《Beneath Unshattered Skies》


 Birth of Shadows

    In a sun-drenched forest, a man sighed as he chopped a mangled chicken over his chopping board. The man is making a stew under the blazing sun of a hot afternoon.


    Clenching his fist, the man suddenly exclaimed, "I swear, that vermin got no sense! Stealin'' newborn chicks but only teasin'' the hens. What''s gotten into him? If he ever shows his nose again, I''ll put an end to his mischief once and for all!"


    The artist of the mangled hen was a cunning fox named Rusty. Rusty frequently invaded Farmer Brown''s chicken coop, as the fox concealed the entrance to his den close to the old farmer¡¯s hut, which the man struggled to locate. One day, while Rusty was chewing on some chicks and plotting his next heist, he heard a slithering snake outside his shelter. The snake seemed wise as he drew some lines on the dirt. The lines were letters that spelled: ¡®Slinky¡¯. Confused, the fox stared intently at the snake.


    ¡®Dumb fox. Why would he even be a named creature if he is this dumb?¡¯ Slinky shook his head as he read the sign over the fox den which spelled out ¡®Rusty¡¯.


    Slinky was a wise snake roaming in the forest. He had a consciousness that was both sharp and curious which made him always feel alert. On day one, Slinky wondered what creature he was and what place he spawned at. He surveyed the whole forest and collected information. He stumbled across a puddle of water and looked at his reflection. Slinky was a snake a meter in length and a deep shade of green. Curious about why he knew what creature a snake was, he continued traveling the forest for days. Slinky later summed up that aside from brainless wild chickens, the forest only had three creatures; a fox, a human, and himself. Observing the human, he learned that the man was an intelligent creature. The man calls himself Farmer Brown which Slinky took interest in. Although curious, Slinky does not approach the man because he realizes he cannot speak like Farmer Brown. Climbing a tree, the snake noticed a weird pattern far from the hut.If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Being an intelligent creature as he is, Slinky discovered this area of the forest as suspicious. The forest was made of dirt and some patches of grass here and there, but the suspicious area had some big rocks. The rocks seemed to be scattered everywhere but upon closer observation, Slinky saw that they formed a big mark of ¡®X¡¯. Lacking the ability to dig around the site, Slinky formed a plan a while ago that he should convince one of the creatures of the forest to help him out. He decided to go with the scary dumb fox instead of Farmer Brown, fearing the man may be more intelligent than him.


    Slinky sensed that the fox Rusty would visit the hut again after days of analyzing his foxy pattern. The snake waved in the air with his tail and proposed a deal: "Spare chickens. I. Give. Treasure. Please. Follow.¡± Slinky gestured as slowly as he could many times until he felt that Rusty was not wary of him anymore. He turned around and began slithering away.