" DRAGOOOONNNN!!! "
Cried the humans as their wooden fort burned to ash. Their homes went ablaze, great black smoke raised from their village as if it was a massive chimney. People ran to and fro, not caring for whom they might stumble upon as cinders blew, for the dragon's wings raged a hurricane that blasted their homes to smithereens.
Our daring adventures were caught amidst the terrifying orchestra. Duck insisted they escape the wooden fort for a dragon's wrath chooses none, but Potato had planned otherwise, she wanted to look at the last house for her abducted potatoes.
But before any of them could conclude, planks of wood from a shattered home landed between them. Potato found herself blocked from Duck, they tried to move the burning planks of wood but ended bitterly.
" Duck...you, go. I...go...potatoes. "
Under the circumstances, Duck didn't have much of a choice, and so, this is where our peculiar potato parted ways with her new guide, Duck.
But our heroine knew that all the odds were against her, but that didn't stop her from going inside the last burning house in search of her abducted potatoes. The collapsed door invited her in, from there she immediately recognized the brown sacks that were used by the humans to capture her fellow potatoes, it hanged empty somewhere at the mix of burning and crumbling structures.
From the right side of the chaotic living room, she heard frantic tapping of wood, as if a million tiny fingers inconsistently tapped a tree's body.
" POTATOES!!! " Our heroine unconsciously yelled from the bottom of her throbbing heart.
The abducted potatoes were stuffed in a crate as barrels and dozens of more crates each occupied crop seeds, vegetables, fruits, and other organic foods that Potato had the first time of seeing. But her amusement was short-lived, the house began to crumble, and so doing would inevitably crush all the potatoes including our heroine.
But our clever little potato thought of concealing herself in one of those crates before the last legs of the house finally gave in. Almost charcoal lumber scattered about as cinders smoldered beneath the thundering roar of the enraged dragon.
Potato hastily tried to break open the crate filled with her kin while the flame drake hasn't noticed her yet, ( if she ever will ). But our courageous potato stopped nothing to force the crate open even though she knew that her efforts alone were futile. That's when a fluffy hand patted our benevolent potato at the back.
It was Duck! Duck came back for Potato, together, they willfully open the crate with Potato's bare hands and with Duck's knife. With their combined efforts, the crate burst with tiny little potatoes, but not as tiny as the potato who opened it.
The potatoes rejoiced, but that too was short-lived as the ferocious bellow of the dragon came with the gust of its mighty wings.
" Duck... I... "
Duck interrupted her by pointing somewhere in the thickness of a greyish black smoke. Potato understood as they exchange a nod, and together they led a herd of potatoes out of imminent death.
" MMM... HAA!!... " Potato screamed from the top of her little lungs to catch all her kin's attention.
" Potatoes... together!!... " Our peculiar heroine truly never fails to impress as she corraled her kin and rallied their morals.
Burning houses littered the scene, roasted humans had fallen flat onto the ground as more and more humans died by dragon fire. As the mighty winged beast loomed over the wooden fort, Potato couldn't help but catch glimpses of such a magnificent creature. Her eyes sparkled in great admiration, thinking of one day she too could become such a marvelously divine being. Potato, the majestic dragon of Potatopia, she thought.
Duck held open a small gap that it made through the wooden wall. Duck held it open on the otherside of the wall while Potato stayed behind to help her kins pass through. Potato ended her count with twenty-five, twenty-five? She must've thought, for the three humans had surely abducted more than twenty-five...have they? her thoughts added.
But nonetheless, the " operation save abducted potatoes " was a great success! The silhouettes of the silver night had shown twenty-six potato-shaped munchkins including a little duck, trekking a precipitous hill here our heroine had once rolled down.
The herd of potatoes took a break once the top was reached, but was immediately greeted by the cold breeze of the night accompanied by the small running puddles of the forest floor. From there they watched as the horrific scene unfolded, the dragon time and time again swoop down to the fort either with humans caged between its claws or human limbs elongated from its mouth.
The potatoes rejoiced another as they see the tragedy that befell their enemies, dictating that mother nature always prospers in the end. But this too was once more short-lived as the daring cold pushes them to the brink of exhaustion after trekking such a hill with tiny feet.
Duck suggested searching somewhere warm to spend the night before their energies completely deplete. But our peculiar Potato told them that she'd catch up for something else had her entirely captivated.
Duck nodded then led the potatoes off the patches of puddles and into the dense part of the jungle. Potato sat at a spacious fine stone to keep her feet from getting wet as she watched a movie entitled " The magnificent dragon " offered by the best seat in the jungle.
As all saw this creature to be utterly horrifying, Potato saw it differently. She praised the glorious mother nature for forging a being like none other, one that's incomparably huge yet at the same time fly with its massive wings, one that has claws as big as the human themselves, and on top of that a fiery breath to keep potatoes warm in the night and in winter. mmm...cozy, she might've thought.
She puts up her hand and closed her left eye to concentrate on shaping the shifting dragon with her hand.
" Mmm... big, flying... warm, dragon... "
A disturbance in the flowing puddles made Potato turn, it was Duck pointing back at the dense jungle with weary bobbing eyes. She gestured a loving smile then followed Duck to where the camps whereabout.
By the break of dawn, the herd of potatoes including Duck traversed to the farmland of Potatopia. Stories were thrown back and forth, some told their tale to the village of the humans, others told a horrific tale of humans murdering their kins in various manners, ( a lot fell silent during this part ), until it was Potato's turn to tell a story. But they couldn't quite understand because of how she speaks nor do they understand Duck with its ever dull expression.
They didn't even know who Potato was nor did Potato knew them. The feeling is mutual on all sides including on Duck's side. By the sun's peak, they've cheerfully reached Potatopia with a loving embrace and bountiful tales to be told during work breaks. The potatoes who were left to rebuild whatever remains of Potatopia were utterly shocked as they didn't expect the return of their lost kins and thought of the little potato's quest to be mere pessimism and downright impossible.
Bitt, the temporary chieftain of Potatopia hastily yelled out for his brother, the chieftain, Nitt.
" Nitt!... "
" NITT!... "
He called out several times, but the potatoes who've returned all shook their heads gesturing that he's no longer with us, then exchanged sorrow with each passing sight.
" He sacrificed his life to prolong ours... " Said many, the others gathered the staff of chieftains in an offer to Bitt. For Bitt to suffer such a grievous loss as too the Potatopia, and now the heavy expectations of making the right decision for everybody. All these, he faced with a weary heart but a persevering will nonetheless.
But before the passing of the chieftain ceremony was to be prepared, many noticed a duck with a knife in hand, one of these was Bitt who questioned the duck's appearance.
" Duck...friend. " explained Potato to those who remained threatened by such intimidating demeanor.
" I see, any friend of Potatopia's champion is a friend of ours. " Merrily exclaimed Bitt as he personally gave his thanks to Potato.
By sun fall, the preparation of the ceremony had finished for all potatoes were busy workers, busy as a bee many would call it. All the potatoes circled in the village center accompanied by a warm fire over the scene.
Bitt was the only one who approached the center with two old potatoes handing him over the staff of chieftains. He thanked those potatoes whom he knew ever since he was a little potato, then proceeded to face his fellow kins including Duck...apparently.
" This is for you, brother. May your spirit lives on and continue to watch over our growing farmland and courageous kins. And now to personally thank Potato for her courageous and selfless act, I personally give you the gratitude and service on behalf of Potatopia. "
Bitt continued by inviting Potato to the center with him.
" I have lived within seven generations along with my brother. I have seen the hardest of workers and the smartest of potatoes. But never have I seen such bold and courageous potato. And now, with the power vested in me by the potatoes. I honor thou Potato, the champion and protector of Potatopia. "
All cheered and rallied including Duck over Potatopia's first and benevolent protector, Potato. Our peculiar potato found herself lost in the warmth of her smile for all this band of merriment were new to her. Her face reflected the gesture of genuine love and happiness while her brown-skinned face was somehow colored in lilac.
Every potato either found themselves dancing, playing instruments made with strings, singing, or chatting, but all shared one common thing, they were having their fill with water till they were either drunk with it or already passed out somewhere on the dirt.
Duck on the other hand shared a table with the best of the best in drinking. Those potatoes who had their youthful days stored nothing better but to drink barrels of water besides heaving on the day-to-day work of course.
All were astonished when Duck wasn't even showing any signs of paleness nor lightheadedness. The tenth straight round of water-filled mugs arrived and was immediately gobbled down by Duck as the audience cheered, all that Duck's fellow competitors could do was watch as they either fell sickly pale or puke out water.
A new drinking champion was crowned that night, and it didn't emerge in the form of a potato, but a duck. ( As unfair as it may seem. ) A golden mug was then given to Duck shortly after it won.
Duck found Potato amidst the crowd of other potatoes, thanks to the two small leaves that distinctively sprouted on top of her head of course. She was sitting on top of a barrel, her lips remained centered but Duck could tell that she was leaping in joy for the safety of her kin.
Duck gestured its golden mug to her, and Potato the same as Duck, saw a slight offset between its expressionless facade, she knew that Duck was somehow in comfort and joy amidst the death of its kin.
" Woah... Duck, won... " a tender jitter escaped her conserved lips. Duck grabbed itself a barrel to sit on as they basked on the warm flickering lights, laughter, singing, and dancing of Potatopia. Duck didn't know that Potato was having a fun of her own. Behind her hid two mugs of finished water as the third sat unfinished beside her. Of course, Our little O'potato was ought to be a little loose after such an adventure. To her surprise, an adventure had already begun by the time a mug-full of water was stuffed between her mouth.
The ten mugs of full water were nothing to Duck, literally. All this, Duck found vaguely amusing.
" Duck... Potato, girl. Duck is?... "
Duck looked at Potato with a hint of uncertainty, not sure what to say for Duck hasn't uttered a word since. All of a sudden Duck found itself woozy as its yellow feathered cheeks swiftly flushed pink. Duck was hesitant as it held whatever Potato's hand were the closest, then reluctantly placed it at Duck's cloaka to determine Duck's gender.
Potato almost leaped out of her seat when she felt what Duck wanted her to know. Silence immediately showered over them as both were flustered not knowing what to do next.
" Duck...girl...too... " Potato whispered unconsciously aloud, Duck nodded hesitantly.
" Mmm...Duck...name?... " Duck shook her head left and right.
" Duck...stay...Potato? " Duck shot her a glance before nodding. This made Potato smile even more.
Bitt interrupted the scene between them as he pointed to a new home for Potato not far off the center of the farmland. Potato thanked Bitt but gestured that she and her companion would only stay here for tonight and venture off by the first break of dawn tomorrow. This shook both Duck and Bitt as they both share no hints of Potato's new quest.
" I...become...dragon...I...protect...warm...potatoes. " Another bold, profound, and peculiarly impossible awaits our naive and courageous potato. Together with her new official companion, Duck. Will Potato achieve her strange and surely impossible pursuit of becoming a dragon? ( If that's even possible. ) What lies next for the journey ahead of our brave adventurers? Tune in to my next chapter, until again.
Truly yours,
henecy.