What if the World Ends?

Happy Whimsical Wednesday! Now that I'm into a more regular schedule, I'm also getting back into the rhythm of writing. Ever since I set the goal to write more back in January I've been joining writing groups and taking advantage of writing prompts. This past weekend I got on a roll with one of them.

"What if the world ends?"

"Then we build it up again."

Here's a little excerpt:

"What if the world ends?"

"Then we build it up again."

Her response should have been reassuring, but as I looked into her steely grey eyes, the words were chilling, not comforting. Carmen's rise to the top of the Enterprise was legendary. I should have been honored, but I was unexpectedly terrified.

How did she get to the top? One look at her was all you needed: Beauty. Carmen Galla was known for her signature look: sleek black boots and mini-dresses that showed off her perfect figure. She pulled her long dark hair into a high ponytail so tight that some people swore it ironed out any wrinkle that may have existed on her face. But everyone knew it was what she sold that made her wealthy. The Galla Cosmetic Line sounded too good to be true. Her claim that the Youth Serum could erase any signs of aging from your entire being had the men in power - and yes, before Carmen they were all men - laughing at her. But when the former Maestro, Peter Bennigan, went missing, Carmen took advantage of the hole left in leadership. Bennigan had led the charge against Carmen when she began to promote her wares. He called her everything from a snake oil salesman to a whiny brat who needed a husband to shut her up. Carmen's allies slowly started to unite against Peter under the banner that you should never underestimate the power of a woman with purpose. When Carmen made her first billion dollars in sales, a Storyteller asked her about Bennigan's disappearance. Her response energized her followers but sent a chill down my spine, "No one, not even a bully like Bennigan gets in the way of a woman with power." Just a few weeks later she was the undisputed Maestro of the Enterprise.

At the age of 84 ,Carmen looked like a 20-year old before the Fall of Concordia. Not a single grey hair, perfectly smooth skin and not a single ounce of fat on her toned body. She was proof that her Youth Serum worked, and her closely guarded top secret formula was flying off the shelves as women and men alike dumped pocketfuls of cash into staying young. Her power grew as her sales did; she had little to do with little people and little ideas, so finding myself sitting across from her with only a heavy ivory desk between us was both daunting and unexpected.

The First question I asked her after requisite pleasantries was, "Why me?"

She was direct in her response, "You're one of only twelve in the whole of Concordia who isn't buying the Serum."

One in twelve out of 125,000. She wasn't making money off of me.

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Interested in hearing more? Catch me next Wednesday!