The Inkwell presents: Up in Smoke

Each month, the community chooses a prompt, and those interested are tasked to write a tale of no more than 2,500 words. This month, we chose to tell our stories around a central event, a singular moment upon which everything hinges. In particular, the moment when a candle burns out, taking with it its light and plunging us all into darkness.

How often do we forget the importance of that illumination where none other reaches? Whether the literal light paving our way past monsters and onwards to hard-sought safety, or the figurative flame burning bright in our chests, a source of hope for something better, we reach for it hungrily, willing it to never die. So, when it does, the consequences feel so much worse, and our reactions take on an import we never expect.

And so, we come to the real question of the matter—what will you do when the light goes out?

Dreamer's Gambit - Dreams bring answers reality cannot
When the Clock Breaks at Midnight - A final, desperate gambit is all that's left for a dying village
The Threads of Light - A mysterious castle in the woods holds the key to the future.
Longclaw, Short Candle - With each kill, the wick burns lower.
Tail's End - Sometimes the only form of comfort is a voice in the darkness