January 2015 contest: History Lesson
Posted: January 5th, 2015, 1:35:45 pm
Two boys run through an empty hallway, chasing each other. "I am the most powerful magi of the Keep," one of them yells. "I'm casting a spell to hold you in place!" He points at the other boy, who jumps to the side, laughing.
"No, I dodge your spell!" the other boy shouts.
"Then I'm casting it again," the first boy calls.
Before he can raise his finger again, the other boy tackles him. "Not if I can keep you from it!" Both boys stumble and fall against a statue nearby. The statue topples and falls, the boys with it, and with a loud crack that reverberates through the corridor, an arm breaks off.
Both boys get up and look at the disaster with wide eyes. "We broke it," the first boy says, panic in his voice.
"No one knows it was us," the other one says. "It's just an old, dumb statue anyway." He gives the stone a kick. "No one knows who that is, anyway."
"On the contrary," a cutting voice suddenly interrupts. "The Lady Antel is still respected and revered for what she did, even though she was not a magi." A man in plain robes, maybe in his thirties steps into view. "She would not appreciate you kicking her statue, especially since she was well known for disliking children. Luckily for you," he fixes the boys with a stern glare, "she has been dead for several centuries and is unlikely to rise from the grave because of a simple accident. Now, I would have your names."
"J... Jensyn," the first boy stammers, while the other quietly mumbles "Erdan."
"Well then, Jensyn and Erdan. You will go to the caretakers and tell them what happened here. And I will talk to your teachers. It seems that we need to educate you better on the historic personalities that shaped our world. Now run along!" The boys quickly run away. As soon as they are out of his sight, the magi smiles and bends down to the statue, running a finger over where the arm broke off. "Poor Lady Antel, you really aren't lucky, aren't you?" he says. "The same arm again; at least you can barely see where it broke off the last time." He glances in the direction the boys vanished. "Hopefully, they'll learn their lesson as well as I did, right?"
The Rules:
"No, I dodge your spell!" the other boy shouts.
"Then I'm casting it again," the first boy calls.
Before he can raise his finger again, the other boy tackles him. "Not if I can keep you from it!" Both boys stumble and fall against a statue nearby. The statue topples and falls, the boys with it, and with a loud crack that reverberates through the corridor, an arm breaks off.
Both boys get up and look at the disaster with wide eyes. "We broke it," the first boy says, panic in his voice.
"No one knows it was us," the other one says. "It's just an old, dumb statue anyway." He gives the stone a kick. "No one knows who that is, anyway."
"On the contrary," a cutting voice suddenly interrupts. "The Lady Antel is still respected and revered for what she did, even though she was not a magi." A man in plain robes, maybe in his thirties steps into view. "She would not appreciate you kicking her statue, especially since she was well known for disliking children. Luckily for you," he fixes the boys with a stern glare, "she has been dead for several centuries and is unlikely to rise from the grave because of a simple accident. Now, I would have your names."
"J... Jensyn," the first boy stammers, while the other quietly mumbles "Erdan."
"Well then, Jensyn and Erdan. You will go to the caretakers and tell them what happened here. And I will talk to your teachers. It seems that we need to educate you better on the historic personalities that shaped our world. Now run along!" The boys quickly run away. As soon as they are out of his sight, the magi smiles and bends down to the statue, running a finger over where the arm broke off. "Poor Lady Antel, you really aren't lucky, aren't you?" he says. "The same arm again; at least you can barely see where it broke off the last time." He glances in the direction the boys vanished. "Hopefully, they'll learn their lesson as well as I did, right?"
The Rules:
- Help with the education of people at the Keep and write a story about a figure in the history of the MS world and what they did to be famous (or infamous). That person may be from recent history, have lived long ago or even be a mythical figure that no one knows whether they have actually existed or not. They don't have to be a magi or from the Keep. Anywhere in the MS world is fine.
- Your story may take any form you choose. A short story, poem, stage play, anything you think would be fitting to tell about them.
- The story must have at least 150 words, there is no maximum length.
- Each entry must have a title.
- You may edit your entry until the deadline.
- You may enter more than once, but you can only win one prize. Please create a separate thread for each entry.
- Please do not write about any of the NPCs or other prominent figures of the Keep. We want to hear about new people, not the same old ones again. Also, yourself and other MS users are not eligible either.
- The contest runs from January 5th until January 25th, closing at midnight EST between the 25th and 26th.
- Entries go into the Competition Entries forum.
- There will be one grand prize. The winner will receive a Regal Sailfin Wyrm (January 5-shard donation pet) and their story will be added to the Library. Note: you can refuse this part of the prize if you do not wish your story to be added to the site. You will still get the pet.
- Any other stories that we think are good enough to be preserved in the library will be added there as well. Anyone whose story is chosen in that manner will receive one Koi Sailfin Wyrm (January 3-shard donation pet). Note: you can refuse this prize if you do not wish your story to be added to the site. You won't get the pet in that case, though.
- By entering this contest, you agree that ownership to your story transfers to Magistream if the story is chosen for the library. We will hold all rights to those stories and may make small edits to make it fit better into the MS world. They may not be removed from Magistream without consent of the site admins.
- Members of the MS team are not eligible for prizes, but may enter if they desire. Previous monthly contest winners will not be eligible to win again for TWO MONTHS. In this case, that goes for everyone whose story was added to the library.
