{"id":7937,"date":"2025-08-04T08:59:24","date_gmt":"2025-08-04T07:59:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/edgeverse.org\/?p=7937"},"modified":"2025-08-04T09:09:09","modified_gmt":"2025-08-04T08:09:09","slug":"fantasy-blip","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/edgeverse.org\/?p=7937","title":{"rendered":"Fantasy (Blip)"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Here you can read an entire shorty story, completely free. Blips are strictly less than two thousand words, or maybe more, and typically have a surprise twist in the tail. \nThese stories are free for you to download and share but please link back to us so we can build our site and create more free content. \nThanks very much for visiting. Please enjoy the story. <\/h6>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Fantasy is a rich and vibrant genre filled with wildly imaginative stories. We eschew all of that with Jack\u2019s first dabble into the subject with a story that goes on an unexpected journey all over the place. Serving as a metaphor for current plattitudes, this narrative takes us into an alternate world where the rules are subtly not quite the same and hold up a dark mirror to our own.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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fantasy<\/h2>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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By Sir Jack of Edgington<\/h5>\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t
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He woke up covered in a fine misting of sweat. A cool breeze was gently blowing across cold, hard stone beneath him with an annoying little whistle. He blinked and looked around blearily at the room he was in. It was less of a room and more of a place, a place made from grey, interlocking granite blocks with a thatched wooden roof above him. The walls weren\u2019t strictly walls in the literal sense, they were crumbling things that more suggested the idea of being a wall, rather than devoting any great effort towards following through on it.
Bits of crumbling stone was strewn about the floor and he found he was laying on top of a pile of dry hay that smelled vaguely of wet fur. He looked down to his hands, slightly concerned that they might be the source of the smell and was relieved to find very little fur on them, and none of it particularly wet.
He was covered with soft pink skin which meant he was human. He wasn\u2019t sure exactly how he knew that but felt it was probably significant. While there might be stuff on the outside of his head there was certainly nothing on the inside and he found that he couldn\u2019t remember much of anything.
\u201cYour name is Bob!\u201d a voice said.
Bob, if that was his name, jumped up startled. Next to him a metal thing skittered across the stone floor and laid resting at his feet. It was a sword, although not a very impressive one. It had the look of a sword you\u2019d buy if you didn\u2019t have the money to buy a proper sword. He snatched it up and pointed the sharper end at the source of the voice anyway. If he was intending to look threatening it wasn\u2019t entirely successful.
Bob said in surprise, \u201cYou\u2019re a dog!\u201d
The small black and white dog huffed wearily to itself and sighed. \u201cI\u2019m a cat!\u201d it told him grumpily.
Bob narrowed his eyes. Although he couldn\u2019t remember very much of anything, there was one thing he was certainly sure of. \u201cNo, you\u2019re a dog. You\u2019re big and pointy and your tail is wagging. I\u2019m pretty sure that those are definite signs that you\u2019re a dog,\u201d he told the dog. \u201cIf I wasn\u2019t absolutely certain that you\u2019re a dog, I could at least be completely certain that you\u2019re not a cat!\u201d
The dog growled a low and menacing rumble, bearing its teeth threateningly. \u201cYou\u2019re a dog!\u201d it told him with a very dog-like snarl.
Bob lowered the sword and said, sounding a little confused, \u201cI\u2019m not a dog. I\u2019m walking upright on two legs and holding a sword that\u2019s secured between my fingers and my opposable thumb. I\u2019m human!\u201d
Wind blew into the crumbling building and the dog\u2019s fur bristled. \u201cHumans are worse than dogs!\u201d
Bob frowned curiously. \u201cAnd eggs don\u2019t taste as good as chicken but you can\u2019t expect to throw a chicken-leg into a frying pan and end up with an omelette.\u201d
The dog told him proudly, \u201cI am a cat!\u201d
Bob shook his head. \u201cNo, you\u2019re a dog. I don\u2019t think the world works like that. If you\u2019re born one thing then you are that thing. If you can\u2019t accept what you are then you\u2019re suffering from mental illness.\u201d
\u201cThat\u2019s hate-speech against my feline kind!\u201d the dog warned him.
\u201cI think it\u2019s just common sense!\u201d Bob shrugged. \u201cAt least it is where I come from!\u201d
The dog stepped closer and looked him over suspiciously. \u201cAnd where do you come from, Bob?\u201d
That was actually a rather good question and answers were certainly thin on the ground. Bob shrugged again, turning to keep a watchful eye on the dog as it padded around him. \u201cI don\u2019t know. Where am I?\u201d
\u201cYou\u2019re Here!\u201d the dog told him, giving a little chuckle. \u201cNobody knows what this place is called so we all just refer to it as \u2018Here\u2019.\u201d
\u201cThe doesn\u2019t really help very much if I want to be somewhere else!\u201d Bob grumbled. \u201cI don\u2019t think I come from Here, I think I come from somewhere else.\u201d
\u201cEveryone comes from somewhere else!\u201d The dog laughed and then turned to face him, glaring at him with clear menace. \u201cBut you don\u2019t know where There is, do you?\u201d
Bob had to admit, \u201cI don\u2019t. But how do I get There?\u201d
\u201cWhere?\u201d said the dog.
\u201cThere!\u201d said Bob. \u201cThe there that isn\u2019t Here.\u201d
The dog sighed to itself. It explained unhelpfully, \u201cWell you\u2019re Here so if you want to go There, you have to stop being Here. It\u2019s obvious really.\u201d
Bob narrowed his eyes. \u201cLike working out the fact that you\u2019re really a dog and not a cat, because you\u2019re clearly actually a dog?\u201d
\u201cI\u2019m a cat!\u201d it told him haughtily. \u201cHow dare you question my identity! I\u2019m free to make this choice.\u201d
Bob smiled at the ridiculousness of all this. \u201cThe only choice you\u2019ve made is to lose all grasp on reality.\u201d
\u201cHumans!\u201d the dog growled. \u201cNo imagination!\u201d
Bob chose to ignore it. He looked around the crumbling stone building. There was a small stool with a metal jug on it in the corner. He slowly edged over and peered dubiously inside. He was hungry and he noticed and the jug was filled with milk. He poured some into a battered clay cup.
\u201cHey,\u201d the dog protested. \u201cThat\u2019s my breakfast!\u201d
Bob reached for the sword that was now held in a leather sheath at his side. He narrowed his eyes and glared as threateningly as he could, but it wasn\u2019t particularly threatening at all. \u201cIt\u2019s my breakfast now!\u201d he said bravely with his hand hovering just above the handle of his disappointing weapon.
The dog sat down and seemed to smile in a very catlike way. \u201cSure, you enjoy it.\u201d
Bob grinned to himself in victory. \u201cI will,\u201d he said, drinking the whole cup at once. It was deliciously creamy. He put the cup down and said, \u201cSo what\u2019s your name anyway?\u201d
The dog said, \u201cSnowflake!\u201d
Bob rolled his eyes. \u201cThat\u2019s a strange name for a dog. Is it because of your white fur?\u201d
The dog glared at him and said with a hiss, \u201cIt\u2019s hair, not fur and I\u2019m actually ginger, not white.\u201d
\u201cBut…\u201d Bob began. He stopped himself and decided to just let this go. He began to pour another cup of milk. \u201cThis is great, where did you get it?\u201d
The dog smiled at him broadly. It said, \u201cAre you enjoying it?\u201d
\u201cYeah!\u201d Bob told him. \u201cIt\u2019s great. I don\u2019t see any cows around here, it must have been hard to find.\u201d
Snowflake sat down and stared at him, an odd smile on her pointy dog-face. \u201cNo cows around here.\u201d
Bob thought about this for a moment and began to frown. \u201cGoats?\u201d
\u201cNo,\u201d the dog said evenly. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing like that around here. There\u2019s just me!\u201d
Bob stared at her in growing concern. He looked to the cup and then back to the dog. \u201cOh my…\u201d he said in disgust, spitting out a mouthful and wiping his tattered sleeve over his face.\u201d He grunted, \u201cDon\u2019t tell me that was-\u201d
\u201cI won\u2019t tell you then!\u201d Snowflake said. \u201cBut by your own logic, that won\u2019t make it any less true.\u201d
Bob sneered at the dog. \u201cHow could you not tell me?\u201d
Snowflake seemed to shrug. \u201cYou didn\u2019t ask!\u201d she said. \u201cAnyway, resources are scarce here, you\u2019re probably better off There.\u201d
Bob couldn\u2019t agree more. \u201cI need to get out of Here.\u201d
\u201cYes!\u201d Snowflake said.
\u201cWell…\u201d Bob flustered, the taste of warm, fresh, creamy delusional-dog milk still on his tongue. \u201cWhat\u2019s going on? Where is this place?\u201d
The dog, Snowflake, got up and walked around. \u201cWho knows!\u201d she said. \u201cI woke up here, remembering nothing except that I was a cat. I am a cat, you know!\u201d
\u201cI don\u2019t care!\u201d Bob told her, and really meant it.
\u201cI was told by a Dwarf, who looked rather tall, that there\u2019s a magician at the top of the mountain who can help you get out of Here. You have to answer a question correctly and if you do, he sends you There,\u201d Snowflake said.
Bob realised there was probably an ominous side to all this. \u201cAnd if you answer incorrectly?\u201d
\u201cHe gives you the delusional belief that you\u2019re really the opposite of what you are,\u201d she said. \u201cIt didn\u2019t seem to work on me though, I held firm in knowing that I\u2019m really a cat.\u201d
\u201cA ginger cat!\u201d Bob suggested sarcastically to the white dog.
\u201cExactly,\u201d she agreed. \u201cA beautiful ginger cat.\u201d
Bob sighed to himself as his stomach began to growl at him. \u201cI need to get out of Here.\u201d
\u201cThen you need to see the dark magician,\u201d she told him. \u201cHe lives on the small mountain in the Valley of Light.\u201d
\u201cOf course he does,\u201d Bob grumbled and rolled his eyes.<\/p>

The journey was a long and dangerous one across the \u2018Mountain of Pain\u2019 which jutted high into the grey clouds above. Luckily there was also a nice paved path that led right to the magician\u2019s village which wasn\u2019t dangerous at all and was lined with bushes that had the tastiest fruit he\u2019d ever tried. Sadly, he couldn\u2019t try very much of it because his stomach was violently protesting about being filled up with dog milk. He did unspeakable things behind several of the very same bushes for that very same reason.
He finally made it up to the door. It was a huge wooden barricade, held together with blackened straps of wrought iron. It was an ominous sight and he hesitated as he raised his hand to knock on it. Above him the sound of flying animals screaming at one another filled the air.
He touched the cold, hard hilt of his pathetic sword and rapt his knuckles against the door with the other. He swallowed his apprehension, knowing he could only wait now as his fate revealed itself to him.
The door clanked from the inside as bolts were pulled back. Then it creaked open.
He felt a rush of fear and found himself stepping back as a daunting sight filled his vision.
\u201cHello!\u201d said the dark magician with a happy smile. He looked like a favourite uncle, perhaps someone who gave to charity without bragging about it. He was dressed in a dirty, but not very dirty, robe tied together with a ropey, but not very ropey, piece of rope.
It wasn\u2019t a particularly intimidating encounter at all and left Bob feeling largely disappointed.
\u201cAre you the dark magician?\u201d Bob said with a slight shudder of nervous anticipation.
\u201cWell yes…\u201d he said. \u201cIt\u2019s Ian, actually. Ian Dark. I do magic and stuff so the whole name thing stuck.\u201d
\u201cI see,\u201d Bob said, not really seeing at all. \u201cI want to go There but I\u2019m Here. I was told when I wasn\u2019t here, but somewhere else, and not the There I want to go, just not the same here as Here,\u201d Bob explained. \u201cI was told you could help.\u201d
\u201cMakes perfect sense!\u201d Ian told him. \u201cWhy don\u2019t you come in?\u201d
\u201cYou haven\u2019t invited me!\u201d Bob said.
Ian frowned to himself and then stepped back and said, \u201cPlease come in!\u201d<\/p>

\u201cIt\u2019s all very simple,\u201d Ian explained. \u201cI merely ask you a question. If you can answer it correctly then you don\u2019t have to be here anymore, you can be There.\u201d
\u201cAnd if I answer it incorrectly?\u201d
Ian smiled at him, showing off a set of slightly wobbly, mismatched teeth as if they each belonged in a different head. \u201cTry not to do that. Life is confusing enough already without any more of that.\u201d
\u201cAny more of what?\u201d Bob shuddered to think.
\u201cPeople being cursed forever to being the opposite of what they are,\u201d Ian explained. \u201cIt\u2019s dreadful and terribly confusing. Myself, I\u2019m an accountant from Surrey, I think. I\u2019m pretty sure my name wasn\u2019t Ian at all, I think it used to be Shaniqua.\u201d
\u201cOK!\u201d Bob frowned. It was too late now to turn back. \u201cSo that\u2019s all there is to it, you simply ask me a question?\u201d
Ian nodded. He said, \u201cI don\u2019t know how it all works here in Here. I found all this written on the inside of a magic stick when I arrived and it\u2019s been working ever since. I find it\u2019s best to go along with it and not ask too many questions.\u201d
Bob frowned. \u201cBut there are so many questions,\u201d he said. \u201cDoesn\u2019t all this work by you asking me another one?\u201d
\u201cOh yes!\u201d Ian said darkly. \u201cMy question is this. Who are you really?\u201d
\u201cWhat?\u201d Bob flustered nervously as a wave of terror crashed down on him. Was his fate to forever be cursed to imagine himself as the exact opposite of what he really was? How would that even work? Was he really Bob, a human, or was that already the delusion? What was the opposite of \u2018human Bob\u2019?
\u201cI don\u2019t remember!\u201d he said, his voice almost pleading. \u201cHow can I answer that?\u201d
\u201cYou must\u2026\u201d Ian said with a sigh. \u201cIf you don\u2019t, you will be cursed forever into the horrific darkness of identity confusion. Would you like a nice cup of tea?\u201d
\u201cBut…\u201d Bob closed his eyes and sunk into his chair. \u201cBut\u2026 I can\u2019t answer that.\u201d
\u201cYou have no choice!\u201d Ian told him grimly. \u201cIt\u2019s started and there\u2019s really nothing else for it. The magic-stick was quite specific about the details.\u201d
\u201cDon\u2019t you mean a \u2018magic-wand\u2019?\u201d Bob said.
Ian shrugged and said, \u201cIt\u2019s probably the opposite of that!\u201d
Bob didn\u2019t know what to say.
Ian\u2019s voice came to him in a most unwelcome way as he heard him say, \u201cIt\u2019s time to answer.\u201d
Bob looked up with a pair of sad eyes. He said simply, \u201cI don\u2019t know!\u201d
Ian smiled happily. \u201cOf course! None of us do, not really. We get ourselves into trouble when we start to decide that our own flawed ideas about things are the only possible truth. That is, of course, the correct answer. That\u2019s the one admission that lets us go from Here to There. Good luck with all that!\u201d
Bob slowly faded away into nothing as he stopped being in Here.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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