Every Stamp Tells a Story by pikatribble |  |
This week: Fetch! Stamp
NEOPIAN POST OFFICE KIOSK - Hello fellow philatelists, and welcome back to another Every Stamp Tells a
Story. As Halloween is fast approaching, I thought it would be appropriate to
describe the story behind a stamp from the Haunted Woods, so today we will be
looking at the Fetch! stamp:
This stamp was sponsored by the Society for the Humane and Ethical Treatment
Of Mutants (SHETOM), whose charter mandates that they are to attempt to educate
the public about Mutant Pets and Petpets. Their efforts focus mainly in two
areas - educating the Neopian public regarding prejudices against mutants, in
an attempt to eliminate such prejudices, and informing the Neopian public regarding
the dangers of using transmogrification
potions without a full understanding of the effects. For you see, though
there are a great many pets who wish to be mutants, finding the attention of
being different attractive, there are equally as many who have been transmogrified
against there wishes, and are ashamed of their appearance. Servant the mutant
Blumaroo, as seen in the stamp above, falls into the latter group.
The text accompanying this stamp says: "That poor Blumaroo doesn't have much
of a life does he?" and indeed, he doesn't. He is forced to spend his days and
nights retrieving various items from the shadowy depths of the Haunted Woods
for his cruel master, who makes certain his servant keeps in line by having
the mutant watch him eat his nightly meals, which usually consist of Blumaroo
Tail Extravaganza or Blumaroo Steaks. Fear rules this young Blumaroo's life...fear
of his master, fear of failing in one of these quests, fear of his own appearance...but
this was not always so.
Servant was, at one time, a happy normal blue Blumaroo. He lived on Roo
Island as a youngster, and enjoyed hanging out with his friends in the
meadows and fields. One of his favourite things to do was to play Dice-A-Roo,
and several times he entered the annual Dice-A-Roo tournament, ranking among
the top ten in the junior division. At that time, he was not called Servant,
but Barton. However, he has since adopted the name 'Servant', as it is one of
the few things his master ever says to him, constantly barking out orders like
"Servant, bring me Froiler Essence!" or "Servant, Fetch me Ergy Paste!". Indeed,
he seems to prefer the name Servant now, perhaps because the name Barton recalls
memories of a happier life that seems unattainable to him at present.
Servant did not know that his life would be forever changed the night he walked
into Grandma Roo's Cafe with a couple of his friends, and ordered his customary
dinner of Blumaroo Pancakes. Most of the others patrons of the small cozy restaurant
were happily munching away on scones and tea, pancakes being on the breakfast
menu. Still, Grandma Roo knew how much Servant loved her Blumaroo Pancakes,
and was always happy to fill his special order. She placed a plateful of Pancakes
before Servant, along with a container of syrup. The young Blumaroo drizzled
the syrup over the pancakes, and eagerly forked a mouthful up. After only a
few mouthfuls, he began to fill slightly ill. He thought perhaps the syrup had
gone bad, as it had smelled rather terrible, but not wishing to offend Grandma
Roo, he had remained silent. However, the other patrons in the cafe did not,
as Servant's friends started screaming and quickly moving away from him. The
poor young Blumaroo did not understand their reaction at first, as the other
patrons of the cafe began to do the same, retreating and huddling together as
if Servant had some terrible disease that they might catch simply by breathing
the same air as he. Then he caught his reflection in a fork laying upon the
table...his face was mutated, his skin having the appearance of a corpse, with
the occasional hair sticking out from the crusty surface, his eyes a beady glowing
yellow. Servant gasped and looked pleadingly at his friends, but they only backed
further away from him. Tears of a substance more akin to slime than water poured
from the frightened Blumaroo's eyes, as he swiftly bounced out of the cafe,
ashamed and terrified.
Witnesses would later claim to have seen a tall shadowy figure lurking near
the restaurant in the afternoon, just shortly before Grandma Roo closed to make
her daily supply run to the markets. They believe that it was this stranger
that snuck into the cafe and replaced the sugary pancake syrup with a far more
dangerous transmogrification potion, though nothing has ever been proven, and
no suspect has been found. It took Grandma Roo a long time to regain her customers'
trust and reassure them that this was an isolated incident, but that was of
little consequence compared to what Servant suffered.
Servant wandered Roo Island, travelling only at night to avoid being seen.
Certain he would be hated and feared by all he encountered, as had happened
the night of his transmogrification, he grew more and more despondent. Unlike
most mutant pets, which often become cynical and angry due to the potion's effect,
his personality remained unchanged, perhaps due to the fact that he had not
received a full dose of the evil liquid. Lonely and depressed, Servant finally
took the last of his NP and chartered a ferry to the mainland. However, a storm
hit the small vessel during its travels, and instead of docking at the planned
port of Neopia Central, the ferry drifted south into a sheltered cove, near
the outskirts of the Haunted Woods. Disembarking here in the hopes that the
darkness of the woods would conceal his ugly form, Servant bounced deeper and
deeper into the forbidding forest, unaware of the shadows that watched him.
A soft sound caused him to stop, as a cold hand came forward to grab him tightly
by the ears. There was to be no escape.
No one truly knows who the cloaked figure that controls Servant's life is,
though several believe it may be a swamp
ghoul, having determined a far easier way to obtain items that it desires
than stealing them itself. Whomever this cruel creature is, he keeps Servant
bound to him with a mixture of threats, intimidation, and psychology - constantly
telling the mutant Blumaroo how all in the world beyond the Haunted Woods will
fear and despise him. Servant, who never asked for this fate or this form, accepts
his servitude to his cruel master, not believing that there is anyone out there
who would even speak to a mutant that is, in his eyes, hideous. To Servant,
even the company of a commanding and cruel monster is better than no company
at all.
SHETOM only recently became aware of the story behind Servant the mutant Blumaroo.
The organization recogised the exposure that the 'star' of the Fetch!
Game could bring to their cause, while at the same time giving them the opportunity
to help Servant himself, and eagerly sponsored the Fetch! Stamp. They would
like to remind everyone that mutation should be a choice. A pet that chooses
to take a transmogrification potion will often greatly enjoy its new form, but
forced mutation often brings heartbreak and sadness to the pet involved. As
well, the next time you visit the Haunted Woods to assist Servant in finding
things for his Master, remember that there is a feeling pet within that mutated
body. Do not focus so much on the NP you gain by helping him, but upon offering
a few words of encouragement to the poor mutated Blumaroo. Who knows? Perhaps
the words you offer will be the ones that convince Servant that it is not what
is on the outside, but what is on the inside, that counts, and he will find
the courage to try and escape from his dark master and find a better life for
himself. Until next time, happy stamp collecting and have a happy and safe Halloween! |
