Chapter 1: The Ultimate Prank

This is going to be. The. Ultimate. Prank.

                An invisible string, thinner than a hair, yet sturdy like a rope strung from a rooftop and tied around a wooden owl; it’s eyes large and piercing, each pupil carved with perfect formations to make it more life-like, spun out towards another rooftop where a small figure enwrapped in a mud colored tunic with a hood pulled over closely to the face, veiling it, held the other end of the string. Attached to the string were empty bottles that were once filled with fizzy lemon and apple soda now stuffed with a brown, murky substance. There were about 8 bottles hanging, each tilted upwards so that the sweet disaster wouldn’t spill until the perfect moment arrived.

                The hooded figure’s dark eyes peered the empty space below, like an owl, waiting for the prey to reveal themselves. The three chubby fingers, middle, index and thumb, gripped onto the thin string tightly, while quivering with excitement. The clock tower struck midnight. The moment was about to come.

                The door of the old temple creaked and out stepped four men in grey cloaks adorned with silver medallions. Three of the men were old, their balding heads were masked by a small grey cap with a silver metal button sewed on the top of it, their beards crinkly and long like that of a goats, and permanent frowns stamped on their prune faces. The younger one was dressed the exactly same way except his beard appeared like an un watered herb garden, the hairs not fully grown nor symmetrical in length, yet his head was covered in luscious yellow locks. He didn’t hold a frown, his face was blooming; teeth shone like small, sparkling stars as he spoke to the three charmingly. Behind them a small figure in an identical cloak walked quietly. A bag made of goat skin hung on the skinny back as the head lifted, revealing a pale boy. His blue river eyes that were slightly covered from his golden bangs scanned up one of the buildings and fixated on the scrubby shadow standing ever so still on the rooftop. A pocket-sized smile formed on his lips. He stopped in his tracks and let out a fake sneeze.

                At once the puny tunic wearing person shook the string vigorously, bobbing the glass bottles up and down until they tipped all at once. The smiley young man was in the middle of his story when the brown liquid splashed upon his head, staining his shiny teeth, the yellow locks getting dyed a rich chocolate-color, except the content was far from the sweet treat. At the moment he stopped, his eyes froze like icicles as he watched the other three get poured on as well. The air around them filled with the stinky, rich smell of animal t**d. At that moment the puny pale boy begins to run, his goat skin bag bumping against his back. The icicle eyes melted and are replaced with fire torches as the young man shouts loud enough for the quiet buildings to echo:

“Scamps! Little monsters! Devil’s children!”

                Letting go of the string and allowing the bottles to crash unto the floor, the rooftop urchin begins to run, jumping over from rooftop to rooftop like a golden tamarin monkey. A shriek of uncontrollable laughter escapes the mouth as the child gallops over the houses. At the far end a ladder was leaning against the wall of a brick house. The kid quickly climbed down the ladder, picked it up, placed it on the floor in front of the house, and continued to scamper.

The pale boy’s face flushed a deep red from sprinting too fast. He breathed deeply from his mouth as he turned his head behind him to see his partner in crime coming towards him. A big grin spread across his thin lips as his golden locks bounced against his neck. “Hurry up you snail! They are going to get us!” He laughed hysterically as he said this. The hooded comrade quickened their pace and eventually was running beside him.

“Who you calling a snail you rotten tomato!” The youngster smirked reaching over and pulling off their hood. What was revealed was the round head of a light tanned (like coffee mixed with milk) girl, dark, full eyebrows, small nose, lightly cleft chin, and large dark brown eyes with long lashes. She let out a huge laugh, her teeth glistened in the moonlight revealing her chipped front tooth. Her hair was covered with a thin, black scarf that was loosely wrapped, the tips of the material colored with a deep red dye.

They both panted hard as they crossed the Learsi town quarters and passed by the Eniteslap villages. The world was empty, without a human soul in site. It was strictly forbidden for anyone from the Enitselap village to be out when the sun sets. It was the perfect place for the two of them to run through. Eventually they passed the village and went into the forest where a small pond lay open awaiting their arrival. The girl and boy both fell to the floor, rolling unto the grass and breathing heavily as they try to grab the free air into their tiny lungs. Hundreds of fireflies roam around the pond, flickering like little fairies. The fish made sweet kissing noises, tall grass sway ever so softly in the breeze, and the trees acted as a canopy where thousands of little birds in nests slept calmly.

The coffee colored girl rolled over unto her stomach and rested her hands underneath her chin. Her brown tunic was covered in grass shards and roots as she smiled over at the boy still catching his breathe. He looked over at her, grinning, then averted his eyes towards the sky. He spoke into between, panting like a dog, “That. Was. Awesome! Those-“He sucked in a deep breeze as his heart beat began to get back at its normal pace, “Those old wrinkly raisins deserved that!”

“Joshua, they looked more like old goats to me,” The girl snickered, “Although I feel terribly sorry for your cousin, poor guy didn’t know what was coming to him.”

“He deserved it as much as those goats did,” Joshua said, crossing his arms, “It’s his fault why I have to be at that place so late at night. Those guys are so bitter, and cold, and if I’m beginning to fall asleep they have these tiny rods that they whip at my wrists to keep me up.” Joshua exposed his slender wrists revealing little pink lashes, “Joseph says it’s to keep me disciplined and in track, and will encourage me to do better in my studies, but in all honesty it just makes me hate it even more!” His lean fingers clenched into fists as he let out a deep sigh.

Her Dark brown eyes narrowed. She felt terrible that her best friend was getting this sort of treatment, especially because he wasn’t in the best of his health, “Why can’t you just quit?” She questioned.

“I can’t Sai…once you are born an Alon, you need to live up to being an Alon.” Joshua’s eyes saddened thinking about what his future held.

Sai hated seeing her best friend full of sorrow. She quickly lightened up and responded, “Well, since they are so cold and bitter, maybe the fresh poop of the cows, sheep, and chickens can warm them up!” And with that they both exploded with laughter at their accomplishment.

Joshua sat up and asked, gazing into Sai’s pupils, “Would you like another reading lesson tonight?”

“I’m going to have to head home in a little bit but I guess we can read a couple of lines,” Sai replied, getting up and sitting with her legs crossed.

Joshua’s eyes lit up as he reached over to his bag and dug out his leather book. It was maroon in color and bounded by thin leather strips. The pages stuck out smoothly and chunky from constant use and written on the spine in golden letters was the name Marwin Roch, Tales of the Mighty Sea.

“Guess what I found out? Marwin Roch’s name actually means “sea friend,” Joshua opened up the book, “That explains why he’s destined to be a pirate.”

“That’s so cool,” Sai said amused, “Mr. Marwin is always out seeking adventure!”

Joshua turned the pages looking for the spot they left off at, “I was eaves dropping on a couple of Learsi sailors who were devouring meat pies and beers while I was walking passed the Fox Anchor pub,” Joshua wrinkled up his nose, “That place stunk worse than poo, smelled like an old man’s burp, but I didn’t want to miss a word of what they were saying,” He leaned in closer and whispered, “They said it was rumored that Marwin Roch was heading towards Airys.”

“What?” Sai said surprised, “But isn’t that a weird place for a pirate to go?”

“Apparently there’s a secret treasure there that he wants, “Joshua smiled. He yanked out a folded paper from his bag and unfolded it, revealing a map. He pulled out his inkwell, stuck the tip of his pinky finger on it, then placing it on Airys. He then got out his quill, dipped it in the ink and wrote small and in cursive, Treasure spot, must see. All over the map were dried ink spots and small written notes. “Added another place to the list that we must see together!” Joshua grinned, “Adventure awaits!”

“One day,” Sai smiled, “We just need to figure out when Mr. Marwin is near the town and sneak unto his ship!”

“Yeah. When that happens make sure to stash a good amount of custard buns so we don’t get hungry, “ Joshua licked his lips in delight as he thought of the soft squishy ball filled with sweet, strawberry custard, an Enitselap specialty.

“Of course, of course! My mom’s close friends with the baker’s wife so I can probably get my hands on a lot!” Sai thumbed up and winked.

“Excellent! Oh- and I found the page!” Joshua pointed and handed the book to Sai.

Sai looked at the letters, first all individually, then together as words. She began to read,

“It was a moment in time that I knew….” She paused for a moment then continued, “That I knew that the sea wasn’t feeling well. You see, I am married to the sea and I can sense her feelings. I knew she wasn’t in her best mood. I must warn my men to head to land as quickly as possible. My wife is having a mood swing again….”

Sai closed the book and handed it to Joshua.

“You are not going to read the rest?” He groaned, “It was just coming to the best part!”

“I have to get going,” Sai stood up and placed the hood back on her head, “Sometimes Kales wakes up in the middle of the night, and if he doesn’t see me in bed he’ll worry and wake my mother. We’ll read more tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow at the garden?” Joshua grinned.

“Yep! The garden,” Sai said smiling as she began to walk out of the forest.

“By the way,” Joshua said as he stood up, holding the book in his right hand as he slung the goat skin bag over his back with his left arm, “Your reading has gotten really good,” He grinned wider, “I’m an awesome teacher.”

“Oh, go to sleep you centipede,” Sai said, sticking her tongue at him as she jogged back to the Azag village.

That night Sai laid in her bed, her wool blanket wrapped around her, gazing up towards the night sky through her window. The dusty curtains moved slightly from the night breeze. She heard a snore and turned her attention to her brother, Kales, who slept on the bed across from hers. Tomorrow would be the day that the Enit people would announce that she is a woman. She let out a sigh, the thought of becoming older intrigued Sai greatly. That means more responsibilities, and more responsibilities meant more work, and more work meant less fun. The thought of less fun made Sai wince, she kicked her foot in the air, and groaned. Kales woke up and said in a sleepy voice, “Can you stop making so much noise?” He dropped his head back into his feather stuffed pillow and began to snore deeply once again.

Sai smirked and mumbled, “Says the one who snores like a cow.” She pulled the blanket over her face and rolled onto her side, closer to the wall. She shut her eyes and furrowed her eyebrows. She was jealous of Kales. Boys don’t become a man until they reach the age of thirteen. Kales was only six. He had a long way to go.

Her head jumbled around like a bunch of crickets who were trapped in a jar and someone shook it. Questions swirled in her head: what duties would she be assigned? What parts of her life would she need to let go of? Will she have to get married? The thought of marriage made Sai’s stomach lurch in disgust. Who’d want to be married to a nose-picking-rotten-smelling-cootie boy? Will she have to learn to bake bread? Will she have to start wearing makeup? Will she have to wear shoes that make her feel unbalanced? Will she have to learn how to take care of babies? Will she have to learn how to pluck a chicken or shave a sheep? Will she-

What awaited her tomorrow?