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Discover weekly, the best short stories

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

8560+ 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 54 of 571

Of Doomsday and fortunate despair

Submitted to Contest #267

Life on Earth ended on a Thursday. Deities met not long after to discuss the Doomsday properly, choosing a crater of the Earth's only moon - The Moon. From over here they could still see the burning planet, blown up, in hundreds of pieces, floating in space and disturbing the otherwise peaceful area. Their vantage point allowed them to observe and evaluate the level of destruction, each of them judging on their own, moods ranging from boredom and disinterest to utter sorrow and satisfaction. Some said it was long due, others wondered what co...

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The Desert Takes

Submitted to Contest #267

You shake the waterskin. Only a sip or two left. You pass it to Mel. She shakes it, passes it back to you. Your mouth is sandpaper, your throat like you’ve swallowed shards of glass. You shake the waterskin, pass it back to her.You make a game of it, sisters stumbling through the desert. Heat boils your insides. Sand billows up to form mini-tornadoes over dunes far and close, a prelude to a storm. Mirages speckle the horizon with pockets of oases. You know better than to trust them.As you keep passing the waterskin between you, there is gall...

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The Bank

Submitted to Contest #267

It must have been at least five minutes now that I had been waiting in the queue, there are seven people in front of me. There are five teller desks, but there are only three tellers. Why do they have five desks but only three tellers? It's not lunchtime, nor morning tea time. Perhaps two tellers are away sick, or on holidays. Perhaps one teller is away on holidays and one teller is sick because they wouldn't allow two tellers to take holidays at the same time, or would they. The lady being served by the right hand side teller looks like she...

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Coffee riot cafe

Submitted to Contest #267

Out side the most quiet street as once had been a few years back.ànd night time walking was safe . especially for homeless begging make in that now suburb turned gang members violence eruption of loud people who have al preferences to sitting around a cafe first in morning and let them know that police are on the lookout for the public gang of a shooting and a drug release and burglary heavy night of shooting coffee consumption and drinking in the local community pub.all the full schooners they were able to having half of price that one off ...

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Tortle Mon

Submitted to Contest #267

My column in the local magazine, Islands Chronicle, stirred controversy and by some was thought to be demeaning to those who had lost their lives in deep blue seas to bring home the bread in the many ways the oceans provided. It was one of those columns that quoted locals and generally went- they went out to do a little fishing but my cousin, brother, father lost his life out in devastating storms or from weapons in hostile hands. Strangely, that kind of talk died out quickly and I became a sort of hero, backed by mothers and wives, to a pro...

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A Light in the Night

Submitted to Contest #267

I collapse to my knees soggily in the mud on a steep incline in the middle of a dark and expansive forest. I can’t see much in front of me due to how dark it’s gotten, and as water rushes down the incline around me, my knees sink further into the mud with a squelch. The short dark hair atop my head drapes itself across my cheekbones, as I tilt my head down to shield my face from the army of droplets racing to the ground. The water, instead, runs from my dirty hair down my face, and collects in my beard, before dropping to the ground. The tre...

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Minong's Call: A Journey of Transformation

Submitted to Contest #267

Chapter 1: The Call of the Wild The tranquil morning in Grand Marais was a symphony of natural beauty, a stark contrast to the impending danger Kai was about to face. The air was perfumed with the scent of pine, the invigorating chill of Lake Superior, and the tantalizing aroma of freshly baked donuts from the nearby bakery. Kai, known as 'Iron Kai ', stood on the rocky beach, his kayak a silent companion. He was irresistibly drawn to the untamed wilderness, where he felt most alive and in control. Kai had meticulously planned his journey ac...

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Deja Vu

Submitted to Contest #266

This story is set in a war zone. There's some swearing and a brief episode of gore. I crouch low behind a pile of rubble barely big enough to protect my ass, let alone the rest of me. I aim to get all the vital bits tucked in and lay low—trying to make it damn near impossible for the sniper to get me with a one-and-done shot. Where the hell is he sitting? I scan the decimated buildings around me for any sign of my nemesis. A flash of sunlight off metal, a shadow that doesn’t quite fit in—but the rubble, the dark empty holes in the walls and...

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Ardent Cosmonaut

Submitted to Contest #266

I distinctly remember mining for gold on Mars at the young age of 8 when an uproar blasted throughout the cave walls. Or maybe I was cleaning the toilets at Grand Central Space Station… No, I was definitely mining for silver. Gold, I mean. The year was 2256. Somebody shouted, “It’s happening! It’s happening!” The next thing I knew, a stampede of men, women, and children - most of the children were older than me - flew out of the tunnels in droves. I was downright perplexed at this strange sight because mass exodus on this scale only took pla...

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PEN POWER

Submitted to Contest #266

The strange phenomenon started for Karley one day as she sat in her favorite spot in her garden with her journal in her lap contemplating what to write or draw. She loved this garden and cottage which she had called home for ten years now since her retirement decision to leave the city and move to a much more bucolic environment. It was an overcast day. She wished the sun would break through. It wasn’t exactly gloomy, just overcast, foretelling the coming of rain with thick clouds blocking the sun. The roses about her in the garden seemed do...

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Make Up Your Mind

Submitted to Contest #266

“Young man, destiny has chosen you for greatness!” Llwyd looked up from his mug to see an old man with the longest beard and the bushiest eyebrows he had ever seen was looking at him. “Are…are you talking to me?” Llwyd asked hesitantly, looking around the tavern. There must be a mistake. Why would anyone talk to him? He was just a humble farmhand from the backwater village of Burr, the smallest village in the land of Made-Upia. “Yes,” the old man crowed, “my boy, our kingdom is in danger! The princess has been kidnapped by the Evil Lord of ...

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Second Draft

Submitted to Contest #266

“Jake? Is that you Jake?” The weathered bartender of Kill Your Darlings, said through squinted eyes as he welcomed who he thought was his regular Jake Mathist, into the bar.  “Onix. Onix Rock Harden, now my friend.” “I’ll get you a tall one. Maybe two,” “Sounds great,” Onix said, because it was the only thing to say. Onix didn’t know if he would like the coming stout beer. Once Jake, Onix, came in to have a draft of his favorite light beer only to unearth a new gluten intolerance. “Who writes allergies into a character?” Onix asked, ...

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Sinew and Silence

Shortlisted for Contest #266 ⭐️

I drop the pen, its tip scraping across the paper as I step back, paralyzed by a vast nothingness that grips my being. The emptiness is turbulent and numbing. It takes my breath away while keeping it flowing through my mouth and nose. I must break free. I must find the muse who waits for me on the mountain. She must call my name, and I must call in response. I must go. Go up the mountain. --- The mountain beckons. Its silhouette falls upon itself under the full moon’s gaze. Light shines onto the valley floor below, reflecting the snow that’s...

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The Whisper That Changed Everything

Submitted to Contest #267

Sarah had always prided herself on being invisible. In her thirty-two years of life, she'd perfected the art of blending into the background, of being the person nobody quite remembered was in the room. It wasn't that she was particularly plain or unremarkable – she simply had a knack for making herself unnoticed. This talent had served her well in her job as a night custodian at Meridian Industries. For the past five years, she'd silently cleaned the offices of the tech giant's headquarters, privy to the detritus of corporate life but never...

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The Photographer's Lens

Submitted to Contest #267

Emma adjusted her camera, framing the dilapidated barn against the setting sun. The golden hour cast long shadows across the overgrown field, creating the perfect ambiance for her rural decay photo series. As she clicked the shutter, a twig snapped behind her. She whirled around, heart racing. A man stood at the edge of the clearing, hands raised placatingly. "Sorry, didn't mean to startle you," he said, offering a disarming smile. "I'm Jake. I own this property." Emma lowered her camera, embarrassment replacing fear. "Oh! I'm so sorry. I sh...

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RBE | Illustrated Short Stories | 2024-06

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