Look what you did, you scared demon!

The way I understand it, the man in the story is someone who'd consider himself a misfit. Someone socially awkward and poorly adapted. He's stuck in a situation he finds uncomfortable. This is compounded by presence of the girl that Death appeared as - possibly someone close to the protagonist, but the way it is worded suggests that the feeling wasn't mutual. Or that the man never really mustered the courage to put his feelings into words, and just put himself down, and eventually convinced himself that there were no feelings whatsoever.

Imagine yourself being stuck in a vague memory of the most awkward situation you have ever been.

A humanoid creature was spotted near Green Thorne County, looked humanoid and according to locals, they're known as the Blight. These humanoid species have the ability to suck the light and the life out of anyone that gets near them.

They are now growing hungry as multiple reports of these attacks appear left and right after the discovery. That's when the Blightbinders came to help, keeping the town safe out of these hungry Blights.

And you, this is your first time dealing with such threat like this, hope you don't get sucked, okay?

Blightbinder is a tale of a team that deals with the Blights and a starting Blightbinder who realizes how hard it is to deal with them— as well as holding a freaking blaster properly.

Price: $10

They didn't fit in in social settings. Their personal hell was being in a nice place where people are together and happy, and they're just not part of it. There, but separate. Lonely.

I'm guessing that their mistake that they needed to fix was that they never took a chance on trying to connect with the person who was kind to them.

goddammit mobile fucked up the text 😭 I’ll fix it when I get the chance, apologies!

‘….the fuck?’ ‘You heard me. Don’t do bad things anymore!’ Em exclaimed, not a single hint of sarcasm in her voice. That definitely wasn’t what Ami was expecting. Emri had just kicked their ass, and along with that destroyed the biggest project they’d had since they started. Yeah, sure they’d been a magical girl before, but that was long before Em and her team had gained their powers. Long before Ami had gone ‘bad’, as Mint would’ve said. Why was Em giving them this chance? They’d nearly killed her and her team, killing multiple citizens in the process. After all the taunting, all the nights Em’s team had spent chasing Ami down, fighting only to get bloody and tattered while Ami’s rage and old magic kept them going… Yet she says this? Part of Ami was outraged. Why should Em get what she wants? Why should she reach her goal, but not them? Ami had fought tooth and claw for their goal. Instead of newfound friends, safety, and a peaceful ending, the peaceful ending that Em was so close to.. Ami had just gotten their childhood ruined, and their partner killed right in front of them. Mint didn’t deserve it. No one did. Yes, Mint would never actually approve of this, but Ami was done. They’d done everything in their power, and it hadn’t been close. Their villain had moved, or disappeared, or retired. Either way, their villain was gone. Moved on, and so had Ami in their own way. A year after Mint died, Ami gave in. Set fire to their home, began using their powers working towards a new wish. Instead of giving hope to the world, they destroyed it. They had fucked up the world because the world fucked up them. Yet part of Ami was also curious. They could see the shock in the rest of the teams’ eyes. Clearly, this wasn’t part of the plan, so Em was just going off of instinct, right? Why did this girl trust in them? After all, they’d gone on quite the crime spree after Mint’s death. And yet this self proclaimed Emri Magica had just told them, wholeheartedly, that she knew they could do good again. Maybe they could. In the end, their curiosity won over their rage. “Why?” Ami prompted. ‘Why what?’ Em responded, innocent and open. God, to think they were almost the same age, Em’s team only appearing two years after Ami had stopped protecting the city, dipping their toes into villainy.. “Why have hope in me? After all that I’ve done?” ‘Well. Why do you think?’ “I don’t know. I’m a shit ass magical girl, an even shittier villain. Why do you trust I can do good again, when all you’ve seen of me is my worst at my best?” Silence. Emri’s team shuffled, clearly unsure what to do. Ami just stood there, their now-darkened blade at their side as they waited for an answer. Neither side lunged in the strange calm after the destructive battle that had just occurred. And finally, after what seemed like hours when there had been minutes.. ‘.. you were my hero’ “Excuse me?” ‘You and Mint. I’d watched MagicTube videos of you two as a kid. Yeah, the audio and video were absolute shit, and the videos were old. But I thought it was so cool how you two had fought together. The smoothness of your teamwork, your magic always complimenting hers and vise versa. Hell, I was even you for Halloween for like, three years straight! I remember seeing all the crimes you did… yet I still believed, and still do, that you can still be good. Do good.’ “… mint would’ve been so proud of you, y’know. Even if I weren’t your villain, she’d have cheered you on every step of the way.” Ami’s image flickered as tears appeared in their eyes. Their magic was dying. Their passion was. Maybe that was for the better. They let themselves down from the pull that their magic had on their heart, and for the first time in forever, instead of being Ami Madoka, magical girl.. they were just Amia, the schoolgirl. ‘I’ll try, kid. I’ll try. I can’t promise you anything.. but if it’s for Mint, and for you, I’ll try.”

[removed]

Well, shit.

I knew I heard something down here. My wife probably went back to sleep by now, but she'll be awake in a second or two. All I know is I won't.

He's a kid too. Just needed some money, now he's just shot someone. I can't even be mad at him. Probably just took his daddy's 22 and went out for some money.

I'm trying to reflect on my life. 42 years of, well, life. I was born, went through school, got a job, got married. Just an average working class man, not much to reflect on.

Well then, I guess that's it. I can't just stay frozen forever.

Whoever and wherever you are m8, I hope next year gets better for you 👋.

I Don't Hate You

Blightbinder

Me also. It’s beautifully written but I can’t quite grasp what’s happening.

Something was definitely different. I had slept through the night - there were no screams, no gunshots and I did not wake up in a cold sweat as I had many nights before. And yet, I was definitely where I had always been. A loft apartment with a far-too old bed worn down by time, on the outskirts of humanity.

Amongst the familiar scene, however, remained the unsettling feeling that something was wrong. The air seemed calmer, unnaturally still, while the sun itself seemed to reflect with peace, rather than anguish. Had I succumb to insanity? Have I finally been driven mad by the increased pressures of urban decay? I remembered seeing a woman the night before, being mugged and beaten for heroin, and I did nothing .. then, here .. but nothing else. Maybe I had finally gone mad.

Sweat began to pool around my brow as my stomach twisted into knots. I had suddenly grown ill at the thought of what might have been. Flashes of gruesome brutality rang in my head between gazes at the growing calmness breaking the serenity. Tick, tick, tick. Eternity, only broken by the ringing of a phone, once disconnected.

"HELL-O and merry greetings. Welcome to eternity. We're sure you have many questions, but we don't care. Press 1 for more options."

There was no 1.

How can I help?

I don’t actually understand this… can someone explain pretty please?

It was a nice day until a big yellow-green fog filled the city of Aldean after a thunderous noise of farting echoed throughout the land... The fog was sweet at first, then it started to become the equivalent of mustard gas.

There are no protagonists, no antagonists, just a God and His daily deity shenanigans.

The Day that God Farted is a collection of short stories about deities doing their ridiculous acts against the mortal world. We even got Loki and Zeus as you would expect.

Price: $70 $69.42

Well, that sucks.

I’m staring at the bullet frozen in time twenty inches away from my face. When I let the time flow, I’m going to die. Can’t dodge that. No shot.

I sigh ---think of a sigh to be more accurate. Like everything else, I too get frozen in time when time stops.

I got pretty good at thinking myself into doing actions that require moving. It feels really natural pretending that I move. Otherwise the whole racing-mind/frozen-body spooky quantum stringy duality thingy feels even more awkward. Let’s just call my ability --- stopping time--- for what it really is: magic. I have no idea how it works. I’m a wizard. Level twenty Chronomancer. Master of Time who just ran out of time.

So embarrassing.

I think of staring at my feet.

I shouldn’t have tried to stop the bank robbery. Should have just stayed outside and waited for the police. Of course, that was not an option. I think of turning around and glancing at Lina. The girl next door. Well, the girl next door I’ve had a crush on ever since I first saw her. She’s pretty. Like, 10/10 super cute and nice and funny… and she doesn’t even know I exist.

What was I thinking? I’m an idiot. So embarrassing. I pretended to be a superhero and ran to the bank to save a girl. God, I’m an idiot.

I think of people around me going ‘awww’. Yeah, it feels like I’m a low-budget rom-com character and this is all a joke.

Awww.

Thanks. I think of waving to Lina.

Hi Lina.

“Hi Andy,” I think of her saying.

“It’s really embarrassing, ha?”

“Yup.”

“She knows!” another voice says. “We all do.”

Odd. I did not think of that voice saying that.

“Knows what?” I think of me asking.

“We can all hear you!”

“Oh,” I gulp, glancing around. Am I losing it? Everyone is frozen. I did not let the time flow. What on earth is going on?

“I don’t know,” the voice says. It’s coming from a bank teller. “But we can hear your words and thoughts. What is going on?”

I scratch my head. “Well, now... Are you sure?”

“Yes!” the bank crowd says in unison.

“That’s really embarrassing. Lina?”

“Yes?” she asks.

“Can you hear me too?”

“Aha.”

“Oops.”

“Look, Andy, you're an okay guy. Clean, polite, nice. You have an apartment, a stable job and a dog. And, apparently, you’re some kind of a superhero, which is a big plus! A level twenty Chronomancer.”

I scratch my head. “Well, it’s a made-up title. Pun on Necromancer. It’s a D&D thing, you know. But… erm… yes, I can stop time. So, I guess, thanks---”

“Why do you always have to be so awkward?”

“Huh?”

“You dress kind of funny, and you mumble and look away whenever I say hi. Why? Make eye contact. And if you like me, why don’t you just ask me out? Like ‘Hi Lina. Do you want to grab a cup of coffee or something?’ How hard is that?”

I squint my eyes. “But what if you say no?”

“Then we won’t have a cup of coffee! Duh! How old are you?”

“Thirty-three.”

“My God! How do you even breathe? You men---”

“Well, sorry.” I shrug. “I guess I fucked up. Got it! And now it’s kind of late, right? I mean, unless you can move really fast. Then I can unfreeze time and you can do the superhero move or something.” I whistle, slicing my hand through the air in front of me.

“You are moving, you idiot! We’re all frozen and you’re the only one in the entire bank who’s casually waltzing across the room!”

“Oh--- I am?” I am. I’m standing in front of her, gazing into her beautiful eyes, far away from the stupid bullet. “How did that happen?”

“I don’t know! How do you stop time? You’re weird! Oh, and thanks for the compliment. I like when guys notice my eyes. You should do it while we’re drinking that coffee. But not now. And I'm sorry for being rude and calling you an idiot. I'm really freaking out right now.”

“Why?”

“Dude--- bank robbery.”

“Ah, right. Hold on.”

I walk across the room to the bank robber.

“Uhmm…” I say. “Hello there, Mr. Robber.” I gently open the palm of his hand and get his gun. “You won’t need this. Let’s just pretend it didn’t happen. Call it an accident, ha? A bad day. I hold no grudges against you. But you need to leave or I’ll freeze you again and tie you up or lock you up somewhere” --- I flick the tip of his nose --- “or hurt you. And I don’t want to hurt you.”

“I’ll leave,” the robber says. “I promise! Just please let me go.”

I give him two thumbs up, smiling. I walk back across the room, poking with my finger the time-frozen bullet so it aims to the ceiling, then stop in front of Lina. I fix my bowtie and smile.

Do you want to grab a cup of coffee with me?

Then I let the time flow.

Proud of you buddy!

Not just the irony, but the whole idea. It’s a very interesting one, too. The idea that someone’s idea of hell is another person’s idea of heaven… perhaps that’s either a metaphor for being grateful, or one for being hopeful.

The Day God Farted

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I'm struggling to understand this one...

This damn girl had just ruined years of work. The whole damn building, in tatters. Everyone had scattered, scared of this bloody little girl. I had a half a mind to shoot them all in their homes for that.

Now she stood over me, by some divine providence she’d been able to knock the gun out of my hand and force me to the ground. She hadn’t killed anyone yet and seemed to just sheepishly rush around the halls like she was playing hop-scotch. But as she winded up her arm with her staff, I thought for a second she might just cave my skull in.

Instead, she playfully bonked me on the head and declared pridefully, “There! Now don’t do bad things anymore!” … What?

How the hell had no one shot this stupid girl dead yet? I just got up, no resistance. She looked at me with a hopeful innocent little smile across her face and beaming eyes. She reminded me of someone, though I couldn’t quite place it.

“You’re just… gonna let me go? Why?” I broached.

“Well, what else would I do? I couldn’t kill you, silly boy. Then I’d be the bad guy! And I can’t send you to prism, what would you do in there? Someone would just take your place, and you’d never be able to make up for what you did. Go, and make up for what you did!”

I was speechless for a moment. She was trying so hard to sound adult, but I couldn’t ignore her accidentally calling it ‘prism’. It was… well it was adorable.

I frowned though, because I remembered who she’d reminded me of. My friend’s daughter, the little girl who didn’t understand what I did for a living. Poor little girl didn’t understand the intricacies of the drug world. And then she’d gone and become a witness to murder and threatened to go to the police. I hadn’t had any choice but to kill her.

The pistol, it was right by my feet. She wouldn’t see it coming, I could kill her so easily. But no, I couldn’t. Not again, not after she’d just told me to be better with all the innocence of a little daughter.

“Do you promise not to do bad things anymore?”

And with all the hope I’d ever seen swelling and overflowing in her gleeful expression, I said with a tear in my eye, “Yes. I do.”

And I just watched her waddle away contentedly. How had she overrun this whole place? Everyone just refused to fight her. Like some bloody spell she’d cast on them. But goddamn, it hurt to think about all the people I’d killed and tortured, for what? For all this accursed money. Too much for me to even spend, why was I still doing this?

I should stop, get out of this business. Make up for my sins, put some good into this world. I had enough money to retire 10 times over, I should spend some of it to make up for all the terrible crap I’ve done. Save some lives for a change.

Well damn, yeah.

I sort of sat there a while stunned. Eventually the others returned, a couple people who hadn’t been there and were ready to mock everyone who’d ran. But everyone seemed to have forgotten already, and were going about business as usual. A few of them came up to me, and started discussing work as normal.

I told them quite frankly that I was out. But they refused to believe me. I’d been in too long, in too deep. And I was too good. My name was engraved in the drug trade, I couldn’t just leave. I had to keep going.

I didn’t want to accept it, I told them I was going to leave as soon as I could, but they talked and talked and coaxed me into staying just until I ‘tied up all the loose ends’.

I decided to do something immediately, i couldn’t just keep going like normal for however long. So I drove straight over to one of my storage lockers where I hid my cash, not realising that my associates had planted a tracker on my car. I took it all and shoved it into the back of my car, then drove into the city, Googling local charities as I did so. But in doing so, I’d just scuffed up.

I was pulled over for reckless driving, and the police officer sussed out that something was wrong. He searched the boot, and found millions of dollars in cash. He of course placed me under arrest and took me to the police station.

There they seized the money and interrogated me. I considered just admitting everything, but no, that little girl was right. I’d just be replaced and I’d never be able to make up for what I’d done.

I had to stay there for a long time, as they put the screws to me to find out where the money had come from. Dozens of hours later, I was finally granted leave to go home and get some sleep. But my colleagues had noticed me arriving at the police station, and had now been watching for hours.

As the police drove me home, they waited until we came upon an empty stretch of road, and then shot the driver and accompanying officer dead. They took me out of the car and started covering up the scene, I saw it was just two young guys who’d been sent to do this.

The one still clutching a pistol came up to me and whispered, “Get out, let’s go!”

I stared back full of woe and dread. “What have you done? They were taking me home! You just killed two damn people!”

He glanced back, ataken, almost looking offended, “What? You’re yelling over two dead cops?”

I just shouted in rage “Of course I am you bloody nonce! You just killed two cops for no damn reason, and you don’t even care? These are people for God’s sake!”

Very well confused now, he explained to me, “What are you on about? You’re Clive Adams, I’ve heard so much about you, the most ruthless drug lord this side of the continent! The calculated relentless puppet master who controls this whole country with an iron fist!”

Oh god, this poor kid. He admired me, as some famous drug lord. I gave up and let him take me. I couldn’t let this go on, I couldn’t let someone replace me and continue to twist these young boys into admiring this trade.

The only way to end this for real was to keep going, and to slowly bring about the permanent end of this cycle of violence and corruption. So I agreed to stay in the business, so that never again a little girl would have to be killed by a drug lord.

Five years later and I’m still deep in it, and nothing has changed.

This goes hard.

Reminds me of Death from Sandman ... This wouldn't be out of place as a chapter from that series. Anyway I relate to this guy. Nice.