The shard of glass scratched my palm and released droplets of crimson tears. I winced, but finished my task - replacing a broken window - anyway. When I was finished, Ms. Catherine called me to her quarters. I hid my bleeding hand behind my back.

"Jane," She said, then sipped her tea, "I must inform you, I have decided to trade you for a new maid."

"What?" I shrieked, "but you said, Ms. Catherine, that you'd keep me 'until I was of age to marry'. So I could have some protection."

Ms. Catherine paused, then said, "Show me your hands."

"Wha-" I was cut off by Ms. Cathrine yanking my hand to her. She clicked her tongue.

"Scratched up, dirty, improper... yes, Marie would do much better." she muttered, "Go pack your things, and clean that cut. I would hate it to find blood on my wool carpets."

I dropped my head and nodded.

Two days later, I found myself on a train to London. I  traveled for what felt like the longest time, munching on eggy bread. It was quite nice, but then I got there.

To Ms. Hertbarn's house; a looming mansion, with cracked windows and a rodent infestation. I had a feeling the good years of my life were over.

Was that good? My idea started with a princess, but I came up with a maid.  :/ 

As they were walking along the road, Steph, short for Stephanie noticed something usual was happening. Her usually angry, violent, and sharp half-sister was relaxed. Too relaxed. ¨Hm. Come look at these flowers Steph!¨ She called. That was wrong. The second daughter to the king, loved stomping on flowers at the least. She might even chop off the branches of the royal garden´s trees and plants, not coo and adore them. She might not know, but they both knew something was up.

Stephanie felt cold. Her mind was slowly urging her to go back to the palace, not fret in this undesirable way. She knew that she was dangerous. But she still wanted to come. ¨Uh Steph? Are you wearing earplugs? Hello?¨ She snapped out of thought. She smiled, walked closer to her, and then her sister’s knife poked her neck.

Her sister growled, ¨ You’re so clueless! Why did you think I came with you? To admire flowers or develop sister bonds? No, no. I’m here for the throne.¨ Stephanie kicked and attempted to bite her. It was no use. She knew that she could leave her stranded and make up some story to trick everyone into hurrying the birthright. She knew what she wanted. But would she actually do it?

She did. 3 weeks later, Stephanie hurriedly slammed the throne room door open, and to her horror, the monster was sitting on it.

It's nowhere near 750 words, but here's my entry! I like it a lot, and maybe later I'll make it the start of a murder mystery I'm planning to write.

She was shivering. Her vision was blurring. Was that a dragon swooping in? The scales were golden and sparkling in the bright light reflected off the ice crystals. Around her was a shimmering, icy wonderland, but she was too cold to appreciate its beauty.

Trisha blinked, and her sight cleared. No, she wasn’t in a frozen desert from Fairyland, but the walk-in freezer at her father’s ice cream parlor. There was the huge tub of lemon-lavender sherbet, and her favorite, Chocolate Peppermint Delight.

And the dragon was...

“You?”

“Yes.” The other person smiled coldly. “Yes, me. I was considering an easier punishment, drowning, perhaps, or poison, but won’t it be thrilling when your father walks into his freezer tomorrow morning and sees his precious daughter’s body here, as cold as his dessert? Don’t worry, I’ll be there too. And I’ll weep just as much as is proper.”

Trisha’s friend turned and was gone. She could dimly hear the door click.

It was cold in her ice palace, but, slowly, she lowered herself down to her frozen throne.

I sniff the air, searching for my party. 

I’m a wood elf sneaking through the dusty, forgotten paths of Neverwinter wood. My party, two dwarves, one elf and a human, went off for breakfast while I was still meditating.

“Keira? Romlem? Vernonia? Clay?  Where are you?” 

Usually I could find them in a moment in these woods. They knew that, so why would they even try to hide? I hear the birds singing, frogs croaking, but no leaves rustling or twigs snapping...

Suddenly everything turns a blur.  I’ve been poisoned. My senses are numb, but before I hit the ground I see Clay standing above me, Sword in hand.

I’ve been betrayed.

Everything I know soon fades, and I lay there, cold and unmoving. The lasting thing I see are Keira, Romlen, Vernonia and Clay watching over me, though I don’t know who they are. Then I taste blood on the floor and fade from this world.

~~~

”Good, it’s done.” I look at the faces of Keira, Romlem and Vernonia who seem oddly sad.

Romlem, my fellow dwarf is first to speak. “She was a friend. What did she have that you wanted? That we wanted?”

”Remember? Her power was growing so much stronger! Maybe if she had chosen to be a Rouge or a Bard, but Wizard? That’s just too much power!”

Keira the human speaks next. “I’m a wizard as well, Clay.”

I realize I’ve been caught.  They’d figure out my true reasons soon. I can’t do anything but get rid of Keira too... But my love...

~~~

That’s it! I may have gone a little over... I’m not sure. I don’t have anything to count on as I just write on here. What do you think? 

Idk why I was getting sci-fi vibes for this, but here you go:) It' around 680 words, btw.

~~~ 

My eyes flick over the control panel of the spaceship, adjusting the thruster speed and trajectory. Holographic maps of distant galaxies layer on top of one another on the dashboard in front of me, and the radar is silent. 

"How much longer until the next jump point?" I ask the empty space. 

The speaker embedded in the wall to my right lights up with a sudden blue glow as the ship's computer answers me. "Only twenty-six minutes."

"Perfect." I am right on schedule to get this cargo delivered to it's buyers on time, despite having to take a small detour to pick up one of my many cousins, Jason, who had asked for a lift to Planet B9-7, my destination. Delivering cargo is monotonous work, coasting through the emptiness of space on the same course, day after day, but I endure it for the money. One day I'll have saved enough to take off in my sturdy ship and see the worlds beyond my native galaxy. One day.

Suddenly, a red light flashes on the dash, shaking me out of my reverie. It's the oxygen meter. I frown. This is an unusual glitch; it's never happened before. My next breath is surprisingly hard to take, and my heart starts to beat faster in panic. I rid myself of the uneasy feeling and stand, using the wall to steady me. All I need is to get to the supplies closet right outside the door, where the oxygen masks are located. I struggle through another breath and let my eyesight focus in time to see there's someone blocking the doorway.

"Hey there, Andy," Jason says, using my old childhood nickname for my full name, Andromeda. He's smiling, though there's no humor in it.

An oxygen mask is strapped across his face.

My mind connects the pieces far too late. "You." I almost can't talk, there's no air. 

"Yes, me," he replies nonchalantly. 

My hand automatically goes for the laser at my belt, but the world spins around me with the quick motion and I drop to my knees. The laser falls to the floor with a clatter. Jason crosses the room in a few confident strides and kicks the laser across the room, well out of my reach.

"Sorry, cousin," he said, with no pity in his voice. "But I need to pay off a debt, and this ship is the quickest way to do that. It’ll sell for a good price on the black market, along with all your cargo." 

The world around me shifts and twists so I can barely make out his words. In my oxygen-deprived state, I almost laugh at him. I can no longer breathe. 

I manage to get out one last whisper of a word. "Why?" 

He shrugs. "Don't take it personally, Andy. If it makes you feel any better, you were never in my original plans. This was a last resort." Something akin to guilt passes over his face, but it is gone so quickly I think it's a product of my deteriorating state.

My eyesight is fading, and I know there's no hope left for me. I fall to the floor. 

He kneels down next to me and whispers into my ear. "Goodbye, Andromeda."

Suddenly, I'm pulled into a memory. Jason's six and I'm eight, and he has come into my room in the dead of night with tears streaking down his face. He tells me it was because of nightmares, but I know it is his father that makes him this scared. I ask him to sit next to me, and I tell him stories, just like I always do when he can't sleep.

He interrupts me. "Andy, can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"What are you most afraid of?"

I think. What am I most afraid of? "Fading away," I whisper to him. "With no one left to miss me. What about you?"

His eyes are full of sadness. "I'm afraid of becoming like my father." He pauses. "A monster."

I was afraid of fading and he was afraid of becoming a monster.

Looks like we both lost.

*Squeal*

Things you know:

1. She loved you.

2. You miss her.

3. This is all, completely, entirely your fault.

4. There's nothing you can do about it now. 

~~ 

Sneakers hit the rain-soaked sidewalk as you follow her like your life depends on it. Earlier, she'd looked at you. You. And as if in slow motion, you'd watched as her face crumpled like a piece of notebook paper. This is all your fault. You know that, even now...

You call her name, but all you get is the sound of her feet running faster up the stairs in front of you. This is all your fault. Without a moment's hesitation you burst into a sprint, flying up the stairs, paying no attention to the signs telling you to do just that. I'm so, so, sorry...

~~

Things you wish weren't true:

1. You don't have anything left of her except a memory.

2. The memory is fading.

3. Then you will have nothing.

~~

She is staring at you, on the roof. In the rain. Even in the rain, you can tell she is crying. And it's all your fault. But when she speaks

she is eerily calm. Her voice is detatched from her thoughts. All your fault. You're sorry. You're so, so sorry.

~~

Misconceptions you had:

1. You'd see her again.

2. She'd forgive you.

3. Eventually, you'd forget.

~~

You can see it in her eyes. She is hurt beyond repair. Why did you not notice this? Why did you not see this coming? What have you done...

Nothing you can change. You're sorry. You're so sorry. It doesn't help, and you know it. All you can see is her face. It's wet, with rain and tears. Your fault. There's nothing you can do

as she fades away.

Except convince yourself you'll see her again.

~~

The last truths:

1. You didn't.

2. It's all your fault.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

What is this? I don't know. It's not my usual style. Do I like it? Yes, I think so. Thank you for this challenge, Leo, I very much enjoyed writing this.

A snippet of a story i'm writing that would fit perfectly here;

Tears ran down my face, I tried to scream out how much I hated her, but they took my voice, my words... All I could do was yell a jumble of noises at her. She laughed at my face, holding Winter's bleeding, head up by the hair to show me how miserable she looked.

"Did you seriously THINK that I would ever want to play with you? Sure, the first two days were fun," She danced around the room, the cardboard box on her head sliding in every direction we went. "But I needed some new friends, you just weren't good enough!" She continued in a whiny voice, making her way over to me.

I couldn't move... I tried to, but the shot she gave me made my legs give way to gravity. How could she do this to me? I gave her everything she wanted, everything she asked for... And this is how she repays me? Memories of our first three months together flashed before my eyes.

"Hehehe! Come on Nix! There's a beautiful sunset up here that I wanna show you!" Cassandra sound with a cheery tone that practically forced me to give in to her every demand.

"Awooo!"  I howled at her, unnaware that she was the cause for my missing voice.

She led me to a nearby cliff in the middle of the forest, holding my hand as she pushed me to the edge.

"See! Isn't it beautiful?" She  asked.

"Aroo roo!" I howled in agreement.

For a moment, I had realized i wasn't alone. It was just us three there in the hospital... Just me, Winter, and Cassandra... She had been so kind, and we returned her kindness only to be played like puppets while she laughed at us. She pulled our strings and cackled as she broke our backs and roped more innocent children into this place just because she wanted more people to play her sick game. I thought... I knew her...

I looked into the holes cut out in her box and tried to look deep into her eyes. I saw the eyes of the person who I loved like a sister, but as I looked deeper into her eyes, I saw nothing but the shell of the girl I once knew, filled with ungodly amounts of rage, regret, and hatred... As she grew ever closer, blade in hand, I wondered how I could still care so deeply about someone who had hurt me so badly... I guess i'll never know. 

This is really short, but here it is.

This is my first time using the portals without an adult. I'm nervous but prepared — I've been training for this my entire life. Millions of kids do this every day, with much less instruction than I got! I'm no different. Well, maybe that's a lie.

Following my instructor's directions, which I memorized months ago, I step into the swirling, glowing portal. My best friend's glowing face almost makes me regret what I'm about to do, but no. This is my path to power. The power that will change my life forever.

I steel myself and whisper something no one told me to say — "Ah-havalo." The last thing I see is the crowd's shocked faces as my atoms disperse and regroup in the forbidden city. 

It was the look of a man who knew no mercy. His blond hair was settled and calm, like his cold exterior. But inside, he was very different. He was angry. How angry? No one would ever ask. But as he stood above me, I saw more than anger. I saw... sadness. Every person who had bullied him. Belittled him. All of it. I was fallen on my back, surrounded by a burning house. "Goodbye. I may not ever see you again, and I hope no one else does." He said. He raised his revolver. "I never wanted to harm you! I never meant you all this pain and suffering! WAS IT MY FAULT? NO! KILLING ME WON'T TAKE ALL THE ANGER AWAY!" I yelled. "You took everything from me. All of it. Yes, killing you won't take my anger away. But it will make sure no one else ever experiences your wrath." He said. I laughed. "Pathetic. Pathetic little boy. I teached you to become a man, but it clearly didn't work. You are still a little boy. Now go cry to your mother." He started to become angrier. "I am no little boy! I am more of a man than you will ever be!" He said with enough strength to shake the room. "I said go cry to your mother! Wait, you only have me! You only ever had me!" I say, continuing to chuckle. His vains on his forehead are pulsing. "A PARENT ACTUALLY CARES FOR THEIR CHILD!" He responds, even louder. "I cared for you all I could." I reply. "No you didn't-" "I cared for you all I could!" "NO YOU DIDN'T-" I put up my hand. "Please. Stop this madness, and come back home with me. Please." I said, my eyes welling up with tears. He waited a couple seconds. "No." I saw the barrel of the gun, then...BANG. I felt a sudden pain, but then all I saw was black. Like I was falling down an inescapable pit. He had killed me. He really had. But I died happy, knowing his training was complete. Now, he will kill anyone. He will be the ultimate hitman. The ultimate killing assasin. I have made... the ultimate weapon.