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CONTEST ENDED – Thank you for submitting your stories!

#263: Heroes and Villains

If you’re an avid cinemagoer, you’ve probably seen trailers or posters for the recently released superhero comedy film Deadpool & Wolverine. Personally, I’m looking forward to seeing two beloved characters set aside their differences to save the world — and potentially start an unlikely friendship along the way.

Inspired by Deadpool & Wolverine, this week's prompts center around protagonists and antagonists. Create a new kind of hero or villain, parody a character who already exists, or go totally off script and interpret the prompts in a creative, unexpected way… the choice is yours!

This week's prompts

Write a story from the antagonist’s point of view.

Character – 84 stories

Start or end your story with a hero losing their powers.

Character – 41 stories

Write about two mortal enemies who must work together.

Character – 29 stories

Center your story around someone facing their biggest fear or enemy.

Character – 71 stories

Write the origin story of a notorious villain.

Character – 89 stories

Stories

“The Unseen Enemy” by Tinaye Wakatama

Submitted to Contest #263

Do you know who I am? There are some who do not believe I exist, but the ones who do call me evil. They call me cruel. But I am merely playing my part in the war—one I did not start, might I add, but one I am destined to lose. There is nothing I despise more than losing, but there is no running away from the prophecy. It states that I will be defeated. Snuffed out. Trampled beneath the feet of the damned followers of the king. Discarded and left to burn in the embers. It is a rather cruel punishment considering I have done no wrong—at least,...

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“Blurred Memories” by Grayson Kennedy

Submitted to Contest #263

Zander drives along the highway, white knuckling the wheel for who knows how long. The radio plays soft tunes, adding a gentle atmosphere underneath the pure nerves building in his stomach. His limbs are stiff. He can’t bring himself to relax. His girlfriend, Hana, must notice as she places a comforting hand on his thigh. “Are you sure you’re okay to drive?” she asks. Zander briefly glances at her, noting her furrowed brows before returning his attention to the road. “Yep. Yes.” He stretches his shoulders and smiles, attempting to at least a...

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“BAD VISION” by Garret Durrette

Submitted to Contest #263

My name is Gerald Taft. I'm told my vision is impaired. "Near-sighted," the doctor says, ever so detached. Something about the shape of my eye. I just call it bad vision. With my glasses on, no problems. The problem isn't what I see with my glasses. It's what I see without them.The first time it happened, I was twelve. I'd misplaced my glasses and was fumbling around my room, squinting at blurred shapes. From the corner of my eye, just inside my peripheral vision, something moved. That's when I saw Them. They looked like shadows but darker, ...

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“Six Feet, Uphill” by Burton Sage

Submitted to Contest #263

Six Feet, Uphill by Burt Sage I’m standing on the 18th tee of the Eagle Hill Country Club. It’s the final round of our golf championship. It’s match play, and it’s down to two guys—me and Stan. We’re all even; whoever wins the next hole wins the championship. We shouldn’t be here. It shouldn’t be me and Stan. It should be Tim and Frank. Stan and I are also-rans, like the horses in a horse race that don’t win, place, or show. But here we are. As usual for these matches, a small group of spectators follow us around the course. There’s my fam...

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“The Tree Remembers” by Jaal Mola

Submitted to Contest #263

Trigger Warning: Verbal abuse I was fourteen years old when I left my mother. Or rather, when she abandoned me. It was a wet spring morning when Mother called me to her room. I passed my father’s–no, Lord Heo’s – quarters, already bustling with servants readying his carriage for the day. Then, I softened my steps to slink by Lady Heo’s garden, as she would be on her morning walk, and she would be furious as a rabid dog if she saw me. To my surprise, she wasn’t there. Finally, I arrived at Mother’s room. Dread had hung over me like a cloud al...

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“An Antagonist's Tale” by Swetha K

Submitted to Contest #263

New York City was as infamous as a city could get. The Big Apple was advertised extensively as a magnificent city that was a haven for opportunities. A place where dreams could blossom. That was a half-truth and the residents knew it, but no one dared to call the Supers out on it because the city was a highly profitable cash cow. They would come running to curb any threat that they caught a whiff of through any and every means at their disposal, however, none of them would even bat an eye if something were to happen in the Bronx. That's just...

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“The Queen” by Vivacity Rex

Submitted to Contest #263

My village is long gone, reduced to ashes that the wind has long since scattered. My sanity fled the year my child would have turned seventy, leaving behind a hollow shell that echoes with memories. How does one deal with being ageless when everything tethering you to life vanishes in the blink of a battered and bruised eye? You don’t. You survive because the curse demands it. But I refuse to merely exist. There is only one thing that keeps me moving forward now—the purpose that drives my every breath, every motion. But that purpose remains ...

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“Sea Witch” by Korynda Pasini

Submitted to Contest #263

Vials and jars clinked together as I rummaged through my shelves, muttering under my breath. My long sleek tentacles propelled me through my lavishly decorated cave as I looked for what I needed on the next shelf. “Where is it?” I shouted, slamming my fist against the wall and making the various jars rattle. Flotsam floated out from around my vanity with a potion wrapped in his tail, Jetsam right behind him. “Oh, my sweet babies, thank you,” I cooed. They vibrated at my praise as I took the jar from my eel and gave them each a loving stroke....

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“Raskolnikov's Origin Story” by John Galton

Submitted to Contest #263

J. Galton8/16/242103 wordsRASKOLNIKOV'S ORIGIN STORY Raskolnikov lay in bed facing the wall, sweating. His door creaked. He shivered. “Who's there?” His voice, hoarse from long silence. “Stand and unfold yourself.” Porfiry grinned from the threshold. “Isn't that my next line?” He shrugged. It'd be a while before anyone looking like Raskolnikov would stand. Porfiry gentled his tone. “You infinitely clever young man, always on guard.” Raskolnikov grunted. He'd known from the clomping of the investigator's boots mountin...

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“The making of a Villain: Nurse Ratched” by Suzanne Jennifer

Submitted to Contest #263

In the dimly lit halls of Belfry Psychiatric Hospital in Salem, Oregon, the air was heavy with a mixture of pain and unrelenting moaning of the sufferers within. Mildred Ratched, a dedicated nurse, had spent the better part of a decade caring for the lost souls that inhabited this place. Like a breath of fresh air, Mildred would breeze into the rooms administering medications. Delivering meals with a smile, she would often take the time to sit with patients while they ate. She would listen to them tell the tales of their tragic lives and off...

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“There's A Villain In All Of Us” by Avery Feyrer

Submitted to Contest #263

“Closing time! Finish up what you got and settle up!” the barkeep bellows. His booming voice sounds like a hurricane in my head, though perhaps that was the point when dealing with the drunken sort. I look around and there’s only a handful of us degenerates left. A pair of guys trying desperately to hit the dart board but the holes scattered around it indicate they haven’t had much luck. An older gentleman passed out in a booth, a pool of drool slowly building underneath his prickly chin. And a middle-aged lady letting loose to Barracu...

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“The Farmer's Daughter” by T. K. Hudson

Submitted to Contest #263

He was a lordly sort of young man, with an average height and an average face. He was overweight—and it showed; yet he still was weakly built. His family had a small title, and small lands, though they were wealthy enough. He was rough and rude (a trait he came by honestly, though not for several generations), and was overly fond of drink, brandy especially. He had the habit, now he was the master of his own house, to have friends over most nights; and a raucous, loud, crude lot his friends were. His own lands were prosperous, entailing two...

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“To Have a Mind of Your Own” by Zoë Page

Submitted to Contest #263

My parents named me Sofia-Dafne. Sofia, for what they intended to call me, and Dafne, for what they would’ve called my twin, had I not unfortunately absorbed her in the womb twenty years ago. They also generally believed it was a pretty name for me to bear, a nice tribute to what could have been – but what my parents don’t know is how fitting that name actually is. People first started to realise something was unusual about me when I began to talk well enough to have conversations. Naturally, as with any child, when I got to this point, peo...

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“Through Neon Pink Colored Glasses” by Summer Hoagland-Abernathy

Submitted to Contest #263

TW: sexual violence, physical violence, gore Another news crew had caught the girl zipping by their studio. They didn’t get much. Just a horizontal flash of bright pink, and she was gone. The busted bar TV wasn’t helping either. A strip of see-through green ran down the flatscreen where a customer had thrown a plate upon the loss of his chosen hockey team. “If you or anyone you know has any information on this individual, the Chrysalis Police Department and Superhero Council urge you to come forward,” the anchor said. “Here’s what Police Sup...

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“Bet on the Blade” by Mark Bulmer

Submitted to Contest #263

Bet on the Blade Oh, my Wren, I hate that woman. Sheriff, she called herself upon riding into town a few months ago. Not really named herself so much as announced. “I’m Sheriff this here town!” she’d yelled, climbing from her mount in the dirt of the crossroads. Her horse looked the strongest looking animal I ever seen. Dust drifted from its coat when it shook, but when it was done shaking, that beast planted its feet as if daring the world move it. Gotta say, if I had to bet, I’d bet on the horse. She was a different story. I saw it in how ...

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$250

Prize money

314

Contest entries

109

Stories

Ended on 23:59 - Aug 16, 2024 EST

Won by Eliza Entwistle 🏆

Title: Petrified

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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