Feera the Faerie by PTLKC@aol.com

Long ago, when the land of Neopia was new, when only Faeries and other mystical creatures roamed the land, Feera was loved by almost all. She was a fire Faerie, the most beautiful Faerie in the land. Her personality matched her looks and even some of Neopia's evilest residents found it hard to hate her. Feera only had one character flaw-- she was curious, too curious. She never left well enough alone, always seeing and finding things she shouldn't. Everyone looked past her one imperfection.

All the Faeries lived in the high plains of Neopia, away and above all evil. They each had their own plain. It was like a mutli-coloured flower, each Faerie's home like a petal, one for fire, water, earth, air and light. The pistil being the one plain where they all fused together. In the lowest plain, far below where the Faeries lived, was the plain of ultimate evil. There dwelled a coven of witches, the most sinister clan in Neopia. They were extremely powerful and hated the Faeries with all their baneful souls. The witches worked almost constantly on spells to haunt the Faeries, but to no avail.

Such a thick layer of goodness seperated them, that even their strongest spells could not penetrate it. As long as the Faeries stayed up high, they were safe from all harm. All the creatures in the darker realms had strange habits. The witches had the strangest of all. They stayed awake for months, constantly casting spells, until they all collapsed as one and slept for five days. When they awoke, the cycle continued. Feera knew about the witches' sleeping pattern, and it sparked her curiosity. No Faerie had ever seen the witches, though they felt their existence strongly. To be the first, and possibly only Faerie to ever see the witches tempted Feera greatly.

She made up her mind to descend through the good and evil plains, to the ultimate evil, to see the witches. Feera left in the middle of the night when it was easier to slip away. She could feel the witches were almost ready to begin their cycle of sleep. She had to hurry if she wished to make it there and back. The first few levels she descended were easy. She met many creatures who were extremely good, but could never reach the plain of ultimate good that the Faeries lived on. It made her smug, so she slowed down quite a bit, resting quite often. But as Feera started to descend into the evil levels, it became tough. She could feel the witches spells strongly now, practically reaching her. The creatures she met here scared her, pure evil with black hearts. She could see their putrid souls, how they desired nothing more than to hurt her, but they weren't strong enough.

Feera couldn't take it, she ascended above the evil levels, to the lowest level of good. She would wait until the witches slept, then race down to spy on them their surroundings. The time was nearing, the witches would be asleep tonight. Feera awoke from her own slumber, she realized the witches had gone to sleep, she had to hurry. She descended the evil levels more quickly this time. When she reached the plain of ultimate evil, the witches were still sleeping, she had made it! Feera fluttered around the witches with joy. She studied each one separately, but they all looked the same- evil, they were the epitome of evil. Even the plain itself emanated pure evil. It made her shudder, being in such loathsome surroundings. She was about to leave when she heard cackling.

Feera looked up and saw all the witches had awakened. She was encircled by them, trapped. The worst nightmare of every Faerie had come true for Feera. "So this is what a Faerie looks like. Such goodness it makes me sick," The head of the coven spoke up. "I am good, and good always defeats evil, so I'm not afraid of you," Feera stated. "That only happens in Faerie tales." The witch cackled at her own bad joke. "Here, we defeat good... My, such a pretty face you have! I can tell you value it greatly, more than anything, as all Faeries do. You Faeries may be good, but you are quite vain... I have the perfect spell." Feera was scared, she knew she was outnumbered by evil. She stood, frozen, as the witches cast a spell. When they finished, the head witch held up a mirror so Feera could see herself. She gasped, her face was gone.

She raced off, up and up, through all the levels, until she returned home. When she reached home, she saw a horrible sight. None of the Faeries had faces, they were all blank as if they were cartoon characters with faces yet to be drawn in. The only difference between her face and the others, was that hers was black instead of flesh coloured, she was marked. Right before her very eyes, Feera saw a large group of light Faeries transform into something evil. The second the dark Faeries had been created, she heard the witch cackle- "You brought about the downfall of the mighty Faeries, now that's something no other Faerie has done!" What's worst, Feera knew she was right.

The Faeries were banned from the plain of ultimate good, the plain itself changed completely with different inhabitants. Most of the Faeries were captured by hunters, though Feera was never seen again. Feera, the most hated Faerie, hid herself in a little cavern and never emerged, too ashamed of her face and what she had done. Neopia was forever changed, some things for the better, some for the worse. Rumour has it one Faerie got her face back, a dark Faerie in league with the witches, the most wicked of all creatures in Neopia. Now, this may not seem a happy ending, but this really wasn't just another Faerie Tale...

The End