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RS Story Contest #4 - Survivor

Quick find code: 49-50-216-62851328

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Zade

Zade

Posts: 243 Silver Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
The Wind’s Betrayal

Adrenaline pulsed through my body as I stole across the grass.
This way, that way. Turning my head left-right-left-right, on alert for the slightest sound, other than the breath of my hooded colleagues' breath.

'Ready?' Marcus, the chief of the operation, asked. We all nodded in agreement, and off we went.

--

Twenty minutes later, as we reached the house, our resident mage Myrajo alchemised the lock, allowing us to pass through.

The house was nothing special, an ordinary stately home, with kitchens, bedrooms, halls, and all the other things you'd expect in a merchant's house.

'Alright lads' Marcus said.'This is an important order. Walk away with this prize, and we'll be rich to the end of our days. Five percent bonus for whoever finds the chest.' With that, we crept away into different corners of the house, still on the lookout for the slightest noise, a whisper of a movement.

---
Ten minutes later
---

My amulet started to glow blue, and I knew one of us had found the chest. We met at the entrance of the house, alert as ever. A relatively new recruit, Ze*i, had found the chest. After a few claps on the back and hurried congratulations, we backed out of the house.

As we walked down the path, Marcus suddenly stopped and put out his hand. I felt the wind blowing against my back as he glanced around in fear.

'The wind!' he gasped. 'It's changed!' I was just asking why the wind mattered as I heard the unmistakeable, blood-chilling cry of a dragon, which, to my horror, was answered my many others. 'Run!' Marcus cried, picking up the chest and running as fast as he can. Even as he spoke, three black dragons dived down from the sky and blasted Myrajo in a blazing plume of fire. Sticking to our duty, three of us, took the chest whilst the others protected us in a tight circle. Running as fast as we could with the heavy burden, we realised the dragons we coming in for another attack. As they hurtled towards us a twang of a bowstring came from my

07-Jun-2011 08:42:55

Zade

Zade

Posts: 243 Silver Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
side. I glanced to the side to see that one of our skilled archers, Karoso, had unleashed three poison arrows into the raging dragons.

'Thought I'd had my chips there' I said jokingly, only to get no reply from the solemn ranger.

The gate came in to sight, but was blocked by a dozen dragons lying in wait.

Marcus spoke up. 'We charge in three! Two! One! GO!'

Two of our crew were killed on the spot, as a dragon let loose a furious burst of flame, so fearsome it was that all that remained of them were charred, black skeletons. Karoso shot the dragon through the throat in vengeance, then moved on to tackle another. Still the chest remained untouched, and the three of us managed to get through the gate, but as our companions started to follow, a blue shape flew overhead.

'Metal dragon!' Marcus cried, but it was too late. The rest of our crew were destroyed in a rain of fire, screaming in agony. There was nothing we could do but run.

07-Jun-2011 08:43:20 - Last edited on 07-Jun-2011 16:30:24 by Zade

Borna Coric

Borna Coric

Posts: 3,785 Adamant Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
Thanks Hooded, great work. Though I try to keep these comments relatively dry until the deadline, everyone has had immaculate entries so far. Thank you all for making this such a competitive round thus far.

07-Jun-2011 13:12:07 - Last edited on 07-Jun-2011 13:12:35 by Borna Coric

Raschilat

Raschilat

Posts: 15,486 Opal Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
It was the first thing in the morning that Benny Kaiser, nursing a terrible hangover from the night before, decided to give up drinking for good. He told this to his wife Eva over a cup of coffee. “That’s it. I’m fed up.”

“How many times have I heard that?”

“I know, but this time… it’s over.” Benny’s eyes were red and sorrowful; his lips slack and dry. Eva thought he looked like a child just recovering from a good cry. She’d been on the merry-go-round with Benny since the beginning; their marriage was going on thirty years and both herself and her beloved husband had just passed fifty. She knew his little-kid fears and his silences. But she also knew his heart, his big, sad heart, and she could detect no half-truths in him today.

She could feel unfamiliar warmth gathering at her eyes. She was crying. One of Benny’s nicotine-stained fingers followed its trail up her cheek to her eye.

“Now really, is that necessary?” he asked sincerely, smiling one of his delightful, heart-warming smiles. Eva offered one of her own, fragile though it may be, and shook her head. She searched inside Benny’s serious blue eyes and they stared back at her, unblinking. A shadow of doubt flickered through her; she knew it would be very hard for Benny to quit.

Impossible, she thought, feeling immediately guilty for even considering it.

“I’ll get help if I need to.”

My God, she thought. Her ears strained beneath the weight of those words. She had never heard them from those weathered lips, could not imagine them in that rugged, knowing voice. But she heard them now and she wanted to believe them so badly. “I’ll help too,” she said. “Anything.”

“Well, first,” Benny began, and his smile intensified, “you can accompany to breakfast. And after that I’ll start making phone calls, and we’ll watch a nice movie. We have some popcorn in the cupboard and I believe I have at least enough knowledge to fix us up a root beer float.”

Eva went to get her coat and grab her purse. She paused in the-

07-Jun-2011 23:13:53

Raschilat

Raschilat

Posts: 15,486 Opal Posts by user Forum Profile RuneMetrics Profile
hallway, taking a moment to stare at the heavy diamond ring that sparkled just a little more brightly in the face of all this good news. Maybe they could revisit the days before Benny had known the temptations of alcohol. Maybe their lives could be golden again. Everything was happening so fast.

…

Ten minutes later Eva Kaiser was dead.

The image was vivid and fresh in Benny’s mind. A car emerged from the intersection and sped past a red light at full throttle; through the windshield Benny could see the driver’s face, the cellphone drop from their hand as the gravity of their mistake hit them with all its impossible immensity. Doing better than 60 it barreled into them, twisting iron and shattering glass, cutting flesh and snapping bones… but Benny could live with that. He had been in car crashes before and he had seen blood; he was a ‘Nam vet. He had seen dead children lining dusty streets, small arms draped over small bodies. They had never had a chance.

Eva Kaiser had had a chance. She hadn’t died instantly. She had whimpered and cried for help and Benny had been paralyzed, helpless to save her, helpless even to beg for forgiveness and whisper goodbye.

“Help me, Ben… help…”

When he finally managed to open his eyes he was met with a dismal vision out of nightmares long undreamt; Eva’s twisted face beside his own, blood flooding her wide-open eyes, filled with tears just moments before. Benny could feel her filling his lap with her substance and his brain lurched.

The door was off its hinge, which made falling out of the car a simple ordeal. A crowd was gathering, and Benny could do nothing but think. Think of the people standing there searching for a spot of spilled blood just so they could look away in disgust.

But mostly he thought of Eva.

Why did you leave me, Eva? You promised we would love each other forever.

Benny stood up and dusted himself off. In the distance he could hear sirens, but he did*’t stop to wait for them.

He really needed a drink.

07-Jun-2011 23:15:20

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