Onc26 Stories

Edmund comes to the remote village of Black Thickett to escape the life grief has carved out of him. He wants silence. Distance. A place where memories can't follow. But Black Thickett is wrong in quiet, unsettling ways. The broken road becomes perfectly smooth the moment he crosses the boundary. The cottages are too neat, too deliberate. And on a noticeboard full of dry flyers, only one poster is wet. A missing boy, smiling as if he doesn't know he's lost. The villagers won't talk about the disappearances. The forest at the edge of the village seems to breathe, and the deeper Edmund goes, the calmer he feels... dangerously calm. The forest can quiet his pain. It can ease his grief. It can make him forget. But not everything that heals you wants you to survive. Welcome to Black Thickett, where you'll find my entry into the ONC 2026.

Her return was supposed to be simple. Go inside, clear the house then file the rapport. Happy ending, she gets her career back. Except she gets greeted differently. And the longer she stays the harder it becomes to tell whether she is investigating the house or someone is investigating her. Based on prompt 82 "You are in love with someone living and someone long dead. Neither one is willing to let you go."

Jareth Coppersmith and Pol Flynt have one thing in common. They kill for a living. One works for GAME, the powerful Guild of Airship Mechanics and Engineers and the other, for the Royal Spymaster. But what happens when they are unknowingly sent on the same secret mission? At best they are rivals, at worst, mortal enemies. SciFi / Thriller/ Steampunk/ LGBT

Rivals. Royalty. Brothers. An ailing King gives the two wayward princes a choice. Learn to work together, or watch as their Kingdom falls to ashes and flames under the fury of the Great Dragon. Wattpad Open Novella Contest 2026 Participating Story #4 in Opennovellacontest2026 15/03/2026 #1 in contestentry 16/03/2026 #1 in wattpadcompetition 15/03/2026 #3 in onc26 19/03/2026

Zara is a hardworking baker and one contract away from success. David is the corporate king of Abuja real estate, a man who values order above all else. When a collision in a VIP elevator douses one of David's most vital land documents in hot espresso; their two worlds finally clash. David views Zara as a chaotic, sugary mess, Zara sees him as a cold, unyielding wall of stone. But when David is caught in an ugly custody battle with his volatile ex for their daughter, Annabelle; David realizes he needs more than just steel to save his family. He needs the one woman who isn't afraid to get her hands messy. Now, Zara and David must decide if they can build a future on the ruins of their first meeting.

"You were my brother Zain..." "Exactly... Were!" Kenji the Lucario lived happily with his parents within the Bolryn clan. He came from a long family of mighty warriors and was next in line to take his place serving under King Brindim as one of his loyal soldiers. That all changed in one night Now he finds himself in the wilds with only his unborn egg sibling to keep him company. He can't return home, at least not now... Not while he's being hunted... by someone he once considered family... Update: I did not make it past round 1 of Open Novella so if you're here because it's a tag, please keep this in mind so this story will probably be not as good. You have been warned please do not criticise me, I entered out of pure boredom and clearly some people didn't like what I wrote. Enjoy!

The dead in Lake Superior don't lie. Neither does Delta. She's got two months with the Crowlers - logging royalty, general nightmares - as part of the arrangement that keeps Hemlock Falls alive. She didn't expect to spend them investigating an angry, sick lake or the winter guardians that wouldn't leave her alone. And she certainly didn't expect Rowan Crowler to actually be useful or unrepulsive. But something is poisoning the water, someone knows about it, and the closer Delta gets to the truth, the more dangerous her two months become. In the UP, secrets don't stay frozen forever.

A loyal hound will drink saltwater. In the Kingdom of Bevran, vagabonds are offered shelter within the walls of the castle. Orthrus, tired of running for his life, scavenging off of the dead, and never escaping the cold, couldn't think of anything better. But it seems the Queen of Bevran has secrets, plans for invading the Kingdom of Khis. Orthrus and his fellow vagabonds seek to understand how they fit into all of this, what purpose they serve in their Queen's grand schemes. What Orthrus can't figure out is why the Queen would keep her desires secret when Khis is their enemy, the reason Bevran has fallen into ruin. Any Bevrani would devout themselves to defeating their oppressor, no? When the truth comes out, Orthrus must decide on what he's willing to sacrifice in order to survive. ♙♙♙ For the Open Novella Contest 2026 | Cover designed by me | Prompt 80 Current Word Count - 9,760

In a dystopian future, an acidic flood reigns and the only signs of old life lie in the deep. Alex - an outcast with an inquisitive mind and a set of strangely specific skills - must navigate a world where she is shunned from the safety of the domes and stuck in the water. One day, while exploring a set of deep-sea ruins, she is haunted by a mysterious spirit; a spirit that seems to be warning her of something. The problem is, this ancient being doesn't seem to have any memory of its previous life. With a newly-possessed fish at her side, she must now uncover a secret organisation, find out what it means to do and save both humans and spirits from their plans. --- This is my entry for the Open Novella Contest 2026. Prompts used: 93, 86 (I have listed them in the author's note) --- #1 oceanpunk | 19/2/26 #1 explorer | 19/2/26 #1 deepsea | 23/2/26 #1 flood | 10/3/26 #2 climatechange | 1/3/26 #2 acid | 10/3/26 --- © 2026 | This is original work. Any references to other persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. Please do not adapt in any way without the author's permission.

Against the backdrop of a damp, golden London autumn... ​In 2026 London, history professor Sarah uncovers a centuries-old letter hidden behind an old framed painting in her new flat. As she deciphers its secrets, she becomes entwined in a long-lost love and a mystery that spans generations-leading her to a man who holds the final piece of the puzzle." Participation in the Open Novella Contest 2026 Prompt used: #79 © 2026 by Nermein Sami El-Kurdi. All Rights Reserved. Unauthorized use and/or duplication of this material without express and written permission is strictly prohibited #onc2026 #opennovellacontest2026 #oncprompt79

In a world where death has found a voice, the living cling to survival behind the walls of Stillwoods. Outside, the Eaters roam-zombies driven not by instinct, but by the cunning of ancient, mind-controlling beetles. Aria never imagined, in her first ever battle, her only weapon would be a rusty trumpet... or that one note could turn the tide against a Prime, a lethal zombie unlike any other. In this fight for survival, sound becomes power, and every choice could echo through life-or death. #ONC2026| Prompt #36 #35 ‼️ Content/Trigger Warning: Contains gore, violence, some strong language. All rights belong to the author and no reproductions are allowed without the permission of @Renaissance111. Please respect the author's copyright. 😊❤️ 2026 C.S. Marie

When the immortal mother died, her most beloved daughter went with her. Five hundred years later, Livia rises again, and the world has changed. So has her brother. After Livia and Camille reunite, they decide to set out to the mysterious Point Crimson to reconnect and clench their thirst. The town, however, is now watched over by the Saints, a group of vampire hunters suspicious of any newcomers. Keeping their vampirism a secret quickly becomes a lot harder with two particular hunters around. ***** ONC 2026 entry, using prompts 11 [main] and 29 ***** started writing: February 2026 started posting: February 2026 ***** cover: drawn by me, temporary rough sketch

Vincent is having an amazing morning. The most popular guy in the office has given him a high-five, a pretty girl has offered him a coffee, and he's been invited to join the frisbee team. It's almost like they've confused him with someone else. Someone popular. Someone fun. Someone about to bring Vincent's life to a shuddering halt. My entry for ONC2026 based on this writing prompt: 77. Everyone in town remembers you differently, as if everyone has lived a different version of your life. Cover design by @elicatucci

The king has been betrayed and his throne taken from him, locked away withno hope... So he thought unknown to him, the spirit did send hope in form of Princess Emeralda... "what are you doing so far, deep in the forest" startled Emeralda looked around but saw no one.. "down here....beside you....come closer...don't be afraid" the voice kept speaking And so Emeralda walked gently towards the voice , this act took all of her courage,but she kept going, slowly till she got to the flower, so sure the voice came from there, she looked into the flower, to her amazement she saw the most handsome moon face she has ever seen In awe of his beauty and shock of the situation she asked "what are you doing in there!".....

Ten years ago, Rose died in an accident. Except she didn't. Not really. She was bitten. Now, on the edge of sixteen, the ten-year clock is running out. The hunger has started. Her reflection lies. Her memories glitch. And Cree - the vampire who marked her - is back. He didn't choose to turn her. The government made him. He's not here to finish the job. He's here to claim what he started in her, before OPHELIA does. A slow-burn supernatural horror about growing up, falling apart, and turning into something you're not. ONC | 2026 #16 And into the forest I go, to lose my mind and find my soul. (Quote by John Muir) #104 While wandering through the woods, you dismiss the rustling behind you as nothing more than the wind through the trees until you turn around and realize it isn't the wind at all.

Clara Morel arrives at a fashionable Riviera resort after a most determined journey, fully prepared to prevent a wedding she considers both foolish and ill-advised. Unfortunately, she arrives a day too late. The ceremony has already taken place with admirable efficiency. What remains is a nearly empty hotel, a quantity of unused champagne, and a handful of guests whose politeness seems somewhat strained. Each of them appears to have a private grievance, an awkward history, or an inconvenient secret. Clara soon discovers that while she may have missed the wedding, she has arrived in perfect time for something else entirely. After all, in a place where everyone has a reason to resent someone, it rarely takes much for resentment to become murder.

Beth Reynolds is running on three hours of sleep, a dying phone, and a very precarious subway coffee... until the train lurches and she dumps the whole thing on a ridiculously hot stranger. Then she shows up late to the biggest callback of her modeling career and realizes the "coffee guy" is Chris Martinez - her co-model for the shoot. The one she has to get half-naked with. Maybe kiss. For the camera. On set, the chemistry is real enough to make the photographer cry. Off set? Chris is sweet, steady, and somehow still sends mixed signals that make Beth feel like she's losing her mind and her oracle cards aren't helping. So Beth does what any anxious romantasy girl with catastrophic impulse control would do: she buys a love spell on Etsy. And after that... everything she's been dreaming about starts happening. Except now she can't stop wondering: did he choose her... or did she pay for him?

A solitary retreat. An endless night. A fear that refuses to stay buried. In a remote cabin, cut off from the world, isolation offers escape. But when the polar night descends, solitude twists into a waking nightmare. As darkness stretches across the sky without end, shadows begin to move in the deepest corners.

Maya Seymour closed a painful chapter that left her helpless in grief, named Foxer Klein. After three years of searching, Elliot Leaf healed the girl's heart that needed closure and a new beginning. But Foxer came back. Alive. [ Prompt 79 and 82 of ONC2026 ] [ Updates follow the ONC timeline ] [ To be proofread soon ] [ Book cover will change ]

"Hello and good whatever time of day it is! It's me, TinyOctopus, coming at you with fresh content." Cameron has heard those words dozens if not hundreds of times. The problem? He's in love with the gamer who goes by TinyOctopus but he's always known her as Brooke, his best friend since middle school. After a long day dealing with 'the customer is always right' he's content to curl up with a bowl of nachos and watch her play and dream that one day he'll have the courage to tell her how he feels. After one of the worst shifts of his life, Cameron falls asleep mid-stream. When he wakes up he's most definitely not at home and everyone in sight is strangely... obsessed with one person. Enter the farmer and with a sinking feeling Cameron knows exactly why this valley looks so familiar.