AnElephantCant keep this a secret
He sadly has never been to Barcelona
It does look exquisite
But if he goes to visit
He doesn’t know anyone so he is all alone there
Once again it is Friday Fictioneer time.
Our Catalonian Commander Rochelle takes us on a Mediterranean meander to inspire spectacular Spanish stories.
And AnElephant is in a paella trouble.
The idea is to write a very short story, circa 100 words, based on this picture prompt (below).
That’s it.
© Dee Lovering
Carry Out
The port area is so crowded it is hard to move.
The restaurants and cafes are packed, the quayside lined with tourists watching the fireworks over the bay.
There are twelve of us, working in pairs.
We have strict limits on what we can do.
Karate is my thing.
I can immobilise silently and without permanent damage in more ways than I can count.
So I run interference.
To ensure the client gets the best product, undamaged.
My partner is well-built, good-looking in a nondescript sort of way.
Doesn’t look at all odd carrying a pretty girl in his arms.
Always with an eye on the pretty girls!
Yeah, well, shucks, Brenda, AnElephant is maybe a bit ancient but he is not yet dead!
LOL But are your intentions good?
Jings, Brenda, are you teasing AnElephant here?
He is very easily led astray, so please tread carefully!
I can only assume you have bad intentions since your pretty girl characters often meet bad ends. Fairies don’t tread, we flit and flutter. LOL
You’ve created an incredibly disturbing story with the matter-of-fact narration coupled with the subject matter. I hate to think how many girls they’ve kidnapped in this way – they definitely sound well-practiced. Good story.
AnElephant is happy that you got disturbed and enjoyed.
But he hopes you are not really too disturbed, it is only a story, honestly, dear lady!
Six girls being carried off! And six partners being karate chopped! And nobody bats an eye! I’m saying away from Barcelona fireworks demonstrations. Great story, Anelephant.
Thank you, Margaret.
And please keep in mind that AnElephant writes fiction.
That is why he has a nose like Pinocchio!
Nasty, nasty ones. Can’t trust the handsome non-descript ones at all…
Never a problem for AnElephant, dear Dale!
Terrifying tale, well written.
Thank you, Anon, glad you got something from it.
Dear Elephant,
One certainly needn’t visit a location to write about it convincingly. Nice work this week.
All my best,
MG
Thank you, MG.
AnElephant has visited a few seedy ports in his days!
Hugs
Nasty character there. I’ll keep away from the ports.
AnElephant thinks you are pretty safe, Patrick!
This is a good scary story! Wow – and you’re good at it! Have a great week! Nan
Well, thank you, Nan!
Big hugs to you.
What a story. Procuring women undamaged off the streets of Barcelona whilst the fireworks flash. Twelve of them working in pairs so assuming they each get one thats 6 women a night. What do they want them all for? I guess that’s another story.
Indeed, Irene!
Thank you for reading, visiting and commenting.
Oh. Creepy kidnappers hidden in plain sight.
A man’s gotta do …
David above expressed better than I was able to formulate. Scary tale. All the more so because of the cold, seemingly benign voice of the narrator.
Personne ne le fait aussi bien que toi, tu sais cela, oui?
Just the facts, ma’am, just the facts.
I had Baltimore on my mind before I saw this prompt. Once I saw it it was all I saw.
My niece, a very pretty girl, lives 20 minutes away from the Inner Harbor.
I would have poo pooed this off a week ago, maybe called you a filthy name (your protagonist of course, not you my dear anelephant) but today I read this with bated breath.
I want/ I need to rescue her and all the other young women who look at the world through the eyes of a 17 year old.
Sadly, dear Dawn, there are bad people in this wonderful world.
AnElephant hopes that your niece, and all youngsters, stay safe.
Thank you sou much.
You have a real gift for sincerely scary things sneaking up on the reader, wrapped in seemingly innocent prose. I know better by now. Great job, as always.
-David
Thank you, David, it seems AnElephant is rumbled!
Dear Elephant,
They’re quite an engaging pair. Enough to make one’s skin crawl. Well done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you. AnElephant is sure that Rochelle’s skin crawls quite charmingly!
Well that took an unexpected turn. If one can enjoy a gut-punch, I just did. Well done.
Ooh, AnElephant does not like to gut-punch a lady.
But he is happy you enjoy it, he thinks!
Huh. Makes me think about what I would do if I saw someone carrying a woman through a crowded street. This one is going to stick with me…
Huh. AnElephant recommends Pachyderm Polishing, to remove all the stuff that sticks!
Very wise…
I’ll never look at a man carrying a girl the same way again after reading this. Scary stuff. The narration was excellent.
Thank you, AnElephant is happy you enjoyed despite the scary stuff.
Scary stuff…the narrative is so effortless and the subject is so heavy.
AnElephant is not scary, but he is a heavy dude!
A story of our times.Sad.
Rosey Pinkerton
Indeed, Rosey, and thank you for visiting.
Another disturbing one Elephant – and another one done well.
KT
Glad to disturb, gladder to do well.
Thank you.
oooops – scary business – by cold professionals, more foxy than elephantine.
Ah, yes, a mammoth difference!
That’s scary, Elephant. You took us inside the mind of someone who does human trafficing. Not a good place to be. Well done. Great description. — Suzanne
Thank you, Suzanne, AnElephant is happy to provoke a reaction.