Story Land

 I woke up, I opened my weary eyes. Everything was covered in black and red, like shadows covered in fresh blood. Dim light shone through the black curtains. I saw a girl with blue hair and a pale face sitting next to me, swinging her feet back and forth, looking bored. The strange girl didn’t seem to notice me. I buried my face into my trembling hands. I was scared, I didn’t know where I was and what I should do. My hands touched a sticky liquid on my head. When I examined my hands to see what it was, I saw that my hands were red. There was only one thing in the world that could make such a special shade of red, blood. 

My head throbbed as I tried to recall what happened to me. Last night, I went to the grocery store with my mother. She told me to wait outside while she rushes into the store to buy a few things. After a while, I started to hear faint whispering and footsteps. The voices came closer and closer. I spun around. Before I realized what was happening, I saw something hurl towards me. I screamed, just as the thing hit me on the head. Then, my vision went dark.

  “Am I kidnapped?” I murmured. I got out of bed. When my feet touched the ground, the ground made a loud cracking sound, like I stepped on potato chips. Little white sticks were littered all over the ground, but as I bent down to look closer, I saw that they were not sticks, but real bones! I jumped back, only to land on more bones. “ You’re awake!” the girl exclaimed, showing a smile of relief. “ Welcome! Please, look around.” “ What is this place?” I wondered out loud, walking slowly so I don’t bump into anything in the dark room. “ Don’t go outside the door! You aren’t fully recovered yet.” the girl warned.

  I saw a black, coffin- like box in the corner of the room. When I touched the coffin, it exploded into thousands of tiny black spiders. I took a step back as the spiders scattered around the room, then joined together, creating another coffin just like it, a few feet away from me. Suddenly, I heard loud footsteps.” He’s coming.” the girl said, looking alert. Getting up from the chair, she rushed to stand by the door with incredible speed. 

  I wanted to run, I wanted to hide, whoever made the calm girl move so quickly and nervously must be someone scary. I wanted to scream on the top of my lungs for help, but my voice wouldn’t work, and, to make matters worse, my body was stuck in this position! The heavy footsteps came closer. My heart thumped loudly in my chest, threatening to jump out of my chest any moment. My palms became sweaty as I heard the footsteps stop in front of the door. I struggled to pry my feet away from the ground, but they stubbornly stuck to it. My lungs screamed for air, as if the oxygen had left the room out of fear too. The doorknob slowly turned open. I looked helplessly at the door. At that moment I felt that all hope was lost, that nothing could help me get out of this nightmare now. Just as the door creaked open and blinding light burst into the dark room, I found out that my voice started working again! I squeezed my eyes shut. In one final, desperate attempt for a chance to keep myself alive, wishing to return home, hoping that this is all just a realistic nightmare and that I would wake up in my warm sheets and soft bed panting and sweating, I screamed “ HELP! SOMEBODY! ANYONE! HELP ME!”

  “This one has a strong pair of lungs!” a voice chuckled. I opened my eyes, trying to adjust to the light. “ She just woke up.” the girl announced. When I finally managed to adjust to the light, I saw a familiar man. “ Do I know you?” I asked him. “ What?” the man looked at me with a blank stare. “ Who are you?” I asked, backing away as he stepped forward. “ I am King Mary!” the man announced dramatically. I tried to stifle my laughter at the funny name. “ What?” King Mary asked, looking confused. “ Mary is a girl’s name.” I snickered, unable to hold back my laughter, I laughed so hard tears poured out and my stomach started to hurt. King Mary growled. “ YOU TRICKED ME! HORRIBLE SERVANT! YOU SAID IT WAS A NAME FULL OF GLORY AND POWER!” King Mary yelled in fury, waving his fist. “ Yeah, for a FEMALE!” the girl laughed. “ Even my most loyal servant is mocking my poorly shrinking brain.” King Mary muttered to himself. “ Your brain isn’t shrinking, your majesty. It couldn’t shrink because your brain is already so small!” the girl mocked. We both burst out laughing. “ Curse you!” King Mary screamed. “ Okay, okay. Joke is over. Why don’t you introduce yourself in your original name?” the girl suggested. “ But I HATE it!” King Mali whined, which made me curious to know what his original name was. “ Just do it. Or would you prefer we call you King Mary from now on?” the girl asked. “ Fine, my original name is King Sid.” the king confessed.” That’s a great name!” I said. King Sid laughed with joy, there was something about King Sid that seemed so familiar, but I just couldn’t place it.

  “ This must be yours. It dropped when we found you in the forest. Erin. Is that your name?” the girl asked, handing me a brown notebook. I flipped through the book, the book has my handwriting, I was sure of it, the book was filled with my adventures, how I got here, why I got here. But I couldn’t remember if I had held a pen and a brown notebook when I was unconscious. “ Thanks. Erin. That name sounds familiar.” I said. “ Is that your name?” the girl asked me. “ I… I… I don’t remember. I don’t remember my name!” I said. I couldn’t believe it! I started to panic. I tried to remember the other  things in my life. My home, where I lived, my friends, strangely, I knew I had them once, but I couldn’t remember who they were, or what they looked like, how they talked… It worried me and scared me. But I decided to write in the notebook, my thoughts, my feelings, the things that are happening to me now, writing in the notebook felt natural, like I used to do this all the time, but sadly, I couldn’t remember if I had ever written something like this in a notebook. 

  “ Let me show you around, with Lydia, of course.” King Sid said, gesturing to the pale girl. “ I need to get home right now.” I blurted out. “ Where is your home?” Lydia asked me. This should have been an easy question, but… “ I can’t remember!” I wailed. I tried to remember, I could feel it on the tip of my tongue, just ready to be said, but my mind just wouldn’t let that memory come to me. Lydia smiled sadly, eyes showing pity. “A victim of the Memory Flower.” Lydia said to King Sid. “ The Memory Flower? What is that?” I asked. “ The Memory Flower is a dangerous and powerful flower. I could let you have the best memory in human kind, or it can cause you to forget something in your life, usually it would take the unimportant memories first. If it takes your memory and you stay there too long, you would eventually start to have a strong desire to stay. And the Memory Flower will start to feed on your memories as their nutrients, sooner or later, you will forget yourself and turn into nutrients or you would become a Memory Flower YOURSELF, according to legend. When that happens, it would be as if you never existed, no one would remember you, even your best friends or your family, all their memories with you will simply be erased.” King Sid explained gravely. “ You’re saying that a Memory Flower took my memory?” I said in disbelief. This didn’t make sense. Flowers can’t take memory! It’s not solid, liquid, or air! It like feelings, it exists, but you can’t control it or touch it. I must escape this strange place! Nothing makes sense here!” Perhaps. We aren’t sure yet, this is just a guess. But we found you unconscious next to a pile of Memory Flowers, we don’t know if those flowers give or take memory. So we brought you back.” Lydia said. “ Can I get back my memories?” I asked. “ No.” King Sid said, bursting my bubble of hope. “ Actually, there is a way…” Lydia began. “ It’s too dangerous. And highly unlikely. Don’t give her false hope. At least she’s still ALIVE. Erin might DIE in the journey before she gets home or her memory, if she wants it. We don’t even know if he moved or if he is still alive either.” King Sid argued. “ What is the other way?” I asked, hope swelled in my chest. “ You could try to find the Wizard King. He could make anything come true, according to the legend and rumors.” Lydia said. “ But no one knows if he even existed. Or if he is still alive or there. And the journey there is extremely dangerous.” King Sid warned. “Tell me where I should go.” I demanded. Even if the risks are high and the chances of success are low, I wanted to find this Wizard King, I needed him. He is the only way I could get my memory back and return home.

  Lydia ran toward the bookshelves and started opening each book and flip through them. “ It should still be here somewhere.” She muttered. “ You still want to go?” King Sid asked.” If you lost your important memories, don’t have a way home, don’t have a clue where you are, and know that your family might be horribly worried when they find out that you aren’t with them, would you want to find the Wizard King?” I challenged. “ I understand. But this is rash. You need to train. You need to know this place more. You need to have a plan!” King Sid cried. “ We don’t have time! My family! What if they think I’m dead?” I asked, getting worried at the thought of my family going to my funeral when I’m still alive, just in a strange place where the people talk nonsense about Wizard Kings, Memory Flowers. “Found it!” Lydia exclaimed, holding a yellow piece of parchment. It looked ANCIENT. The edges were ripped, like those treasure maps the pirates hold in the movies.

   “ What is that?” I thought Lydia was playing some kind of game. I am talking about something that means a lot to me with King Sid and Lydia decides to play dress up and pretend to be a pirate, how very thoughtful, I thought sarcastically. “ An old map. Passed down from generation to generation…” Lydia began. “ I want to know what is inside the paper. I don’t want a history lecture about the ancient paper.” I cut in. “ It’s an old map that says where the Wizard King is located.” Lydia said and rolled her eyes at me. Suddenly, I felt embarrassed. Lydia was actually helping me find the Wizard King and I am not even helping a bit, unless you count in my sarcastic attitude. 

  King Sid held up the map so I could see it clearly. “ The Wizard King should be somewhere around the woods.” King Sid said pointing to a forest of trees on the map. “ I’m going with you, I can help you with my potions. If King Sid lets me of course. Leo and Lia could take my place while I am gone” Lydia volunteered, looking at King Sid. “ You can go. But hurry. Before I change my mind.” King Sid huffed. “ Thank you.” me and Lydia said in unison. A bright blue glow surrounded the room, and Lydia seemed to be the source of the beautiful blue glow. A second later, two duffel bags appeared in Lydia’s outstretched hands, then, the blue glow dimmed. She threw one of the bags to me. “ This bag has everything you need. Don’t leave it.” Lydia said. I caught the bag. “ Thanks.” I smiled.

  Lydia jumped out of the open window. I ran after her and jumped out of the window. Realizing that it was a horrible idea, because now we are both going to fall to our deaths. “ So much for going together.” I muttered. I squeezed my eyes shut, waiting for Death to make his move. But it didn’t come. I peeked down. “ It’s a shadow!” I exclaimed. I was sitting on a shadow of what seemed to be a gigantic bird, that changed it’s looks every second, it’s tail changed length. “ Shadow Bird. We will get to the Wizard King in no time.” Lydia said. “ But you said I am not fully healed yet.” I said, recalling Lydia’s warning. “ Drink this.” Lydia ordered, handing me a small green vial. I stared at the bubbling green vial. I turned the vial open, the smell hit me. It had the worst smell in the universe, my eyes watered, I choked on the smell. To stop the torturing smell, I drank it. My head spun, my vision swam, I started to see spots in my blurry vision, pain hacked my body. I collapsed on the bird, breathing hard. “ I forgot to tell you, it might be painful.” Lydia winced when I screamed in pain.

   After what seemed like forever, the pain subsided. I slowly stood up. “ Just in time, we’re here.” Lydia said. We jumped off the Shadow Bird. I saw a small cottage, a cottage you see when you read the pictures of Fairy Tales. “ Why don’t we knock?” I asked. We headed to the front of the cottage and knocked on the door, since I didn’t see a doorbell we could ring. “ Mr. Wizard King? Are you in there? Sorry to bother you but we need your help.” Lydia yelled. “ Who is it?” a woman’s voice called from inside the door. “ It’s Lydia from King Sid’s castle and an outsider called Erin!” Lydia replied loudly. The door opened. A woman with long black hair wearing a white silk dress with flowers wrapping around it, brown eyes,and skin as white as snow came out. “ Hello girls, I am the Good Witch, servant of the Wizard King. You may call me Clarissa. I am sorry to say that the Wizard King has abandoned the cottage a long time ago.” Clarissa said sadly. “ What? How am I going back now?” I cried. “ Going back?” Clarissa asked, confused. “ She was found next to some Memory Flowers, lost some of her memory, doesn’t know her name, her home, and where she is. She had a notebook with the name Erin written on top, me and King Sid guessed that that was her name.” Lydia explained.” I can try to help you recover your memory.” Clarissa said, taking out a book that looked as if it was about to fall apart any minute, and a crystal wand that sparkled in the sunlight.

   Lydia screamed in rage, launching herself right into Celia’s face. The blue glow in the room appeared again around her. Celia’s eyes widened, but her face turned expression less. Celia aimed her wand at Lydia.“ Lydia dear, you were always such a loyal servant to our king. Pity, I wanted you to be on my side. I guess you would have to die, since you would tell on me that I borrowed Clarissa’s crystal wand and cursed her.” Celia sighed. A green blast shot out of the wand, heading straight towards Lydia. A blue blast came straight out of Lydia, turning into a teenage girl with hair tied into a ponytail, wearing a T shirt with jeans. Lydia held out her hand, the teenage girl did the same, blocking the green light, sending it right back to its user. Celia deflected it with ease. 

  Lydia screamed in rage, launching herself right into Celia’s face. The blue glow in the room appeared again around her. Celia’s eyes widened, but her face turned expression less. Celia aimed her wand at Lydia.“ Lydia dear, you were always such a loyal servant to our king. Pity, I wanted you to be on my side. I guess you would have to die, since you would tell on me that I borrowed Clarissa’s crystal wand and cursed her.” Celia sighed. A green blast shot out of the wand, heading straight towards Lydia. A blue blast came straight out of Lydia, turning into a teenage girl with hair tied into a ponytail, wearing a T shirt with jeans. Lydia held out her hand, the teenage girl did the same, blocking the green light, sending it right back to its user. Celia deflected it with ease. 

  The two females fought back and forth. Blocking, attacking, and dodging magic. Blasts of magic shone. The blue teenage girl flickered, the blue glow around Lydia flickered too. Lydia and Celia both had beads of sweat trickling down, panting for breath. Lydia charged, the blue glow brightened, I looked away as the bright blue glow surrounded Lydia and Celia. When I looked back, a green blast lit up the sky. “ Lydia!” I screamed. Running towards my friend. Lydia fell down from the sky, she had cuts and blood all over her. I ran, rushing to catch her, but a green blast blocked my way. “ Let me get to Lydia!” I screamed. “ You children. Always so foolish. You are looking at the most powerful witch in the universe, listen to me!” Celia commanded. “ NO!” I yelled. A strong force pushed me to bow down to Celia. I clenched my fists. “ I am not going to listen to an old hag’s bossy command!” I said angrily, fighting the strange force as it pushed harder on me. Finally I pushed the force back, and the weight lifted off my shoulders.

   “ You know magic? Celia gaped at me. “ Magic? What do you mean? I am just an ordinary girl who you don’t want to attack.” I said, confused. I can’t do magic. This world must be crazy, thinking a normal girl like me would have magical powers. “ Never mind. You don’t understand.” Celia said. Looking tired, as if she had lost all her energy. She started shooting all kinds of curses at me. But as if time has slowed down, I saw that I could dodge it, I could dodge the curses. With a skip, the curses bounced harmlessly off the trees and rocks. I felt rage bubble inside me as I thought of Clarissa, Lydia, and my family. A red glow surrounded me. I focused all my anger and hatred on Celia. A red ball came out of me, feeding on my feelings, it grew bigger and bigger until it was about the size of a normal building. I threw the red ball at Celia, for once, she actually looked scared. But it was too late, the red ball hit her. She fell into the river near the cottage.

  I ran to Lydia. She had a soft landing, but it was the on the Memory Flowers. “ Lydia!” I cried, remembering her speech about the Memory Flowers. Lydia opened her eyes. “ Erin.” Lydia smiled feebly. “ Get out of there!I’ll help you!” I said, reaching out to her. “ It’s too late. I drank most of my potions so I can slow down the Memory Flowers for a little while, just enough time to talk to you, listen carefully, because I haven’t got much time.”Lydia said. Holding back my tears and emotion, I nodded. “ I will always be a loyal servant to King Sid and I will keep that memory when you save me. I will keep all the memories of my past but I won’t remember you. Here, I will give you my journal. It has everything I have been through when I grew up. Take it. It could tell you everything.” Lydia explained, with that sentence, she passed out. 

   I carried her back to the cottage, Clarissa was already awake and was examining her crystal wand. “ Now, let’s grant your wish.” Clarissa said. The cottage door burst open. A woman that looked just like Clarissa came in, tears flowing like rivers running down her cheeks. “ Celia! You’re back!” Clarissa cried happily. “ That’s CELIA?” I asked, the creepy image of the ugly witch that hit spells. “ Thanks to your strong emotions, I was turned back to what I looked like before! Much better than a old hag!” Celia said with gratitude. “ You two look so similar.” I said, it was like I was looking at a mirror, the only way I could tell them apart was by their dress. “ That’s because we are sisters.” Clarissa smiled. “ But let’s talk about that some other time. Now, let’s give your memory back.” Celia said. Together, the sisters raised the crystal wand. “Return!” They yelled in unison. Suddenly, all my lost memories returned to me. Who I was, where I lived.

   I started to glow bright gold. Lydia’s book dropped out of my transparent hands. “ I remember. I must return. Goodbye.” I said. Lydia’s book was open to one page that I read before I returned to my normal house. Today, when I was walking through the woods, I saw a girl my age unconscious on a patch of Memory Flowers. She had a faint smell of magic from her, her name seems to be Erin, we had no idea how she got here, but one thing was for sure, she was important. Because the last time I saw something like this, Serafina saved us from danger. Then, I returned back, outside the car it was night. My mother came rushing back with groceries, as if nothing had happened. “ Serafina. Who is she?” I murmured to myself, walking into the car, lost in my own thoughts. At last, I was back, back in my world, back in my time, back in my normal life. I thought of Lydia, King Sid, Clarissa, Celia, and this Serafina, how much I would want to know them more.

   When I returned home, I found something in my room. It was Lydia's notebook and a letter on top of the notebook:

 Dear Erin,

If you found this letter, it means that I have succeeded in tracking your destination. Write on it as soon as you finish reading it, when you write on it, the words would go straight to us, a way for us to talk. Have you returned?  We miss you, even King Sidney ( whom you call King Sid) talked about you. Lydia woke up, there is good news for you. She remembers. She said she wouldn't , but she remembers. Don't worry.

                                          Yours Truly,

                      Clarissa, Celia, Lydia,           

                              and King Sidney

I flipped through Lydia's notebook, looking at everything she has been through ( which was a lot ). So I decided to read a few pages every day. I also replied their letter, I could almost see the happiness on their faces when they see my reply. I told them that my name was really Erin, and my home was actually another world, completely different from their world because it had no magic, Memory Flowers, Wizard King, witches, or wands. They were interested in my world. Clarissa, Lydia, and Celia are already trying to do portal magic so they could come to my world. They replied almost immediately. I smiled. I told them I am going to bed and they should too. I slipped into my comfy bed, wondering if I am actually going to meet any of them again. Maybe one day, I would wake up again, with a lost memory or with a notebook and pen in my hand, then I would realize, that I was back once again.

THE END.