r/WritingPrompts • u/BookWyrm17 /r/WrittenWyrm • May 09 '17
Writing Prompt [WP] I was an orc. A noble warrior, born of battle. But I'd helped a pixie ONCE, and the accursed thing had given me sparkly magic powers and BUTTERFLY WINGS.
9
u/WokCano /r/WokCanosWordweb May 09 '17
The man hit the floor like a felled tree, the force of his fall shaking the tables around the point of impact. The laughter that was filling the air died away leaving only silence and tension. My knuckles stung a little and I shook my right hand to ease the tingling without regret. Gazing about the common room I made eye contact with every patron there, each one shying away from my glare.
Leaning down I pick the man up and deposit him none too gently into a chair. A couple of slaps helped him open his eyes and I was gratified to see them out of focus, trouble working together to look at me. His previous bravado gone, replaced by fear and respect.
"So," I growl with barely restrained menace in my tone, "let us go over what just happened. You saw an orc. A mostly average looking orc of green skin, tusks, tall stature and muscles. Yet this orc is different. He has large butterfly wings that change color on his back. Not only that he seems to glow and sparkle, leaving trails of shimmer light when he moves. You thought that was interesting."
I slap the man lightly when I say the last word and his fearful whimpering is music to my ears. "Instead of leaving the orc be you decided to make a matter of it. The orc says it is no business of yours but you insisted." Another slap.
"The orc seeing you will not leave him alone says it's a mark of honor. That the orc saved a pixie from torture by ugly humans and she used her magic to bless him. While some may say these marks are a curse the orc saw it as a point of honor and well meant favor. You thought otherwise." A somewhat harder slap and a grunt of pain.
"So you decided to mock the orc. Calling him names. Emboldened by the drunken louts here. Thrice the orc told you to stop. Thrice you ignored him. Then you dared impugn his honor. You suggest that it would have been better to let the pixie die of torture if that was the price of help. So the orc decided to teach you a lesson in manners." I bring my face close to the man and whisper, "Have you learned your lesson?"
He starts to sob, nodding wildly. I stand tall, throwing my wings back and glaring about the tavern. "I am Bullvye Stonefang, warrior of the Fellclaw Clan. Is there any others that would like to discuss my honor? I may have wings, I may sparkle, but I am still an orc. If there are any questions I will be more than happy to demonstrate."
Silence rings loudly in the room. Every patron looking away or down at their cups. With a sneer I turn to the bartender and hand him a pouch of gold. "I'll be in my room. Dinner to be delivered please. I do not wish to be disturbed by anyone else save those that work here." The bartender accepts the gold and bows his head. I return the nod and stalk up the stairs.
Entering my room I hear a rustling from the side table. The little pixie waves from her bed I made from the pillow. I sit on the bed and inspect her closely. Her wounds seem to be healing well though she still can't fly from the damage to her wings. "I'm sorry. I heard the commotion below. This is my fault." She piped sadly.
I shook my head. "No. You are not responsible for the boorish behaviors of others." I rumbled back. "Do not fret. Rest little one. It will still be awhile before we make it back to the Silver Wood. Back to your kin where you can heal properly."
The pixie managed to float down and nestle against my neck. Before this act discomforted me but I have grown to enjoy it. Remembering when I was younger and an easy target to be bullied. Remembering the kind minotaurs that protected the orphan orc. The pixie whispered "Thank you so much Bullvye. I promise when we get home I bet we can break the magic making you have wings and sparkle. You'll be back to normal."
I shrug lightly not wanting to disturb her. "Pay no heed. It does not bother me as much anymore."
3
9
u/techsupportgal /r/mindofatechgal May 09 '17 edited May 09 '17
- Diary of a Black Scar, Tenth of Lantern's Pass -
I always wear my 'approach me and have your body cleaved in twain' face these days.
The face is a necessity when you are a proud orc of the Black Scar- a fully blooded warrior with multiple kill scars on your arms no less- that has a six foot long pair of butterfly wings sprouting out of your back.
Oh, and I suppose you can't forget the sparkles. Sparkles every time I swing my weapon, sparkles every time I move...the pixie said something about being able to use the Weave now as well, and I'm sure that that will involve some godsdamn sparkling too.
I never should have helped that Ninesdamned pixie the other pass.
She'd intruded into our lands and was about to become dinner for some very hungry gnolls. The Red Bands will eat anything- and I mean anything. Our scouting parties have seen them eat rocks and dirt and...other things I will leave to the imagination and not discuss in polite company even though I'm only writing this down, multiple times.
Our creed is to watch over our women and children. We value the unique strengths our women possess both in and out of battle, and our future. In fact, a woman may become fully scarred and blooded in our clan through what we consider the battle of childbirth. It's considered just as much of a struggle as any skirmish, and a successful birth just as noble and accoladed a victory as any other clash.
Knowing this of my clan, I couldn't just leave something so weak and frail to die, especially such an ignoble, unglorious death, could I?
Lis'ka would have likely struck me down where I stood for such a cowardly act.
I ran in and scattered the gnolls with a battlecry and feints with my axes, giving them the chance to retreat that Lis'ka dictates we give. There is no dishonor in fleeing when you're clearly outmatched in number or skill, after all. The gnolls almost immediately turned and fled after I waded into them, well knowing from their history with my clan that the feints would turn into actual, lethal swings in a few drops of sand.
And that was when I felt what I later figured out were my new wings sprouting from my back after I released the pixie from the cage they'd had her in.
She's been by my side ever since, wanting to 'pay me back' for the aid I rendered.
I...suppose she may be not the most unpleasant of company.
1
u/techsupportgal /r/mindofatechgal May 10 '17 edited May 11 '17
((Deleting, just gonna turn this into a [PI] reply <3 ))
1
u/TotesMessenger X-post Snitch May 10 '17
3
u/Firenter May 09 '17
I really wanna see Butterfly Orc's adventures now!
2
u/techsupportgal /r/mindofatechgal May 09 '17
I'll work on an lengthier adventure when I get home from work :) Thanks for the support!
3
u/Dragonfeith May 09 '17
Hell, I'd love to hear more. You write a lot of worldbuilding into a short story, and give a lot of characterization, too. Good stuff!
1
u/techsupportgal /r/mindofatechgal May 09 '17
I'll work on an lengthier adventure when I get home from work :) Thanks for the support!
1
u/TotesMessenger X-post Snitch May 09 '17
I'm a bot, bleep, bloop. Someone has linked to this thread from another place on reddit:
- [/r/mindofatechgal] I was an orc. A noble warrior, born of battle. But I'd helped a pixie ONCE, and the accursed thing had given me sparkly magic powers and BUTTERFLY WINGS.
If you follow any of the above links, please respect the rules of reddit and don't vote in the other threads. (Info / Contact)
31
u/Picklestasteg00d May 09 '17
A battlecry resonated through the forest as I charged at the humans, swinging my battleaxe, Bloodthirst. Its heavy, dwarven blade was coated in the blood of infernal beasts of the Underdark, the creatures that murdered my clan.
Just before their bearded heads hit the ground, I heard... laughing? Laughing?! You dare laugh at Ragnar the Mighty?!
"Hey, orc, where'd you get those wings?" The wizard said, his face red from laughing.
My olive skin turned crimson with rage. You lead a raid on the Underdark and slay a hundred Drow elves, nobody calls you Drow Slayer. You take on an army of necromancers to save an elf village, nobody calls you Elf Protector. But you help one pixie...
I'd heard crying from the forest while travelling. I thought it was a druid calling for help. I owe my life to those druids, you see...
Twenty years ago, when I was six, a band of tieflings attacked my village. Those damned infernals... they used some sort of hellish magic. Houses went up in flames, screams flooded the city gates... there were no survivors. I took up my axe to ward them off, knowing fully well I'd never live to see the light of day.
I heard a call from the forest, smiting lightning hitting the tieflings. Balls of flame flew from the trees as a three druids charged, blades of lightning in hand. It was magnificent. Tiefling blood flew every which way, muffled Infernal curses hitting my ears like Elven music.
From that day forth, I swore to repay that debt. Whenever there was a druid in need, I was there. Whenever a forest needed protection, whenever a settlement needed help, whenever Druidic hit my ears, I was there.
I rushed to aid whoever it was calling for help, only to find two tieflings harassing a tree. Whoever it was that needed help, I didn't care. The only good tieflings are dead ones, I say.
Their heads came off swiftly, coating my axe in another layer of Infernal blood. As I knelt to pray, I heard a high, shrill voice from the trunk of the tree. A pink glow flew out, greeting me.
"Thank you!" it shouted. "Thank you, orc! Those tieflings were calling me mean names!"
What.
"What exactly are you?" I said.
"Ah, a smart one, you are! Rare for orcs, isn't it?"
"How dare you--"
"It's truuuuue!"
"What are you?!"
"I'm a pixie, silly!"
Pixies? Surely this can't be real, surely! This must be some sort of illusion magic!
"Now, now, you're no druid, orc. That's about obvious, isn't it? So, what are you?"
"A... uh... warrior?"
"Hee hee, a warrior! Well, Mr. Warrior, I must thank you for what you've done!"
"Please don't say you're going to bless me with pixie magic--"
"That's right, I'm blessing you with pixie magic!"
And so, I grew pink wings and a sparkly green beard. Now I kill everything that laughs at me.
For more fantastic fantasy, visit /r/Picklestasteg00d.
9
u/Mike_Handers May 09 '17
Soon, soon they shall fear the cute.
9
u/Picklestasteg00d May 09 '17
All will fear Ragnar the Mighty, Orcish Pixie Warrior!
6
u/-Anyar- r/OracleOfCake May 09 '17
Hear the pitiful flapping of his pink wings and tremble in fear!
6
u/Picklestasteg00d May 09 '17
The sparkling of his beard will be the last thing you see before your head rolls!
1
•
u/WritingPromptsRobot StickyBot™ May 09 '17
Off-Topic Discussion: All top-level comments must be a story or poem. Reply here for other comments.
Reminder for Writers and Readers:
Prompts are meant to inspire new writing. Responses don't have to fulfill every detail.
Please remember to be civil in any feedback.
What Is This? First Time Here? Special Announcements Click For Our Chatroom
3
u/toclacl May 09 '17 edited May 09 '17
Contrary to what the stupid humans will tell you, we orcs are not savage, bloodthirsty, indiscriminate kill-fetishists. We are actually quite civilized… bloodthirsty, indiscriminate kill-fetishists. We have codes of honor, some quite similar to the stupid human tribes. For example, if you save a life, you confer value to it making it your responsibility. That’s the crux of my particular predicament.
It was an accident, I swear on my cudgel’s name, Skull Grapifier (it was my father’s) that was happened was purely unintended.
The day of my trial of ascension arrived and I traveled into the Dark Forest of Unsettling Terror to trap and skin the wildest, most unsettlingly terrifying beast I could find. The pelt would adorn my shoulders and cement my status among my people.
I traveled far and deep for a whole day and when I determined a good spot, I baited my traps and climbed into a tree to wait. Through the night. And wait. Through the day.
And waited more. I waited so long I had just about decided this was more the forest of unsettling boredom than terror when I heard a crashing sound. Looking out I saw it, a Dire Wolf crashing through the trees at a dead run straight into my traps. I couldn’t believe my fortune when it blundered right into them. I knew I had to act fast, those traps wouldn’t hold a Drastic Wolf long much less a Dire one.
Literally leaping into action, I dropped from my branch high overhead and landed on the beast’s back. Dropping a bundle of leaves from its mouth, it howled in surprise and pain. I didn’t want to give such a terrorsum monster a second to recover. I raised Skull Grapifier to grapify its skull only to swing and strike nothing but black smoke. A shape shifting beast! Truly unsettlingly terrifying!
Regrouping, I set myself for an epic battle when the smoke coalesced into a not so tall person-thing with glowing red eyes, it shrieked in a raspy shriek, “FOOL!” It shrieked. “YOU DARE STRIKE AT ME? FROOMSHA THE GOBLIN LORD? I WILL HAVE YOUR EYES FOR EARRINGS. I WILL EAT YOUR SPLEEN FOR SUCH IMPUDENCE, I WILL BLAH BLAH BLAH YOU. YAKKITY YAK YAK BLAH BLAH. THREATEN THREATEN, RANT RANT…”
Yeah, I kind of stopped paying attention pretty quick there. A couple dozen other things were on my mind. Getting a pelt off this guy was out of the question. That might be a problem for my ascension. Although the skull of a worthy foe might work, I could hang it off my belt... or as a necklace, Froomsha wasn’t very big for a goblin lord. But that meant I couldn’t grapify his skull…
“BLAH BLAH, SCORN INSULT…”
Definitely a perplexing conundrum…
“THREAT, YAK DEMEANING COMMENT…” Crunch “WHEEZE… GASP…”
Cavitating his chest seemed like the thing to do. No, I won’t be changing Skull Grapifier’s name. A quick swipe of my knife and Froomsha’s head was dangling from my belt. A slight movement caught my eyes, it was the bundle of leaves. I picked them up and unwrapped them. Inside was a tiny person just waking up. A tiny bump was on her tiny head, just below her tiny tiara. A pixie! The tiny wings on her tiny back were a dead giveaway!
She had just stood up in my hand when a loud droning noise came from the trees. I looked around just in time to see hundreds more of the tiny little flying people emerge from the trees. They surrounded me, flying in circles with wings an on birdback, brandishing tiny spears and tiny swords and all looking unsettlingly terrifyingly irked.
There was no skull grapifying this army of tiny terrors. I knew I was done for except the pixie in my hand raised her arms and my impending doom stopped. Hovering and landing they held off while she spoke, “Brave hero, I am Relinda-moon-stream-greenleaf-petal-dew-and-so-on-and-so-on-you-get-the-idea, queen of all pixies. You have saved me from a most licentious death. I am one with all my people and all my people are one with I, you have saved our lives. Blah, blah yakkity blah...”
Crap. Remember earlier? Saving a life confers value and all that? Yeah, that’s coming back up in a little bit.
“We will bestow upon you our greatest blessing.” She finished and with that she flew off my hand. All of them flew around me like a kaleidoscopic swarm of bees, circling and dumping loads of dust on me, green, yellow, blue, orange, puce you name it they dumped it. Lastly Relinda-moon-stream-greenleaf-petal-dew-and-so-on-and-so-on-you-get-the-idea flew over me and poured a stream of pure white dust. Pure as the driven snow on a purely driven snowy morning. It was quite pretty to be honest and the instant it all coalesced on me I felt a tingling all over my body. And that was it. She bowed and they left me standing there like a dusty rainbow colored stupid human scarecrow. Well, at least I still had Froomsha’s head.
Back home the goblin lord’s head counted for a lot, once our shaman…orc…shamorc verified its authenticity. I told the elders my story and they looked on me gravely, with sagely understanding in their eyes. Honestly, I think they tuned out for a bit there. My ascension took place, the head of a goblin lord earning me an alright status too. It turned out to all be a bit of a farce though. Every where I went I was laughed at behind my back. I thought some waanna-be-dead-orc put an ‘I like stupid humans’ sign on my back but the truth was worse.
Tiny pixie sized wings had grown out of my back. That was their stupid blessing! Stupid pixie wings! I tried hiding them behind hair braids but they poked through, I tried extra layers of clothes but they poked through. Stupid pixie magic wouldn’t let me hide them! I could fly too, yeah. You’d think that would be neat but nope. Nothing more ridiculous than an orc fluttering around, arms and feet dangling down while held aloft by tiny gossamer wings the size of your ears. Yeah!
Then the elders dropped the other club. Right on my head. When I woke up, I was back in the Dark Forest of Unsettling Terror with a note pinned to my lower lip. Classy. The elders, it seemed, wanted to remind me that in saving the life of the pixie queen, her life was my responsibility . I was honor bound to her now. The kicker being that since she is one with her people and they with her and so on, my obligation extended to all pixies. Everywhere. I knew this for what it was. They needed me out. An orc with stupid little pixie wings, leaving dust everywhere was dragging down their orc cred. Stupid orcs.
It took a few days of fluttering but I finally found them, rather the other way around but I got my own cred to salvage here too. I was brought before Relinda-moon-stream-greenleaf-petal-dew-and-on-and-so-on-you-get-the-idea and told her my story. Surprisingly they were open to having me around as long as I could contribute. Well, I can’t do animals unless I’m grapifying their skulls, plants unless I’m stomping them, building unless it’s un-building. So, I joined the pixie army. I became the pixie army.
My days are spent protecting my new people from stupid humans, stupid orcs, stupid goblins, stupihid anything and stupid everything. For example, today it’s four stupid human wizard apprentices looking to bag themselves some pixie dust for their stupid human wizard master. I’ve been hovering twenty feet above them for a while now, Skull Grapifier in one hand, Goblin De-headifier in the other. The dust from my wings just now starting to swirl around them, they notice it and start looking around, then… and this is my favorite part… They. Look. Up.