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Challenge #04784-M035: The Island of Crabs

Ereshkigal has called Wraithvine to an island deep in the sea where nothing is going on. Inhabited by normal crabs, far from trade winds, no merfolk or shipwrecks in the vicinity, no more than background levels of magic. What is here that the Goddess is so insistent? -- Deathshead419

There's something people do to busy people that starts with, "While you're up," or, "While you're there," that will inevitably irritate the busy people in question. Gods do it too, but only to those sworn to the god's aid.

Between teaching Nimnae lessons he wouldn't forget, with most of the year between now and his next birthday, Wraithvine got The Call to investigate a small island to the south.

It would not take long to get there, nor to get back. So it promised to be a relatively quick trip. Wraithvine knew the lure of the quick trip that ended up taking centuries or more. But hir goddess had promised that ze would be back before Nimnae's next petulant attempt at a birthday wish. And the goddess always kept her promises.

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Challenge #04783-M034: Unconsidered Wish

Another birthday, another visit from Wraithvine. Nimnae is sick and tired of the lessons, the trickery, of not getting anything out of the wishes. So Nimnae wishes that they would have the means of escaping this year no matter the cost.

[Sequel to https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04739-l355-birthday-wish -- Deathshead419

[AN: Wraithvine would have definitely hung around to make sure Nimnae learned ]

In the months between Lyala's birthday and Nimnae's, Wraithvine entered the local lord's household as a tutor. Promising to

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Challenge #04782-M033: Extraordinary Evidence

After eighty years, humanity has returned to the Lunar surface again. At last we can begin digging under the regolith. Yet the first expedition runs into a little wrinkle when they excavate whale bones… -- Deathshead419

They thought they had thought of everything. Radiation shielding. Special equipment to snare that and the moon's static electricity and turn it into power. As well as the good, old-fashioned solar panels. Their habitat was proof against meteors big and small. Self-healing, or so the boffins

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Challenge #04781-M032: Power of Belief

Mavis has made her escape with various Board Apes and gold jewelry pilfered from her cultists. A flawless escape, save for one hiccup: the Great Yogi Upadya Nirmanka is real and has no need for early wealth, only the mind, body, and soul of a disciple…

[Sequel to: https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04738-l354-the-vanishing-mystic -- Deathshead419

Belief is an incredibly weird thing. It's why placebos work on patients. It's all in the presentation. Their glorious leader Suma Loma had shown them the

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Challenge #04780-M031: Gifted a Curse

Whilst perusing a market, Waithvine’s companion hands hir a small statuette of an odd winged God. Nothing seemed to be odd about it, but, when ze handed it back, and statuette soon reappeared in hir pocket. Try as ze might, it always returns, while the merchant who sold it is long gone and the mysterious curse grows ever tighter… -- Deathshead419

Wraithvine had grown used to Girrautuvit sticking her hands in hir pockets. She had yet to learn that it was

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Challenge #04779-M030: Those Were the Days

King Nydon is gone, and the jubilation from his fall was real. Yet now years have come and gone, allowing memories of how bad things were to fade, had leaving King Reginald to deal with a burgeoning nostalgia for his father’s reign.

[Follow up to: https://peakd.com/fiction/@internutter/challenge-04632-l248-better-than-perfection ] -- Deathshead419

King Reginald of Bevuran and his Prince-consort Connow ruled wisely and well for decades. Raising a junior niece as the intended heir to the crown. Bevuran was no

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Challenge #04778-M029: And a Little Bit of Lavender

The human's friends fill an enormous, deep tub with hot water, saposin rich flowers, and several doses of lavender oil. The human DID say they loved lavender scented bubble baths. -- Anon Guest

Space does not encourage water immersion for reasons that quickly become obvious the more you know about freefall. So when spacers come to shore leave on a planet, the first thing they do is head for large and indulgent bodies of their chosen fluid. It's no surprise that port

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Challenge #04777-M028: Safety Inspection

This mine has an over 90% safety margin!/ "How in all the Holies you manage that??"

Meet the supervisors. /"These are Kobolds!"

Yep, best damn safety inspectors and supervisors we've ever had! -- The New Guy

Everyone knows that the world of Alfarell was made for Dragons and Dragonkind. Fortunately, after centuries of irreconcilable differences, the Dragons have deigned to share their world with smaller intelligent creatures. Fortunately for Dragonkind, the other intelligent creatures were willing to talk.

Unfortunately for the Kobolds,

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Challenge #04776-M027: Words of Peace

They were an ordinary human, and loved to learn languages. They even learned the elven tongues, some fae language, the native tongue of kobolds, even voulspeak. Which allowed them to make quite a few friends, and helped otherwise distrustful to accept their kindness. -- Lessons

They should have been a Bard, and everyone said so. They insisted that Peony should sing... until she did. Unfortunately for Peony Black, they had the singing and musical instrument talent of a duck.

Peony's talent was

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Challenge #04775-M026: Show Me What You Got

The entire species' culture was that of raiders and conquers. The humans challenged their champions... to a dance-battle?? -- Anon Guest

The cool thing about warrior cultures is that they have honour codes. Once you know the honour code, you're halfway towards gaining an understanding. Understanding is one of the keys to friendship and peace.

Humans will also pack-bond with ANYTHING.

When these two factors join, you get interesting encounters. Such as the confrontation on DF9405YJ-5 between the Humans and the Dolravyn.

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Challenge #04774-M025: Waste Nothing

The human had two massive malamutes that required regular grooming. They washed the loose fur a second time after it was shed, dried it, fluffed it, and stored it. Several species bought the fur for projects, or lining for clothing, or for nesting material. -- Anon Guest

Human Uyn had two massive dogs which, according to hir, were "ninety percent fluff by volume". Whenever ze gave them their "weekly spa treatment", ze wound up with more fluff than dog. Carefully contained in

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Challenge #04773-M024: The Unlikeliest Hero

The storm winds were so strong that wraithvine's hat blew off faster than ze could hold it down. Inside the sheltering cave a mixed species family soon hurried in, with a little kobold hatchling proudly prancing with the pointed thing in hir maw. -- Fighting Fit

In all other ways, it was just a hat. To Wraithvine, it was hir hat, a most special hat. Ze had made it when ze first decided to be a Wizard and ze had been repairing

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Challenge #04772-M023: Read the Instructions

The sign is easy to read, with pictures. No fee via coin. Just leave a bit of honey, or some wool fluff, or split some wood, etc, and the place welcomed you.

Refuse even a small kindness for thanks? You will pay another way. And it's humiliation. You'll live, but the mortification is horrible. -- Anon Guest

It looked like any other roadhaus. Neat, clean, and orderly. The little farm attached to it was enough to support many visitors. The beds were

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Challenge #04771-M022: Kindness to Strangers

Not all hunts go according to plan. This one went sideways almost from the start. Several young teens find the unconscious Jay and Sunshine, and help them recover. The two make very sure these kids are protected afterwards. -- Anon Guest

They were lucky to be alive when the gang found them. Generally, the enforcers were lazy enough to just shoot until the perp stopped moving. These two had somehow caught enough ire to get beaten to a pulp. There was one

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Challenge #04770-M021: You'd Better Watch Out

While one spirit god gives gifts to all human children and other "welcomed" children, this spirit ensues all "unwelcome" children around the world also get gifts no matter who they are, or where they are. -- Anon Guest

Charity sighed and scooped up her child as ze came home crying. On one hand, the formalised schooling system allowed for a decent education, and allowed children to socialise with their peers. It also, unfortunately, enforced socialisation with bullies.

She wrapped up Wit in

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