At The Edge Of This World

6 - Once Upon a Time

Once upon a time, there was a faraway kingdom named Esmond.

The queen and the king that ruled there, lived happily, having the love of their loyal subjects.

One day the knights of the castle returned from the weekly patrol through the forest that circled the kingdom with a surprise to the royal couple. A baby girl was found just outside the city's doors, in a small bassinet. It seemed like she was abandoned there by her birth parents, with only a grey blanket around her small body to keep her warm.

The king took the infant in his arms, and immediately knew what he must do. With a glance to his beloved wife, he welcomed the newest member to the royal family, Iris.

When Iris turned 3 the queen got pregnant with a boy. His name was Augustus and he grew up to be a noble and well-respected prince.

One night, the two kids were playing in the palace's garden. They run through the endless rows of magical trees and tropic flowers until they reached the forest edges. There the oldest one spotted an unusual little tree that wasn't there the last time they went for an adventure together.

The leaves of the plant were teal blue with white glowing ends. Iris had never seen nor read about anything like that. Intrigued by their unknown discovery, August approached the open space, where it was located, and leaned to touch the shining flowers. When his fingertips met the soft surface of a petal, a wave ran through his arms and then his entire body like electricity. A dazzling light started radiating from where the small boy touched the tree, blinding both of them.

Iris run to her brother and helped him go back to the palace. When they reached the gates, they went straight to the Great hall where their father was almost every day. They explained to him what happened and he told them with a calm but concerned voice to show him where this strange plant was.

2 guards, the King himself and a servant girl followed the two kids through the same path they took before their finding. Everyone looked surprised and a little scared when they saw it. The blinding light now faded, only to reveal the tree itself that somehow changed its size. At the same spot where once was a small, fragile sapling, now is standing a larger one, two meters taller but with the same odd blue leaves.

When one of the soldiers tried to approach it, an invisible shield blocked his way and threw him five meters away.

"Impossible!" The king muttered. He ordered a second soldier to move towards the unusual tree, but this time nothing happened. It didn't throw him to the air but allowed him to walk even further than the previous one.

At his next step, the flowers that started to blossom on the smaller branches illuminated a yellow light, which kept getting bigger and brighter by every passing second. The guard took another step forward. This time an energy ring appeared around the tree, and with a deafening high pitch, it disappeared knocking everyone in the small radius out, causing them to lose consciousness.

Minutes later everyone woke up exactly at the same spot where they landed. Immediately, the king rushed to his children to see if they were okay. Everyone else was on their feet again, except the two kids. They were still on the ground unconscious. Afraid something happened to them, the present parent ran back to the castle and found a doctor. Fortunately, both of them were okay, but they couldn't wake up. 

The news spread quickly all over the kingdom and to everyone's surprise, Iris and August weren't the only ones affected by the newfound tree. All children under the age of 8 fell into a deep sleep at the same time. 

Two days had past and nothing changed. Desperate for answers and a cure for whatever happened to every child in his kingdom, the king announced that he will pay anyone who can provide useful information about the situation.