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Challenge #03088-H180: If I Had a Bell...

The bell, when rung, could be heard loud and clear, but no one whose ears worked, could hear it. Only those who had magic. When it was rung, it caused all other bells in hundreds of miles to ring as well. The louder it rang, the louder they did. And only Amatu could ring it. For the bell was his, it formed the day of his birth. -- Adventure

[AN: Big thanks and love to DaniAndShali who provided the link to the preceding story]

It certainly looked like an old bell. Ancient and weathered, rich with patina. As a bell, it was certainly useless. It didn't have a tongue and, upon further investigation, never had and never would. The general consensus around Baumkyn farm was that it was either an apprentices mistake or some kind of strange food covering.

Amatu rather liked it, for the bas-relief on its outside. "Maybe it's a bell for ghosts," he joked, swinging it like a watchman. "Five o-clock, and all's haunted!"

Every bell in Paxdale sounded at the same time. Every clock rang their carillon. Every music box played their tune. Amatu, still a very young man, instantly put the bell down and backed away, anticipating a matronly lecture.

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Challenge #03087-H179: The Natural Order

If you loved me you'd... Often demanded, often with consequences you'd rather not deal with. truth is that "If you loved me," cuts both ways. -- Nonny the Mouse [in memory of too many domestic violence victims]

It was only natural. Take one Tiefling who had rarely known a kind word and never known a kind touch. Add a young lady who showed him even the most elementary of kindness, and you have a recipe for instant trouble. For Kormwind, it was

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Challenge #03086-H178: What a Deal

If. The codicil to a lot of Life's bargains, often toxic, usually starting in learning years, where you often learn more than what's on the syllabus. -- Nonny the Mouse

Sadi hadn't known what they were getting into when they got into it. What they were used to getting into was Miss Tiven's Crap List. This time, Sadi had accidentally wandered into the Feywilds. It wasn't really Sadi's fault, they were just following instructions as best they could remember... so they thought.

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Challenge #03085-H177: Relative Luxury

The young deregger expatriate, somewhat reluctantly, but at Gorx's gentle insistence, schedules a few days off since Gorx is very safely at home for a few days to relax. He takes his mom out, she is also trying to wrap her head around this concept, and they truly enjoy their first taste of what people would call, "a vacation from work with pay."

https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-03047-h124-free-time -- DaniAndShali

Humans Jef and Bea were learning to adapt. Transiteer Gorx would

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Challenge #03084-H176: Hello Again, Little Friend

They had crashed on a planet where the atmosphere was toxic. The pods were safe and able to be moved together to create a larger shelter, and with only four of them, the shelter was big enough for at least a month, though rescue stated they'd be there in about two weeks given the distance and lack of short cuts in that area. Their patient's infection showed by day two. The human frowned, seeing it, then began to cut apart citrus peels

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Challenge #03083-H175: Anything is Ammo

A: "What's that?"

H: "What's what?"

A: "That odd thing you're working on." Indicating the odd contraption attached to the human's suit that the human was carefully adding conditioning agent to the strong, stretching, straps

H: "Oh, this? That's just my wrist rocket"

A: "Wrist Rocket?"

H: "My slingshot"

A: ........................................... -- DaniAndShali

"Aw, don't look at me in that tone of voice," said Human Ess, still tinkering with the simple device. It was nothing more than a forked frame, some stretchy straps,

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Challenge #03082-H174: A Random Act of Kindness

He sought out, not Waithvine, but the kobold he traveled with. The young man, finding them along the trail, carried with him a basket of fresh fruit, fresh breads, dried meat, and sweet-filled pastries. Once he saw her, looking to the three travelers, the bugbear, the kobold, and the elf, the youth held out the basket to her, bowed and said softly, "Thank you." For he never forgot how she undid his bindings, and stopped him from ending his own life that

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Challenge #03081-H173: Assisted Retirement

She was middle aged, approaching her 50's, her lower back hurt so bad she could barely move. Working in those damn factories for so long, ever since she was orphaned when the last big fire that swept through the city killed hers and so many others' families, had broken her. Then they came. It was late in the night, she'd gathered a huge amount of old, scrap, cloth stolen out of dumpsters and did her best to make it comfortable for her

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Challenge #03080-H172: Defeating Monsters

There was a sign on the door. It read "Warning! Deathworlder story time! Humans inside!" Faintly, through the budget soundproofing, a cogniscent with good hearing could make out the wailing cry of an alarmed human larva. One with even better hearing would be able to make out the voices of other young humans, saying "It's OK, it's OK, it's not real, it's just a story. Right, Miss? It's not real, right???" -- Anon Guest

Fairy tales do not exist to tell children

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Challenge #03079-H171: Ave Ceasar...

A: Those who share my purpose becomes allies, those that do not become casualty.

B: There’s nothing about this war that is that cut and dry.

A: Because you still have hope, that this war will end with your honour intact

B: I do

A: stand in the ashes of a trillion dead souls and ask the ghosts if honour matter. The silence Is your answer. -- Anon Guest

War. They say it never changes, but it does. It gets increasingly

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Challenge #03078-H170: The Inherent Hazards of Knomiras

Common sense is not that common, this most people know.

When you lack even that basic knowledge, it's sad how things can go.

They were listening to the instructions of the flight attendants as they had boarded their flight from the station. It was the usual routine safety instructions that all flights normally gave, and the usual "Here is what we do for this type of emergency" thing. Except, this time, a person scoffed, rolling their eyes, refusing to listen to a

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Challenge #03077-H169: Constant Vigilance

A Companion notices that the ship's human's livesuit is picking up on wild, unusual fluctuations in hormones related to emotions and high stress. On questioning, the human informs them that, due to a somewhat negligent upbringing and poor socialization as a child and adolescent, they suffer from underdeveloped emotional maturity... that will never fully develop. That ship has sailed, and they were NOT on board.

The explanation is delivered in a calm, somewhat bored tone, with a bland facial expression. The livesuit

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Challenge #03076-H168: Freedom By the Press

Ok, I gotta get in on this one! :-) I've been reading your stuff for a while now and I've not had the courage to post, but this sounds like the plot to one of the DnD games I was in and it was great, so anyhow!

The person that came in had the same story that many of the others did. A tale of woe where they'd been convinced the King's rules were why the person lived in poverty and pain.

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Challenge #03075-H167: Fighting to Survive

'Hoverboard' on YouTube, actually large drone with person riding. What if the drone was used to carry essential items in times of need and trouble. -- Anon Guest

[AN: I've seen videos of these things. They are cool, but also loud as HECK. More annoying than the average dirt bike and three times as dangerous. And yes, Drones carried goods before they carried people]

Tal could trust the ones that made noise. Ze had learned to hide in the granite tubes until

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Challenge #03074-H166: Homo Insula

Libertarian "paradise" world found by the Alliance. Probably called "Freedom" or something similar. -- Anon Guest

Imagine a world where there is no need for government or law, because the only rule is that of righteous morality. Laws come from God, as was intended by the Good Word. All that is right is moral and all that is moral is right. It's all about the fundamental rights of man.

Everyone else can suck it.

The strong rule the weak. It's the way

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