Twist of Fate
Sabrinadiamond stepped outside, feeling the cold blast of air around her. It was freezing outside her Neohome. Pale white snowflakes drifted gently onto the sidewalk as the rest of the world was silent. No traffic, or people yelling at each other. She watched the snow, noiselessly watching the flakes drift through her fingers before they dispersed onto the pavement. Watching the snow gave her an inner peace somehow. Her breath fogged, looking like a fine mist before it vaporized into the atmosphere. After a while she felt cold, like the frost around her. She longed, she desired to go back into the warm glow of the house and it was drawing her in.
A few minutes later her pets burst out of the house in a confusing jumble of paws and feathers, shattering the serene silence of the streets. Sabrina smiled gratefully as she flung one end of the scarf around her neck; at last they could begin their daily walk to the Faerieland Healing Springs. As usual, her Neopets's conversations were extremely erratic…
"As you know, the Volcano plot is now going to be shown, and also did you know that…" squawked Kassiko, the red Lenny, in her most maddening voice, irritating everyone that heard her.
"WHY DON'T YOU SHUT UP, YOU NINNY!" yelled Parlrina the Wocky as he smartened his rainbow fur, which was the pride of his life.
"Why did you call me a ninny Parly?" screeched Kass as red feathers dropped from her wings. Paws the Kougra looked up from his dog-eared book, Algebra for Geniuses, for once, staring at the commotion with wide eyes.
"Because you are so stuuupid," said Parlrina in the most insulting voice he could muster. Kass turned as crimson as her feathers before Sabrina yelled at Parlrina to apologize. Parlrina muttered some explicit words under his breath as he apologized to Kassiko.
Sabrina sighed regretfully as she looked at her quarrelling pets. Why couldn't she get Neopets that could get along with each other? Why did they have to fight all the time, not giving each other a break? She loved all of her pets and was proud of them, but she just couldn't understand why they hated each other so much. Just as the argument looked like it was about to get worse (Parlrina was about to pounce on Kassiko in a fit of anger, his rainbow fur fluffed up, hissing and spitting like an alley cat),
Sabrina announced they had arrived at the Healing Springs…
Priscilla (the strange stepsister of Jhudora) smiled wistfully at the thought of vengeance. She sat casually on her decorated couch while admiring all the crystal creations that she had collected over the years. Of course, she had crystallized some humans and Neopets to complete her collection, but what did she care for that? What did she care if she made innocent people into lifelike crystals? They were lowly beings after all, humble servants of the dark faeries, even though she wasn't a dark faerie herself. She had somehow inherited her stepsister's love of wickedness, but also she inherited her own mother's passionate love of crystals.
Revenge is bittersweet, sweet to the soul, but bitter to the victim. That stupid owner outwitted me! She must pay for all the trouble she gave me! I'll give her hell all right! She thought as her eyes blazed with anger, literally. Priscilla laughed at the acidic thought as her wings fluttered with the elfin grace of a fire faerie. Her wild, raucous laughter rang throughout the vast corridors of the crystal palace, sounding like tinkling bells to the hearer. But one could find no mirth in her laughter or any likable charm, but an inner maliciousness.
Priscilla, the crystal-obsessed fire faerie, produced in the palm of her porcelain hand a handheld mirror. The mirror was shaped like a dragon-like Draik, with handcrafted emerald scales, silver body amour and fiery red eyes that brought fear into anyone that looked into them. The jagged surface of the luminous mirror was cracked like the crevasses of a canyon and it radiated eerily as if it glowed with a light of its own. Priscilla uttered Fyraen, the faerie language, as she summoned the spell to show what Sabrina was doing at that particular moment. She gazed into the mirror as she began the complicated incantation.
"Brynt thi prynst tia me. Synds of thymi, fyre of prynst. Ia cemand u tia brynt me thi prynst. Thy pywer ist undyr mia cemand, shyw me thi ownyr whych Ia cemand- sybrynadyamynd!"
A faint smoky green mist rose from the mirror as the mirror itself shone a brilliant blinding red, the colour of blood. There was a flash of purple lightning from nowhere as it struck the mirror with a thundering roar. The mirror shattered into many pieces with a splintering CRASH! The intense beam of crimson light demolished most the wall. Priscilla looked up at the destroyed wall; broken crystals and glass were lying shattered on the floor of her airy bedroom. She cursed.
"Oops, I must call the Neohome Builders Association so they can fix up the wall! Oh well," she muttered with a regretted sigh.
Then it came. The image of Sabrina and her healed pets appeared in the mirror. As Priscilla viewed the scene in her shimmering looking glass, she remembered with a twisted leer, what happened when she last encountered this determined owner and her none to be outdone pets…
Priscilla grinned maliciously, her pitiless laughter echoing around the room…The foolish girl thinks she could escape her indestructible spells and rescue her friends at the same time? Fools! The Neopets coiled with fear, yet their eyes were filled with an inner hope, a glimmer of confidence shone in their eyes. The teenage girl looked assured too, although she also looked worried. Sabinalisha also yelled something at the Faerie, her fists clenched. "Let us go!" she screamed.
"You can't do this to us! You can't, you monstrosity!" yelled Parly, the rainbow coloured Wocky, he looked ready to charge at the faerie at any moment as the others only stared at the valiant Wocky.
A mocking sneer ensured from the blazing ball of fire as it raised its burning palms. A ball of fire was growing stealthily within the palms as the huddled group stared in horror. The fire faerie's orange eyes glowed vividly within its face. They flickered for a moment before they flared a deep vibrant red. "Prepare to face a fiery furnace, pathetic people…"
Too late now…She felt her energy levels rising rapidly, her powers increasing within her…
The memory stopped there, fading very quickly as the faerie remembered what she was supposed to be doing. Now Priscilla knew what to do, now she knew what fate she had in mind for that foolish owner who ruined her evil plans (and crystal collectibles)… She laughed harshly as she conjured the spell…
From Sabrina's POV, at the Healing Springs…
"Hi there! Another customer? Ah, Sabrina! How are you today? And how are your little pets?" said the talkative Water Faerie; her mermaid tail flicking pearly drops of water everywhere. Oh, Rainelle could talk for hours this way! Luckily for me, I'm talkative too! An infinite fountain of water gurgled onto the slippery algae-covered rocks as a Bruce dived into the cold icy water, laughing with glee as it slid on its penguin-like body. A green alien-like Grundo squeaked as it leapt into the water.
Parlrina tugged at my hands impatiently with his furry paws.
What does he want now? I wondered. I turned to him. Knowing him, he probably wanted a turn at the fountain.
"Come on Sabrina, I want to have a go now!" he whined in his cute catlike voice. He stomped his hind paw in a tantrum. "I want it! I want it! I want it!" he yelled. Boy was he spoilt!
"Anyway, I was about to sell that potion to the Shop Wizard when-" the Water Faerie stopped talking, she was staring at my pampered pet Wocky indignantly. "Can you control him? He's creating a commotion!" she asked. Other neopets started to point at him and laugh. A Quiggle giggled. The owner of an Aisha stared.
"I've never seen such a pathetic pampered pet in my life- until now!" The Aisha owner yelled at us. I never felt so ashamed in my entire life!
"Parly, how many times do I have to tell you to stop doing that! I am ashamed of your behaviour!" I said, using my official owner voice. That stopped him. Meanwhile, my angel Mystie was looking after Paws, teaching him advanced algebra from a tattered notepad. Mysteria can be so sweet! Kassiko was waiting for her turn like she was supposed to.
Suddenly, something so impossible happened, it defied all odds. There was a POOF! sound heard in the middle of the springs. It was so loud it nearly burst my eardrums. Next, a mini twister materialized in the healing water. It swirled within itself, a bottomless vortex of sparkling water. A water whirlwind? Impossible!
"What in the name of Fyroa is happening?" screamed Rainelle, diving underwater. Neopets and owners scattered, hiding behind anything they could find, scrambling into the trees and bushes.
A sky blue Eyrie spread its enormous wings, with a screech it flew into the blue; the grand griffin was camouflaged perfectly against the skies. The emerald Aisha scrammed, instantly it was hidden in the bushes. I was cowering behind the rocks, hoping that my pets were all right.
Fortunately, a second later, Paws found me, as well as all my other Neopets. Several Neopets burst out of the bushes, their fur and feathers covered thickly in twigs and leaves. They looked more like wild jungle Neopets than domesticated Neopets!
"Thank Garon we found you Sabrina! We thought we lost you in the crowds!" exclaimed Mysteria, her infectious lupine grin beaming at me. She looked relieved as she sighed, leaning against a rock. I felt relief too; my pets were okay! Paws literally leapt at me, his paws outstretched in a friendly Kougra greeting.
"You are ok?" he asked.
But before I could reply, I felt extremely strange, like a bubble was binding me, constricting me, wrapping me into the heart of it. It was. I was trapped in the bubble prison! I panicked big time and tried to bang against it. But the transparent bubble was solid like plastic; I couldn't get out no matter how hard I tried! Mystie looked terrified, trying to release me from the bubble, Parly also tried to help, his furry body pushing against the surface trying to pop it.
"Sabrina!" yelled Paws.
Then a familiar wicked laugh echoed across the Healing Springs. Rainelle gasped in horror. Priscilla, the immoral fire faerie, was standing on top of the fountain, her eyes blazing like fire. All the Neopets and owners at the Healing Springs gasped and bowed in fear. This couldn't be good, I realized.
"Fools! Such ignorant fools!" Priscilla cried as she stepped down from the fountain. With a flick of her wrist, she sent a destructive fireball colliding into the Healing Potions Store. "Run for your life!" croaked a Quiggle as it tried to hop away. A blue furred Kyrii scampered away from the open shop as Mystie growled. No! I watched helplessly as the fire spread. CRASH! The magical potions shattered onto the floor, glass exploding everywhere. Priscilla used this distraction to teleport the bubble I was in…
To be continued... Next chapter-