CATCH THE ENEMY.

My name is DANIEL THE 'M'. The year is 3020.

"When was the last time you ate?", asks SELINA. "I'm skinny by choice", I dismiss her question with my stern voice. Selina thinks that I'm not quite right in my head. She also thinks I'm rude and mannerless. What she doesn't realize is that I'm the only person sober enough to save our pack - myself, Selina and her friend. My feet hurts as we've been walking for hours. We're past the golden hour and it's charcoal dark out here. We're not safe in these woods. In fact nobody is safe amongst these dense, tall and lifeless trees. We're supposed to be far away from here. We're supposed to be at home but we have a mission to finish. We have an enemy to catch.

"Maybe we should take the shortest route by crossing the creek", suggests Selina. "It's dangerous to cross the water at these hours. We'll better walk past the green patch and go around the corner for now. It's far but it's safe", I insist. She hesitates at first but when her friend agrees with me Selina gives in as well. We're treading cautiously towards the green patch of mossy land. She doesn't like me at this very moment. I can smell it in the air. She thinks I'm annoying but I'm her only brother and it leaves her with no other choice.

After taking the longer and meandering route we're almost at the end of our journey. However the hard part is only yet to come. "When is this gonna end?", asks Selina's friend. I shush her immediately. Selina rolls her eyes, "Don't you shush my friend, you rude moron". I shush Selina too. She may be my sister but when it's time to shush you have to shush.

"You have...", she freezes before finishing her sentence. She finally grasps the seriousness of the situation. Her beady eyes are not blinking anymore. "Don't you move", I whisper. The enemy is right over there. We hold our breaths. We make every effort to not move a muscle. Fortunately the enemy hasn't noticed us. "I guess we're fairly below our enemy's eye-line. He can't see us from above. We're alright for now but keep it low", I reassure and calm her down. She breathes with relief.

"Why didn't you tell me before, moron?", she blames me. "You have two big ears but you never listen to me". "But...", she opens her mouth to argue but I shush her once again. "The more you speak our chances of survival becomes slimmer", I remind her of the reality. "What's wrong with you guys? Stop arguing", growls Selina's friend. "But...", Selina grunts in dismay and swallows the rest of the words.

We are safely hiding behind the hedges. Holding our arms together for support, we stick our three little heads out over the edges. The enemy is a good few metres away and hasn't got the slightest clue that we've locked our eyes on him. "I've got a plan but we need a bait", I say without taking my eyes off the enemy. Selina and her friend turn towards me. "What do you mean?", Selina raises her brow, "We've got no bait", she assures. I sigh at their ignorance. "We sometimes need a sacrifice, here and there", I deliberately beat around the bush. "What do you mean here and there?", Selina eyes bulge. Her friend is clueless, "What are you guys talking about?". I'm going to break the ice, "One of us, so called bait, is going to get out there and catch the enemy's attention. The other two must stay low and wait for the right time to attack. That's the plan". "Whoa! Whoa! Nobody's gonna go out there in plain sight. Even if someone has to go, for Heaven's sake it's not going to be me", Selina's friend looks at Selina, "It can't be her neither". And then...

I close my eyes. I take a deep breath. I open my eyes. I leap on to the open ground above the hedges. The wind blows. I come to a stop. I open my mouth. I screech at our enemy. He doesn't move. Instead he sits quietly with not a care in the world. I frown. I take a second look at our cruel enemy. For the love of God, our enemy is sleeping. Yes, you heard me right. This beast of a bird is sleeping.

His name is BILLY THE BARN OWL. This sleeping rascal ransacked our village last night, causing havoc to our community. I then volunteered to slay this maniac. My friends laughed at me. My family laughed at me. Everyone laughed at me. I promised them that I would not return without defeating Billy. Selina joined me. Her friend joined her. We left the village last night.

We've crossed muddy roads and thorny terrains to come face to face with Billy but he is sleeping. What in Heavens!

I pick a stone and hurl it towards him - towards his mighty head. Smack! I think I hit the spot. He opens his eyes and clears his head in surprise. He then scowls at me. He licks his mouth. "I'm not afraid of you, you nincompoop", I yell at him. He gives a good shake to warm up his body and spreads open his wings. He is big and menacing but that doesn't bother me. I'm here for one reason - to put an end to his prowl and power. He hops up into the air, flaps his wings and glides towards me, swiftly and softly without the faintest of noises. He may be a vicious hunter but they don't call me Daniel the "M" for nothing. The "M" stands for "Mouse". And I'm no ordinary mouse. I'm a mouse with brains and tools.

I'm not flinching. My heartbeat is normal. Billy has gone bonkers though. He thinks I'm an easy meal. He's drooling. He opens his claws midair. His claws are razor sharp. He almost grabs me and that's when I duck at the very last second taking him by surprise. "Selina, shoot", I shout. Selina shoots the net sling on Billy. He crashes on to the ground. "Yey!", Selina jumps. "Good job", I genuinely thank her. "I told ya' I can shoot with my eyes closed", she proudly tells her friend and high fives her. "What?", I lose my temper, "I was going to die and you betted on shooting with eyes closed?". "Yes, so what are you gonna do, moron?" she smirks at me. I grunt in shock and horror but this is not the time. Billy is tangled inside the football net and raving crazily - screeching and yelling and crying. We need to finish the job before he escapes. I pick my spear and aim for his eyes but...

The next day, we're back in our village. The villagers are scooting off in fear. They are screaming and running in all directions. That's because we've brought Billy with us.

We however manage to calm everyone down, and then make them listen what Billy is about to say. He is embarrassed. He puffs out his cheeks and says, "I'm sorry. I'll never bother you again. But if you let me dwell in our village and feed me vegetables I'll protect you from your enemies in return. I give you my word, the word of an owl".

After a rather long and lengthy deliberation everyone, to my surprise, generously accepts his request. The crowd cheers merrily.

Selina, on the other hand, can't believe her eye. She opens her mouth to say something but her friend shushes her.

We let Billy live happily ever after in our village.