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This is a daily writing exercise. Each weekday I'll post a prompt consisting of a single word, for you to interpret as you will. Write as much or as little as you want, and then post the result if you'd like. Quality doesn't matter (as you'll see from what I post), the idea is just to stretch your creative muscles. Quantity matters insofar as if I conclude you're phoning it in for points, you will get no points. If it's just for the lulz: suit yourself.

I hope people will want to participate in the challenge on its own merits, but as an added incentive, I'll award 5 points to anyone who completes all five prompts in a given week. (Must duel me to receive points). You can go back and do prompts that you missed until I tally them shortly after midnight on Sunday night.

To keep the clutter to a minimum I'll be posting new threads weekly, with each day's post made to the current thread. Week seven starts now!

2/13/23

Rags

Life of a King (Limerick) 

Rags to riches is how the saying goes

 

But the life of a king is full of shadows

 

For this king did not see his

 

A shadow full of curses

 

Curses for the king of meadows

2/14/23

Love

The Danger of Love (Haiku) 

There was once true love

 

Love so deep it burned like fire

 

A burn she still feels

Ooh I like this one 

Thank you!

Nina loved Ace with her whole six year old heart. She got Ace, her German Shepherd on her sixth birthday as a puppy. The two year old dog was much larger now, and slightly better behaved. While Nina couldn’t be sure, she was confident in her heart that she was the love of Ace’s life too.

Nina’s mother was a natural worrier, and while her worries were much different than they were when her husband had first brought the dog home, they had not lessened in the slightest. While she used to be worried that Ace would eat Nina alive, now she was worried that Nina was neglecting human company to be with her dog.

“It’s not natural!” She told her husband one day as he attempted to tie a fly lure.

He turned around, knowing from experience that ignoring his wife was a foolish course of action. “Who said natural was a good thing? Typhoid’s natural; hemlock’s natural.”

“Well, I’ll hate to see the day her dog dies, because she’ll be all out of friends.”

Her husband fixed her with a serious expression. “Everyone dies. It’s good that she gets exposed to the idea, even if it’s painful. It’ll make her a better person.”

While Nina’s mother didn’t continue the argument, it should be noted that she didn’t understand her husband’s position. After all, Nina had a grandfather and a few great uncles who were already knocking at death’s door. Wasn’t that a normal and less painful way to learn about death?

In the end, it turned out that Nina needed no lesson on death. It was at a friend’s birthday party when she dove into the shallow end of the pool. The impact was just enough to break her neck and kill her.

Her parents were devastated, of course, and felt as though the world was falling apart. However, time marches on, and they found their minds drifting from their loss to the mundanities that life consists of. At first, it felt like a base betrayal to go on living, but eventually, it became easy to rationalize. After all, everyone dies sooner or later, don’t they?

Ace never forgot though. Every waking moment, he sat on the sofa, watching out the window. Whenever a young girl walked by, he began to bark and wag his tail excitedly, but it always slowly devolved into whimpers when she never stopped or he realized it wasn’t Nina.

He only moved for the necessities. Eating, drinking, relieving himself outside. He slept on her bed, and eight miserable years later, that’s where he died.

Her mother was especially heartbroken at the dog’s passing, saying, “It feels like we’re losing her all over again.”

Well I didn't see that twist coming 10/10

Remi turned off the radio. She didn't want to hear another stupid love song, not while her heart was breaking. Not while she was on the road; tears would make it harder to drive.

Anthony, her high school sweetheart, her first love, the man she wanted to be with for the rest of her life, was gone. Not dead, but gone nonetheless. 

A year ago, right after they graduated, Anthony had enlisted in the military. He'd laughed it off, saying that there wasn't a war so he'd never be deployed. At least, that's what the recruitment officer had said... but he'd been wrong.

Anthony had said this was good for their future. They'd get military discounts, health benefits, he'd get to go to college for free. Remi had never felt at peace about the decision, but it was Anthony's choice, not hers.

Still, even Anthony hadn't planned on actually being sent out to fight. 

They got the news a month ago, through the mail. Remi had watched as Anthony tore open the letter. She froze when she saw the color drain out of Anthony's face and his shaking hands drop the selfsame paper. She shook her head and started to back away as his eyes found hers, and she saw fear. Pure, terrible fear. She didn't have to ask. She knew.

They talked about it the next morning, and then spent the next month doing all the things they loved doing together: walks through the park, horror movie marathons, cooking for her parents, planning for their future.

Now the game was up, and there was no avoiding the terrible reality. Anthony had left only moments ago, and Remi was driving home from the airport alone.

Of course the radio was only playing love songs; it was Valentine's Day, after all. Remi shook her head in disbelief. She couldn't go anywhere, not on this day. There'd be couples everywhere, happy and in love. All while Remi had to deal with the crushing weight of the possibility that Anthony would never come back, never smile at her, never hold her ever again.

Not every soldier comes back a hero; not every soldier comes back at all.

2/15/23

Demon

A Knights End (Clerihew)

Long ago a knight roamed the land

The knight was fair for he never made demands

But the demons of the land proved too much

Too much for even a knight from the Sunken Gulch

Every low class scumfuck Warden who has ever joined this conspiracy to milk these threads for no effort comms has earned my eternal ire. (Except stargirl, she's still cool.)

The rest of you know who you are. Be seeing you around. :)

Technically, you just failed The Dog's Challenge...

...to gripe about comms that haven't been handed out for two weeks.

Procrastinating much? :D

I was on the fence about posting that for exactly that reason, but the mod ruling (mine) is that it doesn't count if it's not participating.

Ha! I, a low class scumfuck Warden, manadged to get away with farming low effert comms. Take that other-Wardens-who-I'm-too-lazy-to-see-who-you-are!

All the evidence of your misdeeds is in Corgi's thread.

2/16/23

Journey

2/17/23

Trust

No winners this week. On to the next!