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Inspired Desperation

A 19-post collection

Challenge #04663-L279: Desperate Measures

Lady Death goes by many names. The Goddess of Death, she listens to all. And when this Rogue, nearing the isle, called out her name and said At least you saw fit to let us through, she responded. "I have always watched over your kind. I am impartial, mostly. Though more of your kind deserve reward in the next life than many I have met, it seems. Allow me to be your patron, and I shall give you a boon."

To their credit, when accepting, the Rogue held only worry. "Can we get out of here after without our old crate falling apart?" -- Anon Guest

The weather started getting rough half an hour ago. Their tiny ship was tossed about like a toy in a bathtub. Their idiot Paladin leader insisted that they forge ahead, and the Rogue Kuttapurs was left to tend the helm. Kuttapurs was proficient with a number of vehicles, and always got the short end of the stick when it came to navigating something through a set of surprise hazards.

Visions of midnight murder fueling her determination, Kuttapurs clung to the wheel. Begging every god she could name for their mercy. Including the one that the living should never name out loud.

She who only answered one prayer - Not today, - and she often didn't answer it favourably. Nevertheless, when Kuttapurs begged Ereshkygal, piling on benevolent superlatives, the clouds parted and the seas settled a little. For the first time, Kuttapurs heard the voice of a god ringing in her head.

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Challenge #04642-L258: Books, Brains, or Boots

"What a tangled web you weave when first you choose to deceive."

The problem is, they got caught in their own web, and now had to come clean.

Fortunately, people were merciful. No magic use except for healing spells for a month, and having to be on dishes-duty for a month. Could've been a lot worse. -- Anon Guest

[AN: Nerd moment - the actual quote is "What a tangled web we weave when first we practice to deceive." And yes I

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Challenge #04582-L198: The Nature of Miracles

Priest Robert has found his salvation in the Church and now blesses old pagan shrines into the light of the true faith. Until one day, an innocent is chased by a beast into an abandoned temple, and all of his prayers and symbols fail. All except the icon of a heathen god he ought to think a wicked demon and a little rhyme his mother uttered while tucking him to bed. -- Anon Guest

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not

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Challenge #04566-L182: Bonded Bargain

A student is close to flunking out of a magic school. Desperate, the student turns to the accursed woods where the fairies dwell, hoping to strike a bargain. It's said that there are consequences to dealing with fae magic, but, it can't be worse than flunking out, right? -- Anon Guest

Rin would never make it as a Wizard. Even if he went after forbidden tomes and allowed a powerful spell to reside in his head, he couldn't even be a Wizzard[

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Challenge #04302-K284: Desperate Need

They hated hellkin and others like them, and made it very clear, very publicly. Then the time came they were very sick, almost all healers had given up hope. It was a hellkin who saved their life. Sitting with them, talked with them, caring for them. It was then that the hatred learned at the knee of their parental, began to disappear beneath the weight of understanding. -- Anon Guest

There's many places like it. City-states, nations, minor polities all who made

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Challenge #04171-K153: Against All Odds

They were running with several of their friends toward the emergency escape vehicles away from a nasty, previously unknown, hazard on the planet.

Their friend starts to mention on how slim their chances are on escaping unscathed.

"Don't tell me the odds, just keep running, I always beat the odds!" -- Fighting Fit

Inspired desperation is one heck of a drug. When the chips are down, when it's do or die, incredible feats are possible.

So when the swarm burst forth from

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Challenge #03389-I101: Domino Choices

Havenworlders are planting dwarf fruit trees in pots so when the shipload of rescued humans - refugees from a Deregger polity currently in the middle of a civil war - arrives, can be given at least three plants per person. -- Anon Guest

They were hefty gifts for Havenworlders to carry, but even a weak Human could lift them with relative ease. The ship had said five hundred souls, so fifteen hundred pots now came with a very small tree. Free soil

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Challenge #03153-H244: Alternative to What?

A Pure Lifer, whose ancestors had been some of the earliest of the Pure Lifers had gotten very, very sick. They were still quite young, had very small children to raise, and none of the "medicine" on their world was helping them. In fact, they were getting worse quickly, and no one was willing to care for the children if their parent were to perish, and they had no spouse. What were they to do? Only option left, contact the Alliance, it

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Challenge #03095-H187: Only Among Siblings

Human: We're going to die.. it's over, we're done for.... I'm.. so tired.

Havenworlder: Stop that, we're NOT going to die, you're the human, you're supposed to be comforting me!

Human: I can't do this anymore.. I want to go home, this is hopeless it's over....it's over.. it's over...

Havenworlder: I beg forgiveness in advance for this! - gives the human a sharp slap! -

Human: -- startled --

Human: Sorry... sorry... yeah.. needed that... c'mon, little brother, let's go home

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Challenge #02927-H004: Flight of the Sandman

They were deep into enemy territory, surrounded, lost, and at a massive disadvantage. They were in the valley, their enemies had the hill and it was breezy, though the breeze blew away from them. They could use the sleep powder the havenworlders had invented for their insomnia-riddled human friend, but the climb was steep and they'd get noticed. Then the human had an idea. They made black string and took long strips of black sheets of matte plastic, and then put it

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Challenge #02670-G113: Inspired Desperation? Entertainment!

H: Did you know that you can use Duct Tape to patch your space space suit a pinch?

A: I believe you are trying to deceive me. To make me feel better about the situation you have got us into.

H: Aww. Don't be like that. It works, I promise, I've done it before.

A: That does not surprise me. -- Anon Guest

"We only have soft atmospheric livesuits. They're not rated for micrometeor impact."

"No worries," cheered Human Adam. "I've got

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Challenge #02631-G074: Desperate Measures

You’re not wrong but I don’t want you to be right -- Anon Guest

Phryx stared at her Human companion. "Did you mean that to be confusing as it sounds, or are you having one of your verbal shortcuts again?" Verbal shortcuts were always a problem with Humans, especially on the Edge. They had ways of expressing themselves that were difficult to translate at best and needed a seminar to understand at worst.

"Oh. Right. Whoops. Okay. Brief version: Yes,

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Challenge #01924-E100: A Tisket, A Tasket...

Coracle. Ancient form of water transport made out of sticks, cow hide* and waterproofing. *any firm waterproof material will do. -- Anon Guest

The human was messing around with the local vegetation again. They had already taken some fallen wood and whittled two paddles, and now they were making a positively enormous basket out of the long, bendy reeds that had once been growing by this lake.

"Is this a temporary shelter?" asked Thok.

"Nope," said Human Grif. Still lashing things together

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Challenge #01894-E070: Reverse the Polarity!

[Person 1]: You do realize that if this fails, (long list of results of failure) [Person 2]: eh... on second thought... [Person 1]: (proceeds to do the thing) -- TheDragonsFlame

"Okay. Okay! Ooohhh... kay..." said the Ship's Human. "Okay, we could run the ion ejectors backwards. Reverse the polarity of the magnetic engines, sucking in the trail we left for up to three clicks. That'll give us enough exhaust to propel us to the cloud and fully refuel.... I think."

"You do

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Challenge #01882-E058: Flakk it

After having done something stupid and dangerous to escape a hazardous situation At the time it seemed like a good idea. Afterwards, it's a miracle that it worked without killing us all. -- Anon Guest

It takes a special kind of human to be the Ship's Human in a war zone. Crew need quick thinkers, Luckers of a certain calibre, and those with rapid improvisational skills. Or, as it was known amongst the Humans, "MacGyvering the shit out of things."

Human meme

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