75 Million Gold Contest!

Konariraiden - Heavens Tear

Shota - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Shota took many many literature courses in college.. the original was much better *winks*

EYE C WUT U DEED THAR.

b:dirty

Nokia_Jade - Heavens Tear

Shota - Heavens Tear wrote: »

I did find a new world to play in, I can only hope the journey there will be half what the one here was!

You never know, it's a good idea. If more people plan on leaving for good they could put a little spin on this one. It sort of makes me want to hold a big huge contest when I leave too.

Laycious - Heavens Tear

Good to see you're back, Shota. I hope all is going well and feel free to take all the time you need.

Swiftail - Heavens Tear

Anxiety Attack

Hot and cold
At once, a pair
Strickened panic
Robust despair.

Anxious moments
Question filled
Nervous banter
Emotions spilled.

Desperate musings
Hopeless thought
Answers fleeting
Escape is sought.

Hiding lonely
Narrowed walls
Darkened bedroom
Spirit falls.

Heartbeat racing
Crying fear
Hunger fleeting
Confusion near.

Empty sorrow
Misplaced contempt
Afraid of living
Or some small attempt.

Frightened rigid
Gripped by gloom
Mind aflutter
Impending doom.

Moves uncertain
Sit or stand
Anxiety attacks
Crash to land.

Who won? Who won? Who won? Who won? Who won? Who won? Who won?
lololololol

(this was just a joke not to be taken seriously, take your time Shota)

FiveAlive - Heavens Tear

*Giggles* b:chuckle P p...Va

---

*fleeeeeeeeeeeeeee*

Soaka - Heavens Tear

[edited out by author]

Joshinator - Heavens Tear

Wow, I thought the end date was later than that! Good luck to everyone who entered. :]

I enjoyed the creativeness of the stories :P.

puertoland1

OOC: I had no idea there was a fan-fiction community in MMO's. In the spirit of it all, I'd like to share a short story of my own. Pardon any grammatical errors as my writing tends to flow without forethought to mechanics. And Shota, I have to agree with the poster above, you seem like a wonderful person, shame to see you go before we ever met. And if my word counts for anything, I'd like to give a vote to Soaka's poem, its great.

Edit: I didn't realize this was so long winded, but I do hope you enjoy it. It was certainly a pleasure writing.

Battle of Heaven's Tear
Desert of Echoes

"Devils, the lot of them." spat out a grizzled veteran from the forces of Archosaur, his throat sore from shouting and filled with the grit of the desert. He was a large man and had served his land for many years yet the thought of this wraith army had caused a sense of fear like no other.

His name was Raza, the top centurion in Archosaur's West Army, 12th Legion. He looked to the men beside him, all the best their lands had to offer. For months they had been on campaign and had been fighting an uphill battle against the Void's deadliest. He would be visiting a lot of good men's wives...

"Their beginning to mobilize...prepare the artillery to fire." he growled to his second. Twenty minutes away and straight ahead was a horde of Wraiths marching towards their land. This would be where they stopped them...or would die trying to.

The artillery was a healthy amount of Elven archers and artillerymen from Thousand Streams. The artillery men loaded up their ballistae and fireworks. The makeshift rockets would affect the morale of common men, beast, and Elf but these devils feared nothing.

The men all seemed nervous, Archosaur's army had been destroyed before but the harsh times had created heroes out of the populace and that had helped restore nations.

The Artillery
Artillery Chief Kizaam was a dark exotic man, from a chain of islands across the sea to the east, he was the 'mastermind' behind these fireworks use in warfare and as such was 'promoted' to fight in the spearhead of the war. He poured water onto his bald head, peeling from the sun's kiss and stinging like a demon.

His raspy voice belched out orders to his men. "Forty degrees North East for batteries 1 and 2, 3 and 4 forty degrees north, 5 and 7 wait until we drive their army towards our left flank. The cue to fire will be a flare coming from our magic fielding friends on our left.". The men all did as they were told, this would be the day they had avenged the lives of all those they had lost.

The Wizards of Archosaur

Boroba Thring, Ishmael the Dune Talker, and Verloya the White were the most colorful amongst this party for war. Like most of those with supreme grasp of the Power, these Wizards did not take the call to duty as serious as the conventional warriors and barbarians who fought as infantry. They were robes of bright greens and purples, reds and blues, and hats of silken thread woven with magic whose sole purpose was to shine.

"Oy, Ishmael...how many wraiths would you say that be?"

"That be? That does not make a single lick of sense, 'there are', I still cannot fathom for any large reason why you had been hired on by the Lords of the land to work amongst us Wizards of Archosaur. And I would say that it numbers around twenty thousand. The trick is outsmarting them."

"Ah, shall not be a problem for I. My grasp of magic is wrapped and wiggled in such arcane inscrewable complexes to boggle the mind of Wraiths. They will tremble beneath my might."

A moment of silence pervaded the air as Ishmael turned to look at Verloya. "Damn it, its inscrutable, and you meant complexity! Inscrutable complexities! Let us do that thing where you do not speak."

"Well pardon me, but some of us were not priviledged to be born into wealthy, well educated families. I was in the mines, feeding a family when you were being hand fed by an iron spoon."

The saying is 'silver spoon'...gah.

Hard to believe that these three men were the Legendary Wizards of Archosaur, great masters of the Power hired to aid the West Army in their campaign against the Wraiths. They expected their colleague, a powerful Wizard of no repute to aid them but to no avail. He had not showed up in time.

Wraiths

Dark shadows formed from oblivion and chaos manifested due to the dark energy of the void's minions, creating unmentionable horrors of shapes and sizes that left men breathless. A scarlet tower began to form at the center of this frightening horde, atop the tower the shape of a horned head manifested and lorded over both armies. Clawed feet left as arms jutted out. Silent laughter pervaded its face as it seemed to look into the soul of every man within miles.

All trembled in horror.

Etherblade's army

The General of Etherblade cantered his horse through the steppe of Dragon Lane. His army behind them.

"Gods wept! What is that?!" one of his men cried in horror. He looked to the scarlet coruscation attacking the night-...but it was day...

A sea of black contaminated the natural blue and white of the sky, the darkness from the being which was generated seemed to create a vacuum which all light was absent. Both the thaumaturgic sparks and color of night coalesced into a Devil of mountainous proportions. Horses refused to go any further ahead, throwing back riders and dashing back to the way from whence they came.

He turned around and began to call off the battle.

The Heroes of Perfect World
A thousand brilliant blades and creatures of magical origin carried riders of supreme ability and primal power. They were potential manifested.

These men and women of Perfect World who had dedicated their lives to adventure. Enlightened walkers of the Celestial and Demon Paths.

As armies refused to approach and reinforce the 12th Legion in the front lines, these men and their brilliant beings never surrendered. They fought until their foe was dead. But even the most courageous of these people could not claim to be unafraid as their world was enshrouded in shadows of red and black due to the colossal Stygian horror ahead.

"How could such a thing be possible?..." The Legendary Blademaster Caleb of the Seventh Veil asked to none but himself. His celestial sword quavered in the pure evil emanating from the distance ahead. Likewise the dragons and mystical mounts of others felt weak in the presence of such pure hellish nature.

The Farmer's Son
Overlooking the armada of heroes was a cowled rider, his steed a white silken fox of a celestial nature. His companion had lived far longer then he and he could feel her doubt as to if this thread could be stopped.

"I know Susano, I feel that power too. If they aren't stopped here."

Then we'll all be destroyed. Her voice entered his thoughts, the nine tailed Fox was capable of sorceries he had not yet mastered. Her voice was that of an older woman, wise and bitter, yet with a benevolent undertone.

I will not mourn the death of all the world, but I do not relish the thought of having to mourn your death Jazbet. Do be careful, that demon has a name that can cause death to its speaker...it is a pure evil...lording even over the mightiest devils. It cannot be controlled, and that will be why the Wraiths lose.

He smirked. The Wizards of Archosaur were left waiting for him, and he knew that without his mastery they would not be capable of going on the offensive, it would take four Wizards to continue a decent stream of bombardment and magical defense for the infantry.

"Lets hope that demon kills its own army before it turns on us."

If a Fox could sigh he surely would have heard Susano let one out. The fate of a world to her, was no light matter.

The beast and rider leapt from their cliff, landing into the desert dunes below and leaving behind a shroom cloud of dust. The Fox bared its fangs, a glowing aura surrounding it as a black nimbus surrounded Jazbet. They were preparing their defenses.

The War had begun.

The Frontlines
Raza barked out orders as fast as his throat would allow. Harpies had attacked his first ranks and left brutal viscera in its wake. The lines were beginning to tremble as colorful shrieks flew over the infantries heads and into the enemy.

The rockets had been loaded with shards of metal and crystal, even glass. Exploding above the enemy they would at least injure enough to slow them down. Well, that was the logic when dealing with humans or natural races...not these Wraiths.

The infantry dared not move forth as the scarlet horror cut through the Wraith ranks towards them. They simply formed a shield wall and attacked as the Wraith soldiers crashed into their front lines.

"WIZARDS!" the Centurion howled. His shout was returned in the form of a massive dragon made of ice and water crashing into the enemy, shortly after a sandstorm swept the center of the enemy's ranks.

He smiled to himself before his eyes rolled back and his nose began bleeding. He began shaking uncontrollably.

The Stygian Mountain had looked upon him. Both horse and rider fell. The beast of burden was killed immediately, the pure hatred and evil had ended its life in a matter of seconds. However clerics had rushed to the commander and began infusing as much of their magic into him while saving enough in reserve for healing the soon to be wounded.

Artillery

The massive shrieks and booms from these firework rockets was enough to cause hearing loss for the rest of the week, yet Kizaam dared not quit firing. Hell, he would do without ears and eyes if it won the war.

"5, 6, 7 you see that damned flare?! Why aren't you firing?!"

They did as was expected, even if it were a minute late. There was no time for mistakes, it would cost lives in the numbers of thousands. The artillery exploded in the left flanks of the enemy, causing the wraith commanders to concentrate on moving through the right. Once they were in favorable terrain they rushed...the Wizards shot up a flare, and soon after they were sending forth their most powerful area effect magics into that killbox. The artillery came in shortly after.

Harpies and Wraith infantry cursed in tongues foreign to any man or scholar as magic ate their flesh and thundering weaponry exploded above their heads.

These things would not retreat. They rushed that area, causing severe casualties on their part, but winning out due to sheer brute strength and will. They rushed forth, the legions of hell behind them.

Wizards of Archosaur

"Ho! Surely this being of pure malfesence cannot exist! Tis a delusion belched forth from the crude minds of our wraith enemies. Tis magnanimous opinion to the contrary."

Ishmael was too busy preparing stone rains on multiple enemies to even gawk at the sheer amount of sense that Verloya did not make.

Verloya took his silence as a testament to his vocabulary and smiled before creating another 'dragon' of prime quality. He sent it forward into the enemy lines before they rushed through the magical onslaught and leapt into their own ranks.

For the first time since the battle began, Boroba muttered a simple incantation and a hundred ethreal missiles from the sky rained down on their foes, completely avoiding the wizards in the process. The man then turned around and went back to weaving defensive barriers for the infantry.

Thunderous foot steps behind the wizards had lifted the fear from the hearts...

Untamed barbarians and Venomancer pets dashed from their rear to land in the front of the meat grinder. The werebeasts were like Gods in their own domain, crashing skull after skull, and reveling in the violence.

The ecstatic euphoria quickly evaporated as the scarlet devil within the army reached into the Archosaur army now, its pink skin rending flesh at touch, and sending hundreds of men into seizures.

The Wizards themselves had trouble maintaining composure in such close vicinity to pure evil. Ishmael clutched his chest in pain and took a knee to the ground. The pain was overwhelming.

As blood seeped from his scalp and nose, he paced his breathing and tried to clear his mind. A thousand cruel words spoken in a liquid tongue penetrated his mind. He did not understand the language but feared what was spoken. Images of brutal killings and deeds not to be spoken of pervaded his thoughts...and just as soon as they came...disappeared.

As he returned to a state capable of thinking coherently he saw a white fox the size of several men standing over him. Its rider forming complex weaves of magic and thrusting it into the ranks of the enemy army as well as the massive demon which had wreaked havoc throughout the army.

"...How long have I been unconscious?" the Cleric stared back at him, blood smeared on her face and hands.

"Ten minutes."

Ten minutes...Gods....could this much destruction have taken place in such a short lapse of time?

He looked to those beside him, many men were dead. He rose, wincing at the migraine he had and looked over the army.

They were having trouble overcoming the obstacle of their dead. Bodies had literally piled up to the point where they were beginning to cause mobility issues. The morale of these men were plummeting..already groups of archers were beginning to withdraw, the Stygian Horror could not be defeated.

The sky was now a battlefield. Thousands of Heroes on legendary swords flew around the Scarlet Devil, concentrating their spells, archery, and blades on this single foe. If it could be defeated, then the wraith army would lose its best advantage.

The Farmer's Son

Jazbet...don't expend your reserves so fruitlessly.


Tears had swelled into the Wizard's eyes at the sight of such atrocity. Hundreds were dying in matters of minutes. He sent forth every spell in his arsenal towards the enemy without any thought for his own safety. With the massive demon kept in check, the Wraith army was beginning weaken. Whoever their commander was, he had switched from the hammer like tactics from earlier to a slower paced attack. Almost as if he was biding time until the scarlet devil had taken care of these heroes.

His Blade Tempests, Dragons, and Sandstorms cut through the enemy front line. Gushes of water created storms in a land unacquainted with rain. Some of the aerial bound heroes began flinging their own spells down onto the enemy army creating a plethora of colorful explosions.

Heroes of Perfect World
"This thing won't die!" Caleb shouted out, he concentrated his energy into his blade and sent strikes to the massive hand trying to swat him down. His strike landed but under great force of will. This monstrosity was dabbling with the mind of every person in this battle, causing them to miss nine out of ten blows.

He had witnessed what happened to those who were caught by the beast's strikes and would never wish such a thing upon any enemy.

Gripping the sword in his hands, his flying blade whirled around, narrowly missing a spell that had singed his skin.

The head...I'm going for the head.

Bullet diving for the gigantic pool of crimson that was the beast's eyes, the man was driven.

The bright orb stared down at its invader...the blade began to falter until it fell from beneath Caleb's feet. The momentum from its ascent was enough to propel him towards his target, but the pain he felt was astounding.

He howled in pain as every pore of his body began to bleed.

In seconds, the Legendary Blademaster had fallen. Headed for the same ground his blade now rested in.

Jazbet, Master Wizard, a farmer's son
Ishmael, wounds now healed had approached Jazbet, a look of anger on his face.

"If you had showed up earlier...many would still be alive."

Jazbet said nothing as he continued to send destructive spells into the enemy. He knew Ishmael was correct. Boroba could handle himself, but Ishmael and Verloya were supreme wizards without experience. They needed someone like Jazbet to guide them and instruct them during the battle...but he was too damned busy debating whether he should have joined this battle at all. His own selfish greed for self preservation had won out initially.

"...I'm sorry Ishmael. I truly am." he let out softly, his face however remained in a wolfish snarl. He was busy concentrating his hate on the wraiths. Everywhere he looked was a melee battle. The artillery were all dead, the archers were in a losing fight as well...it seemed that the Barbarians would soon be overwhelmed. Tears streamed freely down his face now. He looked down to his mount, Susanoo, who kept a vigilant eye on all these events.

"Friend, lets end the madness." the fox bared her fangs and scrunched up her face. She knew what he meant. It pained her, but she understood what had to be done.

The Nine tailed fox dashed over the heads of ally and demon alike before crashing into the wraiths, her own magic born from her celestial background rendered the flesh and armor of the demonic army, she sprinted through them. Crashing and casting them out of the way, Jazbet gripped hard on her reins.

The spirit fox leapt onto the massive the clawed leg, its benevolent power seemingly being the only thing that had caused the Stygian Horror pain. A hand the size of a castle reached down to swat them away but Susano twisted around the leg as she ascended up the devil.

A roar bellowed out of its mouth, thunderous sound pierced the ears of people for miles.

Jazbet's tears had stopped. He removed an enchanted dagger, began speaking in a beautiful language known among celestials. Without ears the Devil could hear him, and understood what he was doing. Its massive eyes filled with hatred narrowed as it attempted to crush the man and spirit on him.

The lumbering movement of the massive demon was no match for the spirit fox's speed. Shaking and stomping violently the devil attempted to fling them off but to no avail.

"ALMOST THERE SUSANO! NOW!" The Fox had used its tails to throw Jazbet forward to the head of the beast. A legendary hero had recently fallen attempting the same technique. Yet he had not prepared himself for ascension to the heavens, Jazbet's incantation had. He screamed in pain as the evil of the devil penetrated his skin, bleeding from every pore, much like Caleb had.

The darkness in the sky was cut through by a beam of blue light, a whirlwind of Jihad had swept away the sea of black. Heaven was coming to claim its child.

Another roar left the mouth of the Stygian horror, the beam of light had taken off half its face. No matter the evil this creature was capable of and represented, the Celestial pillars of heaven were more abundant in pure benevolence and energy then this being would be in evil.

The beam had caught Jazbet, keeping him intact and afloat while it landed into the army below. The wraiths could not handle it either, the ones who encountered the beam vaporizing immediately.

The liquid darkness of the sky began to disappear, the desert that was now a sea of blood and bodies was basked in the light of heaven.

Heroes of Perfect World
Eyes were closed and hands rose to shield their lids from the blinding light. Some nearly fell off their mounts and swords as their system were shocked by the luminous interruption.

A Venomancer atop a Dragon did her best to look away from the light but it seemed as if everything were caught in it, as if the world were in a perpetual state of a lightning's flash.

"WHAT IS THAT?!?" she screamed, her Dragon companion merely sent his thoughts to her.

Heaven's tear....

The Wizards of Archosaur

"It would seem our armies are in a perpetrated state of mass confucianism."

"Verloya, its perpetual state of mass confusion..."

"I think I know what I'm talking about."

"Anyway what is going on...and where is Jazbet?"

Boroba spoke out, "Jazbet has chosen to ascend himself to heaven...he has taken his life in hopes that the positive energy of the Celestial realms will be enough to destroy this beast. It would seem it is something he had planned for sometime."

They all spoke in a huddle with cowls over their heads, even the ground refracted blinding light.

Damn it...thats why he took so long to get here...

Ishmael had regretted the last words he had spoken to his friend, Jazbet. A man infinitely more talented then he in the ways of the Power, yet from such an unprivileged background.

Warm streams dripped freely from his face.

Raza

If ever the gods had cared for Raza, it was now. The blinding light had woken him from his comatose state. Pain had left his body completely, all that was left was an extremely bright light which had stunned the photo receptive lenses of his eyes into a frozen image for a few minutes. Even in his blindness he spoke with enough enthusiasm to be contagious.

"Boys! The Gods shining down us now! We got that big ugly destroyed and we damn well won half the battle, all we'd have to do then is mop up the army."

All anyone cared about was the Stygian horrors defeat. Before most men would shudder at the thought of battling a massive army of Wraiths, but after facing this devil, they'd love to fight anything.

Susano

A thousand years in this world and she had never seen anything like it. She had witnessed the ascension of enlightened men and women, but not during a battle with the Aubochon of the Sixteen ****. Seeing something so evil and powerful destroyed by the light of the heavens had made her millenia in this realm fruitful.

Like a Tear from Heaven, the light fell through for only moments. Less then a minute the world had been blinded. And then it was all done.

Jazbet was nowhere to be seen, and the Aubochon, the Stygian Horror, had fallen in what seemed to be as the world's most quiet moment. Without a head, the Devil crashed into the army of wraiths sending forth a scarlet shockwave throughout the desert, and knocking every soldier and mount to the ground and on their backs. The Devil was gone.

Cheers rang throughout the world, the fall of the Devil had been destroyed a large portion of what was left of the enemy army.

Between the Heroes of Perfect World and the 12th Army...the Wraiths stood no chance.

Epilogue:
The Wraiths had suffered a grave defeat after the battle and were never again able to mobilize in such large numbers. Hunted and destroyed throughout the land by wandering Heroes, they never again posed a world threat.

Centurion Raza was promoted to General soon after but had fallen months later to disease, he was survived by his wife and three sons.

Artillery Chief Kizaam was amputated shortly after but rewarded with the title of Forlorn Hope, receiving a special symbol on his armor, a warm bed every night, and free drinks to every land he ever visited. He is remembered as a Hero in the small village where he lived, and couldn't have been more happier with his new status as a veteran of the now legendary battle.

Caleb was mourned by companions and his Wife for many years until new and living heroes replaced him. He was buried in a mass grave a few miles from the battle.

Boroba Thring, Ishmael the Dune Talker, and Verloya the White had all become Legendary Mages throughout Archosaur and surrounding lands. It was their deeds that saved the lives of thousands. Boroba retired soon after and tutored young children with talent in the Power for the rest of his life. Ishmael and Verloya chose to stay in Archosaur, protecting it against minimal threats and boasting the situation to be larger then it ever was. Verloya never improved his vocabulary.

Jazbet had sacrificed himself for the good of many, but was never known. The son of a Farmer, he had a raw talent for the Power which he had honed himself, in solitude. Never having gained a name for himself, he was quickly forgotten as a person, and had become a symbol of the Celestials benevolence, Heaven's Tear itself. Soon after, Susano, his fateful companion had ascended the realm of mortals and onto the heavens herself.

The Battle of Heaven's Tear had changed the land forever, and was never forgotten. Scholars from different nations in all corners of the world consider it the moment mankind's fate was decided, while others disagree and mention it was simply the fate of an army.

Nonetheless, thousands were saved, because of the actions of the bold and the brave.

jokerxdude

Um... The contest is over.

puertoland1

jokerxdude wrote: »

Um... The contest is over.

I'm aware of the dates posted in the original post and I have yet to see results posted up conforming to those dates so I figure at most there is still time for a submission (saw this thread yesterday). At the least, I submitted a fan-fiction to share with everyone else here who has submitted their own works.

Nokia_Jade - Heavens Tear

puertoland1 wrote: »

I'm aware of the dates posted in the original post and I have yet to see results posted up conforming to those dates...

Shota had some personal emergencies to tend to and that is the reason for a delay in the contest results. Other entries were, however, submitted on time

puertoland1

Nokia_Jade - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Shota had some personal emergencies to tend to and that is the reason for a delay in the contest results. Other entries were, however, submitted on time

I understand the reason for the delay at thats perfectly fine, life always comes first : ). If the date of my submission disqualifies my fan fiction thats fine as well, it was submitted with the intention of sharing the work anyway.

Elibael - Heavens Tear

puertoland1 wrote: »

I understand the reason for the delay at thats perfectly fine, life always comes first : ). If the date of my submission disqualifies my fan fiction thats fine as well, it was submitted with the intention of sharing the work anyway.

And bravo, that's all that matters. Well done puertoland1, sucks you didn't get in on time, however, your story was entertaining, and I think it's awesome to see there's people around willing to share their work even without a prize awaiting them.

Good luck to all contestants, and take care Shota. b:bye

Nokia_Jade - Heavens Tear

I'm just happy there was such a great turnout o.o A+ Heaven's Tear!

Konariraiden - Heavens Tear

Insert additional positive comment about Shota/Heaven's Tear/PWI/DESU here!

b:cute

Shota - Heavens Tear

I apologize for those who wanted to submit and missed the deadline. It's true that there was no announcement of the end but I felt secure that in my absence the posted rules would apply since there was no announcement of a change. I apologize for any confusion but am thrilled that there was so much interest.

I do hopethat the creative juices won't totally subside in the absence of future contests... that would be a true shame. Judging is terribly difficult and I wish I had more coins to give away!

The winners will be announced this weekend!

Konariraiden - Heavens Tear

Shota - Heavens Tear wrote: »

I apologize for those who wanted to submit and missed the deadline. It's true that there was no announcement of the end but I felt secure that in my absence the posted rules would apply since there was no announcement of a change. I apologize for any confusion but am thrilled that there was so much interest.

I do hopethat the creative juices won't totally subside in the absence of future contests... that would be a true shame. Judging is terribly difficult and I wish I had more coins to give away!

The winners will be announced this weekend!

*twitching with excitement*

Vixe - Heavens Tear

*twiddles thumbs*

jokerxdude

Congrats to winners in advance. +Eats pie to pass the time+

Vixe - Heavens Tear

The anticipation's killing me~....

Shota - Heavens Tear

Aesur - Heavens Tear wrote: »

Lying on the ground,
I stare in amazement,
at flashing feathers.


Man that's a bad Haiku.

I searched, though in vain
For that missing syllable
But it escaped me!

*winks*

you win a haiku in return!

Shota - Heavens Tear

A lone eagle’s cry tore through the night air in perfect time with the first tear to fall from Shota’s eyes. Occasional flashes of lightning from the coming storm illuminated the slender figure that stood not close to tall but yet erect and proud upon the mountain peak. Undisturbed scrubby brush bespoke the long time past since another had stood in this place. For all she knew, the last feet to grip this rock had been her own when first she came to this world.

It was not her way to let other see her cry, though it was something she did often. Those who came in contact with her often commented on her inner strength and drive, not knowing how thin the protective wall really was and how vulnerable the heart that beat within was. There were none who would witness the deluge of sadness to come, and anyone far below the mountain peak who happened to be out despite the threatening thunderheads would be hard-pressed to know how much of what feel from above was rain and how much was tears.

In many ways it seemed she had been here forever and in a way, perhaps she had. Moreover, perhaps even after the coming rain washed all traces of her footsteps from the world, she would, in a way, linger on if only as a whisper on the wind. If one has truly lived in a place, made contact with the world and those within it, Shota believed that even once a name was forgotten the legacy of the soul persisted. Shota chided herself softly on her ego issues; she had never been short on how she valued herself. It was unfair to leave a place and at the same time not just hope, but expect it to remember you. She smiled a wan smile knowing that no amount of chiding would ever change her.

Thunder rumbled and growled ever close as the wind whipped the silky-soft, pure white cloth of the long formal dress that had been the only raiment anyone had ever known her to wear. She looked every bit the angel she professed to be and her hands found themselves touching softly at her hair searching for the horns she always joked held up the halo.

As the cold storm winds whipped at her more fiercely she wrapped her arms around herself to fight of the chill for just a little more time and because even the most solitary of souls need a hug sometimes even if it’s their own arms that must suffice. Shota had been here for a long time listening to the music of the hearts and minds of the people of the land. Songs, stories, and poetry of surpassing grace and beauty wafted up from all directions and nourished that tender heart within.

Alternating smiles, laughs, and tears Shota had listened, and more importantly heard the magic woven in words by the world she loved, but had to leave. Impossibly, she could hear a clock ticking though there was surely no such thing anywhere nearby. Leaving was a hard thing, and harder yet was trying to pass judgment on the creations of those who had heeded her siren call.

Shota wished that she had more gifts to leave to the world that had given her home and friends and so much love. She hoped that those who did not receive a shiny, glittering gift might find satisfaction in the beauty of their own words.

The storm was upon her now in full force, pummeling her with its fury. Swollen grey thunderheads surrounded her, unleashing a fury unlike any since the world was young and the primordial ooze had craved the life-giving rains. As the fury mounted and the peaked, the thunderheads parted outward forming a thin ring that laid bare the sky and revealed the shining moon and twinkling stars. There was no time left to linger.

Shota looked down upon a home and people she had loved and blew them a kiss, and as she was whisked up into the sky on unseen wings, her hands spread wide and gleaming gold poured from her hands down to many who had made her heart glad and though she had hoped for no sadness at the end, she cried again for those who would have no tangible proof that she had loved them too.

Shota - Heavens Tear

Thank you all SO very much for your entries and efforts. I have labored long in judging and had seriously overlooked how dreadful a task that really is. The contest was much more fun than having to rank one over another. In the end I had to make choices and it was not easy and I have gone back and forth in rankings and reasoning. I wish I had had more coins and could give out more prizes because you all deserve something. I can only hope that my sincere gratitude will suffice. I tried to take into account creativity and people who did something a little different.

Here are instructions for claiming your prizes.

1) The winners below will receive a forum PM from me with a codeword in it. Each winner will receive a unique codeword.
2) Those winners are to log in to PWI and send me an in-game email to me from the character they wish to receive the reward. That email should have the codeword as the ONLY text to the mail. (If you wish to send me more email that’s fine, just do it in a different mail)
3) Over the weekend I will log into the game from time to time and if I can catch you online the same time as me I will meet you to give you your prize, else I will mail your prize to you.

Thank you all again so much, I don’t know what else to say… *tears*

FIRST PRIZE – 20 MILLION GOLD – Vixe oh ye of little faith! Just beautiful.
SECOND PRIZE – 15 MILLION GOLD – Jokerxdude – epic and persistent
THIRD PRIZE – 12.5 MILLION GOLD – Konariraiden – inspired - awesomesauce
FOURTH PRIZE – 10 MILLION GOLD – Jiayin – putting Shota in the story earns points!
FIFTH PRIZE – 7.5 MILLION GOLD – HekateDevine – who doesn’t love a good love story?
SIXTH PRIZE – 5 MILLION GOLD – Swiftail – more ego-boosting Shota lore!
SEVENTH PRIZE – 2.5 MILLION GOLD – lilsistor – clever plea for a blessing!
EIGHTH PRIZE – 1.5 MILLION GOLD – Tryndal – lone poetry winner (I’m sorry!!)
NINTH PRIZE – 1 MILLION GOLD – Kazusame – reminds me of old page-turner adventure games!

Stickygreen - Heavens Tear

hax! i call favoritism! i want a recount of the votes!

Shota - Heavens Tear

Stickygreen - Heavens Tear wrote: »

hax! i call favoritism! i want a recount of the votes!

If I were playing favorites you would have won darling!

I recehcked the ballots, despire living in Florida I know how to vote and there were no hanging chads!

Konariraiden - Heavens Tear

I'm happy-desu. I hope that those readin' my story did more than just enjoy it...but got the underlying messages to society in it...

b:cute

Tryndal - Heavens Tear

Thank you Shota Im glad you enjoyed! Again this was an awesome contest and Gratz to all who entered you did great!

Stickygreen - Heavens Tear

Shota - Heavens Tear wrote: »

If I were playing favorites you would have won darling!

I recehcked the ballots, despire living in Florida I know how to vote and there were no hanging chads!

T___T <3b:cute

jokerxdude

Thank you for the awesome contest. The piece you made was beautiful. I really loved it. Congrats everyone who participated.

Shota - Heavens Tear

jokerxdude wrote: »

Thank you for the awesome contest. The piece you made was beautiful. I really loved it. Congrats everyone who participated.

I'm glad you liked my short bit of prose :-) Logging in to see who I can give gold to!