Waking World

Amelia lived a peaceful life in an ancient village of immortals who called their bodies "Vessels". Vessels never got sick or hurt. They experienced mild hunger satiated by the food grown in the village. Anything they wanted they could create with a power called "Source". When the population of the village started to become more than they could feed, elders would be called to the river and they would take the river to cross the boundary, but it was always voluntary. Until the Vessels started to Empty.

First it was her mother. Then her father. Then a neighbor. Each month a vessel Emptied and was sent down the river to cross the boundary. Almost two years after her mother Emptied, her partner began to Empty. He told her of a way to save him. Go into the woods, cross the Boundary, and find source of Source. To save her life partner, she will fight her way through the woods to the boundary, and then she will break the law of the vessels and go beyond the the boundary without being called.

This story won second in the June 2022 Royal Road community magazine contest. This story is a Royal Road Exclusive short story. It is not posted on any other sites. If you are reading it elsewhere, you can read it for free on Royal Road.