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Thread: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

  1. #1
    Turkafinwë's Avatar The Sick Baby Jester
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    Default Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Creative Workshop Competitions - Check out our sister competitions here on TWC! << Picture & Video Competitions | Tale of the Week | Writers' Study General Competitions | Graphics Workshop Competition >>


    Enter the Void


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    Four entered the Void, only one came out again the rest lost to nothingness. The Void is a remorseless being, if you can even call it a being. I read four tales equal in despair and sadness, though each unique in their telling. Such a fine array of tales I've not seen in a while. For my part all of the entries are worthy of a point. Alas the Great Imp will only reward one. All hail the King, King Athelstan! KA receives his fifth competition point which means he only needs ONE more to receive the bronze Writers' Study Competition medal.
    Down under you can read King Athelstan's winning entry:

    TotW 298: Enter the Void - WINNING SUBMISSION And so we have come here again. How many days will I be locked up this time? How many months? How many years? I guess it’s true what they say. Bad habits break hard. And so, I’m stuck in this cell, once more. I didn’t ask for this you know. I didn’t want any of this. It’s not my fault. Sure, I did do it. But it wasn’t my fault. I swear. It told me to, and I had to obey. The walker, in the plane of my consciousness. It knows everything I do. Everything I see. It lives inside of my head, and I cannot escape it. It tells me things, sometimes. Things of great wonder. Things I wouldn’t know. But it also demands. It demands things, terrible things. I have tried to resist it, I truly have. But I cannot. It always gets its will in the end. Because of this, there is no end. Only an unending stream of petty “errands”. I’m tired of it, I hate it and I want it gone.

    I remember years back, back when I tried to live a normal life. School, a job, friends, the lot. I had it all. I thought it was just a voice, a silly voice. I didn’t know it was *it*. Slowly but surely, it drove me away. Away from it all, it reduced me to nothing. No friends. No school. No family. All gone. All shunned me. Just because I obeyed it once. Just once! I thought if I gave it what it would I would be fine. That it’d go away. That I’d be free. But no. Instead, it took me as its own. I am but a vessel, and it’s my captain. No matter how many times they put me in jackets I cannot break out of, no matter how many times they give me pills I don’t want to swallow, I still can’t break free. I now know that if I do, I’d die. I have nothing left. It has taken everything away from me but itself, and if it were to go, I’d drown in unending loneliness. And so, I must obey. I must do what it calls. It has become part of me, it has become me, or I’ve become it. I don’t know.

    Sometimes, it’s kind. Sometimes, it helps me. It fills me with strength, tells me not to worry. Soothes me when they do not. My life is pitiful, but with it there I have something. And so, I have grown to embrace it. To love it, to see it as myself. One day it’ll give me salvation.


    A big thank you to everyone who submitted an entry or voted in the poll from me on behalf of all the WS Staff. This competition would be nothing without everyone who gets a Tale penned, and the quality of submissions was as excellent as ever. If you wish to read the other entries, and I recommend you do, you can check them out in the Submission or Voting thread linked underneath.

    TotW 298: Submission thread | Voting thread





    Furthermore we have another Tale of the week aching for your entries. Go check Tale of the Week 299: The Emperor and the Child here.

  2. #2
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Congratulations King Athelstan, this is an excellent tale - and thanks Turk!

  3. #3

    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Congratulations indeed! Just as with his last one, I absolutely loved Athel's tale! It is simple in its style, but cuts brilliantly for all that (perhaps because of that). I don't know what Athelstan was going for, but in reading this, I could totally hear a genuinely insane person nattering on to themselves, and the execution of that was just spot on (I guess Athel has insight into the mind of a nutter ). Anyway, a well-deserved win!

    P.s. For anyone who's read Neil Gaiman's fantastic Sandman comics, this entry had me thinking so hard of the character Dee (who I think is the shriveled remains of Dr. Doom). If you've not read those comics, have a look anyway (they are simply brilliant), and in particular, check out how well Athel's story captures the essence of the crazy Dee.
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  4. #4
    King Athelstan's Avatar The Wheel Weaves
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    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Kilo, I actually have the first book collection of Sandman sitting in my shelf waiting for me to finish my current series, so very fitting

    And thanks for the votes and words of praise folks! The other tales were brilliant, it's always a shame only one can win
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  5. #5

    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Quote Originally Posted by King Athelstan View Post
    Kilo, I actually have the first book collection of Sandman sitting in my shelf waiting for me to finish my current series, so very fitting
    Awesome! The Ultimate Sandman is kind of crazy expensive, but totally worth it! Also, I might just record my rendition of your tale, and then you'll have the voice for Dee in your head when you get the parts with his crazy a**.
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  6. #6
    Alwyn's Avatar Frothy Goodness
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    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    I see what you mean about the connection with Dee and with Sandman, Kilo! I agree, Sandman is brilliant.

  7. #7
    PubliusKhannus's Avatar Senator
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    Default Re: Tale of the Week 298: Enter the Void - Winner's Circle

    Really enjoyed the winning tale, congrats King Athelstan. Love seeing how everyone approached the prompt in different ways, suppose we all have a different flavor of nutter whispering in our ears . Looking forward to future competitions and getting to know y'all better. Appreciate the warm welcomes.

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