This week’s instalments come from three students, Jake Brogan, who was Runner Up in the 13-15 age group and Huon Dufield and Grace Reid, who both won Encouragement Awards for their writing pieces.                                  

Seed

by Jake Brogan

In the beginning, it was dark, different shades of brown, black and grey covered the compartment around me. I was slowly moving, no not moving, I was not in control of what I was doing. It was more like sprouting or growing. I laid in this dark space for ages, not knowing how far time had encompassed. Then in one sudden moment, in a soon to be long life, I cracked open. I could feel the root-like substances growing beneath me, slowly pushing me upwards, before I emerged from the damp ground sometime later. A seed turning into a plant, and watched as the glaring sunlight protrudes on my growing stem. I wait and watch, as the bright sun dissipates in the horizon, whilst I lay on a small patch of grass, slowly growing millimetre by millimetre.

Many moons passed whilst I took hold of my new surroundings, a large, over encumbered tree lay a few feet to my left, while I was perched on top of a small hill, overlooking a great expanse of lush bush, with the ocean, barely visible at the end of the great expanse. Wildlife surrounded the area, with birds of all types squawking and screeching at every hour of the day, many insects passed me, groups of them carrying foods of all sort to take back to their unknown home. But every now and again, people came, and spoke in an inaudible language that I couldn’t comprehend. They always looked and muttered things about the large tree next to me. as if it was some type of flaw or mistake. I instantly thought what would they do to the tree, as I felt strangely connected to it. It’s large oak trunk covered in misshapen and loose pieces of bark.

Days and days withered past, every morning the old tree was looking like it was getting older and frailer until the same group of people came with various destruction tools to end the old trees inevitable life. The noise from the fast moving device was piercing and whipped through the tree like it was paper. The tree fell down with a humongous thud, and I could hear the birds chirping and squawking in the background. But it all of a sudden seemed quiet, everything stopped moving after the thunderous thud the tree provided as its bare trunk was laid to waste. I felt it, every other form of flora and fauna felt it, that tree was important, in an unknown way, it was the beginning of the end.

The world stopped after that, every now and then I would see trees being cut down in the distant horizon, every one of them I felt like the old tree as if we were connected. I must’ve been close to ten feet now, with various fresh green leaves and a dark oak like the old tree before. I could see far higher than I could from the beginning, and I think that was being recognised. Birds and other animal perched upon my shore and sturdy branches, while insects and other little critters avoided me, because of the predators laying upon my branch. Every now and then, during this unknown time period, I heard the distant roar of the transportation device the people used, and when you heard that roar, I knew I was about to lose one of my brethren.

Behind me, many of the once lush bush that opened toward the horizon was gone. I knew as I had grown a fairly substantial amount that I would be next. I have over doubled in size and width, I cannot control my movement but I can control the direction my branches and I can go. Later I heard a different roar, a much more powerful large roar. Something was coming, everything within reach could hear it. The large machine appeared, out of nowhere, with various contraptions and sharp tools that would easily tear through anything in its way. It finished off the remainder of the once beautiful forest and replaced with a barren bare space of land. Before dusk, a large mob of people came towards my soon to be final resting place. They drew a large blue X on my now old and withered bark, as I was nearly as large as the old tree that stood before me a long time ago.

My reckoning day had begun, I heard the large machine coming from miles away. I knew I was facing my inevitable death but I had planned beforehand what I was going to do. I suddenly knew why I had been brought into this earth. So I let them hack away at my trunk, shredding me down till my last breath, but in my heart, I knew what I was going to do. It took barely a second, for what felt like an eternity. But I knew in my heart, that it was alright, dying with content, knowing that the legacy of the old tree will live on. 

***

I woke up not knowing where I was with no recall of my memory, enclosed in a dark space. Slowly growing, not knowing my purpose, only knowing I had one. After a long period of time, I spurted from the ground, seeing an old cut tree stump. I felt strangely connected to this stump. And then I realised, I was the seedling of the old stump.

*******

The Seed

By Huon Dufield

11-09-2015 Dear diary,

I just found a seed in my backyard. I couldn’t tell

what seed it was so I decided to plant it,

what could possibly go wrong...

11-02-2016 Dear diary,

my seed has grown very fast into a tree with strange fruits.

I ate one and it tasted like every fruit combined in a good way,

I’m going to start selling them, what could possibly go wrong...

11-04-2016 Dear diary,

everyone loves my new fruit I discovered, I’m the talk of town,

everyone is coming from all around to just get a taste.

What could possibly go wrong...

11-04-2017 Dear diary,

I can’t believe that my little business has grown so much.

I went from being a little town boy to someone on the news that

discovered the tastiest fruit ever, all because of a singular seed,

and nothing has gone wrong...

11-09-2018 Dear diary,

on the news today there was a sudden drop in population,

one Sunday afternoon 100 million people dropped dead.

They are still looking for the cause of death.

What has gone wrong...

11-09–2019 Dear diary,

another 50 million have died and over 200 million in quarantine,

they are yet to find out what the cause was.

I just hope I don’t get affected. What else could go wrong...

11-07-2019 Dear diary

they have found out the cause, and I can’t believe it, it’s all my fault.

I can’t believeI did this, I hope no body comes for me.

It wasn’t my fault, how could I have known I wouldn’t be able to expla%§#*~...

*Knock Knock Knock* “FBI OPEN UP” I dropped my pencil and ran to my bedroom door and locked the latches. What could I do I would be accused of murdering millions, I have to get out of here. I open the window and climb out onto my roof,  and then ran out to the back of my house, jumped into my neighbours yard and just ran and ran and didn’t look back.

When I got to the subway I tried to hide my face, there were notices of me on them saying “Keep clear, Dangerous person” and “Report if seen” I can’t believe I became a wanted criminal and now I’m on the run. I snuck onto the train and try’d not to stand out. I was just shocked that I hadn’t been harmed by the fruit since I was the first to try it.

I could feel someone staring at me, I could see them out of the corner of my eye but I didn’t want to draw attention so I ignored it ready to get off at the next stop hoping that person wouldn’t follow me. The train came to a screeching stop at my destination, I swiftly hopped off and headed for the exit when I noticed two security guards there, I quickly turned around and tired to blend into the crowed before they noticed me but it was too late one pointed to me and started to walk towards me. I started to walk away but they started to jog so I just ran onto the tracks, I knew I wouldn’t be able to convince them I was innocent so I kept running until I saw a light.

Except it wasn’t the light of day but of a train coming straight towards me. I see a door in the distance but the train is coming in fast, I ran to the door but the handle wouldn’t budge *BEEP BEEP* I bang on the door again and again but it won’t open I just have to keep trying because it’s too late to turn back. A kick the door and again and it finally opens I slip through and the train speeds past wind and dust blowing in my face I had just made it with my life. I snuck through the tunnel system and into the outside world. I snuck past shops and though ally ways until I got to the outskirts of the city and into a small abandoned shelter. I don’t think I can go out into the real world again. At least not until a cure is found and I’m forgotten.

11-09-2030 Dear diary,

The population is still slowly depleting and I’m still on the run

I’m not sure how much longer I can do this for, I’m starting to

get sick and the food supply is running low.

I can’t believe everything has gone wrong.

*******

The Trouble With Magic Seed

by Grace Reid

Upon Cyril the crow’s extraordinary luck, he found a seed he believed to be magic. The seed was small, it glowed an unusual mustard yellow but anything that glows or shines Cyril thought ought to be magic. So upon this crow logic, he kept the seed.

Quite oddly this seed was discovered on a Thursday, Cyril does not like Thursdays. Thursday is Cyril's least favourite day, he believes the day is too far gone in the week to be a beginning but too far from the end of the week to be an ending. So alas a Thursday to Cyril will never be anything but a Thursday.

Being early in the morning the crow grove where Cyril lived, called Velence was mostly deserted. Everyone had left to scavenge for food meaning the nests were empty, Cyril carefully placed the seed in a covert space unknown to any of the other crows. Once having done this Cyril decided that since the summer heat was setting in he would go for a quick bathe in the neighbouring river, near his nest that was perched on a high branch of an old yew tree.

So Cyril left. Once Velence was completely deserted the only thing to disturb the peacefulness of the tall Sycamore and Yew trees that created the crow colonies grove, was the hot summer air that blew gently through the trees and pushed the clouds overhead far to the East. Producing the most picturesque European woodland, with the sun gracing the earth with its warm beams of light and the promise of a prosperous summer season.

The covert hiding place that Cyril had hidden the seed, may have been unknown to all the other crows but it was not unknown to Basil the squirrel. Who used the tree nook hole to store some of her food and vittles in preparation for winter. Stumbling upon the odd seed Basil realised that she had not put it in the tree nook. Basil was crafty and knew the only other creature who used this knook was Cyril. So to spite the naive bird who she disliked very much, due to his tendency to continuously remove her food and replace them with shiny objects and long pieces of string, she took the seed knowing something as shiny as this odd little seed would be very much missed and searched for, dashing through the woodlands.

Cyril returned and to his distress, the seed was gone. You can picture the sight, a distraught crow flapping and crying about the place like the world was going to end. It truly did feel like the world might end for the dramatic bird. Cyril went to investigate the grove, questioning every creature who was arriving back to Velence after the morning scavenge. The crow went about asking where they had just returned from and what they had previously been doing, whether they saw anything suspicious whilst around the woodland.

One young squirrel by the name of Rosaly mentioned that she had seen Basil entering the grove when it was deserted, mentioning that it was odd for her to be entering the grove without any food with her. Also that she had been acting oddly all morning after her initial trip to store food. Immediately assuming a cynical plot, Cyril went off in search of the suspect squirrel in question.

After journeying far across the woodland Cyril found Basil lounging in a grove full of almond trees. Content and more arrogant than ever, leaning against the base of a large oak tree. Seeing Cyril swoop in she began hurling insults towards him to further anger the foolish bird. In a wave of indignation Cyril spat insults in retaliation, then a quarrel broke out between the pair. Now it must be known that this odd pair wore, like the rest if their clans, tunics and jerkins as well as other pieces of clothing. They may be simple creatures but they are sophisticated beyond compare to any other two species of animals, besides the otter and church mouse.

Now when Cyril pecked and striked at Basil, the seed that lay precariously in her tunic pocket fell out. Claw, beak, tail and talons were all used in this brawl that disrupted the peace and serenity that’s had once befallen the woodlands. Seizing the magic seed Cyril flew through the trees at a rate you can only imagine.

What happened next was completely unprecedented, the seed pushed its way out of Cyril's beak as he flew. Mid-air the seed grew legs and fell to the ground with the grace of a swan. Cyril was beside himself with shock, chasing after the seed. The last he saw of the rogue leg-growing seed was when it landed in the hollow of a log and miraculously disappeared. Cyril spent several days after that pacing the length of the hollow log until he decided it was no use, his magic seed was gone forever. To think the seed was found on a Thursday, a day too far gone it the week to be a beginning and too far into the week to be an ending. Cyril thought to himself that maybe Thursdays aren’t that bad after all.

Peering down at Earth the Goddess Demeter laughed like she hadn’t in many a Millenia at the odd crow Cyril and his furry nemesis Basil the squirrel. The pair who fought over the possession of a seed Cyril believed to be magic. It turns out the seed truly was magic, Demeter cackled to herself as she lifted the leg-growing seed in question. “Caused a lot of trouble haven’t you, my magic friend”, as if answering the seed hopped about enthusiastically causing further laughter from the Goddess of grain and agriculture.