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She opened her eyes. She had no idea how long she had been
asleep. She tried to get up, but a sharp pain in her back made her double over
in pain. She assumed she must have fallen. She suddenly became aware of her surroundings
-- she was sitting in a forest of some kind. But what was she doing here?
The white silver and blue striped Zafara stood
up and rubbed her head. She wracked her brain, trying to remember something
that happened moments ago that might of explained why she was here now. But
the more she tried to remember, the more the details seemed to slip away. It
was like trying to remember a faded dream. She sat down on a rock, thinking
she'd be able to think better if she sat down.
She suddenly jumped when she heard a muffled
squeal. She looked down at the rock she had sat on. "Hey, watch where you're
sitting!"
She stared in awe. Did that rock just talk?!
No -- no that was impossible, rocks don't talk. She stared down at the rock
again, but then laughed. The "rock" wasn't really a rock at all -- it was a
little brown Khnum.
"Zahi -- is that you?" she asked the Khnum.
"Well duh! Of course it's me, Azuxah! What made
you think it wasn't me?"
"You're -- you're a Khnum!"
Zahi looked at his paw and gasped. "Ack! I am
a Khnum! But -- but how? What's happened to my handsome Krawk body? And how
did we end up here?"
"I'm not sure, I've been trying to figure that
out myself," said Azuxah. Zahi's eyes suddenly began to water. "Wah ha ha! I
want to be a Krawk again! Waaaaaaaah!"
"Oh shut up you big cry baby!" Azuxah retorted.
"I'm trying to remember something..."
"Remember what?"
"Anything at all! I can't remember anything!
Ugh, what the heck is going on here?!"
"Well I don't know, but I want to get out of
this forest!" But Azuxah wasn't listening. She was pacing in a circle, trying
to make sense of all this. Then, at that moment, something in her head clicked.
"Yes -- yes I remember something now..." In Azuxah's mind she could see three
figures. One was completely shrouded in shadow and was wearing a hooded robe
that hid its face from view. The other two, a Zafara and a Krawk, stood in front
of the hooded figure. They seemed to be talking about something.
"...Our world is dying. It is now up to you
two to go to the future and find the Mage. Only with her you will save Neopia..."
The Zafara and Krawk bowed at the hooded figure.
"We will not fail you," the Zafara vowed. Then everything after that went black.
Azuxah shook the image from her head and turned
to Zahi. "Now I remember why we're here. We're looking for some kind of Mage
-- whatever that is."
"Wait -- then that means we're in the future!"
Zahi exclaimed. "This is just great -- this is going to be like finding a needle
in a haystack! Where in Neopia are we going to find a Mage?"
~*~
"Star! Get up; you'll be late for Neoschool!"
StarDustie the purple Shoyru groaned and pulled
the covers over her head, only to have them yanked off by a blonde-haired girl
with thin brown glasses. The girl's hazel-blue eyes flashed angrily.
"StarDustie Pamela Freekishgal! Its 7:45 and
you're still in bed! Get up, get dressed, and eat some breakfast! Neoschool
starts in less than fifteen minutes!"
"Alright, alright, Steph, I'm awake," Star groaned.
Star reluctantly sat up and fell out of the bed head first with a THUD!
Oh good job, thought Star. Star sighed when she noticed he had fallen because
her feet were tangled up in the bed sheets. Star kicked the sheets of her feet
and tied a red bandana around her head like she normally wore and put on her
favorite necklace with the star charm on it. She grabbed her orange knapsack
and shoved her books into it before trudging down the stairs.
The smell of burnt eggs and toast filled the
kitchen when she walked in. Her brother Nerakos the mutant Scorchio and her
cousin Zukoni the fire Wocky were already at the table. Her older sister Tai
the Gelert had already left for school. Her owner Steph placed a plate of burnt
toast in front of her. Star stared glumly at her breakfast and looked at the
clock on the stove. It was 7:50 -- she only had ten minutes to get to school!
Star sprang out of her chair and hugged her
owner before running out the door at breakneck speed. Two feet out the door
she stopped when her owner called to her. "Star, wait! What about your breakfast?"
"I'll eat something at school!" Star yelled
and continued running as fast as she could to her Neoschool. Lucky for her it
was only three blocks away from her NeoHome. She took off flying and headed
towards her Neoschool. "Good thing it's a nice day," she said looking up at
the sky.
Just then large dark clouds blocked out the
sun and drops of rain started pouring from the sky. Thunder boomed in the distance
and lighting shook the ground. "Oh man, there's no way I can fly in this --
I'll have to run the rest of the way..."
Lucky enough the school was not too far ahead.
Ahead she heard the morning bell ring, signaling the beginning of the school
day. Oh great, now she was going to be tardy. "Things couldn't possibly get
any worse -- "
Just as she said that, she tripped and fell
into a large mud puddle, the thick ooze dripping down her face.
"Guess I was wrong..."
To be continued...
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