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A 4634-post collection

Challenge #04678-L294: Strange Submarine Staccato

Things have not been going well for Ludwig and U-634. An English depth charge knocked out the water pumps, the radio is on the fritz, pumping out static in strange, rhythmic bursts, and there are strange scratches and taps on the sub the Skipper swears is the hull scraping against ice. Yet the bizarre patterns, almost like arcane writing he finds when they surface for air, hints at something deeper, and those noises only grow more insistent by the hour… -- Deathshead419

[AN: The actual history - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GermansubmarineU-634 ]

Ludwig had to admit - even if it was just to himself - that they might be in deep trouble. Separated from the pack. Depth-charged halfway to oblivion, having undertaken a lot of significant damage... and surrounded by ice. Worrying, too, were the odd scratches on the hull. As if something had been scrawling graffiti there with sharp knives.

They had said it was due to the hull scraping on the ice or on stones underwater. If those scratches were from ice or stones, they wouldn't look so squiggly or deliberately shaped. If it was from scraping along anything, it would look like straight lines. Not like some barbarian script from the impure countries.

Ludwig shivered as he examined it, almost hypnotised by the swirls and curves. Heart pounding at the alien nature of the sigils.

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Challenge #04677-L293: Nein to Nine

Every night for nine weeks a queen dreams of herself being surrounded by nine hooded figures she almost recognizes in the deepest sanctum of an abandoned castle. Each stabs her once until the ninth drives his blade through her heart. Terrified, she begs Wraithvine, and anyone ze might need to help, to find the truth of these nightmares haunting her sleep. -- Deathshead419

It had to be a portent. Every night for nine weeks, the Queen Chrysanthemum had the same dream. A

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Challenge #04676-L292: Deepest, Darkest Secret

An airplane vanished over the Amazon rainforest, never to be seen again. The authorities did a perfunctory search, but came up empty, declaring everyone dead. But one child of a businessman lost on the flight isn’t so sure. And so the child sets out alone to find the truth of the disappearance and, perhaps, a parent alive… -- Deathshead419

[AN: I misread this and instantly thought of this thing {Offensensitivity warning for flashing imagery} and now I have to divorce myself

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Challenge #04675-L291: Minding a Larger Flock

What a coincidence! Prince Philip has found a young shepherd boy who looks exactly like him living in the countryside. Even better, the young man is willing to trade places for a lark. With the talk of the cafes turning increasingly murderous with regards to Philip’s family, it would certainly be a good time to be a Shepherd Boy rather than a prince, though, the boy doesn’t need to know that… -- Deathshead419

Once upon a time, there was a

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Challenge #04674-L290: There Are Rules

A painter has been gifted with a wondrous, dangerous power: Everything this artist draws upon changes to match the image at dusk. Paintings come to life, stones become gold, hills cleanly vanish into valleys, even bodies shift shape.

The usual suspects are trying to steal this painter away to make weapons, fortunes, give assassins impossible disguises, ect. Perhaps Wraithvine can help hide this artist before those unscrupulous schemers use this human as a tool. -- Deathshead419

Whatever the gifted magic, it has

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Challenge #04673-L289: One in a Million

A drone from a hive mind is mistakenly left behind when the scouting party leaves the planet behind. Now an entity which has never conceived of a singular identity must survive in a wilderness. -- Deathshead419

We are Xaqi, and we seek knowledge. We seek resources without conflict. Harm to the hive is harm to all with the swarm, we are one. We know us. We sense all of us. It is as it has always been.

Until now.

We cannot sense

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Challenge #04672-L288: A Means to Reflect

So he said to the young hellkin...."There are generally two ways to go when the world hates you for how you look. Either be everything they say you are and worse, thus making them point at you as proof... or try your heart and soul away in proving them wrong, but you have to listen anyway. Or be, one of the good ones. If you find a secret third way, more power to you." This young hellkin found a "third way"

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Challenge #04671-L287: Fair Exchange

Unusual icon statues begin popping up all over the world. One puts in gold coins, and from the slot below, the exact amount of silver and copper coins comes out. The few times someone powerful enough to smash one managed to do so, they would find it not filled with coins at all. Merely more runes and sigils as it put itself back together again. -- Anon Guest

They were odd little altars. A figure of a Ravenfolk with an open beak

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Challenge #04670-L286: These Humans Are Crazy

How much will a human do for their friends? They will jump off a high cliff with nothing but a cloth on their back, and the secure rope so everyone else can get down more safely. -- Anon Guest

The good news was that Human Stig had some time to think. The bad news was that it might not be enough time to think.

Smoke rising up the hill behind them, toxic plants to the left of them, savage critters to the

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Challenge #04669-L285: Foretold You So

Through the myriad kaleidoscopic futures, I know it cannot be set in stone. However, your fate is destined for tragedy. Whether you walk it alone or with a band of merry men, the infinite possibilities collide into the same point. All you shall meet will meet the same fate by the end of your blade. -- Anon Guest

Curse or doom? Knowing the foretelling can allow one to try to wriggle free of it. "All you shall meet will meet the same

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Challenge #04668-L284: A-Questing Again

The kobold Anthe.. who became Gikka, found herself reborn again with her former memories, sorta. A love of adventuring, an elven wizard, .. a cat. She met them again around age 15, but she was a part of an adventuring party of her own. She was their rogue, and was deeply loved and protected. Especially by the human, who had a bit of a crush on her, but respected and trusted her fully.

https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04396-l012-foundling-need -- Anon Guest

A

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Challenge #04667-L283: Calculated Retreat

The humans rescue havenworlder colonists from a planet suddenly suffering a massive cooling trend after a super-volcanic incident on the other side of the planet plunged the planet into a sudden ice age. They had no problem with the sub-zero temperatures, but also no problem with the havenworlders needing tropical heat either. One of the rescuers smiled.

"I'm from Wisconsin on Earth, this is normal!" -- Anon Guest

[AN: Having never been anywhere near Wisconsin, I'm guessing this is one of those

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Challenge #04666-L282: Room to Fly

A young human who could tell the gnome Bribrid was actually a dragon asked in a soft whisper. "Could I please have two small scales? I want to make my moms necklaces for their birthdays." He showed several very small pieces of metal already shaped similar to a butterfly's body. "My mom's wife has silver wings." The other necklace was already done, this one was a small blue and yellow agate shaped like a kitten. "And my mom loves cats." -- Anon

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Challenge #04665-L281: Bloodwork Results

The vampiric Count Dragomyr learns to ask first before acting. In this case, by doing so, he saved many lives. Had he rushed in as he so often had done in the desire to care for those he loved, he'd've caused more harm than good. He was grateful this lesson was taught to him.

https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04517-l133-enlightened-self-interest -- Anon Guest

It wasn't just doctors. Dragomyr encouraged libraries and education programs. For anyone willing to learn, the resources could be

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Challenge #04664-L280: Mend the Moon

They found why the moon was stuck like this. An accident, an experiment gone wrong, and the rich {censoreds} that caused it? Were more interested in arguing whose fault it was than fixing it. Fine, then everyone ELSE would fix it, and the moon would be shoved back to its proper orbit again.

https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04534-l150-ameliorative-measures -- Anon Guest

There's an old saying - two can keep a secret if one of them is dead. The corollary to this

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