| Excerpt: Night had arrived. In the forest location inside the cave where Leonard fainted, the air was chilling, quiet and dark. Leonard groaned awaken from his faint, “uughh... Where am I now? Why is it so dark, where am I? Oh, I remember... I fainted in the cave's gate, my body was like burning, my head such to explode, and my body smoky. But ... But ... now, I feel, I didn’t pain anymore. My body fresh, what happened. That poisonous fruit didn’t kill me?” He astonished at what he just experienced, he survived from the poisonous fruit he ate. He didn’t die! ..........<<Wish you enjoy this short fiction story. If you love it, please subscribe to get the notice of every new short fiction story from us. Thank you.>> |
“Hmmm ... hmmm ... hmmm ... hmmm ... hmmm ... hmmm ...,” a handsome youth was humming cheerfully watched his shepherd dog jumping around.
“Leonaard ... Leonaard ... Please come over here for a minute. Help mom to lift vegetables to the barn for you to take to the village tomorrow!" sounded a woman’s voice from a distance was calling him.
“Yeah mom, I’m right there,” he jogged to the garden beside the house and did what his mother, Martha, ordered.
“Happ ...!” his strong hands lifted two baskets at once containing the yields into the barn.
“Mom, I have finished. I am back to the sheep now.”
"Yes! Be careful out there. I will wait for you for lunch."
“Okay mom, don’t worry,” Leonard returned herding the sheep and checking around by careful with his dog, Moli.
The next morning, “akkhhnnh hahhhhhhh,” Leon’s voice was stretching his body when he woke from sleep.
He woke up early because he had to deliver the yields to a village. He headed to a table in the kitchen corner and drinking a glass of bright blue water his mother always prepared since he was a kid.
"Good morning mom."
"Morniiing ..."
“Have you finished your drink?” in a soft voice, Martha asked.
“Yes, sure ...”
“That drink will take care of you, I am glad you drink it every day. Mother loves you.”
Martha always made a blue drink at night and Leonard drank it in the morning after waking up.
“Come on, breakfast is ready,” Martha said.
Leonard washed his face, then went to the dining table to have breakfast with his mother.
After lifting the baskets to the donkey cart, Leonard went to the market in a village four miles away from the valley. He decreased the speed of his donkey cart when passing through one of the forests that made him always curious when passing it. Then he muttered to himself.
“What a magnificent forest. How is the scene in that forest? Much colorful flower, fruit, mushroom, but why people keep at the distance from it, and likewise, my mom forbid me to go in there?” after a while, he sped up the speed of his donkey cart again.
"Yaak ... yaak ...," He shouted to his donkey.
A few moments later, he arrived at the village market, headed to a tradesman who used to accommodate his yields.
"Uncle, I am delivering the yields."
"Yes, lower it in the storeroom."
"Uncle, why many people stay off from the mushrooms forest?"
Uncle tradesman frowned, then said, "do you mean forest across river surrounds by thorny trees?"
"Yes, uncle."
While handing vegetables’ money to Leonard, “yeah! No reason to go there. What’s in the forest ...! There only grow the plant and poisonous tree. Everything is deadly, never go there!”
"Oh, very noxious! Though seems beautiful."
After finished, Leonard said goodbye to go home because he had to help his mother to plow the field.
"Well, I must go home now. Thank you, uncle."
"Okay, be careful. Stay away from the forest. Don't ever try to get in there, Leonard!
"Sure, thanks."
Once upon a night when Leonard was sleeping, he dreamed was walking in the thorny forest and went inside it.
"Wow … very magnificent. I've never seen a colorful mushroom like this. Is it poisonous? Wow, what flower is that?"
He continued to enter deeper into that forest and arrived in a vast fabulous flower garden. Suddenly, he heard an echoing voice. The woman’s voice who was calling out his name, “Leonaaard ... Leonaard ... go away now. Don’t come here!”
When he turned to where the voice came, sudden the forest view changed and he faced a big strange tree which he had never seen.
"Took ... took..." "Took ... took..." "Took, took, took," Leonard surprised and woke from his dream because his mother was in front of the door room waking him.
"Leonaard, let's wake up ...! The sun has risen!" sounded his mother's voice came from the front door.
"Why are you awake late, Leonaard?" asked his mother when in the kitchen.
"Don't know, mother. I had a strange dream last night."
"Oh, never mind then. It’s good. Come on, finish your drink. That’s the most important!" the mother said with a smile.
"Yup," Leonard answered while drinking the blue drink.
"Guukk ... guukk ... guukk" "Guukk ... guukk" "Guukk ... guukk" "Guukk ... guukk ...," moli, Leonard's dog barked continuously to wake him up.
"Ahh, ooh, what!! ... Oh, Molii ...?" Moli’s barking startled Leonard.
"Ugfffff, I fell asleep again. What was happening? I think for a month, I always dreamed of the same thing. I felt she was calling me."
"Moli. You keep sheep here, I'll go for a moment," Leonard ordered his dog, moli, to look after the sheep.
“Guukk ... guuk ...!” moli barked very excited because Leonard gave a big responsibility to him. Leonard ran fast towards the forest that had always been in his dream recently.
With fast, he arrived at the forest edge across the river surrounded by thorny trees. With careful, he walked through the bush to enter deeper. “The picturesque mushroom color. I have never seen such the scenic scene as this.” The various flowers, mushrooms, and fruit grew well there.
“What type of flower is this? What kind of fruit is that? Is it poisonous?” He stepped carefully, so as not to touch the leaves and flowers he passed because he worried something might happen to him.
"Why don’t I see any creature here and I don’t even hear the birds singing? Could it be everything the poisonous plant?"
"What tree is that?" In the deeper part in the forest, Leonard saw a giant tree which fruitful in the whole of its trunks.
"The tree inside my dreams," he shocked for a moment and fell silent facing the tree.
Suddenly, he saw a spear, and a sword leaned in a giant tree’s root corner, then he rushed to that place and shocked because there were human skeletons lying nearby that tree.
“Huh ... could be, this what caused me to always dream this forest? Did they poison because of the fruits?” Leonard wondered to himself and unaware the day had begun to be afternoon. He kept walking across the skeletons and arrived at a cave gate beside that giant tree.
“They must be are royal warriors, but which kingdom are they from? I’ve never seen such a kingdom's symbol,” he found human skeletons who had still used a helmet and uniform of a royal warrior that had wrecked leaning against the gate of the cave.
“What happened to them?” Leonard walked slow into the cave. “Who are they and why are they here? Oooohh...! What I am seeing now, don't to be known by my mother. Huh ... how is this? Mother will look for me.” Leonard just realized he had been too long in the forest.
When he thought he had to go home, accidentally his legs tripped over one skeleton in there and fell rolling into the cave which the path slight slope and stopped in a cavern inside the cave.
“???? ... What is that?” Leonard saw one human skeleton lying in a sleeping position on a somewhat big stone and still wore a gown and looked elegant even though it had started to disintegrate. He approached and shocked. It could be sure from the gown she wore, that was a princess’s skeleton. She lay on the stone had used as the base and there was a wonderful gold necklace had attached to her neck. After checking it for a while, Leonard decided to take the necklace and saved it.
The cavern where that woman’s skeleton lying was bright enough. The sun could enter through cracks of the cavern roof above it. In a location was exposed by the sunlight, a tree grew with colorful leaves, and had the bright violet fruits. In there, Leonard found a baby basket lying beneath the tree, out of curiosity, he approached the basket.
“Where is the baby? The skeleton isn't here,” he walked around tree seeking its whereabouts.
“I see none wild animals around here,” Leonard sat next baby basket, looked around, and kept thinking where the baby’s skeleton was.
“Humm ... what sweet smell, is this? Is it from this tree?” he tried smelling one dangling fruit nearby.
“Humm... from this fruit. Might this fruit be poisonous? I must try it a little. The impact will not deadly. I must further know why these folks died,” he picked that fruit, gouged a slight with knifepoint he always brought then tasting it.
“Yummy ... the taste is divine and very sweet. Fragrant and fresh,” because afraid, he waited for a while, waiting what would happen afterward.
"All right ...! I'm trying again. It seems this is non-poisonous."
He tried again to eat that fruit bit by bit and waited a moment more.
“Wow ... this is the most delicious fruit I’ve ever eaten,” he decided to consume that fruit.
“These folks might die because they ate fruits growing on the tree in front of this cave,” his thought and because hunger, he has spent 8 fruits and took a few to take home.
“I will bury these skeletons tomorrow. Maybe this handling will erase my dream of this forest,” he prepared to leave the cavern and walked out tracing the aisles of the cave, but, before reached in the cave door, suddenly, he shouted aloud.
“Aaaa Kkkhhh ...! Hoooot ... Why is my body so hooot!” he collapsed on the cave floor. His whole body convulsed. His skin color changed into reddish violet.
He groaned in agony, “aggkkffhhh ... My body will explode! Ouch ... My head hurts ...! Aaakhhhh ...!” he rolled to endure the agony he experienced. Something had happened to his body. From inside came out a transparent violet smoke. His body, smoky such as burning. He groaned loud and end up fell unconscious.
Meanwhile, at home, Leonard’s mother, Martha, led the sheep home and put them in the cage. She was very anxious about the Leonard disappearance. After inserting the sheep into the cage, she returned to the valley zone where Leonard herds sheep.
"Leoonard ... Leonard ... where are you!" she shouted to Leonard.
“Molii ... did you see where he went?” Martha asked her dog.
“Guuk ... guuk ...” while barking, Moli ran toward where Leonard goes. Martha shocked, her body trembled, and her face turned pale after knowing where Leonard going.
“Hmmm ... a human cannot avoid a destiny,” she muttered with trembling lip.
“May you survived, Leonard, mom will wait for you at home,” his mother murmured again with a sad-looking face. She decided to go home and waited for him to return.
Night had arrived. In the forest location inside the cave where Leonard fainted, the air was chilling, quiet and dark. Leonard groaned awaken from his faint, “uughh... Where am I now? Why is it so dark, where am I? Oh, I remember... I fainted in the cave's gate, my body was like burning, my head such to explode, and my body smoky. But ... But ... now, I feel, I didn’t pain anymore. My body fresh, what happened. That poisonous fruit didn’t kill me?” He astonished at what he just experienced, he survived from the poisonous fruit he ate. He didn’t die!
The warm morning sunlight woke Leonard from his deep sleep. He opened his eyes and widened shocking with what he saw.
“Hhhhh ... what is this...!" In a choked voice he shouted, seeing the thin violet smoke was rolling up covered his entire body.
“Whaaaat ... what is this... !" He shouted again. The more frightened, broader the smoke rolled up his body moving back and forth without control. The further frightened he was, the smoke came out thicker and wilder spreading broader without direction.
“Why am I ...? What kind is this smoke ...! But ... I didn’t feel suffering from the heat, such as last night. I suffered none pain, and I got my body getting stronger and fresher. I should calm … calm ... caaalmmm."
When he uttered the last word, “caaalmmm,” slow he began capable to control himself, and the smoke was rolling over his full body disappeared back to enter into his body. The more he could calm himself, the entire of the smoke disappeared into his body again.
Leonard checked his pocket and the gold necklace he kept was still there.
“I must go home,” he stood up from his squat and ran carefully to get out of the forest. Arriving at the edge of the woodland he saw a flock of wolves that were besieging a group of royal warriors. For a moment he hid behind a giant thorny tree with a slightly tense feeling. He slunk crossing the river to the road where a road for he went home. He continued to sneak and crawl away from the wolves horde, but sudden from the side appeared a big wolf jumped pouncing on him.
“Hyaaaaaakk ...” he very surprised and tried to catch the wolf’s head which attacked him. But it was too late, that wolf succeeded biting his hand.
“Aaarghhh ...,” he tried to break away and for a moment he succeeded and ran toward the royal warriors and hoped to get help, but it turned out, one of the warriors was archery him and intending to make him as a bait for the wolves.
Suddenly, the violet smoke came out again wrapped his arms and implied his hand to catch the arrow which was sliding towards him.
“Haaappp ...,” Leonard caught that arrow. Surprised and angry, he looked to the warriors and saw one of them would shoot him again.
“Yrkkh ...,” he screamed in pain. A wolf who was chasing after him managed pouncing on his shoulder, then a miracle happened! He shouted furiously and said.
“I’ll kill you are because you want to kill me!”
In a jiffy, from inside of his body appeared the thick dark violet smoke spreading throughout the direction and enveloping where the flock of wolves and the royal warriors located.
“I kill you, evil wolf! Haags ... haags ... haags” he shouted and beating the wolf’s head had pounced him, gripped its neck and continued beating until realized that it wolf had died. With still gripped its wolf’s neck, Leonard looked to around and fell silent. The thick violet smoke still covering the whole of that place. The atmosphere became quiet. Not heard the barking of the wolves and screaming of the royal warriors who scared and frantic. He tried to be calm. The atmosphere changed to silent. Meanwhile, the thick violet smoke still rolled his body.
He remembered “Calm ... calm ... caaalmmm...,” he took a deep breath and tried to relax.
The thick smoke which rolled wild gently came to his body and re-entered to his body.
“Caaalmmm...,” while inhaled and exhaled gently, he kept trying to calm himself until entire the smoke disappeared. He released his gripping to the wolf that attacked him.
“Where are the wolves and royal warriors?” he wondered to himself.
“Haaaaahhh ...! Why are they? Why are they sprawled on the ground?” he thought hard didn’t understand what just happened. Wolves and peoples died with reddish skin as roasted. The royal warriors died with the body bent circular. Entire their skin flushed with eyes bulged. Meanwhile, the wolves’ bodies, curving didn't move as if they experienced enduring extreme pain. The skin color and fur turned becoming dark red. Out of fear, Leonard ran fast, leaving that place.
Leonard continued sprinting and when he looked his bitten hand by a wolf, he surprised, gradually, the wound healed. Wounded torn because of the bite of the wolf’s fangs closed perfectly. So did the wound on his shoulder, he didn’t feel the pain anymore. Amid his shock, he remained to run went home to meet his mother.
"Guuk ... guuk" "Guuk ... guuk... guuk...," moli barked seeing Leonard running at a distance and Martha came to look him.
“Leonard,” Martha whispered when seeing Leonard was running with a fearful expression, “what happened, my son?”
“Mom, I’m sorry,” Leonard shouted softly when he had closed to his mother.
“What went on?” Martha asked anxiously.
“I didn’t know what happened, mom. I’m still confused,” Leonard said while panting.
“Quick ... quick, in into the house and tell what happened to me inside,” Martha said while helping Leonard in.
Once inside the house, Leonard told everything had happened to him, and he showed, too, the gold necklace he kept. Martha listened to Leonard’s story attentively and then Martha said.
"All right, my son. Listen well. It’s time for you to know who you truly are."
"About what, mom?" Leonard asked.
“Now, clean yourself first. Give your bloodstained shirt to me, let mom take care of it. Tomorrow, I will show you something. And mom’s message to you, you must keep these occurrences confidential to anyone.”
“Yes, mother,” Leonard answered with trembling.
The next day, Martha took Leonard to a hill neared his house. A place that he knew where his mother liked to plant and treated various kinds of flowers. A miniature park, which in the middle, there was a small rectangular thick stone placed on the fertile ground to decorate the garden.
“Leonard. Under this stone is your father’s grave. And the gold necklace you found in the cave, it belongs to your mother,” Martha explained to Leonard a reality who he was while she pulled out something from his clothes pocket. The same gold necklace owned by Leonard.
“This … this belongs to your father,” Martha said more. Leonard fell silent, he very shocked by the reality that happened.
Martha continued her story, “when mother went home from the village, I found your father sprawled on the river's edge in the forest, and again, I heard crying a baby and it was you, my son. Your father died. His condition, very terrible. His whole skin flushed such as burned as the royal warriors who died there. I buried him here,” Martha said while holding Leonard’s hand tight.
“I keep everything of this a secret because I don’t wish you to become sad, and I need you to think of me as your own biological mother. Forgive me because mom loves you as if such as a biological child of mine,” and then, Martha continued her story.
“Do you know? The drink you drink every day since you were a kid?” Leon looked into his mother’s eyes with a blank look and don't understand his mother's intent.
“Well, follow me to the house,” Martha pulled tender, Leonard’s hand, to follow her. She invited Leonard to enter her room, shifted a table where she used to place a flower vase. It turned out, was seen a wooden door. Leonard’s mom opened that door and there was a staircase leading to the crypt. Upon arrival in a crypt, Martha whispered to Leonard in a deep face.
“Listen a careful and mom beg for you to keep secret what you know to mom and likewise to you.” With full emotions feeling, Leonard listened to Martha’s story.
“Here, in this room, mother has succeeded creating the most violent anti-poison drug has ever existed,” Martha took a deep breath.
“Did you know the flower beside your father’s grave? That is the deadliest poisonous flower among the poisonous plant in the forest. Mother has succeeded in creating a medicinal herb to prevent even the most dangerous poisons by using that flower.”
While talking, Martha mixed various liquids that available in the jars on a table in a glass. Those liquids were red, green, purple, and the last, a blue liquid produced from the flower. Leonard astonished because of the result was a blue liquid he used to consume every in the dawn after he woke.
“That’s why, mom always prepares this medicinal herb every night for you every day with expectations to forestall unexpected circumstances such as happening to you, now. But, I don’t expect the impact would be extraordinary. Your body can release toxic fumes when something happened and endangers you. And your body can heal itself when injured. I am asking for you to become careful from now onwards,” Martha said, and Leonard slowly began to understand and be able to accept the reality about him.
“Then, who are my parents, mother? And ... what symbol was there on both of my parents’ necklaces?” Leonard asked Martha.
“All right, listen now,” Martha explained everything to Leonard as regards of his father that, he was a royal prince in this territory before taken over by the present king, and Martha a medicine expert who exiled herself after her husband died when joining a battle for defending the kingdom.
“Your ancestor died, killed by the current king, and the symbol on those necklaces are a symbol of your grandfather’s kingdom. Your grandfather was our king at that time.”
Leonard and Martha decided to keep everything a secret about what happened. Then Martha said “Take your mother’s skeleton. Go tomorrow morning. Gather and tidy up the others skeletons in that cave and bring only your mother’s skeleton here to bury her next to your father’s grave. We will make offerings for the universe so that the spirits of both of your parents unite with him. We will light 200 lanterns and feed the animals in this forest.”
“Yes, mom."
Martha said again “when you have done, go to the north side mountain at the third peaks. Find one the biggest stone and walk to its behind, you will discover a narrow cave hole only able for your body. Pass in there. At the end of the cave, you will arrive in the meadow in the basin, find a hut and stay there to practice controlling your strength. Don’t forget to make a bonfire once a week, so I will know you’re fine.”
Leon replied in a voice full of determination, “yes mom!”
One week afterward, Leonard went to the mountain summit to practice his strengths.
To be continued.
Poison II "The Love of Leonard.
