And thus, time passed, as time was wont to do.
Less than twelve days of preparation, just for a single night of story around the shimmering fire.
Above the sky, soft crimson glows enveloped a new moon, dimmed as always.
Beyond the veil, white noises began to die down, signaling the start of our performance.
With a deep breath, I calmed my racing heartbeat and focused on the task up ahead.
Focus.
Fear no failure.
Finish your part, and trust others to do theirs.
It’s showtime!
- - -
*Thump*Thump*Thump*Thump*
With a drumming start, tranquility finally took over the center stage.
*Thump*Thump*Thump*Thump*
Amidst soft whispers and quiet laughters, an unmistakable excitement was also running through the crowd of children. For over an entire week, there had been a rumor. A rumor, that tonight would be special, even more special than the most special of nights.
And so, under the undivided attention of kits and kins alike, the ancient tale began anew.
♫ ℌ𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰
𝔖𝔥𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰
𝔇𝔬 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝔰𝔢𝔢 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔫𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱?
ℭ𝔯𝔦𝔪𝔰𝔬𝔫, 𝔦𝔫 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔰𝖐𝔶? ♪
♫ ℌ𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰, 𝔰𝔥𝔲𝔰𝔥!
𝔉𝔬𝔯 𝔞𝔫 𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔦𝔢𝔫𝔱 𝔱𝔞𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔣 𝔶𝔬𝔯𝔢 ♪
As the singing quieted down, the shadow of a puppet figure appeared on the veil, illuminated by the flickering glow of a nearby fire.
[Once upon a forgotten time, a Giant ruled the land
The world was his for the taking, yet only a lone giant was there, ever present
And so, he dreamed, and dreamed, and dreamed
A dream of gods, divine and kind. A dream of dragons, with might and light
And so, we woke, and walked, and smiled
For the Giant had given us life]
Many small figures could be seen dancing around the giant shadow. From humans to wylders, from orcs to elves, from dwarves to wyverns… Even the gods and dragons floating high above seemed to be in a festive mood.
And yet, there was a sad look from the biggest of them all.
[“This is wrong, it is wrong”, the Giant cried
The world was full after the making, yet only a lone giant was there, ever present
And so, he ran, and ran, and ran
A cry of gods, at the edge of it all. A cry of dragons, witnessing the fall
And so, we wept, and wailed, then silence
For the Giant was no more…]
On the dimly lit veil, a lone shadow with long floating hair could be seen above the rest. As the figure cried, her tears started falling down into the land below, causing shadows in the shape of plants to sprout up.
[“The dragons are gone, the gods are dead”
“The Giant has fallen, there is no magic left…”
Far upon the moon, a lone goddess lamented the unfairness of it all
Angry at the world, the lone Goddess turned her wrath against us all…]
A solemn atmosphere enveloped the sad crowd, not unlike the darkness that was now engulfing the veil. With tightly shut eyes, many kits began to whimper, knowing too well what would happen next.
♫ ℌ𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰
𝔖𝔥𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰
𝔇𝔬 𝔶𝔬𝔲 𝖐𝔢𝔞𝔯 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝔫𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱?
ℭ𝔯𝔦𝔪𝔰𝔬𝔫, 𝔬𝔥 𝔰𝔬 𝔟𝔯𝔦𝔤𝔥𝔱? ♪
Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
♫ ℌ𝔲𝔰𝔥, 𝔩𝔦𝔱𝔱𝔩𝔢 𝔬𝔫𝔢𝔰, 𝔰𝔥𝔲𝔰𝔥!
𝔉𝔬𝔯 𝔱𝔥𝔢 𝖜𝔬𝔯𝔰𝔱 𝔥𝔞𝔰 𝔶𝔢𝔱 𝔱𝔬 𝔠𝔬𝔪𝔢 ♪
Once the dimming veil lit up again, countless shadows could be seen fighting each other. The scene was complete chaos, with the strong preying on the weak, and the many devouring the lonely.
[Once upon a desperate time, the darkness consumed our land
The world was dying, ever dimming. The people were screaming, ever fighting
And yet, the moon turned redder, then madder, and madder
From it the nightmares, deadly and unfair. From it the maws, with fangs and claws
And so, we wept, and wailed, and cried
Soon, the fight for survival, the fight for our life]
As shadowy monsters poured in from both sides of the veil, pandemonium finally broke loose. Orcs fled their highland and cleaved through scattered wylder tribes, mowing down everything in their path. Some big figure in the shape of a lǐon fought against other mighty shadows, uniting every wylder under one banner. Dwarves sealed themselves deep underground, only to find monstrous beasts rising from the depth. Elves hid inside the forests, while wyverns fled to their flying fortress.
For humans, the situation was even more dire. Armies pillaged whatever was left under orders of kings and queens, leaving behind only death and destruction in their wake. Worse still, having defeated the orcs, wylders were now fleeing from the encroaching darkness. As their horde marched towards the humans’ land, a war seemed inevitable.
In the face of despair, countless humans gathered at a great lake, where the last trace of their Goddess could still be felt…
[“This is wrong, it is wrong”, the people begged
“Save us, spare us”, ever louder. “Help us, heal us”, every hour
Just then…
A light… so bright… a true miracle!
From Her last kindness, an oak of old. For our last wishes, a chosen that slays foes
The young, they cheered. The old, they smiled
A hero was with us, in front of our eyes]
To the audience’s amazement, a miracle did not only happen in the old tale. As bright light lit up the screen, rumbling sounds could be heard as a sapling burst forth from behind the stage. Ohh and ahh quickly turned into deafening cheers as a figure from the balcony perched onto the newly grown tree before landing right in front of the screen.
With a holy sword and a floating cape, the great Eagle swiftly cut down monstrous shadows hidden behind the veil. An intense mania soon filled all spectators, from the ones brought to life by flickering fire to those watching this spectacle in real life.
[“It is not over, darkness has not won”
“The Goddess still remembers, of magic, and the sun!”
Far across the land, a chosen rallied the champions of this world
Once upon a time, the chosen saved us from our woes…]
And so, the tale continued, late into the night. Tale of a clash between the Eagle and the Lion King. Tale of the fellowship, where an elven queen and a dwarven king put aside old differences. Tale of a last stand at the three monoliths, where the wyvern princess came to everyone’s rescue. By the end of it all, many actors had joined in on the fun, all sent down from the miraculous tree just behind the veil.
As the curtain fell, despite countless emotions running through the audience, everyone could only agree on one thing.
This was truly, without any doubt, a most special of nights.
- - -
While handing out free fruits for everyone to enjoy, I could not help but let out a satisfied sigh. Everything had gone swimmingly, and it was clear that I wasn’t the only one to think so, if the small smile on Imun’s face was any indication.
“C’mon, say it~”
“Nope. Night’s not over yet. You’ll see.”
“Hah! Dream on dreamer!”
With the last of our pears passed around once again, I decided to take a short break and enjoy the festive mood. Praises from parents and awe from kits were certainly a treat, even if said luxury could only be enjoyed by the actors on stage. Nevertheless, I was still satisfied with being able to contribute to the wonder of this night…
“Color me surprised. You have certainly outdone yourself this time, little Isa.”
Let it be known that bὕnny runners would never scream like a kit, especially a certain doe that somehow got spooked by an old crow. Anyone claiming otherwise was, once again, a dirty liar that lied!
Having sent a glare towards my stupidly smirking colleague, I turned around and said to the old capᴥbara.
“I always aim to deliver, ma Mma. Plus, I had a lot of help.”
I certainly had to thank everyone for going along with my crazy scheme… Not all of them, of course, especially the ones wanting to cut down on my tree trick. Those darn drolls! Truly, I did not regret planting those idiots into the ground at all!
… What were we talking about again?
With a shake of the head, I looked towards where a familiar voice was calling me. Apparently, the audience had devoured all the peachy pears again and was asking for another encore. I nodded my approval to Hiro and gave a thumbs up, which was soon responded by a brilliant light as the hero of our tale blessed us with the boon of plenty once more.
It was amazing what simple crystals hidden in plain sight, or plain gloves in this case, could do. Indeed, the flashy performance might have won the crowd of children over, yet it was the promise of free food that truly sealed the deal. Take notes for your cheap tricks, silly magicians, since this bὕnny had surpassed you all!
However, while my mind was still busy giving a well-deserved pat on my back, a nudge from the side painfully snapped me back to reality. My irritation at the unwelcome bum aside, it appeared that Imun did interrupt me with good intention, given how I seemed to have missed ma Mma’s much important musing.
“-we have performed the play from both sides of the screen before. Yet, the way you planted that tricky tree for future uses was truly something else.” The nest maker then paused slightly to look at a duo of crafty bὕnny and squʝrrel, who were enjoying the fruits of their labor alongside the crowd. “You have also managed to mend the bond between little Ichay and little Ophen as well. And, if my ears have not failed me, word is that those trio of troublemakers are right next on your list… I have to admit, you are one cunning little devil, Isa. Nexa would be proud…”
“Just doing my job, ma Mma.” I humbly added while giving Hiro another thumbs up. The hungry horde had not gotten its fill, after all. “Though, if you reallllly want to reward me for such a task well done…”
“Let me guess. You want me to support your claim in making “Antler Snatcher” your official title, correct?” At my nod, the old capᴥbara shook her head with a sigh. “It’s too soon for you to take the watcher test, Isa. Not to mention how recent events are now making us run in circles. It’d be better if-”
The urge to stomp my foot in irritation was strong, though I resisted such an impulse. With both eyes closed, I quietly turned my head and tried to gather the scattering thoughts. Unfortunately, my annoyance was poked once more when Hiro signaled the same old question - more fruits, again. Apparently, everyone couldn’t get enough of those blessed foods, symbolic or not.
Jeez! Why are some people so darn impatient?
After nodding my head, again, I tuned in to the old crow’s lecture, which had just finished running its course.
“-which is why you should reconsider such options. Look, Isa, I’m not telling you to quit. However, sometimes in life, it’d be better to know one’s own limits…”
“Yes, of course, I understand. BUT, but but but.” I spoke up before the nest maker could shoot down my idea again. “My plan wasn’t something so silly like bashing my own skull against an impossible task, ma Mma. I know what I’m doing, and you can trust me on that!”
There was still silence in the air as the old tender contemplated my words. Somehow, the noisy atmosphere in the background seemed to have faded away, to the point that I could clearly hear my own racing heartbeat.
“Uhm… Isa, Is your ward alright? I think he looks a bit green…”
Imun’s unfounded worry regarding Hiro’s green thumb aside, right now, I could only focus on the troubled face of the nest maker in front of me. Fortunately, a heavy sigh soon left the old crow’s lips, carrying with it the sign of my victory!
“Very well, we will talk about this later… Though I expect that you can actually give realistic reasons for such confidence, young one…”
Yesss!!! Success!!!
With a nod, I gave the old capᴥbara my warmest smile possible and received the same in kind. My face must be sporting quite a toothy grin right now, though I couldn’t care less. Finally, after all those years, I was now one step closer towards achieving my dream! Nothing could ruin this moment for me!!!
Nothing, except the way Imun tilted my head around to where my ward was lying unconscious with a pale face. Or how everyone started shouting and pointing at the massive pear tree that leaned ever closer towards-
Oh.
Oh rut…
*CRASH*
…
“Uh… At least… no one got hurt?” I asked as Hiro got dragged away for treatment, to which the old nest maker simply sighed at her squashed nest.
That night, despite the absolutely unforgettable performance, somehow my memory could only recall a cheerful scream of “NO MORE SCHOOL!!!” and a not-so-subtle “I told you so~”...