“Welcome…” I heard a voice. “Didn’t expect you so soon.” it continued.
I looked around but saw no one. “Who are you?” I asked.
“Your worst enemy,” said a Kacheek with a white beard and hair. He was quite
fat, wore a lab coat, and his face was strangely familiar, although I can’t
put my paw on who he was.
“Oh thanks, that really helped.” I said sarcastically, but perhaps this wasn't
the best time to be funny.
“Do you dare make a joke of the Grand Master of the Universe?”
“How do I know that you’re the Grand Master?” I asked, trying to delay time,
until I can get out of this place... because this guy is just crazy!
“Well then, I’ll show you.” He said as he snapped his fingers and something
was being lowered down by a rope… it was Mina!
“Now, do you believe me? What else could have caused Mina to disappear and
make everyone else mad?”
“Bad hair day?”
“What?!?” he said, as his hair was rising, his eyes bulging and became red,
but he soon relaxed again.
“I like you... you remind me of me when I was young, always making people
mad, so I’ll spare your life longer... until I've finished my story. By the
way, my name is Dr. Death. Anyways, I poisoned the air with 'Anger Dust,' as
it was called, and being on top of a mountain, you know how easy it is for the
dust to spread.”
“Why did you do it?”
“Wait, let me finish. I knew you were coming, and for being a fortuneteller
in my early days, I learned that you would be the one to cause my downfall.
Well now, that won’t happen because I’ve got you in my hands. The dust only
worked on the people here, not outsiders, like you, and what still puzzles me
is why Mina never got infected with it. So my plan now, is to create a potion
and add in lots and lots of water, to make a really big potion. Then, with my
special devices, I will open up the ground, and all the people above will fall
in to my potion and shrink until about my size and I shall control them all.
Ha, ha, ha! *cough, cough* Whew, getting too old for this. And as for you, I’ll
have to destroy you, because your will is too strong. I guess it’s your gift,
for me to control you. I’ll also get rid of that girl Mina, because it was she
who made me shrink. One day, while I was testing new shrinking potions by sniffing
them, that girl went in and scared me, making me drink my own potion, and spilling
the growing potion to the floor. She then laughed and laughed, even though I
told her not to. Oh, and one more thing, that Grundo you saw at Terror Mountain
was me. I never was gone, and I never will be. Ha, ha, ha!!!”
He raised his hand as if he was about to strangle me. I knew I couldn’t run
away, he blocked every possible escape route. I closed my eyes and thought of
happy thoughts, and for some reason, the only thing I could remember was how
my mom hugged and kissed me, how my dad used to play with me, and how my grandpa
read books to me while I was a baby. Grandpa… he went away when I was real young,
and I had forgotten about him when I grew up. I tried to remember his face,
his round face, white hair, white beard, then suddenly I remembered!
“Grandpa!” I shouted.
“What?” Dr. Death said as he let down his arms.
“Grandpa, it’s me, Leli.”
“Leli… that does sound very familiar. No it’s not, annihilate the boy, he
knows too much already.” He said as if having mixed emotions.
“Grandpa, don’t you remember how you used to read books to me? And my mom
and dad…”
“Yes, how I remember those two, and they had a son named…Leli! It’s you! Destroy
him! No, I won’t he’s my grandson. I said get rid of him, or your daughter will
be lost.”
“No, mom’s okay, don’t listen to him. You’ve got to fight him, he has controlled
you too long.”
“Do not stop, destroy him, and the world will soon be yours. I do not care
about the world, I care about my family! No, you don’t . Yes, I do.”
“Grandpa, think of happy thoughts when you were still with us.” I think he
followed my advice because I saw him thinking hard as he finally fell down.
“Are you alright?” I asked him.
“Yeah, quick, help me over there.”
“Over where?”
“Over there.”
“There where?”
“Leli! The room with the buttons!!!”
“What for?”
“Just take me there and I’ll explain later, there’s no time.”
I helped my grandpa to “the room with the buttons” and he started to hit buttons
as fast as he could. I ran back and got Mina, who was still unconscious.
“Mina! Wake up! We’ve got to go!” I shouted, then she began to stir.
“What happened?” she asked.
“I’ll tell you later.”
“All done!” my grandpa walked out happily.
“With what?” I asked.
“I’ll tell you later. Let’s get out of here!”
In my opinion, that’s too much, “I’ll tell you later” in one evening, but
anyways, we walked outside of the cave and the door closed behind us as well
as disappeared. Then we walked towards Rong’s house and everyone greeted us
on the way; I knew that everything was back to normal again.
***
We got to his house, and I told everyone what happened. Next, Mina told us
that she was sleeping in bed, and the next thing she knows, she was in the cave.
Grandpa told us that Dr. Death had died, but that his soul was around Terror
Mountain when my grandpa went up there to do some research. He convinced my
grandpa that he had my mom in his hand, and if he didn’t cooperate and let him
control my grandpa’s body, she’d be lost. He also told us that the village is
safe now, because he turned off the water that was about to flood the village,
and that the soul of Dr. Death has also vanished.
We ate and drank tasty food that night, courtesy of Rong’s dad, and his mom
made me some new clothing. After dinner, Mina invited me to the backyard.
“I have something to give you.” she said.
“What is it?” I asked, as she took out a beautiful golden moon-shaped locket.
It looked extra beautiful when the moonlight reflected on it. She opened it,
and there was a very sweet song coming out. Then she closed it and handed it
to me.
“Thank you, may I ask what song it was?” I asked.
“I Never Had A Dream Come True.”
“It’s very nice. Thank you.” I said as I searched in my pockets to give her
something in return, but I had nothing, so I looked for a flower in the yard
and gave it to her.
“Sorry, I didn’t have anything else to give you.” I said and saw her gasp.
“What’s the matter?”
“It’s you!”
“Of course it’s me, who do you think I was?”
“I planted that flower!”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to pluck your flower.”
“No, I promised to myself that whoever plucks that flower, I will tell them
my secret.”
“What secret?”
“That I’m… I’m… I’m the moon princess.” I am not really Rong’s sister, to
tell you the truth. His mom found me in front of her house and thought that
I should be their daughter. My mom sent me here with this locket and a flower
seed. She said to give this locket to the person who will rescue me from a horrible
fate, whom I guess is you, and tell the person who plucks this flower my secret.”
She explained.
“Why did she send you here in the first place?”
“To help you and this village. You’ve got to admit that without me, you would’ve
never figured out the riddle, right?”
“How did you…?”
“Don’t forget, I can read minds.”
“So, are you going back to the moon?” I asked.
“I still visit my mom occasionally. I always visit her on the full moon.”
We talked a bit longer and went to our rooms to sleep, with me sleeping on
a bed this time.
***
“Good morning!” I heard a voice, which I thought was Mina, but when I opened
my eyes, I was back in my own room, me being full-sized, and my mom was standing
at the end of my bed.
“What are you doing here?” I asked.
“I'm here to wake you up; it’s almost noon.” she answered.
“But what happened to Mina, and Rong, and…?” I started asking.
“I’m not sure I’m familiar with those names.”
“Was it all just a dream?” I wondered to myself, and started my regular schedule.
Before I went on this adventure, not even my brother knew what I was talking
about. I've started to be nicer to Shaktar since, and also gave him my comics.
That night, a surprise guest entered our house… it was Grandpa!
“Leli, I don’t know if you remember your Grandpa or not, but he went on a
Safari Trip and hasn’t been back until now. The last time you met him was when
you were three months old. Shaktar wasn’t even born, yet.” Mom said.
“Hi, Leli!” Grandpa said joyfully.
“Hi, Grandpa!” I said.
We ate omelettes again that night... I’m so used to Rong’s dad cooking that
I began to hate omelettes. I kept on thinking while I was eating whether or
not I should ask Grandpa if he remembered anything about what happened.
“Do you remember…” I started to ask Grandpa., but decided not to.
Then, I saw him wink at me. I ran as fast as I could to my room and searched
in my shirt… I found the locket! It was true, after all! Then I looked at he
moon and opened the locket. It was a full moon that night, and I’m pretty sure
I saw the shape of Mina waving hi. I waved back and looked at her for a moment.
A tear came slowly down my face, then gently, I closed the locket.
The End |