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Seris stared out at the dark blue waters of Kiko Lake. His
toes were gently touching the chilling water. A shiver ran through his spine when
his foot plunged into the water. Then, Seris pushed with his hands into the cold
water of the lake. He moved, trying to keep warm. Paddling around, he looked back
at his friend, Ray'tur. She was sitting down with a Neocola on the sand.
Seris was just a friendly and outgoing Draik
trying to fit the "cool" and "popular" vision by doing crazy stunts even if
it meant freezing his wings off in deadly water. The Fire colored Draik just
wanted to have fun and always tried to have a positive outlook on life. He decided
to give up on that after a while when realizing that life isn't a positive force,
but a negative one. He learned this when his sister, Seremdra, died. His only
true friend was Ray'tur. She was an energetic Poogle, just trying to have fun.
To her, fun is considered two things: bungee jumping and relaxing. Seris had
more money than Ray'tur, but that also made him a tad bit spoiled which he was
trying to improve. Ray'tur, on the other hand, conserved what she had and didn't
buy anything on impulse or things that she didn't need.
Seris turned back his head and plunged underwater.
He opened his eyes and looked around. A few Kikos swam away quickly, muttering
to themselves about visitors. Seris chuckled, forgetting he was underwater.
His mouth opened and water rushed in. He quickly darted out of the water into
fresh air, spitting the liquid out.
After gulping a few breaths for oxygen, he held
his breath and started to gently poke his inflated cheeks. Soon, the air whooshed
out of his mouth and he started to swim around the lake, warming up his body.
It seemed that after you were in the water for some time, your body got used
to it and even though it didn't exactly feel warm, it was comfortable.
Seris was thinking about paddling back to shore,
but not after a little exploring. He gave a short yell to Ray'tur and then went
underwater again, the placid water getting colder the farther he went down.
His eyes were open so he could see his surroundings. They were beautiful. Kikos
and Kois were swimming around in groups chattering away. Flotsams and Jetsams
were sitting around small alga clumps, playing with each other. It looked like
a small community of kids.
Eager to see what was farther down, he pushed
his legs and stroked downward. For the next minute or so, there was nothing
but bacteria and water. Then, he saw a large building with a plastic dome around
it. There seemed to be shops and buildings in there. Seris stared for a second,
wondering how a whole colony could survive under water. Now excited, he stroked
some more until he was up against the plastic. It was definitely some underwater
community.
"Wow," he muttered to himself, bubbles forming
above his head. He needed air now and the interior of the dome seemed to have
some. He banged on the plastic. Curious townsfolk looked up to see the Draiks'
head staring through the plastic. Seris point to his throat and then to his
mouth, trying to make them understand he needed air.
A purple Zafara caught his eye. She was running,
motioning for Seris to follow her. Instinctively, he held back for a moment,
but decided that nothing bad could happen. After all, the Zafara was inside
the dome.
Seris started to swim, trying to keep up with
the Zafara. The purple form stopped him at a large metallic door. It had no
openings in sight. Seris heard clunking and then the door slowly opened, filling
a small chamber with water. The Zafara was standing there. She motioned for
him to come in and he followed. The door closed behind him and he felt a vacuum
sucking all the water away. Before he knew it, he could breath. Another door
opened, this time faster. Seris sprinted into the community, gulping for air.
Then, after hogging some oxygen and filling
his lungs, he turned around to thank the Zafara, but to his surprise, she was
gone. He searched within his vision for her, but it seemed she had disappeared.
Seris shrugged and started to slowly walk, taking in his surroundings.
He was standing on yellowed cobblestone. There
seemed to be no cracks whatsoever in the pavement except between tiles, which
was intentional. Buildings of all different size and color were set up in long,
narrow streets. Seris saw the occasional sign advertising something or stating
some sort of law.
After walking down a series of streets, he saw
a large marble building filled with windows. A long set of stairs went upwards
leading to two oak doors. Neopets in black and blue suits were walking up and
down the stairs. On the very top of the building, a large statue of a Draik
stood, a sword in hand, pointing downward. Amazed, Seris felt he just needed
to go inside. Something about the uniquely carved marble made him curious to
what was inside.
Walking along the edge of the stairs was awkward.
Seris' back rubbed against the banister, leaving scrapes. The marble wasn't
as smooth as it looked from below. It had many grooves and bumps. The white
mineral was as cold as ice. Seris shivered as he made his way up, attempting
not to be noticed by any of the businessmen.
Before he knew it, he was at the two oak doors
he had seen earlier. One was agape, so Seris slowly went in. The interior of
the building was even more spectacular than the exterior. Paintings lined the
hall and various sculptures and ornaments were laid out on a red carpet. Businessmen
were walking around, taking no notice to the Draik.
Seris started to follow the flow of the Neopets.
Many of them bumped into him, knocking his body to the ground. Still, he just
got up again, following all the Neopets. When the crowd seemed at its largest,
Seris slipped into a hall to the left.
The corridor was small with two doors. One was
on the right and the other straight in front of him. The plaque on the door
read: Mr. Warky McFluffkins - Mayor of Tanucha, Located Under Kiko Lake. Seris
tried to hold in a giggle, but instead burst out laughing.
He heard a creak of a door and immediately ceased
laughing and stood up straight. The wooden door was now wide open, a short Shoyru
standing in the doorway. "Why, hello, young sir. What may I help you with today?"
It hit Seris that this Shoyru was Mr. McFluffkins,
the mayor of the aquatic city he was standing in right now. "Uh… nothing, Mr.
McFluffkins. I found this place and was curious what the big marble building
was and came in. I'm so sorry if I… interrupted you."
Mr. McFluffkins gave a chuckle. "Oh, no, not
at all, come in!" The short green Shoyru walked into his office, motioning for
Seris to come in, which he did.
Seris closed the door behind him. "Have a seat,"
the mayor said while propping himself on a small chair.
He stared around. A terrarium filled the right
side of the wall. A plastic board divided all different ecosystems. A PetPet
was living in each. On the left side, six filing cabinets were set up against
a yellow wall. The blue carpet was plush. It felt fuzzy under his bare skin.
The desk that the mayor was sitting behind was made from the finest spruce,
gleaming to perfection.
Seris then asked a question that was bugging
him for a while. "What is this place?"
The mayor chuckled. "Well, this place is our
home."
Seris stared into Mr. McFluffkins' eyes. "Can
you tell me about the city?"
"Ah, of course…" he paused. "Your name?"
"Oh, right. I'm Seris."
"Pleased to meet you, Seris," the mayor smiled.
"Okay, well, this town, if you didn't know it already, is called Tanucha. We
formed here about 300 B.N (before Neopia) and have had a peaceful life since,
except the occasional attack by a mutant sea creature. We get visitors from
all around Neopia, whether their intentions good or bad. Still, no matter what
happens, we continue to expand and help out."
Seris thought about it. It seemed the colony
was a peaceful, war hating community. Interesting that they don't have any fights
with anyone. "Hm, very intriguing," Seris said and then added, "I guess…"
The mayor had a strange smile, sort of like
he was trying to hide something from the Draik. "Yes, it is a very nice story.
I love how we're so peaceful and nothing ever goes wrong."
Seris stared at him. There was something fishy
about the story. No one can be that perfect. "Nothing every goes wrong?"
The mayor nodded. "Never," he said, his eyes
now squinting at Seris. "Why? Do you think I'm lying?"
"Er, no, of course not, sir," Seris said. A
quick reply that definitely had the tone that he though Mr. McFluffkins was
fibbing.
A sudden rumble shook the building, knocking
the terrarium over and spilling out sand, water, and rock. Cracks appeared to
be circling around the room and the door smashed open, leaving it broken to
splinters on the floor. The ground shook as Seris stood up and shouted, "What's
happening?"
The mayor looked out the windows, which were
starting to shatter and break. "Something is going on that I don't like…" he
muttered and turned back to Seris, his face in terror. "Go! Run for your life!"
Seris stood there as plaster fell around him.
Then, instinct took him and he ran out of the room into a hallway of frantic
Neopets, shrieking and running along. Doors were smashing and walls cracking.
Seris could feel the marble breaking under his feet. The whole foundation of
the town was collapsing.
He ran out into the main hall, where portraits
lay ripped apart and Neopets unconscious, maybe dead. Plaster fell everywhere,
leaving clouds of dust and piles of debris. The two oak doors he had seen earlier
were splintered and cracked in two. Seris sprinted out, seeing the destruction
before him. Who or whatever was doing this was strong. Buildings lay in rubble,
flaming embers coming from most of them. Neopets were crying, trying to get
out, but it seemed the metal door as locked itself, not allowing anyone out.
The city was in chaos. Big juts of cobblestone
stuck out of the ground, allowing water to slowly start pouring in. Strangely,
the plastic dome did not crack…yet. Almost immediately when Seris thought the
last though, a crack appeared on the top of the dome, allowing the salt water
of Kiko Lake to rush in. A slimy, green tentacle came in through the hole, waving
around.
A low whisper was heard. Then louder. "Stop!"
it said, catching the townspeople's attention. "Stop what you are doing. Calmly
open thy door and escape."
The Neopets of the colony started to go to the
door, patiently opening it. The door cracked open, allowing cold air to come
through the crack, chilling the people. The water from the crack had stopped.
It seemed the tentacle had stopped it.
Soon, everyone was looking up at the face that
had appeared outside the plastic dome. It was horrid, but had a kind sense to
it. It looked a bit like a slug with six arms, each about two feet long. Its
face had large yellow eyes with brown pupils, enlarging and minimizing, as a
light flashed from a gleam on the tip of the Town Hall statue. "Now, go, before
you all drown to your death. This town is no more. Go back to where you originated
and stay there, for here will not be in existence any longer."
At this, Mr. McFluffkins came running out of
the Town Hall, pushing Seris out of the way (who was standing on the top stair).
"Please! Do not take this town away!"
"I am sorry, Warky McFluffkins, this is how
it must be. Leave and forget about this. I assure you will," the giant slug
said, detaching itself from the dome and letting the water slowly spill through.
The mayor of the destroyed town cried out, on
his knees! "Please! Come back! Please!" He still screamed as the townspeople
left, one by one.
Finally, Seris came down from the stairs and
patted him on the back. "Come on, as he said, you can just forget it."
Mr. McFluffkins shook his head. "It's not that
easy. I can't forget."
Seris sighed and started to walk through the
rising water. "Do what you want." He left, leaving the door open behind him.
The cold water didn't feel any different from when he was in the dome. It actually
felt comfortable. He started to swim up. He saw other townspeople going their
different ways.
Not much after, Seris came to the dark surface.
Lights were searching the lake, screaming his name. Ray'tur must have called
for extra help to try and find him. He sighed and swam up to the shore. "I'm
over here!" he yelled, tired and exhausted.
Ray'tur ran over with piercing eyes. "Where
in Neopia's name were you?" A few Chias in blue uniforms appeared behind her,
bottled Light Faeries in hand.
Seris sighed again. "It's a long story that
will be told by someone someday, maybe even me. I'm here and that's all you
need to know." He shook some water off his body and looked out into the lake
again, seeing a number of Neopets coming to shore and walking their ways.
Ray'tur smiled. "You and your mysterious ways,"
she said and then turned to the Chias and beckoned them off. "So, are we going
home now?"
Seris grinned. "Yeah, home…"
The Poogle grabbed a few things and started
to walk behind Seris, on their way to their houses in the heart of Neopian Central.
The End
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