Atlantis: A Short Story

Atlantis

Long ago, when the Earth was young, there was a wonderful land called Atlantis. In Atlantis were prosperous people who knew nothing of pain, sorrow, or hatred. They always respected one another, and treated others how they wished to be treated. There were also magical creatures in Atlantis, like gnomes, elves, unicorns, nymphs, and fairies. It was them who kept Atlantis green and beautiful.

But what they didn't know was that something dark lay beneath Atlantis, waiting to be unleashed.

One day, a girl named Lilith was walking in one of the many forests on Atlantis, to pick fruit for a feast. She knew she wouldn't be harmed, for she was friends with the creatures here. She went deep into the forest, deeper than she usually went, and found a tree with round, purple, fuzzy fruit on it. She picked the fruit and put them in the basket she carried.

Her basket was only a quarter of the way full when she heard whispers. She looked around, but saw no one. She resumed her task only to hear a voice whisper, " Stop. Come and play. Go deeper into the forest. "

Lilith was scared of the voice, but at the same time she wanted to do as it said. She dropped her basket and did what the voice told her to do. She walked an unfamiliar path lined with ugly weeds. Eventually she came to a dark cave.

" Go inside. Let's play a game ", the voice said. Lilith walked inside. It was very dark, and she was afraid. She couldn't even see the tip of her nose. Then she saw a light. She ran towards it. There, in the light coming from the top of the cave, was a woman. She wore dark clothes that moved like shadows in firelight, pale skin, black hair, and eyes like pools of black.

" Who are you? ", Lilith asked the strange woman.

" I am Ego. I am your friend. Would you like to meet my friends? ", Ego said.

Lilith nodded. Ego spread her arms out, and more strange people came out of the shadows. Lilith saw two men and one woman. They all looked similar to Ego, only one man had red hair, the other brown, and the woman was blond.

" My name is Pain ", the brown haired said.

" My name is Hatred ", the red haired said.

" My name is Sorrow ", the woman said.

" They are the only company I have had for many years ", Ego said.

" We are very lonely ", Sorrow said.

Lilith thought for a minute, looking at the strange men and women. Then she had an idea.

" Would you like to come with me? ", Lilith said.

They all liked the idea, but Ego looked seriously at Lilith.

" We cannot come out of this place like this. You will have to accept us to become one with you ", Ego said.

Lilith thought the idea was very scary, but Ego's mesmerizing eyes made the thought disappear.

" Alright ", Lilith said dreamily.

Ego and her friends cheered. They all turned into shadows and engulfed Lilith. Lilith was knocked unconsious. When she woke, she was under the tree where she was picking fruit. She had no memory of what happened, and assumed she fell asleep. She got up and ran towards her village, grabbing her basket. When she arrives, her mother walks up to her.

" Hurry with that fruit. The feast is about to begin ", she said.

Lilith nodded. She ran towards the large table in the middle of the village. She set down her basket and ran home to get ready.

Later that night, at the feast, everyone was having a good time, drinking and eating, playing games. Lilith is playing with her friends when she starts feeling strange. She sits down in one of the many chairs, feeling dizzy now. Then she hears a voice like a whisper in her ear.

" You met my friends. Now I can meet yours ", it said.

Suddenly Lilith is surrounded by shadows, like she was trapped in a tornado. She was terrified. Then the shadows started surrounding everyone. All Lilith heard were screams before everything went dark.

When she woke, she sat up and looked around. Everyone was shuffling around, moaning, crying, screaming. Lilith started to cry. She was startled. She touched her face and felt water. She cried even more. She cried until her eyes were dry.

" There is the girl that brought us this curse! ", a villager said.

Lilith looked up, scared. Everyone grabbed a weapon and chased her into the forest. She ran and ran until she couldn't run anymore. She could still hear the villager's voices behind her. It was in her last words she pleaded to the creatures to stop this curse. Just as the villagers reached her, all of the creatures fled Atlantis. At the edge, with tears in their eyes, the used their powers to sink Atlantis, attempting to drown the curse. When the deed was done, they stayed in the other lands.

What they didn't see was that when they sunk Atlantis, four shadows leaped out of the water. They spread far and wide, sharing their curse with everyone. When the creatures realised that the curse hadn't died with Atlantis, it was too late. There was nothing they could do. So they stayed in the forests, watching their friends suffer.

Eventually, their friends forgot them. They forgot Atlantis.

One day, many years later, their friends found a poem by a man who had visited Atlantis. They found stories of the creatures. Soon, they started to remember. But they could not find the wonderful land of Atlantis.

To this day we still live in the curse of Ego and her friends. But we still believe in the creatures. In Atlantis. In hope.