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The prequel to The Aisha Legends: Falling Snow…
Tucked into a warm cave, for protection from the driving
snow, a litter of Aishas and their mother huddled together. Outside, it was
freezing cold, the bitter wind whistling across the mountainside but inside,
they were warm and safe. One of the little Aisha cubs mewled pitifully and its
mother came over to reassure it. She nuzzled her kit gently, soothing it. Examining
all her kittens closely, wondering if any of them would get a human.
Humans were a new thing to Neopia, arriving suddenly
and becoming instantly enamoured with the Neopets. Neopia was still new from
its creation by Dr. Frank Sloth but the Faeries had arrived and helped humans
and Neopets to grow and prosper. It was an idyllic time and there was no good,
no evil, no war, no peace – just innocence, pure and simple. A beautiful language,
Ancient Neopian, had been created and pets flourished and spread. The whole
of Neopia was explored. And humans were yet another joy, especially for the
few Neopets who were "adopted" by them. A rudimentary economy was beginning
and Neopia looked promising. It was a great time to be born into.
The Aisha mother smiled fondly as she surveyed
her cubs. One of them, an unusual yellowish-tan colour, woke up and looked at her mother
with keen, bright, black eyes. "Go to sleep, Imril," she whispered and the cub
yawned widely, revealing a pink tongue and two neat rows of white teeth, and
settled back down peacefully. Outside, a blizzard howled.
***
A teenage girl meandered happily through Neopia Central, the aptly named marketplace,
watching it beginning to grow busy. The first stalls were just being opened
by enterprising young pets and pets came from all over Neopia, along with the
few humans, in order to barter for goods. Ray grinned as she watched two Kacheeks
haggling good-naturedly. She loved this new world, full of its strange and wonderful
pets and the ever present and kind hearted Faeries. She examined the pets around
with interest: she had not officially "adopted" pets yet but was hoping to have
several. She twisted a lock of brown hair around her finger as she examined
a group of Shoyrus. How could she decide, with so many to choose from?
She took her time in shopping, purchasing a fleecy
jacket of Baabaa wool -- she was going to need it on the expedition she was
going on. Its emerald colour perfectly matched her eyes. She put it on happily,
stopping to chatter with a few Faeries, one of whom gifted her an exquisitely
made lamp, containing a tiny ball of fire. Faeries intermingled freely with
pets at that time, and often gifted presents and magic to strangers. Ray's happiness
threatened to overwhelm her: it was a beautiful morning, she had a wonderful
present from a friendly stranger, she had the whole of Neopia to explore and
she was going on a trip that promised to be amazing.
Winding her way around a group of Faeries – Fire,
Water, Earth, Air, all giggling together – she headed for the centre of the
market. She was going on her trip with two close friends and she agreed to meet
them here. She had waited for only a few minutes before a fair-haired boy came
into view, a green Uni trotting beside him.
"Hey, Teys. Hey, Kaci."
"Hey, Ray," he replied.
The Uni grinned at her.
"Ready for our trip, Ray?" the Neopet asked.
They were aiming to climb Snowy Mountain, one
of the highest peaks in Neopia. It would be a challenge, but she was in good
company. A short flight later, courtesy of Kasi, the trio arrived at the base
of the mountain. It was a towering spire, laden with white snow, with a few
sparsely scattered trees. With shrieks of delight, they began to climb, playing
in the freshly fallen snow as they went.
They were barely half way up when they heard
high pitched cries. In the blank landscape, nothing was to be seen. Guided by
the noise, they dug quickly through the snow, revealing a buried cave. The recent
snow had completely blocked the entrance. Clearing it away, they were surprised
to see a litter of Aishas in the back of the cave, curled up next to their mother.
The cubs hid their eyes in surprise, but the mother came forward to thank them.
While Teys and Kaci conversed with the mother
politely, Ray examined the Aisha cubs closely. One examined her back: a little
tan coloured Aisha clambered over her mother to get a better look at the strange
humans and overbalanced. It squeaked in surprise as it tumbled into Ray's lap.
Ray lifted up the tiny Neopet and gazed into a pair of the deepest black eyes
she had ever seen. The Aisha looked back silently. They stared at each other
in wonder.
"Her name is Imril," said the mother quietly,
breaking the silence.
"Imril," Ray whispered, utterly transfixed. She
stroked the soft caramel coloured fur and the Aisha purred happily.
The mother smiled gently.
"She is yours, you are hers. So be it."
The Aisha kissed her cub and nodded.
"I shall be sad to see her go, of course, but
that is my foolishness. Neopia is a world of happiness: we know no other. If
you look into the Faeries' eyes, you can see it is not so for every world. But
there is no danger here and I can entrust my cubs to anyone. Good life, Imril!"
Ray hugged the kitten to her tightly.
"I will look after her," she promised. "I love
her."
She was finally complete, with her own pet. She
wrapped Imril carefully in her new jacket.
"Thank you," she told the mother.
The mother smiled.
The two humans and two pets ventured back out
into the sparkling snow, and began to clamber up the mountain.
***
The tan Aisha looked up from her owner's lap, secure and warm. The silky ribbon
around her neck rustled as she turned her head. Regarding her was another Aisha,
a male with a smoky grey coat, perfectly brushed. The two owners chatted away
happily, leaving Imril staring at the strange Aisha.
"I'm Imril," she said sweetly, bobbing her head.
"Torin."
The other Aisha smiled in reply.
"Do you want to go and play ball, Torin?"
Imril glanced up at Ray appealingly, who gave
her a nod. Torin looked up to Teys, who also nodded. The two Aishas slid off
their respective owners and went outside to play.
***
Imril and Torin were firm friends from that day on. They had many friends,
owned and unowned, all happy. They spent their time in simple-minded play, unaware
of what was brewing over their heads.
For times were changing. Faeries fought viciously
for power, becoming embroiled in a huge war. Dark and Light magic, forbidden
on a Neopia that knew nothing of good or evil, was being used in fierce battles.
Shielded and content, Neopians lived harmoniously. But the shield could not
last forever. Snowy skies were looming ahead.
***
It was a sunny day and Imril and Torin were playing outside in the garden.
Filan, a mechanically minded Aisha, who was also a close friend of Torin and
Imril, rushed up to them, his eyes wide in excitement.
"Come and see!" he said breathlessly. The three
friends ran outside to witness a magnificent spectacle.
Two Faeries, one surrounded by white light, one
by darkness, hung in the sky. The whole sky was lit up with colourful magic,
streaked with white and black. The purple and green haired Faerie flung a lightning
bolt of black magic at the other. The red and green haired Faerie avoided it,
sending white magic back at her. The crowd assembled below cheered the Faeries
on, loving the beautiful spectacle, oblivious to the fact that this was a battle,
a battle of light and dark, good and evil: a battle that would decide their
futures.
The crowd screamed in delight as hundreds and
thousands of Faeries suddenly filled the sky, including two types they'd never
seen before – Light Faeries and Dark Faeries. They clapped their paws and stamped
the ground, watching wide eyed as thousands of pairs of wings whirred brightly
and millions of different magics flashed in the air.
And then, errant bolts of magic began hitting
the ground, coming dangerously close. A Kau screamed as fire singed her tail
and pets began to panic. Imril was quicker than most Neopians to catch on.
"Run!" she screamed. "Run! Run! Run!"
Mass hysteria set in amongst the Neopians, thousands
of pets and a few humans pushing and shoving to escape, trying to run between
the random bolts of magic and avoid battling Faeries. Screams echoed around
the place, stalls were overturned and Faeries, once such kindly benefactors,
had turned into creatures to fear and to hide from.
The three Aishas ran as fast as they could to
their Neohomes. But the doors were ajar, the rooms empty and their owners were
not there – had they not waited? The pets were scared and frightened – what
had happened? Why were the Faeries doing this? They barricaded themselves into
Torin's cellar, their paws over their eyes. They were young and innocent, but
their world had just been shattered.
***
The Aishas eventually ventured out, driven by hunger. For the past few days,
they'd hidden, shutting out the destruction. But they could not hide forever.
They wandered, lost, through the desolate ruins of Neopia, mewling pitifully
for their owners. Neopia had been pulled back from the brink of destruction
by one Faerie's sacrifice, but it was not healed. Occasionally, they saw other
pets in the distance, huddled together in groups for protection, snarling at
strangers. And they knew they must learn to fight, to scavenge for food, to
be ruthless and tough, or they would not survive.
Neopia had lost its innocence, and the Faeries
were to bear the shame of that act for aeons to come. But the young Aishas still
had one thing: they kept a single hope burning in the centre of their heart
- that they would find their owners. And that drove them onwards, keeping them
searching endlessly.
They scoured Neopia, weeping at its ruin and
destruction, still wrapped in their own thoughts. And still, they kept alive
a hope that their humans were waiting for them, and would spirit them away back
to the paradise they had once known.
***
It had been snowing that day. The Aishas were thin and cold and weary, worn
down by the hardships of survival. They had wandered far from home now, almost
to the very borders of Neopia. But as the sun broke through the grey clouds,
their spirits rose. That's when Imril saw her.
Her journey had finally come to an end. For right
on the borders of Neopia, in the middle of a barren field, stood a familiar
figure. Her heart gave a painful thud and she ignored the first snow, beginning
to fall again from the sky. She ran towards the girl, bursting with happiness,
calling excitedly. At last, she had found her!
"Ray! Ray! Ray!"
Imril bounded up to her owner, and nestled into
her. Finally, she was complete again. The fear and uncertainty of the last few
days melted away.
Unexpectedly, Ray moved away and Imril looked
up, confused. Was her human hurt?
"Ray?"
Ray's green eyes looked right through her.
"Ray!" she called frantically.
The girl clicked her tongue in irritation and
began to move off.
"Wait!"
Imril hurried after her, tears clouded her vision,
and spoke again.
"I am yours; you are mine. Remember? When you
adopted me, you said those words."
Ray met Imril's eyes.
"I wish I hadn't," she said icily.
Imril crumpled, feeling something die inside
her. Her mouth hung open in surprise, her dream shattering.
"What?"
"Go away, Aisha."
"My name's Imril! I'm your pet!"
Imril rubbed herself against Ray's leg lovingly.
"I'm going away."
Imril frowned.
"But I have to say goodbye to Torin and Filan!
Or are they coming too?"
"They are not coming. And neither are you."
Imril's eyes widened, trapping Ray in their deep,
dark gaze. Hope drained out of the Aisha, and hurt was plainly written on her
face. She met her owner's eyes steadily, devastated beyond words.
"But…"
Ray's eyes flickered in fear. A snowstorm was
building up, and gangs of pets prowled the land.
"It's not safe here… I'll be hurt here."
"But what about me?"
Imril's voice sounded small and petulant, a pitiful
plea lost in the howling wind.
"You'll be fine," Ray said swiftly. "Now, I have
to go…"
A sharp pain twisted in Imril's heart.
"You're running away," she accused. "Abandoning
me."
"What a horrible thing to say to me, honey,"
Ray said mockingly.
"I'm not your honey," said Imril, in a tone as
cold as the snow around her. Her love turned to a keen bitterness, that welled
inside her.
Ray laughed.
"Maybe not, precious, maybe not," she sneered.
Imril felt rage flare inside her.
"You will leave me here?" she screeched. "To
be destroyed?"
Ray smiled.
"Enjoy your new Neopia, Imril," she said cruelly.
Imril's anger drained away suddenly.
"Don't go!" she cried desperately, clutching
at Ray's leg and plucking at her hand. "I still love you," she whispered, tears
mingling in the fur on her face.
Ray said nothing, prising Imril off her leg.
"Goodbye, then."
A look of wounded betrayal shone from Imril's
coal black eyes.
"Ray…" she cried futilely.
Her former owner turned her back and ran. The
driving snow soon blocked her from view.
***
Imril collapsed in despair, white flakes settling around her. Her innocence
was truly gone. She had totally changed. From then on, she distrusted humans,
and hated even more the Faeries that had driven them away. She hid her feelings
under a uncaring exterior, forming her own barrier to the pain she had felt.
With Filan and Torin, they gave up the search for the humans that would no longer
love them and roamed across the ravaged land, picking up other abandoned Aishas.
Her pack grew closer even as they blocked others out. The war had finished,
but it was too late. The damage had been done.
Faeries withdrew from Neopia completely, leaving
pets totally abandoned and lost. Imril felt the betrayal deep within, and grew
more and more bitter.
The skies, and the future, were bleak, pets'
hearts were icy and there were snow clouds ahead…
The snow was about to fall…
The End
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