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After Gwyl's Great Escape


by mehohara

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      Shaking the dust of its clothes, Gwyl whistled in relief. He could not be more excited than now, more relieved and glad. The balloon he used to escape from the horrifying mine has fallen to the ground, full with dust and small holes caused by the spikes he had hit. He escaped just in time; some seconds after and he would have fallen all the way down, with an empty balloon and a heart full of sorrow and despair... He couldn't believe his luck, and he was never a lucky guy. "Somebody over there may be looking after me", he wondered, looking at the starry sky. He smiled at this thought. "Who up there could care about me this way? Is my life that worthy?", he asked himself after. But he shook his head quickly. Those were bad thoughts, and he didn't want them in his head. Not after the greatest escape ever.

      "Not bad for a tiny little Symol and a brave Lightmite, eh?", he asks his Lightmite, his valuable companion, who gave him light and support during his entire journey; a gift from his most lovable sister, who was his best friend. The petpetpet flown happily around its owner, but had quickly fallen into the ground, tired from the extended exercise he had to make to prevent his new owner from falling. Gwyl grabbed him from the ground and felt the warmth of his companion in his hand. The Lightmite was breathing rapidly and with difficulty.

      "We both need some rest. Let's go home, my dear friend. And then we are free. Then we really go back to our true home, far from here, where we belong". He grabbed the bag, full of the jewels he could find in his way up the mine, and started his journey. The balloon was left behind; he doesn't want to remember that day ever again.

      Gwyl walked as fast as his tired body allowed him. He was going home, or at least to the tiny, scary and suspicious house he was living, the closest from the mine he could find and afford. With a sick mother and little brothers and sisters to take care of, Gwyl found his job in the mine by a miracle. His mother feared deeply for the eldest and most beloved child, but he knew he had to do it. He knew he had to leave his home for a while, so he could provide his family in the future. It was his first day of work and he already missed home deeply. He knew, however, that his sacrifice would be worth it.

      "Write me. Always. Tell me everything that happens to you, my precious boy. And come back as soon as you can, heh? This old pal will miss you deeply", asked his mother the day he left his home. He made a faithful promise. But how could he tell his mother all that had passed that night, his first day of work? He simply couldn't tell his mother, or anyone, what had passed. It could be too much for her, and surely she would want him to come back immediately. She couldn't bear danger for her beloved children, and his escape was dangerous enough for his poor mother to handle. His brothers and sisters would love the story, full of adventures. But they were children, and could not understand that their brother could not be there to tell them about this insane escape.

      The bag, full of jewels, was heavy in his shoulder. He smiled. The weight was pleasant to handle; it was the weight that would make them escape from poverty. The hard times would be finally over, and Gwyl couldn't remember being happier in his entire life. As an ambitious, yet compassionate, fellow, the jewels were both his salvation and his pride, as he almost lost his most precious thing to get them. But his family's wealth came first, and this was all for them. He closed his eyes, seeing the happy faces of his mother and siblings facing the shiny jewels. He deserved that treasure.

      But suddenly he felt a shiver running up his spine. Lightmite started to tremble. Something seemed not right.

      "Is anybody here?", he asked fearfully. An enormous, deep laugh was heard, penetrating through his entire body. Gwyl shaked with fear and horror, his legs could barely make a movement, his eyes going from side to side, desperate to see anything that could tell him from where the laugh came. All the pain from the miraculous escape for his life seemed to fall over his body and paralyse him, together with the horror of the situation. The Lightmite wanted to release himself, but Gwyl held him close. He could see shadows running fast in front of him. They were almost graciously dancing in front of his eyes, and he could see what was coming. He had heard about that. He had heard about the dangers of an empty and dark road and its nocturnal inhabitants. He could smell the danger.

      All was so quick Gwyl could do nothing. In seconds he was without his jewels; the bag was quickly missing, and he barely felt someone grabbing it from him. The mysterious laugh was still echoing through his ears, over and over, and no other sound was there to relief him from this horrifying voice. The shadows were so silent, so subtle!

      He saw an intense light far in the sky, blinking and getting further and further from where he was. "Was that a spaceship?", he wondered. Definitely it was neither a star nor Kreludor. But, being honest with himself, he didn't want to know anymore. He was too glad to be alive to care more about the subject.

      The fear disappeared slowly and progressively. The shock was too intense to be quickly forgotten. His legs slowly recovered. The pain was so intense he got blind for an instant. With small steps, he resumed his journey, breath and helpless. He knew all was too good to be true.

      He reached the deceased house, with empty arms and full of tears running down his face, washing all the dust from his cheeks. The worst part was having to go back to that odious and terrifying place, to perform his dangerous work again, and this remembrance gave him chills of horror. The loneliness of his current life also struck him deeply. He swallowed his sorrow and his pain, thinking about why he was there and for who he should fight for. This could not give him consolation enough, and he was desperate for something to hold. All the happy memories with his family, that he wanted to repeat and recreate, were a little disturbing to his recently broken heart.

      "What shall I do know, little fellow?", Gwyl said to his Lightmite. The petpetpet had desperate spirits, feeling like he had failed with his new owner, whom he promised to protect. "How can I come back down there?", Gwyl kept asking loudly. He wanted to scream so loud both Maraqua and Kreludor could hear him and understand his sorrow. But he had no voice for such effort.

      He looked at his broken desk, where paper and ink could be found. He breathed deeply and grabbed a paper, pondering for minutes before sitting by the desk and grabbing the ink.

      "Dear mother," were the words he could write before bursting into tears.

     

      The End.

 
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