☀︎︎𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐂𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐍 𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐋𝐃𝐑𝐄𝐍☀︎︎ 𝑠𝑘𝑦 𝑐𝑜𝑡𝑙

1 - 𝐂𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞𝐧

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Rows and rows of coloured capes and whispering giggles murmered around the field. The children waited in astonishment for the councilers to arrive. The mentors were already placed, standing silently. A navy blue caped counciler with gloved hands lifted their finger to their mask gesturing for the children to quiet down.

All children sat themselves on their knees, nervous, the butterflies in their stomach stormed around, making them almost feel sick.

Three pairs of light footsteps sounded, indicating three people arriving in a row, from a golden dust portal, which sunk into the ground as the councilers stepped onto the stone slab.

The counciler on the left wore a red poncho, with black bells dangling off the frilled edge. Their long ivory hair swayed down to their legs, and they wore a cream fox shaped mask, with golden leaf lines patterned across the sides and through the eye markings.

The counciler on the right wore a forest green cape, with feathered endings. Their hair was short and messy, and fell over their left eye. Their white mask resembled a bear, its jaw hung open, rattling infront of their bare neck, with the golden paint waved all over the front.

The counciler in the middle.

His face was a deer, its antlers reached long across the front of him, small bottles with pieces of parchment inside, hung off the tips, clattering together as he walked. His platted beard reached down to his feet. And his glowing white cape dragged along the ground as the scruff of it puffed up higher and higher with each step.

The children shuddered. They were excited, the two childrens names that will have been read out were to be known forever down in the kingdoms history.

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The deer masked man stepped forward slowly and confidently. He lifted his head, pointing his chin to the wide-eyed children.

Some were crossing their fingers that they wouldnt be chosen, some were praying silently that they would be chosen.

Depending on how they all saw this achievement, told them how they wanted to respond to this.

The man opened his mouth emotionlessly.

"The Elders, have chosen their two children for this year. This year, has been difficult, as ever since we started this annual event, we have lost many many children. May we spend a moment for those who took their lives to save ours."

He lowered his face to the bottom of the engraved stone. The two other councilers requested for the children to lower their heads too.

Child after child, they lowered their head, in an almost mexican wave like pattern.

What the counciler said had been true. Over now hundreds of years, two children each year would be sent out to cure Eden, and save the kingdom, as Edens darkness slowly devours the light.

On the island where thr children lived, next to their village, was a long thin bridge with melting candles on, along it leads to a graveyard, filled with coral petals, and flowers placed by the stones, all for the children who died trying save everyone else.

The man lifted his head.

"Now that we have all respected the lost ones, we may state the two names, of this years saviors."

The crowd murmered and mumbled to eachother. The counciler in the green cape whipped his hand in the air and lowered it, indicating the talking needed to stop.

The deer counciler placed his gloved fingers inside a brown envolope. He pulled out a small peice a paper.

"Vouno!"

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A small boy in the crowd with a moth like cape and droopy hair widened his eyes.

I got chosen?

The boy thought to hinself shyly. Children looked around to find the boy, Vouno pushed himself up from the ground and twisted his fingers in a knot as he tiptoed his way through the staring children. He gulped, and wiped his face under his wooden mask.

He made it to the stone slab. The deer faced counciler grinned at the timid boy, then faced the audiance again. Vouno spun round slowly to see who he would be sent with.

The counciler read out the second name proudly.

"Agapi!"

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The thin girl gripped onto the rim of her dress and pulled it down her small thighs. She swallowed down the nervous lump in her throat. She slowly rose from the ground. She too, had a moth like cape, and a puffy bob cut with a small plat down the left side of her head.

She tossed it behind her hair and flushed red ubder the masks at the amount of people glaring at her.

She trudged to the stone and stood next the Vouno.

"Hi Vouno," she whispered with her hoarse voice.

"Hi Agapi," The boys voice was higher than usual.

They both turned silently to the counciler. He gazed upon the two shy children, and lowered his head, revealing all the bottled messages.

"both of you, choose one bottle each, your paper that you chose will read a wish. When you choose yours, that wish will become your to use, but only once, so spend it wisely."

The children stared wide open at eachother, and felt around each fairy bottle. They gently took them off the mans long winding antlers.

The two other councilers stepped forward and took the bottles out of the confused childrens hands. They popped off the cork, and took out the parchment paper with their long tweeser like fingers, and greeted them back to this children.

Vouno unraveled his.

'I wish to bring sonething back from my travels'

Agapi unfolded hers.

'I wish to ride a manta in its home realms'

The children grinned at their wishes, just what they wouldve wished for in reality.

The hybrid lifted his mask to the children once again.

"We have our new chosen children!" He called out raising his arms to his sides.

The children cheered in delight. Clapping and whistling. It was a delight to know they had been chosen for such an honourable moment.

But little did they know what they had yet to come.

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