All proof for dailies and weeklys will be posted here :>

Ok so I actually did the daily for yesterday in the Megathread on accident.
Today's daily:
262 words (vague)
“She said she didn’t get it.” he muttered under his breath. “I gave it. I remember she said something about it. Something, something, something.” He said while kicking a nearby wall, scuffing his boot. He dropped to the ground and put his head in his hands.

“She said something about it, I just don’t remember.” He tore his fingers through his hair, ripping out brown strands. He knocked his head against the brick wall. He sat there for what felt like hours. The rain soon soaked him to the bone. After a while, clothes drenched, he limped to shelter under a large tree and laid down, lost in thought. He hummed a tune to himself.

“I lost it along the way. Along the way. Along the way.” Suddenly, he heard a sound, and spun around. He gasped; it was her.

“You said that you gave me it. You never gave me anything. You didn’t care. You watched as it all fell apart.”

“I tried. I gave what I could.” He sobbed, falling to the ground, his knees hitting the floor.

“I warned you about it. I told you what would happen.” Her voice was like ice and she glared at him. What a weakling she thought. A disgrace. She stood over him and kicked him with her shoe. He let out a weak cry of pain. She smirked, taking pleasure from his pain.

“It was everything to me.” She kicked him again. This time blood flowed from the wound. It trickled down his backside and pooled on the ground. She smiled, satisfied.

Ambiguous (250 words)
“Have you seen the bark of that dog?” Shoto asked Emily.

“You mean heard not seen right?” Emily questioned, confused.

“No, no, the bark of that dogwood tree over there.” Shoto pointed at a dogwood tree across the street.

“Oh, no I haven’t, let’s go over and look.” Emily started to walk across the street.

“Wait don’t step on that lead!” Shoto yelled out a warning. Emily stopped.

“What lead? I don’t see rope anywhere.” Emily said.

“Don’t you see that pencil?” asked Shoto. “You were going to step on it and crack the lead!”

“Oh, lead in a pencil, that makes more sense. But why would you care about me stepping on a pencil. You’re acting quite strange today…” Emily responded. She wondered why Shoto was acting so weird today, maybe it was something he had eaten. She crossed the street quickly and after inspecting the dogwood tree sat down on the grass.

“Want to go to the nearby bank?” Shoto asked her.

“Well I don’t have a bank account. So why would I go?” Emily asked Shoto. She had never once mentioned having a bank account to Shoto. She didn’t even know that Shoto had a bank account either. Everything seemed off today, maybe she was just going crazy.

“No, no, the bank over there.” Shoto pointed to a small riverbank.

“Oh sorry, everything seems to have double meanings today. Of course we can go to the bank.” She grabbed Shoto’s hand and raced off to the riverbank.

daily: My proverb is “beggars can’t be choosers.”

“Please sir, would you lend a poor beggar a hand.” a beggar grabbed at a wealthy man's coat tails desperately. His grimy fingers streaked dirt across the fine blue silk.

The wealthy man sighed. He took an apple and placed it in the beggar's hand. Then he strode off. The beggar was disgusted with the apple, what was he going to do with an apple. He supposed he could sell it, but not much else. He watched as the wealthy man strode off into the distance, he bet that man had lots of coin, but he gave him a miserable apple.

The beggar walked around looking for someone who might buy his apple. He spied a fruit vendor and approached him.

“Sir, would you be willing to buy this apple for 25 coin?” He begged the man. The man looked at him distastefully.

“I suppose.” The man didn’t really want the apple, but he felt bad for the beggar. The beggar gave theol apple to the vendor and snatched up the coin.

A few hours later.

The man was closing up the shop and he looked sadly at his profits. He wasn’t going to be able to get his wife something for her birthday. He sighed, he wished that he could do better for her, she deserved better. If only he could have gotten her that ring she wanted.

He grabbed the apple that the beggar had sold him and put it in his bag. But he thought he saw something glinting in the apple. He pulled it back out of his bag and took a small bite, uncovering the glinting object. He let out a gasp. It was a diamond ring. He dug it out of the apple to inspect it. The ring had rubies engraved on it and the ring was made of gold. He let out a yell of excitement and sprinted home with a skip in his step.

(329 words)

WEEKLY
total words: 2847

Part 1:



Character Sheet-



Keefe Sencen from the Keepers of the Lost Cities Series.



Series continuing or ended: continuing



Pronouns: he/him



Sexuality: straight



Species: elf



Strengths: sense of humor, bright, curious, brave, loyal,



Weaknesses: self deprecating humor, lack of compassion for himself, not forgiving himself/being too hard on himself, impulsiveness, self-guilt.



General view on life: not hateful, shifts more towards hateful as the books go on and then back again.



Tendencies:



Covering up his problems with jokes and humor.



Not letting his true emotions show and bottling them up.



Playing pranks on his friends.



Situations:



His friends withhold information from him.



Reacts by: Angrily blocking them out of his life and feeling betrayed. Acts distant, doesn’t share information with them, and acts impulsively, usually making up plans that lead to disaster.



Black Swan turns down his ideas.



Reacts by: Following through with his plan anyway without telling anyone. (this usually leads to failure or someone getting hurt/injured)



Romantic Struggles:



Isn’t very open about his feelings, or casually flirts with everyone but never makes his romantic feelings really known.



There isn’t really much here because he isn’t currently in a relationship, and most of the books don’t really talk about Keefe’s romantic life, except for the last few.





Scenario: Keefe finds out Sophie was taken by the Neverseen.



This situation is set during books 4-7.



Mr. Forkle heard a loud thump on his door, it sounds almost as if someone had slammed their fist into it. He groaned, he knew he was going to have to deal with this sooner or later.



“Come in.” he said towards the door. The door swung open with such a force that the doorknob rammed into the wall and dented it.



“Where is Sophie?!” Keefe glared at Mr. Forkle. “What did you do to her? And don’t try to lie because I checked her room, she didn’t just go out on some walk in the forest.”



Mr. Forkle let out a long sigh. “Sophie was out on a mission for the Black Swan. And before you ask its top secret, and I will not be giving you any details about it. While she was undertaking this mission, she was captured by the Neverseen. We believe that they are holding her hostage somewhere in Atlantis, but we do not know the exact location.”



Keefe gritted his teeth. “What about her bodyguards? Were they with her? You know that the Neverseen could attack at any moment.”



Mr. Forkle let out another sigh, this one even longer than the last. “In order to avoid the risk of her being discovered we decided it would be best to leave her bodyguards behind.”



“You what!?” Keefe exclaimed.



“You heard what I said Keefe.” Mr. Forkle said in a calm tone.



“So then, what’s the plan to get her back? Surely you aren’t just going to leave her with the Neverseen.” Keefe said, barely containing the edge in his voice.



“We are currently devising a plan on which to rescue her. We are not going to rush into this situation, risking many more lives. If you would, we would appreciate your help in planning Mr. Sencen.”



Keefe cringed at the sound of “Mr. Sencen.” “What about while you guys are dilly dallying making up a plan? What if they do something to her?” he questioned Mr. Forkle.



“I don’t appreciate you calling our strategic thinking “dilly dallying” but Mr. Sencen you must understand that this is a risk we have to take.”



“Well I’m not going to risk Sophie’s life. I’ll go rescue her. I don’t need the Black Swan’s help.” Keefe said angrily.



“Mr. Sencen I advise against that. Please take a moment to reconsider.” Mr. Forkle said in an aggravatingly calm tone.



Keefe took a slow breath in. His attitude shifted from angry to sober. “I have to do it. If Sophie dies I’ll never forgive myself.” Then he strode out of the room and the door closed shut with a bang.



“You kids..” Mr. Forkle ran a hand across his face, he knew this was going to end in disaster. (458 words)



Part 2:



Will and Horace from the Ranger’s Apprentice series. Note: this is only their character voices from books 1-3. Their character voices change a lot over the books so it would be really hard to write about their voices throughout all of them.



Will: Always curious and wanting to know more about a subject. Usually speaks in a way you would expect of a younger person, not extremely sure of his words, still doesn’t yet have the “wisdom” of an adult. Very charismatic, basically everyone who meets him enjoys his presence. If he is excited about something he will make it known, usually using his tone of voice and body movements. If someone were to compliment him on his actions, he would respond by saying that it was nothing but a coincidence that he was just in the right place at the right time. (100 words exactly)



Horace: Because Horace is so muscular and big people think he’s not very bright, but the opposite is true. Horace is very smart, but he often takes a lot of time to think over ideas before speaking them out loud. This leads to him seeming not very quick on the uptake because it takes him awhile to respond. He cares a lot about his moral values and following the rules. He used to be bullied by the older boys at his battle school, but one day he taught them a lesson. Now he’s more confident and doesn’t stand anyone disrespecting him, but this also leads to impulsiveness. (106 words)



Will: (this memory is him recounting the time he snuck into the Baron’s tower to steal one of his papers)



I still remember me sneaking into the Baron’s tower as a happy memory. If I hadn’t who knows if I would have met Halt. Even if he’s a little grim, he’s still my mentor, and I don’t know what I would do without him. Without becoming a Ranger I would not have met all the people I have.



Though I do admit it was very foolish of me to go climbing up that tower. There were much simpler ways to get up. I can still feel the rough stone against my palms as I struggled to climb up. I’ve gotten a lot better at climbing since then. Or at least I hope so, Halt told me once, but he might have just been trying to make me feel better.



I can still clearly remember the shock on my face when I found out Halt had known about me sneaking all along. And how even more taken aback I was when I realized Halt wanted me, a small skinny boy nobody wanted, as his apprentice. I still wonder about why he chose me, it’s not like I’m anyone special. But I’m not questioning it, I’m grateful he chose me, I’m not sure I would be where I am today if not for him choosing me.



I think the Baron was surprised as well, but even more surprised that I wanted to steal one of his papers. I remember that everything inside me was telling me not to steal, that it was wrong, but I just had to know what was on those papers. In the end it worked out, but that is probably the only part I regret about me sneaking in. Sometimes when I recall this memory I feel guilt, but nobody was harmed so I feel it's best to leave the past in the past. (306 words)



Horace: (talking about when bullies bullied him in battle school)



Looking back there are so many things I wish I had done. I should have stood up to those bullies. They caused me to doubt myself and my ability. They even made me even consider dropping out of battle school, and swordsmanship is my life, I know I would have deeply regretted it if I dropped out. It wasn’t just “harmless pranks” what they did harmed me mentally and physically. I’m glad that I taught them a lesson, but honestly those miserable pieces of scum weren’t even worth my time. They taunted me even though I was three times a better swordsman than them all. They underestimated me because I’m “the big baby” and they assumed I wasn’t very bright. They broke me down, but I healed and I’m doing better than before.



The only thing that I wish was that I wouldn’t have been blamed for all the things that they did to my cabin. My entire class hated me because they ripped apart our rooms because of me, and nobody wanted to hang around me. I believe that teamwork is especially important in success, and I was miserable knowing how my peers felt about me. And because they made everyone hate me, nobody could help me avoid their wrath.



I found newfound confidence and belief in myself without them. But I’ve also gotten over confident and acted impulsively. I underestimated Gilan and mocking his “two knives” was definitely not a good idea. I also challenged Morgarath recklessly and I could have died. My teacher says I have much to learn, and I agree. These bullies scarred me, but they also helped me learn to stand up for myself. Now it is just a distant memory, or perhaps a lesson, to help me be better. I will not forget this memory. (302 words)



Part 3:



My fandom is Keepers of the Lost Cities (again haha)



My tropes are high school au, modern au, and friends to lovers au.



Keefe leaned his head back against the tree, stretching. He wished that he could just get a moment of peace sometimes. There were always girls mooning over him like moths drawn to a flame. He didn’t get it, he wasn’t anything special. Besides, there was only one girl he cared about. “Sophie” he mouthed her name, savoring every syllable. Though he knew that she only thought of him as her friend, still it made him smile when he made her laugh.



Suddenly he heard a rustle of grass and spun around. It was just Fitz. He let out a relieved breath. Fitz sat down onto the grass next to him. They both stared off into silence for a while, just gazing at the open sky.



“So, do you have the Biology notes?” Fitz asked, suddenly breaking the silence.



“Did Fitzy forget to take his notes?” Keefe teased him, grinning.



“You know I was busy.” Fitz said in a hard tone. The mood suddenly turned somber and in an instant Keefe realized that he had messed up. How could he have forgotten something so important?



“I’m sorry.” Keefe said, diverting his gaze to the ground. Biana’s passing was an uncomfortable subject that everyone tried to avoid. “I have the biology notes in my backpack. Besides break is almost over, and we have to go back anyway.” He put his hand on Fitz’s shoulder, and together they walked back to the school building.



As soon as they entered the building they were bombarded with groups of girls. Keefe’s grip of Fitz’s shoulder tightened as they pushed their way through the crowd. He flashed his famous smile and winked, distracting them long enough to get through.



“Fitz, I love you!” One girl with chocolatey brown locks and hazel eyes yelled. She tried to come closer to them but was pushed back by the crowd. Another girl even tried to grab a strand of Keefe’s hair. Keefe sighed, he couldn’t wait for this day to be over. But he still kept on a happy face, smirking at the crowd, and laughing like he was enjoying himself.



At the end of the day they all met up, Sophie, Dex, Keefe, and Fitz. But they all knew who was missing. There was an awkward silence. That seemed to go in forever



“Does anyone want to come over to my house to study for the biology test tomorrow?” Sophie asked, breaking the silence.



“I can come.” Keefe said, trying to keep his voice neutral. He looked around at the rest of the group.



“Sorry I have to help my dad with his shop.” Dex said, looking apologetically at the floor.



“I’m busy.” was all Fitz said.



“Well then, I guess I’ll see you guys tomorrow.” With that Sophie hooked her arm around Keefe and strode off. After they had walked a good distance away Sophie spoke. “I’m worried about Fitz.” She told him. “I don’t think he’s faring well with Biana’s passing. I don’t know what to do.” Sophie seemed distressed.



Keefe tried to comfort her. “I’m sure he just needs some space and time.” He reassured her.



“I don’t know, it’s just the way he reacted when he found out his dad had cancer, I’m worried it’s the same thing all over. Except he’s keeping it all bottled up now.” Sophie looked sadly into the distance.



Keefe wasn’t sure exactly what to say to comfort her. It didn’t seem appropriate to make any kind of joke in this situation. So they walked the rest of the way to her house in silence.



Keefe sat on the floor, looking over Sophie’s biology notes. He had given his to Fitz. Keefe could feel Sophie’s warm breath on his cheek and her lips dangerously close to his. Sophie murmured her notes to herself under her breath while Keefe just watched her. She truly was amazing, she cared so much about everyone around her. He only wished that she could just notice him.



“How’s the studying going Foster?” He asked her in a light hearted tone.



“Good. Not like you would know, I haven’t even seen you take out a paper.” she answered glaring at him.



“Hey now Foster. I was an extremely generous person and donated my notes to Fitzy boy.” He grinned.



“Oh.” A light blush crept up Sophie’s cheeks. “Sorry, I’m just tired, and honestly my life is a mess.” She said, sighing.



“Don’t worry Foster, mine’s a mess too. That’s why I hang out with you, my life is already so messy that a bit more doesn’t mean anything.” He laughed softly. He reached in to brush a strand of hair away from her cheek. Surprisingly, she didn’t slap his hand away.



“Hey Keefe,” Sophie started.



“Yeah Foster?” Keefe said, holding his breath.



“I wanted to say that-” (802 words)



Part 4: (yes im leaving part 3 on a cliffhanger Sokeefe fans I’m sorry T-T)



“MYTH FOR THE WIN!!!” Moss runs into the main cabin cheering loudly. “MYTH FOR THE WIN!” CJ and Re join into her cheering enthusiastically. Iris drums her hands on the table, starting up a chant.



“NO ADVENTURE FOR THE WIN!” Ash exclaims, starting up another chant. “ADVENTUREEE!!” Dawn yells. A screaming match ensues, with each cabin trying to out chant the other.



CJ says to Moss “I think you started a riot.”



“WHAT?” Moss says. “I CANT HEAR YOU!”



“I SAID I THINK YOU STARTED A RIOT.” CJ says louder.



“IT WAS WORTH IT. MYTH FOR THE WIN.” Moss yells enthusiastically and they both continue chanting. Soon everyone’s voices are hoarse from yelling. Everyone looks around and they all dissolve into laughter.



“Now, it is time for this sessions official mango eating contest!” Sophie announces from the other end of the room. The room falls silent, the mango eating contest is one of the most important events in SWC.



“Bring out the mangos!” Sophie announces. Platters of mangos are brought out. Everyone cheers. “Our contestants today will be Tech, Ash, Re, and Finch!”



“3, 2, 1, GO!” Everyone screams. The contestants dive into their plates, rapidly devouring the mangos. Specks of mango fly everywhere. All of the campers watch anxiously. Some let out cheers of encouragement for their fellow campers.



“GO RE!!” CJ screams.



“GO ASHHHH!!!” Dawn yells. Everyone's piles of mangos are diminishing. There is juice smeared across everyone's face, but nobody cares. They grab at the mangos like there’s no tomorrow. Every contestant is almost done, the competition is getting intense. Re looks like she’s going to finish first, but then out of nowhere Tech starts gaining speed. Tech slams the buzzer first. The loud blare declares him the winner. He raises his hands up in victory. All the other contestants stop, and gasp for air.



“The winner of this session’s mango eating contest is….. Tech!” Birdi announces. Cheers go up from Fan-Fi. The other cabins clap politely.



“Can we eat the rest of the mangos now?” CJ asks.



“No, no, or better yet, lets have a food fight!” Moss exclaims. Everyone dives for the nearest mangos. Iris lets out a war cry and throws the first mango, hitting Finch across the shoulder. Mangos fly everywhere, hitting the walls, people, literally everything possible.



10 minutes later..



Everyone is exhausted and covered with mango juice. Some people lay against the wall while others just collapsed onto the floor.



“Worth it.” CJ proclaims. Everyone nods in agreement. (417 words)

Daily: (501 words) apologies in advance for the people who read this. I used the beginning of the Taurus horoscope :>
This is actually a true story, I sort of used this daily to spill all my thoughts.

So many times, I ask myself the same question over and over. Why? Why do humans exist? Why do we feel emotions? But most of all I ask myself, why do we live? Sometimes life seems like a video on loop. Just repeating itself, over and over again. Eat breakfast, lunch, dinner, fit in some other activities in-between, sleep, and repeat.

It’s one of the reasons why I don’t understand people who enjoy being alone. Don’t get me wrong, enjoying alone time is fine. Sometimes you just get caught up in the bustle of life and you want to slow down. I’m talking about being alone all the time. If that’s what makes you happy though, go for it. But for me, socializing, talking, and meeting new people is what makes every day interesting. It spices up life, brings in some variety.

Think of it this way, you have plain ramen noodles, which is your day, and talking to people is the ramen seasoning packets. It’s what makes the whole meal. Without the seasoning its all the same bland ordinary noodle.

When school ended and summer began, I wasn’t sure how to feel. On the one hand I was glad to be done with the tests and homework. But on the other hand, I knew that not interacting with people for most of the summer was going to kill my soul and mentality. During school I would always hear everyone talking about how much they hated school and couldn’t wait for it to end. But I actually enjoyed school, not because of the learning, though that was fine too, but seeing people, every day. For me it was like when you get a sugar rush, except it didn’t fade away. Instead of just going around like a robot, empty eyed, feeling like life was meaningless, life felt like it had purpose. I kept wondering whether anyone else felt this way. Everyone just kept complaining about how they couldn’t wait for the school year to be over. I didn’t want it to be over.

I told a few people the way I felt and it seemed like nobody felt the same. Everyone just told me that they did not feel the same way I did. I told one adult and they laughed and brushed it off. They told me that “trust me you aren’t going to feel that way when you’re an adult kid.” That made me feel stupid, for thinking the way I did.

Now it’s summer, and it might sound stupid but I can already feel the difference. Just being trapped in my room for most of the day, for me it was like the pandemic all over again. Reading this over I know I most definitely sound like a privileged brat, and there are people who are going through much worse. But I just really wanted to write about this, just once.

414 words. I used Snowman by Sia and got “Honey if you don't have ears
I want you to know that I will never leave
I'm Mrs. Snow, so I'm frozen to death” for part of it.
I was freezing. It was so cold it felt like my ears had fallen off. I shivered, teeth chattering as the cold wind slammed against me. I looked around at the snowy barren landscape. The pine trees were skimpy and could barely stand up against the harsh wind. They looked like one blow would knock them clean over.

I knocked on the door again, hoping someone would answer. I looked through the window and only saw darkness. I huddled against the doorframe. If someone didn’t answer soon when they went outside they would find a frozen body. Slowly I felt the cold begin to take over my body. It felt, for some strange reason, like warmth. I embraced it happily and a smile spread across my face. Suddenly something shook me awake. The warmth receded quickly, and I was faced with frigid reality. I looked around to see what had jolted me awake.

I looked up to see a kind face. It was all a blur but through it I saw comforting honey brown eyes and dark skin. I fell forward into their arms and that was the last thing I remembered. I just remembered honey eyes, honey, honey.

I woke up to the delicious smell of stew. My stomach growled and I remembered I had not eaten in days.

Someone behind me laughed. I turned around. It was the person, and now I could see them in clear detail. Their bright honey eyes, coffee colored skin, almond colored hair, and slim frame. They set a bowl of stew down in front of me and I wolfed it up. They laughed again. They didn’t seem to want to talk much so we lapsed into silence.

“Do you want more?” They asked me, gesturing towards the soup. Their voice was soft and musical, like a bird singing.

“Oh, no, I’m good.” I shook my head. “And I’m sorry I never asked, what's your name?”

“Honey.” they said simply.

“That’s a beautiful name, it suits you.” I smiled. “Thank you so much for saving me, I would be dead without you.”

“It’s nothing, I would have done it for anyone.” They smiled at me.

I blushed and looked down. “Really though, I’m forever in your debt.”

They laughed and shook their head, “No. You don’t need to do anything for me. You are not in my debt.”

“I still would like to do something for you.”

“Well maybe there is something.” They smiled at me again.

cabin wars:
“Hello!?” Moss yells. “CJ where are you?” Robin and Re join in “Ayid, Aurora, Ava, come out, wherever you are.” “I wonder where they could be. We’ve searched every inch of this place. I know this maze like the back of my hand. Of course, there are the secret passageways, but they wouldn’t ever stumble into one of those, right?” “If only that monster hadn’t attacked us, then we never would have been separated.” Moss sighed. “We should have been paying better attention.”

Back in another side of the maze, CJ, Ayid, Aurora and Ava are searching in desperation for their leaders. “Moss? Robin? Re, where are you guys?” CJ yells at the top of their voice. “Argh, we shouldn't have let our guard down against the Drakons…” Ava sighed. What could they do at this point? Separated from Moss, Robin and Re, they had virtually no protection with the exception of their mediocre magic. No one could think of a good enough plan.

“I knew we shouldn't have gone down that passage to hide. Now we're lost! If it wasn't for those Drakons…” Aurora sighed. “Does anyone have enough magic knowledge to get us out of here?” Ayid asked.

“Robin did teach me this short song to play in case we got lost, but I don't think it'll be much help…” Aurora sighed. She summoned her lute and played a melodious tune. The rest could not help but clap at the beautiful serenade. “Did it work?” CJ asked the bard. Aurora shook her head. “Doesn't seem like it…” Ayid groaned. “Now we REALLY have no idea what to do! We're stuck in the middle of nowhere, and-” “GAHH! WHAT IS THAT?!” Ava cried, pointing to a mysterious black figure.

Meanwhile, Moss, Robin and Re are tied up in the drakons' castle, a huge, flat building in the exact center of the maze. “Help!” Moss shouted. She tried to pull a spell to her hands, but there was no use. Something about this place rendered her magic useless. She could only hope that somewhere out in the mage, the cohorts were searching for them.

Re harnessed her warrior strength in an attempt to break through the chains clasping the trio to the wall, but they were too strong. Robin whistled the too-familiar tune of a song for insanity, but the chains, sadly, were not alive and therefore did not respond to music. Moss sighed. “This is useless! How are we supposed to get-” She quickly stopped talking as footsteps sounded from behind her.

Back to the lost recruits.. The others turned around and screamed. There was a shadowy figure standing just a few feet away. “W-what do you want?” CJ asked pointing their wand at the person. The figure began to speak but then-

Ava charged at them, sword drawn. “PUT YOUR HANDS UP YOU LYING EVIL HORRIBLE MURDEROUS ROTTEN MANGO THIEF!” She screamed, swinging her weapon wildly. The others looked on, confused. What was she trying to do? “COME OUT OF THAT CLOAK AND FIGHT MEEEE, YOU COWARDLY COWERING FISHFACE!

The figure backed away quickly. “Wait, wait stop it!” It exclaimed. It took off its cloak to reveal a person beneath. “I am the maze in its human form. I can help you escape and find your friends, but it comes at a price. Are you willing to pay is the question…”

What’s the price?” Ayid asked, biting her lip. “And how do we know we can trust you? Like, how do we know you weren’t the one that sent the monster and lured us further into… well… /you/.”

The figure looked straight at Ayid, “You can trust me- if I'm the Maze or not you have a better chance at finding your leaders, I know the Maze like the back of my hand.” Ava's eyes widened. The figure knew what they were trying to do?

“I am willing to sign my promise in blood, if that is necessary.” The ghostly figure spoke agin. “The price you must pay is a drop of blood from each of you, and your magical instruments. Are you willing to pay?”

Aurora stepped into the conversation, “If I give my instruments- I'll be basically weaponless. What would you do with them anyways!” The figure looked at her. “I do not wish to share my intentions- just do what I say and you will be safe with your lost friends.” CJ eyed the figure suspiciously.

“Give us some time to think.” Aurora told the figure as the recruits huddled together in a cluster. “What should we do?” CJ asked. Ayid sighed. “There's not much we can do…if we want to get out of here, we need to get their help!” “I agree with Ayid,” Aurora nodded. “I can still whistle if they take my lute. Ayid and CJ can still use their magic without any equipment, and Ava can still use hand-to-hand combat.”

Back in the castle, Moss tried to look behind her and see who was coming. However, she, as well as Re and Robin, was too cramped to move very far, and was left to sit there in silence, hoping that the approaching creature would be a friend, not a foe.

The group looked around and nodded- they all come to an agreement. CJ spoke, “We agree with your terms.” The figure stalked closer and took at a long strange looking needle and prinked each member of the group.

ANOTHER DAILY! 507 words :>
(twilightstar22’s object) “A really haunted picture of a girl that blinks, it actually does!”

Emil shivered; he hated these weekly visits to his grandmother’s house. She always had so many creepy objects lying around. She had old, moldy candy in a rusty tin, a grand wooden clock that seemed to bang at the most random times, Emil swore it was haunted, a collection of old knives hanging on the wall, and worst of them all was her creepy collection of pictures. They were all in black and white and the people in them seemed to move. There was one picture especially, of a young girl in stockings that seemed to blink at Emil every time he looked at it, and he swore he wasn’t hallucinating. Emil’s grandmother never had the lights on either, she only lit a single lantern for the whole house. The lantern added to the spooky atmosphere, giving off a dim glow that cast everything in shadows. Emil’s grandma was the most old-fashioned person Emil knew, she did everything like it was the 1990s. And if ghosts were real, Emil swore his grandmother's place would be somewhere they would haunt. Every time that Emil even took a single step the whole entire house seemed to groan. The boards creaked and the doors squeaked like they hadn’t been oiled in decades. Worst of all the house was out in the middle of nowhere, so nobody would hear his screams or cries for help.

One day Emil came to visit his grandmother and found her kneeling on the floor. She had lit a lantern and was holding the picture of the girl above the flames. Her eyes were wide open and you could clearly see the whites. Emil was frozen, not knowing whether to intervene or not.

“eee, eoo, sacrifa,” she mumbled and trailed off. Then her eyes rolled back, and she collapsed onto the floor. Emil stood there, not knowing what to do, he was shocked to his core. He shook himself out of it quickly and took action. He tossed the picture into the flames and watched as it disintegrated. Then he quickly flipped the light switches on and sighed in relief as light flooded into the room. Then he grabbed his cellphone and quickly called 911.

Emil huddled in a corner for what seemed like hours, waiting for the vehicle to arrive. When they finally arrived, they loaded his grandmother onto a stretcher and put her into the ambulance. He climbed into the ambulance quickly and they sped off. As soon as Emil was in, he let out a humongous sigh of relief. He was finally leaving that creepy house, he shuddered just thinking about it again. He would do everything in his power never to go back. As for his grandmother, he hoped that she recovered but he never wanted to come near her again after this. After this experience there was no way he was going within a 100 miles of her, with her crazy chanting, creepy house, and haunted objects.

WEEKLY 2:
The Stolen Mangos

From Scratchy Times

Reported by CJ

Just a few hours ago, a great crime was committed. Three boxes of mangoes were stolen from the SWC camp. These mangos were going to be for the SWC mango eating contest, a very important event. These mangos were specially prepared, bathed in rose water, and polished to perfection. Some claim that they were even named by a few of the SWC members. These mangoes were one of the most important things in the camp.

Eyewitnesses claim they saw a person dressed in a blue hoodie coming out of the camp at around 4:15 pm UTC. It is unclear whether this person is a part of SWC or someone completely unknown. If this person is a part of SWC, then we have a traitor among us. Stealing mangos is a crime in SWC and is very strictly enforced.

Just an hour after the crime had been committed, police arrived at the scene. Everything was thoroughly looked over, and nothing was left unturned. A watch was set to guard the rest of the mangos. Members of the SWC community are devastated. I interviewed a few members to get their thoughts on this situation.

“I’m absolutely devastated. One of them, Bob, was especially dear to me, he was like a brother. It’s not like I was going to eat him later or anything.” was what Kiju from Real-Fi had to say about the situation.

“Rest in peace Bob.” Other members of Real-Fi agreed. One member of Real-Fi who witnessed the crime thought they might have some information.

“I saw Kiju extremely close to Bob before the crime happened. I even thought she was going to take a bite of him.” a Real-Fi member who asked to remain anonymous told us. When we questioned Kiju on this she claimed she had been only telling him good night and giving him a blanket. So we went to interview a few other cabins to see what they had to say.

“I saw Moss trying to grab a mango before they were stolen.” one member of Thriller told us. When questioned Moss told us that she merely thought she saw a spot on one of the mangoes. Ayid, another member of Myth who was with Moss confirmed that there was indeed a spot on the mangos.

I also went to ask members of the mango eating contest how they were feeling about this incident.

“This is terrible. The SWC mango eating contest is one of the most important SWC events. To have it postponed is a catastrophe. Whoever stole the mangoes clearly wanted to cause unrest and rumors among the SWC members. We all have to not let this break us apart, that’s what they want. We are helping them if we all turn against each other,” Re, a Myth member, told us about her take on this event.

We went to talk to Birdi from Thiller, who was the main supervisor of the mangoes.

“I don’t know how this could have happened. I just went to go to speed write the weekly and when I came back, they were gone. This is all my fault, I never should have left them!” Birdi sobbed. It seemed a little wrong for Birdi to leave the mangoes unguarded, but no, Birdi wouldn’t do that.

I came to the funeral for the mangoes, where all the mangoes lost were honored. Mini graves were set and there was a speech given, written by all the SWC members.

“Today we honor those lost by this terrible crime. The beautiful mangoes, part of our community, Bob. Arch, and others. We will find who did this, and they will be punished. We will not let this split our community apart, we will not turn against each other.” Birdi said.

It seemed that the SWC was united against this crime on the surface, but was it really so. After all if everyone was united the crime wouldn’t have happened in the first place. There seemed to be two suspects, both of which had evidence against them. Moss and Kiju were the prime suspects. Both were seen near the mangos before the crime, which was more evidence than any others had against them. But the real determining evidence came from one eyewitness, Moonlit. They said they saw a flash of blonde hair on the person who grabbed the mangos. Moss has blonde hair.

Could it be? The dear leader of Myth, the culprit?

-UPDATE!

Security cam footage was found and it showed not Myth, but Thriller’s leader stealing the mangoes. While Birdi claimed to have been writing her weekly, she was actually stealing the mangoes! Those traitors tried to blame it on Myth, their competition for 1st place. They are too smart for their own good. They tried to make it seem like Moss had done it. Thriller were the real thieves, not Myth.

(818 words)

Note: This is all for lighthearted fun, please don’t take anything in this article seriously



Part 2:

Universal Deli and Bakery Reviewed (This is a fake review)

From Scratchy Times

Reviewed by CJ

Let me start by saying in all my years reviewing restaurants, never have I reviewed one that is this awful. The service was terrible, the food was inedible, the seating looked like a rat had chewed it apart, and the whole thing looked like it hadn’t been updated since the 90s.

Half of the walls were a gaudy pastel yellow, and the paint was peeling. The other half was a sky blue but had faded so much over the years it was nearly impossible to recognize.There were dents and scratches all over the wall and it looked as if someone had a brawl in there. The tables were plastic fold ups and the chairs were sticky and dented. The tables had remnants of old food stains and spills and looks like they haven’t been cleaned in years. The whole place stunk of sweet rotting meat and the floor was a blood red, almost as if there had been a spill..

The food was slightly less terrible, at least compared to the appearance of the whole place. I tried the roast beef sandwich first. It was ok, not the worst I’ve had but definitely nowhere near the best. The bread tasted dry and the meat was as hard as a rock. I nearly spit it back out. It didn’t seem the slightest bit fresh.

I also tried the ham sandwich. The cheese tasted moldy, and the bread was even crustier than the roast beef sandwich. The ham was a little wet, and tasted like slimy algae. This one I did spit out, but even after rinsing my mouth out I could still taste its disgusting flavor.

The service was also horrific. The person behind the counter was breathing all over the food and it even looked like they licked it. They grabbed at the food with their bare hands and didn’t even use tongs.

The bakery section was much better. The tables looked cleaner and the chairs didn’t have stains all over them. The counter looked less greasy and unlike the deli didn’t have an overpowering putrid smell. It smelled like sweet jam and heavenly fresh bread. It was almost as if the deli and bakery were completely different places, or at least that was how it felt. They were complete opposites.

I tried a slice of raspberry pie first. The filling was sweet, and amazing, it washed away the terrible aftertaste from the earlier meat. The crust was crispy but soft at the same time. It was a perfect light golden brown as well. I devoured it in just a few seconds.

I then tried the cookie selection. They only offered 5 cookies. Gingersnaps, butter cookies, sugar cookies, chocolate chip cookies, and snickerdoodles. The first thing I noticed was that they were all warm, like they had just come out of the oven. The chocolate chips were melty and there was a good ratio between dough and chips. The butter cookies were buttery and seemed to melt in your mouth. The snickerdoodle cookies were cinnamony but not overwhelmingly, it was the perfect amount They were soft and extremely easy to chew, which was helpful for tasting, you could just let the flavors sit in your mouth. Overall, their cookie section is delicious.

Their tart selection however, is not as good as their cookies. I tried the raspberry and blueberry tarts and both of the fillings were sour and bitter tasting. The filling tasted weird artificial, and it just tasted disappointing. The fruits didn’t taste fresh and it felt like they were straight from a can. The crust of the tart was hard like a stale cracker, maybe even like a rock.

The cashier was extremely friendly and carefully wrapped my orders in plastic bags. The walls of the bakery are a peachy color and there are small lamps for lighting. It’s a very aesthetic and would be a great place to take photos.

I would say that if you are going to visit Universal Deli and Bakery, avoid the deli completely and go to the bakery. If you want aesthetic pictures but don’t want to put in that much effort Universal Deli and Bakery is a great place for you to go. If you also want good pastries at a decent price Universal Deli and Bakery is also a great place for you to visit. Just be sure of what pastries you choose, some are great, while others are just terrible. Overall I would rate Universal Deli and Bakery a 4.5/10. Some things that could be improved are making sure the quality of all the foods is consistent. I would also suggest just removing the deli portion entirely and just focusing on the bakery. (800 words)



Part 3:

Question: “TwirlStar” “I accidentally robbed the supermarket of its entire supply of mangos. How can I frame it on my brother?”

The first step is to hide the evidence. The best way to do this is to eat all of the mangos. After eating all the mangos the seeds remain. In order to frame this on your brother you must place the evidence in a place only he would put it.

First take the seeds and hide them in his room. You must be careful to not leave any fingerprints, I recommend wearing gloves. You should also choose a time when he is not in his room, as to not be caught. Write a sticky note that says “Reminder: Dispose of seeds later” so that it will seem like he stole it. Make sure to write it in his style of handwriting. Wrap the pits a ziploc bag and place it in his room. Then wait.

Question: “Kosmos_Kitty” My cats have decided to do dating apps. Are there some for felines? Worse they seem to be interested in dogs, should I be worried?

It depends on how old your cats are. Kittens probably shouldn’t be dating other cats. I’m not sure if there are dating apps for cats, I bet there are a few. They most likely work similar to human dating apps. You should definitely be worried. Dogs and cats will never get along in the long run, they will never work together. You should separate them before it leads to heartbreak.

Question: “Emma201112y” “HELP I THINK EVERYONE HAS GONE CRAZY! How can I stop them from talking about mangoes?”

There is no way to stop us from talking about mangoes. Mangoes are the superior gods, we must all bow down to the mango gods. You are disrespecting them by asking us to stop. Mangoes are the superior fruit, all others are worthless.

Question: “Anastasia_limanapa” “Everyone at SWC camp has MOD (Mango obsession disorder)! Should I be worried?”

No, this is a completely normal behavior. Mangos are very important in SWC, and so we all seem to “obsess” over them. Mangos are the superior fruit, the most slay of them all. Mango obsession disorder is just something that all SWC people have, it’s nothing to be worried about.

Question: “–Shine–” “Why is literally everyone obsessed with mangos? And how can I grow to like them?”

Mangos are the best fruit to ever exist. Period. That is the only thing you need to know.

You can grow to like mangos by: Start in steps. Slowly incorporate more mango into your diet. An easy way to grow to like mango is to have mango in dishes with other ingredients that you do like. This way you will be more likely to like mango then if it was just on its on its own. I also recommend trying desserts with mango if you have a sweet tooth. Mango ice cream is especially good.

Question: “Cherrie_Tree” “My mother said I have Anger Arson Syndrome where every time other Cabins get a point I burn an object. What should I do?”
This is completely normal. It is terrible when other cabins besides myth get points /j. But if you actually want to help with this there are a few ways. A. During cabin wars, spam everyone with the worst wars that don't have any extra challenges. (this could backfire if they have lots of active people so beware. B. Write more! If you are super busy writing you aren't going to have time to burn objects. Plus, this earns you more points for your cabin. Also do all the dailies and weeklies!

"That’s all for now, hope these answers helped even though most were jokes lol. Very legit answers I swear. (502 words not including the questions)

Part 4: (SO CLOSE)

Invitation:

You have been invited to CJ’s awesome birthday party! If you got this invite it means you are a very epic person. This party will be themed around nothing! Because CJ had no ideas.

“Requirements” You don’t have to bring presents or anything like that, just bring yourself. If you do make a card please plaster MYTH FOR THE WIN on the top, thank you in advance Please at least try to wear shoes though, and bringing mangos is fine, as long as they don’t make everything sticky. The one requirement is you must have gotten AT LEAST 7 hours of sleep before the party. I say while getting 6 hours, not a hypocrite of anything.

“Time and more info” This party will be on CJ’s epic profile at insert random date here. There will be cake, brownies, lots of mangos, and Dawn will be bringing the never ending picnic basket, for all your needs. This party will last several hours, possibly into the night. Possibly the whole morning. Beds will be provided just in case.

You better come, it’ll be the coolest party of all time! Note: This is not a real party don’t actually come lol. I might have a real party on my actual birthday. (207 words)

Daily (433 words)
She screamed so loud it could be heard from miles away. It seemed to pierce Jara’s ear drums and Jara quickly put her hands over her ears. Jara glared at Mia, the traitor, there was no way they weren't going to get found out. Jara quickly raised a finger to her lips. She shook her head at Mia, and narrowed her eyes, a warning to stay silent. Jara cursed under her breath, if Mia got them found, they would both be dead. Mia whimpered in the corner, she knew what she had done.

“I told you to stay silent.” Jara hissed at Mia.

“I’m sorry, but I didn’t think the rattlesnake would bite me. I’m really sorry Jara, please.” Mia said, biting her lip.

Jara scoffed. “Yeah, tell that to the bandits. All your apologies will mean nothing when we are both dead.” But Jara’s voice had softened. She couldn’t stay mad at Mia for long. After all, they had been through everything together.

Suddenly Jara heard the sound of light footsteps. Her eyes lit up with fear, no, it couldn’t be. She shook herself out of it, she had to stay calm. She pushed Mia into a corner, giving her a look that said, be quiet or else. Jara quickly quieted her breathing and tried to blend into the shadows. She unsheathed her blades and started to sneak around the corner. She repeated her mantra in her head “the strong, the smart, the nimble, they survive to live another day” “the strong, the smart, the nimble, they survive to live another day,” She slowly melted into the inky shadows, becoming one with them, as dark as the night sky. She was invisible, nobody would ever see her. She turned the corner, and was about to swing her blade forward. But suddenly she stopped. She had never been so shocked in her life. She sheathed her blades quickly.

“Jamar? Brother? Is it you?” She could feel hope rising in her chest and fought to push it down. What if this was the wrong person, she shouldn’t get her hopes up for nothing.

“Jara? Sister. Oh, I thought I had lost you. You have no idea how overjoyed I am to see you.” Tears started to well from Jamar’s eyes and his voice broke. Jamar threw his arms around Jara, pulling her into a tight embrace. Jara was so happy she almost didn’t notice the prick of pain she felt on her neck. Jamar was pressing a sharp blade to her throat. She gasped and watched as ruby red blood trickled down her neck.

Nyx gazed up at the place she would be living at for the next seven years. Half the castle glowed with blinding light, illuminating its golden arches and doorways, while the other half loomed forbiddingly, all dark turrets and mist clouding around them. Nyx was glad she could finally start training at the academy. Nyx wanted to be more powerful, she wanted to make a name for herself and not just be known as “Astaroth’s daughter.” She wasn’t worried about making friends since people were attracted to her like bees to honey. What she was worried about was failure. One small mistake and she would disgrace her family. Her father’s name was legendary, being a leader of the Shadow Walkers, and she was determined not to stain it.

“All first years, Shadow Walkers, or Light Warriors, please follow me to your orientation.” The principal of the school boomed. He was a man of short stature, but his voice sounded like it should belong to a man triple his size. Nyx studied him closely, taking in every detail. His short well-trimmed gray beard, long robes, slim nose, and glowing circlet. The principal caught Nyx’s eye, saw her dark circlet, and wrinkled his nose. Nyx sighed, typical Light Warrior, thinking they were so superior and that anyone who associated with the evil Shadow Walkers would have been doomed to horrible thing. Her dark circlet would also mark her as different from the “pure.” She knew that the principal would do anything to disadvantage them, so she must be careful. She didn’t understand why he, a former Light Warrior, was allowed to be principal of both buildings. But as of now, she was a first year with no power, and there was nothing she could do about him, so she just set her gaze forward and ignored him.

Both the Shadow Walkers and the Light Warriors followed the principal into the building. The Light Warriors made a noticeable effort to stay away from the Shadow Walkers. Dressed in their golden robes and circlets, fine strands of gold hanging off the sleeves, mutterings of “evil” and “filth” rippled through the group. Nyx held her head tall. She was proud to be a Shadow Walker, even though the others called their skills evil and cursed. Nyx thought the shadows were just as good as the “blessed” lights.

Critique daily:
When you say “It was in his first cycle of mandatory military training that he got his answer, in a voice speaking into his mind. Magic.” it sounds a little clunky. I suggest rewriting it as “through a voice speaking into his mind.”

I also think that “Though he’d always known magic existed, the government controlled it so strictly he never really thought he’d encounter it, except in the mages who wore the black cross and sat in an otherwise empty row on the public train.” would sound better if it was more than one sentence. So, you could rewrite it as “Though he’d always known magic existed, the government controlled it so strictly that he never really thought he’d encounter it. Except in the mages who wore the black cross and sat in otherwise empty rows on the public train. Nobody wanted to be near them.” I am assuming here that people don’t want to be near the mages, as I don’t really know much about the background, it being an excerpt, so feel free to ignore that.

Also when you say “When the voice told him to Run, he didn’t quite know what to do.” I think you should add the word so before the word when “So when the voice told him to run, to say he didn’t quite know what to do would be an understatement.”

And when you say “That was nothing, though, by comparison with his” I think you accidentally said by comparison instead of in comparison.

I would say that you are missing a little bit of background info about the society, mages, magic, etc, but it’s also an excerpt so you might have more on that in the rest of the story. Otherwise I think this is really good, it sounds like a really interesting story and I would love to read the rest

helloo, thank you for letting me offer critique! this already sounds so interesting, and there was just so much i loved. :] i just went through and commented on things i thought were done so well, because so much wasss—already, just from this excerpt, i want to read more! most of my suggestions are just dumb grammar things asdkljf.

Half the castle glowed with blinding light, illuminating its golden arches and doorways, while the other half loomed forbiddingly, all dark turrets and mist clouding around them.

this description <333 i'm a sucker for pretty but not over-the-top descriptions, and this just. fit perfectly. it's a single line, sums up the entire place, and the word choice is really good too! “loomed” paints such a good image of what's going on.

Nyx was glad she could finally start training at the academy.

since this is an excerpt, i was wondering if it was already established that the castle is the academy? if it wasn't, maybe you could add “here” in this line to make sure the reader knows it's the same place, even though it can be inferred. it also helps link this line and the description together. of course, if that's already established, feel free to disregard all that. : )

She wasn’t worried about making friends since people were attracted to her like bees to honey; what she was worried about was failure.

i bolded the suggestion i had for here with the semicolon. semicolons are my second-favorite piece of punctuation after em dashes, and i just. when i see an opportunity, i must suggest. >:] also, i feel like adding it would help link these two thoughts together and flow more naturally. of course, that's a personal style choice!

if you want to keep them as two separate sentences, you could maybe change it to "honey. No, what she was worried about was failure.“ again, the italics is just a style choice, but i think the emphasis of the ”no" and the italics could help convey her fear of disappointing her family.

Her father’s name was legendary, being a leader of the Shadow Walkers, and she was determined not to stain it.

aaa, the use of “legendary” and then “stain” is wonderfulll <3 you can tell just how highly nyx thinks of her father despite what most people think of shadow walkers. also… foreshadowing? :eyes:

“All first years, Shadow Walkers, or Light Warriors, please follow me to your orientation,” the principal of the school boomed.

just wanted to note that the period here should be a comma :] the principal for some reason reminds me of dumbledore, even though he's very much not askldbf.

Nyx studied him closely, taking in every detail: a short, well-trimmed gray beard; long robes; a slim nose; and a glowing circlet.

another grammar suggestion! a colon could work here to make the description a list; it was originally an incomplete sentence. i actually had to google to check whether or not i was using the semicolon in the list correctly :') but yeah, since you use multiple descriptors for his beard, a comma is required, which means a semicolon has to be used to indicate the end of that “item” on the list, and then that has to continue throughout the list.

i hate semicolon lists so much aksldjf but they're a useful tool to know how to use :')

Nyx sighed; typical Light Warrior, thinking they were so superior and that anyone who associated with the evil Shadow Walkers would have been doomed to horrible thing.

…if i suggest another semicolon are you going to k!ll me aklsdfjb :sweat_smile: but yeah, a semicolon instead of a comma after “Nyx sighed.” i found this interesting, though! did something happen in ancient (or recent?) history to cause such negative feelings towards shadow walkers?

Her dark circlet would also mark her as different from the “pure.”

is the circlet a symbol of status? since her father is described as “legendary” and nyx is usually recognized because of him. which is also curious, since the principal also has a circlet… is that because he's the principal or because he's some sort of royalty/nobility? :0

But as of now, she was a first year with no power, and there was nothing she could do about him, so she just set her gaze forward and ignored him.

I REALLY LIKED THIS LINE : D i'm terrible at foreshadowing, but there are just. so many places in this excerpt where i think there's foreshadowing… that “as of now” made me go !!! because, like, sure, she is now, but that could change. is she going to do something about his bias in the future? is nyx going to b3at the principal up??? >:]]] anyway, i am thrilled with this line and all it suggests.

Nyx thought the shadows were just as good as the “blessed” lights.

oo, so do their “factions” have something to do with deities? :0

just realized how much i wrote, whOOPS. i'm truly very fascinated by this excerpt; are you planning on sharing more? / is there anywhere i can view more? i hope some of my critique is helpful! :] have a great day/night! <3

Weekly 3! (3560 words)
Part 1:

Brainstorming:

Lush forest setting (for the middle of the land) desert and mountain setting (for the outskirts)

Lower class live on the outskirts, high class lives in the middle.

Large country ruled by a monarchy

King is disliked by majority

King has an inner circle

Line of succession determined by blood.

Higher class get privilege (better land, food, clothes, political power, more likely to be believed, etc)

Higher class is all about your bloodline.

Disdain for flirting or frivolous relationships (as a society)

Diet mostly based around grains (for lower class)

Diet mostly based around meat (for higher class)

Being able to sew is highly valued (for lower class)

Being honest is very important (as a society)

Importance of being quiet and not drawing attention to yourself (for the lower class)

Rival house, who wants to overthrow the monarch and government system.

Secret organization determined to murder the monarch.

Red is the color that symbolizes war or violence. (as a society)

Shadow magic and light magic

The phoenix is recognized as a symbol for high class, and royalty (as a society)

Strength is valued very highly (as a society)

Small talk is common, but talk between classes is not

Hard magic system





(20 facets exactly)



Connections using the bolded items

The Myconid Kingdom has some of the most stunning geographical features in the whole world. The center of the land holds lush forests, teeming with life. Beautiful waterfalls, flowers, and wild greenery. The outskirts are a completely different story. The outskirts have hot brown stretches of desert with constant dry tumbleweed and cactus the height of skyscrapers. They have jagged mountain peaks, covered in thick layers of snow. The trees are so spindly that even a small wind could knock them right over.

The Myconid Kingdom has two classes, high class, called Magna, which includes the government, royalty, high ranking army officers, and merchants, and the low class, called Turpi, servants, commoners, basically everyone who isn’t in the magna. The Magna live in the center of the kingdom, with its nutrient rich lands, all of their cultivation is successful there. They have a complete abundance of resources and live without a care in the world. They are able to have a variety of livestock, unlike the lower class, so meat is considered a representation of being rich, or high class. Strength is also extremely valued by the Myconid society, and they believe that meat will make them stronger. This combination of factors causes Magna diets to mainly consist of meat, and other proteins.

While the Magna live happily in the center of the kingdom, the Turpi face harsh living conditions on the outskirts. The desert and mountains make it very hard to survive in the outskirts. There is never enough food to go around, and many Turpi feel lucky if they don’t go to bed feeling hungry. The tough conditions make it so that farming anything is a challenge. There are also predators in the mountains, making it so that any livestock is killed quickly. The only thing that can grow is weedy plants. This means that the diet of the Turpi consists of mostly grains, some vegetables, and extremely rarely, meat. The tough conditions also make it very hard for traders to reach the Turpi. This means that the Turpi people lack many basic necessities, such as clothes, bedding, and other items. Because of this, the ability to sew has become extremely valuable in the community. Seamstresses are by far the most important people in Turpi villages and are held to such an esteem that outsiders might think that they are gods.

Because of how extremely different life is for the Turpi and the Magna, the two classes rarely talk. But the real thing that the Magna have that is different than the Turpi, is not really their land, or diet, though that is a factor, it’s magic. The Magna have magic, it runs through every Magna’s blood. Because of this Magna consider the Turpi as weaklings and do not consider them as equals. The Turpi resent the Magna for the way that they are treated and how easy life is for the Magna. The Magna always wear a phoenix badge to set themselves apart from the Turpi. The phoenix badge is the mark of high class, magic, and importance. But even the Magna know that they are not the rulers. For all the Magna’s political power and importance, they all must bow to the king. This fact sends some of them into fits of rage, but nobody wants to give up all that they have. (552 words)

Narrative:

I hate them all. The stupid Magna, and their bloodlines, fancy clothes, magic, and all the privilege that they have. They don’t deserve any of it. We work every single second we can, and still can barely put food on the table. Just because they have magic doesn’t give them the right to treat us the way they do. Our clothes are ragged, with as many holes as a golf course, the stitches barely holding the fabric together. Our sleeves are up to our elbows, and our pants are inches above our ankles. The fabric is thin almost like paper, and it’s a miracle that we don’t freeze to death in the winter. And every night we fear the attack of predators from the mountain. What if they take a child, or any of our animals? Nobody has anything that they can spare. While the Magna live in comfort, with their spacious warm houses, and they have fine clothes that fit. They always go to bed with full bellies and never fear the attack of wild predators. They have magic, but that doesn’t mean they should get everything while we live like wild animals. Nobody cares about the Turpi, we are like the dirt underneath their shoes, the “non magic” peasants.

The only good thing about being a Turpi is that everyone underestimates you. They think you are stupid, brainless, and weak. That’s why my organization was able to rise. It wasn’t hard to find members for the organization, everyone has resentment against the Magna. The only thing that was hard was finding a sole purpose for the organization. But eventually we found one. The Iustitia Organization’s sole goal is to kill the king, and end this terrible class system once and for all.

We are tired of being treated like dirt, and like we are worthless. We are just as smart, and strong as the Magna, and we will not take this abuse any longer. Not having magic doesn’t affect our abilities. There will be equity, even if it comes at the price of blood. There is always a price for everything, the only question is whether you are willing to pay. It’s something that I learned during my time as a merchant, and it is a valuable thing to know.

It was a cold winter night when the organization was formed. I was chilled to the bone in my thin trousers and coat, the only thing that I could afford, but it was certainly not suited for this weather. I longed for a warm wool coat, like the rich have, but alas, the Turpi can not afford such things. I was thinking about everything I hated about the way that Turpi were treated, when I realized, why just think about it. What if I could do something that could cause change? It was a rebellious thought, and surely a treasonous one, but I didn’t care. And so the organization was formed, the organization dedicated to getting justice for the Turpi and equality for us all. (507 words)

Part 2:

What kind of magic is used in your world?

There are two different types of magic, shadow magic, and light magic. Shadow magic is more powerful than light magic but you risk it consuming you or taking you over against your will. Light magic is less powerful but can be used without risk. In a battle shadow magic will always overpower light magic, even if the light wielder is stronger. Shadow magic is much rarer than light magic and is looked down upon, while light magic is held to high prestige. (82 words)



How is magic used in the character’s everyday lives? What are the different abilities?

Magic is used fairly commonly, the characters usually don’t even think about it, it’s a force of habit. The abilities/skills for shadows are being able to shadow walk, control shadow vapor, calling bolts of shadow electricity, and being able to make objects out of shadow vapor. The abilities/skills for lights are light walking, controlling light flux (the purest form of light) controlling rays of light/light refractions, bottling light in its raw form, and making objects out of light flux. Lights can also use their power for healing while shadows can use it for poison. (94 words)



What are the laws of your world, specifically about magic? Punishments?

The rules of the school are pretty simple. Magic is not to be used against your peers unless in competition or it is authorized by the headmaster. The punishment for breaking this rule is expulsion from the school. You can also get punished for using your magic on other non magic people. All though the majority of the population is blessed with magic, some are not. If you use your magic against non magicked you can be given ability restrictors, removing your magic whenever you have them. In general though, mis using your magic outside of school whether on people or anything else can cause you to be given ability restrictors, if you are deemed unsafe and not “stable.”



What is an important symbol of your world?

There are several important symbols in the world. The first two important symbols are the different magic symbols. There is one symbol for shadow magic and one for light magic. The shadow magic symbol is a raven with dark grape vines wrapped around it. The light magic symbol is a hand holding a ball of sun with its rays streaming out of it. Another important symbol is the academy symbol. The academy symbol is a broken heart, with one half being dark and covered in vines and the other bright with light streaming out of it. (96 words)



How common is magic, and are all characters aware they possess it?

At birth the characters are not yet aware if they have magic or not, or which type of magic they have. It is mostly genetic though, so they will have a rough idea. As they age, they will start to show signs of magic, if they have it, and by the time they are 13 their magic will have fully revealed itself. Then they will get to go to the academy to receive training in their magic type. Magic is extremely common, almost everyone has magic, so the few that do not stick out like sore thumbs. (97 words)



What is the origin of your magic?

The magic that the people are blessed with came from the two gods. Lux, the light god, and Umbra, the shadow god. They were twins and were both power hungry. Each wanted to control the world and would not give even an inch to the other. They had a great battle, and in the end they both killed each other. They fell from the sky and their blood created the new people, those created from Lux’s blood would be blessed with light magic and those created from Umbra’s blood would be blessed with shadow magic. Over time through many generations magic started to become diluted and there was no longer a guaranteed chance to have magic. The shadows were also driven to almost extinction, as the lights rose to power. (130 words)



How is magic viewed in your world (ie. as a boring normal, as a fascinating element of their life, or as a curse on society etc.)?

There are not many limitations to magic. But it can not bring people back from the dead, or save someone about to die, even the strongest light magic can not help with that. But it can create medicines to make people almost immortal, it can create almost any object you could every dream of, and more. There are set limitations on magic, and there are laws limiting how much you can truly use magic. This is because people who use magic too much can have it consume them and they can go insane. (93 words)



How is the education system in your world? What do your characters learn (or hypothetically would learn)?

Education is great for those with magic. They learn about all of their skills, how to use them properly and safely, learn about their history, and other basic skills. They have clean schools, great food, the best professors, and the program is extremely well funded. It is not so for those without magic. They learn very little and know almost no basic life skills. Their teachers are untrained and not very good at their job. They don’t have a building and have to be taught outside, no matter the weather. (90 words)

What happens when magic gets out of control in your world?

There is a department specifically for keeping magic under control, and making sure everything is orderly and everyone is safe. The department has very talented and skilled people on it. If a person were to go insane because of their magic and go on a destructive rampage around the city, they would restrain them and put ability restrictors on them. Their job is to keep everything in order and make sure nothing gets out of hand. If something goes wrong, it is automatically their fault, making it an extremely tough job. (91 words)

What are some slang terms or other words used in your world that are related to magic?

There are many terms related to magic. To start with shadow magic people are called “Shadow Walkers” and light magic people are called “Light Warriors.” There are also different terms for shadow magic, like shadowflux, shadow vapor, and shadow electricity. For light magic there is light flux, raw light, and fractured light. Those with magic are also called the “Blessed” while those without it are called “Medis.” There are also energy orbs, used to store one’s magic energy for later use. (81 words)

Part 3:

Dystopian Fantasy:

Jia crouched low, pressing herself against the tunnel wall. She cringed as she felt the slime brush up against her chest and the putrid smell made her gag. But it was either this or risk being caught, and she could withstand this easier than she could the torture she would receive if caught. She had heard the horror stories of what had happened to those that got caught. They came back as completely different people, completely loyal to the government, almost like machines than humans.

The tunnel was pitch black, the only sound being Jia’s quiet breathing. Suddenly there was a clang, it sounded like something had banged against the tunnel walls. The walls vibrated from the impact, and Jia, clutching the wall, felt the vibrations within seconds. Jia turned on her night vision, reminding herself yet again how helpful it was that the Cae had special night vision abilities.

She spotted a dark shadow of a figure at the end of the tunnel. She could feel the energy in her reserve and quickly drew upon it. Flames started to emerge from her palm, first small, but then bigger and brighter as she pulled more energy. Soon they were blazing and so bright they even rivaled the sun. Jia drew her hand back like she was about to throw a baseball and launched it to the end of the tunnel. The tunnel was consumed in flames within a matter of seconds. Jia heard the blood curdling shrieks of someone in true pain, the worst sound you could ever here, if you heard it their scream would be with you for the rest of your life. She gagged at the smell of burning flesh and put her hand over her mouth, fighting the urge to vomit.

She walked over to the corpse, just a piles of ashes and charred bones. But there was one thing that Jia was looking for. She saw it glinting in the pile and quickly pulled it out. The government badge, a golden lion roaring, a symbol that every Cae had grown to fear. Jia’s guilt drained out of her, and her mouth formed a tight line, this person deserved what had happened to them. The government had been hunting her people for so long. Even when it was subtle, new laws restricting their magic, restricting where they could go, what they could do, they always found some way to stab at the Cae. They had abused and tortured her people, and they deserved whatever bad thing came their way. (423 words)





Urban Fantasy:

They backed him into an unlit alley and pushed him against a brick wall. He could feel the rough brick rubbing against his back and could smell the sewage leaking out of a nearby drainage pipe. His feet crushed broken glass from beer bottles and crunched discarded wrappers.

“I know you stole the magic orb Auri. Give it to me and nobody gets hurt.” Their voice was ice cold, showing no hint of emotion.

Auri gave a strangled gasp, how did they know his name? It was worse than he thought, the person must be someone close to him. His brain ran through everyone he knew, they were all like family to him, how could they have betrayed him? Instead of answering the person’s question he just stared sullenly at the ground.

He felt it before he saw it. In a blink of an eye their massive hand wrapped around his throat, choking him. Their hand seemed to burn hot and it was like raw coals were being held against his neck. He knew only one person with such a power. He wanted to cry and punch something at the same time. How could Nich have done this to him. Nich knew the way that Auri felt about them. But now that Auri had a suspect, he needed to confirm his suspicions. He wrenched one of his pinned arms free and ripped off the figure’s hood.

Time seemed to slow as the hood was pulled back. But once Auri had seen it, he couldn’t unsee it. All the energy seemed to drain out of his body. His mouth formed a small o, and he blinked back tears. But he also felt angry, the heat of the betrayal almost making him lose control over his magic. He knew what would happen if he lost control. There would be no stopping him once it was released. Even though he hated Nich he just didn’t have the heart to kill him.

“Nich..” He whispered. “Have you been deceiving me this whole time?”

Instead of answering Nich pinched Auri, and suddenly Auri’s whole world started to spin like he had just been on a roller coaster. He watched as Amsterdam faded from view, and all he could hear was a soft buzz in his ears. (380 words)

Science Fantasy:

“Today with the help of our new advanced heat regulating technology, we will be exploring the Earth’s core.” The instructor explained. “Are there any questions before we begin?”

“Why can’t we just use our magic to get there?” One student pipes up.

“Yeah, wouldn’t that be easier than using all this weird technology?” Another adds on.

The instructor sighed. It was always magic this magic that, why couldn’t they just appreciate the wonder of technology? “Our powers do not let us bring people to the earth’s core in large groups. This technology makes it much easier for many people to experience what the earth’s core is like. Besides, using magic to visit the earth’s core is an extreme risk. One distraction to break your concentration and you will burn up to a crisp.”

The student nodded, but the instructor could see they weren’t really listening. They sighed, why did they even try. They loved their job, but sometimes it irked them how little people really knew about their world, some were just completely clueless.

“Everyone please board the vehicle, one at a time, in an orderly manner.” The instructor instructed. They watched carefully to make sure that everyone got on. They scanned the platform looking to see if they had missed anyone, but nobody was there. They went inside the vehicle and began checking off people on their list. They murmured to themself, “Ali, here, CJ, here..” listing off everyone’s names. Finally they concluded that everyone had boarded the vehicle and the hatch closed with a click.

Just a few minutes later chaos had already erupted. One boy with water magic had tried to double the amount of water in his water bottle and had ended up putting water that was up to everyone’s knees in the aircraft. The instructor grumbled, they were going to have to change out their socks once they got back. But they tried to stay calm, it couldn’t get any worse… Right? (327 words)

Fantasy Fan Store

You walk into the store and look around. There are fans… Everywhere. Fans of all different shapes, sizes, and colors. Large fans, mini fans, blue fans, green fans, square fans, spinning fans, twirling fans, rotating fans, it’s just fans. It’s a small shop, but somehow someone managed to squeeze hundreds of fans in it. Still looking around with a confused expression on your face you wander to the cash register.

“Hello! Welcome to Fantasy Fan Store!” The friendly person behind the counter greets you. “My name is CJ, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Please take a look around at the whole store. It’s not just fans.. It might have a few secrets or two.” They give a mischievous smile and wink at you, but then go back to standing at the register like nothing happened. (139 words)

Weekly. 4,431 words.
*begin a story but keep it about 100 words long*

I nearly fell backwards from shock when I saw my older brother. He was dead, this couldn’t be! Now he just appeared out of nowhere? This didn’t make sense. I had watched him die, held his dying body in my arms, and watched as he had taken his last breaths. He couldn’t be alive. It just wasn’t possible. But yet there he was, solidified, standing two inches away from me, proving everything I was saying false. If he was alive, who had I watched die? Suddenly everything blurred together, and I could feel myself losing consciousness. I tried to fight it, and reach towards my brother, but it was no use. (111 words)

*Write for 10 minutes with the prompt from a person in the cabin with the opposite ranking* For me that was Dystopian and Firetender gave me this prompt: “you were born on a colonizing spacecraft on your way to a distant star. you are the middle generation of history: born too late to have seen earth, and too early to live to see your destination.”


I woke up, and sighed in disappointment, realizing it was all just a dream. I really thought that he was alive, I so wanted to believe it, even just for a moment. I hauled myself out of bed and went to the window.

I stared out the window sadly, watching the stars go past us with a solemn expression on my face. I had always looked out at the passing planets and stars with wonder, wondering how long it would be until we reached our new home. It was only yesterday that the full reality of my people’s situation had sunken in. A month ago… My brother passed away. He had been struggling with cancer, but I thought, hoped, and prayed that he would make it until we reached our new home. I naively thought that everything would be better once we reached it. My brother was not so naïve, he knew he wouldn’t make it, and in his dying breaths he revealed the truth to me. I would never live to reach the star, it would be thousands of years before we even got close.

This truth broke me. What was the point of living? There was no purpose in life. Why did I exist? Why did my parents put me into this world knowing I would just live a confined life on a small aircraft until I died. Did they only have me to continue the line of our people? I didn’t care if I had magic or not. I didn’t get the point of living. I woke up every day, roamed around our small aircraft and then repeated that, over and over.

Before this realization my thoughts about our new home were filled with wonder, all the new things I would experience, and how breathtaking it would be. I thought about how I could use my magic and explore the world. But then I was just an innocent child, and I could no longer believe how I had been so naïve.

I often thought about Earth. I’d heard stories from the elders about Earth. Oh, how I longed to touch fresh grass and breathe in clean air. I longed to taste these foods that they described, hamburgers, candy bars, and gummy worms. Even with all of our advanced technology, we just didn’t have the right thing to make such foods. If I had paid more attention I would have noticed how the elders seemed when they talked about Earth. I would have noticed how they all seemed sad, and not hopeful about the promise of our new home. (431 words)

*sabotage prompt* *positivity flood* I thanked Moss, Wari, and Robin.

Then I went to the daily team’s room and chose Lio. *for the next fifteen minutes write about only non-plot-relevant tangents*

I sighed, pulling myself out of my thoughts. I glanced around our small aircraft. It looked normal, the same as it had looked for the past 15 years. Its average in size, not very small, but not enormous either. Each room has four beds in it, each one in its own corner. I have the corner near the window, which is both a blessing and a curse. I get to see the beautiful sights of the stars, but also see how endless everything seems, and it only further reminds me of how I will never make it to our new home.

Everyone has the same bed, white pillow case, and black sheets, but we are allowed to customize our corner of the room. Mine has a small reading lamp, a book case, and one or two stuffed animals lying on my bed. I have a small rug and desk to the side along with a few random desk supplies, pens, notebooks, etc. That’s pretty much it. We like to keep things pretty plain and simple here, and our resources are also pretty limited. We basically make everything we have. A lot of our stuff is things that we took from Earth. Occasionally, about every few years, we find a planet with resources we can stop on, but the planet is never habitable and we only stay for a little while. Those are my favorite times, stepping out of the confined air space and feeling so free. But it’s still so enclosed, with nowhere to really go. I feel like a bird with clipped wings, never able to fly away.

There are many different parts of the aircraft. We have areas where we build, and design. We have a mini “hospital” but our medicine is extremely limited, being in the air 24/7. We also have a part where we watch old movies, but it’s always the same ones, over and over. We have a library, but the book selection is so limited I’ve read every one of them a thousand times over. We have a school, which is my favorite part, I love learning. But I wonder what I’m going to do with all this learning, our people have tried for decades to find some way to get our aircraft to go faster, but we’ve never gotten anywhere. Sometimes I hold onto wisps of hope that we’ll find a way and I’ll live to see our new home, but I know how impossible those odds are. We have a place where we check on our course, to make sure that we are going the right direction. We have bathrooms, and a small lounge room, all pretty basic stuff.

I don’t have many friends on this ship. Just a few. One is my best friend, Ali, and other is a friend I made recently, James. James seems kind of weird, but I’ll take all the friends I can get. I was always the odd one out, even with my parents being the head commanders of the ship. It wasn’t just because of my fire magic, that people viewed as dangerous, people just avoided me. But people really started to avoid me after my brother died. I was different and they knew it. The kids my age are so carefree, so innocent, not burdened with the knowledge that I know. I don’t want to ruin it for them, I hope they enjoy it while it lasts.. (573 words)

*sabotage prompt* *do something creative for 15 minutes* did some origami.



*workshop* *fantasy* *subgenres* *chose science fantasy* I changed up some parts of my story to incorporate science fantasy, like making it so that they have magic. I already had some advanced technology so the science part was fine. I also wrote this.

I conjured a small ball of fire in my palm to spread shadows along the wall. The shadows always used to comfort me, but now they only slightly soothed my thoughts, and I could still hear them. I turned on my watch, and it beeped to life. The only good thing about this place was our technology, and even that wasn’t enough to fix most of our problems. But I knew it was still pretty advanced compared to the technology that used to be on earth. (86 words)

*sabotage prompt* *write a list of ten awesome things about a person who has significantly impacted your life* *wrote it about my irl girlfriend and would prefer not to share as it discloses personal info*

*beekeeping* *something your character thought was safe has changed into something writing for five minutes you must make a feature of your setting suddenly become dangerous to your main character*

I heard the sound of one of my roommates stirring. I supposed that my cue to leave. I pulled on some trousers, a tank top, and a loose button up. I looked at myself in the reflection. Pale skin dotted with freckles, honey brown eyes, and messy brown hair. I could see the bags under my eyes and bit my lip, I hadn’t been getting a lot of sleep since my brother’s death…I shook the thought away and walked out the door, quietly closing it behind me. I walked quickly to the eating room, I didn’t even need light, I knew this aircraft like the back of my hand.

I poured myself a glass of water and grabbed a small pack of cereal. I grabbed a wooden bowl and poured the tiny package of cereal into it. I finished it after only a few seconds, even though I wasn’t really hungry. Then I went to grab my absolute favorite thing, the star of my day, dried mangos. I took one tiny slice and bit into it. I closed my eyes, savoring the flavor, this was the only good thing here. I went to get another glass of water from the water machine when it suddenly latched onto my hand. I tried to tug it away but it wouldn’t budge. I didn’t want to use my fire magic on it for fear I would light my hand on fire. There was nothing I could do. It was suctioned onto my flesh and I could feel its tight grip as it seemed to be pulling away my skin. I screamed loudly for help, an ear piercing scream and I knew everyone must have heard it. A few minutes later, several people came rushing in, including my father, looking like they had just rolled out of bed. They saw my situation and quickly grabbed slime and tried to slide it underneath the suction in order to loosen it. After many painful minutes of trying they finally got it off of me. Everyone exhaled in relief.

“Alex, what were you doing playing with the water machine?” My father questioned me.

“I was just trying to get some water and suddenly it attacked me.” I said while massaging the circle the suction had left on my hand.

“Everyone stay away from it, that thing is dangerous. Make sure to inform the kids and everyone else on board about this. I’ll tell the engineers and see what they can do about it.” My father announced. Everyone nodded sleepily and shuffled out of the room.

Later James and Ali rush up to me when I’m walking to school.

“Is it true that the water machine almost killed you this morning?” Ali asks me, a look of concern on her face.

“Oh, yeah. I’m fine now though.” I try to brush it off, I don’t want Ali to be worried about me. Ali grabs my hand, examining the angry red suction mark that still hasn’t faded away.

“This doesn’t look fine.” She holds the hand up to me like it’s evidence.

“I’m fine ok. Just leave it.” I shake my head. I feel bad saying it but I wish she would leave me alone. Ali looks hurt but James just stares off into the distance.

“Yeah. It’s too bad that you got hurt, I don’t think the machine has ever done that.” James seemed genuine but something in his voice seems a little off to me. (578 words)



*sabotage prompt* *stop working on this weekly and go find a book or online article to read for 10 minutes*

I read “I Must Betray You.”

*library room* *in 200 words a character reveals one of their main motives is to gain something*

“Yeah, it was weird. I wonder if someone did it on purpose. But honestly, I don’t care.” I can hear the bland monotone of my voice and try to correct it. But I really don’t care, life is meaningless.

“Can I talk to you Alex?” James asks me, his voice cracking oddly.

“Um. Yeah sure. You go on ahead Ali, we’ll catch up in a bit.” Ali looks worried but nods and keeps walking.

“What did you want to talk to me about?” I ask James once we are in a empty room. He pushes me against the wall.

“I did it Alex. I made the water machine do that to you. Let one thing be made clear, I’m going to be the commander one day, not you. You act like you don’t care, and it’s just so aggravating.” James clenches his fists and his eyes gleam like a madman. “If you tell anyone, I promise you’ll regret it.” He smiles wildly and grips my shoulders. My eyes go wide, I knew there was something off about James, him wanting to be my friend suddenly. I stumble out of the room and run to my next class, not looking back. (200 words)

*sabotage prompt* In order to fix the lights, stop working on the weekly and take a 15 min nap or just do nothing for 15 min.

*theater* *chosen one trope* *with at least 200 words describe the moment your character is revealed to be the “chosen one” of some sort*

I’m still in shock over what James said. I had no idea he was that insane, I was going to have to avoid him now, but that would be hard on our small ship. I’m about to bolt through the door to my first class when someone puts a hand in front of me, stopping me from moving forward. I glance up to see who is obstructing my way and I realize its my father.

“Father. Is there something you wanted to talk to me about?” I ask him while bowing respectfully. He takes a step toward me, his bulky form towering over my slight build.

“Yes. There is something I wanted to talk to you about. Please come with me to my private chambers. Don’t worry about missing school, I have gotten you excused from it.” He gestures towards the hall leading to his private chambers and starts walking away. I quickly follow, not wanting to be left behind.

When we reach his chambers he pulls out two chairs and motions me to sit down. I ease myself into the hard wooden chair and sit attentively.

“Alex. I know what your brother told you. I hate to admit it but he was right, at the current rate we’re going all of us will be long dead by the time we reach the star. At the beginning of this journey we received prophecy, about a boy born with powers “that will light us to the end.” We believe that means he will be able to use his powers to help us reach our new home in time. That boy is you, Alex. You are the only one on this ship born with fire magic, it must be you. I didn’t want to tell you when you were younger, because you wouldn’t have understood. I was going to tell you on your 16th birthday, but now you already know. So I am asking you to spend the next months working with the engineering team to see if you can find any way to make us reach our home and save us all. This all depends on you Alex, we need you.”

This is the second time in the past 10 minutes that I’ve been shocked beyond belief. Me? The chosen one? This is so much pressure. If I fail everyone here is going to die. But maybe this is what I need. I chance to hold onto those wisps of hope I once had. But I know that failure would break me beyond repair. But I have to try, for everyone, but mostly importantly my own sanity. I nod to my father. “I’ll do it.”

He nods. “Meet Orin, the head engineer at the bay, in a hour's time. He will teach you about the innerworkings of this ship.” Then he exits the room and I follow. (476 words)

*sabotage prompt* *eat something or drink water for at least five mins*

*candy land* *write for eight minutes with amnesia trope where character loses short term memories*

I’m about to collapse onto my bed but I’m just a few inches too short. I ram my head against my bedpost and suddenly the word goes black. I can feel the pain and hear the voices but I can do nothing. My body will not move a single inch. I wake up in an unfamiliar room. The room seems to spin and it makes me want to throw up. I put my head back down on my pillow and close my eyes, wanting the warm black darkness to engulf me again. But someone shakes me awake, keeping me from hiding back into the warmth. I turn my head to look at who it is. It’s my father, standing over me with a worried expression.

“Alex are you ok?” He asks me, but his words seem to slur together until they are almost unrecognizable.

“I’m fine.” I try to say, but I just can’t get my mouth to move. So I nod my head slightly. He still looks worried but my eyes feel heavy and I can no longer fight it. I sink into a heavy slumber.

I wake up what seems like days later. I sit up in my bed. The word is no longer spinning. I look around the room and see my father. Seeing that I’m awake he immediately rushes over.

“Alex, do you feel dizzy? Do you remember what I told you before your accident? Do you need anything?” He asks me.

I’m surprised by the onslaught of questions but I try to answer them.

“I don’t feel dizzy any more, but I used to. Did you tell me something important? I don’t remember. The last thing I remember is Jax dying in my arms and him telling me the truth about our ship. I don’t need anything.”

My father sighs in disappointment like that was not the answer he was hoping for. “So you’ve lost all of your memories from the past month.. I suppose I’ll have to re explain everything to you.” he mutters to himself. “We’re losing time..”” (345 words)

*sabotage prompt* *list of 5 achievements* (these are just swc related

1. Doing all the dailies so far.

2. Doing three weeklies so far.

3. Participating in both cabin wars.

4. Reaching Apprentice level.

5. Being active every day.

*throne room* *ghost throne* *300 words describing characters sudden flashback*

I held Jax in my arms. It was a feat I never would have been able to do a few months ago, when Jax was healthy. He would have been all muscle and brawn, weighing triple my weight. But now he looked like a skeleton, gaunt, with skin hanging off of his bones. You could even see his ribs protruding out. He struggled with every breath, gasping and wheezing for air. His heart beat at an irregular rate and I could feel it thumping.

“Alex..” Jax broke off coughing. “There is something I have to tell you, that you need to know.” Jax gasped, heaving.

“Jax, what do you mean, you’re not going to die now, it’s too early for you. You still have so much left to give. Please don’t strain yourself.” I said, worried.

Jax laughed weakly. “I’m dying Alex. I’ve known for the past couple of weeks. Now please, let me tell you this. We all talk about our new home, and how glorious it will be when we get there. But the reality is that we are never going to make it. It will take hundreds of years until we reach it, and by then we will be all gone. It’s hopeless. I tried my very best to find a solution, but I’ve concluded that there just isn’t any. I hate to tell you this when you’ll already be dealing with my death, but you need to know the truth. Just remember that I love you little brother.” Then Jax fell silent. His heart beat stopped and his chest failed to rise.

“NOO.” I screamed, but it was too late, Jax was already dead. He had left me with heart breaking news and I had no idea what to do. I started to weep, pounding the floor. (301 words)

*sabotage prompt* *stop working on weekly and look at landscapes, scenery or listen to music for at least 10 minutes without doing anything else*

*dining room* sat with myth, fairy tales, and fantasy. *incorporated some magic in my ending*

*sabotage prompt* *come up with five reasons why you appreciate an ST member and send it to them* did one for ceebee!

*basement* *memory book* *compiling room* *250 words character feels sudden burst of anxiety*

My father explained everything I had lost a memory of, and I was shocked. I couldn’t believe I was being given this much responsibility. It was all up to me if everyone died. If everyone did it would be my fault. I already wasn’t exactly “loved” by everyone, imagine how they would feel if they knew that they were going to die because of my mistakes. Surely people would question why I was missing from school. They would find out what I was doing and there would be so much pressure on me. Everyone would be watching me.

I bit my nails anxiously. I really didn’t feel good about doing this job, but it was necessary for our survival. I clenched my fists. What if I messed something up and it was irreparable? What if I caused our whole ship to crash? What if I turned off our air circulation on accident? What if I destroyed our motors? What if I knocked us off course? There were so many things I could screw up. I tried to breath in deeply but it didn’t help. I knew that I didn’t really have a choice in the matter, if I wanted to live I was going to have to do it. I bit the inside of my cheek and tried not to cry. My father would be so disappointed if he saw me like this. I sighed. At least there was a chance, at least this was better than having no hope at all. (252 words)

*Leave your story unresolved with a cliff hanger* *write 500 words to end your story*

I slowly trudged down the stairs into the engine bay. Orin explained everything in detail and I was overwhelmed by how intricate our small little ship was. How was I supposed to remember everything? I came away feeling exhausted, but I recited everything that Orin had taught me until I drifted into sleep.

I worked like that for months, just endlessly trying out new things, and then failing, trying again, failing, repeat. I was always sore and exhausted, but I knew that if it worked that it would all be worth it. Most everyone on the ship had found out about what I was doing. Some were encouraging to me, while others just ignored me, or mocked me behind my back. I was worried about missing out on learning in school, but I knew that this was just as important as school. Besides, I could always learn on my own.

The strangest things though were that devices in the engineering bay kept malfunctioning and trying to attack me. It was like someone was trying to sabotage me. I didn’t get it, who wouldn’t want to reach our new home sooner. I had to be extra careful around devices and use protective gloves. I had already gotten a burn up my arm and I had to stay in bed for weeks while I recovered.

I worked in the engineering bay for so long I knew it like the back of my hand. I felt like I had tried every possible combination of things. Sometimes I just wanted to give up and just accept that I would waste away on the ship and never accomplish anything. But I powered through.

Things were starting to feel hopeless after almost half a year working on finding a solution. But one day we found something we thought could be the big break. We had found a new planet, it wasn’t habitable but it seemed to have some sort of rare ore on it that we believed could be of use on our ship.

I and a group of seven others, including my friend James, went out to gather it. The mood was tense as everyone put on their space suits and ready themselves to step off on this new planet. I for one, was excited, not just because this could be the big break, but also to final go somewhere that wasn’t just wandering around the ship. I could experience new land. Even if it was a tiny planet with not much to offer, it was still better than nothing. I could feel free, even just for a few seconds.

The ship hatch opened and we all stepped out onto the planet. It was beautiful, purple sand, and some sort of glowing fruit trees. Perhaps those could be edible… But most importantly there were caves, and in those caves were moonstone ore. We carefully made our way deep into the caves until finally we found moonstone ore. It was beautiful. It glowed and shimmered in my hand. Quickly I loaded as much as I could into my satchel.

“Hey guys, let’s get as much as we can.” I called out. But that was when I realized I had separated from the rest of the group and it was just me and James. James had some sort of crazy grin on his face and he started to creep towards me menacingly. I backed away, scared. And that’s when he pounced. (574 words)


PATHS TAKEN: 3-1, 7-6, 82-3, 6-1, 5-2, 4-1, 9-3, 2-2, 1-5, 102-3 | SABOTAGE RESULTS: 8- S;4- F, 7- F, 9- S;1- F, 3- S;2- S;6- S;5- S | ENDING: neutral

dailly (301 words)
The capital city of Center is not like it once was 100 years ago. The pollution from the lands below has become unbearable. The air is thick with smoke, and pollution, poisoning our clouds. They have started to disintegrate and our buildings and land are falling apart.

Even those living on the highest mountains have felt the effects of the pollution. Most are starting to migrate and build higher up to avoid the dangerous effects of pollution. Even with our strong lungs, that are used to less oxygen and used to filtering out air, thousands are going to the hospital because of breathing problems each week.

The lands that once used to be rich with produce now barely produce enough for us to survive. Our grand houses and buildings with their rich colors and patterns have long faded and fallen apart. It has also been getting extremely hot in the past decade, a heat that even the constant cloud mist can’t seem to cool. We had to make mini clouds, that people could always keep with them to make sure that people didn’t collapse of heat stroke. We also had to make clothes with lighter fabric that was moisture wicking. The only problem with the lighter fabric was that the pollution could more easily taint our skin. People who were exposed to pollution daily started dying of skin cancer.

Our civilization has been destroyed by the people below. Many of us are growing restless and want to attack. They say that is unfair for us to suffer for their mistakes. There is resentment breeding for the peoples below, and soon resentment will become hate, and that hate a match to start the fire. The capital city of the Center is not the beautiful serene place it was a 100 years ago.

(312 words)
“Hey, cut Jaimie some slack.” Alan hollered to Adam from his position at the bottom the cliff. He could barely see Adam, who was a tiny speck hovering at the top of the cliff. He squinted, making sure that Adam was really there and he wasn’t just looking at a random pebble.

He watched as the line waved back in forth as Adam loosened the rope’s tight knot around it’s post. Jaimie rapidly descended as soon as the knot wasn’t taut. He slowly lowered himself onto the solid ground. Once he had found his footing he let go of the rope and collapsed onto the ground. Jaimie hugged the ground tight, rubbing his face against the smooth stone.

“Oh I can’t believe I made it back alive. Oh sweet beautiful steady ground, I’m never leaving you again.” Jaimie declared.

Adam just rolled his eyes. “Stop exaggerating Jaimie, it’s not that bad.”

Jaimie just glared at him. “Says the person who doesn’t have a fear of heights. Why didn’t you go up there instead if it’s so easy?”

“I told you already, you are the only one who is light enough to easily hang onto the rope.” Adam told Jaimie. Jaimie just rolled his eyes.

“Yeah well I’m not going up there ever again. That was the worse experience of my life. I wouldn’t do it even if you paid me a million bucks. I don’t know how you guys do this for a living.” Jaimie shuddered. Then he grabbed his bag and hauled it onto his shoulder. He lowered himself onto the ladder and grasped the metal rungs firmly as he began his descent down to the parking lot below.

Adam sighed. Jaimie had always hated climbing. Even though it was the family tradition he had always refused to go with their father and his other siblings on their weekly climbing expedition.