While working on Lost Heroes RPG over the Christmas, I wrote this little flash fiction. I was hitting a bit of mental block so I changed tack and wrote something else. I think it works actual, what do you think?
He put down the staff beside him and scratched his head. “I don’t know if it’ll work. I’ve passed the message up the ranks, but Hermes doesn’t really have any pull with Hades you know? Do you happen to have a fag? I’m dying for a cig.”
I pulled a pack out of my pocket and offered him my last one. He accepted it and used his herald’s staff to light it. It sort of glowed and a flame squirted out of the top, lighting his cigarette. “You don’t happen to be a great singer or artist or something that I didn’t know about?” I shook my head. He weighed his hand heavily on his shoulder, “its not looking good.”
“I need to save her, bring her back.” I pleaded with him.
“The best I can do is allow you to see her one last time from the opposite shore of the Styx. You can say you’re goodbyes and all that. I hope she made it to the Blessed Isle otherwise…” he buried his head in his hands. He was suppressing a sob. “Why do you want to bring her back? The dead is better dead, Hades let nothing leave his domain.”
Controlling my own grief I said, “Because it was my fault. I killed her. I made a mistake…” But at my words, his entire body shook and his face drained of colour as he stared at me.
“Oh my. What have you done my friend!” The sky started to darken. “I’ve given them a connection, a connection to you and you damned fool admitted your stupidity!” His staff started to glow, the wings on his shoes started to flutter. “I can hear Erebus demanding justice!” He added meekly, “you’ve given her to the Furies by telling me this…”
“I don’t understand…” but I could barely speak, the roaring sound of a car drowned out my words and its lights stinging me and holding me in place. He was gone, already flying into the black stormy sky. Before the truck hit me, I saw her face, in the driver seat, an awful black aura burning of her deathly beauty, rage and revenge.
“Its been a long journey” from Laura’s Blog
I know I haven’t posted in ages. I’ve been going through a few things recently and it’s just been too heavy to write so openly about it. This whole year since John’s funeral hasn’t been easy. When he passed away everything went dark in my life. It made just getting out of bed in the morning a nightmare, waking up in that big empty bed was a stark reminder I’d never see him again. Our huge house became cold and eerie where before I was always telling John to tidy up his gear because I was always tripping over it. In those then empty evenings I found it easy to finish a full bottle of wine listening to bad romantic ballads to starve off the tears. I know, cliché.
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Last Thursday (15th March) was the 70th anniversary of Lovecraft’s death. And I didn’t see any mention around here!
Admittedly I only know myself because boingboing posted about it. They have some photos of Lovecraft’s headstone if anyone is interested.
He got up and had a shower. It was late morning and even now the sun was burning through the thin shutters. Once he was dressed he went down for breakfast.
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“He is dead you say?”
“No. Alive. He is one of the Quick.”
“Alive? You mean dead don’t you?”
“Alive.”
The Mayor rolled this thought around his head for a moment. “So let me get this straight. He’s dead and…”
“No your not listening he’s alive.”
“Alive, it’s just preposterous. Doesn’t make sense. But because he is dead, it’s no problem…”
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A little story about a group of lads who journey out to a unnamed pub for an ultimate night but find something very different.
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This is a short story taken from something I’m working on. Its about an Angel and his decision.
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This is a short story about an Irish student who finds himself lost in Paris… via his dreams!
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This is my first attempt at putting together a complete RPG. It’s not really playable in it’s current state but many of the ideas have been refined and used elsewhere. In a sense it has evolved into, well, something completely different.
The Earth exists in the Void; the swirling empty/full potential that contains everything that was, will be or could be. The Earth is a glob of concentrated energy and life, solitary and small. Things born of the Void pick on it and its Shard Realms who desire its energy or life. The are drawn to it, they are powerful and they are insane.
A thin Veil that hides the true nature of the world from people’s eyes and protects the Earth.
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This was a prelude I wrote to a very early version of an RPG. At the time it was called Renegade. It serves as a reader’s introduction to this weird world. An early draft of the RPG is avaliable from here.
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