Your name is Metonot, a sad and troubled Korbat. You are taken care of (most of the time) by your master/owner Jacob. Most of the time he ignores you, but when he does pay close attention, he can be the most caring person in the world. The rest of the time, he goes about Neopia not really caring about anything...except having fun of course!
During the day, you followed Jacob around the shops of Neopia. Tagging along with you was your not so trustful Petpet, Whooper the Avabot. He was prone to sporadic outbursts, which usually involved him spraying sparks, spinning on its head very fast, or firing stray laser shots from its eyes. Whooper’s tendencies didn’t help the fact that Jacob was trying to shop, as he sometimes felt the need to dance on the fruits and vegetables whenever they were near. This didn’t phase Jacob’s stubborn and optimistic spirit though. He simply laughed at the "silly show" Whooper gave.
The shop owners, however, did not appreciate it. You kicked out of every store, only getting a few goods to place in your shop. Still, having something is better than nothing. At least that’s what Jacob said. You thought it would have been better to get more, thereby getting a larger profit in the long run. You kept silent about this though, knowing that Jacob would never agree with you.
It was now night-time, and you, Whooper (he calmed down by now) and Jacob were huddled around a campfire, looking up at the stars. There was a meteor shower overhead, and you counted that at least five passed by every minute. You were enjoying the show, as the falling stars were very bright and beautiful. You were sure to have at least one of your wishes granted by tomorrow!
"Alright then," yawned Jacob. "I think that’s enough star gazing for tonight. Let's pull out the sleeping bags!"
"Come on Jacob," you whined. "Can't I stay up for a little bit longer?"
"The star shower may be beautiful, but our fascination with it must pass. If you or I don’t get to sleep now, neither of us will be able to get up in the morning."
You had to agree with him on that point, as you were pretty tired. However, you still wanted to see the star shower.
Deciding that you needed your sleep more, you said good night to both Jacob and Whooper and flew up into the air. Finding a branch from a nearby tree, you looped your tail around the branch and hung upside down, the preferred sleeping position of all Korbats. You wrapped your wings around your body to keep warm and closed your eyes, falling asleep instantly.
For awhile, you dreamed of nothing as you slept. Then, from the blackness of your dreaming mind, you saw a faint light ahead of you. In the light, you see the outline of a creature. You can’t be sure as to what species or how large it was, as you are too far away to clearly see it.
Curious, you began to fly over towards the unknown creature in your dream. As you got closer, you could see that it was a black Nimmo. This was a good thing, as you liked Nimmo's. They were good and kind Neopets to hang out with. He began to smile as you came closer. Knowing that this was a dream and that you didn’t have to worry about being physically harmed, you landed a few feet away from him.
"Hello," you say. "How are you today?"
The black Nimmo’s smile got even wider as he said, “Fine thank you. How are you feeling Metonot?”
You were about to question how he knew your name, when you remembered that this was a dream. Anything was possible!
"I'm okay I suppose," you say after awhile. "Most nights I go to bed feeling down, but today I was lucky tonight. I was able to see a HUGE meteor shower before I came here!"
“Yes, that was a grand show wasn’t it?” laughed the Nimmo. “Hey, do you want to see something cool?”
Eager to see what he had to show, you nodded your head yes. Still smiling, the black Nimmo raised his palm towards you, showing a ring in his hand. For some reason, looking at the ring made you feel uncomfortable, as if there was some evil about it.
“So,” asked the black Nimmo, “What do you think?”
Not wanting the dream Nimmo to be upset with you, you say, “It’s pretty.”
“Go ahead!” said the Nimmo excitedly. “Put it on!”
Not really wanting to pick up the ring (it was SPOOKY!), you say, “That’s OK. I don’t need to put it on. You can put it away.”
The black Nimmo’s smile went down a bit, and he said, “Are you sure? It’s a very nice ring.”
“No, I don’t want to put on the ring. Goodbye.”
You turn around, hoping to go somewhere else in your dream. However, even though you turned a complete 180 degree turn, the black Nimmo is still in front of you. Confused, you turn around again, only to see that he is still in front of you. His grin now seemed more like a sneer, and there was a glint of anger in his eyes.
“I really must insist that you wear the ring,” said the Nimmo.
You were now in a panic, as it seemed as if you could not get away from the black Nimmo. Being that you were in a panic, your senses were more attuned…and you could sense that someone was coming up behind you. You quickly fly up into the air, barely escaping from the grasp of a giant Mutant Grundo. As you fly into the emptiness above you, you can hear both the Shadow Nimmo and Mutant Grundo call after you in anger.
“It’s a good thing I got away from them,” you thought. “There’s no telling what could have happened...even if this IS a dream!”
After flying higher for a bit, you come to a rocky ceiling. There is an opening not that far away from you, but the opening looks dark and foreboding.
Making full speed towards the opening in the ceiling, you barely dodge an attack by a Darigan Mynci. After flying through the tunnel for a little bit, the path levels out horizontally, making it so that you could only fly forwards. Good thing too, as you were beginning to tire from flying higher!
After flying for a bit more, you come to a fork. One way, the tunnel lead to a green meadow. The other...
Lead to a field of Bagguss’s! There were hills of Bagguss’s as far as you could see! You HATED Bagguss! It made you sick to your stomach!
Your thoughts on how much you hated Bagguss were interrupted as you heard the flapping of many wings behind you. You had to go down one of these paths to get away from them.
Deciding to choose the path that lead to the endless plains of Bagguss, you flew off, feeling rather queasy.
“This may make me sick,” you thought, “but it’s better than going to a peaceful green meadow. This is a nightmare! There aren’t supposed to be peaceful meadows!”
The instant you came over the fields of Bagguss, you were feeling sick because of the smell. They were rotten! There was no point going back now though, as whatever creatures were chasing you were hot on your tail. They cried out to you with angry shrieks and taunts. They were getting closer, yet as far as you have flown, there was no end to the plains of Bagguss’s.
Hoping to hide yourself in the piles of Bagguss’s, you dive for the field below, even though you were going to regret even touching one. You wouldn’t have to worry though, as the spot that you decided to plunge into had a tunnel under it. It would take over a few minutes for the horde that was chasing you to break through the Bagguss’s, so you were free at the moment.
After flying for a few moments, you come to another fork in the tunnel.
“What is with this dream and the forks in the road?” you thought.
Taking the path leading up, you come face to face with a Dr. Sloth Clone. It must be an early model, as it continuously swung its arms at you without aim, making it easy to dodge. It is blocking your path, so you will have to fight it to continue running away. Using your sonic scream, the Sloth Clone falls to pieces in an instant.
“Wow,” you say out loud to yourself. “Sloth sure didn’t build those things well in the past!”
With the Sloth Clone now a pile of rubble, you fly off down the path that was behind it.
Coming to an expansive chamber, you stop in your tracks as you see the Shadow Nimmo coming upon you.
“I’m beginning to tire of this chase Metonot. You WILL put on this ring!”
Knowing that you are no match for the Nimmo, you begin to fly back the way you came, only to see that opening has disappeared.
“Figures,” you say to yourself fearfully. “It’s a dream, and anything is possible.”
You turn back to the Nimmo, who is almost upon you. There were no other exits leading away from here. Seeing that there would be no other alternatives, you rush at him.
Before you could even get close to the Shadow Nimmo, he stops in his tracks and screams, “No! Get him back! Get him…”
The Nimmo disappeared instantly, dropping the ring it was holding to the floor. Cautiously, you kept up to the ring. Slowly, the ring turned into a black, smoky mass, which began to expand. You began to back off when its size began to exceed yours. It continued to keep growing even after it touched the ceiling. A pair of red eyes begins to form from the swirling black mass, and they looked directly at you.
“Metonot,” said a deep and vile voice from the heart of the darkness.
Your back was now pressed against the wall in fear. There was nowhere to go. Nowhere to run. It was just you and this evil darkness...
...Until you hear Jacob’s voice.
“Metonot!” said Jacob’s voice, which seemed to come from everywhere. “Wake up!”
You wake up, and see Jacob and Whooper stare down at you with concern. You were lying on the ground, as it seemed you had fallen from the branch above you. There was a painful bump on your head, which meant you probably fell on your head.
“Jacob,” you say, rather tired. “What happened?”
Jacob gave a little smile and said, “You were having a nightmare, and it must have been a bad one, as you let go of the branch you were hanging from. Are you feeling alright?”
You give a yawn, saying, “Yeah. I do now at least. You won’t believe what I saw in this nightmare!”
Later that night, long after Metonot fell asleep again...
Jacob contemplated the events that happened during the night. He was awoken to the chanting of hooded creatures that were surrounding Metonot. One of them was up in the tree with Metonot, his hand placed upon his Neopet’s head. Knowing that Metonot was in danger, Jacob rushed into the huddled group. The instant he appeared, the hooded creatures fled, all save the one up by Metonot. As he screamed for protection, Jacob threw a rock at him, knocking him off from his position.
At the very same time, Metonot’s tail gave out on him, and he fell to the ground. Jacob panicked, and ran over to Metonot, allowing the last hooded creature to run away. When he was over Metonot, Jacob sensed that he was experiencing a magical nightmare. Without the hooded one to control it, Metonot had lost the strength of his body, and the nightmare would have gained enough strength to have mortally wounded Metonot. Thankfully, Metonot had enough strength left inside of him to escape from the dream. Another reason added as to why one should go to sleep early!
Jacob didn’t tell Metonot the truth of his nightmare, as he didn’t want him to worry about being attacked by evil creatures with evil intentions. Jacob knew that Metonot was sad, and that he didn’t need to also be frightened! He would spare Metonot from that bit of pain at the moment...
...at the moment, as there was no telling when the hooded creatures would be back.
Original content and site layout ©1983-2008 Jacob Nelson. Please do not copy, display, or duplicate anything without creator's permission. Material otherwise not owned by Jacob Nelson is owned by the Internets and their respective owners.