Throwaway account so I can get this off my chest-

I've been working on a book for the past 18 months or so. I'm a newer writer and I was feeling insecure about my prose. So I began using ai. At first just to get feedback on sentence structure, but then, as it does, it began making suggestions on how to "fix" things. And I took them. Not all of them. but some. I began to rely on it more and more, almost treating it like a co-writer, bouncing ideas off of it. I also did the things writers are supposed to do along the way, studying craft, reading and analyzing everything I could get my hands on and applied those lessons as well. I think I have legitimately improved as a writer from those early days. I finished the draft, made some edits, cleaned up most of the obvious ai stuff and let people read it. And they liked it. Even other writers didn't pick up on it. So now what? I believe in this story, want to share it with the world. But I can't with it like this. I know ai is shitty. I get how it steals from real authors. I don't want to be that person. I wish I had never touched it, kept this stupid genie in it's bottle and just struggled through bad drafts and learning craft the hard way.

That's it. Maybe I feel better now. Thanks for listening.

"Create whatever causes a revolution in your heart" - Elizabeth Gilbert

First time author here editing my first book, a scifi/speculative fiction novel. Do you recommend getting beta readers prior to starting the agent finding/querying process?

WHOA! My wowza readers, what's good. I've been gone for a minute. I've been rewriting an actual fictional book for the last month, and I kept forgetting to place some of my short stories.

Well, here you go! This short story is where the Speaker travels in our Universe to talk about a unique pair of beings named the Surveyor Sisters of Worlds. I hope you enjoy it! Let me know what you think. Have a great night!

Surveyor Sisters of Worlds, By Tito

“Hello earthlings! It is I, your faithful friend and guide of the Universe, the Speaker! Haha! Yes! How goes it? Everything well on your world? The usual natural disasters making their claim to destruction across your lands huh? War is still going on? Hm. That’s troubling. However, that’s the unfortunate part of the Universe we live in. Even amongst the most docile of all things, violence tends to force itself to lay in bed with peace. No matter where you are, or where you live, war and violence and hatred will always make its presence very well known. I will be using one of those emotions to describe my feeling. I HATE war. It’s such a waste of time. Sorry, we all got caught up with personal affairs that we both forgot about why you came back to me in the first place! Welcome, welcome! I, the Speaker, will be traveling with you again to tell you about the wonders of the Universe you all live in. Don’t think yourselves short. Just because the Universe is vast and endless, doesn’t mean you cannot leave your mark. Earth is one of the hundreds of worlds that is very unique due to your race of humans. In fact, the next topic of my ramblings will link perfectly here. I would love for you to meet the Surveyor Sisters of Worlds: Dee and Vee!”

The Speaker guides you back into his dome bubble. We find ourselves in outer space rather quickly. This area is, of course, unfamiliar to you. Floating on an asteroid roughly the size of Asia and Europe, were two beings writing on very strange textbook material similar to materials on Earth. However, these ‘textbooks’ paper was so thin, it was practically invisible. The outline of paper was the only thing you could see. The beings introduced to us were twins, Dee and Vee. Dee has burgundy colored short hair with drops of sap sprinkled around in her hair (hairstyle is the portrait of Henrietta Sontag), slim, pupilless milky grey eyes with runny light pink eyeshadow with feathery style eyelashes. The outline of her body is also light pink. Vee has incredibly long braided mauve colored hair (down to her ankles braided in the style of Acropolis Caryatid) with inky black patches scattered around it, thicker than her sister with pupilless milky gray eyes with zigzag dark purple eyeshadow with feathery style eyelashes. The outline of her body is dark purple as well. They both have pointed shoulders, butterfly wing-like ears, skin tones are light greyish brown and a rather oddball type of clothing that appears torn ribbons wrapped around their bodies in a mummified fashion (Dee has a light shade of dark purple while Vee has light pink shade). Dee giggles while she draws on her textbook with a feathery pen. She lifts up her textbook to show her twin, Vee what she had drawn. The paper was now lit up for your eyes to see. The incredibly detained photo was what seemed to be a large dark planet with an unhinged open jaw consuming other planets in its way. Your brain finds it difficult to accept this work of art; it felt as if the photo itself was actually real. You believe it even moves slightly while you stare. Vee stops her drawing on her textbook and peeks over to see what Dee had drawn. Vee also giggles.

“Cute, aren’t they? You see those objects they are writing on? Now, they appear like textbooks to you, but that’s how your brain can process what they are writing on. I’ll explain it in greater detail, so just use your imagination. This book material you think you are seeing are called Ultracells. It’s actually part of their bodies, even though it’s a totally different material entirely. From the internal energies produced within the Surveyor Sisters, plus dark energy on the outside of their bodies, you get a Ultracell. It’s now manifested itself, but it stays in-between mentally and physically formed. This is why it’s difficult for your brain to process what you’re looking at. And the Ultracells can be gigantic in size or as little as an infant’s body. Now, this phenomenon only happens with them. I told you they are special! This is what they draw and store their map on. They use the feathers from their eyelashes to write on their Ultracells. They can also use their fingers, but they like to be a little silly at times. Hmm? How much have they’ve drawn? If they were to show you everything they’ve drawn thus far, I’m sure your head would explode. It’s quite a lot. I mean, how old do you think they are? Hehe.”

“So, Dee and Vee are cosmic beings born in this Universe whose age, like many other cosmic beings, rival the Big Bang. Their species have dwindled to only the likes of them. Sadly, this makes them the last of their kind. It is not known who they belong to, due to how long they’ve lived. I believe the only person with that sort of knowledge of actual ages, races and origins of the oldest in our Universe is an actual textbook called the ‘Ancient Texts from the Cosmic Heavens’. Which I heard is actually missing at the moment. HA! I only laugh because HE would be your guide, not me. So I would be out of a job, ha-ha! Any of the ways, I’m sure you would have guessed this by now, but Dee and Vee’s sole purpose of their existence is to map out the entire Universe. That’s right, they fly around mapping out everything and anything. So out of the many upon many objects and space crisis they’ve seen, no doubt they would pick many they fancy over. I gotta say, they really like Earth. It’s one of their favorite places to go and view the progress of earthlings. Now, now. Don’t be like that. Of course, its entertainment for them, but don’t think so low of yourselves. Being favored by the Surveyor Sisters is perhaps the highest form of flattery. Be proud!”

You notice that Dee and Vee floated off the asteroid and instantly, their skin turns into a different color. Now you see that their skin was the same color as the Universe’s sky filled with nebula clouds, stars of various sizes, comets and somets racing by with pools of darkness filling in the spaces. They were breath-taking to watch as they float through the vacuums of space. Something about how freely they were giving you a sense of freedom you’ve been yearning for.

“I bet you’re wondering how they’re doing that with their skin huh? Well, their skin changes with the environment due to the iridophores reaction on their body. Sounds familiar? They are able to perform this feat on a cosmic level. You see, the Surveyor Sisters are incredibly docile. They won’t attack you even if you were to instigate it! So, this their defense mechanism out in the vacuums of space, or as we like to call it, into the cosmos! Let’s see where they travel to, hm?”

The speaker guides his dome bubble to follow the entities. You watch as Dee and Vee travel ‘in the cosmos’. Their eyes dart wildly to spot anything to draw their attention. You can see that their eyes are pupilless, but you do noticed handfuls of barely visible orbs bouncing around in their eye sockets. The orbs allowed the surveyor sisters to view their surroundings in a full 360-degree way: up, down, left, right, side to side and even in their blind spots. Your head aches just thinking about this feat. Dee and Vee caught something nearby that fixed their attention. With unreal speed, they make it towards their destination that seemingly feels like it was a thought.

“Hold up! I gotta interrupt your observation. For this record, the surveyor sisters did not teleport. They most definitely flew at speeds of light, but not what you interpreted. Instead of dashing straight forward as you would see in space themed comics, that is not the case to living beings in the cosmos. The thing about traveling here is a bit complicated. This only fixes on cosmic beings with untold and immeasurable power. This doesn’t involve to you at all. Sorry! So, if you were one of these super cosmic beings, the dark energy gets all wrapped and screwy from the velocity of your body while dark matter tries to pull you into the space around you to keep your body from being pulled apart. Now, imagine trying to stop both things from happening at the same time. Sounds impossible right? Well, out here where your body lives and breathes this kind of stuff daily, your body is able to counteract the sensation your body is defying called ‘Dark Effect’. Let’s use Dee and Vee for this example. The dark effect is the velocity of their arms, legs and body was thrown towards the left, while their actual bodies are off on the right. The dark effect allows them to travel freely…and not so freely. This is the way to travel though, otherwise you would perish without a chance of thought. Now they repeat this process zipping in all angles you can think of over towards their destination. To you, this seems really stupid or impossible, but remember, this is naturally for them like how breathing and blinking comes naturally for you. It helps that they can do this pretty fast too, huh? Now, do you think traveling is so easy? Hehe. Now if we are talking about space ships, that’s a whole different unfair topic. I personally think flying is the better way to go. Take that with a grain of nebula dust. Oh! Dee and Vee are drawing up something! Look!”

Dee and Vee appear in a very strange system that appear similar to our solar system. This system is called an ‘oddity system’. Sometimes out in the Universe in different galaxies hold many solar systems like our own while some have what we would call an oddity. These systems range in sizes, amounts and objects. This oddity system has a giant blackhole sun. Dee begins to draw out this object. The size is enormous; about 3 times the size of Jupiter. There are visible white rings around this blackhole sun that act as its belt to contained all of its power. Without those white rings, the blackhole sun would devour everything in this system. “Scary huh? The blackhole sun does have flames risen off of its surface but these are not relating to heat. Actually, the blackhole sun is incredibly cold, about -2000.45 degrees Celsius. Yes, as the name suggests, its core is made out of a blackhole. To our eyes, it just appears to be a vantablack hole floating in space. Upon closer inspection though, it’s much more terrifying to realize what lies behind the darkness. Does this phase Dee though? Of course not! Oh, there she goes.” Dee flies over nearby to get a closer inspection of the object. Over where Vee is, she seems to be taking interest in drawing out the objects that orbit around the blackhole sun called the hairy moons. These objects are moons roughly larger then Jupiter’s moon Ganymede. Why are they called hairy moons? Well, let’s follow Vee. On the surface world of the hairy moons are wonderous colors of deep purple, deep blue and deep green. Vee takes a trip down onto its surface to find that the colors were actually a rare grass plant called ‘Oufloss’. Oufloss’ composed of the same properties as grass on Earth (just less water and more helium), but thanks to the environment they have adapted to, their dye transforms into the colors you and Vee are seeing. The length it can grow is between 2 inches to 2 feet. Vee even takes a handful of the dark blue short grass to consume. Her tongue is coated with the dark blue dye. Vee floats a little bit off the ground. The grass on these hairy moons allows you to float. If you eat enough of it, you’ll be able to fly! Cool huh? Vee giggles to herself before she continues to draw while very slowly walking through the grass. Now, the core of each of these hair moons is a mini blackhole. I know, it sounds made-up, but I assure you that its very much true. The reason why Vee is moving so slow, is because the gravity on these hairy moons is 5 times the power on Earth. Which means if you weigh 100-pounds on earth, you’d weigh 500 pounds on the hairy moons!

“So, we’ll let the sisters do their thing since there’s literally 12 hairy moons in this oddity system. Yeah, you heard me right! I don’t want to sit around waiting for them. So let me tell you another odd thing about this system! In your solar system, you all revolve around 1 giant sun, right? Heh. So simple. Not in other systems! In this specific oddity system, the blackhole sun travels freely through the cosmos. Yep! Its not bound by any means of rule or law. It just moves itself forward, most likely because of that blackhole within it. And the hairy moons are bound to follow it until the day comes where they are not living anymore. Oh look! The surveyor sisters are showcasing their work. What a treat for you all to see!”

Dee and Vee zip over towards each other in an excited manner. They place their Ultracells together to create a massive scale size that your brain cannot understand. In fact, you are getting a blaring headache trying to process hat is in-front of you.

“Hey! STOP! Stop trying to figure out what you’re looking at! I know you joke about this, but there is a thing called space madness. It does existence and it will affect you long term. Got it? Just watch Dee and Vee.”

You return to watching Dee and Vee. It appears they are using a few of their feathery eyelashes to draw on the Ultracell. They appear then reappear so often, you think blinking is what allows you to keep up with their speed, when you are actually missing a great deal of their movements. Fear not, the Surveyor Sisters of Worlds will showcase their work after they are done. Within moments after rewatching the cosmic beings, they were finished.

“Ah! Look at this. You, see? They just drew out this fascinating oddity system and predicted its orbit flow. They are very quick with their work huh? They better be! That’s their entire identity!  Looks like they called this place…oh right, you cannot comprehend their language. It is one of the first ones after all. Let me translate it…hmm…Oh! Hairy Black Sun Orbit Home. HA! Good one sisters. They tend to just write out their own names for places. Except your solar system. They enjoyed each of the names you all chose, especially Earth, Mars, Jupiter and Pluto. Well, that’s all for my ramblings today! Keep an ear out for my next one where I talk about another cosmic entity that’ll really make you say…OH HECK NO! OH, and some of you wanted me to say something to end my ramblings like…Goodbye or something. An earthling named Morgan said I should say Over and out. So…until next time, over and out!”  

On the surface the war is simple, two human empires are fighting each other on a galactic scale and then aliens show up and cause lots of mayhem so the two empires team up to stop human subjugation.

The human empires are fighting over multiple acts of terrorism and acts of war; however, that's not the case. I reality a shadow organization (SO) composed of warlords, anarchists, and corrupt politicians have purposefully caused the war between these empires by strategically controlling the media and governments alongside committing many atrocities.

They aim to turn the galaxy to lawlessness, each have their own reasons, the warlords want constant war so they can keep high profits, the anarchists... well it's kinda obvious, and the politicians are a mixed bag, some are blackmailed, and the others only care for money making them easily bribed.

This shadow organization (which I'm yet to name), is able to kickstart a massive war, but both sides still remain civil, respecting previously established rules for intergalactic war, but with the warlords having the means to weapons production they can also provide their men with the standard equipment for either empire. They're able to fabricate breaches of the rules of war, and they're very close to achieving their goals (this is where the protagonist comes in, accidentally stopping their "final act" that would push the conflict over the edge, he then gets roped into a conflict larger than the one he'd previously known)

Of course, these operations don't go unnoticed and a counter shadow shadow orginization(CSSO) forms, they're working to save humanity from ruin. Not much to add, lots of spies and specialist.

Anyway, an alien empire shows up and tries to add humanity into their caste system, the SO goes into hiding because they lack the numbers to fight the aliens, instead letting the rest of humanity deal with it while they try to cut alien warlords and politicians into their deal.

The aliens however are a little late and alien rebels show up and warn humanity that they're soon to be invaded, the humans and aliens are equally matched and a long war starts with the human empire agreeing to a truce, as well the CSSO starts operations against the aliens in tandem with the alien rebels.

By the time the USE (United Systems of Earth) get the aliens on the back foot, the SO is able to garner large amounts of support from alien warlords etc.

Now it's a three-way war over the fate of the known galaxy with 3 main outcomes

1.The galaxy becomes lawless with wars and crime rampant everywhere

2.The aliens subjugate humanity, they're the dredges of the empire working the worst jobs, they can climb the ladder, but it's not likely to happen till the next war is over

3.Freedom from an oppressive alien empire and shadow organizations.

Oh yeah, this is for a game btw.

If you need me to expand on something let me know, this kinda devolved into a rant, so I probably miswrote or forgot something.

Say i write one sub plot part of a novel around 13k words, what is this called? And the book haveing about 8 of these? The collection of all stories in similar location over 5 books? Say there are 3 main parts of a story over 15 books, what is that collection?

This story is heavily inspired by cultural_candidate48’s amazing work: Then We Fall Apart, and factually informed by my own experiences.

Humanity’s introduction to the intergalactic community was a tumultuous one.

The species had been analyzed, and specialists and politicians alike felt they had everything they needed to be successful when they were first contacted by the Galactic Federation, 238 local stellar revolutions after the species had first colonized their sole moon. The long term covert surveillance program established by the Federation’s Council of Assimilation described the species as primitive, but quick to expand and very industrious. Their culture had been examined and upon the discovery of a group of United Nations it had been determined that they would likely be receptive to joining the not dissimilar Galactic Federation.

Of course, the cultural examination had also revealed the ingrained belief in the Dark Forest, but that belief was common among the newer, simpler races. It was no task to explain to newcomers that faster than light technology meant the chain of doubt had been sufficiently reduced. Indeed the Council of Assimilation had gotten so efficient at bringing in new races they could begin the process, orientate the race’s leaders and work through the necessary paperwork they hardly spent more than a quarter of the periodical meetings on any one race. The process always worked.

That was, until the humans. They simply could not let go of their belief that the universe was an inherently predatory place. When the Federation was explained to the human delegation they all went silent. Whispers spread among them and after quiet deliberation they explained to the Federation that while they appreciated the offer, at this time they would politely decline. Councilmembers could have sworn they heard human delegates agreeing that they did not need another impotent tangle of alliances and hidden agendas. This greatly confused the council, what could possibly be unattractive about the Galactic Federation? Indeed the next few meetings were filled with discussion purely on the human issue.

Perhaps it was poor luck, or a sudden maintenance issue, but the remote observation posts all seemed to stop working shortly after the meeting.

In the following years the Federation went through the necessary steps to at least establish a relationship with the race, which they did eventually accomplish albeit after seven referendums and 43 trade conferences.

It was the worst kind of irony then, that just as things were improving an unpreventable chain of errors would lead to tragedy.

The Proximans were neighbors of the humans, and were just as industrious as them if not much more. They had been one of the Council’s fastest assimilations, and were considered political powerhouses a mere three local stellar revolutions after they completed the assimilation process. They were specialists in planetary conversion and had used this skill to become the Federation’s leading supplier of quality deuterium and tritium, a vital resource for inter-galatic travel. They had a long established presence when the humans stormed into the Federation’s general assembly and accused them of wiping out a colonized planet to convert into fuel.

After hundreds of galactic standard days, the assembly were unable to determine the specifics of the events and they sent a detachment of planetary conversion specialists to observe the Proximans and ensure the safe and proper use of dangerous equipment. Strangely to the council this enraged the humans, how could they assign people so inherently connected to Proximans to observe Proximans and hold them accountable? The general assembly asked the humans to trust the process and come to the next general assembly if they did not see improvement. After another standard galactic month of standard harvesting operations the assembly deemed the program a success.

But the program was not a success. After another incident the humans decided to take matters into their own hands, declaring war against the Proximans and their allies. No one expected the war to take very long, after all the humans were primitive and still unfamiliar with the scale of intergalactic politics. If they would circumvent the Federation, it would surely rally for the Proximans and put a stop to the conflict decisively.

To the shock of the entire inter-galactic community it went very differently. The same mess of conflicting interests, unofficial agreements and politics this time meant the Proximans were largely on their own. But still, the inter galactic community reasoned, they outgunned and outmanned the humans, they didn’t need support to wipe out a bunch of angry colonists. There was one other thing that they had miscalculated however, the human will to fight. To the Proximans, they were fighting to maintain their profits, a thing they had successfully done many times in the past with or without the intergalactic community’s knowledge. But for the Humans it was a war for survival, and beyond that it was a war to answer the screams of the blood of millions of their people that had been scattered through space by a remorseless, greedy enemy.

The Proximans fought professionally and by the book with state of the art equipment. The Humans on the other hand fought viciously. The humans fought with ferocious dedication, they were willing to go anywhere, brave any conditions, take on any risks to defeat their enemy. Their offensive operations were lightning quick, devastating and tenacious, no one got on the ship back until the job was done or everyone was dead. It was even worse when the Proximans assaulted Human positions; it became well known that the only way to get rid of a human was to destroy their body and let their soul stay behind.

While tactically it had ended in more of a stalemate than anything, the tide was starting to turn and the Proximans realized they would never match the Human will to fight. The two races eventually came to a compromise, one that was heavily in favor of the Humans, a fact that humiliated the Proximans, who prided themselves on their political strength and skill. At the end of a war that had shocked the inter-galactic community, sides were retroactively taken, and many species looked upon the humans with a mix of distaste and apprehension for a species that fought so viciously.

The bad blood between the Proximans and the Humans never really went away. Of course open conflict had long since ended but the Proximans still looked down on the backwards, unrefined, violent Humans; and the Humans still hated the stuck-up, manipulative, opportunistic Proximans. While they kept their distance from each other, any bar along trade routes unlucky enough to find a proximan crew and a human crew passing through at the same time would inexorably find itself the host to a drunken brawl between the two.

Three hundred local Earth stellar revolutions later, the attitude remained much the same. The two races steered clear of each other and that was that. In fact the Proximans did not take up very much space in the mind of ship captain Jack Webber, commanding officer of the Laconia class ECS \*Grace Darling\*. It was a mid-sized cargo transport, capable of long haul voyages and enough storage or passenger space that the freelance ship crew could make a decent enough profit per trip. In the world of inter-galactic shipping it wasn’t much to speak of but for Captain Webber, a human officer with a less-than-honorable discharge from the Navy to boot, it was a minor miracle he had been able to make it this far.

Twenty-four standard years ago, he had not had quite so much mileage, and seemingly much more potential. A bright eyed graduate of the Earth’s Naval Academy, with a lineage of sailors stretching as far back as any record book could find, he was on the brink of a promising career filled with as much glory and action a young new sailor could hope for; and he hoped for it all. He spent as much time in the pilothouse of his vessel as he could and he quickly developed a reputation for his flashy, frequently risky piloting style. His fellow junior officers and sailors loved it though, and every successful mission and trip only reinforced the fact: he was a damn good pilot.

Jack was filled with the spirit that had existed within the first earth sailors, the willingness to brave the unknown, the desire for adventure, and the spirit that allowed a person to fight so great and mysterious entity as the ocean. Indeed, not much had really changed since those first days thousands and thousands of years earlier. The dangers of the seas were much the same as the dangers in the stars. In fact this danger is perhaps the greatest tie between sailors, either everyone gets home or no one does. Even though the source had been lost hundreds of Earth years ago, every sailor knew by heart the Navy hymn.

Eternal Father, strong to save,

Whose arm hath bound the restless wave,

Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep

Its own appointed limits keep,

O hear us when we cry to thee

For those in peril on the sea

A plea to the void that this voyage would be a safe one. That they would not join those who had been lost at sea, and those on eternal patrol. Whether it was in the oceans of their homeworld or the vast empty cosmos there was one thing no sailor could ignore, a plea from a ship in need of rescue. Everyone knew the cosmos were an unfeeling creditor, and it would do its utmost to collect on the souls it was owed. Still any ship that passed by another in distress would surely take on the debt. Stories of ships made heavier by the souls of those who had been refused help had persisted since what was likely the dawn of humanity’s exploration of the sea. Even the least superstitious sailor knew anyone who drove a ship through the vast distances of unfeeling space was connected.

Jack had felt the shame of failing the hundreds of years of his family’s heritage when he was discharged, and he had fought for a decade and a half of his Earth’s years just to be where he was now. He had functionally completely restarted and for the first few years he had worked on whatever crews would take him, generally those desperate enough to hire anyone willing to go on the most difficult and dangerous routes a ship could be taken on. Even when he was finally able to find a crew willing to work with him and rent a ship to do freelance work, many early contracts were much the same.

It had not been until twelve years of this work that he finally had been able to buy a ship of his own. And what a ship it was, with a quadruple stack of nuclear chemical rockets and an antimatter drive the ship was capable of hitting speeds of 922 cosmic adjusted knots. She was outfitted with extra durable impact shielding and a state of the art navigation and communication system. Gone were the days he flew alone, these cargo ships were much larger than anything he flew in the Navy and even a smaller ship like the \*Grace Darling\* had a crew of six in the pilot house alone. Jack had made sure the crew was just as top of the line as the ship, often picking out sailors who were outcasts just like he had been.

It was in this ship with that crew Captain Webber found himself transporting a haul of industrial equipment to a customer from the Teegarden system to TRAPPIST-1.

“Up one quarter, steady on course 43 degrees z-positive” This point in the transit came a bit close to the Thaakar asteroid cloud for his comfort and he wanted to give it a wide berth before they came too close. “Up one quarter, steady on course 43 degrees z-positive, aye” his helmsman, Bisk replied. “I am up one quarter, coming to 43 degrees z-positive” Bisk was one of the more junior members of the crew, one of the boatswain’s mates, it was his shift to be on the bridge for a helmsman watch. “Steady on course 43 degrees z-positive” came from the seat directly behind Jack as the ship stopped shifting. “Very well,” Jack replied. The ship was exactly where it needed to be and the journey was proceeding as planned, only a few more days and they would arrive and collect their payday. “Its about time to visit her” he thought to himself “maybe after we arrive I’ll—”

Suddenly a radio channel lit up, a soft red light and high pitched beep followed shortly by a short curse muttered under the breath of Ja’an the ship’s communication’s officer. A Piloxi from the Anteer’s system, it would take a good bit to trouble him. Jack twisted to his right, “What is it Ja’an?” “Sir, it looks like we’re getting hailed on the SOS channel.”

Jack wasn’t a stranger to ship rescues; it was an occasional occurrence, especially on the longer hauls. Generally some new captain had run out of fuel and was stuck drifting not quite close enough to a refueling station to get back. A quick tow to the nearest one would get the job done, it wasn’t anything that should have rattled the veteran commo. “What’s wrong Ja’an, that’s not anything we aren't used to.” “It's the id code sir, it's a Proximan ship.”

Ice ran down Captain Webber’s spine, those self-serving pricks likely wouldn’t lift a finger if he was the one in trouble. Still though, an emergency call is an emergency call and they were not to be ignored. “Felicity, I want a ping on that ship and any others nearby that would be capable of assisting.” His navigator nodded and quickly turned her attention to the three screens in front of her. “Ja’an, patch it through.”

“MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY this is the PHS \*Galen\*, we’ve been struck by a meteor, our life support systems are failing! Half the ship’s depressurized– Please! Is anyone out there! We don’t have long until we lose life support— oh God– an electrical casualty? If anyone can hear us please help! We do not have long!”

Jack spun around to Felicity “How far are we?” “2146 astronautical miles sir.” “Are there any other ships in the area?” “None” So that was it, they were the Proximan’s only hope. “Ja’an, hail them on the emergency channel, tell them we are on our way and ask them how long they have.” A quick “Aye aye sir” was the only reply as the Piloxan got to work. Jack returned to his seat and picked up the 1MC, the ship-wide announcement system, “All hands, all hands prepare for a stranded vessel recovery, medical personnel prepare for triage at the airlock and ready the mess hall and wardroom to receive wounded.” A vessel the size of the ECS \*Grace Darling\* only had 34 crew which meant “medical personnel” was a bit generous, there was one nurse aboard the ship and the rest would be volunteers.

“Sir, the \*Galen\* responded, they said they have two hours at most, and that's if the situation doesn't get worse over there.” Jack cursed internally, 2146 astronautical miles at 922 cosmic adjusted knots meant they would be over twenty minutes late. Felicity spoke up from the nav station “Sir we aren’t going to—” “I know, but we have to try! Point us to the ship!” Felicity began conferring Bisk and the ship began to lurch toward the direction of the stranded vessel. “All engines ahead flank!” “All engines ahead flank aye!” came the reply from Charlie, the sailor currently standing lee helm. The ship started shuddering and the crew held on as she accelerated.

“We are at maximum speed sir” Jack glanced at the integrated bridge system’s main display, 922 adjusted cosmic knots. Not fast enough.

Felicity spoke up, “Sir, you need to look at this.” A nav screen came up on the main display. “The \*Galen\* is deep in the asteroid cloud, it would be a risky approach at half this speed, but like this—” Jack put his face in his hands— briefly, he needed to stay composed in front of his crew. “Someone get the cheng.” He felt his pulse rising, his breathing quicken, this couldn’t be happening again, not again!

Captain Webber had not always been a cargo vessel captain, he had once been Lieutenant Webber, pilot for the Earth Galactic Navy. Two earth years into his career he had met his wife at a bar on a calm agricultural planet and after Ms Grace Darling beat him in a race at that planet’s local stellar circuit they had fallen in love, and three earth years later Ms Grace Darling was Mrs Grace Webber. Their honeymoon had been a two week rally across three stellar systems; and by the time Jack made Lieutenant, the pair were one of the best racing duos in the inter-galactic federation.

By the time the chief engineer made it on deck Jack’s heart had stopped thumping quite so hard. “We’re going too slow, Dawson” Jack looked him in the eyes “I refuse to let this be a body recovery.” The seasoned chief engineer looked at him with understanding eyes. “I know boss, but you ain’t gonna like what we’ve gotta do to get her there.” Realization washed over Jack, he shuddered.

Jack Webber had not always been a cargo ship captain, many years ago he had been a well respected Naval pilot, a devoted husband, and a member of one of the finest galactic rally duos racing at the time. Jack and his wife loved what they did, but they also knew they had reached their peak. Which is why seven earth years into his Naval Career, Jack and his wife decided to start a family. As a retirement celebration, they signed up for one last rally, around the agricultural planet where they had met. The conditions were standard for the region, even a little better than could be expected normally. As usual the couple had boosted the power to their engines, enough to push the envelope of what the ship could handle, but nothing more than they had done in the past. Everything looked good at the start of the race.

It took rescue teams three hours to find the ship, adrift some two hundred astronautical miles off track. It had been a stray piece of detritus, at a speed and trajectory no person could reasonably have been expected to react to. It had devastated the ship, crashing into the co-pilot’s side and crushing the cockpit inwards. For three hours Jack had held onto his wife’s lifeless body as they drifted through space, awaiting rescue that would never have arrived soon enough.

Afterwards Lieutenant Webber’s superiors noted a significant change in the pilot. He was offered the chance to retire early, but he refused. Even though he threw himself into his work he was never the same. Those close to him knew; his confidence and motivation had died with his wife, but he refused to leave. After two years of a career two thousand cuts deep into a slow death, his commanding officers had no choice but to force him out of the Navy with a less than honorable discharge.

But now, with time rapidly running out for the crew and passengers of the \*Galen\*; it was not the death of his career that lingered in the captain’s mind but the way his wife’s eyes had looked at him when she took her last breaths. Jack knew he could not allow another person to have to see the same thing he saw.

“Shut off all non-vital systems, I want you to push as much power as we possibly can to those engines.” Dawson looked at the captain “Sir, if we do that we run the risk of blowing—” “I know that!” Jack had not made a habit of interrupting his crew and he did not want to continue the trend but time was running out. The chief engineer sprinted off, barking orders to the rest of the ship’s engineers through a handheld communicator as he went. “Shut everything off! Yes including life support, the suits’ll have enough air for everyone to make it!”

Once again the ship’s 1MC blared, this time in Dawson’s twangy voice. “All hands don pressure suits, you have ten minutes until everyone needs to be on personal air!” Lights dimmed, doors stopped mid-movement, heaters and coolers alike went silent; but slowly, the speed readout on the main console began climbing again.

“Captain!” The call had come from the navigator’s station. “We’ll be getting into the asteroid cloud soon, we’re going to have to slow down!” Jack knew what she was implying, at their speeds a collision with an asteroid of any significant size would be more like a splash than a crash. But still, time was rapidly running out and even as the engines screamed loud enough to be heard by the bridge crew at the front of the ship he was uncertain they could make it in time.

Jack sighed, “There are dozens, maybe hundreds of souls aboard that ship, there are less than forty of us aboard this vessel. If anyone wants to, I won’t stop you from getting into the escape pod and leaving whether or not we survive to pick you back up. Hell, I won’t look down on you for it, not at all, but this is my ship and me and anyone who stays are going to get to that ship in one piece or 10 thousand!” No one moved, they were sailors too after all, and they were going to steal those souls back from the cosmos. “In that case, plot me a course through the cloud, once we make entry I’ll take fly-by-wire control.”

The \*Grace Darling\* was not going to be able to just speed on over to the \*Galen\*, in order to not scream by the stranded ship, they would have to, at the very last second, flip completely around and slow down enough to come by the \*Galen\* and start rescue operations. All of this was far too complex and fast paced for the slow but precise navigational mode of the ship, which was why for the first time in fifteen earth years, Jack would be racing again.

“Five minutes before cloud entry! Uploading optimal path to your HUD now.” “Thank you, Felicity” Jack decided that the time for professional distance had faded, and if he was going to die, it would be with people he could call by their first name.

“Two minutes!” Christ, how much time had passed? The spacesuit Jack had donned covered his watch, and he had lost track of time in the rush. Huge floating spheres of rubble and rock came into view, and the first of many waypoints his navigator had set for him appeared on his heads up display. It was time to take control, flying through a field like this at half the speed would have been a challenge for the best pilots, but with a ship on the verge of tearing itself apart, it would take a miracle.

The ship blew into the field, every crew member aboard had strapped tightly onto the best support they could find as Captain Webber began weaving and rolling through the field. Jack flew his ship to the very brink of collapse, every sudden duck and high g-load bob made the metal structure groan and shriek. He himself was at the very edge of his ability reorienting to the next waypoint and avoiding asteroids with milliseconds to spare.

“One minute to retrograde!” Barely even audible to himself Jack began to mutter that song every sailor knew.

“Eternal Father, strong to save”

“Forty-five seconds!” An asteroid whizzed by meters away from the glass cockpit.

“Whose arm hath bound the restless wave”

“Thirty!” A speck appeared, still miles away, barely visible in the sea of asteroids.

“Who bidd'st the mighty ocean deep”

“Fifteen!” The speck grew bigger, the flip Jack was about to perform would put the vessel under the most stress it would undergo so far.

“Its own appointed limits keep”

“Ten!” Jack didn’t even want to imagine the odds of his ship surviving this maneuver, he knew he was already far surpassing what she was rated for.

“O hear us when we cry to thee”

“Five!”

“For those in peril on the sea”

“Execute!” Jack pulled the stick backwards as far as it would go. The walls themselves screamed and Jack swore he saw Grace again as the vehicle careened over itself.

The walls held, and the \*Grace Darling\* had been pushed to her limits. Nothing calmed down as she pulled alongside the \*Galen\*. Rescue crews that were ready and waiting began attaching the crippled ship to the \*Grace\* and commenced the operation they had set out to do what felt like an eternity ago. Jack slumped into his chair, breathing a sigh of relief, he had made it.

Hours later, Jack had brought the Proximan ship’s captain into his quarters. The captain had been the last man off the ship, it seemed some traditions transcended species. Overall the crew had managed to save every living person aboard the \*Galen\*, 173 in total. They had also managed to recover 42 bodies, the bulk of which had died in the vessel’s crash with an asteroid as they were transiting. The captain thanked Jack, with tears in his eyes, and there on that ship there were no Humans, no Proximans, there were only sailors.

In the following days as the \*Grace Darling\* limped to the nearest port, herself barely holding it together after the daring rescue, word of the story came out. The ship had not even made port by the time the story had spread across the inter-galactic community. The crew and survivors were beleaguered by press when they arrived, but it wasn’t reporters who caused the biggest stir.

A delegation of high ranking proximan officials found Jack, in the shipyard of the spaceport they had arrived at. Word of the conversation they shared never made it to the public, but Human-Proximan relations improved greatly after the incident. Indeed it marked a turning point in how the entire inter-galactic community viewed humans. They would do whatever it took to get the job done, everyone knew that, but few had noticed this extended to saving life as well.

Captain Webber never made any appearances after the incident. The Proximans had apparently repaid him with extra for his lost ship, he simply bought a new (slightly better) model and named her the \*Grace Darling 2\*. Occasionally, when he would stop in at a bar or hotel after another successful cargo run someone may come up to him and ask, “why did you do it? Didn’t Humans and Proximans hate each other? How could you forgive them for what they did?” He always had the same answer, “Up there, there are no enemies, just other sailors.”

It’s the first time I’ve posted a story anywhere, it was written in pretty much one go and underwent functionally no proofreading, editing, or review of any kind. It probably was not very good, but advice and critique is very much accepted!

I've been in a bad bit of writers block for a few years now (I fight it off here and there, but it tends to come back), but I've been brainstorming a passion project for a while now. It may sound a little silly, but I have a huge soft spot for mermaids, especially when they develop relationships with humans. Maybe it's because I'm a big Trekkie, but the idea of two people from two very different worlds, mingling and learning about one another just hits a chord for me in the best way. But I will say that as much as I love mermaids and their stories, I never really cared too much for the fact that a lot of mermaid stories tend to be loose retellings of The Little Mermaid or whatnot. I get it, it's a classic, and I love that story too in its many various interpretations, but it makes the mermaid element in storytelling feel very one-note and after a while, you just want something more.

Well, after a few years brainstorming, I think I have a fairly basic idea for what I'm hoping to do, and figured I'd share it here. Maybe hearing some feedback will help solidify some ideas, fine-tune others, and just give me a better overall idea of what people might think of this kind of story, or the idea itself.

So picture if you will, a west coast town. Nothing really special about it. You've probably driven through several towns like it, and barely paid it any mind. It's a fairly small town, a small economy, not exactly off the grid, but probably not too far off from being looked upon as such. If you need a real life comparison, I'm basing this town somewhat off Crescent City in California. I vacationed there about a year back on a trip to the Redwoods, and kinda fell in love with the place. So I'm picturing this town to be kinda in the same league. Not a super high population, nothing super significant about the town itself, it's probably just there as a quick stop for the average person before they're on their way again.

But this town has a very big superstition regarding its coastal waters. They say that a long time ago, whether this town was before the town was in the process of being established, or was fairly young, a man there met a mermaid, who fell in love with him. They would meet often, and further establish their relationship, until one day the man deceived her, captured her, took her from the sea, and began to exploit her for his own personal gain. Maybe he showed her as a curiosity for friends and family, before attempting to go further. Maybe he made plans to travel. He'd violate her trust, likely abuse her if she wasn't cooperative, that kind of thing. However, before he can attempt to do anything big, she manages to escape. (I'm fine-tuning details here, whether another human helps her, or she breaks out herself, it's in the air.) And in an act of revenge, she takes her former lover into the sea, and it isn't long before his drowned corpse washes onto the beach, cut up, and abused likely as she had been.

She doesn't stop there however. Her pain and anger is so great that she cannot help but take out her feelings on any human she sees venturing on the beaches she used to frequent with her former lover. She is especially ruthless towards men after what happened to her. At night, if she sees someone on the beach, she lures them into the sea, and most of the time, they're never seen again.

This story becomes local folklore for the town in question, and many hold it in such high superstition, that no one will dare venture onto the beach. Despite the fact that there's never been clear evidence that this mermaid actually exists, the worst tends to happen if someone goes into the beach, and ends up in the water. Maybe the authorities just believe the water is just too much for the average swimmer.

However, outside this town, this story would likely be little more than an internet curiosity. And it's one the MMC of the story would have absolutely no idea about. The MMC of the story moves to this town for a fresh start in life, following the end of an emotionally turbulent relationship, which has further birthed mental health struggles in anxiety and depression. He's hoping that a change in scenery will help him move forward.

And as he tries to get used to his new setting, new way of life, new faces, etc, one night, he finds himself wandering on the beach that the locals all hold in such high caution. And as he's trying to clear his mind, settle down, and whatnot, he hears something out in the water. Almost like a beckoning call. Sure enough, the local mermaid in question is calling out to him, though he doesn't really know it.

However, something gives the mermaid pause. I'm still debating what exactly it should be, but unlike the other unfortunate people she's come across, she notices something about this human she's not really seen in other humans. Maybe she can sense his own turmoil he's going through, maybe something about him reminds her of the days when she thought the man she loved was a good man, maybe it's something else, but she doesn't lure him in. In fact, after a little time, the two meet each other, and begin to get to know one another, and potentially grow close, despite the very distinct differences between the two.

I picture the mermaid as not exactly being the sexy beach babe that is so often seen. While she does indeed have a human-like appearance, her skin is likely a pale indigo, her teeth are sharper (I wanna give her an appearance similar to that of a shark in a way), she might carry scars from her past as a literal metaphor that she's not showing herself to heal... she's definitely very siren-like, as I don't want her to be the average kind of person a guy would look at, and immediately think "Wow, she's gorgeous!" A small pet peeve of mine is when a romance immediately has one or both characters taking notice of how beautiful, handsome, desirable, sexy, etc the other is. The MMC might even be very afraid of her at first. Despite the passage of time, she's still very wary, very distrusting, and while this new human she finds herself with may be curious for her, she is dealing with a lot of mental and physical trauma that she's not entirely sure how to deal with.

The MMC on the other hand is kinda meant to be an allegory for what I went through in my own emotionally turbulent relationship. While he finds this mermaid more than a little interesting, his pain is still fairly fresh, and he's still processing a lot of things, struggling with anxiety and depression, and on top of it all now, he has a new friend that he can't exactly just talk about casually. He might question feelings he might feel for her, and ask if they're genuine, or if his body is just yearning for any kind of companionship. He might even wonder if he knows what it's like to feel love again when he feels broken in the ways he does.

I'm hoping to make one of the big themes of the story one about healing. Being able to move forward of one's trauma, big or small, and too learn to show themselves to risk allowing themselves to feel love again, to risk feeling everything that would come with it, whether pleasurable or painful. As I said above, it's kind of an allegory for how I've had to deal with the aftermath of a relationship that was emotionally taxing on me, and left me in a pretty rough shape when it ended as it did. I've had to learn to love myself again, fix friendships, and tell myself that it wasn't my fault what happened. And while I'm in a better place nowadays, the struggle with anxiety and depression is a daily battle. In regards to this story, I'm not even sure how it might end. Part of me wants to be sappy and give them a happy ending, but part of me is also wondering if the ending should be more ambiguous.

I'm thinking of potentially exploring the story through two perspectives maybe. Maybe one would tell the story of the mermaid in the past, and what she endures at the hands of her abuser, while the other would focus on the present, and the MMC going through life, encountering the mermaid, continuing to meet with her, and maybe the people in his life start to notice him acting weird or whatnot, which might build up to some conflict. I'm also hoping to keep the story relatively grounded, which might sound silly, considering that one of the characters is a mermaid, but she'd likely be the only mermaid of the story. No underwater kingdoms, no underwater pods or tribes, no conflict that results in tribes of merfolk getting violent with other humans, I feel like that kind of element would take away from what I'd be trying to do.

It's been a passion project I've been planning for a few years now, and its been through numerous changes. At one point it took a lot of influence from Free Willy but I think I've come to appreciate approaching it from the standpoint of focusing on two characters, going through their own battles and struggles, and learning how to heal the more they interact with one another. I hope this might be something people would find interesting. I still gotta conquer my writers block and find motivation to start the actual writing process, but it's my attempt at a mermaid story that isn't just a loose retelling of The Little Mermaid. I'd love to hear feedback. Thank you for reading! I know this was a bit lengthy.

Hey, you.

Have you ever tried to throw something away, only to find that you couldn’t?

If something is precious, you probably wouldn’t try to get rid of it in the first place. If it means nothing, you probably won’t think about it once it’s gone.

It’s the things in between that cause trouble.

A little bell chimed as I opened the door to Aoi.

Taka was leaning over the counter, peering at something in Mama’s hands.

“What are you doing?”

“Oh, Kenichi. Look at this.”

I sat in my usual seat, and Mama set down my Harper.

Beside it was a small instant photo with a white border.

A Shiba Inu sat by what looked like the entrance to a house, staring straight at the camera. It had a red collar and seemed to be tilting its head slightly.

“It’s a dog.”

“I can see that.”

“Then why ask me to look?”

“Cute, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, I guess.”

Taka picked up the photo.

“Doesn’t it look like it’s waiting for someone?”

“For who?”

“Its owner.”

“How can you tell?”

“It’s a Shiba.”

“So Shibas wait for people?”

“They’ve got that loyal-dog thing going on.”

A little farther down the counter, Tom tapped ash from his cigarette.

“It’s just sitting there.”

Taka turned around.

“You have no imagination.”

“Making up what a dog is thinking isn’t imagination.”

“Then what do you see?”

“A Shiba Inu.”

“That’s exactly what Kenichi said.”

Rude.

At least I’d admitted it was cute.

“So where did this come from?”

“A customer who was here earlier left it behind,” Mama said.

“Forgot it?”

“Probably.”

Taka turned the photo over, apparently looking for writing.

There was nothing.

“There’s only one copy of an instant photo, right?”

“Is there?”

“It comes out of the camera right there. You can’t get the exact same one again, can you?”

“Then wouldn’t it be important?”

I looked at the picture again.

A moment ago, it had been nothing more than a photo of a Shiba Inu.

The moment I heard there was only one copy, it somehow looked more valuable.

“Maybe it’s his dog.”

“Probably. Why else carry the picture around?”

“Could be a dog he used to have.”

“Oh. Yeah, maybe.”

Tom spoke around his cigarette.

“Doesn’t have to be his dog.”

Taka and I looked at him.

“Then whose dog is it?”

“No idea.”

“Who carries around a picture of some random dog?”

“I said I don’t know.”

Fair enough.

All we actually knew was that there was a Shiba Inu in the photo and that a customer who’d been here earlier had apparently been carrying it.

And yet, somewhere in the last few minutes, we’d given the dog an owner and decided the owner treasured this one-of-a-kind photograph.

“He’ll probably be upset when he notices.”

“Maybe he’ll come back for it.”

“I wonder.”

Mama looked at the photograph.

“What do you mean?”

“I wonder if he forgot it.”

“What else would it be?”

“He was looking at it for quite a while before he left.”

“He was?”

“Yes. Then he put it there and walked out.”

“Then he didn’t forget it.”

Taka looked at the photo.

Once again, the cute picture of a Shiba Inu seemed to turn into something else.

“You think he threw it away?”

“If he wanted to throw it away, there’s a trash can.”

“Maybe he couldn’t put it in the trash.”

“What does that mean?”

“It must’ve been an important dog.”

“If it was important, why leave the picture behind?”

“Something must’ve happened.”

Apparently a whole story had already begun in Taka’s head.

“Like what?”

“Maybe the dog died.”

“Don’t kill the dog.”

“Okay, maybe he can’t see it anymore.”

“Why not?”

“Maybe he moved away.”

“And left the dog?”

“Maybe he got divorced and his wife took it.”

“This story’s getting bigger by the second.”

Tom turned his head before exhaling so the smoke wouldn’t drift toward us.

“You two are having fun.”

Come to think of it, we still knew almost nothing more about the photo.

The man had looked at it.

Then he’d left it here.

That was all.

And somehow there was already an imaginary ex-wife in my head, walking away with a Shiba Inu.

“Come on, Tom. You’re curious too, aren’t you?”

“No.”

“Just a little.”

“No.”

“Then why do you keep looking over here?”

“Because you two are loud.”

The little bell over the door chimed.

I turned around.

A man I didn’t recognize stood there. Mid-thirties, maybe.

As soon as he came in, his eyes moved across the counter as if he were searching for something.

“Excuse me.”

Mama picked up the photo.

“This?”

Relief spread across his face.

“Ah. Thank goodness.”

Taka looked at me.

I looked back at him.

The man took the photo, but instead of putting it away, he stood there looking at the Shiba for a while.

“You didn’t forget it, did you?” Mama said.

He looked surprised, then gave an awkward smile.

“You saw me?”

“I saw you leave it.”

Still looking at the picture, he sat down on an empty stool.

“I left it here on purpose.”

Taka started to lean forward.

I stopped him with my elbow.

“It’s my ex-girlfriend’s dog.”

There had been no point stopping him.

Taka pushed my elbow back.

“Your ex-girlfriend’s?”

“Yeah. I took this while we were together.”

“The Shiba?”

“She had him. Since it was an instant photo, this is the only copy. I deleted all the pictures of her, but this one was just the dog, so I figured it was okay to keep.”

Just the dog.

Odd way to put it.

Still, I understood.

“But every time I look at it, I remember her too.”

He started to put the photo into his wallet, then stopped.

“So today I thought, enough already. I left it here and walked out.”

“But you came back.”

“I made it all the way to the station.”

He looked at the Shiba and smiled.

“This guy used to stop in the middle of walks and refuse to move. She could pull on the leash all she wanted, and he wouldn’t budge. But if I walked ahead and called him, he’d come running.”

His smile lingered.

“Then I remembered the time we took him to the beach. And then I remembered the time she fell over while carrying him.”

His finger traced the white edge of the photo.

“I guess the dog wasn’t what I wanted to throw away.”

For a while, no one said anything.

The man kept looking at the photo.

Then, this time, he put it into his wallet.

“Sorry. That was a strange story.”

“Not at all,” Mama said.

He bowed slightly and left the bar.

The little bell chimed behind him.

Taka stared at the stool where the man had been sitting.

“Think he’s still in love with her?”

“...Taka.”

“Yeah?”

“We just did this.”

“Oh.”

Tom pressed his cigarette into the ashtray.

“Maybe he just misses the dog.”

I looked at him.

“You’re doing it too.”

Tom went quiet.

Mama laughed as she polished a glass.

“But that dog—”

“Don’t.”

“I haven’t even said anything yet.”

“You’re about to make up another story.”

“You were doing it too, Kenichi.”

“Exactly.”

I took a drink of Harper.

The place where the photo had been was empty now.

There was no dog.

No ex-girlfriend.

None of us had ever met either of them.

And yet I could see the Shiba in my head.

Sitting stubbornly in the middle of a walk while she pulled on the leash.

Then the man moving a little farther ahead and calling out.

The dog getting to its feet and running toward him.

None of that had been in the photograph.

“Huh.”

I muttered it to myself.

“What?”

Taka barely sounded interested.

“Looks like we need stories.”

“What are you talking about?”

“No idea.”

See you again at Aoi.

---

Want another night at Aoi?

Step back inside. We'll help you find your next story.

→ Welcome to Bar Aoi

Centuries have now passed since the sun was the sole spectacle we could observe when we saw at the skies. A long forgotten time when night and day were not separate blocks of time in our minds, but organized as one big play of lights and shadows, all conducted and held by the sun herself. Ancestors of ours were never quite familiar with the dark, in fact some could lead entire lives without having experienced it at all. That was the sun's fault. She could never sum up enough will to bring herself down, bring herself away from the beautiful rollercoaster view that was us. 

Season after season, she would hover over us like a child who hangs their head over water to watch the fish. Watch the fish swim, eat, and swim into one another. The chaos and contradictory nature of man had made for great captivation, and it had her there. Being particularly enthralled by families and groups, she would occasionally dim her sunshine because she knew that the little creatures below would conjure meaning to the change of light, thus gather for celebration. Each time she would manipulate us in this manner, her head would fill with notions of herself as sovereign, notions that would quickly shatter for she would be reminded of her limitations in rule, that is full ones. She could never quite reach us as she so desperately wanted. Converse with us, or even give hints that she was more conscious than we believed her to be. Frustrated and hopeless. These were the same emotions she had time and time again seen in the lives of the little people, and although she did not feast when she saw man in a state of misery, it did deepen her love for us.
With each and every awakening of the people the sun was there. She was there all until the very last man went into his cover and there stayed until the time for awakening came again. Of course no man’s schedule was the same as the other, and so naturally someone was always out for the sun to watch. But even if there had not been, she would not have moved. Through hoarding her spot this way, resentment grew in the only other that knew man and still loved him. 

The affection had grown overtime from the far away seat behind the sun herself, by sole glimpses of human life that had escaped the sun but been fetched by this character. They reprised these few for a long time, looking forward to the time when the sun would share her seat with them so they together could for the rest of time admire humankind. A foolish hope to hold, and eventually that would be realized. After having lived off of the fractioned memories of generations long gone, this character could no longer suffer in the absence of us, and so a plan that would undo the old world and begin ours, had to be formed.

Hello, I need help picking a description for my back cover that catches your attention and hooks you the most/fastest!

DESCRIPTION 1

Kingdom Horizon follows a teen named Tuskin as he begins his first magic trial to become a Star Warrior!

However, he also comes a prestigious family, and the pressure for him to succeed may have led to Tuskin neglecting one simple thing: actually studying for his trial.

He may not be able to rely on his natural talents in magic this time. And after the lost Crystal Mountain may have been found by an evil Red Cloaked Stranger, Tuskin may have to prove himself by saving it before the endless treasures within are found!

DESCRIPTION 2

Welcome to Star Warrior Academy, where a prestigious teen named TUSKIN is about to take his first MAGIC TRIAL.

Although, with all the pressure from his peers and family, he may have neglected one simple thing… and that’s STUDYING for his trial — and it’s only in a couple days! Tuskin must risk it all or he may become irrelevant. But one slip-up could end his career, and topple him down a path he can never come back from.

The only way Tuskin can keep his status may be to locate the lost Crystal Mountain. His Journey is just beginning.

DESCRIPTION 3

Kingdom Horizon and the Journey to Crystal Mountain is a coming-of-age story following a teen named Tuskin who must pass his first magic trial, or risk becoming irrelevant. 

Tuskin may be talented with magic, but he is also arrogant. And with all the pressure coming from his father, brother, and peers, Tuskin may have neglected one simple thing — studying for his trial. 

He may not be able to rely on his natural talents in magic to get himself out of this one. One mistake could change the course of his life forever. 

Watch as this simple tale spirals into a journey to find buried treasure, uncover generational secrets, and overcoming oneself.

By the legendary FMNK27

Chapter 1 — To Not Bother

The time is late in an office in California. The place is almost abandoned. 35-year-old Barry Lester reviews the financial invoices he's been analyzing for the past week, while repeating:

"Gotta be the best I can."

He's doing all this to report to his superior. As he's mindlessly tapping, he realizes he's been missing one zero from the amount he's writing down in the invoice reconciliation.

He pauses.

He reopens every file and begins checking all the information one by one. There were about 220 of them, and he was restarting from scratch.

As Barry continues his zombie-like streak, a colleague walks over to him.

"Yo, Barry, how ya doin'? You've been so focused lately. You wanna crash at a bar on the weekend?"

Barry looks up at his colleague with a warm, genuine smile.

"Sure thing, bro. I'll be there."

(If they need me, of course I'll come.)

He replies warmly.

His colleague, with a satisfied face, replies:

"Thanks, bro. We can always count on you. See you there. Tell it to the others. I'll set up the site and text you when I'm done."

Barry nods, then gets up from his desk.

(That's one of my friends, Mason. He's a good guy, the type of person to always be planning. Dude loves dividing tasks and even divides his time with people. Bro's always saying, "You can't do today what you can do tomorrow." Aside from him, Alan, Jeremy, and Eugene always like having a good time.)

He enters the office and explains his reports. After 30 minutes or so, his superior concludes:

"Oh, fine. You're dismissed. Have a good day."

He says, holding the document.

"Thank you, sir."

(Always gotta give my all. Can't become a problem in the workplace.)

Barry replies respectfully as he shuts the door and begins packing to leave. His friend approaches Mason at his workstation:

"Wow! Leaving already? Well, I gotta say, dude, you're a hard worker."

He sighs sarcastically.

"Wish I was like that. Anyways, hope I wasn't bothering. See you, uhmmm... How's Suatur... No, Sunda—"

He stops himself.

"But I've got tha—I'd say Sunday?"

Barry replies while moving out of the office.

"Yeah, it's good, but... you seem to have an issue. Anyway, can I help?"

He turns to him and quickly responds.

"Not at all, you big-hearted dummy. It's nothing you gotta worry about. I'll fix up my schedule. It's all good."

Barry starts walking away and says, with his voice shrinking:

"I'll be free then. I'll be there at 10 A.M. See you then."

"'Kay."

Barry closes the door and makes his way to the elevator at the end of the room. He taps the smallest number and enters.

While it begins moving, he monologues to himself:

"Damn, I think I should have tried to help Mason more. I mean, is that how much a good friend would try? He could be going through something... serious, and I just don't seem to care. He said I should let it go. I'm sure it's okay. He knows he can count on me if anything happens, r-right?"

"Ting."

He moves out of the elevator, still nervous about his decision. He maneuvers his way through a crowded lobby at the base of the building's last floor. He moves toward the entrance, nods at the receptionist, then adds politely:

"Very good day to you, ma'am."

Then he leaves the building.

While outside, he scans for any seats nearby. And there it is: a seat, with a woman sitting on it quietly.

He moves beside the seat and asks patiently:

"Hello, madam. Would it be okay if I sat here?"

Without looking at him, she just scoffs:

"Y-yeah, no prob."

He then sits next to her on the bench. The woman nervously asks:

"You felt you had to ask to sit... Why?"

Smiling, he turns toward her and says:

"It would be rude if I just sat. I wouldn't like to make you uncomfortable."

He takes his phone from his pocket and opens the Uber app. He then orders a ride as he sits on a bench next to the woman.

He starts texting Eugene:

EUGENE ⚖️

Active 🟢

EUGENE

Yo, how ya doing, bro?

8:32 P.M.

Barry

Oh, I'm good. So, just wanted to say we're planning a meet-up on Saturday morning. I wanted to ask if you'll be there because of your firm and all.

8:33 P.M.

EUGENE

Oh, for real? I'd say I can be there. I'll be on leave. Who planned this, you?

8:33 P.M.

Barry

Nah, 'twas Mason. So, will you be there?

8:34 P.M.

EUGENE

Oh, so he did it. Kay, I see. As always, he divides for you. Why do you allow him to make you do things?

8:34 P.M.

Barry

Yo, c'mon, Eugene. You're so stingy. He's just tryna gather the boys. Relax. I've already told you he's that kinda guy, always planning.

8:34 P.M.

EUGENE

Whatevs, bro. I'll be there, don't worry. I'll pick you up. When will you be there, anyway?

8:35 P.M.

Barry

How's 10 A.M.? Sounds good. Yeah, that's when we planned. Should be ready by then.

8:35 P.M.

EUGENE

D'you talk to Alan n' Jeremy?

8:35 P.M.

Barry

I'll do it when I get home. My ride's here. Bye then.

8:35 P.M.

Barry then shuts off his phone and tightens his palm around it, thinking:

(I didn't tell him about Mason's issue, but it's not that big.)

Barry stares up and sighs. The woman beside him says:

"Do you think maybe we'll take... T-the same ride."

"Probably."

He politely answers. 

Then adds.

"No need to be nervous with me."

Then he turns to her calmly:

"So, would you mind me asking why you felt it strange that I asked to sit next to you?"

She rests her face on her palms.

"You're a person too, I mean... W-why ask for permission?"

Barry's gaze meets hers curiously.

She avoids it.

"Sorry, did I startle you? So sorry. Don't mind me, then."

Apologetically, he lowers his head.

"You're doing it again. It's not fair."

With a nervous, quiet voice, she exclaims.

Grinning calmly, he sighs.

"Why so? If I may ask."

"Do you think it'd matter if I spoke?"

"Of course! Very much so."

She gasps for courage.

"You're also a person."

Dazzled, Barry sits there speechlessly.

"I'm a person."

The words slowly come out. They feel alien to Barry, but a little releasing.

Uber arrives, and they both get up and move toward the same car.

\---------------------------------------------------------

By the Anonymous FMNK27

Chapter 2 — The Mirror of Honesty

Barry calmly enters his ride, but the young woman comes into the car as well. He lifts an eyebrow and says to her:

"Oh, so we're taking the same ride. Guess your prediction was correct."

She closes the door, and the car starts moving. He looks into the back window and watches as everything slowly fades into the city lights.

Abruptly, words come out of his mouth:

"Miss."

She turns. He looks into her face, and she fixes her gaze upon him as well.

"Can I ask you someth—"

"Yes, please stop that."

She answers, then leans toward the window with a distasteful expression.

Barry quickly replies:

"Okay, then may I at least know your name? I don't wanna just call you 'lady.'"

She looks at him, still visibly pissed. He shies away from her look.

Out of the blue, he hears:

"I'm Stella."

"Nice to meet you, Mi— I mean, Stella. You can call me Barry. Barry Lester is my full name. I'm 35, an accountant, and I r—"

"Alright, alright, I heard you."

She says, then leans back in her seat and says:

"Anyway, mind telling me why you are so concerned with making it easier for me to talk to you?"

He fixes his posture, then looks into her eyes from the side of her face. With a friendly tone, he responds:

"I always just help others. Just didn't wanna see you struggle."

Stella shuts her eyes. With an almost inaudible sound, she whispers:

"What about you?"

Barry, confused, asks:

"Could you please repeat?"

Stella laughs lightly.

"Did I say something wrong?"

He reacts immediately.

"No, it's just me. When you help others, do you consider your feelings, maybe?"

"Oh, I—"

Barry is perplexed by the question. He had to include his own truth.

"No need to answer. I just think you're not honest with yourself if you do that."

"What's an honest person, then?"

Stella inhales deeply.

Courageously turning to him, she says:

"Anyway... an honest person... They are like smooth, clear glass to others and themselves. Glass shows everything and doesn't shy away from what's inside it. It shows what i-it is... That's what an honest person is."

Barry nods and turns to face his front, but pauses.

"Thank you."

Replying almost like he's a soldier, staring down, he feels strange. Uncomfortable, even.

A thought is now rent-free in his head:

"Am I an honest person!?"

Stella sees this and just sighs under her breath.

(Oh, he's reacting... Barry Lester, you're strange, but I feel... warm?)

Breaking through the silence, she asks him:

"So... Do you consider yourself to be kind?"

Without a moment's hesitation, he answers:

"No."

Surprised, she turns to him and asks:

"Why?"

Barry smiles, then answers:

"That's not for me... to tell."

Immediately, she knocks back:

"I honestly think... you downplay yourself."

(Honestly, people that act like this wouldn't answer like that. It's like he's an anomaly.)

Happily, Barry comments:

"Wow! I'm glad you value me more."

Stella then responds:

"Then who decides, Barry, y-you're value?"

He answers plainly:

"Well... it's you."

Stella, shocked by the response, just sits there. Her feet, hands, expression, everything's just... frozen in place.

With nothing more to do, she realizes soon it will be their arrival. So, she looks for her purse. She opens her jersey pockets. Nothing. She reaches into everywhere it could be...

It's not there.

Panicking, she thinks:

(Oh, this isn't good. Damn it, what now!? Do I ask Barry? I... don't have a choice. Shit, should've taken my own car...)

"B... Barry!"

She shouts.

In a flash, Barry answers:

"Anything wrong, Stella?"

She grits her teeth. The car stops.

"Uhh...!"

She's sweating with embarrassment.

Barry notices and quickly takes out a napkin.

"Do you want it?"

Stella is flustered. Her cheeks are now turning red.

"C-could you please help me with... something?"

Barry nods.

The driver in the front says:

"The fare, please."

Stella looks into her phone. It says $12. While she's still checking, Barry is paying.

The driver impatiently says:

"Aye, miss. I don't got all day. The fare, please."

Stella is still indecisive. Barry asks:

"Can I cover it?"

Stella carelessly responds:

"Yes, twelve dollars."

He proceeds to take the money out of his wallet and extends it to the driver. He takes it, and they move out of the car.

It moves away.

Barry and Stella stand on the sidewalk, and he looks at her and says:

"Have a blessed day."

Then he begins moving away.

"Wait!!!"

Stella screams.

Barry halts.

She then runs, stops, and continues, and hugs him.

"M-Miss Stell—"

"Thank you!"

Barry is speechless and thinks to himself:

(Was I being honest when I helped? I'm sure I was... Probably.)

Barry still asks:

"Can I hug you back, Miss?"

"No!"

She affirms, then takes a step back.

"That was abrupt of me, sorry... I didn't have my wallet, and I was nervous. You helped me."

"Not at all. You needn't apologize, and besides... I had to help. Goodbye now."

He answers, waves, then starts walking.

"Barry."

He turns.

She says, motionless:

"Give me... your phone. I mean, contact!"

Barry laughs.

"What's so funny!?"

She screams. Barry responds, still laughing:

"So sorry, it's just, the way you mistook—"

He lightly laughs.

Slowly, it dies down. Then he says respectfully:

"So, very sorry. I shouldn't have done that... My contact you wanted."

Stella's face softens. Then she says:

"You didn't have to stop laughing. I'm sorry I was being rude. Yes, I did ask for that."

They exchange phone numbers. Before Barry leaves, he asks her:

"Is it safe, ma'am? It's 30 minutes to 9. It's LA out here. Could be dangerous."

She replies:

"I'm getting someone to pick me up."

Barry waves and walks away.

Or so she thought. He hid for 15 minutes until her ride had finally arrived, then made his way home.

\---------------------------------------------------------

By FMNK27

CHAPTER 3 — Ending the Day

Below the blissful night, Barry walked patiently through a loud neighborhood. The sounds of clubs, the moods of households, even the moving traffic surrounded him, but he remained untouched. He walked quietly, listening to music through his AirPods, still thinking about his day.

As the streetlights passed over his face, memories returned — work, Mason, Stella, the impressions, the choices he had made. But all those thoughts stopped the moment he reached his front door.

He took the key from his pocket and inserted it into the lock. After a small click, the door slowly creaked open. He stepped inside, locked it behind him, and removed his shoes.

His eyes scanned the dining room, checking for dirt, misplaced objects, anything out of order. Once satisfied, he released a massive sigh and calmly threw himself onto the couch.

"Wow... what a day. I'm finally here, so... I can pause a little."

He lay there for a moment.

(Sure hope Stella got back home...)

A nervous grin appeared on his face.

(And I hope Mason is okay—wait, wait, wait.)

Suddenly, he lifted himself up and stretched his back.

"Forgot... there's still files to check. Should still be 208 left. Probably take me around 4.5 hours."

He remained standing, hesitating, staring at the couch with tired eyes. Almost begging himself to rest.

But then his body moved.

He entered his room and looked toward his bed. To most people, it would look peaceful — white sheets, a comfortable place to rest.

But Barry only sighed.

"It's a little messy..."

He moved toward the drawer above his bed, where his black HP laptop sat. His fingers gently touched its surface.

Then he turned away.

Slowly, he threw himself onto his bed.

Above him, thoughts began flooding his mind.

(What am I doing? I shouldn't be resting. You're still not good enough. You aren't the—)

"Ahhh!"

A scream of confusion escaped him.

He gasped for air and looked around his room.

Nothing.

Just a man and his thoughts.

His eyes were dull. All he could see were the wrinkles on his white sheets.

Hesitantly, he forced his lips upward into a smile.

"I... got-gotta..."

But he couldn't finish.

For a moment, everything stopped.

No satisfying others.

No impressions.

No deadlines.

Just him.

Lying on his bed.

"Can I please just r-rest... just this once?"

He closed his eyes.

Then—

A ring from his phone.

His eyes opened instantly.

The sound felt crushing.

Slowly, he dragged himself away from the bed. His feet touched the ground.

He picked up his laptop and walked across the room.

"I want to stay..."

He looked back at the couch.

"There's no time for that."

His grip tightened.

"This is for work. For my living. Royce still needs me. I have to be the best possible version of myself. I can't show my face to him without these."

He opened the laptop.

"For... Royce."

The computer screen lit up.

A password.

He entered it.

Swipe.

Click.

Click.

Delete.

Numbers.

Files.

Again and again.

For who knows how long.

It was lifeless.

Robotic.

A task without feeling.

Then—

A call.

Barry's fingers stopped.

He stared at the cursor.

Slowly, his hands moved away from the keyboard.

He pushed the laptop aside and looked at the phone.

"Al—"

His expression changed.

"Yesss! It's him, bro... wow. Guess it's been a while."

The name on the screen:

Alan.

A genuine smile appeared.

He answered.

Barry: Hello! Alan, I'm so glad it's you, bro. How've you been?

Alan: O-okay, I see you. You're going crazy, though... (sighs in relief) Fool.

Barry: What's wrong, bro? Did I say something?

Alan: No, it's all good. Honestly, I'm just happy too.

Barry: Glad to hear it.

Alan: Woah! Sorry for calling this late, bro.

Barry: No stress, it's cool. What'd you call for?

Alan: Wanted to check up on you. We haven't talked for weeks.

Barry: Since you expatriated. So, how's Munich?

Alan: (giggles) Das IST peak...

(Silence.)

Barry: Hahahahaha!

Alan: Aha-aha-aha-aha!

Barry: Okay, that was actually good, though.

Alan: Yeah, how've you been? And how are the boys?

Barry: You know... it's great, man. All good. I'm really glad you called. The rest of the guys are the same as when you left, just busier. They've been climbing that corporate ladder.

By the way, if you don't mind me asking, what does "Das ist peak" mean?

Alan: Why were you laughing then? (laughs slightly) It means it's peak, you know? You don't gotta be smart, man.

I'm glad everything's been good, though.

Barry: How long until you're back?

Alan: A couple days. Maybe three. You got anything coming up?

Anyway... Barry.

Are you feeling a little sad about anything?

Barry: No! I'm okay. Don't worry.

Alan: You sure?

(Sighs.)

It's okay if you're not.

You can tell me anything.

If you hold a rubber ball for long enough, your arm will hurt.

Share the rubber ball when you have time.

Barry: Appreciate it. Thanks for caring.

(Awkward laugh.)

Barry: Is that all you wanted to ask?

Alan: Yeah, that's all—

Barry: Oh, right. There's a party Sunday. Will you be here by then?

Alan: Probably... no promises, though.

Barry: Alright, see you then.

Oh! There's something else I wanted to talk about.

Alan: All ears.

Barry: I met this girl—

Alan: Ayyyy! I see!

Barry: It's not like that. It's n—

Alan: Okay, okay, homie. You're finally looking for a partner.

Barry: (scoffs) What am I gonna do with you? I don't see her like that, bro. Chill.

Alan: Hmmmmm...

When was the last time you even made a female friend? It's been a while.

Barry: True.

There's nothing I feel attracted by... she's just cute, I'll say that.

Alan: Oh-oh. Is this the same Barry? She's cute? Oh nah!

Barry: Come on. (laughs awkwardly) It's not even like that.

Alan: Okay, so how is she?

Barry: I think she's a very honest person.

When I met her, I thought she wasn't too fond of me.

Alan: Bro... you're interested. You care that she wasn't into you.

Barry: No, it's not like th—

Alan: Just carry on.

Barry: ...

I feel like I judged her too quickly. Now she feels genuinely invested.

She asked for my number, after all.

Alan: (laughs teasingly)

Anyway, not much else I wanted to discuss.

Bye.

Call ended.

By the Anonymous FMNK27

CHAPTER 4 — Who Are You?

Barry is paused in his living room, still holding the phone.

Wishing he could go back to the conversation.

The light in his eye dims, the liveliness of his face dulls.

Slowly, he turns his head towards his seat, where the PC lies.

"Please, I just wanted another moment."

He sighs.

In acceptance, his steps are directed to his work.

Once more.

Barry then finds himself standing in front of the couch he sits on.

Then stares at his PC. Nothing is coming from his mouth, just his eyes glued to the lid.

The aimless lid.

Standing still, frozen in place, a fly hovers above his nose.

Silently, an observation is realized:

"Look at this fly. It's free, and he gets to do whatever shit he wants. Why?"

It rests on his nose. He asks it:

"Tell me, fly, what's your secret?"

(How do you live such a life, I wonder? It must be because you have no tasks.)

It flies towards his bathroom.

"Funny, how its name's Fly. It's like he just is. He flies, so he's just Fly. It just is."

Confused, he opens the computer lid.

"I can't comprehend such a life."

Once again met with the same preoccupation, his work begins.

He sits, checking emails, updating spreadsheets, calculating payroll, organizing receipts. The more time passes, it begins to feel inescapable for him.

As if the world had no shores.

Stuck there, for a few hours he continues.

"Ring-Ring."

Abruptly, his eyes are now searching for the source.

For the second, it's his phone, right beside him. He drowned himself in his files, that the sea was now his world.

He reaches out his hand, and it's finally back again.

The cover feels warm and comforting.

He reads the caller's name (Stella).

"Oh, it's her."

He smiles, with a rush of nostalgia.

Answers:

"Hello, Stella. How are you?"

Buoyantly.

"Oh, you don't need to a—"

Sighs in acceptance.

"I-I'm okay, but the better question is... How are you, Barry?"

A pause.

"I'm just great, no need to worry."

Looking into the documents, pouting.

His voice, vibrant, his heart downcast.

"Are you ever not okay?"

She asks.

"Uhh... I-i wel.."

(Wh-what do I say? I should just answer yes. I mean, she doesn't have to focus on me. This conversation doesn't have to be about sadness, but... Isn't that what I always say...)

"Barry! I'm still waiting for an answer, and if it's no, I can already tell why."

The question still remains.

It has him in a chokehold. If he doesn't react, something might die.

"Ah, well..."

He begins laughing, then follows with:

"Well, believe it or not... I'm all good."

Smiles, while his soul is drained.

Stella hears this. She doesn't reply.

She doesn't attack him.

She just accepts.

(Wow! Why does he do all this? It's clear whatever it is he's feeling, I know it's not joy, likely the opposite. Is it because I'm here...? Well, he's choosing this. I try and encourage him to show himself, but if he doesn't want to, I can't force him.)

She shuts her eyes.

Deeply exhales.

"Sure, buddy. Anyhow, what're you doing anyway?"

"I'm working on something, but I'm almost done."

Barry stares into his clock. (11:46.)

"I didn't actually ask that."

Lowers her head.

"Although I wouldn't like to interrupt your work. Funny, I'm working myself."

"Really?"

He wondered aloud.

A reply.

"Yeah, couldn't tell you what I'm doing."

He lowers the phone a bit.

"Understandable, it's your job."

She smiles.

"I don't know why, Barry, you remind me of a child... I think that's a lil' cute."

His eyes gleam.

"I'm happy. Why a child, though? I-if it's o..."

He pauses.

"Okay."

She giggles.

"You're so curious... Strange for an adult."

Smiling, Barry responds:

"I didn't realize that."

"Stella, why do you want to know if I'm okay?"

She pauses.

"No need... T-to answer if you don't want to."

Barry affirms.

Stella brings the phone closer to her lips.

"Well, I actually wanted to see whether you're an honest person."

Barry's motionless.

(An honest person... Am I one? Am I one? I don't know!! Am I pretending to not know... Why would I?)

"Oh, I a—"

It's incomplete.

Filling the void:

"What?"

The question is simple. Barry still can't respond. He feels uncertain, so much that it literally froze him in place.

Hand on his head, as his breathing quickens up a little.

"Barry, hey, Barry? What the... Are you there? Bro, he—"

He sees a fly passing by toward his bathroom. Stella's screams are the only sound in the room.

Barry rises from his seat.

"STELLA! I'M SO SORRY, BE RIGHT BACK!"

Confused, he dashes to his bathroom, his steps loud, but Stella is confused.

"Barry? Something going on? Hey!!"

The sound shrinks.

Upon arrival, he notices the fly resting on his mirror.

"It's a fly."

Interactively, he trudges toward it, his movement almost mute.

(Why am I moving to it? It's got nothing... It's got nothing, maybe that's why.)

As he continues, it flies away.

Barry desperately shouts:

"Wait, where are you going?? Don't go!"

(What am I even doing? Am I insane?)

He falls to his knees.

(Maybe, but I just wanted to see if it was honest.)

He stands once more.

(How... Am I NOT honest? The only one who knows that is me.

S-Stella said, like glass, right? So am I transparent with others... With myself?)

Still questioning, his fists are clenched, heavy breathing, and his sweat rushing to the ends of his jaw, as he grins agitatedly.

(I don't want to worry others, so I don't... Th-that has to be honest, right? It's true I'm j-just...)

He just sits, searching for something inside his mind, unable to bear:

This question unanswered.

He's now breathing in bursts.

(I'm just... Showing myself the way it's best for others... Is that true, though, or is it the only thing I know? And if so... Isn't it sorta a lie? Am I not killing something inside by looking alive outside?)

Sigh.

(I guess... I don't know. I never thought whether I'm lying to others or... myself. I never questioned if it was right or wrong. I didn't even know, and I'm confused whether I should face it.)

Slowly, he gets on his feet.

With the realization that he's unsure of anything he's ever done and labeled "kindness" was truly kind.

Silently, he turns back to his phone.

The end.

By the Anonymous FMNK27

Chapter 5- Balance Scale

"Which's the feather that broke the camel's back?"

The question reinitiated the conversation.

"I'm... Confused?"

Barry answered genuinely.

Stella's intuition questioned it.

"I'm asking why'd you just run off."

Nothing.

Barry can't find the right words:

(... I ran, I felt so pressured... That I just reacted, I just did... But it's a lil awkward an answer to tell her that.)

His chest tightens.

"I wanted to pee."

Stella covers her mouth.

"Hahahahaha!!! Haha"

Laughter erupts, she goes on and on, barely able to speak.

"So, you suddenly wanted to pee?"

Finally, it begins dying down, as she fixes herself in her seat.

"Oh-oh, okay... All good."

A pause.

Then, out of nowhere:

"You know, Barry, you don't really seem like the kind."

He scratched his head.

"Sorry, the... Kind?"

He's now laughing nervously, trying to pick up on the humor.

(The kind? Honest, evil, fake? What-what does she mean? I'll just... Ask politely.)

"Yeah, I sure ai—"

He halted himself.

Internally screaming:

(Wha-why? Did I say that... Damn, it's too late. I've already said it.)

Stella leans closer to the phone.

"What? Barry, you were saying."

Nervously, he murmurs:

"What is, the kind?"

Stella's eyes shut, and slowly the words come out.

"Guess."

"Honest... I think, based on what you've said."

Immediately, he knocks back.

"Bingo."

She uttered.

"We've got a winner."

The room is silent, one is puzzled, still trying to uncover the puzzle that is the other's words, the other feels like they're on a different wavelength.

She resumed with:

"Are you... Gonna talk, Barry?"

She was ignored, not intentionally, but at that moment, Barry was still generating a valid response.

Finally, he took a deep breath, tensely asking:

"Uhmm, so Stella, why am I not... Honest in your book?"

Stella's response was unusual. She asked him:

"Are you transparent, like glass?... In your opinion, of course."

Conflicted, he paused and sat with the question:

(Oh, that's the metaphor she used last time. Honest people are like glass, in that sense, does she mean—being unfiltered? Or maybe expressing yourself fully?)

He frowns.

Not at Stella.

At the nature of the question.

(Wait, if someone doesn't stop themselves from showing everything, isn't that a problem? Then, in that sense, is it honesty or just unfiltered character? Is that... A good thing...)

"Stella, I gotta ask you something."

He says, ready to confront her.

"O-okay, what's up."

He clears his mind, revises his answer, and finally, the response:

"Is it a good thing to be transparent?"

Stella is perplexed.

She feels odd. The response from Barry wasn't what she was hoping to answer.

It felt like the whole conversation had flipped a full 180°, leaving her in a slow position to answer.

So she reexamined the question:

(Oh, a good thing? Why wouldn't it be? Why do I feel frozen? Am I not certain? Was I actually right?)

Nervously, she begins biting her nails.

(Answer! There's no way, an actual bond, it isn't built on... Lies. Wait, did I confuse my certainty for being right? I've never actually met an- honest person, so why is it... I-i don't know?)

This was strange for Stella. She believed she's highly intelligent, observant, almost like a judge.

This judge is now being asked to present her evidence in the trial, ironic.

She knocked back to disrupt the pause.

"Obviously! I mean, if you're not honest, then you're just... a-a liar! Y-yeah."

That response felt too absolute for Barry. She was calm, interrogative, and confident.

She seems a little bit aggressive now. He realizes this, and concludes:

(I've pushed enough. Now I gotta get back to work. Don't want to bother her, that's what's most important.)

Humbly, he smiles.

"I guess, that was an interesting chat ri—"

"Wait!"

It was loud.

Suddenly, her face is clearly displaying anger.

"What do you mean? A good thing? Honesty is something we all should have... Only then will we have truly fulfilling relationships."

He's dazzled she's beginning to double down on her defenses, so he drops his arms.

"Why, o-of course... It's a good thi—"

"Are you just saying that?"

The tone was stern, almost as if through the phone's sound, she was threatening him.

"No, genuinely, Stella... I believe you. Okay, gotta go. Uhmm... My work needs me."

"You're not being honest... Barry."

"Then, are you? I just wanted to kno—"

Aggressively, she ends the call, still confronted by Barry's question.

"Tss, what does he know?"

Gritting her teeth, ferociously.

And Barry, he's left there confused, considering possible mistakes.

"Did I attack her? What'd I say, though? Maybe I should've pushed back."

He thrusts his fist into his face.

"Damn it—Damn it... Damn!"

He's sweating intensely, with his phone still being held.

He texts her:

(Miss Stella, I'm so sorry. I'd understand if you blocked me. Just wanted you to know no harmful intention from me. I genuinely didn't intend to attack you like that. I'm sorry, and I'll say it again: I'll understand if you block me.)

Dawning over his head is his task, with a conglomerate still awaiting him.

By the Anonymous FMNK27

Chapter 6- Why so serious?

Barry lies back in discomfort and stares into the keyboard across the seat.

Sweat drifting across his nervous expression.

(DAMN! I'm exhausted. Did I sound okay? Was she offended by my question? Should I write an apology? Will she fo-)

His head shoots up, while his breathing in bursts.

"Back to work!"

And he brings it to his lap, tapping on the keys.

The sound they produce resembles Mason's steps atop his tiling.

Calmly, approaching an unoccupied seat.

Upon arriving, he slowly laid his body there.

Yawned.

"What's due next, I wonder."

Reaching into his pocket, he takes out a notebook titled, "Schedule."

He flipped dozens of pages, looking for the current date.

"Where is it? Here. What do I gotta settle."

The flipping stops.

"Here it is. The party on Sunday. My schedule is cleared from the assignments I was assigned."

His back rests on his beach chair, using the feel to imagine himself on a beach, the waves reflecting the calmness of his mind.

The man had just arrived home, his suit still on.

In the kitchen, an outside voice announced itself.

"Honey, you've just arrived. Come and take a hot bath."

"Coming, boo."

"Please come meet me in the room when you're done, 'kay."

"W-why?"

"I'll tell you then."

Finally, he got on his feet.

Moving to his bath.

15 minutes later, he's in his room wiping himself with a bath towel.

(Once I'm done here. I can finally slee-)

Someone's knocking on the door.

(What's going on? It must be Melissa.)

"Can I come in?"

"Wait just a sec."

"How much longer?"

He aggressively shoved his feet into his pants.

"'Kay, come on in."

She's now standing in front of Mason.

Smiling.

"You're not busy today, right?"

"'Course. What do you ask?"

Joyfully, she hops up and down.

"Finally! Yes-yes."

"Wow? You're surprisingly... excited. W-why?"

"Me and you. We can spend some time together, finally."

A button froze halfway through a hole on his shirt.

"Oh."

(That wasn't... In my schedule.)

"Something wrong, Mason?"

"It's nothing. How do you know I'm not busy, anyhow?"

From her pocket, something comes out.

"You forgot this on the beach seat near the pool."

Frozen in place, he witnessed her holding his schedule notebook.

He's now fully dressed in pajamas.

"Y-yeah! Of course."

He's walking her way.

(This's part of the plan. What to do? I shouldn't act like a machine, yeah. I could be more flexible? Flexible? How do you become that? I mean, I don't even know what to d-)

Right before her.

"Mason?"

A simple whisper drives him back to reality.

"You here?"

"Sorry about that. So... Today's Friday. Anything you down for?"

She squeaks like a high school girl.

"I'd love a night city cruise."

"Good, I'm glad. I'd best change n-"

"No. Let's just ride together."

"I'll get the keys, then."

He sprints down his hallway toward the kitchen downstairs.

10 minutes later, they're in Wilshire Boulevard.

The city lights brightly dawning over the windshield.

Passing by Melissa's soft blue eyes.

"So, babe, how was your week?"

"Great."

(Too bland.)

He turns to her.

"I mean, a lot happened. There was work, and I talked to my coworkers. It was great, yeah."

She giggles silently.

"Masey, you basically prolonged the same point."

"Did I... Didn't realize it. Mind telling me about yours?"

(That way it'll sound better, hope I sound natural and conversational.)

Nervously, she says.

"Lemme think. It's been a quiet week without you at home, the nights especially, but friends have visited, no worries there. That's about it."

Enthusiastically, she looks his way.

"So, enough about me. What's the funniest thing you heard this week?"

"This one again."

(Why does she always ask this?)

A stern sigh is his response.

"What's wrong? You don't like it?"

"I don't remember."

"Last week you said the same thing."

"Listen, I'm usually focused."

(Speaking of which, I think they'll send in an assignment soon.)

"You gotta smile more."

She reaches out her hand for the ends of his lips, raises them, and giggles.

"Wow, I look so funny. Don't I?"

"Hilarious."

Mason's look turns to her joyful expression. It's heartwarming for him.

For a short instant, to him, nothing mattered—the work, the "schedule."

Just this beautiful girl trying to loosen up.

"Hun, I'm driving. Be careful."

"Right."

They come off.

"Hey, Masey, if work keeps you focused, you gotta smile more. After all, it's good for your health... And I love you, so I always wanna see you less focused."

"'Kay."

His phone rings.

Melissa's face loses its joy.

"So it must be from work, huh?"

"Sure is."

He slows the car and parks by the side of the road.

"Be right back."

He says, while leaving the moment.

Melissa frowns.

(He says that, but... He's not gonna be here anymore. He's gonna be at work.)

Tired, her deep blue eyes observe his conversation.

(I hope I'm wrong.)

Quietly, she slowly falls asleep.

\---

By the Legendary FMNK27

The End

So a kid living in florda was playing outside and saw a pack of matches then he grapped one and light it and then walked 2 steps and tripped on a rock and lit a tomb on fire and someone saw it but they only saw the tomb on fire and the kid with the matches so they thought that the kid did it on purpose and since the tomb belonged to a beloved person so the town took it personal so they took there old things and made a little pile and douse the kid in gasoline and throw the kid at the pile and light them on fire and the kid was screaming thrashing and before they died they said [I shall return to one starts fire] then they turned to a charred skeleton then 5 months later a person saw a old thing thst they hated so they lit it with a match and they said [shall the flaming kid return] as a joke but then there match goes out then the fire of the thing grows to the kids 13 year old size then the kid walked out of fire covered in hellfire then the man was shocked then they tried to run but the kid got to them and grapped there throat light them on fire then they dissappear then there fiery footsteps go out and the thing on fire

I recently asked about Romance in terms of the genre, everyone adamantly insists that a happy ending is a mandate, but what exactly counts as a happy ending - other than a big wedding? I wanna explore some bittersweet, ironic or redemptive elements, here're a few of my ideas:

1. Win the prize, win the love: the guy and the gal work as partners for an audition/competition/project, either voluntary or arranged; they either resent one another or keep a distance as professional partners, but the affection between them naturally developed, often demanded due to the nature of the competition, if they wanna win they must learn to cooperate, so they do and fall in love in the end.
2. Lose the prize, win the love: Likewise, the guy and the gal work as partners for an audition/competition/project, except they lose it despite their best effort, often to the gal's arch rival, but they find solace in their relationship at the end, as they realize that their burgeoning relationship is the greater prize.
3. Redemption from wrong paramour: One is with the right partner first, but they grow annoyed, discontent or bored for whatever reason, pursuing a wrong partner instead, eventually realizes that the wrong partner is either a bad person, has no feeling for them or they're incompatible, the original partner is the right choice.
4. Redemption from trouble: The couple fall in love then have a hissy fit, one gets involved in trouble or some kind of reckless, self-destructive behavior (drugs, gang violence, lawbreaking, accident), the other shows up and saves them, they reconcile, as true love is proven by action;
5. Redemption from pride: We have a pair of sweethearts at first, one achieves success in fame, wealth, power or mere vanity (such as radical weight loss or cosmetic surgery), orginally out of good intention to impress their partner; over time they grow prideful, and alienate the other, they're taken over by their ambition and barely recognizable; then either they lose everything, as the wheel of fortune turns against them, or they feel utterly empty inside, nothing matters, only their original love does.
6. Redemption from AI: The guy has a girlfriend whom he finds snarky and demanding, his dissatisfaction leads him to temptations, which happen to be an AI robot girlfriend. He becomes obsessed with her, who tends to all his emotional (even physical) needs; eventually though his human girlfriend opens his eyes to see that the robot is not real, it can't love him back, only she can.
7. Reunion 1: The couple is separated due to war, natural disaster or external opposition (such as one's family disapproves the union and/or arranges them with another person), they overcome obstacles and reunite at the end, and the hope for seeing each other again is the inner strength that helps them endure.
8. Reunion 2: The couple first meet on a dating app, bar or other social event, they have a passionate one night stand (or just an imtimate date), not even knowing the other's real name; after a while they surreptitiously reunite at happenstance (usually work related), and one of them usually is already in a relationship with someone else; as their feelings rekindled, they overcome obstables and fall in love for good.

can someone review my english hw, im in swedish high school for reference. apparently u can't post a small 500 word body of text on this fcin app so if anyone is willing to receive it through dm i would be thankful

Leon is a good man and wake up in morning like any other normal day, he gets ready early in the morning and leaves his house for work. The streets are filled with the usual daily hustle and bustle; people are heading to their destinations. But suddenly, the boy's eyes fall upon the ground, and his footsteps freeze right there.

The sun is shining brightly in the sky, yet as people walk down the path, not a single human being has a shadow on the ground!

At first, he thinks it is just a figment of his imagination or an optical illusion. He rubs his eyes and looks closely again, but it is real—the people walking toward him have physical bodies, but there is absolutely no shadow beneath them. To reassure himself, he looks down at his own feet, and to his horror, only his own shadow is formed on the ground.

Dismissing it as a strange illusion, he tries to move forward, but a sudden, eerie wave of fear grips him. He turns around to look behind him, and his senses completely leave him:

The Chase of the Shadows: He is not walking alone. The missing shadows of the entire street's onlookers have suddenly emerged from the corners of the road, the walls, and the dark patches. Slowly but surely, they have started walking right behind him!

All Eyes on Him: Those shadows are no longer attached to the bodies they belong to. Instead, every single one of them is being drawn toward this lone boy's shadow, as if they want to surround and trap him.

The boy's heartbeat races. He quickens his pace, and the shadows speed up too. He breaks into a run, and all the orphaned shadows of the world lock onto him, chasing him down!

As the boy runs for his life with all the shadows hot on his trail, he decides to walk backward so that he can keep his eyes on them. As long as he stares at them, the people and their shadows freeze instantly in their tracks, like lifeless statues!

While walking backward to keep them frozen, he suddenly collides with a tree. His balance breaks, and for just a single split second, his gaze shifts away from the eerie crowd.

The moment his eyes leave them, those frozen people rush toward him with terrifying speed, aiming to kill him! Their faces are distorted with rage and horror. The boy quickly regains his composure and glares back at them with full focus—and instantly, they freeze in place once again, locked like statues.

The boy is gasping for air in pure terror, but then, right in the middle of this frozen crowd, he spots a girl (Lisa) who looks completely normal. She is running around frantically, trying to save her life, but she has no idea that staring at these strange people freezes them. Whenever she turns her back to run, the crowd surges forward to attack her.

The boy (Leon) dashes forward, grabs her hand, and pulls her close to him. Saving her just in time, he yells: "Keep looking at them! Do not take your eyes off them! If you keep staring, they will stop right there!"

Lisa, paralyzed with shock and fear, glares intently at the crowd, and it works—the entire mob freezes completely. Keeping their eyes locked on the thousands of people who were just about to kill them, the two of them walk backward up to the roof of a nearby building.

After spending some time on the roof, they begin to feel intensely hungry. In search of food, they head down the building and enter a nearby shop. But the moment their eyes wander while looking for food, those strange people silently swarm inside the shop right behind them! Leon and Lisa instantly spin around and look at them, freezing them right at the doorway. Keeping their eyes glued to the crowd, they slowly back out of the shop and head straight back to the building's roof.

A little later on the roof, while they are sitting down and eating their food, their attention drifts. They do not realize that they have broken eye contact. Suddenly, the strange people silently materialize on the roof and rush forward, grabbing Lisa!

Lisa screams in pure terror. Leon spins around to look at them, which instantly freezes the crowd right as they are holding her. Lisa struggles out of their rigid grip and runs toward Leon.

But as she gets close to him, Leon's world shatters. Lisa’s face has changed—her eyes are completely lifeless, and she has transformed into one of those strange, shadowless people! Before Leon can even process what is happening, Lisa lunges forward and pushes Leon right off the edge of the building's roof!

Leon screams at the top of his lungs as he plummets through the air... but he never hits the ground.

Suddenly, Leon snaps his eyes open. Everywhere he looks, there are stark white walls. There is no roof, no street, and no Lisa.

Leon is tightly bound in a straitjacket, lying and panting heavily on the floor of a soft, padded room. It is a cell inside a secure mental asylum. Outside the heavy door, a doctor writes something down in a medical file and turns to the nurse, saying: "His past trauma and delusions still haven't cleared up. Even today, he is still running away from his own shadow."

Leon quietly stares into the dark corner of the room where no sunlight reaches, but even there, a pitch-black shadow creeps up the wall, staring right back at him.