《The Raven of Poppy Pond》


 Chapter 1 - Watcher #029

    Do you think all creatures are equal? If they were, why would humans have planes and cars and buildings? Animals don''t have any of that stuff. Soon enough, humans will even inhabit the ocean and maybe underground too. Some of you might roll your eyes and say that, because we are on the top of the food chain, we are supposed to have this stuff. On earth, this is just how it is. Humans always want to be above others whether they¡¯re other humans or not.


    This is a story about someone who is not human. But he couldn¡¯t be anything else. He is a Watcher. A creature born from human experimentation. Truly a cruel way to be born into this world. This young Watcher is named #029. Two-Nine for short. He is one of the last Watchers to be created before the Wipeout. Only 26 Watchers are currently known. #029 is off the list.


    Two-Nine wanted a name. When he was about eight years old, he asked his mothers for one. They just avoided the question. His mothers had names so why not him? He was just three sad numbers. The other people in his village had names too. He thought that it was very strange. How did he even get his numbers? His parents wouldn¡¯t do that to him. He knew that he wasn¡¯t their real child and he wasn¡¯t very interested in finding his real parents. They left him here anyway so why bother?


    By the time Two-Nine was ten years old, he wanted to explore the surrounding mountains and forests. His mothers only let him stay around the village. Close enough for anyone to see him. One day, he went further through the forest. He went far enough until the village disappeared. On the other side of this forest was a pond. The pond was quite red and seemed murky¡­. As he walked closer, he noticed the trees were leaning towards the pond, like hands grabbing greedily at the last bread rolls in a basket, letting in very little light. The pond didn''t reflect anything. Shadows couldn¡¯t be seen on the surface. He heard something rustling the bushes behind him. He twirled around, assuming it was a large animal of sorts. It was the butcher from the village. Two-Nine¡¯s parents must have noticed he was missing and informed the citizens. The moment the butcher looked at him, his eyes widened. He looked between Two-Nine and the pond. ¡°Boy¡­. You come here right this instant!¡± Two-Nine followed Kevin the butcher back through the forest.


    When they got back to the village, the moon was peeping out from the clouds. It must have been a long walk. Kevin walked him back to his house and jogged away. Perhaps he went away so fast because he was scared. Or he ran because he needed to find Two-Nine¡¯s mothers¡­. This was the end of his exploring. His parents did everything to stop him from leaving the village. Sunday was the only day that he could go to the forest. But only with at least one of his mothers close behind him.


    Two-Nine was 15 now. Five years of missing the forest. Five years since the pond. If he could go back in time then he would collect a cup of the red water. Only to look at of course. Maybe. Yeah, no. He might drink it as a part of his ¡°experiments.¡± One day, after going to the butcher, he took a detour through the various shops of the village. He never knew the name of the village, he just knew that it was off the grid. No one from the outside even knew it was here. There were never any visitors. Except for his aunt. She was the only one who ever came to and from the village. He didn¡¯t have any money to buy things at the moment but soon he would but he was planning to do chores for people for a little coin. His mothers, Sif and Isis, would never approve of his plan.


    Two-Nine was going to the pond soon. He didn¡¯t remember much about it, just that Kevin was scared of it and that it was red and shadowy. He knew nothing about the scenery around it or any wildlife nearby. Two-Nine had decided a while ago to name it ¡°Poppy Pond¡±. It wasn¡¯t very fitting considering the pond was like blood and not at all like the flower. He was going to camp near the pond so he can get samples of it and do small experiments like if he can drink it or if it can boil. A year later he might have enough money to buy the supplies he needed.


    Two-Nine was done with the village and done with the forest. He didn¡¯t know what to do and he didn¡¯t know where to go. He could go back to Poppy Pond like he said he would a year ago but he didn¡¯t feel like it anymore. His mother, Sif, has died. It was only recently as well. Two-Nine¡¯s goal of exploring the pond was gone. He had no reason to go anymore.


    No one knows how Sif died. Isis probably did but then she would tell him, right? It wasn¡¯t old age though. She was young and healthy. She was very energetic too. The villagers made a grave for her and it was large enough to make it seem like she was the most important person in the whole village. Two-Nine often stayed at her grave. He took naps there. Sometimes he would stay the night under a tree near the graveyard. Isis loved her very dearly, though she pretended like nothing ever happened. Two-Nine didn¡¯t know why. How could she just act as if nothing happened? Something clearly did. It was her own wife that had died. If anyone else had died like a sister or a brother, would she still pretend to not care?If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    After many days of sitting at the grave, he had decided to go to Poppy Pond. He had enough money for supplies. He didn¡¯t think about when he would get time to go. When he got home from Sif¡¯s grave Isis was sitting at their dinner table sipping on a cup of tea. Completely normal. He thought that she must have a really good poker face to be sitting so peacefully like her wife didn¡¯t just die. Two-Nine was quite annoyed at this. He walked right past her and into his room but she didn¡¯t even give him a second glance.


    He had to think of a way to get to the pond. Maybe on Sunday when he could go outside. No, Sunday was not good, he might not be allowed out. Besides, he was always supervised when he explored. He could say that he was going to the butcher¡­. That''s not good either. Isis might ask the butcher if he bought anything and if not she would ask which direction he went.


    He had to prepare first. He had to spread his shopping trip over a couple of days because he didn¡¯t want to cause much suspicion and tomorrow, he would go to a couple of shops and get necessities like a tarp, rope, and a knife. He¡¯ll have to get food at the last moment though. He didn¡¯t want it to go downhill before he even left the village.


    The next morning, about dawn, he asked if he could visit his mother¡¯s grave. Isis thought for a bit but reluctantly let him go. He walked out of the house and straight to the Prepare Hare. The Prepare Hare was a shop with everything you need in order to go camping. Since the village was located in a forest, the shop was a very smart and easy way for the owner to earn money. He greeted the owner and started to look for supplies.


    When he was ready to leave, he walked to the counter where the owner was reading a book. Two-Nine had a large number of items in his arms. He paid and left, leaving Cornelious the owner with a confused look on his face.


    Two-Nine did go to Sif¡¯s grave. However, he walked right past it and over to a tree. This was the same tree he often spent the night at. He sat for a while under the tree with his stuff piled next to him. Then he started to dig a hole under the tree. This hole would store his goods and be completely hidden until it was time for him to leave.


    He went back home after a nap at the tree. His mother was sitting at the table again. She didn¡¯t have a cup of tea this time but she was saying something. He couldn¡¯t hear what she was saying. He walked a couple of steps closer. She didn¡¯t even notice. She was saying something over and over again. He had to move closer.


    ¡°Find the Watcher, Watch the mirror, find the Watcher, Watch the mirror¡­.¡±


    Two-Nine went to the tree. He wasn¡¯t going to delay any further. He was going to the pond whether Isis was insane or Sif was dead. He dug up his supplies and started walking towards the direction of the pond. He didn¡¯t remember exactly where he found it last time. He did know that he passed the Prepare Hare. So, he went in that general direction.


    Isis has finally gone insane. She must have finally realized that Sif wasn¡¯t coming back. Two-Nine walked through the forest for a while. It was about an hour since he walked through the village and he was starting to get hungry. He looked through the canopy of leaves. The sky was a red-orange color. How was the sun setting already? He left around lunch! He must have been walking for far more than an hour.


    He decided to camp out so he can eat and rest. He would have to find a place to sleep for the night. After finding a nice spot in front of a tree, he set his stuff down and looked for four very tall sticks. He had to climb a tree for one of them. When he had them, he stuck them in the ground. The two shortest sticks were in the back while the other two were in the front. He then laid his tarp on top of the four sticks and tied them together with a rope.


    He didn¡¯t have much but he did swipe some stuff from his house before leaving. He unpacked the things and brought out a sleeping bag, a matchbox, and a knife. He laid out the sleeping bag and put the matchbox next to it. He held onto the knife as he looked for good firewood.


    Once he had a large enough stack, he began to collect large rocks. He placed the rocks he found in a circle and placed the sticks inside. He grabbed his matchbox and lit a fire. It took him a couple of tries because he couldn¡¯t figure out the right way to light the matches.


    Crickets started to chirp as he looked through his bag again. He forgot to pack food. He might as well starve. ¡°Well, I''m dead.¡± His voice was hoarse. He didn¡¯t even have water. ¡°Half a day and I might as well be DEAD!¡± He started to shout at the canopy of leaves, making his voice sound worse and worse. He ended up sittingdown under the tarp again with his throat hurting and started to think. Sif was dead and Isis was insane. Isis¡­. What did she mean by ¡®Find the Watcher¡¯ and ¡®Watch the mirror?¡¯ What is a Watcher and why would you watch a mirror? Is it an actual mirror? How could he not have reached the pond yet? If he were to actually sleep, how much more time would pass? Might as well try¡­. He climbed into his sleeping bag and laid down. The forest was quite dark and creepy at this time. After a while of sitting in silence, he fell asleep. He didn¡¯t dream. Even in his sleep, it seemed like time was slipping away.

 Chapter 2 - Trying New Things

    Two-Nine slept until noon. He was very exhausted the night before. He laid there for a little while and got up. There was morning dew on the ground. ¡°Strange,¡± he said, ¡°how could that be?¡± He packed up his things and set out for Poppy Pond once again. He was hungry. He didn¡¯t have any food last night. He forgot to buy an from the village before leaving. When he gets to the pond he might look for some food. Like berries or a bird or something.


    After what seemed like an hour of walking, it started to get dark and he saw a clearing. In the clearing was the still pond. It was red and murky and was surrounded by black flowers and trees that seemed to lean towards the center, only letting in small beams of dull light. He has never seen these flowers before. The pond wasn¡¯t reflecting the roof of trees above. It was just a murky red. The beams of light didn¡¯t reflect either. They just disappeared into the pond. Poppy Pond¡­. What an unfitting name for such an eerie setting.


    He was finally here. No need to worry about Isis finding him. He stared at the pond for a minute then walked around it. If anyone happens to find him, then he would see them coming. They would also have to walk around the pond to get to him. When he got to the other side, he set his things up again. This time though, he set his tarp on the ground. He found four large stones and put one on each corner to keep it from flying away from any possible wind. He set his sleeping bag on one side of the tarp and put his remaining stuff next to it.


    A raven landed on the other side of the pond. Raven¡­. What a pretty word.


    Raven was also a pretty name. He had read books with people named Raven. He had never read any with people named after numbers though. Two-Nine was not a good name. He might as well have been named Rat or Orange Peel.


    Two-Nine wanted a name. He asked someone once. They ignored his request. Two-Nine wanted a name. He no longer has to ask.  No one could ignore him now. Raven¡­. He liked it. He has a name. Two-Nine was Raven.


    Two-Nine, now named Raven, needed food but he didn¡¯t know how to hunt. He had his knife so he could make a spear out of a stick. That¡¯s exactly what he did. He collected a stick and used his knife to shave the top. Once it had a sharp enough tip, he put his knife away and paced around. How would he even be able to find and kill something? He could barely watch the butcher prepare meat! He decided to walk away from where he entered Poppy Pond.


    He wouldn¡¯t hunt ravens. They were what inspired his name after all. Maybe he could hunt animals later and collect plants for now.


    He walked around the forest for a while collecting plants that looked edible. He used his shirt as a hammock for the plants. Once he obtained a large stack of mushrooms, berries, and other random greens, he walked back to his tarp and set them down. What if he cooked some of the plants and kept the others for later? He will have to make another fire in order to do that, though. He might as well make the fire neat while he camps here.


    After many days, Raven figured out the pattern of time. The days were way shorter than they should be. He wasn¡¯t good at math, so he couldn¡¯t figure out exactly how fast. It hasn¡¯t rained yet, which he thought was strange. He also started tallying up the days that passed by drawing in the dirt. The water in Poppy Pond was red but when it was removed from the pond, it turned clear, like normal drinking water but super cold. He decided to drink it. Stupid? Yes, but he needed to drink something otherwise he would die. Turns out the water was harmless.This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.


    Raven became nauseous every time he skinned an animal. It was quite gross. He kept some of the skins as a kind of rug to cover the bare dirt so he can safely sit on the ground near his stuff. The other skins were used to repair any holes in his clothing. As it got colder, he realized that he needed a whole new set of clothes. He could go back to the village to get new clothing like a coat and at least a new pair of pants. People would see him if he did that though¡­. He had enough skins to make a shirt and pants and the only thing he needed to figure out was what he could sew with. His knife. He could make thin strips of animal skin and he could use his knife to poke holes in the skin to thread the strips through.


    He was thinking of many things while making a shirt. Black absorbs heat better, also, it looks cooler. Why did Isis go crazy? If he kept making clothing then would he get better? Might as well add a cool hood. Those flowers look like they could be used for dye¡­.


    After a couple of days, he finally made a wearable shirt. It doesn¡¯t look very good at the moment. It had long sleeves of course. It was unnaturally cold at Poppy Pond. He dug a hole in the ground and filled it with water. He then collected some black flowers from around the pond and placed them in the hole. He crushed them up and they made the water and his hand black. ¡°If it stains my hand, then it might stain my clothes. Good.¡± He hasn¡¯t spoken in a while. His voice sounded loud in the silence surrounding the pond. He started to hum a tune and kept humming all throughout his work.


    Over the course of about 3 years, Raven had better clothes and tools. He had even made a small shack. Sadly, the shack would collapse often and he would have to rebuild it. It could still store stuff for a while. He would often find black feathers around the forest and eventually collected enough to attach to a hooded cloak. That was exactly what he did. If he curled up on the ground under the cloak, then he would look like a black bush. This was very helpful when hunting at night.


    His hair got longer as well. He didn¡¯t have anything to cut it with other than his knife and he didn¡¯t really trust his knife skills. So he just let it grow. If it was a windy day he would have to pull it up with a strip of animal skin. He left his hair tangled for the most part. The only time he untangled it was if he accidentally got animal blood on himself and needed to rinse it off.


    One day, he decided to go hunt for a larger animal to have enough meat to relax for a while without hunting. He was curled up with his cloak disguising him as he watched a bear. He had hunted bears before but not without a struggle. He only had a sharp stick as his weapon so it was hard to get good meat.


    Raven was about to attack it when he heard a loud, ugly sound. It was like a yell followed by a choking sound. He was frozen to the spot. What is that? There was something coming closer. He heard uneven footsteps. More and more followed the pair until the creatures stopped. He still couldn¡¯t see anything, after all, he was crouched on the ground in the shape of a bush. More loud yelling came. The footsteps started again only to move faster!


    That¡¯s it, he thought, I¡¯m running. He got up and ran. He looked back to see if the creatures were following. Yeah¡­ they were. They were humanoid but slimy and blackish green. They were pretty fast considering they each had one extra-long leg. They all had one to ten large, white eyes spread out on their ¡°faces¡±.


    If Raven got to Poppy Pond fast enough then he would be able to get in the water. They might not follow him in. He kept running until he spotted the pond. Without stopping, he grabbed his bag and ran into the pond. His bag had important stuff in it. He didn¡¯t want the creatures to loot him.


    He swam to the center of the pond and floated there. The creatures came crashing into the clearing, leaving a black, slimy trail behind. They spotted him in the lake and started to yell at each other. One of them found a large rock and threw it at him, missing by about a foot.


    Raven started to panic. If the others do that too then he would have nothing else to do! He, himself, started yelling and splashing at them hoping it would make them back up. Instead of backing up though, they picked up rocks and sticks to throw at him. Well then¡­.


    Raven took a deep breath and ducked underwater. The items being thrown at him stopped suddenly. He waited until he ran out of air, then swam back up through the red water and out of Poppy Pond.

 Godless

    Felix Hyetal was a young man of twenty years. He lived in Godless. This was a place twinning with another. They were two sides of the same coin. On one side there was Earth and on the other, there was Godless.


    Godless was a place with many kingdoms and cities. Each kingdom has a ruler. And as the name suggests, they have no god.


    Felix was someone of royalty. To be more specific, he is the nephew of a king. This king was the ruler of a kingdom called Hyetal. The Hyetals have always ruled this kingdom for as long as anyone could remember.


    One day, Felix and his uncle, King Avian, were sitting on a bench near Hyetal Pond. Hyetal Pond was something like a portal to the other side. On the other side was an anomaly called a Time-Slip. They didn¡¯t have one on this side.


    This means that you move slower but time moves the same. When you¡¯re in it, your brain kind of makes you believe that you are moving normally. Let¡¯s say you aren¡¯t affected by it. You would notice that everything was moving very slowly but anything that is affected would see you moving abnormally fast.


    ¡°If you want someone to teach you then you just need to ask.¡± The king was trying to convince Felix to find someone to teach him how to use a bow. He didn¡¯t want the king to go out of his way to find someone. ¡°No thank you, I wouldn¡¯t want to bother you or anyone else,¡± Felix said, feeling tired. It has been a while since he has talked to King Avian. Their conversations got longer every time they saw each other.


    Felix looked around in an attempt to not make eye contact. He looked at the ceiling, outside, at a tree, at the bubbling pond¡­. Why was it bubbling?


    ¡°Um, your majesty?¡± Felix was concerned. Why would the pond be bubbling? How? It has never done this before! ¡°How could this be?!¡± the king exclaimed. ¡°Why would something come through now?¡± What? Something was coming to this side? What did he mean?


    The pond looked like it was boiling. King Avian got up and started shouting while Felix was glued to his seat. Out from Hyetal Pond came a black creature. It looked something like a Defective. Felix just recently learned about the Defective in school and was terrified.


    The thing flailed to the edge of the pond and stopped. Felix stood up and ran towards it, kicking it back into the center. It wasn¡¯t moving. Could it be dead already? Maybe the air on Earth is different from the air on Godless. If it was, then it probably took one breath and died.This narrative has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. If you see it on Amazon, please report it.


    The king was still shouting and running around while Felix got into the pond. As long as he stays above the surface and doesn¡¯t fully submerge himself then he wouldn¡¯t be transported to the other side.


    He swam to the black creature and grabbed it by the leg. At least, he thinks it¡¯s a leg. He pulled it out of the pond and let go. If it really is a Defective then what would we do? If the king is killed by it then the kingdom will be in chaos.


    ¡°What is it?! Is it a Defective? Will it kill us? Wait, is it dead?¡± The king kept asking question after question. The creature was very humanoid. Felix flipped it over to get a better look. The creature was¡­. A human?!


    King Avian came over to have a look as well. When he saw the human, he gasped. ¡°How could a human come through the pond? No one has come through the pond in over 100 years!¡±


    Felix ignored him and stared at the person. They looked like a man. Though he did seem to be dead, he was still breathing. ¡°Let¡¯s find a doctor and just toss him away. He¡¯s not our problem,¡± Felix said. ¡°He could be useful and we could get information from him, though, but it¡¯s your choice, uncle.¡±


    Felix looked around and spotted a couple of guards heading towards them. They must have heard the king yell. They were unusually late though. They would normally come over immediately if they heard the king shout. He often shouts so they might have thought it was just a false alarm.


    Felix walked over to them and they met halfway. ¡°Hello. You¡¯re a bit late for guards who are currently ¡®on the job.¡¯ His majesty was shouting for quite a while.¡± They looked guilty and they obviously felt bad about it. ¡°Something has come out of the pond. I need one of you to inform the queen. Tell her to come over while you¡¯re at it.¡±


    He saw one of them run towards the castle. Everyone else had their mouths wide enough to swallow a horse. Felix turned around and walked back to the pond-man and the king. At the moment, the king was crouched down next to the man and poking his face. The man wasn¡¯t waking up even as a group of chattering guards crowded around him.


    ¡°So¡­. Is he alive?¡± Everyone started asking questions about him even if Felix didn¡¯t have any answers. Felix was starting to feel tired. After thinking for a while, he said, ¡°You know what, just take him to a doctor. We¡¯ll ask him questions later.¡±


    Two people grabbed both his arms and dragged him away leaving a wet trail. Oh¡­. he forgot that the man had just crawled his way out of a magical-portal-pond-thing. Oops. the man might not even be in the right headspace to answer questions. Anyone insane enough to go through a one-way portal wasn¡¯t anyone Felix Hyetal wanted to be involved with.


    Felix and his uncle stood at Hyetal Pond watching the crowd of people walk away. The king himself walked away after a while, leaving Felix standing there.


    A long while later he walked away. He went to his bedroom and went right to sleep. It was as if a man didn¡¯t come out of a portal-pond.