Post/Author/DateTime	Post
cog_and_taz 12-31-07, 06:57 PM	My dad worked in the coal mines. Mind you, so did everyone else in that soot-covered hellhole, even the kids. And then there were the few that lived off the mines, somewhere off in their comfortable mansions, almost starving us while they got fat on our work. My mother died a few years ago, and I was an only child. I reckon that’s why my dad acted the way he did. he never did let me work, and always tried to get the best for me. When we had just enough to get by, he started sending me to school when I should’ve been working. Later on, for a short while, he started getting me lessons for horseridin’, as if that would ever be useful. Thought I was some kind of noble, he did. One day, he stopped eating anythin’ at all. Said they started giving out meals at work, so he didn’t need to eat at home. I bought his story, the fool that I was, and took every bit of food he left for me. But life in the mines is never so sweet – things were going a whole lot worse than he let on, but I was none the wiser, even when I saw him getting thinner by the day. A few weeks later, I came back from a long day outside in the rain to find the house quiet. Real quiet, except for the usual sounds outside. I got a bit frightened and ran around to see where he was. Then I found him, lying on the floor, looking like a dried up skeleton. I didn’t need to check if he was still breathing – I knew right away that he was dead. I ran down and grabbed a poker from the fireplace before I ran out into the rain, looking for the one that killed him. I thought someone did him in, I really did. When I realized who killed him, I nearly stabbed myself in the heart right there. Two days later, they brought him out for a funeral. Couldn’t even afford a coffin, so he ended up being buried in a box. I didn’t go to the funeral, I just watched from a way off – couldn’t stand being seen there. There were a whole bunch of pelorites from up the road, too, all dressed in clean white robes. Talked about what a great person he was. Truth be told, they never even heard of him until the day they came to bury him. Right afterwards, I went to their temple, and asked them to bring him back. I knew they could do it, and I got down on my knees and begged, but it wasn’t enough. They didn’t even remember him at first, and when I reminded them, they said it would take a “substantial donation”, just for one bit of magic. The sort of money no one back there would’ve been able to make in a lifetime. They said they came there to help, but when you got right down to it, they were in it for the money. Bunch of callous liars, just like the rest of ‘em. There wasn’t really anything I could do but work on their terms. Right after that, I left, and I wasn’t coming back until I could pay to bring him back. Sooner or later, I was going to clear up all the trouble I started. But then it hit me – if he comes back to this, it’s just going to be the same thing happening all over again. But maybe, just maybe, if I figured something out and got a little more money, I could change this place into something better. Maybe we wouldn’t even have to work in the coal mines anymore. It wouldn’t just be us – things were just the same now for everyone else, but when I was done, it would all change. Sooner or later, I could make a difference. It would take time, but it was really the only way. They say he went to a better place. They say everyone that died in those pits went to a better place. And you know, it’s really not too hard to believe if you lived in the mines, but when I’m done, I’ll be damned if he doesn’t come back to a better place. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, I'm back.:D Been too ill and busy to play for some time now, but I'm back. Any thoughts on the story, CD boards?
Terjon of the Blue Rose 01-02-08, 11:29 PM	I think its good to see you again. I also think its nice to see you not calling yourself a talentless hack for once.:P Good work. Love the ending lines.
cog_and_taz 01-03-08, 12:12 AM	I think its good to see you again. I also think its nice to see you not calling yourself a talentless hack for once.:P Good work. Love the ending lines. Eh, I figured you all knew by now, so I'd save myself the effort :P As for the ending lines, I'm quite fond of them too. Believe it or not, the entire character concept came from overhearing some song in hebrew in the car... I think I got about 3 words in the entire song, too. No idea how it happened >_>