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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#108: Elemental

Water, air, fire, earth, and void: together, these five elements make up one of the earliest systems used to understand our world. Ancient cultures in Greece, Persia, India, and elsewhere all believed that everything they saw could be broken down into these five core categories. While the system doesn’t hold much water scientifically, we still hear echoes of these ancient classifications today — from the groups of astrological signs, to the magical systems of fantasy worlds.

For this week’s prompts, I’m going back to basics, and exploring each of the five core elements in turn. I’m excited to see what you build out of the building blocks of — well, everything!

This week's prompts

Write a story about a voyage on a boat.

Adventure – 42 stories

Write about a person or object vanishing into thin air.

Thriller and Suspense – 44 stories

Write a story about a team tunneling down into the centre of a planet.

Science Fiction – 6 stories

Start or end your story with a house going up in flames.

Dark – 55 stories

Write a story about a character who’s trying to fill an empty space, literally or metaphorically.

Angst – 55 stories

Stories

“The Nexus Team” by Patrick Otvos

Submitted to Contest #108

I am a great hunter. I have a big hat and boots, and I carry a big elephant gun. This summer, in the Serengeti, I collected many trophies and put their heads on my wall. I have maps and locations, and a guide to bring me there. This time we’re hunting Kudu, a spiral-horned antelope. Did I mention I have a big moustache? Lunch is prepared, and I eat two ham and cheese sandwiches, no crusts. Lemonade is cold, and it feels good when I drink it. Great waves crash into the side of the galleon....

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“The Damn Box” by Justan Romias

Submitted to Contest #108

"God damn ..." Christopher Pitt groaned this well-worn expression as he picked up his 107th box of the morning and placed it into his delivery truck. It wasn't a very heavy box, but Chris didn't have a very good back. Or a very good knee, or very good shoulder. It seems that when Chris hit the big 3-0 five years ago he started to play the real life version of the children's game Operation. So many unexpected movements would bring about the annoyingly loud buzz and red light in the form of pain. And right now, hi...

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“The Wish” by Marcia H.

Submitted to Contest #108

Spencer loved to garden and do what he called “pulling the magic weeds from the ground.” He loved to garden almost from the time he could walk outside. But, his high society loving parents didn’t think that it was a good idea for their only son to be outside kneeling in muddy dirt and wet grass besides their gardener every day. Spencer on the other hand didn’t mind the getting mud and dirt from the earth on his clothes and occasionally digging up the elusive earthworms. He loved the feeling of how the dirt caressed his little hands while dig...

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“A Monster's Love” by Virtual Chesse Emporium

Submitted to Contest #108

It’s never been easy for me to make friends. With my Mom searching for success and my Dad begrudgingly going with the plan, there’s never been time to settle down and try to make connections. My status at school was the weird artist loner who sat by herself and drew in her tattered red sketchbook. And to add insult to injury, Mom’s road to success was blocked by two obstacles: Not enough money and Dad’s inability to find a stable job. Since both parental units were busy trying to survive, they had little time to worry about me. There were no...

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“Making Eye Contact” by Doreen Shea

Submitted to Contest #108

Making Eye Contact Her fingers danced along the wine glass stem, as she wondered how her life got to this point. Claire sat at the dimly lit bar waiting for a stranger, wishing she ordered a whisky sour instead but didn’t want to give her age away with that choice. Her bra strap dug in, a foot wanted out of the heels, and a sticky spot on the bar stole her attention and glistened of drinks gone by. She prayed, he wasn’t a serial killer. She tapped other restless fingers on a black cloth headband resting on her thig...

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“Echo” by Floria Yang

Submitted to Contest #108

CW: child abuse<I> “I think it is time for us to have a baby.” I straighten my back and took in a long steady breath before speaking. The smell of fresh flowers mixed with meat sauce and salad dressing on the table filled my nostril. My voice echoed in a room so quiet. I scooped up some salad into my mouth, wincing as I swallowed: I might put too much dressing for his liking. I hoped it wasn’t going to ruin ...

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“Sail Away” by Lynne Conrad

Submitted to Contest #108

Sail Away “Ahh, this is nice,” Todd said, while reclined on the small cushioned bench of the Savvy Lucia. Lena looked up at the blue, cloudless sky through new Ray Bans. Todd was right. The se...

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“A New World” by Kaleen Kar

Submitted to Contest #108

Henry and Catherine Martin were a large upper class family with eight children. William was the eldest and then Bessie, Mary, Martha, Peter, Agnes, Beatrice and the youngest Alma. William had gone into the Army, following in Dad’s footsteps, and the eldest girls Bessie, Mary, and Martha enjoyed a busy social life. Bessie had been promised to a prominent young man named John Tully, who was in the family business of Law. The younger children had not yet joined the society party groups as they were too young, but tonight was different. It was N...

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“The Pain in Her Waves” by Angelia Marie Ford

Submitted to Contest #108

Everything was black. The world appeared to be so dark, yet it was far from empty. There was too much to burn before that happened. Every molecule of smoke and ash filled my nostrils, but it was the smell of fear that scared me the most. My lungs sputtered and convulsed as if they were also on fire, seething and searing pain. Then, numbness. Nothingness.Pain is what I still heard but could no longer feel. The sounds of flames crackling; and wood creaking and collapsing, interspersed with faint screaming floating through the air was nothin...

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“The Lifeboat” by Danh Chantachak

Submitted to Contest #108

The old man stared at me from the bow of the vessel, his cracked lips pulled downwards into a grimace underneath his filthy beard. The armpits of his undershirt were stained yellow with sweat. I could smell his stench; indeed, there was no escape from it. No way to avoid the rancid odor emanating from his every pore. My only solace was the fact that my own odor was likely to be as keen an assault on his senses as his was on mine.I stared back at him from the stern. Oh, how I hated him. His crazy bloodshot eyes – the way they jutted out of hi...

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“When crows come calling” by J .

Submitted to Contest #108

Jacob was only twelve years old when he started to see the dream. As the third son of a decorated General, he had spent his childhood days within the campus of their city quarters. Yet, almost all nights, a vivid account of a river flowing across a dense forest would come as a dream to him. At first it was just the river. Then, gradually, after many nights, he could see for himself how vast it was. Twenty soccer fields, no, forty soccer fields wide! A stretch of dense woods along the banks came to him next. And finally, after months, h...

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“The Island of Mist” by Heather Duckett

Submitted to Contest #108

The sky was so dark it looked black as pitch. Millions of stars glistened and sparkled in the black landscape. Thick stray clouds masked out the moon, filling the sky with a gloomy silver light. The warm glow of the dimly lit lamps became the only lights to see by. The ocean stood motionless in the calm of the night. All of the crew were below deck sleeping. They were used to the sea rocking the ship and could sleep through it. Captain Scar stood quietly at the wheel steering the ship. He was the only one awake and enjoyed the solitude...

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“Mary and Kate” by Robin Owens

Submitted to Contest #108

Her phone keeps going straight to voicemail. “Hey, it’s me. You can leave a message, but I’d prefer a massage.” Massage. I was with her when she set up that recording. We giggled, though admittedly tipsy, and I assumed she’d change it later. She never did. It usually makes me smile, but today it’s unnerving. I let myself into her house a few minutes ago with my own key. I can tell it’s empty by the way the dust is settled and the silence is loud. Neither Kate nor her boyfriend are home. I’ve wandered through the rooms while calling Kate’s ...

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“Red Creek” by M. J. Riv

Submitted to Contest #108

“What a fucking mess!” Rodney had his head poking into the bedroom doorway with a crumpled, disgusted look on his face and his trademark toothpick dangling on his wet bottom lip. Rodney was our new boss. He had just been promoted and transferred to our unit, despite having a lack of qualifications and experience. The worst part is he didn’t even realize it. “What the fuck happened here?”He also had a penchant for unnecessary “Fuck”s. I guess he figured that gave him more of an old school “street detective” authenticity. It did...

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“In the Stomach of the Mad Titan” by Peter C

Submitted to Contest #108

It was warm within the stomach of the Mad Titan, and all of our equipment was next to useless. The pressure was bearable for us, but it had long since crushed our more delicate instruments. The stew of liquid metallic hydrogen was so dense that we could not submerge ourselves beyond our waists. Above us, a flurry of warm hail raged too fiercely for our headlamps to illuminate more than a few feet in front of us. The light of Helios did not reach here, and we can only see by the occasional flashes of lightning. It was warm. It was also no...

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$250

Prize money

202

Contest entries

207

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 27, 2021 EST

Won by Rachel Kenley Fry 🏆

Title: I Leave the Six Blank

Submissions must be between 1,000 - 3,000 words and will be approved and published on Reedsy Prompts within 7 days of the contest closing.

Read the full terms & conditions or check out the FAQ if you have any questions!

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