Ellen Taylor

The Altered Manuscript Ellen Taylor

"Stop!"

I didn't mean to scream. The microphone could pick up the word even if I whispered. My hands trembled as I took off the headset, staring at the two computer screens on my desk. One screen held the text, while the other played out the scene, now frozen in time. I closed my eyes and took a deep breath before opening them again. The boy named Reggie still sat there, watching Bree too close. He didn't belong. I didn't create him.

My legs trembled as I backed away from the two screens. A million nasty possibilities raced through my mind until I forced myself to stop. I worked hard to get the narration device. I did the research to prove I wasn't a target. It was all in vain. The Rogue Narrator had entered my story.

The accidental discovery of the narration device while scientists were researching virtual reality completely changed the entertainment industry. An author could narrate a story, and the finished project would produce a book, an audio-book, and rough footage for a movie which faithfully followed every word of the original story. In the early days anyone could order a device and narrate stories, until a group of five scientists wanted to test the limits of the device. The experiment ended after three days-four of the scientists died, and the fifth ended up in a coma. Distribution of the device was shut down and didn't open again without strict laws in place.

Junior understood the reason behind these laws, which is why Bree does not know she's the main character in a story. However, when a rogue narrator hacks into the system and begins creating chaos in Junior's story, she is faced with an impossible problem: does she continue to follow the strict laws to keep herself safe, or does she risk it all to protect the characters she loves?