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Looking for a steady supply of adventure short stories? Every week thousands of writers submit stories to our writing contest.

8550+ Adventure Short Stories to read

Submitted by writers on Reedsy Prompts to our weekly writing contest. From riding the high sea to climbing behemoth mountains, there isn’t any action that’s out of reach when it comes to adventure stories.

Adventure Short Stories – Page 178 of 571

To breathe or to bleed

Submitted to Contest #187

A sharp blow to the back of the head rendered him soundly into unconsciousness. I let the last of them drop to the pavement in an unceremonious heap, and cast about to find it.Amber colored eyes peered from the darkness. Black tail causing a strange visual flicker against the near impermeable alley's shadows. Then it was off again, bounding from can to create, from sill to to bin, and with each a glance back to be sure I followed.I stayed centered and tread with as much quiet a I could muster. My companion holding the lions share (pun intend...

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New, Improved Axis

Submitted to Contest #186

“So yeah. We’re here.” “I am. Can’t say the same about you.” “Sure. Whatever. What’s next?” “You tell me and we’ll both know. Okay, you’re right. That wasn’t fair. I think we go up to the door. One of us waits outside, one of us goes in and scopes the scene out. Ready to see who does what? Rock paper scissors. I have rock. You?” “Hey hey hey. I haven’t agreed to any of this no matter how irresistibly charming you think you are. What happens after we scope the place out?” “Geez must I be the brains of every. Single. Step? We compare notes and...

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A Letter Leading to Nowhere

Submitted to Contest #186

“You don’t suppose she’s watching us, do you?” “No, it isn’t possible… Why do you ask?” “She was the one who sent us here, remember? It was in her last letter; the instructions were extremely specific. She even specified which tree, out of thousands. Isn’t that a little strange to you?” “No, she was always particular. It’s probably the exact center point of the forest or some weird math calculation. She was obsessed with calculating the center of everything, so it makes sense.” “I guess you’re right, but I still can’t help feeling li...

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YOU KNOW WHAT I MEAN?

Submitted to Contest #186

This is so old, it's got mold. Here we were on the way to clean out the remains of a house trailer that had been stuck in the same location for over eighty years. It's buried like a grave site imbedded in the ground but there was still access to get inside to hopefully find the answers to the questions that have surfaced at family get-togethers over the years. It was an unforeseen moment in time when a hurricane lifted the house trailer only to neatly set it down about a hundred yards away. That was the craziest moment highlighted years ago ...

10 likes 1 comment 1
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Story Tapestry

M B

Submitted to Contest #186

Warning. Life support systems failing. Station integrity at 50%.  That was the warning Lt. Kairi Faas of the 5th Star Patrol heard repeatedly. The blue-skinned girl drew her raygun and fiddled with the settings, effectively turning her weapon into a cutting torch as she started to cut through the jammed metal door.  “Lt. Faas to Endurance,” she said over her comm on her shoulder. “I’m almost through. Sensing a lot of fear this way. Request permission to proceed?”  “Endurance here,” a voice replied. “Delta team is enroute...

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Lion's Story

Submitted to Contest #187

The lioness, Seba, sniffed the air for any scent of danger. She watched her cubs play with rounded stones and bits of twigs as she sat and purred with contentment. Both paws were neatly tucked under her so that the knuckles touched. The cubs played in the shade of a few scraggly trees and rocks, not far from the den where they’d been born a few weeks earlier. A boy and a girl cub, they still rough-housed with each other as two brothers might in playtime. They instinctively knew to keep their claws retracted. Seba felt her empty stomach ch...

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Tanixx Wildfire: Thrash & Swagger

Submitted to Contest #186

 “Do not be startled Tallfellow Halfling, you have come to wield two sentient weapons. I am Thrash, a short sword made of mithril, silver and gold empowered with a unique set of abilities. Accompanying me in your discovery is the poniard, Swagger.” “My name is Tanixx, Tanixx Wildfire. What do you mean by sentient?” “Both of your newfound weapons are able to empathize with you; feel and perceive your needs as well as form a mental bond. We can communicate with telepathy; it's what we are doing at this very moment.” “This is amazing! I...

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A Dream Inside A Dream

Submitted to Contest #186

What happened? Why does it look like downtown Indianapolis has been abandoned for decades? There isn’t a life form to be found, no birds, no sound of a coming train. Nothing but dead silence. All the buildings and skyscrapers are in some level of decay. Spoilage and deterioration have found their home in places I once ventured through. Here I stand looking out over the horizon. If depression had a color, that is what the color of the sky is, a very bleak gray. There it hangs above the decaying landscape. In disbelief, I look around my im...

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The Beast

Submitted to Contest #186

“Are you awake?” “I am.” “How long have we been out?” “Hours. Maybe longer.” “Longer than hours?” “I don’t know. It’s pitch black in here, smells like goat guts, and my head is aching with confusion. And my hips are killing me from laying on the ground.” “Same. I’m real thirsty, too.” “Yep. Like cotton balls.” “I don’t hear…the thing…anymore, do you?” “No.” “What should we do?” “Find a way out.” “Agreed. But how?” “We’re on a dirt floor. I think we’re in some kind of cave. It must have dragged us here.” “That doesn’t answer how we get out.” ...

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The Follice Chronicles - Pt.6: The Rations of Toast That Haunt My Dreams

Submitted to Contest #186

In addressing every man, woman, and child at Follicle Farm, I assuage their concerns about our safety following a recent raid by the pluck squad. ‘Fleeing Follicle Farm is the coward’s way out! We will stand our ground and use the additional manpower we’ve accrued to fortify our defences. We will dig pits! We will lay traps!’The campfire collective concurs with whoops and hollers. We celebrate our resolution to remain by dancing rings around the fire. I have a feeling that later, more carnal forms of merriment will follow, once the chil...

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A Story Within A Story Within A Storybook

Submitted to Contest #186

A Story Within A Story Within A StorybookI was born in the ocean. My mother and father were on a boat when they had me. Of course people would expect me to be safe and in a blanket when I opened my eyes for the first time, but I had other plans. I didn't cry or wail, but instead twirled and moved. Since I was being problematic god thought of a way to teach me a lesson, but it backfired. I twirled and twirled until I rolled over and fell in the ocean. My dad panicked and rushed to get me, but I had saved myself. I was floating peacefully, but...

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The Dining Room Table

Submitted to Contest #186

“You think I WANTED to come here? I had nowhere else to go, Kenny. Trust me, I’m here for our children, not for you.” “You could hide out anywhere in the world and you pick MY cabin. Bullshit, Ashley. I’m sure you’re banging some new guy by now that could take you in.” “No one has a space like you have and you know that. Most people don’t do the whole Grizzly Adams survivalist thing on the rez like you. In fact, I think it was your total need for solitude that contributed to our divorce. Oh wait, you weren’t in solitude, you had…someone el...

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The Balinese Honeymoon

Submitted to Contest #186

“I can’t believe you didn’t bring the entire atlas.”  “Well, I didn’t plan to end up here, Nancy. I pulled out the pages that mattered for our trip.”  “But if you’re going to bring some pages, you might as well bring the whole thing! Clearly, the unexpected can happen.”  “When we talk about the unexpected, I was thinking about an extra glass of wine at dinner, not a plane crash.”  “Our travel guide says to plan for side excursions…”  “Again, he meant a jaunt into the countryside, not barely surviving in a jungle with...

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The Explorer

Submitted to Contest #186

“Good evening, Lord Bellington. And how is my Lordship on this lovely night?”           “Good evening to you, Mr. Stanley. It is indeed quite a nice night for star gazing. But tell me, I am curious about what brings you here to my planetarium?”           “Well, to be truthful, I was hoping I might have a word with your Lordship.  I’m planning an expedition to Tibet this coming winter.”    ...

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G+G

Submitted to Contest #186

“What the hell are you doing here?!”“What do you mean? I was sent here by…”“For God’s sake, I know who sent you. I’m familiar with how resources get assigned! I’m asking what you are doing HERE! You knew that I’d been working on this site for the last nine months!”“Gracey, we need to…”“No, we don’t! After what you did last time, I had no interest in seeing you ever again.”“Well, then it’s a good thing you can’t see my face. Just keep your eyes on the surroundings and the map.”“Do you think it’s funny? I will request another dispatch because ...

21 likes 9 comments 9
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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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