Writing Challenge Winner: Painting the Stars by K. Ann

K. Ann is an eighteen-year old writer who completed the 2024 Hero’s Journey Writing Challenge in which she wrote a 5,000 word original short story.

Author Bio:

As the daughter of a Marine, K.Ann grew up in a world near yet strange, her experiences influencing her writing. Going from writing almost every genre to narrowing it down to one specific niche, she writes young adult contemporary and historical fantasy with hints of dystopian. When she’s not writing, you can find her touring her favorite fantasy worlds and her local libraries.

You can connect with her by signing up to her email list https://kannwriter.myflodesk.com/z8s2ldayio, as well as on Pinterest as @kannwriter and Havok Publishing, where she works on the operations team.

Read K. Ann’s original short story, Painting the Stars, below!

I tighten my hoodie, hunching against the sheets of rain pounding my back. My glasses fog for a second, and the auto cleaner function kicks in, clearing the fog as if it had never been there. Good thing I saved and splurged on them. I can see again.

I stare at the gray sidewalk. There was a time when there was color, when there was more than only shades of gray. A time before the Rift.

Not that I remember it. There’s been no color for decades.

I have no idea why, honestly. Why anything with color is illegal. But that’s the North American sector for you. There’s rumors that the South American sector has color, but that’s just it: a rumor. With the borders surrounded by a border of solid darkness, there’s no getting in or out.

I don’t meet anyone’s eyes. I’m pretty sure thinking such treacherous thoughts is illegal.

And there are people who can get access to mind reading devices—if they pay enough.

I just need to be inconspicuous.

My sneakers splash in a deep puddle, and I groan. Water seeps through, and my socks squelch as I take another step. They’re sopping. If only I wasn’t a broke runaway orphan, maybe I could afford hovershoes. But no, all I can get are regular, pre-historic sneakers.

My feet squish as I trudge up the stairs to my apartment. I place my thumb on the doorknob, and the door illuminates for the briefest of seconds. It opens, and I am met with a sparse, drab room. This building used to be a really nice hotel—at least, it was before the Rift. Now, it is one of thousands of apartments rented cheaply since it has none of the amenities the

rich folk have. Like a stove that cooks for you and seasons the food exactly to your taste if you code it to your DNA. That sort of thing.

I close the door behind me and hurry into my bedroom. All I want to do is collapse on my little cot in the corner of the room. But first, I hurry to my closet, yanking out a dry hoodie. One of those automatic drying machines sure would be nice on days like today.

But alas.

After I pull on the hoodie, I rifle through the back of my closet, glancing behind me, praying nobody can see through the walls with the latest x-ray vision goggles. Shoving aside piles of laundry that I’m saving my decis to wash, I unearth a lockbox.

Historically speaking, it’s a safe. But today, safes are locked and unlocked using DNA, not spin dials. So I call it a lockbox.

It’s so ancient that, if authorities ever knock on my door, they won’t be able to unlock it. Or so I hope. I have no clue what technology official investigators have, anyway. Or if they’d be able to use a software to discover the code.

I unlock it—459—and pull out my most prized possessions.

A set of paint and a sketchpad.

The curtains are drawn, and my door is bolted. I’m safe. Or as safe as you can be when you participate in illegal activities in the North American sector.

I sit on the linoleum floor and open the sketchbook to a new page. I’m never quite sure what I’m going to paint until I start, especially since I have never seen anything with color. It’s amazing, really, that pure paint survived the Rift untainted and lasted so many decades.

I wet my brush and select a dusty rose color. I’ve never seen the color of a rose, but it is the color I imagine they are—a pink that seems slightly darker than a normal pink, which is several shades lighter than this current paint. I brush it along the whole canvas.

I then choose a deep eggplant color—it’s probably lighter than a normal eggplant, but it’s the closest I have to what I imagine an eggplant looks like—and mix it with the pink in large strokes.

I choose color after color, and it doesn’t take long to realize I’ve painted something I’ve never seen before except in gray shades—and in my dreams.

A breathtaking sunset.

***

I scan the bag of chips someone has set in front of me, not meeting their eyes. “12 hectos.” They place their hand on the sensor, using the chip implanted there to make their payment. I place the chips in a bag and hand it to them, never once looking at them.

I’m a cashier at the Econautic Fuel station (which sells economically friendly fuel made from completely water).

I only made about 15 hectos an hour, but working ten-hour days at least pays for my apartment and a few packets of ramen, even leaving me a little extra.

Extra for the White Market.

Another person waits behind the one I just checked out. I scan his items, and he pays in real coin.

“Here’s your four centis change.” I place the coins in his hands. “Have a nice day.” “Thank you…” his voice trails off, and I glance up, wondering what he’s staring at. He’s reading my name badge. “Marita.”

“It’s just Rita.” My eyes drop once more to scrutinize the dusty counter. Why did I just say that? I never say anything to anyone beside social niceties.

“Rita, you want color, don’t you?” His voice drops to a conspiratorial whisper.

I drop the hectos he gave me, and they clatter against the register. “Are you insane?” I hiss, my eyes frantically looking at the security bots that can transcribe lip movements.

He raises an eyebrow and taps his glasses. My jaw drops.

He has a mind reading device.

And I just met his eyes.

He’s going to turn me in for the reward of 312 kilos.

That’s ten years of wages right there.

I swallow a little and take a step back, bumping into the mini fridge behind me that holds grown-up drinks. It clatters, the display on top falling to the ground with a loud crash. I scramble to pick it up, my heart racing as my fists clench involuntarily. I need to get out of here. I have to run. Hide. Perhaps move to a different region entirely.

I might even have find a smuggler willing to help me illegally leave the North American sector.

“Excuse me, mam…”

I look up, and a woman with a child on her hip holds out a couple bags of chips.

I smooth my face so that there are no worry lines showing and straighten. “I’m sorry for the delay.” I scan her items, she scans her hand over the sensor, and then I’m alone.

The man is no longer here. Only one thing is. A note.

It says, Meet me at the northern corner on the east side of the White Market at midnight.

***

I’m not sure what I’m expecting, exactly. On all accounts, it would probably be safer to book it and leave town. So why am I sticking around?

That note. It’s somewhat ominous, almost as if my doom is impending. And yet, here I wait, at the northern corner on the east side of the White Market, a little before midnight. The White Market opens at 1 am and closes at 3 am. And I’m here, skulking about before it opens.

Second, why is a man who knows how I long for color to be back in the world not turning me in for the reward?

Curse my curious mind.

I hunch over, blowing on my numb fingers to warm them up. I tug my hood up over my head and draw my hands into my sleeves, then stick them in my pockets.

The distant ding of the Mountain Region clock rings through the air. It’s midnight.

I peer into the darkness. Midnight in the North American sector is dreary, with no stars to paint the sky. I glance up at the eternal expanse, wishing I could see the Milky Way, the starry system I only read about in science books when I was in school.

I’m about ready to forget it and leave—both the White Market and the Mountain Region, potentially the North American sector altogether.

But something stops me.

A figure, darker than the rest of the darkness, approaches. I hesitantly take a step back, furtively glancing around me in hopes that someone—anyone—might be there. In hopes that someone will witness what is about to happen.

But nothing. The White Market won’t open for another hour.

The figure is fast approaching, and I can make out his face a little. It’s the man from the station, the one who accused me of wanting color then left a creepy note.

My breath comes so fast and so thick that it fogs my glasses, and the auto-cleaner function has to work double-time to clear it.

“Rita.” The man stops right in front of me. I don’t meet his eyes, but I take in his figure. He’s not super imposing—rather short for a man, about my height. His cheeks are speckled with freckles.

He lowers his hood, and I see his hair is a deep shade—not a gray, but not solid black either. And, not to mention, the fact that he is wearing mind-reading glasses—they sort of look like the mythological Harry Potter glasses.

I force a little smile and take a small step backward. I don’t lower my hood, but I do remove my hands from my pockets so I can fight if need be. “Who are you?”

He is quiet a moment. “My name is of little consequence.”

“I should think not. A name is important. It’s who you are as a person.” Then I clap my hand over my mouth. I can’t believe I just said that, especially not in a time where names are not important and your entire being is shoved into the 28 digit number listed in the chip in your hand. You don’t just go shouting out that names are important when, to the leaders of the North American sector, they’re not.

“Be that as it may.” He clears his throat and glances around again. “Time is short. I need to know where your allegiance lies.”

I stifle a gasp. “W-why, to President Volton, of course.” I salute as I say his name—just like any other citizen would.

He raises an eyebrow. “Really, Rita, I’d think you wouldn’t be such a liar.” “I-I…” I swallow down the lump of fear rising in my throat. “I’m no liar.” “Then why will you not meet my eyes?”

Why indeed?

He sighs. “I’ll be straight with you. You know of the Rift, right?”

Obviously. Everyone knows about how President Volton fifty-eight years ago realized how color influenced people’s minds and made them more susceptible to rebellion. And thus, he went on a journey to discover how to separate color from the world because, without color, there would be no rebellion, and thus less death.

I don’t buy that propaganda, but I give a nod. “We all learned it in grade school.”

He shakes his head. “A bunch of lies. Written by a bunch of liars.” He gives me a wry smile. “Like you.”

I jerk my head and death glare him. “Am not.”

“Are to.” He taps his glasses again, and I grow cold. I did it. Again. Let him read my thoughts.

“What do you want from me?” I whisper.

“That, Rita, is something only you can answer. How badly do you want color into the world?” I dare myself to meet his eyes again, and he reads the answer. “Just as I suspected.” His voice drops to a whisper, and he says, “Let me help you, and together, we will bring color back into the world.”

I give an almost imperceptible nod.

He smiles. “You can call me Orion. Like the hunter who crushes the scorpion.” Oh dear. What have I gotten myself into?

***

The plan is simple: infiltrate Obsidian Holdings, retrieve the famous paintings Starry Night and the Mona Lisa. Each member of the Phoenix Squad has been assigned specific paintings to find there.

The problem with the heist? Oh, the usual—Obsidian Holdings is the largest protection facility for art—mostly, they hold paintings. Other places—like Shadow Holdings or Twilight Holdings—protect the books.

Or, should I say, imprison.

I swallow a gulp as I shudder. Cloaked in darkness, this heist is doomed from the start. Even I know that. It’s not well thought out, for one. Because who plans 27 heists to steal 54 artifacts on the same night?

The dumbo ringleader Scorpius, that’s who. We all have code names and hide our identity, covering anything that might give access to our DNA. So, gloves, hair coverings, face obscurers, the works.

I’m called Sun now. Not Rita anymore. Protection of privacy, or so they say. But I don’t trust Orion to not share that if something better comes his way. I don’t trust him.

Come to think of it, I don’t trust anyone anymore, not since my parents were killed when I was three for secretly writing novels and circulating them to the entire sector.

They were dumbos for being rebels. And here I am, a rebel.

I’m a dumbo.

Sun, do you read? It’s a neurotransmitter installed in my inner ear. It reads my direct thoughts and transmits them back to Orion, who then sends it to Scorpius. And so on and so forth.

I really cannot manage my thoughts right now. Even though anyone could have a mind reading device, and I’m allowing myself to remain completely jumbled inside.

I read. I squint at the window below me—I’m standing on the roof of Obsidian Holdings. Or perhaps I should say I’m laying on the roof of Obsidian Holdings because that is what I’m actually doing. I’m watching the night guards doing their circulations and timing how much time is between them while Scorpius does his hacking thing to take down the cameras inside.

Then begin phase 2.

I roll my eyes and carefully raise the window. No alarms go off, so Scorpius must have pulled through. One advantage to having a master hacker during a heist.

Carefully, carefully I lower myself into the building, changing the settings on my borrowed hovershoes so that I change the surrounding gravity gradually.

One thing for sure about this rebel circle: I get nice gear, better than I ever got as a runaway orphan working at an Econautic Fuel Station.

I peer around, pulling my black hood over my head. I’m wearing a face obscurer, so that if I’m caught nobody will recognize me. Hopefully. Hackers are everywhere, and if someone has a mind reading device, all is lost.

I slowly step down the hall, making my way to one of the galleries.

This is the one. Stop here. The first one is hidden in here.

I approach the door and stop. DNA scanner.

I’ve already removed the sensor. Just go in.

I turn the doorknob and enter the room, glancing around me. I hear steps coming my way, and I quickly shut the door as the guards come into view. Hiding behind a large, ornate vase, I hold my breath as someone marches into the room, does a once-over, and leaves.

Breathing a sigh of relief, I step out of my position. I have seven minutes, more or less, to find the painting Scorpius wants and hide before they’re back.

Describe the painting. I scan the room, searching for something in this room. There is little color here, but there is some. And some means some hope. Hope that color can seep back into this room, this region, this sector. Starting with this painting.

There is a dark black tree-like image that is the focal point, but that is not the main part of the painting. Imagine swirls of glorious colors, with a bright gold sun in the shape of a moon.

A bright gold sun in the shape of a moon? What in the North American sector is that supposed to mean? But I don’t directly think those thoughts because I don’t want Orion to hear them and send them to Scorpius. Will I actually see glorious colors and a bright gold sun?

Perhaps. But perhaps not. Just look for something like what I described. Vague. Obscure observations. Sure I can. My eyes scan the room, searching for something. There are a lot of paintings with hints of color seeping from them, but they’re honestly not very pretty paintings. Probably confiscated from inexperienced painters.

Kinda brilliant, though, hiding a brilliant painting with not-brilliant paintings.

I start peaking behind the stands, looking for something. I’m still not really sure what I’m looking for, though.

And then I see it.

Something so vibrant it hurts my eyes.

I thought my paints were bright, but that is incomparable to this.

The swirls seem to engulf each other, dancing across the canvas over the little town and the tall dark structure.

And the sun! The bright gold sun that looks like a moon doesn’t even begin to describe the majesty. It looks like it is reflected in a water-borne sky with a ripple effect, blending seamlessly into the mystical background.

My hand reaches out to touch it. And that’s when I hear it.

“What are you doing here?”

I whirl around, and there is a guard there, holding a laser taser. “Just taking a little peek. I’ll just be going now.” My hands pick up the painting and hold it behind my back as I slowly inch to the side.

Sun, what is the status report?

Shut up! My mind hisses. I’ve been caught, doofus! I told you this plan was doomed from the start.

Sun, what happened?

I ignore the probing questions and continue my side step. “I just got lost. I’d best be leaving.”

The guard approaches. “You’re not going anywhere.” His eyes try to focus on my face, but he can’t see me well—his pupils go in and out of focus as he tries to see my features.

I grip the painting behind me. I can’t lose this breathtaking piece of art.

The guard shoots the laser, and I dodge it, the painting falling from my hands and skidding across the ground. I leap to my feet and whirl around, the laser shooting toward me again.

I arch my back, and it shoots right past me as I leap through the air toward the guard, knocking straight into him.

He’s out like a lightbulb.

“Oh no, oh no, did I kill him?” I gasp, staring open mouth. But then I realize I can’t just stand here; they’re going to find me. I’ve got to get out of here.

Sun, Sun, do you read?

I ignore the probing and start running, scooping up the painting and turning on my hovershoes as I go. Soon I’m half walking, half flying as I dash toward the open window.

And that’s when a laser hits the obscurer on my face. And a security bot flash blinds me. Oh no oh no oh no. I turn the hovershoes on to the highest setting.

I break through the window, gripping the painting tight, as lasers soar past me into the night sky.

I fly off into the night, just as I see a picture of my face and the words “Wanted: Marita

Davis, 312 kilos” form in the sky.

***

“Sun, what the blazes were you thinking?”

Orion is mad—like, blazing mad. I don’t meet his eyes, since I don’t want him to read my traitorous thoughts to both the North American sector as well as the rebellion, but I can see it in the hardened lines of his jaw.

“What the blazes was I thinking? Fulfilling a dumb mission, what do you expect?” I roll my eyes to the painting in my arms. The colors seem to swirl, filling my vision with beauty. “It was doomed from the start—that many heists in one night is a horrible idea.”

Orion rubs his head. “It was all a farse. The missing paintings were a distraction. You could have left them! And instead you got caught, and we got compromised.”

“Sorry.” I fight surprise but feign sarcasm. “Must’ve missed the memo.”

“Duh. Scorpius was using that opportunity to hack into the government’s security banks to find the secret to how they keep color locked up!”

I glance at the painting in my hands. “They haven’t done a good job of it.”

Orion rubs his temples then sits down on a bench, leaning against the muddy gray building. “There’s a reason for that.”

I plant a hand on my hip, then remember the painting and straighten so as to not soil it. “A reason? How could—” Remembering to play it cool, I rephrase what I was saying. “Why would the government not get rid of color if they could?”

“No, no, no, not that sort of reason.” Orion takes the painting from my hands, and I clench my fists, biting my tongue to keep from yelling at him to give it back. I feel sort of… empty without it. He examines it closely and shakes his head. “The key, my dear Rita, is creativity. And you just broadcasted yourself—and the painting—to the entire nation!”

“Sun.” I reach out and touch the painting, feeling a surge of something run through my fingers. “Sorry. And creativity? What is that?”

“Think of your parents, Rita.” His brows furrow at me, his tone calming as he sees me touching the painting. He pulls it slightly away again, and my body grows cold. “Think of the artist of this painting. Think of yourself. What do you all have in common?”

And that’s when I understand—my parents could not be suppressed. Their life work, their creativity could not be stopped. They had to write, like I had to paint. Just like the artist had topaint this starry night.

Creativity. It’s powerful.

I touch the painting again with a renewed spirit. Light pours out of the painting and into me, streaming through my consciousness and into my very soul. The world seems to explode around me, weaving together in streams of majesty I have never seen before except in weak imitations.

Color.

It’s in me, around me, through me.

It doesn’t matter that I’m a wanted criminal.

What does matter is sharing this beauty with the rest of the sector.

I stare at Orion, and he nods at me. “Rita, you have the gift of creativity—don’t let them take it from you. If those few with creativity are silenced, then there is no hope for restoration of the sector.” He stares into my eyes—his brown eyes with flecks of gold in them. “Will you join me?”

“I’ve already done so,” I say, my eyes taking in his entire personage. His dusty brown hair, his eyes that match, his pale freckled skin, his pinkish lips

I think I want to kiss those lips.

I shake my head to clear that strange urge as Orion continues speaking. “Not that rebellion—the inner rebellion, where we share creativity with the world. I don’t care about hacking and stealing and setting fires. I want to restore the sector. Will you join me, Rita?”

I meet his eyes once more, removing my gaze from his lips. “Yes, Orion, I will help you.” His eyes bore into my own. “It’s not Orion. It’s Dustin.”

I smile. That’s the perfect name for him. “What do we do first, Dustin?”

***

Color seems to spring from my every step. Everywhere, there is overwhelming, swirling colors.

And Dustin can see it, too. I know that now. His desire for a rebellion to overwhelm the world, his mind-reading device so he can find those who are sympathizers to the cause and who might have the gift of creativity inside, his joining with a dumb revolution leader so that he can gain access to art that can cause the spark of creativity in someone to burn to an inferno.

And now, it’s my turn.

I can’t get into my apartment because my DNA will entrap me and garner authorities to the scene, but I don’t need my paint to do this.

All I need is a touch. This one singular painting might not be enough, but it will be the spark. The spark to bring color back.

“Scorpius, we need you to hack into the government broadcasting system.” Dustin stands, leaning against the leader’s desk.

Scorpius rolls his eyes. “Not happening. They’ve blocked my signals.”

I narrow my eyes, crossing my arms and staring him down. “Guess you’re not a master hacker, then.”

“Guess not.”

Blazes. Reverse psychology didn’t work.

“For goodness’ sake. Move over.” I push his arm, and when he doesn’t budge from his chair, I grab his computer mouse and start scrolling. I have no clue how to hack, but maybe this will get him to help us.

I start clicking and clacking away, and Scorpius huffs. “You’re ruining my algorithms.” “Your algorithms, huh?” I highlight a section of code and hover my finger over the ‘delete’ button. “You going to help us or am I going to delete this?”

“Fine, I’ll help you. I can scramble the signal and get you access to the broadcasting system.” He grabs my hand and yanks it aside, and Dustin looks about ready to blow when he sees the man touching me. But Scorpius just grabs the mouse and the pad and starts frantically typing and muttering to himself, strings of code pouring forth from his fingers. “Get ready. What are you broadcasting?”

“This.” Dustin holds up the painting. “Make this the entire sky.” Scorpius’s eyebrows raise. “All over the sector?”

“All over the sector.” I narrow my eyes. “Unless I need to destroy your code?”

“Nope, I got this.” Scorpius takes a little scanner camera thing, and a laser light scans the painting and deposits the image as code into the system.

“We need to have our voices hooked up to the system,” I say. “As soon as you start broadcasting the painting.”

Scorpius’s face goes pale. “They’ll be able to track us if we do that.”

Dustin interjects. “Do it.” The determination in his voice strengthens me. I’m a wanted criminal, but this is worth the risk.

Scorpius mutters something intelligible, then starts typing frantically. He pulls a recorder device from a drawer and connects it to the computer. “Start talking. I’m broadcasting. We have less than ten minutes before they can trace the signal and five minutes for them to get here.”

I grab the device and start talking. “Hello, citizens of the North American Sector. My name is Marita Davis, and I’m a lot like you—someone who has something to hide from the government.”

Dustin takes the mic. “I am Dustin Skies. I seek to remedy the problems that the government has infringed on us. Namely, the dystopian world they have perpetrated in locking up creativity.”

I take over. “Look at the sky. Look at the stars painted in the sky. The colors. The vividness of them. Look what we’re missing. Look at the intricacy of it, and consider this: why has the government locked up color?”

“They’ve traced us,” Scorpius hisses, frantically tapping away as his brow sweats.

“So we don’t get the idea to rebel against them!” Dustin exclaims. He is also sweating. “And has that worked? No! They’ve locked up our paintings, our books, our creativity, and to what end? We’re rebelling anyway!”

Clattering noises ring through the building, and I bite my lip. But I can’t freeze now. My voice gains strength as I continue. “Authorities are on the way here to stop us right now. But our voices will not be silenced. Our words will not be stopped. Look at the stars painted in the sky! Let that creativity abound inside you.”

The door crashes open, and someone screams, “Hands in the air or you’re getting tased!” “Don’t let your voices be silenced!” Dustin cries. “Don’t let your creativity be squelched!”

“I’ve lost the signal!” Scorpius yells.

“Silence!”

The room swarms with officials, and I grab Dustin’s hand. He turns to me and wraps his arms around me, his lips pressing hard against mine for a split second before the officials grab our arms and wrench us apart.

“Don’t tell them anything!” Dustin screams. Someone tases him, and he slumps to the floor, unconscious.

I make myself go limp, but I don’t fight. Neither does Scorpius, other than reaching out his finger to his the “delete all” button on his computer. And he gets tased for that.

I touch my lips, and they take us away.

The End.