YOUNG WRITERS - JUNIOR’S CORNER - A QUEST BY CONSTANCE PAU CHIONG JIN

A Quest by Constance Pau Chiong Jin
(11 years old)
Email:Constance_pau@hotmail.com

Once there was a King who had a most unusual hobby. He liked to find the rarest and uncommon things and add them into his collection. He has many unique things such as a singing goat and a golden cloak which could make its wearer invisible.

The King had a daughter, Elizabeth who was beautiful and intelligent. She had a voice of a million angels and was a born actress and singer. She had many suitors, but one by one was turned down by many princes. This made the King sad, for he wanted his daughter to marry.

Every day, the King and his daughter would visit the Kingdom and helped those in need. Libraries, orphanages, museums and schools were built for the peoples’ needs.

One day, while going around the kingdom, an old man came up to the king and said, “Your Majesty, it is an honor to meet you! I have waited all my life to speak to you, my King.”

The King replied, “What do you want, good man? Food? Shelter? Money?”

The old man spoke up, “There is nothing I want, sire. You have given me everything I need, no more, no less.”

“Then what do you want?” His Majesty asked impatiently. He was hungry and his daughter had gone home alone.

“Patience, my king, patience.... I want to tell you that a stone, Melmor, holds a very special power that enables its owner to live forever and will grant every wish that its owner wants. It may look like an ordinary stone, plain, black and looks useless. Very few people know this. It is hidden deep in the cave of Madonna . Many tried to get the stone, none succeeded. You, my King, who has a craving for unusual things, should know. Go forth and find it. This might be useful to you.” With that, the old man forced a black, dirty key and a map into the King’s palm.

The King was speechless, but thanked the man and rode on. He was determined to find it. “ The cave of Modonna....” He whispered. When he arrived at his palace, he immediately told his trusted advisor, Sir Patrick.

“ I wish to find that stone, Patrick. Come with me on this journey, ”the king told Sr Patrick in a calm voice.

“But... It may not be true, sire. It is risky... And dangerous. Yes, yes, dangerous. You may harm yourself. You should not go sire. It would be safer here. Yes, no don’t go. Please..., ” Sir Patrick said.

But the King cut him off. He bellowed, “ I am the King!. I made the decisions and my decisions are FINAL!” The ground shook and Sir Patrick saw that the King’s face was purple, with blazing eyes.

He stammered, “ Of...co...co..course, sire. We ...we will leave....at...at once.”

So off they went. The guards prepared the carriage and Sir Patrick brought with him blankets, food and water. The King stuffed the key in his pocket and held the map in his hands.

Many days later, they stopped in front of a cave. It was dark and creepy. Bats flew in and out. “The cave of Madonna,” Sir Patrick said in a horse voice. He was frightened but the King was delighted.

“Let’s go in, Patrick. Take a lantern or a torch. Bring the phone too, just in case we get lost, ” the king ordered.

So, in they went. Bats screeched, making the King’s advisor jump in fright . The King was not frightened but excited. They went deeper and deeper into the cave. Finally, they stopped. They stood in front of three floating doors. One was black, one was blue and the other was gray.

Suddenly, they heard a loud voice, “WELCOME, MY FRIEND. INFRONT OF YOU LIES THREE DOORS OF DIFFERENT COLORS. FIRST, YOU MUST ENTER THE BLACK DOOR, WITH THE BLACK DOOR KEY, OF COURSE YOU WILL THEN GO IN SEARCH FOR A BLUE KEY. FIND IT, AND OPEN THE DOOR TO THE BLUE STONE. BUT , THEY ARE MANY OBSTACLES IN YOUR WAY. YOU CANNOT TURN BACK AFTER YOU ENTER. SO MAKE YOUR CHOICE NOW, ENTER OR TURN BACK!”

“I...thi...think I’ll...turn...back,” Patrick said, shivering.

“No, You will stay with me!”, the King said fiercely. So he dragged Patrick through the black door. Everything was silent and eerie. The blue key was found easily, because of its color. They rushed through the blue door.

This time, there were snakes everywhere. They were blind. So, slowly they made their way through. But, Patrick accidentally stepped on a snake which hissed at him. All the snakes turned to Patrick and the King. They ran and ran and when they crossed a bridge, they cut off the rope at the end which made the snakes fall into a deep river.

The gray key was suddenly within their grasp. They reached for it, but failed. Finally, Patrick used a plastic bag and caught it. The key tried just cannot fit into the key hole to get it open.

The King opened the lock to the last gray fib rating door and only to find a stone in the middle. The King held it but it suddenly turned into a large, ferocious dragon. The dragon roared and the King unsheathed his sword. Patrick hesitantly did the same. They fought for a long time, until Patrick fainted. But the King did not give up. He fought and fought. Finally, with bruises and cuts, he cut off the dragon’s head.

In a blink of an eye, it turned back into a stone. The King took it and suddenly, he was in his palace. Sir Patrick regained consciousness. and repeatedly thanked the king for saving his life.

The King was very happy. He had received his wish. But, the Princess Elizabeth was not.

Her father used a wish to make her marry a prince. But she got over it quickly and they lived happily after.