The Black Turtles

Bibby came to a halt next to him. The longer she gazed, the more the opaque river reminded her of hot chocolate. The air was thick with the smell of cocoa. Perhaps, she thought, it is chocolate. Gush-radical was already kneeling to drink, suggesting that he agreed. He drank after dipping his hands in.

A expression of sheer delight burst over his face. He got to his feet, whirled around in a kind of dance, and fell on the grass. "Dude, that stuff is amazing! This was nothing compared to the Geyser! Please rename me River-radical. He leaped to his feet and ran back, but Bibby caught him.

She gestured toward an adolescent girl who was barely afloat in the center of the river. She would occasionally seize, jerking closer to the bank each time, until she eventually arrived at them.

Perfectly dry, she went outside. Her long brown hair was the only thing that appeared damp, and she was dressed in a sweatshirt and black, loose-fitting leggings. Her head lolled on her neck as though it could fall off, and her eyes were plagued by a look of exhausted craziness. She ignored Gush-radical and turned to face Bibby. "Hi," she said, waving briefly.

Uncertain, Bibby waved back. But Gush-radical rushed up and gave the girl a firm handshake. Her hand was still lifeless, like a dead fish in his hands. Weakly, the girl freed her hand and stumbled toward Bibby, tilting her head. The lunacy seemed to lessen a little as soft eyes peered out from beneath a curtain of hair.

She smiled softly and murmured, "Hello there," in a slow, thin voice. "You're a girl."

"Yes, of course I am," said Bibby, apprehensively. Gush-radical, who was suddenly, for some reason, sound asleep on the ground, caught her anxious glance.

"So the river is good to you, yes?" The girl inquired. "But I must first tell you who I am before you can tell me. I'm known as Zara.

Bibby paused. She nodded and said, "I'm glad to have met you."

Zara was still where she was. She said, "So is the river good?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

You haven't given it a try? Oh, you have to! Come. Zara managed to take Bibby's hand and guide her to the water's edge despite the fact that they were feet away.

They were drunk and on their knees. Although Bibby didn't recall getting down or drinking, she did recall the taste: exquisite chocolate, the aroma of coffee, the amazing color and taste, and the music-like scent of everything great. All negative emotions were sucked away by an energy that buzzed through her skull and spine. Confusion turned into a joyful absence of any urge to comprehend; irritation turned into serenity; and fatigue became the sensation following a restful slumber. It was all pretty good. More than family, she loved everyone she encountered. Then she was overcome by the flavor again, dry and unfathomable. Allow it to arrive and fill the voids in your life. Let it take the place of all negative emotions, effort, and concern. This amazing stuff, this amazing stuff...

"What is this called?"

"Cocoa of the Current."

The sound of the liquid lapping in the amazing river roused Bibby. She sat up, searching for Gush-radical and Zara. Zara was nowhere to be seen, but Gush-radical was still asleep. Despite being in the river once more, she managed to avoid getting wet.

Bibby got up and peered out more. The opposite side was visible to her, but it appeared to be a considerable swim. Zara, still completely dry, waded back to shore when she called to her.

"Hello," Zara said. "I don't know your name yet."

Bibby was careful with her word choice so as to avoid more confusion. "My name is Barbera if you want to know that, but people call me Bibby."

Zara gave a small smile. "I guess you've figured it out already. You are clearly not from around here. The majority of people stay away from this location. Some of the gleam went out of her eyes.

"Why doesn't anyone else come here?"

"I'm not sure. I believe they're scared.

However, why shouldn't they like it? It's fantastic!" When Bibby observed Zara's anguish, she felt guilty right away.

"Like I said, I don't know." Like an old, misunderstood friend, Zara stared at the water. Bibby saw years of quiet rejection in her eyes. All she had left was the water. Still a friend, but a friend of careless affection. And Bibby recognized the flaw. losing people because of an item or thing. She knew it couldn't love. Zara cannot get affection from it or have what she threw away replaced. Zara was the cause of her own misery. Remove the heart's firewood and swap it out for flash paper. Although it burns quickly and brightly, it always fades out.

What was the river if Zara was more than she appeared to be? It was not a natural chocolate sensation. What was it, then? However, there wasn't much that was natural here.

"But it really is great, right?" "I hope you understand," Zara said. "Like hot chocolate, only better."

Bibby leaped and snapped back to reality. She had a new perspective on Zara. Gush-radical had not yet woken. Zara also appeared sleepy. Her breathing slowed as she whispered something incomprehensible. She had fallen asleep. Then she was a tiny sparrow, perched on Gush-radical's chest, her eyes darting around in bewilderment. He jumped to his feet as they scratched him. She went down.

She was lying in the grass, sound sleeping, and she was a girl once more. So serene. So isolated.

Suddenly, Gush-radical was alert. Startled, he exclaimed, "What was that?" He whirled around before spotting Zara. "Dude, whoa. She is truly out.

Bibby continued to watch Zara. "Yes. Extremely out of everything.

"Hey, you okay?" Gush-radical inquired, observing Bibby's expression. The river had apparently slipped his mind.

"Yes. I'll be alright. Her initial reaction was to abandon Zara, but before she knew it, they were on foot, holding the unconscious girl between them. She was lighter than Bibby had anticipated. A faint, slimy brown path was left in the grass by her dragging feet, which gradually disappeared.

They paused to rest when they came to a broad, level area on the hill. They tried shaking Zara, slapping her, and prodding her, but to no avail. They were off again.

Previously a straight river, it now abruptly divided into three. They went with their branch. Bibby saw that Gush-radical had calmed down and was no longer agitated. He even walked differently. They reached the hill's dip, a level bowl with a cavern carved into the far side. Zara was carefully lowered to the floor, and they sat down, happy to relax. Neither wanted to go into the cave, and neither wanted to leave Zara as she was, her skin turned an off-white, unnatural tint.

Zara and Bibby woke up on the floor. She had been accustomed to these slip-ups. Near the cave, she heard a man's voice declare plainly, "That's not natural."

She took a seat. The man's eyebrows went up. She questioned, "What isn't?"

He paused. "Your team. Two girls and a Froggan. So strange. Shaking his head, he headed for the cave.

"Oh, please don't go!" Bibby stood up and spoke. "My friend is sick."

He said, "The Froggans?" "You never know what strange things new illnesses might do."

"No," Bibby replied. "That's her. Zara is her name, and she refuses to wake up.

With a nod, the man approached them. "I believed so. "Don't you think she looks a little pale?" He put a hand on her head after sitting and checking something on her arm. "It's what I expected. I am aware of her requirements. Carefully, he lifted her and placed her kneeling at the brink of the river. She threw up black things, turtles as black as the Onyx Orb's mouth, after he gently shoved her. So many that they started to clump together, they hit the river, sank, and then bobbed up somewhere else. Her skin color started to return to normal as they poured out of her.

As the turtles continued to pour in, Gush-radical became disinterested and began to eat grass. Now, the turtles were huddled so closely together that they created a dense trail that ran the length of the river. The relentless spew finally slowed. Zara was supporting herself while the man was gone. She was awake once more.

The turtles emerged in a single, continuous stream, like water from a tap, rather than with heaving coughs, which Bibby thought was strange. For the first time in months, Zara must have relaxed when the flow eventually ceased. Then something else spat out of her mouth, and she stiffened one last time. It landed in front of Bibby over the river.

The Orb of Elation was it.

"No! You've located where I hide! Don't worry, I'll talk to the clouds and then locate another one." It took off after that.

Bibby ignored it and went to see her new acquaintance. Bibby concluded that she was a fine person, provided she was maintained under someone else's tutelage. She took a seat beside Zara, who was looking downcast into a section of the river that the turtles had made room for her. Bibby wrapped her shoulders with her arm. Bibby was older, old enough to understand the anguish of loss and the frantic, self-destructive actions people take to regain it, at least in Zara's imagination. She was unable to really comprehend the terrible hug of that fake love, but she was there to console and show that someone cared. Then she was the little sister once more.

Zara sobbed as the knowledge hit her. The tears were black, river tears at first, then scarlet, and then actual, wet tears that dripped like dew on her face. The brown fog washed away as they lowered themselves into the pool the turtles had created, exposing green turtles and clear water below. She shed tears, which gradually removed the dirt until the pool's water was as clear as the air and even clearer.

Once more, the man was behind Zara. Gush-radical was sucking on a long blade of grass close to the cave as Bibby turned away. She turned to see Zara drinking the clean water from her cupped hands and the man gone. She seems so at ease now. Bibby believed that she must appear highly attractive to any boy—not a beautiful, painted goddess, but genuine, shy, and unselfish. You know, the kind of girl a boy would want to protect.

Zara glanced across at Bibby. Bibby observed that her eyes had crimson rims, which were a reminder of her history. That past will always cast a shadow; it would never go away. In this situation, unless she discovered something real to fill the emptiness, a black hole of nothingness would constantly remain. Bibby reflected that nothing in the world ever fulfills for very long.

The Orb then returned from the clouds.