Crossing Boundaries In a large, lush green land with plains of waving grass and crystal clear waters, a herd of deer ruled. The biggest stag was colossal and well known by everyone as the lead. He had the most monster rack on him, and protected everyone from danger, or at least tried his best. His name was Lider, known in Russian as leader. He had a fawn named Beda, which means trouble in Russian.
One day, as Beda was growing up and learning new things he set his eyes on a dark part of their land. He was curious about this, but decided to ask his father before venturing. He ran to Lider, looking up at him with big eyes.
“Dad, what is that place?” he asked. Lider looked over and shook his head.
“The Badlands. Never, ever go there.” The Badlands were full of long, lanky trees that were black, grey, and white. Once in a while you would see a bit of dark green before the darkness swallowed it again. Here, skeletal animals roamed the space freely, some leaving paw prints filled with a liquid that smelled terribly.
One you would have to watch for was a skeleton, but not any ordinary skeleton. This skeleton’s name was Al. Doesn’t sound very menacing, does it? Well, it’s short for alcohol.
You take some of the smoke he offers, or a liquid he offers and you will get swallowed up by the darkness. He wears a cloak, and leaves foot prints full of the liquid, as well leaves a trail of smoke. He’s known to have many of the skeletal animals hunt the fresh animals, and bring them to him. Now Beda was a young fawn, and was growing too.
All young creatures have the urge to explore as much as possible, even if their parents tell them not to. Well, unfortunately, Beda got punished for not listening, and this punishment hurt everyone around him as well. Beda looked to his father then back at the Badlands. The small fawn frowned at the thought of such bad.
“Okay dad, but why?” he asked and Lider looked over at him.
“Because danger lurks around what light can’t touch,” the large stag said, turning back to the large beautiful land. Beda nodded again, and looked down, looking back to see a few older fawns watching from afar, devious grins on their muzzles. About the time mid-afternoon came around, Beda was confronted by the older fawns again.
“Dare you to go to the Badlands, or else we’ll not let you hang with us anymore,” he piped up, a snicker following.
“But…” Beda started but was cut off by another..
“No buts! Do it!” he snapped. The small fawn frowned and looked down with a sigh. He nodded slowly, and moved away from the others slowly. He snuck away from the rest of the deer, slinking towards the Badlands once they weren’t paying attention.
Once he was far enough from the herd, he ran the rest of the way. His hooves hit hard on the ground, alerting nearby animals as he neared the Badlands forest. He stopped at the edge, tilting his head slightly. He heard a few hoots from nearby owls, startling as he slowly moved into the dark. He finally was completely hidden inside the dark forest, his eyes big, and holding curiosity but also a sense of fear.
As he got further into the darkness, a foul smell was starting to get stronger and more noises were heard louder. Beda jumped as a horrifying screech was announced from the shadows, making him pin his ears back and back up. Suddenly, a loud, ghostly roar rang out in front of him. Beda whipped around, starting to prance away as fast as he could. A cougar leapt from the bushes, its bony paws hitting the ground hard. A hiss came from it as it engaged the chase, speed on its side. It was slowly gaining on Beda, aiming to capture the small deer and bring it back for Al.
Beda let out multiple cries for help, jumping over logs and dodging branches. Even though the small fawn’s cries were loud and alerted, he was too far away. He took a large leap, landing wrong on a hoof and falling hard against a large boulder. His eyes widened as the cougar leaped at him. There was an even louder cry, making the large black, silky crows from above fly and let out calls. Lider’s head swept up at the faint sound of his son’s cry, and the birds’ calls. He gathered a few other stags and pranced towards the dark, treacherous forest. Fear gripped his heart at the thought, and that made him even madder.
They stopped at the edge, looking through the trees trying desperately to find Beda. Lider looked at the others then back at the forest. He knew little Beda’s fate. He could almost picture it in his mind. Alcohol got to him, and knowing the little curious fawn, he took what the ancient one offered. With heavy hearts, the bucks headed back to the heard. The death of the young prince of the herd was devastating, and put a hole in Lider’s heart and Beda’s mother’s heart. The moral of the story is not to do things that others tell you to, just because of peer pressure. It is also not to take any cigarettes or alcohol from anyone, even if you know them. It could cause you and others pain. The End
