Destiny: Darkness, But With a Hope

     "You claim you know everything, right?" I gulped. I had once told my Neopets that I knew everything and if they dared to lie or disobey the strict household laws, I would know immediately. Ashkinzy was always the smart one in the family. She didn't fully believe what I had said, therefore, she always asked me any unusual questions she could think of whenever she wasn't joking around.

     "Uh, yeah," I nervously replied, trying to stuff my mouth with a toast with grape jam.

     "Well, I want to know about Meridell."

     "Meridell? Your cousins live there. Even your famous cousin, Sinsi, lives in Meridell. Wow, she's such a brilliant ixi for inventing that game…"

     "Hu! I want to know more about… my heritage."

     "Okay. Meridell is ruled by the fat grumpy king, Skarl. The population of Meridell is mostly of farmers and peasants. The nice pretty faerie, Illusen, lives there. You came from a pretty noble family, though…" I started off, and I took another bite out of my toast.

     "No, Hu. I know that, but I want to know… about that King that ruled when my parents were young as me." I realized that Ashkinzy wasn't trying to intimidate me. She was trying to gather up any last bits of links to her parents who died in a struggle during the wars. I felt bad for thinking this was a way for her to dominate the household.

     "That would have to be King Skarlette. His story is so tragic." I looked at Ashkinzy's sad rosebud smile.

     "Please, go on Hu…" With her request, I took a quick sip of my hot Borovan and began.

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     "Fortuneteller, tell me, what do you see for the future of my kingdom?" inquired King Skarlette casually as he twirled his thick brown mustache. He was a blue Lupe dressed in a plum-purple robe with intricate gold designs on the edges. The fortuneteller, a red Zafara, gazed at a misty crystal ball, absentmindedly like in a trance, and finally spoke. Rubbing her eyes, she had a horrified look on her face.

     "Oh my majesty! My dear majesty!" she cried with tears streaming down her cheeks.

     "Oh dear Fortuneteller, it honestly can't be that bad. Why, the kingdom is so prosperous and happy. So, tell me, what is it that frightened you?"

     "It's terrible. I see…I see your kingdom. I see a Gelert falling. I see shadows of these horrible beings in dark cloaks, laughing evilly. I perceive darkness for your kingdom. Darkness. My dear majesty!" exclaimed the fortuneteller.

     "I don't believe you. The kingdom's prosperous. Nothing is going to happen. You'll see." With that, the king's face paled and he turned around and walked out of the room, leaving the fortuneteller utterly speechless.

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     In a large castle there was a room. In that room laid a baby Aisha. Golden curls of hair outlined the baby's angelic look. Its cheeks were as pink as the blossoming roses in the royal garden. The baby's eyes were shut, and it was sleeping. It laid in a baby bed with white laces bordering everything in sight. Pink ribbons bordered everything as well. However, the baby didn't wear lace or any ribbons. Instead, it wore a fine white silk gown. But, the baby wasn't the only one in the room. A yellow Gelert with dark brown hair watched lovingly at her daughter. The Gelert wasn't just any Neopet; she was Queen Skarlette.

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     Meanwhile, a group of rebels gathered in a secret location for a secret meeting. The group had a similar scar under each of their left eye, and they all wore black cloaks.

     "We must conjure up a name for us, rebels," announced one of the Neopets in the meeting. All agreed about this, but what would they call themselves?

     "How about the Dark Shadows of the Treveltal Kingdom?" suggested one. Everyone rejected that idea and groaned. It was going to be a while until they would have the perfect name.

     "What about the Total Destruction of Kingdom Treveltal, or the TDOKT for short?" later suggested the shortest of the group. A group of ayes echoed through the chilly air. The shortest of the group grinned and then said, "Now, for our first target…"

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     A messenger, a young brown Ixi named Kaetush, ran to the king's castle and said that a village was being destroyed by roaring flames which appeared out of nowhere. Sir Goldhit, a green Grarrl, was ordered to investigate the flames and the cause of the flames immediately and help villagers escape. He came, but it was too late to help anyone. The homes and houses were demolished. All that was left of the village were piles of slate grey ashes. Sir Goldhit sighed sadly, and pearl shaped tears trickled down his cheeks. A baby Kougra woke up in a tree and realized that the worst must have happened. It cried out of utter despair and confusion. Wiping his tears, Sir Goldhit turned his head toward the tree and saw the only survivor. He cradled the baby Kougra and heard an insane cackling from above on the hilltop. The moon lit just the outlines of a group of black shadows. Deeply frightened for the first time, Sir Goldhit swiftly got on his saddle with the baby and galloped towards the castle on his white Uni called Purity.

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     Daintily kissing her sleeping baby on the head, the queen strolled outside to sniff the courtyard's roses.

     "What a beautiful day it is," commented Queen Scarlette.

     "Yes it is, and it'll be your last day."

     "What?" asked the confused queen as she whirled around. But, before she could who was talking or what was happening, a dagger was thrust into her chest, and she instantly died. The rumors were that it was a neopet in a black cloak and that a group of dangerous rebels were destroying villages and that the person who committed the terrible crime was part of the rebels; the TDOKT.

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     "Fortuneteller, tell me, what else do you see for the future of my kingdom?" whispered the king who was sad and depressed from his wife's death. His once cheerful brown eyes were nothing but darkened shadows. The old red Zafara closed her eyes and opened them again.

     "I see darkness, the same darkness that is shrouding your kingdom. This kingdom's destiny is to fall to the darkness."

     "What about my daughter? Will she be falling like her mother?" The fortuneteller closed her cloudy grey eyes again and opened them again.

     "I see darkness shrouding this kingdom, but I see light. Your daughter's destiny is intertwined with the light. There shall be darkness, but with a hope. That too is destined to happen."

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     "No one is quite sure what happened to the fortuneteller, but some say she fled right after telling the king what she had prophesized. Others say that she's still living in the walls of the very same castle, whispering her visions of the future. As for the king, his kingdom fell to dark times, but his only daughter regained control of Treveltal. She renamed it, Meridell. No one really knows what happened to her either…" I concluded, finished my cup of cold Borovan with a sip.

     "Thank you for that… it means so much." Ashkinzy looked at me with misty blue eyes.

     "No problem, no problem at all…" I quickly gave Ashkinzy a bear hug with her groaning.

The End