The Adventures at Vocal

The moderation team on Vocal stays up late at night, drinking coffee so they don’t fall asleep. They review every single story submission. Some of them read the entire story, and a few secretly skim the pages if they lose interest. Some of the stories they read are horrible. Some are ok and kind of good, and there are a few that are just fantastic, and have everything they are looking for. Originality, remembrance, flawless delivery, great quality, and only a few grammar mistakes. The last winner won $20,000 and this new challenge will gain $5,000. Sometimes if the moderation team doesn’t like a story, but knows they have to finish reading it, they will hand the story over to another team member. Some will even trick others into reading the story they didn’t like, but luckily most of them just put their big girl panties on and read them no matter how cheesy or bad they are. The motivation being “Only a few more days” or “Remember, you get paid for this”. They put their favorites stacked in a pile, which they then pass on to the Curation team. Most of them think, but don’t dare say “Great, we have to stay up late and read all these stories, even the crummy ones, and they get to only read the good ones we choose. Lucky them.” Finally, when the submission date closes, the moderation team can relax and have a beer, at least until a few more days when they have to start reviewing their next challenge submissions. Once the stories are passed on to the Curation team, the Curation team works hard brainstorming and comparing the stories, trying to find the best of the best stories. They read the top picks, and carefully score to determine the winners. They’re a huge team, but the main judges in this story are Chris, David, Nicole, Lisa, and Robert. Chris is the funny one, though he sometimes slacks he’s great at his job. David is the flirtatious, womanizer, but when he’s working, you would never know. Nicole is sweet and down to earth. Lisa is the strict, serious one, the one you don’t want to mess with and Robert. Well… He’s Robert. It starts off as any normal day. There are only 8 days left until the submissions close, and everyone’s running around like a chicken with their head cut off, trying to find the top possible winners. There’s not much time left, and all was going well until 2 of the moderation team members weren’t responding to their phone calls and emails. The Curation team was frustrated because that slowed down business for them. The next day 2 more moderation team members weren’t answering or replying to them. The Curation team thought it was weird, and were getting worried not only for their workers but for their business because there were still so many stories that needed to be read. Then 4 days later, 5 people from the moderation team weren’t responding to their calls. This couldn’t be a coincidence. The Curation team knew something was up and tried multiple times to contact them, but they weren’t having luck. What were they going to do? There are only 3 days left until final submissions and they were losing their workers. They started getting phone calls from their moderation team worker’s spouses, and family saying that they were missing. The police eventually got involved. They were now investigating Vocal. So not only did they have to deal with the pressure of the contest, they had to work with the police breathing down their necks. Nicole retrieved the stories from the missing moderation team members. She was afraid and worried about why they were disappearing, but when you’re in a business, you don’t have the luxury to waste time. Nicole split the stack of papers with her friends, Chris, David, Lisa, and Robert. Nicole spent 1 hour writing in her little black Moleskine notebook, and spent about 5 hours reading the submitted stories, when she came across an unusual story called “Kein Ausweg.” This story stood out for some reason. She flipped open the pages and began reading. The next day, Nicole wasn’t answering her phone calls. The Curation team was worried, especially with the other disappearances going on, so as a precaution they all went to Nicole’s office. Like suspected she wasn’t there, nothing was there except a story. This drew Chris’s eye. He picked it up and flipped open the pages. He had a weird feeling. “Hey, guys this looks pretty good,” Chris said.

Lisa rolled her eyes “People and Nicole are missing and the only thing you can think about is a story?”

Embarrassed, Chris put the book back in place.

David squints his eyes. “Wait a minute, can I see that?”

Chris shrugs and hands him the story.

Lisa sighs ‘Seriously guys? People are missing, and you guys are reading a stupid story. I feel like I’m working with children.”

David furrows his eyebrows. “Wait, Chris is right. This looks really good.”

Irritated, Lisa begins to walk away when David begins to read it out loud, catching her attention. “There was once a kingdom Siferia, ruled by a powerful, evil king named Bardolph. Bardolph was a greedy old man, never to be trusted. He was dying, and his oldest son was to be taking over. The king hated the idea because unlike him the young prince was kind. Bardolph didn’t want his youngest son taking over, so he came up with a sinister plan with his oldest son, Baron. They planned to poison Havier, the youngest son. That way the kingdom would be handed over to Baron. Baron was just as evil as the King. The King respected Baron more than Havier. The village was terrified of him, and the only way to get freedom was to stop the king before ...”

Robert interrupts, chuckling “What kind of name is Bardolph? Sounds like some creature from Star Wars”

David sighs “Can I finish the story? It was just getting goo..” Before David could say anything, the walls in the room started to shake viciously. Everyone looks around in fear. “What’s happening!?” Lisa exclaims. The books are falling out of bookshelves. The desk is shaking, causing one computer to crash to the floor.

“Are we having an earthquake?” Robert yells.

“I didn’t think we had earthquakes here” Lisa mutters.

Suddenly a bright white light appears, shining and illuminating the entire room. Everyone looks away from the intensity when everyone loses consciousness.

Everyone wakes up on hard cobble ground. “Wh-what happened?” Lisa asks, pushing herself off the ground. When she gets up, she can’t believe her eyes. She sees David, Chris, and Robert in front of her, all frozen in place.

“What is this place?” Lisa exclaims.

“It seems like we were transported somewhere?” David says in disbelief.

Robert shakes his head “This can’t be real. Is this heaven? Did we die?.” He shouts.

Chris says with uncertainty “I hate to break it to you, but if you’re with me then we’re not in heaven”.

Everyone continues to stare at this new world they have just encountered. They were surrounded by small cottages on hills. The women had long dresses, and the men were riding horses, dressed in strange garments.

“Yep, this is hell”.Chris says. “Now as to why you’re all here? I have no idea..”

Roberts screams “This is not hell!”

Chris argues “Well it certainly isn’t heaven.”

Robert explodes “This is not heaven or hell!”

Chris folds his arms “Then what do you think this is?”

Robert stutters “I-It’s… It’s a dream.”

Chris rolls his eyes “I’ve never been in a dream that felt so real. I seriously doubt that, plus we wouldn’t be so aware if it were a dream.”

Robert scowls “I’ll prove to you it is.”

Robert begins marching to a muscular man sitting on top of a horse.

“I wouldn’t do that if I were you,” Chris warns.

“Rob come back!” Lisa demands.

Ignoring them, Robert continues walking until he’s face to face with a man on a horse. “Excuse me, but did your mom make you wear that dreadful clothing, or do you choose to look like a poorly dressed pirate?”

The man’s face twists in rage.

Robert turns around looking at us smirking. “See I told you it was just a dr…” Before he could say another word the man from the horse jumps off. He takes a few steps, towering over him. Robert must know because he looks at Lisa and his friends in fear. They all watch back in horror. The man behind Robert is tall and buff. He cracks his knuckles. Afraid, Robert turns around, not quite sure if this is still a dream. The man reaches for his sword. They all gasp. As soon as the man raises his sword Lisa yells “Wait!”

The mains spots us. Soon confusion and amusement replace his rage.

“Lisa, what are you doing?” Chris says between gritting his teeth.

“We can’t just let him get killed,” Lisa whispers.

Chris rolls his eyes “Why it’s his fault for being stupid, and it’s not like he has much of a life anyway.”

The man put his sword away in his leather belt, not breaking eye contact with them. He then starts to march towards them. Robert takes a breath of relief, glad that the attention isn’t on him anymore.

“We’re screwed.” David groans.

The man with the sword stops right in front of them and scowls “Who are you?” He spats.

Chris and David cling to Lisa like babies.

Lisa gathers the courage to finally speak. “I-I’m Lisa… These are my friends David, Chris, and Robert.”

He continues to glare. He finally breaks the silence “I’ve never seen you here before.”

“What’s your title?”

Lisa looks at him confused “Title?”

Impatient, the man raises his voice. “Yes, title. Are you imperial or royalty?”

Unsure what to say, Lisa nods “Uh yes… We’re royalty.”

The man gives them a quizzical look and then straightens himself out. “Very well. Apologies for my behavior. I assume you’re here to attend the royal celebration?”

“Yes, yes of course! I wouldn’t miss it for the world” Lisa exclaims.

The man gives Lisa a strange look. “How peculiar. People are furious the prince is marrying that wench.”

Lisa’s eyes widen “Oh...uh… yes I know, but we… we still wanted to support the prince despite that awful woman.”

The man grins “How nice. I will give you all a ride in my carriage to the castle. Follow me”.

“No that’s quite alright,” Lisa says.

The man turns around “Why are you declining my offer? People would kill to have this opportunity. Carriages and horses are quite expensive.”

“Yes, but we rather walk.” Lisa protested.

The man argues “Royalty is refusing to accept a ride to the castle? That’s unheard of.”

Not wanting to raise suspicion, Lisa agrees to go with him.

Chris tugs Lisa's arm and whispers “What if he’s a killer?!”

Lisa sighs “Did you take a look around? Almost everyone is carrying swords and knives. They’re all killers I’m sure.”

Chris freezes in his spot. “You're supposed to comfort me.”

Lisa rolls her eyes “Aren’t you supposed to be the one comforting me?”

“This isn’t the medieval ages. Women and men are treated equally.”

Lisa smirks “Are you sure about that?”

Chris says nothing.

They all ride in the carriage, over the bumpy hills, still confused as to what the heck was going on. When they finally arrive at their destination, they can’t believe their eyes. It’s a humongous castle surrounded by water. The carriage stops right before the bridge. Lisa and her friends follow the man across the bridge to inside the castle, where they are met by an older man with a grey beard, wearing a golden crown who Lisa assumed to be the king. The man that takes them there bows down. Lisa and her friends don’t know what to do. The king gives them a look, and they all immediately fall to their knees. After the man gets up, so does Lisa, David, Chris, and Robert “Hello Alistair. I see you brought guests?”

The man, who must be Alisatri, clears his throat “Yes, I met these lovely people in the Northwick Village. They claim to be royalty.”

The kind widens his eyes “Oh really who are you all supposed to be?”

Lisa stutters “Uh-uh… I’m Lisa and these are Chris, David, and..”

The King yells “I don’t care about your names. Who are you people?”

Dumbfounded Lisa answers “We’re just judges for a writing contest.”

The king looks at them with disapproving eyes. “These are imposters! Guards seize them!” He demands. David, Lisa, Robert, and Chris all panic. The king scowls at the man that brought us here.

“How dare you bring imposters here!” He yells.

The man pleads “I-I apologize Sire. I assumed by their garments, and thought…”

“Enough!” The king yells. “You put us all in danger! You’re no duke!”

The man fumbles “I apologize, Sire. I won’t do this again.”

The king snarls “That’s right you won’t.” He says before raising his sword and killing him.

Lisa and her friends all scream in fear. What did they get themselves into?

“Now, you…” The king hisses, turning to Lisa. “I guess it’s only fair to give you imposters the same treatment of the former Duke.”

He smirks “Ladies first… Any last words?” He says while pointing his sword at Lisa.

Lisa scowls “Screw you”.

Everyone gasps at the bravery or stupidity of her words. The king hesitates for a moment baffled by her response. “I’ll make sure to make your death extra slow.” He says. He raises his sword. Lisa closes her eyes, embracing herself. “Stop!” Someone yells. Lisa carefully opens her eyes, surprised she’s still alive. In walks a handsome man, with a tunic and garments decorated with expensive gold lacing and a cloak. “What are you doing father?” Prince Havier asks.

“These imposters were trying to get in the castle. They must be punished.” Answers the king.

The prince looks at them, his eyes stopping at Lisa.

“Let me handle this father.”

The king scowls “Why? So you can spare another peasant’s life?” He yells.

The prince says unfazed “I am to be future King. I should have a say in this, no?”

The king glares at him “Maybe, but you’re forgetting I am still King! You can’t be so weak. It will kill you son.”

The prince rolls his eyes “We all die father. Weakness has nothing to do with it. The only difference between me and you is people will actually miss me after I’m gone.”

Offended the king shouts “Maybe, but they will walk all over you until your dying day. You should be more like Baron. You should behead them all!”

Silence fills the room. “ I’ll let you have your way this time. Just know when you die for something as foolish as love or compassion, I won’t help you!” The King shouts, storming out of the room.

The prince rolls his eyes. Then he slowly walks to Lisa and her friends. They all stiffen. “Don’t worry. I’m not my father. I won’t kill you, but I must know. I haven’t seen garments like any of yours my entire life. I could see why Alistair would believe you were royals. Where are you from?”

They stay silent, afraid, and uncertain of what to do. Lisa feels she can trust him, so she tells him the truth. After explaining everything to the prince, he looks at them in shock. The prince finally breaks the silence “You do realize how crazy this makes you look, right?”

Lisa scoffs “Says the man’s son that was going to chop our heads off just a few minutes ago.” The prince chuckles, amused by her courage. “Okay you got me, but never associate me with my father. We’re related by blood, but that is all.”

Robert clears his throat “So you aren’t going to kill us?”

The prince smirks “You people are far too intriguing to kill.”

“So that’s a no?” Robert asks.

The prince laughs “Well I can definitely see you people aren’t from around here.”

“How so?” David asks.

“Well first thing, no one in the right mind would ever tell my father to screw you. You’re definitely something.”

Lisa laughs. The prince frees everyone, but before Lisa can walk off the prince stops her. “Wait a minute.” He says while gently grabbing her hand.

Lisa turns around. “Yeah?”

“Will I ever see you again?” He asks.

Lisa smirks “Aren’t you getting married?”

The prince sighs “I’m arranged to, yes....”

Lisa shrugs “Probably not.”

Lisa walks off, following her friends across the bridge. The prince stands there just watching in awe. Later that day Lisa and her friends huddle by a fire.

“How are we going to get out of here!” Robert yells.

Lisa turns to David. “Before this all happened you were reading that story. Do you remember what the story said?”

David shrugs “Yeah it was about an evil King planning to kill the succeeding prince and have the oldest Prince takeover, and the only way to get freedom was to stop the king.”

“That’s it!” Lisa exclaims “I think we’re in that story, and the only way for us to get out and reclaim our freedom and normal life back is to stop the King.”

“That’s crazy,” Chris says.

“Do you have a better idea?” Lisa asks.

No one responds.

“That’s it. That’s what we have to do. I think...” Lisa stammers.

“What if that doesn’t work?” David asks.

Lisa sighs “We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.”

Later that day they try to sneak into the castle. One of the guards caught them and was just about to kill them when Prince Havier saw them. He ordered the guards to stop. When he saw Lisa and her friends, he was happy to see them again but confused. Lisa explains what Havier’s father had in plan for him. Havier doesn’t believe her. “My father may be horrible, but he would never kill either Baron or I.” Havier argues. Lisa tries to convince him, but he’s not falling for it. Furious with the accusation, Havier orders the guards to take them back outside. “Don’t ever show up here again, or accuse my father of such atrocities, or next time I’ll let the guards kill you.” He yells and storms off. Little did Havier know, the King overheard Havier order the guards to take them outside. Behind Havier’s back, the King tells the guards to throw Lisa and her friends into the dungeon, where he planned to kill them. Later that night the King and his two sons were having dinner. Though Prince Havier couldn’t even eat. He kept thinking about Lisa’s warning. Could she have possibly been telling the truth?” Prince Havier shakes his head with doubt “No, how could she know. She’s just insane and delusional”. He thought. “What’s wrong, Havier? You barely touched your plate.” The king asks.

Havier sighs “It’s nothing, I just don’t feel like eating.”

“Very well how about some wine?” The king suggests.

“Sure” Havier replies.

The servant serves their drinks, and they all take sips of their wine. All except Havier. He’s hesitant about drinking. Baron leaves to check the stables, and The King leaves to use the bathroom. Havier sits there. He doesn’t know what to think. Then he hatches an idea. He switches his wine glass with his father. Havier knew what Lisa told him was untrue, but he had to do this, to prove himself it’s all in his head. The king returns and sits back down at the table. Havier watches as the king takes a sip of his wine. He waits a few seconds, nothing happens. Havier rolls his eyes feeling like a fool. Then suddenly the King starts choking. Havier gets up, appalled. The king is gasping for air “Help me…” Havier feels betrayed and hurt. He wanted to help his father, but the bigger part of him wanted revenge. So Havier just stood there, watching the King choke and struggle to breathe, until finally, he passed out dead on the floor. Havier was furious. He leaves the dining room when he hears banging coming from the downstairs cellar area. Curious, he walks down when he sees Lisa and her friends trapped behind bars. “What are you guys doing down here?” He asks.

“Your lovely guards put us down here,” Robert yells.

Havier sighs. “I’m so sorry. I had no idea.” He frees them and apologies to Lisa. “You were right. I just can’t fathom my father would do something like this.”

Lisa frowns, and rests her hand on his back “I know it’s hard, but you did a good thing. Not just for you, but for this kingdom.”

Havier smiles back. Chris, David, and Robert roll their eyes. “Great.” Chris says. “We stopped the King, shouldn’t we be back in Fort Lee New Jersey?” Lisa ponders for a moment. “I thought for sure it would work.” They all groan. Havier remembers something and smirks.

“I thought for sure you were all crazy, but there’s no way you could have found out about my father's plan…” He thinks. Then Havier finally breaks the silence “I think I might have an idea how to get you back home.” Lisa and everyone jumps for joy. “How!?” Robert exclaims. Havier smiles “Follow me” Everyone follows Havier to a huge room with shelves and shelves of books. He gets one particular book and brings it over. “This book just appears randomly on my bed. It wasn’t mine. I asked my father and Baron, but they denied it being there’s too.” Lisa eagerly flips open the pages, and gasps in shock. The whole book is about Fort Lee, New Jersey. She skims through the pages. “I can’t believe it, this book is about us!” “No way!” Chris says while grabbing the book and looking through it. He stands there in shock. David sighs “After everything that’s happened, nothing surprises me anymore.” “How does this help us go back?” Havier shrugs “I don’t know after hearing your story, I was just reminded of this book. Maybe there are some clues on how to get back.” Everyone groans, knowing it’s not over yet. “Wait,” Lisa says and takes the book. “Last time when we read the story we were transported here. Let’s try doing the same thing with this book and hopefully it will do the same”. Everyone nods. Lisa begins reading the book. “There once was a platform called Vocal in New Jersey where the Curation team judged writers from around the world, the best story getting a prize...” Suddenly the room starts to spin, and everything goes black. Everyone wakes up at their desks back in New Jersey. Lisa exclaims “It worked!” Chris, Robert, David, and Nicole are all back at their desks too. They all smile, not sure how to explain what just happened. They all talk, discussing everything they experienced. Lisa sighs “I can’t read one more book.” They all laugh, despite feeling drained and exhausted. Then suddenly the head boss, Anthony plops down a story in front of Lisa. “Here are the top stories. You guys narrow it down and get back to me tomorrow. He leaves the room. Everyone looks at each other, their mouths dropped. “Welcome back everybody,” Lisa says, while taking the story and reading it.