1st winner of A.C.T.S Essay Competition 7th theme:(Fantasy)

1st: Nur Jasthina Bte Jamaludin, 14, Raffles Girls School (Secondary)

John

Seven years ago, humanity killed itself. Pollution had gotten so bad that, slowly, each human being that took whiff after whiff of the brown, wispy air had fallen dead. But, just before that had happened, a young nine-year-old boy by the name of John Smith had been adventurous – he had wandered off on his own and found himself somewhere he had never seen before. The skies were a cotton candy pink and there was a river flowing nearby that actually glittered because it was so clear. The place even had trees – things that John only saw on his holographic displays back home – and they were large and towered beautifully. The boy had been overwhelmed, until he realised that he could not find the way out of the magical place. It wasn’t long before a little elf had come along and offered to bring John to Merlin, and when John asked Merlin if he could ever see his family again, all he got was a ‘no’. John was raised by Merlin who had been right – John never saw his family again.
Over the three years following humanity’s death, the world was restored, dryads bringing life to long-dead forests. Trees rose, growing to what would normally take centuries in only a couple of years. The leaves were no longer green, but instead, it shone golden that seemed to glow with a new life. With the help of mermaids, the ocean was just as quickly cleaned up, making the water glitter underneath the pink-and-blue skies. By the third year, the mess that mankind had made of the world had been cleared up and everyone had come out of hiding, no longer having to conceal their existence from humans.
A day ago, John was found standing in Merlin’s study – the man who had been a father to him, as well as a teacher – and was staring in fear, shock and anger. His father was slumped over his desk, eyes opened as if he had died in shock and with black dagger protruding out of the dead man’s back. Burned into the wall of the study, in large, black letters were the words ‘The Monster Under Your Bed will rise.’ All the sadness in John’s eyes was replaced with anger and rage – he wanted to exact revenge on whatever had done this, and he knew he would.
Now, John was crouched at the ‘Gates of Hell’, the name given to the place where all monsters and ghosts had been banished to. The skies were a sickly green with dark clouds hanging over the entire land. A lightning bolt struck where the large, twisted castle stood – the castle where the Monster Under the Bed resided. John could already spot a few shades skulking around the area and reached for his bow and an arrow, remembering what Robin Hood had said to him about it.
“The arrows I’m giving you are meant for you to take out dark spirits and basically anything of the sort,” Robin Hood had told him before he had left for the Gates of Hell.
He raised his bow, all those years of training with Robin Hood echoing in his head.
‘Keep steady, focus – arms straight and don’t shake.’
John steadied his aim.
‘When you’re ready, let go of the arrow.’
The golden-tipped arrow whizzed straight into the heart of the first shade, the ghost burning up in fire and light, before the light died out, along with the shade. Smirking at the sight, John takes out the rest of the seven or eight shades and ghosts within a minute, not missing his targets a single time.
At the door, he was greeted by two burly orcs and almost immediately, the first one had swung it’s mace at him, which John barely managed to dodge. As he jumped away, the second orc had attempted to smite him but John managed to deflect the attack by pulling out his own sword. It had a blade made of a metal that burned orange when used in attack. A painfully bright flash of light was formed with the clashing of blades of two opposing elements, light and darkness. The flash of light had thrown the mindless fighters into a state of shock and John took his chance – he jumped up and beheaded the two orcs without a second thought. With the enemy lying dead, John swung the large double doors open and walked to the large main hall when the door suddenly shut behind him.
Suddenly, a dark, shadowy figure formed right before John’s eyes. It wore a twisted grin and its eyes glowed red. The creature raised its large, clawed hand and attempted to hit him. John managed to jump off to the side and break into a roll, pulling out his sword as he landed in a crouch. He ran up to the Monster, sword at the ready as he felt his training taking over.
‘Don’t let your enemy take you by surprise,’ the soon-to-be-King Arthur had said.
John anticipated and ducked underneath the Monster’s attack.
‘But make sure you take him by surprise, instead.’
He turned on his heel and struck a blow at the Monster’s hand, making it burn up where he had been hit.
‘And never let him have the upper hand.’
John climbed onto the Monster’s hand, dodging the other arm’s attempts at swiping him away and embedding his sword into the Monster’s to keep himself from falling off at times.
‘When you have the upper hand, take that opening and finish him.’

2nd: Zarith Sofea bte Mohd Azlan, 14, Tanjong Katong Girls School

The Fantasy I’d like to live in

 

To me, she will always been the most beautiful person in the world. I love her. I love very much. So much that I can’t stand the sight of her being with other people. I want her to be mine, and mine alone. However, that will never be possible, no matter how hard I try. I will never, ever be able to reach her, my unrequited love.
 I saw her outside the house from my window, talking to ‘that’ boy. She lights up and smiles so brightly whenever she saw him. What does she see in a person like him? To me, his looks were average and there was nothing grand about him. Yet she always seemed so happy whenever he was around. It makes me feel irritated. How could she be so carefree and vulnerable around people? And why does ‘that’ boy’s ability to make her smile cause me to form resentment towards him? I knew that she has her right to do what she wants, yet my emotions can never seem to accept it. It is so painful watching scenes like these on day-to-day basis.
 It’s not as if I don’t have any relation to her at all. In fact I’m probably the person closest related to her. I’m also sure that I know her better than anyone else. I’ve been by her side all my life. I want to continue doing so, but it seems that she has found someone else to take that place. It hurts too, especially since I know that I cannot do anything about it.
 It got worse when they started going out. I did not get to talk to her or see her as much anymore. All I saw was them getting all touchy-feely; getting me more annoyed each time. She started to leave school early to go home with him instead of me. They hold hands; and she lets him hug her in full view of the public. My resentment for him just kept escalating. Go away. I’d think.
Stop touching her. I screamed it in my head. Go away. Go away. Go away. It just won’t stop.
When I sleep, weird things happen. I dream of myself in the place of ‘that’ boy. Being the one to make her smile. The one to hold her hand, and embrace her delicate built in my arms. To never let go of the girl I love most. I’d also imagine the two of us together, on the bank of the river, exchanging empty whispers while embracing. Then I’d run my fingers through her long, silky black hair and stare into her bright green eyes that were an exact reflection of mine. My fantasies always came in forms like this and it became more impure as I saw her from time to time.
I knew it was bad. I was a horrible person to even fantasize about a person as sweet and innocent as her. But I couldn’t help it. It keeps me from trying to come up with plans to kill ‘that’ guy. I can never get as close to her as he does so the least I could do was imagine it. To live in the world I created, where I was free to do as I like, and it doesn’t matter that it’s wrong. A place where no one would judge me even if I fell in love with my other half. Where I can be with her to celebrate when she is happy and comfort her when she is sad. Technically all my fantasies were of me wanting to be ‘that’ boy.
I met her in school again, and my mind went wild again with all the fantasies. It seemed that ‘that’ person needed help with his studies and she wanted me to help him out. Normally, I wouldn’t do things like this for anyone, especially a person like him, but I could never refuse her adorable puppy-face. It just made it harder for me to erase the impure thoughts from my mind. I smiled, and agreed to help for her sake.
“Aww, thanks for helping out! I love you so much! You’re the best twin brother in the world!”
It wasn’t exactly the dream reply I wanted, but it’s probably the most a disgusting, sister-crazy guy like me could get. I guess I should just live in my fantasy world, after all.

3rd: Lerh Carol, 14, Tanjong Katong Girls School

Oracle Of Dimension

Under the full purple moon, a figure rose into the air, her skirts like water rippled outwards, an ivory white reflecting the glow of the orb of light she held in her hands, the same shade of lavender as the moon.
She rose with the moon till its highest in the sky and then faded till any sign of her enthralling presence vanished from the sky.
*
“I hate you!” Athelia spat, her eyes dilated, sharpened with anger.
She clenched her fists as her mother crossed her arms and continued, “I forbid it, young lady. You are not allowed to leave this valley!”
“I hate you, I hate you, I HATE YOU!” she screamed at last, her voice rising in hysteria. She grabbed the clay cup on the dinner table and threw it at her mother only to be enraged as she dodged the cup with the dexterity of a mage.
“You are grounded, Athelia, such behaviour it not befitting of a lady, especially one who is going to be a mage.”
Athelia laughed. “A mage? What mage?” she hollered, backing away towards the stairs. “Some mage I will be, if I can’t even make the journey from this accursed village to the Capital for my apprenticeship.”
“Don’t you curse your home!” her mother raised her voice and slapped her across the face. “And we’ve been through this many times before. I will be your mentor.”
“No! I hate you! You stay away from me,” she half whispered and ran up to her room, sobbing out loud, almost tripping on the steps to her room.
Athelia grabbed a handful of clothes from her closet and stuffed it into a sack with the wrapped bread and cheese, a gift from the baker’s wife to her mother. She flung the windows open and made to jump down into the snow below when she casted a last look back at her room, her anger fading fast.
She might never see her home again. She might never make it through the dark forest or past the dragon caves or the Great Desert that separated her from the Capital.
Athelia stepped down from the window sill and removed the dagger from behind the painting of her family she kept in the room. She looked at the canvas, her mother’s young, pale face, her late father who perished within the depths of the forest and herself as a little girl, wrapped in the embrace of both her parents.
Without a look back, she jumped from the window and ran as fast as she could from the village. She raised her chin. She will make it, even without her mother’s help.
The forest path was obscure because not many ventured this deep into the forest. She remembered the stories her father told when he was alive. Head towards the rising sun and do not waver from your path.
“Easy for him to say,” she muttered under her breath as she bent once more to untangle her feet from the brambles that grew in her path. Two days later, she was exhausted and hungry, her hands scratched and her mouth parched from thirst.
There should be a stream, Athelia remembered from her father’s story. She trampled past yet another bramble bush and kicked it for good measure.
It was then that she noticed the bright purple berries that grew there. Her eyes sparkled and she felt suddenly faint. With shaking hands, she pulled the berries from the bush and was about to put them into her mouth when a voice spoke just behind her, “I don’t think you want to eat that.”
Athelia jumped and brandished her dagger. The person behind her wore clothing like an ivory stream, rippling as she laughed at her reaction. Her eyes were the darkest purple and she leaned on a staff with a turning purple orb.
She gave Athelia a smile.
“Who are you?” the girl questioned, lifting the dagger up higher.
All the woman did was to open her sticky hand to let the berries drop to the ground. “Those are poison. Don’t eat them. Surely Orbison would teach his daughter better than that.”
“He’s dead and answer me. Who are you?”
Her eyes met Athelia’s. “Are you sure you want to know, Athelia?” The purple in her eyes swirled and she seemed to look through Athelia, deep into her soul where all her thoughts and deeds are bare before her. The orb on her staff intentified and casted a bright glow that made the woman more frightening.
Then she changed her question. “Are you a mage?”
The woman relaxed, the light from the staff faded. “An oracle,” she replied and then made to walk away.
“Wait!” Athelia called. The oracle did not turn her head.
“Return home, young mage. Your mentor will come to your village. You have no need to learn from the Capital.”
“I…”
The oracle turned her head and her eyes glowed with a purple light, her voice lilting in a bird’s song. “The worlds will be destroyed and all that will be left is this village.”
“What do you mean?” Athelia called as the oracle rose into the air, the orb in her hands, glowing brighter and brighter.
“Don’t doubt me, Athelia. You can never find the Capital. It doesn’t exist at all…”
Athelia’s eyes were fixed on the orb in the oracle’s hands and though her thoughts screamed for her to move and ran, she could not. Her feet were frozen on the ground and a light burst in her head till she forgot everything, thought of nothing.
The only thing she could hear was the birdsong of the oracle, and then, nothing.
*
When she woke up, her mother was leaning over her, sweat on her brow, anguish in her eyes.
“Athelia!” she cried and hugged her daughter tight. “I thought you were gone.”
Athelia smiled. “I can’t go anywhere, Mother. The Capital doesn’t exist.”