Flash Fiction: April 2012

[Darill Cyllem]

For those who haven't written for a while or have never attempted fan fiction, a whole story can seem daunting, so here we have the monthly flash fiction challenge to get those creative juices flowing.

*Remember that there is no deadline! Just because there is a new prompt for this month doesn't mean you can't still post in the old threads if you have more stories for those.

Here are the rules:

- Monthly Flash Fiction submissions must be no more than 300 words. They can be less than 300 but not a word more. I will cut off any extra words and then your story won't make sense so be warned.
- Submissions should be posted in this thread.
- This is not a contest, there is no prize; this is merely for fun, to help people get back the joy of writing, and to stay in practice.
- The title does not count towards the word count.

And now on to the challenge! For this month the prompt is:
tentacles!
(Stop me if we've used this one before....)

The first writer to submit her or his story will get to choose next month's prompt! (The same person shall not choose the prompt 2 months in a row.)

Have fun, and may the Force be with you!

[Lord Tesla]

Tentacles, eh? I had one, just the vague shadow, thing-emerging-from-the-light sort of beginning of an idea...but I thought the prompt was Tentacle not Tentacles. Might still work with multiple tentacles, though.

[Darill Cyllem]

Feel free to make it just one tentacle. We're not exactly in a position to turn away submissions, here!

[Cassus Fett]

I quickly looked at that and i thought you wanted a story about testicles at first lol... think i may need to get some sleep. I might try and entry this one

[Darill Cyllem]

Haha!
I'd welcome another Cassus Fett story

[Lord Tesla]

Okay, I finally pulled one off that hits the mark, or comes close enough. I give you...

Today Is a Good Day to Diet
by Lord Tesla

"What's the name of this planet again? Compost?" Anakin asked, sniffing.

" ‘Qo’noS,’ Master," Ahsoka said. "It just smells like compost."

Anakin’s Padawan was right, even in this restaurant...

"I still don't understand why the Chancellor thinks we should cultivate this crowd."

These people didn’t seem the most promising of potential allies. They reminded Anakin a lot of Gamorreans he remembered from Tatooine.

"The Klingons have an empire, and a fleet. Besides, they're supposed to be ferocious warriors."

"Well, all the empire I've seen is one planet with a banged up moon. And those scows we saw at the space port used warp drive. Warp drive, Master."

"I know. Still, we have an assignment, so..."

The waiter delivered their meal with a thump. Whatever it was, it was still moving.

"Did you order the Tentacle Platter, Ahsoka?" Anakin said.

"No, I ordered Gagh, which I thought was some kind of salad..."

Some of the gagh escaped its dish and was making a break for it.

Face puckered, Ahsoka flicked a finger, and the worm-tentacle-things flipped back onto the squirming pile.

Then she started looking for utensils. They didn't seem to have any.

The Klingons Anakin could see eating around them didn't seem to be using them.

"Ahsoka, I don't think--"

Now Ahsoka was scowling.

“That’s it,” she said.

On the edge of the table stood a tapering cylinder, a condiment container, perhaps. Ahsoka seized it, and pounded the gagh with it.

"Okay," she called out at the top of her lungs. "I killed it, now will somebody kindly cook this slop?"

***

That's it, 262 words. But, as they say on TV, that's not all:

The action continues in...

"The Wrath of Tano," which will be appearing in mere moments in the March Flash Fiction Challenge Thread.

[Darill Cyllem]

I read these out of order, and it was still enjoyable.

[bango31]

So like a year later, I have an entry:

Mistake

The tomb was cold, much more so than the cave that had led him there. It wasn’t that he couldn’t tolerate the temperature. His species had been perfecting cold-weather survival for thousands of years. No, it wasn’t the cold at all that was sending the chills running up and down his spine.

It was something far more sinister. He could feel the Dark Side before he even entered the tomb. It was so strong that a novice Force-user could have felt its presence half a planet away. With each step, his legs felt heavier, as though the evil forces lurking within had reached out with invisible tentacles that were slowly tightening their grip on his limbs.

His master had warned him about places like this—not to avoid them, but to approach them with extreme caution. Too many feared the Dark Side, his Master had often said.

“The Dark Side feeds on fear. How are we to defend ourselves against it if we fear it?”

Seek out the evil, he was told. Seek it out and destroy it.

As he continued deeper into the tomb, he passively examined the terrifying scenes etched into the smooth stone walls and began to wonder if he had underestimated the power that lay within the crypt. He eventually came to a set of massive obsidian stone doors. He reached out with his senses, looking for deadly traps inside, but detected nothing.

Drawing on the Force to augment his strength, he pulled the doors open and slowly stepped into the crypt. He nearly collapsed as he instantly felt the weight of the Dark Side wash over him. He removed his lightsaber from his belt and ignited the green blade. He had made a mistake, perhaps his last. He had horribly underestimated the enemy.

[Lord Tesla]

^Well done, Bango. Now I want to know What's In The Crypt?

Reading a fresh Flash has nudged my noggin. There's something moving in there, in the fiction area, maybe something with tentacles...

We'll see what slithers out.

[bango31]

Thanks! After reading through it again I found a missed word or two...whoops. I'll clean it up.

Glad I could help. Going back and reading old entries is what gave me a spark. I think I finally have some clue as to where I want to go with my next project.

[Lord Tesla]

Glad I could help. Going back and reading old entries is what gave me a spark. I think I finally have some clue as to where I want to go with my next project.

Excellent news. I'm still kinda wandering around in circles, but, perhaps the story below is an indication of things straightening out, or at least taking a more interesting turn.

Submitted for your consideration:

An Exchange of Views

Qui-Gon had talked about several settlements, but he said this was the best of them.

Obi-Wan glanced around the cantina. The other patrons were not the sort to inspire confidence.

Qui-Gon always had a weakness for pathetic life forms.

These Obi-Wan judged to be not only pathetic, but dangerous.

A group of Quarren entered, dressed alike, carrying what looked like bound books.

Who read those antiques, let alone carried them around, especially in Chalmun’s cantina?

Obi-Wan looked at them more closely.

Dusty, dry--wet blue eyes casting about, searching…

They fanned out through the room, approaching tables.

He sharpened his hearing; the rest of the room’s noise faded. At one table a Quarren gesticulated, and pointed to the book. A long-faced human adorned one side; columns of pictographs, the other.

The Twi’leks and Duros at the table didn’t look impressed by…

“Damn,” Obi-Wan said under his breath.

Squid cultists.

“Cthulhu fhtagn,” a Quarren said, taking the stool next to Kenobi’s.

“I’m not interested in your religion, thank you,” Obi-Wan said.

The Quarren kept talking.

Obi-Wan exhaled.

“You don’t listen,” Obi-Wan said, and took a handful of the tentacles wriggling beneath the Quarren’s mouth. He hauled down on them, smashing its face into the bar.

“I said I wasn’t interested.”

He let go of the Quarren, and it slid to the floor.

There was silence in the cantina. Even the band had stopped playing.

And everyone was looking at him.

His ride wouldn’t be ready for an hour or more, but he downed what was left of his drink and put coins on the counter.

Outside, he raised his hood, not only to obscure his identity: the suns were fierce on Tatooine.

Walking down the street, he found he felt a sense of satisfaction he had not known in many months.

***

And there it is. 300 words exactly, excluding the title. Hope it was entertaining.

[bango31]

Nice! There have been several occasions where I would've liked to do that to someone myself.

[Lord Tesla]

:howdy: Thank you, sir! That's the beauty of that kind of situation: just about every human being has had that same impulse, at least once (a few saints and philosophers excluded, perhaps). So it lent itself well to the short form, and allowed a glimpse (I hope) into the mindset of Obi-Wan Kenobi relatively early in his Tatooine exile, trying to cope, still just a bit...unsettled.