The Ancient Prophecy

This ancient prophecy was something known nearly by every Neopian. Of course, this caused many troubles for the abandoned, hopeless pets, for many feared to have accidentally adopted the one who would bring doom to all. The Neopian Pound began to overflow with poor Neopets, and to the pound staff's greatest horror, they had to reject hundreds of orphans with many apologies. All the mightiest faeries noticed this, and together, they cast a spell on all of Neopia, causing every owner and pet to rid their knowledge of this prophecy. Only one was spared - at that point a very young Flotsam. It was crucial that this young Flotsam knew.

After the casting of the spell, many Neopians who once feared the adopting side of the Pound loved and embraced it, giving a good home to many grateful pets. No one gave a thought to the ancient prophecy - for now, no one remembered it. The faeries were indeed impressed with their work, and were now less worried than before.

But it was not long before a young yellow Quiggle was adopted, and welcomed in the loving arms of its new family. Some now say it was coincidence, and some firmly declare that it was a matter of fate and destiny, but whatever the reason, the very same youthful Flotsam whose memory was spared, became the older sister of the yellow Quiggle, Glesh.

Now, Glesh was almost like any other adopted Neopet. He had trouble getting along with his new siblings, threw many temper tantrums, opposed their new owner, and complained a lot. But he was intelligent, a bright young pet, learning quickly and adapting to his new surroundings, making him one determined Quiggle. Either he was extremely angry and frustrated, or very giddy. His confidence in himself disappointed his sister and brothers, and Weirdbal, a good-natured Baby Poogle, took up the job of looking after his new brother. He knew it would be hard work, but he decided to do his best and help Glesh, guide him and teach him the proper ways of life. And so, the Baby Poogle became guardian and mentor of the yellow Quiggle.

The two brothers grew together, their experiences, troubles and joys weaved together as one, and their bond was strong. But it was not strong enough for Weirdbal, for he knew in his heart that his little brother could not be controlled. Through many hard times he consoled Glesh, taught him valuable lessons, and noticed that the Quiggle was very talented in many areas. But, on the contrary, he was constantly falling into bad temptations and disobeyed others' orders, which always made Weirdbal lose his patience. But the Poogle knew by now that his brother was meant to do more destructive things in his life, and he tried his best to lead him away from such evil deeds. He taught him all he knew, taught him to be gentle and kind, and learned soon that being a personal mentor was not as easy as it might look. In fact, Weirdbal was beginning to regret his first decision for taking in Glesh as his pupil. He spoke to his sister, Flotsie, about this.

"Sister, I do not think making Glesh my student was a brilliant idea at all. I am mourning the day I first decided it," he had said, his face wrenched up in frustration. His sister frowned.

"Weirdbal…do not give up just yet. You have taken a vow, and that vow must not be broken. You must do your duty, and someday, when it is complete, all of Neopia will acknowledge you. You will be respected by everyone, as the Protector of Glesh," Flotsie replied gently in her smooth, calm voice. The young Poogle was not so easily convinced.

"But he has caused me many troubles and we have been through too much. I can't take it anymore, sister! I can't teach him to control his feelings and actions. He acts too quickly and speaks without thinking," he complained, sitting down, extremely upset.

"Oh, little brother, please listen. This job has been appointed to you and you only. If you cannot do it, no other pet can. You are our only hope. Glesh…he…he is fated to cause destruction. A…a guardian was to be set over him, to try to change his ways before it was too late. Or, the guardian would stop him after a few times and then everything would be fine again. And do you know who that specific guardian was to be?" his sister said quietly, looking deep into his tearstained eyes. She put her flippers on his shoulders, and he sighed.

"Me…I know…but why does this have to happen to our family? Why couldn't it happen to someone else…like…someone famous on Neopets. Like…the person with the most avatars. Or, the people who win Plushie Tycoon all the time…just, why me? We are insignificant in Neopets. Hardly anyone knows us…except for our owner's few friends," he whispered. He curled up into a ball, sobbing softly into his paws.

"Perhaps, brother, it is because the ancient faeries predicted that we would have a lowly life. Perhaps they wanted us to get a higher rank of respect in society. Maybe, just maybe, that is why this matter has been put onto our family's hands. After this, Neopians will recognize our names and rejoice with us. Do you not think that is satisfying?" she asked. The Poogle looked up, and a small bubble of hope formed.

"Do…do you really think so? Do you really think the ancient faeries knew about us and wanted to make our lives more exciting?" he spoke, rising. The yellow Flotsam nodded, a grim smile on her face. "Then I must take this great opportunity that they have given me. I won't fail our family again, sister. I will teach Glesh, and I will learn to persuade him and bring him peace!" He spoke this with a newfound confidence.

"Good," Flotsie said, smiling. "I will be there for you, helping you along the way. I'll be making sure you two don't get into much trouble." As his sister watched proudly, Weirdbal scrambled off to find their young brother. The two of them had work to do.

But the young Neopet could not be found. Weirdbal was running everywhere frantically, asking bystanders if they had seen a young yellow Quiggle anywhere. But no one had. His search began to fail, and he was greatly disappointed and worried. What has he done now? he thought angrily. Where is that Quiggle? After searching thoroughly in the neighbourhood and around, he decided to take a trip to Mystery Island to see if his brother was at his favourite past time place, the Beach. It cost him to take the flight from Neopia Central to Faerieland, the airbus from Faerie City to Krawk Island and the ferry from Krawk Island to Mystery Island around 2750 Neopoints. Normally the Poogle would have called on one of his flying friends to fly him directly to Mystery Island, but all of them were busy. But his attempt was fruitful - the Quiggle was indeed at the beach. However, when the Poogle spotted him, his cries of horror and failure could be heard all the way in the Island Mystic's hut…

"Nooo!" Weirdbal cried, his eyes flowing with tears. He raced after his adoptive brother, Glesh, but was restrained by a strong arm.

"It's too late, young one. Let him do as he wishes. You cannot do anything now," a gentle voice informed him. Weirdbal knew who it was, and was frustrated. He squirmed and fought to get out of his capturer's grasp, but all his attempts were useless. Remains of young Natives' work lay all around. He let more disappointed tears trickle down his face as he watched, helpless, his brother destroy another innocent Neopet's sandcastle.

The End