It happened. What everyone secretly feared in their heart had happened. The river of Aquaridge had dried up. This had never happened before. Without the river, we would be doomed.

I woke up very early the morning of that unfateful day to fetch water from the river which we would need for the rest of the day. I went there by about 6:30AM so that I could be able to get there before anyone else and be the first on the line to fetch water quickly.

I took two buckets and headed for the river. I was shocked at what I saw. Not a drop of water remained in the river. I hurried home to tell my mom about it.

"Mom!Mom" I called to her. She was sleeping when I came in. I had probably woken her up.

"What! Why did you wake me up" She was rubbing her eyes still feeling sleepy.

"The water in the river has dried up " I explained to her.

She paused to look at me.

Astonishment was written all over her face.

"Are you serious?"

"Yes, I went to fetch water this morning and there was not a drop of water there" I began to wonder if what I saw there was true.

My mom went to the door and opened it.  She looked around as if she were looking for something then called out to her friend, Mrs Olivia who was also coming out of her house with her buckets. She had not heard of the bad news.

My mom narrated the situation to her friend who could hardly believe what she heard.  As she was still narrating it to her, two boys came running towards the village. It seemed they had seen the river.

"The river has dried up! The river has dried up!" They exclaimed and caught the attention of the other villagers.

Some doubted it was true and went to check for themselves and they came back with the same bad news.

"Let's take it to the king! " A villager said and we all went to the king's palace.

Word had already reached the king and it was obvious that he didn't know what to do about it. He ordered for the village wise man to be called to the palace immediately.

The village wise man was as old as two centuries and had a lot of knowledge. He bowed to the king and the situation was explained to him.

"This has never happened in the history of this village." He said. He was sitting on a stool brought to him by some palace servants.

"What are we going to do about this? Is this a curse or punishment? Without the river we won't be able to water our crops or get fish to eat. We will also lose our respect from other villages. "The king was confused and worried.

"It has been bound to happen. It was stated in an ancient prophecy which was written by the first people to live in this village of Aquaridge. The prophecy also says that overtime, our land will become dry and unfertile and our crops will rot. The animals will perish and there will be little food to it. It's better to gather and save food before all that happens. "The wise man was now nodding his head repeatedly.

"Please tell us about this prophecy. Can it help us in anyway?" The king seemed to be impatient.

"The ancient prophecy stated that one very day, a child will happen to go to the river early in the morning and it would be dried up. " My mom looked at me after the wise man said that statement.

" The only way our waters can be redeemed is by that same child who will journey to the enchanted grove and help rescue the village of Aquaridge "I held my mother's trembling hands tightly. I looked at her eyes and it looked as if she was about to cry. Her eyes were as red as an apple freshly plucked from the tree.

"The enchanted grove! Does it even exist?!"  Said a shocked man.

"Who was the first child to go to the river?" The king asked looking at the faces of every child that was present.

People shifted their attention to the two boys who came to tell about the river.

"It was this two boys" A woman said pointing at them. She was trying to protect her own child whom she was holding in her right hand.

Mrs Olivia glanced at my mom and then at me. My mom didn't look at her. Was this woman going to reveal our secret and tell them I was really the one.

"Are you sure they were the ones? If they weren't the first to reach the river they'll never make it back home" The wise man told them. The mother of the two boys who were said to be the ones that went there first, broke down and began to shed tears. I could feel her pain and felt very guilty. What would happen to them I wondered. I looked at my mom to see if she was as guilty as me but she appeared to be unshaken.

"Let us begin preparations for them. Everyone else can have their leave". The wise man declared and people were already leaving. The mother of the two boys cried even more. I couldn't handle it. I couldn't bear the guilt. My mom was already dragging me for us to leave.

"No!" I shouted at the top of voice and caught the attention of others. "I woke up very early to go to the river to fetch water and by the time I got there, there was not a drop of water in the river. I was the first to reach there not those two boys." What was I doing? I thought to myself. My mom looked at me with eyes that said 'You are in serious trouble '
Everyone stopped to look at me. People who were leaving already came back. The mother of the boys looked at me in shock. She wiped her tears and stopped crying.

" How come people said it was those boys who first got there? Is there any witness to your claim?" The king asked me.

" Yes, she was the one who got there first and she told her mother about it and her mother told me about it" Mrs Olivia quickly added before mom could say anything to defend me.

" When I got there, I saw footsteps of someone else on the bank of the river. I just remembered." One of the boys said so to defend himself. He looked like he was suppressing his happiness.

"This child, she had the courage to speak up and tell us the truth. With that same amount of courage, I am very sure you'll make it to and fro the Enchanted grove. Let's start preparations for you immediately. What's your name?"The wise man said and I was brought forward to where he was sitted. People had left already and it remained my mom, her friend and the mother of the two boys. She came to thank me then left. Mrs Olivia exchanged glances with my mom before leaving.

"I am Lyra" I replied, getting anxious of what was going to happen after that.

" Please sir, is there anything that can be done to change her. She can't do it. Please choose someone else. She's my only child. She's all I have." My mom was pleading on her knees.

Ever since my dad died three years ago, she became overly protective of me and won't let me do many things on my own. She feared to loose a loved one again.

" It's sad but this is the only way this village can be saved. I assure you that she'll return even with the dangers in the enchanted grove.  Allow me to tell her some things that she must know in other to survive the forest." The wise man explained.

My mom sat on the floor beside me. She was already crying silently. I pitied her but there was nothing that could be done except for this if we wanted to save our village.

"She must go and come back within 30 days. If she doesn't come back within 30 days, there will be nothing that can be done to rescue this village. " He further explained.

"What will happen to the village if I don't come back?"

" There is  a sea shell which you would retrieve from the enchanted grove. Once you come back to the village you will throw the sea shell into the river and our water and fertile lands shall be restored. You will knit a small purse which will be the only thing you will take along where you will place the sea shell upon your arrival. " He continued.

" Sir, you said I am going to take nothing other than a small purse. What about food and water that will sustain me for 30 days? " I asked and wondered how they expected me, a child, to survive in a mysterious forest without food or water.
"That is not allowed. You will get that on your way. " I could hear my mother's sobbing increase as he said that.

"Go to your house and prepare. Knit a strong purse and prepare yourself to journey into the enchanted grove for the sake of your village. " He signaled for him to be carried back to his hut. My mom stood up and left without looking back at me.

I was excited and afraid all the same. I was excited because I was going to have the opportunity and freedom to journey into an unknown place and make history and I was afraid because I didn't know the kind of oppositions I'd meet there or what kind of place it was.