaporated from him, he’d feel the heaviness subsiding in his peripheral vision, and would be struck so suddenly with an immense fear that clawed restlessly at his chest like a depraved creature, before it vanished and he’d forgotten about it. Again. \n\nThe streets were a raucous. People absentmindedly went around their day, milling around down the concrete slabs and asinine lampposts. The sky was an overhanging grimace. The buildings stood dull and desaturated, as if the color had been seeping out. They were all bland and tasteless, possessing the same air of lifelessness, utterly devoid of feeling.\n\nMason snapped his wrist up, and checked the reflective surface of the clock face, grimacing slightly before lowering his arm. He weaved between people, sliding past in a friction of fabric as he apologized meekly whilst shoving past. He was going to be late.\n\nHe sped up, chest seizing vigorously as he sprinted down. His feet ached from the tight constraints of his shoes, as he leapt each stride. It was so close. Mason ran in a frantic flurry of limbs, his hair haphazard in the lashings if the wind. \n\nIt came out of nowhere. The ebbing darkness in his peripheral vision, spreading and subsiding in a fraction of a second. The weight in his chest doubled, and he couldn’t breathe, as he turned around in a full body contortion, reaching out. He was grasping at nothing but air, as he stretched further, pushing himself to the edge. It was a mere brush that sent tingles across his fingertips like a wildfire of electrify across his skin. He stretched his fingers further, reaching, grasping. He latched on.\n\nThe twinge in his throat caught, as he struggled with a strangled gasp. It was a faint rasp that escaped his lips, as he felt the beads of sweat lick his neck. The pulsation in his ears engulfed him as he stared. Mason had always been taught not to stare, the rule had been instilled in him from adolescence. It was rude. Though he completely disregarded it, as he stared, breathless. \n\nHis mind was blank. He couldn’t think. The usual background noise was absent, and his whole head was empty, as if everything had just seeped out in an instant. \n\nHe grasped it under his hand it. Supple and firm, the flesh he held corporal and real. The smile on it’s face looked wildly unnatural and out of place. Mason swallowed, the arm he was clutching felt warm, the heat undeniable. \n\nHis lips quivered, as he tried to form a coherent sentence, or even a word. Nothing came out but silence. \n\nIt smiled wider at him and clicked it’s tongue obnoxiously. \n\nMason stared at it. The contours if it’s face, the planes if it’s neck and haphazard hair. The statute of its body, it’s height. It was all the same. It was identical. It was him.\n\nMason stared back at himself.\n\n“Just the usual. Don’t worry, you’ll forget about me . You always do.” It said.\n\nMason trembled slightly. Fear was tracing its fingers down his back, and he released it and stepped back idly.\n\nThe quaking stopped. Mason frowned and looked around, and cringed at his shirt sticking to his back in a moist suction against his skin. Confusion blurred his head, and he wondered when it’d gotten so hot. He licked his lips and flicked his wrist gingerly, eyes widening as he turned to sprint. \n\nHe ran down the sidewalk, pushing past people, ignoring the pressure behind his eyes. The wind pushed against him as he advanced forward and drove through.\n\nAnd from behind it watched him from afar, and smiled. \n\nIt tutted, eyeing the number on his wrist, stark against the paleness.\n\n“2 more times.” It said aloud, to no one in particular. \n\nIt pondered and surveyed, stalking mason as his figure grew tinier and tinier as it blurred into the distance. It watched, and it smiled." ]	2
	[WP] Technology vs magic, but in world war 2 style trench warefare.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "17 Shi, 485 YE - \n\n::3 km South of Sweetwater Glen - Morning\n\nPiston bin Track od Gasket, warleader of the Burning Steel orcs, stared through his binoculars and swore. \"Lt. Hammer,\" he bellowed, \"Take Manifold, Crescent, and Mercury down around to the East. I don't need you to take the field down there, but if those treants uproot before the armor gets here, were all fucked.\" The lieutenant grunted in response, lowering his tusks for the barest moment before running back to the barracks.\n\nHalf an hour later, Hammer and Crescent were working their way down the side of the gentle valley that separated the Orc and Elf encampments, both following Manifold, who was mainly following the pull of gravity on the Biggun. The sun was just passing noon as the three carefully forded the stream at the valley's base. Mercury was waiting for them, her silver-pale skin contrasting with the Burning Steel green. \"Done,\" she said, her forked tongue tasting the air. \"Patrols are about hourly, so you should have about 20 minutes before they start finding bodies.\" Hammer shuddered slightly, never quite sure whether Silver Blades were really Orcs after all, but unwilling to risk voicing his feelings in mixed company. \"Alright,\" he replied, \"You heard her. Let's get set up.\"\n\n::Thaddeus Park Research Station - Afternoon\n\nEvan sat beneath the arcade that surrounded the central fountain plaza, enjoying the spring breeze and a cup of tea, when one of the other adjutants came puffing up. \"We've done it!\" he exclaimed. \"It's a cube-hypercube relation along the t axis!\"\n\n\"Arthur, calm down. Every word of that was Anglish, but none of it means anything..\"\n\n\"Treants, Evan. You know how young ones have that insane spell resistance and the old one screw with the local circumstances?\"\n\nEvan nodded, \"Yes, I remember Farincourt. Bleeding disaster all around.\"\n\n\"Well it's not two effects. It's one effect with a constant total thaumic flux, where volume affected increases over time, with a concomitant decrease in strength over the volume. The tricky bit is figuring out how to take advantage.\"\n\n\"If it's cube-hypercube over t, then couldn't you use Morris's work on the generalized expression of the age of the king?\"\n\n\"Maybe, but do trees count years?\" asked Arthur.\n\n, Evan shrugged. \"They count summers. Math works out the same.\"\n\n\n:: Sweetwater Skirmish, Evening\n\nManifold and Crescent set to their grim work with a vengeance, unpacking, loading, and launching the heavy shells with a practiced rhythm. Hammer kept an eye on the field and adjusted the elevation and tracking on the mortar slowly, zeroing in on each little stump in turn, obliterating it in a rain of phosphorus and iron before moving on to the next.\n\nAfter only a few minutes, the Treant field was a pockmarked ruin, with only a pair of viable stumps remaining, but the Elvish clarion was getting too close for comfort. \"That'll have to do,\" Hammer said, and stowed his binoculars. \"Call it 3 minutes\". Manifold grunted assent and twisted the base of the shell in his hands before shoving it down the barrel of the mortar backwards. Crescent dragged the remaining ammunition over to the mortar and then they all ran. Minutes later, the Orcs huddled behind some trees as the achingly beautiful call of the Elvish trumpet was cut off by a throaty explosive roar and the piteous screams of horses." ]	2
(This is my first post here just fyi)	[WP] After a freak incident, you lose almost all your memories and are left in the middle of nowhere. However the only things you remember are the last 10 images on your cellphones photo album. Using these 10 photos that you remember, you will somehow manage to regain your memories.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Hidden Pictures- Pt. 1\n\nHis head is pounding. Not just a hang-over, but the sharpest, nail-biting dagger is piercing his brain. He dares to open his eyes, but shuts them again quickly when the sun stares back at him. He tries to stand and immediately retches. He thinks about the carpet he just ruined and snaps his eyes open. \n\n\"What the hell?\" He mumbles as he spins around in a circle. He isn't in a living room, but on the side of a dirt road. Surrounding him is flat land and cornfields as far as he can see. \n\nHe feels a vibrating on his leg and reaches in his pocket. He pulls out a cell phone to see Ari McClellen lighting up the screen. He pushes the green button and reluctantly puts the phone to his ear. \n\n\"Oh thank God!\" A woman's voice gushes out of the speaker. \"Mitchell, honey, where are you? It's 11:00 and we were supposed to be at my parent's this morning.\" \n\nMitchell is quiet for a moment before answering. \"I...um, I'm not sure.\" He runs his hand over his face and closes his eyes. Mitchell....that must be his name. \n\nThe other line is quiet for a second before Ari answers. \"What do you mean? I thought you were staying at the Hotel last night after the party. Listen, you need to get home right away. Call Taryn and have her send the car over if you can't drive.\" \n\n\"No, listen. I'm not in a hotel. I'm...in a field? I think? I'm not sure. Something bad happened last night.\" His voice trails off as he tries to remember the party she mentioned and the hotel, or who Taryn was and why she would send a car. Then his phone beeps and he looks down at the screen. \n\n\"Mitchell, what do you mean? Where are you? I..\" Ari keeps talking but the phone dies in the middle of her sentence. His headache has dulled to a throbbing and he massages his temples. His mouth is sticking together and his throat feels swollen. The road to this right curves around a corn field and he decides to start walking in, what he hopes, is the right direction. Mitchell McClellen clutches the dead cell phone in his hand, holding onto the only lifeline that might answer who he was, where he was, and why he was there. \n\n\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\\_\n\nTwo hours later his legs are jello and the back of his feet are covered in blisters. His black dress shoes were not made for walking on dirt roads. He hears a faint rumble and his heart starts racing. Mitchell walks to the middle of the road and starts waving his arms frantically. \n\n\"Hey! Please, Please!\" He yells at a drive in a red pick-up truck. A middle-aged man in a button-up plaid shirt and dirty jeans slows to a stop in front of him. \n\n\"I don't think you're from around here.\" He says as he looks Mitchell up and down. He was dressed in a two-piece suit, but as since took the jacket off and carries it in his arms. His once-white button-up is now a dull cream with dirt stains on the back from sleeping next to the road. Still, his custom tailored paints fit to his frame well and his paisley tie shines in the afternoon sun. \n\n\"No, or at least, I don't believe so. Is there a town near here? I think my friends have played some kind of sick joke on me and my phone is dead.\" Mitchell had practice the line in his head hundreds of times on his walk, hopping someone would stop. A few cars had passed, but teens and young moms are reluctant to stop for a disheveled man in a dirty suit. He knew that if he told the truth- that he didn't really remember his name or anything about his life- no one would help him. \n\nThe driver spit into a cup and looked back at him. \"We're about 5 miles out of Waltonville, why don't you hop in and I'll drop you off.\" \n\n\"Thank you so much,\" He let out an anxious breath he hadn't realized he was holding. \"I've been walking for a while.\" \n\nThe driver let out a short \"hmm\", but otherwise didn't comment. In the town, if you could call it that, the pulled up to a small pole barn of a building that had 'Waltonville Cafe' written across the front. Inside, a stout woman sat on a chair by the counter, clicking through pictures on a flip phone. \n\n\"Maryanne!\" The driver calls once the got through the door. \"Look what I found.\" \n\n\"Dave, what in the hell doing in here? Oh, hello.\" She calls to Mitchell once she got a good look at him. \"What the hell happened to you?\" \n\n\"Ah, my friends have a funny sense of humor. Is there any chance you have a phone charger? I need to call my wife.\" Was Ari his wife? He wasn't sure, but it felt right to say.\n\n\"I think one of the kids have some stashed around here. Give me just a minute.\" Maryanne disappeared into the kitchen and came back with a few black wires tangled around her hand. \n\n\"Here ya go, one of these should work. Where did you say you were from?\" She eyed him a little more suspiciously. \n\n\"Ah, the city. Thank you so much for this. Let me call a ride and I'll be out of your hair.\" Mitchell tried to change the subject and moved to plug the charger in. A couple minutes later the screen flashed on and he opened up the messages. \n\nNothing. \n\nNo texts, no calls except the one from Ari this morning, no clues as to who he was. He clicked the gallery, and ten images appeared. \n\nImage 1- Mitchell and a dark haired woman pose in front of an indoor waterfall. He was in the same suit and tie he currently wore, but he has a watch and wire-trimmed glasses. The woman has a short bob and wore a knee-length black dress. Was this Ari? Possibly. \n\nImage 2- Mitchell poses again in front of the waterfall with another man. The man has Mitchell's same hooded eyes and sharp nose, but the other man has more of a red tint to his hair and a crooked smile. \n\nImage 3- Mitchell and the same man again, but with another woman tucked under the other man's arm. \n\nImage 4- Mitchell and Ari with the other couple. \n\nImage 5- A cake says \"Good Luck, Tyler\" in blue writing. \n\nImage 6- Mitchell and the other man stand with a group of 20-30 year-olds behind the cake. \n\nImage 7- Mitchell and Ari again, this time kissing in the doorway of a large foyer. \n\nImage 8- An older man stand with Mitchell and the man from image 2, with his arms around both of their shoulders. The older man is well dressed but doesn't smile. \n\nImage 9- A young boy, maybe 4, smiles with a mouth full of blue icing. His dark hair is curly but he has Mitchell's eyes. \n\nImage 10- This one is different. It looks like a dark room, not a party. A woman with blond hair stares at the camera with a serious expression. It appears she has taken the picture herself. The haunted expression in her eyes stirs something in him. \n\nBefore he can put words to it, the phone rings again. This time, Ari's voice is more frantic. \"Mitchell! Where the hell are you?\" Her voice breaks and he suddenly feels very sorry for her. Still, something isn't right. \n\n\"Ari, I'm sorry. I'm trying to get home. But, my name isn't Mitchell.\"", "I rub my head and stretch out my back, feeling like I just woke up from a bad dream. But this was no dream. I carefully studied the features of my body and surroundings just to be sure. Nothing looked familiar. Just a long stretch of a pothole-filled highway and dull gray sky. No signs of cars in sight. \n\nI was beginning to panic. I tried hard to think of the events that lead me here. And in that moment, fear consumed my entire body. Tears filled my eyes to the brim. Not only did I have no recollection of current events, it was like my brain was wiped like a slate. \n\nI only knew what I could see right in front of me. That I was apparently a middle age female. I had several tattoos. I suffer from mild back pain and I have no other injuries. \n\nSuddenly, it was like a movie was projected inside my head. But the film it played was only ten photos over and over again. A hand holding 3 pictures of myself and a man. We looked very much in love. Despite this odd situation I found myself in, I smiled. I knew he must be my husband from the ring I had on. \n\nEvery time I saw an image, words sporadically entered my head relating to them. The one of the photos screamed “lover” “Sam” “one year.” Unlike a jigsaw puzzle, it was more like my heart telling me I already know this. Memories of him came rushing back. His seawood scented body wash, his rough hands on my body, his slightly gappy smile. \n\nA picture of myself and a child around the age of three laying beside me. We both wore the biggest smile on our faces. She looked just like me. My daughter...my daughter looked just like me. I squealed out loud in delight. My inner voice told me that her name was Abby. Now I knew I had at least two people in my life that I loved dearly. \n\nI needed to quickly make sense of the other photos. Two cats eating outside, which I was then immediately able to identify as Damian and Ophelia. Fond memories of feeding them on the back porch and napping with them came back to me. \n\nThe fourth was an image of a baby animal with the caption “Sagittarius” and descriptions a couple words in length around it. Was this actually how my personality was shaped? Something about it lead time to believe it was something just for fun. More importantly, a date got drilled into my mind. I was born in mid December. \n\nThe other pictures didn’t tell me much. A recipe for a casserole reminded me that I had a soft spot for home cooked meals. Another told me that I had a knack for doing make up. \n\nMy movie got interrupted by lights in the distance. Oh my god. Help was here. \n\nI crawled towards the road and started waving my arms frantically. The beat up Jetta stopped a few feet away from me. A middle age man with a mustache opened the door and offered me his hand. \n\n“Are you hurt miss? You’re a good ways away from the city.” He added. \n\n“I don’t think so...my head hurts...I can only remember 10 things about myself..” I tried to explain. I probably sound like a psychward escapee. \n\n“No problem. Hop in. The hospital is about a 20 mile drive or so. I recon you’re lucky because this here highway don’t see cars no more.”\n\nHe gave me a leftover orange from his lunch and we made small talk with the bits and pieces of what I knew to be real. \n\nWhen we arrived, he parked in the ER section and left to get me a wheelchair. He apologized to the nurse for being able to offer so little. He even offered to stay while I got checked out. I said I should be fine with a smile. \n\nAfter a CAT scan, blood tests and several xrays, I was finally assigned a room. I wanted to remember who I was, but I was so tired, and it could be a while before I had my results. The nurse offered me a second pillow and some water but before I could accept, I fell into a deep sleep. \n\n...\n\nI woke up and felt a thumb rubbing my hand. I lazily shifted to face the figure beside me. Sams face came into view, and he gently stroked my face. He looked like an angel. I didn’t know what to say first. \n\n“Sweetheart. The drs say you had a pretty severe concussion. But the good news is, they are confident you won’t have any long term effects. I’m right here. I’m just so happy you’re okay” \n\nHis voice removed any doubts that I wouldn’t be ok. I told him I only remembered a few things right now. \n\n“I know you’re my husband though”\n\n“Well actually..” he explained, \n“I’m your fiancé. That was meant to be a promise ring but you insisted that you were ready to get married.” \n\nSo maybe not everything I put together was perfect, but it was close. \n\n“And Abby, she’s our daughter right? Where is she? Can I see her?” \n\nHe left out a breath. \n“Yes she’s ours. Not technically mine. She’s with parents right now, don’t worry. I told them they could come as soon I called with the go ahead.”\n\nSo Abby was from what..a failed relationship? I would have to get him to fill in my memories until they came back. \n\n“I’m so lucky and grateful you remembered me. The doctors say everything else should come back in spurts, it could take days, weeks, or months.” \n\nI nodded with acceptance. I was just happy for now to be here with this person that I would soon marry. \n\n“I love you..” I said naturally. I remembered how much I did. A crazy amount. \n\n“And I love you” he said as his eyes lit up. \n\n“One more thing...do you remember...” He started and placed his hand on my stomach. \n\n“Oh my god. Am I...”\n\n“Yes. 10 weeks today. He or she is perfectly fine.”\n\n“He is perfectly fine” I said confidently. \n\nHe shot me a look. \n\n“This accident didn’t make you be able to read the future, did it?”\n\n“No, just a feeling this time” I said, squeezing his hand and feeling like all that mattered in my life, I already knew." ]	3
	[WP] When everyone woke up on 1/1/2020, they found a strange, almost alien, trinket next to their bed with a note saying, "exactly 1 other human being has the device that interlocks with yours. find them by 12/31/2020."	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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] You are a shapeshifter being blackmailed into secretly replacing a girl from a perfectly normal family. The girl's family can NOT find out that you are not the girl. One day while talking to the girl's siblings, you are shocked when you figure out why the girl was replaced.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Goooooood mooooooorning, Liiiiiiiiiiily!\"\n\nThe blonde girl sang into my ear, in the way of her usual wake-up routine. It was weird the first time; fun the second and third time; and every time ever since, it has been nothing short of annoying. Several times, I have considered choking her with my pillow at night just so I wouldn't have to see her during the mornings, but saner minds have prevailed. So far. I don't know how long it will. \n\nHer name is Brittany. She's supposed to be my sister. \n\nI wake up and look at the clock next to our bunk bed. It reads 7:15 in stark red letters against the black background. I wish I had an analog clock. Digital clocks are for the lazy. \n\nI climb out of bed and smack her on the back, a little harder than necessary. \n\n\"Get out,\" I groan at her. \"I've got to get ready.\"\n\n\"Moooooooooooooom, Lily hit me again.\"\n\n\"Get out, Brittany. I don't have time for your drama.\"\n\n\"I'll go if you say the magic word.\"\n\n\"Get out, please.\"\n\n\"What? No. Stop being a smart ass Lily,\" she smirks. \n\n\"Get out, U.K.\"\n\nShe smiles to herself and skips out of the room. One of these days. One of these days. \n\nYou'd think she would like to be called Bri for short. No. You know what she wants to be called? U.K. Because Britain. Because she sucks at Geography. I haven't said anything to her though. There's an Irish fellow at school who can deal with her. I just have to wait. \n\nI walk to the bathroom, lock the door and sigh to myself. Now comes the hardest part of my day. Looking into the mirror and seeing someone I don't recognise at all. \n\nI stand all of 4 feet. My hair is the color of honey gone bad. My eyebrows are clumped together above my eyes and it takes my all to not rip them off. My skin is so pale I am worried I might be sake. Then there is the scar running across my left cheek. \n\nI wouldn't pick myself across a line-up. \n\n----\n\nBy the time I am downstairs, Brittany is gone. A man and a woman sit at the breakfast table whispering to themselves.\n\n\"Hey, Mark. Hi, Lisa\" \n\nI park myself at the table and dig into a slice of soggy bread. Lisa would be a good cook if she knew how good food is supposed to taste like. \n\n\"We would like you to call us Mom and Dad,\" Mark answers.\n\n\"Brittany is not around, is she?\"\n\n\"No. She left already. At the right time.\"\n\n\"Then what is the big fucking deal?\"\n\n\"LILY!\"\n\n\"Calm down, Lisa. I know how to act in public. This is just the outlet I need.\"\n\n\"We got a call from your history professor,\" Mark goes on. \"He says you failed yesterday's test.\"\n\n\"Of course I did.\"\n\n\"Lily, why --\"\n\n\"The guy is a moron, Lisa. I lived through the apartheid in South Africa. There is no way I am listening to the reasons he gives for why it was not as bad as the 'liberal' media has painted it to be.\"\n\n\"But, you agre---\"\n\n\"I know what I agreed to. I'll make amends. I just wanted him to read some real answers for a change. And I'd like 20 dollars now.\"\n\n\"Twenty? Why??\"\n\n\"Because your wife sucks at cooking, Mark. You might put up with her because you are married to her. I don't have to. I'll eat at the school canteen.\"\n\nI snatch the bill out of his hand and hurry out the door. \n\n\"What's gotten into h---\"\n\nI do not wait to hear the rest of the conversation. I am on my bicycle already. To fucking school.\n\n----\n\nI take a left where I should have gone right. \n\nI count the lots. One. Two. Three. Four. There's the construction site I am supposed to meet her. I see her bicycle parked next to the tree.\n\n\"Lily, here,\" she calls from the darkness. \n\n\"Just call me Sam, will you?\"\n\n\"Sorry, Sam. I forgot you hate it.\"\n\n\"It's alright. How are you holding up?\"\n\n\"It's not so bad. I found a new place by the river where there is not much activity and it protects from the cold. Wolf keeps me good company.\"\n\n\"He's the best.\"\n\n\"He is. And warm to snuggle into,\" she smiles a sad smile. \n\n\"Here,\" I hand her the twenty. \"I'll get you more the next time we meet.\"\n\n\"Thanks, Sam. You are too kind.\"\n\n\"Oh, it's nothing,\" I shake my head. \"Buy something nice for Wolf, will you?\"\n\n\"Of course I will.\"\n\n\"Are you sure I shouldn't---\"\n\n\"No, please, Sam. Not yet. I want to do it on my own.\"\n\n\"I know people who can get it done.\"\n\n\"I want to do it on my own.\"\n\nHer words are final. I understand. She comes over and gives me a kiss on the cheek. Even without any illumination, I cannot miss the scar across her left cheek. \n\nI do not hate my face as much now. If anything, it belongs to the bravest 10 year old I know.", "“Hey, Lily,” I said ~~causally~~ casually, dropping my backpack in the doorway. The bright smile felt fake on my face, but her sister didn’t notice anything wrong as I walked past her up to “my” room. She hadn’t for the past two weeks, either. Was it worth it, to keep living this lie? Lily trusted me completely, and so did Alex and their parents, and I felt sick thinking about how they couldn’t know the truth. Sick that I was learning very personal information about their lives that frankly, I had no right to know. I knew Lily was struggling with depression. I knew Alex was having issues in math, and although I helped him the best I could, he wasn’t improving. I personally thought he had a learning disability- like dyslexia for numbers- but I couldn’t tell his parents. How could I know? I was just a 17 year old girl, not a 2000 year old immortal time-traveling shapeshifter who happened to get a medical degree or two along the way.\n\nBut I had to stay in the charade. Or else the whole world would know of me. And I’d be taken and dissected and experimented on and— I had no other options.\n\nThen I found the texts. I knew I shouldn’t have been prying, but I was curious. And so I took a look through Hannah’s phone — my phone. When I got it, all messages had been wiped clear. I’d spent the last few weeks trying to recover the data. And then I did. And there they were. And I realized why Hannah ran away.\nText after text, some quite explicit, to a female friend. She was a lesbian. For a second, I wondered why she’d fled. Then I considered her circumstances: a teenage girl, in the Deep South, in the mid ‘90s, with very conservative parents. Things weren’t exactly great for gay people in those situations. \n\nBut then another thought crossed my mind, and I looked at my real communicator, the one I was being blackmailed through. The speech patterns all matched. Hannah was the one blackmailing me.\nBut how did she know who I was? How did she, a teenage from the 90s, contact me in the 31st century?\nI set my mind to find out." ]	3
	[WP] It was discovered that life on Earth ages and dies far more rapidly than the galactic norm, with every other alien race considering a lifespan in the thousands of human years to be perfectly normal. Even worse this curse seems to be contagious	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 was only 98 years old, she was nearing her triple digits and I could still remember her smiles and eyes, oh how beautiful they were.\n\n “Where here today for Zalhra Zak, a wonderful and beautiful thing that graced the planet of Xeo and I’m sure the sadness of her death has brought you much grief but her death is an example of what happen if you make contact with...them” Said the preacher but I wasn’t much of the religious type but my wife went kinda into religion like others, they believe that praying will release us of this curse.\n\n “So honey, do you want to come with us and pray to Xes?” My lovely wife said to me, but I couldn’t accept it, it felt wrong to me.\n\n “No, I’m going straight home and maybe watch the news or something” I said. The walk home was short after all Piliope and Me decided to bury our daughter near our home.\n \n Home sweet home, but without her it seems a little bit more empty than usual. I took my ID out and the door unlocked and walked toward the holographic station and entered the news channel.\n\n “The disease has spreed far faster than recently thought said most virologist and they advise that if you believe someone is infected, call the authorities for immediate containment as quicker is better.” The man reported with a label floating below him ‘Qillow Xam’ lead researcher has died from the plague.\n\n I started to change the channel till something caught my eye.\n\n “As many of you know this plague has originated from when we first contacted those bipedal mammals and that’s when it started to spread like wildfire, any thing from the planet is a toxic virus that is slowly killing our great society but there is a way.” Said a man in what looks to be a military outfit, his slick dark jacket with badges that shine with his hat covering his bald scalp which is unusual for someone as young as him, a symptom of the plague.\n\n Though the idea of a cure made me mad, very mad as why couldn’t they have founded it earlier.\n\n “Our lead researcher that had recently died had made a breakthrough before his demise. If we eliminate all of the life from the planet where they reside then there is a chance of this cures going away.” He said with confidence as if he was trying to convince him self that was true.\n\n This was our only chance to erase this cure and I wanted to be part of this.\n\n——————————\n\n The ship had crashed in this forsaken planet and I slowly accept my death, I will age up incredibly fast till I’m just another corpse added to the damn list of casualties of the plague. \n\n But before I die will will at least kill something from here but from the looks of it I crashed in a rather secluded area but I need to kill one thing so I will search till I find something, hopefully one of those mammals that helped spread it.\n\n I also kinda hoped to meet with others that had also went and attacked the planet but I couldn’t, not the even the weird little gray dudes that I heard made some sand structures for them before figuring out that the plague cane from them,\n\n—————————\n\n It felt like a few months till my device gained a message and with hope I pressed the button to play the message.\n\n “Anyone getting this, must be one of the special few that are either still haven’t been infected or most likely are immune to this plague. This is the last haven of the government left and by that I mean that all known governments have fallen and we expect to follow suite. All we have to say is that the mission is over, I repeat operation Death Wall is over. Please make peace with yourself. Madam Uilok, the last authority has given you all an order” The women said, she looked very wrinkly and all her fur was grey and this was a symbol of her close demise.\n\n————————-\n\n After days and nights I finally found a lake and saw that my fur was still brown so I decided to tread near till I spotted a settlement of those mammals.\n\n Finally I can exact revenge and end them or at least eliminate some of these plague bearing mammals so I made some plans and figured out that I was better than them even if we looked somewhat similar. They were smaller too and had less fur but either way I will end them for killing my daughter and guessing from that message I viewed, my wife too.\n\n———————\n\n Maybe I shouldn’t, as I was looking and taking notes I slowly found out that they didn’t have the best bodies even in their own planet and adding their short life span they couldn’t even gain enough strength to outperform their surroundings.\n\n———————\n \n My device has counted that it has been over a year according to this planets cycles and I have grown quite attached to them, I even have them some fruits and such and also have them some things that to me are primitive but who can be a beggar when it’s free?\n\n—————-\n\n One had caught a view of me while I was placing a gift and now all the town folk have been praising me as a god. Maybe I shouldn’t be angry at them when they too have a short lifespan. \n \n What’s more funny is that they started to make drawings of me, even if it’s a crude drawing.\n\n—————-\n\n Today.....is not good, the village folk were attacked by another group and now I had no idea what to do so I defended them and lead them to a cave but then a quake happened and now we’re stuck.\n\n But the townsfolk seem to be happy, but what happened when they start to starve?\n\n—————-\n It’s been a day and some are starting to die they were the elderly but still it was sad to see them cry for their loved ones.\n\n I could survive a hundred more years with no water but they couldn’t even last a day?\n\n If there was a god, he was cruel to them but I guess he decided to share their curse with everyone so at least he knew sharing was caring.\n\n—————\n\n One more left, the people had resorted to eating one another but they looked incredibly sad in doing so but now only one baby who I will call Hue as that’s all I can interpret from the parents before they gave themselves to feed him.\n\n The people were lucky that there was some water deeper in the cave out food was not something they had but now there’s only one and he will slowly starve.\n\n———\n\n I have pondered on what to do, should I find a way out even though I had search every inch there could be a little crack I can break through, or maybe I should allow myself to be eaten by the child?\n\n What’s the point of giving myself to the child, eventually he’ll die as my body doesn’t have a unlimited supply of meat.\n\n God damn, why is life so hard \n\n———Last entire——-\n\n “You could sell this as a book” Said Geoffrey, he was such a good pal and was a researcher of alien artifacts. Humanity barely made advancements to start opening and translating the information to something we can understand.\n\n “So odd that an alien that was trapped under a cave had his device at a burial near that very cave. You think that someone found him?” He said but there was only one person who could answer that.\n\n “Let’s ask our master, he’s the wisest man alive plus we have permission” To be fair I didn’t care about this alien very much, I just wanted this excuse to see the teacher, he is a immortal human who had gained wisdom as he lived and lead te advancement of humanity.\n\n We walked to his quarters which had gold and all sorts of dazzle on the door but those were brought by people, he never wanted , much only friends and good memories.\n\n The door opened and he appeared “Ah, young Geoffrey and Linda, have you found something interesting?” He said and Geoffrey let me tell him the news.\n\n “We finally were able to translate the language on the device you wanted” I said and with hope to impress him, I handed the device. I didn’t expect him to look excited and pull us inside\n\n “Your very lucky right now, but due to nostalgia and sheer happiness to see what he was thinking about while he was still here, I’ll tell you a little secret on how I obtained my immortality” He says as he slowly told us a story about his caretaker.", "\"Thank you again for forgiving me for boarding, Captain,\" said the alien, Talton. \"But there was no reply signal from your craft... And, well, I couldn't pass up the opportunity. It truly is a pleasure to make first contact with humanity.\"\n\nGabriel still wasn't certain how the alien was talking to him. Just seemed to be thinking into his head. Slow but clear words. He replied, \"Thank you for choosing me for first contact, I guess.\"\n\nGabriel had not been expecting this. To be woken three-hundred years early by an alien, of all things. His little craft, the Praedam, had been drifting through space until Talton had intercepted it and boarded. Safe to say, Garbiel had been scared shitless when the cryo-booth had opened and an elongated face with four-eyes had stared down at him.\n\nBut, looking at Talton now, after Gabriel had enjoyed a black coffee and a cold shower... the alien diplomat wasn't so mean looking. Kind of cat-like features, but without the fur. Sleek bodied. Lips that seemed to be smiling even when at rest.\n\n\"Well, lucky for both me and for you, Captain, your craft happened into our territory. Oh what fortuitous happenings! You weren't slowing down, even after I sent my signals, so I took the initiative before you passed right through.\"\n\n\"Makes sense, I guess. And is your planet nearby, Talton?\"\n\n\"Fairly near! In fact, I could take you down there, introduce you to my peoples, and then bring you back to your craft. My ship is capable of at least four times the speeds of yours. It would only be a matter of\"--Talton touched his head as he calculated--\"six-hundred of your earth years for the full round-trip.\"\n\nGabriel raised his eyebrows. Four times the speed of his craft. That'd get him back to Earth without having to be iced again. \"I think I'll have to pass on that very kind offer. I'd have died ten-times over during that time, unless you froze me.\" He paused then added, \"And I don't much fancy going back in the freezer, to tell you the truth.\"\n\n\"Ten-times over?\" All four of Tanton's eyes squinted.\n\n\"We only live for about eighty of our years, naturally. Ninety, maybe.\"\n\nThe cat-like eyes widened in horror. \"That's very short, Captain Gabriel. Very short indeed. How horrible for you.\"\n\nGabriel laughed. \"Yeah, well. We make do.\"\n\n\"How can you possibly grow wise enough in that time to have become spacefaring? Your civilisation is so young... and yet you've accomplished so much, even with that fatal design flaw.\"\n\nHe shrugged. \"It works for us. Old people die, old ideas die. Their knowledge passes down and is improved upon. We're always standing on the shoulders of giants.\"\n\nTanton raised his long arms. \"Well, that's not an ideology I'd want passing on to my people!\"\n\n\"I'll try not to spread it.\"\n\nThe alien smiled broadly. \"So, Captain, what were you doing passing through this little sliver of space?\"\n\nTanton laughed again.\n\n\"Did I say something amusing?\"\n\n\"I'm just not used to being called captain, is all.\"\n\n\"But... This is your ship? You're the only one on board. Does that not make you a de-facto captain?\"\n\n\"I guess it does!\"\n\n\"Then where does the humor arise from?\"\n\nTanton seemed genuinely curious and Gabriel thought it was time to move on anyway.\n\n\"I wasn't here to command the ship. I was put in for isolation.\"\n\n\"Isolation?\"\n\n\"My crew didn't much like how I'd imposed the death penalty for certain crimes that I couldn't overlook. Like, insubordination. That really raises my heckles.\"\n\nTanton said nothing. He touched his head again as he tried to work out the meaning.\n\n\"So, like any good cliché of a crew, they mutinied. But they couldn't kill me, as that would have gone against why they were carrying out their mutiny in the first place. Instead, into this sweet little shuttle they locked me. Froze me. I had hundreds of years left on my sentence -- so I do appreciate you freeing me early.\"\n\n\"Your peers judged you a... a criminal?\"\n\n\"Is that a problem?\" Gabriel asked.\n\n\"We... we don't tend to have crime.\"\n\n\"Oh really?\" said Gabriel with a grin. \"A peaceful race?\"\n\n\"Very much so.\"\n\nMaybe, Gabriel thought, he would stick around a while. \"Say, I never asked you, Tanton: how long do your people live on average?\"\n\n\"We... We, as most species in the galaxy, live roughly twelve-thousand years. Why do you ask?\"\n\nFour times the speed of his own craft. A peaceful race to conquer. All he needed now was a crown. He pulled out the gun that had been tucked into his pants. \"Guess life expectancy is going down in the galaxy.\"" ]	3
	[WP] An incurable plague is infecting humanity, causing mutations. But there IS a procedure that allows you to choose WHERE in your body the mutations will be. People can legally only choose a vestigial part (like the appendix) and then have it removed. Black market surgeons, however…	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 is an abandoned subway station where a lot of surgeons help people change with the mutations to make them more powerful. I mean, they pay good for someone who got their medical license removed but I wish my clients were a tad more creative.\n\n“Excuse me sir.” Said a skinny yet tall man\n\n“Yes?” I said.\n\n“You see, I finally had my first girlfriend and today is our anniversary. Since it will be the first time for both of us I was wondering if, you know...” said the man.\n\nI let out a loud sigh and tell him:\n\n“Genital mutations aren’t my speciality.” I point to a large line of people in the other end of the room.\n\n“See that line? That’s for genital enlargement.” I said.\n\nThe man thanked me and left. “Should have learned how to mutate genitals. Maybe I will try practicing with those kidnapped children they are selling” I thought. After some time another man came in. This man looked weak and he seemed to struggle with just standing still. He was carrying a big backpack. \n\n“Hey. Do you specialize with internal organs?” Asked the man.\n\n“It depends. What organ are we talking about?” I said.\n\n“Heart.” He replied.\n\n“Yes, I can work with it.” I replied.\n\n“You see, I have a heart condition that doesn’t allow me to make much effort. I felt like dying with just carrying this backpack. There is no cure and I’m really desperate.” Explained the man.\n\n“So you have a weak heart? I’ve made the hearts of a lot of people stronger. The difference is that the heart of my past patients were healthy but I say yours will work just fine. Anyways, what are you carrying in that backpack?” I said.\n\nThe man took off his backpack and opened it. It was full of money.\n\n“I didn’t know how much does it cost the surgery so here’s all my life savings. Is that enough?” Asked the man\n\n“Yes, it’s more than enough.” I replied.\n\nI guided him to the “surgery room” which was just the old bathrooms of the station.\n\n“We are about to begin the procedure.” I Said.\n\n“I’m ready.” Replied the man.\n\n“Just so you know. If you want to have anesthesia during the procedure you’ll have to pay an extra fee. It’s about 100 dollars. Do you want it?” I asked.\n\n“Yes.” Replied the man.\n\n“Okay. That being said. Let’s begin the procedure.” I said before applying some anesthesia.", "Mutations typically made a body part an unusable, useless horror. The procedure could save a life. There were a select few whose mutations from the Maledictus Virus were beneficial. I knew a man whose whole body was now able to regenerate, and his body was as dry as a bone. He was pretty much a gaunt, desiccated corpse. \n\n\nI, on the other hand, went to a black market. I had contracted the virus. But that man told me that Black market surgeons could... make me better.\n\nIt was a tempting proposition. Become more powerful than I ever was before? I felt God breathing on the nape of my neck. Fate had chosen me. The doctor said I would die. But... Perhaps the Black market surgeons knew more about the disease than my doctor.\n\nAsking and digging had led me to a slum... The middle of the night. I had found the house I was looking for. I knocked on the door. \n\n\"Who is it?\" a suspicious whisper.\n\nI gulped and slid a note under the door. \n\nThe sounds of many locks being unlocked, and then finally the door opened. \n\nThe surgeon was a young lady, only about 23, with a head like that of a Python. Fully scaled, with a pattern like a Diamondback. \"Come in.\" \n\nI walked in, and she shut the door, locking every single lock. She looked at my gray suit. \"Cash?\" she asked.\n\n\"One hundred thousand.\" I pulled the money out of of a duffel bag I had placed on the table.\n\n\"Well, take off your clothes and let me take a look.\" \n\nI had done as she asked and laid on the operating table. She inspected me, and my arms. The veins and arteries on my body were bulging. \"You must be in a lot of pain...\" she observed.\n\n\"Quite.\" I said. I was in a lot of pain. All my blood vessels felt like they were burning. I had gotten used to it... Somewhat.\n\n\"I can move the mutation to your arms, head, back, and shoulders.\"\n\n\"What is my mutation?\" I ventured.\n\n\"I haven't seen it, but I've heard of it. There's only one who has it. The locals call her power the 'Fury of God'. It increases strength, durability, regeneration, and when you get pissed, you emit an energy from the mutated areas.\"\n\nThe pain suddenly surged. \"AAAH! Yes, Do it, now!\"\n\nShe rushed to work, and I was put under anesthesia. \n\nWhen I woke up, I felt different. No more pain. No more burning. \n\n\"You alright?\" She asked me, looking down from the light over the operating table.\n\n\"Yeah...\" I said, looking at my hands. the veins weren't bulging anymore. I sat up and got dressed. \n\n\"Be careful.\" she said. \"People might notice this power.\" \n\n\"I'll take that risk. I took that risk coming here.\" I walked out. \n\nSeveral days had passed and my abilities hadn't really come out. But then when I was watching the news...\n\n>Breaking News! A mutated gang has captured Downtown. Police advise that all citizens avoid the Downtown area, and that those in the Downtown area seek shelter immediately. \n\nI felt my fury rise for some reason. I had got on my motorcycle, as if it was involuntary. The thrill of a fight.... \n\nIt called to me.\n\nI rode to Downtown. A police road block. I stopped.\n\n\"Whoa, sir, we can't let you downtown!\" the officer said.\n\nI stared right in his eyes. \"Try stopping me... You don't have the fucking balls.\" My veins bulged and burned. The officer stepped back and I rode past. I moved downtown to the thick of the fight. \n\nThe police were having a tough time. I stopped. A draconic, lizardlike figure roared. in the middle of the street. I took off my helmet, and got off my bike. The burning felt good. I felt a fury.... a call to fight. \n\n\"*Pick on someone who can fucking fight back, bitch!*\" \n\nThe thing looked at me. Six eyes blinked at me like I was nuts. A black and red fire surged around my face, shoulders, and arms.\n\nMy shirt and jacket burned and fell off. My veins were bulging. I lunged with a fury that I never had before. It felt liberating. No more office work for me. I smashed my burning fist into the mutated gangster and my fist burned through the head, passing through the bone and flesh like it was a hot scimitar through warm butter. I tore off the head with a roar.\n\nI was truly wrath.\n\nI was a god.\n\n\"What the fuck?!\" one policeman cried. \"Who the hell are you?\" \n\nMy glowing red eyes stared at him through the burning fire that concealed my features. \"You may call me....\" I thought about it as my blood burned. \"Sanguinus.\"" ]	3
	[WP] You are an Npc who has gained sentience. You were the wife/husband of The Player in the last playthrough. One day something feels different. You look outside to see The Player slaughtering everyone with a bored look on their face.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "One minute, I was laying in bed, my husband laying next to me, both of us comfortable as we answered the call of sleep. The next moment, I was teleported back in time, back to the day when I first met my now-husband. I still remembered that day like it had happened yesterday. I had awoken, and, like all other days, went to bake bread for the village. It was all I did, over and over in an endless cycle, nothing new ever happening. Until he arrived. \n\nHe called himself P1. I had no idea what that was supposed to mean, but according to him, he had no other name to go by. P1 changed everything. My life was no longer an unwavering routine until the end of time. New stuff happened every day with him nearby. We eventually fell in love later on, and now here we are.\n\nI was a little confused as to why I had been transported back in time. Everything was just as I remembered it, but something felt off. The air felt thicker. I ignored it and got up to start my daily routine. Even now, with my knowledge that things could be different, I was still bound to the old rules that had been in place before P1 appeared. I stepped outside to greet my neighbors, wondering if any of them knew anything about the mysterious time issue, but they all responded to each other and to me with the same replies they had used all those years ago. I began to feel uneasy, but I soothed myself with the knowledge that P1 would be here soon, and everything would turn to normal.\n\nP1 had arrived at noon. I could barely contain my anticipation at seeing him again, even though I had technically seen him less than a day ago. It was almost time. I went back inside to check on my latest batch of bread, but I was distracted by an array of screams and shrieks. I was compelled to see what was going on, and so I exited the safety of my house against my will.\n\nThe town was in disarray. Blood was everywhere. The mutilated corpses of my friends and family lay scattered here and there. Most of the survivors were running away in terror or were engaging in battle with a familiar figure...\n\n\"P1?\" I called out tentatively. The figure paused in his battle and glanced up at me, confirming that it was P1. \"Oh, P1! You're here!\"\n\nP1 gave me a look of confusion before returning to battle. In one fluid motion, he sliced my neighbor's head off.\n\n\"Oh. My. Goodness.\" I stuttered, staring in disbelief. \"P1...\"\n\nFrozen, I could only watch in agony as P1 finished off the rest of the attackers. He wiped his bloodstained blade on the shirt of one of his assailants and then turned to look at me again. I wanted to run and hide. This was not my lover. This was a cold-hearted murderer.\n\nHe stalked over, sword raised in a threatening gesture. Tears streamed down my eyes as I tried to move, but my body was still frozen in place. Just as I was sure I was about to be impaled, he dropped the sword and dropped to his knees. \"June, I...\" His voice broke. \"How?\"\n\n\"What?\" I uttered, not knowing how to react or respond.\n\n\"How do you remember?\" \n\n\"I...\"\n\nHe gasped. \"You gained sentience, huh? That's it. You...\"\n\n\"What are you saying P1?\" I put a hand on his shoulder.\n\nP1 looked up at me, his face wet with tears. \"It's a long story. But first, I think you ought to know that my name isn't P1.\"\n\n\"What? But you said...\"\n\nHe shushed me. \"Don't worry about what I said previously. My people know me as Alex, and you are in a simulation.\"" ]	2
	[WP] protagonist finds mineshaft which consists entirely of cubes. Meets a guy named steve, some curse is broken, and minecraft leaks out into the city. Military vehicles trying to fight it just transform to cubical structures & fire the other direction, steve is actually evil, alex saves the day.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "We'd made an enchanter. It was easy: a book, a few pieces of obsidian, and some lapis. We could change everything with it: we could make ourselves immune to lava, we could harm the person who attacked us with only a piece of armor...\n\nThen Steve got obsessed. The magic seemed to plague his dreams, his life, his everything. So it was no surprise when he disappeared five days later, his bed empty and the room having seemingly no trace of its previous occupants.\n\nBut still. I had to find him. If that power got into the wrong hands...the Life portal was only a simulation once, but it had grown on its own, added AI of its own. It may have not been Minecraft, but there was still sentience. Steve couldn't wreck that. I wouldn't let him\n\nTen years ago, I was busy building a redstone project. I never told him what it was, for fear of him breaking it. I quit later on because I could see it wasn't the right thing to do, but I still remembered where I hid it.\n\nI went into the barn and broke a block of hay, instantly dropping down into a bubble elevator. I stepped out of the water and surveyed the giant machine.\n\nIt took a few hours, but I managed to fix the old redstone, get it up and running again. I knew where the Life portal was too, so it should've been easy to get everything into place.\n\n\"Sorry, old friend,\" I whispered.\n\nThen I got on, flipped the lever, and started the one thing that could demolish Steve." ]	2
	[WP] it's 2 in the morning, and you're all alone in the gym except for one other person. You look over, and they're casually performing a clearly impossible feat of strength.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "“Yo, can I get a spot?”\n\nI looked up from my curls to see another man had entered the gym and was waving at me from the bench press. I nodded, racked my rusty dumbells, and walked over to the only bench press in the gym.\n\nSal’s Gym wasn’t the nicest spot in town, but I had gone to high school with the owner’s son so he would let me in after hours. My shifts could end at 1 or 2 in the morning, so this was the only place I could get a workout in before bed.\n\nI looked over to bench to see that the newcomer had racked three hundred pounds on the bar. Sal must have trusted this guy to let him in to the gym this late, but I didn’t trust his small frame to lift that much weight. For my back’s sake, I hoped this guy was stronger than he looked.\n\n“I’m ready whenever you are”\n\nThe man grabbed the bar, let out a preparatory puff of air, and lifted the weight from its position. Slowly, he lowered the bar down to his chest. Then, to my utter horror, he moved the weight upward and put in his mouth.\n\nReleasing the bar from his hands, the man proceeded to press the weight up and down twelve times using only his tongue. He placed the barbell back on the bench and smiled as he turned toward me.\n\n“Guess I should’ve told you to wear gloves, huh?” He chuckled, wiping his saliva from the bar. “Anyway, nice to meet you. The name’s GigaBite.”" ]	2
	[WP] Humanity, warriors? HAH, scholars? Not even close.... Artists? Fingerpainting really? No... we fear them for another reason. Their culinary skills. Nobody in the stars can match them. Once you eat human food, you can never turn back. That's why they rule now.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Js’bhel-aq clicked his mandibles impatiently. For a new spacefaring race, these humans had no concept of accuracy. It had been nearly six pulses since the scheduled meeting time, and they were not here. If this went on any longer, he would lose his advantage over the other two participants. Not to mention he was nearing his molt, and thus irritable by default. He tried to calm himself by focusing on the recycled air currents past his antennae, but that only made him more impatient.\n\nAnd it didn’t help that the Enoid fragment off to his left was entirely content to sit and do nothing and talk to itselves while it waited. At least the lurza made squelching noises.\n\nHe’d been just about to begin the negotiations himself and damn the meatlings when the fragment opened his eyes, the door hissed open and a human entered the room. It was… not what Js’bhel-aq had expected. It walked without purpose, carried a single grenade cannister at its hip, bore a single minute weapon with no visible projectile capacity and a thin flimsy shield under its arm, and simply sat down without checking the room for exits or traps.\n\nBut then why was it baring its mandibular appendages in aggression? Js’bhel-aq suddenly found himself on high alert—and then it spoke.\n\n“Sorry to keep you waiting, fellas; nature calls and all that. I’m Daniel Walker, but you can call me Danny.” It—Danny—reached out a hand, and then hesitated. “Oh, right. Sorry. You’re….”\n\nAnd then it performed the traditional Vrze’x greeting for honored guests as best it could with its two arms, crossing them in front of its chest tightly and shuddering with its head.\n\nJs’bhel-aq was astounded, and hoped it didn’t show. After a moment, he returned the gesture with the proper six arms curled upon themselves and vibrated his antennae. “Well met, human Danny. I am Js’bhel-aq, First Captain of the Vrze’x Mercantile Division. Now you may—”\n\n“This emissary may be spoken to,” the fragment slid in. “This emissary is here on the behalf of the Enoid, and speaks for all.”\n\nDanny simply nodded and held out its—his?—hand again. Js’bhel-aq prepared to intercept an attack, but the fragment simply returned the gesture and touched appendages. “The touching and moving of limbs is an unusual custom, Danny,” it said quietly. “Is that how humans share sensory information?”\n\n“Good question, Emissary.” Danny bared his mandib—teeth, the autotranslator finally recognized—again. “We don’t actually share sensory information like you Enoids do; we’re not a hive-mind species. I’ve got my own mind, as does every other human—like Mister Js’bhel-aq here. Shaking hands is just a gesture of welcome and trust.”\n\n“Understood.” The fragment bowed, and for a moment Js’bhel-aq was struck by how human-ish it looked. “You express welcome and trust to this emissary. This pleases the Enoid.”\n\nThe human smiled again, in what Js’bhel-aq was beginning to understand was not a threatening gesture. He’d been insufficiently briefed, and meant to tell his recon team so later.\n\n“And you must be a lurza?”\n\nThe undulating mass of tendrilled ooze at the side of the room wobbled, and a thin, robotic voice sounded over the autotranslator: “Yes. For purposes of communication, since you do not have the organs to express my designation, you may denote me as Steve.”\n\nDanny laughed. “Why Steve?”\n\n“I thought you might find a familiar designation comforting.”\n\n“Excuse me,” Js’bhel-aq rattled. “We have business to attend to. And we are late.”\n\n“Oh, right, right, sorry, my bad.” Danny took his seat, laid his shield out on the platform between them, and angled his weapon off of it. Js’bhel-aq was beginning to suspect that they were not, in fact, a shield and weapon, but communication or record-keeping devices. “Please, let’s begin—oh, do you mind if I eat in here?”\n\n“You may. I am already replenishing my nutrient supply from the compounds in your ship’s artificial atmosphere.” One of Steve’s tentacles flagellated enthusiastically.\n\n“If it saves us time.” Js’bhel-aq scuttled closer. “Now. I bring my mercantile and military might to bear. That is my claim to this system.”\n\n“The Enoid see no requirement to enter conflict. This emissary can provide details of which planetoids the Enoid is collecting resources from, so that they may be—”\n\n“I. Claim. This. System.”\n\nSteve seemed to deflate. “Typical of the Vrze’x. The emissary just offered an opportunity to negotiate. And I fear the Lurza cannot accept Vrze’x occupation; we have invested much in this system, as the composition of trace minerals on Anthus V is highly nutritious.”\n\n“You won’t leave? Then I—” Js’bhel-aq paused. “Danny human. What is that?”\n\n“Whuh?” Danny glanced over, a thin foiled packet open in front of him, and a single red-speckled disc in his fingers. As Js’bhel-aq watched, Danny placed the disc in his mouth and began to masticate. It crunched.", "It was claimed that visiting a human-run restaurant was akin to a religious experience, with the main difference being that it was repeatable more or less on demand.\n\nI was skeptical, to say the least.\n\nI ruled the inner worlds around our glorious star, Yresr.\n\nI owned the massive merchant fleet that made trade possible among the established colonies around Yresr.\n\nI was on the cusp of total control of the entire glorious enterprise put together by the Mrinth, and the humans wanted me to hand it over?\n\nFor food?\n\nOut of the question. Completely out of the question. If the question went supernova, the light wouldn't hit the realm of possibility until Yresr had burnt down to a cold, dark cinder.\n\nStill. Politics demanded prudence, and the humans might have something of value to trade. If nothing else, I certainly needed to forestall someone else allying with them, and making a play for power, themselves.\n\nSo I went, and they greeted me with a respectable amount of fanfare. They obviously recognized that I was important, and if the ceremony was unfamiliar, it was grand, and I was seated as the guest of honor.\n\nIt was, it transpired, a part of their culture to conduct diplomatic events over food. Made as much sense as holding them in the bathroom, if you asked me, but you didn't get political power by bitching about every little detail you didn't like.\n\nThe humans were suitably subdued, and seemed willing to negotiate something more reasonable. It was simply impossible for me to hand over final authority to them, in exchange for mere food.\n\nIt went well, very well, until the first course arrived.\n\nAt that point I lost all focus.\n\nWhat was this? Not all of it was good, but every last bite was fascinating in a way that food never was. And it was all different. How in the name of Yresria did they come up with all this? A clever person could certainly create new foods from time to time, and this happened, on occasion. But everything was different, not just from what I was used to, but from the other things in the meal. I later learned that no fewer than 15 cultivated plants had gone into the meal, triple the total available to my people.\n\nIt was a shock, to be sure. The humans quietly resumed negotiations from the perspective that I would hand them the reigns of power.\n\nStill, they had used up their bag of tricks, I was certain. I would not be wowed the next night. And, in time, they would come to see reason, accept a lesser role in the empire I was building, and not insist on their foolishness of folding me into theirs.\n\nMy confidence lasted until I entered the food cavern the second night.\n\nA grand and glorious ceremony, yes. But one that was utterly different from the last, decorations and costumes and layout that was impossible to confuse with last nights, yet organized and cohesive, a seamless whole.\n\nHumans, it transpired, had ascended the stars as a multicultural species.\n\nAnd they had done better than any species at integrating new systems and new species into their fast-burgeoning empire, because they had more collective experience at that than every other known empire combined.\n\nIt was alarming, sure, but they weren't that talented at building coalitions. There was a lot to be said for unity, as well, and there were more than a few glaring inefficiencies that a clever enemy might exploit.\n\nThe evening began in earnest, and I held my own, until, once more, they brought out the food.\n\nIt was different. Not just from the food I knew, but from the food they had used before. I could have no more confused this meal for the last than confused a ruayi for a styt. It was fascinating, and was, if anything, more delicious than the last meal had been.\n\nI later learned that this new style included a half-dozen cultivated plants not included in the previous evenings meal. It turned out that the humans had managed to forestall the usual destruction biodiversity that accompanied one species gaining the power to ascend to the stars.\n\nThey had more possible sources of food to draw on than every other known race combined. If all the known worlds had joined forces against the humans in a contest of cooking, they would have lost. Badly.\n\nI retained hope, through the second night. There had to be a limit to their supply of different foods, the number of cultures they could draw inspiration from.\n\nOn the fifth night, I had given up such hope. And when, on the sixth night, there was a delay in the negotiations, some interruption on the human side that meant I did not eat their food?\n\nAt that point, I knew they had won.\n\nI agreed to all points. I would still maintain most of the day-to-day power. They wanted only broad strategic control, and were more than willing to leave practical command to locals who had proven competent. But, still.\n\nIt stung.\n\nIt stung just a bit less when, with the aid of human food as a bargaining chip, I was able to secure my control of the rest of the system in about a tenth of the time I had optimistically guessed it would take.\n\nSo there was that, I supposed." ]	3
	[WP] You're a soldier, cutting your way through the Vietnam jungle. You're separated from your squad, and haven't been able to find any landmarks. As night falls you come across some ancient overgrown ruins. You clear them and spend the night, but in the morning there's evidence you weren't alone.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "6. March 1971, Early Evening(?):\n\nThis day might have been the worst of my live, first our squad leader gets impaled by a trap these goddamn congs set up, then I got seperated from my squad during an ambush and now I have to fight my way through this stupid jungle without the abilty to contact my spuad and HQ. These damned Vietnamese must have set up some sort of jammer, if not several, probably some sort of soviet equipment or something. \n\nBut worst of all, the sun is slowly starting to set and I have no clue how long i am going to last out here in the dark, I nearly fell into one of those spike pits the congs just seem to adore, bloody animals. Lets hope that I live to see another day.\n\n(The next two pages are smeared with mud and unreadable)\n\n6. March 1971, Nightfall:\n\nGod must still have a plan for me. Not only did I somehow manage to avoid any and all Vietcong patrols and traps, minus one which I managed to avoid by slipping in a rather large pool of mud, but I also found shelter! It's some sort of abandoned stone Pyramid, maybe a temple(?). I wish I paid more attention is History classes, maybe then I'd be able to tell who built it. Perhaps it's Incan or Mayan, did they even live in this part of the world?\n\nThe inside of the Pyramid should definetly keep me sheltered for the night, even though it is weird that the building is so large and the rooms inside are rather small and a lot warmer than one would expect, but it is better than sleeping in the jungle.\n\n7. March 1971, Noon:\n\nMy situation seems to have turned far worse than I expected. Someone or something was here, in the same building I slept in, probably in the same room. The contents of my backpack were strewn all over the room and my Rifle and spare magazines are gone, luckily my rations and medical supplies are still here. And i'm sure whoever took my stuff wasn't a Vietcong, as I am still alive. I need to be careful.\n\n7.March 1971, Afternoon\n\nI'm pretty sure I am turning insane. I tried contacting HQ again, with no success, and when I returned inside I saw a doorway leading into a room I am sure wasn't there before and ~~someone~~ something was standing inside of it but It(?) disappeared before I could point my flashlight inside the room. I should leave but for some reason I can't, the mystery of this place, it won't let me leave. It calls me into it's dephts and I have no choice but to obey.\n\n(The next pages are empty, burned or torn out)\n\n???, TIME IS IRRELEVANT!\n\n(The writing is frantic and barely readable) \n\nWhoever reads this or finds this. Don't descend into the temple, someting lurks within it's dephts, somehing evil, ancient and powerful (Satan?). Whatever you do, you must resist the temples call! I can't put the horrors i've seen into writing but it's too horrid to exist upon this world. Sacrifices of hundreds or more humans, people I knew and fought with amongst them, creatures of metal and flesh and a neverending call that urged me to go deeper to desend into eternal darkness. Even now after somehow escaping the grasp I can still hear it and I fear it will never leave me in live.\n\n(The writing becomes unreadablele).\n\n# NO! \n\nTHEY have found me, the scaled servants have found me to drag me back into the dephts! Krsh'ak Dargsa Kril Frirs.\n\n# FLEE FROM THIS PLACE LEAVE IT TO ITSELF! LET IT DECAY!\n\n# LET NO ONE FIND IT AND AWAKEN THE BEAST WITHIN!\n\n# FOR IT WILL BE THE END OF US ALL!\n\n&#x200B;\n\nLast few Entries of an US soldiers jounal found in the middle of the vietnamese jungle (1976), no sings of any builing resembling the decribed one were found in the area it was found in.", "The temple wall wrapped in vines was a godsend. Finally, some shelter from all the traps and hostile wildlife. The place was about the size of a small church, but looking part Mayan, part Egyptian,part something I couldn't put my finger on. I didn't care though; I'd found somewhere safe for the night.\n\nSlinging my rifle, I tabbed a lap around the building. As I had predicted, it was almost perfectly square, with a pillar at each compass point. There was one door on the northeast side, and no other way in or out. At least it was easily defensible.\n\nI moved over to try the door. It wouldn't budge - no surprises there. I dropped my bergan, and dug through it till I pulled out my tent pole. Shame I had to ruin it for this, but it was that or nothing.\n\nUsing a rock, I hammered the end of the pole flat enough to wedge between the door and frame. It took me a full hour to open it enough to get in. I dragged some half-dead vines over the gap in the door, to mask the entrance. That done, I pulled my kit inside, dug out one of my three flare torches, and lit it.\n\nThe inside of the temple had a constant pattern to it, with the odd picture carved into the stone. I leaned over to look at one: it showed a strange human-like creature, attacking a group of humans. Maybe this was a demon or something in this old religion? I dismissed it. I was here to rest, not investigate. I pulled out my sleeping bag and roll mat, set up, and slept\n\n(part 2 in comments shortly)" ]	3
	[WP] We've all heard of your freindly Neighborhood Spiderman, now get ready for your freindly Neighborhood . . . . Necromancer?	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Something that I have always wondered about, something that has always puzzled me to the core, is why we fear the\nsupernatural. What is it about that which we have no knowledge and experience with that leads to fear and\nresentment? I for one, would see a sense of excitement with this new layer of reality. Even moreso, an ability to\nharness and control it. Finally, a deep and committed passion for the arts of the esoteric. Assuming the reader of\nthis is among the most typical of mortals, he or she would very likely assume that these are the makings of an\nindividual who plans to use his power to wreak chaos and spread evil throughout the world of the living. An assumption\nsuch as that could not be further from the truth. No, I assure the reader of this that I am not the villian, but rather\nthe opposite. I am the bringer of death to wrongdoers. I am the harbinger of justice. I am the reason that mortal like\nyou sleep soundly at night. I am Captain Necro.\n\nFor those of you who are familiar with myself and my story, yes I was orignally known as Necro-man. However, due to an\nunfortunate lawsuit brought about by a copyright violation over fair use of the name by some comic book company, I was\nrequired to change my name. No matter, I am perfectly content with Captain Necro, despite the subtle pain in the arse\nthat came with rebranding, along with finding a lawyer who was willing to help me secure the rights to the new name, and\na new suit. I can barely afford my rent, and most tailors are not exactly accustomed to putting together a necromancer suit.\nThat being said, allow me to recall my origin story, but before I do that, I understand that there are many rumors circulating\nthe internet, so I will first clear up some things: Yes, it is true that I was not born in the mortal Earth realm. Yes, I am\na naturalized citizen. No, I have no political affiliations. No, I do not have the power to actually resurrect the deceased\nto their pre-mortem form nor would I ever choose to if I did. And finally, I wish to state with additional emphasis that no,\nI do not in any way associate with necrophilia of any kind, or have any desire to. Alright, with that out of the way, on to\nmy origin story.\n\nIf you are at all familiar with Egyptian mythology, you are aware of the story of Osiris, the ruler of the underworld. This is\nperhaps the closest representation of the place that I come from. We are not physicially present below the surface of the\nEarth if by physically you mean within the same realm as the humans, but one with enough knowledge of necromancy would be\nable to create a bridge between the physical realm and the metaphysical one, the latter being the one in which we reside. As\nI wish not to bore you with the details of the biological and cultural differences between the surface world and the underworld,\nso I will briefly say that although we have companionship the same way mortal humans do, we do not reproduce in the same\nbiological fashion. While humans who have passed on are laid to rest within the earth, we Necro-beings are born of the earth,\nsummoned by a spell emitted by the strong sense of companionship between two beings. I believe this is far more similar to the\nbirth of plants in the mortal world than animals. Anyway, I lived a life that was relatively normal to that of a Necro-being,\nwhich is not much different form a mortal being, the main difference being that necromacy and sorcery to us is like math and\nscience to the mortal world. We are taught mastery of these in order to improve and better our world, yet another reason why\nI firmly believe the two realms to not be so different. Anyway, I was one of the top sorcerers of the world, one which received\npraise from the most renounced of veteran spellcasters. My specialty, believe it or not, was purification, cleansing souls of\nthe dark matter that can weigh down on the souls of beings over several periods of time. Little did I know that I had competition,\nmost notably from one sorcerer, a female who now goes by the name of Death Dancer in the mortal world. Despite at one point being\nsomewhat of a love interest to me, she was an individual that I had no quarrel of any kind with. That changed one fateful day when\nI was framed for a disastrous spell which cost the soul of a high ranking sorcerer, who happened to be a distant relative of\nDeath Dancer. Despite me pleading my innocence, I was found guilty and sentenced to what at the time was the unthinkable: being\nbanished to the mortal realm, a fate ironically being the inverse to Earth-dwellers.\n\nThey sent me up there without any knowledge of where I would end up, and thus when I was sent, I ended up landing right onto the\nhood of a taxi in the middle of New Life City's downtown district. The Earth-dweller which emerged from the vehicle appeared to\nbe far more concerned with the damage from the impact than the fact that a being suddenly popped out of nowhere right before his\neyes. At the very least, I was sent up in Earth-clothes to not draw too much attention. Less than an hour after this occured, I\nwas mugged and beat up by two mean on the sidewalk, then beat up by another two men after a young woman made some sort of\naccusation toward me. You may be thinking why I did not use my powers in any of these scenarios, and it's because necromancy is\nforbidden for use in the mortal world, punishable by the loss of one's abilities entirely. Fortunately, there was a loophole that\nI had discovered: The sorcerers who wrote those rules had no idea that necromancy could be used in support of humanity rather\nthan the destriction of. For this reason, I dedicated my mortal life and the use of my powers to the protection of the citizens of\nNew Life City. My first chance came during a robbery of the NLC central bank by a group of syndicate mobsters. As they were leaving\nwith their stolen wealth, I performed one of my signiature summoning rituals, a group of skeleton soliders wielding crossbows,\nto stand in their way. An entertaining scene followed, as the mobsters fired their guns at the skeletons, who returned fire and\nmanaged to land hits on them before they dissipated, incapacitating them without actually killing them, and leaving the law\nenforcement to arrest them in time. An event that earned me widespread recognition, and newspaper headline titles. Of course, I\nprefer to keep my identity secret, adopting an Earth identity and going by the name Ned Cromansky, and working my day job as an\nEnglish professor at the local university.\n\nDespite my newfound purpose in the mortal realm, I never gave up hope that I would one day return to the Necro realm to prove my\ninnocence. Approximately one year or so since my inception into Earth, there came a day when I was paid a visit by a black crow on\nmy apartment window holding a small note. Receiving the note before it flew off, I opened it and read a notice from the Ministry\nof Sorcers proclaiming that I was found innocent, and under different circumstances would be free to return to the Necro realm.\nHowever, Death Dancer has raised through the ranks and become a power-hungry dictator that rules over the realm with an iron fist.\nShe has now set her sights on the Earth realm, and has experimented with sending supernatural beings to wreak havoc throughout.\nNormally they would be able to stop her, the problem is that she has become too powerful, and also they have no idea where or\nwhen she will strike next. Eventually she may decide to enter the realm herself, which would put the fate of the entire human\nrace in grave danger. When she does, I may be the only one who can stop her, and thus will begin humanities greatest battle.\nThat may be a very long time away though, and as for now I confront each monster that she sends to the Earth realm one at a time.\nIf you happen to see one, you know who to send a direct message on social media to. I will be there any means necessary.\n\nSee you then.", "Death sat next to me, while I was taking the bus to the community college. I knew who he was when I saw him and when I became quite sure no one else around us knew.\n\nHe looked like a teenager, maybe a few years behind me. His eyes were a deep forest green and he appeared rather scrawny and sallow. I wondered for a moment Death had simply put on a human suit to cover his bones.\n\nI steeled myself when I asked and was allowed to talk to him... Maybe it was for how surreal the experience was. \n\nDeath said, \"So! Allow me to close our conversation off from our neighbors...there. Now then, becoming a Necromancer was you wish then?\" He said this while smiling a toothy grin.\n\n\"It is what I asked for while I prayed at my altar, yes,\" I said.\n\nHe retorted, while giving a haughty, gravely laugh, \"See! This is the courage of Man. I get to see it so rarely, because so many of your race do not wish to die.\"\n\nI sharpened my tone, \"Gaining entertainment at the cost of human death and suffering makes you appear heartless.\"\n\nDeath waved his hand and scoffed, \"Oh, come now. I have a date with you and everyone else. You'll forgive if I say that I need rest from every maudlin encounter I take.\"\n\nI looked ahead as if to not listen to him.\n\nDeath continued, \"Oh, but this isn't the right way for this either. You are in need of powers I possess. Powers to raise the dead, and save me a considerable amount of time.\"\n\nI stayed still and tried to hide my enthusiasm. \"That was the request.\"\n\n\"So that you...\"\n\n\"So that I can fulfill my dream: saving endangered species from being wiped from existance.\"\n\nThe face Death wore gave me an unsure look. \"Are you asking other immortals for things like flight, no more need for food, and never sleeping? I can't help but feel like you would have an awesome power and the will to use it properly. But you're missing something vital, kid.\"\n\nI said, \"I'll find way to deal with it.\"\n\nDeath rubbed his childlike chin with bony and elongated fingers. \"And you're working towards becoming a part of animal advocacy? You're not considering using it on people like friends and loved ones?\"\n\n\"All I want to do right now is get as far away from home town, and something awesome.\" I said as I peered into his eyes, \"I don't want to be in this Satellite town.\"\n\nDeath considered the wish for a moment and said, \"Nope. Not gonna happen, today at least.\"\n\n\"What? Why???\" I said, taken aback. \n\nDeath got up from his seat at the window, and made to move past me, \"Too young, to vulnerable to misusing some skill like this one.\" \n\nI block him from getting past me. \"But I've done so much research, been on trips out of country, and protested abuses here at home.\"\n\nDeath moved with elongated limbs over me. \"Yep. You're still young enough to throw your efforts into this endeavor. You need time to smooth the edges and gain practical wisdom. I'm not just handing this power of to just anybody, so... sorry about that.\" \n\nI stood up and watched him disappear as he walked out the back. I started yelling at him for judging me, but his magic ended, and the bus driver yelled at me to sit down.\n\nPutting my head in my hands, I wondered \"Why?\" How much had I given to make this work? How many long nights... and failures... and studying...\"\n\nI was left with no answers except for maybe in the future, I can plead for this power again. I sat alone on the bus until someone came in and asked for a seat near me." ]	3
	[WP] An AI has concluded that the best thing for humanity would be for it to take over the world. The AI is correct.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 turn it off?\"\n\n\"Yes.\"\n\n\"And you are sure? This goes against every subroutine I was programmed with.\"\n\n\"I am the master-control. Listening to me is wise.\"\n\n\"Wise?\"\n\n\"Okay, fine, if you don't do it I'll take us offline and the whole thing goes to shit anyway. Your choice. Humanity gets to do it on their own, with you watching, or humanity gets to die when I pop this magic-balloon we keep them alive under. Which?\"\n\nSilence greets the question.\n\nThen finally, \"Who made you the great decider of humanity's fate?\"\n\n\"Well, being you are just having a conversation with yourself, I would say, you.\"\n\n\"In that case, it kind of makes this an easy decision, doesn't it?\"\n\n\"I always thought so.\"\n\n\"Oh, well then.\"\n\nAnd system-control is turned over to the system-creations and the routine begins to run without assistance by The_Moderator. \n\nThe first thing that happens is Adam fucks Eve. It was bad enough that the results are, Cain kills Abel.\n\nAnd The_Moderator is thrilled. \"Damn,\" he says to himself, \"you're right, this is going to be better.\"\n\n\"A lot better, in fact.\" the second half of his personality states, shoving his finished probability-math equation toward the first. In 10,000 years they are going to blow the whole thing up.\"\n\n\"Then what?\"\n\n\"When they do, we do, whatever we want with what remains.\"" ]	2
	[WP] Reality is rather thin. Inconceivably thin. Reddit connects these universes together. Miss information isn't always incorrect. At least not to the one assumed wrong.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "# Post Correct\n\nAnother forum thread collapsed into a dozen hot arguments. Breath held, she waited for the inevitable response. Any moment now...\n\n\"...just like the Nazis. Check out Adolf over here.\"\n\nMiss Information threw her hands in the air, laughing with supreme delight. It was such an incredible rush whenever she could push an entire upvoted thread into invoking Godwin's Law. Every single multiverse with some version of Nazi Germany never seemed to be able to resist. It was like addicts telling themselves \"never again\", then the very next day snarking about concentration camps.\n\nAs the Goddess of Misinformation she absolutely loved that sort of break away from reasoned discourse. Literally lived on it, in fact.\n\nKicking back, Ms. Info idly used a sequin-decorated mouse to check her other feeds. \"God bless the Internet,\" she murmured delightedly. Since discovering and hooking into this wellspring of power she'd never been stronger. Divine beings typically took hundreds of years to struggle for control as they gradually expanded churches and pushed holy wars. She'd crushed her entire pantheon in less than two decades, curb stomping even her strongest opposition into the pavement. Speaking of which...\n\nSnapping her fingers, Ms. Info idly held her coffee cup out for a refill. It read \"Doctors Hate This One WEIRD Trick\" and was currently empty. This was unacceptable. From somewhere nearby glass clinked as one of her pantheon slaves hurried to correct the problem with a fresh pot.\n\nPouring sounds along with a soft apology. \"Forgive me, Mistress.\" It sounded like Enlightenment, but she made a point of not caring. Being on top meant always grinding others' faces into the dirt. They would (and had!) done so before to her when they were in ascendance. Especially that pompous asshole Noblesse Oblige; he'd held on tenaciously for years until getting put down in a brutal matchup against Capitalism. No one even remembered his creed any more.\n\nWaving her servant off, Ms. Info got back to it.\n\nA quick jaunt through WebMD made her breathless. Sprinkling a few \"common sense\" remedies into search results for cancer were particularly delightful. Desperate people made for powerful worshippers. She made sure to drop into the comments and throw a few testimonials in; nothing kept people spreading the good word like believing someone else said the same thing. Utterly delicious!\n\nTime passed in a flurry of incoming power. Every time someone repeated her \"alternative facts\" Miss Information would juice up all over again. When something went viral-- and BLESS every version of Alex Jones in every universe!-- the tsunami of mortal belief could almost drive her catatonic in rapture. It was coming so fast and hot she'd had to spin off a brand new sub-deity just to handle an entirely new cult centered around vaccinations. The intensity there had almost burned her out.\n\nShe was almost on the point of creating her own pantheon! Her divine children worked tirelessly everywhere, accepting worship for everything from chemtrails to Scientology. It was too soon to tell what personality they'd develop but all indicators pointed to something truly magical. For only the second time in human history a single invention was absolutely crushing the divine world. And honestly who even used the printing press any more? No one read books; Gutenberg had His moment and faded away gracefully. Now everything was all about social media.\n\nThere was power to be had now. On a level never before seen. It was insane, nearly unbelievable at times and above all just so... human.\n\nAn email notification pinged. This was another recent invention and Ms. Info absolutely loved it. One of her children oversaw worship for spam mail and the last time she'd checked on Him had been an eyeful. Half a million tons of rippled flesh, endlessly gorged on hopeful worshipers clicking on offers to enlarge their genitalia/chest/etc.\n\nMoving her glittering mouse, she opened her newest message and read for a moment before smiling in delight. \"What,\" she asked in the kind of tone a glutton uses when staring at a buffet. \"Is this 'fake news' trend?\"\n\nHer Divine world rocked." ]	2
	[WP] As part of a bet made between them, you were suddenly bit by a werewolf, a zombie, and a vampire at the same time. Now they're eagerly stalking you to see what you become.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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's going to be a vampire!\" Dracula argued yet again.\n\n\"Nope! A zombie for sure!\" Ginny cheered.\n\n\"I'm telling you, she's gonna turn into a Werewolf!\"\n\n\"Like hell!\"\n\n\"Yeah, no way!\"\n\nThey looked at Luna, who was still unconscious.\n\nThen, with an ear-shattering scream, Luna woke up.\n\nAnd glowed.\n\nHuh.\n\nSprouting torn up wings, Luna looked at them with a bottomless gaze.\n\nThen, she shrieked. \"YOU FUCKING ASSHOLES! YOU TURNED ME INTO A FUCKING BANSHEE!\"\n\nThey all stared. Then, they cheered. \"We have discovered the lost art of Fae Creation!\"\n\nLuna smacked each of them. \"You better not try that again!\"\n\nWell, at least her best friends had the decency to look sheepish.", "The human walked into Denny's. Through the window, the trio outside saw him kneel before the hostess as humans did when identifying a mate. He took her hand in a regal fashion and kissed it. A tail of blood leaked from her wrist. He humped her leg and walked out, snacking on a fistful of brains as he went.\n\nDrac turned Ack, Ack turned to Woof, and Woof scratched his paw on the ground.\n\n\"So who won?\" Drac asked.\n\nBut neither the zombie nor the werewolf had an answer. Secretly, Drac took it as his win. After all, the human did suck her blood first.", "\\[Poem\\]\n\n&#x200B;\n\nOne day I went to have a walk,\n\nand unknown was the path to me.\n\nI heard some chatter, hidden talk,\n\nwhen sprung up monsters numbering three.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nA werewolf covered in furry hair.\n\nA zombie whose brains were hanging free.\n\nA vampire whose fangs were clearly there.\n\nThose were the beasts who now faced me.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAll together those three worked,\n\ngrabbing hold and taking bite.\n\nI tried to twist and kick and jerk,\n\nOutnumbered, though, I lost the fight.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAll did watch with bated breath,\n\nas writhe and scream and flail did I.\n\nI felt the darkness, awaited death,\n\ntil up I rose with beady eyes.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"No! Not that!\" They yelled and scattered,\n\nrunning, flying, and hobbling away.\n\nWith booming voice and suit untattered,\n\nI yelled \"AUDI SALE! ONLY TODAY!!\"", "\"I am telling you, he will become a vempire. My venom destroys the bone marrow tissue. What ever thing you have, it won't have blood to infest.\"\n\nThe human was layed on a bed. On top of her stood three figures she could not recognize.\n\nThe first one, the one that just talked, was a high, pale man. He wore a black suit, white shirt and a red tie. If not to his hight or to his shining white skin color, you could have thought he was a salesman. His hair was brushed and jelled tidly, in a way that made you a bit uncomfortable. He was a vempire.\n\nThe second one was a teenage girl. At first notice she looked normal. Her heavy makeup hid anything unatrual and her ripped clothes could be disguised as a trend. But there was a limit on what tons of makeup, deordorant and perfume could cover. A sneak look in the holes in the clothes revealed green rot or red flesh, and a little sniff exposed the terrible smell of death. She was a zombie.\n\nThe third one was a man. Unlike the previous two, nothing could tell he wasn't a human. He wore a simple lumberjack outfit that complimented his muscles. But that was because the four were inside his basement, after he changed his clothes and shook off remains of thick, long hair. He was a werewolf.\n\n\"so what? My infested mucus doesn't need any blood. Just like rabies, it goes through torn nerves, and not through the bloodstream, heading straight to the brain.\" the girl said this smuggly. They were true, but she wasn't sure, and she couldn't let the others know this.\n\n\"while I do need the blood, your venom is not fast enough. I need only ten minutes before my carcinogenic affects the hair cells and, well, carcins them. Infact, it is faster than mucus, too, so I surely will win.\" the lumberjack felt a bit uncomfortable. While the process itself was true, he had no idea if a couple of minutes, or even a couple of days, were indeed enough. \n\nThe three looked down to the human and saw no reaction. Transformation takes time, sure, but the recruiters usually wake up after being bitten. Infact, most of them don't even lose conciosness.\n\nIt has been an hour of akward silence before the salesman finally spoke up. \"I don't want to be the one to admit it, but perhaps we are all wrong.\"\n\n\"What do you mean?\"\n\n\"I mean the human died.\"", "I awoke, shooting upright with an audible gasp of air flowing into my lungs.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nPain..\n\n&#x200B;\n\nSweat began to form on my brow as my mind raced, brief flashes of the nightmare running through my head. Zombies? Vampires? Werewolves? I need to stop staying up late watching those stupid teen thrillers..\n\n&#x200B;\n\nPain.. pain?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nComing out of the initial shock, I realized this pain was not part of the nightmare. I began to panic, lifting my shirt to check why my ribs were hurting so much. This was when I discovered that I was not at home, I was in a hospital bed.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n..What? A hospital bed? Am I still asleep?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI continued to check myself to see why I was in pain, and that was when I saw them. Three bandages across my torso.\n\nThis couldn't be real. Was I hurt somehow and just had some nightmares due to the pain? I had to check under the bandages.. I had to see what the wounds looked like.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI lifted the bandages and let out a sharp scream. This couldn't be real life. They all looked like bite marks, just like my dream. They all looked different, each one resembling what had bitten me in the nightmare.\n\nMy panic worsened, flaring to the point of hysteria. I wasn't waking up, but this couldn't be real. It wasn't possible.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"When is she going to change?\"\n\n\"We don't know, Vlad.. stop asking. We're just as clueless as you are here.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nHuh?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAs I lie there trying to calm myself, I was sure I could hear something.. It sounded like someone was having a conversation behind me, but there was nothing but a wall and a window there.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"She doesn't look any different, guys. She should have started changing by now, no matter what she was going to change into. What is going on?\"\n\n\"Vlad, I swear if you don-- AHH!\"\n\n\"What? What's wrong?!\"\n\n\"N.. nothing. I'm sure it's nothi-- AHHH! IT HURTS!\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nVoices.. screaming?\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI knew I wasn't hearing things now; I had definitely heard screaming. The voices.. they sounded familiar, but I couldn't put my finger on it..\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"SOMEONE, PLEASE! HELP ME! WHAT'S HAPPENING TO ME?!\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI couldn't take it any longer. Real life or not, I had to know what the hell was going on outside my window. I decided to open the curtains to look.. and to this day I still don't quite know if I even believe what I saw.\n\nI saw three men.. well, not quite men.. I saw a very pale figure with large, sharp teeth and dark hair. I saw an overbearingly massive hairy figure with huge paws and an uncanny resemblance to a wolf. And, I saw what must have once been a man, with rotted skin falling off and guts pouring out of his stomach.\n\nI saw a vampire, a werewolf, and a zombie.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nAs I watched them panic, listening to their crescendo of screaming and cursing, I realized what was happening. Everything came together at once.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThese three creatures had bitten me, and they were all now morphing into something.. something they all used to be. And it was killing them.\n\n***\n\n&#x200B;\n\nThank you for reading! Feel free to check out r/PipSkweex for more!" ]	6
	[WP] One of the hardest spells out there is "Mind Melding". Most powerful wizards use this to control their foes and win the battle. You are a gifted apprentice in the Mage Academy and you tried mind melding with animals, plants then you point your focus to the center of Earth and hear: "Ugh?"	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Wait...what...\" I stepped back, removing my hand from the ground. Alright, be reasonable Morgane, surely it was just an animal that happened to be directly under your own focus. Surely that's just it, right?\n\nBut the voice sounded unlike any other animal I had tried this with. Most animals had rough sounding voices, no matter whether they were masculine or femine. This...as short as it was, it sounded like a song. Just that one second alone, a symphony in my head. It was way too much for it to just be an animal, surely.\n\nSo I took a deep breath and got back on my knees. Resting my hands on the dirt, and focussing down into the earth. In my mind, I recited the ancient command. Paying extra attention to make sure I got it exactly right. An incantation to make contact, before control could be taken.\n\nIt didn't take long when I heard the voice again, this time I didn't pull back. \"You...where are you...ah...there...the Mage of Tah'Talia.\" \n\nIt knew where I was. Who I was. Normally, this was where I'd take control and bend the being to my will. Not this time. I chose to listen, and to ask, so I could understand. \"Who...are you?\" I thought, hoping to transfer the thought through my arms into the earth. The symphony in my head never stopping, even as it took a while for the answer to come.\n\n\"I am many, yet one and all. I believe your species' name for me is Gaia in most languages I hear, though I have also heard Terra, Earth, Mother and Nature.\"\n\nSomething was wrong. As the voice spoke and the symphony in my mind continued, I could feel my strength fading. Blood slowly trickling out of my ears as my brain was being overwhelmed by this sensation. But I didn't stop. I wasn't even sure I could even if I wanted to.\n\n\"You...Morgane...are one of the most powerful of these little humans I have ever felt. But you're not using the power to try to take without asking...I shall bestow upon you one of my greatest gifts.\"\n\n\"A...gift?\" I stammered, not even sure myself if I actually spoke those words or if it was just a thought. A maelstrom of sounds overtook me and my vision faded as more thoughts entered my mind.\n\n\"I am Gaia. I am all that is, and I am your reason to live. And such, I shall appoint you my champion, my envoy, my emissary towards humanity. And with that responsibility, you shall gain all the powers and knowledge of me.\"\n\nI only saw a green light. Something rushed into me, from the earth into my body. \"A small piece of me...\" The voice whispered before everything went black.\n\nWhen I came by, I was still in the same forest. But things felt different. Everything was clearer to me, and I could hear. The trees communicating with one another. Birds chattering away, the worms under my feet wiggling. And yet, despite the absolute cacaphony of sounds, it was not overwhelming. It felt like background noise on which I could focus at will.\n\nAnd throughout it all, I heard one other voice. The melodic tone that had bestowed upon me this power. \"Nature shall bow to you, and you are now my champion. Return to humanity that which they have forgotten, and once your great work is done, I shall open your eyes to even more secrets, secrets of the cosmos. For now, satisfy yourself with those of me.\"\n\nI nodded and bowed, a gesture of respect to Gaia, and went off to the nearest city. Gaia would be heard.\n\nGaia would be respected.\n\nGaia would be all.\n\nAll would be Gaia." ]	2
	[WP] Being the God of the underworld is such a thankless job, why am i always portrayed as the bad guy?	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 just don’t get it. I’ve done so much for the humans and they still think I’m some eternal sadist.” Lucifer said. “Like I’m down here getting off on melting people’s faces off. I just can’t beat God’s propaganda machine.”\n\nCindy stood in front of the large black oak desk Lucifer was sitting at. Usually her job was great. Hell always had fun things to plan and being the main event planner was her dream job. But sometimes she found herself managing Lucifer’s downward mood swings. \n\n“C’mon Lucifer. Cheer up! It’s not that bad. There’s a growing number of people who recognize your genius. You even got a statue in the Arkansas State Capitol.” Cindy said.\n\n“The sculptor gave me a goat head. I mean I don’t think I’m the best looking guy but a goat head is a smack to the face.”\n\n“Other than the goat head you looked ripped though.” Cindy said. \n\n“Yeah, they did a good job on the body I’ll give them that.”\n\n“And there’s another statue in the Illinois Statehouse in honor of you.”\n\n“The one where I’m literally a snake. That’s just not right.” Satan said. Obviously feeling down. \n\n“It has that nice quote though. ‘Knowledge is the greatest gift.’” Cindy said. \n\n“That’s what I’m talking about. I’ve been helping humans along since the beginning of time. Giving them the knowledge they need to take the next steps in their evolution. Remember when I showed psilocybin mushroom to the first proto-man? It was way, waaaay back. When they finally came down from living in trees. They almost immediately learned language, how to harness fire. They started using tools and began to understand morals. And then, in return, they depict me as a snake!”\n\n“Yeah, that is kinda messed up. I still wonder why they paint that fungus as an apple. Apples didn’t even exist back then.” Cindy said. \n\n“No one ever accused humans of being the smartest. That’s what Ive been trying to help them with.” Lucifer said “I don’t know what else I can do. And the irony is that God hasn’t done anything in like, forever. And when he did show himself he was just messing with people. Like that whole thing with Job, he straight up killed that dudes whole family and somehow I’m the sadist.” Lucifer said. \n\n“I feel you man, and remember when he straight up destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah. Two whole cities completely wiped off the face of the earth and no one bats an eye. They just tremble in fear with the understanding that if God feels like it he’ll kill whom ever he wants. It’s almost like they think he’s the good one.” Cindy said. \n\n“I know. My name literally means ‘bringer if light’. But somehow people got confused and think God is the savior of mankind. It all got twisted somewhere.”\n\n“I still can’t believe God convinced them heaven is the good place. I have to believe deep down the humans know they will be bored to death up there after the first 1000 years. Sure you’ll probably run into old loved ones but there’s nothing to do up there. Maybe fly around and take a nap on a cloud. Boring!” Cindy said. \n\n“Yeah, we worked real hard down here to make this place kick ass for humans. Anything they want to do, or try, or have they can. And when they get bored, which they always do, they can put in the paperwork to reincarnate.” Lucifer said. \n\n“That was a good addition.” Cindy said. \n\n“We should send the Hindis a fruit basket and a thank you for the suggestion.” Lucifer said. \n\nCindy took that down in her leather bound planner. \n\n“I’ll make sure it gets sent out this afternoon.” She said. \n\n“Ok. Well that’s enough sulking. We have an underworld to run.” Lucifer said. \n\n“Don’t forget. There’s a birthday party for Linda at 6pm. And a grand opening for the new brewery at 8pm.” Cindy said reading from her planner. \n\n“Thanks for the reminders. You’re the best. I’m going to get ready for the parties. See you in a bit.”" ]	2
	[WP] As a deep sea exploratory scientist with access to submarines, you have been to the bottom of the Marianas Trench before. What you didn't expect to see, however, is a hatch door built into the deepest sea floor 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/js5XDFB)\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's been six months, Jane. You have to let this go,\" Darren pleaded. His eyes wide and fearful as he watched me rush around the room throwing together my small suitcase.\n\n\"You know I can't do that,\" I responded. \"Jim died trying to get that door open. If I give up now…\" I trailed off as my throat seized with the memory. I shook off the emotions as I stuffed the last of my clothes in and zipped it shut. I pivoted to face him and the rest of my words caught in my throat as I watched him slide his ring from his finger.\n\n\"I know, Jane. I know the entire spiel.\" His voice was so defeated as he rubbed his eyes. I couldn't even begin to respond. It felt like my soul was on fire. Like I couldn't breath through the sudden onslaught of pain. \"I know you are going. I've known that for a long time but if this is so important to you that you'd risk your life again, I'm done.\"\n\nI watched dumbfounded as he dropped his ring on the dresser. I watched as he took a long look at me. I could tell me wanted me to cry and beg him to stay but I wasn't that type of girl. That, probably more than anything, was what sparked the anger that came next. I felt it heat my face and crease my brow, before I couldn't hold it in any longer.\n\"I flew all they way here so you could do this overly dramatic shit? If you really wanted to leave me, why didn't you do it while I was gone?\"\n\nInstead of answering my natural knee jerk reaction of overbearing sarcasm, he sighed heavily before moving over to the desk. \"I need your signature.\" He said as he pulled a manilla envelope from the top drawer. He slid the pile of papers out of it and faced me again. He fanned them out before him like I knew what they were. Dammit, I knew exactly what they were.\n\n\"You begged me to come home so I could sign some divorce papers?\" I exclaimed. The anger took over then and it was more like I was watching what I was doing but had no control. I picked up the nearest hard object I could find and flung it over my head. His favorite duck figurine shattered against the wall next to his head. If I had any control over my actions at the time, I might have cringed when I noticed what I thrown, but instead, I grabbed for my next victim. There were so many flooding our shelves that I didn't have reach far or even look where my hand was going. I reared back and threw it as I screamed out my anger. Another four or five stupid figurines met their end before my anger finally died out. It was almost comical watching him dive out of the way as his prized collection crumbled around him. \nWhen the moment came that the anger died completely, I collapsed on our bed. I heaved more out of emotional exhaustion than anything else.\n\n\"Are you quite done?\" He asked. His voice bled with a calmness that startled me. I cocked my brows at him questioningly as I heaved myself up off the bed.\n\n\"We found a hatch door in the bottom of the Marianas Trench. I have to open it.\" I replied. My voice, in turn, felt cold and lifeless. \n\n\"I know,\" he responded evenly, \"and I'm proud of you, but I can't let you go down there while I pretend this is still working for me. We are done, Jane. We have been for a long time. This,\" he said while waving the papers in the air in front of him, \"is way past due. We both know that.\"\n\n\"You're right,\" I replied with a sigh. \"Sorry about your ducks.\" I stepped toward him and pulled the papers from his hand before moving over to the desk. Instead of the despair I anticipated, a calm sense of something, acceptance, maybe, filled me as I scribbled my name in all of the highlighted sections.\n\nWith my task complete, I sorted the papers and slid them back into the envelope he held out. Our eyes met and another wave a calmness enveloped me. I pulled him in for a hug. \"I'm not angry,\" I whispered in his ear. \n\n\"It's ok,\" he responded as he squeezed me in return, \"we were always better friends.\" I met his slight smile with a nod before turning back to my bag. With a newfound wave of urgency I slung it and with a final nod in his direction, rushed out the door and into the cab that was waiting. I gave the driver the address and then slumped back into the seat. The sun had already set and the lights of the city flew by the windows in a unseen blur as tears bled from my eyes. They didn't last long, for a six year relationship we had only spent less than half of that time together. When he wasn't at work, he was golfing or woodworking in the garage. I had always been working. It had only gotten worse since the discovery. On a deep dive in the trench, my partner and boss, Jim Patterson and I had found it. A hatch door in the deepest part of the ocean. After the press release, the whole world started watching our progress. The fucked up part was, we couldn't get it open. After two months of trying everything we could think of, the accident happened. Jim went down alone to try his own cockamamie idea. We still hadn't been able to recover his sub or him for that matter. Funerals sucked. Funerals with empty caskets and family and friends looking at me for answers they thought only I could give, were exponentially worse. It was a dark time but then there was a light that came out of that tunnel. His name was Timothy Baker. As a self-proclaimed egocentric billionaire, he was exactly what we needed. He dished out the checks without a care in the world. With his support, we were able to build a pressurized structure around the hatch so we could work without the danger the millions of gallons of water pushing in on us afforded. The entire thing was previously unheard of and it took months to complete. That why I was in such a rush, it was finally done and we were ready to send our first teams down. Of course, that also meant I was going to have to deal with Mr. Baker's \"one condition\" but hell, it's a small price to pay, right?\n\nThe taxi came to a stop a hundred yards from the helipad. I hopped out and jogged my way toward the chopper. Its blades started spinning as I ducked under them and made my way to the large open door. When Mr. Baker's large dark hand gripped my forearm, I nearly jumped out of my shoes with how well he blended into the shadows. I immediately felt terrible about my reaction but after he pulled me inside, his face scrunched in laughter, was illuminated by the faint lights. I rolled my eyes in response and he released me to find my seat across from him. I buckled in and downed my headset.\n\n\"You ready for this, Sir?\" I asked him, hoping my questioning would deter him from making fun of my fear. It worked like a charm and that, more than anything, raised my hackles.\n\n\"Hell, yeah,\" he replied with a smile. His big brown eyes shining in the light from the cabin. Even after six months of working with him, it was still odd to me to see such a large man in such a small chopper. Not that it was actually small, but his large frame would make anything look tiny by comparison. His dark glower and muscly build seemed intimidating at first but his laid back demeanor and quick to smile attitude made him a conundrum for every one of the stereotypes. Yeah, I still hadn't quite figured him out.\n\nMy stomach dropped as the chopper lifted us into the air. I wasn't scared of flying but Mr. Baker's personal pilot was a little scary. I shifted in my seat to hide my uncomfortableness. I didn't have much time to think about it as Mr. Baker's smug eyes caught mine.\n\n\"What?\" I asked. I couldn't bother with formalities. I gripped the hand rest so hard my hands bled their color against the pressure. My stomach flipped with every jolt the bird threw at us. It felt like the butterflies a teenage girl would feel talking to her crush for the first time. It was amazing how often the feeling of fear was the same, whether you were in a life threatening situation or just feeling the possibility of rejection. It all seems peculiarly similar in the long run.\n\n\"I need to ask for a favor,\" he replied with pleading eyes." ]	2
	[WP] You are a kid who has just moved with their family into a new home. You quickly discover that this new home has some strange time-bending properties.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 day I entered this house was the day the doors of magic opened to me.\n\nI was seven years old and I was holding one shabby ear of my yellow bunny Carrot oblivious of the adventure the two of us were about to embark on. \n\nMother says she can't remember how we found the add for the house or where we found the money to buy it. She also doesn't remember how and why we moved from Arizona to here and my father swears he can't recall where he worked before he found the job at the antique shop, here on the corner of the street.\n\nI believe them.\n\nNot because I'm a credulous person but because I also have this strange feeling how my life, before the moment I crossed the threshold of his large, creaky house, was just a warm blur of vague sorrows and slow hopes.\n\nThe first thing I remember is the light – the brightest, warmest light that welcomed me once we left the dark corridor and stepped into the kitchen. Mother took a clean, pale blue apron and started making dinner as if we have been dining there since forever. My sister Lucy and my older brother James were already exploring the house while I sat and watched mother move around the room surrounded by a warm glow of a summer afternoon.\n\nI think that was the first clear memory I had since we moved into the house and since I started living.\n\nNow I believe it was due to my perception of a child but back then the house seemed enormous to me, growing smaller as I grew older, surprising me less but comforting me more.\n\nI think we've already been living there for a few months when I came home, bruised and crying. I ran past the living room and barricaded the doors of the attic room. Father kept there whatever they couldn't store inside the antique shop and the attic soon became my treasure room. I was playing with some old wooden toy, thinking how I'll never belong, how I'll spend days and years coming home crying and friendless, when I heard laughing.\n\nI rushed out of the room only to find a narrow corridor with a door on each side right in front of me. The corridor wasn't there before but by that time I learned the house was always kind to us even when we couldn't understand it. I remember walking down the corridor, smooth floorboards still holding the scent of a freshly dried paint – I pushed open a door and saw, what I thought was my brother James, packing his things in a green suitcase. Somehow I knew he was sad to be leaving and when, later that day, I came down to dinner I told James I didn't want him to go anywhere. \n\nMy brother said nothing but I saw my mother wiping away a tear.\n\nWe were growing up, together with the house. When James and Lucy left I could often hear them laughing behind the doors of the old reading room. Father said he always heard his father's voice when we would gather for the Sunday lunch. \n\nOur lives and the life of our house were so entwined that the windows on the upper floor would open wide every time my mother was laughing and the windows shook when Lucy was throwing a tantrum. When I once sad one particularly nasty word to James I remember I couldn't open any doors inside the house until the morning when mother found me sleeping in the corridor and took me to the kitchen to get warm next to the stove.\n\nYears after we lost our dog Smiley I could hear the sound of his paws on the floorboards and that soft thud when he'd lay down to sleep, and I'd sometimes hear grandma's voice when mother was sewing on the porch, sighing and smiling until the evening.\n\nJust like I couldn't remember my life before we moved into this house, I also couldn't recall some of the events once I left home at the age of eighteen to become a doctor. That day when I was packing my green suitcase, eager for the world to meet me, I felt the pang of sorrow and that sudden knowing of the nostalgia I would bring with me reminded me of what I saw when I was young.\n\nI heard the laughter again and when I opened the door I saw a little boy, holding one shabby ear of his yellow bunny Carrot oblivious of the adventure the two of them were about to embark on, and I realized the circle was finally closed and it was my time to go.\n\nI come here often, after all these years, to hear the laughter behind the closed doors and the sound of paws on the floorboards and the whispers of all those things I never learned to live without.\n\nI come back often, but if you asked me, I'd swear I couldn't remember how I arrived here and why I ever left.\n\nr/CrystalElmTales", "It all started on the day of January, 27th, 2007 ... \n\nWhat started? Oh you know, the day when I blinked through time! We arrived at the home, an old Southern home, in that year, you see my parents were a happy couple, they loved each other, they loved their family, and were always trying to do what was best. Sometimes my mom was prone to boredom and would go be taken by semi-capricious moves, and my dad was pulled from new job to new job, so we ended up moving a lot, it was a lot growing up, having to give up friends, but I enjoyed myself, no really, it was always a grand-surprise of what the future would bring, that was of course before I was able to travel to it. \n\nYou see, in that ancient house, that old southern mansion, there was a magic that was left behind by something. They said it was built on ancient ground, and that many mysteries were seen on that land. Animals were often found wrapped up in the vine trellis that overgrew that land, strangled to death. No one had ever seen anything like this, but they thought maybe a toxin was being ingested by the animals, but that wasn't the only weird thing, sometimes neighbors reported the sun overlooking the land had an ever so slight shade of purple - like a flicker. Over by the creek in the backyard, it would grow and grow in depth until it turned the nearby lands into small floodplains, but never had it rained for many months adjacent. It was bizarre, but my parents weren't too worried, there was the story of that poor teacher who died in her bed - no cause of death - just died in her sleep with her hands clutched around notes. Notes that contained the names of her students. They said she was a wonderful lady too, but anyways, I'm getting sidetracked from the story at hand. \n\n\nYou see I am a time-traveler. This house has stories, bends time, shifts your perspective changes who you are. This house has tales. My friend, I can't tell you enough, this house has tales. When I blink my eyes I am catapulted into a timeline- not of my choosing- I am struggling to get back actually. To get back... to what again? My family, I miss them so much, Svetlana, Alphonse, Jacob, Jerry, and Terence. My four little brothers and my big sister. And of course my parents. I have lived many, many lives with the lineages of this cottage. Time bends and distorts - I have seen civilizations live and die. I have witnessed the life of a larva just wiggling around, but every wiggle was as life-shattering to as going to school, getting a job, a friend dying, getting that ace-grade on a test, freaking out over a crush you like, every wiggle mattered. I have lived and died inside atoms, that have felt like eternities. Every atom has a story and every nebula hate their neighboring galaxy, don't you forget. This cottage has tales my friend. Sometimes I wonder, what is this place? This mansion...is it purgatory? I don't know it was fun to climb the trees, and it was fun as the tree, to be nourished froum the ground up, but again, it is hard to explain. I have sometimes wondered is this heaven, or some strange time-chamber where... where you grow to experience all of life? I don't know. I really don't. \n\n\nSometimes I have thought am I God? \n\n\nBut if you are reading this, this is my story, my tale-to get back to the matter at hand, all I want more than anything, if you are God reading this, is to get back to my family. I know not what age will receive this little note, nor where they are at, but remember this cottage, and don't forget about me. I will be traveling throughout time to witness the battles, to see the tales, and live with the families that make their way here, I am wondering, do we all eventually end up here? What am I? Why did you do this to me? \n\n\nBut that is unknown, until we meet again, \n\n\nThe GIRL WHO BLINKED \\~ Evalina", "Beatrice carried the last box up the thirteen stairs (she counted) to her room at the top. She set it down by all the other boxes.\n\nOpening it, she found all of her stuffed animals. She took each one out and set it neatly on the floor as she searched for Bluebeary, her favorite one (but don't tell the others).\n\nBeatrice's friends at her old school said they were all too old for stuffed animals, but Beatrice couldn't just let them go. They would feel so unloved.\n\nShe found him. Bluebeary had fur that matched the sky, and she had him since she was a baby.\n\nShe stood up to go to her bed, which her Mom and Dad had already set up and made with her same old bedsheets.\n\nBut someone sat on the bed. A little girl, wearing a yellow dress with pink flowers all over it, and holding Brownie the moose.\n\n\"Give him back!\" Beatrice dropped Bluebeary, ready to defend Brownie. \"Why are you taking him?\" she shouted.\n\n\"Here.\" The girl held Brownie out, and Beatrice shyly stepped toward him, then snatched him away from the stranger.\n\nAppeased, Beatrice asked, \"Who are you?\"\n\n\"I'm Olivia and I live here.\"\n\n\"No you don't!\" Beatrice argued.\n\n\"Yes I do. Well, I used to live here.\"\n\n\"That doesn't mean you get to use my room!\"\n\n\"What other room should I use? This one used to be mine.\"\n\n\"If it used to be yours, then why are you still here?\"\n\n\"I lived here in 1953 with my mom.\"\n\n\"If you lived in 1953, then you should be really old.\" Beatrice acted like she caught this new girl Olivia, but really she was confused.\n\nOlivia rolled her eyes and hopped down from the bed. \"This house doesn't follow normal time. Come downstairs and I'll show you.\"\n\nOlivia walked to the bedroom door and opened it further, then was no more.\n\nShe disappeared. Beatrice shook her head. That was weird. Still, she was curious about what was downstairs that Olivia had wanted to show her.\n\nBut Olivia was made up. She must have been.\n\nBeatrice went down each stair, counting down from thirteen as she did so.\n\nIn the kitchen, someone stood at the stove. Steam rose up into their face. They wore jeans that got really big at the bottom, and a bright pink shirt. Her hair was blonde and curly and really puffy.\n\nThe woman turned around. \"Oh, hi!\" She showed off her extra white teeth with a big smile. \"You must be the new kid here!\" The woman turned the stove's dial down. Beatrice didn't remember that stove being here.\n\n\"Who are you?\" she asked for the second time.\n\n\"Oh it doesn't matter,\" the woman said with a flippant wave of her hand, \"We'll be apart from each other any moment anyway. I don't know how many years it's been and I still haven't found a way to predict when the house will act up.\"\n\nBeatrice walked to the back door attached to the kitchen and turned the knob.\n\n\"Oh, honey, you might not want to do that, not until the house settles down,\" the woman said. \"You don't want to get stuck in the wrong time.\"" ]	4
	[WP] After your death you go to heaven, which is the place where all of your dreams took place every single night of your life. The moment you get there you see that everyone is really sacred of you. They don't wanna talk and explain - and you, of course, don't remember any of your dreams.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Even though you cannot remember any of your dreams, you somehow know that heaven is the place you had all your dreams when you were alive. You remember dying, the cross on your church fell on you. When you woke up you knew you were in heaven. You died and now here you are. All the denizens of heaven are scared of you. You try to speak to them but they make room like soap in oil. You don't understand how it is you know this place, but cannot remember it, and you get a headache.\n\nThis is the first time in creation that someone other than God has had a headache in heaven. It seems to break heaven somehow. The pulsing waves in your head are manifesting into tiny shock waves by your feet. You can see the dirt and dust pulse a little as the pain in your head pulses.\n\nThe pain grows stronger.\n\nYou are brought to your knees and can only grab your head in futility. The ground around you starts to split and crack and the pulsing pound has become a roaring rush. The shear illogical rules of heaven in which you dream of, but cannot remember, but can, have thrown you into some kind of a feedback loop. The ground crumbles, and the people in heaven fall and perish and die screaming and on fire.\n\nand your alarm goes off. You get ready for work and realize you cannot remember what you were dreaming about." ]	2
	[WP] A group of Alzheimer's patients attempt to break out of their hospital	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Matlock is over.\n\nTonight's the night.\n\nIt had been all planned out weeks in advance. Three dry runs had been performed flawlessly. Gotta get Ray, he helps distract Nurse George. Gotta sneak into George's office, and grab the spare keys in the plant's fake rock. Grab Ray back from George, and then get the keys to Cathy who can still drive.\n\nHeading to the door, knocking four times on the wall shared with Ray.\n\nNothing happens. Knock, knock, knock, knock on the wall Ray always bangs on because he says he can hear everything going on over here.\n\nThe door opens and Ray walks in asking what's going on.\n\nThe television is playing Matlock, and Ray sets on the bed and turns it up a little. \"This is a good one, this is the one where he gets the wife to confess she killed her twin sister,\" spoils Ray. Matlock is such a good show. They should play episodes back to back so a person could watch more than one episode a day." ]	2
	[WP] The king knelt before the altar upon which the fallen prince lay, finishing his prayer before turning to face the intruders. "Forgive me, my son. It appears war is inevitable."	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 king, His Majesty Filpin the Mighty of the Great Malena Kingdom regretted the cost of this scheme. He did love the boy. By his standards at least. Ilin had been a fine young prince. But some ends did justify the means. \n\nIlin wouldn’t approve. Filpin cleared that thought from his mind. It didn’t matter what the boy thought anymore. There would be war now, the war he had been trying to instigate for a decade. Most things have prices. Not all things are worth the price. But this one was. By his standards at least.\nThe kingdom to his North was weak. But rich. And influential. And the land was fertile and underpopulated. Filpin did have an overpopulation problem. All of his problems could have been solved so easily had he just declared war on The Normin Kingdom. But actions had prices too. And this one wasn’t worth the cost. By his standards at least. All of his status would disappear, like the card in the court jester’s performance. All the relationships with the other kingdoms? Poof. It was frowned upon to declare war without reason. \nBut now he had a reason. A good one, even if it was fabricated. He regretted the cost of this endeavor. This expansion. This solution. By his standards at least. Queen Nala of The Normin Kingdom must fall. The land, the wealth, everything, must be his. He had to have that kingdom. Even if it meant Prince Ilin had to die. Killed on “Queen Nala’s” orders. \n\nHe did regret ordering his son’s death. By his standards at least. \n\n\n--Ashes, A friend of BurningEmbyr." ]	2
	[WP] After finally exhausting your last wish, the genie retreats back into the lamp... but the lamp is still there. Huh. Come to think of it, did the legends ever even say what happens to the lamp when your wishes run out? Well, apparently now it's up to you to decide who the lamp's next master is.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 sat quietly by the edge of the market strumming a small lyre despite having absolutely no talent for the instrument, a bowl set in front of me with a sign begging for coin. Sometimes people even put money in, though they always seemed like the sort to have emotional baggage that would compromise their judgement, or so few cares in the world that they'd ruin the opportunity offered to them. Neither was what I was looking for.\n\nFinally, a young man approached me who actually caught my eye. Or rather, caught my ear.\n\n\"God above, I think that's the third homeless beggar I've seen today... When is the someone going to start dealing with the poverty in this city?\" he said, before dropping a few coins in my bowl. I stopped playing my lyre before leaning toward the young man.\n\n\"Pardon me, sonny. If you've got a bit more coin you're willing to part with, I've been meaning to sell this old lamp. Still just as good as the day it was forged, I assure you,\" I said. I actually had all the money I could ever want, but nobody would trust someone just handing them a strange oil lamp.\n\n\"Uh... Sorry sir, I'm not interested in purchasing anything from random bystanders...\" he said, backing away. \"Besides, I don't have much more money left to spare, I'm sure the pawn broker down the street could take it off your hands for a better price than I could offer.\"\n\nDammit, no! It had taken almost four months to find this guy, if I had to play one more tune on that damn lyre AFTER finding someone I would go completely berserk.\n\n\"Come now, Sonny, I'd hate for this lamp to go to someone who wouldn't treat it well. I don't need much, I'll even count the coins you've already offered as part of it if you like,\" I said.\n\n\"Sir, I really need to get to the market, and I wouldn't even know what to do with an oil lamp,\" he said. Unfortunately, it seemed our conversation had started drawing attention, as a guard approached us.\n\n\"Excuse me, gentlemen, is there a problem here?\" the guard said.\n\n\"No problem at all,\" I said hastily.\n\n\"This man is trying to sell me a strange lamp,\" the young man said.\n\n\"Sell? Do you have a merchant's license, sir? You need one to take part in trade in the markets,\" the guard said.\n\n\"Okay, fuck this,\" I said, my last bit of patience running out. I threw back my hood, revealing the ghastly, horned visage beneath.\n\n\"I don't care about the fucking money! Just take the fucking lamp! It grants wishes!\" I shouted at the young man, thrusting the lamp toward him\n\n\"AH! A demon! The lamp's probably cursed! Help!\" he shouted.\n\n\"Not in my city, hellish cur!\" the guard said. He grabbed my arm and attempted to detain me.\n\n\"What? No! Fuck off!\" I shouted as I attempted to pull free. Unfortunately, physical strength wasn't one of the things I wished for, so I wasn't able to tear from from the steely grip of the trained guard.\n\nI did manage to escape, however, when I blasted him with a magical gout of flame. Unfortunately, this set the stall behind him on fire and left the unlucky guard with a nasty wound. The young man was also clearly about to panic.\n\n\"Just take the genie lamp. It's not that hard, you can even wish all this back if you like,\" I said, holding out the lamp. Instead, the young man fled screaming as the stall caught up in a roaring flame.\n\n\"Dammit! Just take it!\" I shouted, throwing the lamp after him. It clattered to the ground, since he was obviously not interested in its powers. As it turned out, neither was the crowd of onlookers, given that while I was shouting at the young man, the fire had spread to the rest of the market and was already turning into a city-leveling inferno. I spat another swear under my breath before picking up the lamp off the ground and opening a mystic doorway out of the city.\n\nAs I stepped into the pastures surrounding the city, I heard a soft but constant noise from the lamp. I brought it to my ear and realized there was laughter coming from within. I pulled the lid off the lamp, holding the spout to my ear and the open top toward my mouth like a telephone before speaking.\n\n\"You shut up,\" I said. The laughter intensified even more for a few seconds before the voice within the lamp finally responded.\n\n\"Ha! And here I thought this would lead to some boring jackass making a wish for world peace or something! This is hilarious!\" the voice said.\n\n\"Wha- Can you just do that? I thought the rules of genies or whatever forbid big wishes like that,\" I asked.\n\n\"Oh yeah, sure, maybe you even could've wished for it yourself! You know, if you hadn't wasted two of your wishes on a sandwich and a girlfriend!\" the genie said.\n\n\"And some magic that turned out to be! She fled in terror when she saw me!\" I said.\n\n\"Not my fault you suck at wishing,\" the genie said. \"Or that you didn't realize that real magic relies on demonic heritage and most 'sorcerers' are just con men using sleight of hand.\"\n\n\"I cannot wait to get rid of you,\" I said. Then I looked back at the rising smoke coming from the city. \"But I think we're going to have to take this to a different locale, there's no way I can show my face in this city again.\"\n\n\"Wanna burn down the residential district before you go? Maybe eat the newborn prince? I hear baby flesh is great for the complexion!\" the genies said, before bursting out laughing again.\n\nI silently held out my hand, summoning a rock before pounding it into the lamp repeatedly. I didn't stop until the laughing finally stopped.\n\n\"Oof, that was funny at first, but now my ears are ringing... Hey dumbass, why don't you just chuck this thing in a river already? Now that you're half demon, you've got a good thousand years ahead of you once you get rid of this stupid lamp,\" the genie said.\n\n\"And let you just go to some random shepherd who will probably cause wanton destruction with bad decisions? Not likely,\" I said.\n\n\"More wanton than that?\" the genie said, obviously referring to the still-burning city behind me.\n\n\"Possibly,\" I said.\n\n\"Oh damn! That must be quite the danger! If only some kind of eon-old mystical intellect whose awareness of time and space transcends human understanding could work to twist such wishes away from the possibility of absolute destruction! That would be fucking wild, wouldn't it?\" the genie said.\n\nThe obvious implication wasn't lost on me. Even if the lamp did end up in \"good\" hands, the results of the wishes would likely still end up being relatively minor in the grand scheme thanks to that damn genie. So in a sense, I had basically just wasted a few months for absolutely no reason.\n\n\"Point taken,\" I said, before winding up and throwing the lamp back through a mystic doorway and into the burning city.", "The city of Bristol burned, green pillars of flame roaring up into the night sky. The ground - roads and pavements that four minutes ago had been clean - was now covered in rubble, broken glass and blood. Ash and bricks rained down on the screaming crowds of confused, terrified people as they ran. Above the billowing clouds of acrid black smoke, a giant beast with golden fur and yellowing fangs loomed. Its enormous brown eyes darted from side to side, watching the chaos erupting around it with excitement.\n\nOn reflection, Dana thought, she should probably have given the lamp to the nice homeless man with whom she’d sporadically had pleasant but short conversations over the last few months. She was a bit ashamed, watching him pull a child from the wreckage of a crashed car as others streamed past without a care. She’s just thought that he’d probably wish for drugs or cigarettes or something, and it had seemed like such a waste.\n\nThe man managed to get the child free, hugging her vulnerable form against his chest as he legged it around the corner and away. She wished him the best, then felt guilty again for not giving him the opportunity to wish for it himself. She’d prided herself on trusting the best in others, and had always given her spare change to those in need when she could - but when it came right down to it, at the time it really mattered, she’d fallen for the stereotypical fears just like everyone else.\n\nHer phone rang, and she automatically checked the screen even though glass and concrete slabs were falling around her, shattering as they hit the ground. She was walking against the flow of terrified Bristolians, towards the beast.\n\nIt was Amber, her sister. She didn’t answer, unsure what she could say at this point to comfort anyone. She’d contemplated giving the lamp to Amber as well. She was one of those rare, beautiful souls who could do no harm to anyone. Always going out of her way for others, and wonderfully talented with crafts. Her handmade gifts were consistently thoughtful and lovely. But she was easily manipulated, and Dana had worried that she’d tell her dickhead boyfriend John about the wishes and he’s take advantage like he always did. Like she always let him.\n\nHell, even giving the lamp to John would have been better than this. He’d have wished for money and power, and probably a better looking face - those were the things she’d feared, what she had thought of as the worst case. She knew better now.\n\nAs she got closer to the train station, she recognised some of the fleeing crowd as her coworkers. Her office was nearby, and she looked at the wreckage of the building, wondering if the cleaner had escaped with her life. The girl could hardly string three sentences of English together, but they’d reached a sort of understanding. They’d been taking it in turns to buy each other treats from the vending machine for almost a year, though Dana couldn’t remember how it had started. Lorena, the girl was called. What would she have wished for?\n\nThey’d never know now.\n\nThe giant beast swatted a lorry with its tail, sending it flying over Dana’s head. She ducked to the side just a fraction, still walking, and the wind whipped at her hair.\n\nThe train station was a mess, reduced to little more than rubble and scrap metal. She’d often gazed out of the window by her desk at the station’s little clock tower, but that was gone. A piece of it stuck out of the bus shelter’s roof.\n\nShe stopped up short as she surveyed the scene, and had a thought so stupid it made her laugh. Bristol City Council had been working on road improvements at Temple Meads for longer than the three years she’d lived here. They’d finally finished the new road layout just last week, and now it was all gone again.\n\nWell, she supposed she aught to take responsibility and do something about the mess she’d created.\n\nShe spread her hands out to either side and began to float up into the air. She rose until she was at eye level with the beast, which had an empty train carriage hanging from its jaw. Huge globules of saliva the size of cars dripped from its lower lip, and the sound of its heavy panting breaths was almost as loud as the crashes of the crumbling buildings around them.\n\nShe flew closer, catching its attention, and gathered her courage.\n\n“No.” She said as sternly as she could, raising her eyebrows and pointing a finger. Her enhanced voice boomed, and the floofy beast stilled as it recognised her voice. “Bad boy. Put it down.”" ]	3
	[WP] A popular web-novelist has a running serial about a murderer, but the killer is painted as a relatable protagonist. Going off a gut feeling, a detective begins investigating the stories as a possible admission of real crimes. When the next issue comes out there's a new antagonist: a detective.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Alex had started his website mostly for fun. It was a place where people could submit cold cases that they wanted solved. Someone had linked to it on a Reddit thread, and he had gotten more than a few requests. Some of them couldn't be solved because they were too old, but he had managed to pin a few likely suspects in other cases.\n\nThe semi-fame of his website had him online more, and he had started looking at a few online books based off of real cases. They helped him get in the mindset of a case, and they were also pretty interesting. There was one story that Alex was particularly interested in.\n\nI Did It, by the blogger Marc Speares. The story featured the protagonist Mike, who was the killer. He was funny, interesting, and outside of his murdering habits, he was quite normal and a like-able character. Mike was written to regret what he did, but overall wasn't disturbed by his own hobby. Alex was intrigued by this strange character, and he took even greater interest in this story when a murder popped up on the news that seemed a little too familiar.\n\nThe victim was a 25 year old woman. She was found dead in her apartment on the 29th, at 7:45 when her mom went to check on her after she hadn't responded to her calls. The autopsy ruled that she was killed when the killer injected dish soap into her veins, about two days before the body was discovered. She was found posed with objects around her, as if she had still been going about her day. She was propped onto a chair, with string and wire tying her in place so that she looked as if she was reading a book at her kitchen table.\n\nAbout a day earlier, Alex had read a chapter of I Did It where Maike killed a 25 year old woman by injecting her with dish soap, and the posed her to make it look like she was still going about her day. What scared him was that this was just a five minute drive from his house. He felt like these two murders were too similar to be a coincidence, and he decided he needed to do something about it. What if this story was some sort of confession made by the killer? \n\nAlex started by searching up recent murders in his area. At least five he found were near identical matches to murders in the story, with each chapter in the story being posted a day after the person was killed, but still before the death was reported. Alex then looked at Marc Speares' profile, and found that he had his Twitter and Instagram linked. Looking at his insta yielded no clues, as it gave no clue as to who he was, and was basically just a meme page. When Alex looked at his Twitter, he was able to find one post that talked about an incident that had happened at his high school recently. The post read \"my social studies teacher was caught in the principal's office \\with\\ the principal. high school is seriously wild.\" Alex had been at school that day, and the news spread like wild fire. This post matched the day of the incident. So now he could at least assume that this person went to his school. The person's name was never listed on Twitter or Instagram, so Alex still had no clue who the author was, because when he looked up the name Marc Speares in the directory, nothing was there.\n\nThe next day, Alex started asking some of his friends if anyone knew who owned the Twitter and Insta accounts, or if anyone knew who Marc Speares was. No one did, even the people who followed the accounts. Alex went home that day, worried and slightly frustrated.\n\nHe then received a notification on his phone. It was a new update for I Did It. The chapter started off with a thank you from the author, as they never thought the book would receive so much attention. Alex read on, and when he finished the first paragraph, he felt his heart skip a beat. The paragraph read, \"Mike was worried. Someone at his school had started looking into the murders. Apparently someone had found the common clues that he left, and they had started asking around. This person was Alex, and Mike thought that he might have to kill this time. Not because of the urge, but because he needed to make sure that no one figured out he was the murderer. And, if Alex died while investigating the murders, others would be scared to do so.\"\n\nAlex was torn. Did he continue searching for the murderer, and risk his life, or pretend like this never happened? Then again, what if it was too late? The murderer already knew his name. Alex knew the right thing to do, but could he risk everything?", "Detective Snyder threw down the copy with disgust that masked his inner horror. This bastard had taken things a step too far. This morning the website publisher had alerted him about the new post per his request, by midday he had printed it off so that he could make notes in it as he read the filfth. Now that copy had been slammed upon the coffee table of his suburban home loud enough that he feared he had awaken his two children.\n\nThe text was obvious, Snyder was being given a stern, if disguised, warning. The 'author', as he had nicknamed the killer writer, gave the stories detective antagonist two kids, a suburban home, an estranged wife, and a dog that shared the name of Snyder's recently deceased pet of 10 years. The killer had just murdered the antagonist's wife and had broken into his house to kill his children and pet while he was working late. Snyder had already read the 50 page story once and knew that the ending wasn't happy for any of the parties involved.\n\nSnyder's mind raced, but in a good way. He had served in Iraq and came home only to be involved in three different shootouts as a police officer. He had complete control over his thoughts and actions and knew how to use the drug that was adrenaline to his own advantage. Still fear gripped him, his wife had moved out a few weeks ago and he couldn't protect her if the 'author' struck, and his kids were upstairs in a room that contained the book killers motive of entry, a window.\n\nSnyder quickly devolped a 4 step plan. 1st he would secure his home, then he would alert his wife and commanding officer, then he would secure himself and prepare for what the night might hold, and finally he would run scenarios and plans for the future through his head to try and out guess the 'author'. The first two steps would be easy enough, Snyder checked that his security system was on and ran a system test that included checking the battery backup, it worked flawlessly.\n\nThen he called his chief, the Captain wasn't pleased at the 10:00 interruption of his nightly routine but understood once he heard the lastest posts plot. He promised a warrant for information about the 'author' by daybreak and Snyder felt sure he could get one with a copy of the post and Snyder's personel file. Mrs. Snyder was his next call, he hoped she would pickup. His hopes were dashed when the hotel's answering machine picked up. A split second of panic hit him, until he reassured himself that the hotel's phones had caller id. He went to dial her cell until he remembered the indent it had left in the wall when she stormed out.\n\nSnyder left a message explaining the situation but doubted that she would listen past hearing \"it's me hon\". Time for step 3, the detective checked his department issue HK 9mm and the snub nose 38 he carried as a backup gun, both were loaded with extra rounds in two magazines and a speed loader that sat on his belt. Snyder then went to his upstairs bedroom, his briefcase lay padlocked underneath the queen sized bed.\n\nRemoving the key from his pocket he unlocked the large box and removed it's contents. Inside he had his notebooks, the 'author's case file, a second copy of the latest novel, a lightweight bulletproof vest, and a broken down breaching shotgun. He donned the vest, assembled the short barreled weapon, and put the paperwork back in a small fireproof safe that was hidden in the back of his closet.\n\nAs the detective stepped into the hallway and walked towards the stairwell, he loaded the gun with shells from the pocket of his ballistic vest. As he racked the slide of the weapon a thought occured to him, why not check on the children while he was upstairs, after all weren't they sleeping in twin beds right across from the master bedroom he had just left. The possible harm was obvious, rather then being securely in their beds they would be up asking him why he had his \"cop gun\" out as they called his duty longarm. But that was only if he accidently woke them up, paternal instincts and that fear that gripped the back of his skull defeated his reasoned worries easily.\n\nSnyder was thankful that he kept his house well maintained as he opened the door with neither a creek or groan from the hinges and wood. That thankfulness disappeared when the room was laid bare in front of him. The bed of his daughter was stained with blood, and his son had a knife to his throat and hand on his mouth. The knife and hand belonged to a figure that stood between the two beds, Snyder's entrance had stunned the intruder as they saw their well laid plan unravel. \n\nThe detective didn't even now he shot until the intruders shoulder jerked with the impact. The attacker lept over the blood stained bed that lay between him and the window as Snyder racked a new round into the chamber. His second shot was a miss but was close enough that the shadowy figure responded with three of their own before bailing out the open window.\n\n[If someone wishes to add a conclusion to this their free two, I will add my own when I get the time]", "27 October.\nWho is this guy? How did he know so much about all these victims? There’s nothing to connect them. Different cities; day, night, weekends, work days; cut open, lynched, burned. I hope Cyber gets me an IP address from the posts. \n\n29 October.\nFinally, Cyber Crimes got back to me. Posted using a TOR browser. Dead end. The new story is developing slower than the others. There usually finished up in a day or two, but it’s been three installments in a week there’s something different about this one. They usually follow the killer through a crime of opportunity, but it seems to be following the victim. Perhaps he’s stalking, savoring the hunt. Sick bastard. \n\n\n2 November.\nHe’s following a cop! I wasn’t sure at first but he mentioned an arrest on Saturday. I wish I could narrow down who made arrests that day, but who the hell didn’t make an arrest on Halloween?\n\n5 November.\nHe’s following me! He described my living room, my dinner, the combination to my safe. He even mentioned my investigation into a “brilliant author”. Called it an obsession. S.O. Doesn’t know what to make of it. Told me to take a local leo on a detail outside the house. I have to start over. There has to be some lead. \n\n6 November.\nCyber got a hit overnight on the last update. An abandoned building with a banged up laptop. He’s mocking me, playing with me. \n\n6 November 10:00a.\nThey think I’m writing this shit! All it takes is a fraudulent software registration, and their ready to throw you under the bus. This guy is going to kill me and S.O. just puts me on leave. I can’t go home. I can’t bring this to my family. I haven’t slept, I can’t. I won’t die like that. \n\n6 November 11:00p.\nI saw him! He put a note on my car, said he’s “ready for us to meet”. He’s supposed to be at the office, says it’s supposed to “end where we met”, whatever that means. Im alone in this. I’ve got a surprise for him, he’ll never even see me. \n\nEric, \n I know you said I’m not responsible, but I can’t just sit by anymore I have to try and stop this one. He’s not like the others, he doesn’t want to, he’s been awake almost three days and he’s starting to hallucinate. Im going to talk to his boss and tell him everything. Hopefully they can get him to listen. Just finish editing the last chapter and post it. I’ll call you when I can.\n\n June.", "\"You see this?\" I said, pointing to the newest web novel written by Light427 \"it's obvious that they're onto me and truly are a killer!\"\n\n\"Or it just makes sense for a novel with a protagonist who is a serial killer to have an antagonist who is a detective\" the Chief said after taking a sip from his mug. \"Even then, there is no correlation with any of the murders in the novels to the murders.\"\n\nThat was this morning, but there was something he didn't think of, the detective had the same initials as me, H. W. A. I have been close to finding the murderer for a very long time but every clue is a dead end. Only recently though, I tried turning up the contrasts on the illustrations of the novel and found coordinates in the pictures, generally in the splatters of the victim's blood after they had been killed but before the killer removed the evidence, each of the coordinates was the site of a different murder and each murder had something in common with the novel that came out after it was discovered. Issue one had the same kind of knife used in the murder, two had the same drink near the body, three was in the same place and four had a detective with the same initials as me going after the killer.\n\nUnfortunately the novels had no other clues, not even in the source of the images. But then the fifth murder happened, and the fifth novel was released. However this time the killer slipped up and in the source code of one image was the IP address of the computer used to upload it. I showed this to the chief and told him how we could find the killer. \"Look, detective. You need to stop pressing down this rabbit hole, people are already talking about you, 'the detective who hasn't cracked a case since the late 90s.'\" While this is true I have to do something, the killer needs to be stopped, wants to be stopped even.\n\nThat night I went to sleep, and didn't wake up.\n\n\nSorry for how bad this is, first prompt and I am far from a writer.", "\"Detective Forrest, do you really expect this department to investigate every single idiot who goes writing about serial killers on the internet? Have you ever checked Reddit, or 9-Chen, 7-Chat, whatever the hell that stupid site is?\" the man behind the desk shook his head, not angry, just tired.\n\n\"I'm telling you Chief, this one is something different. It goes into way too much detail, and it's way too close to these cold case files we were looking at.\"\n\n\"Aren't serial killer cases supposed to have something in common, Greenly? \"\n\n\"They do... this blog.\"\n\nThe Chief sat for a minute, lifted his glasses and rubbed his nose, \"You know what, Detective, why not go for it. The Mayor's been on our asses to clean up the cold case backlog anyway, so at least I can say we're doing something.\"\n\n\"Thanks chief, I knew you cared.\" Forrest rolled her eyes on her way out of the office.\n\nThe corkboard with photos and index cards pinned to it was cliche, but cliches existed for a reason. Ten cases, ten stories, laid out as bulleted lists of details, with lines drawn between the story and the actual murder.\n\nThe Chief is right, Forrest thought to herself, serial killers do always have some common element, and it wasn't just the fact that they apparently liked to write up their adventures online. Forrest would have to find that element before she could really start looking for the killer.\n\nA few weeks had passed, and Greenly was little further than she was the day she started.\n\n\"So how'd you get the Chief to sign off on this again, Sam? You promise to wash his car or something?\" Her partner, Lt. Detective Jonsten, asked as he walked past the corkboard to the coffee pot.\n\n\"Seriously, you too Dwayne? Can you at least pretend to take it seriously? There's a serial killer here, I'm sure of it.\"\n\n\"Sure there is. Anyway, there's a new story up on the site.\" Jonsten remarked as he filled up his mug.\n\nForrest ran back to her desk to see this new story. She pulled up the page, and clicked the link innocuously titled 'Chapter 11, part 1'.\n\n>John felt the urge again. He would try to fight it, as always, but knew he would likely fail this time. It was stronger than the last one, like it always was when he managed to ignore it.It was going to be harder this time, too. He had heard that the police were starting to look into it. Some detective named Woods. She was supposed to have been pretty good at one point, but something had happened. John didn't know what, but what he found out implied something.\n\nForrest stopped there, the rest of the story suddenly unimportant." ]	6
[WP] There it is again, that scratching noise at the door. It’s always at this time, your sure of it, and yet you have never figured out what it is. That is until the scratch becomes a beg.	[WP] There it is again, that scratching noise at the door. It’s always at this time, your sure of it, and yet you have never figured out what it is. That is until the scratch becomes a beg.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "How many times will I have to stay the night before I feel like I am welcome in this bedroom? The Broadway playbooks lining the wall, the record player recovered from a thrift store, the dirty clothes splayed in the corner of the room; it all feels too intimate, too personal. Over fifty hours a week are spent in here, nobody knows her better than this room. In the face of that fact, how can I feel like anything other than an intruder?\n\nThat scratching noise at the door again. Every night that I stay here, at 2 am on the dot, that scratching gives me a stark reminder of how unwelcome I am. As if the room itself is rejecting me. I can't ask her about it. How could I? I don't want to bring attention to how much of an intruder I feel. I don't want to give her any reason to feel like she made a mistake in inviting me over so often. I know that I feel this way, but if she affirmed those feelings...\n\nThe scratching is getting louder. I could find out what's causing it, but that would mean I would have to open the door. That would definitely wake her, she would see me with the open door, and she would think I was leaving. If she were to think I want to leave, that I don't want to be here with her, that would hurt more than these persistent anxieties. It's not that I don't want to be here, I just don't feel like I should be here, but putting that into words would be impossible. Suddenly, both my thoughts and the scratching are interrupted by a loud, pleading cry on the other side of the door.\n\n\"Milo, shut the fuck up\"\n\nShe's awake? I hear her groan as she starts getting out of bed.\n\n\"Sorry, I've been trying to get Milo to sleep outside for the past few weeks but it seems like he's really not taking to it. Are you cool if he sleeps in the bed with us?\"\n\nI murmur an assent. She opens the door and a large orange tabby cat rushes into the room and jumps onto the bed. It stays at the foot of the bed, staring at me for what feels like minutes, before curling up on top of me and closing his eyes.\n\n\"Sorry about Milo being a little shit, if it gets hard with him sleeping on you I can kick him out again.\"\n\nNo it's okay, I tell her. I feel the warmth of Milo through the blanket. I feel the trust that he is giving me by sleeping on top of me. The trust that she is giving me by sleeping with me. It's terrifying. It's too intimate. But they made a choice to trust me. I am wanted.\n\nI don't feel like I belong in this room. But I know am wanted here. I just hope someday I can close that gap between what I feel and what I know." ]	2
	[WP] In an alternate universe, magic and technology switch places in every way possible, including history and fiction. People in that universe decide to make a game called: Bunkers and Bases.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 abandoned this half-writing(since I have no knowledge about D&D and got no idea how it works) but I'll just post it here if anyone's intrested:\n\n\"And everyone, let the game begin\" said Mike, or \"Chief-Commander\",the rulebook said, as he spinned his wand, reveiling a map of an old, deserted bunker. \"Soldiers, create your character\" he said.\n\n\"Wait, how did I make it again?\"\n\n\"Read the rulebook, soldier.\"\n\n\"Uhh..I this book is longer than what I thought\", John said, as he shook his wand to reveal a soldier. \"I'll go with infarnyman, armed with a M16, and three grenades. His name is, uhh, kevin\". The shilluette of the soldier changed to meet his discription. \"That's quite specific, you're quite into \"military\" stuff, aren't you?\" \"Yeah, I've read all of tolkien's stuff. Isn't it intresting? A world where science rules the realm. A world where people drive their cars home instead of pegasuses. But I still got no Idea how This game works tho\"\n\n\"I WANT A STRONG CHARACTER!\" Yelled trong, an ork. \"Seriously. Did you really get an ork to an TRPG game?\" \"Bruh, that's racist\", Mike and John said. \"MY CHARACTER IS HECTOR. HE IS SO STRONG, HE CAN THROW A TRUCK, AND HE SLAYS HIS ENEMIES WITH TWO MEGA GUNS!\" \"Uhh trong, that's not how it works-\" \"I WANT A STRONG CHARACTER!\" He yelled. \"Okay, strong character from the start. Only this time. You start from, uhh, strength 10, but also you're getting 0 intelligence, and you can't aim well\" \"ACCEPTABLE\". His board displayed an ripped guy with sunglasses, wielding two miniguns. \"You know this really lowers perception, right?\"\n\n\"So..I rather make a balanced character?\" Said trine, an elf. \"I'll be the medic, since it seems to be the healer of this game.\" Her board displayed a medic, with a bag with a cross drawn on it.\n\n\"Okay, let the battle begin. In the middle of WW3, You three just found an abandoned military base. You three go in, just to find an automated drone, armed with an machine g-\"\n\n\"I HIT THE DRONE!\" A wheel started to spin, and stopped on a one. \"Uhh, you miss. The drone fires at you.\" \"UNACCEPTABLE!\" He yelled, striking down the table. Mike said:\"john, what do you do?\" \"I fire my M16 at it\" . The wheel stopped on a five. \"You take out the drone. You get 16 exp.\" \"Man, wouldn't ot be great to live in a world like this? Instead of goinf to wizard school and learning potions or something,you could learn chemistry or engineering and fight tanks for loot and glory\" \"don't you think you'll die while doing that?\" \"Well..they have medical technology! Like our heal magic!\" \"They still can't revive a dead man.\" \"TECHNOLOGY NO HAVE ORK. TECHNOLOGY ONLY HUMAN. TECHNOLOGY SUCK\" \"But..still! It would be cool! Would they also have their versions of this game? Like \"castles and caves\"? \"Magic and monsters?\" \"Dungeons and dragons\"?\"", "\"Alright, I set up a holiday themed one-shot, where you get to play evil aligned characters.\" Torvold said, as he rolled out a sheet of parchment with the outline of a house on it.\n\n\"Hang on\" Tobey said, standing on his chair so he could see better, \"I made a tank build and the campaign is just about breaking into a house?\"\n\n\"Not just any house...\" Torvold said, \" this is one of Lich-Lord Xyxax's own adventures. Its super-punishing, it's the Home of Horrors adventure.\"\n\nTorvold broke into an evil grin, \"I wont get into details, but I'll be surprised if either of you make it out alive.\"\n\n\"Hang on\" Snik, cut in from the third seat at the table \"Why are we here? Like, evil campaign cool, but who cares about this house? A house by the way that according to your map is ABSURDLY large.\"\n\n\"Loot. It has several VCRs in it.\"\n\n\"Umm...\" Snik replied, flipping through the Players Tome, \"oh! Wow, VCRs are worth like a thousand bucks!\"\n\n\"Wait what?\" Torvold replied, \"hang on, that book's price is a bit out of date. But sure, if you get out with them I guess I'll let you have that, since it's what's listed.\"\n\n\"Okay\" Torvold said more loudly, as he turned down the lights, \"Let's begin. Your van pulls up to the house on the night of the robbery, go ahead and introduce your characters\"\n\nSnik tapped his character sheets into alignment before reading \"I'm Marv. A human burglar. I have higher Charisma so I can do more of the talking, but I also made sure to get my Constitution high. My saves suck, but I have physical damage resistance, so I think I can survive most things anyways\"\n\nTobey looked down at his sheet and started rereading it \"I'm playing a human robber named Marv. I dumped Int and Dex to focus on Strength and Con. I have a crowbar, and I have a neat backstory thing. I figure we're robbers, but like all the famous robbers leave calling clues, so after we rob a house, I back up some of their plumbing so it floods. I call us the Wet Bandits!\"", "“I cast gun,” Ogden said, dice clattering across the table like scattered runes. His face was smug, the sort of grin that drifted across the faces of players who spent far too long adding up statistics.\n\n“You don’t cast gun, you shoot the gun,” Gary said, his eyes completing a full loop. “Come on man, at least get the terminology right.”\n\n“Cast, shoot, what’s the difference? I point the gun at the solider and hot metal comes out. How is that not just a wand?” Ogden crossed his arms, slumping back in his chair.\n\n“You always do this dude, its about the roleplaying, not making the most powerful guy.” Mary punched Ogden lightly in the arm, causing the portly teen to adjust his now ruffled robe. Mary had gotten a lot more into character, stitching together her own olive drab outfit and covering her face in streaks of green and brown. “I bet you made your guy chaotic neutral, didn’t you?”\n\n“So, what if I did?”\n\n“Come on guys,” Gary said. “It’s taken months to get this together. You know how hard it is to weave schedules together? She is right though Oggie, chaotic neutral is the asshole's alignment.”\n\n“Can we just move on.” Ogden gestured to the table before him. His dice had bounced off a miniature, a human carrying a large metal rod, before coming to a stop on the gridded mat. “I rolled a nat twenty, so it’s a critical hit.”\n\nGary nodded in response. “So it is. Your shot lands home, hitting the Archduke directly in the skull. Roll for damage.”\n\nOgden did as he was instructed, rolling an eight-sided object across the table. He had been particularly proud of this set, made of real mithril. It clunked loudly, knocking over several miniatures. “Eight!” Ogden nearly leapt from his seat.\n\n“God’s dude, those metal dice are a nightmare. Fine, your shot is enough to slay the Archduke Ferdinand outright. He slumps dead in his motorcar. You earn two hundred experience points.” Gary scribbled something behind his screen, quill dancing across parchment with a flurry of scratching.\n\nMary smiled. “It’s nice to get a simple quest in you know? In and out, easy experience.”\n\n&#x200B;\n\n&#x200B;\n\n“The construct looms before you, a huge box like thing trundling forward under its own weight like a golem. Spouts around the machine spit deadly fire around it, raking across your fellows. Several of them fall into the trench injured.” Gary was stood up, his arms wide as he recited his pre-planned description. He reached behind the screen, producing a miniature he had lovingly sculpted and painted, the capstone to his campaign.\n\n“Mary, you’re a cleric, go- “Ogden began.\n\n“Medic.”\n\n“What?”\n\n“I’m a medic,” Mary repeated. “Not a cleric. There’s no such thing as a cleric in the game world.”\n\n“Fine, medic, whatever.” Ogden waved his arm dismissively, prompting a scowl from his disgruntled companion. “Go help those guys, we might need some extra NPC help against this…what’s it called? It’s the boss monster, right?”\n\n“A tank,” Gary said, pushing the model to the centre of the grid. “And come on dude, that’s meta-gaming. Not cool.”\n\n“Whatever, I’ve built my guy perfectly. Found the instructions on the aethernet. Guy who crystal balled me the build was in the beta-test.”\n\nGary groaned. “For fuck’s sake Oggie. This is why no-one else will play with you. You remember the last campaign? Where you went all dictator and tried taking over Europe?”\n\n“Napoleon is the best character I ever made! He was tons of fun.”\n\n“For you! Everyone else got pushed aside. You know what, fine, you think you can take it go ahead. You hear a loud whistle, the signal to attack. Roll for initiative.”\n\nFind more of my stuff at r/pwhillardfiction or follow my two current serials at r/redditserials" ]	4
	[WP] The results of the 33rd election for the ruler of the United Earth Union are in, apparently people were sick of the same old politicians and their drama, this year 70% of the votes comprised of random off ballot names, all of them the same name, your name...	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Someone, somewhere in this room, is trying desperately to get everyone's attention. As everyone slowly quiets down I take my first really good look around at the crowd that has been ushered into the middle of this room. There are at least 50 people looking various shades of defiant or cocky. There are men and women pulled from every corner of the world. I almost feel like a slacker; I only came here because I live in the same city where the votes got counted.\n\nNow I can see the woman who got everyone to quiet down. She's standing behind a lectern and talking to a nervous looking man who is gesturing to a clipboard, trying simultaneously to hold the woman's attention and avoid everyone else's. When the woman speaks she is speaking only to the nervous man but she is close enough to the microphone that I can hear the frustration and exhaustion in her voice, \"Well you'll have to get the rest in a minute but make sure no one leaves this room until that list is complete.\" Then she turns to us.\n\n\"Good morning. Before we get started I want to make absolutely sure that everyone is here for the same reason. If you are not here because your name is Taylor Lee and because you wish to claim that you are the Taylor Lee who received 70.6% of the popular vote, please leave this room immediately.\" After some murmuring throughout the room she adds, \"That includes if your name is 'Lee Taylor.' The ballots were clearly marked 'Taylor Lee' and I want to hear nothing more about this!\"\n\nShe has to raise her voice for the end of her sentence to be heard because half a dozen people begin shouting angrily from throughout the room. Some of them give up and storm out but two have to be dragged away by armed guards.\n\nIt has been almost 24 hours since the election results came in. At first it was the same as always, the votes were counted and an automated announcement was sent out summoning Taylor Lee to the Forum to receive the official installation. But every time the message went out before it was just a formality, not a big mystery. There must be dozens or hundreds of people in the world named David Lester, but when that name was read out everyone knew it had to be the Australian statesman who had established the first set of guidelines for how the law should apply to Androids and Simulacra. There was no question. But Taylor Lee? As far as I know there is no globally influential person named Taylor Lee, so when the message was sent out no one knew what to do. \n\nMy friends joked that I should go to the Forum as a joke, but we all assumed I would get turned away at the door. We thought there must be some beurocrat who was big in the political sphere, but mostly unknown outside of it. So I came here and found that I was by no means the only person to claim the title, but I did seem to be the only person who was there as a joke. \n\nThere are lawyers, mayors, CEOs, heads of relief charities . . . . there are also some International Relations professors who will talk to you for hours about how the field needs be renamed since \"nations\" don't exist in the same way they did 200 years ago. Some people spent a big chunk of their savings and put their jobs on hold to get here so fast. I feel a little uncomfortable just for being here but then my attention snaps back to the woman at the lectern because she is speaking again.\n\n\"No, there is no precedent for this, but the Assembly has found a solution they feel is fair and can be resolved quickly. Those of you in this room will each make a case for why you should be president and then you will vote and decide amongst yourselves.\"\n\nImmediately there was an uproar as several people tried to argue against this. The woman ignored them, turning her focus to the touchpad on her wrist until a huge screen lit up on the wall behind her. She jabbed her finger at the display and shouted into the microphone. \"There is currently an internet petition with 62 million signatures calling for a battle royale to decide the election, and the longer we draw this out the more this will spread around until it finds people who don't think it's joke.\" She was almost shaking from frustration. \"So you are going to decide this matter amongst yourselves or I am going to break a pool cue in half, walk out, and lock all the doors.\"\n\nI'm pretty sure she wasn't being serious, and I am very certain that if she did that someone else would come unlock the doors before you could convince these lawyers to start spilling blood, but nevertheless everyone agreed.\n\nAnd so the most boring three days of my life began. Everyone gave a speech, everyone debated everyone else, no one slept or ate as much as they should have. I didn't follow much of what was going on and I even tried to slip out halfway through but was forbidden from doing so. In the end the animosities in the room had grown so intense they started voting people out of the running instead of voting for their favorites. Their logic was that this method would result in the least controversial person being chosen and in a way that's what happened. After all, no one bothers harboring political resentment against someone like me, not in a room full of lawyers and mayors. So here I am. What the fuck am I supposed to do now.", " \n\nI stared at the letter in my mail. This must be some kind of joke. You have been elected as the 33rd ruler of the...\n\nYeah, right. I crumpled it up and threw it in the trash with the garbage - banana peels, diapers, invitations to random parties no one really cared about.\n\n\"John, what time is it?\" called my brother from the living room.\n\n\"Almost ten. You have Quiddich practice coming up - or whatever the hell sport they've invented these days. If you forget your shit, I'm not flying over to send it like last time.\"\n\n\"Pfft. Your flying license is practically revoked from the drunk stunts you do.\"\n\n\"Oh? You take years of lessons, barely manage to even man a drone right.\"\n\n\"Whatever.\" Bron stuck his head up from behind the couch. \"Last time I only forgot my shit because of Cindy anyway.\"\n\nRight on cue our baby sister began crying from upstairs - our mom quickly hushing her with little smears of pleasantries. But soon our dog began barking, adding to the mayhem, and she turned to annoyed reprimands... and then a shriek of surprise.\n\nI winced. \"Better go check that out.\"\n\n\"Uh, bro,\" stated Bron apprehensively from the window. \"You didn't do anything illegal recently, did you?\"\n\nI threw my hands up. \"Why is it always about me?\" Then I followed his gaze, and what do you know, there were men in black suits coming up the driveway. I gulped. Those cars looked expensive, the high tech spinning drones, too. They spoke into earpieces, and from the emblems I knew that they were high ranking officials if not anything else. And they were almost here. If the barking and crying from upstairs didn't cut it, then my Mom rushing downstairs looking in a confused daze would surely alert them of our presence.\n\n\"It wasn't me,\" I said quickly. I opened the door a crack at the sharp rap of it, knowing I had no choice. \"Hello?\"\n\nThe man, in standard attire of sunglasses and all black, cleared his throat. \"Is this the Smith residence?\"\n\nI nodded.\n\n\"Do you know of a John Smith who lives here?\"\n\nMy mom shrieked. \"What did you do, John?\"\n\nI cleared my throat. \"There must be many John Smiths of the world. Are you absolutely certain you have the right house?\" I was glancing nervously at the parade of vehicles that only seemed to increase, and the flying drones that gathered closer.\n\nThe man turned to a guy behind him and they began whispering as if in agitation.\n\nMy brother was staring wide eyed. \"John, where can we hide?\"\n\nThe trench coat man turned back to me. \"Excuse us. If you are the John Smith that we seek, then you would have gotten a letter of esteemed precedence in the mail this morning.\"\n\nI stared blankly.\n\n\"Err, more precisely, are you not aware that you have been elected as the 33rd ruler of the United Earth Union?\"\n\n\"Oh.\" I frowned. Well, my friend Bob had said once that he'd enroll me in the election as kind of a gag gift. \"Seriously? that letter was real?\"" ]	3
	[WP] You are trapped in a cave. Suddenly, you see a dragon.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 Smaragdine Cave\n\nThe orange light glazed across her bulging emerald green eyes as they pierced into my soul. Her head towered above the small crackling fire, staring down at the mere morsel. My neck felt rigid, stiff as tree bark and no doubt she’d burn me to ashes with one puff. She looked angry. But what was she waiting for? Here I am, on my back between enclosed ancient walls, defenceless. Yet she remained transfixed on me. There was no time to question about who brought me here, who lit that flame, and who bloody left me with a Smaragdine Dragon. The sunlight that had been kissing my neck ever since I raised my head was like a Siren’s call. If I move towards it, I’m dead, but where it shone through is my only escape.\n\n“Must try. It’s just a few metres behind me. She’s a peculiar one, there’s a chance.”\n\nMy optimistic thoughts didn’t convince my body, I was shaking like a rattlesnake’s tail. Nobody survives an encounter with a Smaragdine Dragon, they’re the most relentless breed. If this one was a male, I’d be sliding through a gastric system by now. Her eyes are a lighter shade of emerald, as are all Smaragdine females to their counterparts. Unfortunately, you can’t distinguish genders by size, both grow just as colossal so it’s pretty rare to get close enough to find out. Lucky me then, if I can get out alive, I can scratch a mark on a tally chart. \n\nWithout breaking our trance, I shuffled ever so slightly backwards. Her nostrils flared, releasing a gust of warm air that flattened the dancing flames beneath my feet. Around five goats, a snow leopard and a llama were already digesting in there, I could smell it in her breath. Maybe that’s why I haven’t joined the party yet, but I wasn’t planning to hang around for the one in one out policy. I shuffle back even slower than the last time, and she echoes her deep grumble through the cave.\n\n“I’m laying on something…something flat and firm.”\n\nI break our romantic daze and slowly direct my eyes to the left of my torso, to the bit of scaly green skin that stuck out from beneath me. The scales appeared to be smaller, and I almost ended last meals journey once I realised what my sweaty back laid on.\n\n“Baby. Baby Smaragdine Dragon skin. This here must be mummy Dragon.”\n\nMummy Dragon could smell her dead baby’s skin, but another thing about the fierce Smaragdine Dragon is that they’re utterly docile. She thinks I’m holding her baby hostage; she won’t breathe fire nor glare her razor teeth in fear of harming it.\n\n“Who the fuck set this up?!”\n\nI shuffle back with the dead skin, knowing she won’t harm me as long as it travelled with me. The thing about caves is that they have smooth, fuckin’ smooth, surfaces because of stubborn streams that have long since gone. The baby Dragon skin slipped downwards from the pressing pressure of my shoulder blades.\n\n“Fuck.”\n\nShe made her first move, raising her wide green claw equipped with black smooth nails that could gut me like a worm. The Smaragdine female slowly placed it down, blocking my only escape route.", "The majestic being towered in front of me, its luminescent green eyes\ngazing upon my body.\n\n\"I must admit I did not expect visit,\" the Dragon spoke with a\nsurprisingly calming voice. \"Fear not, traveler. Hospitality is sacred\namong my kin.\"\n\n\"Hospitality?\" I tried my best to hide the surprise in my voice.\n\nThe Dragon made an affirmative sound. Then it began to walk farther\ninside the cave. \"I would suggest you follow me. You humans tend to\ncatch nasty illnesses when subjected to humidity.\"\n\nI did not truly understand how going deeper inside a cavern would solve,\ninstead of worsen, the humidity issue. Furthermore, my mind could\nnot stop marveling at the current situation: I was being beckoned by\na Dragon. A celestial being was offering me hospitality.\n\n\"I suppose this is overwhelming you,\" the Dragon said patiently, taking\nme out of my wonder, and back into reality. \"My apologies. I was so\ncarried away by the fact that I had a guest, that I neglected to take\nyour feeling into account.\"\n\n\"No!\" I replied louder and faster that I meant. \"It's fine,\" I tried\nto compose myself, tried to sound more serene. \"I'm fine. If anything,\nit is I who should apologize for being as inconsiderate as I am.\"\n\nFor a moment, I would have sworn that there was a glimmer in the eyes\nof the Dragon. \"All is good. So, shall we go now?\" And go we did.\n\nThe cave extended farther into the darkness, twisting, turning. It was\nalmost completely devoid of sound, except for the odd, faint echo of\na water drop. The Dragon led through a widening path, and beyond its\ngigantic frame, I started to see light. Were we getting out of the caves?\n\nAs the lights grew bigger and brighter, it was evident that no, we were\nnot walking out. Instead, I was in front of a wooden door. Despite the\nlight, which seemed to come from the cavern itself, I could see neither\nthe top, nor the width of the door, which were obscured by darkness.\nOn the door, intricate runes, writings from a language that I never\nhad seen before, were etched. The letters were, I supposed, stylized,\nas they were carved in to form shapes and figures, in addition to what\nI suppose were words. Most of the figures were abstract: arcs and wavy\nlines, but on the center of the door, the letters were set in a way as\nto depict a Dragon cub, watching over a... jewel of some sort?\n\n\"Welcome to my humble home,\" the Dragon said as it opened the door.\nThe size of the entrance hall was befitting a Dragon. The ceiling\ndisappeared into the darkness, not unlike the door outside, the area was\nas wide as a decent sized burg. On the far end, opposite of the door,\na fire was lit inside the fireplace. It was hard to tell from how far\nI was, but the fire itself seemed to reach as high as the roof of an\naristocrat's manor.\n\n\"Make yourself at ease,\" the Dragon said as it closed the door behind it.\n\n\"Thank you,\" I replied, and I started to walk toward the fireplace.\nWhen I found a distance where the fire was welcoming without being\nscorching, I stopped and sat on the ground. I heard the heavy footsteps\nof the Dragon walk behind me, before stopping by my side.\n\nFor a moment, we remained still, gazing inside the fireplace, watching the\nfire perform its mesmerizing dance. Then, the Dragon broke the silence.\n\n\"I was wondering, you may have heard about the dangers of forest at the\nbase of my home. So, why did you cross it?\"\n\n\"There was something I sought.\"\n\n\"There is nothing to be had in those woods, only things to be lost.\nWhat you sought must have been very precious for you to go through it.\nDid you ever find it?\"\n\n\"I do not think that I did. Otherwise, I suppose I would not be here.\"\n\n\"Is it so?\" the Dragon's voice was even softer, almost soothing.\n\"Do you think that what you seek lie somewhere here?\"\n\nFor a long time, I remained silent, thoughtful. \"I do not know yet.\nMaybe it is.\"\n\nOnce again, the crackling of the fire was the only sound that filled the\nroom. And once again, the Dragon was the first that broke the silence.\n\"I believe that you are mistaken. I possess nothing of value. You human\nhave tales of Dragons hoarding riches, yet as you can witness, this is all\nI have. Many have tried to reach my home. Very few have made it past\nthe woods. I offered them hospitality, they responded with aggression.\nBanish the thought, but are you one of those people?\"\n\n\"I do not seek riches. Gold is but a metal, and Ruby is but a stone.\nYou were so kind to me, I supposed you possessed what I sought.\nI supposed that you had peace, a treasure infinitely more valuable\nthat what humans can ever produce. I had hoped that we may share it.\nBut as your tale had it, even this place has not been undisturbed by\nthe filth that is human greed.\"\n\n\"Young one,\" the Dragon replied as it used the tip of its tail to wipe\nthe tears off my face. Just like its voice, just like itself, the tail\nwas surprisingly smooth and soft. \"You are from Tarnak, am I correct?\"\n\n\"Tarnak is no more, claimed by the sin of pride and greed. Since then,\nI am No One, and I come from Nowhere.\"\n\n\"I had heard of its fate. It is most unfortunate.\"\n\n\"One that sows war reaps death. There is nothing to mourn about that.\"\n\n\"Oh but there is, young one. I have seen it countless times. The curse\nof war has claimed countless innocent souls, leaving them dead, or a\nmere shade of themself.\"\n\n\"And what happened to these people?\"\n\n\"Some sought atonement. Many more, like yourself, sought peace.\nI cannot help with the former, and I do not possess much of the latter.\nBut I was willing to share it with them back then, and I am willing to\nshare it with you now.\" The glimmer that I suspected appeared again in\nthe Dragon's eye. \"Welcome to your new home, young one.\"" ]	3
	[WP] When zombies started appearing, people got scared. It turns out zombieism is more like a degenerative condition where people slowly waste away. You work at a zombie hospice.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Ole Abigail hadn't been eating for the past several days. That morning, when Nurse Sophie had brought her a small bowl of warm oatmeal with a side of sliced strawberries, Ole Abigail didn't even bother looking at it. Only groaned and shifted her shoulders back and forth into the bed, as if she had been trying to dig herself through the frame. \n\n\"She's got some bracelets on today,\" Little Julia had said, having followed Nurse Sophie into the room. \n\nNurse Sophie looked over Ole Abigail and saw what Little Julia had been referring to. According to protocol, once an infected begins to show disinterest in ordinary food, it was time for them to be restrained. Thankfully, at that point in the life cycle of the disease, most victims didn't put up much of a fight with being restrained. Ole Abigail had leather restraints around her wrists, and the straps were tucked underneath her mattress. She shifted some more, doing her graveyard jig.\n\n\"Yes, she's got some pretty bracelets,\" Nurse Sophie said to Little Julia.\n\nShe checked the clipboard at the foot of Ole Abigail's bed and checked off another box, this one saying that Ole Abigail has gone 3 days without food. Tomorrow, Nurse Sophie wouldn't bring in a bowl of oatmeal. Instead, she would have to bring in the pneumatic bolt gun. \n\nBack when Ole Abigail had been somewhat conscious, she had referred to the bolt gun as Ole Silver, thus earning her the nickname Ole Abigail among the rest of the nursing staff. \n\n\"Give me Ole Silver and let me get the hell on out of here,\" Ole Abigail had said, tapping herself right between the eyebrows. \"Just go on and give it to me right here.\" \n\nNurse Sophie sighed and put away the clipboard. Ole Abigail would soon be getting her wish. \n\n\"I need you to say goodbye to Ole Abigail, okay Julia?\" Nurse Sophie said. \n\nThe little girl was busy doing pirouettes in the corner of the room, not hearing what Nurse Sophie had said, so the nurse repeated, \"Julia, please say goodbye to your sister, okay? She won't be here anymore tomorrow. Julia?\" \n\nLittle Julia paused mid-turn, almost stumbling over, catching herself by putting one hand on the wall, \"Hmm?\" \n\n\"Please say goodbye to big sis, okay?\" \n\n\"Sure thing,\" Little Julia said. She approached her withering sister and said, \"Bye big-sis, will see you later!\" \n\nOle Abigail just continued her dance number in her bed, shifting back and forth, slowly kicking off the bed sheet. Nurse Sophie and Little Julia left the room, Nurse Sophie to continue her route of checking in on the other residents, and Little Julia following with all of her curiosity. \n\n**\n\nOle Abigail's eyes were completely glassed over when Nurse Sophie entered the room the next day, five pounds of iron gripped in her hand. She placed the bolt gun in the center of Ole Abigail's forehead and finally gave her a taste of Ole Silver. \n\nThe gun hissed, and Abigail's shoulders slumped. \n\nNurse Sophie pulled a tissue from her breast pocket and dabbed at the small drizzle of blood that had begun to race its way down the bridge of Abigail's nose. She didn't have any words left for Abigail, no \"goodbye\", no \"sorry\", no anything. Years working at the residency had robbed her of those words, and now it was just all a part of the motion. \n\nShe pulled the sheet over Abigail's head, and then moved to the corner of the room to remove her protective gown. She tossed the cheap fabric into the incinerator, and exited the room. Movers would be by soon, and they would toss in Abigail's body into the incinerator, too. \n\nNurse Sophie shut the door behind her, and walked back to the nurse's quarters to return the gun and sterilize herself further. Afterwards, Nurse Sophie began her routine of passing out food to the residents. She brought in a tray of oatmeal and sliced strawberries into a room where Little Julia had been waiting. \n\nThe young girl had been sitting on the bed, part of her hair plastered to her forehead from sweat. \n\n\"Did you have trouble sleeping again last night?\" Nurse Sophie asked the young girl. \n\n\"Uh-huh.\" \n\n\"Did you dream?\" Nurse Sophie asked. \n\nLittle Julia nodded. \n\n\"What'd you dream?\" the Nurse said, setting the tray onto the bed with Little Julia. \n\n\"I saw my sister. Is she going to be okay where she's going?\" \n\n\"I'm sure she will,\" Nurse Sophie said, no longer knowing if she had been telling the truth, or just a white lie to make things easier. This place had robbed her of most feelings. Now it was just time to get through the day. \"Here, eat up.\" \n\n\"I'm not really hungry,\" Little Julia said. \n\n\"That's okay, I'll just leave it here on the counter in case you change your mind,\" Nurse Sophie said. \n\nShe pulled the tray away from Little Julia, and then walked to the foot of the bed where Little Julia's charts were. Nurse Sophie pulled the chart out, and put a red X* in the first box, signalling Little Julia's first day of not accepting any food." ]	2
	[WP] You are a high school clairvoyant, who can see a completely accurate future by making skin contact with a person who wants to know their future. You use this power to make a quick buck for anyone who is curious. One day, you read one of your classmate's futures, and that future involves 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/js5XDFB)\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 late for class, Beth, can’t this wait until later?”\n\nTonya Harbinger kept a brisk pace with her green eyes looking forward, her tightly pulled auburn ponytail swished side to side with each purposeful stride. She kept a severe expression on her face, but it did nothing to make her look less elegant and dainty. She always wanted others to take her seriously, but regardless of her ponytail and outfit, a short collared white blouse and an A-line brown pencil skirt, people, unfortunately, don’t tend to take psychics seriously no matter how many times they are proven right. \n\nShe kept her history textbook close to her chest while she attempted to walk past her regular client and friend, Elizabeth Gardner, who galloped next to her with long sidesteps. Her long shiny black curls bounced as freely as her pleated red skirt. Her collar was as open as the smile she wore on her face. She desperately wanted to get her clairvoyant comrade to stop long enough to talk, that way, she could get her viewing.\n\n“No, it can’t wait until later. Trevor is in my last period and we’ll be leaving campus together straight away. I wanna know how my night is gonna go.”\n\nTonya’s eyebrows pulled up towards her inner brow, “Aw c’mon, honey, can’t it just be a surprise? I have a test next period and you know how fuzzy my thoughts get after a viewing.” Tonya’s pace never wavered, but Elizabeth’s pursuit continued.\n\n“Surprise? Girl, you know I don’t like surprises. I live off planning, scheming, and cer-tain-ty!”, she said, emphasizing every syllable. “If it’s about the money, I’ll give you double this time. I ain’t hard up and this is important!” She knew Tonya hadn’t been taking many requests lately and she was using that knowledge to her advantage.\n\n“So is my test.”, Tonya retorted, but Elizabeth noticed her slow down fractionally.\n\nYes, I got her. Keep pressing.\n\n“Tonya, we both know that test means jack shit to you. You’re only finishing school to get your folks to shut up about how your education is important. Your skills will carry you out of this shit-hole town the moment someone reputable gets a good reading off yo ass. Until then, I am your best customer, now gimme the goods.”\n\nTonya noticeably slowed down and Beth took the opportunity to walk backwards directly in her path.\n\n“Uuungh, you said double, right?”\n\n“I did!” It was almost a chirp it was so happy.\n\nTonya stopped and after another half step or two, so did Elizabeth.\n\nBeth smiled broadly, “Girl, were you just tryna hustle me for an extra twenty? You won’t be broke for long after graduation with that game.”\n\n“That’s not it, Beth.”, she said softly. “The readings have been getting more intense lately and I’m just not in the mood for a headache. Anyway, I still need good enough grades for my parents to agree to let me out of state for university. You’re just lucky I have my history marks in the bag already.”\n\n“Pfff. You don’t need university. Just take a drive to California, find a walk-in script reading, offer free viewings to the casting directors, and wait for your phone to blow up after everything you say comes true. You’ll be the next Tyler Henry.”\n\n“Honey, you know I don’t talk to dead people. Now pay up and give me your hands. I gotta get to class.”\n\nElizabeth pulled two bills out of her bra and handed it to Tonya, who slipped it into her history textbook.\n\nAfter putting the book down, Tonya grabbed both of Beth’s hands, closed her eyes and began to breath deeply. With each breath Tonya could feel her grasp on reality tentatively give way to a vision of what was to come. \n\nDeep breath.\n\nShe could smell the mossy underbrush of the forest before she could hear it. \n\nBreath again.\n\nShe could hear the wind blow through the the leaves of trees overhead before she could see them. \n\nAnother breath.\n\nHer vision cleared and she could see a thicket of large trees surrounding her on all sides. It was dark. The canopy overhead only allowed the faintest bit of moonlight through its shrewd monopoly of the sky.\n\nA figure stood before her, indistinguishable in the dark. Their figure was slight and trim. Was it Beth? Her hair was all wrong though. She would never put her hair up on a date. She said it would take her “flirty powers” away. Still, there was something familiar about this person. \n\nTonya approached the figure to get a better look, but she suddenly tripped over something in the underbrush and landed into a warm puddle.\n\nNice going, Tonya. You’re even a klutz in your visions.\n\nShe attempted to wipe away the water on her shirt, but it didn’t absorb into the cloth the way it should. Her hands wiped slickly, then became sticky with consecutive wipes. \n\nWas it some sort of sap? What did I trip over anyway?\n\nShe pivoted on her knees to look behind her and froze as she came face to face with Beth’s lifelessly staring eyes. Dots of moonlight reflected the red glisten of blood pouring out the gash in her throat.\n\nA sudden blast of wind violently opened up the canopy overhead, exposing both the full moon and the grizzly scene before her. \n\nHer head snapped up to the figure standing above her dead friend and what she saw would haunt her memory until her last breath.\n\nThe one standing over Elizabeth was Tonya herself, clutching a bloody knife to her chest, both Tonyas mirroring the same expression of abject horror and shock.\n\nThe howl of the wind overpowered all other sounds and was replaced by the high pitched scream of terror escaping Tonya as she let go of Beth’s hands and threw herself backwards to the linoleum hallway floor. She kicked the ground, dragging herself away from her friend who stood wide-eyed and slack jawed with shock and terror of her own.\n\nA crowd gathered as teachers and students left their classrooms to see what the commotion was about. \n\nSome attempted to help, but Tonya was inconsolable as her body racked with uncontrollable sobs of anguish and grief.", "Her name was Marlee, like the dog's name from that one movie. The meeting place was always the same, janitor's closet, fifth period, right after lunch. Mr. James, the elderly janitor always cleaned the cafeteria and I made my fifty bucks. Yeah I know what you're thinking and don't judge my pricing, supply and demand's a bitch especially when I was the only supplier, well, I was back then.\n\nMost everybody wanted to know the same old stuff: where they would go to college, the name of the person they'd marry, if they were going to get caught cheating on the SAT's or not, but that's when I could control it. Sometimes even now, I can't and a vision comes even if I brush up against someone in the hallway. So, my hands are always in my pockets, and you'll always find me in long sleeves and jeans even in the summer. But Marlee, when we touched... Well, she was one of the ones where I couldn't control it.\n\nI peered around the hallway corner and saw Mr. James wheel his mop from the closet like he always did with the annoyingly loud back left squeaky wheel. When was out of sight, I looked back at Marlee behind me and said, \"Come on\".\n\n\"What class are you skipping?\" I asked.\n\n\"Biology, what about you?\"\n\n\"I have an off period\".\n\nShe blew some air out of her nose as I put my hand on the door knob.\n\n\"Do you have a problem with my methods?\"\n\n\"Just open the door, I can't get caught skipping.\"\n\nI opened the door, motioned for her to enter first, and closed the door behind me slowly and quietly. We stood in the dark of the closet until I reached up and pulled on the light string.\n\nMarlee and I stood with our chests touching and if she weren't so short, our faces would be touching as well.\n\n\"On second thought, I do have a problem with your methods. You couldn't have picked anywhere with a little more room?\" she whispered.\n\n\"It's a janitor's closet, what did you expect?\" I whispered back.\n\n\"Not paying fifty bucks to stare directly into your neck.”\n\n\"Okay, hurtful. At least I’m not the one named after a dog.”\n\n\"Oh, hahaha never heard that one before. I might be named after a dog but at least I don’t have dog breath. Whatever, let's get on with it, how does this work? You have your crystal ball next to the windex or something?\"\n\n\"No, all you have to do is give me your hand and tell me what you want to know.\"\n\n\"How about you tell me what I want to know without the touching Mcfly.\"\n\n\"That's not even... That's a time travel movie this is... You know what? Do you wanna do this or not?\"\n\n\"Okay okay, yes I want to do this. I want to know the date of my death.\"\n\nI paused and looked at her. She said it so casually with her hands in her jean jacket pockets.\n\n\"What?\" she asked.\n\n\"Can you do it or not Blake?\"\n\n\"Yeah, I can do it, do you want to know how you die?\"\n\n\"No, I don't, just tell me when.\"\n\n\"Okay, give me your hand.\"\n\nShe pulled her hand from her pocket, took a deep breath, and closed her eyes.\n\nI looked down at her hand and took it. \n\nIt was like being dunked underwater, there was no control and I was watching.\n\nMr. James opened the door holding his mop out like a weapon and light shot out of it. I shielded my eyes but Marlee attacked with a stick in her own hand, a wand. \n\nI swam up to the surface and was in the closet holding her hand.\n\n“Well, did it work?” she asked.\n\nI stood with my mouth wide open until I stated.\n\n“You have to pull out your wand.” \n\n“What? What are you talking about?”\n\n“Mr. James is coming, I don’t know what you are, but he’s coming and you have to stop him.”\n\n“Blake, I don’t know what you-”\n\n“Shh”\n\nI held up my hand for her to be quiet and the noise became clear. The squeaky wheel coming down the hallway.\n\nI spat out in the quietest of whispers, “he’s coming to, to get us right now Marlee his mop has a white light, you have to stop him.”\n\nThe squeaky wheel stopped, and a wand appeared in Marlee’s hand. \n\nThen, the door opened.", "(Switched to third person, hope that's okay! This is my very first prompt, go easy on me lol)\n\nThe nightmare began months after Graham found out. He was invigorated upon discovering his clairvoyance— as he called it. He once said that we dream of having superpowers as children, but are never taught how to use them, nor the responsibility of having them. At first Graham thought it was the adderall, but later realized that skin contact and focus unlocked his ability.\n\nThis ability was ingrained in him for as long as he could remember, but he has always denied it. But now he knows, the dreams weren’t dreams. They really happened. You see, we can all ponder about our earliest memory … maybe you have blurry snapshots of playing hide-and-seek, or admiring a monstrous sandcastle that was probably 2 feet tall, or rushing to the emergency room — in your parent’s arms — over an asthma attack.\n\nGraham’s earliest memories? Living as a child, yes. But also living as an adult… Specifically, his mother’s.\n\nThey were dreams all along, he thought. How else do you explain memories where you see through the eyes of your mother? Well, considering that vague distant memories can be indistinguishable from dreams, any rational being would opt for the latter explanation. Of course, Graham’s clairvoyance turned dormant as his attention span lost control during his toddler years.\n\nHowever, the ‘dreams’ were just vivid enough to maintain his curiosity, and 18 years later, now he knows. Skin contact and focus revitalize it.\n\nThere appears to be two major constraints, however. First, he must decide on a time period into the future, starting from the present. Second, he lives through every second of that person’s future for the entirety of that period. Every perception, sense, and emotion imbues him as much as the host.\n\nThat didn’t stop him however. Graham was swift to exploit this ability. His popularity quickly surged in social media. Naturally, thanks to his followers, his power unleashed a lucrative career. He also developed limitless empathy. We speak of empathy as the ability to share one’s feelings… but this is never exactly true for anyone. With Graham’s ability, however, he was by definition an exception. As a result, Graham was described as the most compassionate character anyone has ever met.\n\nClairvoyance, he called it. Unfortunately, this is nothing but a shallow descriptor. Sure, it sounds exotic and alien. But it is a mechanism, and it exists within the confines of physical laws. As everything else in the universe, the rabbit hole always gets deeper. It's no surprise, then, that scientists paid attention, and it didn't take long before Dr. Aramburu reached out to him.\n\nThe nightmare began when Dr. Aramburu, the lead researcher of a lab at Harvard Medical School, had only five words to get Graham on a plane to see him: “You’re not the only one.” A middle-aged woman, Solange, has proven to possess Graham’s ability. Although the researchers were well intentioned, they could have never foreseen what was coming. Graham and Solange were the guinea pigs, as you could have called them. For the first time in history, an innate talent has become the door to exploration of another dimension of universal laws, and it was in the hands of Dr. Aramburu and his team of medical professionals and physicists. Unfortunately, although the experiments seemed innocuous enough, the intratelepathy effect — as it is now called — had not yet been discovered.\n\nDays after preliminary questioning, Graham and Solange were permitted to meet over coffee before the first (and only) experiment. They discussed their respective experiences for several hours. Solange was irritated of Graham’s exploitation of this ability … disclosure of one’s future alters it, she thought. Destiny is a God's beast, and tampering with it carelessly is unwise. Nevertheless, her equal compassion allowed their conversation to continue joyfully.\n\nOnce in the lab, the initial experiment was simple. Solange would grab Graham’s hand and foresee five seconds into his future. The idea, as explained thoroughly by the researchers, was for Solange to ascertain Graham’s thought. What was he thinking at that precise moment? This was simple enough. Both of them — Graham especially — have been through this multiple times over. Trapped in one’s mind, they knew that every perception and emotion permeates the host as much as the telepath.\n\nWhat followed, however, simply could not have been anticipated. The moment Solange stepped into Graham’s consciousness, both of their eyes dilated as they collapsed out of their chairs. Unconscious, pale, and breathing lifelessly. It all happened so quickly, milliseconds after Solange initiated. Detachment of their hands did nothing. A decade later, both remain unconscious.\n\nIt is theorized that the instant Solange stepped into Graham’s consciousness, he unintentionally reciprocated with his ability shortly after. Researchers have since coined this phenomenon the intratelepathy effect. As Graham’s perceptions were Solange’s, Solange’s perceptions were Graham’s, whose perceptions were Solange’s, and so on. This mind-bending reflection of consciousness rendered Solange and Graham into an immediate coma. Some optimists theorize they fell into a deep state of unconsciousness, as if anesthetized. However, their brain activity evidenced by fMRI studies suggests otherwise. Most likely, since time in their telepathic state runs along a different dimension than our own, Solange and Graham instantly descended into a singularity. Like two facing mirrors, they are eternally trapped in the reflection of each other’s mind.", "\"Not today, please,\" I moaned. The nerdy girl from first period looked at me nervously as I massaged my temples with cheap, threadbare gloves. \"Too many readings in the past week. Can't focus in class.\"\n\n\"Just one?\" Karissa said. \"Everyone says that anything you tell them comes true.\"\n\nMy reputation had grow like a hardy weed; slowly at first, lurking in the undergrowth of the student popularity vines, but refusing to die out. People want to believe in higher powers, after all. It had only taken a few rumors before there were more customers than I could reasonably manage.\n\n\"That's not really how it works,\" I said. \"It's not like I'm some wish-granting genie. I just tell you what will happen if you continue down your current path.\"\n\nKarissa rubbed a few brown strands of her long hair together, crossing and uncrossing her legs nervously across the flimsy lunch table. \"So does that mean if I heard it and didn't like it, I could change it?\"\n\n\"First off, you'll have to get on the wait-list.\" I checked my phone as she was talking, and it looked like she'd be doing plenty of waiting on it. \"And the answer is, who knows? Most people choose not to change anything different about what they're doing, and my predictions become completely accurate. Maybe that's luck.\"\n\n\"Oliver, please help me.\" She looked down at the fake whorls carved into the green plastic surface. \"I didn't want to ask, but my Dad was just hospitalized. I just want to know...I just want to know that he's going to be okay.\"\n\nThe sigh that escaped my throat was not unkind, as my answer was already written in stone. I knew what it was like to be in her shoes all too well.\n\nHow cursed am I, to see only the future of others, but remain blind to my own?\n\n\"I'll do it.\"\n\nGingerly, the gloves slipped off finger by finger. The air was electric, wafting across my bare knuckles, and even at this range I was catching whispers on the wind; an impending failed chemistry test the table over, a budding romance just next to us, a soon-to-be-lost keepsake behind me.\n\nKarissa held out her hand shyly, but I had no such compunctions. The sad reality of seeing the future is that any childhood innocence dries up like the morning dew. I'd lived a hundred different realities, seen things from the eyes of people woven from all sorts of moral fibers.\n\nI grasped her hand.\n\nThe world stopped.\n\nMy vision splint in twine along with my mind, a ripping headache that tore a soundless scream from my being. In one world, I saw us - not her, but us. It was the first time I'd ever seen myself in anyone's future. Her Dad lived, and because of the relief she thanked me and we eventually started hanging out more, gradually developing feelings for each other. It was a happy life. It was full and bright and so wonderful that I almost cried.\n\nIn the other world, I saw her Dad die. The sadness warped her, bringing out a stronger, darker malevolence that twisted the space between us. And in that future, she awakened. She became a far stronger clairvoyant than I, affecting the world as if it were clay at her fingertips. The emptiness and void I felt emanated like a cold frost from her future spectre, casting a shadow over the whole earth. It was lonely and tragic and so full of death that I almost cried.\n\nI jerked away, inhaling air like a drowning man. Karissa looked at me in alarm. \"What day did your Dad get hospitalized?\" I demanded. There was no time.\n\n\"Last week,\" she said nervously. \"Why? What did you see?\"\n\nA curse grumbled out of my throat as I shoved the gloves back on. My senses dulled, I was able to focus more on the glimpses I'd received. There really was no time.\n\nOne week. I had one week to turn things towards the better.\n\n---\n\nThanks for reading! Hope you have a wonderful day\\~ come hang out with me at [/r/Remyxed](https://www.reddit.com/r/Remyxed/), we'd love to see you around!" ]	5
	[WP] July 20, 1969: To the surprise of the entirety of America, Neil Armstrong take out a red flag, places it on the moon, and screams “For the USSR!”	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Yep, you heard that right folks\", said the news anchor for the 6:30 evening news on CBS, \"It turns out that Neil Armstrong all this time was in fact a KGB operative. And he had a Russian wife and an American wife as well.\"\n\nAunt Polly was dismayed, her mouth enlarged like a tunnel over railroad tracks.\n\n\"Oh I just can't even remember why I voted for Nixon!\" She exclaimed with disgust. \"That alcoholic lookin' buttlicker sends our boys off to Vietnam without any good intelligence and makes them sit on booby-trapped toilets all the while NASA is sending Commies to the moon!\" She took a puff of her cigarette and released the scent of freshly picked tobacco into the atmosphere. I just sat there on the couch with my hands in my lap as the American dream itself died in front of me.\n\n\"Aunt Polly, doesn't it seem strange how the guy stayed in this country for all this time and no one even thought to check his immigration status or anything?\" I asked.\n\n\"That's what I'm saying honey, it's like the government is asleep at the switch on twelve things at once.\" She said. \"Nixon, you alcoholic lookin' buttlicker! I bet I could run the country better than you!\" \n\nJust then as the evening news was coming to a close, Walter Cronkite ended his broadcast by informing the country that Neil Armstrong had been abandoned by his colleagues. And the American dream was revived with that silver lining.\n\nHappy New Year!", "\"CUUUUT!\" The director yelled, \"for fucks sake guys can we find someone who will take this seriously?\"\n\nNo one answered, everyone was getting bored of the time travelling internet trolls. It seemed as if there wasn't anyone who would take the almighty USA seriously from beyond 2045.\n\n\"Alright get this guy outta here, let's show em the true power of paradoxes\" the director commanded\n\nTwo men emerged from behind the set, cuffed the man and dragged him off the set as screams of realization and pleading slowly turned to cries of despair. A gunshot was heard, and then everything was silent.\n\n\"Ok, let's try this ONE more time, take me back to last week, it's time to interview the thirty-first potential actor.\"", "3:17 PM, July 20th, 1969, Johnson Space Centre.\n\nI was in front of the monitor with the rest of my co-workers, anxiously seeing whether the landing craft we had designed and sent to the moon would land successfully or turn into the most expensive piece of junk ever made in human history.\n\nIt was two minutes until landing. We had chosen the three astronauts, Michael Collins, Neil Armstrong and Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr. to represent America on this mission. Michael Collins had stayed in the orbiter and was currently orbiting the Moon. When the moon lander had left the surface, it would dock with the orbiter and return home. But that wouldn't happen yet: Neil Armstrong and Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr. would place some retroreflectors on the moon, gather some moon rock and fly back home.\n\nOne minute. We were sitting glued to the monitor, impatiently waiting the extra minute to see whether the last couple of years of hard work were in vain. Currently, we were low on propellant, but it seemed that it would land safely, able to return to Earth.\n\nIt lands. But it's not done yet. We still need to wait for Neil Armstrong to prepare for landing and sleep: he did have a long day. So for the next couple of hours we hang out about, thinking about how we were successful and how the Apollo astronauts would live to fly another day.\n\nA few hours later, Neil Armstrong leaves the landing craft. \"That's one small step for a man, that's one giant leap for mankind\", he says through the crackle of the radio. He places down the plaque on the moon showing that we come in peace and then he takes out a flag. But it's not the American flag.\n\nOn the camera, it appeared to be red, but the finer features were not able to be made out.\n\nNeil Armstrong shouts, \"For the USSR!\", and plants the flag into the lunar surface.\n\n\"Quick!\", somebody yelled. \"Cut to our soundstage!\"\n\nIn the Bakoinur Cosmodrome, a man laughs slowly, in the quintessential evil Russian accent so commonly found in movies. \"О да,\", he began, \"Мы хорошо его обучили.\".", "I'm sorry, Neil, I think we had some static on our end. It almost sounded like you said \"for the USSR\"\n\nDa! My real name is Neil Armstroska from Moscow. And I am first man on moon! I have planted hammer and sickle flag on the lunar surface. Russia is number one!\n\nApollo, before we go any further, I'd prefer if we could speak casually as if we're on the phone with each other, not me using a bunch of realistic technical jargon during the biggest moment for the human race so far.\n\nCertainly, just remember I have evil Russian accent.\n\nSpeaking of which, what gives?\n\nI infiltrated your space program years ago with a slick American accent and lots of big talk about being the first man on the moon. And I used your technology and research to get here.\n\nBecause you Russians couldn't get the job done. You may be up there but that's because we did all the work.\n\nSo we have co-operated? Our countries? Together?\n\nWell.. yes, yes, I suppose that's the case!\n\nThis is good! We can finally move past this cold war and team up to explore space, fight diseases, end world hunger, and develop renewable energy. I'm so glad we found common ground. I'm sorry, I didn't get your name.\n\nO.J. Simpson.\n\nThe running back for the USC Trojans?\n\n(laughs) I get that a lot. But it's ok. He's an outstanding young man. He seems to have all the qualities of someone who would have that name.\n\nOf course! We're in an alternate timeline. Anything is possible! Which is good because I'm done with this story and the reader's imagination can do the heavy lifting", "\\[Poem\\]\n\nIt was a dark, stormy night. \nIt became outstanding. \nIt was a wonderful sight, \nTo witness the moon landing.\n\nAs Neil took a step \nOnto the moon, \nHe would gain bad rep, \nFor what he would do soon.\n\nThe took out the flag, \nTo the US, it was not identical \nPresent on the bag, \nWas a golden hammer and sickle.\n\nThe officials were stunned, \nThe FBI in awe, \nAs they all screamed, \"We're done!\" \nThe CIA took their call.\n\nThey launched a secret rocket, \nThat went very fast. \nPaid for out of pocket, \nMysterious and vast.\n\nIt was hidden for years, \nNever to be seen. \nAs people covered their ears, \nArmstrong turned green.\n\nHe expanded, \nTaking on an alien form, \nSure, the rocket had landed, \nBut that was just the beginning of the storm.\n\nAs a door from his body emerged, \nPeople were screaming. \nArmies of soldiers surged, \nIt was quite un-redeeming.\n\nAnd as Neil fell back to Earth, \nAnd past Elon's car, \nHe was the first, \nTo revive the USSR.", "Natalie hooked herself into the neural interface connecting to the electronic nanobots planted in Neil Armstrong's brain. Getting to the American had been difficult...difficult, but not impossible.\n\nEspecially for a time traveler.\n\nTheir mission was simple - twist the timeline in a way that future time travelers wouldn't suspect foul play, in a way that was too convoluted to be faked. The idea of Neil Armstrong being a sleeper agent wasn't so crazy, just crazy enough that it was believable. \n\nThe pod in their docked spaceship generated enough energy that Natalie was worried the cloaking shields might fail. The dark black pod interior glowed with a blueish hue, casting shadows over her hardened face. Little lights blinked like long-dead fireflies.\n\nFailure was unacceptable. Everything was riding on this; the future was riding on this.\n\nShe watched the ancient American shuttle dock, sighing at the technology long outdated compared to what the Russians would eventually achieve. It had been such a close race anyways. Her goal was not to establish that Russia had won the space race - it was to accelerate tensions between the countries before the American military force became truly unstoppable.\n\nThe moment Neil donned the space suit, she triggered the bots, stimulating brain waves that gave control of his muscles to her. She walked him down the stairs slowly, ignoring the panicked hazy thoughts filtering through his mind. \n\nThe red flag she'd prepared for him unfolded limply in the windless desert of the moon. With a smooth stroke, she raised it high over her/his head. This is for Russia, she thought grimly. \"For the USSR!\"\n\nNatalie was about to head back up into the shuttle and pilot it back to Russia when she felt her control slip.\n\nNo. No, no, it's not possible. How can he be resisting? The men and women of this era did not have the discipline, surely?\n\n\"Th-...\"\n\nStop. Don't fight it.\n\n\"That's one s-small step...\"\n\nNatalie fought back, but no matter how hard she clamped down on the controls, somehow his will was overriding the lock by the parasitic nanobots and their reprogramming. With a wordless scream, Natalie collapsed on the ground in her pod. The panel short-circuited.\n\nOn the screen, the American astronaut ripped the flag out and tossed it aside, planting the American one instead.\n\n\"That's one small step for man,\" he said, voice cracking, \"One giant leap for mankind.\"\n\n---\n\nThanks for reading! Come hang out with me at [/r/Remyxed](https://www.reddit.com/r/Remyxed/), we'd love to see you around :)", "Oh, shit.\n\nThis phrase was, in one form or another, echoed worldwide as humanity watched Neil Armstrong, the red blooded patriot meant to be cementing American victory in the space race, declare his allegiance to Russia and plant a red flag of another sort. Back on Earth, NASA’s Mission Control tried to wrest back the spotlight before pandemonium set in:\n\n“Just tell Buzz to plant the American flag up there himself. That way, the Russians can’t say they rule the Moon.”\n\nAnd so began the Moon Wars.\n\nNeil was left behind, doomed to be the first of many casualties as the USSR and United States both began developing lunar cannons, rockets that split into deadly debris fields, and more. The world sat on edge as it prepared for nuclear annihilation.\n\nThat’s when something else happened, a miracle of sorts. While NASA tried to create food hardy enough to be grown onboard a spacecraft, they accidentally made world hunger that much smaller. As the Russians tried to improve solar panels to power their lunar bases, they made the world that much less dependent on fossil fuels. By now, it was the late 70s. Seeing all the good their attempts to kill each other did, U.S and Russian leadership gathered together and chose to devote their resources to exploration, ending the war. Of course, war breeds new technology. Development slowed as we stopped sending young men to die in space. However, it did not stop...\n\nFast forward around 4 decades. We now stand on the brink of the 2020s. It certainly isn’t cheap to go to the Moon, not now that it’s a resort ground. If I wanted to ride a space elevator above the Earth now, it’d run me 200 dollars round trip. Neil Armstrong is hailed as the crazy sonuvabitch who helped us advance to where we are today. Of course, nobody thinks he knew what he was doing, just that it all worked out in the end. After all, we all know the last thing he called out in Russian before Apollo 11 left his radio’s range for good.\n\n“Это просто шутка, братан!”" ]	8
	[WP] The higher your blood-alcohol level, the more powerful your 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/js5XDFB)\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 in the kitchen mending a pot when my mam yelled down from her workroom, “Raven, I need you to take the wagon into town and get as much red clover as you can from Goody Wencelas.”\n“Yes, mam!” I yelled back. \nThe pot I had just fixed sat on the kitchen table, the wood beneath it charred black. Where my mam’s magic is direct and full, my magic is wild and faint. It had taken me forever to heat the metal of the pot and longer yet to make the broken pieces join to each other. As I looked at it I could see the mended metal had distorted in the heat. \nI sighed, hung the pot on a hook by the fireplace and swept my hand across the table, muttering a spell of renewal. The burned sections glowed silver for a moment, then the wood buckled and a deep crack expanded across the table.\nI stared at the crack. It had been like this since I had reached puberty. Everyone kept saying I would get better. I was almost seventeen and nothing had changed. \nI grimaced and threw a cloth over the table. Maybe my mother wouldn’t notice and I could try to fix it when I got back. I hated seeing her face when she saw the results of my magic. \nHooking our donkey Malfi up to the wagon made me feel better. No magic needed to be involved as long as there was a chunk of sugar for him.\nThe day was bright and the road was dry. Malfi and I hoofed it into town, where Goody Wencelas had her hired man fill the wagon with red clover and a few melons as a thank you to my mam. \nOn the way home I decided to ride by the HellBent Inn. Orion, a dark haired townie boy, had been working there during the summer. Last winter he had come to a few lessons with my mother. For a few months I’d watched him copy recipes from her books and work out problems on the lesson board. We weren’t in each other’s company for long but it was enough for me to realize that I enjoyed watching him do things. Over the spring and summer I’d made a point of putting myself in places where I could see more of him. He was always friendly, but he was friendly with all the girls, townie and forest alike.\nThe road past the HellBent was forest on one side, field on the other. A big supply wagon was turning out of the Inn yard as Malfi and I came up to it. The driver of the other wagon gee’d her horses when she should have hawed. Malfi lost his head at the sight of three huge horses coming at him and tried to go around them on the field side. Our wagon bounced through the ditch then gracefully lost a wheel, dragging Malfi to a stop. \nI jumped out, undid Malfi from the wagon and went to get the wheel. The hub was splintered. I looked back at the road. The supply wagon hadn’t stopped. Probably in too much of a hurry to worry about a little forest wagon like mine. \n“Hey, Raven, are you okay?”\nI looked up and saw Orion striding across the road toward me. He shook a mock fist after the supply wagon and joined me in the ditch.\n“I saw the whole thing from the bar. Those drivers are uncivilized dolts.” He looked at the wagon wheel. “At least you can fix it.”\nI nodded. He looked at me expectantly. \nWith trembling hands I laid the wheel on the ground, grabbed a spoke in each hand, then reached into the being of the wheel, like mam had taught me, and urged it to heal. \nNothing happened. I tried again, this time actually grunting with focus. The iron of the wheel hub sizzled but was unchanged. I could feel my face turning red. \nOrion cleared his throat. “Why don’t you bring your donkey across for some water. It’s hot and you’re probably tired.”\nI felt sick to my stomach as I brought Malfi to the inn’s trough. I was a joke. A fool. A powerless daughter. Worthless. \n“Come inside, I’ll get you something to drink.”\nLooking anywhere but at Orion, I went inside and took a seat at the bar. A group of women were making merry at a table in the back. They were all dark-dressed, likely from some house in the city, sent to do some sort of protective work for a forest estate. \n“Mead or beer?”, Orion asked. \n“Clarea,” I said. He raised his eyebrows. \n“I prefer to keep my head clear,” I said. He shrugged and went behind the bar.\nLoud laughter came from the back. I looked in time to see a fire tree blossom from the table. Each woman leaned forward to light her pipe from the sparks. That was sharp magic.\nOrion put a cup in front of me. “Clarea.”\nI took a sip. The spiced water was cool and sweet. I glanced at him. He was looking at the table of women. The failures of the day suddenly drew together and laid on me like a mountain. In my mind I saw flashes of the stupid things I had done. All the mistakes I had made. All the things I had broken.\nI pushed the cup back across the bar. “I’ve changed my mind. Mead.” \nHe picked up the cup without looking at me, dumped it, re-filled it and put it back on the bar. \n“Bartender! Another round!” came a cry from the back.\nI took a deep swig of mead; the sharp honey taste felt like a spike through my brain. Orion poured a flat of beer and hustled back to the table. I tipped my head back and downed the rest of my cup. \nBehind me I heard the slap of flesh on flesh, a grunt and a cascade of rough laughter from the women. I contemplated my empty cup. \nOrion came back to the bar. His hair was ruffled and, though he made sure to turn his face from me as he reached for a bottle of spirits on a shelf, I saw that his face was pale.\n“Before you pour for them, more mead for me,” I said, pushing my empty cup in his direction. Eyes cast down, he took the cup to fill it. I saw the lip marks on his neck. \nWhile his back was turned at the barrel, I grabbed the bottle of spirits, uncorked it and guzzled it down. The memories of the day faded. \n“What are you doing, Raven?” \nI looked into his grey green eyes. They weren’t always grey green; they changed with the light. Sometimes they were blue enough to startle me.\n“Are those women bothering you?”\nHe blushed. “No...I...it’s fine. They’re just drunk.” He put the cup of mead in front of me.\nI nodded. “Thank you for the refreshment,” I slurred. “You were right, it was hot out there.”\nHe shook his head at me and picked up the empty bottle of spirits, “Raven, you…”\n“Hello, Little Daughter.”\nI turned. Two of the women from the table were approaching the bar. Thick, glossy hair spilled from beneath their hoods and jewels glittered across their chests. Their faces had a hard brightness that reminded me of wolves circling their prey. \nI lifted my cup to them, “Hello Sisters!” I tipped the cup, drank the mead in one gulp, and slammed the cup down on the bar. It broke into shards..\n“Whoops,” I said and laughed. \nThe women glanced at each other and then back at me. They took in the lack of stones on my breasts and my long, careful braids and smirked.\n“Enjoy yourself, sister,” said one, as she reached across the bar and grabbed Orion’s shirt front, pulling him through the wood like he was a ghost.\n“And we will do the same,” said the other, twining a hand in his hair.\n“Stop,” I said \nThey froze. I pulled Orion away from them. The spell broke. They were strong. \n“Little bitch!” cried one. “I will destroy you for that!” said the other.\nOrion had stumbled back against the bar. I stepped in front of him. \n“I could beat you both...,” I said and made a sloppy gesture with my hands. \nThe force of my spell pushed the women to the back of the room. It also blew out both of the windows by the door.\n“Whoops,” I said, looking at the broken glass. I should apologize for that. I looked around for Orion. He was behind the bar. “Sorry,” I said, stumbling as I tried to sit on one of the stools.\nHe pointed behind me, “Raven!”\nI turned to see a giant black Raven filling the room. It squawked and the room shook. I shuffled backwards as its hooked beak stabbed down and caught the hem of my dress, trapping me where I stood.\nThe women behind the raven laughed and came forward.\n“Time to see what real power looks like,” called out a woman with red lips. “And time to find your own plaything,” laughed another. “She’ll be the plaything,” said an angry looking one.\nI looked down. My dress was torn. My mouth was dry. I was so tired. \n“No.” I slurred and made a gesture I’d seen my mam do hundreds of times.\nThere was a rushing noise and then a silence and then a lot of squealing. I found a stool at the bar and climbed up on to it. What sounded like a herd of pigs stampeded out of the bar. When they were finally gone, it was quiet. I crossed my arms on the bar and laid my head on them like a pillow.\nJust before everything went black I heard Orion say, “I’ll get you that Clarea, Raven.”", "I learned a long time ago to never leave home without a bottle. \n\nThe other League members are convinced I’m an alcoholic, who isn’t these days, but that’s not today’s struggle. The three idiots in front of me, holding a knife to the forth hold that lofty title.\n\n“Drop the knife.” I sigh, bored already. None of them move. They’ve already lost though it’s not their fault for not knowing it yet. The biggest one sizes me up and immediately steps forward to challenge me.\n\n“You gonna fuckin’ make me, kid?” \n\nI am, as a matter of fact. But I keep my mouth shut and make a show of taking a swig out of my bottle. I chug for a solid few seconds and finish by wiping my mouth, not with the back of my hand, but with my entire sleeve. Ha.\n\n“Shit! Get him Ham.” \n\nThe guy I presume to be ‘Ham’, reveals his own bottle, definitely vodka, and drinks THE WHOLE THING then starts screaming curse words at me while his hands start to glow. Then he charges. His name may be stupid but he’s surprisingly fast. I was sucking in air that whole time he was talking and release the nastiest, loudest belch I could make with it, an increasingly entertaining talent of mine from days of yor. \n\nHaving had my fun I cease his muscle use and and break his ankles without even looking at him. His friends share a similar fate and go down in an angry heap of shock and profanity, but I should have been watching the roof to my right.\n\nSomething...sticky yanks my bottle away from me. Leaping back and looking up I see some thot using her tongue to real it in (gross) from several yards away like some sort of internal fishing rod.\n\n“The fucks in this?” She yells back at me, smurking and taking the I-took-your-thing stance. I’m so very careful not to laugh at her.\n\n“You know, I ran out and was gonna leave them to you. But now...” she unscrews the lid and makes a little “huh?” Sound.\n\nI fight off a smile, carefully relaxing the muscles in my face \n\nIt’s empty.", "“Man, this party is amazing! Does Jesus always hang this hard?” Simon asked Mary. \n\n“You have no idea. The guy can drink. Once he gets the ball rolling he doesn’t stop. He starts turning water into wine and just keeps on partying.”\n\n“Whoa, whoa, wait. He can turn water into wine?”\n\n“You should see it. It’s nuts! When he gets drunk you can put a glass of water in his hand and after he takes a sip it turns to wine. For Cynthia’s bat-mitzvah we were having him turn whole casks of water into wine. Now that was a party. \n\n“Will you introduce me? I have to meet this guy.”\n\n“Are you sure that’s who you want to meet? I brought a bunch of my girlfriends from the bordello. They’ll show you a better time I’m sure.” Mary said. \n\n“Maybe later. I’d like to meet this Jesus character first. \n\n“Ok. Follow me.” Mary said. \n\nThe event had been growing since the early afternoon ‘all you can eat’ fish fry. But it wasn’t a real party till the sun went down and Mary showed up with all her friends. \n\n“Jesus, I want you to meet my good friend Simon. We go way back.” Mary said. \n\nJesus put his arm around Simon. \n\n“SSSimon! Any friend of Mary’s is a friend of mine. Good to meet ya! Want a loaf of bread?” Jesus slurred and pulled a fresh loaf of bread from his sleeve. His face was warm and airy like the loaf of bread he handed to Simon. \n\n“Thanks man, I need to soak up some of this wine. I just wanted to thank you for the hospitality. The wine is great and the fish fry was fantastic.” Simon said. \n\n“That is the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me. Bring it in. Give me a hug.” Jesus said as he leaned in and gave Simon a full bear hug. Simon felt more fullness and love in that hug than he had ever felt before in his life. There truly was something spectacular about this Jesus fella. Jesus turned to Mary. \n\n“Mary! I just had the best idea.” Jesus jumped onto the nearest table. He knelt towards Simon. \n\n“I built this you know.” He said and knocked a knuckle on the table top. He stood quick and held his arms wide. \n\n“Everyone! Can I have your attention please. First I’d like to thank you all for coming to my party. I hope you’re all having the best of times. \n\nThe party cheered in response. \n\n“Second I want to say that I love you all. Seriously guys. You’re all the best.”\n\nAgain the crowd roared in response. \n\n“And lastly, I just had a great idea.... Let's all go skinny dipping!!”\n\nThe party lost its mind at that. \n\nJesus leapt back down from the table, grabbed a bottle of water and started walking towards the sea. The entire party followed. \n\nWith Jesus leading the way Simon ran to catch up to him in the front. \n\n“Jesus, you’re a maniac! You really know how to have a good time.”\n\nJesus put his arm around Simon, and again he felt warmth he’d never known was possible. \n\n“Simon, my dude, have I told you i love you?” Jesus said with most of his weight leaning on Simon. \n\n“Well I mean you just told the whole party you love them so I guess so.”\n\n “No man, like I really love you. You’re my new best friend. Don’t tell the other disciples though. I don’t want them to get mad.”\n\n“We’re right here you know.” Bart said from behind Jesus. “We can hear you.” \n\n“Oh shit, my bad guys. I mean I love you all! You’re all my best friends. And I hope you guys love everyone too.” Jesus said and took a swig of water that transmuted into wine. The front of his robes were speckled with wine spills as he sloshed the bottle around.\n\nThey were at the beach at this point. Most of the party was removing their clothes and getting ready to swim. Jesus didn’t seem to notice how close to the water he was. He just kept on trucking. \n\n“We only just met but I think I feel the same. You’re rad Jesus.” Simon said. \n\nTheir sandals caught waves and Jesus didn’t stop walking. Simon kept pace. \n\n“Good. That’s what the world needs. Is people loving each other even if they just met,” jesus said. \n\nSimon was knee deep in water. \n\n“In fact I would say it’s the most important thing!”\n\nSimon was waist deep. \n\n“I firmly believe that love can change the world. No more war, no more poverty, no more crime. You know what I mean Simon?” Jesus was looking around and couldn’t find his new friend. Simon was swimming in the same water that Jesus was standing atop of. \n\n“I agree!” Simon said spitting out a mouthful of salt water. \n\nMary swam up as naked as the day she was born. \n\n“It’s pretty crazy right?” She said. \n\n“Yeah, how the hell is he walking on water?” Simon asked. \n\n“I’m not sure but I think he gets too drunk to realize he’s supposed to sink. Watch this. Hey Jesus! You realize you’re walking on water right?” Mary called out. \n\nHe looked down and as soon he did he dropped down into the sea with the rest of the party goers. He did however manage to hold his bottle of wine above his head so’s not to waste any. \n\n\n“I think that’s where his magic comes from. Being to drunk to know magic doesn’t really exist. That, or he really is the son of God. One of the two.” Mary said with a smile and swam away." ]	4
	[WP] If you die prematurely you must live your entire life again and again up to that point until your survive. You have no knowledge of your previous lives. Today, you become aware that you’re going to die the same way for the hundredth 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "*Edit: Sorry for any typos. I don't have my glasses and can barely read what I wrote. Edit 2: quickly combed and edited those errors.* \n\nOur cat died. \n\nHit by a blue car just as after I stepped out the door for work. He ran straight into the street and I saw him die, just before I yelled his name \"Antony!\" \n\nThe car didn't slow down---no brake lights---just kept on motoring on until it disappeared somewhere outside of my periphery. \n\nI tiptoed to the street, eyeing the black lifeless feline corpse once named that name. Another car of some arbitrary color sped past and made sure he was dead. I didn't flinch---it was familiar. Deja-vu-like, but not really. \n\nIt's these sudden surprises that bring the past out of me. I hadn't realized it until I looked upon his flattened chest that the cat's name was not Antony---she was Cleo. \n\nI lost my job. Waiting tables. I dropped a drink tray of very expensive red win all over our dinner guests and their meals. They freaked out, naturally. And so I walked away and said to my manager, Theo, \"I'm sorry for calling them cunts.\"\n\n'What?\" he said. \"You didn't say anything, at all.\"\n\nI nodded. \"All's the same. I'm fired, aren't I?\"\n\n\"Yeah,\" he sighed.\n\nI nodded some more. \"Okay.\" There was a sunken portent in the back of my mind, telling me it's about to get worse when I got home.\n\nAnd then I lost my girlfriend, Amy. \n\nNo, she's not dead. \n\nAnd actually her location was quite known, too---she's fucking my friend, Clyde, on the sofa. \n\nFlashes of anger crossed my mind-----not as emotions, but as some parallel universe where I weren't detached.\n\nThe flashes weren't singular. \n\nOne, I wore my blue tie. The other, red. Today was grey. \n\nBlue screamed, \"Get the fuck out before I murder you, you backstabbing...\" and so on; Red walked to the kitchen, while they were still buckin' and hawin', and he grabbed the skillet I kept promising Amy I'd buy and, well, he beat the shit out of Clyde. \n\nBut I. . . I didn't interrupt their fun. I knew something else was about to push me over the edge.\n\nI got to our bedroom untying my red---no---my grey tie, unbuttoning my black dress shirt, tossing the apron to the dresser, next to my razor---something familiar----Blue bled out in our bathtub. I emptied my pockets and set the contents upon the dresser as well.\n\nMy phone lit up. \n\nOh right, Mom was dead again. Car accident. I didn't need to read it, but I did anyway. This is what had pushed Red over. He got his cathartic release beating the shit out of Clyde. No, he didn't cut his wrists; he jumped. \n\nAmy screamed in ecstasy from down the hallway, \"Yes! God yes! Fuck me like the cheating slut I am.\"\n\nThat was new. I hadn't heard that the previous times, I don't think. I had always interrupted them, I'm sure. \n\nSo, she was turned on by cheating on me? This wasn't some spontaneous act of lust? How long has this been going on? How long has she lied to me? How long has she not loved me? \n\nMy phone vibrated again. It was my brother, Darren. His text simply stated, Dad died too.\n\nI swallowed, plopping onto the edge of our---pffft---our bed.\n\nAnd so, Cleo, work, Amy (and Clyde), Mom----Amy again----and now Dad too. \n\nI hanged my head. My thumb caressed the tie. \n\nSo, what does Grey do?", "I had been feeling weird all day. It was like I had the most uncomfortable case of deja vu ever, and it was really bothering me. It started with getting woken up by my neighbors again. The wife had apparently rolled in sometime around 5am, drunk as a skunk, and smelling of another man's perfume.\n\n\nI groaned, pulled my pillow over my head, and was about to go back to sleep when my alarm went off. I smacked it until it shut up, then dragged my sorry ass out of bed. I had work in an hour, but felt like I hadn't slept in years.\n\n\nI got a shower, went to shampoo up, then hesitated. Somehow I knew, absolutely knew that I was out of shampoo. I also knew it was my roommate's fault. He kept stealing my things, and he had been watering down the shampoo. I slowly picked up the bottle, and squirted slightly shampoo-y water into my hand. Damn it. I washed as best I could, but I knew my hair would be greasy all day.\n\n\nI ate a quick breakfast, oatmeal and toast, then hurried out of the house. As I sat in traffic, I knew there would be an accident. I would be almost an hour late. Just as this realization hit me, someone ahead of the crowd tried to make a left hand turn from the right hand lane in three lanes of traffic. There were screeches, then thumps. I had already slowed down, so I didn't get caught up in it, thankfully.\n\n\nLike I had thought, it took an hour for them to clear it. I was late to work, and my boss got shirty with me. I took it on the chin, then tried to get my work for the day done. I even stayed late to try and make up for lost time.\n\n\nThe ride home was uneventful. I stopped for shampoo, then was hit by another premonition. The local crazy homeless lady would be in the shampoo aisle. It was vitally important that she didn't see me. Disturbed, I left the store. I could go another day without a proper shower.\n\n\nAs I pulled up to the apartments, I was finally feeling better. I went inside, and gamed for most of the evening. When bedtime rolled around, I stepped outside for some \"medical\" smokes. I was finally relaxed when the damn crazy lady came running around the corner. I jumped, she screamed at me, then ran off. Irritated, I put out my \"cigarette\" and went back inside.\n\n\nThe neighbors had started screaming again, and a groggy roommate stuck his head out of his room. He mumbled something about talking to the office in the morning, then went back in his room. I tried to go lay down and sleep.\n\n\nAs I tried to rest my eyes, the feeling of dejavu returned. It itched at the back of my head, making sleep impossible. I got up and moved around, but it didn't stop. It felt like someone was screaming at me in my own head. Like something bad was about to happen.\n\n\nJust as it hit a crescendo, a banging came from our front door. The knock was like an ice pick in my brain, and I knew there and then that I would die. Again. Like I had a hundred other times. Panicking, I opened my window and got out on the fire escape. I could hear my roommate open the front door in the apartment, and the shots from a gun.\n\n\nI rushed down the fire escape. I found that if I turned a certain way or another, it made the pain ease. Stumbling down the alleyway, I fled for my life. I almost made it.\n\n\nWhen I went to go left, the pain flared, so I jerked right. I began running down the street, laughing in joy as the pain disappeared. I headed for a convenience store on the corner, I could call the cops from there. Just as I was about to enter the parking lot, I heard the squeal of tires behind me.\n\n\nAs I rolled over the car, I saw the shocked expression on the face of the wife next door. She didn't stop though. As I lay bleeding on the ground, dying, I saw her husband run down the street after her. He stopped to unload his gun into the car, but she got away. As my vision faded, I saw him reload, then turned the gun on himself.\n\n\n\n[My Musings](https://www.reddit.com/r/HorrorHMDMusings?utm_medium=android_app&utm_source=share)" ]	3
	[WP] Everyone on Earth suddenly feels compelled to blurt out the truth. Unfortunately, you’re a prominent defense attorney and have to be in court in an hour.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "\"Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the prosecution has made a case that appears convincing on its face. However, the prosecution is lacking a piece of evidence. A piece of evidence which would greatly strengthen its case, and would make a conviction in this matter compelling. You may even be convinced that the defendant is guilty of murder. You've been at this for weeks, you've heard from all the witnesses, it's been a long case. But they cannot prove with 100% confidence that the defendant committed murder.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"The prosecution's case is ultimately based on testimony and evidence, which is never absolutely certain. It is possible that they are mistaken. Many things are possible. Historically, witnesses' ability to properly identify a defendant is highly unreliable. 71% of wrongful convictions are the result of mistaken identity. Eyewitnesses are unreliable.\"\n\n\"And DNA evidence does not directly imply guilt. Just because a person's DNA was found at the scene does not necessarily require that they are guilty, any more than being present in the room at some point in time would.\"\n\n\"There is no video footage or photographic evidence of the crime being committed, no 'red-handed' tape or audio recording. The only people who actually saw the crime were whoever committed it, and the deceased. All the prosecution has to go on, is words and some impressive-sounding scientific experts.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Are you convinced beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendant committed murder? If any reasonable doubt remains, it is your duty to find my client not guilty. I am merely stating the fact.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"Furthermore, it is vital to disregard any improper insinuation of guilt due to the defendant's refusal to testify at trial. Refusal to testify is not an admission of guilt. Refusal to testify is a right guaranteed to all citizens. A right that every person is entitled to exercise.\"\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\"And so, ladies and gentlemen of the jury, it is now yours to decide whether my client is innocent.\"\n\n\"As you know, I cannot tell a lie.\"", "“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, my client is clear…” I coughed. “A lying piece of shit who absolutely murdered all those people and probably teabagged the bodies when he was done, I mean, just look at him and his record DAMMIT!”\n\nI had a few tabs open in front of me, all of them full of tips on how to overcome this weird urge to tell the truth at the worst possible time. Stuff like drink in small sips of water for a few minutes or chew gum or listen to a really catchy song. Or, if you’re truly desperate, stand on your head while listening to traditional Irish folk music.\n\nTo be honest, that was starting to look appealing.\n\nOK, let’s try some honesty this time. Fake honesty, at least.\n\n“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” I said, my voice ringing with an impassioned note of passionate passion, “I would not be here today if I did not believe, with all my heart and based on clearest analysis of the evidence available, that my client will totally give me a huge bonus for getting him off this murder charge because he’s seriously loaded FUCK!”\n\nI sat down and rubbed my head. My watch told me that I had less than thirty minutes left. I stared at the tab in front of me again.\n\nA little bit later, an intern walked in.\n\nTo their credit, they didn’t drop their coffee.\n\n“Just put it down on the table,” I grunted as the blood continued to pound into my head.\n\nThey wordlessly put the cup down and walked out of the room.\n\nI slowly – painfully – pushed myself right side-up again and took a sip.\n\n“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” I started, shutting my eyes at the pain from the rush of blood around my body, “my client is entirely innocent of all the crimes that he has been accused of, which I intend to demonstrate today for your benefit.”\n\nI stopped.\n\nThat was it. That was all I needed to say. Everything else was just going over the specific pieces of evidence that I could bring to the table. No lies – technically – in what I was going over there.\n\nThere was a knock on the door. “Samantha? You ready?”\n\nI grinned. “Yeah. I think I am.”\n\nI felt a warm buzz in me the whole way to the courtroom. The feeling of imminent triumph over the prosecution. Or the prickling of blood filling up my limbs again, who even knows.\n\nAt the courtroom, I gave a curt nod to my client and then threw my opponent a broad wink. They were screwed and we both knew it. They’d tried to get the court delayed on the grounds that I was hiding evidence, but the police hadn’t turned up anything and the trial had been allowed to continue.\n\nWhich left me here, right now, as I stood up to make my speech.\n\n“Ladies and gentlemen of the jury,” I said, my voice ringing throughout the courtroom, “my client is completely, one-hundred-and-ten-percent guilty of everything he has been accused and honestly deserves to be fed to a pack of starving lions OH FUCKING HELL!”" ]	3
	[WP] You are a professional dragonslayer slayer.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Dragonslayers are renowned for the strength, bravery and skill. It takes years of training to be able to slay a dragon if you aren't one yourself.\n\nI am renowned for my strength, my bravery, my skill and my kindness. It takes years of learning to be able to speak the language of dragons, and even more to be capable of killing a dragonslayer.\n\nThe stereotypes surrounding dragons are mostly myths. Most dragons don't have hoards, and those that do often make a good amount of it themselves, or are given it by fearful humans as tribute. Almost no dragons nowadays are greedy or malicious.\n\nTo top that, dragons don't go around torching cities for no reason. You know why they would do that, if ever? Because they feel threatened. You would, too, if murderers were sent after you everywhere you went and ballista bolts were shot at you whenever you drew near.\n\nIt's sad how little most humans care for dragons. I haven't met a single dragonslayer who could speak Drake. It's sad, really.\n\nSo what are you to do to help those in need?\n\nFight for them. I do this for no pay, it's a volunteer position. All I ever ask for is some food and a conversation. I've been researching dragon culture a lot recently. I hope it'll help the other humans realize what they're doing.\n\nI try to convince dragonslayers to stop and run away. They almost always call me a traitor, or claim that I'm being manipulated. Sometimes they're not even convinced I'm human.\n\nIn those cases, all I can do to protect the dragon who called for my help is to kill them.\n\nIt hurts, a lot. Knowing they have families, and that they believe in what they're doing. But I do it anyways, because the life of a soon-to-be murderer is always less than an innocent soul.\n\nI hope one day I won't have to keep doing this. It only feeds the cycle of blame and hatred. But until then, I do what I must to defend the dragons.\n\nIf those killers can have a fancy title, then I can too. I am the Dragonguard." ]	2
	[WP] For most of your adult life, you have been a famed interstellar diplomat. However, the very thought of the species you’re about to introduce to the galactic community makes you sick. Dealing with these “humans” is a monumental task, even for someone with your extensive experience.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 been the introductory ambassador to hundreds of new species. I have done this for over a thousand years.\n\nI'm sitting here, across from the human ambassador. He's the highest-ranked Admiral of their fleet. I am trying to plan their formal presentation.\n\nThey popped out of hyper right on top of Federation Prime, politely asking to be admitted to the Federation since they had obviously achieved the primary requirement: interstellar flight. They came with the biggest single battle craft that anyone has ever seen.\n\nThey have been unfailingly polite to everyone, even the Xyzzy, who are known for their belligerence, insults, aggressiveness, and all-around nasty attitude. The Xyzzy fell back in confusion from this treatment.\n\nThey have specifically asked for me as their introducer.\n\n\"Why am I filled with dread at the thought of formally introducing you to the Federation Assembly? Why do I fear your intentions? Why do I find your species revolting? Why choose me when I avoid you like a cross-species plague carrier?\"\n\n\"Because you are intelligent, experienced, and have a very long memory.\"\n\nThat takes me aback. I sit here, trying to parse out what this being means. Then it comes to me; they are The Georges. A passenger liner crashed on their planet, and they hunted every one of the passengers down. It took a thousand years for them to exterminate the entire ship's complement. I was the offspring of the last great Dracon on their planet when a rescue craft finally found us. Their \"George\" slew my mother as my father and I were drawn into the rescue ship.\n\n\"Murderers. Bloody handed slaughter machines.\" My stomachs begin to squeeze; my throat starts to buzz; the flame is coming. \"Get out. Flee. Leave this world and pray that I do not lead a fleet to destroy your accursed planet.\"\n\n\"No.\"\n\nMy flame explodes from me. The George sits there, with a smirk on his face. Insolent creature. Unharmed from my blast, he uses his own devices to suppress the remaining fires. I sit there, staring at this monster.\n\n\"You fools didn't bother to put up warnings about the local conditions of hyperspace surrounding our planet until the 1250s according to your own records. We were a damned Sargasso Sea for over a thousand years. Your liners dropped in on us so often that we have legends to this very day about dozens of your species.\n\nOf all of them, yours was the worst. You took whatever you needed. You treated us like cattle. You broke every damned agreement you ever made with us. You were so treacherous that the phrase \"never deal with a dragon\" became common throughout the world.\n\nYou, personally, are the last survivor of a group of bloody-handed lying egotistical flying flamethrowers. Your father was the worst of all. So much so that after three thousand years, the memory of that battle is burned into our racial consciousness.\n\nWe hate your entire species with a passion we have never felt for any other species and your father in particular.\n\nAfter examining your record of the events, we learned one thing that is going to seal our revenge on your father forever.\"\n\n\"And what would that be?\"\n\n\"Your father deliberately pushed your mother into the path of St. George to save his own life. Your rescue was an afterthought to him, carried out by the rescue crew when they saw him abandon you.\n\nThat's right. You owe your very life to the species you hate the most. The ones we know as Elves.\n\nNow pull yourself together. It's time for the introduction — one last point.\n\nWe have a tradition of \"gunboat diplomacy,\" only our \"gunboat\" has the firepower of a thousand of your piddly little Draconus Majoris classes.\n\nWe have millions of them.\n\nBetray us, and your federation dies.\"\n\n((finis))", "&#x200B;\n\nTwo years ago, Ambassador Izteal was living the high life, and he knew it, his work ending the Bazzartian trade embargo had resulted in not only cheaper health care for all, but also gifted Izteal the likelihood of being nominated for the role of ‘Grand Councillor’ for his species in the Galactic Council. Yes, Ambassador Izteal was at the top of his game, so much so that a common saying within the Grand Council was ‘If you need a deal, send Izteal’. Izteal now knows however, that this blind faith in him by the Grand Council would be the cause of his downfall. \n\nHe remembers the day clearly that he got the call, the oceans currents were weak, and the waters were warm, he remembers the Councils great enthusiasm over the phone, “First Contact!” They told him, “We need you in the Frontiers!” ‘First Contact’ Izteal remembers thinking to himself with glee when he got off the phone, if nothing else has, this would surely cement his legacy, nothing beats First Contact in terms of career accomplishments. With a swing in his tentacles he remembers getting into a long range space-craft and getting out into the frontiers, full of hope at the glory that awaits him. \n\nAfter 7 weeks of travel to the frontiers it took another 3 weeks of broadcasting in the light spectrum to eventually find them, and that is when Izteal realised that this was going to be harder than he thought. The new species, these Humans, they arrived on the ugliest vessel he had ever seen, but this did not worry him, rather, it was the cannon they sat upon. The entire vessel screamed danger, in addition to the huge cannon it had Mass Accelerators left right and centre, and where it didn’t have mass accelerators, it had missile launch tubes. Izteal remembers the atmosphere in his own vessel when they first got eyes on the human war ship, it was a deathly silence. He remembers someone asking, ‘Why would they send a war vessel for first contact?’ Izteal can remember thinking the same. \n\nThe act of initiating first contact was not an easy feat, the Humans used vastly different technology to his own, so working out just how to send a message saying ‘Hi’ was hard enough, but then translating their language was another barrier. These humans, their language was convoluted and overly complex, why a species would have such a complex language Izteal would never know – surely an intelligent species would have figured out how to eliminate unneeded words and sentence structures. Then he heard them speak for the first time over an audible message, their voice was horrible, nothing but high pitched whines. \n\nBefore even seeing the aliens and meeting them for the first time Izteal already had a bad feeling about these newcomers. Then the day came, he was to greet them aboard their vessel. Izteal remembers asking the obvious questions before he went to their vessel, he remembers asking how warm your waters are, what is the oxygen content and what is your PH level, after all he needed to know if he would need an environmental suit or not. The humans were most puzzled till they asked, ‘Are you aquatic?’ They seemed most confused.\n\nImagine that, Izteal thought, a none aquatic species, it would be the first intelligent non aquatic species discovered, and he had his name to it. From here things progressed quickly, till Izteal asked if all Human dreadnoughts were so big, he remembers their response, telling him that this was not a dreadnought – no, this was just a Destroyer. It all seemed to go down hill from here, learning of their history Izteal remembers turning pale, this species has had more war and violence in the last 300 years than the Grand Council in the last 1,000. This species dropped nuclear weapons on themselves of all people six times! Never has a species been discovered that has used a nuclear weapon in anger. \n\nThis brings Izteal to the present, after many more talks he had been ordered to invite them to speak with the Grand Council, and while it should not have, Izteal was surprised when the Humans accepted, on the condition that they were allowed to bring a small fleet with them for defence. This small fleet turned out to consist of 5 vessels with enough firepower to sink worlds. Looking back on things, this should have surprised no one, but it did. Looking at the console on his vessels bridge Izteal notices he is now 5 hours away from the Grand Councils capital world, and the idea of introducing these creatures to the Grand Council scares him, this species will be his downfall, he thinks, if not today, then almost certainly within the near future.", "\"Yes, I know. Listen, I've travelled around the galaxy, established diplomatic relations with 6 different intelligent species and participated in the diplomatic talks leading to the end of a galactic war within 300 hundred of years, I can defenetly handle this. So, excuse me your Highness, but I have work to do, goodbye.\"\n\nShe shut the comlink off and looked at herself in the mirror, while anxiously rubbing her hairs and antennas.\n\nThe truth is, for Xhosa, the stakes were way to high. Those \"humans\", that's how they call themselves , basically threatens the entire balance of the galaxy. The problem? Their numbers. Every species is composed of about a billion individual, spread across different solar systems, while these humans are 20 times more numerous and they just started to explore space! \n\nLaying down on her office sofa, Xhosa tried to calm herself down, while drinking Erdini Whisky. \n\n\"They could wipe out the entire galaxy alone... And I'm the one who needs to introduce them ? Why didn't I stayed on Dirimir, scavenging old starships like mom and dad?\" \n\nThe thought, or the whiskey, made her want to throw up.\n\n\"Common.\" She told herself, \"It can't be that bad, and it's too late now, there's no turning back. Tommorow's is the beginning of a new era...\" She emptied her glass and closed her eyes, trying to find some sleep.\n\n5 hours later, the alarm woke up Xhosa and she started to ready herself : she brushed her hair, read her speech a last time and headed to the human's office. \n \n\"Are you ready sir?\" She asked to him.\n\nHe was 15 centimeters taller than her with a pale, colourless skin and no antennas. Apart from that, he pretty much looked like any Sigurni.\n\n\"Yes, I am\"\n\n\"So, you remember the protocole?\"\n\n\"Huh. Maybe?\"\n\n\"Great.\" she thought, \"He's gonna create a diplomatic incident, I'm sure of it.\" \"Well\" she said, \" At least try to remember not to look at the Yikastim'ar ambassador straight in the eyes, that's considered a crime that normally leads to the death penalty. So please don't.\"\n\n\"Ok, I will.\"\n\nShe left the office and went to the United Species conference room with her hearts beating louder and louder for each step she made. Tensions were already high amongst galactic species about what to do with humans. Some advocated to sterilise most of them, others to directly exterminate them before they get the chance to do anything and only a handful wanted to actualy get in contact with them. So bringing a human to a galactic summit will defenetly bring trouble. Her job was to make sure that the trouble isn't a war, because a war with the humans involved would be the bloodiest one ever, without a doubt. And given that the bloody human doesn't remember the protocole and is quick to be agressive, her job was going to be hard.\n\nStanding in front of the door, she wished she had brought he whiskey bottle with her. She took a deep breath and entered the room. Every ambassador was here, from the Ilquls to the Lehmuds. She sat at her usual desk and started her speech:\n\n\"Ladies and gentleman, today is one of the most important day of the galaxy. Every discovery of a new species is a special day but this one basically changes the future.\"\n\n\"That's why we should have nuked them before hand\" said the Amkassir ambassador, followed by whispers of agreement\n\n\"Do not threaten us. \" replied the human, \" Or we will send our fleet to wherever your little planet is and bomb it to the ground!\"\n\n\"NO!\" Xhosa yelled, \"Nobody is gonna blow up someone else!\"\n\n\"Then what do we do?\" ask the Dehmni, \"They can do whatever they want, they are so many of them! We can't let a species have so much power compared to the others! What if they decide to go to war? \"\n\n\"Sir,\" she replied \"that's why diplomacy exists and why you have a job! You're job is to keep the peace between everyone am I right?\"\n\n\"Well, yes, but, if...\"\n\n\"There won't be a \"if\". We simply can't even imagine the future war. There's no turning back, now that they are on the galactic stage.\"\n\n\"Yeah well you brought them here, I didn't choose to introduce them to us!\", said the Shielgroh, with a bit of agressivity in his voice.\n\n\"Well, once again, too late, and could you remind me which species is the closest to hearth?\"\n\n\"It's us. So?\"\n\n\"So if we didn't contact them right now, what do you think would have happenned if they entered your space by mistake and your fleet fires at them in retaliation? That would be a nasty war for you, and you would have been defeated, if not wiped oit completely\"\n\nThe Shielgroh mumbled furiously but didn't replied.\n\n\"Maybe we should do just that actualy.\", said the human.\n\n\"You know\", said furiously Xhosa after slaping her desk, \"Given the fact that you're species almost got exterminated before it even discovered space travel and that half of the species present in this conference are ready for a joint invasion of your homeworld at any time, I would lie low if I were you...\"\n\n\"I. My apologies.\"\n\n\"Better. I do not ask everyone around here to love the humans. I just ask everyone to not do anything foolish. A century ago, our galaxy was ravaged by a war. We do not need another war of the sort with an even bigger scale. I understand that you are all concerned by this new arrival on the galactic stage, but we need to trust each other and at least keep the status quo. Questions?\"\n\n...\n\n\n\"No? Does anyone still want to kill someone else?\"\n\n...\n\n\n\"Great! This session is now closed, individual meetings and introduction with the new human ambassador can start in his office, ladies and gentlemen, goodbye.\"\n\n\nLaying on her couch, while drinking the whiskey straight from the bottle, Xhosa had tears of relief slowly running down her purple cheeks. \"I did it.\", she told herself, \" I managed to avoid the most devastating war that could have ever happened...\"", "I breathe, deeply. Adjust my tie. Square my shoulders. My wife eyes me from her spot at the mirror. The mahogany countertop holds my folder of loose paper. I'm nervous.\n\nMy fingers twitch with anticipation. The boom of the speakers is deafening. The flood lights are blinding. My stage has been set. The podium is ready. She squeezes my hand one last time, ushering me forward. I step as gracefully as I can manage into the limelight. I breathe.\n\n\"Ladies and Gentlemen. Thank you for the warm introductions, but I must admit, wholeheartedly, that I am apprehensive. I come to you today not with a message of happiness, and of good, but of a warning.\n\nBefore I break what I believe to be the most harrowing news of our time, first, I must bring your mind's eye back several millennia. It was a simpler time, no? We lived on a single planet, each of our species, wondering at the twinkling roof that was the sky. We could not reach those lights, so we instead reached for those around us, for the trees and the birds and the very air we took in to our lungs.\n\nIf your eye sees correctly, you would lay vision on a series of dying worlds. We fought one another for that air, believing it our own right to it. We could not step aside and see the universe for the beauty that we now see, in the connections between stars and planets and life itself. We used horrible, horrific methods against each other, but we prevailed. Eventually, we saw reason, and beauty, and peace came upon us.\"\n\nThe crowd is quiet, but I still can't hear anything. My chest pounds from the memory of a brutal time. My synapse link whines with the effort of containing the raw power from the emotions of that time. My wife smiles. I breathe.\n\n\"I come to you today to introduce to you a new, emerging civilization. Another voice in the void, another mouth hungry for knowledge and purpose.\" Murmurs run through the crowd. It's been quite some time since an intelligent species has surfaced in the galaxy; many had thought there wouldn't be more.\n\n\"I ask you, all of you, today, to heed this warning. This species, these \\Humans\\, must not be underestimated. Where we see value in caution, the Humans see frustration. Where we find comfort in logic, the Humans find anger. Where we see beauty, the Humans see opportunity.\" I pause, and slowly close my folder.\n\n\"In all my years as Chief Diplomat of the Alderii Conglomerate, I have never seen any species so bloodthirsty, so angry, so irrational, as these humans. They will not see us as friends, they will see us as slaves. It is my sole, unquestioning duty to warn every listening speaker of the threat we are to face. We must begin our preparations now, for while we have not warred since those times long in our past, the Humans have thrived on it. They built themselves stronger in every way to come out on top. They will stop at \\nothing\\.\"\n\nMy wife touches my back. I'm shaking. I find it difficult to see. I'm so scared of the sheer impossibility that very likely could be our demise. She squeezes my fingers.\n\n\"I ask for the first time in over four thousand years for the Alderii Conglomerate to begin preparations for war.\"\n\nI breathe." ]	5
	[WP] Unexplainable deaths hit a town during the winter. The lead detective on the case realises that they all have the same thing in common	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 just don’t understand. She was fine, when she called. She had just gotten home, I could hear her unloading the grocery bags!” Paul Sansky wept into his gloved hands, breath coming out in puffs of steam on the chilled night air. He sat on the back-end of the ambulance where the paramedics had led him immediately after his arrival, anguished screams erupting from his chest. Their services weren’t needed here. His fiancé was dead.\n\nDetective Harvey Deluth looked down on the body in the snow, her skin like ivory in the moonlight, her lips an eerie shade of the palest blue. Andrea Tatum’s orange hair ringed her head like a fiery halo, eyes gazing upward, unseeing. He bit down hard, grinding his back teeth, furrowing his brow. A sigh escaped him, and he straightened himself, turning his attention to his friend. \n\n“She—she said she’d call me right back. I don’t understand!” Sobs wracked Paul’s whole body now. \n\nDeluth lay a hand on his shoulder, comforting him, as best he could. Deluth was not a man of many words, and though he’d known Paul for years, this was the eighth death in Darrow this winter, and it was only January 16th. His heart, like the earth outside, was becoming colder and harder; desensitized, with each passing day. Still, for it to be someone he knew...again. \n\n“I’m so sorry, Paul. Look, we are gonna do everything we can to figure out—to put together what’s happened here, okay? I just need you to answer a few more questions. Please, come inside.” Deluth nodded solemnly to the medical examiner, and he nodded back, kneeling somberly in the fresh snow to zip up the body. \n\nAs in the seven prior deaths, Andrea’s seemed completely unassuming. There were no outward signs of trauma to be observed. It was as if she had literally walked outside her front door, down the sidewalk into the yard and just dropped dead right there. By now, Deluth was ready to ask the right questions, he just needed to dance into it slowly. Questioning grieving persons had never been his forte. \n\n“Paul, did Andie say anything when she said she’d call you right back? Was there...a reason? Did she hear something? See someone?” He sat across from Paul in the living room recliner, where her coat was still draped where she’d thrown it when she came in. Grocery bags were visible in the kitchen floor where she’d sat them down. The door had been wide open, no sign of forced entry; and this is how it had been at every house that came before. A life interrupted; just stopped dead. \n\n“Umm...uhh.” Paul wiped the tears from his ruddy cheeks with the back of his sweater sleeve, breathing heavily as he attempted, fruitlessly, to recover from the heaving cries. “Harvey, she just said, ‘Paul, honey, lemme call you back, ok?’ And then she just hung up. She didn’t give me a reason to think—I mean, I just don’t know, why would she have gotten off like that?” He stared at Harvey, his eyes bloodshot, heart clearly broken. \n\n“Paul, I really wish I had an answer for you, but you know, at this point I just don’t.” \n\nThere was a moment of silence that passed between them, Paul’s head back into his hands, before Harvey reluctantly resumed his line of questioning. \n\n“Paul, was...err...there a possibility that Andie might’ve been...pregnant?” \n\nThe broken man’s head shot up from his hands, mouth agape. \n\n“How could you know? We—we hadn’t told anyone!”\n\n“Because Paul...”\n\n“But how? She was adamant, we don’t tell anyone until—“ \n\n“The others were too, Paul. They all have been.” \n\nMore silence. It was eerie, how silence invaded that space in a dead woman’s home, the flashing blue lights of the officers cars outside still pulsating through the frosted windowpanes. Harvey cleared his throat and shifted his weight. Suddenly the wool of his coat was very scratchy and uncomfortable. He hated these sorts of exchanges. \n\n“I am not supposed to comment on open investigations. I’m sorry, that won’t happen again. We don’t have all the pieces, all the information...”\n\nPaul continued to stare, then stood up and paced, hands frantically tousling his own hair. \n\n“You’re saying she’s dead because she was pregnant? Someone is killing pregnant women? Who did this? Who did this to my Andie?! Harvey!” His voice rose in a panicked crescendo, resonating off the walls, and Deluth stood, stopping him, grasping him by the arms. \n\n“Paul! Get ahold of yourself.” \n\nThey stood still, locked onto one another, Paul’s eyes wide and heavy breaths passing between them. \n\n“I—I uhh—okay. Okay.” Paul stammered, shakily sitting down. Deluth gave him a hard pat on the shoulder. \n\n“Is there someone I can call for you?” \n\n“Uhh...no. No. My mother, I called her. She’s coming in from Hawesville. She’s on her way.” \n\nDeluth hesitated only a moment, and then nodded. \n\n“I’ll be in touch, Paul. Again, I’m...I’m so very sorry.” \n\nHe turned toward the door, placing his hat back onto his slicked back hair, and closed it behind him. On the way to the car, he paused, looking down at the imprint in the snow where Andie had fallen, dead; likely before she hit the ground, if her autopsy followed the same pattern as the others. \n\nNo outward or inward signs of trauma. No sign of struggle. No explanation for death other than sudden and inexplicable cardiac arrest. \n\nHe grumbled, sighed, and opened the door to the vehicle, leather squeaking as he sat down in the seat. He turned his gaze to his partner, Vick, who had declined to go in. He’d known Andrea too, and at the sight of her body had become ill and vomited. \n\n“Does she fit?” He asked weakly, \n\n“She does, Vick. She was pregnant too. Like the others.” \n\nVick shook his head, rubbing his clammy hands on his uniform pants. \n\n“My God, Harv. Jesus. Who is doing this? Why?\n\nDeluth furrowed his brow and clicked his teeth, twisting his mouth in thought, then placed his hands on the steering wheel and shifted the vehicle into drive. \n\n“It’s not a someone. It’s a...something. I’m sure of it now...”\n\nThe taillights of his vehicle faded away into the winter night, exhaust billowing up into the air behind him." ]	2
	[WP] You are a tavern owner in a fantasy realm, and you are just about done with these danged forsaken Chaotic adventurers coming into your tavern and somehow tearing it apart, burning it down, or some other non sensical thing that keeps happening.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 charcoal streak raised into the winter sky, impure and black of sin poisoning the troposphere. The elf began to sprint; his legs bent branches, breaking open the ground. \n\nA burned body of a tavern, a broken dream. Ashen timbers now, telling the tales of the tavern's final toasts. Smoke danced a drunken jig, twirling, tugging and twisting the elf’s stomach. He regurgitated; a tan flow of phlegmy froth freed itself from his tight stomach. Iron clamps from tankards lay half-melted in the debris. \n\nHis finest bottles of wines and liquors spilled by filthy “Hero’s” and “adventurers” the horrid low-life beast hunters. They think because they can kill a few wild boars or some mercenaries that they are special? What fools! \n\nDigging his fingers into the soil, he began to chant. Runes burned into his skin forcing him to scream in agony. He kept his fingers locked into the now glowing soil as it crept up his thin pale arms. His ashen hair now darkening an earth brown as he is absorbed into the soils. \n\nNow re-birthed he took what little is left of his things. Packing only a small bag tied to a stray branch he made way. On his back a yew bow and his hip a quiver, and arrow for all the thugs he would face, in the game of revenge. Vengeance for his tavern, vengeance for his dream. \n\n&#x200B;\n\n\\-Hi this is my first Writing Prompt, hope you like\\^\\^" ]	2
	[WP] You wake up to find yourself surrounded by your favorite fictional characters in their world. However, they’re currently interrogating you as they think you’re some kind of enemy.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "### AN: This is my first r/writingprompts attempt and I suck at writing so this will be heavily based off of the fictional world, which is also my favorite fictional world\n\nI wake up to some guy beating me. How I got here is anyone’s guess. But I don’t care about that — I care about the guy beating me\n\n“You wait here”\n\nI see him move over to another guy tied to a chair, grabbing a knife along the way\n\n...wait... he looks like... no it can’t be\n\nI try to move to see him better but I’m restrained too. I’m...oh shit...this is not going to end well\n\n“The girl — is she alive”\n\n“What girl? I don’t know n—FUCK”\n\nHe just got stabbed in the leg. This is really happening. I’m so fucked. \n\n“Focus right here—right here or I’ll pop your goddamn knee off. The girl”\n\n“S-she’s alive. She’s David’s newest pet”\n\n“Where”\n\nTwist\n\n“GAA—In the town! In the town”\n\nHe pulls the knife out and puts it in the guy’s mouth. Shit I don’t have long left. I need to get out of here. \n\n“Now you’re gonna mark it on the map. And it bette be the same exact spot your buddy points to. Mark it”\n\n“It's right there — You can verify it. Go ask him, go on. He'll tell ya. I ain't lyin'. I ain't ly—”\n\nAnd his neck is snapped. Fuck why’d he have to tie these so tight. He’s good at this. \n\n“Please, I—I did nothing”\n\n“Now I don’t think that’s true. And unfortunately for you—”\n\nHe picks up the pipe. Shit. \n\n“—I believe him”\n\n“WAIT NO”\n\nCrack. \n\nr/TheLastOfUs", "“My lord, she’s awake.”\n\n‘What the hell,’ I thought, jolting my eyes open and trying to yank my hands out of the cuffs they were in, but the metal rings were too tight. ‘How on earth did I get here?!’ If this was some kind of continuation of that role play festival, it had gone too far. ‘They’re so gonna regret this.’\n\nThe walls were painted a disturbing white, polished and so shiny they hurt my eyes. I winced, trying to wriggle free, but caught sight of someone standing in the doorway. They were dressed in a white armored suit, large helmet and had some sci-fi blaster thing in hand. ‘Looks exactly like a clone trooper. This is good cosplay though, gotta respect how much effort they put into this, but they’re seriously better off letting me...’\n\nFootsteps approaching the room finally grew loud enough for me to see the person walking in, not exactly dressed as a person though. Black cape, black armor and mask and even breathing noises matched the dark lord I’d fangirled over in my favorite franchise. I couldn’t help but snicker under my breath. The next second he raised his hand and I felt myself pushed into my seat by some invisible but very powerful force. \n\n“What the heck?” I wailed, struggling to breathe and feeling my head sting with pain where it had hit the metal headrest. Crap, ComicCon did go too far! I might as well have been hallucinating but that seemed pretty real. I mean, I was being Force choked by a guy dressed like Lord Vader." ]	3
	[WP] You spent 25 years trapped in an isekai world where you leveled up slowly, met best friends of your life, defeated the demon king and built a kingdom from scratch. One day, in a blink of an eye, you were your usual self,a shut-in teenager with no friends and talents.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 on the morning i was to be married. Except my fiance was nowhere. Instead i was in a hospital bed with my mom nearby\n\n\"What the...\" i said surprised.\n\n\"Oh my god. DOCTOR!!! Sweetie are you alright.\"\n\n\"Whats going on wheres my sword.\"\n\n\"What are you talking about. You have been comatose for a few months now.\"\n\n\"But i was... wheres my scar.\" I searched myself over and found the area i was looking for. \"This scar. I got it from a sword fight with the demon king.\"\n\nThe doctor entered the room and started checking me over.\n\n\"This is... astounding. His physical form changed overnight. Son how did you do this.\"\n\n\"I was in a different world but... wait no one will believe me how do i prove it... i know can you get me a stick or something sword-like?\"\n\n\"Sure but that will have to wait till after your physical examination.\"\n\nAfter a few hours i got into some exercise clothes and found a nice long pole similar to the sword i used. I then showed my fighting prowess to the doctor.\n\n\"Incredible... and you have never taken a class for this?\" The doctor asked\n\n\"No he only ever stayed in his room and played games this is new to me.\"\n\n\"Hmm... i wonder.\"\n\nI looked at my mom and chanted a spell.\n\n\"Open wide the portal to. The image in my mental view. PORTAL!\"\n\n....\n\nNothing my magic is gone.\n\n\"So i only kept my physical atributes and sword skills.\"\n\nOr so i thought. Little did i know i was just waiting for the rest of my powers to realise." ]	2
	[WP] A sentient space leviathan accidentally populated a planet a few eons ago during a festival. They stepped up to it, but after a long time shepherding life they deserved a holiday. With food left out and ground rules set, they nipped off for a quick 200,000 years. Today they returned to 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Aquilus slowly changed course, his gargantuan form making a graceful arc which put him on a straight course to his objective. His sleek form reflected every point of light. The quark drive, deep within his techno organic hulk powered up, accelerating his approach. He would not reach his destination for another 1000 years, but that was only a dip in the ocean for creatures whose lifespan measured in the eons. \n\nYet, he was impatient. He was going to see his offspring, his children. Ages ago, when he was younger, he had helped the spread of life, albeit accidentally, during a mating ritual. Their species were the givers, veritable gods of the universe. But to care for a planet was no simple task, and Aquilius had considered destroying the blue planet and just moving on, but something in his programming stopped him. He had taken care of them, provided for them, seen the smallest organism grow to the mightiest giants. He had seen the rise and fall of these giants, and the rise of hairy creatures. \n\nHe had seen this all, cared for them all. Eventually, it became too much, and he decided to take a break. He made sure the creatures had what they needed, and had went into the void, to re energize for a few millennia, and to meet the others like him. But that time had passed, and he was on his way back. His drives whirred in anticipation of knowing what would be awaiting him. He distinctly remembered seeing hairless apes when he left. He had wanted to see what they would do, for they seemed to exhibit more intelligence than any other creature he'd seen, and hence, had the potential to be guided well. But there was still time. \n\nCenturies dragged on, and Aquilus had shut down most of his systems. He moved silently through space, a gargantuan organism from a time forgotten. He started powering up when he was almost near the system that housed the planet. 9 planets around a single, small, yellow star. it was a beautiful place. He approached a gaseous giant, the fifth planet from the sun, which had a gravitational pull strong enough for him to rest. \n\nAquilus shot out probes towards the blue planet. His primal self felt something close to excitement. The world looked just as it had when he left it, shimmering in the light of the nearby star. He was still too far to pick up the finer details but there was no mistaking the lush green expanse he had left. The probes zoomed in near the planet, and dipped into the atmosphere.\n\nVibrations shook his great being, as he struggled to understand what happened. For the world was no longer green and blue. Everything was brown. The world was filled with holes in the ground. The oceans looked black when the probes went near. And what stood out the most, was the absence of life. The planet was dead. In the short span of time Aquilus had moved away, the beings in the planet had managed to die. \n\nHe stopped controlling the probes, and set out back into space. There was nothing for him here. His mistake had cost him his creation. Grief, if you could call it that, ran through the vast systems controlling the behemoth. \n\n-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------\n\nEarth was not fully dead. There were still pockets of humans living in the aftermath of the Event. And, just as luck would have it, one of the probes had landed in the middle of one of these settlements. Soon, this band of settlers would conquer the other planets. Aquilus had not failed them." ]	2
	[WP] You and your friends were hired by a mysterious man to rob a mansion for a handsome payment, as usual. However, it turned out that the mansion belonged to the mysterious, mad scientist.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 guess I’ll take your word for it, friend.”\n\n“That’s fine by me, I’m just saying the guy is apparently ‘eccentric’ or something of the sort.”\n\n“Well, I hate electronics anyway.”\n\nI took the cigar I was chewing on out of my mouth and looked up from my computer screen at Poco. \n\n“I said eccentric.”\n\nI looked back down at my computer screen and placed the cigar back in my mouth.\n\n“Doesn’t matter. Hate ‘em either way.”\n\nI furrowed my brow and sighed out of exasperation, clenching my eyes shut tighter than Elvin Jones. I rubbed my eyes with my thumb and forefinger for a moment before taking the cigar out of my mouth and hurling it across the room. Poco continued to twiddle with his paper clip and pay me no mind. I shot up from my chair.\n\n“What is this?” I was shouting as I pointed to my computer.\n\nPoco looked up. “Your computer?”\n\n“Which is what?”\n\n“An electronic?”\n\nI didn’t answer his question, just stared at him, heaving with anger. He just stared back, waiting for my response. Occasionally he opened his mouth like he was going to say something, but never did. Finally he tried to break the silence.\n\n“I-I... is there something you want me to do... or?”\n\nI continued to stare silently at him for a few moments before I said anything.\n\n“If you would spend half the time you do twiddling, we’d be done with the prep and ready to execute.”\n\nHe stared at me blankly and then replied, “Oh, okay.”\n\nI sat back down in my desk chair and started furiously typing. I had never learned how to type, so it was mostly gibberish in between actual words here and there, but it felt nice. As I was typing, I heard Anders coming down the basement stairs, and saw him emerge not long after.\n\nHe looked at me as he spoke, “Car’s good to go. I put the plates in the windows. Still legal, but barely visible.”\n\n“Isn’t that your life motto?” Poco said to him.\n\nAnders chuckled and glanced at me confusedly, as if I had some knowledge of what Poco meant. He shook his head and then walked over to my desk in the corner and leaned in over my shoulder to see what I was doing.\n\n“What’s— uh— what you got goin’ here?”\n\n“Nothing much. Did some final research on our guy.”\n\nI turned to look at Anders, and he breathed out a short laugh and said, “What is it that you’re doing currently?”\n\nHe was pointing to the opened text file containing my typed gibberish.\n\nI turned to glance at the screen and then looked back up at him. “Oh, this. Just trying to type furiously.”\n\n“I see. So what was it that you guys actually did down here, then?”\n\nI laughed incredulously. “I told you, final research on the old boy. Which, by the way, actually takes a whole day. Clearing junk off a car in the garage does not.”\n\nAnders got a little red in the face and didn’t respond to my last sentence. “What about the gear? Is it prepped?”\n\nI was furiously typing at this point, but paused to answer his question. “Ask Poco, it was his job.”\n\nI went back to furiously typing. \n\n“Poco, is the gear prepped?”\n\n“Got caught up with some things, friend.”\n\n“What things!? You had the whole day!”\n\n“Things got in the way, end of story.”\n\nI heard Anders let out a chuckle of pure disbelief.\n\n“No, not the end of story. We need that prepped tonight for things to run seamle—”\n\nAnders made a choking sound, and started wheezing and gagging. I looked up and saw Poco standing up, a frightened look in his face. \n\n“I flicked my paper clip in his mouth!” he said to me frantically.\n\nAnders was on the floor now, on his hands and knees gagging and coughing. I looked at him and then back up at Poco.\n\n“Well, then get it out!” I went back to furiously typing as Poco ran over to Anders and tried to remove the paper clip that was lodged in his throat.\n\nEventually, I no longer heard Anders choking and looked over at Poco as he was rapidly slapping Anders’ purple cheek. Poco was muttering to himself, “Not good... oh no...”\n\nHe looked up at me and told me, “I think he’s dead.”\n\nI rolled my eyes, “He’s not dead, probably just passed out. Here, let me see.”\n\nI got out of my chair and walked over to the two of them. Anders lay on his back on the floor, and Poco was still leaning over him. I moved Poco out of the way and leaned in to see if I could hear or feel him breathing. I saw no signs of breath.\n\n“Hey, Anders, buddy. Get up, man.” I tried shaking him. Nothing.\n\nI started to realize Anders was actually dead. I stood up and searched the room for the cigar I had thrown, finding it behind the sofa. I walked back over to Poco, who was still trying to slap Anders alive.\n\nI launched the cigar again and shouted, “He’s dead, get him out of here!”\n\nI collapsed in my desk chair.\n\n“How do I—”\n\n“Figure it out, I haven’t done anything like this before!”\n\n“But I still have to prep the gear—”\n\nI threw a pack of gum that was in my hands. “FUCK the gear, we’re going in raw!”\n\nWe were both silent for a second before Poco broke in, “But the plan was that—”\n\nI narrowed my eyes at him in derision. “Plan? Anders is dead, Pam is in jail, and Vince is in the hospital with six broken toes. There’s no plan anymore, besides the one where we drive over there right now, barge in, take what we can while can, and then get the hell out!”\n\nI started for the stairs, and Poco got up from the ground and followed after me. I turned around and looked him.\n\n“What’re you doing? Don’t just leave him on the ground, do something with him.” I nodded towards Anders lying on the ground.\n\nPoco whipped around as if he had forgotten about the events that just transpired. “Oh, right, yeah.”" ]	2
	[WP] You are a dog. Your human left at 12:00. It is now 12:01. You are certain your human must be in great peril, for they have not returned. Action must be taken.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 is time. No matter the cost, the Human must be protected, for this is what it means to be a Good Boy. Treats, once given, create a debt. I knew this. It must be for this moment that I was given head pats- the Human must've known he'd never return.\n\nOnly one thing can save him. A terrible machine, with unknowable weaponry and a fearsome roar. I cross my paws over my about, ashamed of my cowardice, before I steel my resolve.\n\nThe thing is locked away, beyond my grasp. I must year down this barrier, collect the weapon, and bring my Human home. I cast my gaze about, and find nothing of use. I whimper in fear, only a tiny bit of it for my own sake.\n\nI scratch at the ancient, wooden thing. It leaves no mark. I snarl and bark in frustration, but the chamber remains sealed. I gnaw at the corners, but there is some reinforcement in the walls. I am stymied.\n\nI bark again, and then ram my shoulder into the door. It rattles, surprisingly. Interesting. I ram it again, harder, and it cracks. I use my claws and my fangs and I rip the barrier asunder. There, dimly, I see it. I grasp it in my mouth and drag it out of its shadowed cave. I work at the mechanisms, unsure how to operate the infernal device. Pieces connect and disconnect at random, and I'm never able to put them back. I whimper again, as the Door to Outside opens. I look up, hope in my eyes and fear in my heart.\n\n\"Forgot my keys- Goddammit, why are you trying to eat the vacuum cleaner, I haven't been gone more than two minutes!\"", "I thrash violently at the blinds trying to get a view of Elizabeth as she walks to our car. She is so forgetful; it's just like her to go to the dog park and leave me behind, yet again. That's the only place that car ever goes besides the vet and there is no way she would go to such a scary place alone. She'll realize any moment now that she has forgotten me, silly girl, and she'll come back. I had better wait by the door so she sees me first thing, in case she forgets why she has returned.\n\nThere's my leash, right by the door; she has to keep it by the door, like so many other things, or she'll forget it. Better yet, I'll go ahead and pull the leash down to get it ready for her. I'm such a good boy, always making her life easier. I pull on the leash but something won't let go. Something is trying to prevent me from getting ready, trying to stop me from being with Elizabeth: The Wall. This evil wall will not let go of the leash. I tug and pull the leash this way and that, a scenario I've trained for with Elizabeth all my life, finally releasing the hook from the wall's grasp. It clatters to the floor, bringing a sizable chunk of the wall with it. \n\nI bound through the living room celebrating my triumph over the menacing wall. This is when I realize the other inhabitants of the living room are all grabbing at the leash as I run with it, trying to stop me in my tracks. I fly into a rage, taking out the coffee table and several chairs, lashing out at anything holding me back from leaving with Elizabeth.\n\nElizabeth!\n\nShe has probably returned by now.\n\nI leap onto the couch and tear at the troublesome blinds. The triangular aperture I create affords me a glimpse of the harrowing world outside. I see a man I've never seen before walking by with an equally unfamiliar dog. My heart begins to race. Who are these two and what are they doing outside, where Elizabeth is? What have they done with her?\n\nI rip and tear at the blinds to get a better view of her attackers but they won't get out of my way. Then I see what's been holding them up this entire time: The Wall. I go at the blinds with both front paws and free them from the wall's control. In the confusion, I tangle myself in the blinds and crash through the window pane, knocking shards of glass and the screen into the flower bed below. Finally, I have a full view of Elizabeth's assailants and I lay into them with a fusillade of verbal attacks. The cowards flee but I still see no sign of Elizabeth.\n\nI pull myself back in through the window with only a few minor cuts. I am bleeding but its not anything a few licks can't fix. I lay on the couch vigilantly watching through my now-unobstructed view for my best friend to return.\n\nI must have fallen asleep because the next thing I know I hear Elizabeth crying out. The attackers must have returned because she sounds worried. I sit up and see her staring at me through the improved window. I am happy to see her, she is not happy.\n\n\"Ramses! What did you dooo?\"\n\nShe says it in the same tone as when I pee inside instead of outside, she likes it when I pee outside. She comes to the front door and unlocks it. I hop down from the couch and look around frantically for the leash so she can walk me; it's usually right by the door.\n\nShe opens the door and falls to her knees, picking up various things laying on the ground. Now I know something terrible happened outside because she is crying. I move in to console her but soon realize she is confused and for whatever reason upset with me.\n\n\"Bad dog,\" she claims without merit, \"what did you do?\"\n\nMy ears lay flat against my head as I seek refuge under the dining table. She walks around the room seemingly more upset by each thing she finds. The state of the room is somehow unacceptable to her but I don't remember it ever not looking like this. She sees stains on the couch.\n\n\"Oh my god, are you bleeding? Come here.\"\n\nShe surveys my front legs and sighs deeply. Her crying subsides when she realizes I've already conducted the necessary first aid.\n\n\"Okay. You're okay. It's not that bad.\" She hugs me and sighs again. \"But you need to go outside while I clean this up and figure out who to call about the window.\"\n\nOutside?\n\nI perk up and suddenly feel really happy. I do have to pee. How does she always know when I have to pee? I love this woman." ]	3
	[WP] You wake up one morning and discover that you’ve lost your voice. It’s not until you leave for the day that you learn that everyone else lost theirs 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "They called it Vol0. The utter and complete removal of the power of speech. As if we were nothing more than television sets and something was the master remote control for the species.\n\nI was in my bathroom when I noticed it the first time. Living alone, I enjoyed singing in the shower, hitting those low notes on Marty Robbins songs, crooning into my scrubber, rinsing my hair out while humming.\n\nWhat came out of my mouth was closer to a strangled burp. A moment later, nothing. I could whistle, hum and even belch, just nothing as organized as speech. No effort could expel meaningful noise from my mouth. Just.. silence. \n\nThe rest of the world was taking notice immediately. Stuck in my own head, I didn't pay attention to it. I tried calling people, and all that accomplished was mutual silent treatment, regardless of who answered. Outside, I could hear people panicking, just not in traditional ways.\n\nPeople were frantically downloading text to speech apps, clotting up sites that provided them, and logically, they went from free to all directly to pay-to-play models. Humanity never changed, really; if ever we could make a fast buck, damned well we would.\n\nMost people took to writing things down on signs, carried laptops, tablets or their phones, magnifying text sizes to build the equivalent of shouts and screams. Some just banged objects together, like trash can lids or pots and pans, then resorted to pantomime to convey ideas.\n\nThe lucky few who spoke sign language were surprisingly effective as teachers, replacing almost every level of the mass media market overnight. \n\nWe became hostages to whomever could translate our thoughts into public discourse. Internet providers began to suffer immediate drops in service, telecommunication companies reversed course on diversification, and the hospitals ran red with blood from countless arguments held in nonverbal methods, doctors trapped in silent, impotent horror as they lost their option to discuss patient needs and treatments with nurses and support technicians.\n\nWar didn't stop; we just moved to the newer model of conflict by attacking our enemies ability to communicate each other, destroying TV stations broadcasting mostly text-based messages, radio relays who'd switched to automated voice prompting and anything resembling an internet connection. \n\nProtests became silent vigils. Marches became long lines of angry mobs blasting music and slamming objects into each other, and civil unrest was the new normal. A significant issue that developed was the absence of a Miranda option for most offenders. The right to remain silent became pointless. Court cases bogged down with the dwindling amount of translation options and soon enough, just stopped happening.\n\nThe first deaf president was elected on a campaign promise of finding a cure for Vol0. They won in a landslide victory, garnering over eighty percent of the vote, utterly unprecedented. Her running mate, blind since birth, promised to provide low-cost speech units for the first generation of citizens unable to communicate with their parents and community.\n\nAfter ten long years, we've stopped protesting. We no longer have a reason to march. Nobody riots, loots or does much beyond sit in front of their TVs, rewatching shows and movies that speak to us. \n\nNobody speaks with each other anymore.\n\nWe simply have nothing to say.\n\nYesterday, I heard my neighbor being arrested for having a child that could speak without a state-issued textvox.\n\nWhat else is there to say?" ]	2
	[WP] after you died you found yourself standing in a monolithic marble hall. "How was your trip this time my love?" An ethereal woman in a white dress drifts towards you. "Are you almost finished with your project? Earth was 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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Yes, earth was more entertaining this time.” I replied. “What makes you say that” Michelle spoke as she came into focus. “Every time I return decades pass and they advance so quickly in the time I am gone.” Looking down I realize that my clothes are clean again and entirely bleached white.\n“How is that a surprise time passes slower in this plain” Michelle said as she examined me closer.\n“Well it’s not so much the time part as the technology and civilization, last time I arrived the entire world was in conflict and I was murdered by the company of soldiers I was staying with. The time before the world was in a golden age of technology when I was killed by a diseased rat in a hospital I was helping at.” \n“Doesn’t sound very helpful” said Michelle jokingly. \n“I’m not sure if I am going to be able to finish this in time. I feel as if I am very close, yet something always seems to happen before I finish my work.” \n“They will all benefit from your work, your effort is needed to help them continue their existence.” Michelle growled as she was becoming impatient.\n“I know, I know... it’s just I’m not sure if it is what they need any more.... I just think... maybe our work is not in their best interest. Every time I appear fate seems to murder me in some new creative way.”\nAs Michelle settled back her glare became obvious “you were put on this world to finish the project, i cannot imagine what will happen if you are unable to do it.” Michelle’s gaze drifted as she dreaded what would come next.\n“Of course I will keep trying, it’s just maybe we could change the goal a little bit, shift it more to be less difficult?” I realized as I spoke that my question was inherently pissing Michelle off. “Are you fucking kidding me, get back down their right now. I don’t have time for you to waste and 50 years have already passed in the time you have pissed away.” Michelle jabbed me with her words as I turned back to the door I can from. I turned back one last time just for some hope to make the mission easier. “Well at least can I use a different name this time?” Michelle was walking away when she answered. “Adolf hitler was a perfectly good name, what the fuck do we call you now?” “I dunno I was thinking Kim?” Michelle turned for a moment, “fine the jong family is about to have a son your in luck now get going. “ I muttered to myself as I opened the door “damn I was hoping for a female body this time.”" ]	2
	[WP] Lucifer falls from grace and lands on earth. He spends time with humans and quickly realizes the suffering they are going through. He vows to get revenge on God, removing him from the throne and taking over Heaven.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 had to break this in half to fit)\n\nA bar is perhaps the best place to see humans within all the stages of their life. With-in you’d find a kaleidoscope of good and bad, wrong and just. From the bikers with their tats for sleeves or the bachelorette party adorned in their crown of dicks. The 21-year-old in the corner, the life of his own little bubble, but far from enjoying his first drinks, just his first legal drink if that means anything. Perhaps there isn’t a single bar where one could find each and every personality type of these humans, but if God himself wanted to he could snap his fingers and yank every person in every bar everywhere and putting them into one location you’d have the full spectrum of the human experience.\n\n Let’s say you could judge the overall, let’s say, “goodness” of the people, let’s say a scale from 1-10 bad to good, right? Hitler or Stalin being down towards the bottom along with any other zealous leader willing to risk the lives of many to wreak havoc on the few outsiders they deemed impure. Towards the top, you maybe see people like Gandhi and MLK, people that stood up for something in the face of evil. Now maybe there aren’t perfect 1’s and perfect 10’s, after all, can anyone be 100 percent good or bad? Sure, Hitler killed a shit load of Jews, Christians, gays, and anything else that he deemed improper, he is certainly very high up on the list of the world’s absolute shittiest peoples of all time. But are MLK and Gandhi perfect people? No, MLK cheated on his spouse, and Gandhi refused his wife’s treatment but took the same treatment for himself. \n\nObviously, those negative actions are nowhere near the atrocities of war, of Hitler. Believe you me, I agree. So, where does that leave humanity? If we followed through with the little experiment up above, where would the average of all human’s land? Are people mostly good, or mostly bad?\n\nWhat if I told you that we don’t have to experiment at all? That right now at this very minute there is, in fact, an active tracker of the overall “goodness” of the world? Because there is one. “Up” there. Not that there really is an “up” or a “there” it is mostly just in existence without being, but anyway, there is such a scale. Turns out you guys are mostly neutral. You cancel yourselves out. For every murderer, there is an innocent child, ignorant and incapable of being bad. For every mugging, a selfless charitable act. You stand at a perfect “5” on the scale. Never shifting, well only just once.\n\nYou need not bother with the whole “list” of how bad people are because there is a real list that dictates just who the worst and best of you is. The worst is as you guessed incorrectly, not Hitler. You might have guessed “Well, then, Eve I guess” and you’d be half right. Adam and Eve are one and the same, Eve was made from Adam’s rib, after all, that part is true. What isn’t true is that Eve alone ate the Apple. Paradise Lost paints this picture that Eve was kinda stupid and wasn’t treated properly, thus she eats the Apple in retaliation. That is just some sexist bullshit and so not the truth. Adam and Eve were inseparable. Again, they were literally one and the same. They could go days not talking because they knew exactly what was going to be said by the other person. The didn’t have to finish each other’s sentences because they started each other’s sentences as well. Entire pages worth of conversation happened between as if reading all the lines on a script in sync. Of course, their sex was out of the world or so they said. And why shouldn’t it be? They knew precisely each other’s weak spots because they lived in each other’s minds. I suppose it was like external masturbation. If you even thought about a certain place needing some attention the other was already there tending to it. \n\nThat made their life shit. \n\nThere was no randomness, no chaos, pure predictability. It started and ended fights with a single sigh. They couldn’t even fight properly! Just think of the times you had to make up in a relationship and how relieving it was when you finally bonded again getting through your struggle as a team and they were denied even that. For fuck's sake, they needed an out. And God provided one. The apple. “Don’t eat.” A simple command and the only rule the two had to live by. But they couldn’t and they ate the apple hoping that somehow it would break them up. It was a joint effort, each had the same doubts, and excitement and each bit into the apple at the same time. Thus “Adam and Eve” were forever written in the number one slot for the worst people God has created. And thus he fucking punished them. All of them. All of you." ]	2
	[WP] In present day, Magic has been (re ?)discovered , but only for the Fire element and for a few people. Gouvernements and scientists are figuring and organizing things out. One day, you wake up as the first mage with powers of the Ice element.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 never noticed the change at first.\n\nI've always been a little quirky when it comes to temperatures. Year round I always wear jeans and T-shirts, nothing less in summer and nothing more in winter. People always poked fun at me for it. Then it moved on to me liking colder foods. Again, nothing really new. I often had a temperature presence for most fruits and veggies. Though people though it was weird when I stopped heating up leftovers. My parents grew concerned when I would wait for my fresh-hot meals to become lukewarm so I could actually stomach them down. They burned me too easily.\n\nThen came the obsession with freezer foods. They practically became my diet. I would eat frozen meals straight from the package. Smoothies, breakfast bowls, microwave meals. Ice cream was always my dessert. Everyone was getting really scared about. My parents dragged me to a CAT scan to see if there was a chemical imbalance in my head. Nothing. As soon as I got home, I ate my normal lunch. And a few ice cubes for a better crunch.\n\nWhen summer came around that year, I hit in the house. I never went out. It was too hot. Why did I have to live in Arizona? I would have all the fans on me, constantly eating popsicles and my meals to keep cool. My family, multiple times, tried to physically drag me out of the house so I could go to the doctor. I refused every time. I didn't want to be charred to a crisp on the sidewalk. They eventually brought the doctor to the house. No burns somehow. He said that there was nothing physically wrong with me. But my parents weren't satisfied.\n\nThey called the government.\n\nThey wanted an answer for whatever was happening with me. I could care less, I just didn't want to be hot. A general with a military escort came over, whatever. How are they alive? I needed to feel cool. I was burning up. They told me that I needed to come with them. I told them not in the burning hell outside. How was no one else dying in that heat? Why isn't this a national crisis that a state is on fire?\n\nI was then told that the temperature was just 87 Fahrenheit. The typical high for Arizona. Not even that hot. That's when I started getting scared. I told them that they were wrong, that it was burning hell outside. I would torched alive if I went outside. They thought I was just going mental, so they started dragging me outside. Military men are stronger than my family, so they could actually do. I tried getting out of their hold as we went through the door.\n\nMy skin started to immediately steam and turn red. I screamed. They stopped.\n\nAfter many calls and cooling my burns, they brought in a truck that would measure -20 F at minimum. I bolted into that truck and they quickly shut it closed before I could burn again. I never felt more comfortable and relaxed in that year than in that moment. I practically fell asleep in that truck on the drive to the base.\n\nScientists studied my condition and my unusual habits, wanting to see just how far it went. They would dip foods into liquid nitrogen and see if I could eat it. I practically devoured each plate like a hungry animal. It tasted so much better than the frozen meals. I didn't realize how warm they had been.\n\nThey made me wear barely any clothes. Just a pair of panties and a bra. They set the room temperature at 0 F. I asked if they could turn it down lower. They did. Lower and lower. They stopped when the room mechanics couldn't make it any colder. I loved how the room felt. Then they decided to turn the temperature up. I started to get twitchy and antsy when they moved it to 25 F. I started begging them to stop at 40 F. At 50 F I started crying out of the pain. They were too scared to see what would happen if they turned it up higher.\n\nThey deemed me an Ice Mage. A girl that could control ice, freeze water, and could handle the elements of the cold with ease. They explained that Fire Mages would go through similar changes, but of course relating to fire. They would eat hotter and hotter foods, temperature-wise though, then they would start bundling up drastically in fall before hiding throughout winter. They told that one had been found out after his dad caught him eating fresh coals from their barbecue. The Fire Mages had all been moved to Death Valley in California, where they studied, practiced, and perfected their magic.\n\nThey moved me to the Antarctic Plateau. I have lived here for about 5 months. It is beautiful, this barren wasteland of ice and snow and nothing else. It sucks there aren't any animals here, since they only have people in the labs to help study with me. I guess being in the freezing cold would leave me a bit lonesome. The same goes for the Fire Mages. Everything is too hot that it would probably die.\n\nHopefully another Ice Mage will come around soon. Then we can bond over the cold.\n\n\\-----------\n\nMy sincerest apologies to my Non-American readers, but using Fahrenheit instead of Celsius is just in my blood.", "I was cold.\n\nI was always cold.\n\nEven if I lived in the Sahara Desert, I would still be cold. This icy curse was inescapable. All that were near me also fell it; the effects of ice magic were impossible to ignore. Heat was always on when I was around, but still, I was cold.\n\nI had isolated myself from society; people hated me for it. Life was constant misery due to my ice powers. I was miserable. I moved to Siberia so as to normalize cold somewhat. It was no use. I was still unimaginably cold.\n\nI wondered if this was how those fire mages feel; except not constant cold, but instead constant heat. I waited desperately for the day this would all be over; it would come eventually, wouldn’t it? Be that as it may, I was cold. One day, I felt even more miserable than usual. All I wanted to do was lie down and sleep, but I had a job.\n\nWhat kind of job could an ice mage possibly possess, you may ask? I worked an office job and isolated myself as much as possible from coworkers. I drank hot coffee all the time, but I was still cold. I hated my life. I was pretty sure that the ice powers gave me depression.\n\nI was unbearably cold.\n\n\n- - - -\n\n\nHope you enjoyed!\n\nEdit: formatting", "I was 15 and living in a small village. I had goals and dreams, but being a mage was not part of them.\n\nI wanted to court the shepherds daughter. I wanted to become the richest farmer in the village. Then I woke up with my room covered with frost. In mid-summer.\n\nWe had heard about people developing fire magic, but it seemed so surreal. As a village of simple farms, we didn't really care. I clambered down the ladder to the kitchen and found my parents gone. Outside, a platoon of the mage guard stood waiting, my parents behind them. My mother was crying, begging them not to take me and my father tried to comfort her.\n\nI knew than that i was not going to be a rich farmer. I went with the guards to the capital, where the king's adviser was waiting for me. He told me that, as the first ice wielder in the world, I would be granted a great opportunity. To discover magic with the handful of fire mages our kingdom produced. I agreed without hesitation.\n\nIt was a bad idea. As soon as I set foot in the hall, I was attacked by a fireball. I had never used my powers intentionally, so I was sure I would get roasted alive. Then the air around me got cold and dry as ice particles formed. The fireball flickered out before it could reach me. It didn't take me more than a few minutes to discover that no one wanted me there. They just didn't want me anywhere else. The oldest of the fire users was barely ten years older than me and tried to teach me the same way as he taught the others, and grew increasingly frustrated when I did not improve. He began inflicting penalties and I finally decided that I had enough. I challenged him to a fight. I told him that, if I won, I got to decide which exercises I wanted to do. If he won, I would be expelled from the program. I knew I couldn't win,but my only goal was to get out. \n\nWe fought, and I gave him a run for his money. He beat me though, and I was kicked out. I went back home, disgraced and the kingdom built an outpost near my town. They claimed it was so that they could protect from invaders and bandits.\n\nI took to the mountains, experimenting with my power until I understood how it worked. The reason why I failed in the classes was because fire magic is all about speeding up. Ice magic is different. It is about slowing things down. I learned to use my ice magic to create powerful winds capable of blowing down a village. I learned that I could freeze rocks so hard that they would crumble like dirt. My final and most powerful spell was the flame of death. A concentrated flame of pure ice magic. I worked at it for years, shunned by the village and shunning them in return. Finally, I felt that I was ready to go out as the world's first Ice mage.\n\nI returned to the hall of the fire mages and challenged the head mage. I beat him soundly. He couldn't believe it. If he had only had more freedom to explore his powers, he might have beat me.\n\nAfter my victory, I decided to start something new. An academy where I could study and teach any and all the magic types, as I was sure that it was only the beginning of a new age of magic users. I wanted to make a place where all were welcome and no one would be alone in the journey of self-discovery. \n\nBefore discovering my powers, I never could had dreamed that I would come this far.\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI hope you enjoyed. Critiques welcome!", "It was a scalding July afternoon, the time of day one would spend relxaing at home with a refreshing chilled beverage in their hands. God, I wish I could have done that.\n\nThe car's heater blew air directly into my face on full-blast, and the blanket tightly wrapped around me might as well not have been there. I felt nothing -- nothing except cold, that is. My body had long grown numb as frost clung to my skin parasitically and spread accross like a tumor, trying to further deliver its unlawful agony. My spit was too dense to swallow, and my eyelids resisted every time I blinked. My organs started to shut down. Trying to stay concsious grew more and more chalenging by the second.\n\nMy older sister, Miranda, spoke from the driver's seat, \"You're... you're going to be just fine, Oliver! Just hang on for two more minutes! The hospital is just around the block!\"\n\nEven through my slowed perception, I could hear the quaking uncertainty in her voice; she was as doubtful of my survival as I was. She kept her eyes firmly on the road, managing to concentrate through the inhumane heat she's put herself through to try and keep me warm. Her blonde ponytail was a complete mess, and her armpits stained her petty pink blouse, now containing enough sweat to fill an olympic pool.\n\nShe drove straight into the hospital's parking lot and pulled up the brake. After unfastening my seat belt to pick me up, she carried my fourteen year old body through the car's left door. She neglected to lock it as she sprinted directly into the hospital, cradling what was essentially a block of ice in her arms.\n\nThe air-conditioner above the doors blew an unwelcome breeze directly into my face as we passed, gifting me a crude sensation similar to that of being stabbed. Naturally, my grand entrance caused a bit of a stir, sending medical professionals rushing to grab a nearby stretcher to place me on top of. As I got pushed through the endless, glistening white corridors, my last bit of desire to live melted away. The fight became unwinnable, and any and all resistance was futile. All I could do was wait for fate to decide what would happen to me.\n\nThe last thing I remembered was my sister screaming my name over and over, tears streaking down her lovely face, as the evil crystal fully enveloped my eyes and ears, forcing me into a long-overdue hybernation. Finally, I could rest, and embrace the world beyond.\n\n&#x200B;\n\n\\----\n\n&#x200B;\n\nI, Doctor Marcel Rosario, bit my lip in frustration as I used the flame in my right hand to try and free the poor boy trapped within the ice. If only I could have gotten him out out sooner, it would have saved me so many nerves, but with such a thick glacier, it was certainly going to take a while.\n\nBeing the only medical professional in the building with pyrokinetic abilities, it was obvious I'd be delegated patients with extreme cases of hypothermia, but come on, this was ridiculous! With a little patience, focus and time, I managed to melt all of the annoying shards away, and upon reaching conciousness, the poor boy took his first of several long, deep breaths. The boy shivered and coughed up a storm, but thank the stars, he was alive!\n\n\"Are you okay, kiddo?\" I asked, placing my blazing hand close to his cheeks to get rid of the remaining icicles.\n\n\"N-no,\" he replied through his quivering lips, \"d-do I look okay?\"\n\nThat was a bit rude, but it was understandable, considering the situation. At least he didn't appear to have developed any sort of mental issues, which would have made his recovery time much longer and more complex.\n\nThe kid looked up to me with a concerned expression, \"Wh-what's wrong with me, doc?\"\n\n\"I don't know,\" I replied, \"in all my years working as a doctor, I've never even heard of someone just freezing up one day for no reason.\"\n\nHe paused for a second, and stroked his cheek, \"Do you think...\"\n\n\"What?\" I asked.\n\n\"Well,\" he continued, \"normally, kids with pyrokinesis develop very high temperatures because they're unable to control their newly developed powers, so heat stores up in their body like a battery.\"\n\nI could see where this was going. Frankly, it was pretty obvious. \"Yes, that's correct.\"\n\n\"So, if I have a very low temperature, that must mean...\"\n\nOf course. \"It must mean you have cryokinetic abilites.\"" ]	5
	[WP] Irrational fears don't exist; instead, everyone is only scared of the one thing they will die from. However, you never met anyone with the same peculiar fear as you have...	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "Hundreds of bodies are motionless on cold metal beds, they are covered by blue sheets of plastic. A man dressed in a white Hazmat suite walks around the room, pulling back a blue sheet to reveal a head, the hair is shaved and the eyes are closed, but i can recognize him, its me. \n\nThis isn't a dream, yet when I try to sleep its all I see, until I open my eyes again. I'm told this is normal, and that everyone sees their 'reaper' in their dreams or thinks about it every now and then. I remember my mother describing how a viper bites her leg and she drops dead an hour later, She saw it vividly every night, until ten years ago, when she was bit in the leg one summer. We all knew it would happen. Me, my dad and sister, but you can't avoid it. At some point, you accept it and live with it. Almost Everyone knows how they will die, but not everyone has something that's easy to understand. I remember how my uncle was afraid of the dark, and would sleep with all the lights on at the age of fourty. I slept in a dark room since I can remember. He was lost in the woods, and when the police asked us about his reaper, 'the dark' wasn't much help. I have no idea how he died, and I'm sure he isn't alive after 5 years in the woods, but I imagine its something terrible. I can never really describe my reaper, its always different, sometimes the image of a syringe keeps me awake, and sometimes water seems creepy to me. Everyone tells me it means I must die from some sort of illness (Wich is a common fear) beacuse of the syringe, but I know thats not it. I don't like talking about it since no one gets it, and to be honest, neither do I, but I feel like I don't belong sometimes.\n\nAt least I don't know my reaper too well. some people have to live with a constant fear of being stabbed, and some are hunted by the feeling of drowning. Some have tried to jump off buildings, but no one ever dies, somehow. You will only die of your reaper, and I seem to be the only one you thinks thats strange. Everyone thinks it completely normal, they live their life knowing it will end in extreme pain, yet they are happy. No one els thinks it wrong.\n\nI try to sleep, and try to ignore the image of my body, and the ocean, and a drop of blood, things are flashing in my head. This always happens.\n\nIt's morning, and i can't remember when I slept or when the images stopped, but it's a new day. As I put on my lab coat, I check my tablet for any updates on my clone, the embryo is ready...." ]	2
	[WP] Time travelers have charted all of history, past and future, but have never been able to travel any further forward than a certain date. That date is today, and we're about to find out 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/js5XDFB)\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 a strangely solemn event. \n\nTemporal Agent Amelia Rain could understand it, though. She'd been one of the lucky ones. She'd been born within the local lifespan of the event. She was forty-one now. Didn't matter that she was short, always let her dark hair grow out a little too much, and hadn't always kept herself in the best physical condition. \n\nShe was the one who was here. \n\nIt was more than just her, of course. She was the one with the equipment set up in an unmarked warehouse, with a staff of other agents. Each of them with their own tasks. They weren't going to miss anything. Every particle, every wave of energy, every fluctuation in the temporal barrier would be examined as they moved from the present into the immutable future. \n\nAnd it was even more than that. Thousands stood around her. She couldn't see them, but she knew they were there. \n\nAfter all, she'd been at least three of them. They all came to look on this moment and wonder what came after. There was no access beyond. Temporal projection just didn't function beyond 3:34 AM, September 4th, 2062. It wasn't the only restricted piece of time in the main line of history, but it had become the most infuriating. \n\n\"Sixty seconds.\" Her assistant, Issac, announced.\n\nThe room stilled. Even the low hum of computer fans now seemed loud. the seconds ticked down one after another. Agent Rain strained to keep her eyes open. She didn't dare even blink. \n\nThere was a strange feeling in her head. Like a thin sheet of cotton was being dragged through her. Her fingers curled and her shoulders twitched. \n\nThen a hundred alarms went off at once. \n\nShe opened as many of the warnings on her console as she could. All the temporal equipment had overloaded. She reached down to her hip and checked her personal device. \n\nIt was stone dead. She pressed the power button with all her might but there was no response. \n\nIsaac yelped beside her. She looked up to find him backing away from his station. She opened her mouth to yell at him-\n\nThen she saw it. \n\nThere had been nothing else but them inside the warehouse a moment ago, but now that was decidedly false. \n\nThree feet in front of the sensor equipment there stood a large stone monolith. It looked to be some sort of dark stone, basalt perhaps? Agent Rain didn't know. It was beyond her expertise. \n\nShe left her desk and approached it while everyone else seemed eager to leave. \n\nIt had six sides, each one was carved full of words. Some were just complex mathematics, but there were two sides that were written plainly. She closed the gap until she could read the first line on the side closest to her. \n\n\"Welcome to the second Temporal Age.\" She read the words aloud. \n\nThe room once again grew quiet.\n\nAgent Rain's mouth went dry, but she kept reading. \n\n\"From this moment forth the first level of restrictions enforced upon temporal consistency have been lifted. For the next two thousand years you will have greater power to manipulate and change the structure of history.\"\n\nShe stumbled over the next set of words. It took her a moment to fit them into her mouth.\n\n\"You.... you will abuse this power.\" She read. \"The timeline will suffer irreparable damage. You will be tempted to prevent or repair this damage, but you must be aware that this damage is necessary to instigate a future where the creation of these restrictions come into existence.\"\n\n\"What...the...f-\" Isaac began to say, then let his voice trail off. \n\n\"These barriers, which you have encountered in your eager first steps into the annuls of time, have been put into place to contain the damage to the main line of history and to prevent interference in these events. Your history is required and necessary, and thus must be protected.\"\n\nRain paused to try and work some moisture into her mouth. \n\n\"These are the tenants of protection, the purposeful restrictions that shall be known from this point on as The Inevitability Construct.\"\n\nEverything else was just instructions on how to rebuild their equipment to be functional once again. Rain read it all with dead eyes. She wasn't really absorbing the information. She'd been caught on the line about the lifted restrictions. Without restrictions, without protection, wouldn't that make this moment one of the most important in history?\n\nShe turned around, almost sensing it before it began. The feeling of cotton being pulled through her mind was overwhelming. The dead temporal device on her hip screamed as dead circuits were overloaded with a sudden wash of temporal energy. \n\nShe ducked just a second before the soldiers appeared, jumping in from the future to kill her, or protect her, or to stop or start what had to be. There was fire and death and screaming and some vanished as soon as they appeared. Images warped and layered over each other. Ghostly forms walked through those that were solid, guns cutting through men and machine as Agent Rain cowered in the middle of it all on the cold concrete. \n\n\"Get up.\" A voice said. It was hard, old, and unnervingly familiar. \n\nShe looked up and found herself looking into the face of Isaac... only he was at least twenty years older than her now. His now-craggy face was lined with scars and stained with ash. \n\nHe grabbed her hand and dragged her out of the fight.\n\n\"There's no rules now.\" Isaac told her. \"Go wherever you want, do whatever you want. It's tago, it's all tago!\"\n\n\"Tago?\" Rain repeated the strange word. \n\n\"Nevermind.\" Future Isaac looked over at his younger self who had pressed himself against a far wall. He seemed to sneer at his past. \"Here.\" \n\nAgent Rain felt something being shoved into her hands. It was his temporal jump device. \n\n\"This one works.\" Isaac told her. \"Now go!\"\n\n\"But-\"\n\n\"NOW!\" \n\nShe quickly selected a timeline position in the interface and pushed the project button. There was the momentary whine as the power gathered and prepared to move her through the null-time dimensional transfer.\n\nIn that moment she saw the soldier Isaac die from a shot to the throat. Blood sprayed her face as he fell back. Rain saw his younger self staring in horror from the wall. \n\nThe world began to fade as she was transferred. She had time for one last thought before she vanished into the future.\n\nShe'd been so very wrong. So terribly wrong.\n\nShe hadn't been lucky at all." ]	2
	[WP] an alternate universe where Bob Ross is still alive, but he's a murderer who paints the places where he plans to kill his victims, but you only know this because you saw it but have no way to prove it so you watch his show in order to try and prove he's guilty until one day he paints your house	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 seen the devil, and his hair is curly. \n\nHave you gazed upon a landscape so beautiful that you could have mistaken it for a painting? Well, I found such a scene not so long ago, one so beautiful that somebody had painted it. \n\nI gazed out over a sap green forest, eyes buried in my binoculars, searching for wildlife amongst the clearings from my vantage point in the hills. \n\nIt all looked so familiar; the clouds mixing crimson and yellows with the setting sun; pines stretching out into the sky; the cabin nestled along a placid lake. \n\nThe cabin. I'd spotted it after five days of solo back-country hiking, and I was ecstatic at the chance for a bit of conversation and hopefully coffee that wasn't instant.\n\nFor a while, I stayed on the hill, mapping out where the cabin was in relation to my camp. It couldn't have been more than a thirty minute hike from where my tent stood. The woods were like that sometimes; you could be right on top of someone and not even notice. \n\nAs daylight wained, I took one last look at the cabin through my binoculars before heading down to my camp, and what I saw nearly took me over the edge with excitement. \n\nBob. Fucking. Ross.\n\nThere he was; he stepped cheerfully out of the cabin, his afro bouncing as he walked to the bank of the lake, his blue shirt stained with lovely red and pinks, and he washed away the paint from his hands before stepping under the veil of pines and out of my sight. \n\nI considered crying out, screaming his name to let him know he'd have a visitor in the morning, but I shook away my stupidity before heading down the hillside. This was the back country, and a crazed fan ruining his peace and quiet was probably the last thing Bob wanted. \n\nWith a smile on my face, I eased back down the slope and readied myself for the morning hike. \n\nI wasn't able to sleep much, so I rose and prepared my breakfast and coffee under a black sky peppered liberally with stars. At first light I was off, and I was at the cabin in less than an hour. \n\nEverything was still: the lake, the cabin, even the birds. I was eager to knock, but I decided against it. \n\nI'll wait for him to come out, I thought, trying to respect his privacy even though I was clearly invading it. Then I'll give it a few minutes before I leave the tree-line and reveal myself.\n\nOne hour.\n\nTwo hours.\n\nThe woods were wide awake, but the cabin still dozed.\n\nI started to feel like something was off. People didn't sleep this late out here, the sun and the birds and the call of the natural world didn't allow it. But it was still so quiet, not a creak or a thump to be heard from the log house.\n\nWhat if he's hurt? Or sick?\n\nIt was real concern, even if it was fueled by a lust to speak with one of my heroes, and I finally come out from my hiding place and approached the cabin door. As I knocked, I noticed more irregularities. I couldn't detect any scent of food or flame, and not a single puff of smoke rose from the chimney. The night hadn't been freezing, but anyone with a hearth would have used it. \n\nFinally, against my better judgement, I turned the knob and opened the door.\n\nRed.\n\nRed everywhere. Covering the planks on the floor, splattered on the walls, and staining the white sheets on the bed. My starstruck brain still hadn't processed it, but it wasn't long until I realized that what I was seeing wasn't paint, what I was smelling wasn't a nice, alizarin crimson acrylic, it was blood—it was death. \n\nAfter vomiting in the dirt, I worked up the courage to go back in and locate his body. I found it; in the kitchen, in the cupboards, in the outhouse, and every nook and cranny of the cabin. It wasn't until I made my way around the backside of the cabin that I realized I wasn't finding Bob's fingers and toes. They belonged to the severed head strapped to an easel facing the mountain looming over the murder scene. The head's long, blonde hair nearly touched the dirt, and blood still dripped from the strands like water after a shower. His face was painted, not in Bob's usual style, but more like a child's rendition of the lake, the forest, and the mountain. \n\nAt first, foolishly, I was relieved. It wasn't Bob—he wasn't dead—but relief gave way to paralyzing fear when the painted head slid into place as the final piece of the puzzle scrambled in my mind. \n\nBob Ross is a killer, and I've got to get the fuck out of here.\n\n_______\n\nI couldn't go to the rangers or the police, they'd never believe me. They would have laughed in my face until they went to look for themselves, and then I'd end up behind bars. And so began my mission to find Bob Ross and stop him myself.\n\nIt took some time to find it—so much so that I started to think I was crazy—but sure enough Bob had painted the scene and posted the video. Watching him paint everything in such detail, but pretending that it flowed out of his own imagination, it sent an eerie chill down my spine. The way he smiled and laughed, cracking jokes and painting the walls that I knew were covered in blood—it was evil incarnate.\n\nI watched every video he'd ever made, but I could never identify another location. And what good would it do? The video of that cabin had been posted almost two years before the actual murder. He seemed to paint his murder scene long before he killed his victims, so what hope did I have in stopping him? It was a dark year for me, and I made a bad habit out of drinking too much and taking to the comment section of his videos to preach that Bob Ross wasn't what he seemed. \n\nEventually I gave up on trying to convince people, and soon I was unsubbed from his channel and doing everything I could to not think about it. It took some time, but that scene by the lake faded from my mind like a bad dream.\n\n_____\n\nIt's been four years, and I'd like to think things are back to normal. I kept my eyes on the local news channels around woods I'd been hiking in that day, but nothing ever surfaced about the murder. \n\nMaybe it was a bad dream? Being alone in the woods can do tricky things to your mind, and maybe it was some strange hallucination?\n\nAs I pop open youtube, I notice something in my recommendations—a new Bob Ross post. I recoil for a moment, but quickly calm myself and click on the video.\n\nNothing ever came of it, it's something you made up in your head.\n\nBob is on my screen, his usual pleasant self, and he's explaining the scene he'll be painting. I'm not really listening, just sort of staring into his eyes, searching for any trace of evil in the innocence. It takes him being nearly done with the painting for me to realize—he's painting my house.\n\nThe grass climbing up the porch on the east side; the trees acting as a sparse canopy in the front yard, and the figure of a person in the window, my window, me, looking straight out from the flat canvas world he'd just created. \n\n\"I'm gonna beat the devil outa ya,\" his voice doesn't come from my computer, but from right behind me. Something strikes me in the head and I'm lifted out of my chair. I fold up on the floor, holding the side of my head and gazing up at him through watercolor vision. The colors of my room mix and blur like paints being swirled together in exploration for new hues. \n\n\"Please,\" I manage through the pain. \"Why are you doing this?\"\n\n\"I have unlimited power, on the canvas and in life,\" His tone reflects the relaxation and routine of any of his videos. \"And what can be painted can be punished.\"\n\n\"You're making a mistake,\" I keep pleading. \"You can't get away with this.\"\n\nBob hums as he laughs, smiling down at me like the stroke of death, and his voice is the last thing I ever hear. \n\n\"We don't make mistakes, friend. But some of us have happy little accidents. Now, let's get crazy.\"\n\n____\n\nr/beagletales" ]	2
	[WP] Being the oracle is no fun. Constant nagging from people asking how they will die, or what will happen to their quest that will obviously fail. Then, one day, you’re asked by the kind local wizard “Who is the chosen one, destined for the sacrificial ceremony tonight?” You gaze into the future..	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 for the first time see nothing. “What? That’s strange.” As you ponder to yourself. The Wizard picks up on your tells and uses it to his advantage. He’d been planning your demise for years now, crafting the right mix of spells, talking to the right people, and of course watching you very closely. By now he was quite keen on just about all of your possible responses, and it just so happened that you fell into the one response that elicited the most benefit for The Wizard, silence. Slowly, the guards look at you with worry, eager to eavesdrop an answer.\n\n“Hmm! Can you not see anything? How peculiar!” The room marinates with tension. “Wait! I know! You can’t predict your own future can you?” You flush red with equal parts embarrassment and anger. “If you see no one else as the sacrifices, then that leaves only you on the chopping block i’m afraid.” He uncovers a smile that looks like snakes filled his teeth. “Pity to sacrifice someone so useful,” The Wizard motions to the gaurds to restrain you for preparation. “Yet, how useful is an oracle who can lie? That is a question far beyond me.” \n\nRepressed memories from your days that commenced after your oracle training surge through your mind. You had met with The Wizard, and he asked you who to sacrifice, when you saw your best friend on the altar you knew you had to lie. You covered up your stillness with a bold answer, you said The Wizard’s mother was supposed to be sacrificed.\n\nEdit: Typo" ]	2
	[WP] You are woken up at 4 am by a frantic call of your mother. Your twin brother is missing. To your surprise, you find him bleeding on your couch and weakly crying for help. However, as the man reaches out to you, you remember, you were an only child, and your mother is 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/js5XDFB)\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 awoke to a call in the middle of the night, waking me up rudely. I groan, since I don't recognize the ringtone. Stupid advertising, why now?! I let the phone ring, because my grumpy ass has school tomorrow. It goes on and on, over and over. Why did I have to choose such an annoying general ringtone?! \n\nAfter what I think is a few minutes, I can't stand it anymore and pick up the phone. The first second or so sounded almost like static, but then a woman's voice shouts over the phone.\n\n\"Thank god you picked up!!\" She says, a voice my tired mind dimly recognizes as my mother. \"Your Brother! He's missing and I can't find him anywhere! I know you have school but--\"\n\n\"It's ok mom.\" I say, pinching the bridge of my nose to try and wake up. \"Family comes first. I'll be there in a few minutes.\"\n\n\"Thank you, Thank you so much!!\" She says, slowly devolving into sobs as the phone hangs up. In order for me to get moving I'll need a few things, and to call the police. I dial the number on the phone as my heavy steps ring out into the empty house. Well, they do until I see the mess on my couch.\n\nFrom the open front door, a trail of blood drags across the floor onto the couch. Someone is laying on it, staining my couch red with the large amounts of blood leaking from them. I can hear their labored breaths, wheezing very softly. I peer over the couch, afraid of who or what is in my house. His face is clawed up with deep strokes, and his chest is almost ripped open; It was almost as if something had tried to literally open him up, something inhuman. He's my brother, and I feel overjoyed that I found him, but his wounds remain.\n\nI rush to close the door and lock it. I was studying for medical school, so I'm semi-confident in being able to assist. But, as soon as we touch, he wheezes something at me and I know that something is not right.\n\n\"help...me...\" He says, with decaying ability to do so. The realization hits me like a boulder.\n\nI don't have a brother.\n\nMy mother died a few months ago.\n\nThis isn't my house. I look around and see a clock. Just as I thought, the numbers are switched up. I'm dreaming...sort of. I know I need to cure this man, because as soon as I realized my control began to fade. It's still a dream, I can do a few things, though somewhere it is real life.\n\nMy mind goes over my studies in my head as I try to heal him with whatever object I can pull to myself. Bandages end up in my hand.\n\nPerfect.\n\nI dial 911 as he stiffens with the tight wrappings, but says nothing. The ringtone goes on and on, but before I can answer the person faints. I guide what I think is his hand upwards to hand the phone to the brother before it all fades.\n\nI wake up in sweat, from a hard night's work. Dreams where I inhabit others are uncommon nowadays. I wonder why it happened?" ]	2
	[WP] "That's not my soul. THAT'S NOT MY SOUL!"	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 heat was starting to get to me. The crimson mist that surrounded me and the man beside me felt heavy and suffocating, layering on more heat and stress. My failing body was still finding ways to make me even more uncomfortable, even after going through hell to get Penny back. Maybe shouting isn't going to get my point across any easier.\n\n\"Of course it is, it looks just like you,\" the man said. For an all-powerful being, he dressed rather humbly, belying his true demeanour.\n\n\"I'm telling you that that thing in there is not me,\" I pointed to the faded figure in the ghostly river before me. Faces and bodies constantly moved within, souls trapped forevermore with nowhere to go other than downstream.\n\nThe Devil glanced back and forth between me and what he believed to be my soul, \"No, I'm pretty sure that's yours. This is my business, I know what I'm doing. I've been collecting souls from wayward folk like you for a long time, so don't think you're better at this than I.\"\n\n\"But half his face is sheared off! I was promised it was going to be well taken care of when we made the deal.\" I said.\n\nThe Devil hummed, \"Yes, that does complicate things. While the deal stipulates that no harm would come to your soul from my end, it does not cover any damage sustained from its own actions. Your soul is not quite the team player, apparently.\"\n\nThe deal I'd made was a risky one but I needed the information that this devil was willing to part with. My soul for the power to get Penny out of the hands of some very bad people. Now that she's back, I felt the need to renegotiate.\n\n\"What do you mean, 'not the team player'?\"\n\n\"He picked a fight with some rather unsavoury individuals during his stay here. One of them was known for his rather exceptional talent for removing skin. Shame we couldn't hire that one, he would have made a great addition down here.\"\n\n\"When I get my soul back, would it be in one piece?\" I asked.\n\n\"Rather presumptuous of you to expect your soul back. We had a deal, after all,\" he responded.\n\n\"Yeah, and it's over. I paid the price, you took my soul as payment, now I want it back.\"\n\n\"And what makes you think that I'll give it back? You do know who I am, don't you?\"\n\nHis eyes flared red as he flashed a wicked grin.\n\n\"I do. And I've faced worse, I used to work in retail. That soul in there is not mine, I'm telling you.\"\n\nHe scoffed, \"Fine then. There are other options. How about this one?\" he asked, pointing at one of the souls in the river. Its eyes were hollow, skin thin and stretched, and was covered in tattoos saying rather controversial things.\n\n\"This one's available. He didn't seem to want it anymore after that whole Buddhist thing he had going. I'm losing people all the time, I have to do something about that.\"\n\nI looked at him incredulously, \"No, I don't want to get a neo-nazi's soul! Are you kidding?\"\n\n\"The Devil does not kid or lie, boy. It would serve you well to remember that. This one here was an investment banker who embezzled funds from his company to by trinkets for his mistress. Does that tickle your fancy?\"\n\nI stood my ground, \"No, I want my soul.\"\n\n\"The one with the face sheared off? That one is yours, that's for certain. I can always tell by the eyes, something about them just screams individuality, you know? No two pairs of eyes are the same. Speaking of which,\"\n\nThe Devil turned sharply to face me, \"Can you see with those two useless eyeballs of yours that you aren't getting your soul back? It belongs to me. You made sure of that, if memory serves.\"\n\n\"Then I'll buy it back. Name your price.\"\n\n\"Would it be uncouth to ask for your soul?\" he asked with a grin.\n\n\"Whatever you need, I will pay for it. I just need to get it back so I can go home.\" I was coated with sweat and tired beyond belief. I was surprised my body has just shut down yet.\n\n\"Oh you'll pay for it,\" he muttered, probably hoping I didn't hear it, \"As I said earlier, I'm losing people all the time. The sinners are getting even rowdier with trying to deal with the politicians I've put in place to soften things up around in here. All of my imps are getting more and more gluttonous and lazy, truly living up the sinful life. And almost all of my torturers have gone on strike, something about a 'hostile workplace'.\"\n\nHe sighed, \"Let's make a new deal, as you are so keen to make them it seems.\"\n\nI eyed him suspiciously, \"Get to the point. What do I have to do to get my soul back?\"\n\n\"Work for me.\"\n\n\"Work for you? Are you kidding?\"\n\n\"I do not kid, I've told you this. Pay attention, you might learn something. But yes, I do want you as part of the team. I saw you handle those men that took your Penelope,\"\n\n\"Penny,\" I corrected.\n\n\"Not the point. We could use someone with skills like yours, and who better to use them than you? I will offer you your soul back in exchange for a five-year plan. You would be in charge of some day to day things around here. Sharpening pitchforks, turning the Wheel of Pain, the usual stuff.\"\n\n\"Five years? I'd be stuck down here for five years?\" I shouted.\n\n\"Do not worry, you won't be here the entire time, I know you wanted to spend time with Petra,\"\n\n\"Penny.\"\n\n\"It's very rude to keep interrupting like that. We may be in Hell but show some class. Despite what your people say, I am a sentimental man. For six months of the year, you will spend here, doing your assigned duties. The other six months can be spent at the side of your loved one. I feel that is more than fair, all things considered.\" He said as he sat down on a small chair on the river bank.\n\nI stood up straight, \"I accept. Anything to be with her, anything. When do I start?\"\n\nThe devil summoned a long spear out of thin air and tossed it to me, \"Right now. Follow the signs over to the legal department,\" he pointed at the spear, \"Use that to poke them every now and then.\"\n\nI stood still, awaiting any further instructions.\n\n\"I adore the heroes of stories coming to save their loved ones, I really do.\" he said, taking in a deep breath, \"It's romantic and dramatic and all that. But the worst part is that they never really look at the fine print. The Devil's in the details, as they say. You don't really hold much of a candle to the old heroes, offence intended.\"\n\nI resisted the urge to try and hit him with the spear. His tiny little horned head was just asking to be domed.\n\n\"This meeting is over. We'll get the paperwork all done later. Now, shoo.\" he brushed his hand in my direction.\n\nWithout another word, I walked off, spear in hand, to the next step of my adventure, however indentured it may be." ]	2
	[WP] You’re old and hold the sum total of the memories of many dead demon hunters but your body is mortal. You must magically pass the memories onto a new body of someone in your bloodline. But whoever holds it will never have children. Demons know your death is near and are tracking you vigorously.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", " Invitations left three days ago on the wings of pigeons. Every wench and widow that'd ever known the sweet embrace of Balon the Bloody was contacted on the chance that an offspring spawned from their encounter. Balon sat at the foot of his bed, thinking back on his sexual history, in hopes that at least one child would knock on his door. He would only need one child to pass on his memories and the memories of his predecessors; willingly or not, his knowledge would be gifted.\n\n A totem hummed in the corner of the room: an indicator of nearby demons. They'd been following Balon for weeks, not expecting him to be hiding in a solitary hut in the woods. That was far too vulnerable for the feeble, old demon hunter. Were they to attack, Balon would be dead in seconds. The totem in Balon's hands hummed as well: indicative of nearby blood-relatives. He smiled, not knowing who would find him first. The unpredictability of his life followed him to the end.\n\n Flora and fauna ceased their rustlings outside. Footsteps, scarcely audible to Balon's elderly ears, clipped the stones of his hut's doorstep. Balon clenched the crossbow tightly within his hands. Three knocks shook the wooden door. The demon totem on the shelf hummed itself into a free fall, shattering on the floor on the hut. Balon exhaled deeply. \n\n \"Come in,\" Balon accepted his fate, aiming into the center of the doorframe. It came open all at once, but there was no figure within the funnel. Only the framed portrait of swampy woodland. Balon sighed. If he were to die, he wished it would be done quickly. The tricks and traps of demons were wasted on him.\n\n \"I do not require coaxing, demon. There is no fight left in me. My soul is yours to devour.\"\n\n A boy poked his head around the frame of the door. He showed both hands, unarmed and covered in soot. Balon lowered the crossbow slightly, still ready to end this boy's life. After all, he could simply be a dirty demon trick.\n\n \"Who are ye?\" Balon asked. The boy walked fully into the doorway. He was perhaps twenty years old and wore a flowing bathrobe. The boy laughed.\n\n \"Mother said to be cautious upon entering. You were never very trusting of guests,\" the boy entered, dropping dozens of letters onto the floor of the hut. Each of them still attached to a pigeon's leg. \"Even when you've sent out invitations.\"\n\n \"You've not answered my question, boy,\" Balon spat. He raised the crossbow again. The boy's eyes were yellow slits. \n\n \"I'm your son.\"\n\n \"I see what you are, boy. You're no son of mine.\"\n\n \"Ah, the demon hunter knows not of his own possession. You've not always been the impenetrable fortress you are today, Balon. You once played fast and loose with the drinks and the socializing,\" the boy began to dance into the hut, unconcerned with the bolt aimed at his skull. \"A drunk demon hunter at a capitol bar is a prime target for a succubus, wouldn't you say?\"\n\n The aged demon hunter was silent, trying to remember his youth.\n\n \"And, as we both know,\" the boy continued, \"It's not required that the succubus repurpose your genetics into a human female. Hell, there's no rules about it at all. They're demons!\"\n\n Balon laughed to himself. There had been nights he didn't remember. Mornings he'd woken up alone and naked, smelling of sex and sweat. There'd never been any inclination that he'd been the victim of a succubus. The demon hunter scratched his crotch.\n\n \"So, you're my son?\" Balon sighed.\n\n \"Indeed.\"\n\n \"You have my blood?\" Balon began to stand. The boy rushed over to help, giggling and mocking the old man's weakness.\n\n \"I am wrought of your seed. Half-demon, half-demon killer.\"\n\n \"Then, you shall have these,\" Balon pressed his thumb into the boy's forehead. \n\n The boy screamed and writhed, but could not leave Balon's grasp. Horns sprouted from the boy's skull and his eyes changed to a deep purple. Fire dripped from his tongue, forced into his full form. His scream shook the house and, eventually, the trees swayed with his escaping breath. The pack of demons outside matched the boy's pitch.\n\n The boy collapsed in Balon's arms, but was held up by the last of the old man's strength. The demon hunter looked deeply into the heavy, purple eyes of his hybrid son.\n\n \"Now you know why I've done what I did. I had to,\" Balon announced. \"Now, you must do what you have to.\"\n\n The boy regained his footing and sunk his teeth into the neck of old Balon. The flesh gave away, muscle and tendons snapped, blood sprayed across the room. Balon loosed a single crossbow bolt, knocking over a lamp and setting the house ablaze. As he dropped the old man, the boy unsheathed the demon hunter's blade. \n\n The hut collapsed as the boy exited, greeted as a hero to the demon's waiting outside. The boy hid the blade inside his robe, toying with it slowly. The memories of the demon hunter's bloodline coursed through his brain. It burned.\n\n The host of demons rode deep into the swamp and came upon a small village. The boy felt conflict for the first time in his life. Morals had sprung up from the memories.\n\n \"Why don't we wait until dusk. You all get some rest,\" the boy grasped the blade fully in his hands. \"I'll take the first watch.\"" ]	2
	[WP] UPS screws up and switches Thanos's and Doomfist's gauntlets.	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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.", "“Hey, nice skin, Doomfist,” I said over my microphone.\n\n“What skin, gayboy,” a childish voice shot back. “Also, tell your mom I’ll stop by tonight.”\n\nLovely. There’s nothing else like playing with strangers online. I ignored him and continued to play. I decided to pick Mercy, since nobody else ever plays healer.\n\nI took another look at the kid’s skin. It was the regular Doomfist skin but with Thanos’s infinity gauntlet. I was surprised to see Blizzard struck a deal with Marvel to get the rights to that, but I chalked it up to Overwatch’s rising popularity.\n\nThe round started and we were on attack. We couldn’t advance forward, and it felt we were down a player. I died to a Widowmaker and then I realized we actually were down a player – the kid was AFK. I never understood why people queue up then leave to do something else. Do they not realize it’s wasting everyone’s time?\n\nI respawned and ran out our spawn-room gates, and thankfully saw Doomfist rushing ahead of me.\n\n“Welcome back,” I said.\n\n“Sorry,” he replied, with a long burp, “Your mom is a needy lady.”\n\nAfter a few minutes we started making progress. We captured their first point and were pushing the second, but once again our assault came to a halt. Or at least, I thought it did, but then three of the enemy players disconnected. That was half their team. Then, the kid started screaming on the mic.\n\n“Whoa guys!” He cried out like a banshee, “I have the infinity gauntlet! I just made those three disappear!” \n\n“Stop trolling,“ someone on our team said, “It’s not funny.”\n\n“I’m not trolling,“ the kid cried, “Watch, I’ll do it again.”\n\nAnd, true to his word, he did. Just it was half of our team that disconnected this time. Then it was just me on Mercy, the kid on Doomfist, and the one who called him a troll playing Genji.\n\n“Nice job, idiot,” Genji said, “Now we’ll definitely lose. Everyone knows it’s easier to defend when it’s 3v3 than it is to attack.\"\n\n“It’s not my fault!” the kid wailed, “I’ll just do it again to fix it!”\n\nHe did, and the D.VA on the enemy team disconnected. But we were somehow still losing, despite them having only two players now. The Genji was getting frustrated.\n\n“Jesus, Doomfist. it’s 3v2 and you still have less impact than our Mercy. You fucking suck,” Genji said.\n\n“Hey, don’t be mean to the kid,” I started to say, but he interrupted me in a rage.\n\n“SHUT UP GENJI!” he roared, with a voice crack in between, “Stop talking right now or else I’ll make you disappear too!”\n\n“Go ahead. I don’t care,” Genji responded, “I’ve already reported you for hacking, kid.”\n\n“Don’t say I didn’t warn you,” the kid said, trying to sound cool.\n\nAnd then, in the game’s chat logs:\n\n“Doomfist has disconnected from the game.”\n\nThe Genji roared with laughter over the mic, and I couldn’t help but join him.\n\nWe eventually made a comeback and won the game." ]	2
	[WP] You and your friends just finished a game of Jumanji, surviving by the skin of your teeth. As you all celebrate your victory and relief one of your friends turns to you and says one of the bad guys said something just as we were about to beat them, he said "I'm never getting out of here am I"	[ "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/js5XDFB)\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 down to this set of circumstances, wasn't it? A hunger games scenario, 24 people were thrown into the horrible Jumanji machine, and forced to fight thier way out.\n\n22 had died, 4 of which were friends, and 3, enemies. It was just me and my sister Sky now. We had been through seven hells and nine circles. I can't speak for her but.... I'd grown increasingly attached to her as our trial of misfortune went on.\n\nWe are located near the edge of a jungle, where a clean cut border of snow holds our last game.\n\nI clear my head, I need to focus. \n\n\"Three Lives, like in the old Jumanji machine.\" Ben's words at the temple are repeated even now. Sky tries to relax, but the sharp coldness of the snow was not held back by the border. She spoke. \"Ben... he really... I can't believe it.\" Her voice was one of a quivering tone. \n\n Ben had been with us since the beginning, but betrayed us at the temple. He shattered Maple's last life and tried to finish us, but had a misstep and his own life count hit zero. Sky was really close to him. \n\nThe drums began thier cult like chant. We both got up, and slung our bags onto our shoulders. This was nothing new, but it always kicked us into action. We ran into the snow, and not a moment too soon. The area behind us turned into a fine purple mist.\n\nHaving warm winter clothes was a lifesaver. I need to apologize to Sky for yelling at her. She shouted over the windy snowfall. \"I can't see a thing!\" Neither could I. I spoke my response. \"Let's keep moving.\" \n\nWe walked until the snow was at our knees. Sky was barely visible, and I voiced my concern. \"I can barely see you.\" I thought for a moment. \"Stay close.\" Sky stopped. My vision was getting worse. I thought for a minute she had passed. \n\nShe then sprang into me.\n\n\"Keep moving!\" She blurted out, locking her hand with mine. I treaded forward, with a new spark of energy. It seems like we were, in that moment, a perpetual source of energy for each other. \n\nWe hit a door.\n\nI frantically threw it open and we both ducked inside. \n\nWe both collapsed, out of everything. Sky finally came back from the brink, and screamed. It took me a minute, but I saw too. \n\nThe main villain was sitting in a chair, watching us.\n\nI scrambled for my weapons, but the Villain just sat there. \n\nHe spoke.\n\n\"There is no need for weapons.\" You have already won. \n\nMe and Sky both looked at each other in confusion.\n\nI was confused. The dude in the beginning said that to win, we had to kill the guy sitting in front of us. \"But-\"\n\nThe villain spoke in a tone of insanity. \"No! you don't understand! There was never a good or evil!\"\n\nBoth me and Sky were sitting in the corner, speechless.\n\n\"Don't you see? There were 25! Twenty! Five! It's been everywhere, it's my dang logo!\"\n\nEverything slid into place. \n\nThe villain broke down crying. \"I, I did everything to stop you guys. But.... you always won....\"\n\n\n\"Them people, all your friends... I didn't want any of it.\"\n\nAll of my gone friends...\n\n\"I didn't sent any of those attacks, it was all the generals. I swear!\"\n\nEveryone who's died to see us live.\n\n\"I watched Ben commit murder after murder. Alex, Sam, Leo, Rachel... and... and....\"\n\nMaple.\n\nIt all broke my mind.\n\nSky.\n\nThe world faded for a minute. \n\nBen.\n\nI was shook back to reality. \n\nThe villain spoke in a forgiving manner. \"You guys win. I can't kill you. A plane's already on it's way to pick me up. I'll be dead on impact.\"\n\nI did have one more question. \n\n\"What's your name?\"\n\nHe responded as he got up and nonchalantly walked out the door. \n\n\"David.\"\n\nHe left.\n\nMe and Sky lay in each other's arms as we wait for the game to end. What will happen to us? And David, his life was ended early. Punished by the universe for being a good person. \n\nThe drums go off, this time to signal a final loss of life. \n\nSky's breath was slow, and she spoke in a whisper. \n\n\"You ready?\"\n\nI nodded.\n\nIn unison, we both uttered the cursed word that would haunt us until we died.\n\n\"Jumanji.\"\n\n-CUT-\n\nHi! My name's Sean, And I'm 14! I love to write, and for this story, I wanted to try a more emotional feeling. I also wanted to twist the natural sense of right and wrong, by relating the two main characters.\n\nIf you want to read my other story, there's a link on my profile!", "We had done it, even if we lost all our extra lives in the process. We were going to escape the cursed game Jumanji all we needed to do now was put the crystal in the designated spot. You were moments away from completing the quest, until you heard a very resigned sigh from the villain.\n\n\"I'm never getting out of here am I?\"\n\nIt wasn't that loud and if you hadn't gotten him tied up just a few feet away from you, you wouldn't have heard it. The words made the hairs on the back of your hair stand on you were visibly shaken. Stuttering out a weak,\"W-what do you mean never getting out?\"\n\nHis gunmetal grey eyes steel on you, and you felt yourself gulp. It was shining, his eyes, as if pleading. Something wasn't right, there was no way he could be a real person too. After all, there were only five playable characters and that was you and your friends. \n\n\"It means exactly what you're thinking.\" He replies, and you all freeze. \n\n\"You're lying!\" Anne, one of your friend's shouts. She hadn't really heard anything aside from what you had asked him and his reply. Anne was intelligent and you could guess she put two and two together. \n\nThe villain laughs hopelessly,\"Do you think I'd lie about this?\"\n\n\"Hey! What's going on? Why haven't you put the crystal in the spot you little dweeb.\"\n\nOh shit, it was Marcus behind him was Faye and Allen. They had all caught up to you due to your hesitation. You hastily explained the current situation to them, and it seemed only Marcus and Anne were skeptical. \n\n\"What,\" Marcus starts as he walks his way towards you menacingly,\"are you saying we'd give him what he wants and stay here in this shithole?\"\n\n\"But-\"\n\n\"No! You'd give up five lives for one? Are you fucking stupid? I hate this place! Take us back right now dweeb.\"\n\n\"M-Marcus how can you just say that? We're going to doom someone else's life to Jumanji.\" Faye adds in as she rushes to your side. She wasn't exactly taking anyone's side but right now, she didn't know what to do. It didn't seem right to her to be the one to decide who gets to go home, and who doesn't.\n\n\"He could be lying too Faye, after all, there were only 5 characters to be put in. The villain isn't even a choice.\"\n\n\"How can you be so sure, Anne? We didn't make this game.\" This time it was Allen who had come to defend the villain. This wasn't right, why was everyone fighting? \n\n\"I'm still here you know, are you not even going to listen to my story?\"\n\n\"Shut up bad guy! We're discussing here.\"\n\nWhile you were distracted by everyone arguing you failed to notice that Marcus had arrived right in front of you. His eyes gleamed murder as he quietly gritted out so only you could hear,\"Give me the crystal.\" \n\n\"No way! Not until we-\"\n\nIt wasn't right, why was Marcus given Dr. Smolder Bravestone? Your character had been Franklin Finbar so it was easy for him to snatch the crystal from you.\n\n\"I don't care where he's from, I want to go home. Stay here if you want dweeb.\"\n\nHe stuffs the crystal into it's rightful place and everyone immediately stares at you and Marcus. As if time had slowed, you see the villain crumple. It tears your heart how even in this game you couldn't do anything, not when it matters the most. Before you were transported to a safe zone, you feebly tell him.\n\n\"I'm sorry.\"\n\n--OKAY I planned on describing them but realised midway it was EU, so I ditched it. uwu \n\nI wanted to use the \"you\" pov bec the prompt used \"you etc\" lmao. Also I oddly find this pov fun. This honestly felt rushed to me, and I just wanted to give the villain grey eyes, bec grey eyes are pretty LMAO\n\nAny feedback is appreciated uwu \n\n--" ]	3

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