[drachoth]

Sparkz' wandered through the forest. Well where is this place? She often ranted out loud to herself. This caused most of the other creatures at her pen to think she was a crazy, old, and batty creature. "I'll show them. Once they know how tough I am they'll stop thinking, 'Oh, don't worry she is too old to do anything.' As soon as I catch one of those Moonlings, then, they wont mess with me ever again." The thick jungle was full of odd sounds, or at least sounds Sparkz' had never heard of. Creatures were calling out as if to defend their territory. Others made noises as if a loved one was lost. The jungle was also full of many fragrances. Many exotic flowers surrounded her. In her lifetime she had seen many different kinds of plants, but not like these. Colors she had never in a million years thought of. Now her pen seemed to be in just shades of gray compared to the lush world that surrounded her now. Vines stricken with moss hung from the mighty trees surrounding her. Their roots twisted around the winding trunks. A mist hung in the air. It was hard to see even five feet in front of her. Little insects buzzed around her head. She did all she could to swat them away, but nothing worked. As the mist rose, so did the insects. Farther into the forest she knew it was still daytime, darkness surrounded her. The canopy now let very little light in. She figured the library would be in a hidden unmapped part of the forest. Unlike the quiet morning when most of the animals were just waking at her pen, no matter what hour of the day it was the noise still persisted here. Sparkz' wondered how the Moonlings could handle the noise. After awhile she found a small clearing to rest in. She had to find a torch of some sort, or she could make one herself. Before long she would be in complete darkness. She couldn't keep a stream of fire going through the night. Sparkz' had gathered enough wood to make a campfire and few torches. Using her prized knife she cut a few leather strip, to tie the sticks together, from her pack. "Ahhh. I still remember the day when I obtained this switch blade." She may have been old but this day would always stay fresh in her mind.

{1}

[drachoth]

-flashback-

"Hey Sparkz'. I see you still have that crummy old knife of yours." Kalena was her best friend. They always jokes about each other's broken tools ."Yeah, yeah, yeah. What about that useless rock you always carry around?" Now that had crushed Kalena. "It's one thing when you joke about meaningless things, but it's another when you joke about all I have left of my brother!" Sobs filled the air around the girls. Sparkz' had then felt no sympathy, but instead she felt anger. How was she supposed to know that's what it was. Kalena never talk about it. For all Sparkz' knew it was a hammer of some sort. Kalena ran down the street weeping. A stranger walked up beside her. "Hey, you don't need a sap like that. She seemed to be mooching off of you anyway."   Sparkz' stared at the man dumbfounded. "She never mooched of me! In fact anyone who calls Kalena a sap deserves a clock up 'side the head!"She didn't even know why she was defending her. For all she knew Kalena was cursing her at the moment. "Whoa, whoa. Just take it easy. I didn't mean to offend you. God...you could've at least given me a warning before you exploded like that. I mean c'mon, you acted as if I cursed her and her whole family. An innocent bystander like me wouldn't have any reason to do such a thi..." Sparkz' cut him off short. "I didn't over react. What you did was horrible, no matter who you were talking about. Insulting a weeping person is worse than putting salt in a fresh wound." She gave him one quick glare and he ran so swiftly not even the fastest jet could pass him. As he ran a white thing fell out of his left jacket pocket. When Sparkz' walked up to it she saw it was a switch blade. The most beautiful one she had ever seen. The handle was pure ivory. It was covered in intricate carvings.It was the symbol of the cursed, and on the other sides were the symbols of the temple and another that she didn't recognize. Her eyes glazed over as her finger followed every grove, every bump, and every little crack in the handle. that's what she liked best, all the small imperfections they were what gave it character. And then...oh the blade. It was sharp and yet dull to the touch. There were more designs on the blade itself. The best part of all it never needed to be sharpened. Kalena had came rushing out of her hiding place while Sparkz' was glazing over the knife. Her little frail body clasped Sparkz' in a warm, caring way. "No one has ever done that for me...I'm sorry I snapped at you earlier. I should have told you but ever since my brother was blown up in the mining accident, its just been a sore topic for me." Tears of joy streamed down her thin face. "You shouldn't feel sorry. I should have known that no useless tool is ever put in that beautiful leather pouch. That must have taken hours, probably even days, to do that embroidering." Both sat in the middle of the road sobbing, hugging, crying out in joy. So many emotions were felt that day.

{2}

[drachoth]

-return to normal time-

The blade was still sharp, even today after years of wear and tear. The flame kept her warm throughout the day and most of the night. Sparkz' scavenged for hours looking for fruit. 'Natures perfection' was what she called fruit. " They full you up, and quench your thirst." In her pack there was blanket, canteens, and other various survival needs. She pulled out the book. The Survival Guide to Finding and living past Moonlings. There was no author to this very thick and worn book. Her hand traced the carved lettering, and patterns. They seemed to resemble the patterns on the knife.. This book was the ultimatum in all of the books she had ever owned. It had pictures, clippings, and many foot notes, that made it complete.


{3}

[drachoth]

-A little while later-

She yawned and swallowed a gaggle of bugs. "Ack!" Sparkz' sputtered awake. *Yawn* "Oh! I must've dosed off while I was reading."The fire was out now. A rumbling in her throat signaled a flame was coming. After the fire was started again she noticed a very peculiar sight. "MY BOOK!" All of the sudden the fire she just started went out. Scared she tried to light another fire but she couldn't find the torches she had made. Even her pack was gone. "What the..." This had never happened before. How could a pack and three unused torches go missing? The fire pit was even wet so she couldn't create a new one. She curled up against a moss covered tree and went to sleep. It was so cold that night she was shivering the whole time. When she awoke it was just light enough to see a few feet in front of her. She foraged around to find more wood. It took her three hours this time. It seemed that good, non-wet wood was taken far away. This was to weird but nonetheless, she couldn't wait here and have the library come to her. She had to find it herself. "Huh..." Sparkz' had just noticed that all the animal nioses had stopped. Now there was only silence and the sound of her feet crunching the leaves as she walked.

{4}

[drachoth]

Her heart rate quickened. Those chants the other, younger animals used to say at home reappeared in her mind, as if told to come back for some reason.

"You're too old, so weak.
Drachoth will never let you go out and seek."

"Old Grandma that's your name,
You're the one thats always lame."

They haunted her mind with every step she took. Her mind began to recoil from fear. Maybe I am too old. I shouldn't be out here. All those little kids were right, I'm just a weak old grandma whose worthless. Again silence was all she could hear next to her thoughts. A wave of anger came over Sparkz'. I WILL NEVER BE TOO OLD. THERE IS A REASON THAT SPARKZ' IS MY NAME. I ALWAYS HAD A SPARK OF LIFE IN ME, AND THAT SPARK WILL NEVER DIE!!! She stopped moving, stood her ground and waited for the silence to end. It wouldn't matter if she moved or not. Sparkz' made her feet like iron weights and stood there waiting, waiting.

{5}