《Descend》No Accident 13
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The others looked at one another. She endured this silent communication of theirs much as a traveler on a cold night endured glimpses of warm people through the windows of their houses; although she could see them, she was not part of them. But an explanation came from the unlikeliest source — herself. Not long after she'd said the name Charlotte, she smelled a sweet rush of perfume, sandalwood under jasmine. She saw a crazy mass of wavy red-brown hair barely held in place by pins. She saw a sweet round face and warm brown eyes. She saw a girl broken at the foot of a huge staircase that spiraled up into the dark. And the blood, oh, God, the blood. So much of it.
More memories followed, scattering like shards of broken glass across a floor.
Elise, sprawled on grass outside a small school, her backside and legs throbbing with pain. Girls encircled her, jeering. Abriana Adesso led the pack of them, grinning like a wolf. She looked all of fourteen and vicious.
"Wh-why are you doing this?" Elise said. "Why?"
Predator stalked towards prey. She shrank back. Another kick would come this time, or maybe a slap. They liked to slap, because they thought it didn't matter. But it did matter, it did! Just because she wouldn't stay bruised for long didn't mean it wouldn't hurt.
Fire sprang up in the grass, catching on fallen leaves. The jets of flame rose until they towered over Adesso.
A clear voice rang out. "What do you think you're doing?"
Disbelief and hope coursed through Elise. She looked over her shoulder to the one who'd saved her and saw a girl haloed by wild curls.
Each new shard cut more deeply than the last one had.
A hand held out in friendship. Air that smelled of smoke. Lips that parted in a smile. "I'm Charlotte Cooke," said the girl, no anger in her voice now. "And you are?"
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But Elise kept picking them up. Was incapable of not doing so. And, God, how they hurt.
The coffin looked beautiful. It was wrong for something like that to look beautiful. A deep glossy brown, with such much red in it. Like Charlotte's hair. And the flowers, she would've loved the flowers. Not white lilies, but a profusion of colorful, unfamiliar blossoms that burned in the pale morning light. Ash, he must've grown them just for this, just for her.
They were beautiful, too, these flowers, and Elise longed to rip apart their petals and their leaves and their stems until her fingers bled.
The shards stopped falling. Some of them had contained memories that didn't involve Charlotte — grammar books, blue pens, struck out sentences — but Elise couldn't think of them right now. She gasped at the pain of her sudden, yet old loss. Her stomach rolled, threatening to send her breakfast into her throat. Someone rushed to her side at once, joined by the others.
"What's wrong?" Willow said. She took Elise's face in her hands. They felt so warm. "Ellie, what's wrong?
Tears turned the office to a blur. Elise blinked them away. Some spilled over. "I remember," she said, with a sob. "Not everything ... but Charlotte ... oh, poor, sweet Charlotte." Her shoulders trembled. "How could I forget Charlotte when I love her so much?"
Willow's worry softened into sympathy. "I know," she said, gathering Elise into another hug. "I know — we all know. We all loved her so much."
Another sob wracked Elise, because that wasn't what she'd meant. That wasn't what she had meant at all.
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Ember in the Ashes
During the Fall of the Kingdoms, two royal siblings torn apart. Kale and Melody Lione were stolen from their futures as keepers of the Lione Kingdom and split down two different paths. Kael finds himself hurried away across the AlBlu Sea to a remote place hidden by mountains where men and women dedicate themselves to murder for the “greater good.” A new destiny is forced upon him by his saviors/captors and he is trained to use his blade to unmake rulers rather than become one himself. After a fiery betrayal from a man he trusted that cost him a second home and a second chance at stability, Kael becomes lost once more without a future so he clings to the only thing he knows; vengeance against the one responsible for his misfortune. Melody is raised in a remote village by people loyal to her lost parents. It is from these people that she learns to see the beauty that lies within every part of existence, especially in music. Music becomes her escape and her happiness. After a dear friend and mentor is taken from her by the ignorance of the same people from whom she once learned kindness, she leaves to find something more and to share her love for music on the other side of the Alblu Sea. With kingdoms becoming obsolete to the modern world of Embre, her choice to be a musician over trying to get back the royal life stolen from her leads her to dark places in a big and dangerous city. When they meet again, Kael has the chance to learn forgiveness from his long-lost sister and Melody has the chance to be corrupted by Kael’s need for revenge. Kael has the army Melody needs and Melody had the home Kael needs, but they cannot both have what they want. For Melody to surive a dark threat, she would have to accept the path of violence. For Kael return to the life he lost, he’d have to abandon the strength to keep his sister safe.
8 179The Dragons Predicament
Monsters, humans, war. Within their shielded cities of Technomagi, the humans live their lives in small boxes. Only venturing out of their bubbles with gunslingers or mages trained to defend against the beasts outside. Teleportation to other cities is normal, done through square boxes on rails that are housed underground. These days, the disparity between humans and us has grown to a breaking point. In a single night: an entire nation of monsters vanished. A cloud and flash of light that all had seen. Only the strongest could survive against their might and stubborn ingenuity. Those terrifying, amazing humans. We had laughed at first. ‘What possible danger is there? They’re just humans’. That was centuries ago by this point, of course. We all realized the moment we saw that metal tube fall. There is something that only a human can accomplish, through their ability to see light even in the darkest situation. You don’t win against humans. You either die with them or live to serve them.
8 364Emperor Of The North [Dropped]
Erwin is an ex-army officer who found himself in a snowy forest. At first, he thought he came here because of something he drank while hanging with his friends, but later a strange Voice, which calls itself Guideline, reached Erwin. Without knowing its purpose or why he is in a different world, he tries to survive, improve and learn. As he progressed forward. Erwin learned he was supposed to be the Lich King, a villain destined to be defeated by heroes, but because of a conflict that happened between gods, he isn't affected by a curse which supposed to turn him into a monster with no self-control. With a broken guideline and some powers of The Lich King he is supposed to be, Erwin will rise from a nothing trying to survive in a snowy forest to a conqueror who will turn God's precious playground into his.
8 350Through the Vortex
It all started when Howard walked in on a top secret meeting between the government and his childhood ‘friend’. This was the last thing he had expected, especially since he had just walked into his own house! The next thing Howard knew he was dragged along to an adventure he wanted nothing to do with, and even forced to play an important part. It was a simple deal. The gathered criminals, and Howard, would go out to space, take readings on a strange anomaly, and come back with their names cleared. All fun and games before they went through the vortex. (This fiction will be participating in the Royal Road Writathon Challenge)
8 159Magic Barbarian
When a mystical Orb falls from the starry skies and demolishes his hut, Zogg goes on a quest to reach where the orb came from following a message transmitted from the mysterious princess of the stars, the orb itself projected, the barbarian must find a way to reach outerspace Zogg the magic casting Barbarian armed with his amazing returning Boomeraxe and with his two unlikely legendary friends Papaya the amazon and Githiom one of the five Royal Guards from the kingdom of light,Illumia. now go forth to complete their quest!
8 56Backstabber
At fifteen, Lena Sione has already been through hell and back. The last thing she expects after a sudden move is to meet someone with a similar story, but that is exactly what happens. At first, Jason Vetra seems like the ultimate cliché: the hot, brooding jock from a rich family. However, she soon learns there's more to him, that his past is even bloodier than hers. The trouble starts even before their friendship does: intense jealousy, a hidden serial killer and the revival of a life-long nightmare. They ask themselves if things could get any worse, and not surprisingly, they can.
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