Monday, March 28, 2011

Writing Prompt #7 - The Tomb Raider

It's Monday, and what better way to start the day than with this week's writing prompt.

Remember, you can write as little or as much as you'd like, and if you want, you can post your prompt right here. **All work is under copyright of its authors**

Here we go...

Your character(s) is in an ancient tomb said to be cursed by the spirit of a great faerie. Taking the ancient vial of immortal elixir, the tomb begins to shake and your character(s) decide to hightail it out of there...

Quincy shoved the bottle of elixir into his satchel and skipped across the ancient stones inscribed with the language of the faeries. He felt a cold snap at his neck and realized he had set off a freeze trap, something he just barely avoided as he leaped out of the entrance to the tomb and plummeted down the dirt hill, rolling like a barrel.

Once at the bottom, and dizzy as a merry-go-round, Quincy got to his wobbling feet and steadied his head which was bobbing back and forth. A shriek pierced the summer air, setting him on his feet again toward the rustic Jeep he had waiting for him at the end of the dirt road.

Bobbing in and out of the trees, he wondered if the legends were true about the great faerie who guarded over the elixir. Worrying about it now would do him no good. The vial was in his bag and he was on his way to safety.

He reached the Jeep, staring the engine with frantic motions. The vehicle backfired a few times, but the engine finally rolled over with a loud rumble. He drove the Jeep through the woods, heading in the direction he thought was the train station. Checking his watch, he realized he only had minutes until the Gunmetal Express left for Serventia.

A few miles in the Jeep, and Quincy slammed on the brakes, spotting the tomb he had just left on the hill in front of him. He looked around, realizing with terror that this was the same area he had just left. Can't be, he thought. Can't be the same.

He turned the Jeep around and started through the forest, in another direction now. Minutes later, he wound up at the same spot again.

"What is going on?!" he screamed.

A loud shriek, the same as before, echoed between the trees. The sunlight suddenly vanished and darkness fell over the land. Quincy noticed a bright purple glow emanating from the trees to his right. He stepped on the gas and the Jeep died. Slipping out of the driver's seat, Quincy knelt to the ground, his body trembling. The glowing spilled out from the trees and took the form of a being, a faerie.

She floated a few feet from the ground, her body mostly bare save for some large palm leaves wrapped around her chest, and some wrapped around her waist to form a skirt of sorts. Her wings were causing the glow - big and beautiful like large neon signs.

Her purple lips parted and a soft voice came out. "You have taken something that is not yours, human."

He reached into his satchel and pulled out the vial of elixir. His hand was trembling. He offered it up to her. "This. Yes? This is yours?"

She nodded. "I give you a decision, mortal. Drink of the elixir and live with us forever, or give me back my potion and become a feast for my children."

Without thinking, he popped the cork from the vial and drank the elixir. 

With rush of warmth, Quincy's heart stopped and he fell over, dead.

The faerie grinned as she descended to pick up his body. "The food around here is getting easier and easier to catch nowadays."

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