The Cursed One

Robin's Valley, a slice of paradise on Earth, with lush greenery, majestic mountains, serene lakes, and a tight-knit community where everyone knew each other like family. Crystal, adored by the villagers, had a natural connection with animals as if she could communicate with them in a secret language.

In this idyllic place, Crystal embarked on a thrilling adventure with a group of children, turning an ordinary truck ride into an exhilarating escapade across the field. Laughter filled the air as they clung to the sides of the truck, the wind rushing through their hair, and the sun setting behind them in a blaze of orange and pink.

The respect went both ways, from Crystal to the villagers and from villagers to Crystal as she filled the void left in her heart by her parents through the love of the villagers.

Crystal stepped through the front door and called out, "I'm home!" But as soon as she entered, a familiar eerie feeling washed over her, like a heavy blanket of darkness suffocating the space.

Despite the windows, doors, and curtains being just like any other household, there was something unsettling about the lack of sunlight in the house. It had always been the same and whenever Crystal tried to bring up her concerns to her parents, they would dismiss her words as if they didn't matter.

Crystal had long suspected that her parents were different from everyone else in town. They never seemed to show any emotions, and their faces remained frozen in a serious, almost stone-like expression. Being around them drained her energy and left her feeling weighed down by a heavy emotional burden.

Determined to find happiness outside of her gloomy home, Crystal focused on spreading positivity to others and making them happy. She knew that putting on a fake smile was hypocritical, but it still felt better than subjecting herself to the regular misery of her home life.

"Good, the laborers will pick them up later. Go freshen up for dinner?" Crystal sighed and shook her head in dismay at her mother's monotonous voice. She could almost feel the weight of her mother's words dragging her down. It was as if her mother was more of a robot than a human being. She had no emotions, no empathy, and no understanding of her daughter's feelings.

"I don't feel like having dinner, so I'll just go to bed," Crystal said, hoping that her mother would at least show some concern for her sudden change in appetite. But as usual, her mother was indifferent to her daughter's emotions. A miserable smile formed on her lips as she realized she shouldn't have expected anything else.

"Crystal!" A sudden chill ran down her spine when a voice whispered her name. She turned around quickly, looking for the source of the sound, but there was nothing - no living soul beside her in the living room.

It wasn't the first time she had heard something from nothingness, but it was the first time that someone had called her name so clearly and loudly, as if they were standing right behind her.

"Crystal," she yelped, turning around in horror to find her father standing there with his usual stone face, looking at her with his left eyebrow raised as if she was doing something suspicious.

"I-- I--" Crystal wanted to tell him what had just happened, but she knew how he would react. She had learned over the years what to say and what to keep to herself, and ultimately decided to just shut up about it.

"I was just double-checking if I locked the door," she said, giving a tight-lipped smile to her father and quickly dashed away to the staircase to go to her room.

Her father looked at her retreating figure with a knowing expression, as if he sensed that something was amiss. He turned to look in the direction Crystal had been staring at earlier, as if he, too, had caught a glimpse of the extraordinary whispers lurking within the walls of their seemingly ordinary home.

...

Gasping for air, Crystal's eyes snapped open. A strangled gasp escaped her lips as she frantically ran her fingers through her tousled hair, trying to stabilize her breathing. The last thing she remembered was a suffocating sensation, as if someone was choking her with an iron grip. But now, as she looked around, all she could see were the towering trees of a dense jungle and the twinkling stars above. She also felt a metallic object's coldness on her head through her fingers but couldn't care less about it at the moment.

The night sky was breathtakingly beautiful, yet there was something melancholic about it that sent shivers down her spine. The stars glittered like diamonds against the inky darkness, casting a surreal glow over the surrounding foliage. Crystal had never seen anything like it before, and yet there was a sense of desolation that seemed to loom over the entire landscape.

As she tried to make sense of her surroundings, Crystal noticed something odd about her attire. She was dressed in a stunning gown made of shimmering fabric, with a heart-shaped neckline, a constricting belt, and a billowing silk skirt that trailed behind her. A delicate, translucent cape hung from her shoulders to the ground, fluttering in the cool breeze. The entire outfit was awash in shades of deep maroon, as if she had been draped in a sunset.

Crystal’s heart was beating like crazy as she looked at the sparkles coming out of her dress or who knows from her?

"Where am I?" she whispered, her voice barely audible in the hushed forest. The vast expanse of trees stretched out before her, a seemingly endless sea of green that obscured any hint of civilization.

The only answer to her question was just the sound of the wind to keep her company. Despite feeling the coldness, she was surprised to find that she wasn't shivering in the slightest, which only added to her suspicion that she was still trapped in a dream. Yet, the fear that gripped her and the vivid details of her surroundings seemed all too real to be a mere figment of her imagination.

With a gulp, she scanned her surroundings, hoping to find a clue as to where she was. But to no avail, there was nothing in her vision except for the thick greenery of the night that enveloped her in a blanket of darkness, leaving her with nothing but a sense of disorientation.

She just wanted to know what her dream meant as she knew that her subconscious never conjured up anything without a purpose, and she suspected that it was something related to her origin, making her scared or maybe excited.

Just as she was lost in thought, the ground beneath her feet shook, causing her to stumble. A blood-curdling screech, so loud it could wake the dead, pierced through the air, jolting her out of her reverie and shaking Crystal to her core.

"Wh--what was that?" she asked herself, almost hyperventilating. Her heart racing with terror, as she spun around, only to see a cloud of neon purple smoke rising from the woods behind her. A small gasp escaped her lips, and her pulse quickened.

She realized, with a growing sense of dread, that she was walking without even trying to, towards the source of the smoke, and most likely where the deafening screech had originated from. The fear that had been simmering beneath the surface erupted into a full-blown panic, even though she knew deep down that it was all just a dream.

Passing by a wide, huge bush, Crystal stumbled over the hem of her cape and fell to her knees, saving herself from face-planting by putting her hands to the ground. She cursed her darn outfit under her breath. Why did her subconscious insist on dressing her like a medieval queen, complete with an impractical, floor-length gown? It made no sense, especially not in the middle of a dense, overgrown forest.

But before she could ponder this further, her attention was drawn to something far more intriguing; someone so unfamiliarly familiar to her eyes. Its wings were massive, its beak razor-sharp, strong claws, eyes like that of snakes, and pupils as honed as a whetted knife. One look at the creature, and she could tell it contained ancient glory.

If such a skeleton were discovered today, people would call it a cockatrice, a two-legged dragon with a rooster's head and wings attached to its upper limbs like that of a bat. And yet, it was more majestic and awe-inspiring than she had ever seen in a book.

The creature stood at the edge of a long, narrow fissure in the ground, from which neon purple smoke billowed out like a beacon.