A quick pause to glance in the Travel Agent’s window.
“Ruins, always ruins,” his wife’s voice echoed in his head. “What’s wrong with a beach or a living city where I can shop? No, we visit ruins.”
She always said it with a smile and a laugh so he never took it as seriously as he now knew he should have.
A shriek caused him to sprint and take cover.
The Travel Agent’s window was blown out and the building set on fire.
“I didn’t take her to the ruins,” he thinks, “this time the ruins came to visit us.”
***
word count = 100
Friday Fictioneers is hosted by Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. This week’s prompt is here and uses a photo by @ Rochelle Wisoff-Fields. If you want to join or see other stories, go to the inlinkz linkup.
Note – I love visiting ruins when I travel, but I hate the creation of new ruins! Shelling and bombing living cities is a grave crime against humanity…
Trent's World (the Blog) 
Oh my goodness! In this mad world the beach would have been mined and littered with cluster bombs. she didn’t stand a chance.
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If her city is being bombed, yeah, the beach would not be safe!
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A story of our times, sadly. I wonder if there’ll be many natural beauty spots and interesting shopping places left to visit before too much longer.
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I was definitely thinking of today’s world and current events. We (humans) don’t seem to be the best stewards of the planet, not even of the things of beauty we create ourselves…
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If you can’t go to the ruins, wait. Eventually, they’ll come to you.
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They will eventually, but usually you like to wait a millennia or two first, not have them find you overnight…
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Dear Trent,
I personally like old ruins AND beaches. All in the same vacation. However no explosions, please. Nicely done.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I agree – beaches, important cities, ancient ruins, and no bombing, shelling or other types of explosions!
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Well done. I love visiting old ruins but definitely don’t want to be there for the making of new ones!
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Thanks. There is something about walking where the ancients walked and trying to imagine their world, which is quite different form walking on broken glass and pulverized concrete and trying to imagine tomorrow!
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So true!
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Oy vey! Ancient ruins are one thing. The fresh ones, while you feet tread glass and broken shards, are another.
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I love ruins! But this is sad…(also pertinent).
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Ancient ruins are great, but creating new ones… Thanks.
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Well, that’s that. From now on, the beach it is. Well done, Trent.
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If they get out of this one, he’ll take to Honolulu and let her have a choice between beach and shopping… Thanks.
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Am I wrong for laughing? She has a good point, but I think she went a little overboard this time.
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She did have a point, but.. It is odd, and I may have to do a an edit, but about half of the people seem to take the story this way (he or she destroys the place that sent them to all of the ruins) and the other half got what I meant – his city is being shelled, turned to rubble (ruins). He pauses for a second, thinks about old times, and then runs as another shell destroys the building he was looking at.
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Oh wow, Trent, thanks for the clarification.
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One of those odd things that if I had 5 more words nobody would miss my intention, but without those 5 words almost half the people who left comments did… Oh well, one of the reasons we do these 100 word stories!
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Ouch, I hope the shriek wasn’t her!
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Nope, not her. In all of the movies, incoming artillery shells make a loud shriek as they are about to hit…
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Yikes! Why blow up travel agents, all you did is kill a lot of liars and theifs after all. Good story, Trent.
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Don’t think anyone was spared in this hit… Thanks.
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No it seems not.
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There is a market for war tourism, I’m sure
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I’m sure there is. You can count me out of it – I’d rather see the ancient ruins than the brand new ones!
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You’re right, fascinating to visit ruins and historical sites, not so fun to see new ones being created through war and devastation.
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I think it is those old, historical ruins that are so fascinating… Every day I cringe as I open the news to see all of those new ruins.
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My mom’s favorite joke about my parents’ trip to Europe is “I’ve been ruined!”
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My wife’s jokes aren’t quite as good, but she does make fun of my ruins obsession…
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Well there’s a turn around Trent 💜
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Yep….
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