Solifan the wizard and Aldor stood on the beach of a lake in the middle of the forests of Dimkarat and watched the 'Shooting Star' sail away. The setting sun was drawing long shadows over the smooth surface. Captain Jokham gave them a last wave, then thousands of runes on the hull flared up, and the boat was swallowed by the waters.

"How will we get back?" Solifan shouldered his backpack.

Aldor was studying a map and searching the view over the lake for landmarks.

"The long way, I'm afraid." He folded the map and looked at Solifan expectantly. "I know where we are and how to get home; now you just have to find your cat."

"Let us look for a place to stay for the night." Solifan gave the lake a disapproving look. "I have had enough water for today."

Half an hour later they had spread their bedrolls in a moderately dry cave, and Aldor was making a small pile of firewood in front of the entrance.

"It's not dry enough." He took a step back, and Solifan lifted a hand towards the pile. His eyes began to glow, and within seconds the logs started to fizz and steam until only dry, cracked wood remained.

"Oh how I missed that." Aldor sighed. "SO convenient." He stacked some branches and logs and produced a metal kettle from his backpack. Solifan's eyes flared for a second, and the branches began to burn.

"I will now try to find Ból." Solifan sat down at the fire and closed his eyes.

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

"Oh," the emperor of the galaxy said, "what happened to that monkey world?"

"Our agents infiltrated them some eight thousand years ago."

"Have they taken over the world?"

"Not yet."

The emperor licked a paw and started washing his ears.

"I'll still count it as one of mine," he purred.

#MicroFiction #TootFic #SmallStories

The sun was slowly climbing over the horizon, bathing everything in warm, morning light. Flocks of docile clouds dotted the sky, a welcome contrast to the angry storms of the last week. All-in-all a perfect start for a haircut day.

With a cup of steaming hot wakeup tea in hand, I went through my morning routine. Energy storage was full, thanks to the storms, and I diverted incoming power from the wind farm to Bearlington, they still had capacity. Two turbines with reduced efficiency and a couple of blades due for their checkups. I sent a message to the maintenance list. Solar output was way down, but we'd take care of that today.

I took a careful sip of tea and scrunched my face. This harvest had extra punch. The startup routine for the drone went through without issues and I loaded the shears and chainsaw before I took my seat, which made the load indicator turn yellow. Curse those cookies. Well, as they say: "fly yellow, it's mellow".

The trip up the mountainside to our solars went smooth and I saw that two drones had already landed. Sam and Juri were chatting and drinking tea when I joined them.

"Pretty early and pretty fast, this year." Sam said, as she drew work areas onto a map on her tablet and sent them to us. The mild and wet weather had made the forest spill into the clearing for the panels, and reclaim what was rightfully hers.

"Jup." Juri laughed and let his hydro shears clack. "Time for a haircut!"

#writing #hopepunk #solarpunk #microfiction #tootfic #smallstories

"Which do you think is hotter: Big Bang or Ninth Circle?" I hefted the bottles like a scale for weight.

"Are there Scovilles listed?" Bud asked.

"They just say 'Be Not Afraid' and 'Be Very Afraid,' respectively," I checked.

"What are you boys doing?" Eve came over.

"Comparing hot sauces," I said. "We already ruled out Hades."

Eve knelt and dug around the back of the bottom shelf. "You need Grandma's Favorite," she said.

"Pfft, like we'd even-" I started, but was interrupted by a horrible noise.

I slowly realized it was the sound of me and Bud screaming. Eve flipped the label around and I slapped my hand over my mouth as it stopped.

"Uh, where's that from?" Bud shakily asked.

Eve turned it around and we screamed again, but only for a second.

"It would have roughly corresponded with Kentucky at the time," Eve said.

"And the language on the bottle?" my mouth asked for me.

"Aramaic, but don't trust it; it's been through a few translations."

#TootFic #SmallStories #MicroFiction #HotSauce #Eldritch

The 'Shooting Star' had left the harbor and was making her way onto the open sea. Rough waves slapped the hull with an inconsistent rhythm and made for a rocky ride. Solifan the wizard kept to the back of the ship and concentrated on a particularly interesting plank between his feet, while Aldor had joined captain Jokham at the wheel.

"We need to get a little distance between us and prying eyes." Jokham said, occasionally looking back at the village on the coast. When the buildings were a mere speck on the horizon she softly caressed the hub of the wheel and spoke to her ship in the language of the sea.

The runes all over the wood started to shine and everything fell. At least Solifan was sure that everything was falling, just not where. Maybe up?

The world changed. The land and the sky had vanished. There was still an endless ocean, only this one did not know its place. It twisted and turned, flowing upwards and sideways, ripping apart and smashing together to form walls of water and vicious maelstroms.

Captain Jokham stood at the wheel, laughing and singing while the 'Shooting Star' plowed her way through the chaos.

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

The #MastoPrompt for Tuesday 10 February 2026 is:

#gloat

The poem or story can include the prompt word or be about the prompt word.

@ me, if you like, or just include the #MastoPrompt tag (to allow people to follow or filter their feeds), or keep your work to yourself - all the options are good as long as you're writing.

If you're including an image please do include alt-text if you’re able to.

#Writing #SmallPoems #Poetry #Fiction #MicroFiction #SmallStories

A cry of anger and anguish swept over the cubicles and made many a head pop up and look around; like meerkats looking for danger.

The noise, coming from one of one of the few non-cubicle offices, subsided, presumably to let the producer draw some air, and was replaced by a different scream.

"STEEEEEEEEEEVE!"

I sipped my coffee and marveled at the screamability of my name, then I made my way to the office with a quick detour to the coffee machine.

I knocked on the flimsy door and entered without waiting.

"Hey Ronald, what's up?"

"There's ADS in our software!" Ronald pointed at an email on his screen showing a photo of our main screen with an ad for an exotic spa.

"Oh, Copilot must've put that in there; I forwarded you the new terms of service, they now do ads, too."

"Didn't you CHECK the code?" A little bit of spittle landed on Ronald's screen. I took another sip of coffee.

"Claude checked, said the code was fine."

I think Ronald needs to see someone for his blood pressure, a vein on his temple was undulating under the skin.

"DID. YOU. NOT. CHECK?"

I sighed.

"AI use is mandatory, remember? Also: we are not allowed to change Copilot's code anymore. It's in the new terms of..."

Ronald interrupted me with another guttural scream and more spittle.

My coffee was getting cold anyway.

#microfiction #aislop #enshittification #writing #smallstories #tootfic

"Sure," said the rocket scientist, "we can send rockets to the moon."

"We can build a city there," said the engineer. "It'll be expensive, but we can do it."

"But why?" said the economist. "What would you mine there you can't get on Earth?"

"One thing," said the billionaire. "Respect."

#MicroFiction #TootFic #SmallStories

"Is this legal?" Solifan the wizard eyed the runes on the barge's hull warily.

"Does it matter?" Aldor grinned and climbed onto the deck of the boat. "I told you I'd get you to Dimkarat as fast as I could."

"I see some things have not changed, old friend." Solifan sighed and followed. The barge was small and looked rickety, with rough wood and patched sails. Parts of the railing were markedly newer than the rest of the boat, but everything was covered in runes. Solifan's eyes began to glow as he peered beyond the surface of this reality. He had expected to see power in the runes but had to concentrate to even see a dim outline of something.

"SO not legal." he murmured and got immediately shushed by Albor.

"We're here to make a friend." Albor whispered as he bowed down and knocked on the hatch leading under deck.

A few moments later the hatch flew open, and a freckled head with a wild, black mane and very skeptical eyes appeared. The eyes gave Solifan and Aldor a quick once-over and turned from skeptical to some kind of friendly. Like a friendly shark.

"Captain Jokham welcomes you aboard the 'Shooting Star'." The captain exclaimed as she climbed out of the hatch and hugged Aldor, then tried to do the same to Solifan, who took a step back.

"We need to get to Dimkarat." Solifan said.

"Aaaah, sure, maybe two weeks, if the winds are good." Captain Jokham started tallying on her fingers. "Food, water, a weather prophecy, then maybe a weather-soother, Schnaps..."

"Fast." Aldor interrupted, then started speaking in a language Solifan did not understand, a lot of soft words, rounded by the churning of water and steady winds but able to pierce the cacophony of a storm. Captain Jokham listened, startled, and then changed. Her smile grew genuine, her posture relaxed.

"Fast." she said. Not a promise, but a fact. Then she handed Aldor back his purse.

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

The #MastoPrompt for Monday 9 February 2026 is:

#trepanning

The poem or story can include the prompt word or be about the prompt word.

@ me, if you like, or just include the #MastoPrompt tag (to allow people to follow or filter their feeds), or keep your work to yourself - all the options are good as long as you're writing.

If you're including an image please do include alt-text if you’re able to.

#Writing #SmallPoems #Poetry #Fiction #MicroFiction #SmallStories

When I awoke, the notifications were already queuing up in my inbox, so frequent and annoying that they stood out even against the torrent of spam. 'Dynamic price adjustments' is what they called it. Since the Supreme™ Court had ruled all necessary¹ price adaptations legal without consumer consent, adjustments happened very frequently.

The last few weeks had been tough, but this would bankrupt me in 25 hours and 13 minutes. I checked if I could reduce my living space any further and auctioned off another foot. I'd have to sleep in a fetal position from now on. 47 hours and 5 minutes.

I tried to sell some ad space, more in the center of my field of vision, but my consumer score was too low; only low bids. I'd have to live with ads for bankruptcy lawyers and payday loans for the foreseeable future. 62 hours and 47 minutes.

Fuck it. I logged onto 'rent-a-brain'. The benchmark put me in performance category 'D'. Fuck. The interactive package would be nice, but that would pay less. Numbness crept into my limbs as the service started partitioning off my brain for the workloads and left just enough capacity to consume a feed of ever-changing dopamine-optimized micro-experiences.

I snapped back 8 hours and 16 minutes later with a massive headache. Sixteen minutes of warmup time, my ass. Fuckers. 112 hours and 33 minutes. If I stopped eating.

¹required to protect shareholder profits

#microfiction #tootfic #writing #smallstories

Genna, the enchantress, sat in the back room of her shop, working on a tricky piece of magic, when she heard a polite cough. Irritated, she eyed the drapes towards the front room.

"I'm closed for the day." She got up and made her way into the front room, finding it empty. She pulled on the door a couple of times, but it was locked, just as she had thought. As she sat down at her worktable again, the cough repeated. Genna's eyes began to glow as she slowly scanned the room. She put one hand on the ornate dagger on her belt. Burglars usually don't cough politely, but there's a first for everything. Then her eyes fell on the tree in front of her window. Trees also usually don't cough, but they usually don't have faces either.

Sorry to disturb you, but I can't find the wizard. The words were tinged with a tiny bit of panic.

"You stole his cat." Genna leaned out of her window to get a better look at the tree. "So you're the replacement for my charms?"

Through the veil of reality, Genna could see the spirit in the tree, giving it a golden glow. The spirit's crown extended far beyond the young tree's canopy, covering the whole street in translucent, shining branches.

Oh, sorry, I am Ból, and I didn't steal Píp; we were supposed to be back by dinner. A little more panic this time. But she's... a cat.

"You can tell him when he finds you he went to Dimkarat to look for the both of you." The glow in Genna's eyes deepened, and her gaze wandered up the tree.

He's coming here? That'll take weeks! A moderate amount of panic.

"I think they'll be there sooner."

Ból sighed. I hope so. I've got to go. Fickle catsitter.

"Catsitter? I thought you lost her?" Genna asked, but the tree was just a tree again.

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

The #MastoPrompt for Sunday 8 February 2026 is:

#surreptitious

The poem or story can include the prompt word or be about the prompt word.

@ me, if you like, or just include the #MastoPrompt tag (to allow people to follow or filter their feeds), or keep your work to yourself - all the options are good as long as you're writing.

If you're including an image please do include alt-text if you’re able to.

#Writing #SmallPoems #Poetry #Fiction #MicroFiction #SmallStories

"Litter Winter/Spring 2026 affirms the power of collective visioning, imaginative responses, and design with the more-than-human world to confront harm and build conditions for life to thrive." (Jessie Croteau, Editor).
https://community.ecodesigncollective.org/litter-winter-spring-2026/

#SolarPunkSunday #EcologicalDesign #SolarPunk #EcologicalDesignCollective #EDC #Ecology #Pollution #SmallStories

The alien ambassador sidled through the museum in awe.

"You Humans have so much art! Do you have machines to make all paintings, poems, stories and songs?"

"We experimented with that, briefly," the guide said. "But humans are both cheaper and more creative. And, well, we will make art regardless."

#MicroFiction #TootFic #SmallStories

The #MastoPrompt for Saturday 7 February 2026 is:

#mendacious

The poem or story can include the prompt word or be about the prompt word.

@ me, if you like, or just include the #MastoPrompt tag (to allow people to follow or filter their feeds), or keep your work to yourself - all the options are good as long as you're writing.

If you're including an image please do include alt-text if you’re able to.

#Writing #SmallPoems #Poetry #Fiction #MicroFiction #SmallStories

Píp, the spirit cat, watched the river trout from a large stone, standing over her sleeping body. Between the solid, shimmering fish swam some glowing, translucent ones, looking suspiciously similar to herself. Ból, the tree spirit, towered over the scene and watched with curiosity.

«Spirit trout?» Píp whispered, surprised.

Trout spirits. Ból answered. The essence of uncountable individuals performing their rituals of life and death. The words brought memories of schools of tiny fish hiding between waterlogged roots.

Píp carefully touched the river surface with a glowing paw, which passed right through the surface without disturbing it.

«So I can catch one now?» She fixed her gaze on a particularly juicy spirit, crouched, and began to wiggle her butt.

Yes. The word evoked emotions of gratitude and a final farewell, which startled Píp, who had already half-launched herself off the stone, and made her miss her mark.

Both the spirit and the real trout scattered. The real ones: up and down the river; the spirit ones: in all directions. Ancient instincts took over, and Píp dashed after her prey into the forest.

Pįp! Ból's branches reached for her as they began to follow, but their attention was caught by the tiny, sleeping cat in the middle of the stone, Píp's body, and in an instant her spirit was gone.

Manure. Ból stood over the body and sent their roots far and wide, finding nothing.

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

Píp the cat lay on a large, sunlit stone by a river, deep in the forests of Dimkarat. Another, translucent and glowing, Píp the cat stood on the same large, sunlit stone and looked at herself in disbelief.

«This is so weird.» She rounded herself a couple of times. «Am I... dead?» She bowed down and listened to her body breathing. «Apparently not.»

Ból, the tree spirit, flowed out of the young tree next to the stone: a nexus of amber light with enormous roots, sinking into the mossy ground, and gigantic branches full of leaves, stretching far over the sunlit canopy of the forest.

«This is even weirder.» Píp stared at him with big eyes.

It is? Ból laughed, and colorful streaks swirled through the nexus and up its branches.

Píp looked back at her sleeping body. «Do you have a body somewhere?»

Not for a long time. The words carried fond remembrance and memories of a tree on the side of a mountain, from a fragile, small seedling to an ancient, tired giant.

«Can I go back?» Píp carefully booped herself on the nose and jumped in surprise. «I FELT THAT!»

It is still very much you, and you can go back any time. Ból flowed onto the stone, cradling the body in fine roots. You must care for yourself.

Píp nodded.

Now, remember how you promised to listen? A gnarled face appeared in the nexus and looked directly at Píp.

«Yeah?» Her ears focused on the face.

For now, do not go alone. There were more memories in these words of getting lost in an alien world without direction and light, without a place to bury your roots and drink the sun.

«Ok, I'll stay at your side.» Píp shivered. «Now, about those trout.»

#writing #microfiction #smallstories #tootfic #fantasy

The #MastoPrompt for Friday 6 February 2026 is:

#quiet

The poem or story can include the prompt word or be about the prompt word.

@ me, if you like, or just include the #MastoPrompt tag (to allow people to follow or filter their feeds), or keep your work to yourself - all the options are good as long as you're writing.

If you're including an image please do include alt-text if you’re able to.

#Writing #SmallPoems #Poetry #Fiction #MicroFiction #SmallStories

A gravelly voice spoke from under the mayor's bed.

"I hear you need a monster hunter."

The mayor sat up.

"What? Who?"

"I'm a monster. I hunt. What do you need hunted?"

"Beklo the Ogre, but..."

"I'll bring you its head."

"How..."

"I am a monster under the bed. If it sleeps, I can find it."

#MicroFiction #TootFic #SmallStories