Irene Duchess

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2022

Stories (19)

19 Stories

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“Lost in Refuge - Part 6” by Irene Duchess

My feet hit the hard gravel floor beneath me. I look up. The five faces of my friends, Ria, Jacob, Elena, Ramona, and Alex peer down at me through a small square of daylight. I shine the dim beam of the penlight up at them. “Is there any more room down there?” Jacob calls. “For anyone else?” “Not really,” I shout back. “Just room for one—maybe two, at very most—people.” “Oh well,” Jacob says, and I c...

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“Lost in Refuge - Part 5” by Irene Duchess

“We can’t just sit around and do nothing,” Elena says, pacing with her hands behind her back. Heh, I think with an inward chuckle. Same old Elena. Never could sit still and do nothing. Always busy, always going. Action, action, action.“Well, what are you proposing we do?” Jacob demands hotly.“We need to get out,” Elena emphasizes each word carefully.“It would be suicide!” Jacob argues. We just got here! Why is everyone fighting already? I groan inwardly. I try to...

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“Home Again - Welcome to the New Age - Part 2” by Irene Duchess

 “Why’d we even agree to coming out here?” Leila Greenrow complained, swinging her legs off the side of the white pickup truck. “It was to prove people can time travel!” Ben Schmidt said defiantly. “I don’t regret coming out here!” “Well good for you!” Leila snapped irritably. “We’re stuck FIVE-HUNDRED YEARS IN THE FUTURE. Iris was shot and we have no idea how to get home.” Iris winced. She ...

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“ Lost in Refuge - Part 4” by Irene Duchess

I turn the pages of my great-great-grandmother’s journal back to the first and re-read the words. This is a true story that few know. Someday maybe this will fall into the right hands, and they will fix this mess. Listen carefully
“Sounds very poetic
” I mutter to myself. My cat, Patches, meows and rubs his head on my arm. "Dramatic."I go back to where it says The Beginning of the End and try to let my brain process those words. Even more puzzled than before, I turn to the next page and start...

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“Welcome to the New Age” by Irene Duchess

“Copy that.”“Is the launch team ready?”“Affirmative. All systems go.”“Launching in ten. Nine. Eight. Seven. Six. Five
” * * * Iris Hawthorne gave her friend, Leila Greenrow, a thumbs up. She clicked her helmet on. Iris, along with four other people, were about to travel through time. They had perfected time travel. They had already sent plenty of guinea pigs through—but you can’t tell those how to come back.“Hawthorne!” Barked Commander Gunner through their intercoms.“Yes, sir?”...

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“The Wyvern’s Lair” by Irene Duchess

Volund took a deep breath and exhaled slowly. Fyrnor watched him closely. Was Volund scared? No, he couldn’t be. The great Volund? Never.Volund looked around at the great chamber carefully. “Hold this,” he said, unbuckling his sheath and handing his sheathed sword to Fyrnor.He didn’t even glance at Fyrnor. Too busy wrapped up in his own glory, scoffed Fyrnor to himself. The great hero who thought only of the good of the people, rescuing them from the greatest dangers, was really just a self-entitled...

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“A Dike Doomed” by Irene Duchess

That’s tall. that was all Alwryn could think as she stared up at the towering wall known as the Elwar Rim. It pretty much marked the end of Elwar City. Beyond it was the wild sea. She hadn’t been here before. She lived on the other side of the city. The dike kept the raging waves at bay. Elwar city was in a valley, between the un-climbable mountains on an island in the ocean. She didn’t know how her peopl...

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“The Lost Immortals” by Irene Duchess

“Father, are there really no more unicorns left in the world?” “My boy,” sighed the man, “no unicorn has been seen in years. They vanished long ago.” What? No more unicorns? They must be mistaken. Man never sees the truth. Silverstar perked her ears up worriedly. Surely I am not the only one? Just because man hasn’t seen a unicorn in a long time doesn’t mean I’m the only one. Silverstar sh...

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“Lost in Refuge - Part 3” by Irene Duchess

Same thing. Every. Single. Day. Nothing but the same, boring old days. I never thought of it like that, but since I’ve been to the Out There and then had that talk with Ria I’ve thought differently.That’s my train of thought as I walk slowly home, deep in thought. I realized that almost my whole life, things had been the same. An endless cycle. In which everyone I knew—and more—was trapped.Every morning I wake up at eight-thirty to nine AM, had breakfast, then went to work at ten AM. At noon we took a lunch break, then resum...

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“Dark Cat, Dark Fate - Part 3” by Irene Duchess

Rose watched the hole through bleary eyes.Ever since she had recovered her backpack Rose had been keeping track of the time that passed. It had been two days. She had a small leather-bound journal and a few pencils, along with an eraser and a pencil sharpener.She had also torn out some of the pages, written ‘my name is Rose. I am trapped in a cave and I need help’ on them, made a paper plane out of each of them, and sent them out into the forest, as best she could. Trying to get them to fly in different directions.She...

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“Lost in Refuge - Part 2” by Irene Duchess

I’m jogging down the street.A determined look has graced my face. I don’t think I’ve ever looked determined before. That’s how ‘perfect’ my life used to be. There was nothing difficult to do. That’s what’s wrong here. No one is challenged by anything. Everything’s easy.Before long I start huffing and puffing. I’m not used to running. er—jogging. This isn’t as strenuous as running, I think. When was the last time I ran?I finally turn onto my friends’ street and arrive at their door.I knock, trying to regain my b...

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“Lost in Refuge - Part 1” by Irene Duchess

I’m happy. I mean, why not? Who isn’t happy? What’s wrong here? Nothing, that’s what. It’s perfect. A perfect place for a perfect, peaceful people.I’m currently strolling down the sidewalks towards home, the soaring glass buildings touching the sky above me.Cars drive by slowly, enjoying the peaceful day. Not that everyone doesn’t enjoy every happy day. There’s no bad traffic on the roads, and there hasn’t been since the Deliverance. The day everything changed. Of course, that was long before I was born. I’m glad I never had...

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“Dark Cat, Dark Fate - Part 2” by Irene Duchess

   “When I find you
” Rose groaned as she sat up, looking around in the darkness. “When I find you, I’ll make you regret dragging me down to this endless pit. Every bruise and scrape you gave me. Oh yes. It will not be pretty.”An image of the black cat appeared in Rose’s mind, and she frowned. It was probably gallivanting off somewhere in the forest, free as the wind, while she, Rose, was trapped in an endless misery of death. Which was the cat's fault.Tired, and less then entirely sane, Rose lurched to her fe...

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“A Man and a Mutt” by Irene Duchess

It was so terribly cold. Snow was falling, and it was almost dark. Cold winds whistled over rooftop and chimney, never ceasing its mournful howling. Shadows lurked everywhere in the deepening gloom.The people left were few, and those who remained hurried along the streets in silence, heads bowed. A horse-drawn cart rattled by.No one stopped to pay attention to me, leaning against the side of the building, waiting. Watching. For what, I did not know. I just waited. What else was I to do? Where to go?I pulled my tattere...

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“Dark Cat, Dark Fate” by Irene Duchess

Rose’s eyes followed the dark cat as it padded silently along the rotten, moss-covered log. It paused at the end and glanced back at Rose.She turned towards it, curious, keeping her eyes glued to the black cat. Its green eyes seemed to stare straight into Rose’s soul.Rose had started her hike a few hours earlier, and a few minutes ago she had spotted the cat. It had stayed with her, often vanishing in the thick forest, then reappearing just as suddenly.It mewed at her, and Rose took a step towards it. Could it be ...

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