During our weekly Creative Night we give out 10 minute challenges at the end of the session. For the artists, it's a 10 minute sketch of a random character. For the writers it's a 10 minute story from a prompt that we randomly pick out of a book. For this one, the prompt was "a magician finds out something supernatural is at work". Hope you enjoy.
“And PRESTO! The lovely Claudia!”
With a flourish, Alexander the Unknowable pulled open the door of the garishly painted box to reveal that his assistant had indeed reappeared from the hidden door in the false bottom. The crowd erupted into applause as smoke and the scantily dressed Claudia poured forth from the box. Alexander took a moment, closed his eyes with his arms wide as he drank in the adulation of the crowd. This was joy, this was power. This was magic.
Alone in the empty theater, Alexander paced the stage like a jungle cat. His high from the night’s performance still resonated through his body. He was tense, unable to stand still. So much energy, he could feel it in every part of his body. But it was slowly fading, too fast for his liking.
“More...if only. Something new, bigger crowds...more...more energy!”
Almost on cue, smoke again came slowly trickling at first, then as a torrent out of the magic box still on stage. The door slowly opened, and the lovely Claudia again slithered out of the box.
“Claudia? I thought you went home? Turn off that smoke machine, save the performance for the paying customers.”
Claudia made slow movements towards Alexander, holding eye contact long after it was comfortable. She slinked up to arms reach, Alexander could see there was something...different...about Claudia.
“You’re not...who...what are you?”
Claudia’s mouth opened to speak, but a voice more reverberant, a voice further away, came out.
“Power. True power is what you want. These charlatan tricks do not suit you Alexander. You desire, nay deserve the power to perform true magic.”
Her voice bounced around his head like a lottery ball. A whisper was all he could manage.
“You must give up...much...for this power.”
“I’ll remember you said that.”
Claudia held out her hand, fingers slowly uncurling to show a blackened hand. The blackness creeped up her arm until it was dark like coal, with the same flat quality. Dust fell from her arm as it blackened, the ash after a fire. Alexander hesitated.
With a deeper, gravelly voice, the thing that was not Claudia spoke.
“Why hesitate Alexander? This first step is the simplest. Trust me, after this it becomes more...challenging.”
Alexander looked down at his still human hand contrasted against the rapidly blackening figure in front of him. What wouldn’t he do for true power? To become a true magician?
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