《Sign of the Timez: Child of the Cave》


 Chapter 1: The Book

    I heard adults say all the time that it must be hard to be a child today. We are bombarded with information and dependent on social media and apps and whatnot. Adults say we do not have time to be children. We are slaves to the media on how we should look and act. We are in a fast-moving time where we get new music and new movies every day. Unlike the children of the past, we have no time to be bored or just let the days roll by. Some adults think that children cannot even play!


    I do not think this is true. Let me introduce myself. My name is Stephanie and I am 11 years old. I live with my mom, dad, and older brother.


    I do not believe what older people think about childhood today. I do not think we are victims of technology. I love my cellphone and tablet. They are like a third arm. I like that I can contact my friends at any time. I have a nice mom and dad. Even my older brother is nice. Mom and Dad both have good jobs, so I never tried being hungry or things like that


    I have friends at school. However, I hate some subjects. Maths and history were the ones I hated the most. I would often daydream or draw as the teacher went on and on and on. I did not understand a lot of what the teacher was trying to tell us. I could not see why it was important. Take history for example. Why should I care what people did a few hundred years ago?


    The history teacher told me to stay behind once. She was confused. She thought I was an intelligent girl but did not understand that I never paid attention in her class. She heard the same about maths class.


    "You have a bright future," She said "you need to pay attention in all classes, not daydream or be in your own imaginary world. We all need to do things that we do not like or even understand why we do them. I do not want to hear excuses or promises from you. I do have ways so that will make you will pay attention and learn something. I hope it does not come to this!"


    I was made when I left school. The teacher did not even allow me to answer or defend myself. When I came home, I was still annoyed despite that grandpa was there. I told him the whole story, hoping that he would have some sympathy for me. All I got was a speech on how spoiled children were and we had no sense of responsibility and all that. I ended up in my room getting hugs from my teddies.


    I really tried my best the next day to concentrate on history. The teacher was talking about the cave days. All I could think about was who cares. We have learned a lot since then. It must have been boring back then. I mean who wants to live in a cave? Before I knew it, I was daydreaming again.


    The teacher put an old book on my desk and told me if I could not pay attention, I could read this book. I looked at the book and could see it was covered by some animal skin. There were gems around the side and old writing on the front. It was not English. Why would the teacher want me to look at an old book?


    I opened the book, and it just had pictures. However, these pictures were strange. They were clearly a picture of history. Like there was a picture of Vikings surrounding a boy with a modern school uniform on. There was a picture of an old Indian camp with a girl tied to some wooden post. There were loads of old pictures, but the children all had modern school uniforms.


    I finally came to the last page. It was a page with a picture of cave people. There was no modern child in this. I looked at the picture as it was different from the rest. The old book started to spin around which nearly made me scream. Then things got far worse. The walls of the classroom started collapsing and blackness surrounded the room. I started screaming and I admit, I was very afraid. The blackness started coming into the classroom. Everything disappeared and it was only me and the book on my desk.


    The book was still spinning around and I managed to say a quick prayer before I started spinning around. There was now only blackness around me. Somehow I was still alive but I was floating in the black emptiness.Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.


    At one stage I could see the earth below me. I started to fall down to the earth. I was moving fast and I could see the ground beneath me get closer and closer. I knew that this would be the death of me, as no one could fall from the clouds and survive. The strange thing is that I could see no cities or lights, just huge forests.


    I closed my eyes just before I hit the ground.


    Everything went black.


    I was a bit surprised when I woke up. I was sure that I was dead. I mean I fell down from the clouds. How could anyone survive that? I looked around and could see a few huts around with a big fire. It looked like I fell in the middle of a museum. I closed my eyes and fell asleep again.


    The second time I woke up, this girl that was older than me was nursing me. She looked so strange. Her hair was messy and she wore a dress made from skin and fur. Then I realized that my school uniform was gone and I was wearing the same. The dress I was wearing was a bit coarse and itchy. It was definitely not fashionable! There was also a necklace around my neck that was stones and bones. I looked like one of the Flintstones. Then it hit me... Somehow I travelled back in time and was now stuck in prehistoric times!


    This was too much for. I closed my eyes and everything went black again.


    I woke up and the girl was still beside me. However, this old man was also there. He looked so strange. His hair was like a mad scientist and he painted black around his eyes. He also had blood smeared on his face. He was chanting as he waved this big bone over my body. He was chanting to a Goddess called Pia to restore my health.


    I felt fine, so I sat up. Then everyone started cheering. The old man stopped chanting and went back to his hut. The older girl was still sitting beside me trying to get me to eat some berries and drink some water. I told her that I did not know where I was and I didn''t know anyone. She looked worried and called this man and woman over. I told them that I had no clue where I was. The last I remembered was that I was sitting in class.


    Of course, none of them knew what a class was. The man said that my spirit must have been held captive in the demon world. Everyone was telling me how lucky I was that I could escape.


    The girl told me that my name was Ladybug. Her name was Bluebell and she was my older sister. She was now an adult. I figure that she was around 18. she told me that she lived with her husband. She pointed at the other two people there and told me they were my parents. My new mum was crying and saying it was good that I was back. Dad told everyone to be careful as the demons could be living in my head.


    I asked what year it was. They all went silent and said wondered what I was talking about. Bluebell told me to rest as it has been a hard day. So rested again on a matt that was close to a big fire.


    Somehow, I was thrown back to the past and now a cave girl. A man and woman thought I was their daughter and I had an older sister. I convince myself that this must be a bad dream. My real body was asleep in the classroom. Still, this was strange as it felt so real. I could not wake up, so I was stuck here in the past and I knew nothing about them besides they all had names of animals or plants.


    I really missed my tablet where I could use Google. I always wondered what people would do before Google was invented. Google has the answer to everything.


    My cave mom came and sat beside me.


    " I am worried," she started. "When we could not find you, I was sure an animal had eaten you. However, your sister found you suddenly here on the ground. The witch doctor explained that a spirit may have returned you. He also told us that an evil spirit may have returned you because your head is empty. You do not remember anything. You do not remember your name, your family, or this clan. I am so worried that an evil spirit has emptied your mind."


    I explained to them that I remembered nothing. I had no clue where I was, or who anyone was. I had no idea how we lived or what people have done. I knew nothing!


    "It is obvious that an evil spirit has stolen your soul," Bluebell said, " The Evil spirits name is Darz. The question is why did Darz take your memory and thoughts, and left you to live as an empty shell. If the others know what Darz has done, they would demand that you be sacrificed to SOL, the God of Gods."


    Mom finished by saying, "We must not let them know you are like an empty shell! Bluebell will help you remember new things, who people are, and how we live. I do not want to lose another daughter. I will pray to Sol and the other Gods, asking them to help us."


    How could I tell them that I came back from the future? The Easiest thing is if I could find my way back to 2021. The question was how?

 Chapter 2: Cave girl

    So here I was thousands and thousands of years ago. There was no electricity or shops or tv or cellphones. People here spent their lives just surviving from one minute to the next. They were superstitious and believed that anything good that happened was one of their God''s fault and anything that went bad was another God''s fault. I really wanted to go home, but I had no clue how to travel thousands of years to the future


    My life was also in danger. My cave mom and my sister told me that others thought I was possessed by an evil spirit because I forgot everything. If they thought an evil spirit dwelt in me, they would either banish me from the village or they could sacrifice me. I found this hard to believe in. Who would kill an 11-year-old innocent girl just to please some Gods?


    Mom told me that it was time that we slept. So I followed her into a small hut. The hut was made of twigs, mud, and leaves. It was not that large. There were some fur skins on the ground. I asked mom quietly where my bedroom was. She looked back at me shocked. She never heard the word "bedroom" before. She told me that we slept together on the rug.


    I was standing there in shock. Did they expect me to sleep with them? This could have not been right. I always took it for granted that I had my own bedroom. Now I did not even have that. Dad must have seen how shocked I was as he started yelling at me. He reminded me that he protected me from the wild animals and other tribes that wanted to harm me. He asked me would I rather sleep outside and take my chances. I was afraid that he would hit me. I found a place and fell asleep.


    To be honest, it was hard to sleep. It was so dark. I could hear every sound that there was. I was worried about every sound thinking that it could be some dangerous animal. I also wondered if there were dinosaurs. I decided not to ask as it could mean people thought I was evil.


    The morning came. It took me a while to figure out where I was. Mom whispered to me and told me she would show me where they relieved themselves. This means the toilet was basically behind some bush. It''s amazing how we take a running toilet for granted. Using nature as a toilet was not fun. I felt like I was on a bad scout weekend.


    As we ate I could see others looking at me. They were most likely wondering if I was evil or not. I tried my best not to ask questions but to copy what people were doing.


    Bluebell, my cave sister told me that I should be with her today. It would help me remember things and know what to do. So I followed her in some fields nearby. She told me that we would be picking berries that day. I saw others work in a field with some type of corn being grown. This made me think that the teacher told us that agriculture was introduced at the last stage of the prehistoric days. This made me feel a small bit better. It meant that there were no dinosaurs.


    Picking berries was fun. Bluebell kept on scolding me not to eat them, as they were to feed the whole tribe. This was hard to do. It reminded me of when mom would give me berries with ice cream. I did not say this to Bella, as she most likely did not know what ice cream was. There was nothing to do except think of all the things I took for granted and no longer had.


    Bluebell told me that we could take a break. We sat and watched the view, which was mostly forests. It was hard to imagine that somehow there would be huge towns and farms here in the future


    I asked Bluebell if children always worked or did we go to school or even play. Bluebell was confused and asked what a school was. I explained and this made her laugh. She told me there was no need to spend all day learning. Our parents would tell us all we need to know about picking berries, working in fields, farming, fishing, and hunting. We did not need to be cooped up in a small hut all day to learn about this. She laughed at me and told me that I had some crazy ideas.


    I was trying to fix my hair. It hasn''t been brushed and probably looked like a bush. I bet it also needed a lot of shampoo and hair conditioner. Bluebell sat behind me and brushed my hair with her fingers. It was more like a head massage, but it was nice.


    We went back to picking berries. After an hour or so, Bluebell asked me why I was so silent. I could not tell her that I missed my real family. She would not understand that my family was not even born yet, and I belonged in the future. The truth was that picking berries reminded me of when Grandma and I picked berries. Afterwards, we would spend all afternoon in her kitchen and make jam and bake bread. It was something I really loved, especially warm fresh bread with homemade jam.


    I told Bluebell that I was fine. I hoped that she did not see a tear or two that were rolling down my cheeks. I was sure that I would see my family one day. Without this hope, I doubted that I could survive here.Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author.


    As we came back to the camp area, there was a lot of commotion. My cave mom came and took my hand where we stood outside a hut. All I could see was people that were standing there as it was Christmas eve. They were all excited. Mom told me that a woman was giving birth to a child. This was one of the most important events in the tribe, as it ensured that the tribe could continue. The husband was on his knees praying to the Gods. I could hear him ask that both baby and his wife would be healthy and that he would have a son.


    Mom whispered in my ear that Dad did the same when I was born. They already had Bluebell and was certain that the Gods would bless them with a boy. They decided that I would be a girl. Dad may never have been content with this, but mom assured me that the Gods blessed her with me in her life. This explained why Dad was always so grumpy when he was around me.


    There was a lot of screaming and panting inside the hut. This went on for a long time. The people outside the hut never lost their patience. They wanted to welcome the new child into the tribe. I thought this was sweet. It''s something that never changed in history. It was the same in 2021 as it was in prehistoric times. The birth of a child is special and a miracle.


    Suddenly everything went quiet. I waited and thought I would hear a baby''s scream, but there was nothing. This was strange so I tugged at mom''s clothes so she could explain to me what was happening. She just looked at me with a worried face and told me to stay quiet. After a long time, an old woman came out and looked at everyone. She was sad and simply shook her head.


    Both the mother and child were dead. I remember hearing the teacher say that most did not reach the age of 16 in prehistoric times. One thing is hearing about it in a history class and seeing it in reality. This was very bad news for the tribe. It was worse than I thought, as the baby was a boy.


    Everyone was silent as we ate some food, which was fish and berries. I did not know what to say, so I just sat beside my cave mom. Once again I missed my real mom''s hugs and how she would say something that would make me feel better.


    I told everyone that I was going to sleep. I was sure that all this was a bad dream. So I prayed to God that I would wake up in my comfy bed and I would have my old family back.


    This did not happen. I woke up in the hut the next morning. I now knew that this was no bad dream.


    Bluebells and I collected berries again. I admit that it was fun doing it the day before, but if we did this every day, it would be a tedious chore. I really missed my phone. I missed the music. There were so many things that I missed.


    When we were taking a break, I asked Bluebell if she had any plans with her life or ambitions. She did not understand what I meant by ambition so I asked her what she wanted to achieve. Bluebell explained that the Gods have decided what our destiny was. She explained that as a woman, we were to get married and have as many children as we could, so the tribe could survive. Women had a lot of duties. They made sure their husband was happy, have babies, raised children, cook, pick berries, help in the field, make clothes... the list went on and on. Bluebell did not have time to do what she wanted. She was expected to do so many other things.


    The funeral of the woman and her baby came. They were on a bed made of logs. The people then put bowls of food and drink around the woman. Then the high priest started chanting to the Gods. The dead woman and her baby would now travel to the valley of the ancestors. This was a peaceful place and we would all at one stage be there together. The husband then took a torch and lit the log bed. The woman and baby were burned and it was like the smoke was their souls. Still, it was too much for me to see, so I buried my head in mom''s dress.


    After we ate supper which was fish and berries, a boy my age gave me his plate and told me to wash it. I told him that he could wash it himself. He must have got mad at my answer and slapped me across the face. I just jumped on him. He was not strong enough for me and he ended up in tears. Dad pulled me off of him and spanked me in front of everyone. He was shouting and asking if I was crazy. He ordered me to go into the hut as he did not want to see me.


    I was confused! What did I do wrong? I went to my corner and started crying. Mom came in later and hugged me. I tried to explain to her that I was self-defence. Mom sighed and told me that I had to remember that the Gods have given men the gift of women, It was our job to make them happy and serve them. The men had an important job to do. They had to protect us and make sure we had enough food.


    I told mom that someday women will be considered equal to men. We will even be leaders! Mom started laughing and told me not to let Dad hear that. He would be certain that I was crazy. She gave me a hug and told me that soon I would bleed in my privates, and this means that I would finally a woman. Then it would be time for me to find a husband. I think I must have gone white as I realized what she just said. When I started puberty, I will be getting married.


    I couldn''t sleep that night. It wasn''t just the thought that I could be a child bride, it was also a storm outside. Mom and dad couldn''t sleep either. They were at the door of the hut looking out. Dad was holding Mom''s hand and telling her it will be ok. I could see that mom was putting up a brave face.


    Then I could hear the rain belting the hut. It was like small elves hammering. I was surprised that only a few drops entered the hut. Dad said he would go out and make sure the animals were ok.


    Mom sat beside me and held my hand. She told me the Gods will take care of us


    After a long time, Dad came in.


    "It''s the girl''s fault," he moaned, "She has evil in her. The Gods are not pleased. The hailstone destroyed the crops!"


    "How will we survive? What will we eat" mum asked

 Chapter 3: The Gods are mad

    Dad was blaming me for the crop being destroyed. He was sure that I had an evil spirit in me and this would be the doom of the family. The truth is this was founded on the fact that I was not a boy. He thought I was a punishment from Gods for something he has done wrong. It made me think did my real dad want a boy or a girl?


    The next day, I was helping cooking. Everyone was asking how we would eat. The elders were saying we should do what our ancestors have done. They fished and hunted. It would be a hard winter. I never tried to be hungry before. There was always a supermarket full of food. The only people we saw hungry were the children in Africa. That was on TV.


    While I was cooking, I said a short prayer to God. I asked him to help us not starve and if he can find some way to send me home. I admit that I was crying. I was afraid and I missed my family so much. The problem was that Bluebell heard me praying and asked why was I praying to a strange god. She wanted to know if it was the demon that everyone thought kidnapped me. I told her not to tell anyone about what she just heard and I would explain it sometime. I assured Bluebell that I was not praying to anyone evil.


    I changed the subject and asked her did she ever think about the future? Then I talked that the population will grow, and there would be cities. I explained that there will always be enough food and people could get their food at supermarkets. If they did not want to eat food they could go to a restaurant and have cooks make food for them. They could also get fast food, which is made in minutes. Bluebell was spellbound as she heard this. She hugged me and told me that I was a great storyteller.


    I went into the little hut. Mom was sitting before some wooden figures mumbling some words. I sat next to her figuring that it must be a shrine to the Gods. Mom smiled at me and said that we had to beg the Gods to help us through the winter and forgive us for what we did bad. This made me ask was the crop destroyed because we have done something wrong.


    "Who knows how the Gods think?" Mom explained, "It could be a punishment. Maybe some Gods feel forgotten and maybe some think we are not living the way we are. It can also be a God that is bored and wants to see how we deal with a crisis. The thing is that you need to help as much as you can during this hard time. We cannot be worried about you. The tribe will need everyone''s dedication and help."


    Dad grunted as he came into the hut and shouted that he just spoke with the wise elder man. He was in a trance as he said that I did not belong there. I was too different. The Gods said that I was an intruder. Of course, the man was totally right, which surprised me. However, Dad thought it meant that everything that went wrong was my fault! I had evil and the tribe was being punished because of this!


    Dad ordered me to sit down. He told me as soon as I showed signs that I was a woman, I would get married. He also told me who. It would be a man that was twice my age. At first, I could feel myself get sick over the idea that I would be getting married. The man had crooked black teeth and was as hairy as an ape. I looked up at Dad as he said he will not discuss it. He just could not wait until this man took over my evil heart.


    I rushed out of the hut and hid under an old tree. Yes, I was crying as what 11 years old would not with being married to someone she did not love, and at such a young age. I closed my eyes and really concentrated I was hoping that this would take me to the future. I was so desperate that I started mumbling words like Acre ka Dabra and clicking my shoes three times. Nothing worked


    Bluebell came to me and asked me to tell her about the future. I knew that she was probably trying to cheer me up. So I told her when an adult tried to do naughty things with someone under 18, he would be hated and thrown into jail for years. When a girl was old enough, she could marry the man she wanted and the man that she loved. Bluebell started laughing and saying I had a great imagination


    Mom found us and admitted that she used to sit under this tree when she was a child. She told me life had been hard for her. She was also told when she was very young when she was forced to be married. She had 7 children, and only two have survived. I could tear welling up. I remembered back to history class when the teacher told us that cave people did not live very long and many died as children. I could understand that mom had a hard life that seemed so unfair.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    I gave mom a hug and told her that I would never marry until I was old enough and was in love. Mom smiled and said let''s hope I never start puberty. Bluebell and mom left and left me to feel sorry for myself


    Then I heard people screaming. I heard Dad call my name. I just sat under the tree. I was not interested and just sat under the tree. It was quite strange as I could hear more and more shouting and screams and it sounded like metal was being clashed. I could hear men shouting. I just had to see what was going on. So I walked towards the huts.


    I froze as I have seen the men of our tribe fighting some men I never saw before. I just froze as I saw the men fighting. Bluebell was in the hut and she shouted at me telling me to come to the hut for safety.


    It was too late. One of the strange men stood before me. We looked at each other for a while and then he lifted his spear. He looked as if he was going to throw the spear at me. In fact, he was going to do it! It was like it was slow motion, as I could see the spear cruising through the air towards me. I was still frozen and did not move. Then I could see a blurry object. It was Bluebell. She must have seen the man throwing a spear at me. She ran as fast as she could and jumped saving me from the spear. Now she laid on the ground with a spear in her body. At the same time, Dad killed the man that threw the spear. The fighting was over.


    I sat beside Bluebell, that was in a lot of pain. Mom came and despite she was crying, she managed to pull the spear out. I could see that Bluebell was in so much pain. She looked at me and asked me to tell her about the future. So I told her that people could fly. I tried to explain what an aeroplane was and explained a person could fly anywhere they wanted. Bluebell said that it would nice to be as free as a bird and see everything. Then she went quiet. I looked down at her and could see she was not breathing.


    Bluebell was dead.


    Mom started screaming and shouting. In fact, many were screaming and wailing over a lost one that died in battle. I heard someone say that it was a rival tribe that attacked. It made no difference, so many people died, including Bluebell. Dad looked at me and told me that it was my fault. I only bring misfortune to the family and tribe.


    Over the next few days, I could not stop thinking of Bluebell. She was my sister. She was a friend. Dad really needed parenting skills. I mean who tells an 11-year old that everything is her fault. Still, in a way, he was right. I kept thinking that I should have listened to Bluebell and her warning to get into the hut. If I have done this, my life would not have been in danger. Bluebell would be alive today.


    The funeral of Bluebell was hard. She was of course burned. Mom was holding me as Dad was ignoring me. I was crying. It was so hard to say goodbye.


    After the funeral. The high priest shouted that first the crops were destroyed. Then the tribe was attacked by another tribe. It was obvious that the Gods were mad at the tribe. He announced that the tribe had to sacrifice, and it had to be the ultimate sacrifice.


    Everything happened so quickly.


    Dad pointed at me and then everyone else pointed at me. Before I knew it strong men were surrounding me and binding me up. Mom was crying and shouting. She ended up on her knees begging. I had no clue what was happening. The high priest had me on an altar and I was tied up. I looked around and there was quietness. I was so afraid and asked why was on some stone altar. Why was I tied up? I tried to tell them that no child should be tied up. It must be against some law.


    "The Gods are displeased with us!" the high priest said, "First this young girl went missing and when she returned, she was not the same. Her father says he believes that she is evil and wants to destroy this tribe. Since this girl came back she had questioned the way we live and talks about humans flying or not working for food. What has this girl done to anger the Gods?"


    I tried to protest, but the high priest told me to shut my mouth. He continued. "We all know the Gods are mad at us. They destroyed our crops and many died when our rival tribe attacked us, killing many! The Gods really are mad. We must calm them down!"


    I could hear mom pleading and asking them to spare my life.


    My life?


    The high priest looked in my eyes, "You will be sacrificed to the Gods. We will be in their favour again."


    I screamed no. I did not believe they would kill a child, I could see the high priest raising a knife. Then I shouted that "I should have listened in history class."


    Before the priest could kill me. The clouds went very dark. It was like nighttime.


    Everything went black.


    When I woke up, I was so happy that I was not dead. However, I was not home. It was like I was in some Roman field.