Arushi Dawadi
Once upon a time, in a place where the snow never melted, there lived a young girl named Erica with her mother in a small village. Her father had passed away due to a horrible illness, and she did everything she could to take care of her mother. Erica not only took care of her family but she also took care of the entire village. Because of continuous snow, they couldn’t harvest a lot of food, so Erica would go to the forest to hunt for food for the villagers. No one dared to cross the forest or hunt there as they believed that the wild creatures would kill them at once. Crossing the forest was impossible for Erica too, though, on the other side, they all knew it was a whole different place than their village.
One day, when Erica was hunting in the forest as usual, she saw a shadowy figure of a human approaching closer. She called out to them but she received no response. Suddenly, it disappeared, but when Erica turned back, she saw a small, old lady behind her. She was scared and tripped on a branch and fell over. The old woman helped her up and reassured her that she wasn’t a danger to her. Though skeptical, Erica decided to hear what the woman had to say. The old woman then said, “Huntress, the reason your village is suffering due to the snow is because of a jewel hidden on the other side of this forest. If we were to take the jewel and keep it hidden and safe, the forest will fall apart and your village will be safe.” “How do you know all of this? and why have you come to tell me about this?”,
Erica asked. “I protect the desert on the other side of this forest, which has now turned into a wasteland because of the jewel. I have been watching you for a while and I think you are the one I need to assign this task to. The things you have to do are very simple. Travel through the desert, find the jewel, and give it to me so I can keep it protected. But this is your choice. If you want to keep your village safe then you are to accept my request, if you don’t, I’m afraid I will have to find someone better for this job.” After say- ing this, the woman disappeared. Erica neither trusted the woman nor did she trust anything that she had said, but she wanted to protect the village and her mother.
Erica tried her best to convince her mother, but doubtfully, she fi- nally agreed. The next week, she left for her voyage with all the wishes and blessings from the villagers. She travelled through the forest, and unlike the rumours, there wasn’t a single creature who came for her. She travelled for days and days, surviving on dates and fruits she picked up from the trees, and finally, she reached the desert.
She had never seen anything like this. The sun was shining and not a speck of snow could be seen anywhere. But it was a wasteland, just like the woman had said. The place had no civilization, trees, plants, or animals. She travelled through the desert for days and days aimlessly. She thought that the jewel must have been somewhere in the middle of the desert and walked towards wherever her instinct told her to. Somehow, she always knew which way to go.
After a few weeks of travelling, she came across a blinding light. She assumed that that was it! She walked towards the light. Suddenly, she got caught in a harsh breeze and it was getting foggy, so it was very hard for her to see anything. But she didn’t stop walking. After a while, she bumped into something and stopped. Suddenly the fog disappeared and she found a pillar and on top was a beautiful amethyst. She went forward and picked up the jewel. Instantly, the pillar began to break and the ground started shaking. Erica ran and ran, and soon she stopped. The ground stopped shaking and in front of her, she saw a spring. She quickly sprinted towards it and washed her face and drank some water.
Then she went unconscious. When she woke up, she was back in the village with her mother by her side, waiting for her to wake up. When she realised this, she woke up and hugged Erica tight, and welcomed her back to the village. When she went outside she saw that the forest had fallen apart, there was sand beneath her feet and only a little snow. Erica and the villag- ers started celebrating and planned a party.
After a few days, everything became normal. She was helping her mother harvest and walking around the village and everything seemed peaceful. That night, when she was out in her yard, the woman appeared in front of her. Erica rushed towards her and thanked her. “I should be the one thanking you huntress, you saved the desert and your village. The jewel is safe with me now. Thank you so much for everything you’ve done. I wish you eternal happiness.”, said the woman, and then
