Caleb POV

Later that night, when everyone was asleep, I started hearing strange noises in the village. I got up from my bed and went to the window to check what was happening. That's when I saw a beast entering someone's house after it had successfully found its way in. I looked to the far end of the village and saw another two beasts moving about. I thought, "This is what they call a 'Beast invasion'." The problem was that the beasts couldn't see, and what if they mistakenly marched on the people who were sleeping, and they made noise, then they were as good as dead. I was brought out of my thought by the scream of a woman. I took the beast stone (pear) and my sword out of the house. "Hey!" I shouted, and the beast ran fast towards where I was, but it backed off immediately because the beast's heart with me showed a very bright green light (the light didn't affect them, but it made them think I was one of them). The death of that woman made us remain eighteen people, still surviving in this village.

An idea slipped into my brain, and I went to my parents' room. My mother was already awake, perhaps because of the screams of the woman.

Mrs. Parker (signing): Why the sudden visit?

Me (signing): I'm sure you're aware that another person just died.

Mrs. Parker (signing): Yes.

Me (signing): I want to ask about the Forbidden River. (A river we have been banned from going to.)

Mrs. Parker (signing): What do you want to do there?

Me: Mum, please just answer me and trust me.

Mrs. Parker (writing it down in a book, which I read): Okay. In the history of the village of Truth, there was an Indian man who came to this village as a traveler. However, some of our village's hunters who saw him on his way questioned him. He tried to explain the reason for his visit, but since language was a barrier, they thought he came for evil. One of our hunters shot at him, and he used magic to throw one of our hunters away. This led to a war between them. The hunters were able to kill the Indian man with their voodoo. Before he died, he spoke some last words, which we later translated. He said, "I came for peace, and you bring war. Nobody will be able to use this river again, including your animals." He recited the some spell despite struggling with death and fell into the river. The moment he fell into the river, it turned to fire. From that day on, we called it the River of Fire or the Forbidden River. It was one of our best rivers back then. The people who were in it when he fell inside melted away.

Me (signing): This is a great idea.

Mrs. Parker (signing): What are you thinking?

Me (signing): I am thinking of ending all the beasts inside the Forbidden River.

Mrs. Parker (signing): You can't be serious. This is dangerous.

Me (speaking): Don't be afraid, Mum. I will come back to you alive.

Mrs. Parker (signing): Stop talking.

At that moment, a beast came to my mother's window, and it backed off immediately.

Mrs. Parker (signing): How is that possible?

I took my time explaining everything to my mum—how I killed two beasts and took their hearts. I also went so far as to tell her that was the reason the beast backed off. My mum told me to give one heart to my sister, which I agreed to because I was already planning to give her one. I left my mother's room, and she called me from behind, telling me to be careful.

After I went to my sister's room to give her one heart, I returned to my room to sleep. I couldn't sleep because I was busy thinking about how I would destroy all the beasts in the River of Fire. I just hoped it was possible.

Early the next day, after I had eaten, I went alone to the river. On the way there, I saw roadblocks. Whoever set them up didn't want anyone going near the river. I found my way around them and proceeded to the river. When I arrived, I was amazed by what I saw: fire burning, generating smoke into the air.

I noticed a very long and large tree that had fallen, crossing the river to the other side, and I decided to climb it. I carefully climbed the tree and made my way to the other end, feeling the heat of the fire. I knew that if I accidentally fell into the River of Fire, I would be as good as dead, so I treaded carefully. When I reached the other end, I stood on the ground, about ten feet away from the sea. I looked to the left, and there was water ten feet away from me; I looked to the right, and it was the same. I was standing in the middle of the sea and the river in a small island amazed that they are not mixing. There was no way the beasts could get to me here unless they climbed the tree.

I stood five feet away from the tree, facing the village rather than the sea, and shouted at the top of my voice. Different beasts came running and fell into the river, melting away. 

I continued to scream, and when I grew tired, I used my sword to make noise by hitting the ground. I stayed like that for the next 22 hours, but it felt as if they were never ending. 

Ah, we are really suffering in this village. Seeing that I was exhausted, I fell to the floor and drifted into a deep sleep, entering my dreamland.