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0 Fictional Writing Portfolio Erin Moore

1 Reflective Essay As my semester in this course comes to an end I am sort of sad to see this go I enjoyed this course as it has opened my eyes and helped me get to know just how to write the tales I want to tell I enjoyed the books as they provided some good tips and tricks to be able to write a good and comprehensible story though I will say I will not miss having to tell about videos and reading about a part of a story and not sure how to quite answer the questions With this class I can create better stories for my future goals to go into the game design business Two of my major stories are surrounded by fantasy and adventure the last one I wrote about a video game concept that I had My life has always been surrounded by that those types of fantasy worlds starting off from when I was young and obsessed with the world of Disney and princesses to when I went into middle school and had to monster high dolls as well as starting to play video games with the story in detail to highschool were my English teacher had taught a class that surrounded the story aspect of video games He brought in one of his favorite and most story rich games that we got to play for a whole year and we went through the entire plot going over the characters backstories the allusions and symbolism in the game It was one of the best years of that class and it really inspired me to want to open that door to create a story for a video game In middle school I wanted to be an author writing cringy fan fiction in my room and now I strive to create amazing stories with characters with depth to eventually create my own storyboard for a game Maybe one day you ll see my name as a developer

2 Table of Contents Major Stories 3 11 The Tavern Trials 3 4 Murder In the Valley 5 6 Tales from Aurenthia 7 11 Small Tales 12 15 Photo Scene 12 Murder In the Valley The Prequel 13 Murder Scene 14 Movie Scene 15

3 The Tavern Trials The party walked through the streets of Gilvshire on their way to the local tavern planning on finding an inn or a place to build camp after talking to the owner to turn in some parts for ingredients and a way to prove that they did the quest that the owner had given them The party was exhausted after this feat it took them almost a day to gather everything due to constant interruptions As the party got closer to the tavern doors it was odd how quiet it was there was light chatter compared to the usual bustling of laughter and loud music pouring out the doors The tallest member of the party enters the tavern first pushing open the door and holding it open for the rest of them he takes a look around to notice that the tavern itself isn t as full as it usually is The rest of the party heads up to the bar counter with Nephem the tallest following behind them Thunder rolled in the distance as the group sat down watching the owner emerged from the back a few glasses in hand and two little frog like creatures known as grung follow out behind her with plates full of food The grung scrambled out to few full tables in the tavern to give the other customers their food The owner approached the counter and placed the glasses on a rack turning to the party Can I help you she asked sharply Nephem placed the bags filled with ingredients on top of the bar we gathered the ingredients you asked for and got rid of the monsters surrounding the area The owner looked at the bags in confusion Right she said taking them and putting them on the floor the party looked at her expectantly of course with them being promised a reward for their services The owner began to turn around and try and return to the back Oh uh excuse us Mara one of the more timid voices of the group spoke up Mara barely turned around What This caused Rosalin to scoff The reward We were promised a reward remember the goblin crossed her arms as the gnome beside her was confused this kind of treatment was very unlikely for Mara the usual friendly and joyful owner seemed to be replaced by one who didn t want to give either of them the time of day Mara walked back up to the bar top Of course what was the agreed price again It seemed to have slipped my mind

4 As Nephem began to reinstate the rewards they were promised the small gnome felt a tap on her shoulder one of the grung staff was behind her and handed her a small slip of paper with foreign writing on it Before the gnome could ask for an explanation the grung ran behind the bar trying to stay out of the sight of Mara it seemed like After the party gathered their rewards from a slightly annoyed Mara they sat down at a table that was a distance away from the bar as Mara disappeared back into the back The party discussed how weird she was tonight and how odd the tavern seemed when compared to how it usually is As the party was talking the gnome was silently trying to decipher what language the note she was given was written in which caused another member of the party to look over Sage what is that Eclipse asked leaning over her eyes recognizing the writing Sage sighed it s a note one of the servers gave to me I m not sure what the writing is but they seemed frantic and wanted me to have it I don t know what language it is let alone how to read it she slid the note over to her friend the rest of the party also taking interest in the note Oh this is infernal Eclipse stated reading over the words and furrowing her brows in worry What is it Nephem asked seeing the look of worry fall on his party member s face Eclipse gestured for the party to lean in closer This essentially says that the Mara we just spoke to isn t the Mara we met yesterday she spoke in a hushed tone What s that supposed to mean Sage said a look of confusion growing on her face as well I m not sure the note doesn t go into specific details it s messy infernal too Eclipse responded still keeping her voice slightly above a whisper The party all looked amongst themselves before glancing back at the bar to see Mara staring at them before realizing she had been spotted and turned to rush into the backroom The party glanced around one another once more realizing that the simple hunt for ingredients may not be so simple

5 Murder In the Valley Crimson coated her hands her brows furrowed as her pulse and breath both seemed to quicken She looked further down towards her clothes they seemed to be coated in the same color as well Blood There was no denying it She had seen it many times when accidentally doing something reckless in the town s mines to gather materials to expand her land She dove her hands into the water and began scrubbing furiously she didn t know where it came from but if it was due to an injury again her love would be sure to worry The cold water caused goosebumps to rise on her skin as she scrubbed the wind adding on to the chill that went into her bones causing a shiver to come over her Her teeth chattered as the blood started to finally wash away she brought her hands back up to her face to examine them for any cuts or scrapes She didn t realize that she had been holding her breath until she finally let it out a sense of relief washing over her once she realized that there was nothing there She then tried to examine the rest of her body as another set of chills went over her body she finally decided now would be the time to go back to the house to warm up She began walking out of the water confusion filling her mind as she didn t seem to find anything wrong with her She had no idea where the blood had come from Maybe she had killed a different type of creature in the mines as she had been getting weirder and harder creatures to defeat as she traveled deeper and deeper into them She rubbed her arms trying to warm up just a bit faster to combat the major chills she had as well as to calm down the goosebumps Her teeth had slowed its chattering thankfully even if it was just slightly that means she was warming up a bit more She walked up onto the porch and took off her boots the pond water had muddied her footsteps so she didn t want to have to mop it all up later on She opened the door before she could even try to greet her love her eyes befell a familiar color Crimson She looked around as an expression of horror spread across her face she dropped her boots and covered her mouth Her love was on the floor with crimson surrounding his head and coating his dark colored locks She let out a small noise sorrow overcoming her as tears streamed down her face Who could have done this She thought to herself walking over to him frantically she kneeled down pulling him

6 onto her lap Her cries were silent as she wept stroking his head and pulling small strands out of his face She couldn t believe her eyes She had no idea who could have or would have done this She buried her face in his shoulder her thoughts racing through her head as she raked through for anything that could have hinted at this happening Someone coming into her home and shattering her world around her Her cries settled to slight sniffles as she raised her head to gaze upon her face taking in all of the features that once held so much life lay motionless and not moving she missed the slight twitches that his face would do sometimes the scrunch of his nose whenever he got mad as well as his face slightly filling with red How bright his smile seemed to be even on the gloomiest of days The floorboards creaked she snapped her head up her gaze landed on a figure who seemed to be trembling holding onto a fire prod She knew that face her eyes narrowed as rage blossomed in her chest You she spoke looking at the other woman her bright purple hair stained with red blood splattered across her body a terrified look in her eye a makeshift bandage around her head and waist Abigail why she asked looking down once more on her love his lifeless face mocking her Abigail let out a shaky laugh You you think I did this she spoke her tone dripping with malice and grief she pointed at the girl holding onto the boy she once loved and who she cherished who was holding onto her just moments ago Ivy you did this Abigail exclaimed Ivy s eyes widened a pain shooting throughout her chest she gently laid down her love as she got up backing away her pace quickened once more as she glanced at the boy in front of her and back at Abigail anger filling her once more Bullshit she screamed You re lying You did this Ivy went to the fireplace to grab one of the other tools You were jealous of what we had You couldn t get it through your head that he wanted to be with me What you two had was over Ivy pointed another poker at Abigail to make things even The girls stared each other down they were both standing over the boy they both had once shared feelings for accusing each other of the same crime One of them knew the truth though the only witness to the true crime was lying in front of them never to utter a word again

7 Tales From Aurenthia It had been almost five years since the kingdom of Aurenthia had fallen The once beautiful fields filled with flowers and homes for all had turned into a wasteland The only buildings left were either damaged incredulously or makeshift bases for squatters and factions The movement has been going on longer than the kingdom it seems Humans versus their mythical counterparts Humans once reigned in power but that has since been dwindling ever since the mythical beings started to fight back It s hard to believe all of this started just with a simple trick from the mythical side The land was thrown into ruin due to the human s carelessness and the mythical outcry and rage The gravel crunched underneath the party s feet a few human stragglers managed to cross paths Together they fight for their own survival and to try and bring peace back across the land that they once called home A woman was leading them she had short black hair a few scars here and there She was the one to take charge for she had seen the grit of most of the battles throughout the years after being thrown into the human army for a few months until she managed to escape presumed dead She had found a map that was crudely drawn that hinted at a general store of sorts even with everything happening that was still running The group hadn t had a full meal in days having to ration their food while trying to also hunt for their next meal One member didn t make it that easy One of the shorter members of the group with almost white blonde hair had claimed himself as a vegetarian of sorts With his setbacks he was a great forager and knew where to look for what plant The trick was of course the time it would take for them to come back after taking them His goal with this group was for them to eventually find a home to where he can plant some of the seeds he has been saving for a garden so they have plenty of food Another member of our party trekked behind the rest of them a slow and sluggish pace They complained the most out of all of them that their feet hurt it s too hot it s too cold They usually slept in the longest and the consequences for that would be being slightly behind or not at all for there was only one party member that was

8 essentially the glue for them all The tallest member of the group a tenderhearted brunette that tried his best to make sure that no one was left behind No matter what They all met by chance running into one another on their travels our strongest member meeting the weakest first Together Libelle and Elio found the rest of the party fighting through tough battles and surviving through even tougher nights throughout all seasons Together they had made a fort but unfortunately it was attacked by mythical creatures whenever they were out foraging and hunting They were forced to move on As they continued on they stumbled across the slowest member of the group Ezra was hiding amongst the rubble a group of goblins circling nearby Libelle managed to fight some and scare away the rest of them as Elio went to retrieve Ezra Elio had to beg Libelle to allow Ezra to join them Libelle had reluctantly agreed not happy about another mouth to feed especially with how difficult Elio was to feed due to his diet The final member of the group the glue happened upon them during a campout Damarcus happened to see their fire He was prepared to fight if it was a group of mythicals but hoped it would be humans Due to Libelle s time in the war she was trained to pick up on slight sounds that could lead to a possible threat She was the one to always keep watch she stepped away from the party for just a moment to confront whoever was sneaking around in the woods Damarcus crept forward making sure to watch where he was going his hand on his sword being as quiet as he could possibly be whilst also trying to be aware of his surroundings He slowed his breath almost holding it he was nervous but he never wanted to be a coward ever again Not this time he wouldn t allow it Damarcus was close enough to be able to slightly see through the treeline a breath of relief passed through his lips but that breath was returned with a gasp as a cold metal blade was pressed against his throat Even after all of that they all stuck together through thick and thin through bloodshed and fires Even with their differing personalities each had one thing in

9 common which was simply the urge for survival Libelle checked the map once more Should be just over this hill and through the treeline she said looking back at her party Ezra groaned complaining about their feet hurting and the sun beating down onto their skin which caused Demarcus to chuckle patting his friend on the shoulder It won t be much longer as Libelle said you can rest once we find it Damarcus looked around a puzzled expression becoming on his pale face as he realized they were missing Elio Libelle let out an exasperated sigh Elio We can come back for the mushrooms Don t be a straggler the bushes rustled as Elio emerged from them an armful of mushrooms he managed to find along the trail he smiled at the group as he took the bag off of his back to place the mushrooms inside We may not be able to turn around later so it will be best for me to grab these now Lib Better to be safe than sorry he closed his bag and placed it back onto his back Libelle rolled her eyes she kept moving forward wondering when these idiots would just listen to her for once Demarcus jogged forward throwing his arm around his irate friend patting her shoulder to try and calm her down a bit as Libelle tended to have a short temper and a railroad way of thinking The party made their way through the woods swiping away the brush and branches a small smoke trail emitted from a run down looking hut with tables filled with various items That must be it Demarcus spoke holding his hand over his eyes to see better the sun beating down even harder now that they weren t covered by the treeline The party began walking down the hill Libelle cautiously stepping forward with her tanned hand on her blade she led the party of course with Ezra slowly following behind the rest There was loud clanging noises emerging from the hut metal against metal The impressive show of crudely made metal armor and weapons spread out across one of the tables each of which varied in size As the group got closer they noticed a little window with arrows pointed towards it a sign with horrid handwriting stated knock or scream for service with some of the e s written backward the sight caused Elio to let out a slight laugh as they approached the counter

10 Ezra scoffed and crossed their arms should we scream or knock a slight chuckle to her tone Libelle rolled her eyes before knocking hard onto the counter in between the bangs of metal causing them to halt A grumble was heard within the hut as a small pitter patter of feet made its way towards the window Demarcus tried to peer inside wanting to get a better feel of the place before a small goblin made his way into the view of the party The goblin pushed his goggles to the top of his head wiping his hands with a rag and going up to his forehead to wipe the sweat off of it One of his large ears had a big gash in it as well as a scar gracing his eye which seemed to be completely white Libelle raised her sword out of her shieth her face twisted into a scowl prepared for a fight The goblin let out a cackle upon seeing this holding his hands up I mean no harm to any kind of person he shrieked I merely want to serve any traveler who happens upon my hut Human or Mythical Even smelly old Orcs are allowed here the goblin hopped up onto the stool that stood in front of the window Demarcus tugged Libelle back he smiled and pushed her weapon down Fantastic We just so happened to need a bit of help The goblin cackled once more You re in luck then for sure Welcome to Xak s Shack Where I try my best to fit everyone s needs he attempted a spin on the stool shuffling around in a circle due to the fact that the stool itself just didn t spin Ezra held in laughter at the sight they couldn t believe a creature like that would be so funny looking Libelle sheathed her weapon still keeping a hand on it though not fully letting her guard down We need supplies food in particular her tone was matter of fact and to the point tired of being thrown around by useless venders being tricked by mythical creatures her distrust was high but Demarcus made sure that she wouldn t do anything stupid or that she would forget The goblin hopped down from his stool opening a small door below the window Follow me he walked towards a table that had various kinds of foods spread across the top This is just some of the food I have to offer some it is inside you know meat preserves and such he cackled No one wants rotten meat except for the orcs his shrieking laugh filled the ears of the party as they looked across the table Elio found various herbs and some mushrooms that looked familiar

11 Oh he spoke digging into his backpack did you get these mushrooms from that clearing in the forest Elio held one out to Xak the goblin s eyes widened Oh yes That s my garden area I based it around those mushrooms as they tend to grow frequently when in season Elio chuckled nervously I m sorry I didn t realize that it belonged to anyone I just thought it was a great foraging spot the goblin cackled once more it s totally ok I understand the want and need for adventure and food The party gathered up the food that they wished to purchase inquired about the meats as well Libelle still was on edge even as the rest of the party was laughing and having a good time with the goblin she still distrusted him feeling as if there was an ulterior motive besides just simply selling his items She rushed the party after their purchases on they went to the next adventure The rest of the party raved about all the food they were able to get around the campfire they had built for the night cooking up some of the food They all planned on going back Libelle was not very happy about it She went to go patrol the area as the rest of the party ate their food and told jokes The night filled with the fire crackling and the party s laughter Things seemed to be looking up for this small party of misfits

12 Photo Scene The door slammed behind Avyanna as she rushed in trying to keep ahold of the wood she had just gathered She walked over to the fireplace and dropped the wood beside it causing her friend to wake up with a start The wind caused the walls to squeal as the storm raged on outside the fire s crackling being the only other noise besides the wind Avyanna placed another log on top of the fire trying her best to keep it alive as well as themselves She walked over to the small cot that her friend had been sleeping on Benny sat up still determined to have herself wrapped up in the blanket but trying to make room for her friend Avyanna let out a sigh as she sat down taking off her boots and changing into a fresh pair of thick socks Any luck with food Avyanna asked or have you just been sleeping this whole time she let out a slight chuckle with that last statement which earned her a slight punch in the arm No I checked the traps and the surrounding area the best I could before giving up and coming to be under the covers then I fell asleep Benny said feigning an offended tone before ending in a chuckle herself The pair watched the fire as they listened to the wind outside Avyanna poked at the fire absentmindedly thinking to herself How long have we been here How long will we be here Benny s stomach growled she glanced over at Avyanna hoping she didn t hear The traps haven t caught anything for a while but she has been giving all of the food to her friend to make up for Avyanna going out into the worst of it to keep the fire alive and letting her sleep longer It must have been a few weeks now that they have been living like this Relying on traps and animals carelessly passing by their cabin while the other went to gather firewood Sleeping in turns to make sure the fire stays alive so that they are able to keep warm Sharing a cot and a blanket and trying to ration the best they can If only they had known that this blizzard would hit if only they would have checked to make sure they had enough food If only they had known and maybe this would be easier or not happened at all

13 Murder In the Valley The Prequel The wind blew strong seemingly trying to get rid of all of the last remaining dead leaves left from the winter and fall as fast as possible to make room for the valley to come back to life my boots crunching those that fell in the way of my path the bags full of groceries weighing heavy on my arms I had planned to make dinner for myself and my boyfriend to celebrate the coming of frog spawn with the springtime so that we can build our little frogtopia again and help little frogs grow up and thrive throughout the valley A thought kept popping into my head though during my walk home I went to visit one of my closest friends who just so happened to be the town doctor After not seeing him for a while due to being kept up in my little cabin due to the winter cold and due to his schedule being overtaken by the usual winter sickness we just had not had time to chat I had brought him some coffee for us to maybe sit down and catch up though after spotting me once I had walked in his eyes filled with fear He seemed nervous during our entire conversation I kept asking him what was wrong but he seemed to just keep dancing around the question and switching to topics that I simply didn t care about or understood I had left shortly after the coldness of the winter seemed to still linger not only in his office but seemingly in his attitude I played it up to perhaps him being stressed due to the winter full of patients I went to the little grocery store next to pick up things to make dinner The smell of the fresh produce seemed to always fill the senses whenever arriving it was quite nice and always put a smile on my face seeing what they had to offer along the small little shelves As I walked throughout the isles I had managed to bump into another one of my friends the same look of fear came across his face as well once he had spotted me he tried to ignore me as well Instead this time he had answered what was wrong As I approached my cabin my fist had gripped one of the bags tighter as the words my friend had said echoed through my head I had forgotten just for one second my mind let me push it out but once the thought of happiness had once again popped into my head it seemed as if all of the green grass had died again due to their loss of hue as the festering anger I had felt inside of me grew bigger I couldn t believe what he had said but as I approached my cabin and saw a familiar vehicle outside I started to believe it I approached the door and heard a muffled conversation slight giggles followed by whispers My face felt hot as the more I realized the truth my boots clunking on the porch didn t seem to deter those inside as if they might have been lost in one another I opened the door the scene before me unfolding as I took it all in I couldn t believe it Hot tears ran down my face as all of the bags I was carrying seemed to be heavier I let them fall the sound of the wine bottle breaking only seemed to break their moment of solitude As my eyes met his my world seemed to crumble to pieces around me He was with her in my house The world faded to grey I close my eyes for a second

14 Murder Scene As the rain fell her tears blended in with them falling onto the same source of calm water and causing streaks down her face She wiped her nose as she stepped further into the water it now up to ankle height She felt numb yet there were so many thoughts going through her head one that still seemed to linger was mainly the thought of having to grab a jacket She rubbed her arms and the goosebumps never seemed to go away the cold air adding onto the rain and making it seem as if it were razors falling against her skin instead of just simply rain Something was telling her to go back and rush into the arms of her lover but that only seemed to add a funny feeling Her brows furrowed she felt as if she could not ever go back but she didn t understand why She remembered walking into the house to surprise him with dinner but the next thing she remembered was being outside the waves tickling her toes as the frogs croaked in the distance She had always loved frogs she wondered if she would be lucky to see one hopping about on the top of the lake due to the rain A smile curled onto her lips as she thought about her love and his love of frogs as well They had started a small tadpole sanctuary together rescuing frog spawn from building sights and such She had hoped to start that up again as spring was almost here the grass had a slight green hue and flowers had started to grow She turned her head back wanting to ask her love if they could start it up again but that funny feeling came back the smile from her face disappeared as she went further into the water as it seemed her instincts were telling her to She looked back across the lake taking in shallow breaths as she watched the raindrops patter against the surface the trees blowing with the wind the taller grass following the last of the autumn leaves falling off to make room for the green leaves that once reigned Spring was her favorite season for it would be the time for all of the flowers to bloom and all of the frogspawn to come to life the time that she and her love s anniversary The funny feeling appeared again A voice seemed to tell her to look down at her hands so she did as she was told her brows furrowed as she saw blood

15 Movie Scene The clock chimed as minute s first ring rang throughout the kingdom Midnight That was the expiration for the potion that Shrek had taken to be able to try and gain the King s blessing so that there would be no more fights and he could prove to Fiona that he can change He looks at the clock in a panic before turning to Fiona and placing his arms gently on her shoulders and asking her if this is what she wanted Did she want them to both remain human To stay that way forever Fiona looks bewildered at the statement she couldn t believe that he would be willing to do that just for her Even with how proud Shrek has always been over the fact that he was an ogre the love that Shrek had for Fiona overpowered that all to where he would sacrifice that if only it meant keeping her happy He told her that if they were to kiss before the last stroke of midnight they would stay human and leave their life and swamp behind Fiona looked around and back at her mother and newly transformed father a big smile on her face she was so happy that Shrek was willing to do that for her As she turns to Shrek she says I want what any Princess wants to live happily ever after Shrek leans in thinking that this meant that she wanted them to remain human forever but to his surprise Fiona placed her hand on his lips With a small smile on her lips with the ogre I married she said holding his face with the same hand Shrek smiled taken aback a bit that she didn t want to remain human but happy that she wanted to remain with him even as a big smelly old ogre As the final stroke of midnight rang through the air the pair was lifted into the air with the same magic that had transformed them before and in a flash they both turned into ogres once more Their love not only strengthened but their trust in one another as well

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