Week 2 Winners are out! Here are all of the entries:
Wendigo (WIP)Norma Jean drew a heart on the back of my hand in hoop snake blood.<da:thumb id="554092361"/>
“When that fades,” she said, tapping the center of her work, “you may forget about me.”
Norma Jean and I dated on and off through high school and then some. We grew up wandering the forest and exploring the caverns surrounding Ripple Creek, running from the hidebehinds and hodags when we stumbled too far into their territory.
The day Norma Jean disappeared, I saw a teakettler scuttling around the shed behind my place. It walked backwards, like they do, and bumped right into the pile of wood I spent all day chopping. Teakettlers don’t ever stray so far from the woods; they’re very shy. It was actually kind of cute – it looked more or less like a cat, but huskier. I had planned to see about trapping it the next day, to show Norma Jean – course, that didn’t happen after all.
I heard about Norma Jean the next morning, on my way to the general store for a new axe; the ax
Casimiro finds port in Sao Jorge da MinaPortuguese captain Casimiro Dimas came from his audience with King Joao II full of fervour and determination: he would sail to establish a trade route with India and he would do it for his king. His ship, Graça de Antȏnio, was stocked and ready to sail and the crew were eager to reach São Jorge da Mina and begin trading with the Africans they knew. As to finding out what lay beyond, well, that was up to fate and God and, perhaps, a little grace from St Antȏnio. They could use his grace, as the saint was the patron saint of finding things and a sea trade route to the east needed finding more than ever, as it would be a quicker route by far than the land trade already established.
“Captain, how did the meeting go?” Horacio, his first mate, questioned him when he reached the ship.
“As well as can be expected. The king has granted us leave to travel to São Jorge da Mina, and then from there south and east.”
“South and east? You mean
The VictorHis hands trembled as though frozen. His wrists quaked out in front of him and he tentatively curled in his fingers, almost as though in disbelief that they still functioned. Without warning, he grabbed his face and caressed his skull, visible under gaunt, tight skin. He was alive.<da:thumb id="554386447"/>
And Lyrndal, God of Lyrnda, was not.
James felt a shiver move from his hands (as though they pushed their shakiness out into the rest of his body) to his chest, his throat, his well-shaped mouth and cynical bright eyes. He laughed in conflicting pride and self-loathing.
He was now a God Killer by title, joining the ranks of an order whose members he could count on two hands hand. His father would certainly herald his arrival. Yet so too was he a god killer by deed: hundreds of thousands of Lyrndans, devoid of their deity, were shrieking all around him in the temple and outside, their voices echoing in a cacophonous symphony that carried for what must have been miles. It was the loudest sound he
The Last Golden StoneThe Last Golden Stone by J.A. Grier
Shener spoke into my mind, “We are getting close, Tasha.”
I stopped and turned to look down at him. I didn’t have to look down very far because Shener was a huge, huge wolf. His eyes glittered up into mine through the dim light of the forest.
I felt my heart sink. I was exhausted and injured. I gazed down at my sword and thought about all my recent kills. I thought to him, “So soon. We barely survived the last two trials.”
He thought back, “We’ll be lucky to survive this one, too.”
I laughed a little, I couldn’t help it, and went down on one knee before him. I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him close. He licked my face as I said aloud, “It was you that saved us both times before.”
“Counting on me again, are you?”
I smiled, “Of course I am.”
He shook his head and snorted, sounding like a horse, “Two
Innocence lostViolette looked longingly at the opening in the tall stone wall. She couldn’t see past it, or through the thicket that was beyond it. She remembered this door. She’d dreamt of it before. Some times Violette could tell she was dreaming, like now. Staring at this gateway, she remembered that beyond those bushes was adventure and joy. Details were foggy, but the essence of what awaited her on the other side of that wall was pure happiness.
She stepped forward, but a rocky outcropping from the wall was sticking out too far. Ducking under it, she tried to move through. Brambles with sharp thorns caught on her shirt, and prevented her from getting past. Pulling, wriggling, pushing, Violette just couldn’t seem to make any headway.
Taking a step back, Violette studied the opening. From back here, it looked like there was plenty of room. Only when she moved closer did the way seem clogged with branches and debris. Why
The Ice BreakerIt wasn’t the birdsong, but the shattering boom that woke her.
Ceylin barely had time to rub her eyes before she scrambled to her feet. Her little charge had woken as well, and the girl clung to Ceylin’s leg with a new ferocity. She hid her cringing face in Ceylin’s tail, keeping her arm sling flush to her trembling chest.
The centauress took a moment to soothe the little one, and instructed her to stay put, before she moved to the doorway and peered outside. Ceylin scowled as she scanned the area first, then emerged from the shelter of the thick tree roots. She trotted around to the other side of the large tree and followed the steam beside it towards the forest. The noises carried a long way this winter morning.
It took her mere minutes to locate the source of the problem.
He was facing away from her, standing almost waist-deep in the water, driving a stick against the bank. Ceylin watched as sizable chunks of ice drifted by with the current.
“What are you doi
Knight of RoadsSunlight dapples a forest clearing thick with berry bushes and thorns, filtering down through the green boughs of close-grown trees. A brown road starts before two ash-gray trees with white branches and silver leaves. The twin trees twine together above to form an archway, through which the forest becomes shrouded in heavy shadow, the way shut tight by dense foliage.
A man, clad in armor of a many-hued metal, rides from the bright road into the clearing on a tawny horse. He pats the horse's neck and whispers, “Goodnight, Woodglue.”
The horse neighs and vanishes, popping like a soap bubble and a flash of gold sparks. The man lands on his feet, knees bent. He steadies himself, straightens up, and reaches to pull off his helm.
Bareheaded, he stares at the twin ashen trees. His hair is shaggy and black, growing down the sides of his face to become a bushy beard. With sunken eyes and sallow cheeks, he appears gaunt and haggard. But he stands tall, unbowed.
A great voice bellows
Witches of Salem (Short Story)
Mary stood with the other girls of Salem Village and stared at the line of women on the raised platform. Conversation from the crowd buzzed around her like insects on a hot, humid day. Mary clenched the coarse fabric of her skirt, and a hush fell over the crowd as Chief Justice William Stoughton stepped onto the platform.
He spoke to the crowd, but none of the words registered for Mary. Her eyes slowly trailed over the faces of the women facing the crowd, hands tied behind their backs and a thick rope placed around their necks. One of the women stood with her chin lifted towards the crowd so that she could glare down her nose at them.
Mary watched the woman and stepped back into the group of girls when the woman’s sharp eyes rolled over them. A pinch on the back of her arm—a reminder to stay in line—made Mary stop.
A voice rang out from the back of the crowd when the Chief
The Fae of TeraloreThe soft white sand shifts and glitters under my feet as i stare one last time out at the ocean as Teralore's sun sets
before i turn reluctantly from my favorite part of every day and head off in to the forest .
Teralore is a planet like earth in ever aspect other than the sun , Its red and never as hot or bright as earths .
We are in a parallel dimension to earth and yet light years away .
We were driven here centuries ago when human kind began to reject us from society because of our uniqueness as our elders recall.
The forest is quite for most of my walk untill the wind picks up blowing my hair crazy and knocking me into a tree , quickly tying it high in a pony tail i take off at a dead run straight for the clearing that marks the start of Mirali the fire fae's village .
"lady Aralya your late for dinner the elders will not be pleased "
I smile at the petite brunette in front of me , her names Saare shes the handmaid for the head elder
" Im sorry Saare i love the sunset i dont mean
A second chanceTwo women, one with hair black as ebony and one with hair white as snow stood across each other on a desolate plain, their once beautiful garments torn from the past battles, their once pretty faces distorted to grimaces of hatred and agony.
Their fallen comrades, laid around them, scattered by the furies these two had invoked, trying to procure victory for their side.
As a soft wind picked up, their long and pointy ears twitched, as their nostrils perceived the smell of heavenly tears. It would begin to rain soon.
The black haired woman rammed her staff into the ground and shouted, "So it has finally come to this..."
"So it would seem," the white haired woman replied, leaning ever so slightly on her own staff, trying to not allow the fatigue to show on her face.
The black haired woman closed her eyes briefly, then picked up her staff, raised it into the air and shouted, "By the great mother of Darkness, this battle ends here and today!"
The white haired woman also picked up her staff
But now what you really want:
1st place:
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2nd place:
The Last Golden StoneThe Last Golden Stone by J.A. Grier
Shener spoke into my mind, “We are getting close, Tasha.”
I stopped and turned to look down at him. I didn’t have to look down very far because Shener was a huge, huge wolf. His eyes glittered up into mine through the dim light of the forest.
I felt my heart sink. I was exhausted and injured. I gazed down at my sword and thought about all my recent kills. I thought to him, “So soon. We barely survived the last two trials.”
He thought back, “We’ll be lucky to survive this one, too.”
I laughed a little, I couldn’t help it, and went down on one knee before him. I threw my arms around his neck and hugged him close. He licked my face as I said aloud, “It was you that saved us both times before.”
“Counting on me again, are you?”
I smiled, “Of course I am.”
He shook his head and snorted, sounding like a horse, “Two
3rd place:
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REMEMBER: just because you didn't place this week doesn't mean you can't win the Grand Prize! Be sure to submit to week 3 for a chance at weekly prizes as well! tWR Summer Genre Contest: Week 3
This year we will be running a slalom event for genre fiction. Three weeks. Three stories. There will be prizes at the end of each round for the best story of the round, and then, a mega prize at the end for the first place winner who completes all three rounds. Go here for the full logistics and rules!
Week 3's Genres are:
Romance or HorrorWhat to do this week:
Write a story in one of the two genres above, 1,500 words or less, prose only. You will have one week to do this. No fanfiction, no non-fiction. To submit your entry, link it to the journal with the current week’s prompt.But remember!:
You don't have to submit to more than one week if you don't want to. Just one, or two is fine. But we hope you submit to all three. Only someone who has done all three weeks will be eligible for the final Grand Prize.Prizes:
Weekly prizes:
1st Place:
1 month Core Membership from TheMaidenInBlack
50 pts from doughboycafe
50 pts from inknalcohol
25 pts from WyvernLetDie
Critique from TheMaidenInBlack, doughboycafe
Features from theWrittenRevolution, HugQueen
2nd Place:
25 pts from doughboycafe
25 pts from inknalcohol
25 pts from WyvernLetDie
Critique from TheMaidenInBlack, doughboycafe
Features from theWrittenRevolution, HugQueen
3rd Place:
25 pts from inknalcohol
10 pts from doughboycafe
Critique from TheMaidenInBlack, doughboycafe
Features from theWrittenRevolution, HugQueen
Go here for the full logistics and rules!
You have until 11:59pm EST, Thursday August 27th to get your entry in! Good luck!
>>All hail GinkgoWerkstatt for this beautiful skin.
