Theundergroundnovella2022 Stories

There was always a rock of sorts between Sebastian and the rest of his family, something he always felt the need to escape. He found the escape in the outdoor sports, one of the few positive things he'd picked up from that person over the years albeit he didn't want to otherwise think of them. One day, he decides to take up climbing again, which felt as simple as getting new equipment. Disclaimer - I don't own Stardew Valley. This is written for ONC 2020, the prompt I am using is the first one. "You plan to go rock climbing, so you head to the local sporting goods store to buy some new equipment. While on the mountain, you run into some problems."

Timballisto struggles with the scattered pieces of Martin's memory the best he can, telling Martin the past doesn't matter. Yet, in saying so he doesn't know how much the past does matter, particularly when illness befalls those helping to build Redwall, which will eventually become a safe haven for many. Polleekeen always knew, though, what lay in store for Martin. Disclaimer - I don't own Redwall. This is written for ONC 2022, but the prompt I picked for this was prompt was number seventy, "His eyes were cold and lifeless as he stared at me. 'You have no idea who I am, do you?'."

My journal for ONC this year, following through with my tradition of writing a journal every year.

She wished... She wishes she could be anywhere, but there, though ending up in one of her favorite fandom always seemed like an ideal anywhere. Yet, instead of ending up anywhere, one sixteen, almost seventeen-year-old Sirius Black ended up there, in her world instead, with sixteen-year-old her with all the things about herself that she hated. Of course, Sirius Black is Sirius Black... Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter. This is written for Open Novella Contest 2022 for prompt thirty-six. "You've always wished you could enter the world of your favourite video game. Instead, you wake up one morning to find a character from said video game in your room."

After losing her husband during the pandemic, Runa MacCabe moves herself and her children to the remote island that her husband's family had owned for centuries, hoping that she, her daughter, Hertha, and her son, Stigr, can find some kind of peace and closure. When the island is rocked by an earthquake and a terrifying storm on the first night, Runa believes their new life may not be as peaceful as she hoped. Especially after her children tell her that they were saved from the earthquake and storm by a big dog that now lay injured in a mysterious cave. Only, there were no dogs on the island and the only other resident of the island had only livestock animals on his farm. Insistent, Hertha and Stigr persuade their mother to see the big dog, only for Runa to find something far stranger and far more dangerous than she could have ever feared. Something that could spell destruction for the entire world. A novella, written for #ONC2022. Based upon Prompt No. 13 and in the Creature Feature category. Cover created in Canva, using a Pixabay stock picture.

'The Passing Bell', ONC2022 The Passing Bell" is based on Prompt 62: The old man you've been taking care of at the hospital has passed on. And in their will, you've been given their Wiltshire mansion. It's your first day in the house but something seems off; and, Prompt 65: You were told if you find a bell in the woods to never ring it, or you will be cursed! While hiking deep in the forest, you-literally-stumble across a bell. The title comes my checking on the use of bells in England in older times. Bells gave information. i.e., summoning to church, or announcing a death (knell). A passing bell was rung to call a curate to a person about to die. The death bell was rung when the person died. The funeral bell (formerly lych or corpse bell) was rung for the funeral. Two bells appear in this story: Hydd's bell, and St. Duncan's bell. April Waverly cared for Drew Ramsey the last few years of his life. He leaves her his Wiltshire farm, Oakton, in his will. However, there are conditions: 1) she must live at Oakton continuously until Ostara; 2) she may not marry or have a relationship until the month after Ostara; 3) Ramsey's religfious group, the Pelham Druids, must be allowed to worship at the King's Oak until Ostara; 3) she must attend the seasonal festivals of the Pelham druids until Ostara in place of Drew; and, 4) she must maintain Oakton as is until Ostara.

In fixing up the Granger home before returning her parents memories, Hermione comes across the antique mirror in the attic, only to find herself in a world where she's back to being eleven, but this time around she's the child of a single mother, no father in sight. Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter. This is written for Open Novella 2022, prompt eighty-four. "Word has it that antique mirrors are the doors to another realm. When curiosity compels you to take a closer look at the giant mirror in the Attic, you find yourself being dragged inside it. Leaving you trapped in an alternate universe." It's also a Froday Flash Fiction Challenge, for the current Froday Madness which is characters living.

Wolfie Johnson moves back to Transylvania, Pennsylvania under the care of his older brother to attend high school, but the town is supposed to be a haven for their kind - monster kind, so he looks forward to going back to a life of not having to hole up at home during full moons, as well as seeing his friends he left behind in third grade. Disclaimer - I don't own the Great-Uncle-Dracula series. This is written for Open Novella 2022 for prompt 93. "You attended the same elementary school from kindergarten through third grade before moving away. You find yourself returning to that same school district when starting high school. Faces look familiar as you walk through the hallways. Will childhood friendships rekindle or have they changed too much?"

Under the stairs is a locked cupboard in the house Alisha rents, that she passes every day on the way to what turned out to be a nine-to-five kind of job. One day, she finds it unlocked only for the door to close and lock behind her, the light going out. What happens next is not what she expected, but then what would she have otherwise ended up in through a cupboard under the stairs? Disclaimer - I don't own Harry Potter. This is written for Open Novella Contest's prompt number fifty-seven. "For as long as you've rented the house, the door to the cupboard under the stairs has always been locked and you never paid it any mind. You wake one morning, and discover that not only is it unlocked, but wide open."

When a strange old woman comes to the village of Little Plimpton, her arrival sparks a conflict that could bring the entire population to the brink of war. And by 'war', read 'a series of petty grievances aired in public'. Humphrey, caught in the middle of the ensuing whirlwind of accusations, threats and mildly aggressive and/or violent actions, must try his utmost to bring Little Plimpton back to some semblance of serenity and, if he has his way, at least quiet. If only so he can read his newspaper in peace. A novella, written for #ONC2022. Based upon Prompt No. 6 and in the General Fiction category. Cover created in Canva, using a Pixabay stock picture.

"Unfortunate, that your bird can't speak for itself." *** Javeria Hadid has been gifted miscellaneous pieces of nature by the same lark ever since she turned eighteen. Perhaps it saw her one day and thought she was worthy of a few pretty pebbles. Five years later, she and her best friend visit a museum where they discover an anonymous painting of her lark surrounded by familiar treasures. They decide to search for the artist, thinking they might know who the lark belongs to. However, tracking down the artist might be harder than they thought. *ONC2022 Prompt 46.

Lila Unwinter is not a very talented witch; she mostly has a lot of ambition, determination, and enough spite to last her a few hundred years. How else was she supposed to survive the past sixteen years, after she lost both her best friend and her family over something she can barely even remember now? They're not dead, of course, but for all that they care about her, she might as well be. But then her magic decides to send her home for lunch break one day, and she not only finds out about a curse that's taken hold of her way back when she was only six years old, but also reconnects with her childhood friend (who's considerably less alive now). A series of events unfolds that may well redefine Lila's perception of both love and magic itself. Featuring: way too many ghosts, the town at the Edge of the world, knife and sword-wielding girls, sapphic childhood-friends-to-lovers, ghost kitties, weird magic and magical creatures, and a certain three-headed dog. ________________ an entry for the open novella contest 2022

Rachel took on the job of limo driving to pay for college. She learned within the first few months that sometimes meant taking on challenging clients. More often than not a too good to be true payout meant a challenging client, and the higher the pay, the more challenging. Of course, the fact she'd not gotten any real details should have been a clue this one would definitely be a challenge. Disclaimer - I don't own Voltron: Legendary Defender. This is written for ONC 2022 and is written for prompt four. "You're hired as a temporary bodyguard/driver for a high-profile client visiting your city for a week. It is very important you make sure the client sticks to the itinerary you are given. Only when you arrive are you told the client's identity - a celebrity known for being wild and always getting into trouble!"

Six hundred years is a long time to be alive, and Freya is not looking forward to her birthday, the next in a long row of lonely days and only fickle mortals for company. She just wants to get away, reinvent herself once more. Getting catfished was not really part of that plan, and neither is finding herself face-to-face with her greatest nightmare and her oldest dream. A journey through the past and the yet-unknown future. Featuring: non-stereotypical sapphic vampires, sword fighting and betrayal, hanging out in a grocery store and watching the stars. _______ an entry for the Open Novella Contest 2022 based mainly on prompts 76, 33, 39 and 38

Since the first day they met, Teagan and Malcolm were always attached at the hip. Wherever one went the other would follow. They always had that special kind of bond, a bond some will never experience. Everything changes when Malcolm - suddenly and without warning - moves away. It's been 15 years since Teagan last saw Malcolm, he hasn't changed at all, except for the fact that he is going to be married in a month. --- ONC 2022 Prompt 89

Between 1813 and 1819, the great composer, Ludwig van Beethoven almost disappeared from public life. Many stories passed about the reason, but none could ever hope to know the truth. Until now. In 1818, Bernhard Gerber experiences something terrifying and heartbreaking, bringing him in contact with the great man, Beethoven, himself. Though Beethoven proves nothing like the person known all across Europe. Between them, the two men take on the task of ridding the world of the greatest horror ever to walk the Earth and, in the process, perhaps lay to rest both men's greatest tragedies and guilt. A deadly serious story with a character that doesn't know it. And doesn't care. A novella, written for #ONC2022. Based upon Prompt No. 70 and in the 'Creature Feature' category. Cover created in Canva, using an AI generated picture.

Keith hated school, and while having Shiro in his life now that he was enrolled in the garrison program was a plus, being seen as Shiro's favorite wasn't. And then, one day a new kid transfers in from the Japeanse garrison, one the other kids joke looks like Keith's identical twin brother, but the fact Keith looks like Ryo Shirogane - Shiro's younger brother - becomes a laughing matter, one Keith isn't to keen on. Disclaimer - I don't own Voltron: Legendary Defender. This is written for ONC 2022, prompt 95. "They say that everyone has someone out there that looks like them, but what happens when you come face to face with the new kid in school that could pass as your identical twin?"