Free Prizes -- Fiction Contest: Spirit of Halloween!!!

Story contest. Win free cards! Details below

  The elevator doors slid open and Director Nova stepped out into BADGE HQ. He hated that two mile ride down, but this was the most secure location on Earth. The headquarters of the most advanced base on the planet were surprisingly vacant, but this was normal. Most of the work conducted here was done by robots along with the most sophisticated AI system in the world.

After a short walk down the corridor, Nova came into a large room filled with computer consoles and a massive set of screens. Two robots worked at the consoles as the only crew today.

“Let’s check in on the teams.” He stated. “Call up the world maps, I want to see where these leagues are?”

“Understood Director.” The computer answered and the screens filled with maps of the world. Each map had the location of the various teams of superheroes that worked for BADGE. They organized themselves into leagues so they could fight crime locally as well as more easily respond to a call for international emergencies.

“Unit 10915, contact the leagues around the Detroit area. I want to know why the crime rate there has doubled this week.” The robot at the computer stopped moving and nothing happened, “10915 respond.” Nova approached the rigid robot.

Before he could find out what was wrong both robots stood up and started dancing around, their bodies acting like puppets on strings.

“What the hell is going on?” Nova struck a fighting stance.

Just then the computer monitors buzzed and the lights flickered. The screens began to run through map after map, and then it all became fuzz. The two dancing robots flung themselves at Nova. He was pummeled to the ground, pinned down. He shoved on them, unhurt but furious. “GET OFF OF ME!”

One turned it’s head all the way around and then cackled at him. In a high, cracking voice it screeched, “Having fun yet?” and then laughed.

Nova finally shoved them off of him and backed away, “Okay, that’s creepy.”

A green energy streamed out of the robots and formed a sinister looking Jack-o-lantern in the air. It laughed in that same horrible voice and then flew around the room, passing in and out of the computers like they weren’t there. When it went through something, the already crazy machine went even more haywire. Computers exploded, the lights shut down, and the fuzz on the main screens became the only light in the room.

Nova pulled out a communicator and pressed a switch, “Nova to...” suddenly that Jack-o-lantern flew right into his body and he felt it filling him. He lost control of his left arm, his head twitched erratically, and his mind was slowly fading as if he were falling asleep. It didn’t take much to realize this creature was taking over his body. He managed to hold that communicator up, “To...any...heroes who can hear...me. BADGE has been compromised….help...”

***

Calling all the heroes, BADGE has been compromised. Time to tell your story. Your hero comes back to BADGE to find the answer to this new, strange problem. It is up to you to tell the story of how you solved this problem. Is it a computer program gone haywire, a real ghost in the machines, perhaps a strange form of supervillain? It is up to you to decide.

Here are the rules:

--This contest is a story prompt, I gave you the opening, you complete the story.

• Fiction must be between 400-1000 words, don’t worry if you are slightly over the word count, just don’t go too far. (This does not include the prompt word count.)

• Content must be PG13. No Erotica and nothing that is explicitly derogatory or inflammatory. Keep it fun for everyone.

- Judges have final authority over content, at their sole discretion.

Entering your story:

• All submissions should be posted as a top level post to the fan fiction forum. Include in the title of your post, “Halloween Contest Entry: (title of work)” Only posts with this as the title will be considered for the contest.

-- Fiction forum for posting is HERE

• The first line of the post should include “Contest Entry” and your in game player id (from your profile page)

• Post your story any time before the morning of October 25th

Prizes

All reasonably good stories will get copies of the power card “Good Job”.

The best stories will also get one, two, or three “Spirit of Halloween” featured cards.

“Good Job” can be used as a card, or resold for 10 MP each

“Spirit of Halloween” can be used as a card, or resold for 20 MP each.

Your stories will be featured on the front page of this site, and linked to from the homepage of Heroes Rising.

All prizes will go out near the end of October.

As always, all reasonable effort fiction posted in the forum is eligible for one “Reality Writer” card per week. These entries will ALSO receive the normal Reality Writer card.