Secret Civilization

Story Starter - Writing Prompt:

There was nothing in the guidebook about this – she checked it twice. But there it was right in front of her…

Secret Civilization

There was nothing in the guidebook about this – she checked it twice. But there it was right in front of her, a beautiful city surrounded by a mountain range, which kept it hidden from the rest of the world.

“What is this place?” Kyra asked

Matthew answered, “I don’t know. It’s not on the map and the screenshots I took of the website before we left never showed this. It looks like something from the future.”

The city was full of tall buildings, surrounded by fields of green grass, and seemed to be inhabited by small, green humanlike creatures.

The pair stood behind a tree watching in disbelief as vehicles flew through the air, seeming to disappear when they reached the top of the mountains. It was as if the blue sky above them was a hologram and the vehicles could fly right through it.

Kyra asked, “What should we do?”

Matthew pulled out his camera and snapped many photographs, but all they captured were the mountains, trees, and wildlife. The pictures did not show the city, the flying vehicles, or the people that were walking around.

“Should we leave or should we hike down there to explore?“ asked Kyra.

Matthew replied, “I’m intrigued. But if we do decide to explore, we need to make a plan that includes how to handle any dangers or emergencies that may rise.”

The two sat together on a rock under a huge ash tree.

As they planned their visit to this city, they also made plans on how to handle any emergency that may arise. They had a bite to eat, packed up their belongings and the trash they accumulated, and cautiously started the descent down the mountain side towards the city.

Halfway down the mountain, they heard the metallic sound of something coming towards them. A few moments later they were standing in the forest and staring face-to-face at a drone.

“We come in peace!” Matthew explained, holding his hands in the air to signify that he was unarmed. Kyra looked worried but also held her hands in the air.

The drone flew into the air as if searching the area as the pair stood with their hands in the air.

A few minutes later, the drone lowered to eye level, and a voice asked, “Are you alone?”

They both said, “Yes.” at the same time.

The drone voice asked, “Why are you here? Who sent you? What are your intentions?”

Kyra replied, “We are just hikers. We are on holiday and wanted to explore the area before heading home. We were not sent by anyone. We didn’t even know this place existed. We were surprised to see it and got curious as to why yhere was an unmarked city in the middle of the jungle.”

The drone scanned them from the crown of their head to the tips of their toes. It waited for a moment, as if it were processing its findings. Then it said, “Follow me.” and headed down the mountain towards the city.

Matthew glanced at Kyra and nodded his head. They didn’t have much of a choice because they weren’t sure what or who they were dealing with. He whispered, “Go cautiously and keep your guard up at all times.”

Kyra’s anxiety level increased a little with each step towards this beautiful, enchanting city.

When they reached the edge of the city, nobody was outdoors. The entire city appeared to have been abandoned. The pair were confused because the city was bustling a little while ago. Where did everyone go?

The drone’s voice said, “Caution protocol. Keep following.”

As they walked along the stone paths leading between the buildings, they heard shuffling as if people were running away from them, but they didn’t see anyone.

The drone stopped in front of a building in the center of the city. It said, Enter here and follow the path of emeralds. Once you get to the end of the path, have a seat, and the Prime Minister will be with you shortly.”

The two humans watched the drone disappear back down the hall.  They walked slowly and cautiously, following the green gems on the floor, passing through many corridors, turning left here, right there, and following so many switchbacks that they knew they could never find their way back out of here without help.

When they reached the end of the emerald path, they found themselves inside what appeared to be a waiting room. It was decorated in many different shades of green, and they felt peace for the first time since discovering this city’s existence.

The door opened and another drone approached. This drone also scanned them and waited for the results before saying, “The Prime Minister will see you now. Follow me.”

They walked through the door and were instantly inside of a palace. They followed the drone through the grand hall towards the only other door in the room. The door opened and standing before them was a 4‘10“ green woman with the most beautiful green eyes ever seen!

“Hello. My name is Olive Seafoam. I am the Prime Minister of Celadon. Please state your name, and what business you have in our city.”

Matthew noticed that she was looking at Kyra when she spoke, so he figured that she should be the one to answer.

Kyra smiled, looked down at the floor as a sign of respect, and replied, “My name is Kyra Johnston. This is my brother Matthew. We were here on holiday and wanted to explore the forest before returning home. I apologize for arriving unannounced. We were following our map and the pathway listed in our guidebook. Your city is not listed anywhere, and we had no idea it even existed. We don’t want to intrude, and we have no ulterior motives. Please forgive us for barging into your home.”

Kyra kept her eyes cast downwards until the Prime Minister spoke again, she asked, “How long do you plan to stay here?”

Kyra said, “We need to catch our plane home in three days. Is there anyway we could spend the night so that we aren’t stuck in the dark overnight? We don’t need anything fancy, and we will leave in the morning.”

The Prime Minister told her that there are guest accommodations downstairs. They could dine with her, sleep in the guest quarters, and discuss their visit over breakfast. She told them that they were free to explore the first floor, but asked, for the safety of everyone, to please refrain from leaving that floor. She also told them that it was unwise to be outdoors when the sun goes down.

She called her drone to show them to their quarters. She added, “Sage and Fern will help you get settled in. I will see you at the evening meal.”

As they followed the drone to the quarters they couldn’t help but notice how beautiful this building truly was. They admired the colors surrounding them, including every shade of green you could ever imagine.

Their quarters consisted of a two-bedroom suite with a bathroom, a kitchenette, and a comfy couch with a library of books lining the walls. It was peaceful, and absolutely stunning!

Ten minutes later, two small, green women slowly entered the room. They both stood about 3 1/2 feet tall and resembled the Prime Minister. They introduced themselves as Sage and Fern.

Kyra looked from one to the other. They looked the same – like smaller versions of the Prime Minister.

As if reading her mind, Sage told her that Olive is their mother. The Prime Minister has 15 offspring and unfortunately, they were the only females.

Sage showed Kyra to her room and Fern told Matthew to follow her. They explained that this will be their quarters while they are visiting. Sage told them that they could give them a tour  of the floor before meal time, if they would like.

The sisters show showed them along a corridor full of doors. They explained that each room contains a different experience for them to enjoy. There were rooms designated for sports, for painting, and even virtual reality rooms that could take you anywhere in the multi sphere.

After exploring for a while, Kyra found that she was getting hungry.

They were escorted to a dining hall filled with tiny people. A hush fell over the crowd as they entered the room.

Fern took them to a table where the Prime Minister was waiting for them. She suggested they have a seat. The table was filled with a feast of wild game and what look like plants and vegetables from the forest. They ate until their bellies were full. The tables were cleared, and they were served tea. A group of children were ushered into the center of the room. The children put on a play that explained the history of Celadon.

The story was about the Queen of the Aquamarine Galaxy, Queen Chartreuse, and her daughters’ escape from the Tangerinians.

King Marmalade tried to conquer the Aquamarine Galaxy and force Queen Chartreuse to become his wife and to live under his rule.

The queen packed up her eldest daughter and sent her through the portal to another world to keep her safe. She told her daughter that she would be the Prime Minister of the land until the day she herself took over as queen. She sent with her a quarter of her army of to protect her.

Olive and her army of drones built the city of Celadon.

Once the city had been completed, the Prime Minister sent for her mother to join her.

The queen brought a few of her subjects with her to help Olive make sure their species doesn’t go extinct just in case they lose this war. The queen and her drones worked together to make sure Celadon was invisible to anyone who stumbled upon it. They surrounded the entire city with a dome, shields, and holograms to keep the city safe from the creatures of this world.

The queen and her army went back to the  Aquamarine Galaxy to fight for their kingdom. But when she returned home, she found that it had been destroyed. Her daughters had been taken back to Tangerine to become mates with the king and his sons.

Queen Chartreuse went to Tangerine and agreed to marry the king if he freed her daughters.

Once her children were safely hidden with their sister, Olive, in Celadon, the queen’s plan to keep the safe began instantly.  She started singing.  She sang louder and louder until the planet itself shattered like a glass when hit with the sound waves of an opera singer.

Unfortunately, nobody on the planet survived – including the queen.

Her death made Olive the new queen of Aquamarine. However, can you really be a queen if your kingdom no longer exists?

The story ended as the children danced and sang songs about Queen Chartreuse and her ultimate sacrifice so that her species could live on. The story was moving. Kyra had tears in her eyes and thanked Olive for allowing them to be a part of this celebration of her mother’s sacrifice. They excused themselves and returned to their quarters for the night.

In the morning, Fern showed them to breakfast, where they were served eggs, fruit, nuts, and green tea. They were escorted outside to see the rest of the city. They noticed that each building was a different shade of green. The statues were green. Even the flying vehicles had a green view tint to them.

They sat in the park and watched the children play a game of leapfrog. They saw women tending to laundry, the garden, and to small children.

Suddenly, Matthew asked, “Where are all the males?” The Prime Minister answered his question. “The Galaxy of Aquamarine was a matriarchy. The males live in the buildings on the outskirts of the city. They are placed in these homes as a first line of defense of anyone tries to get into the city. They oversee the drones and are used for breeding. My sons live there with their father.

The Prime Minister explained to them that the existence of their city and its people had to remain a secret to keep them safe. She asked them to keep her secret, and they both agreed.

Olive presented the pair with a satchel of food and tea to help them on their journey. She told them that they are welcome to visit anytime they want, but to come alone. Having people know about their existence is a big threat to their safety.

The siblings promised to return one day, and to always keep their existence and their location top-secret.

A few moments later, a flying vehicle landed on the lawn in front of them. A green young man hopped out of their vehicle and rushed to embrace his mother.

Olive said, “This is my eldest son, Hunter. He will fly you out of the mountains to keep you safe from the creatures that roam the forest. Thank you for visiting, and I hope to see you again. Have a safe journey, my friends.” She then turned and walked towards her home.

Kyra and Matthew climbed into the flying vehicle. It looked like a small plane without wings. They closed the doors and Hunter prepared for takeoff.

Soon they flew through the hologram and into the air above the mountain range. Hunter pointed out how far they were from civilization. He flew to a lake on top of the mountain. He told him that this is as close to the village as he will go and pointed them in the direction they should travel.

They thanked him for the ride and headed off towards the village.

When they got home, they quickly added the city of Celadon to the map. They called it, “The Green Mountains“ to disguise it from prying eyes. They also added names for other areas they passed, so that if anyone else saw the map, they would think it was just their way of remembering where they been.

“One day I need to return.” said Kyra.

Matthew replied, “One day we will – now that it exists on a map.”

The siblings spent the next five years planning their return to the city. The day before their flight, they received a letter in the mail. The letter was written on mint green paper with artichoke colored ink. It said, “Aquamarine has been restored. Celadon is being left behind and we are returning home. Thank you for your friendship. Maybe one day you can visit our real home.”  The letter was signed, “Olive Seafoam, Queen of Aquamarine.”