StoryTellers’ Short Story Collection
Pratibaa Prabhakaran
I stood in front of a row of Arab merchants, screaming their products in front of all the scrambling common men. Trinkets, candies, scrolls, silk robes. Anything a man would ever desire. But things that most would never acquire. Far too luxurious and rich for the common man to hold, at least that’s what the merchant says.
I walked through the market, smiling as I browsed the selections. Suddenly I felt a hand drop on my shoulder. I quickly turned around, expecting to find a robber, but instead was met with a young woman. A pretty one too.
“Good day sir,” said the girl. I smiled as I waved. “Is there anything you are searching for in particular?” She asked with a beautiful smile.
I simply looked at her, my mind wondering how to reply to such a question. What I wanted truly could not and would not be found in a market such as this. I shook my head sadly.
“Why do you not tell me my good sir? Is it something that embarrasses you?” She asked. Hand had moved to the side of my arm, not in an inappropriate way, but in a gentle prodding way. I didn’t answer.
“Is it that you cannot answer? Is it something you wish but think you can never receive?” Said the girl smiling.
My eyes widened, yes, yes you are right. What I want is beyond human capability, it is something I can never receive.
“I see your answer in your eyes, it seems my assumption was correct. It seems you are uneducated in the ways of the universe. All you wish for can be granted. All you must do is follow me.”
Who was this woman? Does she even know what it is I wish for? What I yearn for? And why was she speaking so eloquently that it bordered insanity?
“Your voice. That is what you wish for. You wish for your voice to return.” stated the woman abruptly. I stared at her in disbelief, how could she know that? How…
“You spoke nothing through this entire conversation sir. You merely smiled, and nodded. I figured it would have to do something with your voice.” the pretty woman answered to my unspoken question.
I nodded, a tongueless man like myself could only do that much unfortunately.
I immediately took out my little handy, dandy notebook for occasions where my hand motions were not enough for people to understand me (which was most times). I grabbed a pen from my left brest pocket and began writing my thoughts and questions down in as little words as possible. The woman watched me from the corner of her eyes, as she took me from corner to corner of the packed marketplace. I was not able to ask any of my questions.
She grabbed the neck of my collar and dragged me along her, I was stunned but said nothing else. Pretty girls were my weakness, and only the gods know when was the last time I was in the vicinity of one.
She led me to a weird back alley… this should have been my first warning of that something was amiss. But alas I said nothing but followed her like a dog to its owner.
She walked over to a crate by a dustbin, and looked around the area. She looked over my shoulders a few times, her lips pursed into a fine line.
She then opened the crate, and in it I saw multiple layers of cloth. Thin gray cloth covered whatever was inside, not that I could see what it was. The woman began to strip away the layers. Peeling one layer off, just to reveal another underneath. It took the length of approximately two minutes before something other than a drab gray cloth was revealed underneath.
But when those 2 minutes passed, and the women peeled away the final piece of cloth, I saw a necklace.
A beautiful necklace. Made with gold, and what seemed to be silver outlining it around the edges. In the very middle was a gem, covering in a larger gold plate. It was a majestic piece of jewelry to say the least.
I raised an eyebrow at the woman, pointing to the necklace and shrugging my shoulders. She must’ve noticed my confusion, because she then went on to say the very last things I ever expected to come out of her mouth.
“Its a wish granter necklace.” She said, picking it up gingerly and holding it up for me to look at.
I raised my eyebrows a little higher.
“I’m not lying,” she said, as if I would trust her a second time. “Anything you want, anything you have ever wished for. You can be granted it with one single word… or writing.” she said motioning to the notebook I still had in my hand.
I flipped a page in my notebook and wrote down Why are you selling this? In big legible letters.
“I want the money,” the woman said, with a forceful shrug of her shoulders. I looked her up and down. Even a mute man like me knew there was something else motivating her underneath all her carefully selected words.
But even if she was telling silly lies to entice me to buy, it was still a pretty necklace. And who knows, maybe I can give it to my future wife whenever I meet her.
And so, in my notebook I wrote.
How much?
The woman looked ecstatic, she immediately pushed it into my hands not even giving me the option to reply.
“$10.99,” she said. I frowned at such a low cost for such a pretty necklace. But I dipped my hand into my pocket and pulled out the change anyway.
The woman thanked me, took the money, and scrambled off before I could even give a gesture. I stood there awkwardly for a few seconds before leaving the alleyway.
Not knowing then, that in the future, I would wish I had never bought it off her.
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By: Christian Arguinzoni
“Y’know, post-postmodernism isn’t really all that far away from being reality,” John Doe said, talking to his idiotic yet confusingly charming sidekick/companion, Jane Doe.
“W h a t t h a t,” replied Jane Doe, talking in a way that confused John Doe. Like, really though, what was the point of spacing out your letters when talking on a TTS-PreCon Translating Device®? Did those people who used it think that it was quirky when they were spaced out????
Anyway, whatever, it doesn’t much matter. John Doe usually didn’t read the messages that appeared above those who used the TTSPCTD anywho.
“Shut up, narrator,” John Doe replies, breaking the fourth wall. And quite casually, one might say. I mean, it’s not like this is Homestuck—
“w o a h whatthehell was that a Homestuck reference???? y o u frickin’ internet NERD hahalhalhahahahalmaomalmaolollll,” Jane Doe replies, also breaking the fourth wall. And in reply, I say shut the actual hell up, Jane Doe. Jane Doe rolls her eyes.
Anyway.
Back to that post-postmodernism thing. Whatever that means. Actually, what does that mean, John Doe?
“Means, uh. I’m not really sure actually, it just sounded like a smart thing to say,” John Doe replies. Right well, I suppose that’s reason enough. Anyway anyway. So. John Doe, and Jane Doe. They’re in the middle of New Dork City, (cue impromptu history lesson starting NOW!) a city that was originally built as a parody of New York City®, because some architects thought it would be fun.
And now, 304 years later, it has become the New Dork City® that everybody loves. And, as a matter of fact, it’s the only of two cities that exist. Well, sort of. But if I tell you about . . . the . . . well. The Other One—
“Narrator.” John Doe says, sharply. Sorry. Got a little off track. Just . . . forget it, alright? I’ll get fired if . . . okay, nevermind. Right. John Doe and Jane Doe are in the Dimes Square®, a staple of New Dork City®. The duo are surrounded by giant, towering screens, screens that go over a mile up into the air, where gravity gets to be slightly less potent.
The screens are chalk full of advertising, and it looked like there were about a couple hundred or so people lined up at to use a SHVFTPOLAATAQFUITA® (Sky-High Viewer For The Purposes Of Looking At Advertisements That Are Quite Far Up Into The Air®), which was pretty much as it sounded. It’s quite funny to think that the law that required you to use a SHVFTPOLAATAQFUITA® for two hours per day received as much backlash as it did, back those 304 years ago.
I, personally, think it’s quite fun to look at advertisements for those two hours! The Corporate® really nailed it with that law. And it is the whole point of the city, after all. You know, the Corporate advertising its products, and us buying it! Ah. You might be wondering about the politics of the city. So, you—Oh. Wait. Wait.
“Narrator. The . . . the new law.” John Doe said.
I’m sorry. I forgot. Holy shit, holy shit shit shit! Wait! Please! The narrator turns back into his physical form. A machine resembling an upright robot with a label on it, saying “the Enforcer®”. The robot approaches the Narrator and company—John and Jane Doe. It clasps their arms, and starts to make an ear-splitting noise.
They begin to plead for their lives. The robot does not respond.
It says, “Law 192,382,193,801,293 Broken: Common Citizens Are Not To Use The Word, ‘Politic’ in any of its forms. You will now be punished in a public fashion.” The Narrator, John, and Jane begin to scream, and continue to plead for mercy.
Everybody in the Dimes Square was looking now, some screaming. The robot raises a stick, and hits the three directly on the arms. They scream in pain as the robot continues to hit their arms and legs. Nobody cries, for fear they would be hit in the same manner.
Elaine Nguyen
The TV advertisement from a travel agency starts with the head of a middle-aged man appearing in a lightly-colored background.
“Hello, consumer!” The advertisement narrator speaks loudly, with enthusiasm. “Today, we are offering $20 tickets to go to Miami! In order to get a $20 ticket, you must register on our website. There, we will choose the winners to get a $20 ticket, and you may get one! Hurry up, ‘cause we’ll give away $20 tickets for Miami soon!
The TV advertisement ends, fading to black.
Sydney Collier
The old TV slowly flickered on as advertisements filled the cracked screen. It was required for every person to have a TV, the quality of the TV didn’t matter as long as it worked. Most people just have old broken TV’s because nobody even watches anything anymore. Most companies don’t even bother making anything new so they just run forced advertisements to make small revenue.
I glanced at the TV as the usual advertisements played, people talking in fast paced voices about fancy potions to make you look like an entirely different person, it didn’t matter though barely anybody went outside. I watched as the advertisements slowly came to a close. I was about to walk away when I heard a soft voice coming from the old box.
I turned my head back to the Tv and saw a little kid facing the tv, it looked as if they were staring directly into my eyes. I walked towards the side of the tv and their eyes continued to follow me even as their body stayed faced forward. Nervously I sat back down on the worn down couch and listened as the child on the screen continued to speak with a soft muffled voice.
“Do you want to finally escape this cold, dark, horrible world?” They said with an emotionless face, “Well then this is for you, just take this potion before you sleep and you will be instantly transferred to another world for eight hours and you will still get a full night’s sleep!” I stared in astonishment at the screen as the next advertisement began.
This couldn’t be possible…could it? I thought to myself as the final advertisements played. What happens next? Well you can get the next episode free if you pay for a $20 monthly plan! Just click the link below. First month free if you click now!!
Table Of Contents
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The Reviver’s Passage Chapter I
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