Welcome back to the latest installment of the drabblicious Friday Fictioneers. As always, thanks go out to Madison for hosting this little get together and to you all for reading.
Being that today is my birthday, I decided to do something special with this story. The idea is that this will be the first of a multi part story. I’m not sure how many there will end up being or even where the story will go as I have to wait for the next prompt to come up with the next portion, but each should stand on its own. I hope you’ll join me over the next few weeks to see where Winger’s journey takes him.
Feel free to leave your comments, criticism, and half drunken rants below.
Copyright Maggie Duncan – via Madison Woods
The Conundrum (The Winger Chronicles: Part 1)
He stepped off the porch into the mist and started toward the tree line. His pack was loaded with cans from the farmhouse’s pantry and one fewer box of bullets than he’d gone in with.
He glanced back at the home looming out of the fog. The massacre that had taken place inside barely crossed his weathered mind.
A young girl stood on the porch, her cheeks wet with tears. He wanted to take her with him, to explain why what he did was necessary, but his life was not fit for a child. He couldn’t do that to her.
Adam Ickes 
August 24th, 2012 at 3:39 AM
A great idea – for the picture each week to take you in a different direction. And this is a fantastic start – beautifully written and I really want to know what happened, and what will happen next.
I guess my only thought, and perhaps you’ll go on to explain this in a future episode, is why, if there’s been a massacre in the house, is the girl standing with only tears on her cheeks. Wouldn’t she be a bit more traumatised?
I hope all will be revealed in future weeks.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:35 PM
You’re right, that will be explained later. It was in there but had to be cut to make it fit the 100 word limit. Its always hard figuring what should stay and what should go.
August 24th, 2012 at 4:10 AM
Good one, full of intrigue.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:35 PM
Thanks, Sandra.
August 24th, 2012 at 7:23 AM
Happy birthday! Birthdays are a big deal and I almost rushed through the story so I could wish you felicitations. I didn’t rush through the story and found it interesting (I have no critique or drunken rants to add at this time. Maybe next time). Look forward to the next part.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:36 PM
Thanks for the birthday well wishing and I look forward to a future drunken rant.
August 24th, 2012 at 7:47 AM
Happy Birthday, Adam! You left us with a lot of questions. I hope you’ll not leave us hanging for long. I love your writing style. You have a knack for taking me into the scene. Thanks for your comment and encouragement on mine. It came at the right time.
For any readers who happen by mine is http://rochellewisofffields.wordpress.com/2012/08/22/escape/
August 24th, 2012 at 8:36 PM
Thanks, Rochelle. I appreciate your kind words as well.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:08 AM
Happy birthday Adam!!! Have a great one. This story left me wanting more…Well done!
August 24th, 2012 at 8:37 PM
Thanks, Boomie. You’ll get more… you just have to wait until next week! 🙂
August 24th, 2012 at 9:29 AM
Happy birthday! And that story left me wanting more. Great job using my photo. 😉
Here’s mine: http://unexpectedpaths.com/friday-fictioneers/pillar-of-salt/
August 24th, 2012 at 8:37 PM
Thanks for supplying the photo. It’s a beautiful capture.
August 24th, 2012 at 9:54 AM
A great start, full of intrigue and suspense and very well written. Happy Birthday, Adam Mine is here: http://readinpleasure.wordpress.com/2012/08/23/fridayfictioneers-light-on-the-hill/
August 24th, 2012 at 8:39 PM
Thanks! I’m glad you enjoyed the beginning of Winger’s journey. I’m anxious to see where it goes from here.
August 24th, 2012 at 10:26 AM
A chilling tale, so well told in just 100 words.
I look forward to reading more of Winger’s journey.
Happy birthday.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:40 PM
Thanks, Mike. I’m looking forward to writing of Winger’s travels. It’s a bit strange not knowing his story. I have a feeling the journey he is on is far longer than I thought when I came up with the idea of carrying it forward from week to week.
August 24th, 2012 at 11:31 AM
Happy Friday & Happy Birthday Adam!
Cool idea – Can’t wait to see what happens next…
August 24th, 2012 at 8:41 PM
Thanks, Rosy. I’m wondering what comes next myself!
August 24th, 2012 at 3:01 PM
Gefeliciteerd (congratulations)! Happy birthday. Ok, I’m in, looking forward to seeing where this goes. Great start.
http://mysocalleddutchlife.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/the-haar-ff-240812/
August 24th, 2012 at 8:42 PM
Thanks! You and me both. It’s a bit strange not knowing the rest of his story yet. Usually I have a fairly good ballpark of the whole story before I write anything.
August 24th, 2012 at 6:32 PM
Can’t do a drunken rant since I had my Guinness (only one) last night, but I can say good job and I look forward to seeing where this will go. I like “his weathered mind”, not the usual use of “weathered” but it works!
August 24th, 2012 at 6:32 PM
Ohhhh, forgot….happy birthday and many, many more happy ones.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:43 PM
I like using words how they aren’t usually used. I don’t do it as often as I’d like, but when I do I try to make it something I’ve not seen before. And thanks for the birthday wishes.
August 24th, 2012 at 8:59 PM
That’s a really great hook. I think what brought it home was that he wanted to take the girl with him. It humanizes him. I look forward to reading the rest of this story.
August 25th, 2012 at 7:39 AM
He’s not as bad a guy as he may seem by reading this chunk of his journey. I’m looking forward to seeing what lies ahead for him.
August 24th, 2012 at 9:15 PM
dude — take her with ? Leave her after he smoked her family?
good story, I am ready to smack some sense into him, which I would call emotionally involved!
August 25th, 2012 at 7:50 AM
I never said it was her family that got smoked. I think there’s a bit more than that going on, but I could be wrong.
August 25th, 2012 at 9:03 AM
laughing — that was good stuff, got me fired up!
August 24th, 2012 at 9:18 PM
ps happy birthday
August 25th, 2012 at 7:50 AM
thanks!
August 25th, 2012 at 3:00 AM
Happy Birthday Adam. I was going to ask who he massacred but Bill said he smoked her family? Did I miss an episode? Want to know more. Find me here: http://www.triplemoonstar.blogspot.com
August 25th, 2012 at 7:52 AM
Nope, you didn’t miss anything. Bill just assumed it was her family, but there’s a bit more to it than that and hopefully that’ll all be explained in later episodes.
August 25th, 2012 at 10:06 AM
Okay I am hooked, now I must go back and catch up! Thank you for the welcome, much appreciated.
August 25th, 2012 at 8:34 PM
Not much to catch up on, really. Everything before this was other unrelated stories, but you’re welcome to go read those if you like.
August 25th, 2012 at 10:10 AM
Happy Birthday!
Alright. I’m paying attention. Take me on this journey. I too have a pocket full of shells.
August 25th, 2012 at 8:35 PM
A pocket full of shells isn’t going to get you very far if you’re planning on following winger. I’m not even sure a warehouse full would be enough to stand beside this guy. He scares me a little.
August 25th, 2012 at 10:38 AM
Happy birthday, Adam.
I love this first part of your story and I’m already looking forward to more. Your intimation – that he can kill her family and yet he sympathises with her and can’t take her with him – is a powerful one and I wonder what could be worse than the life he’s leaving her to.
I’m over here; http://elmowrites.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/friday-fictioneers-far-afield/
August 25th, 2012 at 8:37 PM
I don’t know a whole lot about his future, but I’m certain the girl will be making at least one more appearance, probably more.
August 25th, 2012 at 11:03 AM
What a great idea, looking forward to seeing how the prompts carry the story on and finding out more about what happened, I’m over here http://anneorchardwriter.wordpress.com/2012/08/24/misty-friday-fictioneers/
August 25th, 2012 at 8:38 PM
I’m looking forward to it also. It’s a bit weird not knowing where the story is going, but it’s a good weird.
August 26th, 2012 at 10:58 AM
“and one fewer box of bullets than he’d gone in with.” Loved this.
August 28th, 2012 at 4:20 PM
Thanks Kathy, That was actually the line I came up with first and built the rest around it. Not sure why fog inspired that but it did.
August 26th, 2012 at 2:34 PM
I LIKE IT. What did he have to do in there? Was it safe to leave the little girl behind? Was there something in the mist? I can not wait until next week to see what you do next. BTW Happy Late Birthday.
August 28th, 2012 at 4:22 PM
Your questions may or may not be answered next week, and you may be left with even more. Hard to say as even I have no idea what’s up next for Winger.
August 27th, 2012 at 1:13 PM
Wow. This is great! Heart wrenching…but, he must not be a “bad guy” if he only killed as necessary. The little girl illustrates that portion of his persona. (Happy Birthday…a bit late. I was out of town).
~Susan
August 28th, 2012 at 4:23 PM
You’re right. He isn’t really a “bad guy”, but that’s all I’ll say on that subject.
August 31st, 2012 at 12:14 AM
[…] Read previous installments: Part 1 […]
September 14th, 2012 at 12:23 AM
[…] Installments: Part 1 | Part […]
September 21st, 2012 at 7:52 AM
[…] Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 […]
September 28th, 2012 at 1:00 AM
[…] Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 […]
October 19th, 2012 at 8:41 AM
[…] out Craig Towsley’s Owl and Raccoon Fables for an excellent piecemeal example of this, or The Winger Chronicles of Adam Ickes to see how it works doing it chronologically. Share this:TwitterFacebookLike this:LikeBe the first […]
September 18th, 2013 at 8:15 AM
[…] Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 […]