Two?! At least it isn't six. I've stayed up that late before (playing video games) and I didn't even know it. I think I was 5 years old then... I was so worried when I saw the sun coming up.
Yay, terribly written fanfiction. It was based on a CTM I made up lore for. Of course, I had to cut down on some of it, so it's not the best. I hope we can enter more than once!
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
Ashen, Dav and Laney were three friends. They lived in a small village far away from everybody else. They each had a small house, with a bed, chest, furnace and a few others in each one. Ashen's had a bookcase. They
rarely left the village, and Ashen had never left. They grew their own food and had a stable for the three horses. Ashen's was a light brown one she named Epona.
Later that night, Ashen heard a noise outside. She threw open her door and saw a blinding light. "Ashen, you must leave. A dangerous creature has escaped its prision. You must gather the three dragon eggs, head to the Temple
of Time in Castle Town, imprision the great creature and find out who you really are. The Great Deku Tree will tell you more. He resides in the temple far in the desert now. Go now, and be brave."
"Wait! I have-" Ashen started, but it was too late. Dav and Laney came rushing out of their houses. "I'm sorry, but I must leave. I have a journey to go on." Ashen told them as she mounted
Epona. As she was on the path to the desert, she heard two other horses.
"We're not leaving without you!" the other two Minecraftians said as they started their journey.
******************************
After what felt like forever, the three friends arrived at the temple. Ashen ran upstairs to find the Great Deku Tree. "Great Deku Tree, I was sent here to find you." Ashen said with great happiness.
"Yes, I was told you would come to me. We do not have much time. You will find the first deep in an underground safe out here in this desert. You will find the second in the Great Hall of the North. The final one is in the ruins deep
in a jungle city. Go now, Ashen. Find who you truly are. When you have the three eggs, return to me and I will send you to the Castle of the Three Sisters."
"Got it. Come on, Dav and Laney! We'll go find those eggs!" Ashen yelled. She knew she would find them.
******************************
Ashen was getting tired of walking when she saw a girl about her age. "Hey!" she called out.
"Ah don't think ah've ya 'round here before." the strange girl said.
"No. I don't get out much. Have you seen a dragon egg around here?"
The girl started shaking. "Uh, er, no. I mean yeah. Uh, not that ah have relation to it. Follow me." Ashen followed her. A few minutes later, they reached an opening. "Here ya go. Don't excpect me goin' down there. Spiders. Ah
hate them. Just follow the staircase." the girl shivered.
"Thank you!" Ashen said, running down the stairs. At the end of the path, she saw an exit to the outside. It looked like a small temple with a deep pit below it.
"Don't be scared," Ashen heard a familliar voice. "I'm tired of doing that stupid accent. My name is Fae. I'm a Dragon Sage. Please, take the egg."
"Thank you. I will protect it and save this world!" Ashen, Dav and Laney headed off for the cold north.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
As they reached the cold north, they saw an abandoned castle. "I wonder what it was used for." Laney wondered. They soon passed a second castle. It had started snowing, so they needed a place to stay. They heard someone
crying when they entered.
"Hello?" Ashen said.
"AHHHHHHH!" another girl said, running to the door. "Who are you?"
"I'm looking for a dragon egg."
"I know where it is. In fact, I was just headed to the Great Hall. Would you like to join me?"
"Sure. But why were you crying?"
"I'm tired of everyone calling me Queen. I'm not even the real queen, just someone chosen to rule when our kingdom fell apart."
"I'm sorry." the four walked towards the hall.
"By the way, my name's Lana." said the queen. "The Great Hall was carved from the mountain. It is also the only access to the jungle. It's really beautiful." Ashen was shocked at how magnificent it was. Colorful, intracite, she
loved being there. They followed Lana down the stairs. "Down here is the vault. Go on ahead, the dragon egg is in front of you. I am one of the Dragon Sages, so I wish for you to obtain it. Please, take care of it."
"I will" Ashen replied. They went upstairs and went down the hallway.
"Down there is the entrance to the Jungle. Be safe!" Lana called out to her new friends.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
"It sure is nice here" Laney said about the jungle. It was really sunny there. They took a railway to the jungle city. However, when it reached its destination, there was only one person.
"My name's Ryan. Please, hurry. I am a Dragon Sage. My egg was in the temple, but it... it attacked. I had to hide it. Please, follow me down this path." And so the four walked down a path, spreading across many islands.
"Here's the temple" It was ruined. They walked to the basement and Ryan retrieved it. "Here you go. I can return you the Great Deku Tree." Ryan brought up.
"That would be wonderful. Thank you for your help." Ashen said as Ryan said some words and the trio appeared back at the Deku Tree's temple.
******************************
"Ashen, you must do this alone. Dav, Laney, you will see her soon." The Great Deku Tree said. "Ashen, are you ready?"
"Yep." Ashen said. She closed her eyes and reopened them at the Temple of Time. She went inside and placed the three dragon eggs down. A door opened in front of her, and she drew the Sword of Time. She noticed everything
changing around her. "What's going on!?" she cried.
"Young sister, do not be afraid. You are going into the past to imprision the Wither. Let the powers of the dragons guide you..." Ashen saw the same light she saw a few nights ago that started her on this journey. She followed a dirt
path in this new barren wasteland and found a giant, death black creature with three heads. It hissed at her.
"Young Dragon Queen, have you returned to put an end to me? Return me to my prision? If so, you're foolish." it said, sending skeletons that looked like the Wither. Ashen fought them off.
"I don't know what you mean, but with this sword, I will imprision you!" she said. She stabbed it through its chest, relizing something. She had the power to imprision it.
"No... NO! My plans are foiled! You will pay one day! YOU WILL PAY!" it said, fading into mist.
"Thank you little sister. We have one more request." Two beautifully dressed girls appeared. "Will you return as the lost Dragon Queen?"
******************************
A few days later, Dev and Lana found out that their best friend was the lost Dragon Queen. Over time, they got to live in the castle of the Dragon Sisters. Many years passed, and Ashen returned the dragon eggs to their rightful
places and guardians. Ashen also found out one more thing: Even thoguh you may be important, you can never lose friendships.
I haven't read your fanfic (above) but I saw the ending. You can write that "lesson" in a much more... How can I put this? Metaphorical? I don't know how to say it, but it can be improved.
I haven't read your fanfic (above) but I saw the ending. You can write that "lesson" in a much more... How can I put this? Metaphorical? I don't know how to say it, but it can be improved.
I agree with Once. I read a few parts and then the ending, and a message like that is better implicitly stated. Also, I didn't really understand what it has to do with the theme Time Travel - Past, but if that was in there and I just didn't read it then sorry, I rescind that criticism. But yeah, implicit morals are better than obvious morals.
Feel free to leave your comments. Or criticisms, I suppose, if they're constructive. Almost anything really, unless it's an outright threat. In that case I'd prefer you put it in a private message.
I haven't read your fanfic (above) but I saw the ending. You can write that "lesson" in a much more... How can I put this? Metaphorical? I don't know how to say it, but it can be improved.
I agree with once. I read a few parts and then the ending, and a message like that is better implicitly stated. Also, I didn't really understand what it has to do with the theme Time Travel - Past, but if that was in there and I just didn't read it then sorry, I rescind that criticism. But yeah, implicit morals are better than obvious morals.
Yeah, the original didn't have a moral, so I kind of threw that in there just so the story would feel complete. And the main plot is they're gathering three dragon eggs to go back in the past.
Yeah, the original didn't have a moral, so I kind of threw that in there just so the story would feel complete. And the main plot is they're gathering three dragon eggs to go back in the past.
Do you want it added or are you going to rewrite it?
Feel free to leave your comments. Or criticisms, I suppose, if they're constructive. Almost anything really, unless it's an outright threat. In that case I'd prefer you put it in a private message.
"All... most... finished..." Jack said, panting loudly. He missed the terrain generation of old Minecraftia, and wished he could see the bright green grass once again.
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!" barked Rowdy, wanting attention. He hasn't really gotten his daily petting/color dying since Jack started making, well, whatever the heck he was making!
"****! THAT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE! And now its broken," Jack exclaimed. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was broken. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was also extremely expensive too! Jack had to save up his money for 15 years before he could start this project, longing to see the old, bright grass of Minecraftia. "Sigh..."
Rowdy whined, realizing he caused something to go wrong. But what did he do? He wanted to help fix this mess!
After stalking and listening to his masters muttering at night, he learned what Jack wanted! To see the old generation of Minecraftia and all the bright colors. And so, Rowdy had his first go at modifying reality. Rowdy struggled to do so. He has never programmed before, so he had to completely learn Java from scratch!
He didn't even know what RME (Reality Modding Environment) to use to make his modifications work! He was confused. How did the physics of Minecraftia build its own world long ago? And even before that, he didn't even know how to type! But he did it.
Rowdy left a page open in Word saying what he has done, "Jack, I went through all this for you! I learned to type and program in Java so you could have the old terrain generation back! Sadly, you can't go back in time, but this is the best I could do."
Minute Glass, by OnceInALongTime (A.K.A: Oncie)
This is pretty short, 644 words. This is my entry for the theme: Time Travel, Past
One. The wind swept by her face, and she ran. She kept running. Away from everything. The branches clawed at her face and her legs, and she kept going, her red cheeks and tear streaked face bleak and hopeless.
Two. She looked back, and she saw black. The absence of color, looking for her. Trying to capture her. She couldn’t breathe very well, the wind slipped past her too fast, playing with her. An unfriendly game.
Three. It grabbed at her ankles and slipped into her skin and chilled her bones. She felt cold. Her teeth chattered and her vision became blurred every few moments, shifting in uneven waves that vibrated annoyingly in her throat.
Four. She was almost there, to wherever there was. It was climbing up her legs, and she couldn’t feel her knees anymore, but she kept running. How, she did not, but she knew she had to keep going. She had to.
Five. She could see it. It was crawling, wrapping itself around her waist, and she was left with her head and her upper torso, and she did not want to run anymore. She never did. She had to. An end would come either way, there is hope.
Six. The color kaleidoscope path was right ahead, if she could just reach her past, she might be able to make it. Fix her life, fix her. It was crawling up her chest and her hands. She shook and struggled, the grass grabbing her legs in which she could no longer feel. She saw herself ahead. She might make it.
Seven. She could see her windblown hair and the small features of her face and she was only a few hours away.
Eight. She could see the autumn trees in the background and the sun against her skin. She was only an hour away. She reached out her hand, but she felt none, and she only felt her head, her neck and her hair, blowing wildly against her pale skin.
Nine. She saw the shadow and the light, and she could tell the difference. She was only a minute away, she would make it. She could save herself and she could save him. Her. Him. The black wrapped itself around her neck and she couldn’t breathe. She could only feel her face and the skin around it.
Ten. A second away, this was the worst. Her face was fading away and the black was seeping into her heart and her blood. White. Against black. She was almost there. She fell and the black took over her, and she disappeared into the Nowhere.
Or perhaps the Somewhere. She had so wanted to save him. To save her. They were apart, on the other sides, opposite sides of the Nowhere and the Somewhere. They were just there.
In the past, she sat on the park bench. Surrounded by the autumn leaves and the sun, a hand over her shoulder. His windswept hair, brown and gold, and his blue eyes. Her brown hair and her green eyes. Then he came.
There was a loud BAM! and a bullet was shot. He fell on to the ground, confused and hurting. His heart, his chest, it had flew right through it. She was too late, and another BAM! was heard. Lying on the ground, that was their last minute, and they held their hands tight and they closed their eyes.
She was surrounded by the black and he was surrounded by the white. Lost in time, trying to run to the past. A second more, and she would’ve fixed it. No, it was too late.
On the front page of the newspaper that day, in the past, said: LOCAL GIRL AND BOY SHOT AT PARK. That was the end of it.
With it, did the last grain of their minute glass fall, and it was done.
Yay, terribly written fanfiction. It was based on a CTM I made up lore for. Of course, I had to cut down on some of it, so it's not the best. I hope we can enter more than once!
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
Ashen, Dav and Laney were three friends. They lived in a small village far away from everybody else. They each had a small house, with a bed, chest, furnace and a few others in each one. Ashen's had a bookcase. They
rarely left the village, and Ashen had never left. They grew their own food and had a stable for the three horses. Ashen's was a light brown one she named Epona.
Later that night, Ashen heard a noise outside. She threw open her door and saw a blinding light. "Ashen, you must leave. A dangerous creature has escaped its prision. You must gather the three dragon eggs, head to the Temple
of Time in Castle Town, imprision the great creature and find out who you really are. The Great Deku Tree will tell you more. He resides in the temple far in the desert now. Go now, and be brave."
"Wait! I have-" Ashen started, but it was too late. Dav and Laney came rushing out of their houses. "I'm sorry, but I must leave. I have a journey to go on." Ashen told them as she mounted
Epona. As she was on the path to the desert, she heard two other horses.
"We're not leaving without you!" the other two Minecraftians said as they started their journey.
******************************
After what felt like forever, the three friends arrived at the temple. Ashen ran upstairs to find the Great Deku Tree. "Great Deku Tree, I was sent here to find you." Ashen said with great happiness.
"Yes, I was told you would come to me. We do not have much time. You will find the first deep in an underground safe out here in this desert. You will find the second in the Great Hall of the North. The final one is in the ruins deep
in a jungle city. Go now, Ashen. Find who you truly are. When you have the three eggs, return to me and I will send you to the Castle of the Three Sisters."
"Got it. Come on, Dav and Laney! We'll go find those eggs!" Ashen yelled. She knew she would find them.
******************************
Ashen was getting tired of walking when she saw a girl about her age. "Hey!" she called out.
"Ah don't think ah've ya 'round here before." the strange girl said.
"No. I don't get out much. Have you seen a dragon egg around here?"
The girl started shaking. "Uh, er, no. I mean yeah. Uh, not that ah have relation to it. Follow me." Ashen followed her. A few minutes later, they reached an opening. "Here ya go. Don't excpect me goin' down there. Spiders. Ah
hate them. Just follow the staircase." the girl shivered.
"Thank you!" Ashen said, running down the stairs. At the end of the path, she saw an exit to the outside. It looked like a small temple with a deep pit below it.
"Don't be scared," Ashen heard a familliar voice. "I'm tired of doing that stupid accent. My name is Fae. I'm a Dragon Sage. Please, take the egg."
"Thank you. I will protect it and save this world!" Ashen, Dav and Laney headed off for the cold north.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
As they reached the cold north, they saw an abandoned castle. "I wonder what it was used for." Laney wondered. They soon passed a second castle. It had started snowing, so they needed a place to stay. They heard someone
crying when they entered.
"Hello?" Ashen said.
"AHHHHHHH!" another girl said, running to the door. "Who are you?"
"I'm looking for a dragon egg."
"I know where it is. In fact, I was just headed to the Great Hall. Would you like to join me?"
"Sure. But why were you crying?"
"I'm tired of everyone calling me Queen. I'm not even the real queen, just someone chosen to rule when our kingdom fell apart."
"I'm sorry." the four walked towards the hall.
"By the way, my name's Lana." said the queen. "The Great Hall was carved from the mountain. It is also the only access to the jungle. It's really beautiful." Ashen was shocked at how magnificent it was. Colorful, intracite, she
loved being there. They followed Lana down the stairs. "Down here is the vault. Go on ahead, the dragon egg is in front of you. I am one of the Dragon Sages, so I wish for you to obtain it. Please, take care of it."
"I will" Ashen replied. They went upstairs and went down the hallway.
"Down there is the entrance to the Jungle. Be safe!" Lana called out to her new friends.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
"It sure is nice here" Laney said about the jungle. It was really sunny there. They took a railway to the jungle city. However, when it reached its destination, there was only one person.
"My name's Ryan. Please, hurry. I am a Dragon Sage. My egg was in the temple, but it... it attacked. I had to hide it. Please, follow me down this path." And so the four walked down a path, spreading across many islands.
"Here's the temple" It was ruined. They walked to the basement and Ryan retrieved it. "Here you go. I can return you the Great Deku Tree." Ryan brought up.
"That would be wonderful. Thank you for your help." Ashen said as Ryan said some words and the trio appeared back at the Deku Tree's temple.
******************************
"Ashen, you must do this alone. Dav, Laney, you will see her soon." The Great Deku Tree said. "Ashen, are you ready?"
"Yep." Ashen said. She closed her eyes and reopened them at the Temple of Time. She went inside and placed the three dragon eggs down. A door opened in front of her, and she drew the Sword of Time. She noticed everything
changing around her. "What's going on!?" she cried.
"Young sister, do not be afraid. You are going into the past to imprision the Wither. Let the powers of the dragons guide you..." Ashen saw the same light she saw a few nights ago that started her on this journey. She followed a dirt
path in this new barren wasteland and found a giant, death black creature with three heads. It hissed at her.
"Young Dragon Queen, have you returned to put an end to me? Return me to my prision? If so, you're foolish." it said, sending skeletons that looked like the Wither. Ashen fought them off.
"I don't know what you mean, but with this sword, I will imprision you!" she said. She stabbed it through its chest, relizing something. She had the power to imprision it.
"No... NO! My plans are foiled! You will pay one day! YOU WILL PAY!" it said, fading into mist.
"Thank you little sister. We have one more request." Two beautifully dressed girls appeared. "Will you return as the lost Dragon Queen?"
******************************
A few days later, Dev and Lana found out that their best friend was the lost Dragon Queen. Over time, they got to live in the castle of the Dragon Sisters. Many years passed, and Ashen returned the dragon eggs to their rightful
places and guardians. Ashen also found out one more thing: Even thoguh you may be important, you can never lose friendships.
Adding anyways. Though if you do want to revise it before sunday you are welcome to.
"All... most... finished..." Jack said, panting loudly. He missed the terrain generation of old Minecraftia, and wished he could see the bright green grass once again.
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!" barked Rowdy, wanting attention. He hasn't really gotten his daily petting/color dying since Jack started making, well, whatever the heck he was making!
"****! THAT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE! And now its broken," Jack exclaimed. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was broken. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was also extremely expensive too! Jack had to save up his money for 15 years before he could start this project, longing to see the old, bright grass of Minecraftia. "Sigh..."
Rowdy whined, realizing he caused something to go wrong. But what did he do? He wanted to help fix this mess!
After stalking and listening to his masters muttering at night, he learned what Jack wanted! To see the old generation of Minecraftia and all the bright colors. And so, Rowdy had his first go at modifying reality. Rowdy struggled to do so. He has never programmed before, so he had to completely learn Java from scratch!
He didn't even know what RME (Reality Modding Environment) to use to make his modifications work! He was confused. How did the physics of Minecraftia build its own world long ago? And even before that, he didn't even know how to type! But he did it.
Rowdy left a page open in Word saying what he has done, "Jack, I went through all this for you! I learned to type and program in Java so you could have the old terrain generation back! Sadly, you can't go back in time, but this is the best I could do."
Everyone loves time travel! Nice story, though it barely fits with the theme it is ok.:D
Added.
Minute Glass, by OnceInALongTime (A.K.A: Oncie)
This is pretty short, 644 words. This is my entry for the theme: Time Travel, Past
One. The wind swept by her face, and she ran. She kept running. Away from everything. The branches clawed at her face and her legs, and she kept going, her red cheeks and tear streaked face bleak and hopeless.
Two. She looked back, and she saw black. The absence of color, looking for her. Trying to capture her. She couldn’t breathe very well, the wind slipped past her too fast, playing with her. An unfriendly game.
Three. It grabbed at her ankles and slipped into her skin and chilled her bones. She felt cold. Her teeth chattered and her vision became blurred every few moments, shifting in uneven waves that vibrated annoyingly in her throat.
Four. She was almost there, to wherever there was. It was climbing up her legs, and she couldn’t feel her knees anymore, but she kept running. How, she did not, but she knew she had to keep going. She had to.
Five. She could see it. It was crawling, wrapping itself around her waist, and she was left with her head and her upper torso, and she did not want to run anymore. She never did. She had to. An end would come either way, there is hope.
Six. The color kaleidoscope path was right ahead, if she could just reach her past, she might be able to make it. Fix her life, fix her. It was crawling up her chest and her hands. She shook and struggled, the grass grabbing her legs in which she could no longer feel. She saw herself ahead. She might make it.
Seven. She could see her windblown hair and the small features of her face and she was only a few hours away.
Eight. She could see the autumn trees in the background and the sun against her skin. She was only an hour away. She reached out her hand, but she felt none, and she only felt her head, her neck and her hair, blowing wildly against her pale skin.
Nine. She saw the shadow and the light, and she could tell the difference. She was only a minute away, she would make it. She could save herself and she could save him. Her. Him. The black wrapped itself around her neck and she couldn’t breathe. She could only feel her face and the skin around it.
Ten. A second away, this was the worst. Her face was fading away and the black was seeping into her heart and her blood. White. Against black. She was almost there. She fell and the black took over her, and she disappeared into the Nowhere.
Or perhaps the Somewhere. She had so wanted to save him. To save her. They were apart, on the other sides, opposite sides of the Nowhere and the Somewhere. They were just there.
In the past, she sat on the park bench. Surrounded by the autumn leaves and the sun, a hand over her shoulder. His windswept hair, brown and gold, and his blue eyes. Her brown hair and her green eyes. Then he came.
There was a loud BAM! and a bullet was shot. He fell on to the ground, confused and hurting. His heart, his chest, it had flew right through it. She was too late, and another BAM! was heard. Lying on the ground, that was their last minute, and they held their hands tight and they closed their eyes.
She was surrounded by the black and he was surrounded by the white. Lost in time, trying to run to the past. A second more, and she would’ve fixed it. No, it was too late.
On the front page of the newspaper that day, in the past, said: LOCAL GIRL AND BOY SHOT AT PARK. That was the end of it.
With it, did the last grain of their minute glass fall, and it was done.
Wow! Once... You are insane at writing. 0_o
Added.
Adding anyways. Though if you do want to revise it before sunday you are welcome to.
Everyone loves time travel! Nice story, though it barely fits with the theme it is ok.
Added.
Wow! Once... You are insane at writing. 0_o
Added.
Adding anyways. Though if you do want to revise it before sunday you are welcome to.
Everyone loves time travel! Nice story, though it barely fits with the theme it is ok.
Added.
Wow! Once... You are insane at writing. 0_o
Added.
:3
By time travel theme, I thought it meant it had to do with time stuffies :3
This is my entry. It's slightly too long but you you can probably overlook that since it's only seven hundred words or so over the limit. It took me a while to write and ended up being a lot longer than I originally anticipated. I think it turned out pretty well though.
Bavarian Wine - Words: 2755
“Checkmate.” The man in the silver suit lifted the minute white marble figurine depicting a queen in a flowing robe and placed it softly on an unassuming black tile three rows away. He smiled slightly, and leaned back in his armchair. Across from him, the man in the black suit’s eyes flitted across the remaining pieces on the chessboard. A white knight, six white pawns, a white bishop and the white king against four black pawns, a black rook, a black bishop, the black king and the elegant black queen. He set his fingertip on the intricate white marble crown that distinguished his king from his lowly pawns, and tried to think of a scenario where he wasn’t cornered. The black queen stopped his horizontal advance, and a black rook stopped him vertically. He could shift his white king sideways but depending on his chosen square a bishop and a pawn would be ready to meet his advance. After a long silence, he, too, leaned back in his armchair and threw up his hands.
“Well done.” he said cordially in his usual soft, purring German accent, his voice calm even as his eyes continued to flick rapidly from piece to piece, trying to determine what he might have done differently to win. The man in the silver suit chuckled softly. They were both sitting in large, comfortable-looking red velvet armchairs on opposite sides of a large dark brown oak wood table. On the table sat a large, ornate chessboard made of black and white marble and a series of elaborately sculpted marble chess pieces. They sat in a large room with walls made of the same dark brown wood and a floor carpeted with a rich crimson satin rug. A large fireplace made of dark gray stone sat next to the table and armchairs and a blazing orange fire within it cast long tendrils of shadow across the room.
The man in the armchair to the right of the table wore a suit made of silver silk and a black bowtie. His cuffs were white and studded with simple gold cufflinks, and his pants were made of a rich black wool. He appeared to be in his late fifties, and had combed black hair streaked with silver and a silver beard. His smile revealed a row of polished white teeth. His eyes were a bright brown and shone with the spark of vast wisdom. He sat upright again and began to gather the chess pieces, placing them neatly back in their initial positions with a calculated meticulousness. “Are you really that surprised, Karl?” he asked without looking up at the other man. He gave another small laugh. “I’ve played the game for some thirty years now. And even if I hadn’t I can always read you like the back of my hand. How could I not win?”
“I suppose you’re right. Chess is an old man’s game.” said the man in the armchair to the left of the table, eliciting another laugh from his companion. Karl wore a suit made of black silk, and a bright crimson bowtie. His cuffs, too, were white, though his cufflinks were silver instead of gold and had the sheen that came only with recent purchase. His pants were black and striped with silver. He appeared to be in his late twenties, and had combed black hair that he had gelled in place and a short black beard. His eyes, too, were a bright brown, but unlike his companion his contained not wisdom but a blazing, fiery ambition. He sat up and spoke again. “Well, it has been a pleasure playing with you. However the night is becoming quite late, and I would suggest we proceed to opening a bottle of wine and discussing anything you’d like to discuss, if that’s alright with you?”
“Of course.” said the man in the silver suit. Karl nodded.
“Leon!” he called into the hall beyond the doorway. “Would you bring the Bavarian Wine?” In a few minutes a sharply dressed man in a white doublet and black pants hurried through the door, holding a silver tray. He had brown hair and looked to be in his early twenties. He smiled eagerly at Karl and the man in the silver suit before setting the tray down on the table. Sitting placidly on it’s shimmering metallic surface were two thin crystal wine glasses and a bottle of wine with a large brown cork. Karl picked up a wineglass and set it on his side of the chessboard, and motioned for the man in the silver suit to do the same. With one swift flick of his hand, Leon drew a small silver corkscrew from his pocket and unscrewed the cork, allowing it to fall into his open hand. Then, he picked up the wine bottle and poured a sparkling, foamy red wine into each of their glasses.
When he was finished, he picked up the silver tray again and looked expectantly at Karl. “Can I fetch you and your guest anything else, Master Wulff?”
“No, I think that’ll be all. Thank you Leon.” said Karl. Leon continued to smile at both of them and bowed shortly before returning to the hallway outside of the room. Once he was gone, the man in the silver suit flashed Karl an amused smile. Karl shrugged. “The estate needs servants if it’s going to be properly maintained. Leon’s not a bad fellow, just a bit tight in the collar for my tastes.” Karl paused to take a sip of the wine. He set the wine glass down and seemed to silently contemplate the quality of the wine before speaking again. “Marvelous, no? I hand picked it from perhaps a dozen samples at the vineyard. I’m told it’s from the person wine cellar of a Bavarian nobleman, a duke or a count I think. Costly, but what is wealth if not a means toward luxury?” At this the man in the silver suit burst into laughter. Karl looked at him cynically, confused and slightly indignant. “What’s so funny?” he asked.
“Which memoir did you read that one in?” asked the man in the silver suit between short chuckles. “Honestly Karl, if nothing else, you make an incredibly amusing millionaire.” Karl grinned sheepishly.
“Can you blame me?” he asked. “Ever since last month it’s all been a whirlwind of nice clothes and seaside estates and . I’m drunk on wine half the time and drunk on power the other half.” He tipped back his head and smiled, as though savoring the wealth. After a few moments of silence he turned to the man in the silver suit and smiled at him slyly. “I’m sure you can relate.”
“Yes, I can. But you’ve seen nothing yet. I can tell you Karl, there is very little that a man cannot enjoy in this world with a hundred million Euros at his beck and call.” At this Karl’s eyes widened suddenly and he nearly spit out his wine.
“A hundred million?” he managed to gasp after sputtering for a few seconds. “You turned five million Euros into a hundred million?”
“You didn’t really think this was it, did you? This little estate, a few servants? This is only the beginning.” The man in the silver suit spread his arms wide in a grand gesture and smiled at Karl. “But I didn’t expect you to think that far ahead, at least not yet. You have ambition, Karl, but not drive.” He picked up a small white marble pawn from the chessboard in his left hand and focused on it, his eyes widened in contemplation. He stroked it’s chiseled helm with his finger. “What is the difference between this pawn, one of twenty on the board, completely expendable, and the white king?”
Karl looked at him, puzzled. “Well, if a pawn dies the game goes on. If the king dies the game is over.”
“Yes.” said the man in the silver suit. “But both can die, eventually. Both are men. Neither is immortal, neither fully in control of their own destiny. One wears a crown and the other a helmet, but at the end of the day there is only one real difference between the two. A pawn is nearly useless, a simple foot soldier, a life of little weight on the battlefield, endlessly able to sacrifice its own life with little cost if it will hurt the enemy. A king needs to live, a king must live. A king has the weight of the game on his shoulders. Therefore, when a player acts as a pawn, their desire to survive extends only as far as the limited usefulness of the pawn’s life. When a player acts as a king, their desire to survive extends as far as they value winning the game. A player acting as a pawn has almost no drive, while a player acting as a king has infinite drive. Infinite will to succeed. Something I, and, in another life, you, created for ourselves.”
“But you don’t have the drive I had once. You have a different drive, bred of different emotions. You don’t know what it’s like to work in a dead end job for thirty years in a gray cubicle on the fourth floor of some godforsaken office building in Bavaria. You haven’t been embittered by being passed up for a promotion for the fourth time because your boss simply can’t be bothered, come home to a dusty apartment full of half-finished notes and old furniture that you can’t afford to replace, have your heart broken by that Viola you’re always talking about because ‘you’re a really nice guy, but the relationship isn’t going anywhere’.” As he spoke the man’s voice became steadily louder, and his hand began to tremble slightly. Realizing he was losing his composure, he took a deep breath and turned to Karl with a final frosted gaze. “But thanks to you and me, you won’t need to. We’ve saved you from that Karl. Thirty years of tinkering madly in that apartment by the light of a single dim bulb has saved you from that. And now, finally, we can turn to pursuing what ultimately drives us: the hope of creating a brighter, greater future for you and me.”
“One has a lot of time to think in thirty years of near-complete isolation from the outside world.” continued the man in the silver suit. “I kept myself updated on finances, stocks, rising companies. There are ways to turn nothing into five million Euros, as you have, and then turn five million into ten or twenty, or a hundred or a thousand. I have a path for you, Karl, a path of investments and business deals that will, in the end, work very prosperously for both of us. But I am, quite literally, getting ahead of myself. These are discussions to be had another time. The night really is getting late, and I should be on my way soon. For now, I want you to enjoy yourself. You, and I, have earned it.”
“I am.” said Karl, shortly. “I had no idea what you sacrificed to make this happen. You have my thanks, of course.”
“And I accept them. But don’t feel sorry for me.” said the man in the silver suit. “Those sacrifices will soon be entirely made up for. I have only your best interests at heart, Karl. Think nothing of it. You would have done the same for me.” Suddenly, he drew an object from his pocket and brought it to his eyes. In the light of the fire, Karl saw it was a thin silver pocket watch with a long silver chain that wound down and disappeared into the man’s pocket. The man in the silver suit stared at the glass surface of the timepiece for a few moments before looking back at Karl and speaking again. “It is late, Karl. I should be going soon. It has been a pleasure meeting you. Before I go, however, there is one thing I would like to see, if you would be fine with it.”
“Anything.” said Karl.
“Could I see the ticket. One more time?”
“Of course.” said Karl, fumbling in the pocket of his black pants until he found a small, slightly torn piece of paper, about the size of cinema ticket. He held it up to the light of the fire, now reduced to a few sparks and embers, and held it out to the man in the silver suit. It was red, and bore the black, gaudy designs of a casino at it’s edges. Printed on it’s surface were five numbers in a simple black font: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The other man took it slowly, as though he were afraid it was not entirely real and would shatter at his touch. When he gazed upon it his eyes began to fill with the spark of nostalgia, and a thin smile crossed his lips, as though he were seeing a long-lost friend again after years apart. Karl watched his silent reverie curiously. “I kept it with me, of course. Somehow, I don’t think I could ever get rid of it. It’s like a good luck charm, I suppose.”
“Neither do I.” said the other man. He reached into the same pocket he had pulled the pocket watch out of, and withdrew a small object. He set it on the table, and set the other ticket next to it. It was the same ticket, a bright red with black designs and writing, though much more worn and tarnished. On it were printed the same five numbers: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The man in the silver suit smiled again, and laughed. “I’ve kept it with me all these years. To bring good luck, yes. But also to remind me that I am the master of my own destiny. Five numbers. Just five simple numbers made it all happen. Five numbers on a red lottery ticket.” He laughed again, and turned his gaze to the fire.
He handed the red ticket back to Karl. “It really is time for me to be going.” he said, checking his pocket watch. He looked at the silver pocket watch closely, and began to turn the small silver dials on it’s side with precise, methodical motions of his fingers. He left only a large circular piston on the side unchanged. “I should return to my own time now. We will meet again, and there will be specifics to discuss. But for now, Karl, I want you to have some fun. Go out, enjoy life. Tell Viola a mutual friend said hello. Go out, take her somewhere nice. Berlin maybe, or Paris or Geneva or anywhere you like. And know that I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you.” said Karl, with a short smile. “I eagerly await our next meeting.” He raised his wine glass. “Cheers, Mr. Wulff.”
The man in the silver suit pressed the large piston, and, almost immediately, small silver sparks began to fly out of the silver pocket watch. The flew around him, becoming quickly larger and greater in quantity. A sphere of silver light began to envelope him.
“Call me by my first name.” said the man in the silver suit with a final laugh, raising his wine glass to meet Karl’s. “Cheers, Karl.”
“Cheers, Karl.” said Karl, clinking his wine glass against that of the man in the silver suit. The sound of glass shaking resonated through the room, and Karl watched as Karl was consumed by the silver light and his body disappeared entirely from view. He saw the other wine glass being lowered slowly, and heard it drop onto the table. The light became bright enough to make him shield his eyes for a moment, and had evaporated into the air as soon as he opened them. There was no trace of Karl or the silver pocket watch left. Karl sat up, his wine glass still raised. He looked at the red ticket in his right hand for a few moments before putting it slowly back in his pocket. He looked at the empty armchair where only a few moments before had sat another Karl, a Karl from a different time. He smiled at it, and raised his wine glass again, clinking it against the air. “Cheer’s Karl.” he said to the empty room, before laughing shortly to himself and draining the last drops of red wine in the wine glass.
Feel free to leave your comments. Or criticisms, I suppose, if they're constructive. Almost anything really, unless it's an outright threat. In that case I'd prefer you put it in a private message.
This is my entry. It's slightly too long but you you can probably overlook that since it's only seven hundred words or so over the limit. It took me a while to write and ended up being a lot longer than I originally anticipated. I think it turned out pretty well though.
Bavarian Wine - Words: 2755
“Checkmate.” The man in the silver suit lifted the minute white marble figurine depicting a queen in a flowing robe and placed it softly on an unassuming black tile three rows away. He smiled slightly, and leaned back in his armchair. Across from him, the man in the black suit’s eyes flitted across the remaining pieces on the chessboard. A white knight, six white pawns, a white bishop and the white king against four black pawns, a black rook, a black bishop, the black king and the elegant black queen. He set his fingertip on the intricate white marble crown that distinguished his king from his lowly pawns, and tried to think of a scenario where he wasn’t cornered. The black queen stopped his horizontal advance, and a black rook stopped him vertically. He could shift his white king sideways but depending on his chosen square a bishop and a pawn would be ready to meet his advance. After a long silence, he, too, leaned back in his armchair and threw up his hands.
“Well done.” he said cordially in his usual soft, purring German accent, his voice calm even as his eyes continued to flick rapidly from piece to piece, trying to determine what he might have done differently to win. The man in the silver suit chuckled softly. They were both sitting in large, comfortable-looking red velvet armchairs on opposite sides of a large dark brown oak wood table. On the table sat a large, ornate chessboard made of black and white marble and a series of elaborately sculpted marble chess pieces. They sat in a large room with walls made of the same dark brown wood and a floor carpeted with a rich crimson satin rug. A large fireplace made of dark gray stone sat next to the table and armchairs and a blazing orange fire within it cast long tendrils of shadow across the room.
The man in the armchair to the right of the table wore a suit made of silver silk and a black bowtie. His cuffs were white and studded with simple gold cufflinks, and his pants were made of a rich black wool. He appeared to be in his late fifties, and had combed black hair streaked with silver and a silver beard. His smile revealed a row of polished white teeth. His eyes were a bright brown and shone with the spark of vast wisdom. He sat upright again and began to gather the chess pieces, placing them neatly back in their initial positions with a calculated meticulousness. “Are you really that surprised, Karl?” he asked without looking up at the other man. He gave another small laugh. “I’ve played the game for some thirty years now. And even if I hadn’t I can always read you like the back of my hand. How could I not win?”
“I suppose you’re right. Chess is an old man’s game.” said the man in the armchair to the left of the table, eliciting another laugh from his companion. Karl wore a suit made of black silk, and a bright crimson bowtie. His cuffs, too, were white, though his cufflinks were silver instead of gold and had the sheen that came only with recent purchase. His pants were black and striped with silver. He appeared to be in his late twenties, and had combed black hair that he had gelled in place and a short black beard. His eyes, too, were a bright brown, but unlike his companion his contained not wisdom but a blazing, fiery ambition. He sat up and spoke again. “Well, it has been a pleasure playing with you. However the night is becoming quite late, and I would suggest we proceed to opening a bottle of wine and discussing anything you’d like to discuss, if that’s alright with you?”
“Of course.” said the man in the silver suit. Karl nodded.
“Leon!” he called into the hall beyond the doorway. “Would you bring the Bavarian Wine?” In a few minutes a sharply dressed man in a white doublet and black pants hurried through the door, holding a silver tray. He had brown hair and looked to be in his early twenties. He smiled eagerly at Karl and the man in the silver suit before setting the tray down on the table. Sitting placidly on it’s shimmering metallic surface were two thin crystal wine glasses and a bottle of wine with a large brown cork. Karl picked up a wineglass and set it on his side of the chessboard, and motioned for the man in the silver suit to do the same. With one swift flick of his hand, Leon drew a small silver corkscrew from his pocket and unscrewed the cork, allowing it to fall into his open hand. Then, he picked up the wine bottle and poured a sparkling, foamy red wine into each of their glasses.
When he was finished, he picked up the silver tray again and looked expectantly at Karl. “Can I fetch you and your guest anything else, Master Wulff?”
“No, I think that’ll be all. Thank you Leon.” said Karl. Leon continued to smile at both of them and bowed shortly before returning to the hallway outside of the room. Once he was gone, the man in the silver suit flashed Karl an amused smile. Karl shrugged. “The estate needs servants if it’s going to be properly maintained. Leon’s not a bad fellow, just a bit tight in the collar for my tastes.” Karl paused to take a sip of the wine. He set the wine glass down and seemed to silently contemplate the quality of the wine before speaking again. “Marvelous, no? I hand picked it from perhaps a dozen samples at the vineyard. I’m told it’s from the person wine cellar of a Bavarian nobleman, a duke or a count I think. Costly, but what is wealth if not a means toward luxury?” At this the man in the silver suit burst into laughter. Karl looked at him cynically, confused and slightly indignant. “What’s so funny?” he asked.
“Which memoir did you read that one in?” asked the man in the silver suit between short chuckles. “Honestly Karl, if nothing else, you make an incredibly amusing millionaire.” Karl grinned sheepishly.
“Can you blame me?” he asked. “Ever since last month it’s all been a whirlwind of nice clothes and seaside estates and . I’m drunk on wine half the time and drunk on power the other half.” He tipped back his head and smiled, as though savoring the wealth. After a few moments of silence he turned to the man in the silver suit and smiled at him slyly. “I’m sure you can relate.”
“Yes, I can. But you’ve seen nothing yet. I can tell you Karl, there is very little that a man cannot enjoy in this world with a hundred million Euros at his beck and call.” At this Karl’s eyes widened suddenly and he nearly spit out his wine.
“A hundred million?” he managed to gasp after sputtering for a few seconds. “You turned five million Euros into a hundred million?”
“You didn’t really think this was it, did you? This little estate, a few servants? This is only the beginning.” The man in the silver suit spread his arms wide in a grand gesture and smiled at Karl. “But I didn’t expect you to think that far ahead, at least not yet. You have ambition, Karl, but not drive.” He picked up a small white marble pawn from the chessboard in his left hand and focused on it, his eyes widened in contemplation. He stroked it’s chiseled helm with his finger. “What is the difference between this pawn, one of twenty on the board, completely expendable, and the white king?”
Karl looked at him, puzzled. “Well, if a pawn dies the game goes on. If the king dies the game is over.”
“Yes.” said the man in the silver suit. “But both can die, eventually. Both are men. Neither is immortal, neither fully in control of their own destiny. One wears a crown and the other a helmet, but at the end of the day there is only one real difference between the two. A pawn is nearly useless, a simple foot soldier, a life of little weight on the battlefield, endlessly able to sacrifice its own life with little cost if it will hurt the enemy. A king needs to live, a king must live. A king has the weight of the game on his shoulders. Therefore, when a player acts as a pawn, their desire to survive extends only as far as the limited usefulness of the pawn’s life. When a player acts as a king, their desire to survive extends as far as they value winning the game. A player acting as a pawn has almost no drive, while a player acting as a king has infinite drive. Infinite will to succeed. Something I, and, in another life, you, created for ourselves.”
“But you don’t have the drive I had once. You have a different drive, bred of different emotions. You don’t know what it’s like to work in a dead end job for thirty years in a gray cubicle on the fourth floor of some godforsaken office building in Bavaria. You haven’t been embittered by being passed up for a promotion for the fourth time because your boss simply can’t be bothered, come home to a dusty apartment full of half-finished notes and old furniture that you can’t afford to replace, have your heart broken by that Viola you’re always talking about because ‘you’re a really nice guy, but the relationship isn’t going anywhere’.” As he spoke the man’s voice became steadily louder, and his hand began to tremble slightly. Realizing he was losing his composure, he took a deep breath and turned to Karl with a final frosted gaze. “But thanks to you and me, you won’t need to. We’ve saved you from that Karl. Thirty years of tinkering madly in that apartment by the light of a single dim bulb has saved you from that. And now, finally, we can turn to pursuing what ultimately drives us: the hope of creating a brighter, greater future for you and me.”
“One has a lot of time to think in thirty years of near-complete isolation from the outside world.” continued the man in the silver suit. “I kept myself updated on finances, stocks, rising companies. There are ways to turn nothing into five million Euros, as you have, and then turn five million into ten or twenty, or a hundred or a thousand. I have a path for you, Karl, a path of investments and business deals that will, in the end, work very prosperously for both of us. But I am, quite literally, getting ahead of myself. These are discussions to be had another time. The night really is getting late, and I should be on my way soon. For now, I want you to enjoy yourself. You, and I, have earned it.”
“I am.” said Karl, shortly. “I had no idea what you sacrificed to make this happen. You have my thanks, of course.”
“And I accept them. But don’t feel sorry for me.” said the man in the silver suit. “Those sacrifices will soon be entirely made up for. I have only your best interests at heart, Karl. Think nothing of it. You would have done the same for me.” Suddenly, he drew an object from his pocket and brought it to his eyes. In the light of the fire, Karl saw it was a thin silver pocket watch with a long silver chain that wound down and disappeared into the man’s pocket. The man in the silver suit stared at the glass surface of the timepiece for a few moments before looking back at Karl and speaking again. “It is late, Karl. I should be going soon. It has been a pleasure meeting you. Before I go, however, there is one thing I would like to see, if you would be fine with it.”
“Anything.” said Karl.
“Could I see the ticket. One more time?”
“Of course.” said Karl, fumbling in the pocket of his black pants until he found a small, slightly torn piece of paper, about the size of cinema ticket. He held it up to the light of the fire, now reduced to a few sparks and embers, and held it out to the man in the silver suit. It was red, and bore the black, gaudy designs of a casino at it’s edges. Printed on it’s surface were five numbers in a simple black font: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The other man took it slowly, as though he were afraid it was not entirely real and would shatter at his touch. When he gazed upon it his eyes began to fill with the spark of nostalgia, and a thin smile crossed his lips, as though he were seeing a long-lost friend again after years apart. Karl watched his silent reverie curiously. “I kept it with me, of course. Somehow, I don’t think I could ever get rid of it. It’s like a good luck charm, I suppose.”
“Neither do I.” said the other man. He reached into the same pocket he had pulled the pocket watch out of, and withdrew a small object. He set it on the table, and set the other ticket next to it. It was the same ticket, a bright red with black designs and writing, though much more worn and tarnished. On it were printed the same five numbers: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The man in the silver suit smiled again, and laughed. “I’ve kept it with me all these years. To bring good luck, yes. But also to remind me that I am the master of my own destiny. Five numbers. Just five simple numbers made it all happen. Five numbers on a red lottery ticket.” He laughed again, and turned his gaze to the fire.
He handed the red ticket back to Karl. “It really is time for me to be going.” he said, checking his pocket watch. He looked at the silver pocket watch closely, and began to turn the small silver dials on it’s side with precise, methodical motions of his fingers. He left only a large circular piston on the side unchanged. “I should return to my own time now. We will meet again, and there will be specifics to discuss. But for now, Karl, I want you to have some fun. Go out, enjoy life. Tell Viola a mutual friend said hello. Go out, take her somewhere nice. Berlin maybe, or Paris or Geneva or anywhere you like. And know that I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you.” said Karl, with a short smile. “I eagerly await our next meeting.” He raised his wine glass. “Cheers, Mr. Wulff.”
The man in the silver suit pressed the large piston, and, almost immediately, small silver sparks began to fly out of the silver pocket watch. The flew around him, becoming quickly larger and greater in quantity. A sphere of silver light began to envelope him.
“Call me by my first name.” said the man in the silver suit with a final laugh, raising his wine glass to meet Karl’s. “Cheers, Karl.”
“Cheers, Karl.” said Karl, clinking his wine glass against that of the man in the silver suit. The sound of glass shaking resonated through the room, and Karl watched as Karl was consumed by the silver light and his body disappeared entirely from view. He saw the other wine glass being lowered slowly, and heard it drop onto the table. The light became bright enough to make him shield his eyes for a moment, and had evaporated into the air as soon as he opened them. There was no trace of Karl or the silver pocket watch left. Karl sat up, his wine glass still raised. He looked at the red ticket in his right hand for a few moments before putting it slowly back in his pocket. He looked at the empty armchair where only a few moments before had sat another Karl, a Karl from a different time. He smiled at it, and raised his wine glass again, clinking it against the air. “Cheer’s Karl.” he said to the empty room, before laughing shortly to himself and draining the last drops of red wine in the wine glass.
Feel free to leave your comments. Or criticisms, I suppose, if they're constructive. Almost anything really, unless it's an outright threat. In that case I'd prefer you put it in a private message.
I'm surprised so few people entered this week. Also, dejers I think the spoiler for my story in the "Entries" section of your main post is broken. But I guess it doesn't really matter now.
Feel free to leave your comments. Or criticisms, I suppose, if they're constructive. Almost anything really, unless it's an outright threat. In that case I'd prefer you put it in a private message.
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On Topic; The New theme is officially up. :}
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
Ashen, Dav and Laney were three friends. They lived in a small village far away from everybody else. They each had a small house, with a bed, chest, furnace and a few others in each one. Ashen's had a bookcase. They
rarely left the village, and Ashen had never left. They grew their own food and had a stable for the three horses. Ashen's was a light brown one she named Epona.
Later that night, Ashen heard a noise outside. She threw open her door and saw a blinding light. "Ashen, you must leave. A dangerous creature has escaped its prision. You must gather the three dragon eggs, head to the Temple
of Time in Castle Town, imprision the great creature and find out who you really are. The Great Deku Tree will tell you more. He resides in the temple far in the desert now. Go now, and be brave."
"Wait! I have-" Ashen started, but it was too late. Dav and Laney came rushing out of their houses. "I'm sorry, but I must leave. I have a journey to go on." Ashen told them as she mounted
Epona. As she was on the path to the desert, she heard two other horses.
"We're not leaving without you!" the other two Minecraftians said as they started their journey.
******************************
After what felt like forever, the three friends arrived at the temple. Ashen ran upstairs to find the Great Deku Tree. "Great Deku Tree, I was sent here to find you." Ashen said with great happiness.
"Yes, I was told you would come to me. We do not have much time. You will find the first deep in an underground safe out here in this desert. You will find the second in the Great Hall of the North. The final one is in the ruins deep
in a jungle city. Go now, Ashen. Find who you truly are. When you have the three eggs, return to me and I will send you to the Castle of the Three Sisters."
"Got it. Come on, Dav and Laney! We'll go find those eggs!" Ashen yelled. She knew she would find them.
******************************
Ashen was getting tired of walking when she saw a girl about her age. "Hey!" she called out.
"Ah don't think ah've ya 'round here before." the strange girl said.
"No. I don't get out much. Have you seen a dragon egg around here?"
The girl started shaking. "Uh, er, no. I mean yeah. Uh, not that ah have relation to it. Follow me." Ashen followed her. A few minutes later, they reached an opening. "Here ya go. Don't excpect me goin' down there. Spiders. Ah
hate them. Just follow the staircase." the girl shivered.
"Thank you!" Ashen said, running down the stairs. At the end of the path, she saw an exit to the outside. It looked like a small temple with a deep pit below it.
"Don't be scared," Ashen heard a familliar voice. "I'm tired of doing that stupid accent. My name is Fae. I'm a Dragon Sage. Please, take the egg."
"Thank you. I will protect it and save this world!" Ashen, Dav and Laney headed off for the cold north.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
As they reached the cold north, they saw an abandoned castle. "I wonder what it was used for." Laney wondered. They soon passed a second castle. It had started snowing, so they needed a place to stay. They heard someone
crying when they entered.
"Hello?" Ashen said.
"AHHHHHHH!" another girl said, running to the door. "Who are you?"
"I'm looking for a dragon egg."
"I know where it is. In fact, I was just headed to the Great Hall. Would you like to join me?"
"Sure. But why were you crying?"
"I'm tired of everyone calling me Queen. I'm not even the real queen, just someone chosen to rule when our kingdom fell apart."
"I'm sorry." the four walked towards the hall.
"By the way, my name's Lana." said the queen. "The Great Hall was carved from the mountain. It is also the only access to the jungle. It's really beautiful." Ashen was shocked at how magnificent it was. Colorful, intracite, she
loved being there. They followed Lana down the stairs. "Down here is the vault. Go on ahead, the dragon egg is in front of you. I am one of the Dragon Sages, so I wish for you to obtain it. Please, take care of it."
"I will" Ashen replied. They went upstairs and went down the hallway.
"Down there is the entrance to the Jungle. Be safe!" Lana called out to her new friends.
"Long long ago, when Minecraftia was just a barren wasteland, three dragons descended from the skies. They blessed the land with their powers and created a powerful race known as the Minecraftians. Before disappearing,
they left three eggs with three dragon sages. They also apppointed three sisters to be the queens of the land to keep order. When they left, an ancient evil known as the Wither escaped from below the surface of Minecraftia.
The youngest sister was brave and stood up against it. She used the power of the dragons' blessing to seal it away, but because of this, she disappeared into thin air. Since then, nobody-"
"Ashen!" called a male voice. "Are you reading that book again to yourself?"
"Dav, what's wrong with it? I'm interested in what happened back then. It's definately more interesting than staying in this... boring village all day."
******************************
"It sure is nice here" Laney said about the jungle. It was really sunny there. They took a railway to the jungle city. However, when it reached its destination, there was only one person.
"My name's Ryan. Please, hurry. I am a Dragon Sage. My egg was in the temple, but it... it attacked. I had to hide it. Please, follow me down this path." And so the four walked down a path, spreading across many islands.
"Here's the temple" It was ruined. They walked to the basement and Ryan retrieved it. "Here you go. I can return you the Great Deku Tree." Ryan brought up.
"That would be wonderful. Thank you for your help." Ashen said as Ryan said some words and the trio appeared back at the Deku Tree's temple.
******************************
"Ashen, you must do this alone. Dav, Laney, you will see her soon." The Great Deku Tree said. "Ashen, are you ready?"
"Yep." Ashen said. She closed her eyes and reopened them at the Temple of Time. She went inside and placed the three dragon eggs down. A door opened in front of her, and she drew the Sword of Time. She noticed everything
changing around her. "What's going on!?" she cried.
"Young sister, do not be afraid. You are going into the past to imprision the Wither. Let the powers of the dragons guide you..." Ashen saw the same light she saw a few nights ago that started her on this journey. She followed a dirt
path in this new barren wasteland and found a giant, death black creature with three heads. It hissed at her.
"Young Dragon Queen, have you returned to put an end to me? Return me to my prision? If so, you're foolish." it said, sending skeletons that looked like the Wither. Ashen fought them off.
"I don't know what you mean, but with this sword, I will imprision you!" she said. She stabbed it through its chest, relizing something. She had the power to imprision it.
"No... NO! My plans are foiled! You will pay one day! YOU WILL PAY!" it said, fading into mist.
"Thank you little sister. We have one more request." Two beautifully dressed girls appeared. "Will you return as the lost Dragon Queen?"
******************************
A few days later, Dev and Lana found out that their best friend was the lost Dragon Queen. Over time, they got to live in the castle of the Dragon Sisters. Many years passed, and Ashen returned the dragon eggs to their rightful
places and guardians. Ashen also found out one more thing: Even thoguh you may be important, you can never lose friendships.
don't click this link...
I agree with Once. I read a few parts and then the ending, and a message like that is better implicitly stated. Also, I didn't really understand what it has to do with the theme Time Travel - Past, but if that was in there and I just didn't read it then sorry, I rescind that criticism. But yeah, implicit morals are better than obvious morals.
Yeah, the original didn't have a moral, so I kind of threw that in there just so the story would feel complete. And the main plot is they're gathering three dragon eggs to go back in the past.
don't click this link...
"All... most... finished..." Jack said, panting loudly. He missed the terrain generation of old Minecraftia, and wished he could see the bright green grass once again.
"RUFF! RUFF! RUFF!" barked Rowdy, wanting attention. He hasn't really gotten his daily petting/color dying since Jack started making, well, whatever the heck he was making!
"****! THAT WAS THE MOST IMPORTANT PIECE! And now its broken," Jack exclaimed. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was broken. The super-atomic-desembler-then-transport-and-reassemble do-hicky was also extremely expensive too! Jack had to save up his money for 15 years before he could start this project, longing to see the old, bright grass of Minecraftia. "Sigh..."
Rowdy whined, realizing he caused something to go wrong. But what did he do? He wanted to help fix this mess!
After stalking and listening to his masters muttering at night, he learned what Jack wanted! To see the old generation of Minecraftia and all the bright colors. And so, Rowdy had his first go at modifying reality. Rowdy struggled to do so. He has never programmed before, so he had to completely learn Java from scratch!
He didn't even know what RME (Reality Modding Environment) to use to make his modifications work! He was confused. How did the physics of Minecraftia build its own world long ago? And even before that, he didn't even know how to type! But he did it.
Rowdy left a page open in Word saying what he has done, "Jack, I went through all this for you! I learned to type and program in Java so you could have the old terrain generation back! Sadly, you can't go back in time, but this is the best I could do."
This is pretty short, 644 words. This is my entry for the theme: Time Travel, Past
One. The wind swept by her face, and she ran. She kept running. Away from everything. The branches clawed at her face and her legs, and she kept going, her red cheeks and tear streaked face bleak and hopeless.
Two. She looked back, and she saw black. The absence of color, looking for her. Trying to capture her. She couldn’t breathe very well, the wind slipped past her too fast, playing with her. An unfriendly game.
Three. It grabbed at her ankles and slipped into her skin and chilled her bones. She felt cold. Her teeth chattered and her vision became blurred every few moments, shifting in uneven waves that vibrated annoyingly in her throat.
Four. She was almost there, to wherever there was. It was climbing up her legs, and she couldn’t feel her knees anymore, but she kept running. How, she did not, but she knew she had to keep going. She had to.
Five. She could see it. It was crawling, wrapping itself around her waist, and she was left with her head and her upper torso, and she did not want to run anymore. She never did. She had to. An end would come either way, there is hope.
Six. The color kaleidoscope path was right ahead, if she could just reach her past, she might be able to make it. Fix her life, fix her. It was crawling up her chest and her hands. She shook and struggled, the grass grabbing her legs in which she could no longer feel. She saw herself ahead. She might make it.
Seven. She could see her windblown hair and the small features of her face and she was only a few hours away.
Eight. She could see the autumn trees in the background and the sun against her skin. She was only an hour away. She reached out her hand, but she felt none, and she only felt her head, her neck and her hair, blowing wildly against her pale skin.
Nine. She saw the shadow and the light, and she could tell the difference. She was only a minute away, she would make it. She could save herself and she could save him. Her. Him. The black wrapped itself around her neck and she couldn’t breathe. She could only feel her face and the skin around it.
Ten. A second away, this was the worst. Her face was fading away and the black was seeping into her heart and her blood. White. Against black. She was almost there. She fell and the black took over her, and she disappeared into the Nowhere.
Or perhaps the Somewhere. She had so wanted to save him. To save her. They were apart, on the other sides, opposite sides of the Nowhere and the Somewhere. They were just there.
In the past, she sat on the park bench. Surrounded by the autumn leaves and the sun, a hand over her shoulder. His windswept hair, brown and gold, and his blue eyes. Her brown hair and her green eyes. Then he came.
There was a loud BAM! and a bullet was shot. He fell on to the ground, confused and hurting. His heart, his chest, it had flew right through it. She was too late, and another BAM! was heard. Lying on the ground, that was their last minute, and they held their hands tight and they closed their eyes.
She was surrounded by the black and he was surrounded by the white. Lost in time, trying to run to the past. A second more, and she would’ve fixed it. No, it was too late.
On the front page of the newspaper that day, in the past, said: LOCAL GIRL AND BOY SHOT AT PARK. That was the end of it.
With it, did the last grain of their minute glass fall, and it was done.
Everyone loves time travel! Nice story, though it barely fits with the theme it is ok.:D
Added.
Wow! Once... You are insane at writing. 0_o
Added.
:3
By time travel theme, I thought it meant it had to do with time stuffies :3
*Insert signature here*
Bavarian Wine - Words: 2755
“Well done.” he said cordially in his usual soft, purring German accent, his voice calm even as his eyes continued to flick rapidly from piece to piece, trying to determine what he might have done differently to win. The man in the silver suit chuckled softly. They were both sitting in large, comfortable-looking red velvet armchairs on opposite sides of a large dark brown oak wood table. On the table sat a large, ornate chessboard made of black and white marble and a series of elaborately sculpted marble chess pieces. They sat in a large room with walls made of the same dark brown wood and a floor carpeted with a rich crimson satin rug. A large fireplace made of dark gray stone sat next to the table and armchairs and a blazing orange fire within it cast long tendrils of shadow across the room.
The man in the armchair to the right of the table wore a suit made of silver silk and a black bowtie. His cuffs were white and studded with simple gold cufflinks, and his pants were made of a rich black wool. He appeared to be in his late fifties, and had combed black hair streaked with silver and a silver beard. His smile revealed a row of polished white teeth. His eyes were a bright brown and shone with the spark of vast wisdom. He sat upright again and began to gather the chess pieces, placing them neatly back in their initial positions with a calculated meticulousness. “Are you really that surprised, Karl?” he asked without looking up at the other man. He gave another small laugh. “I’ve played the game for some thirty years now. And even if I hadn’t I can always read you like the back of my hand. How could I not win?”
“I suppose you’re right. Chess is an old man’s game.” said the man in the armchair to the left of the table, eliciting another laugh from his companion. Karl wore a suit made of black silk, and a bright crimson bowtie. His cuffs, too, were white, though his cufflinks were silver instead of gold and had the sheen that came only with recent purchase. His pants were black and striped with silver. He appeared to be in his late twenties, and had combed black hair that he had gelled in place and a short black beard. His eyes, too, were a bright brown, but unlike his companion his contained not wisdom but a blazing, fiery ambition. He sat up and spoke again. “Well, it has been a pleasure playing with you. However the night is becoming quite late, and I would suggest we proceed to opening a bottle of wine and discussing anything you’d like to discuss, if that’s alright with you?”
“Of course.” said the man in the silver suit. Karl nodded.
“Leon!” he called into the hall beyond the doorway. “Would you bring the Bavarian Wine?” In a few minutes a sharply dressed man in a white doublet and black pants hurried through the door, holding a silver tray. He had brown hair and looked to be in his early twenties. He smiled eagerly at Karl and the man in the silver suit before setting the tray down on the table. Sitting placidly on it’s shimmering metallic surface were two thin crystal wine glasses and a bottle of wine with a large brown cork. Karl picked up a wineglass and set it on his side of the chessboard, and motioned for the man in the silver suit to do the same. With one swift flick of his hand, Leon drew a small silver corkscrew from his pocket and unscrewed the cork, allowing it to fall into his open hand. Then, he picked up the wine bottle and poured a sparkling, foamy red wine into each of their glasses.
When he was finished, he picked up the silver tray again and looked expectantly at Karl. “Can I fetch you and your guest anything else, Master Wulff?”
“No, I think that’ll be all. Thank you Leon.” said Karl. Leon continued to smile at both of them and bowed shortly before returning to the hallway outside of the room. Once he was gone, the man in the silver suit flashed Karl an amused smile. Karl shrugged. “The estate needs servants if it’s going to be properly maintained. Leon’s not a bad fellow, just a bit tight in the collar for my tastes.” Karl paused to take a sip of the wine. He set the wine glass down and seemed to silently contemplate the quality of the wine before speaking again. “Marvelous, no? I hand picked it from perhaps a dozen samples at the vineyard. I’m told it’s from the person wine cellar of a Bavarian nobleman, a duke or a count I think. Costly, but what is wealth if not a means toward luxury?” At this the man in the silver suit burst into laughter. Karl looked at him cynically, confused and slightly indignant. “What’s so funny?” he asked.
“Which memoir did you read that one in?” asked the man in the silver suit between short chuckles. “Honestly Karl, if nothing else, you make an incredibly amusing millionaire.” Karl grinned sheepishly.
“Can you blame me?” he asked. “Ever since last month it’s all been a whirlwind of nice clothes and seaside estates and . I’m drunk on wine half the time and drunk on power the other half.” He tipped back his head and smiled, as though savoring the wealth. After a few moments of silence he turned to the man in the silver suit and smiled at him slyly. “I’m sure you can relate.”
“Yes, I can. But you’ve seen nothing yet. I can tell you Karl, there is very little that a man cannot enjoy in this world with a hundred million Euros at his beck and call.” At this Karl’s eyes widened suddenly and he nearly spit out his wine.
“A hundred million?” he managed to gasp after sputtering for a few seconds. “You turned five million Euros into a hundred million?”
“You didn’t really think this was it, did you? This little estate, a few servants? This is only the beginning.” The man in the silver suit spread his arms wide in a grand gesture and smiled at Karl. “But I didn’t expect you to think that far ahead, at least not yet. You have ambition, Karl, but not drive.” He picked up a small white marble pawn from the chessboard in his left hand and focused on it, his eyes widened in contemplation. He stroked it’s chiseled helm with his finger. “What is the difference between this pawn, one of twenty on the board, completely expendable, and the white king?”
Karl looked at him, puzzled. “Well, if a pawn dies the game goes on. If the king dies the game is over.”
“Yes.” said the man in the silver suit. “But both can die, eventually. Both are men. Neither is immortal, neither fully in control of their own destiny. One wears a crown and the other a helmet, but at the end of the day there is only one real difference between the two. A pawn is nearly useless, a simple foot soldier, a life of little weight on the battlefield, endlessly able to sacrifice its own life with little cost if it will hurt the enemy. A king needs to live, a king must live. A king has the weight of the game on his shoulders. Therefore, when a player acts as a pawn, their desire to survive extends only as far as the limited usefulness of the pawn’s life. When a player acts as a king, their desire to survive extends as far as they value winning the game. A player acting as a pawn has almost no drive, while a player acting as a king has infinite drive. Infinite will to succeed. Something I, and, in another life, you, created for ourselves.”
“But you don’t have the drive I had once. You have a different drive, bred of different emotions. You don’t know what it’s like to work in a dead end job for thirty years in a gray cubicle on the fourth floor of some godforsaken office building in Bavaria. You haven’t been embittered by being passed up for a promotion for the fourth time because your boss simply can’t be bothered, come home to a dusty apartment full of half-finished notes and old furniture that you can’t afford to replace, have your heart broken by that Viola you’re always talking about because ‘you’re a really nice guy, but the relationship isn’t going anywhere’.” As he spoke the man’s voice became steadily louder, and his hand began to tremble slightly. Realizing he was losing his composure, he took a deep breath and turned to Karl with a final frosted gaze. “But thanks to you and me, you won’t need to. We’ve saved you from that Karl. Thirty years of tinkering madly in that apartment by the light of a single dim bulb has saved you from that. And now, finally, we can turn to pursuing what ultimately drives us: the hope of creating a brighter, greater future for you and me.”
“One has a lot of time to think in thirty years of near-complete isolation from the outside world.” continued the man in the silver suit. “I kept myself updated on finances, stocks, rising companies. There are ways to turn nothing into five million Euros, as you have, and then turn five million into ten or twenty, or a hundred or a thousand. I have a path for you, Karl, a path of investments and business deals that will, in the end, work very prosperously for both of us. But I am, quite literally, getting ahead of myself. These are discussions to be had another time. The night really is getting late, and I should be on my way soon. For now, I want you to enjoy yourself. You, and I, have earned it.”
“I am.” said Karl, shortly. “I had no idea what you sacrificed to make this happen. You have my thanks, of course.”
“And I accept them. But don’t feel sorry for me.” said the man in the silver suit. “Those sacrifices will soon be entirely made up for. I have only your best interests at heart, Karl. Think nothing of it. You would have done the same for me.” Suddenly, he drew an object from his pocket and brought it to his eyes. In the light of the fire, Karl saw it was a thin silver pocket watch with a long silver chain that wound down and disappeared into the man’s pocket. The man in the silver suit stared at the glass surface of the timepiece for a few moments before looking back at Karl and speaking again. “It is late, Karl. I should be going soon. It has been a pleasure meeting you. Before I go, however, there is one thing I would like to see, if you would be fine with it.”
“Anything.” said Karl.
“Could I see the ticket. One more time?”
“Of course.” said Karl, fumbling in the pocket of his black pants until he found a small, slightly torn piece of paper, about the size of cinema ticket. He held it up to the light of the fire, now reduced to a few sparks and embers, and held it out to the man in the silver suit. It was red, and bore the black, gaudy designs of a casino at it’s edges. Printed on it’s surface were five numbers in a simple black font: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The other man took it slowly, as though he were afraid it was not entirely real and would shatter at his touch. When he gazed upon it his eyes began to fill with the spark of nostalgia, and a thin smile crossed his lips, as though he were seeing a long-lost friend again after years apart. Karl watched his silent reverie curiously. “I kept it with me, of course. Somehow, I don’t think I could ever get rid of it. It’s like a good luck charm, I suppose.”
“Neither do I.” said the other man. He reached into the same pocket he had pulled the pocket watch out of, and withdrew a small object. He set it on the table, and set the other ticket next to it. It was the same ticket, a bright red with black designs and writing, though much more worn and tarnished. On it were printed the same five numbers: 8, 19, 26, 38 and 57. The man in the silver suit smiled again, and laughed. “I’ve kept it with me all these years. To bring good luck, yes. But also to remind me that I am the master of my own destiny. Five numbers. Just five simple numbers made it all happen. Five numbers on a red lottery ticket.” He laughed again, and turned his gaze to the fire.
He handed the red ticket back to Karl. “It really is time for me to be going.” he said, checking his pocket watch. He looked at the silver pocket watch closely, and began to turn the small silver dials on it’s side with precise, methodical motions of his fingers. He left only a large circular piston on the side unchanged. “I should return to my own time now. We will meet again, and there will be specifics to discuss. But for now, Karl, I want you to have some fun. Go out, enjoy life. Tell Viola a mutual friend said hello. Go out, take her somewhere nice. Berlin maybe, or Paris or Geneva or anywhere you like. And know that I’m proud of you.”
“Thank you.” said Karl, with a short smile. “I eagerly await our next meeting.” He raised his wine glass. “Cheers, Mr. Wulff.”
The man in the silver suit pressed the large piston, and, almost immediately, small silver sparks began to fly out of the silver pocket watch. The flew around him, becoming quickly larger and greater in quantity. A sphere of silver light began to envelope him.
“Call me by my first name.” said the man in the silver suit with a final laugh, raising his wine glass to meet Karl’s. “Cheers, Karl.”
“Cheers, Karl.” said Karl, clinking his wine glass against that of the man in the silver suit. The sound of glass shaking resonated through the room, and Karl watched as Karl was consumed by the silver light and his body disappeared entirely from view. He saw the other wine glass being lowered slowly, and heard it drop onto the table. The light became bright enough to make him shield his eyes for a moment, and had evaporated into the air as soon as he opened them. There was no trace of Karl or the silver pocket watch left. Karl sat up, his wine glass still raised. He looked at the red ticket in his right hand for a few moments before putting it slowly back in his pocket. He looked at the empty armchair where only a few moments before had sat another Karl, a Karl from a different time. He smiled at it, and raised his wine glass again, clinking it against the air. “Cheer’s Karl.” he said to the empty room, before laughing shortly to himself and draining the last drops of red wine in the wine glass.
Poll for winners added.
Wait, there's no First Place, Second Place or Third Place? Tough decisions.
It was complicated tallying points.