literature

FFM '14.22 The Departure

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TheBrokenBride's avatar
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Literature Text

If you’re running in Tucson, Arizona, you should question the choices that led you there. The summer is hotter than the Devil’s tits, and the sun is so bright, even the blacktop has a glare.

The choice I was questioning was simply stepping out of my house that morning. The air was already oppressive, and I hadn’t even made it to my car before I was set upon by something that dropped out of the sky with a yowling scream, like a cat crossed with a Banshee.

I made it two blocks on foot before I felt the sweat start dripping through my clothes. After one more block, I couldn’t breathe, and I got the feeling that the thing was toying with me; it had wings, after all.

All of a sudden, something else grabbed me, from the side rather than behind. I found myself suspended by my collar in front of a short ladder on the side of a wheeled cart with a seat.

“Climb on!” I assumed this was the man who had hold of my collar.

I grasped the rungs and heaved myself over the side of the cart. From my new vantage point, I saw that it was being pulled by a moped. Also that it was flying.

“What is this thing?!” I yelled, promptly wishing I hadn’t, because the whole thing was somehow shielded from the air rushing by.

“It’s a tuk-tuk,” said the dark-haired man astride the moped, twisting in his seat to gesture at the whole contraption.

“Ok, but why is it flying?”

“I want to be able to say I flew a tuk-tuk before it was cool.”

I stared.

“And it’s magic,” he added. “You do believe in magic, don’t you…?” Oh, sure. Now that I was grown-up and didn’t believe in magic someone told me it was real.

“Jake. And I didn’t until just now.”

“Nice to meet you, Jake. I’m Kyle.” Kyle’s eyes went wide, and I fought the urge to look at whatever he saw.

“What is it?”

He pursed his lips. “You know the thing that was chasing you? The demon?”

Was that what it was? I nodded.

“Well, it’s following us. Hold on, we’re going to jump.”

“Jump where?  We’re flying!” My voice cracked on the last syllable because I’d turned to look, and the demon was, in fact, flying behind us.

“In space.  Kind of like a teleport. Only I don’t know where we’ll end up, so hold on!”

I closed my eyes as the world lurched around us.

It's Collab Day at FFM, and this is 423 words, with no new character deaths! (14 to date)

So Collab day CHALLENGE was to find a partner, include a journey between places we've lived, use at least one form of non-standard transportation, and no adverbs :stare: I think this is adverb-free, but if you catch any, let me know! My partner for this was the lovely CatLeo9894, who wrote Part Two!
© 2014 - 2024 TheBrokenBride
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glitterxgraphite's avatar
Ooooh! I find myself reminded a little of The Mortal Instruments - maybe
unfairly, just because of the presence of a demon and someone who has
no idea what's going on, and mention of wards. In any case, I want to
know a lot more about this world that Jake's been thrown into, and why!
Well done, and very intriguing! <3