- { The Inciting Incident }
An inciting incident is the event or decision that begins a story's problem. Everything up and until that moment is backstory; everything after is “the story."
"Father?" a small voice chirped, light even compared to the stars above. "You said you'd get anything for me, right?" it continued, as it's owner gazed up at the constellation above her head. A crisp, chilly air whipped at the young canine's coat, although it only made her more content. Sighing, her head rolled over to her dad's, and she noticed the pained expression on his face.
"Micah..." he breathed, voice warm and crackling like the very sun that hid away on that November night. Except this man, unlike the sun, was fading with his age; and seemingly unable to regain the strength and limitless energy of such an important star. "I'd do a lot for you, child, you know I would. But the stars, Micah? I don't think so."
With that, the young creature started to sulk. For days on end, she'd wail and cry, begging her father to find a way for the stars to be brought to her. At the time, the young pup did not realise the difficulties of carrying out such an impossible task, but the girl has always been ambitious. This ambition, along with a selfishly brilliant talent for persuasion, was the thing to make her dad finally cave in. That, and the constant guilt-tripping and bratty tantrums.
So, after several hard months of experimentation, the father finally had a plan ready. He had built a machine that would hopefully allow his daughter to see her precious stars up close - a 'telescope', he liked to call it. The plan was to bring out Micah on the now frostbitten evening, and when the time was right, allow her to peer through the scope. So, he did, and when a new constellation appeared in the sky, the extatic pup looked into the new device.
"Wow!" she gasped, jumping up and down with excitement. "It's beautiful! Take a look!"
And so he did.
Zap! Crackle! Bang! Just at the exact time the father had touched the telescope, a large wave of energy (later known as a lightning strike) had came into brutal contact with the machine. "Daddy!" Micah wailed, sobbing profusely as she sprinted over to the still body of her parent. He wasn't moving, and his once vibrant eyes seemed glassy. "It's all my fault." she continued, tears dripping off her nose and onto the lifeless being. Little too late, Micah had realised the error of her ways. She had been the one to demand the creation of the telescope. If it wasn't for her, none of this would have happened - the wretched device would cease to exist.
Angered, Micah ran over to the still-strong hunk of metal. She clawed at it, bit it, attempted to tear it apart - but sadly, with no luck. "Agghhh!" she shouted, desperately trying to kill the thing that may have killed her father. Micah didn't think of the dangers; not in her moments of utter fury.
Now, what happened next cannot exactly be explained. Some have scientific explanations, but none of them really seem right. Most believe it was the Universe's way of teaching the child a lesson - of giving Micah a reminder of what she had done. In short, Micah had been granted her original wish. The stars had indeed been given to her, but to Micah, they no longer held beauty or wonder.
And so, these stars would become a part of her forever: constantly trailing behind her as a reminder of her past. Many people say it's part of the reason she was so willing to remove part of her eyesight, no matter the risks or the cost. To Micah, the stars were no longer a thing she loved and desired to see - and when the stars lose their beauty, what else in the world could be even remotely appealing?
