WINTER 2015 SHORT STORY CONTEST

[Zunkwentania]

Actually, I replaced the German for Farsi (which a member of my region was able to translate). It's only one phrase, not a massive chunk of dialogue...

Thanks for that, Zunk

No problem

[Vancon]

So, how's everyone's stories coming along?

[New Kvenland]

So, how's everyone's stories coming along?

Mine's about halfway done, but I've gotten a bit sidetracked. Hopefully that will be over now.

[Shaggai]

So, how's everyone's stories coming along?

Mine is done, honestly. I make no assurances as to quality, but it should be short enough to judge without much difficulty.

Day 1

My memory has started to slip, probably due to the Mound. I am starting this journal to preserve information in the case of worse memory loss. I’m somewhat concerned about the general state of the Mound. This sort of memory loss is quite far beyond the normal effects. I’ll have to think about what to do.

I checked on the Mound. There was no activity besides the usual passive effects, although I’m not sure whether or not to consider the memory loss “activity”. It’s worrying, but not really the sort of activity that would be a serious warning sign. I performed the ritual with no problems, then returned.

In the afternoon, I went to the Wall. No changes. I saw some sort of bird on the way. I’m not sure what species it was, as it was flying east quite quickly. All in all, not much to write about today.

Day 2

Checked on the Mound, same as yesterday. There was minor resistance to the ritual, but nothing much. On a whim, I decided to climb to the top. It was beautiful. From up there, it’s possible to see quite far. I would do it more often, if it weren't for the passive effects of the Mound.

Later, I decided to explore the library some more. I managed to finish mapping the shelves I had started on, and started to map two other shelves that I hadn’t gotten to before. I stopped after hearing some strange noises off in the distance. I don’t know what caused them, but it’s not worth taking the chances right now.

Day 3

I woke up early due to odd dreams. I can’t quite remember their contents. They’re probably a side effect of the Mound, similar to the memory loss. Is the ritual working correctly? I should do some more research about the Mound in the shelves that I finished mapping. If lucky, I’ll be able to improve the ritual. I should have time, as there’s still no noticeable activity at the Mound and there was no resistance to the ritual today.

I went back to the library to see about the research. I looked over the new shelves a bit, but none of the titles seemed to be about the Mound. I could do a more thorough search, but I’ll look back at the other shelves first. I should probably reread some of the older books, as well. There may be clues I have missed.

Day 4

More dreams. I’m going to have to reread the books some more. I believe that Eibon may have had some useful information on the Mound, so I’ll start there. I should also probably look over the new shelves again. That’ll have to wait until I've checked the Mound, of course.

Nothing new at the Mound. Still no resistance to the ritual. I did look over some of the carvings around the base, but they didn't give any hints as to how to improve the ritual. Eibon had a few useful facts, but not enough to improve the ritual. I've gotten about halfway through one of the new shelves, and there’s some interesting material. Nothing concrete yet.

Day 5

I slept in a bit today, as the dreams weren't quite as strong. No activity at the Mound. I decided to check on the Wall, as well. There was another of the birds, but otherwise everything was normal there.

Did some research in the new books. Some of the stuff in Eibon makes more sense now. They also provided context for some of the Azif, but none of that applies to the ritual. With the new information and the contextualized stuff from Eibon, I think there might be a few improvements I can make. I’ll have to wait to implement them, though.

Day 6

Dreams back to previous intensity. No other activity at the Mound. I’m getting the feeling that I should record a bit more in this journal. It’s honestly not worth much if I don’t make use of it.

I briefly forgot the way down to the library. Luckily, it came back after a few minutes. I need to do more to fix the ritual before more serious stuff happens.
An unmarked book had a lot of useful stuff. It looks like the Sleeper is slightly different than I had previously thought. With that and Eibon’s information, I’ve started work on an improved ritual. It shouldn't be too big of a task. Maybe a day or two.

I've gotten stuck in the design of the improved ritual. One segment looks like it could be fixed with a simple qettklo clause, but closer inspection reveals some rather complicated nga’a structures which could require more intensive rewriting.

I decided to go on a walk to clear my head. I’m writing this from the Wall. No sign of the birds this time.

Back in the library. I've gotten the structures to work, using a few slightly unorthodox methods. They shouldn't compromise the effectiveness, though. The improved ritual is nearly done. I’ll finish it up tomorrow morning so I can test it.

Day 7

I tested the new ritual. I won’t know how effective it is until tonight, though. No activity at the Mound. There isn't much for me to do right now, so I’m reading some of the more interesting books. One, a collection of the writings of Klarkash-Ton, is very good entertainment, although I suspect at least a third of it is entirely made up.

Day ?

It appears that the “improved” ritual does not, in fact, work nearly as well as the previous one. Unfortunately, my presumed past self did not remember to include the actual ritual (either one) in his diary or elsewhere.
To clarify, it seems that I have lost all specific memory. I don’t know where I am, how I got here, or why I am here. I remembered my name for the first few days, but now I’ve forgotten that too. I just stumbled across this diary, and I've decided to write my further experiences down in it in order not to forget them.
The place I find myself is strange beyond imagination. It is, as far as I can tell, a plateau. It is certainly nowhere on Earth (and how do I remember Earth, for that matter? I don’t even know my own name, yet I know the name of my home planet?). The sun is dimmer and redder than the sun of Earth, but the stars are brighter and there are two small moons. The temperature is consistently chilly, but never quite freezing. The only vegetation is a strange sort of grey lichen-like material which grows in ugly, irregular splotches across the plateau. The only animal I have seen is some sort of flying creature (presumably the bird mentioned earlier, although its proportions were slightly off from any bird of which I know). The main landmarks are my house and what are presumably the Wall and the Mound.
Towards the edge of the plateau lies the Wall. It’s weather-worn and clearly very old, and surprisingly large when you get up close. It’s not too difficult to climb it, but on the other side the edge of the plateau drops off into darkness and mist.
The Mound is… well, it’s a mound. It’s a massive, vaguely pyramidal rock formation which juts out of the approximate center of the plateau. It scares me for some reason. I walked up closer and saw some sort of hieroglyphs engraved all across the surface. I’m definitely staying away from now on.
My house is the most incongruous of the three landmarks. It’s a small cottage, located about halfway between the Mound and the Wall. It takes me about ten minutes to walk to each, starting from my house. The most interesting part of my house is the underground tunnel system. It contains various passageways leading in all different directions. The interior of the plateau could be honeycombed with the things. There are arrows carved into the wall of one downward-leading tunnel, labeled “L”. I assume these lead to the library mentioned earlier, but it’s getting too late to check. I should probably go to bed now.

Day ? -- 2

I can’t remember what I dreamed, but I woke up screaming.

The arrows do, in fact, lead to the library. It’s the biggest library I've ever seen. There’s a large table near the entrance, with a few piles of old books on it. I assume these were the books I was reading previously. I flipped through one of them, which seemed to be some sort of list of demons and their properties. It was illustrated with some disturbing woodcuts.
There was a map under one pile of books. Seems like the library is even larger than it appeared at a first glance. I understand what I meant when I wrote about exploring new shelves. The library stretches on into the dim distance. There are lamps every few shelves, but I wouldn't dare to go farther than the mapped areas. I think I saw something uncomfortably large scuttle between two of the shelves.

Having been to the library, I've decided to walk around the plateau and see what else there is. I’ll record my observations when I get back.

Back from the walk. There is nothing else of note on the entire thing. What the hell? I would at least expect some oddly shaped rocks, but there’s nothing bigger than gravel, and the whole plateau is flat except for the Mound. Something is seriously wrong here.

Day ? -- 3

The dreams were worse. I still don’t quite remember what they were, but I know they had to do with the Mound.

I’ve gone to the library in order to see if I can figure out what the hell the ritual is. I’m starting with the Book of Eibon, since I have no other leads. Luckily, there’s a table of contents. There are a few potential sections that could be relevant: On the Sleeping Things, since I mentioned a Sleeper; Visions of a Plateau, for obvious reasons; and The Pnakotic Fragments, Regarding the Barren Worlds: Translated by Eibon, because this is a barren world if there ever was one.

There was a small note about the Mound in On the Sleeping Things, but the plateau described was very different, and the Pnakotic Fragments were… well, too fragmentary to be of use. I’ll try some of the others. I don’t have much hope, given the immensity of the library.

Day ? -- 4

I fell asleep in the library. That was not a good idea. I woke up from the worst dreams yet to some frankly terrifying sounds. I managed to grab this diary and run back up the tunnels. I don’t think I’ll be able to get back to sleep tonight.

The sun is coming up now. I’m looking out the attic window at the Mound, and something has changed. I’m not sure what it is, but it looks positively menacing now. I want to get out of this place as soon as possible. I’m going to go to the Wall and see if I can find a way down off of the plateau.
There’s nothing. The Wall goes down for a bit, and I could probably get to the bottom of that without much problem, but there aren’t as many handholds on the rock farther down, and it’s incredibly steep. Besides, I don’t know what I might find in the mist. Better to stay up here, for now.

Day ? -- 5

It woke up.

It woke up, and I am doomed.

I woke up just as the sun came up. My night had been unprecedentedly peaceful, with no dreams, but as I woke up something seemed to shift. There was something wrong. I looked out at the Mound, and I knew. There is something in the Mound, something that shouldn't exist. Some sort of cosmic violation that doesn't belong in any sane universe. It had been the Sleeper, but it’s awakening. I grabbed a few things and I ran for the Wall. I've been waiting here for nearly an hour, and the wrongness has strengthened the entire time. I can only assume that the Sleeper is taking some time to wake from its millennial sleep.

I can’t stay. I can feel the presence of the thing, almost a physical weight on me now. Every instinct I have is screaming at me to run, run as fast as I can, get away from this at all costs. But the only way to go is down, and when I look over the Wall the mists are swirling strangely. I’m caught between the unknown and the unknowable.

I had the presence of mind to store a rope in my pack last night. I am unutterably glad of that now. I had forgotten in the initial terror, but I found it just now. It means that I have a chance, to descend the cliff into the mists no matter how strange they are. The Sleeper is nearly awake, and if I am still here when it wakes, all will be lost. I shall choose the unknown rather than the unknowable. May the gods smile upon me.

[Krytonus]

So, how's everyone's stories coming along?

Mine is done, honestly. I make no assurances as to quality, but it should be short enough to judge without much difficulty.

Day 1

My memory has started to slip, probably due to the Mound. I am starting this journal to preserve information in the case of worse memory loss. I’m somewhat concerned about the general state of the Mound. This sort of memory loss is quite far beyond the normal effects. I’ll have to think about what to do.

I checked on the Mound. There was no activity besides the usual passive effects, although I’m not sure whether or not to consider the memory loss “activity”. It’s worrying, but not really the sort of activity that would be a serious warning sign. I performed the ritual with no problems, then returned.

In the afternoon, I went to the Wall. No changes. I saw some sort of bird on the way. I’m not sure what species it was, as it was flying east quite quickly. All in all, not much to write about today.

Day 2

Checked on the Mound, same as yesterday. There was minor resistance to the ritual, but nothing much. On a whim, I decided to climb to the top. It was beautiful. From up there, it’s possible to see quite far. I would do it more often, if it weren't for the passive effects of the Mound.

Later, I decided to explore the library some more. I managed to finish mapping the shelves I had started on, and started to map two other shelves that I hadn’t gotten to before. I stopped after hearing some strange noises off in the distance. I don’t know what caused them, but it’s not worth taking the chances right now.

Day 3

I woke up early due to odd dreams. I can’t quite remember their contents. They’re probably a side effect of the Mound, similar to the memory loss. Is the ritual working correctly? I should do some more research about the Mound in the shelves that I finished mapping. If lucky, I’ll be able to improve the ritual. I should have time, as there’s still no noticeable activity at the Mound and there was no resistance to the ritual today.

I went back to the library to see about the research. I looked over the new shelves a bit, but none of the titles seemed to be about the Mound. I could do a more thorough search, but I’ll look back at the other shelves first. I should probably reread some of the older books, as well. There may be clues I have missed.

Day 4

More dreams. I’m going to have to reread the books some more. I believe that Eibon may have had some useful information on the Mound, so I’ll start there. I should also probably look over the new shelves again. That’ll have to wait until I've checked the Mound, of course.

Nothing new at the Mound. Still no resistance to the ritual. I did look over some of the carvings around the base, but they didn't give any hints as to how to improve the ritual. Eibon had a few useful facts, but not enough to improve the ritual. I've gotten about halfway through one of the new shelves, and there’s some interesting material. Nothing concrete yet.

Day 5

I slept in a bit today, as the dreams weren't quite as strong. No activity at the Mound. I decided to check on the Wall, as well. There was another of the birds, but otherwise everything was normal there.

Did some research in the new books. Some of the stuff in Eibon makes more sense now. They also provided context for some of the Azif, but none of that applies to the ritual. With the new information and the contextualized stuff from Eibon, I think there might be a few improvements I can make. I’ll have to wait to implement them, though.

Day 6

Dreams back to previous intensity. No other activity at the Mound. I’m getting the feeling that I should record a bit more in this journal. It’s honestly not worth much if I don’t make use of it.

I briefly forgot the way down to the library. Luckily, it came back after a few minutes. I need to do more to fix the ritual before more serious stuff happens.
An unmarked book had a lot of useful stuff. It looks like the Sleeper is slightly different than I had previously thought. With that and Eibon’s information, I’ve started work on an improved ritual. It shouldn't be too big of a task. Maybe a day or two.

I've gotten stuck in the design of the improved ritual. One segment looks like it could be fixed with a simple qettklo clause, but closer inspection reveals some rather complicated nga’a structures which could require more intensive rewriting.

I decided to go on a walk to clear my head. I’m writing this from the Wall. No sign of the birds this time.

Back in the library. I've gotten the structures to work, using a few slightly unorthodox methods. They shouldn't compromise the effectiveness, though. The improved ritual is nearly done. I’ll finish it up tomorrow morning so I can test it.

Day 7

I tested the new ritual. I won’t know how effective it is until tonight, though. No activity at the Mound. There isn't much for me to do right now, so I’m reading some of the more interesting books. One, a collection of the writings of Klarkash-Ton, is very good entertainment, although I suspect at least a third of it is entirely made up.

Day ?

It appears that the “improved” ritual does not, in fact, work nearly as well as the previous one. Unfortunately, my presumed past self did not remember to include the actual ritual (either one) in his diary or elsewhere.
To clarify, it seems that I have lost all specific memory. I don’t know where I am, how I got here, or why I am here. I remembered my name for the first few days, but now I’ve forgotten that too. I just stumbled across this diary, and I've decided to write my further experiences down in it in order not to forget them.
The place I find myself is strange beyond imagination. It is, as far as I can tell, a plateau. It is certainly nowhere on Earth (and how do I remember Earth, for that matter? I don’t even know my own name, yet I know the name of my home planet?). The sun is dimmer and redder than the sun of Earth, but the stars are brighter and there are two small moons. The temperature is consistently chilly, but never quite freezing. The only vegetation is a strange sort of grey lichen-like material which grows in ugly, irregular splotches across the plateau. The only animal I have seen is some sort of flying creature (presumably the bird mentioned earlier, although its proportions were slightly off from any bird of which I know). The main landmarks are my house and what are presumably the Wall and the Mound.
Towards the edge of the plateau lies the Wall. It’s weather-worn and clearly very old, and surprisingly large when you get up close. It’s not too difficult to climb it, but on the other side the edge of the plateau drops off into darkness and mist.
The Mound is… well, it’s a mound. It’s a massive, vaguely pyramidal rock formation which juts out of the approximate center of the plateau. It scares me for some reason. I walked up closer and saw some sort of hieroglyphs engraved all across the surface. I’m definitely staying away from now on.
My house is the most incongruous of the three landmarks. It’s a small cottage, located about halfway between the Mound and the Wall. It takes me about ten minutes to walk to each, starting from my house. The most interesting part of my house is the underground tunnel system. It contains various passageways leading in all different directions. The interior of the plateau could be honeycombed with the things. There are arrows carved into the wall of one downward-leading tunnel, labeled “L”. I assume these lead to the library mentioned earlier, but it’s getting too late to check. I should probably go to bed now.

Day ? -- 2

I can’t remember what I dreamed, but I woke up screaming.

The arrows do, in fact, lead to the library. It’s the biggest library I've ever seen. There’s a large table near the entrance, with a few piles of old books on it. I assume these were the books I was reading previously. I flipped through one of them, which seemed to be some sort of list of demons and their properties. It was illustrated with some disturbing woodcuts.
There was a map under one pile of books. Seems like the library is even larger than it appeared at a first glance. I understand what I meant when I wrote about exploring new shelves. The library stretches on into the dim distance. There are lamps every few shelves, but I wouldn't dare to go farther than the mapped areas. I think I saw something uncomfortably large scuttle between two of the shelves.

Having been to the library, I've decided to walk around the plateau and see what else there is. I’ll record my observations when I get back.

Back from the walk. There is nothing else of note on the entire thing. What the hell? I would at least expect some oddly shaped rocks, but there’s nothing bigger than gravel, and the whole plateau is flat except for the Mound. Something is seriously wrong here.

Day ? -- 3

The dreams were worse. I still don’t quite remember what they were, but I know they had to do with the Mound.

I’ve gone to the library in order to see if I can figure out what the hell the ritual is. I’m starting with the Book of Eibon, since I have no other leads. Luckily, there’s a table of contents. There are a few potential sections that could be relevant: On the Sleeping Things, since I mentioned a Sleeper; Visions of a Plateau, for obvious reasons; and The Pnakotic Fragments, Regarding the Barren Worlds: Translated by Eibon, because this is a barren world if there ever was one.

There was a small note about the Mound in On the Sleeping Things, but the plateau described was very different, and the Pnakotic Fragments were… well, too fragmentary to be of use. I’ll try some of the others. I don’t have much hope, given the immensity of the library.

Day ? -- 4

I fell asleep in the library. That was not a good idea. I woke up from the worst dreams yet to some frankly terrifying sounds. I managed to grab this diary and run back up the tunnels. I don’t think I’ll be able to get back to sleep tonight.

The sun is coming up now. I’m looking out the attic window at the Mound, and something has changed. I’m not sure what it is, but it looks positively menacing now. I want to get out of this place as soon as possible. I’m going to go to the Wall and see if I can find a way down off of the plateau.
There’s nothing. The Wall goes down for a bit, and I could probably get to the bottom of that without much problem, but there aren’t as many handholds on the rock farther down, and it’s incredibly steep. Besides, I don’t know what I might find in the mist. Better to stay up here, for now.

Day ? -- 5

It woke up.

It woke up, and I am doomed.

I woke up just as the sun came up. My night had been unprecedentedly peaceful, with no dreams, but as I woke up something seemed to shift. There was something wrong. I looked out at the Mound, and I knew. There is something in the Mound, something that shouldn't exist. Some sort of cosmic violation that doesn't belong in any sane universe. It had been the Sleeper, but it’s awakening. I grabbed a few things and I ran for the Wall. I've been waiting here for nearly an hour, and the wrongness has strengthened the entire time. I can only assume that the Sleeper is taking some time to wake from its millennial sleep.

I can’t stay. I can feel the presence of the thing, almost a physical weight on me now. Every instinct I have is screaming at me to run, run as fast as I can, get away from this at all costs. But the only way to go is down, and when I look over the Wall the mists are swirling strangely. I’m caught between the unknown and the unknowable.

I had the presence of mind to store a rope in my pack last night. I am unutterably glad of that now. I had forgotten in the initial terror, but I found it just now. It means that I have a chance, to descend the cliff into the mists no matter how strange they are. The Sleeper is nearly awake, and if I am still here when it wakes, all will be lost. I shall choose the unknown rather than the unknowable. May the gods smile upon me.

It's Lovecraft, all right.

[Vancon]

As of now, you all have less then a month to get your stories in.

You have been notified.

[-Ebola-]

Moar stories plz. You guys have to distract me so I don't bored and go infecting people.

[Vancon]

Moar stories plz. You guys have to distract me so I don't bored and go infecting people.

You.

I know you.

Go away.

[Bunkeranlage]

Moar stories plz. You guys have to distract me so I don't bored and go infecting people.

This ebola joke has gone too far.

[Furry Alairia and Algeria]

Moar stories plz. You guys have to distract me so I don't bored and go infecting people.

This ebola joke has gone too far.

It was a joke?

[Bunkeranlage]

This ebola joke has gone too far.

It was a joke?

A very poor attempt at one, if I may say so.

[-Ebola-]

This ebola joke has gone too far.

It was a joke?

No, I'm really a sentient virus.

[Bunkeranlage]

It was a joke?

No, I'm really a sentient virus.

To think that doctors are going to their deaths in Africa, and here we have someone pretending to be that very virus killing those people.

*is not impressed*

[-Ebola-]

No, I'm really a sentient virus.

To think that doctors are going to their deaths in Africa, and here we have someone pretending to be that very virus killing those people.

*is not impressed*

We've had this conversation before. If posting with this nation was going to make more people catch Ebola IRL, I would stop posting.

[Bunkeranlage]

To think that doctors are going to their deaths in Africa, and here we have someone pretending to be that very virus killing those people.

*is not impressed*

We've had this conversation before. If posting with this nation was going to make more people catch Ebola IRL, I would stop posting.

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

[Furry Alairia and Algeria]

We've had this conversation before. If posting with this nation was going to make more people catch Ebola IRL, I would stop posting.

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

And everybody's entitled to go with the stories that were to come.

Anytime now...

[Bunkeranlage]

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

And everybody's entitled to go with the stories that were to come.

Anytime now...

With only 4 people, I wonder how we're gonna have this competition…

[-Ebola-]

We've had this conversation before. If posting with this nation was going to make more people catch Ebola IRL, I would stop posting.

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

My main nation is dedicated to Nazi jokes.

[Conserative Morality]

With only 4 people, I wonder how we're gonna have this competition…

We've still got time, now. No need to get pessimistic.

[Furry Alairia and Algeria]

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

My main nation is dedicated to Nazi jokes.

Makes me think of Nazi Flower Power.

With only 4 people, I wonder how we're gonna have this competition…

We've still got time, now. No need to get pessimistic.

True

[Bunkeranlage]

Of course. Everybody's entitled to their own idea of satire, though I don't think we should be making light of something so serious. It's the reason why Holocaust jokes are frowned upon.

(Somehow, it's not the same when you've experienced the terror of an actual epidemic before- in my case, SARS and H1N1)

My main nation is dedicated to Nazi jokes.

[-Ebola-]

My main nation is dedicated to Nazi jokes.

Makes me think of Nazi Flower Power.

That's the one.

[Laerod]

And everybody's entitled to go with the stories that were to come.

Anytime now...

With only 4 people, I wonder how we're gonna have this competition…

A lot of entries don't come in till the end anyway. And even if they don't, less reading for me! =D

[Nazi Flower Power]

With only 4 people, I wonder how we're gonna have this competition…

A lot of entries don't come in till the end anyway. And even if they don't, less reading for me! =D

I expect at least a few more entries.

I am debating whether to write a different story to replace mine because I don't think it's my best work. I just kind of threw it together in a couple of days because the story I originally wanted to enter went over 6000 words. But I don't know what to write about if I make a 3rd try.

[Old Tyrannia]

Tag. I may or may not finish what I'm working on in time for the deadline. If I don't, I can always save it for the Spring Short Story Contest