As I finished Bounding Ramps, my attention turned to the next story in the pipeline for March. And this month, the second genre is one of my absolute favorites, a fantasy. This is a wonderfully rich genre with many sub-genres to explore. With a gleam in my eye, I navigated to NYC Midnight’s competition page for 2019 and searched for a fantasy prompt. My random search fell on the line telling me to write this tale in a barbershop with a bongo drum making an appearance. The instant I absorbed the prompt, my mind latched upon Darren Gilbert, and I shoved him into the story.
With the beginnings of the story in place, I focused on everything else. With each passing moment, the story started to come into focus, until it clicked, and the bare bones of the tale crystalized. After the events of Act of Heroism, another Patreon story featuring this mage, Darren wanders into his barber’s shop, and the two discuss the circulating new when their day gets turned upside down. Come delve into the second tale of Darren Gilbert and enjoy the story.
When Darren is getting a haircut, his barber asks what Darren thinks about the new crackdown on rogue wizards…
The bell attached to the door chimed as Darren entered the shop. He stopped in the middle of the entrance and glared at the man at the far end of the barbershop. “Neil, why do you let Geoffrey bang away on those bongos?”
“I enjoy it,” Neil replied, climbing out of a chair. “Geoffrey, stop serenading us and take a break.”
“Fine,” Geoffrey grumbled as he collected the money from his hat and shoved the wad into his pocket. He placed his small drum set on a table, saying, “Lunch sounds good.”
Darren stepped out of the doorway and allowed Geoffrey to leave.
“You could learn to live with his drumming,” Neil said, waiving Darren into an open chair.
“I’m not a fan of the noise pounding inside my skull,” Darren replied, plopping down into the proffered seat. “I prefer soothing music, not a wild percussion going off at random intervals.”
.
.
.
To continue reading, click here page and become a patron, $2 a month will give you access to this and other flash fiction stories. If you enjoyed Darren’s tale, delve into his origins with Darren Gilbert: Journeys on Wattpad.