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A Novice Gambit: a microfiction

A microfiction of magical hijinks and a small heist

By Ian ReadPublished 3 years ago Updated 3 years ago 1 min read
Top Story - June 2023
A Novice Gambit: a microfiction
Photo by Eilis Garvey on Unsplash

"What if Magister Delbreck catches us, Donald? You know what he'll do!" one boy said, warily casting a spell of detection over a cabinet.

"Do you want to pass exams or not, Kellan?" retorted Donald, haphazardly rummaging through drawers and bookshelves.

Kellan nodded.

"Then quit being antsy! Just find the damn formula while they're none the wiser!"

"A magister's study must have a thousand wards..." Kellan said.

Delbreck's study was more a miniature library than anything else. There were dozens of places to hide things: full bookshelves, cabinets, a desk, suits of armor; too many places to search in the time they had. The boys also left the door to the college cloister open in case they needed a hasty escape.

Suddenly, Donald opened a drawer and held a paper aloft, "Huzzah!"

A book sailed through the air and struck him on the forehead.

"Run!" said Kellan.

Donald was already out of the room with the formula when two suits of armor came to life. The study door flew shut behind Donald. Panicked, Kellan drew sigils in the air and teleported outside.

There, he saw a magister holding Donald by the ear.

"Boys," Delbreck said admonishingly.

"Magister," they said fearfully.

MicrofictionFantasy

About the Creator

Ian Read

I am an archaeologist, bookwyrm, and story-teller from New Hampshire.

Serial Fiction, Short Stories, and Poetry in diverse genres with a penchant for dark fiction and whimsical fantasy.

Find me on:

||Discord||Twitch||

Reader insights

Nice work

Very well written. Keep up the good work!

Top insights

  1. Excellent storytelling

    Original narrative & well developed characters

  2. Easy to read and follow

    Well-structured & engaging content

  3. Masterful proofreading

    Zero grammar & spelling mistakes

  1. Compelling and original writing

    Creative use of language & vocab

  2. Eye opening

    Niche topic & fresh perspectives

  3. Heartfelt and relatable

    The story invoked strong personal emotions

  4. On-point and relevant

    Writing reflected the title & theme

Add your insights

Comments (21)

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  • Jazzy 2 years ago

    These micro fictions are so hard for me but you made it look easy!

  • Holly Pheni3 years ago

    Oh, I like this! Magical fantasy heists are the best!

  • Paul Stewart3 years ago

    Why am I not susbcribed to you already. Bad bad oversight on my part. This is a great take on the challenge and I'm already intrigued by the world you've built in such a short piece of writing!Congrats on Top Story!

  • 5-4-3-2-13 years ago

    Great read

  • Aphotic3 years ago

    Ooh, I like this take on the challenge! Nice world building and characterization. I have a feeling this wasn’t Delbreck‘s first time dealing with these two…🤔

  • Very creative and I enjoyed your very magical spin on this challenge 🧐

  • Joelle E N3 years ago

    Obsessed!

  • Novel Allen3 years ago

    Too much Harry Potter and such eh! Love all the mystical magical stuff. Bravo on TS.

  • Dana Stewart3 years ago

    Nicely put together. Quite clever using some ‘magic’ on the micro fiction plot. Congratulations

  • Gerald Holmes3 years ago

    Excellent story-telling. Left me wanting to know what comes next. Congrats on the Top Story.

  • Lamar Wiggins3 years ago

    That was very entertaining. The set up and language was perfect! Congrats, Ian.

  • Ashley Lima3 years ago

    Fantastic, Ian! Well done, and many congratulations on your Top Story :)

  • D. D. Lee3 years ago

    The scene came to life perfectly as I read the story. It does make you wish there was more, curious to know what happens next.

  • Donna Renee3 years ago

    This is really cool, Ian! I want the long version too haha

  • C. H. Richard3 years ago

    Enjoyed that! Would be a great story to continue with as well as microfiction 😊 Congratulations on Top Story ! 👏

  • Matthew J. Fromm3 years ago

    Congrats on the top story sir!

  • This was great fun, really enjoyed it and congratulations on your top stiry

  • Cathy holmes3 years ago

    Nicely done. Congrats on the TS

  • Lilly Cooper3 years ago

    I like what you have done with such a limited word count :) and that the subject is magic is not where my mind was going when I read about the challenge. I like your take on it!

  • Ash Digest3 years ago

    Reminds me of the games me and my siblings would play when we were kids, love how you drew us in with such a short, but well written (stuck on the correct term for this lol) and magical way, well done!

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