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ENW Short Story Smackdown Summer 07 (Winner Announced)
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<blockquote data-quote="FickleGM" data-source="post: 3676280" data-attributes="member: 8964"><p><strong>Extinction</strong></p><p></p><p>ENW Short Story Smackdown Summer '07</p><p>Round 1, Match 3 -- FickleGM vs FreeXenon</p><p></p><p></p><p>Extinction</p><p></p><p></p><p>My name is Ogg, and I am not human. Of course, my twin brother Igg isn't human, either. Sure, we can pass as human...degenerate and inbred, perhaps, but human. What we are is the last of our kind. After we die, there will be no more. We are known better by the names that our enemies call us – ogres, trolls, hobgoblins, ettins, and so on. We don't actually have a name for ourselves, but we do have a goal.</p><p></p><p>Unfortunately, that goal is currently blocked by an army. An army that is aware of our goal and is ready to die to prevent us from reaching it. The army may pose a problem, especially with the guardian angels flying above it, encouraging its soldiers and preparing to bring their celestial power to bare against us. Soon, we will find out, for the gate lies beyond. The gate is our goal and our salvation.</p><p></p><p>Carved from stone and covered in mystic runes, the great arch will take us from this place of danger and bring us to a place where we will no longer be hunted as monsters. For too long we have been on the run. For too long we have witnessed our brethren put to death by fanatical humans. Today, with courage, strength and luck, we will finally be out of their reach.</p><p></p><p>The sun has set and the new moon is hiding in the starless sky, so it's time for Igg and me to make our move. Under the cover of darkness, we make our way to the edge of the army. Necks snap, humans die, humans scream and the fight is upon us. What the mortals appear to have forgotten is that we have not lived as long as we have by being easy to kill. Their swords and spears can barely scratch us, let alone actually slay us. Igg has just popped the head off one soldier and is using it as a flail against his assailants, which makes me laugh.</p><p></p><p>As we get close to the arch, we can see the religious humans praying their spells of protection. Two angels fly above them, both of them carry a sword, but the one that I am interested in has a key in his other hand. The key is the final piece required for our escape. Igg's eyes meet mine and I nod to him that it is time for our surprise. He discards the head and brings out the talisman from under his tunic. Holding it up and chanting some mystic words, Igg snaps the talisman as I make my move.</p><p></p><p>A bright light fills the sky, as if the sun was rising on the horizon, and the sounds of a heavenly chorus ring across the battlefield. In the distance, beyond the enemy's fort, fires erupt. The army almost comes to a standstill, as the soldiers and clergy look to the lights as a sign from above. Even the angels are taken by surprise, as they hover in front of the arch, pointing at Igg in the distance <strong>(Picture 2)</strong>. Leaping high above the humans, I swat one angel out of the air with my right hand as I grab the key out of the other angel's hand with my left.</p><p></p><p>Fighting for my life, I wait for Igg to reach me before activating the archway. These humans are tenacious, even if they have no chance against me. The angels, on the other hand, are quite dangerous and their holy swords sting as they pierce my flesh. Any time now, brother. Suddenly, a horse flies over my head and crashes into the attacking angels. Igg is showing off, again.</p><p></p><p>Turning to the archway, I raise the key and recite the sacred words, as Igg clears some space around me. A shimmering light appears in the opening beneath the archway, signifying our success. Turning to the angry masses, we bow and step back through the portal.</p><p></p><p>Looking around, it doesn't take long to figure out that we are indeed in a different place. Actually, we were both in a different place and a different time. Standing in the middle of a strange smooth road, the first thing we notice are the iron chariots moving rapidly past us. No horses can be seen pulling the chariots, yet some strange beasts are obviously moving the contraptions from within, as they can be heard trumpeting warning cries toward us as they pass.</p><p></p><p>Humans walking by also seem to be taken back by our appearances, strange dress and perhaps where we are standing, seeing as they are all walking on a different smooth road. I grab Igg and motion to the "walking road," and we move away from the large road and its iron chariots. Igg suggests that we try to blend in, but in order to do that, we'll need some native clothing. We decide to walk down a side alley and stay clear of the gawking public. Eventually, we come across a group of humans huddled against a building. They appear to be lower class, but two of them are large enough to accomodate our needs. The screams do not appear to bring any support, which is surprising with the number of humans in the area. Perhaps they don't take care about each other any more.</p><p></p><p>With our new clothing, we should be able to walk amongst the enemy without being recognized. Of course, the humans of this time may not recognize us regardless of our attire, but it's better to be cautious. We still have another task that must be completed before we will truly be safe. We must find the mystic realm, which lies hidden behind the veil innocence. Our only clue is the vision I've seen of a strange device or creature from this time, consisting of a red disk having four silver horns and red spiral tendrils or vines. I have no idea what it is, so we may have to communicate with our enemy to get some answers.</p><p></p><p>The mortals of this time must be the most oblivious creatures that we have ever seen. Walking past a large reflective wall, we can plainly see that we do not blend in as well as we first thought. Our clothing, while similar, was obviously old and used compared to the clothes of the humans around us. Igg, in particular, has a terrible stain on the front of his shirt that must stand out, yet they only walk around us. The mechanical bracelet that I am wearing, must make me look more respectable. Igg thinks that he should get one, too. Our heads look human enough, but normally stand out so that humans have always reacted to us with fear. Our large ears, in particular, have always been reacted to first <strong>(Picture 1)</strong>. Not here. Not now. Perhaps this will not be as difficult as we first thought.</p><p></p><p>Well, it's been half a day and we still have no idea what the object is from my vision. Humans are just as fragile as ever, if not moreso. They can't understand descriptions and they don't respond well to torture. I'm about to give up on this tactic. There is a knock at the door of the rundown, abandoned building that we found. An authority figure is demanding entrance and stating that he is an officer of the law. Perhaps he can tell us what the object is. Igg let's the human in and right away there is trouble. The human sees blood and immediately takes a piece of iron from a scabbard on his belt. He's pointing it at us, but it doesn't have a blade, so I tell Igg to hold him down. A loud bang rings out and Igg knocks the human across the room. Igg is now on the floor with blood flowing out of his chest. The human is screaming into a device on his shoulder, saying that he needs backup. Two large strides, a sidestep to avoid his loud weapon and a kick to the head ends his life.</p><p></p><p>I am alone and for the first time in my long life, I am afraid. These mortals, oblivious and weak, possess weapons that can kill me with relative ease. I am not safe and do not know how to complete my journey. My limited magic is not divinitory in nature and I know of no seers or oracles from this period of time. Lost, I wander from alley to alley, and avoid human contact. Leaning against a metal container of refuse, I look up and see it. Within a strange box containing a transparent side, the object sits. A red disc-like object, with four silver horns and four red tendrils, just like in my vision <strong>(Picture 4)</strong> The box sits in a clear sack, swinging from the hand of a human woman. Not just any human woman, but the human woman that I must follow. This can not be coincidence.</p><p></p><p>The woman walks up the steps to the door of a small house. Using a key, she unlocks the door and steps inside. I hide along the side of the house and peer into the windows. The woman sets the bag on a table and turns, as if she hears something in another room. As she blocks the bag from the view of anyone entering the room, a child runs in and hugs the woman. The child, a red-headed girl of approximately twelve years, looks past the woman and directly at me, winking. Her face is the epitome of innocence. My journey is almost complete.</p><p></p><p>Later that night, I sneak into the house, using a simple incantation to open the lock. Creeping from room to room, I eventually find the girl, sleeping in her bed. As I slowly walk in the door, I notice that the girl is not alone. On her bed lies a black cat and under the foot of the bed rests a dog. I step in front of the bed and prepare to wake the girl when a sudden gust of wind flows through the room, blowing the curtains behind the girl's bed. The girl suddenly sits up in bed and calls me by name. Strange green tentacles erupt from under the bed, presumably coming from the dog, which is now a matching green color. In addition, the dog now has three heads, each containing hypnotic spiraling eyes. The front paws now resembling hands, the beast growls at me in warning. The cat displays its magical nature by revealing antlers on its head, as it stares at me under sleepy eyelids <strong>(Picture 3)</strong>.</p><p></p><p>I ask the girl if she can take me to the mystic realm and she answers that she is indeed to doorway to the mystic realm. I finally made it. I am finally going to a place where I will be amongst others like me and away from hateful humans. I look into her eyes as they begin to glow. The glow surrounds me and I feel myself fade from this world...the last thing I see are two angels flying from her eyes, pointing celestial blades at me. There is no hate in their expressions, only remorse.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="FickleGM, post: 3676280, member: 8964"] [b]Extinction[/b] ENW Short Story Smackdown Summer '07 Round 1, Match 3 -- FickleGM vs FreeXenon Extinction My name is Ogg, and I am not human. Of course, my twin brother Igg isn't human, either. Sure, we can pass as human...degenerate and inbred, perhaps, but human. What we are is the last of our kind. After we die, there will be no more. We are known better by the names that our enemies call us – ogres, trolls, hobgoblins, ettins, and so on. We don't actually have a name for ourselves, but we do have a goal. Unfortunately, that goal is currently blocked by an army. An army that is aware of our goal and is ready to die to prevent us from reaching it. The army may pose a problem, especially with the guardian angels flying above it, encouraging its soldiers and preparing to bring their celestial power to bare against us. Soon, we will find out, for the gate lies beyond. The gate is our goal and our salvation. Carved from stone and covered in mystic runes, the great arch will take us from this place of danger and bring us to a place where we will no longer be hunted as monsters. For too long we have been on the run. For too long we have witnessed our brethren put to death by fanatical humans. Today, with courage, strength and luck, we will finally be out of their reach. The sun has set and the new moon is hiding in the starless sky, so it's time for Igg and me to make our move. Under the cover of darkness, we make our way to the edge of the army. Necks snap, humans die, humans scream and the fight is upon us. What the mortals appear to have forgotten is that we have not lived as long as we have by being easy to kill. Their swords and spears can barely scratch us, let alone actually slay us. Igg has just popped the head off one soldier and is using it as a flail against his assailants, which makes me laugh. As we get close to the arch, we can see the religious humans praying their spells of protection. Two angels fly above them, both of them carry a sword, but the one that I am interested in has a key in his other hand. The key is the final piece required for our escape. Igg's eyes meet mine and I nod to him that it is time for our surprise. He discards the head and brings out the talisman from under his tunic. Holding it up and chanting some mystic words, Igg snaps the talisman as I make my move. A bright light fills the sky, as if the sun was rising on the horizon, and the sounds of a heavenly chorus ring across the battlefield. In the distance, beyond the enemy's fort, fires erupt. The army almost comes to a standstill, as the soldiers and clergy look to the lights as a sign from above. Even the angels are taken by surprise, as they hover in front of the arch, pointing at Igg in the distance [b](Picture 2)[/b]. Leaping high above the humans, I swat one angel out of the air with my right hand as I grab the key out of the other angel's hand with my left. Fighting for my life, I wait for Igg to reach me before activating the archway. These humans are tenacious, even if they have no chance against me. The angels, on the other hand, are quite dangerous and their holy swords sting as they pierce my flesh. Any time now, brother. Suddenly, a horse flies over my head and crashes into the attacking angels. Igg is showing off, again. Turning to the archway, I raise the key and recite the sacred words, as Igg clears some space around me. A shimmering light appears in the opening beneath the archway, signifying our success. Turning to the angry masses, we bow and step back through the portal. Looking around, it doesn't take long to figure out that we are indeed in a different place. Actually, we were both in a different place and a different time. Standing in the middle of a strange smooth road, the first thing we notice are the iron chariots moving rapidly past us. No horses can be seen pulling the chariots, yet some strange beasts are obviously moving the contraptions from within, as they can be heard trumpeting warning cries toward us as they pass. Humans walking by also seem to be taken back by our appearances, strange dress and perhaps where we are standing, seeing as they are all walking on a different smooth road. I grab Igg and motion to the "walking road," and we move away from the large road and its iron chariots. Igg suggests that we try to blend in, but in order to do that, we'll need some native clothing. We decide to walk down a side alley and stay clear of the gawking public. Eventually, we come across a group of humans huddled against a building. They appear to be lower class, but two of them are large enough to accomodate our needs. The screams do not appear to bring any support, which is surprising with the number of humans in the area. Perhaps they don't take care about each other any more. With our new clothing, we should be able to walk amongst the enemy without being recognized. Of course, the humans of this time may not recognize us regardless of our attire, but it's better to be cautious. We still have another task that must be completed before we will truly be safe. We must find the mystic realm, which lies hidden behind the veil innocence. Our only clue is the vision I've seen of a strange device or creature from this time, consisting of a red disk having four silver horns and red spiral tendrils or vines. I have no idea what it is, so we may have to communicate with our enemy to get some answers. The mortals of this time must be the most oblivious creatures that we have ever seen. Walking past a large reflective wall, we can plainly see that we do not blend in as well as we first thought. Our clothing, while similar, was obviously old and used compared to the clothes of the humans around us. Igg, in particular, has a terrible stain on the front of his shirt that must stand out, yet they only walk around us. The mechanical bracelet that I am wearing, must make me look more respectable. Igg thinks that he should get one, too. Our heads look human enough, but normally stand out so that humans have always reacted to us with fear. Our large ears, in particular, have always been reacted to first [b](Picture 1)[/b]. Not here. Not now. Perhaps this will not be as difficult as we first thought. Well, it's been half a day and we still have no idea what the object is from my vision. Humans are just as fragile as ever, if not moreso. They can't understand descriptions and they don't respond well to torture. I'm about to give up on this tactic. There is a knock at the door of the rundown, abandoned building that we found. An authority figure is demanding entrance and stating that he is an officer of the law. Perhaps he can tell us what the object is. Igg let's the human in and right away there is trouble. The human sees blood and immediately takes a piece of iron from a scabbard on his belt. He's pointing it at us, but it doesn't have a blade, so I tell Igg to hold him down. A loud bang rings out and Igg knocks the human across the room. Igg is now on the floor with blood flowing out of his chest. The human is screaming into a device on his shoulder, saying that he needs backup. Two large strides, a sidestep to avoid his loud weapon and a kick to the head ends his life. I am alone and for the first time in my long life, I am afraid. These mortals, oblivious and weak, possess weapons that can kill me with relative ease. I am not safe and do not know how to complete my journey. My limited magic is not divinitory in nature and I know of no seers or oracles from this period of time. Lost, I wander from alley to alley, and avoid human contact. Leaning against a metal container of refuse, I look up and see it. Within a strange box containing a transparent side, the object sits. A red disc-like object, with four silver horns and four red tendrils, just like in my vision [b](Picture 4)[/b] The box sits in a clear sack, swinging from the hand of a human woman. Not just any human woman, but the human woman that I must follow. This can not be coincidence. The woman walks up the steps to the door of a small house. Using a key, she unlocks the door and steps inside. I hide along the side of the house and peer into the windows. The woman sets the bag on a table and turns, as if she hears something in another room. As she blocks the bag from the view of anyone entering the room, a child runs in and hugs the woman. The child, a red-headed girl of approximately twelve years, looks past the woman and directly at me, winking. Her face is the epitome of innocence. My journey is almost complete. Later that night, I sneak into the house, using a simple incantation to open the lock. Creeping from room to room, I eventually find the girl, sleeping in her bed. As I slowly walk in the door, I notice that the girl is not alone. On her bed lies a black cat and under the foot of the bed rests a dog. I step in front of the bed and prepare to wake the girl when a sudden gust of wind flows through the room, blowing the curtains behind the girl's bed. The girl suddenly sits up in bed and calls me by name. Strange green tentacles erupt from under the bed, presumably coming from the dog, which is now a matching green color. In addition, the dog now has three heads, each containing hypnotic spiraling eyes. The front paws now resembling hands, the beast growls at me in warning. The cat displays its magical nature by revealing antlers on its head, as it stares at me under sleepy eyelids [b](Picture 3)[/b]. I ask the girl if she can take me to the mystic realm and she answers that she is indeed to doorway to the mystic realm. I finally made it. I am finally going to a place where I will be amongst others like me and away from hateful humans. I look into her eyes as they begin to glow. The glow surrounds me and I feel myself fade from this world...the last thing I see are two angels flying from her eyes, pointing celestial blades at me. There is no hate in their expressions, only remorse. [/QUOTE]
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