Monday September 29th, 2014

The exercise:

Write about: the challenger.

The end of the BC teachers strike also brought about the return of StrongStart, which is where Kat brought Max this morning. While they were there I finally got another haircut and ran a few errands in town.

This afternoon I started the box harvest, collecting zucchini and the bigger (heirloom, beefsteak, roma) tomatoes. Kat also took a turn, taking care of the cherry tomatoes before dinner. That just leaves me carrots, peppers, and arugula for tomorrow morning while Kat works and Max helps his grandparents pick Ambrosia apples.

Or plays nearby while they pick apples.

One of the two.

Mine:

You set them up,
I'll knock all of 'em down;
All these silly
Challengers to my crown.

I can't be beat,
I don't know why they try.
I will stand tall
Until the day I die.

Who is this chump?
He looks like a puppy!
I'd be more scared
Of a flailing guppy.

I start to laugh
But then hear roaring cars;
I'm on my back,
Counting the pretty stars...

4 comments:

morganna said...

Soaring high into the sky
Off to explore the rarefied air above us
Exploding like another star
Killing the brave explorers
Falling back to earth.

Anonymous said...

“And that is how it is done.” Corvinous wore a large smile, a rarity in and of itself.
Amicus was hunched over, his hands gripping his knees for support. Though he was breathing heavy, I could see a smile on his face as well as he shook his head back and forth, sending his blond curls flying.
“Yes. You are right,” he sighed. “No one is a match for your skill, Anti.”
They both began to chuckle. Chuckle! When I first met these warriors, they all seemed like war and death had turned them all into stone. But apparently stone can still laugh.
“Let me have a go.”
The laughing stopped. Everyone turned to look at the gate of the stadium. Still wearing the rags Todd found him in, Ossin had his sword—his father’s sword?—in one hand and a large shield in the other. He was biting his lip and his body bent to the side while the arm holding the shield began to shake.
Neci and Silvia were standing behind him. Silvia was holding Neci back.
The light and smile vanished from Corvinous’s face. In an instant, he was the same hardened warrior I saw when I first came to Aemilia. The same shiver returned to my shoulders at the sight of his gaze.
“You want to challenge me?” Corvinous asked. His voice, calm and quiet, traveled through the silent arena. “I am the antistrategos of the Morphia, the pentestrategos of the Candrian army.”
Ossin clenched his teeth. “I know very well who you are. I long to fight.”
I looked from Crispin to Vitus and back. Someone had to stop this madness. Corvinous looked like he was in his late twenties early thirties. And Ossin? He was only a teenager. Maybe just a little older than me.
“Give the boy a chance,” Todd called from the armory door. “It was not long ago that you humored a young fox in his rage, if I recall.”
I blanched. “Cris, do something.”
He shook his head. “Todd is right.” Louder, he called, “Do not spare the lad.”
“Here here,” Amicus said, stepping away from the center and towards us.
As Ossin walked towards Corvinous, my stomach felt like it was eating itself alive.

Greg said...

@Morganna: wow, that's quite the poem! I wasn't sure how it related to the title at first, and then things... exploded and suddenly I realised. I think you've captured pathos really well in such a short piece. I'm terribly impressed :)

@Marc: Your haircuts are seasonal, aren't they? You should look up the legend of the Fisher King... ;-)
Heh, pride comes before a fall? I like your champion's confidence in his abilities and how he keeps seeing people off. I'm not sure why, but I get a definite David and Goliath vibe from it, but that definitely counts in its favour.

The challenger
Dr. Septopus looked at the masked man in the Audience hall of the headquarters of the Council of Nastiness. The man's face was hard to concentrate on, probably because he was hanging upside down from his ankles and there were streaks of vomit on it as well. Sylvestra, responsible for the man-trap that the masked man had stepped into, was stood to one side looking smug.
"Well, Challenger," said Dr. Septopus. His voice squeaked a little as though it were breaking, and he tried again. "Well, Challenger! I think you've met your match!"
"I challenge you, Green Lightbulb!" said the Challenger. There was a hypnotic intensity to his words, but it curled past Sylvestra and Dr. Septopus like smoke.
"Wrong again," said Sylvestra. "Look, we just want to know why you're killing people."
"I don't kill people," said the Challenger. Dr. Septopus sniffed; the man smelled like cinnamon. "I challenge them, and some of my challenges prove more than they're capable of."
"You challenged Slim Jane to eat less," said Dr. Septopus.
"Yes?"
"She was anorexic already."
There was a moment's silence, then, "I challenge you, Bad Kitty!"
"Still wrong," said Sylvestra. "Can you smell cabbage? You also challenged the Great Guppy to dry out."
"No superhero should be an alcoholic!"
"He wasn't," said Dr. Septopus. "But he did have to stay wet in order to stay alive. It's not cabbage, it's fennel seed. My mother used to cook the two together too."
"I challenge you, then, Colostrum!"
"Still wrong," sighed Sylvestra. "Can I torture him now?"

Marc said...

Morganna - beautifully and poignantly captured.

Ivybennet - though I fear this will not end well for Ossin, I'm hopeful that you have a surprise in store for all of us.

Greg - heh, I appreciate your Challenger's tenacity :D