Challenge 15

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**Words: Sketch, Crosswalk, Student, Film, Waterfall**

"Surwelf," Sydney Ampton said, scowling. She was done with this. If she had to die, today wouldn't be a bad day, as long as she took Surwelf with her.

"Yes, it's me, daughter of Claksto. I'm here to see that your soul passes to the Neider peacefully. As did your brother's. Come now, let's go."

What is he saying? Claksto? I am the daughter of Emilia and Travis Ampton. And what's Neider? Too many questions, she chided herself, I can't afford to be distracted.

She took out a notebook from her backpack and turned the pages until she reached the intended one. She tore the page in rage and flashed it at Surwelf.

"Look at this, you demon. Do you even recognize him, or have you already forgotten? Tell me!" she screamed.

"I remember him, child, Eric was indeed a brave one, a pity what happened to him. And that is a good sketch you have made, Sydney," he said, his face as calm and expressionless as a mask.

"You killed him...," her voice was cracking and her eyes were brimming with tears.

She stood up and threw her backpack away on an empty crosswalk, "You killed him, and you are concerned about my drawing! I will kill you with my bare hands," she moved forward with murderous rage, afraid of herself.

She ran towards him, but Surwelf just stood there, shaking his head in disapproval. He snapped his fingers, and Sydney froze in her steps, literally. Her body paralyzed and she could not move.

"Look at this world, Sydney, tell me, what has it done for you, except treating you as a burden and throwing you around like garbage," he snarled and swept his hand through the air and the surroundings changed, she was no longer near the Sakura tress but in a metropolis, maybe. Huge buildings passed by and she saw people in suits moving around in a hurry, "Look Sydney, look. Look at these students, leaving school to see films in the mall. Look at their parents in cars and suits, do you really think that any of them care about anything except themselves?"

Her mouth was paralyzed but she didn't have an answer nevertheless.

He swept his hand again, and they were floating over 500m above a waterfall, Niagra Falls, by the looks of it. The mighty waterfall looked almost puny from this height.

"You have a lot to learn, girl. Lots. Till we meet again, but remember, I'm not the worst out there looking for you," Surwelf waved his hand as if to say goodbye and disappeared in the air.

She didn't.

She fell down into the cascade.

### Chiron66 (Morgan)

Skies are dark and gray

But it's better that way

Film's are black and white

Who needs any light?

Life is like a pencil sketch

No color but you can't look away

No time to say what needs to be said

Some people have hearts like lead

But sometimes life needs to change

Can't walk on only one lane

Cause every road leads to a crosswalk

And you gotta make a choice

And you gotta ignore the white noise

I say left

He says right

Why do we have to fight?

I go my way, you go yours

We all have that choice

And my way led to a waterfall

I can follow the river and leave the road

But where will I really go?

I don't know

But we'll find out in the end

And his way lead to twenty books

And more stuffed away in their nooks

And he read them all and said

This is the way it's got to end

So he followed the plan he read

A student who's now been sent

But sent to where?

He doesn't know

Cause he never looked up to see the river flow

But both ways can lead to life

Or both ends will make us die

We walked on our lines

Now we're in new lives

Lives of color

Lives of sturdy walls

Which is which I wouldn't know

But I'll follow the river where it flows

And he'll follow the road where it goes

## 2nd Position: Samirah ara with 4 upvotes

The underground parking lot was always empty, for it had long since been deserted. The crosswalk that had once been full of running feet hurrying to their next destination now was quiet, and the only mark of its busy past was the old muddy footprints that were scattered across its yellow lines. No cars ever parked here, leaving the hollow rooms to stretch on forever in murky silence. Sounds echoed eerily throughout the forgotten tomb; the irregular dripping of thick water onto the slick cement, a metal sign finally breaking and falling to the ground with a loud empty clang, or the occasional slow footstep of a adventurer there for an unknown reason. Students would sometimes visit to practice their illegal art expressions, and groups would gather to meet and show off how tough they were. Water from a broken rusty pipe streamed silently down the cracked wall like a miniature waterfall, pooling upon the floor in an oily puddle. Graffiti was sprayed carelessly across the walls, the sketched words mutely shouted out slogans and nasty words. The paint covered entire sections of the floor and walls, filming it with faded neon colors.

## 3rd Position: BadPoet with 3 upvotes

Standing on a crosswalk

Thinking what went wrong?

My life once beautiful

Now nothing more than trash

A scholar I was

But now just a failure

Got elected always

As the best student of the year

But now nothing makes sense anymore

My life is a flop film

I don't know how to make it a hit

It's just going down

Like a waterfall

Down not up

It's like a sad sketch

Beautiful but sad

Full of colours

But everything discoloured

Standing on a crosswalk

Thinking what went wrong?

Trying to find which turn

Would make it right again