3 Words: Token, Gather, Rounded (October 5, 2012 prompt)
The Fourth Wall – The Final Chapter
(Part1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4)
“Now is the time to walk a dangerous road.”
Henchman one and two gulped. Joe the dark frowned at them for such an annoying sound then thought better of it as he realized for once he wanted that kind of a tone.
“Listen up you two. I’m going to monologue the plot of this whole thing now.”
Henchman number one raised his hook, “Um, why now, boss?”
3 Words: Exploitation, Enlarge, Active (September 28, 2012 prompt).
The First Wall - Part 1
by William Ross
“Master Arkwon?” the servant said, poking his head through the door.
“What?” came the annoyed reply.
“Um,” the servant gulped, “there is a Mr. Lynn here to see you.”
“Oh…great,” said master Arkwon, nonplussed and cynical. “Give me a second.”
He stood up from his high backed, overly ornate chair, grabbed it by the arms and scooted it around to face the window. All the best villains sat with their back to the door when a subservient walked into the room.
“Ok, send him in,” he said, taking an arrogant position in his chair.
3 Words: Stock, Amass, Cloudy (September 21, 2012 prompt)
The Fourth Wall - Part 4
by Quentin Thayn
“I swear you two are the stupidest people I know,” said Joe the Dark One. “I’m glad for your sakes that you said all of that before now. If you had spoken just three seconds later much of what we’re doing, which is nothing more than working on this train set I might add, would be out in the open for all the do-gooders to read.”
“Huh?” said henchman one and two in unison.
Joe hit them both with a flyswatter. “Shut up! You almost said something leading again! Just don’t talk! ‘Kay! No talking, no asking questions, and no doing anything other than what I tell you!”
“Joe! Joe!” yelled a woman down the stairs. “Do you and your friends want some Hot Pockets or Cheetos?”
“Damn it, Ma!” screamed Joe the Dark. “I told you not to bother me!”
3 Words: Motivation, Fear, Fourth (September 14, 2012 prompt)
The Fourth Wall – Part 3
by Quentin Thayn
Joe the Dark sat at his worktable. The pair of jeweler glasses made the Dark One’s eyes look four times bigger than normal. Although the effort taxed Dark Joe beyond anything he’d like to admit, he made his best attempt to seem like he was bored.
“What’cha doing with the ammo and explosives, boss?” said henchman number one.
“First off, I told you a million times to call me Joe. Second, I thought I told you to play Plants vs. Zombies or something. And last of all, if you try to make what I’m doing sound interesting again, I swear I’ll punch you in the nuts,” said Joe. The Dark. One. Continue reading →
3 Words: Flight, Change, Optimum (September, 7 2012 prompt)
The Fourth Wall - Part 2
by Quentin Thayn
(Read Part 1 here)
Ed was a nobody. He didn’t know who his mother was, or his father, and he certainly didn’t know who he was. When the basket was left on the doorsteps of the orphanage, all that was on the pathetically short note beyond a self exonerating excuse was the footnote that mentioned his name.
Since then Ed busied himself with his biblical studies and helping old ladies cross Main Street. Ed’s window overlooked the intersection with the heaviest traffic in all of the tri-city area. It seemed when he wasn’t running down to help some poor walker-bound citizen traverse the asphalt to concrete, he was helping the other less fortunate children in their studies.
3 Words: Comma, Unite, Gradual (August 31, 2012 prompt)
The Fourth Wall – Part 1
The Dark One smiled in grim satisfaction as he sealed the last of the Narration Plasma in the lead-lined cask. A flick of his head and the henchmen pulled a lever. The cask descended into the depths of some unnamed and uncharted cave.
“Do it,” the Dark One said.
Explosives on the mouth of the cave pulverized the rock into nothing more than dust. Even through the choking filth that almost blinded him, the Dark One could see that no one would ever enter that cave again.
“Dark One,” said the henchman with a hook for a hand.
“My name is Joe.”
3 Words: Sagebrush, Fuse, Grizzled (June 15, 2012 prompt) Part 1
Memento – pt. 2
by Quentin Thayn
Crouching behind the cluster of sagebrush Rhett surveyed the oasis. The desert melted away into patches of thin grass which grew thicker inside the small valley with the spring in the center. The pressboard houses clustered around the spring like men huddling around a fire to escape the night’s chill. Somewhere in the mess of people and livestock Rhett’s sister, Ellie, waited to be rescued.
With any luck Dan had been shouting out empty threats, but in his gut Rhett knew that Dan had been waiting for a chance. Rhett involuntarily touched the holster and the ammo belt at his hip. Next, Rhett looked to the shiny, smooth case of the relic. The little light flashed, as it did every minute or so. Perhaps he might storm in and take his sister then ride on fresh horses to the next oasis. Surely one of the other farms might take him in?
3 Words: Bosom, Cram, Inhuman (Feb. 24, 2012 prompt)
A Quiet Interlude
by Ernest Shell
It was Tarn’s horse that saved him; a quiet whinny that roused him from a deep sleep. Eyes wide, he sat up and pulled the curved knife from its scabbard hanging on the headboard in one quick motion. The door crashed open, a crossbow wielding assassin leaping inside firing. Tarn dove forward, feeling the bolt brush his head. With a quick flick of his wrist Tarn sent the knife through the man’s throat. Rolling to his left, he grabbed the scimitar hanging at the end of the bed.
3 words: Month, Fix, Rounded (February 17, 2012 prompt)
The Return of Steam Powered Pants
by Quentin Thayn
The compact boiler oozed grease. Steam hissed out of the top and the ruptured hose. The rest of the boiler might have fallen apart at any second. The fat balding Jimbo rubbed at his stupid sweaty head. Sammy was amazed Jimbo hadn’t tried to fix the thing while it was hot enough to take the skin plum off of his hands.
Sammy sidestepped the wheel and slapped the back of Jimbo’s head.
“Ow, Sammy, Wha’d ya do that for?”
3 words: Dollar, Cast, Winning (February 3, 2012 prompt)
Burden of Proof, Pt. 5 – Beyond A Reasonable Doubt
by Heather Chang
Veronica realizes how close she is to winning when she hears Denise sniffle; she’s cast herself as the damsel in distress and on a surge of instinct it becomes the role of a lifetime.
“What did you do after you offered Keplar some wine?” Continue reading →
Deadline: January 31
Here at TWOS, we love what can happen when a writer lets a few words lead him or her on a new adventure. This site is a writer’s journal, of sorts, which allows writers to post their short stories inspired by weekly prompts. Three random words provided each week are what drive the story telling.
The story types and topics are unrestricted, so come back often to see what people have come up with. They’re short and raw and just the kind of thing to spark the imagination, cause a smile, brighten the day, or just kill some time. Enjoy!
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