Waikouiti: Summer Love and Winter Torture

Waikouiti
Summer Love and Winter Torture
by Scott Horn

The swarm of birds cried and the sound echoed around the Waikouiti lagoon and the homes that surrounded the outskirts. They splashed about in the water, which was dirty and muddy yet mesmerizing to watch as it jittered under the gentle blow of wind. One hundred birds were nesting there and one hundred more would be tomorrow. This was the halfway stop between their place of departure and their destination. Old Man Cypress stirred slightly as he awakened from his sleep. His thousands of arms that were slowly crawling to the heavens were covered in a coat of dark green leaves. He remained almost completely still as he watched the lagoon in a way that made it seem he was protecting it, as if it was his child.
A small girl and her beautiful golden retriever were playing in their back garden that sat on the border of the lagoon. The dog chased the girl in circles, snatching out with its mouth at the tattered stick she was holding in her tiny pale hands. The sun shone its glory down upon Waikouiti, the warmth and light it created was wondrous to all that it touched.
The sun rose and the sun set, over and over again, until summer became winter and the whole world transformed.
Absolute zero struck the lagoon as the sun fell down behind the Matanaka Peninsula. There was no longer squawking cries from the birds in the day. Occasionally, a lonely bird would fly down from the black sky only to find that the pool of murky water had gone and been replaced with a great field of ice that stretched out across the scene. Old Man Cypress shivered as the cruel wind penetrated his colossal hide. Even he could not protect the lagoon from this terrible fate.
The small girl and her golden retriever were sitting quietly under the veranda, hugging onto each other for warmth. Almost frozen, they shivered as the merciless embrace of frost threatened to engulf them. There was no sun, no warmth and no light. Only a place filled with darkness and despair. There was a moment of complete silence before the sky flashed and showered the land below in its watery woe. The wind howled and an indignant gust stormed through the atmosphere. Slowly, a thick mess of fog crept its way into the scene, suffocating everything that dwelled inside.
The girl ran inside her house, furious. This place used to be her dreamland, her favourite place to be. Now it was just a nightmare.