The Omen

(This rhyme is based in Bukle my shoe)

      One, two, Coca come for you

      Three, four, shut the door

      Five, six, mischievous girl

      Seven, eight, who misbehave

      Nine, ten, begin again

       Now everybody sings with me

      One, two, Coca come for you

      Three, four, close the window

      Five, six, naughty girl

      Seven, eight, that lie and disobey

       Nine, ten, repeat again

      One, two, Coca come for you

       Three, four, say goodbye

       Five, six, you who being naughty

       Seven, eight, there's no way to escape

       Nine, ten, you pray and repent

       You pray again

       You pray again

       You pray again

Okay everybody, one more time

      One, two, Coca come for you

       Three, four, shut your eyes

       Five, six, sleep tightly

       Seven, eight, to escape your fate

       Nine, ten, never awake again

       Never awake again

       Never awake again

       Never awake again

That's the end.

That was a common children song that could be heard along with the whole Empire of Licorne where you could find kids jumping ropes.

       Coca the witch was a popular figure in nursery rhymes, described as a millenary witch, that only sleep one night at every seven years, the face of an alligator, claws like a hawk and took naughty children from their families.

       In reality, she was the high priest of

the cult of the dragon god Green Storm, also known as the Coca witches.

       It was common to the children of the Licorne Empire, fear the figure of Coca as a threat for misbehaved children.

       The young Sapphire was one of those children constantly praised by her good behavior, and the fear of Coca never crossed her mind.

       She even heard many times that Coca the witch would never come for her.

       Nevertheless, Coca comes for her.

       In addition, contrary to what the rhymes and tales, it was not in a cloudy dark night without the moon in the sky.

       Sapphire liked to look at her window to the ring around the world until sleep.

       The Propasa world is inside a Nebula, which makes beautiful auroras in the night sky.

       Combined with the ring around the planet similar to the ones around Saturn, the moons and stars create an inspiring view.

       Looking through her window sometimes followed one or another leaf, which entered her bedroom carried by the wind.

       In a special clear night, with a bright silver moon, a leaf entered by the window. Even without any wind.

       Soon after another, another, and more, each leaf holds on each other until form the shape woman.

       Then there was a real woman looking at

her in the middle of the bedroom.

       It was a tall and elegant woman, wearing a green cape, made of skin alligator dress with a pattern of leaves, and a collar of silver and emeralds sparkled with the light of the night.

       The only odd and scary things were her big green eyes that resembled an alligator.

       The woman snapped her finger and a leaf floating in the middle of the bedroom started to burn a white flame that illuminated like was a day.

       The women looked around the room, the curtains in the window, the wooden door, the shelf with children books, the trunk with toys, the wardrobe and finally the girl in the bed, brown hair,

cinnamon skin and amber eyes.

       “Little elf doesn’t look like a baby.” The woman said in a loud and authoritative tone.

       Sapphire understood that wasn’t a dream and awoke completely, with a tall elegant woman looking at her.

       “Where’s the baby puppy elf?” The mysterious woman said in an authoritarian tone.

       “What is a puppy elf?” The little girl asked, trying to understand what was happening.

       “Puppy elf is a puppy elf.” The woman pointed at her, letting clear that a puppy elf.

       Most people in Propasa didn´t have the concept of elves since they are all elves with pointed ears.

       “The baby.” The woman said. “Where’s the baby?”

       “There’s no baby here,” Sapphire answered, covering her face until the nose with the sheets. “Just me.”

       The woman gave an uncertain stare. “Puppy elf is a baby?”

       “I’m not a baby anymore.”

       “And the not a baby is alive?” The woman stared at her in doubt.

       “Yes, I’m alive.”

       “Puppy elf has a name?”

       “My name is Sapphire. People call me Gem, my father call me his little gem when I was a baby. Now is just Gem.”

       “Hum… Puppy elf Gem is Jolly Acacia's child?”

       “Yeah?” She answered in doubt to answer.

       “Puppy elf has siblings? Little brothers or little sisters?”

       “No?”

       They stared at each other in silence for a moment. “Call mommy puppy elf Gem.”

       “Mom!” Sapphire obeyed.

       “Lauder.” She lifted a finger.

       “Mommy.” Her voice sounded dozens of times stronger and the woman gave a smile of satisfaction.

       Did not take too long until a brunet with pale skin and the third eye in her forehead appeared at the door, startled in a nightgown.

       “A third eye?” The woman pointed at her forehead like it was the funniest thing she saw. “Jolly Acacia is one of those tryclopes who turn into a flying pony’s?”

       She ran towards the children to embrace her and talk mentally. “Are you fine Gem? She did something to you?”

       “Ah… Telepathic flying pony’s” The woman pressed her fingers between her eyes with a disgusted expression. “That’s why flying pony’s usually don’t live among elves. Can’t talk? Mental transmissions

gave migraines to this old brain.”

       Acacia shook her head and communicated with telepathy. “I don’t talk. Why you came here?”

       “Curiosity.” She took a long tube from a small purse in her waist. “Why a flying pony is so interested in this?.”

       “What is a pony, and what you have there?”

       “Thee eyes is a flying pony and this is the dharmaquation. Jolly Acacia wasn’t looking for it?”

       “The dharmaquation?” She released Gem and approached the woman, “You are one of the Coca’s witches?”

       She released a loud laugh. “Coca is no

Coca’s witch. Coca is a witch, but Coca is Coca.”

       That moment Coca revealed her identity turned things a bit awkward; A weird woman invading was scary, but Coca was a figure so mythic that Jolly Acacia doesn´t know how to react.

       “You are Coca?” She squeezed Gem hard and started to tremble with the idea that she could come for her daughter.

       She nodded her head with a smile. “Coca is Coca. The only one and the best.”

       “Really?”

       “Pony doubt that Coca is Coca?”

       “Well… To say the truth I expected that you looked like an alligator.”

       She pulled her hood made with an alligator head, combined with her purse and clothes made with alligator skin

and her inhumane eyes. she fit the description of the witch alligator. The queen of the witches. The Coca.

       Coca took out the hood. “What is your relationship with the Whitehawk wizards?”

       “None! I heard that they resurrected the

daughter of the baroness, and a woman who worked for my husband became a slave

there. Just that.”

       “If elf Pony doesn’t have a dead baby,

why the elf pony is looking for this?” She shook the tube.

       “It’s not for me. My Niece. My brother’s daughter is dying. She has around the age of my daughter, She's living through strong spells and doesn’t awake for months. Barely breathe.”

       “It’s not for a baby neither for the Pony. Very irregular, where is the mother?” She’s snapped her fingers. “Coca

wants to talk with the mother. Call the mother of the dying puppy.”

       “That will be a problem. She lives in Marigold County.”

       “Where’s that?”

       “You know the Yellowbelly mountain, were the Yellowbelly dragon lives.”

       “Of course. Green Storm had a couple of babies with him some centuries ago.”

       “She lives, close to that mountain.”

       “That’s in the other side of the country. More than twenty thousand miles from here.”

       “Now you understand why you can make a deal with me and I take the dharmaquation to her.”

       “No! That’s not the Amaru way.” She said bothered. "There are procedures."

       Gem pulled Jolly Acacia nightgown. "Mom, what's a barmaquadron?"

       "A dharmaquation is a complex formula to perform a magic ritual to do a ginormous spell," Jolly answered. "The Count of Rock and the Whitehawk wizards made one to save his granddaughter life."

       "They got their dharmaquation with Coca," Coca said shooking the tube.

       “My niece is dying there wasn’t another

way?”

       “Take Coca there.”

       “What?”

       “What pony is going to do with the dharmaquation?”

       “I going to take immediately to Bonina in the Marigold Manor. You give it to me and I go to Marigold right now.”

       “Them what pony is waiting for?”

       “What?”

       “Pony wants to take the dharmaquation, and is going to take Coca too.”

       “Why? You can deal with me and I take there.”

       “No. Those things have procedures. Coca will just make a pact with whom will use it. Take me there. That’s the Amaru way.”

       “Okay!” Jolly Acacia turns to her daughter. “Dearie, put your clothes we were going to travel.”

       “Today?” Gem asked.

       “Now.”

       Surprised, confused, scared, and curious, Gem dressed her clothes and went after her mother with her stuffed dragon.

       Jolly Acacia put some clothes in a bag, and Coca ordered. “Get the big one.” She pointed at the trunk, Gem got her stuffed toy.

       She obeyed and started to put clothes and other belongings in the big trunk that Gem used to put her toys.

       Put your stuff too.” Coca ordered Gem and started to look at her picture books.

       “What is this?” She showed a picture.

       “That’s Cinderella. Her sorceress dragon godmother turned a pumpkin into a magic carriage.”

       "Sorceress dragon godmother?" She flipped the book. "That illustration looks like Coca. Why Coca will do

that?"

       Gem stopped to show the book and her Mother glanced worriedly. "Cinderella was bullied by her stepsisters and stepmother after her father died. And them the prince of the kingdom make a great party inviting all the single girls in the kingdom, and the evil stepsister lock Cinderella in a dungeon."

       "A dungeon full of monster?"

       "Nope, just a dungeon."

       "And them?"

       "Her sorceress dragon godmother goes to rescue her and uses her magic to create a beautiful dress, an enchanted carriage to make the prince fall in love for her."

       "Why Coca would become the godmother of an elf?"

       Gem shows the picture. "The sorceress dragon loses a game of dices to her father and became his daughter

godmother to avoid pay the gold she bet."

       "That's is something Coca would do. What's the catch? Coca will not just give magic to elves without a catch."

       "The spell ends at midnight, the dress became scraps and the carriage became a pumpkin again, except for her magic ruby slippers. She loses one in the stairs of the castle when she runs away at midnight"

       "The shoes have a hex to the prince?"

       "I think so. The prince became obsessed with Cinderella and make all the girls of the kingdom try the ruby

slippers until finding Cinderella."

       "That's because need time for a good obsession jinx fix for good." Coca though. "The hexed prince

finds Cinderella?"

       "Yes. They Marry, Cinderella becomes the queen, the sorceress dragon godmother moves to the tallest tower to the castle and they live happily ever after."

       "Smart move." Coca was enchanted. "Makes the goddaughter the queen. Why Coca didn't burn the evil

stepmother and stepsisters to crisps?"

       "She did." Gem shows the picture. "She forced them to wear red hot iron shoes and dance until their

bones turned into coal."

       "Coca enjoyed this book." Coca smiled. "Who wrote this book has a fine understanding of Amarus."

       A woman appeared worried at the door. “Miss Greenwood, take care of the house in my absence. I’, going to Marigold.”

       “Marigold?” She looked at the woman in green who looked and Gem's picture books. “That has something to do with your niece? Zenon’s daughter?”

       “Yes. We are going out for a couple of months. Take care.”

       “You want me to wake up Catclaw to prepare a carriage?”

       “It’s will not be needed.” Coca took two dolls among Gem toys. “Bring me a pumpkin.”

       “Sorry, but we don’t have pumpkins.”

       “You have some squash?”

       “We have Chayote squash.” The maid answered.

       “Chayote? That’s so irregular. Get the bigger one and wait outside.”

       “Yes.” She answered.

       “What are those colorful things?” Coca got two ceramic figures similar to cartoonish bulls with wings made of ceramic with crazy colors to Gem.

       “Boi-boombás.” Gem answered, putting clothes in the trunk. “Coca don’t know the boi-bumbás?”

       “Coca heard about boi-boombás. What a boi-boombá do?”

       “They hunt nightmares. So I can sleep with sweet dreams.”

       “That works. ” Coca showed the figures to Gem. "Blow."

       She blows the boi-boombás figures.

       “Get up in the trunk.”

       Gem obeyed.

       “It’s too big and heavy, we need to call someone to carry.”

       Coca made a tired expression and pick up the trunk with Gem upon using two fingers. “The Pony need something else?”

       “No. No.” They went to the first floor where they meet three maids waiting for them.

       “I’m sorry for waking you miss Spoon.”

       “It's not any problem my love,” The old woman kissed her head. “But I have a bad omen about this.”

       “Coca is a bad omen,” Coca said harshly.

       “Goodby Catclaw.” Gem said to the younger maid.

       “Bye, my dearie. Be a good girl or the Coca will come for you.”

       “Too late. Coca came for her.” Coca got the squash. “Blow!” she ordered to Gem.

       Gem Blow the Squash and Coca throw the dolls in the air with the dolls and they fell ahead in the dirt.

       “That’s Coca?” The old lady started to tremble. “What are you doing my dear?”

       “It’s okay. Everything is fine, Miss Spoon.” She kissed the old lady.

       “Go with the grace of the gods.”

       While Coca walked in their direction, they twirled and grow like plants at an absurd fast rate, and when they reached; it was a weird green carriage pulled by two colorful and impotent shining creatures. Living boi-boombás.

       The door opened by itself and them they entered, Coca sat down and put opened a colorful fan.

       To Gem amazement, the interior was decorated like a magic carriage from one of her picture books.

       The creatures flapped their wings and flew through the sky, pulling the carriage. Jolly Acacia holds whatever she could frighten and avoided to look outside. “Where we are going?”

       “There was a quoza lake nearby, we take there until Toyland.”

       “Toyland?” Gem clapped, “Sounds wonderful.”

       “It’s a stinking butt hole. There are no toys in Toyland. There’s only a stinking paper factory.”

       Gem was a bit disappointed.

       “You really is  the Coca witch from the children's tales?”

       “No! Coca is from none tale. Coca is the real Coca. There’s no other.”

       “You are the high priestesses of the dragon goddess Green Storm?”

       “Yes! Coca is the high priest of the wise and powerful Green Storm.”

       “And you are the queen of all witches?”

       “No. Coca is the queen of the wonderful Coca witches, and the wonderful Coca witches only. No relations with puny witches.”

       “It’s true that you eat children?”

       “Yes! Coca eats veal. Coca loves veal, principally roasted with baby carrots at the side.”

       “I like to eat roasted veal too, is very tasty.”

       “That means the little puppy elf eats children too.”

       "Veals are not children."

       "To their moms they are."

       “That means you don’t come to get naughty children?”

       “No! Coca is only interested in naughty little girls.”

       Gem gulped saliva with a bit of fear. “What Miss Coca does with those naughty little girls?”

       “Coca turns them in Coca witches, naughtier the little girl, better the witch she will become.” She became

exalted “In addition, Coca has the better, naughtiest, powerful, and wonderful witches of them all. Those are the Coca witches.”

       "You think bad girls are better than good girls?"

       "They are. Smarter, cunning, funnier, everything better. Puppy elf never heard the saying?"

       "No. What saying?"

      "Good girls go to heaven, bad girls go whatever they want."

       “I would be a witch?”

       “Not a Coca witch. The little elf is too puny and soft to be a Coca witch.”

       “Are you sure? How you know?”

       “Coca sees everything. Coca knows that puppy little puppy elf-like blue, crisp fish and coconut. Don’t like baths, cut fingernails, vegetables and pretend to brush the teeth, when did not.”

       “You did what?” Jolly Acacia scolded angrily. “You know how important hygiene is.”

       Gem remained in silence sacred of the witch, looking at her bored face.

       “We are in the quoza lake,” Coca said with a smile.

       “The quoza lake?” Jolly acacia look at the window. “How fast are we going?”

       The quoza lake was surrounded by the Jatoba town. Gem looked at the window, dazzled by the view of the builds at night from the top. "This is the infinite magic ocean that connects all the magic quoza lakes in the world? Where we can go even to the five moons?"

       "That one." Jolly Acacia hugged Gem to not get to close to the window. "Trought the lake the

carriage will go to Toyland lake, twenty-five thousand miles from here."

       The quoza lake has a port, with a couple of ferry boats. The carriage dive in the middle of the lake and for their surprise didn’t hit the water, instead, keep going under the water inside a bobble of air.

       Gem's looked at the window disappointed. "I can't see anything. I heard that the quoza cities under the water were beautiful."

       "It's night puppy elf," Coca said. "Everybody is sleeping now."

       Gem was simply amazed by that. “Incredible, how you do that?”

       “Magic.”

       “I want to do magic too, I want to be a wizard. Like, my mom.”

       “Just don’t be a rotten one, little puppy elf.”

      "Rotten?" She turned her face and put a finger in the cheek.

      "Most wizards are rotten, dirty, scoundrels who lie and take advantage of the poor people, only interested in their own bellies."

       "Mom is not like that." Gem was excited about that adventure and comfortable with the witch after that. “Your ears are funny. They were small and round.”

       “Because Coca is not an elf.”

       “I never saw someone without pointed ears.”

       “Because little puppy elf never saw someone that is not an elf.”

       “It's cute. It seems like a monkey ear.”

       Coca didn’t like to hear that and gave a serious stare. Quickly Gem tried to change the subject.

       “It’s true that you can turn into a dragon?”

       “Yes! Coca can turn into an Amaru. Every Amaru high priestesses can turn into Amarus.”

       “What is an Amaru?”

       Jolly Acacia hugged. “Amaru is a kind of dragon, my dearie. Now stop doing questions.”

       “Yes!” Coca showed the palm of her hand close to Gem's face. “No more questions. Now to sleep little puppy elf Gem.”

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