Traveling Thoughts

I begin my quest for a digital camera while surfing for opportunities at the local bloggers guild. It is here that a poster reads, “Wanted. Blogger. No Experience necessary. Write us a tale, the crazier the better. Reward of HP Digital Photography Gear to the successful applicant.” There’s actually to be 5 successful applicants and the battle began immediately.

I had to fight other vicious bloggers who were quick with their mouse just to get my hands on an application before the real journey could begin; I didn’t want to be left standing on the sidelines. The applications had a different route for each of us to take. The route we took was the route our imaginations wove (hence why each was different).

As I take the application I’m immediately and magically ported to a cave in a rocky outcropping. As I peer outside I see that I’m stuck in the cave until the blizzard passes. “Phew” I sigh. “I was lucky I landed in a cave and not outside.” I’m talking to no one, but in the event anyone’s around I’m talking to anyone who will listen. A few hours pass and the blizzard subsides. I poke me head out of the cave and look up to the sky and am immediately covered in an avalanche of words. I quickly back into the cave. I shake my head to clear it and wait for the rumbling to stop and then I start digging through the words. I take the ones that I think will weave creativity and soon enough my head pops up out of the snow. I finish digging myself out, stand on the rock that was previously the cave I was in. I look around to make sure it’s safe and decide that I can now continue on my quest.

I climb up the mountain and as I gain altitude I can see a road etched out of the icy snow banks. Soon enough the snow is completely gone and the icy road has become a road that winds through a very beautiful forest with trees so high you can’t see the sky. After some time wandering aimlessly through the woods I get stuck in a web of confusion. Everything has gone hazy and I don’t know which way I’m going. The ideas get stuck and won’t come to me. As I’m struggling to find something that will help me on my quest a spider comes out of no where.

I begin to shake “whaaaaaaattt dooooo yooooouuu waaaaant wiiiiith meeeee?” The spider stares, comes closer and begins to clip the lines that I got caught in. “You will travel far to get what you’re looking for, in the end, you’re looking for an Ogre named Ted. Your destiny is held by his decision. Whether you’re successful or not fully depends on him. Your journey won’t be done tonight because you don’t know when or where you’ll meet him, you can only speculate.” With that I’m cut free and the haze begins to clear and everything in my head begins flowing as it should. I’ve overcome another small obstacle and feel as though I’m closer to the end, despite what the spider told me. I forge ahead and am soon coming down the other side of the mountain.

I get as far down the mountain as I can before there’s no other way than a quick drop and a sudden stop. Not wanting to go down a completely vertical cliff, I walk on the edge for a while. Eventually, I stumble (quite literally stumble) across an opening that heads down into the mountain. Unfortunately for me it’s dark and short. I’m forced to my knees to crawl along. The ground is slimy, it’s quite disgusting. I crawl along for sometime. After a while it starts to get warm. After some more time, I’m able to stand up and walk. The tunnel goes from dark to bright, very bright and hot. When I get to where I can see what’s causing the brightness, I’m staring at a pit of lava. There’s an opening across the pit that seems to go to the outside (at least, as far as I can see). Unfortunately for me the ledge doesn’t go around the pit. It goes in either direction about half way around. There is however a rock floating across the pit. I jump on to it and just as soon as my foot hits the stone a huge flaming fire breathing creature pops his head out of the lava pit. I’ve got nothing to battle him with except the icicles hanging off of me from when I was on the mountain, and they’re not all that big anymore. I rip off the icicles from my elbows, aim at his eyes and throw them. As soon as they get near his eyes they melt but it was enough to extinguish the flame of his eyes. He can’t see me and now he’s wondering around aimlessly, howling, rubbing the pits where his eyes were, trying to reignite them. The stone moves slowly across the pit, not nearly fast enough, moment after moment I have to watch for the ledge of the other side as it gets closer while avoiding the swinging arms of the creature. Finally I get close enough to the ledge that I jump for it. Just as I do the creature grabs at the spot where a moment before I was standing. I almost lost my chance to see the ogre. There’s a sign just outside the cave and if I squint at it I can see that it reads “Ogre this way” and there’s an arrow that points the direction. I run as fast as I can for the outside. When I get outside I sit on a rock and rest a moment.

I fear what’s going to happen next, first an avalanche, then a giant spider, a fiery creature, what can I possibly come up against next? I look in the direction of the sign and notice that I have to cross a bridge before entering the mound in which I’m assuming The Ogre lives.. Immediately my thoughts turn to a troll. Everyone knows that trolls live under bridges. I’ve got no choice but to move forward, I can’t go back to whence I came from because I don’t have magic to get me back to the guild. I’ve got no choice but to go find Ted the Ogre. My trek across the bridge was uneventful thankfully. On the other side is a mound with a stone structure in front of it and in front of that is an Ogre, Ted the Ogre. “That’s got to be his place, a mound, ogres live in mounds, and it’s near the mountain with the lava, they like heat. It’s got to be Ted’s home and that must be Ted standing in front of it.”

I cautiously approach Ted, not knowing how he’s going to react to a mere human showing up on his territory. I hear the thundering of his voice “What fair maiden has stumbled upon my home?” I approach the Ogre. “It’s me Ted, Blogger Court. I’m here on the quest for a digital camera, I was told that my fate resides in your opinion.” He takes me into his home. Sits me on the table and asks to hear my story…

After I tell him all about my journey to come see him, he asks me “And why, Blogger Court, do you want a new HP camera and printer?”

Well Ted, it’s simple. I’d like to be able photograph my journey’s without having to worry about if I can or can’t take the family digital camera while I’m out on my adventures. Currently I have to war with the King and Queen to see who get’s the camera while they’re out riding the countryside. I’d like to be able to leave the house with my own camera and use it in whatever manner I please.

Check back soon to see the fate of Blogger Court and whether or not Ogre Ted decapitates and eats her or gives her the digital camera and sends her back to the guild.

—————–
Read the final chapter in Blogger Court’s Quest for a Digital Camera: Blogger Court’s Fate Is Held By Ogre Ted’s Decision
—————–

This story is brought to you by HP.