Sunday Photo Fiction is a weekly challenge presented by my old friend Al Forbes.
The idea is to write a short story (200 word max) inspired by what you see in his picture (below).
This one, I confess, leaves me confused.
Yes, okay, but more so than usual.
Click on this link to enter your tale, and see what others have written.
Copyright Al Forbes
The Bauble
At first it is just Carol and I.
We are far along the beach, past the Broken Steps, when we see it.
It is small, about the size of a bauble from a Christmas tree, and shiny.
No, it is glowing, with an almost painful intensity.
She goes to lift it, pulls back in surprise.
What, I ask her, bending, reaching.
I feel the heat before I can touch it.
At this time of year the beach is deserted, but I don’t like to leave it lying there.
I rummage, salvage crumpled tinfoil from a forgotten seaside supper.
I scoop it into my rucksack, find it incredibly heavy.
We go to the little café in the square, show it off.
My friend Rafa points to the TV.
We see similar objects, discovered all over the world.
It seems that there are dozens, maybe hundreds, of them.
No one has as yet determined what they are, or where they come from.
We are told to call a special number.
I do, and I am told to wait, leave it untouched.
So we all sit around, speculating.
It starts to vibrate, gently.
A small crack appears.
And unspeakable evil emerges.
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Evil emerges… and it is left just there for the imagination. You build up the perfect story and then at the end I have to finish it off as I want. That’s not fair. Good story anyway
Glad you enjoyed the story, SD2,.
If you do not want to finish it off with your imagination, please see my response to Brenda, below.
Thank you, I’ll have a quick look
It ends just as the story gets going. You should write more!
Nah, Brenda, not much happens after that.
Mankind is threatened with annihilation, but Brad or Daniel or some other handsome hunk has an idea and against all odds and with extraordinary courage saves the day with the help of a beautiful but zany lady who at first can’t stand him but at the end falls happily into his arms.
Cue credits.
LOL Sounds very James Bond. Could that be Daniel Craig? Ah, Brad Pitt, now he could save the world, if only he had time.
Are you laughing, Brenda, at my highly original plot?
Pah!
I am enjoying your wit at my expense. 🙂 I guess sometimes continuing the story does just take it down predictable paths.
Great read! I was anxious to see what happened and when I reached the end of the story….I wanted more…especially when the unspeakable evil emerges!
Thank you, LJC, but there is no more to be said.
It was unspeakable!
The intro to The Blob…? Or a whole lot of Blobs, maybe.
Or not.
Cheers, Dave.
intriguing twist in the tale
There is always a twist in the tale.
Nearly.
This is a great story and leaves me craving for more. 🙂
How very kind of you, Maria, thank you.
There are more stories on here, and, if you go to my Current Story Page, you can hear me read a short tale from my recently published book.
Brilliant! You just got yourself a new follower. 🙂 I love your style.
I like that you hint at this huge science-fiction world-wide catastrophe going on, but instead of giving us lots of overhead shots of that, you zoom right in on how a few everyday people experience this curious new thing, and how it develops for them.
As soon as I read that there were more of these found all over the world, I could tell that it was either going to be Very Good or more likely, Very Bad. And because you used the phrase “unspeakable evil” my first thought was something Lovecraftian. ((shiver))
Thank you, Joy, for your kind words and thoughtful comments.
I am beyond flattered at any comparison with Mr Lovecraft.
It’s always gotta be some unspeakable evil, eh?
They do it on purpose, ya know…make it all shiny and pretty so unsuspecting folks pick them up and bring them into places with no protection…
Maybe not so much unspeakable as unwritable.
Thing is, I had run out of words, so it was totally unmentionable, if you see what I mean.
And thank you for the enlightenment.
I had not previously understood that the shiny prettiness was just to save on fuel.
It begins so mysterious and ends so chilling! Great story CE!!
Thank you, Joy, very glad that it drew you in so well.
Man, don’t you just hate that when evil emerges…
Where is Superman when you need him? But wait it is green…was green maybe there’s
some nasty krypotnite residue?…
This wasn’t a Rumors week… but I did do another poetic mash-up –
Reigning in Expressions
And I used my own interpretation of the ‘green bauble’ Cheers.
Hiya, Jules
I never see Superman down here, guess he doesn’t like the sun.
That Kent guy is always hanging around though, go figure.
I don’t think it is kryptonite though, not according to what just happened here…
Maybe Kent has a nose for news…
and maybe he’s got some connections?
Pure evil is nasty stuff though…Hope I don’t find one of your green globes.
Nice story from you 🙂 sense of mystery, and leaving lots of people wondering when, where, and how… Great stuff!
Thanks, Angie.
Always leave ’em guessing, that’s my motto!
I actually like the last line – it still leaves plenty to the imagination. Enjoyed the build-up too!
Thanks, Steve.
Don’t tell anyone, but that Rochelle knows nuttin’ about short stories!
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Dear C.E.
I wonder what that evil looks like. Although, take this as my opinion, I think the story might be more effective if you left us hanging without the last line. Nonetheless, I love your concise style of writing.
Shalom,
Rochelle
Thank you, Rochelle, and I understand your point.
I also value your opinion, and cherish your praise.
But it would then be a very different story, and not the one I had in mind.
Perhaps as good, perhaps even better, but…
I did not envisage, as some undoubtedly would, little fluffy duckies popping out.
Ooooh … unspeakable evil .. I like it. I did wonder where the Government came from, and now we know 😉
It’s a crystal ball that has had a laser light shone in it with a shutter speed of ten seconds.
Ah, I thought it was an egg containing Iain Duncan Smith!
If it is, then smash it with a hammer before it gets out properly. He is one of the only people that will make me use words I don’t normally use.
Reblogged this on anelephantcant and commented:
AnElephantCant decide what this photo depicts
It looks a bit like a wee shiny cat’s poo
He does not like to be rude
He’s a well-mannered dude
So he hopes that C. E. Ayr has somewhat more of a clue
Oooh … lovely! I love this sort of story!
Thanks, Belinda, I am all smiles here!