Fiction: Group 4
New Tales of the Pearl River Delta
Island School, Cheung, Stephanie - 14, Fiction: Group 4
loud caw echoed through the moonlit sky, once, twice, then three times. The wind howled as an
eagle emerged from the pool of clouds swimming around the moon, swooping down on
magnificent wings as it pulled into a steep dive. It extended its sharp and unforgiving talons towards
the night below, squawking as it rushed towards a lonely, black shadow by the shore of the Pearl River - a
mottled catfish that would tonight become the eagle’s meal.
Amber eyes glinted in the darkness, and the eagle made its way towards the rushing water. With a frenzy of
quick movements, it sunk its talons into the squirming fish, staining the water with wisps of crimson red.
When the fish was drained of whatever life it had before, the eagle dragged the carcass up towards a few
nearby rocks, nosing at the still body before starting to peck contentedly at it.
When it had finished its tasty meal, the eagle spread its massive wings, eyes darting quickly around the still
silence before rising into the cold air and disappearing into the night. And all that was left of the presence of
the eagle was a small pile of polished bones and traces of vanishing red in the water.
—————
Night slowly turned to day as the red sun rose into the calm air. The wind had calmed, and was starting to
breeze through the tall pines that stood high and proud, and the weeds that grew near the muddy riverbanks
started to dance along too. The white clouds looked soft and fluffy, texture rivalling those of marshmallows,
drifting through the splendid blue sky to wherever the wind took them.
Little animals had come out, too. The forest was basked in streams of golden sunlight, and in the corner,
fluttering around a rose, was a pair of butterflies out enjoying the morning.
But a nightmare had yet to come.
At that exact moment, a crackling started up, and a pungent smell, a smell of fire and burning and
destruction, wafted through the forest into the area around.
—————
Fifty-three trees and seven clouds away, the sky was painted a deep shade of ruby red. Streams of orange
and yellow ran across, seemingly setting all the clouds on fire, and the sun, which had been hanging from
the sky a few moments ago, had long gone.
Down below in the forest floor, a fiery inferno hissed and licked at all the dry tree trunks and plants.
Sparkling and glowing embers leaped and twirled through the air, hanging like twinkling stars before
dimming and cascading back to the ground.
The fire was greedy, oh-so-greedy. It was a monster which devoured everything in its path feverishly with
an unquenchable thirst. It would wound around blackened trees and plants, spitting orange at them before
drawing back and carrying on its path. And it was merciless too. The fire left trails of destructions behind -
smouldering paths and burned plants devoid of any life, carved out by deadly, flickering flames, seemingly
unstoppable.
And was it unstoppable? The fire was spreading so fast, bringing down tree after tree, and it seemed as
though there was no hope for the land. After all, after this was all over,
if
it was all over, there would be no
more place to call home, and no more food inside the forest. It would years after years for everything to
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