Orphan Source
The lethal find
The lead cylinder sat lethally on the shelf among books. Little did Jason know. At the garage sale it was a curious thing with esoteric markings, sitting upon a table among coffee mugs.
“What is this?” he asked.
“Don’t know. Scavenged it out in the desert. Some old building. Abandoned crap. $10?”
Seemed like a deal. He brought it back and filmed himself opening the lid. The video screen scattered with static as a small gray lump sat at the bottom. He shook it out into his hand feeling its weight. Heavy for its size and strangely warm, he placed it back in the container and never thought about it again.
An orphan source is a radioactive product not under the control of any governing body. Abandoned x-ray equipment and evacuated labs. There are hundreds out there.
The men in yellow protective suits arrived at 3AM. They easily got past the dead bolts, their clicking dosimeters leading them to the shelf and placed the cylinder in a lead bag. Jason lay nearby on a cot. His hand like raw meat and vomit sprayed across the floor. He would be dead in two days. They made their escape back into anonymity.
About the Creator
Kevin Rolly
Artist working in Los Angeles who creates images from photos, oil paint and gunpowder.
He is writing a novel about the suicide of his brother.
http://www.kevissimo.com/
FB: https://www.facebook.com/Kevissimo/
Reader insights
Outstanding
Excellent work. Looking forward to reading more!
Top insights
Excellent storytelling
Original narrative & well developed characters
Compelling and original writing
Creative use of language & vocab
Masterful proofreading
Zero grammar & spelling mistakes
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Comments (16)
Great story. Well done on your win.
oh no, that was awful! The story was great, I mean, but the content, you know what I'm trying to say! congratulations! :D
Dark story told in few words-great job
Really impressive how you were able to do so much with so few words, absolutely deserving of a winning spot! Loved the unique perspective and how your use of the object and it's description allows the audience to imagine the rest of this world and the things going on in it for themselves.
This was a story fully told in few words. Very deserving win. Congratulations
You leave us with a completely consuming type of horror, the type that derails other thoughts and just permeates. Your writing is understated and exactly right. Wowza. What a seriously brilliant piece, so happy it placed. Congratulations on your achievement!
That was chilling and not what I expected from this challenge. Well done on runner-up
Wow, this was so intense at the end! It's despicable how the men just left him there. But your narrative style is so compelling, so haunting, almost, how it zooms out and tells us what will happen. I can't get the image of Jason sick out of my mind. Horrifying way to die. I love how creative you were with the challenge, and congratulations on placing!
Congratulations 🎉 🎉❤️😉💯
Way to go, Kevin. congrats
Well worth the read! Congratulations!
Damnnnnn! This is a seriously amazing piece. Thought-provoking, haunting, and masterfully told. Congratulations and incredible work! The attention to detail in this was truly brilliant.
Outstanding work!
I thought this was going to be about human trafficking, but clicked for a read because the title got me ;) Your story is way better than human trafficking. great mental imagery, to the point, but doesn't leave anything out... and great title. ;)
Outstanding!!! Left a ❤️
Oh my. That's scary.