Ninja Faellie Diaries: Part Three

Ello happened to be in great physical shape. She could fly and run, was extremely flexible, and incredibly fast for her size. Chris used to be in great shape. Then Halloween came around, he lost his willpower to work out, stuffed his face with candy, and well... that was that.

     So when chaos started happening inside the restaurant Exquisite Ambrosia, Ello or Chris didn’t question the stranger Lola Lockhart and escaped out the back door with her. “What’s going on?!” Chris demanded.

     “We’re being hunted!” Lola answered. “And we’ve got to escape!”

     “Who are we being hunted by?” Ello asked.

     “There’s no time for questions; we either move now or we’ll be caught!” Lola Lockhart exclaimed forcefully. The three were in the dark alleyways of Altador. It was by now late at night, and not many Neopians were out on this cold night.

     Loud voices started to come closer and closer, accompanied by heavy footsteps. “Where do we go?” Chris asked.

     “Hide!” Ello exclaimed. The Faellie then leaped upon the two Shoyrus, knocking them into an alleyway dumpster.

     “Gross!” Lola hissed.

     “Quiet!” Chris ordered.

     The footsteps were now a few feet away from them. “I saw them come this way,” a deep mysterious voice said.

     “I did too; they must have gone somewhere else,” another voice agreed.

     “It’s a dead end; they must be hiding,” the first voice objected.

     “You’re right. Let’s start searching.” The footsteps resumed.

     Chris’s heart began to beat louder and louder, anticipation making him sweat from his brow. Any second now, and those mystery men would open the lid to the dumpster and discover him, Lola and Ello. “We need to get out of here,” Chris whispered as low as he could.

     “We need a plan,” Lola corrected.

     “I need a bath,” Ello added.

     “Alright, how many Neopets were after you, Lola?” Chris asked, ignoring Ello.

     “Probably five or six,” Lola answered.

     “Okay, we each fight two,” Ello said.

     “Are you two serious! We can’t fight them!”

     “Trust me Lola. We’re almost ninjas; we can do this.”

     The lid of the dumpster opened, and a snarling Jetsam looked down on them. “Well, well, well, what do we have here? Got some friends, do you, Lola? Well we can have three times the fun, can’t we?” The Jetsam stuck his fin inside the dumpster and pulled out Ello, holding her by the tail. “And what do we have here? A little itty bitty Faellie?” He grinned.

     “Don’t hurt him!” Chris cried.

     “Ah, I wasn’t going to hurt this helpless little Faellie,” the Jetsam lied, grinning even more.

     Ello smirked. “He was talking to me.” And with that, Ello flipped up and bit the Jetsam’s arm with her sharp teeth, making him howl and let go of her tail! This alerted the other Neopets around, and Chris and Lola leaped out of the dumpster! “Who’s next?” Ello grinned deviously, staring at the five other Neopets before her.

     “We’ve got no time for fighting; we’ve got to escape!” Lola exclaimed.

     “I’m on it!” Chris assured her. He reached into his backpack, grabbing a bag of faerie dust. In one swift movement he threw down the bag, grabbed Lola and Ello and propelled off the ground, the three of them flying high into the skies! As it turns out, the dust he had was a special smoke screen, making the enemies cough and go temporarily blind, giving them just enough time to escape!

     Once in the skies of Altador, Lola realized what had happened. “Thank you!” she exclaimed. “You two saved me!”

     “You’ve got some explaining to do!” Chris exclaimed.

     “Alright, alright, fair is fair. I’ll tell you what you need to know,” Lola answered, “as soon as we’re somewhere safe.”

     ~*~

December 4th, Month of Celebrating

     Dear Diary,

     Wow, a lot of craziness has happened! Everything is going great, Chris and I are on our mission, and we decide to rest in Altador. While we’re in a restaurant ordering food, we meet this girl named Lola Lockhart. Then we’re suddenly attacked, and Chris and I find ourselves on the run with this Lola girl, and there are Neopets out to get her!

     Finally the three of us escape, and we fly for a few hours until we reach the outskirts of Altador. We’re staying inside a comfy motel inn, and I’m worn out! And hungry! We just had to get attacked before dinner!

     Anyway, after Chris, Lola, and I ate a quick piece of Altadorian bread for dinner, Lola said she’ll finally explain to Chris and me why we were being hunted down. This should be good... I only wish I had some popcorn with me. Really, I wish I had popcorn... the bread is stale.

     ~*~

     Ello stuffed her diary underneath the cushion of the motel’s comfy chair, right as Chris and Lola stepped into the room. “Oh good, you two are here, I was about to go searching for you,” Ello said.

     “No need,” Chris smiled tiredly, sitting down on the same chair Ello stuffed her diary under. He shifted in his seat uncomfortably. “Is it me, or is this seat lumpy?”

     “It’s you, you dork, now please explain, Lola,” Ello insisted. No one was going to find her diary. No one.

     “Alright, it starts like this; I was born into a long line of famous Altadorian archers,” Lola began. “Once a year my father holds a fancy dinner party, a ceremony rather, and all the famous archer families get together to celebrate Christmas time and the new year of Neopia.”

     “Go on,” Chris pressed impatiently.

     Lola rolled her eyes. “Well, let’s just say I’m a disappointment to the family. Not only am I a horrible archer, but I’m supposed to be the next generation of Lockhart; I’m supposed to take over when my father steps down.”

     “Still doesn’t explain why we were attacked during dinner,” Chris said.

     “I’m getting to that!” Lola exclaimed. “Alright, so my father’s friend was hosting a ceremony at his house, and when our family showed up, I accidentally broke my father’s friend’s priceless golden arrow. By doing so, I have disgraced the name Lockhart, and the only way I can bring back my family’s good name and honor is to travel to Shenkuu and retrieve a priceless flower, because it is only the flower’s rare petal that can restore the glory of the broken golden arrow.”

     “And let me guess, those Neopets that attacked us don’t want you to restore your family’s honor?” Chris asked.

     Lola nodded solemnly. “Correct. They belong to another famous archer family, and they want to be the only famous one. They somehow knew I was going to begin my quest tonight, followed me, and well... you two got dragged into my problems as well.”

     “And does this rare flower happen to be the Lotus Flower, which only grows underneath the deepest and most dangerous waterfall of Shenkuu?” Ello asked.

     “Yes,” Lola answered. “How did you know that?”

     “Because that flower is what I need to restore my focus and turn Chris and myself into ninjas,” Ello answered.

     Lola began to laugh hysterically. She fell to the floor gripping her sides, laughing all of her breath out. “What’s so funny?!” Chris demanded.

     “Ha ha! It’s just- aha- you need a –aha– flower to make you guys ninjas?” Lola asked between giggles.

     Ello and Chris exchanged looks. “Uh...”

     ~*~

December 4th, Month of Celebrating

     Dear Diary,

     Ninjas don’t depend on flowers.

     ~*~

     It was still the fourth day of Celebrating when Chris, Ello, and Lola woke up from their slumber. Chris checked outside and by the looks of the skies it seemed to be 7:00 in the morning. “We should get a move on,” he said to Lola.

     “We?” she asked.

     “You’re coming with us, aren’t you?”

     “Well... I wasn’t sure if you two wanted me to come or not.”

     “Of course we do.” Ello grinned happily, “We’re both after the same thing, aren’t we? We’ll run into each other eventually. Plus, if those same Neopets give us any trouble, Chris and I can help you escape them.”

     Lola smiled. “Thank you. I’m in debt to you two, really.” Chris winked at her, and the three flew out of the motel, and began their flight to Shenkuu. The weather was harsh and unforgiving, and the three had to fly low to the ground to not get caught up in the ferocious wind. Eventually, the three safely made it to Shenkuu, and Ello had to suppress her desire to go to the Lunar Temple and bug the Wise Old Gnorbu.

     “Have you ever been to Shenkuu before, Lola?” Chris asked.

     “No, this is my first time,” Lola answered.

     “Well, this is a merchant town. As nice as this place is, don’t let any of the locals know how many neopoints you’ve got.”

     “Unfortunately, I’m broke.”

     “Then at least you won’t fall victim to a pick pocket.”

     Chris looked around where the three had landed, which was right outside the medical building. “Think if we ask around the locals will tell us where the deepest and most dangerous waterfall is?” Ello asked.

     “No need,” Lola answered. “Look out there; that waterfall must be it.” The red Shoyru pointed, and Chris and Ello saw where she referred to. And they gulped in nerves. Far off in the distance, was a waterfall that fell from the biggest mountain of Shenkuu, with the water raging rapidly, and the drop of the waterfall looking deadly. One word to describe that waterfall: fatality.

     ~*~

December 4th, Month of Celebrating

     Dear Diary,

     I hate waterfalls. That is all.

     ~*~

     “Okay, so how are we going to go about this?” Ello asked Chris, when the three flew close enough to the waterfall. They were across the waterfall standing on a group of rocks, huge and sturdy enough to support their weight. They had to talk loudly over the roaring water ahead of them.

     Chris pondered his Faellie’s question. “Alright, Ello, because you're small enough, you should be the one to dive through the waterfall and search for the flower.”

     “Size does matter,” Lola agreed.

     “WHAT?” Ello shrieked. “So basically what you’re saying is I’m the bait?”

     “Bait to what?” Chris asked.

     “Fine, not bait, but you would really put me in the front lines of danger?”

     “Ello, it was your brilliant idea to go to the Training School, ask Sensei to give you a task, and to come all the way to Shenkuu TO THE BIGGEST AND MOST DANGEROUS WATERFALL! So YES, you ARE going to be in the front lines of danger!”

     ~*~

December 4th, Month of Celebrating

     Dear Diary,

     Get Chris a lump of coal for the next ten Christmases.

     ~*~

     “Alright, Ello, the rope around you is tight and secure,” Lola assured her, tugging the rope for the fiftieth time.

     “Are you ready, Ello?” Chris asked.

     The Faellie sighed. “As ready as I’ll ever be.”

     “That’s the spirit,” Lola encouraged.

     “Remember, Ello, this is all for the ninja glory,” Chris reminded her.

     That was all he needed to say to get his Faellie focused. “You’re right!” she exclaimed. “For the ninja glory!”

     “Don’t forget you need to pick two Lotus Flowers, one for me and one for you,” Lola reminded. “And good luck. Chris and I will be on the other side of the rope if anything goes wrong.”

     Ello nodded. She took in a new breath, then walked backwards as far as the rope would let her. Goodbye, sweet land, she thought solemnly. And then she crouched down on all fours (a rare thing she did) and took off running as fast as she could! With a giant leap, Ello propelled herself off the rock, gaining immense speed! She’d need every bit of that speed, because in order to get the Lotus Flower, she’d have to get past the waterfall, which meant going through it. And to simply fly through it wasn’t going to work, so she had to build up speed. The only question going through Ello, Chris’s and Lola’s heads?

     How much speed?

     Ello squeezed her eyes shut tightly, feeling the weight of the water pound onto her pink fur. Luckily for her, it only lasted a second, but for that one second it felt as if a thousand pounds of freezing water covered her entire body. The Faellie shivered. “That’ll clear out the sinuses.”

     Finally, she had made it behind the water. Ello stared in awe at the inside of the water, how everything looked as if it was made of crystal. The floor and walls looked like a cave, and were glittering bright neon purple mixed with brown. It truly was a magnificent sight. She decided she would tuck this image away in her memories, and think of it whenever she saw something disgusting like Rachel reading romance novels out loud to her.

     Ello shook out the cold water from her fur (making her look extra fluffy and irresistible to the faint of fluffy heart) and walked along the cave. After walking a few yards, Ello’s eyes widened at what lay in front of her- a patch of Lotus Flowers. The flowers were beautiful, really, and Ello reminded herself to give thanks to nature more often. “Snap out of your daze, you’re on a mission,” Ello told herself. She carefully picked two Lotus Flowers, and hurriedly turned back towards the front of the cave.

     Now came the difficult part. Unfortunately, getting in the cave wasn’t as hard as getting out. Not only did Ello not have enough room to back up and pick up speed as she had before, but she was carrying two very precious flowers in her paws. Ello gulped. She’d have to take a chance on luck, hope for the best, and get it over with. Perhaps she should have heard Sensei’s other option in restoring her focus. Maybe next time she wouldn’t choose the life-threatening option. “Oh well. No time for the past,” Ello said aloud again.

     She backed up as far as the rope would allow her to. She then put the two flowers inside her mouth, careful not to damage them with her fangs. If she held them in her paws, they’d get wet from the waterfall. With a quick breath, Ello then began to run on all fours as fast as her heart was beating. The roaring water got louder and louder, closer and closer. Closing her eyes, Ello leaped out, felt the ice cold water crush upon her, and then felt it stop.

     “Yes!” Ello cheered, realizing she had made it out. She flew to the end of the rope where Chris and Lola were. “I did it, guys, I got the flowers! We can go home now!” she exclaimed.

     There was no answer. Ello gasped. Chris and Lola were gone. But the Faellie knew they didn’t just leave- they were taken.

To be continued...