October 2018 75-word Writing Challenge:- VICTORY TO MOSAIX!

[chrispenycate]

October 2018 seventy-five word challenge (submissions thread

RULES:

Write a story inspired by the chosen theme and genre in no more than 75 words, not including the title

ONE entry per person


NO links, commentary or extraneous material in the posts, please -- the stories must stand on their own


WHEN WRITING YOUR STORY, PLEASE REMEMBER THIS IS A FAMILY-FRIENDLY FORUM



All stories Copyright 2018 by their respective authors
who grant the Chronicles Network the non-exclusive right to publish them here




The complete rules can be found at Rules for the Writing Challenges


Contest ends at 11:59 pm GMT, 23 October 2018


Voting ends at 11:59 pm GMT, 28 October 2018



You do not have to submit a story in order to vote --
in fact, we encourage all Chrons members to take part in choosing a winner



The Magnificent Prize:


The Dignified Congratulations/Grovelling Admiration of Your Peers

and the challenge of choosing next month's theme and genre

Theme: Legacy


Genre: Science Fiction or Fantasy

​

This thread to be used for entries only. Please keep all comments to https://www.sffchronicles.com/threads/572437/


We invite (and indeed hope for) lively discussion and speculation about the stories as they are posted, as long as it doesn't involve the author explaining the plot



** Please do not use the "Like" button in this thread! **

 

[Ihe]

The Natural Order Of Things​

Father took his last breath. My hands squeezed future out of him, until only past remained—a memory our village will not honour.

It was a fair fight. Rules are clear: It is a son’s duty to take his inheritance by force. It is a father’s duty to defend his livelihood.

– –​

My dear son comes of age tomorrow. I see him eyeing me whilst sharpening his daggers. An ambitious lad...

I couldn’t be prouder.

 

[LittleStar]

A Life, Less 21 Grams

“You really are an ass,” the Angel swore. “I have your entire life in statistics, and you ask that? Grow up.”

“Alright.” Cameron laughed. “How many hearts did I break?”

“Two.”

“Hundred? Nice.”

“Total. Your mother’s and Bonnie’s”

Cameron frowned. “How many lives did I change?”

“One.”

His breath caught. “Only...”

“Abigail’s.”

“My daughter hardly counts! And Bonnie?”

The Angel shrugged. “Last one, then Judgement.”

Cameron’s tears rained through the clouds. “Do they even care?”

 

[Kerrybuchanan]

Prison Planet Legacy

I worked hard to round 'em up, all those heroes who split infinitives and wheezed through masks. The doctor took some time, and Ironman's a fly b*****d, but the sandworms? Had to dig 'em out, see?

They tortured my childhood, and now it's payback time. No shiny Starbucks here. It's the Silent Planet for 'em all.

That's my legacy.

I'd like to see 'em try to terminate their sentences early, that's all.

 

[Cat's Cradle]

Delightful!​

“Lord Windstrong, success! I’ve condensed the day’s every meal into one tablet – please swallow this. We’ll eliminate starvation – your name will resonate throughout history as a giant of patronage. A caveat: as the pill dissolves, compressed nutrients expand rapidly, and the stomach experiences the most unusual – well, you’ll see momentarily...”

*PLOOOMF*

“Oh, delightful!”

“Indeed. The byproduct of the pill’s digestion isn’t solid waste, but delayed, excessive volumes of – well, you’ll see tonight…”

~

*TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOT*

“Oooooh, delightful!”

 

[Danny McG]

“That's my ... boy?”

Joe flinched as his wife cried out in childbirth, finally he heard a yelling newborn.
The medic murmured, “Your child's alive, go see to your wife”

She lay sobbing as the creature writhed, it's red eyes glaring as they hugged.
“There's no hope Joe, is there? All the babies are like that now.”

President Joe gazed at the glowing radiation counters and then around the overcrowded bunker; his futile legacy to mankind.

 

[nixie]

Homecoming.
​

Earth, abandoned by humanity, nuclear and chemical warfare turned a once beautiful world into a dry barren wasteland. Her people scattered across the galaxy.

A millennium passed.

"Captain we have to land now"

"Take us in, everyone suit up"

"Captain, readings say the air is breathable"

"Sensors must be wrong, it was left uninhabitable"

"Captain, Look"

A look of awe lightened her face.

Mother nature had created her own legacy, this was paradise.

 

[Calliopenjo]

What?

I opened the letter: This is your legacy. Open the door and you will see.

Nothing else in the letter. I still had the odd key that came with it. The house had an old feel to it.

Beyond the door... so pristine. I couldn’t help but look in the mirror over the fireplace.

“Welcome,” the mirror said. “I am here to serve you.”

Mirror mirror on the wall?

 

[Cathbad]

A Personal Legacy

My Boss:

“He was an excellent employee! Always on time, always willing to work late – to do what was necessary. We’ll miss him.”

My Wife:

“He was a faithful husband, never cheated on me, always provided for our family. He always did his duty; always took care of his family. We miss him, dearly.”

My Children:

“We wish he had spent more time with us, but he was always working.”

Saint Peter:

(Shakes head sadly.)

 

[Victoria Silverwolf]

Testament

"As executrix," Ms Rashid said, "it is my duty to read the will. Mister Santaro left an extensive estate."

The brothers murmured agreement.

"To my elder son, Carlos, I leave twelve cans of vegetables."

"Papa always liked you best," his brother said.

"Hush," Carlos whispered. "We agreed there would be no bickering."

"To my younger son, Felipe, I leave three candles."

Outside, toxic rain dissolved what was left of their father after the vultures fed.

 

[scarpelius]

Ogre Magical Boots: +10 Confidence

The unfinished building before me sends shivers down my spine. My master was one of the greatest builders the realm had. I feel despair trying me, looking at his humongous ogre boots.

They say the boots were the source of his knowledge and he left them to me.

The moment my bare foots touch them, I feel strange.

I am growing.

Now that the boots fits, I feel confident I can continue his work.

 

[Justin Swanton]

Tribal Border

“Help me.”

Sheila looked down at the rushing waters. A boy clung to a root, his head barely above the furious current.

“Coming!” she cried. She unwound her long leatherskin belt. Throwing one end to him she pulled at the other, inch by inch, till his feet touched ground.

“Thank you,” he murmured, prone and exhausted.

Whipping out her knife she sliced his throat. “Damned Demkrat,” she said. “You’d’ve done the same to a Repubkin.”

 

[David Evil Overlord]

Don't Make Me Turn This Asteroid Around

After more than a million years in the interstellar void, the asteroid-ship scanned the new life-world.

An unsuitable species squatted atop the food chain. Greedy. Lying. Cat-grabbing?

To cleanse, or not to cleanse? The Oumuamuan AI projected probabilities.

No need. With dystopian visions, blind to reality, they were industriously destroying themselves.

The Oumuamuans returned home. They would come this way again in another million years, when dogs would inherit the Earth.

 

[Luiglin]

Arrival

The stars beckoned. A thousand seedships containing a thousand sleeping souls set for a thousand distant planets.

Waking from stasis, the Captain of 946 stared at a screen, waited and swore. Joining her, the rest of the bridge crew followed suit.

“I can’t believe they installed this for the AI preboot. Anyone know how long we give it?”

The dots continued circling.

Configuring update for Windows 10

27% complete

Do not turn off your computer​

 

[Pedro Del Mar]

Jeffers Ark

“3, 2, 1, Launch” ordered Commander Jeffers.
Rockets fired and huge jets of flame burst from the jet engines slowly pushing the spaceship up into the night sky leaving gigantic plumes of smoke behind.
Tears slowly coursed their way down Jeffers’ cheeks as the rocket ship grew smaller as it flew higher and higher disappearing into space.
The ship contained embryos and DNA for all life on planet earth.
Global warming had taken its toll.

 

[Starbeast]

Simon Hagstone's Will​

Attorney Grimlock, continued. "...and finally. I bequeath to my acquisitive family..."

"What'd he call us?"

"Silence."

"Sorry, Grimmy. Get to the money."

"...I leave to them, my rare, treasured, Golden, Gug."

"Treasure?"

"Gold?"

"It resides, within this sealed trunk. Farewell."

"He left and locked the door."

"Who cares."

"Open the trunk!"

"We split the gold, 31 ways."

"It's open..."

#

Grimlock drank his tea, while a hellish abomination slaughtered the Hagstones. "I never liked them either."

 

[elvet]

Impotent

“No children”, she said.
For now, or forever? I was too afraid to ask. Everything else about her was perfect.
“The world is going to hell in a hand-basket”, she continued. “This is no place to raise a child.”
Certainly, the wars and climate have made a mess of the planet, but this, this was a big decision.
Sighing, I took her hand and entered the chapel. The choice was made.

 

[D.A. Xiaolin Spires]

The Corporeal Voice

When her ballads sailed through star-streaked skies, she knew she'd hit it big.

The Committee had selected her DNA to be turned into melodic interpretation for all the universe to relish.

She waited for the applause even while knowing it would never come in her lifetime.

Millions of light years away, Craelytttans played out dings and dongs that comprised of her human existence.

She appeared again, a posthumous euphonious spectre, singing them to sleep.

 

[johnnyjet]

In Their Father’s House

They approached the mansion.

“It’s all he left us. Unbelievable!”

“Father’s employees are set for life.”

“Let’s look inside.”

A robot greeted them. “Welcome, Jacob, Evan. We’ve been expecting you.”

The house crawled with robots.

“We are at your service. Ask for anything except an exit. Your Father’s final command: They must remain in my house until they find a way out. A challenge to do something with their worthless lives.

“Enjoy your stay.”

 

[Mr Orange]

Human Legacy

The speeder slid to a dusty stop outside my saloon. A figure emerged, desert smock and hood smothering his features. I blew a smoke ring from the doorway, inclined my head. Salis and Brieve advanced, blasters drawn.

He drew, fast. A taser crackled, my girls fell. A blaster replaced the taser and he lowered his hood.

A feminine face, soft but for the circular burns and ragged scar.

“Hello, daddy.”

My stomach dropped. She fired.