Flash Fiction – The Void

Zippy Flash Fiction

For the Carrotranch September 3: Flash Fiction Challenge

Arture dashed across the windswept plain. His heart pounded in his head; his feet pounded the ground. Sand bit at his face as it was dragged away into the void behind him.

What now?

A rocky outcropping jutted up ahead. Perhaps it would shield… Arture faltered and dodged as the mighty wind peeled giant jagged stones away from the earth.

Every fiber of his body strained forward. Then… Arture left the ground. The void pulled him in like a great whirlpool.

Arture set his jaw, tucked his legs, and sped at the void like a cannonball. This wasn’t over.

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Flash Fiction – Exile

Zippy Flash Fiction

“Adjust 9 degrees. Increase charge by 12%. Fire in 7 seconds. 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… Fire.”

The ground lurched and quaked as the giant gun fired its capsule into orbit around a distant chunk of earth. Number 46 was prone to a wild elliptic due to the slingshot created when Number 16 and Number 23 came alongside its east and west hemispheres at almost exactly the same time before falling away again in opposite directions. Pinpoint accuracy was necessary in any case when it came to launching among any of the 48 regions, but Number 46 was a special case.

As the capsule entered the low orbit of Number 46, triangular wings emerged from either side of the craft. Sprays of air escaped sporadically from the shuttle as it rolled, flipped, and aligned itself flat against the atmosphere of Number 46. It sailed slowly down, cutting through the sky and clouds of the speeding planetoid.

The shuttle rattled and smoked as small explosions shredded the thin metal hull. Boxes of supplies and tools began pouring out through the gaps, freefalling to the earth below. The shuttle started to swing around due to air resistance tearing across the widening holes. Faster and faster it spun, staying level. It came down on a lake like a giant skipping stone, skidding across the water’s surface before losing momentum and flipping. A tidal wave rippled away from the wreckage as it began to sink.

The water boiled as air bubbled up from the sinking shuttle. Slowly, the water became calm.
Suddenly, a head popped out of the water. The man gasped, pushing shaggy black hair out of his eyes.

The exile emerged from the lake coughing. He stood and stared out across the path of supplies spread far and wide over the land. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a compass.

“Well, better get started.”

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Flash Fiction – Skystriker

Zippy Flash Fiction

“It’s pointless, the king is a fool! He’ll never agree,” a figure cloaked in purple said.

“But he must agree. And he will. I’ll make sure of it,” a man wearing thick black goggles said. He smiled, his teeth black as soot. The purple figure fidgeted, uncertain, concerned.

Black Teeth stretched out his right arm, it was twice the size of his left, and took hold of a heavy, cast iron crank. He grunted. The muscles and veins stood out of his arm and neck. His body tightened, bulged, sweated. Slowly, a long low creak screeched through the room. Gears tangled in a brilliant horrible mass began turning on each other. A faint blue light glowed all around like bottled lightning crackling.

“What, what are you doing?!” the purple figure said, stepping backward.

The light grew brighter and brighter. Blinding blue, white-hot light. The purple figure dropped to his knees, shielding his eyes.

Black teeth began laughing maniacally as the crank turned faster and faster. Soon his arm was a blur as the gears ground on each other in a cacophony of iron and steam. The purple figure scratched at his ears trying to block out the terrible sound that pounded his head.

A sudden explosion rocked the entire airship. The purple figure felt as though his insides had been separated from each other. Bone from bone, muscle from muscle.

The machine began to slow and the lights dim. The purple figure stood shakily, clutching his head and stomach. He looked up, bleary-eyed, at black teeth. His arm was still turning, slower and slower as the machine screeched to a halt, and the room darkened.

“Wh-what did you do?” the purple figure asked.

Black teeth was smiling.

“I stopped the rain.”

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Series – Nitro! Frog – Issue 001

Series

“Nitro! Yo, Nitro! Wake up!” Teach shouted. Smack! Teach slapped the napping frog with a wet mackerel.

“Ouch! What’s that all about?” Nitro cried.

“You were napping again!” Teach shouted as he tossed the mackerel back into the ocean.

“Now, everybody listen up! Today, you graduate from Teach’s Life Training! Some of you did better than others!” Nitro withered under Teach’s glare.

“It’s time to choose your skills! Choose carefully, you only get one shot at this! When I call your name, step forward and get your R.I.B.B.E.T.S.!”

“Isn’t this so exciting?” Gloria, a pink frog, asked.

“Yeah! I can’t wait to get my skills! I’m going to be a master fisherfrog like Teach!” Nitro answered with stars in his eyes.

“Penelope!” Teach shouted.

Penelope, a sassy purple frog in a tutu, claimed her R.I.B.B.E.T.S. She turned the small red tablet over in her hand.

“Thank you, Teach!” she said, prancing back.

“Dexter!” Teach shouted.

Dexter, a blue frog and King of Nerds, retrieved his R.I.B.B.E.T.S.

“Why thank you, sir,” Dexter said, adjusting his thick glasses.

“Nobody likes a suck-up, Dex! Next, Gloria!” Teach shouted.

Gloria practically floated over to get her R.I.B.B.E.T.S.

“THANK YOU, TEACH!” Gloria said, over-enthusiastically.

“Lance!” Teach shouted.

Lance, a gray frog of few words, collected his R.I.B.B.E.T.S.

“Teach,” Lance nodded.

“Lastly, Nitro! Try not to break it right away,” Teach said, momentarily losing his usual enthusiasm for shouting.

Nitro, a typical green frog, snatched up his R.I.B.B.E.T.S.

“Thanx, Teach!” Nitro shouted.

“Excuse me?! I don’t think I heard that spelling correctly! Let’s try again!” Teach shouted.

“Oops. Thanks, Teach!” Nitro corrected himself.

“That’s more like it! If you have any questions, refer to the ‘HELP’ menu! DO NOT ASK ME! Good luck with life, cadets! I’m going to take a nap,” Teach said, exhausted.

After Teach had gone to lay in his hammock, the five young frogs chattered excitedly over their R.I.B.B.E.T.S.s. Nitro turned his over and over, tapped it, shook it, and sighed.

“How does this thing work again?” Nitro asked.

The other frogs fell over. This was going to be a long day.

Issue 002

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Series – The Flowerman – Issue 001

Series

The Flowermen were getting sick.

Flowermen were never a populous species, though they did at one time thrive among the concealed valleys of the Magiljak Mountains. Guarded by those treacherous peaks, it was unknown that these gentle creatures existed until after The East Erscha Company had set up shop and begun blasting the whole area with industrial dust clouds.

At the time, I was employed by The East Erscha Co. in the Botanicals Research & Development Division. It was on June 3, 483 that the first Flowerman appeared, collapsing near the facility’s reflection pool.

Issue 002

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Short Story – The Traveler – The Chase

The Traveler

“They will be after this. Keep it safe. Take it away from here, Traveler.”

The silhouette of a shadow slipped away through the crumbling brick and darkness of the bay city. The Traveler stood alone, quickly pocketing the object he was entrusted with. His eyes twinkled in the dark, swirling with clusters of stars.

The warm lap of water against wood blew gently through the air, settling down in his ears. He would have to wait a while before leaving the city or risk drawing suspicion. A crooked row of storefronts looked out over the infinite blackness of the night sea. The ocean seemed thick as oil in the darkness, filled with nightmares and unspeakable abominations of the deep. The Traveler felt a wave of vertigo as the uncertainty of that darkness lurched out from before him, stretching on into eternity.

The slow screech of a swinging chain came from overhead, crunching into his thoughts. It called to him in its jagged voice. An inn. The Traveler slipped in.

Inside was a parlor, steeped in warm shadows. Beyond was a bar and a bartender, illuminated by the rusty buzzing glow of a thick light bulb. He never looked toward the door, just continued polishing a glass with a deep patience and distant thoughtfulness.

“What’ll it be,friend?”

“I need a room.”

“Sure, but why not sit down and have a drink first… On the house.”

The Traveler took his seat on a rickety barstool. The bartender set the glass down and turned, grabbing a glass bottle from the shadows behind him. It was half-empty, ambiguous in color, and chipped on the rim. Pulling out the cork, he poured. The liquid spilled out like a viper, rattling off a death warning as it coiled up inside the glass.

“What do I owe you for the room?”

“Whadya got?” The bartender looked up and smiled. He had Time in his eyes.

The Traveler leapt back, his stool crashing in the darkness. They were already here.

“Why so jumpy? I’m a friend after all… and friends share!”

The man’s hand shot into The Traveler’s pocket and wrapped around an object. His momentary smiling turned to panic as something began to pull him in.

“Indeed, friends do share.”

“Wait, no!”

In an instant of time, he fell through a thick darkness into a world filled with glistening silver greed. The man spat and kicked a pile of silver coins, spraying them into the air.

“Blast it!”

The Traveler reached into his pocket and pulled out a worn silver piece. He tossed it through the air and walked out as it sang its spinning song and fell flat on the bar. The Traveler knew that soon this Space would be filled with Enforcers. Walking straight across the dock, he dropped into the dark water and swirled away to a world he knew was glutted with danger.

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Writing Prompt – 5 Words #18

Today’s words are:

• Korea
• Tool
• Sale
• Expressive
• Mount

The goal is to exercise your brain and split writer’s block. You can write anything! A story, a poem, a paragraph, a sentence, anything! The only rule is that it includes the words given or is inspired by the words given. If you post something, link it in a comment. I’d love to see what everyone comes up with! Have fun and remember to include #5words

Writing Prompt – 5 Words #17

Today’s words are:

• Fiber
• Ignoble
• Vivacious
• Black
• Honey

The goal is to exercise your brain and split writer’s block. You can write anything! A story, a poem, a paragraph, a sentence, anything! The only rule is that it includes the words given or is inspired by the words given. If you post something, link it in a comment. I’d love to see what everyone comes up with! Have fun and remember to include #5words

Writing Prompt – 5 Words #16

Today’s words are:

• Impression
• Hiding
• Towers
• Doubtful
• Remarkable

The goal is to exercise your brain and split writer’s block. You can write anything! A story, a poem, a paragraph, a sentence, anything! The only rule is that it includes the words given or is inspired by the words given. If you post something, link it in a comment. I’d love to see what everyone comes up with! Have fun and remember to include #5words

Writing Prompt – 5 Words #15

Today’s words are:

• Hoodwink
• Brash
• Shiny
• Squawky
• Cure

The goal is to exercise your brain and split writer’s block. You can write anything! A story, a poem, a paragraph, a sentence, anything! The only rule is that it includes the words given or is inspired by the words given. If you post something, link it in a comment. I’d love to see what everyone comes up with! Have fun and remember to include #5words