Thursday May 2nd, 2019

The exercise:

Write about something that is: oversized.

2 comments:

Greg said...

I grow increasingly curious about where the prompts are coming from lately... the washing instructions on the label in your hoodie? Also, good news, I no longer need a "Splat!" prompt :)

Oversized
"That's the first time I've seen that happen," said Lord Derby. He was calm, but unsmiling, and his eyes were on the spot where whatever had shot through the Gate had stopped. "Might I hope that these Gates are home to some kind of oversized pigeon?"
"You can hope," said Memnith, "but it wouldn't be true. And that would only annoy you, Ernest."
"This isn't a Gate," said Elizabeth. Her voice quavered, and when the two men looked at her, they saw that the blood was steadily draining from her face and she was swaying. Memnith quickly moved to her side to steady her, and Lord Derby took two steps towards her, keeping himself away from the Gate, which still bulged and wobbled. "It connected to something else -- no, something connected it to something else. It snatched it from me and I wasn't prepared."
"From the colour of it, I doubt any of us could have been prepared said Memnith."
"It's a Safe Passage," said Elizabeth. "I've created enough of them to Enclaves, I recognise it. I just don't know where it goes. Or - or why the King in Yellow would have hijacked one." Her eyes rolled up into her head and her body went slack. Memnith caught her, and, after a moment's hesitation, lowered her gently to the ground.
"Derby, I'm sorry," he said, his voice sounding oddly gruff. "Can you look after her? I can't afford to let Grace get even slightly free."
"Of course," said Lord Derby, kneeling beside her. He checked her pulse, which that there but slightly jumpy, and then picked up her hand. It was clammy, so he rubbed it between his, wondering what a doctor would do.
"It doesn't look safe," said Tomasz, eyeing the Gate. "That looks like it would attack you if you got close."
"Elizabeth knows her magic," said Memnith. He was now checking the spells holding Grace and has a look of firm concentration on his face. Tomasz noted that this made the man seem oddly younger. "Strange though, why would she say that the King in Yellow hijacked a Safe Passage?"
"I go look at oversized pigeon," said Szymon. Tomasz shrugged, and walked off with him.

When the soldiers returned Elizabeth was sitting up, one hand holding her head, and apologising for fainting.
"Was person," said Szymon. "Red blood, white bone. Definitely dead. Couldn't even make demon from what is left."
"Horrible," said Elizabeth. "Imagine being in a Safe Passage of all places, and then that happens to you. Oh! I did that...."
"Hardly," said Memnith quickly. "You said the King grabbed the Gate off you. The King did it all, we were just tools."
"True," said Lord Derby. "Is there any clue as to who it was?"
"That came through?" Tomasz shrugged. "We have a large piece of skull," -- he held it out, though they'd tried to wipe it clean there were still bits of pink and grey matter clinging to it -- "maybe a wizard can identify them from that?"
"Yes," said Memnith. Elizabeth sighed and fainted again.

Marc said...

Greg - sigh.

Poor Elizabeth :(