Storytelling Competition - (click for the map) | (printer friendly version)
If you have any questions about the competition then read our awesome FAQ!
Week 165 |
| You are on Week 166
|
Week 167 |
Every week we will be starting a new Story Telling competition - with great prizes! The current prize is 2000 NP, plus a rare item!!! This is how it works...
We start a story and you have to write the next few paragraphs. We will select the best submissions every day and put it on the site, and then you have to write the next one, all the way until the story finishes. Got it? Well, submit your paragraphs below!
Story One Hundred and Sixty-Six Ends February 20th
"Fore!" the Meerca cried, swinging a club with
all his might.
"Ahh!!" screamed his sister, dropping to the ground for cover as the ball ricocheted
off several rocks and landed in a pond. "Merco, this is miniature golf... stop hitting
the ball like that!" The blue Zafara stood up, then brushed the dirt from her knees.
"Well, I've got to do something to keep me entertained,"
the Meerca complained, "miniature golf is SO boring."
"Just because you couldn't hit a ball straight if your life depended on it, doesn't mean
it's boring." replied his sister, Taria.
Merco stuck his nose in the air. "Hmmph! Nothing ever happens at a miniature golf course.
Can't we go somewhere else?"
"There's plenty of things happening. Umm... look! That guy just got a hole-in-one..."
said his sister, pointing.
"Thrilling." the Meerca said, rolling his eyes.
"And, um... look at that... uh, exciting windmill course over there."
Merco flopped onto his back, moaning in false agony.
"Hey, look!" Taria cried.
"What, did someone discover a new colour of golf ball?" the Meerca said with extreme
sarcasm.
"No, really! Look!...
|
Author: Par 4
Date: 16 February
|
...she said, pointing just beyond the forest, where a large, black gate stood erect. A
menacing skull loomed above it, as well as a sign that read:
"The Miniature Golf Course of Doom," Merco read aloud. "Hmm... sounds a bit
cliche to me."
"Let's go check it out!" Taria said, enthusiastically.
Before Merco could respond, however, she was already heading towards the gate.
Great... I don't even have a say in the matter, he thought, scurrying
after his sister.
The two siblings gazed in awe as they peered past the front gates. The golf course
was like an amusement park from the Haunted Woods, only a lot bigger. Everything
from ferris wheels to giant skulls acted as obstacles throughout the course. "Whoa...
miniature golf just keeps on evolving," Taria said.
"No kidding," Merco said, gasping in disbelief. "Forget what I said earlier. Let's go play
some golf!" He stepped through the front gates, which were already unlocked. They
creaked with an eerie presence that sent a chill down his spine, but he quickly
ignored it.
"Umm... Merco? Are you sure this is okay?" Taria said, creeping behind him. As soon
as they were a good distance away from the gates, they slammed shut with a loud bang.
Merco's eyes widened with horror. "Hey, let us out!!" he screamed, clanging on the
gates furiously, but to no avail.
"It'sss no ussse, you ssssee? They are already locked, for you mussst play the game..."
a voice said, echoing in the distance.
Taria spun around frantically. "Who are you? What do you want?"
"You mussst play the game with my little friendsss... but you'll have to get
to them firssstt."
A loud rumbling sound filled the area, as a giant lava pit appeared in front of them.
There were a few rock platforms above it, almost as if they'd been designed for playing
golf.
"The game beginsss. Only the stakesss are much higher... yesss..."
|
Author: shoyrutamer_13
Date: 16 February
|
..."Wh-hat do you-u mean-n by the stakes are much higher?" asked a thoroughly shaken Taria.
"Why don't you find out for yourssselvesss?" the voice responded, as two golf clubs
and two balls magically appeared in front of Taria and Merco.
"Well, I promise I will at least try to hit the ball right this time,"
Merco said, trying to make light of the situation.
"You'd better," Taria said, "or else, I have a feeling we might not make it to see tomorrow."
The siblings each picked up a club and a ball. Taria approached the starting area for
the hole.
"You have a par of three, and if it takes you more shots than that, then there will be
grave consequences," the voice rumbled.
Oh great, Taria thought. She pulled back her club, then hit the ball, sending
it soaring onto one of the lava platforms. Great, now I have to get to the ball,
Taria thought as she hopped across rocks protruding from the lava towards the ball. Again she struck the
ball, this time getting within putting distance of the hole. Tapping the ball slightly,
she made par by gently sinking it into the hole.
"Very good," the voice rumbled. "Now, it isss your turn, Meerca."
"Here goes," Merco said...
|
Author: light_dragon_rose
Date: 17 February
|
...As he positioned his club, the droplets of sweat began to form. The notion
that it was REALLY important for him to make par began to form in his mind.
Struggling against any notion of importance, Merco chipped the ball much harder
than anybody with sense would have.
Taria gasped, and the lispy voice cackled as the ball took its seemingly wayward
flight through the air.
The ball overshot the hole, ricocheted off the tip of a stalactite, bounced off a
boulder, spooned into a pothole, then went straight into the air, proceeding to
circle the hole's very top three times before sinking for a hole in one!
"Piece o'cake!" Merco said.
"Beginner's luck... wheeew!" Taria said, sighing.
"Impossssible..." grumbled the voice. "However, I hardly exssspect you to make a
hole in one on the nexssst courssse!"
Taria and Merco followed the mocking voice to the next course, through bubbling
pits and hissing geysers of steam that smelled of toxic sulfur. There they found
a much tougher course, which deserved to have a par of 100!
Matter-of-factly, the voice said, "Thisss isss a par three, as well."
Despite the high temperature of the cavern they were in, Taria began to get the
chills. Luckily, she had read her books, and also had an innate knowledge of physics.
This wasn't as hard as it looked, as long as one kept in mind that gravity would be
your friend on this hole.
She stepped up to the inaccurately named "green", then placed her ball in a craggly
spot in the ground where her ball wouldn't roll away.
"Here it goes!" she said before tapping her ball a few degrees to the left.
Rolling down the slight incline, the ball landed in a tiny crater, where it seemed
to get stuck.
The voice giggled. "That takes two strokes off your game, little Zafara!"
Taria calmly said, "Wait."
Sure enough, ten seconds later, the ball rocketed into the air, seemingly disappearing
into the black of the ceiling. It came down hard, bounced a few times, then landed a
single stroke away from the hole!
Taria, amidst the voice's startled gurgles, tipped the ball into the hole.
"Birdie!" she proclaimed.
"Nice shot, sis!" Merco said admiringly.
"You won't be ssso lucky nexssst time!!!" the voice growled. "It'ssss the little Meerca's
turn now... no tricky ssstuff!"
"Here goes nothing!" Merco said, then turned to place his ball...
|
Author: delightfulmuse
Date: 16 February
|
...Merco gingerly stepped up to the tee, then lined up his shot.
"Remember," the voice hissed in his ear. "The stakesss are higher than you think."
"Okay, I get the point," Merco said through clenched teeth. "I can do this."
Merco drew back his club, then swung with all his might.
The ball sailed through the air, landing about three lava platforms away from
the hole. The ball had narrowly missed dropping into the liquid magma below.
"Alright Merco!" Taria cheered from beside the hole. "You can do it!"
Merco sighed with relief, then started hopping along the rocks to where his ball had
landed.
"Remember," the voice hissed again in his ear. "Go one ssshot over par, and dire
consssequencesss will await you."
Carefully measuring his next shot, Merco swung a little more gently this time.
Hoping to avoid having his ball go over the edge, he luckily lobbed it over the
next two lava platforms so that the ball wasn't far from the hole, about two metres away.
"Okay... steady, Merco... who knows what will happen if you miss the hole," Taria said
anxiously.
Merco took a deep breath as he placed his putter next to the ball. He gently drew his
arm back and hit the ball. It slowly rolled towards the hole. Neither sibling dared
to breathe. It looks good, Merco thought. It's going to go in, then maybe we can
get out of this crazy game. Just then, however, as the ball was about to reach the
hole, it stopped.
Taria gasped. Merco just stared on.
"What a ssshame," the voice hissed with a hint of amusement. "I wonder what'sss
going to happen now?"...
|
Author: star_sappire
Date: 18 February
|
...Just then, the platforms began to shake, and the lava began to rise.
"Is this what he meant would happen?" Taria asked as she tried to reach her
little brother.
"I dunno... hey, you! Is this what you meant to happen?!?" Merco screamed as
he grabbed for his sister's paw.
"Noooo," the voice muttered, itself seeming mildly surprised. "Thisss isss
not what wasss sssupposssed to happen. What I had planned wasss much worssse..."
The siblings were terrified. If this was not what the voice had intended, then
that must mean the course was doing it all by itself. It also meant that what the
voice would do to them hadn't even started yet.
The lava reached higher and higher, beginning to cover the platforms that they stood upon.
"Hey, look!" Merco cried excitedly.
"Yes, Merco. I know the lava's coming up," Taria said exasperatedly.
"No! No, Taria... look at my ball! The ground's moving it!"
Sure enough, the ground's shaking was causing the little ball to move
this way and that; hopefully, the ball would move enough to drop into the hole.
"C'mon, ball... c'mon!" Taria and Merco chanted together.
The ball inched nearer and nearer to the hole. Five inches... four inches...
three inches... two inches... one inch!
"C'MON! C'MON, YOU CAN MAKE IT!" Merco screamed encouragingly. The lava was coming
up even further now, and he could feel the heat on his legs.
The ball dropped into the hole with a small *plop*.
"Par three," the voice said sadly.
Suddenly, just as the lava was about to reach them, Taria and Merco were swept
away to the next course. However, they were no longer alone...
|
Author: chipster33
Date: 18 February
|
..."Meet my friendsss," the voice said, retaining its evil tone.
Merco raised his eyebrows slowly, looking at the Meerca and Zafara that
were in front of him. They seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite place them.
"Merco, look," Taria whispered to him. "They're... they're us."
Merco looked at his sister, then towards the mystery Zafara. She was a ghost Zafara,
with bulging red eyes and a haunting stare. He tilted his head, looking for the
similarities. Yes, they both had the same face, and they were the same height.
"What about him?" Merco hissed, pointing to the mutant Meerca that stood
before him. Before Taria could answer, he nodded to himself. Both he and
the mutant that stood in front of him had the same eyes.
"Time to play," the voice said with a hint of joviality. "My friendsss will go
firssst. Whatever they hit isss the par for each of you. Fail to make par..."
the voice said, trailing off.
"Who are they, exactly?" Merco asked, kicking his ball with his left foot.
"Or what, even."
"They are you," the voice said flatly, "or what will become of you sssoon. They
are mindlesss beingsss, entranced by the goodnesss of evil." the voice said,
then laughed. "Don't worry, they aren't real... yet."
Taria gulped as she looked at her ghost self. "So... you're me?"
The ghostly Taria merely stared back at her blankly.
"Enough with the chatter!" the voice said sharply. "Time to play."
A large bolt of lightning came out of the ceiling, hitting the course in front of
them. A tunnel of fire sat in the middle of the green, and several stalactites
began to come up out of the floor. Merco gulped in unison with Taria.
"Meerca! Zafara!" the voice snapped. "Sssit back and watch your parsss being set.
Ghossst! Mutant! You may begin..."
|
Author: jegstar21
Date: 19 February
|
...The pair watched as the Zafara stepped up to putt. She looked first at the
hole, then at the ball. The ghost positioned herself carefully and then swung,
sending the ball through a flaming hoop and bouncing off of stalactites, until it
landed a few feet from the hole. The ghost Zafara disappeared, then reappeared
next to the ball, putting it carefully into the hole. She vanished again,
only to return behind Taria, looking into the distance with that eerie, unfocused stare.
"Zafara, you have a par two..." the voice declared.
The mutant Meerca then stepped forward, balancing perfectly on his tail before
taking a hefty swing. The ball shot through the ring, ricocheted crazily around
the green before finally stopping somewhere near the middle of the course.
The Meerca began to lumber forward with a stiff, heavy gait, as though he weighed
several tons.
"Gee, Merco... he shoots like you," Taria said with a feeble smile towards her brother.
Then, her eyes lit up. "That's it, Merco! He shoots like you!"
"What?" the Meerca asked, narrowing his eyes in confusion.
"Don't you see? They're copies of us. They can't be any better than us, because
they don't possess any more skills, knowledge, or anything else that we don't have
ourselves. If we try our hardest, we're sure to
beat them," Taria explained.
"You're right..." Merco nodded, then watched as his mutant copy knocked its ball
into the hole on its third shot.
"Meerca, par three..." the voice hissed. "Zafara, it'sss your turn..."
|
Author: caesius_draco
Date: 19 February
|
...Taria took a deep breath and stepped up to the tee. Although her fur bristled
and her palms were sweaty, she was going to stand by her theory and try her very best.
She gripped the club in her hand and studied the ball. Bringing back the club, she
hit the ball.
It flew threw the ring of fire, then maneuvered its way through the stalactites.
Unfortunately, it landed right in the middle of the jagged rocks.
Meerco looked at his sister in dismay, but she smiled at him. "It's ok, Meerco. I
still have one more shot to match par. I think I can sink it."
Taria weaved through the stalactites and positioned herself over the ball. If she
had her angles right, she should be able to get it in one shot. She gave the ball a
strong tap, making it bounce off the stalactite and head straight for the hole.
Suddenly, a light wind appeared out of nowhere. When the ball was just a centimeter
from the hole, the wind pushed it in the opposite direction. Then, it stopped. The
mysterious voice cackled in the distance. "Heh, heh, heh. Too bad. You misssed...."
Taria felt an odd sensation run through her body. She glanced down at and saw that
she was becoming transparent.
"TARIA!" Merco lunged forward through the fire, just barely singeing his fur and
dodged the stalactites, trying in vain to reach his sister. But when he finally did,
he no longer saw her lovely blue fur, but instead a ghostly white. The transformation
was complete.
"T-Taria?" he stuttered, reaching out to her. His paw went right through her chest.
The ghost didn't seem to notice; her eyes were blank and vapid. Meerco looked behind
him to see that the other ghost Taria had disappeared.
Meerco felt hot tears filling his eyes as he shouted to the sky. "You did that on
purpose!!!"
"Do not blame me for weather problemsss," said the voice mockingly. "Your sssissster
jussst had a ssstroke of bad luck. It'sss too late for her, but you could ssstill win."
"NO!" shouted Meerco. "I'm not leaving without Taria!"
"Ssshe knew the ssstakess and now ssshe mussst pay."
Meerco searched his mind for a way out of this. He couldn't leave Taria behind, not
after all the support she showed him. Just then, an idea struck him.
"Wait!" he shouted again. "What if we make a deal?"
"A deal? What sssort of deal?"
"If I make a hole in one on this next shot, then you have to change Taria back and
let us go. But if I miss on the first shot, then you can change me into a mutant."
Meerco waited anxiously for the voice's answer. "Hmmm... interesssting offer. Very
well. If you make a hole-in-one, then you and your sssissster will be ssset free.
But remember: You only have one chance..."
Meerco gulped and looked down at his club. Boy, I hope I know what I'm doing,
he thought...
|
Author: bitsy_dj
Date: 20 February
|
...Merco positioned his fingers rigidly on the club, then let out a short breath. The
voice above him began humming an eerie tune that sent shivers down Merco's back. He
eyed the course ahead of him and shuddered. What had he been thinking? It was impossible
to do this in one shot! However, the deal been made, and... with one last look at Taria,
Merco knew what he had to do.
He picked up the small golf ball and ran.
Jumping, Meerco made it over the hurdles of stalagmites, and skillfully
dodged the hanging stalactites. Puddles of lava whizzed by under his nimble paws as his headed
ever closer to the hole.
Steady, steady... keep going! Merco thought.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!" the voice shouted. Merco didn't hear. For all he knew, the
voice trailed somewhere behind him and was shouting some garbled message.
There it is! There it is! Merco thought as he looked toward the coveted hole.
He stopped
abruptly, placed the golf ball one centimeter away from the hole, and smiled triumphantly.
No earthquake, thunder, lava, or gust of wind could stop this shot!
With more confidence than he had ever felt before, he sank the ball into the hole.
"HA, HA, HA, HA," screamed the voice, "YOU CHEATED!!! YOUR BODY ISSS ASSS GOOD AS
MINE!!! Whatever ssshould I do with my newfound, albeit dumb, mutant?"
"Hold on now," Merco said boldly. Inside, his heart throbbed because he knew that what
he was about to say would determine both he and Taria's future. "We agreed to a hole-in-one,
right? I did that."
"YOU DID NOTHING!!! You CHEATED... you TOOK the ball and RAN. That isss NOT golf, that's
COWARDICE, and a poor ssshow of ssskill." the voice chuckled.
"I took the ball and made a hole-in-one. I did what we agreed to. BUT, I never agreed
to any starting point. So no, I didn't cheat at all," Merco said proudly. He stole a
glance at Taria, and to his delight, saw that she had begun to solidify.
"...No, no, NO! That isss NOT true! I did NOT lossse to sssome petty Neopetsss!" raged
the voice. "THAT'SSS IT!! GET OUT, THE LIKESSS OF YOU... GETTT OUTT!"
"Merco! Merco, you did it!" Taria said, running towards him. Suddenly, an angry wind
swept her up and caught hold of Merco.
The two spun around in a cyclone of grey and white, then landed hard on a patch of green
grass.
* * * * *
"Fore!" a faraway golfer shouted. Merco and Taria moaned, twisting themselves upright
on the bright green grass of a small golf course. A sweater-vested Bruce walked toward
them.
"Hey, uh, kids... you mind stepping off this mini-golf course? I did pay to use it, ya
know..." the Bruce said in an annoyed tone.
"How'd we get back here?" Merco said groggily.
Stepping away from the course, Taria said, "That voice must've kicked us out. I guess he
couldn't take it that you won. By the way, you were great back there with your strategy
and everything!"
"...I'm not one for the golfing, I guess I'm more for the thinking. Speaking of golfing,
I don't feel like seeing or hearing anything about pars for another year or two. Let's
just go home," Merco said.
"Sounds good to me. Let's go," Taria said, then stopped abruptly. "Hey, look over there! It's the
Bowling Alley of Doom!"
"WHAT?!?"
"Haha... just kidding, bro!"
The End
|
Author: royal_guppy
Date: 20 February
|
Quick Jump
IMPORTANT - SUBMISSION POLICY! By
uploading or otherwise submitting any materials to Neopets, you (and your parents) are
automatically granting us permission to use those materials for free in any manner we can think
of forever throughout the universe. These materials must be created ONLY by the person
submitting them - you cannot submit someone else's work. Also, if you're under age 18, ALWAYS
check with your parents before you submit anything to us!
|