Hello All,
Please could I have your feedback. There is a writing challenge which I am participating in. The theme is fantasy and must have the opening line of ‘There weren’t always dragons in the Valley.‘ I have written the short story below and any critique or feedback is welcome.
Nobody can hear a scream in the vacuum of space, or so they say. But that scream comes from a silence. A deafening silence. The silence of creation.
There weren’t always dragons in the valley. But then again, there weren’t always fairies. You see, long ago, this world was very different. But there comes a time when everything has to evolve.
The evolution of the earth came through solar flares, a prophecy and change that comes every 11 years in the sun’s cycle. Each time, new beginnings are forged by the sun. In 2022, the most powerful flare impacted Earth and cut power to the world. When the energy of the flare pierced the Earth’s electric field, genetics were affected. Not everyone survived the flare. The burst of energy caused mutations in all living creatures. Those that survived were left in grief and appreciation of their new world and the second chance they were given, and I should know as I am one of the humans that remained.
My name is Zilkrix and I am writing to you from a hill peak in the Amazon. It’s been 10 years since the flare. Time has rapidly changed, but for me it still feels like yesterday, and that’s because time feels different now, less elastic. I was 30 when the flare struck, and now 10 years later, you’d think I’d look older, when in fact I don’t look a day over 18. That’s what the mutation did. The energy gave us a burst of vitality, and now we’re younger than before.
Humans mutated into different races with power over the elements and hybrids of animals. This change made way for some unusual combinations. Whatever combination you can imagine, it exists. Ethnicity and nationality are things of the past. The real shock for me was the evolution of animals, trees, and plants. Dragons and unicorns are now reality. There are forests forged entirely of mushrooms, bigger than old office buildings. Flowers can walk and move locations, and shape-shifting is very much a trend. The shapeshifting humans do prevent you from talking to every creature like a baby and trying to pet it, just in case you’re petting a human in disguise. From experience, I can tell you this can be mortifying.
The nightlife of the New Earth is a magical place. The flare blessed all living creatures with the gift of UV luminous, which we can switch on and off as we choose. Each of us has unique patterns of UV lines, which me and my sister call HD tattoos. It helps to create nights of light, colour, and beauty with all the different creatures.
The real surprise for me was the evolution of fruit. Trees were given the ability to not only whip people with their branches when disrespected. But to also harvest dead animals by turning their meat into fruit. From the skin of the fruit, we are able to determine which animal the meat belongs to. It’s made hunting for food so simple.
Everything has become more heightened and fuller of life. It’s an awakening of magic to the senses, and it helped make the loss of the old world easier to bear. The more time went on, the more you understood why it needed to be done. More importantly, how ready we were for change.
The flare didn’t come as a surprise to many that survived; deep down we knew it was coming. We did try and warn many in the old world. However, they just called us crazy. Ignorance was bliss for a percentage of the population. They refused to evolve their own understanding or learn beyond the teachings of the system (matrix). On the old earth there was a ‘spiritually awakened population’, which I was part of. During meditation, our bodies adapted to higher frequencies and vibrations and activated many new genetics, which stayed dormant until the flare. Which meant that when the flare hit, our bodies were already aligned with the new earth. Not everyone survived the flare, but not everyone had aligned with the New Earth.
As soon as I awoke after the flare, I knew what had happened and which abilities I had. After all, I had foreseen my evolution. I began my journey to see my sister. She lived around 100 miles from me. I stepped outside and there was a strange roar from the sky. I looked up and, oh my, my legs buckled and I fell to my knees. It’s a… it’s a… dragon. It’s a goddamn dragon.
All the butterflies rushed to my stomach. Excitement and nerves washed over me. I had never been so happy. I felt like a kid and this burst of childlike energy washed over me, and then something peculiar happened. Wings appeared. I had long grey iridescent wings coming out of my back. They were attached to me, and I was flying in circles trying to control them, but I couldn’t stop laughing. I prayed until this day that no one was there to witness it. I managed to regain some control and straightened myself. I was in awe. They were so beautiful and they were mine. I was overwhelmed with joy and it was strange that the wings came with their own tracker. I was able to sense Earth’s electromagnetic navigation field. It’s what racing pigeons use to travel to different locations, and I now have access to it. I spread my wings and with force I flew, faster and faster, in circles, up and down. I passed other flyers on the way and the world looked so different from above.
My wings were one of many abilities I had to discover. If you could imagine it, it could happen, and for me, my greatest abilities were the power of imagination and the ability to transform. There were no limits to transitioning, but each transition required metamorphosis to transform. We were in the age of infinity and everything and anything felt possible. In order to gain new abilities, you had to understand the abilities. The deeper the understanding, the greater the connection and strength to any new ability.
I’m not who I used to be, and tomorrow I’ll be something entirely different. My readers, my family, I’ve given you the start of how my journey began, and tomorrow I’ll teach you more, but for now I have the Amazon sunset to enjoy and fruit to forage. Take care of yourself, you miracle.
K
The Darkest Fairytale 