Well done! That was great! And a lot of work, too.

I just want to let everyone know that Carla is the greatest person ever. I couldn't get anything more than a link to come up, so I emailed her with the whole story and she put it into the post for me. Talk about customer service. THANK YOU CARLA!!!

what is E-rated? i always forget

rated for Everyone

sooooo if i write horror story (or at least i try to), will you accept it?

The ESRB definition for "Everyone" is:

"Titles rated E (Everyone) have content that may be suitable for ages 6 and older. Titles in this category may contain minimal cartoon, fantasy or mild violence and/or infrequent use of mild language."

If you can write a horror story that fits the definition, we will certainly accept your submission!

Smashing idea but I guess LDW have you beat there with their story about VV2 and VV3 and how we would have to wait for months LOL !!

The Tale of a Broken Heart:
There was once a girl named Jazza. As a simple farmer, child of two farmers, she spent all of her time fishing. Each time she caught a fish, she walked to the food bin and passed the reaserch table. What losers, Jazza thought. She was a sophisticated farmer, and them, they just made clinking noises and walked around a table. However, her opinion on scientests changed when she first saw Jazzo, a trainee scientest. It was love at first sight. She tried to say hi but when her mouth opened, she dropped the crab she was carring to the food bin. Everyone laughed. Jazzo went back to his researching. Jazza really wanted to talk to Jazzo somehow, but she had her work to do, and Jazzo had his researching to do The next morning, Jazza announced she was now a scientist. That was the perfect way to get closer to Jazzo. She had no fun at all researching. She still couldn't get a chance to talk to Jazzo. Soon, she gave up and just stared at him all day long. Then, the terrible thing happened. Some other girl also decided she liked Jazzo. Even worse, that other girl was an adept parent. I watched Jazzo as he went indoors and hoped nothing would happen. Jazzo was the first one out. He walked away with his new wife, and their new baby. Jazza was broken-hearted.

We had always been friends, Maliwa and I. Since our births we had been inseparable, born of the first ones in the twilight of their lives. Maliwas’ mother had been the tribes’ leader, he was her image with her red hair and blue eyes, she doted on him, she knew he would be her last. Maybe she spoiled him a bit, he could get away with it; when he ate the last of the berries of the bush and the farmers caught him with stained fingers and lips, when she looked into his big tear filled eyes she could not help but to forgive him. “The crops are in and it is not a great loss”, she told the farmers. They grumbled a bit but went back to the harvest, he could get away with things like that, he was born lucky.

I on the other hand was not so lucky. My Mother was found at the edge of the forest by one of the younger villagers, she had washed out of one of the canoes as it struck the reef and the current swept her to another side of the island. She remembers struggling in the sea trying to swim ashore but she was too weak and thought she would drown. Once, in the hut on a moonless night she told me of that day during the storm and how the waves pulled her under and then she felt as if someone had grabbed her hand and pulled her to the shore, but when she awoke on the beach she was alone at the edge of the surf, so she thought at first it must have been a dream. She leaned in close to me and whispered, “but I wasn’t alone Alisha, there are others here, I saw them.” She would say no more on the subject. Although she came to the village with great knowledge of the growing and harvesting of food plants, most of the villagers kept their distance from her, she would never come out and say what she had seen in the jungle in the months she had survived alone, but sometimes we would see her stand at the edge of the clearing talking to no-one in the bushes and trees…at least we never could see anyone, and she would stop talking whenever anyone came near.

I do not remember when my innocent childhood friendship with Maliwa changed, for so many years we played together in the rocks by the shore. Those same rocks, as adults, we were told by the Great Spirit to use to built a temple. Maliwa and I danced around the great rock, that even now, the Spirit says holds a new gift to the tribe that we must chip away to find. Time changed the village and time has changed us, where once we were children, now we are man and woman. Maliwa was in charge of the work on the great rock and I swim in the sea and gathered fish for the tribe. We worked hard during the day but in the evening around the fires we would sing the old songs and still we would dance together in the moonlight. It was he who would comfort me when my Mother died and he who would help to dig her grave and erect the stone.

Only a few moons had passed since my Mothers death when Maliwa and I walked in the moonlight and promised our love to each other and to no other, we would raise many children together as we watched our tribe grow strong… We made great plans together that night. By the light of the dawn Maliwa left me to return to work on the great stone, he would go first to the rock pile in the jungle behind the flowering field to gather stones to make new chisles out of, as the old ones were growing dull and small. I did not rush to the sea to fish, I lingered by the stone covered cave and the berry bush and remembered the small boy with the juice stained lips and marveled at the man he had become, the man I would love forever.

“Alisha, Alisha,” I was surprised to hear my name being called, I turned to see Maliwa beckoning me to come to him over near the burial grounds, I rushed over to him as he motioned me to be silent. “Look what I found hidden under the stones in the rock pile”, he said as he uncovered a skin wrapped book. “What is it, I asked…what does it say”? “I don’t know I haven’t read it”, Maliwa replied. “I am going over to the waterfall where I can be alone and read it”. “No Maliwa, take it to the elders, it might be some book of magic or one written by the old ones, the ones my Mother said lived on this island before we came here”, I begged him. “I think it is from the old ones and I want to read it”, he replied, “I will show it to the elders after I am done”, and with that he left me with a kiss, hid the book in his shirt and walked to the waterfall.

I did not fish that day; I took laundry back and forth to the lagoon so that I might catch a glimpse of Maliwa reading now and then. As the sun began to dip down for its journey under the sea, I went one more time to the lagoon. Maliwa was there at the edge of the jungle walking quickly back and forth, I could see he was upset and before I could call out to him he plunged into the brush, finding the secret path that had gone unnoticed by the villagers. Where he has gone is a mystery, but he has gone...
The others heard me standing at the edge of the jungle, frozen by the words of my Mother that “they were out there, the old ones”, I screamed his name again and again but there was no answer.

I told the elders of the book and watched Maliwas Mother grieve at the loss of her youngest child. Some of the villagers blamed her, since he had again disobeyed her rule about things found that might be from the old ones. “He was spoiled”, was their verdict. Some blamed me because of my Mothers strange ways. In the end it did not matter, village life continued on; Maliwas’ Mother faded away and died a few moons after his disappearance and his sister, Meira, became our tribal leader.

And what of me? I spend my day’s cradling my infant son in my arms, whispering his fathers’ story to him. I take him to the edge of the jungle and call out to Maliwa, hoping he will come to see his son. I wait; I know someday he will return…someday…

Here’s my story.
And the two main characters are Ashleigh & Greggad. All other names mentioned are already names from the game.
Ehh.. I hope this is considered 'E'. I'm not totally sure.
Enjoy people. <3

Ashleigh awoke on a clear Saturday morning. As she slowly wiped her eyes and let a small yawn crack through, she looked around, but was unaware of her surroundings. She was in a hut, about the same size as hers. The wooden walls were barren of the medical charts her mother and father owned, and instead covered with drawings, sketches, and measurements. This was clearly was the house of a builder, but Ashleigh had come from a long line of doctors. She looked down and found herself in a mattress much smaller than her own. Then again, she had to share hers with 4 older siblings, while this one was clearly made for only one. She looked to her right and almost shrieked in terror. There, lying peacefully under the covers, was her best friend, Greggad. He was a strong builder of 20 who had just moved out of his parents’ hut. She looked under the covers and thankfully, they were both clothed.
She slowly and quickly got off the bed, as to not wake up Greggad. She skillfully tied her blue hair into a bun, leaving her short bangs over her face. She quietly left the building and applied her usual think layer of blackberry eyeliner outside. From the sun’s position outside and only the farmers awake, plowing at the fields, she could tell it was only around 4:30 AM. She had always been an early riser. She adored the golden copper Isola looked when the sun was just slightly glancing over the horizon, opening its eyes.
Careful not to show herself coming out of Greggad’s home so the other teens would not gossip, Ashleigh crept past the research table, towards the south, to her home. She was glad to see through the window a small candle burning and her father looking over some medical texts. She opened the door to this much more familiar hut. She could barely see the walls with all the diagrams of the cactus and other plants of Isola. She could hear her dad sniffing quietly and her mother was, surprisingly, not in the house.
“Dad? Um… What’s wrong? And why did I wake up in Greggad’s house?”
“Honey? Well, something happened while you were sleeping last night. The village was woken by a catastrophe, and we all gathered by the ocean. You were still sleeping. I asked Greggad to take you to his house and look after you while the doctors investigated.”
“Um. So what happened exactly?”
“Well. Most of the village was sleeping at the time. Your mother and I, however, were still awake, trying to figure out how to cure Mrs. Pakwa, who you know is ill currently. Suddenly, there was a loud boom coming from the south. We left the house and went to the ocean, where the sound probably originated from. All us adults were trying to figure out what was happening. The Master Scientist, Kin, found a crate lying along the shore. He was brave enough to open it, and inside were a couple of tools for us. While the scientists rejoiced, your mother went closer to examine, and to see if there was anything else in the box. Then, an enormous spider emerged and bit her arm!”
“Oh no. NO!” Ashleigh tried to hold back tears.
“Well, the others immediately took notice and Kin stabbed the spider with a wrench he was holding to avoid it biting anyone else. I, being the most experienced doctor of our village, immediately started tending to your mother. Currently, she is being cared for by your older sisters in the biggest building on our island, the school. No one knows what’s going to happen with her.”
“No. No! Why didn’t anyone wake me up? I could have helped! I’m only 17 and still a better doctor than my sisters! Even Tiki, who’s already 25! AHHH!” Ashleigh screamed and left the hut, stomping towards the schoolhouse.
She harshly tugged on the door to the school, to no avail. She screamed into the door, “LET ME IN TIKI, ZEN, CITY, AND KIRI! IT’S ASHLEIGH! I WANT TO SEE MOM!”
Ashleigh heard the bolts unlock behind the door and her youngest older sister appeared, Zen. “SHHH, Ashleigh. Mom’s sleeping. We’re tending to her.”
“Can’t I see her??”
“Ashleigh, we can’t afford that. The four of us, being in so much contact with her, have probably become ill. We can’t have you sick too. The village will have no doctors left, but dad. Besides, you’re still a kid.”
“ZEN! I’m turning 18 in a few weeks! And besides, you’re only one year older than me! What makes you an adult and not me?”
“Look, Ashleigh, I know you don’t understand. But you’ve got to believe me, okay?”
Ashleigh glared at her sister and groaned. She trudged back to Greggad’s house and fell onto the bed. Greggad awoke with a yelp and saw Ashleigh crying beside him. Her blue hair had sprung out of its neat bun and was cascading down her back in gentle waves. Her hands and cheeks were stained with her blackberry eyeliner that had been brought down with her tears. Greggad embraced her and whispered into her ear, “So I guess you’ve heard?”
Ashleigh sniffed and wiped her eyes. “Yeah. How could my dad NOT wake me up? I can’t believe they doubt my skills like that!”
“Hey, hey, wipe those stains off your beautiful face. You’re the most amazing, dedicated, intelligent doctor of our generation. And don’t be doubting that, Lei.”
Ashleigh brightened slightly at Greggad’s little nickname for her. When they were only little tots, and Greggad was 6 and Ashleigh was 4, neither of them could pronounce ‘Ashleigh,’ so they resorted to ‘Lei.’ Only Greggad could get away with calling her that now. And he only broke it out when she needed cheering up. “Thanks Greg. But, I don’t know why they won’t let me help!”
“Lei, they know how good you are. They can’t take the risk of having you infected.”
“I’m willing to take that risk for my mother! They should know that. Hey, Greggad, and you should too! Why didn’t you wake me up and tell me?”
“Whoa, now, Lei. Don’t be blaming this on me! I can’t defy my elders, you know that. If I went against your father’s orders, it’d be off into the ocean with me!”
“Right. Sorry. I forgot that you’re an adult and you’ve got to adhere to those ‘adult’ punishments.”
“Hey, what’s that supposed to mean??”
“Haha, you know what I mean, Greg. You’re always either building something, sketching a plan for something, or hanging with me. Me! A mere seventeen year old. And we’ve been friends forever… It’s just weird thinking of you as my elder.” Ashleigh smiled.
“There, that’s what I like to see, Lei. Those gorgeous, pearly whites. You need to flash those more. And keep your hair down like this more. Those waves are amazing. And get those bangs out of your face. I can barely see those bright green eyes through that barrier of hair.”
“Smiling is not my thing anymore. Nothing’s making me happy. Especially now.”
“Hey. Don’t. You should be happy, because you never know who’s falling in love with your smile. Like that 15 year old kid, my apprentice, Tofu? He most definitely has it for you. Whenever you’re visiting the construction site, I see him giving you glances.”
“Tofu? Haha. Nah. We went on like one date… It didn’t really work out. I didn’t know he was going to be a builder. He was in my medical class back in those days when I still went to school. Whatever. Anywho, he’s too young for me.”
“Something wrong with liking someone younger than you?”
“No, but this kid, he’s so immature.”
“Like me?”
“No…”
“But you said a few minutes ago that I wasn’t an adult!” Greggad gave a puppy face to Ashleigh, and she laughed.
“Yeah, but you’re mature! Well, except when you make that face!”
“And… also when I… do this!” Greg reached his hands out to Ashleigh’s stomach and began tickling her. They rumbled for a while on the bed, and Ashleigh began attacking Greggad back.
“Haa.. okay.. ha… truce??” Ashleigh staggered out between giggles.
“Okay, Lei. Deal.”
They lay on the bed, facing the ceiling.
“You always know how to make me feel better, Greg. Thanks.” She turned and faced him.
“Hey. For you, anything.” Greg took a tissue and wiped the now dry blackberry from her cheeks. “There. Much better. I got scared staring at all that black. What’s with all the eyeliner, anyway? You’ve got natural beauty. And besides, when it smudges, this eyeliner gets so dirty.”
“Look who’s talking!” Ashleigh ruffled Greggad’s already tousled blonde hair. As she was bring it back, Greggad grabbed it and twisted.
“AHH okay, okay, mercy!!”
“That’s better.”
“Oh, please. You really are so immature. Not any better than Tofu.”
“Oh, well, I’ll bet I do this better.” Greg held Ashleigh’s face and brought their heads together. He gave her a gentle kiss on her soft, pink lips.
“Wow. Greg? You know this is illegal, right? I’m not 18 yet!”
“You will be in 2 weeks. I can wait!”
“Really?”
“Hey. I’ve waited since I was 17. I can wait another 14 days.”
Ashleigh smiled and got out of the bed.
"Now that I'm calmer, I'm going to talk to my dad. We'll work this out. Thanks Greg."