The Path to Hope: Merc's Story

by Alkuna

Birth and Betrayal

My name is Mercolagos, and I'm a blue Gelert. My first owner picked me from my litter of brothers and sisters when I was very young. My owner gave me my name, and took me home. I lived with my first owner for some time before I became aware that something was wrong. Since I am a vegetarian, I happen to be hungry a lot. This caused some problems I guess. My owner had to spend a lot of his NPs on food instead of other things. Still, I tried to make up for it by staying loyal to him. I was always at his side and tried to offer as much support as I could. I always greeted him eagerly when he came home and put a lot of effort into everything I did for him. I was only trying to prove to my owner that I was worthy of his care. But he began spending more and more time away from me. At first, I thought I had offended him or somehow I did something that made him dislike me.

I worked hard, desperately trying to prove to him that I didn't mean to offend him. Then, I realized that he wasn't trying very hard to train me. A little reading each day would have helped bring my stats up but it never happened. I didn't advance; I remained an average pet. What bad thing had I done? My heart felt sick inside at the thought of having caused him harm, even if it was by accident. Still, I didn't think he was truly unhappy until my world was pulled out from under me.

My owner took me to the Adoption Center. I looked around and shivered slightly, horrified by the thought of being in one of those cages. I assumed we were going there to adopt another pet. I looked forward to having a companion to keep me company while my owner was away. Then money was passed between my owner and the lady at the desk. And before I knew what was happening, the door to my cage was slammed right in my face. He had paid the fee and I watched him walk out. "Noooo!" My howl echoed off the walls of my prison. "Wait! Master! Please tell me what I did wrong! At least you can tell me why you're doing this!" But my master didn't reply. And he never looked back. He just left me.

Misery

How could he leave me like that? How bad had I been? What did I do? Did he want me to starve? Dinnertime came and no one served any food to any of the pets. I talked to a red Scorchio in a cage next to me. I asked, "When will they come to feed us?" She stared at me for a moment then laughed, "Do not delude yourself. Nobody feeds us here. We are either adopted and fed by our new owners or they starve us to make room for more abandoned pets." I could feel my jaw drop. "How...how can they...?" I asked in horror. "Nobody cares," she shrugged, "Welcome to the darker part of life. We were brought here because nobody wanted us. Therefore, we aren't worth the effort of feeding. Once you are here, it is a mere flip of the Neopoint as to whether you are fed or not. Let me put it this way, your odds are against you. There are more than a hundred of us here. So, you have to stand tall and keep your strength up.. Your odds are slightly better if a Gelert lover comes along, but you still have to stand above the other Gelerts sitting in the other cages. If your stats aren't up to an adopter's expectations, you'll be passed by." I felt sick. My ears drooped and my tail sank to the floor of my dirty cage. All my stats were solidly in the "average" range. And I had many doubts and I knew that there were other Gelerts that were better trained than I was. Indeed, I was pretty much just taking up space.

As the days passed, I began to get weaker. People came and went, some adopting other pets. But no one adopted me for the longest time. After all, I was only at level one--How could I stand out from the other pets? Dully, I watched as NeoPet after NeoPet was adopted or their weak bodies were dragged out to make room for the new adoptees.. My fur became filthy, my ribs began to show, and I lost the strength to move or even open my eyes. I thought my life was going to end there. I was dying of hunger when someone stopped at my cage and opened the door. They must have been coming to take me out to add me to the pile of the weak.

Hope

I didn't bother to open my eyes, but I was in shock when a stranger gently picked me up. The stranger smelled good, like a ray of hope. Once my weight was balanced in her arms, she carried me to the front desk, where I was to be examined. The stern lady at the desk looked me over and spoke, "This is your choice Miss Al'Kuna? Mercolagos isn't exactly top notch as a pet. Perhaps you want a better NeoPet? Say, one that is better than average?" There was little emotion in her voice. No doubt she had seen many of us come and go. "Merc is my choice Ma'am," said the stranger. "How much is he?" I was poked and prodded far more than I would normally put up with, but I didn't have the strength to snap at the offending hands. Finally, with a sigh, the lady at the desk said, "Forty two NPs." "If he is not one of the best you have, then why is he so expensive?" snapped Al'Kuna. "I saw a monster of a Skeith that was cheaper, and probably can eat more than this Gelert can." "Look, I just follow orders. Forty-two Neopoints is the price the boss put on him. If you don't want to pay that much then just choose a cheaper pet," the lady at the desk said. I heard an irritated sigh and my long ears and tail drooped even further. I thought I was going back in my cage.

Surely I cost too much for Al'Kuna. "Here, enjoy your ridiculous profit. I'm getting out of this crazy place." Then I heard a soft metallic clinking. I opened my eyes to see a hand pull out a bag of Neopoints. The hand slapped the money down on the desk and shoved it towards the woman. Even though I was in such poor health, this Al'Kuna woman had adopted me! I thought it might be a cruel joke but no one was laughing. After all, if my first owner didn't want me, why would Al'Kuna?

Al'Kuna did. I was scooped up again with a surprising gentleness. She took me home and generously began spending all of her Neopoints that she had been saving for other purposes on items that would help strengthen my health.

A Better Life

While I was recovering, I began to notice the scent of another pet. It was a blue Lupe! The Lupe looked healthy and well groomed. Being a vegetarian might make me look like dinner to this powerful hunter. My heart thudded in my chest fearfully and I tried to get to my shaky legs to flee from the meat eater, but I collapsed before I could raised myself more than an inch. Human hands pressed down on my back, pinning me to the ground. "Easy boy, you're safe. No one's going to hurt you." Indeed, the Lupe didn't seem interested in making trouble. In fact, she wasn't even hungry. Instead, the blue Lupe brought in another tray of food, looked me over then sat down.

"We have a lot of work to do on this one. He hasn't been taken care of very well," rumbled the Lupe mildly. My new owner turned briefly to the Lupe and replied, "Well, we'll just have to work on that." My new owner offered me more food, which I eagerly gulped down, still not losing sight of the Lupe's sharp teeth. The food tasted heavenly. The only thing I worried about was getting more of it into my stomach. I could feel strength trickling back into my body as I ate an organic pear.

So the Lupe was named after my, I mean, our owner! Not only that, but Alkuna was very smart. While Al'Kuna fed me, I watched as the Lupe casually began studying from an Algebra book. Then I was carried to a tub, where I was bathed and groomed. I didn't realize how much I had needed a good washing until I watched the dirty water go down the drain. After two baths, she lifted me out and dried me off. My fur began to glow again as she brushed and dried it. I thought I had died and gone to heaven. Al'Kuna was the greatest! Not only had I been nursed back to health by Al'Kuna, she has also continued to feed the both of us every day. And, she even buys us books and reads them to us. She even let us read the book ourselves.

After a brief conversation with my new Lupe friend, I learned the rules. Everyday we are to work hard to help earn Neopoints. By helping to earn money, we would guarantee ourselves good food and special care. That's fine with me. I look forward to repaying my new owner because she has done so much for me. My life has improved immensely since I began my new life with her. I owe Al'Kuna my life and I'm working hard to pay her back with my loyalty. I'll tell you this: We may not be the richest family in Neopia, but we couldn't be any happier.