He was not lonely, he actually loved being alone. He had lived in a cottage near a forest all his adult life. Every day he ventured into the forest to cut woods, and then he would visit the nearest village to sell them. His only companions were his donkey and his dog, who accompanied him everywhere he went. Other than that, he lived alone. He had no friends or family. He hated the company and liked to brood in a quiet and peaceful environment. He was often rude to people who bothered him and didn’t appreciate it when anyone from the nearby villages came to his cottage, so people left him alone. They assumed that he was tormented due to the tragic death of his parents. After all, there must be a reason why he didn’t like socializing, but the truth was he practiced dark magic. He didn’t want people to know about it. Although, He had never hurt a living soul nor was he ever planning to. But still, he knew that people would think of him differently if they found out the truth about his hobby. He used his powers to study the universe and gain as much knowledge about life, death, past, present, and future as he could. He was obsessed with attaining knowledge about every single important incident that had ever occurred or would occur in the future. He wanted to know everything, his thirst for knowledge was unquenchable. His very soul was seeking the truth about the universe in which he existed. He was living beyond his time and perhaps that was also the source of his unrest.
He knew the fates of every King and Queen in the world, he knew which country would conquer which or who would get famous and why, in short, he knew it all, or so he thought. That was another reason why he avoided people. It was difficult to talk to the ignorant souls whose only purpose in life was to earn their living and be content with what little they had. They had no idea what they were missing. However, in some ways, ignorance could be bliss, so maybe it was all for the best. He knew a lot though and he couldn’t stand to be around uneducated minds who were not as well-versed in the ways of the world as he thought himself to be. It was also his way of protecting himself, because no matter how much you cared for people ultimately everyone would leave you.
Everything in his life was perfect, just as he wanted it to be. He spent his days cutting wood and at nights he would sit in front of a fire and saw the fates of others in his very own magic ball. Yes, he did have one of those truth seekers. One night while he was gazing in his magic ball he saw a strange place which shocked him to no extend. He saw sky-high buildings and strange vehicles. People were wearing the strangest clothes he had ever seen and they were rushing from one place to another. He was amazed to see the glittering lights of the cities. It was the most beautiful place he had ever imagined. He knew that it could not be in the past because he had never read about any such place in all the books he had gathered over the years, so it must be the future and right then and there he decided to learn all about that enchanting place.
He stayed up for many nights working with his magic ball, reading everything he could find on the future world, and finally, he learned that it was his homeland in the twenty-first century. So, in a thousand years’ time, his homeland would become that enchanting place. The wonders of the world never ceased to amaze him. No matter how much he knew about his world there was always something new and exciting to be learned. He wanted to see that place for himself. He was desperate to find a way to live for a thousand years and be there or to travel through time. He wanted to fly in that strange machine. He wanted to see glittering lights of that city. He knew it would not be easy even with his magic. No magician alive or dead had ever been able to achieve immortality or even prolong his life. It was not possible. It had never been done, yet he had to try it anyway.
He worked day and night, traveled throughout the world, and in the end his efforts were fruitful. At long last, after many years of struggle, he had found a way. Now, he could be alive after thousands of years and witness in person all that which he had witnessed in his magic ball. He was so excited that all his efforts were coming to fruition. He had forgotten about his present in the hope of seeing a future worth living. Finally, he could be somewhere he belonged.
After struggling for ten long years he was able to concoct a potion that would make him fall asleep for a thousand years and after that, he would wake up as if it were the next day. He made a coffin for himself to sleep in comfort. Placed it in the right place where he knew he would not be harmed in any way. For precaution, he did cast protective spells all around his coffin and then he lied down in it, drank the magic potion, and fell into deep dreamless sleep.
A thousand years later…
He opened his eyes. Waking up from his slumber, blinking he looked around and remembered… He was here! Finally! His excitement knew no bounds.
He took a deep breath and pushed the coffin’s lid up. He got out of it and stretched his limbs. He walked to the opening of the cave where he had placed his coffin and was blinded by the sunlight. For a few moments, he could not see a thing. He kept blinking. When his eyes adjusted to the bright light he moved forward looking around eagerly. He bent around a corner and his hair stood. What he saw left him rooted to the place in despair.
“What had happened here?” He thought, “what went wrong with his magic and his careful calculations?” Because it was not the sky-high buildings, he was looking at nothing but barren land! As far as he could see he saw only ruins.
“Were these buildings once? Those splendid buildings?” He could’ve wept at the sight that stared back at him. He couldn’t imagine what could have destroyed the cities he had envisioned. It was a scene after the war had taken place. He felt sad and miserable. All his dreams were crushed. There were no vehicles or lights just crumbling buildings, as if everything had been destroyed cruelly, leaving nothing behind and no sign of life at all.
He walked on in hopes of finding someone who might be able to explain to him exactly what had transpired here. He walked for three hours and did not come across a single living soul. The whole city stood in rumbles. He thought about it, wondering what could have happened. Could it be an earthquake? Or some other natural calamity? What was he to do now? He had his magic but there was a limit to its usefulness. He couldn’t possibly go back.
After walking for miles, he was hungry and very thirsty. He prayed for any sign of life and then suddenly, he saw a cottage. Just like his own was, this cottage stood in the wilderness, away from any other sign of life. It must be the very edge of a city, he gathered. He knocked on the door and it was opened by an old man.
“What do you want stranger?” The man asked him rudely.
He was hurt by his rudeness but still, this man was the first living being he had seen so he said, “I am very hungry. Can you give me something to eat and some water?”
“Let me see if I have anything on hand,” with that the man closed the door again leaving him outside.
“How rude!” he thought. Back home if he had asked someone for food he would have been given a feast. This was a strange land. He knew no one here. The city he desperately wanted to see was destroyed and the only living being he came across was hostile.
After a while, the rude man returned with some fruits and a glass of water. Gave it to him and closed the door again without uttering another word.
He ate and drank water and then set out once again on his journey to find someone who could help him and would not treat him like an animal. No, not even an animal because in his land even animals were shown more respect than that man had shown him, at least he was given food so that was something.
He walked for an entire day, resting only a few times and at last reached a village. He was sourly disappointed to see that all the people here were as rude as the man from earlier. They did give him food and water but no one would allow him to enter their homes to rest. So, he slept outside on the cold floor but what else could he do? He stayed near the village at least that way he would have something to eat and drink even though his back hurt from sitting on the floor all the time. In the meantime, he planned his next move. It was clear that he was an unwelcome guest and the sooner he found his way back home the better.
One day he was sitting under a tree outside the village and thinking about all his troubles when he saw a fairy. She was very beautiful but was dressed in all black. He had never seen a fairy dressed in black before. He called out to her and explained his plight and asked her to help him in any way possible. Perhaps, she could show him a way to the nearest library, if that’s the least she could do. The fairy had no idea how to help him though. She told him that he had come to the right time, but things had not gone the way he had seen in his magic ball. There weren’t any libraries left. That was probably the most horrible thing he had ever heard. He wanted to know what went wrong. How would he find answers without books?
The fairy told him that the world had indeed become a paradise. There was advancement in every field of life. There were tall buildings and comfortable homes. Moving from one place to another was no longer a problem. People had more than they could spend. All seemed perfect but then people became greedy. They had it all still they wanted more. They became cruel and wicked. They started fighting with each other. They fought for land and for power. No one cared for the other. Countries were destroyed in pointless wars. There was no love and no regard for happiness of others. People were all selfish and mean. That was the reason fairies wore black because they mourn for the loss of love. Fairy was crying by the time she finished telling him all this and so was he.
“What have I done?” He thought, “why did I come here, in this godforsaken land?” He missed his home. He thought about his village and how he had never made friends, how he always liked to stay alone in his own little cottage and how wrong he had been! He cried and prayed to his Lord that if he could go back to his home somehow, he would be nicer to people. He would help others and be more courteous. He remembered all those villagers who had never been cruel to him even though he was rude to them when they disturbed him, but not anymore. He would love them as much as they all had loved him. He would be kind. He just wanted to go back to his little cottage. He would even give up dark magic. He cried and cried and fell asleep.
When he woke up he was back at home. In his bed and his dog was lying at his feet. Everything was the same. He was ecstatic. He danced with joy. He was so happy. That day he did not go into the forest instead he went straight to the village. He talked to the villagers and spent time with the people who loved him regardless of his previous attitude. They welcomed him even though they were amazed at the turn in his behavior still no one said anything. They were happy for him. There was love there and that was all he wanted, no, he needed it to be happy. No sky-high building or magnificent vehicle could ever measure up to that. He was born in a simpler time and he should be glad about it. He had only then realized how lucky he was.
Thank God he woke up when he woke up…
Because sometimes what you already have is far better than what you seek…
© 2018, Fizza Younis. All Rights Reserved
“I believe in everything until it’s disproved. So I believe in fairies, the myths, dragons. It all exists, even if it’s in your mind. Who’s to say that dreams and nightmares aren’t as real as the here and now?”
― John Lennon
Between The Pages Of A Book 